"Mrs Obama, who was speaking ahead of Mother's Day in the US on Sunday, said the girls reminded her and her husband of their own daughters. "What happened in Nigeria was not an isolated incident. It's a story we see every day as girls around the world risk their lives to pursue their ambitions," she said. She cited the Pakistani schoolgirl and campaigner Malala Yousafzai, who was shot and wounded by the Taliban for speaking out for girls' education. "The courage and hope embodied by Malala and girls like her around the world should serve as a call to action," Mrs Obama said." BBC
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OK. What does Mrs. Obama want the US to do? It is clear that the Nigerian government cannot deal with this situation. It is likely that no combination of minor powers can deal with a mass kidnapping followed by slave trafficking across a lot of central Africa. Unless some intelligence analysis of extraordinary quality pinpoints locations and that breakthrough is followed by the availability of high quality troops, transportation, etc. then nothing will be done by European or African means.
No, to do the job properly would require something like the commitment of much of US Eighteenth Airborne Corps (the 82nd Airborne Division, additional air assets, logistical assets, etc.), a lot of SOF and the redirection of a lot of US satellite reconnaissance, UAVs and SIGINT assets. All these intelligence means are exactly the activities so thoroughly reviled by the press.
A major logistical base would have to be built, local contracts let and the whole cycle of corruption that has infested Iraq and Afghanistan would begin anew.
A major campaign would be fought across NE Nigeria. The expense, born solely by the US would be immense.
Is that what Michelle Obama wants? pl
Colonel Lang,
“Is that what Michelle Obama wants? pl ”
Is this a trick question? (Yes, I know it’s a rhetorical one). The answer though I greatly fear is “Yes”.
I think that the political elite believes its own nonsense and that Mrs. Obama is a very typical specimen.
A question that never seems never to be asked anymore is “to what end and to what outcome should this be done?”
“A major logistical base would have to be built, local contracts let and the whole cycle of corruption that has infested Iraq and Afghanistan would begin anew.”
What if the outcome of all of this activity you outline above is worse than the status quo ante?
Dubhaltach
The road to hell is paved with…well…you know the rest.
To actually accomplish anything will take just intense efforts as you point out. Sadly it is much easier to re-tweet posts or even go make an appearance at a rally. This does distract from those oh so successful US efforts in Ukraine, Obama’s tanking poll numbers and sets the stage for 2014 election year “talking points”. There is a “War on Women”, or so the politicians tell us. Since this started with Hillary we can assume this is setting the stage for 2016 as well?
No, she wants to setup a hashtag on twitter.
To quote Madeline Albright in this context .”What is the use of
having this superb military you are always talking about, Africom,
If you are not going to use it.” Are we now going to be the
R2P nation on steroids? Funny, why is it the celebrity elites
care more for foreign conflicts than those taking place here.
Chicago, Detroit anyone.
And not to mention the massive hypocrisy inherent in destabilising Syria and Ukraine with concomitant family destruction?
Sir,
To answer your last question: Yes.
Its not like her daughters are going to fight it. Its going to be the sons of all those ‘racists’ from fly over country who are going to be fighting and dying.
I thought this was a good take on the situation:
http://voxday.blogspot.com/2014/05/doubling-down.html
Specifically: “Kristof is acting as if the young women are not legitimate military targets. But that is the entire point. He, and many others like him, have made them legitimate military targets by intentionally turning them into weapons in a cultural war. And he had better pray that Boko Haram does not follow al Qaeda’s lead in bringing the West’s cultural war on the South and East back to the West.”
All
There seems to be a slippery slope that is getting steeper in Africa for our continuing military involvement . Why can’t the African Union do more to go after these homegrown jihadis ?
Awareness campaigns are all the rage these days. Everyone is trying to raise awareness for some unpleasant aspect of the human condition, or some tragedy abroad. For many, they find the soap box alluring – and bringing an issue to the publics attention is far easier than actually doing something about it.
I suspect Chaucer would have enjoyed this phenomenon. We all seem to care, and care quite a bit, but how is it that we never actually do anything?
There’s a curious disconnect there. It’s enough to make one wonder.
if it quacks….
This (seems to )have all the sounds and smells of nothing but a FP stunt by US. Given the recent (decade) of FP disasters, some think (not) tanker/advisor’s idea and Mrs Obama is just the icing on the cake to promote it.
Administration is not an honest broker in this.. You have to ask where do these terrorists get their APCs, weapons, etc?? they certainly don’t grow on trees nor are they cheap. selling kids for $12 does not cover the expense either.
Most certainly the support comes from the saudi wahabi royals, kuwaiti emirs, etc.. Our dearest allies. If US was sincere, they would use the treasury and go to the source and stop the funding in place of miss-using the military. The use of mil has other objectives. It is most unfortunate to use the plight of these girls are being used in such manner.
Remember our peace loving man of the 70s supported by another delusional administration and financed by the saudis? That one did not end too well did it?
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ldFAfbIcygQ/U2e17X5x_9I/AAAAAAAAP9o/FNe9g_2S5Ik/s1600/IMG_0207.JPG
Or the British, if Cameron so desires, seeing how Nigeria used to be a crown colony.
“Is that what Michelle Obama wants?”
Sir,
I believe this is emoting on her part. It is certain other people who concern me. They would love to expand Africom to oppose the PRC. According to this writer there is quite a bit of construction going on in sub-Saharan Africa.
http://original.antiwar.com/engelhardt/2014/04/13/africom-becomes-a-war-fighting-combatant-command/
The emoting aspect being whipped up by the media worries me. I’ve heard on neocon talk radio some of these hosts argue that the US needs to get involved. This infuriates me, the idea of sending troops who are not only expensive to train, but also represent an extremely finite resource. I mean those of the SOC and to a lesser extent those of your standard line units. Only a few can qualify for the standards necessary for success. They are only to be used as a last resort in my eyes and not wasted on some feel good nonsense.
These so-called “conservatives” are no different from the “liberals” they decry when it comes to standing in front of a mirror, preening and saying to themselves “I’m a good person. I care.”
I have sympathy for the families of these girls and the people who kidnapped them are scum who deserve no quarter, however, this is Africa and this criminal conduct occurs all the time. The only difference was this slave raid is bigger than the others that have occurred in the past. Nonetheless, it is up to the Nigerians to deal with this problem.
There was a report on the news that the Nigerian military had a warning this was going to happen and sat on its hands. If this is the case, it is even more reason to stay away from this mess.
I see some of the Hollywood idiots want to get involve. Fine. Seeing how they like making all these action movies give them all a stand of arms and let them have at it. The situation should be cleared up in roughly an hour and a half.
Not just no, but hell, no.
Speaking of hash tags, Harry…
http://www.lewrockwell.com/assets/2014/05/Michelle-300×266.jpg
The photo was changed by a group of socialists. Still, it appealed to my cynicism and highly developed sense of black humor*.
[note to anti-“racist” lurkers. “Black humor” is an old pre-political correctness figure of speech. Do a search on it.]
I think it’s a convenient pretext to enlarge the scope of our military/mission creep in Africa.
A large military base in Nigeria? More intelligence operations? Special Forces?
What’s not to like for the P2P/Neocon bunch?
Tyler,
There you go channelling you inner Al Gore with all this inconvenient truth:
“Its not like her daughters are going to fight it.”
In one speech BHO said that “as the father of two daughters myself…” as if somehow that leads him to have a understanding of the situation. Michelle speaks of her daughters. They think that they have a special bond with people who live on fifty cents per day and wonder where their next meal comes from because, like them, they have daughters. They have no clue.
I have to wonder what the parents of a missing child, right here in the US, make of all this.
RE:”bringing an issue to the publics attention is far easier than actually doing something about it.”
Aye, far easier to be a “talking head” than for one to be of both Thought & Action.
I for one am pretty sure that some of those “honorable compatriots” who share the same land-of-origin as our host cannot wait to see logistical bases built anew on the “Dark Continent” with the ensuing Greed that accompanies work of condottieri nature…
Colonel,
This is propaganda of the highest order and serves our plutocrat rulers in a number of ways.
You are correct the Africa Command would need all those troops and assets to do it right. That would require the draft and taxing the rich. No. They just need a boost in current military spending to rake off more money.
It makes their subjects feel better. By gosh, Americans are so much better than those other people.
It cements their support among women. That is if the upcoming war with Russia, conquering Africa, Middle East’s forever wars, and the pivot to Asia doesn’t kill too many of their fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, sons, and daughters.
So much impatience and drama over the issues that provide the proper positioning for the proxy wars of the future. Y’all need to think strategically about Africa. China does.
The First Lady’s comments amount to a hill of beans. Some clean water, simmer, bit of fat and funk of your choice, pinch of salt. That is far warmer and more nutritious than anything in a bag at the corner bodegas (where available).
No economy can prosper while it squanders about half its intellectual capacity, and under-educates boys as well.
I would offer more pablum here, but others have more need for loose, mixed lentils and pulses, maybe with a little dairy.
Well it looks like we now know where the next batch of volunteers is coming from:
http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/hagel-open-review-transgender-policy
Does the Chair of the House Armed Forces Committee really think all the Russian Federation units near the border are really made up of conscripts? I wonder if he thinks “combat effectiveness” might preclude staffing units that way? See the link above, too. I’m glad combat effectiveness of military units wasn’t a part of the decision making of the retired surgeon general and coast guard admiral. It’s not like we might actually have to fight a war, right?
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-05-11/hagel-sees-no-evidence-russia-troops-leaving-border-with-ukraine
They can send in the new tranny soldiers to find the girls.
http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Peace/2014/05/11/Hagel-Military-Ban-On-Transgenders-Should-Be-Reviewed
What a lick spittle of a SecDef. I guess they removed his spine and replaced it with a push to talk button.
If they were truly concerned,they might start with the human trafficking in their own country. The I-5 corridor would be a good start.
Unfortunately, it’s not politically correct at the moment to discuss our problem.
Is Dubhaltach a gaelic word? If so what does it mean?
In reply to Highlander 12 May 2014 at 10:45 AM
In a word yes, to get slightly more informative it’s Irish (Gaeilge) rather than Gaelic. (Gaelic being the very closely related language spoken in parts of Scotland as with a name like “Highlander” I’m sure you know)
Dubh → “Black” & Altach “haired” thus “black-haired”.
It’s a family name, but something of a misdescription in my case as I take after my blonde and blue-eyed Danish mother. Most of my siblings and one of my own sons have the typical Irish/Scottish black hair and blue eyes ‘though.
Dubhaltach
I saw that too. Looks like Jocelyn “We really need to get over this love affair with the fetus…” Elders needs an election year gig. Good to see that Senator Gillibrand is concerned about opinions of former in the closet USCG admirals – who served in the health care arm. Combat effectiveness obviously needs to be a secondary concern to ‘equal opportunity’.
http://www.kirstengillibrand.com/act/dadtstoryproject/stories/alan-steinman-former-rear-admiral-u-s-coast-guard
I don’t know, those Norsemen were merrily raiding away in Ireland and Scotland a thousand years or so ago. That Danish influence may have occurred a lot longer ago than you think.
Thanks for the reply.
They’re closing the Riverside Border Patrol Station because they claim there’s no illegal alien traffic in the area.
The truth is that they’re terrified of the La Rasa Hispanics picketing them everywhere they go. Pathetic.
In Michigan the fine leaders of the University of Michigan have decided that illegal immigrants should pay the same tuition rates as veterans. To the great acclaim of the local liberal establishment. That would also be one of the universities called out for the 20% sexual assault rate on female students, not that anyone is going to get fired over that statistic mind you.
I love the dichotomy there. Illegal aliens are the new “born without sin” darlings of the left. This country gets more insane everyday.