In my lifetime I have noticed two very general sets of attitudes toward the U.S. I have lived abroad and travelled extensively, so I have a basis for comparison. We have either been grudgingly respected or dismissively ignored, with very few exceptions, during very short periods of time (after 9/11, etc.), There has been little middle ground. Our allies have been our allies and our enemies have been our enemies. Their actions have been contingent upon both of those sets of attitudes and which one was prevalent. Care to guess during which presidencies either have occurred?

I have a vivid recollection of the Carter years. I was active duty Navy at the time. It was post-Vietnam era and as a country we were walking around hanging our heads in shame for Vietnam and Watergate and it seemed patriotism was a dirty word. What did we have to be patriotic about? The media and Hollywood fed this national hangdog attitude with their drumbeat of “shame on you, shame on you”. Movies like Coming Home portrayed patriots as Neanderthals, insensitive, fringe lunatics and baby killers. Debauchery was also the rule. If you watch other movies from the 70’s it seemed everyone smoked dope. It was portrayed as an acceptable practice by regular moms, CEO’s, religious leaders and military people. Non-dope smokers were portrayed the same as patriots were. Whether society was a reflection of Hollywood or vice versa is irrelevant. It was what it was.

Our foreign policy seemed to consist of walking around the world bowing our heads and speaking softly to everyone, except we had no big stick. I remember a political cartoon during the Iranian hostage crisis that depicted President Carter, the IDF general who rescued hostages at Entebbe and the head of Scotland Yard who rescued the London hostages from that department store hostage crisis in London. Sorry, I could spend hours researching both their names, but what’s relevant was that in the cartoon, both the Israeli and the Brit had medals hanging from their chest with the names of their successful rescue operations. Carter was wearing a rose on his lapel. The caption said “yep, I grew it myself”. I was ashamed to read that cartoon.

Then came the Reagan years. The elites hated Reagan, both at home and in Europe. They portrayed him almost as badly as they did Bush 43. The portrayals ranged from him being a simple minded boob to a narcissistic arrogant cowboy. Sound familiar? Yep. The one thing they could not take away from Reagan however was his ability to communicate to the people. As a result, our national pride soared and suddenly we were getting the grudging respect from the rest of the world. They still didn’t like us but they damn sure respected us. I was still in the military and I saw the attitude of the military change dramatically as well. Patriotism seemed to come in style again and movies depicting dope smokers faded away. Again, whether society was a reflection of Hollywood or vice versa is irrelevant. It was what it was.

This patriotism carried us through the Clinton years during which we were repeatedly attacked by Islamo-fascists. From the first WTC bombing to the USS Cole we couldn’t seem to stop them. While this was going on, our Department of Justice became famous for raiding Americans homes and compounds (Waco, Ruby Ridge, Elian Gonalez family’s house). Meanwhile they were prohibited from sharing information with the CIA thanks to Jamie Gorelick. Information that may have prevented 9/11.

In came our second “clueless cowboy”, President Bush. This is when the world really amped up its hatred. They loved us briefly when we were victims after 9/11, but that ended the day we decided to fight back.

What? Fight? Are you insane?

This defeatist attitude began to spread back home too. Of course the media grabbed that torch and willingly ran with it. Comparisons to Vietnam invariably surfaced. Of course not the true Vietnam history where we were winning but the media’s attitude that it was a quagmire. This despite the fact that both wars could NOT have been more different. It was failure that the peaceniks wanted to emphasize. They wanted to go back to those hangdog glory days where the US was not the big badass sheepdog. Liberals love victims and it just won’t work if we win.

Of course they ignored the fact that attacks on our soil and sovereign assets stopped abruptly after April 2003. Sure they attacked Spain and Spain immediately surrendered and pulled their troops. They attacked EVERYONE BUT THE US.

Why the diatribe? Well I just read a fabulous piece in the New York Post of all places and it immediately took me back to those blasted Carter years.

http://www.nypost.com/seven/04082009/postopinion/opedcolumnists/os_amateur_hour_163368.htm?&page=1

Let’s hope we don’t see the same resulting effect. I for one am not optimistic. This administration’s going to get us killed. But that’s okay cause we’ll become victims again and maybe, just maybe, the world will love us. At least till 2012 when we decide to get our grudging respect back. Who gives a rats patootie if they like us. I like it when they shake their fists from the relative safety of their side of the fence. I’ve seen those guys in real life. Their bark is definitely worse than their bite. 

Hey how about this for a feather in Obama’s cap?

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2009/04/congressional-caucus-members-meet-with-the-castro-cousins-in-cuba.html

Now I’m sure, much like the LA Times, most would love to tout this as a foreign policy success, but before you start tooting that horn let me ask you. Why now? What is it about this administration that makes Castro so willing to work with it? Could it be that we are heading toward Cuba’s form of government at a breakneck pace? Ding, ding, ding! Give the man a cigar! Make it a Montecristo while you’re at it.

Listen, as a child of the Caribbean, I’m all for relations with Cuba. I would love nothing more than freedom and prosperity for all Cubans and for that island to leap forward into the 21^st century. Here’s the problem. While Castro’s oppressive communist regime remains in power, despite the leader’s failing health, that just ain’t gonna happen. Much like all Communist regimes, any kind of treaty or economic deal we begin with the Cubans is going to benefit the elite few. The poor downtrodden Cuban’s plight will remain the same. The fact that liberals don’t see this is yet another clear indication of their inability to think critically. 

 I was raised with expatriated Cubans in Puerto Rico. My uncle even married one. I guarantee you that the vast majority of expatriated Cubans have a deep seated mistrust and hatred for the Castro regime. They know the true deal. The Cuban community in Miami has been avidly working for regime change in Cuba for the past 50 years. Some have died valiantly pursuing the dream of Cuba becoming a free democratic society. Here’s another side of the story.

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/columnists/myriam-marquez/story/989534.html

But to people like Michael Moore, Sean Penn and the Black Congressional Caucus, Castro is just misunderstood and has been abused by our past administrations. Dr. Thomas Sowell put it best this week in his column of random thoughts.

“How a man who holds the entire population of a country as his prisoners, and punishes the families of those who escape, can be admired by people who call themselves liberals is one of the many wonders of the human mind's ability to rationalize. Yet such is the case with Fidel Castro.”

 

I spent 19 months working as a DOD contractor in the Middle Eastern country of Qatar. Being an unarmed American working for the DOD in an Arab country, I was more than a little paranoid of being kidnapped. Reading this article kind of brought the whole thing home for me again.

http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2009/03/20/1844071.aspx

For the most part, I was safe, as Qatar is one of those “moderate” countries trying to appear more modern to the Western world. They see the writing on the wall. Their oil and natural gas reserves are a finite resource so they’re trying to become like the Arabic French Riviera. The Emir is trying to modernize it every single day. It was however, an Arab country, the headquarters of Al Jazzeera is based there, and my job was a very sensitive one. I worked with hundreds of Arab, Assyrian, Palestinian, Egyptian, Iraqi, Kurdish, Somali and Etiopian linguists every single day. Muslim, Christian, Jewish, Agnostic, Atheist and a couple Scientologists. I travelled out into the city of Doha frequently.

I had a couple things going for me. For one thing, I look like everyone over there. I could blend into a crowd (unless I was taking some R&R guys out or going out with my co-workers). I didn’t wear a Thob, but neither did every local over there. What is astounding is how everyone looks like they sprouted from my family tree (or vice versa).

I wasn’t completely unarmed. I ALWAYS carry a nice 3” knife with a locking Tanto blade I can open with a flick of my wrist (hold the Rican jokes please). Plus, I’ve been a training martial artist for almost 37 years. Ironically, although invaluable, my training is not completely essential for survival.

My most powerful weapon was the one permanently imbedded between my ears. What I did, that I consider my best “preventive” self-defense system was to create what Tony Blauer (Blauer Tactical Systems) calls a “Mission Directive” in my head. It’s somewhat specific. Mine went something like this:

“If I am under threat of a kidnapping attempt I will fight to the death. I will become such an impossible victim that my kidnappers will be forced to kill me on the spot rather than take me to some undisclosed location and film me while decapitating me and putting the film on the internet for my children to see. I will fight them until I am dead or unconscious and when I regain consciousness I will fight again. Survival and escape are secondary. Primary is to NOT be taken.”

I repeated this like a mantra every single day. When I awoke and went to work, and every time I left the base. When I remembered I would repeat it again.

For those cringing and thinking this is an extremely paranoid way to live I’m here to tell you it is the opposite. It’s very empowering. I have several mission directives here at home. No matter where I am. What they do is prepare you to leap into action without hesitation when a violent attack begins. It removes that initial few precious seconds of hesitation where most victims find themselves either thinking or even uttering out loud “I can’t believe this is happening to me!” It’s like programming your hard drive with a mental directive to act NOW!

Even though in the above directive survival and escape were “secondary”, my death was not a foregone conclusion in my mind. I created scenarios where I killed every single one of them. I swapped them continuously; in a restaurant, on the street, in the mall, in the Suqs, at the gate, in a cab, in a car, driving, passenger etc. etc. Even at the Embassy surrounded by armed Marines. I kept them simple knowing that anything I did would be under an extraordinary amount of stress and I would be highly adrenalized. Why does that matter? Loss of fine motor skills. I always knew where the escape routes were and where anything I could use as a weapon was. You’d be amazed how little time this takes. I knew the city like the back of my hand and could drive over there like a local.

Situational/geographical awareness are important. Physical skills are also important, but you’re kind of stuck with the physical frame you have and the training you’ve allowed yourself. Not everyone’s gonna be Bruce Lee or Rambo. The mindset I’m describing however, is invaluable! It manifests itself in the way you carry yourself physically and sends subconscious messages to everyone around you, human and animal. You stop walking and acting like prey.

Does that mean that because of my mental state a potential kidnapper sized me up and decided I was “too much trouble”? My theory is the same for a lunatic islamist as it is for a potential mugger. Yes. Don’t believe me? Take a look at the picture above and others they have kidnapped and tell me what they have in common? More importantly than how they perceived me, it was me training myself for how I was going to react. There would be no pleas to my country to “Help me please!” Whether I was sized up by a criminal or a terrorist are irrelevant to me.

It’s never a wasted effort no matter where you are. Ask the family of that pastor that was shot and killed on the altar of his church a couple of Sundays ago. For those who say there was nothing he could do, that’s where you’re wrong. He had time to deflect the first bullet with his bible, therefore he had time to spring into action. It was the inaction that allowed the gunman to eventually find his mark with a bullet. This is not meant as criticism of the pastor as he reacted like the vast majority of the population will react in an incongruous sudden violent act. They simply have no mental training for it. Just so you know, I also have a mission directive in church.

In the end, I suppose the correct answer is, I’ll never know. I intend to keep it that way.

 

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. You may have many disagreements with President Bush on his policies, his decisions as president, his personal beliefs etc. You may be one of the hordes of sheep who repeat the MSM and late night comedian mantras about how the former president is just not that smart. Or the other side that he’s a megalomaniacal genius who manipulated the world. All those I can grant you. But the one thing that cannot be disputed is the man’s grace under fire.

This president has been one of the most maligned in at least my lifetime. I’ve never seen such venom spewed at one man in the course of eight years in very public forums by very prominent people. Not once have I ever heard the president publicly retaliate or respond in kind. Personally I don’t know how he does it. He may have a shouting closet in his house or he may just leave it out on the trail in one of his 100 degree plus 5 mile runs in Texas. In any case, he has shown more class than some of those who are supposedly more “sophisticated” than he (I recall John Kerry stating how he couldn’t believe he was getting beat by this “idiot”). Here’s his latest public statement about President Obama at his first public speech since leaving the White House:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090318/ap_on_re_ca/canada_bush_first_speech_20

Recently there was yet another adolescent moment with President Obama’s press secretary. This guy (Gibbs) can’t talk without sounding like the freshman that keeps getting thrown into a locker at school. He insulted the former Vice President who had answered a journalists question with his honest opinion. Clearly Cheney’s answer was critical of the present administration, but it was also directed at the issues. Gibb decided to thumb his nose at Cheney (who has more time on the commode than Gibb has in government) like a juvenile dolt. Cheney is no Bush and is known for his less than gracious responses to criticism, but President Obama’s press secretary is starting to sound like Rush Limbaugh with half the IQ. Point is, we have serious problems that need to be dealt with by serious people. They’re going to have to grow a couple more layers of skin if they expect to survive. If they’re this thin skinned at this stage of the game I can’t imagine them withstanding the criticism George Bush had to endure.

Their only solution would have to be Achmed the Dead Suicide Bomber’s response,

“Silence! I keeeel you!”

 

So, things are not as bad NOW as people think they are and things were not as good THEN as people thought? Does anyone but me feel like we’re playing a game of three card monte?

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/first100days/2009/03/12/obama-declares-economic-crisis-bad-think/

I don’t necessarily have a problem with the President delivering an optimistic message to the country. It’s in my nature to be one of those annoyingly upbeat guys. People ask me how I’m doing and I usually say “Fabulous! Couldn’t be better if I were twins.” And the market/economy being driven by consumer confidence, I believe it is the president’s job to stay positive and deliver a positive message.

But how convenient for the president that things “aren’t as bad NOW, and weren’t as good THEN.” I’m sure if we were in the campaign season still it would be doom and gloom 24/7. Things wouldn’t be “bad”, they’d be CATASTROPHIC! And when the Consumer Index, GNP, and the market were up, it wasn’t as good as we thought.

I’ve been paying attention to Barrack Obama’s rise in politics since the buzz started about this “charismatic state senator”. The one universal thing that has bothered me since then and continues to bother me still is how I feel like I’m constantly being hustled by this guy.

Worse yet, I’ve watched him ascend to the presidency by running on a campaign of bromides and platitudes completely lacking in substance that people simply swoon over. Or get “tingles running up their legs”. I still don’t know how he got there. Scratch that, I know how he got there but it’s still staggering to me how we elected someone with no record to speak of, a highly questionable past and unresolved doubts about qualifications.

I’m not bitter. My attitude with this guy is the same as it was with Clinton. Okay, you got in, now get your arse to work. So Clinton’s first windmill was ensuring gays could serve openly in the military. Obama can’t seem to staff his administration and the stock market has plunged faster in this new administration than it has in 90 years! Not that he cares about that, since he believes the stock market ups and downs are just a thang. He’s spending my money like a drunken sailor on shore leave.

He has gone back on most of his major campaign promises. Not that I have a problem with that as I thought they were insane, but those were the things his base used as justification for his election (or coronation as it were). Unless you were black. Then you just elected him because he was black. Okay, so did some white people.

It doesn’t seem to matter what he says or does, he still gets a pass from the MSM. Not surprisingly so since they carry the lion’s share of the credit for getting him elected. They’d have to admit that they’d been bamboozled if they want to go after him.

As much as I detested everything Clinton stood for I used to admire his Teflon coating. Nothing seemed to stick to him. It seems I gave him too much credit. It wasn’t Clinton necessarily, but the generosity of the media that ascended him to bulletproof status. The reason I say this is because as soon as his wife started running against the newly anointed one, Bill couldn’t seem to get anything right. He went from Superman to Bozo the clown. He was the same guy, but now everything he said or did seemed to be a major faux pas. I even remember reading somewhere an analysis of Bill during the campaign that seemed to wonder what happened to him. It even floated the theory that his quadruple bypass had affected his judgment somehow. How convenient. Wish I could remember the reporter and the source.

In the art of the plausible, subterfuge and sleight of hand are most often the modus operandi. I get that. I have a healthy dose of skeptical cynicism. But is it too much to ask though that these people refrain from insulting my intelligence? I mean c’mon, really. I’m not that smart.

 

 

It’s been a while since I’ve done the Stupid Celebrity Quotes blog. Not because there’s a paucity of material. I’ve simply been focused on other things. In fact, I haven’t been blogging this prolifically in a while on any subject. So after clicking on one stupid quote, I stumbled on a treasure chest!

The whole fiasco of that Virginia State Senator wanting to ban Barbie produced a bountiful feast of dimwittiness! Chief among them from Khloe (with a K) Kardashian, one of those “celebrities” who is famous for nothing but being famous. Here’s her quote to the Senator.

“He can suck an egg, seriously. He's probably butt-ugly and always wanted a girlfriend that looked like Barbie but could never get one. People like that really annoy me."

Now I also agree that banning Barbie is a bit extreme and a really stupid move for a politician, but ya gotta love the vacuous bimbo with a forum.

On the same subject, from a supposed feminist and (of course) actress, of He’s Just Not That Into You,  Ginnifer (with a Gin) Goodwin:

"Barbie’s very empowering and my inner feminist is really very proud of our Barbie culture. She does have a rather tiny, unrealistic waist but she’s a doll and you know the thing about Barbie that I’ve always found very inspiring is she was fashionable and could have a fella if she wanted and sometimes she did, sometimes she didn’t and any career of her choosing. So if she was affluent it was due to her successes and especially for a doll that premiered in the 1950’s that’s pretty admirable that’s pretty incredible."

That is world class babbling right there! You can read the whole thing here:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,509097,00.html

And just so you don’t think I’m picking exclusively on the girls, this from one of my current favorite movie stars, The Rock, who believes in magic, but is also very logical. Here’s his “logic”:

"I can believe in the magic and the power of possibility but I am also pretty logical as well. A plus B most of the time equals C." Emphasis mine.

Have a fabulous weekend boys and girls!

 

I’ve been wondering how it’s possible under the current circumstances that anyone who voted for Obama is not riddled with buyer’s remorse. I keep hearing from these people that “he’s only been in office xx days! Give him a chance.”

A chance to do what?

Look, I didn’t run on the platform of change and hope. I didn’t run on the “getting our forces out of Iraq within xx months” and “creating xx jobs” blah blah blah. Yes, yes I know it’s all politicians rhetoric, but have you been paying attention? The economy has not leveled out man, it’s plunging like Monica on Bill! (I promise that’s the last time I use that metaphor). His solution, MASTERCARD, INTERNATIONAL! SO WORLDLY SO WELCOME….” Cha-ching, mo money, mo money.

Take the economy out of the equation and start listening to our enemies in Iran. They don’t seem to be under the Obamessiah’s spell. For those of you who thought electing someone named Barrack Hussein Obama would make the Islamo-lunatics start to like us, well, yeah, you’re morons. Don’t get me started on Russia and Venezuela.

Then there’s his administration picks. What’s the pre-requisite to be on a tax raising presidential staff? Avoid paying taxes.

We got an Attorney General calling America cowards for not having a dialogue on race? Where has this genius been? Frankly I’m getting tired of the damned race dialogue and I certainly don’t need the AG telling me how to conduct my personal life. Did he sip some of Obama’s holier-than-all-a-y’all juice?

Now I know the ultra leftist is ecstatic with Obama, no matter what he does. They love him for jess bein him. I know blacks are wearing him like a proud badge of accomplishment cause he representin. The people I’m wondering about are what many like to refer to as “centrists”. I pay attention, I read varied sources and I’m wondering where is their “whoops!” moment.

Then I came across Burt Prelusky’s column. He finally nailed it for me when he wrote:

“Frankly, I don’t know why anybody continues to hold Obama in high esteem. Maybe it’s like those women who marry charming fellows only to discover after the vows have been exchanged that he’s an abuser. In spite of the black eyes and split lips, the ladies are just too embarrassed to call the cops and have their friends and relatives discover what a dunderhead they’ve been.”

Now there’s a theory I can get behind. It’s one of those things I teach in my women’s self defense classes and seminars. Plus, there’s a relevant case in the media right now involving Rhianna and Chris Brown.

Here’s what I tell my students. If you’re in one of those relationships get out. Don’t beat yourself up for following your passion and ignoring your better instincts and the voice in your head. It’s not too late to get out of it, but you have to get out now, before he kills you.

Damn. I guess that doesn’t apply here. We got four more years.

 

It seems Medvedev has about as much respect for Obama as Kruschev had for Kennedy. As soon as I heard about the supposed “deal” being extended to Russia I could have almost anticipated their response. It seems Medvedev has about as much respect for Obama as Kruschev had for Kennedy. Of course Medvedev isn’t really running things is he? As soon as I heard about the supposed “deal” being extended to Russia this morning I already knew what Russia’s response would be.

Clearly Obama is no student of history. The only time we ever won anything with Russia was when we did not capitulate. Anyone heard of Ronald Reagan?

So now the Russians have seen the face of Barrack Obama and Hillary Clinton and have concluded that Carter is back in office. Well done America for putting these two clowns in charge of our foreign policy. The media of course is clearly not emphasizing this gargantuan foreign policy failure. It would taint their golden boy wouldn’t it?

 

It is a classic strategic ploy. Find a black hat. A villain if you will.

I actually wrote about this same strategy when it was being employed in Puerto Rico. This strategy led to the closure of Naval Station Roosevelt Roads and the loss of $300,000,000 to the local economy. And for what? Not even the Puerto Ricans living on the island of Vieques can figure out how they were duped. I was given a half page editorial in the San Juan Star a few years back for my letter to the editor regarding this hoodwink. 

Here’s how it works. In order to avoid close scrutiny or to ensure the “masses” become a mob you can direct and manipulate, you have to identify a villain. Then you have to put the big black hat on him and point him out. 

In Puerto Rico, the big bad villain was the US Navy for having the audacity to train the Armed Forces with live fire exercises on the small island of Vieques. These exercises had been conducted for over 40 years and in those 40 years the only civilian casualty was a DOD security guard who decided to step outside a fortified observation tower to have a smoke. He became the symbol for the poor  downtrodden residents of the island whose economic and health situation was supposedly affected negatively by this big bad villain with the big ten gallon black hat; the US Navy. There is more to say about this situation, but the germane point is the strategy employed to get the Navy to shut down its operations which led to the base closure.  

For the past 8 years it has been somewhat easy for the Dems. Bush was the bearer of the black hat. However that currency wont buy anything anymore. For one thing, the Dems have had both houses of congress since 2006 and now have the presidency. Since Obama won the election the Dow has taken a plunge. Investor confidence being what it is, this downward spiral began last year when the president was elected. It dives even deeper every time the president speaks or does anything related to the economy.

Not that he cares. To him, the stock market indicators are like opinion polls. Wanna know why that’s about the dumbest thing he’s said? Because money talks and bull***t walks. Easy to express an opinion, but buying stocks requires someone to part with their hard earned dollar. Even an economic novice such as myself can figure that out.

So in the midst of this economic crisis what does the administration and the Dems decide to waste time on? Finding a black hat. Who would that be? Rush Limbaugh boys and girls. A private citizen. A radio talk show host. A non-elected official. Guess what else? A SUCCESSFUL BUSINESSMAN. A SELF MADE MAN. And an unabashed patriot whose love for this country is above reproach.

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0309/19596.html

Obama started pointing him out at least a month ago when he told the nation that the Republicans in Congress should stop taking their cues from Rush. We should be so lucky! Had they been taking their cues from Rush these last 8 years the Dems would not be in power.

It is about the biggest insult to our collective intelligence you can imagine. Why is it working? You tell me. I have my own theories.

Those of us who made a career of fighting communism during the last century understand that the demise of the USSR did not kill “communism”. We have been ridiculed as paranoids and alarmists. The liberal media and liberals in general are responsible for most of this, as is Hollywood’s glorification of our enemies and maligning our true heroes. The same is true for the fight against Islamofacism. The comical and sad irony is both those ideologies would decimate the very freedoms liberals espouse to protect.  

One of our greatest American heroes, Sen Joseph McCarthy has been maligned for over 50 years despite the redemption history has provided. Facts be damned, McCarthyism is still a term used by liberals to classify unjustified persecution, even though the people that Sen McCarthy pursued were exactly who he claimed they were.

Below are some quotes by Nikita Krushchev. If you don’t know or remember who he was, he was the man who played nuclear chicken with JFK during the Cuban Missile Crisis of the 60’s. Read and think. That’s all I ask.

Kruschev was the Soviet Premier of Russia in the 50s/60s. These are the words of Ezra Taft Benson, Secretary of Agriculture in the Eisenhower Administration. The grandchildren of Sec. Benson would probably be about the same age as those of us in our 40s or 50s today. The relevance of that will be evident upon hearing what he had to say.

"I have talked face to face with the godless communist leaders. It may surprise you to learn that I was host to Mr. Kruschev for a half day when he visited the United States, not that I'm proud of it. I opposed his coming then, and I still feel it was a mistake to welcome this atheistic murderer as a state visitor. But, according to President Eisenhower, Kruschev had expressed a desire to learn something of American Agriculture - and after seeing Russian agriculture I can understand why. As we talked face to face, he indicated that my grandchildren would live under communism. After assuring him that I expected to do all in my power to assure that his and all other grandchildren will live under freedom he arrogantly declared in

substance:

" 'You Americans are so gullible. No, you won't accept communism outright, but we'll keep feeding you small doses of socialism until you'll finally wake up and find you already have communism. We won't have to fight you. We'll so weaken your economy until you'll fall like overripe fruit into our hands.'

Other Quotes---------

Do you think when two representatives holding diametrically opposing

views get together and shake hands, the contradictions between our

systems will simply melt away? What kind of a daydream is that?

Nikita Khrushchev <file:///""quotes"quotes"n"nikitakhru134779.html>

I once said, "We will bury you," and I got into trouble with it. Of

course we will not bury you with a shovel. Your own working class will

bury you.

Nikita Khrushchev <file:///""quotes"quotes"n"nikitakhru115027.html>

Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build bridges even

when there are no rivers.

Nikita Khrushchev <file:///""quotes"quotes"n"nikitakhru386389.html>

The press is our chief ideological weapon.

Nikita Khrushchev <file:///""quotes"quotes"n"nikitakhru115037.html>

When you are skinning your customers, you should leave some skin on to heal, so that you can skin them again. When you are skinning your customers, you should leave some skin on to heal, so that you can skin them again.

=======

 

Dear Mr. President,

Thank you for your service to our great country! You have served under one of the most difficult times in our nation’s history. It is easy to judge and critique your administration from the comfort of our armchairs, but the decisions of leadership are always shouldered by the ones sitting in the leadership chair. You have never shirked that duty and I know that your decisions were always governed by what you felt was best for this country. I know this to be true. Whether I agreed with them or not, your decisions were selfless, noble and honorably driven. I never had to question your motives. It is obvious to me that you were not concerned with popular opinion or your historic legacy. You did the job I hired you to do.

I want to specifically thank you for keeping this nation safe from attack since September 11, 2001. You said two things in the days following that I have kept with me. In speaking to the Terrorists you looked directly into the camera and said “You are now the focus of my administration.” And “I will not relent in waging this struggle for freedom and security of the American people”. In those two things you have never wavered.. For that I will be eternally grateful.

You have been the target of some of the most despicable and cowardly attacks I have witnessed ever heaped on a sitting president. The personal invective of these attacks was unprecedented. The culmination of which was a physical attack in a country you, ironically, made freedom possible enough to be able to conduct that type of protest. You handled all those with enviable grace and class, never going on the attack yourself, regardless how despicable the act or how foul the verbiage. I will forever aspire to emulate that behavior, probably never coming close.

I am positive that history will be kind to you Mr. President. I’m also fairly certain that this will not weigh heavily upon your conscience. I hope not. You have burdens aplenty. I am certainly not going to be your judge. We both know who that ultimate entity will be and it is that knowledge that probably gives you peace. He will also be kind. In any case sir, I speak for many I’m sure when I say simply, thank you. 

May you always have fair winds and following seas.

Respectfully,

Anthony D. Hubble, RMC(SW), USN(Ret)

 Had this arrest happened before Nov 4^th the results of the election would probably have been much different wouldn’t they? For those who say “what does this have to do with Obama?” I say the same thing the crashing economy has to do with McCain/Palin and that was the singular event that turned the tide for Obama. Why? Because the media enabled the association.

The mantra “what does this have to do with Obama?” has been repeated so often during the electoral process that it became almost a standard. The names are like a rogues gallery of characters. Rezko (also associated with this arrested governor), Wright, Ayers, the list just grows like the tip of Pinochio’s nose. Eventually some of the crap has to stick doesn’t it? Oh no, not for the Obamessiah! However, substitute that (D) for an (R) and the media would have been on it like sharks in bloody water.

I’m not suggesting that any Illinois politician’s misdeeds are a reflection of the President Elect’s. It’s not a suggestion. There is more of a connection to Obama if you use the simple process of triangulation than there ever was of President Bush’s to his “Ohl buddies”. If I had the time and inclination I’d run a side by side comparison of the despicable allegations made against George W. Bush with no basis in fact, against the complete absence of them against Obama, who has a treasure trove of documented associations available to anyone with a modicum of logical reasoning. Not that it would make a difference to the swooning masses. I used to say Bill Clinton had Teflon coating. He doesn’t come close to Obama’s ability to live in a cesspool of manure and still emerge with nary a dingleberry stuck to his white armor.

For those interested in the recently arrested, future cellmate of Tony Rezko, here are some links. I post them knowing full well the swooning Obama acolytes wont read them and the rest of you have probably read them in depth.

http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/years/2008/1209081rod1.html

http://cbs2chicago.com/local/rod.blagojevich.charged.2.883170.html

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2008/12/09/report-illinois-governor-taken-federal-custody/

 Egads! Holy liberal commentators Batman! Could it be? Thomas Friedman reporting positive news about Iraq, the war, the troops? He didn’t fall all over himself giving President Bush too much credit. That would just be the Thomas Friedman of Bizarro World. Not to mention the fact that he wants to hang the success of Operation Iraqi Freedom on the Democrats. You know, the ones who’ve been fighting the president and maligning our troops for the last 5 years; almost immediately after voting to send them to war. 

I’m just reeling from the fact that a NYT columnist is optimistic, albeit guardedly, about the future of Iraq. This is not really news to many of us, and I bet Code Pink is frothing at the mouth. Enjoy.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/30/opinion/30friedman.html?_r=1

 

In reading news coverage of the economic meltdown and the entire presidential campaign it still amazes me how little common sense is actually “common” and how the PT Barnum “there’s a sucker born every minute” reinforces itself every time.

Politicians love the old Hollywood “black hat” trick. Put a black hat on someone, demonize him and bingo! Instant fall guy! It diverts your attention and makes the villagers gather their torches to storm the castle while the politician kicks his feet up and lights up a stogie (please excuse the mixed metaphor). Democrats are superb at this game.

Never mind the facts. Never mind their own hands in the mess being caused by their meddling. They can always put a black hat on someone, point their fingers and shake their fists. Cases in point:

Jamie Gorelick, creator of the wall that prevented the FBI and the CIA to share information. This wall was one of the major contributors to 9/11. Here’ s the insane thing, she served on the 9/11 commission. She smugly questioned and browbeat members of the Bush administration pointing her fingers and shaking her fist while her hands were clearly bloody. How many people know this? Not many, believe me because I’ve asked.

Barney Frank, who two years ago stated that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were financially sound, ignoring the warnings of the Bush administration and Senator McCain. His lunatic defense is that the Bush administration’s “deregulation” caused the failure of these institutions. Huh? Can anyone say Community Re-investment Act? I know you can!

There are many more. Why don’t you know about them? The mainstream media and more recently, Bush Derangement syndrome are great enablers to those who would urinate on your shoes and tell you it’s just rain. A very recent example is Sarah Palin. She’s still being demonized and she LOST the election. She should be the epitome of what feminists have been trying to achieve in the entire history of the movement and yet the opposite is true. She is their greatest threat! Sooooo, portray her as an idiot, an intolerant religious despot and a hypocrite and voila! Stick a fork in her, she’s done!

As soon as I see someone being demonized by the media I start to pay attention and I want to pull the curtain back. I still remember the love fest they had with Carter and the hatred of Reagan. Unfortunately, most people alive nowadays do not. Here are a couple of clues for you, in case you don’t recognize the tactic. I’ve seen it employed enough times to consider it a pattern.

1. The media elites’ coverage will have an air of smugness and superiority and will be characterized by  “ahaaaa!” moments, which they will play over and over in “teasers”, followed by questioning the competence, intelligence or motives of the person being covered or interviewed. They become sharks in bloody water if God is mentioned at any moment and in any context. In the event you don’t know who I mean by media elites, they would be the Katie Courics, the Charlie Gibsons, the Wolf Blitzers, the Chris Matthews et al).
2. The late night comedians and Saturday Night Live will begin their skits and sketches, portraying them as buffoons, Nazi’s, cold hearted puppy killing bastards or just plain weirdos.
3. The media elites, taking the cue from late night comedians will begin throwing logs on that fire as if to say “See? Toldya!” Then they begin throwing the ball back and forth to each other. If they really despise the individual, they go after their families, putting the spotlight on any perceived hypocrisy, not matter far fetched.

Vice President Dan Quayle, who happens to be an exceptionally smart individual, was continually portrayed as a moron because he happened to challenge the spelling of the word potato in a grade school spelling bee. The grade schooler had the correct spelling and Dan Quayle is now an idiot, forever. He was also portrayed as an intolerant religious nut because he happened to criticize a network television’s show’s glorification of single motherhood. Single parenthood has historically shown itself to not be the fluffy puppies and pink cloud world that network television writers like to portray.

Yet, Vice President Elect Joe Biden’s continuous verbal gaffes are largely ignored. His statement about Franklin Roosevelt getting on television in 1929 following the Wall St crash is about as dumb and misinformed as you can get, and yet, it has received little focus. To the elite, Biden is a distinguished and polished elder statesman who will give President Elect Obama much needed foreign policy experience.

So, beware of the black hat. By the same token, the reverse is also true. Once someone is put up on a white steed with shiny armor, it’s also time to pay close attention. Particularly when they start causing “leg tingles” and damsels to faint.

Having a discussion with a acquaintances reminded me again just how insane the left has behaved where President Bush is concerned. Right now, the left is calling for “unifying under President Obama” and stopping the “partisan bickering” to move forward. Where the hell were these guys and President Bush took office?

Other than a brief period after 9/11 when President Bush’s approval ratings were about 75%, they have done nothing but stonewall, attack and denigrate anything the administration has attempted. After 9/11 all these cowards were running scared, with their tails between their legs, clueless as to how to defend themselves against a senseless and completely violent attack. Their lack of frame of reference and fear of continuing attacks is what caused them to rally behind a decisive force of leadership, as is usually the case. President Bush was that force.

Later, when it became clear that we would not be attacked again (due to the decisive leader’s actions) they eventually reverted to their standard. It was all  Bush’s fault. That mantra has served them ever since, despite clear evidence to the contrary. Facts seem to get in the way of their braying, so they enlisted their allies in the MSM to reinforce their message. In my opinion, the demonization of Bush has been unprecedented. At least in my lifetime. I’ve never seen so many unaccomplished, useless and uninformed idiots who have suddenly become warfare, intelligence and political geniuses. The only qualification they seem to have is an illogical hatred of the president and his entire administration. 

Ann Coulter has put out another jewel here.

http://townhall.com/columnists/AnnCoulter/2008/11/19/genius,_thy_name_is_obama?page=1

A final example: the media is falling all over itself over Obama’s historic selection of his DOJ nominee while they ignored the historic significance of Bush’s (Alberto Gonzalez). In fact, Gonzalez ultimately got run out on a rail by the constant attacks of the left, history be damned. Another “historic” fact ignored was the fact that President Bush had a more diverse cabinet than Clinton.

I just found out this morning that President-elect Obama has tapped my governor Janet Napolitano (D) to head the DHS. Of course this is not a historic precedent. Clinton also hired a completely useless and unqualified woman to head up his Department of Justice. Her name was also Janet.