Posts about Obama Surrenders Afghanistan as of October 12, 2009

By John Helmer in Moscow Vanity corrupts; pathological vanity corrupts pathologically. That’s when you cannot believe that others are capable of disbelieving you. An American president who is at that stage will contrive anything, including war, for his personal benefit. For Obama to feel, as he said, “deeply humbled” when awakened by the Nobel Peace Prize telephone-call on Friday morning, you have to think that he and his intelligence agencies failed to know he was a candidate for the award, and did nothing to lobby the Norwegs against the two hundred or so other candidates.

Tags People Celebrities High Tech Sports Odd News Top Information Health Business Spoken News News Photos Slideshows 1/137Boyzone lead singer Gately dies on holiday in Spain (AFP) AFP - Boyzone lead singer Stephen Gately has died while on holiday in Majorca off the coast of Spain, the Irish band said on its website. He was 33. (AFP) Click on the image for the actual size or for a fullscreen flash.Click here for more description.

Catholics for Choice recently surveyed American Catholics on the issue of health care reform, and, lo and behold, the Catholic hierarchy is not in line with Catholics. Many Catholic bishops have voiced unconditional opposition to any bill that “funds” abortion , and a recent letter sent to Senators by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops outlines admirable goals for affordable, universal health care—only after demanding that abortion not be a part of anyone’s health plan.

WASHINGTON — As the Obama administration reconsiders its Afghanistan policy, White House officials are minimizing warnings from the intelligence community, the military and the State Department about the risks of adopting a limited strategy focused click for more It’s tee time. The next several weeks mark the heart of fall golf season in Myrtle Beach, which officials say should be on par with last year, if not better.

I have a question for Barack Obama, the Nobel Appease Prize winner, and the man who told us during last year’s presidential campaign that troops needed to be redeployed from Iraq to the “real” front in the war on terrorism – Afghanistan. In case your memory fails you, here’s what he said in July 2008: “In fact – as should have been apparent to President Bush and Sen. (John) McCain – the central front in the war on terror is not Iraq, and it never was.

WASHINGTON - Obama administration officials have admitted that the United States is falling far short of goals to fight Afghanistan’s endemic corruption and to create a functioning government and legal system, besides making the country’s [...]

“Deficit Neutral” Health Care Reform Absurdity upon Absurdity Michael Collins The health care debate and general political climate compound absurdity upon absurdity. First we’re told that our health care is only worth the time and effort if the remedy has no negative impact on the budget.  No deficits allowed.  The deficit risk defines your chances for health and longevity. At the same time, we see that Wall Street failures and the overseas war effort are not held to the same standard on deficits spending.

Obama administration officials say the U.S. is falling far short of the president’s goals to fight corruption, create a functioning government and train a police force. Bookmark It Hide SitesPosted in Breaking News, Celebrity Oops.No comments Byadmin–October 11, 2009

admin 12 October 2009Bizzare and Offbeat No CommentSenators escalate call for Obama to grant commander’s request for more troops in Afghanistan as debate continues• Did Weapons Fail U.S. Troops During Afghan Assault?• U.N. Official: ‘Widespread Fraud’ in Afghan Election• NEW! FOX News Interactive Presidential Polls

Washington, Oct.12 (ANI): Obama administration officials have admitted that the United States is falling far short of goals to fight Afghanistan’s endemic corruption and to create a functioning government and legal system, besides making the country’s police force competent. Conducting interviews with senior administration and military officials and accessing recent reports on how far Afghanistan [...]

Obama calls US ambassador to Afghan; talks strategy Press Trust of India Washington, Oct 12 (PTI) President Barack Obama spoke with US ambassador to Afghanistan to discuss the ongoing review of American strategy in the region … Obama talks strategy with US ambassador to Afghanistan AFP Obama hears request for troops Santa Rosa Press Democrat Obama , advisers have ‘robust’ Afghan talks-W.House Reuters ABC Online  - Sarasota Herald-Tribune  - Atlantic Online

WASHINGTON: The proposed missile defense system for Europe is robust and will meet both long-term and short-term threats, a top Pentagon official told the Defense Writers’ Group today. Alexander Vershbow, the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, also spoke to the group about NATO efforts in Afghanistan. Vershbow, just back from a trip to Europe, said a constant theme at all stops was missile defense. “There is a misunderstanding in all of Europe about what exactly our policy is, especially in relation to Russia,” he said.

“For all the talk of polarization and partisanship in U.S. politics, what’s remarkable is the extent to which President Obama has continued policies and practices of his predecessor, George Bush, in domestic economics and military affairs. Economically, Obama has continued the bailout of Wall Street, maintained Bush-era tax cuts, pursued ’stimulus’ through large deficit spending and re-appointed Ben Bernanke, the Federal Reserve chairman who was a Bush favorite.

“My reaction to Barack Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize elicited some decidedly ‘un-peaceful’ responses from my friends and followers on social networking and blog sites. … I have been an ardent supporter of President Obama. … But my response to the Nobel Peace Prize announcement was not particularly celebratory. … I criticized the idea of awarding a Nobel Peace Prize to a president whose short presidency has included drone attacks with devastating civilian casualities, the escalation of the war in Afghanistan, and a painfully slow response to the basic human rights issues facing LGBT communities.

Monday Oct 12, 2009 – By Zettler Clay Pop quiz: You are the president of the United States. You win an award, but not just any award. You capture the holy grail, the Nobel Peace Prize. Many claim you did nothing to receive that award and therefore tells you to reject it. There are agendas pending, and this award multiplies your onus of taking this pile of mess (inherited by the way) known as the economy, war and a ballooning health care system and making it manageable.Do you:(A) Accept the award

“If the president approves the McChrystal plan he will implicitly: * Anoint counterinsurgency — protracted campaigns of armed nation-building — as the new American way of war. * Embrace George W. Bush’s concept of open-ended war as the essential response to violent jihadism (even if the Obama White House has jettisoned the label ‘global war on terror’). * Affirm that military might will remain the principal instrument for exercising American global leadership, as has been the case for decades.

“I think the great danger now is a half-measure, sort of a – you know, try to please all ends of the political spectrum. And, again, I have great sympathy for the president, making the toughest decisions that presidents have to make, but I think he needs to use deliberate speed.” Sen. John McCain • Doing what he always does – sounding brilliant when the stakes are low for him. Regarding Afghanistan (but really relevant for every part of his presidency), he tells Obama that it’s alright now, as long as he learns his lesson well.

“The surprise decision to award President Barack Obama the 2009 Nobel Peace Prize had much of the world scratching its head on Friday, even among the president’s most ardent fans. Less than a year into office, the young president has made lofty promises, committed his administration to diplomacy, and convinced the world that a less belligerent America is in the offing. But he is also the commander-in-chief for the Afghan and Iraq wars, as well as ongoing lower-scale US military efforts in Pakistan, the Horn of Africa, and the Philippines.

by LarynSen. DeMint On Honduras Trip: Our ambassador is the only person I met there who thinks there was a ‘coup.’For the first time in history the United States government is siding with Marxist leaders Hugo Chavez, Daniel Ortega, Raul Castro and Evo Morales against the pro-democratic Honduran government of Roberto Micheletti.The Honduran Congress and Supreme Court along with the military ousted corrupt Leftist President Manuel Zelaya from power.

“TK 421, why aren’t you at your post?” “What?” we replied to one of our analysts this morning. “He’s the only Storm Trooper named in the Star Wars movie. I bought a card board cut out of him pointing his laser rifle at you. It was on sale the Science Works exhibit. I’ve put him behind your desk to remind you that you’re under the gun.” True enough. It’s not just your editor under the gun, though. What’s at stake this week is whether attempts by governments and central banks to prevent more credit writedowns have succeeded.

CBS News Survey on Afghanistan Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the situation with Afghanistan? Approve 42% (44%) [48%] Disapprove 34% (35%) [30%] Among Republicans Approve 20% (32%) [31%] Disapprove 58% (45%) [47%] Among Democrats Approve 54% (58%) [64%] Disapprove 16% (26%) [17%] Among Independents Approve 44% (38%) [43%] Disapprove 36% ( 38% ) [31%] Do you think the U.S.

Conservatives couldn’t have dreamed up a clarifying event this effective. But thanks to the Nobel Peace Prize, an epidemic of common sense and queasiness about multiculturalism is breaking out even among liberals.  Howard Fineman writes: Obama isn’t going to be sworn in as planetary president. But it doesn’t matter; in his mind, he already is. From the time he announced his candidacy, his appeal—and his sense of himself—has been global. After years of war and fear, he would be what George W.

First, how to win a Nobel Peace Prize in five easy steps: 1) Don’t be George W. Bush. 2) Be a top American liberal (think Jimmy Carter, Al Gore, …). 3) Internationally, use apologetic rhetoric regarding all things American. 4) Use lofty-sounding internationalist rhetoric and deny American exceptionalism. 5) Be black. When all five of these steps are combined, the combination is so powerful that, well, you don’t even have to, you know, accomplish anything.

Summary Of Last Week’s Influences: Friday marked the two year anniversary of the Dow (14,164.53) and the S&P500 (1,565.15) closing at record highs. The Dow celebrated by closing at a fresh 2009 high (9,864.94), but at 1,071.49, the S&P stopped short of beating its September 22 close. Both indices were slightly shy of surpassing their September 23 intraday highs. It also marked the first time since June 2007 that so many stocks (1,069) closed at 52 week highs.

MiamiHerald.com Of health care, war, costs and consequences Minneapolis Star Tribune By DAVID MORRIS In the next few weeks this country will make two decisions of great consequence: Will we send additional troops to Afghanistan? Will we reform our health care system? It is both instructive and disheartening to see the different ways …

Man am I glad I live in a country where the major press organizations lay out all the complexities of the war in Afghanistan. It’s not like I have to read The Times of India or anything. Without naming Pakistan or its spy agency ISI, India on Saturday said the attack on its embassy in Kabul earlier this week was the handiwork of the enemies of India-Afghan friendship and their “patrons across the border”.

The incessant hand wringing by America’s so-called thinking class over the so-called signs of instability in Pakistan caused by Al Qaeda/The Taliban’s ability to infiltrate and attack Pakistan’s High Command completely misses the important points about the attack. Attacking the Pakistani high command in Rawalpindi was the equivalent of hitting their Pentagon with an airplane. For Pakistan’s military this was their September 11th.

World. Obama administration officials say the U.S. is falling far short of the president’s goals to fight corruption, create a functioning government and train a police force.

I’m sure by now everyone’s heard that President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize . While some are wondering why, I’ve been thinking about this Marvin Gaye “classic”. This song has a powerful message, that War is not the answer, and that only Love can truly conquer Hate. My heart goes out to the mothers who have sons and daughters fighting for their country in the Middle East, in Iraq and in Afghanistan.

Los Angeles Times Civilian Goals Largely Unmet in Afghanistan New York Times An Afghan boy washed among the ruins of a Kandahar building supplies store destroyed by a rocket attack in August. Recent reports assessing Afghanistan’s progress show government institutions are deteriorating as much as the country’s security. …

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R-AZ): “I think to disregard the requirements that has been laid out and agreed to by General Petraeus and Admiral Mullen, I think would be an error of historic proportions.” VISIT OUR HOMESITE www.polijam.com FOR ALL THE LATEST HEADLINES AND NEWS Share This

The Nobel Down Payment Jim Hoagland | The Washington Post The election of the first African American president deserves global recognition. But if that is the committee’s intent, the Nobel should have been given to the American electorate. Instead, my compatriots several generations removed intend this award to a first-year U.S. president as a down payment on peace agreements to come, to encourage even more splendid speeches and U.N. votes for multilateralism.

Remember the yellowcake? Remember the mobile chemical labs, the anthrax and the WMDs? Now, ask yourself if you really trust the CIA and the military enough to take their word for it:WASHINGTON — As the Obama administration reconsiders its Afghanistan policy, White House officials are minimizing warnings from the intelligence community, the military and the State Department about the risks of adopting a limited strategy focused on al Qaida , U.S. intelligence, diplomatic and military officials told McClatchy .Recent U.S.

As Obama considers McChrystal’s demand for more troops – in fact more troops than we had initially heard ( 60,000 plus! ) one Democratic senator has apparently decided to sign up with the McCain posse to support the McChrystal escalation push. McChrystal may been shushed by his superiors but the pressure continues with more leaks reporting that he described leaving troop levels where they are as “high risk.” Unmentioned in all this are “ new US intelligence reports ” that describe the majority

By MATTHEW ROSENBERG and ZAHID HUSSAIN Associated Press Pakistani army troops return back to their base camp after conducting an operation on their own army headquarters. ISLAMABAD — The brazen militant attack on Pakistan’s military headquarters that left 20 people dead this weekend sets the stage for a Pakistani assault on the country’s most entrenched Taliban stronghold. The Pakistani army is expected to target the Mehsud faction of the Taliban, which operates in the country’s mountainous South Waziristan tribal area.

So apparently when bloggers and their readers question the President’s LGBT policy moves it must be something more sinister than the ” holding him accountable ” and ” keep up the pressure ” messages he said were A-OK. In an NBC report less than 24 hours after the President declared his unwavering support for the LGBT community, the White House has decided to sh*t on citizen journalists on the left who are simply advocating for our civil rights. This is a real shot across the bow.

Candidate Barack Obama correctly argued that strategically Afghanistan cannot be severed from Pakistan. At first President Barack Obama acted as if he meant it. He put General Stanley McCrystal in charge, asked to devise a strategy for victory and in the meantime increased the number of troops available to the new man. His envoy went [...]

Or rather, if Obama’s serious about detente, why doesn’t he demand that they do so as one of those “constructive beginnings” with Islamist fascists that he’s been pursuing? I’ve been thinking about that since reading the Times’s profile of Mullah Omar this morning and haven’t come up with a good answer yet. Quote:Richard Barrett, a former British intelligence officer now monitoring Al Qaeda and the Taliban for the United Nations, argues that Mullah Omar has learned the lesson of 2001.

I wasn’t the only one wondering why the President’s keynote address during the HRC Dinner wasn’t released to the media prior to the speech (embargoed). This is unusual because most major addresses are sent out before so journalists can have accurate quotes in their articles, which are usually written during the delivery. The White House will sometimes re-issue the transcript (as delivered) as well. None of that happened yesterday, and Steve Clemons of The Washington Note decided to ask the WH what the blazes was going on.

Like many people, I tend to think the decision to pre-emptively award President Obama the Nobel Peace prize was a very poor one. Not only is Obama undeserving, having failed thus far to secure any substantial foreign policy achievement, but the decision appears to have been motivated primarily by a desire to strait-jacket his policy choices and, more obviously, to bash the Bush Administration over the head once again for its own excesses.

HEADLINES: Obama gives Nobel Peace Prize to the “world for peace” saying: “I haven’t done anything that millions haven’t been doing for years – calling for peace.” The above headline is fiction – fantasy – perhaps a little hopeful – but certainly not real. It would be a noble gesture to give back the “Nobel Peace Prize” since United States President Obama hasn’t done anything to merit it in his short tenure in office.

Bethlehem - Ma’an - An anti-wall leader in Bil’in village suggested on Saturday that former US President George W Bush was just as worthy of receiving the Nobel Peace Prize as Barack Obama, who won on Friday. “Why didn’t the committee give the prize to Bush?” asked Iyad Burnat, head of the village’s Popular Committee Against the Wall, in a statement on Saturday. “I remember nine years ago Bush had a good speech about the establishment of a Palestinian state in the year of 2005,” he said.

Juan Williams is being proclaimed a milquetoast for saying that Obama is making a lot of progress in Afghanistan.  I can hardly believe this one. Bill Kristol and Liz Cheney absolutely make Juan Williams look like an Obamageek. Gateway Pundit: Cool. Bill Kristol and Liz Cheney Scream at Juan Williams On FOX News Sunday (Video) [...] President Peacemaker is stalling just like he does with every major decision. [...] Silly Juan.

President Barack Obama reaffirmed his commitment — strongly — to repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” last night at the 13th annual Human Rights Campaign dinner. Think that’s worth some airtime today, in the wake of his Nobel Peace Prize and the ongoing tumoil in Afghanistan? CNN’s Bill Bennett doesn’t ! Today during a panel discussion on State of the Union , Bennett said that it was not “the most important thing to worry about” and evinced frustration that the matter was even being discussed at all.

‘US furious over Israeli incitement against Obama’ Ha’aretz The US administration is furious over Israeli incitement against President Barack Obama, Democratic congressmen close to Obama told an Israeli source who returned from a visit to Washington this week. … and more ‘US furious over Israeli incitement against Obama’ – NIMBRUNG.NET is a post from: Daily Hot Breaking News at Your Finger Related posts: Barack Obama furious at General Stanley McChrystal speech on Afghanistan – NIMBRUNG.NET Telegraph.co.uk Barack Obama furious at General Stanley McChrystal speech…

[Guest post by DRJ] Taliban violence is escalating in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and the Taliban leaders almost certainly noticed President Obama’s delay in acting on General McChrystal’s request for more troops. They aren’t the only ones. Today on ABC’s This Week with George Stephanopoulos , Democratic Senator Dianne Feinstein says the mission is in serious jeopardy : “I reviewed all of the intelligence and looked at the situation, and it was pretty clear to me that violence was up 100 percent , 950 attacks in August.

Maasanova Rys2Sense Note: This is a modified post which I originally posted over at Ryan Dawson’s forum I recently stopped at the convenience store and I noticed a scowling Muslim’s face  splashed all over the most recent issue of Newsweek (October 5, 2009). All of the sudden, the forgotten Afghanistan war is is once again the focus in America’s Great War on Terror Hoax. It would make sense that the Iraq war not be the focus of the Obama Administration since president Barack Obama pretended to oppose the Iraq war before he entered Congress.

Newsweek Obama talks strategy with US ambassador to Afghanistan AFP WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama spoke Sunday with the US ambassador to Kabul about the country’s recent election and the administration’s review of US strategy in the region, the White House said. Obama talked by phone with Ambassador Karl …

I’m going to try and not make fun of my adverts anymore that pay me so well. I don’t know what’s in me, I just can’t resist ridiculing these adverts, even though I’m making like $20 for just one post, isn’t that crazy? In fact, I get $1 every time you click my Google advert over there on the right. But I have a lot of fun blogging, and now it pays. Look, in America the main way to be a serious writer, and earn money at it, is to write about politics i.e.

1.  Piece Prize? “Obama’s Nobel Prize Stuns War Victims The Afghan man is puzzled how Obama was chosen to the Nobel Prize, even though he ordered more troops to the war-torn country. “The number of US Army [troops] has increased here, the number of terrorist attacks increased here,” he said. He said that the extra US troops Obama has ordered are adding more fuel to the raging conflict. “I’m kind of confused whether that Nobel Award [is] for all those things.” Obama has recently sent more than 30,000 extra troops to Afghanistan and is mulling requests for thousands more.