Why the desire to pull the troops out of Iraq in the first place?

*posted first on Friday Feb. 10, here*

In the Australian today:

NO sooner did President Barack Obama welcome home American troops from Iraq and laud that country’s stability and democracy than an unprecedented wave of violence across Baghdad and elsewhere revealed the severity of Iraq’s political crisis.

Unfortunate, yet hardly surprising, even to the most casual of observers.

And whilst I can understand (yet not agree with) the Left’s position not to send troops into Iraq in the first place – an argument, largely moot, for another day – what I don’t understand is their fervish desire to pull the troops out.

It always smacked of idealism, ideology, rather than hard-nosed practicality.

After all, what was so bad with having a US troop presence there to help maintain Iraq’s fragile democratic stability?

One could argue that I am biased because a) I am centre-right politically and b) because I live in South Korea, a nation that has had a US troop presence – some 37,000  28,000 or so currently – since the armistice between North and South Korea and have seen what a permanent US troop presence looks like.

I am happy to accept those labels and can gladly tell you that such a presence ain’t that bad.

By and large,  US bases in Korea – and Japan for that matter – haven’t been a problem.

Sure, issues pop up from time to time, but if one looks at the big picture, then a strong US presence here can only be seen as a good thing, a safe option, a pretty darn good insurance policy against North Korea trying anything major on.

Almost 60 years we’ve had US troops over here without any major problems. In fact, many major problems (a full-scale Nork attack comes to mind) have arguably been averted thanks to this presence.

So, why the rush to leave Iraq essentially free of any US military  before even a decade is up and before, as is clear now, the job is done?

OK, so perhaps it’s a bit like comparing apples and oranges. US troops in Korea, aside from those stationed at the DMZ, aren’t on active duty as they were in Iraq.

However, it’s not a completely dissimilar situation. Perhaps a good analogy would be to compare mandarins and oranges.

US troops not only provided safety and stability in the fledgling democracy that is Iraq – a country still steeped with sectarian and tribal rivalries – but surely they also provided a deterrence to anybody or any groups who want to destabilise the nation.

What takes years to build can take mere seconds to destroy, and I fear a lot of hard work is being undone on the whim of a flawed, feel-good, ideology.

So why?

The only practical reason that I can see for Obama pulling his troops out of Iraq is that with an Iranian confrontation looming which includes action needed in Syria, Iraq frankly isn’t important enough any more or at best, an impractical option for a potentially over-stretched military.

Of course, Obama – a man of the progressive Left – can’t actually come out and say that but it is reasonably well-known to those who don’t just get their news from the MSM that Obama is actually more of a war-time president than Bush was, having committed more troops to both Iraq and Afghanistan, and for a longer period of time.

So whilst the MSM might play along with the “bringing the troops home” narrative, the evidence indicates this simply isn’t the case.

Some 20,000 marines, seamen and air crews from half a dozen countries, a US nuclear aircraft carrier strike group and three US Marine gunship carriers are practicing an attack on a fictitious mechanized enemy division which has invaded its neighbor. It is the largest amphibian exercise seen in the West for a decade, staged to simulate a potential Iranian invasion of an allied Persian Gulf country and a marine landing on the Iranian coast. Based largely on US personnel and hardware, French, British, Italian, Dutch, Australian* and New Zealand military elements are integrated in the drill.
Bold Alligator went into its operational phase Monday, Feb. 6, the same day as a large-scale exercise began in southern Iran opposite the Strait of Hormuz. This simultaneity attests to the preparations for a US-Iranian showdown involving Israel behind the words on Feb. 5 of US President Barack Obama (“I don’t think Israel has decided whether to attack Iran”) and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Feb. 3 (“The war itself will be ten times as detrimental to the US.”).

(*BTW, I don’t recall Aussie PM Gillard highlighting that one.)

And this:

As the US and Israel carried on bickering over the right time to strike Iran’s nuclear sites, their war preparations continued apace. debkafile’s military sources report that flight after flight of US warplanes and transports were to be seen this week cutting eastward through the skies of Sinai on their way to Gulf destinations, presumably Saudi Arabia, at a frequency not seen in the Middle East for many years.

Add into this mix reports that China will reportedly help Saudi Arabia build a nuclear bomb, and that both China and India have started paying Iran for its oil in gold thus helping thwart current US/UN sanctions (more of which were recently thwarted by Russia and China), then we see a stage set for a showdown and we see the reality that rhetoric aside, Obama won’t be bringing many troops home at all.

To someone who doesn’t know any better, it’s as if Russia, India, and China – all wannabe first chickens to the trough – are ganging up on America.**

PS Who wouldn’t love to be a fly on the wall listening in to what the US is really saying about China? Their ever-expanding use of soft power is in many ways, stuffing it all up for America. China must surely be becoming an ever-increasing pain in the neck.

This leaves Australia in an interesting position. Our main export partner is China. Our main ally is the US. We send China our goodies to help them get rich and rival America. We practice shooting our guns with America to help keep America on top.

And yet China and America are also so deep in each other’s pockets. America buys China’s goods. China buys America’s debt.

Fun times.

** I highly recommend reading The Lucifer Principle by Howard Bloom. Part of the book talks about the pecking order of nations.

New video from the makers of “We Con the World” – Guns, Guns Guns! #flotilla

If you liked the Flotilla Choir in We Con the World last year, you’ll want to see Latma’s latest offering, the Audacity of Dopes band with Guns, Guns, Guns! 

An encore of last year’s Flotilla Choir masterpiece:

(via Big Peace)

Gavin Atkins and the Search for the 50 Million Missing ‘Climate Refugees’

In 2005, the United Nations Environment Programme predicted that climate change would create 50 million climate refugees by 2010. These people, it was said, would flee a range of disasters including sea level rise, increases in the numbers and severity of hurricanes, and disruption to food production.

Gavin Atkins has been doing a series over at Asian Correspondent trying to track down these 50 million missing climate refugees and I thought I’d keep a list of his articles on the subject here, for ease of reference.

What happened to the climate refugees? (April 11, 2011)

Cover up: UN tries to erase failed climate refugee prediction (April 16, 2011)

50m climate refugee claims: It’s all about money for the UN (April 19, 2011)

Reaction to the 50 million climate refugee prediction (April 22, 2011)

The origins of the 50 million climate refugees prediction (April 23, 2011)

50m climate refugees? New Scientist can’t find them either (May 5, 2011)

50 million climate refugees – the search continues (May 9, 2011)

The Alaskan climate refugees who never left (June 14, 2011)

Asian Correspondent makes it to the Beeb:  Gavin Atkins talks to Hannah Barnes from BBC radio 4 about the missing 50 million climate refugees story  (June 16, 2011)

I’ll try to keep this list updated as the hunt continues.

…as I told him after his May 9 article was published, “Mate, you’re gonna need a bigger milk carton” 🙂
Anyone with Photoshop skills out there want to step up..?

Obama on the 2nd Amendment

That looks loud.

In the past, Obama’s position on the second amendment has been less than ideal.

While the Obama administration hasn’t mentioned the Second Amendment by name, it seems he may have recently had a change of opinion.

The new opinion takes the much more hardcore view that because the authority of a government is derived from the consent of the governed then owning guns is important as sometimes it is necessary to use arms to assert that consent (or lack thereof) and overthrow a government.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton confirmed for the first time in London that the United Nations resolution did allow for the ”legitimate transfer of arms” to rebels if a nation chose to do so.

”Our interpretation of 1973 amended is that it overrode the absolute prohibition of arms to anyone in Libya … so there could be legitimate transfer of arms if a country chose to do that. We have not made that decision at this time,” she said.

Not even a mention of any plans to do background checks for the new owners!

I know, I know. You might be skeptical. But we also know that his administration allowed known gunrunners to transport thousands of guns into Mexico.  Granted, allowing guns to Mexican drug gangs instead of the law abiding seems like a questionable idea.

I suppose that arming people in other countries might be the first step to acknowledging that people in his own country aren’t “bitter clingers.”

As Obama’s War Begins in Libya, Peace Activists Hold Rally at White House…

…Against the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars.

.

“You know it makes sense!”

h/t @WeaselZippers

UPDATE:

BUT BUT BUT!!!!! HE’S NOT BUSH!!!!!! heh. #ChimpyMcObamaHitlerHalliburton

PFC Bradley Manning, heres the torture..

As has been reported on many news sites PFC Bradley Manning is apparently so mistreated the UN is going to investigate. ( Id sleep with my bum to the door if I were him, the UN has a certain…reputation)

From the link: “THE UN HAS CONFIRMED it is investigating complaints made by supporters of detained US army soldier Bradley Manning, suspected of supplying confidential US files and military information to WikilLeaks.”

Now Ive run across an interesting website run by an ex-military man now lawyer who specialises in court martial cases. Hes also currently defending Mr Manning. David E. Coombs is his name, and he has a blog of his own.

He has written a piece on his blog which clearly outlines how PFC Manning is treated, and how his day unfolds. Its matter of fact and fairly banal, Mannings biggest hassle will be boredom.

Heres a couple of sections, but please go across and have a look at the full thing.

His cell is approximately six feet wide and twelve feet in length.

The cell has a bed, a drinking fountain, and a toilet.

The guards at the confinement facility are professional. At no time have they tried to bully, harass, or embarrass PFC Manning. Given the nature of their job, however, they do not engage in conversation with PFC Manning.
…..

He is allowed to watch television during the day. The television stations are limited to the basic local stations. His access to the television ranges from 1 to 3 hours on weekdays to 3 to 6 hours on weekends.
……

He is allowed to have any combination of up to 15 books or magazines. He must request the book or magazine by name. Once the book or magazine has been reviewed by the literary board at the confinement facility, and approved, he is allowed to have someone on his approved list send it to him. The person sending the book or magazine to him must do so through a publisher or an approved distributor such as Amazon. They are not allowed to mail the book or magazine directly to PFC Manning.
…..

He is not allowed to have a pillow or sheets. However, he is given access to two blankets and has recently been given a new mattress that has a built-in pillow.
…..

When PFC Manning goes to sleep, he is required to strip down to his boxer shorts and surrender his clothing to the guards. His clothing is returned to him the next morning

…..

So as you can see his daily routine is banal, and boring, but torture??

The Lawyers blog has been infested by shrieking moonbats of the most fantastic varieties, the comments section is a hoot.  Some highlights under the fold…

Israel’s shame

Go here to register your complaint against the Jewish state.

H/T Bolta

Meanwhile, gay Spaniards prefer terrorists over homosexuals.

UPDATE

And it looks like hardly any aid was on that flotilla to Gaza to begin with, and none was on the Mavi Mamara. Conspicuously absent was medical aid – what Gaza really needs.

H/T Aussie Dave

*cross-posted

Iran to “punch” the West on Thursday

Tomorrow, Thursday, will be the 31st anniversary of Iran’s Islamic revolution (oxymoron, anyone?). And they reckon they will “punch” West “in a way that will leave [us] stunned“. What exactly this “punch” will entail, no one really knows, but it probably won’t amount to much, as is the norm when Iran bleats defiantly. Shaking in ma boots.

Now if only China would stop selling them weapons and whatever else, we could impose some more effective sanctions on them. China’s veto power at the UN currently prevents us from doing that. And, of course, the commies are thirsty for energy.

Cross-posted at bing’s cubby house.

UPDATE

Was this the punch??? Suspending gmail??

Devastating…

Climate-gators at Copenhagen

Well, not surprising the skeptics aren’t getting a good hearing at COP15. After all, this is more a gathering of the faithful than an honest discussion, especially in light of Climategate. At least (and whoulda thunkit?) CNN is finally, belatedly asking some questions.

Yet Oppenheimer’s distortions are jaw dropping in that interview. Nowhere near all glaciers have been studied, sea levels are barely rising, the Arctic ice isn’t melting but has been increasing the past few years, there aren’t 2500 scientists all agreeing, but rather a handful as Climategate proves. Yes, take out CRU and there are other institutions. Hmm, that would include hockey stick Mann at Penn State, who’s stick has been debunked (Mann is being investigated by PSU), and NASAs Goddard Institute whose director James Hansen can’t be trusted. And for any worries about the oceans, just take a look at the observed data compared to the models.

And as for Earth being a closed system and our piddly amount of CO2 (5% of a gas that takes up less than 0.4% of the atmosphere) not letting heat escape from the planet? Bullshit. Again with those models. The red lines are the models, the green lines are the observed data. Anyway, it probably doesn’t stay in the atmosphere for long anyway.

Preaching to the converted here (pardon the pun), but those links are for any folks, and there’s many, still duped by this climate change scam.

NewsBusters has a pretty good piece on that interview and CNN’s coverage.

But back to Copenhagen, and despite a very critical opening few paragraphs, The Financial Times, finally sensing a whiff, gives Monckton et. al. a run.

It was not all political bombast. Several serious scientists, with long paper trails of academic work behind them, delivered power point presentations filled with data and diagrams attempting to show why the mainstream consensus was wrong.

Not really much good or bad news to report so far. Tom Wilson has a short clip covering the rabble that was day two.

If being a sceptic means not being friends with those nutjobs at the start of that video… good.

To be honest, I had more fun today replying to a few brain dead commenters over at Unleashed who were in support of Clive Hamilton, in what has to be one of the most rubbish, condescending, puerile posts ever read.

UPDATE

With thanks to lucanas in comments in another post, some Copenhagen piccies.

US Citizen? Sign the petition against cap n’ trade

If you’re a man-made global warming sceptic, or if you think the science perhaps isn’t settled, or if you are worried about a potential communist world government, or if you are worried about giant non-sovereign world taxes being imposed on all of us, or if you think the governments of this world already have too much power, or even if you’re not convinced yet either way, and don’t want a road paved that there’s no turning back on in just two short weeks, then sign this petition.

SIGN HERE

People literally right now are speaking at Copenhagen presenting the other side to this man-made CO2-driven man-made climate change/global warming argument. They will also be speaking tomorrow. Time is of the essence.

UPDATE

This post differs from the original. It came from watching the latest Monckton videos (the end of Part 4 of which part 1 was posted by 1.6 below), about a GLOBAL problem – but unfortunately only US citizens can sign that petition. Hence, first update removed, replaced with this.

Copenhagen: Climate Sense Conference

This is one of the first conferences of the COP15 junket summit, and it’s prime objective will be urging UN members (and everyone else there) to have open minds about this debate. Although Climategate has essentially proven that climate scientists, politicians, journalists, and the UN don’t have an open mind about climate change and it’s many causes, well, at least this Climate Sense Conference is taking place at all. It begins at 8pm tonight, Tizona time (same as Sydney and Melbourne) and runs until 2am Tizona time. It will continue at 8pm Tizona time on Wednesday and wrap up at 1am, er, Tizona time.

*Note: They mixed up the date on that link. It should read Tuesday, December 8, not Tuesday, December 7.

It’s brought to you by this mob, the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow, and that link has lots of great additional stuff related to Christopher Monckton, Climategate, and Copenhagen et. al..

In case you missed it yesterday, Lord Monckton, along with Professor Fred Singer, and Professor Ian Plimer, will be speaking at that conference.

Also, in case you missed this over at Bolt’s, Tim Wilson of Sustainable Development is actually over in Copenhagen and will be blogging about it. Might be a good place to go to get up-to-the-minute info.

UPDATE

Better late than never. From December 1, MIT’s professor of meteorology, Dr. Richard Lindzen, argues that the science isn’t settled in the following summary…

Is there a reason to be alarmed by the prospect of global warming? Consider that the measurement used, the globally averaged temperature anomaly (GATA), is always changing. Sometimes it goes up, sometimes down, and occasionally—such as for the last dozen years or so—it does little that can be discerned.

Claims that climate change is accelerating are bizarre. There is general support for the assertion that GATA has increased about 1.5 degrees Fahrenheit since the middle of the 19th century. The quality of the data is poor, though, and because the changes are small, it is easy to nudge such data a few tenths of a degree in any direction. Several of the emails from the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit (CRU) that have caused such a public ruckus dealt with how to do this so as to maximize apparent changes.

Copenhagen schedule

A silver lining…

On Tuesday and Wednesday, Monckton, Fred Singer, and Ian Plimer will be speaking. Bad news is that they’re speaking right at the beginning and could well be forgotten by the end. Good news is that nothing much is likely to come out of this, with no actual agreements until June next year or even until 2011.

Let’s hope “our boys” get a fair hearing and their message gets through over, say, Desmond Tutu’s call for cash.

Schedule.

And with trepidation, a link to an article quoting Lord Monckton. Do read the whole enchilada, but since the following has been largely passed over, here’s an excerpt reminding us what this AGW crock means for our food.

Speaking about replacing one third of agricultural land which grows food to be used for growing bio-fuels instead, Christopher Monckton reminded that it has led to double food price surge over just one year.

“If we have to pay twice as much for our food – it’s inconvenient. If you are in a poor country – that difference of a 100% in the price of your food is the difference between life and death,” he warns.

More.

UPDATE

In related news, have you heard about the steel cages being set up for any protesters who are arrested?

Powerline asks: What do they think we are, anarchists?

Will Lord Monckton throw Molotov cocktails, or Pat Michaels smash bank windows?

The Cause of the Fort Hood Massacre: Islam

I intentionally waited 24 hours to post this, because it became obvious to me quite early on in the news coverage of the incident yesterday that there were many errors in the coverage, some intentionally misleading, and others not.

First, it was reported that there were three shooters in at least two locations: There was one shooter in one location. It was reported that the shooter and the officer who shot him were both killed: They both survived. We heard that the shooter was a convert to Islam, sparking speculation that he was a black Muslim: He was a life-long Muslim, and a first-generation American son of Palestinian immigrants. We also heard that there were no warning signs: There were many.

If you want to see just how much of a cluster-fuck the reporting was, just read this Jawa Report post, or this Ace of Spades post to get a taste. No offense to those guys at all, as this is just what happens when you try to keep readers informed with continuously updated posts during a confused major news story like this. I, however, didn’t want to go there; I wanted to wait until the dust settled.

So, aside from the facts above, what do we now know? We know that Major Malik Nadal Hasan was the perpetrator, that he was a devout Moslem, that he voiced opposition to US policy in the GWoT many times, that there were at least some who were investigating some Jihadist statements he made, that he had come to the attention of the FBI because of some of these sentiments posted online, that he was a psychiatrist treating our servicemen and women who had been in combat or in combat zones, that his education was paid for by the American taxpayer, that he was in the military elite, earning a six-figure income, that he had received a “poor” performance evaluation at his previous post in Maryland, that he creeped-out some of his fellow officers with the statements he made, and that he was shouting, “Allahu Akbar” as he mowed down our Army men and women with two handguns that he illegally smuggled onto the post. And, most importantly, that he was about to be deployed to Afghanistan and was openly unhappy about it.

Yet, there are still some debating or denying that this was a terrorist attack. I don’t care that it was a lone shrink suffering from Sudden Jihad Syndrome, or if he had any ties to known terrorist groups, it is a fact and not an opinion when I say, this was a terrorist attack. It is always terrorism when a Muslim does something like this: Islam is a terrorist religion.

One person being interviewed following the disclosure of the perp’s identity even said, “I wish his name had been Smith.” Of course you do, because WASP males are the only group left who are legitimate targets of prejudice, racism, and religious discrimination (Well, there are the Jews. Eternally). Additionally, it is the hight of PC heresy to blame Islam or a Muslim for their actions. The MSM interviewers and commentators were spinning like tops to avoid it yesterday.

Well, fuck that. This POS Moslem scumbag should never have existed. His parents should never have been allowed into the US to breed on the taxpayer’s dime, he should never have been educated on the taxpayer’s dime, and he should never have been allowed into the US military! Since that proper policy wasn’t followed, once his sentiments became known – the instant they became known – he should have been kicked out of the Army and forced to repay what the Army spent on his education. Every. last. dime.

Additional problems abound. This was a US Army post, yet it was a gun-free zone? The female officer who shot Hasan was a civilian, not an MP. Whiskey, Tango, Foxtrot?

Guess what? In Israel when a weapon is issued to a serviceman or woman, they own it and are expected to keep it with them and ready to use 24/7. Go to an Israeli beach sometime: Scantily clad men and women carrying full-auto military firearms. I don’t know about you, but that would give me a warm and fuzzy feeling all over. Yes, people have gone crazy in Israel and started shooting innocents too, and they were summarily mown down by the armed populace. That is the solution! Why?… because crazies will always manage to get ahold of firearms, no matter how stringent the brain-dead shyster-politicians make the gun laws. The doughnut-eating police can’t ever seem to manage to be where they are needed when they are needed either – it’s impossible for them because they aren’t psychic – so the only solution is an armed citizenry.

For Christ’s sake, at least on an Army Post! When I grew up on USAF bases, the gates were guarded by armed AP’s. My dad routinely carried a .357 around with him, and nobody thought anything at all about it. We need to get back to that, especially now. And not just in the US, but in every Western country. Being armed and ready to defend your life, your family, and your property, is a fundamental human right! You want to prevent genocide? Arm the populace so they can resist effectively!

Let those evil fucks at the UN choke on that shit.

I’m sure as hell glad I live in Texas, where I can be armed in my house, my truck, and in public with a CCP. I’m still pushing for open carry like New Mexico has, though.

Bottom line is, most of these deaths would have been prevented if the soldiers were armed, as they should have been: 13 dead and 30 wounded. By one man with two handguns. On the largest United States military post in the world.

Disgraceful.

Here’s the perp the morning of the attack buying coffee, dressed in trad Islamic rags.

Here are CAIR representatives doing what Muslims do best, faking sincerity and lying to us infidels. Remember, CAIR is an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terror financing case. The Koran tells them to lie to us, so that’s what they do when it suits their purposes. And they really don’t want the attention on them for this incident, so they are lying: Islam is the religion of lies also.

I’ll never trust a Muslim. Ever. And that’s not prejudice, it’s a rational and post-judicial decision. Islam is evil, as its followers prove daily.

UPDATE – bing

The compant we keep. From a fellow worshipper at Hasan’s mosque…

Duane : I’m not going to condemn him for what he did. I don’t know why he did it. I will not, absolutely not, condemn him for what he had done though. If he had done it for selfish reasons I still will not condemn him. He’s my brother in the end. I will never condemn him.

Personally, this is hard to reconcile. I have two muslim friends. And they are good blokes. Yet, unsurprisingly, the above pops up…

Man-made CO2

Anthropogenic CO2 – around only 5% of all CO2 – runs at about 15 ppm – that’s fifteen parts per million or 0.0015% – of the earth’s atmosphere. How batshit crazy do you have to be to think that reducing that 0.0015% will make even the slightest difference to average global temperature, especially when you have that big orange ball in the sky – our sun – constantly changing its output? Let alone changes in the earth’s orbit and wobble, and natural changes in ocean temperatures.

And yet Copenhagen is barely more than a month away. Potentially lots of money for some but certainly not for us.

And back in Australia, Rudd still wants to impose a massive job-killing tax on everything and everyone. A massive tax because Australia produces about 1.5% of total global man-made carbon dioxide output. Yes, that’s 1.5% of 15 ppm – 0.0000225% of the atmosphere.

Astounding. And insidious.

Having trouble vizualizing those numbers? Here’s a good vid to help out.

Divide the smaller of the two amounts of red rice by about 65 and you’ll get Australia’s contribution. Yeah, that’s right. Time to break out the HD plasma.

And just in case you haven’t seen this yet.

UPDATE

There’s a new study out suggesting even Neptune might play a part in climate change on Earth.

The point is this: with so many variables that we likely don’t fully understand – sun, oceans, orbits, wobbles, cosmic rays, possibly even the other planets now, and most probably a whole host of others we don’t yet know about, all going about their various cycles and cycles within cycles – to go to all this bother and consequent pain (if Al Gore et. al. get their way) all over a piddly amount of man-made CO2 is utterly, utterly ridiculous.

H/T Reader Greg over at Bolt’s palace.

A nice little earner….

Most people here will have seen Monkton’s little speech about the perils of signing up to the new UN climate change treaty.

 

Be sure to check out Lord Monkton’s own powerpoint display…. I wonder if he can get an Oscar if he films it?

Some of his figures appear to be quite devastating

What most people probably dont know is just how much of an income stream the UN is already receiving from the “processing fees” attached to issuing those credits.

 

From the UNs own background paper.

C. Share of proceeds to cover administrative expenses
7. At COP/MOP.1 Parties decided6 that the share of proceeds to cover administrative expenses of the CDM shall be:
(a) USD 0.10 per CER issued for the first 15,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent for which issuance is requested in a given calendar year;
(b) USD 0.20 per CER issued for any amount in excess of 15,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent for which issuance is requested in a given calendar year.
8. These arrangements are to be reviewed at the next session of the COP/MOP.
9. The share of proceeds to cover administrative expenses takes the form of cash rather than CERs, at least initially. Cash payments were specified because continued operation of the CDM needed immediate funds and a predictable cash flow. Collection and sale of CERs as the share of proceeds to cover administrative expenses might yield more, or less, revenue. But the timeneeded to implement a system to sell the CERs collected would certainly have delayed receipt of urgently needed funds.7
10. The COP/MOP decision relating to the share of proceeds for administrative expenses does not limit its decision on the share of proceeds to assist in meeting the costs of adaptation; the share of proceeds to assist in meeting the costs of adaptation could be collected as CERs reflecting decisions 17/CP.7, 19/CP.9 and 12/CP.10 or as a cash payment if so specified by a future COP/MOP decision.

 

Now coming from the mob who oversaw “oil for food” under Saddam it doesnt exactly fill me with confidence.

It is difficult (well for me anyway) to find out just how much of the carbon market is made up of UN certified carbon credits. However for conveniences sake I will use Wikis figures.

 

Market trend

Carbon emissions trading has been steadily increasing in recent years. According to the World Bank’s Carbon Finance Unit, 374 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO₂e) were exchanged through projects in 2005, a 240% increase relative to 2004 (110 mtCO₂ewhich was itself a 41% increase relative to 2003 (78 mtCO₂e).In terms of dollars, the World Bank has estimated that the size of the carbon market was 11 billion USD in 2005, 30 billion USD in 2006and 64 billion in 2007

 

So if I was to be conservative and use 2005 figures, at the lower rate of .20 USD per tonne how much does that yield in play money for the UN?

Nearly $74,000,000 USD using 2005 figures. It can be assumed the figures are actually much, much higher given the massive growth in trading since then.

 

Now can somebody tell me how this isnt a form of taxation payable to the UN directly? After all it is based on energy, the most essential part of any economic activity, if this treaty is enacted and followed just how is this not a global consumption tax?

 

And we are supposed to embrace the UN climate change statistics as a neutral player in this game? The UN is pushing as hard as it can to obtain a revenue stream free from pesky things like donor nations, this will allow it to do so.

If its PACO industries, its of an assured quality...

PACO, servicing the environment, just like a bull at a cow…

We are told we cant trust certain scientists because they are just shills in the service of big oil/coal etc. I remain unconvinced why I should trust the UNs paid shills when they have just as much, possibly more riding on it as well.

Will Israel attack Iran soon?

Well, not so much ‘attack’ as take out their nukes and some other military targets.

Lubos Motl’s post, here, suggests that it’s highly likely (probably shortly after the latest UN junket) and ‘kind of a good idea’…

Agreed. Especially after Ahmadinnerjacket’s disgusting rant at the UN.

H/T Breitbart and TT over at Blair’s.

A view into the Leftist hivemind.

Shamelessly stolen from Boltas comes this story, http://blogs.news.com.au/heraldsun/andrewbolt/index.php/heraldsun/comments/a_degree_of_professional_protesting/

About the Sydney Universities “Centre for Peace and conflict studies”. I think they deserve a closer look.

 

Heres their website http://www.arts.usyd.edu.au/centres/cpacs/about/index.shtml, I wonder what nonsense and lefty wankery can be found within?

 

No- Really hes the media lecturer.

More below the fold Caution, a little bit of swearing inside!

CNN’s NK wrap

It’s actually pretty decent. With more resources and collective time than this blogger has, it’s worth a look.

Still, grain of salt. Air raid sirens still go off here every month or two (usually on the 15th or so) to remind people. Yawn. And we all know how the 24/7 media cycle works. They’ll flog it til something else comes up.

This shit always comes up. Real question is; how will Obama deal with it? This has all been to get Obama’s attention.

Obama’s actually done well getting SK to sign on to the Proliferation Security Initiative… and this has pissed the shit outta NK, hence the latest missile tests and a declaration of war. But as much as I disagree on Obama on most things, he cannot be blamed for this.

Anyway, how serious is this? Some schools and academies have been closed for swine flu (ha!) but all this is not enough to get me outta going to work tomorrow but, d’oh.

Remember, Kim Jong-il is about to cark it and NK still needs to be noticed by Obama and CNN.

Good night, folks.

Watch This Guy

Although not given much attention by the UK Press, MEP Daniel Hannan’s recent speech in response to Gordon Brown’s address to the European Union is nearing 2 million hits on Youtube, and one can see why. Wish we had him.

Was this the plan all along?

The only source for this is Pravda, so I wouldn’t stake the farm on its reliability.

George Soros was a major backer of Obamas campaign through a multitude of “community organisations” and soft money.

Obama appears to be floundering on the economy in the US. For the “smartest guy in the room” he appears to be fumbling much more than you’d expect, with many of the economic management positions in his administration still to be filled. (And Barney “I know Nuthik!” Frank anywhere near money after his role in the Fannie/Freddie debacle)

Then there’s this.

Russia unexpectedly supported George Soros’s idea to turn the drawing rights of the IMF into the world’s supercurrency. The idea is clear: the dollar is too risky to become the stronghold of the financial system.

B'stard

More below the fold.

How to boycott Israel… properly

Ever wanted to give Israel the shaft but just can’t work out the most effective way to do it? Well, easy solutions are at hand.

H/T Geoff of the West over at Bolt’s palace.

Meanwhile, speaking of bashing Israel, Bolt’s asks, “Why are we going to this hate-fest?”

What hate-fest? The United Nations Durban Review Conference to be held in Geneva, but of course. The last one in Durban turned out to be little more than an attack on Israel and her allies.

So, yeah, why go? Oh. For that non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council and we need the anti-Zionist vote to nail it. Rudd has sunk to a new low.

Click the above link for a more detailed analysis.

More related shennanigans is here in case you missed it.

The United Nations will be introducing a totalitarian piece of authoritarianism as a binding resolution in March 2009 in an attempt to force if possible and influence where force is not possible member nations to do away with freedom of speech regarding religion.

They have already passed a non-binding resolution, introduced by the 57-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference which has a permanent place in the United Nations, titled “Combating the Defamation of Religion” which seeks to influence all member nations to pass laws to criminalize freedom of speech regarding religion.

The upcoming proposed binding resolution will be an attempt by the 57-nation Organization of the Islamic Conference and their sympathesizers to force all member nations, including all free western democracies, to criminalize freedom of speech regarding religion, with prejudice toward Islam, effectively shredding the Constitution and first amendment in this country and ending freedom of speech regarding religion in democracies around the world effectively seeking to usher in a new dark ages with a single U.N. binding resolution. – Lou Dobbs

Nyeh, you’re First Ammendment was getting boring anyway, Yanks.

Rant while you can, folks (although it’d be astounding if any of the garbage mentioned in this post were actually adopted).

UPDATE

Andrew Bolt calls for an all-out boycott of the United Nations Durban Review Conference.

UPDATE II

No worries, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon thinks the Yanks are deadbeats anyway. Gotta love that appreciation. Something about dogs, hands, and biting in there somewhere.

Bing visits the DMZ

Yep. Finally, after more than four years (on and off) working in South Korea, a mate and I got around to visiting the most heavily fortified place on the planet, one of the final ‘living’ remnants of the Cold War, where democracy and capitalism literally meets old school communism – the Demilitarized Zone aka DMZ aka Panmunjom.

Part of the tour included visiting the most exciting place of all, the Joint Security Area aka JSA. As you probably know, that’s the bit where you could literally walk into North Korea if you were so inclined (and didn’t mind being shot at).

And we also saw the third incursion tunnel, one of four that have been discovered, that the North Koreans built after the armistice (remember, the Korean War isn’t technically over – the military guys did their part but we’re all still waiting on the politicians to sort the rest out).

Anyway, I took pics of course (where they let me) so without further ado…

Hamas update: Now they’re hiding out in hospital basements

Yep.

After a day in which “only” 22 rockets were fired into Israel, the IDF stated that there has been a dramatic reduction in Hamas’ ability to launch rockets, with the launches having dropped by 50% compared to the start of the operation.

What hasn’t reduced is the cowardice of Hamas leaders, and desire to endanger the lives of their citizens, with reports that senior Hamasholes are hiding out in the basements of the Shifa Hospital complex in Gaza.

The UN’s call for a ceasefire is an utter joke. No wonder the US abstained.

McCain’s Perfect Choice for a Running Mate: Governor Sarah Palin

While most of the pedantic, two-dimensional, inside-the-box-thinking, conservative political hacks are touting Tom Ridge for the slot (Not a bad guy, but…), David Freddoso notes a far superior choice has been proposed: The Republican Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin.

I believe this is a truly inspired idea. Gov. Palin ran as an anti-corruption outsider, and handily defeated a corrupt and entrenched Republican political machine. Plus, at 44, she would almost totally wipe the “age issue” McCain has off the slate, and since Obama is only two years her senior, there is no way they could attack her for her youth and inexperience: She has much more executive experience than Senator Obama has.

Not to mention the fact that, she’s a gorgeous woman who exudes mass quantities of charisma…

and has a super-solid family life.

Dibs on the eldest daughter! LOL!

This inspired choice would allow McCain to actually capitalize on his “maverick” persona, as Gov. Palin shook Alaska politics to the core: She’s a charming, charismatic woman, but she can also play with the big boys and kick ass.

What say ye?

UPDATE: Things are looking optimistic!

UPDATE II: Welcome to all 4500 8000 40,000 in the past few hours (so far!) people visiting us from Google. We’re a fairly opinionated right-wing blog, and you might like to take a look at our “About” page. You might also be interested in our other coverage of Sarah Palin and whether she becomes a prospective Vice President of the United States. You can find this coverage here and here. Personally, I hope she does, but you can feel free to debate the idea in comments below. All first comments are moderated, but unless you either insult or use severe profanity (and I mean severe by my standards, which generally only means the C U Next Tuesday word or the implication that someone has had a rather enjoyable erotic experience with someone who has borne a child), however if you come up with a new one, I may simply delete your comment. I, and all other contributors to this blog are more than fair in what we permit.

UPDATE III: Nayr Drahcir, don’t bother even trying. You will not be published.

UPDATE IV: A lot of people must like Palin.

UPDATE V: More coverage of Governor Sarah Palin and a theme song here.

UPDATE VI: Funniest observation on the announcement yet: “Put Obama and Palin on a basketball court one on one. Winner takes all!”

UPDATE VII: [spot_the_dog] No, we do not have any pictures of “Sarah Palin + Naked,” nor do we have any of “Sarah Palin + Swimsuit.” In the past 24 hours, there have been 157 separate searches on this site for “Sarah Palin Swimsuit,” and 161 separate searches for “Sarah Palin Naked.” I repeat, we have no bathing suit, swim suit, bikini, or naked pictures of Sarah Palin. What kind of people do you think we are, anyway? 😉

UPDATE VIIa: [spot_the_dog] Ace has noticed a similar search phenomenon on his blog and has a theory…

UPDATE VIII: A well-rounded view of the selection of Sarah Palin for the Vice President Nomination can be found here.

UPDATE IX:  We got it!  YES!  Nude photo of Sarah Palin right here!  (C’mon.  You know you want to click.)

UPDATE X: Feel free to visit our main page and read the latest posts we’ve written.

Never fear, America. Super-Kev to the rescue!

Australia’s Boy Wonder PM Kevin Rudd is off on his 16th overseas trip since he was elected 10 months ago.  He’s been gone so often,  a map has even been created to track his wandering ways.

Where is Kevin this week?  Off saving the American economy!  As Piers Akerman relates,

Late Friday, usually reliable Treasury sources claimed that Rudd had asked Treasury for five ideas on solving the sub-prime crisis he could take with him this week to the US and present in his talks to senior American officials.

The laughter, as this story was retold around Canberra dining tables, could be heard echoing across Lake Burley Griffin.

Action-Man Kev.  For the past 10 months in Australia, he’s done nothing but watch – and now he has delusions that he can fly into New York and single-handedly solve America’s sub-prime crisis?

Can’t wait for another Zelig Rudd / Being There moment.