Month: November 2011

The Republican Presidential Race And Foreign Policy: What A Change For The Worst!

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The Republican Party since World War II has built its reputation more on foreign policy than domestic policy, being seen as the stronger party in shaping our relationship with the outside world.

Republicans can rightly brag about Senator Arthur Vandenberg, Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, President Richard Nixon, Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, Senator Bob Dole, President George H. W. Bush, Secretary of State George Shultz, Secretary of State James Baker, Senator Richard Lugar, Secretary of State Colin Powell, and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as brilliant examples of people who shaped and understood foreign policy.

Today, we have a motley group of Republicans running for the Presidency, with Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich, and Rick Santorum showing no evidence of even a clue as to how to deal with the outside world! Instead, their primary idea is to attack Iran and discipline Pakistan, the two most dangerous nations at this point for the United States.

Instead, Dwight D. Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Ronald Reagan, and George H. W. Bush understood the need for diplomacy and to attempt alternatives to the use of force, except when unavoidable.

Only Mitt Romney, somewhat, and Jon Huntsman in a major way, have the skills and common sense to deal with foreign policy, and this indicates the sad, pitiful situation we are in, when six “dangerous” people are considered possible Presidents, without any understanding of diplomacy!

God forbid that the United States gets one of these six “losers” in the Oval Office!

Newt Gingrich: The $1.6 Million Historian!

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This author, being an historian, finds it astounding that Newt Gingrich, former Speaker of the House, and a Republican candidate for President, and also a Ph. D. in History, has managed to be paid approximately $1.6 million for “historical advice” to Fannie Mae and Freddy Mac, both of which organizations he now condemns!

It is one thing if an historian makes lots of money publishing best selling books. It is true that Gingrich has published 24 books, but many of them are NOT history, and many not “reliably” accurate, which are history!

The point is that Newt Gingrich, no matter how much he brags about himself, toots his own horn, is NOT a David McCullough, Michael Beschloss, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Douglas Brinkley, or other highly reputable historians and authors.

What Gingrich has spent his life doing is promoting lobbying, which he condemns, while earning millions of dollars due to his connections.

Newt Gingrich has no ethics, morals, or scruples, whether in private life or public life! He will say or do anything without any guilt in the fact that he lies and deceives! He can have a straight face while causing division and turmoil.

Newt Gingrich is an opportunist of the worst kind, and he should not be a serious candidate for President, but in this crazy election cycle, he can lie through his teeth and yet, seemingly, advance!

The Re-emergence Of Newt Gingrich: A Nightmare Scenario!

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Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich of Georgia has suddenly catapulted into a front runner status in some polls for the Republican Presidential nomination.

This comes after the various “flavors of the month”, Donald Trump, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, and Herman Cain, have all imploded after a flirtation with front runner status.

The polls this last six months have been notorious for proving absolutely nothing, except the clear cut desire of Republicans NOT to nominate Mitt Romney!

Gingrich has a lot of “baggage” in his background. Has there been a Congressional leader since World War II quite as controversial and divisive as Newt Gingrich was in the 1980s and 1990s, even before his four tumultuous years as Speaker?

Has anyone else left an image of poor ethics and morality as much as Newt Gingrich with his three marriages and two divorces, and pontificating on morality when Bill Clinton was facing impeachment?

It is often forgotten that Newt Gingrich was facing ethics charges as Speaker in 1998, after seeing his party margin in the House of Representatives dwindle dramatically, and that he was forced out as Speaker by his own party!

It is forgotten that Newt Gingrich has benefited from government, and has always utilized his fame to sell books and DVDs, get high lecture fees, and be a lobbyist for various organizations while denying that, and yet he denounces government as evil!

Can anyone believe ANYTHING coming out of Newt Gingrich’s mouth? He has been very inconsistent and often reckless in his rhetoric and behavior, and has been willing to utter ridiculous character assassination charges at Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, and anyone who challenges his veracity or honesty in the news media, as he has no principles that he will not change for his maniacal ambition to be President!

Gingrich has the advantage of being more knowledgeable and informed than most of his GOP opponents, but the thought of a Gingrich Presidency is enough to vomit over, as it would be easily the most divisive Presidency since Richard Nixon declared “war” on liberals and the news media and promoted “law and order”, while presiding over the most unethical administration in American history!

Greece And Italy: The Roots Of Western Civilization, And The End As We Know It?

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Europe, the United States, and the entire civilized world is facing a catastrophe that threatens economic and political stability in the 21st century.

Greece, the original western civilization, with its center at Athens; and Italy, the center of the great Roman Empire which dominated much of the then known “world” outside the Far East, are both in what many consider “death throes” of their societies, as both are in a state of near bankruptcy, which threatens the whole foundation of the Western civilized world as we know it!

One wonders how these two nations can cope with the austerity being forced on them, and how this will affect the rest of Europe and the United States, which has its own financial challenges.

Will future generations look back on these times as the moment where the non Western world, led by China, India, Pakistan and Iran, became the centers of world power and influence, to the detriment of the values that brought about the great empires of Spain, France, Great Britain and the United States?

Will the United States, which is looked to as the leader of the “free world”, be able to gather the strength and fortitude to lead the future, or will we look back on these times as the beginning of the end of America as a great power? We have to wonder how the American people will react to the visions of Barack Obama and the opposition Republicans as we enter a crucial, turning point, election year!

Time For The “Limelight” For Jon Huntsman, The Most Difficult Opponent For Barack Obama

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We have seen many Republican Presidential candidates have their “place in the sun”, been “the flavor of the month”, surged in the public opinion polls, as the search for an alternative to Mitt Romney has evolved.

First, we had Donald Trump, who ended up not running for President.

Then, we had Michele Bachmann, followed by Rick Perry, followed by Herman Cain, and now Newt Gingrich.

The problem with all of these candidates is that they have major flaws and weaknesses, along with Ron Paul and Rick Santorum, who have never surged.

And Mitt Romney has been made out to be a “flip flopper” to match any “flip flopper” in the past.

The fact is that Barack Obama has great ammunition against any and all potential GOP opponents for the Presidency, EXCEPT Jon Huntsman!

Huntsman, after all, was given the position of Ambassador to China by Obama. Also, Huntsman presided over a very popular and prosperous time as Utah Governor. He has great knowledge about foreign policy, and comes across as reasonable and rational. It will be very difficult for Obama to mount a campaign against Jon Huntsman.

Will the Republican Party ignore these advantages and the reality that Huntsman is supremely qualified to be President, and use the Mormon issue or the fact that he is, in comparison to other candidates, comparatively moderate, although clearly a conservative, against him?

If the GOP has any common sense, which they seem not to have, they would promote Jon Huntsman becoming the person in the “limelight”, as the person with the best chance of defeating President Obama!

NBC, MSNBC, And Presidential Offspring And Near Presidential Offspring!

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NBC and MSNBC have mined Presidential offspring, and even near Presidential offspring effectively.

It has been announced that Chelsea Clinton, daughter of President Bill Clinton and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, will be contributing to NBC Nightly News and Rock Center with Brian Williams.

At the same time, Jenna Bush Hager, daughter of former President George W. Bush, is a contributor to NBC’s Today Show.

Ron Reagan, son of former President Ronald Reagan, is an analyst on MSNBC.

And Meghan McCain, daughter of 2008 Republican Presidential candidate John McCain, is also often on MSNBC.

The Riches Of Embarrassment In The Republican Presidential Field: Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry!

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The Republican Party is in the midst of major riches of embarrassment about its Presidential field.

Herman Cain, already having displayed how inadequate a candidate he is in so many ways, adds to the riches of embarrassment when he cannot answer a simple question about Libya when asked, and seems totally confused and out of touch with reality. He is best at repeating his ill fated plan—9-9-9–when asked to explain himself on some issue. He also said he was for collective bargaining for workers one day, and then the next day says he considers collective bargaining to be collective hijacking! He also has the stupidity to ask Henry Kissinger to be his Secretary of State in his administration, as if Cain is about to become President tomorrow! And, of course, Cain forgets or does not know that Kissinger, as great as he might be considered to be by many diplomats, has been out of government for 34 years, and is going on 89 next year, and would be 90 years old in 2013, and therefore, a bit ridiculous to imagine him as a cabinet member at such an advanced age! Cain lives in his own reality, and he has demonstrated total incompetence to be President.

But then Michele Bachmann says the most inane things, and now has suggested that we should be socialist as China is, just the opposite of what she has always professed, and demonstrating no idea of what socialism is in the first place! Whatever she says makes one’s eyes roll, and she and Cain both endorsed waterboarding as not torture, despite so much testimony by people in the military who know it is torture, and produces no verifiable evidence helpful to national security.

And then Rick Perry, who cannot remember what agencies he wants to close, and now advocates a radical concept to “uproot, tear down, and rebuild” Washington, DC, when he cannot even run the state government of Texas adequately and competently, and has been a true disaster in debates and in his other public appearances!

These three candidate have no shame, no embarrassment gene, and seem to be running for the sake of their own warped egos, believing somehow that they are qualified to be sitting in the Oval Office!

They cannot leave the Presidential race soon enough, as they are making our past Presidents alive and dead look better all of the time, even those who were far from adequate in the office!

If this is the best we can do, America is doomed!

Right Wing Religious Zealots Connect Pedophilia To Homosexuality: Totally False And Unjustified Bigotry!

Ronald 1 Comment

For anyone who believes in the basic human rights of gay men and lesbians, it was predictable that right wing religious zealots would launch an attack on homosexual rights after the arrest of Jerry Sandusky in the Penn State scandal involving his inappropriate sexual contact with young boys.

The fact is that there is absolutely no connection between pedophilia and homosexuality, as the vast majority of pedophilia cases involve adult men with young girls, followed by adult women with young boys.

Pedophilia is a crime, and involves the reality of young people being victimized by adults.

Homosexuality is not a crime, and involves consenting adults male or female, who have a natural inclination toward people of the same sex.

No adult male who is normal wishes to engage in sexual conduct with a child, who is being forced into activity that is non consensual, and even if a child believes he or she is interested in such conduct, legally he or she is not able to consent because of age restrictions in state laws.

It is a tragedy that pedophilia is being seen as an excuse to attack the gay community, which has no desire to promote such sick behavior, and if any individual is involved in such activity, they should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law.

It is also sad that gay parenting, gay foster care, and gay adoption is being targeted, when there is absolutely no evidence of inappropriate behavior by gay parents, and yet there is much evidence of heterosexual fathers who abuse their own daughters!

This kind of discrimination and bigotry must be exposed for what it is!

Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, And History: Fact Vs Fiction! Addendum Correction And Apology!

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Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck are well known political commentators, and both have millions of fans and followers of their television and radio programs.

Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck have the right to say whatever they wish on their programs, and they have the right to write and publish whatever books they wish to produce!

Bill O’Reilly and Glenn Beck, however, are not historians who work at producing accurate, valid historical works, and one has to realize that they are more outstanding in producing historical fiction than fact, when they make references to the past via speech or by publication.

So the fact that O’Reilly has published a book on the Lincoln assassination, which the Fords Theatre bookstore in Washington, DC will not sell because of alleged incorrect or unsubstantiated information without documentation, and this decision is backed up by expert historians on the Civil War period, has become the center of controversy.

O’Reilly is, of course, furious, and he has a right to be, as any author can feel, but the historical profession needs to legitimize what is called “history”, and to challenge publications that claim to be “history”, but are in fact historical fiction!

Certainly, there is much interpretation that goes on in the historical community of scholars, but there is a responsibility when there appears to be a lack of accuracy and validity on a book and topic that many will read and believe is totally true, when experts make it clear it is NOT accurate, or backed up by appropriate documentation!

So it means a serious student of history should have a doubting view of anything that Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck (author of a supposed authoritative view of George Washington), or any other political propagandist chooses to publish!

Anyone can write and publish what he or she wishes, but we have the right to make a judgment on its validity and to state so, whether that author likes it or not!

ADDENDUM: It has now been reported that there were only four minor errors in O’Reilly’s book, and they have been corrected, and Fords Theatre has NOT removed his book from their store as reported incorrectly in the media. O’Reilly is owed an apology, and I will also apologize. However, any reader should always be alert to any book published, whether by O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, or anyone else, as to whether it is accurate in its factual basis and documentation!

The Myth About Foreign Aid: Rick Santorum, Of All People, Exposes It!

Ronald 2 Comments

During the Republican debate on foreign policy Saturday night in South Carolina, Rick Perry said that foreign aid should be zero budgeted, and nations be evaluated as to whether they should gain foreign aid from the United States.

Newt Gingrich seconded what Perry said, and both talked very toughly. And then Rick Perry was caught in a bind when asked if Israel was part of that strict attitude, with him saying that they were a special case.

Then, of all people, Rick Santorum actually said something intelligent for once, that foreign aid was based on American interests, and that to cut off aid would undermine American foreign policy, using the example of Pakistan specifically as his view that we as a nation need to be engaged with that country, and that Pakistan needed to be a friend, to help counterbalance radical Muslims who have influence in that country.

Santorum was absolutely right, and he pointed out today on MSNBC that foreign aid is only about one half of one percent of our national budget, and that we do not give foreign aid to be nice, but rather for our strategic interests, and that it would hurt us if we abandoned foreign aid, much of which is spent in the United States for military hardware by other nations.

So the great myth about foreign aid was again exposed, but this time by a candidate who generally comes across as not very reputable in anything he believes or says–Rick Santorum.

The average American thinks foreign aid is 10-20 percent of our budget, another indication of how ignorant and lacking in knowledge and insights our citizenry is, and how easily manipulated they can be by candidates such as Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich, who should be ashamed of themselves!