Blackwater The C.I.A and Aghanistan

Failure and the Bush Administration had a symbiotic relationship from its inception following through to its inglorious end this past January. Even as it pasted into the annals of history its misadventures continue to haunt America its political leadership and its allies in central Asia. So, once again information has come to the fore concerning Blackwater its contracts with the C.I.A and their operations in Pakistan against the Taliban.

Members of Congress have increasingly become alarmed by the implications of what they are learning about Blackwater, notably in regard to questions of accountability. While Congress has direct oversight of the CIA and its operations overseas, that oversight crumbles if some of that work, some of it apparently of the most sensitive nature, is handed over to people who essentially are guns for hire.

The CIA yesterday denied that any line had been crossed in its use of the firm. "This agency, like many others, uses contractors in roles that complement and enhance the skills of our own workforce, just as American law permits," a spokesman, George Little, said in response to the article. However, the current CIA director, Leon Panetta, ordered a review of the agency's relationship with the company in July.

Blackwater has been an embarrassment ever since they became involved with the U.S. government starting with their involvement in Iraq with such incidents as the 4 Blackwater employees killed in Faluja, the murder of an Iraqi security guard who worked for one of the ministries in the Green Zone or the 17 people gunned by a Blackwater convoy in September of 2006. The C.I.A has denied any further Blackwater involvement in its operations yet reporting by Jeremy Scahill of the Nation has shed further light on just how involved Blackwater really is in America's War On Terror.
Blackwater (Xe Services) is nothing more than a mercenary army used by the U.S. the government for operations that are possibly legal violations but these contracts continue much to the detriment of America.

Sarah Palin Doesn't Like Asian's and Pacific Islanders Much

Sarah Palin America's Hockey mom who claims to speak for "the people"
has a small problem to along with her small mind. She felt uncomfortable living amongst the Asian and Pacific Islander population whilst attending university in Hawaii. You know Hawaii that America state which is 5,000km from the mainland of the United States in the middle of the Pacific ocean. So imagine poor racist Sarah's surprise when she discovered that this Pacific Island was populated with people from other Pacific Islands and Asia oh the horror of it all. Suddenly Sarah the racist is in the minority oh the horror. What's the spawn of Richard Nixon to do? Leave immediately after all Sarah the racist shouldn't have to face the reality minorities in the United States face everyday because she might actually learn something not only about other people and their culture.

Oh The Horror Of It All

Afhgan Pakistan War

Last Tuesday President Obama laid for the the American public and the world his policy concerning America's future and continuing involvement in Afghanistan with the main component being an infusion of an additional 30,000 combat troops in what was described as an effort to help stabilize the cities and regain control over Afghanistan's southeast the area of the country which borders Pakistan. Large numbers on Americas left have sighted parallels to Vietnam and Lyndon Johnson's escalation in that countries war in 1965. Perhaps there are some comparisons but not the ones you may think even though they are there for all to see.

Last August a Presidential election was held in Afghanistan in less than 24 hours Harmid Karzai was declared the winner by a landslide within days of this declaration evidence began surfacing that suggested the out of the "election" had been fixed through among other things ballot box stuffing and the old vote early vote often method for winning elections you are about to lose. Peter Galbraith the U.S representative for the UN blew the whistle and was fired. Karzai's government is corrupt, powerless and completely incompetent and is seen as illegitimate my the Afghan people. President Karzai's brother is suspected of being a major player in poppy production in that country.
Vietnam's government: That being the South Vietnam was just as corrupt and incompetent and was given just as much support even though they were following the same path as that being taken in Afghanistan. Payoff's, bribery, nepotism and election fraud are just some of the obvious comparisons.

Americas reason or purpose for its actions in Afghanistan is its War on Terror. Which is meant to root out terrorist organizations which pose a threat to America. Here's a question how does one fight against an idea or beliefs which are set in religious extremism and fed by hate of another set of ideas as represented by America and its allies.

Vietnam and Americas war there was the result of another set of ideas or in this case a theory. The Domino Theory set out the principles by which Western Dominatrices especially the United States which become involved in wars or conflicts that it was believed could lead to the Soviet domination of a region or the world.

Even though America isn't "officially" conducting operations in Pakistan one can draw a line between what is happening there and Nixon's Secret War in Cambodia which was exposed with the publication of the Pentagon Papers by the New York Times which revealed that American forces had made incursions into Cambodia and Laos even though neither country was involved in the conflict along with the revelation that the U.S. Air Force had been secretly bombing North Vietnam.

Jeremy Scahill of the Nation recently published an article which shows those secret wars haven't gone out of fashion. In the article Scahill provides information showing Blackwater (Xe services) continued presence in helping America fight its War on Terror.

At a covert forward operating base run by the US Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) in the Pakistani port city of Karachi, members of an elite division of Blackwater are at the center of a secret program in which they plan targeted assassinations of suspected Taliban and Al Qaeda operatives, "snatch and grabs" of high-value targets and other sensitive action inside and outside Pakistan, an investigation by The Nation has found. The Blackwater operatives also assist in gathering intelligence and help direct a secret US military drone bombing campaign that runs parallel to the well-documented CIA predator strikes, according to a well-placed source within the US military intelligence apparatus.
The source, who has worked on covert US military programs for years, including in Afghanistan and Pakistan, has direct knowledge of Blackwater's involvement. He spoke to The Nation on condition of anonymity because the program is classified. The source said that the program is so "compartmentalized" that senior figures within the Obama administration and the US military chain of command may not be aware of its existence.

Vietnam can be and should be used as a means or base for discussion concerning Americas actions and presence in Afghanistan as there are many obvious parallels. But, there are no obvious answers as to how to resolve the current situation when the only policy seems to be the military one.

Some Observations

Watching the news in Japan is like viewing the world through a very narrow tunnel or perhaps in a locked room with the lights turned out. If one didn't know any better you might think that Japan was only country on the planet. even though news happens throughout Asia and the world Japanese news programs just ignore it. After all what's more important having an informed populace about the world or hours of news about an actress found with 0.08 grams of drugs. The drugs of course.

Korea is a place where it seems its confidence is easily unnerved. Example the Dokdo islands just off the Korean coast. Korea controls these islands and has controlled since the end of World War II. Yet the countries nerves become jangled when ever some bone headed local politician in Japan claims those islands belong to Japan. Remember Korea controls the islands.

When does something belong to you when it really belonged to someone else. Take Tibet heres a place where the people have developed a completely different culture, society and language but somehow it belongs to China. Or Taiwan which again has an indigenous population with its own language and culture but China claims Taiwan is apart of CHina. How one justifies these claims takes a lot of pretzel making.

The LDP Acting Like Spoiled Children

Funny thing about elections people tend to vote in them and not always in the way one would like. On 30 August of this year Japan held its first general election in four years. After more than five decades in power the Liberal Democratic Party lost in a huge landslide victory for the Democratic Party of Japan.
It was an historic event as this would be the first time a true opposition party would take power in Japan with a clear majority in the Diet. Elections as Americans say have consequences one day your party controls government and the next day it does not that's how politics works.

For the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan losing its grip on power has been a burden they are unable to deal with or comprehend. Instead of acting like an opposition party which they now are they have acted like spoiled children who have decided to take their ball and go home. Yet their failures fall squarely on their shoulders. Japan Post Privatization: Which has led to nothing but problems from the closing of post offices in rural areas to their attempt to sell holdings at less than market value in an attempt to enrich directors and the companies they were doing business with. Passing of the Temporary Worker Dispatch law: Which allowed Japanese corporations to hire thousands of workers on short term contracts thus avoiding having to give them all the benefits that would be afforded those with full time status along with making it quite easy to fire them. Which happened after the financial crisis last year leaving literally hundreds of thousands out of a job. National Pension Plan: Because of poor or shoddy record keeping 300.00 people in Japan had no actual records of their having paid into the system because they were either lost, erased or thrown away. Those are just some of their recent failures.
Yet, these fools can't understand why they are no longer in power and no one will listen to them.

Given 5 decades of chances the Japanese voter finally threw the bums out just what they deserved. So now they are boycotting the current Diet session. Please don't stop the country can't handle any more of your stupidity or disastrous decision and policy making.

Economic Reform North Korean Style: Kill It

When the Soviet Union and the East Bloc collapsed North Korea would have followed if not for the intervention of China. That was the precursor to the famine which is estimate to have killed at least 1 million North Korean citizens. If not for intervention from the UN's World Food Program and charities such as Oxfam many more would've perished. Then Kim Dae-jung was elected President of South Korea and who through his Sunshine policy managed some rapprochement with the North including the building of tourist resort, allowing separated families to hold reunions and the building of the Kaesong industrial complex located a short distance inside North Korea. Kim Jong-il even allowed for some private enterprise to exist. Yet on Monday that was all brought to halt when the North Korean government decided to devalue won by removing a couple of zero's which made the currency worthless on top of which they gave the people one week to exchange their old currency. Given how poor North Koreans already were before Monday's announcement one might ask why you would then want to make them even poorer. Because then government seems to be afraid of several things: A growing income gap, the existence of private as well as Black Markets and of course control of the population.
The reaction of the populace was quite surprising in that they actually held protests against the changes.

North Korea once agian shows just how far a small group of elites is willing to go just to retain their power no matter the cost.

Anwar Ibrahim of Malaysia

Anwar Ibrahim once Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia seemed to be on the political fast track. A protege of former Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad he seemed all but assured to be Mahathir's successor once he stepped a side. 1998 would prove to be a pivotal year for both men with Ibrahim attempting remove himself from the shadow of Mahathir bin Mohamad and his ruling United Malays National Organization (UMNO). Ibrahim wanted to rid the UMNO of cronyism and nepotism through its Youth Wing by waging a national campaign against these practices. Mahathir retaliated by publishing lists of those who benefited from these practices among listed were his father Datuk Ibrahim Abdul Rahman and his brothers, Farizan and Marzukh all of them hold large numbers of shares from national and international corporations based in Malaysia. Though the published clearly showed his family benefited the rampant cronyism within the UMNO Ibrahim continued his assault Mahathir's administration accusing it of being corrupt while advocating for a more transparent and open government.

Malaysia like several other "so called" democracies in Asia (Singapore, Uzbekistan, Cambodia and until recently Japan) is a one party state which uses the countries courts to suppress dissent. One always needs "proof" for any allegations to become charges filed against the accused.

At the UMNO General Assembly, a book, 50 Dalil Kenapa Anwar Tidak Boleh Jadi PM ("50 Reasons Why Anwar Cannot Become Prime Minister") was circulated containing graphic allegations as well as accusations of corruption against Anwar. This book carried the byline Khalid Jafri, an ex-editor of the government-controlled newspaper Utusan Malaysia and former editor-in-chief of a failed magazine, Harian National.

Even though Anwar Ibrahim was able to get a court injunction against any further publication of the book and would eventually be awarded civil damages in the the millions it didn't stop the government from laying charges of sodomy and corruption against Ibrahim. His first court appearance would lead to large protests

On September 29, 1998 Anwar appeared in court and pleaded innocent to charges of corruption and sodomy. A photo of Anwar with a black eye (which he incurred from a beating by then Inspector General of Police Rahim Noor) and one hand raised became a symbol of the political opposition in many reformasi posters.

Convicted on both counts on April 14, 1999 he was given a six year prison term for corruption and a nine year sentence for sodomy which were to be served concurrently. He was released from prison in 2004 after the High Court voted 2-1 overturning the sodomy conviction even though they didn't seem to believe in their ruling. "We find evidence to confirm that the appellants were involved in homosexual activities and we are more inclined to believe that the alleged incident at Tivoli Villa did happen."

Anwar Ibrahim made a political come-back in March of 2008 when as the head of three party coalition managed not only to win seat in Parliament for himself but his coalition took 1/3 of the seats giving the ruling UMNO its worst showing since coming to power 5 decades ago. The government has continued to pursue charges of sodomy against Ibrahim which were filed once again in 2008.

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A Malaysian court Tuesday rejected Anwar Ibrahim's bid to stop his sodomy trial from going forward, dealing another blow to the opposition leader's fluctuating fortunes since he achieved spectacular election results last year.
The Kuala Lumpur High Court denied Anwar's application to have the case thrown out before it is heard in court, and set the trial date for Jan. 25. Anwar's lawyer Sankara Nair said he will appeal the decision in the Appeal Court.

"I didn't expect anything different," Anwar, 62, told reporters after the ruling by Justice Mohamad Zabidin Diah.

"The manner in which the case is proceeding seems worrying. I think we are in for a tough battle but we have compelling arguments. We have facts.