Response to my "War on Terror Reading List" post

Dear Robert,

Here are a couple of books you might like to review. Since 9/11 I have been speaking around the country on Saudi Arabian Wahhabi-Salafism and the origins of the ideology of al Qaeda, having spent much of my professional life living and working in the Middle East. I have also been actively supporting various civic organizations with a variety of speaking assignments. Below is some information on two books I co-authored over the past two years. I’m currently working work on a third book and film regarding the significance of the Iranian-Saudi standoff since the downfall of the Shah of Iran in 1979 and what the Saudis are currently doing in Pakistan, Ethiopia and the Horn of Africa to destabilize the region through Wahhabi-Salafist proselytization with money and missionaries. Our books address the origins of the ideology of al Qaeda and Saudi Arabian Wahhabi-Salafism and are an amplification of my series of lectures that culminated during my lecture at the Nobel Peace Prize Forum in 2004. The webpage for our books is at http://www.bushwaronterror.com/. I am also on the board of The Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Saudi Arabia, located in Washington, DC (http://www.cdhr.info/) with a goal to bring significant reform to the Kingdom before it is destroyed from within by arch-conservative Wahhabi clerics.

Sincerely,

B. Wayne Quist
Colonel, USAF, (Ret)


P.S. It is well documented that he Saudi government and wealthy Saudis have spent over $70-billion over the last thirty years to spread Wahhabi-Salafist Islam and the effort continues today, especially in Pakistan and the Horn of Africa, but even in Europe and here in the U.S. It can safely be said -- wherever there is a trouble spot in the Muslim world, you will find Saudi Wahhabi-Salafist money spreading hate-filled literature and building madrassas and mosques with strings attached. The largest destination for this money has been Pakistan. Saudi money financed the Pakistani nuclear weapons program launched by Benazir Bhutto's father, former Prime Minister Zulfikar Bhutto, and Wahhabi-Inspired Jihadists killed Benazir Bhutto last year because she was a woman.


New books by Colonel by B. Wayne Quist, USAF (Ret) and Dr. David F. Drake, Ph.D., University of Chicago.

“The Triumph of Democracy Over Militant Islamism,” PublishAmerica, 2006

“Winning the War on Terror: A Triumph of American Values, iUniverse, 2005

These books address the origins of the ideology of al Qaeda and Saudi Arabian Wahhabi-Salafism and are an amplification of Colonel Quist’s series of lectures that culminated at the Nobel Peace Prize Forum, when he was featured as a counterpoint to former president Jimmy Carter. The books may be purchased through major bookstores or online through http://www.amazon.com/.


Book Webpage: http://www.bushwaronterror.com/

The Triumph of Democracy Over Militant Islamism traces the origins of al Qaeda through the founding of the Saudi Arabian monarchy and the establishment of Wahhabism as its state religion. Vast amounts of oil in the Arabian desert converted an obscure, ultra-reactionary Muslim religious sect into a dangerous threat to Western civilization. Al Qaeda is a Saudi phenomenon, and America’s tangled relationships with Saudi Arabia are why al Qaeda attacked the United States on 9/11. Untangling those Saudi relationships was a central feature of American strategy for finding the right antidote to radical, Islamist terrorism. This required keeping bin Laden on the defensive by rapid deployment of American and Allied forces into al Qaeda’s safe haven in Afghanistan. Continuing the offensive by toppling Saddam Hussein made the Saudis understand the president’s enduring resolve to plant the seeds of freedom and democracy in the Middle East as the antidote to militant Islamism.

A NEW BOOK ON AMERICA'S STRATEGY IN THE WAR ON TERROR

Winning the War on Terror: A Triumph of American Values
By Colonel B. Wayne Quist and Dr. David F. Drake
Published by iUniverse, Inc. http://www.bushwaronterror.com/

SYNOPSIS: Winning the War on Terror: A Triumph of American Values stresses why American success is vital to the Middle East and the future of Western civilization. Today we live in a rapidly changing and interconnected world, a truly remarkable historical era, with inter-dependent globalized economies and rapidly changing technological innovation. We are also engaged in a protracted and violent war against radical, militant Islam, a truly global struggle, but as George Will remarked in the Washington Post, there is no guarantee that civilization as we know it will survive, for in the long history of the human race, democracy and human freedom are relatively recent and short-lived concepts. While the West faces uncertainties in the struggle against militant Islam's armies of darkness, and while we do not yet know precisely how it will end, the West's flexible, democratic institutions and all-encompassing ideology of freedom can ultimately defeat radical, militant Islam.

Winning the War on Terror: A Triumph of American Values traces the origins of al Qaeda through Islamic history to the founding of the Saudi Arabian monarchy and the establishment of Wahhabism as its state religion. Billions in oil wealth converted this obscure ultra-reactionary Muslim sect into a dangerous threat to Western civilization. Al Qaeda is a Saudi phenomenon, and America's tangled relationships with Saudi Arabia are the reason for the al Qaeda attack on the United States on 9/11 and a primary but unstated reason that the United States reciprocated by invading Iraq in 2003. Untangling the American-Saudi relationship was the central feature of developing U.S. strategy for fighting the war on terror and formulating the Bush doctrine in the twelve months after 9/11. After invading Afghanistan, routing the Taliban, and chasing Osama bin Laden into remote areas of Pakistan, the U.S. entered into very tough negotiations to safeguard nuclear weapons from al Qaeda. Invading Iraq was undertaken to pursue al Qaeda, get the Saudis to cut off financing of al Qaeda, and obtain information about that terrorist organization. The invasion sought to keep the Islamist terrorists on the defensive, create a haven for democracy in the middle of Muslim world, and stop further attacks on America.

The authors believe that American success in Iraq is vital to the Middle East and the future of Western civilization and that American commitment to its values represents the only viable strategy. Although they recognize that we are engaged in a protracted, generational, and violent war against militant Islamist, Quist and Drake remain optimistic of where America stands in its global war on terror. They identify the principal importance to the moderates in the Muslim community of challenging the authority of Wahhabists and mainstream Muslim clerics, as Christianity did earlier in the Reformation. Only in an environment of political freedom can the West's actions combat the militant Islamists. Muslims must then take the next steps themselves. The West's greatest sin during the Cold War was ignoring Middle Eastern totalitarianism in exchange for free flowing oil to fuel its growing economies. The authors believe that victory in fighting the war on terror will be achieved through confidence in American values, knowing that political freedom is the antidote to al Qaeda's hate-filled ideology.

A NEW BOOK ON AMERICA'S STRATEGY IN THE WAR ON TERROR:

A riveting account of the history of Saudi Arabia and the source of al Qaeda's hate-filled ideology

Why most of the 9/11 hijackers came from Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabian Wahhabi-Salafism and its threats to Western civilization

Globalization and the "disconnected one third" of the world's people

How the Bush administration developed its post 9/11 strategy to counter "Bin Ladenism" and radical, militant Islamism

Why freedom and democracy are the only long-term antidotes to hate-filled "Bin Ladenism"
The Bush Doctrine and American strategy

Prospects for the future - seeds of hope, roots of change

EXTRACTS FROM RECENT REVIEWS:
Dr. James Forest, Terrorism Center, U.S. Military Academy at West Point: "The authors have assembled a useful synthesis of the history behind the threat posed by al Qaeda. Their analysis of the religious ideology that fuels radical Islamists, rooted in the socio-political history of Saudi Arabia, adds a useful dimension to our understanding of the current global security environment. This is also one of the first pieces of scholarship to draw solid connections between the struggle in Iraq and global Islamic jihad led by al Qaeda. The authors provide a balanced view of our successes, failures and challenges in Iraq, and how these impact our ability to successfully prosecute the global war on terrorism. In doing so, they add some new insights to the national debate about the Iraq campaign, and offer some hope that our struggle for global peace and security does have an end in sight.....I would recommend that West Point's library purchase this book."

Peter J. Bergerson, Ph.D., Professor of Public Affairs, Florida Gulf Coast University: "Readers will find this book a valuable resource to understand the origins of radical militant Islamic philosophy and how it became a jihad to threaten western society. Quist and Drake have provided a sober picture of an international deadly disease yet an optimistic picture of the future of U. S. national security interest as we enter the 21st century."

Reverend Ralph A. Baumgartner, Bishop's Associate, Saint Paul Area Synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: "The novel argument...that [the authors] make is that the invasion of Iraq does serve the war against terrorism because it puts pressure on Saudi Arabia to change its behavior and to make reforms that lead to democracy."

Peter Huessy, Member of the Committee on the Present Danger and President, GeoStrategic Analysis, Washington, DC: "A key insight of this book reveals the network of killers motivated by a fanatical and twisted Wahhabist faith, sponsored by vast oil wealth and given sanctuary by rogue states. Another is that free institutions and due process will destroy these terrorists, an effort begun in Afghanistan and Iraq."

WINNING THE WAR ON TERROR:
Political Science / General / Trade Paperback / Price: $19.95 / Size: 6 x 9
Publication Date: Aug-2005
Authors: Colonel B. Wayne Quist and Dr. David F. Drake
ISBN: 0-595-35776-8
252 Pages
Webpage: http://www.bushwaronterror.com/

THE AUTHORS:
Colonel B. Wayne Quist is a graduate of The National War College in Washington DC, published author and popular speaker on Saudi Arabian Wahhabi-Salafism and the ideology of al Qaeda, lectured at the 2004 Nobel Peace Prize Forum. He can be reached at wquist@northstarindustries.com.

Dr. David F. Drake is a published author, former Senior Vice President and Secretary-Treasurer of the American Hospital Association, taught at the University of Chicago where he received his Ph.D., lectured at Northwestern University School of Medicine. He can be reached at ducker02@comcast.net.

Piper for President

When Sarah Palin was nominated for VP on the McCain ticket, my wife and I were much taken with 5-year-old Piper, watching her taking care of her baby brother Trig, and as she smiled and waved to the crowd on stage. Probably because we have an 8-year-old granddaughter.

(Yes, liberal friends, I know you hate Piper too. Along with the photo-shopped pictures of Gov. Sarah in a bikini, or nude, and the faked list of books she was supposed to want to ban, or the forged high school transcript showing she was only an average student, I saw the photo-shopped picture of Piper flipping off another kid that was circulated on the net by the left-wing haters. But shouldn’t five-year-olds be off limits for lies and venom?)

So I used my button making kit to make up buttons that say, “Piper Palin President 2048.” I mailed three of them to Gov. Palin.

Just received the following hand-written reply:

“Robert – Just received the buttons “Piper for President.” Wow, what a great gift. I’ll get them to Sarah and Piper tomorrow. I’m helping Sarah with her mail now as she’s 87 boxes behind! She get’s hundreds and hundreds of letters weekly. Again, Thanks. Chuck Heath, Sarah’s dad.”

I think it's cool--so you can hate Chuck & me too.

Hopefully not needed soon...

A Marine’s Last Will and Testament
Former SSgt Robert A. Hall

I, Robert, an old Mud Marine, being of sound mind, do hereby create this Marine Codicil to my Last Will and Testament, through which I bequeathed all my worldly goods and possessions to those beloved of me in life. This Marine Codicil is to pass on the intangible gifts I received as a Marine, which were beyond the price men put upon worldly possessions.

I have attested to being of “Sound Mind.” That may be challenged by those who think that all Marines are crazy. We have enjoyed and magnified that reputation, of course, to bemuse our friends and intimidate our enemies. As a Navy Psychologist once told me, “The trouble with treating Marines is that if you cure them, they can’t be Marines!” But ours are really the soundest of minds, for the life of our free society depends on warriors. If you do away with us, our civilization commits suicide, surely the ultimate mark of insanity. If there comes a day when is no longer a Marine Corps, the American Idea will die soon after.

To all my Marine brothers and sisters, now and in generations to come, I leave the legacy of our Corps, stretching back to November 10, 1775. It was bequeathed to me by generations of Marines who served before me, who “grew gray in war,” and who gave me those priceless traditions “such as regiments hand down forever.” I have tried in my small way to add to its strength and burnish its luster. Go you and do the same.

To those Marines I served with, I leave my rich stock of Sea Stories, a few of which are even true, that you may embellish them and pass them on to other Marines, to awed members of our sister services and, sanitized for language, to civilians. I also leave you the gratitude of a brother, for you stood by me, cared for my in trouble, and inspired me with your deeds. The poet Alan Seegar, who was KIA in France on July 4, 1916, said it best, “Comrades, you cannot think how thin and blue, look the leftovers of mankind that rest, now that the cream has been skimmed off in you.”

To my Marine DIs, I leave a debt unpaid. The discipline and pride you instilled in me guided me long after I had to shed the uniform for the last time. Thanks to what you did in a few short months, I have had a great life. I’ve tried to make you proud of me every day, and to pay a bit on that debt through my service to my country and my fellow Marines, both in the Corps and in civilian life afterwards.

To my family I leave a few old photos, a few mementos and a service to country in which I hope you take pride as I have. However they serve, I hope future generations of our family find something larger than self to serve, worthy of their time and commitment. There is no happiness in serving the ever-greedy god of self, the root of our world’s troubles.

To our nation’s elected leaders, I leave the Core Values of our Corps: Honor, Courage, Commitment. Imagine if candidates for public office adopted our values as a campaign platform. Imagine candidates with the Honor to tell people the truth and to not trade their support on issues for campaign contributions or personal perks. Imagine elected officials with the Courage to do what was right for the next generation, rather than what was popular to win cheap votes for the next election? Imagine office holders with the Commitment to serve selflessly, live austerely, and do the right regardless of personal cost?

And to the Republic, the country I love, I leave my service. It was little enough payment on the debt every American owes her for the freedoms we have, for the life we live, and for the opportunities we and our loved ones have received in this land. When people thank me for my service, I say, “It was a privilege to wear the uniform of the Republic, and to earn the title Marine.”

I must go now, but I leave my country a new generation of Marines, standing watch out on the lines, putting their bone and blood between the barbarians and our free people, the few guarding the many with their lives. God grant it may ever be so.

Senate Candidate #5: Change we can believe in!

The Chicago Tribune today identified "Senate Candidate #5" as Congressman Jessie Jackson, Jr. Think I've heard the name. Wasn't he just involved as National Co-Chair of a major campaign to bring Change We Can Believe In to government? Can we buy a seat in the US Senate? Yes, We Can!

Here's the section on "Senate Candidate #5" from the Trib's original story about the arrest of the Governor Blagojevich:

.... Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr. has been the most aggressive in promoting himself as a contender for the Senate seat. As recently as Monday, Jackson met with Blagojevich to discuss the Senate post. Last week, Jackson told the Tribune that he had recently reached out to Blagojevich confidant John Wyma as well as the governor's patronage chief, Victor Roberson, to discuss the Senate job. The Tribune reported last week that Wyma has been cooperating with the federal corruption probe of Blagojevich.

Jackson did not respond to requests for an interview Tuesday, and his spokesman did not directly address questions about whether the congressman offered to raise campaign money for Blagojevich in exchange for appointment to the Senate seat. His office, however, did release a statement in which he denied any wrongdoing and vowed to aid the federal probe.The government affidavit refers to a "Senate Candidate 5" whose identity could not be confirmed. The candidate is described as someone who publicly is known to be seeking appointment to the Senate.

On Oct. 31, according to the affidavit, Blagojevich described an approach by an associate of Senate Candidate 5. "We were approached 'pay to play.' That, you know, he'd raise me 500 grand. An emissary came. Then the other guy would raise a million, if I made [Senate Candidate 5] a senator," Blagojevich allegedly said.Last week, according to the affidavit, Blagojevich told an adviser that he was giving greater consideration to Senate Candidate 5 because that person could raise money for Blagojevich if he ran for re-election and perhaps kick in "some [money] upfront" as well. And Blagojevich was recorded as saying that he was going to meet with Senate Candidate 5 in the next few days, the affidavit said.

Blagojevich allegedly told one of his fundraisers to pass a message to someone identified in the affidavit only as Individual D whom Blagojevich believed to be close to Senate Candidate 5: If Candidate 5 was to land the Senate seat, "some of this stuff's gotta start happening now . . . right now . . . and we gotta see it. You understand?"

Emanuel, the confidant of both Blagojevich and Obama, is not mentioned by name in the government complaint. But the document refers to a "president-elect adviser" concerned about the conduct of a special election for a new congressman in his 5th District .....

Soon the whole country will have Change the Illinois Way!

Illinois Gov Goes Down

The latest from the Land of Lincoln, Illinois, and Crook County, home of the next president and the Daley Machine.

“I have one US Senate Seat for sale. Only one. Don’t be left out. Place your bids, ladies and gentlemen. Sorry, no Republicans need apply. This is a special opportunity for loyal Democrats.”

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/09/AR2008120900987.html

My Inaugural Ball Tickets

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/03/AR2008120304095.html?wpisrc=newsletter

By disadvantaged and “others down on their luck” I’m assuming he means Republicans. I’ll be watching for my tickets.

Seriously, nice gesture, but I’d think people down on their luck could use say interview cloths, resume and interview help, or maybe a week’s supply of chow more than a ball.

Quiz on politics, history and the economy

Out of 2,500 American quiz-takers, including college students, elected officials and other randomly selected citizens, nearly 1,800 flunked a 33-question test on basic civics. In fact, elected officials scored slightly lower than the general public with an average score of 44 percent compared to 49 percent.

Only 0.8 percent of all test-takers scored an "A."

It's scary that elected officials scored only 44% on this quiz. I missed two, but I didn’t like how they were worded. Most of the questions are very basic civic & history literacy. A few are about economic theory, and as I said, the wording can be confusing.

Anyone who can't get 50% shouldn't be allowed to vote, let alone graduate from college! I was embarrassed to miss two.

Can you pass the quiz?

http://www.americancivicliteracy.org/resources/quiz.aspx

Nuclear, bio terror attack now "likely"

A bi-partisan commission, Chaired by former Senator Bob Graham, D-FL & Former Congressman Jim Talent R-MO, has concluded that a terrorist attack with bio or nuclear weapons before 2013 is more likely than not.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/12/01/AR2008120102710.html?wpisrc=newsletter

This was the main issue for me in the recent election. I thought John McCain was more likely than Barack Obama to prevent such an attack. Already, the Democrats in Congress are calling for defense cuts to free up money for social programs. But if an A-bomb goes off in DC, the economy will go to 19th century levels (can you grow potatoes?). Civil liberties will be gone, as 98% of the public demands security over liberties. And the West will become so weak that efforts to resist the tyranny of Shari’a law, including subjugated status for women & non-Muslims, child marriages, the stoning of rape victims and honor killings, will make great advances around the world.

Which, of course, the terrorists know.

Ten terrorists armed with conventional weapons have just cost the Indian economy billions of dollars, while killing 200 people. Imaging five teams of four terrorists, easily brought in over our porous border, hitting a mall, a casino, an elementary school, a parade, the Super Bowl or a presidential inauguration. Five targets, all at once, spread around the country.

Now imagine what they can do to us with WMDs

In 1998, three years before 9/11, I published a column about what I called “The War on Terror.” It’s reproduced below. Note the highlighted areas. If I could see this in 1998, ten years ago, how come our elected officials couldn’t? Hint: They are more worried about the next election than the future welfare of the country. Both parties.

America’s War on Terror will be long, slow and cruel
Courier Post, August 28, 1998

Early in World War Two, a bitter joke went around Britain. Two Scottish soldiers, rescued from Dunkerque, are in a pub. “It’s going tae be a lang, lang war,” one Jock sighs.
“Aye,” says his mate, “especially if England capitulates and Scotland has to fight on alone.”
Our war against terrorism is going to be a “lang, lang war,” especially if our allies capitulate and America has to fight on alone.
The war is not new. It has escalated for years, as terrorists targeted Americans around the globe to serve their purposes. It grew out of the American defeat in Vietnam and the French defeat in Algeria. The third world learned that western powers with modern armies and advanced technology could be defeated, not on the battlefield, but by a long, slow, intensely cruel bloodletting that would break the political will of the people, without which a democracy cannot prevail.
That we are envied and hated in the world is no surprise. It has ever been the fate of rich republics. All terror needs is the conviction there is no atrocity that cannot be committed for the cause, no innocent blood, no act that is evil if it strikes at the enemy.
A man with a wild look in his eye, a pipeline to his god, and a weapon in his hand has ever been a danger. But the weapons now are explosives powerful enough to destroy buildings, snuffing out hundreds of lives.
Soon they will be gasses that can slaughter thousands, diseases that can kill millions. Perhaps even atomic bombs. And men like Osama bin Laden and Saddam Hussein will use them without compunction.
They believe they can humble America by breaking our will to resist. It doesn’t matter if it’s Vietnam, or the Clinton scandal or the troubles with Iraq, Americans always want to “get it over with.” Can we prevail in a struggle that may last decades? Can we cope with the frustration, the horror, the cost? Or will we surrender when the terror has stretched out long enough, as our enemies believe?
They may be right. Saddam has apparently backed Clinton and the UN down, faster than even I predicted, by playing brinkmanship perfectly. He’s now free to develop diseases that can wipe out entire cities. Coming soon to a location near you.
How will we prevail when the alternative is to be killed and do nothing or be killed and strike back, escalating the killing? How can we defend ourselves? What must we do to survive?
First, we need a new president. Clinton reacted strongly and appropriately to the embassy bombings. I do not believe he took action to divert attention from his scandals. But that people think so points up the importance of the much-maligned “character issue.” Could the embassy bombings have been timed to take advantage of his perceived weakness under self-inflicted wounds? We cannot have a president who creates that opportunity for our enemies.
If we are to rally in this war, we need a president—probably a series of presidents—who have served in the military, who understand the nature of war, and who have the moral authority to lead us in desperate times. Democratic Senator Bob Kerrey, who earned the Medal of Honor in Vietnam, and Republican Senator John McCain, a heroic POW in Hanoi, come to mind, but there are other Americans we can respect instead of snicker at.
Second, we must be willing to go after the leaders, to repeal the executive order against assassination. Somehow, the “Blame America” crowd convinced us it’s okay to drop bombs on his followers, but to put a bullet between bin Laden’s running lights would be immoral. What rubbish.
Third, we must be prepared to go after terrorists in countries we are not at war with, as Clinton has just done. TV news called the attack “unprecedented,” but it’s not. Nixon ordered the bombing of North Vietnamese soldiers in Cambodia to protect American troops, though we were not at war with Cambodia. Many believed this was immoral, that it was better to let American soldiers die than to kill their enemies when they were hiding over a line in the jungle.
Everyone who would rather have your family murdered than kill enemies hiding in a neutral country, raise your hand. Thank you.
Fourth, we must be willing to accept what’s called “collateral damage.” That is, innocent civilians will be killed, including children, when we go after terrorists. That’s the nasty price of war, created by those who attack us. And it will be on the evening news, with moralists condemning America.
Fifth, we must beef up the military, especially on equipment and special training for small groups of Marines and Army Rangers who can fight sharp, dirty actions against terrorists. Bombs and cruise missiles will not do all the bloody work. And we will have casualties, both military and civilian.
Sixth, we must increase our intelligence capabilities. The CIA must have the human assets—spies and assassins—to combat this plague for us. It will be war in the shadows, nasty and brutal.
Lastly, we must let it be known that any country that launches an attack with weapons of mass destruction, chemical, biological or nuclear, or any country who harbors a group who launches such an attack, can expect us to use nuclear weapons to destroy them.
And we must mean it.

Why Canada loves Nancy Pelosi

Hint: she’s helped their trade position.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122757205904454793.html

The Terrorists will win-again! (Updated)

We are watching the Terror in Mumbai, India with more concern than most this Thanksgiving. My wife Bonnie works for a health care foundation, which had scheduled an international conference in India. It’s dedicated to relieving the suffering of millions afflicted with a series of painful conditions. (I’m being vague, as I don’t know if they’d want to be identified.)

Her boss and his wife, and the Foundation’s president and his wife went to the conference, going first to Mumbai for some sightseeing. They are staying in the Taj Hotel. They managed to call out and report that they were in a “safe room,” which we heard about 1 pm CST on Wednesday. There have been no reports from them since, at least that have filtered to us. Her boss holds a Canadian passport, but the president is American.

So like many, we wait and hope and pray.

This was a cleverly-designed attack. It targets westerners for terror, and only the west has stood against the jihadist values, based on their Qur’an, of slavery, subjugation of women and non-Muslims, and establishment of a worldwide Caliphate under the tyranny of Shar’ia law. And it targets the economy of the world’s largest democracy, an American ally, an enemy of Pakistan, at a time of great economic trouble.

And what will be the reaction of political leaders in the Western political parties to the action of the murdering Jihadist scum? (Pardon my redundancies.) Doubtless, they will accelerate the slow suicide of appeasement. We must make concessions to Muslims, so they won’t become radical and kill us. Then they kill us again, prompting more concessions.

Say, I know. Maybe if we give them the Sudetenland, we will have Peace in Our Time!

Update: 3:00 pm CST. Bonnie had sent an e-mail to her boss. She has received a response. He, his wife, and the Foundation president and his wife are safe. They were having dinner by the pool, when they heard explosions. They were told it was fireworks at a wedding, though there was nothing in the sky. Then there were gun shots and they “bolted.” The hotel got them into the basement, then into a safe room. Later they were taken out in groups of ten. There was firing behind them, they understand from terrorists who were in the next room, undetected. They bolted again, scattered into the street and were taken to safe locations. All their belongings, including his Blackberry & phone, are in the hotel. They are at a safe location. He said the hotel staff was great. They expect to begin applying for papers to leave tomorrow.

So one of the lesser causalities of the Jihadists’ twisted faith was the cancellation of a conference that was designed to work to alleviate human suffering. Not that alleviating human suffering seems to be one of the tenants of millions of fanatics who are believers in what apologists call a “Religion of Peace.”

Thanksgiving

A time to be thankful
Robert A. Hall

For many, this is a tough Thanksgiving, with a tough Christmas to follow. But most of us have much more to be thankful for, than to regret.

I’m thankful to have been born in the United States, during the days of the American Republic, when economic freedom gave me the opportunity to make a comfortable living, and political freedom the chance to enjoy it, unmolested by the heavy hand of government. History teaches us the American Republic won’t last forever, that freedom isn’t eternal, but she was wonderful while she was here, and gave tens of millions a great life.

I’m thankful to live in a country that just had a revolution, replacing one party with another, and the streets aren’t full of tanks, the jails aren’t full of the losers, and them morgues aren’t full of the innocent caught in the crossfire.

I thank God I live in a country where we can worship, or not, as we choose, and I pray to preserve her from those who believe an evil deity commands them to bring all humanity under their religion, by the sword if necessary.

I’m thankful to have been born into a family that taught me both the value of work and to love my country. That didn’t take with everyone, but those lessons still guide my life.

I’m thankful that my wife and I have jobs in this troubled economy, and that we work for some of the best, most giving professionals you could find anywhere, orthopaedic surgeons. I’m thankful that, at 62, I’ve been constantly employed since I was 18, except for one six-month period between jobs, and one semester in college.

I’m thankful for the associations that employed me as their executive over the past 26 years. By luck or skill, all were stronger when I left than when I arrived, and I learned much at every one.

I’m thankful that I learned to live within my means, and am not in debt at a time when the credit crunch from over-extended people and feckless businesses is bring great trouble to our country.

I’m thankful that the people of the Third Worcester District, albeit by a slim 9-vote margin, gave me the privilege at age 26 to serve as their state senator. That was a great ten years, and a priceless education.

I’m thankful I had the opportunity to get a decent education, little as I valued it before I got to college.

I’m thankful that I learned to love reading and to love history and poetry. I think my biggest regret at death will be all the unread history books. (Gimmie another shot doc, I’ve only got two chapters to go!)

I’m thankful I’ve had the chance to travel, to see other countries I loved, like Scotland, and those as well where the people didn’t enjoy the blessings of economic and political Freedom, so I’d know how good we have it.

I’m thankful for a wonderful family, the usual spats aside, for my beautiful, loving wife, Bonnie, and for the most special granddaughter, Britnye, a guy could have. I married late in life, but I married well.

And every day I give thanks that, at age 18, the United States Marine Corps gave me the opportunity to earn the title Marine, to wear the uniform of this great Republic, to serve with the finest men of my generation in Vietnam, to try every day to live up to the Corps’ core values of honor, courage and commitment. I’m grateful my DIs, Sergeants Harris, Martin and Owens, didn’t give up on this un-athletic, un-coordinated wiseass. If the Corps every goes down, it will surely signal the end of the American experiment in liberty.

I’m very thankful that I can still claim the title Marine with honor. I wouldn’t trade that for the largest lotto prize in the world.

Biden Needs Lesson in Chicago Politics

A placeholder has been appointed to his seat, to keep it warm until his son returns from being a lawyer in Iraq to run for it in two years. That’s not how it’s done—that means the people actually get to vote, however stacked the election deck.

Former Aide to take Biden Seat
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/24/AR2008112403055.html

Now in The Chicago Way, Illinois Senate President & Obama Mentor Emil Jones resigned after the primary. Then the local Democrat committee appointed his son to fill the vacancy, to run unopposed in the November election. That way, he wills his seat to his son without the pesky voters getting to vote on the choice.

http://www.chicagodefender.com/article-1610-state-senate-president-emil-jones-to-retire-wants-son-in-his-seat.html
Too bad Obama’s girls aren’t old enough to get his seat in the US Senate. After all, he’s held it for 2/3rds of a full term, and possession is nine tenths of the law, right. Maybe Michelle needs something to do while the kids are in their expensive private school.

Economic Freedom

Sonnet: Defending Economic Freedom

Freedom from want is built on liberty,
When folk can sell their labor or their goods
As they will chose, a free economy
Creates all wealth, though that’s misunderstood,
By bureaucrats, who think that they know best
How you should live and work and buy and trade.
Central control has always failed the test—
Of those who seek such power, be afraid.

They do not care who lives in poverty,
If they control your markets and your votes.
They do not care about the misery
The heavy hand of government promotes.
Power corrupts, and blinds them to the flaw,
For tyrants hide in economic law.

-- © Robert A. Hall

THE SIDWELL CHOICE: THE OBAMA FAMILY LEADS BY EXAMPLE

The Obamas want to chose the school their daughters go to. Fair enough. But they want to deny school choice to poor black folks. Okay, they owe the teachers unions big time for the dollars and votes they put in. Tough for blacks wanting better educations for their kids, but that's politics.

Can we send our kids to better schools? "Yes we can."

Will we get the choice? Not under Barack the Unready.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122748801490451927.html

Worth Reading

THE DEATH OF THE AMERICAN IDEA
By Canadian Mark Steyn

http://www.steynonline.com/content/view/1477/

Muslims in Kosovo harvested Serb Christian organs

The stories don't mention the religion of the harvesters and harvestees. Want to bet if it was the other way around, there would be anti-Christian riots in a dozen countries?

Kosovo Holds Two over ‘Organ Transplants’

http://balkaninsight.com/en/main/news/14634/

Serb prisoners 'were stripped of their organs in Kosovo war'

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1584751/Serb-prisoners-'were-stripped-of-their-organs-in-Kosovo-war'.html

Some good news

Pakistan: US missile strike kills al-Qaeda connected "terror-mastermind"

http://www.jihadwatch.org:80/archives/023604.php

The Cub Scout

The Cub Scout
by Robert A. Hall

A few years ago, Milt "Pappy" Gore dragooned me into a VFW rifle squad for the annual Memorial Day service in Westmont, NJ. Pappy is a retired Marine tanker who served on Peleliu and Okinawa in World War II, and in Korea. I had my doubts, but he's a hard guy to turn down.
It was a typical Remembrance Day. While the majority of residents were enjoying a long weekend at the shore, perhaps a hundred gathered to listen to speeches by local politicians and watch aging veterans honor fallen comrades. The master-of-ceremonies was "Sarge" Ulsh, a "Chosin-few" Marine Korean vet, who also serves as the VFW's caustic-tongued bartender.
The squad sweltered in the sun while the speeches dragged on and wreaths were laid. There were six of us: Pappy and two other World War II vets in khaki, two present day soldiers in Army green who happened to be husband and wife, and myself in dark trousers, white shirt and an old Marine utility cap. All we needed was Norman Rockwell to paint the scene.
The squad commander was an Army vet, who crisply snapped out orders. Of course, World War II was awhile ago, so he was winging it on some commands (ordering "Turn-ABOUT" instead of "About-FACE"), which hurt our parade-ground precision a bit. As such small-town ceremonies often go, it managed to be both comic and touching.
I'm a sharp critic of rifle squads, but our three volleys weren't bad, considering we had never practiced. While kids scrambled to pick up the empty shells, we turned in the old M-1 Garands and thought about getting a cold beer at the post before heading home for the obligatory barbecue.
Drinking my beer, I found the funny-sad ceremony had put a lump in my throat. It brought back sharp memories of the last time I served on a rifle squad honoring our dead, over 40 years and 40 pounds ago.
I was a young Marine PFC, full of "hot sand and ginger" in Kipling's phrase, working my way through a year-long electronics school at Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego. This was the Spring of 1965, and Vietnam was heating up. My best buddy, Ron "Count" Pittenger and I had already gone to our commander and volunteered for the infantry in Vietnam.
We didn't know we were volunteering for a war the politicians would have neither the will to win nor the will to end. Television pictures the sixties generation as flower-power, long-haired hippies, smoking pot and protesting a terrible war. Rarely do you hear that tens of thousands of kids from that generation believed in America, believed communism was a great evil and volunteered to fight in that war.
Lucky for us, in those days the Marine Corps sent you where it wanted to, and it thought we should be studying electronics rather than carrying a rifle through a rice paddy. The skipper thanked us and sent us back to our duties. Vietnam would wait. I think we were equal parts disappointed and relieved.
A few weeks later, we had another chance to volunteer. We were between schools, and while waiting for classes to form, were assigned various unpleasant duties. One morning the company Gunnery Sergeant asked for volunteers for burial duty. I grabbed Count's arm and dragged him forward. We reported an hour later to the sergeant in charge.
I'd like to tell you we were motivated by a deep desire to honor the dead. The truth is, I was desperate to avoid another round of long hours walloping pots in the chow hall, where my most memorable accomplishment was cracking 120 dozen eggs for the cooks one morning. And I'd heard that burial detail was "skating" duty.
That's how the Count and I participated in over a hundred funerals in the next month. It was easy duty, especially for the rifle squad. The big guys were assigned to be body bearers, carrying heavy coffins. All we had to do was stand straight, look sharp, and fire three tight volleys from our seven rifles.
We worked at the national cemetery at Point Loma, CA, sharing the chore with a Navy squad. The Navy preferred to sleep late, so we'd take the early funerals, and get early liberty. For some reason there were no Friday funerals, usually giving us a three-day weekend.
Most of the funerals were for old veterans, guys who had served in the first or second world wars. Often there was no one to see them off but the funeral director, the minister and us, rendering last honors on behalf of the nation.
When you're in ten or fifteen funerals a day, it quickly becomes routine. We took it seriously-we were Marines-giving every vet our sharpest effort. But we quickly stopped feeling sad. You can't grieve endlessly for strangers.
Then we buried the cub scout's dad.
We were told to look sharp, because the next funeral was for a Marine who'd been killed in Vietnam. With the family was a Marine staff sergeant, perhaps a buddy, assigned to help. The large crowd of mourners included the young widow and the son of the dead Marine, a cub scout in full uniform. He was perhaps eight years old.
When we fired our volleys, the seven rifles making a single crack, people in the crowd began to weep. The rifle fire always seemed to signal how final death was. Then we stood at present arms while our bugler played taps.
He was a lance corporal permanently assigned to Point Loma, and had blown taps at several hundred funerals. No one has ever made it sound sadder.
While the bugle notes rolled down the hillside and the family wept, the staff sergeant and the cub scout stood at the foot of the casket at rigid attention, saluting the tautly-stretched flag. The contrast between the tall Marine in dress greens and the small boy in blue giving his dad the cub salute tore at our hearts.
And then the boy turned his head slightly, looked up at the Marine, and changed from the cub scout salute to the open-handed Marine salute, honoring his dead father as best he could. And if there is a God, somewhere his dad saw him.
We held our position, but I wasn't the only Marine weeping openly. Finally taps ended, the notes dying out over the sobbing of relatives. The body bearers folded the flag into the traditional triangle and passed it to the staff sergeant.
He presented it to the cub scout and saluted. The cub accepted the American flag from his dad's grave, and sharply returned the salute-Marine style.
Slowly the family and friends drifted away, and we marched off. Another funeral was waiting.
But I've carried that moment burned in my heart for over thirty years.
*****
Former Marine Staff Sergeant Robert A. Hall is a Vietnam veteran who later served five terms in the Massachusetts State Senate. Currently he manages associations. This column was published in the Camdon County NJ Courier Post and in Chicken Soup for the Veterans Soul. (c) Robert A. Hall.

US automakers can survive--outside the US!

Check out this video of Ford's most efficient plant. Where is it? Hint: where the UAW can't make it unprofitable!

http://info.detnews.com/video/index.cfm?id=1189 < http://info.detnews.com/video/index.cfm?id=1189 >

Thank heavens Democrats respect privacy laws, unlike Bush!

Ohio IG Report: Joe the Plumber's Records Were Improperly Searched

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/11/20/ohio_ig_report_joe_the_plumber.html

Update: Verizon employees who violated Obama's privacy were fired:
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/11/21/verizon-employees-fired-over-obama-cell-phone-breach/

But this violation of Joe's privacy drew a one month suspension:
http://hillbuzz.wordpress.com:80/2008/11/21/action-item-if-helen-jones-kelley-believes-people-thrust-into-the-limelight-should-be-investigated-and-have-their-personal-information-made-public-then-hasnt-she-been-thrust-into-the-spotli/

Things like this feed the racists, because the the black person who violated the white person's privacy still has her job, but the people who violated the black candidate's privacy lost theirs. It makes some people think there is different treatment based on race!

The Growth of Government Spending

This column reports that according to the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), in 1930 the federal government spent 3.4 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and federal taxes took in 4.2 percent of GDP (there was a .8% surplus!)

In 1940 federal spending was 9.8 percent of GDP, federal taxes were 6.8 percent and we borrowed the 3% difference.

In 2009, it is estimated that the federal government will spend 20.7 percent of GDP while taking in 18 percent of GDP in taxes, and we’ll borrow the 2.7 percent difference.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=29369

Wonder what % it will be in four years? Or in 50?

Angry Liberals

Why are liberals so angry?
Robert A. Hall

Have you noticed that even though they have put Barack the Unready in the White House, and the League of Leftwing Lawyers in firm control of the Congress, a lot of liberals are still very angry? They can’t stop kicking Sarah Palin. They are still seething at Bush. And don’t you dare tell a mild joke about The One.

I sent my family leftie a version of the joke about not tipping waiters to “spread the wealth around” by giving the tip to the poor. He snarled about what a “sore loser” I was. I responded that I would be as gracious and cooperative with President Obama as he had been with President Bush. Maybe even a tad more.

Sure, there are lighthearted liberals. But many respond to any conservative joke or comment the way rioting Muslims responded to a few cartoons about the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be Upon Him—and Especially upon his Followers). Why fury and outrage instead of laughter, debate and discussion?

We often hear how the “Religious Right” has joined politics and religion at the hip, to force us to accept the tenets of their faith as, well, gospel. The Westboro Baptist Church being an extreme and disgusting example. As a conservative centrist with a libertarian bent, who doesn’t believe in proselytizing my faith, I understand the concern. I have the same concern about black churches and ministers like Rev. Jessie Jackson, Rev. Al Sharpton and Rev. Jeremiah Wright, or about Catholic Bishops, who tell people how God wants them to vote.

Religion should be about faith; politics about opinion, facts, debate, discussion and outcomes. When politics becomes about faith, political apostates get stoned.

While some on the right have entwined religion and politics to the detriment of both, the Angry Left has replaced religion with politics. Thus, political questions are no longer open to discussion, to a review of what the policies results actually are for real people. I notice that the angriest liberals are the most secular. Political cant has replaced liturgy in their lives.

That’s why they become angry at mild jokes, the way millions of fanatical Muslims responded to the Danish cartoons. The Liberal Faith cannot be mocked!

If you point out that liberal policies have bad outcomes for the people they are supposed to help, you are a heretic.

The Liberal Faith was that the Vietnam War was evil. Mention that twice as many people were reportedly murdered by the Communists in SE Asia in the first two years after the war, as died in the eight years we were involved, and they become enraged.

The Liberal Faith was that the Shah was evil and we had to stop supporting him. Mention that replacing the Shah with the current theocrats in Iran resulted in a war that killed millions, or that Iran is hanging Gays, stoning women, and developing an atomic bomb to exterminate Israel, and they become enraged.

The Liberal Faith was that white rule in Zimbabwe was evil and everything must be done to bring about black rule. Mention that black life expectancy under black rule has dropped from 63 to 36, that millions have died, and millions more now starve in a country that used to export food, and they become enraged.

No one pretends that South Vietnam, Iran under the Shah or Rhodesia were slices of democratic heaven. But did tens of millions have to die so liberals could feel good about instituting the Liberal Faith?

The Liberal Faith was that DDT had to be banned to save the birds and prevent a “Silent Spring.” Mention that this resulted in the deaths of tens of millions of black, brown and yellow children from Malaria, and they become enraged.

The Liberal Faith is that black illegitimacy and thus poverty is a result of slavery and discrimination. Mention that a generation after the Civil War, blacks had slightly higher rates of marriage than whites, that the trend of black fathers abandoning their children exploded after the cultural change of the 1960s and the expansion of welfare, and they become enraged.

The Liberal Faith is only responsible for good intentions; they take no responsibility for bad outcomes.

Mention any fact that might conflict with the Liberal Faith’s fervent belief in anthropomorphic global warming, and they become enraged. Facts, free debate and open discussion are the stuff of science, not religion. The Faith cannot be questioned.

I was an early supporter of Gay rights in my senate career (when a lot of liberals ran for cover), though I was single and representing a 4-1 Democrat district in 1973. That libertarian departure from conservative orthodoxy buys me nothing with liberals. With religion, you must avow the entire catechism, or you are an evil sinner, outside the circle of love and respect.

For the Angry Left like MoveOn, as opposed to pragmatic left-center politicians like the Clintons, policy is not politics, but piety. It can’t be that you simply have a different worldview, and thus believe that different policies have preferred outcomes for the polity and the public. They are the wise and faithful. If you do not believe all they believe, you must be stupid, evil or both. And your impiety makes them angry.

Robert A. Hall is a Marine Vietnam veteran who served five terms in the Massachusetts state senate.

Hottest October Ever?

Hottest October Ever?

James Hansen, head of NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies, and Al Gore’s favorite scientist, claimed that October, 2008, was the “hottest October ever.” Turns out the highly-regarded scientific institute was using bogus numbers carried over from September.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration registered 63 local snowfall records and 115 lowest-ever temperatures for the month, and ranked it as only the 70th warmest October in 114 years.

But remember, the “debate is over.” Anyone who questions anthropomorphic global warming is “on the take from the oil companies.” (I’m still waiting. Make mine small, unmarked bills, please.)

In science, questions are debated. In religion, heretics are stoned.

http://www.ibdeditorials.com/IBDArticles.aspx?id=311816111671293

Dealing with Pirates

In today's news, the ever-bolder pirates of Somalia have seized a Saudi-owned oil tanker as large as an aircraft carrier, worth a reported $120,000,000, with a cargo that may be worth $100M more. (It would have been worth twice as much a month ago.) If these guys keep it up, GM will ask them for a bail out--so they can build more gas-guzzling SUVs nobody wants, while paying union guys $73 an hour. The story I read didn’t mention the pirates’ religion, but since the ship belonged to Muslims, I’m guessing crazed Presbyterians, or out-of-control Unitarians. Something like that, doubtless.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/nov/18/piracy-somalia

Solution: Create an international navel force, under US, not UN command. Establish convoys protected by frigates and destroyers, with air cover from a carrier on call. Create armed merchantmen. Use Q-ships. Shoot to kill on suspicion. Launch surgical air strikes on pirate nests (sorry about the collateral damage). Captured pirates should be tried by navel court, at sea, executed immediately, and buried at sea. Any ship taken by pirates should be sunk, killing the pirates (sorry about the crew, but more crewmen would be saved, long term, by stopping the pirates now). End of problem, six months, tops. If the pirates knew they were going to die, instead of get large ransoms, they would stop being pirates. Probably run for Congress or something.

Alternatively, for those who believe “violence solves nothing,” President-elect Obama could meet with pirate leaders, in Somalia, one on one, without pre-conditions, to build consensus, respect and understanding. This would make the UN, Europe and, especially, Joe Biden VERY happy.

Why are health care costs so high?

The Massachusetts Medical Society has found in a study that “Defensive Medicine,” that is procedures and tests ordered not because the doctor thinks they are needed, but to reduce the risk of a lawsuit, costs $1.4 Billion in Massachusetts, just for the specialties surveyed. And we wonder why health care is so expensive, and why so many people can’t afford coverage, and why Medicare is breaking the Federal Government, and Medicaid the state governments?

Will anything be done about it? Not with the League of Leftwing Lawyers firmly in charge of the Government. (Barack & Michelle Obama, Joe Biden, Bill & Hillary Clinton, Nancy Pelosi & Steny Hoyer running the house, Harry Reid, Dick Durbin and Harry Byrd running the senate. And there are a lot of Democrat Lawyers throughout the Congress & the new administration--bet on it.) Tort reform is dead, so the rest of us will pay & pay.

http://www.massmed.org/AM/Template.cfm?Section=News_Releases&TEMPLATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTID=23559

Wisdom from the Old Book

Ecclesiastes 10.2 The heart of the wise inclines to the right, but the heart of the fool to the left.

I'm going to be rich

At last I’m going to be rich
Robert A. Hall


I’ve always thought I wouldn’t be spoiled by big money. Finally, I’m going to find out. And I’m not going to do those rich-people things. I don’t plan to buy a huge mansion, run for the US Senate, or get a super model for a trophy wife.

I’m not even going to quit my job. I like the people I work with and it’s important work. My wife and I will travel more, get that sailboat, and maybe a Jeep for me.

I’ll help out family members, support our church and contribute to some charities.
You’re probably thinking I’ve won the lottery. Not so. I buy the occasional ticket, but that woman who pulls the numbers has been a sore disappointment to me.

Nope, my wealth is coming from my new friend Mr. Boniface Obaseki, Chief Auditor of the African Development Bank in South Africa. See, Mr. Obaseki has a little problem. He’s discovered an inactive account at the bank with $126 million dollars in it. And if he doesn’t “remit this money out urgently it will be forfeited for nothing.” That would be a shame.
According to my e-mail from Boniface (partners should be on a first-name basis) the account belonged to a Mr. Smith B. Andreas, a minor/geologist at the Kruger Gold Company, who “died since 1990.” If I’d known geologists did that well, I’ve have changed my major in college.
But never mind. Boniface needs my help, because the money has to be remitted to a foreign bank. And his secretary, who operates the computer and “believes in God” that I’ll “never let him down,” found me, “a reliable and honest person.” He wants to transfer this amount to my local bank, which may be a tad surprised at the influx of cash.

Good thing he picked me. I mean, a dishonest person might have kept the whole bundle, rather then the 35% I get for helping him, plus expenses. Since my share comes to $44 million and change, I’m his man.

Oh, I was suspicious, but Boniface assured me we would sign a binding agreement, as this was “real and genuine” business. He asked me to keep this strictly confidential, because I’m the only person he’s told about the money, so don’t you tell anyone.

Since there’s so much money floating around Africa that doesn’t seem to have an owner, why shouldn’t I get a chunk? In the past, I’ve received several letters from Nigeria, from various important folks needing my bank account number and contact information to get big money out of the country. About ten years ago, they started to come by e-mail.

All are urgent. All involve several million dollars. All come from someone highly placed. Lately, various relatives and attorneys of the late head of state, General Sani Abacha, are desperately trying to get many millions out of Nigeria, offering me from 15% to 25% if I’ll help.

I’m glad I held out, though. Getting 35% of $126 million is the best offer yet. Maybe it’s because this money is in South Africa—most of the offers come from Nigeria. Some are now coming from Iraq, Afghanistan and the Philippians.

These are known as Nigerian scams or “419” scams, after a seldom-enforced section of the Nigerian Penal Code.

Their plan is not to get your account number, (you could open a new account), but to get you hooked on the idea of great, though shady, wealth. Then it turns out—so sorry—that an up front payment is needed for a bribe, or advance fee for the lawyer, or export fees, or whatever.
Once you are on the hook, you will be sent demands for more payments, official looking documents and even invited to visit Nigeria or another area country. Then the scam may become kidnapping. There are reports of people missing and murdered.

Think people aren’t that dumb? As of 1995, an estimated $5 billion had been duped from the feckless and greedy. Some claim this is Nigeria’s third largest industry.

If you get a scam letter, fax or e-mail, you can fax it to the US Secret Service at 202/406-6930. Mark it “no financial loss—for database.”

You can learn more about these scams at the 419 coalition website: home.rica.net/alphae/419coal. This and other scams are also detailed at http://www.crimes-of-persuasion.com/.

Con artists say, “You can’t cheat an honest person.” If you’ve got doubts, the rule is, if it sounds too good to be true, it ain’t true.

But I still feel bad for old Boniface. He put his faith in me, and I let him down. So did everyone else in my office—we all received his “exclusive” e-mail.

The economy

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/11/AR2008111102832.html?wpisrc=newsletter

Interesting and scary article about the economy from the Washington Post. All Bush’s fault, of course. His failure to regulate European and Asian banks, which were more over-leveraged than even ours, really did us in! Seriously, everyone is to blame, Democrats & Republicans, Wall Street and banks worldwide, GM for not building cars people want, unions for making GM much less competitive, and consumers, especially those who financed debt for homes, cars, etc. that were more than five or ten times their annual income. Those of us who didn’t pile up debt now have to bail them out, so they can—sob—“stay in their homes,” even if the home cost $1M. Wonder if the new administration will repeal the Community Reinvestment Act, so banks won’t continue to be forced to give loans to people who can’t pay?

To understand why politicians of both parties do things short term that feel good, but screw the economy long term, I again recommend the excellent books Basic Economics and Economic Facts and Fallacies by Dr. Thomas Sowell. Many of the short term solutions to relieve the pain will make things worse long term, but both parties have their eye on the 2010 midterm elections, not the long term.

Obama and Minorities

Can President Obama bring real change for minorities?
Robert A. Hall

If President Obama really wants to do something about black poverty, he needs to do something about the ghetto culture poor blacks adopted from poor whites in the south, which liberals think is sacrosanct as “authentic” black culture. (See Black Rednecks and White Liberals by Dr. Thomas Sowell.) He needs to have blacks understand that education is not “acting white,” but the road to a better standard of living. He needs to do something about casual black on black violence, which, among other pernicious things, drives job-creating businesses out of black areas. And something about black men abandoning children, a legacy of the Sixties and the welfare state, not of slavery. (A generation after the Civil War, blacks had slightly higher marriage rates than whites.)

If he wants to do something to help Hispanics, stop the multi-cultural nonsense and encourage them to learn English. Hispanics who speak English have significantly higher income levels than those who don’t.

But liberal “Poverty Pimps” prefer poor minorities dependent on liberal-sponsored government handouts, thus locked into voting for liberal candidates. Big government Democrats are the new Masters of the Plantation.

Blacks do worse educationally than whites who test at the same ability level. Is that culture or discrimination? Well, whites do worse educationally than Asians who test at the same intelligence level. And Jews do better than Christians who test at the same level. So does that prove Asians are discriminating against Whites, and Jews are discriminating against Christians? Or does it prove that Asians and Jews have cultures that are focused on education and success for their children? Black kids who were raised in an Asian or Jewish culture would outstrip whites in educational achievement. It’s neither discrimination nor lack of ability holding minorities back, it's culture. What will President Obama do to change that?

White politicians can’t speak to the real issues keeping minorities impoverished, because the media will join with liberals in trashing them as racists. One of the hopes for the Obama presidency is that, being half black, he will be able to speak to the real issues, thus really bringing positive change for minorities. If Jessie Jackson doesn’t do surgery on him for trying. If Obama has the courage. I wish blacks and Hispanic Americans every success. Can President Obama beat down his own party and the media to really help them? I hope so, but I’m not betting on it.

Robert A. Hall is a Marine Vietnam veteran who served five terms in the Massachusetts state senate

To the Old Breed on Veterans Day

To the Old Breed on Veterans Day

They’re dying out, you know.
They’re fewer every year.
We watch them homeward go,
And shed an errant tear.

They are the old, true breed
Who wore the uniform.
They served at every need,
For that was once the norm.

Their passing goes un-mourned,
They simply fade away,
But Freedom once was borne
By them through every day.

They suffered, toiled and died,
They sweated, bled and fought,
Through honor and through pride
Your liberty they bought.

So you may heroes jeer,
And you may comfort seek,
Oh, let the feckless sneer,
The cowards and the weak!

The day is coming near
When you will beg for men,
And they, no longer here,
Will not return again.

--Former SSgt Robert A. Hall, USMC

Veterans' Day

"A veteran is someone who, at one point in his or her life wrote a blank check made 'Payable to the United States of America' in the amount of 'up to and including my life.'"

--Anonymous

Check out this great video clip about Veterans' Day

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eyrCm5e32qc

What America Wanted

A liberal former legislative colleague pointed out to me that Vietnam has not produced a president, and with McCain's defeat, probably won't.

The reason is simple, I believe.

America didn't want a hero.

America wanted a handout.

Sending jobs overseas

Who sent American jobs overseas? We all did!
Robert A. Hall

The movement of some jobs overseas elicits loud complaints in election years. There are calls to rescind NAFTA, even though after it passed the number of jobs in both the US and Mexico increased. Economics is not a zero-sum game, as politicians would have you believe. The trick is to develop pro-growth policies, such as free trade, which increase the general wealth, even though some people get hurt, as jobs flow to where they can be most economically done.

But, who is really responsible for anti-growth policies that create the economics to make jobs move? George Bush? Guilty. Bill Clinton? Guilty. The Democrats in Congress? Guilty. The Republicans in Congress? Also guilty. Every president back to FDR? All Guilty. Me? Guilty.

Hey, hold on, pal! How can I be guilty? I don’t own a business, never moved a single job. I’ll explain my guilt, but first a simple lesson in economics. Every economically-rational business seeks to maximize revenue and minimize expenses. Even government agencies and non-profits, like the one I manage, try to increase revenue and reduce costs, though they are more subject to non-economic considerations. Businesses that don’t follow this iron law don’t ship jobs overseas. They simply go out of business, as consumers choose the products and services of businesses that act in accord with economic laws. Then the jobs don’t move, they disappear, meaning both the employees and the investors lose. And increasingly the investors who lose are not just rich folks, but you and I with our 401k plans. I seldom hear of unions demanding that their pension funds be invested in USA-only companies, regardless of income results.

Economically-rational consumers seek to obtain products and services of acceptable quality at the least cost. Which is why I have a Korean car and shirts from every third world country except Iraq.

Moving a company is expensive. But if costs have increased to the point where other companies are able to offer products at lower prices, a company has to choose between moving and closing. Bankruptcies seldom benefit workers or consumers.

These facts of economic life have always been true. Sen. John Edwards has lamented the pain caused by the closing of textile and furniture factories in North Caroline, to seek more favorable working conditions overseas. But no one in North Caroline cried for workers in Massachusetts when these same factories relocated in past decades from Lowell and Gardner in search of a more favorable economic environment in North Carolina.

What increases costs enough to cause a company to have to relocate? Wages and the cost of living are one factor, of course, though we can often compete with countries with lower wages, because we have higher productivity. Higher hourly wages can still mean lower labor costs per unit produced.

But, increasingly, well-intentioned government regulations also drive up costs—and drive out jobs. That’s where I’m guilty too.

As a Republican member of the Massachusetts state senate, I was known as a pro-business guy. But I also supported the state equal-rights amendment, and efforts to prohibit discrimination against gays in employment and housing. I’m proud of these stands. But I also recognize that their successful passage made the cost of doing business in Massachusetts a little bit higher.
Look at the wonderful things the government has done in the past few decades. The ADA was passed to help people with disabilities. The EPA was established to protect the environment. OSHA protects workers. The FMLA helps pregnant women and families. Title VII prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, religion, and gender. ADEA protects older works from discrimination. The Equal Pay Act protects women. USERRA protects veterans. And we could name a lot more at both the federal and state level.

These are all good things, intended to protect and help people. I’m not suggesting that we repeal any of them. They were passed with the best of intentions, and supported by presidents and legislators of both parties. None of these things alone drove jobs overseas. But each increased the cost of doing business and made a move overseas just that more necessary for some American companies. As Stanislaw Lem reportedly said, “No snowflake in an avalanche ever feels responsible.”

Protectionism doesn’t work in a global economy, as President Bush found out when he tried to pander to steel workers with import barriers on steel, and was forced to backtrack because of the economic damage it would have done. President Obama will discover the same thing when he tries to reward union contributions with higher trade barriers. The anti-globalization Luddites are having fun trashing cities and protesting trade, but in the end they will be as successful of those who fought the introduction of power machinery in 1811, because it destroyed jobs.

It would help, of course, if Americans were as interested in economic reality as in reality TV. Until then, we may expect candidates to continue to pander to their ignorance. And it would help if each time we asked government to do something good, which increased the cost of doing business, we realized we might be the snowflake that sent our job overseas.

In the meantime, I recommend everyone read "Basic Economics" by Dr. Thomas Sowell. You’ll know when politicians are pandering to you.

When the Guardians Fail

When the Guardians Fail
Robert A. Hall

Robert Frost wrote, “Then leaf subsides to leaf/So Eden sank to grief/So dawn goes down to day/Nothing gold can stay.” As Eden sank to grief, so goeth all nations.

It’s never expected, of course. Christian citizens of the Byzantine Empire at the heights of its glory could not foresee the day in 1453 when Emperor Constantine XI, in a heroic last stand would die fighting the Muslim conquest of once-Christian Turkey. Yet today, it’s unthinkable that the city, now called Istanbul, could be anything but Muslim ruled.

And no citizen of Rome at its height expected the Pax Romana to bow to barbarians.

Americans may believe the United States will last forever. But history shows superpower status does not confer immortality on a nation. Someday, the guardians will fail.

Citizens are naturally suspicious of their guardians. After all, armed protectors, police or military, can be dangerous. It has been likened to the relationship of sheep to sheepdogs. The sheep do not particularly like the dogs. After all, dogs can bite, and the capacity for violence inherent in their job makes the sheep nervous. But without them, the wolves will soon be among the flock, rending and tearing. George Orwell said, “People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf.” That does not make the rough men popular with those they guard.

That John Adams, defeated by Jefferson, packed and went home was perhaps the true American Revolution. That Richard Nixon could be forced from office without one tank in the streets was incomprehensible to much of the world. America’s guardians, with few aberrations, have been protectors of the people, because they have been of the people.

That is rapidly becoming not the case. In WWII, President Franklin Roosevelt’s son, Maj. Jimmy Roosevelt, served as a Marine in combat. It wasn’t thought remarkable, because our citizen military once drew its leaders from America’s elites. The Ivy League was then well represented in the officers’ corps. The guardians were of the people.

Who today expects to see Chelsea Clinton or the Bush twins in uniform? It would create a sensation if they served here, never mind in Iraq. Even if I had not had other reasons, I would have voted for McCain and Palin for allowing their kids to go to Iraq, as, respectively, a Marine and an Army infantryman. (And yes, Biden’s son is going too—as a military lawyer.) Today, few members of Congress or the administration have served. Fewer still of their children are serving. The more prestigious the university, the more likely it is to have driven ROTC and military recruiters off campus. Increasingly, those who for low pay are expected to put their lives at risk for us come from families of those who have served the country, or from immigrants. And those who benefit the most from America—the educated elites, the wealthy Hollywood stars and sports figures—feel the least call to serve.

Worse, perhaps out of hidden shame, they denigrate those who do serve. For every one of us who admired Pat Tillman for giving up a multimillion-dollar NFL career to serve our country, at the cost of his life, I’m sure there were three who secretly thought he was a jerk. As the war on terror drags on, the “we support the troops” mantra is wearing threadbare from poorly-hidden contempt.

Our guardians are growing increasingly disconnected from the society they protect. Leona Helmsley famously said, “Taxes are for the little people.” Increasingly, our elites believe that service to the Republic is for the little people, the contemptible poor who can’t get another job. When the 7,000 defenders of Constantinople fell to perhaps 85,000 besieging Muslims, about 2,000 of the defenders were mercenaries. Next time you rail against illegal immigrants from Mexico, note the number of Hispanic names on the casualty lists from Iraq. They are our mercenaries, Jose and Maria on guard, so Jason and Tiffany can take from the country without risk.

Once protecting the society is held in contempt, once the elites are no longer willing to lead the guardians, the signs of failure are manifest. The world will not appreciate what it will lose until the day America’s guardians fail. We who loved her will hope, like Constantine, to go down in the last melee. And the children of privilege will wonder, “How could this evil happen?” as their daughters don their burkas.

A Reading List for the War on Terror

A Reading List for the War on Terror
Robert A. Hall

Everyone has an opinion about the current nasty world situation, including Hollywood celebs who couldn’t place Wisconsin on a map, never mind Iran or the UAE. But are the opinions based on knowledge?

Below is a list of books I’ve read recently to try to educate myself on the subject, which I highly recommend. I doubt they will change your Weltanschauung, but think how entertaining you’ll be at cocktail parties, armed with a wealth of new facts to club your opponents!

The Sword of the Prophet by Serge Trifkovic. Subtitled, Islam: History, Theology, Impact on the World, this critical volume by British journalist Trifkovic explores the theology of Islam, including the Shia-Sunni split, who Mohammed was, how Islam came to power in many lands, and the foundations of the terrorists’ beliefs in the Koran and the traditions of the faith. It will not encourage feminists to look forward to the imposition of shari’a law.

The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam and the Crusades by Robert Spencer, who maintains the website www.jihadwatch.org and provides a free e-newsletter with info on world news on the topic. The book is not flattering about Islam, of course, but makes its points by quoting extensively from the Koran, the Islamic traditions that are also considered holy works and the writings of ancient and modern Islamic scholars. (Sometimes hard to tell the difference.) It also provides a pretty interesting reading list of other works, listed in each chapter as "Books you're not supposed to read." Islam may, as we are told, be a "Religion of Peace" but not according to Spencer, or what he quotes from a large body of Islamic writing. Islam Unveiled by the same author is also excellent.

The Truth About Muhammad: Founder of the World’s Most Intolerant Religion by Robert Spenser. As you might expect from the keeper of JihadWatch.org, and someone who has to live in a secret location for safety, this is not a flattering biography. It is, however, backed by solid research, and uses the Quran and the Hadith (the Muslim traditions of Muhammad and his followers, which Muslim scholars use to interpret the Quran) as his sources. Since Muhammad is considered by Muslims, as Allah’s Messenger, the perfect example of how a man should live, and his revelations in the Quran not subject to modification, what he did and thought is of great importance today. Using only Muslim sources, Spencer documents things like Muhammad’s marriage to a girl of six, which was consummated when she was nine. While child marriages were common at that time, this is still the rule today; Iran, for example, has a marriage age of nine for girls. The Islamic law requirements that a woman must have four Muslim witnesses to prove rape, that a woman’s testimony counts for only half of a man’s, that Jews and Christians are second class citizens in Islamic lands and can only live if they pay the Jizya (the special tax on unbelievers which funded Muslim conquests), and that slavery is proper and a man may have sexual relations as he pleases with slave girls all come from Muhammad’s revelations and example. From Muhammad comes the ruling that anyone who eaves Islam must be killed. So too, does the ideal that Jihad against the unbelievers—Muhammad was constantly at war in his conquest of the Arabian peninsula—and the use of beheading and torture against enemies. The idea that Muslims must fight the non-believers until Sharia—Islamic law—rules all nations is not the concept of a “small group of radicals who have hijacked a religion of peace.” It is solidly founded in Allah’s revelations to Muhammad which constitute the Quran.

Apologists who persist in seeing Islam as no different from Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism or Hinduism will be offended by this book, because it uses the Quran and Hadith to prove them terribly misguided.

A Concise History of the Crusades by Thomas F. Madden. Were the crusades the brutal attempt by Europeans to subject the Muslims to Christian rule, or the first war on terror, a European defensive reaction against a hostile religious power bent on the invasion and conquest of Europe. You get the facts and decide.

A Peace to End All Peace: Creating the Modern Middle East 1914 – 1922 by David Fromkin. Following the close of the “Great War” in 1918, one of the generals remarked that if it was really “The War to End All Wars,” then surely the peace accords developed by the victorious allied powers were creating “A Peace to End All Peace.” From this prescient remark, Fromkin draws the title for his excellent book on how the hotch potch of nation states that make up the ever-roiled Middle East came about.

Most of the countries in the Middle East we know today (Israel, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon) were not nation states prior to WWI, but territories in the Ottoman Empire, governed from modern Turkey, and were created after the war. Turkey’s decision to support Germany in the war led the allied nations—France, Russia and Britain—to look on her empire as potential colonies, useful buffers against rivals, or necessary spheres of influence. The clash of these forces with each other and with local movements such as Zionism, the ambitions of the House of Saud, the Hashemite movement and the Wahhabis sect produced results that we are still paying for today.

Sowing the Wind: The Seeds of Conflict in the Middle East by John Keay, this is a broader look at the area than A Peace to End All Peace. Published in 2003, probably too late for policymakers to read, this is an excellent one-volume history of the Middle East, from the 1890 through the Suez crisis in 1956, with an epilog to bring us up to date. The catalog of crime and invasion, contention, execution and insurrection, siege and betrayal of Hashemite vs. Wahhabi, Sunni vs. Shia vs. Kurd vs. Turk, Allies vs. Ottomans, Britain vs. France, Zionists vs. Muslims, and other groups great and small would give a tourist pause, never mind a diplomat or soldier. Sowing the Wind is as entertaining as it is educational, fascinating as it is frightening. Packed with characters from Saddam to the Hoffman twins, from Lawrence to Ibn Saud, this should be required reading for every policymaker and politician.

Lighting Out of Lebanon: Hezbollah Terrorists on American Soil by Tom Diaz and Barbara Newman. Diaz was the lead Congressional Democratic counsel on Anti-terrorism, and a consultant to the Justice Department on technology & terrorism. Newman is a senior fellow with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. The book provides a very interesting history of the development of Hezbollah, which the authors consider more dangerous that al Qaeda. It goes into interesting details about the FBI’s busting of the Charlotte, NC Hezbollah ring, how they use criminal activity here (credit card fraud, cigarette smuggling, etc.) to fund Hezbollah and terrorism. It details the connection to the Arab community in Dearborn, MI, which LE folks call “Hezbollah Central,” and the operation smuggling Hezbollah members over our southern border. It also explains why it was so hard to fight in the 90s, due to the “Chinese Wall” that grew up at Justice, due to weird ruling, which prevented the sharing of information between the intelligence section and the criminal section of federal agencies, which prevented the 9/11 hijackers from being stopped in advance. (Thank you, Janet Reno, for protecting their civil rights!) And it details other American cities where it is believed Hezbollah cells operate. Not guaranteed to help you sleep at night.

Infidel by Ayann Hirsa Ali. Ali’s autobiography describes her rise from a nomadic Muslim family in Somalia, her and her sister’s genital mutilation at ages 5 & 4, her escape to Holland from a forced marriage, her election as a member of the Dutch parliament, her campaign against the domestic violence and circumcision of little girls on kitchen tables that is widespread among Muslim immigrants in Holland, the murder of Theo van Gogh (grandson of the painter) after they made a film about violence against women, and her move to the United States after having to go into hiding to save her life. If there was ever a feminist book by a feminist who sought change at the risk of her life, this is it. I highly recommend reading Infidel.

War by Other Means by John Yoo. Anyone who really wants to understand how the legal decisions in the War on Terror were made, rather than depend on the red state-blue state polemical attacks, should read John Yoo’s book. He is a University of California at Berkeley law professor who served in the Office of Legal Counsel at Justice, and was involved in many of the legal decisions about military tribunals, the Patriot Act, wiretapping and coercive interrogation. Regardless of your views on these issues, doubtless formed by red state-blue state polemical attacks, your understanding of the arguments will benefit from Yoo’s clear presentation of the issues and the reasoning behind the decisions.

The Savage Wars of Peace: Small Wars and the Rise of American Power by Max Boot. The popular view is that the “American Way of War” is to bring massive power to totally defeat our enemies, with WWII being the poster-war for such thinking. But most of American conflicts have been low-intensity, insurgency type operations, using limited power, for limited political goals and, often, with results that were much less satisfying than VE or VJ day. Journalist Boot set out to draw the history of these conflicts together, and try to create some guideposts for the future. If all you know about America’s military history is WWI & II, or you want to know what the War on Terror will look like ten years from now (You don’t think it’s going to end that soon do you? Surely we won’t surrender that fast!) you need to read this book.

No True Glory by Bing West. West’s book details the first and second battles of Fallujah, and the period of anguish in between. A Marine veteran himself, West clearly likes Marines, a bias which feels just right to me. This is a fine account of the courage and sacrifice of young Americans at war. (I know, you don’t support the war, but you support the troops. You just don’t want to know anything about them.) More importantly, West details how the multiple factions in Iraq, Kurds, Shias, Sunnis, tribes, sheiks, and Imans, interact with the multiple factions trying to manage the war, the American civilian authority and the US military leadership in Iraq, the Pentagon, the White House and the Congress, to create such a mess it’s a wonder anything has gone right.

One Bullet Away: The Making of a Marine Officer by Nathaniel C. Fick. This is a fine combat memoir, but it’s also a wonderful guide to leadership. Equally important, One Bullet Away should be required reading for those responsibility for policy, who wish to understand what went right and what went wrong in Iraq. Fick quotes a sergeant telling him exactly how and why the present insurgency would start. I had flashbacks to Vietnam, where Marine corporals were openly contemptuous of the Johnson administration’s plans to build a wall across the DMZ, asking if the leadership had ever heard of the Maginot Line. So there’s another lesson here as well—leaders need to listen to the folks on the bottom, doing the dirty work. They often have insights you don’t. As a Marine veteran, I regret Fick’s decision to leave the Corps. We are going to badly need officers like him in the coming years.

An End to Evil by David Frum and Richard Perle. Yes, this is the Neo-conservative view of how the War on Terror should be conducted, including what Clinton did wrong (described harshly) and what Bush is doing wrong (described gently). Think how badly you’ll be able to trash the neocons when you actually know what they believe! Then you should read the opposition’s book laying out their strategy for victory. (So far, only chapter one, “Impeach Bush,” has been written. But more will come once they agree.)

There you have it, a good week’s reading, which will make you the most informed war protester around. Let me know when you finish and I’ll recommend a few more. Unless, of course, you want to go on getting all your political opinions from Barbra Stresisand and the Dixie Chicks.

Everything I Need to Know, I Learned in Bootcamp

Everything I Need to Know, I Learned in Bootcamp
Robert A. Hall

Robert Fulghum’s inspirational essay, “Everything I Need to Know, I Learned in Kindergarten,” is one of the most read and reprinted articles of our time. Though I admire Fulghum’s insights, I must have been a late bloomer. Everything I’ve needed to know, I learned at Parris Island, from three leather-tough Marine drill instructors.
The lessons taught by Sergeants William Harris, Michael Martin and Ezekiel Owens, while training Platoon 273 in the summer of 1964, have carried me through the rough times, and led to what success I can claim in life. In college, in my earlier political career and in my current job as an association manager, my DIs were always with me, guiding me, helping me, urging me on—and kicking my tail when I need it. I may not think about them daily, but for over 35 years their training and spirit has been an inseparable part of my life. Schools, colleges and even the other services educate the brain. Marine training burns deep in the heart and the bone.
In light of the trying times facing our country, I’d like to share the lessons they gave me:

• Challenge yourself—you can always do more than you think you can.

• Make your bed every morning.

• Real friends will do the push-ups, even though you were the guy who screwed up. They know you’ll do it for them.

• It’s easier to stay organized, than to get organized later on.

• Balance physical and mental activity. You need both to succeed.

• Individual effort is important, but teamwork wins battles.

• It’s not a person’s size, looks, background, color or gender that counts. When the fight is fierce, and the situation desperate, it’s what’s inside that makes the difference.

• Study your notes.

• Courage isn’t the absence of fear—courage is being afraid and still doing what needs to be done.

• Stand up straight—your bearing reflects your confidence.

• Every situation, every day, is a learning experience.

• A light touch brings the best shine.

• Find friends you can count on, and stand by them.

• Carry the load for slower teammates—it’s vital the team get there together.

• Neatness does count.

• A vigorous attack is usually more effective—and safer—than a plodding approach.

• Repetition teaches.

• It’s what you do when you just can’t do anymore that determines the outcome.

• Keep your equipment clean—a dirty rifle is just a bad club.

• Look out for the welfare of your subordinates first.

• Learn to laugh at discomfort and trouble—it makes misfortune lighter, and annoys your enemies.

• Write home often.

• The great creations of the human race aren’t buildings or machines, but the concepts of duty, honor, loyalty, teamwork, and freedom.

• Never, never give up.

• Close counts with hand grenades, too.

• Everybody’s scared of something, everybody’s scared sometimes.

• It takes two shelter halves to make a tent—work together or get wet.

• It’s surprising what you’ll eat if you’re really hungry.

• Better to have a small group you can count on, than an army of wafflers.

• Conserve your water and your ammunition.

• You don’t have to like people to respect them.

• Change your socks every chance you get.

• Generals don’t know everything—listen to the troops at the bottom too.

• The people around you are entitled to your best. So are you.

• Properly motivated, even the weakest will make a contribution.

• Get in step.

• Sure, you have to salute officers—but they have to salute back.

• Help the people on your team whenever you can—you’re going to need their help real soon.

• Always give more than you expect to get.

• Without pride, you don’t have anything.

• If you’re going down, go down fighting. It sets a good example, and your memory will be honored.

• A clean, neat appearance improves confidence and performance—but you can get the job done while covered with mud.

• Respect has to be earned.

• Honor those who went before and set a standard for you.

• If advancing and retreating look equally risky—advance!

• Sometimes it’s better not to stand out.

• Make your mom proud.

• Shoot straight and tell the truth.

• Real discipline comes from within.

• Concealment hides you, cover protects you—cover is better.

• Aim carefully—hits count, not shots.

• Leadership requires the leader to set the example. Lead from the front.

• Getting shot at focuses your attention.

• Too much beer can lead to unsightly tattoos—or worse.

• When in doubt, do something. Inaction is almost always wrong.

• It’s better to out-smart ’em, than to out-slug ’em.

• You’re never so tired or so safe that digging-in to protect yourself isn’t necessary.

• When you let the team down, you let yourself down.

• There are wolves in the world. It’s your job to face them.

• And when you go out in the world, it’s good to have Marines at your side.

Semper Fi, Marines. Thanks for a great life. I’m proud to be one of you.

*****

Former Staff Sergeant Robert A. Hall served as a Marine from 1964 to 1968, and was a radio relay team chief in Vietnam. He later served five terms in the Massachusetts State Senate. While a senator, he re-joined the Marine reserves, serving from 1977 to 1983. Currently he manages associations and is a part-time freelance writer. He lives with his wife, Bonnie, in Des Plaines, IL.

Eight post-election predictions

Eight post-election predictions

1. Gov. Sarah Palin will not be the Republican nominee for president in 2012, despite her popularity with conservatives—or maybe because of it. Losing Veep candidates seldom move on to the big prize. Besides, with the sexism and general nastiness that descended on her family, why would she—or any woman—want to go through a national campaign any time soon?

Sarah has two ways forward:

A. Go for the bucks. She could transition first into being an author and, after her term is up, a TV host as Gov. Huckabee has done. She’s attractive, articulate and has a devoted following. And she makes the left spit tacks, always a good credential for being in the conservative media. Being the female Bill O’Reilly will give her influence with a lot less grief than having lefties Photoshop your head onto nude bodies, attack your children and circulate forged documents about you on the net. And the financial rewards would be great.

B. Go for the clout. Assuming Ted Stevens is expelled, she would be the front runner for the senate in a special election. Mrs. Palin goes to Washington. But she can’t run for president in 2012. With only four years in the senate, the media would kill her on lack of experience and moving too fast—they won’t give her the pass that President-elect Obama got, with the same amount of experience. She should work hard as a senator, keep a low profile at first, help Republican candidates around the country, build donor contacts and build a reputation for knowledge in some useful areas. In 2016, she’ll only be 52, if she really wants the big prize. If not, well, being a senator is nice--you get to work indoors and there’s no heavy lifting.
Of course, she could just say to hell with it and go home to raise kids, fish and hunt caribou.

2. President-elect Obama will have little time to enjoy his victory. Neither the economy nor the jihadists will give him much slack. On the economy, many of the things he’s promised aren’t doable without great pain. Increased trade barriers, increased capital gains taxes and even increasing the death tax, as he’s promised, are anti-growth. I can’t wait to hear what the "President of Canada," who Obama promised to call to modify NAFTA, has to say.

He either breaks those promises, as he did on campaign financing, ticking off the unions and the left, or keeps them and worsens the economy, not a good route to high poll numbers. His toughest promise was for a tax cut/welfare check for 95% of the people, but can he borrow the money to redeem his pledge? The people in the top 5%, those making over $153k, already pay 60% of the taxes. There’s not enough blood in the turnip to quench the thirst for it that he’s created.

Presidents in our age are basically nailed anyway. They have to appeal to the far left/far right to get the votes, money and volunteers to win their party’s nomination, then move to the center where elections are won, as Obama deftly did. But then they have to govern.

If President Obama governs from the left, the majority of people who are in the center will soon be disgusted with his policies. If he governs from the center, the left and the media will be disillusioned and baying for blood. Jessie Jackson won’t be the only one wanting to do surgery on the Obama Treasurers. This will be fun to watch.

3. Hillary Clinton will never be president. By 2016, she’ll be so yesterday. If Obama crashes and burns, she could challenge him in 2012, but serious internal party challenges usually hand the White House to the other party. She may decide being an influential senator is enough. See above about heavy lifting.

Watch Bill, though. Will he be satisfied to be an aging roué, bringing in bucks on the speaking circuit, with ever-dwindling relevance? Or will he start putting the knife in Obama, just because he can? See above, about being fun to watch.

4. Public financing of campaigns is dead, murdered by President-elect Obama. From now on, winners will have heavy hitting fund raising machines in place. If a candidate takes public bucks, write him off.

5. Obama’s promise to send a "tax refund" check to the 40% of the public who don’t pay taxes was brilliant. If he can borrow enough money to do it, and the people who sold their votes for a check are happy, look for Democrat primaries for the next few elections to become bidding wars, as Democrat candidates out bid each other on taking money from the most productive to buy votes from the least productive. You might as well hold them on eBay. Republicans will want to do the same thing, of course, but can’t afford to tick off the fiscal conservative base more than it already is. Obama has changed the Democrats’ paradigm.

6. Watch for corruption scandals. Democrats will have more opportunity now, the Charlie Rangels and William Jeffersons of the Democratic Party will be unleashed, and Obama is a child of the Daley machine in Chicago. This will help Republicans. Think of it as change we can believe in. And a disillusioned press corps will remember their function and turn on him. See above about being fun to watch.

7. Republicans, having fallen this far, will get serious. Watch for Congressional Republicans to start this spring recruiting attractive, fresh candidates for the House and Senate, and building a funding and PR apparatus. There should be enough disillusionment with Obama to make 2010 a Republican year, if they can recruit and fund the right candidates. Right now, Congress’s approval rating is below Bush’s, but I bet 35% of the voters think the Republicans still run it. After January, there will be few Republicans to blame, though they’ll blame Bush for a year or two.

You’ll know the Republicans are serious if they create a new "Contract with America," that includes zero tolerance for corruption within the Republican caucus, and a commitment to zero earmarks by Republicans. The latter will be tough. But they need to be more than just Country Club Democrats to win.

8. Newt Gingrich in 2012. You read it here first.

TV & Pregnancy

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/02/AR2008110202592.html?wpisrc=newsletter

TV & Pregnancy

Shocking news. Teen who watch programs with high sexual content are more likely to get pregnant or cause a pregnancy!

Young, unwed mothers are the most common factor in extreme poverty. I’ve read that 3% of female college graduates have babies out of wedlock. That goes up to 10% of high school graduates, and a whopping 15% of high school drop-outs. The rate is higher among minorities, but any attempt to focus on cultural change is met with charges of “racism.” You’d almost think that some politicians want black kids trapped in poverty, so they will go on being reliable voters for politicians offering things like “tax rebates” to people who didn’t pay taxes.

When I was in high school, I was about equally determined to have sex as soon as I could, and not to become a father. But the sixties removed the stigma to having children outside marriage, and welfare made it possible to get by, though not well. And the kids become trapped in poverty. It was “change we could believe in.”

I write this before the election, holding the post until afterwards, but it looks like the poverty pimps will be in firm control of the government. God help poor folks, black, white or brown.

The other thing the poverty pimps say is that so many black kids born into single parent homes are a legacy of racism, when the black family was destroyed by slavery. That’s a comforting theory for those who help create black poverty through their liberal policies. But the brilliant economist, Dr. Thomas Sowell points out in his books that a generation after the Civil War, blacks had a slightly higher marriage rate than whites, and that the vast majority of black kids then grew up in homes with two parents, though most were desperately poor.

The explosion of single-parent black families is a modern trend, created by modern policies, starting with the Great Society.

Sowell also points out that before minimum wage laws, blacks had a slightly higher employment rate than whites. It may have been at a dirt poor level, but it created pride, and they were able to learn some skills, and develop a work ethic and work history that gave them a shot at moving up the economic ladder, despite discrimination. Today, a third-generation welfare family, white or black, has almost no route to economic mobility.

Sowell should know. He was born into a poor black family in NC, where they didn’t have electricity, an indoor privy or hot water. He was on his own in NYC at 17, worked his way through Harvard before affirmative action, and earned a PhD in economics from the University of Chicago.

I again urge everyone to read his books on economics, intellectual history and race.

The People Have Spoken!

O’Bummer!

Well, the people have spoken. It’s now time to put aside the animosities and excess of the campaign and come together. All Americans—Republicans, Democrats and Independents, rich and poor, black, white, yellow and brown, young and old, male and female—must now unite. There is work to be done.

We must join together and vow to fight the League of Leftie Lawyers (LLL: Reid and Durbin, Pelosi and Hoyer, Biden and Obama and their minions who now control the government) every inch of the way, to block their every effort to destroy American security, American political freedom, American economic freedom and American prosperity based on property rights and the rule of law. We will fight them in the courts. We will fight them in the media. We will fight them on the Internet and in the Blogs. We will fight them in the polls. We will fight them in every election. We will fight them in the bureaucracy. We will fight them in the military. If they again resort to thuggery by ACORN, union bosses and gang-bangers, we will fight them in the streets. We will preserve the American values of independence, hard work, individualism, limited government, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion, and all amendments in the Bill of Rights for future, wiser generations. We will contest every piece of ground. We will never surrender. So help us God!