History can help - Italians too?
Why Libya is really two provinces, OK way back in Classical times and only joined by the Italians in 1911:http://www.spectator.co.uk/essays/68...o-libyas.thtml
On KoW another historical piece and this struck me:
Quote:
..the need to consider the psychological effects of having NATO warplanes bomb yet another Muslim country...what are the likely psychological effects of the fact that this intervention marks the 100th anniversary of the first-ever instance of aerial bombardment, carried out by Italy in Libya in 1911, and resulting (much as today) in apparent ‘collateral damage’ (then called ‘frightfulness’)
Link:http://kingsofwar.org.uk/2011/03/lon...libya-history/
Makes one wonder if the Italians recalled this history and tried to keep out of the coalition.
Gadaffy, the bailout papers
By God, we are a generous people.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-0...in-crisis.html
All it took was the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers, and the Libyan financial infrastructure became the primary OJT of Chairman Ben.
Not primarily a legal question
Quote:
from JW
We, the United States and NATO, are now engaged in an undeclared war against one party (or both parties, depending on what day it is) where the casus belli is a doctrine entitled Responsibility To Protect. Is anyone else concerned at what this precedent might lead to?
Yes.
Quote:
from MAL
The answer is simple: a military facism blessed by the Just Cause of the mightiest.
I wouldn't use "facism" ("democratic humanitarianism" can be equally doctrinaire and devastating). And, I'd put "Just Cause" in quotes - it may or may not be "just", with strong views on both sides. E.g., the stance of the liberal and more to left UN members re: Rhodesia and South Africa (as to which, JMA need not respond).
Quote:
from MAL
I do believe in R2P and the obligations for the international community to interviene to protect civilian populations against crazzy guys. But the way J Wolfsberger resumes it is quite frightening. And it's an open door to barbarism in the name of "Just" (Latin definition in legal language) and not a step to better wealth of mankind. I believe JMM could enlight us on that particular issue of how you turn a good positive rights (Droit positif) ideas into a crazy repressive system that set a norm which is applied by force to any deviant.
The remainder of this discussion is probably best conducted privately over more than one bottle of Maccarthy-Moula (not the best of clarets, despite its noble name ;)).
http://www.pages-pourpres.com/vin/bo...y-moula-81.jpg
Regards
Mike
Debris from Ireland's "Small Wars"
You will find much current history under Chateau Haut-Marbuzet (the grand vin; Chateau MacCarthy is the second wine). Here's a very little bit on these Wild Geese MacCarthy-Reagh cousins (from the Wine Doctor):
Quote:
In 1825, however, these vineyards came to the MacCarthys, a family of Irish immigrants that included amongst their number wine merchants and the chairman of the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce. It was the MacCarthy estate that would give rise to Haut-Marbuzet, but not until the middle of the 19th Century. The new Napoleonic laws decreed that estates must be divided upon their inheritance, and so it was that in 1854 the MacCarthy vineyard was partitioned into 17 separate parcels. It was one of these parcels that would become the Haut-Marbuzet of today.
.....
Within a few years [of 1953], he [Hervé Duboscq] was gathering together the original MacCarthy estate, slowly acquiring one by one a good number of the seventeen portions that had been created over a century before, including Chambert-Marbuzet, Tour de Marbuzet and eventually purchasing the original Chateau MacCarthy itself in 1987.
.....
The grand vin is Chateau Haut-Marbuzet, the second wine Chateau MacCarthy, and the Duboscq trio also bottle the wines of the other estates accrued by the family over the years as Chateau Chambert-Marbuzet and Tour de Marbuzet.
The roots of these Bordeaux MacCarthy-Reagh in St.-Estèphe (Médoc) appear to go back the late 1700s (Dermod ou Denis), although the business was later developed by the issue of his brother Thomas:
Quote:
XIX/ Donal Mac Carthy (né vers 1680 ou 1690 dans le comté de Kilkenny), dit “ de clan Dermod ” [XIX Donal = petit-fils de XVII Dermod MacCarthy-Reagh, né vers 1605 + après 1649], écuyer, Marié vers 1715 à Limerick à Honora Long, fille d’Edmund Long, écuyer, de la ville et comté de Limerick ; D’où :
1) Thomas MAC CARTHY, qui suit ;
2) Dermod (ou Denis) Mac Carthy (13 avril 1719; Limerick + 18 juin 1796, Bordeaux), écuyer, seigneur de BEAUGE et de FONVIDAL. Marié Naturalisé français, maintenu noble d’extraction (1785), quatrième consul (1766-1767), puis premier consul de Bordeaux (1767-1768) et l’un des directeurs de la chambre de commerce (1767). Il siégea avec la noblesse (1789). Marié à Jeanne (de) Fitz-Gerald (v1730 + Bordeaux, 14 décembre 1780); sans postérité. C’est probablement Denis qui acquit le vignoble de “ château Mac Carthy ”, à Saint Estèphe (Médoc).
Many of this and other MacCarthy-Reagh branches served in the régiment MacCarthy-Reagh (French Army infantry), and others in the French Navy and Marines.
Regards
Mike
Few titles are more abused than that of "AQ"
Quote:
Originally Posted by
davidbfpo
An odd story IMO, which cites Algerian sources, that Libyan arsenals have been emptied and taken by convoy - eight Toyota pick-up trucks - across the desert to stores in Northern Mali:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worl...n-weapons.html
So AQ's reputation in Eastern Libya will not locally be affected by such a move, taking weapons away from the front line into the deserts to the far south?:wry: Then there's geography, distances and logistics for such a journey.:confused: Eight pick-ups fully laden will make that much difference in Northern Mali?:rolleyes:
AQ is a very small UW headquarters led by bin Laden. Certainly they have been active conducting UW in Libya these past several years, and in Mali and Chad and other surrounding places as well.
Our Intel community is far too quick, with the media in tow, to slap AQ stickers on the nationalist insurgent movements that have turned to AQ for the support that their networked UW operations provide.
Based on no more information than what this article provides, this to me sounds like a handful of the nationalist insurgents from down in Mali are taking advantage of the situation in Libya to pickup some military gear from the Libyan army as it becomes available and transport it south for their own nationalist operations at home.
AQ in this is probably much like a Special Forces A-Team, and is executing the same mission. There are probably 1-2 AQ operatives for every 50-100 insurgents providing guidance, advice, whatever support they can, and generally working to shape events to best suit the interests of AQ in the process.
If I was in a Mali insurgent group, I would be up in Libya looking for supplies. Similarly, If were running the AQ "SF operations" in North Africa I would be using the chaos of Libya to both motivate my insurgent groups in other areas, and to leverage my own mojo in the region by helping them to attain weapons, ammo and other helpful kit from liberated Libyan military sources.
On the other hand, if I were a US CT guy, I would have my eyes and ears open, as people are breaking cover to take advantage of current events for their own ends. I would direct my guys to very carefully seek to separate the insurgents from the UW guys, and to go after the UW guys to the degree possible, while leaving the insurgents alone. If I were a US UW guy, I would be attempting to get my own guys onto the ground to fill that vacuum and out-compete AQ for this role with the people of the region. I would then work to steer these groups toward non-violent insurgent tactics while the State Department got serious with engaging the various affected governments on reasonable reforms.
I'm none of those guys though, so I will watch and speculate with the rest of the SWJ community... There are opportunities to be had though, I suspect we are not making the most of them.