Buchanan once again makes a strong logical case on why McCain's foreign policy ideas are not rooted in reality.
I really can't see myself voting for McCain this election. I'd rather "throw my vote away" on a libertarian candidate. In a recent interview on Larry King Jesse Ventura sums up how bad our choices are better then I can. I agree with him, might as well vote none of the above.
Consider Ron Paul originally appearing in www.chattanoogan.com
posted January 22, 2008
I do not write this by candlelight to pretend the year is 1776, but rather as an attempt to draw on the mood of our founding fathers as I consider the current state of affairs. This letter goes out to each person who is greatly concerned with the direction our great country is going.
In this momentous election year, with only 6.5% of the delegates decided, and with many primaries just around the corner, we do well for ourselves and our future generations to step back from the busyness of the moment, to thoughtfully consider, and then to make our voice heard.
I have discovered a candidate who truly loves this country, who consistently votes for the benefit of those he represents, and whose integrity is unmatched. While several other candidates are currently listed on the "Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians" for 2007 list by Judicial Watch, you see a striking difference when you look at Dr. Ron Paul, who refuses to accept the congressional retirement program offered him because he has gone to Washington and remembered it is the people he represents who have to pay the bill for such things. Dr. Paul is the one candidate who consistently votes to reduce the tax-burden on hard-working Americans. While the other candidates promise more programs, Dr. Paul speaks out and votes against ever-increasing amounts of our paycheck going to the federal government, which tends to offer cookie-cutter solutions and includes more waste as it increases the layers of bureaucracy.
As for illegal immigration, again we see that Dr. Paul is guided by the principles that made this country great - freedom and opportunity, balanced with the rule of law. Dr. Paul makes sense when he says that you get more of something when you reward it. Therefore, in order to address this issue, we must secure the border, but we must also not have amnesty or birthright citizenship which motivate people to come illegally. For centuries, America has stood as a beacon of hope and a land of opportunity to the world; hope and opportunity that with hard work and ingenuity, one could enjoy the fruits of one's labor. But to systematically reward me with the fruits of your labor is ultimately de-motivating for both sides work ethic. Even where I thought it would be generous of me to help with my resources, it would be immoral for me to steal from you to "be generous" to others. Dr. Paul believes in motivating those that work hard by fair (lower) taxation, not in rewarding illegal behaviors by increased taking from the hard-working.
On matters of national defense, pretty much everyone agrees now that we went into Iraq on false pretense of threat to our safety as a nation. If we intended to invade to overthrow a cruel dictator, then we should have made it clear that was the mission, and we should have done it with well-laid plans for short-term military success and long-term stability and peace. I have the utmost respect and appreciation for each American who has enlisted to defend our country. But did not our founding fathers recognize the danger of absolute power corrupting absolutely when they carved checks and balances into our county's foundation? America needs a future president that is strong enough to resist the urge to take the power intended for congress to declare war. Following 9-11, when much of our countries leadership was pushing war, Dr. Paul voted in favor of going after the people involved in the attack, but was speaking out strongly in Congress against invading Iraq, who wasn't involved in 9-11. Isn't that what we need as a leader - someone with the foresight, clear thinking and wisdom to guide our nation in times of difficulty?
Similarly, a clear contrast can be seen between Dr. Paul and the other candidates in the recent discussion about Iran. While it appears that most of the candidates approach the discussion with the mentality of the local playground bully (with an arsenal of threats and intimidation), Dr. Paul speaks with wisdom, rather than more aggressive rhetoric that escalates the conflict. It greatly concerns me that some of these guys seem like they can't wait to get their hands on the "trigger button." When this country experiences a real external threat, we will have no shortage of volunteer troops to defend us. But with our troops spread so thin in police actions around the world, a draft is inevitable, and probably will be here soon with the current direction. The choice is ours: strength, wisdom and tact, or almost constant fighting.
It is worth noting that Dr. Paul comes to politics with a background as a physician, not as another lawyer. Our country needs a leader who can approach difficult issues to bring needed change toward good health for America, not special interests. Lobbyists pushing special interests go right past his door because he can't be bought. Another strong interest of his is the economy and monetary policy. He has studied these issues extensively, and I don't see any other candidate knowledgeable enough to debate with the fed chairman the short vs. long-term impact of the feds intervention and impact on the economy. Our economy cannot afford to have the leadership of this country anything less than well-studied on these and related issues.
Lastly, on the issue of electability, a Republican will win the Republican nomination, and that is for certain. But I would argue that the Republican Party would do itself no favor to bring to the November election another voice that echoes the same old thing you hear from the current administration. In fact, if our nominee sounds like they will offer four more years of the same, I will wonder if the Republican Party strategists were hijacked by the Democrats. Trouble on the economic home-front and trouble abroad plus four more years isn't exactly a recipe for success, no matter how unappealing the other options are. Meanwhile, Dr. Paul garners support from every spectrum of the political rainbow, not because he promises the government can give the pot of gold, but rather because he stands for hard-work, personal responsibility, freedom, and opportunity, within the rule of law. Isn't that what made us the envy of the world?
Yes, there is a lot at stake. The future is shaped by our actions now. If you want to vote for the status quo, there are plenty of others to choose from. But serious concerns on our shores and abroad require serious solutions to move us back in the right direction. With only less than 10% of the votes cast to determine the Republican nominee, let’s just go ahead and give the remaining 90% to the good doctor - representing Hope for America - Dr. Ron Paul.
David A. Shinn
Chattanooga
There's a candidate in the crowded field of republicans that really stands out that most people haven't heard about, Ron Paul. I encourage everyone to read up on this guy and see if you agree with me that this guy is one of the most refreshing politicians you've ever scene. Main Stream media is not giving this guy the attention he deserves.
There is a huge online buzz about this guy. There is also tons of video about Ron Paul on YouTube so getting up to speed on him is easy to do. Here are some videos I recommend to start with.
- Summary of Ron Paul
- Ron Paul at South Carolina Debate
- Ron Paul in New Hampshire Debate
- Ron Paul educates Guiliani on Terrorism
Ron Paul at Iowa Rally (These links are the best for getting details on policies he supports.)
- Economy
- Economics of Foreign Policy
- Non Intervention Politics
- Health of the State in a time of war.
- Liberty
The Main Stream Media, particularly Fox News, is just not giving this guy the credit he deserves. Although he's not doing strong yet in telephone polls remember that lots of people these days don't have land lines(Like myself and every one of my friends). Those are the same people are likely to find out about candidates on their own though the internet. I'll give three examples of just how biased Fox News is against this guy.
- Ron Paul rocking a Text Page Poll following the FOX Republican debate
- Ron Paul being talked about on Fox News about his belief that perhaps our Foreign Policy has something to do with Terrorism. *Keep in mind Ron Paul does not believe the conspiracies about Bush knowing about the 9/11 attacks prior to them happening and does not believe it was a missile that hit the pentagon.
- One more attempt to link him to some crazy people. Look at how well he handles the attack. Imagine Bush trying to stand up to this kind of questioning.
With Main Stream Media still not giving him the attention he deserves, if you like his message, pass it on to others. Tell them to go search on Google and YouTube about his view, speeches, and writings.
With all the over the top political adds that appear as election day gets closer here is an example of a real ad that didn't make the cut.
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From the drudge report
In the ad, Zucker, producer of SCARY MOVIE 4, recreates former Clinton Secretary of State Madeleine Albright's 2000 visit to North Korea. During the visit, Secretary Albright presented North Korean dictator Kim Jong Il with a basketball autographed by former NBA superstar Michael Jordan.An actress playing Secretary Albright is shown presenting Kim Jong Il with the Michael Jordan basketball, painting the walls of Osama bin Laden's Afghanistan cave and turning a blind eye to suicide bombers. In one scene her skirt rips as she changes the tire of a Middle Eastern dictator's limousine.
One GOP strategist said "jaws dropped" when the ad was first viewed. "Nobody could believe Zucker thought any political organization could use this ad. It makes a point, but it's way over the top."
Zucker is the producer and director of comedies such as "Airplane" and "The Naked Gun." In 2004, Zucker, a longtime Democrat, embraced the Republican Party based on concerns he had about national security issues and voted for President George W. Bush.
One of the most interesting use of blogs IMHO are military blogs. USA Today has posted an article talking about blogs written by soldiors in the field. I subscribe to numerous soldiors blogs. I also subscribe to blogs written by Iraqi citizens about the war. Here are the iraqi on the ground blogs I subscribe to:
*Note I subscribe to iraqi blogs with both favorable and unfavorable to get a more balanced perspective. I do not support the views in some of these blogs.
April 24th is considered the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide that took place in the beginning of the twentieth century. Even though most estimates put the death toll of Armenians at over a million people the Turkish government still denies it was genocide. Many people in the US never even learn about it in school. An interesting quote (its accuracy somewhat disputed) is from Adolf Hitler
"Our strength is in our quickness and our brutality. Ghengis Khan had millions of women killed by his own will and with a gay heart. History sees in him only a great State-builder. What the weak European civilization thinks about me does not matter. I have given the order, and will have everyone shot who utters one word of criticism...
Thus for the time being I have sent to the East only my Death's Head units, with the order to kill without pity or mercy all men, women, and children of the Polish race or language. Who still talks nowadays of the extermination of the Armenians?"
Unless you are one of those people who don't care at all about the world around you start reading Rantings of a Sandmonkey. In his most recent entry he explains why he thinks the Iraq was was started. I have to say I completely agree.
To Quote the NyTimes Article
Cardinal Bernard Law, who was forced to resign in disgrace as archbishop of Boston two years ago for protecting sexually abusive priests, was named by the Vatican today as one of nine prelates who will have the honor of presiding over funeral Masses for Pope John Paul II
By permitting Cardinal Law to take the limelight in Rome just when the church is mourning the death of John Paul, the cardinals have reminded American Catholics that their most painful recent chapter barely registered in the Vatican.
As scene on Daily Kos
and originally mentioned in the NYT Article
The parents of Terri Schiavo have authorized a conservative direct-mailing firm to sell a list of their financial supporters, making it likely that thousands of strangers moved by her plight will receive a steady stream of solicitations from anti-abortion and conservative groups. "These compassionate pro-lifers donated toward Bob Schindler's legal battle to keep Terri's estranged husband from removing the feeding tube from Terri," says a description of the list on the Web site of the firm, Response Unlimited, which is asking $150 a month for 6,000 names and $500 a month for 4,000 e-mail addresses of people who responded last month to an e-mail plea from Ms. Schiavo's father. "These individuals are passionate about the way they value human life, adamantly oppose euthanasia and are pro-life in every sense of the word!"