A Reconstituted Reagan Coalition?

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The Reagan presidency reconciled three elements that often seemed opposed to each other. These were the social, fiscal and defense conservatives respectively.

Today's world is much different than that of 1980 when Reagan began making his stump speeches across the country igniting a wave of prairie fires caused by discontent with big government. But the principles are the same. Limited government and lower taxes, keeping the federal government at bay.

Today there is no central national leader to lead the charge. Instead, the wave of indignation is occurring spontaneously at tea parties and town hall meetings nationwide. The lesson of November 3 is that Americans are reasserting their God given liberty which transcends political categories. Either the politicians will get on board, or they will face extinction in the upcoming elections.

Those who view Doug Hoffman's showing in New York's 23rd as a defeat completely miss the point of the reawakening process. As in the days of Ronald Reagan, this is all about redistribution, but not as Obama's supporters envision.

HOW SWEET IT IS

Both Wars Stink

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While the MSM has predictably jumped on the Obama bandwagon in distinguishing between the Iraq war as a war of choice as opposed to the Afghanistan war of necessity, the fact remains that both wars together have taken a huge toll in terms of American lives, economic resources, and world recognition. The criticism leveled against Bush 43 for leading American forces into Iraq is not altogether justified. There had to be some strong military response after 9/11. To blame everything on Al Qaeda, and the Afghan Taliban for harboring Al Qaeda, seems simplistic at best. Saddam's regime was far more brutal and dictatorial than that of the Taliban, and was responsible for some of the terrorist violence preceding 9/11.

Unfortunately, America's war crimes, particularly those directed against detainees many of whom were demonstrably innocent, more than offset any rational justification for war at this point. Capitalism breeds vindictiveness. The legitimate goal of interrogation gave way to the temptation to exact vengeance and to dehumanize and ridicule.

Obama's exit strategy is the beginning of our economic recovery. Iraq and Afghanistan will never become like us. The sooner we realize this, the better.

Obama's Afghan War Policy Makes Sense So Far

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Americans are sick and tired of nation building which is just a recipe for more big government. President Obama acts wisely in resisting the tempting pleas of the military brass for higher troop levels. The goal in Afghanistan should not be to remake a small nation into a democracy like us. The Afghans have clearly demonstrated that they do not want a society based upon free elections, even though we Americans may think that we know what is best for them.

As in Iraq, the best course to follow is to bring about an orderly exit of American and NATO forces as soon as possible through negotiating with the Taliban and other resistance forces, while avoiding a bloodbath. Karzai will have to go. It is just a question of how long he has to act as puppet.

Afghanistan was not the good, necessary war any more than Iraq was the bad war of choice. Saddam's was by far a worse dictatorship than that of the Taliban. Either way, Muslims do not believe in democracy. They believe in total submission to Allah. That is why their women cover their heads in public, and not because of a paternalistic, male dominated society.

Obama, being a Christian brought up in the Muslim tradition, is uniquely qualified to act as peacemaker with respect to Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran. The key to peace is that we show mutual respect for each other's civilizations and cultures.

Sour Grapes in Upstate New York

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The exit of the hand picked Republican candidate in upstate New York's 23rd Congressional District special election, and her endorsement of her Democrat rival, or rather they are both like two peas in a pod, is the height of cynicism. Since she is so liberal, why doesn't she just change her name to Abdullah and have it over with. At least that name would be a lot easier to pronounce.

Seriously, don't be surprised if the conservative candidate pulls off an upset victory in this race tomorrow. Both major party organizations, Democrat and Republican, are now clamoring behind their Napoleon whose Waterloo will be health care reform.

Has the GOP Run Its Course?

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The 23rd congressional race is shaping up to be a battle in upstate New York between two liberals and one conservative. The Republican candidate was hand picked to represent views antithetical to most conservative Republicans. This sends the clear message that the Republican Party is just another materialistic, bureaucratic monstrosity that does not represent real American citizens.

Is there room for a fledgling third party?

The country is leaning more and more toward doing away with abortion. Any sensible person realizes that jobs and the economy cannot take precedence over whether future generations of Americans are allowed to be born, or are killed off. The great lie foisted upon America is slowly being unraveled.

Independents are more likely to choose a third party candidate when both of the major parties show contempt for American good sense and values. The real problem is a lack of real community. Capitalists abhor authentic community spirit because it means that people will not be as easily cajoled into accepting bribes in exchange for their liberty. Authentic immigrant communities did exist, but were put down and ridiculed by greedy upstarts who themselves lived isolated from any real community. These cynics in turn were rewarded and built up by the wealthy class, until even the political leadership of the communities lost its authenticity and became part of the materialistic mass culture. This is the source of America's problems today. But it is also the source of a greater good, because the seeds of the communities that have disappeared still exist and are indestructible. The cultural war rages on.

The Copenhagen Fiasco and the G-20

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The Copenhagen Climate Summit looks like it may fizzle out. China and India, our future biggest economic rivals, have opted out. Likewise, Obama has RSVP'd that he will not be in attendance.

Despite the rhetoric, nations need to act together to bring greenhouse gasses under control. Extending carbon credits to nations and multinational corporations is a workable solution. As stewards of the environment, it does not make any difference how much pollution is man-made and how much is naturally caused. The point is, we must live within the limitations set by God.

At the recent G-20 summit, University of Pittsburgh student Kyle Kramer was forced to kneel by Chicago police for a trophy photo. This goes to show how irresponsible and out of touch some local government agencies are with the American people whom they are commissioned to serve. The bad news is that some law enforcement officers now regard themselves as Americops, or worse yet as Cosmocops (see inset). The good news is that more and more law enforcement and military are now taking their obligations to serve seriously, which brings hope that the higher level wrongdoers in government will face justice soon.