Page 24 of 272 FirstFirst ... 1422232425263474124 ... LastLast
Results 346 to 360 of 4074

Thread: Had enough yet

  1. #346
    Member HipKat's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Pekin, IL
    Posts
    8,744
    Since early 2016, there have been four attempts to broker cease-fire deals involving various groups and state actors. All but one collapsed outright and the last is only working by degrees:

    — A cease-fire that went into effect in February 2016 involved the United States and Russia. A month later, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would pull out of the pact as Moscow backed a push by Syrian-government forces to retake territory captured by the Islamic State. At the time, NPR's Alice Fordham put the difficulty of a lasting truce this way: The parties, she said, "have ... raised concerns that there's no consequences for violations. And they've shown a reluctance to really look beyond the first few steps of this sequential plan because they say ... we have to understand that there really will be a cease-fire."

    — Another deal was done in September between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. It didn't last long. It was difficult even for Kerry to be optimistic about the outcome. NPR wrote when the announcement was made that the U.S. secretary of state noted "the history of [failure] ... and warned that the implementation of this new [cease-fire] is far from guaranteed."

    — In December of last year, Turkey and Russia agreed to a truce. It unraveled quickly. When the cease-fire was announced, analyst Aron Lund told NPR, "If there's good faith on both sides here, then maybe. But good faith - Russia, Iran, Turkey - I don't know."

    — And barely two months ago, Russia, Iran and Turkey signed an agreement in Astana, Kazakhstan, to create "de-escalation" zones. Although these zones have enjoyed some success, there's much confusion about their boundaries and not infrequently, violations that result in more bloodshed. As we reported at the time, the watchdog group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that airstrikes had dropped off in the protected zones but that government forces continued to consolidate gains near the capital.
    Let me articulate this for you:
    "I'm not locked in here with them. They're locked in here with me!!"
    HipKat's Blog

  2. #347
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Quote Originally Posted by HipKat;1735267[QUOTE
    ]Since early 2016, there have been four attempts to broker cease-fire deals involving various groups and state actors. All but one collapsed outright and the last is only working by degrees:

    HipKat,

    Your vague qualification "by degrees" aside, you have admitted that the cease-fire is holding, and is still in effect.

    If there are violations, how many of the violations resulted in combat deaths?

    Are the the violations increasing or decreasing on a hourly/daily basis?

    How much territory has been acquired/changed hands through hostile acts during the cease-fire period?

    Is there supporting evidence that either side is planning, or positioning for, an organized resumption of hostilities?

    Cease-fires, including the 64-year-old one between North and South Korea, are not flawless. Hell, Vietnam holiday truces were broken. Ever hear of Tet? Success is measured by the broad picture and the general trend.

    I also note you did not speak to the point made on chemical attacks.
    Last edited by mark blazejewski; July 23rd, 2017 at 03:53 AM.

  3. #348
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Since early 2016, there have been four attempts to broker cease-fire deals all but one collapsed...

    TRUMP ADMINISTRATION.

    A cease-fire that went into effect in February 2016 involved the United States and Russia. A month later, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would pull out of the pact as Moscow backed a push by Syrian-government forces to retake territory captured by the Islamic State.
    OBAMA ADMINITRATION.

    Another deal was done in September between Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and then-U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry. It didn't last long.
    OBAMA ADMISTRATION. Perhaps Kerry should have brought in James Taylor again.

    Maybe Trump is not as hapless as the left says.

  4. #349
    Member HipKat's Avatar
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Pekin, IL
    Posts
    8,744
    Or maybe since Russia has a larger presence in Syria, that's who should be commended
    Let me articulate this for you:
    "I'm not locked in here with them. They're locked in here with me!!"
    HipKat's Blog

  5. #350
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Quote Originally Posted by HipKat View Post
    Or maybe since Russia has a larger presence in Syria, that's who should be commended
    Curious to know when Russia started to become a major power in the Middle East again.

  6. #351
    Member BorderBob's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Posts
    2,924
    Quote Originally Posted by Lee Chowaniec View Post
    Hey Mark B.

    Is the Syrian cease fire still holding? I haven’t read anything in the mainstream liberal media that indicates that it is. Is that another example of collusion with the Russians and one we should be worried about?.
    Nope!

    http://www.reuters.com/article/us-mi...-idUSKBN1A805H




    b.b.

  7. #352
    Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Posts
    8,921
    Quote Originally Posted by BorderBob View Post

    From the report:

    Syrian government warplanes carried out several air strikes in the Eastern Ghouta area east of Damascus on Sunday, a day after the Syrian military declared a cessation of hostilities in the area, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

    The United States, Russia and Jordan reached a ceasefire and "de-escalation agreement" for southwestern Syria this month, which has reduced violence. That agreement did not include Eastern Ghouta.

    ????????????????

  8. #353
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Quote Originally Posted by BorderBob View Post
    See my reply to poster Lee Chowaniec.

  9. #354
    Member BorderBob's Avatar
    Join Date
    Feb 2006
    Posts
    2,924
    Yea, I knew you two would split the hairs. Lee's "Syria cease fire" becomes "well, not where there is still fighting going on." BTW, both sides are arming up, the USA is sending MRAPS and other military vehicles into Syria as we write this. But keep living your dream while you wait to WIN.





    b.b.

  10. #355
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Quote Originally Posted by mark blazejewski View Post
    See my reply to poster Lee Chowaniec.
    Obviously, Bob must be reading from a Fake News site for the objectively impaired.

    I do not put a lot of stock into any cease-fire, absence a comprehensive peace agreement. Usually, all such cease fires are broken. But, this cease-fire, unless Bob has a source leaking classified information, information to which you and I Mr. C. are not privy, is another foreign policy "By Comparison To Obama" victory for The Trumpster.

    The President, even if the cease-fire fails, can take credit for reducing some suffering, and more importantly, has proven to the world he can forcefully stand-up to Putin, example being the Cruise Missile strike, and still be able to work with him from a position of strength and respect. Hyperbolic and exaggerated Watergate comparisons aside, those are about the only REAL NEWS comparisons that can be made to the tactics, stratagems, and policies of President Nixon.

    Trump does not work above a globalist safety net. He works in the interests of the United States, world peaces, AND WITHOUT JAMES TAYLOR.

    Curious to note that neither of my good friends Bob and HipKat spoke to the chemical warfare observation I made.
    Last edited by mark blazejewski; July 23rd, 2017 at 01:26 PM.

  11. #356
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Quote Originally Posted by BorderBob;1735325[QUOTE
    ]Yea, I knew you two would split the hairs. Lee's "Syria cease fire" becomes "well, not where there is still fighting going on." BTW, both sides are arming up, the USA is sending MRAPS and other military vehicles into Syria as we write this.

    That is not splitting hairs Bob.

    Your response inappropriately describes a futuristic, hypothetical comprehensive peace agreement, to the exclusion of the original question which concerned the status of the cease-fire sponsored by Trump and Putin.

    The correct answer to that original question is "Yes."


    Your responsive observation is a deflective fruit compote of apples and oranges.
    Last edited by mark blazejewski; July 23rd, 2017 at 01:57 PM.

  12. #357
    Member
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Posts
    8,921
    Hey Mark B.

    Thank you for the response - a knowledgeable one in fact and historical content that clearly holds both sides accountable for past administration policies and practices.

    Should Trump get his ‘ducks in a row’ and attack the left, the citizenry will suffer even more because of it.

    An example of how divided, inept and dysfunctional our government is today was well illustrated by a Washington Post opinion column written today by Kathleen Parker – and spot on in my opinion.

    In the post Parker declares she did not find a single person who thought the GOP could pull off a ‘repeal and replace’ ACA. She rightfully observes that the mast majority of Americans are fundamentally opposed to anyone suffering. She adds that ACA takes up one-sixth of our economy and is so complex and asks “how can one untangle a knot of 20 million strings".

    She proceeds to point out the issues (on both sides) and the difficulty of initially crafting ACA and the difficulty of coming up with a health care plan that is cost-effective and fair to all. “There are simply too many moving parts to craft it – and too many reasons to not sink it.”

    Parker’s closing paragraph says it all for people like me that are tired of the toxic, blame game politics dividing this country:

    Since the repeal-only idea seems doomed, perhaps, finally Republicans and Democrats can snap on their wizard hats and cobble something workable. After all, it’s the only thing they haven’t tried yet.

  13. #358
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Since the repeal-only idea seems doomed, perhaps, finally Republicans and Democrats can snap on their wizard hats and cobble something workable. After all, it’s the only thing they haven’t tried yet.

    Obama and the Democrats screwed-up the nation's health insurance. The Democrats paid the price.

    The Republicans won three elections pledging to fix it. With blame assigned to the Democrats, and with confidence having been placed in the Republican promise of an alternative, the Republicans MUST deliver.

    Both sides can come out smelling like roses, if they get to work and stop flinging the s***.

    But I'm not holding my breath, and that is why I think both sides suck.

  14. #359
    Member dtwarren's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2003
    Location
    West Seneca, New York, United States
    Posts
    4,636
    Quote Originally Posted by mark blazejewski View Post
    I hold, if there are legitimate questions concerning law breaking, those concerns are properly answered through a prescribed legal process. Collusion, if it did take place, does not seem to be illegal. However, I am supportive of a remedial reaction to the rather clouded area of collusion legality. IMHO, that legality should be addressed by future, specific, statutory remedy.
    It does not matter if there was collusion. Proof of a collusion is not necessary to establish a violation of Federal Law. All that is necessary is that they knew or should have known that the information was coming from a Foreign National that is prohibited from contributing to any U.S. election either directly or indirectly. This entire obsession of whether or not there was/is collusion is a smoke screen: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/52/30121
    “We in America do not have government by the majority. We have government by the majority who participate.” ― Thomas Jefferson

  15. #360
    Member mark blazejewski's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2015
    Posts
    5,307
    Quote Originally Posted by dtwarren;1735342[QUOTE
    ]It does not matter if there was collusion. Proof of a collusion is not necessary to establish a violation of Federal Law.
    In an earlier post, I addressed this so-called "collusion" business. I did not address any other possible violation(s) of Federal Law. While your comment is most probably correct and certainly welcome, it is entirely unnecessary.

    All that is necessary is that they knew or should have known that the information was coming from a Foreign National that is prohibited from contributing to any U.S. election either directly or indirectly. This entire obsession of whether or not there was/is collusion is a smoke screen: [url]https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/52/30121[/url


    The FBI is the investigatory instrument of the Justice Department. The IRS and the Secret Service perform similar functions for the Treasury Department. There are component offices under the authority of the NSA to further exert legal machinery.

    Those agencies are properly charged with investigating wrong doing, and then reporting their findings appropriately. The prescribed investigatory processes do not provide for the leaking of information to the press and other media.

    Currently, the only discernible acts of illegality, with publicly presented supporting evidence, arises out of the world of "illegal leaking."

    As I have repeatedly posted, if there are any such suspicions and charges, ALL of the those charges, which may have negatively impacted the 2016 primary and/or general election campaigns, including all of the attendant illegal "leaks," should be pursued, investigated, and disposed of, through the legally prescribed processes.

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 156 users browsing this thread. (1 members and 155 guests)

  1. Lee Chowaniec

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •