12/14/11 Update

Politics has taken a back seat for a while.  I should be back into it after the New Year, with the upcoming elections, and the 2012 nonsense just around the corner.

Finance Super-Committee Says “We Blew It”: Are We Really All That Surprised that Congress Can’t Get the Job Done?

The Congressional “Super-Committee” (that really isn’t all that super) is preparing to announce that they “blew it” and have failed to come up with ANY cuts to the budget whatsoever.  So now they’re wasting time, arguing over how they’re going to announce that they’ve failed.

Are we really all that surprised?  This is Congress we’re talking about, after all.

If they were serious about this, they would have begun meeting three months ago, when the “super-committee” was announced.  They just started meeting a week or two ago.    The only thing super about this committee is the super-hype.   I hope they all get voted out of office.

And so should any Congress person who votes to remove the triggers, which were put in place by the last budget ceiling bill.  If anything, they should be ADDING to the triggers that will go into effect in 2013 (which was also a mistake.)  They should be going into effect the day after Thanksgiving.  That would give the cuts some teeth.

Unfortunately, the military will take the brunt of the cuts, amounting to some $600 billion.  It’s unfortunate.  The military has a lot of rebuilding to do to get into trim to fight the next war, as they should be, and always are, preparing for.  Getting out of Iraq will help the military do that, and will also help our budget.

Hard choices will need to be made, but not by this Congress or President.   They’ve wasted far too much time; we’re at 101% of GDP, and it’s getting worse.   Talk about lame ducks---we’ve got 535 of them in Congress.

I’d be in favor of a financial blockade of all 535 members.  No contributions to any of their campaigns until they come up with a way to make steep cuts, in the trillions, not in the billions like the Democrats want.  It would only work if established donors joined this blockade.

When austerity comes to this country, it isn’t going to be pretty.   The government should make the changes now, while there’s still a choice over what to cut.  Because the day is coming when entire departments will be slashed, and the national government budget crashed, and the prized entitlements that the Democrats are so viciously defending will go away too.  I would think they’d want to make changes now, so that their entire program, whatever it is, doesn’t collapse.

This Congress must not delete or delay the triggers.  The only thing they should change is the start date—move it from 1/1/2013, to 1/1/2012.

That’ll never happen either.

Why Are We Surprised That Gadhafi Was Executed? The Libyan Rebels Said What They Were Going to Do, and Then They Did It

What’s with all this international racket about Gadhafi being executed?  

The Libyan rebels said what they were going to do, and then they did it, regardless of the international community’s wish to place him on trial for crimes against humanity.   This madman murdered tens of thousands of people over the last 40+ years to stay in power, including many thousands more in the last six months alone.

It’s their country; we’re only interfering in their internal affairs.  If they wanted Gadhafi alive, NATO shouldn’t have bombed his convoy to begin with.   It’s a final fiasco to the international fiasco that this intervention has been from the get-go.

If they really wanted Gadhafi alive, they could have tried for a capture in Niger with no Libyan rebels around.  But they chose to attack his convoy on Libyan soil with Libyan rebels already firing on the convoy.  We will fit that decision into the “well, DUH!” category.

No investigation into Gadhafi’s death is necessary.  Everyone already knows what happened.  Gadhafi was captured after being wounded, and summarily executed by his own people.   The international community ought to get off its high horse and let this nightmare that they’ve contributed to reach its final conclusion. 

Instead of wasting time on investigating how Gadhafi came to die, perhaps the international community would best be served by investigating where Gadhafi put billions in Libyan money, and how best to return that stolen money to the new Libyan government.

Liberal Media Asks “Who is Responsible for Organizing the “Occupy” Movement?” Their Friends Are, That’s Who!

Some liberal media outlets are asking who is responsible for the “Occupy” movement across America.

Their liberal, socialist and anarchist friends are, of course.   

The strength of the protests seems to be dependent of how bad off the local economies are.  In the United States, the range of protesters is anywhere from 16-5,000 protesters.   The largest protests have been in Los Angeles and in Washington, DC (an estimated 5,000 protesters each). 

Overseas, the protests have been much bigger as they have huge problems in places like Spain, where their big protests have drawn anywhere from 40,000 to 500,000 people.  They’re protesting against austerity measures being taken by their governments.  And they’re already accustomed to Socialist governments in Europe.  Greece has had huge protests, and they’ve turned really violent.

The protests that are taking place in Arab countries are part of the ongoing Arab Spring protests and happened to coincide with the protests taking place in the West. 

The “Occupy” protesters in America are calling for an October Revolution and should be taken as a  warning.  What are they proposing to replace our current economic system with?  A Soviet-style economy?  That’s already a proven failure.

Those protesting do not represent the other 98% of people who disagree with them.  They have their own agenda, except for the idiots who have joined in and have no idea of what they’re protesting, or even what they want if they should gain any traction.

I think the political impact that these protests will have in 2012 will not make much of a difference.  Obama’s going to have a very tough re-election bid, and many incumbents, regardless of which party they belong to, will also be out of their jobs as well.  We already know that’s going to happen.  Congress is at an 11% approval rating.

I also think that the press coverage is out of proportion to the actual protests taking place, and that they’re trying to cash in on the unhappiness of the American public, most of whom have no intention of joining the Occupy movement and do not feel their interests are represented there.

Florida Goes After Unfair Primary Election System Again: They’ve Scheduled Their Election for Late January, In Violation of Rules that Favor Four States Over All the Others

Florida has again violated the peculiar primary election system that allows Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, and Nevada to hold their primary elections first, at the expense of the other 46 states. 

They’ve gone ahead and scheduled their primary election for January 31st, which violates RNC rules that state there can be no elections, except for the four favored states, prior to March 6th.  If a state does, they risk losing half of their voting power at the convention under the GOP rules, and all of their voting power at the Democratic convention. 

Florida and Michigan bucked the system four years ago and were punished by the DNC for doing so, and to a lesser extent by the GOP.  (The DNC discounted all Florida and Michigan votes, the RNC docked half the votes).  

The other 45 states should also schedule their primaries prior to March 6th.   What better way to force both parties to change their rules and come up with a system that addresses the needs of ALL the states, and not just the current four?

I have nothing against voters in those four states.  But it’s a system that never should have been agreed to by either party in the first place.  

Liberals Should Remember That They Created the Very Environment that Allowed Right Wing News Media and Talk Radio to Thrive In: If They’re Unhappy With Getting Trounced on TV and on Radio, They Should Realize That The Ones They Should Be Blaming Are Staring Back at Them in the Mirror

Lots of liberals blast Fox News for leaning right (aka pointing stuff out that the liberals would rather sweep under the carpet.)  They go after people like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michael Savage, and other conservative talk-radio people for getting people fired up about the never-ending conservative vs. liberal debate on just about every issue.

And they cannot figure out why liberal talk radio programs and channels do not succeed on the air.  Air America went bankrupt because their business model set itself up to fail.  They couldn’t match the audiences that Limbaugh, Hannity and Savage get, nor could they attract the kind of advertisers who purchase airtime by the bushel from their conservative rivals.

And they don’t want to admit that by dominating the news with their own viewpoints for decades, they gave birth to an audience that got tired of the liberal slant on things and was hungry for the other side of the story.  And when conservative talk radio and Fox News came around, their appetites increased. 

Perhaps if the liberal media had done their jobs in presenting the news, without trying to influence it as they have tried to do over the decades, the audience for conservative news and talk radio wouldn’t be so huge and liberal news networks wouldn’t be getting creamed in the ratings, week after week after week.

I don’t have a lot of sympathy for those who cry about Fox News not being a “true” journalistic entity due to THEIR slant on stuff.  Reap what you’ve sown, liberal media.

Key to Saving U.S. Postal Service is Quite Easy: Congress Needs to Quit Making Them Prepay 75 Years Worth of Pensions in Ten Years

In 2006, the USPS made money, and their outstanding debt was $2.1 billion.

In 2011, their projected losses exceed $11 billion, and they’re running into their outstanding debt ceiling of $15 billion and are looking at closing 3,700 post offices, laying off 100,000 people, ending Saturday deliveries and overnight deliveries, and closing down the USPS in mid-2012.

What happened?

People started paying their bills online, and doing other things via the Internet.  That accounts for part of the drop.

The other thing that happened is that Congress passed a law in 2006 that stated  the USPS must prepay 75 years of pensions in 10 years in order to keep their pension plans in good shape for the future.   According to this article, within three years of implementation, the Post Office was $10.2 billion in debt.

Who is the idiot who thought up this dumb law?

75 years worth of pensions in 10 years?  I think prepaying 5-10 years is much more reasonable than 75 years.

If Congress wants to save the Post Office, they should revoke and then rewrite this insanity.   They can fund the retirement program at a much more reasonable rate than what they’re doing now.  And without killing the Post Office too.

WikiLeaks Blames Guardian Newspaper for Allowing Previously Blacked Out Information in U.S. Government Cables to Be Seen: Baloney! WikiLeaks Posted the Information, So They’re Ultimately Responsible and Should Take the Responsibility

All of the data (251,000+ documents) that WikiLeaks has is now accessible on the web, with names of informants included.   All one needs is the password, which is being circulated online.   WikiLeaks is blaming the Guardian newspaper for posting the password, but who posted the material in the first place?

That was not the Guardian, or any other publication who did that.  WIKILEAKS did that.  And they should take total responsibility for any harm that comes to people whose identities were not protected, as WikiLeaks promised that they would.

This is all on WikiLeaks, and Julian Assange,and no one else.  They should quit trying to throw blame onto others.

U.S. Espionage Act of 1917 is Outdated and Needs to Be Fixed: Current Law Can Convict People Without Judges Ever Seeing the Materials

In the last three years, five people have been charged with violations of the 1917 Espionage Act, including one fellow who disclosed that the FBI and the NSA were spying on the Israeli Embassy in Washington.

But at the time that he was convicted, no one knew that; not even the judge assigned to the case.  The man who was convicted was a former FBI Hebrew translator who came to be in possession of top secret material in the form of wiretaps from the Israeli Embassy.  Entire conversations between Embassy officials, their top supporters in this country, and Embassy  conversations with members of Congress were captured electronically, as were emails, faxes and other digital mediums. 

The Obama Administration buried what had happened deep so that it would never come to light, as spying on an ally isn’t a very nice thing to do.

The translator, who was afraid that Israel was going to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, passed the information on to a blogger, who held onto the information for a while, then broke the story in the last few days. 

The government uses the Espionage Act to discipline federal employees who violate government secrecy.   I don’t have a real issue with that point, as the government does need to keep some stuff classified and expects its employees to be secret-keepers and to keep the trust. 

But once someone is charged, like the translator mentioned above who WAS correctly charged with breaking the law, if the government sees fit to bring the case to court, the judge should have an idea of what sort of materials were disclosed.   To blindly allow a conviction without seeing the materials reeks of star chamber justice, which is illegal under U.S. law.

The next time the government brings a case, the judge should tell the government to give him/her more information, or face the possibility of the judge throwing the case straight out of court.

Once the material is given away or sold, the cat’s out of the bag anyways.  Assuring the judge and the jury that a crime by others isn’t being covered up under a veil of secrecy isn’t as big a deal as the original loss of the data or material. 

FCC Drops Fairness Doctrine: This is a Step in the Right Direction

The Federal Communications Commission decided to drop the Fairness Doctrine, and 83 other obsolete measures that were media-related as part of its reorganization (“reform agenda”).

The dropping of the Fairness Doctrine is good news, as it will protect talk-radio, both conservative and liberal, from being effectively silenced.  It will give the consumer the choice of what kind of talk radio they prefer to listen to.

I don’t know about the other measures that they dropped, but the elimination of the Fairness Doctrine from the agenda is a step in the right direction.  I’m still looking at all the others.

British Riots Make No Sense: Rioters Come From a Wide Variety of Backgrounds, Have Nice Jobs and And Are Not Gang Members

Like many, I’ve been watching the riots taking place across Britain and find myself wondering…why are people over there doing this?

I thought that it was gangs at work, as described by the Prime Minister, but the British courts have started dispensing justice to accused rioters, and it’s a veritable who’s who of British society: primary school workers, lifeguards, organic chefs, musicians, children of millionaires (I did a double take when I read that), college students, real estate agents, opera stewards, postmen, charity workers, hairdressers, professional and semi-professional football (British) players, Olympic ambassadors (another double-take), and dozens of other respectable sorts.   And tons of kids are standing before the judges too.

They have been charged with a wide variety of crimes, including stealing, various forms of theft, concealment of stolen property, throwing bricks at police and police vehicles, violent disorder, assaulting an ambulance crew, mugging, lying to police, racial crimes, inciting violent disorder (Facebook), arson, destruction of property (public and private), handling stolen goods, carrying weapons, using weapons during the commission of a crime, obstructing police, assaulting police officers, and up to eighty other crimes not listed here.

The sheer volume of what was taken is extraordinary too.  One guy broke into a bicycle shop and stole the equivalent of $32,500 worth of cycles.  What was he going to do with all those bikes?  Ride them around?  Try to sell them?  He was also accused of breaking into two other shops and stealing money, cigarettes, and other assorted stuff and causing major damage to both shops.

Another idiot stole the equivalent of $65,000 worth of plasma TVs, computers, and other electronic equipment.  He’s been denied bail and will be back in court next week.

The police are also said to be going after people who were invited to attend the riots on Facebook, and very stupidly said “yes” to the invites as well, or joined the pages.   The police really like having their suspects lined up in a row like that on a Facebook page.

I’m sure there are some gangs involved in the mischief, but the majority seem to be unthinking and greedy people who took advantage of the trouble.

Unbelievable.

Point of Order: Changes to the Electoral College Require a Constitutional Amendment; States Can’t Write Laws to Arbitrarily Change It Without Taking a Few Steps First

I’ve become aware over the years of the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact, or an agreement between several states to throw their Electoral College votes to the winner of the national popular vote.

It’s back in the news as California governor Brown signed the compact, making California the eighth state to join the compact.

This smells of election rigging, and here’s why.  If the majority of voters of California choose, for instance, a Republican candidate for President, but his/her Democratic candidate wins the popular vote nationwide, all of California’s electoral votes go to the candidate that the majority of California voters didn’t choose.

This is inherently unfair, and runs the risk of disenfranchising large blocks of voters (the other 49% of their populations??!)

I also couldn’t help but notice that the eight states (and DC) that are in this Compact either lean or are heavily Democratic:  Maryland, New Jersey, Illinois, Hawaii, Washington, Massachusetts, the District of Columbia, Vermont and California.

Definitely smells of election tampering.

States can decide themselves how they determine their electors, as enshrined in the Constitution in Article II, Section 1, Clause 2.   However, it is unknown if this compact needs Congressional approval, as it seems to indicate in the same article, same section, under Clause 3.   The whole thing may not even be Constitutional. 

I think one of more of the small states will challenge it in court if their influence is threatened, and it’ll end up going to the Supreme Court eventually. 

Veterans Administration Really Needs to Get It Together and Start Taking Better Care of Our Returning Veterans Who Are Suffering from PTSD and Other Mental Issues

There’s a report out that eighteen veterans a day are committing suicide.

And the VA continues to make veterans who are already feeling suicidal wait a minimum of eight weeks for someone to see them.   They can’t continue doing that!  Nor can they just hand a suffering veteran a pamphlet and a bag full of sleeping pills and anti-depressants to deal with their Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Delaying disability paperwork for months is irresponsible, too.  It’s gotten to a point that lawsuits are underway, and one judge called the VA’s handling of veterans as “unchecked incompetence.”

Would the veterans do better seeing civilian medical experts, rather than government ones?   I think the answer is “yes.”  SOMETHING’S got to change, because the current system is failing those who need it the most.

We can do much better than this.

The Way That the U.S. Government is Releasing Bin Laden Information, They Have BECOME WikiLeaks: We Don’t Need to Know Everything

The government has released much more information than they should have concerning materials seized during the raid on Bin Laden. 

Particularly troubling is the release of information contained in Bin Laden’s diary, which describes new specific terror plans to disrupt the U.S. and the West.

Anyone in counterintelligence will tell you that you don’t tip off the enemy that you know about their plans.  You allow it to continue, while turning some of the operatives involved, so that the entire operation can be taken down in one stroke, instead of having them disappear into the shadows, only to have them reappear months later with plans we don’t know about.

Our government should keep al-Qaeda guessing as to what we actually do know, while chasing down every lead.

The government needs to control the information much more than they have.

Double Standard Hypocrisy: It’s OK for the Muslim World to Celebrate America’s Failures, But When Our Citizens Do The Same to Celebrate Bin Laden’s Downfall, the US Gets Criticized for Offending Muslim Sensibilities?

I’ve got a bone to pick with the double standard that we’re seeing in international relationships between America and the Muslim world.

It involves the take down of Osama bin Laden and the subsequent spontaneous outburst of celebration of Americans around the country, that was widely reported in the media, both here and abroad.

Before continuing, I need to say that I was not one of the ones who was out there who was celebrating the death of a mortal enemy.   I was relieved that the SEALs got him, that’s for sure.  And I was glad that our enemy had been delivered into American hands, thanks to the tireless efforts of the military and our intelligence community.  

But I do NOT celebrate death, even to a misguided soul like bin Laden’s.  I would have preferred taking him alive, in spite of the dubious state of our legal system when it comes to habeas corpus and military commissions.

But now, four days after bin Laden’s death,  those who were out at all hours of late Sunday night and early Monday morning who chose to celebrate bin Laden’s downfall are being criticized for being insensitive to Muslim sensibilities.  HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!

It occurs to me that the ones who are criticizing the outpouring of emotion over here show NO such awareness or sensitivity to AMERICAN sensibilities in recent years when Muslim governments organized anti-American demonstrations over OUR misfortunes. 

The hypocrisy in the media and the Muslim world is ASTOUNDING!

After ten years of sacrifices, I think our fellow Americans have earned the right to observe the passing of bin Laden HOWEVER THEY CHOOSE TO.  And the rest of the world should GET OVER IT! 

Pakistan is No Ally of Ours: They’ve Been Playing Both Sides From the Get-Go, Got Caught Red-Handed, and Has Egg in Their Faces

Is there anyone out there who REALLY believes that Pakistan had no idea that Osama bin-Laden was living less than eight hundred yards from a Pakistani Army base? 

I don’t.

It appears our government doesn’t buy that idea at all. 

They launched the operation to get bin-Laden without Pakistani involvement, penetrated Pakistani airspace, mounted a major attack within eyesight and earshot of thousands of Pakistani troops, killed bin-Laden, blew up one of their own choppers after it suffered engine problems, loaded bin-Laden’s body and the booty from his hideout and withdrew from Pakistani airspace in a back-up chopper.  Our leaders then notified the Pakistani leadership that the attack had taken place, but not while the U.S. task force was still within Pakistani airspace.

The reason why is they couldn’t trust the Pakistanis. 

They might well have notified bin-Laden to head for the hills as the choppers were inbound.   Or had their troops fire on the SEALs.

There are elements of the Pakistani military and intelligence service who have been actively aiding the Taliban and al-Qaeda, and there was no guarantee who the Pakistani President might have notified in the Pakistani military hierarchy, or if foreknowledge of the attack would reach those bin-Laden supporters.

Pakistan doesn’t know what they’re doing with their internal security.   I think Pakistan is a bigger risk than Iran is right now, as Pakistan already has nuclear weapons, has a major Taliban presence, and is protecting them.

I do not believe that the Pakistani President knew that bin-Laden was where he was.  But I think that ObL had to have the help of elements of the Pakistani military to camp out half a mile from a major Pakistani military base.  And I don’t think that the Pakistani President looked hard enough, or asked the right people the right questions.

And the fact that bin-Laden’s been there SIX YEARS?

Pakistan can’t be trusted.  They were never really on our side to begin with; they were the ones who STARTED the Taliban in the first place.  

The mujahedeen that we supported in Afghanistan against the Soviets in the 1980s ended up fighting Pakistani-backed Taliban forces in the 1990s Afghan civil war, and lost.   Surviving mujahedeen formed the Northern Alliance, which the U.S. supported against the Taliban in 2001.

Pakistan is a state sponsor of terrorism.   The aid needs to be cut immediately; they aren’t doing what they pledged to do with the funding and fight terrorism…they’re aiding people like bin-Laden.  Why are we giving them billions of dollars?

Congratulations to the U.S. Military on Getting bin-Laden

After nearly a decade of war and covert operations in Afghanistan and Pakistan, the U.S. military went after bin-Laden, after intelligence confirmed his location.   And they got him.

Congratulations and THANK YOU to the U.S. military for closing the book on bin-Laden.   Hopefully it’s a step closer to bringing the Afghan war to a close.

Trump’s “Profanity-Laced” Speech Was Nothing of the Sort: It Was a Good Speech With a Few Exclamation Points Here and There

The media talking heads were all aghast at Donald Trump’s speech in Las Vegas, in which he dropped some “f-bombs” and dared to raise more talking points.

99.5% of the speech was clean; it was over thirty minutes long. This was no profanity-laced speech. His speech is on YouTube, under "Trump speech Las Vegas".

Yes, Trump is a prima donna. He'll be the first to admit it. His taking credit for President Obama's releasing his birth certificate was hugely amusing. But he's also a lightning rod, which may make him a very difficult person to vote for, from my point of view.

In any case, this speech wasn't profanity-laced, and the media should stop trying to sell it as anything other than what it actually was: a speech with exclamation points here and there.

Trump isn't even a candidate yet. And I'm not sure he's serious about it yet, but people are definitely listening to what he has to say.

I'm enjoying the show.

Iraqi Prime Minister Says Iraqi Government and Military Will Be Ready on December 31st: All U.S. Troops Need to Be Out of There, Ahead of Time if Possible, so That They Can Be Home for the Holidays

Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki told Admiral Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, that Iraqi troops would be ready to assume control of Iraqi security, paving the way for U.S. troops to return to their families for the holidays.

Hopefully U.S. troops will be withdrawn on time; it would be even better if all the troops were home for Thanksgiving.  Their families would really like that.

It’s time for Iraq to run its own affairs and fight its own battles.  It’s long overdue.

Trump’s Early Lead in GOP Polls Shouldn’t Be As Perplexing as Some Political Analysts are Finding It: Trump is Leading for Very Simple Reasons

Some political analysts are finding it difficult to believe that Donald Trump is leading in many GOP polls.  Called a “sideshow” and a “joke candidate” by leading Democratic and Republican leaders and advisors, Trump is being taken seriously because you will NEVER EVER catch him doing THIS:

Nor will he apologize for everything in sight as Obama has done.  Nor will he take a  back seat in something as important as getting the budget done and passed ON or AHEAD OF TIME.

The American people want strength in their President, not more weakness.  And while Obama may not be the worst President in history (something that’s been said about just about EVERY U.S. President in history by each President’s political enemies) he isn’t helping the perception that he’s the observer-in-chief.

People should remember that Obama wasn’t willing to state what his opinions were during the 2008 election, a tactic that many Democrats also followed in prior elections as well.  Now the results are on FULL display in the White House.  Even the Democrats in both houses have criticized President Obama for his lack of leadership on recent issues.

Now comes Trump who’s standoffish and will mix it up with anybody out there.  While he’s definitely off-the-wall, he’s seen as having a lot of strength and possessing the will to tell the world what to go do with itself, something that President Obama has yet to prove.  And the American public is sick and tired of being sick and tired.

That’s why Trump is doing so well early on.

NATO Is Learning a Valuable Lesson on Going to War Without U.S. Help: They Can’t Handle It

NATO is discovering that they don’t have the political or military will to fight an air campaign over Libya without American assistance.

The headline in a German newspaper said it all: “NATO Fears War Without End.”

NATO members should have thought about that before securing a U.N. Security Council resolution, and before they started dropping bombs and firing cruise missiles at or on Libyan targets.

Here is the NATO/Arab League order of battle over Libya, according to globalsecurity.com:

Belgium—(6) F-16 fighters
Canada—(2) P3 Orion spy aircraft, (2) tankers, (6) F-18 fighters
Denmark—(4) F-16 fighters
France—(1) EF3 command & control aircraft, (6) tankers, (8) F3 fighters, (4) Mirage fighters
Greece—(4) F-16 fighters, (1) command & control aircraft
Italy—(4) Tornado fighters, (4) Typhoon Eurofighters
Netherlands—(1) tanker, (6) F-16 fighters
Norway—(6) F-16 fighters
Qatar—(1) C17 Heavy Transport, (2) Mirage fighters
Spain—(1) SAR bird, (1) tanker, (4) F-18 fighters
Sweden—(8) JAS-39C fighters, (1) command and control aircraft, (4) tankers
United Arab Emirates—(6) F-16 fighters, (6) Mirage fighters
United Kingdom—2 Air Wings with support aircraft, 10 Eurofighters, 4 Tornado aircraft 

By my count, that’s 86 fighters, or seven full squadrons of fighters to clear the skies of Libyan aircraft, and bomb targets.  That’s without the additional 33 fighters that the U.S. pulled off the flight line, which was a minority of the total fighter aircraft currently in use. 

There’s nothing wrong with the NATO and Arab League fighter numbers, except that the various governments don’t have the stomach for a prolonged campaign that the U.S. Air Force is already accustomed to.  And they’re unwilling to contribute more combat aircraft to the campaign, even though they’ve got PLENTY of late-model fighters.  France and Britain are encouraging NATO to contribute more aircraft.

Speaking of the Arab League, only two countries belonging to the AL (out of 22) are involved; the UAE has more combat aircraft involved (12) than all other countries, except France and Britain.

There was a HUGE lack of foresight in the planning of this U.N.-sanctioned debacle.  And the U.S. should not have been involved at all.  This is a NATO mess.

And now with France locking horns with the outgoing Ivory Coast government, the second such direct clash between the French military and Ivory Coast since 2004, the main driving force behind the NATO effort is engaged in three conflicts of its own: it has forces in Afghanistan, is engaged against Libya, and is now engaged in Ivory Coast.   France may not be able to withstand internal political pressure to stop their military campaigns.

It may fall to Britain to lead the alliance.

NATO really needs to rethink what it’s doing in Libya, what its goals are, and what it can accomplish with air power alone.

I think putting non-Arab troops on the ground in Libya would be a colossal mistake.  And putting American combat brigades in there isn’t an option, regardless of whether we close down shop in Iraq or Afghanistan first.

I think the U.S. should keep doing what it’s doing, and stay out of the NATO/Libyan fight.

Federal Government Spends 8 Times More Than They Made in March: This is Unsustainable, Reckless and Needs to Change TODAY, Not in 2012

I’ve been listening to the pundits analyzing the different (and ultimately meaningless) numbers that both parties are planning to cut out of the current budget.  The Democrats wanted $4 billion in cuts, the GOP wanted $61 billion in cuts.  They’re negotiating a $33 billion compromise cut.

It isn’t nearly enough.

The federal government took in $128 billion in tax revenues in March, and spent $1.0582 TRILLION in the same time.  That translates to the feds spending 8.2 times more than they brought in.

If you or I spent 8 times more than our monthly income month after month, how long could it possibly be before the monthly bill to repay the loan would exceed our total monthly income, or our ability to pay it back?

The Congressional Budget Office says that the U.S. debt will reach 800% of GDP by 2037 if spending levels remain unchanged.  We must stop this madness now, and reduce our debt load to much more manageable levels.   The debt level should not exceed 30% of GDP; we are currently at 97.3%.   GDP was $14.66 trillion, and the debt was $14.26 trillion, as of March 25th, 2011.  This is INSANE!

They Feds need to stop overspending immediately and start to live within their means like most American families and individuals have to.  They need a balanced budget Amendment to the Constitution by the end of 2012.  And the cuts to the 2011 budget should be massive, and not a paltry $33 billion that is barely a drop in the bucket.

The government needs to make the cuts now, while there’s still a choice as to what to cut, because once we hit the tipping point there will be NO choice, and what the politicians are trying to protect today will be impossible to keep tomorrow.

Congress and the President are failing us.  They need to get it in gear NOW, and get the job done!

Florida Pastor is At It Again: This Time He’s Gotten People KILLED in Afghanistan

Last September I wrote about all the hoopla about a Florida pastor who was threatening to burn the Koran on September 11th, and how other “hate pastors” like Jeremiah Wright and Fred Phelps of the Westboro Baptist church were grabbing undeserved media attention.

The Florida pastor finally carried through on his threat to burn a copy of the Koran, confirming that a “trial” was held for the Koran last month and that it was subsequently burned.

And once again, the illiterate Afghans (who probably can’t even read the Koran) went on a rampage in direct response, beheading two UN workers and killing five others.  Five demonstrators were also killed.    Afghan rioters then attacked a NATO base in a suicide attack, wounding three soldiers.

This man’s act has lead directly to the deaths of thirteen people.  How many more will die because of his unthinking actions?

New 4G Cell-Phone Networks May Jam GPS Signals; If This is True, They Need to Delay 4G Until This Problem is Resolved

As an avid GPS user, I’m very concerned about reports that some of the 4G network frequencies that are being looked at for use are too close to Global Positioning System (GPS) frequencies, and that the GPS signals might be jammed.

We need GPS more than we need 4G at this stage.   GPS is “critical need” and 4G is still in the “nice to have” category, in my estimation.

Commercial air traffic, ground-based delivery trucks, emergency responders and other critical agencies use GPS to get to their intended destinations, not to mention millions of families and individuals who navigate all over the place using GPS for critical and non-critical travel.

I think that if they just move some of the frequencies further apart that will take care of the issue.  The frequency being proposed for use by LightSquared is in the 1525MHz-1559MHz range, while GPS kicks on at 1559Mhz-1610MHz.  Cell phone towers send out their signals which are orders of magnitude stronger than the incoming satellite signals.

A recent test by Garmin showed that the GPS signal was lost after they sent a GPS unit into an area where a 4G signal was active on the proposed frequency.  At various ranges, the GPS unit was way off its target, then lost the signal completely when it was in proximity to the test transmitter.

Is this problem limited to ground-based GPS units, or will it affect commercial airliners, military aircraft and other kinds of aircraft that rely on GPS?  What about enhanced 9-11 systems?

LightSquared, Garmin, and other experts in the GPS and cell phone fields are looking at the problem.  Hope they solve the issue quickly.

al-Qaeda IS Active in Libyan Civil War: Is Anyone Getting a REALLY Bad Feeling About Arming Them to Fight Qaddafi?

With confirmation that al-Qaeda is actively involved in the Libyan civil war, some questions need answering.  This is a huge problem, though one that was not a surprise, as Libya had the second largest contingent of al-Qaeda fighters in Iraq in recent years.

As far as I’m concerned, the rebels can do without American arms or ammunition or air cover if they’re accepting aid from al-Qaeda.  There have been reports that the Libyan al-Qaeda fighters left the field in Iraq to return to their homeland to join the fight against Qaddafi. 

I have a real issue with arming people who may well take (or send) those arms to Iraq and use them against American soldiers, once Libya’s dictator is gone.  al-Qaeda is our enemy, not our ally. Not under ANY circumstances!  And especially not with the blood of American soldiers and the victims of 9/11 on their hands.

Our Administration needs to decide where its priorities lay.  I think it erred in getting us involved in the first place.  Listening to requests for help from some of the murderous Arab League membership was a huge mistake, and one that will haunt us for a long time to come.

Why Do News Organizations Read Too Much into a Military Code-Name? “Odyssey Dawn” is Just As Good as “Enduring Freedom”, “Operation Iraqi Freedom”, “Desert Shield”, “Desert Storm” and “Desert Fox.”

The press seems to be getting bored with criticizing the President’s ill-advised foray into a military confrontation with Libya, and is now ridiculing the military code-name for the operation as well.

I don’t seem to see any reference in the article to the Libyans fighting for their own freedom over the long haul in Fox News’s forensic analysis of the code-name.  That was what I perceived the code-name to be referencing. 

The military follows the orders of the politicians, and the politicians are solely responsible for getting us into another mess.   That’s who the press needs to be focusing on.

Half the Nations in the Arab League are Facing Their Own Protests: What Business Do They Have Requesting a No-Fly Zone Over Libya to Protect Libyan Citizens While FIRING On Their Own Citizens Back Home??!

Let’s take a look at the members of the Arab League, and what is happening in their territory, as compared to what’s going on in Libya:

Egypt—government fell to protestors. Military running the country.

Sudan—just split in two after a civil war. South Sudan set to become independent in July 2011. Genocide in Darfur. Sudanese President indicted by ICC for crimes against humanity for his actions in Darfur, and South Sudan.

Algeria—just lifted a 19 year long state of emergency following popular protests. Government killed 3, wounded 800 in the latest round of riots.

Morocco—very stable country; a U.S. ally since 1777. One of the first nations on earth to recognize the United States after the American Revolution. Opposition took office following peaceful elections in 2002; the very first change of government like this in the Arab world. Currently fighting an al-Qaeda chapter within its territory that has targeted several north African countries.

Iraq—U.S. and international troops are still there; government is still trying to get its act together.

Saudi Arabia—Saudi king is attempting to buy off protestors with cash and with shows of overwhelming force. “Day of Rage” in Saudi capital cancelled after tens of thousands of police were deployed first. Saudi King Abdullah gave asylum to exiled Tunisian President after he was thrown out of office by Tunisian protestors. Saudi “virtue police” treat citizens harshly and violently if they are perceived as doing something illegal under Sharia law, although King Abdullah has put more moderates into the religious police.

Yemen—One of the most heavily armed nations on the planet, there are three guns per every man, woman and child there. Sliding rapidly toward civil war; government is attempting to put down protests there. President is pulling a Mubarak, wanting to stay on until after elections. Protestors want him gone ASAP. Heavy al-Qaeda presence. Government is firing on protestors, who are returning fire. Recent fighting left forty dead; government officials and military leaders have begun switching sides as a result. President expected to resign.

Syria—First pro-democracy protest of some size in decades began recently; four dead, hundreds injured by some accounts. Government and Syrian intelligence service has been using violence to influence events in neighboring Lebanon, including assassination of Lebanese politicians who want Syria out of their politics. The Syrian government shows no mercy to protestors or people around them; in 1982, the Syrian government attacked a Syrian town (Hama) that rebelled with their full military might, and left no survivors. As many as 40,000 civilians perished.

Tunisia—Government fell to protestors. Dealing with refugee crisis with incoming Libyan civilians fleeing Qaddafi’s mercenaries. Protestors in other Arab nations were inspired by the Tunisian protests, which were successful in overthrowing their government.

Somalia—Ongoing civil war. No central government from 1991-2009; pirate strongholds on the coastline; several African nations have intervened militarily with no conclusive results. Charges of genocide in the civil war. New government is getting stronger, building up a Somali military and attempting to wrest the countryside from militants.

Libya—Ongoing civil war, currently has the attention of the world. Qaddafi brought in mercenaries to deal with his own people. Heavy civilian casualties.

Jordan—Stable Arab country. Leads the Arab world in political reforms, though they still have a ways to go. Practices torture of political prisoners, application of the death penalty being questioned by Amnesty International. Peace treaties with all of its neighbors, including Israel. Protests began in January 2011 over food prices and unemployment and against the Prime Minister of Jordan. King of Jordan fired the cabinet and the Prime Minister in a nod to the concerns of protestors.

United Arab Emirates—Protest leaders were arrested and deported after leading a 3,000 man work strike over wage increases, and is threatening legal action against the rest. Liberal Arab country. Protestors appeared a few days ago to protest the Israeli airstrikes on Gaza.

Lebanon—Under the control of Hezbollah and Syria. People who protest against this arrangement are assassinated by bombs or bullets, or simply disappear, never to be heard from again. Got dragged into a Hezbollah-Israeli war a few years ago, and is likely to be dragged in again if the terror group decides to start bombarding northern Israeli towns again with Iranian rockets.

Kuwait—Protests have been waged by non-citizens over citizenship issues and the arrest of other non-citizens at previous protests. Protestors clashed with security forces. Thirty people have been wounded. The Emir of Kuwait is an American ally.

Mauritania—Military coup in 2008; the leader of the coup ran for President in 2009 and won the election. Protests are currently underway. They’ve been relatively peaceful protests so far, and the authorities have allowed the protests, arresting some for getting out of hand.

Oman—Protests over wages and government reform. Some protestors got violent, and other protestors wrote to the Sultan of Oman, apologizing for the violence. One person was killed, twenty were wounded. Hard to see which direction this situation might go.

Comoros—An Arab island chain in the Mediterranean, it has a small military, numbering 500 men and 500 police officers. Naval protection is provided by France; the French also have a base there. They are a multi-party “federal presidential republic” that is a working democracy, after decades of dictatorship. Power changed hands peacefully in 2006. Laws are based on a mix of Islamic law and Napoleonic codes.

Qatar—A protest scheduled on Facebook to confront the country’s problems with corruption of government officials was cancelled. Then rumors of a coup in progress started circulating around the country. A major U.S. ally in the region; American troops are stationed there. They also have some kind of a defense treaty with Iran.

Bahrain—A Sunni king rules over a Shiite majority here; there was an explosion of bloody violence between government forces and civilian protestors in the last few weeks. The Sunni king has called for foreign troops to enter his country and assist in suppressing the Shiites. Saudi troops entered the country and are currently assisting in doing so. Also a U.S. ally, and the forward operating base of the U.S. Fifth Fleet. This one’s going to bite us when we least expect it. Iran is already stirring up trouble here.

Palestine—They’ve always got protests going on, and usually it’s over what Israel’s doing to them. With Hamas in charge of Gaza, there will be no peace. And Fatah’s control of the West Bank against Hamas is tenuous at best. Violence is mostly between Fatah and Hamas, and Hamas and the Israelis. The majority of the news coverage report on the fighting between Israel and Hamas.

Djibouti—Protests are underway against their President, who won against his main rival in the last election with 100% of the votes going his way. Election was denounced by international monitors. Clashes have turned violent since February 3rd, and the opposition appears to have been knocked out by the killing of many protestors, and the arrest of their leaders.

I have a hard time swallowing the fact that we’re entertaining requests from this group of nations, in particular the ones who are violently suppressing pro-democracy movements in their own countries, to protect pro-democracy protestors in Libya.

The truth is that these nations are using Libya to throw attention onto Gaddafi and off of THEM!

And our leaders are bowing to their wishes to present the public picture of a united response involving Arab and Western nations, when the Western alliance is fragmented, and only a few of the Arab nations in the Arab league are contributing aircraft or support personnel. And Arab nations are NOTORIOUS for changing their tunes at the drop of a hat.

They suckered us in good.

Arab League Declares Libya Has “Lost Its Sovereignty” and Asks For No-Fly Zone, Then Changes Its Mind When It Happens: That’s The LAST Time We Should Listen to Those Idiots!

The Arab League has apparently gotten cold feet in regards to the suppression of Libya’s air defense system, and the defense of Libyan civilians, after begging the West to help set up a no-fly zone.

They are now talking about withdrawing their ill-considered motion, or providing aircraft with all kinds of stipulations on how they are to be used.

What did those Arab League idiots think was going to happen? As soon as the first Tomahawk was fired, and the first Western aircraft entered Libyan airspace, people were going to start dying. These are not toys that the West is dropping on Libya.

We need to hand this operation over to the Arab League ASAP, and pull NATO out of this misbegotten adventure, and tell the Arab League to go screw themselves.

The next time they want a no-fly zone, they can DO IT THEMSELVES without Western help. They’re a bunch of weak-willed hypocrites that some very smart people over here said would jump ship as soon as military action began.

They were right.

U.S. Following the Correct Course in Libya: NATO Takes the Lead in Sending Their Air Forces into Libyan Skies

Following declarations from the Arab League and the U.N. Security Council that allow for a no-fly zone to protect the Libyan people from Col. Qaddafi, the French Air Force is in action over Libya, presumably shooting down Libyan military aircraft, and bombing government and mercenary forces who have been attacking Benghazi.  The Italian Air Force is also in action.

There has been a lack of U.S. leadership on this issue, and for once, I am in agreement with it. 

The U.S. has two wars ongoing already, with a potentially explosive Korean situation waiting in the wings.   That’s enough for us to be getting on with. 

The majority of the American people are opposed to our getting involved in Libya.  Many polls of the American public have opposition to American involvement ranging from 66-75%. 

I hope this conflict doesn’t last long, and there’s no expansion of the NATO role beyond what is already stated.

People Need to Calm Down About Japanese Nuclear Problem: Even if Reactors Go into Full Meltdown, the Radiation Will Not Reach California

I think some people need a geography lesson.  Finland is not next to Japan.  Nor is the continental United States.  Yet people in both countries are rushing out to buy potassium iodine tablets, and some in their idiot governments are inciting a panic, like the Surgeon General of the United States.

A news article in California blasting the Surgeon General’s ill-conceived political statements said that if a nuclear reactor in California was to go into full meltdown, the authorities would only give out potassium iodine to people living within 10-12 miles of the reactor.  From Tokyo to Los Angeles, it is roughly 5,478 miles.  From Tokyo to Helsinki it is 4,878 miles.  

This is not like a nuclear warhead going off and throwing up billions of tons of dirt into the upper atmosphere, and radioactive dust raining down around the entire world over weeks and months.  By the time any radiation from Japan reaches Los Angeles or Helsinki, it will have mostly blended into the background.

At its worst, Chernobyl’s nuclear accident contaminated 125,000 square miles.  The airspace above the Pacific Ocean between Japan and the West Coast is in the neighborhood of 18,000,000 square miles.  Radiation from Japan won’t make it.  The other thing is that the Soviets had no containment for their reactors, other than the housing for the nuclear cores themselves.  And the graphite used in the Soviet reactors were like candy to an out of control nuclear reaction.

Settle down, people.  Just stay cool.

Three Danish Soldiers Captured By Forces Loyal to Qaddaffi, Eight British Soldiers Captured By Libyan Rebels: NATO Needs to Keep Boots Off the Ground

NATO isn’t doing so good in Libya so far.   Three Danes and eight British soldiers have been captured by both sides in the Libyan civil war.   Is NATO planning on attacking both sides now, and turning this into a three-way dance?

This is a no-win situation for the West. 

By all means, NATO aircraft should airdrop food and medicines into rebel-controlled areas, but the West should not be involved in combat operations.   And they shouldn’t be sending soldiers in…both sides are saying they don’t want a Western military presence in Libya. 

Why doesn’t NATO listen?  STAY OUT of Libya! 

NATO should be flying supplies and transports into Tunisia to relieve the humanitarian nightmare taking place there, instead of trying to push Qaddaffi out.   I think he’ll be betrayed by one of his own men in the end, and forcibly removed from the picture in a hail of gunfire.

That can’t happen soon enough.  However, this is a Libyan and an Arab problem until then, not an American or NATO one.  If they want us in there, they’ll ask for it.

But if the reception that both sides have given NATO soldiers so far is any indication, they won’t.  And now NATO has a really complicated hostage situation to deal with too.

Libya “May Be” On Verge of Civil War? Not! They ARE in a Civil War

The media is playing catch-up on the terminology that they’re using to describe the strife in Libya.

Since there are clearly defined lines of battle, and two sides are vying for control of the government, all the conditions exist for the term “civil war” to apply.  A Twitter user by the name of Iyad El-Baghdadi has put together these maps of the current military situation in Libya.

Judging from the reports coming out of Libya, Qaddafi is using mercenaries, government troops, heavy artillery and other heavy weapons to attack towns held by the National Transitional Council.   Libyan Army units have defected to the rebels and are fighting Qaddaffi’s mercenaries and troops loyal to him.

Sounds like a civil war to me.

We Need to Keep Boots Off the Ground in Libya at ALL Costs: Libyan Rebels Can Handle Things Themselves

Libya seems to be lunging toward a civil war, and the West is making noises about establishing a no-fly zone over Libya to keep Qaddafi from launching air strikes against protestors who want him GONE.

I think the U.S. needs to sit this one out. 

France and Britain and Australia are making a lot of noises; let them take the lead this time.  The best thing the U.S. can do is not get involved militarily in Libya.  We have quite enough on the plate already, with Iraq and Afghanistan, and all the saber rattling going on in Korea.

The rebels have indicated that they do not want a foreign military presence on Libyan soil; I think that’s a piece of advice that the West should heed. 

But will the rebels help downed NATO pilots?   Or will NATO also have to have search and rescue (SAR) units on standby to rescue them from Gaddafi’s supporters?  Where would the SAR birds be stationed?  No Arab nation publicly wants Western troops on their soil.

Before a no-fly zone is established, they really need to take this into account.  Libya has massive stockpiles of anti-aircraft weapons, many of which are still under Qaddafi’s control, so there may be some aircraft losses, and pilots who will need to be rescued.   He could send his Air Force after ships in the Gulf of Sidra.

This is a mess we don’t want to get entangled in.  The Libyan people need to fight for themselves, rather than having us send in the Marines.

And I’m not sure about referring to Qaddafi to the International Criminal Court (ICC) either.  Libya has never signed the ICC treaty.   If Qaddafi’s regime falls to the rebels, does anyone think he will be taken alive?  Or that his countrymen would allow him to face an international tribunal without a possibility of a death penalty, as he would face under Libyan law? 

Let the Libyans judge him themselves.  They don’t need the West sticking their noses into that too.

Canadian Case Highlights Socialized “Death Panel” Situations That Will Follow Obama’s Health Care Plan if It Isn’t Repealed

And they say that death panels couldn’t possibly happen?

Take a look at this situation in Canada, and then tell me that death panels couldn’t possibly happen here.

This is awful.

See the Democrats Scream and Run Away: Now Thirty-Seven Indiana Legislators Flee Their State Rather Than Lose a Vote, Fair and Square

Now the Democrats in Indiana are fleeing their state as well, departing Indianapolis and their state  rather than trying to persuade their Republican opponents to vote against an anti-union bill.

This is childish, and more proof that all the states need laws which clearly define dereliction of duty, and the declaration of vacancy of their seats.  Only three of forty Democratic senators showed up for work this morning.

Perhaps they’re going to Wisconsin to get doctors notes too.

All politicians who stoop to using this tactic should be locked out, and their resignations considered accepted.

It may be that anti-union measures need to be put before voters themselves as the state legislatures don’t have the brass to handle this issue.  Right to Work issues probably should go on the ballot anyways as they require amendments to state constitutions in a number of states.

How many more states will be paralyzed by shortsighted politicians who decide that they should stop all work and take a paid holiday just to stall one vote?

State Austerity Measures Are Needed Now, While There is Still a Choice

For some states, the time of austerity is here.  For many others, it’s not very far away.

Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, Minnesota and a couple of others have been in the news, but the problems run much deeper than just the Upper Midwestern states.

According to the Center on Budget and Priority Policies, forty-five states and the District of Columbia will have deficits in 2012, totaling $125 billion.  This is on top of the cuts that many states have already made, between 2009 and 2011. 

All the states need to reduce their deficits to at least break-even.  And that will involve painful cuts on all levels.

I think that the Wisconsin governor asking the unions to give up their say on everything other than wages is going too far.  There is definitely room for a compromise, but both sides in Wisconsin have dug in and adopted a “my way or ELSE” attitude which is not particularly helpful to resolving the stalemate.

As for the missing Democrats in the Wisconsin state legislature, they need to get back to work and do what they were elected to do: represent the people of Wisconsin.  There is no provision in the Wisconsin constitution for the seats of shirking lawmakers to be declared vacant, and special elections called.  This is unfortunate. 

Every state should have such a provision for it in order for all representatives and senators to know what will happen if they abandon their posts.   Their pay should be forfeit, so should any benefits that follow a state legislator’s leaving office honorably.

Lots of problems ahead, for at least forty-five states.

GOP Should Quit Praising Dictator Mubarak and Obama Needs to Drop the “Passive Bystander” Role and Publicly Support the Egyptian People

Former Vice-President Cheney has come out singing the praises of Hosni Mubarak, calling him a “good friend” and a  key U.S. ally.

Israel is also worried about Egyptian/Israeli ties should a new government arise in Cairo. 

This is not good.  

While Egypt has played the role of a moderate in Middle Eastern politics, and played a vital role in the peace process since signing a treaty with Israel, there has been a dictator at Egypt’s helm for thirty years.

And he’s used his military and secret police to murder his opponents, lock up his enemies, and has amassed a $70 billion fortune.  I have no doubt that he’ll be prosecuted for corruption for that alone.  I’m not surprised that his family is allegedly fleeing Egypt.   Wonder what they’re taking with them.

I think that our politicians need to get with the program, and realize that their “good friend”, while he’s contributed to stability in the region, has violently repressed the people of Egypt, and they’re clearly fed up.  Washington and Tel Aviv need to support the Egyptian people, NOW.

Obama’s policy of “passive bystander” is failing.  He needs to get in front of the cameras and state that he supports the Egyptian people and their aspirations for freedom.  And he needs to convince Mubarak that it’s time to leave sooner rather than later.

If Egypt stabilizes and they start having democratically elected governments, it can serve as a model for the rest of the region.  That’s something to strive for, rather than clinging to a dictator who is losing power rapidly.   The U.S. should be embracing the rule of law for Egypt, rather than the rule of one man.

Hosni Mubarak’s Egyptian Government Should Be Abandoned, and the Protesters Endorsed: Weak U.S. Response Will Lead to a Weak U.S./Egyptian Relationship

President Obama’s response to the massive upheaval in Egypt has been exceptionally weak, and the U.S./Egyptian relationship that emerges may reflect that.

We should be telling Mubarak to not let the door hit him in the butt on the way out, and endorse the leader that the protest factions have united behind, Mohamed ElBaradei.   ElBaradei can lead the Egyptian people out of the current dictatorship. and into free and fair elections.

We’ve been backing the wrong man in Egypt for far too long, and President Obama needs to show some iron. 

Mubarak’s time is running out, and so is our time to strengthen our ties to the Egyptian people.

And the more friendship we display to the Egyptian people, the less likely the Brotherhood of Islam will take control of Egypt once Mubarak’s government is toppled.  Obama’s making this much more difficult than it needs to be.

What Some Call “Vitriol”, Others Call “Freedom of Speech”: People Are Complaining Because Congress DOESN’T LISTEN and Does What It Wants, and The Public Has Had Enough

I’ve been watching Nancy Pelosi and other Democrats use the term “vitriol” to describe the current atmosphere when it comes to their incompetence and irresponsibility.

If they don’t like the current atmosphere, perhaps they ought to consider changing their own behavior to get the public off their cases.  Because that’s the source of much of the public tension.  

In the last session, Congress enacted a health care bill that the majority of Americans opposed, continued spending outside its means, and continued to push the debt ceiling higher and higher.  They’ve got their priorities backwards, choosing to move their party agenda forward, at the expense of all Americans. 

And they’re hypocrites too, name-calling their opposition and employing the same kind of “vitriol” that they’re accusing the public and their right-wing opponents of employing against THEM.  Except that when the Democrats call one of their GOP opponents a “Nazi” or a “racist”, they claim that it isn’t “vitriol” at all.  They’re exercising their rights to be idiots, after all.

And they can’t figure out why the public is so irate with them?    According to the example that the Democrats are setting, it’s “vitriol” until they (the Dems) use the same kinds of words.  THEN it’s “free speech.”

Bunch of dang hypocrites.

British Moves to Cut Their Military Budget Are Yielding Strange Results: Aircraft Carriers Without Aircraft, New $5 Billion Surveillance Aircraft Being Turned Into Razor Blades Without Performing a Single Mission

One note: I converted British pounds into U.S. dollars for this posting.

Great Britain has been slashing programs from their military budget, and it’s yielded some strange results, and some costly ones too.

Most of their front line aircraft carriers are being scrapped or sold.  Their Harrier jumpjets are being scrapped.  Their brand-new aircraft carriers won’t be online for at least five years, and they won’t have any fixed wing aircraft for the remaining or new carriers for several years after that.

The latest thing is that they spent the equivalent of $6.5 billion on a new class of spy aircraft, and now that they’re rolling off the production line they’re being retired without taking to the air.  They’re severely over budget ($1.2 billion) and nine years behind schedule.

The cancellation of the Nimrod Maritime Surveillance Aircraft (MRA4) is expected to save the British military approximately $3.1 billion over ten years.

They’re also laying off 17,000 troops and support personnel.

Is this what our military cuts will look like when they do come?

So This is the New Moderate Tone in Washington? Democrat Refers to Republicans as “Nazis”

Well, well, well!

As anticipated, the Democrats couldn’t refrain from getting nasty in the ongoing health care debate, with Nazi references to the Republican position on health care.

Why am I not surprised that this “truce” wasn’t going to last very long?  Politicians have no choice but to launch personal attacks; they do not possess the vocabulary to argue their points without doing so.

The more things change…the MORE they STAY THE SAME!!

President Obama Should Ask President Hu if Chinese Ballistic Anti-Ship Missiles Will Be for Chinese Military Only, or if They’re Planning on Exporting Them Elsewhere

China is continuing their development of the world’s first anti-ship ballistic missile, and the U.S. Navy needs to adapt to this new weapons system and soon.

But first, we need to assess what the Chinese intend to do with these weapons.  Once they’re deployed, will they remain on Chinese territory, or is China planning on selling the designs or the actual weapons to countries who would love to destroy a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier?

China says that they will be to protect China from the U.S. Navy.  But has anyone asked them what their intentions are with these game-changing ballistic missiles in terms of international sales?

President Obama Needs to QUIT BOWING to Foreign Leaders! This is Disgraceful!

I think Burger King is the ONLY one President Obama hasn’t bowed and scraped to.

As the American head of state, President Obama is on an equal footing with ALL heads of state, whether they’re Presidents, Premiers, Prime Ministers, Kings, Queens, Emperors, and other people with equally impressive titles before their names.

He MUST quit bowing to his equals unless the bow is being returned at the same level. He keeps violating diplomatic protocol and American tradition, and it’s sickening to watch.

With the arrival of the President of the People’s Republic of China today in Washington, he needs to bow to no one, no matter how much money we owe them. Straighten up and represent the American people properly, please, Mr. President.

Here's what the Taiwanese make of President Obama entertaining President Hu. This is not good for an American President to be thought of like this.

Israel and U.S. May Have Unleashed Computer Virus to Sabotage Iran’s Nuclear Program: It’s Better Than Launching a Military Assault on an Iranian Nuclear Facility and Sparking a Regional War

There have been several news reports that Israel and the U.S. are responsible for unleashing a computer virus on Iran’s nuclear production facilities.

Israel is said to have assembled the same sort of centrifuges that Iran is using, and tested the virus, with U.S. cooperation, at their facility first before sending people in to plant it.  The virus causes the centrifuges to spin wildly out of control and ruins them.  The virus is said to be extremely difficult to eradicate and has set back the Iranian nuclear project back 3-5 years.

For those who think that this is a bad idea, remember what Israel did to the Osirak nuclear  facility in Iraq in the early 1980s?  They sent in a squadron of F-16s to destroy the facility and assassinated several Iranian and French nuclear scientists who were assisting the Iraqis.

I like this sort of action over military action.  Iran’s got enough military hardware to cause a lot of trouble in the Middle East, and we don’t need that right now.

It has been the stated goal of the U.S. and the international community to stop Iran from getting the bomb.   This sabotage is a good start.

Tucson Victim Claims Gunman Was “Exercising His Second Amendment Right” When He Opened Fire: NO HE WASN’T!!

One of the people who was wounded in last Saturday’s mass shooting in Tucson put an inflammatory document online, in which he attacked the media and private citizens by name (he’s probably going to get sued by one or more of the individuals he attacked) and said that the gunman was exercising his “Second Amendment rights.”

With all due respect, no he wasn’t.  The Second Amendment doesn’t say ANYTHING about shooting a federal judge or a U.S. Representative or a nine-year-old girl, or any of the other victims whose names and stories we are still learning.   The victim’s political statement is deeply flawed.

The gun is nothing but an extension of the person’s will.   What good is a gun without a hand to wield it, a steady arm and an eye to aim it, and a finger to pull the trigger?

People have been posting the following note on the social websites.  It reads in part: “…If guns kill people, then pencils misspell words, cars drive drunk, and spoons made Oprah fat ! Remember: Hold the person accountable for their actions, not the means they chose to utilize!!!”

Quit blaming the Second Amendment. 

This guy could have just as easily climbed into his car and drove through the very same crowd that he attacked with a gun, like the madman who tried to run over Rep. Katherine Harris in Florida in 2004.  That fool claimed he was exercising his “political expression.”  I don’t seem to recall people trying to ban the First Amendment after that, or banning cars either.

Restricting the First Amendment right of free speech or the Second Amendment right to bear arms doesn’t deal with the lunatics out there who might go off at any time for any reason.

Build more loony bins.

Now Liberal Media Bashes Palin for Defending Herself: Do They Seriously Expect Her to Allow Them to Trash Her Without Comment?

Liberal media outlets NBC, ABC and CBS went out of their way to blame Sarah Palin for the Tucson massacre, and then cried foul when she gave it right back to them.

They stand revealed as the hate-mongering opportunists that they really are.  They’ve all but accused Palin of having blood on her hands, even as their more even-tempered colleagues are telling them to back down on the rhetoric even before the first victims of Saturday’s mass shooting are laid to rest.

This is the most disgusting political ploy that I’ve ever seen by the left-wing press; this is even more disgusting than the political rally/funeral of Minnesota congressman Paul Wellstone.

And like the Wellstone “funeral”, this will also backfire on the opportunists, especially the idiot sheriff out there who sounds more like a Democratic Party spokesman rather than a lawman.   He’s a political hack masquerading as a cop.  Hope his constituents are paying attention to his inattention to the facts of the case.

The “blood libel” quote that the press is skewering her about is in reference to a very old false rumor that Jews and other non-Christians kill Christian children for their blood for use in pagan rituals and foods.   Blood libel accusations over the centuries have caused even more blood to run in the streets.

I think' Palin knew EXACTLY what she was saying, and who she would provoke.  And that their angry responses would provide her with even more source material to use against the Democrats. 

While I’m concerned over the use of this particular religious term, it’s really amusing to see the Democratic media sputtering over what Palin’s said now.   They get so flummoxed.

With the blood libel card now played, I think it would be a smart move for both sides to refrain from using it again.  It is an offensive term. 

If the Democrats are serious about lightening up the tone, perhaps they should refrain from calling Republicans “Nazis” during political debate, and using the SAME graphics with bulls-eyes on vulnerable Republican districts, as Palin did with crosshairs on vulnerable Democratic districts.   That will be a good start.

I don’t think either side can stop.   They would run out of vocabulary to use.

Quit Blaming the Tea Party for Today’s Catastrophe in Arizona: The Shooter is a Lunatic and Had His OWN Agenda

In the midst of the day’s disastrous events in Tucson, one of Congresswoman Gilffords’ Senatorial colleagues blamed the Tea Party and the GOP for pushing the IDIOT who shot her and eighteen others over the edge.

And some liberal bloggers are echoing the remarks.

Grow up!

This guy is a lunatic!  He shot nineteen people for no good reason, and the investigation will bear this out.

Gates Targeting Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle: He Might Want to Hold Off on Decision to Cut Marine Landing Craft from Military Budget

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) in his sights for termination.  It’s a high speed landing craft/infantry carrier that will replace the much slower and lower performance Amphibious Assault Vehicle that has been around since the 1960s.

I think he should look at other programs to cut.

We might need to land the Marines along the Korean coast, like they did during the Korean War.  What if we need to land troops in Somolia, or Yemen, or Ivory Coast, or Iran, or Taiwan, or any of the coastal hotspots around the world? 

Chances are, if they have to repel a North Korean invasion of South Korea, most of South Korea will be overrun before we can get additional troops in there.  And if that were to come to pass, the North Koreans would be ready for an end-run this time.   They’ve got artillery all up and down their coastline now, as well as mobile artillery.  They didn’t have nearly as many guns in 1950.   Inchon was moderately defended, but the North Koreans still damaged two U.S. Navy cruisers and three destroyers with their coastal guns.

I really think the EFV should be spared; the Iraq War will be winding down in the next year; the military will save money by cutting out Iraq War funding in the future on the level that it has been at.

This is a program that should be spared for now.

Russia Delivers 1,800 Shoulder-Launched Anti-Aircraft Missiles to Venezuela: Should We Threaten to Return the Favor and Send the Same Number of Stinger Missiles to Chechnya?

Venezuela has continued its massive arms buildup, preparing to export the weapons to rebel groups in neighboring democratic nations, with most of its weapons purchases coming from the Russian Federation.

This is not particularly helpful.  Russia needs to stop supporting Hugo Chavez.

Vladimir Putin seems to want to reignite the Cold War, and is using proxies like Venezuela to do it.

In that vein, should we threaten to match the Russian arms sales to Venezuela with shipments of arms to Chechnya in equal numbers?   Russia recently delivered 1,800 shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles to Venezuela.  What if we were to send 1,800 shoulder-fired Stinger missiles to Chechnyan rebel groups?  Russia would have a stroke!

Unfortunately, al-Qaeda has been known to support the Chechnyan independence drive, and there’s no guarantee that any Stinger missiles provided to Chechnya wouldn’t end up elsewhere in the world, being used against American, Israeli and European airliners as well as Russian interests.

It’s an interesting “What if?” 

But the risks far outweigh the benefits of taking an action as dangerous as supplying advanced arms to the Chechnyans.

When our nation provided Stinger missiles to the Afghans in their war against the Soviets in the 1980s, we had little idea that some of the same people we were supporting back then would become America’s most dangerous enemies down the road.   In those days, the Soviets were the #1 threat, and the perception was that they’d be around for a long time to come.

All Stingers provided to the 1980s mujahedeen in Afghanistan were either used, or went off-line when the batteries in the Stinger’s target-acquisition system ran out, or became unusable due to lack of maintenance by qualified technicians.  Remember, we are talking about 12rh century horse soldiers using 20th Century technology. 

But with today’s arms market, it might be possible to keep Stinger technology going for a lot longer if we WERE to provide Stingers to Chechnya.  We’d probably have issues with the missiles for a LONG time to come should the missiles fall into the wrong hands.

But what if….