Category Archives: Conservative views

by | March 6, 2014 · 7:30 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 104

CHAOS IN THE LAND

I wonder how many people when they hear the word “change” think of a new and better approach to individual and national problems. When I hear that word, I think, “hope and a better life are gone.” It seems that hope and change requires chaos as a required element of the way progressives bring about change. Our president isn’t very good about working on our issues, individual or national. Is it possible that a man who has won two national elections seems to be a reckless, incompetent leader when it comes to management.

Take Obamacare. It would take a battalion of Philadelphia lawyers to mess up the implementation of the Affordable Care Act more than President Obama and his minions. He’s been educated at our best schools, taught Constitutional law at the university level, given countless speeches, and served in the Senate of his state and nation.

Maybe he believes radical transformation of a long-standing national system of government requires widespread chaos as a midwife. When people are in despair over health care, lack of employment, a capricious and/or corrupt civil service, lost lives, and treasure in wars the president never explains or even mentions, the erosion of savings, a poor education system with no other choice for their children, welfare of the nation’s warriors, a government that no one trusts anymore, a national government that has lost respect at home and abroad, and an administration that destroys both individual initiative and American industries, they are ripe for change of any kind. We elected this president twice. Why should he doubt he and the progressive party can offer change people in despair will accept?

You would think the debacle of Obamacare, the rapid growth of the rate of spending more then we take in, the plan to cut back the Army to pre-World War II levels, the push to destroy first coal and then the rest of the fossil fuel sources, the thousands of returning veterans without civilian jobs or the option to remain in the military, the corruption in the IRS, that never seems to be investigated by the Justice Department or the FBI, would be enough to ensure a change in the White House in 2016. Not so. The growth of people who are dependent on government welfare, if incentivized to vote, will be enough to swing the popular vote to the progressives.

Don’t believe President Obama is inept. He isn’t. By his standards and those of Saul Alinsky, the progressives guru, he is right on schedule. The issue is never the issue. Traditional Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and independents —  you don’t have many chances. The 2014 and 2016 elections must be won by the opponents of the progressive party and its foreign ideology.

By the author of the Jack Brandon novels. This blog is meant to be shared and encourage dialogue.

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by | March 4, 2014 · 7:40 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 103

PUTIN-OBAMA FACEOFF

Are Putin’s action in the Ukraine a surprise? I hope not, but for the group of amateurs in this administration, they probably were. Is there a foreign policy expert in the stack of dead wood the president depends on? Certainly not Secretary of State Kerry or Vice President Biden or the departed Mrs. Clinton. Reminds me of the surprise of the Carter White House when the Ayatollah was allowed to enter Iran from Europe. When have deeply committed religious radicals ever established a true democracy with regular free elections? I think the Carter administration was shocked when his followers took over the U.S. Embassy in Teheran and established an Islamic theocracy. When the Russians moved into Afghanistan, he was again surprised.

For centuries, the czars had tried to establish a geo-political foothold in South Asia. Through Afghanistan was the most direct route to a warm-water port and the riches of the sub-continent. Only the power of the British Empire thwarted the Russian plan. The Russians, seeing a weak U.S. president, made their move and thousands of lives were lost to add to the total killed by the Muslim aristocracy in Iran. History holds many keys to the future and weakness invites aggression. It has always been so. Now what about Ukraine?

The Ukraine was part of the great Russian Empire that President Putin wants to restore. Ukraine looks both east and west. To the west are its hopes for a close relationship with Europe to balance the threat from Russia. To the east it has a long border with a powerful nation that has shown its willingness to use its military power to achieve political goals, such as the forcible annexation of a part of the Georgia nation in the era of the Bush presidency. Ukraine’s current leadership knows it cannot afford a conflict with Russia without strong political support from the west.

What are President Putin’s plans? Well, even the Obama administration should understand that the recent upheaval in the Ukraine threatens Russia’s strategic interests. The only warm-water port in the entire Russian nation is in the Ukraine. This port is part of a settlement between Ukraine and Russia. Russia’s entire Black Sea Naval Force calls Sevastopol home. A large portion of the people in the area of Sevastopol are Russian ethnics. President Putin probably felt he had to move to protect his naval forces. The question is will he push to acquire Ukrainian territory beyond the strategic area of Sevastopol? He knows his history. There is not great love between the people of Ukraine and the Russians to the east. When the German panzers pushed into the Ukraine in World War II, many Ukrainians welcomed them as liberators. Some even took up arms and supported the Germans. Unfortunately, for those Ukrainians and the German Army, the German leadership treated the Ukrainians like the other people they had conquered. German cruelty knew no ethnic bounds in their drive to occupy Moscow.

President Obama has few options. One is to know that his plan to reduce the U.S. Army to pre-World War II levels is  another revealing sign of his weakness. He should immediately re-think his destruction of American power. Peace has never come from weakness. A strong America is necessary for a path to peace. The progressive party is well on the way to achieving what neither the aggressors of both World Wars and the Cold War could accomplish. Our president is a master of winning elections but he is way out of his league when dealing with a man who is not afraid of power and its use.

If Putin goes beyond the securing of routine access to strategic Russian bases in the Crimea portion of the Ukraine and annexes Ukrainian territory, the Obama administration will maybe learn that words do not count for much in the constant struggle to maintain world peace. Weakness only feeds the actions of dictators. It does nothing in the struggle to contain territorial aggression.  The willingness to maintain and use national power when necessary, sets apart real leaders from empty ones. Ronald Reagan was a real leader. Barack Obama is not.

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EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 101

A COUP IN THE USA?

Is a coup possible in America? If enough of us keep our heads buried in the sand, it will happen sometime. It may not require violence or the deployment of uniformed troops; there have been coups without gunfire in the streets. A coup is simply the shifting of power from an existing norm to a new organization of government that becomes the new norm. A new structure that no longer permits individual freedom to criticize or work to change back to the old system. The slogan ‘one person, one vote, one time’  is an apt description. No violence or dramatic action is required. A coup can happen slowly over a period of years, one small step at a time.

The one thing that is essential for a coup to succeed is the coup sponsors must first destroy the opposition. In America the first opposition to a coup is the opposing political party. The law and courts also protect our current system. The concept of a separation of powers among the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government is another bulwark against inside coups. Lastly, our traditions and collective morality make drastic change harder for the coup makers.

Let’s assume that President Obama and his cadre of progressive radicals are working to turn America into a one-party government, run by a self-proclaimed progressive elite, in order to bring about their version of heaven on earth. Are they succeeding? The only way we can tell is to look at their policies and actions over the last six years.

What do they need to do?

(1) Control health care and associated industries. The Obama administration is well on the way to controlling the seven plus percent of the national economy and a very large part of the populace.

(2) Expand the welfare  system under federal control. The welfare system, including unemployment insurance and food stamps, has grown immensely under Obama.

(3) Ensure win at the polls. Using blatant delaying tactics, the administration withheld critical information on Fast and Furious (gun running to the drug cartels),  Ben Ghazi, the IRS targeting of conservative groups, the targeting of journalists, and the true nature of Obamacare. It also fought voter I.D. legislation in all the states aimed at reducing voter fraud. Why would anyone object to identifying themselves at the polling places? The Obama administration knows how to win elections using all possible tactics.

 

(4) Re-distribution of wealth. The increase of welfare programs, the pushing  for higher taxes on the wealthy, and constant messaging to promote class warfare are seen by many as an organized campaign to destroy capitalism and the free market. Plans for a death tax to destroy the economic power of wealthy American families are waiting in the wings. The administration is fully prepared to use the United Nations to re-distribute national wealth through programs like Cap and Trade (global warming).

(5) Shift control of industry from the private sector to federal control. The flow of regulations from the executive branch is at the highest level ever. Many of these regulations give the federal government more control over the means of production. (The killing of the coal industry comes to mind.)

(6)  Encourage class warfare issues. Do you remember President Obama ever giving a speech that did not include class warfare rhetoric like “protecting the middle class,” “the widening gap in income levels,” and “the top 2 percent must pay their fair share?” This is the big lie of the Progressives. Repeat it often enough and people will believe it. (A page out of the Nazi coup success.)

(7) Focus attention on domestic issues. Notice the president almost never gives a speech devoted to foreign policy issues. All his energy is devoted to transforming domestic America. He is so inept at foreign policy that it appears he just doesn’t care about foreign issues.

(8) Destroy the opposition. With considerable help from the hopeless Republican Party leadership, Obama progressives are  well on their way to establishing the ground work for a one-party system.

(9) Control the justice system and the courts. The Department of Justice is under tight control of the progressive agenda. Why else would investigations by Justice employees, including the FBI, be so slow and ineffective? The IRS’s deliberate targeting of conservative groups and the State Department and Joint Chiefs lies and failures of the Ben Ghazi affair are virtually being ignored by the FBI and Justice Department. Congressional inquires by the Republican-controlled House of Representatives are, at best, lackadaisical. After the debacle of the Supreme Court’s rewriting of the Affordable Care Act to make it constitutional, can we count on the judicial system to protect the Constitution from the executive branch’s routine usurping of the powers reserved to the Congress? Probably not.

(10) Corrupt the civil service. The IRS, FBI, STATE, EPA, HHS, ENERGY, JUSTICE, EDUCATION, DEA have all lost their claim to being politically neutral. They are, or seem to be, fully on board with the Progressive Party, once the proud Democratic Party.

(11) Weaken the military. Successive deployments have worn down the troops. They need more manpower, not planned cutbacks. New weapon systems need to be planned and procured. The Joint Chiefs of Staff needs to be composed of people who are not afraid to tell the truth and who will not lie to protect the White House. Mission creep turned the campaign in Afghanistan from victory into a defeat. Nation building is not something the military or any part of our government knows how to do. The War in Afghanistan under the current rules of engagement cost us many of our best and bravest.

(12):  Protect the message. Everyone in the Progressive Party must be on the same page. It doesn’t matter if the message is true. Over and over with the big lie while at the same time doing everything possible to censor the opposition. Outspend them, use the power of the government to criticize and punish the media outlets that print and broadcast news that is not favorable to the administration. Fox News and talk radio are examples of  uncontrollable media outlets. Witness the recent effort by the FCC to send its people out to newspaper media outlets to query them on how they decide to publish an article and what is their political position. Under a law-abiding administration, this would be prevented by the Constitution.

If the current governing process is continued, you won’t be able to recognize what is left. Your freedom and control of your own destiny will only be memories. It will  be a coup by a “thousand cuts.” Wake up, America, while there is still time.

By the author of the Jack Brandon novels.

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by | February 28, 2014 · 7:30 am
by | February 14, 2014 · 7:51 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 98

IRAN AND THE BOMB

Let’s begin with a few facts the Obama administration seems to overlook.

It is hard to believe any White House could assemble a more naive team that can’t even find the ball, let alone watch it. You don’t even need inside information to tell you where to start. It is all there for all of the former players now pacing on the sidelines.  Why should Iran want a nuclear weapon? Not a bad starting point. The only friends the Shia Moslem nation of Iran has are those like Russia, China, North Korea, and France who view them as a lucrative market for all their wares and as an anti-American supplier of oil. They have no friends among the Sunni Moslem nations. The Iranians fought a long and bloody war against Iraq when it was under Sunni rule. Today, decades later that bloody war is still remembered by Iraqis who lost family members in the fighting.

Iran’s exporting of terrorism through its puppets Hamas and Hezbollah has alienated Lebanon. Iran is hated by the Israelis and pays for its uneasy partnership with Syria. Iran is without loyal allies. That is a weak position from which to dominate the Middle East, unless they become a nuclear power. That’s is their number one strategic goal. How can anyone think they will negotiate away their top priority national security goal?

A military strike by Israel or the United States would destroy or set back Iran’s time table to achieve nuclear status. The sanctions, before the Obama administration eased off on them, were causing hardships in Tehran. Not all Iranians want to make sacrifices to achieve nuclear weapons. For internal political reasons the religious leaders decided to roll out a strategy of negotiating to buy time and get concessions from the West on the crippling sanctions. This strategy had worked before. Why not dial back the anti-American rhetoric and pretend to negotiate on their nuclear program?

Of course the Obama administration jumped at the bait and became the leader of the “let’s negotiate” flock. He thinks it makes sense to use all possible diplomatic endeavors before resorting to any military action. That is generally true but not when it is obvious that the other side is playing you. Iran is so confident that the Obama administration is below the paper tiger level that they have blatantly tested an ICBM capable of destroying Israel and hitting several American targets. Big clue. Yes! No nation has ever spent treasure on developing a long-range ballistic missile unless they were positive they could mate it with a nuclear weapon. There is no other rational explanation. Yet our president is resisting his own party’s effort to ready additional sanctions to ensure Iran lives up to the agreement.

Officials from the administration and learned talking heads will tell us that it will be some time before Iran can weaponize a nuclear device. Don’t believe that fairy tale. North Korea and other nations that are not admirers of the U.S. and Israel would sell the Iranians whatever they need in a heartbeat.

To sum up the administration’s position: They are confident that even though the Iranians have put much treasure and time into developing a nuclear weapon they can be talked out of completing the task. After buying hundreds of centrifuges, building underground facilities to house them, and developing long-range missiles, how can anyone believe they can stop Iran’s long, expensive effort to acquire nuclear weapons by negotiating from a weak position? The administration’s followers will point with pride to the Iranian destruction of highly enriched uranium. This not true. The Iranians didn’t destroy anything, they merely converted the enriched uranium into another form that can easily be reversed.

Don’t be surprised if the Iranians test their bomb while Secretary Kerry is having tea in Damascus.

By the author of the Jack Brandon novels.

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by | February 13, 2014 · 7:36 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 97

FEBRUARY

February is a dismal month. Winter is still hanging around. Spring is still but a hope.  If we could vote to abolish a month, I would vote to abolish February. It is only good for sleeping in and gathering strength for the rest of the year.

Politics in February are no better than the weather. The scary part is that unlike the weather,  February politics won’t give way to a political spring. February began with the echos of a dismal, grey State of the Union address by the president talking about what he has accomplished and plans to accomplish this year. Talk about shades of grey. Nothing he has done or plans to do fills the people with the strength and hope that their lives will be better this year than last.

Class warfare and income re-distribution are not subjects filled with happy thoughts. The president may think February is the beginning of spring, but the people know better. The Federal Reserve will continue with a slightly diminishing monthly printing of money that will still supply Wall Street and the investment world with wealth but do next to nothing for the vast numbers of people who do not have the money to invest. Investors have done very well under President Obama but the people have suffered. Wall Street is not the economy. The President who is constantly ranting about the widening gap between the rich and the wage earner, is the cause of the widening gap.

While it is always springtime for the rich investors, it is always February for the workers, especially the unemployed whose buying power is gets less each month the Fed prints billions of new dollars that devalue both wages and unemployment checks. Please, Mr. President, stop talking Progressivism philosophy and free up the forces of growth from your avalanche of anti business regulations.

Start with the EPA who thinks it, not Congress, makes laws. Let’s back off killing the work of coal miners and put them back to work. Approve the pipeline from Canada. Stop listening to your environmental worshiping base who all have jobs. (We’d all be better off if more of them were unemployed.) Fire the head of your EPA who is a hardcover believer in the myth that human activity causes climate change. It is not science the climate warming crowd chants as it dances around dead solar units in the dark of the night. Of course the world’s climate changes: Remember the ice age when the site Chicago now stands on was under two miles of ice? Did our ancestors, what few, if any there were at that time, have so many fires that the rising gases from burning carbon warmed the planet and freed Chicago from its icy tomb? Did the Viking settlement on Greenland circa 1100 AD stop burning carbon material and caused the temperature to drop below the mark where agriculture is no longer possible? No, while climate change occurs, the cause is not human activity. The Progressives have to believe that human activity is the cause because, while they can regulate our lives, even the Progressives recognize they cannot yet regulate the sun, celestial orbits or volcanic activity.

May the political winds of spring bring back the slightly left-of-center Democrats before the Progressives (far, far left socialists) make them extinct.

By the author of the Jack Brandon Novels.

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