Heavy On The Gas

"...we like natural diasters as bookmarks in our chronicles. Earthquakes, flood, tsunamis, volcanoes all appear to be outside of history and non-partisan." - John Batchelor.

I really like your description of natural disasters as ‘non-partisan bookmarks’. I guess it’s been in the back of my mind ever since RE uttered the words, “You never want a serious crisis to go to waste. And what I mean by that is an opportunity to do things you think you could not do before.”

I just finished listening to Aaron Klein’s Sunday show in which he parsed Barack Hussein Obama’s speech last week re the Middle East. Aaron’s weekly radio program is the kind of radio The John Batchelor Show used to be; and, in somewhat diluted form, still is.

Putting aside what Aaron actually had to say, the very fact that we cannot comfortably take Obama’s words at face value is troubling. Does he support Israel, or does he not? The jury is still out on that. An argument can be made either way. Does he understand the linkage between Israel and America as it has traditionally served? And, in a more immediate sense: What does he intend for America? Again, a variety of opinion prevails.

We’ve come a long way from trying to figure out whether Bill Clinton had sex with Monica Lewinsky or not. The argument we’re having today brings it much closer to home. It puts us in the crosshairs. After two and a half years, we are still at a loss to explain who our president is and in whose interests he might be working. Meanwhile all the metrics by which we have traditionally judged administrations are telling us we’re going down.

It seems what we write here has very little impact; that even what JB and his guests may say on his mighty New York ‘blowtorch’ megaphone is but a thimble’s worth of utterance tossed into the great torrent of popular babble. I think we’re all smart enough to know that no one really cares what we say or write. If people should actually begin to care, it would probably be wise to stop. Mitch Daniels and Donald Trump (among others) seem already to have reached this conclusion.

It is, after all, only ourselves we aim to please. Unfortunately, whether by design or accident, we remain our own severest critics, forever seeking approval from someone ‘outside’. The more astute among us, perhaps, eventually come to realize that there is no one really out there – never was; never will. Call this futile exercise good old-fashioned ‘blame-shifting’.

At one time, there was a great debate to determine the center of the universe. As is customary in any such endeavors, the first three reports were wrong – and from the look of things, all subsequent reports may be wrong as well. In fact, the question may be so absurd as to not even deserve consideration.

Given all we have to worry about, it’s a small matter indeed, intended only for GPS fanatics – as is worry about apocalypse; rapture; the 12th Imam’s well; etc. These are not things we can actually do anything about. What does appear to be possible is for us to handle our own affairs with due care and dignity. And even in that we too often fail (Schwarzenegger, Strauss-Kahn).

When a nation fails, it seldom fails from the outside. It fails from within. It fails due to the fractures and divisions induced by uneven emphasis. By that score, we have failed already – even before Barack Hussein Obama started sporting his first legitimate tooth. Our president is merely the driver whom we have chosen to drive our bus. Netanyahu happens to be on that bus as well. He now wishes he weren't - as he now raises the alarm, saying that our driver may be a little too heavy on the gas.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Flipped

Both China and Japan - (we could even go so far as to say) all countries - face challenges in implementing policy. There are always approaches that warrant tweaking. Since there might be questions as to the underlying assumptions that would presumably lead to improvement, it is possible that any given policy (based on such assumptions) might ultimately fail to produce the desired result. So far, China has done things pretty much by the book.

There is, however, nothing to guarantee that ‘the book’ - even the American book - is always right. Time is like a train rushing ahead. There also needs to be some measure of faith that the tracks will continue to be there.

There is no doubt in my mind that - although China has made some serious mistakes in the past, giving birth to any number of Albatrosses around its neck - China aims high. It wants to be top dog. As such, it intends to surpass America. This does not necessarily imply evil intent. It proceeds out of a sense of national pride. The leaders of China believe in destiny. They feel that their time is at hand, and that they must now prepare as much as possible and, when the time is right, ‘seize the day‘. Apart from China, there are any number of signals that the U.S. itself has been sending that confirm China’s suspicion that its own turn at the wheel is near.

When my wife queries me if I would prefer eggplant or carrots for supper, she immediately jumps to the conclusion that I don’t like carrots and will never buy them again. In truth, I don’t mind carrots at all. Confronted with a choice, I inevitably fall into a trap of my own making as soon as I voice an opinion. Carrots, after all, are different from eggplant.

I agree with a liberal friend of mine that we should not be in the business of exporting ‘democracy’ throughout the world. We should persuade by example. China has been watching us and has adopted many of our ways. It has helped them to become relatively successful in a short period of time. China also sees us now, and intends to avoid making our mistakes. The point is, the leadership of China seeks to do what it feels is best for China. We may or may not agree as to how China‘s ascendancy would ultimately affect us.
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Interesting opinion piece by Michael Medved in this morning’s WSJ, entitled, “Obama Isn’t Trying To ‘Weaken’ America”. The pull quote from it reads “Some conservatives call the president the political equivalent of a suicide bomber: so consumed with hatred (for America) that he is willing to blow himself up in order to inflict casualties on a society he loathes.”

It goes on to list various failings of past presidents from Franklin Pierce to Bill Clinton, implying that we have well survived all their foibles; that Obama’s fumbling in office is of no more consequence than Clinton’s diddling with Monica Lewinsky in an Oval Office anteroom. Medved’s grand proof that people like Rush Limbaugh - who has said, “I think we face something we’ve never faced before in our country; and that is, we’re now governed by people who do not like the country.” or Sarah Palin, who said, “...he (Obama) is hell-bent on weakening America.” - are imbecilic. He bolsters his argument by saying, “None of the attacks on Mr. Obama’s intentions offers an even vaguely plausible explanation of how the evil genius, once he has ruined our ‘strength, influence and standard of living’ hopes to get himself re-elected.” - as if elections would be of any concern to ‘evil geniuses’ in the first place.

I used to like listening to Medved’s radio program when he was here in New York years ago. I especially liked his movie reviews. It could be that he has flipped, like Philadelphia's Michael Smerconish, and as John Batchelor himself is forever threatening to do.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Who Will Be Left Standing?

We tend to be arbitrarily selective in weighting individual events as to their relative importance. Almost every pundit concerns him or herself with simply categorizing the flotsam to satisfy some curatorial interest or bias. Officially, our country has already become a museum - desultory displays in every room - static, enforced silence; no running; no cameras allowed. No hint of the wave that continues to build.

During Clinton’s term in office, some tried to make hay of his brother’s cocaine use. It fell flat and was quickly dismissed as irrelevant - yet, it most likely occurred. Then, Republicans made a lot of Bill’s peccadilloes outside the sacred vows of marriage. That too fell flat, though it did ended in impeachment; in this case, merely a technical term - an asterisk - that essentially meant nothing.

Then there was Gore’s stolen election, which, as far as it went, only proved that a “bird in the hand…”

Then, it all started with 9/11.

In my view, Bush was an adequate caretaker, but the wave was already building: a hardening of positions, a disrespect of government in general. A whole line of American presidents had already been discredited, reaching back all the way to our founding.

The Left was the first to take advantage of our political chaos. Republicans had to be defeated at any price, even at the expense of the country - and things went from bad to worse. Obama was elected in ’08. He was supposed to be the messiah who was sent to bring us together and heal us. The country had been proclaimed a basket case - but, at least, we still had a country.

Obama changed things alright. He cut us loose from our moorings. It’s become clear to many of us that the Left has managed to hoist its red sail even without openly stating our destination. Meanwhile, the Right has dropped anchor. Horse latitudes. We’re not going anywhere.

Meanwhile, the wave is building. It is expected to crash on shore in early November, scattering flotsam all across our beaches. The clean-up may cost us more than we can afford.

Already the tourists are leaving the continent. The tsunami flags are flying. Both Democrats and Republicans are running for the hills. Losing has become as risky as winning. Who will be left standing? Who will right the ship? Who will clean up the beaches?

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Clinton's Legacy (Redux)

It seems incredible to me that the Dems would stoop to bringing back a man who single-handedly destroyed their party. To be sure, back when he did it, the party was in much better shape than it is today. It must also be noted that Bill Clinton is not out there campaigning for Obama or any of his lackeys; he is campaigning for his wife who he hopes to take over party leadership after Obama has been disposed of.

To remind readers of just how it went; what ruptured the old-style Democrats and allowed the anti-American, hard Left to take sole possession, I reprint a post written back in January of this year:

“I am just now beginning to see how the Bush presidency was doomed from the start. My clue came from an off-hand remark made by my wife. 'Clinton was the one who damaged America’s standing in the world,' she said. This thought had never occurred to me, especially since he (Bill) is routinely held up as the gold standard of American politics by the mainstream media. Yet, what he did - what he will forever be known for - was so outrageous; it blindsided everyone. Any corporation executive, anywhere in the world, could not have survived a similar situation for ten minutes. Any self-respecting wife would have walked away. Any court would have been justified in sending Bubba to prison.

“None of this happened. Republicans were too cowardly to act. Those assigned to the matter were ceaselessly attacked. Meanwhile the Clinton spin machine went into overdrive, besmirching America’s founders one by one. 'See, what Bubba did wasn’t so bad' went the drumbeat day in and day out on the front pages of newspapers and on network TV. It went on for months; the public felt hurt and humiliated; ashamed that the man, in whom they had placed their trust, would act like a cad. They felt sorry for his wife and especially for his daughter. Eventually everyone would get tired of this sordid business and tried to pretend it never happened – just like they do now with respect to 9/11.

“The entire world watched in disbelief as Bill Clinton continued to be defended by his party. The effort continued throughout the Bush/Cheney years: In order to excuse the inexcusable, the man who would come after (Bush) had to be destroyed. It was the only chance the Clinton legacy (as well as the Democrat party) would ever have for redemption.”

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Third Party

The wave is certainly building. Already of tsunami-like proportions, it is poised to sweep everything out to sea. Democrats - partially by chance, partially by their own effort - happen to be situated closest to the shore. Republicans are just behind. There is reason to believe that ultimately no one will be spared.

John Boehner’s taking over the reigns of congressional power will prove to be temporary. Politics as usual can no longer stand - particularly the practice of entitlement by seniority. Boehner will have to pull off a miracle in order to survive the public mood. There is no reason to believe that he (or any Republican) is up to the challenge.

This does not mean that voters will automatically jump back to supporting Democrats. This is where most pundits get it wrong. Let me be clear, the Democrat Party for all intents and purposes is finished. Bill Clinton finished it off with the Lewinski scandal. By forcing it to defend the indefensible, it would become an empty shell, retaining only its name. That’s how the socialists were able to fill the vacuum and take it over.

Republicans are blamed for letting it happen. Republicans were expected at the very least to keep watch. They failed to do even that much. They slept at their posts, allowing the enemy to breach the defensive line and create major havoc from within. Republicans are seen as being ineffectual at best, or somewhat corrupt at worst.

Voters will give them a very short leash should they come to power as now seems likely. The ineptness of The Republican Party will be exposed in all its amazing colors of Joseph’s Technicolor dream coat. The state-sponsored press will make sure that the news of Republican ineptness is well disseminated.

All this amounts to is that we could be seeing the birth of a wildly successful third Party in the next election cycle. All it would need is for a leader to emerge - one, capable of speaking the language of the American people.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

Old Brown Shoe

Even as we continue to strive to be like France, we still cling to some of the old American taboos inherent in a stubborn streak of our puritan tradition. To be sure, Bill Clinton’s dalliances were a game changer. Although we would never - now 15 some odd years later - think of impeaching a man (or woman) for casual private affairs, we’re still not comfortable with it. I have previously (on this blog) enumerated the consequences of the Monica Lewinsky affair and defended my contention that it was precisely this - not the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan - that, in a real sense, brought us to where we are today.

In order to maintain any semblance of old brown shoe prudishness (which seems to compliment our unctuous leanings), we’ve had to introduce money into the equation. New Jersey governors Corzine and McGreevey as well as New York’s Elliott Spitzer all fell under this sword. Corzine was said to have had improper dealings with the someone in a public sector union; McGreevey was said to have given a plum job to a lover; and Spitzer was said to have paid actual money (God forbid!) to the madam of high-end call girls. It is no wonder that the Hurd affair is now couched in similar terms.

Only someone of such immense political stature as Bill Clinton could get by and change the game once again, removing even the last remaining vestige of fig leaf with regard to the sex trade.

Admittedly, the whole notion is preposterous, especially in the face of all our other problems. It is infinitely more palatable than looking a train wreck straight in the face, especially while standing on the same track. Guilt weakens; and, as such, renders a powerful man vulnerable. Still, it would allow him at least some space in which to squirm. A good lawyer can always find enough wiggle room for the perp to slip the cuffs. A train wreck, on the other hand, spells closure. The paints are dry; the brushes broken. Nothing can be done anymore to alter even a single brushstroke of the finished dystopian masterpiece once it has been released for public endurance.