David Mulroney served as a deputy minister in charge of Canada’s Afghanistan task force. It seems he learned a thing or two from the experience, enough to know that we’re at risk of repeating the same mistakes in our rush to war in Iraq. “When I recently saw Foreign Minister
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The Disaffected Lib: Tony Blair and his "Bloody Crusades"
Tony Blair’s former deputy prime minister, John Prescott, thinks he can explain the radicalization of Britain’s Muslim youth – his former boss Tony Blair’s “bloody crusade” to topple Saddam Hussein. The outspoken former deputy PM, who was recently appointed as an unpaid adviser with special responsibility for climate change by
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Forget Iran, This Is What We Should Worry About.
What if ISIS, the Islamic State, Daesh – call it what you will – becomes a serious presence in Pakistan? Why should anyone worry about that? Because, first, ISIS is already making inroads in Afghanistan and, second, a senior Pakistan army general says there’s nothing to worry about, ISIS does
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Meanwhile, Today In ISIS News….
These guys are really getting around. They’re in Syria and Iraq. They’re in Libya and environs. They’re becoming established in Afghanistan. Now they’re engaging Egypt and Israel. Yes, that’s right, Israel. This ISIS outfit is on the move. The Israeli newspaper, Haaretz, reports that the Israeli Defence Force is preparing
Continue readingThings Are Good: An Art Gallery for Destroyed and Stolen Art
The Museum of Stolen Art is an online museum that showcases artwork that has been destroyed or stolen in conflict. The new museum couldn’t exist at a better time as ISIS destroys sites of great importance to humanity, and before them the Taliban in Afghanistan destroyed a lot of ancient
Continue readingCowichan Conversations: Pilger: Why the Rise of Fascism is Again the Issue
Richard Hughes- Political Blogger John Pilger’s thorough examination of fascism from the German Nazis Holocaust through to the US led attacks on Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Kosovo,Vietnam, and the sorry list goes on. Read about President Obama’s Tuesday ‘CIA’ kill list, the tie in with the evolution of US backed radical
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: To So-Called Liberals Who Slam Trudeau Over His ISIS Policy
Sometimes even I have to stand up for Justin Trudeau. He has been attacked recently for his less than bloodthirsty views on ISIS. Some of these attacks come from self-identified Liberals who apparently can’t get a paid gig from Team Trudeau but are they fair? MSNBC’s Chris Hayes helps make
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: You’ll Need More Than a Six-Pack for That Job.
Well, that was the idea anyway. Brace yourselves. In a move that could send chills down the spine of every member of ISIS, it’s been revealed that Canada is ‘considering’ expanding its war effort to Syria and, gasp, Libya too. Libya? That’s that place that Gaddafi guy used to run.
Continue readingISIS and the grand imam—not so different
That ISIS is a scourge of major proportions is agreed on across the globe. Driven by some religious mania, they persecute other religions, behead infidels, burn enemies alive—all with sickening zeal and an obsession with publicity. Other Muslims are as outraged as any of us. A host of Arab governments
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: Friend Or Foe?
You decide. A message from Anonymous to ISIS: We will hunt you, take down your sites, accounts, emails, and expose you…From now on, no safe place for you online…You will be treated like a virus, and we are the cure…We own the internet…We are Anonymous; we are Legion; we do
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Has ISIS Already Failed?
The political blanket wrapped around the fight against ISIS tends to prevent any reliable assessment of what’s going on in Iraq and Syria. That’s doubly true in Canada where, as the economy languishes in contrast to America’s, the ‘war on terror’ has become Harper’s best pre-election trump card. I know,
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Our Schizophrenic War on Terror
Ah, yeah, right. It’s tough to win a war when you have to ally yourselves with both sides. That injects an element of schizophrenia in your policies and planning. It results in a fatal lack of coherence, a narrative that is hopelessly confused. And that is what confronts us in
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: About That Islamic Terrorism, Who Are We Kidding?
Well those damned Muslims have us in hysterics now. Rupert Murdoch says this is on all Muslims. Bill Maher says ditto. But wait. There are two strains of Muslims – Sunni and Shia. Our Muslims of choice, those we consider our allies, are Sunni – Egypt, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: NATO Commander Says Key to Defeating ISIS Isn’t Bombing
US general Philip Breedlove and Liberal leader Justin Trudeau seem to be on the same page when it comes to tackling the Islamic State. The NATO supreme commander says the key to defeating ISIS (and other Islamist extremists) is to get at the root causes of their radicalism. “Until we
Continue readingA coalition of the willing for Syrian refugees?
The United States has resumed its war in Iraq, once again building a “coalition of the willing.” Our government has, unfortunately, decide to join this one. Our participation is unwise and unjustified for a number of reasons. To begin with, this war—to “degrade and destroy” ISIS—is the result of a
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: Danger and Delusion: From ISIS to Ebola
There are very real dangers in the world, but let’s not lose all perspective. Perspective is everything. Don’t believe the hype. It must be stated directly: the majority of people have wildly irrational, and frankly delusional modes of thinking when it comes to risk assessment. And of course, pre-formed, unreflective
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: Time for a New Approach to ISIS?
When the Islamic State overran most of Sunni Iraq, the West invoked the default option – air strikes. We decided that a good course of therapy with precision-guided, thousand pound bombs was just what the doctor ordered. Like loyal gang members we lined up for the chance to turn rubble
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: It’s Called "Blowback"
Our confused, incoherent, even knee-jerk response to ISIS appears to be backfiring on us, at least in Syria. There, it’s reported, US air strikes are driving anti-Assad groups – outfits we’ve supported like the Free Syrian Army – into the arms of ISIS. US air strikes in Syria are encouraging anti-regime
Continue readingThe Cracked Crystal Ball II: So, Just Who Is The Terrorist Here?
In 2014 in Canada, we have had several incidents involving people attacking various institutions and symbols of government. Consider the following list: January: “GG” Plans an attack on a Veteran’s Affairs office in Calgary June: Justin Bourque shoots 3 RCMP Officers in New Brunswick October: Martin Rouleau hits and kills
Continue readingThe Disaffected Lib: When My Enemy’s Enemies Are Still My Enemies
One of the greatest mistakes we make in the conduct of modern warfare is to make our conflicts suit a politically palatable narrative. It can seem as though the spin doctors are as powerful as the generals which might explain why they seem to do an equally marginal job at
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