This is war

The Times of India recognises this for what it is: war.

"This nation is under attack. The scale, intensity and level of orchestration of terror attacks in Mumbai put one thing beyond doubt: India is effectively at war and it has deadly enemies in its midst."

The editorial also has some familiar suggestions:

"Constitutional experts must put their hands together to see whether under existing laws any special, but temporary, powers can be given to the security agencies. All major political parties should be taken into confidence to see what urgent steps can be taken to prevent the nation from sinking deeper into chaos. There is a pressing need to restructure India's security architecture. A federal agency to deal with terrorism has been suggested by this newspaper and now by the PM. A coordinated effort to process information gleaned by state and central agencies should help to transform randomly collected information into actionable intelligence.

The government should immediately work on an internal security doctrine that demarcates the role of various security wings and a clear command structure to deal with terrorism. This should include contingency plans for various scenarios which lay out in advance how to respond to them. Tougher laws, in consultation with the opposition, may also be needed to control terror."

And observations:

"Besides terrorists coming in from the Arabian Sea, their looking for Americans, Britons and Israelis give the signal that the attack on Mumbai is a spillover from the larger war on terror. Al-Qaeda is, for the first time, feeling the pressure in its Pakistani sanctuaries as it is under Pakistani and American attack. But South Asian borders are notoriously porous. Al-Qaeda affiliated organisations such as Harkat-ul-Jihad-al-Islami (HuJI) have struck deep roots in Bangladesh.

To tackle terror in India it is urgently necessary to stabilise Pakistan and Bangladesh. And, India should seek international help now to upgrade its own security apparatus, but also to stabilise the entire region stretching from Afghanistan to Bangladesh. There is no time to waste."

Obama lines up more heavyweights

Obama looks set to unveil a strong national security team next week with Robert Gates remaining at DOD and former NATO chief General James Jones slotting in as national security adviser.

This illustrates that the president-elect, who is doubtless aware of the "soft power" he oozes, realises that "hard power" is still the currency of international relations when dealing with actors who do not share consonant interests. This is shaping up to be a tough administration, with a keen interest in clever diplomacy, and an unprecedented resevoir of global appeal. That should be a potent cocktail.

Alas, what the White House will be missing

Absolute babble once again

If Governor Palin wants to have a future in American politics, she needs to salvage her career in Alaska (where her approval ratings plunged 20 points during the campaign) and start studying the many policy areas that prompted her fall from grace. This interview with NBC is riddled with same sort of nonsense we heard from her over the past three months and she's not even discussing foreign or domestic policy. If she keeps this up, she won't give independents, who turned out quite decisively against her, a chance to refresh their opinions because these interviews reinforce her worst impressions. Moreover, she is addressing the gathering of GOP governors shortly - everyone knows she is popular with the base, so this won't change anything. She has plenty of time to learn the ropes and this is the worst way to go. What's the rush?

The Great War ninety years on

DULCE ET DECORUM EST

By

Wilfred Owen

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,
Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,
Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs
And towards our distant rest began to trudge.
Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots
But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;
Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots
Of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind.

Gas! Gas! Quick, boys! – An ecstasy of fumbling,
Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;
But someone still was yelling out and stumbling,
And flound'ring like a man in fire or lime . . .
Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light,
As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.
In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,
He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.

If in some smothering dreams you too could pace
Behind the wagon that we flung him in,
And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,
His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin;
If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood
Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,
Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud
Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,
My friend, you would not tell with such high zest
To children ardent for some desperate glory,
The old Lie; Dulce et Decorum est
Pro patria mori*.

*It is sweet and honourable to die for one's country.

Quote of the week

"And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world -- our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down -- we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security -- we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright --tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope."

President-elect Barack Obama, Chicago, IL, 11/04/08

What can you say?

These Orthodox priests broke into an Orthodox bar room brawl at a chruch service in Jerusalem today.

Apparently Greek and Armenian Orthodox priests in Jerusalem never got the memo about the Second Coming in Washington. Or maybe they're fighting over him?

In any case, this is exactly what Jerusalem needs. Israel is long over due another flare up.

What can you do other than laugh?