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Canada flexes its muscles in dispute over Arctic wastes

While the US is busy taking on global Islamofascism, Canada is also busy sticking up for it's interests:

Canadian warships were sailing towards the Arctic yesterday in the latest act of gunboat diplomacy over control of the frozen wastes there.

Amid diplomatic arguments over territorial rights, Canada's defence minister recently clambered on to a frozen rock, tiny Hans Island, triggering protests from Denmark. The Canadian programme hit high gear yesterday as the frigate Fredricton sailed towards the contested Davis Strait separating Greenland and north-east Canada.

Denmark was not going to take this lying down - but the brink of disaster has been averted with the prospects of meetings at the UN.

Denmark dispatched the naval cutter Tulugaq and threatened to land more men. However, as tensions rose, the two Nato allies had second thoughts, and the rival claimants agreed to discuss the dispute at the United Nations next month.

(Phew! Close call! Another world war averted!)

Still, this whole thing threatens a new arctic arms race, since the Canucks apparently need a bit more guns and less butter:

Critics of the Canadian policy argue that if the government is serious about pursuing a robust "northern strategy" it will have to start investing.

A C$700 million (£322 million) road to Tuktoyaktuk on the Arctic Sea has been proposed, but the money has not yet been pledged.

Maybe the Martin government can pitch in some of its political slush fund money to help repay from the "Ad-scam" scandal, which has been fully documented by Captain's Quarters, among others.

The military, meanwhile, is not ideally equipped for the brutal conditions of the far north. Although it is expanding its Arctic command base at Yellowknife, the navy lacks sufficient capacity to plough through the pack ice. Critics say that this explains why the Canadian authorities have chosen the summer months to undertake their sovereignty patrols.

This situation will bear close watching, what with World Peace on the brink and all.

And so it begins: NEVE DEKALIM, Gaza Strip (Reuters) - Jewish settlers blocked Gaza's most hardline enclaves on Monday to stop soldiers delivering eviction notices launching a pullout that Israel says will end its 38-year occupation of the coastal strip....

A comment has been left on this blog from a classmate of Crystal Guyer, the 14-year old who is watching her 22-year old husband face first-deree sexual assault charges. I asked for insight when soliciting comments from readers, and it...

The Chief wishes a hearty "Welcome Aboard" to another worthy participant in the South Dakota blogosphere: South Dakota Lawyer.

He has an interesting post relating to the ongoing discussion of intelligent design vs. Darwinian evolution. As a religious believer with a biology background, this is a rather interesting topic. I plan on digesting his remarks a bit more, and probaly will comment further in the near future.

Anyway, again, welcome aboard!

West Bank test looms after Gaza evictions

Israeli security forcesEinsatzkommando teams moved into four settlements in Gaza yesterday as the evacuation of Jewish settlers from the areaenforcement of the judenfrei zone neared completion. They were met with burning barricades but no real opposition.

Yep, Hamas will now be able to complete it's new Gaza fire-base without any pesky jews around to see.

There will be a bigger test this week when they move to clear out two settlements in the West Bank manned by 2,000 hard-line opponents of the pullout. Some are armed and there are fears that what has been a virtually bloodless operation could turn very violent.

Will history repeat itself again: the Warsaw ghetto revolt, take 2?

The Chief thinks that Israeli PM Sharon has been royally suckered on this one - and that there will be no lasting positive result from the Palestinians. Get ready for the return of Netanyahu.

This half of August has been a fine traffic month, one of the best since clear back in November. Thanks for stopping by. Wish I could hit a high enough mark to start running BlogAds again... or, should I say,...

Latins Upset at No Free Ride

Three years ago the Bush administration began prodding countries to shield Americans from the fledgling International Criminal Court in The Hague, which was intended to be the first permanent tribunal for prosecuting crimes like genocide.

The United States has since cut aid to some two dozen nations that refused to sign immunity agreements that American officials say are intended to protect American soldiers and policy makers from politically motivated prosecutions.

To the Bush administration, the aid cuts are the price paid for refusing to offer support in an area where it views the United States, with its military might stretched across the globe, as being uniquely vulnerable.

¡Hola señores! If you want to dance to the music, you've got to pay the piper - no respecto, no mas dollares. ¿Comprende?

From NewsMax:Ex-president Bill Clinton now says he would have taken out Osama bin Laden before the 9/11 attacks ? if only the FBI and CIA had been able to prove the al-Qaida mastermind was behind the attack on the U.S.S....

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