From Anti-war.com : Following confirmation by the French military that they definitely weren’t in the process of invading Somalia, the United States military is now confirming that it is, in fact, American forces that are pouring into the southern portion of the country in a helicopter-backed invasion. US military officials confirmed to the Associated Press today that forces from the US Joint Special Operations Command had invaded the lawless African nation, and were the ones responsible for the attack on the tiny village of Barawe this morning that was the first staging ground of the attack. What the officials wouldn’t comment on was exactly why the United States, which launched a failed “peacekeeping” operation in the nation in 1993 and backed an Ethiopian invasion in 2007, had decided to launch yet another foreign adventure, though media outlets speculated that it was probably something to do with al-Qaeda. The United States has recently been supplying the self-described Somali “gov...

It is particulary bemusing (although not at all amusing) to watch the Obama administration extend and expand the Bushco program of military interventionism into new global fields. Now we are admitting that we have been fueling the fighting in Somalia with shipments of weapons for a couple of months, and intend to increase our involvement: Hillary Clinton pledged US military and other support for Somalia’s besieged transitional Government, and warned nearby Eritrea that it would take action if it does not stop supporting Islamist insurgents terrorising the war-torn nation. Speaking after a meeting with Somalia’s President in Nairobi, the US Secretary of State said that the actions of Eritrea, which is widely accused of supporting the militant group al-Shabaab with arms and money, were “unacceptable”. Eritrea’s Government denies the accusations. “It is long past time for Eritrea to cease and desist its support for al-Shabaab,” she said.... In June the US admitted that it had sent a ship...

A few tidbits: Gang-style execution is now the leading cause of death in the Iraq we've reconstructed. Afghanis have so grasped the concept of American-style democracy that mobs of them are lining up to stone women protesting the recently passed law requiring Shi'a women to submit to sex every four nights and have permission to leave the house. In Pakistan the Taliban are now operating freely within less than sixty miles of Islamabad, the nation's capital. Meanwhile, reacting to stories that Islamabad is turning over more and more control of the countryside to the SWAT Taliban, the Obama administration opined , White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said that the Obama administration believed that “solutions involving security in Pakistan don’t include less democracy and less human rights.” ... but apparently has no intention of connecting US aid--either military or civilian--to concrete performance on these issues in either Afghanistan or Pakistan . The result of all this? Wit...