Bush Did Not Get Just The Geography Wrong On Iraq

There are reports Bush-Cheney started looking for excuses to declare war on Saddam as soon as Bush got into office. It has to be noted Saddam attempted an assassination on Bush Senior some time in the 1990s when Bush Senior went on a visit to Kuwait. It was a plot that went nowhere, but Clinton did send in a few missiles in retaliation. "Not enough," Bush Junior said while campaigning for president in 2000.

The direct and indirect costs of the Iraq War have been estimated at three trillion dollars by the likes of Joseph Stiglitz. That is a ton of money. I am going to argue that sum played a key role in sending the US economy into the tizzy that it is in right now.

The verbal assaults by the Al Qaeda on Barack, the US drone strikes inside of Pakistan, neither have surprised me. The war the Al Qaeda declared on America a long time ago was an ideological war. Two vibrant, opposing ideologies continue to be very much at loggerheads.

Barack immediately started doing what he said he will do. On Guantanamo and torture, on Pakistan. The biggest downside of the misadventure in Iraq has been the Al Qaeda got pretty much a free reign in the stateless parts of northwest Pakistan from where they continue to plot. In his latest tirade Bin Laden has talked of going into "new directions." As far as Bin Laden is concerned, the entire world is a stage. He does not have to strike inside America to prove the resiliency of his organization.

It is hard to fight an unconventional war with a conventional army, with conventional tactics. Iraq was Looking Tokyo Going London, but it was also conventional. You were in a hurry to bring down a state. The Al Qaeda is stateless.

Barack might end the war in Iraq, and he might close Guantanamo, and he might end torture as a tactic, and he is hugely popular in the Arab world, and he might get the geography right in terms of a renewed focus on Afghanistan and Pakistan, but I fear he might get the details wrong.

A big chunk of the work in Pakistan is political. How do you bring the Pakistani army completely under the parliament? How do you bring the Pakistani intelligence agency, the ISI, usually called a state within a state, completely under the Pakistani parliament? The ISI gave birth to the Taliban, but back then that is what the US wanted, the Soviets had gone amok in Afghanistan.

And it would be a mistake to think the Al Qaeda exists only in a particular, rugged province in Pakistan. It is stateless, it is global. It is an ideology seeking converts, seeking the disenchanted, the angry few. They don't even need direct communication half the time to do what they need to do, which is to stage "spectacular" attacks, like the one in Mumbai, London.

I have long maintained the only way to conclude the War On Terror is by bringing about a total spread of democracy in the Arab world. There is a progressive, proactive way to do that that is nothing to do with the Al Qaeda, an organization of a few thousand individuals in an ocean of a billion Arabs/Muslims.

As in, there is not a Bush way to build democracy in Afghanistan and Pakistan, just like there was not one in Iraq. There is a progressive alternative.

Spread Democracy
Revolution

Harassing Arab Americans have been a bad idea. Talking disrespect of Islam as a religion is a bad idea. And the Palestinian plight is a permanent thorn. That has to be resolved. It is a good sign that the first foreign leader President Barack called up was Abbas.

Three major world religions clashing is not a pretty sight. There are complex emotional threads entangled. The situation is volatile, has been for decades. The task is tough. The communists claimed godlessness, the Islamists claim God. At some level that makes their ideology more challenging.

The idea remains to help make the mainstream Muslims feel their destiny is in their own hands. The hard work of peace, the hard work of state building, the hard work on education and health, the hard work of prosperity.

It is not going to be easy. It is not going to be swift. Moments might feel like reverse progress. But it is necessary work, the central challenge in global politics today.

If and when we start seeing more democracies in the Arab world, you can expect the largest political parties to be as steeped in Islam as you could argue the Republican Party in America is steeped in Christianity. Turkey is a case in point.

What the Palestinians are going through right now is worse than apartheid. It feels like a case of child abuse. The Germans abused the Jews so the Jews are going to abuse the Palestinians. Where is the logic in that?

In The News

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President Obama 'orders Pakistan drone attacks' Times Online Security officials said the strikes, which saw up to five missiles slam into houses in separate villages, killed seven "foreigners" - a term that usually means al-Qaeda - but locals also said that three children lost their lives. ....... Dozens of similar strikes since August on northwest Pakistan, a hotbed of Taleban and al-Qaeda militancy, have sparked angry government criticism of the US, which is targeting the area with missiles launched from unmanned CIA aircraft controlled from operation rooms inside the US. ........... Mr Obama has made Afghanistan his top foreign policy priority and said during his presidential campaign that he would consider military action inside Pakistan if the government there was unable or unwilling to take on the militants. ........ Since September, the US is estimated to have carried out about 30 such attacks, killing more than 220 people.
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India revels in acclaim for 'Slumdog Millionaire' Christian Science Monitor Dharavi, a grubby slum in Mumbai (Bombay) that is touted as Asia's largest ....... "Slumdog ... is Boyle's gift to Mumbai," Shobha De, a socialite and author ....... More than 60 percent of Mumbai's citizens are known to reside in slums. The most visible of them is Dharavi, a labyrinth that is home to more than 1 million people. ....... one toilet for every 1,500 people ...... Many of Mumbai's elite view Dharavi as a blight that must be purged if the city, India's financial and entertainment capital, is to achieve stature as a world-class city. Local politicians have long dreamed of transforming Mumbai into "India's Shanghai."
Windows 7 vs. Mac OS X Snow Leopard: Apple ups the ante Apple Insider
Jindal gets top GOP speaking slot Politico Jindal will headline the National Republican Congressional Committee’s March fundraising dinner ....... will take the speaking slot that in years past belonged to President Bush. ..... Jindal has said he is only focused on running for re-election in Baton Rouge in 2011.
Obama's approval opens high, standard The Swamp - Tribune's Washington Bureau
Barack Obama orders closure of Guantanamo Bay prison The Australian
Clinton shines on first day as secretary of state Newsday With a broad smile, Clinton won excited, almost giddy, applause and cheers from hundreds of diplomats, foreign service officers and staff as she worked a rope line in the department's packed main lobby yesterday morning. ....... Obama and Vice President Joe Biden paid an unusually early visit to Foggy Bottom ....... "I've given you an early gift: Hillary Clinton. ....... She then took an intelligence briefing and toured the building before holding a closed meeting with Obama, Biden and national security advisers.
Hillary Clinton Brings Change to the State Department U.S. News & World Report
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Former NY Senate leader Joseph Bruno indicted The Associated Press
Obama to lift restrictions on abortion funding Reuters
India PM Singh to miss months of election campaign due to heart bypass Telegraph.co.uk speculation that Rahul Gandhi, the son of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and great- grandson of Nehru, will lead the Congress Party campaign. ........ The economist is 76 and this will be his second bypass and third heart operation. He also suffers from diabetes, which is expected to delay his recovery from surgery. ....... Sources close to the Gandhi family say they want Rahul to assume the party leadership as soon as possible. "It is his destiny" ...... he will also replace his father as India's youngest prime minister.
China's Economic Growth Slows Forbes
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Google CEO Hints at Semantic, Contextual Search eWeek
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Google writes down Clearwire investment, confident about Android FierceWireless Google reported a net income of $382 million, down 68 percent from the $1.21 billion in the year-ago period, but that was primarily due to write downs of its investments in AOL and Clearwire by $726 million and $355 million, respectively. Google, along with Intel, Comcast, Time Warner, Brighthouse and others invested $3.2 billion in the new Clearwire.
Oscars not ultimate recognition, says Amitabh Bachchan Times of India Bachchan said he was very happy as Indian films were catering to amount 2.5 billion people ..... Describing cinema as a uniting medium, the actor said there was no better example of an integrated India than a cinema hall.
Bollywood's Bachchan apologises to 'Slumdog' director AFP Despite having a British director, producer, writer and studio, India has claimed the film as its own because of its Indian cast, crew and location and is eagerly anticipating next month's Oscars.
An open letter to Amitabh Bachchan Livemint
Filmmakers dogged pursuits earn Oscar's attention Los Angeles Times
`Button' vs. `Slumdog': A study in contrasts MSNBC
Gillibrand Is a Centrist With a Tenacious Style New York Times

Kirsten Gillibrand Is A Good Choice

Because there are so few women in the US Senate.



I was rooting for Caroline Kennedy, but she chose to take her name out at the last minute for personal reasons, and I respect that. But Caroline would have been a great choice.

Paterson Needs Caroline To Get To Barack
Advice For Caroline
Caroline Kennedy Is No Sarah Palin, She Is No Airhead
I Like The Caroline Kennedy Name

I am glad I rooted for Caroline, because Caroline rooted for Barack when it was not obvious he will win. The primary fight was tougher than the general election fight.

I was scared the seat might go to some guy. I have nothing against Cuomo, I hear he has been a good Attorney General, but there are already too many guys on Capitol Hill.

Kirsten Gillibrand - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Paterson Picks Gillibrand for Senate - NYTimes.com known for bold political moves and centrist policy positions ....... considered an up-and-coming and forceful lawmaker in her district and has gained considerable attention from Democratic leaders in Washington. ...... Mr. Paterson made his final decision shortly before 2 a.m. Friday after a marathon series of phone calls and deliberations with his top aides ...... One of Mr. Paterson’s preferences had been to select a woman to replace Mrs. Clinton. ..... The choice reflects Mr. Paterson’s thinking that his selection should be someone who can help him attract key demographics — in Ms. Gillibrand’s case upstate New Yorkers and women. ....... (Ms. Gillibrand received a standing ovation on the floor of the House from her colleagues for working right up to the day she gave birth to Henry.) ....... a day of anonymous and often bitter sniping over Caroline Kennedy’s mystifying departure from the Senate field ...... Paterson “never had any intention of picking Kennedy” because he had come to consider her unready for the job. ...... the governor told Ms. Kennedy last week that she was the choice but that he would use the next few days to do “a little misdirection to keep the suspense up.” ......... and released a statement by e-mail at 12:03 a.m. Thursday, saying, “I informed Governor Paterson today that for personal reasons I am withdrawing my name from consideration for the United States Senate.” ..... several people who are longtime allies of the governor warned that he was unpredictable.

In The News

Obama lauds Gillibrand pick Boston Globe

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Aide: Kirsten Gillibrand picked as next NY senator USA Today 42-year-old Gillibrand
India celebrates 10 'Slumdog' Oscar nominations The Associated Press The movie got the second highest number of Oscar nominations Thursday, including best director for Danny Boyle, best picture and — generating the most buzz in India — three music nominations for Indian composer A.R. Rahman. ...... "I'm at the top of the world," Rahman told the Times of India. "Everything is a blur." ..... The gritty movie, which features prostitution, religious violence and maimed beggars, has sparked great debate over whether the film is a blow to India's international reputation. ..... Calling it "a piece of riveting cinema," the paper praised the movie as "a Cinderella-like fairy tale with the edge of a thriller and the vision of an artist." ...... The movie was being released both in English and in Hindi and many predicted it to be a monster hit. ..... The film was also nominated for best adapted screenplay, cinematography, sound mixing, sound editing and film editing.
Rahman nominated for three Oscars, Slumdog for 10 Indian Express, India
10 Oscar nominations for Slumdog Sify, India The film has got 10 nominations, of which three are for the film's music - one for best original score and two for the best original songs - “Jai ho” and “O saya”, for the 81st Annual Academy Awards. The lyrics of 'Jai ho' have been penned by noted lyricist Gulzar. ..... best motion picture, best director, best adapted screenplay, best film editing, best sound editing, best sound mixing and best cinematography. ..... the movie has already raked in $43 million at the US box office and jumped itself back to the US Top 10. ...... “The Bollywood dance scene that explodes under the closing credits feels both incongruous and earned: Young India kicking up its heels. You may even feel like dancing in the aisles yourself ....... "Boyle brings down the curtain with a musical number that registers as a gift from movie heaven. He breaks your heart, then heels it - and sends you out with a song." ....... The movie triumphed at various awards across the globe. Screen Actors Guild Awards, London Critics Circle Award, New York Film Critics Circle Awards, Satellite Awards, Toronto Film Festival, British Independent Film Award - to name a few. ........ Brad Pitt starrer reverse-ageing drama "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" leads the race with 13 nominations.





Slow Vista sales hit Microsoft revenues as netbooks gain ground Computerworld the "PC market weakness and a continued shift to lower priced netbooks." ...... If PCs aren't selling, Microsoft's not making money." ..... Windows was "collapsing" because of the operating system's increasingly bloated code base and inability to roll out upgrades in a timely fashion.
Apple's Cook Says No To Netbooks, But Then Again ... ChannelWeb shot down rumors that Apple would be entering the sub-$500 netbook space ....... Apple simply doesn't know how to make a cheap netbook. ....... they tend not to enter a market unless they know they've created a product that seamlessly blends a user experience, interface, software and aesthetics. ...... But if the netbook market takes off in 2009 like some are predicting, the company may start to sign a different tune.
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Wayne Barrett: Is Gillibrand Too Republican to Replace Clinton? Village Voice