Category Archives: foreign policy

by Barry Kelly | November 25, 2013 · 6:56 pm

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS-90

From left to right (front): Chamberlain, Daladier, Hitler, Mussolini, and Ciano pictured before signing the Munich Agreement. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

OBAMA’S IRAN

When you badly want a deal, you get a bad deal. In the case of the “Peace in Our Time” appeasement of Iran by the Obama Administration, the President wanted and needed the fasade of a successful negotiation with the radical Islamists who run Iran. He needed a deal for domestic political reasons. Without the plummeting poll numbers about his lack of Presidential qualities exposed by the failing of Obamacare, America would have stayed the course to keep real sanctions on Iran. You see in Obama’s world all issues are domestic issues. He just doesn’t care about foreign affairs unless a world journey provides good photo ops and news bites for the American Press. Obamacare’s many slogans apply here. ‘If you like Iran without nuclear weapons, you can keep it.’

Not hardly. Again some history. When Neville Chamberlain made his infamous deal with Hitler in 1938 he was a hero to every liberal in the world. “Peace in our time” sounded so good. Once you could sit across the table from your adversary everything could be worked out. Except, Hitler was only buying time. Sound Familiar? When he was ready, his Panzers roared across the border into Czechoslovakia and later into Poland. “Peace in Our Time” was over. Chamberlain and the dangers of appeasement were exposed. Millions of lives later, the historical monumental mistake of Chamberlain and his liberal supporters was corrected.

I believe to improve his poll numbers President Obama has positioned himself as the American Chamberlain. Iran has sacrificed years of hardship to pay for the development of nuclear weapons. It is their number one strategic objective. No words by Secretary Kerry or President Obama will deter Iran from its goal of becoming a nuclear power and using that power to dominate the Middle East.

President Obama claims that if Iran doesn’t follow the terms of the agreement, he will ‘crank up’ the sanctions. It will be too late and neither Russia nor China will cooperate. China wants Iranian oil and Russia views Iran as a market for the sale of its weapons. Europe and the rest of the world are tired of the whole process. The time window for sanctions will very soon be over. As it was in Europe in WWII, the Jews will be the first victims. The vows of the Supreme Ayatollah to wipe Israel off the map are not just rhetoric. Hitler’s Mein Kampf wasn’t just a book either.

This is yet another example of the President’s word that no one should trust.

By the author of the Brandon novels. I welcome comments and urge you to pass on this message to your contacts. The above is the result of my own analysis, experience, and beliefs.

There Are A Lot People Comparing Obama’s New Iran Deal With a Significant (and Very Bad) Moment in History (theblaze.com)
Doc’s Talk: The Nuclear Deal With Iran is a Foreign Policy Disaster (docstalk.blogspot.com)
Obama’s Iran Deal: Worse than Munich (conservativebyte.com)
Why Obama’s Iran Nuke Deal Is a Good Thing (frontpagemag.com)

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Filed under Conservative views, Eight Decades of Insights, foreign policy, Intelligence & Politics, Israel, Obama, Obamacare, Poland, Russia

Tagged as Adolf Hitler, BarackObama, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Neville Chamberlain, Obama, United States

by Barry Kelly | October 21, 2013 · 7:40 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS-80

MORE OF THE SAME

Seal of the United States Department of State. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

It’s bad now. Can it get worse? It sure can. Just elect another Progressive Socialist Democrat to the White House. We had our experiment with their kind of change. It isn’t good. Let’s elect a real moderate Democrat or a true Conservative in 2016. And let’s pay attention to the primary process. No more nominating candidates without a resume or with an incredibly incompetent record. Remember, having won elections in the past is does not qualify anyone to stand for the presidency. Winning elections means you can raise money and are good at messaging, not much else.

I wonder how a candidate such as our disgraced former Secretary of State can even think about running for president. Benghazi and the cover up should be enough to disqualify anyone with a sense of honor and pride. Standing with the families of the murdered Americans at Ben Ghazi during the arrival of their remains at Andrews Air Force Base, our Secretary of State was recorded telling them a distasteful video was the cause and the maker of the video would be punished. Days before the dead heroes arrived at Andrews, the President, his Secretary of State and many other key officials knew it was an attack by al Qaeda affiliated terrorists who were responsible. That single incident is the most shameful thing I have ever witnessed in my years of serving in and following the U.S. Government. As shameful was the non- action of the timid Defense people who left Americans to die without even trying to rescue them. In the past, officials like the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs would resign rather than follow the political directions of the amateurs in the White House that resulted in leaving Americans behind without trying to save them. The morale of active duty soldiers and veterans can’t stand more tentative political maneuvers on the part of their leaders. It is an American tradition that we don’t leave people behind.

We also must not forget the The Secretary of State’s failed reset with Russia, the support for Assad in Syria as a reformer, and the abandoning of the Eastern European nations who were willing to let us establish a much-needed ballistic missile radar system to protect against Iranian missiles. How can the Democratic Party nominate anyone with such a shameful resume? Only if they continue to be under the control of the Progressives. We need to get back to a two-party system where one of them is not the Progressive Party in disguise.

Hillary Clinton Shame – Benghazi Heroes Woods, Doherty, Smith & Stevens (morningliberty.com)
‘It Goes Back to the Bin Laden Attack’: Expert Who Said New Benghazi Info Will Leave You ‘Amazed and Shocked’ Gives More Details to TheBlaze (theblaze.com)
House GOP Grills Pickering, Mullen on Benghazi and ‘Whitewash’ Gov’t Investigation (theblaze.com)

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Filed under class warfare, Conservative views, Eight Decades of Insights, foreign policy, Intelligence & Politics, Politics, Progressives, Terrorism

Tagged as al Qaeda, Benghazi, Democratic Party, Libya, Russia, Syria, United States, White House

by Barry Kelly | October 2, 2013 · 11:58 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS-78 THE ADVISOR

BEWARE OF THE MESSAGE

The Advisor was pacing in his office. It was day two of the government shutdown and the President had just appeared on TV to blame it on the Republicans. The Advisor could see right through him and surrendered himself to the journals.

He wrote: I’ve studied politics and the struggle for power all my adult life. The essence of all efforts to gain power is the developing and dissemination of “the” message. Truth is usually not necessary. The believers don’t need the truth. No great takeover of power ever involved the truth. Russia, China, Cuba, Eastern Europe, Germany, and various third-world countries are good examples. But the current administration of the Progressive Democrats is a world-class messaging machine.

For example, the blame game of who is responsible for shutting down the government. All the President had to do was agree to applying Obamacare to the Congress and to delay the application of the law to individuals, in the same way the President gave a year’s delay to big business without any consultation with the Congress, in itself an unlawful and unconstitutional act. He made 16 other changes in the law also without consulting the legislative branch. Yet the message is that Republicans wanted the government shutdown. That’s not the truth. In the struggle for power, truth is a bystander. Why didn’t he compromise? There was plenty of political space for him.

The reason he didn’t is ugly. The President’s actions can only be understood if you understand he must use every issue to destroy the opposition. The goal is a one-party government. He cannot escape Alinsky’s teaching that the issue is never the issue. Ultimate power for a Progressive elite is the end game. The transformation of America cannot be accomplished as long as there is even a bewildered opposition that still doesn’t understand the rules have changed. Only a very few of the Republican Party’s elite talking heads are learning the new rules, but very slowly.

Obama’s war is here, in the homeland. Iran, Russia, South America, Syria, Egypt, and North Africa are of no interest to him, unless he can shape the issue to diminish the opposition party. He is willing to sacrifice our former international position of respect, won at the cost of much blood and treasure if he can improve his domestic power position. He doesn’t want to be a world power. He just wants to be an equal part of a one-world order governed by a United Nations on steroids. A world of talk, legal maneuvering, and equality. Where wealth must be redistributed to achieve the equality of nations. Anything to achieve this goal is good: climate control, cap and trade, energy resources controlled by an international group. Limitations on the size and quality of troops and weapons. The keeper of the new world order dictates when, where, and what force is needed to maintain equality. It is Utopia by the same, old, tired wishes for a fairy-tale land that has failed everywhere it has been tried, now lives anew in the minds of the new Progressive elite. While dreamers may think the end is a beautiful creation, the process is ugly and never ending. Beware of the message. Search for the truth for only it will make you free.

The author has 27 years of Government service, including two years serving President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s as an

advisor. Considering today’s volatile political situation, you are encouraged to share this on Facebook and to click the “like” button below. Comments and dialogue are welcome.

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Filed under Alinsky, Conservative views, Eight Decades of Insights, foreign policy, Intelligence & Politics, Obama, political solutions, Progressives, totalitarianism

by Barry Kelly | September 30, 2013 · 8:23 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS-77 THE ADVISOR

OBAMA’S WAY

The Advisor was shaken. It was after 2:00 AM and the Secret Service just called to say the Boss was on his way down. He turned the coffee pot on and got himself together. He could go to sleep most nights rather quickly but, after 82 years it took a while to wake up and function. Sometimes he wished for a schedule. It would never happen. The Journals told the story. Presidents seek advice where and whenever they like. That’s partially why the institution of the Advisors had lasted so long.

I think I must be the least effective of all the Advisors, he thought as he found two coffee mugs. The President listens but never takes my advice. I have no agenda. Protecting this bastion of liberty from all attackers is my agenda. Now for the first time an Advisor knows that the President has his own unique agenda that requires, in his words, “The transformation of America.” After five years the ugly shape of the transformation is becoming visible. That transformation if successful will mean the end of individual liberty in the world. Can I and should I help him to accomplish this goal?

The advisor paused. I have to. It’s my mission. I took the oath of office willingly and he was elected twice by the people. The question is if the people elect a man to be their leader, is that enough? I would argue that freedom can be lost through the tyranny of the majority. We fought for the right to establish a free Republic of the people, for the people, and by the people. We have now or soon will have a majority of voters who seem to favor a Democracy over a Republic. These are very different concepts. The President’s core supporters are the people who believe in an elite leadership of the masses who will lead the nation toward a managed equality and world government.

The Advisor was pouring coffee when the heavy steel door swung open and the President came in wearing a warm-up suit. He looked trim and healthy but very tired. Rather than his usual civil greeting, he said, “I’m pissed. Everywhere I go people are trying to tell me what to do. Even my own staff. At least down here nothing I say gets discussed the next day by some pompous talking head. I hate them. Especially those of the left. They should know better. This mess with Iran, Syria, and Russia has everyone chasing their tails or trying to step on mine. Damnit, on top of that the right wing radicals in the Congress are fighting ‘The Affordable Care Act and raising the debt limit. Obamacare is the damn law. I like to put them all in the Gitmo place they love so much.”

“Mr. President, how can I serve you?”

“I’m tired of talking. I want to ask you questions and just listen.”

“I’ll answer as if I was burdened with the same issues, which in my way I am. Okay?”

“Yes. My first question is how would you handle Iran’s nuclear weapons program?”

“I would not focus my entire efforts on stopping Iran from becoming a nuclear power. The issue is greater and has more points of danger. Iran’s unshakeable commitment to developing nuclear weapons is driven by their goal to dominate the Middle East in one Muslim Shia state ruled by Iran. Nothing the West can do will change this national goal. The best weapon against Iran is to motivate the Sunnis to actively provide an roadblock to Iran’s aggression. Syria is a pawn in that struggle. Assist the Sunnis in their effort to secure Syria for the Sunni sphere of influence. Hamas, Hezbollah, and a large part of the Jihadist movement would be weakened. Yes, I know al Qaeda is basically Sunni. But Iran is far more dangerous than the stateless organization of al Qaeda. No effort of yours to diplomatically stop Iran’s messianic drive to acquire nuclear weapons will do anything but give Iran more time to weaponize. Negotiation with them with the goal of exposing their treachery and rallying the Sunnis …in the end a military strike will be necessary. But get the Sunnis actively on your side first.”

“What about the budget issues and The Affordable Care Act?”

“That is an easier problem. You can solve that because you are the problem. Never mind the Alinsky theology about using every issue to diminish the opposition. Alinsky was never president. You are. Some issues must be solved. The American people do not trust a president that cannot solve important problems. You, yourself, have delayed and modified parts of The Affordable Act several times. Because it needed fixing. You stretched and maybe broke the law doing so. But that is another issue. Your problem is, do you want to give Americans better health care or do you want to use control of the health/medical industry as a big step toward socializing America? You can’t have it both ways. Negotiate health care with the Congress, both Houses. There are good things in Obamacare. Keep the good and modify the rest. Your ratings will soar and the budget crisis will disappear. The choice is yours.”

“That’s enough for me. I need to get some sleep. I’m not finished. I’ll work up to listening to more of your analysis. It helps me deal with my Republican enemies.”

The President took a last drag on his cigarette and walked out the door with an almost imperceptible over the shoulder wave to The Advisor.

The above is a fictional account of a meeting that never took place. Too bad.

The author has 27 years of Government service, including two years serving President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s as an

advisor. Considering today’s volatile political situation, you are encouraged to share this on Facebook and to click the “like” button below. Comments and dialogue are welcome.

Historic phone call between Obama, Rouhani caps Iran’s big week at UN (csmonitor.com)
Syria Crisis Yet to Derail Iran Nuclear Talks (ipsnews.net)

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Filed under Alinsky, Conservative views, Eight Decades of Insights, fiscal cliff, foreign policy, Intelligence & Politics, Obama, political solutions

Tagged as Iran, Obama, Obamacare, politics

by starediting | September 9, 2013 · 10:54 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS – ADVISOR 74

WHAT THE RUSSIANS WANT

The Advisor had done some research in the history of Russia’s struggle to compete with British seapower and later the United States. The czars as well as Mr. Putin, who believes he is a czar, understand the need for the Russian fleet to have a warm water port. Without an all-weather port the Russians cannot extend their power much beyond their own borders. The Advisor thought, it is precisely this kind of knowledge the President does not have. Nothing in his background prepared him to understand the real world which is that nations act in their own interest. If you don’t understand this central reality, your foreign policy is composed of reactions to events you really don’t understand. Like it or not, his mission required him to educate as well as advise President Obama.

The Advisor knew the President seldom took his advice but he was enough of a scholar to listen thoughtfully and enough of an ideologue to follow his collectivist doctrine. The President would be down here within the next hour. I’ll ask him if he will allow me to present my research. Right on schedule, the ancient steel clad door opened and the President strode in. “Good evening Mr. President. The coffee is ready. Take what ever seat you want. I did some research this week and, if you will permit, I will give you the bottom lines.”

“Well, I thought your advice was just the result of your eight decades of life. I’m intrigued that you include research. So go ahead.”

“Thank you. Why are the Russians so hard to work with in the disaster we call Syria? Russia has no common border with Syria. Syria has no supply of oil or minerals. They have no exports Russia wants or needs. Yet Russia is sending game-changing weapons to Syria and, if their past behavior is any guide, they have or will also send technicians and weapons specialists to Syria. Putin knows there is no one to stop him. Certainly not any Arab or Persian State. Israel can’t without our help. The Euro powers are too focused on themselves to risk capital and blood for anyone else. I have no special insight to U.S. Russian policy but I do remember you whispering to President Medvedev before Putin took the presidency again, asking him to tell Putin you would have more flexibility after the election. Putin is a Czar. He only understands strength. Your secret message to Medvedev told Putin you were in a weak position. In Syria he believes you will not oppose Russia’s historical push to have a warm water port.

“Without a warm water port their fleet is frozen in, bottled up in the Black Sea or cruising far beyond their supply base for many months of each year. Again there is no proof I know of but the Soviet push into Afghanistan in the 1980s was another step in their bumbling efforts dating back to the Czars to gain a corridor to warm water. Syria has dangled a warm water port in the Mediterranean called Tartous. The Russians have already done significant development projects in this port. They really don’t much care who rules Syria as long as Tartous is firmly in Russian control. The Russians will do whatever is necessary to ensure they do not lose control of this port. They have never been so close in recent history to the control of a warm water port. A Syrian regime friendly to the United States that would exercise real control over Tartous is not acceptable. Putin, today, has no respect for America. He only understands strength and has no use for words that are mere rhetoric.

“There is more at stake in Syria than the ousting of President Bashar al-Assad from Syria. I don’t think your Administration understands the historical power that motivates Putin to capture an all-weather port. That single feat will mark him as the greatest of all Russia’s Czars. A warm water port at no cost in blood or treasure. A remarkable achievement.”

“You’re telling me Russia’s end game in Syria is for a seaport?”

“Yes. Of course, they don’t mind throwing all Western powers out of the Middle East.”

“No one on my team will believe your analysis.”

“Try some military scholars. They will tell you the same thing,” The Advisor said, as the President was getting up to leave. “Mr. President, maybe you need some different people on your team.”

The author has 27 years of Government service, including two years serving President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s as an

Meeting with President Reagan, Vice President Bush, Deputy National Security Adviser Frank Carlucci and General Colin Powell in the Oval Office.

advisor. Considering today’s volatile political situation, you are encouraged to share this on Facebook and to click the “like” button below. Comments and dialogue are welcome and helpful. Find and connect with the author on Goodreads.