BALTIMORE, Maryland June 13, 2014 - Too violent for Al Qaeda. Imagine that.
Irag Being Given Away
Too violent for the people who blew up the Pentagon and took down the Twin Towers, killing over three thousand Americans in the process. The people who fit that description are the ones said to be in the process of overrunning Iraq as I write this (Friday morning, 8:35 am). USA Intelligence has known that this group was on the move for at least the last four months, sources say, but President Obama says his administration is "studying" the situation. Large Iraqi cities such as Mosul and Tikrit have already been run over and occupied by a group too vicious for Al Qaeda, which has broken ties with the group because of its sadistic treatment of people it conquers. The forces loyal to this Islamic Extremist group are said to be less than 70 miles from Baghdad. In the afternoon, yesterday (Thursday), Obama said that "all options" are "on he table." That statement was refined and defined this morning by Pentagon sources, who told Fox News that "all options" do not include United States troops on the ground. The options may include United States Air Power and Drone Strikes.
If the United States joins the battle in Iraq, it will become allies of Iran. Iranian military forces have entered Iraq and are doing battle with the Extremist forces. Kurd military forces are also in on the battle against the Extremists. The Extremist Forces have been so overwhelming that Iraqi Military Forces are surrendering in wholesale fashion, dropping their weapons and fleeing. The Extremists are said to have taken over the former United States military base at Tikrit. In addition, many United States vehicles, including tanks, have been taken by the Extremists, although some sorces indicate that the Extremists are having difficulty operating some of the equipment - for now.
Old political battles have been rekindled by the situation in Iraq. Democrats say that this would not be taking place if the United States avoided invading the country and deposing and executing Sadam Hussein (the United States says that the Iraqi Government executed Hussein). The GOP is said to be livid that Obama did not leave any kind of residual force behind when he withdrew all American forces early in the Obama administration. It is customary and prudent in the wake of such military actions to leave behind a competent and able force to discourage a re-igniting of the hostilities that caused your nation to enter the battle to begin with. The United States still has forces in Korea and Germany. In places where no residual force was left behind - Vietnam - the original enemy now rules absolutely. There is also the important matter of the blood shed to gain the ground. The United States is said to have lost over 4,000 soldiers to the fighting, with thousands of others badly wounded.
Update on Missing Malaysian Airlines Jet With 239 Persons Aboard
There is news on the missing Malaysian jet, but most of it is in the nature of backbiting about the places searched so far and the places still to be searched. As far as hard news is concerned, there is this: (1) According to the respected aviation blog, "Planetalking," authored by Australian Journalist Ben Sandilands, who has been on this story from the moment the plane disappeared, the unmanned submersible Bluefin-21, owned by the United States but launched off of an Australian Royal Navy Ship, was only able to search the bottom of a certain area up to depths of 6,000 meters. In other words, it is possible the plane is in areas already said to have been searched, but in an area of the ocean that has a depth in excess of 6,000 meters. Were there areas in the area already searched with such great depths? The answer is yes; one of the first dives of the submersible had to be cut short because it had slipped to a depth greater than 6,000 meters; (2) Going forward, Malaysia and Australia have agreed to split the cost of future searches. That might not sound like big news, but the truth is that there might not be any future searches if such an agreement is not in place. And even with that agreement, rest assured the viability of any future search will be closely scrutinized by both countries since neither is exactly overflowing in cash. As stated above, there is still much bickering by everybody about the math used to determine where to search, whether the facts that presuppose the southern turn of the long flight are certain, and whether the variables that went into figuring where to search are valid. Also being discussed is whether the idea of re-creating the original flight is viable. See Mr. Sandilands current column on line, and scroll down to his June 10 column for the news that has made its way here. See, also, the comments section, where this writer has made a contribution. Here is the site: http://blogs.crikey.com.au/planetalking/2014/06/10/mh370-costs-and-search-opinions-become-more-divided/#comment-26490
Orioles and Blue Jays Square Off in Big Series in Baltimore
The first place Blue Jays and the tied-for-second-place Orioles are squaring off in Baltimore in a four-game series that will give all concerned a peek at the two teams and their viability as season-long contenders. In game one, last night, the Orioles sent the Blue Jays reeling to their third straight loss, winning 4-2 behind the outstanding pitching of young Kevin Gausman. In his second call up this season, the 23-year-old showed that his first start against the Western-Division leading Oakland Athletics was no fluke. He held the Blue Jays to one run and five hits over six innings before turning the game over to the Orioles revitalized bullpen. Toronto Manager John Gibbons called Gausman's fast ball "overpowering." The Oriole offense turned on Delmon Young's two-run home run in the first inning off of Toronto Ace Mark Buehrle, who came in with a 10-2 record and ERA around 2.30. The Orioles also got an RBI single by catcher Caleb Joseph, which brought home Manny Machado, who had doubled to lead off the Oriole second inning. The fourth Oriole run scored when Nick Markakis' double brought home Jonathan Schoop, who had also doubled, in the Oriole Seventh. Gausman was the winner and is now 2-1, while Buehrle took the loss to slip to 10-3. Zach Britton got the save, his sixth. Because the Yankees beat the Mariners in Seattle, 6-3, they remain tied with the Orioles in second place. Here are the up-to-the-minute American League Eastern Division Standings:
American League East
1, Toronto Blue Jays: 39 wins, 29 losses, .574 pct
2. Baltimore Orioles: 34 wins, 31 losses, .523 pct, 3.5 games behind
2. New York Yankees: 34 wins, 31 losses, .523 pct, 3.5 games behind
4. Boston Red Sox: 30 wins, 36 losses, .455 pct, 8 games behind
5. Tampa Bay Rays: 25 wins, 42 losses, .373 pct, 13.5 games behind
This is also my second mention of the Wild Card Race. Remember, the top two non-division winners are the Wild Card teams qualifying for the playoffs. In the standings, the second place team is the "standard" by which games behind, and, in the case of the number one team, games ahead, are figured.
American League Wild Card
1. Los Angeles Angels: 36 wins, 29 losses, .554 pct, +2 games
2. Baltimore Orioles: 34 wins, 31 losses, .523 pct, even
2. New York Yankees: 34 wins, 31 losses, .523 pct, even
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3. Seattle Mariners: 34 wins, 32 losses, .515 pct, 0.5 game behind
4. Kansas City Royals: 33 wins, 32 losses, .508 pct, 1 game behind
5. Chicago White Sox: 33 wins, 34 losses, .493 pct, 2 games behind
5. Cleveland Indians: 33 wins, 34 losses, .493 pct, 2 games behind
6. Texas Rangers: 32 wins, 34 losses, .485 pct, 2.5 games behind
7. Minnesota Twins: 31 wins, 33 losses, .484 pct, 2.5 games behind
8. Houston Astros: 31 wins, 37 losses, .456 pct, 4.5 games behind
9. Boston Red Sox: 30 wins, 36 losses, .455 pct, 4.5 games behind
10. Tampa Bay Rays: 25 wins, 42 losses, .373 pct, 10 games behind
In the American League East, today and tonight, the Blue Jays continue their series in Baltimore against the Orioles at 7:05 pm EDT, the Yankees are at Oakland to play the Athletics at 10:05 pm EDT, the Cleveland Indians are at the Boston Red Sox at 7:10 pm EDT, and the Tampa Bay Rays travel to Houston to play the Astros at 8:10 pm EDT.
Burnley Announces Pre-Season Schedule
Burnley has announced the rest of its pre-season schedule. The club, preparing to return to the top Club League in the world, the Premier League in England, had already revealed a match in Austria at FC Grossklein (FC Großklein), which will come after a week of training in the mountain country. Here, now, is the complete slate:
Sunday, July 20, 2014: at FC Großklein (Austria), 5 pm*
Saturday, July 26, 2014: at Accrington Stanley, 3 pm*
Tuesday, July 29, 2014: at Preston, 7:45 pm*
Saturday, August 2, 2014: at Blackpool, 3 pm*
*all times are Lancashire local time
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