During his presidential campaign, President Trump promised to bomb the Islamic State of Syria and the Levant (ISIL) brigands in the Middle East back to the Middle Ages. He now seems to have given America’s generals carte blanche to do that. The only problem is that the ISIL fanatics involved
Continue readingTag: isil
Alberta Politics: Questions without answers: Why are our U.S. allies so ambivalent about ISIS, and what does it mean for Canada?
PHOTOS: U.S. State Department spokesperson Mark Toner. (Screen grab from C-SPAN.) Below: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Conservative interim Opposition Leader Rona Ambrose and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. For all we know, Syrian President Bashar a…
Continue readingA. Picazo: #RefugeesWelcome
This op-ed appeared in The Ottawa Citizen on November 27, 2015. “This is not a federal project, this is not even a government project, it’s a national project for all Canadians,” declared John McCallum, minister of immigration, refugees a…
Continue readingAkaash Maharaj - Practical Idealism: National Post: NATO and the Judgement of Paris
The lessons of Afghanistan were purchased at a bitter cost: the war claimed more lives, more years, and more money than any other campaign in NATO’s history. Unless the alliance takes those lessons to heart, a war in Syria and Iraq to extinguish D…
Continue readingWritings of J. Todd Ring: ISIS and Terrorism – A Reality Check
“The responsibility of intellectuals is to speak the truth and expose lies.” – Noam Chomsky “In times of universal deceit, telling the truth is a revolutionary act.” – George Orwell According to a February 2015 Gallup poll, Americans consider the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant — abbreviated as
Continue readingAlberta Politics: Jason Kenney sails close to the wind on Anti-Terrorism Act at picnic visit
PHOTOS: Liberal candidate Adam Vaughan’s photo of the Kurdish Peace and Cultural Festival in Toronto Saturday, with an image of PKK founder Abdullah Ocalan visible in the background. (Grabbed from Twitter.) Below: Defence Minister Jason Kenney, who bragged about being at the event, and Mr. Vaughan. Jason Kenney, who notwithstanding
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: Why is ISIL so Darned Effective?
One retired general’s opinion on why ISIS such a force in the world. A quick yet still interesting interview tagging social media and the media cycle as contributors to the success of ISIL. Filed under: International Affairs Tagged: ISIL, social media
Continue readingBabel-on-the-Bay: Harper endangers Canadians at home.
There was some interesting story positioning in the Toronto Star on Monday. The top story on page two was that the federal government will block any attempt to procure bail for prisoner Omar Khadr. The top story on page three was a full width picture of the prime minister being
Continue readingDead Wild Roses: The DWR Sunday Disservice – Burnt in a Cage – Why We Need the UN.
The BBC gives a little more background – ” Islamic State has become synonymous with viciousness – beheadings, crucifixions, stonings, massacres, burying victims alive and religious and ethnic cleansing. While such savagery might seem senseless to the vast majority of civilised human beings, for IS it is a rational choice.
Continue readingAlberta Diary: Ten Questions about the Harper Government’s embrace of war with ISIS-ISIL-IS
Ready, Aye, Ready! Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird whips up the War Party in the House of Commons. Below: Stephen Harper, the prime minister, and Edmonton Centre MP Laurie Hawn. Stephen Harper, John Baird, Laurie Hawn and the rest of the boys yesterday finally got the war in Iraq they’ve
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Reasons why "The Khorasan Group" was fabricated by the US government
When the US-led bombing campaign in Syria got underway media outlets announced the emergence of a new jihadist threat that posed an even greater threat to the US than ISIL. It wasn’t just a threat to the region, but a direct and imminent threat to the United States. “The Khorasan
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Elizabeth May Responds To Harper’s Iraq War Motion
Green Party Leader Elizabeth May agrees with Harper that “Canada cannot stand on the sidelines,” but warns that “bombings have never ended an Islamic or any religious extremist terrorist threat.” The post Elizabeth May Responds To Harper’s Iraq War Motion appeared first on The Canadian Progressive.
Continue readingThe Canadian Progressive: Harper Speech Announces Canada’s Air Strikes Against ISIS
Here’s an unedited text of Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s speech in the House of Commons on Friday, announcing Canada’s air strikes against ISIS in Iraq. The post Harper Speech Announces Canada’s Air Strikes Against ISIS appeared first on The Canadian Progressive.
Continue readingCanadian Political Viewpoints: War Is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength.
I am a great admirer of George Orwell, the man whose quote has provided the title of this post. The first and last part of it are, sadly, greatly applicable to the situation we now find ourselves facing. Since the 1950s, the Western World has found itself clenched in the
Continue readingCanadian Political Viewpoints: War Is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength.
I am a great admirer of George Orwell, the man whose quote has provided the title of this post. The first and last part of it are, sadly, greatly applicable to the situation we now find ourselves facing.Since the 1950s, the Western World has found itse…
Continue readingCanadian Political Viewpoints: War Is Peace. Freedom is Slavery. Ignorance is Strength.
I am a great admirer of George Orwell, the man whose quote has provided the title of this post. The first and last part of it are, sadly, greatly applicable to the situation we now find ourselves facing. Since the 1950s, the Western World has found itself clenched in the
Continue readingdrive-by planet: Washington’s war to ‘destroy’ ISIL: what is ISIL and who is the real security threat?
In recent weeks Western media has been sounding the alarm over the speedy territorial gains made by the Islamic State – also known as ISIL and ISIS – with warnings of the threat it poses to the West. In some of the more alarmist commentary you would think ISIL had
Continue readingPolitics and its Discontents: The Murky Lessons Of History
Blindingly clear for some, obscure and ambiguous for others, the lessons of history need to be given close scrutiny these days, especially by our chickenhawk prime minister. Like so much else that his regime brays and sputters about, Stephen Harper’s recent tough talk about the Ukraine and the Middle East
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