Hasta La Gadget!

Indian Strategist Prof. M D Nalapat, UNESCO Peace Chair and Editorial Director of the Sunday Guardian, has an unusually spot-on record for predicting trends in the Middle East. He was in New York City on September 11, 2001, having just warned that the U.S. was likely to be targeted. At the start of the Arab Spring, he was already predicting a ‘Wahhabi Winter.’ And he foresaw the current catastrophic situation in Libya from the early days of the conflict, as well as the potential for extremists spillover from Syria to its neighbors. This is what he has to say about Iraq.

How did we get to where we are today in Iraq?

Via Benghazi and Aleppo. The 2011 decision by NATO member-states to arm, train and finance those willing to physically battle first against Muammar Gaddafi and subsequently against Bashar Assad set in train a series of events that have led to the present crisis in Iraq. The U.S. and its European allies ought to have understood that the goal of states such as Turkey, Qatar or Saudi Arabia was not to ensure that democracy dawned on Libya or Syria when it was still absent in their own countries, but the removal of those they saw as apostates: Muammar Gaddafi and Bashar Assad.

Those who have read Gaddafi’s writings and speeches know that he was a foe of Wahhabism, which he (correctly) saw as un-Islamic and indeed, in several respects, anti-Islamic. As for Bashar Assad, his Alawite sect is regarded with the same reserve as the Ahmadiyyas are in Pakistan. They are regarded by Wahhabis as apostates needing to be either converted to the “true” faith or eliminated. By hitching themselves to the Turkey-Qatar-Saudi Arabia bandwagon and assisting these states to fund and equip Wahhabi fighters, the West in effect joined in their crusade against anti-Wahhabis (in the case of Gaddafi) and the Shia (in the case of Bashar Assad).

Ever since the 1980 occupation of the U.S. embassy in Tehran by students swearing fealty to Ayatollah Khomeini, the U.S. and several of its allies have conflated the mullahcracy in Iran to cover an entire country (Iran). Over time, this has drawn in governments in states such as Syria and Iraq that have been seen as “over friendly” to Tehran.

Check the weapons used by ISIS in its drive on Baghdad. They are almost entirely from the stocks supplied to the “moderate” opposition to battle first Gaddafi and later Assad. This concept of a “moderate opposition” in battlefield terms is laughable. The fact is that extremists join the so-called “moderate” groups, collect cash, training and weapons from them and subsequently migrate to those frankly extremist groups, such as ISIS or Al Nusra.

The assumption made by policymakers in the U.S. and in the EU is that the divide between those in the “moderate” and the “extremist” camps is watertight enough to ensure that the flow of cash and weaponry from the first to the second is minuscule. The fact is that this division is illusory. There is perfect mobility between the two supposedly irreconcilable groups. In fact, almost all the actual fighting is carried out by the “extremist” groups, while the fundraising and collection of weapons is done by the “moderates”. What has landed in Iraq are the weapons, cash and training given by Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states with leaderships eager to ensure a reserved seat in paradise by facilitating the defeat of presumed infidels.

What is the situation on the ground?

Still very susceptible to improvement, provided both state as well as public donors in the GCC abandon their policy of training, funding and arming groups to do battle against established regimes in the region.

The fact is that the extremist groups have very little support within local populations. What is unfortunate is that television channels such as CNN and BBC are constantly talking of a “Sunni” rebellion against Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki of Iraq, a Shia.

The fact is that this is a Wahhabi war against a Shia leader, one in which the majority of those classified as Sunni are standing aside, just as they did in Syria. While al-Maliki has drawn much flak from NATO member-states for his alleged “neglect of the Sunnis,” the fact is that in his government, just as in that headed by Bashar Assad in Damascus, there is ample representation of Sunni elements.

What the Qatar and Saudi regimes seek is to give primacy to Wahhabi elements within the Sunni population, and to give this tiny minority (among the Sunni, itself a minority in Iraq) the same importance as the (majority) Shia population. Should Nouri al-Maliki agree to this, it would lead to both his exit as well as to a distortion of democracy in Iraq. Indeed, by holding back on launching air strikes against ISIS until al-Maliki fulfils the Qatari-Saudi agenda, the U.S. is creating a situation where the Prime Minister of Iraq will be forced to turn to Moscow and Tehran for military support.

Wahhabi extremists are a danger to the entire community of nations, and hence what is needed is to do battle with them in every theatre where they are seeking to change ground realities by force. This is still very possible. If the opportunity is missed, and safe havens for Wahhabi extremists become semi-permanent, this would pose a significant threat to Europe within the next two years.

How does this relate to Syria and/or other neighbors?

The Assad regime is proving quite successful in battling the Wahhabi extremists seeking its overthrow but, even now, assistance from Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and other states is pouring into Syria, including assistance by France and other Western countries. This has to be stopped immediately, as arms given in one theatre flow to others, the way it happened between Libya and Mali. Should the fighting in Iraq develop into the bloody stalemate that the war in Syria is in danger of becoming because of assistance funneled into the Wahhabi groups, there is likely to be clashes between Shia and Wahhabi across the region, with the moderate majority among Sunnis caught in the crossfire. Fire spreads quickly, and sectarianism is a fire.

Who is backing ISIS?

Al Qaeda. The so-called disavowal of the group by Ayman al-Zawahiri was in my view a ruse to ensure that ISIS continued to get assistance from those capitals seeking the end of the Assad regime, and in ensuring Wahhabi supremacy in the governing structure of Iraq. It is surprising how quickly Al Qaeda’s protestations of daylight between itself and ISIS have been believed. In this context, the Obama administration is doing a disservice to the entire world by keeping secret the cache of information seized from the Abbottabad house of Osama bin Laden. The war on terror is global, and information of the kind retrieved from bin Laden ought to be more widely shared rather than hoarded.

Who is bribing whom, and what is the outcome?

ISIS has been bribing commanders in the Iraqi army so that they ensure near-zero resistance to their takeover of population centers. This was the same tactic carried out by the Taliban in Afghanistan during 1994-96. Those Iraqi commanders shown to have been bribed should be identified and executed, so as to prevent others from going the same way. At present, several are either in GCC watering holes such as Dubai or are in London and other such locations, working on spending the money they have made through betraying their country and in the process, endangering several countries in Europe.

What are the options for the U.S.?

To help the Iraqi military to finish off the ISIS battalions while this is still possible. Once they disperse among the population at large, it will be too late. They need to be attacked while they are still on the march. And to stop pursuing a Wahhabi agenda in the Middle East. That would be the same mistake as Israel made in Lebanon in the 1980s — backing the Maronite Christians against the Shia in Lebanon, making Israel the only country in the world to have to endure Shia terror. Should the U.S. and its allies continue with its post-2011 policy of assisting Wahhabis against Shia, the whole of Europe as well as the U.S. will become the target of Shia terror groups formed in the crucible of the present sectarian combat in the region.

What does this mean for India?

Terror in India was Subcontinental, now it is continental and covers the whole of Asia. In my view, India should assist Baghdad in battling the extremists, ideally together with the U.S. and other powers, including Iran.

It is time for a Grand Alliance against Wahhabi terror, and what this means is that the Wahhabi International has to be confronted in every theatre, confronted and eliminated, so that the great religion of Islam can get freed of its distorting influence and once again shine as a moderate force for good in the world.

Should the U.S. or India hesitate in helping Iraq to eliminate the extremists who are so close to the gates of Baghdad, we may see the start of sectarian war across the region, with incalculable consequences to both the international economy as well as security.

Iraqi girls are facing a law that would consider them ready for marriage at nine years old, which could force them out of education for good.

South Sudanese girls are so discriminated against that, in a country of ten million people, there are only 400 14- and 15-year-old girls in school.

Three hundred thousand Syrian child refugees are exiled in Lebanon and want to go to school — but no one has yet been willing to pay the $4 a week it would cost for them to be educated.

Two hundred girls were kidnapped in Nigeria and have now spent eight weeks in captivity — just because they wanted to go to school.

Every week, 200,000 school-age girls are married off as child brides and excluded from their right to education. Every day, millions of school-age boys and girls are forced to work as child laborers when they should be at school.

Around the world, a civil rights struggle is underway as girls and boys demand a basic right that in the year 2014 should be automatic and guaranteed — their right to education.

While the world promised that by the end of next year every single child would be at school, the total figure for children who are being deprived not just of an education but of the oxygen of opportunity was 57 million last year. A new up-to-date assessment will be given on Thursday by Irena Bukova, head of UNESCO. But today, these 57 million children are deprived of the most basic thing of all — hope that they can plan a future for themselves.

We ask on behalf of the 57 million out-of-school children, when will they ever learn? And we ask of our leaders, when will they ever learn? Learn that education is the key that unlocks the eradication of poverty, the creation of jobs and the meeting of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals for health.

On Thursday in Brussels, the world is tested on its commitment to basic education. From UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and EU Commissioner Andreas Pielbags hosting the replenishment conference, there is a universal demand that countries sponsor the educational needs of the poorest children. And countries that can afford it should do more than the typical $13 per child — which is barely enough to pay for a textbook and which is the breakdown of the cumulative total of all education aid for sub-Saharan Africa.

The replenishment of the Global Partnership of Education that takes place in Brussels on Thursday is being led by two world-renowned women leaders — Julia Gillard and Alice Albright. It is a vital element in the push towards meeting the United Nations Millennium Development goal that every child be at school by the end of 2015. The shortfall in educational investment to meet this goal is around 6 billion dollars a year. If we are to have a chance of getting close to that goal, then all countries should give generously.

Today I’ll be sharing a list of the eight cutest workout shoes I could find. Whether you’re looking for a shoe for cross training, power walking or even crossing that half marathon finish line, these soles will have you inspired to get moving, ASAP.

all photos by Jay

After I attended a screening of the new film, “Jersey Boys,” directed by Clint Eastwood, I wanted to see a performance of “Jersey Boys,” the musical play, to refresh my memory of it before I wrote my Huffington review of the movie. Fortunately, it has just opened at the Segerstrom Hall in Costa Mesa and will be running there until July 13th, so I booked a few tickets. The last time I had been there was several years ago, when I drove down to attend the ceremony where the Orange County Performing Arts Center had been renamed The Segerstrom Center for the Arts. I had then met the philanthropist Henry Segerstrom and his lovely wife Elizabth and they guided me on a tour of the center. Henry told me his long association with legendary architect Cesar Pelli, who had designed the stunning 2,000 seat $200 million state-of-the-art concert showplace, which opened in 2006. I later wrote an article entitled “From Bean Field to Bonanza” depicting the fabulous story of how the Segerstroms had developed their thousand acres of lima bean fields into the world-famous shopping and cultural center of today. Elizabeth pointed out the imposing 66-foot Richard Serra sculpture, Connector,” on the plaza, which they had commissioned. All of this came to mind when I made my plans to see the show,,..and then decided to have dinner beforehand at the celebrated restaurant on the ground floor of the glass-and-steel concert hall next door to the theatre. I had heard great things about Patina’s Leatherby’s Café Rouge there (615 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa (714) 429-7640, www.patinagroup.com/caferouge) and brought my friends there for what turned out to be an exceptional dining experience.

Exec Chef Ross Pangilinan holding a bottle of Laetitia Brut Cuvee

The main dining, with 110 seats and two private dining rooms, also designed by Pelli, is surrounded by undulating walls of glass inspired by the waves of the Pacific Ocean. Its warm minimalistic interior with plaza views was a perfect setting for a meal which equaled the theatrical experience to follow. The serene light-filled dining room was the scene of what has been described in their brochure as a whimsical culinary experience. I would describe our dinner differently: it was exceptional modern American cuisine with an emphasis on seasonal farm-fresh ingredients. Executive Chef Ross Pangilinan looked too young to be in such a responsible position, but I knew that Patina boss Joachim Splichal would not have assigned him to the task unles he was very, very capable..and we quickly learned that was the case. Ross grew up in an Orange County Asian-American household, worked at various sous chef positions at Patina and in Michelin-starred French restaurants, becoming Exec Chef here in 2009. One of our group opted for the Jersey Boys Menu while the rest of us ordered a la carte. Her first course was a summer dish of Tomato Watermelon gazpacho dressed with crab, cucumber gelee and crème fraiche. It was followed by a main course of house-made Fettuccine with sherry-braised beef short ribs, pea tendrils and forest mushrooms. She shared bites with me and I quickly realized that we were in the presence of a very skilled toque in the kitchen. Her Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame dessert was a trio – a root beer float, banana royale, and strawbeery shortcake. I expressed the hope that the musical would live up to the meal bearing its name.

Tomato Watermelon Gazpacho

Sauteed seafood salad

Soft Egg Ravioli

By then the rest of us were enjoying our first course and one of the highlights of the evening: a Soft Egg Ravioli, made with fine herb ricotta, crispy guanciale (pork jowl), and mushroom ragout with parmesan. Breaking the yellow yolk into the dish unleashed a luscious taste treat which we all commented on favorably. One companion had ordered the Bristol Day-boat Scallops, the sea scallops charred on one side and served with carrot-ginger puree, baby bok choy, mushrooms, crisp potato and a lobster vinaigrette. My main course was the Colorado Lamb Loin, with a goat cheese potato ouree, zucchini, eggplant caponata, piquilo, preserved lemon, with basil emulsion and a drizzle of lamb jus. It was superb, and quickly disappeared with a passing of plates. I received a succulent slice of the Muscovy Duck Breast and quickly consumed the perfectly-rare bite. It had come with wilted romaine hearts, a French radish, shiitakes, cipollini onions, polenta fondue and cider jus.

Diver Bay Scallops

Salad atop a block of imported salt

We all commented on the delicious sophistication of the dishes emerging from the pristine kitchen. I asked the G.M, Al Kanjo, where the name of the restaurant came from, and he told me that Ralph Leatherby had shared his love of big band music with everyone, and was renowned for believing that art and music were essential to a life well-lived. So true.

Other dishes we experienced included a first course of Hamachi “sisig”….a tribute to the chef’s Filipino family….a dish of sizzling pork belly, onion and Serrano chile, with a calamari-soy dressing, mango, avocado, and a quail egg. He and I talked about my love for authentic Filipino ‘adobe’ dishes with their vinegary base. Other dishes we all shared included a Sweet Corn Mezzelune, housemade moon-shaped raviolis; Scottish Salmon, and a Hercules Ranch natural Beef Tenderloin. Desserts were as exemplary as the rest of the meal: a White Chocolate Lime Bar and my favorite, the Smore’s, milk chocolate Chantilly, torched marshmallow fluff, graham crumble and chocolate pop rocks. The wine list was full of boutique selections, fairly priced and sure to please any wine lover.I enjoyed the musical show in that stunning setting, but it was the superb meal at Leatherby’s Café Rouge which received my rave review on the drive home.

Chocolate Crumb Cake is one of the many delicious desserts

To subscribe to Jay Weston’s Restaurant Newsletter ($70 for twelve monthly issues) email him at jayweston@sbcglobal.net.

BY KATHRYN DOYLE
NEW YORK Mon Jun 23, 2014 8:37am EDT

(Reuters Health) – In a new study from California, children with an autism spectrum disorder were more likely to have mothers who lived close to fields treated with certain pesticides during pregnancy.

Proximity to agricultural pesticides in pregnancy was also linked to other types of developmental delay among children.

“Ours is the third study to specifically link autism spectrum disorders to pesticide exposure, whereas more papers have demonstrated links with developmental delay,” said lead author Janie F. Shelton, from the University of California, Davis.

There needs to be more research before scientists can say that pesticides cause autism, she told Reuters Health in an email. But pesticides all affect signaling between cells in the nervous system, she added, so a direct link is plausible.

California is one of only a few states in the U.S. where agricultural pesticide use is rigorously reported and mapped. For the new study, the researchers used those maps to track exposures during pregnancy for the mothers of 970 children.

The children included 486 with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), 168 with a developmental delay and 316 with typical development.

Developmental delay, in which children take extra time to reach communication, social or motor skills milestones, affects about four percent of U.S. kids, the authors write. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that one in 68 children has an ASD, also marked by deficits in social interaction and language.

In the new study, about a third of mothers had lived within a mile of fields treated with pesticides, most commonly organophosphates.

Children of mothers exposed to organophosphates were 60 percent more likely to have an ASD than children of non-exposed mothers, the authors report in Environmental Health Perspectives.

Autism risk was also increased with exposure to so-called pyrethroid insecticides, as was the risk for developmental delay. Carbamate pesticides were linked to developmental delay but not ASDs.

For some pesticides, exposure seemed to be most important just before conception and in the third trimester, but for others it didn’t seem to matter when during pregnancy women were exposed.

Dr. Philip J. Landrigan speculated that the pesticides probably drifted from crops through the air, and that’s how pregnant women were exposed. The new study did not measure airborne pesticide levels, however.

Landrigan directs the Children’s Environmental Health Center at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York and was not involved in the new study.

“We already knew from animal studies as well as from epidemiologic studies of women and children that prenatal exposure (to pesticides) is associated with lower IQ,” Landrigan told Reuters Health. “This study builds on that, uses the population of a whole state, looks at multiple different pesticides and finds a pattern of wide association between pesticide exposure and developmental disability.”

What’s more, this study almost certainly underestimates the true strength of the association between pesticides and neurological problems, he said, since it did not precisely measure each individual woman’s exposure.

Pesticide registries like the one in California and another in New York are rare, but are critical to public health efforts in this area, Landrigan said. Concerned parents could advocate for registries like them in their own states, he added.

“One lesson or message for parents is to minimize or eliminate use of pesticides in their own homes,” Landrigan said.

In the months before and during pregnancy, it would make sense to avoid using pesticides in the home or on the lawn, he said.

For city-dwelling families, instead of spraying for cockroaches every month, integrated pest management is a better choice. That approach makes chemical pesticides the last resort – first steps are to seal up cracks and crevices in the home, clean up food residue and try relatively non-toxic options, like roach motels.

“If there’s one thing that parents can control it’s what comes into their home,” he said.

“It would be a great first step to stop using organophosphates and pyrethroids inside the home,” Shelton agreed.

Copyright 2012 Thomson Reuters. Click for Restrictions.