Saturday, August 26, 2017

Ghosts of the Confederacy .

These white knuckleheads beating on each
other . On both sides ARE to BLAME.
My observation .
Residents of Charlottesville, Virginia, are readying themselves for another (1.1)>> influx of white nationalists ahead of protests against the removal of a Confederate-era statue from a city park.Organizers say the ‘Unite the Right’ rally on Saturday aimed to “unify the right-wing against a totalitarian Communist crackdown” and to protest“displacement level immigration policies” in the US and Europe The Original protesters were there to voice their opinions  on the statute of Robert E Lee . Some how a meltdown happened. Though many social media ,  (1.2)>>Alex Jones "claim" that the protest was a staged set up , perhaps by George Soros . The Die -hard conspiracy buffs have gone spilling over the internet  . While going over most of the posted videos . I noted that most of the protesters there were white in contrast to  few African -Americans who were there . Its a bit strange . So my own thoughts on this is that it could be that it really was a staged protest . The lack of action of law enforcement is vary disturbing , much worse than the persons that waved Nazi flags , carried torches.  Now the issue of the Confederate monuments has now exploded .  Over the last two years there has been a growing controversy about Confederate monuments . I wanted to address it earlier last year, but was swayed by the Trump scandals . I wanted to write my feelings about removing Confederate monuments  . First we have a problem in this country that has sprung up during the last decade . (1.3)>>It's the problem of "re-writing" history by "erasing the past" . The Protesters on both sides are to blame for the violence . There is no escaping it . It was hard to slow down the videos to see who threw the first punch . What I saw watching the videos was a bunch of mayhem instigated by a bunch of racists , thugs , "paid protesters" I believe were in their mist to stir up violence . Sadly one young woman was killed and run over by a alleged white supremacist . 

Getting rid of the Past .
Robert E Lee statute at the
center of Charlottesville
riots 
This subject is serious enough that it pertains to what is a dark period in American history. The Civil War was a terrible war . It divided the nation , set families apart . It was  much about slavery . I believe you can't just remove the monuments of the Confederacy because they have been  associated them  with "racism"and slavery  in America.  When the whole nations foundation was rooted with the abomination of slavery from the colonial period. (2)>>We have had past Presidents who owned slaves just prior to the Civil War . I am amazed at how little the general public understands about our history The Civil War ( it really happened no matter how much you try to erase it ) was the culmination of a battle that started pre Revolution but could not be settled in 1776 and our Founding Fathers (North and South ) wisely put their differences aside to complete the founding of our great country.  It makes a hard argument to remove the memorials , but at the same time it also effects other historic monuments like those dedicated to General Custer who was a notorious racist , helped with the genocide of Native Americans . The List of offensive monuments goes well beyond  the Confederate . I just don't care about removing them from public . The other point is what about monuments to Union soldiers   ? At Gettysburg Tennessee  where soldiers died on both sides there is a monument to both Union and Confederates . It seems ludicrous that its not just Confederate monuments are going down . Its the whole subject of the civil war which some people want to erase . It stems from fear and hatred of the past.While the  white supremacists themselves now may tainted any efforts of any historical society to preserve the monuments .  Sure enough the radicals will win out . Soon they will head to Mount Rushmore .
damnatio memoriae
Interestingly  back in 2015 made a statement that resonates in regards to the " removal of the statutes " . Frankly it sound like someones "political agenda".

In ancient Rome, it was called damnatio memoriae, the “condemnation of memory,” and its purpose was overtly political. The point was to dishonor traitors and deposed emperors by purging them from public memory. Rome would seize their property, remove their name from public monuments, and destroy or re-work their statues.
Davidson's point about damnatio memoriae is intriguing enough.   Yet the monuments were mostly erected decades after the fall of the Confederacy and made of flimsy materials, bought from factories that specialized in budget-friendly “racist kitsch.” The United Daughters of the Confederacy sought to reify the myth of the Lost Cause by funding the Durham monument and others like it—precisely because people who lived through the Confederacy were forgetting it or dying. Monuments are never just benign markers of the past, but the past told according to a particular narrative and made tangible in order to influence collective memory. Images such as sculptures and paintings have been recognized as having special power for millennia, which is why people from Ancient Egypt to modern Iraq have practiced damnatio memoriae, including the ritual toppling and attacking of monuments. 
The "culture war" of the radicals .
 In America its a new wave of what we might deem as (2.1)>>"culture war" .  In the Obama era we had BLM which showed divided nation still at racial lines . Black Lives Matter radically took over from the Occupy Movement which saw the injustice of racially motivated law enforcement  The explosion of the alt-right { white supremacists} who may have been hiding in the shadows during the Obama era , now have found their popularity with the Trump Presidency who during his campaign last year  denounced BLM  pushing the Republican right wing "all lives matter" .    Despite ongoing rebukes over his defense of white supremacists, President Trump defiantly returned to his campaign’s nativist themes on Thursday. He lamented an assault on American “culture,” revived a bogus, century-old story about killing Muslim extremists and attacked Republicans with a renewed vigor.Earlier in the day, Mr. Trump made clear that he has no intention of stepping back from his assertions about the Charlottesville rally that have drawn widespread condemnation. In three tweets, Mr. Trump defended Civil War-era statues, using language very similar to that of white supremacists to argue the statues should remain in place.


Antifa, and the possible staged protests .

While the media was focused on the alt-white supremacists . There is a curious possibility that the protests were some how set up .  As I mentioned above , Alex Jones "claim" that the (2.2)>.protest was a staged set up . Could be true . Far-left agitators are calling for an escalation in tactics following this weekend’s violence at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville.Many of the same groups that have organized violent demonstrations in Berkeley, California and elsewhere are now calling for an aggressive response to the violence in Charlottesville. Far-left “anti-fascist” (or antifa) figures are advising agitators to do the job that police won’t: shutting down “fascists” and preventing them from organizing.They relish in punching Nazis. They protest in all black. And they've vowed to physically confront racists and extremists across the country. They wave communist symbols in black , But who exactly are the protesters that violently clashed with white nationalists in Charlottesville, Virginia? Perhaps it was Antifa . But President Trump's election seems to have injected new vigor into U.S.-based anti-fascist organizations. On Inauguration Day, black clad protesters rioted, damaged property and destroyed a limo while peaceful anti-Trump protesters marched nearby. Since then, Antifa protesters have clashed with white nationalists in Berkeley, Calif., Chicago and now, Charlottesville. It seems that over the years protests have become move violent , case in point BLM movements . These goons and thugs oppose free speech, celebrate violence, despise dissent, and have little use for anything else in the American political tradition. But many liberals, particularly in the media, are victims of the same kind of confusion that vexed so much of American liberalism in the 20th century. Because antifa suddenly has the (alt-)right enemies, they must be the good guys. 

Trump's Confusing Charlottesville statements .
 President Trump initially issued statements about the incident that condemned “many sides” for their actions, a stance that was criticized by conservative  In the Trump presidency, pundits spend days debating the surprising—and often confusing—things Trump says in interviews and tweets. But often, the biggest questions are about what the president leaves unsaid. Charlottesville bloomed with controversy . The "fact" that there where no nice people on both sides , considering the infiltration of Antifia agents in the riots, other anarchists groups. The President was on the mark with that . BUT when he said that there were  (3)>>"fine people" there I must disagree . Fine people just don't resort to violence . Trump’s “many sides” statement suggests that there is blame to go around for the day’s violence—that the counter protesters are as much to blame for hatred and bigotry as the “Unite the Right” attendees, whose speakers included former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard David Duke and self-identified white nationalist Richard Spencer.Regardless of whether Trump’s characterization is fair, it fails to acknowledge the partisan backdrop against which tensions bubbled over in Charlottesville. 

Last Note : Ghosts of the Confederacy .

 It makes a hard argument to remove the memorials , but at the same time it also effects other historic monuments like those dedicated to General Custer who was a notorious racist , helped with the genocide of Native Americans . The List of offensive monuments goes well beyond  the Confederate . I just don't care about removing them from public . The other point is what about monuments to Union soldiers   ?
As I said above . My feelings on the "monuments", just to be clear and not misquoted . Robert E Lee himself may have given the best warnings about any Confederate monuments , why . Based on his writings, Lee was not a fan of statues honoring Civil War generals, fearing they might "keep open the sores of war." In a 1866 letter to fellow Confederate Gen. Thomas L. Rosser, Lee wrote, "As regards the erection of such a monument as is contemplated, my conviction is, that however grateful it would be to the feelings of the South, the attempt ... would have the effect of ... continuing, if not adding to, the difficulties under which the Southern people labour." Three years later, Lee was invited to a meeting of Union and Confederate officers to mark the placing of a memorial honoring those who took part in the battle of Gettysburg. "I think it wiser not to keep open the sores of war but to follow the examples of those nations who endeavored to obliterate the marks of civil strife, to commit to oblivion the feelings engendered," he wrote in a letter declining the invitation. For Lee setting up monuments only en-devour to further strife and discord . He was right .


NOTES AND COMMENTS:
(1.1)>> influx of white nationalists . There has never been so many idiots to literally come out of the shadows taking the streets is amazing . Charlottesville became the center of ignorance when Nazi flags were displayed along the Confederate flag . While I under stand the Southern white racial images , but seeing Americans wave the Nazi flag is so alien to the Confederate cause it is somewhat disgusting . A slap in the face to many proud World War 2 veterans who fought to liberate Europe,  now they have to see would be Nazi's chanting anti Semitic slogans in America . While the "hatred" is real , its also vary stupid . The White Nationalist have really put down the whites they represent as being superior to others.  (1.2)>>Alex Jones "claim" . Mr. Jones himself has been considered a purveyor of so-called “fake news” since well before the phrase entered the modern parlance during the 2016 U.S. presidential race, Jones presented his depressingly predictable explanation of what transpired in Charlottesville in a video posted on Saturday. “EXCLUSIVE: Virginia Riots Staged To Bring In Martial Law, Ban Conservative Gatherings,” the headline read. The video was an hour-long diatribe against some of Jones’s favorite targets, including liberal philanthropist George Soros, Black Lives Matter, globalists, elitists, the Democrats, the Republicans and anarchists, among many others. However, Jones failed to provide even remotely compelling evidence that anyone of these forces was directly responsible for the weekend’s violence (Fields killed one woman with his car, while two Virginia State Police officers died when their helicopter crashed en route to Charlottesville).  (1.3)>>It's the problem of "re-writing" history by "erasing the past" . Mount McKinley — the 20,237-foot mountain and the tallest in North America — has been renamed Denali, as it was originally known by Alaska Natives before it was renamed to honor President William McKinley. Was renamed by President Obama  (2)>>We have had past Presidents who owned slaves . George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, James Madison, Andrew Jackson. Should we also remove their monuments ?This clearly highlights my problem about court rulings based on the "original intent" of the Constitution. Allowance for slavery was such a serious flaw that the war to correct it cost us the lives of over 300 9/11s at a time when the population was less than 10% of what it is today. Robert E. Lee is said to have been a slave owner but so was General Ulysseus S. Grant, the leader of the Union Army. Nobody wants to desecrate any of his monuments. The Confederacy was said to be fighting for the preservation of slavery, but the North had slaves throughout the entire war and for a brief period of time after the war, longer than the South was allowed to keep their slaves. The Confederate flag is seen as a symbol of racism but it only existed for 4 years of slavery, while the American flag existed for around 90 years of slavery and the Union Jack existed for about 150 years of slavery before that (in North America of course.) Many of these facts are not known by the general public and more facts will continue to go unknown if the current trend of revisionist history continues. And those who do not know their history are doomed to repeat it.  (2.2)>.protest was a staged set up .A Republican state lawmaker in Idaho refused to back away  from his  claims that the deadly violence following a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, earlier this month might have been staged with the help of former President Barack Obama.Representative Bryan Zollinger shared an article last week that suggested the “Unite the Right” march was orchestrated by Obama along with other leading Democrats, such as Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, Charlottesville Mayor Michael Signer and billionaire donor George Soros. Published by the site the American Thinker, the piece asserts, “Charlottesville is beginning to feel like a set-up, perhaps weeks or months in the planning.”(2.1)>>"culture war" .Of course we have culture wars, because we have always been a nation in which big-city values fight the values of the countryside. "Burn down your cities and leave our farms, and your cities will spring up again as if by magic," declared William Jennings Bryan, the Great Commoner who spoke for country folk. "But destroy our farms, and the grass will grow in the streets of every city in the country." Now, that's cultural warfare. Americans thinking of themselves as "modern" and "advanced" have always battled other Americans whom they wrote off as backward and parochial. The people dismissed as backward have always looked down on highfalutin big-city folks as hopelessly immoral. Today these battling types are all intermixed in suburbs and exurbs, though they try hard to congregate with their own kind.And yes, we are black and white, and much that passes for cultural warfare is also racial warfare. We are a country that waged a civil war over slavery and states' rights. Whether you explain that war in terms of the former or of the latter is still a sign, more than 140 years after it ended, of where your sympathies lie.  (3)>>"fine people" there I must disagree . Around dinnertime on August 14, President Donald Trump tweeted about the“truly bad people” who played a role in the Charlottesville race riots. Less than 24 hours later he highlighted some “very fine people” who were there, tooThe “bad people?” Perhaps not surprisingly, Trump was referring to members of the news media, whom he’s previously labeled the “enemy of the American people.” And the “very fine people?” They were in Charlottesville simply to protest the removal of a statue, Trump said. And while they may have walked alongside the neo-Nazis shouting racist taunts and white supremacists carrying torches, these fine people were not only good citizens; they were the real victims. There were, Trump said, “many people in that group other than neo-Nazis and white nationalists. Okay? And the press has treated them absolutely unfairly.” He added: “You had a lot of people in that group that were there to innocently protest and very legally protest.”

Wednesday, August 9, 2017

"embrace the chaos"

"embrace the chaos"

Jeb Bush in 2016 predicted on President Donald Trump . "When I ran for office, I said he is a chaos candidate and would be a chaos president"  .  Bush, a former Florida governor, fought bitterly on the 2016 campaign trail with Trump, labeling the real estate mogul a "chaos candidate" and arguing he would make a "chaos president."The thing about the chaos theory is that once the first events occur, it is difficult to stop the domino effect.The result, at least in politics, is, often extremely damaging.Trump has created chaos in his government. He should blame no one else. If he does not significantly adjust, his presidency may well become uncontrollable.Bush, who was considered in the early days of the GOP race to be a favorite, ended his bid for the Republican nomination after a disappointing finish in the South Carolina primary in February 2016.   I have heard Pro-Trump'ers use the phrase (1)>>"embrace the chaos" as a way to justify the chaos in stu that is going on in the White house   Its hard to "embrace the chaos" in a government kinda of way  that nothing is getting done .  The factors are we have an on going investigations , Russia probe first of all .   Second , Republican held Congress is imploding ,they are turning against each other on the repeal and replace healthcare bill . Remember the Republicans gave Mr. Obama  so much hell. Obstructionism reigned . The fact the GOP could not  overhaul the healthcare industry is vary telling . It explains how powerful the industry is , its pretty much backed by the Republicans . The ultimate failure is they want to repeal quickly , return to the status quo. The White House chief of staff is out — after the new communications director went on a profane, public rant insulting him.All of this is clearly borne out of the president’s frustration with how his administration has gone so far. Trump is unpopular, his legislative agenda has stalled, and his presidency could be in serious legal danger from the Russia investigation. So he very clearly (and understandably) wants to make changes. But the way he’s going about it — by publicly humiliating officials who have long supported him but are now out of favor — is downright deranged. And it will make his problems far worse in the long run, as competent and qualified people will choose to stay far away rather than risk similar disgrace. '
"leaks"
Of Course going after the "leaks" Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Friday that the Justice Department is ramping up steps to investigate an prosecute government leaker's  a day after transcripts of President Trump's calls with two foreign leaders were leaked to the Washington Post.  IT'S INTERESTING  to note that we  have been bombarded with this hype before  about (2)>>"FAKE NEWS".  A trump trademark . The hype about the mysterious" LEAKER'S" in the White-House . For me , its still government misinformation . While Jeff Sessions goes after the non-existence leaker's ,President Trump's tweets continue to send a barrage of information to the public that should be "classified" . It was Mr. Trump that first "leaked" info on two foreign leaders . The conversations between the Australian Prime Minister , the Mexican President were known to the press for a long time . It’s not yet clear how big Sessions’s stand against leakers will be. He did not specify any new investigations or outline any revised policies, but he said four people have already been charged under the Trump administration for leaking classified information. The tableau presented by Sessions, who is struggling to hold on to his job after weeks of withering criticism from Trump for recusing himself from the Russia investigation, seemed designed to suggest to the president’s political base that other, more trusted security agencies would play a prominent role in the leak investigation.Not going to happen. As opposed to what the TV pictures might suggest, U.S. intelligence agencies are barred from criminal investigations of leaks (although they conduct their own internal probes).  
Sanctions and More Sanctions!
This week Congress voted to increase sanctions against Russia, North Korea,  (3)>Venezuela   and Iran . Over the years since the 1990s sanctions have lost their power over other nation. In simpler ways  "they have no effect" . They only increase hostilities against our nations . In some cases, it’s not surprising that other countries don’t comply with our sanctions. There’s no reason to expect, for example, that China would refrain from giving North Korea foreign aid or that Russia would cease trade with Iran just because the United States says so. But often the countries that undermine US sanctions are our allies. For decades, countries like Great Britain, Japan, and Spain have conducted business with Cuba, taking a lot of the bite out of the longstanding US embargo. In fact, the embargo actually made business easier for those countries, in a way: With US firms on the sideline, they faced less competition for Cuban business. In July 2010 President Barack Obama signed into law a series of tougher bilateral sanctions against Iran.These were intended to turn the screw on Tehran and to bolster existing United Nations Security Council sanctions.The hope was that the mix of UN and bilateral sanctions - tougher measures are already being planned by the European Union - would persuade Iran to change its mind and halt its uranium enrichment pro gramme.So far they never worked.  Obama ended up negotiating a deal that gave Iran 400 billion dollar's  , currently a deal that now Trump wants to reverse . Russia  and Iran for instance have huge reserves , resources at their disposals . These sanctions just do not work.I am for sitting down at the table with Russia , China and Iran . Its vary easy to talk , start dialog with those countries , but hostile actions on our governments part has made the world a bit more dangerous.
North Korea. 
While Washington D.C. "reeks" with scandal . There is a serious and worrisome note . Its North Korea . North Korea is seriously considering a plan to fire missiles at Guam, state media reportedly said Wednesday, hours after President Trump responded to reports of nuclear threats by saying the regime (4)>>"will be met with fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which the world has never seen before."  For me is not a good  thing and I feel that were in trouble . It’s after US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Moon Jae-in agreed to apply maximum pressure and sanctions on North Korea in a telephone call on Monday.The U.N. Security Council unanimously imposed new sanctions on North Korea on Saturday aimed at pressuring Pyongyang to end its nuclear pro-gramme.The U.S.-drafted resolution bans North Korean exports of coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood following Pyongyang’s two intercontinental ballistic missile tests in July.Trump’s national-security adviser later elaborated on what his boss meant. In an interview with Fox News in April, H.R. McMaster specified what might prompt the Trump administration to take the extremely risky step of using military force against North Korea. “I don’t think anyone thinks that it would be acceptable to have this kind of regime with nuclear weapons that can target, that can range the United States,” he said. So far, congressional leaders from both parties have been silent on the issue. They’re reluctant to tie Trump’s hands as Pyongyang threatens to bomb a specific target: the U.S. territory of Guam. They also recognize how unpopular and divisive a vote on a war resolution would be for lawmakers facing reelection next year.  The US military isn't in any position right now to strike North Korea with the kind of campaign that would be needed to bring battlefield success and would need weeks, if not months, to sort out the logistics, analysts say. So What can we hope for ? Here are my scenarios . Please I am not trying to be cruel . I don't wish harm on innocent people caught up in the North Korean imperialism . But when play fire prepared to be burned .  Hope that one of North  Korea's missile guidance system malfunctions so it falls in Chinese territory . Yes, China has to wake up ! and quit kissing butt to  Un . China will take action for sure   . Hope that North Korea has a Chernobyl  like event were somehow one of the nuclear devices explodes by "accident" in Pyongyang.  Mean time . Let's pray that Congress and Mr. Trump would open dialog with China as a channel , along with Russia,  first try to talk { reason} with the beast first before any side takes any action .  ADIEU !


NOTES AND COMMENTS:


(1)>>"embrace the chaos" . “Chaos creates drama, and drama gets ink,” former Trump campaign aide Sam Nunberg said. “This is a new kind of presidency. He’s followed the tabloid model, and it got him to where he is, and it’s the model that will be followed until it doesn’t work. And it has worked. He’s sitting in the Oval Office.”  (2)>>"FAKE NEWS".  A trump trademark .   If the reports are fake, then there are no real leaks because Trump is claiming that the "media" is pulling them out of thin air. Clearly there is some substance behind the news reports. Trump is protesting a bit too much with his incongruent arguments. Remember Trump is accusing the American media of spreading Fake News , while the Democrats are accusing Russia of spreading  misinformation at the same time . If you look it closely it sounds more like our own government is spreading  disinformation  as part of some cover up . All totally unsubstantiated unsourced fake news propaganda being deliberately produced in order to hide a political coup d'état by the already  political establishment against the people's will . First by convincing the public of Russian melding which I never believed . It reminds me of a cover up by presenting misleading facts by instilling hostility in the populace,  so our government could continue its international anti-Russian hostilities  . Keeping the American population brainwashed .  3)>Venezuela. The Hilarity of sanctions is best demonstrated here. Amazing isn't it? First US gov't has a hissy fit over mere rumours that Russia "interfered with" US elections, then they turn around and blatantly interfere in Venezuela's elections. This is why people hate the USA, the blatant double standard, the "one rule for us, and a different rule for the rest of you" attitude. And they're so incredibly *shameless* about it. I swear their hubris is just breathtaking. Let me get this straight.The US is sanctioning Russia on ALLEGED election interference and on the same day the US is INTERFERRING in Venezuela's planned election?
Is something wrong with the USA? Our great Congress announced economic sanctions against Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin blasting the democratically elected leader as a "dictator who disregards the will” of his people".  Again its down right silly to accuse the Venezuela government of fraudulent elections while we here in America seem to have the same problem. It wouldn't be the first time the US had meddled in the affairs of other countries though would it? We could go back to Cuba, Vietnam, Panama, not to mention Cambodia and Laos, the list is as long as your arm. This is in large part due to American foreign policy which dates from the end of the second world war when the US envisaged a domino like scenario in which if one south American country fell to communism, the others surrounding it would fall with a domino like effect, one after the other.  In the case of Venezuela, it's not communism, it's the oil.  (4)>>"will be met with fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which the world has never seen before."  President Trump is as crazy as Kim Jun Un . Has anyone ever heard of  MAD ???? " Mutual Assured Destruction!.  Case in point it's right  out of Dr Stangelove .  Trump's craziness may have alerted the Russians and Chinese to do drills together . I really can't believe how far our country has sunk in diplomatic matters .  I look back to the days of Ronald Reagen and Mikhail Gorbachev when walls came down . We seem to live in age where walls are going up ! Something must be done. This is something –– therefore it must be done.”  I feel  like Dr WHO who needs the "Time Lords" to intervene some how and stop some idots  in power from making awful decisions . Frankly North Korea is a nut house . It puzzled me why the Chinese would allow for such a "fake" Communist state to exist under their wings for a long time . The Communist Party in China must never took note that North Korea has a monarch system where it's leaders are worshiped as gods , slightly not like Marxism . But the people of North Korea are starving , so what do the North Korean leadership want ? Right now , North Korea has nothing to lose. They sure are making the west look like a bunch of suckers. Swallow pride, NK is winning. And thats better than 10million more victims of senseless war. Rather than continously threaten them, ask them what they will do to contribute to humanity, try to bring out the best in them, and welcome them into the global community for the betterment of society.