Category: U.S. Government Reform

  • Viva Chavez!

    A recent Reuters news article noted that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has ordered special training for the country’s military forces and civilians to repel an invasion by U.S. forces.  The training adopts a doctrine emphasizing “asymmetric war” or resistance against a more powerful foreign force.
     
    True to form, U.S. officials are attempting to portray Chavez as a negative influence in Latin America.  I don’t know President Chavez personally; but I do know what our leaders are capable of, as does anyone who has read information by noted people, knowledgeable on the subject..  I would tend to believe and support President Chavez to do what is necessary to protect his country from U.S. imperialism.
    Other factors are building that spell trouble for Americans, primarily the low approval rating for GWB.   The good news is that people are finally catching on that we have corrupt, inept and criminal leadership.  The bad news is that the Rove machine must go into high gear to re-instate the “fear factor” in us to help the ratings, particularly before the November elections when many seats in congress will be up for change.
     
    This could mean that we might expect an “al-Qaeda” attack on Americans or on American soil itself.  Michael Scheuer, the former CIA chief of counterterrorism has noted that GWB’s policies have helped to strengthen al-Qaeda and that the most likely point of attack is Houston, TX, by means of a truck crossing the border from Mexico. 
     
    Based on additional information, I believe that should al-Qaeda decide not to attack in a timely way for some reason, our CIA “al-Qaeda impersonators” could fill in for them.
     
    If there is no attack, GWB can then claim that his security measures are effective.  He wins either way.
     
    This might not even be of interest to many people, were it not for the fact that our leaders have no concern for the deaths of innocent people, when it furthers their agenda.  It then stirs up a “patriotic fervor” that also works to their benefit.
     
    It appears that there’s “no way out,” which, in fact, there may not be under our current structure.  But I’m an optimist and will, soon, discuss a “Manual for Change.” (Your thoughts on this are always welcome. I have one idea I’ll present later.) We can always just smile at the situation because death is really not a bad thing.  In some spiritual thought, it’s just another step of life.  I just have a problem with the pain that may be associated with it.   🙂

    Joe

     

  • Introduction

    Please read the editor profile, guidelines and disclaimer and objective for this web log by clicking on these sections under “Pages” on the right side.  I encourage you to check out the web site http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=04/11/09/1526251 with information on John Perkins, author of “Confessions of an Economic Hit Man.”  His guidance in the epilogue of that book, that we can change our situation with “words,” was the inspiration for this web log site.

    Note: Some of you will have read the following material in one of my emails, so you can “speed read” through it or just ignore it 🙂

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    Recent opinions regarding the president’s power in reference to protecting national security are split, primarily because few people understand the workings of government, our numerous agencies and the administration in particular.
     
    Some key things to remember: the attacks on Americans at home and abroad are based on U.S. policies going back many years, particularly our need for control in the oil rich Mid-East and South America, our ignorance of human cultures, our arrogance in thinking that we have the “right” cause, “God is on our side,” etc.; and a thought process that war rather than diplomacy and tact is the approach to solving problems.
     
    George Bush has bad advisors, for sure; but he also closes the doors to information that would be helpful to decision-making and uses events for his best interests and those of his cronies, his “base of support.”  The 9/11 attack was used to bring the country together, for a short time, in a common cause against a common, albeit, foggy enemy, “terrorism,” which would not be a problem if we would change our global policies.   The war on Iraq was completely unnecessary, brought the deaths of thousands of innocent people, and has made our situation less safe than before 9/11.  Bush became the “poster-boy” for Al-Qaida recruiters.  Our troops should never have been required in Iraq and when they were brought in, they were ill-equipped and insufficient in numbers.  They are there because of deceit.  They must get out of Iraq; but now in order to cover for our error, their return must be tempered by the needs of the situation.


    We do not need a president and national leadership team who put personal interests above those of our country. Reviewing the political history of the United States, we know that our current administration does not stand alone in its arrogance, greed and ignorance.  But we can hope that the situation will inevitably be seen clearly by an independent media and an educated, enlightened population, and that our leadership will soon revert to someone with intelligence, courage, common sense, responsibility, honesty and integrity -  qualities that will once again elevate America to a position of honor at home and in the world.
     
    The full solution would be for our country to eliminate a two-party controlled system and become an actual democracy in which anyone, regardless of wealth and “connections” could rise to become our leader.  How that would happen is a puzzle to me.  Perhaps we need a version of “American President” in the format of “American Idol” to develop some qualified candidates for whom we all would feel good about voting.
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