For the USA to maintain a coherent foreign policy, it must either: 1. Have a major adversary (Axis powers, USSR) or 2. Retreat into isolationism.

*** 7-Nov-13 World View -- John Kerry condemns Israeli settlements

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• John Kerry condemns Israeli settlements
• Pakistan will supply nuclear weapons to Saudi Arabia
• British girls dress up as burning Twin Towers and win contest

****
**** John Kerry condemns Israeli settlements
****


John Kerry and Benjamin Netanyahu (AFP)

In a desperate attempt to salvage the latest collapsing Mideast "peace
process," U.S. Secretary of State met with Palestinian President
Mahmoud Abbas, and said:

<QUOTE>"Let me emphasize at this point the position of the
United States of America on the settlements is that we consider
now, and have always considered, the settlements to be
illegitimate.

As in any negotiation there will be moments of up and moments of
down, and it goes back and forth. But I can tell you that
President Obama and I are determined, and neither of us will stop
in our efforts to pursue the possibility (of peace)."<END QUOTE>

Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas was quoted as saying:

<QUOTE>"The Palestinians are committed to negotiations that
would lead to the establishment of an independent Palestinian
state with east Jerusalem as its capital."<END QUOTE>

Jerusalem Post

****
**** Pakistan will supply nuclear weapons to Saudi Arabia
****

Reports indicate that Saudi Arabia has for years invested a great deal
of money in Pakistan nuclear weapons, and that nuclear weapons made in
Pakistan on behalf of Saudi Arabia are now sitting, ready for
delivery. Technology for the weapons comes from China. Saudi
officials have been saying for years that they would not tolerate Iran
having a nuclear capability unless the Saudis also had one.

The Saudis could take delivery of the nuclear weapons in either
of two different ways. First, Pakistan could just deliver
nuclear weapons for Saudi Arabia to use, though that would
be considered an extremely provocative action in international
eyes.

The second way would be for Pakistan to send its own troops
to maintain the nuclear weapons in Saudi Arabia, and maintain
control over them. This is similar to the way that the
United States stations nuclear weapons in some countries,
keeping them under control of U.S. armed forces.

As I've been saying for years, the coming Clash of Civilizations world
war will pit the United States, India, Iran and others against China,
Pakistan, the Sunni Muslim countries, and others. When I first made
that prediction in 2005, based on a Generational Dynamics analysis, it
seemed completely likely to be unfulfilled, but the trend lines in the
past couple of years indicate that the prediction will be fulfilled.
BBC

****
**** British girls dress up as burning Twin Towers and win contest
****


Girls wearing burning Twin Towers costumes

Families of 9/11 victims are expressing outrage that two 19-year-old
college girls at University of Chester in Britain won a costume
contest by wearing two of the most grotesque costumes of all time:
matching costumes labeled "North Tower" and "South Tower," with head
pieces that represented smoke billowing from the tops of the doomed
skyscrapers and individuals leaping to their deaths. They topped it
all off with American flags. Rosie's nightclub in Chester gave them
the "best dressed" award and a cash prize. NY Daily News


KEYS: Generational Dynamics, John Kerry, Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu,
Mahmoud Abbas, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, China,
Iran, Twin Towers, University of Chester

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Originally Posted by TimWalker

For the USA to maintain a coherent foreign policy, it must either: 1. Have a major adversary (Axis powers, USSR) or 2. Retreat into isolationism.

2, man. Peace Out.

And

Updated ditty I recall from the 60's. For Rags.


I'd like to build a world a hole
and furnish it with shit
Grow poison ivy and roaches
and black ravens.

I'd like to teach the world to fuck off
and leave me in perfect harmony.
I'd like to kick it in my feet,
and keep it out of my life

I'd like to see the world for once
all standing ass to ass
And hear them STFU through the hills
for peace throughout the land.

It's the real thing
what the world wants today,
That's the way it'll stay
with the real thing.
I'd like to teach the world to fuck off
and leave me perfect harmony.
A song of heavy metal that echoes on
and never goes away.

Put your mind at ease in my tobaccy
let's begin today,
With your hand in my snus can
help me find a way.

I'd like to see the world for once
all standing toking up
And hear them echo through the hills
for drunken slurs throughout the land.

I'd like to teach the world to fuck off
and leave me in perfect harmony.
A song of heavy metal that echos on,
and never goes away.






::
High, Eric. Xer snark, dude.

Originally Posted by Ragnarök_62

2, man. Peace Out.

And

Updated ditty I recall from the 60's. For Rags.


I'd like to build a world a hole
and furnish it with shit
Grow poison ivy and roaches
and black ravens.

I'd like to teach the world to fuck off
and leave me in perfect harmony.
I'd like to kick it in my feet,
and keep it out of my life

I'd like to see the world for once
all standing ass to ass
And hear them STFU through the hills
for peace throughout the land.

It's the real thing
what the world wants today,
That's the way it'll stay
with the real thing.
I'd like to teach the world to fuck off
and leave me perfect harmony.
A song of heavy metal that echoes on
and never goes away.

Put your mind at ease in my tobaccy
let's begin today,
With your hand in my snus can
help me find a way.

I'd like to see the world for once
all standing toking up
And hear them echo through the hills
for drunken slurs throughout the land.

I'd like to teach the world to fuck off
and leave me in perfect harmony.
A song of heavy metal that echos on,
and never goes away.






::
High, Eric. Xer snark, dude.

I'll raise you one (since that offering neither rhymes nor scans) with -from the '70s -

" O ugly now for poisoned skies, for pesticided grain,
For strip-mined mountains’ travesty above the asphalt plain,
America! America! Man shed his waste on thee,
And milled the pines for billboard signs from sea to oily sea."

If I hadn't said '70s. what period would you all have said it was from?

Always topical, isn't he?

Originally Posted by The Grey Badger

I'll raise you one (since that offering neither rhymes nor scans) with -from the '70s -

Yes, wrong decade, but I was in grade school when that thing came out so I'ze deserve a pass.

" O ugly now for poisoned skies, for pesticided grain,
For strip-mined mountains’ travesty above the asphalt plain,
America! America! Man shed his waste on thee,
And milled the pines for billboard signs from sea to oily sea."

The above in from Gilded Age I to now, (Gilded Age , the sequel) my fine furry badger.

If I hadn't said '70s. what period would you all have said it was from?

How about corn fed Americans?



Corn, fattens people , just like feedlot animals.

Corn cheese doodles and high fructose corn syrup stuff does scan at Walmart.

*** 8-Nov-13 World View -- 'Butcher of Swat' Fazlullah named as new chief of Pakistan's Taliban

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• 'Butcher of Swat' Fazlullah named as new chief of Pakistan's Taliban
• Fazlullah rejects peace talks with Pakistan's government
• European Central Bank cuts rates to fight deflationary spiral

****
**** 'Butcher of Swat' Fazlullah named as new chief of Pakistan's Taliban
****


Mullah Fazlullah and Malala Yousafzai, whom Fazlullah tried and failed to murder

Pakistan's citizens are expressing dismay that Tehrik-e-Taliban (TTP -
the Pakistan Taliban) on Thursday selected Mullah Fazlullah as their
new leader.

Fazlullah has gotten the name "Butcher of Swat" because he led the
Taliban in 2007-2009 to create rivers of blood with terrorist acts and
a reign of terror in the Swat Valley of northwestern Pakistan, which
used to be a beautiful tourist and ski resort. Finally, in 2009,
Pakistan's army was able to drive Fazlullah and his terrorists into
the tribal areas, and then across the border into Afghanistan.

Fazlullah led a campaign to end a United Nations program to vaccinate
children against polio, by murdering doctors and nurses who
administered the vaccines. The result is that polio is endemic in
Pakistan, as well as in Afghanistan and Nigeria.

Fazlullah earned international notoriety for ordering the November
2012 shooting of Malala Yousafzai, a teenage girl from Swat who had
campaigned against the TTP's bombing of schools. She narrowly survived
after being airlifted to the United Kingdom for specialist medical
treatment. She has since been feted across the world for her bravery,
narrowly missing out on the Nobel Peace Prize. McClatchy and BBC

****
**** Fazlullah rejects peace talks with Pakistan's government
****

TTP's previous leader, Hakimullah Mehsud, was killed by an
American drone strike, as we reported
last week. The drone strike triggered an
angry reaction from some Pakistani politicians, who claimed
that Mehsud was about to enter into peace talks with the
government.

Imran Khan, the former cricket superstar turned anti-American
politician, said one Wednesday that America launched the
drone strike on purpose to prevent peace in Pakistan:

<QUOTE>"Absolutely deliberate - this was a deliberate
targeting of the peace process. The US clearly knew what was
going on and everyone in Pakistan knew what was going on.

We'd been waiting for two months for this peace process to start
and then finally when everyone had come to a consensus for peace,
they destroyed the peace process.

The people of Pakistan want peace so we will do whatever is in our
hands - which is to block the supply to put pressure on the US to
stop this madness, because all it's doing is fanning
fanaticism."<END QUOTE>

The last sentence is a threat by Khan to close the Nato supply lines
from the port of Karachi through Pakistan and across the Khyber Pass
into Afghanistan. The government opposes this plan, but Khan
threatened to ask his supporters to block the supply routes unless the
U.S. ends the drone strikes permanently.

The selection of Fazlullah as the new TTP leader confuses the picture
substantially. For one thing, Fazlullah has always rejected any talk
of peace plans, and he immediately repeated that rejection on
Thursday:

<QUOTE>"Holding of peace talks is not even an issue to
discuss – this government has no authority, it is not a sovereign
government, it is a slave, a slave of America. Holding peace talks
is a waste of time."<END QUOTE>

However, other changes may be in the works. The choice of Fazlullah
was a surprise to a number of analysts because they had expected the
the new TTP leader to be another "Mehsud" -- that is, another member
of the Mehsud clan which has led the TTP in the past. The choice of
Fazlullah, who lives in Afghanistan and who is more bloody and
hardline than previous TTP leaders, may signal that the entire TTP
organization is becoming even more bloody and hardline than in the
past. Some analysts have suggested that the selection of someone
other than a Mehsud indicates that the TTP is splintering into groups
that are more moderate and more violent. BBC and AFP

****
**** European Central Bank cuts rates to fight deflationary spiral
****

For years, Generational Dynamics has been predicting a deflationary
spiral (as opposed to inflation or hyperinflation predicted by
so-called experts). The Fed has been fighting off deflation by means
of zero interest rates and $85 billion per month of "printed money" in
the form of quantitative easing.

Mario Draghi, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB),
has been firm in denying that the ECB would follow the Fed's
example, saying that deflation was not a danger in the
eurozone. So the financial community was shocked on Thursday
morning when Draghi announced a reduction in interest rates
to 0.25% from 0.50% because of a fear of inflation.
According to one analyst:

<QUOTE>"The ECB had to do something. The rise of the euro was
becoming deflationary and threatening to choke off growth. It is
very rare for a central bank to change its policy so dramatically
from one month to the next so something profound must have
happened."<END QUOTE>

The "something profound" that happened was that the inflation
rate in the eurozone plummeted to 0.7% in October, far below
the ECB's target of 2%. And the fall in the inflation rate
has been so rapid for the last six months, that Draghi
feared that the euro was in a full-fledged deflationary spiral.

Mainstream economists have predicted that the global financial crisis
has ended, but Generational Dynamics predicts that it's far from over.
Generational Dynamics predicts a global financial panic and financial
crisis, accompanied by a worldwide deflationary spiral. Telegraph (London)


KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Pakistan, Mullah Fazlullah,
Tehrik-e-Taliban, TTP, Pakistan Taliban,
Malala Yousafzai, Hakimullah Mehsud, Imran Khan,
European Central Bank, ECB, Mario Draghi

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Originally Posted by Ragnarök_62

Corn, fattens people , just like feedlot animals.

Corn cheese doodles and high fructose corn syrup stuff does scan at Walmart.

Including jelly beans and syrupy sodas.

I remember, when Wal*Mart was a new economic phenomenon, that it got a high sales volume per square foot by having narrow aisles. It was clearly not 'obesity-friendly'. Those are not people who struggle with their weight and fail. Those people on scooters have given up.

Originally Posted by pbrower2a

I remember, when Wal*Mart was a new economic phenomenon, that it got a high sales volume per square foot by having narrow aisles. It was clearly not 'obesity-friendly'. Those are not people who struggle with their weight and fail. Those people on scooters have given up.

My wife rides a scooter in stores like that. She's not that overweight but she has chronic ankle problems. Her doctor has said she shouldn't be on her feet more than ten minutes an hour. (Which means she can't use the teaching certificate that took her years to earn.)

*** 9-Nov-13 World View -- China implements 'Skynet' surveillance program to control protests

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• China implements 'Skynet' surveillance program to control protests
• United States and Israel lose their votes in UNESCO
• Foreign ministers rush to Geneva to complete Iran nuclear deal

****
**** China implements 'Skynet' surveillance program to control protests
****


Uighur terrorist act at Tiananmen Square on Oct 29

The recent successful terrorist attack by ethnic Uighurs in the heart
of Beijing's most securely guarded and well-protected offices ( "30-Oct-13 World View -- China scrambles to suppress Tiananmen Square terror attack reports"
)
illuminates the increasing discontent of the ethnic Uighur population
in Xinjiang province in northwest China.

To provide better and more thorough control over the population, and
to try to prevent everything from protests to terror attacks, China's
government has installed as many as 130 million security cameras
around the country, with 800,000 in Beijing alone. Facial recognition
software is being installed, so that the movements of any citizen can
be tracked automatically by computer systems. China is calling this
the "Skynet" program, where Skynet is the name of the computer system
in Arnold Schwarzenegger's Terminator movies that became self-aware
and decided to protect itself by killing all the humans.

However, in Xinjiang province itself, tens of thousands of security
cameras, two million internet monitors and large internal paramilitary
forces have not only not pacified the Uighur population, but have
fueled protests, and violence appears to be worsening significantly.
Uighur insurgents cannot obtain guns domestically, but Xinjiang lies
next door to Central Asian states where guns are plentiful. The real
danger for China is that Uighur terrorists will target China's energy
infrastructure, bombing Xinjiang's rail network and a growing number
of oil and gas pipelines that are vital to supplying energy to the
rest of China.

The Uighurs are not the only rebellious group in China. China has
tens of thousands of "mass protests" every year, and the Chinese
Communist Party's great fear is that these individual protests will
coalesce into a major regional protest. I've been writing for several
years that China is overdue for a new national civil war. (See
"China approaches Civil War" from 2005.) China's history is full of massive civil war
rebellions, such as the White Lotus Rebellion (1796-1805) and the
Taiping Rebellion (1852-1869), killing millions or tens of millions of
people. These occur at regular intervals, with each new one occurring
at about the time that the survivors of the preceding one die off.
The last of these rebellions was Mao's Communist Revolution (1934-49),
and now it's time for the next one. The Diplomat

****
**** United States and Israel lose their votes in UNESCO
****

Both the United States and Israel will no longer be permitted to vote
in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO), although they both will remain non-voting
members. The U.S. stopped paying dues to UNESCO in 2011, when the
state of Palestine was made a member of UNESCO, in accordance with
U.S. law, and Israel followed suit. UNESCO cancels the ability to
vote for any country that hasn't paid its dues in two years. UNESCO
supports girls' and women's education, and the protection and
preservation of cultural heritage sites. U.S. State Dept. and Global Post

****
**** Foreign ministers rush to Geneva to complete Iran nuclear deal
****

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry joined foreign ministers from
Russia, Britain, China, EU, France and Germany rushed to Geneva on
Friday, leading journalists to conclude that a deal with Iran had been
reached, and that all was needed was the signatures. That turned out
not be true, but officials are saying that a deal is close, and should
be reached this weekend.

The details of the proposed agreement are not known, but
the general outline is as follows:

• Iran will promise to limit its uranium enrichment program
  to below the level needed to build nuclear weapons, and will
  promise not to build nuclear weapons.
  
• Iran will agree to U.N. inspections.
  
• The West will reduce some sanctions that target Iran.

Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu was stinging in
his criticism of the proposed deal:

<QUOTE>"The deal that is being discussed in Geneva right now
is a bad deal, it's a very bad deal. Iran gets everything that it
wanted at this stage and it pays nothing."<END QUOTE>

President Barack Obama called Netanyahu to reassure him, and
said in an interview:

<QUOTE>"We don't have to trust them. What we have to do is to
make sure that there is a good deal in place from the perspective
of us verifying what they're doing. And that they're actually
moving in the right direction."<END QUOTE>

Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif

<QUOTE>"We’ve got to be creative, we’ve got to be innovative
and deal with situations as - on the basis of realities, not on
the basis of illusions. I believe, at the end of the day,
everybody will be happy with a deal that can be achieved ...

Iran demands respect and equal footing [that is] only done when
you are prepared to accommodate the other side without trying to
impose your views."<END QUOTE>

It is not clear whether the U.S. Senate will approve any deal that's
signed. Also, it's not clear whether Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards
Corps (IRGC) will go along with any deal. VOA and Tehran Times

KEYS: Generational Dynamics, China, Skynet, Uighurs, Xinjiang,
Tiananmen Square, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Terminator,
White Lotus Rebellion, Taiping Rebellion, Communist Revolution,
Israel, UNESCO, Palestine, Iran, John Kerry,
Benjamin Netanyahu, Mohammad Javad Zarif,
Islamic Revolution Guards Corps, IRGC

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*** 10-Nov-13 World View -- Iran nuclear talks collapse after France complains of 'con game'

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Iran nuclear talks collapse after France complains of 'con game'
• The Top Ten Most Popular Conspiracy Theories

****
**** Iran nuclear talks collapse after France complains of 'con game'
****


Iran's foreign minister Jawad Zarif and France's foreign minister Laurent Fabius (VOA)

Using phrases like "con game" and "fool's deal," France's foreign
minister Laurent Fabius demanded additional concessions from Iran in
return for an agreement to reduce Western sanctions. Fabius cited
differences over Iran's Arak nuclear reactor southeast of Tehran,
which could produce enough plutonium for several nuclear weapons a
year once it goes online. Iran says it expects Arak to be completed
and go online sometime next year, though the plutonium would not be
weapons grade. Fabius is demanding that work on Arak be suspended for
the time being, which Iran refuses to do. He also called for a
reduction in the purity of Iran's stockpile of highly enriched
uranium. The talks collapsed, but will reconvene on November 20.
France 24 and VOA

****
**** The Top Ten Most Popular Conspiracy Theories
****

Some people believe that Martians landed at Roswell, or that 9/11 was
the work of the government. Here's a list of not just ten, but the
top 13 conspiracy theories:

• Fifty years after President John F. Kennedy’s assassination,
  the belief that more than one person was involved in his assassination
  remains the most widely held conspiracy theory in America. In an April
  2013 poll, 59 percent said others were involved.
  
• In the few polls we have, a sizable minority of the population
  believes President Roosevelt knew about the attack on Pearl Harbor in
  advance and used the attack as an excuse to go to war.
  
• Around 20 percent embrace the view that UFOs have landed in the
  United States at Roswell, New Mexico, and that the government is
  engaged in a systematic cover-up of this event.
  
• In a 1976 Harris poll, 60 percent believed the assassination of
  Martin Luther King Jr. was the work of a conspiracy. In a 2008 CNN
  poll, 55 percent endorsed the notion of a conspiracy.
  
• In an August 2007 Fox News poll, 31 percent agreed that foul play
  was involved in Princess Diana's death.
  
• In a July 2006 Scripps Howard and Ohio University poll, 16 percent
  said it was likely that the “people in the federal government either
  assisted in the 9/11 attacks or took no action to stop the attacks
  because they wanted to United States to go to war in the Middle
  East.”
  
• Around 6 percent believe the moon landing was a hoax.
  
• In 1994, 37% said that it was possible that the Nazi extermination
  of the Jews in Nazi death camps during World War II never happened?
  
  
• On July 17, 1996, TWA Flight 800 exploded and crashed minutes from
  takeoff from JFK. The NTSB determined that the likely cause was the
  accidental ignition of fuel vapors in the fuel tank. But 39% of those
  surveyed said that it very likely or somewhat likely that the Navy
  shot down TWA 800 with a missile.
  
• Fifteen percent told Fox News that there was a chance that Osama
  bin Laden is still alive, while 24 percent told CBS News that they had
  doubts about whether he was killed.
  
• In June, 1997, 52% believed that it was very likely or somewhat
  likely that the CIA has allowed Central American drug dealers to sell
  cocaine to black kids in inner-city neighborhoods?
  
• In March, 2013, people were asked: "Do you believe that
  shape-shifting reptilian people control our world by taking on human
  form and gaining political power to manipulate our societies, or not?"
  4% believe, and 7% are not sure.
  
• "Do you believe media or the government adds secret
  mind-controlling technology to television broadcast signals, or not?"
  15% believe, 15% are not sure.

AEI


KEYS: Generational Dynamics, France, Laurent Fabius, Iran, Arak

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Originally Posted by Earl and Mooch

My wife rides a scooter in stores like that. She's not that overweight but she has chronic ankle problems. Her doctor has said she shouldn't be on her feet more than ten minutes an hour. (Which means she can't use the teaching certificate that took her years to earn.)

That... I understand, and for that situation I empathize. I understand well how people can love teaching, and that teaching is absolutely not a sedentary activity if one is to be good at it. I have had gout so bad that I needed a wheelchair until the painkillers kicked in. Once the painkillers kick in I am on my feet as much as I can be so that I can exorcize the uric acid out of my system through exercise and by drinking water by the vase.

There are so many mysteries about the JFK assassination that it is easy to understand why so many would assume that a conspiracy was possible. I'm satisfied that even if Lee Harvey Oswald was the lone gunman he could still have been manipulated into doing the crime. Maybe he was a Soviet agent. KGB or GRU? James Earl Ray probably acted alone (Martin Luther King was not a security fetishist) in the assassination, I suspect that somebody helped him get out of the United States. I suspect that Ray had accessories after the fact, people who thought him a hero.

The other conspiracy theories are manifestly absurd.

*** 11-Nov-13 World View -- Saudi Arabia's plans for Syria intervention face many obstacles

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Massive Saudi Arabia migrant expulsion leads to violence
• Saudi Arabia's plans for Syria intervention face many obstacles
• Special negotiating tactics from Israel's chief negotiator, Tzipi Livni

****
**** Massive Saudi Arabia migrant expulsion leads to violence
****


Ethiopians await deportation in Riyadh (Reuters)

Two people were killed on Saturday in clashes between police and
African, mostly Ethiopian, migrant workers, in Riyadh, the capital
city of Saudi Arabia. Police arrested 561 people, after a week in
which thousands have been arrested. The clash follows a crackdown,
begun last Monday, to expel hundreds of thousands of migrant workers
who don't have valid work visas. Many entered the country illegally,
often seeking a job as domestic work, others have expired work visas,
and others were smuggled across the border. The reason given for the
crackdown is to make available more jobs for Saudis. The crackdown
will close numerous small businesses, such as laundries, barbershops,
eateries and bankers, and remittances back to home countries will fall
about 20%. [What's not clear to me is why the closing of all these
businesses won't have a recessionary effect on the economy.] Gulf News and Arab News

****
**** Saudi Arabia's plans for Syria intervention face many obstacles
****

Following Saudi Arabia's nasty split with the United States --
following President Obama's public flip-flop on Syria, and
the administration's new rapprochement with Saudi's
arch-enemy Iran -- the Saudis are struggling to find a way
to use their almost unlimited funds to do something to
end the intolerable genocidal slaughter of innocent civilian
Sunni Arabs by Syria's psychopathic president Bashar al-Assad,
supported by Iran's Revolutionary Guards.

The plan is for the Saudis to create and fund an Army of Muhammad,
uniting the Sunni rebel groups. A year ago, this army would have had
7,000-10,000 soldiers, including 6,300 army defectors who had taken
refuge in Jordan and Turkey. But with the collapse of any hope of
support from the United States, the plans for the size of the rebel
army has increased to 50,000, at a cost of "several billion dollars,"
growing to 250,000 by March, 2016. And while the Army of Muhammad
would just have had to fight al-Assad's army a year ago, today
it would be fighting against two enemies -- al-Assad's army
and al-Qaeda linked jihadists.

The Saudis are planning for cooperation from the Pakistanis,
with whom they've shared defense ties for years. The Saudis
would like Pakistani help in training its Army of Muhammad,
as well as a few thousand troops.

However, Pakistan's military is dealing with its own problems
from the Taliban and jihadist violence, and is not anxious to
get involved in a huge effort in Syria. Furthermore, the Saudi
plan would require the cooperation of Jordan, and they're also
put off by the size of the Saudi plan, since there would
be a large Syrian rebel army on Jordan's soil.

The biggest problem of all is getting the Saudi rebel groups to
cooperate with one another. According to one analyst:

<QUOTE>"The biggest problem facing the Saudis now is the same
one facing the U.S., France, and anyone else interested in helping
the rebels: the fragmentation of the rebels into groups fighting
each other for local and regional dominance rather than
cooperating to overthrow Assad. Could the Saudis force [the rebel
groups] to cooperate? I have my doubts."<END QUOTE>

Foreign Policy and ISN Security Watch (Zurich)

****
**** Special negotiating tactics from Israel's chief negotiator, Tzipi Livni
****


Tzipi Livni

A report last week in the Lebanon newspaper Al Diyyar says that
Israel's chief negotiator, Tzipi Livni, has admitted having sex with
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat and PLO official Yasser Abed Rabbo.
The story quotes a Rabbi as saying, "It was ok for her to sleep and
have sex with strangers, as long as it benefits Israel." According to
the Arab press, Livni has previously admitted that she doesn't mind
killing or having sex with someone in exchange for information that
could benefit Israel. Al-Bawaba (Jordan)

KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia, Syria,
Pakistan, Iran, Bashar al-Assad, Army of Muhammad,
Jordan, Israel, Tzipi Livni, Saeb Erekat

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*** 12-Nov-13 World View -- Iran's statement on Syria shows signs of desperation

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Iran's statement on Syria shows signs of desperation
• U.S. Marines land in Philippines after massive Typhoon Haiyan destruction

****
**** Iran's statement on Syria shows signs of desperation
****


Mohamed Javad Zarif being interviewed on BBC on Monday

A statement by Iran's foreign minister Mohamed Javad Zarif to a BBC
interviewer is so completely full of crap that it sounds like
desperation. Zarif expressed outrage at terrorism and extremism by
Sunni jihadists, and totally ignored 30 years of Iranian Shia
terrorism through the Revolutionary Guard Corp, and through direct
funding of Hezbollah and other violent terrorist groups. Sunni
jihadists now targeting Hezbollah, Iran's allies in Syria, and Iran
itself. Call it Kismet, call it Karma, or call it comeuppance, Iran
is now facing well-deserved retribution.

Zarif began the interview by parroting the usual line - there is no
military solution, there has to be a political solution, blah blah
blah - not mentioning that Iran is fully involved militarily in Syria.
Then, the BBC interviewer, Jeremy Bowen, asked about the role of
jihadists in Syria (my transcription):

<QUOTE>"That is a threat to all of us. The role of
jihadists, the role of extremists, these are a band of mobile
people, most of them non-Syrian, who are moving from Chechnya to
Afghanistan to Yemen, the [next] day to Iraq to Syria, and
wreaking havoc in all these countries. It's in the interest of
everybody to understand that extremists will not be able to be
contained in one country. If they give rise to extremism, this is
a fire that will engulf them and will burn them. We've got to
understand that extremism has no boundaries. Terrorism has no
boundaries. We need to collectively deal with them thru serious
measures to prevent them from wreaking havoc."<END QUOTE>

This is exactly the point that I've been making for months, except
that I place the blame squarely on Iran and Russia. Iran and Russia
have been supplying fighters and weapons to Shia/Alawite Bashar
al-Assad, who is trying to exterminate all the Sunnis in Syria. So of
course the Sunni jihadists from countries near and far are going to
flock to Syria to fight al-Assad. Are the Iranian and Russian leaders
so incredibly stupid that they didn't think that would happen?
Apparently so. But that's typical of the utter stupidity of
many politicians in many countries.

As I've said in the past, I believe that a tipping point has already
been reached in Syria, and that there's no way to stop the rising
sectarian conflict in the Mideast. With hundreds of thousands of
deaths, and many millions of refugees, the countries around Syria are
now so destabilized that there's no way to recover without a
full-scale war.

At this point, Bowen said that the war in Syria has increased
Sunni/Shia tensions. He asked Zarif how serious this sectarian
tension is for the Mideast and the world:

<QUOTE>"I think it's probably the most serious security
threat not only to the region, but to the world at large. And I
think all of us, and Iran is committed to this and when I was in
Turkey with our Turkish friends, regardless of our differences
over Syria, we need to work together on this sectarian issue.

When I was in Iraq we agreed with the Iraqi friends that we need
to work together, that this was the single most important problem
that we all - we ALL face. And I believe we can work with
everybody in the region, with Saudi Arabia, with the countries in
the Persian Gulf, with other countries in the region, with others,
in order to contain this threat, because this -- some people have
fanned the animosity for short-sighted political
interests."<END QUOTE>

At this point, Bowen interrupted and said, "Saudis - you mean the
Saudis." Zarif was obviously talking about Iran's hated enemy, the
Saudis, but refused to say so.

The more that Zarif spoke, the more his words were full of crap.
Iran not only has NOT been working to "contain this threat,"
but in fact Iran has been the principal cause, along with
Russia, of the sectarian threat.

Iran's economy is on the ropes because of the international sanctions,
while Saudi Arabia has an almost unlimited amount of money to fund
anti-Assad fighters in Syria. (See "11-Nov-13 World View -- Saudi Arabia's plans for Syria intervention face many obstacles"
)

So now Zarif is whining that the Saudis have "fanned the animosity for
short-sighted political interests." What crap, given that that's
what Iran has been doing for years.

<QUOTE>"I'm talking about certain countries that have called
various names about Shia Crescent, and all of that -- this
business of fear-mongering has been a prevalent business. I think
we need to come to understand that sectarian divide in the Islamic
world is a threat to all of us. Nobody can benefit from it.
Nobody should try to fan the flames of sectarian violence. I
think we should all rein this divide, and rein it in, bring it to
a close, try to avoid a conflict that would be detrimental to
everybody's security."<END QUOTE>

By this time, Zarif sounded completely desperate. Iran has been
fanning the flames of sectarian violence in Syria since the war
started 2 1/2 years ago, and now it's biting them on the ass. The
wealthy Saudis are gearing up for a fight, the bankrupt Iranians can't
compete, and Sunni jihadists are striking within Iran itself.

For 30 years, Iran has been funding and fomenting terror throughout
the Mideast, and through Hezbollah, around the world. Iran's
desperation is well deserved. Even worse, the survival of
the regime is at stake, with Iran in a generational Awakening
era, and the younger generations getting very impatient with
old hardline geezers running the country.

The question is how much of a change in policy can be expected
from this desperation. The nuclear talks this past weekend
collapsed, but there also, Iran seemed almost desperate to reach
an agreement that would get the sanctions eased.

There's a final word to be said about Hezbollah. The sectarian
conflict really spiked up last April when Hezbollah announced that it
would be invading Syria to fight on the side of al-Assad. Reports
indicated that Hezbollah leadership didn't want to intervene, but was
forced to by their masters, the Iranians. (See "27-Sep-13 World View -- How Hezbollah's reluctant foray into Syria changed the Mideast"
)

Analysts have noticed that, without any particular announcement,
Hezbollah withdrew from Syria a couple of months ago. This reflects a
change in policy of Hezbollah, but more so of Iran. That could be the
first sign that Iran is finally realizing the disaster that it has
caused, working with Russia. BBC

****
**** U.S. Marines land in Philippines after massive Typhoon Haiyan destruction
****


The city of Tacloban in the Philippines, with a population of over 220,000, almost totally destroyed by Typhoon Haiyan

U.S. Marines landed Monday to bring food, water, generators, blankets,
mosquito nets, soap, underwear, and other critical supplies to the
survivors of Friday's deadly Typhoon Yolanda (called Haiyan elsewhere
in Asia), possibly the most powerful typhoon on record. The nation is
used to typhoons, having had 20 or so already this year, but no one
was prepared for Haiyan, with 145 mile per hour winds, and storm
surges as high as 20 feet. Haiyan killed over 10,000 people, and
completely destroyed cities in its path. Almost 9.7 million people
were affected. A new typhoon, named Zoraida, will make landfall on
Tuesday, with top winds of 34 miles per hour, but with plenty of new
rain to add to the misery. The U.S. is providing $20 million in aid
to the Philippines, and the aircraft carrier USS George Washington,
currently in Hong Kong, is making final preparations to deploy to the
Philippines, and will arrive Wednesday or Thursday. President Benigno
Aquino III has declared a "state of calamity." Fox News and Bloomberg

KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Iran, Mohamed Javad Zarif,
Syria, Bashar al-Assad, Hezbollah, Saudi Arabia,
Philippines, Tacloban, Typhoon Yolanda, Typhoon Haiyan,
Typhoon Zoraida, Benigno Aquino III,
USS George Washington

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*** 13-Nov-13 World View -- Human Rights Watch says Syria is using Russian-made incendiary weapons

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Lebanon tries to prevent widespread polio epidemic
• Human Rights Watch says Syria is using Russian-made incendiary weapons
• Zero Obamacare enrollments in Massachusetts

****
**** Lebanon tries to prevent widespread polio epidemic
****


A Syrian girl in a Lebanon refugee camp kisses her younger brother. (AP)

Lebanon has launched a massive public health initiative in order to
head off a threatened polio epidemic. The threat comes from the flood
of refugees that are coming from Syria, which is experiencing its
first major outbreak of polio in 14 years, because of the war. There
are more than 800,000 Syrian refugees spread across Lebanon in nearly
1,600 locations, and an attempt will be made to go "house by house,
tent by tent" across Lebanon to vaccinate all children under 5 against
polio. In Syria, about 10 children are already paralyzed. Reuters

****
**** Human Rights Watch says Syria is using Russian-made incendiary weapons
****

An investigation by Human Rights Watch finds that the regime of
Syria's president Bashar al-Assad has been using incendiary weapons to
torture and kill Syrian civilians. There has been limited
international condemnation because al-Assad has also been using
chemical weapons to kill civilians.

"Incendiary weapons cause excruciating pain, they can burn to the
bone," explains Docherty. "Some models can re-ignite after being
treated when exposed to oxygen. They also cause ong-term effects such
as disfigurement and ostracization. According to an HRW official:

<QUOTE>"There should not be less concern about chemical
weapons, but there should be more concern about incendiary
weapons. They're all problematic. We're not asking for a
comparative approach but we're saying there should definitely be
more attention paid to the use of incendiary weapons. ...

They are being used mostly in air strikes by the Syrian
government. We haven't heard any confirmations or denials by the
Syrian government."<END QUOTE>

The incendiary weapons are all Russian made from the Soviet era.
Human Rights Watch and Voice Of Russia

****
**** Zero Obamacare enrollments in Massachusetts
****


Obama and Mass. governor Deval Patrick at Boston's Faneuil Hall on October 30 for speech selling Obamacare (Boston Herald)

I had thought that if any state was going to do well under
Obamacare, it would be Massachusetts (where I live), for several
reasons. First, Massachusetts has had several years of
experience with "Romneycare," which supposedly served
as a model for Obamacare. Second, Massachusetts has had
a "Health Connector" web site for years, so they know how to
provide health plans online.

Well, it turns out that the web site had to be rewritten, since the
old web site was not Obamacare-compliant. Anyone who had gotten a
plan from the old web site would have to re-apply on the new web site,
and the new web site is as much a mess as the Obamacare web sites in
other states.

There are 150,000 Massachusetts residents who are facing cancellation
of their health insurance. As of this week, only 549 applicants have
selected plans without confirming them, and ZERO people have confirmed
enrollment in a new plan.

As I've written many times, the worst economic policy in my lifetime
up to a few years ago was President Nixon's wage-price controls, which
were an absolute disaster for the economy. (See "5-Jul-13 World View -- Eurozone and Obamacare continue their parallel economic collapse"
)

Every day, the news about Obamacare gets worse. This is a much worse
disaster for the U.S. economy than Nixon's wage-price controls. This
is spiraling into a historic catastrophe, and what's incredibly
depressing is that, at this point, there's absolutely nothing that can
be done to stop the damage. This is a nightmare. Boston Herald


KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Lebanon, Syria, polio,
Human Rights Watch, Russia, incendiary weapons,
Obamacare, Massachusetts, Romneycare

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*** 14-Nov-13 World View -- Netanyahu cancels Israeli settlement plan to save 'peace process'

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Manufacturer makes a metal gun with a 3D printer
• Netanyahu cancels Israeli settlement plan to save 'peace process'
• Malta sells EU citizenship for 650,000 euros

****
**** Manufacturer makes a metal gun with a 3D printer
****


3D printed metal gun

The gun-control concept took another hit on Friday when a Texas gun
manufacturer, Solid Concepts, tested the first all metal gun made from
3D printing. The pistol is a version of an M1911, a handgun designed
by John Browning and first used widely in the latter stages of combat
stemming from the Philippine-American War.

When I last wrote about gun control and 3D printing
I described a 3D printed plastic gun tested by Cody
Wilson, an activist, which worked adequately but fell apart after
several dozen shots. Now, a few months later, 3D printing of guns has
already advanced substantially. Within a couple of years, I would
expect it to be possible for anyone to be able to purchase a 3D
printer for a few thousand dollars, and make good quality guns in his
cellar or garage. CNN

****
**** Netanyahu cancels Israeli settlement plan to save 'peace process'
****

Israel's prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has decided to
"reconsider" preliminary work toward building 24,000 settlement
housing units in the West Bank, which much of the international
community considers to be occupied Palestinian territory. The
decision was a slapdown of his hardline nationalist housing
minister Uri Ariel, who had authorized the preparatory work.
Netanyahu tied his decision in with the ongoing negotiations
between the West and Iran:

<QUOTE>"In recent months, we built thousands of homes in
Judea and Samaria [the West Bank], and in the coming months we
plan to build thousands more. It was never easy, but we did it
responsibly despite international pressure. [But] there’s no
point in creating friction with the international community over
theoretical potential and plans that aren’t applicable. ...

We need to fight for real, true, practical things and not things
that create unnecessary tension with the international community
that can hurt our fight against Iran."<END QUOTE>

Netanyahu's decision comes as Palestinian peace negotiators have
reportedly submitted their resignations, refusing to take any further
part in the so-called "peace process" with Israel. However,
Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas has not yet accepted their
resignations, and so the farcical peace negotiations may yet continue.
Jerusalem Post and Deutsche-Welle and BBC

****
**** Malta sells EU citizenship for 650,000 euros
****

You can now buy citizenship in Malta for 650,000 euros, thanks to a
new plan approved by the country's parliament on Tuesday. Once you're
a citizen of Malta, you'll be an EU citizen, and you can travel freely
without visa controls. Malta is receiving a great deal of criticism
for this plan, but it turns out that Greece, Spain and Hungary all
offer residence permits in exchange for steep fees, allowing the same
freedom of movement. Malta has merely gone one step further, by
offering citizenship. Spiegel

KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Solid Concepts, 3D Printer, Cody Wilson,
Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, Uri Ariel, Mahmoud Abbas,
Malta

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As I recall, the M1911 pistol has been noted for: 1) Exceptional reliability 2) Sheer stopping power.

Originally Posted by TimWalker

As I recall, the M1911 pistol has been noted for: 1) Exceptional reliability 2) Sheer stopping power.

Did you fight in the Philippine-American War?

I recall reading an article about the war. I have also read articles praising the design.

1911s are still in production, and were widely used by the military and law enforcement as sidearms for much of the last century, even up to today (though less frequently).

The 1911 in .45 ACP is one of those great designs that will likely persist for decades if not centuries to come.

Originally Posted by JordanGoodspeed

1911s are still in production, and were widely used by the military and law enforcement as sidearms for much of the last century, even up to today (though less frequently).

The 1911 in .45 ACP is one of those great designs that will likely persist for decades if not centuries to come.

Not only are they still in production, but apparently they're being commercially 3D printed!

I suspect that 3D printing will be a game changer.

*** 15-Nov-13 World View -- China snubs Philippines on humanitarian aid, then backs down

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• USS George Washington brings first significant aid to the Philippines
• China snubs Philippines on humanitarian aid, then backs down
• France and Eurozone economy falter, while Greece approaches new bailout crisis

****
**** USS George Washington brings first significant aid to the Philippines
****


USS George Washington nuclear powered aircraft carrier

The first significant international aid since Typhoon Haiyan hit the
Philippines started flowing Thursday with the arrival of the USS
George Washington aircraft carrier. Helicopters began ferrying in food
and clean water for regions that have seen little help in days. Other
supplies included tarpaulin sheets to shelter people from the sun and
rains, entire cities and towns have had roofs blown off almost every
building. Many people are getting increasingly angry at the
Philippine government for its failure to provide adequate aid to
starving homeless people. USA Today

****
**** China snubs Philippines on humanitarian aid, then backs down
****

China has been forced by international pressure to reverse itself and
send much more humanitarian aid than it originally intended to the
Philippines. Following the total destruction of many Philippine
cities and the deaths of thousands of people from Typhoon Haiyan, the
worst typhoon on record, the United Arab Emirates, Japan and Australia
have each offered $10 million in humanitarian aid, and South Korea has
pledged $5 million, while the United States has given $20 million and
its military, leading a massive relief effort. But China pledged only
$100,000 in aid, in an obvious snub to the Philippines.

China is claiming as sovereign territory the entire South China Sea,
including regions that have historically belonged to other countries,
including the Philippines. China has already forced the Philippines
to cede the Scarborough Shoal to China, under threat of military
force. So China's obvious snub in humanitarian aid has been heavily
criticized internationally, and even its own Global Times said
editorially on Wednesday:

<QUOTE>"If it snubs Manila this time, China will suffer great
losses. China, as a responsible power, should participate in
relief operations to assist a disaster-stricken neighboring
country."<END QUOTE>

On Thursday, China announced:

<QUOTE>"Several days ago we also decided to send 10 million
RMB ($1.64 million) worth of humanitarian aid, including tents and
blankets, to the Philippine people in the disaster zone. These
include thousands of tents and hundreds of thousands of
blankets. ...

The Chinese are a nation who have a lot of sympathy, a people who
love peace, who are happy to do good deeds. I believe that the
vast majority of the Chinese people are understanding and
sympathetic toward the situation of the Philippine
people."<END QUOTE>

Actually, the Chinese people have a great deal of highly nationalistic
hatred of the Philippines, as shown by the initial snub. The Diplomat and LA Times

****
**** France and Eurozone economy falter, while Greece approaches new bailout crisis
****

France's economy contracted by 0.1% in the third quarter (July,
August, September), when it had been expected to grow slightly. The
entire 17-country eurozone grew by a much slower than expected 0.1%,
after growing 0.3% in the previous quarter.

Greece and eurozone officials are making little progress in coming up
with 2 billion euros of additional austerity measures and asset sales,
as previously committed to the "Troika" of organizations bailing out
Greece -- the European Commission (EC), the European Central Bank
(ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) -- in exchange for the
previous 240 billion euro bailouts. Greece is offering up 1.2 billion
euros in the form of "clamping down on loopholes that allow companies
to evade social security contributions, reducing the budgets of public
organizations, merging state bodies and strictly implementing the
across-the-board wage structure in the public sector." Greek
officials are refusing the Troika request to sell off the
government-owned weapons manufacturer Hellenic Defense Systems. An
agreement has to be reached in time for Greece to receive a new
bailout loan to pay off about 1.85 billion euros of bonds falling due
on January 11. Reuters and Kathimerini


KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Philippines, China, Typhoon Haiyan,
USS George Washington, Japan, Australia, South China Sea,
Scarborough Shoal, France, eurozone, Greece, Troika

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*** 16-Nov-13 World View -- Albania refuses Syria chemical weapons destruction

This morning's key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Venezuela's congress votes to give Maduro dictatorial powers
• Albania refuses Syria chemical weapons destruction
• Executives watching porn are leading targets of hacker attacks

****
**** Venezuela's congress votes to give Maduro dictatorial powers
****


Maduro meets with enthusiastic voters

Venezuela's congress has voted in favor of
granting President Nicolás Maduro emergency dictatorial
policies. A second vote will occur next week to put the change
into effect. Maduro had been one vote short of the number of
votes needed, but solved that problem by charging an opposite
legislator with corruption, removing her from the legislature,
and replacing her with someone from Maduro's Socialist Party.

As we described last month in
"26-Sep-13 World View -- Venezuela's economy approaches full-scale hyperinflation" ,
the country is plagued by
shortages of everything from milk and cooking oil to toothpaste and
toilet paper. Maduro's government has now arrested more than 100
businessmen in a so-called crackdown on corruption and price-gouging.
According to Maduro:

<QUOTE>"They are barbaric, these capitalist parasites! We
have more than 100 of the bourgeoisie behind bars at the
moment."<END QUOTE>

Thanks to massive overspending and vote-buying by Maduro and by his
predecessor, Hugo Chávez, Venezuela's inflation rate is over 45%.
It's thought that Maduro arranged for the new dictatorial powers
because of elections being held in December. AP and Russia Today

****
**** Albania refuses Syria chemical weapons destruction
****

In what is being described as a snub to the United States, Albania has
rejected a request to allow the destruction of Syria's chemical
weapons to take place on Albania's soil. Albania was considered to be
a good choice to host the destruction, since the country destroyed
tons of its own chemical weapons in 2007 and 2012. Albania's prime
minister Edi Rama announced the rejection on Friday, after four days
of massive demonstrations by opposition activists in front of the
prime minister's residency in Tirana. According to reports from
Albania's government, the country had several things to gain by
allowing the destruction on its soil:

• Albania would officially be a candidate for EU membership
  in December, and will become an EU member within four years.
• Albania would receive 12 billion dollars, which is three times as
  much as its entire 2012 budget.
• Albania would have a special status with the U.S., which would
  abolish the visa regime for Albanian citizens.
• Albania would be a candidate to receive the Nobel Prize for
  Peace.

Albania's refusal has halted further work on the United Nations
program to destroy Syria's chemical weapons, when the international
agreement specifies that the 1,000 tonnes of weapons must be
transported outside Syria by February 5, 2014, and destroyed by June
30, 2014. France and Belgium have been named as possible alternate
locations. Albeu (Albania) and BBC

****
**** Executives watching porn are leading targets of hacker attacks
****

A new survey shows that a leading cause of corporate malware, which
can permit a corporation's entire network to be hacked and
compromised, comes from senior managers visiting X-rated porn sites
with their desktop computers or mobile device. Watching porn on work
computers is not rare. Nielsen reported that about 29 percent of
working American adults watched porn on work computers in March 2010.
Time


KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, Hugo Chavez,
Syria, Albania, Edi Rama, France, Belgium

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