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29 Nov 2010 00:19

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U.S., World: Five random facts from Wikileaks’ diplomatic cable leak

  • one China was behind the hack attack that led Google to temporarily withdraw from the country. (Duh.)
  • two Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah wants the U.S. to attack Iran to kill off its nuclear program. (Hmm.)
  • three The Afghan vice-president came a-knockin’ in the UAE with $52 million dollars in his luggage.
  • four The U.S. worries about Silvio Berlusconi’s tight friendship with Vladimir Putin, but not Leo’s.
  • five Obama would only meet with Slovenia if they took a Gitmo detainee from the U.S. Wow. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 Nov 2010 17:21

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World: Wikileaks to reveal how corrupt the U.S. thinks world leaders are

  • leak Wikileaks revealed today that their next leak will be U.S. diplomatic cables on corruption of various foreign leaders. It could come as soon as this weekend.
  • details Among those fingered in the cables will be obvious ones – Afghanistan, Russia – but allies in Europe and East Asia could also be on the list. Have fun, Obama! source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

21 Nov 2010 10:58

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World: Taliban: If you don’t leave Afghanistan, NATO, we’ll force you out

  • Various untoward and tragic events and battles will take place as a result of this meaningless, imposed and unwinnable war. They should not postpone withdrawal of their forces even be it for one day.
  • A message from the Taliban • Suggesting that NATO is going to suffer a world of pain if they hold off leaving the country until 2014 (2015, by some counts). Right now, violence is the worst it’s ever been in the country, leading to record casualties. This is despite the 150,000 international troops there. By the way, let’s emphasize a pretty good point about this mess – this is what the Taliban’s going to say. That’s not to undercut the need for us to stay in the country for another four years – there are good reasons on both sides for us to get out (or stay). But the Taliban is a formidable foe and they’re going to taunt us. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Nov 2010 10:32

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World: NATO’s plan for getting out of Afghanistan pushed back a little

  • good NATO has announced a firm exit date to finally end military operations in Afghanistan.
  • bad That firm exit date isn’t until 2014, well into Michael Bloomberg’s first term. (Kidding!)
  • worse Obama won’t commit to that date. Hmm. Wasn’t this war supposed to end in 2011? source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

19 Nov 2010 12:00

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World: Afghan War apparently needs tanks now, for some reason

  • The Afghan War’s been going on for nine years. Know what it’s been missing all this time? That’s right. Tanks. The Afghan War is finally getting its first tanks. About freaking time, if you ask someone who knows nothing about military policy (or why it’s necessary to take on terrorists with something this big), but just thinks tanks are awesome. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 1 Comment • Permalink

14 Nov 2010 12:01

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World: Hamid Karzai to Americans: Mind calming down this war stuff?

  • The time has come to reduce the presence of, you know, boots in Afghanistan … to reduce the intrusiveness into the daily Afghan life.
  • Afghan President Hamid Karzai • Suggesting that the U.S. needs to scale back its military operations in Afghanistan so as to encourage a less volatile situation in the country. The U.S. doesn’t plan to change course, however: “We understand President Karzai’s concerns,” an anonymous military official (the best kind!) said, “but we would not be as far along as we are pressuring the network had it not been for these very precision operations we do at night.” Karzai claims he made the comments to encourage more candor between the two countries, which have often had a “grudging” relationship in the past. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

11 Nov 2010 21:42

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Politics: Dennis Kucinich: Don’t try to expand Afghan War on MY watch

  • Expanding the timeline constitutes a de facto expansion of the war without Congressional approval.
  • Rep. Dennis Kucinich • On why he’s going to push for a vote on an end date for the Afghan War when Congress gets back in session in January. Obama reportedly plans to de-emphasize the July 2011 exit date and go with a more realistic 2014. This does not sit well with ol’ Denny boy, and he’s going to make sure the president knows it. But will the Republican House just go with the president on this one? (thanks stfuteabaggers)  source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

30 Oct 2010 12:33

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World: Afghan war: Military base clash doesn’t end well for insurgents

  • 80+ number of insurgent forces who died in last night’s fighting in Afghanistan
  • zero number of coalition forces (or civilians) who died in fighting source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

25 Oct 2010 09:53

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World: Great! Afghan government taking money from Iran, won’t stop

  • They have asked for good relations in return, and for lots of other things in return. And we have also asked for lots of things in return in this relationship. This is a relationship between neighbors and it will go on and we will continue to ask for cash help from Iran.
  • Afghan president Hamid Karzai • Admitting his government takes money from the Iranian government (a payment of around $1-2 million every other month, by the way). But here’s the kicker – even though they’ve been called out for it, they don’t plan to stop. The U.S. has been funding your nation for how many years, buddy? This is something you just don’t do if you’re working with the U.S. In other news, Karzai wants his country’s local media to “defame The New York Times just as they have defamed us.” The Times broke the story a couple days ago. Karzai claims they wrote it to defame his chief of staff, Umar Daudzai. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Oct 2010 11:04

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U.S.: Know what isn’t being talked about right now? The Afghan War

  • 3% of people think the Afghan War is the most important issue source
  • » Blindsided by the economy: In the wake of the huge economic problems the country is facing, just 23 percent of people are following the Afghan War closely, versus 43 percent of people following the economy. This despite the fact that nearly 100,000 troops are over there and the U.S. has spent hundreds of billions of dollars there.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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