Well, *that* was certainly an eventful weekend, wasn't it?
The world finally decides it has had enough of Libyan leader Momar Kadafi (or however he's spelling his name this week...I swear, in the last 40 years this guy has gone through more versions of his name than "The Artist Formerly Known As Prince"!) and launches a military strike. And Barack Obama--who up until now has been disgustingly doveish in his approach to "The War on Middle Eastern Culture"--was right in the middle of it. Obama made the call to authorize America's portion of military intervention in Libya. Obama ended up getting some level of criticism from both sides of the political aisle, with some of the "peaceniks" on the extreme Left (those that oppose any military action, for any reason, ever) saying the action was unjustified, and some on the Right opposing the decision because of the cost and (in some cases at least) simply because Obama authorized it.
My reaction to the events of this weekend? It might surprise some of you, considering how anti-Obama I am on most issues...but I support Obama's decision and believe he made the right call. Kadafi is one of many Middle Eastern despots who has advocated the anti-Western mentality that resulted in 9/11 and the subsequent war between Western Civilization and The Middle East. Once he started firing on his own people, his removal could wait no longer. Kadafi's regime is emblematic of the type that routinely springs up when an anti-Western, anti-Christian philosophy is allowed to take root. As such, the Libyan people, the American people, and the entire world is better off without it.
So I'm on board with Obama--all is well, right? Well, not quite. While I agree with Obama's decision, I'm a bit worried about how he arrived at that decision. Think back to your high school or college days, when you took an Algebra course. If your Algebra course was anything like mine, it wasn't enough to simply produce the correct answer on your homework or an exam, you also had to "show your work" as well. The idea being that your mastery of the process was as important as the actual answer you arrived at. After all, you could sometimes get the right answer by guessing, but "showing your work" made it clear that you fully understood the mathematical processes that you were being taught. Back when I was in high school, if you got the right answer on your Algebra homework, but didn't show your work (or if the work you showed was incorrect), then you only got half-credit (or sometimes, no credit) for your response.
And so it is with Obama's response to the Libyan issue. He came up with the correct answer, but when he "shows his work" in terms of how he got there, it's not impressive at all. At no point was Obama out in front marshalling the world's forces against Kadafi...indeed, he barely reacted at all until the United Nations and Europe made it clear that they were going to respond. He did not take the bull by the horns and shape the situation to our advantage, but instead was almost goaded into the situation. For the first time in our lifetimes, America is involved in a military conflict, yet we're not calling the shots. Such a result is inexcusable for an American President and the leader of the Free World. To take such a lackadaisical entry into the conflict compromises America's traditional (and rightful) role as the leader, the trend setter, and the catalyst for freedom loving nations everywhere. Obama did not lead the nation or the World in this matter--instead, he reacted and "followed".
America leads. It does not follow.
So the lack of leadership shown by Obama is quite worrying, indeed. It's difficult to compare hypothetical situations between Presidents, but I suspect that if a Ronald Reagan or George W. Bush would have been confronted with this situation, they would have been out in front, making the case for military involvement, would would have been clear about the need for Kadafi to be deposed. Obama--while authorizing military action, which is a positive--has not made the clear case for military involvement nor has he made it clear that the continued reign of Kadafi will not be tolerated.
To do so would require strong language, and as the BP Oil Spill, the Egyptian situation, and now the Libyan conflict have illustrated, strong, straightforward, from-the-gut, clear leadership is not a trait that Barack Obama has. I've always suspected that this deficiency is rooted in the academic cocoon that he has come up in--and that his disconnection from the "real world" throughout his life leaves him looking for "consensus" and "input" when when clear and obvious decisions are right in front of his face.
Obama managed to back into one good decision. And for that he deserves a small amount of credit. But one decision does not make a leader.
Showing posts with label 9/11. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 9/11. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Thursday, October 21, 2010
The Most Destructive Phrase in the English Language
There is one phrase in the English language that I absolutely despise. I mean, I reeeeaaallly hate it. Can't stand it. Makes my skin crawl whenever I hear it.
And it's not "Last Call".
That offending phrase is "You just can't say those things!"
It's usually a phrase that is used when something controversial--but true or reasonable--is stated in a public forum. It is the epitome of Political Correctness--a retort indicating that while the "offending" comment might have some validity, it's still a comment that somehow shouldn't enter into public debate as it's just too "offensive". It is usually generated by the unspoken notion that it is better to be polite and inoffensive in public debate as opposed to being truthful.
Suppose you're having a conversation with a group of friends, and you say "There's more violent crime in poor, black areas than their are in the suburbs". You're likely to get at least one person in the group to pipe up with the "You just can't say that!" phrase. They won't dispell your point--anybody who would attempt to do so simply could not be taken seriously in light of what human beings see and observe every day--but there is something about that particular piece of truth that doesn't jive with the worldview that they subscribe to, and as such, they cannot tolerate that type of fact into the discussion.
National Public Radio perpetrated perhaps the biggest "You just can't say that!" moment of all time by firing Juan Williams for his comments on the Bill O'Reilly show. Williams "controversially" said that he gets nervous or worried when he goes on an airplane and sees other people wearing Muslim garb.
Well, Duh! After 9/11 who among us doesn't do a double-take when seeing these kind of people in an airport or on a bus?
However, NPR evidently decided that Williams didn't do a suitable job of pretending that the threat of Muslim Terrorism doesn't exist, the way that NPR wants their employees to do so. In the PC world of NPR, the fact that Williams had a reasonable reaction to seeing people in an airport wearing Muslim garb, and dared to be truthful and admit it, was somehow beyond the bounds of good taste. Likewise, I've heard many people since that time say that you just can't say what Williams said, though they would admit that his reaction was somewhat natural and understandable.
Are you fucking serious?
Williams never impuned Muslims as a whole in his comments (and in fact, later in the interview, cautioned Bill O'Reilly that we as a nation should be careful not to view all Muslims in the same vein--a statement that I don't exactly agree with Williams on). All he said was that, after the events of 9/11--when, might I remind you, WE WERE ATTACKED BY RADICAL MUSLIMS--he gets a tad nervous when seeing Muslims on a plane. He didn't say he interferes with them, or that he takes any action against them, or that they shouldn't fly, just that he is a bit more "aware" of them than he might have been previously.
Nobody is suggesting that all Muslims are terrorists--but it is clear, based on recent history, that there is a percentage of them that are. We've also learned that it doesn't take many radical Muslims to cause large amounts of damage (remember Ft. Hood? All done by only one radical Muslim). Therefore it is only logical that a human being who is concious of his own safety would give an extra look towards those who may potentially be among a group that would pose a threat--particularly when in a vulnerable environment such as an airplane.
So it's certainly reasonable that one would take extra precautions with this group of people when you consider the events of the last nine years (and longer if you count the destruction that they have wroght worldwide). The stand of NPR (and those who agree with their decision) gives the appearance that we are to ignore the threat of radical Muslims, by forcing us to "pretend" that such a threat doesn't exist, or is, at worst, minimal.
It is my view that we can't fully address and and solve the problem of radical Islam (or many other problems for that matter) if we are not allowed to honestly discuss them--with no restrictions placed on what we say for "political correctness". See #10 on the CWG list of key Conservative concepts--"The truth hurts, but that's ok." In other words, ignoring an issue, or refusing to acknowledge it because doing so would force us to overturn the unrealistic worldview of those who naively believe that human beings of all races, religions, and nationalities can somehow live in peace (World History shows us that this is, indeed, impossible), will only lead to more problems, and the issue will remain unsolved.
If you have a relative with a drug problem, does insisting that nobody mention it make it go away? Of course not. If you are having financial problems, do they get solved by never looking at your bank statements? Certainly not. It should go without saying--but I suppose it doesn't--that problems cannot be solved when they are ignored. Those problems just fester, grow, and become unmanageable if they are not attacked at first site.
I'm going to say something now that will offend many of you Liberals who read this blog (and I know you're out there): Radical Islam is a problem in America and the World at large. It is not a philosophy to be understood or contained, it is not the result of any group of people having a legitimate gripe with the United States or Western Culture, and it is not a result of the favorite buzzword of the Left--"unfairness". These people hate our culture and our nation, have already attacked us multiple times, and have made it clear that they intend to keep attacking. We must do all we can--on a personal level as well as on a national security front--to address this problem and eliminate it. Our survival depends upon it.
There is never a time where Americans should sacrifice their safety and security merely for abstract and high-minded concepts like "fairness" and "understanding". If protecting our safety crosses the line into bigotry or even racism, then so be it. I hope the American Left can learn this lesson before their inaction results in the demise of us all.
And it's not "Last Call".
That offending phrase is "You just can't say those things!"
It's usually a phrase that is used when something controversial--but true or reasonable--is stated in a public forum. It is the epitome of Political Correctness--a retort indicating that while the "offending" comment might have some validity, it's still a comment that somehow shouldn't enter into public debate as it's just too "offensive". It is usually generated by the unspoken notion that it is better to be polite and inoffensive in public debate as opposed to being truthful.
Suppose you're having a conversation with a group of friends, and you say "There's more violent crime in poor, black areas than their are in the suburbs". You're likely to get at least one person in the group to pipe up with the "You just can't say that!" phrase. They won't dispell your point--anybody who would attempt to do so simply could not be taken seriously in light of what human beings see and observe every day--but there is something about that particular piece of truth that doesn't jive with the worldview that they subscribe to, and as such, they cannot tolerate that type of fact into the discussion.
National Public Radio perpetrated perhaps the biggest "You just can't say that!" moment of all time by firing Juan Williams for his comments on the Bill O'Reilly show. Williams "controversially" said that he gets nervous or worried when he goes on an airplane and sees other people wearing Muslim garb.
Well, Duh! After 9/11 who among us doesn't do a double-take when seeing these kind of people in an airport or on a bus?
However, NPR evidently decided that Williams didn't do a suitable job of pretending that the threat of Muslim Terrorism doesn't exist, the way that NPR wants their employees to do so. In the PC world of NPR, the fact that Williams had a reasonable reaction to seeing people in an airport wearing Muslim garb, and dared to be truthful and admit it, was somehow beyond the bounds of good taste. Likewise, I've heard many people since that time say that you just can't say what Williams said, though they would admit that his reaction was somewhat natural and understandable.
Are you fucking serious?
Williams never impuned Muslims as a whole in his comments (and in fact, later in the interview, cautioned Bill O'Reilly that we as a nation should be careful not to view all Muslims in the same vein--a statement that I don't exactly agree with Williams on). All he said was that, after the events of 9/11--when, might I remind you, WE WERE ATTACKED BY RADICAL MUSLIMS--he gets a tad nervous when seeing Muslims on a plane. He didn't say he interferes with them, or that he takes any action against them, or that they shouldn't fly, just that he is a bit more "aware" of them than he might have been previously.
Nobody is suggesting that all Muslims are terrorists--but it is clear, based on recent history, that there is a percentage of them that are. We've also learned that it doesn't take many radical Muslims to cause large amounts of damage (remember Ft. Hood? All done by only one radical Muslim). Therefore it is only logical that a human being who is concious of his own safety would give an extra look towards those who may potentially be among a group that would pose a threat--particularly when in a vulnerable environment such as an airplane.
So it's certainly reasonable that one would take extra precautions with this group of people when you consider the events of the last nine years (and longer if you count the destruction that they have wroght worldwide). The stand of NPR (and those who agree with their decision) gives the appearance that we are to ignore the threat of radical Muslims, by forcing us to "pretend" that such a threat doesn't exist, or is, at worst, minimal.
It is my view that we can't fully address and and solve the problem of radical Islam (or many other problems for that matter) if we are not allowed to honestly discuss them--with no restrictions placed on what we say for "political correctness". See #10 on the CWG list of key Conservative concepts--"The truth hurts, but that's ok." In other words, ignoring an issue, or refusing to acknowledge it because doing so would force us to overturn the unrealistic worldview of those who naively believe that human beings of all races, religions, and nationalities can somehow live in peace (World History shows us that this is, indeed, impossible), will only lead to more problems, and the issue will remain unsolved.
If you have a relative with a drug problem, does insisting that nobody mention it make it go away? Of course not. If you are having financial problems, do they get solved by never looking at your bank statements? Certainly not. It should go without saying--but I suppose it doesn't--that problems cannot be solved when they are ignored. Those problems just fester, grow, and become unmanageable if they are not attacked at first site.
I'm going to say something now that will offend many of you Liberals who read this blog (and I know you're out there): Radical Islam is a problem in America and the World at large. It is not a philosophy to be understood or contained, it is not the result of any group of people having a legitimate gripe with the United States or Western Culture, and it is not a result of the favorite buzzword of the Left--"unfairness". These people hate our culture and our nation, have already attacked us multiple times, and have made it clear that they intend to keep attacking. We must do all we can--on a personal level as well as on a national security front--to address this problem and eliminate it. Our survival depends upon it.
There is never a time where Americans should sacrifice their safety and security merely for abstract and high-minded concepts like "fairness" and "understanding". If protecting our safety crosses the line into bigotry or even racism, then so be it. I hope the American Left can learn this lesson before their inaction results in the demise of us all.
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