Right Wing Nut House

Attention! The next moonbat who opens their slimy gob about “stingy” US contributions to the relief effort…PLEASE READ THIS: (HT: Powerline)

Most interesting to me was this memo written by Dutch diplomats and circulated at an EU meeting in Indonesia:

The US military has arrived and is clearly establishing its presence everywhere in Banda Aceh. They completely have taken over the military hospital, which was a mess until yesterday but is now completely up and running. They brought big stocks of medicines, materials for the operation room, teams of doctors, water and food. Most of the patients who were lying in the hospital untreated for a week have undergone medical treatment by the US teams by this afternoon. US military have unloaded lots of heavy vehicles and organize the logistics with Indonesian military near the airport. A big camp is being set up at a major square in the town. Huge generators are ready to provide electricity. US helicopters fly to places which haven’t been reached for the whole week and drop food. The impression it makes on the people is also highly positive; finally something happens in the city of Banda Aceh and finally it seems some people are in control and are doing something. No talking but action. European countries are until now invisible on the ground. IOM staff (note: this is a USAID-funded organization) is very busy briefing the incoming Americans and Australians about the situation.

And how about the United Nations? What have they been up to? This from the Diplomad, some Bush-loving State Department folks (very lonely folks, indeed):

Well, dear friends, we’re now into the tenth day of the tsunami crisis and in this battered corner of Asia, the UN is nowhere to be seen — unless you count at meetings, in five-star hotels, and holding press conferences.
Aussies and Yanks continue to carry the overwhelming bulk of the burden, but some other fine folks also have jumped in: e.g., the New Zealanders have provided C-130 lift and an excellent and much-needed potable water distribution system; the Singaporeans have provided great helo support; the Indians have a hospital ship taking position off Sumatra. Spain and Netherlands have sent aircraft with supplies.

The UN continues to send its best product, bureaucrats.

The United States has TWO Carrier Battle Groups with more than 80 helos plus 50 or so C-130 Cargo Transports.

Where’s the French Navy? The Norwegian Air Force? The Swedish National Guard? Any Belgium Marines out there?

The fact is, they don’t exist. Which is why they call the United States military to get the job done and save hundreds of thousands of lives.

Goddamnit, I’m not asking for the Euroweenies and the rest of the Third World kleptocrats to get on their knees and grovel…but don’t you think just a little bit of acknowledgement is in order here? Maybe a resolution of thanks passed in the UN General Assembly? For once, can’t these hypocritical bastards do the decent thing?

Guess it’s too much to ask.

Looks like Washington, D.C. is going to be inundated with moonbats come inauguration time:

The Jan. 20th inauguration — shaping up to be one of the most heavily secured and expensive in history — will be the scene of small and large demonstrations. Organizers from dozens of local and national groups are planning marches, rallies and acts of civil disobedience on Inauguration Day and the days before and after. (WAPO:1/4/05)

Things sure have changed since I was a kid. When we went somewhere to demonstrate, we DEMONSTRATED! Not these chaps:

The D.C. Anti-War Network is sponsoring two actions — a rally and march from Meridian Hill Park in Columbia Heights and a “die-in” to symbolize those who have died in Iraq or because of Bush policies. The details of the die-in are still being planned, but the street-theater action will take place near the parade route, organizers said.

A “die-in” is where the protestors all lie down and pretend to be not only brain dead (which, of course, they are) but like really dead. I’ve got just two words for that:

BOR-ING!

No imagination. Why not have a “kill-in?” Why not arm yourselves with some uzi’s or AR-15’s and, instead of representational street theater, actually gun down the requisite number of Bush supporters? You could get Ramsey Clark to take time out from defending Saddam Hussein to come and make the case that you were simply exercising your constitutional rights of free speech and free expression.

No guts…no glory.

John Hawkins at Right Wing News has done the world a tremendous service. After exhaustive research, John has come up with the “40 Most Obnoxious Quotes of 2004.”

Let’s just say he had a lot of material to work with.

And lest John be taken to task for rampant partisanship, there are several quotes in there from Republicans; like this gem from Alan Keyes:

15) “Christ would not vote for Barack Obama, because Barack Obama has voted to behave in a way that it is inconceivable for Christ to have behaved.” — Alan Keyes

No wonder Keyes lost by 40 points.

How about this, said on LIVE TV by Convention producer Don Mischer:

38) “Go, balloons. Go, balloons. Go, balloons - What’s happening balloons? There’s not enough coming down. All balloons! Why the hell is nothing falling? What the f*ck are you guys doing up there?” - Democratic Convention producer Don Mischer on CNN as balloons failed to drop from the ceiling of the Fleet Center in Boston

Here’s one of my favorites:

35) “(Bush is) just a sick f***. I think we’d be hard-pressed to get someone worse than Bush. I think if you had to sum it up he’s an incredibly selfish man and his administration in my opinion puts Americans ahead of people in other countries.” — MCA from the Beastie Boys

Imagine that! Putting “Americans ahead of people in other countries.” Jeez…and I thought we elected an American President to put the interests of people from Tonga ahead of us silly yanks! Maybe we could get Clinton to feel their pain. Maybe we could get Michael Moore to fart in their general direction. Maybe we could get Margaret Cho to say more silly things like this:

34) “Despite all of this stupid bullsh*t that the Republican National Committee, or whatever the f*ck they call them, that they were saying that they’re all angry about how two of these ads were comparing Bush to Hitler? I mean, out of thousands of submissions, they find two. They’re like f*cking looking for Hitler in a haystack. …George Bush is not Hitler. He would be, if he f*cking applied himself.” — Margaret Cho at a MoveOn Award Ceremony

Ah yes…and this passes for intellectual discourse on the left.

Here’s more Bushitler. One wonders if the left isn’t just a teensy bit obsessed with the Austrian Corporal…maybe to the point of preternatural paranoia:

28) “People don’t realize that by voting Republican, they voted against themselves….I worry that some people are entertained by the idea of this war. They don’t know anything about the Iraqis, but they’re angry and frustrated in their own lives. It’s like Germany, before Hitler took over. The economy was bad and people felt kicked around. They looked for a scapegoat. Now we’ve got a new bunch of Hitlers.” — Singer Linda Ronstadt

Ronstadt had the distinction of making the list twice. Remember this goody?

9) “It’s a real conflict for me when I go to a concert and find out somebody in the audience is a Republican or fundamental Christian. It can cloud my enjoyment. I’d rather not know.” — Singer Linda Ronstadt

Next time I’m at a Linda Ronstadt concert to listen to a medley of her greatest hit, I’m gonna bring a 50 foot sign saying “JESUS WAS A REPUBLICAN.” That just might do the trick.

Finally, here’s my personal favorite:

2) “Let the people see what war is like. This isn’t an Xbox game. There are real repercussions to Bush’s folly. That said, I feel nothing over the death of mercenaries. They aren’t in Iraq because of orders, or because they are there trying to help the people make Iraq a better place. They are there to wage war for profit. Screw them.” — Markos Moulitsas Zúniga on the four Americans who were murdered by terrorists and then had their corpses desecrated in Fallujah, Iraq

And we’re supposed to take “compassion lessons” from nitwits like this? This guy has the temerity, the cohones, the unmitigated gall to accuse Republicans of being unfeeling, uncaring monsters?

What else should you expect from the “Reality Based Community.”

What’s the #1 most obnoxious quote? You’ll have to follow the link to find out!

Wouldn’t you like to have been a fly on the wall at THIS meeting:

UNITED NATIONS, Jan. 2 - The meeting of veteran foreign policy experts in a Manhattan apartment one recent Sunday was held in strict secrecy. The guest of honor arrived without his usual retinue of aides.

At the gathering, Secretary General Kofi Annan listened quietly to three and a half hours of bluntly worded counsel from a group united in its personal regard for him and support for the United Nations. The group’s concern was that lapses in his leadership during the past two years had eclipsed the accomplishments of his first four-year term in office and were threatening to undermine the two years remaining in his final term. (NY Times 1/3)

I wonder what they told him? How “blunt” do you think they were?

Do you think they told him that his position had become untenable as a result of the corruption and bribe taking of his son Kojo during the oil for food program?

Do you think they asked him to resign as a result of high-level malfeasance on the part of close aides?

Do you think they advised him to pack up and head back to Nigeria as a result of the scandalous behavior of UN Peacekeeping troops in Africa and elsewhere?

Of course not. These were, after all, the vanguard of one worlders, multilateralists, and Eurocentric lickspittles who so weakened the United States during the 1990’s. The meeting was held at John Kerry’s designated Secretary of State Richard Holbrooke’s apartment.

Others in attendance were John G. Ruggie, assistant secretary general for strategic planning from 1997 to 2001 and now a professor of international relations at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard; Leslie H. Gelb, a former president of the Council on Foreign Relations; Timothy E. Wirth, the president of the United Nations Foundation, based in Washington; Kathy Bushkin, the foundation’s executive vice president; Nader Mousavizadeh, a former special assistant to Mr. Annan who left in 2003 to work at Goldman Sachs; and Robert C. Orr, the assistant secretary general for strategic planning. Sir Jeremy Greenstock, Britain’s ambassador to the United Nations from 1998 to 2003, was invited but could not attend.

Being worried that the oil for food scandal, the sexual harassment charges against one of his top aides, the vote of “no-confidence” by UN unions, the criminal behavior of Peacekeepers in Africa, the ongoing genocide in the Sudan, the deliberate interference of himself and UN nuclear watchdog Mr. Baradie in the November elections, and the general impotence and hypocrisy that runs rampant throughout his administration of the United Nations might…just MIGHT…”eclipse the accomplishments of his first four years” is either a bad joke by the NY Times reporters (not likely) or self-deluded nonsense on the part of the Clintonistas who are so anxious to “save” the UN.

And what were those “accomplishments” for the first four years of Mr. Annan’s tenure?

1. While Mr. Annan’s UN dithered and wrung their hands, 400,000-800,000 people were slaughtered in Rwanda.

2. The UN became openly hostile to Israel, the only democracy in the middle east and coddled the Palestinian terrorists.

3. In the biggest bribery scheme in history, Saddam stole nearly $20 billion from the oil for food program, kicking back nearly $12 billion to officials in countries with seats on the Security Council.

4. Turned a blind eye to North Korea, Pakistan, and Iran as they all benefited from A.Q. Khan’s black market nuclear bazaar and developed nuclear capabilities.

Only moonbat multilateralist, one world nincompoops would think that this was a record worth admiring. Annan’s and Baradei’s blatant and deliberate interference in our elections should alone be enough to call for Mr. Annan’s scalp.

Instead, Holbrooke, Gelb, and Wirth et al tried to give Annan advice on how to bury the record, paper over differences with Washington, and pretend that Mr. Annan’s “authority” hasn’t been damaged by the most scandal plagued secretariat since Kurt “Heil Hitler” Waldeim’s administration.

Save Kofi? Save the UN?

What for?

As you may or may not already be aware, members of the Watcher’s Council hold a vote every week on what they consider to be the most link-worthy pieces of writing around… per the Watcher’s instructions, I am submitting one of my own posts for consideration in the upcoming nominations process.

Here is the most recent winning council post, here is the most recent winning non-council post, here is the list of results for the latest vote, and here is the initial posting of all the nominees that were voted on.

The winning Council post comes to us via Alpha Patriot with some thoughts on the “numbers behind the numbers” taken from the November election. I gotta say, this is the kind of stuff I love…”inside politics” with a dash of humor and thoughtful analysis. Great stuff!

The winning non-Council post was written by Lashawn Barber whose post on David Horowitz recounts his troubles with lefty academics.

Horowitz was a radicals radical back in the 1960’s. Gradually, however, he realized the threat these moonbats posed to western civilization and when his beloved Black Panthers killed a key witness in a murder case involving Black Panther leader Huey Long, Horowitz had a very public and very messy break with his ideological soulmates. For this, he was threatened both professionally and physically. Ever since then, he has championed academic freedom and contributed in no small way to the debate over islamic fundamentalism.

I wasn’t as radical as Horowitz back in the 1960’s. But after reading his excellent book on the Kennedy’s (written with Peter Collier) I realized that I’ve taken an intellectual journey not dissimilar to his. Horowitz sponsored a symposium called “Second Thoughts” out of which came a book containing a dozen or so essays from former 60’s radicals and sought to explain that journey. Among the other contributors are Joshua Muravchik, Richard Neuhaus, Arturo Cruz, Jr., Jeffrey Heft, K. L. Billingsley, Doan Van Toai, and Barry Rubin. The perspectives of an earlier generation of “second thoughters, ” such as Martin Peretz, Norman Podhoretz, Hilton Kramer and Irving Kristol are also included.

P. J. O’Rourke has an excellent essay on the conference in his book “Give War a Chance.”

If you’d like to submit a post for consideration, you may do so by following the instructions here.

Kiefer Sutherland
Originally uploaded by elvenstar522.

JACK IS BACK!In just seven days, Jack Bauer and all the guys and gals at CTU will once again be faced with a situation where they’ll get to do a lot of cool things like:

Kill people. A lot of people.
Start and end some kind of love affair
Endure family crisis while taking time out to save the planet
Did I mention that a lot of people are going to die?

All of this in the space of 24 hours.

Those of you who regularly visit here know that I NEVER do any posts about ANYTHING on TV not related to politics. But “24″ is different. This is without a doubt, the most addictive show in the history of TV. Maybe it’s something they flash across the screen at a McLuhan like level, a la the flash images of popcorn that movie owners in the 1960’s would place within the body of a film to try and get moviegoers to head out to the lobby and buy some refreshments.

I’ll be blogging the series every morning after the previous evenings episode. We’ll try and keep track of the following:

1. Jack’s body count. There has never been such a murderous thug…albeit with a heart of gold…as Jack Bauer. He makes all Mafioso ever portrayed look like teenage interns at a Christian summer camp. But he’s all American…and he’s absolutely relentless in pursuit.

2. Plot twists. Who’s gonna be the mole? Which bad guy is really working for CTU? How is Jack gonna get out of THIS one? Join the fun…and the speculation!

3. Inconsistencies. Try as they might, the screenwriters always manage to have several inconsistencies in the plot, the storyline, or the characters. We’ll highlight them as they come along.

4. Did I mention Jack’s body count?

Bookmark this site! And come along for the ride! I’ll be looking for other “24″ sites as the season progresses. And if you’re gonna be blogging “24″ let me know.

You’ve probably read one or more stories recently about pilots of commercial airlines reporting that lasers have been aimed at their cockpits:

NEWARK, Dec. 30 - In the past week, laser beams of unknown origins have been shined into the cockpits of seven airplanes as they were about to land at various airports around the country, including Teterboro Airport. Federal officials announced on Thursday that they were initiating a major investigation to determine whether the episodes were related to terrorism. (NY Times 12/31/04)

And this isn’t the first time that this has happened:

A pilot flying a Delta Air Lines jet was injured by a laser that illuminated the cockpit of the aircraft as it approached Salt Lake City International Airport last week, U.S. officials said. (WA Times: 9/29/04)

This memo from 12/10/04 sent by the FBI and Department of Homeland Security warns of the threat:

“Although lasers are not proven methods of attack like improvised explosive devices and hijackings, terrorist groups overseas have expressed interest in using these devices against human sight,” the memo said.

“In certain circumstances, if laser weapons adversely affect the eyesight of both pilot and co-pilot during a non-instrument approach, there is a risk of airliner crash,” the agencies said. (CNN.com: 12/10/04)

And if that’s not worrisome enough, the real problem may NOT be an attempt to blind airline pilots. After all, in order to crash the plane using that method, the terrorists would have to hit both the pilot and co-pilot; not an easy thing to do when you have to aim a laser at a descending airplane going 300 mph.

What then is going on?

According to a study published by the Federal Aviation Administration in June, there have been hundreds of laser-in-the-cockpit incidents, many pre-dating the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. Clearly, some of these incidents have been either benign (laser light shows) or simple mischievous pranks. After all, lasers are all over the place; from laser gunsights to the kind of pointing lasers used by carpenters and lecturers.

But the recent spate of incidents could presage some kind of terrorist attack on commercial aviation using relatively cheap and readily available hand-held anti-aircraft missiles. What are they using the lasers for?

Lasers are not being used to blind pilots. Lasers are being used to measure straight line distance from the ground to an aircraft at its most vulnerable state - landing. An aircraft on takeoff would be a more difficult target - maximum power and maximum climb. But a landing ship slows down to a speed just short of a stall and follows a prescribed path of flight .

The information regarding an aircraftÂ’s peak vulnerability would be invaluable. Documenting landing approaches and and straight line distances would be highly useful in target acquisition. That information is critical regarding available weapons systems.

The above is a post from the Daily Brief one of the best milblogs around. (HT Instapundit) Sgt. Stryker points out that a laser range finder for a rifle or any of the other cheap lasers would be unable to penetrate the cockpit of an airplane flying at 8,000 feet but that other commercially available lasers costing in the range of $7,000 to $10,000 would be more than adequate to do the job.

And what job would that be?

In late December of 2004, it was revealed that Los Angeles Airport (LAX) was increasing its preparedness for a shoulder fired missile attack. John Miller, head of the LAPD Counterterrorism Bureau, explained that about 20,000 shoulder-fired missiles were currently on the black market. The black market prices range from $5,000 to $30,000, presumably based on the vintage of the weapon.

And people are taking notes.

Here’s the nightmare scenario: Several teams of terrorists positioned at let’s say 6 major airports around the country armed with shoulder fired anti-aircraft missiles and using lasers to get an exact range from weapon to target fire off their missiles, all within less than 10 minutes of each other and bring down 6 jetliners carrying an average of 250 passengers. You not only have 1500 dead passengers you have scores, maybe hundreds of dead on the ground as the planes crash into suburban neighborhoods that surround most major airports and start huge fires initiating widespread panic.

How quickly will the FAA respond? Could the terrorists get off another missile…and another? How many teams of terrorists? In one awful 30 minute period, the terrorists could kill thousands.

We know that Al Queda is capable of this kind of coordinated attack. They did it with our embassies in Africa when both consulates were hit within 15 minutes of each other. The question is whether or not they’ve been able to infiltrate such a large number of operatives into the US. Given the porousness of our borders, it’s a distinct possibility.

Such an attack could virtually end commercial aviation as we know it. Millions of jobs would be lost in the travel and tourism industry. Thousands of businesses large and small would go under. It would be an economic catastrophe of the first order as many nations would refuse to fly commercial airlines into US airspace.

Let’s hope that these incidents are indeed only pranks or accidents. To contemplate otherwise is to look into the abyss of an economic and human catastrophe that would dwarf September 11, 2001.

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1. OSAMA BIN LADEN CAPTURED. DEMS DECRY “UNFAIR TREATMENT”

The world’s most wanted terrorist Osama Bin Laden was captured today while trying to purchase a Vanilla Coke at a local market in Karachi, Pakistan.

CIA and FBI agents swooped down on and captured the Saudi national after receiving a tip that the mastermind of 9/11 was experiencing problems with the Coke machine in his mountain hideout. “It’s the only stall in all of Karachi that sells the shit,” said Staff Sargent Scooter “Hit Man” McGee who was in on the capture.

Democrats in Congress lambasted President Bush for the unfair way in which Mr. Bin Laden was captured. “What does it say to the rest of the world that we would wait in ambush to capture this suspect like a bunch of cowardly dogs,” said Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). “The French would have done it much differently,” she sniffed…

2.EARTHQUAKE RATTLES WEST COAST. DEMS START IMPEACHMENT PUSH

A strong earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale struck the west coast today causing widespread damage but little loss of life. The epicenter of the quake was centered 12 miles from downtown San Francisco.

Democrats in Congress accused President Bush of having foreknowledge of the quake and deliberately holding back information so that liberals and gays would die. Rep. Cynthia McKinney (D-GA) pointed out that a psychic in the news magazine “The World” had predicted an earthquake at the beginning of the year but was ignored by the administration.

“This was deliberate murder,” said McKinney. “The President knew this quake was coming and did nothing because he wants liberals and gays to die. Oh yes…and black people too,” McKinney added.

Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee have started formal proceedings to impeach the President on grounds of “Being really, really dumb”…

3. UNITED STATES PLEDGES $450 BILLION IN TSUNAMI RELIEF. “TOO MUCH” SAYS KOFI

The United States today pledged $450 billion in direct aid to the tsunami ravaged countries of Asia and promised to rebuild every mosque destroyed in the disaster.

The news was greeted with violent demonstrations in muslim countries as moderate clerics decried American “religous imperialism” and promised to behead any muslim who worshipped in the “christian built outhouses” constructed with the aid.

In a related development, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan criticised President Bush for giving too much in disaster relief. “It makes other countries look bad. It make the United Nations look bad. And it makes ME look bad,” Annan said. He called for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council to discuss ways in which the UN could tap into the $450 billion and distribute it “in the best humanitarian traditions” of the United Nations. Mr. Annan mentioned the “superlative” job the UN did in distributing aid to Iraq during …

4. DEMOCRATS CHANGE MASCOT FROM DONKEY TO OSTRICH

In a move to energize their liberal base, the Democratic National Committee today voted unanimously to make the ostrich the party’s mascot. The flightless bird that buries its head in the sand at the first sign of danger replaces the party’s long-time symbol, the donkey.

A move to replace the ass with a stylized rat was squelched by animal rights activists who accused the party leadership of being insensitive to “millions of rats held in bondage” in American laboratories…

5. MICHAEL MOORE EXPLODES

The body of controversial filmaker Michael Moore exploded today. The incident occurred at “Sven’s Swedish Smorgasborg and Pizza Parlor” near the portly propagandists Bel Air home. Two other customers were slightly injured in the blast and police cordoned off a two block area due to excessive levels of hot air.

Longtime friend and fellow director Oliver Stone pointed to a probable CIA conspiracy. Citing surveilance video taken in the restaraunt at the time of the blast, Stone claims to have clear evidence of foul play.

“If you look closely at the video you can clearly see Mike’s head go back and to the left…back and to the left…”

6. BLOGGERS ARRESTED IN INTERNET SEX “STING”

Markos Moulitsas Zúniga and Anna Marie Cox, AKA “Kos” and “Wonkette” were arrested last night and charged with felony solicitation of a child, lewd acts, and extraordinarily stupid punditry.

A policeman posing on the internet as a 14 year old girl lured the two members of the Reality Based Community to a McDonalds in surburban Washington, D.C. where they were promptly arrested. An Attorney for Mr. Moulitsas denied the charges saying that his client was doing “valuable research” for his website on “The harmful effects of faith-based sexual abstinence programs for teenage girls.”

A lawyer for Ms. Cox claimed her client was ready to face the consequences. “Anna Marie knows that some of the best writing in history has been done from a prison cell,” her lawyer said. “Besides, she believes that prison will expand her sexual horizons and give her a larger vocabulary of dirty words to use on her site”…

UPDATE: FISHING FOR LINKS

Outside the Beltway is wishing everyone a happy new year with a linkorama. I’m gonna link this post and wish all visitors from that excellent site many happy returns!

Q: How many liberals does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Let George Bush fix it! It’s his fault it’s dark anyway!

Having followed politics in America for more than 30 years, I’ve gotten used to the mud wrestling, the name calling, the delicious ironies and laughable contradictions inherent in any democratic system with free and open debate monitored by a free press and engaged in by some of the most colorful, larger than life personalities one can imagine.

On the left, there’s been Tip O’Neil, a big, blustery Irishman from the back bay of Boston whose love of America and her politics made opposing him such an intellectually challenging and joyful experience. And Paul Simon, the Illinois Senator who was “scary smart” with a marvelously ironic sense of humor and a way of making anyone who came in contact with him feel like they were an intimate friend.

On the right, there was the down home plain speaking Senator from Wyoming Malcolm Wallop. A gentleman in every sense of the word; a fair minded, common sensical sort of fellow with a biting wit and will of iron. He also had a mind like a steel trap and a lawyers command of the facts on just about any issue. Then there was my personal favorite Bob Walker from Pennsylvania. Of all the lawmakers I dealt with when working the Hill oh so many years ago, Bob was the smartest, the funniest, and the most independent cuss I ever came across. Unpredictable to a fault, he’d drive the Republican leadership batty with his principled stands on budget issues. He was also the kindest man I ever met…and one of the least pretentious.

What was truly amazing is that these diverse personalities, from different parts of the country and different backgrounds, worked fairly well together for what we euphemistically call “the common good.” Oh they had fights and battles royale over any number of issues. But when the time came to act, they papered over their differences and did what had to be done.

It was the great Henry Clay who said”

“All legislation, all government, all society is founded upon the principle of mutual concession, politeness, comity, courtesy; upon these everything is based…”

Clay was part of the generation of lawmakers working in the most divisive period of American history; the period from 1820 to 1850 when America was threatened constantly with coming apart at the seams because of slavery. Clay, Daniel Webster, and John C. Calhoun; men from different sections of the country with differing views on slavery, came together on numerous occasions to craft compromises to save the union.

I bring all of this up because the point I’m trying to make is that opposition in wartime absolutely must be principled, with not only clear alternatives offered but at least SOME kind of realization of the consequences that one’s opposition entails.

And moonbats today don’t have a clue. Worse than being stupid, the positions they’re advocating are dangerous to the continued existence of the United States as we know it.

Take this colloquy I had yesterday with Shaun over at Upper Left. His post involved some comments on a Georgia Ann Geyer article with unnamed sources wringing their hands over Iraq. He closes his post with this gem:

“Geyer still seems to have one small blind spot, writing that…

No, Georgie Anne. The truth no one really wants to deal with, not even, apparently, you, is that this war has been lost by the United States.”

My response, referring to Geyer’s unnamed sources, was as follows:

The problem isn’t you’re wrong…

If you stopped cheerleading for people who are killing our men people might take you more seriously.

First up to respond was this clueless customer who has a problem trying to figure out that in war, it’s best that the other guy gets killed, not our guy:

Our “men” are killing more people than kill our “men.” By matters of multitudes. And we started it. I’m not cheerleading anyone over there. We need to get the hell out of there, and to hell with George Fucking Bush.

The fact that not enough of our guys are dying seems to upset this fellow. Now I know it may be unfashionable, but I think I’ll go to the dictionary and find the definition of “disloyal.” To wit:

“…showing an absence of allegiance, devotion, obligation, faith, or support…”

If complaining about how many of the enemy are being killed isn’t disloyal, what is?

Then, our good friend Shaun weighs in. You’d think that he’d come up with some reasoned riposte to my critique of Geyer’s use of unnamed sources…but no. Being a moonbat, he goes for the ad hominem attack:

Well, I imagine Mr. Hawk is of the ‘chicken’ subspecies. Those are the ones that usually conflate critcism of Bushco’s military adventurism with “cheerleading for people who are killing our men.”

Yes…perhaps I shouldn’t have used the word “cheerleading”…how about “defeatism?” And as for the appellation “chicken,” I assume you’re referring to my not being over in Iraq (being an old fat man going deaf I doubt I could do anybody any good over there).

Since I once was one, my support for troops detailed to combat without a clear, achievable and sustainable mission is absolute. Since I once was one, I understand well that the best way to support troops in that situation is to get them the hell out of it.

Just because you were “one” (I assume that makes you a vet, thank you for your service) doesn’t make you any more or less qualified to comment on the military. Some of the dumbest things I’ve heard said about the war have come from conservatives with military experience (Ollie North for one). Besides, I’m not calling you stupid, I’m saying you’re disloyal…or maybe you’re both?

In fact, among the “people who are killing our men” one is compelled to include the chicken hawk civilian commanders that ordered them into that situation. Those are the ones that are most directly empowered to save our men’s (and women’s - we got us an equal opportunity Army, risk-wise, these days) lives by bringing them home poste haste.

Leaving out the fallacious argument that Rumsfeld et. al. are “killing our men” because they’re not “bringing them home poste haste”–circular logic at best–I don’t see what you think the consequences would be for the US in either the short term or the long term.

I realize this involves a little bit of thought…or more likely, you could give a shit what the consequences would be. What a nice luxury you have compared to the people who’ve been elected to think about those things!

To say that the results of an American premature pullout in Iraq or Afghanistan would be a catastrophe is an understatement. I know that you and your lefty buds would go into fits of orgasmic ecstasy to see the US humiliated and prostrate before the beheaders, the torturers, and the murderers of our citizens. For the celebrations would not be confined to Tikrit and Fallujah you ninny! They’d be dancing in the streets from the West Bank to Teheran. And the fascists you’d like to see take over in Iraq would be emboldened to the point that no friend of the US in the Middle East would be safe.

Why don’t you just come out and say you want to see the US humbled, that this would be a “good thing?” If you don’t think that such an outcome would have real world consequences, look at the immediate aftermath of the fall of Saigon. Between 1975 and 1979, a dozen countries had pro-US governments overthrown and replaced by communist tyrannies that made the autocrats they replaced look like kindergarten teachers.

And that, of course, is the trouble with moonbats like you. A reflexive anti-Americanism, an intellectual disconnect between cause and effect, and a paranoid, ignorant outlook using an outmoded, outdated, discredited worldview (economic determinism) that’s been tossed on the ash heap of history because it’s been proven in country after country and society after society to be a load of crap.

It’s why you lose elections…and why you’ll never be trusted with power by the American people.

Here, according to ABC News, are the top ten news stories of the last year.

1. U.S. ELECTION: After vanquishing Howard Dean, John Edwards and other Democratic rivals, Kerry seemed to have a strong chance of ousting Bush. But the Massachusetts senator struggled to explain his stance on Iraq, underestimated the sting of negative ads and in the end narrowly lost the pivotal swing state of Ohio after a campaign in which Bush, over and over, insisted he was best qualified to be commander in chief at a time of complex challenges to national security.

2: IRAQ: Throughout 2004, Iraq was a striking mix of bloody turmoil and tantalizing promise. Anti-American insurgents wreaked havoc with car bombings and videotaped beheadings of hostages; the death toll for U.S. military forces passed 1,300, and the toll of Iraqi civilians was many times higher. Yet Iraq’s interim leaders doggedly proceeded with plans for national elections early in the new year.

3. FLORIDA HURRICANES: Four major hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne devastated Florida and other southern states in August and September, killing 117 people in Florida, destroying 2,500 homes and causing more than $22 billion in insured losses. Not since 1886 had one state been hit by four hurricanes in one season.

4. ABU GHRAIB SCANDAL: Photographs came to light showing U.S. military guards at the Abu Ghraib prison near Baghdad forcing naked Iraqi detainees to pose in humiliating positions. Prosecutions ensued, and the scandal fueled anti-American sentiment in the Muslim world.

5. SEPT. 11 REPORT: After painstaking research and dramatic public hearings, the commission formed to investigate the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, issued its report. It concluded that America’s leaders failed to grasp the gravity of terrorist threats before Sept. 11 and recommended creation of a national intelligence director to oversee civilian and military intelligence agencies.

6: GAY MARRIAGE: From coast to coast, gay marriage was a volatile topic throughout the year. Massachusetts became the first state to have legal, same-sex weddings, and local officials in several places including San Francisco and Portland, Ore. also wed gay and lesbian couples before courts intervened. However, each time the issue reached the ballot in 13 states in all voters decisively approved constitutional amendments banning gay marriage.

7: ARAFAT DIES: For three decades, Yasser Arafat was a hero to most of his fellow Palestinians but considered unreliable or worse by leaders in the West and Israel. His death in November, at age 75, triggered emotional mourning among Palestinians but also sparked hopes of a breakthrough in efforts to end their long, bloody conflict with Israel.

8: REAGAN DIES: Alzheimer’s disease had kept Ronald Reagan out of the public eye for a decade. But when the nation’s 40th president died in June, at 93, Americans responded with an outpouring of affection and respect. His stately funeral in Washington brought the country together at least briefly in a year otherwise marked by bitter partisan divisions.

9: RUSSIAN SCHOOL SEIZURE: Even in a world grown all too accustomed to terrorism, the drama in the Russian town of Belsan was shocking because children were so clearly prime targets. A band of terrorists, believed led by a Chechen warlord, took more than 1,000 people hostage at a school in September. When the seizure ended, amid explosions and gunfire, more than 330 hostages had been killed most of them children.

10: MADRID BOMBINGS: Another stunning terrorist strike occurred in March, when 190 people were killed after bombs hidden in backpacks exploded on four commuter trains during Madrid’s morning rush hour. Soon after the attack, which was blamed on Islamic militants, angry voters unseated Spain’s pro-American conservative government in favor of the Socialist Party, which promptly withdrew Spanish troops from Iraq.

NOTE: This list was compiled before the horrific tragedy in Asia. But where to put such a story in a top ten list?

This tragedy rivals other natural disasters over the last 30 years. In July of 1976, an earthquake measuring 7.9 (about a hundred times LESS powerful than last week’s temblor) hit Tangshan Province in China killing 240,000 people.

In 1990 an earthquake in Mazandaran Province in Iran killed an estimated 100,000.

In 1991, not one but two huge cyclones struck Bangladesh killing more than 270,000.

What makes this story so much bigger than those horrific natural disasters is the explosion of new media on the internet and on cable TV. Nearly every web site has not only been blogging the story, they have links to videos, eye witness accounts, relief organizations, and pleas for help. It’s the first natural disaster in history where the world is actually present from the beginning.

So, because of the impact that this story has had along with the sheer magnitude of the disaster, what other story could top the list?