Well Dave, let's not get hysterical about things. Riots? Fact is things were much worse in the 60's. I know, I was there. War? Fact is things were much worse in the 60's. I know, I was there. Corrupt government? LOL. 60's...Do I even need to explain? End times? I'd guess people who lived through the Civil War, WWI, the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, WWII, the very real threat of nuclear war during the 50's and 60's...I'm guessing those people could tell you a thing or two about persevering through the "end times". This is not to say that current events are all good, or do not have the potential to escalate, but let's not be a bunch of pussies about it.
Looks like NATO may finally be getting its **** together: BRUSSELS, Sept 1 (Reuters) - NATO leaders will respond to the Ukraine crisis by agreeing this week to create a "spearhead" rapid reaction force, potentially including several thousand troops, that could be sent to a hotspot in as little as two days, officials said on Monday. The 28-nation alliance already has a rapid reaction force but U.S. President Barack Obama and other leaders meeting for a NATO summit in Wales on Thursday and Friday are expected to create a new force that would be able to respond more quickly to a crisis. The speed with which Russian forces infiltrated Ukraine's Crimea region in March has focused minds at NATO on speeding up its ability to respond if a similar crisis ever occurred on NATO territory. "We will develop what I would call a spearhead ... a very high-readiness force able to deploy at very short notice. This spearhead would be provided by allies in rotation, and could include several thousand troops, ready to respond where needed with air, sea and special forces support," NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told a news conference. A senior NATO official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the spearhead force could range from "a very small size up to something potentially as large as a brigade size". A NATO brigade typically numbers between 3,000 and 5,000 troops. The official said the force would be able to deploy to a crisis zone in just two days. Other NATO sources said however that some elements of the force might take longer to arrive. Currently it takes five days for the first units of NATO's rapid reaction force to arrive. The creation of the new force will be one of a range of measures in a "readiness action plan" that NATO will adopt at the summit to step up deterrence in response to the Ukraine crisis. BASES Eastern European NATO members, including Poland, have appealed to NATO to permanently station thousands of troops on its territory to deter any possible Russian attack. But NATO members have spurned that idea, partly because of the expense and partly because they do not want to break a 1997 agreement with Russia under which NATO committed not to permanently station significant combat forces in the east. Instead NATO leaders will agree to pre-position equipment and supplies, such as fuel and ammunition, in eastern European countries with bases ready to receive the NATO rapid reaction force if needed, This will enable the new rapid reaction force to "travel light, but strike hard if needed", Rasmussen said. Infrastructure such as ports and airstrips in Poland and the Baltics may have to be upgraded to enable them to receive reinforcements quickly if needed, NATO officials say. The goal of the NATO plan is to show that it is serious about its key commitment that an attack on one NATO member is considered an attack on all and that it would come to the aid of any NATO ally if it faced aggression. NATO will continue with the short-term measures it put in place in response to the Ukraine crisis which include sending more fighter aircraft to the Baltics and stepping up military exercises in eastern Europe. The "spearhead" force is different to a new "joint expeditionary force" that Britain and six other NATO allies plan to set up, NATO officials said. "What the UK is doing ... is establishing this joint expeditionary force which could be used for NATO but could be used for other things as well, whether a European Union operation, a U.N. operation or indeed national operations," the senior NATO official said. The British-led force could follow behind NATO's spearhead force in a crisis, he said. NATO leaders will also "enhance the breadth and depth" of the naval forces it has on standby, which allies take turns to contribute to. They will also work to improve alliance intelligence capabilities and its ability to respond to the type of "hybrid" warfare used by Russia in Ukraine, which NATO officials say have included disinformation, subversion and cyber attack. Adrian Croft
Hysterical? No. Concerned? Yes. When I say the news hasn't this bad in a long time, I wasn't thinking the last 100 years. You're right, the Civil War, WW 1, WW 2, and the Great Depression are certainly worse than the present situation. We have 4 major stories happening right now that could all get bigger. One thing to remember is that during those events, America was in a much better place back then. But now because of liberalism, it has become weakened to the point that it can't even fight a war (Iraq and Afghanistan) without the second guessing its every move. How is it going to defeat a much stronger Russia or China in 20 years? You could blame President Obama, but he is carrying out the will of an electorate that is increasingly liberal. But when the next equivalent of one of those events happens, it will be cold comfort that "they've happened before". The next ones will be worse. I will hope for the best and prepare for the worst.
On the other hand . . . As the full impact of sanctions against Russia hit the European Union and as the EU attempts to recover from the sovereign debt crisis that nearly destroyed it, the European economy is once again in contraction, threatening to derail the country’s unified response to the Ukraine crisis. European leaders met in Brussels over the weekend after Russian troops and pro-Russia separatists opened a third front in the fight for eastern Ukraine. However, despite strong talk, the group could not reach agreement on how to increase punishments against Moscow. Some European leaders urged restraint in the face of stagnation across the eurozone. “I believe that the sanctions will become senseless and counter-productive. Slovakia may use its right of veto,” Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said Sunday. Economic data released Monday revealed by Fico is concerned about the residual impacts of sanctions on Europe. The manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI), an indicator of the health of an economy’s manufacturing sector, dropped to a 13-year low of 50.7 in August, down from 53.8 in July. In short, economic output is dropping fast. “Although some growth is better than no growth at all, the braking effect of rising economic and geopolitical uncertainties on manufacturers is becoming more visible," said Rob Dobson, senior economist at Markit. Even Germany, whose economy powered the eurozone’s tepid recovery, is slipping. According to Eurostat, the German economy contracted from April to June. France and Italy, the continent’s second and third largest economies respectively, also are in trouble. “France remains a real concern, as does Italy's descent from solid expansion to stagnation. Signs that growth impetus waned in the key industrial engine of Germany, and in Spain and the Netherlands too, is also less than reassuring," Dobson said. Austerity Failed? The European slowdown has increased calls for some kind of stimulus from the European Central Bank. But any action by the ECB would have to be coordinated across a number of different countries with a number of different fiscal policies. This brings up the Catch 22 that has haunted Europe since the start of the crisis -- the EU has common monetary policy, but not common fiscal policy. The ECB’s inability to affect change prompted its chief, Mario Draghi, to question whether the austerity demanded by Germany in exchange for a bailout of Greece and other struggling European nations was the right call. “It would be helpful for the overall stance of policy if fiscal policy could play a greater role alongside monetary policy, and I believe there is scope for this, while taking into account our specific initial conditions and legal constraints," Draghi said. “The risks of 'doing too little' outweigh those of 'doing too much.’” Shadow over NATO Summit Europe’s economic stagnation, as well as Draghi’s comments, is likely to hang over the NATO summit later this week. Europe is now faced with a difficult choice; it could increase economic sanctions, which would hurt Russia while also negatively impacting the European economy. The alternative is to choose to look the other way as Russia carves up Ukraine. “If not the … sanction policy then what?” asked Edward Goldberg, a professor at Baruch College and the New York University Center for Global Affairs. “Probably the only alternative now would be for the EU, not NATO, to send some military equipment to the Ukraine.” DAVID FRANCIS ---------------- It will be interesting to see if principle wins out over economics. If the latter, this would be a perfect opportunity for Russia to retake Eastern Europe.