Social Sense
great post! Interesting that the agent of change is in bed with the agents of same from the Clinton years. Perhaps he should get Sandy Burger to be his right hand man. Rumor has it he is quick on the grab and shred. Madeline Albright is quite dim when it comes to honest and forthright analysis. You would think a person that holds a non-political position would be a little less political. But the staus quo demands it and its the only way to land a job!...I can't rip enough. plugging my nose. That's what I am doing. I am hoping for Mitt Romney for Vice...I think he would have given Obama far more grief as a candidate. nice job. 
N
Mustang, do you feel 9/11 could have been prevented?..that officials "responsible for preventing or reacting to attacks upon the UN ..were criminally negligent?" I'm really curious about that and why.
excellent post......I particularly liked reading the "defeat of Barack Obama"... "this is MY hope" too!!
z
Great post Mustang but it should have published the gang of 14. I guess you did not hear yesterday that Caroline Kennedy is the new replacement for his top advisory position help select a VP. She has stepped up to the position for her Uncle Teddy who sadly is in a private battle against brain cancer.
On the Kennedy issue-Caroline is an author and a philanthropist - not a politician. Will not criticize her zeal to step into the shoes of the Uncle and probably only father she has had after the tragic death of JFK - BUT having said that what makes her any more experienced than Barack Obama. They both are junior flips being treated like royalty. It is ridiculous and so irresponsible to entrust our nation and its perilous future to Obama and Ms. Kennedy who may know of politics, but is not a politician. What can she really offer? I believe nothing but more liberal nonsense.
For all his pretending not to be a Washington insider, Obama is indeed so -- if not personally then by proxy with his Gang of Thirteen.
This November, I'm not only going to have to hold my nose to vote. I going to have to wear a gas mask!
Layla makes a good point. That Obama would choose Caroline Kennedy for assisting in his VP hunt says a lot about how he's 'politics as usual' and sucking up to a Kennedy in hopes that some of their Camelot Dust rubs off on him. The "outsider" is proving he's anything but an outsider.
Maybe she'll pick Bono and we can all finally relax!?
"Why do voters continue to elect inept or self-serving legislators?"
1. Based upon the 2000 Presidential election only about 3% of eligible people even bother to vote.
2. Based upon ratings, only about 5% of the American population bothers to watch the news ON ANY NETWORK OR CABLE SHOW.
3. Based upon ratings, Rush Limbaugh pulls in about 1.5% of the population as listeners.
4. In large cities (typically liberal enclaves) close to 50% of kids never graduate from High School
5. There is a genuine attack upon Christianity, patriotism, and capitalism being carried out in our media, our courtrooms, and even everyday water-cooler conversation.
6. Many people don't believe that there's any point in voting (my wife for example) when politicians ignore the people and do as they well please.
7. It's easier to play video games or read a book than to write to a Congressman or Senator - especially when you get nothing but platitudes back.
8. Principled candidates rarely run for office. Most candidates that run know the system too well.
9. Voters vote with their greed and their insecurities instead of with their heads and their reason. Over half of our nations's "taxpayers" don't pay income taxes at all anymore, they get refunds of it all or "credits" that exceed the amount they pay in. Class warfare and socialism works for them.
10. Too many people are interested in image rather than substance, including politicians and diplomats.
We don't get decent politicians very often, and when we do they are vilified.
As for terrorism and its rise - I think you've pretty much got it. They tested the limits for decades. When Carter allowed the abomination to run for a year and a half, the mere threat of a man that would "do something about it" caused Iran to release the hostages within days. But the probing continued and the response turned out to be weak after all -- Because the President is not the true center of power in our government.
It's our Congress. The balance of power between the socialists, the "pacifists" (actually idiots pretending to be pacifists), and the anti-Americans in congress against the conservatives, the patriots, and the "wishy-washy" or so-called moderates leaves us with a Congress that has no resolve (other than to make a Republican appear weak when the Democrats are in power).
It was Congress that forced us to quit Vietnam. It's Congress that's causing us to appear to lose resolve in the war on terror. It's Congress that needs a serious overhaul.
But it's that 97% of the population that's disengaged that needs to be woken up. Obama's got a good chance of pulling it off with "young" people and that's scary.
Socialist programs like the defense budget? Yeah, I do hope that gets cut. It's been nothing but a patronage trough for some time.
Some editing is required.
(1) Al-Qaeda attacked the World Trade Center in 2001 killing thousands
(2) Al-Qaeda terrorists forced the United States/United Nations out of Beirut Lebanon due to Reagan administration incompetence.
(3) We lost nineteen servicemen in the Khobar Towers terrorist bombing in 1996 and continue to kiss the Saudis ass to this day. Republicans sure are tough on the Royal Family
(4) Al-Qaeda terrorists destroyed two of our African Embassies on 7 August 1998, killing more than 230 and injuring 4,000. Nearly all Africans.
(5) In October of 2000, terrorists bombed the USS Cole with the loss of 17 killed and 39 wounded. And the Bush administration chose not to pursue the culprits.
5. There is a genuine attack upon Christianity, patriotism, and capitalism being carried out in our media, our courtrooms, and even everyday water-cooler conversation.
----------------------------
Prove it. You stated previously that only 5% of the population even listens to the news.
How is Christianity under attack? That's a bizarre charge. If you mean that a lot of the population is fed up with Protestant fundamentalism then that's simply an expression of freedom of religion and freedom from religion. What's the problem?
No editing is required on my part, Ducky. I have demonstrated that government incompetence is a bipartisan problem. Slow down, read what is written, and once you've done that, feel free to dialogue with us. The theme of the post is that in spite of what I consider to be criminal negligence by high officials, none are ever held accountable. As a consequence of that, they keep popping back up in successive administrations to do even more harm.
Where is this assertion incorrect?
Duck,
It's blatantly bloomin' obvious that Christianity is under attack, and the media barely scratches the surface as being the culprit. That's not a bizarre charge at all; it's far too obvious.
To prove it, keep track of what's being said about Christianity as a whole. Look what's happening to Christianity.
Meanwhile, Liberals are dragging this country down with demands on gay marriage. Sorry, but sex with male on male and female on female is not only un-natural; it violates every single ethical principles on sex as a whole, it is disgusting, and that's just one example of immoral fortitude that's being bred by the Liberal front.
Mustang was right, even though he discussed the media, it's not the only source of the battle against morality and Christianity.
There is a problem with defense contracting ... it always requires careful scrutiny. For the most part, GAO does a good job in oversight and the fact that they do catch dishonest people seems to validate that.
From the context that defense programs result in the employment of thousands of Americans, I suppose one could make an argument it is a “socialist program,” but only if one happens to be an idiot. A better illustration would be the continued expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars into a failed educational system (which is nothing short of criminal negligence).
It is healthy to debate where we spend our limited resources, especially when government believes there is no such thing, and which explains why our country is in debt. Of course, this is just my opinion following salient facts, but you are certainly entitled to yours.
So what do we do about it, mustang? I think we've gotten to a state of affairs where we need to b**ch and moan about "the other side".
We have reached a state of inertia that doesn't permit any kind of bipartisan solutions.
Who benefits from this impasse? Things happen for a reason and we are being played to someones gain. I'd say the solution is in history and discovering that both conservative and progressive ideas have been important and constructive in this countries development.
It goes back to education but that is going to get bogged down in cries of "indoctrination" and useless fights over things like intelligent design. Both sides have to find a constructive way to talk but it ain't happening. Myself, I think we have to start with the media which is in terrible shape in this country. 85% of it is pure drivel and the blogosphere is no better
government incompetence is a bipartisan problem..and with McCain ..things dont look good for our future my friend! 
It starts with f'n term limits on Congress AND us as a people getting pissed off enough to get off our as*es and doing something other than b*tching about it. (pardon my sailor's mouth Mustang). I getting ready for a fight...my previous statement about enemies foreign AND domestic stands.
Oh no! Not another Kennedy in politics, that's all we need.
The only change we are going to see with Obama is a socialist/Muslim nation.
Hmm..is that too extreme in my observation?
The Gang of 13. Hmmm.
My first thought. A Table of Organization Marine Rifle Squad was 13. At my last duty station (from which I left active duty after 32 years of service) the Sergeant Major was growling and grumbling about some individual and then I heard him conclude with "...and he couldn't lead a squad of Marines in silent prayer."
OK, you don't think it's funny. That's OK. It's a Corps kinda deal, I guess.
More germane to Mustang's point: Wasn't America once a country built on MERITOCRACY? Why in the world would Obama round up those losers? Oh, right. Most Americans don't pay attention. Right.
Meanwhile, those money guys want to do political payoffs for people. Got it.
And then there is General Wesley Clark. He is proof that you can actually be pretty bright and still be an idiot. (West Point [honors] and Rhodes Scholar) I would say he is the premier example of a gent who punched all the tickets. Further, he is most certainly a political general. When Kerry ran, he introduced Kerry at some event by announcing that Kerry was truly qualified because he'd (Kerry) seen war. Right. Four months in country. Three Purple Hearts. One a band-aid was put on. (Self-inflicted shrapnel wound) Another was being bruised on the shoulder in which his patrol boat rocked. Using a well-known rule (designed for seriously wounded warriors) Kerry works the system and leaves Vietnam after only four months...leaving his boat crew behind. What a hero! Yep. Oh, and the Silver Star for shooting a wounded and fleeing Viet Cong..in the back. Am I impressed? Oh, yeh.
McCain, on the other hand (according to Gen. Wesley Clark...from Arkansas), a graduate of the Naval Academy, a Naval Aviator (look up the qualifications for THAT title) who was shot down over Hanoi...five years in their ever so nice POW camps...and did twenty years in the Navy and retired as a Captain (Colonel in the non-Navy services)..again, according to Clark isn't qualified enough to be the president. As I said. He just proved himself - Clark - as an idiot. Most of the members of Congress could not tell the difference between a Dempsty Dumpster and an Abrams tank. Whatever, McCain's faults, he knows more about America's military, its' capabilities and what service life is really like, than Obama's Gang of 13.
Puffing resumes and jerking us around like we don't know what's what is insulting.
Ducky,
What we do about it is, as I suggested. WE have to elect better representatives in Congress. This is the pool from which presidential hopefuls emerge. We should really know a lot about where a candidate stands before we pull that lever.
More important than what party the guy belongs to is what he thinks about a host of problems. Once he's in office, especially in the first two years, he ought to be "on probation"; the voters ought to watch him or her like a hawk.
If he/she is unresponsive to mail, email, or phone calls ... OUTTA HERE.
With education, I'm inclined to agree with you. More civics education for one thing, and here's a novel idea: schools should actually educate students. High School is not for football or cheerleading. If "mommy" is so pathetically psychotic that she needs to relive her own cheerleading days through her daughter, why not make the daughter study and let Mommy be on the cheerleading squad? Same deal with Daddys who are plagued with flashbacks to when they were snapping each other with towels in the locker room.
Sometimes, real solutions can be real hard. The alternative, however, is to do nothing ... so nothing gets fixed.
Excellent post, Mustang.
It does begin with hard work - this change Obama promises yet has no ability or real desire to produce. I found that volunteering for down ticket candidates is useful and produces candidates qualified for later races. I am working hard to keep Texas a 'red' state. My Congressman and the one Senator up for re-election both have some of my volunteer time.
A well written and informative article. Its also extremely rare to see a post that is in the "middle" and or truly independent. I gave up hope on our system back in 92. My son still young and naive still believed in the system. In 99 he thought that Clinton and or any other president would take action if a navy ship was attacked. I tried to tell him that presidents ignored small groups of terrorist attacks. That it would take a major attack on US soil before apresident would react. he was murdered in the attack on the Cole. Unfortunately many people still believe as my son did. Our leaders become more useless with each passing day. They promise and promise and do nothing of significance while the real problems are left to grow until they explode on all Americans. Just like 9/11. If Clinton or Bush would have conducted a proper investigation after the Cole, 9/11 could have been avoided. But they both chose to leave it to a Dictator know for his support of Al-Qaeda. President Saleh of Yemen where the Cole was attacked. Its only been with the help of our state senators, representives, lawyers, and other bloggers that the government announced it would bring charges against one Cole bomber. The DoD had told us that no plans existed to charge anyone with the Cole attack years ago. So we had to mount a campaign to bring it about. Our leaders fear the truth about the forgotten Cole attack.
Much as Daddy Bush left Somalia for Clinton to clean up, Clinton could have whacked the hornets nest over the Cole just a month before a change of administrations.
He didn't. He left it for the incoming administration to do something in a coordinated fashion. Seems prudent.
Bush chose to do nothing. He was clearly intent on ignoring al-Qaeda.
High School is not for football or cheerleading. If "mommy" is so pathetically psychotic that she needs to relive her own cheerleading days through her daughter, why not make the daughter study and let Mommy be on the cheerleading squad? Same deal with Daddys who are plagued with flashbacks to when they were snapping each other with towels in the locker room.
-----------------
Yeah. Well said and pretty funny
Dear Mr. Swenchonis
You foremost have my deepest condolences for the loss of your son. I did not expect to hear from a family who suffered a personal loss as the result of terrorist operations, so all that I can tell you is that, as a Nation, we must be resolved and dedicated to defeating the scum who seek to murder and destroy our people. We can best honor the memory of your son through victory.
The loss of any American to the murderous acts of Islamic terrorists is a tragedy of the first order, but it is made even more so when government officials refuse to act intrepidly to preserve our security and our national honor.
My post is not news; it is simply my point of view … but I hope beyond expression that Americans will begin to understand how important voting is. We can no longer accept mediocrity from those whose duty it is to protect and defend our America. Representatives in Congress and high officials who pursue their own agenda over the good of the Nation disgust me; I cannot imagine they genuinely believe that they are performing an honorable service to the American people.
I have visited your site … I have shared the URL with several of my correspondents. I thank you for your comments, and hope you’ll visit with me again.
Semper Fi
Mr. Swenchonis speaks from the heart and from the head.
I agree with him that politicians are first and foremost about themselves.
Maybe our leaders have forgotten about justice for those aboard the USS Cole, as Mr. Swenchonis said. But some of us haven't -- even if we are not in positions of leadership and did not recognize the attack's significance and effects upon loved ones at the time of the attack. I myself was "asleep at the wheel" and all-consumed with family and career matters.
May those who perished about the USS Cole not have perished in vain!
Note: I fear that my comment is inadequate and doesn't convey what I wish that it could.
Ducky,
I see you're still doing your duty as a leftist to run around the internet trying to convince anyone who will listen of the fact that all leftists, without even one exception, are mentally retarded.
But historical ignorance is lazy. Maybe it's because you see in Iran and their nuclear weapons program an opportunity to complete the Holocaust that your leftist hero Adolf Hitler failed to complete, but your whitewashes won't sell among the literate.
To wit:
(2) Al-Qaeda terrorists forced the United States/United Nations out of Beirut Lebanon due to Reagan administration incompetence.
The Marines barracks in Beirut was bombed by your beloved Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
(3) We lost nineteen servicemen in the Khobar Towers terrorist bombing in 1996 and continue to kiss the Saudis ass to this day. Republicans sure are tough on the Royal Family
The Khobar Towers were also bombed by your beloved Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
(4) Al-Qaeda terrorists destroyed two of our African Embassies on 7 August 1998, killing more than 230 and injuring 4,000. Nearly all Africans.
More specifically, black Africans, which caused a conundrum in the cornpone Clinton White House on how to respond. Eventually, plans for a massive Pennsylvania Avenue block party were scaled back to an intimate celebratory backyard barbecue. Richard Clarke was alerted to watch for signs of Osama Bin Laden downloading Metallica songs from Napster.
(5) In October of 2000, terrorists bombed the USS Cole with the loss of 17 killed and 39 wounded. And the Bush administration chose not to pursue the culprits.
The only fault that can be blamed on Bush is that after spending too much time fighting Al Gore's appeal against people with less Electoral College votes being declared the loser of a Presidential election, Bush failed to fire George Tenet and Louis Freeh.
There wasn't much "culprits" to pursue, as they blew themselves up in the attack.
Beamish in '08
I'll second that...Beamish in 08. (and another Beamishism for my files!)
Commenting by HaloScan
