Tag: Political Rhetoric

Anti-Globalists Used to Be Left Wingers

During this past election there was a term bounced around and it has caught on for the Right wing when they are searching for an insult to anyone that disagrees with them….”globalist”.

I tried to cover this situation in an op-ed for my friend at Ace News Room…….

For a decade those people that do not agree with the bean brains on the Right have been labelled…..”apologists“……”elitists“……”socialists“…..”bleeding hearts” and now we are “globalists“…..which is fine but I am not sure that the nose pickers actually knows what the term means….other than a convenient insult.

But as with anything thing its meaning is subjective……subject to the whims and mental farts of idiots.

The “Globalist Agenda“….as defined by a conspiracy site(I would give a link but screw it…find the looney tunes for yourself)……

Source: Warning: The “Globalists” Are Coming | Ace News Room

And now for the part that so many dislike….my historic perspective…..(listen for the moans and groans)……

Not so long ago it was the Left that was spouting the anti-globalist rhetoric……

If the current political narrative pits Donald Trump’s “real Americans” against the “global elites,” in the waning days of the 20th century it was just the reverse. Organized opposition to global “free trade” agreements was overwhelmingly a province of the left (though with a diverse sprinkling of various small-scale traditionalists). Anti-globalization protesters suffered intense police repression and were treated as misfits, oddballs or at best an inscrutable coalition of disparate groups — although polls showed they enjoyed public support. If that earlier, pro-democracy anti-globalist movement had been listened to and engaged with by elites, we might not be facing the kind of much darker anti-globalist backlash we’re seeing today.

Source: Historic Switcheroo: Anti-Globalists Used to Be Left Wingers; Now It is Donald Trump | Alternet

Closing Thought–08Dec16

There Are No Facts!…….

I have had this conversation a couple of times…usually when I quote facts and then someone disputes their validity….by asking how do you know what are facts?  How do you know that these are truly facts?

It is easy….A Fact is just the a FACT!

For instance it is a FACT that the Golden Gate is a bridge…it is NOT a FACT that it is a taco…..see how that works?  Think that is silly?  NO more so than the slugs that argue against facts.

I revisit this issue because of something that I read…..a supporter of Donald Trump said in an interview….

“Well, I think it’s also an idea of an opinion. And that’s — on one hand I hear half the media saying that these are lies, but on the other half there are many people that go, no, it’s true,” Hughes said. “And so one thing that has been interesting this entire campaign season to watch is that people that say facts are facts, they’re not really facts.”

She went on, “There’s no such thing, unfortunately, anymore of facts. And so Mr. Trump’s tweet amongst a certain crowd, a large — a large part of the population, are truth. When he says that millions of people illegally voted, he has some — in his — amongst him and his supporters, and people believe they have facts to back that up. Those that do not like Mr. Trump, they say that those are lies, and there’s no facts to back it up.”

Source: Trump booster Scottie Nell Hughes gets blasted on NPR after saying ‘there’s no such thing as facts’

People that do not comprehend the concept of a fact are people that will readily believe a lie to influence their nature.

I stand by my assertion that….a Fact Is A Fact!

My day is done…all have a great remainder of the day….

Then There Is “American Exceptionalism”

As always during an election there will be those inevitable cheers about “American Exceptionalism” from one party or the other……in other words it is a call to see who loves America more.

But where did all this begin?  (And yes this is one of my historical perspectives….in case you were confused)…..and I am pleased you asked……

American Exceptionalism – What Makes America Different?
What is American Exceptionalism? Five decades after America gained independence, French political analyst Alexis de Tocqueville remarked on the exceptional character of the United States and gave us a great snapshot of what makes America different. Unlike other nations that were defined by ethnicity, geography, common heritage, social class, or hierarchal structures, America was a nation of immigrants bond together by a shared commitment to the democratic principles of liberty, equality, individualism and laissez faire economics.

But that is all well and good….but where did the term originate?

On the campaign trail, Mitt Romney contrasts his vision of American greatness with what he claims is Barack Obama’s proclivity for apologizing for it. The “president doesn’t have the same feelings about American exceptionalism that we do,” Romney has charged. All countries have their own brand of chest-thumping nationalism, but almost none is as patently universal — even messianic — as this belief in America’s special character and role in the world. While the mission may be centuries old, the phrase only recently entered the political lexicon, after it was first uttered by none other than Joseph Stalin. Today the term is experiencing a resurgence in an age of anxiety about American decline.

Read on, McDuff……..

‘American Exceptionalism’: A Short History

I had thought that it originated with Woodrow Wilson about the time of the beginning of World War One…..I was mistaken….it appears that it was originated by Joseph Stalin as a derogatory statement aimed at the US …..

Basically the cheer from the Right about the land we call America was originated by a…..wait for it…..a COMMIE!

You gotta love the ironic twist.

CRAP! A New Label!

American politics has boiled down to labels that we attach to different things…..like political correct or apologist or bleeding heart or ……..yada……

Well 2016 is NO different……

Some have described the liberal policies as being “race traitor”….but that is not the best…..the newest label that someone has attached to the white people that are angry with the “establishment” as a philosophy of “alt-Right”…..and it is all the rage in the media….

Suddenly, “alt-right” is the political phrase of the moment. Hillary Clinton on Thursday called out Donald Trump for being linked to what she calls a racist, “paranoid fringe” movement, while Trump denied even knowing what the phrase means. Coverage:

  • What Clinton said, per Gothamist: “These are race-baiting ideas, anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant ideas, anti-woman—all key tenets making up an emerging racist ideology known as the ‘alt-right.’… The names may have changed. Racists now call themselves ‘racialists.’ White supremacists now call themselves ‘white nationalists.’ The paranoid fringe now calls itself ‘alt-right.’ But the hate burns just as bright.”
  • What Trump said, per the Hill, on CNN: “Nobody even knows what it is, and she didn’t know what it was. There’s no alt-right or alt-left. All that I’m embracing is common sense.”
  • Trump campaign CEO Steve Bannon, formerly of Breitbart Media, told Mother Jones last week that Breitbart is the “platform for the alt-right.” Read the interview here. (Asked about it on CNN, Trump responded, “I don’t know what Steve said. I can only speak for myself.”)
  • CNN’s Brian Stelter has an explainer video on the movement here.
  • The Washington Post‘s Dave Weigel has a primer here.
  • At Breitbart, editor Milo Yiannopoulos says Clinton herself is responsible for the rise of the alt-right. Earlier this year, he wrote “An Establishment Conservative’s Guide to the Alt-Right.” Read it here.
  • A USA Today columnist offers a definition: “It’s an online movement of white people—young white guys, mostly—including white supremacists, nationalists, nativists and plain ol’ racists. They’re anxious. They’re afraid. They worry whites are losing power and influence in America, and so they generally oppose immigration and multiculturalism.”
  • This video blogger and alt-right supporter says the movement is “about us having a home, a place where we can be with people like ourselves.”
  • When Clinton called out the alt-right movement, the alt-right loved it. See tweets rounded up by Slate.

I am sorry but I do not appreciate labels…no matter who they are attached to…..and I truly despise dog whistle slogans that are solely for the applause they generate….

I believe that any campaign or political program should be driven by dialog and not these labels and slogans….this is why our political system has become a huge joke….there is NO substance any longer to political campaigns…..(there are so few of us idealists left)

We on the Left have been living with labels of a century…I guess it is only fair that the wealth get spread…..

In closing a few words about fanaticism…….

“Fanaticism obliterates the feelings of humanity”

“Fanaticism comes from any form of chosen blindness accompanying the pursuit of a single dogma.”

“The tendency to claim God as an ally for our partisan value and ends is the source of all religious fanaticism.”

“Fanaticism consists of redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim.”

Time to move on……and that’s the name of that tune!

The Power Of Words!

Please forgive me if I do not comment soon as usual….today I am playing tag with my doctors….always a real joy (sarcasm)……I will get back as soon as possible please bear with me…..

Have you noticed that in the conversation about Islam and such…all the Western experts are named Smith, Jackson, Hightower, Strickland or Rosenbaum?  I guess the more Anglo-Saxon you are the more of an expert you become.

When I was young my grandfather told me there was power in words…that the pen was mightier than the sword…….(not his saying)……but I never knew just how powerful some words were…..(I have been schooled)…..

Since the conventions are in full swing has anyone noticed that the Right wingers have not used the term “Radical Islam” for awhile now?  But I am sure that will change any day now.

For a couple of years most notably since ISIS has been on its barbarous rampage there has been a bunch of mental deficient that are ate up with the term “Radical Islam….it seems that they are more concerned that the president will not use the term (basically because they want him to) and for that reason we cannot defeat a bunch of terrorists.

Personally, I think it is more that without his use of the term then they would have very little to write about…..can you think of any other subject more contentious than the use of terminology?

The recent verbal attacks by the Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump and his supporters on President Barack Obama for avoiding the phrase “radical Islam” in his public pronouncements are simplistic, racially inflammatory — and flatly misinformed.

Settling upon accurate and strategically nuanced terms to describe the post-9/11 enemy is not the product of “political correctness” (contra Trump) or a failure to understand the enemy (contra a much-discussed Atlantic cover story). Nor are objections to using overly broad terms like “Islamic radicalism” limited to Democrats. The Bush administration understood the power of words, too. It concluded that distinctions that may seem small to Christian-American ears make a big difference to the mainstream Muslims we need on our side.

Source: I worked in the CIA under Bush. Obama is right to not say “radical Islam.” – Vox

But never fear (this is for my Right turd readers)…..Donald has a plan (makes about as much sense as any of his other issue solutions)…..to defeat those pesky bastards, ISIS……

Does anyone believe that ISIS can be defeated through terminology?

I guess they do or the terminology would not be such an issue….maybe we should just find some ram horns and blow them at the enemy…..if it can destroy walls then it damn sure should be able to defeat a person or persons, right?

It took simpletons to find the answer to defeating this barbarous group….words!

Who knew?

Attack On One Is An Attack On All

After the DNC there has been a lot of back and forth on the speech that a father of a dead veteran made to the convention floor…I was not going to be a part of this stupidity but things change.

Trump has decide he would attack the character of this family over their words……Right wing morons have decided that they would link radical religious jerks…..

If the statement from Mike Pence lauding Humayun Khan as an “American hero” was intended to put an end to the controversy over the fallen US Muslim soldier, it hasn’t done the trick. Among the developments Monday:

  • John McCain weighed in: “In recent days, Donald Trump disparaged a fallen soldier’s parents. He has suggested that the likes of their son should not be allowed in the United States—to say nothing of entering its service. I cannot emphasize enough how deeply I disagree with Mr. Trump’s statement. I hope Americans understand that the remarks do not represent the views of our Republican Party, its officers, or candidates.” Read it in full at CNN.
  • Columnist Charles Hurt, however, thinks Democrats deserve blame because they used Khizr Khan—and his son’s death—as a political tool at the convention. And Khan “allowed himself to be tricked into it.” Read his column at the Hill.
  • Khan himself went on CNN Monday morning and said the GOP wasn’t doing enough to rein in Trump. “Every Republican has rebuked his behavior, yet no one has stood up and said, enough, stop it, you will not be our candidate.'” See Politico.
  • During Khan’s TV appearance, Trump tweeted, “Mr. Khan, who does not know me, viciously attacked me from the stage of the DNC and is now all over T.V. doing the same – Nice!”
  • President Obama entered the fray, though he didn’t mention Trump by name, notes Politico. “No one—no one has given more for our freedom and our security than our Gold Star families,” he said Monday, referring to the families of fallen vets.
  • While former Trump campaign chief Corey Lewandowski had this to say on CNN: “If Donald Trump were the president, Capt. Khan would still be alive today because we never would have entered the Iraq war in the first place.” See the Daily Beast.

My take is that those that are spreading lies and criticism are nothing but COWARDS…..cowards of the highest order.

The son died serving his country and the family has every right to say whatever they would like to say….they have earned the right……anyone that has not served and has not lost a family member in that service have NOTHING to say.

Mr. Khan has earned his right….Trump and his mental midget followers have NOT!

Time for COWARDS to shut up or if they want to comment then join up and earn the right.

The only disgusting thing is to try and link this family for political advantage…..you may hate all you like….but when it comes to a veteran who died for his country then you need therapy….you are a sick son of a bitch!

It’s The Blame Game

All the media circus around the latest terrorist attack has the media salivating….and it has provided the politicians a chance to do what they do best….bullsh*t.

And as usual…..as with everything international……this attack is Obama’s fault…..not much is said about the sick bastard driving the truck…..

Gingrich went on to blame the attack on President Obama, saying it was “the fault of Western elites who lack the guts to do what is right, to do what is necessary, and to tell us the truth, and that starts with Barack Obama,” the AP reports. He predicted that Obama will give a press conference “in which he’ll explain that the problem is too many trucks.” Gingrich, who had been in the running to become Trump’s VP choice, told Hannity that it now appears that Indiana Gov. Mike Pence has gotten the nod, “but I’ve not been officially told yet.” Trump, who spoke to Fox’s Bill O’Reilly, didn’t go as far as Gingrich, but he said as president, he would ask Congress to declare war on global terrorism, reports the New York Times. “If you look at it, this is war. Coming from all different parts,” he said. “And frankly it’s war, and we’re dealing with people without uniforms.” (Trump has delayed his VP announcement, which had been scheduled for Friday morning.)

First Trump postponed his announcement not out of respect but rather he would not be the center of attention with this attack…..he is waiting for a lean time where he can once again be the center of the universe….

Next, so far these attacks have been carried out by citizens of the country where they occur….not outsiders…..

Finally, there were at least 100+ uniformed officers at the scene for crowd control for the fireworks display….if 100 cops could not stop this attack then Obama sure as Hell could not…Blaming him does nothing to solve the problem of these attacks.

Again the media is allowing the political toads to control the cycle….all the blame except for the a/hole that was driving the truck….

This will be my last post on this horrific attack unless something new is reported and I feel it needs more attention…..

Something Nice About Saddam Hussein?

Last week in the news the media was all choked up on something that Mr. Trump said.  The MSM got lots of speculation in over his words.  Did he really say something nice about Saddam?

Trump’s stupid comments reveal a larger problem with how we talk about Iraq.

It’s possible that playing a game of gotcha with Donald Trump for the sin of saying that Saddam Hussein was good at killing terrorists is the most boring thing ever. Over 250 Iraqis were killed in Baghdad on Sunday when a lorry exploded in a busy shopping area of the city. The area is mostly Shiite and the Sunni extremist group Islamic State took responsibility. Believe it or not, this was the single worst loss of life since the invasion in 2003. Here’s how Jermey Bowen of the BBC put it:

Saddam Hussein’s regime was harsh, and it could be murderous. He led the country into a series of disastrous wars and brought crippling international sanctions down on their heads.

But with the benefit of 13 years of hindsight, the world that existed before 9 April 2003 seems to be a calmer, more secure place. They have not had a proper day of peace since the old regime fell.

As for democracy, many I have spoken to believe the hopelessly sectarian political system is broken. At least, they say, law and order existed under Saddam.

We need to reckon with this reality. It does no good to keep going back to the old rhetoric about what a tyrant Saddam Hussein was to his own people. What Trump is trying to say in his own awkward way is that Hussein kept the lid on and what we’ve gotten in his place is far worse. And, if he stuck to making that limited point, he’d be on solid footing, which means that it’s just a perpetuation of our national stupidity and infinite capacity to avoid self-reflection to go out and say, “Ooh, ooh, Trump said something halfway complimentary about Saddam Hussein!”

Source: Washington Monthly | Did Trump Say Something Nice About Saddam Hussein?

I may not agree with Mr. Trump on too much but I too believe that Iraq was a safer more secure nation when Saddam was its ruler…..

What is amazing is that all this debate, the back and forth, and not once has anyone in the media asked the Iraqi people what they think…..especially about Saddam….why is that?

BAGHDAD: The Iraqi man who was filmed attacking Saddam Hussein’s statue with a sledgehammer when US troops stormed into Baghdad in 2003 said Iraq was in a better shape under his rule and George W. Bush and Tony Blair should be put on trial “for ruining” it.Kadhim Hassan Al-Jabouri was speaking on Wednesday as British former civil servant John Chilcot released a long-awaited report criticizing Britain’s role in the US-led invasion and occupation of Iraq.

Source: Iraqi who hammered Saddam statue: ‘I wish he would return’ | Arab News

I still have a couple of friends in Iraq and they confirm that this is a popular talking point that is when people can actually go out and schmooze with their neighbors…..

Language Wars Flare Again

From time to time this country goes batcrap crazy over the language used to describe a situation…..some falsely attribute it to being “politically correct” an overused term for the last 8 years…..and then some of the mentally challenged will always lose their minds over what to call this situation or that…..a waste of time.

We are ass deep in another one of these silly debates……especially after the horrendous attack in Orlando…..the debate is what do we call the reason for the act……

(this article is in the Wall St. Journal….not one of my normal sources for accurate opinion pieces)……

Donald Trump says the Orlando attack is an example of “radical Islamic terrorism.”

Hillary Clinton said she’s willing to blame “radical Islamism” or “radical jihadism,” but doesn’t think that’s the point.

And President Barack Obama? He typically won’t use “Islam,” “Islamic” or “Islamism” as part of his description of terrorists.

The Orlando shooting has revived the long-running debate over how to refer to Islamist terrorists. The administration and allies have shied away from using the term “radical Islamic terrorism,” saying it serves no purpose but to alienate Muslims and fuel terrorists’ propaganda. But critics say the refusal to use the phrase is political correctness run amok, and gives the impression that the White House isn’t sure about who the enemy is.

Source: Radical Islamic Terrorism? Language Wars Flare Again – Washington Wire – WSJ

Sorry but this is a waste to time….the argument is lame and does it really matter what it is termed as…..I mean the people that died could not care less…..should not the discussion be on the act not the terminology?

But I understand if one has no idea of what they talk about then I guess a debate on terminology would make sense after all….

Will Change Be Coming?

Trump has many supporters and people that just like his style…..many also like his open speech and his grasp of the issues that most Americans are struggling with daily….personally, I do not see any of that but what the Hell…….people will vote for him because of his unique style of campaigning…..am I right?

But “what if” he decided to change his “style” and try to get more people on his side for the election and the convention….will his support dwindle?

Over the weekend I read a piece that may be good news to some and bad news to others……

No more Mr. Trump Guy? At a Republican National Committee meeting in Florida Thursday, senior Donald Trump advisers told worried GOP leaders that the brash persona the candidate has projected for as long as anybody can remember is about to be replaced by something more electable. “The part that he’s been playing is now evolving into the part that you’ve been expecting. The negatives will come down, the image is going to change,” top aide Paul Manafort said, according to a recording heard by Reuters. “You’ll start to see more depth of the person, the real person. You’ll see a real different guy,” Manafort promised, adding that Trump plans to start focusing on “crooked Hillary.” He explained that Trump “had to first feed the first phase” before softening his image.

“When he’s sitting in a room, he’s talking business, he’s talking politics in a private room, it’s a different persona,” Manafort said, per NBC News. “When he’s out on the stage, when he’s talking about the kinds of things he’s talking about on the stump, he’s projecting an image that’s for that purpose.” ABC News reports that at a rally in Harrisburg, Pa., on Thursday, Trump seemed unready to start projecting the image his advisers promised. “I just don’t know if I want to do it yet,” he said, adding: “At some point, I’m going to be so presidential that you people will be so bored.” Ted Cruz, meanwhile, said he was glad Trump had admitted that it’s “all an act, a show,” the AP reports.

Let’s say he alters his style or positions….will that be his death throe?

…..waiting for a answer…….

NOPE!  Psyche!  Did you really think anything would change?

After say that Mr. Trump had this to say……

So much for a changed Donald Trump. He told supporters on Saturday that he’s not changing his pitch to voters, a day after his chief adviser assured Republican officials their party’s front-runner would show more restraint while campaigning, reports the AP. “I sort of don’t like toning it down,” he said at a rally in Connecticut, per the New York Times. “Isn’t it nice that I’m not one of these teleprompter guys?” Trump also declared to the crowd that he has no intention of reversing any of his provocative policy plans, including building a wall along the length of the Southern border. “Everything I say I’m going to do, folks, I’ll do,” he said.

Trump’s new chief adviser, Paul Manafort, met Thursday with top Republican officials and told them his candidate has been “projecting an image.” The “part that he’s been playing is now evolving,” Manafort said. At a rally in Waterbury, Trump joked about acting presidential, making a series of faux somber faces……

This ought to drive the media into a home for the criminally stupid……now you see it….now you don’t…….type of thing.

Side Note:  Trump will be giving a foreign policy speech this week in DC…..since that is kinda my thing I will be watching and analyzing what he has to say.