England, MY England!

Is Britain still "Great"? Apparently not everybody thinks so.

A Canadian journalist, Matthew Fisher, has this:

Great Britain is hardly all that great, anymore

By Matthew Fisher, Postmedia News
January 22, 2012

LONDON - Whatever happened to Tony Blair's ``Cool Britannia?''

Harper's Magazine summed it up with a front-page headline last year that screamed ``Broken Britain,' a catchy phrase borrowed from the British tabloid, the Sun. Others recently have dubbed the country the equally unkind ``Angry Britain.''

It is one of life's abiding mysteries why some American presidents pretend that Britain actually matters. ``Once Great Britain'' has been faltering for years and yet British foreign secretaries, with the help of the BBC, which is obliged to provide them with a soap box, remain self-important on the world stage.

Britain's national railway grid, the first and for so long the best in the world, has been deteriorating for more than half a century. Although perhaps not as much as they did 20 or 30 years ago, workers still go on wildcat strikes, making a mess for visitors to a country that has become hugely dependent on tourism.

[...]

Britain's constant boast that it punches above its weight internationally rings more hollow by the day. The defence ministry is eviscerating the Royal Navy and Royal Air Force and making deep cuts to the army, too. There have been sweeping redundancies across all three services, the sudden retirement of the fleet of Harrier jump jets, the premature retirement of the aircraft carrier Ark Royal and the likely immediate sale to raise cash of one of two carriers now being built. Even after the current round of Draconian cuts, it is difficult to see how Britain can sustain the force that will remain, let alone underwrite plans for a new generation of nuclear submarines, new frigates and the new F-35 Joint Strike Fighter....

Go read the rest of this thought provoking article here.


(H/T Another Matthew....)

Sitting...

9/11 Health Panel Seeks Public Input on Cancer

January 17, 2012
By Julie Shapiro, DNAinfo Reporter/Producer

LOWER MANHATTAN — A panel of medical experts will soon decide whether the federal government's $2.8 billion 9/11 health fund should cover cancer — and they want to hear from the public before making a decision.

The World Trade Center Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee is asking Downtown residents, first responders and others to weigh in on whether those who got cancer after being exposed to 9/11 toxins ought to be compensated for their illness.

Written comments are due Wednesday, and those who want to speak directly to the committee can participate in a conference call Jan. 24. The committee will also hold a public meeting in New York City in February, but details about the hearing haven't been confirmed.

Catherine McVay Hughes, vice chairwoman of Community Board 1 and a member of the WTC Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee, encourages as many people as possible to make their voices heard.

"It's important for the committee to be aware of all the information on cancer and how it correlates to exposure at the World Trade Center," Hughes said.

While many Ground Zero recovery workers developed cancer after spending hundreds of hours at the site inhaling carcinogenic chemicals, the federal government decided in 2010 that there was not enough medical evidence to include cancer on the list of illnesses covered by the $4.3 billion James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act. ...

Much more here.

Congressman West: “America needs a commander in chief, instead we have a campaigner in chief..."

This article is based on a speech Congressman Allen West gave last November, but it still resonates loud and clear in the truth of his words. Read on:

Rep. West to Media: ‘Stop Being Afraid of This President’ Who ‘Is Destroying This Country’

Elizabeth Harrington
November 15, 2011

(CNSNews.com) – Congressman Allen West (R-Fla.) called on the media to “stop being afraid” of President Barack Obama who is “destroying this country.” West made his remarks on Tuesday at a press conference in support of the TransCanada Keystone XL pipeline.

“It’s about time that I asked this from the media: Stop being afraid of this president,” said Rep. West. “Stand up to him and call him out on the shirking of his duties and responsibilities. The House Republicans are passing pieces of legislation, after pieces of legislation about jobs.”

[...]

“This is the most important thing we have to understand, America needs leadership right now and America does not have that,” said Rep. West on Tuesday.

“America needs a commander in chief, instead we have a campaigner in chief, and that’s exactly what continues to happen,” said West. “Whether it’s the decision to go to zero troops in Iraq, which gives a green light to Iran, or whether it’s the decision to shut down what you have heard is a win-win situation for the United States of America and for a new trading partner, which is Canada.”...

Much more here.

Last 2 MWD in Iraq

Sather Working Dog Veterans

3rdID8487 on Dec 12, 2011 Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines aren't the only veterans coming home from Iraq this month. Sergeant Gene Taylor introduces us to two of man's best friends, doing their part to help make Iraq safe.

Brazil backs Argentina over Falkland Islands

Posted by EU Times on Jan 19th, 2012

Brazilian Foreign Minister Antonio Patriota says all Latin American nations back Argentina against Britain over the disputed Malvinas islands, which Britain claims as its own, calling it Falklands.

Latin America and the Caribbean “back Argentine sovereignty over the Malvinas and back the UN resolutions calling on the Argentine and British governments to hold talks on the issue,” Patriota said in a meeting with British Foreign Secretary William Hague in Brazil.

Patriota added that Britain knows “Brazil and Unasur (Union of South American Nations) support Argentinean sovereignty over the Malvinas.”

As the 30th anniversary of the war between Britain and Argentina over the Malvinas Islands nears, the dispute over the territory is heating up once again.

Britain on Tuesday reiterated its tough stance over the disputed islands, with the foreign secretary warning South American countries not to ‘collude’ with Argentina to reclaim its occupied territory...

More here.

IDF Base: 1,500 Tank Shells Stolen

From Israel National News:

by Gil Ronen



Fifteen hundred tank shells were stolen from an IDF munitions base in southern Israel.

A senior officer in Southern Command said that the shells could reach terror organizations. Some of the shells may have been smuggled to the Sinai Peninsula and then transferred to terrorists inside Gaza. The Investigative Military Police is looking into the possibility that soldiers inside the base assisted the thieves.

The theft was discovered during an inventory check of ammunition last week. A serious shortage of shells was discovered, and after a second count was held, the scale of the theft became apparent.

Military sources said that a gang of Arab metal thieves that operates in the area is apparently behind the theft. The Arabs apparently studied the security arrangements at the base and were able to sneak in and out undetected numerous times, taking a large number of shells with them each time.

A senior source in the Southern Command said that the Arab gangs in the Negev have been stepping up their attacks on IDF bases as the IDF has been tightening its hold on the Israel-Egypt border and as construction of the security barrier along the border has progressed.

"It started from theft of bullets from firing ranges, proceeded to theft of parts of fences and has now reached the theft of expensive and dangerous ammunition. Security in all of the southern bases needs to be rethought."

(c) Israel National News