Friday News Roundup - International
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-01-06/friday-news-roundup-international
The Taliban tentatively agreed to open an office in Qatar. Dozens died in bombings inside and outside of Baghdad yesterday. The Arab League is criticized for failing to halt violence in Syria. The League is now seeking technical assistance from the U.N. And the European Union agreed in principle to an embargo on Iranian oil. Tom Gjelten of NPR, Nadia Bilbassy of Middle East Broadcast Centre and Mark Landler of The New York Times join Diane for analysis of the week's top international news stories.
Guests
Nadia Bilbassy
senior U.S. correspondent, MBC TV -- Middle East Broadcast Centre.
Mark Landler
White House correspondent, The New York Times.
Tom Gjelten
NPR national security correspondent and author of "Bacardi and the Long Fight for Cuba: The Biography of a Cause."
Comments
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The assertion that the United States cannot fight two ground wars (or any other kind of war) simultaneously is false. We are currently fighting in one theater with military personnel in locations around the world - all without the support of an empire as Britain, Spain, France, Rome, et al had for support of their military action. The nation is not "geared for war" yet we are able to sustain a prolonged military effort with a duration exceeding that of World War I, II, the US Civil War, the Mexican-American War, the Spanish American War, the Revoultionary War... need I continue? if this nation really went to war, every hunter in the United States would stop buying shells and go bow hunting to support the troops. If we were really at war, the President would draft men for the United States armed forces. If we were really at war, every fit retired officer would be called back to duty. If we were really at war, the governemnt would institute rationing of critical war materials, institute punitive taxes on fuel consumption and luxury goods. Again, need I go on? I support scaling back the US military and refocusing our efforts, but none of us, especially those who are old enough to know better, should get confused about the power and force this country can apply when we "go to war" against an enemy. I suspect we could manage three fronts, if pressed.
Although it is never commented on, we must all remember that the economic war we are waging on Iran is nothing new -- we have been making war on Iran since the Iranians toppled the dictator we installed in 1950 (to protect the profits of our and Britain's oil companies). We are continuing this 30 year war on Iran, not to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon (that is just the latest pretext), but to overthrow the government so we can once again put our oil companies in control of Iran's oil. It's sad that our oil companies have so much control of our Government ...
While not trying to diminish the contributions of our men and women in the military, as far as the unemployment rate among veterans, many of these people are in the military because they couldn't get a civilian job. There is no better recruiter than a bad economy.
Concur with 'tteclod' -- just one slightly different idea -- the troops we have spread across the globe ARE there to control and maintain our empire. It is not that we don't have an empire, it's just that with our modern military and economic system, we don't have to directly control the governments of other nations as Britain, Germany, Spain, etc, did in the 17th-20th centuries.
I am disappointed by the use of time giving background to the opinions by your guests; we know this stuff, please use time for more depth. Also much time used for
cliche', we need insight not info,
thank you
michael burke
"come to the assistance of Israel"
"turn it's back on Israel"
C'mon, backing Israel aggression against Iran isn't a foreign policy question except pro forma. It's a domestic political issue in the US.
How is it that tiny Israel wags the US dog? The panel seems to acknowledge that such a catastrophic eventually is more than probable.
Don't these discussions play out like a broken record in that they all have their roots in 9/11? It would appear we are discussing symptoms of a greater issue. Whose really pulling the strings and why are we fighting and dying in the Middle East? Meanwhile, America continues in its state of complacency and denial of certain facts while Globalists continue their scheduled agendas.
The military drum beat of worry about China that comes out of Washington makes no logical sense -- except to justify more weapons spending for military-industrial complex.
Consider that China has a very modest military for its size and no recent history of aggression, other than disputes over adjacent territories like Tibet and Taiwan. Consider that China is our biggest trading partner and creditor and that both economies are strongly enmeshed.
Instead, it is China that should be worried about the United States. We are the country with uncountable hundreds of garrisons around the world. We are the country with a growing history of unilaterally attacking other countries and wreaking devastation on them (going back to Vietnam, this now 50 years of such warfare by the USA). Suppose China applied our thought process in reverse -- wouldn't they want a fleet regularly patrolling the Caribbean and another fleet protecting their interests off the West Coast of North America?
Finally, it is not North Korea that has tutored Iran on the value of having nuclear weapons -- it is the United States that has taught the world that lesson: if you want to be safe against attack by the United States, you need some nuclear weapons.
Is that so tteclod? Where is the money going to come from?
I propose trying something a bit more civilized like actually meeting and talking instead of shooting first and asking questions later which seems to be the only "strategy" America has for the Middle East. Our government needs to work a bit more on creative, ethical communication and when one peaceful resolution idea doesn't work, try another and keep trying till we get a peaceful solution that works. I don't know why that's so hard for us to do, we almost always go straight to the guns because we're so trigger happy. I look forward to the day when America can learn to negotiate peacefully with other countries that we have disagreements with, when America learns to be more creative if things don't work out the first time. We will save the lives of our own kids who are fighting in these wars not to mention the other resources we would save.
Kevin,
I don't disagree with any of your suggestions.
I did find it ignorant for Ms. Rehm's guest to assert that the USA isn't capable of significantly greater military force than we are presently applying overseas. Whether we use that strength is another discussion.