Sunday, June 13, 2010

No Terms

We read this am that the Saudis have gifted the Israelis with clear skies to attack Iran, or as the UK Times broke the story, “Saudi Arabia has conducted tests to stand down its air defences to enable Israeli jets to make a bombing raid on Iran’s nuclear facilities.” This was naturally denied by the Saudis but most understand it to be true. The Sunni Saudis not only dislike, but greatly fear the Shi’ite (the word is an editor’s nightmare) running Iran.

The US, first under Bush and now especially Obama has failed to do anything except make noise. The latest US/UN “sanctions with teeth” are no more than a nuisance. The sanctions that everyone knows will work most everyone is afraid to apply. Thus we will have violence - either of the American or Israeli variety. Bill Kristol reports that although some in Wash are resigned to an Israeli strike, “A U.S. failure to act in response to what is perhaps the greatest threat to American interests in decades would be irresponsible. Israel, moreover, lacks our full capabilities to do the job.”

There is only one way left to us. We tell the Iranians that the nuclear party is over or they will suffer one of two consequences, which one they won’t know until it happens: 1) A full blockade of refined gasoline, or 2) a US strike on their facilities.

Where is U.S. Grant when we need him? As the Confederates at Ft Donelson prepared to give up they asked for terms, seeking delay while at the same time trying to calculate an escape. Grant responded, “General Buckner, Yours of this date proposing....terms of Capitulation, is just received. No terms except an unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted. I propose to move immediately upon your works. Respectfully, U.S. Grant, Brig. Gen.” After protesting the terms as “ungenerous and unchivalrous” Buckner couldn’t surrender fast enough.

Robert Craven

Saturday, June 05, 2010

Illumination and the Blockade

From a woman who helped to send the latest aid vessel to interfere with international law, one Greta Berlin of the Free Gaza movement (and safely in Cyprus) - “What Israel needs to understand is that nothing is accomplished with force.” What a stupid comment from an obviously stupid woman. “What Israel needs to understand...”? For decades Israel has met belligerency, kidnapping and random murder with restraint. Only in the face of death does Israel respond.

In fact, the Rachel Corrie was boarded today. All was quiet. “The different outcome we saw today underscores the difference between peace activists who we disagree with but respect their right to express their different opinion and flotilla participants [on the Mavi Marmara] who were violent extremist supporters of terrorists," said Netanyahu. Oh, heck, that’s no fun. The Turks and the Hamas chumps can’t make hay out of that. Come on.

We can sense tension at the nursery. They simply can’t stand it. “We’ll wait till the facts are in,” one quipped, meaning we hope the facts cooperate. Indeed, it is a known fact that the vessel Mavi Marmara was sponsored by an Islamic aid group from Turkey, the Foundation for Human Rights and Freedom and Humanitarian Relief. Israel outlawed the group, known by its Turkish acronym IHH, in 2008 because of ties to Hamas.

How inconvenient for the chatterers.

And where is BO? Why have the world’s outlaws grown emboldened so suddenly? Why not? There are no consequences. Notes Caroline Glick of the Jerusalem Post, “As for the US, in the year and a half since Obama took office he has fundamentally restructured American foreign policy in a manner that rewards US enemies at the expense of US allies. From Honduras and Colombia to Britain, Poland, and the Czech Republic, to Japan and India to Israel, Iraq and Afghanistan, Obama has treated US allies with contempt and hostility. At the same time, his repeated bids to woo US adversaries have rewarded the leaders of Iran, Venezuela, Russia and others for their aggression.”

Thank you Caroline. As BO continues with faculty-lounge style diplomacy, his anchor is that since US support for Israel is/was the root of the Arab and Islamic worlds animus towards the US, let’s punish Israel and woe its worst enemies. This Obama guy looks to appease Iran and Syria; by doing so he humiliates Egypt and Jordan, those that signed a peace treaty with Israel. Heck, the Arabs see that and know the best way to inflate their power is by attacking Israel.

And the American left fall perfectly into line. They should be ashamed of themselves for their lack of scholarship, for their susceptibility to group thought. This vacuity of intellect - almost amusing is it not?

Robert Craven

Friday, June 04, 2010

The Blockade - An Update

Let’s take a second look at the recent “mission of humanitarian relief” tragedy. How about table talk tonight, right here in Marin County? Want to chant party slogans tonight at dinner time, or want your kids to respect you when they get older? Interested in a grounding, or just falling for party fashion? Read on.

We’ve already presented a quick and accurate snap shot of the recent violence. We could do that because we’ve followed Hamas for the past 5 years. Primary forces remain in place. Now to more background.

Recall that Israel gave up land originally taken as a buffer to protect their populations, southern Lebanon in 2000 and Gaza in ‘05. Big mistake. Ok, to continue. What did they get in return? An intensification of belligerency, heavy militarization of the enemy side, multiple kidnapping, cross-border attacks, and, from Gaza, years of unrelenting rocket attack. (Naturally.
These people don’t want land or equality; they want Israel eliminated. And, we know why.)

So Israel withdrew from Gaza in 2005, forcibly uprooting 8,500 Jewish settlers and evacuating all soldiers. The Palestinians were left free to form their own government and run their own affairs. But recall that in 2007 Hamas gained political control of Gaza. These clowns occupied themselves by raining 10,000 missiles on Israeli cities, sending kidnappers and suicide bombers across the border. Too much!

So Israel imposed a blockade to prevent Hamas from receiving weapons or the materials from which to make weapons. Food, medicine, and other humanitarian relief flow to the inhabitants on a daily basis through Israel. Why bother? There is no humanitarian crisis in Gaza for goodness sake. As the Washington Post reports, "Gazans readily admit that they are not going hungry ... (but they) used to be earning $100 per day, smoking Marlboros and going to Egypt every two months on vacation." They are just spoiled little thugs.

So there is no need of “relief.” Oh, but weren’t the Gaza-bound ships on a mission of humanitarian relief? The answer to any but the willfully blind is “No.” Otherwise they would have accepted Israel’s offer to bring their supplies to an Israeli port, be inspected for military material, and have the rest trucked by Israel into Gaza — as every week 10,000 tons of food, medicine, and other humanitarian supplies are sent by Israel to Gaza. But Lenin’s “useful idiots” take the bait every time Hamas claims victimhood. Israel naturally imposes a blockade to prevent Hamas from arming itself with still more rockets.

In World War II, with full international legality the United States blockaded Germany and Japan. And during the October 1962 missile crisis, we blockaded (“quarantined”) Cuba. Yet Israel is accused of international criminality for doing precisely what John Kennedy did: impose a naval blockade to prevent a hostile state from acquiring lethal weaponry.

Oh, that. How inconvenient for the left.

Conclusion: The big winner from this week's incident are the leaders of the Turkish organization. Their first declarations this week played up the killing of the civilians aboard the Marmara by the IDF, which many international media outlets described as a massacre. In the weeks to come, IHH will construct the myth of how its brave activists humiliated fighters in the IDF's most hallowed unit. Their brothers in Hezbollah have made huge capital out of less.

The big loser is Israel. In live footage from the ships on the way to Gaza, broadcast by Al Jazeera, participants in the flotilla sang inflammatory songs calling for a massacre of Jews. Sheikh Ra'ad Salah, from the Islamic Movement in Israel, delivered fiery harangues. One broadcast showed a Turkish activist brandishing an Arab dagger. The IDF did not translate those images into intelligence insights about the nature of the adversary.

Next time Israel, inject a great terror into the hearts of these bandits.

Robert Craven

Thursday, June 03, 2010

Lessons For Israel

The Israelis defended their families and their sovereignty and the international community, including our own dear far left, has a fit. But of course, it could be no other way. They’re all shocked and all want a major inquiry although they all already have the verdict. But the shower of missiles from Gaza you say? What inquiry?

Let’s take this example a tad further. We know the IDF warned those aboard the Marmara that their presence in the area was not welcomed, in line with international law. The Israeli army encouraged the flotilla to sail safely along with its “humanitarian aid” to a different port, to be examined for weapons; if free of those, the aid would be delivered (which in fact Israel is doing right now, with that very aid from that very ship, minus the weapons). But the activists breached a security blockade; this warrants a naval response. It was mild and to be contained. The Israeli’s came down one at a time with paint ball guns, not assault rifles. They were met with unsolicited violence; this warrants defensive measures. They had pistols for self-protection, and used them. A fierce fight erupted on deck and only after taking casualties and fearing for their lives did the commandos fire back, trying to aim first at the feet of the "peace activists."

What’s the big deal?

The big deal is the instructive nature of this exercise, for all of us but especially for the Israelis. Their first error was to underestimate the potential for violence aboard the ship. We now find that some 40 Turkish mercenaries were aboard, no papers, but bullet proof vests and night goggles. Just your run-of-the-mill humanitarians naturally. But wait! As Vic Hansen observers, "Turkey thought that the Gaza flotilla would be yet another clever way of confronting Israel: They would hype the hoped-for 'overreaction,' then posture as regional defender of the faith to the world’s outraged Muslims. However, as more details of the incident emerge, more and more suspicion is falling on Turkish interests that seem to have gone out of their way to stage a violent encounter in order to showcase Turkey’s new Mideast role.'" Oh, that.


The Israeli error which eclipses all others however is their recent habit to play nice, worrying too much about pr and not enough about their security. When you’re sweet, thugs grow only more surly. Witness the recent Lebanon initiative. Israel has used just enough force to irritate, not enough to intimidate.

Our lefty friends instantly pounce on the Israelis, taking the case of the “underdogs.” They lack the intellectual curiosity to do otherwise. In fact, the “underdogs” are deviled by envy, nothing else. Here is a little, thriving, free democracy that provides evidence of excellence to otherwise failed neighboring states - all a mess, in spite of their sitting on riches in oil. These clowns can’t even refine their own gasoline. So of course they’re pissed. And when the Israeli’s sworn enemy, by policy in fact randomly target civilians, they forfeit any credibility, any legitimate complaint they may have had. It’s that simple.

You want understanding? Stop the murder. Until then Israel, vanquish these troglodytes.

Robert Craven

Tuesday, June 01, 2010

Praise For Obama

The drone strike taking out Mustafa Abu Yazid (where do these guys get these names?), the #3 al-qaida mucky muck, was nothing if not brilliant. Obama’s at the helm; he gets the credit. Not only has our dear leader endorsed Bush war policy (contrary naturally to his campaign rhetoric) but he has put teeth in the stealth portion of it.

BO has also adopted wholesale the Bush-Cheney US security apparatus; this too is to his credit. You know, the oversight that kept the Marin Cty left's sorry asses safe for 8 years. However, as we highlighted earlier he hasn’t what you might say “maintained it." It’s become more of a crossed-your-fingers approach, counting on civilians to intercede and bomber's crotches to take fire. And then there’s that worse-than-useless Janet Napolitano, unable to find her way out of a wet paper bag, in this position because she’s a she. This is known to reasonable folk as a dumbing down.

But back to BO - nice work.

Robert Craven