Listening to: Peter Pan
Mood: Happy with a little quiet time
Overall, this political season has been surprisingly benign. Really, there hasn’t been much mudslinging or personal attacks. Surprising, I know. Unfortunately, that has changed a bit. I heard an ad recently from John McCain. I have never been a huge fan of John McCain. Obama has been such a breath of fresh air from politics as usual, it’s disappointing to hear a candidate resorting to smearing the other. John McCain released an ad about Obama and his “liberal allies” being more of the same. Ahem. Well. What? Liberal allies? I thought allies were supposed to be a good thing. Why in the world would McCain use such a charged word, reinforcing the fact that he’s quite militarily minded when most of the country has had enough to war talk for a while. It just seems very poorly done. Anyway, how exactly would liberal leadership be more of the same? What? At least McCain seems to have given up the tack that Obama doesn’t have enough experience. Especially after he chose a VP candidate with, you guessed it, literally no experience in big government.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
The Art of Winning or Losing a War
Listening to: The noisy, yet appreciated, air conditioner.
Mood: Mellow
I was reading Time magazine (I know, another blog inspired by Time) recently and happened to catch an article about the presidential candidate’s views on the war on terror. More specifically the problems we are having in Iraq and Afghanistan along with a schedule for leaving. Now I like Time magazine. It’s one of the bazillion magazines I read every month along with numerous books. It just so happens to feature things that get my dander up. Me being a raging liberal and all. Anyhow, I was reading about how both contenders for the presidential title would be judged for winning or losing the war. Ehm, what?
First of all, are have we advanced beyond the bullshit to call it a real “war” now rather than just using the justification of a war on terror? (God I hate that term!)If we are still hiding behind that, we need to be waging war on humanity. Mankind has, and continues to be, incredibly stupid and brutal. Most if not all civilizations have engaged in terror (state sponsored in most cases!) at one time or other. Let’s call a blunder a blunder and recognize the war for what it is. A drain on human capital and money. As a species, we should have advanced way beyond the need for taking what we want by force. Since certain parties did not take history lessons and did not bother to think about the Vietnam war before they instigated this mess, it would probably be a good idea to remember next time that the world has evolved beyond war being an effective means of getting what you want.
Second, and mainly, how in the world do you judge either a win or a loss in war? I’d venture to say that since we are a country with a ginormous army, plenty of money and resources, and a huge amount of control in the world, we have probably won in Iraq and Afghanistan. Well, we’ve won in a war sense. We’ve devastated both countries and area not getting resistance per say from the countries themselves. Yes, we are still encountering resistance, but from non state sanctioned entities, which is a whole other matter and blog. We have completely ruined what was a semblance of order and control and have destroyed their economic system along with blowing away a shameful number of civilians. So what’s the problem? We won. It’s just not that easy. We still have not gotten what it was that we started the war for. Yes, Saddam Hussein was definitely way up there on the list of brutal rulers who need to be disposed of. Yes, Osama bin Laden and the Taliban are evil entities that really had no business ruling a country or running around free. But folks, that is not why we went to war with either place. What the US really wanted when we went in was to gain some control. You see, we are control freaks. At one point, we supported Saddam and the Taliban in the form of Mujahidin. We seem to think that we can control a lot of things in the world through swaggering and threats. In the realm of control of the country and region, we have definitely lost. I think this is a major reason that we have been so reluctant to leave. There are still insurgents, and while the countries have changed, we still control them no more than before we invaded. If we leave now, or before the next 100 years are up Senator McCaine, we will have to come to terms with the purpose of the invasion and the countless lives and resources that have been misused and wasted. We hid behind the moral ground going in. We fancied it up to make it look like a defense of our own soil. Admittedly, that was a catalyst, but in terms of Iraq, it was an empty justification that was just below the surface. If we do the mature, responsible, ethical thing and do what we can to help both countries while we’re leaving, we may gain back some of the respect that was lost when we invaded.
There is no winning at this point. It’s my personal opinion that no one “wins” wars. If we struggle on and deny dealing with the problem, we will only lose more lives, resources, and respect in the eyes of the world. I sincerely hope that both candidates have used their heads in thinking of a strategy for dealing with this problem. Arrogance and stupidity never had a place in the leadership of the United States.
Becky
Mood: Mellow
I was reading Time magazine (I know, another blog inspired by Time) recently and happened to catch an article about the presidential candidate’s views on the war on terror. More specifically the problems we are having in Iraq and Afghanistan along with a schedule for leaving. Now I like Time magazine. It’s one of the bazillion magazines I read every month along with numerous books. It just so happens to feature things that get my dander up. Me being a raging liberal and all. Anyhow, I was reading about how both contenders for the presidential title would be judged for winning or losing the war. Ehm, what?
First of all, are have we advanced beyond the bullshit to call it a real “war” now rather than just using the justification of a war on terror? (God I hate that term!)If we are still hiding behind that, we need to be waging war on humanity. Mankind has, and continues to be, incredibly stupid and brutal. Most if not all civilizations have engaged in terror (state sponsored in most cases!) at one time or other. Let’s call a blunder a blunder and recognize the war for what it is. A drain on human capital and money. As a species, we should have advanced way beyond the need for taking what we want by force. Since certain parties did not take history lessons and did not bother to think about the Vietnam war before they instigated this mess, it would probably be a good idea to remember next time that the world has evolved beyond war being an effective means of getting what you want.
Second, and mainly, how in the world do you judge either a win or a loss in war? I’d venture to say that since we are a country with a ginormous army, plenty of money and resources, and a huge amount of control in the world, we have probably won in Iraq and Afghanistan. Well, we’ve won in a war sense. We’ve devastated both countries and area not getting resistance per say from the countries themselves. Yes, we are still encountering resistance, but from non state sanctioned entities, which is a whole other matter and blog. We have completely ruined what was a semblance of order and control and have destroyed their economic system along with blowing away a shameful number of civilians. So what’s the problem? We won. It’s just not that easy. We still have not gotten what it was that we started the war for. Yes, Saddam Hussein was definitely way up there on the list of brutal rulers who need to be disposed of. Yes, Osama bin Laden and the Taliban are evil entities that really had no business ruling a country or running around free. But folks, that is not why we went to war with either place. What the US really wanted when we went in was to gain some control. You see, we are control freaks. At one point, we supported Saddam and the Taliban in the form of Mujahidin. We seem to think that we can control a lot of things in the world through swaggering and threats. In the realm of control of the country and region, we have definitely lost. I think this is a major reason that we have been so reluctant to leave. There are still insurgents, and while the countries have changed, we still control them no more than before we invaded. If we leave now, or before the next 100 years are up Senator McCaine, we will have to come to terms with the purpose of the invasion and the countless lives and resources that have been misused and wasted. We hid behind the moral ground going in. We fancied it up to make it look like a defense of our own soil. Admittedly, that was a catalyst, but in terms of Iraq, it was an empty justification that was just below the surface. If we do the mature, responsible, ethical thing and do what we can to help both countries while we’re leaving, we may gain back some of the respect that was lost when we invaded.
There is no winning at this point. It’s my personal opinion that no one “wins” wars. If we struggle on and deny dealing with the problem, we will only lose more lives, resources, and respect in the eyes of the world. I sincerely hope that both candidates have used their heads in thinking of a strategy for dealing with this problem. Arrogance and stupidity never had a place in the leadership of the United States.
Becky
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
So You Wanna Be a Martyr
Listening to: Hercules
Mood: Content and calm
I just saw on the news today that Kahlid Sheik Mohammad’s trial is finally under way at Gitmo. It seems that our friendly neighborhood 9/11 terrorist would like to receive the death sentence and become a martyr. Keep in mind that this is a man who freely admits to orchestrating the suffering and death of thousands of innocent civilians. Enthusiastically. Is there any reason that anyone should care what this man wants, nonetheless give him what he wants?
So. Now that he was stupid enough to make his preference known, why in the world should we not do everything humanly possible to avoid turning this man into a martyr? Wouldn’t a miserable life in prison be much better of a punishment? The whole idea of justice and punishment is to keep society in line and discourage others from following the same path. Why should we encourage individuals to plan massive pain and suffering because of ideological differences only to have the consequences amount to becoming a hero in death? It makes no sense.
I generally hold this person in very low regard. He has proven himself to be arrogant, cruel, and stupid. I mean seriously. If you wanted to be a martyr, the best strategy when being judged by a country with a score to settle would probably have been to keep your mouth shut. You probably would have gotten your wish without much ado. I’m sure your lawyer would have explained this to you, had you not been arrogant enough to appoint yourself as your council. However, now that you have once again selfishly made your preferences known, I’m sure most Americans would much rather keep you alive just on principal rather than let you further your ideological religious heroism.
I’m not even going to get into how I feel about people who have no respect for the differences of others, not to mention causing intentional pain and suffering. I would be up on my soap box for hours.
So seriously, dude. Just shut up and think about what you’ll do about your trial. I hope you’re prepared to become someone’s bitch in jail for a long, long time. In fact, let’s just pipe in Eric Cartman’s “Kyle’s mom is a bitch” song just for good measure. I personally would find that to be fantastic poetic justice. Is that vengeful? Well, yes. In other circumstances, I would find it to be too severe. But bombing two huge buildings full of innocent people for religious reasons seems a bit vengeful too. Someone who has no respect for human life or differences really doesn’t deserve too much respect in return either.
Becky
Mood: Content and calm
I just saw on the news today that Kahlid Sheik Mohammad’s trial is finally under way at Gitmo. It seems that our friendly neighborhood 9/11 terrorist would like to receive the death sentence and become a martyr. Keep in mind that this is a man who freely admits to orchestrating the suffering and death of thousands of innocent civilians. Enthusiastically. Is there any reason that anyone should care what this man wants, nonetheless give him what he wants?
So. Now that he was stupid enough to make his preference known, why in the world should we not do everything humanly possible to avoid turning this man into a martyr? Wouldn’t a miserable life in prison be much better of a punishment? The whole idea of justice and punishment is to keep society in line and discourage others from following the same path. Why should we encourage individuals to plan massive pain and suffering because of ideological differences only to have the consequences amount to becoming a hero in death? It makes no sense.
I generally hold this person in very low regard. He has proven himself to be arrogant, cruel, and stupid. I mean seriously. If you wanted to be a martyr, the best strategy when being judged by a country with a score to settle would probably have been to keep your mouth shut. You probably would have gotten your wish without much ado. I’m sure your lawyer would have explained this to you, had you not been arrogant enough to appoint yourself as your council. However, now that you have once again selfishly made your preferences known, I’m sure most Americans would much rather keep you alive just on principal rather than let you further your ideological religious heroism.
I’m not even going to get into how I feel about people who have no respect for the differences of others, not to mention causing intentional pain and suffering. I would be up on my soap box for hours.
So seriously, dude. Just shut up and think about what you’ll do about your trial. I hope you’re prepared to become someone’s bitch in jail for a long, long time. In fact, let’s just pipe in Eric Cartman’s “Kyle’s mom is a bitch” song just for good measure. I personally would find that to be fantastic poetic justice. Is that vengeful? Well, yes. In other circumstances, I would find it to be too severe. But bombing two huge buildings full of innocent people for religious reasons seems a bit vengeful too. Someone who has no respect for human life or differences really doesn’t deserve too much respect in return either.
Becky
Monday, April 28, 2008
R.E.S.P.E.C.T
I have a beef. I have been noticing a lot of people who have either been indifferent or downright unsupportive of the US army and navy and their branches. This bothers me on multiple levels. I understand if people don’t support the war, the generals directing the army, or the executive asshats that be. I don’t support any of these people or their agendas either. Yet this has nothing to do with supporting the individual soldiers. Like it or not, the army is here to stay and performs a very important function for this country. Most soldiers follow orders. It’s their job. They don’t question (out loud) the integrity or ethics of war. They do what they feel they must to keep this country safe and guard our sovereignty. Think about it. What if we did not have an army or were stuck with a disorganized, inefficient one and Canada or Mexico started getting a sneaky look in their eye. We’d be colonized before we could all pickup sticks and wave them at Canada to try to scare them off. We’ve already proven that we can’t keep anyone south of the border out, invading or not.
So let’s give a little respect. Since the vast majority of us are not willing to take up arms to defend the country, nonetheless fight unnecessary wars, we should really give some respect to those who have hear the calling to.
Becky
So let’s give a little respect. Since the vast majority of us are not willing to take up arms to defend the country, nonetheless fight unnecessary wars, we should really give some respect to those who have hear the calling to.
Becky
Saturday, April 12, 2008
How Not to be a Popular Presidential Candidate
Listening to: Ahhhhh. Quiet.
Mood: Calm
I'll give you a hint - your first step is becoming Barak Obama.
So I was watching Jon Stewart the other night and had a good laugh about Barak Obama. Well, not specifically about him, but about the brouhaha that arose from something he did. Now I’ve blogged on Obama before and his choice to not wear a flag pin, but this just set the bar lower for the idiocy that is syndicated news. It seems now that not only do you HAVE to wear a flag pin to be a good president, you also have to…….wait for it, wait for it…………be fantastic at bowling!! That’s right boys and girls. If you do not know how to bowl, or are just horrible at it, you will not be a good president of these here United States.
Now I really like Barak Obama as a candidate. I will come on the record as endorsing him. (as if anyone cared….) He has an honest, hardworking air about him that I think would come as a breath of fresh air to this country. He has handled the race issue beautifully, especially after the sermon issue with the pastor that arose recently. It was SO heartening to see a candidate look an issue in the face and speak to the American public as adults and challenge them to raise their own standards of judgment and behavior. I loved it.
When are we (as in the media) going to focus on what’s really important? Are you really that hard up for news that you have to make fun of someone for their bowling score? This is not local news!! Are your priorities and perception of leadership really so screwed up that you consider bowling something to report on? Perhaps if it was just a passing reference to Barak trying to reach the blue collar audience and that he went bowling I wouldn’t be so incredulous.
*Sigh*. They should make leadership classes mandatory in high school. I understand that not everyone wants to or can be a leader, but we should have the common sense as adults to recognize the traits that make a good leader. Perhaps then more people would be calling this baloney what it is.
Becky
Mood: Calm
I'll give you a hint - your first step is becoming Barak Obama.
So I was watching Jon Stewart the other night and had a good laugh about Barak Obama. Well, not specifically about him, but about the brouhaha that arose from something he did. Now I’ve blogged on Obama before and his choice to not wear a flag pin, but this just set the bar lower for the idiocy that is syndicated news. It seems now that not only do you HAVE to wear a flag pin to be a good president, you also have to…….wait for it, wait for it…………be fantastic at bowling!! That’s right boys and girls. If you do not know how to bowl, or are just horrible at it, you will not be a good president of these here United States.
Now I really like Barak Obama as a candidate. I will come on the record as endorsing him. (as if anyone cared….) He has an honest, hardworking air about him that I think would come as a breath of fresh air to this country. He has handled the race issue beautifully, especially after the sermon issue with the pastor that arose recently. It was SO heartening to see a candidate look an issue in the face and speak to the American public as adults and challenge them to raise their own standards of judgment and behavior. I loved it.
When are we (as in the media) going to focus on what’s really important? Are you really that hard up for news that you have to make fun of someone for their bowling score? This is not local news!! Are your priorities and perception of leadership really so screwed up that you consider bowling something to report on? Perhaps if it was just a passing reference to Barak trying to reach the blue collar audience and that he went bowling I wouldn’t be so incredulous.
*Sigh*. They should make leadership classes mandatory in high school. I understand that not everyone wants to or can be a leader, but we should have the common sense as adults to recognize the traits that make a good leader. Perhaps then more people would be calling this baloney what it is.
Becky
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
All Hail Madeleine Albright
Listening to: Monster’s Inc
Mood: Calm
I happened to catch Jon Stewart’s program last night. He had Madeleine Albright on as a guest promoting her new book, A Memo to the President Elect. I recently read Secretary Albright’s book. As a woman, I already had a good deal of respect for her as an example for women. After I read this book, my understanding of her, my understanding of the world, and respect for her have greatly increased. This book should be a required read for any of the candidates before they take office. In fact, they should do a book report too! Ms. Albright also brought up some very good points as to why she thinks that we need Hillary in the white house. Up until now, I have been an Obama supporter. I feel that he has the chutzpah and determination to get things done. I also am a great proponent of the change that all of the candidates seem to be determined to get us to believe they can achieve. In my opinion, Obama would do his best to change as many negative things as possible. As Ms. Albright pointed out, the world is in a mess. We need someone with Hillary’s knowledge of politics and the world in order to have some hope of digging ourselves out of the cesspool that we’re in.
I just wanted to say Kudos to Secretary Albright. You are a fantastic role model for all women, young and old. I do hope the next president pays attention to and follows your advice. You are an asset to the office of President
Mood: Calm
I happened to catch Jon Stewart’s program last night. He had Madeleine Albright on as a guest promoting her new book, A Memo to the President Elect. I recently read Secretary Albright’s book. As a woman, I already had a good deal of respect for her as an example for women. After I read this book, my understanding of her, my understanding of the world, and respect for her have greatly increased. This book should be a required read for any of the candidates before they take office. In fact, they should do a book report too! Ms. Albright also brought up some very good points as to why she thinks that we need Hillary in the white house. Up until now, I have been an Obama supporter. I feel that he has the chutzpah and determination to get things done. I also am a great proponent of the change that all of the candidates seem to be determined to get us to believe they can achieve. In my opinion, Obama would do his best to change as many negative things as possible. As Ms. Albright pointed out, the world is in a mess. We need someone with Hillary’s knowledge of politics and the world in order to have some hope of digging ourselves out of the cesspool that we’re in.
I just wanted to say Kudos to Secretary Albright. You are a fantastic role model for all women, young and old. I do hope the next president pays attention to and follows your advice. You are an asset to the office of President
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Pakistan Vs. Iran - It's Nuclear
Listening To: Patience – Guns N Roses
Mood: Tired
I’ve been meaning to write on this subject for quite some time now at least long before both countries came into the spotlight for totally different issues. Unless you have been on a different planet (like, say, Saturn) lately, you will have heard about the findings that Iran has not developed weapons grade uranium nor does it plan to in the near future. This happened in spite of all of the posturing and pissing contests being held between our fearless, fake cowboy, leader and Iran’s short and conservative Ahmadinejad. You will also have heard about Pakistan’s recent drama with President Musharraf refusing to disrobe (well, not exactly disrobing, but it sounds so much more fun than just taking off his uniform!) and the unfortunate demise of Benezir Bhutto.
I haven’t been hearing as much lately, but the presidential candidates have been participating in some saber rattling over Iran and how we will definitely go after them if they don’t bow down and kiss our ass and do what we say. Now, I’m not mindlessly pro-Iran. They definitely have their own problems with religious nutcases and infrastructure. I don’t know that I want them to have nuclear weapons capabilities either because there are a lot of power hungry nutcases who would use them in the wrong way. However, in this case I think I admire Iran. They basically bent over and mooned the US and told us where to stick it instead of letting the US bully them. They were right that we had no authority to tell them that they were to get rid of any and all nuclear things. Hats off to Ahmadinejad for having cojones.
What concerns me is not so much that we’re going after Iran, but that we’re bothering them and completely ignoring Pakistan’s decent into chaos. A country that already has weapons grade nuclear capacity. Let’s wade just a little further into this cesspool of ridiculousness. Ahmadinejad seems to be an intelligent guy. As we determined, he has balls and knows how to conduct himself politically in the world. He has his own mind and stands up for himself. Iran isn’t the model democratic country, but they really have a lot more order than, say, Afghanistan or Pakistan. There is an infrastructure and a strong leadership, even if fanaticism rears its head at times. Pakistan, on the other hand, has been, and continues to, spin farther and farther out of any semblance of order and control. If you need proof of this, just take a look at Pakistan’s Northwestern Frontier Province (NFP) and Balochistan. Not only are these areas completely out of any government control, they are under the control of local war lords who thumb their noses at Musharraf and do what they want. Pakistan has numerous problems with porous borders in these areas into and out of Afghanistan, a major production center for religious nut jobs with control issues. I have my own theories that Bin Laden himself is indeed within Pakistan instead of Afghanistan, but I’ll save that for another day. I know for certain that I don’t want anyone in Afghanistan having nuclear knowledge. In case anyone is still interested in Afghanistan (you know, the country that started our latest meddling in the middle east…..) the Taliban nutcases are starting to come back out of the woodwork and being pains in peoples’ asses again. On top of all this nonsense, Pakistan is going through what promises to be a transitional phase with the government.
So why are we so blind to the situation in Pakistan? Why are we not giving the situation due attention? A few reasons. Number 1, we (as in we the White House) like Pres. Musharraf. Well, we like the fact that we can control him for the most part. Number 2, we would rather have the evil that we know (i.e. Musharraf) rather than a religious fanatic that we don’t. Number 3, we (again as in we the White House) want oil, and Pakistan is pretty well useless in this regard. Iran on the other hand would be a strategic resource for oil snatching.
A few rebuttals for these points:
1. Pakistan has, and probably always will be, bought by the highest bidder in the interest of the country. Has anyone in the White house looked into the history of Pakistan?? Seriously?? It is truly an insane place. The governments in Pakistan have a history of changing loyalty and interests like they change underwear. Whatever/whoever they gain the most from has their attention for the moment. The fallacy that we have Pakistan under our thumb is just that – a fallacy. If some country offers them lots of money to pass on technology they’re not gonna say, “Gee, the US probably wouldn’t like that….,” they’re gonna pass it on.
2. Musharraf is a temporary calm in the storm. As I mentioned, the government in Pakistan is unstable. We recently saw a serious jockeying for control in Pakistan because Musharraf decided that he was going to throw a tantrum and not take off his uniform, prompting Bhutto and Shariff to see the opportunity to take over in the event that the world turned against him. Anyhow, as we already determined, they already have nuclear technology. If they can’t get their government in order, how are they ever going to keep state secrets like nuclear technology?
3. Musharraf helping us to police his section of the world in regards to terrorists is another fallacy. Musharraf has no more control over certain sections of Pakistan (like the ones that cater to and harbor terrorists) than you or I. As I mentioned, the reality is that local war lords rule their territory with complete authority and a ferocity that Musharraf really has no desire to go up against. Musharraf has never really stood up to, nonetheless taken a stand against the religious fanatics that reside in his own country.
4. Invading Iran, whether it’s recognized as an oil snatching maneuver or not, would be a devastating decision for the US. Iran is not going to fall over like Iraq did. I would place money on the fact that Ahmadinejad will not be hiding in any underground tunnels. He will be directing the beating of the US army with a stick – most likely with the support of a large section of the world. Does anyone really think that Iran has not taken notice of the events of the past 3 years along with our cavalier attitude towards telling Iran what to do and not made plans about how to defend itself? I’m not thinking so.
I could probably go on about this for a few more pages, but I’ll stop now and post this. Please do not support a candidate who jumps on the bandwagon about Iran. It’s just not worth it. Our country needs to do some serious diplomacy research and actions in order to restore our face in the mind of the world. We have seriously wasted our good name and lots of patience in the past few years, and going vigilante on Iran would be a huge mistake to make.
Becky
Mood: Tired
I’ve been meaning to write on this subject for quite some time now at least long before both countries came into the spotlight for totally different issues. Unless you have been on a different planet (like, say, Saturn) lately, you will have heard about the findings that Iran has not developed weapons grade uranium nor does it plan to in the near future. This happened in spite of all of the posturing and pissing contests being held between our fearless, fake cowboy, leader and Iran’s short and conservative Ahmadinejad. You will also have heard about Pakistan’s recent drama with President Musharraf refusing to disrobe (well, not exactly disrobing, but it sounds so much more fun than just taking off his uniform!) and the unfortunate demise of Benezir Bhutto.
I haven’t been hearing as much lately, but the presidential candidates have been participating in some saber rattling over Iran and how we will definitely go after them if they don’t bow down and kiss our ass and do what we say. Now, I’m not mindlessly pro-Iran. They definitely have their own problems with religious nutcases and infrastructure. I don’t know that I want them to have nuclear weapons capabilities either because there are a lot of power hungry nutcases who would use them in the wrong way. However, in this case I think I admire Iran. They basically bent over and mooned the US and told us where to stick it instead of letting the US bully them. They were right that we had no authority to tell them that they were to get rid of any and all nuclear things. Hats off to Ahmadinejad for having cojones.
What concerns me is not so much that we’re going after Iran, but that we’re bothering them and completely ignoring Pakistan’s decent into chaos. A country that already has weapons grade nuclear capacity. Let’s wade just a little further into this cesspool of ridiculousness. Ahmadinejad seems to be an intelligent guy. As we determined, he has balls and knows how to conduct himself politically in the world. He has his own mind and stands up for himself. Iran isn’t the model democratic country, but they really have a lot more order than, say, Afghanistan or Pakistan. There is an infrastructure and a strong leadership, even if fanaticism rears its head at times. Pakistan, on the other hand, has been, and continues to, spin farther and farther out of any semblance of order and control. If you need proof of this, just take a look at Pakistan’s Northwestern Frontier Province (NFP) and Balochistan. Not only are these areas completely out of any government control, they are under the control of local war lords who thumb their noses at Musharraf and do what they want. Pakistan has numerous problems with porous borders in these areas into and out of Afghanistan, a major production center for religious nut jobs with control issues. I have my own theories that Bin Laden himself is indeed within Pakistan instead of Afghanistan, but I’ll save that for another day. I know for certain that I don’t want anyone in Afghanistan having nuclear knowledge. In case anyone is still interested in Afghanistan (you know, the country that started our latest meddling in the middle east…..) the Taliban nutcases are starting to come back out of the woodwork and being pains in peoples’ asses again. On top of all this nonsense, Pakistan is going through what promises to be a transitional phase with the government.
So why are we so blind to the situation in Pakistan? Why are we not giving the situation due attention? A few reasons. Number 1, we (as in we the White House) like Pres. Musharraf. Well, we like the fact that we can control him for the most part. Number 2, we would rather have the evil that we know (i.e. Musharraf) rather than a religious fanatic that we don’t. Number 3, we (again as in we the White House) want oil, and Pakistan is pretty well useless in this regard. Iran on the other hand would be a strategic resource for oil snatching.
A few rebuttals for these points:
1. Pakistan has, and probably always will be, bought by the highest bidder in the interest of the country. Has anyone in the White house looked into the history of Pakistan?? Seriously?? It is truly an insane place. The governments in Pakistan have a history of changing loyalty and interests like they change underwear. Whatever/whoever they gain the most from has their attention for the moment. The fallacy that we have Pakistan under our thumb is just that – a fallacy. If some country offers them lots of money to pass on technology they’re not gonna say, “Gee, the US probably wouldn’t like that….,” they’re gonna pass it on.
2. Musharraf is a temporary calm in the storm. As I mentioned, the government in Pakistan is unstable. We recently saw a serious jockeying for control in Pakistan because Musharraf decided that he was going to throw a tantrum and not take off his uniform, prompting Bhutto and Shariff to see the opportunity to take over in the event that the world turned against him. Anyhow, as we already determined, they already have nuclear technology. If they can’t get their government in order, how are they ever going to keep state secrets like nuclear technology?
3. Musharraf helping us to police his section of the world in regards to terrorists is another fallacy. Musharraf has no more control over certain sections of Pakistan (like the ones that cater to and harbor terrorists) than you or I. As I mentioned, the reality is that local war lords rule their territory with complete authority and a ferocity that Musharraf really has no desire to go up against. Musharraf has never really stood up to, nonetheless taken a stand against the religious fanatics that reside in his own country.
4. Invading Iran, whether it’s recognized as an oil snatching maneuver or not, would be a devastating decision for the US. Iran is not going to fall over like Iraq did. I would place money on the fact that Ahmadinejad will not be hiding in any underground tunnels. He will be directing the beating of the US army with a stick – most likely with the support of a large section of the world. Does anyone really think that Iran has not taken notice of the events of the past 3 years along with our cavalier attitude towards telling Iran what to do and not made plans about how to defend itself? I’m not thinking so.
I could probably go on about this for a few more pages, but I’ll stop now and post this. Please do not support a candidate who jumps on the bandwagon about Iran. It’s just not worth it. Our country needs to do some serious diplomacy research and actions in order to restore our face in the mind of the world. We have seriously wasted our good name and lots of patience in the past few years, and going vigilante on Iran would be a huge mistake to make.
Becky
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
By Way of Introduction
Hi I'm Becky. I have set up this blog to vent some of my frustration and opinions on some of the current political events that are occuring in our fair country. (The US of A).
About Me:
I'm a 26 year old married chick living in White Plains NY. It's about a half hour from NYC. I have a bachelors of science in business admin. I have 2 kids and am at home for a year with my youngest. After that, I will persue a job and or career. I have a few other blogs, so if you want to know a little bit more about me, you might want to check those out in my profile. I have been blogging for 2 years on Yahoo. If you want to get a little background on me and my style, check it out at:
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-h6VVLvEjfKeRs37GCw2TsX6YAeY-?cq=1
I have moved to Blogger to split up blogging topics and keep things a little more organized.
Blogging is a way for me to mentally exercise and enjoy writing, and while I might not do it as often as I would like, I do try to blog on a regular basis. No one is paying me anything - it's just me, my opinions on life, and my love of writing.
Caveat:
I know politics is a touchy subject, like religion and sex. I'm a firm believer in everyone having the right to their own opinion and thoughts, no matter how stupid. This being said, Please don't email me hate mail about how stupid I am and my opinions are. I welcome comments and constructive criticism. I do not welcome bashing simply because I think differently or have a different opinion or political bent. That being said, you are welcome to your own opinions and thoughts too. I would love to hear how you think on any given topic.
Let's get the party started!
Becky
About Me:
I'm a 26 year old married chick living in White Plains NY. It's about a half hour from NYC. I have a bachelors of science in business admin. I have 2 kids and am at home for a year with my youngest. After that, I will persue a job and or career. I have a few other blogs, so if you want to know a little bit more about me, you might want to check those out in my profile. I have been blogging for 2 years on Yahoo. If you want to get a little background on me and my style, check it out at:
http://blog.360.yahoo.com/blog-h6VVLvEjfKeRs37GCw2TsX6YAeY-?cq=1
I have moved to Blogger to split up blogging topics and keep things a little more organized.
Blogging is a way for me to mentally exercise and enjoy writing, and while I might not do it as often as I would like, I do try to blog on a regular basis. No one is paying me anything - it's just me, my opinions on life, and my love of writing.
Caveat:
I know politics is a touchy subject, like religion and sex. I'm a firm believer in everyone having the right to their own opinion and thoughts, no matter how stupid. This being said, Please don't email me hate mail about how stupid I am and my opinions are. I welcome comments and constructive criticism. I do not welcome bashing simply because I think differently or have a different opinion or political bent. That being said, you are welcome to your own opinions and thoughts too. I would love to hear how you think on any given topic.
Let's get the party started!
Becky
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