Tag: Libertarian

This is why I am no longer a Democrat

It is not everyday that I agree or even link to, or in this case, fawn over a story that is done by the National Review.

But this, is an exception……

Byron York just did an excellent story on a Marine who gave John McCain his purple heart.

"I just gave John McCain my Purple Heart," Marine Sgt. Jack Eubanks told me a few minutes after McCain finished a speech at a campaign rally in Woodbridge, Virginia Saturday. "I said, ‘I want to give this to you, sir, as a reminder that we want you to keep your promise to bring us home in victory and honor, so it will mean something.’"

"We fought over there, and we want it to mean something," Eubanks continued. "We don’t want to come back and it just be all for nothing."

Eubanks, 22 years old, knows as much about the war as anyone. On October 3, 2005, he was in a Humvee on patrol near the Syrian border when an IED went off. "I was thrown from the vehicle, took some shrapnel, landed on my spine and mashed it up a little bit," Eubanks told me in a remarkably good-humored way. He was injured much more than just a little; it took him eleven months to recover. And then — then he volunteered to go back. In August 2007, he was hurt again in a strangely similar way. "Hit by a mortar, thrown from a vehicle — the same situation," Eubanks told me. Now, he’s teaching recruits at Marine Corps Base Quantico — and walking with a cane.

Steve over at Wizbang, chimes in on this, in a way, that I never could ever match:

Unlike The Message(TM) fed to us at every turn, we are not a nation of community organizers, bitter malcontents or hyper-intellectuals or even ‘education reformers’ rubbing ideological elbows with Hugo Chavez.

We are a nation of quiet doers, not just loud mouthed gripers.

We, America, remain as we always have been – a Nation of Sergeants; a people who fight with grit, think with clarity, enter each day with determined work ethic, and love with intensity. And our love of country – for what it is, not simply some farcical vision of what it could be or should have been – is no more blind or rote than our love of family.

And it is just as fierce.

We are a Nation of Sergeants. Thank you, Sgt. Eubanks, for your service, your sacrifice, and for your reminder. Semper Fi, Marine.

To that, I simply add, a solemn; Amen.

This, is why I could never vote Democrat come November 4, 2008. The Democratic Party just does not give flying flip about our Military. Barack Hussein Obama has never served a damned day in our Nation’s Military. He just does not fucking get it it at all. Yes, I do realize that our going into Iraq was a tragic mistake, caused by a incompetent and possibly lazy intelligence department. But for this Nation to pull itself out of a situation that we created ourselves; would be the greatest strategic blunder, since the United States of America’s withdrawal from Vietnam.

If we quit, before it’s time. All those that we lost, will have been lost; for nothing.

Others: The Corner and Babalu Blog

Highly Recommended Reading: Prairie Fire – The forgotten communist manifesto of William Ayers

pfcoverbig

This comes via Zombie Time. It’s highly recommended thing to read.

The finer points are:

Ayers was not simply protesting “against” the Vietnam War. Firstly, he wasn’t against war in principle, he was agitating for the victory of the communist forces in Vietnam. In other words: He wasn’t against the war, he was against our side in the war. This is spelled out in great detail in Prairie Fire. Secondly, and more significantly, the Vietnam War was only one of many issues cited by the Weather Underground as the justifications for their violent acts. As you will see below, in various quotes from Prairie Fire and in their own list of their violent actions (and in additional impartial documentary links), Ayers and the Weather Underground enumerated dozens of different grievances as the rationales for their bombings — their overarching goal being to inspire a violent mass uprising against the United States government in order to establish a communist “dictatorship of the proletariat,” in Ayers’ own words.

• Ayers and his co-authors freely brag about their bombings and other violent and illegal acts, and even provide a detailed list, most likely typed up by Ayers himself, of the crimes they had committed up to that point. Ayers’ list, scanned directly from Prairie Fire, is shown below. He may have escaped conviction due to a legal technicality (the prosecutors failed to get a warrant during some of their surveillance of the Weather Underground), but this in no way means that Ayers was factually innocent of the crimes. As has been widely reported, after the case against him was dropped, Ayers described himself as “guilty as hell, free as a bird.”

• Just because Ayers tries to appear respectable now doesn’t mean that he wasn’t a violent revolutionary in the past. In fact, as the text of Prairie Fire shows, Ayers was one of the most extreme extremists in American political history. And as the links given as the end of this essay will prove, Ayers is just as politically radical now as he was back then. He has never renounced the political views he professed in the 1960s and 1970s. The only difference is that now he no longer commits violence to achieve his goals. After his stint as the leader of the Weather Underground, he shifted to a different tactic: to spread his ideology under the aegis of academia. But the goal remains the same: to turn America into a communist nation. Ayers’ contemporary writings contain many of the same ideas (and even the same phrases) found in Prairie Fire, just toned down to make them more palatable in polite society.

Please, go read the rest at Zombie time!

I look at stuff like this and I just have to ask myself. Just what the fuck exactly are we electing for President? I dont know

Others: The Jawa Report, Little Green Footballs, Don Surber and Stop The ACLU and more via Memeorandum

RNC Spends $150K to make Sarah Palin look good

Sorry gang, got a late start today. Slept till noon. SleepyYawn I needed to catch up. Didn’t get much sleep the last few days. Because Dad was in the hospital. So, I’m a little sluggish today. Sigh

—–

The big story today is that the RNC spent $150K on wardrobe and make up on Sarah Palin and some within the Republican Party are not happy about it.

The reactions are mixed:

Michelle Malkin says “Heckuva job, RNC”

John McCormack at the Weekly Standard wants to know “How much is Hillary Clinton’s Wardrobe worth?

Don Surber says it was money well spent and based on some of these, well, interesting photos of her, I think he’s correct. Hee heeWinking

Ann Althouse wants to know if it is legal or not.

My Take: At this point, I do not think that this will all matter at all. Considering how John McCain is doing in the polls.  I believe that this is a distraction generated by the Liberal media to cover up for the huge gaffes made by Joe Biden.

Further more, I believe it is a distraction to focus away from the real facts about Barack Obama. In fact Ed over at Hotair.com and a few of his friends, have made up a very good case against Barack Obama. I suggest that you read it before voting.

The Sad truth about Sarah Palin

My Mom, of all people, sent me this… I think it speaks the truth myself.

This comes from Brasscheck TV:

…and if the polls are any indication, The public is quite informed about her too.

I think we’re about to see four to eight years of solid Liberal rule in this country.

Thank You Mr. Bush for royally fucking your Political Party, Conservatism and yes, Libertarianism squarely in the ass. You beedy-eyed fuck.

Needless to say, this election is going to be historic.

Idiot Moonbat quote of the day….

From that Homosexually owned Moonbat center, Media Matters for America:

Matt Drudge is still doing his loyal best to boost the chances of the GOP down the homestretch in the form of a blizzard of anti-Obama and pro-McCain links on his site. (Last week, it was the half-baked McCain “comeback” that Drudge hyped relentlessly.)

And there’s no question that Drudge’s Web traffic remains strong and continues to grow, thanks to a burgeoning international audience. But in terms of setting the ground rules — in terms of setting the campaign agenda — Drudge has been AWOL since mid-September when the credit crisis erupted.

His current spectator status mirrors that of the low-flying right-wing bloggers. Just as the bloggers were hailed for their (pseudo) detective work in undermining CBS’ Dan Rather in 2004, Drudge was credited for the way he used his widely read platform to push the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth story into the mainstream press, which helped derail John Kerry’s campaign.

Four years ago, Drudge and the right-wing bloggers were at the peak of their political power. Today, they’re pretty much watching the election pass them by, reduced to the role of frustrated sideline hecklers.

Oh really? Raised Eyebrow I have news for that idiot, we Conservative Bloggers are still here, we’re still powerful and we’re not going any damned where. Enjoy the ride Moonbats, because that Magic Negro personal “Messiah” of yours has got to screw up sometime or another.

I mean, I just cannot wait till he is elected into office and then begins to break every damned last campaign promise that he has made in the past. That will be the best Blog fodder ever.  I just cannot wait for the frustrated Blog postings of “He Betrayed us!!!!”

It will make for some awesome hilarity, that is for sure.

Frustrated sideline hecklers, my ass. PhbbbtttAngryBring it onLoserRaised Eyebrow

The Obligatory Obama taking time off to be with ill grandmother posting

For the record, I think what Obama is doing, is totally awesome.

Considering what is going on with my Dad right now, I have to agree with this guy here.

Anyone who would knowingly insult a man’s dying grandmother and the man who’s showing the compassion to go and see her, especially at end stretch of the presidential campaign, well, that person ought to be shot.

Can you see now, why I am not a Republican? Not to mention John McCain’s insulting comments, during a time like this, I can only believe that is going to hurt him in the polls.

I’ve made my share of mistakes during my tenure of being a Blogger, I admit that. But to knowingly insult someone like that. It simply shows your colors man. I’m sorry, I cannot agree with that.

Yes, This is wrong too! – Tires slashed at an Obama Rally

For the record, I do think stuff like this is wrong too, very wrong. Angry

This story via the FayObeserver:

Someone slashed the tires of at least 30 vehicles parked outside the Crown Coliseum on Sunday during a rally for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, authorities said.

Sheriff’s deputies are investigating. The tires were cut while people were inside the Crown Coliseum listening to speeches, said Maj. E. Wright of the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office.

Many of the damaged vehicles were parked on Wilkes Road. Representatives from Obama and Sen. John McCain’s campaigns said they were unaware of the acts.

Susan Lagana, the North Carolina communications director for Obama, said it was extremely disappointing and unfortunate that “people would have to experience something like that.”

Mario Diaz, communications director for McCain, did not respond to a call late Sunday.

Sarah Revis, who lives on Wilkes Road, said the slashed tires left several women, including a single mother and a toddler, stranded and upset. At least four tow trucks were sent to move the vehicles from the Crown, Revis said.

“This is an embarrassment to this city and to me as a citizen,” Revis said. “I’ve seen women out here crying and men cussing. This is a crying shame.”

Lynne Steenstra said she thought that the slashings were scare tactics designed to keep her and others from supporting Obama.

Even though it cost her roughly $120 to get her Dodge Caravan towed and fixed, Steenstra said the act would not intimidate her from voting.

“It hasn’t deterred us one bit,” Steenstra said. “It has only encouraged us more. I just hope whoever did this pays the price.”

Yes, I do believe that this is wrong, damned wrong. Not only is it destruction of personal property, it could very well be voter intimidation. We live in the United States of America, not Russia. We are supposed to be able to vote for whomever we wish, this sort of thing, whether it is being done by Liberals OR Conservatives is wrong and should be dealt with as harshly as the law allows.

The sobering truth is that there is hate on both sides of the Political fence, and folks, I’m just going to say it, it’s damn wrong and it needs to stop.

I am sad to report that we will most likely see more of this as November 4’th approaches, I hope that McCain and Obama do the right thing and condemn these actions. While politics is a contact sport and this election is an important one. This sort of petty nonsense is totally uncalled for. 

We are Americans my friends, let’s not forget this. Vandalism is not the way to solve our nations problems or to settle this election.

Dude, where’s MY Union?

I was reading this morning over on a Liberal blog, about the return of the middle class and unions. As a Moderate, I will confess, I have no quarrels with unions. But as a bit of a Conservative, I do criticize them and their double standards.

This entry at firedoglake by someone calling themselves Joe Fish is of interest:

As a member of a union that I have to wonder about sometimes (ALPA, the Airline Pilots Association) I think it’s certainly worthwhile to talk for a minute about the Employee Free Choice Act and the role of unions in building a stronger middle-class and hence stronger America. Why do I wonder about ALPA? More on that in a minute…

A quick and simplistic review for those not old enough to remember the ultimate Federal Union Buster, Ronnie Reagan and his most excellent (in his mind) PATCO adventure. In 1981 the air traffic controllers union decided to go on strike and the controllers were fired by Reagan for violating a federal law banning strikes by governmental unions, although previous strikes by other governmental unions like the Postal Workers had not been punished by terminating their employees. Reagan’s views of unions was the same as virtually every other major republican figure of the 70’s and 80’s; that unions were the creation of the devil and the antithesis of American/Free Market capitalism and thus should be put down like Old Yeller… with a single shot to the head, but without the emotion.

This, of course, is a stretch of the truth and a bit of poetic license. Reagan was forced into the position that he was put in, by the union. Reagan knew that if the air traffic controllers had struck, commerce would have been interrupted and it could have led to a shut down in the economy. Reagan saw that and took action. One must remember, the economy was still shaky from the disastrous Presidency of Jimmy Carter.

Where does this apply to me? My Father is a U.A.W. member, I am very appreciative and grateful for the many great things that the Unions did for him. I am here today, because of that. I am also, as a history buff, very aware of the role that the unions had in the forming of this area here. However, as a man, I must ask the unpopular question, asked by many of the children of the Union members:

What exactly has the unions done for me?  The sad, but truthful answer is, nothing at all. Has the union ever approached my Father and offered me a job in the plant, where my dad worked, No. The closest thing I ever came to getting a job offer from the Union, was G.M. sending me for a test to see if I had the smarts to work for the company. Me and 10,000 other people. The test I took, there were people at this testing session with 2 year college degrees, who were having trouble with it. Needless to say, I never got a call to work for the company.

The sad truth is that the unions have simply become protectionists. There was a time when the unions had a legitimate role in defending auto workers from the out of control hiring and firing polices of the auto companies here in Detroit. But because of the greater control and stricter labor laws in America. Unions have lost their value. Not to mention the various trade agreements, passed by the Democratic President Bill Clinton, which was viewed by many unions as a “selling up the river”, caused the unions to lose their foothold in the organized labor movement.

This is not to say that I think that unions should be eliminated, not at all. I think if the unions want to be brought back into the mainstream and taken seriously again, the Democrats need to work to make them strong again. Like renegotiating trade agreements and if said countries will not, Op out of them. This was a early campaign promise of Obama. I wonder if he will honor it? This would cause the unions to become strong again. Also, giving tax breaks to companies who hire new blood, without all the restrictions, would be a bonus as well.

So, until this, I ask the question; Dude, where’s my union?

Depressing Quotes of the Day: Rush Limbaugh and Redstate Prove my Points

Remember what I wrote earlier about Colin Powell’s endorsement of Obama?

Well, it seems that Rush Limbaugh and someone over at RedState has basically proven my point.

Rush Limbaugh wrote to Jonathan Martin the following:

“Secretary Powell says his endorsement is not about race,” Limbaugh wrote in an e-mail. “OK, fine. I am now researching his past endorsements to see if I can find all the inexperienced, very liberal, white candidates he has endorsed. I’ll let you know what I come up with.”

As for Powell’s statement of concern this morning about the sort of Supreme Court justices a President McCain might appoint, Limbaugh wrote: “I was also unaware of his dislike for John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy and Antonin Scalia. I guess he also regrets Reagan and Bush making him a four-star [general] and secretary of state and appointing his son to head the FCC. Yes, let’s hear it for transformational figures.”

and over at Redstate:

So Colin Powell has endorsed Obama. Let’s see, Powell is pro-abortion. So is Obama. Powell is pro-affirmative action. So is Obama. Powell has stated repeatedly that tax policy should ensure fairness. Obama likewise wants to “spread the wealth.” The endorsement of Obama only demonstrates what unpaid prognosticators could have told those million dollar a year experts years ago. Powell never was a Republican. He has been aligned with the Democrats from the day of his retirement from service.

On today’s talk show, Powell explains: “I think he is a transformational figure.” THAT’S what I’m afraid of. Hitler, Stalin, and Pol Pot were all transformational too, Colin.

Another note to moderate Republicans: Hey guys, are you happy with your fellow moderate? No? You should be–this is what you moderates do. They pretend in order to achieve status, and then attack the hand that feeds them–to maintain that status. Yes, you keep telling us that Palin’s conservatism is what is sinking McCain. Really? Do you think that McCain picking another moderate would have changed Powell’s position? If you do, I’ve got a nice bridge to sell you.

Affirmative action is now at its zenith here. A unqualified candidate for president who has never run anything; who has never governed anything; and who has policies precisely on line with Karl Marx–is going to be put into our highest office solely due to his race. Doubt me? Just ask if Obama would be where he is at if he were a white man. The answer is inevitable.

The Republican party must clean house or it is lost.

My goodness, the Republicans are not even trying to hide it anymore. It has went from nuance and inferring to outright blantant racism.  The part I put into red is what really disturbs me. The Republicans and Conservatives are now officially channeling McCarthy. The whole Idea is, if you cannot beat him, you slander him with racism and attempt to paint him, as some sort of communist. It is the oldest trick in the book.

The the guy from Redstate tries to claim that Moderates are ruining his party. What a damn joke. It’s the moderates that have kept the Republican Party from becoming the next Whig Party! Which is right where it is heading now. Some would say and good for it too. Myself, I think it is a sad place that the Republican Party is headed. Change is needed within that party, but not this sort of a change at all.

Colin Powell Endorses Barack Obama for President of the United States

My thoughts in a moment, But first the video:

Via MSNBC:

Originally, I was going to word this article much differently. But I scrapped it. This is my take on Colin Powell’s endorsement of Obama.

At first blush, someone like me would think, “Well, he is endorsing him because he is black.” But I personally believe that it goes much deeper than that. As Colin Powell said in this video, the G.O.P. and John McCain’s campaign took a stance in this election that to even me, was disturbing. McCain and the G.O.P. basically decided to paint Obama as a terrorist by proxy.

I have written in the past on this Blog, that I have been totally disgusted at the way that McCain and the Republican Party have been handling this election and how they have painted Obama. Now, before anyone calls me a hypocrite, let me explain, I totally understand that there has been race baiting on the left. But there has also been calls to incite violence on the right as well. This has been fueled by the inferring of the McCain campaign that Obama is a Black Terrorist by proxy. This was a fatal strategy and it could possibly cause McCain to lose hard in the election. To his credit, McCain did switch gears as of recent and began harping on Obama’s statement of “Spread the Wealth”. Which lead to the liberal take down of “Joe the Plumber”.

However, it is this writers opinion, that it is, quite sadly; too little, too late. The damage is done, independents view McCain and Palin as white racists, who are out to smear and discredit a Christian black man, who is running for President. Not to mention that Economy is just not on the side of the Republicans.

Not to mention how the current President ruined it for the Republicans. His out of control spending, the war in Iraq; which is turning around for the good, much to the chagrin of the Liberals. The attorney general scandal, the spying scandal, it just goes on and on. The fact is that this election is not on the side of the Republicans. It is, as I have written many times before, the Reagan Revolution in reverse.

Which beings me to another point I feel the need to make. The Republican Party and the Conservative Movement has to realize something and it is a realization that is quite a painful one for some to swallow. The Reagan Revolution and era in politics is over. We are living in much different times, than we were in 1980. The problem is, most Conservatives still believe that it is 1980! They need to update their message, make it more relevant for this day and age.

To sum this up, I will basically say this, the endorsement of Barack Obama, by a well-known Black Republican should send a message to the Conservative community that you cannot finger a black man, who is running for President of the United States as a terrorist by proxy, because of his middle name, because of his skin color and because of people he has had past relations with. It just does not work. My only hope is, that the Republican Party and the Conservative Movement as a whole is listening to that message.

Update: My favorite quote from this interview was this:

And it is permitted to be said such things as, "Well, you know that Mr. Obama is a Muslim." Well, the correct answer is, he is not a Muslim, he’s a Christian.  He’s always been a Christian.  But the really right answer is, what if he is?  Is there something wrong with being a Muslim in this country? The answer’s no, that’s not America.  Is there something wrong with some seven-year-old Muslim-American kid believing that he or she could be president?

…

I feel strongly about this particular point because of a picture I saw in a magazine.  It was a photo essay about troops who are serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.  And one picture at the tail end of this photo essay was of a mother in Arlington Cemetery, and she had her head on the headstone of her son’s grave.  And as the picture focused in, you could see the writing on the headstone.  And it gave his awards–Purple Heart, Bronze Star–showed that he died in Iraq, gave his date of birth, date of death.  He was 20 years old. And then, at the very top of the headstone, it didn’t have a Christian cross, it didn’t have the Star of David, it had crescent and a star of the Islamic faith.  And his name was Kareem Rashad Sultan Khan, and he was an American. He was born in New Jersey.  He was 14 years old at the time of 9/11, and he waited until he can go serve his country, and he gave his life.

The Photo that Colin Powell is referring to is this: (H/T The New Republic)

My friends, this photo says it all. We are all Americans. No matter what Rush Limbaugh or anyone else from the Republican Party might say. While I may have a disdain for those extremist Muslims, who want to destroy this nation, it is these type of Muslims like Kareem Rashad Sultan that give me hope, that the Extremism in the Muslim Religion can be destroyed once and for all.

I really must wonder, can Michelle Bachman look this woman in the eye and say that she is Un-American?