Submitted by Michael Snyder via The Economic Collapse blog,

A lot of people were expecting some really big things to happen in 2015, and most of them did not happen.  But what did happen?

by Ron Paul

Those who advocate ending, instead of reforming, the welfare-warfare state are often accused of being “impractical.” Some of the harshest criticisms come from libertarians who claim that advocates of “purism” forgo opportunities to make real progress toward restoring liberty. These critics fail to grasp the numerous reasons why it is crucial for libertarians to consistently and vigorously advance the purist position.

Over the weekend, a series of dramatic events stemming from Saudi Arabia’s execution of Shiite cleric Nimr al-Nimr plunged the Mid-East further into chaos.

The torching of the Saudi embassy in Tehran prompted Riyadh to cut diplomatic ties with the Iranians and on Monday, Bahrain quickly followed while the UAE recalled its ambassador.

Saudi Arabia is reportedly planning to stop all flights to and from Iran and banning its citizens from travelling there. The Saudi foreign minister Adel al-Jubeir told Reuters that all commercial ties between the countries would also be cut. The move follows attacks on the Saudi embassy in Iran by protesters angry at the execution of Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al Nimr. Sunni-led Saudi Arabia claims that the execution was part of a war on terrorism.

Hillary Clinton’s “regime change” policies as Secretary of State helped spread the chaos that has turned the Middle East into a killing field and might have done even worse if not for extraordinary obstructions from the Pentagon’s Joint Chiefs of Staff regarding Syria, as Gareth Porter recounts at Middle East Eye. By Gareth Porter Seymour…