12/30/2012
Ehiztari
Three name changes,
dozens of legal problems, two major disputes with the governments of Iraq and
the United States and the resignation of its founder, would mean a disaster for
any company. Not for Academi.
The company previously
known as Xe and Blackwater -now bearing the “boring name” of Academi- has a
bright future ahead. Or at least that is what one would think reading the
report from an independent commission on the attack to the US embassy staff in Benghazi.
Both the independent commission
and a Senate hearing have stated that the main problem was that the guards were
foreign and unreliable. And both recommended either increase...
12/18/2012
Ehiztari
After the last mass shooting in Newtown the debate about gun control has jumped to the frontpages again. And again, the people who never want to talk about it are saying that it is insensitive to talk now. “Too soon” they say.
The problem is that the shootings are pilling up. And just when the mourning period for the one in Portland was about to expire -and according to the NRA timeframes, it was ok to talk about it- Newtown came in.
As many people have pointed out, it is not that it is too soon to talk about it. In fact, it is too late. That should have been discussed before. One would think that after a Congresswoman was attacked, politicians...
12/13/2012
Ehiztari
On Wednesday North
Korea launched successfully -finally- a satellite into space becoming the 11th
nation to achieve it. The date could not be easier to remember (12.12.12) and it
is indeed a huge step forward for the Kim regime.
Several details of the
launch tell how the North Koreans have advanced. They finally got the third
stage to separate successfully, which had been the major problem for the previous
rockets -at least for the ones that survived more than a minute on the air.
They also managed to
predict accurately where the boosters and debris of the rocket would fall -confirming
the Philippines’ fears. This is more important...
12/10/2012
Ehiztari
Last week we woke up
to the unsettling news of Al Assad cooking sarin-filled ammunitions. It is not
that we didn’t know that Syria has chemical weapons. We knew it. But some
intelligence reports suggest now that the regime of Assad may be loading them
on the delivery recipients.
Immediately, the US
stated that using chemical weapons would be a “red line” that if crossed would
carry “consequences”. It is easy to imagine those consequences in the form of a
Libya-style intervention.
If the reports are
true it would show significant weakness for the Assad regime. That shouldn’t
come as a surprise. The rebels are closing the gap with Damascus'...
12/07/2012
Ehiztari
The odds are against
them. So far, the atmosphere has beaten North Korea rocket launch attempts by
4-0 since 1998. Yet, here they come again with another satellite launch -allowing snow clears up. Persistent
they are.
It will be conveniently
timed to commemorate the passing away of late Kim Jong-il and to interrupt the
southern neighbors’ election. This time, however, the Pentagon is saying that
Kim Jong-un could at least improve where his father failed.
That wouldn’t be that difficult. All of the previous attempts by North Korea of putting a satellite
in orbit have failed miserably. That’s it, at least, according to the United
States....
12/04/2012
Ehiztari
Photo: Baz Ratner/Reuters
Netanyahu promised consequences if the UN voted in favor of the Palestinian statehood bid. That would have been an optimistic view. In a conflict fuelled by retaliations -who shot first?- there was to expect some sort of payback.
However, Western democracies probably didn’t expect this degree of bitterness. It is a diplomatic Cast Lead operation against the Palestinian Authority and the West Bank.
The Palestinians felt the hand that the Israelis tend in peace to them, as the Israeli ambassador to the UN said last week in New York. Only that it was more of a fist than an open hand. Immediately after the UN vote,...
11/30/2012
Ehiztari
Jehad’s birthday is on
the 30th of November. As a Palestinian living in the UK, the news of
Palestine being recognized as a state arrived from America just on time to
celebrate his birthday. At that moment, the UN was voting in favor of granting
Palestine recognition as a non-member state and a seat as an observer state at
the UN.
His fellow nationals
back across the West Bank and Gaza were as well celebrating. It is indeed a huge
step forward for the Palestinians towards a two state solution and an upgrade
to their situation, at least internationally.
Photo: AP/Seth Wenig
Upgrades, however, are
as good as the originals they are...
11/26/2012
Ehiztari
Photo: Xinhua
China announced on Saturday 24th that it has successfully completed the first take off and landing sea trials on the Liaoning, its new aircraft carrier.
It hasn’t been an easy task but China is finally on track to become not only an economic superpower, but a military one as well. Although they still lag far behind the capabilities of American ships, the country starts to develop a characteristic of every superpower through History, the projection of force.
The announcement came just a day after the Philippines, Vietnam and Taiwan issued a formal protest for the new Chinese passports. The documents depict a map of disputed...
11/26/2012
Ehiztari
Slowly but steadily, we will try to bring back DEFCON 3 in
the following days. Winter may be coming but it's time to defros...
Are you afraid? Well, this works in that way. First you do what scares you and it's later when you get the courage
12/30/2012
Ehiztari
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