Celsius Heat

Blind Faith

Having been forced into retirement a decade before I had planned, I find myself with a lot of time on my hands.  Besides writing novels, and I have written seven to date under the name of J. L. Kane, I love to read and listen to talk radio and television and the news channels.  Our Constitution has provided us, along with the sacrifice of so many men and women in our armed forces, with so many liberties and freedoms, that it is hard to imagine that anyone, who loves being an American, would abuse those hard earned gifts.

And yet, there is a truly dishonest division among those who purport to report to us the "truth," such that the public, at least those of us who can read and understand English, are often misled by what we read or hear or even see.

For example, our President, who came to office on a campaign of truth and transparency, has fooled a lot of people, mainly those who actually believed in his rhetoric.  Rather than truth, we have been fed lies and fabrications.  Rather than transparency, his administration is as opaque as the deepest depths of the oceans.  Instead of men and women who love the America, which our short history and sacrifice has given us, he has filled his cabinet and his advisory staff with men and women who want to see America changed into a Banana Republic, where pure Socialism is the rule of the day.

Take for example Mr. Obama's appointment to head medicare.  Rather than let the Senate question Mr. Donald Berwick, Mr. Obama made a stealth appointment of Mr. Berwick while Congress was in recess.  Of course, this is all quite legal, but one has to question the reason behind this appointment.  Mr. Berwick believes that those of wealth must "share" with those who have not attained that level.  Mr. Berwick believes in all of the talking points of a socialistic society, as does our President.  And yet, what have "you" heard about this stealth appointee from our "neutral" news outlets?  I have heard nothing!

This new appointee, Mr. Donald Berwick, has been described as a one man "death panel," and he now controls the reigns of Mr. Obama's new national health care plan.  Has there been any learned discussion about this conflict of interests?  None!  As a matter of fact, just how much has the press explained to you about that 1000 page plus health care plan?  Nada!  Nicht! Nothing.  However, given the fact that Medicare consumes a very large portion of our gross national product, come 2014 and you will rue the day you allowed this monstrosity to pass.  It is all part of the overall plan to socialize our society so that we conform with the other middle class nations of the world.

How much have you gleaned from your favorite news outlet about the Black Panthers and their rabid speech in front of a polling location?  Perhaps you are not interested in their views on "crackers" or "white babies."  If this were the 1960's, the FBI and the Department of Justice would be arresting and indicting people today.  And yet, another Obama appointee, the head of the Justice Department Eric Holder, seems to have a problem with reverse racism.  He is doing nothing about this obvious case of discrimination ( see the 13th, 14th and 15th amendments to the Constitution) and voter intimidation, and has been, most likely, told by his superior that nothing will be done now or in the future.  After all, a 10% minority still remains a powerful voting block for the 2010 and 2012 elections.  After all, isn't this how Jesse Hi - Jackson operated to fund his Rainbow Coalition, with intimidation and threats against major corporations?  And by the way, where has Jesse been lately?  Speaking of Jesse, where has the Rev. Al been?  They have been told to shut up and let the big dog eat.

Speaking of voting blocks, why not just give the millions of illegal aliens, now in this country, who have found our borders to be as porous and the minds of Liberals, amnesty?  Why protect this nation from illegals, when allowing them to enter and become American citizens virtually guarantees another viable voting block for the upcoming elections?  And yet, how often do you hear those left leaning talking heads and the liberal press discuss the hazards and threat to the American way of life, as a result of this failure to protect our borders.

Oh yes, I listen to Rick Sanchez on Rick's List (unlike my liberal friends, I try to hear both sides of an issue) talk about this nation and how it was built on the backs of immigrants.  Well, just to inform Rick, this nation is no longer living at the end of the nineteenth and early twentieth century.  As I have stated before, we are all descendants of immigrants.  However, times and nations evolve.   Times change, America has changed, and we no longer are an immigrant seeking nation, and certainly not those  of the illegal status.  Be reasonable Rick.  Just because we had slaves in the mid nineteenth century does not mean that we should have them today.  Get it through your thick liberal head that just as the Supreme Court has overruled past Stare Decisis, and I mean very bad past holdings, with the changes that have evolved over time, America must accept the fact that what once was may no longer be.  Article I states that Congress has the "duty" to legislate as to immigration.  It does not have the non - duty to sit on its ass, and it certainly does not have the duty to allow one or more of its border states to be over run with illegals.

Oh yes, we hear a lot about the Arizona immigration law, and how it is preempted by Article I of our Constitution, but do we ever hear the honest truth about the consequences of the inaction by the Obama administration and his lackey head of homeland security ( pardon the smirk)   Janet Napolitano, as to the threat to our way of life?  Of course not.  After all, most of us are just trying to scrape by.  We voted with our wallets in 2008, and that is where our concerns are now - the economy stupid.   Why read or listen to facts when we can be swayed by obfuscation amidst the smoke and mirrors of this administration?

Of course, we hear a lot about the Gulf oil spill, for which neither BP nor this nation were prepared.  That in itself is a demonstration of incompetence on both sides of the ocean.  But how much do we hear about Mr. Obama's shutting down operations of the hundreds of other wells in the gulf?  Nada!  Nicht! Nothing!.  And yet, we sit helplessly by as our needs for natural gas and oil are filled by unfriendly nations who will, in the end, win an advantage over us, an advantage that Mr. Obama certainly seems to be hoping for, in his continuing failure to lead.

Mr. Obama was in my home town of Las Vegas yesterday, trying to raise money for that hapless Senate majority leader Harry Reid.  Mr. Obama should never go anywhere to speak without a teleprompter.  He hemmed and hawed through his speech to 3000 blind sheep, and this was billed, by the press as a major turnout for the President and our lack luster Senator.  However, how many photographs has the press put out of the opposing demonstrators, who demonstrated their distaste for both men just outside the "invited guests only" reception?  By the way, how many photos of the Searchlight, NV tea party gathering have you seen.  I can tell you with 100% certainty that the crowd at this "for all citizens without regard to race, religion or party affiliation" anti - Reid gathering made the Obama - Reid crowd in Las Vegas look anemic.  As to the Searchlight photos, you have seen none!

I find it very interesting that my Democrat friends, and I do have Democrat friends, have been very quiet over the  last 8 or so months.  I even have begun to detect an sense of shame in their tone.  It seems, however,  that no matter what the subject matter of discussion is, they always seem to find their way back to George W. Bush.  It appears that they just cannot seem to get over it, and yet, despite the  poverty of leadership demonstrated by Mr. Obama, they, in their blind faith in liberalism and their party, cannot quite admit that they were fooled in 2008.  I mean they were really fooled by a consummate actor.  Well, acting is fine on the stage and screen, but it takes a true leader to run this nation, and brother, we have certainly not elected a true leader.  And yet, that rabid 40% or so just won't admit their stupidity and admit that perhaps, they made a major mistake in the voting booth.

I hope, if you are not in fear of retaliation by friend or enemy, that you will begin forwarding this blog to others.  Our national reserves are running low, and there are others, of a less kind quality, who wish to overtake us or perhaps worse, destroy us.  Then again, if you are like most of the left leaning news outlets, this blog has never been written.

JLK

We are what our elected officials make us out to be

Despite all the stimulus plans and fiat currency pushed into the public sector by our President and Congress, the economy remains dormant, at best, or still in a downward trend. The European debt crisis has the markets in a position without direction, and our debt crisis here is no better. At the same time, third world countries are growing at rates that put the first world to shame. Why? Because the third world nations never depended on debt in order to grow. China, India, to name but two, are growing at rates which will, if nothing changes, allow them to overtake first world nations as world leaders in industry, exports and quality of life. The reason is that when you own something, such as your home, and you have no mortgage, you need not worry, when times are hard, because you are not forced to sell or simply abandon your property. Therein lies one of America's major problems. Past administrations, such as the Clinton years, encouraged us to own our own homes but at the same time encouraged mortgage debt, debt which it appears now that many of us could ill afford.

You know things are not good when Europe, which boasted of a strong Euro for so many years, is now looking to the U.S. dollar and gold for a safe haven. The Euro, the currency of those debt ridden nations such as Greece, Portugal, Italy, Spain, is tanking, as those economies are failing, due to intolerable debt. By turning to the dollar, these nations actually believe that they are secure. The truth of the matter is that since Nixon unlinked Gold from the dollar in 1971, the United States has been printing a fiat currency with abandon, while at the same time, borrowing from investor nations, so that there is nothing backing our dollar and our treasury bonds but the full faith and credit of the United States. Personally, as an investor, I have little faith in either.

As a result, precious metals, such as gold and silver, along with other commodities and other tangible investments, have been rising to record highs. As a result of our out of control spending and borrowing, America is traveling the same road as Europe has been traveling. We are just not as far along on that road to hell.

There are nations in Europe, such as Germany, whose economic condition is still sound, but as such, Germany is being called upon to bail out the debtor nations to an extent which may cause the Germans to balk. If this happens, then the European Central Bank will begin to print Euros just as we have been printing dollars, for the last 60 years, and it would not surprise me to see the rioting in Europe increase and spread to the U.S. The demise of the European welfare state, a form of government which the liberals have been trying to create here in America since our government took over our education system, is inevitable. Unfortunately, that same educational system, which has made most Europeans socialists, is at work here in the U.S., as demonstrated by our election of President Obama.

If you were born after 1970, you probably do not realize that you were born into bankruptcy. Your federal government has planned, since your birth, to take every cent you make for use in this welfare state. However, the current economic patterns across the world are finally allowing the young blind statists, educated by a system which praised big government and downplayed individualism and entreprenurialism , to realize the error of their ways. The welfare states corruption and ill devised plans are too enormous to hide.

Other nations have suffered the same fate. Just look at Chile 1970's, when socialism, hyper inflation and annual price increases of 150% or greater led to rioting, a military coup and the death of the president of Chile. Argentina, at the same time, had prices rising at 5000% per year, and that was with government instituting price controls. Rioting by both the poor and the middle class were the result. Brazil has no middle class - you are either rich or your are poor, and that is the direction being taken by this administration, as we continue to spend and borrow beyond our means.

I realize that what I am saying is drastic, but were it not for the precedent of prior national examples, we might not recognize all that is occurring around us. Just because we have been top dog for the last century does not mean that we have a right to remain at the top. Sooner or later, the end result of all these government spending and borrowing programs, in addition to the billions we are spending on nation building in war torn nations, which may never be democratic no matter how much we try, is going to come back to haunt us. You think that we could never go the way of the Soviets. You believe that our Constitution can protect us from any abrupt changes in our system of government. Do not kid yourself. We are what our elected officials make us out to be, and so far, this administration is doing little to impress me with their vision.

JLK

One Man's a Leader and One's an Empty Suit

If you think that General McChrystal faces serious problems tomorrow, in his meeting with President Obama, I know of someone who is in far deeper trouble from the fallout of McChrystal's Rolling Stone interview - the President himself. One has to remember that if Mr. Obama removes the General from command, it will have been his second time, in his short term in office, to act in this manner, when it has been decades since such an executive decision was made by a sitting President.

The President, after the scheduled meeting between the two men, may do nothing about the issue or he may reprimand the General and send him back to the field, or he may fire him for insubordination. The basic problem for the President is that McChrystal stated the obvious truth as to our war effort in Afghanistan, and Mr. Obama cannot deny the truth. We are not winning the war, and if anything, we are slowly having our life's blood sucked from us, in much the same way the Soviets did when they fought the same enemy.

Our troops are fighting a defensive war with one hand tied behind their backs, and General McChrystal understands the obvious - we are not going to win the war by the time that Obama has called for a pull out of troops in one year. He knows it and thanks to Mr. Obama's decision on this dateline, the enemy knows. Unfortunately for Obama, although the war is being run according to the plan devised by McChrystal and accepted by the President, with fine nuanced tweeking done to the plan by the President which demands that Afghan civilians be spared or protected, by tempering the offensive nature of our men on the ground, it is the President and not the General who has placed our troops in harms way. If I knew the enemy was going to pull out in one year, I would hold back and wait. Why use all my forces up when time is on my side? That is what Obama's interference with the war effort has done.

War is hell, and the one's who usually pay the biggest price are civilians. Unfortunately, our President, a man with no military experience, and need I say little experience at the requirements of his executive position, is trying to wage a war that cannot be won under his terms. His apologetic attitude, to the other nations of the world, for past harms done by the United States, has tempered his ability to wage a complete war with victory as the final goal. When we pull out in one year, if his plans are carried out, we will have done nothing insofar as our goal to destroy the enemy.

The problem for the President however goes much deeper. While McChrystal can say to hell with it and hand in his letter of resignation, knowing he did his best under the circumstances of an inept Commander and Chief, Mr. Obama has a more serious problem to face. The war plans call for an attack on Kandhar Province, in the near future, an attack which General McChrystal has sole responsibility for insofar as preparation and planning. His resignation or firing would set back those plans and thus have a serious effect on the pull out date. With the General goes his staff, leaving no one in the field who understands the current plans of war. Bringing a new commander would take time, and time is one thing Mr. Obama does not have.

In addition, pulling the commanding General from the field requires his replacement almost immediately, and Obama has been reluctant to do anything of an emergent nature "almost immediately."

Finally, firing General McChrystal or accepting his resignation again would demonstrate to the U.S. voter just how weak their President is, from the standpoint of accepting truthful criticism about his administration, when that same administration is now bogged down and seemingly helpless amidst the BP oil disaster. It would make Obama appear to be a person who may be suited for the neighborhoods of Chicago, but certainly not the White House.

Were I McChrystal, if the end result were simply a reprimand, I would not go back to Afghanistan unless the President and those in his administration, who are in charge of the civilian aspect of running this war, agreed to allowing our troops to fight in the same manner that our troops did in Europe in the last great war. Civilians died, property was destroyed, cities were turned to ash, but we won the war. Unless we are allowed to fight a full war, there is no sense in us even being in Afghanistan, and certainly no sense for McChrystal to return to that country just to have himself used as a target for the civilian administration of this President. I would bring our troops out and increase our own border security, where it is needed the most. If the cruel Soviets could not beat the Afghans, our tempered forces stand no chance.

Thus, the problem being faced tomorrow is not being faced by General McChrystal and his staff, but rather the President and his staff. Once again, our President is being called upon to act Presidential. Chances are he will once again screw it up.

JLK

Posterous Page

Celsius Heat is trying to stay up to date with modern technology and software/web applications and Posterous is the first of many we will try.