We’ve lived so long under the spell of hierarchy—from god-kings to feudal lords to party bosses—that only recently have we awakened to see not only that “regular” citizens have the capacity for self-governance, but that without their engagement our huge global crises cannot be addressed. The changes needed for human society simply to survive, let alone thrive, are so profound that the only way we will move toward them is if we ourselves, regular citizens, feel meaningful ownership of solutions through direct engagement. Our problems are too big, interrelated, and pervasive to yield to directives from on high.
—Frances Moore Lappé, excerpt from Time for Progressives to Grow Up

Monday, November 30, 2015

Moving Closer to Europe: ISIL Sets Its Sights on Expansion in Libya

Click here to access article from Sputnik (based in Russia).
The Islamic State has increased its presence in the Mediterranean city of Sirte in Libya from 200 fighters at the start of the year to a force of 5,000 men, including administrators and financiers; the base is the first to be directly established by ISIL outside Syria and Iraq, and brings the terrorists closer to Europe.
This report is corroborated by a similar report in the Wall Street Journal. It has been speculated that the large buildup in Libya has been from ISIS soldiers fleeing from Syria where their forces have been besieged by Russian and Coalition bombing raids, and ground forces of the Syrian and Kurdish armies.