Which Side Will the Military Take?

>(all the while no one in the military knows if they are deploying or not and for how long)<

Anon - Good observation, but it doesn't apply to the military alone. No businessman in this country can plan ahead either. He doesn't know whether to scale back or expand; invest or cash out; hire or lay-off. We're in a holding pattern here with this administration. We don't know what to expect.

Actually, we do know. But when we talk about it, we're looked at as crazy, right-wing, anti-progressive Neanderthals. Personally, I feel, it's deliberate. It's impossible to believe that a government could be making that many mistakes so consistently. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day. Obama and his stooges in the media and elsewhere have yet to be right a single time.

So, what's the plan? It has got to be to diminish America's last remaining strengths, the economy and the military. I'm beginning to believe that our military is actually in Afghanistan to lose. That way, the Left can paint them as losers, cut funding, proceed with disarmament and claim they’re saving a bunch of money. It'll also send a signal to our enemies (which are Obama’s friends) that it's now open season on American interests throughout the world. Believe it or not, Obama's biggest obstacle to becoming leader of the world (in his mind) is America.

Here at home, it's not difficult to imagine Obama's blow-out (the dollar and other) policies will lead to some kind of civil strive, likely pitting the general population against the government. The standard question in all such situations is, "Which side will the military take?"

Only Value Will Have Value

Wonderful explanation of how all of it intersects in Jerusalem and how any possible resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict - whether in blood or peace - will have wider repercussions throughout much of the world. Nice to know that Netanyahu - unlike Washington and Riyadh - is resisting the easy, shameful solutions. In the end, character always wins out.

There may be a timetable to this (peace talk) farce that everyone appears to be perpetuating so desperately at this particular time. Yes, there's the succession struggle within the House of Al-Saud. But that's a factor in every house and cannot be considered as unusually significant. The startlingly new element is the collapse of the dollar and that of financial paper in general. It means that the House of Al-Saud will see itself stripped of influence. All the money they have amassed over the years is about to be unmasked to show that nothing of value was ever done with it. The currencies themselves - surely stored in large, elaborate vaults - might just as well be stored in incinerators.

In the new world order, only value will have 'value'. Mere money in the hands of the undeserving will turn to sand. That time is near. It will happen before Obama's first term ends. It will unleash a maelstrom, sweeping aside all the corrupt and broken pieces. There will also be much collateral damage. Only 'value' will survive - and 'character'. The Saudis, as well as most of the rest of the Middle East, are not particularly strong on either point.

Raining Stones

American public opinion moves at a glacial pace, especially in relation to the frantic speed at which the Obama administration is working to remake America. Larry Kudlow has always been a good egg. I was disappointed early on when I heard him applauding Obama’s lip service support of capitalism. But Larry too has come around, now stating categorically that Obama’s economic plan will not work.

This is where most American opinion resides at the moment. Americans seem to be okay with that. They are resigned to the waiting for the opportunity to change the political landscape in the next couple of election cycles.

What most Americans are still failing to grasp is that what they see as a failure of policy since Obama’s been in office is DELIBERATE! Kudlow continues to hold out hope that the Obama administration, seeing the error of its ways, will re-tool and try some pro-growth policies, like tax cuts. When I hear Kudlow saying this, I want to just reach in through the radio, grab him by the shoulders, shake him awake and shout, “It’s deliberate; you fool! Obama’s aim is precisely this. He wants to implode the economy; he wants to crush the dollar. He’s a Marxist! The people around him are Marxists. They were picked by Obama because they are Marxists. This is not a smear; it’s not mud-slinging. It’s the way it is. They are Marxists. And their aim is to destroy America’s economy, all during Obama’s first term. Everybody knows it now on some level. They know it in Maine; they know it in Oregon, and everywhere in between. Even the Marxists among us are having second thoughts for they are about to achieve what they have always thought was merely a pipe dream."

The strength of a nation can be directly linked to its people. Destroying the economy of any nation automatically plunges it in to civil strife. This is the starting point for the Marxist societal re-ordering which Obama envisions.

Obama is obviously not the only one determined to bring this about. He has many very smart and patient supporters. It might be said that Obama is only the figurehead – the mouthpiece – for all those who have been planning for this moment for generations. They’ve been meticulous in their preparation. They’ve undermined our educational system; they’ve re-written our history; they’ve taken control every institution that would have held them in check: the media, academe, entertainment, etc. They’ve effectively neutralized any challenge to themselves from a corrupt political class. All that remains is to ignite the people to anarchy.

Right now, it resembles a Japanese Kabuki play where all the action happens at the end. Nothing has happened yet, but the fuse has been lit. As I see it, when the time comes for Obama to run for re-election, the polls will show the opponent way ahead. The markets always predict the future. They will be encouraged by Obama’s poor showing in the polls. Consumers will spring to life, as will investors. A turn-around? No. A trigger!

By that time, the money supply will have been flooded with so much worthless paper; inflation will set in big time. This will grind the entire economy to a halt – like sawdust in the crankshaft of a car. Civil strife ensues. Martial Law is declared. We go from there.

I’m not saying that it’ll work. But that is plan A. I am convinced of it. Public option, this or that, is merely a distraction, designed to overwhelm the system; to deflect; distract - to once again get us to scratch our heads, when it starts raining stones, and ask, "How the hell did this happen?"

Ladies' Night Out

I was fully expecting to see some changes after having been six months away. But everything seemed just the same as it had been before I left. No profusion of 'For Sale' or 'For Rent' signs; nothing to indicate that the rats were leaving. Yards continued to be well kept. One of our neighbors just got a new roof.

There are a few shops (mostly high-end men's clothing) along the main street that have closed, but you wouldn't necessarily know it. The Chamber of Commerce has decorated the store windows of the unfortunates to make it seem that these shops too are open. There's an office building that's slated to be converted to luxury apartments that's been dormant in mid-process for close to two years now. At the same time, there's a fight developing about putting in additional low-income housing.

There's a bank branch that closed in the center of town. There are so many banks left here (including the one where I opened my very first savings account with five dollars in quarters), I might not even have noticed; but they took their digital time/temperature display with them when they left. I always gave it a glance when I happened to be up that way.

Last Thursday was “Lady’s Night Out” (in town). Most shops stayed open beyond closing and were offering women gifts and coupons. At first I thought it was Halloween already when I saw all the ladies with their handsome Fifth Avenue style shopping bags. Then I realized that the kid’s time was yet to come. It was a huge success in terms of creating buzz, same as the street fair was two weeks ago; the antique car show the week before that, and Halloween night will be next week. Whether or not it’ll be enough to give a boost to our shrinking tax base is another matter. But at least, they’re still trying.

Along With Everybody Else

A friend of mine is in the middle of a divorce. He realized early on that the marriage is no longer working. He suggested that he and his wife just split up and lead separate lives. To sweeten the deal, he offered to pay her a lump sum.

But no! She wanted a formal divorce in a court of law. She wanted this mainly because he did not want it; and because she thought that, in court, she could win a bigger settlement than what my friend was offering.

During litigation, everything is exposed. It was discovered, for instance, that my friend had been running an all-cash business for all these years; he had never filed income tax.

An accountant was hired to assess the situation. He presented his findings to the judge, to which the judge remarked (addressing the woman in particular), “The only thing that is to be divided up here is debt. You will be expected to pay your share.”

Unions generally make the same mistake. They assume that the company’s financial coffers are bottomless. They typically continue to agitate even after the dregs have been disbursed. After the golden goose has been strangled, they content themselves with staging a puppet show for a while. Once the thrill of that wears off, they find themselves standing out in the breadline along with everybody else.

The New World

Why do we care? Two possible reasons come immediately to mind: With all this talk of our own planet dying and running out of resources it seems plausible for us, as a group, to start looking for somewhere else to pillage. The other is to cement the seemingly permanent, irreconcilable chasms that have developed between us, with the only reasonable option being, that some of us move away. As such, we could toss a coin to determine whether Republicans or Democrats would be required to seek greener pastures on a suitable exoplanet. Or, Islamists could decide that rather than stoning the infidels to death, they could be shipped en masse off to Corot 7b. …you get the idea.

We’re stoking a Deus ex machina fantasy because, in many ways, we’ve managed to turn our fair Eden into a holy hell. Our desire now, when you come right down to the nub of it, is either to escape or expel. Our planet has become too small for us all to coexist and there is no longer a New World to set sail for within the known edges of the earth.

Beyond that, we fear a dousing of fire and brimstone that a significant portion of us feels is just ahead - the just reward for our excess and sin. I dare say, a war is inevitable at this point. It happens when things start falling apart as they have. This, however, is not our fear. We’ve had wars in the past, all of which we’ve been able to win or explain away. The next one, many of us feel, we’re likely to lose outright. How to deal with defeat other than to dream of new worlds, for the opportunity of a fresh start; ironically, with the same parameters in place - the same experiment done over and over again, each time hoping for a different outcome.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

This administration has zero credibility. Any rational argument regarding any aspect of Obama's policies only confirms this. Unfortunately, critical thinking has become a lost art in our nation and has been replaced in some quarters by an arguably more primitive form of 'hero worship'. As long as the object of worship still moves and talks, no one is allowed to question even his own individual circumstance. (This form of worship goes back to even before the stone idol (which marks the very first departure into the religious abstract.)

Obama has literally become America's national religion along with a full array of religious paraphernalia: ceremony, sacrifice, music, sin, excommunication and deliverance. We can not yet determine whether or not Obama is a perpetually angry god or a kind god. We do not know if he is vengeful or forgiving. We don't even know if he's competent.

This is where faith enters in. Faith as pertains to religion is generally seen as unshakable. In some religions a breach of faith is punishable by death.

For clues as to the state of our nation, we watch what happens to the media’s angels. They are closest to the sacred perimeter that gives our president his magical shield, designed to both dazzle and protect (his vulnerability inside).

No doubt, the MSM has been taken hostage. They can collectively be compared to Jean-Dominique Bauby, a real-life Frenchman, who lost all voluntary motor function due to a stroke, save for being able to blink the left eye. The 2007 French film, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly” dramatizes his almost superhuman effort to complete the writing of a book (with help from three heartbreakingly beautiful women who acted as translator scribes).

Similarly, the MSM appears dead; totally in the tank for Obama, grotesquely twisting some stories in his favor while withholding others altogether. Obama, Democrats and the media appear to be in total lockstep; so tight, daylight is impossible to penetrate. They’d surely win the gold in Olympic synchronized swimming were they to compete in Rio come 2016… all except for the media’s one blinking eye.

It’s a small but significant gesture – like the shiver running through a Kerala Kathakali dance figure: It’s those approval numbers that continue to slide. Rasmussen’s (and all the others’) poll results are regularly and dutifully reported. It puts the lie to all the other spin that tells of how well our president is doing.

I, for one, don’t believe the press is collectively that stupid or even unduly mesmerized by the White House celebrity glitz parade. I think they’re afraid and trying to survive – like the rest of us – in this somehow fascinating dictatorship we ourselves let slip in place. It’s a small miracle that anyone is still willing and able to report on the president’s crashing poll numbers; all of which is meant to tell us, “Don’t pull the plug just yet! We’re still alive and we know what’s going on.”

Pre-Election Games

The donations to the Republican Party mean nothing, though these are said to be substantial. It won't add up anywhere near to what the Dems have already stolen. New York's 23rd represents a classic conundrum for Republicans. They stand to lose the seat by sheer stupidity; misreading the public mood, thinking that Republicans lose because they are just not liberal enough. Don't count Hoffman (Indi) out yet. The people may be quite ready to dump both major parties. Should Hoffman win, it would signal to the rest of the country that a third party could do very well next year and beyond.

I believe the mood in America has fundamentally changed. People are highly alarmed by what the Democrats have been up to. Neither do they see the Republicans as an alternative. This situation could result in one of two possible outcomes: Either, people will stay home en masse, refusing to participate in what they perceive to be a farce - in which case the Dems would win across the board with their 20% approval rating. Or they will come out and vote for 'none of the above'. In New York's 23rd this would mean a win for Hoffman.

Well-Versed

Nice to know that we finally have a president who appears to understand and is well-versed in Muslim ways. Clearly, the House of Al-Saud owes its continued existence on U.S. largess - not only militarily but also with respect to the oil we consume and pay for. It is perhaps not too much of a stretch to say that the House of Al-Saud depends on us just as much as the Israelis do.

It would be interesting to read transcripts of just what was said in discussions between the King and Barrack Hussein Obama. Did the King realize that Obama's plans would not necessarily favor the kingdom? If so, did he try to convince Obama to change course? After all, the Bush policy suited him just fine.

Does King Abdullah realize that the days of the monarchy are numbered? Does Israel? It seems to me that what we have here are new and natural alliances in the making, based on sound strategic concerns: Israel and Saudi Arabia; adding Jordan (perhaps), Egypt, Kuwait, the UE; (there may be others further afield) India…

Peace in Our Time

Did you hear the latest? Obama has, or is about to solve the problem of illegal marijuana - by making it legal. Similarly, all around the world, he has shown our enemies that he is willing, even eager, to join their ranks. This way, he figures, there will be no one to fight, and no one will want to fight us. Hence: PEACE in our time; the peace dividend to blow sky-high; and accolades from the likes of the UN and Nobel.

Imagine the world without enemies (excepting, of course, FOX, talk radio and Republicans)! Imagine a world without Israel, Taiwan, India and Eastern Europe. Imagine a world without America.

It’s no longer difficult to predict our future. Yet, there are too many who still don’t see. It may already be too late to reverse course. We’ve already traveled too far along this road.

There was never a reason for why we should lose a war. Yet we’re about to lose our second and third in a row. We’ve tied ourselves into knots for too long. Our whole nations has become the like the Republican Party which is afraid to win. Even when we win, we don’t act like winners – we apologize. It’s no wonder that the Marxists were able to step into the breach (no apologies there).

Nothing new on talk radio either. “The next election; the next election”. Over and over again, “the next election”. And what happens in the meantime? We argue about health care and cluck our tongues. “Did you hear what Rush Limbaugh said about slavery?” Did you read Helen Thomas’ latest book? How come Borders isn’t stocking “Liberty and Tyranny” anymore?

Meanwhile the country is slipping out of our grasp. What march? What tea parties? Did you hear? Obama had a party at the White House where ‘Earth, Wind and Fire’ performed. Awesome, dude!

We’ve got to do better than this. At this rate, we won’t last until the mid-terms. Never mind 2012. I no longer worry so much about Obama serving multiple terms. When things get this hot, there’s usually a world war. As soon as that happens, all bets are off.

Let's Be Blunt

Let’s be blunt: ‘Global Warming’ is nothing more (or less) than a tool the Left uses to achieve its goals. What does the Left want? It wants America to be the pariah among nations. It wants the nations of the world to rise up against America. Its goal is to see America utterly and totally defeated. The Left wants Americans to feel guilty to the point of ceasing to be Americans. It wants Americans to stop doing those things that have made America great. It wants America to be weak and confused. It wants Americans to be divided. It wants America to collapse.

‘Global warming’ is just one of the tools in the hands of the Left to help bring about the final defeat of America. 'Cap and trade' is a logical response to the 'global warming' accusation - for all those who can be convinced to take it seriously - that will destroy America's economy. The MSM, our corporate elites, academe, Hollywood, and our political class all have signed on to the 'global warming' bandwagon. Not all necessarily see ‘global warming’ as a threat to mankind. They see it as a means of bringing America to its knees.

So valuable does the Left consider the ‘global warming’ ploy to be, it has long suggested that any vocal opposition to the concept be treated as a thought crime similar to holocaust denial. If tomorrow, Jesus Christ himself were to come down from the heavens and declare 'global warming' a fraud, those committed to America’s destruction would remain unconvinced. Like Dan Rather, they would maintain that, in spirit the concept remains valid; that, even though the science may be faulty, the deeper reality of America representing the ultimate evil continues to hold true. Therefore, they could justify and condone any means – lies, subterfuge, threats, smears or slight of hand - if it serves their goal of mitigating America’s global influence.

‘Global warming' is no longer the issue - just as health care, racism or outrageous deficit spending, Israel, Afghanistan, etc. are not the issue. The issue is: Do we countenance the deliberate destruction of our nation by this administration? Can we countenance Obama leading us into abject poverty and civil strife? Can we countenance our country falling to last place among nations?

Do not be drawn into pointless, long-winded arguments about ‘global warming’, universal health care, deficit spending, racism, executive compensation, the apparent failure of capitalism and democracy. All these are on the table as we speak. These are bogus. Pure distraction. All we have to understand is that our own government is out to destroy us. Every one of Obama’s policies since he has taken office is geared towards this singular goal. If we do not agree with its basic premise that America is the only rotten apple in the barrel, it is incumbent on us to oppose, or at the very least not to participate in, its public lynching.

The GOP is Toast

So too, the Dems (in this country) will collapse 'from the top'. Already we see the fault lines emerging between those who want to moderate and those who want to radicalize even more. The danger is that the radicals will win; that they will come to recognize the instability within their own ranks and resort to fascism.

It’s odd, that the party that Bill Clinton effectively hollowed out to the point of permitting the “hate America first” crowd to take it over, today seems more alive than the GOP. As I see it, the Republicans are completely shut out of the political process well into the next century.

Both, JB and Arlen Specter know the GOP is effectively barred from regaining power forever. Both have mapped out survival strategies for themselves. Republicans have sealed their fate by refusing to fight (and refusing to lead when they were winning). Only their most viscous supporters think they will be able to simply waltz in after declaring America’s experiment with socialism a failure.

Ahmadinejad too may be failing his people in many critical areas, but I don’t see his opposition in the position of ever coming forward and turning things around.

Balloon Boy, Obama, Deflating

Has anybody noticed how competent Biden is starting to look? He seems to be growing in stature even as Obama fizzles.

How many would have voted for the Democrats last November if Biden had led the ticket? It's like the price of a barrel of oil rising. The barrel is not getting any bigger; it’s the currency that’s failing. So too, Biden is not necessarily perceived as being smarter. It’s just that Obama is deflating - like the dollar.

The funny thing is; he doesn't seem to know it. He looks in the mirror each morning and marvels, "I'm still the man!" He pounds the side of his head with the palm of his hand and blinks his eyes hard. "Yeah, I'm still POTUS," he sighs, smiling broadly with all his implants showing.

He either doesn't realize that balloon boy's future is tied to the balloon’s capacity to remain inflated, or he doesn’t care. If he doesn’t know, it’s those around him in the Oval Office who are refusing to tell him - allowing him to happily traipse around Wonderland, making a fool of himself - all the while deflating his balloon further. If he doesn’t care, it’s quite a bit more grotesque. It’s indifference that hurts a nation most.

We must ask ourselves, “Have we elected a stupid man president, or an indifferent man?” Either one will land us on the ash heap of history. But when we think about it down the road - after all that was meant to happen, has happened - it might be easier for us to accept that Obama was merely stupid. ‘Indifference’ has a much more sinister ring to it …and we really would have to paint ourselves with the same brush. Wouldn’t we?

I mean, we’re not really into blame-shifting yet; or are we? God, I’d hate to think that we could have sunk that low. Once we reach that particular slide, it’s pretty much over. That’s exactly the reason most of the countries in the Middle East are so screwed up. When anything goes wrong over there, they’ll always blame Israel first. And then they’ll never do anything further about it. Dilapidated Cuba, same thing: They’ve been blaming the U.S. trade embargo for years. Meanwhile, they’ve always had the opportunity to trade with every other country in the world. Hey, CASTRO! Do you think the problem might be COMMUNISM?

Theoretically, we could shut down all dialogue and blame Bush forever. Under the ‘blame Bush’ umbrella, we could then drive our country ever deeper into the ground. We could spark food shortages, fuel shortages, blackouts, social unrest, violence and mayhem of all sorts. And we could blame Bush for all of it. We could tell our kids that Bush was responsible for Grandma’s house going up in flames last winter. It was because of that damned religion thing she was practicing (Bush’s religion) – that damned Christmas tree of hers. It had nothing to do with the frayed wires we happened to notice as she was setting it up. It had nothing to do with the town not being able to afford hiring more fire fighters or maintain their equipment. No, it was all Bush’s fault; every thing is Bush’s fault; everything will always be Bush’s fault.

And as blame gets heaped higher and higher, Bush will begin to reach a pinnacle of sorts. They won’t be able to avoid naming a street or town after him – or a transfer station (like they do in NJ). He’ll be just as alpine as Obama’s listing balloon. And when the two of them come face to face, they will see they are brothers; that one reached celebrity on a mountain of blame while the other reached it on a bag of hot air.

Meanwhile, things down below will get seriously worse, until we ourselves start accepting some responsibility for what happens and get off our duffs and work to make a difference.

Pictures of Tyranny

It seems, everybody can accept that Obama wants to get out of the Middle East any way he can. He wants to do it soon (before the mid-terms) and there’s pretty much nothing to stop him. Any rough edges can be easily papered over with words. After the U.S. military leaves, the president is betting that the media will no longer have much interest in the region. In the meantime, a bunch of fall guys are already in place – both, at home and abroad – to take the heat for anything unpleasant that might happen between now and then. (Israel is one of these.)

If all of this relatively complicated global stuff is so obvious to everybody, why on earth is it so hard for us to come together concerning where he is planning on taking our country? I’d be willing to bet the farm that if people were shown a color photograph of what Obama has in mind for America, every one of us would reject it outright. All of us already know it in the pit of our stomachs. Yet, we pretend to be blind, deaf and dumb. Intellectually, we hide behind humor, cynicism and denial.

Plenty such pictures exist: China during the purge; Cambodia during the murderous rule of the Khmer Rouge; Cuba under Castro; Iran, now. There are even more such pictures I could show: Russian re-education and labor camps, and all the countries that served decades essentially as prisons behind iron and bamboo curtains (the list could easily run into volumes).

The response here is always the same, “You’re crazy! This is America; it can’t happen here.”

Can’t it really? Just look at all that’s already happened, and what’s still in the offing? On the economic front alone, look at all the equity lost; all the jobs lost; the dollar crashing. No hope in sight. Double-digit inflation dead ahead. Can’t sell the house because it doesn’t meet government energy standards, and you can’t afford to get it upgraded; can’t pay the property taxes either. Walk away from what was supposed to be your nest egg – the one you paid into for most of your life – watch the government bank take it and convert it into an ACORN office.

Neither does it look good for the world, by the way. There’s any number of hot spots around the globe ready to blow, and we appear to have no clue as to the meaning of words like ‘friend’ or ‘enemy’. I take that back, we actually do know, but the world is upside down today: Our so-called ‘friends’ don’t really seem to want us (as friends); and our other friends are all looking at us funny. (Note: ‘Enemies’ do not exist in the new world order.)

It’s become all too clear where we’re headed. And I want very much to help stop this train wreck before it happens. And I’m not even really sure if it hasn’t happened already. They’ve clearly done their homework; it’s not likely they’ve failed to nail down the end game as well.

Even if there’s still a chance of stopping it, none of us can do it alone. Yet, I know that there’s a whole lot of us out here who feel the same way (the same, perhaps, as the ordinary Palestinian once felt, or the ordinary Iranian). Only, they’re afraid to speak up because they feel they’ll be ridiculed (here, which is, of course, considerably less serious than being shot, over there).

If it should come to shooting – as it has in Iran – it’s already too late. The hole for us to climb out of would already be much deeper than it ever needed to be. The good news is, we’re not there yet. There’s still free speech in America. And Obama still hasn’t built his private army that he said would be equally well (or even better) funded than our present military. The fact that he’s even thinking of doing this means, that what he has in mind for America would likely fail to win the support of the U.S. Armed Forces.

Our last chance will come in the next election cycle. It’s good news indeed that next year’s elections haven’t been postponed or canceled yet. To Obama, it doesn’t really matter which way elections go next year. He has enough czars to override anything Congress might ever want to do. But there’s one thing that he apparently forgot: that Congress can initiate and execute the impeachment of a president.

We can demand from any politician – Democrat, Republican, Independent or Socialist – who may be asking for our vote next year that he or she get behind any one of the various gambits that are already underway in this regard. I’m not saying it will be easy. Obama has a lot of clever friends in high places. But if we stick together, we can get it done.

I believe there are more of us than there are of them. I believe it is vital to the continued existence of our nation (as our founding fathers intended it) that we stop Obama in his first term. I believe that if we fail to do so, we must consider ourselves beaten.

At the very least, this exercise will be a test for us. It’ll give us an idea of just how many are willing to show up to defend our nation in her moment of need. If we lose this one, it’ll take us a long time to recover – long enough, certainly, to learn Russian or Chinese.

Trends

Any election from now on will appear as 'no trend' (to anyone who does not understand what's happening on the ground). Instability? Perhaps. The Left is breaking apart between Obama sycophants, toadies and lackeys; and those who think that Obama is not radical enough. Republicans think they can just waltz into the breach. They couldn’t be more hopelessly wrong!

It's not about parties anymore. Republicans are just as distrusted and despised as Democrats, particularly if they are perceived as trying to be more like Democrats (or ueber-Democrats) in hopes of winning elections; particularly if they have mocked or tried to marginalize popular conservative talk show hosts and tea parties participants in order to gain favor with the press; particularly if they have consistently broken ranks with their own party for the sake of expediency; particularly if they have remained silent since Obama has been in office.

Republicans too will be voted out along with the Dems. The (as of yet unspoken) trend is towards a movement to impeach the president in his first term. Anyone - Republican, Democrat or plutonian - who implicitly or explicitly promises to work towards this singular objective automatically wins.

IT WORKS!!!

Dateline: Summit, NJ; USA

Many years ago I read a whole series of books by Carlos Castaneda. At the time, I practically devoured them, finding them irresistible and compelling. I don’t remember much about them now. But one particular passage has always remained with me. It’s where Don Juan explains that if one looks down at the palms of one’s hands while dreaming, one can morph into a crow and fly to wherever one wants.

I tried it for a time but soon concluded it was impossible. I gave up and never thought about it again, until today …when it happened.

I had gone to lie down after lunch with the radio on. I fell asleep and started to dream. I dreamt I was in India at our apartment there. My wife was at work. The only other person in the house was her mother. I decided to go out for a walk. Outside, there were five roads leading in different directions. I chose to follow the railroad tracks.

It was a gorgeous day and I was enjoying the Indian scenery immensely. I had taken my iPod along and was listening to Rush. Eventually, the tracks ended but the track bed continued.

I walked on, and came to a stone church at another crossroads. The doors were open and there were people inside. I wanted to enter as well but stopped myself, thinking the sound from my iPod was way too loud. I tried desperately to turn it off, but none of the controls worked. So I walked around the outside of the church trying to figure out which way I had come.

It suddenly occurred to me that the reason I couldn't turn my iPod off was because I was dreaming. I remembered what Carlos Castaneda had said about looking at one’s hands. I looked down at my palms, and immediately took off like a rocket. I was not afraid. Up, up, up, I went, floating high above the earth. It was tremendous! I had perfect vision and clarity of mind. My body tingled all over. I was simply bursting with unbridled joy.

Then I remembered the second part of the exercise. I decided to fly to America to visit my mother.

Next, I heard the tea pot whistle. I was fully awake. My mother was downstairs, making tea.

Attn: Babs

I hope you will read this. I mistakenly erased your latest comment. In it you had given a web address. Could you please re-submit?

Regards,

Peter

P.S. Keep checking this site. There's some good stuff on the way. I'm having brainstorms. Also, you might check in with RBO once in a while. I like to post there as well.

The Pit and the Pendulum

‘No plan’ is a plan. What can never be, can never be. Choosing to do nothing is a powerful choice. Bush could have done so after 9/11. Who says we’ve got to do anything? Why not pretend we aren’t even here? It’s not too far fetched, after all. People did alright before we were born. They’ll do alright again, after we’re gone.

Then there’s ‘doing nothing’ as a strategy: Lighting the fuse and watching it burn; then, ducking behind the sand bags. Which part of this is the active part; which is passive? Max out the credit card and then sit back and see what happens.

The determining factor in all this is ‘intent’. I’ve said all along that Obama’s intends to implode the economy; bust the dollar. He hasn’t said so explicitly, but look at his policies. How can any sane person come to any other conclusion? And he’s by no means alone. There are many people in this country who honestly believe that America is and has always been the vortex of evil; that the world would be much better off with an America that is diminished. They believe that global conflicts would cease without undue American influence; that ‘global warming’ could be reversed without American appetites stoking consumerism; that America’s success must be pared down for the rest of the world to enjoy prosperity. It is an argument that has achieved some degree of consensus, even among Americans. What is the meaning of (the) ‘redistribution’ (of America’s wealth)? What is the meaning of ‘social justice’? Is it not the diminution of America?

If our economy survives the Obama administration, it will surely not be due to Obama’s policies. It will be despite them. Ditto, if Israel survives. It will be proof positive that America’s destiny is assured; that, despite all, America’s spirit lives. Both Germany and Japan were bombed into the Stone Age. How quickly it took them to build themselves back up into what they are today! Just the other day I received an e-mail showing pictures of Hiroshima right after the bombing, followed by pictures of Hiroshima today - then, Detroit. The contrast could not be more striking. It is a testimony to the spirit of the Japanese people who alone deserve credit for having made this miracle possible.

Today I read that only 34% of our eighth graders can read at the eighth grade level. This is a disaster not unlike the bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Who is the architect of this failure? Who will be held to account?

I do believe we will survive this administration. We may disassemble in the short run; but, in the long run, the pendulum will swing back; and it will do so before any other nation or ideology can dominate us. We will find a way to fight back. We will prevail without sacrificing our principles. Every disaster our enemies foist upon us will strengthen our resolve. Even those of us who chose to do nothing for now, are just biding their time, waiting for the right moment. If we have learned anything, it is that ‘haste makes waste’. Our enemy wants our decisions to be hasty; half-baked.

It’s taken them so many years to bring us to this trough. They honestly believe they are on the verge of striking the fatal blow. They have advanced the great stone to the very top of the mountain. Even Sisyphus knew it couldn’t remain there forever. It’ll be our turn when it once again reaches bottom.

Boycott the Elections

What a bunch of hogwash! I'd bet this column and the comments, together with Al Gore, account for nearly all the 'global warming' that's said to be occurring on this planet. Anybody who believes that merely voting Republican (or Democrat) in the next election will solve all our problems is delusional. If the responses alone to John's column can be said to prove anything at all, it's that America is no longer prepared to function as a representative democracy in which (theoretically) democratically elected representatives are sent to Washington to run our nation's business.

Our system has become so straight-jacketed that nothing works anymore as it should. It's become top heavy in favor of the government. It no longer matters what directional monikers we ascribe to our government, the result is always the same: more government; less private sector.

Now it just so happens, that government is merely a tool. And a tool can never exceed the function for which it was designed. On the other hand, the private sector is a dynamic, living thing. We are the private sector. It is we who can dream and aspire to ever greater things. It is we who can grow the economy to outpace public debt; it is we who can win wars; it is we who can put men on the moon; build cars; raise families and lift ourselves up to the full potential that defines a productive and dignified existence.

Government can do none of these things. Without popular support, government becomes a prison. All those within it are already dead. Guards and inmates alike are confined by the same walls; all, simply waiting for the stoppage of breath that would release them from what essentially amounts to self-imposed bondage.

At this point it's become senseless to talk about political parties. Whether Democrat or Republican, government is too big; too burdensome; too intrusive. Why should a six-year old be sent to reform school because he proudly brought his Cub Scout cutlery to school for show and tell? Why should any citizen be denied from becoming an owner of a football team if he has the money and is willing to pay? Why are there laws prohibiting smoking outdoors? Why should a beauty queen be condemned for giving an honest answer to a solicited question? Why should a person be fined for choosing not to purchase health care insurance? It goes on and on.

That is why I say, it's already gone too far. A vote for this or that no longer matters. It is mere distraction; a way to cajole us into believing that we can slip our chains.

So many are breathlessly awaiting the next election cycle. Just as so many have waited for the last. So many had thought something good would happen if they just were to gather on the National Mall in great numbers. It’s all but forgotten now. The ‘National Equality March’ last weekend drew less people and received more national coverage. It’s already been released as a milestone to appear in next year’s crop of school books. Go figure. The deck is clearly stacked.

Time to reassess the situation. At this point I would say, boycott the elections. Sure, the Dems would win again – so what? UN observers would have to declare the election null and void – but they won’t. Realistically, what would we gain if Republicans were to win? We would just be endorsing their ‘good cop/bad cop’ scam with our once precious vote. …and the hosing would continue, now with our blessing, until we’re so tired, so disheartened, so suicidal… Kenneth may have a point when citing the birth rate in Russia.

Europe: The Maturing Child

Mike - Thank you for this as well. It represents a very reasoned and sober apologia for European anxieties vis-à-vis the United States. No doubt, Europe is aware of the huge debt it owes to America - and they don't like it. The problem is that any time a debt is owed, the debtor's position of inferiority emerges in stark relief. It highlights a degree of dependency that for most proud people infringes on their dignity. In order to counteract this feeling of inadequacy, the normal human response is often quite the opposite of gratitude.

I doubt that today's modern European looks much to what has happened in the last century for guidance. If they did, they would not be so eager to repeat its mistakes - anti-Semitism and appeasement, for example. No, Europeans live in the here and now - as do Americans. I become suspicious of anyone who is all too ready to display a purely curatorial grasp of history in order to support any given point. Nine times out of ten, it is a distraction from the real issue, which is often obscured by its very dominance in a room full of invisible elephants.

In my view, what is shaping European opinion about the U.S. at this moment is our view of ourselves. The orgy of unbridled Bush (and country) bashing that our media and culture have tolerated - and even encouraged - in recent years has not gone unnoticed in Europe. There it has found a sympathetic chord among those whose natural inclination has been to rebel against America's largess. To European sensibilities (as in America) Obama, represents a break with the past, igniting the hope of starting afresh and on equal footing. By our own actions, we have reinforced - for all who crave the dignity of self-reliance - the notion of an American colossus on the wane and no longer threatening voluntary assumption of equality with a part of the world regarded essentially as inferior. We will always be seen as the midwife of Europe’s rebirth (after the wars). Now we must let go of the maturing child that is intent on exposing the cracks and strains in his parent's relationship for an excuse to rebel and take wing on its own terms.

VOTE THEM ALL OUT

It’s become bigger than just Democrat vs. Republicans. My fear is that it soon won’t matter who we vote for. We’ve already had a taste of it in the last election. McCain would have been even worse for us than Obama. McCain would have done pretty much the same things Obama is doing, with the added spectacle of the Left going out of their minds (the way they did with Bush). And the whole thing would have tarred the Republicans (and the country) into the next century. At least this way, all the fallout will land on the Dems’ doorstep.

I’m not saying the Republicans represent anything close to a remedy. In fact, at this point, they must be seen as accomplices. Anyone who thinks that voting Republican will turn things around has another thing coming. It’s Washington – Democrats and Republicans alike – that’s the problem. The deafening silence of the Republicans these days is indicative of the ‘good cop/bad cop’ routine.

No, friends, we must figure out a way to cut them off at the pass. We must outsmart them. We’ve got to stop falling for the same old Democrat/Republican shell game and realize that we’re the ‘mark’ in any case – and the mark always loses.

No doubt about it, we must vote them ALL out and start from scratch. (The press will call it a ‘massacre’.) We must make it clear that they work for us; that we want an accounting for our money; that we want us to start winning wars again; that Americans expect nothing less than ‘numero uno’ where American leadership is concerned. To this end, we commit to doing our share of the heavy lifting. Each one of us will work impeccably at the job each of us is best at. We expect the government to stay the hell out of our way except for what’s specifically enumerated in our Constitution.

I have no illusions. It’ll take us a long while to get back to where we should have been all along. It might even be that the whole thing will blow wide open even before we get there. Times like these usually end up in some kind of tussle. It’s difficult to predict at the moment just who the antagonists might turn out might be. Recognizable borders certainly would have been helpful in this regard. But it’s not as if we’ve never been there before. Mr. Lincoln was quite effective in seeing us through the last time this happened.

Hostage

Where is the sense of proportion here? JB makes it clear that Obama enjoys far greater support in the general media than the opposition does. In fact, the last time I heard, FOX was banned in Canada (while Al Jazeera was not). And, further out – in Europe, South America, and Asia – the conservative sides of our various arguments are not even heard (unless people happen to be savvy enough to navigate the English language web).

So, what’s the problem, Mr. President? And there does appear to be a problem. Otherwise, you wouldn’t send your lackeys out to trash FOX and Limbaugh, Beck, et al. every chance you get. I don’t remember Bush ever spending so much time complaining about the media – and he certainly had cause.

No, Barry, we don’t buy it. In fact there’s something very fishy about your media obsession. Is it that you’re too thin-skinned? And why is that? It’s almost as if there’s some kind of psychological problem you’re dealing with. And that could be a problem for us as well. We’re all sitting in the back of your bus, after all – and you’re driving it. We look out the windows and see some pretty dramatic landscapes out there – steep roads and hairpin turns. Do you think you can handle it? The way you’ve been acting, we have our doubts.

Or is it that you’re trying to put one over on us; that we’re really hostages? It’s just that most people haven’t figured it out yet. They’re still thinking you’re taking them to a place called ‘Schlaraffenland’. It would make sense for you to try and keep it that way. You’re afraid that, if they were to find out where you’re taking us, you’d have a riot on your hands. You might lose control and we’d all go for a toss. Or worse, you might have to pull over. How long do you think you’d last, pulled over on the side of the road with the stench of Marxism on your breath? Do you really think anyone here would get back on the bus with you? The prompt appearance of a squad car would be far more likely. I’d be willing to bet that more than just a few of us would be taking out our cell phones and start dialing 911.

Love and Hatred Are the Same

Cash is no solution. Hatred demands a different remedy. Nothing the West does will appease it. Anything the West does will only inflame.

Hatred constricts; hatred corrodes. Hatred feeds on itself. Hatred is first; hatred is blind. Hatred shuns reason. Hatred metastasizes (like cancer). The same is said of love. When a concept segment is bent into a circle, love and hatred share the same point. Love and hatred are the same.

Yet, as hatred leaves hopeless chasms in its wake, love is optimistic. Love confidently bridges all obstacles. The difference between love and hatred, if not material, must then be one of perception alone. Whether one loves or hates is determined by where one is willing to mark the start of time. Love looks toward the future. Hatred marks the beginning with death. Both views are equally passionate in that both inspire action. Both views validate the life force by acknowledging its role in achieving some end. As such, the difference between love and hatred appears to be dependent on one’s disposition towards the future. Love celebrates the eternal; hatred demands just enough time to force an end to something. The antithesis to love and hatred is indifference.

Failing to Achieve the Ecstasy

Back when George Bush famously quipped that he wanted to spread democracy all over the world, he was roundly laughed at. The old woman (democracy) was already dying. Her two sons, communism and nihilism were ascending and preparing to take power. The election of Obama was proof certain that democracy had run its course. She stood weak and discredited, shamed by her own arrogance which precluded her from mounting a credible defense.

Communism seemed the most logical heir. He was older and could claim a record of sorts. Admittedly, there were gaps and disappointments in his resume but - being young and strong, with plenty of tricks up his sleeves - he succeeded in pulling himself back up each time after error and embarrassment had stained his effort.

Nihilism was the upstart. Nihilism had been subject to manipulation by his older brother in his younger days. No more! …and eventually the equation turned around.

Now nihilism rules. He has taken a bride named ‘solipsism’. There are no longer any rules. The degree of savagery determines success or failure. We’ve been there before – the Roman Coliseum – only no one remembers back that far.

It is acknowledged that, for many, history begins on the day they are born. Most of us have been living off the fruits – the success – generated by our culture. We have known little else. Happiness is relative. I’ve been astounded how few Americans travel to see how others live. If they did, they would know that their (good) fortune is quite unique. They would be more appreciative of those who came before. They might even be enthusiastic.

Lacking such exposure and perspective, however, they tend to look longingly at worlds that can exist only in theory. They tend to ascribe reality to tomes which, like fishing nets, can only capture debris of a certain size, while the vast balance filters through. Still, failing to achieve the ecstasy to which we all feel entitled, we’ve now resorted to attacking the net itself. Ennui is Sisyphus’ stone rolling down the other side of the mountain.

The terrorists are merely an expression of ourselves. ‘Solipsism’ taught us as much.

In a Failed State Nothing Works

Pakistan is a failed state. Afghanistan is a failed state. Nothing works in a failed state. We worry about Pakistan because it is said to have nuclear weapons. We know this because we have seen the intelligence. We have seen how the nuclear weapons got there. ...and we did nothing about it.

Increasingly, we face the same dilemma, but seem unwilling to act. We know Iran is in the process of acquiring nuclear weapons, but are unwilling to act. We know about North Korea, but do nothing. We know that many of the countries intent on joining the 'nuclear (country) club' consistently call for our death.

Why are we quaking in our boots? We're scared that the truth be known. We worry about how our own populations would react if the truth were to come out. The lying started long ago; too late to go back now and confess. Confessions will no longer undo the web into which we ourselves have fallen.

Significantly, already there are calls to vote everybody out - Republicans and Democrats alike. A revolution is brewing.

The political elites clutch and moan. The people's oracle (Beck) has already fingered the guilty. They are neither the rich nor the poor (as the elites would have us believe); neither are they black, white, red or yellow (as the racists would have us believe); they are not those who believe in Allah; they are not the Jews; Christians; Hindus; Buddhists, etc. – they are the corrupt.

The corrupt live in our own houses. They spread lies and rumors. They dress the same as us so we can’t tell them apart from us. Yet we must find them and weed them out.

Their virtual control of the media makes it seem that there are many more of them than there are of us. This is a lie. It has always been within our power to crush them. As soon as we can get over our fear of them, or stop lusting over their empty promises, we stand empowered.

There’s just us. There’s nothing more… Our faith (in ourselves, perhaps) is enough to defeat them. We already know who they are.

Then there’s the matter of the Pakistani bomb; the soon-to-be Iranian bomb; the North Korean bomb. These all are failed states. I just finished saying that in a failed state nothing works.

Survival of the Fittest

It's not a question of who wins or loses what. It's a question of waiting until Obama makes up his mind. In the opinion of the rest of the world, America still holds the deciding suit. Bush is tagged as a failure because he didn't get it done. Obama promised 'change', meaning that people are hoping Obama WILL get it done. Obama has been sufficiently vague as to allow each of the players to believe that he will come out ahead; that his particular enemy of choice will be crushed. Nothing has happened yet to dispel such fantasies.

The longer Obama delays - the further he kicks this can of worms down the road - the longer it festers, leaving any eventually agreed-on American policy to clean up a putrid mess. Or, we could just continue singing Kumbaya, start silencing critics, and pretend that all's well in Whoville. Eventually, it will dawn on India and others that they now stand alone; that the once great, sometimes bumbling, 'policeman of the world' has hung up his boots and retired. The rabble will fill the void; Faustian bargains will be struck all around, resulting in wickedness and back-stabbing betrayals.

As I see it, Obama's plan is to do nothing to antagonize anyone. If any nation's (or group's) mere existence should prove to be an obstacle to peace, a rational will be drawn up to support its removal. No ideals, no virtues, no grievance will ever be an excuse to raise one's hand against another. Victims will be required to submit, and brutality will become the standard by which the human pecking order is determined.

What we see happening now, albeit under different guise, is a reenactment of the Scopes (monkey) Trial and very possibly the practical consequence of a reversal of the original verdict – which would inexorably translate into the realization of Darwin’s 'survival of the fittest’ theory.

Film of the day: The Counterfeiters

‘Category Error' once again. I always enjoy sparring with you, Spencer, when you are lucid. Actually, I am in full agreement with the rhetoric you quote; only, it no longer applies to our post-Obama times. Think of the world as being upside down. It is a far greater lie to say black is white, up is down, what happened in Honduras was a coup, to remain silent about the outrages in Tibet and Iran, to leave one's allies fate in the hands of their enemies, to coddle tyrants, to deliberately destroy one's own currency, etc. than it was saying, "there was a good chance...; there might have been...; there was (but it's not there now) WMD in Iraq”.

I too espouse the virtues enumerated in your ‘American (plain)speak', but, if Obama said it, you know its a lie. The evidence is all around. And if anyone else said it, you know they've been duped or drugged by the Obama Kool-Aid. Read the WSJ today. There are articles about how (especially) the poor are suffering under Obama's radical policies; how the U.S. ambassador is practically the only one there characterizing what happened in Honduras as a ‘coup’ ...and so much more. No, for all his rhetoric, Obama is leading us down the wrong path. We follow cheerfully because we are lied to daily and asked to willingly suspend our disbelief; to see what doesn't exist or see what we see as something else.

Yesterday, I saw ‘The Counterfeiters’ (’07) that dramatizes Operation Bernhard, the Nazis’ attempt to print so much British and American currency as to sink the economies of their most potent adversaries. They almost did it. It still holds the record as being the largest counterfeiting operation in history. The Nazis might have succeeded, had they been able to persuade these countries to run their own printing presses non-stop; to flood their own economies with worthless paper – as we are doing now. Tell me again that the Obama administration is not out to destroy us – and along with it, any and all hope the world might have to save itself.

Category Error

Scott - Your reply to Tom from NJ's post (in John Batchelor's blog) is a classic example of a "category error". Tom writes from within the framework of what the U.S. once was. Your point of departure is based in what the U.S. has become. I agree with you that under Obama there's no point in prolonging this or any fight. I too lament the loss of trust in us by our allies, the now wasted sacrifices we must endure, and the credibility we've blown. But to go on as before is now folly, as you suggest. The first thing we must do is to set our own house in order.

It's a common slip-up, glaringly apparent in virtually any discussion on any given blog. Even Thaddeus McCotter fell into the trap in his speech before Congress posted above.

Ironically, any hope of us changing the world has gone down the drain with the election of Obama. The barbarians have outmaneuvered us. The proof of the pudding was in today's announcement that Obama had won the Nobel Peace (or absence of war) prize. There are only two ways for either side involved in a conflict to secure peace. One is to win outright; the other is to surrender. The Nobel Prize committee was not wrong. They simply placed all their bets on the now certain recognition that we will yield.

The New World Order

If you believe that in the 'new world order' economic recoveries can proceed without jobs; that immortality can be guaranteed by just agreeing to pay an additional tax; that wars can be fought without weapons; that peace can be bought and sold for forty pieces of silver; that competent leadership can be arranged for via Madison Avenue, then I have a bridge I'd like to sell you cheap.

If we on this blog - and anyone else having given these matters an iota of thought - can agree on the folly of what appears to be our president's vision for the future, how long would you think it will take for the Saudis, the Pakistanis, the Taliban, the Pashtuns, the Palestinians (and everyone else with their hands out) to figure out that the dollars we we throw around like confetti aren't worth a plug nickel.

The work that the citizens of a nation do is what gives value to the currency it prints. Devalue work; marginalize achievement; disparage the engine that provides the opportunity for people to reach their full potential, and you're left with nothing of value to trade.

So far, American style capitalism has been able to create enough excess value (but 'value' nonetheless) for us to jump in and contain some of the the wrongs contrived by lazy and ruthless tyrants who want nothing more than to spill their putrid poisons across international borders. We've been able to give a boost to the hapless who by accident of birth have found themselves stranded on barren lands, surrounded by hostile tribes. Often times we've been condemned for doing what we felt was right. Even so, we've jumped in without hesitation in the aftermath of natural disasters, trying to save lives (friend or foe, it never mattered) - not with talk, but with the sweat of our hard-earned dollars.

But none of this was good enough. Now - when it rains too much; when it gets too cold; too warm; when the ground shakes - we have everybody pointing their fingers at us. The demand is that we set ourselves on fire for them; to give up everything we've built and hold dear in the name of ‘Social Justice’. ...and it's come to the point where we feel compelled to oblige.

How long before there's another devastating earthquake in Indonesia; a flood in Bangladesh; a tsunami in Thailand; a wildfire in Greece; a genocide in Uganda - and nobody shows up to help?

Cass Sunstein

Obviously, Sunstein has his backers. He is articulate, reasoned and persuasive. The extent to which he is willing to bring his views to the marketplace of ideas determines his level of confidence in what he’s promoting.

No doubt, Sunstein’s views are radical and quite in keeping with what some claim is Obama’s stealth agenda. I happen to agree with those who say that Obama has not been entirely honest with the American people. That goes to the heart of Obama’s credibility and presents a problem for him. Cass seems up front in what he believes – his credibility remains in tact.

Will Obama walk away from Sunstein when his (and Cass’s) policies fail to bear fruit? Will he cut his ideological twin off at the knees for political expediency? Only time will tell.

One thing is for certain: If the economic picture in this country does not improve or (God forbid) gets worse, Obama will have a lot of angry constituents on his hands.
Our president is just now beginning to learn the difference between rhetoric and governing. He is beginning to recognize the limits of his cuddly teddy bear charm. There’s a real world out there that only accidentally connects to ivory tower discourse.

Give Cass his due. He’s a pointy-headed dreamer, with his head in the clouds, who should be writing graphic novels instead of formulating public policy. He is of no interest to us. He’s a distraction. We must keep our eyes trained on Obama. We must attempt to divine our president’s moves because these, not Sunstein’s blather, will ultimately affect us all.

My response to Obama's copious hard-Left connections...

The exposé above should scare any red-blooded American – but it won’t. The Left is so entrenched in American politics and media culture, leftist lies and propaganda no longer even raise eyebrows. The failure of capitalism has put it on par with socialism in most people’s minds. Gone is the nuance that the legitimate functioning of capitalism was deliberately damaged by socialist subterfuge. Gone, also, is the memory of socialism’s abject failure everywhere it’s been tried. At the same time, a massive anti-capitalist campaign has been underway for some time to undermine every pillar of what we’ve come to accept as civil order: national sovereignty, law, democracy, morality, religion, bosses, private property, family, etc.

A review by Brian C. Anderson of just the latest in a series of Marxist apologia, “Commonwealth” by Michael Hardt and Antonio Negri in today’s WSJ closes with the following: “’Commonwealth’ is a dark, evil book, and it is troubling that it appears under the prestigious imprimatur of ‘Harvard University Press’. Countless millions were slaughtered by the adherents of Karl Marx in the 20th century. God help us if the scourge returns in the 21st.”

To paint a visual representation of the ecstasy that the hard Left is ultimately aiming at, picture a mass of naked, drugged-out bodies writhing in unison to the strains of ‘The Grateful Dead’ on the floor of some slummy abode in Haight-Ashbury back in the 60’s. No thought is given to who, or which human orifice is violated – male, female; it’s all the same – the point of which amounts to nothing less than the total annihilation of the dignity we commonly ascribe to identity. ...kinda puts you in mind of the '72 virgins' fantasy the Islamists have. Doesn't it?

Obama will have to call it...

Conventional wisdom has it that we need not re-live the mistakes of the past if we allow history to inform us. A practical way of doing this is to examine the historical record as it is outlined in books. Now we find that the historical record itself is flawed because it was written by men with conflicting views and motives. We also know that, whereas there might be parallels, each situation differs in significant ways.

The lesson here is that history alone does not absolve the decision maker from doing his duty. Neither can history provide a shield for the consequences of any decision he might have to make.

Clearly, our president is not up to the task of being commander-in-chief. He appears not to trust himself or anyone around him. Still, with respect to Afghanistan, whether to send in more troops or throw in the towel is a decision only he can make. As such, only he can bear the blame should something go wrong.

I believe, that Obama never thought he'd be in this predicament. I believe he always envisioned that doing nothing was a credible out - a third way. Now he knows that this is not merely an academic exercise in which 'deus ex machina' always works on paper and is always dismissively marked 'genius' - given the affirmative action factor - by exhausted and cynical ivy league rug rats.

Obama will have to call it, one way or the other. It's what he signed up for. Suddenly, he no longer seems as cocky as he was during the campaign. I wonder if he might not be considering picking up the phone and asking Bush. Nah, that would be too easy. Or would it?

RECALL

Questions; questions! Is the administration inept? Inexperienced? Too focused on polls? Too distracted? Or do they know exactly what they are doing? (Except, they haven't let us in on it yet. How can they tell us what's up their sleeves? If we knew the plan, we would immediately demand a recall. We would close our shops and businesses and keep them closed until there's new leadership in Washington. Fools we can tolerate; traitors we cannot.)

Factoid# 1: Each disaster, at home and abroad, advances this president's agenda. It is therefore to his advantage to compose disasters, whether by (apparent) accident or by promises of doom.

Factoid# 2: The threat of a nuclear confrontation between Pakistan and India is real. If the situations in Kashmir and in Arunachal Pradesh (in north-eastern India - involving a border dispute with China, an ally of Pakistan) are stoked properly, war could break out there. And there is the very real possibility that it could go nuclear. Without U.S. opposition, China could take India. Pakistan and India could then be reunited under Chinese rule.

Factoid# 3: China calls the shots in South East Asia. Clearly, the U.S. has ceded its sphere of influence there. When China is ready, she will take Taiwan.

Factoid# 4: For Obama to have any relevancy at all in the new world order, he must deliver a scalp. There are two projects he is currently working on. It remains to be seen which one of the two will mature faster: One is the defeat and total annihilation of Israel; the second is the collapse of the dollar which would confirm the castration of America's economic leverage.

Factoid# 5: The last thing Obama needs to do is to neuter the military. The best way of doing that is to put it into a no-win situation. Afghanistan is perfect for that.

Note: I am quite aware of the common meaning of the word, “factoid”. I use it deliberately in order to undermine my own argument. Because, quite frankly, it scares the hell out of me.

Recent Postings on the Question of Israel

>"Bad policy and bad times and bad ends."<

Agreed, but not necessarily bad for Obama. The same way our president has sought to discredit 'capitalism', he is working on discrediting 'democracy'. Wherever he can demonstrate electoral shortcomings anywhere in the world, he can use it as an object lesson to show that 'democracy' does not work. This is one of the arguments he'll be banking on when the time comes for him to make the necessary moves to extend his own tenure in the White House beyond two terms. (And don't think that Castro and Chavez are not helping him with it.)

Look for our mid-term elections to be a complete mess. It will be deliberately so. The strategy is to get the American people so disgusted that the last thing they want to think about is another election. Will it work? No. But it should make for some high drama.
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>"These terrorists," he said, "they are injured snakes."<

Wrong!!! It's we who are injured. They are winning! They will succeed in bringing down a nation of good people and turning it into a place without even the most basic of what we understand to be human rights. There is no evidence that the brutality will end after terrorists have taken full control. No, it will intensify and spill its borders into India and beyond.

All this cancerous hatred toward the West has been generated by only one thing: Israel's presence in the Middle East. Western nations (particularly America) are seen as supporting Israel. The terrorists at their (out of cell phone range) training camps have not yet absorbed the news that Israel has been more or less left abandoned by the West. And even if the news had gotten out, they would then demand that the West itself crush the Jews.

They know that it wouldn't take much more to get the West to do their bidding in this regard. They also know that if the West could be enticed to pull the trigger on the Jews, it could be classified as a murder-suicide; that the once haughty Western imperialists would never again dare to raise any objection to any outrage committed in the name of their permanently angry god.
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Mike - If you've been reading me now and then, you probably know that I have been a supporter of Israel all along - and not necessarily because I like Jews. I continue to believe that if we were to deliver Israel into the hands of its enemies, we would literally lose our souls. It's that serious. (Sorry Lou, but that's what I believe.)

You are right, Mike; there are all kinds of reasons for why Islamists hate us. The one you mention is no doubt the most relevant (even if they themselves don’t know it). But now that the ball has been put in motion, it seems only to be gathering steam. From where does it draw its energy? What is the fuel that powers it? Why do there seem to be unlimited numbers willing to sacrifice themselves and their children - and for what?

It always comes down to Israel. That’s the weakness to which their propagandists always keep returning. Even the Mumbai attacks had that particular component. Were Israel gone, the spring would wind down; the pressure would lessen - at least for a time. I'm convinced of it.

This does not mean that abandoning Israel would solve all (or even any) of our problems. I believe it would create new, bigger and even more profound ones for us (especially if our abandonment of Israel should result in genocide).

It would likely take years to find the words to articulate the consequences, but consequences would be with us nonetheless (whether we acknowledge them or not), like millstones - or a whole flock of albatrosses - tied around our pathetic, cowardly necks.
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The responses generated by my remarks on Israel suggest that questions raised in this regard point to something considerably more sensitive than what is readily apparent. Most comments were designed to mitigate the problem by perpetuating the myth that Israel is fully capable of defending itself; when, in fact, it has been Israel’s strategy all along to align itself with a supportive ‘big brother’ to ensure its continued survival. This tacit understanding has never been questioned until the present administration came to power – and with good reason.

The balance of comments were designed to support of a second myth - promoted by Israel itself – designed to convince the ‘big brother’ that more than just the fate of Israel is at stake.

Both these are myths because they are not grounded entirely in reality. Israel will not be able to defend itself without our help when the hoards are finally unleashed. And the threat is existential to Israel alone. All others will be able to muddle through in a post apocalyptic world.

Israel is a test for western civilization. It is the ‘canary in the coal mine’. What happens to Israel will eventually happen to us (manifold). No question about it: fate has fashioned Israel into the crucible that determines the future of western civilization. Look at what’s happening as we speak: Israel is under threat; the West (and western interests everywhere) is under threat. Israel stands divided about what to do about it; the West stands divided. Each has powerful voices within its own borders giving aid and comfort to the enemy. If Israel is permitted to fall, the West falls. Pure and simple.

With all due respect to your scholarship, Tom; I doubt if your average jihadi fighter understands or cares what happened 500 years ago. All this ’knowledge’ is our torment and distraction to sort out. All they know is ”hate the Jews; kill them, if possible; as well as all those who support their effort to remain among the living.” (Don’t look at me; I didn’t write this script. It is what it is.)