Surprise, Surprise, Surprise!

“Truth never damages a cause that is just.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

Jim Nabors, along with his musical talents, brought my generation good clean humor as Gomer Pyle.

 

 

I did not understand it at the time but there were strong moral messages in the scripted humor and of course, you could count on Gomer to do the right thing. No matter the situation or the challenges to overcome and regardless of how it made him look, he always resolved the situation while displaying honesty and integrity along the way.

 

Sadly, public examples with that level of character are increasingly harder to find. With Congress' approval rating at an all time low and Harry Reid recently identified as the least liked American politician, our political system could use a good dose of Mayberry R.F.D. right now.

 

Today the Senate voted to strip a defunding provision from a cloture vote. If you follow these things then you know what was going on. If you don't follow these things then your head just might explode if you try to assign some rational reasoning to the process. And you would not be out of line when you asked the question "who do these guys think they are".

 

Let me try to explain.

 

As an election approaches, politicians who have their thumb on the pulse of the public - you would think that normal but no, not really - begin to re-align their image with regards to current issues and legislative proceedings that are important to their constituents. 

2014 is our next election year.

The Affordable Health Care Act is unpopular with the majority of Americans.  

With those two facts in mind, party leaders are providing "cover" on a range of issues for their members by giving them an "out" on hot topics like the Affordable Health Care Act. The House of Representatives approved and sent a budget bill to the Senate which included an amendment to defund the health care act. The Senate had no intention of accepting it but understood that some of it's members face tough re-elections in 2014 and feared that if they did not vote to defund the health care act in accordance with the current wishes of their constituents, that they might lose their re-election bid. The bigger implication for the party leaders is of course the potential to lose control of the Senate. 

So the answer was to provide cover by forcing a cloture vote which included a provision to defund the health care act, knowing all along that the provision would be removed immediately afterwards, which it was, and voted on again, which it was, and passed on a party line vote, which it was.

That allowed the politicians facing tough re-elections to publicly state that they voted to defund the health care act, thus capitalizing on current public opinion and retaining support in their re-election bids. Actually making that statement would be at best misleading and at worst an outright lie. Stay tuned to see who walks the plank on this one... 

 

How is it possible that this absence of integrity is not only considered acceptable by our elected officials but also, and it truly pains me to acknowledge, occuring without most of us (quickly becoming 'subjects') not even knowing what is going on.     

 

Aunt Bea would not allow this to happen in Mayberry. Neither would Andy or Gomer. Even Barney would see through it eventually. 

 

Why don't we? 

  

“There’s no going back, and there’s no hiding the information. So let everyone have it.”

― Andrew Kantor 

Dezinformatsiya! Beware!

The Vince Lombardi offense has disappeared but Putin has taken a sheet from the Soviet Era playbook with this bit of disinformation.

Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes

Odysseus' plan to fool the Trojans was seen through by Laocoon as well as Helen of Troy... to no avail. Troy was sacked and whether the story is fact or fiction, we now know: Timeo Danaos et dona ferentes.

So too is Putin's 'Syrian Horse' editorial in the NY Times seen through by most of Congress and America. But will President Obama play the part of King Priam or listen to those who have instilled him with power? We will soon know. And considering that Iran continues racing towards the development of a nuclear weapon, North Korea is reputed to have re-started a nuclear reactor and Russia has announced they are reconsidering the sale of a missile defense system to Syria, we will also soon know the future of that region. China, by the way, is observing and tracking every player and every move.

In the meantime, Pelosi and Kerry are lauding the virtues of Odysseus's, I mean Putin's, efforts to mediate the crisis in Syria. Does 'fox in the hen house' or 'inmates running the asylum' mean anything to these [wise] leaders? They were both around before the collapse of the Soviet Union so are aware, or should be, of the practices that governing body implemented and surely must be aware of Russia's recent past when it comes to supporting UN resolutions against the bad guys.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dempsey has indicated that the cost of war now will be huge but understanding we will be involved in war in that region if not now then in the future, the cost then will be greater. His letter to congress gives a brief yet clear indication that he is the right man for the job! Ultimately and sadly throughout history the president's advisers are just that.

With Sinon alongside the horse, sorry - I keep getting the names mixed up, I meant Putin... with Putin presenting the horse, whose advice will King Obama, dang it I did it again, King Priam... ugh... I meant Obama, whose advice will President Obama heed?

Like most, including President Obama, I believe that the great majority of all people around the world have nothing but good intentions. I am also keenly aware of history, recent and in antiquity.

There are now and probably always will be bad guys.

Ronald Reagan Quotes:
"Don't be afraid to see what you see."
"Trust, but verify."
"Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means."

"My credibility is not on the line" - President Obama

"America and Congress's credibility is on the line" - President Obama

 

 

This elitist attitude displayed by President Obama has gone largely unaddressed by the media with few exceptions; one notable exception being this article published in the NY Times.

 

A presidents decreasing popularity within any particular group of voters is typically related to a specific issue and generally does not change the support from other groups. However when every voter demographic registers a decrease in support then one of two things has happened:

 

1. The president has failed to meet many, many promises with at least one promise specific to each and every voter demographic.

 

2. The president has crossed a socially unacceptable line of behavior that is registered on a subconscious level, if not outright, by all people.

 

You get to decide which it is.

 

For me, the moment I heard the president make his statement's about credibility, I was reminded of concerns I have suspected before. That this president believes he is above not just all Americans but all people. And while I will give him credit for his advanced academic education, which in my mind has not served him well, that is where it ends.

 

President Obama would do well to heed the 10 Traits of Humble Presidents written by Jeremie Kubicek.

 

Mr President - while you have sought for 5 years to separate yourself from congress to highlight your ideological and political differences, you cannot separate yourself from America's values. We elected you. You represent us. We are one.

 

“Our mind is the canvas on which the artists lay their colour; their pigments are our emotions; their chiaroscuro the light of joy, the shadow of sadness. The masterpiece is of ourselves, as we are of the masterpiece.”  

Kakuzō Okakura, The Book of Tea

 

If you are unable to proudly enact the will of America and execute it as if it were your own will, whether you personally agree with it or not, you do not deserve the position. A President of the United States does not exist separately from the country or it's citizens and by looking down your nose upon the rest of us suggesting that you do, you have again displayed your disconnect with the average American and added yet another contentious chapter to your legacy.

 

You are right, your credibility is not on the line. Long before today's comments it was fading fast here in the US and abroad. The good news is that America's legacy is reinforced and supported by a new leader every 4-8 years. And unlike yours, America's resolve has not been forgotten by the world's leaders.  

 

America, her people and values will persevere.     

 

 

President Obama's Astounding Disappearing 'Red Line'

Netanyahu's visual display at the UN of his 'Red Line' on Iran's nuclear ambitions was a clear signal of Israel's intentions and backed up by their bombing of Iraq's nuclear reactor for similar reasons in 1981.

 

Obama's 'Red Line' on Syria and subsequent waffling on his comments have not only created doubt about America's resolve to aid our allies and support human rights but have diminished our credibility with both our allies and our adversaries around the world. Despite America's long history of engaging countries or groups who would harm the US or their own people, the words of President Obama are falling flat on the ears of the world.  

 

In a telling example of the Obama Administration's inability to effectively deal with the worlds bad guys, John Kerry, a staunch anti-intervention democrat, made a compelling appeal to the American public for support of military action against Syria only to be contradicted by President Obama, another anti-intervention democrat, hours later.

 

As a side note, consider the following paraphrased statements made by Kerry:

 

If Assad had nothing to hide regarding chemical weapons then his response should be immediate transparency. (Does this apply to Obama's response to the IRS scandal?)

 

The UN has been stalled at every turn to investigate the claims of a chemical attack, this is not the behavior of a country that has nothing to hide. (What of our own congress in their investigation of Benghazi?)

 

Assad has used the worlds most heinous weapons against the most vulnerable people. (If information is the symbol of power, how do we interpret our government's extensive spying on it's own citizens?)

 

Let me be clear about anti-intervention politicians of any stripes: their insistence for justification is a good thing! When it turns to indecision or worse, inaction in the face of over 100,000 deaths it is a bad thing. Make no mistake about it, America has no business in the civil wars of foreign countries. We do however have not only an interest but an obligation to defend the basic human rights of all peoples and provide support for our allies safety and security. Innocent Syrian civilians are being killed. Jordan, Turkey and especially Israel are directly threatened by the continued expansion of this war.

 

Because just like in the game of chess where a move on the board cannot be un-done, a missile fired or bomb dropped cannot be recalled therefore every possible scenario must be considered from every angle before the move is executed. What makes Obama's disappearing 'Red Line' astounding is not his second guessing. Rather it is his failure to calculate the right move. To provide creative solutions that our global neighbors will support - create a coalition of nations. History is filled with the successes and failures of American Presidents foreign relations as well as their relationships with the leaders of foreign countries. I think I may have seen this rodeo before...

 

As a reminder, the primary function of our Executive Branch is to:

Approve or Veto Legislation (not write it)

Enforce Laws (regardless of personal views)

Conduct Foreign Affairs (does anyone still revere America?)    

 

 “When you find a man you wish to marry, Tessa, remember this: You will know what kind of man he is not by the things he says, but by the things he does.”   

Cassandra Clare, Clockwork Angel