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Friday 29 January 2016

Conservatives vs. the Conservative movement


More paradigm shift: In the National Review, David Harsanyi, author of The People Have Spoken (And They Are Wrong), sees the current popularity of a Republican candididate as an existentialist threat to traditional Republicans: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/430468/donald-trump-what-if-he-wins

Ann Coulter takes aim at Fox

Ann Coulter

Is Fox News conservative or 'conservative'? This article by Ann Coulter signifies that a political paradigm shift is under way in the United States: http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/presidential-campaign/267300-trump-boycott-isnt-about-kelly-its-about-fox-being   


The Azaz-Jarabulus Corridor (Part V)


The story keeps unfolding: http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/isis-syria-kurdish-militia-ypg-plans-massive-attack-against-daesh-seal-turkish-border-1540728?

Tuesday 26 January 2016

The Azaz-Jarabulus Corridor (Part IV)

This is a map of how Rojava will look in the future (courtesy: http://turkeyharvest.blogspot.com.au/-)

Jarabulus is a target for the YPG/SDF because it remains a transit point between the Islamic Republic of Turkey and the Islamic State: http://aranews.net/2016/01/kurds-bomb-isis-headquarters-in-jarablus/

Wednesday 20 January 2016

The Azaz-Jarabulus Corridor (Part III)

Commander of Ahrar Jarabulus (the freedom movement of Jarabulus) announces merger with SDF 

Ahrar Jarabulus joins the Syrian Democratic Forces: http://aranews.net/2016/01/jarablus-rebels-join-western-backed-syrian-democratic-forces-to-combat-isis/

Wednesday 13 January 2016

Vladimir Pribylovsky Dead


Russian dissident Vladimir Pribylovsky appears to have been murdered: http://www.ibtimes.com/who-killed-vladimir-pribylovsky-author-who-criticized-russian-president-putin-found-2263119

I hope Yuri Felshtsinky is safe: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yuri_Felshtinsky 

Candidate Hillary Clinton: Defend Samar Badawi!

Sometimes you have to go beyond a photo op

The Saudi regime is threatening Raif Badawi's sister: http://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jan/12/samar-badawi-sister-blogger-raif-badawi-arrested-saudi-arabia

Here is a link to Samar Badawi's story: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samar_Badawi

And here is Raif's: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raif_Badawi

And, while we are at it, here is a brief history of the struggle for women's rights in Saudi Arabia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women%27s_rights_in_Saudi_Arabia

A win: Aljazeera America closes up shop


Here is a good news story (pun intended): http://money.cnn.com/2016/01/13/media/al-jazeera-america/

Erdoğan cracks down, Turkey cracking up

Courtesy of www.dailycos.com

President  Erdoğan keeps burning down the house: http://www.todayszaman.com/national_measures-to-be-taken-against-university-academics-who-signed-critical-text_409490.html?

Monday 11 January 2016

Vale David Bowie (1947-2016)



Favourites? "Heroes", "Golden Years", "Fame", "Gene Genie", "Starman", "Space Oddity" and, sadly in these circumstances, "Ashes to Ashes". I have always been impressed by the fact that "Ashes to Ashes" represents, in a sense, "Space Oddity Part 2" - the drug world he inhabited involved thrills and spills but down here was reality - and humanity. He experienced, in the end, thirty years of solid family life: good for him. Here is the Wikipedia link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bowie

Sunday 10 January 2016

The Azaz-Jarabulus Corridor (Part II)

The Tishrin Dam Offensive: 23 December-30 December 2015


The Tishrin Dam offensive was the last battle waged by the Syrian Democratic Forces (QSD) in 2015: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tishrin_Dam_offensive

Here is small video of QSD getting the power-generating dam up and running: https://www.facebook.com/1814267612131127/videos/1951497661741454/?theater

Saturday 9 January 2016

The Azaz-Jarabulus Corridor (Part I)

Courtesy of the Washington Institute: http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/ 


This is the link to Fabrice Balanche's "The die is cast: the Kurds cross the Euphrates" article: http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/the-die-is-cast-the-kurds-cross-the-euphrates

Losing Turkey


Courtesy of the Kurdish Daily Newshttp://kurdishdailynews.org/


David L. Philips is only belatedly stating the obvious in this Huffington Post article, but at least he is on the right track. The Free World has, in a sense, "lost" Turkey in the way China was "lost" in 1949: http://kurdishdailynews.org/2016/01/07/david-phillips-losing-turkey/   

Saturday 2 January 2016

Erdoğan's war on Turkish Kurds



The link to Sputnik magazine is: http://sputniknews.com/


Just because a story appears in Sputnik magazine does not mean it is wrong. Here is a link to the Kremlin's view of Erdogan's war on Turkish Kurds: http://sputniknews.com/middleeast/20160103/1032618744/kurdish-towns-bombardment.html