Increasing government spending will require an increase in taxes. Anyone who has even the simplest understanding of math will grasp that concept. So with the Democrats’ intent to increase spending where do they plan to get the money? Obama says they will get all of this money by increasing the taxes on those who make more then $250,000 per year and by eliminating business loop-holes to hide money from the tax-collectors. This way Obama is keeping his promise to the Middle-Class by taking from the rich and giving to the middle.
This situation as I explained it seems to be a great plan, so I decided to look into it further to see what history has shown us happens in situations like this and how it could pop-up in the future.
First I wanted to look at what increasing the amount of taxes that are taken from those who are making a salary of over $250,000/year would do. These households that make more then $250k per year are less then 1.5% of the population. In the past when similar methods have been used this led to creative investing that allowed individuals to pay a minimum of taxes and encouraged investing outside of the USA as a way to hide money. This is becoming increasingly easier as most large corporations become international and portions of salaries can be paid to small corporations started in countries that do not have income tax laws. This decreases the amount of taxes that one can be charged at that higher rate and allows them to be charged at the lower percentage rate that is used for funds, corporations, and trusts.
Now a way to get that money back is by closing the tax loop-holes that businesses use to hide their money. Of course this has the immediate effect of decreasing the amount of foreign investment in US companies. It also has the added effect of forcing companies to export more jobs overseas where countries that have business friendly laws will allow these major corporations to exploit the local labor force and produce cheaper products. If these companies do not export their factories overseas then they will often resort to using illegal labor that will work for significantly cheaper rates, until the factory unionizes and then forces the manufacturing site overseas.
The next step in this process is to increase the tariffs on goods coming into the USA or penalizing US companies for exporting jobs. This in turn allows foreign nations to decrease their dependency on the US and allows them to expand their markets to other nations.
After all of these affects take place the only way for a US company to succeed is to live off of government bail-outs. This will increase the total spending of the US government and create a larger need for taxation thereby forcing the country deeper and deeper into the same problem.
If we continue along a path that punishes those who get the education and training to make a lot of money and those who take the risk to start their own businesses … then soon nobody will do that in the USA. When that happens who will pay all of the money to give to everyone else?
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
We all love the Artist until we need the Soldier
Can Iraq take care of itself? We all love the idea of an Iraq that can take care of itself and live in peace. Obama is talking about leaving Iraq because of the great advances the Iraqi military has made in learning how to defend themselves and said so at the annual convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Secretary of Defense Gates mentioned that the security situation will lead to the early withdrawal of US troops. Iraqi President Nouri al-Maliki was so eager to convince the world that the security situation was being handled by the Iraqis that he removed all security barricades within the Green Zone after telling US troops to slink back to their bases and stay there. Jamal Hashim applauded this utopian bliss in an article written on the 19th of August. It seemed that the politicians and reporters were shrouded with the collective delusion of stalwartness. On that same day bombs blew through the deception of the politically driven but collectively ignorant. With their disastrous flurry these bombs forced open the questions about how far along the new government had advanced.
First the people asked why the Americans could not protect their chief city.
Then these emotions were replaced with questions of convenient timing for the American posture.
Eventually the cacophony cried out for resolution and memories started to twist the recent past to yearn for the forced consistency of Saddam Hussein.
Now we see what a timid Artist that waxes poetic about peace and prosperity can accomplish in Iraq there is a desire for the Soldier, for a Strong Hand, for a LEADER.
Whoever will supply this will have the feverish support of a drowning populace… any takers?
First the people asked why the Americans could not protect their chief city.
Then these emotions were replaced with questions of convenient timing for the American posture.
Eventually the cacophony cried out for resolution and memories started to twist the recent past to yearn for the forced consistency of Saddam Hussein.
Now we see what a timid Artist that waxes poetic about peace and prosperity can accomplish in Iraq there is a desire for the Soldier, for a Strong Hand, for a LEADER.
Whoever will supply this will have the feverish support of a drowning populace… any takers?
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Back in the USA
Well – I have been gone… again… I am sure anyone reading this is completely shocked that I would be traveling. I am such a home-body that almost never strays away from my front stoop… Ok, that may not be exactly truthworthy. I may even be a little of the opposite.
Once again I have traveled to Iraq, but this time I was not gallivanting around the North chatting with locals and placing myself in completely safe villages that caused others to have coronaries. Nope – this time I was sent there by the company I work for. They paid for the trip and I got to have the great privilege of staying in fortified structures, traveling by armored vehicle and military air-craft. My meals were taken in gargantuan dinning facilities with hundreds of soldiers and contractors eating American food and not worrying about diarrhea. All-in-all it was a standard boring trip. Hmmm… maybe my old way of touring has caused me to not find FOBing to be a real form of foreign-service.
As I did go overseas with my company I am sorry that I am not allowed to go into more detail, and I can not show you the pictures. Not that there is a lot to see past rows and rows of concrete barriers, razor wire, dust, and debris. Not exactly the pre-2003 Baghdad. One thing about Saddam – he sure ran a clean and tight ship.
Now that I am back in the USA I will try and put some more stuff up on my blog. This may be random stream of conscience stuff – so just bare with me.
Thanks for paying attention…
Once again I have traveled to Iraq, but this time I was not gallivanting around the North chatting with locals and placing myself in completely safe villages that caused others to have coronaries. Nope – this time I was sent there by the company I work for. They paid for the trip and I got to have the great privilege of staying in fortified structures, traveling by armored vehicle and military air-craft. My meals were taken in gargantuan dinning facilities with hundreds of soldiers and contractors eating American food and not worrying about diarrhea. All-in-all it was a standard boring trip. Hmmm… maybe my old way of touring has caused me to not find FOBing to be a real form of foreign-service.
As I did go overseas with my company I am sorry that I am not allowed to go into more detail, and I can not show you the pictures. Not that there is a lot to see past rows and rows of concrete barriers, razor wire, dust, and debris. Not exactly the pre-2003 Baghdad. One thing about Saddam – he sure ran a clean and tight ship.
Now that I am back in the USA I will try and put some more stuff up on my blog. This may be random stream of conscience stuff – so just bare with me.
Thanks for paying attention…
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Rich Man in Kurdistan
I wrote this article in the early part of 2006. It is interesting to look back sometimes...
The mountains on the horizon are on fire. Children gathering on the hillside barely pay it any heed on this Thursday morning. A long line of children trod on by with baskets on their heads and a burden’s curve in their back. Brisk morning breezes from the mountains above bring crisp whiteness to their breath.
Back in the United States these children would be on their way to school, but here in the mountains outside of Hawler the closest school is over 45 miles away.
There are few people, but many reasons to work in Kurdistan. Since the Kurdish peoples first note in 3,000 BC in writings from the Sumerians to the present day, these people have seen the backlash of many civilizations.
In Iraq today there are 4 – 6 million Kurds and in the Middle East there is an estimated 25 to 35 million Kurds, none of which have a country to call their own. In Iraq Kurds have been persecuted by the Ba`athist regime coming to power in 1968. Even though this heralds a time of great sadness for the Kurdish people, the wholesale slaughter of an entire generation only began after the 1980’s Iran – Iraq war.
In the city of Halabja on 15 March-19 March in 1988 the Halabja poison gas attack was one of the greatest direct attacks on the Kurdish people. Of course no one knows if it was the Iranian or Iraqi forces that were to blame for the gassing or if it was an unintentional byproduct of war.
No confusion exists on who is to blame for the Iraq regimes Al-Anfal campaign between 1986 and 1989. The Al-Anfal campaign takes its name from Surat Al-Anfal1 in the Qur'an. This holy name was then used as a code for the Iraqi Ba`athist regime to place a holy calling on a series of military campaigns aimed at extermination of the peshmerga rebels2 and the mostly Kurdish civilian population of southern Kurdistan.
The campaign was headed by Ali Hasan al-Majid, Saddam Hussein’s cousin who used ground offensives, aerial bombing, systematic destruction of settlements, mass deportation, concentration camps, firing squads, and most disasasterously - chemical warfare thereby earning al-Majid the nickname of "Chemical Ali" to exterminate the Kurdish people from the land.
The results of the Al-Anfal campaign led to the elimination of 3,827 villages (approximately 75%), 1754 schools being destroyed, 2450 mosques demolished, 48 churches leveled, and 270 hospitals wiped out and according to The Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International 182,000 civilians were systematically eliminated.
Loosing ones schools, places of worship, homes, as well as brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, husbands and wives, and children would seem to be the worst that could happen to a people. Yet the Kurdish have always seemed to known that this was their lot in the world. There is a saying amongst the Kurdish people, “No friends but the mountain.” In all of their history the Kurdish people have had to flee to the mountains to escape one group after another who had either ethnocentric ideal or religious ideology that called for the blood of unbelievers. As the largest ethnicity in the world without their own country the Kurdish people are at the mercy of governments in over 9 different countries.
If physical destruction and murder was not enough, Kurdish Iraq also had to deal with the “arabization” of Kurdistan. Arabization was an idea used by Hussein's regime to drive Kurdish families from their homes in cities like Kirkuk by moving in poor Arabs from Iraq’s southern regions to flood the northern territories with Arabs and thusly limit the Kurdish majority.
After the first Gulf War, in 1991, the United States forced a “No-Fly-Zone” over northern Iraq establishing relative peace in the Kurdish region of Iraq for the first time in generations. The resultant action was the creation of a democratic government by the Kurdish people that was the first in the Middle East to embrace the tenants of freedom and understanding. Of course, no new society is perfect, and many setbacks occurred. But the Iraqi-Kurds are building a society when everyone else seems to just want to destroy. Universities have sprung up all over Kurdish Iraq, as well as open forums inviting in foreign investors. The Kurdish people do not tolerate terrorists or criminals in their land no matter their ethnicity. Arabs, Christians, Jews, and Kurds all live together in relative peace. The young kids in Kurdish Iraq are now starting to have dreams of becoming builders in their society, even young girls are encouraged to go to school and become engineers. This however is the story in the cities that have received aid from foreign countries and donations from private groups.
Out in the countryside, where the devastation from Saddam’s attacks was the worst, there is a different story. Children whose parents have either been killed or fled to the cities to find work are raising each other. Those who are too old or feeble to walk depend on the children to sustain their lives.
Walking through the villages you see an entire generation is missing, no fathers to teach their sons how to be a man, and no mothers to teach compassion. These children are forced to grow up at an early age. Some are missing limbs or are horribly disfigured from mines left by the Iraqi military in wheat fields and orchards.
Fleeing to the fields that give death as easily as they yield life the children learn by trial of elimination to disarm the same mines that took so many of their lives. They sell them to UN troops for money and small rations of food thereby gleaning life from something that for so long has been an instrument of death.
Even with the rugged cut of the Iraqi-Kurdish youth like all kids they yearn for the gentle touch of compassions sweet caress or just anyone to show they care even in the smallest regard. Soldiers become children’s heroes just by giving them chocolate when they pass by or waving a friendly hello. Soldiers who stay with these delightful children long enough to open the breach of communication find the language barrier to not enter the scope of issues as the universal language of love is evident in the simple actions shared between an 18 year old soldier far away from home and the 8 year old life hardened child who just yearns to be loved.
Halfway around the world in a small island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean live three people who are not Kurdish. All three come from middle class families who have not had many hardships in their life. All three men are in completely different corners of society yet a common thread binds them together. Dr. Paul Kingery is the Associate Dean of Research at the University of Hawaii’s College of Education, James Filibeck is a Business Student at the University of Hawaii, and my name is Bertwin Lord I am a nuclear mechanical engineering operator on submarines for the United States Navy. The three of us are as different in personality as we are in careers yet we are working together to try and improve life in Kurdistan the best we know how.
You may wonder what three white men on the island of Hawaii have to do with Kurdistan or why with all of the world’s problems we choose one so far away and unrelated to our local concerns. I have asked myself this same question time and time again. Even I am not sure what the answer is; it could be the touching scenes left in my heart from the stories of Gulf War soldiers talking about the brave citizens that helped them in the first Gulf War only to have to turn their back on them when they needed the US the most, or maybe it is a engrained desire to help the little man, even more possible I see the untapped potential of spreading peace through the only tangible finger hold in the middle east at this time. I do not know what the answer is I just know that my heart has been moved.
Currently Dr. Kingery (Paul), Mr. Filibeck (James), and I (Bert) are working with the US State Department and several agencies along with the University of Hawaii and several universities in Iraqi-Kurdistan to better the available education and increase the houses of education. As easy as it may seem to travel halfway around the world and help people that barely have running water let alone email or cell phones there are more then a few bumps on this gravel road. The first is a lack of concern in many people’s eyes towards the plight of the Kurdish people, or any of the forgotten people in the Middle East. Second would be a lack of funding which we try to supplement with government grants and University stipends. We make do with what we can yet often I find that my own money is being used to make sure the shipment of books makes it over to Mosul or the container of computers arrives safely in Irbil.
On May 10th 2006 Dr. Kingery and James Filibeck will set out on their journey to Kurdistan to meet with many of the professors that we have been in contact with and who have received our books and computers. They will be bringing more computers as well as software to the people in Mosul. This will be our first contact with many of the people we are trying to help. I will not be able to travel with them as my status as an American Military Member precludes me from traveling to Iraq without military escort of military reasons. Where my military background has helped so many times before, it now is a liability. At least I was able to help Dr. Kingery and James get there.
When Dr. Kingery and James return at the beginning of June we will know a lot more about what we need to get done to assist the people in Iraq more then ever before. At a young age I learned what it means to be rich. My father said that if every day you can say that you made the life of even one person better – then you are rich. My father was the richest man I ever knew. When he died over 1,700 people came to see him at the showing and his funeral was held in a high school gymnasium to accommodate all of the people who wanted to say good by to a man that had touched their soul. I am not looking for the same funeral, but I know that if I touch just one life that may have never been touched in any other way – then I to will be a rich man in Kurdistan.
Notes
1 - Surat al-Anfal (Arabic: سورة الأنفال ) ("the Spoils of War")[1] is the 8th sura of the Qur'an, with 75 ayat. It is a Madinan sura, recorded after the Battle of Badr. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anfal)
2 - Peshmerga, pesh merga, peshmarga or peshmerge (Kurdish: pêşmerge) is the term used by Kurds to refer to armed Kurdish fighters. Literally meaning "those who face death" (pêş front + merg death e is)
References
Randal, Jonathen C., 1993 ,After Such Knowledge, What Forgivness? My encounters with Kurdistan, Westview Press, Boulder, CO, ISBN 0-8133-3580-9 (pb)
Rich Man in Kurdistan
by Bertwin Lord
Some say there are no rich men in Kurdistan. Maybe it is because there are not many men. Or maybe it is just the definition of rich that should change.The mountains on the horizon are on fire. Children gathering on the hillside barely pay it any heed on this Thursday morning. A long line of children trod on by with baskets on their heads and a burden’s curve in their back. Brisk morning breezes from the mountains above bring crisp whiteness to their breath.
Back in the United States these children would be on their way to school, but here in the mountains outside of Hawler the closest school is over 45 miles away.
There are few people, but many reasons to work in Kurdistan. Since the Kurdish peoples first note in 3,000 BC in writings from the Sumerians to the present day, these people have seen the backlash of many civilizations.
In Iraq today there are 4 – 6 million Kurds and in the Middle East there is an estimated 25 to 35 million Kurds, none of which have a country to call their own. In Iraq Kurds have been persecuted by the Ba`athist regime coming to power in 1968. Even though this heralds a time of great sadness for the Kurdish people, the wholesale slaughter of an entire generation only began after the 1980’s Iran – Iraq war.
In the city of Halabja on 15 March-19 March in 1988 the Halabja poison gas attack was one of the greatest direct attacks on the Kurdish people. Of course no one knows if it was the Iranian or Iraqi forces that were to blame for the gassing or if it was an unintentional byproduct of war.
No confusion exists on who is to blame for the Iraq regimes Al-Anfal campaign between 1986 and 1989. The Al-Anfal campaign takes its name from Surat Al-Anfal1 in the Qur'an. This holy name was then used as a code for the Iraqi Ba`athist regime to place a holy calling on a series of military campaigns aimed at extermination of the peshmerga rebels2 and the mostly Kurdish civilian population of southern Kurdistan.
The campaign was headed by Ali Hasan al-Majid, Saddam Hussein’s cousin who used ground offensives, aerial bombing, systematic destruction of settlements, mass deportation, concentration camps, firing squads, and most disasasterously - chemical warfare thereby earning al-Majid the nickname of "Chemical Ali" to exterminate the Kurdish people from the land.
The results of the Al-Anfal campaign led to the elimination of 3,827 villages (approximately 75%), 1754 schools being destroyed, 2450 mosques demolished, 48 churches leveled, and 270 hospitals wiped out and according to The Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International 182,000 civilians were systematically eliminated.
Loosing ones schools, places of worship, homes, as well as brothers and sisters, mothers and fathers, husbands and wives, and children would seem to be the worst that could happen to a people. Yet the Kurdish have always seemed to known that this was their lot in the world. There is a saying amongst the Kurdish people, “No friends but the mountain.” In all of their history the Kurdish people have had to flee to the mountains to escape one group after another who had either ethnocentric ideal or religious ideology that called for the blood of unbelievers. As the largest ethnicity in the world without their own country the Kurdish people are at the mercy of governments in over 9 different countries.
If physical destruction and murder was not enough, Kurdish Iraq also had to deal with the “arabization” of Kurdistan. Arabization was an idea used by Hussein's regime to drive Kurdish families from their homes in cities like Kirkuk by moving in poor Arabs from Iraq’s southern regions to flood the northern territories with Arabs and thusly limit the Kurdish majority.
After the first Gulf War, in 1991, the United States forced a “No-Fly-Zone” over northern Iraq establishing relative peace in the Kurdish region of Iraq for the first time in generations. The resultant action was the creation of a democratic government by the Kurdish people that was the first in the Middle East to embrace the tenants of freedom and understanding. Of course, no new society is perfect, and many setbacks occurred. But the Iraqi-Kurds are building a society when everyone else seems to just want to destroy. Universities have sprung up all over Kurdish Iraq, as well as open forums inviting in foreign investors. The Kurdish people do not tolerate terrorists or criminals in their land no matter their ethnicity. Arabs, Christians, Jews, and Kurds all live together in relative peace. The young kids in Kurdish Iraq are now starting to have dreams of becoming builders in their society, even young girls are encouraged to go to school and become engineers. This however is the story in the cities that have received aid from foreign countries and donations from private groups.
Out in the countryside, where the devastation from Saddam’s attacks was the worst, there is a different story. Children whose parents have either been killed or fled to the cities to find work are raising each other. Those who are too old or feeble to walk depend on the children to sustain their lives.
Walking through the villages you see an entire generation is missing, no fathers to teach their sons how to be a man, and no mothers to teach compassion. These children are forced to grow up at an early age. Some are missing limbs or are horribly disfigured from mines left by the Iraqi military in wheat fields and orchards.
Fleeing to the fields that give death as easily as they yield life the children learn by trial of elimination to disarm the same mines that took so many of their lives. They sell them to UN troops for money and small rations of food thereby gleaning life from something that for so long has been an instrument of death.
Even with the rugged cut of the Iraqi-Kurdish youth like all kids they yearn for the gentle touch of compassions sweet caress or just anyone to show they care even in the smallest regard. Soldiers become children’s heroes just by giving them chocolate when they pass by or waving a friendly hello. Soldiers who stay with these delightful children long enough to open the breach of communication find the language barrier to not enter the scope of issues as the universal language of love is evident in the simple actions shared between an 18 year old soldier far away from home and the 8 year old life hardened child who just yearns to be loved.
Halfway around the world in a small island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean live three people who are not Kurdish. All three come from middle class families who have not had many hardships in their life. All three men are in completely different corners of society yet a common thread binds them together. Dr. Paul Kingery is the Associate Dean of Research at the University of Hawaii’s College of Education, James Filibeck is a Business Student at the University of Hawaii, and my name is Bertwin Lord I am a nuclear mechanical engineering operator on submarines for the United States Navy. The three of us are as different in personality as we are in careers yet we are working together to try and improve life in Kurdistan the best we know how.
You may wonder what three white men on the island of Hawaii have to do with Kurdistan or why with all of the world’s problems we choose one so far away and unrelated to our local concerns. I have asked myself this same question time and time again. Even I am not sure what the answer is; it could be the touching scenes left in my heart from the stories of Gulf War soldiers talking about the brave citizens that helped them in the first Gulf War only to have to turn their back on them when they needed the US the most, or maybe it is a engrained desire to help the little man, even more possible I see the untapped potential of spreading peace through the only tangible finger hold in the middle east at this time. I do not know what the answer is I just know that my heart has been moved.
Currently Dr. Kingery (Paul), Mr. Filibeck (James), and I (Bert) are working with the US State Department and several agencies along with the University of Hawaii and several universities in Iraqi-Kurdistan to better the available education and increase the houses of education. As easy as it may seem to travel halfway around the world and help people that barely have running water let alone email or cell phones there are more then a few bumps on this gravel road. The first is a lack of concern in many people’s eyes towards the plight of the Kurdish people, or any of the forgotten people in the Middle East. Second would be a lack of funding which we try to supplement with government grants and University stipends. We make do with what we can yet often I find that my own money is being used to make sure the shipment of books makes it over to Mosul or the container of computers arrives safely in Irbil.
On May 10th 2006 Dr. Kingery and James Filibeck will set out on their journey to Kurdistan to meet with many of the professors that we have been in contact with and who have received our books and computers. They will be bringing more computers as well as software to the people in Mosul. This will be our first contact with many of the people we are trying to help. I will not be able to travel with them as my status as an American Military Member precludes me from traveling to Iraq without military escort of military reasons. Where my military background has helped so many times before, it now is a liability. At least I was able to help Dr. Kingery and James get there.
When Dr. Kingery and James return at the beginning of June we will know a lot more about what we need to get done to assist the people in Iraq more then ever before. At a young age I learned what it means to be rich. My father said that if every day you can say that you made the life of even one person better – then you are rich. My father was the richest man I ever knew. When he died over 1,700 people came to see him at the showing and his funeral was held in a high school gymnasium to accommodate all of the people who wanted to say good by to a man that had touched their soul. I am not looking for the same funeral, but I know that if I touch just one life that may have never been touched in any other way – then I to will be a rich man in Kurdistan.
Notes
1 - Surat al-Anfal (Arabic: سورة الأنفال ) ("the Spoils of War")[1] is the 8th sura of the Qur'an, with 75 ayat. It is a Madinan sura, recorded after the Battle of Badr. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Anfal)
2 - Peshmerga, pesh merga, peshmarga or peshmerge (Kurdish: pêşmerge) is the term used by Kurds to refer to armed Kurdish fighters. Literally meaning "those who face death" (pêş front + merg death e is)
References
Randal, Jonathen C., 1993 ,After Such Knowledge, What Forgivness? My encounters with Kurdistan, Westview Press, Boulder, CO, ISBN 0-8133-3580-9 (pb)
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Religion and Terrorism
I understand the concept of religion being the "biggest cause of terrorism" but I feel that this is misrepresented. I do agree that religion is the biggest excuse for terrorism, but I am not sure that it is the cause. In Encyclopedia of Wars -by Charles Phillips (Author), Alan Axelrod (Author): there are a total of 1,763 wars listed of which 123 are listed as religious wars.
The State Departments lists 42 terrorist entities of which 21 have religious leanings and 14 are specifically religious (http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/fs/37191.htm).
Until the 1970's terrorist activity in the United States was mainly politically aimed (communist, leftist, fascist, and other ists…) with clear political agendas. In the 70's we started to see an increase in the number of terrorist groups that were associated with a religious or nationalist agenda but these attacks were political and not religious. Members of this group were the PLO, Jewish Defense League, and others. We still saw the majority of terrorist activities attributed to political groups. In the USA the leading terrorists were the Black Liberation Army.
Throughout the 80's we saw a significant rise in the amount of terrorist activities being reported and most were political in nature. Political extremists had found a way to express their discontent and voiced it often. During the 80's we also started to see a rise in eco-terrorism and animal rights terrorists groups (ELF and ALF being the largest). Remember the 80's was also the reign of the Unabomber. In 1989 we saw a significant rise in the amount of terrorist activities in Columbia and other parts of South and Central America. These activities carried on as the most prolific in the world through the 90's.
During the 90's there was an increase in the number of terrorist activities being reported from Muslim nations, but most of these activities were claimed by nationalist groups that were Islamic by religion but did not state an Islamic purpose. In 1993 the first Trade Center Bombing was attempted. The bulk of terrorist activities at this point were still associated with rebels in South and Central America but we did see a rise in terrorism directed towards anger about the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands. During this time most Islamic terrorism was conducted in Islamic lands and on Islamic people. Some terrorism was being seen conducted towards the Russians but this was done in lands where Muslims dominated the population and many of these groups were supported by the USA.
In the first portion of the new millennium Basque separatists and Columbian FARC dominated the terrorist news world with their actions. In 2001 the 9-11 Trade Center Bombing made terrorism a fore-front in the eyes of US Citizens. Since 2001 there have been less terrorist attacks in the USA then ever in the history of the USA. The majority of terrorist attacks were conducted in Israel and Columbia until 2003 where we saw a massive increase in the number of terrorist attacks in Iraq.
Since 2003 the majority of world-reported terrorism incidents were conducted by groups affiliated with Islam. We still see just as many attacks by the political terrorist but the number of terrorist activities by Muslim terrorist groups has grown exponentially. Many have speculated that this increase in terrorism being used as a tactical weapon began because of Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Saudi Arabia fighting for control of a post-Saddam Iraq yet none of these countries having the power to face America in a head-to-head war. That is why we see the majority of attacks are conducted on the civilians and not on the US Military.
In Southern Iraq, my operations teams found that most of the assassinated Iraqis we investigated were those who fought against Iraq in the Iraq-Iran wars and now that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has activities inside of Iraq they are using this time to eliminate old rivals. On the Syrian border, we saw Syrian backed terrorist attacking anyone that fought against the Baathist regime. Remember – Syria is ruled by the Baathist Shi'ite minority and Iraq was ruled by the Baathist Sunni minority. This is more political then religious and has more to do with power and control then religious ideology, even if the young people who are blowing themselves up don't know it.
All of this information has come from Terrorist Activities Listings by www.GlobalIncidentMap.com. This is a pay-site but you can get a pretty accurate reading from Wikipedia (I don't usually use them as a reference but this portion of Wikipedia is actually pretty accurate) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_terrorist_incidents.
The State Departments lists 42 terrorist entities of which 21 have religious leanings and 14 are specifically religious (http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/fs/37191.htm).
Until the 1970's terrorist activity in the United States was mainly politically aimed (communist, leftist, fascist, and other ists…) with clear political agendas. In the 70's we started to see an increase in the number of terrorist groups that were associated with a religious or nationalist agenda but these attacks were political and not religious. Members of this group were the PLO, Jewish Defense League, and others. We still saw the majority of terrorist activities attributed to political groups. In the USA the leading terrorists were the Black Liberation Army.
Throughout the 80's we saw a significant rise in the amount of terrorist activities being reported and most were political in nature. Political extremists had found a way to express their discontent and voiced it often. During the 80's we also started to see a rise in eco-terrorism and animal rights terrorists groups (ELF and ALF being the largest). Remember the 80's was also the reign of the Unabomber. In 1989 we saw a significant rise in the amount of terrorist activities in Columbia and other parts of South and Central America. These activities carried on as the most prolific in the world through the 90's.
During the 90's there was an increase in the number of terrorist activities being reported from Muslim nations, but most of these activities were claimed by nationalist groups that were Islamic by religion but did not state an Islamic purpose. In 1993 the first Trade Center Bombing was attempted. The bulk of terrorist activities at this point were still associated with rebels in South and Central America but we did see a rise in terrorism directed towards anger about the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands. During this time most Islamic terrorism was conducted in Islamic lands and on Islamic people. Some terrorism was being seen conducted towards the Russians but this was done in lands where Muslims dominated the population and many of these groups were supported by the USA.
In the first portion of the new millennium Basque separatists and Columbian FARC dominated the terrorist news world with their actions. In 2001 the 9-11 Trade Center Bombing made terrorism a fore-front in the eyes of US Citizens. Since 2001 there have been less terrorist attacks in the USA then ever in the history of the USA. The majority of terrorist attacks were conducted in Israel and Columbia until 2003 where we saw a massive increase in the number of terrorist attacks in Iraq.
Since 2003 the majority of world-reported terrorism incidents were conducted by groups affiliated with Islam. We still see just as many attacks by the political terrorist but the number of terrorist activities by Muslim terrorist groups has grown exponentially. Many have speculated that this increase in terrorism being used as a tactical weapon began because of Iraq, Turkey, Syria, and Saudi Arabia fighting for control of a post-Saddam Iraq yet none of these countries having the power to face America in a head-to-head war. That is why we see the majority of attacks are conducted on the civilians and not on the US Military.
In Southern Iraq, my operations teams found that most of the assassinated Iraqis we investigated were those who fought against Iraq in the Iraq-Iran wars and now that the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has activities inside of Iraq they are using this time to eliminate old rivals. On the Syrian border, we saw Syrian backed terrorist attacking anyone that fought against the Baathist regime. Remember – Syria is ruled by the Baathist Shi'ite minority and Iraq was ruled by the Baathist Sunni minority. This is more political then religious and has more to do with power and control then religious ideology, even if the young people who are blowing themselves up don't know it.
All of this information has come from Terrorist Activities Listings by www.GlobalIncidentMap.com. This is a pay-site but you can get a pretty accurate reading from Wikipedia (I don't usually use them as a reference but this portion of Wikipedia is actually pretty accurate) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_terrorist_incidents.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Definition of Terrorism
Terrorism and Extortion are very similar in action but where they differ the most is with intended results.
Extortion: Using violence or the threat of violence to create an environment where actions toward the victim lead to the victim giving the perpetrator(s) something of value.
Terrorism: Using violence of the threat of violence to create an environment where actions towards the victim lead to society giving the perpetrator(s) something of value.
When defining terrorism it is pertinent to first set what parameters the definition is adhered to. If we took a general definition of terrorism and said that it is simply the act of generating fear to elicit the desired response of the issuer then we can say all governments engage in terrorism to control the activities of their populace. Threat of going to jail unless you meet social norms would fit into this definition of terrorism. The same could be said about having a strong military imposing the will of a country upon another country. Again this would meet the simple definition of terrorism.
Definitions by governments declare that terrorism is any activities conducted by non governmental agencies or entities against governmental or non-governmental entities in order to cause chaos. This allows governments to declare “war” on what they deem is terrorism.
Individuals that are indisposed towards the current government define terrorism as the systematic and deliberate act of a repressive regime to suppress the rights of their people. Often claiming that a government is a government of terror gives the “freedom-fighters” a license to respond in extremely violent means as they are morally vindicated when they label the government as the terrorists.
When a “state” sponsors organizations or entities that use terrorism as a chief tactic then they are either considered state-sponsors-of-terrorism, or they are assisting a freedom-fighting organization. This is a very dangerous form of interpretation because the definition is completely based upon which side of the ideological coin you fall. Wars fought in South America, Near East, Middle East, and Africa between the Communists and Capitalists are a prime example of this.
In any event the victor writes the history books. During the American Revolution the “Patriots” often engaged in acts of terrorism but due to the United States wresting control of America from a tyrannical ruler during the “War of Independence”, they could easily write off those actions as necessary when facing such atrocities from a government. One would just have to read letters written by British soldiers to hear a completely different view of the “Patriot’s” actions.
Terrorism is hard to define because each variant in society will have a different view of terrorism when it is compared to different aspect in their paradigm. In the simplest form Terrorism is exactly what I stated earlier “the act of generating fear to elicit the desired response of the issuer.” However the exact definition of terrorism changes with each instance that it is assigned to explain. The terrorism that was conducted by Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre during the Reign of Terror in France is much different than the terrorism used by the Army of God and their anti-abortion pro-Christian agenda. The part that all can agree upon is that Terrorism in any event must always effect non-combatants or innocents in a negative way, otherwise it would just be considered war and a separate word would never have been formed.
Extortion: Using violence or the threat of violence to create an environment where actions toward the victim lead to the victim giving the perpetrator(s) something of value.
Terrorism: Using violence of the threat of violence to create an environment where actions towards the victim lead to society giving the perpetrator(s) something of value.
When defining terrorism it is pertinent to first set what parameters the definition is adhered to. If we took a general definition of terrorism and said that it is simply the act of generating fear to elicit the desired response of the issuer then we can say all governments engage in terrorism to control the activities of their populace. Threat of going to jail unless you meet social norms would fit into this definition of terrorism. The same could be said about having a strong military imposing the will of a country upon another country. Again this would meet the simple definition of terrorism.
Definitions by governments declare that terrorism is any activities conducted by non governmental agencies or entities against governmental or non-governmental entities in order to cause chaos. This allows governments to declare “war” on what they deem is terrorism.
Individuals that are indisposed towards the current government define terrorism as the systematic and deliberate act of a repressive regime to suppress the rights of their people. Often claiming that a government is a government of terror gives the “freedom-fighters” a license to respond in extremely violent means as they are morally vindicated when they label the government as the terrorists.
When a “state” sponsors organizations or entities that use terrorism as a chief tactic then they are either considered state-sponsors-of-terrorism, or they are assisting a freedom-fighting organization. This is a very dangerous form of interpretation because the definition is completely based upon which side of the ideological coin you fall. Wars fought in South America, Near East, Middle East, and Africa between the Communists and Capitalists are a prime example of this.
In any event the victor writes the history books. During the American Revolution the “Patriots” often engaged in acts of terrorism but due to the United States wresting control of America from a tyrannical ruler during the “War of Independence”, they could easily write off those actions as necessary when facing such atrocities from a government. One would just have to read letters written by British soldiers to hear a completely different view of the “Patriot’s” actions.
Terrorism is hard to define because each variant in society will have a different view of terrorism when it is compared to different aspect in their paradigm. In the simplest form Terrorism is exactly what I stated earlier “the act of generating fear to elicit the desired response of the issuer.” However the exact definition of terrorism changes with each instance that it is assigned to explain. The terrorism that was conducted by Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre during the Reign of Terror in France is much different than the terrorism used by the Army of God and their anti-abortion pro-Christian agenda. The part that all can agree upon is that Terrorism in any event must always effect non-combatants or innocents in a negative way, otherwise it would just be considered war and a separate word would never have been formed.
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
The Turkish Neo-Ottoman Response to the War in Iraq
Turkey has a collected interest in the war in Iraq not just stemming from multiple sources not of which the least is Turkish dependence on Iraqi oil to survive, and the desire for Neo-Ottomans to take Northern Iraq for their own. Since Turkey was made a nation after WWI they have had a desire to regain their old Ottoman glory. The Turks have forced the Turkish language on people living within their borders, and have made deals with local countries allowing them to conduct cross-border operations that enabled them to set up military outposts outside of Turkey. During many of my visits to Turkey I have always found humor in how Turks will claim all things good from the Ottoman empire to be Turkish, but whenever the “bad-portions” are brought up those are quickly explained away as being European-Ottoman problems and having nothing to do with Modern Day Turkey. I guess there is a serious desire to have their cake and eat-it-too.
Neo-Ottomans are the Turks that feel a desire to regain some of the prestige of the once powerful Ottoman Empire. Obvious internal posturing and interference in border country politics shows this desire to once again be the policy maker for the Near Eastern World. This desire is ever so evident in Ankara’s (capital of Turkey) inter-dealings with the Turkmen Issue in the Iraqi city of Kirkuk. Access to Oil and a desire to expand the Turkish Empire is forefront in the posturing, rhetoric, and financial and political support designed to decrease the stability of Iraq. The Neo-Ottoman Turks desire nothing more than to see Iraq split into several autonomous regions that then try to split. Sharing the same value with Turkey is Iran, as both Turkey and Iran have this same desire and both want a major piece of this pie. Interesting enough both areas where Ankara and Tehran (Capital of Iran) pledge their support for mistreated people just happen to be sitting on-top of some of the largest oil reserves in the entire world. I am sure that this is just a coincidence though and that both Ankara and Tehran are truly just concerned about the well-being and fair representation of a portion of Iraq’s citizens. After all, the humanitarian activities of both Ankara and Tehran around the world are second only to their benevolent nature in their own counties.
There are two distinct tactics that the Neo-Ottoman Turks are using to gain control of Northern Iraq and both of them are aimed at causing a disruption in the overall peace process. The first tactic is an age old tactic that serves to masters inside Turkish politics. This is a creation of a common enemy. For this purpose the PKK serve the role as the “bad-guys.” The PKK is a terrorist organization that by most liberal counts can amass a count of 20,000 members with an estimated 5 – 7,000 fighting troops armed with light weapons and a rudimentary understanding of explosives. Operating inside Turkey and hiding in Northern Iraq, the PKK are a separatist group that calls for the unification of Kurdish lands under a single socialist government. The Turkish military has worked in conjunction with the Iraqi and Kurdish governments to hunt down the PKK military camps for the past 20 years. Part of this agreement allows Turkish military bases to be constructed inside Iraq. I personally have visited 12 of these bases located anywhere from directly across the Turkish-Iraqi border to a large Turkish military base 30 miles inside the border that houses multiple tanks, armored fighting vehicles, jet runway, war helicopters, support vehicles and a contingency of over 100 Turkish soldiers .
The political aspect of this tactic is two-fold. First it allows the Turkish military to justify spending billions on military build-up while Turkish citizens in the eastern provinces do not have running water, constant electricity, medical care, adequate infrastructure and roads, or basic living allowances to include food subsidies. Second, this political tactic allows the Turkish government to not recognize the autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern Iraq as they are “aiding the terrorist PKK.” It is very important for the Turks to quell any Kurdish thoughts of autonomy because it would be very dangerous for the Neo-Ottoman Turks’ desires for expansionism. The reason it would be dangerous is because the Kurds make up 20% of Turkey’s population and are the dominate ethnicity in the eastern HALF of Turkey. Giving credence to a Kurdish Autonomy would not aid in expanding Turkey but would in effect cut it in two.
The second tactic the Neo-Ottoman Turks are using is claiming defense of their Turkmen brethren in Iraq. Turkmenia is a land claimed by the Turkmen people living in Iraq. This area of land sweeps across Iraq from the Turkish Syrian border, through Kirkuk and below Sulimaniya on the Iranian border and lays south of the area controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq. The Turkmen people come from Turkmenistan on the North Eastern border of Iraq. The people from Turkmenistan and the people of Turkey are related in the fact that some people in Turkey descend from the people of Turkmenistan as do the Turkmen of Iraq. These are really the only ties. However the reason why a country that does not allow autonomy for their own people but cries for autonomy of their Turkmen brothers in Iraq is chiefly due to the fact that Turkmenia lies across two of the largest oil fields in Iraq. Turkey has said many times that if The Kurdish region of Iraq separates and becomes its own country then Turkmenia should also be its own country. Of course Turkey being so gracious to its brethren would move in and absorb Turkmenia into its auspices to help them move into the new world. The key point and largest point of contention in this move is the city of Kirkuk. Many people claim to be the true majority in Kirkuk making it their city, yet the true diversity of Kirkuk makes it very hard to declare who the majority is.
Politically this is a sound movement and relies heavily on Iraq not resolving the issue of who owns Kirkuk. Turkey has vested interest on keeping the situation highly unstable and even pushing the Iraqi Central Government to create such a level of hostility with the Kurdish north that this region secedes from Iraq and declares themselves a separate country. At this point Turkey will move in and take over Northern Iraq in a two-fold sweep. The reason they will use is that they were afraid a Kurdish government that close to their border would embolden the Kurdish rebels in their own country and they were acting in the better interest of the Turkmen people that are being abused by the Kurdish regime in this new country. This move would cause concern from the United States but by declaring the Kurdish Government as a state sponsor of terrorism the US cannot condemn Turkish actions. Iran will not condemn Turkish actions because they would be looking to accept their Shia brethren who are living in the southern region of Iraq, and Saudi Arabia will gladly take the Sunni West and Central.
Few countries may have an issue with this division. Syria will find itself surrounded by strong Sunni countries that may threaten their Shia minority rule. Greece already has unresolved border disputes and may feel an emboldened by their new-found power Turkey may focus their new expansion ideas to the west.
When you look at this tactical reasoning and at the current state of politics within Turkey you can easily see why Turkey acts the way it does. Many in the USA look at Turkey’s actions and think they are filled with inconsistencies and erratic actions. Yet when you remember that Turkey has been involved in political intrigue for centuries you can start to see how their politics may be evolved to the point where we can give them the benefit of the doubt; that there is reason behind the madness.
The political aspect of this tactic is two-fold. First it allows the Turkish military to justify spending billions on military build-up while Turkish citizens in the eastern provinces do not have running water, constant electricity, medical care, adequate infrastructure and roads, or basic living allowances to include food subsidies. Second, this political tactic allows the Turkish government to not recognize the autonomous region of Kurdistan in northern Iraq as they are “aiding the terrorist PKK.” It is very important for the Turks to quell any Kurdish thoughts of autonomy because it would be very dangerous for the Neo-Ottoman Turks’ desires for expansionism. The reason it would be dangerous is because the Kurds make up 20% of Turkey’s population and are the dominate ethnicity in the eastern HALF of Turkey. Giving credence to a Kurdish Autonomy would not aid in expanding Turkey but would in effect cut it in two.
The second tactic the Neo-Ottoman Turks are using is claiming defense of their Turkmen brethren in Iraq. Turkmenia is a land claimed by the Turkmen people living in Iraq. This area of land sweeps across Iraq from the Turkish Syrian border, through Kirkuk and below Sulimaniya on the Iranian border and lays south of the area controlled by the Kurdistan Regional Government of Iraq. The Turkmen people come from Turkmenistan on the North Eastern border of Iraq. The people from Turkmenistan and the people of Turkey are related in the fact that some people in Turkey descend from the people of Turkmenistan as do the Turkmen of Iraq. These are really the only ties. However the reason why a country that does not allow autonomy for their own people but cries for autonomy of their Turkmen brothers in Iraq is chiefly due to the fact that Turkmenia lies across two of the largest oil fields in Iraq. Turkey has said many times that if The Kurdish region of Iraq separates and becomes its own country then Turkmenia should also be its own country. Of course Turkey being so gracious to its brethren would move in and absorb Turkmenia into its auspices to help them move into the new world. The key point and largest point of contention in this move is the city of Kirkuk. Many people claim to be the true majority in Kirkuk making it their city, yet the true diversity of Kirkuk makes it very hard to declare who the majority is.
Politically this is a sound movement and relies heavily on Iraq not resolving the issue of who owns Kirkuk. Turkey has vested interest on keeping the situation highly unstable and even pushing the Iraqi Central Government to create such a level of hostility with the Kurdish north that this region secedes from Iraq and declares themselves a separate country. At this point Turkey will move in and take over Northern Iraq in a two-fold sweep. The reason they will use is that they were afraid a Kurdish government that close to their border would embolden the Kurdish rebels in their own country and they were acting in the better interest of the Turkmen people that are being abused by the Kurdish regime in this new country. This move would cause concern from the United States but by declaring the Kurdish Government as a state sponsor of terrorism the US cannot condemn Turkish actions. Iran will not condemn Turkish actions because they would be looking to accept their Shia brethren who are living in the southern region of Iraq, and Saudi Arabia will gladly take the Sunni West and Central.
Few countries may have an issue with this division. Syria will find itself surrounded by strong Sunni countries that may threaten their Shia minority rule. Greece already has unresolved border disputes and may feel an emboldened by their new-found power Turkey may focus their new expansion ideas to the west.
When you look at this tactical reasoning and at the current state of politics within Turkey you can easily see why Turkey acts the way it does. Many in the USA look at Turkey’s actions and think they are filled with inconsistencies and erratic actions. Yet when you remember that Turkey has been involved in political intrigue for centuries you can start to see how their politics may be evolved to the point where we can give them the benefit of the doubt; that there is reason behind the madness.
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