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I really hope this doesn't end with another Rab'a.
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Apr 25, 2019 10:32
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Ham posted:I really hope this doesn't end with another Rab'a. Its what I keep expecting. I read just now 3 top generals have resigned, which the protesters have demanded. I really hope the people some how get something good out of this. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-48049936
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Apr 25, 2019 12:09
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Are any threads covering the Sri Lankan bombings?
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Apr 25, 2019 14:14
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Darth Walrus posted:Are any threads covering the Sri Lankan bombings? nope, pretty much just me with a couple posts in cspam  as of a couple days ago: 40-ish Sri Lankans have been detained in relation to the Sri Lanka attacks. The government seems to be officially-ish blaming National Thowheed Jamath, not necessarily to be confused with Tamil Nadu's NTJ, and a splitoff (for reasons I do not know) from Sri Lanka Thowheed Jamath. SLTJ, while Wahhabi-leaning ideological assholes, has historically been nonviolent-ish, which is presumably part of why the feds went "wait, what?" and are pretty darn sure there was international coordination / involvement / resource contribution. There's apparently another lovely local group the government thinks is also involved, the "Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen India linked to a similar organization in Bangladesh." The claimed motive for the attack seems to be retaliation for the Christchurch mosque attacks. IS has gotten around to officially claiming responsibility, but that doesn't necessarily mean they were the international dudes involved - they've claimed responsibility for stuff they didn't do in the past. == There's not a shitload new that I can tell, a couple of the bombers have been identified and there's an rear end in a top hat cleric who the authorities are Extremely Interested in.
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Apr 25, 2019 14:22
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Amnesty just released a massive investigation into coalition airstrikes in Raqqa killing at least 1600 civilians, 4 times the amount claimed by the US: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8Bvzuppihs There's some really well done interactive pieces on there, and 100s of cases they looked into.
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Apr 25, 2019 14:37
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GreyjoyBastard posted:nope, pretty much just me with a couple posts in cspam There's footage of the bombers pledging loyalty to IS before the attack, and it's almost certainly not about Christchurch given how sophisticated and resource-intensive the plot was (as in, they'd have to have been planning it well before the mosque attacks). One weird/horrifying detail I saw was that the suicide bombers included a millionaire businessman and his pregnant wife - the bombs were apparently made in one of his factories. That's, uh, not your stereotypical suicide bomber backstory.
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Apr 25, 2019 14:37
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The bombing attacks in Sri Lanka were pretty sophisticated in terms of logistics and planning. It really does point to an international element such as ISIS or AQ because there isn't a group in Sri Lanka who have pulled off anything close to this in the past. From what I've read about the local Islamic group who are being blamed for this (National Thowheed Jamath) the biggest attacks they have pulled off before have been minor acts of vandalism, there's no way they could suddenly escalate to a massive coordinated attack like this one.
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Apr 25, 2019 14:38
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Darth Walrus posted:There's footage of the bombers pledging loyalty to IS before the attack, and it's almost certainly not about Christchurch given how sophisticated and resource-intensive the plot was (as in, they'd have to have been planning it well before the mosque attacks). One weird/horrifying detail I saw was that the suicide bombers included a millionaire businessman and his pregnant wife - the bombs were apparently made in one of his factories. That's, uh, not your stereotypical suicide bomber backstory. Didn't know about the loyalty pledge thing (might have to hand in my isis-watcher card). Two other bombers were the kids of another mogul. I'm morbidly curious about the recruitment process. edit: oh, that was the same guy Goatse James Bond fucked around with this message at 15:05 on Apr 25, 2019 |
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Apr 25, 2019 15:01
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Don't know if anyone posted this yet but this hit more close to home. Considering the university I attended has a large saudi Arabia portion of students from there and being a university close by. https://www.freep.com/story/news/education/2019/04/23/saudi-arabia-beheadings-executions-mujtaba-al-sweikat/3552679002/
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Apr 25, 2019 19:17
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I wonder if Trump's oil sanctions against Iran will cause the barrell to go over $100 again. Also what do his trade wars actually hit? I'm hearing nothing yet from China about downturns.
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Apr 25, 2019 19:26
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Grouchio posted:I wonder if Trump's oil sanctions against Iran will cause the barrell to go over $100 again. Also what do his trade wars actually hit? I'm hearing nothing yet from China about downturns. No they wont. Your teacher is wrong and probably has stock in Haliburton.
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Apr 25, 2019 22:30
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Grouchio posted:Also what do his trade wars actually hit? I'm hearing nothing yet from China about downturns. why don't you go ask in a thread about trump, the US economy, or china
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Apr 25, 2019 22:54
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https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/...ty-coup-mueller Trump is basically incompetent Erdogan
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Apr 27, 2019 07:02
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Throatwarbler posted:https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/...ty-coup-mueller Erdogan is pretty incompetent to begin with, but nevertheless the statement holds true.
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Apr 27, 2019 07:33
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Throatwarbler posted:Trump is basically incompetent Erdogan
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Apr 27, 2019 08:42
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Grim but important thread listing the folks executed in Saudi Arabia for 'terrorism' the other day. https://twitter.com/eshalegal/status/1120762989609652229?s=21
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Apr 29, 2019 14:02
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https://twitter.com/DanieleRaineri/status/1122896753685086209
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Apr 29, 2019 18:41
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If true, is anybody else singing "The Jihadi came back, the very next day..." to themselves?
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Apr 29, 2019 19:31
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Not a story that was getting much play outside of Iran, but they finally got the Iranian Christopher Dorner. There's been a manhunt since he murdered a cleric in the street a few days ago. https://mobile.twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee/status/1122425795782291456
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Apr 29, 2019 22:21
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How did we not kill him...?
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Apr 29, 2019 22:42
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If IS is really just an idea then might as well give them some small patch of land so they can party on it instead of partying at random parts of the world, no? Do people really think they can destroy the idea that is currently embodied by IS?
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Apr 29, 2019 23:41
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Shaocaholica posted:If IS is really just an idea then might as well give them some small patch of land so they can party on it instead of partying at random parts of the world, no? Do people really think they can destroy the idea that is currently embodied by IS? Are you inviting them over to your house? Who the gently caress on the planet wants ISIS on their border?
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Apr 30, 2019 05:22
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Kawasaki Nun posted:Are you inviting them over to your house? Who the gently caress on the planet wants ISIS on their border? The ocean?
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Apr 30, 2019 06:05
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Shaocaholica posted:If IS is really just an idea then might as well give them some small patch of land so they can party on it instead of partying at random parts of the world, no? Do people really think they can destroy the idea that is currently embodied by IS? Yeah, except one small problem is that the "idea" IS embodies is a global caliphate.
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Apr 30, 2019 06:20
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Shaocaholica posted:If IS is really just an idea then might as well give them some small patch of land so they can party on it instead of partying at random parts of the world, no? Do people really think they can destroy the idea that is currently embodied by IS? The hottest of takes.
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Apr 30, 2019 13:08
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This is really loving bad, and if the US government carries through with it, it's basically a statement to people living under the yoke of dictatorship in the Arab world that they're not allowed to aspire to live in a democracy: https://twitter.com/nedprice/status/1123207515926405121
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Apr 30, 2019 18:03
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And that the only true opposition to the dictatorships are islamists.
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Apr 30, 2019 18:10
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Sinteres posted:This is really loving bad, and if the US government carries through with it, it's basically a statement to people living under the yoke of dictatorship in the Arab world that they're not allowed to aspire to live in a democracy: That's hardly new though. There's been a broad perception in the region that [url=]the United States is only concerned with its own larger geopolitical interests and props up local dictators while thwarting local aspirations for political and eocnomic sovereignty that goes back to the 1950s. FOREIGN RELATIONS OF THE UNITED STATES, 1958–1960, NEAR EAST REGION; IRAQ; IRAN; ARABIAN PENINSULA, VOLUME XII posted:2. Current conditions and political trends in the Near East are inimical to Western interests. In the eyes of the majority of Arabs the United States appears to be opposed to the realization of the goals of Arab nationalism. They believe that the United States is seeking to protect its interest in Near East oil by supporting the status quo and opposing political or economic progress, and that the United States is intent upon maneuvering the Arab states into a position in which they will be committed to fight in a World War against the Soviet Union. quote:Our economic and cultural interests in the area have led not unnaturally to close U.S. relations with elements in the Arab world whose primary interest lies in the maintenance of relations with the West and the status quo in their countries—Chamoun of Lebanon, King Saud, Nuri of Iraq, King Hussein. These relations have contributed to a widespread belief in the area that the United States desires to keep the Arab world disunited and is committed to work with “reactionary” elements to that end. quote:The continuing and necessary association of the United States in the Western European Alliance makes it impossible for us to avoid some identification with the powers which formerly had, and still have, “colonial” interests in the area.
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Apr 30, 2019 18:21
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Helsing posted:That's hardly new though. There's been a broad perception in the region that [url=]the United States is only concerned with its own larger geopolitical interests and props up local dictators while thwarting local aspirations for political and eocnomic sovereignty that goes back to the 1950s. Sure, but declaring the last legitimately elected government in Egypt a terrorist organization is still a step beyond the norm, or else you wouldn't see career officials resisting it the way they are: John R. Bolton, the national security adviser, and Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, support the idea, officials said. But the Pentagon, career national security staff, government lawyers and diplomatic officials have voiced legal and policy objections, and have been scrambling to find a more limited step that would satisfy the White House.
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Apr 30, 2019 18:41
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While certain high level officials might recognize that its a clumsy and unnecessary statement to put out the idea that it's some kind of dramatic shift from America's typical posture or that it will somehow shift the already overwhelmingly negative opinion most people in the region have toward America just comes off as a bit silly though. I think American actions over many decades speak more loudly than any one administration's actions could at this point.
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Apr 30, 2019 18:44
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Worldweary cynical takes like 'everything's already bad so it doesn't matter if it gets worse' never get old.
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Apr 30, 2019 18:50
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Being realistic about how America is perceived isn't world weary cynicism, it's just pointing out the obvious. Setting up Trump as some uniquely awful figure is an unsubtle way of apologizing for past American presidents who really weren't notably better, even if they were slightly more measured in their communications strategy. The problems here aren't reducible to a single administration, especially not one that took office less than a full term ago.
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Apr 30, 2019 18:56
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a big part of trumpism is that it's american power politics without the mask the mask wasn't nothing, but trump's politics, bizarrely, seem basically honest; when he says he wants to build a wall, he tries very hard to build the wall, against all reason likewise it seems like he just doesn't get why he should be careful about the framing of foreign policy; that just seems like pointless hypocrisy to him, i think
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Apr 30, 2019 19:01
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in a hosed up way, trump is probably the most honest president america's had in a very long time in terms of policy. this is objectively hilarious
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Apr 30, 2019 19:03
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Obama tentatively supported Egyptian democracy, so not all US presidents are the same, and for all his faults even Bush seemed to genuinely believe in the transformative power of democracy in the region in the early part of his presidency, before he realized people might have the gall to elect leaders we didn't approve of. Yeah, the consensus US foreign policy position has been to bolster some massively authoritarian leaders, particularly in Saudi Arabia, but with Trump I really think the message is that all a strongman has to do is call the people terrorists and he'll support the strongman (see also his support for Haftar).
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Apr 30, 2019 19:05
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Sinteres posted:Obama tentatively supported Egyptian democracy, so not all US presidents are the same, and for all his faults even Bush seemed to genuinely believe in the transformative power of democracy in the region in the early part of his presidency, before he realized people might have the gall to elect leaders we didn't approve of. Yeah, the consensus US foreign policy position has been to bolster some massively authoritarian leaders, particularly in Saudi Arabia, but with Trump I really think the message is that all a strongman has to do is call the people terrorists and he'll support the strongman (see also his support for Haftar). This refusal to admit how consistently bad American foreign policy in the region is does not help anything. You're inflating minor and mostly irrelevant distinctions that are more a matter of style than substance. When you're praising George W. Bush for his belief in middle eastern democracy it is time to check yourself and ask what lead you down this path.
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Apr 30, 2019 19:09
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Helsing posted:This refusal to admit how consistently bad American foreign policy in the region is does not help anything. You're inflating minor and mostly irrelevant distinctions that are more a matter of style than substance. When you're praising George W. Bush for his belief in middle eastern democracy it is time to check yourself and ask what lead you down this path. I mean I did say he abandoned the view once it proved inconvenient, so it wasn't really praise. I'm not exactly the most patriotic American posting in this thread, and think there were plenty of reasons to question the good faith of the United States long before Trump came along, but I do think the way he's ripping off the mask and displaying the very worst of America's cynical imperialism for the world to see is a bad thing, because it's going to give license to the region's dictators to do whatever the gently caress they want with his support. There used to at least be the idea that our support was contingent on pretending to give a poo poo about human rights, but now there's nothing. Dr Kool-AIDS fucked around with this message at 19:13 on Apr 30, 2019 |
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Apr 30, 2019 19:09
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Sinteres posted:I mean I did say he abandoned the view once it proved inconvenient, so it wasn't really praise. I'm not exactly the most patriotic American posting in this thread, and think there were plenty of reasons to question the good faith of the United States long before Trump came along, but I do think the way he's ripping off the mask and displaying the very worst of America's cynical imperialism for the world to see is a bad thing, because it's going to give license to the region's dictators to do whatever the gently caress they want with his support. I won't belabor the point but suffice it to say I think you're grasping around trying to find a distinction that makes no actual difference.
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Apr 30, 2019 19:13
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Helsing posted:I won't belabor the point but suffice it to say I think you're grasping around trying to find a distinction that makes no actual difference. Whereas you used a lot of words to say lol nothing matters.
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Apr 30, 2019 19:16
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Sinteres posted:Obama tentatively supported Egyptian democracy, so not all US presidents are the same, and for all his faults even Bush seemed to genuinely believe in the transformative power of democracy in the region in the early part of his presidency, before he realized people might have the gall to elect leaders we didn't approve of. Yeah, the consensus US foreign policy position has been to bolster some massively authoritarian leaders, particularly in Saudi Arabia, but with Trump I really think the message is that all a strongman has to do is call the people terrorists and he'll support the strongman (see also his support for Haftar). and then bankrolled the everloving poo poo out of the coup to be rid of it, in violation of US policy, because the alternative was letting a democratically elected government that didn't like us exist, but hey, details
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Apr 30, 2019 19:29
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