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Tuesday, April 28, 2015

NEPAL EARTHQUAKE AND DRONE SHIPPING

PROOF OF CONCEPT OPPORTUNITY


Why is it that our military is so drone adept for surveillance and killing, yet, it is not (or at least appears not) capable for disaster deployment?

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/nepal-earthquake-drones-used-by-canadian-relief-team-1.3051106

One hopes that such excellent and innovative corporate leaders, such as Jeff Bezos, who are already at work to innovate shipping via drone deployment, may at this very moment be on the telephone with SOD Ashton Carter and with CJCF Martin Dempsey, proposing to join "forces" beyond the odd camera drone in order to deliver actual relief throughout the earthquake region in Nepal, most especially beyond the city of Katmandu, where road access remains blocked.

One hopes as well that any such plan may incorporate the use of military and/or commercial cargo jets for airdrops of supplies to those in Nepal, who are suffering.  Presumably the capability already exists for the launch and recovery of drones from cargo planes.

There must already exist maps of Nepal according to which the locations and populations of need may already be inferred and thus airdrops may be planned and executed immediately. Better to airdrop now based on estimated need, than to wait and see, as people to die.

Is there any reason that the military cannot make use of paratroopers and parachute them into the more isolated earthquake areas of Nepal with tools including communications devices and medical equipment and supplies?

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF THE IRAN NUCLEAR DEAL

PRESIDENT OBAMA COMPROMISES ON SENATE INITIATIVE

Is it just me?

Or, are there others, who like me do feel their stomachs fluttering and perhaps even quaking a bit, having heard simultaneous announcements that Russia and Iran have made an S-300 Missile System deal and that the White House has signed onto the Senate initiative regarding the Iran Nuclear Talks?  (It is a good thing that the Senate came together across Party Lines and that President Obama cooperated.)

"Serendipity doo-da... serendiptiy-ehhh.... I've got a feeling it's a wonderful day [in the Chinese sense of 'wonderful' -- analogous to the Chinese sense of 'interesting']...."  Come on... you know you want to sing that tune with me!

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/04/15/us/senators-reach-deal-on-iran-nuclear-talks.html?_r=0

WHEN IRANISH AND RUSSISH EYES ARE SMILING:

QUESTIONS REGARDING THE ANNOUNCED SALE OF THE S-300 RUSSIAN MISSILE SYSTEM TO IRAN...

1) Will the S-300 Missile System provide Iran with an effective "iron dome" of protection against an attack of it's nuclear facilities, military facilities, and government facilities?

2) Will deployment of the S-300 Missile System be observable to American and Israeli and Other human and technological Intelligence systems?

3) If the S-300 Missile System is observable to non-Iranian Intelligence, then may the existence of this System reveal high priority Iranian targets (especially nuclear infrastructure targets)?

4) Will there be enough scope to the Iranian S-300 deployment, such that Iran may move S-300 missiles, where they may "protect" neighborhoods of internal opposition to Iran's theocracy (which then America or Israel or Others might then mistakenly target and destroy, harming the Iranian internal opposition and aiding the Iranian theocracy)?

5) Will there be sufficient scope to the Iranian S-300 deployment plan, that Iran may move S-300 missiles, where they may "protect" dummy targets, deceiving America or Israel or Others into believing in false locations of presumed priority targets?

6) Is the timing and the announcement of this Russian-Iranian missile deal a "stick-it-to-ya" moment that Putin and Rouhani are celebrating at the expense of Obama? Or is Obama a less obvious party to this deal? 

7) Did Putin and Rouhani both just save 15% on their car insurance by switching to GEICO?

8) Are Putin and Rouhani arrogantly confident that neither Obama nor Netanyahu nor Another will order an attack against Iranian priority targets? Are Putin and Rouhani arrogantly attempting to provoke attack? Are Putin and Rouhani offering a gambit that only an arrogant or ill-advised fool would accept? Are Putin and Rouhani bluffing? Is Obama indeed the naked emperor, and the whole world laughing at him? Or is America the naked empire, and the entire world poised to flay the U.S.?

Iran and Hezbollah have been removed from the U.S. Annual Security Threat Assessment.  If you would like to read about this, please cut and paste the following link into your browser...

http://www.newsweek.com/iran-and-hezbollah-omitted-us-terror-threat-list-amid-nuclear-talks-314073.

Cuba is about to be removed from the list of state sponsors of terrorism, which gives rise to the question, "Is Obama about to make "good" on his promise to close down Guantanamo?" The logical next step for Obama may then be to completely abandon the American Naval Base at Guantanamo, even as Russia and China expand military and infrastructure activities in the Caribbean and in South America...

http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/apr/14/obama-remove-cuba-list-state-sponsors-terrorism.


If you would like to read an excellent article about the Russia-Iran missile deal announcement (including a great grinning photo of Rouhani and Putin) please cut and paste the following link into your browser...

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/04/13/us-iran-nuclear-russia-idUSKBN0N40YX20150413.

If you would like to read an excellent and well-illustrated article about the S-300 Missile System, please cut and paste the following link into your browser...

http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-22652131.

Tuesday, March 24, 2015

ISRAELI PRIME MINISTER NETANYAHU WON HIS RE-ELECTION BEAUTIFULLY.

PM NETANYAHU STATED THE CASE FOR ISRAEL CLEARLY.

First, he made the case before the entire world that Israel's national security and national integrity are paramount.  He defined national security and national integrity in terms of present exterior and interior threats, e.g. Iran, ISIS, Hamas, Fatah, Hezbollah, etc.

Second, by declaring, "There will be no State of Palestine on my watch," he defined Israeli national security and national integrity as being (a) independent of the pressure of the worldwide lynch-mob mentality towards Israel and (b) independent of American political pressure from the Presidency, should that Presidency unwisely seek to impose it's own castration of Israel.

Third, he alerted Israel and the world to the fact of an active Fifth Column in Israel in which "left-wing Israeli's were transporting 'Arabs' to the polls in droves."  This allegedly racist comment has drawn much unjustifiable condemnation, even to the point of public apology!  Can you imagine!  Should a man, who saves his village by plugging his finger into the breach hole of a dam to prevent the dam from bursting, be made to apologize for doing so?  Such is the perversity of popular public opinion!

"EMPEROR" OBAMA SHOULD BE GRATEFUL TO ISRAELI P.M. NETANYAHU, MUCH AS THE LEGENDARY EMPEROR, WHO ONCE UPON A TIME, WAS ENLIGHTENED BY AN HONEST AND SOLITARY INDIVIDUAL -- EVEN A CHILD -- WHO EXCLAIMED, "THE EMPEROR IS NAKED!"

"EMPEROR" OBAMA AND HIS CADRE SHOULD UNDERSTAND THAT TIMES HAVE CHANGED SINCE THE DAYS OF GOLDA MEIR AND MOSHE DAYAN.

The idealism of Jewish and Arab secularists has given way to the pragmatism of the default reality, that Jews are Jews and Arabs are Arabs.  And the vast majority of Arabs are Muslim of one flavor or another.

The dominant Muslim flavor at present and throughout the history of Modern Israel is Jihadism of the Hamas and Hezbollah varieties.  The progenitors of these jihadist mentalities are Saudi Arabia (Sunni Jihadism) and Iran (Shia Jihadism).  Interlocuter between these two apparent competitors are the Bathists and the Muslim Brotherhood.  In Iraq the Bathists at this very moment are using social media to publicize and finger the names and faces of 100-American Servicemen, calling on Muslims around the world to kill these American Servicemen at will; this is chillingly reminiscent of the American deck of cards depicting the 52 "Most Wanted" Iraqui leaders (Saddam Hussein was the Ace of Spades) that Americans hunted down during the Second Iraq War.

We should all perceive by now that the effort to compartmentalize the Arab-Israel Conflict into a much smaller "Arab-Palestine" Conflict has failed and has caused great harm to Arabs and Jews, to Palestinians and Israelis, and to any rational idea of a State of Palestine.  And the so-called "demographic"problem of Israel is also falsely framed, as  not all Arabs are Muslim Jihadists;  but, among Israel's Arab citizenry, the majority may be Muslim Jihadists, perceived for what they are by their creation and celebration of "Al-Naqba" and their non-celebration of Israel Independence Day -- a day which gave them their Israeli citizenship.

In Judea-Samaria and in Gaza, the population majority are occupying Muslim Jihadists, who unambivalently wage a war of annihilation against Israel in proxy for larger Arabia.  It is worth noting that Gaza, which Israel "disengaged" itself from in 2005, has forced Israel to engage militarily time and time again.  Judea-Samaria under Israeli "occupation" has steadily experienced economic and social growth and diminished violence.  There can be no clearer "social science or political experiment"; nor can there be a clearer argument, that Judea-Samaria must remain under Israeli hegemony.

Given the Palestine reality; given that only Egypt and Jordan have made peace with Israel; and given that since 1948 at least twenty Arab nations maintain an official state of war with Israel; it should be clear that Israeli PM Netanyahu has done what must be done to maintain Israeli integrity.

There was no guarantee of electoral victory in Israel for PM Netanyahu.  PM Netanyahu is to be lauded for his exercise of the right to speak freely before the Congress of the USA.  Had PM Netanyahu not spoken truth to power in the timely way that he did speak (contemporary to the American nuclear negotiations with Iran), then PM Netanyahu might not have had the opportunity or prestige of office by which to address Congress, America, and thereby world at large.

If there was any doctrine of fairness in the world, then (a) the world would hold Arabia accountable for it's continued official state of war of annihilation against Israel, (2) the world would deny Arabia the right to vote or hold offices of power in the UN, UNGA, and UNSC, (3) the world would allow Israel to serve on the UNSC, (4) the world would support relocation of the jihadist populations of Judea-Samaria and Gaza into existing recognized Arab countries, where jihadists would genuinely be at home, (5) the world would hold Arabia accountable for the fomentation of terrorism against Israel by proxy in the disguises of "Palestinian Human Rights" or "Israeli Occupation", (6) and the world would encourage Egypt to give or sell Israel a significant portion of Sinai in exchange for world assistance in the development of Egypt's proposed new capitol city and the development of Egyptian fresh water projects.

This sixth idea must be framed and understood as an amelioration of the lopsided Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty of 1979, according to which Israel, having won the Sinai twice in defensive warfare, returned the entirety of Sinai to Egypt in exchange for peace.  While at the time such an agreement may or may not have been necessary to assure America's cold-war-era consolidation of Egypt into the American camp and away from the Russian camp, the local effect in the Middle East did set a terrible precedent: that Arab nations could wage terrorism and wars of annihilation against Israel and then be rewarded for their aggression against Israel at no consequence.  Why should lands won by Israel, either by legal purchase or by defensive war, be expected to be returned completely to Arabian nations in an atmosphere of worldwide support and ratification?

Is it any wonder, that today's UN is so lopsidedly anti-Israel, that Hamas and Fatah make it clear in their Charters, that all of Israel is defined as an illegal [against Muslim Law] "Occupation" of "Palestine", that the goal of their entities is to "liberate Palestine", and that none of their official maps depict the existence of the State of Israel?

Therefore, in our time today, an amelioration of the 1979 Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty must see to the material improvement of present day Egypt and to the return to Israel of at least a portion of the Sinai.

And for all of these reasons, we must ameliorate our chorus of songs to the Naked Emperor; we must cease to extol the fine thread of his non-existent Garment; we must arouse his conscience and his consciousness; and we must all insist, that the Emperor be fully, properly, and honestly clothed!

***************************************************

Thursday of this week is March 26, 2015 and marks the 36-year anniversary of the Israel-Egypt Peace Treaty.


Monday, March 2, 2015

A SPEECH FOR PM BENJAMIN NETANYAHU

RECOMMENDED TO BE MADE TO THE CONGRESS OF THE USA

In the year 1624 A.D. the legendary English poet John Donne authored a book entitled "Devotions Upon Emergent Occasions," and he writes in his most famous Meditation XVII,

"No man is an island entire of itself; every man
is a piece of the continent, a part of the main;
if a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe
is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as
well as any manner of thy friends or of thine
own were; any man's death diminishes me,
because I am involved in mankind. And therefore
never send to know for whom the bell tolls;
it tolls for thee."

(pause)

"It tolls for thee."

(pause again)

These words of John Donne (who in his youth fought alongside Sir Walter Raleigh and later became famous as a cleric and poet) ring as truly today as they did in his time and one may say they ring truly for all time.

There are Americans, who still regard the New World as an island of itself; and there are British, who still regard Britain as an island of itself; indeed, there are
Israelis, who regard Israel as an island of itself, albeit a social island surrounded by a sea of hostility.  The island nature is real enough.  And the potential threats islands may face are real enough.  The threats become greater, when they are ignored or explained away or not fully appreciated for the threats that they are.

So what is the threat today, and how may that threat be appreciated, that it may be faced with eyes wide open?  That threat is Iran, and while that threat is felt most acutely and immediately in Israel, it is a threat that is no less potent in it's import with respect to the larger Middle East, India, Europe, Britain, and America.

The militant nature of Iran is a matter of present historical record.  Ever since the regime of the Mullahs has ruled Iran, Iran has been the greatest single source of terrorism in the world.  And now Iran is on the verge of becoming a nuclear threat.  Nuclear power in and of itself is a powerful tool that may be used for good or evil.  How it is used depends on the hands that wield it.

The Iranian regime of the Mullahs has repeatedly stated as a matter of policy that it would wipe Israel from the face of the Earth, and this regime has already established a militant record for decades against Israel by manning, training, supporting, and supplying terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah and Hamas.

It was Hezbollah that bombed the Jewish Center in Buenos Aires in 1994, killing eighty-five persons and injuring hundreds; it was two Hezbollah suicide bombers, who attacked the American and French barracks in Beirut in 1983, killing the two-suicide bombers, killing six civilians, injuring seventy-five persons, and killing two-hundred-and-ninty-nine American and French soldiers.

Iran has labelled Israel "Little Satan."  Iran has labelled the USA "Big Satan."

One may infer that Iran regards Britain and Europe as the "Medium Satan".

This type of language, by which Iran describes you and I, is not the speech of diplomacy; rather, it is the speech of megalomania -- megalomania with the potential to hold nuclear power in it's hands.  In every manner of thought, speech, and action the Iranian regime of the Mullahs has already shown it's face and it's arms to the world.  If the world fails to stay the course of Iran's present regime, then the consequences become inevitable; and, those consequences are not beyond imagination; those consequences are: increase of Iranian totalitarianism, increase of Iranian born terrorism, and increase of nuclear proliferation.

Iran must be constrained militarily and financially, as it is already awash in black market money, despite existing sanctions.  This is why greater sanctions must be enacted and enforced against Iran.  And we must ask, whether or not ISIS or Al-Quaeda or Fatah are funded by Iran, just as Hamas is funded by Iran.

Much is made of the hatred between Sunni Muslims and Shia Muslims.  Perhaps too much is made of this rift.  The Mullahs perceive themselves to be an apocryphal regime, and former Iranian President Ahmadinijad regards himself as The Mahdi -- the Messiah of Islam destined to reconcile and reunite all Islam.

All of the fundamentalist Muslim regimes, be they Shia or Sunni, regard themselves as apocryphal.  And Pakistan, the one Muslim regime that is already a nuclear power, is only questionably stable and is riddled with Taliban.

The issue at hand is the timeliness of additional sanctions against Iran in appreciation of the reality of the Iranian threat.

So, I am here in Washington today to say one thing and one thing only:

(pause)

"... the bell tolls for thee."