‘Yes, Assad will go. One day. He says as much. But don’t expect it to happen in the immediate future. Or Gaddafi-style.’
‘Hamas and Khaled Meshaal will go on denying Israel’s right to exist – thus allowing Israel to falsely claim that it has “no one to talk to” – until the next Gaza war.’
Iran
‘Israel has no stomach for an all-out war against Iran – it would lose – and the United States, having lost two Middle East wars, has no enthusiasm for losing a third.’
Saudi Arabia
‘There are those who say that the Gulf kingdoms will remain secure for years to come. Don’t count on it. Watch Saudi Arabia.’
Iraq
‘Its own civil war will go on grinding up the bones of civil society while we largely ignore its agony.’
US
‘Now that Obama has entered his drone-happy second presidency, we’re going to hear more about those wonderful unpiloted bombers.’
Never make predictions in the Middle East. My crystal ball broke long ago. But predicting the region has an honourable pedigree. “An Arab movement, newly-risen, is looming in the distance,” a French traveller to the Gulf and Baghdad wrote in 1883, “and a race hitherto downtrodden will presently claim its due place in the destinies of Islam.” A year earlier, a British diplomat in Jeddah confided that “it is within my knowledge... that the idea of freedom does at present agitate some minds even in Mecca...”
So let’s say this for 2013: the “Arab Awakening” (the title of George Antonius’ seminal work of 1938) will continue, the demand for dignity and freedom – let us not get tramelled up here with “democracy” – will go on ravaging the pseudo-stability of the Middle East, causing as much fear in Washington as it does in the palaces of the Arab Gulf.
On the epic scale of history, that much is certain. At the incendiary core of this discontent will be the claims of a Palestinian state that does not exist and may never exist and the actions of an Israeli state which – through its constant building of colonies for Jews and Jews only on Arab land – ensures that “Palestine” will remain only an Arab dream. If 2012 is anything to go by, the Palestinians themselves face the coming year with the knowledge that: 1) neither the Americans nor the Europeans have the guts to help them, because 2) Israel will continue to act with impunity, and 3) neither the Obamas nor the Camerons nor the Hollandes have the slightest interest in taking on the Likudist lobby, which will scream “anti-semitism” the moment the minutest criticism is made against Israel.
Add to this the fact that Mahmoud Abbas and his utterly discredited regime in Ramallah will go on making concessions to the Israelis – if you do not believe me, read Clayton Swisher’s The Palestine Papers – even when there are no more concessions to make. Hamas and Khaled Meshaal will go on denying Israel’s right to exist – thus allowing Israel to falsely claim that it has “no one to talk to” – until the next Gaza war and the subsequent cowardly request from the West which will “urge restraint on both sides”, as if the Palestinians possess Merkava tanks, F-18s and drones. A third Intifada? Maybe. An approach to the International Court to condemn Israel for war crimes in building Jewish colonies on other people’s land? Perhaps. But so what? The Palestinians won an international court case which condemned the building of Israel’s apartheid/security wall – and absolutely nothing happened. That’s the fate of the Palestinians. They’re told by the likes of Tom Friedman to abandon violence and adopt the tactics of Gandhi; then when they do, they still lose, and Friedman remains silent. It was, after all, Gandhi who said that Western civilisation “would be a good idea”.
So bad news for Palestine in 2013. Iran? Well, the Iranians understand the West much better than we understand the Iranians – a lot of them, remember, were educated in the United States. And they’ve an intriguing way of coming out on top whatever they do. George Bush (and Lord Blair of Kut al-Amara) invaded Afghanistan and rid the Shia Iranians of their Sunni enemy, whom they always called the “Black Taliban”. Then Bush-Blair invaded Iraq and got rid of the Islamic Republic’s most loathsome enemy, Saddam Hussein. Thus did Iran win both the Afghan and the Iraqi war – without firing a shot.
There’s no doubt that Iran would fire a shot or two if Israel/America – the two are interchangeable in Iran as in many other Middle East countries – were to attack its nuclear facilities. But Israel has no stomach for an all-out war against Iran – it would lose – and the US, having lost two Middle East wars, has no enthusiasm for losing a third. Sanctions – and here is Iran’s real potential nemesis – are causing far more misery than Israel’s F-18s. And why is America threatening Iran in the first place? It didn’t threaten India when it went nuclear. And when that most unstable and extremist state called Pakistan was developing nuclear weapons, no US threat was made to bomb its facilities. True, we’ve heard that more recently – in case the nukes “fell into the wrong hands”, as in gas which might “fall into the wrong hands” in Syria; or in Gaza, for that matter, where democracy “fell into the wrong hands” the moment Hamas won elections there in 2006.
Now that Obama has entered his drone-happy second presidency, we’re going to hear more about those wonderful unpiloted bombers which have been ripping up bad guys and civilians for more than four years. One day, one of these machines – though they fly in packs of seven or eight – will hit too many civilians or, even worse, will contrive to kill westerners or NGOs. Then Obama will be apologising – though without the tears he expended over Newtown, Connecticut. And here’s a thought for this year. The gun lobby in the States tells us that “it’s not guns that kill – it’s people”. But apply that to drone attacks on Pakistan or Israeli bombardments of Gaza and the rubric changes. It’s the guns/bombs/rockets that kill because the Americans don’t mean to kill civilians and the Israelis don’t wish to kill civilians. It’s just “collateral damage” again, though that’s not an excuse you can provide for Hamas rockets.
So what’s left for 2013? Assad, of course. He’s already trying to win back some rebel forces to his own ruthless side – an intelligent though dangerous tactic – and the West is getting up to its knees in rebel cruelty. Yes, Assad will go. One day. He says as much. But don’t expect it to happen in the immediate future. Or Gaddafi-style. The old mantra still applies. Egypt was not Tunisia and Yemen was not Egypt and Libya was not Yemen and Syria is not Libya.
Iraq? Its own latent civil war will go on grinding up the bones of civil society while we largely ignore its agony; there are days now when more Iraqis are killed than Syrians, though you wouldn’t know it from the nightly news.
And the Gulf? Arabia, where the first Arab awakening began? Where, indeed, the first Arab revolution – the advent of Islam – burst forth upon the world. There are those who say that the Gulf kingdoms will remain secure for years to come. Don’t count on it. Watch Saudi Arabia. Remember what that British diplomat wrote 130 years ago. “Even in Mecca...”
January 1st & Country Joe born in 1942 more that Earned Courage for his Vietnam song and the FISH 'FUCK' Cheer at Woodstock.
But I will turn to a new Direction and not give you more than any three of my # 1's for any Month.
Today that would be this Guy a fellow Pennsylvanian who I met: Adam Taliaferro (31) 1982 -- Born: Moon Township, Pennsylvania. -- A former American football player whose recovery from a paralyzing spinal cord injury sustained -- while playing cornerback for the Penn State Nittany Lions gained national media attention. -- Growing up in Voorhees Township, New Jersey, he was a standout running back and cornerback -- for the Eastern High School Vikings. -- In two years of varsity football at Eastern High School, he averaged 9.4 yards per carry, -- racking up 62 touchdowns, and seven Interceptions. -- Taliaferro was also a four year varsity starter in basketball, -- and set his school's record in the high jump at 6' 6". -- On September 23, 2000, while playing in only the fifth game of his college career, -- Taliaferro sustained a career-ending spinal cord injury while tackling tailback -- Jerry Westbrooks during Penn State's game versus Ohio State. -- Taliaferro's helmet had hit Westbrooks' knee during the tackle, -- bursting the fifth cervical vertebra in his neck and bruising his spinal cord. -- Unable to control his fall, the crown of his helmet hit the turf -- and his body rolled awkwardly over his neck. -- Taliaferro was paralyzed on the hit, -- which left him with no movement from the neck down. -- Recovery: Taliaferro had surgery at the Ohio State Medical Center to fuse his C-5 vertebrate. -- After successful surgery, Taliaferro was airlifted back to -- Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to begin his recovery. -- ( Baltimore Bob dated a Student Nurse from 1/4/1974 to 1/4/1976 who attended Jefferson -- her name was Valerie Walter & she was born in December 1952 & we met at TEKE pary on -- Fri October 26th 1973 when Baltimore Bob was attending Drexel University from 1973-1975. ) -- Although surgery was successful, Taliaferro was only given a 3% chance of ever walking again. -- He began his well-publicized rehab at Magee Rehabilitation Hospital in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. -- After eight months of rehab, Taliaferro had learned to walk again. -- 2012: 1/31/2012: Baltimore Bob got a picture taken with Adam. -- As Adam delivered the Joe Pa Eulogy at the 2012 Philadelphia Sports Writers Banquet -- which was the 108th but only the 4th one ( 4 in a row ) that Baltimore Bob attended.
Today I gave you Two but I will only give One from now on.
My #1 Celebrity Birthday Person for January 1st is Country Joe McDonald (71) 1942 Born: El Monte, California Sometimes Credited As: Country Joe and The Fish Spouse: Robin Menken (1968 - ?) (divorced) 1 child Among the causes he has worked for include marijuana legalization, veteran's rights and environmentalist issues. U.S. Navy Veteran (Honorably Discharged: 23 November 1965). Baltimore Bob also a US Navy Vet (Honorably Discharged: 12 February 1975) about 10 years later. Has done extensive volunteer work with Vietnam-Era veterans. Woodstock (1970) (uncredited) as Himself - Country Joe and the Fish ... aka Woodstock 25th Anniversary Edition (USA: director's cut) ... aka Woodstock, 3 Days of Peace & Music (USA: longer version). ‘Woodstock’ (1970) (song "I-Feel-Like-I'm-Fixin'-to-Die Rag") (uncredited) (song ‘Rock & Soul Music’) (uncredited) aka Woodstock 25th Anniversary Edition (USA: director's cut) aka Woodstock, 3 Days of Peace & Music (USA: longer version). Baltimore Bob 1st saw this movie in Sydney, Australia in Dec 1970 while on Leave from his Vietnam Tour (March 1970 to March 1971). Country Joe was born on a Thursday: DAYS OF THE WEEK POEM: Monday's child is fair of face, Tuesday's child is full of grace, Wednesday's child is full of woe, *Thursday's child has far to go, Friday's child is loving and giving, Saturday's child works hard for his living, But the child that is born on the Sabbath day Is bonny and blithe, and good and gay. http://www.youthonline.ca/birthdays/dayofweekborn.shtml
Jeff Carter (28) 1985 - Born: London, ONtario, CANada / Height: 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) & Weight: 200 lb (91 kg; 14 st 4 lb) - Born on a TUESDAY just like Baltimore Bob. - A Canadian professional ice hockey centre for the Philadelphia Flyers - of the National Hockey League (NHL). - He is an alternate captain for the Flyers during home games. - Carter grew up playing minor hockey in London, Ontario - with the London Jr. Knights rep program. - He played Bantam hockey with the AAA Elgin-Middlesex Chiefs of the OMHA - before spending a season with the Strathroy Rockets Jr.B. team at age 16. - Carter was drafted in the 1st round (3rd overall) in the - 2001 OHL Priority Selection by the S.S. Marie Greyhounds. - Carter began his hockey career with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the - Ontario Hockey League (OHL), before the Philadelphia Flyers selected him - 11th overall in the 2003 NHL Entry Draft. - He was a Second Team All-Star in 2003–04 before recording a major junior career-high - 74 points (34 goals and 40 assists) in 55 games for the Greyhounds in 2004–05. - He was a First Team OHL All-Star that season - and won the OHL and CHL Sportsman of the Year Awards. - After the Greyhounds were eliminated from the 2005 playoffs, - Carter joined the Flyers' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, - the Philadelphia Phantoms and recorded 23 points (12 goals, 11 assists) - in 21 playoff games to help the Phantoms win the Calder Cup. - The next season, in 2005–06, Carter made the Flyers out of training camp. - He was joined by fellow rookies Mike Richards and R. J. Umberger, who were both - also instrumental in the Phantoms' Calder Cup championship of the previous season. - He scored his first career NHL goal on October 24, 2005, - against Roberto Luongo of the Florida Panthers. - He finished the campaign first in team-scoring among rookies with 23 goals and 42 points. - 2010: On November 13, 2010, Carter signed an 11-year, - $58 million contract extension with the Flyers. - Baltimore Bob added Jeff on Sunday November 14th 2010. - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Carter
A person born on October 8th 1948 would be 22,000 days old on 1/1/2009. Baltimore Bob born March 7th 1950 will be 22,000 days old about June 1st 2010 ? check 22,000 days old is 60 years plus one week shy of 3 months. A person is 25,000 days old at 68.45 years of age. A person born July 20th 1940 would be 25,000 days old on 1/1/2009. Denis Menke born 21 July 1940, Algona, Iowa, USA. (A MLB player) will be 25,000 days old 12/31/2008 - yesterday. Alex Trebek born 22 July 1940, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada (The Jeopardy Host) will be 25,000 days old on 1/1/2009 - today. Don Imus born 23 July 1940, Riverside, California, (Radio guy hated by H Stern) will be 25,000 days old on 1/2/2009 - tomorrow. Jerry Blavat born 3 July 1940, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. (The Geator with the Heater) was 25,000 days old last month/December. Figures were checked on January 1st 2009. http://www.paulsadowski.com/BirthData.asp
1986: 1/1/1986: Baltimore Bob’s 1st Penn State loss (the NCAA College Football Championship) Oklahoma beat Penn State 10-25 at the old Orange Bowl. Thru 2012 Baltimore Bob is 20-4 with losses at home, in Florida, LA and Columbus, Ohio. http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/penn-state/1985-schedule.html
2010: 1/1/2010 4th ever NHL Winter Classic and Philadelphia Flyers lose 2-1 to Bruins at Fenway in Boston. Joe Pa captures 24th Bowl game with 19-17 win vs LSU at Capital One Bowl in Orlando, FL.
i know we have heard it all before, people crying wolf, so there is a good chance if such an event was at the door, people would just ignore the warnings, after all the hype of 21/12/2012.
But still a hard core of believers feel 2013 , will bring with it, solar flares, i know some mention a report from Nasa , speaking of solar flares between 2012 -2015 , power full enough to take out national grids for months. ?
so no surprise some feel we are not out of the woods yet, infact we have just entered it. ? and are in the thick of things to come .
Modern History Sourcebook: President John F. Kennedy: Towards a Strategy of Peace, June 10, 1963
Address by President Kennedy at The American University, Washington, D.C., June 10, 1963
[]
I have . . . chosen this time and this place to discuss a topic on which ignorance too often abounds and the truth is too rarely perceived-yet it is the most important topic on earth: world peace.
What kind of peace do I mean? What kind of peace do we seek? Not a Pax Americana enforced on the world by American weapons of war. Not the peace of the grave or the security of the slave. I am talking about genuine peace, the kind of peace that makes life on earth worth living, the kind that enables men and nations to grow and to hope and to build a better life for their children-not merely peace for Americans but peace for all men and women, not merely peace in our time but peace for all time. .
First: Let us examine our attitude toward peace itself. Too many of us think it is impossible. Too many think it unreal. But that is a dangerous, defeatist belief. It leads to the conclusion that war is inevitable, that mankind is doomed, that we are gripped by forces we cannot control.
We need not accept that view. Our problems are manmade; therefore they can be solved by man. And man can be as big as be wants. No problem of human destiny is beyond human beings. Man's reason and spirit have often solved the seemingly unsolvable, and we believe they can do it again.
I am not referring to the absolute, infinite concept of universal peace and good will of which some fantasies and fanatics dream. I do not deny the values of hopes and dreams, but we merely invite discouragement and incredulity by making that our only and immediate goal.
Let us focus instead on a more practical, more attainable peace, based not on a sudden revolution in human nature but on a gradual evolution in human institutions - on a series of concrete actions and effective agreements which are in the interest of all concerned. There is no single, simple key to this peace, no grand or magic formula to be adopted by one or two powers. Genuine peace must be the product of many nations, the sum of many acts. It must be dynamic, not static, changing to meet the challenge of each new generation. For peace is a process, a way of solving problems.
With such a peace there will still be quarrels and conflicting interests, as there are within families and nations. World peace, like community peace, does not require that each man love his neighbor; it requires only that they live together in mutual tolerance, submitting their disputes to a just and peaceful settlement. . . .
Second: Let us reexamine our attitude toward the Soviet Union.
No government or social system is so evil that its people must be considered as lacking in virtue. As Americans we find communism profoundly repugnant as a negation of personal freedom and dignity. But we can still hail the Russian people for their many achievements-in science and space, in economic and industrial growth, in culture and in acts of courage.
Among the many traits the peoples of our two countries have in common, none is stronger than our mutual abhorrence of war. Almost unique among the major world powers, we have never been at war with each other. And no nation in the history of battle ever suffered more than the Soviet Union suffered in the course of the Second World War. . . .
Today, should total war ever break out again-no matter how-our two countries would become the primary targets. It is an ironical but accurate fact that the two strongest powers are the two in the most danger of devastation. All we have built, all we have worked for, would be destroyed in the first 24 hours. And even in the cold war, which brings burdens and dangers to so many countries - including this nation's closest allies - our two countries bear the heaviest burdens. For we are both devoting massive sums of money to weapons that could be better devoted to combating ignorance, poverty, and disease. We are both caught up in a vicious and dangerous cycle in which suspicion on one side breeds suspicion on the other and new weapons beget counter-weapons.
In short, both the United States and its allies, and the Soviet Union and its allies, have a mutually deep interest in a just and genuine peace and in halting the arms race. Agreements to this end arc in the interests of the Soviet Union as well as ours, and even the most hostile nations can be relied upon to accept and keep those treaty obligations, and only those treaty obligations, which are in their own interest. . . .
Third: Let us reexamine our attitude toward the cold war, remembering that we are not engaged in a debate, seeking to pile up debating points. We are not here distributing blame or pointing the finger of judgment. We must deal with the world as it is and not as it might have been bad the history of the last 18 years been different. . . .
Speaking of other nations, I wish to make one point clear. We are bound to many nations by alliances. Those alliances exist because our concern and theirs substantially overlap. Our commitment to defend Western Europe and West Berlin, for example, stands undiminished because of the identity of our vital interests. The United States will make no deal with the Soviet Union at the expense of other nations and other peoples, not merely because they are our partners but also because their interests and ours converge.
Our interests converge, however, not only in defending the frontiers of freedom but in pursuing the paths of peace. It is our hope-and the purpose of Allied policies-to convince the Soviet Union that she, too, should let each nation choose its own future, so long as that choice does not interfere with the choices of others. The Communist drive to impose their political and economic system on others is the primary cause of world tension today. For there can be no doubt that, if all nations could refrain from interfering in the self-determination of others, the peace would be much more assured. . . .
I am taking this opportunity . . . to announce two important decisions . . .
First: Chairman Khrushchev, Prime Minister Macmillan, and I have agreed that high-level discussions will shortly begin in Moscow looking toward early agreement on a comprehensive test ban treaty. Our hopes must be tempered with the caution of history, but with our hopes go the hopes of all mankind.
Second: To make clear our good faith and solemn convictions on the matter, I now declare that the United States does not propose to conduct nuclear tests in the atmosphere so long as other states do not do so. We will not be the first to resume. Such a declaration is no substitute for a formal binding treaty, but I hope it will help us achieve one. Nor would such a treaty be a substitute for disarmament, but I hope it will help us achieve it.
Finally, my fellow Americans, let us examine our attitude toward peace and freedom here at home. The quality and spirit of our own society must justify and support our efforts abroad. . . .
It is the responsibility of the executive branch at all levels of government -local, State, and national-to provide and protect that freedom for all of our citizens by all means within their authority. It is the responsibility of the legislative branch at all levels, wherever that authority is not now adequate, to make it adequate. And it is the responsibility of all citizens in all sections of this country to respect the rights of all others and to respect the law of the land. . . .
While we proceed to safeguard our national interests, let us also safeguard human interests. And the elimination of war and arms is clearly in the interest of both. No treaty, however much it may be to the advantage of all, however tightly it may be worded, can provide absolute security against the risks of deception and evasion. But it can, if it is sufficiently effective in its enforcement and if it is sufficiently in the interests of its signers, offer far more security and far fewer risks than an unabated, uncontrolled, unpredictable arms race.
The United States, as the world knows, will never start a war. We do not want a war. We do not now expect a war. This generation of Americans has already had enough - more than enough-of war and hate and oppression. We shall be prepared if others wish it. We shall be alert to try to stop it. But we shall also do our part to build a world of peace where the weak are safe and the strong are just. We are not helpless before that task or hopeless of its success. Confident and unafraid, we labor on-not toward a strategv of annihilation but toward a strategy of peace.
This text is part of the Internet Modern History Sourcebook. The Sourcebook is a collection of public domain and copy-permitted texts for introductory level classes in modern European and World history.
DENVER - Recreational marijuana clubs opened Monday in Colorado, less than a month after the governor signed into law a constitutional amendment allowing recreational pot use.
With a reggae soundtrack and flashing disco-style lights, Club 64 in an industrial area just north of downtown Denver opened Monday afternoon, with some 200 people signed up. The opening came less than 24 hours after club organizers announced they would charge a $29.99 admission price for the bring-your-own pot club.
THE FREEDOM ROAD: In "Road to Freedom" David Icke gives a keynote lecture reveals many secrets where hidden by those who govern us and manipulate. Among other things, talks about the Freemasons and the Illuminati and its relationship with many of the U.S. Presidents.
En "Camino a la Libertad" David Icke nos ofrece una magistral conferencia donde desvela numerosos secretos ocultos por aquellos que nos gobiernan y manipulan. Entre otras cosas, nos habla sobre la masonería y los iluminatis y su relación con muchos de los presidentes de EE.UU.
Special music for relaxation, meditation and healing.
Special music for relaxation, meditation and healing. Are frequencies that affect the balance and harmony of the body, restoring energy patterns. Among other tunes are Ahu Saglam, Arnica Montana and music with dolphins and whales.
Música especial para relajarse, meditar y sanar. Son frecuencias que inciden en el equilibrio y la armonía del cuerpo, restableciendo los patrones energéticos. Entre otras, se encuentran melodías de Ahu Saglam, Arnica Montana y música con delfines y ballenas.
RELAJACIÓN MÚSICA, MÚSICA RELAX, MÚSICA MEDITACIÓN, MEDITATION MUSIC, FRECUENCIAS SANADORAS, MUSICA ALTERNATIVA, MUSICA SANADORA, MUSICA PARA SANAR EL ALMA, HEALING MUSIC, MUSIC FOR HEALING,healing frequency, FREQUENCY TO HEAL, MUSICA ESPIRITUAL, SPIRITUAL MUSIC, MUSICA DELFINES, DOLPHIN MUSIC, MUSICA NEW AGE, MUSICA REIKI, MUSICA YOGA, MUSICA DE BALLENAS, RELAX MUSIC FRECUENCIAS SAGRADAS SOLFEGGIO
