1. Six months ago President Obama called for Hosni Mubarak to go, and so began the CNN inspired "Arab Spring". This week large forces of the Egyptian army entered Sinai with Israeli approval. And why, one may inquire? Apparently the Sinai has turned into a major training ground for Al Qaeda and Hamas insurgency. The majority of Egyptians support the Muslim Brotherhood, while clearly the military have no intention of handing over power to anyone. Meanwhile Mubarak, terminally ill with cancer is placed on trial in a cage in Cairo.
2.The attack from Sinai by Palestinian terrorists on an Israeli civilian bus was perpetrated by an organization out of Gaza by name PLC. These guys are sponsored by Iran who are trying to divert attention from the Syrian civil war by creating a crisis between Israel and Egypt. The Iranian sponsored terror groups in Gaza apparently have more missiles in their possession than Hamas. So despite the quickly organised Hamas ceasefire (the Egyptians understand what the Iranians are up to), expect the spattering of missiles to continue.
3.Hillary Clinton is tooting her horn on the impending fall of Gaddafi in Libya. This will be heralded as a foreign policy "success" by the administration.....for about three days. Then the penny will drop. Gaddafi will be replaced by another lunatic supported by different tribes, and the instability will continue. Even if Gaddafi falls, beware of his sons and followers. Family honour has to be addressed. To all those professors and intellectuals who consider this to be a renewal of the arab spring, the peanut gallery wishes them success. So long as it does not cost the American taxpayer......
4.A senior US military officer says Iranian-backed militias present the most dangerous security threat for Iraq, outpacing al-Qaeda-linked terrorists there. Maj. Gen. Jeffrey S. Buchanan, the senior US military spokesman in Iraq, says the Shiite militias are working to keep the Baghdad government weak and isolated. He says decisions on the number and types of attacks by the militias are made inside Iran, including through ties with the powerful Quds force. The US will be withdrawing at years end. Get ready for the mother of confrontations. What a waste of money!
5.The civil wars in Yemen and Syria continue. In both countries, the army is in charge. In fact, right across the arab world, armies and dictators are in control. Whatever happened to the social revolution? The one inspired by the western media, facebook and twitter?
6.Obama, citizen of the world, still insists on calling for for the evil, nasty arab leaders to go. Regardless of the outcome, the PG does not see any real change on the ground. Arab citizens, starved of happiness, are taking the opportunity to have a spontaneous celebration, then, after waking up with a massive hangover they find that the world still looks the same. Americans might remember the "change" that was coming to Washington....
7.GE are moving their x-ray division to China. GE also signed a joint venture with China to build planes. The Chinese don't have the technology. According to the NY Times GE earned $14.2 billion dollars last year and thanks to some fancy accounting footwork, did not pay a cent in taxes. Okay, so why is the PG mentioning all this? Hold onto your hats folks....GE chief executive officer Jeffrey Immelt, heads up the President's (Obama) Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. Tapping Immelt was supposed to provide the Obama administration with a business world perspective on job creation - not in China - in the US!
8.Bolstered by the development of a new stealth fighter, an aircraft carrier and a record number of space launches over the past year, China is on pace to achieve its goal of building a modern, regionally focused military by 2020, according to the Pentagon. In a report released Wednesday, the Pentagon said Beijing has closed critical technological gaps and is rapidly modernising its military equipment, all with an eye toward preventing possible U.S. and allied intervention in a conflict with Taiwan. PG: We wonder who's giving them a hand....
9.World markets are still volatile and will probably continue the volatility as uncertainty grips the financial world. One of the big questions on everyone's mind is "will there be a recession and if so, how deep?" One indicator is the price of copper (Dr Copper) which is pretty stable around the $4 mark at the moment, Indicating the possibility of a soft landing. A fall in the price of this metal would indicate at the least, a slowdown.
10.The earthquake that rattled a wide swath of the eastern U.S. this week may have been a blessing in disguise for a 75-year-old who regained his hearing after the 5.8-magnitude tremor hit. Robert Valderzak, of Washington, D.C., lost his hearing in a fall on June 19 -- Father's Day. Since then the cancer patient has been at the Virginia Medical Center using a special speaker phone and an audio device system to communicate. The earthquake rocked the region at 1:51p.m. local time. When it was over, Valderzak, who had sat in silence for two months, sat up in his bed and told his kids, "My hearing is back. I can hear everything, people in the hallway."
There are things known and there are things unknown, and in between are the doors - Jim Morrison
No comments:
Post a Comment