Putin and Peanut-head, Despots in the Making

 

  Last week it seemed that the world was going to Hell in a hand-basket, the hot Summer days making the militants bitchy and mean, to paraphrase an old song by the folk-singer John Stewart...

Now I can sit back, read the newspaper, and marvel at the stupidity of Vladimir Putin or whomever had the idea to send 260 Trojan Horses into the Ukraine, disguised as humanitarian aid. They are camped out near the border because they won't let anyone look at the cargo inside the trucks, which are all badly repainted military trucks, driven by men who say they are not soldiers, all wearing the same brown shorts, t-shirts, and brown caps. It gives an ominous tone to the phrase "what can Brown do for you..." A few of the trucks tried to sneak across the border at night, and were destroyed beyond recognition by Ukrainian forces, probably drones provided by western allies.

This game of humanitarian charades is about to end. Inspectors from the Red Cross or someone equally important are on their way, and we may soon learn if there is even one six-pack of bottled water in those 260 trucks, or will they slink back to Moscow, hiding their secrets, thinking up some great excuse to tell Mr. Putin. Or. will every driver get tired of playing, put on their uniforms and battle gear, making a mad dash to free Donetsk, or the very least, beef up the defenses in Crimea... I know that Putin doesn't like it when he's made fun of, but if he keeps on doing really stupid things, then telling dumb, transparent lies about them, he will end up the laughing-stock of the world...

Speaking of telling transparent lies, the GOP keeps trying to blame President Obama for everything bad that's going on in the world, including the rise of  ISIS in Iraq and Syria. The argument goes that if Obama had sent arms to the Syrian rebels or had left some American troops in Iraq, there probably wouldn't be any ISIS running rampant up and down Iraq, claiming towns for their own brand of Islamic Caliphate.

But if any one person should take the blame, it's Mr. Peanut-head himself, the Prime Minister of Iraq, Nouri al-Malicki. He made sure that the US didn't leave any troops behind, he also created a government of intolerance, ruled by Shias, and fuck the Sunnis. He arrested his political opponents, and chased out of the country anyone who had talent or leadership qualities, allowed the bombing of Sunni neighborhoods and gathering places. Yes, he became a Saddam mini-me...

And now, with pressure from both the US and our new BFF's in Iran, al-Malicki has finally agreed to step down and let some moderates try to form a more inclusive government. We'll see if this happens or if it really is too late. Of course, we could always let the Kurds take over the whole country. They have already proven that they can rule an area intelligently, without all of the drama and intolerance...