The Battle for Kandahar ?

The New York Times: Reports on the use of American Special Forces in the Afghan City of Kandahar, this is the next major battle for NATO Forces in Afghanistan. The problem for the West is that NATO Forces will have to be in Afghanistan for years to show any real difference, the Obama Administration is planning to take forces out in 2011, thus if your Taliban/Al Qaeda all you have to do is wait out Obama, why fight a war you cant win if the other side is just going to leave. It is beyond debate that NATO forces will win direct one on one fights with the Taliban/Al Qaeda but one has to think of Afghanistan on a strategic level, on that level any Western Force in Afghanistan is going to lose in the long term, the political timetable never matches the military timetable, its just a matter of when we leave Afghanistan and the cost in the loss of Armed Forces Personnel.

Bush 43 Memoirs

Telegraph: Reports that memoirs of Bush 43 will come out in November. The book is of historic importance, it will be interesting to see what Bush 43 thought about his long fight to win the Presidency in 2000, his opinion Bill Clinton, the Bush Administration actions after 9/11 and the failure in Iraq after the invasion and the long War in Afghanistan. One advice to Bush 43 learn from Bill Clinton, don't make it War and Peace, keep to the point and keep it interesting, the liberal NYT will hate it from the start, but this is the chance for Bush 43 to set his own historical record.

The Shadow War in Labour - Redux

The Times: Reports on the growing internal battle within the Labour Party for after the May 6th result, the Home Secretary Alan Johnson is making clear that he has not problem with working with the Liberal Democrats and that he supports reforming the voting system. In other words folks PM Brown is toast, if Labour comes third as expected on May 6th expect Brown to be thrown out and Mr Johnson to try and make a deal with LibDems. The old hands within Labour don't want to see the Conservatives and LibDems working together, this could mean that they could be out of power for a generation, thus they will throw Brown under the Bus to keep power, the game is afoot folks.

The Shadow War - UK Election 2010

Telegraph: Reports on the shadow war within the Labour Party, on one side you have the supporters of PM Gordon Brown who want him to stay as PM after a deal with the LibDems after May 6th and others who want to throw him under the next bus to get a deal with the LibDems after May 6th. The UK voter should take notice of this shadow war, this is the kind of war that will happen after every election should the neither the major Parties gain an overall majority in the House of Commons. If the LibDems from a pact with the Labour Party they will demand reform of the electoral system, this would mean that the LibDems would always be in power, they would always decide who would be the King makers, you could never get rid of them, that is a threat to the UK system. Its a kind of permanent one Party rule. Thus UK voter this is a wake up call, this is your alarm call from the future.

2010 US Mid Term Elections

The Ledger.com: Reports that safe Democratic House seats could be at risk from a Republican take over this year. This is down to one issue folks, health care reform and the Obama White House pushing it down the throats of the US voter. It does not matter on the policy, it was bad, but how the Democrats might have shot themselves in the backside with passing ObamaCare. If Republicans take the House will be the fault of two people, President Obama and Speaker Pelosi, they have but Party before Country folks.

Is Brown a Political Dodo ?

The Sunday Times: Reports that Nick Clegg the leader of the Liberal Democrats has stated that he will not support PM Gordon Brown in No 10 after the General Election. It really depends folks on how the Seats fall in the House of Commons, Mr Clegg just might be getting ahead of himself, the voter and the Labour Party wont like the idea that Mr Clegg thinks that he gets to be the King maker before a single vote is cast in the General Election. This blog still holds to its prediction that the Conservative Party will gain a small overall majority of between five and ten seats. The Liberal Democrats have to careful that they don't give the impression that they have allowed the polls to go to their heads. An HOUR is a very long time in politics folks.

Obama and 1915

The one thing about history is that it can come back and bite you on the backside, the issue of the Armenians that were massacred in Turkey in 1915 during World War One is not a new thorny issue for the Oval Office, even Reagan had problems with the issue in the 1980s. As Candidate Obama, President Obama called the deaths in 1915 a genocide, but POTUS has to deal with Turkey as a NATO ally, and a close friend in the region. The extreme liberal New York Times takes POTUS to task for his more diplomatic approach to Turkey, the President does not call these deaths a genocide, the NYT writes the following, " once again declined to do so on Saturday as he marked the anniversary of the start of the killings. " President Obama in a written statement states the following, " On this solemn day of remembrance, we pause to recall that ninety-five years ago one of the worst atrocities of the 20th century began. In that dark moment of history, 1.5 million Armenians were massacred or marched to their death in the final days of the Ottoman Empire. Today is a day to reflect upon and draw lessons from these terrible events. I have consistently stated my own view of what occurred in 1915, and my view of that history has not changed. ( In other words President Obama still keep to his view that the killings came under the term genocide but does not say that in the statement, for once Obama is right to follow the middle path, it seems to have annoyed the Left in the US and Turkey ) It is in all of our interest to see the achievement of a full, frank and just acknowledgment of the facts. The Meds Yeghern is a devastating chapter in the history of the Armenian people, and we must keep its memory alive in honor of those who were murdered and so that we do not repeat the grave mistakes of the past. I salute the Turks who saved Armenians in 1915 and am encouraged by the dialogue among Turks and Armenians, and within Turkey itself, regarding this painful history. Together, the Turkish and Armenian people will be stronger as they acknowledge their common history and recognize their common humanity. Even as we confront the inhumanity of 1915, we also are inspired by the remarkable spirit of the Armenian people. While nothing can bring back those who were killed in the Meds Yeghern, the contributions that Armenians have made around the world over the last ninety-five years stand as a testament to the strength, tenacity and courage of the Armenian people. The indomitable spirit of the Armenian people is a lasting triumph over those who set out to destroy them. Many Armenians came to the United States as survivors of the horrors of 1915. Over the generations Americans of Armenian descent have richened our communities, spurred our economy, and strengthened our democracy. The strong traditions and culture of Armenians also became the foundation of a new republic which has become a part of the community of nations, partnering with the world community to build a better future. Today, we pause with them and with Armenians everywhere to remember the awful events of 1915 with deep admiration for their contributions which transcend this dark past and give us hope for the future. " As they say in Chicago lets hope Obama has a learned a lesson, it easy on the Campaign trail to make statements about history, more easy if you don't have a clue! Obama is lawyer, he does not have a Degree in International Politics and International History. Thus history has come back to bite Obama on the backside, we have the history from 1915, and also the statements that Obama stated in the Campaign of 08. One doubts Obama has gone beyond his own hubris yet, but lets hope he has learned a lesson from history.