I sorta missed this on Monday. Sorry it is late:
Month: October 2009
White House is screwing the War in Afghanistan to hell
Not a big surprise, considering the President’s middle name; I mean after all, The President does not even want the words “War on Terror” used anymore.
This comes via the AP:
President Barack Obama is prepared to accept some Taliban involvement in Afghanistan‘s political future and appears inclined to send only as many more U.S. troops as needed to keep al-Qaida at bay, a senior administration official said Thursday.
The sharpened focus by Obama’s team on fighting al-Qaida above all other goals, while downgrading the emphasis on the Taliban, comes in the midst of an intensely debated administration review of the increasingly unpopular eight-year-old war.
Though aides stress that the president’s final decision on any changes is still at least two weeks away, the emerging thinking suggests that he would be very unlikely to favor a large military increase of the kind being advocated by the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
McChrystal’s troop request is said to include a range of options, from adding as few as 10,000 combat troops to — the general’s strong preference — as many as 40,000.
Obama’s developing strategy on the Taliban will “not tolerate their return to power,” the senior official said in an interview with The Associated Press. But the U.S. would fight only to keep the Taliban from retaking control of Afghanistan’s central government — something it is now far from being capable of — and from giving renewed sanctuary in Afghanistan to al-Qaida, the official said.
[….]
There now are no more than 100 al-Qaida in Afghanistan. Instead, the U.S. fight in Afghanistan is against the Taliban, now increasingly being defined by the Obama team as distinct from al-Qaida. While still dangerous, the Taliban is seen as an indigenous movement with almost entirely local and territorial aims, less of a threat to the U.S. than the terrorist network.
Obama’s team believes some elements in the Taliban are aligned with al-Qaida, with its transnational reach and aims of attacking the West, but probably not the majority and mostly for tactical rather than ideological reasons, the official said.
“They’re not the same type of group,” White House press secretary Robert Gibbs said. “It’s certainly not backed up by any of the intelligence.”
That leaves the primary aim in Afghanistan to deny al-Qaida any ability to regroup there as it did when the Taliban was in power before the 2001 invasion that ousted them. And this points to a smaller military increase in Afghanistan and a bigger focus on surgical strikes against terrorists in Pakistan and elsewhere — essentially the approach being advocated by Biden as an alternative to the McChrystal recommendation for a fuller counterinsurgency effort inside Afghanistan.
Biden has argued for keeping the American force there around the 68,000 already authorized, including the 21,000 extra troops Obama ordered earlier this year, but significantly increasing the use of unmanned Predator drones and special forces that have been successful in Pakistan, Somalia and elsewhere.
[….]
Clinton has not tipped her hand as to how she is leaning in the sessions, according to aides. While she is broadly supportive of building up troop levels — although not necessarily in the numbers favored by McChrystal — she also believes the military cannot be the only focus, said the aides, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to detail her views.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates, long wary of a large troop presence in Afghanistan, appears to have grown more comfortable with the prospect of a moderate, middle-path increase.
Many lawmakers from Obama’s own Democratic Party do not want to see additional U.S. troops sent to Afghanistan. According to a new Associated Press-GfK poll, public support for the war has dropped to 40 percent from 44 percent in July.
Republicans, meanwhile, are urging Obama to heed the military commanders’ calls soon or risk failure. “Unnecessary delay could undermine our opportunity for success,” House Republican leader John Boehner of Ohio said Thursday.
So, while President Obama and Hillary Clinton are playing political chess and trying not to offend one another; our troops are dying on the battlefield. Terrific.
AllahPundit over at HotAir.com, who was in New York during the 9/11 attacks; is quite livid:
They’re looking for any way they can to avoid giving McChrystal the troops he says he needs to secure the country, so they’ve come up with a way out. If the people we’ve been fighting for eight years aren’t the enemy, then the country no longer needs to be secured from them, does it?
[…]
In other words, rather than eat crap by forthrightly admitting he’s prepared to abandon huge swaths of the country to Islamist fascists rather than invest another 40,000 troops, he’s going to create an artificial distinction between the Taliban and Al Qaeda to let him save face by claiming he’s focused on “the real enemy.” Much like how he was focused during the campaign on “the good war” in Afghanistan rather than “the bad war” in Iraq. I wonder how long it’ll be before he decides that not everyone who’s in Al Qaeda is an enemy either — or, better yet, that AQ’s been “substantially defeated” or something, which has been the unstated thrust of all those WH-leaked pieces in the press lately about how weak Bin Laden’s gang has become. Why, I’ll bet in a year or so we’ll be told that they’re so weak that we can start pulling out of Afghanistan altogether. Things sure have improved over there since Bush was president, huh?
I would not want to be in the United States Military right now for no amount of money in the world. Not with that idiot buffoon running the Military. The man has zero, and I do mean ZERO clue how to fight a war. I feel for our boys over there right now; because, quite frankly, they are trapped. Just like in Vietnam.
The real sick and sad part is; that the Republican and the Democrats both are taking this whole, “Whatever you decide to do boss! We’ll support you, all the way!” attitude; because none of them have the damn guts to stand up and tell this jack assed idiot to either damn lead or resign and let someone else lead for him. That is what makes me so damned angry.
Update: Video: (H/T to reader Stephanie)
As Stephanie said, this is going to be tough one. But he does need to stand up and lead and quit putting it off.
Others: Atlas Shrugs, The Long War Journal, Flopping Aces, Stop The ACLU, theblogprof, War in Context and Pajamas Media
The Obama Administration cannot handle real press
The is just too damned rich; Ol’ Big ears and his Administration cannot handle Roger Alies and Co. over at Fox News.
Via the Obama Magazine AKA Time:
There was never a single moment when White House staff decided the major media outlets were falling down on the job. There were instead several such moments.
For press secretary Robert Gibbs, the realization came in early September, when the New York Times ran a front-page story about the bubbling parental outrage over President Obama’s plan to address schoolchildren — even though the benign contents of the speech were not yet public. “You had to be like, ‘Wait a minute,'” says Gibbs. “This thing has become a three-ring circus.” (See who’s who in Barack Obama’s White House.)
For deputy communications director Dan Pfeiffer, the more hyperbolic attacks on health-care reform this summer, which were often covered as a “controversy,” flipped an internal switch. “When you are having a debate about whether or not you want to kill people’s grandmother,” he explains, “the normal rules of engagement don’t apply.”
And for his boss, Anita Dunn, the aha moment came when the Washington Post ran a second op-ed from a Republican politician decrying the “32” alleged czars appointed by the Obama Administration. Nine of those so-called czars, it turned out, were subject to Senate confirmation, making them decidedly unlike the Russian monarchs. “The idea — that the Washington Post didn’t even question it,” Dunn says, still marveling at the decision.
All the criticism, both fair and misleading, took a toll, regularly knocking the White House off message. So a new White House strategy has emerged: rather than just giving reporters ammunition to “fact-check” Obama’s many critics, the White House decided it would become a player, issuing biting attacks on those pundits, politicians and outlets that make what the White House believes to be misleading or simply false claims, like the assertion that health-care reform would establish new “sex clinics” in schools. Obama, fresh from his vacation on Martha’s Vineyard, cheered on the effort, telling his aides he wanted to “call ’em out.”
The take-no-prisoners turn has come as a surprise to some in the press, considering the largely favorable coverage that candidate Obama received last fall and given the President’s vows to lower the rhetorical temperature in Washington and not pay attention to cable hyperbole. Instead, the White House blog now issues regular denunciations of the Administration’s critics, including a recent post that announced “Fox lies” and suggested that the cable network was unpatriotic for criticizing Obama’s 2016 Olympics effort.
White House officials offer no apologies. “The best analogy is probably baseball,” says Gibbs. “The only way to get somebody to stop crowding the plate is to throw a fastball at them. They move.”
There is a whole bunch of stuff to say here; much of which I have written before. It is quite obvious to anyone who has been following this President and his White House staff since day one; and has not been drinking the damn Kool-Aid, knows that this President Administration, much like the last one, is still running in campaign mode. I believe it was not until the very bitter end, that Bush realized that he was doing wrong and stopped the campaign mode, this is why Karl Rove and Donald Rumsfield were tossed overboard.
Just as well, this President is making the same mistakes as the last one. The difference is this; it took George W. Bush six years for his poll ratings to plummet and it has taken this President six months. That my friends, is the astounding fact.
The glaring fact of this Administration is that they seem to have this glaring sense of entitlement. It seems that they are caught up in this whole mentality of, “This is a black President and you must treat him special!” The problem with is, that may work in the city of Chicago; but just does not cut it in American or more specifically beltway politics. Does this Presidential Administration actually believe that Sean Hannity is just not going to say anything at all about President Obama socialist agenda?
The way I see it, Fox News has been extremely fair to the President, they have given him all of the benefit of the doubt. But they have not went into the tank for the President, at all. Something that I am extremely grateful for. As a result of this; Fox News’s rating have soared over every other networks; and I know why. It is because the American people, like me, do not want apologists for the Administration; we want hard factual news and critical reporting. If the President is screwing up, I want to know about it. If what the President is doing is not good for the Country, the American people have a right to know.
What the American people do not need; is someone like that sniveling four-eyed punk Robert Gibbs dictating to them, what they can and cannot report. Personally, I think Robert Gates is a asshole; and he is not doing much for the White House and President Obama’s image, he needs to be replaced. But I do not see that coming, unless Gibbs makes a major blunder.
Others: JustOneMinute, NewsBusters.org, Townhall.com, RedState, Riehl World View, Left Coast Rebel, Jules Crittenden, , Hot Air, Pajamas Media, JammieWearingFool,Gateway Pundit and TVNewser
The White House of Unoriginality
Via Malkin:
Pathetic. Of course, I have never known African-Americans to ever do anything original at all. I mean, look at rap music; How unoriginal can you get? Talking over music, made by other people. They very fact that they even call that tripe music, is an insult to musicians like myself.
Others: Althouse, Ruby Slippers,
Updated: BREAKING NEWS: President Obama wins the Nobel Peace Prize Liberals even shocked
My first question is, For what?
Via the NYT:
OSLO — In a stunning surprise, the Nobel Committee announced Friday that it had awarded its annual peace prize to President Obama “for his extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and cooperation between peoples.”
“He has created a new international climate,” the committee said in its announcement. President Obama’s name had not figured in speculation about the likely winner until minutes before the prize was announced here.
Likely candidates had been seen here as including human rights activists in China and Afghanistan and political figures in Africa.
The committee said it wanted to enhance Mr. Obama’s diplomatic efforts. “We are awarding Obama for what he has done,” the committee said. “Many other people and leaders and nations have to respond in a positive way” to President Obama’s diplomacy.
The announcement noted the special importance the committee attached to President Obama’s vision of a world without nuclear weapons. “Obama has as president created a new climate in international politics. Multilateral diplomacy has regained a central position, with emphasis on the role that the United Nations and other international institutions can play,” the committee said.
I have been watching twitter since this news broke and boy are the Conservative blogger angry. Wow! 😮
Anyhow, I do not think he deserves it; he has done nothing. But, that is your liberal world for you. Reward you for doing nothing. Just look at all these bailouts and such.
It is a bit of a shock, but hardly a surprise.
Update: Memeorandum has the roundup.
Update #2: Even Liberals are asking themselves, “Why?” Rob Kall, Who runs Op Ed News; which is about as Liberal, as I am Conservative, Writes:
I woke up to a text message from CNN that Obama had won the Nobel peace prize. First thought– “Why? What did he do to earn it? Extend the Afghan war? Send thousands of storm trooper police to Pittsburgh for G-20?
[…]
But maybe Josh is right. Maybe it will inspire Obama, who’s proven to be a disappointment so far, to live up to the honor. Maybe it will give him an attitudinal boost so he finds more spine to represent the people who voted for him. Maybe it will get the right wing blowhards to STFU. Maybe it will give him the spine it takes to tell his DLC, right wing Dem advisors to STFU and maybe even leave.
Ironically, I feel little pride in this awarding of the Nobel. I don’t think he deserves it. Sure, it’s a nice image boost for the US and the Democrats, but it is a failure by the Nobel committee. If they had waited until Obama made his decision on Afghanistan, and he did the right thing– stand up to a General with a hard-on for un-ending war, and all his backers, then Obama would have deserved it. I pray the Nobel committee knows something we don’t know about Obama and Afghanistan.
Now, we have a “peace price winning” president about to commit tens of thousands more troops to a never ending war in a country that has never been defeated.
[…]
Let’s hope the prize inspires Obama, not just to be a peace maker but also to be a stronger president who stands up to the corporations which have waged war against humanity. Maybe he’ll pay attention to Justice Sotomayor’s questions about corporate personhood and wage the good war, ending the longest war of human history– and kill the right of corporations to be treated as persons.
Awarding the prize to someone who is older, whose work with war and the possibilities for peace is done is a passive act. Awarding the price to someone who has the potential to make a difference, well that’s a bold step to take, a gamble. I still have a little hope that Obama will find his inner strength, cast off the corporate enablers rife throughout his administration and do the right things, maybe with Michelle Obama’s inspiration. Maybe this award will help. Maybe it will remind him of what he could become– a great man who goes down in history for standing up to the powerful tides and forces within and outside his party which pushed him to do more of the same. Maybe he will reject the garbage the corpsestream media spews, the pressure the lobbyists apply and the corruption and sold out humanity within the beltway.
Sometimes extraordinary things result from extraordinary acts are done. This could be one of those times. Let us hope.
Now, while I disagree with some of the thoughts articulated here; as they are from a Liberal standpoint; I must commend Rob for having the boldness to express his true feelings about this President. I wonder. are the Obama-Bots going to call Rob a racist bigot? I wonder. As they sure do love to call me that, quite a bit.
As for his feelings about Obama being a disappointment; That is because he overreached so horribly bad, and now, people are having a case of buyers remorse.
Yes, Twitter is down or at least wonky
Heh…..
The Story via Chicago Now:
I’m not sure what’s worse … Twitter being completely down or being so slow that you see no updates from your friends.
Today it’s the latter. Normally I have like a hundred replies to things I’ve posted by now and there’s not a single one. And each time a RedEye staffer logs in, they are asking if it’s down because there’s nothing happening.And how about this juicy tidbit — everytime Twitter experiences a slowdown or outage, it’s almost ALWAYS on a Thursday. I know this because it happens before @redeyechicago’s #80slunch.
Tell you what I think … we’ve got the Fail Whale when Twitter’s down. I think we need a mascot for when it’s slow. I nominate the Fail Turtle.
Now, while my reaction might not be as strong the above video. But it is kind of annoying. As I use Twitter, for traffic and other such stuff. They’re working on it, so they say. So, We’ll see.
By the way, in case you pay zero attention to my sidebars. I am RightBloggerPat on twitter. Hopefully, Twitter fixes this, so people can actually see/read/hear me again. 😀
The Round up of moans at TechMeMe
Jackie Mason asks Sexual debauchery is funny?
I got to give the man credit. he does have a good point.
Keith Olbermann talks about healthcare
Unlike some other Blogs; who’s malfeasance is supposedly mocking of those on the other side of the Political Debate, not to mention supposedly Conservative politics —— I am not posting this entire video series and transcript to mock, to deride, or even make light of. I am simply posting this, because I can relate to this story and to the emotions that this man is feeling.
As someone who does not have Healthcare insurance, at all; I agree with various parts of this Video. Naturally, there are parts of this rather long commentary that I highly disagree with, which parts are only the business of myself and not yours.
For those of you who come here via Twitter, StumbleUpon, Digg or even Reddit; and would look at this posting and have the desire to want to deride me, as some sort of faux Conservative or even patriot and possible desire to inform me of this. To save you the time, effort and possibly internet bandwidth; I give the shortest, straight from the hip, tell it like it is statement…:
Go Fuck Yourself
Here is Keith’s Special Comment on Healthcare, in it’s entirety…and if you come here and fail to watch this entirety; or at least read the entire god damned transcript; then, quite frankly, this might not be your kind of a blog and you should act likewise.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
The Transcript after the Jump:
Cartoons of the Day
Just I think that nobody cares about me or what I do….. I get a shout out. Thanks Zack, you make a great product buddy! 😀
Broken Dreams.....25 cents?
For more fun visit the website/blog at www.diversitylane.com or go directly to the blog at www.diversitylane.wordpress.com.
For more fun, Check out Baloo’s Cartoon Blog.
Owning an AK-47 is a hangable offense…..In Kenya
Hmmmmmm… A vision of things to come in America? 😮
(Thanks to Say Uncle, Who also runs the awesomely Awesome Gun Blogger’s Network on BlogAds)
Memo to Fox News: Marc Lamont Hill has got to go
Click here to read.
Maybe it is because Fox News knows that Marc Lamont Hill is black and they’re afraid of a lawsuit.
RedState Update on Healthcare and The Olympics
Enjoy these two, because man, they are funny!
Democrats try to play the Gender Card and get smacked down
Now this is just too rich.
Via the Politico:
The National Republican Congressional Committee is urging Gen. Stanley McChrystal to put House Speaker Nancy Pelosi “in her place” for weighing in on Afghanistan — prompting one female Pelosi ally to blast the House GOP as “80 percent male,” “100 percent white” — and completely out of touch.
On Monday night, Pelosi told Charlie Rose “should go up the line of command” instead of publicly opining on strategy — prompting a swift, sneering reaction from the GOP committee.
Mocking the first female speaker as “General Pelosi,” an NRCC spokesman wrote, “If Nancy Pelosi’s failed economic policies are any indicator of the effect she may have on Afghanistan, taxpayers can only hope McChrystal is able to put her in her place.”
Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.), who is close to Pelosi, could barely contain her anger.
“I think the place for a woman is at the top of the House of Representatives,” said Wasserman Schultz.
“It’s evidence they long for the days when a woman’s place was in the kitchen. Now a woman is third in line for the presidency… But it’s not surprising, coming from a party that’s 80 percent male and 100 percent white,” she added, referring to the composition of the House GOP conference.
NRCC Spokesman Ken Spain was unrepentant, telling POLITICO that Pelosi is “playing out of her league,” and questioned the reluctance of Democrats to call for McChrystal to testify in a hearing on the war.
Spain: “Spare us the lectures and mock-outrage. The Speaker of the House is taking on a highly decorated general who has outlined a strategy in Afghanistan that she once claimed to advocate… [S]he’s playing out of her league and she knows it.”
Quite a-typical for a Party that thrives on the gender, and race card. Good on the G.O.P for not sitting there and allowing the Socialist twits to suck them into that little game. This is a perfect example of why I will never vote for that Party, ever again. I mean, they may like to do things to help the middle class; sometimes. But at what cost? At the cost of having to kowtow down to fat broads that never get any? I think not. Of course, if they pass that Cap & Trade Bill or should I call it Cap & Tax? Anyhow, that will result in the majority of Americans; getting royally screwed in the pocketbook. So, that whole middle class line gets a wee bit over played by the Democrats. For the record, I am poor class myself; according to the Democrat Party way of looking at things. What have they done for me? Not my Parents; but me. Truthfully? Jack shit, that is what they have done for me, and they know it. They are too damn busy playing the protectionist role; too busy supporting those corrupt unions, like SEIU and Organizations like ACORN. They are too busy for white people like me; they have support the people that get them votes, IYKWIMAITYD!
As to the Story; Yes, Nancy Pelosi is way in over her head, and yes, she knows it. That Botox wearing fat bitch ought not even be in politics. She is a damn disgrace to America and hopefully will be voted out come 2010. Hopefully, she will be, because it is quite obvious that she is not cut out for her position in politics. Never was, only got the job; because she was damn female; and because she was well connected in the, shall we say, Hollywood world. IYKWIMAITYD.
Update: Check out the roundup of Liberal political hacks carping about this story….What a joke!
We already have a perfect Bible
It’s called the King James Bible folks.
Yes, I saw this little entry at HotAir.
It was, in fact the Bible that was used for over 300 years in this Country. Modernistic Versions did not become widely used until the 1960’s.
Think your bible is better, do a comparison. Click here to check out a chart.
Also, click here to read a very well written defense of the King James Bible.
Books that I highly recommend on this subject:
There are others, but I think these will suffice. I have been a Christian for 26 Years. I am, without apology a Fundamentalist Baptist. I am a user, lover and defender of the Preserved Word of God for the English Speaking people; that is the King James Bible. Also, Before anyone comes tromping in here and tries to tell me that I am wrong. I have read the for and against arguments on this subject; and quite frankly, I have made up my mind long ago. That the King James Bible is the Word of God, nothing else comes close in my opinion.
Some other stuff to read, click here please…..and here’s some books that I personal Recommend, by a missionary that I highly respect:
Please note; I make nothing, if you buy these… I am providing them as a service.
ANSWERING THE MYTHS ON THE BIBLE VERSION DEBATE
THE BIBLE VERSION QUESTION AND ANSWER DATABASE
DYNAMIC EQUIVALENCY: DEATH KNELL OF PURE SCRIPTURE
EXAMINING “THE KING JAMES ONLY CONTROVERSY”
THE GLORIOUS HISTORY OF THE KING JAMES BIBLE
IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF BIBLE TRANSLATORS
THE MODERN BIBLE VERSION HALL OF SHAME
UNHOLY HANDS ON GOD’S HOLY WORD
WHY WE HOLD TO THE KING JAMES BIBLE
I this helps anyone that has any question about this subject. Personally, I think using the Word of God for political purposes or changing God’s Word, is a Sin.
Consider the following please:
(18) For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
(19) And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. – Revelation 22:18-19 KJV
For the record; that is referring to the ENTIRE Bible and not just the Book of Revelation, like some idiots, like the Moron idiots like to say. John was referring the Word itself. Of course, I do not consider mormons to be Christians anyhow. But that is my opinion and if you really believe the Bible is true, it is God’s also.
Update: Here’s Memoramdum’s Roundup of the Story. Even though it’s not scanning me anymore.
A text book example of why Keynesian economics does not work
I have said it a thousand times on this blog. Pumping excessive currency into the money supply results in a devalued currency.
Well, this is the fall out from our President pumping currency into the money supply. Now those who trade oil want to stop using the dollar as their currency.
The Story Via the U.K. Independent:
In the most profound financial change in recent Middle East history, Gulf Arabs are planning – along with China, Russia, Japan and France – to end dollar dealings for oil, moving instead to a basket of currencies including the Japanese yen and Chinese yuan, the euro, gold and a new, unified currency planned for nations in the Gulf Co-operation Council, including Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, Kuwait and Qatar.
Secret meetings have already been held by finance ministers and central bank governors in Russia, China, Japan and Brazil to work on the scheme, which will mean that oil will no longer be priced in dollars.
The plans, confirmed to The Independent by both Gulf Arab and Chinese banking sources in Hong Kong, may help to explain the sudden rise in gold prices, but it also augurs an extraordinary transition from dollar markets within nine years.
The Americans, who are aware the meetings have taken place – although they have not discovered the details – are sure to fight this international cabal which will include hitherto loyal allies Japan and the Gulf Arabs. Against the background to these currency meetings, Sun Bigan, China’s former special envoy to the Middle East, has warned there is a risk of deepening divisions between China and the US over influence and oil in the Middle East. “Bilateral quarrels and clashes are unavoidable,” he told the Asia and Africa Review. “We cannot lower vigilance against hostility in the Middle East over energy interests and security.”
Ron Paul, of whom I have some disagreements on Foreign policy, has said since he was running for President and even prior to that; that what we are doing to our Economy is the moral equivalent of economic Jones-town massacre mass suicide —- and it turns out that the man was and still is absolutely correct.
Of course, the oil traders are denying that this is taking place; but of course! The last thing that they want is a mass panic by market investors!
Via Fox News:
The world’s oil producers will continue using the U.S. dollar as the currency for buying and selling crude, high-ranking oil and finance officials in the Gulf said on Tuesday, denying a report in a British newspaper.
Earlier, The Independent reported that Gulf Arab states, as well as China, Russia, Japan and France, are in secret talks to end the use of the U.S. dollar to trade oil, causing the American currency to fall in overseas trading Tuesday.
Qatar’s oil minister, Kuwait’s finance minister and sources in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi central banks all denied the report.
The Independent report is “absolutely incorrect” and there has been “absolutely nothing” of that nature discussed between Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil exporter, and other countries, Saudi Central Bank Governor Muhammad al-Jasser told reporters in Istanbul.
We did not discuss this at all,” Russia’s deputy finance minister Dmitry Pankin said on the sidelines of International Monetary Fund meeting.
The newspaper report said, “Secret meetings have already been held by finance ministers and central bank governors in Russia, China, Japan and Brazil to work on the scheme, which will mean that oil will no longer be priced in dollars.”
Lew Rockwell‘s Reaction to the story was not entirely surprising at all:
Though conservatives call this important story “Arabs Plot to Drop the Dollar,” it’s simply self-defense. Or are other peoples just supposed to be kicked in the teeth by the Fed and like it? China, Russia, Japan, France, and Gulf Arab states seek to substitute for the dollar in oil transactions a basket of currencies including the yen, the yuan, the euro, and gold. Heroic. I’d like to use that myself. In fact, why isn’t the Fed’s crazed monetary expansion called a plot to harm others and regular Americans, to the benefit of the US state and its bankster and corporate allies? And if it does indicate another step in “The Demise of the Dollar,” all the fault is in Washington, DC–as usual.
UPDATE From Ryan Cowles:
In light of this, see Ron Paul’s 2006 article on Dollar Hegemony
I could not have said it better myself. 🙂
A funny reaction from Vinnie over at the Jawa Report:
Oh well, I’m good. It takes me 3 minutes to drive to work in traffic. If they go off the dollar in the Scotch industry though, I’m taking up arms.
Heh. In my case, if they go off the dollar in steaks or in coffee; it’s on baby. You can ream my butt for Gas… Hell, I usually just put in five or so bucks to get me around town. Considering the fact, that I drive a piece of crap clunker. But we start fiddling around with my caffeine jolt, or my monthly or so splurge on a good steak; there will be war.
Sammy over at Yid with A Lid quips:
But wait a second this cant happen, don’t they know that Barack Obama is our president, they love him.
Yeah, They love him alright; with that knife behind their backs. If ol’ Big “O” thinks because he’s black and got a funny middle name, is going to stop the Arab Nations from royally screwing America. The President has another thing coming. The Arab nations have hated us; for taking their resources for decades, that goes back to before the President; and myself for that matter, were even born. So, the socialist liberals cannot scream BOOOOSH on this one. This even predates him too.
William Jacobson over at Legal Insurrection writes:
I would like to think someone in the Obama administration would be concerned, but honest reflection leads only to the conclusion that the lowering of U.S. international power will be music to Obama’s ears. He never misses an opportunity to lecture the world about the evils of domination by any one country, by which he means the United States.
A fiddler who is not oblivious to the fire, by any means.
So true, I mean, I have followed politics with some sort of interest since I started voting when I was 18 and I never, ever heard a President apologize for America, Ever. In another time period, President Obama would have been impeached for treason for saying something like that in another Country. But in this day of socialistic rule; nothing happens at all.
I guess time will tell on this one; if it happens, the results will be devastating to our economy. Let us home, for the sake of America, that this is nothing more than poorly sourced rumor story.
The Round Up: Fox News, The Moderate Voice, Guardian, Left Coast Rebel, Credit Writedowns, naked capitalism, Another Black Conservative, ParaPundit, Mish’s Global Economic …, YID With LID, RedState, Townhall.com, The Jawa Report, Le·gal In·sur·rec· tion and LewRockwell.com Blog (via Memeorandum)
So much for that Ahmadinejad Jewish roots business!
I wrote about this earlier this week.
Perhaps not:
In June 2005, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s meteoric rise from mayor of Tehran to president of one of the most influential countries in the Middle East took everyone by surprise. One of the main reasons for the astonishment was that so little was known about him.
One recently published claim about his background comes from an article in the Daily Telegraph. Entitled “Mahmoud Ahmadinejad revealed to have Jewish past”, it claims that his family converted to Islam after his birth. The claim is based on a number of arguments, a key one being that his previous surname was Sabourjian which “derives from weaver of the sabour, the name for the Jewish tallit shawl in Persia”.
Professor David Yeroshalmi, author of The Jews of Iran in the 19th century and an expert on Iranian Jewish communities, disputes the validity of this argument. “There is no such meaning for the word ‘sabour’ in any of the Persian Jewish dialects, nor does it mean Jewish prayer shawl in Persian. Also, the name Sabourjian is not a well-known Jewish name,” he stated in a recent interview. In fact, Iranian Jews use the Hebrew word “tzitzit” to describe the Jewish prayer shawl. Yeroshalmi, a scholar at Tel Aviv University’s Center for Iranian Studies, also went on to dispute the article’s findings that the “-jian” ending to the name specifically showed the family had been practising Jews. “This ending is in no way sufficient to judge whether someone has a Jewish background. Many Muslim surnames have the same ending,” he stated.
Upon closer inspection, a completely different interpretation of “Sabourjian” emerges. According to Robert Tait, a Guardian correspondent who travelled to Ahmadinejad’s native village in 2005, the name “derives from thread painter – sabor in Farsi – a once common and humble occupation in the carpet industry in Semnan province, where Aradan is situated”. This is confirmed by Kasra Naji, who also wrote a biography of Ahmadinejad and met his family in his native village. Carpet weaving or colouring carpet threads are not professions associated with Jews in Iran.
via Ahmadinejad has no Jewish roots | Meir Javedanfar | Comment is free | guardian.co.uk.
The short of it is this; him not crazy Jew, Him Crazy Persian! (Not Arab…Persian…)
Others: (on all sides of the aisle…) Reclusive Leftist, Political Insider, Solomonia, Hot Air, The Reality-Based Community, THE WEEK News & Opinion, Ezra Klein, The Reaction, ATTACKERMAN, Power Line and Politics Daily
Living Proof that Socialist Liberals are classless assholes
I have seen classless asshole behavior in my day is a blogger; in fact, I have partaken at times.
But this one takes the farking cake and frosting.
Glenn Beck is pissed, Watch: (H/T HotAir)
What is Glenn referring to? This little gem:
Besides condemning anyone committing the latest “sin” — that is, referring to “illegal immigrants” as, er, “illegal immigrants” — Media Matters‘ “senior fellows” are now devoting their considerable energy and financial resources to one of the pressing issues of our time: whether or not Glenn Beck is lying about the way his mother died.
Like you, I’ve been unable to sleep at night, obsessing about the details of a total stranger’s death by drowning back in 1979.
(If only Media Matters allotted this much online real estate to another young woman’s untimely watery demise; however, typing “Mary Jo Kopechne” into the Media Matters search function yields only four mentions, all of them chiding conservatives for being so gauche as to mention the name of the young woman who died forty years ago when she was a passenger in a car that Senator Ted Kennedy drove off a bridge.) – Go read the rest Please.
If you really must, go read article by Media Matters that is still on the website; despite the objection of some of the commenters on that site. I mean, when regulars are even telling you, “Hey, this one is a bit over the line“, than obviously you are doing something wrong. If you noticed, I am using TinyURL, because I refuse to give MMFA anymore direct traffic than they are already getting.
I mean, what more proof do we need that socialist liberal media is desperate to steer back the ship and overtake the conversation? These bastards know no bounds at all.
Let me just go on the record saying that David Brock and the entire staff of Media Matters for America deserve to be taken out into a Parking Lot, lined up against a wall and shot dead. Every last damned one of them. They’re bastards, UnAmerican bastards; may they all rot in hell.
Yes, I did say that, and you quote me on it. There is just no excuse for this, at all.
A Review of Glenn Beck’s New Book
An Awesome Review of Glenn Beck’s New Book:
I bought my copy last night, and although I said I’d wait til this morning to start it, I ended up reading the first 18 pages last night. I tweeted from my car “I just bought Arguing with Idiots! WootWoot! I’ll try not to speed on my way home LOL” the book rode in my lap, I wouldn’t even let the cashier put it in a bag, ha! I have been looking forward to this book ever since I read Common Sense. That was a great book too. What a genius concept this one uses! It looks like a textbook on the inside, complete with funny and informative additions to the pages like pictures, quotes, and more. He really packs in the information too, but he does so in a way that ties things up in neat little bows. Brilliant!
I follow Debbie on Twitter. She’s a nice spunky gal, with lots of heart. I suggest you read her blog often.I also suggest that you read the rest of that entry as well.
Well Done, Debbie! 😀
A Necessary Clarification
As I have written on my blog a good number of times, my blog is not at all about me. My Blog is, however, about my take on the current political events of the day. As it is written in my “About Me” section on my Blog, that I am a former so-called “Reagan Democrat,” or a “Blue Dog Democrat” or more simply, a “left of center” type person. However, during my tenure of being a Blogger and Political writer and seeing how I watched how this past election went down; my political philosophy changed. This is still allowed last time I checked. I just felt that the Democratic Party had succumbed to the teachings of identity politics, not to mention all the socialism that is poisoned that party beyond repair. For Clarity’s sake, I essentially came to the same conclusions that Former President Ronald Reagan came to long ago, albeit much later in my life. Thus, one could call me a Conservative. Although, I will be the first to tell you, I am just not quite ready to don my elephant button and become a sworn Republican just yet. For what it is worth; I tend to lean more libertarian on social issues; however when it comes to defense and foreign policy I am quite the “Neo-Con” as those who are isolationist or Anti-Semitic would call me.
Having said all of this, I feel the need to make something very clear. For those of you who read this blog on a daily basis or happen to stop from a reference link or what have you, you know that I am someone who is keenly aware that the War on Terror is a very real issue. I am also aware of the fact that the Islamic-Fascists want to impose a strict form of Islamic law in this Country. Having said all that, I feel the need to make a clarification on where I stand on this issue. The Anti-Islamic-Fascism crowd is divided into two camps —– The first, is quite a noble and intelligent crowd, who know that the Religion of Islam has been hijacked by a group of bloodthirsty killers, who hate America and our way of life; and want to see this Nation destroyed. The second crowd is such that I hate to even waste my time even writing about them. The second crowd area group of people, who personal intellect is that of a primate; they are those who believe that all of those, who practice the religion of Islam and those who are of middle eastern descent , are, in fact, those who want to engage in acts of terrorism.
Let me be clear; I stand with the first noble crowd and not with the second crowd. The second crowd is nothing more than racist bigots, who employ the tactics of the far left in this Country and engage in the practice of collectivism; or as it is commonly known as “Guilt by Association.” This is the same sort of tactic, which was used by the racist bigot Democrats in the south back in the days before the Civil rights act of 1964. Their reasoning was that the entire Negro race was evil and that it must be contained. This was, and still is a flawed mindset. What saddens me greatly is that there are those, who refer to themselves as conservatives that cling to this idiotic mindset. Peradventure that I should say that, these people are no more “Conservative” than I am a damned sworn Marxist.
The reason why I am even writing about this is that I happen to be a user of the social network Twitter, which is quite the marvel of the twenty first century. For those who happen to follow my “tweets” as they are called; know that last night and early this morning, I was engaged in a “Tit for tat” with a group of so-called Conservatives whom, I felt, were engaged in this sort of idiotic mindset. In subsequent conversation with the lot of them, I discovered that I perhaps was a bit early in my judgment of them. For this a greatly apologize. Although, I did block one of them, as she did hurl an undeserved salvo at me and call me a “Liberal.” In some respects, I might just be a liberal, albeit a “Classic Liberal”—- the different there is as wide and deep as the span and depth of the Grand Canyon. I say this because I feel that Religion’s involvement in the Government is quite wrong, however, I do believe that the Government’s involvement is private industry is quite wrong also, not to mention it goes against the strain of what this Nation’s principles were founded upon.
I will end this rather long rambling piece with a dire warning to those who follow me on Twitter. If you follow me and I follow you; and you happen to post something on twitter that I happen to think is racist or bigoted, I will call you on it. I make no apologies for my feelings on this subject. Just to be clear; there is nothing at all wrong with being concerned with the Islamic-Fascism movement, and being one who stands up against the terrorists who want to destroy our country. However, we must not allow ourselves to be overcome with feelings of hate towards the race of people or toward those who practice a form of religion that was simply hijacked by those who are on a political mission to destroy our Country. If we do this, we are no better than those, who wish to destroy us.
My Hero! :)
God I love this woman. She’s tough, strong, and like me; she just does not care. 😛
I witnessed how The New Yorker really bent over for Hollywood. NYC power publicist Steven Rubenstein succeeded in deleting every reference to Paramount’s Brad Grey. Warner Bros and Universal and DreamWorks and William Morris/Endeavor and Summit Entertainment execs and flacks and consultants also had their way with the mag. (They were even laughing about it. When I asked one PR person what it took to convince Tad to take out whole portions of the article, the response was, “I swallowed.”) At Harvey Weinstein’s personal behest, his description of me as a “cunt” became “jerk”. (Then the article would have contained two references to me as a “cunt” in addition to its four uses of “fuck”. Si Newhouse must be so proud…) And so on. Now remember, readers: you, too, can make The New Yorker your buttboy. Just act like a cunt and treat Remnick like a putz and don’t give a fuck.
If she were about 30 years or so younger. I’d ask her hand in marriage! 😛 😀 😆
Obama not happy with General McChrystal
Oy, this is not good.
According to sources close to the administration, Gen McChrystal shocked and angered presidential advisers with the bluntness of a speech given in London last week.
The next day he was summoned to an awkward 25-minute face-to-face meeting on board Air Force One on the tarmac in Copenhagen, where the president had arrived to tout Chicago’s unsuccessful Olympic bid.
Gen James Jones, the national security adviser, yesterday did little to allay the impression the meeting had been awkward.
Asked if the president had told the general to tone down his remarks, he told CBS: “I wasn’t there so I can’t answer that question. But it was an opportunity for them to get to know each other a little bit better. I am sure they exchanged direct views.”
An adviser to the administration said: “People aren’t sure whether McChrystal is being naïve or an upstart. To my mind he doesn’t seem ready for this Washington hard-ball and is just speaking his mind too plainly.”
In London, Gen McChrystal, who heads the 68,000 US troops in Afghanistan as well as the 100,000 Nato forces, flatly rejected proposals to switch to a strategy more reliant on drone missile strikes and special forces operations against al-Qaeda.
He told the Institute of International and Strategic Studies that the formula, which is favoured by Vice-President Joe Biden, would lead to “Chaos-istan”.
When asked whether he would support it, he said: “The short answer is: No.”
He went on to say: “Waiting does not prolong a favorable outcome. This effort will not remain winnable indefinitely, and nor will public support
via Barack Obama furious at General Stanley McChrystal speech on Afghanistan – Telegraph.
I’m with Jimmie over at the Sundries Shack; If I were serving in the Military right now and I were in the Afghan Theater. I would be just a wee bit worried.
GrayHawk over at Mudville Gazette says:
Seriously, I can think of several alternatives to General McChrystal’s plan for carrying out the administration’s Afghan strategy, but certainly none I’d want my name associated with in any way, shape, or form. In D.C., no one in the administration (or the Pentagon) is willing to have their name associated with any alternative plan, but apparently many are willing to whisper to reporters that there is one and Biden thinks it’s great.
Just something to think about.
Oh Yeah,this is not going to end well, at all. Kind of like watching a train wreak. You hate to look; but curiosity just will not let you look away.
My Prediction: General McChrystal will tell ol’ big ears Bambi, to puff a damn root and will resign, which will leave the President and his staff twisting in the wind; let THEM be responsible for one of the biggest screw ups, since Vietnam. I mean, seriously, would you want this whole debacle on your shoulders, and have on your conscience the lives of all those men; because the President is more interested in making himself look good; than he is actually interested in being the commander in chief? I think not.
Others Covering: JustOneMinute, American Spectator, And So it Goes in Shreveport, protein wisdom, Flopping Aces and Weasel Zippers (Via Memeorandum)
