Well, another year has come and gone and once again we find ourselves immersed in another Holiday Season. Hopefully, everyone out there has found happiness and joy in some form during the year. Perhaps more so now than at other times of the year, it is important that each and every one of us quietly thinks upon just how good we have it. Many in our country are currently suffering through economic difficulties and Christmastime can be an exceptionally rough period for them. The Obama Administration has been adept at feeding the flames of distrust on a national level between the workforce and corporate America. They would have us believe that corporations are heartless entities intent only on making profit; even if it is at the expense of the lone worker. What good does the creation of enmity between two factions that cannot exist without the other really serve? Corporations don't vote; but single workers do and it is a time honored political play to pretend that you, the caring politician, truly do have the concerns of workers at heart. In the end, if corporations get hurt, workers will pay the ultimate price via unemployment which brings us back to the Christmas season.
I work for a small trucking company in Central Oregon. The owners are incorporated so yes, I too work for one of those evil and lecherous organizations that would suck me dry if they could or; that is what the current occupants of government in Washington D.C. would have me believe. Contrary to the image labeled onto corporate America, the outfit that I work for truly understands the ideal behind the requisite coexistence of the worker and management. They also believe that they are a part of their local community and therefore have a requirement to be stalwart good citizens and help their fellow man when they can. With that in mind, management sent out a message to all of their employees that our company was going to support six needy families during this Christmas and asked if any of us would like to be involved through the adoption for gift giving of a child or money donations to management. The response from one and all was massive and our company is now going to support an additional two families so, we are now supporting a total of 8 families this season.
So, as you celebrate with family and friends this Christmas, think beyond yourself and try not to fall for the misleading prods of political hacks who would divide us for personal gain. Corporations are not our enemies and are not out to destroy us. Without one, I wouldn't have a job and I wouldn't be able to take a moment of happy silence and give a quiet toast to the good deed they have done this season for others suffering through difficult times. MERRY CHRISTMAS!
De Oppresso Liber
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Tuesday, October 27, 2009
President Obama: A Man of Indecision
President Obama's tenure thus far has been littered with numerous missteps. Unemployment hovers around 10%. The stimulus package is supposed to be generating a recovery but if it is, it is damn near invisible. Washington D.C. is more than ever, divided into two polarized and implacable camps. The battle over health care meanders along as politicians argue over how much of our money they should waste. What has our illustrious president been up to? From my perch, he seems to be stuck in a permanent state of campaign. He apparently is having a difficult time evolving from candidate to president. Meanwhile, our country treads water in a growing sense of gloomy apathy.
Added to all of this are our two wars. Iraq has seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth even though we still maintain a large footprint on Iraqi soil. Afghanistan has become Obama's war. During his campaign, he called it the "just war", and a necessary endeavor for our nation to see through to the end. Now, he seems uncertain. Why? Of course, only he knows for certain but as a citizen, I am left wondering. Is he worried about his political base? Does he fear the ghost of Vietnam? Has he changed his views on the war or, could it be possible that he is unable to make timely and tough decisions? I've known many people who suffer from this malady. Many of them are highly intelligent but they allow an overload of information and viewpoints to override any ability to take charge and execute a plan. I fear that this is now President Obama's conundrum. During his run for the presidency I had major issues with the plethora of "present" votes that he registered while serving as a state and federal senator. I took them as a sign that he had difficulties taking a stance on hard issues. I didn't buy into his campaign's statement that these "present" votes indicated a somber ability to take the hard path while others either simply opposed or supported legislation without getting into the details of specific bills. Now, we all can see this trait rearing its ugly head while he ponders what to do in Afghanistan.
Warfare is an ugly and tedious human endeavor. Current leaders cannot blame former leaders. Whether they be in our nation's capitol or, on the battlefield, all battlefield leaders must take into account the latest battle space estimates and develop plans to support our nation's objectives in theater. Once developed, these plans must be implemented in a timely manner. Time is of the essence in warfare. In my view, our current president is unable, or unwilling to make tough strategic battle space decisions. His inability to make the tough choice can eventually lead to indecisiveness with the individual foot soldier in battle. I am not rattling my saber but, I am having a hard time following President Obama's strategic outlook for Afghanistan. He seems to vacillate with the wind and he would do well to study Sun Tzu's, The Art of War. Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese warrior-philosopher who penned this important work over 2,000 years ago and his warnings still apply in our time. In chapter 3, Planning a Siege, Sun Tzu wrote:
"So there are three ways in which a civil leadership causes the military trouble. When a civil leadership unaware of the facts tells its armies to advance when it should not, or tells its armies to retreat when it should not, this is called tying up the armies. When the civil leadership is ignorant of military affairs but shares equally in the government of the armies, the soldiers get confused. When the civil leadership is ignorant of military maneuvers but shares equally in the command of the armies, the soldiers hesitate. Once the armies are confused and hesitant, trouble comes from competitors. This is called taking away victory by deranging the military."
As a former career soldier, I now fear for our troops in battle. President Obama's inability to make the tough choice hampers our nation's efforts abroad. I do not have the information to know for certain what we should do and I'm not saying that regardless of the difficulty, we should jump deeper into Afghanistan however; if we're not, then lets develop a plan of disengagement and get our boys out of harm's way. I call on our president to for once, make a tough decision while he stands alone on his own two feet!
De Oppresso Liber
Added to all of this are our two wars. Iraq has seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth even though we still maintain a large footprint on Iraqi soil. Afghanistan has become Obama's war. During his campaign, he called it the "just war", and a necessary endeavor for our nation to see through to the end. Now, he seems uncertain. Why? Of course, only he knows for certain but as a citizen, I am left wondering. Is he worried about his political base? Does he fear the ghost of Vietnam? Has he changed his views on the war or, could it be possible that he is unable to make timely and tough decisions? I've known many people who suffer from this malady. Many of them are highly intelligent but they allow an overload of information and viewpoints to override any ability to take charge and execute a plan. I fear that this is now President Obama's conundrum. During his run for the presidency I had major issues with the plethora of "present" votes that he registered while serving as a state and federal senator. I took them as a sign that he had difficulties taking a stance on hard issues. I didn't buy into his campaign's statement that these "present" votes indicated a somber ability to take the hard path while others either simply opposed or supported legislation without getting into the details of specific bills. Now, we all can see this trait rearing its ugly head while he ponders what to do in Afghanistan.
Warfare is an ugly and tedious human endeavor. Current leaders cannot blame former leaders. Whether they be in our nation's capitol or, on the battlefield, all battlefield leaders must take into account the latest battle space estimates and develop plans to support our nation's objectives in theater. Once developed, these plans must be implemented in a timely manner. Time is of the essence in warfare. In my view, our current president is unable, or unwilling to make tough strategic battle space decisions. His inability to make the tough choice can eventually lead to indecisiveness with the individual foot soldier in battle. I am not rattling my saber but, I am having a hard time following President Obama's strategic outlook for Afghanistan. He seems to vacillate with the wind and he would do well to study Sun Tzu's, The Art of War. Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese warrior-philosopher who penned this important work over 2,000 years ago and his warnings still apply in our time. In chapter 3, Planning a Siege, Sun Tzu wrote:
"So there are three ways in which a civil leadership causes the military trouble. When a civil leadership unaware of the facts tells its armies to advance when it should not, or tells its armies to retreat when it should not, this is called tying up the armies. When the civil leadership is ignorant of military affairs but shares equally in the government of the armies, the soldiers get confused. When the civil leadership is ignorant of military maneuvers but shares equally in the command of the armies, the soldiers hesitate. Once the armies are confused and hesitant, trouble comes from competitors. This is called taking away victory by deranging the military."
As a former career soldier, I now fear for our troops in battle. President Obama's inability to make the tough choice hampers our nation's efforts abroad. I do not have the information to know for certain what we should do and I'm not saying that regardless of the difficulty, we should jump deeper into Afghanistan however; if we're not, then lets develop a plan of disengagement and get our boys out of harm's way. I call on our president to for once, make a tough decision while he stands alone on his own two feet!
De Oppresso Liber
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Politics: Dissension versus Racism
I have had a difficult time deciding whether or not I wanted to discuss anything political over the past month and a half. The direction that the Obama Administration seems to be taking the country is for me extremely unsettling. The recent cries of "racist and racism" being levied against those of us who dissent from President Obama's philosophical social endeavors screams of hypocrisy. The supporters of President Obama and the Reid/Pelosi Congress are either possessed with unbelievably short memories or they have no problem taking a hypocritical posture when their policy efforts are questioned.
Now I know, being half a century old, my memory could be accused of beginning to falter however; I can remember the horrific ad hominum attacks levied against former President George W. Bush during his tenure in office. I also never once heard any cry rising from Congress asking the dissenters amongst us to remain civil. Yet, Speaker Pelosi, amongst others, demand civility. Why is it perfectly acceptable to accuse a white person in opposition to President Obama's policies, of racism? If we are going to trod down this path then, why weren't high profile black Americans such as, Kanye West, Whoopi Goldberg, and Randi Rhodes called on the carpet for being racist merely because they opposed the policies of a white president?
We have only recently moved beyond the shadow of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Does racism exist in America? Naturally, however; is racism the sole propriety of whites against blacks? Of course not. I oftentimes work in Compton and Oakland, California and I can sense racism in the comments made by black residents when I am in their environs. Is it their right because they may possibly be descendants from former slaves or; is it socially acceptable for blacks to be racist against whites as a form of "payback" for the atrocities of slavery? I think not. Is the charge of racism being levied against white dissenters as a method of quieting the masses? A sense of white "guilt" for the institution of slavery is a reality. Personally, I think about it when I am a minority within a black community and I am very careful to not offend anyone. Are people such as Bill Cosby, President Carter, Representative Clyburne, and Dr. Lamont Hill playing the race card in order to get those of us who truly want a color blind society to shut up? Is the charge of racism being thrown around because we now have a black American for our president and the marketeers of the theory supporting the subliminal white suppression of black social ascendancy are worried that their beliefs are on the verge of being disproved?
I'll be the first to admit that I do not have the answer to any of these questions. More importantly, I cannot understand why anyone amongst us would hope to stir up racial unrest within our culture. I support almost none of President Obama's policies however; I am proud of the fact that he is the first black president of our great nation. Racism has no place in the current national discussion surrounding health care or any other of President Obama's social views. Such talk muddies the real issues facing our nation. Besides, how would those on the left who are currently playing the race card against President Obama's dissenters feel if J. C. Watts was president and his conservative supporters accused his liberal dissenters of racism merely because they dared to voice their dissent?
De Oppresso Liber
Now I know, being half a century old, my memory could be accused of beginning to falter however; I can remember the horrific ad hominum attacks levied against former President George W. Bush during his tenure in office. I also never once heard any cry rising from Congress asking the dissenters amongst us to remain civil. Yet, Speaker Pelosi, amongst others, demand civility. Why is it perfectly acceptable to accuse a white person in opposition to President Obama's policies, of racism? If we are going to trod down this path then, why weren't high profile black Americans such as, Kanye West, Whoopi Goldberg, and Randi Rhodes called on the carpet for being racist merely because they opposed the policies of a white president?
We have only recently moved beyond the shadow of the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Does racism exist in America? Naturally, however; is racism the sole propriety of whites against blacks? Of course not. I oftentimes work in Compton and Oakland, California and I can sense racism in the comments made by black residents when I am in their environs. Is it their right because they may possibly be descendants from former slaves or; is it socially acceptable for blacks to be racist against whites as a form of "payback" for the atrocities of slavery? I think not. Is the charge of racism being levied against white dissenters as a method of quieting the masses? A sense of white "guilt" for the institution of slavery is a reality. Personally, I think about it when I am a minority within a black community and I am very careful to not offend anyone. Are people such as Bill Cosby, President Carter, Representative Clyburne, and Dr. Lamont Hill playing the race card in order to get those of us who truly want a color blind society to shut up? Is the charge of racism being thrown around because we now have a black American for our president and the marketeers of the theory supporting the subliminal white suppression of black social ascendancy are worried that their beliefs are on the verge of being disproved?
I'll be the first to admit that I do not have the answer to any of these questions. More importantly, I cannot understand why anyone amongst us would hope to stir up racial unrest within our culture. I support almost none of President Obama's policies however; I am proud of the fact that he is the first black president of our great nation. Racism has no place in the current national discussion surrounding health care or any other of President Obama's social views. Such talk muddies the real issues facing our nation. Besides, how would those on the left who are currently playing the race card against President Obama's dissenters feel if J. C. Watts was president and his conservative supporters accused his liberal dissenters of racism merely because they dared to voice their dissent?
De Oppresso Liber
Sunday, August 09, 2009
America and Factionalism Revisited
The ascendance of the Democratic Party to total control of both houses of Congress and the White House has led to an ever increasing level of factionalism in the United States. A poor economy combined with a seemingly oblivious Republican Party swept the Democrats into power. The mantra of "change you can believe in" enticed a majority of voters to try something different. As is often the case in life, you sometimes get more than you bargained for and such is now the case in Washington D.C. Many voters were oblivious to just what the consequences would be if Speaker Pelosi and Majority Leader Reid gained an ally in the White House and failed to critically analyze just what candidate Barack Obama would become if he became President. All of us are now reaping what the majority of voters sowed last November. I find it amazing that our citizenry is "surprised" by runaway spending and the attempt to centralize control of many aspects of our society, ie. health care, at the federal level. Even more surprising is the Democratic Party's disbelief at the opposition to their efforts growing nationwide. The White House's call for citizens to "narc" on their neighbors and Speaker Pelosi's contemptuous description of individuals expressing their opposition to universal health care at town hall meetings as mere thuggery is truly alarming. So, what is to become of our Republic? Will you lie down in subservience to the current majority or, will you stand tall and peacefully voice your concerns and force the legislature to return to their roots and remember that they are merely our elected representatives and not overlords of American society?
James Madison penned, The Federalist No. 10(www.constitution.org/fed/federa10.htm), on November 22, 1787. He published this essay under the name of Publius and hoped it would further increase support for the fledgling constitution. He dealt specifically with human factionalism in society and offered safeguards to prevent the eventual destruction of any given society. His findings led him to believe that a republican form of government was the only method through which individual liberties could be preserved. It is often funny how common it is for history to repeat itself. The following excerpt from his essay vividly describes our current government:
James Madison penned, The Federalist No. 10(www.constitution.org/fed/federa10.htm), on November 22, 1787. He published this essay under the name of Publius and hoped it would further increase support for the fledgling constitution. He dealt specifically with human factionalism in society and offered safeguards to prevent the eventual destruction of any given society. His findings led him to believe that a republican form of government was the only method through which individual liberties could be preserved. It is often funny how common it is for history to repeat itself. The following excerpt from his essay vividly describes our current government:
"The instability, injustice, and confusion introduced into
the public councils, have, in truth, been the mortal diseases under which
popular governments have everywhere perished; as they continue to be the
favorite and fruitful topics from which the adversaries to liberty derive their most specious declamations."
An unchecked party majority of the legislative and executive branches of the federal government could seriously weaken our nation. The best method of countering this sickness is to demand that our representatives listen to our opinions, both in support of or opposition to, their efforts in our capitol. If these same representatives should fail to heed our voices, it will become our duty as citizens to remove them from office through the peaceful power of the vote. An involved citizenry is requisite sustenance for a vibrant republic so; I humbly ask the Democrats to explain to me just why they are surprised at the opposition they are now being presented with? Did they not oppose, sometimes in a civil and oftentimes uncivil fashion, the previous administration? Was this not their right?
Many on the Democratic side of the aisle view our constitution as a living, malleable document. Most conservatives view it as a bedrock supporting constancy within our republic. Most Americans are centrists and don't appreciate extreme factionalism within our culture. Neither the far left nor the far right maintain a majority of our populace. Once again, Madison addressed the importance of our constitution as the most effective form of inoculation against rampant factionalism:
"If a faction consists of less than a majority, relief is
supplied by the republican principle, which enables the majority to defeat its
sinister views by regular vote. It may clog the administration, it may convulse
the society; but it will be unable to execute and mask its violence under the
forms of the Constitution."
Madison clearly demonstrates in Federalist No. 10 the importance of our constitution to civil order in America. It is not a document to be tampered with and the public knows this. I have thus far not been surprised by a single event emanating from Washington D.C. I can say with complete satisfaction that I did not vote for President Obama nor; do I support the rampant spending and legislative efforts of Speaker Pelosi or Senator Reid. The Democrats hope to stir up the fire of factionalism in the belief that such discord will keep them in power. It is time for independent thinkers without party allegiances to demand more from our representatives or force them from office through the power of the vote in 2010.
Saturday, August 01, 2009
The Final Gasp of the 1960s
The whirlwind of activity in Washington D.C. portends the final hopes of the Flower Power Generation. Even though he is too young to have actively participated in the socio-cultural events surrounding the 1960s, President Obama’s associates and mentors are for the most part, products of this movement. Political power brokers in the Democratic Party draw their social sustenance from the values espoused by this counter cultural movement. Individuals such as, Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi, Chris Dodd, Henry Waxman, Barney Frank, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein, Harry Reid and numerous others in both Houses of Congress are now in a position to aggressively pursue the long lost dreams of liberalism and socio-economic equality.
The above mentioned individuals have risen to power and are now in a position to fulfill their dreams. Knowing this, they intend to begin a last ditch effort to remake America in the image of the hippie movement. With the Democrats in control of two out of three branches of the federal government, they intend to aggressively change our culture through the enactment of new laws designed to enforce their views. Their policies must be in place before 2010 or, as with other distinct cultural movements throughout our nation’s history, the psychedelic social fantasies of the 1960s will become relegated to mere mention in history books.
Contrary to the endless hyperbole roaring forth from the left and the right, most Americans are centrist in nature and maintain a uniquely American ability to remain ambivalent over many social issues facing our nation. We do not like to do things quickly. For instance, the issue over slavery was contentious during our nation’s founding and yet, it took over a century before the issue was settled. Women sought equality in the 1840s yet; they still struggle to gain parity with their male counterparts. The Democrats would do well to heed the warnings and realize that our citizenry does not react well to being force fed.
All of us need to wake up and not allow an extreme position on socio-political values to become the law of the land. Every one of us needs to look in the mirror and ask ourselves; who are we and what is to become of our country? All is not lost however; for the Democratic Party knows full well that it must move quickly because the youth of our nation who witnessed the horrific attacks of 9/11 are even less likely than the voters of today to accept a political schism that would forever separate us from the hopes and dreams of our founders. Let all of us return to school a month early, demand answers to our questions from our representatives and senators and remind them that we are the employers and they are our employees.
De Oppresso Liber
The above mentioned individuals have risen to power and are now in a position to fulfill their dreams. Knowing this, they intend to begin a last ditch effort to remake America in the image of the hippie movement. With the Democrats in control of two out of three branches of the federal government, they intend to aggressively change our culture through the enactment of new laws designed to enforce their views. Their policies must be in place before 2010 or, as with other distinct cultural movements throughout our nation’s history, the psychedelic social fantasies of the 1960s will become relegated to mere mention in history books.
Contrary to the endless hyperbole roaring forth from the left and the right, most Americans are centrist in nature and maintain a uniquely American ability to remain ambivalent over many social issues facing our nation. We do not like to do things quickly. For instance, the issue over slavery was contentious during our nation’s founding and yet, it took over a century before the issue was settled. Women sought equality in the 1840s yet; they still struggle to gain parity with their male counterparts. The Democrats would do well to heed the warnings and realize that our citizenry does not react well to being force fed.
All of us need to wake up and not allow an extreme position on socio-political values to become the law of the land. Every one of us needs to look in the mirror and ask ourselves; who are we and what is to become of our country? All is not lost however; for the Democratic Party knows full well that it must move quickly because the youth of our nation who witnessed the horrific attacks of 9/11 are even less likely than the voters of today to accept a political schism that would forever separate us from the hopes and dreams of our founders. Let all of us return to school a month early, demand answers to our questions from our representatives and senators and remind them that we are the employers and they are our employees.
De Oppresso Liber
Saturday, July 04, 2009
Independence Day 2009
Happy Fourth of July to all Americans! Hopefully, this day will find you to be in good health, surrounded by friends and family, and employed. If you are out of a job, don't worry because, the national unemployment rate should not exceed 8%. President Obama insured us that his vaunted stimulus package would retard the spike in unemployment. So much for "change we can believe in". We are now hovering around the 10% mark nationally and it is over 16% where I live in Bend, Oregon.
We celebrate the idea of individual independence on this day so, lets take a gander at our national capitol. Just what has been accomplished in Washington D.C.? Near as I can tell, there has been a whole lot of noise and the desire to spend ourselves into bankruptcy. I would like President Obama or any of his advisers to explain the theory behind the belief that deficit spending will move our nation out of the red and into the black? If a family hits financial troubles, they sit down at their kitchen table and juxtapose their monthly cash flow with their monthly bills. All unnecessary expenditures are terminated and only requisite outflow of cash to pay financial obligations is permitted. In other words, the family unit (the bedrock of American culture) tightens its purse strings. Why should our government be any different? If deficit spending was fiscally viable for economic growth, states such as California, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington, and several others should be in a position to bail out the federal government in these difficult times yet; these very states are begging for federal handouts. Even more amazing to me are the pundits who have long supported President Obama's ascension to power. These very folks are now crying for patience and civic support for our President's efforts. If I'm not mistaken, these are also the same people who wanted to see President Bush tarred, feathered and run out of town on a rail. I guess it doesn't bother them to see our nation rudderless and following no true bearing towards any specific goal for economic recovery.
Of course, we must also look towards Afghanistan, North Korea, and Iran. Just what is our policy on the world stage? Okay, the President went around the globe and apologized for the Bush Administration's bullishness against terrorism. Now what are we going to do? It seems to me that our current Administration's national security strategy is to simply wait and see if our problems will recede if we just play nice. In case you liberals out there haven't noticed, things are getting dicey on the world scene and our President is more concerned with issues such as health care, global warming and the like. At least I can now rest assured, President Obama is everything I thought he would be as our President. In Special Forces we have a common saying, "Actions talk and bullshit walks.". My civic support for my president will revolve around an unending desire for him to cease selling his image, take a stand in world security affairs, and to put our national wallet and credit cards away.
I do not want to live in a social democracy and if I did, I would have moved to Europe long ago. Individualism is the very nucleus of the American experiment and this idiosyncratic belief is what will cause our nation to rise above our fiscal troubles. I do not need the government to presuppose my requisites for life. If I'm not mistaken, our founders wanted the government to stay out of my way so I had an unimpeded path to reach for life, liberty, and happiness. Happy Independence Day!
De Oppresso Liber
We celebrate the idea of individual independence on this day so, lets take a gander at our national capitol. Just what has been accomplished in Washington D.C.? Near as I can tell, there has been a whole lot of noise and the desire to spend ourselves into bankruptcy. I would like President Obama or any of his advisers to explain the theory behind the belief that deficit spending will move our nation out of the red and into the black? If a family hits financial troubles, they sit down at their kitchen table and juxtapose their monthly cash flow with their monthly bills. All unnecessary expenditures are terminated and only requisite outflow of cash to pay financial obligations is permitted. In other words, the family unit (the bedrock of American culture) tightens its purse strings. Why should our government be any different? If deficit spending was fiscally viable for economic growth, states such as California, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington, and several others should be in a position to bail out the federal government in these difficult times yet; these very states are begging for federal handouts. Even more amazing to me are the pundits who have long supported President Obama's ascension to power. These very folks are now crying for patience and civic support for our President's efforts. If I'm not mistaken, these are also the same people who wanted to see President Bush tarred, feathered and run out of town on a rail. I guess it doesn't bother them to see our nation rudderless and following no true bearing towards any specific goal for economic recovery.
Of course, we must also look towards Afghanistan, North Korea, and Iran. Just what is our policy on the world stage? Okay, the President went around the globe and apologized for the Bush Administration's bullishness against terrorism. Now what are we going to do? It seems to me that our current Administration's national security strategy is to simply wait and see if our problems will recede if we just play nice. In case you liberals out there haven't noticed, things are getting dicey on the world scene and our President is more concerned with issues such as health care, global warming and the like. At least I can now rest assured, President Obama is everything I thought he would be as our President. In Special Forces we have a common saying, "Actions talk and bullshit walks.". My civic support for my president will revolve around an unending desire for him to cease selling his image, take a stand in world security affairs, and to put our national wallet and credit cards away.
I do not want to live in a social democracy and if I did, I would have moved to Europe long ago. Individualism is the very nucleus of the American experiment and this idiosyncratic belief is what will cause our nation to rise above our fiscal troubles. I do not need the government to presuppose my requisites for life. If I'm not mistaken, our founders wanted the government to stay out of my way so I had an unimpeded path to reach for life, liberty, and happiness. Happy Independence Day!
De Oppresso Liber
Sunday, June 28, 2009
President Obama's Remaking of America
It has been a long time since I’ve been able to muster up enough fortitude to write another political essay. It seems to me that the Obama Administration has been hell bent on remaking America and to tell the truth, their endeavors have left me somewhat depressed and at times fearful of putting my feelings into words lest I come across as just another dissatisfied conservative. Enough is enough and it is time for those of us who oppose an America modified to resemble a member nation of the European Union to speak out. Why is the President attempting to mold us into a social democracy now? Does he not realize that countries such as England, Germany, and France have begun to move away from this failed experiment? Has he brought learned childhood social prejudices such as, economic inequality forced upon the “little guy” by the power brokers of the business world and the supposed virtue of the oppressed proletariat into the oval office? Of course, only he knows the answers to these questions while the rest of us are left wondering. As far as I’m concerned, he is just one in a long line of fiscally successful individuals of a liberal bent who either feel guilty for their financial success or, believe that they can endear working class Americans to their cause by vociferously proclaiming their empathy (A word thrown into almost every conversation coming from the White House) for the plight of us “poor common folk”. I don’t need anyone to feel sorry for me and in fact, I find it somewhat haughty for those in power to assume that they have any idea about my level of success or lack thereof in life. President Obama has reinvigorated the timeless argument over whether big government is a friend or foe for the average citizen. For brevity’s sake, I shall only discuss universal health care.
I retired from the US Army in 1999 at the rank of Sergeant Major. A hip replacement surgery precluded me from continuing to execute my job as a Special Forces Senior Sergeant. The Army replaced my right hip at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. After retirement, I began my long trek through the morass more commonly known as the Veterans Administration. Now let us be clear, the vast majority of the personnel within the VA system are consummate professionals however, the system under which they must operate is so flawed that it borders on ineffectual. Having attained the rank of Sergeant Major, navigating a circuitous trail through paperwork was not new for me but, it still took a Letter of Congressional Inquiry from my congressman to even get me into the system. Once in the system, it took yet another inquiry from his office to speed up the delay for the eventual surgical replacement of my left hip in 2004. I am currently rated at 60% disabled by the VA and I also receive monetary compensation from the US Army for Combat Related Special Compensation. Yet again, my congressman’s office had to get involved to insure that I received all of the financial compensation I am eligible for and the whole process took from 1999 to 2007! I have a BS in Business Management and I am extremely adept at managing paperwork and I still needed my congressman to kick the VA and the US Army in the butt just so I could receive the proper health care and financial support that I had earned after devoting 21 years of my life to our country. Mind you, I’m not complaining but, my intent is to highlight the ineffectualness of big government. What is an uneducated person to do if this type of scenario should become commonplace under government run health care? Don’t be fooled America because by its very nature government is unwieldy and oftentimes unable to adjust to differing situations. After all, the federal government did such a wiz bang job responding to Hurricane Katrina, didn’t it?
Now that I am retired, I am eligible for the military’s health care plan more commonly referred to as TRICARE. I live in Central Oregon and even after 10 years, it still is not available in Central Oregon. In case you are wondering why, the answer is quite simple. It takes upwards of six months before a health care provider receives any compensation from the government for services rendered. What type of business can operate under conditions where it must wait half a year to get paid? For this reason, even in areas in Oregon where TRICARE is available, health care providers are not taking on new patients who use TRICARE as their health care benefits plan.
Government is not the solution. Yes, health care costs need to be reined in but; the question is, how? If I knew the answer to this question I would become wealthy. We need a symposium of heath care providers, insurance companies, government officials, employers and patients to sit down and hammer out some type of solution and I’ll bet a paycheck that the answer won’t be government mandated health care.
De Oppresso Liber
I retired from the US Army in 1999 at the rank of Sergeant Major. A hip replacement surgery precluded me from continuing to execute my job as a Special Forces Senior Sergeant. The Army replaced my right hip at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. After retirement, I began my long trek through the morass more commonly known as the Veterans Administration. Now let us be clear, the vast majority of the personnel within the VA system are consummate professionals however, the system under which they must operate is so flawed that it borders on ineffectual. Having attained the rank of Sergeant Major, navigating a circuitous trail through paperwork was not new for me but, it still took a Letter of Congressional Inquiry from my congressman to even get me into the system. Once in the system, it took yet another inquiry from his office to speed up the delay for the eventual surgical replacement of my left hip in 2004. I am currently rated at 60% disabled by the VA and I also receive monetary compensation from the US Army for Combat Related Special Compensation. Yet again, my congressman’s office had to get involved to insure that I received all of the financial compensation I am eligible for and the whole process took from 1999 to 2007! I have a BS in Business Management and I am extremely adept at managing paperwork and I still needed my congressman to kick the VA and the US Army in the butt just so I could receive the proper health care and financial support that I had earned after devoting 21 years of my life to our country. Mind you, I’m not complaining but, my intent is to highlight the ineffectualness of big government. What is an uneducated person to do if this type of scenario should become commonplace under government run health care? Don’t be fooled America because by its very nature government is unwieldy and oftentimes unable to adjust to differing situations. After all, the federal government did such a wiz bang job responding to Hurricane Katrina, didn’t it?
Now that I am retired, I am eligible for the military’s health care plan more commonly referred to as TRICARE. I live in Central Oregon and even after 10 years, it still is not available in Central Oregon. In case you are wondering why, the answer is quite simple. It takes upwards of six months before a health care provider receives any compensation from the government for services rendered. What type of business can operate under conditions where it must wait half a year to get paid? For this reason, even in areas in Oregon where TRICARE is available, health care providers are not taking on new patients who use TRICARE as their health care benefits plan.
Government is not the solution. Yes, health care costs need to be reined in but; the question is, how? If I knew the answer to this question I would become wealthy. We need a symposium of heath care providers, insurance companies, government officials, employers and patients to sit down and hammer out some type of solution and I’ll bet a paycheck that the answer won’t be government mandated health care.
De Oppresso Liber
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Americana in Spring
Sometimes I think that I get too involved in my passion for politics and as they say, "I fail to see the forest through the trees." No matter how turbulent Washington D.C. might seem to be, it is the humdrum complacency of daily life that is the heartbeat of America. Politicians come and go yet, the American people endure and just this past Thursday I was pleasantly reminded of this.
I was in the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California picking up a load of various diameter 18 foot long steel pipe for delivery to a customer in Fox Island, Washington. It was a gorgeously beautiful spring day in Union City. The sun shone brilliantly on the green vibrancy of Eucalyptus trees as they shimmered in a slight breeze. It was just one of those days when you come to realize just how great it is to be alive. I've taken many loads of pipe out of this pipe yard over the years and I know most of their employees well. Pete, the security guard of Indian descent, and I bantered over the upcoming season for the SF 49ers. As usual, he gave me crap for being both a 49ers and LA Dodgers fan by asking yet again if I knew that there was also a baseball team called the Giants across the Bay? The forklift driver, an Indian man in his fifties, is the big man in the pipe yard and I was lucky enough to have him load me. He never takes any guff from a driver and he didn't with me either however; per usual, after putting the pipe on my trailer he ended our short interlude with a huge smile and a hand off of my paperwork. After securing my load, I drove back to Pete's office so that he could verify the pipe count and give me my bills of lading. I asked him if I could park alongside the curb and buy a burrito from the mobile diner which had just set up shop in the employee's parking lot. He told me, "No problem, but you might want to hide that LA Dodgers baseball cap."
The smell emanating from the mobile diner, or more colloquially, the "gut truck", stirred my pangs of hunger. A good looking oriental lady in her mid thirties was sitting in the shade talking to somebody on her bluetooth. Inside the van was another woman, also in her mid thirties however; she was of Latin descent. Her English was just as poor as my Spanish and we proceeded to engage in the point at the menu game while I decided what I wanted to order. Eventually, I settled on a pork burrito with the works. As she was putting my order together, I began to wonder about these two women. Both of them were slim, well groomed, with brunette hair and charming smiles. They had that "real" look to them. They were not plastic copies of some Hollywood or Manhattan women of fancy. I wondered what they talked about, how they maneuvered through the urban miasma of the East Bay region, and if they were friends? Soon, my order was finished and the young oriental gal came over so that I could pay and I had to chuckle because her English was spoken with such a heavy oriental accent that I had to ask three times for my total. As I pulled out of the pipe yard munching on my burrito I began to think about our great country.
Only in the United States could an individual observe so many people of different descent working within one facility. Indian, Black, Asian, Latino, and White were all interacting in their daily lives on a small piece of real estate in sunny California. Life as we know it here is complex and yet, if we all just remain true to who we are and have respect for our fellow human beings as they trek along on their life's journey things seem to move along quite smoothly. I made a resolution this past Thursday to try on a daily basis to pay more attention to the fluid interaction of all Americans and to an extent, disregard the media's incessant reminder of just how disparate our nation has become. The simple acts of doing my job and ordering a burrito proved that we are all more alike than any of us know.
De Oppresso Liber
I was in the San Francisco Bay Area in Northern California picking up a load of various diameter 18 foot long steel pipe for delivery to a customer in Fox Island, Washington. It was a gorgeously beautiful spring day in Union City. The sun shone brilliantly on the green vibrancy of Eucalyptus trees as they shimmered in a slight breeze. It was just one of those days when you come to realize just how great it is to be alive. I've taken many loads of pipe out of this pipe yard over the years and I know most of their employees well. Pete, the security guard of Indian descent, and I bantered over the upcoming season for the SF 49ers. As usual, he gave me crap for being both a 49ers and LA Dodgers fan by asking yet again if I knew that there was also a baseball team called the Giants across the Bay? The forklift driver, an Indian man in his fifties, is the big man in the pipe yard and I was lucky enough to have him load me. He never takes any guff from a driver and he didn't with me either however; per usual, after putting the pipe on my trailer he ended our short interlude with a huge smile and a hand off of my paperwork. After securing my load, I drove back to Pete's office so that he could verify the pipe count and give me my bills of lading. I asked him if I could park alongside the curb and buy a burrito from the mobile diner which had just set up shop in the employee's parking lot. He told me, "No problem, but you might want to hide that LA Dodgers baseball cap."
The smell emanating from the mobile diner, or more colloquially, the "gut truck", stirred my pangs of hunger. A good looking oriental lady in her mid thirties was sitting in the shade talking to somebody on her bluetooth. Inside the van was another woman, also in her mid thirties however; she was of Latin descent. Her English was just as poor as my Spanish and we proceeded to engage in the point at the menu game while I decided what I wanted to order. Eventually, I settled on a pork burrito with the works. As she was putting my order together, I began to wonder about these two women. Both of them were slim, well groomed, with brunette hair and charming smiles. They had that "real" look to them. They were not plastic copies of some Hollywood or Manhattan women of fancy. I wondered what they talked about, how they maneuvered through the urban miasma of the East Bay region, and if they were friends? Soon, my order was finished and the young oriental gal came over so that I could pay and I had to chuckle because her English was spoken with such a heavy oriental accent that I had to ask three times for my total. As I pulled out of the pipe yard munching on my burrito I began to think about our great country.
Only in the United States could an individual observe so many people of different descent working within one facility. Indian, Black, Asian, Latino, and White were all interacting in their daily lives on a small piece of real estate in sunny California. Life as we know it here is complex and yet, if we all just remain true to who we are and have respect for our fellow human beings as they trek along on their life's journey things seem to move along quite smoothly. I made a resolution this past Thursday to try on a daily basis to pay more attention to the fluid interaction of all Americans and to an extent, disregard the media's incessant reminder of just how disparate our nation has become. The simple acts of doing my job and ordering a burrito proved that we are all more alike than any of us know.
De Oppresso Liber
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Liberalism & Conservatism: A Socio-Political Dichotomy
Throughout its history, America has oftentimes been a turbulent place to call home and so it is today. Our populace seems to be divided into two almost equal numerical groups with differing social philosophies. On the one hand we have the followers of liberalism and on the other, we find the believers in conservatism. Barack Obama’s election to the presidency and the Democratic Party’s control of both Houses in Congress has placed our nation’s future into the hands of a single political party with a distinctive taste for liberalism. As is often the case, we are all left wondering if ultimate power will corrupt? Time will tell but, what of the differing social views between social philosophies? Are their viewpoints irreconcilable? Thomas Jefferson feared factionalism, and along with others, he did not want the United States to see the development of political parties. Much to his chagrin and though guilty of factionalism himself, his wishes for a more civil discourse in politics did not survive the end of President Washington’s second term. The centrists amongst us are the golden goose that both political parties hope to convince to follow them into power.
Naturally, there are many differences between liberalism and conservatism however; if you break it down into its simplest form, the dichotomy between both philosophies starts with the importance of individual responsibility. Liberalism tends to pay little mind to the relative importance of individual responsibility in human society while conservatism places the importance of individual accountability as the foundation upon which its social philosophy will be built. How many times have you heard a liberal politician speak of an individual’s accountability to society? Rather than holding individuals to account for their behavior, they are more concerned with the welfare of the group and hope to enact social policies on a national level to change society and I believe that this is a fatal flaw in their reasoning. Most liberal politicians will never assign any sense of responsibility to the individual for the plight which he or she finds themselves in. In their view, there are always outlying conditions which disallow the individual to become a cohesive part of society. For brevity’s sake, let’s look at education and guns.
According to statistics, our children are intellectually falling behind the world’s other developed countries. Okay, but why? A horrendous crime occurs with a firearm and for liberals the cause of the crime was the gun and not the human finger which pulled the trigger. Individual responsibility and an innate sense of right and wrong are the bedrock of human society and they must be taken into account and encouraged to develop if any human culture hopes to survive.
Liberal politicians are always demanding that more money be spent on education while claiming the virtues of America’s public education system. Could it be that our educational system is indeed flawed and has more to do with how money is misspent rather than the amount of money spent? Children have to take responsibility for their own actions and attempt to learn. If they begin to wander off course then it is the responsibility of their parents to bring them back into line. Who allowed the teacher’s union to become the sacred cow which cannot be touched? Give me any other occupation where it is next to impossible to be removed for lack of productivity? I’ve known teachers who have no right to be in a classroom and yet, their tenure and the power of their union make them virtually untouchable. Here’s another idea, if dollars are tight, lets evaluate the disparity between the salaries of personnel in educational management positions and the salaries of the teachers. For example, why would a blue collar community close to where I live in tight economic times have to come up with a mid six figure salary for the procurement of a school superintendent? I’m taxed too heavily on the local level for education as it is and yet, I’d be willing to pay higher taxes for education if the local school board would construct a pie chart depicting the spending breakdown of a single dollar procured through taxation. Of course, the school board has said that it is too difficult to analyze the breakdown in cents for every dollar spent thus proving my contention that the real issue is how money is misused and not the lack thereof. Money isn’t the issue and it is merely a liberal placebo meant to obfuscate the responsibility of each individual involved in the educational process.
Being conservative, I am endlessly amazed at how the liberal viewpoint has no difficulty espousing the virtues of the 1st, 4th, and 5th amendments to our constitution and yet, they seem unable to wrap themselves around the simplicity of the 2nd amendment. The Bill of Rights was developed and implemented as a safeguard against any government intrusion into what the founders saw as inherent individual rights in a republic. Let us take a close look at the gun. A firearm is a tool, nothing more, and nothing less. In order for it to operate, it always requires the manipulation of a human finger empowered by a human mind. If a gun was loaded, chambered, cocked and then laid on a table, it would remain in that position until corrosion set in and caused a mechanical failure. In the liberal view, some miscreant from our society harms or murders someone with a firearm and what we need are more laws limiting public access to guns. Have you ever wondered why gun crime statistics are always higher per capita in our urban areas than in rural ones even though the number of guns per capita in rural regions is much higher than in our metropolises? If it is the prevalence of guns that is the culprit then, this statistic would be contrary to common sense. Do we need common sense regulations to keep firearms out of the hands of nutcases? Yes, however, these laws also need to correct human misbehavior if a crime is committed with a gun. Jail sentences for gun related crimes need to be severe. For example, the sentence for an armed robbery conviction with a knife should be far less than the same felony committed with a gun. If people knew that a gun related crime would have a drastic impact on their freedom for the majority of their life, they might actually think twice about picking up a gun with criminal intent. We will reduce violence in our society when we no longer tolerate gun crimes and not by taking a placebo and believing that we can actually remove guns from our landscape.
As you can see, we all are the commanders of our own vessel. Nobody can truly force us to steer off course. The sacred freedom which each of us has to follow our own path brings with it the high cost of permanent personal responsibility. I believe that if we are to ever improve our society it will only occur if it begins one person at a time and not on a large scale filtered down to the individual.
De Oppresso Liber
Naturally, there are many differences between liberalism and conservatism however; if you break it down into its simplest form, the dichotomy between both philosophies starts with the importance of individual responsibility. Liberalism tends to pay little mind to the relative importance of individual responsibility in human society while conservatism places the importance of individual accountability as the foundation upon which its social philosophy will be built. How many times have you heard a liberal politician speak of an individual’s accountability to society? Rather than holding individuals to account for their behavior, they are more concerned with the welfare of the group and hope to enact social policies on a national level to change society and I believe that this is a fatal flaw in their reasoning. Most liberal politicians will never assign any sense of responsibility to the individual for the plight which he or she finds themselves in. In their view, there are always outlying conditions which disallow the individual to become a cohesive part of society. For brevity’s sake, let’s look at education and guns.
According to statistics, our children are intellectually falling behind the world’s other developed countries. Okay, but why? A horrendous crime occurs with a firearm and for liberals the cause of the crime was the gun and not the human finger which pulled the trigger. Individual responsibility and an innate sense of right and wrong are the bedrock of human society and they must be taken into account and encouraged to develop if any human culture hopes to survive.
Liberal politicians are always demanding that more money be spent on education while claiming the virtues of America’s public education system. Could it be that our educational system is indeed flawed and has more to do with how money is misspent rather than the amount of money spent? Children have to take responsibility for their own actions and attempt to learn. If they begin to wander off course then it is the responsibility of their parents to bring them back into line. Who allowed the teacher’s union to become the sacred cow which cannot be touched? Give me any other occupation where it is next to impossible to be removed for lack of productivity? I’ve known teachers who have no right to be in a classroom and yet, their tenure and the power of their union make them virtually untouchable. Here’s another idea, if dollars are tight, lets evaluate the disparity between the salaries of personnel in educational management positions and the salaries of the teachers. For example, why would a blue collar community close to where I live in tight economic times have to come up with a mid six figure salary for the procurement of a school superintendent? I’m taxed too heavily on the local level for education as it is and yet, I’d be willing to pay higher taxes for education if the local school board would construct a pie chart depicting the spending breakdown of a single dollar procured through taxation. Of course, the school board has said that it is too difficult to analyze the breakdown in cents for every dollar spent thus proving my contention that the real issue is how money is misused and not the lack thereof. Money isn’t the issue and it is merely a liberal placebo meant to obfuscate the responsibility of each individual involved in the educational process.
Being conservative, I am endlessly amazed at how the liberal viewpoint has no difficulty espousing the virtues of the 1st, 4th, and 5th amendments to our constitution and yet, they seem unable to wrap themselves around the simplicity of the 2nd amendment. The Bill of Rights was developed and implemented as a safeguard against any government intrusion into what the founders saw as inherent individual rights in a republic. Let us take a close look at the gun. A firearm is a tool, nothing more, and nothing less. In order for it to operate, it always requires the manipulation of a human finger empowered by a human mind. If a gun was loaded, chambered, cocked and then laid on a table, it would remain in that position until corrosion set in and caused a mechanical failure. In the liberal view, some miscreant from our society harms or murders someone with a firearm and what we need are more laws limiting public access to guns. Have you ever wondered why gun crime statistics are always higher per capita in our urban areas than in rural ones even though the number of guns per capita in rural regions is much higher than in our metropolises? If it is the prevalence of guns that is the culprit then, this statistic would be contrary to common sense. Do we need common sense regulations to keep firearms out of the hands of nutcases? Yes, however, these laws also need to correct human misbehavior if a crime is committed with a gun. Jail sentences for gun related crimes need to be severe. For example, the sentence for an armed robbery conviction with a knife should be far less than the same felony committed with a gun. If people knew that a gun related crime would have a drastic impact on their freedom for the majority of their life, they might actually think twice about picking up a gun with criminal intent. We will reduce violence in our society when we no longer tolerate gun crimes and not by taking a placebo and believing that we can actually remove guns from our landscape.
As you can see, we all are the commanders of our own vessel. Nobody can truly force us to steer off course. The sacred freedom which each of us has to follow our own path brings with it the high cost of permanent personal responsibility. I believe that if we are to ever improve our society it will only occur if it begins one person at a time and not on a large scale filtered down to the individual.
De Oppresso Liber
Sunday, April 12, 2009
President Obama and The Age of Revisionism
President Obama's recent trip abroad to meet with world leaders and his attendance at the G20 meeting allowed us to watch him in action overseas for the first time as our nation's leader. So, how did he do? As usual, he was charming and quite eager to let everyone he met know that he is not George W. Bush. Did he actually realize many of his foreign policy objectives? If we use Afghanistan as a measuring stick, I think that any critical thinker will come to the conclusion that he achieved almost nothing. Once again, European leaders have chosen to sit on their hands instead of offering them to us in our fight against the Taliban and Al Quaida. The administration, in an attempt to lower expectations, has argued that a shift in European cooperation will take time because the Obama team must repair the damage made by the "arrogant" unilateral foreign policy decisions of the Bush Administration. How long must we endure the Obama Administration's finger pointing? Can his White House and the democratically controlled Congress ever come to terms with the fact that continually painting George W. Bush as the bogey man will grow tiresome and achieve nothing for our nation's interest?
There is alot of truth to the old saying, "When in charge, take charge!" President Obama would do well to more closely study our nation's history vis-a-vis Europe. Almost since our inception as a nation, Europe has despised our country's rising influence on the world scene. Europeans have generally and often continue to view us as a somewhat uncivilized and uncultured "colony" that somehow managed to break away from European control. Alexis de Toqueville wrote in the 1830s that our nation was lacking in the disciplines of philosophy and the arts. Many of us look to Europe for providing us with refined culture instead of looking at and admiring our own distinctive American culture. This desire to emulate Europe is nothing new and Ralph Waldo Emerson thoroughly chided his fellow citizens for not expending their energies on developing a unique American culture. President Obama, for some reason believes that a subordinate approach to Europe will cause us to be more liked on the world scene and will assist in the realization of our foreign policy initiatives. Europeans love a subordinate and fawning America because it inflates their own feelings of self importance even though, everyone knows that since the end of World War II, the European continent has been basically impudent when it comes to enforcing any type of reaction to the repression or genocide of people around the globe.
President Obama has chosen to follow a common theme in his dealings with the world. His conciliatory approach to foreign nations and public recognition of our nation's transgressions is also a common theme taught in the classrooms of our nation's university level American History courses. I am a history buff and it amazes me just how many new American history books have taken a revised approach at describing our nation's turbulent past. Many historians seem to concentrate on our nation's warts rather than objectively looking at these warts and accurately describing their effect on our country's body. All nations on this globe have a dark side to their history. If I'm not mistaken, Africans are still paying for the high cost of European colonization on their continent. Why does the president seem willing to publicly hang our nation's head in shame? I believe that he is merely a product of the academic environment in which he has spent the majority of his adult life. Such a disjointed view of our nation's history does us a disservice and contrary to his intentions, will not endear us to the world.
At times, has our nation failed to achieve the self realization of it's founding documents? Have we hopefully learned from our missteps? Will we trip up yet again? The answer to the preceding sentences is yes however; I believe that we still are a nation of great possibility and endless horizons and, as an American citizen I will not hang my head in shame or offer our nation's dirty laundry as evidence to the world of our country's less than stellar past. I will eagerly place our country's record against any other country on the globe.
De Oppresso Liber
There is alot of truth to the old saying, "When in charge, take charge!" President Obama would do well to more closely study our nation's history vis-a-vis Europe. Almost since our inception as a nation, Europe has despised our country's rising influence on the world scene. Europeans have generally and often continue to view us as a somewhat uncivilized and uncultured "colony" that somehow managed to break away from European control. Alexis de Toqueville wrote in the 1830s that our nation was lacking in the disciplines of philosophy and the arts. Many of us look to Europe for providing us with refined culture instead of looking at and admiring our own distinctive American culture. This desire to emulate Europe is nothing new and Ralph Waldo Emerson thoroughly chided his fellow citizens for not expending their energies on developing a unique American culture. President Obama, for some reason believes that a subordinate approach to Europe will cause us to be more liked on the world scene and will assist in the realization of our foreign policy initiatives. Europeans love a subordinate and fawning America because it inflates their own feelings of self importance even though, everyone knows that since the end of World War II, the European continent has been basically impudent when it comes to enforcing any type of reaction to the repression or genocide of people around the globe.
President Obama has chosen to follow a common theme in his dealings with the world. His conciliatory approach to foreign nations and public recognition of our nation's transgressions is also a common theme taught in the classrooms of our nation's university level American History courses. I am a history buff and it amazes me just how many new American history books have taken a revised approach at describing our nation's turbulent past. Many historians seem to concentrate on our nation's warts rather than objectively looking at these warts and accurately describing their effect on our country's body. All nations on this globe have a dark side to their history. If I'm not mistaken, Africans are still paying for the high cost of European colonization on their continent. Why does the president seem willing to publicly hang our nation's head in shame? I believe that he is merely a product of the academic environment in which he has spent the majority of his adult life. Such a disjointed view of our nation's history does us a disservice and contrary to his intentions, will not endear us to the world.
At times, has our nation failed to achieve the self realization of it's founding documents? Have we hopefully learned from our missteps? Will we trip up yet again? The answer to the preceding sentences is yes however; I believe that we still are a nation of great possibility and endless horizons and, as an American citizen I will not hang my head in shame or offer our nation's dirty laundry as evidence to the world of our country's less than stellar past. I will eagerly place our country's record against any other country on the globe.
De Oppresso Liber
Friday, March 13, 2009
The Americans: Who Are We?
Our country is now traveling a perilous path. The poor economy has a stranglehold upon our populace. We all are nervous spectators to the seemingly ineffectual travails of our government. President Obama and the democratically led Congress have embarked on a spending spree which thus far, has out paced governmental expenditures from any administration in our nation's history. Of course, President Obama, Senator Reid, and Speaker Pelosi are all in agreement that deficit spending is necessary if we are to have any chance at righting our ship. Naturally, none of us, be we uninformed consumers or economic wizards have any unassailable clues as to whether this spending will harm or hurt us. I am of the belief that it will harm us but my fellow citizens seem to be eagerly anticipating federal handouts. This eagerness to look towards the government for solace has led me to several unanswered questions: What is our national identity? Who are we as citizens? What is our relationship with and responsibility to the government?
We Americans would do well to remember the struggles of our forefathers. Our nation was established on the premise that the government works for the people and not the other way around. The Pilgrims were the first Americans to try socialized control of the citizenry. Their “Mayflower Compact” did not survive the first winter ashore. Privatization of lands, dwellings, and commerce was required for them to survive. All of the major players in our revolutionary era sought the freedom of the individual. Naturally, much like now, they disagreed on many issues. Hamilton and Jay desired a strong central government and expressed as much in the Federalist Papers. Jefferson, and later Madison, championed the individual and their “individual rights” which no government could usurp or oppress. We all now know these as our “Bill of Rights”. Our established form of republican democracy requires an active citizenry. Individually, we all are responsible for what we achieve or, fail to realize. Only limited government will help us realize this. We all are equal in opportunity of chance and will over time become socially separated on a series of interconnected occurrences. If you doubt me, think about the following questions. Are all people equal in effort and or lack thereof? Are all people equal in intelligence? Are all people equal in courage? Are all people equal in fear? Are some of us more willing to “risk it all” than others of us? Are all of us equally optimistic or, are some of us more pessimistic than our peers? Are all of us problem solvers or, are some of us complainers? By now you should get my point and realize that about the only time we are equal is when we first leave the womb. After that, life circumstances, personality, and the influence of government will socially, intellectually, and economically divide us. No government, no matter how well meaning, can substitute for personal discipline. Any individual who feels that he or she is due governmental assistance as their birthright demeans themselves and limits their horizon to permanent mediocrity. Will I ever be financially wealthy? Maybe, or maybe not, however; the true question is whether or not I will be able to accrue the wealth of personal realization? A vast resource of wealth lies within each of us and yet, we waste all of our energies in our attempt to accumulate things. Maybe, if all of us spent more time being happy instead of trying to get happy, our lives would become more enriched and the nation would soon follow suit.
Our government, controlled almost solely by the democrats, is seeking to change who we are. Socialized medicine, enforced economic equality through taxes, and massive governmental programs designed to control behavior patterns are currently on the agenda. The buzzword is “crisis”. They are using the citizenry’s fears to throw all of these long desired socialistic programs into action and then call it “stimulating” the economy. I’ll borrow a line from the film “The Outlaw Josey Wales”, and say, “Don’t pee down my back and tell me it’s raining”. My argument stems not from who is office rather; my concern lies with who we are as a nation. I do not support the efforts of our President or our legislative branch. I believe their plans could lead to a devastating loss of our national identity. Much like those before me, I fear the tyranny of the majority. In a letter to James Madison on March 15, 1789, Thomas Jefferson wrote,
De Oppresso Liber
We Americans would do well to remember the struggles of our forefathers. Our nation was established on the premise that the government works for the people and not the other way around. The Pilgrims were the first Americans to try socialized control of the citizenry. Their “Mayflower Compact” did not survive the first winter ashore. Privatization of lands, dwellings, and commerce was required for them to survive. All of the major players in our revolutionary era sought the freedom of the individual. Naturally, much like now, they disagreed on many issues. Hamilton and Jay desired a strong central government and expressed as much in the Federalist Papers. Jefferson, and later Madison, championed the individual and their “individual rights” which no government could usurp or oppress. We all now know these as our “Bill of Rights”. Our established form of republican democracy requires an active citizenry. Individually, we all are responsible for what we achieve or, fail to realize. Only limited government will help us realize this. We all are equal in opportunity of chance and will over time become socially separated on a series of interconnected occurrences. If you doubt me, think about the following questions. Are all people equal in effort and or lack thereof? Are all people equal in intelligence? Are all people equal in courage? Are all people equal in fear? Are some of us more willing to “risk it all” than others of us? Are all of us equally optimistic or, are some of us more pessimistic than our peers? Are all of us problem solvers or, are some of us complainers? By now you should get my point and realize that about the only time we are equal is when we first leave the womb. After that, life circumstances, personality, and the influence of government will socially, intellectually, and economically divide us. No government, no matter how well meaning, can substitute for personal discipline. Any individual who feels that he or she is due governmental assistance as their birthright demeans themselves and limits their horizon to permanent mediocrity. Will I ever be financially wealthy? Maybe, or maybe not, however; the true question is whether or not I will be able to accrue the wealth of personal realization? A vast resource of wealth lies within each of us and yet, we waste all of our energies in our attempt to accumulate things. Maybe, if all of us spent more time being happy instead of trying to get happy, our lives would become more enriched and the nation would soon follow suit.
Our government, controlled almost solely by the democrats, is seeking to change who we are. Socialized medicine, enforced economic equality through taxes, and massive governmental programs designed to control behavior patterns are currently on the agenda. The buzzword is “crisis”. They are using the citizenry’s fears to throw all of these long desired socialistic programs into action and then call it “stimulating” the economy. I’ll borrow a line from the film “The Outlaw Josey Wales”, and say, “Don’t pee down my back and tell me it’s raining”. My argument stems not from who is office rather; my concern lies with who we are as a nation. I do not support the efforts of our President or our legislative branch. I believe their plans could lead to a devastating loss of our national identity. Much like those before me, I fear the tyranny of the majority. In a letter to James Madison on March 15, 1789, Thomas Jefferson wrote,
“The executive power in our Government is not the only, perhaps not even theIs the era of tyranny upon us? Hopefully not, but our populace’s silence and willingness to accept governmental control of our lives scares me. Ralph Waldo Emerson continues, even after death, to be one of our nation’s most eminent philosophers and in 1841 he penned an essay titled, “Politics”. In this essay he wrote the following:
principal, object of my solicitude. The tyranny of the Legislature is really the
danger most to be feared, and will continue to be so for many years to come. The
tyranny of the executive power will come in its turn, but at a more distant period.”
“Hence the less government we have the better,--the fewer laws, and the lessAll I ask is to be left alone. If I suffer from inequality of opportunity, I’ll let the government know however; I will do so only after all of my efforts to right my own ship have led to naught. I don’t expect the government to assume anything for me. More importantly, I expect the government to never enact laws or policies based on short lived current events or economic cycles. Knee jerk reactions to cyclical events can lead to calamity for all. It is time for all of us to take responsibility for ourselves and stop placing the blame on others such as, your boss, a political party, or a President. I alone am in charge of my vessel and I intend to steer her clear of any obstructions. After all, President Obama proves my point. Though born out of wedlock from an interracial couple and raised by white grandparents, President Obama still managed to persevere and is to this day, a self made man. His success encapsulates my point. We are who we choose to be based on self effort and self discipline.
confided power. The antidote to this abuse of formal Government is; the influence of private character, the growth of the Individual, the appearance of the principle to supersede the proxy; the appearance of the wise man; of whom the existing government is, it must be owned, but a shabby imitation.”
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Sunday, February 15, 2009
United States: What is the Cure for an Economic Influenza?
By now, everybody knows that our economy is sailing through rough waters. Our economic woes have rippled through our homes, businesses, Wall Street, and all levels of government. Many of us are suffering financially and are worried about the plight of our families, friends, and neighbors. President Obama has gotten his initial economic stimulus package through Congress and will soon sign it into law. Naturally, opinions regarding the positive or negative impact that this stimulus will provide to our economy are all over the map. Nobody knows for certain whether it will work or not. So, we must all be patient and see what happens. That said, it is my belief that now, more than ever, all of us must assume a personal civic responsibility to track our government's implementation of this stimulus package.
Government, in my opinion, is flawed in its ability to implement policy. Funds from TARP One and the Bush Administration's economic stimulus package were largely wasted. Why should we, as citizens expect anything different now? Those of us who vigorously support President Obama and his vision for America will of course opine that this administration, unlike the former one, will provide us with "transparency". Ya, and someday pigs will sprout wings and fly. Thus far, this administration has shown little to differentiate it from the operational templates utilized by Republican or Democratic administration's which have preceded it. This is not a criticism of President Obama rather; it is an observation into the reality of American politics.
I have the sense that this administration is fumbling along. They seem to still be campaigning and not leading. Their vision for our future, much like their campaign platform, is opaque. The Secretary of the Treasury, Timothy Geithner, did little to encourage me that I should not worry. His bumbling, often faint hearted briefing this past week did not highlight any well defined path that the federal government intends to follow through this economic mess. Instead, it seems to me that they are making it up as they go along, and are covering for this operational flaw by continuously claiming that we are sailing in uncharted waters. Christopher Columbus sailed into uncharted waters too, yet he no doubt led his tiny flotilla on their voyage by following a magnetic bearing. What is the Obama Administration's economic bearing? None of us can know for certain because I believe they don't have one. During an interview with FOX's Sunday morning news show with Chris Wallace, David Axelrod, President Obama's senior advisor, provided little evidence that the administration is in control of this economic situation. Mr. Axelrod appeared to me, to be uneasy with answering Wallace's questions. He answered with a certain vagueness which has permeated the Obama mystique since its political inception. As Americans, particularly now, we do not have the luxury for the government to waffle. We must demand that our government act but; what are our responsibilities?
Throughout our nation's history, it has been us, the citizenry who have righted our ship. Once again, our country's plight calls us to action. We must all turn a deaf ear to the calamitous cries of doom and gloom emanating from Washington D.C. Does this mean that we, like an ostrich, stick our heads in the sand and pretend that we don't have work to do? Of course it doesn't, but we need to roll our sleeves up and get a bit dirty. Maybe all of us should live within our means, and manage our household budgets so that we don't exist almost entirely on credit. Maybe we should dust off the ideal of loyalty to one's family, friends, and employer and more vigorously pull our own load instead of just trying to pawn it off onto others? Once again, I seem to come full circle and have run smack dab into my call for self reliance. All of us would do well to read Emerson's critically acclaimed essay, "Self Reliance". After reading it, we should ponder it for awhile, and then take a good hard look at ourselves in a mirror. I try to do this every day and just when I think I've achieved my goal of self realization, I find a chink in my armor and have to get back to work. If we all would just expect more out of ourselves and yet, maintain a positive belief in our personal role in the world things around us would begin to improve. There is truth in the old adage that it is better to view your wineglass as half full rather than half empty. Optimism will always be a more palatable prescription than pessimism. Lets get to work America!
De Oppresso Liber
Government, in my opinion, is flawed in its ability to implement policy. Funds from TARP One and the Bush Administration's economic stimulus package were largely wasted. Why should we, as citizens expect anything different now? Those of us who vigorously support President Obama and his vision for America will of course opine that this administration, unlike the former one, will provide us with "transparency". Ya, and someday pigs will sprout wings and fly. Thus far, this administration has shown little to differentiate it from the operational templates utilized by Republican or Democratic administration's which have preceded it. This is not a criticism of President Obama rather; it is an observation into the reality of American politics.
I have the sense that this administration is fumbling along. They seem to still be campaigning and not leading. Their vision for our future, much like their campaign platform, is opaque. The Secretary of the Treasury, Timothy Geithner, did little to encourage me that I should not worry. His bumbling, often faint hearted briefing this past week did not highlight any well defined path that the federal government intends to follow through this economic mess. Instead, it seems to me that they are making it up as they go along, and are covering for this operational flaw by continuously claiming that we are sailing in uncharted waters. Christopher Columbus sailed into uncharted waters too, yet he no doubt led his tiny flotilla on their voyage by following a magnetic bearing. What is the Obama Administration's economic bearing? None of us can know for certain because I believe they don't have one. During an interview with FOX's Sunday morning news show with Chris Wallace, David Axelrod, President Obama's senior advisor, provided little evidence that the administration is in control of this economic situation. Mr. Axelrod appeared to me, to be uneasy with answering Wallace's questions. He answered with a certain vagueness which has permeated the Obama mystique since its political inception. As Americans, particularly now, we do not have the luxury for the government to waffle. We must demand that our government act but; what are our responsibilities?
Throughout our nation's history, it has been us, the citizenry who have righted our ship. Once again, our country's plight calls us to action. We must all turn a deaf ear to the calamitous cries of doom and gloom emanating from Washington D.C. Does this mean that we, like an ostrich, stick our heads in the sand and pretend that we don't have work to do? Of course it doesn't, but we need to roll our sleeves up and get a bit dirty. Maybe all of us should live within our means, and manage our household budgets so that we don't exist almost entirely on credit. Maybe we should dust off the ideal of loyalty to one's family, friends, and employer and more vigorously pull our own load instead of just trying to pawn it off onto others? Once again, I seem to come full circle and have run smack dab into my call for self reliance. All of us would do well to read Emerson's critically acclaimed essay, "Self Reliance". After reading it, we should ponder it for awhile, and then take a good hard look at ourselves in a mirror. I try to do this every day and just when I think I've achieved my goal of self realization, I find a chink in my armor and have to get back to work. If we all would just expect more out of ourselves and yet, maintain a positive belief in our personal role in the world things around us would begin to improve. There is truth in the old adage that it is better to view your wineglass as half full rather than half empty. Optimism will always be a more palatable prescription than pessimism. Lets get to work America!
De Oppresso Liber
Saturday, February 07, 2009
President Obama & Congress: Who is on First and What is on Second
The never ending gyrations of an inept Congress and a newly inaugurated President have created a tumultuous roller coaster ride of emotions for the American public. Speaking personally, my emotions range from amusement to concern and usually end up in annoyance bordering on anger. We all are trying to figure out just who is in charge in our nation's capitol. President Obama has thus far been unable to adjust to his new role as our President. In my opinion, especially if you listened to his speech on Thursday night to the Democratic Party retreat, he acts and sounds as though he believes that he is still on the campaign trail. The Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid is lost at sea. I cannot remember when I've ever observed a more inept leader in the United States Senate. The Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, believes that the entire nation speaks with one voice and is in total concurrence with her views on social reform and economic policies. She is either deluded or, she needs to get out more often and visit "flyover country" instead of flying in her personal jet between Washington DC and San Francisco.
Leaders have a responsibility to provide a steady hand in an unsteady world. These three individuals constantly remind me of the childhood story , Chicken Little. I am growing weary of being told that our economic end is near and that unless we act hastily, we are doomed to fall off an economic precipice from which we will never be able to climb out of. Political leaders have a responsibility to present an aura of steadiness and self control during turbulent times. They must also only enact policies or actions based on thoroughly developed courses of actions. Haste leads to ineffective use of time and resources. What if Winston Churchill had presented an image of doom and gloom to the British citizenry during the dark hours of the Battle of Britain? Would the British have been able to overcome the Germans? Maybe, but more importantly, Churchill instinctively knew that he had to present a public image of stern steadiness in horrific times and he encouraged the British to stand tall and join with one another in their efforts to defend their shores. Are the economic times tough? Of course, only a total moron would be oblivious to this reality however; our response as a nation to this dilemma is what matters. Nations in strife tend to assume the personality of their executive in chief. Do you think a NFL football coach for the losing team in a Superbowl tells his team at halftime, "Well, we're losing and I don't see a positive outcome in the second half."? Naturally he doesn't do this; instead, he will use positive reinforcement to correct mistakes made in the first half and encourage his team to believe in themselves and the possibility of their winning the game. Where is the positive encouragement coming from President Obama, House Speaker Pelosi or, Majority Leader Reid?
Leaders cannot delude their citizenry with false hope however; they need to light the way through rough terrain. I'm still waiting for the soft glow of optimism to rise from Washington DC. President Obama promised, though I must admit I didn't believe him and I did not give him my vote; a new age of compromise and conciliation in the Beltway. Thus far, I can only see the political trenches being dug deeper and the philosophical ramparts becoming more impregnable. As my title suggests, the classic comic routine of Abbot and Costello describing baseball has become the political reality of Washington DC. Maybe President Obama is incapable of leadership after all; he voted "present" on numerous occasions at the state and federal levels which, in my view, demonstrates an incapability to make a hard choice on vital and or, sensitive issues. Hopefully, he will soon realize that his current duty position does not allow him the luxury of such avoidance tactics. He would do well to step up to the plate and take charge in a truly bipartisan manner. Talk is cheap, now is the time for well thought out action!
De Oppresso Liber
Leaders have a responsibility to provide a steady hand in an unsteady world. These three individuals constantly remind me of the childhood story , Chicken Little. I am growing weary of being told that our economic end is near and that unless we act hastily, we are doomed to fall off an economic precipice from which we will never be able to climb out of. Political leaders have a responsibility to present an aura of steadiness and self control during turbulent times. They must also only enact policies or actions based on thoroughly developed courses of actions. Haste leads to ineffective use of time and resources. What if Winston Churchill had presented an image of doom and gloom to the British citizenry during the dark hours of the Battle of Britain? Would the British have been able to overcome the Germans? Maybe, but more importantly, Churchill instinctively knew that he had to present a public image of stern steadiness in horrific times and he encouraged the British to stand tall and join with one another in their efforts to defend their shores. Are the economic times tough? Of course, only a total moron would be oblivious to this reality however; our response as a nation to this dilemma is what matters. Nations in strife tend to assume the personality of their executive in chief. Do you think a NFL football coach for the losing team in a Superbowl tells his team at halftime, "Well, we're losing and I don't see a positive outcome in the second half."? Naturally he doesn't do this; instead, he will use positive reinforcement to correct mistakes made in the first half and encourage his team to believe in themselves and the possibility of their winning the game. Where is the positive encouragement coming from President Obama, House Speaker Pelosi or, Majority Leader Reid?
Leaders cannot delude their citizenry with false hope however; they need to light the way through rough terrain. I'm still waiting for the soft glow of optimism to rise from Washington DC. President Obama promised, though I must admit I didn't believe him and I did not give him my vote; a new age of compromise and conciliation in the Beltway. Thus far, I can only see the political trenches being dug deeper and the philosophical ramparts becoming more impregnable. As my title suggests, the classic comic routine of Abbot and Costello describing baseball has become the political reality of Washington DC. Maybe President Obama is incapable of leadership after all; he voted "present" on numerous occasions at the state and federal levels which, in my view, demonstrates an incapability to make a hard choice on vital and or, sensitive issues. Hopefully, he will soon realize that his current duty position does not allow him the luxury of such avoidance tactics. He would do well to step up to the plate and take charge in a truly bipartisan manner. Talk is cheap, now is the time for well thought out action!
De Oppresso Liber
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Terrorism: Are We at War or Not?
Well, January 20th has come and gone and the Obama administration has taken the reins of control in our nation's capitol. Thus far, in order to appease the left, his administration has taken relatively easy steps such as, closing Guantanamo. Somewhat humorously, Speaker Pelosi and her fellow democrats want to massively increase the cost of the upcoming stimulus package. They would do well to steer clear of the negative influences that total power can place on a political party. After all, just look where such an identical situation led the Republicans. But I digress. Of more concern to me are the seemingly retrograde like selections of Leon Panetta to head the CIA and William Holder for Attorney General. Both men served in the Clinton administration and were part and parcel to the philosophical belief that fighting terrorism is basically a police action. As is often the case, our nation's leaders have led us in a large circle. The attacks on 9-11 just didn't occur out of thin air. They were the culmination of a long well directed mission planning process which took years to implement. The Clinton administration's choice to employ police type actions against terrorist threats obviously fell short of discovering imminent threats to our country.
The real question is, are we in a state of war against terrorist elements who seek to harm or destroy our way of life? Unfortunately, the geographic isolation of the United States often makes it difficult for our citizens to come to grip with the hazards we now face. The destruction of the Twin Towers on 9-11 was surreal for those of us who live on the West Coast. The 3,000 mile distance between New York City and San Francisco made it difficult to completely absorb the fear that people on the East Coast felt on 9-11. Thus, even today, the geographical distance from our shores to Afghanistan or Iraq makes it difficult for our populace to grasp the notion that as far as our enemies are concerned, we are in a state of war. The Bush administration did little to involve our citizens in any form of national effort to support the efforts of our troops on the battlefield. In their defense, it is a difficult task to create a national civil effort when the enemy does not form a part of a nation state or occupy its own national ground however; they should have at least attempted to create some sort of national support network. People have gotten by with just verbalizing that they support our troops. Nobody has had to limit their personal needs or indulgences in any fashion so now, we have come full circle and I believe the Obama administration intends to restart the foreign policy template of the 1990s.
This is a major gamble. If we get attacked again, the Obama administration will be through. Now, some will argue that I am fear mongering. I ask those who feel that way to analyze the Clinton years. 9-11 was the culmination of a cascading cycle of terrorist events. Does anyone remember the U.S.S. Cole or the embassy bombings? If a nation does not support its war effort, it is doomed to be defeated. If we fail to grasp just what we are up against we are setting ourselves up to experience the violent realities of a sharp learning curve. I hope for all of us that I am wrong but, the time that I spent in the Middle East during my 21 year military career has provided me with well developed personal insights into the mind of our enemy. Hopefully, those amongst us choosing to wear rose colored glasses will take them off and come to recognize the ground realities we face. Of late, the newly installed mantra has been that President Obama will somehow make the world like us again. Many believe that if our country "makes nice" the world will like us and that somehow, this will reduce the possibilities of another terrorist attack. These folks would do well to remember that we have been attacked in one way or another during the presidencies of Carter, Reagan, Bush Sr., Clinton, and Bush. Obviously, from my point of view, the political party in control in Washington D.C. matters little to our enemies. We are living in dangerous times and my only hope is that leaders such as Panetta and Holder are capable of steering our nation's boat through troubled waters.
De Oppresso Liber
The real question is, are we in a state of war against terrorist elements who seek to harm or destroy our way of life? Unfortunately, the geographic isolation of the United States often makes it difficult for our citizens to come to grip with the hazards we now face. The destruction of the Twin Towers on 9-11 was surreal for those of us who live on the West Coast. The 3,000 mile distance between New York City and San Francisco made it difficult to completely absorb the fear that people on the East Coast felt on 9-11. Thus, even today, the geographical distance from our shores to Afghanistan or Iraq makes it difficult for our populace to grasp the notion that as far as our enemies are concerned, we are in a state of war. The Bush administration did little to involve our citizens in any form of national effort to support the efforts of our troops on the battlefield. In their defense, it is a difficult task to create a national civil effort when the enemy does not form a part of a nation state or occupy its own national ground however; they should have at least attempted to create some sort of national support network. People have gotten by with just verbalizing that they support our troops. Nobody has had to limit their personal needs or indulgences in any fashion so now, we have come full circle and I believe the Obama administration intends to restart the foreign policy template of the 1990s.
This is a major gamble. If we get attacked again, the Obama administration will be through. Now, some will argue that I am fear mongering. I ask those who feel that way to analyze the Clinton years. 9-11 was the culmination of a cascading cycle of terrorist events. Does anyone remember the U.S.S. Cole or the embassy bombings? If a nation does not support its war effort, it is doomed to be defeated. If we fail to grasp just what we are up against we are setting ourselves up to experience the violent realities of a sharp learning curve. I hope for all of us that I am wrong but, the time that I spent in the Middle East during my 21 year military career has provided me with well developed personal insights into the mind of our enemy. Hopefully, those amongst us choosing to wear rose colored glasses will take them off and come to recognize the ground realities we face. Of late, the newly installed mantra has been that President Obama will somehow make the world like us again. Many believe that if our country "makes nice" the world will like us and that somehow, this will reduce the possibilities of another terrorist attack. These folks would do well to remember that we have been attacked in one way or another during the presidencies of Carter, Reagan, Bush Sr., Clinton, and Bush. Obviously, from my point of view, the political party in control in Washington D.C. matters little to our enemies. We are living in dangerous times and my only hope is that leaders such as Panetta and Holder are capable of steering our nation's boat through troubled waters.
De Oppresso Liber
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