Another example of the clueless US foreign policy establishment. Nothing in comparison with the assumption that the "liberated" Iraqis would agree the US "with flowers," or the Russia and China can be "isolated." And we pay these people?
Sic Semper Tyrannis
And the scales fell from his eyes ...
Col. W. Patrick Lang, US Army (ret.), former military intelligence officer at the US Defense Intelligence Agency
Regardless of Arab psychology, they offered Arafat nothing. That is the opposite of how it was portrayed in the media.
ReplyDeleteHis bio is a little more than that.
ReplyDeleteFro Wikipedia:
"While serving in the US Army, Lang graduated from the U.S. Army War College, the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College and the Armed Forces Staff College. He is a decorated veteran of several of the United States' overseas conflicts. During the Vietnam War, he served in the Special Forces and Military Intelligence.[3]
"He was trained and educated as a specialist in the Middle East and served in that region for many years. He was the first professor of Arabic at the United States Military Academy, where he was twice selected as best classroom teacher of the year.[4]
"At the Defense Intelligence Agency, he was the Defense Intelligence Officer (DIO) for the Middle East, South Asia and counter-terrorism, and later, the first Director of the Defense Humint Service.[5] At the DIA, he was a member of the Defense Senior Executive Service. He participated in the drafting of National Intelligence Estimates. From 1992 to 1994, all the U.S. military attachés worldwide reported to him. During that period, he also briefed President George H. W. Bush at the White House, as he had during Operation Desert Storm.[citation needed]
"He was also the head of intelligence analysis for the Middle East for seven or eight years at that institution. He was the head of all the Middle East and South Asia analysis in DIA for counter-terrorism for seven years. For his service in the DIA, Lang received the Presidential Rank Award of Distinguished Executive.[6]"
Regardless of Arab psychology, they offered Arafat nothing. That is the opposite of how it was portrayed in the media.
ReplyDeleteOur press is Jew-centric.
John,
ReplyDeleteThe press is America-centric.
Not in terms of Israel, they’re not. I didn’t really notice how much until 2008/2009. It was only the plight of the Jews that got press. The Palestinian side was not only not represented, but when they were mentioned, it wasn’t reported accurately in the least. The NYT uses weasel words today to describe what Netanyahu and his extremist buddies are doing. Of course, that’s changing internally in Israel today, with the recent resignations of a prominent Knesset member and two military heads denouncing Israel as having become fascist and nazi-like under Netanyahu.
MRW,
ReplyDeleteWhat I meant by "America-centric" was that the media reflects corporate and state power. When state power decides that Israel no longer serves a useful purpose - as a rabid dog to guard the oil centres from Arab nationalism - then it will be thrown under the bus. Much of the corporate sector doesn't care about Israel. The energy sector, which is the most powerful corporate sector, is known to have lobbied for a two state solution, because Israel's antics is bad for business.
Once the oil runs out in the Middle East, or some gigantic oil field is found in, say, Kazakhstan that dwarfs all the known oil reserves elsewhere, or the world turns to renewable energy, what is the point of Israel for the elite corporate and state interests? The US uses oil as a weapon for state interest. The energy sector's only interest is profits. These two interests - corporate and state - are usually the same. They're not in this instance. So the US keeps the conflict humming along.
Without Uncle Sam to keep it afloat, Israel will become an irrelevance. A small group of Christian Zionists will foam at the mouth about the coming of Jesus and what not, but American people will become gradually saner because the media isn't filling their heads with obscene lies and propaganda.