“The Pacific” wastes no time shipping out to the Solomon Islands in August 1942, where we are made to understand that war is indeed hell, but it is also a lot of hunh? In terms of comprehension, it looks at first to be a death march, 10 unrelenting episodes.

The people who’ve collaboratively and meticulously crafted this HBO epic — from executive producers (and prominent World War II valor-aholics) Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg, and continuing all the way down the list to the lowly production assistants (oh, the things they carried: blood, arms, legs, artillery, coconuts) — seem to want to deliberately disorient their audience at the start. Because that’s how it was for the generation who fought World War II: an initial burst of duty followed by confusion and darkness. (Brother, we survived “The Wire.” We do not turn tail at the first sign of epic complication.)

Read more ….

My Comment: I look forward to it this weekend. Check your listings for the exact time.

A Review Of This Weekend’s HBO Series “The Pacific” is a post from: News Updated Frequently

With major testing and design problems, the stealthy F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, once planned to cost just $50 million in 2002 dollars, has now doubled in price. And that number will only rise, according to Bill Sweetman. “We haven’t heard the full story on JSF overruns.” And the rising cost could drive away customers, decreasing the production run and further escalating the unit price. “Welcome to the death spiral,” Sweetman wrote.

Read more ….

Super Stealth Plane Breaks Through Cost Barrier — The Danger Room
U.S. Air Force Outlines Future Spending, Aircraft Needs — Daily Tech
Chambliss upset over F-35 delays and its impact on the F-22 — The Sun news
Budget Wars Spell Grim Future For F-22 and F-35 Planes — Popular Mechanics
USAF considers options to preserve F-22 production tooling — Flight Global
Why the Air Force Needs the F-22 — Mark Helprin, Wall Street Journal

With Cost Overruns Hitting the F-35, Is There A Future For The F-22 Program? is a post from: News Updated Frequently

Heavy fighting between the transitional government troops backing by AMISOM and the Islamist fighters is continuing in parts of the Somali capital Mogadishu, witnesses told Shabelle radio on Friday.

At least 40 people were killed and more than 100 others wounded in a bitter clashes and shelling between the two warring sides in the north of the capital Mogadishu on Thursday.

Read more ….

Somali rebels attack in capital for third day — Reuters
Somali official to residents: Flee battle zones — AP
Death toll from Somalia clashes nears 80 — Press TV
More Than 50 People Killed in Somalia Fighting — Newstime Africa
Somalia: Government troops advance rival wards in Mogadishu — Somaliweyn
100 000 displaced in Somali unrest, says UN — IOL
Disengaging From Somalia — Council Of Foreign Relations

Heavy Fighting Continues In Mogadishu, Somalia is a post from: News Updated Frequently

As the storm clouds gather for Iraq’s postelection season of political turmoil, the prospects for stable governance as U.S. combat troops prepare to depart appear increasingly uncertain. Preliminary returns released Thursday from four of Iraq’s 18 provinces show the incumbent, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, carrying predominantly Shi’ite areas — despite a strong challenge from supporters of radical cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. Former U.S.-installed Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, a secular Shi’ite who, like Maliki, leads a broad nationalist coalition with strong Sunni Arab representation, appears to have prevailed in predominantly Sunni areas north of Baghdad.

Read more ….

Iraq election results from handful of 18 provinces remain far from conclusive — Washington Post
Iraqi race is tight amid claims of election fraud — McClatchy News
Allegations of corruption and vote-rigging as election hangs in the balance — Sydney Morning Herald
In Early Tally, Tight Iraq Race Deepens Splits — New York Times
Ayad Allawi’s cry of foul play already seems like the act of a loser — Times Online
Ayad Allawi accuses Nouri al-Maliki’s group of fraud in bid to retain power — Times Online
Fraud alleged on Iraq voting commission — Globe And Mail
Centrist Groups Take Early Lead in Iraq Vote — Voice of America
Shiite group leads in southern Iraq province vote — Forbes/AP
Once-dominant Sunnis anxiously watch as Iraq votes are tallied — Washington Post
Arab neighbors cast a wary eye on Iraq election results — Christian Science Monitor

Accusations Of Fraud As Iraq Election Results Trickle In is a post from: News Updated Frequently

They believe military pressures in the Pakistani border region are making the Afghan militants reluctant to cooperate with their longtime allies. Not all officials are convinced.

Reporting from Washington — A growing number of Taliban militants in the Pakistani border region are refusing to collaborate with Al Qaeda fighters, declining to provide shelter or assist in attacks in Afghanistan even in return for payment, according to U.S. military and counter-terrorism officials.

The officials, citing evidence from interrogation of detainees, communications intercepts and public statements on extremist websites, say that threats to the militants’ long-term survival from Pakistani, Afghan and foreign military action are driving some Afghan Taliban away from Al Qaeda.

Read more ….

Bomb attacks kill NATO soldier, four children in Afghanistan — Yahoo News/AFP
Afghan insurgents kill 3 police in attack on post — AP
Six Afghans, South African die in Afghan violence — Reuters
British troops hand over control of key Afghan town to US — The Guardian
Q+A: Make-or-break months for Afghanistan war — Reuters
Marjah push: Ups and downs are lessons for future — AP
Battlefield dead haunt U.S. Marines and Afghans alike — Reuters

Report: Captured Taliban No. 2 ‘Singing Like a Male Canary’ — FOX News
Afghan Tribal Rivalries Bedevil a U.S. Plan — New York Times
Program aims to rebuild Afghan police force, repair its image — Washington Post
Afghan Troops Earn Kudos, But Questions Remain — NPR

Karzai Welcomes Pakistan’s Help in Negotiating with Taliban — Voice of America
All’s not well between Afghanistan and Pak: Experts — Rediff News

Afghanistan: Playing By The Traditional Rules — Strategy Page
U.S. criticizes Afghanistan’s ‘poor’ human rights record – McClatchy News
Torture in Afghanistan common, U.S. report says — Toronto Star

Reporters Fight Back Against Patrick Kennedy Rant — CBS News
Kennedy’s Diatribe: Press Is Despicable for Covering Massa, not Afghanistan — The Atlantic

Afghanistan War News Updates — March 12, 2010 is a post from: News Updated Frequently

A jailed Jordanian cleric who is behind bars for promoting terrorist attacks appears to be the face of Al Qaeda’s newest recruitment campaign.

Shaykh Abu Muhammad al-Tahawi, who is influential in Jordan but little known elsewhere, has been the subject of recent widespread praise from suicide bombers and jihadist leaders. Experts say the attention he’s getting from his fellow terrorists suggests an attempt by Al Qaeda to recruit his followers and turn his imprisonment into a flashpoint that can be channeled to open a new front in Jordan.

Read more ….

My Comment: I guess he is the flavor for the month.

A New Poster Boy For Al Qaeda? is a post from: News Updated Frequently

(Reuters) – The Islamist insurgency in Russia’s North Caucasus region appears to be mutating from a grassroots separatist movement toward global jihad or holy war, whose goals, propaganda and patronage point abroad.

In February Russia’s most wanted guerrilla, Chechen-born Doku Umarov, vowed on Islamist websites to spread his attacks from the Muslim-dominated North Caucasus into the nation’s heartland, wreaking havoc through jihad.

Read more ….

Four militants killed in police operation in Chechnya – Kadyrov — RIA Novosti
Russian ‘Bin Laden’ killed by Moscow’s special forces — The Telegraph
Rebel Ideologist Killed After Filming Last Sermon — Moscow Times
Russia says Islamist rebel leader killed — Washington Post/Reuters
Russia Says Burnt Body May Belong to Militant — New York Times
Russian forces kill militants linked to train attack — CNN
Armenia not taking part in arms racing in South Caucasus — News.Az
U.S. raises rights concerns in Russian North Caucasus — Reuters
From Chechnya, a cautionary tale — Boston.com

The Insurgency In The Caucasus Is Becoming A Global Jihad is a post from: News Updated Frequently

China’s strategic nuclear forces remain shrouded in secrecy, but a new report this week identified the key location of Beijing’s tightly guarded underground nuclear-weapons storage base.

The report by the Project 2049 Institute, a private China affairs research group, also suggests the Chinese military is working on a long-range conventional warhead missile capability. The conclusion is based on indicators that China is not building nuclear warheads as fast as it is deploying large numbers of long-range missiles.

Read more ….

My Comment: The problem with developing a missile that will be used only as a conventional weapon is that when it is launched …. no one on the other side will know if it is a conventional or nuclear missile launch. This Chinese policy of developing a conventional warhead missile …. if true …. is going to raise tensions on the Asian continent that will not bode well for anyone, and will only heighten nuclear fears and counter measures.

China’s Nuclear Forces And The Development Of A Conventional Warhead Missile is a post from: News Updated Frequently

Government anticipates possible conflicts with region’s minority groups.

YANGON—Myanmar’s military is moving large numbers of soldiers to border areas near China and Thailand in anticipation of possible conflicts with ethnic rebels in those areas before elections this year, according to diplomats, intelligence experts and residents who are tracking the activities.

Details about the buildup, including the total number of troops involved, are unclear. Myanmar is one of the world’s most secretive countries, and its government rarely speaks publicly about activities it deems sensitive, especially military movements. Attempts to reach the Myanmar government were unsuccessful.

Read more ….

My Comment: For some reason the Burmese Government has decided to lay the groundwork to wage war against it’s ethnic minorities. Expect China and Thailand to reciprocate by moving soldiers and aid groups to the border regions in anticipation of the humanitarian crisis that will soon develop …. a crisis that will probably happen sooner rather than later.

Burma Getting Ready To Wage War Against It’s Ethnic Minorities is a post from: News Updated Frequently

According to local lore, Portuguese travelers as far back as the late 19th century suspected that oil might lie beneath parts of East Africa after noticing a thick, greasy sediment wash up on the shores of Mozambique. More interested in finding cheap labor, though, the explorers had little use for oil.

A century later, it turns out that the Portuguese were right. Seismic tests over the past 50 years have shown that countries up the coast of East Africa have natural gas in abundance. Early data compiled by industry consultants also suggest the presence of massive offshore oil deposits. Those finds have spurred oil explorers to start dropping more wells in East Africa, a region they say is an oil and gas bonanza just waiting to be tapped, one of the last great frontiers in the hunt for hydrocarbons.

Read more ….

My Comment: Long time readers of this blog know my opinion on this matter …. there has always been plenty of oil in the world, but the problem has never been oil reserves and supply …. the problem has always been politics, government corruption, coupled with either government nationalization and/or outright government control and management of oil supplies.

The reason why I say this is simple …. if there is one thing that I know about governments when it comes to managing a business or commodity …. they will always fail. For East Africa …. I can easily predict what will happen if oil companies start to explore for oil reserves. After a brief period of time the politicians and special interests will take over, and the same cycle of corruption, government intervention, and mismanagement will come into play. As for the people on the ground …. they will get nothing but suffering and a belief that they are being exploited by their own leaders …. which they are.

Is East Africa The World’s Next Oil Boom is a post from: News Updated Frequently