ISIS in Crisis?

ISIS suffered a rare defeat because the Obama administration took a baby step towards following the policy advocated in our sister blog.  See: http://phoodphotospolitics.blogspot.com/2014/09/kurdling-iraq.html.

The Kurds have the only troops disciplined, and more importantly, motivated enough to defeat ISIS.  With the support of US airpower The Kurds have taken Kobani, Syria from ISIS.

If the US were to promise to recognize a Kurdish State covering all land reclaimed by them from ISIS, Kurds would pour in from the Diaspara at a rate that would make ISIS recruitment seem like a trickle.

Of course, this would anger the Iraqi government, but how long can we support incompetence.  Much of the ISIS armament is from the ever retreating Iraqi army.

We need a reliable ally that can supply ground troops.  Airpower has been more successful than critics realize.  Conquest of land, with vast open dessert areas, requires massed troops and equipment. Massed troops provide a target rich environment for our planes.  Since the introduction of air sorties, ISIS expansion has largely halted.   Airpower can also help by cutting supply lines.  But reconquering cities is a door to door affair.

Shites don't fight and the Sunni side of the street is going the wrong way.  So Kurd is the Word.

What doe this have to do with a travel blog?  I want to see the wonders of Iraq and Syria.  I fear that the entire MiddleEast could become a no fly zone.

Best Dessert in Bangkok

Nobody does it better, nobody does if half as good.

Famous Sticky Rice, Coconut Milk and Mango stand on Sukhumvit Soi 38


I come by my girth honestly check out my ebook for restaurant and food stall recommendations.

Southeast Asia on a Rope: Cambodia and Myanmar

I just reviewed the proofs of my second guidebook.  Now  it will be converted to ebook formats and submitted.  It should be on sale in 2 to 3 weeks.

Is Islam an Inferior Religion?

I hardly have the credentials to engage in comparative analysis of competing ideologies.  But I can note that the former Cat Stevens lacks the star power that Tom Cruise focuses on Scientology.   In all seriousness, the hypersensitivity and extreme bravado  behind the tragedy in Paris is generally associated with an inferiority complex.

What does this have to do with a travel blog?  But for extremist radical Muslims, through tourist dollars, travelers on a rope would extent an economic lifeline to Syria, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan and Afghanistan.   Some of the great sights of antiquity are hidden behind a veil of religious strife.
Long ago I visited Israel, and in 2011 I traveled to Egypt and Jordan.  I would like the opportunity to safely explore more of the region.

Travelers on a rope waste countless hours in security lines because of religious terrorists.  We pay a heavy toll for the feelings of inferiority by religious extremists.

Cover Picture

This picture will be the cover for my upcoming book, Southeast Asia on a Rope:  Cambodia and Myanmar.  The picture is of a crabber in Kep bringing in her haul.

The Great Secret of Vietnam

The great secret of Vietnam is R&T.  Satisfied?  If not please read on.

Vietnam has two well known lagers, Saigon Export and 33.  Many cities have regional beers.  In Hoi An and Hanoi you can drink fresh beer, often with locals.  Fresh beer is only good for a day.  Fresh beer places have kegs of the brew.  The beer is light, but cheap.  The price in Hoi An was as low as 3000 Dong, fifteen cents.   The price in Hanoi is about triple that.

But the best drink I had in Vietnam was local dark rum, sometimes hard to find.  The rum is not spiced, but has strong vanilla and carmel overtones.  The rum is a good mixer.  Eschewing the common, but to my palate not very satisfying rum and coke, I drank rum and tonic.  The best I have ever had.  I believe the rum is called Caribbean Rum.  This is an oddity since it is an imported French Rum blended and distributed by Viet beverages.