A Certain Level of Irony?

I found Sen. McCain's response to Vladimir Putin's Op Ed piece to be quite ironic. Here is an excerpt:

I make that claim because I respect your dignity and your right to self-determination. I believe you should live according to the dictates of your conscience, not your government. I believe you deserve the opportunity to improve your lives in an economy that is built to last and benefits the many, not just the powerful few. You should be governed by a rule of law that is clear, consistently and impartially enforced and just. I make that claim because I believe the Russian people, no less than Americans, are endowed by our Creator with inalienable rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

On one level, I can't say I really disagree with too much he said. (Although he clearly did not understand what the punk band he mentioned, whose name I will also not repeat, actually did. They would have been arrested if they had done the same thing in Washington, but the prison sentence would have been less.)

This is what happens if you are McCain's or the US' "interesting man." Assad knows thisBut on another level, for McCain to write such a piece shows just how clueless he is. Read the entire piece and substitute America for Russia in your reading. The criticisms he makes of Russia just as well apply to America. Accusing Russia of supporting dictators was particularly funny. As McCain himself said after meeting Qaddafi, "an interesting meeting with an interesting man." Click on the link to see just how ironic it is. 

What planet does he live on?

Actually, I know. He married into the elite that run the US. While his wife is in the second tier of the US's elite, she clearly belongs among their number. Yes, an elite controls Russia. But an elite controls the US as well, and McCain is a part of that elite.

Having gone to Russian many times in the last 12 years, I see the trajectory that Russia is on--more freedom, and more prosperity. Having lived in the US for the last 12 years I see the trajectory the US is on--less freedom, and less prosperity.

If these trends continue, at some point the two countries can wave at each other as they pass in the night, going in different directions.

There is a rumbling stampede headed our way. Are you doing the equivalent of having a nice picnic in a field watching the herd approach, but instead of rising to flee, you continue your meal? Are you enjoying your potato salad as hoof beats get louder?

Syria from a Christian Perspective

If you want to know what is happening to Syrian Christians, watch this. 

Why Don't I Believe Obama?

Why don't I believe President Obama? It is the company he keeps.

The Supreme Court ruled that Georgia had no jurisdiction over the Cherokees. President Andrew Jackson, just before he sent many Cherokees to their death in a forced evacuation, said this: "Mr. Marshall has made his decision. Now let him enforce it!" (Marshall was the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. My historical side forces me to point out that this quote is not well documented historically. But he did say many similar things.) 

“I’ll have those n****** voting Democratic for the next 200 years.” —Lyndon B. Johnson to two governors on Air Force One - 

"I am not a crook." "When the president does it, it is not illegal." Richard Nixon

"I don't remember." Ronald Reagan

"Read my lips, no new taxes." George Bush I

"I did not inhale." "I did not have sex with that woman, Ms Lewinsky." "It depends on what the meaning of "is" is." Bill Clinton

"A zebra does not change its spots." President Al Gore, well he was really elected. 

"Saddam Hussein has weapons of mass destruction." George Bush II

"I have known eight presidents, three of them intimately." Joe Biden 45th President. 

And yes, whatever Conservative Favorite Son is elected in 2020, I will be of the same opinion as to presidental veracity.

But I must admit I do "Like Ike." 

I used to think well of Cal, until I found out he was playing us all for fools using the Public Relations master Bernays to form Coolidge's iconic image. I feel so used. So after what "Cal" did, I no longer trust any president. 

Dietary Infographic

I thought I would give Mark Sisson a little publicity, although the pro-saturated fat mania among low carb dieters is not well placed. I would place fruit and vegetables at the bottom, with most of that portion dedicated to vegetable. 

I try to replace saturated fats with mono unsaturated fats. like olive oil, dietary heresy for some. 

Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum

I just got the Audible audio for Alice in Wonderland! It only cost $.49! Can you tell I am excited?

This will allow me to make more comparisons of our modern political system using Alice in Wonderland analogies.

My favorite I have used in the past is Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.

It tends to shock people when I point out the substantial lack of difference between the major parties. Conservatives are particularly irked when I point this out. But let's look at the issues.

The difference between the Republicans and Democrats on War is minor. Obama is proposing to spend immense amounts of money on "Defense." (I think the original term, the War Department, is more honest than the Department of Defense.) The Republicans complain that it is not enough.

Does either party really plan to end what Eisenhower called the "Military Industrial Complex"?

Be Serious.

There are even pro-war "Libertarians." But the Libertarians, and the 1% of the vote they get, in general offer more on this.

Wealth concentration is a huge problem. While the Democrats pay lip service to the idea, they really are no different than the Republicans. In fact the various "reforms" that have destroyed our financial system were done under their watch during the Clinton administration.

Libertarians do not seem to think it is a problem.

Most of the solutions offered are to my mind worse than the disease of wealth concentration. High marginal tax rates and inheritance taxes do not really affect the very wealthy, only their modestly wealthy competition.

What are my solutions...solutions I acknowledge will never be done short of some sort of economic disaster.

Declare victory in our various wars and bring the soldiers home. Why in the world does the US still have troops in Europe to fight the Soviet Union? We are coming up on the 30th anniversary of the end of the Soviet Union.

I would limit the number of employees that anyone can employ to 50,000. Apple seems to do fine with a little more than that. This might be hard on Walmart with 2 million employees, but that endears me to the proposal.

Will anything happen on either of these issues?

Don't make me laugh.

The parties will continue to fight over things, like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum over their rattle.  One may win, but in the fight the rattle may be destroyed.

Stay far, far away as you are the politician's oyster, ready to be eaten.