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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 2-Jan-2013
2-Jan-13 World View -- Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali

Web Log - January, 2013

2-Jan-13 World View -- Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali

Egypt's currency collapses to seven-year low

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali
Egypt's currency collapses to seven-year low
Fiscal cliff negotiations lead to farcical conclusion

Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali

Djenna Mosque in Timbuktu, Mali, built around 1300. Islamists say they'll tear down and destroy all Timbuktu mosques

Djenna Mosque in Timbuktu, Mali, built around 1300. Islamists say they'll tear down and destroy all Timbuktu mosques

Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and affiliate Ansar Dine are now in almost complete control of northern Mali, a region as large as France, and is entrenching itself to prepare for a war by external forces attempting to eject it. The U.N. Security Council has authorized military intervention in Mali, under a proposal by 15 nations in West Africa, but there is little energy to mount the intervention. For years, al-Qaeda has been trying to gain control of an entire country, in order to use it as a base to launch attacks against other countries. Now, for the first time, they may be close to success. AP

Egypt's currency collapses to seven-year low

Egypt's pound currency, which has been falling steadily since the January, 2011, Egyptian revolution, has fallen to its lowest value against the dollar in seven years. The collapse has been caused by a number of factors: bank runs by Egyptians, converting pounds to dollars; political turmoil; slowing tourism revenue and foreign investment; and a sharp fall in foreign currency reserves in the central bank. The collapse will increase the prices of imported staples, such as tea and sugar, and underlines the crisis facing Egypt's economy. President Mohamed Morsi said that the situation "does not worry or scare us, and within days it will balance out." Reuters and Al-Arabiya

Fiscal cliff negotiations lead to farcical conclusion

A couple of days ago, I wrote, "America is truly Greece now," and the past 48 hours have shown that in the worst sense. President Obama has been gloating constantly, bragging that he's been able to screw the Republicans by forcing them to raise taxes without having to agree to any spending cuts. The whole point of the sequestration agreement in mid-2011 is that long before 1/1/2013 arrived, Congress would be forced to implement tax reform and reduce spending.

Just the opposite has occurred. The "compromise" fiscal cliff bill makes taxes more complicated, and increases the deficit. (As I write this, early Tuesday evening, it appears that this bill will pass within a couple of hours.)

The "Kick the Can Theory" predicted that Washington would do the minimum possible to get through the current crisis, and would do nothing to fix the underlying problems, so that there would be a worse crisis later. That's exactly what's happening. America today is much worse off than it was a month ago.

As usual, expect President Obama, the Congressional Democrats, and the Congressional Republicans to lie to the press, and to declare some sort of great victory for the American people. And, as usual, expect the mainstream press to be completely in the tank for Obama, and to agree with everything he says, even when it's totally incoherent. Meanwhile, get ready for one crisis after another in 2013. Reuters

(Comments: For reader comments, questions and discussion, see the 2-Jan-13 World View -- Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali thread of the Generational Dynamics forum. Comments may be posted anonymously.) (2-Jan-2013) Permanent Link
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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 2-Jan-2013 2-Jan-13 World View -- Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali

Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali

Egypt's currency collapses to seven-year low

Fiscal cliff negotiations lead to farcical conclusion

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Generational Dynamics Web Log for 2-Jan-2013
2-Jan-13 World View -- Al-Qaeda prepares for war in northern Mali