Middle East

Barack Obama’s Speech To The Nation On Syria Next Tuesday Requires Signs Of “Cajones”!

Ronald 2 Comments

President Barack Obama faces a major crisis and moment next Tuesday, September 10, as he speaks to the nation regarding the Syria Chemical Warfare controversy, at a time when many of his liberal and progressive allies, who should know better, have abandoned him and joined the far Right in calling for no action on this war crime by the Assad regime in Damascus!

It seems clear that not only many Democrats, but also MSNBC, public opinion polls, and town halls are making clear that they wish no action on Syria, because of fear of another Middle East war, with memories of Iraq still fresh as a wound.

But Presidents are not required to follow public opinion, particularly when so often, it is ill informed or just plain wrong!

We do not govern by emotion or mass public opinion, thank goodness, as if we had, we would never have made it through so many crises in our history!

The President has to have guts and courage and principle, and take action, and the reaction of the people be considered, but not be decisive, as, after all, he has more knowledge, gathered intelligence, and understanding of events around the world than anyone else, other than his close advisers!

Our great Presidents did what they had to do, no matter what was popular opinion, and they were pilloried for it, but in the long run of history, they have turned out quite well, to say the least!

These courageous Presidents include Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Harry Truman, who are listed in the 2009 C Span poll of Presidents, judged by historians and political scientists, as Numbers 1, 3 and 5 among our 43 Presidents!

So Obama needs to take action, no matter what Congress, the news media, and ill informed and overly emotional public opinion feel, and worry about the consequences later!

He needs to make an appeal to reason and reality, but whatever happens, he will be criticized, and better to be on the side of what is ethical and moral!

Yes, he might face impeachment for taking action against public opinion, but really, that will simply be an excuse, since radical Right elements of the loony party called the Republicans, are looking for an excuse to do so, but it is all an exercise in futility, as it was for Bill Clinton in 1998-1999, when everyone knew impeachment would not succeed, and that the GOP would suffer for it, as totally unjustified.

No way will Obama ever be removed by impeachment charges and trial, so go for it, enemies and haters, and Obama will stand strong in any case!

So Barack Obama needs to show “cajones”, and prove he can be a President who will do what is right, and take whatever punishment is needed, as in history, he will be looked upon kindly if he does, and poorly if he caves in on this most important moment of his Presidency!

Barack Obama Must Be A Combination Of Woodrow Wilson, FDR, JFK, George H. W. Bush, And Bill Clinton On Syria!

Ronald 3 Comments

Barack Obama now faces what might be the greatest foreign policy challenge of his Presidency, with the chemical warfare attack by Bashar Al Assad of Syria on his own people.

There are many, including those on the left, who tell him to do nothing, stay out of the Middle East, do not get involved in any reaction to this inhumane method of warfare.

But that would be far worse than intervention, and we cannot allow isolationism, or the lunatic libertarianism of Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky , to control America’s destiny in world affairs.

We as a nation have to be smart, have to be principled, have to be as John Kerry, our brilliant Secretary of State, and could have been President, has demonstrated in his case for intervention!

Barack Obama needs to be a combination of five Presidents in foreign policy:

Woodrow Wilson, in regards to the role of morality and ethics in foreign policy, a crusade for what is right and good, part of the essential nature of the American nation, to want to do what is right.

Franklin D. Roosevelt, in regards to his clear understanding that isolationism was a threat to American security and safety once World War II began, and took the attacks of the isolationists and deflected it excellently.

John F. Kennedy, who showed tremendous courage and principle in the most dangerous moment in world history, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and succeeded in gaining the withdrawal of Soviet missiles.

George H. W. Bush, who demonstrated determination and steadfastness when Iraq invaded Kuwait, making it clear he would not accept anything other than total withdrawal, and had success in that intervention within six weeks in the Persian Gulf War.

Bill Clinton, who despite international opposition, decided to bomb Serbia to force the end of the massacre and war in Kosovo, and succeeded brilliantly.

So Obama must be a combination of Wilson, FDR, JFK, the first Bush, and Bill Clinton, and in so becoming, he is in VERY good company, of Presidents we truly admire for their courage and principles!

Being “chicken”, unwilling to accept the responsibility of reacting to aggression, is NOT a way to greatness, but a retreat from it!

White House Solar Panels As A Symbol–Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, And Barack Obama

Ronald 2 Comments

During the administration of President Jimmy Carter, a much maligned President, unappreciated then and now, we had the oil embargo brought on by the Arabs in the Middle East, and Carter decided to promote the concept of solar panels as a better form of long term energy supply than oil, natural gas and coal, seeing the need for a change in US energy policy. This included the establishment of the Energy Department as a new cabinet position.

So Carter arranged in 1979 for installation of solar panels on the White House, a great symbol of our need to change our energy policies.

But seven years later, after much ridicule by the administration of his successor, Ronald Reagan, the solar panels were taken off the White House, as Reagan made clear that he was going to be captive to the oil and coal industries, and concern himself only with their profits, and ignore conservation and the environment, thus helping to accelerate the global warming and climate change crisis, which even now, the Republican Party refuses to accept as reality!

But now, 27 years later, President Barack Obama has reinstalled solar panels, repudiating Reagan and backing Carter in his vision of the energy and environmental future of solar power.

This is to be commended, although the powerful oil, natural gas, and coal industries will continue their lobbying, as their only goal is profit, not concern over the future of the planet.

So the battle over future energy supplies and climate change continues unabated, as the GOP proves yet again, their lack of concern for the long term future, only concerned about capitalistic profit in the present! It is as if they have their heads in the sand, and live in a world of illusion!

Religious Right Wing Christians Join Russia, Uganda, Saudi Arabia And Other Nations In Advocating Persecution Of Gays And Lesbians!

Ronald 2 Comments

As Gay Rights advance in 13 states and nationally in America, and also in much of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and parts of Latin America, we also witness the horrible persecution going on in Uganda and other African nations; Saudi Arabia and other Middle East nations; in much of Asia; and sadly, in Russia, which will be hosting the Winter Olympics in February 2014, threatening athletes, journalists, coaches, visitors, as well as victimizing Russian citizens on the basis of their sexual orientation.

This reality brings back memories of gays and lesbians being the second largest group of victims in the Holocaust during World War II, with only Jews surpassing the number of victims of the Nazis under Adolf Hitler.

As terrible as this persecution and discrimination is, the fact that the right wing Christian conservatives in the United States are very willing to endorse this persecution, and claiming to follow the teachings of their Jewish icon, Jesus Christ, is infuriating, and makes one wonder how anyone who studies the teachings of Jesus could possibly be for persecution, and even worse for gays and lesbians in America and world wide. Their ability to promote such hate and to use poisonous invective against gays and lesbians is mind boggling.

What hypocrisy, what immorality, what lack of ethics, what sick minds would advocate violence and mistreatment of people based on their sexuality!

Vladimir Putin’s War On Gays A Threat That Requires Olympic Boycott On Basis Of Human Rights Violations!

Ronald 7 Comments

The Russian government under former KGB head Vladimir Putin has taken a step which, regrettably, requires an Olympic boycott by the United States and other Western nations on the basis of human rights violations that are unconscionable!

Putin has declared war on gays and lesbians in the following ways:

Russian born children cannot be adopted by gay couples or by any couple or single person living in any country that promotes gay rights, including gay marriage.

Russian police can arrest any tourist or foreign national they suspect of being gay, lesbian, or having pro gay sympathies, and detain them for 14 days for questioning.

Any Olympic athlete, trainer, family member, reporter or fan who is gay, suspected of being gay, or accused of being gay, can be sent to jail.

Any teacher, parent or anyone who makes pro gay statements, or argues that being gay is normal behavior, and any lawmaker, lawyer, or judge who has an open mind on the subject of homosexuality, is subject to arrest and fines.

Any couple accused or suspected of being gay could have their children taken from them by the state, whether adoptive or biological parents, as unfit to be parents.

This set of laws and restrictions are a gross violation of human rights, and totally unacceptable, no matter what a person’s viewpoint on homosexuality, as gays and lesbians are human beings who are entitled to the same treatment under the law as straight people are!

This situation reminds one of the campaign against gays and lesbians by Nazi Germany during the Holocaust, and the mass murder of this group on a level only second to Jews!

Just as Western Europe and Canada and even the United States and portions of Latin America are moving ahead on gay rights and gay marriage, we see Russia moving in the direction of much of Africa and Asia and the Middle East in demonizing gays!

And joining with them in this regard, sadly, are the Catholic Church and many evangelical Christians and Mormons, who are not teaching the vision and tolerance of Jesus Christ, and are now “bedfellows” of oppressive governments, including Russia!

The United States and Western European countries should make it clear that unless these anti gay laws and restrictions are repealed, that they will boycott the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia!

This would be a sad event for the athletes of these nations, but this is a question of basic human rights that cannot be overlooked by any decent government or any tolerant, open minded people! And remember that Olympic participants could become victims under these Russian laws, as well! So there is no choice but to boycott if nothing is done to repeal these laws!

Democracies Which Emerged Out Of Dictatorships And Became Success Stories

Ronald 1 Comment

As we see the breakdown of law and order in Egypt, Turkey and elsewhere, all seeking the development of democracy in nations that have not been paragons of promoting justice and equality, we must not forget that there have been cases of nations that have become successful, stable democracies without massive violence and bloodshed in the past few decades. The partial list below does not include those nations in North America, Western Europe, Japan, Israel, India, Australia, New Zealand, and Costa Rica which have had longer term stable democracies

These would include, as a few major examples the following:

Spain since 1975
Chile since 1989
Poland since 1989
Hungary since 1989
The Czech Republic since 1993
South Africa since 1994
Northern Ireland since 1998
South Korea since the 1990s
Taiwan since the 1990s

If only such could be the same in the Middle East, Africa, much of Asia, and much of Latin America, but we are a long way from that reality!

Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert Becomes More Of A Lunatic Than Congresswoman Michele Bachmann: No Easy Feat!

Ronald 3 Comments

Texas Congressman Louie Gohmert of the First Congressional District of Texas is rapidly gaining notoriety as more of a lunatic, more outrageous, than even Congresswoman Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, who was considered to be the leading wing nut in the Republican Party for the past few years.

But Gohmert is challenging her for certain, as with the following examples:

He has stated that women are coming into the nation illegally to have their babies, then take them out of the nation and breed them, as they are growing up, to be terrorists, and to be able to return to the country in 20-30 years to commit terrorist acts!

Barack Obama is a Muslim, and is encouraging terrorism, and hates Christianity and the American way of life!

If the principal and teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School had only had guns, they could have stopped the massacre of 20 children and six teachers in Connecticut. The same goes for the Aurora, Colorado mass killings in the movie theater, that if patrons had had weapons on them, they could have stopped the mass killer dead in his tracks.

The US government is in cahoots with the Muslim Brotherhood in the Middle East, and is undermining America’s defenses, including Attorney General Eric Holder!

There is no such thing as climate change, and drilling in the Alaska Arctic Wildlife Refuge is a good idea to pursue. And a Trans Atlantic pipeline also encourages caribou to have sex!

Former Congressman Allen West of Florida should have become Speaker of the House for the113th Congress, after his defeat by his constituents.

Having limits on gun magazines is equivalent of gay marriage and bestiality!

Most recently, Gohmert has advocated that a woman must carry full term a pregnancy, in which it is determined that the fetus has no brain function! Gohmert believes the woman has no right to terminate a pregnancy at any point after conception!

Can any sane person NOT see that Gohmert is a total lunatic, and needs to be forced to have a mental examination as to his mental stability?

Gohmert is an embarrassment to his own Republican colleagues, and yet his district keeps electing him, so what does that say about the First Congressional District of Texas?

Barack Obama, The Successful Diplomat In The Middle East!

Ronald 3 Comments

President Barack Obama is finishing a triumphant trip to the Middle East, having visited Israel, the West Bank, and Jordan, and making clear the following:

America will continue to be backing Israel in any threat from any source, including Iran.

The only way to ultimate peace and tranquility is for there to be a Palestinian state alongside Israel, with both accepting the reality of a moderate government that respects the rights of both nations, and gives opportunity to young Palestinians and young Israelis for a future secure and prosperous existence.

Obama was able to convince Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to apologize to Turkey for an unfortunate naval incident in 2010, therefore helping to restore good relations between the two nations, an important development for Middle East stability.

It is clear that a large portion of the Israeli people, particularly the young, admire Obama, based on the reception he received in his most important speech, one of the greatest of the Obama Presidency. The government of Netanyahu is, clearly, more hawkish than the general Israeli population, but Ohama is working on him to promote hopes for a peaceful resolution, ultimately, of the Middle East conflict!

Barack Obama knows that Netanyahu must deal with him, and Obama now has the upper hand, but with the assurance that America will act, if need be, against an Iranian nuclear threat!

America’s Underappreciated Presidents—James K. Polk, Grover Cleveland, William Howard Taft, Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush

Ronald Leave a comment

With Presidents Day celebrated on Monday, this is a good time to reflect on which Presidents are underappreciated for their contributions in the White House.

Five Presidents, four of them having only one term, and three of them soundly defeated for reelection, are often overlooked in an unfair manner.

These five underappreciated Presidents are as follows, chronologically:

James K. Polk (1845-1849), Democrat—-who did not wish a second term in office, died only three months after his term of office, but accomplished more than any President, regarding expansion of the nation, as he negotiated the gaining of the Pacific Northwest with Great Britain, and went to war with Mexico to gain the Southwestern United States. Because of Polk, highly controversial due to his manipulation of conditions setting up war with Mexico, and often criticized as an “imperialist”, we gained more land than any other President, including Thomas Jefferson with his Louisiana Purchase.

Grover Cleveland (1885-1889, 1893-1897), Democrat—-the only two term non consecutive terms President, although winning the popular vote three consecutive times, Cleveland accomplished the passage of the Interstate Commerce Act, promoted civil service reform, and became regarded as a man of strong principles, including refusing to take over Hawaii, after a treaty was negotiated by the previous President, Benjamin Harrison. A rare President on the concept of opposing the addition of territory to the United States, he refused to go to war with Spain over the issue of Cuba in his second term, and opposed the Spanish American War and the Filipino Insurrection intervention under William McKinley, standing out as a leading anti imperialist.

William Howard Taft (1909-1913), Republican—-was unfortunate in coming in between two very charismatic Presidents, Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, both of whom would end up ranked in the top ten of all Presidents, in most polls of experts on the Presidency. Taft also was the worst defeated President running for reelection, competing against both TR and Wilson, and ended up third, rather than second in defeat, and winning only 23 percent of the vote, two states, and eight electoral votes. But he deserved better, and did have the distinction of becoming Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in the 1920s, where he was much happier. But Taft actually signed a highly successful regulation of the railroads, the Mann Elkins Act of 1910; won lawsuits causing the breakup of the monopolies of Standard Oil, United States Steel, and International Harvester; and supported two constitutional amendments, the 16th (Federal Income Tax) Amendment, and the 17th (Direct Election of United States Senators) Amendment.

Jimmy Carter (1977-1981), Democrat—served one divisive term, defeated for reelection by Ronald Reagan, due to the Iran Hostage Crisis, high inflation and unemployment, and the Soviet Union invasion of Afghanistan, and faced primary challenges from Ted Kennedy and Jerry Brown. But he accomplished the Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt; the Panama Canal Treaty; the promotion of the principle of human rights in foreign policy; the advancement of the environment, making him the third best President on that issue; and creation of three cabinet agencies–Health and Human Services, Education, and Energy. And his post Presidency, now the longest in American history, has been a model for Bill Clinton’s post Presidency, and Carter continues to promote human rights and economic and social reform nationally and world wide, and is often considered the best former President of the United States in American history.

George H. W. Bush (1989-1993), Republican—the second worst defeated President in American history, despite having led the coalition which forced Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein out of Kuwait, lessening a threat to the Middle East oil supply and the government of Saudi Arabia, in the Persian Gulf War of 1991; being the President under whom the Cold War came to an end in a stable manner in 1991; managing the unification of Germany between 1989 and 1990 in a skillful manner; and promoting the passage of civil rights law for the disabled population of America, a major reform in American history. Bush was always considered a master in the field of foreign policy, and for years after, had an impact on policy making through his significant staff members, who continued to have an impact.

All five Presidents deserve a better coverage and appreciation, despite the fact that each could be roundly criticized for events that would cause them to be overlooked as outstanding Presidents. Presidents Day is an appropriate time to do so!

Transformative Presidents In Diplomacy And Foreign Affairs

Ronald 3 Comments

With Presidents Day coming up on Monday, this is a good time to assess the Presidents who were transformative in diplomacy and foreign affairs.

The Presidents who truly made a difference in foreign policy would include the following, chronologically:

Thomas Jefferson—who presided over the Louisiana Purchase of 1803 negotiated with France, and the handling of the Chesapeake Affair of 1807, avoiding war with Great Britain, but causing decline in public opinion about Jefferson as he left office, due to the economic decline caused by the Embargo Act.

James Monroe—who, with the brilliant leadership of Secretary of State John Quincy Adams, was able to gain control of Florida in 1819, settle much of the Canadian boundary in the same time frame, and promote the Monroe Doctrine of 1823, a major part of American foreign policy in the future.

James K. Polk—under whom the Pacific Northwest was gained by negotiation with Great Britain, and the American Southwest and California by war with Mexico between 1846 and 1848.

William McKinley—under whom Hawaii was added as a territory, and America gained an “Empire” by engagement in the Spanish American War in 1898.

Theodore Roosevelt—under whom America fully engaged with the outside world, including foreign crises and wars in Europe and Asia, as well as growing intervention in Latin America between 1901-1909.

Woodrow Wilson—under whom America fully entered into international war involvement in the First World War in 1917, and then rejected internationalism as Wilson left office in 1921.

Franklin D. Roosevelt—who took America out of isolationism in the late 1930s, and presided over our involvement in World War II between 1941-1945, and the growth of America as a super power by 1945.

Harry Truman—who led us into the Cold War with the Soviet Union after 1945, with transitional foreign policy leadership that set the mold for the next half century until 1991.

Richard Nixon—who moved America toward detente with the Cold War enemy, the Soviet Union, and opened up to mainland China between 1969 and 1974.

George H. W, Bush—who smoothed the end of the Cold War, was receptive to a unified Germany as a result, and created a coalition to prevent Iraqi domination in the Middle East in the Persian Gulf War of 1991.

Other Presidents who had an impact on diplomacy and foreign affairs in a major, if not transformative manner, would include:

George Washington
Abraham Lincoln
John F. Kennedy
Lyndon B. Johnson
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
George W. Bush

Sadly, Lyndon B, Johnson and George W. Bush were mostly negative forces in foreign affairs; Jimmy Carter and Ronald Reagan were mixed in their results; while George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, and John F. Kennedy were much more positive.