
 |
|
May 13, 2013
David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church
May 10, 2013
Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be
May 8, 2013
Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas
Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate
Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility
May 6, 2013
May 3, 2013
Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine
April 29, 2013
Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust
Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?
Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA
April 26, 2013
Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty
April 24, 2013
Morgan Housel Admit it: No one has any idea what's going on
April 22, 2013
US man departing country arrested on terror charges
Barbara Williams: An unorthodox but growing treatment in a 9-year-old's battle against cancer
April 19, 2013
Caroline B. Glick: Why Obama's visit to Israel had no impact on public opinion or government policy
Morgan Housel: Gold collapse: The start of something big?
Pete Spotts: Livable super-Earths? Two candidates among Kepler's latest finds
April 17, 2013
Shira Rubin: Too much of a good thing? 'Palestinians' realize downside of foreign aid boom
Morgan Housel: BAD NEWS: EVERYONE IS RIGHT!
April 15, 2013
Kristen Chick: Egyptian Christians respond with harsh words to attack -- rocks, Molotov cocktails, and gunfire -- against main cathedral
Marcy Darnovsky and Karuna Jaggar: High Court to decide if you should own your DNA
Howard LaFranchi: US bracing for more Russian blowback after taking action against 18 more human rights violators
April 12, 2013
Mark Clayton: New cybersecurity bill: Privacy threat or crucial band-aid?
Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jackie Robinson's Friend, Hank Greenberg; CNN's Jake Tapper; Texas County in the News is named for 19thC. Jewish soldier and Congressman
The Kosher Gourmet by Susan Russo: FRUITY QUINOA STUFFED PEPPERS: A flavorful, colorful and edible vessel of delicately fluffy, mildly nutty filling combined with chewy apricots, tangy cherries, and crunchy pistachios
April 10, 2013
Peter Grier: North Korean missiles: Could US shoot them down?
Morgan Housel: Warning: Don't waste your capital being fooled by profit prophets
Donald Hensrud, M.D.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Take vitamin supplements with caution --- even approved, they may actually do damage
Eryn Brown: 74 DNA discoveries move cure closer for three cancers
April 8, 2013
Jonathan Tobin: What Part of No Preconditions Do American Jews Not Get?
Fred Weir: Is Putin finally trading his own party for a new power base?
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Mid-East Megalomaniacal Despots on the Run
By
Ron Hart
| 
|
|
|
| |
|
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
"Freedom, in a political context, has only one meaning: the absence of physical coercion." Ayn Rand in Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal
Moammar Khadaffi, the Libyan dictator who rules with an iron fist while wearing a comfortable-looking Snuggie, looks to be the next victim of a growing surge toward democracy in the Middle East. But there is a fine line between democracy and mob rule.
Khadaffi, the strange leader who seems to reinvent his style every few years, (usually around a Michael Jackson theme), seems ripe for ouster. The source of the citizens' uprising in Libya is hard to pin down; maybe they are demanding Khadaffi's birth certificate, as many believe he was born in Gary, Indiana.
Khadaffi has killed his citizens, but he says they "all love him." He pays them money and, according to him, takes care of their needs. This gives them comfort and takes a weight off their minds, since the average life expectancy of a Libyan citizen is about 25 years. Opposing Khadaffi usually results in being dragged behind a car for eight blocks - or, as it is known in Libya, "dying of natural causes."
Even Iranian nut-job Mahmoud Ahmadinejad chimed in and said Khadaffi had gone too far in suppressing his people. That's like Charlie Sheen telling you that you really need to get your act together.
Garnering strength from the recent U.S. overthrow of other dictatorial bullies (Keith Olbermann and Simon Cowell), it seems that more regimes in the region are in jeopardy. The march of freedom and potential regime changes in Tunisia, Jordan, Libya, Egypt, the Ivory Coast, Yemen, etc., augur well for all of us and especially for property values in New York City. Note to anyone in NYC contemplating renting to any of these "relocating" despots: They are hard to evict. It might take 40 years, in some cases.
This is the third kleptocracy to melt down in recent days. Bad things seem to happen in threes; look at the the Kardashian sisters.
If you think these thieving billionaire despots have money now, just wait until they apply for unemployment, food stamps, disability and a government union pension in the USA. That's some real money.
Giving us much needed context, celebs like Sting choose to air their views on the situation, mostly blaming Americans for not understanding the Middle East. What's not to understand? Those governments seem uncomplicated and perfectly sane. Their actions are in no way driven by religious fanaticism or greedy, tyrannical dictators. With all due respect to Sting and his opinions, I remain skeptical, at least until Seal, Meatloaf and Phil Collins weigh in on the matter. Until we have a policy consensus among these rock icons of the 90's, we must defer to Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton.
As Khadaffi's military henchmen killed protestors, Hillary once again called on a sitting president to exercise restraint. Many of Khadaffi's generals have defected to the other side, so his lower ranks have done most of the killing. Hillary clearly has the most experience in this area, having called for a sitting president to restrain himself and his privates since 1997.
As we witness one country after another descend into chaos as their despotic leaders are toppled, Hillary's State Department needs a plan to install democratic reforms after each domino falls. She could call it the "Domino's Democracy Plan," where she promises to have a freshly-made government delivered to your door no more than thirty minutes after a coup.
Supporting countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia as our "friends" in the region is like having a brother-in-law with cocaine, hooker and gambling problems move into your basement. You should not be the least bit surprised when it does not end well for you.
My main news source to help me understand matters as complex as the Middle East, The Onion News, reports, "In a televised speech addressing the pro-democracy protests currently sweeping across the Middle East, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia reiterated that the people of his country should not even think about it. 'Get it out of your heads right now,' the king said in a firm, unwavering tone of voice while staring directly into the camera. 'I'm serious. Whatever you are thinking about doing, it's not gonna end up good for you. Trust me.' The king then widened his eyes, paused, and added, 'No.' "
=<<
| BUY THE BOOK |
|
Click HERE to purchase it at a discount. (Sales help fund JWR.). |
|
Comment by clicking here.
JWR contributor Ron Hart grew up in Tennessee and began writing a column for his hometown paper in 2002. He attended The University of Memphis and the Institute for Political and Economic Systems at Georgetown University. Ron graduated Magna Cum Laude and was elected student government president. Upon getting his MBA, he went to work for Goldman Sachs. He was appointed to the Tennessee Board of Regents by then Governor Lamar Alexander and is now a private investor. He appears on CNN and has been quoted in numerous publications including the Wall Street Journal.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Previously:
• Truther or Dare
• Facebook Un-friends Our Increasingly Regulation-burdened Capital Markets
• Egyptians Unfriend Mubarak
• Hold 'em liable --- the colleges, that is
• Follow your Hart in a look back at 2010
• GOP wins in showdown
• WikiLeaks --- Danger or Disinfectant?
• The Angle of the Rangel
• Where We Let Terrorists Really Hurt Us
• Time to starve the spending beast
• The TSA: We Do Chicken Right!
• A Red Wave
• No Juan Left Behind at NPR
• Capitalism in Time Saves Mine
• The Broader Picture of What These Elections Mean
• Dem-moralized: Dead Fish taken to the trash cant
• Ships Passing in the Night
• Obamanomics continue to add up . . . for Republicans
• She had Tiger by the tail: If Elin did not get Tiger's money, Obama would have
include "/home/jwreview/public_html/t-ssi/jwr_squaread_300x250.php"; ?>
© 2010 Ron Hart
|

Arnold Ahlert
Mitch Albom
Jay Ambrose
Michael Barone
Barrywood
Lori Borgman
Stratfor Briefing
Mona Charen
Linda Chavez
Richard Z. Chesnoff
Ann Coulter
Greg Crosby
Larry Elder
Suzanne Fields
Christine Flowers
Frank J. Gaffney
Bernie Goldberg
Jonah Goldberg
Julia Gorin
Jonathan Gurwitz
Paul Greenberg
Argus Hamilton
Victor Davis Hanson
Betsy Hart
Ron Hart
Nat Hentoff
A. Barton Hinkle
Jeff Jacoby
Paul Johnson
Jack Kelly
Ch. Krauthammer
David Limbaugh
Kathryn Lopez
Rich Lowry
Michelle Malkin
Jackie Mason
Ann McFeatters
Dale McFeatters
Dana Milbank
Jeanne Moos
Dick Morris
Jim Mullen
Deroy Murdock
Judge A. Napolitano
Bill O'Reilly
Clarence Page
Kathleen Parker
Star Parker
Dennis Prager
Wesley Pruden
Tom Purcell
Sharon Randall
Robert Robb
Cokie & Steve Roberts
Heather Robinson
Debra J. Saunders
Martin Schram
Greg Schwem
Culture Shlock
David Shribman
Roger Simon
Lenore Skenazy
Michael Smerconish
Thomas Sowell
Ben Stein
Mark Steyn
John Stossel
Cal Thomas
Dan Thomasson
Bob Tyrrell
Diana West
Dave Weinbaum
George Will
Walter Williams
Byron York
ZeitGeist
Mort Zuckerman

Robert Arial
Chuck Asay
Baloo
Lisa Benson
Chip Bok
Dry Bones
John Branch
John Cole
J. D. Crowe
Matt Davies
John Deering
Brian Duffy
Everything's Relative
Mallard Fillmore
Glenn Foden
Jake Fuller
Bob Gorrel
Walt Handelsman
Joe Heller
David Hitch
Jerry Holbert
David Horsey
Lee Judge
Steve Kelley
Jeff Koterba
Dick Locher
Chan Lowe
Jimmy Margulies
Jack Ohman
Michael Ramirez
Rob Rogers
Drew Sheneman
Kevin Siers
Jeff Stahler
Scott Stantis
Danna Summers
Gary Varvel
Kirk Walters
Dan Wasserman

Tech Q&A
Mr. Know-It-All
Ask Doctor K
Richard Lederer
Frugal Living
On Nutrition
Bookmark These
Bruce Williams
| |