Day: July 7, 2016

Patriotism, What’s It Good For?

Patriotism?  Now there is a subject that we all cannot agree on……. at any time….some will write or talk about what it means to be patriotic….and at NO point will any two people agree with the assertion….

So the study that I refer to is a simplified study on only one aspect of what it means to be patriotic……

Americans are a proud people but they’re no longer bursting with patriotism the way they were earlier this century, according to the latest Gallup poll. Some 52% of respondents said they were “extremely proud” to be an American, which is the lowest rate recorded this century. The rate was 54% months before the 9/11 attacks, after which patriotism surged, with 70% saying they were “extremely proud” by 2003. In the latest poll, another 29% said they were “very proud” to be American and 13% “moderately proud.” Some 5% told pollsters they were “only a little proud” of their country, and 1% weren’t proud at all.

Patriotism dipped in 2006 then held steady until 2013, when it tumbled a few more points, the Washington Times notes. According to Gallup, “Americans’ continued frustration with national conditions—likely tied to their concern about the economy and lack of faith in public institutions—is probably one reason patriotism is at a recent low point.” As in 2001, liberals, Democrats, nonwhites, college grads, and people 18 to 29 years old are less likely than average to say they are extremely proud to be American. But in a shift from 2001, people 50 to 64 are now, on average, more proud of their county than the over-65s.

Then of course there are those toads that try to capitalize on the term “patriotic”….Bud comes to mind in this case……

In an election year filled with the phrase “Make America Great Again,” it’s perhaps appropriate that Anheuser-Busch InBev is introducing packaging for Budweiser that, as USA Today puts it, is going to “throw some America on it.” Per Advertising Age, the company confirmed Tuesday it will be swapping out the labels on its 12-ounce Bud bottles and cans, replacing “Budweiser: King of Beers” with limited-edition labels that say “America,” accompanied by “E Pluribus Unum,” “Indivisible Since 1776,” and, courtesy of Woody Guthrie, “From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream waters, this land was made for you and me.” The new labels will start to roll out May 23 and will continue through November, with a goal of “[inspiring] drinkers to celebrate America and Budweiser’s shared values of freedom and authenticity,” per a press release.

The short-lived packaging for the brand—the third most-popular beer in the US, per the Atlantic—is part of its “America Is in Your Hands” campaign. “We are embarking on what should be the most patriotic summer that this generation has ever seen,” the VP of Budweiser says, pointing out Team USA’s competition in the Summer Olympics, as well as July Fourth celebrations, the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service, and June’s Copa America Centenario soccer tournament, being held in the US for the first time. “I feel like I’m drinking an artifact bound for a Michael Moore documentary—something that’s enjoyable when consumed in an ironic way, with a sort of Stephen Colbert, Team America, Mission Accomplished bravado,” writes Mark Wilson for Co.Design.

My guess is the the Pentagon is writing a check for this change…..I mean if they will pay NFL teams to have “soldier appreciation day” then this is a cake walk.

Patriotism is a subjective term and means nothing to anyone….these days it is spread around like peanut butter along with the term “hero”…..

Riverine Mystery Solved

By now most Americans will not recall this incident….they have moved on to other things……but…….

I waited a few days after a report to see how the blogosphere would react….especially those on the Right….and as I thought there was little mentioned in their daily regurgitation….so I guess it is up to me after all……but since it will not confirm the paradigm about our troops then it also was ignored….(go figure)….

Back in January of this year there was an international incident that sent the American press into a batcrap crazy frenzy……that situation was the capture of Americans sailors in Iranian waters….I wrote a couple of posts after I saw the vid that the Iranians provided……to get a little background may I suggest that you spend some time to familiarize yourself with the posts I wrote…..

https://lobotero.com/2016/01/15/iran-i-have-questions/

https://lobotero.com/2016/01/28/iran-the-riverine-mysteries/

The government the other day has released its finding is the cause of this incident……

On Thursday, the US Navy released its official report on the 10 sailors detained by Iran last January, and the whole thing sounds like something out of Down Periscope. Problems started instantly, as the two Navy vessels left Kuwait for Bahrain four hours behind schedule, Fox News reports. The vessels then attempted to take a shortcut, veering off course without any apparent concern for where they actually were. According to Reuters, that’s how the vessels ended up passing through Saudi Arabian waters before suffering mechanical difficulties in Iranian territory. The report found that all it would have taken to figure out their location was for a crew member to zoom in on their navigation system’s map. Instead, 10 sailors were captured by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

And the problems continued. “It is clear that some, if not all, crew members provided at least some information to interrogators beyond name, rank, service number, and date of birth,” Reuters quotes the report as saying. Information given up by sailors included passwords to phones and laptops and the capabilities of their vessels. The detained sailors also shouldn’t have eaten on camera, as the video was used as propaganda by Iran, CNN reports. The problems with the mission were blamed on low morale, bad planning, and lack of oversight, among other factors. Or as CNN sums up: “Crews were poorly prepared, their boats not properly maintained, communication almost entirely lacking.” The Navy will use the incident as a “case study” in the future.

Having dealt with these agencies in the past I can say here and now…BULLSHIT!

First, if you believe these findings then I have a bridge that can be yours for the right amount of cash……

Now that it comes out that they (Iranians) were given laptops, passwords and other “sensitive” equipment and/or information…..that was the operation all along….false intel…..

Beyond that…we are told that the US troops are the best trained and armed force in the world, right?  Then how do they want to explain this statement…..“Crews were poorly prepared, their boats not properly maintained, communication almost entirely lacking.”  Is it a one time thing or is it a symptom?

When the original story broke I said there was something terribly wrong with the story as told to the press….how stupid do they think we are?

Mystery solved!

Doesn’t Fit The Paradigm

Here in the West the news media is the leading purveyor of propaganda…..if it does not fit the paradigm that they have set up then the report will not appear or will be used as filler.

As today….the paradigm that many want to believe is the ISIS somehow represents ALL Muslims….of course this is as ignorant as any one person could be….but that will not stop the mental midgets from ranting…..

For instance I read a story about 2 days ago and waited to see how the western MSM would handle it…..and after waiting they handled it as I thought they would….they ignored the report and just kept on with the BS……

The report I am talking about…….

Yet more high-profile terror attacks: Suicide bombers struck three cities in Saudi Arabia on Sunday, including in Medina near one of the holiest sites in Islam. In the latter incident, the explosion took place outside the mosque where the Prophet Muhammad is buried, reports AP. Several cars caught fire, and local media showed images of what appeared to be a fire outside one of the buildings overlooking the Prophet’s Mosque. The number of casualties was unclear, though Reuters reports three bombers and two security forces officers were killed. The sprawling mosque is visited by millions of Muslims from around the world each year during pilgrimages to Mecca. The area would have been packed with pilgrims for prayer during the final days of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, which ends in the kingdom on Tuesday.

Also Monday evening, a suicide bomber and a car bomb exploded near a Shiite mosque in eastern Saudi Arabia, several hours after another suicide bomber carried out an attack near the US Consulate in the western city of Jiddah. Neither of those two attacks killed anyone but the bombers. The possibility of coordinated, multiple attacks across different cities in Saudi Arabia on the same day underscores the threat the kingdom faces from extremists who view the Western-allied Saudi monarchy as heretics and enemies of Islam. Saudi Arabia is part of the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria. The violence follows attacks in Iraq, Bangladesh, and Turkey.

This is not the act of a true believer…..for NO one would attack the “Prophet’s Mosque” as it is a truly Holy site…..

There is more……so many on the Right keep harping that there are 1000s of refugees willing to come here for no other reason than killing Americans….basically all Muslims want death to the infidels….

Here is another story that will not fit the paradigm……

Iraqi Muslims celebrated Christmas to show solidarity with Christians last year, while the Chaldean Catholic Church announced a day of fasting during the holy month of Ramadan this year to show that all Iraqis are united.

Father Maysar Bahnam of Mar Korkis Catholic Church in Baghdad told Al-Monitor, “Christians are organizing activities to reach out to Muslims. Our church organized on June 9 an iftar [meal served at sunset] for the fasting Muslims, as an annual tradition that promotes coexistence between Christians and Muslims.”

The official in charge of the church’s Social Committee, Issam Maskouni, told Al-Monitor, “Organizing an iftar for Muslims provides a meeting point for Muslims and Christians far from sectarian bickering and in an atmosphere free from the hate speech and divisive rhetoric prevailing in the political scene.”

Source: How religious holidays are uniting Iraqi Muslims and Christians

This will most likely fall onto deaf ears for it does not fit the paradigm that some want…..

How America became the most powerful country

The war hawks and others are always saying that the US is the most powerful country on earth….if it is true…how did it become so?

Those who call themselves “patriots” are always spouting diatribes……all that chest thumping is marvelous but like so much in politics is an applause line not something substantial….like why and how did it become this omnipotent nation……

I found a little ditty that can explain just how this came into being…….

We take it for granted that the United States is the most powerful country on Earth today, and perhaps in human history. The story of how that came to be is long, fascinating, complex — and often misunderstood. Here, excerpted in part from “70 maps that explain America,” are maps that help show some of the key moments and forces that contributed to the US’s rise as sole global superpower.

Source: How America became the most powerful country on Earth, in 11 maps – Vox

History is a cruel bitch!