Month: May 2010

5,113 Nuclear Weapons And Declining! Great News!

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In a surprise move this week, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced that the government would release the information on the number of nuclear weapons the United States possesses, and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates revealed the exact number, 5,113, at the beginning of the UN Conference on reviewing the Nuclear Non Proliferation Treaty.

On first thought, one might think why is it that we are being told the exact number, and then the thought why do we need that many nuclear weapons in the first place?

When we discover that the number of nuclear weapons have been in constant decline since the all time high in 1967 when we had 31,255 nuclear warheads, and that therefore, there has been a drop of 84 percent in the past 43 years and 75 percent since the end of the Cold War, we can feel good. But then why do we need even 5,113 weapons to defend ourselves?

The purpose of the revelation of these numbers of nuclear weapons is to encourage other nations to cut down their nuclear stockpile, and prevent other nations from moving toward a nuclear arms race.

The hope is that eventually the danger of nuclear war can be overcome by the complete elimination of nuclear weapons by negotiation and verification means and trust among nations, so that the age of nuclear threat, now 65 years, can finally be scrapped and make life on this earth a lot safer and more secure!

Of course, it is certain that the right wing conservatives and the defense establishment will wish to continue to promote fear and hysteria to prevent what most sane Americans want–a world safer than when they were born! So the battle for peace continues with no easy resolution!

Defense Secretary Robert Gates Continues To Amaze!

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Defense Secretary Robert Gates, a holdover from the Bush Administration, continues to amaze in his open mindedness and insights, and is seen as one of the major assets of the Obama Presidency, despite many Republicans being critical of him, even with his extensive background in the party structure and in the administrations of earlier Republican Presidents!

Now, on the anniversary of V E Day, May 8, Gates has delivered a speech at the Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Library and Museum in Abilene, Kansas. This location is no accident or coincidence, but perfectly planned, as President Eisenhower remains famous for his outgoing Farewell Address in January, 1961, still regarded as one of the three greatest Farewell Addresses in American history!

A former leading General in World War II, responsible for the successes of the D Day (June 6, 1944) Normandy, France invasion, Eisenhower warned of the dangers of the Military-Industrial Complex on the future of American democracy!

The last nearly 50 years since his speech have proved very prophetic as we have seen the national debt skyrocket, with most of it being caused by military spending and interventions in Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan and Iraq yet again, plus the numerous other smaller interventions around the world, and the fact that we have troops and military and naval bases in more than 60 countries around the world!

Gates referred to those realities, and called for cost savings and cuts in spending in the future on defense. He pointed out that the past decade since September 11 has seen a doubling of spending on defense, and he said some of it is wasteful spending that cannot be expected to continue.

Gates has canceled or cut back dozens of weapons programs estimated to save a third of a trillion dollars over the long haul, and wants now to cut the bureaucracy in the department, and also cut overseas locations and operating costs.

Gates questioned the need to have more than 40 generals, admirals, or civilian equivalents overseas, two decades after the Cold War ended with the Soviet Union.

This is all very refreshing news, as Gates challenges the accepted worship of military spending by the right wing of the Republican party, who only wish to cut domestic spending, but see defense spending as sacrosanct!

Gates has said he will have to see what happens after this year, as he had pledged to stay at least through the first two years of the Obama Administration. Needless to say, Obama should keep him on indefinitely as a tremendous asset, and Gates should do the patriotic duty and continue to work for the Commander in Chief for as long as Obama wishes him to contribute to a new image of the Defense Department! What a tremendous change since the days of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld! 🙁

The Hypocrisy Of Anti Gay Religious Conservatives: The Case Of George Rekers

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There is nothing worse than anti gay “religious” conservatives who condemn the gay lifestyle, and at the same time, have latent tendencies and live a life of denial, while promoting discrimination and prejudice against those that they participate in with hidden trysts!

The latest case is George Rekers, one of the founders of the Family Research Council, infamous for its self righteous campaigns against homosexuality which spur attacks by those who think it is God’s work to punish those who are outside the mainstream of “Christian” values!

Rekers was a founder, also, of the National Association For Research And Therapy Of Homosexuality, and is a retired professor of Psychology at the University of South Carolina. He recently was paid $60,000 by the state of Florida to testify against gay adoption, a case which was lost in court, despite the payment being authorized by the Florida Attorney General, Bill McCollum, who now is the Republican nominee for Governor in Florida! This fact should make intelligent and open minded people wonder about making McCollum the next governor of the fourth largest state! 🙁

For an anti-gay activist to take a male escort who he found on Rentaboy.com on a two week trip to Spain and Great Britain and have sexual massages, and claim he just needed someone to carry his luggage is beyond preposterous!

Hopefully, just as with Ted Haggard, an evangelist who had been the head of the 30 million member National Association of Evangelicals until he was outed by an escort he had hired in 2006, the legitimacy and validity of anti gay “Christian” activists will be further damaged by the George Rekers scandal.

If one is truly religious, he or she should be tolerant of differences and promote understanding and open mindedness, rather than hate and intolerance. In other words, follow the preachings of Jesus Christ, not politics! 🙁

Tea Party Extremists Gone Amuck: Defeat Of Utah Senator Robert Bennett!

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Senator Robert Bennett of Utah would be considered, by any reasonable standard, to be a solid conservative Republican, certainly in no way a liberal or moderate.

This man, a Mormon whose father Wallace Bennett served in the Senate before him; the grandson of the seventh president of the Mormon Church; and married to the granddaughter of the ninth President of the Mormon Church–was unable to win a fourth term nomination at the Republican State convention today!

What stood in the way of this senator, who voted against abortion, affirmative action, gay rights and marriage, health care reform, energy standards proposals, even emergency funding for Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina–and for the Patriot Act and tighter immigration controls, and repeal of the inheritance tax and support of the flat tax which favors the most wealthy taxpayers, among many other votes?

You would not believe that the vote which doomed Senator Bennett as NOT conservative enough, was his decision to support, as many others in the Senate and House did, the “bailout” of Wall Street institutions introduced by the Bush Administration in the fall of 2008, and continued in 2009 by President Obama’s Administration!

This event, the rejection of Senator Bennett, is an example of the absolutely sickening, crazy, loony Tea Party Movement’s influence, and a warning to Senator John McCain, Governor Charlie Crist and many others–establishment Republicans with a solid record of accomplishments for conservative causes–but also an element of individualism and maverick nature who DARED to use their brain, rather than ideology, to do what was the proper thing to do in a dire emergency, as we had not seen or experienced in 80 years!

The fact that what the US government has done has indeed worked toward the beginning of an economic revival does not matter to these lunatics! They are such “puritans” regarding their backwards ideology that they do not care what harm they do to the party which has best represented their right wing interests for all these years!

This is a warning to the GOP–continue to embrace the Tea Party extremists–and IF the American people have any common sense, these right wing rebels will be rejected at the polls this November!

Obviously, SOME of these characters will manage to get through and poison the political atmosphere, but Democrats MUST do whatever they can to keep the ship of state on an even keel, as a Tea Party takeover of American politics would be the triumph of insanity and harm the long term future of the United States!

By the way, there is the possibility that Senator Bennett will wage a write-in campaign for his seat, since this rejection was not in a primary where all registered Republicans could vote. With a famous name in Utah politics, and 18 years in the Senate behind him, it could occur that Senator Bennett will yet overcome the wingnuts who defeated him in the state convention today! For a state that is solidly conservative Republican, his eventual write in victory is the best that could be hoped for!

Germany 1945 And Germany 2010: 65 Years After VE Day! What A Difference!

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65 years ago today was VE Day, as the remnants of Nazi Germany surrendered, ending World War II in Europe!

Germany lay in ruins, and was then divided by the Allies, into what became a 45 period of division, between Communist East Germany (controlled by the Soviet Union), and the Federal Republic of West Germany (controlled by troops of the United States, Great Britain, France).

East Germany was a totalitarian Communist dictatorship which languished economically, while West Germany flourished as a successful democracy.

The Berlin Wall was built by the Russians in 1961, dividing that city physically from then to 1989. When the Wall fell, the Soviets had already determined to withdraw from Eastern Europe and East Germany, and within a year, not only was the Cold War ended, but the two German nations became united as one, finally, after 45 years of division.

Now Germany, a very successful democracy, is also the economic powerhouse of Europe, and is engaged in the bailing out of Greece, and likely in the future, of other European countries in economic crisis, including Portugal, Ireland, Italy and Spain!

Who would have ever imagined that the nation that had spawned the worst war in history would, two thirds of a century later, be the savior of nations?

An amazing turn of circumstances, which no one could ever have imagined! 🙂

Michelle Obama: Role Model, Good Will Ambassador, And Elegant First Lady! :)

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Probably the greatest asset President Barack Obama has is not his cabinet officers or advisers, but his elegant, highly intelligent and articulate First Lady! 🙂

Michelle Obama has already demonstrated that she is one of the greatest First Ladies in American History in just a little over a year in office!

Not only has she become a role model for women and young girls and promoted “family values” and the work ethic, but she has also become the leading advocate of her husband as he faces the most massive series of problems of any President since Franklin D. Roosevelt!

On her recent trip to earthquake torn Haiti and to Mexico, she showed her talent as a good will ambassador and spokesperson for every decent human trait to help those less fortunate!

She always knows the right thing to say and do, and she possesses great charm and presence!

It is such a delight to have an intelligent and accomplished First Lady, as the job description has become much more upgraded by her qualifications, which rival, and in some ways, surpass all First Ladies except, possibly, Eleanor Roosevelt and Hillary Clinton!

Michelle Obama will continue to be a tremendous asset to her husband and to America in the coming years, and this can be seen in a way to follow what Bill Clinton said when he was elected, regarding his wife: You elect me, you gain my wife as a dividend! 🙂

That is certainly the case with Michelle Obama!

The British Parliamentary Election: Lessons For America And The GOP

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The British parliamentary elections brought a lot of attention in the past few weeks due to the fact that, for the first time, the candidates for Prime Minister debated, an idea adopted from the American Presidential elections belatedly, but now there will be no chance to back off from such debates in the future!

It was also noted that the Liberal Democrats, the small third party represented in the House of Commons, was perceived as running a competitive race, and its candidate for Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, came across as charismatic and appealing in a way not typical for British politics. Of course, in reality, the hype for the Liberal Democrats was much greater than the result, as there was disappointment in the actual performance in relation to seats gained.

Also, the Conservative party, angling to regain control of government for the first time in thirteen years, ran a campaign promoting a more centrist view, and showing interest and concern for social reforms that could appeal to middle class voters. David Cameron, its candidate for Prime Minister, ran a masterful race of moderate centrist conservatism, and although the Conservative Party did not gain a majority of the House of Commons, it came out as the number one party in seats, and will be working to gain support of enough Liberal Democrats to form a government. The whole idea of a third party having a crucial role in formation of what has basically been a two party system forever is a stunning development!

The lessons for America is that even with all of the expectations that may exist for a third party, it will, invariably, disappoint in actual result, as shown in Great Britain today and in America many times in the past!

The closest situation in America that may remind one of the pivotal role, despite disappointment in seats gained in Parliament, of the Liberal Democrats in Britain would be the all time greatest and most influential third party in American history, the Bull Moose Progressives of 1912, who ran Theodore Roosevelt for President, ended up second in popular and electoral votes, won the most states (6) ever of a third party, and threw the election to Woodrow Wilson, the second lowest percentage winner of the Presidency in American history! Otherwise, third parties have been great disappointments, although at times affecting election results in minor, rather than major, ways!

The lesson for the Republican party is that the Conservatives only ended up first because of their moderation and centrism, but the indications are that the GOP will NOT learn from the British example, and will continue to veer to the far right, and likely lose most of the American people in the process! Regaining of political power, historically, has been by the moderate, centrist route!

The Conservatives in Britain came to the realization that they could not win by copying Margaret Thatcher! The Republicans need to realize that they cannot win by copying Ronald Reagan! The past is the past, and to win, they must look to reality of where most people are when they vote–the moderate center!

Cinco De Mayo And The American Flag: Why Can’t They Coexist? :(

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A really ridiculous example of educational administrators using bad judgment is what happened on Wednesday in the suburbs of San Francisco.

May 5 was the celebration of Cinco De Mayo, the Mexican national holiday. There is nothing wrong with Mexican Americans celebrating their national heritage!

But a group of high school boys came to school on Wednesday wearing clothing bearing the American flag. They were ordered to remove the flag items or turn the shirts inside out to hide the flag symbol. They were threatened with suspension or being told to leave school for the day.

The story was that supposedly some Hispanic students would be affronted by the flag clothing. There was concern that there could be confrontations between Hispanic and white Anglo students.

The school apologized for the action against the white Anglo students, as well they should. One must not give in to threats or intimidation from any source!

The answer is that this situation was a perfect opportunity to promote tolerance, open mindedness and patriotism to both the Hispanic students and the Anglo students! It should not be that students are denied the right to express their patriotism just because of an ethnic holiday!

In the future, there is a need to hold assemblies for students, in which both tolerance of cultural diversity and demonstrations of patriotism by people of differing ethnic backgrounds should be seen as positive matters that do not conflict with each other’s sensitivities. These students must enter a world in which understanding and appreciation of others who are different than us is essential to promote good will and peace in our society and in the world!

Newt Gingrich Being Totally Irresponsible And A Demagogue!

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Former Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, always considered very intelligent and knowledgeable, but also seen as very confrontational and divisive in his years in the House of Representatives, has been, as Richard Cohen of the Washington Post wrote recently, on a “tear” lately in his vicious attacks on the Obama Administration.

Considered a likely candidate for the GOP Presidential nomination in 2012, even though he has been out of elective office since 1998, Gingrich has used the words “socialism” and “secularism” very loosely and attacked what he calls “Cultural Elites”!

The problem is that he, himself, is part of the “Cultural Elites”, as he is a former college professor with a Ph. D. in History who speaks in such a way that most “ordinary” people would have trouble understanding his intellectual bent!

Gingrich promotes religion and “family values”, but he has been married three times, divorced twice, admitted to an extramarital affair, and served his first wife with divorce papers while she lay in the hospital after cancer surgery! 🙁

As Richard Cohen points out, Gingrich lives in a very wealthy suburb of Washington, DC. He has never been in the military, but always promotes them as if he was a war veteran himself! He has never worked in the business world, but acts as if government is evil, even though his whole career has been one of being in government or being paid to comment on government! 🙂

But he revels in calling Barack Obama “socialist”, when, as any reasonable person would have to admit, Obama is FAR from being a Socialist, even on National Health reform (no public option)!

As Cohen states, Gingrich lives off controversy and provocation! He promotes trouble and mischief! Cohen concludes: “He is good at being bad. He is just not any good at being good.”

To this, I say “Amen” without invoking religion! LOL 🙂

Glenn Beck’s New, Distorted Attack On Progressive Presidents Woodrow Wilson And Franklin D. Roosevelt!

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Talk show host Glenn Beck is on a tear again, telling his audiences that it is progressives who were the biggest racists and violators of civil liberties in American History, particularly Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt!

Interesting how Beck distorts history and reality! 🙁 He is wrong in his facts and in his interpretation!

Let me make it clear that racism and civil liberties violations are a problem throughout American history without a doubt! But the facts are that while it is clear that Wilson worsened race relations during his administration, and has been roundly condemned for that, he cannot really be blamed for the violations of civil liberties known as the Red Scare which occurred during the last 18 months of his administration, when he lay paralyzed by a stroke and the government was really leaderless, giving Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer the freedom to abuse civil liberties!

While it is true that Franklin D. Roosevelt ordered the internment of Japanese Americans after Pearl Harbor, he did not do it without widespread support from most Americans, including many Republicans and conservatives, with California Republican Attorney General Earl Warren, the future Chief Justice, really actively promoting the idea in the two months after Pearl Harbor before FDR issued the executive order. To call what happened specifically racist seems unjustified, as it was more a reaction against the hysteria and panic felt throughout America after the surprise attack on our naval base in Hawaii!

Meanwhile, it was conservatives and Republicans who willingly abandoned Southern blacks at the end of Reconstruction, leaving their futures to conservative Southern Democrats who promoted “Jim Crow” racial segregation under the Republican Presidents, who no longer cared about the lives of African Americans in the South!

It was also a conservative and Republican dominated Supreme Court that authorized segregation as constitutional in 1896 in Plessy V. Ferguson!

It was also conservative Republican President Calvin Coolidge who appointed J. Edgar Hoover as head of the FBI, a new government agency created in 1924 that proceeded to violate civil liberties much of the time during the 48 year career of Hoover!

It was conservatives and Republicans, headlined by Wisconsin Senator Joseph McCarthy, who promoted the Second Red Scare after World War II!

It was Republican President Richard Nixon who authorized illegal bugging and wiretapping that led to widespread violations of civil liberties of Americans opposed to the Vietnam War!

So although “Progressives” such as Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt certainly can be blamed in some respects for violations of civil rights and civil liberties during their administrations, the heavier burden of responsibility for violations of civil rights and civil liberties must be laid at the door of conservatives of any political persuasion, as well as members and leaders of the Republican party!

For Glenn Beck to conjure up that it was “Progressives” who were the major perpetrators of violations of civil rights and civil liberties is, as MSNBC talk show host Ed Schultz terms it,
“Psycho Talk!” 🙂