Hillary's Conflict Resolution 101 in the Middle East Is a Waste of Time

This morning as I was at the gym exercising, I'm thinking about the ceasefire agreement that was "hammered" out by Hillary Clinton, Egypt, Hamas & Israel. Does this really mean that we're going to see peace in the Middle East? Don't bet on it. Any peace agreement brokered by Hillary and Mohammed Morsi of Egypt isn't worth the paper it's written on. 

Personally, I would've thought the great arbiter of peace and Nobel prize winner, Barack Obama, would put some skin in the game, show up and get both sides to stop this warfare. But instead, he sends a woman out to do a man's job--Hillary Clinton. 

For Hillary, this is a win-win, because this is nothing more than a "dog and pony show" designed to give the illusion of having secured a "peaceful" settlement to this conflict. Even if it's artificial, fragile and lasts for only a few days, she gets a pass on the whole Benghazi-gate thing where Congress has a series of questions to ask her, for which she hasn't given any straight answers. 

7 yrs ago, Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip, hoping for Peace
For the record, seven years ago, in full view of the world, Israel pulled out of Gaza, dismantling every settlement and withdrawing every soldier. I was there in 2005 shortly after Israel's handover of the Gaza Strip and friends of mine in Israel said it was a waste of time--that it would not bring peace, and they were right. 

What did occur was that Hamas built up strength in the Gaza strip and they have been building up an arsenal of missiles which they get from Iran. This cease-fire does nothing but give them more time to prepare for another assault on Israel. 

Bus-bombing in Tel Aviv

Even today, as I arrived home from the gym and checked the news, here's the latest headline in USA Today:  

11:23AM EST November 24. 2012 - TEL AVIV — A bus bombing in this seaside city Wednesday appears to be strengthening the Israeli public's support for a ground offensive in Gaza.

A cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas went into effect later Wednesday, but many Israelis say they don't believe it will provide a long-term solution to the rain of rockets into their territory or to renewed acts of terrorism.

"We know that the situation is bad," said Tel Aviv resident Daniel Ramzi, 25, referring to the 8-day-old escalation of hostilities with Gaza. "There's no end. After what happened today, I think that most Israelis think now that we should go in," he said, referring to a possible ground offensive in Gaza.

A Peace Treaty Only Brings Peace When One Side Is Defeated in War

This latest cease-fire agreement with Hamas was a mistake. Israel needs to go in with a ground offensive and wipe Hamas out-completely. They need to defeat Hamas and re-take the Gaza Strip. 

Gen. Douglas MacArthur accepting the Japanese
surrender in Tokyo Bay, Sept. 2, 1945.

Here's a bit of wisdom that I learned from listening to Rush Limbaugh years ago--you can't have peace until your enemy is defeated. You can't sign a peace agreement that is worth anything until one side has been defeated, surrenders and comes to the table willing to sign a meaningful treaty.

Where Would We Be Today If We Had Signed a Peace Agreement with Germany without Defeating Them?

Where would we be today if we had signed a peace agreement with the Germans without defeating them? We'd probably be living under the Nazi Swastika flag. Or, what would life be like for us if we had signed a peace treaty with Japan without having defeated them? Do you really think that Japan would have stopped all its aggression? The ONLY way we came out of WWII with any peace and hope for the future was because Japan and Germany had both been defeated! 

Every peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians is a waste of time until the Palestinians are totally defeated, and give up their thirst to drive Israel into the Mediterranean Sea. Even now, Hamas still believes that Israel shouldn't exist and they are planning their next offensive on Israel.

The next time, and it will arrive in a few days or weeks, Israel needs to go in on a ground offensive and completely destroy Hamas and it's leaders, as well as all their weapons, drive the Palestinians out of Gaza Strip, retaking control of this territory and buffer between Israel and Egypt. Then, Israel might be able to sign a peace agreement with Hamas which would really have some meaning and lasting value.

Send in the Clowns

On election eve, I predict that Mitt Romney will win by a wide-margin. I don’t care about the polls which are rigged by the media to depress the Republican turnout.

Sarah Palin at a Tea Party bus stop in Phoenix, AZ

Here’s why Romney will win—because the Tea Party still exists and the same Tea Party folks that flocked to the polls in 2010 for the biggest sea-change election since WWII, will once again show up on Tuesday. They are just as angry, probably more so because now they get a chance to vote Obama out of office.

Also, the evangelical vote is flying under the radar and not even being considered, but I predict that MORE evangelical Christians will show up at the polls than in 2008 when we were forced to hold our nose and vote for John McCain. Obama has alienated many Christians with his stance on gay marriage, his emphasis on abortion, his mandate that religious institutions have to give out birth control pills, and his continual “dissing” of Israel. All of these are reasons why evangelicals will show up en masse to send Obama on a permanent golf vacation.  

Now on to my post for today: “Send in the Clowns” 

• It was a You Tube video's fault.
• It was a spontaneous mob.
• It was Clinton’s fault.
• It was Gen. Dempsey’s fault
• It was Gen. David Pattraeus’ fault
• It  was the CIA’s fault.
• It was the State Dept’s fault
• It was Leon Panetta’s fault 
• It's the fog of war's fault....

Damage inside burnt U.S. consulate bldg. in Benghazi on Sept. 13.

The President along with Leon Panetta, Hillary Clinton, David Pattraeus, the CIA and the State Dept. are all part of a cover-up. Hillary has blamed all the confusion on the “fog of war.” But we know that Obama was informed of the initial attack within 80-min. (11pm Libyan time).

For over two weeks, the President blamed non-existing events (a YouTube video which no one had ever seen) as well as a spontaneous gathering of demonstrators. He even spoke at the UN two weeks after this event and blamed the YouTube video six times during his speech and never once referred to this as a terrorist attack.

For the past 40 yrs., we’ve made a big deal about Watergate as the political scandal for the ages, but Watergate is a misdemeanor when compared with Benghazi-gate where 4 Americans were killed—needlessly, and then the sacrilege of a political cover-up to protect this President and keep the American people in the dark so he could win re-election.

Reminds me of the lyrics to a Stephen Sondheim song: “SEND IN THE CLOWNS”: 

The clowns: VP Joe Biden, Sec. of Defense Leon Panetta,  UN Ambassador
Susan Rice, Gen. Dempsey, Gen. Patreaus, Hillary & Obama

Isn't it rich?
Are we a pair?
Me here at last on the ground,
You in mid-air.
Where are the clowns?
Isn't it bliss?
Don't you approve?
One who keeps tearing around,
One who can't move...
Where are the clowns?
Send in the clowns.

Just when I'd stopped opening doors,
Finally knowing the one that I wanted was yours.
Making my entrance again with my usual flair
Sure of my lines...
No one is there.
Don't you love farce?
My fault, I fear.
I thought that you'd want what I want...
Sorry, my dear!
And where are the clowns
Send in the clowns
Don't bother, they're here. 

Yes, we’ve already got the clowns, thanks to Obama, Biden, Hillary Clinton, Leon Panetta, Gen. Patreaus, Gen. Dempsey, Susan Rice, the CIA, the State Dept.—they’re already here.

Are you living in an "information bubble"?

Jason Whitlock

Are you living in an INFORMATION BUBBLE? I was reading Jason Whitlock's column at Fox Sports titled, "Bubble Doesn't Help Black QBs." In a nutshell, Jason's putting forth the argument that the No. 1 hindrance for black quarterbacks is the "information bubble" which insulates them from any real criticism, and creates self-delusion, and a lack of self-awareness. Now fortunately, Jason is black and can say this--if this column had been written by a white sports' writer, he'd be fired on the spot for racism.

This got me to thinking about the rest of us--about you and me. Do we live in an information bubble? An information bubble means you get your information from a limited number of sources and they all affirm rather than challenge your thinking. You may subscribe to 2 newspapers and watch the news every night and go on the internet, and still live in an information bubble if all your news sources present a certain political viewpoint and ideology. 

Democrats and Republicans both live within their respective bubbles. If you are a Democrat or a liberal, you probably get your news from one or more of the following sources: 

• MSNBC
• CNN
• NBC
• CBS
• ABC
• PBS
• NPR
• LA Times
• NY Times
• W. Post
• USA Today
• Jon Stewart
• Boston Globe

If you are a Republican conservative, you most likely get your news from one or more of the following sources:

• Wall Street Journal
• Washington Times
• Talk Radio
• Fox News 
• Drudge Report

Take note that there are many more outlets supporting the liberal-Democrat point-of-view.

If you live in an information bubble, it's unhealthy for your own personal and intellectual growth. It's "group-think." You want to be loved and accepted so you go along with the political mindset and the dogma of those around you that says abortion is an "ok" thing--after all, it's just human tissue, and even in the 3rd tri-mester, it's no big deal. Besides what would your co-workers or friends think if they thought that you were one of those "pro-lifers" who actually believes that life begins at conception? Whether you lean left or right, there is an accepted dogma.

You also buy into the idea that the oil companies are bad for America because that's what you hear coming from the President and all the news programs you watch. You never entertain the idea that maybe, just maybe, oil is a good thing--after all, we need it to power our cars (even electric cars), fuel our airplanes and jets (when's the last time your flew cross country on a wind or solar-powered jumbo jet?).

Have you ever thought that those big evil oil companies that MSNBC keeps telling you are making obscene profits have a much smaller (like 1/5) of the profit-margin of Apple. You never hear anyone complaining about all the big profits that Apple's making off of consumers. And while we're at it, your computer (be it a Mac or PC or tablet) is made from OIL--try buying a MAC or PC or tablet made from wind or solar energy? There's NO such thing available. Try buying a flat-screen TV made from solar energy? There's no such thing. I think I've made my point.

For the record, I refuse to fall lock-step into group-think. Sad to say, many that I went to school with in high-school and college are still part of the "group-think" crowd. They haven't grown intellectually in 30-40 yrs. If you have a conversation with them, it's as though they are living in a time warp back in the 70s during the final days of the Vietnam War. At that time, they were anti-government, now, they believe government is the answer to every problem, which is why they support Obama.

I was raised to be a good liberal, and I marched for peace and protested the war in Vietnam, voted for Jimmy Carter in 1976. But then I walked away from the group-think crowd. I realized that I no longer needed their love and acceptance, which is really phony anyway, because they only love you when you think like them and espouse their accepted viewpoints. Walk away from liberalism or the LEFT and they'll turn on you like a rabid dog.

Even to this day, I try not to get caught in the "information bubble" and I try to exercise my critical thinking skills. I'm always asking why this network or news program is ignoring certain stories.

I'll guarantee you that you are living in an "information bubble" if you haven't read or heard about the Benghazi emails which reveal that the White House and the State Dept. knew almost immediately that the attack on the Libyan embassy was not the result of some YouTube video. You also live in an information bubble if you haven't heard or read that those CIA operatives a mile away from the Libyan embassy asked for permission to go and provide back-up during the attack on the Libyan embassy and three times they were told to "stand down" or in laymen's terms, "NO!" If you haven't heard about this breaking story, you live in an information bubble and need to get out more.