Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Smoke

A little background. Over the weekend MSNBC host Toure tweeted that the Jews were able to recover from the concentration camps in WWII because of White Privilege.  (So did you want to trade with them?) There was quite naturally a twitter riot, and today (or at least I heard about it today) he made a sort of 3 tweet non-apology-apology.  Because 140 characters can’t possibly be “nuanced” enough for this discussion.

Maybe that’s true, but I remember a Jewish guy who was allegedly pretty smart once said “If you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, you don’t understand it.” Name was Einstein? Anyway, what this White Privilege really says is it’s nice to have rich parents, and then slaps race on it. 

Now I would not trade my parents in for different ones, but it sure would have been nice if they were rich.  I could have struggled through that.  But that was not the case, and it seldom is.  It’s pretty easy for ANYONE to hate obnoxious silver-spooned-idiots, but they now come in all colors. Whatever its original merit – White Privilege has now become nothing more than a smokescreen for racism on the left.

One of the things smoke is used for in the military is to hide – so you can do your business without the enemy having a specific target to shoot at.  All they know is that you’re somewhere in the smoke, and best guess shooting doesn’t work very well.

One of the things my not rich parents taught me was a word – Sophistry. According to Google, it’s “The use of fallacious arguments, especially with the intention of deceiving.”  Or according to me, a complicated argument to disguise your true motives or reasons for something you are doing.   This is not new or rare – it’s older than history.  Most people know it when they see it.  White Privilege Is used that way by racists on the left, and most people of all colors know it for exactly the BS that it is.  Most people care about your actions more than your excuse for them.  For some things, there is no good enough reason.  (Insert your own example here.) 

As for reparations for crimes long past (An issue that came up yet again in the White Privilege twitter riot), In America there is no inherited guilt.  The dead, like it or not, will either be judged by God, or by no one at all.  There is nothing that we can do now without punishing the innocent.  That we won’t do. 

Monday, May 26, 2014

ACTION REQUIRED

I really doubt the President will read this, or ever know I exist, but I do hope he sees something similar from somebody.  All the time, in his face, until he acts. Like him or no, and for me it’s no, he IS the President and the “buck” has landed squarely on his desk, because at this point he’s the only one who CAN act. Congress can’t change anything.  And the Judicial branch can’t help unless someone is charged with a crime. It’s all on Obama’s shoulders.

We have heard lots of speeches from the President.  Slowly and painfully we have learned speeches are NOT action.  Another investigation is NOT action. This will be investigated for a decade regardless. On both sides of the isle we need to SEE action on this.  There is more than enough information to act on at this point, but we aren’t seeing any action.

General Shinseki and at least 19 others should be fired immediately.  That would show both seriousness and decisiveness, and it’s something we can see. Even if there is no stomach to fire them, yet, at the least they should be placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of investigation.  Either way, they’re done and won’t be able to meddle. Those are actions we can SEE.

I’ve heard some people say “But then who’s going to fix the problems?”  or “They know the VA better than anybody so they should fix it.”  Well, apparently “They” don’t know, assuming they weren’t complicit.  The accused does not get to be in charge of the crime scene, and that may well turn out to be literal truth here.

I don’t know if Shinseki knew about this, but it does not matter.  It may not have been his fault, but it was definitely his responsibility. No former military man is going to be confused about that. Including Shinseki himself.

The other thing is vouchers.  They will save lives RIGHT NOW.  Whatever it costs congress will backfill eventually, because they have no choice.  The President has thrown money at MANY dumber things.  He is perfectly capable of throwing money someplace where it’s needed.   People will SEE this.  It will be good for the President and his party almost immediately.  And I will celebrate too, because of the Veterans.


Constitutionally, he is the ONLY person who has the authority to do all that needs to be done RIGHT NOW.  It is, in fact the PURPOSE of the Executive branch. The American people want action on this. We are furious.  What I WANT is to see the president attack this situation like Godzilla with a chainsaw on crack, IN SPITE of the good it will do him politically.   He’s the only one who can.  Our heroes are that important.  As they should be.

Tuesday, May 20, 2014

CLIPPING CHINA

Obama has decided that the best way to deal with 5 Chinese Military hackers is to indict them publicly for cybercrimes.  The logic here escapes me completely, but this really happened.  China is of course deeply insulted about all this demanding of our ambassador that the U.S. withdraw the indictments.  All of this is perfectly predictable political theatre.

It may not be true that the Chinese have the best hackers in the world, but it is definitely true that they have the best organized hackers.  They are legendary. They have been doing this for a long time and they have earned their reputation.

At one time it was probably true that most of the hackers learned their trade right here in the U.S.   Since this hacking has been going on since at least the late 80’s they are well into their third generation of these hackers and probably can train them in China alone now.  That’s a capability that I would want, and I assume they want it as well.  It makes sense to not depend on your enemy to train your spies, (which is pretty much what hackers are.)

Spies don’t hold awards ceremonies because the best stolen secrets are the ones that your enemy does not know you have.  This can make it nearly impossible for a poor civilian (me) to keep track of what’s really going on in the world of hackers.  Still, I long ago concluded that as far as hackers go, the Chinese have been eating our lunch for a very long time.  I’d be delighted to be wrong, but I don’t think so.

Still, this is a very strange strategy.  These 5 men are probably not themselves the hackers, but most likely are their commanding officers.  They never left China and likely never will. In essence, all we are doing by indicting them is saying China steals military and industrial secrets from us, which is already well known by anyone who pays the slightest attention.

The Chinese may have lost some face over this, or pretend they did if it’s useful, but the only thing we are going to get out of this is their raised middle finger.

But if that’s the way we are going to do this then lets get some concrete gains.  As China (and hopefully Obama) by now well knows, International law only exists where it is enforced.  Not where you CAN enforce it, only where you DO enforce it.  So international law be damned.  Why don’t we fine them every time we find another Chinese hack into U.S. corporations or government/military computers? I’m thinking a billion a pop.  We just let them know that some of the debt they own is considered paid because of this hacking.  Now that will irritate them. 

They will probably threaten (or even try) to dump all our debt, but if we state that specific bond numbers are now invalid and won’t be paid, nobody will buy them or any other bond numbers, lest we decide to declare those worthless too.  That would put a dent in, or potentially eliminate a threat China enjoys holding over our heads.

We’d probably be condemned by the UN for it, but I figure we can just add it to the list.


Even the RUMOR of such a thing might set them back on their heels, which would be a good thing.

Debts

This might just be the only thing that Republicans and Democrats agree on this year, but it’s a big one.  Absolutely nobody on either side of the isle understands why our President and Commander in Chief is messing this up so badly. It’s quite simple really, but perhaps the President requires something to put on his teleprompter before he really gets it. I shall therefore attempt to do so.

The problem is quite simple really.  Our wounded veterans are supposed to be getting care from the VA in a timely manner, yet they are not.  This is a promise that we made to these men and women and one we have a moral obligation to fulfill.  WE ARE SUPPOSED TO DO WHAT WE TOLD THEM WE WOULD DO: TAKE CARE OF THEM, PERIOD.

The problem arose when too many bureaucrats decided that if they couldn't fix the problem, maybe fixing the paperwork would be good enough.  This is the nature of bureaucracy, and is fairly common.  Their Management or Commanders are expected to step on some necks well before at minimum 60 vets die while waiting for lifesaving medical care.  This was all to earn bonuses and good reviews for pretty paperwork.

Whatever political party you belong to this is quite simply not good enough.  If you are human, this is not good enough. No one is debating any of this.

What our fearless leader fails to understand, or does not want to understand, is how we expect this to be dealt with, BY HIM.

First, relieve all the commanders/bureaucrats-in-charge of these institutions.  They are supposed to know better.  Just tell them that they are no longer in charge and that we’ll figure out what to do with them after the vets are taken care of.  Punishing them is not fixing the problem so do whatever you do AFTER THE VETS ARE CARED FOR.  Also, NO BONUSES THIS YEAR. Nobody gets to profit off the deaths of our heroes.

Care for as many as the VA can, and send the rest out with vouchers so they get that lifesaving care we promised.  I would expect Democrats to be absolutely wonderful at this. They love red ink. I expect Republicans to keep their word and spend what is required to get this done, RIGHT NOW!  And they don’t have to like it.

The President is expected to go forth and kick ass until this is done.  I don’t give a damn about his, or anyone else’s feelings on this one.


Make it happen.

Monday, May 12, 2014

Oh to be young and offensive!

I remember the days when one of my chief joys in life was to offend people.  That’s how I got good at it. Still I thought Harvard students were supposed to be smart.  I understand doing something to offend as many people as possible.  I get it.  It’s a kind of freedom and a kind of power. 

This Black Mass thing probably seemed like a good bet.  I mean all the Harvard kids did is find a group they don’t care for and stack the facts (or lack thereof) in the most offensive language possible. Best I’ve ever seen is CHRISTIANITY: A 2000 year old cult based upon ritual cannibalism. It’s technically true, and spectacularly offensive.  I once looked in to getting a bunch of t-shirts that said “Nuke a whale for Jesus Obama ” But I am too cheap or too broke or just too lazy to follow through with that. 

And I can’t believe Harvard brats have never seen this sort of thing before.  I would have expected that they have Affirmative Action cookie sales there from time to time. You know, the one where the darker a person’s skin, the less they pay for cookies?  There’s actually a point to that. It’s about Affirmative Action. (Just for the Harvard students.) I’ve got to ask though, was there a point to this Black Mass beyond offending random people? I mean, if you really want to promote the satanic lifestyle, join the Satanic Temple.  I’ll bet they let you in. It’s free advertising. Which is why they were so willing to help you do this.

I’ve met a few Satanists, mostly they are just ethical egoists on crack with some grudge or other against Christianity. Great for kids who want to piss off their parents. The rest of the time it just irritates people.  Also, there are easier ways to get sex. But enough about that.


I myself think that these “smart kids” should know that when you are trying to offend people, you should count on succeeding. However what The Sage of Hackberry Hill (a.k.a. Dad)  used to tell me is probably more appropriate.   Once I was allegedly too old to do stupid stuff just to see what would happen, he told me, “Each Generation thinks they are the ones who invented sin.  They are wrong.”


Thus endith the lesson.

Monday, May 5, 2014

Peace Offering

Now many people say that I am unfair in my criticism of the Democrat Party.  It may even be true from time to time.  In response I have decided to turn over a new leaf and help them out for a change.

This is a cheat sheet that you can copy and hand out to any Democrat who is confused about Democrat Doctrine. Now, I’ve never seen this written down anywhere (which is why so many Democrats are confused) but based on standard responses to similar situations, I have been able to infer much. I believe putting it down in one place will help you in your recruitment drives by laying out how to respond to us….I mean to the evil Republicans and Conservatives.  Don’t say I never did anything for you.

Democrat Doctrine

All white people who don’t agree with us are RACIST.

All Republicans are RACIST.

All non-white people who don’t agree with us are UNCLE TOMs.

Histrionics and Republican baiting are expected. After all everything IS THEIR FAULT!

No Democrat is ever racist no matter what they say or do, and hating white people is not racism.  It is the height of reason.

While we love the first amendment, free speech that criticizes ANY DEMOCRAT should be banned!

Guns are EVIL because somebody might use them to protect themselves or others or their constitutional rights. (which are also evil)

All Christians are EVIL.

Islam is just misunderstood. Once you get past the fact that they mostly want to kill us all, it’s a beautiful religion!

Climate Change will kill us all unless we give lots of money to useless organizations that Democrats just happen to own.

Climate Change means we must pass many laws that restrict Republicans – I meant big business – from making any profits lest they be used against us.

Violence and intimidation are against the law and therefore not approved of by the Democrat party – however, we will welcome you back as soon as you finish.

All negative information about Obamacare is a lie. Nobody has lost their insurance or their doctor, and the web site is fine!

While Eric Holder is Attorney General- no laws apply to democrats – including donors and anyone who practices voter intimidation that favors us! Of course anyone who objects to this is obviously Racist and/or an UNCLE TOM

It is my sincere hope that this summary will assist you in your recruitment of new members.


See! I’m VERY fair!