American Empire Ends at Durand Line

Evidence of the strain facing America’s cold war-trained bureaucrats now appears regularly as the contradictions deepen. Defense Secretary Robert Gates crossed his own personal zero line in an address to the National Defense University in February when he criticized Europe’s growing anti-war sentiment as a dangerous threat to peace. The Obama administration rails at the Karzai government’s corruption but denies it the guidance and expertise necessary to make it effective at governance. The U.S. then diverts power and money to regional tribal leaders whom many fear (including U.S. Ambassador Karl Eikenberry) will simply become a new class of warlord, once the U.S. departs.

Since January 2009, U.S. Predator Drone strikes are reported to have killed at least 529 people in the tribal areas of Pakistan of whom 20 percent may have been civilians. Considered to be a clear violation of international law by American legal scholars, the cross border strikes inflame Pakistani opinion against the U.S. Yet, the Pentagon praises their new anti-terror weapon while at the same time continuing to deny that the program even exists.

As the Obama administration struggles to reconcile Washington’s special interests with those posed by Iran, Pakistan, India, China and Russia, it should be remembered that the Soviet Union faced a similar challenge in Afghanistan. But in the end the biggest enemy the Soviets faced was not the Stinger missiles or the disunited Mujahideen Jihadis. The Soviet Union’s biggest enemy was the archaic cold war structure of the Soviet system itself, and that is a lesson that Washington refuses to accept.

The United States has fought on both the Pakistani and Afghan sides of the Durand line. In the 1980s it fought on the side of extremist-political Islam. Since September 11, 2001 it has fought against it. But the border separating the two seemingly incompatible behaviors remains largely a dark mystery. It is therefore appropriate to think of Zero line as the vanishing point for the American empire, the point beyond which its power and influence disappears; the line where 60 year’s worth of American policy in Eurasia confronts itself and ceases to exist. The Durand line separating the two countries is visible on a map. Zero line is not.
Sibel Edmonds, Boiling Frogs

Rev Franklin Graham Warns POTUS Imposing Sharia

Evangelical leader Rev. Franklin Graham issued his toughest remarks yet Monday on the administration's role in revoking his invitation to speak at the Pentagon's National Day of Prayer event, charging that President Obama is "giving Islam a pass" rather than speaking openly about the "horrific" treatment women and minorities receive in many Muslim countries.
In an exclusive telephone interview with Newsmax.TV, Graham called revoking his invitation to the prayer service "a slap at all evangelical Christians."

And he clearly placed the blame on the Obama administration, telling Newsmax that the Pentagon would never revoke such an invitation without first consulting with the White House.

"I'm being restricted from my religious rights, and from what I believe," Graham warned, as he complained of a growing “secularization” in the government.

He also warned Christians of “coming” persecution for believing in Jesus Christ.
Atlas Shrugs

Less Engagement with POTUS, Please!

Bibi is a different story. Here the deliberate and sustained assault (from the fit over Jerusalem housing to the threats of an imposed peace plan and an abstention in the UN Security Council) suggests that more than personal ire or irritation is at play. Here Obama plainly intends — he’s told us as much — a change in American policy. The charm offensive is meant to quiet domestic Jewish opinion, not to repair or moderate its stance toward the Jewish state.

Diehl argues that a personal failing on Obama’s part is at the root of these conflicts. (”Public bullying won’t do it. Assurances of U.S. support and stroking by special envoys go only so far. What’s missing is personal chemistry and confidence, the construction of a bond between leaders that can persuade a U.S. ally to take a risk; in other words, presidential ‘engagement.’ Isn’t that what Obama promised?”) But with regard to Israel, there is something far more fundamental at issue. Despite the PR offensive, Obama’s goal is not to re-establish a more robust relationship with the Jewish state; it is merely to mask the animus that bubbled to the surface over the past two months. It is not through neglect that relations with Israel have been strained — it is by design. We therefore should not expect that increased presidential attention will result in an improved U.S.-Israel relationship. Frankly, the more Obama focuses on Israel, the more damage to the relationship is likely to occur. At this point, benign neglect would be a welcome development.

I'm with Jennifer on this. The less we see of Obama here, the happier we will all be.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem

Want to make President Obama's life miserable by buying a home in 'east' Jerusalem, Judea or Samaria? Here's how:

Jerusalem activist Aryeh King has launched the Israel Land Fund website (israellandfund.com) to keep the Land of Israel in Jewish hands. The new website offers properties and dwellings for sale in Eastern Jerusalem, Jaffa, the Galilee, Judea and Samaria and other locations.

According to the site "It is a fact. Israel has been confirmed the fastest growing real-estate market in the world. In a period of uncertainty, and economic weakness, one thing is assured - the value of property in Israel will prosper. What started more than 130 years ago continues today through the Israel Land Fund – that all Jews own a piece of Israel. The Israel Land Fund allows you to fulfill a religious obligation, share a dream and realize a vision. Join us today and watch as both the spiritual and physical benefits of possessing a stake in the land, keep on rising."

Or just click here.

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 10:26 PM






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* London police raided a hotel to arrest Livni (this site)
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* What 'everyone knows' about Jerusalem (this site)

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1 Comments:

At 11:14 PM, Blogger NormanF said...

Jews can begin illegally building in east Jerusalem. The state cannot even stop illegal Arab building on that side of the city. It might be in Netanyahu's interest to just order the government to turn a blind eye to unauthorized Jewish construction and plead ignorance or lack of means to stop it to Obama.


About Me

Name: Carl in Jerusalem
Location: Jerusalem, Israel

I am an Orthodox Jew - some would even call me 'ultra-Orthodox.' Born in Boston, I was a corporate and securities attorney in New York City for seven years before making aliya to Israel in 1991 (I don't look it but I really am that old :-). I have been happily married to the same woman for twenty-eight years, and we have eight children (bli ayin hara) ranging in age from 5 to 26 years and three grandchildren. Our eldest daughter and eldest son are married! Before I started blogging I was a heavy contributor on a number of email lists and ran an email list called the Matzav from 2000-2004. You can contact me at: IsraelMatzav at gmail dot com

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Maryland May Adopt Version of AZ SB1070

If Delegate Pat McDonough has any say in it the free ride that illegal aliens have been having in Maryland is over. McDonough, a fierce fighter for the residents of his state, plans to introduce a similar bill to SB1070 that was recently passed and made law in Arizona. The law allows state and local law enforcement to conduct immigration checks if someone stopped during a normal law enforcement action is suspected of being an illegal alien.

McDonough plans to introduce the legislation in the 2011 Maryland General Assembly session and has said that he has invited state representative Russell Pearce, the main force behind the Arizona law, to speak at a future event.

Go Maryland. Go McDonough!

Tipped by: Inside Charm City

by Digger

Wall Street Journal Using FOX TACTICS

Washington has never been held in lower esteem by Americans than it is today. Yet those in control of Washington—President Obama and congressional Democrats—are bent on enacting a series of sweeping domestic policy changes this year that have one thing in common: They are unpopular, in whole or in part.

This is unprecedented and a bit weird too. A revival of civility and an end to the ugly political polarization in Washington—goals stressed by Mr. Obama in his presidential campaign and again last Saturday in a speech at the University of Michigan—won't be furthered by passage of an unpopular agenda. A more likely result is years of partisan resentment and bitter fighting over efforts by Republicans to repeal the unwanted policies.

Fred Barnes, WSJ

The GOP strategy begins by obstructing or killing every part of the Democratic agenda. The Republicans rarely promote their own legislation. Any display of bipartisanship is a ruse meant to delay proceedings. They dismiss public sentiment or support for a measure arguing that the Tea Party beliefs are a better guide for policy makers. Since they advance no complete agenda, they waste legislative time to defeat measures through extended rancor.

The Republican tactics are beginning to unwind. They leave them with nothing to run on during the 2010 mid-terms.

Bush Administration waited till 9/18/08 to Alert Congress

In little-noticed statements to reporters over the last few weeks, Pelosi has alleged that the Bush administration knew well in advance of its intervention that the financial crisis would hit, and that Congress would need to authorize a historic and unpopular bailout - but that top officials, including then-Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, told her that they had been barred from briefing Congress about true extent of the crisis.

If accurate, the allegation could constitute a major indictment of the Bush administration, which may have worsened the crisis and resulting economic fallout by delaying the call for congressional action. Pelosi says the admissions from Bush administration officials that they had kept Congress in the dark came in private conversations between her and those officials in person and by phone. None of the other parties to those conversations would comment for this story. Nor is it clear if the Administration's alleged decision not to brief Congress earlier was a calculated strategy to avoid spooking the already shaky financial markets thus hastening the crisis or, as Pelosi suggests, a political calculation in advance of the 2008 presidential elections, or a combination of the two.

During her weekly press conference on April 15, a reporter asked Pelosi a seemingly innocuous question about taxes. Pelosi prefaced her response with a fairly standard litany: explaining the dire state of the U.S. economy inherited by President Obama and setting the blame at the foot of the Bush administration. But she also added this: "When [then-Senator Obama] accepted the nomination in Colorado, the [Bush] Administration had kept from the public the idea that, in a matter of weeks, the financial community would be in crisis, and we would need to pass the TARP legislation."

Brian Beutler, TPM EXCLUSIVE