World View: Romney Advocates Sending Weapons to Syrian Opposition

This morning’s key headlines from GenerationalDynamics.com

• Massive security planned for Merkel’s visit to Athens Greece
• Supporters of alleged rapist Julian Assange ordered to forfeit $150,000 bail money
• Mitt Romney advocates sending weapons to Syrian opposition fighters
• Thousands of people in Mideast threatened with losing Canadian residency rights

Massive security planned for Merkel’s visit to Athens Greece

Merkel depicted in as Nazi in Greek newspaper Democracy, February 2012

Greece’s security forces are mounting the biggest security operationin Athens since the 1999 visit of Bill Clinton, in preparation for thevisit on Tuesday of German Chancellor Angela Merkel. There have beenlarge, angry protests in Athens against the Germans for forcingausterity measures on Greeks, and Merkel herself has been portrayedas a Nazi in uniform. According to Alexis Tsipras, headof Greece’s left-wing Syriza political alliance:

“She does not come to support Greece, which herpolicies have brought to the brink. She comes to save the corrupt,disgraced and servile political system. We will give her thewelcome she deserves.”

When Merkel arrives, Greece’s Prime Minister Antonis Samaras plans tobeg Merkel for her support for delaying austerity measures for twoyears, and for continued bailout payments even if Greece can’t meetits existing commitments. Without another bailout payment, Greecewill go bankrupt in November. Spiegel and Kathimerini

Supporters of alleged rapist Julian Assange ordered to forfeit $150,000 bail money

Westminster magistrates court in London on Monday ordered thesupporters and backers of alleged rapist Julian Assange to forfeit£93,500 ($150,000) in bail money, because Assange did not fulfill theconditions of his bail. Two women in Sweden have charged theWikileaks founder with raping them, but Assange has sought asylum inthe Ecuadorean embassy in London, claiming that the two Swedish womenare lying about being raped, and that the whole thing is a conspiracyby the women, the Swedish authorities and the American authorities totrick him into being sent to America, so that American officials cankill him. The Assange supporters have 30 days to pay the $150,000 tothe court.

As far as I know, not a single feminist, women’s group, rape victimsupport group or battered women’s shelter has spoken out in support ofeither Swedish rape victim woman, or against her alleged rapist.Guardian

Mitt Romney advocates sending weapons to Syrian opposition fighters

Mitt Romney at VMI on Monday

In Monday’s foreign policy speech to the Virginia Military Institute,Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney advocated providingweapons to Syria’s opposition:

“And we must persuade our friends and allies to placesimilar stipulations on their aid. In Syria, I will work with ourpartners to identify and organize those members of the oppositionwho share our values and ensure they obtain the arms they need todefeat Assad’s tanks, helicopters, and fighter jets. Iran issending arms to Assad because they know his downfall would be astrategic defeat for them.

We should be working no less vigorously with our internationalpartners to support the many Syrians who would deliver that defeatto Iran–rather than sitting on the sidelines. It is essential thatwe develop influence with those forces in Syria that will one daylead a country that sits at the heart of the MiddleEast.”

This is potentially a dangerous policy. Arms given to the Syrianopposition may very well end up in the hands of al-Qaeda linkedterrorists. One of the major reasons that the Russians are opposed toany outside help to the Syrian opposition is the fear that anyunguarded weapons will make their way to Islamist terror groups in theNorth Caucasus, just as large warehouses of weapons in Libya have madetheir way into al-Qaeda linked terror groups across northern Africa.Daily Beast

Thousands of people in Mideast threatened with losing Canadian residency rights

Canadian immigration officials have announced a crackdown onimmigration and residency fraud, targeting more than 10,000 peoplesuspected of committing residency fraud. Nearly 5,000 of them havepermanent residency status, and 3,100 are naturalized Canadians whosecitizenship is being revoked. Most of those affected are from theMiddle East. Canadian immigration law requires new immigrants to livein the country for a minimum of three years continuously beforeapplying for citizenship, but many people get around this requirementby committing fraud, fabricating fake paperwork to prove residency.criminal investigations have found that a family of five may payupwards of 25,000 Canadian dollars over four or more years to createthe illusion of Canadian residence. The National (UAE)

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