Neocon Blog

Most of my links on this blog are to more liberal or progressive oriented sites. I was beginning to think I was not sufficiently balanced. I found Neocon Express which should balance things out. It has all sorts of links to Conservative blogs and sites.

The post for 7/27/06 is entitled The UN is Not Blameless. The subject is the UN's role in Lebanon. I assume the post was prompted by the controversy over the bombing of an UN observer post by the Israelis.

Here is a comment I submitted in response to the post:

I have a few problems you post. If the observer position you have pictured is the same one that the Israelis bombed then I would say that the UN forces made a fatal mistake in hanging around once the shooting started. But that would be a failure to take adequate force protection measures on the part of the local UN leadership.

You on the other hand seem to be blaming the victim. The UN forces are after all, observers. The UN itself hasn't actually enforced anything since the Korean War. You didn't offer any evidence that they were cooperating or aiding Hezbollah. And since they were tasked to observe, it probably made sense so cohabitate in order to observe Hezbollah. Given that UN observers probably have limited force protection capability it probably made more sense to colocate than not. It doesn't necessarily mean the UN force were co-opted.

I am also surprised to find a Neo-con that expects the UN to actually implement a resolution.

So I am not buying your argument for the partial justification for Israel targeting the UN post. On the other hand it is going to be a long war and this incident will be a minor atrocity when all is said and done.

On the other hand I think the naiveté and incompetence displayed by the Neocons/Bush Administration in pursuit of their Middle East agenda are to blame for the emboldenment of Hezbollah's supporters Syria and Iran. I find the analysis that Iran's position has been strengthened by the removal of Saddam very credible. I am afraid that the Neocons have fumbled the opening kickoff deep in their own territory.

The unfortunate reality of this sports analogy is that we have 130,000 U.S troops in a country with a Shiite majority. That country is barely in control by anyone. That Shiite majority cannot be happy with how the Shiite civilians of Lebanon are being treated by the Israelis.

I just hope the Green Zone doesn't join Diem Biem Phu and the Kyber Pass(1st Afgan War) in the list of military disasters

No local politics

I was considering posts about St. Louis politics, but this column in the Post Dispatch convinced me otherwise: Mayor's blog

As a minor city technocrat, it's alot safer for me to not blog about local issues.

Hillary in '08 ? Wellesley Women on the Rise

When people ask me what I studied at M.I.T. and I am in the mood to be a smart ass, I respond, "Wellesley Women and Comparative Beer Analysis." Obviously the most famous Wellesley Woman is Hillary Rodham '69. Today Arianna Huffington blogged on the subject of Senator Clinton's possible presidential candidacy Hillary's Secret Strategy.

Truth be told I really didn't study Wellesley Women all that hard. M.I.T. had and most likely still has an exchange program with Wellesley College. We could take courses at Wellesley and the women could take courses at M.I.T. However, I did not avail myself of this perk until spring semester of my senior year, when my main man, Bubba, and I enrolled in an introductory micro-economics course.

We were the only males in the class. The professor seemed ill at ease with us there, particularly after Bubba, soon to be a graduate of the Sloan School of Management, 'dis-ed' her explanation of linear programming. I had the impression the professor was always looking at us. I took to sitting directly behind a statuesque sophomore and slumping in my seat, using the young lady as a human shield.

Since I had pretty much completed my required engineering studies, I also took a seminar on Environmental Economics. Doubling my class time didn't help though, I did not have girl friend before the semester ended, I was just more well rounded education wise.

The point of this post, however, is not that I didn't find a Wellesley Woman to date that spring, but rather what I have observed about them in the intervening 30 years. They are highly successful. Even here in St. Louis, when a woman is appointed to an important position, like the Federal bench, it is not uncommon to find Wellesley College in her resume. Google has allowed me to check up on my limited number of Wellesley aquaintences:

1. Tall girl from economics class: Former bank executive pursuing a second finance related career.

2. Wellesley freshman I dated my junior year: Real Estate Tycoon and mother of five. (Hmm, I do recall she was avowed heterosexual, I probably should have done a better job of romancing her!)

3. Friend who hung out with us to include slumming with Bubba and I at the dog track: Has her own venture capital firm. (She studied the racing form like it was a business plan or prospectus.)

So my point is, no one should underestimate Senator Clinton. I also would not be surprised if one day a Wellesley Woman is elect to be the POTUS. I just hope she uses her intellect to further her firmly held beliefs rather whatever is politically expedient.

Do we know what we are doing in Iraq?

We seem to be clueless on so many levels. This op ed piece by Andrew J. Bacevich points out our behavior on the ground is often at odds with stated purpose.

What's an Iraqi Life Worth

For those of you on the right who might want to discount the opinions of an academic from the liberal N.E. (Boston University, his office is down the street from my MIT Frat house), please google before you speak/post. Prof. Bacevich is a Vietnam Veteran and a graduate of West Point. For those of you on the left, yes one can think for ones self after being educated by the military. In fact it is encouraged.

As a former member of the National Guard, I have often thought that we would be much better off if George W. Bush had come to drill more often. Especially if he had paid closer attention of the Military Law classes and learned about the Geneva Convention etc.