Link Purge from the Last Week (Or So)

I've recently updated the system I use to collect news links. Here's a purge - with some commentary as necessary - of the news links I've collected in the past week.

China:

WOTR: Ten Reasons Why China Will Have Trouble Fighting a Modern War - I recognize the need for America and its allies to prepare for Chinese ambitions, but I remain very skeptical that China is on the verge of becoming a legitimate superpower, militarily or otherwise. These are some good reasons to question such alarmism.

RAND: China’s Incomplete Military Transformation: Assessing the Weaknesses of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) - This study was produced semi-independently from the article above, and provides more depth on the issues identified by the author of the WOTR article, in addition to other relevant topics.

COIN:

War is Boring: All the Reasons Islamic State Won’t Have It Easy in Afghanistan: For one, there’s Taliban to deal with

CNN: Nonsense about terrorism's 'root causes' - There's been a lot of press this week about ISIS/DAESH's motives, and how to undermine its regional ambitions. This is one of those items, though

CNN: Why does ISIS keep making enemies? - This op-ed, also by Peter Bergen, is another such item.

The Atlantic: What ISIS Really Wants - The most prominent article on the topic is this one from The Atlantic.

Slate: The Atlantic’s big Islam lie: What Muslims really believe about ISIS - Haroon Moghul at Slate disagrees with that article in The Atlantic. I'm shocked, I swear.

Iran:

War is Boring: Looks Like Iran Upgraded Syria’s Helicopters: But the regime’s not actually using the new systems

War is Boring: A Bunch of Iranian Drones Have Crashed in Iraq

Science/Junk Science:

BBC: In pictures: Snow blankets the Middle East

Kuwait Times: In Pakistan, vaccinating kids becoming a deadly battle

Kuwait - General:

Kuwait Times: The pros and cons of cousin marriage - Occasionally, I'll post a "Kuwaiti Headline of the Day" on Facebook. This one absolutely made the cut. Previous favorites include "Fight over 100 fils (about $0.34) renders Bangladeshi impotent", "‘Accusing Kuwaitis of laziness unfair’", "Excessive meddling ruining Kuwait Airways: MP Saleh", "New twist in Kabad camel market brawl", "Royal among three Kuwaitis in fight over bike ownership", "Daesh (ISIS) Goes Potty", "Ministry of Interior officer steals sheep", "The great Kuwaiti cat-meat scandal", and my all-time favorite, "Egyptian Sex Maniac brought to book".

Military Kit:

WOTR: Getting Our Money’s Worth: LCS vs Iver Huitfeldt-Class - This one feeds into a conversation I've been having with one of my postgraduate coursemates, CN Slapshot.

AFP: Four US littoral combat ships to operate out of Singapore by 2018 - This feeds into the same conversation with CN Slapshot.

Risk Management:

UPI: Industry: Risk aversion costs more than 'fast failure'

Russia:

Sputnik: Russia May Finalize its Flagship Aircraft Carrier by 2025 - A couple of years ago, I researched the state of Russia's conventional forces, to include its navy. I wasn't impressed.

SPX: Russian Shipyard Makes History: 4 Subs Under Construction Simultaneously - See directly above.

Scottish Miscellany:

BBC: Shetland firearms teenager to appeal against three-year sentence

BBC: Shetland ferry strike called off after Cosla talks

BBC: Wood Group warns of further cuts over low oil price

BBC: British Gas owner Centrica sees profits fall steeply

Strategy:

BBC: How strong is the Nato military alliance?

Terrorism:

Al Jazeera: Al-Shabab stages deadly attack on Somalia luxury hotel

WMD:

AFP: Nuclear deterrent important in 'dangerous world', says Hollande - I mainly saved this article to share with my Strategic Nuclear Doctrine instructor, Critical Mass.

General Chicanery:

Wondermark #1101

Wondermark #1102

Al Jazeera: Spring has sprung in Oregon - It can't be very frequent that Oregon gets mentioned by Al Jazeera.

BBC: Algeria's protracted end of an era

Failblog: This Wrong Number Text Ends in Excellent Home Decoration Advice

BBC: Rand Paul and his Ron Paul conundrum