So, the Crazed American just got back on Facebook after an absence of six months.
Holy S#!+, people... there is a metric f--kton of bad mojo running around out there.
Civil discourse is ALMOST gone. Calls for violence against political opponents are PLENTIFUL.
Keep in mind a lot of this is passed back and forth by normally nice middle aged (30-50 year old) folks.
This does not bode well for the overall political health of the nation. It also provides me a touch of nausea seeing it. American politics is not supposed to be violent. No tanks, or riot police rolled during the 2000 Gore/Bush debacle. American politics can be vitriolic, can be filled with invective, but I think the accepted norms of not physically attacking your political opponents are in danger of collapsing. The tome and rhetoric have changed. Peaceful transfer of political power has been a hallmark of the American Political system. Me thinks that era might be at an end.
I think it's because the average American finally feels the disenfranchisement that has been there for a long time. The political parties and their corporate masters can't hind behind the flimsy veil much longer.
I can't predict where the battle lines will be drawn. When or if this little experiment of the USA comes apart, it is not going to be like the nice, neat USA/CSA schism (650,000 dead) of 156 years ago. This will Balkanize, with entire regions going up due to several competing factions in each area and state. Cities will be criss-crossed with opposing organizations and groups, each one clamoring for control or a piece of the overall pie. To say nothing of Russian or Chinese involvement in political developments and factionalization here. We do it to them, why the hell do we think they wouldn't return the favor??
Overseas, the Russians are running what appears to be a reasoned, well thought out foreign policy. Taken at face value (which is all we have thanks to very woeful American intelligence gathering), President Putin is marking a staged withdrawal of some of his combat forces in Syria. His goals for the mission have been met, now he will pull out just enough of his forces to allow the Syrians government to stand on it's own two feet and begin opressing the hell out of opposition groups and hopefully battling ISIS, or at least coming to a standstill and not let them expand anymore.
Contrast this with American foreign policy, which is, to put it mildly, confusing and inept. Libya is a wreck, as is our support of factions in Syria. Iraq is a mess, Afghanistan a failure. The past 30 years of American Foreign policy has been ill advised, at best. That outlook does not look to change dramatically anytime soon.
America always gets the government it deserves. Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Donald Trump.
One of those people will be president barring martial law or a coup d'etat.
When I look into the crystal ball, I'm not sure what I'm seeing. What I am seeing is not good. More surveillance, less freedoms, more authoritarian rule. The oligarchy is tightening the grip. The economy, or what's left of it after 8 years of "RECOVERY" is a shell of it's former self.
I am concerned, friends. There's a storm coming.
Crazed American, out.
14 March 2016
24 November 2015
The Guns and Missiles of November
Why, dear friends, does it feel as though we are rushing headlong towards war??
Today a flight of Turkish F16's shot down a Russian Su-24 fighter-bomber. Both the pilot and Weapon Systems Officer were killed in their parachutes while descending (most CERTAINLY NOT COOL). Further more, according to reports, a rescue team of Russian Marines was sent in for a recovery and there were fatalities. The Crazed American sends love and condolences to the families of the fallen Russian airmen and Marines. I just hope they are not the first casualties of a major shooting war.
Instead of immediately requesting a dialogue at the highest level with the Russians, the Turkish Government went right to NATO, undoubtedly with a copy of the North Atlantic Treaty, Article Five nicely highlighted.
Who's to blame in this fracas??
Everybody - long and short of it.
The Russians aren't currently fighting ISIS. Sure they'll engage targets of opportunity right now, but their stated goal is to shore up the faltering and beat-up regime of Bashar al-Assad. So, in a prudent military move they will take out the weakest and most highly disorganized opponent of the Assad's. Primarily the "Free" Syrian "Army". (Quotations are not by accident). These are apparently a group of idiots the Obama Administration threw some money, a bit of training and some weapons at, and expected to ride, victorious into Damascus. So, since the Assad's have decades of being really, really mean to a lot of people behind them, there are a lot of disparate groups all fighting themselves and the Assad's for who gets to be the least dead warlord in Syria.
One of those groups is a group of people who are identified in most press as the Turkmen. These are not Turkish people by nationality, but by ethnicity. They are Syrian by nationality, and are trying to overthrow Assad, hence the Russian fighter-bombers in the area trying to kill them.
The area we are talking about is a very small area of land that Turkey claims, but Syria does not recognize the Turkish claim. Russian aircraft have strayed over this small spit of Turkey repeatedly. Turkish Air Defense has warned the Russians repeatedly about straying over their territory.
In less heated times, the Turkish government under Erdogan would have sent up a couple F16's to make sure none of those Russian bombs were landing on the wrong side of the border, and deliberately kept very good records of what transpired and lodged a formal complaint with the Russian Federation. Let the diplomats handle it. Nobody gets shot at. More importantly, nobody has a reason to escalate.
Let me tell you one possible scenario of what might happen next. Erdogan is all riled up. The Turkmen he's supporting in Northern Syria get a temporary reprieve from Russian air strikes. The Russians, figuring they have to do SOMETHING in support of their strategy change up the mix and bring in a few more of the Su34 fast movers who are more than a match for the Turkish F16 air defense fighters and support the bombers. Erdogan will move additional air defense units, meaning surface to air missiles into the area. The next time the Russians move against the Turkmen, whether intentionally, or accidentally, a Russian pilot will get painted by an air defense radar and will fire upon it. Or, the Turkmen will hightail it across the border into Turkish territory the next time the Russians come a calling.
National borders are a very inconvenient thing. The Russians will do what we (the US) ALWAYS do, ignore them. We currently just do it with unmanned armed drones. The Russians, lacking a bit in that technology will send their combat equivalent, manned ground attack aircraft and air superiority fighters to defend them.
It spirals quickly from there. Turkey is backed up by NATO, and the Article Five provisions state that all member states will act as an attack upon one is an attack upon them all.
Now is a time for sage, wise leadership and for cooler heads to prevail. Alas, I fear we are well and truly fucked, as the foreign policy skills of the POTUS and current and previous SecState are woefully lacking.
We created ISIS. In our zeal to kill another Bogey Man (Assad) we threw logistical support at anyone with a pulse. Some of those anti-Assad boys are the crafty bastards in charge of the new Caliphate. We've been dumb enough to continue to double down on bad choices. The long and the short of it, we should be figuring out a way to work with the Russians, not taking us to the brink of war with the only nation in the world that truly is an existential threat to us. No doubt the Lightbringer-in-Chief, Cooler of the Earth and Lower-er of the Seas hasn't read his Sun-Tsu.
Keep your friends close - keep your enemies closer.
Hug your families, and pray that our leaders pull their heads out of their asses long enough to not condemn us all to a long and brutal war.
RADM Joshua Painter: "This business will get out of control. It'll get out of control, and we'll be lucky to live through it."
Today a flight of Turkish F16's shot down a Russian Su-24 fighter-bomber. Both the pilot and Weapon Systems Officer were killed in their parachutes while descending (most CERTAINLY NOT COOL). Further more, according to reports, a rescue team of Russian Marines was sent in for a recovery and there were fatalities. The Crazed American sends love and condolences to the families of the fallen Russian airmen and Marines. I just hope they are not the first casualties of a major shooting war.
Instead of immediately requesting a dialogue at the highest level with the Russians, the Turkish Government went right to NATO, undoubtedly with a copy of the North Atlantic Treaty, Article Five nicely highlighted.
Who's to blame in this fracas??
Everybody - long and short of it.
The Russians aren't currently fighting ISIS. Sure they'll engage targets of opportunity right now, but their stated goal is to shore up the faltering and beat-up regime of Bashar al-Assad. So, in a prudent military move they will take out the weakest and most highly disorganized opponent of the Assad's. Primarily the "Free" Syrian "Army". (Quotations are not by accident). These are apparently a group of idiots the Obama Administration threw some money, a bit of training and some weapons at, and expected to ride, victorious into Damascus. So, since the Assad's have decades of being really, really mean to a lot of people behind them, there are a lot of disparate groups all fighting themselves and the Assad's for who gets to be the least dead warlord in Syria.
One of those groups is a group of people who are identified in most press as the Turkmen. These are not Turkish people by nationality, but by ethnicity. They are Syrian by nationality, and are trying to overthrow Assad, hence the Russian fighter-bombers in the area trying to kill them.
The area we are talking about is a very small area of land that Turkey claims, but Syria does not recognize the Turkish claim. Russian aircraft have strayed over this small spit of Turkey repeatedly. Turkish Air Defense has warned the Russians repeatedly about straying over their territory.
In less heated times, the Turkish government under Erdogan would have sent up a couple F16's to make sure none of those Russian bombs were landing on the wrong side of the border, and deliberately kept very good records of what transpired and lodged a formal complaint with the Russian Federation. Let the diplomats handle it. Nobody gets shot at. More importantly, nobody has a reason to escalate.
Let me tell you one possible scenario of what might happen next. Erdogan is all riled up. The Turkmen he's supporting in Northern Syria get a temporary reprieve from Russian air strikes. The Russians, figuring they have to do SOMETHING in support of their strategy change up the mix and bring in a few more of the Su34 fast movers who are more than a match for the Turkish F16 air defense fighters and support the bombers. Erdogan will move additional air defense units, meaning surface to air missiles into the area. The next time the Russians move against the Turkmen, whether intentionally, or accidentally, a Russian pilot will get painted by an air defense radar and will fire upon it. Or, the Turkmen will hightail it across the border into Turkish territory the next time the Russians come a calling.
National borders are a very inconvenient thing. The Russians will do what we (the US) ALWAYS do, ignore them. We currently just do it with unmanned armed drones. The Russians, lacking a bit in that technology will send their combat equivalent, manned ground attack aircraft and air superiority fighters to defend them.
It spirals quickly from there. Turkey is backed up by NATO, and the Article Five provisions state that all member states will act as an attack upon one is an attack upon them all.
Now is a time for sage, wise leadership and for cooler heads to prevail. Alas, I fear we are well and truly fucked, as the foreign policy skills of the POTUS and current and previous SecState are woefully lacking.
We created ISIS. In our zeal to kill another Bogey Man (Assad) we threw logistical support at anyone with a pulse. Some of those anti-Assad boys are the crafty bastards in charge of the new Caliphate. We've been dumb enough to continue to double down on bad choices. The long and the short of it, we should be figuring out a way to work with the Russians, not taking us to the brink of war with the only nation in the world that truly is an existential threat to us. No doubt the Lightbringer-in-Chief, Cooler of the Earth and Lower-er of the Seas hasn't read his Sun-Tsu.
Keep your friends close - keep your enemies closer.
Hug your families, and pray that our leaders pull their heads out of their asses long enough to not condemn us all to a long and brutal war.
RADM Joshua Painter: "This business will get out of control. It'll get out of control, and we'll be lucky to live through it."
20 October 2015
Bucking the Trend, by not bucking the ACTUAL trend
Great opinion piece : http://theconcourse.deadspin.com/what-if-the-new-star-wars-sucks-too-1737539377
The author of that piece brings up VERY salient points.
I'm not a fan of JJ Abrams - he's made a couple good action films, but in terms of Sci Fi - One decent Movie (Star Trek).
Star Wars: The Force Awakens might just suck. All but two of the previous 6 movies did - although I liked Return of the Jedi more than the author did, but not by much.
I'll see it, but not on opening weekend.
I, for the record, hope it does not suck.
The author of that piece brings up VERY salient points.
I'm not a fan of JJ Abrams - he's made a couple good action films, but in terms of Sci Fi - One decent Movie (Star Trek).
Star Wars: The Force Awakens might just suck. All but two of the previous 6 movies did - although I liked Return of the Jedi more than the author did, but not by much.
I'll see it, but not on opening weekend.
I, for the record, hope it does not suck.
A10's in Turkey...
American forces staying in Afghanistan for the foreseeable future.
Russian Sukhoi's dropping A LOT of iron on anyone that opposes Assad.
China claiming territory in international waters.
Japan is rearming.
Europe is being stressed beyond their limited capacities by an onslaught of immigration (read: refugees)
Paradigms are shifting.
Where do we as Americans fit into all of this? Should we fit into all of this?
Are we in a situation closer to 1913, or 1938. The old men in charge seem to be pushing us all toward a point where a balloon might go up.
"Maybe the old men woke up one morning and forgot what it was like."
Interesting times.
American forces staying in Afghanistan for the foreseeable future.
Russian Sukhoi's dropping A LOT of iron on anyone that opposes Assad.
China claiming territory in international waters.
Japan is rearming.
Europe is being stressed beyond their limited capacities by an onslaught of immigration (read: refugees)
Paradigms are shifting.
Where do we as Americans fit into all of this? Should we fit into all of this?
Are we in a situation closer to 1913, or 1938. The old men in charge seem to be pushing us all toward a point where a balloon might go up.
"Maybe the old men woke up one morning and forgot what it was like."
Interesting times.
08 October 2015
Social Media
Boom.
Finally sloughed off an albatross worth of mill stone 'round me neck.
No longer am I on the book of Faces.
I can feel creativity returning to me as I write this.
Notified my family, that I would be putting a bullet into the monkey on my back...
...at work, on my phones, tablets and computers.
Now begins the process of contacting those people I want to communicate with on the regular, and not be beholden to the Zuckenbeast.
Who knows, maybe I'll be more motivated to share here.
Crazed, Liberated American, OUT.
Finally sloughed off an albatross worth of mill stone 'round me neck.
No longer am I on the book of Faces.
I can feel creativity returning to me as I write this.
Notified my family, that I would be putting a bullet into the monkey on my back...
...at work, on my phones, tablets and computers.
Now begins the process of contacting those people I want to communicate with on the regular, and not be beholden to the Zuckenbeast.
Who knows, maybe I'll be more motivated to share here.
Crazed, Liberated American, OUT.
14 October 2014
The Anabasis: Iraqi Road (2014)
Interesting commentary from the PJmedia folks.
The battle of / for Baghdad has begun. They're apparently approaching Baghdad International and they are definitely armed with MANPADS (Man Portable Air Defense Systems) and who knows, captured Syrian ADA (Air Defense Artillery - anti-air cannon and missiles). They can negate what separates us from the rest of the world militarily, the can blunt, for a time, our Air Dominance.
In 2003, it was no real big deal when the Thunder-Runs of American armor into Baghdad, resulted in the accidental occupation of the city. This time, as Mr. Poole elucidates, is different. If ISIS/ISIL/IS WTF they call themselves, actually take the city, they have occupied the place where previously the Abbasid Caliphate resided when the. they will have occupied a capital city of a modern nation state (albeit a pretty bad one).
Al-Baghdadi is a worthy adversary, we should definitely not continue to underestimate him. It does go without saying, however that we should kill him and his senior leadership as quickly as humanly possible.
If not, the American Embassy in Iraq, the largest embassy in that part of the world, is chock full of Americans. I am not worried about here being embarrassing "last helicopter out of Saigon" images, as if ISIL has half the number of MANPADS that common wisdom says they have, then there will be pictures of a lot of flaming wreckage. Hopefully our leadership is taking steps, now, to plan the evacuation of embassy personnel.
The people at the embassy will probably not be able to access BIA (Baghdad International Airport), due to threat force action. They might have to hoof it. Marines, soldiers, sailors, airmen and all of the civilian contractors (some of which are very capable trigger pullers, btw), and state department and allied civilian employees, and Iraqi's employed by us, there - we can't leave them - they'll be gruesomely murdered as an example. That's a lot of folks, possibly 16,000.
Hope senior allied planners have dusted off their copy of Xenophon's the Anabasis.
It'll be a long, nasty drive from Baghdad to Kuwait, made a bit more bearable by the USAF and USN.
Thalatta, thalatta.
Crazed American, out.
The battle of / for Baghdad has begun. They're apparently approaching Baghdad International and they are definitely armed with MANPADS (Man Portable Air Defense Systems) and who knows, captured Syrian ADA (Air Defense Artillery - anti-air cannon and missiles). They can negate what separates us from the rest of the world militarily, the can blunt, for a time, our Air Dominance.
In 2003, it was no real big deal when the Thunder-Runs of American armor into Baghdad, resulted in the accidental occupation of the city. This time, as Mr. Poole elucidates, is different. If ISIS/ISIL/IS WTF they call themselves, actually take the city, they have occupied the place where previously the Abbasid Caliphate resided when the. they will have occupied a capital city of a modern nation state (albeit a pretty bad one).
Al-Baghdadi is a worthy adversary, we should definitely not continue to underestimate him. It does go without saying, however that we should kill him and his senior leadership as quickly as humanly possible.
If not, the American Embassy in Iraq, the largest embassy in that part of the world, is chock full of Americans. I am not worried about here being embarrassing "last helicopter out of Saigon" images, as if ISIL has half the number of MANPADS that common wisdom says they have, then there will be pictures of a lot of flaming wreckage. Hopefully our leadership is taking steps, now, to plan the evacuation of embassy personnel.
The people at the embassy will probably not be able to access BIA (Baghdad International Airport), due to threat force action. They might have to hoof it. Marines, soldiers, sailors, airmen and all of the civilian contractors (some of which are very capable trigger pullers, btw), and state department and allied civilian employees, and Iraqi's employed by us, there - we can't leave them - they'll be gruesomely murdered as an example. That's a lot of folks, possibly 16,000.
Hope senior allied planners have dusted off their copy of Xenophon's the Anabasis.
It'll be a long, nasty drive from Baghdad to Kuwait, made a bit more bearable by the USAF and USN.
Thalatta, thalatta.
Crazed American, out.
18 September 2014
Probably not wise to ignore...
...threats like this.
Czar Vlad wants to be taken seriously. He's seriously throwing shade and threats around now.
Could the Russians put troops into FIVE NATO capitals in five days or less?
Probably. Would the Lavtians, Estonians, Lithuanians, Romanians and Poles make them bleed for every g--damned inch?
You fuckin' bet.
Putin could put airborne troops into each of those capitals. Trust me this, those peoples remember being under the yoke of the Soviets. They'll fall all over themselves after the initial shock wears off and kill the paratroops to a man. Sending armor in to those countries, equally probematic. I'm not up on the military capabilities of the Baltic States, but I would NOT go up against the Poles when they're playing defense, on their ground.
Czar Vlad's telling us, not very nicely, by the way, to take him seriously. We should. We should engage the Russians - avoid a war which will be very, very bloody, and possibly apocalyptic.
The situation in Ukraine? We started it, folks, by fomenting unrest and getting the previous government (democratically elected, by the way) ousted. You can thank Former Secretary of State Clinton for that one.
I have absolutely ZERO confidence in the President or his Secretary of State (current or former). to handle this mess with even the slightest hope of a good resolution. ALL signs point to a real shit-show.
This is some bad juju, folks. Hold on, it's going to get even bumpier from here.
Crazed American, out.
Czar Vlad wants to be taken seriously. He's seriously throwing shade and threats around now.
Could the Russians put troops into FIVE NATO capitals in five days or less?
Probably. Would the Lavtians, Estonians, Lithuanians, Romanians and Poles make them bleed for every g--damned inch?
You fuckin' bet.
Putin could put airborne troops into each of those capitals. Trust me this, those peoples remember being under the yoke of the Soviets. They'll fall all over themselves after the initial shock wears off and kill the paratroops to a man. Sending armor in to those countries, equally probematic. I'm not up on the military capabilities of the Baltic States, but I would NOT go up against the Poles when they're playing defense, on their ground.
Czar Vlad's telling us, not very nicely, by the way, to take him seriously. We should. We should engage the Russians - avoid a war which will be very, very bloody, and possibly apocalyptic.
The situation in Ukraine? We started it, folks, by fomenting unrest and getting the previous government (democratically elected, by the way) ousted. You can thank Former Secretary of State Clinton for that one.
I have absolutely ZERO confidence in the President or his Secretary of State (current or former). to handle this mess with even the slightest hope of a good resolution. ALL signs point to a real shit-show.
This is some bad juju, folks. Hold on, it's going to get even bumpier from here.
Crazed American, out.
10 September 2014
Sands in the hour glass
http://mashable.com/2014/09/10/obama-islamic-state-strategy-syria/?utm_cid=mash-com-G+-main-link
So el Presidente is going to get on the ol teevee tonight and lay out a case for bombing another sovereign nation (Syria), in pursuit of degrading the Islamic State's ability to... do stuff to people we don't hate. He promises, "no boots on the ground."
Until there are boots on the ground.
Look, I'm all for wanting to stop bad guys from killing innocent people, but if you want to go to war with the IS, you have to go to war with the IS. Airstrikes cannot and have never been the solution to things like this.
I'm saying it now, there's going to be irregular warfare here in the homeland. Or, major strikes against American or Allied bases outside of the IS territory (Iraq, Syria, the Levant).
These IS-types are not the super warriors the media has made them out to be. All they have been is more competent than the Arab militaries they have gone up against. That's not saying much. I will give them "competence." They do have, at their core, someone who obviously paid attention in history class as well. Those two things make them the most dangerous threat that has come from the mideast in a while. It is wise to pay attention to them.
It is not wise to hamstring your policy with a speech like the one el Presidente is giving tonight. You want your enemy to always be wondering what you're going to do, you do not remove entire methodologies and tactics from the arsenal before the opening salvo.
Not to mention, it's us, the US of A. There will be boots on the ground, no matter what. In fact, there undoubtedly already are, boots on the ground in Syria, Iraq and Kurdistan. Please, spare me the political invective that you think might get you a few more votes during the mid-terms, sir.
Those bobs we're going to drop don't guide themselves, nor does the intelligence needed to aim them gather itself. Those are done by quiet, steely-eyed types.
Also, here on the 13th anniversary of the attacks of Sept 2001, it would not surprise me in the slightest if the IS made a try at any American dignitaries in Iraq.
I shall pray for my country and those of hers in harm's way.
Destroy the enemies of our nation with skill and professionalism.
Come back home, soon and in one piece.
So el Presidente is going to get on the ol teevee tonight and lay out a case for bombing another sovereign nation (Syria), in pursuit of degrading the Islamic State's ability to... do stuff to people we don't hate. He promises, "no boots on the ground."
Until there are boots on the ground.
Look, I'm all for wanting to stop bad guys from killing innocent people, but if you want to go to war with the IS, you have to go to war with the IS. Airstrikes cannot and have never been the solution to things like this.
I'm saying it now, there's going to be irregular warfare here in the homeland. Or, major strikes against American or Allied bases outside of the IS territory (Iraq, Syria, the Levant).
These IS-types are not the super warriors the media has made them out to be. All they have been is more competent than the Arab militaries they have gone up against. That's not saying much. I will give them "competence." They do have, at their core, someone who obviously paid attention in history class as well. Those two things make them the most dangerous threat that has come from the mideast in a while. It is wise to pay attention to them.
It is not wise to hamstring your policy with a speech like the one el Presidente is giving tonight. You want your enemy to always be wondering what you're going to do, you do not remove entire methodologies and tactics from the arsenal before the opening salvo.
Not to mention, it's us, the US of A. There will be boots on the ground, no matter what. In fact, there undoubtedly already are, boots on the ground in Syria, Iraq and Kurdistan. Please, spare me the political invective that you think might get you a few more votes during the mid-terms, sir.
Those bobs we're going to drop don't guide themselves, nor does the intelligence needed to aim them gather itself. Those are done by quiet, steely-eyed types.
Also, here on the 13th anniversary of the attacks of Sept 2001, it would not surprise me in the slightest if the IS made a try at any American dignitaries in Iraq.
I shall pray for my country and those of hers in harm's way.
Destroy the enemies of our nation with skill and professionalism.
Come back home, soon and in one piece.
Crazed American, out.
01 September 2014
Do you want to know how much someone means to you??
You want to know how much someone means to you?
Wrong them, see the look on their face, then see how you feel.
If you're like me, you might almost break your hand punching the steering wheel.
hastag bad day
hashtag dontlietoyourlove
Wrong them, see the look on their face, then see how you feel.
If you're like me, you might almost break your hand punching the steering wheel.
hastag bad day
hashtag dontlietoyourlove
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