SHRAPNEL OFF THE WALL

Head To Head

Another skirmish this time a pleasant, engrossing one.

Clinton Washington and India Carney

meet head to head in

The Voice.

Head To Head.mpg

The Skirmish

Command  Responsibility

 Part 2  The Skirmish

4. The one thing going for Generals Purisima and Napenas in the planning stages of this operation is that they know exactly where the target is. And this knowledge virtually gave them 80% assurance that they will get their man. They had an informant who may have formed the habit of toying with his cell phone which was equipped with video capture. I presume that he is either a double agent, or he worked for both sides to favor the one side which had the advantage. And while he confirmed where Marwan was before the assault, I presume that he was also the one who sounded the alarm after he detached himself from the assault force. He may be also seen as the one with the MILF ambush group, and shooting over the heads of the SAF to keep up with appearances. He probably received his reward via “diplomatic” procedures.

5. This man may be the source of the all-true narrative of the skirmish. This narrative of his regarding the skirmish all but debunks the results of the BOI and the MILFl investigations. His is a first-hand account of the skirmish, not only because he was a first-hand witness but he also participated in it.

6. After Marwan was slain, all hell broke loose. The assault force decided to shoot it out with the band which they believed to be small and not the group that comprised the whole armed coalition of the Bangsamoro—-MILF, BIFF, kidnappers, terrorists, and what have you. The SAF now realizes the need for more protective cover than corn stalks, the need for mechanized extrication plans, the need for grenade launchers and inflatable rafts. The only way out could have been back through the river, but the SAF probably do not want to get wet or worse, they can’t swim. But where is the support? The mission has been kept secret even from those army units that could mount an effective relief.

7. On the other hand, and this is a bigger hand than that which was laid down, with 44 people in the assault force, they don’t really need a support force had they brought heavier firepower. Four grenade launchers could have turned the tide. So with SAW’s and M-60’s. But the PNP clearly is not provided with weapons that are regular issues to soldiers. Who then decides what weapons are to be issued the SAF?

8. Let me say again, the SAF that went in was meant to fend for itself. But then again this was a mistake because they do not have heavier firepower to fight a pitch battle against more than their number. Even the “blocking force” did not have any firepower that could spell the difference in the skirmish. And then again, if the force has to fend for itself, they could have done it differently.

9. Were I to plan the operation, I would have augmented stealth with secrecy. In this case, I would have needed only a squad of 7 t0 10 really special force members and use the 34 to join the “blocking force”. If the distance from Marwan’s hut to the river is greater and offered no considerable cover, OK I would use more men. But let’s say that I am required to use 44 men this would be too large a force and would make more noise in advancing. I would then have 10 men cover the left flank and another 10 men to cover the right flank. The other 24 men would be enough to riddle Marwan’s hut. How do I get across the river? SWIM, or use siege ropes and wooden logs. The bridge is not to be used as it would silhouette the men against the sky. And, for heaven’s sake, don’t allow that informant to leave.

10. If the skirmish is forced upon the men, I would start an orderly retreat. Form a rear guard while the others move back towards the river. Waiting for the “blocking force” is useless as they would have to cross the bridge which would have been under enemy control. If there still was no support coming, I would have the men fire flares. At the same time I would have raised hell to ask the other army units for help. Because it is now clear that the 44 men have to fend for themselves. They are as good as lost.

(next: The Can of Worms)

ENZO

Enzo and his mom, Sheila May.

The Ghost Ship

  Andreas Lubitz was depressed when he locked himself in the cockpit of the GERMANWINGS plane

and then calmly brought the plane to a slow descent

directly towards a mountain in the Alps.

Calm and composed, he assumed the posture

of a child ignoring his parents’ pleas to open the door.

Due to the gravity of the situation after the obliteration of the plane,

I did refrain from posting that he did it

because he was afraid of heights.

Now I’m sorry I first thought about it that way!

Lubitz  knew  that this was  the last  time

that he will be allowed to fly a plane,

much less as  Pilot.

 Now the calls from the traffic control

and the frantic pleas from outside the cockpit

all helped to confirm  his dream.

Eventually, these sounds turned to music

that lulled him to complacency

as he savored the feeling that finally

 he was Captain of the Ship

even if it were

a ghost ship.

Luanne Dy

Bernadette Sembrano

Sheena Sabino

Saudis React

Saudi Arabia has started doing air strikes on Yemeni Houthi.

Iran balks.

If the Saudis and the Iranians don’t,

their leaderships in the region may be jeopardized.

I surmise that the drop in oil prices

is somewhat due to the ISIS selling very cheap oil.

ISIS need funds asap for arms and provisions.

So they sell oil dirt cheap.

But who could the gun runners be?

IF NATO needs a target to justify its existence

why don’t they turn their guns on ISIS

instead of posturizing in Ukraine?

What If?

What if Iran already has a nuclear bomb?

Don’t you think the US would fight tooth and nail to have inspectors in

the country even if this entry would cost the removal of sanctions?

What if the co-pilot of Germanwings was promised

a large sum of money to crash the plane,

do you believe that he would?

Andreas Lubitz did say he liked flying the budget-type of planes

didn’t he?

Ah, but what he did is similar to a child’s

act of locking himself in his room

when he’s angry with his parents.

Guessing, I’m just guessing.

Command Responsibility

Command Responsibility

Part 1  The Drama Starts

  The Mamasapano encounter opened up a can of worms within the makeup of the Philippine Government, particularly in the configuration by which the Armed Forces work. More so because all the nuances, politics,  personal ambitions, pride, jealousy and other factors affecting the stability of Southern Mindanao converge on this little place called Mamasapano. Indeed the fate of the region is embroiled in this place as if the stage play started and will be finished here.

And as the stage opened, we see a situation wherein the rebels of Southern Mindanao seek to end the revolution by asking the Philippine Government the status of autonomous government for themselves amid the region that they presently occupy. The rebels have always been up in arms ever since. To provide urgency for their purpose, they kill and kidnap, and burn, and pillage, promptly calling these  acts as necessary to foster the revolution.

Thus was the situation that led to the Bangsamoro Basic Law, or BBL, as the requirement to form the autonomous Bangsamoro Region. This is now submitted to the Philippine Congress as a bill for debate. If and when approved, the Philippine Government hopes to attain peace in the region.

It should be noticed that the region in question would be in close proximity to the Federated Malaysia borders which, in due time, would be a good prospect for the Bangsamoro autonomous region to join it as its parliament may approve. This condition of autonomous region qualifies them to secede very much like Crimea did, and which Quebec tried to do. Curiously enough, Malaysian involvement in this BBL has been  notably instrumental, so far.

As the BBL play progresses, the following factors get into the act:

1. There is an existing truce between the armed elements of the Bangsamoro called the MILF and the Philippine Armed Forces while the BBL is being pursued. It appears that while the Bangsamoro negotiators know who they are dealing with, they have little idea of who they are dealing for. The territory in question is plastered with armed elements, some of whom have built a kind of fort complete with a Mosque and concrete defenses. This fact invalidates the mandate of the MILF negotiators. They are not in command of the territory and therefore they are not responsible for it.

2.  To the PNP, or Philippine national Police, is entrusted the mission to take down primary target Marwan and secondary target Usman, since it will be a police action and the undertaking will not break the truce. Formerly called the Philippine Constabulary, the unit has outgrown the equipment it is supplied with. The rule is that police units are not provided with heavy weapons as befitting a regular army unit. The SAF, or Special Action Force, is therefore formed that would perform as a pseudo regular army unit. The SAF, alas, still has not been provided with armaments such as grenade launchers, mortars, rpg’s and such. The SAF force that was involved in the Mamasapano encounter is actually more like an urban swat team, helpless in field skirmishes. The mission, therefore, had not that many chances of coming out with no casualties. Theirs is but to do and die.

3.   The greatest priority is given secrecy. There has been a rash of ambushes at each and every mission undertaken by military forces. The targets have almost always been forewarned. Curiously enough, the missions have been compromised by civilians sympathetic to the MILF, jealous military units, spies within the camp, and mostly by the amount of preparations that the missions are required to have. This particular mission, therefore, has been kept secret from almost everybody. This meticulousness has made the mission to get Marwan a success.  

 (next : The Skirmish)

Suzanne Malveaux

Ginger Conejero

Rick Mercer

The Rick Mercer report is one show you should watch.

It is very entertaining, and has views in all aspects

of world events.

This is well thought out, finely-tuned, and meticulously edited.

Rick Mercer completes the episodes

with the effort of trying to make your day.

The following videos in one episode

will prove what I say.

Skeet Shooting.mpg

Carillon.mpg

The MILF Report

The MILF report on the Mamasapano encounter

actually did not vary much from the BOI report.

By the scheme of those who did the report,

the blame for the encounter and the lives lost

is on the Philippine National Police

which initiated the conflict.

The MILF report, however, is yet to explain to the

Philippine Government why the MILF

started shooting at the SAF who were clearly identified

as the police doing police action.

Explanation should also be provided as to the

reason why Marwan and Usman

have comfortably settled in Mamasapano,

therein described as Revolutionary Territory.

This is actual proof that the region which comprises

the purported autonomous region will just become

a haven for terrorists,

a haven which the Philippine Government

will subsidize from its own tax revenues

coming from the rest of the country.

Hah! The MILF should stay as revolutionaries

and raise their own crop.

Note that the Philippine Government has yet to realize

one sizable tax collection from the said

rebel territory.

Victory For The Ben

Benjamin Netanyahu wins the Israeli Knesset elections

retaining his position as Israel’s legitimate leader.

He plunged into this election

with deathly determination

and the utmost in urgency

to save his country.

His policies against Palestine and Iran

may have been redeemed by this win.

Erin Burnett

Gaby Concepcion

There has been a slack in the cute chick uploads recently.

This was so because I have noticed that from those lovely personages

that I put up here, there’s been an amazing coincidence

wherein they actually get pregnant after a while.

This here lady is with whom I have high hopes.

The name helps, too.

Gretchen Fullido

The Word Nigger

The Word Nigger

  So I said it, even wrote it down for all to read.

Now, do I get fired for it?

Do I get stoned for it?

Do I get kicked out of school for it?

Or do I get shot like I were a cop?

Frankly the era after Martin Luther King has been disappointing.

You would have thought that the brave and the free people,

 the Americans,

  would have gone over the days of Uncle Tom’s Cabin by now.

They have yet to grow up.

If the blacks consider the word as hurtful, then they deserve it.

Only those who get hurt by that word deserve to be hurt by that word.

The word nigger today is still as derisive as the days of slavery.

The Negroes should have gone over the implication of that word.

They should take the word as meaningless as past history.

In truth, nigger refers to, and only to, the black African Americans.

So why consider the word in a bad context?

For the Americans to live up to the dream of Martin Luther King,

they should stop considering the word as something that separates black and white.

This word is probably the first thing that initiates segregation.

This should not be the case.

Not if this word is not used as a swear word, but is instead, uttered affectionately.

Or even with just a smile.

It is sad that a fraternity would be kicked out of the university for the members singing a song about niggers and lynching. What happened was a group having a private revelry similar to what we may call a stag party. And Lord knows what the favorite sex expressions are said during a stag party. This is a private gathering of a frat in a bus and the revelry was not supposed to be public. Therefore the frat members did not do anything wrong, in my book, the video in question was not intended to be publicized. So why get riled by it.

Nigger is just a word.

Ignore it and it will go away.

And grow up!

The SAF Goat

General Getulio Napenas,

strategist and director of operations

for the elimination of Marwan,

internationally wanted bomb-maker,

now suffers for the success of the mission.

Da Goat.mpg

With the resulting collateral damage of 44 SAF soldiers,

his accomplishment of completing the mission

was overshadowed, and he has now been marked as

the one responsible for the massacre.

His plan was not defective as alleged in the reports,

but, if I might opine, it was a good plan

despite the lack of resources and armament at his disposal.

If one has to go back and read my first comments

immediately after the Mamasapano massacre came out

(specifically in the February 10 and 12 posts)

the prime requirement for the mission is SECRECY.

Napenas now confirms this paramanout importance of secrecy publicly.

 Past missions were ambushed when the mission was known to some particular

groups of people, including the military.

Such imposition of secrecy thus deprived the mission of

the needed support and backup from the rest of the Army.

But who is to blame for the massacre?

I would say that whole blasted kaboodle of people

who are entrusted to give orders and who could

have changed things around.

Yep, all those involved from the very top

to the very bottom of the command line.

General Napenas is,  of course,   given the blame

because he is the one who could have said “GO!”

Notice that his job of getting Marwan was successful

because there was complete secrecy imposed on the operation.

The plan was brilliant up to the minute that Marwan was slain.

And when the alert was sounded, it was too late,

and Marwan’s  camp  reacted only after Marwan was dead.

Now how could the SAF been detected?

How would I have planned it if I were Napenas?

Net Neutrality

(As Simplified by RT.COM)

  The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday published a 400-page report containing the open internet rules that the agency’s panel moved to adopt last month in a 5-3 vote hailed as a victory by net neutrality advocates. The report, the FCC says, “once and for all…puts into place strong, sustainable rules, grounded in multiple sources of our legal authority, to ensure that Americans reap the economic, social and civic benefits of an open Internet today and into the future.” Want to know what that means, but without wrapping your brain around the report’s 270,000 or so words? We’ve outlined a few key takeaways to help explain the FCC’s latest release.

No blocking

The FCC says that strong rules are required in order to protect consumers against past and potentially future tactics that would threaten the existence of an open internet, and first on the agency’s list is a “no blocking” provision. As one might expect, this rule prohibits internet service providers, or ISPs, from keeping customers from accessing content that isn’t against the law. “A person engaged in the provision of broadband Internet access service, insofar as such person is so engaged, shall not block lawful content, applications, services or non-harmful devices, subject to reasonable network management,” the FCC says.

In other words, an ISP, such as Comcast or Verizon, for example, can’t take action to keep ordinary customers away from certain websites (or stop them from downloading certain movies or music, for that matter), unless the content in question and the act of obtaining it is otherwise illegal. So while the new rules prohibit ISPs from blocking access to blogs that might be critical of their corporations, web service providers can still take action if a customer is somehow caught downloading illegal content. “[T]he no-blocking rule only applies to transmissions of lawful content and does not prevent or restrict a broadband provider from refusing to transmit unlawful material, such as child pornography or copyright-infringing materials. We believe that this approach will allow broadband providers to honor their service commitments to their subscribers without requiring a specified level of service to those subscribers or edge providers under the no-blocking rule,” the agency says. Throughout the report, the FCC notes that, notwithstanding rules such as the “no blocking” provision, certain custodial efforts (or “reasonable network management”) might affect access to the internet. As long as the management is reasonable, however, the FCC says it will find no fault.

No throttling

Similarly, the FCC’s new rules also say that internet providers can’t decide to speed-up and slow-down the delivery to customers of online content at an ISP’s own discretion. Adding to open internet rules adopted by the FCC starting in 2010 (and enforced up until a federal court judge told them otherwise, eventually paving way for the release of this report nearly a half-decade later), the agency says this no throttling rule means ISPs can’t “degrade lawful Internet traffic on the basis of Internet content, application or service, or use of a non-harmful device, subject to reasonable network management.” “Degrading access to legal content and services can have the same effect as blocking and will not be permitted,” reads a portion of this week’s report.   According to the FCC, “the ban on throttling is necessary both to fulfill the reasonable expectations of a customer who signs up for a broadband service that promises access to all of the lawful Internet, and to avoid gamesmanship designed to avoid the no-blocking rule by, for example, rendering an application effectively, but not technically, unusable.” “With the no-throttling rule, we ban conduct that is not outright blocking, but inhibits the delivery of particular content, applications or services, or particular classes of content, applications or services.” Once again, though, illegal content isn’t covered by the FCC’s “no throttling” provision, meaning the agency’s new rules won’t stop ISPs from adjusting the connection speeds of customers caught sharing copywrited material, as RT previously reported.

No paid prioritization

Ahead of the FCC’s decision last month to adopt the rules released in this week’s report, a hot topic among commentators watching the debate was whether the agency would allow for paid prioritization; that is, whether ISPs should be able to cut deals with content creators in which the delivery of web traffic, specifically with regards to the speed, could differ depending on how much those content creators chose to pay. “Paid prioritization occurs when a broadband provider accepts payment (monetary or otherwise) to manage its network in a way that benefits particular content, applications, services or devices,” the FCC says, and allowing for it would indeed enable the creation of “fast lanes” feared by net neutrality advocates. “To protect against ‘fast lanes,’ this Order adopts a rule that establishes that: A person engaged in the provision of broadband Internet access service, insofar as such person is so engaged, shall not engage in paid prioritization,” reads another one of the FCC’s new rules. Along with no blocking and no throttling, the FCC says this this provision is one of three “clear, bright-line rules” necessary to preserve net neutrality. Well, almost no paid prioritization Yet while paid prioritization and “fast lanes” became a central argument to the net neutrality debate, the FCC has included language in its report that doesn’t outright ban that concept 100 percent. According to the FCC, the ban on paid prioritization may be waived “only if the petitioner demonstrates that the practice would provide some significant public interest benefit and would not harm the open nature of the Internet.” In order to demonstrate as much, the FCC says that the applicant “must demonstrate that the practice will have some significant public interest benefit,” and explain how it wouldn’t harm the concept of net neutrality. According to the rules, “An applicant seeking waiver relief under this rule faces a high bar.” “We anticipate granting such relief only in exceptional cases,” wrote the commissioned.

Regulations won’t restrict law enforcement

Speaking of exceptional cases, the FCC made sure to include language in this week’s report that reiterates the importance of ensuring authorities can bypass open internet protections adopted through the ruling for the sake of law enforcement operations. “The record is generally supportive of our proposal to reiterate that open Internet rules do not supersede any obligation a broadband provider may have – or limit its ability – to address the needs of emergency communications or law enforcement, public safety, or homeland or national security authorities,” the FCC says. According to the report, broadband providers have obligations under statutes such as the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA), the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) and the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) that “could in some circumstances intersect with open Internet protections,” given that access must always be prioritized “in order to coordinate disaster relief and other emergency response efforts, or for other emergency communications.”   “Most commenters recognize the benefits of clarifying that these obligations are not inconsistent with open Internet rules” the FCC says. Privacy advocates have raised questions in recent years about the scope of laws like CALEA, FISA and ECPA, however, especially given statements from government officials concerning ways in which authorities may rely on certain legislation to conduct online eavesdropping. RT reported at the time that a Justice Department attorney said in 2013 that the government wants to use CALEA to monitor the online conversations of suspected criminals in real time, and disclosures that same year from former intelligence contractor Edward Snowden revealed that the government uses Section 702 of FISA to authorize digital surveillance on foreign persons – the likes of which, tech experts have argued, has involved exploiting security weaknesses on behalf of the government and, as a result, secretly undermining the protocols meant to protect online activity. The language in the report doesn’t provide any new powers to law enforcement, but rather clarifies that open internet provisions shouldn’t in any way preclude the authorities’ already established abilities.

Prince Karim Aga Khan

Waxing philosophically over the political situations

in the nine Middle Eastern countries,

his words may just as well apply to all countries of the world,

whether they be developed or underdeveloped.

Aga Khan 1.mpg

Aga Khan 2.mpg

The RCMP Commissioner Testifies

RCMP Commissioner Rob Paulson answers question regarding the rampage

of Ziehaf-Bibeau in Ottawa.

Paulson 1.mpg 

Paulson 2.mpg

Paulson 3.mpg

Paulson 4.mpg

Paulson 5.mpg

Paulson 6.mpg

(Bravo!)

The Canadian Terrorist

Ziehaf-Bibeau who went on a rampage in Ottawa

with his Winchester repeating rifle,

left his cell phone in his car

containing his celf-video.

The RCMP review of this celf-video

just but helped condemn him as a terrorist.

Ziehaf-Bibeau.mpg

Victor Borge’s Sleepwalk

Borge 1.mpg