Periodic World Craziness Update # 21

The latest month’s wackiness in the world of international relations, politics, and  brinkmanship.

EGYPT: 36 KILLED IN PRISON TRUCK ESCAPE ATTEMPT:  As predicted, Egypt appears to be slipping into a Civil War.  How long until McCain starts saying we need to arm the MB there to protect them against the Military that is trying to keep Egypt secular if not exactly Democratic?

In Egyptian village, Christian shops marked ahead of church attack:  What do the Christians have to do with the military – Muslim Brotherhood conflict/argument?  I see these attacks as the MB using the opportunity of the unrest to get rid of a minority they despise anyway.  If the current conflict escalates to Civil War, expect Cristian persecution to get worse.  If the military was smart they would be courting the large Christian community right now.

Egypt crackdown may not crush Brotherhood:  Accordinbg to Reuters the MB is so resilient that is cannot be shut down.  I would suggest that if the Military is prepared to be ruthless enough the MB can indeed be shut down.  There are plenty of hisorical examples of how to silence dissent, Bolshevism and Fascism being wo of the most ruthless and more successful recent examples.  Don’t forget the lessons from Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge which effectively ended all resistance to the regime and had to be deposed by oitside invasion.  One thing history teaches is “never say never,” there is always a way to achieve political ends.

Syria’s darkest hour: Hundreds of children’s bodies piled high after nerve gas attack near Damascus leaves up to 1,300 deadSyrian forces bomb area of alleged chemical attack:  If this was nerve gas and if it was Assad then no doubt calls for outside intervention will increase.  All that is known right now is that many people died and we don’t know why except the word of the rebels.  I highly doubt that if it was gas that government forces did it.  It smells more like a bait and switch to me.  The timing of the attack when UN inspectors arrive seems too good to be true for the rebels.  I suspect the rebels did it and are trying to pin it on Assad.  Then again, I think of the two sides in this civil war, the rebels are the least savory. The more I think about the claims of chemical weapons and the account of no visible wounds on the dead it makes me wonder.  There are many things that can kill without visible wounds and concussion is one of them.  If Sarin was used we would expect to see victims who had foamed at the mouth, vomited, voided their bowels, and wet themselves among other symptoms according to the CDC.  A hallmark of nerve agents is loss of motor control leading to an anything but peaceful death.  I get the sense that many people want to find evidence of chemical use and that the UN will find it whether it is really there or not.

Israel strikes Lebanon after rocket attacks:  Expect Israel to get even more twitchy about defending her territorial integrity as the Middle East continues to implode around her.  I would expect the Israelis to retaliate quickly and harsly to any provocation by Islamic or other militants.

Egypt security deploys as Morsi supporters rally:  The Egyptian meltdown continues.

John Kerry: Syria’s use of chemical weapons ‘undeniable’:  The Western Drumbeat to intervene has stepped up.  It would be idiotic for the West to get more involved in the Syrian Civil War than they already are.  But then, when has the stupidity of an action ever stopped policiticians from doing it anyway?

Arab League Cautious as U.S. Gears for Strike:  From the article-“The Arab League demanded an international response to what it called the “heinous crime” of last week’s alleged chemical attack near Damascus that activists and rebels said left more than 1,000 Syrians dead. But the U.S.’s major Arab allies have stopped short of offering public support for a strike without international backing, reflecting broad unease in the region about another Western military intervention.”  So they want the west to do something but won’t support it and are too afraid of their own people to do something their damn selves.  If this is not an argument for accelerating efforts to end reliance on Middle East oil so we can let the Arabs rot I don’t know what is.

U.K. Parliament Rejects Syria Action:  At least the British Parliament and British people are apparently smart enough to recognize that R2P is not a good justification for war.  The only good justification for going to war is national interests.

Suez Canal Authority says attack attempted on container ship:  Now if attacks on shipping going through te canal increase and actually get effective then I can see a justification for securing the canal zone.

Lebanon turns to apps to avoid growing violence linked to Syria:  I guess there really is an app for everything.

Special report: We all thought Libya had moved on – it has, but into lawlessness and ruin:  Now, is anyone surprised that Libya is falling apart?  WHat is it with people that think you can cut the head off of a despotic regime and Democracy will flower on the barren ground left behind?  Democracy is not just a sytem of government, it is a way of thinking and a tradition.

Syria said Tuesday it has accepted Russia’s proposal to place its chemical weapons under international control for subsequent dismantling:  Let’s see, John Kerry makes an off the cuff remark, Russia Jumps on it as a serious proposal, Russia then gets Assad to buy into it, and the US Administration is left tap-dancing trying to justify attacks whose raison d’etre has just disappeared.  If the Syrian CBRN crisis has not showcased how inept and amateurish current US foreign policy is, I don’t know what else could.  Perhaps we should threaten to attack Venezuela over their recent power outages as causing unneeded human suffering.

Assad did not order Syria chemical weapons attack, says German press:  That there is no smoking gun evidence that Assad is involved does not surprise me.  In fact, the timing of the attack when the UN Isnpectors were in Syria seems too pat to me.  I am increasingly convinced the rebels did it and are trying to pin it on Assad and Western intel agencies are going along with it.  The only question I cannot answer is why the intel weenies would do so.

Jihadis gain ground in Syrian rebel movement as moderates grow desperate:  This is not a new development.  The Jihadis have been gaining in strength all along, probably becuase they are willing to be more ruthless than the moderate and secular rebels.  It is just a matter of time until the Jihadist elements totally supplant the non-jihadis as the leadership of the rebel movement.