"The Iraqi government has officially confirmed a cooperation with Syria, Iran and Russia to secure the Syrian-Iraqi border. According to the Iraqi Interior Ministry, there is a cooperation between the four countries on this issue. The Iraqi media also reported refering Iraqi officials that Iraq and its allies will not allow establishing of any “buffer zone” between two countries." South Front
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Well, pilgrims, this is some really bad news for the "US led coalition."
1. The US has struggled since the invasion and occupation of Iraq to make the country a reliable ally in its wars against regional actors in the ME. One can debate endlessly what the causes were for these wars. The "oilies" and other economic determinists have their explanation. The Zionist conspiracy fans have theirs. The "demonic forces" people (me) have ours. The MIC crowd have theirs. But, no matter what your explanation the reality of the long military COIN, financial and political struggle cannot be seriously doubted. If you think it was somehow not a real struggle look at the pictures of men with metal, robotic looking legs in the ads for various wounded veterans' aid groups.
2. The present government of the US along with its European allies is now continuing to struggle to help its painfully clumsy Iraqi government ally to capture Mosul against rather small but incredible determined Sunni Muslim fanatics who, in the main, would rather be dead than live in the Western mindset of the 21st Century.
3. A while back Mattis and Kushner went to Baghdad to see Al-Abadi, the "moderate" Shia Arab prime minister. One must imagine that at least part of the message was an exhortation to "get your act together." And a few days ago the Iraqi Shia population was treated to the spectacle of President Trump not only being "appointed" mukhtar in America but then his further denunciation of Iran the foremost Shia power center. The Sunni princeling lounging in a chair behind Trump watched him IMO as a cat watches a bird. One can only imagine the conversation among the potentates and dictators in that room after the mukhtar had finished his obeisance.
4. Iraq, Russia, Syria and Iran are now proclaimed to be allies by the Iraqi Interior Minister (police and police troops)The US with its encrusted neocon, ziocon and R2P Borg blew the last 15 years in the Islamic World and we are obviously invincibly ignorant and determined to remain so. pl
"My suspicion is, it won't be easy to sort out neocons/ziocons short of some type of inquisition given the length of time post 1945. Or to what extend the American narrative is necessarily entangled with the neocon/zionist one."
Actually. it would very easy since they self select and publicly parade themselves around in the media(thank God for good old human vanity). Only need to get the top thousand to turn the page on their current reign of error.
"After all I am not a native speaker."
Hats off to your english teacher since you rarely make a mistake, though whoever it was did you, a Catholic girl from the Black Forest region, a disservice by not translating Pharisee. That is if what you have said here through the years is true.
Posted by: Thomas | 26 May 2017 at 04:16 PM
Interesting allusion, David. Incidentally I was pretty fascinated by Restoration Drama and it's larger theater, actors and staging context. You may realize why. But I am not more then vaguely aware of George Farquhar after all these years.
Your reference to the Battle of Blenheim makes a lot of sense. ;)
Posted by: LeaNder | 27 May 2017 at 08:26 AM
Pat, I simply wanted to challenge the statement, not necessarily the gender gap concerning strength. Triggered a chain of associations, admittedly. ;)
Strictly, the British series made me wonder about medics in the army more generally. Besides, I did not necessarily expect the TV series to show the real British army. Obviously I wondered to what extend the Zeitgeist discussed here too influenced the story. But I like to watch other European productions.
And yes, obviously I wonder about the genesis of series from idea to script. ;)
Posted by: LeaNder | 27 May 2017 at 09:54 AM
LeaNder
I have no objection to having women in the armed forces so long as they are no forced into roles for which individuals of either sex are not suited by virtue of personality or physical strength. All are not equally qualified. As TTG a few others here have said, One must have tried to put up a wet, general purpose medium tent to fully understand what I am talking about. pl
Posted by: turcopolier | 27 May 2017 at 11:02 AM
Please no "hats off" to my English teacher, Thomas. Would you be so kind?
He successfully chased me out of the language branch. We distinctively disliked each other. I had to shift to the natural science branch, more precisely physics instead of English. My math and physics teacher on the other hand, liked me.
My English teacher on the other hand also successfully managed to kick me out of school frequently before for one or two weeks at a time. Started with me not wearing a skirt in summer, which was the rule for girls. Seems there may have been a specific day he waited in his office overseeing incoming students, and all other girls obeyed or knew the rule.
I had always had preferred trousers. That's how our troubles started. Sure, I had heard about this rule during his 'new school year address' some time before. But fact is, I simply had no skirts when I arrived at the school. It's that easy. I guess, I didn't even alert my mother to the problem. I simply did not take it serious.
Posted by: LeaNder | 27 May 2017 at 02:19 PM
Col Lang
Could you expand on McMaster and "Falling On One's Sword" and "Drinking The Coolaid". I wonder if he thinks he must stay on Team Trump to prevent a greater disaster vs leaving and preserving his honor.
Posted by: dilbert dogbert | 27 May 2017 at 10:50 PM