Attack On Iran Would Have "Disastrous Consequences"
Three former United States Generals have published a letter in Britain's Sunday Times newspaper, warning of the consequences of military action against Iran.
The drumbeat for war with Iran is growing, and the war hawks may soon have their way, ushering in an age of greater destruction and instability - not only for the middle east, but for the world.
BBC reports that "Three former high-ranking American military officers have warned against any military attack on Iran."
Lt Gen Robert Gard, Gen Joseph Hoar, and Vice Adm Jack Shanahan wrote that diplomatic measures "would serve the interests of the US and the UK and potentially could enhance regional and international security," and warned that military force against Iran could result in "disastrous consequences".
But will the suggestions of these former Generals cause the hawks in Washington, London or Jerusalem to reconsider their plans for the new Armageddon? Or will they fall on deaf ears?
A war with Iran now seems inevitable, maybe only months or even weeks away. One can hope something can be done to change this, but as pointed out in the video below by MSNBC's Keith Olbermann, the rhetoric President Bush is using to describe Iran, is eerily similar to the rhetoric the President used shortly before the invasion of Iraq.
FOX News (?) pundits have been caught proclaiming that an Iran attack would not be a bomb and run expedition but a full ground invasion, like Iraq was and is.
If a war with Iran is indeed inevitable one has to consider where the troops and resources will come from. In reality the United States never did have enough troops in Iraq, so in reality where would troops for an Iran invasion come from?
A draft? How would the young people of American, already so thoroughly disgusted with the war and with George W. Bush react to a draft? My guess (as an elder of 25), is with anger and noncompliance.
Hypothetically, let's imagine the United States invades Iran, either under the context that Iran is building "the bomb" or Iran is funding/arming insurgents in Iraq.
What will the President say then? "Trust us, we are right this time. I know we were wrong about the WMD's in Iraq -- but that was then, this is now, this is the real bogeyman I have been telling you about, the real threat to liberty and democracy, I found 'em, and we gonna smoke 'em out, this time I promise."
I certainly don't trust Ahmadinejad and what his aspirations may or may not be. But I certainly don't trust Bush either.
It is not that I don't "have the stomach" for war, because I do. But I don't have the stomach for any more wars based on loose intelligence. What I really feel like I don't have enough of for the war is money. War is expensive for most and lucrative for a few.
I am not convinced a war with Iran would in any way benefit the United States. I see where it benefits Israel, I see where it benefits terrorist and defense contractors, but I don't see where it benefits the United States or anyone else in the world.
On the contrary it is likely a war with Iran will strain or eliminate or tedious relationship with the former Iran exiles who now run Iraq's government and further contribute to instability and bloodshed in the region.
If there were no nuclear weapons in Iran the United States would be in a situation precariously similar to Iraq, the credibility of the United States would be further diminished and our allies would be reconsidering their relationship with us, viewing us as an imperialist force that may be dangerous to the world.
The insurgency that would grip Iran shortly thereafter which would include pro-government militias, foreign fighters and domestic dissidents. All would be fighting each other and all would be fighting the occupying US troops and the endless line of greedy defense contractors eager to "rebuild" Iran.
All of this would be happening, as we were still in Iraq battling an insurgency.
This would leave our country spread even further, economically and militarily, and still our country would be no safer, it would just be more vulnerable.
Friday, February 02, 2007
Let The Spin Begin
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changes (IPCC) has issued an authoritative report which concludes Global Warming exists, is man made and will continue for centuries, and rising sea levels and temperatures will continue even with efforts made to control emissions.
The United Nations IPCC, composed of 2,500 scientists from more than 113 countries also said it was "very likely", meaning more than 90 percent probable, that human activities - primarily the burning of fossil fuels explained most of the warming over the past 50 years.
A PDF summary of the report or a web-cast of the conference is available at The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change website.
The release of the report comes shortly after Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said at a hearing that evidence indicated Bush administration officials had tried to "mislead the public by injecting doubt into the science of global warming." as reported by the Chicago Tribune.
Also making news, the Guardian is reporting that the American Enterprise Institute, an ultra conservative Exxon-Mobil funded lobbying group with close ties to the Bush Administration has offered to pay scientists and Global Warming critics a sum of $10,000 to emphasize shortcomings in the IPCC report.
Liberal Progressive website Think Progress is also reporting that "Prominent global warming deniers, such as Rush Limbaugh and Sen. James Inhofe, have already been downplaying the report and contravening the science."
Which goes to prove that no amount of science can change the mind or mouths of those who are financially or politically motivated to hold to a certain conclusion.
They repeat "there is no such thing as global warming" and it reminds me of the mobsters who repeat "there is no such thing as the mob" and it reaffirms the Nazi belief that if one repeats a lie often enough that people will believe it.
In the coming days and weeks we can expects to see the usual pundits and quasi scientist try to debunk the evidence presented in the IPCC report without offering any real evidence to the contrary.
Those who deny global warming now will in the future be viewed much the same as people who once believed the world was flat, as ignorant, almost inexplicably so.
So now, we sit back and wait for the Spin to begin.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Changes (IPCC) has issued an authoritative report which concludes Global Warming exists, is man made and will continue for centuries, and rising sea levels and temperatures will continue even with efforts made to control emissions.
The United Nations IPCC, composed of 2,500 scientists from more than 113 countries also said it was "very likely", meaning more than 90 percent probable, that human activities - primarily the burning of fossil fuels explained most of the warming over the past 50 years.
A PDF summary of the report or a web-cast of the conference is available at The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change website.
The release of the report comes shortly after Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said at a hearing that evidence indicated Bush administration officials had tried to "mislead the public by injecting doubt into the science of global warming." as reported by the Chicago Tribune.
Also making news, the Guardian is reporting that the American Enterprise Institute, an ultra conservative Exxon-Mobil funded lobbying group with close ties to the Bush Administration has offered to pay scientists and Global Warming critics a sum of $10,000 to emphasize shortcomings in the IPCC report.
Liberal Progressive website Think Progress is also reporting that "Prominent global warming deniers, such as Rush Limbaugh and Sen. James Inhofe, have already been downplaying the report and contravening the science."
Which goes to prove that no amount of science can change the mind or mouths of those who are financially or politically motivated to hold to a certain conclusion.
They repeat "there is no such thing as global warming" and it reminds me of the mobsters who repeat "there is no such thing as the mob" and it reaffirms the Nazi belief that if one repeats a lie often enough that people will believe it.
In the coming days and weeks we can expects to see the usual pundits and quasi scientist try to debunk the evidence presented in the IPCC report without offering any real evidence to the contrary.
Those who deny global warming now will in the future be viewed much the same as people who once believed the world was flat, as ignorant, almost inexplicably so.
So now, we sit back and wait for the Spin to begin.
Monday, January 29, 2007
Israel 'broke US arms deal terms'
BBC reports :
"Israel probably violated the terms of its arms deals with Washington by using US-made cluster bombs in Lebanon last year, a US government report says."
Read more at BBC.Com
BBC reports :
"Israel probably violated the terms of its arms deals with Washington by using US-made cluster bombs in Lebanon last year, a US government report says."
Read more at BBC.Com
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