That Critical Palestinian Authority Security Training

Secretary of State Condolezza Rice noted the need for Middle East security as the surest path to peace. Her right hand man, General Jim Jones, serves as Special Envoy for Middle East Security. And a key component of this path is training Palestinian Authority Security Forces, as they protect their leader and may someday have to root out rival Hamas fighters.

PA President Mahmoud Abbas is most excited about having American security contractors guard him and train his police forces. He even told President Bush's advisers of his interest.

The sources said Abbas, opposed by several senior members of his Fatah movement, has contacted Blackwater USA, a key contractor in Iraq, for the training of a new bodyguard unit. They said Blackwater has quietly been examining the Presidential Guard and Force 17, the two units responsible for Abbas's protection.

So how's that Palestinian security force training going? It's been a struggle to say the least. A military official even got defensive over the problems to date:

"No one can deny that at the beginning there were some growing pains," said Dov Schwartz, a Defense Department official who is spokesman for the training program. "We had never done this before."

What about America's four year effort training Iraqi national police? Is that not experience? General Jim Jones led a Congressional panel on that topic just last summer. Did he not bring that knowledge to his new job? They're even using the same facility and private security contractor, DynCorp. How can they plead "no experience"? The company's website states, "DynCorp International will support projects to include training and equipping of the PA Presidential Guard (PG) and the National Security Forces (NSF)." Who knows how Defense Dept. bureaucrats get to make ridiculous claims? But nevertheless, it's the State Department's baby. In early March, Condi said:

The goal is to create "a professional and capable Palestinian security force" in part to counter Hamas, the armed Palestinian faction that controls the Gaza Strip and does not recognize Israel.

How have they performed on the task? The problems range from numerous equipment shortages to what to cover in training in light of Israel's objections. Consider this report:

Course manuals, provided by the State Department's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, or INL, arrived after the courses began, the Americans said. The course work is in English, program administrators acknowledged, even though most of the trainees speak only Arabic.

What makes this even more amazing is DynCorp's association with a translation contractor. They are joint venture owners of GLS, winner of a $4.6 billion translation contract from the government to support Operation Iraqi Freedom. One might expect the State Department or DynCorp to have police training manuals in Arabic. While late, the instruction books did arrive.

However, much of the State Department course material consisted of excerpts from army manuals, U.S. officials confirmed. One American said trainers had to edit out sections on how to use tanks and grenade launchers to breach buildings, among others involving offensive military tactics.

"Is that normal for training? No," said William J. Durch, a senior associate at the Henry L. Stimson Center, a Washington research group, and an expert in training international security forces. "Is that normal for a program that someone simply wanted to get going for political purposes? Yeah."

But here's the good news on this critical piece of the Middle East security situation that leads to peace.

Thomas Moselle, a State Department police adviser who is one of the program's administrators, acknowledged early problems in the program. But he denied that any curriculum or equipment shortages were hindering training.

While the politician minimizes setbacks, the people on the ground know the negative impact. One could wonder if the U.S. really wants to train a capable Palestinian force. Elements of the Washington Post piece bring this question to light:

A U.S. mission statement, dated mid-January, said Palestinian forces would receive body armor and Saudi-made light-armored personnel carriers, designed for use in riots. Israeli objections have blocked delivery of that equipment.

Israeli officials have blocked delivery of body armor to Palestinian forces of a grade capable of stopping rounds from the M-16 assault rifles used by Israeli troops, American officials said. That level of armor, however, is needed to protect against AK-47 fire from Palestinian fighters.

"You never know when these things are going to be used against you," Shlomo Dror, spokesman for the Israeli Defense Ministry, said of armor and weapons.

Haaretz reported on the start up of the new training earlier this year. The piece cited a projected 2,000 Palestinians would be trained in 2008, out of an eventual 50,000 police force.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert insists a Palestinian state will not be established until the Palestinians rein in militants in the West Bank, where Abbas's secular Fatah faction holds sway, and the Gaza Strip, which Hamas seized in June.

If P.M. Olmert holds true to his word, it will be a long time before the establishment of a Palestinian state. There's little current capability to rein in militants and despite wonderful words, the work to date has been woefully inadequate.

I believe Eliot Abrahms called Israeli-Palestinian peace efforts "just process" not long ago. Could he be right? Or, is it more divide and conquer? But rest assured, Condi says everything is on track...

Jim Jones Plans Israeli-Palestinian Peace?

Eisenhower's feared military-industrial complex exists today in America. A retired General is helping Secretary of State Condi Rice mediate peace between Israel and the Palestinian Territories. While his name sounds similar to actor who played Darth Vader in Star Wars, it's a different James Jones, James L. Jones. Here's what the Jerusalem Post said about the General: Jones, who officially retired from active duty last year after serving as Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, was appointed by Rice at the Annapolis conference as US Special Envoy for Middle East Security. Befitting his title, he is described by one source as "the big-picture guy," advising and helping Rice to place the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a larger regional context, a responsibility that includes engaging other Arab leaders. Jones, who also holds a senior position in the US Chamber of Commerce and sits on the corporate boards of Boeing and Chevron, is a real heavyweight, not only for his storied military past, but his possible future prospects. Last year the Wall Street Journal described him as one of "Washington's hottest political commodities," courted equally by both Republicans and Democrats. Hillary Clinton has talked of putting him in her cabinet, Barack Obama has consulted with him, and John McCain described Jones as one of his "closest and longtime friends." General Jones leads the Institute for 21st Century Energy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. He also led a blue ribbon panel that looked at the Iraqi National Police. After the U.S. military dedicated 2006 as "the year of the police" in Iraq , significant problems remained with sectarian elements in the national police force. Congress had General Jones look into Iraq's security forces. Shortly after submitting his report, the General got his State Department appointment. At his unveiling Jim (as Condi called him) Jones said: "I look forward to forming a team and working with both the State Department and Defense Department as the need arises to complete our task." Defense Department to mediate peace? That's odd. Well, it turns out I read it wrong. Haaretz clearly stated General Jones new position is Special U.S. envoy for Middle East Security. Condi Rice had this to say about the order of things: "Building security in the Middle East is the surest path to making peace in the Middle East," Rice said, "and General Jones is the best individual to lead our efforts in this essential endeavor." So security comes first. Does that involve the use of Boeing products to stabilize the region, making it safe for Chevron to do business? We know it involves the use of private security companies to train police. Since the Iraqi police training didn't turn out so well, how will the current training of Palestinian police be any better? It's boomeranged on us before. But that leads us to another uniquely post modern concern, private corporate armies. If Eisenhower were alive, what would he think when he saw the feared elements of the military-industrial complex hamming it up on the media's front pages? Would he be horrified to see an indifferent public and politicians who treat Jim Jones like a hot commodity? Would Dwight wonder who drank the cool aid?

 

Update 10-19-22:  Retired General James Jones is a paid advisor to Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the man who ordered the death of Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Bush Team Proposes Financial UnPatriot Act

After 9-11 the Justice Department pushed the Patriot Act to prevent future catastrophes from happening again. It allowed the government new methods to determine if individual citizens posed a risk to our nation's safety.

After the Bear Stearns bailout on Wall Street, the Treasury Department offers the UnPatriot Act which does nothing to prevent future market meltdowns from speculative to illegal corporate behavior. However, it does allow the Feds to come to the rescue should our Wall Street icons once again paint investment pigs as high priced hookers.

While the government can scrutinize a suspected terrorists' information, it remains hands off with investment banks and other financial institutions, including hedge funds and private equity underwriters (PEU's). The NYT piece on this new non-regulatory reform closed with ex-SEC chair Arthur Levitt's saying "his first impression of the plan was positive. Even though the S.E.C.’s powers might be reduced, Mr. Levitt said, the plan would create a broader agency to regulate business conduct in all financial services."

So the government would have slightly broader breadth, but less depth than what allowed the current crisis? And who is your employer Mr. Levitt? Why it's the Carlyle Group and Arthur's just one of the PEU boys! It's all beginning to make sense...

Recent NRCC Donations Pose Audit Challenge

Rep. Mike Conaway, the Chair of the National Republican Congressional Committee has more than one challenge as head of the audit committee. Besides tracking down missing funds from dirty accounting, Mike has to contend with donations varying from the normal deposit.

The New York Times magazine article on Rep. Tom Cole, Chair of the NRCC had this to say:

Many conservative activists have become so dissatisfied with the party's heresies, particularly on immigration and government spending, that as Cole's staff took over, the committee's fund-raising pleas were being ignored and, on at least one occasion, returned in an envelope stuffed with feces.

How are these new deposits accounted for, first in, first out (dried) or last in, first out (moist)? It must be no fun to work in the NRCC's accounting department these days. But come November, the fruits of these donations will hit the airwaves via TV and radio commercials. Be sure to turn down the smell. (But don't you feel sorry for those Republican bundlers?)

It's 3:00 pm on Friday & The Phone's Ringing

The phone in the Oval Office rings at 3:00 pm on a Friday afternoon. It's the media wanting to know why another Bush official mishandled government funds. But President George W. Bush is mountain biking at Camp David and not available. So the phone just rings while his underlings play rock, paper and scissors to see who has to answer. The reporter on the other end gives up. He's used to not getting his questions answered. The story should get buried over the weekend. Welcome to Bushworld.

Carlyle's Scarbody Fair?

Are you going to Scarbody Fair? Passionate rage, weaponry, and crime...
---(sung to the tune of the Simon & Garfunkel hit song).

The predatory Carlyle Group reportedly is eyeing Reed Elsevier's trade publications division, which includes the renowned British medical journal, The Lancet. Reed also has an exhibition division specializing in weapons fairs. Physicians encouraged the company to ditch the fairs, but to no avail.

Should the Carlyle Group buy these parts of Reed, they stand to make a killing. The sale of arms isn't declining world wide, even as George W. Bush conducts his full court press to "make the world safer". Also, a proposed FDA rule change will make medical journal articles on "off label uses" for drugs quite valuable. Big Pharma would likely pay premium prices for placement and the opportunity to market non-FDA approved uses of their drugs.

I hear some Carlyle cash registers ringing. As George Bailey told Clarence in It's a Wonderful Life, "That means another angel got its wings."

Carlyle Reads the Signs

What would an enterprising private equity firm do given President Bush's proposed FDA rule relaxation allowing pharmaceutical companies to market off label uses of their drugs as long as articles on the topic have been printed in a trade magazine? Why, it would purchase a company publishing trade magazines!

The Times Online reported The Carlyle Group is interested in Reed Elsevier's trade magazines division. Elsevier Health Sciences group is a global leader in healthcare and medical publishing.

For a clue as to how this might work, a pharmaceutical company could fund a bogus study. The FDA rule relaxation doesn't require the drug maker to promise to test the drug for the new off label use. However, most doctors like a little data, so some slanted study could be done quickly and cheaply.

The next challenge is getting it into a peer reviewed clinical magazine. That's where Reed Elsevier and their 800 medical journals/yearbooks come in. I'm sure pharmaceutical companies would pay big bucks to get articles in journals that allow them to expand their marketing of off label uses for existing drugs.

For the skeptical reader, consider the case of the cancer study funded by cigarette companies. The New York Times reported on the Foundation for Lung Cancer: Early Detection, Prevention & Treatment.

A review of tax records by The NYT shows that the foundation was underwritten almost entirely by $3.6 million in grants from the parent company of the Liggett Group, maker of Liggett Select, Eve, Grand Prix, Quest and Pyramid cigarette brands.

The outcome of the company funded study was "80 percent of lung cancer deaths could be prevented through widespread use of CT scans." The New England Journal of Medicine had no clue it published a study funded by cigarette companies. But here's where it gets devilish.

In New York, a bill would create a $10 million fund “to carry out lung cancer early detection research using computer tomography (CT) scanning” at a place “that was established by the multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary research program that began at 22 sites in the state in the year 1991,” a description that could only fit Dr. Henschke’s (the author of the study) group.

Sooooo wheeeee! Someone brought home the bacon, just like Carlyle will if they buy the parent company of The Lancet. Unfortunately, something else needs to be lanced. It's the infection of our democracy by the government industrial monstrosity. All hail President George W. Bush, The Carlyle Group and their staphs. Should the FDA rule change not materialize, Carlyle could still make out like bandits from Reed Elsevier's weapons fairs, currently under protest from Lancet physicians.