Friday, December 18, 2015

That sexist Rock & Roll Hall of Shame


Is Jann Wenner one of those gay men that gives gay men a bad name?

In the immediate aftermath of Stonewall, for example, a number of gay men were incredibly sexist and irritating.

And I think of those times when something like today happens.

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (SHAME) announced its inductees for this year.

How many women?

Zero.

Janet Jackson was overlooked, Tori Amos was overlooked.

Women like Carly Simon are still not in the Hall despite being eligible for induction for years now.

Cher is still not in.

And yet not one woman was named.

It's time to ask the real question:  Why does Jann Wenner hate women?



Closing with C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"



Thursday, December 17, 2015. Chaos and violence continue, US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter visits Iraq, and more.



Join in, to the tune of "Gidget Goes Hawaiian" (written by Stanley Styne and Fred Karger, originally sung by James Darren):


It's not the same
Down by the Arabian sea
Since Ash Carter went
South of Turkey

. . .


Follow Carter's travels in the at our web special here:
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  1. Carter today thanked and coined troops serving in Baghdad during the holiday season
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Speaking to the US troops, Carter declared, "This fight has to be fought.  It's for civilization against evil.  It's for America against its enemies. [. . .] We will win.  But we need to win quickly, and that in turn, is on you, your ingenuity."


Carter addresses troops in Baghdad, wishes them a happy holiday and thanks them for all they do
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Secretary Ash Carter (speaking in Baghdad): But whatever you call it, here in Iraq and also in Syria, we have to defeat it, we're going to defeat it, and we're looking for ways to up our game and hasten that demise of ISIL, here in Iraq, also in Syria.  And I should say, by the way, from the nature of our world today, and -- I call it sort of social media terrorism, that even though the parent tumor of ISIL is here in Iraq and Syria, it's like a cancer. It metastasizes around the world.  So, we're combating everywhere else, including at home. And we'll do that, and we have do that, but we have to take out the parent tumor, which is here in Iraq and Syria.  Here in Iraq, we do that by importantly supporting the Iraqi Security Forces. We have to build them, we have to help them be successful, we have to do more than we've been doing, as circumstances arise, and of course, subject to Iraqi approval.  But to help that -- I expect us to be doing more. And I told General MacFarland, we're looking for him to bring us ideas for how we can hasten this.  Now, obviously, a lot of it hinges on the performance of the Iraqis, and we need to help strengthen. But we need to have things that no other contributor can possibly bring.  And there are others around the world, other members of the coalition who can bring things to the fight -- and I'm talking to them about supporting the fight, too, because this has to be what it needs to be, which is a fight of the civilized world against this form of evil.  And since it is good versus evil, and it's the powerful, after all, in the end of day, it's us, the powerful and the many against the few.  We will win. But we need to win quickly, and that in turn, is on you, your ingenuity. And I'm here to help you, and there will be others joining the fight as well, both here in Iraq, and here in Syria.





  1. Today visited troops in Erbil to thank them for the unique capabilities they bring to counter fight
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Secretary Ash Carter (speaking in Erbil): The Kurdish Peshmerga have been exactly what we have been looking for in this whole fight in Iraq and Syria, namely a capable and motivated force that we can enable. I had an opportunity, first and foremost, to meet with our forces here, and by the way, if anybody wonders whether there are boots on the ground in Iraq, there are 3,500 boots on the ground, including some wonderful people here.  And in addition to telling them how much their country appreciates them at holiday time. Of course, our business was to talk about how to enhance our effective -- the effectiveness of the campaign here.  Let me start with the Kurdish side, if I could. I had a very productive meeting with President Barzani. I commended him on some -- a couple of items of recent performance of the Peshmerga. One was the taking of Sinjar, which was important because it separated the Iraqi-Mosul side of the theater from the Syrian-Raqqah side. So that was an important objective and that couldn't have been accomplished without them.  But also, and very timely here in Erbil, there was an attack by ISIL right here in the Kurdish region last night by ISIL -- an intense attack which shows you that ISIL intends -- it certainly showed the people who live here that ISIL intends to strike at them and can strike at them. And it also shows -- showed how effective the Peshmerga were because they repelled the attack. And it showed you especially how effective they were as -- when they were enabled, as they were, by our -- our forces here that advised them, and in particular called in air.  I discussed with President Barzani the future of the campaign, particularly the role that his forces could play in the encirclement and recapture of Mosul, the second-largest city in Iraq, an important objective where we need to help, and he affirmed we would get the help of the Kurdish Peshmerga.




In addition to meeting with US and Kurdish forces, Carter also met with a few officials.



Carter met with Iraqi PM and MinDef to discuss the counter campaign
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THE WASHINGTON POST's Liz Sly Tweeted:







  • Whether or not the proposal is off is unknown.  It is known -- or should have been -- that the US government was aware Haider al-Abadi was already making such statements for public consumption and that he had conveyed this in conversations with US Lt Gen Sean MacFarland before Ash Carter made his now infamous remarks in this month's Senate Armed Services Committee hearing.




    Secretary Ash Carter:  Turning to northern Iraq, Peshmerga units, with the help of U.S. air power and advisers, have retaken the town of Sinjar, cutting the main line of communication between Raqqa and Mosul, the two largest cities under ISIL's control. To move people and supplies, ISIL now must rely on backroads, where we will locate and destroy them. Elsewhere in Iraq, we have about 3,500 troops at six locations in support of Iraqi Security Forces, or ISF. There, we've been providing increased lethal fire and augmenting the existing training, advising, and assisting program. And we're prepared to do more as Iraq shows capability and motivation in the counter-ISIL fight and in resolving its political divisions. After a frustratingly long time, we are starting to see some movement in the operation to re capture Ramadi. Over the past several months, the coalition has provided specialized training and equipment -- including combat engineering techniques like in-stride breaching and bulldozing, and munitions like AT-4 shoulder- fired missiles to stop truck bombs -- to the Iraqi Army and counter-terrorism service units that are now beginning to enter Ramadi neighborhoods from multiple directions. In fact, in the last 24 hours, the ISF retook the Anbar Operations Center on the northern bank of the Euphrates River across from Ramadi's city center. This is an important step, but there is still tough fighting ahead. ISIL has counter-attacked several times, but thus far the ISF has shown resilience. The United States is prepared to assist the Iraqi Army with additional unique capabilities to help them finish the job, including attack helicopters and accompanying advisors, if requested by Prime Minister Abadi.



    We covered the hearing in the Wednesday, December 9th "Iraq snapshot," "Turkey's invasion and occupation of Iraq continues..." and in the Thursday, December 10th "Iraq snapshot" while Mike covered it in "So now attack helicopters" and "What is the plan?," Betty in "Joe Manchin is a sad US Senator," Wally at Rebecca's site with "Who knew Ash Carter was a fan of The Killers?," Ava at Trina's site with "Those shameful senators," Ann with "That posturing and preening Senate Armed Services Committee," Ruth with "Senator Blumenthal misses the point," Kat with "Disgusting 'answer' to the refugee crisis" and Elaine with "Senator Claire McCaskill is a pig."




    In Baghdad, on Wednesday, Carter took questions from the press.



    Q: (inaudible) -- clarification -- (inaudible). When you announced the -- (inaudible) -- last week to the Congress, you put it in the context of the Ramadi fight. Are you saying now that the use of American Apaches to support the Iraqi forces and their (inaudible) advisers -- (inaudible) -- level is -- are steps that are unlikely to happen during the battle of Ramadi and will be perhaps taken up for a future engagement?

    SEC. CARTER: They certainly might be taken up for a future engagement. And I am telling you that it's not either General MacFarland's judgment or the prime minister's judgment that they're needed right now for the completion of the fight in Ramadi. That does not mean that they wouldn't -- they won't make a difference sometime in the future.

    And so, the offer of the United States when circumstances suggest it, and subject to -- always to Iraqi approval, our willingness to do more, including the use of Apache helicopters. So that's the situation.

    (CROSSTALK)

    Q: Mr. Secretary, there is some reluctance among some Iraqis to have a larger U.S. or coalition footprint on the ground here in Iraq. Did you discuss that with either the minister or the prime minister? And what is their assessment of how much more they could accept?

    SEC. CARTER: We didn't discuss specifically, no, numbers. We did discuss the opportunity for the United States to do more. Now, you know, the ways that we uniquely contribute and can uniquely contribute to Iraqi battlefield success is by training Iraqi units, providing air support to Iraqi units, and possibly operating with Iraqi units to advise and do other things like that; not to replace them.

    So I don't think in any case that the numbers were a part of the conversation -- numbers, per se. But I just want to be clear, numbers aside, we were talking about the opportunities that will arise in the future to increase the American contribution to Iraqi success here, and both he and I anticipate that those circumstances will arise as Iraqi troops move north to Mosul, and we're prepared to increase our contribution.




    The US government has Lt Gen Sean MacFarland doing daily meetings in Iraq and they had Secretary of Defense Ash Carter visiting this week.

    The White House still, however, struggles to seriously work on the political aspect.

    Wednesday, December 16th in Baghdad, Carter did remark, "By the way, while I'm rattling on, I should say it's actually a whole-of-government too, because there's a political side to this, right, all these societies. And really importantly for us, there's a law enforcement, homeland security, intelligence, you know, my colleagues around the U.S. government matter in this, as well as everyone. That's a whole government approach."


    That's the only time he noted the political aspect.

    In fairness to Carter, he's the Secretary of Defense, not the Secretary of State.

    But it does underscore the lack of importance the White House has placed on diplomacy.


    Yes, June 19, 2015, US President Barack Obama insisted in public that only a political solution could solve Iraq's various crises.

    But it was just empty lip service as evidenced by the refusal to emphasize diplomacy.


    Repeatedly, Barack has acted as though the answer -- the one and only answer -- was military.


    In keeping with that one-note approach, the US Defense Dept announced today:




    Strikes in Iraq
    Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 11 strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government:
    -- Near Fallujah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL sniper position, an ISIL tunnel, two ISIL heavy machine guns and an ISIL rocket-propelled grenade and wounded an ISIL fighter.
    -- Near Hit, one strike destroyed an ISIL homemade explosives cache.
    -- Near Kirkuk, one strike destroyed an ISIL excavator.
    -- Near Mosul, two strikes struck multiple large ISIL tactical units and three suicide bombers and destroyed 12 ISIL machine guns, 13 ISIL fighting positions, six ISIL vehicles and an ISIL vehicle bomb.
    -- Near Ramadi, four strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL machine gun, three ISIL fighting positions, five ISIL buildings, three ISIL staging areas and an ISIL vehicle bomb.
    -- Near Sinjar, two strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions and an ISIL machine gun.

    Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target.






    Thursday, December 17, 2015

    The reality of ObamaCare

    In "Obamacare enrollment deadline: Fines mount for failure to buy costly, barebones insurance," Kate Randall breaks it down:

    At the same time, Obamacare prepares the way for the privatization of Social Security and Medicare and their transformation into voucher programs, and provides the impetus for an assault on employer-provided health insurance, the means by which about half of all Americans currently receive coverage.


    Remember that THE NATION, THE PROGRESSIVE, DEMOCRACY NOW! and other whore outlets claiming to represent the left pimped ObamaCare.

    They're liars.


    They're whores.

    We all need to remember that.

    Closing with C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot:"


    Tuesday, December 15, 2015.  Chaos and violence continue, Barack Obama delivers a speech on his (military) approach to the Islamic State, Saudi Arabia and others band together to form a new coalition (of fighters), and more.





    Monday, US President Barack Obama gave a speech on the military approach he's leading against the Islamic State.  From the speech, we'll note this:


    This fall, even before the revolting attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, I ordered new actions to intensify our war against ISIL.  These actions, including more firepower and Special Operations forces, are well underway.  This continues to be a difficult fight.  As I said before, ISIL is dug in, including in urban areas, and they hide behind civilians, using defenseless men, women and children as human shields.
    So even as we’re relentless, we have to be smart, targeting ISIL surgically, with precision.  At the same time, our partners on the ground are rooting ISIL out, town by town, neighborhood by neighborhood, block by block.  That is what this campaign is doing.
    We are hitting ISIL harder than ever.  Coalition aircraft -- our fighters, bombers and drones -- have been increasing the pace of airstrikes -- nearly 9,000 as of today.  Last month, in November, we dropped more bombs on ISIL targets than any other month since this campaign started.
    We’re also taking out ISIL leaders, commanders and killers, one by one.  Since this spring, we’ve removed Abu Sayyaf, one of their top leaders; Haji Mutazz, ISIL’s second-in command; Junaid Hussain, a top online recruiter; Mohamed Emwazi, who brutally murdered Americans and others; and in recent weeks, finance chief Abu Saleh; senior extortionist Abu Maryam; and weapons trafficker Abu Rahman al-Tunisi.  The list goes on.
    We’re going after ISIL from their stronghold right down -- right in downtown Raqqa, to Libya, where we took out Abu Nabil, the ISIL leader there.  The point is, ISIL leaders cannot hide.  And our next message to them is simple:  You are next.
    Every day, we destroy as well more of ISIL’s forces -- their fighting positions, bunkers and staging areas; their heavy weapons, bomb-making factories, compounds and training camps.  In many places, ISIL has lost its freedom of maneuver, because they know if they mass their forces, we will wipe them out.  In fact, since the summer, ISIL has not had a single successful major offensive operation on the ground in either Syria or Iraq.  In recent weeks, we’ve unleashed a new wave of strikes on their lifeline, their oil infrastructure, destroying hundreds of their tanker trucks, wells and refineries. And we’re going to keep on hammering those.
    ISIL also continues to lose territory in Iraq.  ISIL had already lost across Kirkuk province and at Tikrit.  More recently, ISIL lost at Sinjar, losing a strategic highway.  ISIL lost at Baiji, with its oil refinery.  We saw the daring raid supported by our Special Forces, which rescued dozens of prisoners from ISIL, and in which Master Sergeant Joshua Wheeler made the ultimate sacrifice.
    So far, ISIL has lost about 40 percent of the populated areas it once controlled in Iraq.  And it will lose more.  Iraqi forces are now fighting their way deeper into Ramadi.  They’re working to encircle Fallujah and cut off ISIL supply routes into Mosul.  Again, these are urban areas where ISIL is entrenched.  Our partners on the ground face a very tough fight ahead, and we’re going to continue to back them up with the support that they need to ultimately clear ISIL from Iraq.  




    One of the things that Barack's long advocated for was a regional force to combat the Islamic State -- Iraq and surrounding countries.


    And, to a degree, that's now happened.


    SPUTNIK reports, "Earlier in the day, Saudi Arabia announced the establishment of a military alliance between 34 predominantly Muslim states to fight terrorism. The joint operation's command center will be based in the Saudi capital of Riyadh."  Along with Barack, this sort of coalition has also been advocated by many members of US Congress -- Democrats and Republicans.  And US Secretary of Defense Ash Carter has spoken in Congressional hearings about his belief that such a force is needed.


    Most recently, he spoke of it in the December 9th Senate Armed Services Committee which we covered  in the Wednesday, December 9th "Iraq snapshot," "Turkey's invasion and occupation of Iraq continues..." and in the Thursday, December 10th "Iraq snapshot" while Mike covered it in "So now attack helicopters" and "What is the plan?," Betty in "Joe Manchin is a sad US Senator," Wally at Rebecca's site with "Who knew Ash Carter was a fan of The Killers?," Ava at Trina's site with "Those shameful senators," Ann with "That posturing and preening Senate Armed Services Committee," Ruth with "Senator Blumenthal misses the point," Kat with "Disgusting 'answer' to the refugee crisis" and Elaine with "Senator Claire McCaskill is a pig."  We'll note this exchange between Carter and Committee Chair John McCain.



    Secretary Ash Carter:  Uh, a couple of things, Mr. Chairman.  First of all, to your main point about, uh-uhm, more American forces -- and I-I-I would say Special Forces but others as well that train, advise and accompany -- they're not Special Forces, we are doing --

    Chair John McCain:  -- I was talking about a multi-national force.

    Secretary Ash Carter:  There, Mr. Chairman, I-uh-uh, as I indicated, I too wish that particularly the Sunni Arab nations of the Gulf would do more.  And going way back --

    Chair John McCain:  They are willing to do so --

    Secretary Ash Carter (Con't):  -- to -- I've --

    Chair John McCain (Con't):  -- if there's a large commitment.

    Secretary Ash Cater (Con't):  -- I've had -- I've had lengthy conversations --

    Chair John McCain:  And so have I.

    Secretary Ash Carter (Con't):  -- with representatives there.  Well I-I-I-I have to say that, uhm, I have, uh, consistently emphasized to them that they have a unique role here and, uh, also so far as they're concerned about Iran which is another concern that they have -- by the way, that we have also -- a totally different but, uh, serious subject also.  Uh, that, uh, what I've emphasized to them is that we don't like it but the Iranians are in the game on the ground.  And I very much would like -- we would very much welcome -- we have repeatedly said this -- working with those countries on the ground because we believe as you noted that they, uh, would have a distinct advantage in a ground fight.  



    On this new force, Saudi Arabi's official news agency, SAUDI PRESS AGENCY, issued the following:


    Riyadh, Rabi'I 04, 1437, December 15, 2015, SPA -- A joint statement on the formation of an Islamic military alliance to fight terrorism has been issued. It reads as follows:

    In the name of Allah, the Merciful,

    Praise be to Allah and peace be upon Muhammad, the messenger of Allah,

    Based on the Lord's guidance in the Holy Quran: (And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression), and on the teachings of the Islamic Shari'a and provisions that reject terrorism in all its forms and manifestations because it is a heinous crime and injustice rejected by all heavenly religions and human instinct.

    Since terrorism and its atrocities - which spread Shari'a-forbidden corruption and destruction in the world - constitute a serious violation of human dignity and rights, especially the right to life and the right to security, and subject the interests of countries and communities to danger and threaten their stability; and acts of corruption and terrorism cannot be justified in any way, and hence it should be fought by all means and collaboration should be made to eliminate it because this is cooperation in righteousness and piety,

    Affirming the principles and objectives of the charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, which calls for member states to cooperate to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and rejects all justifications and excuses for terrorism,

    Achieving integration, closing ranks and uniting efforts to combat terrorism, which violates the sanctity of people's lives, threatens regional and international security and peace, poses a threat to the vital interests of the nation and undermines coexistence in it,

    Committed to the provisions contained in the United Nations' Charter, the charter of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation and other international conventions aimed at the eradication of terrorism,

    Affirming the right of states to self-defense in accordance with the purposes and principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations and on the basis of the provisions of the OIC Convention on Combating Terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and the elimination of its objectives and its causes,

    Performing the duty to protect the nation from the evils of all armed groups and terrorist organizations - whatever their doctrine or title - which spread killing and corruption in the world and are designed to terrorize the innocent[.]

    But before anyone could do a victory lap or take a bow, ALSUMARIA was reporting that the Chair of Iraq's Security and Defense Committee in Parliament, Hakim al-Zamili, was denouncing the new force and insisting that it did not represent Islam. al-Zamili is a member of the movement led by Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr. Pakistan's NEWS INTERNATIONAL offers coverage of other countries not participating:


    The list did not include Shia Muslim Iran, the arch-rival of Sunni Saudi Arabia for influence across the Arab world. Tehran and Riyadh are ranged on opposite sides in proxy conflicts in Syria and Yemen.
    Notably absent from the list is Oman, a neighbour of Saudi Arabia. In recent years, Oman has maintained a neutral role and has emerged as a mediator in regional conflicts, serving as a conduit from the Gulf Arabs to Iran.

    Iraq and Syria, whose forces are battling to regain territory taken by ISIL and whose governments are allied with Iran, are not in the coalition.


    While there was no time for a victory lap, there was time for a limited critique.  Howard LaFranchi (CHRISTIAN SCIENCE MONITOR) weighs in with:




    Yet as encouraging as the new coalition and the rhetoric around it may sound, the effort may end up as little more than window dressing. The announcement may be aimed at assuaging a world that after the Paris and San Bernardino attacks is demanding action by Muslims against the rising Islamist terrorist threat, some terrorism analysts say.
    “The Saudis are under a lot of pressure, for what they’re doing in Yemen, from the accusations that they’re spreading Wahhabi ideology, and for what they are not doing on the military side of the US-led coalition to defeat ISIS in Syria and Iraq. So I can see that this would have some propaganda value for them,” says Aaron David Miller, a former US diplomat in Middle Eastern affairs who is now a vice president at the Woodrow Wilson International Center in Washington.
    That is one aspect to criticize.
    Another one, a better one, might be that yet again the focus is on military.
    That's not how you defeat the Islamic State.
    As Richard Spencer, Ben Farmer and Louisa Loveluck (TELEGRAPH OF LONDON) observe today, "A 16-month bombing campaign led by the United States has failed to crush Isil and military planners say victory will require the assistance of a unified ground force that can hold territory and progress under cover of air strikes."
    Today, the US Defense Dept announced:

    Strikes in Iraq
    Fighter and bomber aircraft conducted eight strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:
    -- Near Huwayjah, a strike struck an ISIL vehicle bomb factory.
    -- Near Ramadi, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, denied ISIL access to terrain, and destroyed three ISIL light machine guns, an ISIL heavy machine gun, four ISIL fighting positions, and an ISIL staging area.
    -- Near Sinjar, three strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units, halted an ISIL vehicle’s movement, and destroyed three ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL heavy machine gun, and an ISIL light machine gun.
    Task force officials define a strike as one or more kinetic events that occur in roughly the same geographic location to produce a single, sometimes cumulative, effect. Therefore, officials explained, a single aircraft delivering a single weapon against a lone ISIL vehicle is one strike, but so is multiple aircraft delivering dozens of weapons against buildings, vehicles and weapon systems in a compound, for example, having the cumulative effect of making those targets harder or impossible for ISIL to use. Accordingly, officials said, they do not report the number or type of aircraft employed in a strike, the number of munitions dropped in each strike, or the number of individual munition impact points against a target.
    These bombings have been going on since August 2014.
    They have not defeated the Islamic State.
    Nor can they.
    You destroy the Islamic State by destroying that which gives it power and legitimacy.
    Before the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq, there was the long persecution of the Sunnis.
    Instead of addressing this, the White House has looked the other way, some argue, or encouraged it.
    Ned Parker (REUTERS) has a major report on abuses in Iraq carried out by Shi'ite militias and officials and the US government's long role in concealing that abuse and looking the other way:



    The documents show how Washington, seeking to defeat Sunni jihadists and stabilise Iraq, has consistently overlooked excesses by Shi’ite militias sponsored by the Iraqi government. The administrations of George W. Bush and Barack Obama have both worked with Badr and its powerful leader, Hadi al-Amiri, whom many Sunnis continue to accuse of human rights abuses.
    Washington’s policy of expediency has achieved some of its short-term aims. But in allowing the Shi’ite militias to run amok against their Sunni foes, Washington has fueled the Shia-Sunni sectarian divide that is tearing Iraq apart.
    The decade-old U.S. investigation of the secret prison implicates officials and political groups in a wave of sectarian killings that helped ignite a civil war. It also draws worrying parallels to the U.S. government’s muted response today to alleged abuses committed in the name of fighting Islamic State.
    Those accused of running the secret prison or of helping cover up its existence include the current head of the Iraqi judiciary, Midhat Mahmoud, Transport Minister, Bayan Jabr, and a long revered Badr commander popularly referred to as Engineer Ahmed.

     


    There is no political solution in Iraq because the US government doesn't demand it.
    This despite Barack declaring, June 19, 2014, that the only answer to Iraq's political crises was a political solution.
    No efforts are made at diplomacy, no efforts are made to stop the persecution of the Sunnis.
    And not only does the White House fail, so does the alleged peace movement.

  • American invasion of led to rise of ISIS and now candidates want to invade again with troops on the ground
  • A bunch of blowhards -- of any political party -- gather on stage and that's the big issue?
    For CODESTINK it is.
    At least, it is if the blowhards are Republicans.
    The failure to protect the Sunni people isn't an issue for CODESTINK.
    But they will whore and spin for the Democratic Party while pretending they're about peace.
    They will distract from the very real problems to whore for a political party.














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