Category Archives: War on Terror
James Foley
The New York Times reported that ISIS wanted $130,000,000 ransom for James Foley. European countries have paid ransom in the past. It’s a major source of income for ISIS. The US policy is not to pay ransom for hostages, on the theory it encourages more hostage taking.
The same theory doesn’t seem to apply when it comes to swapping terrorists for American hostages. We gave up five of GITMO’s worst bad asses to bring home alleged deserter Private Bergdahl.
Bergdahl’s parents were flown in from Idaho to celebrate the joyous occasion with President Obama in the White House Rose Garden.
James Foley
James Foley met his grim fate with courage. His parents showed the source of that fortitude in their meeting with the media to discuss their son on the day of his death.
Obama played golf.
Military Policing
The American people don’t want the US military policing Ferguson, Missouri any more than they want it policing Mosul, Iraq. Besides it’s kind of illegal. But that doesn’t keep the Pentagon from shipping free military hardware to police forces all over the country. Your local cops are armed to the teeth with everything from assault vehicles to grenade launchers. The Washington Post says half a billion in free gear was handed out to cops last year. That doesn’t sit well with Rand Paul. Or Mark Steyn. Not to mention, cops in camo look ridiculous on main street.
Shouldn’t a ‘Ferguson’ camo pattern be, like, 7/11 & Kool-Aid logos?
Military Policing
The single bullet Barney Fife policing method may not be the way to go, but more dashboard cameras and fewer MRAPs might not be a bad idea. A convenience store camera showed that Michael Brown wasn’t the “gentle giant” he was made out to be, as he strong-armed his way to a box of Swisher Sweets. But as Steyn notes, we’ll never see the way he was killed because the cop who shot him lacked a dashcam.
Update:
Here’s Kevin Williamson in NRO on the purpose of policing. And Mark Steyn from last November on our “drift toward despotism“.
In other news, local cops aren’t the only ones we’ve armed to the teeth.
High Tech Execution
There was another botched high tech execution last week in Arizona. It took two hours to kill Joseph Rudolph Wood III by lethal injection. Here’s Reason editor Nick Gillespie writing for Daily Beast.
Kerry, Qatar, Hamas, and Turkey
Israel, Egypt, Jordan, and the Saudis want Hamas out and Fatah in in Gaza. So what did John Kerry do? He met with Islamist Turkey and Qatar to come up with a cease fire agreement that keeps Hamas in power and its rockets and tunnels intact. The Israeli cabinet unanimously rejected the deal. Israel has Hamas on the ropes. Hammas is without friends – save for Turkey and Qatar – which is why Krauthammer called Kerry Hamas’s lawyer.
Here’s David Harsanyi in The Federalist:
Perhaps because of tragic loss of life, the United States would rather see a ceasefire than Hamas dealt a mortal blow. And that is almost certainly one of the reasons Hamas uses Palestinians as human shields.
Thomas Sowell , looking way back, says ” ‘Cease-fire” and “negotiations” are magic words to “the international community.” But just what do cease-fires actually accomplish?”
In the short run, they save some lives. But in the long run they cost far more lives, by lowering the cost of aggression…
At one time, launching a military attack on another nation risked not only retaliation but annihilation. When Carthage attacked Rome, that was the end of Carthage.
Looks like mutual assured destruction all around is the key to world peace.
The Washington Post’s David Ignatius calls this Kerry’s big blunder:
Kerry’s error has been to put so much emphasis on achieving a quick halt to the bloodshed that he has solidified the role of Hamas, the intractable, unpopular Islamist group that leads Gaza, along with the two hard-line Islamist nations that are its key supporters, Qatar and Turkey. In the process, he has undercut not simply the Israelis but also the Egyptians and the Fatah movement that runs the Palestinian Authority, all of which want to see an end to Hamas rule in Gaza.
The State Department’s response to Kerry criticism? Well, this is “not the way allies treat each other.”
Hamas and the Iron Dome
Hamas has fired over 1200 rockets claiming “every Israeli is a legitimate target”. So far only one “legitimate target” has been killed. That’s because of Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense.
Israel doesn’t consider individual Palestinians “legitimate targets”. Before striking back at Hamas it warned civilians with pamphlets and phone calls. Hamas responded by telling them to stay in place as human shields.
Charles Krauthammer writes in the Washington Post, “Rarely does international politics present a moment of such moral clarity”:
“Here’s the difference between us,” explains the Israeli prime minister. “We’re using missile defense to protect our civilians, and they’re using their civilians to protect their missiles.”
Hamas and the Iron Dome
William Saletan in Slate says there’s plenty to argue about in Gaza, “But one thing should be clear to everyone: Hamas is insane. It’s destroying Gaza.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, is perplexed:
“What are you trying to achieve by sending rockets?” he asked rhetorically in a TV interview. In another appearance, he pleaded: “We are the losing side, and every minute there are more and more unnecessary deaths. … I don’t like trading in Palestinian blood.”
The Guardian disagrees. Seumas Milne says, “The idea of Israel defending itself from unprovoked attacks is absurd.”
