Bleatings From The Leper Colony

Ever since George Washington, we have always had presidents with some overarching vision of where they want to take the nation. They might have gotten bogged down in the minutia of governance, or they might have made mistakes that would eventually require retreat. But the basic vision nevertheless remained and focused on bringing America to a better place.

We, the people, more or less accepted the fact that we were not policy wonks; that we were not necessarily privy to all the things that our presidents were privy to – nor would we want to be. We could more or less assume that our president was doing his best to move us forward while keeping our best interests in mind.

We always accepted a certain amount of change – even downturns in our personal and collective fortunes - as being an integral part of life. We even accepted small, incremental deviations from the principles on which our nation was founded. We accepted the slow creep of socialism to accommodate the needs of the poor, the sick and the otherwise unfortunate.

All this changed with the election of Barack Hussein Obama. As the continuing controversy about his birth certificate suggests, there is now a growing concern as to just who this man actually is. Are we better off now than we were just two years ago? The resounding answer is no.

The tea parties were the first to sound the alarm. They were summarily rebuffed and dismissed. As more and more people dared to raise questions, more and more people were labeled ‘extreme’ and, therefore, illegitimate. Everybody knows at least a part of the threat our nation faces. And yet, every citizen is treated as guilty – at airports, for example – while the obvious culprits are excused from our scrutiny in the interest of maintaining a veneer of tolerance – tolerance for whom? The only ones not tolerated are us! It almost seems like our world has been turned upside down where a declaration of obvious criminal intent somehow provides immediate immunity.

Meanwhile, the rest of us must carefully maintain our resumes, and closely monitor our words and actions lest we stand accused of racism, hate crimes and various sundry sins that might well result in our exclusion. A natural bent towards conservatism in some precincts would practically confine one to the modern equivalent of a leper colony.

Meanwhile, too, we watch our fortunes fading, even as the media celebrates great strides toward some unspecified unknown. Should we venture to connect the dots and project our path to some seemingly alien experience, we are slapped down by harsh voices laced with severe accusation and ridicule. Since when, in America, has anyone not been allowed to speak openly without having to fear intimidation; especially, when what we say, points out gross contradictions in policy objectives; and particularly as these might relate to the fundamental contract we have with our government?

It has not gone unnoticed that this contract is now in serious jeopardy; that our government has gone rogue; that our own leadership is now on the brink of labeling us as illegitimate. We, of course - now that the contract has been broken - can say the same.

We never thought it could come to this – not in America.

http://pkoelliker.blogspot.com/

'Mona Bone Jakon'

Seems like Monday morning quarterbacking; trying to figure out what happened in Sunday's game. Team Obama is wondering how the underdogs were able to get past their defenses and score (big).

On the (flat) gridiron each team has an even chance; on the diamond, the team that goes second gets last dibs; on the track, the better horses are sometimes physically handicapped (by adding weights to their saddles); in golf... We understand all that. But this here is not a game, Mr. President. This is not about being fair. This is about winning the war against Islamic terror (which you claim doesn't exist).

If we can agree, though, that this is a war against al-Qaeda (as you now claim), know that al-Qaeda has no single banner to signify a particular region. Members can be found anywhere and everywhere. Only their target is specific: Israel, America, and anybody who does not wholeheartedly and openly advocate for Israel’s total destruction.

Democrats have put so much stock in thought crime legislation over the years. It is no longer enough to kill somebody to qualify for punishment. No, you must also shout hateful epithets while you are doing it (and you must either admit to it, or someone must have heard you). I’m sure they’re already working on trying to figure out how to punish someone in advance of the crime; i.e., on evidence of hateful thoughts alone. It was on that basis returning war veterans, pro-lifers and others were targeted by Homeland Security last year. Just because they were laughed out of the room does not mean they’ve forgotten what they meant by it.

Barack Hussein Obama finally admitted that we are engaged in a war. It is not a war he feels comfortable in fighting. Quite frankly, he would much rather engage in fighting Republicans, white people, rich people, accomplished people… (We’ve been over this list far too often before. I agree it has all the earmarks of ‘forever’ and would give anyone who is not Obama a thin line to tread. In fact, anyone in Yemen or anywhere in the Middle East, except Israel, may have a better chance of escaping Obama’s contempt than just plain, ordinary, garden variety Americans).

Be that as it may; the question arises, why don’t we apply hate (or thought) crime legislation to the various plotters, bombers, inciters, supporters, battlefield captives, etc.; then we could be certain of quick conviction and an appropriately satisfying, maximum penalty to be carried out with all pomp and circumstance. Let’s at the same time perfect our ability to discern the guilty thought before the actual crime can occur (as the Democrats claim they are on the verge of being able to do) and we would surely be sitting on top of the world. No one could hurt us - except we ourselves. …and that is precisely why it’s not on this president’s agenda.

Getting back to how we could have missed it – let the panty bomber on the Detroit bound plane in the first place despite so many clues - allow me to relate a personal story: I must admit to being a huge fan of Cat Stevens. At some point I found myself wandering around 'Landmark Books' at Citi Centre Mall in Chennai. I noticed a Cat Stevens CD on the shelf; one, ‘Mona Bone Jakon’, that seemed to have escaped my attention. I bought it and brought it home. There I tried to listen to it. I soon gave up, trying to figure out how this CD could be so bone-crushingly bad. It was only then that I noted the picture of a garbage can on the cover.