Day: September 14, 2015

‘Seven Days In May’ Scenario

Actually a great novel and great movie starring Burt Lancaster and Kirk Douglas back in the 60’s…..the plot is that a group of military officers plan a military coup to take over the US from what they saw as a weak president….

Back years ago I wrote a post about Blackwater, a private security firm that has its own army and air force, and their time in Iraq and Afghanistan….I wrote then how I was leery of any company that employs its own military that they could be used to make the scenario treated in a movie come true…..

But would Americans really allow such a a scenario play out?

Good question?

Americans in general trust their military—and 29% of them trust so much that they can imagine supporting a military takeover of the government, according to a YouGov poll. That rose to 43% among Republicans, while just 20% of Democrats said they could envision supporting a military coup in the US. When respondents were asked if they could potentially support the military “stepping in to take control from a civilian government which is beginning to violate the Constitution,” the overall number saying yes rose to 43%, though a military coup itself wouldn’t exactly be constitutional.

The same poll found that most people have a lot more respect for military officers than they do for civilian leaders: Some 71% said military officers put the interests of the country ahead of their own interests, while just 12% thought the same about members of Congress. But there’s probably no need to worry about tanks rolling down Pennsylvania Avenue or a Main Street near you anytime soon: The Pentagon hasn’t shown much interest in taking over the nation, and a University of Pennsylvania expert tells the Guardian that the YouGov poll, like any online poll, isn’t likely to be truly representative of the US population. (Texas Gov. Greg Abbott ordered the State Guard to keep an eye on the military this summer.)

Does this not give a normal person pause?

I realize that some hate Obama and think is somehow in cahoots with the bad guys….but support a military coup?

Now I really would like thoughts on this…….

The militarization of the refugee crisis

It has been a helluva week for international news….so much happening and few care….why is that?

The issue du jour is …..refugees.

That means that people cannot get past the headlines……

It is today’s hot button topic that will drive some into a fit of batcrap crazy rants…..and others to check their humanity…..

With that comes all the misinformation and even worse the lies.  Few will look beyond the headlines and try to understand the situation……instead they want to paint these people as some sort of threat in the making.

I have read some pretty racist stuff…..some compassionate stuff……and a bunch of just plain HATRED!

To me I see the situation as a crisis of our own making……I mean think about it…..would you be searching for a better life if you had to live like this…….

If that does not answer the question…..then how about this….?

If a person cannot understand the refugee crisis then there is nothing left of their souls…….if they ever had one….

Source: The militarisation of the refugee crisis – Al Jazeera English

I can understand the people that are concerned about things…..but I can also understand why these people are doing what they are doing…..but I refuse to pretend that this situation is the fault of the people that are looking for a better life…..they are not trying to take over a country….just trying to find a place they can live without worrying about which group will bring death to their door…..

I pray that none of my detractors ever have to face a situation where they have to make a decision that we have just discussed…..or ever have to feel the distrust and in some cases the hate that these people are facing today…..

Can anyone else understand that?

ISIS: Cooking With Mata Hari

First Mata Hari was a German spy during World War One….in case the name was throwing anyone’s concentration off…..(historic reference of the day)…….spies will set the tone of this post……

There have been times in our history when the books and information has been cooked (altered) to justify a military reaction…..

The first one that come to my mind is the Gulf Of Tonkin Incident which lead to the involvement in the war in Vietnam….the situation between the US ship and the gunboats of North Vietnam was manipulated to make the case that the US needed to retaliate for this blatant attack.

Next one that my mind ‘s filing system stopped on was the mash up to the invasion of Iraq in 2003…..we all know about the lies told by Cheney, Bush, Wolfowitz, Libby, et al that got the Congress and the people to authorize a war….

Now there is the possibility that our current conflict with ISIS may fall into the category of “cooked” intelligence….

More than 50 intelligence analysts working out of the U.S. military’s Central Command have formally complained that their reports on ISIS and al Qaeda’s branch in Syria were being inappropriately altered by senior officials, The Daily Beast has learned……(read more)…….

Source: Exclusive: 50 Spies Say ISIS Intelligence Was Cooked – The Daily Beast

I have been writing that the intel reports do not substantiate the conditions that are being reported from the ground…..looks like there is more afoot than a game in the Middle East.

Once again I point to the need for propaganda in this conflict…..it is the only way to keep the American people in the politicians’ pocket….

The Pentagon is quietly reviewing their failed policy of treaining “moderate” rebels a program that the intel people said would be the best way to handle ISIS without the use of American troops on the ground…(BTW, I refuse to use “boots on the ground” it is demeaning to our troops…it dehumanizes them).

In case my reader is interested there is another report along these lines…..

Source: US spy chief’s ‘highly unusual’ reported contact with military official raises concerns | US news | The Guardian

Do you still trust everything you are told?

If wo then maybe you would be better off voting for a charlatan like Trump….

Lobbyists: Scourge Of The Hill

How many times have you written or heard or read…that there needs to be something done about these damn lobbyists?

Personally, I think we need to lock them all in a dog pit and let them fight to the death….but that is just me…..

I have heard many people ask if there is anything we can do about Congresspeople becoming lobbyists…..actually there is some sort of law on record that they have to wait “x” amount of years before they can become one….sort good….but how can we stop them from cashing in on the big bucks from special interests?

Since the MSM will not talk about this I guess it is up to me to bring it out into the open…..

Senators Al Franken and Michael Bennet introduced a bill this month to ban the outrageous practice of former members of Congress cashing in as big money lobbyists.

The bill, the Close the Revolving Door Act, also:

  • Increases penalties for breaking the Lobbying Disclosure Act
  • Extends the ban on congressional staff becoming lobbyists, from only one year to six
  • Gives the public better online access to information about who lobbies Congress

Sign the petition: Tell Congress to pass the Close the Revolving Door Act to ban Senators and Representatives from ever becoming lobbyists.

Petition to Congress:
Serving in Congress shouldn’t be a tryout for a high-paying career as a lobbyist. Pass Senators Al Franken and Michael Bennet’s Close the Revolving Door Act without delay and ban members of Congress from becoming lobbyists.

See what you learned today……you learned that there are people in Washington that are actually working when in town and Sen. Franken and Bennett are two of those people…..

Next time you feel like bitching about the lazy bastards in DC….remember there are some that actually go there to work…..think Franken and Bennett……

Bernie Sanders’s plan to abolish private prisons, explained – Vox

Almost every candidate in this election cycle has something to say about the prison system and the overcrowding……like most elections it is a lot of lip service……few plans available for analysis…..

This overcrowding problem began with the Clinton admin and his hard line on crime….his “law and order” presidency…….and since those days little has changed.

Another of these problems within the prison system is the “for profit prisons”….the privatization of prisons has made someone billions and amplified problems a hundred fold

The presidential hopeful wants to fix a “broken criminal justice system.”  All that is good idea but who of the bunch actually has a plan?

Source: Bernie Sanders’s plan to abolish private prisons, explained – Vox

Bernie has been talking issues at all campaign stops and he has a plan….there may be others that I have not run across just yet…..but at least Bernie is speaking to truth here……..

Thoughts?