This week has seen the final nail in the coffin of Iraq as we've known it since the end of World War I. The headlines around the World have been dominated with how ISIS has been ever so successful--and continues to be so right now based on all that has been happening on the ground. Iraq, though, is part of the tragedy that continues to evolve in the Middle East as Syria continues to burn and Israelis and Palestinians are at each others' throats as Israel continues its' hunt for the young kids who were kidnapped on their way home--a profound tragedy for those children and their families.
This month, though, also saw one very hopeful sign: The joint appearance by Mahmoud Abbas & Shimon Peres with Pope Francis at the Vatican at a Prayer for Peace.
In assessing some of the deliberations in the US Public Affairs Shows, what did not get "much traction" in the Worldwide mainstream press that was so much the cheerleader for the Second Iraq War is the views of those who actually get That part of the World. One of them is Vijay Prasad of the University of Beirut who had some compelling things to note in his recent commentary on the Real News Network:
The hard truths noted is ever so crucial. The same cheerleaders who wanted war were again calling for another war. Thankfully, voices even on the Conservative Community (including Glenn Beck) are saying enough is enough. There is a bigger challenge, though: What to do now. It was frankly shocking to see the latest BBC dispatch about the fact that the Iraqi Air Force ran out of hellfire Missiles two weeks ago. What about all the Billions that was spent? What is absolutely clear is that no one seems to know the answer. There are reports that Irbil--one of the key cities in the Kurdish Region--is also under threat. As the Shias were mobilizing and parading in Baghdad, there were increasing calls to replace Maliki. What was laughable was reports about who would replace him, though: Ahmad Chalabi or Ilay Alawi. In the meantime, as the bombings and killings continue, the ordinary man and woman is forgotten as refugees continue to flee in their thousands.
Excepts released to http://www.outsiderviews.com, June 2014
This month, though, also saw one very hopeful sign: The joint appearance by Mahmoud Abbas & Shimon Peres with Pope Francis at the Vatican at a Prayer for Peace.
In assessing some of the deliberations in the US Public Affairs Shows, what did not get "much traction" in the Worldwide mainstream press that was so much the cheerleader for the Second Iraq War is the views of those who actually get That part of the World. One of them is Vijay Prasad of the University of Beirut who had some compelling things to note in his recent commentary on the Real News Network:
The hard truths noted is ever so crucial. The same cheerleaders who wanted war were again calling for another war. Thankfully, voices even on the Conservative Community (including Glenn Beck) are saying enough is enough. There is a bigger challenge, though: What to do now. It was frankly shocking to see the latest BBC dispatch about the fact that the Iraqi Air Force ran out of hellfire Missiles two weeks ago. What about all the Billions that was spent? What is absolutely clear is that no one seems to know the answer. There are reports that Irbil--one of the key cities in the Kurdish Region--is also under threat. As the Shias were mobilizing and parading in Baghdad, there were increasing calls to replace Maliki. What was laughable was reports about who would replace him, though: Ahmad Chalabi or Ilay Alawi. In the meantime, as the bombings and killings continue, the ordinary man and woman is forgotten as refugees continue to flee in their thousands.
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