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What Would You Do?

Posted by Bill Lewis on Tuesday, August 29, 2006 10:57:07 AM

What would you do? This is the question which needs to be asked of all 2008 Presidential contenders. Specifically, what would you do about the Iraq war? With some detail, if you please?

We always let politicians off the hook. Since the war in Iraq is one of the biggest issues of the day, we need to ask the question,and demand specific answers, not the usual political obfuscation.

Any candidate for President should be able to enunciate clearly his or her position. Stay in Iraq? Leave Iraq? When? With a clear schedule or based on conditions? This is an easy question. Any politician without a specific answer to what he or she would do
does not deserve to win.

It's not a matter of being prowar or antiwar. It's a matter of precision and a matter of clarity. Will you, Mr. Candidate, continue to pursue our military activities in Iraq, or will you bring the troops home? Please answer in detail.

Nixon had a "secret plan" for ending the Vietnam war. That turned out to be nothing more than pulling out under the guise of "Vietnamization". No more tolerance for "secret plans".

Any high school student can write a 500 word composition and generally stick to the topic. For once, each candidate should be required to give us at least this much on their position on Iraq.
Knock off the obscuring and diversion, can the hyperbole and rhetoric.  In 500 words or less, state your position. If you can't do that, or we can't understand your essay, you're fired before you're even hired.

 

 

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My State was a Slave State

Posted by Bill Lewis on Monday, August 28, 2006 8:50:52 PM
Senator Joe Biden from Delaware is one of the early wannabes for the 2008 Democrat nomination for President. When asked recently about his chances in the South against contenders from that region, Biden noted he would have no problem because his state was a slave state.

It appears that Delaware was indeed a slave state during the Civil War, although it did not leave the Union. It just seems strange to me however, that Biden would use that way to describe his chances against southern Democrats for the nomination.

Does he think that this will endear him to Southerners? That because Delaware had slaves that makes him part of the club? Besides the fact that it is incredibly insulting to Southerners, It was just a bizarre thing to say. 

I understand that Biden is trying to distance himself from the image as a liberal from the Northeast, but to me Delaware is at the very least a Mid Atlantic state, certainly not a southern one. Joe, you just can't join that club.

But hey, I'm from Jersey. What do I know?
 
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That's Entertainment?

Posted by Bill Lewis on Tuesday, August 22, 2006 12:00:03 PM

I don't watch Entertainment Tonight, but last night immediately following the evening news their screaming setup caught my attention. The lead and about half the show sensationalized the JonBenet Ramsey murder. Image after image of her possible murderer, John Mark Karr were woven between often seductive pictures of that poor little girl. Murder, especially sordid murder, is clearly now entertainment in the eyes of the media.

Too be sure, this is nothing new. Tabloids and television have long sought the goriest for the front page. There was a time, however, when some discretion was used. No longer.

"If it bleeds, it leads", has long been a media cliche. From the Manson murders to Princess Diana, we've seen and read far more about insanity and tragedy than has ever been necessary. I can understand CBS or CNN or even Court TV regurgitating this "story" under the loose rubric of "news".
 
Entertainment Tonight packaging this poor little girl along with the Teen Choice Awards is one step further down in our descent into perdition.

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Murtha/Haditha

Posted by Bill Lewis on Wednesday, August 02, 2006 5:05:30 PM

Last November there was an alleged massacre of Iraqi civilians by Marines in Haditha. Today, one of the Marines involved in the incident is suing Congressman John Murtha of Pennsylvania for defamation for Murtha's public commentary about the event.

Since May, Murtha has been publicly speaking about Haditha, inferring it was cold blooded murder and that there was a Marine Corps conspiracy to cover up what really happened. Murtha supposedly has his facts of the event from sources in the Pentagon.

As of this writing, the men have not been charged. Once the Marine Corps and the NCIS complete their investigations, the men may be charged, and may be indicted. If indicted they may eventually be found guilty or innocent, but Murtha has declared them guilty long before charges have even been brought.

Murtha was a Marine. So was I. I'm not suggesting Murtha should have kept his mouth shut based on any misplaced loyalties. I am suggesting that he should have noted the presumption of innocence for these young men. If they are guilty, a trial will convict them. If not, Murtha has clearly defamed their character, as well as the character others who served with them.

When Murtha,74, first started speaking on this issue I was confused. At first I chalked it up to his age. Later I realized that he has simply injected his antiwar sentiments into the issue and has lost all perspective along the way. He has become a liberal icon because of this, and that is a pity. He is being used.

If these Marines are guilty of a crime, they should be tried and convicted accordingly. If they are innocent, they should be allowed to live their lives out of the public spotlight. John Murtha has tried and convicted them in his mind, and blasted them and the Marine Corps in public. As a Congressman, he should know better. As a former Marine, he should be ashamed.

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Farewell Fidel

Posted by Bill Lewis on Tuesday, August 01, 2006 12:37:31 PM
It appears Fidel Castro may be heading out the door. Whether he dies now or later, it seems evident that his days are numbered. Brother Raul is waiting in the wings, but at 75, he's not exactly a spring chicken.

I'm old enough to remember Fidel appearing on the Ed Sullivan Show. I remember the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Bay of Pigs and all the flap and yap that has been Cuban - U.S. relations or lack thereof.

Here's what I don't understand: the Castro regime is Communist - so is the Chinese government. We've been falling all over ourselves for years to be buddies with the Chinese, but Castro has been a pariah. We've inherited thousands of his exiles and not once in over 40 years have we been able to negotiate some sort of accommodation.

To be sure, Cuba is 90 miles away, while China is half a world away. He had Russian missiles once, but they've been gone for decades. Maybe it's because we're afraid of China and not Cuba, but it seems silly to me to keep up the charade of the Cold War against a pretty pitiful regime. Hell, we opened relations with the Vietnamese, and we had far more reasons to be pissed at them.

It seems to me both countries could benefit from a lessening of tensions, and less posturing. Any easing of relations probably won't happen under Raul, or our current administration, but maybe somewhere down the road some folks in both governments will figure out that the Cold War is over and maybe we can kiss and make up.
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