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What is happening in northern Africa?
Suddenly, we’ve got a war in Mali, “terrorist-jihadist-militant-one-eyed-something-or-others” in Algeria and the dreaded Al Qaeda of the Islamic Maghreb threatening the entire region!
Question: When Leon Panetta talks, does anyone listen?
Why? Because Panetta knows exactly what is happening, according to an overlooked story from The Hill:
Panetta: ‘No question’ US counterterrorism campaign in Africa led to Mali conflict
Leon knows blowback!
“There’s no question, as you confront [Islamic extremists] in Yemen, in Somalia, in Libya, that they’re going to ultimately try to relocate. So, you know that certainly, I think, is a consequence,” Panetta said Monday.
Go figure.
Team Obama’s often-overlooked expansion of the War on Terrorism—in Yemen and Somalia, into Uganda, Kenya, Libya and various points around Africa—is actually inciting a response. Apparently, some people don’t like US troops, drones, advisers and weapons popping up in their backyard.
Perhaps coincidentally, the son of a Kenyan has taken full advantage of AFRICOM, which is the Africa-centric corollary to, among others, NORTHCOM (North America) and PACOM (the Pacific) and the candidly-named CENTCOM (yes, the Middle East is and has been the Pentagon’s “Central” Command).
AFRICOM was created right before Obama took office and it is growing in power and influence. Troops and trainers are currently “doing the continent,” and we can expect a lot more action in the months and years ahead.
Forget Iraq, with all those bombings and all that carnage US forces left behind. Africa is brimming with oil, rare earths, and mineral resources. And it features a patchwork of easily-corrupted governments. Can you say “Nigeria?” Shell and Chevron can, and have for years!
Forget Iraq. Africa is the new Iraq!
To that point, Panetta just threw down another gauntlet:
Panetta in London says terrorists will find ‘no refuge’
And so it goes.
Despite the all that doom and gloom about the impact of the dreaded sequester on defense contractors, there is good reason to believe that the War on Terrorism is still a growth industry.
Single-bid contracts will keep on coming, easily surpassing the $1.6 trillion issued since 2000. And Washington, D.C. will continue to be America’s lone recession-proof economy.
Alas, it’s funny how re-electing the new boss…sure seems a lot like re-electing the old boss.
2 Comments
Thank you JP Sottie … good topic pick and storytell… recommended
Gosh … this may be the 1st comment … and only comment seeing this diary is just about at the bottom of the FDL diaries stack…
…hmmmm… ??
Could it be the topic? Who is being exposed?
Perhaps because it isn’t gleefully bashing the malefactor Rs some more?
Instead reveals what a D POTUS and D run WH and what a D run WH SoD have been doing/are doing in Africa and have to say about all this/that doing?
At this point in early 2013 it is easily knowable Barack Obama is doing and does Bush/Cheney WH regime styled American Militarism/Empire better than Bush and Cheney could or did.
It is knowable that POTUS Obama fully benefits from and uses IOKIYAAD cloaking to make this possible and successful. Stalwart D Party members and those who like to do simpleton D vs. R politics like IOKIYAAD as a way of justifying and validating what Barack Obama is doing and what Leon Panetta is saying above. Hey! Its all about supporting Team D !!
Africa is in play because indeed that is where lots of stuff is or can be gotten with imperial/colonial means via what American Empire does thru Corporatists/Pentagon/CIA. See Iraq. See Libya.
Also it is plain to see China has been active across Africa post year 2000 and that fact is bringing on what Leon Panetta is calling for above.
In the end the Africans will be/ will have been largely abused in countless ways by American Empire and American Empire sanctioned militarism whether done directly by Pentagon/CIA or indirectly via the likes of NATO or some contrived “African Pro Democracy” umbrella creation that is used to soften American Empire conduct/goals optics. Just like Africa was by the European imperial/colonial empires for past 200 years right up into the 1960′s. Supposedly that era came to an end by 1970′s but it looks now like that was premature supposition. Meanwhile Africans and USians will be told and are being told it is and will be All Good. Imagine that?
Clearly the Planet Earth is and it’s 7 billion plus human beings are here to be gamed/taken/pushed around/run by American Empire.
Leon Panetta seems to find this a perfectly natural state of affairs.
So who toppled Libya into abyss of chaos/instability again Leon? Who? Why? For what?
Correction — misspelled JP Sottile’s last name at Line #1 in comment #1.