Category Archives: Middle East

Egypt, Iran, Middle East, Politics, Religion, War On Terror

President Fails To Make His Case On Syria

After weeks of saber-rattling and ego boosting, and statements on Syria from everyone but the Commander-in-Chief himself, President Obama finally speaks to the question everyone is asking. What is our national security interest that necessitates attacking Syria?

And to that question, the President fails to make the case. He said . . .

This kind of attack threatens our national security interests by violating well-established international norms against the use of chemical weapons by further threatening friends and allies of ours in the region, like Israel and Turkey and Jordan, and it increases the risk that chemical weapons will be used in the future and fall into the hands of terrorists who might use them against us.

Might use them against us? There are no national interests of ours where Syria is concerned. They haven’t attacked us. They have telegraphed what they’d do to Israel if they were attacked by the U.S. But predicated on the United States attacking them first. To pin our national security interests on what might or could happen means there are no boundaries or limits to a trigger happy President. President Obama also failed to explain the end-game to his limited “smack in the face” attack on Syria.

The Syrian government is doing bad things, but it is doing them to their own people. Not to the United States. They are involved in a civil war now, and most of Assad’s opposition is coming from the alQaeda and Muslim Brotherhood types. Launching any kind of attack will only improve the chances that alQaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood will take over.

Syria needs to fight their own civil war. It’s as if nothing has been learned from the last 60 years of history in the Middle East. Let’s not repeat history. No one interfered with our civil war. And after it was over, we had a unified country. Their civil war needs to play out to its conclusion. Then, and only then, will the world know what kind of country remains. Friendly to the west, or not. At least, it will be a known entity. Not a mess like the rest of the Middle East.

Bottom line, we’re not the world’s policeman nor are we a civil-war-country’s custodian.

Egypt, Iran, Middle East, Politics, Religion, War On Terror

Obama Losing Coalition Support On Syria

britains_parliament_special_session_on_syria
British Parliament In Special Session

Great Britain’s Prime Minister David Cameron called a special session of Britain’s Parliament to discuss growing tensions in Sirya and President Obama’s call for military action over the use of chemical weapons, ostensibly used by the Syrian regime on its own people.

U.S. Congress On Vacation
U.S. Congress On Vacation

President Obama, on the other hand, demonstrating his lack of leadership in not calling Congress back from vacation for a special session, is now talking about going it alone. Without a coalition of willing partners and without involving Congress. And so far, without addressing the American people as to what our security interests in Syria are that justifies us getting involved militarily on our own. And also without explaining to the American people the possible consequences of a slap-in-the-face cruise missile attack.

A proposed attack with the potential targets being revealed to the world, including the Assad regime. A military strategist, he is not. Nor, apparently, are the people advising him.

It is this lack of leadership and President Obama’s vague, if not non-existent, strategy in the end-game with Syria that has caused all the coalition partners he had last week to drop out. Add NATO to the list of the unwilling. Instead of following the blind, they’ve taken the position to wait and see what the U.N. inspectors conclude about who it was that used the WMD’s outside of Damascus. So far, most people in the U.S. aren’t convinced that we are being threatened by Syria to the extent that we need to act unilaterally against them, not only at the expense of our credibility in the world, but at the expense of our ally Israel, who both Iran and Syria said will attack if the U.S. attacks Syria. And certainly not before knowing who will be taking over in Syria. Common thought now is if Assad goes down, alQaeda and company takes his place.

We’ve already seen it happen in Libya with alQaeda and their affiliates, and in Egypt with the Muslim Brotherhood. Is Obama’s ego worth turning over the rest of the middle east to radical Islam and possibly sacrificing the state of Israel?

The time to act militarily has long past. We’re not the world’s policeman and civil-war-country custodian. They’ll have to fight it out on their own, and kill each other until someone wins. Then, and only then, will we know who it is we’re dealing with.

Link: U.S. ready to go it alone on Syria after stinging British defeat  |  Obama strike plans in disarray after Britain rejects use of force in Syria  |  NATO CHIEF: NO PLANS FOR ALLIANCE ACTION IN SYRIA

Egypt, Middle East, Politics, Religion, Saudi Arabia, War On Terror

Egypt Arrests Muslim Brotherhood Leader, Obama Dumbfounded

Egyptian security forces have arrested the top leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, pressing a crackdown on his group. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates know who the enemy is, and have already sent over $12 Billion to support Egypt’s military, who is taking the fight to them. The U.S. position under obama_surrenderPresident Obama? Undecided.

He won’t say releasing Mubarak, who he help to overthrow, is good. But does say that Morsi (Muslim Brotherhood) should be released. Won’t say a peep about the war on Christians in Egypt by the Muslim Brotherhood. Where Egypt’s neighbors have stepped up financial support to Egypt’s military to take the fight to the ‘Hood, to the tune 10 times what the U.S. was committed to, Obama finds himself on the wrong side of the fight, if for no other reason than not being in the fight.

What we have here is the Nobel Peace prize recipient who manages to make the United States the laughing-stock of the world while at the same time alienating the United States from our friends and allies in the region.

If there’s anything more the President could do to make the United States irrelevant on the world stage, I’d like to hear it. For the first time in his Presidency, he has finally come upon an instance where ‘voting present’ isn’t an option, and he hasn’t the courage to take a stand. It’s what ‘leading from behind’ gets us.

via Egypt arrests Muslim Brotherhood leader Badie: state media – Yahoo! News.

Egypt, Middle East, War On Terror

This Ain’t No Tiananmen Square

Watch as a Muslim Brotherhood dude gets shot. I think he was violating a curfew. The military, the ones in “control” now, didn’t want the “Day of Rage” going on, or the Coptic Christians from being raped, tortured, and killed and their churches burned down.

Since this nut wasn’t killing an infidel, I don’t think he qualifies for 72 virgins.

There’s roughly 600 of the Muslim Brotherhood now killed. Some by the military, and the rest by the Egyptian citizens. 2400 to go to reach parity with 9/11/2001. obama_surrender

Any bets how long it will take for 3000 Muslim Brotherhood to reach room temperature? Is Las Vegas or Atlantic City laying odds on this? Oh yeah, I feel compassion. For the victims of 9/11/2001. Not for these dirty people.

Media, Middle East, Politics, War On Terror

No “Stand Your Ground” For U.S. Embassies

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The news this weekend is all about the United States closing 22 embassies in the Middle East. Two things are clear. Make that three.

surrender_white_flag

alQaeda is on the run. But not in the direction we’ve been led to believe.

The lesson learned from 9/11/2012 seems to be, instead of defending our interests, you retreat. They win. We lose.

The third thing is, which seems to be lost in all the hoopla, is the way the administration is handling this incident that is yet to obama_surrenderhappen. An incident that, arguably, is best dealt with in private, not in public. They have signaled to the enemy that they’ve already won. Without a single shot being fired. At the same time, they’ve told the enemy that their electronic communications were intercepted, losing our intel on the two terrorist leaders. It clearly demonstrates that this administration has absolutely no will to take the fight to this enemy. Even when they deliver it to us. And is willing to sacrifice national security for political cover.

That the administration would weaken their hand with all this pre-emptive transparency to the enemy, seems more than a little politically motivated when we still get no transparency on what happened nearly a year ago in Benghazi.

Economy, Egypt, Middle East, Politics, Religion, War On Terror

News Flash, alQaeda Is Not Dead

Next time you hear a politician (take your pick) say how alQaeda is “on the run,” they want you to believe that they are running away. I don’t see any evidence of that. Do you? If anything, the direction is towards us, not away.

alqaeda_not_deadAside from Allah calling for the destruction of infidels in America, the Egyptian Muslim Cleric in this interview also has a commentary of America in general. Says that “America will collapse on itself” from its “huge debt” and “spreading poverty.” Apparently he didn’t get the memo. What appears to be a collapse to him is part of the “transformation” our President had in mind.

Economy, Egypt, Media, Middle East, Politics, Race Relations, War On Terror

Obama’s Racially Divisive Administration

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If recent history is a lesson, and it ought to be, you can count on one thing from our community-organizer-turned-President. And that is, whatever he says about important issues, you better believe his true place, and desired result, is the opposite. With one, and only one exception.

Beginning with his coming out at the Democratic National Convention keynote speech in 2004, he painted himself as someone who even a Republican could embrace. But it was all false. All for show.

Tonight, we gather to affirm the greatness of our nation, not because of the height of our skyscrapers, or the power of our military, or the size of our economy. Our pride is based on a very simple premise, summed up in a declaration made over two hundred years ago, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal. That they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights. That among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

That is the true genius of America, a faith in the simple dreams of its people, the insistence on small miracles. That we can tuck in our children at night and know they are fed and clothed and safe from harm. That we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door. That we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe or hiring somebody’s son. That we can participate in the political process without fear of retribution, and that our votes will be counted — or at least, most of the time.

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The people I meet in small towns and big cities, in diners and office parks, they don’t expect government to solve all their problems. They know they have to work hard to get ahead and they want to. Go into the collar counties around Chicago, and people will tell you they don’t want their tax money wasted by a welfare agency or the Pentagon.

When it comes to Race Relations. This President bragged that his administration was going to be the first post-racial administration. At every turn, President Obama has not only sat on his hands when he could have helped, but he, and sometimes his Attorney General Eric Holder, have been active in festering a racial divide. Preamble to the beer summit, New Black Panther voter intimidation in Philadelphia, the personal destruction of Paula Deen, the stirring up of tension in the Martin / Zimmerman incident ultimately leading to Zimmerman being over-charged when in fact, no charges were called for. And now, same case, sitting on his behind leading from behind with the media eagerly anticipating racial unrest if/when Zimmerman gets acquitted.

This is just his racial deception. Pick any other topic from foreign policy, education, health care, THE ECONOMY, JOBS, and you will also see the results are 180 degrees from his promises.

Which brings me to the one exception to his promises, the one he has steadfastly kept. That is, to fundamentally transform this great country. That, he has done.

Nuclear proliferation gone wild, terrorism and terrorists spreading around the world (Africa, Middle East, “the right war” in Afghanistan), Pakistan, a nationalized health care system that is still leaving over 30 million people without health care, more expensive health care premiums, never before government levied fines for not buying health care, high fuel and energy prices and going higher, record food stamps, nearly a third of the entire population getting some government help, record long-term unemployment, smallest worker participation rate since Jimmy Carter. And, none of it has to do with his skin color. It has to do with his political color.

It is time for the coward to come off of the golf course, off from vacation, long enough to address the public, today. And tell the American people, especially those Black Americans who are already getting restless, that whatever the verdict in the Zimmerman show trial turns out to be, that he expects everyone to respect the decision and, that anyone breaking the law or rioting because they don’t agree with the verdict, will be punished to the fullest extent of the law. White, Black, and everywhere in between. And he should address the race industry specifically, the Jesse Sharptons, the New Black Panthers, the Farrakhans of the world, that he and his Justice Department expect them to change their tune and preach the same message to their activist followers.

And just one last thing. That we can believe him this time.

If he doesn’t use his bully pulpit to do that, then he will have shown ‘his true colors,’ and I don’t mean skin color, to all of America.

Media, Middle East, Politics, War On Terror

On Benghazi Attack, Ignorance Abounds

At President Obama’s “news conference” today, when asked about eye witnesses (some in the State Department) being blocked, or barack_obama_presserotherwise pressured from coming forward, and requests by their attorneys for the necessary security clearances to represent them being ignored, President Obama claimed ignorance.

Q Ed Henry:   And on the Benghazi portion, I know pieces of this story have been litigated, you’ve been asked about it.  But there are people in your own State Department saying they’ve been blocked from coming forward, that they survived the terror attack and they want to tell their story.  Will you help them come forward and just say it once and for all?

THE PRESIDENT:  Ed, I’m not familiar with this notion that anybody has been blocked from testifying.  So what I’ll do is I will find out what exactly you’re referring to.  What I’ve been very clear about from the start is that our job with respect to Benghazi has been to find out exactly what happened, to make sure that U.S. embassies not just in the Middle East but around the world are safe and secure, and to bring those who carried it out to justice.

But I’ll find out what exactly you’re referring to.

Q Ed Henry:   They’ve hired an attorney because they’re saying that they’ve been blocked from coming forward.

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m not familiar with it.

There was no “Yes Ed, if what you are saying has any truth to it, I will help them come forward so the American people may know the truth in the matter. As you know Ed, this administration prides itself in being open, transparent, and forthcoming with the truth.” Maybe the President should assign someone in his administration to watch FOX news, the only network carrying the story?

Adding to the ignorance is Secretary of State John Kerry (who served in Vietnam). In classic John Kerry, his response was bi-polar.

  • First chastising Republicans pressing for answers to what happened on the night of the attack, and for not simply accepting “the conclusions of the Accountability Review Board empanelled by his predecessor, Hillary Rodham Clinton.”
  • Then seeming to agree with Republicans saying “We have to demythologize this issue and certainly depoliticize it. The American people deserve answers. I’m determined that this will be an accountable and open State Department as it has been in the past, and we will continue to do that, and we will provide answers.”

The only problem with his statement is the “as it has been in the past” part. Because his predecessor, Secretary of State Clinton, was anything but forthcoming with facts. Was forthcoming with the false story about a YouTube video.

Then a State Department spokesman denied that any requests by attorneys representing the whistle blowers were made. Which doesn’t jibe with Rep. Darrell Issa’s (R-CA) complaint that he had not received responses to four letters he sent to the administration calling for whistle-blowers’ lawyers to get the security clearances needed to represent their clients. Further, State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell flatly denied that any employee had been threatened or told to remain silent.

Whether we’re looking at ignorance, or a cover-up, based on statements coming from The White House and the State Department, there’s plenty enough reason (not even counting the surviving family members’ need to know) to get to the bottom of what happened on the night of the attack. Including why no help was sent.

Link: News Conference by the President  |  GOP persists with questions about Benghazi attack