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Wallaby

Published Letters: 140

Monday, January 12, 2009 06:36 AM
Original article: What mandate for change?

Obama is not V.I. Lenin

I'm not sure if you're mad about that or not. In either case, he's not George Bush the 2nd either. It seems that the one group of people who are profoundly unable to grasp that the nature of politics is the ability to compromise in order to get something done, is you people here. Led by Glenn Greenwald and his People's Revolution to point out that anyone to the right of Mao is an evil traitor, you seem angry and blinded by that. But to be fair, the Democrats in Congress are insane. They're so used to impotently disagreeing with everyone, they just can't stop.

Monday, January 12, 2009 06:38 AM
Original article: The two-boyfriend problem

Which episode of Gabmore Gals is this?

And word to the wise, they probably don't love you all that much either.

Monday, January 12, 2009 08:44 AM

You DO know he's claimed to have voted for Obama, don't you?

He did say that, FWIW.

Monday, January 12, 2009 09:01 AM

What I love is Christiane Amanpour with an $800 Hermes scarf on her head

In a room with the windows covered up with sheets and paper to block out the sunlight. Whereupon she proceeds to give us a 'story' about the darkness the Palestinians are forced to live with.

Monday, January 12, 2009 09:16 AM
Original article: What mandate for change?

It's not at all clear what the black T-shirt and Starbucks window smashing crowd actually wants

Short of flaming anarchy, that is. It's tough to build a policy let alone a consensus out of "Let's assault the cops and throw their tear gas back at them". You need to work on your policy statement.

Monday, January 12, 2009 09:53 AM

People People People

The communist regimes have fallen. Get over it.

Monday, January 12, 2009 09:54 AM

Oh sure he's a fool

A fool who claims to have voted for Obama.

Monday, January 12, 2009 10:08 AM

I want my solar powered flying car

then we don't need roads.

Monday, January 12, 2009 10:17 AM

Your anger will lead to yet another Bush victory in 4 years

You told yourself Obama was the Communist Messiah. When it turns out not to be you'll be so furious that you'll vote for a real Communist next time thereby turning the Obama era into a one term Presidency and ushering in another 8 years of GOP failure.

Good luck with that.

Monday, January 12, 2009 01:11 PM

I hope they are all allowed to resettle in the US

For free. Give them a free home, an annual stipend.

Monday, January 12, 2009 01:13 PM
Original article: Genghis Khan gets a bad rap

That's what we need now

A friendly secular east Asian global dictator. I can't say I'm shocked by Salon.

Monday, January 12, 2009 01:24 PM

Well they can't go back to wherever they came from.

Seems like keeping them in the US is the only option. That they hate us now? So what. Lots of Americans hate us now.

Monday, January 12, 2009 03:36 PM
Original article: What mandate for change?

Jo

I only want to give you what you expect, so I won't answer you.

Monday, January 12, 2009 06:46 PM

The spread between what credit companies pay for money and what they get

Is wider than it's ever been in the history of the US, ever. Banks and credit card companies got billions in handouts and now one third of their customers are paying 25% interest rate, or more. So yeah, it's working....for them. For the rest of us, not so much.

Monday, January 12, 2009 06:50 PM

http://zombietime.com/gaza_war_protest/

http://zombietime.com/gaza_war_protest/

Monday, January 12, 2009 06:53 PM

Aryan Guard at Gaza protest

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Aryan+Guard+Gaza+protest/1168132/story.html

A man is measured by his companions.

Monday, January 12, 2009 06:55 PM

Red Army Faction rejects destroy Holocaust exhibit

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1226404730069&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter

which is kinda weird because, there was no holocaust, right?

Monday, January 12, 2009 07:06 PM

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Aryan+Guard+Gaza+protest/1168132/story.html

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Aryan+Guard+Gaza+protest/1168132/story.html

Monday, January 12, 2009 07:07 PM

anti nazi exhibits destroyed by Palestinian protesters

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1226404730069&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FPrinter

Tuesday, January 13, 2009 05:53 AM

Most Arab states have at best lukewarm support of Hamas

Most of Hamas support comes from useful idiots here in the west.

January 13, 2009: The only chance Hamas has of surviving its current battle with Israel, is to stir up enough anger against Israel to force the Israelis to stop fighting, and enter into a ceasefire agreement that Hamas can easily subvert. This Information War campaign is not going well for Hamas. While there are demonstrations in Moslem countries, and in the West as well, they are not as numerous or as spirited as in the past. Worse, most Arab countries are either lukewarm in their criticism of Israel, or openly blame Hamas for the current round of fighting.

There are several trends going on here. First, most Moslem nations have had it with Islamic terrorism. Even before September 11, 2001, the current round of Islamic terrorism was unpopular in Moslem countries where Islamic terrorists had already been operating. The al Qaeda campaign in Iraq was particularly demoralizing to Moslems worldwide. Al Qaeda revealed itself to be more capable, and willing, to kill Moslem civilians, than non-Moslem troops. Al Qaeda made things worse by bragging about non-existent successes and claiming that victory was inevitable. By 2007, it was obvious that al Qaeda had been defeated, and even al Qaeda eventually admitted it. Now Hamas is asking Moslems to buy into another campaign, just like the failed al Qaeda effort. A lot of Moslems are not taking the bait, despite efforts by Arab media organizations to make it appear otherwise.

Second, Hamas is seen as counterproductive to Moslem goals. That raises another problem. What exactly are "Moslem goals." To the Islamic radicals, it's turning the world into one big Islamic state. To Islamic moderates (or just "non-radicals") it's getting Moslems in general a little more respect. Islam, as a religion/culture, is not big on introspection and taking responsibility for failure. But the Islamic world has lower economic and educational achievement than the rest of the world, and a lot of that is a direct result of some Islamic practices (no education for women, or working outside the home, and general resistance to new ideas and technology). An increasing number of Moslems are beginning to question these traditional practices, and are hostile to the old school attitudes espoused by Hamas.

Third, there is the Iranian connection Hamas has developed. Iran is another Islamic state, but one that opposes the majority (80 percent of Moslems) Sunni sect of Islam. The Iranians champion Shia Islam (ten percent of all Moslems). Nearly all Palestinian Moslems are Sunni, and many are uncomfortable with this Shia connection, as well as the failed radicalism of the Shia clergy that run Iran (as a religious dictatorship which calls itself an "Islamic republic.")

Hamas is seen as a spoiler, an organization that concentrates on destruction, rather than trying to build something positive. While most Moslems back the destruction of Israel and killing of Jews, if only because of decades of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic propaganda, most also prefer the Fatah approach to dealing with Israel (lie and cheat all you have to in order to establish a separate Palestinian state). Actually, more Moslems are coming to accept Israel, and are not supporting a genocide of all Jews. Hamas is backing the wrong trends.

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