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unhappycamper
unhappycamper's Journal
unhappycamper's Journal
June 24, 2014
Iraqi Turkmen pose with their weapons as they ready to fight against militants led by the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on June 21, 2014, in the Iraqi village of Basheer, south of Kirkuk
Iraq's Destruction Is a Reminder of the Ugly Face of American Empire
By Chris Hedges
June 23, 2014
The black-clad fighters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, sweeping a collapsing army and terrified Iraqis before them as they advance toward Baghdad, reflect back to us the ghoulish face of American empire. They are the specters of the hundreds of thousands of people we murdered in our deluded quest to remake the Middle East. They are ghosts from the innumerable roadsides and villages where U.S. soldiers and Marines, jolted by explosions of improvised explosive devices, responded with indiscriminate fire. They are the risen remains of the dismembered Iraqis left behind by blasts of Hellfire and cruise missiles, howitzers, grenade launchers and drone strikes. They are the avengers of the gruesome torture and the sexual debasement that often came with being detained by American troops. They are the final answer to the collective humiliation of an occupied country, the logical outcome of Shock and Awe, the Frankenstein monster stitched together from the body parts we left scattered on the ground. They are what we get for the $4 trillion we wasted on the Iraq War.
The language of violence engenders violence. The language of hate engenders hate. “I and the public know what all schoolchildren learn,” W.H. Auden wrote. “Those to whom evil is done do evil in return.” It is as old as the Bible.
There is no fight left in us. The war is over. We destroyed Iraq as a unified country. It will never be put back together. We are reduced—in what must be an act of divine justice decreed by the gods, whom we have discovered to our dismay are Islamic—to pleading with Iran for military assistance to shield the corrupt and despised U.S. protectorate led by Nouri al-Maliki. We are not, as we thought when we entered Iraq, the omnipotent superpower able in a swift and brutal stroke to bend a people to our will. We are something else. Fools and murderers. Blinded by hubris. Faded relics of the Cold War. And now, in the final act of the play, we are crawling away. Our empire is dying.
We should have heeded, while we had a chance, the wails of mothers and fathers. We should have listened to the cries of the wounded. We should have wept over the bodies of Iraqi children lined up in neat rows in the morgues. We should have honored grief so we could honor life. But the dance of death is intoxicating. Once it begins you whirl in an ecstatic frenzy. Death’s embrace, which feels at first like sexual lust, tightens and tightens until you suffocate. Now the music has stopped. All we have left are loss and pain.
Iraq's Destruction Is a Reminder of the Ugly Face of American Empire
http://www.alternet.org/world/iraqs-destruction-reminder-ugly-face-american-empireIraqi Turkmen pose with their weapons as they ready to fight against militants led by the jihadist Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) on June 21, 2014, in the Iraqi village of Basheer, south of Kirkuk
Iraq's Destruction Is a Reminder of the Ugly Face of American Empire
By Chris Hedges
June 23, 2014
The black-clad fighters of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, sweeping a collapsing army and terrified Iraqis before them as they advance toward Baghdad, reflect back to us the ghoulish face of American empire. They are the specters of the hundreds of thousands of people we murdered in our deluded quest to remake the Middle East. They are ghosts from the innumerable roadsides and villages where U.S. soldiers and Marines, jolted by explosions of improvised explosive devices, responded with indiscriminate fire. They are the risen remains of the dismembered Iraqis left behind by blasts of Hellfire and cruise missiles, howitzers, grenade launchers and drone strikes. They are the avengers of the gruesome torture and the sexual debasement that often came with being detained by American troops. They are the final answer to the collective humiliation of an occupied country, the logical outcome of Shock and Awe, the Frankenstein monster stitched together from the body parts we left scattered on the ground. They are what we get for the $4 trillion we wasted on the Iraq War.
The language of violence engenders violence. The language of hate engenders hate. “I and the public know what all schoolchildren learn,” W.H. Auden wrote. “Those to whom evil is done do evil in return.” It is as old as the Bible.
There is no fight left in us. The war is over. We destroyed Iraq as a unified country. It will never be put back together. We are reduced—in what must be an act of divine justice decreed by the gods, whom we have discovered to our dismay are Islamic—to pleading with Iran for military assistance to shield the corrupt and despised U.S. protectorate led by Nouri al-Maliki. We are not, as we thought when we entered Iraq, the omnipotent superpower able in a swift and brutal stroke to bend a people to our will. We are something else. Fools and murderers. Blinded by hubris. Faded relics of the Cold War. And now, in the final act of the play, we are crawling away. Our empire is dying.
We should have heeded, while we had a chance, the wails of mothers and fathers. We should have listened to the cries of the wounded. We should have wept over the bodies of Iraqi children lined up in neat rows in the morgues. We should have honored grief so we could honor life. But the dance of death is intoxicating. Once it begins you whirl in an ecstatic frenzy. Death’s embrace, which feels at first like sexual lust, tightens and tightens until you suffocate. Now the music has stopped. All we have left are loss and pain.
June 23, 2014
'By denying water service to thousands, Detroit is violating the human right to water.'
Blue Planet et al. Appeal to UN over Detroit Water cut-off to Thousands
By contributors | Jun. 23, 2014
By Sarah Lazare
As thousands of people in Detroit go without water, and the city moves to cut off services to tens of thousands more, concerned organizations have taken the unusual step of appealing to the United Nations to intervene and protect the "human right to water."
“After decades of policies that put businesses and profits ahead of the public good, the city now has a major crisis on its hands," said Maude Barlow, founder of Blue Planet Project and board chair of Food & Water Watch, in a statement. “By denying water service to thousands, Detroit is violating the human right to water."
The Submission to the Special Rapporteur was released Wednesday by the Detroit People’s Water Board, the Blue Planet Project, the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and Food & Water Watch.
It calls for the "state of Michigan and U.S. government to respect the human right to water and sanitation" and for shut-offs to be halted, services restored, and water to be made accessible and affordable.
Blue Planet et al. Appeal to UN over Detroit Water cut-off to Thousands
http://www.juancole.com/2014/06/planet-detroit-thousands.html'By denying water service to thousands, Detroit is violating the human right to water.'
Blue Planet et al. Appeal to UN over Detroit Water cut-off to Thousands
By contributors | Jun. 23, 2014
By Sarah Lazare
As thousands of people in Detroit go without water, and the city moves to cut off services to tens of thousands more, concerned organizations have taken the unusual step of appealing to the United Nations to intervene and protect the "human right to water."
“After decades of policies that put businesses and profits ahead of the public good, the city now has a major crisis on its hands," said Maude Barlow, founder of Blue Planet Project and board chair of Food & Water Watch, in a statement. “By denying water service to thousands, Detroit is violating the human right to water."
The Submission to the Special Rapporteur was released Wednesday by the Detroit People’s Water Board, the Blue Planet Project, the Michigan Welfare Rights Organization and Food & Water Watch.
It calls for the "state of Michigan and U.S. government to respect the human right to water and sanitation" and for shut-offs to be halted, services restored, and water to be made accessible and affordable.
June 23, 2014
Afghanistan and the Artificial US War on Terror (Anand Gopal’s New Book)
By Juan Cole | Jun. 23, 2014
I guest-hosted a book salon over at Firedoglake on Sunday concentrating on Anand Gopal’s expose of the so-called ‘war on terror’ in Afghanistan. Below is my review of the book. Do go to FDL to read the whole salon, where Mr. Gopal was kind enough to answer our questions about the book and the subject.
No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War through Afghan Eyes
Anand Gopal’s No Good Men Among the Living is a deconstruction of the American “War on Terror” as it pertained to Afghanistan. It is an argument that the US military allowed itself to fall into chasing phantoms, put up to search and destroy missions by tribal allies mainly interested in using the Americans to settle feuds and deflect rivals. They got drawn into what anthropologists call the segmentary lineage political system of rural Afghanistan.
In short, as Gopal tells the story, there was no Taliban activity in Afghanistan to speak of by 2002, but the US military machine required an enemy, and its clients among the men on the make in Karzai’s Afghanistan were glad to supply alleged Taliban (sometimes even tagging as such men who had spent a decade fighting the puritanical seminarians). In the course of these betrayals and injustices, the US managed actually to create a growing Taliban resistance to its presence in the country. The book is a 21st century Catch-22, and as with the original, is leavened by episodes of dark humor and profound irony.
Afghanistan and the Artificial US War on Terror (Anand Gopal’s New Book)
http://www.juancole.com/2014/06/afghanistan-artificial-terror.htmlAfghanistan and the Artificial US War on Terror (Anand Gopal’s New Book)
By Juan Cole | Jun. 23, 2014
I guest-hosted a book salon over at Firedoglake on Sunday concentrating on Anand Gopal’s expose of the so-called ‘war on terror’ in Afghanistan. Below is my review of the book. Do go to FDL to read the whole salon, where Mr. Gopal was kind enough to answer our questions about the book and the subject.
No Good Men Among the Living: America, the Taliban, and the War through Afghan Eyes
Anand Gopal’s No Good Men Among the Living is a deconstruction of the American “War on Terror” as it pertained to Afghanistan. It is an argument that the US military allowed itself to fall into chasing phantoms, put up to search and destroy missions by tribal allies mainly interested in using the Americans to settle feuds and deflect rivals. They got drawn into what anthropologists call the segmentary lineage political system of rural Afghanistan.
In short, as Gopal tells the story, there was no Taliban activity in Afghanistan to speak of by 2002, but the US military machine required an enemy, and its clients among the men on the make in Karzai’s Afghanistan were glad to supply alleged Taliban (sometimes even tagging as such men who had spent a decade fighting the puritanical seminarians). In the course of these betrayals and injustices, the US managed actually to create a growing Taliban resistance to its presence in the country. The book is a 21st century Catch-22, and as with the original, is leavened by episodes of dark humor and profound irony.
June 22, 2014
Republicans: Never Wrong About Anything
by Jaime O'Neill | June 21, 2014 - 9:38am
They say that if you live long enough, you’ll see everything. But I’m beginning to doubt I’ll live long enough to hear a Republican say they’ve ever been wrong about anything. Remember that disastrous war in Iraq, the one that put so many young men and women in VA hospitals, the one that was never funded, that ballooned our national debt, all while doing nothing at all good for our nation?
That was the war where we were going to be “greeted as liberators,” the one the neo-cons promised “would be a cakewalk.” That was the war we were lied into fighting, with whoppers like this one from Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, when he said: "We do know that the Iraqi regime has chemical and biological weapons...including VX, sarin, cyclosarin and mustard gas. ...large, clandestine stockpiles of biological weapons—including anthrax and botulism toxin, and possibly smallpox."
That lie was compounded by Bush II (George the Dim-Witted) who blamed 9/11 on a nation that had absolutely nothing to do with that attack (and he knew it). Still, he told us this bald-faced lie: “... for the sake of protecting our friends and allies, the United States will lead a mighty coalition of freedom-loving nations and disarm Saddam Hussein. See, I can't imagine what was going through the mind of this enemy when they hit us. They probably thought the national religion was materialism, that we were so selfish and so self-absorbed that after 9/11/2001 this mighty nation would take a couple of steps back and file a lawsuit.”
Instead, he launched a hasty and ill-planned invasion, putting soldiers at unnecessary risk because, according to Rumsfeld, “you go to war with the army you have, not with the army you want.” There was no urgency, no clear and present danger, but we went ahead and sent troops into Baghdad in very expensive but unarmored Humvees, and lots of those soldiers suffered unnecessary deaths or life-changing injuries because Dubya, Cheney, and Rummy wanted to hurry things up.
Republicans: Never Wrong About Anything
http://smirkingchimp.com/thread/jaime-oneill/56522/republicans-never-wrong-about-anythingRepublicans: Never Wrong About Anything
by Jaime O'Neill | June 21, 2014 - 9:38am
They say that if you live long enough, you’ll see everything. But I’m beginning to doubt I’ll live long enough to hear a Republican say they’ve ever been wrong about anything. Remember that disastrous war in Iraq, the one that put so many young men and women in VA hospitals, the one that was never funded, that ballooned our national debt, all while doing nothing at all good for our nation?
That was the war where we were going to be “greeted as liberators,” the one the neo-cons promised “would be a cakewalk.” That was the war we were lied into fighting, with whoppers like this one from Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld, when he said: "We do know that the Iraqi regime has chemical and biological weapons...including VX, sarin, cyclosarin and mustard gas. ...large, clandestine stockpiles of biological weapons—including anthrax and botulism toxin, and possibly smallpox."
That lie was compounded by Bush II (George the Dim-Witted) who blamed 9/11 on a nation that had absolutely nothing to do with that attack (and he knew it). Still, he told us this bald-faced lie: “... for the sake of protecting our friends and allies, the United States will lead a mighty coalition of freedom-loving nations and disarm Saddam Hussein. See, I can't imagine what was going through the mind of this enemy when they hit us. They probably thought the national religion was materialism, that we were so selfish and so self-absorbed that after 9/11/2001 this mighty nation would take a couple of steps back and file a lawsuit.”
Instead, he launched a hasty and ill-planned invasion, putting soldiers at unnecessary risk because, according to Rumsfeld, “you go to war with the army you have, not with the army you want.” There was no urgency, no clear and present danger, but we went ahead and sent troops into Baghdad in very expensive but unarmored Humvees, and lots of those soldiers suffered unnecessary deaths or life-changing injuries because Dubya, Cheney, and Rummy wanted to hurry things up.
June 22, 2014
The Return of Sixties Values
by Bob Burnett | June 21, 2014 - 9:05am
The level of U.S. political rancor has reached an intensity not seen since the '60s with its battles over civil rights and the Vietnam War. On the one hand, we have Republicans advocating a new Iraq war and more tax breaks for the rich. On the other hand, we have Democrats saying no to war and standing up for working families. For populists, it's the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
~snip~
There are a lot of trends in the 2014 midterm election but for populists the most encouraging is the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
In terms of foreign policy, this means reducing the Defense budget and limiting our engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In terms of domestic policy, the new populism means changing policies that benefit the rich and powerful -- reforming the tax code, ending corporate welfare, breaking up the big banks, and resurrecting the Glass-Steagall Act. And the new populism means instituting new policies that benefit working families -- making the minimum wage a living wage, guaranteeing a minimum standard of living (in effect, enforcing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights), and protecting the right of workers to organize.
The Return of Sixties Values
http://smirkingchimp.com/thread/bob-burnett/56518/the-return-of-sixties-valuesThe Return of Sixties Values
by Bob Burnett | June 21, 2014 - 9:05am
The level of U.S. political rancor has reached an intensity not seen since the '60s with its battles over civil rights and the Vietnam War. On the one hand, we have Republicans advocating a new Iraq war and more tax breaks for the rich. On the other hand, we have Democrats saying no to war and standing up for working families. For populists, it's the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
~snip~
There are a lot of trends in the 2014 midterm election but for populists the most encouraging is the return of the '60s theme, "peace and justice."
In terms of foreign policy, this means reducing the Defense budget and limiting our engagement in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In terms of domestic policy, the new populism means changing policies that benefit the rich and powerful -- reforming the tax code, ending corporate welfare, breaking up the big banks, and resurrecting the Glass-Steagall Act. And the new populism means instituting new policies that benefit working families -- making the minimum wage a living wage, guaranteeing a minimum standard of living (in effect, enforcing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights), and protecting the right of workers to organize.
June 22, 2014
When drones fall from the sky
Written by Craig Whitlock
Published on June 20, 2014
More than 400 large U.S. military drones have crashed in major accidents around the world since 2001, a record of calamity that exposes the potential dangers of throwing open American skies to drone traffic, according to a year-long Washington Post investigation.
Since the outbreak of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, military drones have malfunctioned in myriad ways, plummeting from the sky because of mechanical breakdowns, human error, bad weather and other reasons, according to more than 50,000 pages of accident investigation reports and other records obtained by The Post under the Freedom of Information Act.
Commercial drone flights are set to become a widespread reality in the United States, starting next year, under a 2012 law passed by Congress. Drone flights by law enforcement agencies and the military, which already occur on a limited basis, are projected to surge.
The documents obtained by The Post detail scores of previously unreported crashes involving remotely controlled aircraft, challenging the federal government’s assurances that drones will be able to fly safely over populated areas and in the same airspace as passenger planes.
When drones fall from the sky
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sf/investigative/2014/06/20/when-drones-fall-from-the-sky/When drones fall from the sky
Written by Craig Whitlock
Published on June 20, 2014
More than 400 large U.S. military drones have crashed in major accidents around the world since 2001, a record of calamity that exposes the potential dangers of throwing open American skies to drone traffic, according to a year-long Washington Post investigation.
Since the outbreak of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, military drones have malfunctioned in myriad ways, plummeting from the sky because of mechanical breakdowns, human error, bad weather and other reasons, according to more than 50,000 pages of accident investigation reports and other records obtained by The Post under the Freedom of Information Act.
Commercial drone flights are set to become a widespread reality in the United States, starting next year, under a 2012 law passed by Congress. Drone flights by law enforcement agencies and the military, which already occur on a limited basis, are projected to surge.
The documents obtained by The Post detail scores of previously unreported crashes involving remotely controlled aircraft, challenging the federal government’s assurances that drones will be able to fly safely over populated areas and in the same airspace as passenger planes.
June 22, 2014
GOP: Show Me the Money!
By Richmond Shreve
OpEdNews Op Eds 6/21/2014 at 11:10:54
~snip~
It is high time that this obscene tradition end. I propose a COMBAT TAX. This tax would be an amount initially estimated by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office to cover any proposed action involving armed government personnel. The estimate would be updated quarterly to reflect actual incurred costs. It would be added as a percentage, a surtax on all US Federal taxes across the board. Income tax, excise tax, gas tax -- every tax paid to the US Treasury. Each of us would feel the bite in the taxes withheld from out paychecks. We'd see it immediately in the cost of gas and luxury items we buy. We would all have skin in the game, every single one of us. Rich or poor, each of us would pay. (We might consider exempting income for the veterans who had seen combat.)
At the same time, the Combat Tax legislation would provide for universal service -- yes, I mean conscription. Every adult man or woman would be required to serve the nation in some capacity. Service could be in qualifying occupations like Teach America, Peace Corps, Volunteer Firefighter, Volunteer EMT, and the like. To provide more opportunity we could resurrect the Civilian Conservation Corps to help rebuild our rotting infrastructure. The idea would be that in addition to the monetary hit of the Combat Tax, there would be a universal investment of time and energy for the national good that was in some small way on a par with that made by our military personnel.
The end result of the Combat Tax would be total accountability. Each and every one of us would have a personal stake in assuring that the US never initiate combat unless a truly vital national interest were at risk. Moreover, all of us would have a stake in limiting the conflict and making sure there was an exit strategy.
I'd bet that none of the US wars of the last fifty years would have happened were a Combat Tax the law and the tradition of American democracy. My challenge to the GOP hawks is this: You want more war? Then declare it, and along with it enact the Combat Tax. GOP: Show me the money!
GOP: Show Me the Money!
http://www.opednews.com/articles/GOP-Show-Me-the-Money-by-Richmond-Shreve-Activism-Anti-War_Conflict_Conflict_Congress-140621-766.htmlGOP: Show Me the Money!
By Richmond Shreve
OpEdNews Op Eds 6/21/2014 at 11:10:54
~snip~
It is high time that this obscene tradition end. I propose a COMBAT TAX. This tax would be an amount initially estimated by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office to cover any proposed action involving armed government personnel. The estimate would be updated quarterly to reflect actual incurred costs. It would be added as a percentage, a surtax on all US Federal taxes across the board. Income tax, excise tax, gas tax -- every tax paid to the US Treasury. Each of us would feel the bite in the taxes withheld from out paychecks. We'd see it immediately in the cost of gas and luxury items we buy. We would all have skin in the game, every single one of us. Rich or poor, each of us would pay. (We might consider exempting income for the veterans who had seen combat.)
At the same time, the Combat Tax legislation would provide for universal service -- yes, I mean conscription. Every adult man or woman would be required to serve the nation in some capacity. Service could be in qualifying occupations like Teach America, Peace Corps, Volunteer Firefighter, Volunteer EMT, and the like. To provide more opportunity we could resurrect the Civilian Conservation Corps to help rebuild our rotting infrastructure. The idea would be that in addition to the monetary hit of the Combat Tax, there would be a universal investment of time and energy for the national good that was in some small way on a par with that made by our military personnel.
The end result of the Combat Tax would be total accountability. Each and every one of us would have a personal stake in assuring that the US never initiate combat unless a truly vital national interest were at risk. Moreover, all of us would have a stake in limiting the conflict and making sure there was an exit strategy.
I'd bet that none of the US wars of the last fifty years would have happened were a Combat Tax the law and the tradition of American democracy. My challenge to the GOP hawks is this: You want more war? Then declare it, and along with it enact the Combat Tax. GOP: Show me the money!
June 22, 2014
After countless delays, technical problems and cost overruns, the German capital's troubled new airport faces another obstacle: It is running out of money. With the current CEO refusing to give detailed plans, it seems likely taxpayers will have to foot the bill.
Mayday: Berlin's Ill-Fated Airport Faces Insolvency
By Christoph Pauly and Andreas Wassermann
June 20, 2014 – 03:40 PM
Hartmut Mehdorn, CEO of Berlin's still unfinished new airport, isn't one for transparency. "This isn't a sandbox where everyone can just snoop around," he said in March. In other words, comptrollers looking into his project's finances are decidedly unwelcome, and indeed, when federal auditors from the Bundesrechnungshof, Germany's Federal Court of Auditors, recommended an independent audit, Mehdorn wanted none of it, and the public officials backed down.
~snip~
But the situation cannot continue for much longer. In 2012, Berlin, Brandenburg and the German federal government budgeted an additional €1.2 billion for the completion of the airport. By the end of this year, that money will likely be used up -- primarily to cover existing expenses and to resolve construction debts. But getting the airport up and running -- and certified -- will require much more money, and taxpayers will likely be the ones to supply it.
How much the airport will ultimately end up costing remains Mehdorn's secret, if he even knows himself. In the spring, he mentioned an additional €1.1 billion in a presentation to parliamentarians, which would bring the total cost of Berlin's new airport to €5.5 billion. He didn't say how he arrived at that sum.
The more expensive the project becomes, the less likely it is that it will ever turn a profit. Officials in both Berlin and Brandenburg have thus begun trying to figure out how to limit the project's collateral damage. In Wowereit's city-state government in Berlin, one proposal under consideration involves removing the airport from the Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH consortium, which also runs Tegel and Schönefeld airports, and placing the project's bank debts of €2.4 billion in a separate state-owned company.
Mayday: Berlin's Ill-Fated Airport Faces Insolvency
http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/new-berlin-airport-faces-major-funding-difficulties-a-975863.htmlAfter countless delays, technical problems and cost overruns, the German capital's troubled new airport faces another obstacle: It is running out of money. With the current CEO refusing to give detailed plans, it seems likely taxpayers will have to foot the bill.
Mayday: Berlin's Ill-Fated Airport Faces Insolvency
By Christoph Pauly and Andreas Wassermann
June 20, 2014 – 03:40 PM
Hartmut Mehdorn, CEO of Berlin's still unfinished new airport, isn't one for transparency. "This isn't a sandbox where everyone can just snoop around," he said in March. In other words, comptrollers looking into his project's finances are decidedly unwelcome, and indeed, when federal auditors from the Bundesrechnungshof, Germany's Federal Court of Auditors, recommended an independent audit, Mehdorn wanted none of it, and the public officials backed down.
~snip~
But the situation cannot continue for much longer. In 2012, Berlin, Brandenburg and the German federal government budgeted an additional €1.2 billion for the completion of the airport. By the end of this year, that money will likely be used up -- primarily to cover existing expenses and to resolve construction debts. But getting the airport up and running -- and certified -- will require much more money, and taxpayers will likely be the ones to supply it.
How much the airport will ultimately end up costing remains Mehdorn's secret, if he even knows himself. In the spring, he mentioned an additional €1.1 billion in a presentation to parliamentarians, which would bring the total cost of Berlin's new airport to €5.5 billion. He didn't say how he arrived at that sum.
The more expensive the project becomes, the less likely it is that it will ever turn a profit. Officials in both Berlin and Brandenburg have thus begun trying to figure out how to limit the project's collateral damage. In Wowereit's city-state government in Berlin, one proposal under consideration involves removing the airport from the Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg GmbH consortium, which also runs Tegel and Schönefeld airports, and placing the project's bank debts of €2.4 billion in a separate state-owned company.
June 22, 2014
Neo-Zangid State erases Syria-Iraq Border, cuts Hizbullah off from Iran
By Juan Cole | Jun. 22, 2014
With the alleged fall to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria of Qa’im on Saturday, and of Talafar a few days ago, the border between Iraq and Syria has now been effectively erased. A new country exists, stretching from the outskirts of Baghdad all the way to Aleppo. In history, it uncannily resembles the state ruled by Imad ad-Din Zangi (AD 1085 – 1146), a Turkish notable who came to power in 1128 after a Shiite Assassin killed his father. His realms lay between the Abbasid Caliphate on the one hand and the Atabegs of Damascus on the other. Like ISIS, he was not able to take and keep Homs. He also was not able to take Palestine away from the Crusaders, despite a brief alliance for that purpose with Buri of Damascus. ISIS also so far lacks Baghdad or Damascus but like Zangi does have much in between.
~snip~
This is a notional map (don’t hold me to its exact details) of Zangi’s domain at its greatest extent.
ISIS now holds almost all of Ninevah and al-Anbar Provinces, and has a strong position in Salahuddin Province just north of Baghdad. (The Zangid state was a launching pad for Saladin Ayyubi, in Arabic Salahuddin, for whom this province is named). It also has a position in Diyala Province, which stretches between Baghdad and the Iranian border to its east. Diyala is the most mixed of the military fronts, having many Shiites and Kurds (in the north around Khaniqin).
The first thing that occurred to me on the fall of Qa’im is that Iran no longer has its land bridge to Lebanon. I suppose it could get much of the way there through Kurdish territory, but ISIS could ambush the convoys when they came into Arab Syria. Since Iran has expended a good deal of treasure and blood to keep Bashar al-Assad in power so as to maintain that land bridge, it surely will not easily accept being blocked by ISIS. Without Iranian shipments of rockets and other munitions, Lebanon’s Hizbullah would rapidly decline in importance, and south Lebanon would be open again to potential Israeli occupation. I’d say, we can expect a Shiite counter-strike to maintain the truck routes to Damascus.
Neo-Zangid State erases Syria-Iraq Border, cuts Hizbullah off from Iran
http://www.juancole.com/2014/06/erases-border-hizbullah.htmlNeo-Zangid State erases Syria-Iraq Border, cuts Hizbullah off from Iran
By Juan Cole | Jun. 22, 2014
With the alleged fall to the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria of Qa’im on Saturday, and of Talafar a few days ago, the border between Iraq and Syria has now been effectively erased. A new country exists, stretching from the outskirts of Baghdad all the way to Aleppo. In history, it uncannily resembles the state ruled by Imad ad-Din Zangi (AD 1085 – 1146), a Turkish notable who came to power in 1128 after a Shiite Assassin killed his father. His realms lay between the Abbasid Caliphate on the one hand and the Atabegs of Damascus on the other. Like ISIS, he was not able to take and keep Homs. He also was not able to take Palestine away from the Crusaders, despite a brief alliance for that purpose with Buri of Damascus. ISIS also so far lacks Baghdad or Damascus but like Zangi does have much in between.
~snip~
This is a notional map (don’t hold me to its exact details) of Zangi’s domain at its greatest extent.
ISIS now holds almost all of Ninevah and al-Anbar Provinces, and has a strong position in Salahuddin Province just north of Baghdad. (The Zangid state was a launching pad for Saladin Ayyubi, in Arabic Salahuddin, for whom this province is named). It also has a position in Diyala Province, which stretches between Baghdad and the Iranian border to its east. Diyala is the most mixed of the military fronts, having many Shiites and Kurds (in the north around Khaniqin).
The first thing that occurred to me on the fall of Qa’im is that Iran no longer has its land bridge to Lebanon. I suppose it could get much of the way there through Kurdish territory, but ISIS could ambush the convoys when they came into Arab Syria. Since Iran has expended a good deal of treasure and blood to keep Bashar al-Assad in power so as to maintain that land bridge, it surely will not easily accept being blocked by ISIS. Without Iranian shipments of rockets and other munitions, Lebanon’s Hizbullah would rapidly decline in importance, and south Lebanon would be open again to potential Israeli occupation. I’d say, we can expect a Shiite counter-strike to maintain the truck routes to Damascus.
June 22, 2014
Army veteran: Key to getting benefits is persistence
Dennis Proulx says it’s not always easy for a returning war veteran to convince the Department of Veterans Affairs that he or she has a medical disability deserving of monetary compensation.
~snip~
The 64-year-old Vietnam-era Army veteran said he initially sought help for hearing loss in 1971, after spending 14 months in South Vietnam, but was told his problem was not combat related.
He says he eventually filed for compensation in 2001 after other medical problems began to manifest themselves.
Proulx, who is vice president of the Tautnon Area Vietnam Veterans Association, says it took more than two years, but eventually he was declared 60-percent disabled. It took another couple years, he said, before he began collecting disability checks from the VA.
Army veteran: Key to getting benefits is persistence
http://www.tauntongazette.com/article/20140621/NEWS/140629179/1994/NEWSArmy veteran: Key to getting benefits is persistence
Dennis Proulx says it’s not always easy for a returning war veteran to convince the Department of Veterans Affairs that he or she has a medical disability deserving of monetary compensation.
~snip~
The 64-year-old Vietnam-era Army veteran said he initially sought help for hearing loss in 1971, after spending 14 months in South Vietnam, but was told his problem was not combat related.
He says he eventually filed for compensation in 2001 after other medical problems began to manifest themselves.
Proulx, who is vice president of the Tautnon Area Vietnam Veterans Association, says it took more than two years, but eventually he was declared 60-percent disabled. It took another couple years, he said, before he began collecting disability checks from the VA.
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