The Debate and 2008

Here are some interesting articles:

Time : Obama gets a A grade from Time for his performance in the Debate.

Time : Clinton gets a B+ for the debate. I have stated that the MSM supports Hillary Clinton.

The Daily Standard : Has Clinton winning the Debate. But Standard is Conservative in nature might not get the what Liberals want to hear, cue Obama again won the debate.

New Gallup Poll

A new Gallup Poll has Giuliani ahead of Clinton by three points, this follows a trend of polls by Gallup. Giuliani could be the Trump Card for the Republicans against Hillary Clinton. Also Giluliani is ahead of Obama by four points. If the Republicans choose another candidate then the Democrats win the race. In other words Thompson might not be the new Reagan.

Democratic Debate

After thinking about the debate it can be argued that we are seeing a split between what the Beltway Politicians and what the public see in the Debate. If you watched the CNN and Fox for the reaction, one could see the MSM ( Main Stream Media ) supporting Hillary Clinton while those that actually matter the voters seem to have a found a new leader in Senator Obama. As I have argued before Obama needed to be quick on his feet in the these debates and last night he showed that he could up his game. Obama could be the Democratic Reagan, he needs a few good Debate shows also he needs to get some political punches in as to show that he wants the job and is not seeking the VP spot in 08.

On the debate itself one question was interesting would those on the platform meet with the leaders of North Korea etc. Obama stated he would meet with them with no conditions, he used Reagan as a example of a leader who would meet with those that he opposed. Clinton was smart and stated that she would not be used as some propaganda peace for those leaders, she does not seem to mind when it comes to Bill Clinton during his troubles. The Liberal based liked the reaction of Obama, the beltway reaction of the MSM liked the Clinton response. Clinton while looking at the long game and the general election might be weak in this race if Obama can show he is the real Liberal in the 2008 election.

Senator Obama won the Debate

Democrats Extreme Left

The Extreme Liberals in the Democratic Party are losing the plot, they cant end the War in Iraq, the Agenda is stalled on the Hill so what do they do compromise and talk to the White House, NO AND NO again they want to Impeach Bush or Cheney or both if they could find a way. In the 1980s the Labour Party pre - Blair had a group called the Militant Tendency, other words the complete left, the Party had to throw them out or die on the vine. In the end this cancer in Labour was removed, the Democrats in the USA find themselves in a very similar position. If they don't throw out the extreme left they risk the chance of losing the next Presidential election and worse for them they could lose the House and Senate. I wonder if the Democrats have the nerve to challenge the real left, and tell them to start their own party. If not then Democrats will fade and the once great party of FDR, Truman, JFK will fade from politics. Nothing is forever, the earth is not and so parties can die from within, lets hope there is a politician in the mould of JFK or RFK would will stand up for the real Democratic Party.

Here is a Interesting article on the Democrats and Impeachment.

The Politico: How the left is causing problems for the Beltway Establishment. How the Party needs to say that Impeachment is off and why. Also has to be said by someone that the left will believe. I would suggest Bill Clinton, he has been through the process and is loved by the Party followers or even Hillary Clinton could argue the point.

Rome

One of the best TV shows on at the Moment is Rome on BBC 2, twice weekly. Rome is just great.

9/11 World

In my previous Blog I looked at the methods of Intelligence networks via the West and East. Here we come to the Post 9/11 World.

Al Qaeda is not a country it is a Terrorist cell or groups, thus all action is required to destroy them, No actions are beyond question; torture is out as it is not effective and not very Western; and all instruments of state should be used to destroy those that are a threat to Western Civilisation.

Here are some interesting articles on the CIA and Al Qaeda.

LA Times : The LA Times reports that President George W. Bush has signed Executive Order " that clears the way for the CIA to resume some of the harsh interrogation methods it has used against terrorism " The article points out that what we in the West would describe as torture is out, on this VIEWS supports a banning of torture. There has to be a difference between the West and those Terrorist groups. On the other hand making life very difficult for those in detention is not a problem. Those on the left will never understand they are still in the pre 9/11 world.

Washington Post: A very interesting article that looks at the history of Interrogation by the CIA and how over the years there have been calls for restraints how the Administration has reacted. A good and balance article worth a read.

The Spy

In the modern age of the Spy and for this brief essay we have the Cold War between the West and the USSR, 1945 - 1991, Post Cold War Period 1991 - 9/11 2001, Post 9/11 Period. Over the weekend VIEWS watched the The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, and Smiley's People on DVD. It is interesting how Modern Film Depicts the Shadow World of Intelligence. If you look at the Bourne Identity but switch countries from the USA to Russia it is easy to understand the present strained relationship between the UK and Russia. In the Bourne Identity the CIA goes after a rogue agent after a failed mission, they send other agents to kill him with different methods from guns to knifes. They do not use nuclear material. A real life a ex agent becomes a critic of the Russian government, the allegation is that the Russian Government was not happy and took extreme action, they killed the critic. This is not new in the present Russia.

On the whole in the the Bourne Supremacy is more like a Post Watergate film set during the Cold War. Three Days of the Condor starring Robert Redford is about a researcher who comes across a highly secret operation to invaded the Middle East. The CIA is not happy and try to remove him. The Bourne Supremacy adds a post USSR feel to the movie but this only keeps it current, in essence a rogue CIA agent is the bad actor in the film, the actual CIA has no clue whats going on, more pre - 9/11 period. The problem is we need the CIA out there doing operation we of the great unwashed don't want to know about, we live in the age of mass terrorism. If you have the chance watch the Bourne Identity and see a mirror of our age.

Smiley's People with the one and only Alec Guinness starts with the death of a critic of the USSR, Ex Russian General form Estonia, the removal is via the use of a gun, the plot leads to the downfall of a rogue Russian Security Chief Karla. The Plot of Smiley's people could be changed with a few updates and done again. This time if you believe the reports it is not a Rogue Russian Operation but the arm of the state killing its critics. Thus in many respects the classic work by John Le Carre is a window in to the past and the present.

In the modern age a Intelligence network will follow subjects, listen to their conversations, open their letters, hack their computer email and telephone. Break in to homes and other buildings to take photos or copy computer files that are stored and cant be hacked. Also they will check the bank accounts, medical records, financial records. In operational terms, they will try to compromise people through blackmail such as honey traps, set people up as to make them seem suspect, they try to cause friction within different groups ( MI6 does not kill people ) it gets people to suspect people in their groups and get them to kill them. It should be added that through modern intelligence that satellites can take pictures better than if your standing by a building or a person. Also they can trace Mobiles as UBL found out when the Press in the States published the fact.

Thus VIEWS does not give an opinion about these methods, all the major intelligence networks use them ever day thats their job. But and here is the but, the use of Nuclear Material should never be used, its well very dangerous and can cause major diplomatic problems. In the Cold War it could have been seen as a Act of War. A good film about that is The Fourth Protocol with a future 007. All networks of countries should come to an understanding, above methods in the rule books but nuclear material is a no go area.