‘Sledgehammer’ Terror War

July 24, 2008

Definition from Merriam-Webster online for terror.

Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French terrour, from Latin terror, from terrēre to frighten; akin to Greek trein to be afraid, flee, tremein to tremble — more at tremble
Date:14th century
1: a state of intense fear
2 a: one that inspires fear — scourge; b: a frightening aspect — the terrors of invasion; c: a cause of anxiety — worry; d: an appalling person or thing; especially — brat
3: reign of terror
4: violent or destructive acts (as bombing) committed by groups in order to intimidate a population or government into granting their demands — insurrection and revolutionary terror

synonyms: see fear

On that fateful Tuesday morning, Sept. 11, 2001, a couple of seemingly unrelated people collided in violent contact.
One of those guys is Osama bin Laden.
The other — Decider George.
Of course, it wasn’t actually them, but their henchmen/cronies, and above all, it was in reality their dangerous philosophies which impacted together.

Despite all said about Osama and his boys, one has to give the cave-dwelling sonofabitch credit for anticipation — the US would come to him instead of the other way around.
Decider George’s Wide World of War on Terror has been a total disaster, an incompetent, politically-motivated product that has mangled life not only in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the US and the rest of the whole, wide world.

Osama says he wants the West out of the Middle East, under which the world’s energy source lies, and that’s why there is now two major conflicts there amid multi-billion US weapons-deals to Persian Gulf countries –Decider George says to Osama, Yeah, so what? Bring ’em on!

And the US right now is embroiled in disaster — all for politics geared to program of oil for war.

A case in point appeared in this morning’s New York Times under the head, ‘Plan Would Use Antiterror Aid on Pakistani Jets,’ and reported that Decider George and his band of wingnuts want to divert “nearly $230 million in aid to Pakistan from counter-terrorism programs to upgrading that country’s aging F-16 attack planes, which Pakistan prizes more for their contribution to its military rivalry with India than for fighting insurgents along its Afghan border.”

  • The timing of the action caught lawmakers off guard, prompting some of them to suspect that the deal was meant to curry favor with the new Pakistani prime minister, Yousaf Raza Gilani, who will meet with President Bush in Washington next week, and to ease tensions over the 11 members of the Pakistani paramilitary forces killed in an American airstrike along the Afghan border last month.
    The financing for the F-16s would represent more than two-thirds of the $300 million that Pakistan will receive this year in American military financing for equipment and training.
    Last year, Congress specified that those funds be used for law enforcement or counterterrorism. Pakistan’s military has rarely used its current fleet of F-16s, which were built in the 1980s, for close-air support of counterterrorism missions, largely because the risks of civilian casualties would inflame anti-government sentiments in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.

And this, buried in the story with absolute-no further explanation:

  • State Department officials say the upgrades would greatly enhance the F-16s’ ability to strike insurgents accurately, while reducing the risk to civilians.
    The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because Congress was weighing the plan, said the timing was driven by deadlines of the American contractor, Lockheed Martin.

What the hell?
What’s Lockheed Martin have to do with all this?
Maybe, just maybe — Lockheed Martin is making money hand-over-jack-off-fist.
On Tuesday, the stupendously-behemoth-like defense contractor announced a profit of $882 million:

  • …or $2.15 per diluted share, for the second quarter of 2008, a 12 percent increase from the second quarter of 2007 when the company recorded a profit of $778 million, or $1.82 per diluted share.
    Lockheed (NYSE: LMT), which has facilities in Dallas and Horizon City, Texas, attributes its solid performance in the quarter to strong activity in its aeronautics, electronic systems and information and global services sectors.
    Despite aeronautics sales falling 8 percent because of a drop in aircraft sales, the company’s overall net sales increased 4 percent from $10.6 billion in the second quarter of 2007 to $11 billion in the most recent quarter.

Although some might bluster a bit, the bottom line Decider George will get his shit.
Also from the Times report:

  • Many Congressional officials remain unconvinced. “Using F-16s this way is like hitting a fly with a sledgehammer,” said one senior Senate Democratic aide, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the current negotiations.
    It remains unclear whether any lawmaker will block or postpone the financing, and risk harming relations with Pakistan any further.

Decider George has gotten the US into some bad, rotten water — the river of terror of no return.

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