Update: Regarding the redistribution of your wealth… Obama: My Plan Will Spread the Wealth Around
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Oh I can feel the love…
McCain supporters march in Manhattan.
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Things to expect with an Obama victory. Or even without it… Michael Barone speaks regarding a liberal thugocracy.
“I need you to go out and talk to your friends and talk to your neighbors,” Barack Obama told a crowd in Elko, Nev. “I want you to talk to them whether they are independent or whether they are Republican. I want you to argue with them and get in their face.” Actually, Obama supporters are doing a lot more than getting into people’s faces. They seem determined to shut people up.
…later …
These attempts to shut down political speech have become routine for liberals. Congressional Democrats sought to reimpose the “fairness doctrine” on broadcasters, which until it was repealed in the 1980s required equal time for different points of view. The motive was plain: to shut down the one conservative-leaning communications medium, talk radio. Liberal talk-show hosts have mostly failed to draw audiences, and many liberals can’t abide having citizens hear contrary views.
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Speaking of liberal open-mindedness, take a look at what the EU is doing. Limiting MP3 players to 100dB.
[EU spokeswoman Helen Kearns] said regulators would look next year at lowering the EU legal limit of 100 decibels for MP3 players.
Apple was forced to pull its iPod player from store shelves in France and upgrade software on the device to limit sound to 100 decibels.
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Note: I managed to make a statement that was caught by Allen and I want to put it up front – the kind of individual who I had in mind when writing this was the individual who suddenly decides they are the conscientious objector type only when faced with being called up. Allen is very right to point out that there are examples of genuine and honorable conscientious objectors and it should be recognized.
Obama is dizzying himself running around doing contortions while chasing his tail.
Women should register for Selective Service. But he does not approve of a draft. He’s been taking lessons from the Great Prevaricator, WJC.
“And I think that if women are registered for service — not necessarily in combat roles, and I don’t agree with the draft — I think it will help to send a message to my two daughters that they’ve got obligations to this great country as well as boys do.”
How’s about we take a peek at “Selective Service”? We’ll humor Wikipedia and pretend like it is factually trustworthy… in this case it is.
The Selective Service System is the means by which the United States administers military conscription. It entails registering all males between the ages of 18 and 25 with the system for the purpose of having information available about potential soldiers in the event of war.
The description on the Selective Service website (government):
The legislation under which this agency operates is the Military Selective Service Act. Under this law, the mission of the Selective Service System is twofold: to deliver untrained manpower to the armed forces in time of emergency in accordance with requirements established by the Department of Defense, and to administer the alternative service program for conscientious objectors. It is in these instances that my “ought to have the balls” statement should not and cannot apply – Thanks Allen – LK
Huh. So, Selective Service registration essentially has two purposes – one, to gather information for a draft. The second is for conscientious objectors who wish to live here and partake of the freedoms in this country but are too lily-livered to ever follow through with doing their duty if it required actual fighting or service. (Yeah, I feel pretty strongly about this – if your neighbor is man enough to go if/when he is drafted – and possibly die in doing so – you ought to have the balls to do it, too. THAT is why I honor and respect veterans – draftees or voluntary servicemen.)
Obama goes to say:
But he did say women should be expected to register with the Selective Service, comparing the role of women to black soldiers and airmen who served during World War II, when the armed forces were still segregated.
“There was a time when African-Americans weren’t allowed to serve in combat,” Mr. Obama said. “And yet, when they did, not only did they perform brilliantly, but what also happened is they helped to change America, and they helped to underscore that we’re equal.
In no way is there a correlation between blacks and women in combat. NONE.
I’ll have to take issue with you on this one. Conscientious Objectors have served nobly and ably, including winning the Medal of Honor, in non-combatant roles since the beginning of the nation.
They have also served public duty at home during wartime. Anyone who publicly and with conviction who states their conscience, and accepts what may follow gets my respect.
My unit medic was a CO with the heart of a lion. He just didn’t want to take a life.
My apologies, I am referring to the individual who suddenly at the last moment decides they have a problem, only after they are called.
It’s not the person who doesn’t want to take a life that I have issue with, it’s the individual who shirks any kind of duty out of preservation of one’s skin.
Sorry for the misunderstanding there, Allen. Good point and well made.
Hmm…how did I not see this posting. Senility, I tells ya…creeps right up.
The draft? I do not want my son to serve under Obama. I’m not sure he would even be selected seeing as how he is blind as a bat, borders on anemic, and does not do well in heat.
And most definitely not my daughter.
I’m starting to feel bad about this post.
I most certainly don’t want a draft.
It might help to understand that I make comments in the context of WWII. There was a war of utmost seriousness. Two fronts, lots of people sacrificing/dying, serious rationing at home, the works.
If you think about the amazing sh*t those veterans went through, it kind of puts certain things in perspective when you see a “suddenly converted” objector or an active duty soldier or a got-my-college-paid-for reservist who refuses to step up.
Again, Allen did a good thing by pointing out that my narrow characterization was doing some folks a grave disservice.
Am I making any sense at all? I sure hope so. I’m man enough to admit when and where I’m wrong. Same time, I don’t respect those who make obligations (or have them) and don’t follow through.
I’m old enough to be old fashioned I guess. With either kid I’d be heartbroken if they died in the service but here’s the difference – I could be proud of my son and feel a terrible sense of loss, but I’d be proud of my daughter, feel a terrible sense of loss, AND crushed all at the same time. I’m of the mindset that men and women are NOT interchangeable, are NOT equal, but each have unique strengths that the other just does not have and 99% of the time never will. And they are very complimentary.
Yep, old fashioned.
Allen makes a great point.
My problem with a draft in this time is that I just don’t respect/like/trust Obama and know that he may willy-nilly send our troops wherever the wind may blow like Clinton did…along with slashing the military budget. Not good at all.
And if he doesn’t he will be setting up some bad shit by kowtowing to his despotic buddies, that would kill more of us in future….like Clinton did.
Agreed. All my points rely on the conditionals that (1) it is a justifiable war, (2) the CIC is completely cognizant of what he/she is doing, and (3) the troops are fully supported and that treated fairly.
I *hate* the idea of a draft. If it came down to a full-scale guaranteed war I don’t know what the options would be *assuming* that the voluntary service we have was not sufficient to do the job.
The draft put my dad out for four years. He wasn’t happy about it but spent four years in Germany. I think dad summed up the options: “Like the sergeant told me ‘There are your orders, there ain’t nothing can be did about it, and if you like, go to the chaplain and get your TS card punched. You ARE going to Germany. Dismissed.'”
No, no, LK, I was only pointing out that there are many exceptions. Not that you were wrong. A person that suddenly found they were a CO is bullshit. The person who volunteers while saying beforehand: “I will serve, but I will not fight” falls in a different category.
Draft, bad mojo. Heres’ why in my opinion. A draft assumes any citizen would make a decent soldier. The fact is, that the military is highly skilled and way over the heads of many of the youts in the country. Keep it volunteer, and professional.
Best
I think it gets summed up like this, Allen:
No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country. – Patton
That said, asymmetrical and urban warfare is changing the dynamics at a very rapid pace – our military is constantly improvising and adapting. The new battlefield is a very difficult place, especially with enemies that are more than willing to sacrifice lots of innocents on their own side.
But in some ways, Patton would probably note the saying “The more things change, the more things remain the same” holds true.
Complicated thing, war. Too bad it really is a bad idea to beat those weapons into plowshares.
Sorry about babbling. Too many thoughts and concepts in a few short paragraphs. Likely makes very little sense.