Is it not questionable that the current British government likely lacks the will to go to war with Argentina over these islands? The welfare system in Britain has crippled the nation.

England is going to suffer a humiliation.

A useful distraction from the massive failure of the "socialist" Argentine state, just like last time. Nothing like an external hated enemy to stir up the citizens and get them to forget domestic troubles - like a serious inflation and erosion of civil liberties.

Yeah, Kirchner is just yelling "squirrel" out to sea, to keep the homeys from meditating on the shambles she has wrought.

"It is disappointing that today the Government of Argentina is once again ignoring the rights and wishes of the Falkland Islands people"

Replace Argentina with America and Falkland Islands with the American people and you pretty much sum up the Obama admin as well.

#1, my feeling is that the UK will go to war over the Falklands if necessary. There is a garrison on the island; the islanders regularly train with the soldiers; a submarine or two is usually lurking; and the UK´s latest destroyer, the first of the Type 45s named HMS Daring, is now past four years of trials and ready for trouble.

Wikipedia has a fairly good description of Daring.

Dittoes, #4.

The UK may be a dieing and decadent society, but if they can muster the will in their socialist paradise...I think they can still kick the Argies´ butts.

As an item of interest, in ´89-90 I was a student at the USMC Command and Staff College, where we had an Argentine Naval (Counter-guerilla) guy, and an British officer. They were polite to each other, but not friends. I became friends with the Argentine (because of my own expertise in guerilla and counter-guerilla war), and asked him once about the war. "It was stupid," he told me. "We didn´t need those islands, and it was a stupid war. We lost, and that´s that." All in all, he took it pretty well, I suppose. He kept telling me (we had him and his family over for dinner a couple times), when I retired I should move to Argentina; I could live like a king (MUCH lower prices). Gotta admit, it sounded tempting, but unstable political situations always worry me. :-)

This letter is totally beside the point. Argentina is in a total social, economic, and cultural shambles. To survive, the government must present an emotional distraction; the Falklands is an excellent selection to keep the subjects preoccupied.

Their (Argie and Brit) cool politeness was downright friendly compared to the Israeli officer and the various Arab country students. But the rules were clear: We were there as professionals, and would maintain ourselves that way. Though it was obviously a strain for them all sometimes.

Please excuse another post--have just posted another piece on the Falklands and it contains this important bit of info (among many others):

Britain has four warships, four RAF fighter-bombers and a 1,000-strong garrison on the Falklands. . . .

http://www.lucianne.com/thread/?artnum=717575

That would seem sufficient to hold off an attack to allow reinforcements to arrive (not forgetting one or two submarines), given that Argentina doesn´t have much of a military left. I´m sure each time Kirchner opens her mouth certain units are put on high alert.