Patrick Howley sets the stage:   “Is there hope for liberal television after all? Probably not, but for a brief shining moment one conservative rocked the epicenter of the lefty airwaves with such righteous force that HBO viewers are still trying to figure out if they should be terrified, impressed, or some combination thereof”.

If your children are old enough to be in college, they probably think the country they were born into is falling apart.  If you’re a Baby Boomer like myself, you know the country you were born into is already gone.  It’s a hard thing to thwart the general feeling of optimism shared by most Americans during a beautiful summer season.  But, if you stop and take a thoughtful assessment of the disasters currently befalling our world, perhaps you’ll see that the fall might be closer than you think.

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The summer of 2014 will go down in history as the season when America fell apart. Let’s take a tour of the disasters…

(Townhall)…Germany in 2008 enthusiastically hosted candidate Barack Obama for his so-called “Victory Column” speech. Now, Germans suddenly sound as if they are near-enemies of the U.S. Chancellor Angela Merkel reportedly was furious that her cell phone was tapped by American intelligence agents. She just kicked the top CIA official out of Germany, further enraged that the U.S. had recruited at least one German official to provide intelligence on the German government. Polls show that Germans find Vladimir Putin’s Russian tyranny almost as popular as Barack Obama’s America.
Japan is becoming similarly frustrated with the U.S. It is rearming like crazy to confront an aggressive China. Both Asian powers apparently assume that Obama won’t guarantee the security of the Japanese as America had in the past. (more…)

WASHINGTON DC – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry on Tuesday called for a halt to “dangerous” levels of violence in Libya after militia clashes in Tripoli closed the country’s main airport, destroyed most planes parked there, and prompted the United Nations to evacuate its staff.
In some of the worst violence in months, at least 15 people have been killed in clashes in Tripoli and the eastern city of Benghazi since Sunday, and a Libyan official said several Grad rockets hit the Tripoli International Airport on Monday, damaging the control tower.
With its new government struggling to impose order since the 2011 rebellion that ousted Muammar Gaddafi, Libya is sliding deeper into turmoil with rival brigades of former rebels battling for political and economic power. (more…)

The freedom coalition = Netanyahu, el-Sisi and Harper

The Israeli military launched a ground operation into Gaza late Thursday, the government said.  The much-anticipated operation follows some of the most intense fighting in the 10 days of bombings and airstrikes between Israel and Hamas.

FULL STATEMENT – press release issued by #Israeli military announcing it's initiation of ground operation in #Gaza pic.twitter.com/tnfpUfOpOR

— POWER987News (@POWER987News) July 17, 2014

Just now on @Channel2News: Egypt announces that Hamas is reponsible for this conflict.

— Jonathan Schanzer (@JSchanzer) July 17, 2014

https://twitter.com/DannyNis/statuses/489861421568512000
With Egypt’s el-Sisi supporting Benjamin Netanyahu against Hamas this time things might be substantially different. If Israel is allowed time to work through the border region used by Hamas terrorists the IDF can fully dismantle and destroy the network of underground border tunnels.

A recent report into the inside contacts surrounding a Hamas / Israeli negotiated ceasefire confirms –with exact precision– what we predicted was happening at the time.

(Via WFB) Secretary of State John Kerry offered numerous times to fly to Cairo or Jerusalem to assist in cease-fire negotiations but was told that the sides “didn’t need American mediation,” according to an account of events by Haaretz.
Senior Israeli officials told Haaretz that Kerry offered to come to directly join the talks in each and every call during the attempted brokering of a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas on Monday, but was “politely rejected” by all sides.
Egypt wanted to prove that it could play its traditional diplomatic role with regards to Gaza without U.S. assistance. Israel thought that a visit by Kerry would make it look like the United States pressured Israel to make a deal, which would have been a public relations victory for Hamas. (more…)

(Via Wall Street Journal) Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl hasn’t spoken to his family since he was released from captivity in Pakistan, according to an Army official.

Sgt. Bergdahl has refused to see his parents or speak to them on the phone, the official said. The decision by Sgt. Bergdahl, who returned to regular duty on Monday, suggests a deeper estrangement between the soldier and his parents than the military understood when he was released. Still, officials said, they don’t know the precise cause of the tension or when it began. (more…)

#BREAKING #Hamas armed wing rejects #Egypt ceasefire proposal as 'surrender': AFP

— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) July 15, 2014

No doubt the fact that Abdel Fattah el-Sisi’s Egyptian government was the peace-broker for this deal had something to do with Hamas refusal to engage. Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood despise el-Sisi.

BREAKING NEWS: Hamas reportedly rejects proposed Gaza cease-fire http://t.co/b9JgqwAznv

— Fox News Alert (@foxnewsalert) July 15, 2014

https://t.co/b9JgqwAznv

Al Marj is located just North of Benghazi on the road to Darnah…
Tripoli, Libya (CNN) — Faraj al-Shibli, who was suspected of involvement in the 2012 attack on the U.S. diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, has been found dead, a Libyan source and locals in the town of Marj said.

Al-Shibli, whose name is also spelled Chalabi, was last seen being detained by local militia in Marj two days ago, a Libyan source said.

It is unclear what happened to al-Shibli since then, but his body was found on Monday in Marj, which is in eastern Libya.

  Locals in Marj also confirmed that al-Shibli’s body was found Monday.  (read more)

Cleaning up Zero Footprint ?

This question highlights the actual substance of the policy issue.
Who would be the best broker, considering each side’s position, for peace?

USA’s Obama/Kerry, or Egypt’s Abdel Fattah el-Sisi ?

[polldaddy poll=8185601]
(more…)