U.N. Refugee numbers highest ever and will get much worse

 UN: Refugee numbers at highest in 19 years:  Many refugees from African countries such as Ethiopia and Eritrea have been paying people smugglers thousands of dollars to take them to Europe via the Mediterranean, often on rickety and crowded boats that drown in rough seas.

The asylum seeker is not granted refugee status unless the member state decides they qualify, following a defined legal procedure.More than 26 million people - 10.4 million refugees and 15.6 million IDPs - were receiving protection or assistance from UNHCR at the end of 2009.This is 1 million more people than in 2008.By the end of 2009, UNHCR had identified up to 6.6 million stateless persons in 60 countries.

In 2011 UN Reported Steady Rise of Refugees: Just wait, along with the hungry it will get much worse and you can bet with the increase of our destructive environment along with an increase of war, the situation will bleakly double the 2013 finding.

in 2011the UN corectly Reported a Steady Rise of Refugees

2011: UN Reports Steady Rise of Refugees: The United Nations refugee agency said Monday that as of last year, 43.7 million people around the globe had been forcibly displaced from their homes by conflict or persecution, the highest number in 15 years. Eighty percent of refugees were being sheltered in the world’s poorest countries, and the agency warned that they could not continue to shoulder the burden alone.

Poor countries bear the brunt of refugees: Four-fifths of the world's 15.4 million refugees are hosted in poor countries, where their prospects for citizenship are slim and economic opportunities are limited, according to a UN report released Monday. More than a quarter are in just three nations: Pakistan, Iran and Syria.

In 2 years we had added more than 8 million to the worlds refugee ranks and along with the hungry it will get much worse: 4 years ago we discussed the 2 million permanent nomads Bush created in his Iraq success and the numbers would get worse as the "success spread throughout the middle east! What about them? What about what we have created in Afghanistan? We now hear an added of more than 2 million in Syria.

Well, it is spreading! 5 years ago I pointed out: The International Committee of the Red Cross, in a report titled "Iraq: No Let-up in the Humanitarian Crisis," writes, "Despite limited improvements in security in some areas, armed violence is still having a disastrous impact. Civilians continue to be killed in the hostilities. "The injured often do not receive adequate medical care. Millions of people have been forced to rely on insufficient supplies of poor-quality water as water and sewage systems suffer from a lack of maintenance and a shortage of engineers."

Both Amnesty and the Red Cross slammed the Iraqi government for failing to grapple with the critical needs of their populations. The two reports cite a litany of concerns, including severe widespread poverty, a lack of food and water, and broken families left to scrounge for whatever they can find to get by. Both reports describe a situation that shows no sign of clear improvement. Many women "have been forced to wear Islamic dress or targeted for abduction, rape or killing. That is not to speak of the more than 2 million permanent nomads because of Bush's success.

Millions of Iraqis still don’t have clean water and medical care, thousands are jobless, the government is still dragging its feet on important reforms like an oil sharing law. That was a year ago and I have not heard of any substantial change in the situation Bush created to get in the middle east with the promise of spreading the situation throughout the entire middle east!
 
 I woke to hear warnings of a growing refugee crisis in Gaza because of Israel but I first want to say I think it is because of Hamas. According to the United Nations, about 30,000 people are living in schools it sponsors and an estimated 60,000 have fled to the houses of relatives. The figures still represent a small part of Gaza’s 1.5 million population but have doubled and probably quadrupled by now, United Nations officials said, raising concerns about the humanitarian impact of a broader war.

I was remembering that Tens of thousands of Afghan people have fled their homes in central and southern Afghanistan since the resurgence of the Taliban and the associated flare-up in fighting began in 2006 and it is worsening daily. I never hear them mentioned!

I thought of the Tens of thousands of people who have been killed in Sudan's Darfur region. Over 240,000 fled across the border to Chad. Millions more are homeless. Most are women and children, terrified while the fighting continues.

It made me revisit something I have discussed in the past and the growing refugee crisis around the world as we seek "peace" I am reminded that Nearly 35 million people around the world are uprooted from their homes and communities by persecution and armed conflict. The quest for "peace" is going to be the death of us all.

* God forbid! I would never minimize killing one person, uprooting one person, starting any conflict. Man around the world must learn to live with what they have or we are screwed. You know what that means! In this instance I merely want to point out we have a growing crisis around the world that will get much worse and focusing on Israel "agree with it or not" and the 60,000 refugees in Gaza is commendable but is inconsequential to the rapidly growing numbers around the world as the world fights to gain a foot in a world that very likely will not be able to support them at the very least!

James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

Muslim leaders call for patience toward anti-Islam film as Islamist Nations continue to instigate for Osama Bin Laden's vendetta

Actress: Anti-Islam filmmaker 'was playing: Lily Dionne had been in Hollywood a week when she answered an ad on Craigslist looking for actors for an action-adventure film called "Desert Warrior." Now, Dionne says she feels betrayed by the California filmmaker who turned the low budget-movie with a threadbare plot into an anti-Islam film that provoked outrage -- with sometimes violent results -- in parts of the Muslim world.

When news broke that violent mobs attacked the U.S. consulate in the Libyan city of Benghazi, leaving Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans dead, she was overwhelmed. "I was shaking when I found out. I had no idea," Dionne told CNN on Sunday. "This was a movie that I thought no one would ever see."

Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia calls to end attacks on embassies: The Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, the highest religious authority in the kingdom, on Saturday condemned the attacks against diplomatic representations as contrary to Islam after protests that have rocked the Arab and Muslim world. Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al al Sheikh condemned the anti-Islamic film "The innocence of Muslims" which sparked protests and called on governments and international bodies to criminalize insults against the prophets.

"It is forbidden to punish the innocent for the crimes of the guilty or attack those who were given the protection of their lives and their property or public buildings exposed to fire or destruction," said the Grand Mufti in a speech quoted by the SPA news agency. Describing the film as "pathetic" and "criminal," he said attacks against innocent people and diplomats were "as a deformation of the Islamic religion." They "are not accepted by God," he said.

Muslim leaders call for patience toward anti-Islam film: Muslim leaders and local clerics want the local communities to be sensible rather than be sensitive and emotional in dealing with the mounting indignation over the controversial “The Innocence of Muslims” film, which has been perceived as a means to malign Islam.

Acting Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao Governor Mujiv Hataman said that he is convinced that the film’s having been uploaded to the video-sharing site, YouTube, could be a ploy to stir violent reactions from among Muslims and, as a consequence, destroy the image of Islam. Hataman said he is confident that while ARMM residents look up at the issue as an affront to the Islamic faith, they will deal with it according to the value of saba’r, the Arabic for patience and endurance.

Anti-US protests linger after deadly weekend of "insider attacks" in Afghanistan: There were violence protests at a U.S. military outpost near the Afghan capital Monday after a weekend of bloodshed that left at least six American troops dead - four of them in the latest apparent "insider attack" by Afghan defense forces.

The scuffles in the Afghan capital came after a bloody weekend that saw a renewal of the so-called "insider attacks" on Western forces by their Afghan partners, and an apparently misguided NATO airstrike on an alleged militant target which left at least eight Afghan women and girls dead.

Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah calls for Hezbollah supporters to protest against film:

KABUL - Protests Monday turned violent for the first time in Afghanistan and Indonesia over an American film mocking Islam as hundreds of angry men clashed with police, hurling stones and shouting "Death to America". The outbreaks of violence were the latest eruptions of anger over the low-budget trailer made in the United States and aired on YouTube that has fanned unrest around the world, leaving at least 18 people dead.

The movie entitled "Innocence of Muslims", believed to have been produced by a small group of extremist Christians, has sparked a week of furious protests outside US embassies and other American symbols in at least 20 countries.

Responsible Muslims are doing the right thing. They are calling for calm. The only reason the protests are growing and in more than 20 countries in the middle east and around the world is Islamist extremist have succeeded in keeping this alive. They have succeeded in keeping Osama Bin Laden's vendetta against the west alive. That said, it is time for normal citizen's Muslims included to forget this stupidity and get back to the business of life. It is time to isolate the extremists who will never stop as they have nothing else to do.

Responsible Muslims are going to have to police themselves is there is to be victory over the Islamists. They are getting stronger not weaker. Muslim's can not allow Islamists to continue to allow Islamists to blaspheme the very religion they are supposedly defending so they have the excuse to continue Osama Bin Laden's vendetta.

Ye we have done wrong by Islam in the past but there is no reason for this. The only thing it is accomplishing is to give a growing number of out of work disgruntled men a reason to fight. This has to stop!




James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.com

China sends 3rd ship in standoff with Philippines: Despite the past this is the beginning of China's military pomposity in Asia

Philippines Warship, Chinese Vessels in Standoff: The Philippines foreign ministry said the standoff began Tuesday when Manila's flagship naval vessel, the Gregorio del Pilar, confronted eight Chinese fishing boats near a disputed shoal off the northwest province of Zambales. It said the two Chinese surveillance vessels then positioned themselves between the Philippines Navy ship and the fishing vessels, "preventing the arrest of the erring Chinese fishermen."

Both countries claim ownership of the shoal, which is known as Panatag in the Philippines, and as Huangyan Island in China. Tensions in the region have risen in recent years as China becomes increasingly assertive about its claims over the entire 3.5 million-square-kilometer South China Sea, which is thought to be rich in oil and gas.

China sends 3rd ship in standoff with Philippines: China deployed a third ship Thursday in an area of the disputed South China Sea where a tense standoff with Philippine vessels has dragged on, sparking alarm in Manila. One of the Chinese ships blocked the entrance to a lagoon at the shoal, where at least eight Chinese fishing vessels were anchored. The Chinese ships also ordered the Philippine warship to leave Scarborough, claiming Chinese sovereignty over the rich fishing ground. 


But the warship has stayed put, arguing it is Philippine territory. "We're not retreating from our own territory," Pama said. Aside from Scarborough, the South China Sea is home to a myriad of competing territorial claims, most notably the Spratly Islands south of the shoal, an island chain claimed by China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan.

Philippines, US Begin Military Exercises as Standoff With China Continues


Philippines, China recall protest to ease standoff

China is squeezing all her neighbors in what is just a developing fight for Asian seas and islands unfound mineral and other natural riches.:
TONY JONES, Australian Broadcasting: Now, do you support the idea of using the Cocos Islands as an air base for US surveillance aircraft? DAVID JOHNSTON: Oh, absolutely. I think our closest ally, if they're prepared to assist us in the management of what is a huge maritime frontier, I would welcome that and I know the Coalition would welcome that.

TONY JONES: There does seem to be a plan to either replace or supplement Diego Garcia, to build another version of it possibly. We should note that the US Navy operates that base in Diego Garcia for warships. It also has a military air base there under lease from Britain. So would a Coalition government be prepared to undertake a similar arrangement with the United States in the Cocos Islands?

Cocos Island - Image Results It is absolutely gorgeous and geographically placed to spy on China!

US, Thailand hold largest military drill in Asia Pacific: The Cobra Gold 2012, the largest ever multinational military exercise in the Asia-Pacific region jointly held by Thailand and the United States, began in Thailand on Feb. 7. More than 13,000 military personnel from the United States, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia have participated in the 11-day exercise.

The Cobra Gold exercise has been held annually since 1982. Given the large scale and busy schedule of the 31st Cobra Gold exercise this time and America’s newly unveiled military strategy that switches focus to the Asia-Pacific region, analysts believe that this exercise will be an important step the United States takes to enhance ties and expand cooperation with its Asian allies and to achieve its goal of “returning to Asia” and shifting its strategic focus eastward.

China says US defense policy stance misjudges Beijing intent: judge for yourself

China says US defense policy stance misjudges Beijing intent: The United States' expanded military presence in Asia is based on a miscalculation of Beijing's intent to modernize its military defenses, China said on Monday, taking a tempered stance in its first official response to Washington's plan. The United States unveiled a defense strategy last week to boost capacity in Asia, an attempt to counter China's growing ability to check U.S. power in the region, that comes with a pledged reduction in the overall size of U.S. forces. I think we have it just right this time if Iran will allow us the luxury.

China and U.S. Brinkmanship in the South China Sea: Two weeks ago, The Washington Post broadsided us with another Beltway bombshell: China's "Underground Great Wall" – a "vast network of tunnels" with a "sophisticated missile and nuclear arsenal" dug by "a secretive branch of the Chinese military."

China is also challenging its neighbors over the Spratly Islands, the Paracels, the Scarborough Shoals, Reed Bank and Tungsha in a South China Sea home to 17.7 billion tons of oil and gas? According to the Indonesian Center of Democracy, Diplomacy and Defense, Beijing has deployed 27 battleships, an aircraft carrier and unknown submarines to the area amid competing claims with Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

After years of covering the growing tensions between China the US and all of the rest of Asia feeling bullied by China the story is getting long. Factbox: Pentagon details China's military expansion :The Pentagon said that China was on track to forge a modern military by 2020, a rapid buildup that could be potentially destabilizing to the Asia-Pacific region. Its annual assessment to Congress on China flagged all the major concerns over its growing military might, including Beijing's widening edge over Taiwan.

It also noted cyber attacks in 2010 -- including on U.S. government computers -- that appear to have originated in China. Here are details from the report Wow check out the wide expansion

The United States wants a prominent role in Asia to counter China's developing aggression The U.S. move to "return to Asia" aims to gain more interests from Asia's regional development and cement its dominant position in Asia. First, it should learn to get along with China. Its "return" to Asia has drawn people's attention back to a possible confrontation between itself and China. Many Western scholars believe that the reassertion of the leading U.S. role in Asia is directed against China because only China's rise can pose a potential challenge to its hegemony. Furthermore, a few Asian countries hope to take advantage of the United States, especially its military power, to strike a so-called strategic balance with China
.
U.S. wants to use India in missile shield against Russia, China

We have been discussing increased tensions due to ownership claims over long disputed islands and unrecovered raw material riches below the east and South China Seas for years. China is embroiled in territorial disputes with Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei Japan, and India:

China has been making all these ownership claims while warning other Asian countries to stay away. Meanwhile they have supposedly been building their world war machine with "innocent" intentions. China accuses Japan of exaggerating it as a military threat: It is no exaggeration it is called truth and you better be concerned

and China calls weapons modernization drive warnings alarmist "cock-and-bull story.

Also US senators warn Beijing on South China Sea, China warns US to stay out of it

All this to no avail as China's answer is always that her intentions are innocent "yeah like Hitler's military buildup prior to WW2" We must all stop playing these games at this point and like it or not "share" if we are to survive into the future. Sadly we know the powers to be are not smart enough to do that. We are already in severe trouble with the condition of the world environmentally and due to power struggles getting ready to erupt in the Middle East and make things horrifically worse in many regards.

I am a little worried that China too is getting a little too heavy handed and abusive with her new position of power and beginning to take what she wants instead of being content with what she has which is what I constantly lecture has to be the case if we are to have a future. The time when man and the planet could handle war and colonialism is over, period or else!

We are Taiwan's, the Philippines, and Japan's protectors and now Vietnam's. Vietnam is no real threat to China so what is up here? As China flex's their military muscles in the area we are not supposed to worry. Just what are we supposed to think they are going to do with their advanced weaponry, missiles, stealth aircraft, aircraft carriers and the like.

Their threats are going to become more ominous until they cannot be ignored and it is too late. We have been here before. The world was not supposed to worry as Hitler built his arsenal and we know how that turned out. If peace is truly the goal then try something unique and share the wealth. We need peace to succeed as a world into the 21st century not more and never ending war.

To make the situation worse as we've discussed often, the US is pledged to defend Taiwan who "at least they say" will never unify under China. There is no way we can get militarily involved with China's lust to rebuild Imperial China. Three years ago the US signed a deal to deliver a massive amount of advanced weaponry to Taiwan. The package includes a variety of U.S.-made weapons systems, including Patriot III anti-missile missiles, Apache attack helicopters, Harpoon missiles and Javelin anti-tank missiles.This was 3 years ago Some deliveries are in process and some still being worked out.

China is not taking this lying down! We have covered East, South, and China sea disputes extensively

Knowing all of this I must once again express naivety. We are so kept in the dark as to any truth in any incident here and around the world. I had no idea or even thought in this context but President Hu Jintao's call for a rejuvenation of the country 100 years after the Xinhai Revolution that ended more than 2,000 years of dynastic rule in China is something new to me. Worse part is that this includes Taiwan too and China is not going to settle for no! China Urges Reunification at 100th Anniversary of Demise of Last Dynasty

President Hu calls on all of China's sons and daughters to join hands to carry on with the work of the Chinese Republic's first president, Sun Yat-sen, and realize his ideals of what he described as “China's great rejuvenation.” China has not been building her military and flexing her muscles for nothing. China wants Asia period and not just supremacy. She is going to have her Dynasty once again United States be damned. I do not like this, once again we are putting ourselves right in the middle of a growing conflict or war.

As we discussed there have been at least three cases of groups of Chinese military ships crossing through the area of Okinawa since November 2008, first 4 ships then 6 then 8 and now 10 including destroyers and submarines. That case appeared to be the first involving surfaced submarines. The group of 10 ships, including the submarines, was observed about 90 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of Okinawa in international waters.

Two missile destroyers and three frigate ships from the same group were spotted participating in a flight exercise of carrier-based helicopters April 7-9, the Defense Ministry's Joint Staff Office said in a statement The war ships were in international waters but close to Okinawa and Japan was not notified. That area as you may know has natural resources under the ocean and islands claimed by both Nations.

It is important that we stay in Okinawa as China plays a more important role in Asia and around the world as she gains strength militarily and economically as we just discussed. Remember our discussion on the importance of China and the US staying together to move successfully through the 21st century

We must maintain as much of the old world balance and order as we can to maintain a balance as we try to move progressively and successfully through the 21st century! I know of China and Japan's past, I know of the still ongoing Island disputes, the disagreement over natural gas in another area of the East China Sea, I also remember that with China's economic clout rising she took the number 3 seat on the world bank and we talk constantly that China is taking the leading role in Asia and Asia relations.

Being in a superior position puts one in a unique position of power and that power must be handled gracefully, with humility, responsibly, and not abused. That is something I taught all my sons and America under Bush did a lousy job of handling. I am a little worried that China too is getting a little too heavy handed and abusive with her new position of power and beginning to take what she wants instead of being content with what she has which is what I constantly lecture has to be the case if we are to have a future. The time when man and the planet could handle war and colonialism is over, period or else!

We are Taiwan's and Japan's protectors. As China flex's their military muscles in the area we are not supposed to worry. Just what are we supposed to think they are going to do with their advanced weaponry, missiles, stealth aircraft, aircraft carriers and the like. Their threats are going to become more ominous until they cannot be ignored and it is too late. We have been here before. The world was not supposed to worry as Hitler built his arsenal and we know how that turned out.





James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

Assad urged to leave to Russia, asylum offered in Tunisia, Islam confused

Syrian envoy denounces UN talks, walks out [Video]

Syria claims 90% of voters backed reforms in referendum: Syria claimed that a constitutional referendum held on Sunday was approved by close to 90% of voters, even as international reaction to its ongoing crackdown intensified with the European Union announcing fresh sanctions against key regime figures. Bloodshed continued in restive parts of the country on Monday, with around 30 people killed the day after a ballot which had been hailed as a showpiece of reform in the rigidly controlled state.

The Baba Amr district of the country's third city, Homs, was again the worst affected, with violence in the neighborhood accounting for much of the nationwide death toll. That is not hard to believe when you take into account that Assad supporters were the only ones that felt safe enough to venture out and vote their mind.

70 dead as Asaad urged to leave to Russia: The President of Tunisia Moncef Marzouki has proposed to the Syrian President to go to Russia with his family into exile. In a speech at the first meeting of the Friends of Syria, which was held in Tunis, he said the Assad family should be guaranteed immunity.
"The justice will not be served, but the life of the Syrians is more important than justice," he said. Such a solution along the lines of the Yemen road plan is better than a military intervention or the arming of deserters, the Tunisian leader stressed.

Hamas PM salutes 'heroic' Syrians: Gaza premier Ismail Haniya on Friday hailed the "heroic" Syrian struggle for democracy during a rally in Cairo, in the first expression of support of the uprising by a Hamas leader. "I salute all the people of the Arab Spring, or rather the Islamic Winter," Haniya told thousands of cheering people during the demonstration of support for Palestinians and Syrians at Cairo's Al-Azhar mosque.
"I salute the heroic Syrian people, who are striving for freedom, democracy and reform," he added. "No Iran, no Hezbollah. Syria is Islamic," chanted the protesters, in an apparent reference to the Syrian regime's Shiite Muslim supporters.

Iran angry at Hamas abandoning Al-Assad

Syria conflict worries Beirut, reopens divisions: People in the Lebanese capital Beirut are watching anxiously as the increasingly bloody conflict in neighbouring Syria unfolds, fearing it could spill over the border and bring a return of the violence that tore their own country apart for so long.

Indonesia urges all parties in Syria to end violence: "Principally, we agreed that violence must be stopped now. Now, not tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, because enough blood has been shed, there have been enough people who have suffered," said Natalegawa.

The Minister said in the press conference after met Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sudan Ali Ahmed Karti at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Jakarta on Friday, Feb 24. Natalegawa also said that Indonesia has signed an agreement with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation to support peace in the Middle-East.
"It is very unfortunate that UN has failed to take a stance about conflict in Syria, therefore we have to push more the diplomatic effort," he said.

7500 dead in Syria as Assad offered asylum in Tunisia: Tunisian President Mouncef Marzouki offered the Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad a political asylum. Tunisia was willing to host Assad and his family, the Tunisian leader told the local newspaper of "La Presse". On Friday, Tunisia hosted a conference called the "Friends of Syria" in his speech there, Marzouki offered Assad to step down in exchange for legal immunity.



James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

US, Thailand hold largest military drill in Asia Pacific: Should we invite China to a military exercise against them?

US, Thailand hold largest military drill in Asia Pacific: The Cobra Gold 2012, the largest ever multinational military exercise in the Asia-Pacific region jointly held by Thailand and the United States, began in Thailand on Feb. 7. More than 13,000 military personnel from the United States, Thailand, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, and Malaysia have participated in the 11-day exercise.

The Cobra Gold exercise has been held annually since 1982. Given the large scale and busy schedule of the 31st Cobra Gold exercise this time and America’s newly unveiled military strategy that switches focus to the Asia-Pacific region, analysts believe that this exercise will be an important step the United States takes to enhance ties and expand cooperation with its Asian allies and to achieve its goal of “returning to Asia” and shifting its strategic focus eastward.

China says US defense policy stance misjudges Beijing intent: judge for yourself

China says US defense policy stance misjudges Beijing intent: The United States' expanded military presence in Asia is based on a miscalculation of Beijing's intent to modernize its military defenses, China said on Monday, taking a tempered stance in its first official response to Washington's plan. The United States unveiled a defense strategy last week to boost capacity in Asia, an attempt to counter China's growing ability to check U.S. power in the region, that comes with a pledged reduction in the overall size of U.S. forces. I think we have it just right this time if Iran will allow us the luxury.

China and U.S. Brinkmanship in the South China Sea: Two weeks ago, The Washington Post broadsided us with another Beltway bombshell: China's "Underground Great Wall" – a "vast network of tunnels" with a "sophisticated missile and nuclear arsenal" dug by "a secretive branch of the Chinese military."

China is also challenging its neighbors over the Spratly Islands, the Paracels, the Scarborough Shoals, Reed Bank and Tungsha in a South China Sea home to 17.7 billion tons of oil and gas? According to the Indonesian Center of Democracy, Diplomacy and Defense, Beijing has deployed 27 battleships, an aircraft carrier and unknown submarines to the area amid competing claims with Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.

After years of covering the growing tensions between China the US and all of the rest of Asia feeling bullied by China the story is getting long. Factbox: Pentagon details China's military expansion :The Pentagon said that China was on track to forge a modern military by 2020, a rapid buildup that could be potentially destabilizing to the Asia-Pacific region. Its annual assessment to Congress on China flagged all the major concerns over its growing military might, including Beijing's widening edge over Taiwan.

It also noted cyber attacks in 2010 -- including on U.S. government computers -- that appear to have originated in China. Here are details from the report Wow check out the wide expansion

The United States wants a prominent role in Asia to counter China's developing aggression The U.S. move to "return to Asia" aims to gain more interests from Asia's regional development and cement its dominant position in Asia. First, it should learn to get along with China. Its "return" to Asia has drawn people's attention back to a possible confrontation between itself and China. Many Western scholars believe that the reassertion of the leading U.S. role in Asia is directed against China because only China's rise can pose a potential challenge to its hegemony. Furthermore, a few Asian countries hope to take advantage of the United States, especially its military power, to strike a so-called strategic balance with China
.
U.S. wants to use India in missile shield against Russia, China

We have been discussing increased tensions due to ownership claims over long disputed islands and unrecovered raw material riches below the east and South China Seas for years. China is embroiled in territorial disputes with Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, Brunei Japan, and India:

China has been making all these ownership claims while warning other Asian countries to stay away. Meanwhile they have supposedly been building their world war machine with "innocent" intentions. China accuses Japan of exaggerating it as a military threat: It is no exaggeration it is called truth and you better be concerned

and China calls weapons modernization drive warnings alarmist "cock-and-bull story.

Also US senators warn Beijing on South China Sea, China warns US to stay out of it

All this to no avail as China's answer is always that her intentions are innocent "yeah like Hitler's military buildup prior to WW2" We must all stop playing these games at this point and like it or not "share" if we are to survive into the future. Sadly we know the powers to be are not smart enough to do that. We are already in severe trouble with the condition of the world environmentally and due to power struggles getting ready to erupt in the Middle East and make things horrifically worse in many regards.

I am a little worried that China too is getting a little too heavy handed and abusive with her new position of power and beginning to take what she wants instead of being content with what she has which is what I constantly lecture has to be the case if we are to have a future. The time when man and the planet could handle war and colonialism is over, period or else!

We are Taiwan's, the Philippines, and Japan's protectors and now Vietnam's. Vietnam is no real threat to China so what is up here? As China flex's their military muscles in the area we are not supposed to worry. Just what are we supposed to think they are going to do with their advanced weaponry, missiles, stealth aircraft, aircraft carriers and the like.

Their threats are going to become more ominous until they cannot be ignored and it is too late. We have been here before. The world was not supposed to worry as Hitler built his arsenal and we know how that turned out. If peace is truly the goal then try something unique and share the wealth. We need peace to succeed as a world into the 21st century not more and never ending war.

To make the situation worse as we've discussed often, the US is pledged to defend Taiwan who "at least they say" will never unify under China. There is no way we can get militarily involved with China's lust to rebuild Imperial China. Three years ago the US signed a deal to deliver a massive amount of advanced weaponry to Taiwan. The package includes a variety of U.S.-made weapons systems, including Patriot III anti-missile missiles, Apache attack helicopters, Harpoon missiles and Javelin anti-tank missiles.This was 3 years ago Some deliveries are in process and some still being worked out.

China is not taking this lying down! We have covered East, South, and China sea disputes extensively

Knowing all of this I must once again express naivety. We are so kept in the dark as to any truth in any incident here and around the world. I had no idea or even thought in this context but President Hu Jintao's call for a rejuvenation of the country 100 years after the Xinhai Revolution that ended more than 2,000 years of dynastic rule in China is something new to me. Worse part is that this includes Taiwan too and China is not going to settle for no! China Urges Reunification at 100th Anniversary of Demise of Last Dynasty

President Hu calls on all of China's sons and daughters to join hands to carry on with the work of the Chinese Republic's first president, Sun Yat-sen, and realize his ideals of what he described as “China's great rejuvenation.” China has not been building her military and flexing her muscles for nothing. China wants Asia period and not just supremacy. She is going to have her Dynasty once again United States be damned. I do not like this, once again we are putting ourselves right in the middle of a growing conflict or war.

As we discussed there have been at least three cases of groups of Chinese military ships crossing through the area of Okinawa since November 2008, first 4 ships then 6 then 8 and now 10 including destroyers and submarines. That case appeared to be the first involving surfaced submarines. The group of 10 ships, including the submarines, was observed about 90 miles (140 kilometers) southwest of Okinawa in international waters.

Two missile destroyers and three frigate ships from the same group were spotted participating in a flight exercise of carrier-based helicopters April 7-9, the Defense Ministry's Joint Staff Office said in a statement The war ships were in international waters but close to Okinawa and Japan was not notified. That area as you may know has natural resources under the ocean and islands claimed by both Nations.

It is important that we stay in Okinawa as China plays a more important role in Asia and around the world as she gains strength militarily and economically as we just discussed. Remember our discussion on the importance of China and the US staying together to move successfully through the 21st century

We must maintain as much of the old world balance and order as we can to maintain a balance as we try to move progressively and successfully through the 21st century! I know of China and Japan's past, I know of the still ongoing Island disputes, the disagreement over natural gas in another area of the East China Sea, I also remember that with China's economic clout rising she took the number 3 seat on the world bank and we talk constantly that China is taking the leading role in Asia and Asia relations.

Being in a superior position puts one in a unique position of power and that power must be handled gracefully, with humility, responsibly, and not abused. That is something I taught all my sons and America under Bush did a lousy job of handling. I am a little worried that China too is getting a little too heavy handed and abusive with her new position of power and beginning to take what she wants instead of being content with what she has which is what I constantly lecture has to be the case if we are to have a future. The time when man and the planet could handle war and colonialism is over, period or else!

We are Taiwan's and Japan's protectors. As China flex's their military muscles in the area we are not supposed to worry. Just what are we supposed to think they are going to do with their advanced weaponry, missiles, stealth aircraft, aircraft carriers and the like. Their threats are going to become more ominous until they cannot be ignored and it is too late. We have been here before. The world was not supposed to worry as Hitler built his arsenal and we know how that turned out.





James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
http://anaverageamericanpatriot.blogspot.com

Bush encouraged about Afghanistan, Musharraf fears talibanization, Bush dead wrong, neither have a clue what they're facing!

It is really hard listening to the so called leaders discuss how to fight and win this war on rising Islamism that is still just beginning knowing they do not have a clue as to what is happening, how to win this, and how this is going to be won. Bush has proven many times that he will not wake up for many reasons so for America we have to continue to try to get all average Americans to understand what we are really up against and that little Bush is winning nothing and does not have a clue.
This is still just getting started. Bush gave an upbeat view of Iraq but acknowledged the country's slow political progress. In stating his case, the president emphasized enemy deaths. He has to stop playing cheerleader for once in his life. You can kill a million of them and it will not matter. That is a moot point. There is no shortage of volunteers in large part because Bush is the best recruiting tool the so called terrirists have.
Overall, Bush said al Qaeda and other extremists are under withering attack. "Since January," he said, "each month we have killed or captured an average of more than 1,500 al Qaeda terrorists and other enemies of Iraq's elected government." I am sick of hearing this Political rhetoric. This war against so called terrorism is still just beginning and besides being the poster child for Islamist recruitment his attack on Iraq and its destabilizing effect in the middle east is also just beginning. With the failing infrastructure in Iraq and basic human needs unable to be met and they will not be by us, we are winning nothing but the hearts and minds of mindless Bush fans.

On Afghanistan, Bush voiced confidence in Afghan President Hamid Karzai, with whom he met at the Camp David, Maryland, presidential retreat earlier in the week. Bush, echoing Karzai, said the resurgent Taliban are not a threat to the government of Afghanistan. "The Taliban fighters can still launch attacks on the innocent, but they cannot stop the march of democracy in Afghanistan," Bush said.
Correct me if i'm wrong but I remember talk of inviting the Taliban to participate in the Government because they were too hard to fight. Also amidst increased American casualties three of which occurred yesterday wasn't that the first day light frontal assault on an Allied outpost that occurred last week? Why does he continue to get away with lying and convenient ommisions of facts and the truth?
http://www.cnn.com/...
Anyway one person as usal is right but wrong about what they are facing and how to win. Musharaf was right in saying Military action and diplomacy are key in the fight against a rise in Taliban extremism currently plaguing Pakistan, But wrong to think that it or any combination there of will win anything. To extremists, getting rid of him would be a nice start.
He said Military action and diplomacy are key in the fight against a rise in Taliban extremism currently plaguing Pakistan, the country's president, Gen. Pervez Musharraf, said during a joint Afghan-Pakistani peace jirga in Kabul. The Pakistani leader, whose nearly eight-year rule is being challenged by opposition activists and Islamic militants, said he has witnessed "the rise of extremism, militancy and violence tearing at the fabric of our society." I guess no one will get him to see reality either unless he does and due to Bush must ignore it.
As you know, In recent days a crisis had been brewing in Pakistan, with the country teetering on the edge of a state of emergency amid the growing security threat in the country's lawless tribal regions. Musharraf thinks he can successfully combat this and like Bush blames it on a crisis had been brewing in Pakistan, with the country teetering on the edge of a state of emergency amid the growing security threat in the country's lawless tribal regions. Also what he calls a phenomenon of Talibanization and other forms of extremism, saying there are people that may be sympathetic to Taliban point of view and susceptible to extremism." http://www.cnn.com/...

Regardless of what karzai, Musharraf, Bush, or anyone else says they will success comat and turn nothing around certainly not extremists. Bush of course did not start this fervor of increased Islamist nationalism but his "perceived" militarism towards Islam has certainly fueled the fire beyond any control.
There are elements who want a Muslim State in Iraq thanks to Bush and other middle east States, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Spain's Basque region, and now Indonesia speaks up again. Nearly 90,000 followers of a hard-line Muslim group packed a stadium in the Indonesian capital Sunday, calling for the creation of an Islamic state and thunderously chanting "Allah is great!" The group that sponsored this rally is outlawed in Indonesia. Hizbut Tahrir, a Sunni organization with an estimated million members, is banned in some Asian and Arab countries, but drew supporters from Europe, Africa and the Middle East to Indonesia for a meeting of the group that is held every two years.Speeches called for the return of the caliphate, or Islamic statehood, across the Muslim world. The crowd, divided into sections for women and men, roared in support.
"We need to carry this message from every corner from the east to west, so that on judgment day we can be proud," said Salim Frederick of Hizbut Tahrir's English branch. That message is being increasingly heard and voiced around the world.
http://www.foxnews.com/...
This movement towards Islamist lone rule, recapturing all lands that were once theirs, and the drive for Islamic States is still in its infacy and will increase exponentially as time passes and the emotion spreads and it will. It will not be won Diplomaticlly, militarily or any other way. It will only be won by perseverence and attrition over a long, long, long, long, time.

James Joiner
Gardner, Ma
www.anaveragepatriot.com