War for Sale

Why in the world are we still be selling military hardware to Egypt?  The Washington Post reports we are still delivering M1A1 Abrams main battle tanks to Egypt, along with another squadron of F-16 fighters.

This as we've watched older U.S, made M60 tanks and M1 APCs in the streets of Cairo to put down a popular uprising against the extreme measures taken by President Morsi.  Remember, Morsi is the leader of that nation's Muslim Brotherhood - an organization dedicated to bringing Sharia, or Islamic Law, to the entire world.

Wouldn't it be ironic to see American made tanks going up against Israeli tanks in the Sinai someday?  Don't laugh, if we keep up this ridiculous policy of arming Egypt it might soon happen.

Remember, we once armed Osama bin Laden to fight the Russians in Afghanistan.  That worked out well, didn't it?

http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/dec/6/muslim-brotherhood-inherits-us-war-gear/

Remember Pearl Harbor

Remembering Pearl Harbor, the USS Arizona, and all US vets who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

http://life.time.com/history/pearl-harbor-photos-from-the-pacific-and-the-home-front-1941-1942/#1

Syria's Chemical Weapons Prep

Okay, this is starting to get serious.

If U.S. Intelligence (which has already learned Syria is loading the precursors for its Sarin nerve gas into aerial bombs) finds out those bombs are being loaded onto Syrian aircraft, then the U.S. must strike.

Syria has one of the best Russian made anti-aircraft systems in the world, but we shouldn't care.  Like I said, it's Russian, so therefore its junk.  Aircraft from U.S. Carriers in the Med and Persian Gulf should make quick work of it, then destroy Syrian fighters on the ground. 

It may already be too late - a no fly zone should have been created over Syria weeks ago.  Now, if those planes get off the ground with nerve gas bombs, millions of people could die.

 

By NBC News' Jim Miklaszewski,

 

The United States and other Western powers could be trying to find a "pretext for intervention" in Syria's civil war, a member of the Assad regime said Thursday, after U.S. officials told NBC News that the country's military was prepared to use chemical weapons against its own people.

The Syrian military has loaded the precursor chemicals for sarin, a deadly nerve gas, into aerial bombs that could be dropped from dozens of fighter-bombers, the unnamed American officials said.
Sarin is an extraordinarily lethal agent. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein's forces killed 5,000 Kurds with a single sarin attack on Halabja in 1988.

Read more at:   http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/06/15727284-syria-fears-us-seeking-a-pretext-to-intervene-in-civil-war?lite

Iran moves more Nuke processing underground

The sanctions meant to stop Iranian nuclear ambitions are really working...right.  New UN Agency report says Iran has moved more of its nuclear processing in a deep underground facility.  That is sure to make the Israelis happy.  They may not be able to reach it anymore without our help, unless they nuke the place.

The story in today's Reuters.com

The New Forgotten War

By NBC News staff and wire reports

KABUL, Afghanistan -- It was once President Barack Obama's "war of necessity." Now, it's America's forgotten war.

The Afghan conflict generates barely a whisper on the U.S. presidential campaign trail. It's not a hot topic at the office water cooler or in the halls of Congress — even though more than 80,000 American troops are still fighting here and dying at a rate of one a day.

Americans show more interest in the economy and taxes than the latest suicide bombings in a different, distant land. They're more tuned in to the political ad war playing out on television than the deadly fight still raging against the Taliban. Earlier this month, protesters at the Iowa State Fair chanted "Stop the war!" They were referring to one purportedly being waged against the middle class.

By the time voters go to the polls Nov. 6 to choose between Obama and presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney, the war will be in its 12th year. For most Americans, that's long enough.

Read More

Dishonorable Disclosures

A group of mostly retired U.S. Special Forces and intelligence operatives from the CIA have banded together to form an organization called OPSEC (Short for Operational Security) that is highly critical of the disclosure of operational secrets for political gain - especially those secrets leaked by the White House since the killing of Osama bin Laden. 

Watch their video on You-Tube - Click Here

It is a compelling argument, and as someone who has worked in the television news media for more than 30-years, I can see both sides.  Of course, the safety and security of our armed forces is paramount, and nothing resembling operational security, methods or sources, should be reported by the media.  But it's hard not to when that information comes directly from the President of the United States.

However, in a free and open society, with a free press, even if the President hadn't said a word, information about the bin Laden raid would have come out eventually.  The event was just too important for the American people to understand and digest.  And the information including operational details would have been reported eventually anyway.

But, there would have been a delay if the President had withheld the information for a day or two, allowing Special Forces to act on the intelligence gathered at the bin Laden compound.  They may have been able to take down a few more bad guys before they scattered.  That would have been worth a couple of days of silence, don't you think?

And as a news-person and an American, I am clearly not happy about the White House using operational details as a re-election strategy.  Describing how the president decides what targets to attack with Predator drones is a huge miscalculation that may come back to bite us someday.  I hope not.  But clearly, the only reason that information was leaked was to help the President look tough on national security, to show that we are going after and killing terrorists who have a link to al Qaeda or the 9/11 attacks.  Somebody needs to tell the President to shut up.

Watch the video - OPSEC makes a very compelling argument.

Silent Running

According to a report in today's Freebeacon.com, a Russian Akula attack submarine just spent a few weeks vacationing in the Gulf of Mexico...and the U.S. Navy knew nothing about it. 

Besides spending time in waters much warmer than most Russian sailors are used to, the Gulf of Mexico is still considered very strategic waters by the United States Navy, with a major boomer submarine base off the coast of Georgia.

What in the name of John Paul Jones is going on here?  The Navy is supposed to protect our shores, but it allows an Russian attack submarine armed with missiles capable of striking any spot in the United States to spend several weeks alone in the Gulf of Mexico without so much as a "Howdy" from the most powerful Navy in the world?

Maybe Obama's budget cuts, especially in ASW (Anti-submarine warfare) are not such a good idea.  Russian President Putin is back in charge, and the ex-KGB operative shows every intention of returning to good old Soviet style diplomacy...which was always more about action than words.  In case you haven't noticed, Putin has initiated a massive ship building program, and we'd better start paying attention.  He's enjoyed tweaking us over Syria and Iran, and he is in a growing position to do something more about it.

After all, is there a big difference between the Soviet Union placing ballistic missiles in Cuba (October 1962) and allowing the Russians to cruise our shores with submarines that carry even more lethally armed cruise missiles?  I don't think so, do you?

Real Unemployment - Real Economic Catastrophy

Why it's never a good idea to trust government unemployment numbers at first glance.  Read this excellent opinion by  Clyde Prestowitz, posted in today's Real Clear Politics: 

"So the headlines said jobs were up by about 80,000 last month and unemployment stayed at 8.2 percent. Not great, but not a disaster. At least things are not getting worse. Right?

That was how it looked to me at first glance. But I took a second glance — and quickly lost my appetite.

The headline unemployment numbers are the so-called U-3 government numbers, which count current jobs held, gained, and lost. Because of seasonal factors, they are subject to distortion that makes them more or less meaningless, as was the case in June.

A broader, more meaningful measure is U-6, which considers workers who have only recently stopped looking for work, as well as part-time workers who want full time work. U-6 unemployment is 14.9 percent and was up about 0.2 percent in June.

Until 1994, the U.S. government also kept track of long discouraged workers. Then the method of collecting and calculating unemployment data was changed, and workers who said they would like to work but were so discouraged that they hadn't been looking for work for a long time were defined out of the calculation. But the consulting firm Shadow Government Statistics still does that calculation, and it's a shocker: 22.9 percent.

That's the share of Americans who say they would like to work but for one reason or another can't find work; are working only part-time but want to work full-time; or have become so discouraged that they have given up looking for work. That means the full-time workforce ought to be a quarter larger than it is.

Can you imagine what that would do to U.S. growth, tax collections, savings, investment, and long-term retirement prospects? The fact is that the U.S. economy is operating far below its potential. Estimates of how far vary, but a good guess is about 5 to 8 percent of gross domestic product, or close to $1 trillion.

A trillion dollars is real money, and it's money America isn't making. Why is the big question."

The Web as Electronic Cocaine

You have to read this article - Is the Web Driving Us Mad.  Scary stuff.

Dr. Doom's Perfect Storm Begins

"Dr. Doom" Nouriel Roubini says the "perfect storm" scenario he forecast for the global economy earlier this year is unfolding right now as growth slows in the U.S., Europe as well as China.

Getty Images

In May, Roubini predicted four elements - stalling growth in the U.S., debt troubles in Europe, a slowdown in emerging markets, particularly China, and military conflict in Iran - would come together to create a storm for the global economy in 2013.

“(The) 2013 perfect storm scenario I wrote on months ago is unfolding,” Roubini said on Twitter on Monday.

Read more at cnbc.com

Sphincter Factor Up

I give this whole situation in the Middle East a sphincter factor of about 9.5.

Just consider this; A potentially nuclear armed Iran is holding missile practice as the toughest sanctions yet go into effect.  The U.S. deploys more naval assets to the Persian Gulf, along with F-22 Raptorss and F-15c Eagles that remain in the region for an extended deployment.  The war in Syria continues, it's even getting worse, with Russia and China still supporting Syria in the Security Council.  Russia and China also want a hands-off approach to Iran.  Then there is Egypt, now run by the Muslim Brotherhood, whose founders helped establish al-Queda. 

Yeah, this looks real good.  Russia and China are clearly fed up with the United States invading countries and bombing others at its discretion - they want it stopped.  They want the U.S. out of the area, and the best way they can influence the situation is to side with U.S. enemies - Syria and Iran.  World Wars have started this way, for much less. 

What is going on here?

Russian Troops in Syria

Russia is sending armed troops to Syria amid escalating violence there, United States military officials told NBC News Friday, in a move certain to frustrate Western efforts to put pressure on the regime of President Bashir Assad.

Moscow has sent a ship carrying a small contingent of combat forces to guard Russia’s deep-water port and military base at the Syrian city of Tartus, the US officials said.
The U.S. officials also said Russia has not sent additional attack helicopters to the Syrian government, but replacement parts for the Russian helicopters the Syrians are already flying.

Days before President Barack Obama's meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, there has been a war of words between the U.S. and Syria's longtime military supplier. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

It comes after the conflict was declared by France on Wednesday to be a full-blown civil war.

The head of the U.N. observers in Syria said Friday a recent spike in bloodshed is derailing the mission to monitor and defuse more than a year of violence and could prompt the unarmed force to pull out.

"Violence over the past 10 days has been intensifying willingly by the both parties, with losses on both sides and significant risks to our observers," Maj. Gen. Robert Mood told reporters in Damascus. "The escalating violence is now limiting our ability to observe, verify, report as well as assist in local dialogue and stability projects."

Tartus is one of Russia’s most strategically-important assets, giving it military access to the Mediterranean Sea.

Russia and China, both permanent members of the U.N. Security Council with veto power, frustrated attempts by key Western figures, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, to enforce a United Nations peace plan brokered by special envoy Kofi Annan.

Russia’s foreign minister Sergei Lavrov on Friday repeated Moscow's strong opposition to external interference in Syria, said it was not discussing plans for a Syrian political transformation following the exit of Assad.

Read More at MSNBC.com

Random Thoughts

Does anyone ever notice that when gas prices are going up, the government DOES NOT include them in its consumer price index?  But when gas prices are going down, it does?  Can anyone really paint an realistic picture of inflation in this country, because obviously the government can't.

Secretary of State Hillery Clinton complains to the Russians because Moscow is still sending attack helicopters to Syria.  Meantime the slaughter goes on in Syria without anything stronger than protests from the west.  Does it bother anyone that Syria is aligned with Iran, Russia and China - and maybe that's why we don't care that women and children are being murdered there?

Israel is staying quiet about its plans against Iran.  That worries me more than anything, because when they're talking they are not acting.  When the Israelis stop talking, they are probably about to act.  I still think they will strike with US help before the US elections in November - before the election Obama will have no choice but to aid the Israeli strike.  After he's re-elected he can tell the Israelis to F@#$ off.

Why is it that every time I go on a diet, someone brings in free Pizza to the newsroom?

Iran's Last Chance to Make a Deal

The head of the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency said Friday he will travel to Iran over the weekend on a previously unscheduled visit to try to resolve an impasse over access to Iranian nuclear documents and scientists.

The visit to Tehran by Yukiya Amano, director  general of the International Atomic Energy Agency is set for Sunday, three days before the start of a closely watched round of nuclear talks between Iran and six world powers,i including the United States.

There's only one way to look at this.  The UN and IAEA are desperately trying to get something from Iran so that Israel will not launch at attack against Iranian nuclear facilities.  It's also clear that Israel is in the final stages of preparation for such an assault, and will likely do so before the U.S. Presidential election.  Why?  Because President Obama will have no choice but to come to the aid of the Israelis to win re-election.  He needs the Jewish votes, especially in Florida.

In addition, the United States armed forces are now fully prepared to either support Israel in its assault, or to retaliate against Iran, if the Islamic Republic should lash out at U.S. forces in the Gulf in response to an Israeli attack.  There is now at least a squadron of F-22 Raptors based at the U.A.E. and the United States Navy has three Aircraft Carrier groups either in the Persian Gulf or lurking in the Arabian Sea nearby.

I know what you are thinking - the U.S. can not handle another war because of all the repeated deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan over the last ten years or so.  However, any assault on Iran will not involve U.S. Army or Marine Forces.  This will be strictly an Air Force and Naval Aviation/Surface fleet operation.  The ground troops can sit this one out, thank goodness.  The Navy needs practice.

However, if the IAEA can show any progress toward a nuclear settlement with Iran next week it may delay an attack.  If not, the war will begin sometime by late June or August - says this author.  And it could be the trigger that starts the next world war.

The Clock is Ticking

Another indication of what may be to come - The U.S. Air Force moves F-22 Raptors to UAE.  What better air-superiority fighter to cover the Israeli attack on Iran nuclear sites...or to protect valuable U.S. Naval assets in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea?

From Yahoo news: 

The United States has deployed sophisticated F-22 fighter jets to the United Arab Emirates amid deepening tensions between Iran and its pro-US neighbors, officials said Monday.

The US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, would not say how many F-22s would be sent to the Al-Dhafra air base in the United Arab Emirates. Military officers tend to avoid publicly discussing details of operations at the US air base.

An Air Force spokeswoman confirmed that a number of F-22 Raptors, the most advanced fighter in the US fleet, would be deployed to the region without mentioning the base or Iran.
"The United States Air Force has deployed F-22s to Southwest Asia. Such deployments strengthen military-to-military relationships, promote sovereign and regional security, improve combined tactical air operations, and enhance interoperability of forces, equipment and procedures," said Major Mary Danner-Jones.

Read More - Click Here

Amazing Report on IDF Attack Plans

An Israeli TV station is given details of how Israel will allegedly attack Iran if a diplomatic solution to the current nuclear crisis isn't reached. 

What is amazing is that the attack details weren't just leaked to a TV news reporter, but that Israeli censors actually allowed it to air.

There are different theories about this.  It could be a huge misdirection campaign to fool the Iranians.  It could be a warning to Iran that unless you make a deal, this is what will happen to you.  It could also be for local consumption because apparently some Israelis don't think their defense forces can handle a major raid on Iran.

Whatever the reason, the information is interesting, and shows how far Israel is ready to go should a diplomatic solution fail.

How Long Do We Wait?

The situation is Syria is getting worse by the day - deteriorating rapidly.   Is the U.S. afraid to take action because it doesn't want to upset Syria's only true ally, Iran? 

Iran Cleaning Evidence

Of course the Iranians now want to put their nuclear sites on display for the IAEA - especially after they've been "cleaned" of all nuclear bomb evidence.   See this AP Report:

Satellite images of an Iranian military facility appear to show trucks and earth-moving vehicles at the site, indicating an attempted cleanup of radioactive traces possibly left by tests of a nuclear-weapon trigger, diplomats told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

I agree with the President - War is an awful thing that must be avoided at all costs.  But in this case, is the cost of inaction Israel itself?  How can we justify ordering Israel not to attack Iran when all we care about is a dollar more on a gallon of gas, when Israel's very existence is at stake?  I say we cut the Israelis lose, and like President Obama promised, we have their back.  We join in to make sure Iran can never threaten anyone, ever again.


With half the US Air Force and two US Aircraft Carriers (With a third on the way) within striking distance we don't have to invade Iran - a combined US-Israeli air campaign lasting days can obliterate most Iranian targets from 30,000 feet...without ever presenting a target to the Iranians.  We have the capabilities.

2 More Die for the Koran

Two more US Troops are killed by Afghans over the burning of a Koran.  How long are we going to let this go on?  Nuke them all - or get out and let them kill each other.  If they want to live in the stone age, then let them.  The radical Islamic world is not worth one more American life.

Koran Burning - Enough is Enough

Who is fed up with the response to the innocent burning of a Koran by our troops in Afghanistan?  Okay, maybe the guys should have known better - but the reaction has been ridiculous.

Here's a portion of a blog posted by Karl Denninger on the Market Ticker - to read the entire work CLICK HERE

"Transport yourself over to Afghanistan, where our military participated in disposing of some Qurans that they didn't need any more.  They burned them, which is a time-honored way to get rid of pieces of paper you don't want laying around and there's not a damn thing wrong with it.  In fact I'm sure that there are more Bibles laying in a landfill somewhere or wafting in the smoke emitted by an incinerator than you could possibly count; after all, it is the most-printed book of all time and like all books particular copies are sometimes damaged, worn out or simply not wanted any more.

So what was the response?  Murder.  Mayhem.  Arson.  Shooting.  Including the murder of one particular person, Army Sgt. Joshua A. Born, 25, of Niceville FL, a soldier from my town who was killed defending our freedoms.

And what does our President do?  He apologizes -- not to the parents of a young man who risked his life for the freedoms that we all enjoy every single day, including to criticize our leaders, our religious institutions and the foibles of both, but rather to those savages who are so f&^#ing pea-brained that any such criticism of "their" faith is an instantaneous and permanent justification to wanton, puerile and outrageous acts of violence.

I'm damned tired of this savagery.  There is absolutely no reason for us to apologize to any of these animals.  Their behavior deserves lead emitted at 3200fps and bombs from 30,000ft in response, not apologies.  Or even better, how about we simply tell them to **** off, come home, bar every one of them from trade with our nation and entry into our country until they grow a brain and act like human beings?

These *******s are due no more consideration than is a coyote eating your livestock in the dead of night.  Those animalistic spawn of Satan are so pussified that they lack the pride and belief in their own positions that would otherwise come with conviction -- instead of throwing on a uniform, declaring war and having at it as men should do when they have a grievous difference of opinion that cannot be peacefully resolved they sulk behind rocks, hide behind women and children, taking the innocent as shields and engage in various cowardly acts more suited to pigs seconds before they are slaughtered and turned into Sunday morning bacon.

We as a nation need to be done with this crap.  Were I President I would tomorrow declare peace, but with a clear warning -- the next time an Islamic terrorist killed just one American I would level Mecca with a tactical nuclear weapon, rendering that "hallowed ground" impassable for a thousand years.  If it happened again I'd level Medina in exactly the same way, consigning, under these people's beliefs, every single one of them to Hell as they'd be unable to complete their holy obligations -- forever.  And I'd order the military to dip their rounds in pig's blood so that any of these jackals that happened to get a special-delivery present at 3200fps would believe that they, under their own set of beliefs, would be unclean and go straight to eternal Hell if they were shot by them."

Interesting, huh?

What is Iran Hiding?

Iranian officials refused to provide IAEA inspectors access to a key military installation during a visit that ended earlier this week, and dismissed the concerns of inspectors as based on "unfounded allegations," according to a just completed report.

(USS Abraham Lincoln - right - one of two U.S. Navy Aircraft carriers now in the gulf region.  Should U.S. Navy carrier based warplanes be used to support an Israeli strike?)

CNN has obtained an advance copy of the report which has not yet been released - CLICK HERE to see the CNN story.

Here's my question - if Iran isn't building a nuclear weapon then why not allow IAEA inspectors access to every single one of the country's nuclear power and refining facilities?  Clearly they have something to hide, and clearly they are lying about building a nuclear bomb.

The only question is how long can the U.S. keep Israel from destroying nuclear targets inside Iran?  It's time to take off the brakes and provide support to Israel in whatever form its required.

Gas Prices or Extinction?

Let's see - what is more important?  Another $0.30 for a gallon of gas, or your very survival?

The White House continues to send a parade of high level national security advisers to Israel, twisting Israeli arms into NOT attacking nuclear facilities in Iran.  Just the thought of war is driving up gas prices here, inconveniencing drivers here in the U.S.  It also threatens our economic recovery and President Obama's re-election to a second term.

But, really, do we expect the Israelis to give a damn about our gas prices?  Three nukes would just about obliterate Israel.  And they wouldn't have to be "weaponized" to be carried atop a missile either.  Iran could drive them there in a truck, or aboard a small speedboat launched by one of their ships now in the Med.  You don't have to get that close with nuclear weapons, a couple of miles will do.

Israel has to consider its very existence as a nation and a people - they're not worried about how much we pay for a gallon of gas.  Our requests are petty and selfish.  Instead of worrying about gas prices here we should be worrying about ways to help Israel eliminate the threat.

What Sanctions?

Well, it looks like U.S. and European sanctions against Iran are really kicking in.  Iran announced today it has made further advancements in processing nuclear fuel, and has threatened to stop selling oil to the EU.  Yeah, the sanctions are working all right.  Iran knows the U.N. has no teeth as long as China and Russia wield their veto power like a club...they really have nothing to fear by advancing their nuclear ambitions.

After the assault by Iranian terrorists on at least three overseas Israeli targets this week - does anyone really think Israel won't hit Iran - and hard - sometime very soon?

All the talking heads on TV say a war against Iran is a lose-lose situation because of the economic turmoil it will cause.  They need to stop for a second and consider the situation from Israel's point of view.  Israel was established to protect the Jewish faith and those who practice it from the kind of bigotry that led to the Holocaust and the 6-million Jews dead as a result.  Their choices are between extermination and wrecking the western economy.  That's not a lose-lose situation.  That's a life or death situation.  Their decision is a no-brainer.  Unless there is some dramatic breakthrough on the nuclear issue in Iran, and soon, there will be war.

Again, the U.S. 5th Fleet in the Persian Gulf and Arabian Sea regions better be on its toes.

No Oil, No U.S. Blood

I guess we only care about a country when it has oil to sell.  Syrian has none - just blood.

Does President Obama's complete withdrawal into isolationism mean abandoning all moral high ground to tin-horn dictators like Assad?  Apparently.

In the meantime, How many have to die?

Associated Press - Mourners carried a body during a funeral for a 10-year-old boy and rebel fighters killed during fighting in Idlib, Syria, on Thursday.

Religious Hypocrisy Runs Rampant

Oh - It's okay for religion to intrude into government, but not for government to intrude into religion?  I am sick of the hypocrisy of organized religion and the right wing-nuts.

Russia And China Together Again?

Russia and China have apparently lost some diplomatic credit in the Arab world (Outside Syria and Iran) for vetoing a UN Security Council Resolution condemning the Syrian attacks on its own civilian population.

But hold on here - connect the dots - and see what is really happening.  Russia and China have already made it clear they will not accept further UN Sanctions against Iran...and now they veto a resolution condemning Syria.

Like I said - connect the dots.  China and Russia back Iran, Iran backs Syria and also funnels weapons and cash to Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas on the West Bank.  Obama doesn't want Israel going after Iran, and maybe for good reason.  Does Israel want to drag the U.S. into what could be a World War against Russia, China, Iran and Syria?  Of course not.  And I'm not saying things would ever go that far.

But any student of history knows WWI started for reasons economically similar, but over much less.  When tensions ratchet up this high, things can go wrong - and in this modern age - they can go wrong very fast.

President Obama also doesn't want any military intervention in Syria despite civilian deaths that already top what happened in Libya.  Now you know why.  He doesn't want to pick a fight with Syrian, Iran, Russia and China at the same time.  Would you?  I think it's a reasonable strategy not for the U.S. to get in too deep, not right now anyway.

Syrian Slaughter - No Intervention?

The Syrians are shelling one of their own cities - killing hundreds, wounding thousands.  But President Obama says this conflict should be resolved WITHOUT outside military intervention?  What makes this war different than the one in Libya?  I'm confused.

Plus, the U.S. evacuated all its diplomats from the country as Syrian forces intensified a shelling assault on the restive city of Homs.   The offensive began Saturday, the same day Syria's allies in Russia and China vetoed a Western- and Arab-backed resolution aimed at trying to end the brutal crackdown on dissent.

I guess we know where China and Russia stand - with their Iranian and Syrian allies, that's where.

The Clock is Ticking

Israel warns its embassies and outposts in America and around the world to look out for Iranian backed terror strikes.  Do they know something we don't - like a time table for an Israeli strike on Iran, triggering possible retaliation?  Probably.

And why can't the United States get a clue as to what Israeli intentions might be?  If you were planning and executing an air strike on Iran, would you tell the U.S?  Of course not.  We can't keep anything a secret.  Informing Washington before jets are in the air would be an unnecessary risk to Israeli pilots.  The U.S. 5th Fleet in Bahrain better be ready for anything at any time.

Record 1.2 Million Leave Job Force

Good Grief, I am sick of all this government led economic cheer-leading.  If you look at most headlines today, you'll see that unemployment has dropped to a three-year low.  Hip hip hooray!.  Look deeper people.  A record 1.2 million people left the job force last month, and the percentage of U.S. civilians employed dropped to a 30-year low.

Here's a blog posting by Tyler Dyrden:

"A month ago, we joked when we said that for Obama to get the unemployment rate to negative by election time, all he has to do is to crush the labor force participation rate to about 55%. Looks like the good folks at the BLS heard us: it appears that the people not in the labor force exploded by an unprecedented record 1.2 million. No, that's not a typo: 1.2 million people dropped out of the labor force in one month! So as the labor force increased from 153.9 million to 154.4 million, the non institutional population increased by 242.3 million meaning, those not in the labor force surged from 86.7 million to 87.9 million. Which means that the civilian labor force tumbled to a fresh 30 year low of 63.7% as the BLS is seriously planning on eliminating nearly half of the available labor pool from the unemployment calculation. As for the quality of jobs, as withholding taxes roll over Year over year, it can only mean that the US is replacing high paying FIRE jobs with low paying construction and manufacturing. So much for the improvement".

Well done, Tyler.  But let's not forget to be positive!  What a joke.

Get Real about US Economy

Are you tired of all the economic cheer-leading in the media?  This might shut them up for a while.  Real GDP growth in 2011 a paltry 1.7%.

The U.S. Economy is not in Recovery as the government and TV pundits would have us believe.  Remember, most of the reporting on TV and in Newspapers is done by people who have a vested interest in your money.  They want the economy to improve so their investments will improve.

The Government spins positive economic news all the time because that's their job.  Have you ever heard any President of the United States announce that the economy is in the tank and we're all doomed?  Of course not.  A lot of what makes a free-market economy run is faith - if you have faith in the system and the country you are investing in then you will spend money.  When you lose faith, the economy suffers.

I'm a member of the television news media, and my fellow journalists are drinking the same government Kool-Aid we all drank before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.  Yeah, of course Iraq has weapons of mass destruction, remember?  Now it's, yeah, of course the economy is improving.

The dismal GDP numbers released today come one day after a report on the worst new-home housing sales ever in 2011, and other less headline grabbing news about India switching from dollars to gold to buy oil.  Oh oh, didn't see that one did you?

The problem is, no one can save the US economy from the mess it is in now.

I recommend reading three books:

Leverage: How Cheap Money Will Destroy the World by Karl Denninger and Charles Hugh Smith

Aftershock: Protect Yourself and Profit in the Next Global Financial Meltdown by David Wiedemer, Robert A. Wiedemer and Cindy S. Spitzer (Aug 2, 2011)

Crash Proof 2.0: How to Profit From the Economic Collapse by Peter D. Schiff and John Downes (Nov 8, 2011)
 

All three of these books are by authors who forecast the disastrous bubble bursts of the 2008 recession (giving them instant credibility in my book)  They all dispute that we have ever been in recovery, warn us again about inevitable bubble trouble with the U.S. Dollar and U.S. Debt and they correctly point out that the only reason we've seen any hint of recovery in stocks is only because the government keeps printing money like a mad hatter. (See QE1 and QE2 with QE3 most likely to come). 

No wonder President Obama wants to desperately cut military spending in a time of great international danger.  When the dollar collapses in value, sending interest rates and inflation skyrocketing, the feds won't have enough money to pay the interest on our debts, much less pay for combat anywhere.   

Don't take my word for it - read the books.  

 

 

Massive Defense Cuts

The Pentagon announced its budget today for the next fiscal year - actually cutting some costs, about 100,000 troops, mothballing ships, and parking some of the Air Force inventory.

This may actually be a good move.  The administration wants to shift its focus to Drones and a bigger presence in the Western Pacific, which are good ideas.  The Pentagon bureaucracy is bloated and stuck in its ways.  There will be no Soviet invasion through the Fulda Gap, so its time to ease back a bit on a large conventional force.  There aren't too many M1A2 main battle tanks fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan are there?  There are no F-22 Raptors fighting it out with anyone's Islamic Air Force, huh? 

A smarter, more hi-tech force is what we need. 

And this is no massive isolationist draw-down (like post WWI) that many of Obama's critics would have you believe.  We have enough firepower to destroy the world five times over.  Lets be smarter, quicker, more mobile and more capable of responding to asymmetric threats.

Like this - we're one step closer to a real invisibility cloak  It may soon be reality, not just science fiction.  Cool stuff

Did Iran Just Blink? More Likely a Stalling Tactic

Iran threatens to halt all oil sales to the E.U. causing prices to spike for a time.

This, just after the President of Iran announced to the world today he is ready to re-new talks on his nation's nuclear activities.  But at the same time he said Iran will not under any circumstances halt or curtail the enrichment of Uranium for peaceful purposes.  Then what is there to talk about?  This is just another stalling tactic.  If the U.S. and the E.U. delay their embargo of Iranian oil, then it works.

Here We Go

The EU just slammed Iran with new Sanctions - cutting off the flow of Iranian oil to all EU nations.  At the same time, a three nation flotilla centered around the Abraham Lincoln crossed into the Persian Gulf through the Strait of Hormuz without incident.

But Iran says it will still Close the Strait, despite whatever the American Navy does.

We are entering a very dangerous new phase of action against Iran that could turn efforts to reach a peaceful resolution of Iran's suspected nuclear activities into a full blown war.  Keep your fingers crossed that Iran doesn't take the bait, and doesn't want to see its Navy destroyed.

But hold on, it could get even worse.  If the Chinese don't back the embargoes, and instead backs Iran, we're looking at a whole new dimension.  The Chinese and Russians have already said they will NOT back further UN sanctions in the Security Council (and they wield Veto power).  That's why the unilateral action by the EU and proposed unilateral action by the U.S.  If the Russians and especially the Chinese stay in Iran's corner on this - well, you use your imagination and get back to me.

Counterstrike

For all of us disgusted by the actions of our government - in the back pocket of Hollywood lobbyists - by Taking down Megaupload.com yesterday will be happy to know its action has come at a steep price.

24-hours after the government move, www.DoJ.gov is still down.  So are other government and media sites who are behind the blatantly unconstitutional restrictions on the world wide web.

Here's a clip (is this illegal now, are the feds going to close me down?  Oh, I hope not.) from the Guardian, a UK site bemoaning loss of internet freedom across the Pond.  Good grief, even the British feel sorry for us:

The US government has closed down one of the world's largest filesharing websites, accusing its founders of racketeering, money laundering and presiding over "massive" online privacy.
According to prosecutors, Megaupload ilegally cheated copyright holders out of $500m in revenue as part of a criminal enterprise spanning five years.
A lawyer for Megaupload told the Guardian it would "vigorously" defend itself against the charges, dismissing the criminal action as "a civil case in disguise".

I don't know why the Pentagon is spending billions of dollars to keep up with the Chinese military buildup in the Western Pacific when our government is acting like the Communist Chinese more every day.

Anonymous is rapidly becoming the Robin Hood of our age, and you can thank government corruption and big media bribery for all of it.

When it comes to the new piracy bills before the House and Senate - it looks like the movie and recording industry lobbyists are going to have to grease a few more palms - this one is dead.  

The Long National Nightmare Continues

Iranian newspapers are calling for a retaliation strike against Israel - the U.S. Navy will shortly have three Aircraft Carriers in the Persian Gulf region - the stock market is crashing on word of lower bond ratings for France and other European Union Countries - Obama wants to raise the national debt another one and a half trillion dollars or so.  But the real National Nightmare:  43% of Americans actually believe God had something to do with Tim Tebow's play for the Denver Broncos.  PLEASE... Read More Here

Did the Other Guy Just Blink?

The U.S. has been eyeball to eyeball with Iran for a few weeks now - but did the other guy just blink?  AP is reporting Iran is willing to discuss nuclear weapon allegations with International Atomic Energy officials - this is a breakthrough, but we should caution Iran is only willing to discuss "allegations" for the first time.  This is not an admission that Iran is building nuclear weapons, nor is it a promise to stop nuclear enrichment which the U.S. and Europe have set as the bar for future negotiations - Read More

Meanwhile, the U.S. Navy has substantially increase its presence in the Persian Gulf/Arabian Sea area with the addition of two more aircraft carriers.  It will give them a temporary deployment of three flat-tops - while one delays its trip home for at least a while - US Carriers Deployed  The Pentagon denies the deployment is in response to heightened tensions with Iran - but sorry, I don't believe in such coincidences.  The Pentagon does  nothing if not by design.  The Chiefs of Staff don't take a dump without a plan.

A Clockwork Killing?

An Iran nuclear scientist dies in a car bombing.  Oh oh

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — It seemed a clockwork killing: Motorcycle riders flashed by and attached a magnetic bomb onto a car carrying a nuclear scientist working at Iran's main uranium enrichment facility. By the time the blast tore apart the silver Peugeot, the bike was blocks away, weaving through Tehran traffic after what Iran calls the latest strike in an escalating covert war.  READ MORE

Could this be a CIA targeted assassination?  I doubt it.  Targeting a nuclear scientist - my money is on Israel.  They've been pulling off assassinations like this ever since its Olympic team was murdered in 1972.  Chalk up another one.  Payback's a bitch, isn't it?  But what will Iran do now?

Fill up those gas tanks fast.

Tick, Tick, Tick

Did anyone notice?  The Doomsday Clock just got a little closer to midnight.  Doomsday Clock

Navy Ready for Chinese Move?

Do the Chinese have the capabilities to close shipping lanes in the South China Sea?  Apparently so, according to a top U.S. Naval Commander.

In remarks to the Washington Times, Admiral Jonathan Greenert, the Chief of Naval Operations said that China might try to, "limit access in the region.”  After all, the Chinese claim just about every island within their reach, including the Spratly Islands which are also claimed by Vietnam and Japan.

But is the U.S. ready to defend those waters?  Absolutely, said Admiral Greenert.  " “About half of those are forward deployed naval forces in and around Japan” he said. “That’s the most advanced air wing we have, the most advanced cruisers and destroyers, ordnance, anti-submarine warfare. And we screen our sailors and our commanders very carefully. We put our best in the Western Pacific.”

But that may not be enough.  Read More.

Iran CAN Block the Strait - At Least for a Little While

It seems that Iran can block the Strait of Hormuz, at least for a little while.  Bloomberg Report  While it would be shortly reopened after the U.S. Navy gets its act together - oil prices will most likely spike and trigger the next phase of our bubble laden economy to burst.  (Inflation and skyrocketing interest rates are next along with a collapse in government spending - read "Aftershock" because the authors, David Wiedemer, Robert A, Wiedemer and Cindy S. Spitzer got it right the first time...accurately predicting in 2006 that the housing, stocks, private debt and discretionary spending bubbles would burst within 2-years.  And they did in 2008.)  Just like it did four years ago, only this time it will be worse.

Americans, Israelis and British, Oh My!

US Navy rescues Iranians held hostage by Somalian Pirates  Iran Responds to US Rescue of Captured Fishermen

But not so fast - all that goodwill could soon go to waste.  The Iranians are planning a large land based military exercise near the border with Afghanistan.  Iranian Military Exercises

And then there's this, published today in the Financial Times:  "Tension in the oil shipping lanes of the Gulf looks set to intensify amid indications that Iran, Israel and the US will hold military exercises designed to test weaponry and tactics. As the US and European Union press ahead with oil sanctions on Iran, Tehran’s Defense Minister announced on Friday that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps will hold large-scale exercises in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf next month. The drills will be the “greatest naval war games” to be conducted by the Iranian military’s elite corps, Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi, said in remarks published by the semi-official Fars news agency. The exercises, called “the Great Prophet”, will take place in February and will be more extensive than the Iranian Naval maneuvers in the Gulf of Oman that ended last week.  The Iranian announcement came as it emerged that the US and Israel are gearing up for a major missile defense exercise in the next few weeks. The drill, called “Austere Challenge 12”, is designed to improve defense systems and co-operation between the US and Israeli forces. According to an Israeli official cited by the Associated Press, the drill will test multiple Israeli and US air defense systems against incoming missiles and rockets. Israel has deployed the “Arrow” system, which was jointly developed and funded with the US and is designed to intercept Iranian missiles in the stratosphere, far from Israel.  The announcements of the exercises are the latest indication of mounting tensions between Iran, Israel and the west over its nuclear program. The EU is set to impose sanctions on oil imports from Iran on January 30 while the US is set to impose petroleum-related banking sanctions on Iran from June of this year.  Most defense experts believe it is highly unlikely that Iran will act on a threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s major sea lanes for the oil trade. However, many experts are concerned that the amount of military activity in the region could lead to an incident that triggers a conflict."

Add to this mess: the British are deploying one of their most advance warships, the Type 45 Destroyer HMS Daring, right up the Persian Gulf Gut - The Strait of Hormuz, in a clear challenge to Iranian threats to close the Strait.  British Warship Deployment   This is going to get really interesting really fast.

The £1 billion destroyer HMS Daring carries the world's most sophisticated naval radar, capable of tracking multiple incoming threats from missiles to fighter jets Photo: PA

But what do Americans really care about?  The top story on Yahoo News: A Rare Look into a Celebrity's (Zooey's) Finances  Please.  Somebody just shoot me.

Unemployment Down? Maybe

Today the US Labor Department announced the jobless rate in America dropped to 8.5% and said it was the strongest sign yet of a sustained recovery.  Really?  I've worked in TV news for 30 years - and I can smell spin control when I read it.  What else are they going to say - the Labor Department is cheering for Obama to get re-elected, or they all lose their jobs!

If it's such good news then why does the broad measure of unemployment which includes people who want to work but have stopped looking and those working only part time but who want to work more, drop to only 15.2% from 15.6% in November?

And why are a record 23.7 Million Americans still out of work or underemployed?

To make matters worse - other studies show that the average job lost since the great recession began in 2008 paid $40.00 an hour - and the average job created since then pays only $15.00/hour.  Buried inside the Labor Department statistics was the fastest growing job category - couriers.  Yeah, those are high paying jobs all right.

LONDON (SHARECAST) - Though the tech-laced NASDAQ Composite index is making progress, the other two main US equity benchmarks are in the red, as some markets call into question what initially looked like better-than-expected US jobless figures for December.   Economists such as those at Barclays Capital are of the opinion that, “while we characterize this employment report as upbeat and consistent with the underlying acceleration in economic activity in the second half of last year, we suggest that the December data probably overstate the rate of improvement in labor market conditions."

Why talk economics in this "War Room Now" blog?.  Because if you haven't figured it out by now, all this is connected.  When the government debt and stock market bubbles hit the ceiling (sometime in the next couple of years) the United States and Western Europe will be in so much economic dire straits that our interests abroad will be easy pickings.  Do you really think Washington or NATO will come to the aid of Iraq when Shiite extremists in that country invite Iran to invade?  When China makes its long anticipated move in the South China Sea - do you really think the United States will have the monetary and political will to block them when our inflation rate is at 50% annually or higher?  An island hopping strategy in WWII almost bankrupted America - now, we're about to do that all by ourselves.  A tremendously costly campaign in the Asian-Pacific region will be wildly out of reach.  So long suckers, you are on your own.

Not Needed - Really?

After warning the US Navy not to re-enter the Persian Gulf because it was "not needed" - an Iranian boat crew is rescued by personnel flying a US Navy Helicopter off the destroyer USS Kidd - Iranian Boat Rescue   
Maybe Tehran will slow the saber rattling - maybe.

This is a Good Move

For all you war hawks out there - read between the lines.  President Obama's plan to cut standing forces in the Army and Marines wouldn't be a good move by itself.  But he's also increasing our presence in the Asian-Pacific region, and boosting Air Force and SPOC Drone operations.  He's looking at two future wars, not two past wars.  Most leaders plan to fight the last war - but there will be no Russian invasion through the Fulda Gap anytime soon.  We will be better prepared for the Chinese threat in the Pacific - and ready to strike back at Terrorist using high tech airborne weapons and drones instead of boots on the ground (Which worked really well in Iraq and Afghanistan, didn't it?).  Good move, this time, Mr. President.  Let's see how well he follows up on this promise.  See:  Obama's Leaner Military

Preparing for War - and Higher Gas Prices

Now Iran says we can't deploy an Aircraft Carrier to the Persian Gulf again.  Whatever.  Iran Warns US Navy  How much longer can this go on?  Not much.  Get ready for a serious spike in gas prices.

The latest - Not Good

Want to know what's going on in the world - it's not promising.

Lets take a look at the situation in the Persian Gulf.  The latest - Iran is shooting off missiles like they are having their own 4th of July:   Iran Tests Cruise Missile


Iran has already promised to close the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. or anyone else includes sanctions against the import of Iranian oil.  Prices of gasoline are already going up as hoarders prepare for the worse.

What about our rapid withdrawal from Iraq?  Think that has anything to do with clearing the way for an Israeli air strike against Iranian nuclear targets - just read this:   US Clears Way for Israel?

In case you missed it - President Obama approved the sale of 50 bunker busing bombs to Israel about two months ago - Bunker Busting Bomb Sale - something not even Israeli supporter President George W. Bush would do.  Why?  It's Libya all over again.  Obama wants Israel to take care of Iran for him, just like he wanted NATO to deal with Libya.  It's war by proxy.  Just don't look for it to work so well this time.

The Islamist extremists running Iran have one option if attacked by Israel - and that's to attack the U.S. 5th fleet in the Gulf.  Iran will also attempt to close the Strait.  It's not generally known, but the Pentagon recently war-gamed an attack by Iran on the 5th fleet - the commander deploying red forces (Iran) used asymmetrical warfare tactics (suicide speed boats, etc.) and was able to sink a U.S. Aircraft Carrier and several escort vessels.  As a result of the exercise, he was removed as commander, and the game was re-started (remind anyone of Billy Mitchel's air raid on old German Battleships before WWII and the attack on Pearl Harbor?)  The facts are these - Iran can close the Strait of Hormuz, cause considerable consternation among oil producing nations - for a short period of time.  Like Pearl Harbor, the United States Navy will recover given time.  The Strait will be re-opened by force and Iran's military might will be serious degraded when the United States Naval and Ar Forces attack from afar, without even presenting Iran with a target.  But it will take times, cost lives at least initially, and trigger a serious economic disruption in the short term.  Hello 2012, we can't wait.  The Coming War with Iran

Then there is the Far East.  USPACCOM at Pearl is having serious issues with China, after Chinese President Hu Jinato urged its navy to "prepare for war."  China Prepares for War?  What?  Don't worry too much about this one USPACCOM sources say they believe the statement was meant more for a Chinese domestic audience than anyone else.  Chines defense spending is up - way up - at the expense of certain domestic programs.  A little saber-rattling goes a long way when it comes to domestic political support (Not that the Chinese Communists really need any to do whatever they want.  However, I believe it is critical to note that the Chinese have been building up their naval strength for some time.  China Launches Aircraft Carrier   and it could threaten a move against islands in the South China Sea claimed by China, Japan and Vietnam for their natural resources.  USPACCOM is watching - and it has more ships, US Air Force bombers, and troops (Mostly in Japan) than any other U.S. Joint Command.

Stay tuned.