As Scotland goes, so goes....the world?

Today Scotland votes on whether they want to stay part of Great Britain or go it alone as an independent country.  Many there have long wanted their independence, and this seems as civilized a way as any to get it.  If they vote "yes" they will probably claim much of the North Sea oil, which will fund their operations quite nicely.  Until it some day runs out.

But it's a much bigger vote than just that.  In many parts of Europe....the world even....there are many regions watching and taking notes.  After all the 20th Century European wars many of them are of one heritage/custom/language, yet are officially part of another country.

If Scotland can pull it off, will Catalonia (think Barcelona) give it a try?  Will Belgium finally just give up and implode, the Flemish and Walloons going their separate ways (to Holland and France)?  Will Poland grow and Ukraine shrink?  The possibilities are almost endless.

For a few of us it will be interesting to watch.  For the rest of you, you can go back to your Twitting now.

S

Did these guys ever read a history book?

It's amazing to me how ignorant our "leaders" are.  Both parties need to require their elected lap-dogs to attend a class and educate them on the realities of the Mid-East.

President Brick O'bama has okay-ed the use of US surveillance drones to keep an eye on ISIS forces (the ultra-radical Islamic terrorist group) operating in Syria and Iraq.  What he hasn't authorized is the use of force against ISIS fighters across that line in the sand marking the border between Iraq and Syria....we don't want to violate Syrian airspace.

Here's the problem with that thinking: SYRIA AND IRAQ AREN'T REAL COUNTRIES!  Neither are Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, or Saudi Arabia.   They aren't now and never have been.  

They are "nations" with borders arbitrarily set up by the victors (Britain and France) after World War I.  During that Great War the two decided quietly to divvy up the Mid-East after the defeat of the Ottoman Empire (Turkey), who was fighting along side eventual losers Germany and Austro-Hungary.  

According to the Sykes-Picot Agreement France would exercise their sphere of influence over the northern part of said territory (the current areas known as Syria and Lebanon), while Britain would oversee their sphere of influence over the southern part (now known as Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, and Israel).

But "national identity" was a foreign concept to the Arabs.  Their society was (and still is) organized around "families", which are part of "clans", which are part of "tribes".  They routinely band together to form temporary alliances when their short-term interests merge.  But when their interests change those alliances break up and new alliances with former enemy tribes take their place.  Regional politics are always fluid, therefore national boundaries are meaningless to them.

They don't give a rats ass about "borders".  Kurds don't see themselves as Turkish Kurds or Syrian Kurds or Iraqi Kurds.  They have no allegiance to any nation-state.  To say that we shouldn't violate "Syrian" airspace is a farce, as there is no Syria, and therefore no Syrian airspace to violate.  There are only various families and clans and tribes which congeal now and then into interest groups.

I'm not saying we should or shouldn't go after ISIS forces across that mythical line on a map that defines Syria, but just that that shouldn't enter into our decision.  And above all, we should give up on trying to introduce "democracy" to the people of the region.  They will never swear allegiance to any "country".  Why should we waste American lives and national treasure trying to set them up?

Screw 'em!

S

I've got all the answers. It's the questions that trip me up.

So now leaked information has come out that says the NSA has paid $278M to media companies (Google? Yahoo? etc) for access to their customer's data.  What a waste!  They could have just come straight to me in the first place and for a whole lot less than that I would have "cc'd" them on all my emails from the get-go.  We could have cut out the middle men and saved the taxpayers a bundle.

I don't quite understand what's fixing to happen in Syria.  With the aid of maybe France....the Germans and Brits have opted out....the US stands ready to strike Syria in retaliation for their use of chemical weapons.

We've announced probable targets are their Ministry of Defense building, their Secret Police HQ, their Republican Guard barracks, certain military warehouses, etc, ALL OF WHICH ARE BY NOW UNDOUBTEDLY EMPTY.  And we've said we have no desire to target Bashar Assad personally....we're not looking for "regime change".  And we have no idea how to measure whether or not we're successful.

Yeah boy, that's a well thought out plan.  Can't we just hit a few keystrokes and cyber-fry all their computers and be done with this?  Yes, I know....they can retaliate and maybe fry ours, too.  Feces occurs.  I'll chance it.  (Which just reinforces my case for good 'ol yellow pads and #2 pencils.  :)

IMO we should either kick the ever-lovin' shit out of them or stay home and let's watch football.  And since cruise missiles cost more than we have left in petty cash, I say "pass the nachos".

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I hereby declare the long Labor Day weekend begins the second I click "Publish".  (The boss won't mind.  Go ahead and mention my name.)

Y'all have fun and stay safe.  ;)

S

It says WHAT? + You know what I'd like to see?

What is it they say...."The English and the Americans are two peoples separated by a common language"?

This is an ad for Mini that I saw in the English auto magazine Evo.  Now I've been to the UK, and I realize we often have words and phrases in common that mean something very different in our two countries.  Is this one of those instances?  Can any of you who are American/English bilingual 'splain it to me?

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You know what I'd like to see?

Once again the cops confronted a vicious criminal and had a shoot-out, and the law won.  And right on que the media interviewed the perp's neighbors and they said what they always say:  "He was a good boy.  He never caused any trouble.  I just can't believe he would do something like this."

For once I'd like to see a neighbor go on camera and say, "That was one mean little son-of-a-bitch.  I mean, he'd steal the dirt from your flower bed just to have something to steal.  And he'd pimp his grandmother if he could make a buck.  I'm tellin' you, if the cops hadn't popped him, some of us would....er....I mean, accidents happen, you know?"

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It's supposed to be 68 and rainy here in Dallas today, a definite step backward from yesterday's 78 and sunny.  Oh well, it is what it is.  Have a good day everyone.

S

Entertainment at its finest

Is anyone out there besides me a fan of women's beach volleyball?  (Well DUH!  Dumb question Scott.  Any man who can still fog a mirror loves women's beach volleyball.)


Let me try again:  Have any of you been watching Misti May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Jennings compete for the USA in the London Olympics?

If you have you've seen some incredible volleyball. I'll watch them win a set and think, WOW!  Can it get any better?  Then they go out and do again...only better.  They know what the other is thinking, what the other is going to do before they even do it.   Every sports team in the world ought to study them as an example of the value of absolute teamwork.  

Count me a big fan!

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Interesting comment from a Brit in a man-on-the-street interview....with the gold medal count showing 30 for China, 28 for the USA, and 16 for Great Britain, he said, "Yes, but if you look at the number of medals based on population, we're waaaaay ahead."  Hmmm....I think he's right.  Good for 'em!

S

Oh, my achin' back...mystery solved!

I've had a pinched nerve in my upper back, left side and my upper left arm for a month.   A week ago I had an MRI done and now we know what the problem is:  I have herniated discs.  I'm relieved as now they know what to treat.  It's fairly common and can probably be treated with injections of steroids. Surgery is many options down the road, and I've been assured a waist-up amputation is not likely.  Whew!

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Anyone watch the Olympic Opening Ceremony last night?  I was most impressed!  I was there a few years ago and fell in love with London and the other parts of Great Britain I was able to see on my too-brief visit, and the people we met were wonderful, too.  It was fun watching the tube and being able to identify landmarks I had visited. 

Wonder if they'll ever have the individual events on TV on an "On Demand" basis?  This morning they're showing a loooooooong bicycle race which I find rather boring, then they broke in and showed us the final point of a women's beach volleyball match.  WHAT?  The TV people need to review their priorities!  (Note:  the women were wearing bikinis.  I guess it was warm enough for them to not have to resort to their coverups. :)  I need to find out the Olympic TV coverage for today so I can arrange my outings around the more interesting events. 

Have a fun Saturday everyone.  

S 

Cars and Coffee, July 2012

I just realized I didn't post any photos from our most recent Cars and Coffee.  It wasn't really one of the better ones as it was on the long July 4th weekend and attendance of both cars and spectators was down by about a third.  Still, there were some good looking / interesting cars there....

....like this little '60's vintage British Riley.  It was just like a real car, only smaller!  (Circus clowns optional.)

I generally don't get all gushy about hot rods, but dang, this was a nice one!

How about a rather sinister looking Ford Mustang?

And finally, a Morgan.  Although it looks like a holdover from the 40's, it's a thoroughly modern car still built by hand on an ash wood frame in Britain.  *Now where's my driving cap and pipe?*

S