Category Archives: War Commentary

Political Commentary, War Commentary

The Enemy Has A Strategy

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Do we?

Of course, the White House strategy seems to consist of apologizing to them, and pretending that they aren’t enemies, but just Facebook Friends we haven’t met yet. “Enemy” is a term reserved for American citizens who don’t agree that we should become a bankrupt European social democracy as soon as possible.

[Update a few minutes later]

“Amateur Hour at the State Department.” Thoughts from Claire Berlinski:

I recently interviewed Turkey’s former ambassador to the United States, Faruk Loğoğlu. He is appalled — like many in Turkey — by the soft-headedness of the Obama administration’s diplomacy in this region. He finds Obama’s speeches about his personal warmth toward Islam ludicrous and inappropriate. “Obama can’t play the religious game,” he said. “He should be playing the security game. His policy toward Turkey is a bad imitation of the worst parts of Orientalism.”

It’s not merely the ideological color of the Obama administration’s diplomacy that worries me, but its incompetence. I’ve lately been examining in very close detail the events that led to Turkey’s “No” vote on the Iran sanctions package in the UN. I’ll be writing about this elsewhere, and the details are too complicated to summarize here. But one thing leaps out: our incompetence. How could there have been any ambiguity — and obviously there was — in our communication with Turkey about our negotiating position on the nuclear-fuel-swap deal? How is it possible that Turkey was receiving critically different messages from the White House and the State Department on an issue as significant as the Iranian nuclear program, for God’s sake? It’s inconceivable, but on looking closely at the evidence, it is clear that this is just what happened.

When the State Department spokesman sends a completely inappropriate birthday message to to Ahmadinejad via Twitter, it is, likewise, a symptom of utter amateurism. Apologists for this incident have suggested to me that this wasn’t such a big deal; it was sarcastic, they say, and it wasn’t a diplomatic note or official communiqué. I am guessing that had that Tweet said, “Tomorrow we bomb Iran into rubble,” the same people would have thought it quite a big deal indeed.

Unfortunately, regardless of what happens today, it’s not a problem we can solve for another two years. And it won’t be solved by replacing the president with the current Secretary of State, though that would be a modest improvement.

Media Criticism, Political Commentary, War Commentary

Are Stewart And Colbert Pro-Islamofascist?

36 Comments

…or just ignorant/stupid?

Based on their previous behavior, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.

Why yes, I’m not as impressed with their supposed intelligence and hipness as I’m supposed to be. Why do you ask?

It’s really a shame, too. I liked Cat Stephens in my youth, before he became a murderous misogynist nutcase. Or at least, I liked his music.

[Update a few minutes later]

Just how much sanity was on the Mall yesterday? A crowd estimate.

[Update a while later]

Here’s sample of the sanity on offer. Note the abundance of leftist projection (e.g. fear mongers, tools of corporations). And this is classic:

“[Barack Obama’s] made some progress, but the dude’s got to dig out of a big hole,” said an Obama voter from Maryland. “We need him to do what he asked us to make him do what he said he was going to do in the campaign.”

Got it.

Dude.

Media Criticism, Political Commentary, War Commentary

An Important Point For The Clueless Eric Holder

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…and his defenders:

We have to be careful to analyze our enemies in terms of their circumstances, not ours. An analogous mistake is made by those who claim Guantanamo Bay “causes” terrorism or materially contributes to terrorist recruitment; the jihadists themselves care only about the fact that we are detaining Muslims — they don’t care where, and they don’t have a clue or a care about the differences between military and civilian processes under U.S. law. Good intelligence requires taking the enemy on his own terms, not as we would think or act under the enemy’s circumstances.

This, in the context of whether or not the latest attempt had anything to do with the elections.

Media Criticism, Political Commentary, War Commentary

The Racists At NPR

36 Comments

They’ve fired Juan Williams.

As a commenter notes at Riehl World, apparently there are some things that shouldn’t be considered.

[Update a while later]

This seems related — SF author Elizabeth Moon is shunned by PC SF fans. I think the best response to this is to purchase a book or threeof hers.

[Update a couple minutes later]

A lot more Juan Williams links and thoughts.

[Bumped]

Media Criticism, Political Commentary, War Commentary

Geert Wilders, Western Sages

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…and Islam:

During a March 2009 interview with the Boston Globe’s Jeff Jacoby, Wilders had earlier rejected the notion he “hates Muslims,” while providing a frank characterization of the totalitarian nature of Islam:

I have nothing against the people. I don’t hate Muslims. But Islam is a totalitarian ideology. It rules every aspect of life — economics, family law, whatever. It has religious symbols, it has a God, it has a book — but it’s not a religion. It can be compared with totalitarian ideologies like Communism or fascism. There is no country where Islam is dominant where you have a real democracy, a real separation between church and state. Islam is totally contrary to our values.

By making this latter claim, Wilders shattered a corrosive modern taboo, enforced rigidly and without forgiveness by cultural relativist politicians and government bureaucrats as well as influential “savants” in media, academia, and religion.

But Wilders’ assessment not only comports with scholarly observations made (primarily) before the advent of the postmodern Western scourge of cultural relativism, it is supported by contemporary hard polling data from 2006 -2007, and a more recent follow-up reported February 25, 2009. At present, overwhelming Muslim majorities — i.e., better than two-thirds (see the weighted average calculated here) of a well-conducted survey of the world’s most significant and populous Arab and non-Arab Muslim countries — want these immoderate outcomes: “strict application” of Shari’a, Islamic law, and a global caliphate.

We keep our head in the sand (or in the case of Joy Behar and Whoopie, up our fundament) at our peril.

Media Criticism, Political Commentary, War Commentary

A Declaration Of War

7 Comments

…by the Muslim Brotherhood:

…this is the group that many in the West, some in high positions, are urging to be engaged as a negotiating partner because it is supposedly moderate.

What does he say?

–Arab and Muslim regimes are betraying their people by failing to confront the Muslim’s real enemies, not only Israel but also the United States. Waging jihad against both of these infidels is a commandment of Allah that cannot be disregarded. Governments have no right to stop their people from fighting the United States. “They are disregarding Allah’s commandment to wage jihad for His sake with [their] money and [their] lives, so that Allah’s word will reign supreme” over all non-Muslims.

–All Muslims are required by their religion to fight: “They crucially need to understand that the improvement and change that the [Muslim] nation seeks can only be attained through jihad and sacrifice and by raising a jihadi generation that pursues death just as the enemies pursue life.” Notice that jihad here is not interpreted as so often happens by liars, apologists, and the merely ignorant in the West as spiritual striving. The clear meaning is one of armed struggle.

–The United States is immoral, doomed to collapse, and “experiencing the beginning of its end and is heading towards its demise.”

–Palestinians should back Hamas in overthrowing the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank and unite in waging war on Israel.

To answer his question, no, few others will notice, including the media and the new national security advisor. Because (all together now) Islam is a religion of peace.

One of the stupider questions that the press often asks after a Jihadi attack is whether or not it was Al Qaeda, as though we’re supposed to be relieved to find out that it wasn’t.

[Via Michael Totten]

Education, Media Criticism, Political Commentary, War Commentary

Academics Seduced

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..by radical Islam.

I’m not sure that “seduced” is quite the right word. I agree with Instapundit:

Bending over for tyrants is a major aspect of today’s academic culture, even as the benders-over proclaim their own courage and independence, and demonstrate those by attacking those whom they need not fear, while fearing those whom they do not criticize.

Islamaphobes.

Political Commentary, War Commentary

Imagine My Shock

9 Comments

The first administration attempt to try a Gitmo detainee in civilian court isn’t going well.

[Update a few minutes later]

More here:

Ghailani’s trial was supposed to start Monday. It has been postponed until today to allow the court to resolve the witness issue. If Abebe’s testimony is disallowed, the government will almost certainly appeal, potentially delaying the trial for weeks, if not longer.

Playing with fire like this is no way to prove a point. Maybe the Justice Department will convince the courts to permit the testimony of their crucial witness. Maybe the very talented prosecutors in Manhattan will even figure out a way to convict Ghailani without Abebe’s testimony. But we are intentionally tying our hands behind our backs and running an unnecessarily high risk of acquittal in a case involving a war criminal.

Is there room under the bus for Eric Holder? It’s long past time.