I read an interesting WSJ article yesterday entitled "The Emperor's Nuclear Clothes" which outlined the presence of nuclear arsenals throughout the world, and why states like Iran and North Korea continue to pursue them. The article summarily concluded that elimination of all nuclear weapons is to the benefit of the United States, which is why it will never happen, mainly because the US has the most powerful conventional weapon military that is unmatched by any other country - even China.
The article discussed the importance of regional securities as a solution to nuclear proliferation, and really got me thinking about the United State's role in world military operations. A simple search for US foreign military bases reveals a list of a couple dozen countries hosting hundreds of US bases worldwide. These are bases used in current military operations as well as those threatened for use in future military strikes/campaigns. It is evidence that the security of the world relies too heavily on the United States. The coupling need of regional security and the over-extension of the US military are what I would like to discuss.
The US government treats foreign nations the same way that it treats her own population - the less they know and the less they can do for themselves, the better. We get countries like South Korea to so heavily lean on the United States for security that when attacked by the north, the first response is not defense or mobilization of SK forces, rather a call to the White House for direction and defense. For who needs to defend their home, person, or property when you have police available via the 9-1-1 call centers? Japan's constitution does not allow them to have a standing military - an echo of their previous empire follies. Saudi Arabia, as was revealed by the Wikileaks documents, uses the US military like a maid-to-order security service, trying to influence military campaigns by OUR COUNTRY against their oil rich neighbors. Add to the list every nation in Europe who depended on US influence to stay the Soviets. The list goes on, and the bills are coming due!
What makes a successful United States? One where we use our generations old military industrial complex and our natural drive toward force to pressure smaller and weaker countries into compliance for the sake of security? Or are we better off returning our soldiers home and ending our empire campaigns of the previous hundred plus years?
Follow the money. Stabilization of regions under US control allow increased economic influence and thus industrial growth. US corporations are influencing the growth in these otherwise undeveloped regions, acting as the current day colonialists - often time with the same drastic results the left Africa a war torn continent for so many years. We draw borders and boundaries across a land which we know nothing about, with the sole intent of harvesting a good or service. Minerals, ore, fuel... It is what lies beneath the dirt that garners the interest - the people above are merely tolerated.
If we want to move toward a more peaceful (not necessarily Utopian) future, the United States needs to holster her pistol and come on home. The threat of war makes no easy peace. The cost of perpetual war is too high. It is time to enter the US into an era of post-colonialism, lest we continue to fail from within.
I have posed the question time and again over the years: What is a terrorist? Time and again I have come to the same conclusion. A terrorist is anyone who gets in the way of the United States or her allies. You don't have to be making bombs in a shack behind your house. No, as the 2009 leaked memo about right-wing terrorists who can be classified as anyone participating in a Tea Party event of that year poignantly revealed, all you need to do is challenge the US government. And as the recent Wiki-Leaks debacle reaffirms, embarrassing the sleeping dragon is worse than a surprise attack on her harbors.
The paper also cited documents showing the U.S. used hard line tactics to win approval from countries to accept freed detainees from Guantanamo Bay. It said Slovenia was told to take a prisoner if its president wanted to meet with President Barack Obama and said the Pacific island of Kiribati was offered millions of dollars to take in a group of detainees.
Italy's Foreign Minister Franco Frattini on Sunday called the release the "Sept. 11 of world diplomacy," in that everything that had once been accepted as normal has now changed.
WikiLeaks should be designated a 'foreign terrorist organization,' Rep. Pete King demanded, citing treason and espionage. Again, we see common criminal acts being presented to the population in a double speak of fear and manipulation, as if the people of the United States (and the world) are too stupid to deduce results for themselves. So we are encouraged to look at any crime as an 'act of terror', and therefore the US should immediately, without prejudice or process, dispatch the 'terrorists'... "and the people will love you for it." (Instructions to the Gladiator on how to kill for entertainment)
Forget the illness, treat the symptom.
Instead of going after the Wiki-leaks organization, we need to ask ourselves "How did we get into this mess in the first place?" Saudi Kings begging us to attack Iran. Covert air strikes in Yemen. Disputes with Pakistan, Russia, and China. Other than confirming news stories that we all already knew about, and hearing first person details and opinion, the leaks are symptoms of the greater sickness with which the United States is currently plagued.
George Washington warned in his farewell address to beware our entanglement in foreign alliances and affairs. He warned that there is no cause so great as to suggest US free men should lay boots on the ground of foreign land, and suggested that any requirement to do so should also require an expeditious return to the free soils of the US. However, the US ignores the Father of this nation, and the warnings he has given. We are grossly entangled in all the world affairs, and it is the fuel that drives anger toward us from both without and within.
John Kennedy warned of secrets within the government, and the dangers they posed for the people. Dwight Eisenhower warned of the US war machine and the military industrial complex. Benjamin Franklin declared that those who surrender liberty for security deserve neither. And yet here we are. 2010 is rapidly coming to a close. Our secrets revealed, our flesh exposed. The true nature of the United States and our foreign entanglements are there for every free thinking man and woman to read, and to form their own conclusion. The symptom is the web of lies, the eternal wars, the worldwide empire. The illness is most assuredly Alzheimer's, for we fail to recognize or acknowledge the wisdom of our forefathers. History is a more distant than a vague memory; it is lost altogether. We are on a crusade of world leadership, a responsibility of world policing, on a mission against terror. However, we lead with force and not by example; we police to our government's interest and not in accordance with just laws; the only terror is the threat of tyranny against our own people and that of people around the world.
Whatever your view of the wiki-leak events, do not be fooled by the symptoms. Look deeper into our ailment. What is the cause of such great secrecy. What do we have to hide? Then, and only then can we start to accurately diagnose our true sickness.
In an apparent show of aggression, the Northern State unleashed her most readily available weapon on the il-prepared Evergreen State - Cold Weather. A winter storm moved into the state on Monday, fueled by a winter depression from Alaska that must have developed sometime around November 17th, when Murkowski was announced as the leader at the original vote count deadline. After a few days of southern migration, the wild storm gave Washington a shellacking unseen since November 2nd's Democratic Party beat-down.
Power was out to 75% of our county, and thousands of cars have been donated to the counties apparent new Modern Art exhibit entitled "Crumpled Highway Cars". Thank you lousy California drivers with bald tires on your 2wd cars and trucks!
We never lost power at our home, and are hosting families from the neighborhood for soup and warm showers until power can be restored. The high temp today is supposed to be 25 with more snow and ice expected.
As a survivalist, I was fully prepared (well, a little lite on the water). I love these little training exercises for upcoming disasters. Let's me know where the leaks are in the ship. On top of my Christmas list is an army style tent for ten people and a portable wood stove. Who needs a generator when you can set up camp in the back yard and party like it's 1899!
Big Sister is watching, and groping, and posting it all on the Internet! Homeland Security Chief, Janet Napoletano, told freedom loving citizens of the nation to piss off and "Deal with it, or find another way to travel". As the new naked body scanners and enhanced groping techniques are being brought online there is much consternation from those with their Pocket Constitutions. It seems like this is the straw that broke the camel's back.
There are about 400 full body scanners throughout airports across the nation currently in use. Some are the full nude scanners, or the x-rays; the other batch are the 'fuzzy cock' scanners, or the millimeter scanners. If you would prefer to NOT be erotically photographed, you can simply opt to be molested by the TSA's new enhanced pat down techniques. The new technique includes the following process:
"We're going to be doing a groin check. That means I'm going to place my hand on your hip, my other hand on your inner thigh, slowly go up, and slide down. We are going to do that two times in the front and two times in the back. And if you'd like a private screening, we can make that available for you also."
Does that come with a cigarette and a happy ending?
Not only that, but if you wear sweats or clothes that the TSA agent deems "baggy", they ARE PUTTING THEIR HANDS DOWN YOUR PANTS. That is right. Reports are coming in from across the nation that hand to skin contact under the clothes is now taking place.
And Janet says "Deal with it". Others are saying "just don't fly, then".
Alas, there is a vocal group that is making headlines. Starting with the "Don't touch my junk" guy, as well as some very powerful activist and Civil rights groups. Their arguments, other than the violation of 4th Amendment rights, are based on health and effectiveness questions. Maybe the ACLU friendly 9th Circuit can shut these machines down? Who knows... You can't trust any branch of the government to check or balance the other... It is truly US versus THEM!
On the topic of Effectiveness... Do the following images look like an effective use of risk mitigation?
The Muslim TSA agent makes sure the good Sister left her bombs at home.
Small children are precisely the target group we should be focusing on for enhanced full body groping. This procedure has been endorsed by NAMBLA.
This ol' timin' terrorist won't get past these top notch TSA agents. Good thing grandpa fought so hard in WWII to ensure fascism and tyranny never make it to America!
Security Theatre is defined as the perception of security with no real aversion to actual threats. This charade serves no security purpose, and only further numbs the population to unconstitutional intrusion to the secure self.
---------- In regards to my comment regarding the two types of scanners:
The x-ray scanner is the most controversial, allowing true nude images of passengers using simple negative image processing. This is the true blue tits and ass pictures of you, grandma, your wife, and your daughter... and guess what - they are easily stored and made available for Internet users.
The millimeter scanners, or the fuzzy cock, as I like to call them, still show the nude body, just in a lower resolution. Gizmodo posted a series of 100 pictures of the lower resolution images, though there is a sure certainty that the x-ray images have been stored somewhere as well (the mm images were stored by a local department and made available via the freedom of information act directly to the public).
The following picture is one of the hundred released, with the "weapon" of the passenger clearly visible... Sir, is that a pistol in your pocket or are you just happy to see TSA? (The white "figure" in the upper right hand corner of the blue box is the man's penis.)
What right does the TSA, an extension of the Executive Branch, have to virtually strip search me simply as a condition of free interstate and international travel? This is the exact case that the 4th amendment was protecting us against.
To be secure in our person is NOT a right that is waived by travelling, nor by standing in line at a bank. I do not waive my rights, and nor do you, as a condition to freely move about this country. Janet and all those "big deal" clowns out there are both grotesquely wrong on the constitutionality of this intrusion, and cowards for not standing up and defending yet another trampled amendment in our Bill of Rights.
-------
Did I mention the use of force to scan and molest children by the TSA officers, or the threat of $11,000 fine for refusing to be scanned? What the hell happened to my America? The attaached link shows a video where the girl is SCREAMING (at 3 years old) "stop touching me"... even at three she has more sense than Janet!
I last wrote a full article on 2012 Republican speculation in early October of 2009. Arguably, this is a different world than 13 months ago. The rate of change in the political spectrum over the course of the 2010 cycle has been so much so that one should stop to ponder some scientific source of free energy from it! That being said, it is time to look at some serious and not so serious issues facing the presidential elections of 2012.
To begin, one has to wonder what the current President is planning for 2012. Early speculators for the left are suggesting that Hillary is ready to jump in and save the party and the unpopular president, while others are publicly calling for the president to announce that he will not seek re-election now in order to stop short of absolute destruction of the Democratic Party. A saviour he was not! Of course, barring any major changes on the left, we should expect to see a very weak President unable to control his divided legislature and thus enter the race as a weak incumbent. His performance at the G20 summit and throughout Asia last week indicate that the world is no longer smelling what Barack is cooking!
The GOP faces two camps of contenders for 2012 - those who fell short in 2008 and those who are new to Presidential politics; Each has a strength and a weakness. Those who are past failures have name recognition, but also suffer from burn-out or simple distaste from the people - hey, we already said we didn't like your brand of politic. Those who are up and comers have the fresh sense of something new, but may struggle with name recognition on a serious national scale. For the old, they suffer from the changes over the past two years, as anyone can clearly tell 2012 is definitely no 2008 in the political world!
So, who is in and who is out for the GOP?
Fox News is running a series called "12 in 2012" where they highlight 12 candidates:
Those candidates includes: Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, South Dakota Sen. John Thune, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, South Carolina Sen. Jim DeMint, Indiana Rep. Mike Pence, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. McPike reports, “A thirteenth story is also planned with long-shots such as former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Texas Rep. Ron Paul, and others like Donald Trump.”
I had looked into the campaigns of some potentials (mentioned in my 2009 article linked above). Idaho Gov. Otter is out, carrying only 59% of his state when the Republican Senator snagged 71%. ND Gov Hoeven easily won election as the US Senator from ND with 76% of the vote. Some time on the federal stage could lend credence to his libertarian tilt. Gov. Luis Fortuño of Puerto Rico is single handedly turning the liberal state into a conservative economic model, and his campaigning in 2010 with others around the nation have lended credence to him as an early pick.
So, who is in? Who is out? No one is talking just yet. Word is that some are waiting until after the first of the year, and after the new congress is seated. Some are waiting a bit longer to see who is jumping into the race.
Of the list above, who would I NOT support? 1. Mitt Romney. He is a big government moderate who has gained nothing since 2008, and remains somewhat of an elitist with respect to the people and the media. He has nothing good to offer the GOP... unless you need someone to sell you a used car. 2. Bobby Jindahl. Anyone who votes 'yes' on making the Patriot Act permanent will never get my vote. He would be the Bob Dole of 2012, and is not significant enough to move this country back into the hands of the people. His horrible state of the union response in 2009 was both the beginning and the end of his national level political career. He is best left to the people of Louisiana. 3. Sarah Palin. I know Palin is a fan favorite, but she cannot beat Obama, and she cannot unite the base. Her career move to leave Alaska's Governorship in 2009 (after just two years) destroyed her credibility as an elected official. For whatever her purpose, the end did not justify the means. Her re-election campaign in 2010 would have been the training for 2012, and her two more years running up to that election plus two more ahead of the 2012 election would have given her significant executive experience. Instead she became a cheerleader for the tea party, in my mind washing away all the hope and respect I had for her as an elected official. 4. Newt Gingrich. He may have been third in line for the top spot in the nineties, but this is not the nineties. Newt Gingrich is a relic, and does not have what it takes to 'right' the sinking ship.
Who would I support? 1. Luis Fortuño. A PuertoRican bid for the presidency would send a shockwave through the nation. A territory of the US for over one hundred years, the island's population are US citizens, but hold no vote in the US federal government. They pay no federal taxes, but receive federal funds. Fortuño has spent the last two years reforming the island commonwealth into a tax haven, and has worked to drastically cut the size of the island's government - and the jobs that went with it. He is a rising star, and his campaign would not only draw a latino voting bloc, it would change the debate to one focused on our imperial policy of territories. 2. Ron Paul. His economic forecasts proved to be true. His foreign policy stance is very isolationist, much like most Americans pre-WWII. His followers have taken root in local and state parties across the nation, moving into key leadership positions. His backers have never quit the 2008 campaign. Ron Paul's followers are the reason for the Tea Party. The Campaign for Liberty has millions of followers. Ron Paul's appointment as the Chair of the Sub-Committee on Monetary Policy, which he will use to go after the Federal Reserve lends credence to his gain in popularity and credibility within the party, and the outcome of his crusade of the Fed could put him in a strong place to lead the field in 2012. 3. John Hoeven. If he can do something strong and dramatic within the Senate, he stands a chance to make a national name for himself. He is easily in the libertarian camp; arguably able to become the Ron Paul of the senate (notice Rand did not get that distinction). He did a great job in North Dakota, and could do a great job taking that same policy to D.C.
Others who Intrigue. 1. Lou Dobbs. There were feelers put out when he left CNN last year that he may be setting up for a 2012 run. Dobbs would do a great job in the mix. 2. Joe Arpaio. The Arizona County Sheriff will play the part of Tom Tancredo, getting tough on immigration. He holds general favor across the nation, and is already making the rounds.
Wikipedia is tracking 28 potential GOP contenders, with the prospect of a few more waiting in the wings. As the dust settles from November 2010, it will surely be interesting to see who decides to put a horse in the race for 2012.
Alaskans seem to have sent a clear message - Alaska is no Texas. In fact, the write-in campaign seems to have made Alaska more closely resemble a trend toward Washington State politics. Perhaps the last frontier has been tamed, and now Alaska is just like the rest of us - a moderate liberal state mired in the same old politics as the rest of us. Time to cancel that meeting with my Alaskan Realtor!
On a positive note, the Washington senate race is days away from bweing decided. This new all mail-in system has left stacks of ballots dumped at ballot return sites just before the deadline. Not to mention the apparent rule change that a postmark is good enough for a vote to count (as opposed to being on location), this thing is going to the courts. All of the votes in WA from today are apparently early votes. There are about a million more votes to count from today - and then all those that will be disputed. Alaska, take note - this is what run of the mill politicking looks like!
On that note, we have the House, and I'm going to bed! I think the Dems got the message!
Every other poll across the nation was right on the money - except in Nevada, the earliest state to start reporting concerns about voter fraud. Each and every race across this fair nation fell to within 1% point of Real Clear Politics polling, for the most part - even the hugely contested and perpetually "Toss-Up" states. However, in Nevada, The apparently VERY popular Harry Reid has pulled an election day miracle, swinging the polls BY TEN POINTS in his favor as of this posting.
I don't want to prematurely cry foul here. But it is late and I am ready to call it a night and go home. It appears that the outcome in the Senate is set - the GOP will remain the minority. I still believe that we win Colorado and Washington, which are still counting, giving us a 49/51 disadvantage. Not bad. If Nevada turns in Angel's favor between now and tomorrow morning, 50/50 is not a bad place to be.
BONUS: The House is unfathomable. We have picked up 52 seats and counting on the Right, setting pace to pick up nearly 75 seats for the night.
PLUS: The big question will be surrounding Colorado's governor race - Does the GOP become a minor party in that state due to Dan Maes' showing of less than 10% for the GOP? This has huge implications to the party, but should also remind the people of Colorado that principle should ALWAYS come before party. Not to mention they just shot themselves in the foot at a time when they could have easily taken the Capitol in a redistricting term. Look for Colorado to become a blue state for the next ten years.
I'm sitting on pins and needles as we are 15 minutes away from the first results of the night on the East Coast. I know that the GOP is going to win the House. There is only the question of "How Big?"
I predict that the GOP will pick up 68 seats in the House, taking majority and a firm advantage. Pelosi will retire and a special election will come to California.
I predict at least 48 seats held by the GOP in the Senate. 48 would mean that we lost Illinois and West Virginia. I think we have a good shot in Illinois, giving the GOP 49. At the most, the GOP could walk away with 52 Senate seats - meaning that West Virginia, California, and Washington State voted Republican. If I were a betting man, I would say 50/50 split in the Senate - WA goes to Republican Rossi
Please head over to the site, read the initial articles I have linked, and some key words of praise for Fortuno. Take a moment to see what a conservative Republican has done in a liberal Carribean island, and US territory (Puerto Rico).
Luis Fortuno is the underdog, the dark horse, and just what this country needs - a strong man cabaple of looking his constituents in the eyes and saying 'get off the government payroll and into the free market!'
Luis Fortuno represents the voice the GOP has been missing, and it is time to spotlight a worthy member from the conservative ranks who, quite literally, speaks the language of the Hispanic voting bloc - a core group of social conservatives who the liberal media is courting on behalf of the liberal Democrats.
Mr. Fortuno sees Hispanics as a natural GOP constituency. The University of Virginia Law School graduate and father of triplets says what he missed most while serving two terms in the U.S. House of Representatives was weekly lunches with his extended family. "Hispanics put family first, and from that stems all else," Mr. Fortuno says. "We are mistrustful of government, own family-sized businesses, and value basic social principles. All of that is aligned with my party."
Governor Fortuno is more than a talking head, or a game-piece in the battle for votes. Fortuno finishes the job, stands firm on Conservative principles, and represents a want and will to preserve and grow the strength of the Union - as the leader of the New Progressive Party of Puerto Rico (The Republican Party on the island aimed at pushing for statehood).
This guy is the one we have been waiting for - a small government fiscal conservative, a catholic social conservative, and a fiery leader with a record of strong finishes!
Tomorrow is election day. One more reason to fight establishment candidates in favor of true reform in our government: Corruption. This RT report highlights insider trading that is protected for legislators. Harry Reid's name comes up in this report. Pay attention, Nevada!
