Photo, above: In Yemen, Dignity March set out from Hodeidah Governorate on Tuesday, walked a distance of 226 km and reached Change Square on Sunday. The march was divided into two groups due to slogans the Houthis imposed the day before yesterday.

Revolution youths of Change Square welcomed and received the march at the gates of Change Square after its way was secured by pro-revolution army (despite the fact that Organizational Committee of Hodeida said that the march did not represent it).

The Houthis group that dissented from Dignity March beat the journalists of Yemeni Revolution Site during their covering the march. This article is from 2012. Photo by courtesy of and with thanks to YemenFox, published by AlShomoa Foundation for Press and Media.

JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW 

Hour One

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 1, Block A: Simon Breheny, Institute of Public Affairs Australia, in re: threat to abduct an Australian national at random, behead that person on video to intimidate Australia. There were 800 police in antiterror raids in Sydney and Brisbane.   Local terrorist have been growing problem, esp in Sydney's western suburbs.    Estimate of 40 to 60 Australians who've gone to fight in ISIS-controlled regions.  Harrowing plots we've been hearing about.  Always surprised to see MPs and even members of the Shadow Cabinet sitting in a pub without security. Found plot against Parliament House; normally, a moderate level of security there.  Abott not being blamed because absolutely no one saw this coming.  The Australian commentariat is not usually friendly to conservatives like a=Abbott, but consensus today is favorable.

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 1, Block B:  Edward W Hayes, criminal defense attorney par excellence, in re:  See the Gatorade ad released today on Derek Jeter – which he produced.  It's a video of Jeter walking from a subway stop away to Yankee Stadium; the whole neighborhood raced up to cheer, shake his hand, speak very warmly to him and, in some cases, lightly weep. Best ad of the decade.  Meanwhile, Mayor DeBlasio doesn't have security clearance yet. He has to get secure information from his police commissioner.

Islamic State steps up anti-US propaganda with calls to attack Times Square.  New York has closed down its former, discreet, noninvasive surveillance of mosques thought to harbor highly questionable persons.  Online propaganda videos and messages posted by ISIL supporters encourage "lone wolf" attacks against numerous US tourist destinations and detail how to make homemade pipe bombs. Bratton and his former chief aide, Timoney, are both excellent. Will do everything they can to protect the city.  NYPD wants a thousand more cops. JB: How about five thousand?  EH: Can’t afford it.  JB: What’s it cost to get hit?

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 1, Block C: Larry Johnson, NoQuarter, in re: Patrick Kennedy, career foreign svc ofcr, the fixer.  A sort of consigliere; identifies and resolves potential problems for the Secretary of State; all Benghazi security decisions came from him.  To communicate in State, you have to write a memo that in turn has to be cleared by a half-dozen other agencies and bureaux, in order to get the memo to Pat Kennedy.  Huge turf battle between CIA and State; the latter always is short-funded by Congress.  The Benghazi operation was CIA.  State must have seen it as someone else's problem and so refused to fund sufficient security for Ambassador Stevens. Maxwell was Dep Asst Sec in Near East/Africa Bureau, who should have intervened; still, Trey Goudy needs to pull out the memos to see what actually happened.  Pat Kennedy was put in charge of investigating what happened; in fact, what he was doing was investigating Pat Kennedy.  He was at the center of denying security and was head of reviewing what went wrong with security No doubt that security threat was heightened, people n he ground were warned No excuse to justify withdrawing security as was done then.. HuffPo: "We've been arming the Syrian rebels all along and it's been a mistake." The Accountability Review Board told Congress that they'd interviewed ____, when in fact the Board refused to let him testify.  The permanent govt: part of its job is to protect employees.  Congress doesn’t pin Kennedy down and doesn't know what questions to ask.  A competent, sophisticated actor within State apparatus.   Security is always defined by security experts; unheard of for a political apparatchik t decide not to provide security to an ambassador I contributed money to Hilary Clinton's campaign; this has demonstrated Mrs Clinton's serious incompetence in recognizing threats and protecting the American people. 

 6 Key Moments From the Benghazi Hearing  The State Department's failure to follow through on an independent group’s No. 1 security priority after the attacks proved a major highlight. The House special committee investigating the Benghazi terrorist attacks today convened its first public hearing, examining progress in implementing security improvements at U.S. embassies and other missions abroad. Although no fireworks erupted, the State Department’s failure to follow through on an independent group’s No. 1 security priority after the attacks proved a major highlight. Here’s a look at that issue and five others that surfaced as the House Select Committee on Benghazi began its work in public.

1. ‘Most Important’ Idea Not Adopted    The State Department rejected the suggestion that it create the new position of undersecretary for diplomatic security. Out of 40 recommendations made last year, it was one of only two that the agency didn’t accept. Todd Keil, testifying as a member of the Independent Panel on Best Practices that made that recommendation, said the panel was “disappointed” the State Department didn’t accept this first and “most important” priority.

Benghazi Bombshell: Clinton State Dept. Official Reveals Details of Document Review

The independent panel was created to review the work of the Accountability Review Board that initially examined events before, during and after the attacks on the U.S. consulate and another facility in Benghazi, Libya, which left Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead.

“Talk about State Department arrogance,” Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said at one point. . . .[more]

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 1, Block D:  Gene Countryman, KNSS Wichita, in re: Greg "$50,000 peanuts" Orman vs Pat "Drive-By" Roberts http://www.kansas.com/news/business/article2143243.html. Democratic candidate Chad Taylor weak and not raising money, tried to drop out; refused permission by election group, but the Kansas Supreme Curt today rued that he may drop out. The Kansas Secy of State campaigned very hard to prevent this, was supposed to print ballots on Friday but got a one-week stay.  The GOP candidate also not campaigning ell but has money. However, Greg Ormond – independent with progressive leanings – is leading both other guys in the polls, so the GOP is displeased.  Dem fingerprints are all over this: a Missouri Dem helped Taylor decide to get out of the race, which wonderfully serves the interests of Democrats. Governor's race is also neck and neck. 

Hour Two

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 2, Block A: Eric Trager, Esther K. Wagner Fellow at Washington Institute, in re: Egypt, Sinai, Rafah Crossing, Sisi, communications monitoring.

 (Imagine if Morsi had been in charge.)  Kerry arrives in Egypt, invites Sis to join the coalition. Sisi says, "Thanks, we’ve got our hands full. First, kindly clean up the mess you made in Libya."  From the Egyptian standpoint threats on two fronts: Sinai and now Libyan attacks in the Western desert over months.  SIsi met w Emirati officials and Saudi intell chief; expect cooperation. reported attack in which the Emiratis seem to have attacked Libya from an Egyptian base.  Sisi in New York for he UN GA: to improve his intl legitimacy.   Egypt-US relations in dire straits, deep lack of trust. Sis reached out to Russians, signed huge deal.  US removed from the equation in solving Gaza.  Qatar earlier this week said it was expelling seven Ikhwan leaders who'd been there for fourteen months.  . . . Severe electricity crisis and ghastly economy with no tourists. Winter palace at Luxor is empty!

http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/egypts-western-security-concerns     http://english.alarabiya.net/en/media/2014/09/18/Egypt-monitors-social-media-on-unprecedented-scale-.html     http://english.alarabiya.net/en/views/2014/09/18/Turkey-to-draw-Egypt-s-ire-by-hosting-MB.html

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 2, Block B:  Amin Ahmed, MultiFaith Alliance for Syrian Refugees in Jordan, in re: Refugees in Jordan, Multi Faith Alliance. Syrian refugees in Jordan: I grew up Syrian taught to hate Israel, HJews, Zionists,  In March 2011, pepe started demonstratig in Syria; many citizens shot, no treatment: if they ent to hospital, would be tortured and likilled. e responded by providing medica help secretly; became very dangrous, so we moved around in Syria and neighboring counties.  We watched he destruction and shelling of homes by the Syrian govt. To our amazement, we were approached by an Israeli NGO that wanted to help.  Stunning we always thought of Israelis as wanting to kill us.  I reviewed all the teaching of hate of Israel we wondered why tdo they ant to help? There must be something sub rosa. Surprise, it was simply humand awnting to help other humans. It changed ot lives.  After two years of working together, we have grat partnership helping thousands of people.    A Syrian oppo leader visited Israeli hospitals today, sauid , Syria tries to kill us, Israel heals us.  The Syrian Interfaith Alliance in jordan is probably the most helpful organizatn helping the worst refugee situation in the world, Now Iraqis also entering Jordan – maybe 150,000, with Iraqis already living there.  More information on the Multifaith Alliance at Conf of Presidents.

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 2, Block C: Tony Badran is a Research Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, in re: degrade and destroy what??  Lee Smith in __ on ISIS origin:  reincarnation of al Q but also a revival of Saddam Hussain's Muhabarat, with a Sunni tribal component. A multiple grouping. aligned with other armed Sunni groups in Iraq. It’s an amalgamation of various phenomena, bleeds into tribal areas of Syria up to Aleppo.  Now they’re attacking one of three cantons that the Kurds control in Syria, stuck between tow ISIS areas, pincer movement.  Intensified fighting after July and Mosul; now rejoining the fight there.  Took a few villages, now having more success; PKK brethren coming in from Turkey to help, as some went before to help the peshmerga.  US is unofficially in alliance with Hezbollah and Suleimani.     Syrians want US openly to align with Assad. K When Assad moves in somewhere, Assad and tehr do, too.  Iranian nuclear program.  US pres has declared war on the Islamic State – JB: I'm told here's no difference whatsoever between IS conduct of war and Nusrah's conduct of war, The US decisions does not solve Nusrah – if it gains control of Syria, we'll have a Medieval state of rage.    TB:  In fact, there is a radical different in conduct.

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 2, Block D: Yossi Hollander,  , in re:  If we cut oil price to e$50 o r $60/Bbl, we'd have energy independence. If world price of oil drops,  . . . need competition at he pump.  Right now, all you can choose at he pump is gasoline, but if you could pick ethanol, methanol, LNG – let people choose – we have options all cheaper than oil.   Abt 70% goes to automobiles.  Current incumbents don’t want things to change; can convert your car to run n multiple liquid fuels, sometimes as easily by a simple software switch, for less than $300.  Having only a Tesla system won’t solve it, either. We like electric cars, think they'll be the big winner in a few decades; now, 100K out f 30 million cars in the US.  Out of the last years of recession O&G have been the only growth.  We’ve bought time with this. but the big story isn’t oil productions – hard to get over 10 million Bbl – but we have cheap nat gas, can convert it to liquid fuels – that will break the price of oil. 

Hour Three

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 3, Block A:  Malcolm Hoenlein, Conference of Presidents, in re: Turkey, Yemen, Syria. Rakkah.  Conference of presidents will not meet with Erdogan, given his disruptive regional role and anti-American stance. Turks assembling a mil force n frontier, possibly to fight IS but more likely to crush Kurds.  Can’t afford to let PKK . . .  selling arms to Syrian Kurds.  Young American women entering to join ISIS; no one intercets them.  Kurds in Turkey being asked to help with the 21 villages lost.  British women joined ISIS, now 20 American women there.  Houthis [Howtis]  attacking in Sanaa; collapse of national order. Houthis , a Yazdi Shiite group, proxy for Iran in Saudi-Iran conflict  now control all land from Sanaa to the northern border, are advancing in to Sanaa, the Yemeni capital. Yemen controls the straits, so is a critical place. Falafin Street: advancing troops therealong. Clashes with Yemeni armi, control wo key district, going after Sunni properties, incl TV and university. Local Sunnis are not fighting the Shia Houthis.  ISIS oil goes through Turkey; Rakkah headquarters.  Gone underground, moved families out, leadership hides in tunnels. 

.  Syrians now admit having chem weapons, incl Sarin and such in RPGs.  Facility producing ricin.   Took fighters's families out of Rakkah.   Only the US is likely to bomb there.  ISIS presence in Ciudad Juarez.  – no ground troops. The US Air Force and its invisible allies will be attacking Rakkah, where no one is any more, Teheran: You come to Syria, we'll strike back – threaten US interests and allies. Teheran continues to support Assad; can heat up all areas.  The Islamic State is not waiting in Rakkah for cruise missiles to show up.

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 3, Block B: Joshua Muravchik, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, & Institute of World Politics; author, Making David Into Goliath; in re:  When in the Security Council, Taiwan lost its seat and Beijng took it, America was given a kick, In 1974, Yassir Arafat was invited to participate in discussion on Middle East, to speak at the GA.  He was not only not a head of state, but was head of a terrorist organization and warmed with a holster and gun "We'll let the Jews stay in the Middle East if they'll leave that land of Israel"  -- and got a massive standing ovation.   UN not much concerned about Palestinians  Israel is he symbol of white Euro colonialists (incl US), while Palestinians represent benighted people of color.  Israel's very success has damaged its symbolic meaning.  Pres Sisi, but also many other movements and Arab citizens who see their greatest thereat the rise of radical Islam, which wants to impose a totalitarian structure on them.  The danger of colonialism reposes mainly in the mind of Western intellectuals, rather than among Arabs who have legitimate current worries.  Enablers: Arab oil money funds a lot of vicious movement but much more European governmental finding for them

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 3, Block C: Clair McDougall. AlJazeeera America, in Monrovia, in re:  

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 3, Block D:   Daniel Henninger, WSJ WONDER LAND 
, in re: G.I. Joe in Lilliput  
The U.S. military is a giant Gulliver tied down by Washington lawyers.

Hour Four

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 4, Block A: Arif Rafiq, RealClearWorld, Middle East Institute &  PakistanRisk, in re: http://www.realclearworld.com/articles/2014/09/16/misunderstanding_al_qaedas_new_affiliate_110709.html

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 4, Block B:  Robert Zimmerman, behindtheblack, in re:  Blue Origin to build rocket engine for Atlas 5 The competition heats up: Jeff Bezos’s company Blue Origin has signed a contract with the United Launch Alliance to build a rocket engine for the Atlas 5 rocket so that it will no longer have to depend on Russian engines.  Neither executive [of either company] would discuss a dollar figure, although it’s likely somewhat less than $1 billion. Bruno said a typical liquid-fueled rocket engine takes seven years and $1 billion to develop, but Blue Origin is already several years along on the BE-4. Bruno said the engine could be ready within four years to serve as the main engine on the company’s Atlas V rockets.

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 4, Block C:  Amos Guiora, University of Utah, in re: Guiora blog: http://www.law.utah.edu/degrade-and-destroy/

McCormack blog:  http://www.law.utah.edu/obama-bashing-lets-the-jihadists-suck-us-in-again/

 

Thursday  18 September 2014 / Hour 4, Block D:   Ken Croswell, Science magazine, i1  http://news.sciencemag.org/space/2014/08/star-exploded-dawn-time