Tuesday, March 31, 2015

The Generals are Talking - That's Rarely a Good Thing.

The top brass is getting restive and they're looking for a bit of mass mayhem.

This might be news to you but Russia has an Academy of Geopolitical Problems. The president of the academy, Konstantin Sivkov, wears a uniform with the insignia of a three star general.

Comrade Sivkov thinks he has an answer to NATO's steady encroachment right up to Russia's doorstep - America's backyard - the San Andreas Fault and Yellowstone national park to be specific.  He thinks that all Russia has to do is pop a good size nuke into the fault and another into Yellowstone and America comes to an end.

"Geologists believe that the Yellowstone supervolcano could explode at any moment. There are signs of growing activity there. Therefore it suffices to push the relatively small, for example the impact of the munition megaton class to initiate an eruption. The consequences will be catastrophic for the United States - a country just disappears," he said.

"Another vulnerable area of ​​the United States from the geophysical point of view, is the San Andreas fault - 1300 kilometers between the Pacific and North American plates ... a detonation of a nuclear weapon there can trigger catastrophic events like a coast-scale tsunami which can completely destroy the infrastructure of the United States."

Meanwhile, US Navy Admiral, Harry Harris, is accusing China of building a second "Great Wall" of artificial islands in the South China Sea.  Harris, soon to head America's Pacific Command, says the island chain will threaten major shipping lanes.

"China is creating a great wall of sand with dredges and bulldozers over the course of months," said Admiral Harris, who is currently commander of the US Pacific Fleet.

"When one looks at China's pattern of provocative actions towards smaller claimant states, the lack of clarity on its sweeping nine-dash line claim that is inconsistent with international law, and the deep asymmetry between China's capabilities and those of its smaller neighbours – well, it's no surprise that the scope and pace of building man-made islands raises serious questions about Chinese intentions," he said.

China has repeatedly rejected regional concerns, saying the constructions are "necessarily" and are taking place on Chinese territory.

Just what Admiral Harris proposes to do about China's expansion into the South China Sea is a mystery.  But often these things begin with hard talk and then get a life of their own.

16 comments:

  1. It's curious that Americans can push and prod and then complain when their targets react.

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  2. No it isn't Toby. America enjoys the blessings of god, remember? The nation has a sacred duty to spread it's unique brand of joyful gunpowder democracy.

    Once upon a time, before the advent of jet propelled military transport, the doctrine applied only to the northern and western hemispheres and was called Manifest Destiny.

    It's now known formally as "America Fuck Yeah" and is applied globally, irrespective of culture, context or result.

    Nail meet hammer.


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  3. Yes, apparently it was just some bureaucratic error, soon to be corrected, which caused it to be called the "South China Sea" rather than the "South United States Sea".

    But the writing has recently hit the wall.
    http://www.counterpunch.org/2015/03/30/chinas-bank-waning-usa-hegemony/
    Apparently the Americans were somewhat shocked to find that the Brits were the first to announce they would be joining up with the new Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank even though the Americans would really have preferred they not do so. They tried to get them to back up on it, and seem to have gotten a response along the lines of "Hey, we'd love to help you but business is business". And if the Brits fall out of line everyone short of maybe Micronesia could too. China just has too many yuan for anyone much to be willing to help the US isolate them. The counterweight has arrived.

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  4. Speaking of Generals, Rick Hillier was blasting MPs for not showing up to vote on the "expansion into Syria" war today. Apparently, just enough NDP and Liberals did not show up to lose the vote.

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  5. If all the Liberals and NDP members along with the Bloc members and the Green member voted against the motion the Harperians would still win the vote.

    That's why it's called a "majority government".

    Please don't be stupid on purpose.

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  6. Thanks Dana, for the ad hominum attack. The vote went 142/129.

    http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/retired-general-rick-hillier-angry-at-mp-no-shows-for-isis-vote-1.3016401

    19 Cons did not show up to vote. 5 NDP, 5 Libs and 4 Indies. Would have defeated the motion by 1 vote.

    That any MP failed to show up to send our Forces into a potentially prolonged and illegal action is shameful. I'm sorry you think that I am stupid. I have "skin in the game".

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  7. Kim, I'm a bit under the weather today so I'll respond only to your comments. I think Hillier is a jumped up little shit.

    "Skin in the game"? What does that mean in a limited conflict where unopposed strike fighters lob in bombs from safe altitude where they're not vulnerable to ground fire or even heat-seeking missiles?

    How many of our pilots have we lost in total in Kosovo, or Desert Storm, or Libya or in this farce? By my count that would be "nil."

    Compared to previous conflicts I don't think anyone has much skin in this game.

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  8. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pair_%28parliamentary_convention%29#Canada

    One of the very few Parliamentary conventions the Harperians have carried on with.

    On purpose...on purpose...Don't be stupid...on purpose.

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  9. Dana, please cut Kim a bit of slack. She's a fine blogger and doesn't deserve epithets.

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  10. Sorry, skin in the game was not the best way to phrase it. It am very much under the weather right now too Mound, I won't bore you with the details. I meant that my son is in active service and it rankles me that our Elected Representatives failed to show up to prolong this potentially illegal military action.

    Maybe Dana is feeling out of sorts too, I am not usually attacked personally for commenting here.

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  11. ...Let me try that again. Failed to show up to prevent the potentially illegal action.

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  12. Kim, my apologies. Just bad manners, no excuses. Please forgive me.

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  13. Of course Dana, we are all on the same side here and these are stressful times. It's easy to get caught up in the passion of the moment and civility is often the first casualty. No harm done.

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  14. Thank you.

    Over the years I've spent online it has slowly become reflexive for me to assume ignorance just because ignorance is so pervasive and ubiquitous.

    I mustn't.

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  15. And now, that wonderful Godly country south of us is trying to force Canada to stop using "Metric". Will we fall into step and obey like good little children? America is the only country in Western World that uses the system of measurement it does. Since we have an agreement called Nafta, will the US force Mexico to change it's system? And they wonder why they are dislike around the world...SHESH again and again and again.

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  16. Need to mention, my comment about "Metric" was an April Fool's Day" stunt mentioned on CBC; the morning show out of Calgary. Many caught it.

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