Passchendaele and Pyongyang

Written By: - Date published: 3:14 pm, October 12th, 2017 - 19 comments
Categories: us politics, war - Tags:

The massive artillery barrage at Passchendaele was supposed to cut the German wire and make advance easy. All it did was churn up the mud though which so many doomed New Zealanders slogged and died. A monument to military incompetence and political disaster. These days they prefer bombs, which are equally deadly and equally futile.

Its time we said no more.

Driven back to the 38th parallel by the Chinese, American bombers flattened Pyongyang (and every other city in North Korea as well as its infrastructure) in 1953 with high explosives and incendiaries. It didn’t defeat them; all it has done is drive a resurgent North Korea to dig underground and seek nuclear weapons as a deterrent, just like the other nuclear states. We we now have a grandiose narcissist in Donald Trump sheltering behind his generals wives and threatening to bomb them all over again.

Its time we said no more.

U.S. President Donald Trump, center left, and U.S. First Lady Melania Trump, center right, stand for an official photograph with senior military leaders and spouses in the State Dining room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017. President Trump and the First Lady are hosting the group for dinner in the Blue Room of the White House. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images

 

19 comments on “Passchendaele and Pyongyang ”

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  2. Visubversa 2
    12 October 2017 at 4:30 pm

    Kitchener refused to plan for trench warfare, despite it being used in the Boer War and the New Zealand Land Wars. “Gentlemen do not make war hiding in rabbit holes”, was his response. You wonder how things might have been different if they had.

  3. marty mars 3
    12 October 2017 at 4:58 pm

    Yep I say no more. Both of the examples used are awful to contemplate

  4. Draco T Bastard 4
    12 October 2017 at 5:29 pm

    Conversation between Robert Reich and a former Republican (pic, needs big monitor)

    And this tweet and conversation:

    “We have a missile that can knock out a missile 97 percent of the time. So if you fire two you’re gonna get it.”

    • joe90 4.1
      12 October 2017 at 5:32 pm

      TLDR; Trump’s dementia is progressing, the GOP is worried he might go nuclear, but not worried enough to risk the promised tax cuts for the rich.

      Robert Reich
      7 hrs ·

      This morning I phoned my old friend, a Republican former member of Congress.

      Me: So what’s up? Is Corker alone, or are others also ready to call it quits with Trump?

      He: All I know is they’re simmering over there.

      Me: Flake and McCain have come pretty close.

      He: Yeah. Others are thinking about doing what Bob did. Sounding the alarm. They think Trump’s nuts. Unfit. Dangerous.

      Me: Well, they already knew that, didn’t they?

      He: But now it’s personal. It started with the Sessions stuff. Jeff was as loyal as they come. Trump’s crapping on him was like kicking your puppy. And then, you know, him beating up on Mitch for the Obamacare fiasco. And going after Flake and the others.

      Me: So they’re pissed off?

      He: Not just that. I mean, they have thick hides. The personal stuff got them to notice all the other things. The wild stuff, like those threats to North Korea. Tillerson would leave tomorrow if he wasn’t so worried Trump would go nuclear, literally.

      Me: You think Trump is really thinking nuclear war?

      He: Who knows what’s in his head? But I can tell you this. He’s not listening to anyone. Not a soul. He’s got the nuclear codes and, well, it scares the hell out of me. It’s starting to scare all of them. That’s really why Bob spoke up.

      Me: So what could they do? I mean, even if the whole Republican leadership was willing to say publicly he’s unfit to serve, what then?

      He: Bingo! The emperor has no clothes. It’s a signal to everyone they can bail. Have to bail to save their skins. I mean, Trump could be the end of the whole goddam Republican party.

      Me: If he starts a nuclear war, that could be the end of everything.

      He: Yeah, right. So when they start bailing on him, the stage is set.

      Me: For what?

      He: Impeachment. 25th amendment.

      Me: You think Republicans would go that far?

      He: Not yet. Here’s the thing. They really want to get this tax bill through. That’s all they have going for them. They don’t want to face voters in ’18 or ’20 without something to show for it. They’re just praying Trump doesn’t do something really, really stupid before the tax bill.

      Me: Like a nuclear war?

      He: Look, all I can tell you is many of the people I talk with are getting freaked out. It’s not as if there’s any careful strategizing going on. Not like, well, do we balance the tax bill against nuclear war? No, no. They’re worried as hell. They’re also worried about Trump crazies, all the ignoramuses he’s stirred up. I mean, Roy Moore? How many more of them do you need to destroy the party?

      Me: So what’s gonna happen?

      He: You got me. I’m just glad I’m not there anymore. Trump’s not just a moron. He’s a despicable human being. And he’s getting crazier. Paranoid. Unhinged. Everyone knows it. I mean, we’re in shit up to our eyeballs with this guy.

      https://www.facebook.com/RBReich/posts/1729852823693973

      • marty mars 4.1.1
        12 October 2017 at 5:42 pm

        Hasn’t trump just said he hates everyone in the white house?

        How much stick did we all get for calling out the idiot trump while his noddys just clintoned it. I hope they all hang their heads in shame. And when the bombs start dropping…

        • Andre 4.1.1.1
          12 October 2017 at 6:12 pm

          When CV gets back, do we take turns or should we all just pile on at once?

          • Ed 4.1.1.1.1
            12 October 2017 at 6:13 pm

            I quote Rachel stewart.

            ‘Depressed yet? You should be. And when you’re bored with that, maybe stop blaming others for their point of view, and start blaming the real culprits. Picking off fundamentally decent – and basically planetarily powerless – others is a waste of your time. Anger, sadness and fear is best expressed by doing, rather than talking into a vacuum (which, ironically, I’m likely doing here).

            The culprits? Oil companies, industrial agriculture, the 1 per cent, over-fishing, neoliberalism, capitalism, Monsanto, Trump, the “free” market (an oxymoron if ever there was one). You know who they are.

            Get off the cyber treadmill of judgment and virtue signalling, and dismount your fat donkey and make a change in the world. Maybe there’s still time?

            I doubt it, but at least you’ll go down trying’

            http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11931445

            • Andre 4.1.1.1.1.1
              12 October 2017 at 6:46 pm

              Vegetable rights and peace!

            • spikeyboy 4.1.1.1.1.2
              13 October 2017 at 7:14 am

              Well said ed. If not trump then someone else cause thats where rape and pillage capitalism takes you. If North Korea, and all the rest is ok its not such a big step to go nuclear

        • joe90 4.1.1.2
          12 October 2017 at 6:14 pm

          I hope they all hang their heads in shame.

          Nah. Their continuing support despite revelations about his history as a racist, his inherent dishonesty, his misogyny, his predatory behaviour both sexual and financial and the Access Hollywood tapes says they’re POS with no compass and certainly, no shame.

          But her emails.
          //

      • Andre 4.1.2
        12 October 2017 at 5:56 pm

        But the Repugs still won’t do anything about him. Even though they would much prefer Pence. Because they’re craven cowards, whimpering in fear of the Trumpkins whose votes they need next year and that the dayglo swamp-thing will go full Trumpzilla on their asses. Some even openly admit it: here’s Mark Meadows (R-NC) “It’s easy to be bold when you’re not coming back,”

        https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/10/9/16448294/meadows-corker-trump-comments-bold

        https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2017/10/10/16447276/bob-corker-trump-world-war-iii

  5. adam 5
    12 October 2017 at 5:35 pm

    We are going to get sucked into another war, at the beset of an imperial power.

    No wait we already are.

    What is wrong with NZ, we stood up to these Muppet, then ran around congratulating ourselves, whilst doing bugger all else.

  6. tracey 6
    12 October 2017 at 5:49 pm

    As I watch people sad and upset at the commemoration of the deaths of relatives they never met, a hundred years ago, I hope those people understand when Maori still hold grief and anger over events over a hundred years ago.

  7. Stuart Munro 7
    12 October 2017 at 7:00 pm

    Trump may be dumb enough – but it’s likely Mattis can talk him out of it. Korea has good defensive terrain, which is why it has been able to defy the US for so long. China might be talked out of aiding Kim Jong Un, but Putin might well exploit the opportunity to entangle the US in another punishing debacle. And South Korea has promised before to throw the US out if they unilaterally commence hostilities. There would certainly be a role for NZ – sending blankets and food and accepting refugees. As usual when the big boys fight, the smaller kids do best to stay out of it.

  8. CoroDale 8
    12 October 2017 at 9:34 pm

    Spin on that level will spin like this, in the back ground: Paris Accord gives billions to mitigation, right. And if ALK needs new fuel tanks, then. Excuse the tin hat, but was reading in the “Steuerzahler (tax-payer)”, that Germany borrowed five billion euro to match the 3 billion euro from Paris Accord, and their skies are full of sustained condensation trails to reduce summer temp. Could the UN have sold both Labour, and Nats, and Kenn Greyham; that AKL could contribute better to climate mitigation in the Pacific? Or is that a bit too; hula hoop and Cypress Hill?

  9. Sparky 9
    13 October 2017 at 2:49 pm

    Its unlikely the US would attack NK. The US losses even on a conventional battlefield would be exponential. Just as likely too it would draw China and maybe even Russia into the conflict either by proxy through weapons supply or directly. In either case logistics favour the locals.

    Nuking the place would start WWIII as they are on the same landmass as Russia (which has the largest working stock pile of nukes and China (who wont say how many nukes they have-be sure its no doubt plenty).

    This is much the same policy as Obama and for those who were wondering many many other Dems favour (for those who think they are somehow warm and cuddly). The so called “Pivot to Asia” which in my view is about disrupting economics in the region giving the US an advantage.

    Ironically these nations having nukes has had the effect of dampening down military ambitions leading to a war of words instead.