This ain't Hell, but you can see it from here

Category: Foreign Policy

  • Expand the war to end the war

    Rowan Scarborough of the Washington Examiner fuels the anti-Iran debate with more evidence that the Quds Force which President Bush recently designated as a terrorist organization is operating in Iraq;

    One analyst estimates that more than 300 members of al Quds Force, the terrorist arm of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, are operating in southern Iraq. The Revolutionary Guards answer directly to Tehran’s ruling mullahs.

    The intelligence about al Quds comes from an Iranian resistance group, retired Air Force Lt. Gen. Thomas McInerney told The Examiner.

    “They have penetrated into the Tehran system,” McInerney said of the People’s Mujahedin of Iran (MEK). “Everything they have put out has always check out.” He said that despite new U.S.-Iran talks in Baghdad, Quds operations inside Iraq are increasing, not decreasing.

    Army Maj. Rick Lynch, who oversees U.S. troops in an area south of Baghdad, told reporters on Sunday he believes 50 Quds operatives alone are operating in his sector.

    While al Qaeda’s main weapon is the vehicle-borne suicide bomber targeted at civilians, Quds Force specializes in building huge roadside bombs (explosively formed projectiles) primarily designed to kill American troops.

    “The damage to U.S. forces right now is greater from Quds than from al Qaeda,” McInerney said.

    We’ve known since the inception of this war against terror that Iran has been behind every move that’s been made against us. Some Taliban and al Qaeda leaders escaped from Afghanistan into Iran, there is supported evidence that Hussein moved some of his weaponry to Syria and Iran before the US bombs fell. He famously flew his jets to Iran to protect his air force before the Gulf War, it stands to reason he sent more stuff before this war.

    Now we have evidence (but really who needs evidence in war – I ask you) that Iran is physically operating against our interests and against democratic Iraqi interests. So what do we do? Shrug our shoulders and bow to the wishes of the US anti-war crowd? Or do we light up the Iraqi borders between Syria and Iran?

    In the realm of diplomacy, the Europeans, despite the fact that they support sanctions against Iran for their nuclear program, won’t participate out of pure greed. From the Washington Times’ David Sands;

    Among them: EU members Germany and Austria, as well as India, which just signed a major nuclear cooperation agreement with the United States that Mr. Burns had a central role in negotiating, and Turkey.

    Mr. Burns said the United States had not insisted on a “quid pro quo” with India to give up its lucrative oil trade or pipeline projects with Iran. But he said the United States was forcefully telling India and Iran’s other trading partners that Tehran does not represent a good investment or credit risk with a package of U.N. sanctions hanging over its economy.

    “If countries around the world want diplomacy to be the way to resolve problems with Iran, then there has to be a harder-edged diplomacy. There has to be some teeth,” he said.

    And at home, the political wing of radical Islamists (otherwise known as the US Congress) is busy undermining the democratically-elected government of Iraq, says the Washington Post;

    Declaring the government of Iraq “non-functional,” the influential chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee said yesterday that Iraq’s parliament should oust Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and his cabinet if they are unable to forge a political compromise with rival factions in a matter of days.

    “I hope the parliament will vote the Maliki government out of office and will have the wisdom to replace it with a less sectarian and more unifying prime minister and government,” Sen. Carl M. Levin (D-Mich.) said after a three-day trip to Iraq and Jordan.

    I guess it’s much easier to criticize our allies than it is to criticize the enemy. Why doesn’t Levin grow a pair of cojones and announce that Ahmadinijahd is “non-functional”?

    The same goes for the inhuman way that prisoners are treated in Iran. Nearly every week we’re subjected to the lies and scare-mongering of Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib, but what about the treatment of Iranians by their own government?

    My new friend, Kamangir, an Iranian student who toils from the safety of Canada to translate Iranian news sources, report some new tragedy nearly every day. Yesterday, he wrote;

    Mahmoud Moghimi and the brothers Mohammad and Davood Sharei were executed in Saveh, Iran,  despite the controversy surrounding their case. The execution was announced for Monday, but was carried out a day earlier, disrupting their lawyer’s efforts in proceeding with legal actions to stop it. Jahani, the defense lawyer of the executed individuals stated “if they had not executed them before noon, we had gotten the cancellation verdict.

    Two weeks ago, Kamangir translated;

    “The executed individuals have been tortured beforehand”, stated Shiva Nazar Ahari, a human rights’ activist, to Rooz.

    The interview was carried out right before the execution of fifteen individuals, a short while ago. Shiva says “They were arrested more than eighty days ago and fifteen of them are to be executed today. The families do not know if their sons are among the ones to be executed. Whenever they talk about execution, all the parents get excited. To my understanding, the Judiciary is intentionally doing this to hurt the families. That is while according to the Human Rights Law, the detainee’s family must be informed of their whereabouts and health immediately.” 

    Yet, we get to hear the Left whine about our “mistreatment” of the killers and thugs in Guantanamo. I guess because it’s so much easier to cricize someone when you know they won’t retaliate – sissies.

    Where is the NY Times and the Washington Post on these REAL atrocities? Well, when the Islamists finally get themselves a nuclear weapon, I guess all of the pain and suffering in the world will end, won’t it?

  • Lieberman; al Qaeda’s travel agent

    Today’s Wall Street Journal carries a commentary by Joe Lieberman entitiled Al Qaeda’s Travel Agent – it gives me hope that someone, anyone from the Senate recognizes Syria as a threat to the troops in Iraq – instead of someone to whom we can play nice;

    Recently declassified American intelligence reveals just how much al Qaeda in Iraq is dependent for its survival on the support it receives from the broader, global al Qaeda network, and how most of that support flows into Iraq through one country — Syria. Al Qaeda in Iraq is sustained by a transnational network of facilitators and human smugglers, who replenish its supply of suicide bombers — approximately 60 to 80 Islamist extremists, recruited every month from across the Middle East, North Africa and Europe, and sent to meet their al Qaeda handlers in Syria, from where they are taken to Iraq to blow themselves up to kill countless others.

    Although small in number, these foreign fighters are a vital strategic asset to al Qaeda in Iraq, providing it with the essential human ammunition it needs to conduct high-visibility, mass-casualty suicide bombings, such as we saw last week in northern Iraq. In fact, the U.S. military estimates that between 80% and 90% of suicide attacks in Iraq are perpetrated by foreign fighters, making them the deadliest weapon in al Qaeda’s war arsenal. Without them, al Qaeda in Iraq would be critically, perhaps even fatally, weakened.

    That is why we now must focus on disrupting this flow of suicide bombers — and that means focusing on Syria, through which up to 80% of the Iraq-bound extremists transit.

    Even though this old news to anyone has read an article on the Syria-Iran connection, it’s just heartening to hear a politician, any politician involve Syria in a discussion of security in Iraq. Lieberman goes on to point out that, if Syria, particularly Assad was interested in securing the area, it wouldn’t be that hard – if he wanted to, that is;

    Before al Qaeda’s foreign fighters can make their way across the Syrian border into Iraq, however, they must first reach Syria — and the overwhelming majority does so, according to U.S. intelligence estimates, by flying into Damascus International Airport, making the airport the central hub of al Qaeda travel in the Middle East, and the most vulnerable chokepoint in al Qaeda’s war against Iraq and the U.S. in Iraq.

    Syrian President Bashar al Assad cannot seriously claim that he is incapable of exercising effective control over the main airport in his capital city. Syria is a police state, with sprawling domestic intelligence and security services. The notion that al Qaeda recruits are slipping into and through the Damascus airport unbeknownst to the local Mukhabarat is totally unbelievable.

    I’ve always said that it’s ridiculous to expect that Syria couldn’t stop the influx of fighters into Iraq – which is essentially what Pelosi’s trip to make kissy-face Assad last Spring told the world. I wonder if she asked him to tighten airport security (since she has the same access to intelligence that Lieberman has) while she was passing along false peace messages.

    But Lieberman admitting this in public is fairly unique, since no one else in the Senate is brave enough to even mention Syria – in any discussion. Lieberman doesn’t stop there, though. He goes on to outline a course of action for the Senate and the Administration;

    When Congress reconvenes next month, we should set aside whatever differences divide us on Iraq and send a clear and unambiguous message to the Syrian regime, as we did last month to the Iranian regime, that the transit of al Qaeda suicide bombers through Syria on their way to Iraq is completely unacceptable, and it must stop.

    We in the U.S. government should also begin developing a range of options to consider taking against Damascus International, unless the Syrian government takes appropriate action, and soon.

    Imagine that! Barack Obama should take notes – Lieberman is actually threatening our enemies instead of threatening our allies. This could be the dawning of a whole new age.

    Proving the Left still doesn’t get the whole idea of this war, The Carpetbagger Report claims that Lieberman wants to start a “third war” with Syria. Hey, fellas, it’s all the same war. Just like Nixon’s excursions into Cambodia wasn’t opening up a “new front” – it was all a part of fighting the North Vietnamese. This is all part of defeating tyranny and radical Islam in the Middle East.

    And Think Progress’ commenters’ antisemitism is showing.

  • Disparging the vision against tyranny

    In a half-mocking tone, Peter Baker in the Washington Post describes another Bush failure – his failure to end tyranny;

    By the time he arrived in Prague in June for a democracy conference, President Bush was frustrated. He had committed his presidency to working toward the goal of “ending tyranny in our world,” yet the march of freedom seemed stalled. Just as aggravating was the sense that his own government was not committed to his vision.

    As he sat down with opposition leaders from authoritarian societies around the world, he gave voice to his exasperation. “You’re not the only dissident,” Bush told Saad Eddin Ibrahim, a leader in the resistance to Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. “I too am a dissident in Washington. Bureaucracy in the United States does not help change. It seems that Mubarak succeeded in brainwashing them.”

    Baker goes on to blame the failed Bush vision of ending tyranny in the world on bureaucrats in the State Department, Republican candidates for president, even the Vice President.

    But Baker doesn’t blame Democrats – you know, those guys who stood on the roof of Hussein’s palace on the eve of our attack and declared Hussein to be a more honest broker than the President. Those guys who deliver false messages of peace to tyrannts against the advice of the White House, the guys who do their best to keep the Iraqis scared that we’re going to pull out and leave them to their own devices.Those folks that coddle every dictator they can get their puny arms around. Sacrificing the lives and well being of our planet’s citizens for purely political reasons. All for the Bush Derangement Syndrome – sacrificing human lives at the alter of Al Gore’s and John Kerry’s political defeat – such petty, petty little cretins.

    And those career diplomats in the State Department who figure that turmoil in the world is their job security:

    But some officials worry about alienating a friend in a region where Russia is reasserting influence. Assistant Secretary of State Richard A. Boucher has argued for giving Nazarbayev more time to reform. The discord has gotten so personal that rivals have dubbed him Boucherbayev. In an interview, Boucher said those promoting democracy are not responsible for the broader picture. “We have to work on an overall relationship,” he said. “The issue of democracy is not to be able to denounce people. The issue is to make progress.”

    Still, after an invigorating start in 2005, progress has been harder to find. Among those worried about the project is Sharansky, whose book so inspired Bush. “I give him an A for bringing the idea and maybe a C for implementation,” said Sharansky, now chairman of the Adelson Institute for Strategic Studies at the Shalem Center in Israel. “There is a gap between what he says and what the State Department does,” and he is not consistent enough.

    The challenge Bush faced, Sharansky added, was to bring Washington together behind his goal.

    “It didn’t happen,” he said. “And that’s the real tragedy.”

    What a rational person can’t tell these arrogant imbeciles is that those tyrannts who oppress their people don’t respond to kind words and cajolery – that’s why we call them tyrannts. Regimes who hang dissidents in public, threaten the media and the families of dissident students don’t respond to diplomatic gestures. No matter how hard you wish it to be so.

    I’d never thought I’d see the day that the US government wouldn’t stand behind the President on such an essential issue as spreading Democracy and improving conditions for people world wide. Yet, here we are.

  • Politics of the surge

    Bad news for the Democrats is always good news for the country. And the bad news is that the latest strategy in Iraq seems to be working. Even Der Speigel, the German publication and certain writers for the NY Times can’t help but notice that Iraq is a becoming a safer place. And of course the Left is rushing out to blunt the good news and provide al Qaeda, the Democrat Party’s military arm, some hope. from the Washington Examiner;

    Pro-surge analysts contend al Qaeda is on its heels and desperate in the face of a six-month-old U.S. troop reinforcement.

    But Anthony H. Cordesman, a military analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, offered a gloomy assessment.

    “Al Qaeda is far from defeated. It still has major support from some tribes, and significant al Qaeda operating areas exist,” Cordesman said. The struggle against al Qaeda has become perhaps the most important military objective in Iraq. The outcome will likely determine whether warring sects can reconcile and whether U.S. troops can start coming home next year.

    […]

    While the U.S. command has trumpeted the killing and capturing of scores of al Qaeda leaders this summer, Cordesman concluded, “Al Qaeda continues to show considerable resilience in rebuilding its leadership and key cadres.”

    As if to underscore Cordesman’s analysis, al Qaeda struck this week in what may turn out to be its most deadly coordinated attack of the war. Four massive truck bombs exploded in three Iraq villages near the Syrian border. The death toll may reach 500.

    So because the cowards are still able to attack unarmed citizens with massive stocks of home-made explosives, that proves we’re not doing damage to al Qaeda.

    Curt of Flopping Aces illustrates the internals from the latest propaganda poll from CNN;

    Quite curious how in the world CNN can spin a poll where they ask a question of only half a sample and proclaim it proof that America distrusts our military leaders:

    Of course, the reason that Americans can’t trust their military officers (if it were even true) is because they don’t get the news of the war from outlets like CNN. they have to get the truth from sources like Bill Roggio;

    Al Qaeda in Iraq continues to face opposition from Sunni insurgent groups. In the Buhriz district in Diyala province, the 1920s Revolution Brigades assisted Iraqi police in fending off an attack of upwards of 60 al Qaeda fighters. Multinational Forces Iraq identified the Sunni insurgents as the “Baqubah Guardians,” however IraqSlogger reported the al-Ishreen Revolution Brigades (1920s Revolution Brigades) engaged in the fight. Multinational Forces Iraq described the fighting, and notes the coordination between the insurgent group, the local police, and US attack helicopters:

    And you have to red all the way to the bottom of the Examiner story to read;

    “I think that we are within sight of defeating this organization in Iraq if we continue to press, but it will be able to conduct periodic spectacular attacks for a long time to come,” he said. Cordesman conceded that the six-month surge of five U.S. Army brigades and 30,000 extra Iraqi troops in Baghdad “did enable [the coalition] to make some gains against al Qaeda.”

    Most analysts also agree that Anbar province, once the most restive Sunni area in Iraq, has become one of the quietest, as Sunni tribal leaders end an alliance with al Qaeda and join the coalition. Attacks in its two largest cities — Ramadi and Fallujah — are down sharply.

    And outlets like the Washington Post and the Associated Press still call al Qaeda “Sunni insurgents” just in case someone might get the idea that this isn’t a civil war like it was a year ago;

    U.S. troops clashed with suspected Sunni insurgents holed up in a mosque north of Baghdad and launched an air-to-ground Hellfire missile into the structure. One American soldier was killed in the fighting, the military said Friday.

    The soldier was killed and another was wounded when troops stationed at a nearby outpost came under heavy small-arms fire from the Honest Mohammed Mosque late Thursday in Tarmiyah as they targeted about six insurgents who were believed sheltered inside, according to the military.

    And the Washington Post buries on page 18 that there is a coalition taking root among Sunnis, Kurds and some of the Shi’ite factions in Iraq;

    As Iraqi politicians flew north on Thursday to survey the devastation in two villages ruined by bombings, Shiite and Kurdish political leaders in Baghdad announced the formation of a new alliance intended to begin mending the fractured government and defuse the forces behind such violence.

    For weeks, politicians have discussed an alliance among the four leading Shiite and Kurdish parties, with the hope that marginalized Sunni factions would join the coalition. But politicians from the largest Sunni bloc in parliament said they would remain apart from the new group, asserting that the ruling Shiites still have not met their demands for greater participation. The Sunnis’ stance effectively undermines the coalition’s chances of breaking the political gridlock that has frustrated U.S. and Iraqi officials.

    And of course, they blunt the good news with minority opinions where they should find some hope instead;

    “We have lost hope, frankly, that this coalition will be the ideal solution to the strangling political crisis that the country is going through,” said Abdul Kareem Samarrae, a Sunni lawmaker, on al-Hurra television. “We hope that this is a genuine chance to solve those problems, but we think that this is merely a political cover for a government in its last few days or weeks.”

    What the media and the Democrats have disregarded is that the reason the surge is working is because Americans have demonstrated our resolve to the Iraqis – for the last three years iraqis have been reticient about making any real commitment to their own security because of the cut-and-run talk that pours out of the crooked mouths of Demorats and their willing accomplices in the press.

    The surge proves to Iraqis that this President and this administration is committed to the Iraqi people, while the Democrats are committed to their defeat – and the defeat of this nation as well.

  • Hezbollah recruiting in Venezuela

    Just when you think things in Venezuela can’t get more weird, things get more weird. I just ran across this from Jungle Mom at The Jungle Hut;

    If the United States were to attack Iran, the only country ruled by God, we would counter-attack in Latin America and even inside the United States itself. We have the means and we know how to go about it. We will sabotage the transportation of oil from Latin America to the US. You have been warned.

    Sounds like Ahmadinejad! This statement is from Hezbollah Latin America, also known as Hezbollah Venezuela. Signed by Teodoro, called Commander Teodoro. He was a guevarists guerrilla that organized disorder in the Maracaibo region in the past. He was in born Ciudad Bolivar, and was converted to Islam. (Funny how commies convert to Islam!) He is a Chavista.

    Teodoro is running a social experiment among the Guajiros of Venezuela. Anyone who has paid attention to the news of Venezuela will realize that the evangelical missionaries were removed by the government of Chavez and no new religious worker’s visas have been granted for over 2 years.

    While Chavez accuses the North American missionaries of being “spies” and genocide, coercing conversions to Christianity, Chavez proclaims that Shi’ite Iranian “missionaries” are welcome to live and work among the tribes.

    Any anti-American port in a storm. I’d guess it’s to make little suicide bombers that can slip across our borders and blend in a little better than an Arab.

  • Links for a busy day

    I’m a little backed up workwise so I found a bunch of people with my opinion on various subjects – since they all write better than I write, anyway, you’ll enjoy hearing it from them a lot more than if I repeated their thoughts.

    Blackfive reminds us that today is National Airborne Day-so all ya’all nasty Legs give thanks that we sacrificed our leg joints for you.

    The Gentle Cricket and Crotchety Old Bastard discuss the draft (and the Democrats)

    Invincible Armor points and laughs at the New York Legislature’s latest attempt at being everyone’s nanny.

    Israel Matzav tells us that UN troops are scared of actually doing anything to keep peace in Lebanon.

    Todd Anthony at Flopping Aces discusses the consequences of withdrawing from Iraq, and Aunt Agatha at Bloodthirsty Liberal gives us a historical perspective on the withdrawal from Viet Nam.

    Gateway Pundit has round up of links on the Peruvian earthquake.

    Hot Air has all the links you need to find out about Flat Fatima and Her Magic Bullets. (Sounds like a Harry Potter book doesn’t it?)

    And Kamangir, a blog I’ve only recently become acquainted with, has so much good stuff today on the condition of the Iranian people and the utter garbage theey’re subjected to in the way of news everyday, there’s no way I can point to a single post. His blog is so good on the subject, just go and read it all.

    Jeff at Protein Wisdom gets into the spirit of the Dutch clergy.

    Soldier’s Dad, my drinking/smoking buddy from the MilBlog Convention, catches the Iranians in yet another lie.

    Mark Masferrer tells a tale from Cuba that sounds more like a storyline from The Sopranos

    And from Doctor Helen (h/t Ace)- all ya’all men 35 – 44 are most miserable. I’m here to tell ya that by 52 it’ll all be over with. I’m the happiest I’ve ever been – mostly because there are no more teenagers in my house, and because I have friends like my readers.

  • Chavez is suddenly news

    Apparently the newswires finally noticed that Chavez is working to rewrite Venezuelan Constitution this morning;

    President Hugo Chavez called for changes to Venezuela’s constitution Wednesday night, delivering a key address pitching reforms that are expected to allow him to be re-elected indefinitely.
     
    Chavez, speaking to the National Assembly, said the changes affect “less than 10 percent” of the constitution but would bring Venezuela “new horizons for the new era.” Chavez, who is seeking to transform Venezuelan society along socialist lines, denied he wants lifelong power as his opponents allege.

    “They accuse me of making plans to be in power forever or to concentrate power. We know it isn’t like that. It’s power of the people,” Chavez said. “So many lies in the world. I doubt there is any country on this planet with a democracy more alive than the one we enjoy in Venezuela today.

    Since we already know that Chavez rigged his last election and he had Jimmy Carter certify it for him, there’s nothing that can stop him from rigging the next several elections, too. And since he silences his opposition (as he did RCTV) and he has the unerring support of Hollywood’s biggest spaztards, and military support of Iran, we can be sure he’ll continue in perpetuity as the leader of Venezuela como su Tio Fidel. The Devil’s Excrement writes that the government is cracking down even more on the press, accusing them of terrorism against the State.

    Poor Daniel of Venezuela News and Views wrote last night that Chavez’ latest rant (Chavez calls them a cadena which means chain) lasted for hours and since he commands the television stations now, each carried his hours-long cadena – and Venezuelans were forced to go to the internet for news about the earthquake in Peru. Daniel links to Bruni of Cuentos Intrascendentes, who in turn summarizes Chavez’ reform plan;

    The two articles of reform;

    Article 1: All of the power belongs to the People

    Article 2: Hugo Chavez changes his name. He is now called Hugo People

    Somewhere this morning I read that Chavez proposed a mandatory six-hour work day be added to the Constitution. I can’t find the link again (so if anyone else sees it, let me know). It’s just more populist drivel from the little socialist goofball. It’ll give the impression that the unemployment rate in Venezuela has gone down, but there’ll be less money in Venezuelans’ pockets as a result. But more time for them to protest, he’ll find out eventually.

    And of course, no matter how anti-American a foreign dictator gets, you can always find a Democrat to cuddle with them. From Kate at A Columbo-Americana’s Perspective;

    Macon, GA mayor C. Jack Ellis has become enamored with the robolución bolibanana to the point where he sent Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez a letter expressing his solidarity with him. Ellis defends his praise of Chávez citing his “humanitarian efforts.” Humanitarian efforts, eh? I do wonder to what Mayor Ellis might be referring. Is silencing opposing opinions now considered to be a humanitarian act? Or maybe he means putting people on a political blacklist because of the way they voted in the 2004 recall referendum.

    Don’t be surprised when I tell you that C. Jack Ellis is awaiting a legal name change to Hakin Mansour Ellis. From Wikipedia;

    In February 2007, Ellis made headlines by announcing his December 2006 conversion to Islam, including plans to legally change his name to Hakim Mansour Ellis. Ellis, who had previously been a practicing Christian, became a Sunni Muslim during a trip to the west African country of Senegal, saying it was like going “back to [his] roots” — claiming that some West Africans brought to America as slaves practiced Islam.

    Um, C. Jack, buddy, Muslims were the folks who sold African slaves to the Europeans. And now, you want to honor them by claiming that becoming a Muslim is getting back to your roots? Dumbass. More on Ellis from The Foxhole and Right Truth.

    That’s the type of folks that Chavez attracts – the intellectually lazy with a superficial understanding of the world around them. That’s why Chavez’ empty promises have made him so popular – empty promises to empty heads.

    Empty promises like oil to the Caribe for the next century and beyond;

    Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez pledged on Saturday to meet Caribbean nations’ oil needs for years to come, and urged the region to unite and seek greater independence from the U.S.

    Mr. Chavez deepened past pledges to share his country’s oil wealth as he addressed a summit of nations taking part in Venezuela’s Petrocaribe oil initiative, which supplies fuel under preferential terms.

    “If we truly unite .. the grandchildren of our grandchildren will have no energy problems,” Mr. Chavez said. He predicted oil prices will soon hit $100 a barrel but said “the Caribbean shouldn’t have problems this century and beyond.”

    “Venezuela puts this oil wealth at the disposition of our peoples of the Caribbean,” Mr. Chavez said. “It belongs to all of us. We’re going to share it like Christ. .. It will be enough for everyone.”

    He sounds just like all of the other caudillos in Latin American – promises and no substance. 

    And fingers are flying over the $800,000 found in Buenas Aires airport a couple of days ago. According to the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board the story goes like this;

    When customs officials found $800,000 in a suitcase at the Buenos Aires airport 10 days ago, maybe they were surprised. Then again, maybe not. The plane containing the case was chartered by the state-owned Argentine energy company, Enarsa, and was carrying a high-ranking Argentine official and three amigos from the Venezuelan state-owned oil company PdVSA.
    Investigators aren’t sure where the money came from or where it was going. Claudio Uberti of the Argentine Planning Ministry had been on a trip to Caracas, and the PdVSA trio asked to hitch a ride. A Venezuelan businessman on board is said to be the owner of the bag — though even that is unclear. Maybe they’d just seen “The Godfather: Part II,” and were inspired watching Fredo carry the suitcases to Michael in Havana to invest with Hyman Roth.

    The incident has caused an uproar in Argentina, and Mr. Uberti has resigned. The suspicion is that the cash was intended to play a role in October’s presidential election, in which Cristina Fernandez, the wife of President Nestór Kirchner, is the Peronist candidate. Mr. Kirchner has lined up with Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez against the U.S. and market economics, and in return Mr. Chávez has financed the Kirchner government to the tune of more than $5 billion, with $1 billion more pledged last week. Political parties in Peru, Mexico, Colombia, Nicaragua and Ecuador have complained in the past about Mr. Chávez’s meddling in their presidential elections.

    And of course, it’s Bush’s fault;

    Mr. Chávez calls the episode a “U.S. plot,” naturally. But even the Argentine government concedes that it looks bad, claims to know nothing of the money, and wants Venezuela to apologize. Those dictator allies sure can be embarrassing.

    And the Left blogs rush to back Chavez.

    Blogs by Boz has a link summary and reports figuratively (so far) rolling heads.

  • Obama; US forces only “air-raiding” Afghan civilians

    I wonder what was going through Barack Obama’s mind Monday when he decided to declare that US forces in Afghanistan were “air-raiding” Afghan villages.

    “We’ve got to get the job done there,” he said of Afghanistan. “And that requires us to have enough troops so that we’re not just air-raiding villages and killing civilians, which is causing enormous problems there.”

    First of all, I’m not sure “air-raiding” is even a word – I know it’s not a word anyone I’ve ever met would use. It must be one of those pseudo-warrior words that pin heads use to make other pin heads think they might know something about air strikes.

    And if all we’re doing is “air-raiding” villages and homes in Afghanistan, what is the 10th Mountain Division (the Army’s premier light infantry division) doing in Afghanistan? I’ll grant that they have 10th Aviation Brigade for support – but only inasmuch as it aids the infantry battalions with lift and fire missions. 

    I think Obama is just painfully inexperienced in military matters, even more than most Senators. I wonder when the last time he was in Afghanistan, and I wonder where he gets the idea that the US is only “air-raiding” Afghan homes – probably from his equally ignorant staff weinies.

    Now, our air attacks on Serbia – that was problematic, i wonder where he stands on that fiasco?

    I get the distinct impression that Obama thinks he’s getting elected to President based purely on the color of his skin, because he hasn’t really made an effort to learn anything about the job, or the matters involved in being President. From the Washington Examiner;

    The flap comes three weeks after Obama promised that if elected president, he would meet without pre-conditions with the leaders of Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba and North Korea. That pledge was called “irresponsible and frankly naive” by rival Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton.

    Eight days later, eager to rebut Clinton’s charge, Obama said that as president, he might send U.S. troops into Pakistan to fight terrorists not targeted by Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

    “If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won’t act, we will,” he vowed.

    Critics called this overly hawkish, prompting Obama to modulate again the next day by ruling out the use of nuclear weapons to fight terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

    “I think it would be a profound mistake for us to use nuclear weapons in any circumstance,” he told the AP before pausing.

    “Involving civilians,” he added. “Let me scratch that. There’s been no discussion of nuclear weapons. That’s not on the table.”

    That’s the backpedaling of a campaign that’s unprepared to advance their candidate on anything more than his visage. It’s clear to me that the people in Obama’s campaign staff would prefer that he just stand on stage silently while supporters throw money and votes at him. And you know you suck if Hillary Clinton calls you stupid.

    It’s equally clear that Obama never had any intention of doing anything towards cultivating his image as leader – like John Kerry and Al Gore before him, he just felt he deserved to be President and we ought to just give it to him.

    Here’s a candidate that’s obviously a Class I Dullard – when will the media begin to portray him as such? If he were Republican, it’d already be a foregone conclusion.