tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post114985441612705656..comments2023-10-20T21:46:49.945+08:00Comments on Philippine Commentary: PDI-deologues Say Zarqawi Was Just An American MythDeany Bocobohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comBlogger21125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150251085791564922006-06-14T10:11:00.000+08:002006-06-14T10:11:00.000+08:00Democracy is exportable. Germany and Japan are pro...Democracy is exportable. Germany and Japan are proof of that. Prior and during WWII both were authoritarian societies and after the war there was a large US force present in both (and small ones still present) until they figured out how to run liberal societies.<BR/><BR/>It isn't easy and takes a little grit to git 'er done.<BR/><BR/>Now it has been stated at least one is slowly rearming. Yeah so? They've done their time in the corner and it seems they have learned their lessons.<BR/><BR/>As far as the significance of the Zarq-Man's death.<BR/><BR/>First off yes he was commanding the jihadis and the jihadis are reputed to be a small part of the problems in Iraq. I would dispute that. The sectarian violence that is common was sparked and stoked by his gang of ex-pats.<BR/><BR/>But as I said at Blogger Beer this isn't a game of chess, the game does not end when the king is dead (check-mate) and that is why we build organizations. So one person's loss, weankess, or failure ruins the effort. Still, one person can make a big difference.<BR/><BR/>If Woody Allen were a disaffected paper hanger in Germany, would WWII have hapened?<BR/><BR/>Also John, there is quite a bit of thought President Bush's poll numbers have something to do with his penchant for very centrist/moderate left domestic policy and his base is becoming unhappy with that. Immigration and spending are the biggest bugaboos with the base.Marcus Aureliushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12731740191789466205noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150233118058518042006-06-14T05:11:00.000+08:002006-06-14T05:11:00.000+08:00HB,Mi Comentario, su comentaryo. Hehe, you folks ...HB,<BR/>Mi Comentario, su comentaryo. Hehe, you folks are always welcome here, you know that!Deany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150211550960442132006-06-13T23:12:00.000+08:002006-06-13T23:12:00.000+08:00Karl,I'm sure you will find the French language ea...Karl,<BR/><BR/>I'm sure you will find the French language easy to speak - it's Latin based and therefore close to Spanish or Italian... <BR/><BR/>Moreover, the English language (the original English language) is peppered with French because it was the official Royal Court's language which stayed on for a long, long time even after the invasion of the Angles (the original Anglo-Saxons) by French Guillaume le Conquerant (William the Conqueror).<BR/><BR/>So many common English words we use today were based on the French language, e.g., chat (cat), charbon (carbon), tête (test or head), geol (jail), char (car but is also a military tank), ecole (school), etudiant (student), maître (master - the<BR/>"hat" on the letter is a silent letter "S"), chattel (cattle)... the list is terribly long - an enormous number of English verbs or infinitives are the same in French except that instead of the preposition "to" the French add the suffix "er", e.g., organizer (to organize), arriver (to arrive), dancer (to dance), etc., etc., etc.<BR/><BR/>PS: Dean, hope you didn't mind my posting une leçon en français here... Thanks for not minding it... Cheers!HILLBLOGGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05977843513566589811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150197874657674032006-06-13T19:24:00.000+08:002006-06-13T19:24:00.000+08:00pardon my french just guessing(my translation)...a...pardon my french just guessing(my translation)...<BR/><BR/>as to the spelling of bonjour<BR/>even in english and tagalog I do typos.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150189760194819542006-06-13T17:09:00.000+08:002006-06-13T17:09:00.000+08:00Bonjour Karl,Mais, non, pas du tout!I know that yo...Bonjour Karl,<BR/><BR/>Mais, non, pas du tout!<BR/><BR/>I know that you don't say things to spite anyone. (I do but not you...)HILLBLOGGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05977843513566589811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150156971045037712006-06-13T08:02:00.000+08:002006-06-13T08:02:00.000+08:00Boon Jour Anna,I was afraid that I pinched a nerve...Boon Jour Anna,<BR/><BR/>I was afraid that I pinched a nerve when I said the French surrendered.<BR/>Thanks for the history of France in brief about the second world war!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150122748381091502006-06-12T22:32:00.000+08:002006-06-12T22:32:00.000+08:00Karl, France during WWII in a capsule:When the Ger...Karl, <BR/><BR/>France during WWII in a capsule:<BR/><BR/>When the Germans crossed the "Maginot line", Marshall Philippe Petain decided to sign an armistice with Hitler. Although a highly decorated WWI soldier hero, he was nevertheless a very old man and was terribly alone. <BR/><BR/>Against his better judgement, he thought he could limit the damage or an all out war with Germany that France and its people could not win so he signed an armistice with Hitler. He was hoping beyond hope that an armistice would save the wanton destruction of France (He was like Osmena I believe in that respect - was it Osmena who was president during the Jap occupation?). <BR/><BR/>Britain could barely sustain its own war efforts against Germany and was absolutely in no position to help France repel the Germans (the US was nowhere to be found yet - Franklin Delano Roosevelt* was proving difficult and wanted Chruchill to literally go down on his knees before he would commit openly to helping the allies) so by Petain's action France was split into France Occupée and France Libre (Occupied and Free France respectively). <BR/><BR/>Petain was WRONG. Hitler didn't honor the treaty and used poor, old, weak Petain as a pawn, a puppet to force half of France into submission.<BR/><BR/>The Germans marched into Paris but there was virtually no more French Army or the ones that could have made up the French Army were in England preparing to wrestle France from the Germans while bewildered, confused French units were still following Petain's orders, some of whom were "fighting" alongside the Axis powers (mainly Germans at that time) in North Africa. It was fratricide.<BR/><BR/>But lest you be misguided that the French forces surrendered - you must know that Charles de Gaulle represented the other half of France, la France Libre and THEY didn't surrender. De Gaulle had fought the Germans during WWI, was a good military officer but openly rebelled against a superior officer, a Marshall of France (6 stars) because he believed France should not surrender. For this de Gaulle was court martialled and was meted death in absentia.<BR/><BR/>From England, De Gaulle did just that and organized an internal French guerilla movement known as La Resistance Française to wreak havoc against enemy installations and promptly brought back the exiled French forces to France to fight the Germans alongside the Allies during D DAY.<BR/><BR/>After the war, Marshall Petain was tried, convicted and sentenced to die by the firing squad. However, already in his 80s, Charles de Gaulle commuted Petain's death sentence to life imprisonment.<BR/><BR/>(*Don't get me wrong - Pres FDR is one of my heroes but that was the reality then.)<BR/><BR/>Voila mon cher Karl, l'histoire de la France en bref lors de la seconde guerre mondiale...HILLBLOGGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05977843513566589811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150121779381436142006-06-12T22:16:00.000+08:002006-06-12T22:16:00.000+08:00i disagree with those who claim na zarqawi's impor...i disagree with those who claim na zarqawi's importance was inflated. eto, pakinggan si tom friedman of the NYT, not exactly a bush-loving mideast expert.<BR/><BR/><I>The killing in Iraq of the archterrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is important both for Iraq and for the U.S. political debate about Iraq.<BR/><BR/>It is important for Iraq for a few reasons. First, Zarqawi was finally tracked down because someone in his organization or in the Sunni community in Iraq turned against him. We need more of that, because Iraq will only work if more Sunnis turn against the terrorists and join the government. <B>Second, Al Qaeda can talk all it wants about replacing Zarqawi, but he is not so easily replaced, because he was a world-class, first-team all-star terrorist. For three years he terrorized Iraq, while eluding the U.S. Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force and C.I.A. Bad guys like him don't grow on trees.</B> But his death will be a turning point only if it leads more Iraqis to come together into a coherent government and army. Ultimately, that is all that matters.<BR/><BR/>Zarqawi's death, though, also interests me in terms of U.S. politics. Recent polls show that not only are the Democrats more trusted to manage key domestic issues — from health care to the budget — but they have pulled even with Republicans on national security, a traditional Democratic Party weakness. If I were the Democrats, though, I wouldn't get too comfortable.<BR/><BR/>What the polls show is largely the result of President Bush's incompetent performance in Iraq, rather than the emergence of a convincing Democratic national security message or group of candidates respected on defense. <B>When it comes to national security, I've always felt that voters don't listen through their ears. They listen through their gut. They vote based on a visceral sense of whether a candidate understands we have real enemies and is ready to confront them.</B><BR/><BR/>What Zarqawi and the recently arrested group of terrorists in Canada remind us of is that, <B>whatever you think about the Iraq war, open societies today are threatened by these utterly ruthless jihadists.</B> Many Americans feel that. If Democrats want to really seize control of the national security issue, they must persuade the country — in its gut — that they have a convincing post-Iraq strategy to rally the world against these Islamo-totalitarians.</I><BR/><BR/>(his article is under a timesselect firewall, but peking duck <A HREF="http://www.pekingduck.org/archives/003773.php" REL="nofollow">has the full article posted on his blog</A>)john marzanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08036820667908976630noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150118970802355472006-06-12T21:29:00.000+08:002006-06-12T21:29:00.000+08:00The thing about France surrending to Germany made ...The thing about France surrending to Germany made me research.......<BR/><BR/>It was a matter of France never expecting the unexpected,they blew up all the bridges from the rivers so as the tanks can not penetrate,but they thought that the Germans won't use the rail bridges for there is no way that the tanks can pass through them,but what dya know the Germans used them by remoiving the rails...<BR/><BR/>It was not that France had no strategy,the Germans only had a better one.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150113706209436162006-06-12T20:01:00.000+08:002006-06-12T20:01:00.000+08:00MB--That's the Cold War talking. Democracy is NOT ...MB--That's the Cold War talking. Democracy is NOT like religion, where all fantasies and credos are, by necessity created equal. The prideful nationalists should look to the example of Japan, which is America's perfect semi-colony. Look she surrenders her entire defense to America. Look she's No. 2 in the world! I don't counsel subservience or second class citizenship. I champion doing the smart thing. Democracy is technology. Though we cannot, nor should we force physics, biology and chemisty on others, it seems wrong to think we can't teach it to them, or that they can't learn it, or that they have to discover what works for themselves.<BR/><BR/>It's just our way of blaming the Americans for "Laming us". Heck we've been independent 60 years and it's still their fault we are the way we are!<BR/><BR/>There is no salvation is eternal resentment. We have every chance to make something of our country without blaming others for our own shortcomings.Deany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150111394824209352006-06-12T19:23:00.000+08:002006-06-12T19:23:00.000+08:00MB,i borrowed your comments and posted it to the c...MB,<BR/>i borrowed your comments and posted it to the comment thread of MLQ...<BR/><BR/>I just felt it was related.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150101443365208742006-06-12T16:37:00.000+08:002006-06-12T16:37:00.000+08:00That word -- 'dozens' -- it's sticking my mind rig...That word -- 'dozens' -- it's sticking my mind right now. I just can't bear to think how in the world can the writer overly underestimate (!) the casualties. <BR/><BR/>Though the DepEd budget rose quite a weeny bit, it's still not enough. Doesn't take a finance and budget expert to figure that out. And ho ho ho -- state universities' budget reduced? No wonder we were actively eliciting funding from corporations when I was still in UP. Heck, one of the goals of our Department's Week was to get enough sponsorships to build a new building. tsk tsk.<BR/><BR/>btw, i thought that maybe you'd like to read my independence day entry at <A HREF="http://ccrux.corsarius.net/2006/06/12/independence-day-and-the-burmese-priest/" REL="nofollow"> crimson crux</A>, if you have the time. there, i share the belief of a burmese priest in the philippines. if a foreigner can believe in us, why can't we?<BR/><BR/>thanks, rizalist.Corsariushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17984493812083953924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150084771224639512006-06-12T11:59:00.000+08:002006-06-12T11:59:00.000+08:00HB,I must admit I know very little about France. R...HB,<BR/>I must admit I know very little about France. Recently I've been reading about Rizal's sojourn in Paris with Juan Luna, his wife and Luling their son. I guess it all ended rather badly for the Lunas. There was a nice little operetta by Ryan Cayabyab on the Spoliarium recently. Not quite Mozart, but not bad...Deany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150084691304289062006-06-12T11:58:00.000+08:002006-06-12T11:58:00.000+08:00If we are talking of etymology then, as many other...If we are talking of etymology then, as many other english words that are derived from either latin or greek,democracy was sure one of them.<BR/><BR/>As I said somewhere that even if the war was about oil or getting rid of saddam;<BR/>I think it is about time for the US to pullout of IRAQ.<BR/>What many republicans point out that as long as their isinsurgency they should stay.Boy,that would take forever.If not for mount Pinatubo,they would have still been here and insurgency during the time they left were not isolated incidents.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150078608268426252006-06-12T10:16:00.000+08:002006-06-12T10:16:00.000+08:00Tut...tut Dean,Shows how little you know about Fre...Tut...tut Dean,<BR/><BR/>Shows how little you know about French history.<BR/><BR/>Let's not get too excited ok?<BR/><BR/>Also, America did not export democracy to Europe. Europe had it long before America did.HILLBLOGGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05977843513566589811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150062572941580522006-06-12T05:49:00.000+08:002006-06-12T05:49:00.000+08:00HB,And I don't know if I wanna include France in w...HB,<BR/>And I don't know if I wanna include France in what I said about Europe. Seems their entire military defense strategy is to surrender to the first German General that shows up at the Eiffel TowerDeany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150062263724337702006-06-12T05:44:00.000+08:002006-06-12T05:44:00.000+08:00HB--Didn't mean to minimize Europe or aggrandize A...HB--Didn't mean to minimize Europe or aggrandize America. It was Europe that bore the brunt of the Nazis and China that fought 95% of the Nipponese army.<BR/><BR/>But I am talking about AFTER the war. After she had already "won" and "conquered" the world and possessed the only atomic bombs. <BR/><BR/>If she had a different vision, if she believed that democracy should not be exported, if she said things like we say now:: that the Muslims can't handle democracy and that we should force it down their throats...if America did not believe she COULD export democracy and plant it in those countries after they each got done killing 60 million human beings together...that was an extraordinary moment in human history.<BR/><BR/>We would not be here without it. The world would be far grimmer, far uglier than it is now if Germany and Japan WEREN'T forced into democracy, by a conscious choice of the AMERICANS. By a choice unpopular even in America. <BR/><BR/>Why after all does America care about a stupid lil place on the map called Baquba or Basilan?<BR/><BR/>Why should it? Because it understands the stakes better than PDI!Deany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150054447303128702006-06-12T03:34:00.000+08:002006-06-12T03:34:00.000+08:00The CONQUEST of the Axis powers that you speak of ...The CONQUEST of the Axis powers that you speak of therefore were made hand in hand by friends and allies so that America and the rest of the Western world may be free.HILLBLOGGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05977843513566589811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150054250646440062006-06-12T03:30:00.000+08:002006-06-12T03:30:00.000+08:00Dean,I recognize the immense contribution of Ameri...Dean,<BR/><BR/>I recognize the immense contribution of America to help Europe thump the Nazis and I think it goes without saying that Europeans will always be indebted to their relatives and brothers in arms in America for their enormous contribution to humanity.<BR/><BR/>However, in so doing, we shouldn't discount or minimize the sacrifices of people in Europe both in the East and in the West, who got ém Gestapos, Nazis, Hitlerique Germans running for their dear lives - millions and millions of Russian lives alone perished to make that a reality.<BR/><BR/>We must also agree on one thing: it wasn't only America that fought the war in Europe - a great part of Europe actually gave up a significant number of their people to achieve victory so that we may all be free.<BR/><BR/>It would be maligning the memory of extremely courageous people who gave up lots too, including their lives without any hesitation, if we only recognized American valor.<BR/><BR/>It would be maligning the memory of my English father in law who fought and got wounded twice and who at 18 almost died in a German concentration camp, and my mother in law's 2 young brothers (age 21 & 24)who died one after the other in great pain while the Mosquito aircraft they were flying and fighting the Germans with went down in flames. It would be extremely unfair to the memory of a submariner uncle of my husband's who gave up his life in an effort to bring down a Nazi fighting ship.<BR/><BR/>It would be fair to say that the theatre of war in Europe did not only see American sacrifices but European sacrifices too.HILLBLOGGERhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05977843513566589811noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150038844539157692006-06-11T23:14:00.000+08:002006-06-11T23:14:00.000+08:00MB, I don't see why democracy cannot be exported o...MB, <BR/><BR/>I don't see why democracy cannot be exported or taught to others. <BR/><BR/>We do it for biology, chemistry and physics. Does everyone have to have their own version of the internal combustion engine or the laws of science? We cannot force anyone into democracy, I agree with that, though there WAS a great deal of coercion to do it even in Japan and Germany. I keep mentioning these, because that is the clear model for Iraq and the Middle East. What's the alternative, do you think? Drift? Let them do what they want with the fuel tanks of the world economy? <BR/><BR/>The names and nationalisms are what get in the way. In the end, what really matters is what really works for the greatest number of human beings. No individual may be ignored, but no individual may ignore the rest of humanity. The world has gotten too small and there aren't any more virgin continents to run to.<BR/><BR/>Democracy to me should be not an ideology only or a religion, but a technology -- know how.<BR/><BR/>Treated like that, then the comparative values of cultures, traditions and localisms can be removed the equation. The world is in an extraordinary state of flux. But it has to be towards a more humane world. Some things -- many things are known not to work. We cannot insist on them. Dictatorship and terrorism are just those sorts of things. <BR/><BR/>Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia and China are their own punishment. What progress they've made recently come directly from whatever democratization and liberalization they've not been able to prevent. They will I think evolve into fully capitalist competitors, if they aren't already. <BR/><BR/>And Hollywood will take care of the cultural rough edges and political uptightness. <BR/><BR/>These countries are I think built for success once they shed their socialist and communist trappings. Or the old fogeys die out, and their MTV generations take over!Deany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14974164.post-1150031913091503612006-06-11T21:18:00.000+08:002006-06-11T21:18:00.000+08:00MB--I think what we must ask ourselves is a questi...MB--I think what we must ask ourselves is a question like this: How do we want Iraq and the Middle East to look like in 10 to 20 to 30 years?<BR/><BR/>I suppported the War on Saddam Hussein because I believed, and still do, that it will put the Middle East on an irrevocable path towards democracy and prosperity. <BR/><BR/>This is not theoretical. The Americans did it before with Germany in Europe and Japan in Asia. Imagine what vision it must have taken in 1945 to believe that Militarist Japan and Nazi Germany could become the worlds No. 2 and )until China awoke from communism) No 3 economies in the world, and among its strongest democracies.<BR/><BR/>I believe that too about Iraq. In 10 years she and Israel will be the bulwarks of Democracy in the Middle East. <BR/><BR/>I think that is the future of the middle east now. No matter what our opinion about why America went to war there, it is no longer a thing we can change.<BR/><BR/>Democracy in the Middle East or bust!<BR/><BR/>Iraq will be more like Malaysia and not Iran by then.<BR/><BR/>So how do we decide what to support.<BR/><BR/>I say we must always support that bright future of which we already have shining examples in the past.<BR/><BR/>Remember:: 60 million human beings died in World War II. Yet the peace that resulted with Japan and Germany as a result of CONQUEST by America with democracy following on was well worth it. <BR/><BR/>It can happen again in the Middle EastDeany Bocobohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01443168826029321831noreply@blogger.com