Soviet Union

Proper Move For Obama, Mrs. Obama, And Biden To Boycott Sochi Winter Olympics!

Ronald 1 Comment

It is the proper moral and strategic move for President Obama, Michelle Obama, and Vice President Joe Biden to boycott personal attendance at the Sochi, Russia Winter Olympics in February.

The move of the Russian authorities to deny basic rights to their gay population is an outrage which endangers gays individually and in families, and it is the new civil rights movement, and the United Stares rightfully must do everything required to take the proper stand on this violation of human rights.

The abuse of gays and lesbians goes on in many nations, but America must not sit on the sidelines, as it did for a long time on the issue of race, and as it did on the issue of anti semitism, which led to the Holocaust of World War II.

Just as we must speak up on the rights of women, labor, the elderly, children, and the poor, we must not allow any government or religion to think they can win the day as we ignore their violations of basic human rights.

If we only had the ability to decide not to compete in the Olympics as a protest, but Obama has decided that it would penalize athletes, both straight and gay, if we did what Jimmy Carter did regarding the Moscow Olympics in 1980, which was boycotted by the US over the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan.

So instead, the official delegation to the Sochi Olympics will include well known gay athletes as the response to the abuses of human rights by Vladamir Putin. And if it worsens the relationship between Russia and the United States, so be it, as Russia is backing the mass slaughter in Syria, another outrage that we must oppose vehemently and with vigor!

Let us hope that gay athletes win a lot of the medals at the Sochi Winter Olympics, as that would be the ultimate triumph!

The Barack Obama–Raul Castro Handshake: Much Ado Over Nothing!

Ronald 3 Comments

While at the Nelson Mandela commemoration in South Africa, Barack Obama had an opportunity to meet dozens of world leaders, some of them from democracies, and some from dictatorships.

Unfortunately, dictatorships are much more common historically and in contemporary times, than are democracies.

Richard Nixon went to China and met Mao Tse Tung.

Dwight D. Eisenhower met Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev at Camp David, and John F. Kennedy met Khrushchev in Vienna.

Ronald Reagan met Afghan freedom fighters, who later became involved in promoting terrorism, including September 11.

John McCain met Moammar Gaddafi of Libya, and shook his hand.

Donald Rumsfeld met Saddam Hussein of Iraq as a emissary from Ronald Reagan.

Also, many Presidents have bowed to royal leaders, including George W. Bush with the King of Saudi Arabia, and many Presidents with the Emperor of Japan and the Queen of England.

Never was such a big deal made of these handshakes or discussions, and even summits, until suddenly, Barack Obama became President!

When he met Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, it was the worst crime of the century to the right wing whackos!

Now, Obama shook the hand of Raul Castro, who has made it clear that he is leaving power in 2018, when he will be 87, and his brother Fidel Castro, will be 92, if either is still alive.

There will be a successor government in Cuba within a few years, and there is always the chance that Cuba could undergo change and reform, and in fact, already has developed capitalism and private property, as China, for instance, has done.

Has our government, under Democrats and Republicans, liberals and conservatives, refused to deal with “evil” governments? NO in the modern era, and we are talking with Iran and North Korea at times, so why not Cuba?

After 55 years, has the embargo on Cuba changed anything in that island nation? NO, as it unites the government with its population, who are the true victims of the American blockade!

Do we blockade trade and contact with other nations of much greater importance? The answer is NO, but apparently, we must cater to three million Cuban Americans, and their leadership in the Republican Party, when it benefits no one, and is a failed policy!

It is time for rapprochement with Cuba, so that we can have an effect on its future. This is the time to start such development of relations, and forget the lobbying of right wing groups and Marco Rubio, who have no interest in planning for the future without a Castro in power!

Ronald Reagan, Nelson Mandela, And South Africa

Ronald 2 Comments

The push is on to promote an image of Ronald Reagan on South Africa that is false, that he was a supporter of freedom in South Africa, but could not do so because of the Cold War with the Soviet Union,

While it is true that Reagan worried about the African National Congress being linked to Communism in the 1970s and 1980s, the fact is that the US Congress, including a large number of Republicans, overcame a presidential veto of legislation to put sanctions on South Africa in 1986,

Who was on Reagan’s side? People like North Carolina Republican Senator Jesse Helms, one of the most outrageous racists ever to walk the halls of Congress, and ironically, hailed earlier this year by Texas Senator Ted Cruz as someone he admired, and wished there could be 100 Jesse Helmses in the US Senate today!

Also, one must recall that Reagan did not promote “human rights” in countries that Jimmy Carter had condemned, and withheld foreign aid from during his Presidency, nations such as the Philippines and Haiti, and only after “peoples” revolutions in those nations in the same year as the override of the presidential veto on South African sanctions, 1986, did Reagan suddenly become an advocate of human rights.

And one must remember that Reagan worked to undermine the civil rights laws in the 1980s, including opposition to affirmative action, and had never been an open advocate of those laws when they were passed.

So while no one is calling Ronald Reagan a racist, least of all the author, his lack of sensitivity on the outrage of apartheid in South Africa, still stand out as reprehensible!

And the greatest example of how the Reagan view has been repudiated is the fact that three former Presidents–Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush—and President Barack Obama, are all going to the funeral of Nelson Mandela next week, a tribute to the greatness of this man considered by many 30 years ago as a “terrorist”, including former Vice President Dick Cheney, who himself could be considered a war criminal by many for the waging of the war in Iraq on false pretenses.

Dick Cheney is no model to follow, any more than Jesse Helms!

If this is said to be representative of the conservative movement in America, then they have made their own downfall as a serious alternative to what matters most, human rights and dignity!

Statesmanship Requires Gambles To Avoid War: Obama In Company With Six Presidents!

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Barack Obama is not the first President to gamble to avoid the danger of war.

He is being criticized for the six month agreement with Iran, a nation which has been hostile to the United States for 34 years.

But Harry Truman worked to overcome hate and hostility from nations we fought in World War II–Germany and Japan.

Dwight D. Eisenhower promoted a “thaw” in the Cold War by inviting Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev to the United States in 1959.

John F. Kennedy promoted an alternative to war in the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962, and signed the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty with the Soviet Union in 1963,

Richard Nixon went to China to overcome a generation of mistrust and lack of communication in 1972.

Jimmy Carter arranged for Egypt and Israel to negotiate diplomatic recognition to overcome decades of mistrust and war in 1979.

Ronald Reagan negotiated missile agreements with Soviet Premier Mikhail Gorbachev in the late 1980s, helping to end the Cold War.

Statesmanship requires gambles to avoid war and overcome mistrust.

Barack Obama is on the same road as were Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy, Nixon, Carter and Reagan.

This is good company to be in!

Should Barack Obama Agree To UN Meeting With Iranian President Hassan Rouhani? YES!

Ronald 1 Comment

Iran’s new President, Hassan Rouhani, will be attending the fall session of the United Nations, along with other world leaders, a tradition at the end of each September.

Iran has been on a course to develop nuclear weapons, by every measure we have been able to gather through intelligence information.

But sanctions by the international community have had an effect on Iran’s economy, and the decision of the population to vote in a President who is looking for reconciliation with the West, makes one hopeful that Iran could reject nuclear weapons development, and just wish to develop nuclear power for peaceful uses.

Both the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the new President Rouhani have, in recent days, stated that they will never develop nuclear weapons, and want to end the state of tension between Iran and the US and other western nations.

The fact that they have said this does not mean we should, automatically, drop our guard on their possible threat to Israel, other Middle Eastern nations, and the entire world.

But with the new, conciliatory language, it seems worthwhile for President Obama, who will be attending the UN session later this week, to agree to meet with Rouhani, and start exploration of the possibility of negotiations and diplomacy, rather than continue a possible buildup toward military engagement.

Israel’s leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, warns against trusting Rouhani and the Iranian government, and certainly, Obama and other Western leaders need to pursue engagement with Iran in a cautious manner.

But it is worth a try to see if Rouhani and Khamenei mean to have a serious discussion, as after all, the US always held summit meetings with Soviet leaders, so what is the danger in discussion, while keeping the possibility of the use of force in the background, if it is shown that Iran’s government is lying and is untrustworthy?

Any possibility of avoiding military force and war is worth a try, so hopefully, Obama will meet with Rouhani and explore the idea, without any pledge to drop possible military action in the future, if that, regretfully, becomes necessary!

Vladimir Putin, The New York Times, And Lecturing America

Ronald 6 Comments

It is literally shocking that the NY Times chose to publish a self serving, propagandistic statement by Russian President Vladimir Putin, in which Putin lectures the United States, and questions the “exceptionalism” that America is known for, and even discusses God in a society infamous for atheism during the Soviet Period, when Putin was a member of the Russian Secret Police of that era, the KGB!

Yes, the United States has many problems and faults, but still we are an “exceptional” nation that is a model for the world!

Meanwhile, the Russian Federation has arranged for the disappearance and death of dissidents, even in other countries; invaded the nation of Georgia; massacred hundreds of thousands of people in Chechnya; denies basic freedoms to its own citizens, including freedom of speech and press; and is now on a campaign to persecute and intimidate gays who live in Russia, as well as causing an Olympics crisis with its anti gay laws, which are likely to lead to arrest of foreigners in Russia during the upcoming Winter Olympics!

Putin is, clearly, a dictator and a totalitarian, and the NY Times should be ashamed of itself for allowing him a venue through their newspaper to lecture the US and its government and people!

Instead, what Putin needs to do is look in the mirror, and work on promoting human freedom and opportunity in Russia, on the model of the United States, which has plenty of work left to do, but has a lot to show that is good, to the rest of the world!

Barack Obama: Elements Of Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Dwight D. Eisenhower, And John F. Kennedy In Him!

Ronald 21 Comments

Barack Obama has, after some false starts and hesitation, accomplished something no one would ever have imagined: convincing Russian President Vladamir Putin that he had better do something with his ally, Syria, on the subject of chemical warfare, or face an American military strike against Damascus! There is a long road to travel, but the outlook for a peaceful resolution of the matter seems very promising and likely.

And in so doing, Barack Obama has demonstrated elements of two former Republican Presidents, and two former Democratic Presidents, all of whom are ranked in the top ten of all of our 43 Presidents of the United States!

Chronologically, Obama has demonstrated:

That he is like Theodore Roosevelt in his promotion of “speak softly, but carry a big stick”, promoting diplomacy but willing, if need be, to use force.

That he is like Woodrow Wilson in his ethics and moral cause to enforce the international ban against chemical weapons, as Wilson wished to secure the ideal of a world without war and promotion of international diplomacy.

That he is like Dwight D. Eisenhower in wishing to have Congressional backing and approval on important issues of foreign policy, a master stroke by Obama, putting the onus on Congress to do what needs to be done, but reserving the right to take action as Commander in Chief if need be, even if Congress refuses support.

That he is like John F. Kennedy, staring down the Soviet Union in the Cuban Missile Crisis, as Obama is staring down Russia in the Syrian chemical warfare crisis.

So Obama has some of the characteristics and principles of four outstanding Presidents!

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!

60th Anniversary Of Korean War Truce Ending “Forgotten War”!

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On luly 27, 1953, after three years and one month of a undeclared war, the Korean conflict, which killed 33,000 American soldiers, ended in a truce, and the establishment of a demilitarized zone, and an uneasy relationship between the Republic of South Korea and Communist North Korea, a tense atmosphere which has continued, and has come close to the beginning of a new conflict.

35,000 American troops remain in what has become the prosperous, democratic South Korea, expecting a major war at any time, and the United Nations, which led the war under American supervision and that of about 18 other nations, continues to have a role in the on-off negotiations to bring about a much hoped for, but unlikely, permanent peace treaty between the two Koreas.

Meanwhile, Communist North Korea remains the most closed society in the world, with the population being brutalized by three generations of a family that has brought the nation down to dire poverty and total fear, a true totalitarian society on the level of Soviet dictator Joseph Stalin.

Korea remains a war that most Americans do not have a clue about, and most could not find Korea on a map, due to ignorance of our history after World War II, and the much greater controversies that swirled around the later Vietnam War.

Korea remains even today the most likely place for another major American commitment of troops, if South Korea is ever attacked by North Korea, whether conventional war or nuclear attack, since North Korea has been testing nuclear weapons and defying the world community, under the leadership of grandson Kim Jong Un, successor to Kim Il Sung, and Kim Jong Il!

The Korean War Memorial in Washington DC is a reminder of the sacrifices of our troops and the other nations which fought for the South Korean survival, and South Korea recovered from massive loss of life and property, and is a proud example of democracy today!

Only four American veterans of the Korean War serve in Congress, and none from World War II, as we see Congress today with pompous members who talk about war, and yet, in most cases, have never experienced military service. It is easy to send others to war, while one sits and pontificates and is ready to send others to fight!

Let us hope that no more blood is shed in the Korean peninsula, and that rationality and common sense rules!

60th Anniversary Of Castro Revolution In Cuba: What Is The Future?

Ronald 4 Comments

60 years ago on this day, Fidel Castro led a failed attempt to seize an army barracks, which is marked as the beginning of his revolutionary uprising against Fulgencio Batista, leading after five and a half years of struggle to his seizure of power in Havana on January 1, 1959.

Fidel Castro gave up power due to medical problems in 2006, after 47 plus years of leadership, but his brother Raul succeeded him, and the Castro dynasty is still in power in Cuba after 54 and a half years, and Fidel Castro will be 87 years of age nest month, and is reported in good health.

Fidel Castro, as evil a man as he is, will go down as the most significant Latin American government leader of the past century of history, with only Juan Peron of Argentina a weak second behind him.

The effect of Cuba on the international scene has been massive, considering the fact that Cuba never made a dent in world affairs before Castro, and we nearly had nuclear war between the US and the Soviet Union 51 years ago, a year and a half after a failed American attempt to use Cuban exiles to overthrow him in the Bay of Pigs fiasco!

And our domestic politics has been profoundly affected by the loyalty of the few million Cuban Americans to the Republican Party, making them a distinct Hispanic group in their political behavior, particularly in Florida!

We have also seen three Cuban US Senators–Robert Menendez of New Jersey, Marco Rubio of Florida, and Ted Cruz of Texas–who have a great impact in the US Senate, as well as a few in the House of Representatives. Menendez is the lone Cuban Democrat who has made it to a prominent position, Chairman of The Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

The question is what will happen when Fidel and Raul Castro leave the scene, at least officially in 2018, according to the plans of Raul Castro to retire. How will Cuba evolve, and how will the United States react to change in Cuba? Will democracy develop in Cuba or come about by a new revolution, or will the Castro influence and Communism persist in Cuba?

This island, just 90 miles from the Florida Keys, will become the center of world politics again very soon, and what happens there will affect America domestically and in foreign affairs for the long term future, just as it has for the past six decades!

The Castro brothers have managed to survive in power through the terms of 11 Presidents from Dwight D. Eisenhower to Barack Obama! It is an amazing story just by that reality!