Month: December 2009

Rare Praise From Left And Right On Obama Nobel Peace Prize Speech

Ronald 2 Comments

Imagine this! President Obama has been praised by people on the Left and the Right for his Nobel Peace Prize speech!

Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, and columnist Cal Thomas all had a lot of good things to say about Obama’s speech.

But the liberal Nation magazine, certainly disappointed by much of what Obama has done or not done, also lauded the speech, as did columnist Joe Klein of Time Magazine.

It can be hoped that the moral level and realistic nature of his speech can transform the world in a better direction before Barack Obama leaves the Presidency!

The Obama Doctrine: Realistic And Statesmanlike

Ronald 1 Comment

President Obama, in his Nobel Peace Prize speech, enunciated what is already being termed the “Obama Doctrine.”

Obama stated that the US must adhere to a higher standard of conduct, including the ban on torture, and the closing of Guantanamo as a prison base for terrorists.

The nations of the world must engage in tough diplomacy against nations that create instability in the world, such as North Korea and Iran, and must do so in a sense of unity.

The nations of the world must also work to engage with rogue nations and bring them back into the diplomatic community.

Any nation denying economic justice or human rights must be opposed because it undermines the world and leads to war.

War sometimes is unavoidable and just, as for instance World War II against Adolf Hitler, and Al Qaeda since 2001.

The principles of Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. are to be pursued when possible, but evil exists in the world and must be confronted.

The Obama Doctrine can be considered Realism in the world that we face today, and many on all sides of the political spectrum can join together in praising it as practical and statesmanlike!

A Great Step Forward On Restoring Confidence In Future Of The Economy

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The US House of Representatives took a major step forward in restoring confidence in the future of the American economy, when it passed by a vote of 223-202 a bill establishing the greatest set of changes to the banking regulatory system since the 1930s.

The purpose of the legislation is to prevent a future collapse of the economy similar to what happened in 2008. But it also sets up a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency to regulate credit cards, mortgages, and other financial products, and give consumers easier understood contract language and information, so as to prevent them from becoming victims of corporate manipulation.

Additionally, the government would have the power to break up companies that have become too large and threaten the stability of the financial system. This would address the argument that some banks or insurance companies are “too large to fail.”

The problem, however, is that the Senate is working much slower on this legislation, and also, the Republican party is again stonewalling support of this essential legislation. So the first battle has been won for consumers, but it is far from certain that this initiative will succeed all the way to legislation signed by President Obama.

Climate Change Debate Between Al Gore And Sarah Palin

Ronald 1 Comment

As the Climate Change Summit meets in Copenhagen, Denmark, the debate over whether global warming is occurring is raging, with former Vice President Al Gore and former Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin attacking each other’s views on the issue.

Ironically, Palin has completely switched her views from when she was Alaska Governor and the running mate of Senator John McCain. She has chosen to join the Climate Change deniers, including such loonies as Oklahoma Senator James Inhofe, and conservative talk show hosts such as Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, and Glenn Beck.

This just is further evidence of the shallowness of Sarah Palin, and her total lack of knowledge of science, and her inability to speak on any issue with intelligence and knowledge. If she represents the so called “average” American, then indeed the nation is in much deeper trouble in the future than we yet recognize!

Barack Obama, Nobel Peace Prize Winner, Distinguishes Himself In Acceptance Speech!

Ronald 3 Comments

As usual, Barack Obama distinguished and dignified himself in his acceptance speech today for the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, Norway.

He conceded that he had fewer accomplishments and credentials to win the prize, so he acted appropriately humble.

At the same time, he made it clear that war is sometimes necessary when there is evil in the world, such as Hitler in the 1930s and 1940s and Al Qaeda terrorism today.

He therefore defended his decision to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan, basing it on necessity, not on the basis of choice, but facing reality.

He handled himself in his speech and in his other public gatherings in a way that reflected well on his country.

We should all be very proud of him, and be assured that even if many do not think he deserved the Nobel Peace Prize now, he will be seen in history as having richly earned it by his actions in office during his Presidency!

The Nerve Of Dick Cheney To Attack Barack Obama!

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Former Vice President Dick Cheney has a lot of nerve attacking President Obama for trying to deal with the economic, diplomatic and military mess left by the Bush-Cheney Administration.

Cheney thinks Obama is a leftist radical who undermines the country and has committed treason. This is very strong language, considering Obama has decided to stay in Afghanistan and escalate American involvement, has kept on Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke (both Bush appointees), and has continued the TARP program initiated by Bush.

To call Obama a leftist radical is ridiculous, as he is a clear cut moderate when it comes to military and economic matters. If anything, he has been criticized by liberals for not fighting hard enough for the public option on health care, going slow on gay rights, and trying to support the auto industry, banks and insurance companies that helped to cause this economic mess we are in.

Obama has, like Franklin D Roosevelt before him, saved the capitalistic system and aimed at restoring our diplomatic image abroad. This makes him a mainstream moderate with some liberal tendencies, not a radical leftist in any form.

But then again, when was Dick Cheney correct? There is a long list of inaccurate statements, misjudgments and actions by the former Vice President, and one could only wish that he would just go away, but that, unfortunately, is not going to happen.

Dick Cheney is a burden on the Republican party, and until he is repudiated as a lost cause, the GOP has no future!

The Obscenity Of Our Wars In Afghanistan And Iraq: One Percent Of Americans Sacrificing

Ronald 2 Comments

Bob Herbert, an Op-Ed columnist for the NY Times, makes an excellent case for the obscenity of our wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.

He points out that less than one percent of our population is in the military, and that the same small percentage keeps on sacrificing by having numerous tours of duty in one or the other nation, with most Americans not giving it a thought, and not contributing anything to the war effort except making patriotic statements that they back the men and women who are there and want them to have all of the military equipment they need to fight for us.

But without a draft, and the stubborn unwillingness to pay more taxes, and with our government not requiring any kind of sacrifice by 99 percent of the American people, it means we as a nation are immune to what war means–the fact that many military people either die, or return with major physical and mental problems from their combat tours, while we go on our merry way living the American dream, without any commitment at all to our country, except to make money and practice materialism and greed as a motivator.

We are fighting wars with the equivalent of a small group of dedicated Americans who care about their country and its security, while most of the country has no concern because there is no draft and no tax burden.

One way to make Americans realize what we are doing overseas would be to reinstitute the draft or impose a war tax. If nothing else, having young Americans serve in the Peace Corps or start a new Civilian Conservation Corps as alternatives would make the American people begin to appreciate their responsibility to the nation and remind us of the nation that would not be what it is now without the massive sacrifices of past generations.

Sarah Palin As A Third Party Presidential Candidate?

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Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin has hinted that she might consider a third party run for President in 2012 if the Republican party does not become conservative enough for her taste.

Were she to do that, it would create a real “wild card” in the 2012 race, as there is no doubt that she has a base of supporters, fanatical enough to wait up to twelve hours to meet her at a book store and have her sign their copies of her best selling memoir.

Palin could really harm the GOP were she to bolt the party in 2012, and assuredly, it would help President Obama’s reelection campaign.

It could be that Palin realizes that the Republicans would be extremely unlikely to nominate her for President, so she might take the third party route. Conceivably, she could be a third party candidate who could win one out of every five voters nationally, as Ross Perot did in 1992. But it is highly doubtful she would win any electoral votes.

But again, the Republican party nominee would be likely to be harmed heavily by a Palin third party candidacy.

The “Gang Of Ten” And Health Care Reform

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A group of ten senators, five progressives and five moderates, is attempting to come up with a compromise health care reform bill that could be acceptable to the Democrats, and gain their full backing for major change.

The idea is to allow people to buy into Medicare at age 55, instead of 65, bringing millions more into that program, and to allow the Office of Personnel Management to offer alternative programs of health care to other Americans, as they do now to federal employees.

The ten senators involved include progressives Tom Harkin of Iowa, Chuck Schumer of New York, Jay Rockefeller of West Virginia, Russ Feingold of Wisconsin, and Sherrod Brown of Ohio. The five moderates include Ben Nelson of Nebraska, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana, Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, David Pryor of Arkansas, and Tom Carper of Delaware.

This new development is a promising possible alternative that would allow health care reform and avoid the controversial “pubic option” opposed by some of the moderates and Joseph Lieberman of Connecticut, who also is thought to be a possible part of this new initiative.

Whether this idea of the “Gang of Ten” bears fruit should be known in a very short time, and may produce progress in the ongoing Senate debate that has been occurring day after day, including on the weekend, in the US Senate!

President Obama’s “Plot” Against Christmas And Charlie Brown!

Ronald 2 Comments

The mayor of Arlington, Tennessee, has become controversial over his outrageous, ridiculous accusation that President Obama, by having given his nationally televised speech from West Point last Tuesday on the war in Afghanistan, pre-empted “Charlie Brown’s Christmas” on television as part of a “Muslim conspiracy” against Christmas!

Mayor Russell Wiseman obviously has an inappropriate last name, as he calls Obama a Muslim, and sees his speech timing as related to his supposed Muslim faith.

As it is, any Presidential speech pre-empts shows on television, but “Charlie Brown’s Christmas” is being shown two more times before Christmas, has been aired every Christmas on television, and is also available on DVD.

For a mayor of a small town or any community to make such an insane statement, and to top it off, on Facebook, shows how low we have fallen in the quality of officeholders that small towns elect. Do they really know the quality of who they elect, or is this a commentary on small towns?

But then again, Sarah Palin was Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, a small town, and look how far she has gone! 🙂