Poor Taste??? Yeah, I think so!

Ok, so I’ll admit it, I’m not a big Barak Obama fan, at least when it comes to policy (I have to admit that man can speak), but this NY POst cartoon, well even with my pention for being politically incorrect, I had to comment on this one.  Not only was it insensitive, but actually it wasn’t that funny.  Not that I think the government, or some legal “entity” should pursue a lawsuit, but those that purchase the NY Post should probably speak with their wallets, and decide, at least for awhile purchase another newspaper…check it out

 

Goodbye George Bush

I am a George Walker Bush supporter.  I know saying that is almost like saying you support the devil, but that’s a whole different discussion.  Now, I do not support him 100% mind you, considering my mantra is “The only politician I agree with 100% is me.  If you agree with another person (especially a politician) ALL of the time, I have to question your free will.”  I honestly can say, though, that I am better off now (by leaps and bounds) than I was 8 years ago.  I realize that is not the case for the economy, as it currently stands.  I also realize that there is much work to do when it comes to finding a fix for our current economic woes, but I digress. 

This is more of a post regarding the end of an era, one that was mired in many successes, tragedies, and tense moments.  This era is one that I believe will be debated for decades to come, both positively and negatively.  It didn’t start very well, considering he had to go all the way to the Supreme Court to become the POTUS, and as we see now it did not end well.  As for the middle portion of his administration, I will touch on but not expand upon the highs and lows of a President that I believe has been unfairly construed as a liar, cowboy, and overall pariah.

To accurately portray George Bush’s legacy (or anyone’s for that matter) you need to take the decisions that were made and the outcomes of those decisions and compare that to the situation at hand.  Take 9/11 for instance.  To quote an ”intellectual” on the left, ”he grandstanded over the wreckage and the dust of the dead at his feet.”  No, what he did is what any good president should do and that is show strength in a time of despair, show solidarity in a time of fear, and show support for the men and women that perished at the hands of monsters.  My first thought, after the attacks in NY, D.C. and Pennsylvania, was GET THEM, get them with everything we have.  Did George Bush (the “Cowboy”) go in, half-cocked, bombing every country that has either sponsored terrorism or turned a blind eye to it?  No, he was calculated, methodical and poised in a time when people were clamoring for action.  That action did not take place until October 7, 2001, nearly 1 month after we were attacked.  So much for the “cowboy” moniker.

Iraq;  has been categorized by scads of people as an “endless war”, “Bush’s war”, “unnecessary war” (my favorite, by the way), amongst others.  All of those could be further from the truth.  We all know that Bush’s father had already had a run-in with Saddam Hussein, but what people fail to realize is that Bill Clinton, in 1998, had signed the Iraq Liberation Act, which called for a regime change in Iraq on the basis that Saddam Hussein’s possession of weapons of mass destruction, oppression of Iraqi citizens, and attacks upon other Middle Eastern countries.  http://www.iraqwatch.org/government/US/Legislation/ILA.htm  Following 9/11, there was intelligence that indicated that Hussein not only had WOMD, there was a proven willingness to attack rival nations (Iran and Kuwait for example), there were UN resolutions, a U.S. congressional Act signed by the previous president, and it was known that Saddam Hussein’s regime was brutal and aggressive to the U.S..  Why wouldn’t we go in, liberate, and expel a known aggressor to the U.S. and the rest of the world?  Once in Iraq, the intelligence was proven to be faulty, but at that point what was Bush to do?  Uproot and leave a fledging country to fend for itself.  We saw what happened when Saddam was taken out – the terrorists tried to take over.  For awhile it seemed like this was another Vietnam, but to his credit, Bush was not going to allow the terrorists to win.  He along with General David Petraus came up with the ever successful “troop surge”.  A policy and strategy that to this day, should be lauded (certainly not criticized – like Barak Obama did).  There is much work to do in Iraq and the Middle East as a whole, but to say that we not only didn’t win the war, but lost it, are naive. 

Another watershed policy enacted by President Bush in the wake of September 11th that have been ridiculed and chastised was, The Patriot Act.  An act that expanded the ability of the President to counteract terrorism with a variety of different tools.  The knock on the particular piece of legislation is that it infringes on the rights of Americans and flies in the face of the constitution (another knock on President Bush, and I quote “shredded the constitution at every turn….”).  The left LOVES to throw this back at Bush, but do you know that when the legislation came up for a vote in October of 2001, 98 out of 99 Senator’s voted YES and 366 out of 423 Congressmen also voted YES?  Wait, it gets better.  In March of 2006, when Bush’s approval ratings were plummeting, the same two groups voted in the following fashion: Senate – 89 YES, 10 NO  – House of Representatives – 238 YES, 138 NO.  If Bush’s utilization of this act was soooooo unconstitutional, shouldn’t the congress been a little more “boisterous” with their opposition?  The question isn’t whether this is constitutional or unconstitutional (it is), the question is “does it work”?  The answer to that is – YES, and it should be continued.  The other tool used in the war on terror, that has been criticized, is the use of the U.S. military base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba to hold terror suspects.   Without going into too much detail, this is the absolute best place to house and detain those that choose to commit terrorist acts against the United States.  They are enemy combatants and as soon as they are released all they will end up doing is partnering up with their cohorts and start up their terrorist ways (see attached link for up to the date proof)

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090123/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_yemen_al_qaida

The years between 2001 and 2007 were filled with an ever booming housing market, questionable investing, and other financial chicanery that came to roost the 2nd half of 2007 to the present.  Was George Bush culpable for the downturn in the market, housing and the like?  Sure, but the amount of criticism heaped onto his shoulders is nothing more than piling on, by the same people that allowed Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to approve and administer loans they knew to be bad.  That in and of itself did not create the current economic woes, but it is endemic of the attitudes on the left (and the right) to just look the other way because of political correctness, or some other platitude.

There are other issues that I could discuss (Katrina – how a President can be absolutely lambasted for a natural disaster is beyond me, deficit spending, etc) but I just don’t have the time.  I am going to finish off by stating George W. Bush was not the greatest President to ever sit in the oval office, but by no means was he the worst.  Where would I put him in the pantheon of Presidents?  That’s hard to say, but given the difficult times that were layed out in front of him, I believe he did a pretty good job.  After 8 years of war, economic boom and subsequent downturn, and everything else in between, I believe everyone will agree that George Bush’s legacy (for good or bad) will always be remembered.  I guess, for me, the view of that legacy is a little brighter than the current American voter.  We’ll see in 10-15 years how history views him.  My guess is, way better than the left will ever care to admit…..

Corruption, Partisanship, and Everything Else

Who’s more corrupt Milwaukee or Chicago?  OK, that’s an easy answer – Chicago right?!?!?  Not so fast; Milwaukee,with impotent DA’s and more importantly do-nothing federal prosecutors (Buskupic not included), Milwaukee has made leaps and bounds to equal their southern counterparts – but I digress. 

I know it’s been several days since the IL Governor scandal broke, and every newspaper, blogger, and TV newstation has beaten the IL machine horse to death, but I wanted to look at this in a slightly different, somewhat biased way. 

We Milwaukean’s, along with the rest of the American public have been able to sit on our proverbial soapbox and look down on the people and politicians of the Chicago/Illinois machine, but is any community, state, or government really that “clean”?  Chuck Chvala, Scott Jensen, three Milwaukee Aldermen, THE Michael McGee debacle, and the Milwaukee County pension scandal…and that’s just Wisconsin politicians, off the top of my head.  How many other “back-door” deals have MKE aldermen, county supervisors, mayors, county executive, assemblymen, senators (state and federal), and congressmen been able to get away with, without retribution (not to mention the boundless other politicians strewn about the American political landscape)?  My guess is as good as yours, but sufficed to say, we are not a community, state, or government without skeletons. 

Why do I bring this up?  Simple….I read and comment on numerous liberal blogs, and for the most part I try to be civil, but I am sick and tired of those on the left accusing me and others on the right of demagoguery, stupidity, hypocrisy, double standards (you name the insult and it’s out there), when they are as guilty or culpable of the same corruption, maneuvering and political pandering as the right. 

I consider myself a realist.  I understand that people that I may agree with on an ideological front may be absolute jack-asses.  I get it….don’t like it, but I get it.  What I despise, and what I believe creates a serious divide in political discourse, is when one side doesn’t acknowledge that there candidate/PARTY can a) be as corrupt b) be as dishonest c) perpetuate and support the “same-’ol-same-’ol” – “you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours” mentality. 

Pontification is easy.  I should know, I probably do it more than I should, but I’m admitting it…..I’m out there.  I’m admitting that there’s a partisan problem.  We talk about it, we complain about it, but when it comes down to correcting it, AS VOTERS, we do nothing about it.  Couple that with the fact that if there are two people in a room with differing political opinions (God forbid, egregiously different opinions) not only will NOTHING get accomplished, but there is a good chance that there will be a physical altercation.

I’m a conservative.   I’m a family man.  I am empathetic, giving and kind.  I’m not a racist, misogynist, or a homo-phobe.  I just have an opinion(s) as to how to better move our country forward.  Do I have all of the answers?  Will you agree with me 100%, 75%, 50% of the time?  NO!  But here’s the kicker…because I don’t vote for Barak Obama, because I believe in the free market, and because I believe that there needs to be some societal boundaries, I’m called a neo-con, racist, homo-phobe, anti-feminist and the like.  Calling people names, especially “charged” names (racist being a big one) all you’re doing is creating division, shoving people in corners and forcing one to defend themselves.  Sometimes without merit and honest discussion…..unfortunately.

George Bush Legacy

I have, over the past several years, been relatively supportive of President Bush.  I know that is an unpopular stance to take, considering at the time of this post his approval ratings are hovering around 25-30%.  There are several reasons why I have generally supported him and his adminstration, but the one that stands out more than any is his unwavering stance on security.  Many will argue the tactics taken by his administration, and I believe there is room for discussion/debate on that subject, but the fact that we haven’t seen any attacks on U.S. soil since 9/11, especially considering our wars in the Middle East, is nothing short of a miracle.  Many Presidents have been in power in a time where there were no attacks on the U.S., (Franklin Roosevelt and George Bush are the only ones that have in modern politics) so why does 7 years of NO attacks deserve consideration?  The answer to that is simple; this is a different time.  Islamic extremism is at an all time high, you couple that with the fact that traveling internationally is much cheaper and easier than in years prior, that, along with the ability to obtain material to create severe damage…add that all up and you have a recipe to create major havoc.  I will, as my liberal counterparts like to do, ”blame” that on George W. Bush (I mean if you’re going to blame everything else on him, you HAVE TO heap the “blame” of no terrorist attacks on the US onto his shoulders…).  With that in mind, I’m curious what people think George Bush’s legacy will be in say….20 years?!?!?  I will, after a time, give a little more insight of what my opinion is, but for now, let me know your thoughts……

Quick Hit – The Dow Jones Argument

I’m a conservative, so this post may seem a little strange, but I want to tell all of those people on the left and the right to stop using the Dow Jones roller coaster ride as a reason to make your “case in points” argument.  In the case of liberals when the Dow plummets, don’t get on your soap box and say ”look, if we privatize Social Security, this is what can happen”.  In the case of conservatives, don’t use the dip in the Average when Barak Obama gets elected as a “see, I told you so…” moment.  This is not the best economic indicator we have, and when it goes up and down (especially recently) it more often than not, is NOT based on some political issue.  Just one mans opinion, but seeing blog posts on both sides jumping on that band wagon, well….it’s just plain annoying.

“Tolerant” Left

Here’s what happens when you don’t agree in totality with the Democratic Party: http://www.usatoday.com/news/states/2008-11-07-reid-lieberman_N.htm?csp=34 Amazing, just 8 short years ago, Senator Lieberman was the Democratic nominee for Vice President.  Now, because he has a brain, and excercises the use of it, contrary to the wishs and DECREES of the Democratic Party, they’re looking to strip him of committee leadership positions and are shutting him out of Democratic caucuses.  This in conjunction with their failed attempt to get him voted out of office a few years ago. 

Anytime a liberal or a Democrat talks to you about tolerance, bi-partisanship, reaching across the aisle, “progressiveness”, etc, ask them about Joe Lieberman.  I was told as a conservative by the MSM and those same liberals that John McCain’s bucking of the Republican Party was “ground breaking”, important, and enlightented, but the minute there’s disention in the ranks of the Democratic Party, the minute someone has a differing opinion, the ever so tolerant, accepting Democrats just cannot allow that to happen.

Post Election “Synopsis”

And so it is….Barak Obama is the 44th President of the United States and will be taking office in less than three months.  As much as I think this was a major mistake by the American electorate I can completely understand why it happened.  George W. Bush - President AND a Republican represents the party, and frankly he is not very popular.  He has, I believe unfairly, been blamed for many things that were completely out of his control and in turn created a perception, in many peoples minds, that the party as a whole is bad, which it is not.  I’m not saying the GOP doesn’t need to get their collective heads out of the you-know-what.  What I am saying is, the majority of those that hold conservative/Republican beliefs are good people that want security for their finances, their global and domestic community (as it relates to the betterment of their fellow man), their family (financially and safety) and the overall quality of life for all. 

That being said, I have several wishes: 1) that Barak Obama NOT lead based off of his Illinois and US Senate record.  Helping those that are less fortunate is important, necessary and simply the right thing to do, but HOW you do that is more important than the intent.  Be true to your words President-Elect and work with us (citizens on the left AND the right) 2) Republican party – SHAPE UP!  You spout off about Reagan, and how great he was (which he was), but you don’t govern with that in mind.  Realize that it is more important to act on your principles than to just talk about them.  Stop getting into scandals.  Stop pandering to special interest groups and start acting like you understand what it means to be a conservative.   3) If Barak Obama and his Presidency are not bringing about hope and positive, responsible “change”, bring the fight to him.  Stand by your ideals, and right the ship.  The United States was built on hard work, integrity, entrepreneurship, and personal responsibility.  To turn our backs on those (and many other ideals) and allow our country to be turned into Canada (or worse) is not only bad, but IRRESPONSIBLE.   4) Lastly, when getting the party back to its roots, keep in mind that the next candidate, (whether it’s for the highest office, or the small town mayor) does not need to be the “next in line”.  This party needs to stop trotting out the Bob Dole’s and John McCain’s of the world.  They are both great Americans and men that I would love to sit and discuss politics, service to our country, etc, but they are not Presidents. 

I truly hope that Barak Obama follows through on some of his promises, especially the broad, feel good promises I heard in his acceptance speech.  I hope he is telling the truth when he said he wants to work with both Republicans and Democrats, and not take on the policies and procedures that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid will take.  I hope he is sincere in defending this country, our allies and is willing to confront evil around the world head on and not in the European fashion of appeasement.  These are not patronizing hopes, these are what I really hope for, but unfortunately don’t expect.  My last hope is that I am wrong about those expectation, and we can continue to move this country forward domestically and internationally.  Good luck to both you Mr. Obama, and our Democratic Congress, but most importantly good luck to the American public – I feel we’re going to need it.

Presidential Election

Last I read, Obama is up by 6 points in the Rasmussen poll.  It’s Monday at 10:00 pm and it is now (if it wasn’t already there) in the hands of the American electorate.  I am here to say, as if it wasn’t apparent, that I am voting for McCain.  There are MANY reasons that Senator McCain is getting my vote, but I can honestly say a large reason is because I firmly believe, and I have yet to find an Obama supporter that can argue against this with any intelligence is, that McCain is a more QUALIFIED candidate to become POTUS than Obama, period.  ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY THREE DAYS…..Why do I emphasize those 6 words???  Simple, that’s how many days that Senator Obamahas been a U.S. Senator.  My Lord, you can’t become a shift manager at McDonald’s with that many days “on the job”.  So what makes this man QUALIFIED to become POTUS, and more importantly what is wrong with the American people that they are sooooo willing to vote this guy in???? 

I will say this, Senator Obama is right on a couple things.  One, and I heard this on Monday Night Football, is that college football needs a playoff system (8 teams and let them play it out for the national championship) and two, that this election is one of the most important elections to face the American public.  With that knowledge (and I think we can all agree that Obama is correct on the importance of this race – and the playoff system…) don’t you think that we, as a country should put someone in charge that is slightly more qualified than a junior senator, with a hair more than 2 years in the US Senate, with no executive, and foreign affairs experience (amongst other concerns)????  It sounds like a simple question, but for some reason, if you trust the polls, over 50% of those polled think it’s ok to put the district manager of the Elk Grove Village McDonald’s (Illinois suburb reference) in charge of the Corporation.  You can tell me that he’s going to have advisers, (Biden, for example…..Oh, wait Democrats don’t really want to admit that), but you can put all of the VP’s/advisers in place, but the final decision still comes down to the district manager now made leader of the free world.  Does it sound scary?  If it doesn’t you need to look around.  If it looks dark and kind of grainy, you need to get your head out of the sand and realize we are in a world that needs experience, not prophetized “HOPE”.

Tomorrow will give us a new president.  If things go as most people expect, America will be electing one of the most liberal, inexperienced people to sit in that office in the modern age.  Do me a favor America, DO NOT blame me (or the Republicans), come 2010, when things look like absolute garbage.  That falls squarely on the Democratic leadership, Barak Obama, and most importantly those people that voted for that ever popular District Manager.

If THEY Hate It, It Must Be Good

Read this article last week, and before I could even get to the second paragraph, I thought, “if two Hard Line Iranian newspapers don’t like it” it must be good….so I read on.  http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080512/ap_on_re_mi_ea/iran_iraq_us  I have, for awhile, thought our presence in Iraq was not only NOT a bad thing, but over time, a good strategic PLUS for the United States.  It’s the same policy we had in the cold war, and it WORKED.  What if we didn’t have military bases in Europe, and other places?  How concerned would the Soviets have really been?  I’ll answer both with – DISASTROUS and NOT AT ALL.  Bottom line is, and this is the theme of our war in Iraq and Afghanistan, we MUST bring the fight TO the enemy.  Let them concentrate on us in their backyard instead of ours. 

We have not had a SINGLE terrorist attack on US soil since 9/11.  Why is that, luck?  Or could it be, just maybe, that our policy against terrorism and our presence in Iraq and Afghanistan is actually working?  I realize I’m in the minority with that opinion, but it is undeniable that we have not had an attack on the US (not saying it won’t happen in the future) since that day.  We allowed, for decades, the terrorist camps to go unchecked.  We ignored the obvious signs that Islamic Fascists were poised to attack the US, and did nothing.  It wasn’t until 9/11 that we woke up and realized we’re a target.  What George Bush did was take the fight to them.  Did Reagan do that?  No, he was too busy with a larger threat at the time – the Soviets.  Did Bush the First do anything????  Sort of, but didn’t go far enough.  Did Clinton change anything????  Well, sort of.  He allowed the bombing of the USS Cole to go unpunished….I guess that’s “something”. 

As for the Jomhuri-e-Eslami’s of the world, I have this to say….GOOD.  I hope you disagree with this policy, because, for me, it emboldens my opinion that not only do we have to stay in Iraq, we need to challenge those in that region to capitulate.  What I find most intriguing is the quote “The U.S.-cooked agreement turns Iraq into a full-fledged colony, so that Iraqi officials will be totally powerless but American military officials will have full powers to commit any action they want,”….only side note is, I don’t agree with Iraqi officials being totally powerless.  On the contrary, the fact that the Iraqi government and the US can be “allies” is even more of a testament to this agreement.  I guess THAT’S what really scares the Iranians…..and it should!

Quippy Sentiments – Enjoy!

Thought I would post these two for everyone’s (well, almost everyone’s) enjoyment:

http://bp2.blogger.com/_-r8QwF7lMmQ/SBO7SqTfCUI/AAAAAAAAAa8/usTklX83MD8/s1600-h/ObamaCampaign.jpg

Ann Coulter quoted as saying…..If it takes Obama 20 years to notice that his pastor is a traitorous, racist nut-job, it will probably take him his full term of office to realize that the U.S. has been invaded and subdued by al-Qaida. Let’s just hope President Obama pays closer attention during national security briefings than he did during 20 years of the Rev. Wright’s church services.