UK MILITARY COMMANDER SAYS WAR AGAINST THE TALIBAN CANNOT BE WON

Witness the total collapse of the British Empire. Imagine if the Americans had told the British that the war against Nazi Germany could not be won. Frankly, the Brits and every other European country are worthless as military allies. Absolutely worthless. And that spells the end of Western Civilization.

Britain's most senior military commander in Afghanistan has warned that the war against the Taliban cannot be won. Brigadier Mark Carleton-Smith said the British public should not expect a “decisive military victory” but should be prepared for a possible deal with the Taliban.

His assessment followed the leaking of a memo from a French diplomat who claimed that Sir Sherard Cowper-Coles, the British ambassador in Kabul, had told him the current strategy was “doomed to fail”.

Carleton-Smith, commander of 16 Air Assault Brigade, which has just completed its second tour of Afghanistan, said it was necessary to “lower our expectations”. He said: “We’re not going to win this war. It’s about reducing it to a manageable level of insurgency that’s not a strategic threat and can be managed by the Afghan army.”

ARE THE DEMOCRATS TRYING TO RUIN THE ECONOMY TO WIN THE ELECTION?

Hope and change doesn't resonate unless things suck. The Democrats are some treasonous mofos.

One of the more curious — but not unprecedented — incidents in the last couple of weeks involved Harry Reid. The Wall Street Journal explains:

Just as U.S. credit markets this week were close to the edge of the cliff, threatening capital-starved businesses large and small, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid stepped in front of reporters and offhandedly announced:

“One of the individuals in the caucus today talked about a major insurance company. A major insurance company — one with a name that everyone knows that’s on the verge of going bankrupt. That’s what this is all about.” The next day, share prices fell sharply across the insurance industry. Let us stipulate we do not think it necessary for even U.S. Senators to understand the internal mechanics of credit default swaps and collateralized debt obligations. But if we have learned anything amid the panic over Bear, Lehman, Merrill and adventures in naked short-selling, it is that rumors can obliterate economic value, instantly.

But this wasn’t the only such incident:

It calls to mind Senator Chuck Schumer’s public suggestion in July that troubled IndyMac Bank “could face collapse.” It did, after a deposit run. Senator Schumer said criticizing his action was akin to blaming “the fire on the guy who called 911.” The nation’s shareholders would sleep better at night if some Members of Congress enrolled in Arsonists Anonymous.

All of this raises the question: are they trying to make things worse in the hopes of furthering their party’s election prospects? Similar suspicions were raised when Nancy Pelosi seemed to inflame her partisan opponents and resist any effort to whip her own caucus on the first failed bailout bill vote. Certainly as the financial crisis has intensified their electoral prospects have brightened.

But if we assume that they “meant no harm” we are left with an equally troubling conclusion: they are reckless and ignorant about the ways in which their words and actions may impact a fragile economy. Or to put it differently, their first consideration is invariably “How do we maximize the public’s perception that things are rotten?” rather than “What can we do to contain the conflagration?”

It does remind one of their attitude on the Iraq war: every set back was gleefully trumpeted and every minor advance was dismissed. They never much cared how their rhetoric or votes might embolden the enemy or unnerve our ally. The sole consideration was domestic political gain. If they didn’t want to lose they certainly gave every indication it was low on their list of priorities. Bashing the President, rallying their base and positioning themselves for the next election was clearly more critical.

Shameless, soulless, and downright evil!

THIS GERMAN UNDERSTANDS OBAMA BETTER THAN MOST AMERICANS

Gabor Steingart of Der Spiegel writes:

After the confetti has been shaken out of the hair and the party balloons have deflated, what is left from Tuesday's election night (more...) is a disturbing message: There is nothing to celebrate.

The winner is the loser. But the loser is not the winner. Clinton's victory was not big enough to snatch the nomination from Obama. But neither was his star power enough to woo the voters in the center.

It seems the race is jinxed: He was handed a defeat when he needed a victory, and she secured a victory when only an improbable triumph would have helped her.

Barring a miracle, Clinton's role at the Democratic Party convention in Denver in August will be limited to guest speaker. But Obama will go into the actual presidential election badly damaged.

On the night of Obama's first primary win, in the state of Iowa, this columnist wrote (more...): "(Obama) has scant hope of reaching the White House. He's too young, too inexperienced, too vague, and for many Americans, too black. His magic words about the era of change, of hope, of an America he will unite -- all that will evaporate like morning mist."...

Obama's chances of a successful run for the White House are anything but rosy. There are three reasons why his presidential run will be difficult:

First, a politician who favors social policies has a tough time in a recession. In his desperation over the persistent rejection by white working class voters, Obama has shot himself in the foot...

These people want new jobs, but they don't want new government debt. They want leadership, but Obama is only flashing his wallet.

Secondly, he is an opponent of war in a time of war. The United States is fighting a lonely and increasingly difficult war on two fronts, in Iraq and Afghanistan. He would like to finish the war quickly -- but the majority of Americans would like to win it first.

...he is a party favorite in times of dwindling party loyalty. He excites the active members of the Democratic Party, the officials, the young people and the university graduates, not to mention that part of the party -- a part which should not be underestimated -- which is to be found within newspapers and TV stations. Up to 35,000 people came to his meetings in Pennsylvania.

...the further one moves from the ranks of the true believers in the direction of the undecided -- from the left to the center, from young to old, from student to worker -- the lower the excitement over Obama. In Pennsylvania, 61 percent of older voters chose Clinton, as did 68 percent of Catholics, 65 percent of workers and over 70 percent of voters in rural areas. There, where life is hard, serious and sometimes monotonous, Obama struggles to make himself heard...

...this game is approaching its terrible end. The superdelegates, who are independent from the party base, will have to commit a political murder in the coming months. Will it be Obama or Clinton? For the party, the decision could amount to political suicide.

Full story

Well said Dieter...well said.

IRAQIS WANT McCAIN VICTORY

TIME reporter Bobby Ghosh wrote the following about his recent trip to Baghdad:

"For Sunnis, al-Sadr's continued clout is a warning and a provocation. In the district of Adhamiyah, a Sahwa fighter named Mahmoud (like his Mahdi Army counterpart, he gave only his first name) tells me there can be no reconciliation between the sects "as long as Muqtada is alive." Then he makes a grim prediction: "Right now, the Americans want us to fight against al-Qaeda, and that's fine. But we know the real fight will be in the future, with the Mahdi Army. We are getting ready for it." Fattah, in Sadr City, is preparing for the same fight. "The Americans protect the [Sahwa] for the moment, but we know who they are; we have lists," he says. "When the time comes, we will know what to do with them."

The Baghdadis caught between these extremes know that the only thing standing in the way of another sectarian conflagration is the U.S. military. This may explain why every Iraqi who offers me a view on American politics seems to be praying for a McCain victory. A 100-year American military presence, of which McCain once spoke, may seem a bit much; I suspect most Iraqis would be happy with five."

Iraqis back McCain

The McCain folks have not commented on any plans to conduct a "get out the vote" campaign in Baghdad.