Egypt's Sisi meets new Saudi King to discuss Middle East crises
Reuters via Yahoo! News1 day agoEgypt's President Abdel Fatteh el Sisi met Saudi Arabia's King Salman in Riyadh on Sunday for the pair's first in-depth talks on regional issues at a time of unprecedented turmoil in the Middle East....
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Egypt's Sisi meets new Saudi King to discuss Middle East crises
March 1, 2015 9:26 AMSaudi Arabia's King Salman is seen during U.S. President Barack Obama's visit to Erga Palace …RIYADH (Reuters) - Egypt's President Abdel Fatteh el Sisi met Saudi Arabia's King Salman in Riyadh on Sunday for the pair's first in-depth talks on regional issues at a time of unprecedented turmoil in the Middle East.
The meeting was aimed at strengthening bilateral ties, as well as discussing the crises in the Middle East and addressing security in the Red Sea in light of growing political chaos in Yemen, pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat on Sunday quoted Sisi as saying.
Salman broke official protocol to meet Sisi at the airport, a pointed mark of favor towards the Egyptian president at a time when some Arab media have asked whether the close ties that existed between the two states under the late King Abdullah would continue.
The visit is the latest in an intense flurry of diplomacy in Riyadh, and follows talks between Salman and leaders of all Saudi Arabia's Gulf Arab neighbors, as well as Jordan. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet him on Monday.The talks have been billed as an opportunity for the new leader of the United States' top Arab ally and the birthplace of Islam to meet his peers for in-depth discussions after cursory initial meetings last month when they paid condolences over Abdullah's death.However, the talks may also be aimed at strengthening Arab and Sunni unity in the face of what Riyadh sees as a dual threat from Iran and Islamic State militants, analysts say.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry will visit Riyadh this week ahead of another round of international talks aimed at finding a nuclear deal with Iran, something that worries Tehran's main regional rival Saudi Arabia.(Story corrects nationality of Asharq al-Awsat newspaper)
(Reporting By Angus McDowall; editing by Clelia Oziel)-
Monday, March 2, 2015
Egypt's Sisi meets new Saudi King to discuss Middle East crises
No Russians have a future with Putin in place
The easiest way to think about this is if Putin were Al Capone the big Mafia Boss of the 20s and 30s. Can you imagine someone like this in charge of a country?
Because for someone like this you are either of him, by him or for him, or you are dead or poor.
There is no other alternative as long as he rules Russia.
Yes. He does control the media so in effect the Free Press does not exist in Russia anymore at all. And with the Assassination of Nemtsov there is no one leader for Russian people who want free speech and democracy and human rights to rally around now. They only have a martyr. It's hard to rally around a martyr for good results (unless it is Martin Luther King, Ghandi or Jesus or others like this).
So, unless you are a member of the Putin mob just like the Stalin mob and the Hitler Mob before him, you have no future in Russia and might already be dead or soon to be like Nemtsov.
Is this a new beginning for Putin or is this the beginning of the end for him? Audacious assassinations like Putin was responsible for here can easily go either way now in Russia.
Because for someone like this you are either of him, by him or for him, or you are dead or poor.
There is no other alternative as long as he rules Russia.
Yes. He does control the media so in effect the Free Press does not exist in Russia anymore at all. And with the Assassination of Nemtsov there is no one leader for Russian people who want free speech and democracy and human rights to rally around now. They only have a martyr. It's hard to rally around a martyr for good results (unless it is Martin Luther King, Ghandi or Jesus or others like this).
So, unless you are a member of the Putin mob just like the Stalin mob and the Hitler Mob before him, you have no future in Russia and might already be dead or soon to be like Nemtsov.
Is this a new beginning for Putin or is this the beginning of the end for him? Audacious assassinations like Putin was responsible for here can easily go either way now in Russia.
Rats can be a problem if you have dogs
If you have dogs and a house with a back yard where they might do their business, it is important to think about where you live. If you live near a forest or other wild or wilder place where you see raccoons, skunks, deer etc. and wild birds of all sorts very likely you also have wood rats or other species of mice and other things that size.
Where I live wood rats live in the forests but if you have dogs (1 dog or more) and you let them do their business in your back yard, just remember if you don't walk around cleaning up from them doing this often enough that rats can live on dog feces almost completely. All they need is enough water to drink. So, during the winter months they might want to come live under your house or in your walls or near your forced air heater ducts or even inside those ducts if they can get away with it. Then they go outside and feed on your dogs business that they have left in the back yard.
This is an important thing to think about if you are a home owner or if you are a renter of a home with a fenced in back yard especially, because a wood rat (at least in California) is perfectly capable of chewing through almost anything wood and even through the blocks of cement tile that are the basis of most pier block building done in California where we don't usually have basements. So, they are perfectly capable of chewing through wood or those pier blocks to get under your house and into your heating ducts, especially if they aren't the all metal expensive kind and are instead the wire hoops with plastic or mylar sheeting instead. They don't want to come inside your house where you live because your dog or cat might eat them or you might kill them and their babies. However, they are perfectly willing to live under your house or in your attic or inside your walls if you let them.
Just remember wood rats and other creatures are survivors too. They have lived thousands to millions of years without us and now sometimes if we aren't very careful they try to move in with us under our homes and into our walls and sometimes into our attics. So, don't let them do this.
Rats are very pernicious and hard to get rid of multigenerationally. So, I have used rat pellet poison if I have had this problem in the past. The problem is I have had 2 dogs since the early 2000s at this house and there are dogs across the back fence and then there are multiple dogs the other side of the south fence as well in our back yard. Even though the dogs and one of mine loves to eat things like rats and gophers they can be hard to catch. Also, if you poison your rats put the pellets where the rats are and where the dogs (or your cats) cannot get to so they don't die too.
The main advantage I know of to using poison rat pellets is rats die usually under the house and this often scares away other rats in the future from moving in there too for 1 to 2 years. Though you could go find the carcass but then it wouldn't scare away more rats because of the dead rat there. So, it is up to you what you decide to do. But, it is important to know when you live in a fairly wild area where deer and bucks and raccoons walk up and down your front driveway and up and down the street every day, you are going to have literally anything wild that lives in the forest. In fact, one of our neighbors woke up to watch a mountain lion walk across her front yard while hunting for food about 7:30am one morning recently and about 10 years ago I came across a mountain lion kill while walking in the nearby forests of a rear leg partially eaten of a deer by a mountain lion as well. So, the wilder it is around where you live the more you need to prepare to deal with critters. In fact, recently a really beautiful skunk I saw walking through our back yard. My daughter's corgi dog wanted at it real bad but I didn't want to have to take my daughter's dog to a vet so she wouldn't go blind or have lung failure before she died either from skunk scent.
I personally think that porcupines and skunks are two of the most dangerous things for dogs in a forest because either can kill a dog in one night if humans aren't around to save the dog. 2nd to this would be raccoons which love to hunt dogs in packs, especially little ones at night. All three of these creatures are out at night so be sure to bring your dogs inside to keep them seeing and alive.
Where I live wood rats live in the forests but if you have dogs (1 dog or more) and you let them do their business in your back yard, just remember if you don't walk around cleaning up from them doing this often enough that rats can live on dog feces almost completely. All they need is enough water to drink. So, during the winter months they might want to come live under your house or in your walls or near your forced air heater ducts or even inside those ducts if they can get away with it. Then they go outside and feed on your dogs business that they have left in the back yard.
This is an important thing to think about if you are a home owner or if you are a renter of a home with a fenced in back yard especially, because a wood rat (at least in California) is perfectly capable of chewing through almost anything wood and even through the blocks of cement tile that are the basis of most pier block building done in California where we don't usually have basements. So, they are perfectly capable of chewing through wood or those pier blocks to get under your house and into your heating ducts, especially if they aren't the all metal expensive kind and are instead the wire hoops with plastic or mylar sheeting instead. They don't want to come inside your house where you live because your dog or cat might eat them or you might kill them and their babies. However, they are perfectly willing to live under your house or in your attic or inside your walls if you let them.
Just remember wood rats and other creatures are survivors too. They have lived thousands to millions of years without us and now sometimes if we aren't very careful they try to move in with us under our homes and into our walls and sometimes into our attics. So, don't let them do this.
Rats are very pernicious and hard to get rid of multigenerationally. So, I have used rat pellet poison if I have had this problem in the past. The problem is I have had 2 dogs since the early 2000s at this house and there are dogs across the back fence and then there are multiple dogs the other side of the south fence as well in our back yard. Even though the dogs and one of mine loves to eat things like rats and gophers they can be hard to catch. Also, if you poison your rats put the pellets where the rats are and where the dogs (or your cats) cannot get to so they don't die too.
The main advantage I know of to using poison rat pellets is rats die usually under the house and this often scares away other rats in the future from moving in there too for 1 to 2 years. Though you could go find the carcass but then it wouldn't scare away more rats because of the dead rat there. So, it is up to you what you decide to do. But, it is important to know when you live in a fairly wild area where deer and bucks and raccoons walk up and down your front driveway and up and down the street every day, you are going to have literally anything wild that lives in the forest. In fact, one of our neighbors woke up to watch a mountain lion walk across her front yard while hunting for food about 7:30am one morning recently and about 10 years ago I came across a mountain lion kill while walking in the nearby forests of a rear leg partially eaten of a deer by a mountain lion as well. So, the wilder it is around where you live the more you need to prepare to deal with critters. In fact, recently a really beautiful skunk I saw walking through our back yard. My daughter's corgi dog wanted at it real bad but I didn't want to have to take my daughter's dog to a vet so she wouldn't go blind or have lung failure before she died either from skunk scent.
I personally think that porcupines and skunks are two of the most dangerous things for dogs in a forest because either can kill a dog in one night if humans aren't around to save the dog. 2nd to this would be raccoons which love to hunt dogs in packs, especially little ones at night. All three of these creatures are out at night so be sure to bring your dogs inside to keep them seeing and alive.
63.4% of U.S. is now covered in Snow
It's almost like a temporary Ice Age at present. I'm looking at a map that was DVRed on Sunday night on NBC Nightly news for Sunday (yesterday). Looking at this snow covered map basically most of Canada is snow covered right now along with most states. Even the top of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia and South Carolina are covered in snow. The Sierras of California are snow covered and most places East of there all the way to the far east coast are partially or completely covered in snow. and northern Arizona across to Albuqueque are snow covered and Albuqueque has more snow at one time than it has ever had at present.
I DON'T REMEMBER EVER SEEING A MAP WITH THIS MUCH SNOW. IT'S LIKE A MINI-ICE AGE TO SEE THIS MAP RIGHT NOW!
THIS MAP IS FROM THE MARCH 1ST NBC NIGHTLY NEWS ON SUNDAY 2015.
Luckily, most of California west of the Sierras is not snow covered at all. Even Mt. Shasta Ski Park never opened in Mt. Shasta for Skiing as far as I know even one day this whole season (October 2014 to June) it looks like now. Although I suppose there could be a fluke here too and we might ski from now or later until August. We will have to see.
5000 flights were cancelled or delayed today including ours from Las Vegas to San Francisco. We landed in San Francisco 4 to 5 hours after we expected to so we rented a room there near the airport rather than drive home tired from there.
I DON'T REMEMBER EVER SEEING A MAP WITH THIS MUCH SNOW. IT'S LIKE A MINI-ICE AGE TO SEE THIS MAP RIGHT NOW!
THIS MAP IS FROM THE MARCH 1ST NBC NIGHTLY NEWS ON SUNDAY 2015.
Luckily, most of California west of the Sierras is not snow covered at all. Even Mt. Shasta Ski Park never opened in Mt. Shasta for Skiing as far as I know even one day this whole season (October 2014 to June) it looks like now. Although I suppose there could be a fluke here too and we might ski from now or later until August. We will have to see.
5000 flights were cancelled or delayed today including ours from Las Vegas to San Francisco. We landed in San Francisco 4 to 5 hours after we expected to so we rented a room there near the airport rather than drive home tired from there.
Syrian rebel group that got US aid dissolves
| Washington Post | - |
BEIRUT - The first Syrian rebel group to be given U.S. weapons collapsed Sunday after losing control of its headquarters to Syria's main al-Qaeda affiliate, further complicating American-led efforts to counter the rise of extremism in Syria. The rout ...
Syrian rebel group that got U.S. aid dissolves
The bodies of eight fighters of Harakat Hazm are buried near Aleppo, Syria. They were killed during clashes with Nusra Front fighters on Feb. 28, 2015. (Abdalghne Karoof/Reuters)
The rout of Harakat Hazm, whose name means Steadfastness Movement, culminated months of clashes with the al-Qaeda-linked Jabhat al-Nusra in which the moderate group first was pushed from its main headquarters in the northern Syrian province of Idlib and then was ousted Sunday from its new base in the province of Aleppo.
After losing this latest battle, Hazm said in a statement circulated on social media that the movement had been dissolved “in an effort to halt the bloodshed” and that surviving members would be absorbed into a new rebel coalition called the Shamiyah Front.
[Read: Al-Qaeda group’s gains in Syria undermine U.S. strategy]
Nusra fighters boasted on Twitter that they had seized control of U.S.-made TOW anti-tank missiles and other American aid provided to Hazm when they overran the rebels’ headquarters in the town of Atarib in the province of Aleppo. The claims could not be verified, and American supplies of weaponry to moderate rebels in northern Syria had in any case been scaled back in recent months since the battles with Nusra began.
The collapse comes as the Pentagon embarks on a new effort to train moderate rebels to fight the Islamic State, a different extremist group that is at odds with Jabhat al-Nusra and has severed ties with al-Qaeda.
Hazm, which once claimed to have 5,000 fighters, had received U.S. weapons under a separate covert program launched last year by the CIA that was intended to bolster moderate rebels and put pressure on President Bashar al-Assad to compromise with the opposition.
Since Islamic State fighters surged into the Iraqi city of Mosul last summer, the Obama administration has refocused its Syria policy in ways that emphasize defeating the Islamic State rather than pressuring Assad to step down.
[Read: Is it a ‘war’? An ‘armed conflict’? Why words matter]
Hazm’s defeat will muddle the wider effort to combat extremism by leaving large swaths of northern Syria that had once been controlled by moderates in the hands of Nusra, which is not the main focus of the U.S. effort but is formally aligned with al-Qaeda and is also designated as a terrorist group by the United States.
Created a little over a year ago, Hazm earned prominence as the first recipients of U.S.-made TOW anti-tank missiles, the most sophisticated weapons to be supplied directly by the United States and its allies to the Syrian battlefield.
But Hazm and other moderate groups that later received the weapons complained that the quantities were insufficient to make a difference in the fight against the government. And after Nusra attacked the U.S.-backed group late last year, the supplies were curtailed, further weakening the moderates.
The new Pentagon program, in contrast, aims to train and equip Syrian rebels to fight only the Islamic State and not the Syrian government. A Pentagon spokesman, Rear Adm. John Kirby, said Friday that the training would begin in the next four to six weeks and that 100 Syrians have been vetted for participation, out of a total intended to exceed more than 5,000 a year.
Syrian rebel commanders say it is unclear whether the program will extend to fighters who have already been vetted and trained by the CIA, such as those in Hazm. It is also unclear whether the fighters who are to be trained under the new program will be charged with fighting Nusra, a fierce rival of the Islamic State that was a target of U.S. airstrikes shortly after they were launched last September but since has been left largely unhindered to expand its control in northwestern Syria.
The Islamic State controls territories in northeastern Syria, where it has suffered a number of battlefield setbacks in recent days inflicted by Kurdish fighters. On Sunday, the Islamic State released 29 of the estimated 90 to 300 Assyrian Christians taken hostage during the battles, Assyrian activists said.
Liz
Sly is the Post’s Beirut bureau chief. She has spent more than 15 years
covering the Middle East, including the Iraq war. Other postings
include Africa, China and Afghanistan.
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Porsche, Mustang or Camaro?
In 1968 since my cousin as a lawyer (who was 5 years older than I) (I was 20) drove an XKE Jaguar, I decided I wanted to own a Porsche. However, even though I was a 20 year old computer Programmer and making more than 3 times the minimum wage then as a 20 year old when I tried out Porsches that I could afford they were mostly going to be old and a lot of work (This was 1968). So, my father said (who was with me looking at Porsches, "You know, son, these Porsches you are looking at are really pieces of crap and close to falling apart and needing a lot of work. Why don't you buy a Mustang or Camaro. So, my first thought was to get a Mustang Fastback Hard top because of the way they looked and they had been made since 1964 with a 289 engine that was pretty good. But, when I got into one I found I was too tall so it wasn't comfortable trying to drive with my head against the ceiling pushed down. So, the next car I tried to sit in at almost 6 foot 5 inches tall was a Camaro. It was a 6 cylinder Gold 1967 Camaro. However, I wanted a V8. I didn't want a 6 cylinder. My Dad wanted me to get a 6 cylinder because many of my friends like to race on the streets and he didn't want me to do that too.
However, I had seen people drop their parents transmissions by trying to do things you can't do with a stock car in a race. I knew you had to build up whatever you had with at the very least a specially built transmission if you were going to street race at all and you needed racing slicks for better traction too that were wide especially if you planned to win any races. Then you needed a Hurst Shifter for power shifting. Without at the very least these three things you were going to completely destroy your cars drive train and then you might as well just junk it.
So, I finally settled on a 327 Camaro that was metallic blue. I put special wheels on it with very wide tires but I really was more into driving fast and cornering on mountain roads fast than anything else. I wasn't really interested in putting enough money into my new Camaro for street racing. I was able to buy my new 1968 Camaro for $3500 and I could still afford the monthly payments myself and insurance as long as I didn't move out of my parents house then. So, at 20 I looked pretty sharp in my new 1968 Camaro. Pretty soon I had had it up to 100 mph to see what it could do. It likely was the fastest car I ever owned from 20 to 70 mph. In other words if I floored it at 20 I was instantly at 70 within a second or two which would paste me back into my seat pretty strong along with anyone else in the car with me. I used to like to do this to impress my girlfriends at the time.
I was still living in Glendale then. I kept my Camaro in the family for about 10 years. Even then it was hard to part with but I knew I had to move on. At that time I was a single father and I needed something more practical so I bought a truck, a Toyota Long Bed that I put a 6 Pac cabover camper on that had sidejacks.
I once had my Camaro up to over 140 miles per hour. It was even happy at that speed. Amazing Car!
However, I remember once driving up towards Chilao and Mt. Waterman(Angeles National Forest) where it snows and there is/was? a ski lift there and I wasn't paying attention to the rain as it slowly changed over into snow because I lived in Southern California then. All of a sudden I was spinning on a two lane highway with thousands of feet drop offs on one side. Only because I was a really good driver with really fast reflexes then did I survive at all. Somehow because no one else was on the road after a couple of 360s and barely missing going over the edge I stopped with the car skidding backwards. I was so shaken up I just turned right around and went down. Luckily, I was by myself driving that day because if I had had a girlfriend screaming I wouldn't have survived that without my full concentration then.
So, the point of this is a fast car with wide tires might be great on a dry road but when it gets wet or snowy watch out.
This is what convinced me ever since to get Michelin Rain/ All Weather tires on most vehicles (all vehicles now that I own) when I could afford paying for a better and more expensive tire on all my vehicles. I even have a set on my truck that work great for 4 wheeling. In some conditions you might want a real wild looking off road tire. But, I find an all weather tire can go almost anywhere 90% to 95% of the time. You just have to choose where you are going to off road more with an all weather tire. For example, you don't want to be driving through some muds and really slushy snows where your tires spin a lot unless you are going to chain up for more 4 wheel drive traction.
However, I had seen people drop their parents transmissions by trying to do things you can't do with a stock car in a race. I knew you had to build up whatever you had with at the very least a specially built transmission if you were going to street race at all and you needed racing slicks for better traction too that were wide especially if you planned to win any races. Then you needed a Hurst Shifter for power shifting. Without at the very least these three things you were going to completely destroy your cars drive train and then you might as well just junk it.
So, I finally settled on a 327 Camaro that was metallic blue. I put special wheels on it with very wide tires but I really was more into driving fast and cornering on mountain roads fast than anything else. I wasn't really interested in putting enough money into my new Camaro for street racing. I was able to buy my new 1968 Camaro for $3500 and I could still afford the monthly payments myself and insurance as long as I didn't move out of my parents house then. So, at 20 I looked pretty sharp in my new 1968 Camaro. Pretty soon I had had it up to 100 mph to see what it could do. It likely was the fastest car I ever owned from 20 to 70 mph. In other words if I floored it at 20 I was instantly at 70 within a second or two which would paste me back into my seat pretty strong along with anyone else in the car with me. I used to like to do this to impress my girlfriends at the time.
I was still living in Glendale then. I kept my Camaro in the family for about 10 years. Even then it was hard to part with but I knew I had to move on. At that time I was a single father and I needed something more practical so I bought a truck, a Toyota Long Bed that I put a 6 Pac cabover camper on that had sidejacks.
I once had my Camaro up to over 140 miles per hour. It was even happy at that speed. Amazing Car!
However, I remember once driving up towards Chilao and Mt. Waterman(Angeles National Forest) where it snows and there is/was? a ski lift there and I wasn't paying attention to the rain as it slowly changed over into snow because I lived in Southern California then. All of a sudden I was spinning on a two lane highway with thousands of feet drop offs on one side. Only because I was a really good driver with really fast reflexes then did I survive at all. Somehow because no one else was on the road after a couple of 360s and barely missing going over the edge I stopped with the car skidding backwards. I was so shaken up I just turned right around and went down. Luckily, I was by myself driving that day because if I had had a girlfriend screaming I wouldn't have survived that without my full concentration then.
So, the point of this is a fast car with wide tires might be great on a dry road but when it gets wet or snowy watch out.
This is what convinced me ever since to get Michelin Rain/ All Weather tires on most vehicles (all vehicles now that I own) when I could afford paying for a better and more expensive tire on all my vehicles. I even have a set on my truck that work great for 4 wheeling. In some conditions you might want a real wild looking off road tire. But, I find an all weather tire can go almost anywhere 90% to 95% of the time. You just have to choose where you are going to off road more with an all weather tire. For example, you don't want to be driving through some muds and really slushy snows where your tires spin a lot unless you are going to chain up for more 4 wheel drive traction.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
3 hour delay for plane to take off from Vegas
We arrived in plenty of time for our flight. However, we had to then wait an extra 3 hours for our plane back to San Francisco. It appears the snowstorm was so bad it delayed flights from Denver 3 hours which was where our plane came from. And we heard about another flight that was delayed out of San Francisco by fog that was going to be 3 hours late going east to Cincinnati as well. So, finally about 9 pm we arrived at the SF airport a little worse for the wear but stayed nearby the airport for the night because of all the changes to our schedule. Luckily, we are mostly retired and could afford to do this both time and money wise. Other people were having a terrible time trying to make connections to other flights in the western states and beyond. So, though it was more than we bargained for at least we actually took off within 3 hours of when we were supposed to. I had been thinking of renting a car and driving to Los Angeles somewhere where I had relatives or friends to stay with as a backup or renting another night at a hotel in Vegas (since Sunday is an easier night to get accommodations in Las Vegas than Friday or Saturday night are. But, luckily for us this wasn't needed.
As we took off up into the storm I noticed through the lights of the plane that as we ascended we were flying through snow for a long time until we got above the clouds. So, I felt a little more at ease when we got above all the snow at higher altitudes. By the time we got to Sacramento in the distance the clouds weren't as bad so we could see clearly Sacramento, Stockton, and the whole Bay area north of San Jose as we began to land: Beautiful!
As we took off up into the storm I noticed through the lights of the plane that as we ascended we were flying through snow for a long time until we got above the clouds. So, I felt a little more at ease when we got above all the snow at higher altitudes. By the time we got to Sacramento in the distance the clouds weren't as bad so we could see clearly Sacramento, Stockton, and the whole Bay area north of San Jose as we began to land: Beautiful!
Why are young women from europe becoming Jihadi Brides?
I don't really know the full answer to this. However, unless the world figures it out better than they have so far, this problem is much worse than it looks to be on the surface. Because a bunch of lunatics with criminal records of violent Crime joining ISIS is one thing. But, " A" student Sunni Muslim girls 15 to 17 joining?
The world needs to better understand these dynamics here or this whole thing will get much worse before it gets better.
Making ISIS a caricature or cartoon isn't good enough anymore. They aren't just a cartoon but appear to have some sort of infrastructure present like Hitler did. It may be a really crazy infrastructure like Hitler. But look what someone like Genghis Khan did all across Asia by only giving part of the spoils to his soldiers instead of taking them all for himself.
The world needs to better understand these dynamics here or this whole thing will get much worse before it gets better.
Making ISIS a caricature or cartoon isn't good enough anymore. They aren't just a cartoon but appear to have some sort of infrastructure present like Hitler did. It may be a really crazy infrastructure like Hitler. But look what someone like Genghis Khan did all across Asia by only giving part of the spoils to his soldiers instead of taking them all for himself.
Egypt, Italy, Russia Planning Military Action in Libya
World View: Reports Indicate Egypt, Italy, Russia Planning Military Action in Libya
This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com
Russian warships in the Mediterranean (Russia Today)
Various unconfirmed reports are emerging indicating that there may be
joint international action planned in Libya as early as next week.
Egypt is already conducting air strikes against ISIS-linked targets in Derna, close to where Egyptian Coptics were massacred recently, as displayed in a gruesome video. Debka reports that Egypt’s president Abdel al-Fattah al-Sisi is planning further action in Libya, including more air strikes and possible ground troops, within a few days. According to the report, Egyptian commando and marine forces are preparing for sea landings to seize Derna and destroy the terrorist elements there. If this attack is actually launched, it will be the first time in modern times that an Arab country has sent ground forces into another Arab country.
Al-Jazeera television reports that the Italian navy is getting ready to carry off sophisticated military drills off the coast of Libya as early as Monday. Although Italy claims that it will be a regular exercise, there are many more vessels taking part in this year’s exercise than have in the past, which Italy explains by saying that they are testing out sophisticated new technologies.
There are several reasons why Italy is pursuing this show of force:
These are all unconfirmed reports of possible military action in Libya by Egypt, Italy and Russia. There are no reports of possible participation by Nato or the United States. Debka and Cairo Post
According to a decision on Saturday from the Cairo Court for Urgent Matters:
A Hamas spokesman denied all the charges and said that the ruling was “dangerous”:
It is not known whether Erdogan will ever be in the same room as al-Sisi. The two have been bitter enemies ever since a coup by al-Sisi ousted Egypt’s elected president Mohamed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood government in 2013, and later declared MB to be a terrorist organization. Erdogan’s own political party, the AKP, is an Islamist party like the Muslim Brotherhood, and they had good relations while Morsi was in power.
There has been some speculation that King Salman is going to completely reverse King Abdullah’s policy on the Muslim Brotherhood. Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAE) had branded MB as a terrorist organization, but some are wondering if Salman is going to shift from that policy. The Saudi foreign minister recently said that his government has “no problem with the Muslim Brotherhood; our problem is with a small group affiliated to the organization,” suggesting that shift is in the works.
Other problems make an Egypt-Turkey rapprochement unlikely: Erdogan vitriolicly hates Israel and supports Hamas. Al-Sisi vitriolicly hates Hamas and works closely with Israel on military matters, especially in North Sinai. It does n0t seem likely that any meeting, if one even occurs, will be pleasant.
If King Salman is able to pull off a miracle and mediate a new relationship between Egypt and Turkey, then it would appear to be the establishment of a new “Sunni front” in the Mideast, to oppose Iran, Hezbollah and the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria. Al Arabiya and Kurdistan and Arab Times
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Egypt, Abdel al-Fattah al-Sisi, Libya, GreenStream pipeline, Italy, Mare Nostrum, Triton, Northern League, Russia, Hamas, Gaza, Al-Qassam Brigades, Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Abdullah II, Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, United Arab Emirates, UAE, Sunni Front, Iran, Hezbollah, Syria, Bashar al-Assad
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- Reports indicate Egypt, Italy, Russia planning military action in Libya
- Egypt court declares Hamas to be a terrorist organization
- Egypt and Turkey may try to create a ‘Sunni front’ with Saudi Arabia
Reports indicate Egypt, Italy, Russia planning military action in Libya
Russian warships in the Mediterranean (Russia Today)
Egypt is already conducting air strikes against ISIS-linked targets in Derna, close to where Egyptian Coptics were massacred recently, as displayed in a gruesome video. Debka reports that Egypt’s president Abdel al-Fattah al-Sisi is planning further action in Libya, including more air strikes and possible ground troops, within a few days. According to the report, Egyptian commando and marine forces are preparing for sea landings to seize Derna and destroy the terrorist elements there. If this attack is actually launched, it will be the first time in modern times that an Arab country has sent ground forces into another Arab country.
Al-Jazeera television reports that the Italian navy is getting ready to carry off sophisticated military drills off the coast of Libya as early as Monday. Although Italy claims that it will be a regular exercise, there are many more vessels taking part in this year’s exercise than have in the past, which Italy explains by saying that they are testing out sophisticated new technologies.
There are several reasons why Italy is pursuing this show of force:
- Italy considers the flood of migrants from Libya into Italy to be an existential threat to Italy itself, because there may be ISIS-trained terrorists smuggled in, along with the other migrants. Italy may be planning some kind of military action in Libya in conjunction with Egypt’s air strikes and other operations.
- The GreenStream pipeline is a gas pipeline running underneath the Mediterranan Sea from Libya to Sicily. The pipeline is vital to economic relations between Italy and Libya. In recent months, there have been attacks by gunmen on oil installations in Libya, forcing some ports to shut down. The new show of naval force may be related to threats of attack or sabotage on the pipeline.
- For over a year, Italy ran a search and rescue program called “Mare Nostrum” (“Our Sea”) that saved the lives of thousands of migrants attempting to travel from Libya to Italy. This program required Italian naval vessels near the Libyan coast. In November, the program ended and an EU program called Triton replaced it, but Triton restricts its operations to only 30 miles off the Italian coast. Triton has been considered unsatisfactory because many more migrants are drowning. Italy’s new show of naval force may be an attempt to restore a portion of the Mare Nostrum program.
- Related to the last point, on Saturday there were large demonstrations in Rome by Italy’s anti-immigrant Northern League party for the government to do more to keep immigrants out. The naval show of force may help to mollify the protestors.
These are all unconfirmed reports of possible military action in Libya by Egypt, Italy and Russia. There are no reports of possible participation by Nato or the United States. Debka and Cairo Post
Egypt court declares Hamas to be a terrorist organization
Egypt on Saturday became the first Arab country to name Hamas as a terrorist organization. The U.S. and the European Union have named Hamas as a terror group. An EU court took Hamas off the list in December 2014, ruling that the designation was not based on solid legal evidence, but the EU is appealing the court’s decision.According to a decision on Saturday from the Cairo Court for Urgent Matters:
It has been proven without any doubt that the movement has committed acts of sabotage, assassinations and the killing of innocent civilians and members of the armed forces and police in Egypt.About a month ago, the same court declared Hamas’s military wing, Al-Qassam Brigades, to be a terrorist organization. Saturday’s ruling makes the political wing a terrorist organization as well.
It has been also ascertained with documents that [Hamas] has carried out bombings that have taken lives and destroyed institutions and targeted civilians and the armed forces personnel. It has also been ascertained that this movement works for the interests of the terrorist Brotherhood organization [which Egypt has already declared to be a terrorist organization].
A Hamas spokesman denied all the charges and said that the ruling was “dangerous”:
History has recorded Egypt’s support to national liberty movements in the Arab world and Africa, particularly in Palestine. … This ruling serves the Israeli occupation. It’s a politicized decision that constitutes the beginning of Egypt evading its role toward the Palestinian cause. This is a coup against history and an Egyptian abuse of the Palestinian cause and resistance, which fights on behalf of the Arab nation. We call on Egypt to reconsider this dangerous decision.Al Jazeera and Al Ahram (Cairo) and CS Monitor and Al Resalah (Palestine)
Egypt and Turkey may try to create a ‘Sunni front’ with Saudi Arabia
By coincidence or by planning, the presidents of both Egypt and Turkey will be in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this week. Egypt’s Abdel al-Fattah al-Sisi and Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan will both be visiting King Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, the new king of Saudi Arabia, who has replaced King Abdullah, who died last month.It is not known whether Erdogan will ever be in the same room as al-Sisi. The two have been bitter enemies ever since a coup by al-Sisi ousted Egypt’s elected president Mohamed Morsi and his Muslim Brotherhood government in 2013, and later declared MB to be a terrorist organization. Erdogan’s own political party, the AKP, is an Islamist party like the Muslim Brotherhood, and they had good relations while Morsi was in power.
There has been some speculation that King Salman is going to completely reverse King Abdullah’s policy on the Muslim Brotherhood. Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates (UAE) had branded MB as a terrorist organization, but some are wondering if Salman is going to shift from that policy. The Saudi foreign minister recently said that his government has “no problem with the Muslim Brotherhood; our problem is with a small group affiliated to the organization,” suggesting that shift is in the works.
Other problems make an Egypt-Turkey rapprochement unlikely: Erdogan vitriolicly hates Israel and supports Hamas. Al-Sisi vitriolicly hates Hamas and works closely with Israel on military matters, especially in North Sinai. It does n0t seem likely that any meeting, if one even occurs, will be pleasant.
If King Salman is able to pull off a miracle and mediate a new relationship between Egypt and Turkey, then it would appear to be the establishment of a new “Sunni front” in the Mideast, to oppose Iran, Hezbollah and the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria. Al Arabiya and Kurdistan and Arab Times
KEYS: Generational Dynamics, Egypt, Abdel al-Fattah al-Sisi, Libya, GreenStream pipeline, Italy, Mare Nostrum, Triton, Northern League, Russia, Hamas, Gaza, Al-Qassam Brigades, Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Abdullah II, Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, United Arab Emirates, UAE, Sunni Front, Iran, Hezbollah, Syria, Bashar al-Assad
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National Security, Syria, Russia, Iran, Turkey, Italy, Generational Dynamics, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Libya, Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, Hezbollah, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Bashar al-Assad, Gaza, Abdel al-Fattah al-Sisi, uae, United Arab Emirates, Al Qassam Brigades, Mare Nostrum, Triton, GreenStream pipeline, Northern League, Abdullah II, Salman bin Abdulaziz al Saud, Sunni FrontSyria: 19 Christians Have Been Released by the Islamic State, Local Leaders Say
| New York Times | - |
Nineteen of the Assyrian Christians seized by Islamic State militants last week in northeastern Syria have been freed, and they met with church officials in a cathedral in the city of Hasaka, local leaders said Sunday.
In Moscow, a protest march becomes a wake
| Kyiv Post | - |
The Christian Science Monitor: In Moscow, a protest march becomes a wake for slain opposition politician. Print version. March 1, 2015, 8:08 p.m.
Obama and Netanyahu: A clash of world views, not just personalities
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Obama and Netanyahu: A clash of world views, not just personalities
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Breaking
News. Please select your default edition: International U.S.. Mexico.
U.S. Edition. U.S.; International; Arabic; Español; Mexico; Set edition
preference.
Boris Nemtsov's
23 year old Ukrainian girlfriend who witnessed her boyfriend's murder first hand and is being illegally held right now against her will has an "accident" while in custody either. (They have to cover up the truth she witnessed). Or they need to silence her by threatening her friends and/or relatives lives (normal procedure for Putin's government) or by torturing her (one or all of the above).
Israeli Generals angry at Netanyahu: Think he is furthering career not helping Israel
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- www.thedailybeast.com/...israeli...angry
-at-netanyahu.html Cached
Mar 01, 2015 · Even Israeli Hawks Are Angry At Netanyahu. ... When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivers ... made up of 180 retired generals and ...The basic logic is this from the Generals: "Netanyahu is furthering his career and better insuring his election as a Likud Party member in Israel.However, this is counterproductive to the actual needs regarding the survival of Israel. Because his actions are driving the U.S. (with the Obama Adminstration) of signing the peace agreement with Iran. (whether this is really useful to the U.S. or not).My point of view is that BECAUSE Russia is aligned with Iran our relationship now with Iran in some ways is similar to our relationship with Soviet aligned states before the Iron curtain fell and the Cold War ended.So, seeing the U.S. relationship with Iran as being a relationship (sort of) with a nuclear power like Russia (Cold War Style) it is in the U.S. interests of not having another nuclear war with Iran because of it's alliance with Russia(most nuclear weapons except for the U.S. that could nuke all life on earth dead at least 12 times over.So, because of this our relationship with Iran is also our relationship with Russia as long as this relationship exists between Iran and Russia.The basis of this relationship between Iran and Russia is a complete hatred of all Sunni Muslims.This is why most or all Sunni Muslim states like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and others are aligned with the United States and Israel and Europe through the European Union and NATO.
The complexity of all these relationships borders on the ridiculous on a variety of fronts because many things Russia wants Iran doesn't want. And Also many things Sunni nations want Europe and the U.S. and Israel don't want.
WHO says 1.1 billion young people at risk of hearing loss
| The Guardian Nigeria | - |
THE
World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that some 1.1 billion
teenagers and young adults are at risk of hearing loss due to the unsafe
use of personal audio devices, including smartphones, and exposure to
damaging levels of sound at noisy ...
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WHO says 1.1 billion young people at risk of hearing loss
- Written by Chukwuma Muanya
• Urges mass vaccination against measles
• Scientists plan first human head transplant
THE World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that some 1.1 billion teenagers and young adults are at risk of hearing loss due to the unsafe use of personal audio devices, including smartphones, and exposure to damaging levels of sound at noisy entertainment venues such as nightclubs, bars and sporting events.
Until now, hearing loss has been shown to have potentially devastating consequences for physical and mental health, education and employment.
According to a statement published Sunday by WHO, data from studies in middle- and high-income countries analysed by the apex UN body indicate that among teenagers and young adults aged 12 to 35 years, nearly 50 per cent are exposed to unsafe levels of sound from the use of personal audio devices and around 40 per cent are exposed to potentially damaging levels of sound at entertainment venues. Unsafe levels of sounds can be, for example, exposure to excess of 85 decibles (dB) for eight hours or 100dB for 15 minutes.
Also, the WHO Regional Office for Europe calls on policy-makers, health care workers and parents to immediately step up vaccination against measles across age groups at risk. This will help to put an end to the outbreaks occurring in countries in the WHO European Region and to prevent similar outbreaks in the future.
WHO, in a statement yesterday, said seven countries in the region have reported 22 567 cases of measles in 2014 and thus far in 2015. “This threatens the Region’s goal of eliminating the disease by the end of 2015. Even though measles cases fell by 50 per cent from 2013 to 2014, large outbreaks continue,” it reads.
Also, WHO has warned that the world remains highly vulnerable to a possible severe flu pandemic and governments should increase surveillance, vigilance and preparedness.
According to the WHO, the current global influenza situation is characterized by a number of trends that must be closely monitored. These include: an increase in the variety of animal influenza viruses co-circulating and exchanging genetic material, giving rise to novel strains; continuing cases of human H7N9 infections in China; and a recent spurt of human H5N1 cases in Egypt. Changes in the H3N2 seasonal influenza viruses, which have affected the protection conferred by the current vaccine, are also of particular concern.
The United Nations (UN) health agency warned: “Nothing about influenza is predictable - including where the next pandemic might emerge and which virus might be responsible.”
It said the world was fortunate that the last flu pandemic, caused by H1N1 swine flu in 2009/2010, was relatively mild, but added: “Such good fortune is no precedent.”
In a seven-page report on flu, WHO said that on many levels, the world is better prepared now than ever before for a flu pandemic. The level of alert is high, it said, and there is better surveillance of flu viruses in both animals and humans.
Meanwhile, an Italian surgeon will at the American Academy of Neurological and Orthopedic Surgeons’ 39th Annual Conference in Annapolis, MD, in June, announce updated plans to conduct the first ever human head transplant, claiming the procedure could happen within the next two years.
Dr. Sergio Canavero, of the Turin Advanced Neuromodulation Group (TANG) in Italy, believes the revolutionary procedure - named HEAVEN-GEMINI - could save the lives of people with metastatic cancer or muscle-wasting disorders, such as muscular dystrophy.
Medical News Today first reported on Canavero’s proposal in July 2013. Back then, he noted some challenges for human head transplantation, reconnecting the severed spinal cord, and preventing the immune system from rejecting the head.
In an editorial recently published in the journal Surgical Neurology International, Canavero says he believes these challenges can now be overcome, noting that recent animal studies have confirmed human head transplantation is “feasible.”
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Egypt's Sisi meets new Saudi King to discuss Middle East crises