Category Archives: Eight Decades of Insights

by Barry Kelly | May 17, 2013 · 10:25 pm

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 51

King George III, by Sir William Beechey (died 1839). See source website for additional information. This set of images was gathered by User:Dcoetzee from the National Portrait Gallery, London website using a special tool. All images in this batch have been confirmed as author died before 1939 according to the official death date listed by the NPG. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

FREEDOM

Stop where you are and look around. If you are anywhere in America, everyone you see who has grown up here has never known anything except freedom. Even those who have had the misfortune to be temporarily in prison know what freedom is and believe it is the natural state of being. It isn’t.

Freedom as we know it is an anomaly in the course of history. Where, except here in America, has it ever been the normal condition? Where else do people grow up with individual freedom, which is the only freedom? If individuals are not free to act out their lives, including making mistakes and bad choices, there is no freedom.

Why have we been so blessed? We are a nation of immigrants who all had first-hand experience with tyranny, either from governments, religious organizations, or from their employers or owners. Only black Americans who spent decades as slaves, and a few others, did not escape tyranny by living in America. And, they too, knew what freedom was. They also knew they didn’t have it. Our founders also knew that they did not have the freedom they believed should be theirs as long as King George III made the laws that governed in America.

They knew only under a limited government elected by the people was freedom possible. A reading of the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, The Federalist Papers, and the Articles of Confederation clearly shows a strong push to limit the powers of government. They knew intuitively that government could not grant freedom but it could diminish or abolish freedom. The stronger and larger the government becomes the greater danger it becomes to curtailing individual freedom.

Big government, bigger than it could be and still provide necessary services, is the only threat to freedom in America. Governments are not inherently evil. They, if allowed, just slowly and inexorably absorb functions and rights reserved to the states and individuals in the name of dealing with some issue. There is no other threat to our freedom, beyond foreign military invasions. We must keep government to its necessary functions and size commensurate with its responsibilities.

The dual process of centralization and distribution of wealth, under the well meaning intentions of elitist political groups, to make a better life for allis always a threat to freedom. The current mayor of New York and the nanny state he wants is a perfect example of well meaning intentions limiting individual freedoms. Give a government of progressives ten or fifteen years of uninterrupted growth in size and power and the freedom so many of us have fought for will be gone.

Freedom is won quickly and slowly lost. Freedom demands eternal vigilance for it is vulnerable to citizen demands for goods and services and the human drive to continue the growth and centralizing of government.The dual watchdogs of the free press and dedicated citizens are needed to keep us free from the abuses of Government.

Obama Urges Grads to Ignore Tyranny Warnings (fromthetrenchesworldreport.com)
What Should States Do When the Federal Government Usurps Power? Advice From James Madison, Father Of The US Constitution (thedailysheeple.com)
Statists Use Twisted Logic To Attack The Bill Of Rights (personalliberty.com))

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Filed under centralization, Conservative views, Eight Decades of Insights, General, Intelligence & Politics, Obama

Tagged as Articles of Confederation, Constitution, Federalist Papers, government, Individualism, United States, United States Bill of Rights, United States Constitution

by starediting | May 14, 2013 · 7:30 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 50

As you may already know, I started writing “Eight Decades of Insights” 50 blogs ago mainly to promote my novels, of which there are now three. I’ve been lucky enough to have the books reviewed in a local daily newspaper where I live (The Sun News). I’m always happy to hear the opinions of what others think of my books — good or bad — because I think people’s opinions are important. But also, if someone is confused or unsure about something that happens in the novels or wonders why something happened a certain way, I like the opportunity to clear up the confusion or curiosity. I’m posting the most recent review of “Shades of Justice” here for you to read and to welcome you to leave your own comments here, on my Facebook page (www.facebook.com/factsandfictions) or on my Amazon author page.

Reading Corner | Myrtle Beach area author’s third book boasts good writing, but lots of violence

Books one and two of Pawleys Island author and retired CIA agent Barry Kelly’s good-guy-bad-guy series caught me in their snare.

I’m now a fan of his writing and of his hero Jack Brandon and sidekick wonder dog, Shadow. The animal is part Lassie, part Rin Tin Tin and part Wonderdog with a dash of his own breed’s (Bouvier) special talents tossed in.

I’ve come to enjoy the freedom from reality, a utopia of sorts, where the good guys have all the resources (money, material, training and skills) that they need to outfox the bad guys.

I love Kelly’s writing: It’s crisp, has clear style, good plotting and pacing. His place descriptions are wonderful. Of course it helps the settings include some of my favorite places in the world – Pittsburgh, Washington, D.C., metro area and the Grand Strand. The details are spot on and integral at many times to the unfolding of the plot. I’ve even been willing to accept a certain amount of vigilantism in the books – heroes step outside the law to bring the bad guys to justice – even when justice involves shootings.

The third book, “Shades of Justice,” takes on the very topical and important issue of human trafficking – people who brazenly steal young women from the streets and transport them to other countries to make them sex slaves.

By the end of this novel, the hero, Jack has also shown his respect for women by rescuing them but also by empowering female members of his team with training in fighting and technology. Even more telling is the way he treats his own wife – a woman who is his intellectual equal and partner in action – with love and respect.

However, this third book descends so far into violent vigilantism and outside of the law justice, it is simply too violent for me.

“Shades of Justice” has so much shoot ‘em up by the “good guys” that several times I wondered if I was in the middle of a violent video game. Kelly himself obviously felt the burden of this violence and his characters justify themselves more than once in philosophical conversations that offer the rationale for this violence.

“Leave no witnesses” seems to be the refrain in “Shades of Justice.” It was only Kelly’s good writing that kept me reading on in spite of the awful acts his good guys commit.

Once a reader accepts Kelly’s alternative world where Jack, wife Kathy and the others operate with unlimited monetary resources and wicked good physical, mental and technological skills, I think they would accept a few plot manipulations to allow for the rule of law and fewer bodies strewn about by the “good guys.” I’m hoping for more of that sort of thinking in his next work and look forward to reading it, because the man writes well.

If you have not read Kelly’s work before, start with his first two books: “Justice Beyond Law” and “Justice Without Mercy.” Read “Shades of Justice” with my warning – good writing but extreme violence ahead.

You can purchase “Shades of Justice” and the other two novels in the Jack Brandon thriller series at Amazon.com as print or ebooks or by contacting the author directly.

2 Comments

Filed under Action thrillers, bouviers, Eight Decades of Insights, Intelligence & Politics, Spy novels

Tagged as Grand Strand, Myrtle Beach South Carolina, Shades of Justice, Sun News

by Barry Kelly | May 6, 2013 · 7:30 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 49

MODERN TERRORISM

THIS ANALYSIS OF MODERN TERRORISM WILL APPEAR IN MY FOURTH NOVEL, THE PREQUEL TO THE JACK BRANDON JUSTICE SERIES. I’M GIVING MY READERS A PREVIEW. I WROTE THIS SEVERAL YEARS AGO WHEN DRAFTING MY FIRST NOVEL, JUSTICE BEYOND LAW.

“The goal of terrorism is to create in the target state an atmosphere of chaos that will cause the state’s reaction to result in an even higher level of chaos. The target state will lose its internal cohesiveness and will gradually move toward vulnerability to either external military action or political attacks from within. Carefully managed terrorism could successfully destroy an enemy, an enemy that was previously thought to be invincible. It isn’t as most terrorists and their supporters think that the individual terrorist acts had to be sensational in order to be successful.

Banner used by the FBI since inception on October 10, 2001 as the main title for the web site pages of both the group of wanted terrorists, and also on the wanted poster of each terrorist fugitive. The three overlapping seals on the left are the seal of the U.S. Department of State (similar to the Great Seal of the United States), the seal of the U.S. Department of Justice, and the seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

In fact, many isolated sensational terrorist operations ended up by making the target state’s resolve stronger and its internal security procedures more effective. Average citizens expect that important people and large landmark structures are the targets of terrorists from time to time. What is far more effective is to have people from all classes lose confidence in the ability of the government to protect their lives and property. The western media will act as the carrier of this political disease and focus on the failure of the security services to protect people from terrorists.

“In the past, terrorism has been limited to attacks against targets with high political impacts. After a time, the terrorist incident will disappear from the front page only to reappear if someone is caught and put on trial. It is too hard for terrorists to continually hit high-profile targets. The detailed planning and logistical effort required to hit high-impact targets cannot be sustained. If, however, the new terrorists concentrate on soft or unprotected targets, they can continue a drum beat of assassinations and sabotage.

“Then local governments are unable to cope and begin to break down. The media demands action. Citizens lose confidence and no longer trust the authorities to protect them, proving once again that the greatest freedom is freedom from fear. It is in the actions taken by states to protect themselves from terrorism that the real payoff for terrorism occurs. As states put into effect more and more protective measures, the very nature of democracies like the United States begin to change from a government that emphasized individual freedom and initiative to one that seeks to control and track its citizens with a growing security apparatus. A security apparatus that can easily, if unchecked, form the core of an emerging police state that will eventually enrage the populace.

“Small forces should not attack high-impact targets that by their very nature will be protected. The terrorist leader of today must count upon the media to frighten the nation much in the way media focus on a serial killer can paralyze a local area. Timing and selection of targets must be carefully managed to develop and maintain momentum.”

By the Author of the Jack Brandon Thriller Series http://www.fasctsandfictions.com

The Changing Faces of Terrorists (pleventhinkers.wordpress.com)
Shocker : 96% Most Wanted Terrorists Are Muslim … Who Knew ? (youviewed.com)

6 Comments

Filed under Eight Decades of Insights, Intelligence & Politics, political solutions, Terrorism

Tagged as Police state, terrorism, Warfare and Conflict

by Barry Kelly | May 1, 2013 · 7:30 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 48

ENOUGH?

Whether Republican, Democrat, or Progressive, the facts don’t change. You are entitled to your interpretation of the facts but lets agree on the facts. In the bullet list of what I believe are facts, I’ll try to keep my conservative views on the sidelines. Since the mainstream media does not cover most of the items in this list, many citizens will not be familiar with these facts.

FACTS:

* President Obama has appointed more czars than any other president. Maybe more than all others combined.

English: Barack Obama signing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act at the White House (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

* President Obama’s administration has not followed the Constitutional requirement to forward a budget to Congress every year.

* President Obama’s landmark legislation (Obamacare) was passed without either the people or Congress given a chance to read it.

*President Obama has bypassed Congressional rules and precedents to appoint officials without the advice and consent of the Senate.

* President Obama has spent trillions more than the government takes in.

* President Obama has expanded the role and size of the executive departments and agencies.

* President Obama has used executive power to bypass Congressional authority.

* President Obama refused the Republican offer to give him the authority to select where the sequestration cuts would be made to lessen the impact on the people.

* President Obama has stonewalled Congressional rights to information in the case of the death of the American ambassador in the terrorist attack on Ben Ghazi and in the case of ‘fast and furious’ supplying guns to Mexico’s drug cartels. On the Ben Ghazi issue he refused to call it a terrorist attack for two weeks, insisting more facts were needed. The Justice Department arrested a filmmaker accused of inciting the attack on Ben Ghazi. The president vowed to bring the attackers to justice. So far, we have no evidence of the effort to apprehend them. Evidence is now surfacing that no attempt was made to rescue the embattled personnel at the consulate and annex.

* President Obama has supported the Arab position in issues with Israel.

* President Obama refuses to use the term “War on Terror.” The killing of several soldiers at Fort Hood by an Army major and follower of Islam shouting Islamic slogans is called “workplace violence.”

* The President and his Attorney General consistently opt to give Islamic terrorists the protection and rights usually reserved for U.S. citizens.

* The President’s redline was crossed by Assad in Syria weeks ago when he used chemical weapons against the Syrian people. No comment or action so far.

* The President’s repeated attempts to engage the Iranian regime regarding their efforts to develop nuclear weapons have not worked.

* An open microphone caught the President whispering to President Medvedev of Russia to, “Tell Putin he (Obama) would have more flexibility after the election.”

* Despite the President’s words, unemployment is worse.

* Under President Obama, welfare recipients have risen dramatically.

* The President campaigned on the promise Obamacare would bring down medical costs. They have increased instead.

* The President stated he would support “all of the above” in discussing his energy plans. He and his administration have constantly taken positions to destroy our fossil fuel production. The coal industry is shutting down. The Keystone Pipeline from Canada is still pending another EPA ‘study.’ Billions have been spent in supporting marginal energy producers that haven’t worked.

* Stimulus One did not provide private sector jobs. The President remains committed to the belief government spending is the key to economic development.

* Obama’s administration has issued more regulations impacting economic development than either Presidents Carter or Clinton.

* President Obama has not focused on job development in the private sector.

* President Obama has not tried to find who leaked voluminous intelligence secrets to the press. All the leaks made the President look good.

I’m sure many Progressives can explain these facts in a favorable light. That is their right. At least some of the facts should concern even Progressives. Most of them should concern Democrats. Given a stronger Congress, President Obama would be flirting with impeachment proceedings.

By the author of the Jack Brandon Thriller series. www.factsandfictions.com

Taking part in a Nov. 10, 2009, memorial service on Fort Hood, Texas, President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama look at the photograph of one of the victims of the Nov. 5 shooting rampage that left 13 dead and 38 wounded. See more at http://www.army.mil (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Frank: I Don’t Know Why President Obama Will Not Define Boston Terror Attack As Jihad (freebeacon.com)
AP Scrubs ‘Muslim’ from Obama’s Self-Referential Joke (frontpagemag.com)
Eight Decades of Insights 44 (factsandfictions.com)

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Filed under Eight Decades of Insights, foreign policy, Intelligence & Politics, Israel, Obama, Politics, Progressives, Putin, Terrorism

Tagged as Barack Obama, Benghazi, Congress, Dmitry Medvedev, Fort Hood, Keystone Pipeline, Obama, United States, United States Congress

by Barry Kelly | April 25, 2013 · 7:30 am

EIGHT DECADES OF INSIGHTS 47

IT IS WHAT IT IS

We are a great nation and we have the best law enforcement, intelligence collection, military, and counter-terrorist capabilities in the world. Unfortunately, we have a tentative president, who, for reasons no one who knows or is willing to talk about, thinks American influence in the world is too strong and America with the rest of Western world has much to be ashamed about. Only by diminishing our power through a socialist transformation can the world find equality and peace, he thinks.

The “black flag of jihad” as used by various Islamic terrorist organizations (since the late 1990s) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The president and his administration don’t want to acknowledge that Islamic Jihad in all its forms is a danger to our way of life. Islam and Christianity have a history. And it is not a peaceful one. The Crusades, the Muslim military sweep through North Africa, followed by the Muslim invasion of Western Europe, the fall of Cordoba, the last Islamic center in Spain are all part of this history. The war continues today and it is an Islamic war against Christian nations. All the Arabs who were dancing in the streets of Islamic countries when the twin towers fell were not all members of an organized terrorist group or active Jihadists but all were Muslims. It is what it is. Muslims do not like us. Moderate Muslims may not be active Jihadists but they condone it and support it. Billions of Saudi dollars have supported radical Islamic Wahabism schools throughout the world. Our president attended one.

He also attended a strident anti-American church for 20 years. He comes by his disapproval of America’s past history naturally. He has a right to hold those beliefs. Unfortunately, the attitude of the president permeates through the entire administration. How else can you explain their

View of Mosque 2 (Photo credit: TushyD)

efforts to cover up Jihadist actions like Ben Ghazi, the constant reluctance to use the word terrorism, or the term war on terror? This president who rushes to judgement at the drop of a hat on other issues, preaches the need to gather all the facts, wait until the investigation is complete, “there is no evidence a terrorist group was involved.” He often ends his preaching with “don’t blame an entire group of people.” Mr. President, Muslims have been involved in nearly all bombing terrorist acts for more than the last two decades. (Yes, I know about Oklahoma City.) Many, if not most, of the mosques in America and elsewhere preach a form of Jihadism. Directly or indirectly, Islamic mosques support radical Islamic fervor. What’s not to profile? Profiling is a common-sense approach to law enforcement and protection of citizens.

Like it or not, we are in a war that has deep Islamic roots. It is what it is.