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Wednesday, 5 March 2014
News.......................
Pushing Climate Deception and Fear at Children - two US organisations carry on the despicable practice
President Putin - Macho Man Gives Uncle Sam And John Bull A Spanking
Great Lakes nearing ice cover record
Subject of 'hot mug shot' suing over use of photo
The Basics of Concealed Carry
Crimea River
Emails revealed on Lois Lerner's attorney agreeing to her testifying
CDR Salamander: The Lessons of WWI we need to Remember Today
Is Moldova next?
Obama’s Journey from Arrogance to Incompetence
Obama's budget eyes $1 trillion hike in tax revenue
What Putin and Obama Do and Don’t Have in Common
High school senior denied 1st request for college tuition
Petraeus being kept 'quiet'? Rep asks Holder why probe of ex-CIA chief remains open
Vintage World War II aircraft visit Pensacola for the weekend
Choom Gang Economics
Dempsey: Threat of Conflict in Asia Increasing
Israel and the Rest of the World
Can the US Afford the Asia Pivot?
Britain reduced to shaking a weedy fist at Vladimir Putin
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Crisis in Ukraine: Did Obama Invite Russia into Crimea?
Trifecta looks at President Obama's response to the Russian invasion of Crimea. Did Obama's overall weakness on foreign policy serve as a silver platter invitation to Russian President Vladimir Putin; an invitation to invade Ukraine? Hear what Scott Ott, Stephen Green and Tammy Bruce think.
Irony!...from TPC
In the scheme of government a battle has been raging over who would be the worst President of all time and who would be second-worst!
The result is the irony of all ironies!
At The Political Commentator here.
Is the housing market heading up or rolling over?...from HAS
Is the housing market going to continue to improve or have we seen the bounce and prices and sales are now going to roll over and head back down?
In a guest article the author lays out his case for why the market may be running out of steam.
At HAS here.
Tuesday, 4 March 2014
MLK a Republican? Or Just a Dream?..........................
Democrats insist that MLK wasn't a Republican. They want to claim, and take credit for, his dream, but not the blame for destroying that dream.
Ponzi has a 'red line' too.....................from Rico
Yesterday's ~2% rise in Gold put the Banksters on full combat alert.
You can easily see their paper attack on Gold and Silver bullion this morning. Any 'unmanaged' rise in price puts control of their paper Ponzi scheme at risk of failing and you can almost hear them collectively (a) making pyramids in their seat cushions, (b) gasping, and (c) muttering "price.increases.must.not.stand."
Any move towards something even remotely resembling 'price discovery' that threatens the paper price suppression scheme is clearly their 'red line'
...and unlike their metrosexual political counterparts, they have the cojones to do something about defending that line, illegal though it may be.
Manipulator-in-Chief........................from Dan Friedman
[Is this another instance of Obama making another end-run around the Constitution? Or is it another instance of gutless Congressional Republicans failing to protect it? df]
The Hill,March 03, 2014,
Netanyahu at AIPAC...................from Dan Friedman
Here's a link to a play-by-play summary of Netanyahu’s address to AIPAC this morning via Times of Israel. No video as yet. Please note: I never said Bibi doesn’t give a heckuva speech. It’s his follow-thru (or lack thereof) that worries me.
Obama's Sewer Pipe..........................from Dan Friedman
With the full cooperation of Obama’s leftist friend at Bloomberg, Jeffrey Goldberg, Obama tried again to ambush Netanyahu while he was in the air traveling to D.C. Shades of 2011. For about a day the interview, and Obama’s condescending threats, got plenty of play in our media. But that all changed on Sunday night. That’s when the Russians pulled their stunt in the Crimea, capturing the world’s attention and upstaging Obama (and Bibi) in the process. The “distraction” took the wind out of the sails of Goldberg’s “scoop”, and now it’s dropped entirely off the radar screen. Instead, we’re back to business as usual. All eyes have returned to BHO’s incompetence (intended or unintended) in foreign affairs and how the man has turned a once-great country into the laughing stock of the “international community.”
Reading stories about the Ukraine and Crimea, I did learn a strategic lesson. The Europeans are heavily dependent on Russian oil and gas, and this will have a strong impact on how the Continent – especially Germany – deals with this crisis. In turn, it would surely give more leverage to stable, friendly countries who can replace the Russian bear. Now here’s the kicker. Recently, enormous reserves of gas have been found off Israel’s coast, and shale oil under her land. These just beginning to come on line. By now, you must see where this is going. If only Israel and its fractious leaders can avoid the traps set for them by Jewish peace mongers and Muslim rejectionists alike, then the future of the Jews and Israel may yet be bright – in spite of Jeffrey Goldberg and his BFF Obama.
Going Outlaw - Wild Bill
If a tyrannical goverment passes laws we cannot obey, we will be outlaws. But that is not necessarily a bad thing.
Putin's Folly
By Alan Caruba
Photos of Vladimir Putin, Russia’s president, often show him shirtless, riding a horse, shooting, catching large fish, and close to wild animals. It is the kind of public relations intended to emphasize his manliness and strength.
Putin has made it clear over the years that he wants to restore the size and influence of the former Soviet Union, but the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, in part from the four decades of isolation of the Cold War and in part because Communism doesn’t work no matter how large or small a nation may be.
Just ask the Venezuelans who want to overthrow their government or the Ukrainians who forced out their president, Viktor Yanukovych, after he tried to thwart a greater engagement with the European Union.
Putting Russian troops into the Republic of Crimea while claiming that they are there to protect the human rights of Ukrainians in the eastern sector will prove to be a major blunder. Call it Putin’s folly.
History is often shaped by the errors made by various leaders. The former head of the Soviet Union’s NKVD is long accustomed to using coercion and Communism depends on it to maintain its power. The move into Ukraine reflects the preference to threaten this and other former satellite nations, but we are now in different times. Putin is about to learn that.
President Obama’s lack of a coherent foreign policy and his desire to have better relations with Russia has been widely criticized, but so far as the Ukraine is concerned, he has acted wisely.
At an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Monday, the U.S. ambassador, Samantha Power, spelled out Putin’s errors of judgment for everyone to hear, accusing Russia of an act of aggression.
“Russia has every right to wish events had turned out differently,” she said of the events in Ukraine, but “It doesn’t have the right to express that using military force.” President Obama backed that up, warning of potential diplomatic and economic “isolation.”
In blunt terms, Powers said “So many of the assertions made this afternoon by the Russian Federation are without basis in reality.”
Powers enumerated the events, noting that Russian military forces had taken over Ukrainian border posts, taken over the ferry terminal in Kerch, and that its ships were moving in and around Sevastapol. In addition, Russia was blocking telephone services in some areas. “It is a fact that Russia has surrounded or taken over practically all Ukrainian military facilities in Crimea” in addition to having had its jets enter Ukrainian airspace.”
“Russian military action is not a human rights protection mission. It is a violation of international law and a violation of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the independent nation of Ukraine, and a breach of Russia’s Helsinki Commitments and its U.N. obligations.” All true.
Powers, speaking for the U.S., said that “There is a way out. And that is through direct and immediate dialogue by Russia with the government of Ukraine, the immediate pull-back of Russia’s military forces, the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, and the urgent deployment of observers and human rights monitors, not through more threats and more distortions.”
Putin’s show of strength will backfire because neither the U.S., nor the European Union, or any other nation wants to see a revived Soviet Union in the form of an over-aggressive Russian Federation.
President Obama announced an aid package to bolster the Ukrainian government, including $1 billion in loan guarantees to offset any loss of energy subsidies from Russia. The U.S. is also planning to provide technical support for Ukraine’s financial institutions, training for election observers and assistance in anti-corruption efforts. One of the reasons Ukrainians drove out Yanukovych was the corruption he represented and his preference for Russian influence in the Ukraine.
Coming off the global attention generated by the Winter Olympics, Putin may have calculated that he had to back Yanukovych and, after he fled Kiev and the Ukraine, concluded that only a show of military power would restore respect for the Russian Federation. He was wrong. Nations get respect for not invading their neighbors and for participating in the global economy.
In many ways, in today’s world there are options to pressure Russia with regard to its need to sell its natural gas and oil assets, and conduct trade with other nations. Putin has underestimated these options.
At some point he will withdraw his military—whose uniforms do not show any identification of origin—and will declare that Russia will respect the outcome of the Ukrainian elections in May. He has no choice. The Cold War is over, but it never really ended as far as Putin is concerned.
While President Obama has received a torrent of criticism for his foreign affairs policies, much of it well earned, his restraint is the best way to address the Russian invasion and the U.S. mobilization of resistance to it is the wisest course of action.
Nobody wants World War III and that includes Vladimir Putin.
© Alan Caruba, 2014
News.................
Fatah Infighting Jeopardizes Kerry's Peace Process
What i would do if i were israel .... geopolitics 101 .... diplomacy 101 .... phd. in survival ....
British Immigration Disaster Now Official - The End Is Nigh Part II
Cruel, heinous, implacable slaughter .... the cost israel must exact on the arabs to exist as a state ....
End-of-world money moves to make
Ukraine's Mess: Made in the EU
Next, Putin Will Seize Donetsk and Kharkiv
Will Piers Morgan Apologize for Spreading a Racist Hoax?
Connecticut Patriot Forewarned Lawmakers about Gun Registration: "I Will Not Comply"
Reid's black racist nominee on hold
Carr: Hooray! Justice is served!
CDR Salamander: The Fundamental Value of the Ukraine Crisis
NJ Gun Law Critic Targeted By State Police 72 Hours Prior To Hearing
EagleSpeak: Russia in the Ukraine: 90 day eviction notice
Western nations begin cutting economic ties with Russia over Ukraine
Russian forces mass near Ukraine’s western border
Obama Finds a Country to Threaten. Too Bad It's Israel.
Russian fleet delivers ultimatum to Ukrainian forces in Crimea to surrender or else
50 Ways The British Embassy In Washington Is Wasting Your Money
Barack Obama: US Won't Be Able to Defend Israel If Peace Talks Fail
CDR Salamander: The Budapest Memorandum
Ukraine Threats: This time Obama has gone too far! (Humor)...from TPC
It's one thing for Obama to threaten Putin with pulling-out of the G8 meeting but the threat he makes in this picture is going way too far!
At The Political Commentator here.
Obama (& Bibi) Play The "Pressure" Card.......................from Dan Friedman
[You would think Bibi and his people would have figured out Obama after their first catastrophic meeting in 2009. But for some strange reason, the Israelis continue to play Obama’s game. Now, after Obama’s latest foreign policy fiasco in the Ukraine, is there another head of state besides Netanyahu who still takes our president seriously? Now that’s what I call isolation! df]
Times of Israel, March 3, 2014
En route to his meeting at the White House, the PM and the rest of the world read that the president believes he’s leading Israel to wrack and ruin
By David Horovitz
Barry's chicken Kiev, with ketchup.......................from Rico
This can truly be called Barry's "chicken Kiev" moment, but what can you expect from someone with an IQ smaller than his cup size...which segues nicely to Ketchup Boy, since it applies perfectly to him as well.
Oh, yeah. Chicken Kiev with Ketchup. Please, you go first.
- Take a big bite and eat hearty.....
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The Cossacks Ride Again!...........................from Dan Friedman
[Before the arrival of the Nazi's, the Ukraine led the league in oppressing, murdering, and brutalizing the Jews. Now that a crisis has developed between Russians and Ukrainians, the quaint old customs of the Cossacks are making a comeback. Jews in the Ukraine are vulnerable and under threat once again.
We already know that an Obama-led America might give this situation lip service at best. So first and foremost, this is a vacuum that needs to be filled by Israel. Will they or won't they work to keep our brethren in the Ukraine safe?
If you ask me, that should have a much higher priority for Netanyahu and the Israelis than absorbing more abuse and humiliation to placate an openly hostile American president. df]
Times of Israel, February 25, 2014
Rabbi asks Netanyahu for urgent protection against a ‘growing wave of anti-Semitic attacks’
Hollywood Salutes Heroes February 2014
Gary Sinise Foundation, along with the USO and American Airlines, proudly presents Hollywood Salutes Heroes. Fifty of America's wounded heroes were brought on an all-expenses paid three-day trip to Los Angeles with stops at Disneyland and Paramount Studios and surprises at every turn.
Hotties of Hollywood Arriving at 2014 #AcademyAwards
Well, some classy babes, no doubt.
My goodness I was about to die when Kate Hudson came on.
That woman is so smokin' hot it's mind-boggling.
Check out all the hotties at the link. (Emma Watson's all grown up now and freakin' hot. Sheesh what a babe.)
A Russia/Putin/Obama/Cold War walk down memory lane!...from TPC
Three articles from the past of The Political Commentator that showed how weak the Obama administration was then and what it has led us to now!
At The Political Commentator here.
Monday, 3 March 2014
Destroying the U.S. Military
By Alan Caruba
It tells you everything you need to know about the idiots running this country. As the Russians were invading Ukraine, our Secretary of Defense was discussing major cuts to our military budget.
“Si vis pacem, para bellum” is wisdom passed down to us over the centuries from ancient Rome It translates “If you want peace, plan for war.”
One of the requirements the early presidents of the nation faced was the creation of an army and navy to protect it from the imperialist powers of Britain, France and Spain, all of whom had their eyes on parts of the continent they wanted to claim. After the Revolution, the nation fought a succession of wars to protect and expand the map we now have.
The world to the Founding Fathers and all presidents since was seen as a dangerous place because it is.
The only “success” of President Barack Obama has had to date has been to impose six trillion more in debt than when he arrived. A variety of programs such as the failed “stimulus” added to the debt and the deficit.
He has been consistent in seeking cuts to our military budget. From his first year in office Obama has sought to reduce the military in every way possible, though part of the reductions are attributed to the sequestration limits to reduce government spending. There are areas that most surely require reductions, but the security of the nation to protect itself and maintain and project its influence is critical.
Since the end of World War II, the U.S. has exerted this power. In the 1950s President Truman extended protection to South Korea after it was invaded by the Soviet-backed North Korea. The war ended in a stalemate that exists to this day. There have been other conflicts with less successful outcomes and they include Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.
In each case, we stayed too long. After the 9/11 attack the Afghanistan conflict was essentially won by 2002, but we stayed on. The Iraq War outcome has been a spectacular failure because the Obama administration was unable or unwilling to retain a military presence there. The Syrian civil war has cost over a 130,000 lives after Obama failed to respond to the red line he drew and turned Syria over to the Russian Federation. Iran is also an ally of the Assad regime there.
In an act of incredible naiveté or stupid or both, the U.S. is negotiating with Iran in the belief that diplomacy will have any effect on an Islamic republic that has regarded itself at war with the U.S. and Israel since it came into being in 1979.
No matter the outcome of the current budget cut proposals, Americans know they owe a debt of gratitude to those who put their lives on the line to fulfill the outcomes they were called upon to fight for. We won World War II because we destroyed the capacity of Germany and Japan to wage war. That is the only way to win a war.
Earlier, after our entry into World War I resulted in bringing that first modern conflict to an end, its veterans returned home to discover that benefits they had been promised were not fulfilled. The Bonus Army was the popular name given to an assemblage of an estimated 43,000 marchers, some 17,000 veterans and their supporters, who in 1932 wanted the cash payment redemption of their service that had been promised. The nation was in the midst of the Great Depression, not unlike our present economic decline. In July, after being ordered off of all government property, the marchers along with their wives and children were assaulted by U.S. infantry and cavalry, support by six tanks. Some deaths ensured. A second, smaller Bonus March in 1933 was defused by the Roosevelt administration. In 1936 Congress voted to pay the veterans.
America has enacted veteran appropriation bills on time only three times of the past 25 years. There is a huge backlog in the disability benefits claims. Four years ago, recognizing the harm to the Veterans Administration healthcare system, Congress passed and the President signed legislation to fund it a year in advance, removing it from the gridlock affecting so much of the nation’s programs. The problem, however, continues.
Any nation seen to be weak will have to deal with its enemies in some fashion.
The ancient Romans knew that and it is no less true today. A recent poll indicated that Americans believe that the U.S. is no longer respected by other nations. They are right and the source is Barack Obama who was in part elected by his promise to withdraw troops from Iraq and Afghanistan. The U.S. will be out of the latter by the end of this year.
The announcement by Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel regarding major military funding reductions reflects the President’s efforts to destroy its ability to respond to a future conflict. The likelihood that we might have to fight global wars such as WWII is offered as the reason for the cuts. That has not precluded lesser conflicts. All wars, however, are very expensive. Not having to fight them is a very good investment. It is an essential reason for maintaining a powerful military capability.
The budget put forth by the Obama administration would shrink the Army to pre-World War II levels. The current 520,000 active-duty soldiers would shrink to 440,000-450,000. The U.S. Marines, now numbering around 190,000 would be drawn down to 182,000 or to 175,000 if sequestration –level cuts were continued in 2016 and beyond. The Air Force will reduce the number of tactical air squadrons and retire the entire A-10 fleet; a Pentagon recommendation that reflects their primary anti-tank mission which they deem to be no longer needed.
The Army National Guard and Reserves would also be drawn down—from the current 355,000 to 335,000 for the Army and the Reserves from 205,000 soldiers to 195,000. If sequestration returns, the former would be reduced to 315,000 and the latter to 185,000.
Former Vice President Dick Cheney says that Obama would “rather spend the money on food stamps than he would on a strong military and support for our troops”, believing that “somehow, a strong America, well equipped, with a strong military, is a danger to international peace and stability.”
“And just exactly the opposite’s true,” said Cheney, “I think if history teaches any lesson, it’s that the world’s a safer, more stable place when the United States is strong and is prepared to use that strength when necessary.”
If one does not learn from history, as a sage once noted, you are likely to have to repeat it.
Having weakened the nation’s economy, causing millions to be unemployed, and having attacked its healthcare system, the nation’s military strength is now openly being attacked by the proposed reductions.
Nothing good can come of this.
© Alan Caruba, 2014
Micro Macau.......................
Macau has become known as the "Las Vegas of the Far East".
Travel through the city and the amazing casinos of this former Portuguese colony in miniature size. Macau has never looked more adorable.
A time-lapse tilt-shift film by Joerg Daiber.
Do we take Putin at his word or Obama's?...from TPC
Putin has delivered an ultimatum to Ukraine aka a 'redline'!
Should we take him at his word or is he pulling an Obama?
At The Political Commentator here.
Barack the Wash Out - Wild Bill
Obama could not pass any military training program, so why is he qualified to be Commander in Chief?
NRA News Commentators Episode 47: “Guns in Businesses” With Dom Raso
Dom Raso explains why keeping law-abiding gun owners out of private businesses is a mistake.
2014 Dakar Rally Winner: Nani Roma and MINI ALL4Racing - Jay Leno's Garage
Winner of 2014's Dakar Rally Nani Roma gives Jay a lesson in desert driving in the car that took him across the finish line of the toughest rally on earth!
Obama Cartoons: Ukraine Edition...from TPC
Obama cartoons that are dedicated to all of the libs and Obamabots who gave Barack Obama not one but two terms in office.
And, as we see from Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, every action has an equal and opposite reaction.
The Dream Team..............................from Rico
Barry Boy Marxist has purposely built his "dream team"...this was no accident or coincidence:
SecState Kerry (a world-class dipshit)
DNI Clapper (a world-class liar and career bureaurat)
DCI Brennan (converted to Islam while COS Riyadh)
SedDef Hagel (a world-class Jew hater)
Chmn Jt Chiefs Dempsey (tell me he's worth shining Petraeus's boots)
This truly IS a "dream team" if you (a) are having a nightmare, (b) your idea of heaven is four wives and no booze, or (c) you want to show up the French as surrender monkeys.
It has not yet been confirmed that the sole qualifying question to get their appointments was being able to say "ryuki vyerk" * clearly and convincingly in Russian.
* Rough translation: 'I surrender'
Can You Say " Allāhu Akbar" in Chinese?..........................from Dan Friedman
[In China, at least 29 people were stabbed to death by a group of machete-wielding “terrorists.” The hideous attack happened on Saturday, but you’re excused if you haven’t got wind of it yet. Our state-run MSM has chosen to downplay the story, and instead, has gone into narrative-protection mode. For one thing, connecting Islam to the violence going on around the world could start the average guy thinking the Islamist jihad is the common denominator and that the Arab-Israeli conflict needs a new name: Muslim-Jewish conflict sounds more accurate to me. Why TIME has chosen to spill the beans and mention that Muslims were behind the attack in China is anyone’s guess. Of course, after one call from the White House TIME could issue a retraction. df]
TIME, March 01, 2014
China
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Nice Sunday Roundup from Earlier, Plus Some #AcademyAwards Blogging
From earlier, "Roundup of the Roundups for #Oscar Sunday."
And from the Oscars, "'12 Years a Slave' Wins Best Picture — #Oscars."
Also, "Ellen Degeneres Selfie Most Popular Tweet of All Time — #Oscars."
INFOGRAPHIC: Latest in #Ukraine
I love this stuff: "Chronology of Latest Events in #Ukraine."
INFOGRAPHIC: Chronology of the latest events in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/ommkCm6uIa
— Agence France-Presse (@AFP) March 2, 2014#Ukraine Crisis Update Day 3
Again, lots of blogging.
See, "U.S. Has Few Options in #Ukraine," and "Obama, Ukraine and the Price of Weakness":
The lessons of the tragedy unfolding in the Crimea are many, but surely the first of them must be that when dictators don’t fear the warnings of the leader of the free world and when America demonstrates that it is war weary and won’t, on almost any account, take firm action, to defend its interests and to restrain aggression, mayhem is almost certainly always going to follow.And don't miss, "Pessimism Is Key to Understanding Russia in #Ukraine."
More, "Ukraine Forces Ill Equipped to Take Back Crimea."
And just incredible here, "In Moscow, Lone Orthodox Priest Protests Russia's Invasion of #Ukraine."
As always, continuing breaking coverage throughout the night.
Fabulous Photos of Elizabeth Marxs: Playboy's Cybergirl of the Month for December 2013
Man, she's tasty!
See: "Extremely Smokin' Elizabeth Marxs!"
Her breasts are pretty much perfect, and she's got a lovely face.
Sunday, 2 March 2014
Putin on the attack, Obama on his way to Connecticut!
Is there any wonder why Putin has zero respect for our American leader?
The Progressive Destruction of the U.S.
By Alan Caruba
Barack Obama is the final piece of the map in the progressive movement’s century of steady destruction of the U.S. dollar, income taxation, and massive, liberal intrusion into the lives of all Americans from birth to death.
An excellent analysis of this is found in “The Great Withdrawal: How the Progressive’s 100-Year Debasement of American and the Dollar Ends” by Craig R. Smith and Lowell Ponte ($19.95, Idea Factory Press, Phoenix, Arizona). Together they have written eight books on economic topics.
There is a great backlash to the Obama administration’s efforts to impose a socialist economy on America in which the federal government essentially controls all elements of it. The most recent and dramatic example is Obamacare, the takeover of one sixth of the economy. The Tea Party movement emerged to protest it in 2009 and has steadily grown as a political movement.
Their protest march on Washington, D.C. that year drew nearly a million or more Americans.
In 2010 the movement was instrumental in returning power to the Republican Party in the House of Representatives. If the political pundits are right, the forthcoming November midterm elections will remove many of the Democrats who voted for it and may also return power to the GOP in the Senate. The elections are critical to thwarting Obama’s further efforts to destroy the nation by adding millions to its many welfare programs as the result of its failure to increase economic growth from a dismal 2% per year, the lowest in decades. Presidents Kennedy and Reagan took office and reversed recessions. Obama has not.
“Either we successfully reboot the original operating system of individual freedom, free enterprise, and small government that America’s Framers built into the U.S. Constitution or the Progressives will by manipulation and force continue to impose their failed collectivist ideas on humankind’s future,” writes Smith in the introduction to his book. Make no mistake about it, “collective ideas” is another way of describing Communism, often referred to as Socialism.
“They aim to replace Capitalism, private property, ‘selfish’ individualism and God with a human-made Eden, a utopian humanist society where an all-powerful State would equally redistribute the world’s wealth and power to the working elite.”
Consider just five ways progressivism has impacted America; (1) abortion that has killed more than 55.7 million fetuses since 1973, (2) banning prayer to support the development of moral values in schools, (3) the spread of same-sex marriage as a legal definition of marriage, (4) the movement to legalize marijuana, a known gateway drug, and (5) a culture filled with films and television that exploit violence and sex.
The utopian dream has been the creation of intellectuals who view themselves as an elite group who should control economies and lives. The failure of the former Soviet Union and the adoption of Communism in China are prime examples of this elitist notion which, as history has demonstrated, includes the murder of hundreds of millions in the process. Progressivism depends on the use of force.
Noting the stalled economic growth in the U.S. Wall Street Journal columnist, Daniel Henniger, addressed the global implications on Feb 26. “If the American economic engine slows permanently to about 2%, you’re going to see more fires around the world like Ukraine and Venezuela. At the margin, the world’s weakest, most misgoverned countries will pop, and violently.”
Craig points out that “More than 100 years ago, these collectivist ideas began to dominate Western civilization. In 1913 they took control of the United States government and began a ‘fundamental transformation’ of our economy, politics, culture and beliefs that continues today.”
The good news, however, “The Progressive collectivist vision today is dying and its death will cause huge changes in our world.” The anger that gave rise to the Tea Party movement is emerging as a widespread desire for national change. Efforts to downgrade the freedoms embodies in our Bill of Rights are generating major resistance.
“The various collectivisms may still pose a military, political or economic threat as their power wanes—but fewer and fewer people take the Left seriously as an ideology anymore. History has thoroughly discredited the Left as both a moral and practical failure” says Smith, adding that “the trouble is, many have likewise lost faith in the values that once made the West great—Judeo-Christian values and belief, free enterprise and the individual rights of the Enlightenment…Millions of Americans have become hooked, dependent on the entitlement state and on the paper money conjured out of thin air.”
There are signs, though, of change. “As of August 2013, polls found that only 35 percent of Americans supported President Obama’s economic policies, a rating similar to President Herbert Hoover’s after the start of the Great Depression. He is destroying the confidence needed to encourage investment in new jobs or to expand businesses.” More recent polls indicate Obama’s performance in office is rating poorly.
We are witnessing the way the Progressive movement works. “When the economy is good, they raise taxes and expand government. When the economy cycle turns negative, the politicians blame others, refuse to reduce government—and, increasingly, use the bad economy as a reason for expanding government and spending even more.”
That is why Obama’s policies have added $6 trillion dollars to the national debt and expanded government welfare programs. At $17 trillion and growing, it is a massive threat to the economy and to a government that depends on borrowing money to pay its bills. The downgrade of the nation’s credit rating—the first in the nation’s history—is a major warning sign if this is not reversed by electing politicians who want to reduce the debt and the size of the government.
Thomas Jefferson said the future of the nation depended on binding those in power “with the chains of the Constitution”, but we have a President who now routinely ignores those limits and wants to rule independent of the legislative branch, Congress, and refuses to enforce existing laws or changes them unilaterally, an issue the judicial branch increasingly is addressing.
America needs a major revision to the progressive income tax system that began in 1913. It needs to end the Federal Reserve’s (a cartel of banks) control of the economy and its creation of money “out of thin air.” It needs to return to the gold standard to back the value of the dollar. It needs to end the Department of Education’s grip on the curriculum that has indoctrinated the generations since the 1960s to accept Big Government. It needs to eliminate the Environmental Protection Agency and return this responsibility to the States. These and other measures must be implemented to return the nation to greatness.
Progressive politics and policies have reversed the greatness of America making it the exceptional nation it was before they were imposed a century ago. That is the challenge of the current and future American generations.
© Alan Caruba, 2014
PSA: Don't be an ATM victim!...from HAS
If you've ever been at an ATM machine whether late at night or at a quiet time of the day and felt a little bit uneasy it is understandable.
This article provides tips to help you avoid becoming the victim of a crime and what to do if you are!
At HAS here.
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