"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
pardon my ignorance, but i am very familyar with all the groups you mentioned other than the “The “demonic forces” people (me) have ours.”
the quote make me assume you are not being literal in the sense that you blame the devil or satan, would you mind pointing me towards what ever this position is?
A Sunni NATO? Oh dear…one can’t help but feel a certain foreboding, like there’s a Waterloo (Wadi-loo?) in someone’s future.
It seems the Status Quo is nothing to ‘quo’ about!
paul
Whichever Paul your are, IMO mankind is driven by dark forces of a self destructive nature. Its a Nietzsche thing, you need not worry over it. pl
Touché! LOL 😉
The cause of human suffering, as explained in Buddhist terms, is greed, anger and ignorance
“Ignorance, the root and stem of all evil.” – Plato
I think you have to include misogynists. I’m completely serious.
Excerpts from Mohamed Atta’s instructions for his burial:
“I don’t want a pregnant woman or a person who is not clean to come and say good-bye to me because I don’t approve it.
I don’t want women to come to my house to apologize for my death.
The person who will wash my body near my genitals must wear gloves on his hands so he won’t touch my genitals.
I don’t want any women to go to my grave at all during my funeral or on any occasion thereafter.”
This is a diseased mind talking.
I think that misogyny is a thread running through all strict ME religions including strict Roman Catholicism and strict Judaism. I wonder if it is easier to bomb the World Trade Center or a nearly all girl crowd at a Manchester theater if you’re a misogynist. And then there’s the fact that the three “dictators” that the “West” has gone to a lot of trouble to wipe out had societies in which women were treated well, Hussein, Assad, Gaddafi.
And then there’s good old Saudi Arabia, the original feminist paradise. What an irony that the Democratic Party should embrace the Saudi’s.
Let us see where Macron falls in this area. A case can be made both for and against Macron’s being a misogynist. Will Mme. Macron permit her husband to fawn on misogynists? I will be very interested to see. Certainly, May has no trouble with it, nor does Clinton, a woman married to a four-square misogynist.
Shia arc it is then and with Russian (& I expect Chinese) backing to boot. I’d suggest whoever heads ME strategy among the neocons/ziocons etc. should be up for early retirement.
Guess we can start preparing ourselves for Borg plan B; Sunni insurgency 3.0 – now with even better weapons and funding.
“The US… blew the last 15 years in the Islamic World…”
In broad strokes, what would have been a better course for the last 15 years?
“Iraq, Russia, Syria and Iran are now proclaimed to be allies by the Iraqi Interior Minister.”
I would add that Egypt is just one step to join that coalition. Sissi speech during Trump’s visit in Saudi Arabia is eloquent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vFhE1AFIuk
It’s clear that he is not happy with what happened to Mubarak, a close US ally for many years, to be replaced by a MB leader. Many signs show that Egypt is making a political U-turn. So if Egypt joins Iraq, Russia, Syria and Iran in the fight against terrorism, it’s going to be a tectonic shift in the ME.
egf
If I had been emperor of the world after 9/11 I would not have attempted regime change anywhere. Nor would I have done nation building beyond what we would have done in USAID normally, and that is a lot but non-invasive politically. Beyond those policies I would have worked with the existing governments to exterminate jihadis. They were all anti-jihadi including the Iraqis and Iranians. the rubbish about Iran being “the world’s greatest sponsor of terrorism” is Israeli propaganda. pl
Oh, the US will make the Iraqis walk it back.
Meanwhile: https://www.wsj.com/articles/manchester-bomber-fought-in-libya-1495662073
Possibly a (Wahhabi-loo)?
I once worked with an Iranian emigre in America, he and his family left just before Khomeini returned from Paris. He said that educated Iranians believed that Khomeini received CIA protection in Paris and that the 1979 revolution was orchestrated by Israel and friends of Israel to destroy the emergence of a major Arab country that had both oil, a modern economy, and a large population.
Idealism is the noble toga that political gentlemen drape over their will to power. — Aldous Huxley
Power always sincerely, conscientiously, de très bon foi, believes itself right. Power always thinks it has a great soul and vast views, beyond the comprehension of the weak.
— John Adams in a letter to Thomas Jefferson (2 February 1816).
The intoxication with power is worse than drunkenness with liquor and such, for he who is drunk with power does not come to his senses before he falls. – Mahābhārata 5(51)34:52
In many way’s , egl’s question was just a “time suck”,
It’s been used as a troll tactic for years.
At the time, you wrote about what was happening, how it was “wrongfooted” and would probably fail.
It’s now about what’s happening now, not some alt history pundit blathering, there is mo Game Noy reset or multiple lives feature with history.
BTW, thanks again to you and the Anthenum for continuing to write and publish.
Thank You Colonel,
You are one of the only people willing to take on the Israelis.
Israel and AIPAC have poisoned the political discourse in this country for years. Why must we always be subservient to their interests?
Regards,
David