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Things That Make No Sense
by Brad Linaweaver
[email protected]

Special to L. Neil Smith's The Libertarian Enterprise

Few libertarians have as many noteworthy accomplishments as my friend Brad Linaweaver, or as many other admirers who have granted him iconic praise. His first novel, Moon of Ice, carries endorsements from Robert A. Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and William F. Buckley, Jr.

Ronald Reagan once devoted an entire radio show praising one of Brad's articles written when Brad was a college student.

Brad's published credits as a short-story writer, film commentator, novelist, journalist, essayist, interviewer, and screenwriter would take up pages. That doesn't even list his work as a magazine editor and publisher (Mondo Cult), public speaker, and film professional. And I can't tell you how many times Brad's informal analysis of politics and world affairs is far more penetrating than any talking heads you'll find on cable-news or talk radio.

Brad Linaweaver is the man behind The Silicon Assassin.

With Silicon Assassin writer/producer Brad Linaweaver from photo left: Vicki Marie Taylor as Lady Twilight, Victoria Plumb as Deadly Tween, and Paula Labaredas as Bubble Blonde Girl

Earlier today Brad called to say how impressed he is with Kurdistan's offer to do the boots on the ground solution to ISIS if we give them the military equipment.

Quoting Linaweaver: "Neil, you and I want the United States to offer diplomatic recognition to Kurdistan. The time has come. The Kurds will not abandon what America gives them on the battlefield. But if the lawyers won't allow a deal with the Kurds, my little article suggests other solutions than sending American troops back into the same old mess."

—J. Neil Schulman

I always like to celebrate surviving another birthday (9-1) by thinking about something that makes no sense.

So, I'm a year older. The year is 2014, and the current example of nonsense has to do with ISIS (or ISIL, or the Islamic State).

Not only frantic Republicans, but a fair smattering of Democrats and nervous Brits insist that this latest tentacle of Radical Islam is the whole octopus.

It's here at last, an existential threat.

Maybe even a metaphysical threat.

It is the beginning of the dread Caliphate!!!!

The Prime Minister of the UK talks about it as a greater threat than Hitler's Nazis, Stalinist Commies, Imperial Japanese, eternal China, pedophile priests and Injuns on the warpath.

He also gives the impression that ISIS may be worse than cancer, yellow fever, tuberculosis, Ebola, and the Black Plague, combined.

Meanwhile, in the exception that is America, our pathetic President Obama (curses be upon his golf clubs) is lazy, crazy (as in psychological problems), and doing nothing about ISIS, despite the explosives he seems to be exploding in the desert areas where ISIS seems to be festering.

Most Americans would not know that the USA is killing ISIS members if not for the censored terrorist videos where the killer complains about American policy right before he decapitates captured American correspondents.

You'd think from Fox News and talk radio that Obama is an agent of ISIS. Since the President refuses to use the powers he has from the two Patriot Acts to silence his lying critics (which he could do even without a declaration of war) many Americans believe the President is doing nothing.

Obama sucks at being a dictator. FDR would be ashamed of him.

But it's not just the Tea Party lunatics boiling in America who are ill informed.

Many right wing Israelis also believe any old nonsense spewed out about Obama.

Which brings me to an obvious point.

If ISIS is truly an existential threat, then it does more than threaten, say, Londoners and New Yorkers. It is a more immediate threat to Israel. Look at a map.

Israel must have a few weapons left over after its incursion (i.e., lopsided war) into/with Gaza. Israeli casualties were low, especially considering the civilians protected by Iron Dome, provided by the always popular Obama administration.

If ISIS is only 17,000 killers (give or take a few thou) then why doesn't Israel act in concert with the USA? It's just not that many people to kill in a military situation.

ISIS, the greatest threat of all time, couldn't hold onto that one dam in Mosul which would have actually constituted a lasting threat. I believe the Turks helped rescue the dam.

What I'm trying to say is that the usual arguments ring hollow about the need for Israeli non-engagement in this peculiar situation.

The tiredest argument is that Israel will make Arabs, Turks, Persians, genies out of magic lamps, and other members of the unchosen unite against the Jews.

Not this time.

Not when ISIS is hated by Al Qaeda, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the lovable leader of Syria, the generals in Egypt, and maybe Allah Himself.

Not all Sunnis love ISIS. Shocking, but true.

Then there's the idea that Israel cannot act without permission of the United States. Been hearing that cliché for years.

Israel just acted in Gaza without American permission. They act without American permission a lot. Remember Lebanon?

There is only one pertinent question:

Is Israel a real country, or a pretend country?

If right wing assholes are telling the truth about ISIS, then it is potentially a greater threat to Israel than Hamas.

Why does Israel seem more reticent than Obama to take on ISIS?

(Another mystery is why any member of Likud cares if Americans hate Hamas as much as ISIS. Seems like a waste of everyone's time.)

Israel just made a bad impression on the world stage. But many critics would downplay Gaza if Israel publicly took on ISIS in a big way.

Spy stuff (always valuable) to one side, it did not take a lot of courage to pull off what Israel did in Gaza. American soldiers took greater risks to limit civilian casualties, fighting block to block in Iraq, then Israeli soldiers did with their blockbusting tactics in Gaza.

Israel looked bad.

Normal humans might start thinking, "Have we been exaggerating the martial courage of Israel in recent times? Perhaps their brave days are behind them?"

There is a simple way to defend the honor of Israel, of course. It is simply to agree with Obama that ISIS is not an existential threat. ISIS can be destroyed without a war.

But how can that be true? That would mean we're being lied to by the King of Saudi Arabia, as well as retired military blowhards on every American cable news channel.

There you have my radical thought for 2014.

Either we're being fed a bucket of camel shit, or Israel has lost its nerve. The latter seems unlikely.

Prediction:

Next year, around this time, the new threat will be OSIRIS.

First published at http://jneilschulman.rationalreview.com/2014/09/guest-commentary-by-brad -linaweaver-things-that-make-no-sense/

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