About Me

40ties, 3 children, full time work, little time.

Thursday, August 31, 2006

Israel extrajudiciary killing in Palestine Occupied Territories

Twenty first century. 2000 years of Jesus Christ teachings. We, the superior western civilisations are meant to be the peak of human evolution tree. We are supposed to be powerfull, and able to insist that our lofty ideals of human rights and individual freedoms and compationate capitalism and equality and and rule of law and democracy without trampling on minorities etc, etc, etc...
And then I'm surfing the internet and find that the powerful and influential are exempt from the rules. Why we subject the young soldiers with inadequaty personalities who commit war crimes to the full wrah of the law, but sit on our hands and ignore totally a much more cold blooded, pre-meditated and executed without flicker of the remorse murders occuring under our noses in Middle East?
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Thursday, August 24, 2006

US: Military strategy based on business strategy?

In his essay "The end of the Bush Revolution" (published June 2006) Philip H Gordon argues that the Bush administration, despite keeping the rethoric of war on terror and the ideology that America has moral right to show the liberalism and democracy down peoples throats whether they want in or not, have, in fact modified its approach and, behind the scenes takes more conciliatory approach, trying diplomacy and making overtures to mend the bridges with Europe. "America is at war ... Axil of evil..." has been replaced with "US will continue to rally the world " . This softening of approach is in retreat since the Israel attacked Lebanon. America had no option but to support Israel and must have been aghast to realise that Hezbullah have an upper hand. Iran's and Syria's posturing while entirely predictable must grate badly. It will be interesting if re-activation of neocon-pur "America is at war, Iran is a clear enemy of US interests " will win against the american public's and world's revulsion against so called collateral damage inflicted on Lebanese people. Frederic W. Kagan in an essay in periodical Foreign Affair describes the recent approach of the neocon military strategists responsible for distribution of funds to various military sections of the Pentagon. The business acumen requires that the product bringing the best returns should be expanded at the expense of the less profitable product. This is hardly revolutionary. Using this logic in the military milleau can be quite disastrous. US has been pouring funds into high tech military hardware, especially aircraft and information gathering systems, while cutting down on actual soldiers and ground support. The problem with this choice of priorities is obvious to anyone who heard of Hannibal and his "victory" over Roman Empire or seen VietCom withstand US might and Hezbollah virtually untouched in its warrens spanning the south Lebanon. The point is that destroying military targets and destroying country infrastructure is NOT a military victory per se. To win the war, the loosers must accept the authority of the victors on the level of government and administration. Hence Israel did not "win" the 1967 war - they are still fighting it every day.

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Litani River


This is Litani River. Will red poppies grow on its banks , watered not by rain, but by blood of Lebanese people?

Exploding dell computer at Nuffield

Not so long ago, while working at Nuffield Hospital, a computer started smoking at the back of the large piece of equipment. We pulled the plug, thus preventling the chunk of hospital going up in flames, we let it cool down overnight, went home, and next morning called an engineer. The engineer let it slip that this was by no means the first time it happened. These computers often overheated. He also said, that as the computer was made by Dell, and simply added to the back of the unit, the manufacturers of the analyzer itself were not really responsible.
Well I thought that this may need to be reported, as the NHS hospitals are littered with this equipment and as they tend to be left unattended for prolonged periods of time, overheating may well cause fire.
Alas, I was naive. For a while I expected incident report to be completed. Then I approached our estate manager, who is responsible health and safety, and asked him if this incident comes under RIDDOR. He didn't think so, but he was waiting for a official report about the incident from my boss. In addition, I heard that hospital already reported two incidents to local Health and Safety Executive, and the third one may trigger an investigation. I asked if it would make sense to write to Medical Devices Agency but got brushed off.
After a while it became obvious that my boss had no intention to waste time on the incident report, and I was pissing him off just mentioning it. Medical Devices Agency would not take
anonymous report and I would step on every imaginable toe if I were to circumvent proper channels and take the matter to them myself.
I always felt a coward for not forcing the issue. Sometimes I had nightmares that there is a burning hospital building with fire started by computer at the back of these large analysers.
Yet reporting the incident was clearly not part of my job description. I raised it with all appropriate people and agencies. Did I do enough? When is a right time to let go of something? At which point do you draw the line and say "Lets forget it, its somebody else's ball, they get paid more than me, I want to get on with my life and clear my conscience."

Monday, August 14, 2006

Islamofascism


I am extremely offended by use of the phrase "islamofascism". It is emotive, divisive and it attempts to deliberately incite religious hatred.
“Naturally the common people don’t want war; neither in Russia, nor in England, nor in America , nor in Germany. That is understood. But after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine policy, and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice of no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is to tell them they are being attacked, and denounced the pacifists for the lack of patriotism and exposing the country to the danger. It works the same in any country”
Hermann Goering at the Nuremberg trials. (quote thanks to Les at Newsnight ‘s website)

On frogs, resistance and terrorism


I have just finished listening to the beautiful and powerful song written about a soldier of polish resistance leaving his beloved to join partisans fighting German occupier. These men knew very well they faced almost a certain death. They lived the life full of danger, appearing from nowhere and dissolving in the night, fighting the enemy army, knowing full well that the British and French are not coming. We remember them, we salut them, we teach our children to remember them as heroes, we lit the candles in churches for them, we lit the candles in cemeteries knowing that many never had a Christian burial. They fought and they fell, and if they didn’t fell their fate was often worse in the hands of the German.
Please can someone tell me how, somehow, fight of men wanting to get rid of aggressor from their soil is different in Middle East than it was in Poland 60 years ago, how can we consider those who want to protect their land and their families and their livelihoods as terrorists? How and where did we get brainwashed into thinking that resistance to the ruthless aggressor is somehow wrong. And talking of wrongs - I do not believe and I never condone attacks on civilians. But It is grotesque to accept and to accept without thinking the preposition that just because people fight dirty their fight, their resistance, their sacrifice is invalid, is all criminal., is all terrorism.
How do we arrive at the stage that we are indifferent to this desperate injustice going on under our own noses and in front of our own eyes. Is this how Germany let fascists to lead them to despise Jews so much that their fate was not worth putting oneself in danger.
I am sure that this belief in Jews and Gipsies and handicapped as somehow subhuman did not happened overnight. There must have been a gradual process of the whole society deciding that they are superior to other groups of fellow human beings. How did this gradual process occur? Did it start with Cristalnacht and with sense that one can destroy other people’s property without consequences? Did it followed that as those people had less right to the justice they did not deserve justice? Did it followed that as society stayed indifferent to their fate the perpetrators were not really doing anything reprehensible? Did it follow that these “people” were not really same as us and as such did not deserve the society’s protection. Can you see how easy it is? Those people becoming those “people” becoming those dirty scum becoming vermin to be exterminated? It didn’t take Germans long to make this journey. Are we, civilized as we are, becoming de-sensitised to the tragedy unfolding in front of our eyes? By awarding some people right to kill others with impunity, while standing idly by, are we awarding a different “intrinsic” value to different groups in Lebanon, Palestine, Israel - are we on a slippery slope walked by our German friends 70-plus years ago?
I always wondered what it was like to have humanity sucked out of you in pre-was Germany. Did people notice? Or was it like that frog, that put in the pan of cold water does not try to escape when cooked alive?


Saturday, August 12, 2006

Army strength and individual morals

I saw an interview between Amy Goodman and Sergeant Ricky Clousing on DemocracyNow.org: He was an Army interrogator in Iraq and a year ago went AWOL .
On one hand I salute him for the strength of character that allowed him to follow his conscience. On the other hand I can see how the army of democratic nation which has freedom of speech can be weakened by those uncomfortable moral questions. The successful army has to have total dedication and iron discipline. None of this is likely to be present in the unjust war. Lest just hope that our troops will not be weak when the enemy will land on our soil and just war must be waged.

Friday, August 11, 2006

Cold Logic of Suicide Bombers

I came across an interview, conducted by Harry Kreisler from Institute of International Studies , University of California at Berkeley with Robert A. Pape, professor of Political Science at University of Chicago. After 9/11 Robert A. Pape set out , in the problem oriented approach, to research the phenomenon of suicide bombers using research tools of social sciences. To say that his findings are surprising is an understatement. There are five necessary elements to persuading people to commit suicide in this extreme manner. First element, which is also primary and of overwhelming importance, is that there must be an occupation of the land that the resistance fighters/terrorists value extremely highly. The occupation of Palestine and Lebanon, the stationing of foreign troops on the ground in the Arabian Peninsula after first Gulf War both fit the bill. Second element is, that virtually all other tactics have failed to dislodge the occupier. The kamikaze fighter is firstly a weapon and his death is a secondary , abeit predictable consequence of using that weapon. Third element is that there must be a religious difference between an aggressor/occupier and victim/occupied. The religious difference is useful in presenting the conflict not only as a just war for the sovereignty of the land but also as a war between the most fundamental and basic religious and personal beliefs of the indigenous population. This is why Osama bin Laden uses phrases of "great shaitan " in "the land of the Prophet" and invokes the images of Crusades. There is always an element of urgency - perception that the loss of sovereignty (or defilement) of occupied land is irreversible/imminent unless something is done immediately. (there are no brownie points for realizing that this is pretty widespread political tactic in it's own right. Bush is using "an axel of evil" and Crusades, while Blair's infamous "45 minutes" have entered permanently to the political lore.). Fourth element is that there must be widespread social support for terrorists/resistance fighters as without it there would be no volunteers for the job. It must be said that the volunteers are rarely combatants/fighters. Their fate is to be weapons not to be soldiers. Finally, the occupying force must belong to a democracy. This is crucial, as democracies are uniquely vulnerable to loss of life of its soldiers and its civilians. Democracies also have freedom of speech allowing for re-assessment of gains due to occupation versus losses due to the terrorism/resistance actions, meaning losses of lives of its soldiers and civilians. In democracy there are usually a number of mechanisms for the change of policy by the elected government.
Like any good research this theory/hypothesis for the origin of the suicide bombers/terrorists/resistance fighters elegantly explains numerous inconsistencies in the suicide bombers phenomenon, which before were considered unexplainable or due to illogical minds of faith crazed Islamic fundamentalists . Suicide bombers were used by Tamil Tigers who's ideology is predominantly atheist Marxist/Leninist. The terrorist attacks in Britain are perpetrated by home grown operatives because the Home Offices own opinion poll suggests that 8-13% of English Muslims are in vehement opposition to occupation of Iraq which, rightly or wrongly, they perceive as augmentation of the presence of Kufr (unbelievers) on the sacred land of Arabic Peninsula in direct contradiction of their deepest religious beliefs. The change of ruling party in Spain immediately following the Madrid bombing and subsequent removal of Spanish forces from Iraq and Ronald Reagan's decision to remove US troops from Lebanon following the attack of suicide fighter on the marine barracks, both show vulnerability of the democracies to the loss of life and loss of perception of safety that suicide missions impose on the society. As far as I know this is the only comprehensive study of the phenomenon of suicide attacks and as such leaves me with a sense of bewilderment why the findings of this research have not been more widely reported by the press.

Thursday, August 10, 2006

Islam Online

I have been spending days on Middle East Crisis and Middle East in general as well as getting side tracked on issues of Women and women's rights in Islam. I made my acquintance with two guys: one, Tarik Ramadan, who is a very good looking modernising islamic scholar with ability to be seriously oblique in his writing. He is a grandchild of the founder member of Muslim Brotherhood (conservative islamic religeous and social movement from the thirties, started in Egipt). The other is Yufus al-Quaradawi, who runs website Islam Online, is famous for being a quest of Ken Livingstone in 2004, and supporting kamikadze palestinian bombers. I have been impressed with two things: one, the number of websites supporting Israel which pretend to be objective, and number of websites run by muslims for muslims which are verymuch "They do what it says on the packet". I have also been slightly paranoid since sending money for a medical aid for palestinins - what if someone will diclare it a terrorism supporting organisation and I will get into trouble for helping? And what if my service provider is quietly checking all websites I visited for forbidden word combinations like Middle east islam invasion aperthait muslim and israel? What if my my visit to Wikipedia for entry on Dair Yussuf massacre is considered a sign of my radicalision ? Not for nothing I was brought up in communist Poland. The healthy paranoia is grafted in my bones. I was so proud of being in England. I felt free. I no longer do so. No I don't think anyone will burst here tomorrow for writing this blog or for surfing internet. No, I'm not worried about tomorrow; but for the next 5-10 years - definately. Todays surfing may be recognised as god knows what in the new wave of MacCarthism that I feel in my bones will come.

Impotent anger and Middle East

I have always felt a low simmering anger at the apparent freedom of rich and powerfull to trample on little people. Now I am so angry I don't know what to do with this emotion that is seeking to explode from within me. If I feel like that, I can't even start to imagine how other people feel at what is happening in the Middle East right now. There is little doubt in my mind that russian policy of scorched earth withdrawal from the invading german army is eerly echoing in the wastes of Lebanon. Only this time, the scorched earth is meant not to prevent invading german army from finding food and shelter, but from prenventing people of Lebanon from finding food and shelter in their own lands. I have no ilusions that Lebanon up to the Listari river being a total wasteland will suit Israel ver well. The reluctance of other countries in getting bogged down in the Lebanon is understood not only because of Hesbullah. Hesbullah, understandably, will see little difference between Israeli army occupying this land and "Peace Keeping" forces occupying this land on the Israeli/US bidding. And lets not kid ourselves that Problem is that many countries will see no difference either. I don't know if after Genmany occupied Belgium, would Belgium welcome "peace keeping" troups comprising of Japanese, Italian and Serbian army units.