ShrinkWrapped

SW's Top 10

Welcome to the second weekly installment of ShrinkWrapped's Top 10.  Out of hundreds of posts, these caught my attention and deserve your perusal.

1) The Man Who Saved the World is by John Noonan at the Officers' Club; he tells a story that is chilling and must be read.  We all have a lot to be thankful for.

2) Snouck blogs from Amsterdam at Snouck Hurgronje and deserves to be read by anyone interested in what is happening on the continent.  Western Hotel is very short but pithy.

3) Robert Godwin, under his nom de blog of Gagdad Bob, has done an invaluable service to the blogosphere by putting together a collection of "wise old Islamic sayings".   His post, Cultural Sensitivity 101, can be found at One Cosmos and is very aptly named.

4) Meanwhile, Bernie Golomb blogs at Plank's Constant and refutes Dinocrat's post from last week with How the world looks when you've created nothing: Islam  Bernie says it best himself:

There are many, many creative inventions in Islam, but they are unrecorded because most simply do not apply for a patent.

Go see for yourself (unless you offend easily).  And check out More Muslim Inventions while you are there.

The Information War

Many years ago, a patient told me a story.  She was trying to impress me with the power of her mother's personality and how her mother's hair trigger temper made everyone reluctant to challenge her.  She recalled a summer at a lake in the country; her father would stay with them on the weekends and work in the city during the week.  Her mother had found and rented the cabin and would not tolerate any criticism of their accommodations.  One weekend night when her father was at the lake, there was a terrible rain storm; the roof began to leak.  When her father mentioned the leak to her mother, her mother screamed at him that the cottage was fine, there was no leak, and he should go to sleep, whereupon her father dutifully rolled over ands went to sleep, with the ceiling dripping on him throughout the night.  There was never any further mention of the incident.

And the most interesting aspect of the story?

When my patient told me this story, she suddenly realized that though she had not thought of it for years, she had been, to that moment, uncertain whether or not the roof had really leaked.

I mention this story for two reasons.  First, it is important to recognize the importance of "authority" in shaping perceptions; second, the plasticity of perception and memory requires constant vigilance to safe guard reality.

The Vietnam War was arguably lost 38 years ago today, when Walter Cronkite, "the most trusted man in America", during the CBS Evening News broadcast, declared, after the Tet Offensive in 1968, that our war effort was " mired in stalemate."

The Council Has Spoken!

Once again, the Watcher's Council has pondered and decided.  Among the Council posts, Rick Moran, of Right Wing Nut House, won first place for a post on an American icon who inspired so many of us; his poignant points at the end of the post reveal why the title, THE “HAPPY WARRIOR” IS WEEPING IN HIS GRAVE, is so apt.  In second place was a book review that was both more and less than a book review.  Take a look at Team of Rivals by  Callimachus  at Done With Mirrors.

Among the non-Council posts, Dinocrat won first place by offering an unassailable argument that some cultures just work better than others, in How does the modern world look when you have done nothing to help create it, and innovation is a threat to cherished beliefs?   Rand Simberg took second place with some very useful ASCII work at Transterrestrial Musings in a post inviting the lunatics to Bring On The Fatwah.

As always, all the nominees can be found at the Watcher of Weasels and all will reward your time and energy.

50 Years Ago: The Beginning of the End

On February 25, 1956 Nikita Khrushchev, the Leader of the USSR, began the process of destroying the Soviet Union by giving a speech, in secret, to the 20th Congress of the Communist Party in which he did the one thing that no totalitarian state can withstand: He told the truth.  While it took almost 40 years for the Soviet "Evil Empire" to finally fall, Khrushchev's speech removed the first brick from the wall. 

Here is how the BBC describes the "secret speech", as it came to be know:

In a sensational speech to the 20th Congress of the Communist Party Mr Khrushchev painted a graphic picture of a regime of "suspicion, fear, and terror" built up under the former dictator who died three years ago.

He said he wanted to break the "Stalin cult" that has held Soviet citizens in its thrall for 30 years.

The prime minister described the purges during the period of 1936-38.

He implied that one of Stalin's most trusted aides Kirov had been assassinated in 1934 at the leader's behest.

Stalin then initiated a series of trials of members of the politburo and had some executed for Kirov's murder, including Zinoviev, Kamenev and Rykov.

Fast Forward: Part IV

Day by day it is becoming clearer that the most important question facing the world today is whether or not the Muslim world can join the family of nations who have adopted Modernity or whether they will remain trapped in their violent, Jihadist mentality, permanently at war with the rest of the world.  There are several important points to keep in mind when considering how things are likely to develop over the next several years. 

The first important point is that both of the primary supporters (and exporters) of Islamic fascism, Shia Iran and Sunni (Wahabi) Saudi Arabia, require high oil prices indefinitely if they are going to be able to support their growing populations without precipitating violent uprisings at home.

Secondly, if oil stays at high levels indefinitely, the magic of the market place is guaranteed to find alternative supplies.  $60 a barrel oil makes recovery from the oil shale and tar sands economical.  Further, while the details may differ, we are likely to see more and more stories like this one from David Foster  at the Chicago Boyz, Sweet Energy, Sour Politics:

Barbados has developed a new breed of sugarcane which is specifically intended for use as fuel. "Developed" is probably not the right word, though...selective sugarcane breeding has been conducted on the island for generations in an effort to improve the crop's value for sugar production. Happily, intermediate breeds have been kept in a museum, and one of them turned out to be excellent for its fuel value.

Primary use of the "new" sugarcane will be boiler fuel for an electric power plant; it is also usable for ethanol production.

Fast Forward: Part III

Iraq has been the central front in the war between Modern Civilization and totalitarian Islam since the United States and its coalition partners invaded.  The purpose of the invasion was primarily to destroy the regime of Saddam Hussein in order to change the dynamic in the Middle East, decrease the risk of Iraq expanding or recreating their WMD programs (the jury is still out on the whereabouts or existence of any Iraqi WMD but that is not germane to this issue at the moment, in any event), and present a third option to the world's Muslims, most of whom have lived their entire lives under authoritarian or totalitarian rule, either secular or theocratic in nature.  Democratizing Iraq was often posed as an after-thought, but it was and is a crucial aspect of the larger war against Islamofascism.

The  destruction of the dome of the Golden Mosque Samarra has been the latest and perhaps most effective, attempt yet to ignite civil war in Iraq.  Bill Roggio suggests that the next few days will be key.  In Looking for Signs of Civil War in Iraq, he offers a variety of guideposts by which to determine the likely direction of future events and concludes:

Iraq has yet to encounter any of the problems stated above. The Sunni led Iraqi Accordance Front has suspended talks to form a government, but have not withdrawn from the political process. The Iraqi Security Forces have taken appropriate measures and suspended all leaves, but there are no indications they are cooperating with militias or abetting the violence in any way. There have been both encouraging statements by the Shiite and Sunni leaders. There also have been some irresponsible statements from the politicians on all sides, but this can be understood as tensions are running high. The Shiites are devastated by the destruction of the Golden Mosque and the Sunnis are horrified at the retaliation attacks. What is critical is what is said and done by these politicians in the next few days and weeks.

Fast Forward: Part II

Islam is splitting in front of our eyes.  This split is not primarily between Shia and Sunni, or between Arab and Persian and non-Arab Islam, or any of the other variations of Islam we read about.  The split, which is already accelerating, is between those who accept Islam as a totalitarian system controlling all behavior (commonly referred to as Islamofascists) and those who aspire to an Islamic version of liberal democracy (Moderates).

Islam is closing in on a "Forced Choice."  Psychologists use "Forced Choice" exams to do just what the term implies; they force the person in question to discover for themselves and for the tester what their bottom line beliefs are.  An example for a Muslim-American citizen living in the United State, would be: Do you consider yourself to be an American first or a Muslim first?  A "forced choice" does not allow for a non-answer; it is either-or and must be answered.  Conditions are rapidly developing that are presenting the Muslim world with a forced choice: Are you going to be Moderate members of the Modern World or are you going to be radical members of a reactionary sect?  Answer the question...NOW!

Captain Ed believes that the cartoon wars have exposed the Muslim world as already making their choice:

In fact, most Muslim journalists who have criticized the response to the cartoons find themselves either in jail or facing arrest, and the article itself provides a very telling look into why. The isolation and persecution of these journalists show that the riots and demonstrations represent mainstream Islam, despite the multicultural pablum given by most pundits over this eruption. Friends and relatives of these reporters remain silent for fear of violent retribution. A significant moderate faction within Islam has been cowed into almost-complete silence by the ascendant violent and radical factions.

On Holocaust Denial and Child Abuse

I have hesitated to join in the discussion of David Irving, the infamous Holocaust denier who was just sentenced to a 3 year prison term in Austria.  I have very mixed feelings on this since I am close to an absolutist on free speech, yet there is something deeply troubling about Holocaust denial which feels like a different issue.

Alexandra has an excellent collation of the various arguments being put forth around the issue.  She writes:

David Irving, the infamous and discredited British historian, languishes in an Austrian jail, having been sentenced to three years. Just writing that sentence makes me feel happy. The next sentence is much harder to write. He should be released.

Irving’s views are repulsive and wrong. He is a deeply offensive crank, and a litigious one, who has tried to use the libel laws to silence his critics. Five years ago, he sued the American historian, Deborah Lipstadt, after she described him as a Holocaust denier, and lost. In a withering 333-page judgment, Mr Justice Charles Gray described him as an anti-Semite, a racist and a neo-Nazi sympathiser who had “persistently and deliberately misrepresented and manipulated historical evidence”.

The arguments for criminalizing Holocaust Denial are important; Sigmund, Carl and Alfred writes:

Fast Forward: Part I

Radical Islam has approximately 15 yeas in which to restore and expand their fantasied Caliphate.  If they miscalculate, and assuming the Iranian Apocalypse-cult believes what they have been saying such miscalculation is inevitable, the world of Islam will be a very different place which will make their populations long for the days when the infidels traded with them; if they are more cautious, they will be more slowly, but just as surely , destroyed. 

The world of Islam is going to split into two fundamentally distinct and divergent communities; we see the outlines of the split forming and the major question of our time is how disastrous and horrendous the times will be until the Islamists complete their "suicide by police".

A number of developments set the outer limits of Islam's window of opportunity at ~15 years.  Another set of developments suggest the parameters of a world in which radical Islam's current attempt to re-instate the Caliphate escalate out of the control of those who are attempting to ride the tiger.

A New ShrinkWrapped Feature

I peruse upwards of 50 blogs a day and find innumerable posts that are interesting, thought-provoking, well written, and worth commenting upon.  On average, I find 5-10 posts a day which deserve links and commentary, but since "real life" precludes me from writing 5-10 posts a day (and I have been told that one is quite sufficient, thank you) that leaves many excellent posts unremarked and unlinked. 

As a service to my readers, I thought it would be useful to spend one day a week linking to no more than 10 of the best posts that I read during the prior week.  I hope, especially, to be able to link to posts that might not have received tremendous amounts of attention.  I also hope to supply enough information about the post to enable you to decide if you want to spend the time and energy to read it in full.  In all cases I will link to the particular blog and to the specific article. 

Herewith, my first weekly round-up of SW's Top 10!

1) Dinocrat has an absolute must read, How does the modern world look when you have done nothing to help create it, and innovation is a threat to cherished beliefs?, which goes a long way toward answering the question, "Is Mutli-Culturism merely foolish, or is it actively dangerous?"  Dinocrat offers a targeted metric by which to determine if one culture offers any advantages to its people than another. 

2) EU Referendum wonders Why do we appease these people?  Writing from their vantage point in England, they point out further differences between the two warring sides in the Cartoon War and marvel at the power of appeasement.