US Soldiers Get Ready to Die for Israel

It is said that there are about 40,000 American troops scattered around at bases and on ships at any time around the Middle East region, including in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and United Arab Emirates. 

But as Donald Trump escalates the war in Iran, that number has reached more than 50,000, according to a US military official, as reported by The New York Times on March 29, 2026.

It doesn't matter how many soldiers are being deployed to fight Iran because there will be a bloodbath. For sure, the ruby tide will rise on Iranian soil, where the fallen Americans turn the ground beneath them crimson in their final moments.

Here's the truth about the US involvement in Iran:

I betcha Temu have already received a massive order of body bags from the US Department of War. 😆😆😆

Donald Trump Rages at News Outlets Over War Coverage

US President Donald Trump threatened media organizations with treason charges, accusing them of knowingly colluding with Iran to cast doubt on Washington’s decisive “victory”. 

In a lengthy Truth Social post on Sunday, Trump alleged that “fake news” outlets had been spreading false information supposedly fabricated by Iran using artificial intelligence. 

“The fact is, Iran is being decimated, and the only battles they ‘win’ are those that they create through AI, and are distributed by Corrupt Media Outlets”, Trump derisively wrote. 

He implicated Tehran in circulating fabricated footage showing attacks on US military assets, including alleged strikes on refueling aircraft and naval vessels. According to the president, some of the images depicted non-existent “kamikaze boats” and the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier burning, which he dismissed as artificial intelligence-generated propaganda intended to portray Iran as militarily successful. 

He claimed that only one aircraft was damaged and remained out of service since the escalation of the conflict on February 28. 

Trump described the outlets that published the reports as “Corrupt and Highly Unpatriotic ‘News’ Organizations”, adding that media spreading “knowingly FAKE” information “should be brought up on Charges for TREASON for the dissemination of false information”. 

Over the weekend, Trump and Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr both threatened the media over stories and headlines they said were grossly inaccurate and painted the US in a poor light. Trump suggested criminal action against news outlets, while Carr floated not renewing broadcasters’ licenses. 

The US and Israel began by launching coordinated strikes on the Islamic Republic, triggering Iranian retaliatory attacks across the region. 

To be sure, US military assets have been on the receiving end too. As of March 14, 2026, reports have indicated that at least three F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jets were destroyed in a supposedly friendly-fire incident over Kuwait, while at least five KC-135 refueling aircraft were damaged in an Iranian missile attack on a Saudi base and eleven MQ-9 Reaper drones were downed during the ongoing conflict. Not to mention, at least four AN/TPY-2 radar systems, which were the "eyes" of the THAAD missile system as well as a $1.1B AN/FPS-132 radar in Qatar were wrecked.

A F-35 fighter jet was forced to make an emergency landing on Thursday after it was struck by suspected Iranian fire on Thursday. 

And a March 16 post shared by RT on X cited “latest Chinese satellite intel” indicating the US nuclear aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln “has now retreated to roughly 1,000 km from Iranian shores” after being targeted by Iranian drones. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed their drones struck the carrier, forcing it to relocate. Of course, the US military denied the claim, stating that no Iranian missiles or drones had even touched the ship.

And news reports have highlighted that 2,200 US Marines, part of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, a rapid-response force based in Okinawa, Japan, are being deployed to the Middle East. The USS Tripoli, an America-class amphibious assault ship, which is said to be transporting the marines and accompanied by two escort ships, were spotted approximately 107KM northeast of Bandar Penawar, Johor, Malaysia on March 17.

Experts say the MEU would likely be used to conduct raids across the Iranian shoreline to gain a foothold in areas across the Strait of Hormuz, which has emerged as a contested point of the conflict. 

Asked Tuesday if he was afraid of the Iranian regime's assertion that US boots on the ground "will be another Vietnam", Trump replied, "No, I'm not afraid. I'm really not afraid of anything".

The move suggests Washington is not seeking to wind down its war on Iran anytime soon, despite repeatedly boasting of operational successes.

In fact, the Pentagon are seeking an additional $200 billion from Congress to fund the United States-Israel war with Iran, and on Thursday, War Secretary Pete Hegseth warns it has no “timeframe” for ending.

So, don't expect any off-ramp; only escalation.

Raging Mideast War is Escalating

Today is Day 13 of the US-Israel war on Iran! It has already outlasted the 12-day war initiated by Israel – as is this war, by the way – on June 13, 2025, with the US joining nine days later. 

In fact, US President Donald Trump affirmed on Monday the war against Iran will end “very soon” but not this week!

“We’ve wiped every single force in Iran out, very completely”, the Orange Man trumpeted the destruction of more than 50 Iranian naval ships, and decimation of its air force and anti-aircraft defenses. 

He also said that the war would be over when Iran no longer had the capacity to use weapons against the US, Israel and other allies for a long time, according to CNBC on March 09, 2026. 

In fact, Trump had blithely described the war on Iran as a “short-term excursion”, maintaining that the US is ahead of schedule and already achieved “tremendous success”, as per Al Jazeera on March 10.

But this time around, the conflict has engulfed neighboring Arab countries, entering an escalatory phase as Tehran unleashed its 37th wave of missile and drone attacks across the region. 

Oil, gas and fuel storage facilities in Israel’s Haifa were repeatedly targeted while Gulf states scrambled to intercept drones and missiles heading toward energy hubs. Sirens echoed from Bahrain and Kuwait to Dubai, UAE, as defenses raced to stop incoming threats. 

At the same time, Washington and Tel Aviv intensified airstrikes inside Iran, hitting key sites across the country. 

Already, oil production in Iraq has dropped by 70%, from 4.3 million bpd before the conflict to 1.3 million bpd. Saudi Arabia has lowered output by 2 million to 2.5 million bpd, while the UAE has cut 500,000–800,000 bpd, and Kuwait has cut 500,000 bpd.

On top of that, drone attacks have hammered key infrastructure, including the Ras Tanura refinery in Saudi Arabia and the Ras Laffan gas facility in Qatar, the latter responsible for 20% of global LNG supply. Already, QatarEnergy declared force majeure on LNG shipments yesterday.

Moreover, Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz, a global energy chokepoint, handling about a quarter of the world's seaborne oil and significant liquefied natural gas (LNG) and fertilizer.

Predictably, Trump threatened “death, fire and fury” if Iran keeps obstructing the only sea passage from the Persian Gulf to the open ocean. Tehran hit back, vowing it won’t allow “one liter of oil” to leave the Middle East until US and Israeli attacks cease. A top Iranian official even warned Trump to be careful not to be “eliminated” himself. 

With oil and gas facilities now at the center of the battlefield, the conflict is rapidly turning into a wider energy war.

And more. Yesterday, Iran identified new targets, i.e., offices and infrastructure run by top US companies with Israeli links whose technology has been used for military applications. Al Jazeera confirms this, saying the companies include Google, Microsoft, Palantir, IBM, Nvidia and Oracle, and those companies offering cloud-based services that are located in multiple Israeli cities, as well as in some Gulf countries. 

And banks too. Yesterday, state-owned Bank Sepah in Tehran which were reportedly responsible for processing salary payments for Iran's military and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, got hit by enemy missile(s). This presents Iran with the option to target economic centers and banks belonging to the US and Israel within the region. It's damn serious because Iran's military command (Khatam al-Anbiya) are warning civilians to stay at least one kilometer away from these establishments in the region.

The raging war is escalating, that's for sure. Yet, just hours ago, Trump is telling Axios in a 5-minute interview that there's "practically nothing left" to target in Iran! 🤣🤣🤣

As of March 11, the death toll has reached over 1,300 in Iran and at least 11 in Israel, with additional casualties reported among US troops in the region. 

Bombs, Missiles and Drones Cause Widespread Death and Destruction

Israel may have pulled the trigger first – but I blame US President Donald Trump! He, himself suggested on Tuesday that he may have “forced Israel’s hand” into a war with Iranian "lunatics" (The Times of Israel, March 03, 2026). 

It sure has been a very busy week so far for all parties involved. Yesterday, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth touted as evidence of America's global reach in its war on Iran when he confirmed a US fast attack submarine had sunk an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean – the Pentagon released footage of the strike. FYI, the IRIS Dena, had participated in a naval exercise in India just weeks ago. And according to Sri Lankan authorities, 32 sailors have been rescued, 61 are still missing and 87 bodies have so far been found. 

Iran's navy are already almost decimated, if you believe the Americans. Trump declared Monday that the US sank 10 Iranian battleships. But, on the same day, CENTCOM had stated that in two days, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman and now they have none left. 

Whether 10 or 11, that hadn't stopped Trump from gloating: “They’re at the bottom of the sea”. 

Oil tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has plunged by 90 percent since the outbreak of the Middle East war, energy market intelligence firm Kpler said on X. Iranian forces, meanwhile, claimed "complete control" of the strait, a vital route for world oil and gas supplies, after Trump said Tuesday the US Navy were ready to escort oil tankers through the channel. 

The British are joining in. Their F-35s shot down Iranian drones over Jordan, marking the first time that one of the Royal Air Force's stealth fighter jets had destroyed a target in combat, the UK defense ministry shouted out on Tuesday.

The Israel Defense Forces said they dropped more than 4,000 bombs on Iranian targets in just four days and on Tuesday, even hit “Minzadehei”, a secret underground site on the outskirts of Tehran where Iran transferred much of its nuclear program after the 12-day war with Israel in June. 

The commander of CENTCOM – the forward headquarters of United States Central Command in Qatar – Admiral Brad Cooper claimed the US has struck more than 2,000 targets with more than 2,000 munitions and severely degraded Iran's air defences.

It's not all one-sided though. Three US fighter jets were downed over Kuwait. The Americans explained on Monday that the F-15s were "mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defences" and all six crew ejected safely. If you ask me, I don't believe this excuse of a "friendly fire incident".

A day earlier, Iran pounded a base housing US troops in Kuwait on Sunday, killing three service members. Since then, the death toll has risen to six, CENTCOM confirmed on Monday, an uptick that was forecasted by Trump and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Dan Caine. 

Still, Iran maintained that more than 650 US military personnel were killed and wounded in the first two days of Operation True Promise 4, while its military say they fired over 700 drones and hundreds of ballistic missiles in 48 hours exceeding the total firepower of the June 2025 war. 

Also, on Monday, Saudi Arabia’s largest oil refinery at Ras Tanura halted operations after a drone strike in the area. Iran accused Israel of carrying out the attack, describing it as a “false flag” operation.

And on the same day too, a Shahed-type unmanned aerial vehicle struck a runway at a UK military base in Akrotiri, Cyprus. Consequently, Greece is sending two frigates and a pair of F-16 fighter jets to Aphrodite's Isle.

Amazon Web Services reported Monday that two data centers in the United Arab Emirates were “directly struck” and another facility in Bahrain was also damaged after a drone landed nearby. 

On Tuesday, two ballistic missiles were aimed at Qatar's Al Udeid Air Base. Air defenses intercepted one, while the second struck the base southwest of Doha without causing casualties. Al Udeid is the backbone of US military airpower in the Middle East, housing the Combined Air Operations Center that direct American and coalition missions across the region. The strike marks a direct hit on one of Washington’s most critical strategic assets there. 

There's been so many claims made by all sides; it's been difficult to establish the veracity of every claim. What is certain is the trail of death and destruction left behind! 

And then there's this widely-circulated story which according to Israeli journalist Nahum Barnea, Trump through Italy had sought an immediate ceasefire upon seeing that the Iranian government did not collapse after the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with senior figures in the country’s leadership – but Iran rejected it outright.

They should fear Khamenei as a martyr, more than Khamenei alive!

This ambitious American-Israeli project targeting Iran envisioned a massive bombing campaign to last only 4-5 days and expecting Iran to surrender thereafter. 

Today is Day 6! 

IRAN HAS NOT SURRENDERED! 😂😂😂😂😂😂

And on Tuesday, parents in Minab, Iran held a mass funeral for the 165 students – most of them girls aged between 7 and 12 – as well as staff killed in the attack on the Shajareh Tayyebeh all girls' school by the evil Israel-US axis. 

The IRNA news agency had cited a local prosecutor as saying that 96 people had been wounded in Saturday’s strike. 

Ali Farhadi, spokesperson for Iran’s Education Ministry, said Sunday that three attacks struck the school, which he said had 264 students. 

Some social media accounts linked to Israel claimed the site was “part of an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base”. However, an analysis by Al Jazeera’s digital investigations unit of satellite imagery compiled over more than a decade, as well as recent video clips, published news reports and statements from official Iranian sources, tells a very different story. 

The findings reveal that the school had been clearly separate from an adjacent military site for at least 10 years. The investigation also shows that the strike pattern raises fundamental questions about the accuracy of intelligence information on which the bombing was based.

The Minab massacre is a war crime.

Iran's official IRNA news agency said Wednesday Israel and US had killed 1,045 military personnel and civilians since the start of the war. Elsewhere, Al Jazeera reported at least 11 dead in Israel as well as six US soldiers and eight civilians killed in the Gulf states. And the death toll from Israeli military action in Lebanon has risen to 72, with 437 injured since this front of the war ignited on Monday.

Iran Attacked Again

A return to armed conflict. Truth be told, there's just no way to avoid it. It's gonna happen, sooner or later!

And so, on February 28, Israel in cahoots with the US attacked Iran! 

US President Donald Trump himself confirmed "major combat operations" had been under way, and he openly called for regime change. 

The office of Iran's supreme leader, and the presidential office in Tehran, were targeted, as well as military sites across the country. Innocents too were sacrificed when children were cold-bloodedly murdered – initial kill numbers were said to be at least 57 – and scores more were injured. A missile had hit an all-girls' elementary school in Minab, southern Iran. 

Iran promptly launched retaliatory strikes on Israel. And it wasn't just confined to this illegitimate state. Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan, which hosted US assets, all admitted they had intercepted missiles fired from Iran at US military bases on their territory. 

Of course, they wouldn't acknowledge it but they were left battered and bruised. 

Defence Security Asia affirmed that an Iranian Shahed drone took out a key US-operated $1.1 billion early warning radar system, the AN/FPS-132 stationed in Qatar. And the Guardian reported that the 5-star Fairmont The Palm hotel in Dubai was struck by an Iranian missile. Social media videos showed smoke rising from the building and four people were injured. And I'm sure there was destruction and devastation in other places too.

Then the claim by Trump in his Truth Social post that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been eliminated. 

Today, at 08:38 AM GMT+8, Reuters citing Iranian state media reported that Khamenei has indeed been killed, along with his daughter, grandchild, daughter-in-law and son-in-law in the Israeli-US strikes.

And Trump openly urged Iranians to "take over" the government, saying: "This will be probably your only chance for generations".

Naked aggression must not go unanswered. Iran is not Venezuela. Or Cuba. 

I expect Iran will not spare the Americans nor the Israelis and Netanyahu knows it. One report is claiming he has hightailed out of Israel. Another report says he has fled to Berlin, Germany.

I anticipate Iran to unleash its full military might and punish and crush Israel. Once and for all, I hope. 

And I pray that the citizens of the US vassal states in the Middle East will have the courage to rise up, overthrow their puppet leaders and set their country back on the right side of history. Only then, can they say their nations are truly sovereign.

I'm not a Shi'ite and I’m not neutral. I firmly stand with Iran. 

Long live Iran! Zendeh baad Iran! (زنده باد ایران)! 

Unliveable Kuwait City

One city in the Middle East is slowly becoming "unliveable" – its heat burns you! 

 

Kuwait City, the capital of the gulf nation of Kuwait and a place made mostly of unforgiving concrete and asphalt, regularly sees temperatures skyrocket to 52C, more than half the temperature required to boil water. 

 

On July 21, 2016, the Mitribah weather station in northern Kuwait recorded a temperature of 54C (129F) – the third-highest reading in the world, while the mercury mercilessly breached 50C for a staggering 19 days in 2021.

 

Kuwait is also heating up faster than the global average. Climate scientists believe it could be a staggering 5.5C hotter by the end of the century. 

 

There have been shocking reports of birds falling dead from the sky and seahorses boiling in the bay. Even the hardiest pigeons are seeking shade from the ferocity of the sun. Temperatures of 50C are not just uncomfortable, they're dangerous. They're 13C (55F) above body temperature and can cause serious health problems like heat exhaustion, heart issues and even death if people are exposed for too long.

 

Desperate measures have had to be taken to protect residents from the baking heat. Last year the Kuwaiti government issued an edict allowing funerals to be conducted at night for the very first time.

 

A 2020 study also found 67% of total electricity consumption in residences come from air conditioning which runs all day, every day. Indoor shopping streets also blast cool air throughout the summer months in a bid to keep traders and shoppers cool. 

 

Joshua Wood wrote in ExpatsExchange about the "high quality of life" in this "modern, luxurious and safe" country, but warned that the heat can be "very hot from May through September" and become "insanely hot" in June, July and August.

 

I have read that research from last year by the Institute of Physics suggested that by the century's end, climate change could cause heat-related deaths to rise by 5.1% to 11.7% across the entire population.

 

One expert of environmental issues, Salman Zafar, wrote: "Kuwait could be potentially facing serious impacts of global warming in the form of floods, droughts, depletion of aquifers, inundation of coastal areas, frequent sandstorms, loss of biodiversity, significant damage to ecosystem, threat to agricultural production and outbreak of diseases".

 

 

The continuing mass influx of illegal immigrants into the US could mean that American citizens could cease to decide the outcome of elections in the country in the not-too-distant future, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk (right) has predicted. 

 

The South African-born billionaire claimed that the Democrats are wittingly refusing to address the issue, in the hope of skewing the balance in their favor. 

 

Musk’s comment came in response to Republican lawmakers passing the Equal Representation Act in the House of Representatives on Wednesday, which would require the Census Bureau to ask respondents about their citizenship in their ten-year surveys. GOP representatives want only US citizens to be counted when determining the number of congressional seats in each state.

 

House Speaker Mike Johnson argued that “we should not reward states and cities that violate federal immigration laws and maintain sanctuary policies with increased Congressional representation. Common sense dictates that only American citizens should be counted for electoral apportionment”.

 

Democratic Representative Grace Meng of New York described the initiative as “reckless, cynical, and frankly, illegal”. 

 

President Joe Biden’s office was quick to state that it “strongly opposes” the measure, “which would preclude the Department of Commerce’s Census Bureau from performing its constitutionally mandated responsibility”. 

 

In a post on X on Thursday, Musk wrote: “Unanimous Democrat opposition to requiring citizenship for apportionment of House seats and Presidential electoral college votes says it all”. According to the entrepreneur, “the Democratic Party goal is to disenfranchise US citizens by importing as many illegal immigrants as possible. Given the massive influx of illegals from every country on Earth, 2024 will probably be the last election actually decided by US citizens”.

McDonald's (And Starbucks) Take a Sales Hit

After Starbucks, McDonald's too have admitted they are seeing a "meaningful" hit to business, as customers in the Middle East and elsewhere boycott the fast-food behemoth for their perceived support of Israel. 

Chief executive Chris Kempczinski acknowledged the impact in a LinkedIn post, blaming the backlash on "misinformation". 

"This is disheartening and ill-founded", he said. "In every country where we operate, including in Muslim countries, McDonald's (are) proudly represented by local owner operators". McDonald's rely on thousands of independent businesses to own and operate most of their more than 40,000 restaurants around the world – and about 5% are located in the Middle East. 

Since the Hamas-Israeli war began, the McDonald's corporate headquarters have tried to keep a low profile regarding the conflict. But their brand still gets entangled. It was sparked by McDonald's Israel boasting they had given away thousands of free meals to members of the Israeli military. 

The move sparked grassroots calls for boycotts of the brand by those angered by Israel's military aggression in Gaza, prompting owners in Muslim-majority countries such as Kuwait, Malaysia and Pakistan to put out statements distancing themselves. 

The post from Kempczinski comes as tensions over the boycotts have escalated. 

The pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS), which had not formally targeted McDonald's, this week officially called for a boycott of the brand. The move came after McDonald's Malaysia, which are backed by a Saudi entity, sued the Malaysia BDS group for $1.3 million, citing "false and defamatory statements" that they said had hurt their business. 

BDS called McDonald's to cut ties with their franchisee in Israel as well as in Malaysia, unless they dropped the lawsuit. 

"Instead of pressuring (their) parent company, McDonald's Corporation, to terminate (their) shameful franchise agreement in Israel, McDonald's Malaysia and (their) Saudi owner are desperately trying to silence voices of peaceful solidarity with the Palestinian liberation struggle in Malaysia", the group said. "We cannot let this pass. Let's show McDonald's what grassroots boycotts can do".

McDonald's declined to comment on the lawsuit, referring back to the post. In his message, Kempczinski said: "We abhor violence of any kind and firmly stand against hate speech, and we will always proudly open our doors to everyone".

And in the US especially, Starbucks became the target of pro-Palestine boycotts after they sued the Starbucks Workers United union in October over a social media post in support of Palestine. CEO Laxman Narasimhan, in a letter to employees, noted many of Starbucks' stores have experienced incidents of vandalism, and added the company are working with local authorities to ensure the safety of their workers and customers.

The coffee chain won’t yet say how their sales have been impacted. The company’s next quarterly sales report won’t come out until February, but there are indications Starbucks are taking a sales hit. 

In an early December report, JP Morgan analyst John Ivankoe lowered his US sales forecast for Starbucks’ fiscal first quarter, saying holiday sales appeared to be slower than promotions in the fall. Starbucks' share price tumbled on the news. 

Meanwhile, videos posted on X show protests and empty stores in London, Dubai and elsewhere.

McDonald’s Franchises on Opposing Sides

Pulitzer Prize-winning commentator Thomas Friedman in the late 1990s famously claimed that two countries with McDonald’s outlets had never gone to war. 

 

But as fighting rages between Israel and Hamas, the iconic American fast food chain are at war with themselves.

 

McDonald’s franchises in the Middle East have weighed in on opposing sides of the conflict, with branches in Muslim countries disavowing a decision by McDonald’s Israel to provide free meals to the Israeli military. 

 

Franchises in Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and United Arab Emirates have distanced themselves from their Israeli counterparts and collectively pledged more than $3 million to support Palestinians under bombardment in Gaza. 

 

“Let us all combine our efforts and support the community in Gaza with everything we can”, McDonald’s Oman, which pledged $100,000 towards humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza, posted on X (formerly Twitter) last Sunday. “We ask God Almighty to protect our beloved country and all Arab and Muslim countries from all the evil and hate”.

 

Since announcing their support for the Israeli army, McDonald’s Israel have changed their Instagram account to “private” following a backlash from consumers in Arab and Muslim countries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While McDonald’s rank among the most iconic American brands, most of their restaurants worldwide are locally owned and operated. The case of McDonald’s highlights the tricky geopolitical dynamics that globe-spanning brands must navigate in an era where businesses are often expected to weigh in on hot-button social and political issues.

 

Having different franchises of McDonald’s end up on different (rhetorical) sides is an example of how politics permeates everything.

It is a known fact the United States is driven by a lust for wars!

 

 

Fact: CO2 Drives Climate Change

The COP26 climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland is in session. Since Sunday.

One subject that is bound to be hotly debated is carbon dioxide emissions. 

And I wasn't aware that Malaysia's CO2 emissions are pretty high! Malaysiakini had reported yesterday that at 7.2 tonnes per person, Malaysia's carbon emission per capita is greater than China(!) but thankfully, a lot less than the United States. 

In fact, the carbon emission per capita for China is 7 tonnes, while the United States emits 15 tonnes per capita. 

I decided to find out more and so, I'm sharing what I found out here. 

Malaysia’s carbon dioxide emissions per capita for the 1960-2018 period, according to theglobaleconomy.com showed an average value of 3.67 metric tonnes with a minimum of 0.44 metric tonnes in 1960 and a maximum of 7.76 metric tonnes in 2014. 

The latest value from 2018 is 7.6 metric tonnes. For comparison, the world average based on 186 countries is 4.24 metric tonnes. 

Compare this to China with 7.4 metric tonnes and the US with 15.2 metric tonnes (World Bank). 

And from knoema.com, CO2 emissions per capita for Malaysia in 2020 was 7.98 tonnes of CO2 per capita. 

If you must know, in 2020, Palau was the #1 country for CO2 emissions per capita at 55.29 tonnes of CO2 per capita. The other countries to make the Top 5 were Qatar, Trinidad and Tobago, Bahrain, and Kuwait.

Per-capita emissions are highest for oil-producing countries and some island nations, reflecting the huge energy costs the oil business has on the global environment – even before those fossil fuels are burned. 

CO2 emissions per capita in selected countries and regions, 2000-2020 (last updated Oct 28, 2021: 

Source: International Energy Agency

FYI, carbon dioxide is a key greenhouse gas that drives global climate change. 

Atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide are at the highest levels ever recorded. Greenhouse gas levels are so high primarily because humans have released them into the air by burning fossil fuels. The gases absorb solar energy and keep heat close to Earth's surface, rather than letting it escape into space. That trapping of heat is known as the greenhouse effect. 

Today, climate change is the term scientists use to describe the complex shifts, driven by greenhouse gas concentrations, that are now affecting our planet’s weather and climate systems. Climate change encompasses not only the rising average temperatures we refer to as global warming but also extreme weather events, shifting wildlife populations and habitats, rising seas, and a range of other devastating impacts.

There is widespread belief that world leaders at COP26 will likely have their last chance to curtail the deadliest consequences of human-induced planetary warming. 

Time is of the essence for unified global action as studies suggest as little as 9 years remain before the most catastrophic effects of climate change take hold and are impossible to stop. 

But I'm not putting much hope in COP26 anyway.  

148 Million Cases and India's Unfolding TragedyI

The world has registered 148 million cases – and India alone contributed 47.5% of daily new cases. 

There’s no denying it anymore, the country is in full crisis mode. 

India has already confirmed more than 197,000 deaths and 17.6 million cases – more than five million have been added just this month alone. FYI, as at March 31, 2021 there were nearly 163,000 deaths and 12.2 million cases. 

The devastating effect is evident in the images pouring in from crematoriums across the country – of anguished families waiting for hours to perform last rites, mass cremations as cities run out of space to honor the dead and incessant plumes of smoke from funeral pyres. 

Journalists in many Indian cities have challenged official figures, often spending days outside crematoriums to count the dead. Their estimates suggest that deaths in some cities are ten times higher than what is being reported.

The steep increase in Covid-19 cases in India, where the health care system is on the verge of collapse has been attributed to the new B.1.617 double mutant strain that is considered to be more contagious and spreads quicker compared to other variants around the world. 

In fact, Al Jazeera reported that this variant had been initially detected in the country at the end of last year! However, India only acknowledged the presence of the mutated virus at the end of March this year. 

So far, many countries, including Singapore, the United States, United Kingdom, France, Canada, Iran, Kuwait, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, and Italy have banned flights from India due to concern over the double mutant strain of the virus. 

Shockingly but not surprisingly, Malaysia will ban flights to and from India only from tomorrow! That’s the PN government for you! There's no sense of urgency.

Twin Threats to UN Climate Change Initiative

Climate change is already here. 

Regretfully, NOT everybody is united behind the agenda to tackle climate change. 

I just read a BBC report published Wednesday that recalcitrant countries are derailing UN efforts and therefore, putting the whole world in peril.

Last December at the Katowice COP24 meeting in Poland – four countries: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Russia and the US of A objected to moves to welcome the findings of the IPCC Special Report on 1.5C. 

That study, regarded as a landmark, had two clear messages. 

It showed that there are massive benefits in keeping temperature rises this century to 1.5C compared to a world that warmed 2C or more. 

It also said that keeping the world below 1.5C was still possible – if drastic cuts in emissions were initiated by 2030. 

To the distressing frustration of a huge majority of countries, the objections of the four major fossil fuel producers, meant that the scientific report was not formally recognized in the negotiations. 

The battle over the 1.5C report has carried over from Katowice to Bonn, Germany. 

Normally, this mid-year meeting is concerned with technical questions but this time the issue of the IPCC has re-emerged as a huge fault line between nations. 

Many environmental campaigners see the Saudi forceful pressure on the IPCC as part of a deliberate campaign to discredit the science. 

As Dr Jeni Miller from the Global Climate and Health Alliance says: "This report was requested by the UN, by these countries themselves, so to not accept the findings of the report is a rejection of science, and if you are rejecting the science there is not a way forward to address this problem". 

And if that is not worrisome enough, the European Union's inability to reach consensus on cutting carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 has thrown a spanner in the works.

Just last week, four countries: Poland, Hungary, Czech Republic and Estonia, refused to support the plan. 

The Secretary General, António Guterres called a special summit on climate change to be held in New York in September with the express purpose of getting countries to increase their existing targets. The EU's proposed net zero goal, therefore, was key to making this a success.

With the rejection by the four, the EU will be put under a Brobdingnagian cloud of acute embarrassment if they go with what they just have now. 

Ulriikka Aarnio, from the Climate Action Network said sarcastically: "...they would be going from leader to loser if that was the case". 

Obviously, we cannot leave it to the politicians to ensure the survival of our world as we know it – it's time for the people to take direct action! 

For the sake of planet Earth. For our sake and for our children's sake.

Bomb Violence with Mercy

A still from the advert showing the suicide bomber pursued by a crowd. Photograph: Youtube

Those playing victims of terror in the video attempt to reclaim the bomber’s religious invocations. Photograph: Youtube

A Ramadan TV ad by a Kuwaiti telecom company Zain in which victims of terrorism confront a suicide bomber and urge society to “bomb violence with mercy” went viral over the weekend.

At the same time, it provoked a heated debate on social media – there were those who praised its attempt to tackle extremism as well as those saying it was inappropriate to use images of victims of terrorism in a commercial spot, arguing it was exploitative. 

 

On top of that, it has also sparked conversations about Islam.

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