Let's face it, there was plenty of fraud in the Afghanistan election, and probably not just by the Karzai crowd. Now there will be a run off. In all probability there will be more fraud, but hopefully with more of the world watching, the UN/NATO observers can keep things more on the up and up.
What will be interesting to see after the election, regardless of what happens and who wins, is if President Obama will honor the promises of all around assistance the United States offered Afghanistan. Just as important is if the United States will honor the pledges it made to Pakistan.
Again I question - why other Islamic nations are not at the fore front in attempting to bring peace to the region? Where are Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Indonesia and even Turkey? Why cannot they send a peace keeping force, not only to monitor the elections but to show the people of Afghanistan that they have religious allies, not just western democratic allies?
The Islamic world needs to take the lead and show that Islam is a religion of peace. Regrettably we in the West are believing more and more every day that Islam is a religion of close minded conservative fanatics who believe that the answer to all problems is death if who do not agree with what they say.
The Islamic world needs to remind the West that they are a people of deep spirituality, who still field some of the finest doctors, teachers, lawyers, politicians and religious men in the world.
Islam needs to show peace and harmony, not chaos and war.
Maybe if other Islamic nations provide the support and guidance for the upcoming Afghanistan election, the world will see Al Qaeda and the Taliban for what they truly are, a very small and narrow minded group of fanatics within a much larger and much more enlightened Islamic majority.
Its Common Sense!
Showing posts with label allies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label allies. Show all posts
Friday, October 23, 2009
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Honeymoon?
Will the Obama Administration have a honeymoon period? The way the week is shaping up that might turn out to a dream Obama will never see.
When Obama chose Leon Panetta to head the CIA he forgot to confer with Senator Diane Feinstein of California, the chairperson of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Talk about a slap in the face. You would think that Feinstein just might have had a few suggestions for the person to run US intelligence, other than a former president's chief of staff. (Where are the new faces and changes Obama promised? More and more it is looking like the same old story and same "old" faces.)
Evidently irked by being ignored, Senator Feinstein decided that she had no problem with Roland Burris being seated as the junior senator of Illinois, an act that irked her Democrat brethren. I guess this is her way of letting Obama know she is not someone to be played with.
As for Roland Burris, we will see how it plays out. Being from a small town outside the city of Baltimore Maryland I found it interesting that one of Burris' attorneys is Kurt Schmook (never could spell his last name correctly) a former Baltimore mayor. According to Kurt the law is on Burris' side. We'll just have to see if the law means anything.
Harry Reid asked Norm to concede the Minnesota election and let Al move to DC. Norm has filed a suit in court, so it will be some time before we know what will happen in the land of lakes.
If the Democrats want to sell Obama's economic package, they better get their act together and become unified or at least put on a united front and do their bickering behind close doors. This is a time when Americans need to see a strong government, not a bunch of cat fights.
We'll watch as the next couple of weeks progress. Is it possible the members of Congress can put aside their petty squabbles, their greed and their desire to be on camera to actually work for the good of the American public?
I saw an interesting comment this evening on one of the news shows. The 2008 Congress had one of the lowest approval ratings of all time, and still over 90% of the incumbents were reelected.
What does that say about us? Are we as afraid of change as the DC gang is?
Apathy has brought us here, continued apathy can only take us further down.
Is that what we want? Is that the legacy we want to give our children?
Get off your butts and be heard!!!
Its Common Sense!
When Obama chose Leon Panetta to head the CIA he forgot to confer with Senator Diane Feinstein of California, the chairperson of the Senate Intelligence Committee. Talk about a slap in the face. You would think that Feinstein just might have had a few suggestions for the person to run US intelligence, other than a former president's chief of staff. (Where are the new faces and changes Obama promised? More and more it is looking like the same old story and same "old" faces.)
Evidently irked by being ignored, Senator Feinstein decided that she had no problem with Roland Burris being seated as the junior senator of Illinois, an act that irked her Democrat brethren. I guess this is her way of letting Obama know she is not someone to be played with.
As for Roland Burris, we will see how it plays out. Being from a small town outside the city of Baltimore Maryland I found it interesting that one of Burris' attorneys is Kurt Schmook (never could spell his last name correctly) a former Baltimore mayor. According to Kurt the law is on Burris' side. We'll just have to see if the law means anything.
Harry Reid asked Norm to concede the Minnesota election and let Al move to DC. Norm has filed a suit in court, so it will be some time before we know what will happen in the land of lakes.
If the Democrats want to sell Obama's economic package, they better get their act together and become unified or at least put on a united front and do their bickering behind close doors. This is a time when Americans need to see a strong government, not a bunch of cat fights.
We'll watch as the next couple of weeks progress. Is it possible the members of Congress can put aside their petty squabbles, their greed and their desire to be on camera to actually work for the good of the American public?
I saw an interesting comment this evening on one of the news shows. The 2008 Congress had one of the lowest approval ratings of all time, and still over 90% of the incumbents were reelected.
What does that say about us? Are we as afraid of change as the DC gang is?
Apathy has brought us here, continued apathy can only take us further down.
Is that what we want? Is that the legacy we want to give our children?
Get off your butts and be heard!!!
Its Common Sense!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Congratulations Barack Obama!!
Well Obama did it, he is the first Afro/Euro American president in the history of the United States and I congratulate him on his victory.
Although the popular vote only gave him a six percent victory, he got the right states to back him and had almost a two thirds majority in the Electoral College. (This is a system we need to eliminate and allow the vote of the people to decide who the victor is.)
Because of his background - the fact that he is half black - Obama is going to be held up to higher measure than the forty-three presidents who have come before him. (Let's hope he can do better on intelligence than George W and better on morality than Billy Boy.)
The stock market went down, the president of Russia wants to talk, but is ordering missiles near the Poland border, President Karzai of Afghanistan wants the Americans to spot killing innocent civilians, as does the Pakistani government. Iraq wants the USA out in the near future, but with a lot of guarantees that could be difficult to provide.
President Elect Obama is going to have his hands full and his worst enemy could end up being the members of his own party who have taken over the Congress. How many of them - Pelosi, Reed, Clinton, etc, are going to be willing to play Indian to Obama's chief? Is Hillary going to demand a compromise between her health plan and Obama's before she'll vote for it? Are Pelosi and Reed going to graciously fade into the background and allow Obama to be the shining light of the democratic Party?
What deals will Obama have to cut with his own party - before he even gets around to dealing with the Republicans - to get any of his legislation passed?
The next four years will be interesting and I am certain they will provide a lot of material for me to speak out about.
I hope all goes well for Obama. I hope he is able to pull off his dreams - at as little expense to me as possible.
The majority got their wish, let's hope they are right.
Say prayer tonight for the good of our country.
Its Common Sense!
Although the popular vote only gave him a six percent victory, he got the right states to back him and had almost a two thirds majority in the Electoral College. (This is a system we need to eliminate and allow the vote of the people to decide who the victor is.)
Because of his background - the fact that he is half black - Obama is going to be held up to higher measure than the forty-three presidents who have come before him. (Let's hope he can do better on intelligence than George W and better on morality than Billy Boy.)
The stock market went down, the president of Russia wants to talk, but is ordering missiles near the Poland border, President Karzai of Afghanistan wants the Americans to spot killing innocent civilians, as does the Pakistani government. Iraq wants the USA out in the near future, but with a lot of guarantees that could be difficult to provide.
President Elect Obama is going to have his hands full and his worst enemy could end up being the members of his own party who have taken over the Congress. How many of them - Pelosi, Reed, Clinton, etc, are going to be willing to play Indian to Obama's chief? Is Hillary going to demand a compromise between her health plan and Obama's before she'll vote for it? Are Pelosi and Reed going to graciously fade into the background and allow Obama to be the shining light of the democratic Party?
What deals will Obama have to cut with his own party - before he even gets around to dealing with the Republicans - to get any of his legislation passed?
The next four years will be interesting and I am certain they will provide a lot of material for me to speak out about.
I hope all goes well for Obama. I hope he is able to pull off his dreams - at as little expense to me as possible.
The majority got their wish, let's hope they are right.
Say prayer tonight for the good of our country.
Its Common Sense!
Sunday, October 5, 2008
Pakistan Invasion
Once again the US military made strikes into northern Pakistan where it is highly suspected that Al Queda and Taliban sympathizers and probably leaders are hiding out. The Pakistani government is not happy with these incursions into their sovereign territory and have repeatedly stated that the US's actions are hurting their attempts to control those regions of their country.
I find it interesting that both Obama and McCain feel that the US military has the right to follow potential threats into Pakistan, with or without the approval of the Pakistan government. My understanding is that Pakistan is an ally, an ally with nuclear weapons, and yet we disregard their sovereignty and do what we want.
Yet, as we well know, during the Iraq War, allegations have been made about the manpower and weapons being supplied to the insurgents by both Iran and Syria. Both of those countries are not consider to be USA allies, in fact our government favors sanctions against both of them. Yet, you do not hear of our troops or missiles violating their national borders in pursuit of the enemy.
It appears that we treat our allies worse than our enemies. Maybe it is because we do not think that Pakistan will retaliate, other than verbally. Are we afraid of how Iran and Syria would respond if we entered their territory? Are we more concerned of how the world would perceive our actions in relation to Syria and Iran, than we are about Pakistan?
Frankly, I fear that our arrogance is going to get us in trouble once again. Pakistan is in the midst of trying to rebuild its government, its military command, and the unity of its people. The last think the new government needs is incursions into areas of its country that are the most isolated and least educated. I believe that regardless of what their government says, these people believe that the US military is operating with the Pakistani government's permission. These are the people who support the Taliban and Al Queda. These are people, if they receive the funding and training, could start a civil war within Pakistan and start a whole new front on the war against terrorism.
The USA needs to work with and support our allies, not simply ignore them when we think they are in the way. Pakistan has nuclear weapons. We want a power friendly to us to control those weapons. Taking actions that divide Pakistan is not wise. We need to work with the Pakistani military, not tell them what to do.
Obama, much more than McCain, has stated he wants to talk with world leaders and improve our country's image. At the same time he has stated he has no qualms about going into Pakistan to get Bin Laden. Invading an ally, what image does that portray?
Mc Cain is so focused on Iraq I don't even know what he thinks about Afghanistan and Pakistan, except its okay to go anywhere to get Bin Laden.
Our country needs to treat our allies as equals, not as people less capable than we are. If we do not show respect for others, others are not going to show us any respect.
Its Common Sense.
I find it interesting that both Obama and McCain feel that the US military has the right to follow potential threats into Pakistan, with or without the approval of the Pakistan government. My understanding is that Pakistan is an ally, an ally with nuclear weapons, and yet we disregard their sovereignty and do what we want.
Yet, as we well know, during the Iraq War, allegations have been made about the manpower and weapons being supplied to the insurgents by both Iran and Syria. Both of those countries are not consider to be USA allies, in fact our government favors sanctions against both of them. Yet, you do not hear of our troops or missiles violating their national borders in pursuit of the enemy.
It appears that we treat our allies worse than our enemies. Maybe it is because we do not think that Pakistan will retaliate, other than verbally. Are we afraid of how Iran and Syria would respond if we entered their territory? Are we more concerned of how the world would perceive our actions in relation to Syria and Iran, than we are about Pakistan?
Frankly, I fear that our arrogance is going to get us in trouble once again. Pakistan is in the midst of trying to rebuild its government, its military command, and the unity of its people. The last think the new government needs is incursions into areas of its country that are the most isolated and least educated. I believe that regardless of what their government says, these people believe that the US military is operating with the Pakistani government's permission. These are the people who support the Taliban and Al Queda. These are people, if they receive the funding and training, could start a civil war within Pakistan and start a whole new front on the war against terrorism.
The USA needs to work with and support our allies, not simply ignore them when we think they are in the way. Pakistan has nuclear weapons. We want a power friendly to us to control those weapons. Taking actions that divide Pakistan is not wise. We need to work with the Pakistani military, not tell them what to do.
Obama, much more than McCain, has stated he wants to talk with world leaders and improve our country's image. At the same time he has stated he has no qualms about going into Pakistan to get Bin Laden. Invading an ally, what image does that portray?
Mc Cain is so focused on Iraq I don't even know what he thinks about Afghanistan and Pakistan, except its okay to go anywhere to get Bin Laden.
Our country needs to treat our allies as equals, not as people less capable than we are. If we do not show respect for others, others are not going to show us any respect.
Its Common Sense.
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