McCain: “Thank God for the Saudis and Prince Bandar" who lavished funding to make ISIS "unstoppable"

[99th_Monkey]

Tell me again, why exactly does our US gov't still regard Saudi Arabia an "ally"?


The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), now threatening Baghdad, was funded for years by wealthy donors in Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, three U.S. allies that have dual agendas in the war on terror.

The extremist group that is threatening the existence of the Iraqi state was built and grown for years with the help of elite donors from American supposed allies in the Persian Gulf region. There, the threat of Iran, Assad, and the Sunni-Shiite sectarian war trumps the U.S. goal of stability and moderation in the region.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/14/america-s-allies-are-funding-isis.html

“Thank God for the Saudis and Prince Bandar,” John McCain told CNN’s Candy Crowley in January 2014. “Thank God for the Saudis and Prince Bandar, and for our Qatari friends,” the senator said once again a month later, at the Munich Security Conference.
http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2014/06/isis-saudi-arabia-iraq-syria-bandar/373181/

Prince Bandar bin Sultan, once the powerful Saudi ambassador in Washington and head of Saudi intelligence until a few months ago, had a revealing and ominous conversation with the head of the British Secret Intelligence Service, MI6, Sir Richard Dearlove. Prince Bandar told him: "The time is not far off in the Middle East, Richard, when it will be literally 'God help the Shia'. More than a billion Sunnis have simply had enough of them."

The fatal moment predicted by Prince Bandar may now have come for many Shia, with Saudi Arabia playing an important role in bringing it about by supporting the anti-Shia jihad in Iraq and Syria.
http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/iraq-crisis-how-saudi-arabia-helped-isis-take-over-the-north-of-the-country-9602312.html

The governments of Saudi Arabia and Qatar are very loudly blaming the “sectarian and exclusionary policies” of Nouri al-Maliki for the violence in Iraq. They’re not wrong, but this also deflects from an issue they’d rather not discuss—the role of wealthy funders in the Gulf in helping ISIS rise to prominence.

Qatar has officially stopped giving aid to more radical groups under U.S. pressure, and Saudi Arabia has also backed off its support of the rebels, a process the culminated in the removal of spy chief and Syria point man Prince Bandar bin Sultan earlier this year, but private donations from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states—notably Kuwait—have likely continued.
http://www.slate.com/blogs/the_world_/2014/06/16/the_saudis_helped_create_a_monster_they_can_t_control_in_iraq.html

[underthematrix]

1. yep. the world is not as simple as FOX HATE NEWS portrays it

domestic terrorist john mccain probably has business in the region

[SummerSnow]

2. I thought all Muslims were terrorist according to rethugs.

Bandar is close to the Bushs' and the Cheneys'. So we know his thinking.

[99th_Monkey]

3. I think the Masters of War simply needed a new Al Quada

to pump up the war machine again, and justify domestic abuse of citizens by stripping us of our constitutional rights, forever.

Rather like the US created AQ in the first place, since "the Communist Threat" had run its course.

[SummerSnow]

4. oh yea the Masters of War love this, just another chance to get back into a full scale war

and get the oil.

[hifiguy]

7. Dunno about that.

Cindy's beer-distributing empire probably doesn't sell a lot of Bud in Riyadh. They're more likely just paying Grampy directly.

[WovenGems]

9. hifiguy

What hi-fi ye got?

[hifiguy]

10. My last serious rig

before unemployment and a rooming house intervened and things went into storage was

SOTA Cosmos III turntable
Graham 2.0 arm
Dynavector XV 1S phono cartridge

and the following on "extended loan" for review from manufacturers - I am an audio reviewer and this is the main perk - if you like it you can usually keep it until it's superseded even if it is insanely expensive.

Various CD players

VTL TP 6.5 Phono Stage
Aesthetix Calypso Signature line stage (mine)
VTL TL-7.5 Series III line stage
Lamm M1.2 Reference power amps (these are mine)
VTL MB-450 Signature monoblock power amplifiers
Wilson Audio Specialties SASHA W/P loudspeakers
All Nordost Odin cabling and AC cables

I've seen bigger and more expensive (in Dave Wilson's listening room and a couple of other places) but it gave deep and profound musical joy. Can't wait to get things back up and running.

[Make7]

5. "... the U.S. goal of stability and moderation in the region."

Someone appears to not be paying attention.

[99th_Monkey]

11. We have a rather odd approach to achieving such lofty aims

I must say.

I'm not quite sure what your post means, but I can assure you
that I've been paying attention ever since BushCo engineered
the illegal invasion and destabilization of Iraq.

What did I miss? Or were you directing that at me?

[hifiguy]

6. The fucking Saudis.

Again. And again, and again, and again. Always the fucking Saudis. That country is the anus mundi and its "royal" family the chief turds. Literally King Shits from Turd Hill.

[PoutrageFatigue]

8. ^^^This^^^

[99th_Monkey]

12. +10 Nice to see someone IS paying attention. ~nt

[hifiguy]

14. The first thing I thought when I heard about ISIL/ISIL

was "Oh, the Saudis' latest Army of Crazy." And I was right.

Were I a nihilist, I would drop a few neutron bombs on Saudi Arabia. It's a North Korea-class hellhole.

[Duppers]

22. my thoughts too. nt

[Tom Ripley]

16. +1000

[Ikonoklast]

27. They fund terror elsewhere, using massive funding to attract home-grown and other malcontents

and in doing so keep them busy killing in other countries and away from the House of Saud...their *real* enemy.

Of course, if caught doing the same thing in SA they get paid to do in other countries they get their heads cut off, quite promptly, no mercy from the Sauds.

Fuck the Saudi royal family, they are no friend of this nation.

[Marrah_G]

13. Iraq, Syria, Saudi Arabia and many other countires in that region are not our friends

Every conflict does not have to have a side that we support. Often times both sides are assholes.

[Tom Ripley]

15. There's no tool like an old tool

[rhett o rick]

17. "Tell me again, why exactly does our US gov't still regard Saudi Arabia an "ally"? "

They have oil and they own a big piece of us.

[justiceischeap]

18. You dance with the one who brought ya

For better or worse some of are ME allies are not our best friends. Sadly, foreign policy is often tempered with having to pinch ones nose.

[Aerows]

20. Or tampered with

It seems to be the case here.

[Aerows]

19. I hate to speak ill of Mr. McCain

But if he still has a brain left he would take it out and play with it.

[jillan]

21. We all should copy this and send it to every Sunday morning show that has him on as an "expert"

along with the pic of him palling around with terrorists - to borrow a phrase from his vp pick.

[Botany]

23. I wonder if anybody will bring this up on "Face the McCain" or Meet the McCain" this Sunday AM?

[napkinz]

25. ...

[KansDem]

28. All this for $175,000 a year plus excellent retirement and health care...

He's a maroon as well as the voters who vote for him.

[Botany]

29. McCain was with the leader of ISIS al Baghdadi? That I didn't know.

Oh my f*****g God. And yet he still shows up to tell us how President
Obama doesn't know what he is doing.

[lpbk2713]

24. This is the clown who thought The Quitter would be good for America

Any more discussion on McLame's opinions?

[justiceischeap]

26. Has anyone noticed that when McCain claims someone is good

they sooner, rather than later, turn into our enemy?