SECOND AMENDMENT RIGHTS

I am perplexed as to why there seems to be so much anger, directed at abortion clinics, by gun enthusiasts, even though they seem to have no compunction at all in killing living things. The only thing that I have been able to come up with is that somehow they feel that abortions are depriving them of their second amendment rights by taking targets away from them, prematurely.

CARSON MAKES TWO DAY VISIT TO MIDDLE EAST

Ordinarily, a two day visit overseas would qualify any Republican as a pre-eminent expert in the area.  Dr. Carson might have been in that category, but, possibly because of jet lag, his initial commentary from Amman, Jordan, was reasonable and rational, limited to what he actually learned on site.  There may be some serious repercussions in his approval rating as the result of this campaign gaffe.

UNION LEADER ENDORSES CHRIS CHRISTIE

Of course, it's the newspaper, "Union Leader" that has endorsed Christie, unmindful of the fact that he probably be unable to win the State that he is presently governing.

POLITICIZING THE PLANNED PARENTHOOD SHOOTINGS

It is reprehensible that Obama, instead of honoring the fallen, at the Colorado Springs shootings, as staunch defenders of Second Amendment rights, chose to use the situation to further gun control. This lack of good taste has been evident throughout his entire Presidency.  

GUEST POSTING FROM GREG STOUT

  I'm a dove, but I understand the reasoning behind the following five prerequisites.  I read this article and thought some of you may be interested as well ... if it's going to happen (depending upon who is elected president), these premises should come under consideration.  I’m not saying I agree with these 100%, but I do understand the reasoning behind them.  The blue print is from the article.

Five Prerequisites For War Against ISIS

We appear to be moving ever closer toward a world war against the Islamic State.

No sane person welcomes war. Yet if we do go to war against ISIS we must keep a watchful eye on 5 things:

1. The burden of fighting the war must be widely shared among Americans.

America’s current “all-volunteer” army is comprised largely of lower-income men and women for whom army pay is the best option.

“We’re staring at the painful story of young people with fewer options bearing the greatest burden,“ Greg Speeter, executive director of the National Priorities Project, told the Washington Post. NPP’s study found low- and middle-income families supply far more Army recruits than families with incomes greater than $60,000 a year.

That’s not fair. Moreover, when the vast majority of Americans depend on a small number of people to fight wars for us, the public stops feeling the toll such wars take.

From World War II until the final days of the Vietnam War, in January 1973, nearly every young man in America faced the prospect of being drafted into the Army.

Sure, many children of the rich found means to stay out of harm’s way. But the draft at least spread responsibility and heightened the public’s sensitivity to the human costs of war.

If we go into a ground war against ISIS, we should seriously consider reinstating the draft.

I’m against war, but I understand that the largest number of losses are being incurred by our poorer citizens.  Our wealthier citizens are aware of this also ... thus, their lack of concern and caring since they aren’t directly affected.

“It was here I learnt that corporate principles and military principles are basically the same. Insulation. Illusion. Hype. Activity.” ~ Tarun J. Tejpal, The Alchemy of Desire

2. We must not sacrifice our civil liberties.

U.S. spy agencies no longer have authority they had in the post-9/11 USA Patriot Act to collect Americans’ phone and other records. The NSA must now gain court approval for such access.

But in light of the Paris attacks, the FBI director and other leading U.S. law enforcement officials now say they need access to encrypted information on smartphones, personal and business records of suspected terrorists, and “roving wiretaps” of suspects using multiple disposable cell phones.

War can also lead to internment of suspects and suspensions of constitutional rights, as we’ve painfully witnessed.

Donald Trump says he’d require American Muslims to register in a federal data base, and he refuses to rule out requiring all Muslims to carry special religious identification.

"We’re going to have to do things that we never did before….we’re going to have to do certain things that were frankly unthinkable a year ago,” he adds.

We must be vigilant that we maintain the freedoms we are fighting for.

Loss of liberties seems to be a common thread whenever fear is implanted within the minds of our citizenry.

"Arguing that you don't care about privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don't care about free speech because you have nothing to say." ~ Greg Stout

3. We must minimize the deaths of innocent civilians abroad.

The bombing raids have already claimed a terrible civilian toll, contributing to a mass exodus of refugees.

Last month the independent monitoring group Airwars said at least 459 civilians have died from coalition airstrikes in Syria over the past year. Other monitoring groups, including the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, also claim significant civilian deaths.

Some civilian casualties are unavoidable. But we must ensure they are minimized – and not just out of humanitarian concern. Every civilian death creates more enemies.

And we must do our part to take in a fair portion of Syrian refugees.

Losses of innocents tends to create more terrorists, rather than eliminating them.  How would we react if 459 innocent Americans were targeted and killed here in our homeland?

“What difference does it make to the dead, the orphans and the homeless, whether the mad destruction is wrought under the name of totalitarianism or in the holy name of liberty or democracy?" ~ Mahatma Gandhi

4. We must not tolerate anti-Muslim bigotry in the United States.

Already, leading Republican candidates are fanning the flames.

Ben Carson says no Muslim should be president.

Trump says “thousands” of Arab-Americans cheered when the Twin Towers went down on 9/11 – a boldface lie.

Ted Cruz wants to accept Christians refugees from Syria but not Muslims.

Jeb Bush says American assistance for refugees should focus on Christians.

Marco Rubio wants to close down “any place where radicals are being inspired,” including American mosques.

It’s outrageous that leading Republican candidates for president of the United States are fueling such hate.

Such bigotry is not only morally odious. It also plays into the hands of ISIS.

Bigotry and persecution of others is also a major factor in creating terrorists and hatred.

"The problem in defense is how far you can go without destroying from within what you are trying to defend from without." ~ Dwight D. Eisenhower

5. The war must be paid for with higher taxes on the rich.

A week before the terrorist attacks in Paris, the Senate passed a $607 billion defense spending bill, with 91 senators in favor and 3 opposed (including Bernie Sanders). The House has already passed it, 370 to 58. Obama has said he’ll sign it.

That defense appropriation is larded with pork for military contractors – including Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, the most expensive weapons system in history.

Now Republicans are pushing for even more military spending.

We cannot let them use the war as a pretext to cut Social Security and Medicare, or programs for the poor.

The war should be paid for the way we used to pay for wars – with higher taxes, especially on the wealthy.

As we move toward war against ISIS, we must be vigilant – to fairly allocate the burdens of who’s called on to fight the war, to protect civil liberties, to protect innocent civilians abroad, to avoid hate and bigotry, and to fairly distribute the cost of paying for war.

These aren’t just worthy aims. They are also the foundations of our nation’s strength.

The only way to deter the wealthy from waging wars that cost the lives of our poorer citizens is to hit them in the wallet; they are insulated in all other ways.

“Experience demands that man is the only animal which devours his own kind, for I can apply no milder term to the general prey of the rich on the poor.” ~ Thomas Jefferson

Since so many hawks are pushing for war and persecution of those from other groups, while restricting our own liberties and freedoms, I thought you might at least consider what the author had to say. 

PUTIN'S RIGHTEOUS OUTRAGE

A Russian bomber attacking non-ISIS, Turkmen  rebelling against Assad, is shot down by Turkey,  Putin is outraged that Turkey is interfering in a civil war.  Who can blame him?

CRIMINAL ACTS ARE ALLOWED ONLY FOR GOVERNMENT AND LAW ENFORCEMENT

After committing acts tantamount to felonious obstruction of justice, Government officials, in Chicago, tell demonstrators, enraged by an attempted cover up of a shooting of an unarmed black man, that they are allowed to demonstrate but not to commit crimes.  That privilege is reserved for politicians and police officials.