And the beat goes on …
Month: June 2010
BP’s Damage Control, Ctd
First newspapers, then Google searches, now social networking sites.
… BP seems uninterested in the social aspect of social media. On Facebook, the company only accepts comments from people who “like” BP, while comments are disabled completely on the company’s YouTube channel
("BP fail whale" illustration by Oskar Krawczyk)
McChrystal Must Go? Ctd
Andrew Exum runs through the pros and cons:
In the end, your opinion on whether or not Gen. McChrystal should be dismissed might come down to whether or not you think the current strategy is the correct one for the war in Afghanistan. My own prediction is that Gen. McChrystal will be retained. As much as critics of counterinsurgency like to blame Gen. McChrystal (and nefarious think-tankers, of course) for the current strategy, the reality is that the civilian decision-makers in the Obama Administration conducted two high-level reviews in 2009 and twice arrived at a national strategy focused on conducting counterinsurgency operations in Afghanistan. I suspect the president will not replace the man he has put in charge of executing that strategy with just 12 months to go before we begin a withdrawal.
Goldblog sides with Joe Klein:
I remember once in Iraq being made to feel profoundly uncomfortable by an Army colonel who was openly scornful of President Bush's tactical leadership of the war effort (this was well-before the surge). I didn't disagree with his analysis one bit, but I thought it was deeply inappropriate, and even nervous-making, to hear a senior military leader disparaging his commander. Civilian control of the military is a paramount American virtue, and anyone who undermines this core principle is unfit to serve. There's no way around this fundamental fact, unfortunately.
Tom Ricks bets McChrystal will be gone in a week or two:
My nomination is for Petraeus to step down an echelon and take the Afghanistan command. You could leave him nominally the Centcom chief but let his deputy, Marine Lt. Gen. John Allen, oversee Iraq, the war planning for Iran, and dealing with Pakistan and the Horn of Africa. But more likely is that Petraeus will ask for another Marine general, James Mattis, who is just finishing up at Jiffycom, and who had planned to retire later this year and head home to Walla Walla, Washington. Petraeus and Mattis long have admired each other. The irony is that Mattis has a reputation — unfairly, I think — for speaking a little too bluntly in public about things like killing people. I think Mattis is a terrific, thoughtful leader.
My gut tells me Ricks is right.
A Solstice Tradition
Last night witnessed another midnight baseball game in Alaska. No artificial light required. And here is a picture of the first, 102 years ago (the first post title said "equinox"; fixed now):
Worst Case Scenarios, Ctd
A methane-triggered tsunami? Yes, on my meds, I've had a few of those.
The VFYW Contest: Winner #3
A reader writes:
So those pretty unique mountain formations immediately make one think of Southern China or Vietnam. But seeing as I’m getting to this particular contest 24 hours late and many guesses that fall within China and Vietnam have probably already been submitted, I think my best bet of winning this book is to cross my fingers and hope this was taken somewhere else in the region. It’s clearly an urban space, blue bus public transportation and all. I’m going to take a wild stab in the dark and say Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
Another writes:
I believe this one is from Rio de Janeiro. Or, perhaps to be more precise, Niteroi, Brazil (which lies across the bay from Rio). I believe I can see the famous statue of Christ the Redeemer in one of the mountains.
Another:
I first saw AC units like that in China, so I’m thinking it’s there, and likely in the southern part of the country. A bit of a stab in the dark, but Suzhou? (Looking forward to laughing in a couple of days when I find out I guessed the wrong continent.)
Right continent. Another:
The hills in the background of the photo remind me of the ones in coastal southwestern Turkey (but they also remind me of China, so who knows). I’m going to guess Fethiye, Turkey for the heck of it – also because the white building on the right also reminds me of Turkish construction.
Another:
This is clearly China. The mountains in the background are a dead giveaway. I am amused at myself for recognizing this based on Art History classes in Chinese landscape painting from many, many years ago. Beyond that I need to guess; I pick Huangshan.
Warm. Another:
I’m probably the hundredth person to guess this, but Vietnam, Halong Bay? (Beautiful place, but the tourist scene is out of control and really detracts from the experience. Still, it’s a must if you’re ever in Vietnam. It really is one of the wonders of the world.)
About 20 people did guess Halong Bay, but no dice. Another:
I think this may be Guilin, China. I went there on holiday with my family when I was 14 (am now 21). A guy in our group had been there in the ’70s and remembered local people holding their children up to the window of the restaurant he was eating in. They’d never seen a white man before. If it’s not Guilin, then this little story is fairly pointless. Still, beats looking out of my own window in Abingdon, UK. Industrial estates leave much to be desired.
Guilin is getting warmer. Another:
This is most likely spectacularly wrong, but the only place I’ve ever seen the shape of mountains like those is Jackson Hole, WY. So that’s my guess: Jackson Hole, WY.
Spectacularly wrong. This reader nails it down:
Is it Yangshuo, China? If it is, it took only one guess (China) and one Google image search (chinese mountains) to get it right. Thank Google!
About 50 readers also got Yangshuo (a third of the 600 entries correctly guessed Guilin, but Yangshuo is the more specific political division). The first reader to do so was D.I., who wrote:
Yangshuo in Guilin Province, China, on the Li River. Just a guess based on the karst mountains.
Another reader explains:
Rain water and ground water are slightly acidic and will dissolve carbonate rocks. In Missouri, we get caves. In China, it results in spectacular pinnacles.
Congrats to D.I.! Next contest goes up Saturday at noon.
The Odd Lies Of Sarah Palin XCII: “Rahm,u lie”
That was a pretty clear attack by the fabulist know-nothing from Wasilla. Rahm Emanuel had opined that Joe Barton’s view that the $20 billion pried out of BP by the Obama administration was a “shakedown” was common among Republicans. Emanuel noted, moreover, that Barton was speaking from prepared remarks, and reflected the GOP’s “larger philosophy,” adding “they see the aggrieved party here is BP, not the fisherman. And remember, this is not just one person.” Palin responded immediately with this marvel of eloquence:
“Falsely claim’? As Think Progress notes, the Republican Study Committee, put out this statement June 16:
“BP’s reported willingness to go along with the White House’s new fund suggests that the Obama Administration is hard at work exerting its brand of Chicago-style shakedown politics. These actions are emblematic of a politicization of our economy that has been borne out of this Administration’s drive for greater power and control. It is the same mentality that believes an economic crisis or an environmental disaster is the best opportunity to pursue a failed liberal agenda. The American people know much better.”
The RSC has 115 House members in it, or rather 65 percent of House Republicans.
Will Palin retract her lie?
Does the Pope crap on the tortured souls of hundreds of raped deaf children?
A Tale Of Two Conservatisms
“We oppose the legalization of sodomy. We demand that Congress exercise its authority granted by the U.S. constitution to withhold jurisdiction from the federal courts from cases involving sodomy. We support legislation that would make it a felony to issue a marriage license to a same-sex couple and for any civil official to perform a marriage ceremony for such. We believe that the practice of homosexuality tears at the fabric of society, contributes to the breakdown of the family unit, and leads to the spread of dangerous, communicable diseases,” – the platform of the Republican Party of Texas, urging prosecution of those who issue marriage licenses to gay couples.
“We’re working to make Britain a place where everyone is treated fairly and everyone has an equal chance in life, whatever their sexual orientation or gender identity. This ambitious programme of work is the first step on that journey,” – former Conservative party chairperson and British Home Secretary, Theresa May.
Two Months Into The Spill
The Big Picture takes stock.
How We Know What McChrystal Really Thinks
It's a shock, isn't it? Obama essentially gave McChrystal everything he asked for, and backed the full counter-insurgency strategy. He has, in my view, foolishly thrown more resources and more ambition at this hopeless task than his predecessor ever did. And yet, McChrystal and his flunkies still feel the need to bad-mouth and mock those who lost the argument. This is news, no? It's important news. It reflects on the character and integrity of the man tasked to lead America's longest ever war. So why, one wonders, have we not heard a peep of this from all the official MSM Pentagon reporters and analysts with their deep sources and long experience? Politico explains:
McChrystal, an expert on counterterrorism and counterinsurgency, has long been thought to be uniquely qualified to lead in Afghanistan. But he is not known for being media savvy. Hastings, who has covered the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan for two years, according to the magazine, is not well-known within the Defense Department.
And as a freelance reporter, Hastings would be considered a bigger risk to be given unfettered access, compared with a beat reporter, who would not risk burning bridges by publishing many of McChrystal’s remarks.
The better their sources, the less we know. Take it away, Greenwald!
(Photo: Andreas Rentz/Getty.)
The Dish 