Thursday 20 March 2014
Photo, above: Famous kissing sailor photo, Aug. 14, 1945, the day Japan surrendered in WW II.
JOHN BATCHELOR SHOW
Co-hosts: Mary Kissel, Wall Street Journal editorial board and Malcolm Hoenlein, Conference of Presidents
Hour One
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 1, Block A: Devin Nunes (CA-22), and Ray Appleton, The Ray Appleton Show on KMJ, in re: Why Food Prices Are Rising Morning Editorial Report: Some drought conditions are Man-made, plus the latest on ObamaCare sign-ups. Doc Hastings, Congr McCarthy. Congr Devin Nunes, othr House Representatives; all at a demo of bout 3,000. Took 12,000 to Sacramento. It's been the power of the people that's finally turning some heads after so many years. House Natural Resources Committee: concerns of the San Joaquin Valley. res Obama claimed the problem is global warming; Committee mtg in situ: disproved that notion. To be eligible for Fed indemnity, your cows have to die. But NO ONE here is asking for money. We simply want our water not to be rerouted directly to the sea. Effort is to get Diane Feinstein and Barbara Boxer to do something. Looking at 800,000 acres lying idle – two times the entire state of Delaware, the most productive farmland in the world. This is ostensibly to save the Delta smelt – an endangered species in no real danger of disappearing. We will not produce 260 million heads of lettuce. What'll that do to the cost of food in the US? If we're going to keep the 800,000 acres, we need water – it takes seven years to get the first crop. After the almond trees die, who'll come in with capital to wait seven years?
House panel meeting in Fresno hears emotional impact of Calif. drought Sadly, in the real world, water is about power, water is a weapon, water ... field hearing on California's water crisis convened in the Fresno City ... Congressional Hearing On California Water Visits Fresno House panel meeting in Fresno hears emotional impact of drought.
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 1, Block B: Edward W Hayes, criminal defense attorney par excellence, in re: De Blasio's goal is to make the city into a big Petri dish for his social theories; Cuomo has national ambitions. DeBlasio is a shrewd political operator, will do what the can to hedge him in. Charter schools - DeBlasio wants to raise money from higher taxes, which Cuomo doesn’t. The young, progressive mayor of New York was fully endorsed by the New York Times. Liam Neeson opposes the mayor on horse-drawn carriages. Does DeBlasio care? No. MK: Tonight I was confronted by a New York UES Democrat in solid fur and high heels: "Do you like the Republicans?" "Yes." I don’t know about this mayor; I may come around to your side."
A Hard Turn Mayor Bill de Blasio sailed into office on the winds of a well-run campaign. Then he kept on campaigning, pressing for one overriding goal: a vast expansion of full-day prekindergarten and after-school programs, financed by an income tax on wealthier New Yorkers. Though the tax has always had only a whisper of a prayer of coming true — it needed approval in the State Legislature, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Senate Republicans were dead set against it — Mr. de Blasio pushed on anyway, giving no indication of having a Plan B.
This seemingly quixotic quest has just entered a new phase in Albany, where a budget is due on April 1. The Assembly, as many expected, last week embraced Mr. de Blasio’s pre-K tax, which would raise about $532 million a year for five years. Then the Senate proposed giving Mr. de Blasio even a little more than he was asking for — $540 million — although it rejected his tax as a way to pay for it. These numbers aren’t real — in Albany nothing is, until the closed-door budget dealing is done — but they look pretty good for the . . . [more]
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 1, Block C: John Roskam, Executive Director of the Institute of Public Affairs, Melbourne, in re: Last night, Tony Abbott announced some possibly-relevant debris found, did so in a low-key manner, garnered respect therefor. Previous PMs, Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd, did such an appalling job that they've tainted all politicians. The last 24 hours may improve the "plague on both your houses." Arthur Sinodinos: was Chief of staff to John Howard, previous PM, and considered good; a rep from New South Wales. Massive scandal: as president of the party he was in a company selling sewerage an water facilities seems to have paid a lot people a lot of money. Closure of Ford, Toyota, GM, in Australia still a main topic. "No country has ever subsidized itself to prosperity." - billions paid to car companies established by American parents ("It costs four times as much to make a car in Australia as in Asia.") The MH370 story is starting to turn into a conspiracy-theory tale in Australia. Paper: "The Top 20 Theories" headline.
Tony Abbott lands in Papua New Guinea for talks on trade, economy, Manus Island Tony Abbott has arrived in Port Moresby for his first visit to Papua New Guinea as Prime Minister - but he will not be making a trip to Manus ... Watch Tony Abbott Squirm as Australian Students Ask Some Very Awkward Questions Tony Abbott's surprise cabinet call on Arthur Sinodinos proves shrewd
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 1, Block D: Francis Rose, Federal News Radio, and Jeff Bliss, The Bliss Index, in re:
Hour Two
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 2, Block A: Nelson Bocaranda, journalist under govt attack in Venezuela, has two million Twitter followers, runrun.es; in Caracas, in re: Venezuelan economy in tatters; some empty shelves in stores, not enough food – but Caracas is better off than everyone else is. Elsewhere, shortages are much worse. Under Chavez, a million million dollar – eighteen zeroes – was given away to "lefties" to get support; gave $40 mil to Oliver Stone to make a movie about him; more money than the Soviet Union gave to Cuba. In fifteen years, we reached 180,000 people killed in Venezuela; this year, 1,200 dead: collectivos are armed groups, supplied with a motorcycle, a cell phone, and arms (AK or sidearm) all over the country to protect the regime against any uprising. Arm fell into the hands of delinquents. Collectivos have just been re-activated to kill demonstrating students – torturing, tear gas, it’s looney. Also San Cristobal, and a dozen of other cities. Yesterday Maduro said, I care naught that they call me dictator – establ media censorship. "Carinas" – he speaks on TV and radio for hours on end and all stations must carry it completely . Regime has a close relation with Iran, bought spy planes and plenty of arms; gave Iran land to do – what?
After two of his media caved to political pressures and took Bocaranda off the air, he turned to social media where he has even more impact than on traditional media. Bocaranda’s Twitter account (@nelsonbocaranda) surpasses 1.9 million followers, making him the country’s most followed journalist and one of the top 10 most followed journalists in the Spanish-speaking world. Bocaranda is also editor in chief of Runrunes Media (www.runrun.es) a popular news and opinion destination which is now home to more than 17 contributors and informs hundreds of thousands of visitors on a daily basis. More than 3 million unique visitors. All the content for the 12 various sections is exclusive and specially made for the page.
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 2, Block B: Ahmad K. Majidyar, AEI, in re: Sunni Shi'ite tension in Lebanon and greater Middle East, elections in Afghanistan. Afghan presidential election on 5 April: first democratic transfer of power in Afgh. history. Concerns: security – violence in previous days and much today – Taliban cannot cease the election but can cause trouble Iran has played a double game: helped in bldg country while using IRGC to undermine US and Western efforts . Lebanon: Hezbollah (Iran's proxy) losing many fighters, having trouble explaining why people's sons are dead from fighting Arab brethren rather than the Crusaders. Has undermined Hezbollah's image across the Arab world. Hezbollah's grip on the Lebanese govt has been iron-fisted for years; if Assad survives and rebels are defeated, that'll boost Hezbollah. If Assad regime is toppled, that's be a severe blow for Hezb: it'd lose a mentor, and lose a supply corridor. Hezb completely not cooperating w Hariri trial, even though some member have been indicted in absentia.
Ahmad K. Majidyar studies political and security affairs in South Asia and the Middle East, with a special focus on Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Iran. He also travels frequently to military bases across the United States to instruct senior U.S. Army and Marine officers about culture, religion, and domestic politics in Afghanistan, and about terrorist groups operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Before joining AEI in 2008, Mr. Majidyar worked as a media analyst with BBC Monitoring in Kabul, and served as an aid worker with the United Nations agency for refugees in Peshawar, Pakistan. He is fluent in Dari (Persian), Pashto, and Urdu.
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 2, Block C: Ambassador Danny Ayalon, in re: The Truth About Israel, esp in connection with the UN. When Iran chairs the antiwar committee and Libya the human rights organization, UN no longer has any moral authority. People assume that the UN must be an objective and dispassionate organization so Israel must be a wicked country. In the GA, one country/one vote; 60% are not democratic countries; they follow Arab directions – for oil or other blandishments. The BDS [boycott, divest, sanction] is as dangerous to Israel as anything: it's a concerted effort to delegitimize Israel. In the US, the BDS movement is working under an orchestrating hand. The crucial moment was in 1993, Oslo. Israel legitimized the PLO, an overtly terrorist group, and Israel stopped advocating for Israeli right. Arabs continued and concentrated on Europe. Now isolated cases in the US - a union, a campus group, etc. - are not isolated. It's a campaign. Last year in the UN, 85% of the resolutions dealt with Israel! Note that Abbas's thesis in Moscow was on how the Holocaust never occurred. Were there not an Israeli security presence in the West Bank, Abbas would not be in power at all – Hamas would take over in hours. He's four years past elections, has no mandate. Disintegration of the Arab world is not even at the end of the beginning Syria into four or five entities; eke Lebanon. The Maghreb, the kabili, Berber minorities, want some self0dertermination. For Israel, there may be no one nation stae that can take us on militarily but tactically it’s rough: al Qaeda, Hezbollah, rockets form Syria and the Sinai. I encourage US citizens to call legislator in DC and outlaw BDS vs Israel: if a Dutch bank or French firm joins BDS, it'll be denied all business with the US government.
The Truth About Israel (thetruthaboutisrael.org.il/) is founded by Danny Ayalon, based on his 25 years of experience at the forefront of Israel public diplomacy and foreign affairs as the recent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Member of Parliament, Ambassador to the USA, and Foreign Policy Advisor to three Prime Ministers. Danny Ayalon was elected as the number one influential diplomat by Foreign Policy magazine. With the phenomenal success of the series of videos by Danny Ayalon, "The Truth About", which were translated into 12 languages and viewed by millions around the world, Danny renewed the efforts for "hasbara".
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 2, Block D: Jonathan Schanzer, FDD, in re: Peace process, terrorism in Turkey. Massive financial scandal about Erdogan and his cronies, much released from one twitter handle, so he closed down twitter in Turkey today – and immediately a million and a half tweets worked around it. Gas for gold. Turkey is now reaching toward the Muslim world, not Europe, esp via its illicit finance with Hamas and other terrorist groups. NATO thinks it still needs Turkey for access to the Black Sea. Since Turkey now qualifies as a state sponsor of terrorism, its NATO connection will wither. Thinks it needs Turkish permission to put war ships in the Black Sea. In 2012, PLO proclaimed e state of Palestine; got UNESCO's acquiescence and promptly lost all US funding. PLO is wildly popular in the UN – 38 out of 193 countries supported the Palestinian statehood bid.
Since joining the FDD in February 2010, Dr. Schanzer has been singularly focused on ensuring that FDD delivers not only accurate and timely research, but also research that is useful to decision makers inside the Beltway, across America, and around the world. Dr. Schanzer brings solid scholarship and public policy credentials to his job of overseeing FDD's research. He worked as a terrorism finance analyst at the U.S. Department of the Treasury, where he played an integral role in the designation of numerous terrorist financiers. A former research fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Dr. Schanzer has studied Middle East history in four countries. He earned his Ph.D. from Kings College London, where he wrote his dissertation on the U.S. Congress and its efforts to combat terrorism in the 20th century.
Hour Three
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 3, Block A: Benjamin Weinthal, Gatestone Institute, in re: Reports on Iran human rights from UN; also Hezbollah in Europe and the need to clamp down on its activities, including the groups sending combatants and financial aid to Lebanon and Syria. Forty-nine Christians, also Bah'ais, Druze, Jews, held in Iranian prisons – all openly persecuted; Iran doesn’t even bother denying it. The number of executions has increased under Rouhani – all sorts of political dissidents and religious. The Iranian human rights situation is worse now than under Ahmadinejad. The P5+1 have narrowly focused on Iran's nuclear enrichment program; US cd say that Iran must release the three Americans now held in prison before negotiations can re-commence. Recall that Rouhani is not democratically elected; was hand-picked by the Supreme Leader, has spent years repressing student protests. Washington seems to think that interfering in torture is rank cultural relativism and not our business. US has used the same policy anent North Korea and massively failed. You'd think our political class would have learned. US is providing sanctions relief to Iran, money being pumped into buttressing Assad.
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 3, Block B: Malcolm Hoenlein, Conference of Presidents, in re: the USS Lincoln is in the Persian Gulf; IRGC have set out in heavily-armed boats to harass and intimidate US ships. Now, a 2/3-size mock-up of the USS Lincoln in a shipyard. Perhaps to blow up for propaganda purposes, or . Note that Iran's hand is now worldwide, including across South America, and it's currently torturing and hanging every kid of non-Muslim or political dissident/ A decade ago, Iranian Jews were missing. Malcolm met with Zarif (then ambassador to the UN), and Zarif denied this despite bushels of absolute evidence. Today announced that eight or nine are dead and three are unfound. Golan Heights: because of the geography, essential to Israeli safety. Regular IDF patrols; one was ambushed by Hezbollah; thousands of fragments – shrapnel and ball bearings. Goal was to kill or kidnap. Israel struck back immediately. Hezbollah has set up a f ield pertain just north of the border both to supply its fight in Syria and to plan attacks vs Israel. See the same thing on the Iraqi front, with agreement of Iran. Escalation. A departure from the last three years of the Syrian civil war, In Iraq, 8 to 15,000 people fighting, dying like flies.
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 3, Block C: Daniel Henninger, WSJ, in re: American Fatigue Syndrome . If the U.S. doesn't lead, the strongmen win. For them it's easier. By the time the second World Trade Center tower collapsed on Sept. 11, 2001, the whole world was watching it. We may assume that Vladimir Putin was watching. Mr. Putin, a quick calculator of political realities, would see that someone was going to get hit for this, and hit hard. He was right of course. The Bush presidency became a war presidency that day, and it pounded and pursued the Islamic fundamentalists of al Qaeda without let-up or apology.
In 2008, the American people elected a new president, and Vladimir Putin, a patient feline, would have noticed that President Obama in his speeches was saying that American power would be used "in concert" with other nations and institutions, such as the United Nations. What would have made Mr. Putin's eye jump was the decision by George Bush's successor not just to leave Iraq but without leaving a residual U.S. military presence to help the new government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Sometime in the first Obama term, opinion polls began to report that the American people were experiencing what media shorthand came to call "fatigue" with the affairs of the world. The U.S. should "mind its own business." The America-is-fatigued polling fit with Mr. Obama's stated goal to lead from behind. A close observer of American politics also could notice that Republican politicians, the presumptive heirs of Reagan, began to recalibrate their worldview inward to accommodate the "fatigue" in the opinion polls.
We are of course discussing Vladimir Putin's path to the forced annexation of Crimea. And possibly in time a move on the independence of Ukraine, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Kazakhstan or Moldova. This narrative has one more point of Putin demarcation: Syria.
Last September, every foreign chancery in the world concluded that the United States would bomb Bashar Assad's airfields with Tomahawk missiles in reprisal for killing nearly 1,500 Syrians with chemical weapons, including sarin gas. Vladimir Putin placed a bet. He suggested to the American president that in lieu of the U.S. bombing Assad's airfields, their two nations, in concert, could remove all of Syria's chemical weapons. Mr. Obama accepted and stood down from bombing Assad. Six months later Vladimir Putin invaded and annexed Crimea.
This moment is not about Barack Obama. By now we know about him. This is about Vladimir Putin and the self-delusions of Western nations and their famous "fatigue." Vladimir Putin is teaching the West and especially the United States that . . .
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 3, Block D: Jim O'Sullivan, in re: Shaheen, Brown go on offense in N.H. race: Senator Jeanne Shaheen and Scott Brown took potshots at each other as the Senate campaign in New Hampshire heats up.
Hour Four
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 4, Block A: Robert Zimmerman, behindtheblack.com, in re: THE BLACK PLANETS. Using images from the Spitzer Space Telescope, astronomers have assembled a 360 degree zoomable portrait of the plane of the Milky Way galaxy. The image is in infrared, which is why it can see parts of the galaxy obscured by dust in visible wavelengths, and you can explore it at your leisure, from home. Before and after images from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter have discovered the formation of a new gully on Mars sometime between November 2010 and May 2013. The winding gully seems to have poured out from an existing ribbon channel in a crater in Mars’ Terra Sirenum region. The leading hypothesis on how the gully formed is that debris flowed downslope from an alcove and eroded a new channel. Though it looks water-carved, the gully is much more likely to have been formed when carbon dioxide frost accumulated on the slope and grew heavy enough to avalanche down and drag material down with it.
China’s Yutu rover is still functioning but cannot move. Last week Yutu and its companion spacecraft, the Chang’e 3 Moon lander, awoke from a period of dormancy after the frigid, two-week lunar night — the third awakening since landing on 14 December, Chinese scientists said this week at the Lunar and Planetary Science Conference in The Woodlands, Texas. The probes continue to gather data and send it back to Earth.
But Yutu may never move more than the 100–110 metres it has already travelled from its landing site — in the Mare Imbrium. Mission officials had hoped that Yutu would travel to the rim of a nearby crater and explore it, but a mechanical failure in Yutu’s drive system has stilled the rover since late January.
I wish they'd get their story straight. This article suggests that the problem wasn’t in the circuit that controls the storage of equipment during the long lunar night, as reported previously, but in the system that actually moves the rover. It also appears from the story above that scientists were disappointed by the amount of information released at the Texas conference.
nationaljournal.com/tech/here-s-how-nasa-thinks-society-will-collapse-20140318
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 4, Block B: Jody Shenn, , in re: CHASING FORBIDDEN TREASURE Almost six years after bad home loans crippled the economy, Perry Capital and other big hedge funds are battling the government over the future of mortgage companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which needed taxpayer bailouts to survive. If the investors prevail in the courts or in Congress, they could enjoy one of the biggest paydays in history. But the fate of the two companies—and the investors’ bets—are very much up in the air because the U.S. Department of the Treasury decided two years ago that all the companies’ earnings must go to the government. If the government decides to put the companies out of business without compensating shareholders, the stock could end up being worthless.
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 4, Block C: David Davenport, Hoover and Forbes.com, in re: International Criminal Court: 12 Years, $1 Billion, 2 Convictions
Thursday 20 March 2014 / Hour 4, Block D: The Kissing Sailor: The Mystery Behind the Photo That Ended World War II by Lawrence Verria, George Galdorisi, and David Hartman
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Music
Hour 1: Cowboys & Aliens. Dexter. Mad Max. Sin City.
Hour 2: Mask of Zorro. The Ghost Writer. Dark Shadows. Atonement.
Hour 3: Green Zone. Indiana Jones & the Last Crusade. Road to Perdition. Inside Man.
Hour 4: After Earth. Land of the Dead.