See Why Israel Doesn't Trust Obama?

See Why Israel Doesn't Trust Obama?

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Not only has our beloved "Dear Leader," Obama, managed to "PO" Israel even more, he has now "PO'ed" the Baku government of Azerbaijan.   By leaking news, recently,  that Israel and Azerbaijan have reached an agreement for Israeli aircraft to have landing rights at Azeri airbases, Obama has infuriated Israel's Netanyahu government even more and may have compromised Azerbaijan's relations with Iran (shaky as they may be), as well.     

In case you missed it when looking at a map, Azerbaijan is the small country snuggled tightly against the northern border of Iran.  There are roughly sixteen million Azeris (The people of Azerbaijan).

Now here's the thing:  Azerbaijan's government and the Israeli government have become, er, friends.  The only people who are having a problem with this is the Obama Administration in America --  and the Ahmadinejad Administration in Iran. Suddenly, it would seem, the US and Iran are BOTH going after Israel.

We have told you for months and even years that the Netanyahu government in Israel does not trust the Obama administration in the US and that is why the Israelis refuse to give Obama a heads-up on an attack on Iran.  They are convinced (as am I) that the Obama Administration would immediate pick up the phone and call Iran and tell Ahmadinejad  "the Israelis are coming."

Far-fetched, you say?  Believe what you want, but the truth is -- Obama's people have already tipped off Iran that there is a pact of some sort between the Baku government in Azerbaijan and the Netanyahu government in Israel possibly for landing rights for Israeli combat aircraft on Azerbaijan soil.

Israeli attack aircraft cannot make it to Iran, drop their ordinance, and make a return flight to Israel without refueling.  For that reason, an air raid on Iran by Israeli jets has been considered a "suicide mission."  Lack of fuel would not allow Israeli aircraft to loiter over their targets or even fend off attacks by the Iranian air forces. A second run on a target would be compromised by low fuel.

In-flight refueling could solve that problem, IF it could be done over friendly territory, which is sorely lacking in that neighborhood. Damaged aircraft would simply have to be abandoned.  If Israeli pilots chose to bail-out of their foundering jets, it was/is a given they would be captured and killed or languish for years in an enemy prison.  

Those Azerbaijan airbases make perfect refueling bases -- and forward bases for Israeli search and rescue units -- for an air raid on Iran's nuclear facilities, and an emergency landing field for damaged aircraft.  

It is no secret that the American President's favor lies with the Muslim countries of the world.  He has made that abundantly clear since he first entered the office of President of the United States.  And Israel wisely does not trust him.    

"We're watching what Iran does closely," one of the U.S. sources, an intelligence officer engaged in assessing the ramifications of a prospective Israeli attack confirmed. "But we're now watching what Israel is doing in Azerbaijan. And we're not happy about it."  -- This is a quote from an article by Mark Perry at FOREIGN POLICY.COM.   It is an excellent article and we recommend you read the entire piece. (SOURCE)

The Azeris and the Persians tolerate each other -- but just! There are those who fear that IF Azerbaijan does allow Israel to use its airbases for an attack on Iran, Iran might use that as an excuse to reclaim Azerbaijan as a part of the so-called "Mother Persia" and make a military move against their northern neighbor.

And then there is the solidly based concern that Russia may step in and create trouble in Azerbaijan to foil any attempt by Israel to use those Azeri airbases.  With Putin in charge in Russia, it is certainly within the realm of possibility.   Putin's Russia will again be seeking to expand its influence in the Caucasus. 

By and large, the people of America stand with Israel -- even if their President does not. Obama is the most divisive American president since Abraham Lincoln.  You may recall that upon Lincoln's election eleven American states pulled out of the Union.  Many Americans feel the Presidential Election in November of 2012 is every bit as important as the 1860 election, which broke apart the United States.

As Israel and many other countries of the world still look to the United States for assistance and direction, America is roiling in a national controversy to decide if the nation remains a constitutional republic or adopts socialism and dumps the constitution and representative government. The American people's attention is turned inward at this moment in history and that is allowing the mice to come out and play.

When Obama removed America from a leadership role in the world, it opened the door to all sorts of mischief around the globe.  An isolationist America has a history of producing deadly wars, some even global in scope.

Israel, the best friend to America in the Middle East, has been forced to look elsewhere for alliances simply because Obama refuses to maintain America's alliance established almost the moment Israel became a country/ state.  

The point is simple:  Had Obama maintained the long-standing relationship the US had with Israel, then there would have been no need for Israel to seek friends -- and assistance -- elsewhere.  As a result, there is a strong possibility the US will be drawn into a war in the Caucasus -- as well as a war in the Persian Gulf -- when Israel strikes Iran.

There can be no doubt Israel WILL strike Iran.  They have no choice. Otherwise, Israel will be wiped from the map just as Iran has promised so often to do.

If an alliance with Azerbaijan will help Israel destroy the Iranian nuclear facilities, then more power to them.  May the God of Israel bless them and "make straight their "aim."

J. D. Longstreet

I'll Tell Vlad, Mr. President

I'll Tell Vlad, Mr. President

ALL Microphones ARE HOT!

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet 

I was in the broadcasting business for thirty years.  One of the first things you learn is that one must always consider a microphone, ANY and EVERY microphone to be HOT  -- in other words,  switched on and transmitting with the "pot" set at 80 decibels, or more.

I recall a number of times two or more broadcasters would be having a discussion in a control room, or studio, when a mike would be turned on.  The room would go deathly silent --instantly.  Some speaking would halt in mid-word as if an unseen laser had suddenly severed their vocal cords.  Broadcasters become so sensitive around microphones that it becomes something of a sixth sense.  Even with that extra sense we still manage to have our moments of embarrassment before a mike. 

A broadcaster learns never to have a conversation -- anywhere near a mike -- that he doesn't mind the entire world hearing.   Forget distance from a mike.  Microphones are so sensitive today, there IS no "safe" distance from a mike that your conversation cannot be picked up electronically.

I have a digital recorder, smaller than a pack of cigarettes that will record conversations twenty to thirty feet away in a meeting room -- clearly.   And that is not even considered high tech, anymore.

The lesson I am attempting to impart is simply this:  If you are tempted to have a private conversation anywhere -- where you know there is a microphone -- DON'T!

When the small lavalier mikes first came on the market, entertainers and ministers gobbled them up.  Those tiny mikes would clip onto your tie or lapel and a small wire ran from the mike to a battery pack and transmitter located someplace on one's person out of sight of the audience or congregation.   The lavalier mikes would transmit to the main transmitter in the studio or church and be broadcast or sent through the public address system in the church.

Now, entertainers, as a rule, are "mike smart."  They know not to do something, or say something, stupid -- after you have been "miked." 

Early on, however, ministers were not that mike savvy.  The men of the cloth soon learned a hard and embarrassing lesson when a few,  after being "miked," decided to visit the restroom, one last time, before entering the pulpit.  You can guess what happened.  Once that mike is clipped on you and turned on -- you have no secrets.

You would think the folks who handle Presidents, especially the unit that handles Presidential electronic communications, would make a point of instructing our Presidents and Vice-Presidents in such basic mike etiquette.  Who knows?  Perhaps they do and our illustrious leaders fluff them off -- until they say something stupid, confidential, or even secret, in the presence of a live microphone. 

Once a microphone has been tested and the "level" set, as a rule, that mike is left on (hot) until the performer or speaker takes the stage, lectern, or pulpit.  Yes, there IS a reason for that.  Should the mike show signs of a problem while it is set and waiting for the speaker, it allows the sound engineers time to solve the problem or replace the mike -- BEFORE the speaker begins.

It is all basic stuff.

Knowledge of mike basics is not enough.  One must practice the proper etiquette or one will suffer the consequences.

Had President Obama had the self restraint to remain mute, with a mike so close, and not engage in a private conversation with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev he might not have frightened roughly half the people of earth with his comments about his "flexibility" after his reelection.  What he actually said was: “This is my last election,” Obama said. “After my election, I have more flexibility.”

OK.  Before my liberal friends get all bent out of shape, I DO recall President Reagan's on-mike remarks paraphrased here:  "Let the bombing begin."  That, too, was in front of a hot mike.  The difference was this:  Reagan was doing a mike test to allow the engineers to set the "level" of the microphone. 

People's voices modulate differently.  For a good quality sound and to properly sense, or "pick up," a speaker's voice, a test is run and the levels are set before a speaker is ready to speak on the air or for a recording. (You may recall that occasionally "voice prints" are used in court.  Each person's voiceprint is different)

A mike test is supposed to be private.  All sorts of things are said -- jokingly -- during a mike test.  Reagan's joke was not meant for public consumption.  He was an actor and very familiar with testing mikes on the set.  I would imagine someone was dressed-down, shall we say -- energetically -- (if not fired) after that mike test was released to the public.

Obama's gaffe has the world wondering what, exactly, he meant by his remarks that Medvedev promised he would repeat to Vladimir Putin, the President-Elect of Russia. Was he referring to the missile shield proposed for Poland and other eastern European countries?  If so -- what did he mean?  Was he referring to his breath-taking endeavor to cut America's nuclear stockpile by a humongous eighty percent?

(Obama's should be advised that Putin is about as flexible as four-inch steel rebar.)   

We conservatives feel it is just a sample of what we have been warning about if Obama wins a second term.  He has been restrained during his first term because he wants to be reelected.  In a second term there are no such restraints and, frankly, we expect Mr. Obama, the socialist ideologue that he is, to basically go wild and really push his socialist agenda on the people of the US. It is NOT a chance we want to take.

So, all in all, maybe Obama's faux paux has given Americans a realistic look into his plans -- if granted a second term.  At least Mr. Obama's second term intention toward "flexibility" is no longer something the American voter has to guess about.  We are, however, worried about what he will be more flexible on:  gun control, illegal immigration, gay rights, socialized medicine, and the biggest of all -- interpretation of the US Constitution.

The American electorate has now had a "heads-up."  There is no excuse remaining for reelecting Obama.  Conservatives would be well advised to redouble their efforts to deny Obama an extension of his lease on the Oval Office.

J. D. Longstreet

There Can Be Only One

There Can Be Only One
The Russian Bear Loosed ... Again
A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet


Nature abhors a vacuum.  When the current leadership of the United States decided the US would no longer maintain its leadership position in the world, a momentary vacuum was created.  As of March 4th, that vacuum was filled.  Vladimir Putin has returned to the Kremlin.  (Geez.  Even the word "Kremlin" causes my heart to go cold and my skin to crawl.) 

The Russian bear, under the leadership of Vladimir Putin, is more than ready to take over the world leadership role from the United States.  That will mean that Mr. Obama can have the back seat he seems to crave so much.

If you are old enough to remember the Cold War, you certainly must be asking yourself if Putin's election as President of Russia means the kick-off of Cold War II.  The return to a bi-polar world could be just around the corner.

Putin has remarked that he sees the United States as a parasite on the world.  Now, that's not a very friendly thing to say, right?  Nevertheless, he said it, and, frankly, I believe he meant it.

Relations with Putin's Russia is going to get very complicated very fast.  Putin is known to long for the old Mother Russia and the gone -- but certainly not forgotten -- Soviet Union.  He'd like, very much, to reconstitute the old USSR.  And I expect he will attempt to, at least, recreate as much of it as he can.

Vladimir Putin

.

Dealing with Putin is going to be tough -- very tough.  However, America is blessed with a President who is a "word man" and not an "action man."  I truly suspect Obama believes he can just overwhelm Putin with his soaring oratory and overcome him with just the weight of his WORDS.   As my British friends would say:  "Not Bloody Likely!"

Putin TALKS tough, and goes to great lengths to make sure he ACTS tough -- and is SEEN acting tough.  

Obama plays basketball and golf. 

See how perception can have such a tremendous effect on foreign policy and practically everything else a country does outside its own borders. 

Putin can, and will, make Obama's life much more complicated that it was before March 4th. 

Right at, or near, the top of the list of problems Obama is going to have with Putin is the U.S. plans for the missile defense system deployment in Europe.  Even before Putin walks into his old/new office, that missile defense problem is deadlocked.  At least it is deadlocked as long as Obama remains President of the United States. 

That may change in November -- if the US voters show Obama the door and place a stronger President in the Oval Office.  A new President may just say the heck with Russia and deploy the missile defense system and let the Russians howl all they want.

I suspect that, right off the bat, Putin will want to show off his Russian military might to the rest of the world.  Once again those Bear bombers will be bumping into US airspace off Alaska and they will most certainly be skirting our airspace along the eastern seaboard just as they did for decades during Cold War One. 

Look for Putin to scrape together another Russian Navy from the scrap heap of a navy he now has.  If he is able to keep his nuclear submarines from exploding, he might even be able to get one or two out to blue water -- before they sink or blow up. 

Never fear.  The Russians can be an industrious people.  It will not take long for them to rebuild their military and with the cash pouring in from their oil sales they will be able to afford it. 

Just think about it.  While the US is cutting back on the size of our military the Russians will be working like crazy to build their military UP --  bigger and better than that of the old Soviet Union.  That ought to make for some sweet dreams tonight -- especially for us old codgers who remember what it was like facing down the Russians/Soviets at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin about fifty years ago.   Americans and Soviets were eyeball to eyeball, toe to toe, both sides leaning forward ... waiting, just waiting -- for the Third World War to begin.   Believe me when I tell you -- I do not long for the return of those days and that kind of international stress and strife.

Putin is a man of few words ... far fewer than Obama.  And, unlike Obama, he does not employ nuance.  Nosiree.  He can say Nyet! (NO!) quite clearly and forcefully, thank you!   Putin is famous (or infamous) for being intractable.  When he DOES say "nyet" ... the negotiations are ended, period.

The US can certainly expect to have problems with Putin's government in the Middle East.  That is already clear.  We've learned, just this week, that Russian troops have been deployed to Syria.  The Russian Navy was been represented in Syrian waters for a while now.

What we are about to see, I believe, is a rebuilding of the Russian superpower under Putin.  There is simply no way that can be good for America.

What will be even worse for America is to have Obama reelected and have to watch as Putin chews him up and spits him out.


J. D. Longstreet

Obama to Visit Oklahoma to Talk About Oil Drilling ... by Texas Fred

LINK: http://texasfred.net/archives/15135#more-15135
Obama to Visit Oklahoma to Talk About Oil Drilling.
By Texas Fred of the Texas Fred Blog

President Barack Obama will travel to the reddest of red states, Oklahoma, next week to argue yet again that he’s not against oil drilling, no matter what Republicans repeatedly say.

President Barack Obama waves as he boards Air Force One at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Friday, March, 16, 2012, before traveling on to Atlanta for another fund-raiser. He plans to travel to Cushing, Okla., just outside Stillwater, next week, where a new pipeline is set for construction by TransCanada, the same company that the administration blocked, at least temporarily, from building the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the Gulf Coast, an administration official said.

Full Story Here:
Obama to Visit Oklahoma to Talk About Oil Drilling

Isn’t it amazing how Barack Hussein Obama always wants to talk about things of which he has NO knowledge? The good folks of Oklahoma are NOT going to buy into Obama’s faux words of wisdom, bet on it!

We don’t need no stinkin’ oil, that’s what Barack Hussein Obama says: Forget oil, fuel up with algae. Louisiana and Florida swampland owners are going to make a ton of money I guess.

If you don’t buy into the algae for fuel thing, or any number of other brilliant Obama ideas designed to save the earth from man, you must be a part of ‘Flat Earth Society’.

So says the Obamessiah.

I realize that I’m just a redneck, Neanderthal, knuckle dragging blogger from Texas and I don’t know much about the world, or *The BIG Picture* we hear so much about.

I obviously don’t understand the nuance of world government and the way our leaders work to keep this nation safe and solvent, that’s what the U.S. leadership would tell you, but I have got to say, in MY opinion, this story and its premise, and every action that the Obama regime foists off on this nation, is designed to destroy the American economy and to take the United States of America into the abyss of third world chaos.

In the first place; why are we importing oil from Libya? Why do we import oil from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela? Why are we allowing ourselves to be held hostage by the enemies of this nation? OPEC is NOT our friend, they don’t care if we live or die as long as we keep on pumping BILLIONS of U.S. dollars into their economy.

We don’t need foreign oil!

On March 13, 2011 I published this piece: New report says U.S. has largest fossil fuel reserves in world along with this commentary:

 

Yet WE rely on the Muslim world for most of OUR oil. We are held hostage and are subject to any whim or political shift the Arab world wants to force upon us.

It appears that Obama, his fellow Muslims, and the assorted moonbats and tree huggers are good with it too. All I can figure is, these tree hugger types MUST make a lot of money, they don’t seem to care how expensive oil gets and what that expense does to the U.S. financial markets and the manufacturing segment that relies on oil for a lot more than just gasoline.

In that same piece I also pointed out this little tidbit:

New drilling method opens vast oil fields in US

A new drilling technique is opening up vast fields of previously out-of-reach oil in the western United States, helping reverse a two-decade decline in domestic production of crude.

Companies are investing billions of dollars to get at oil deposits scattered across North Dakota, Colorado, Texas and California. By 2015, oil executives and analysts say, the new fields could yield as much as 2 million barrels of oil a day — more than the entire Gulf of Mexico produces now.

This new drilling is expected to raise U.S. production by at least 20 percent over the next five years. And within 10 years, it could help reduce oil imports by more than half, advancing a goal that has long eluded policymakers.

“That’s a significant contribution to energy security,” says Ed Morse, head of commodities research at Credit Suisse.

Full Story Here:
Oil & Gas: New Drilling Method Opens Vast Oil Fields in US

Wow, we have new and innovative methods of drilling that can open up vast fields of previously out-of-reach oil in the western United States, helping reverse a two-decade decline in domestic production of crude. Isn’t that amazing?

Did anyone think to point this out to Barack Hussein Obama?

Oil Drops as International Reserves Are Tapped

Oil plunged nearly 5 percent Thursday after the International Energy Agency said it will release 60 million barrels of oil from its reserves to make up for a loss of Libyan exports in global oil markets. SOURCE

For those that don’t know, or don’t watch the stock markets as closely as others, the Dow DUMPED 215 points on this news. At last check the Dow was recovering and had regained some of its losses at the time this post was made, but the question is; WHY do we have to tap reserves and why are we still buying oil from OPEC?

We have made OPEC nations RICH with our purchases of oil, and don’t think I blame Obama exclusively, I don’t. This goes back a long time before he came on the scene.

There is one thing that I have known for many years; we have the oil, more than enough oil to keep the USA swimming in oil for many generations to come.

I remember Oklahoma in the 1960’s, we were buying gasoline for .16 per gallon in places, sometimes even cheaper than that if the stations decided to have a little *price war*.

For those too young to remember, at .16 per gallon, you got your windshield washed, your oil and water was checked, your tires were pressure checked with a gauge and your lights were wiped clean. FULL SERVICE at what we called, ‘A Service Station’.

There is only one thing I ever heard Sarah Palin say that I can 100% agree with, and that was her “Drill Baby Drill”.

We are being driven off of a cliff by the most anti-American individual I have ever seen. I am of course referring to Barack Hussein Obama and his dedication to taking America into the abyss of outright socialism. If we continue to allow him to do so, if he is allowed one more term in office, this nation is DONE FOR and the American way of life slips off into the annals of history.

But if America would seat a true Conservative in the White House, true Conservative, not RINOs, in the Senate and House, seat true Conservatives on the SCOTUS and would drill its own oil we could once again be paying less than a dollar a gallon for gasoline and this nation could emerge from the brink of destruction and rise like the Phoenix to a position of world greatness once again. 

But hey, what do I know? I’m just a Neanderthal, knuckle dragging, flat earther, redneck, beer swilling blogger from Texas that believes Barack Hussein Obama and his entire regime are the personification of PURE EVIL

 

Freedom of Speech a Fantasy in America

Freedom of Speech a Fantasy in America

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

We have known for some time that the government was listening to our phone calls, landlines and cell phones, and we have suspected they were doing the same thing to our e-mail and to our blogs.  Now we KNOW.

“A privacy advocacy group has swayed Congress to hold a hearing next week into the Department of Homeland Security’s practice of monitoring social networks such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as media reports and organizations, including The Drudge Report.”  (SOURCE)

How much longer will Americans allow our freedom to be eroded … taken away?  How long are we going to allow the desecration of the US Constitution? 

Since September 11^th, 2001 we have been trading our freedom for security.  It never works.  The end result has always been that a people who trade freedom for security eventually wind up with neither. 

“The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) recently obtained close to 300 pages of documents, as a result of a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit, detailing the federal agency’s “intelligence gathering” practices on the web.

Among the documents were guidelines from DHS instructing outside contractors to monitor the web for media reports and comments that “reflect adversely” on the agency or the federal government.

As Reuters reported last month, in early 2010 contractors were asked to spend 24 hours monitoring news media coverage on popular websites, including Facebook, Twitter, Hulu, WikiLeaks, as well as news sites including the Huffington Post and The Drudge Report.

The documents obtained by EPIC indicate that following the exercise, a procurement official awarded an $11.3 million contract to General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems in order to carry out the monitoring on a “24/7/365 basis”.” (SOURCE)      

What has happened to America’s guarantee that its citizens have “freedom of speech?”  Has that guarantee been revoked?  Indeed, it has.

Look.  America has a government run amok.  Like a giant vacuum cleaner, Washington is sucking our freedom up and leaving us vulnerable to a tyrannical central government with a socialist agenda.

The Bill of Rights, the leash our founders placed around the neck of government in America has been slipped and like a ravenous junkyard dog, that government is devouring the liberty and freedom of all Americans. 

The Obama Regime has been the worst violator of the government restraints placed on them by the constitution since the Lincoln Administration.

The corruption within the current government is as bad, or worse, than that of the Grant Administration.  Government -- and the power of government -- has grown exponentially under Obama’s leadership  -- and he is asking for another term to complete the job.

Consider this:  As we observe the degradation of American liberty under the Obama Regime’s first term, what do you think will happen when Obama is not restrained by an impending election?  Can America survive as a free constitutional representative republic with a capitalist society?  In my opinion, the answer is an emphatic, resounding NO!  America cannot survive.  At least a FREE America cannot survive.

America is facing the very real threat of becoming another socialist dung heap where all its citizens suffer “fairly” or, as the socialists and Marxists say, … equally.

Ginger McCall, the Director of EPIC is reported to have said:  “The idea that the government is constantly peering over your shoulder and listening to what you are saying creates a very chilling effect to legitimate dissent.”  (SOURCE)  

I agree with Ms. McCall, except that I would take it a step farther.  Not only does government eavesdropping chill freedom of speech … it THROTTLES it!    

This whole mess is just another indication of how America has slipped into the Post Constitution era.  The “fabled” US Constitution is a thing of the past.  It is a myth born in the dim mists of yesteryear and is no longer applicable today. 

Just as history records that Nero burned Rome, history must record that Obama presided over the destruction of America. 

Look.  A nation like America can only be successful if it has a God-fearing populace, not a people who celebrate infanticide and behavior that God has proclaimed an abomination. America is more like the latter than the former today.  As a result, we have sold ourselves into slavery.

The distant bell we hear is tolling America’s death knell.  The last best hope of mankind is breathing it’s last, felled by it’s own hand.

J. D. Longstreet

The Democrat’s “REAL” War Not So Real After All

The Democrat’s “REAL” War Not So Real After All

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet 

Americans have been accused of having the shortest collective memory of any people on earth.  Back when I was but a wee lad, I brushed that off.  Common sense told it was what we used to call in the advertising business  “Puffing.”  Puffing is rhetoric that is known to be untrue but is often used to make a point.  Back in the old days even the federal government allowed a limited amount of puffing in advertising.

Note that above I said the “Common sense told me….  .”  Problem is, these days common sense is certainly not common, and those expressing an opinion based on common sense are frowned upon and often mocked.

We have often stated the political left does not understand making war.  They have shown us time and again they do not understand the military, itself, nor how to apply military strength against an enemy of the US.   Their naiveté is such that they cannot grasp the simplest military tactic.  And they totally do not grasp the meaning behind the old saw:  “All’s fair in love and WAR.”

You may recall that we railed against the Obama Regimes’ public announcement of the date US troops would be withdrawn from Iraq.  You may also recall, we predicted that Iraq would slip back in to anarchy and eventually wind up under the control of another “strongman dictatorship” akin to the one headed by Saddam Hussein, which we overthrew at a rather high cost to America.  It was a cost, which Americans paid in blood and treasure.

Hardly had the dust (kicked up by American forces leaving Iraq) settled until the struggle for a new dictatorship was underway.  It is plain to everyone that our effort in Iraq was a total waste of time, effort, treasure, and blood. 

It is universally understood that when at war with a nation or a stateless rag-tag group of irregulars such as the Islamofacists we’ve been fighting for over ten years now, you do not telegraph your next move.  And you certainly do not openly inform them of the date you intend to leave the battlefield.

But Obama did.  Now Iraq is lost … again, and will most likely necessitate another war with Iraq at some point in the future.

That was bad enough.  But now Obama is doing it all again in Afghanistan.  The Taliban has openly boasted they have beaten America and will rebuild their forces and move to take over Afghanistan as soon as American forces are out of the country.  Unlike the Obama Regime, the Taliban is smart.  The Taliban has completely flummoxed the American Commander-in-Chief and, yes, they will have beaten the American military as a result of the catastrophically poor leadership from Obama. 

Obama’s awful leadership as a war commander has unnecessarily cost many lives of American military men and women and will, undoubtedly, cost even more as he compounds his mistakes on the battlefield with his blunders in foreign policy in the Middle East.

At the moment, while a very short fuse is burning on the powder keg in the Middle East, Obama is attempting to “talk” with Iran.

Only a fool would suppose that talks with Iran are anything more that a sham and an instrument to stall America -- AND Israel -- and buy more time for Iran to realize their dream of building an “Islamic Bomb,” (an atomic bomb), which they have every intention of using on both America and Israel.

Obama has proven to be Iran’s best weapon against the non-Islamic world.

The bottom line is this:  America is in deep trouble and needs a replacement for Obama who will deal a crushing blow against the terror nations of the Middle East.  It has been called a “Peace Through Victory” policy.

It is clear that anything less that a resounding victory is a total waste of time when dealing with the masters of hyperbole.  They can, and will, make anything less into a victory for themselves and spoon-feed that propaganda to their followers who will lap it up with gusto.  It will stoke their anger and enmity toward the US. 

As a lad I was taught to say little because it lends importance and gravitas to what you DO say.  For three years we have had a constant stream of talk from Obama, yea, even rivers of rhetoric flowing from our supposed leader.  His continuous talking has lent new meaning to the phrase: “talk is cheap.”

Our new leader must be a man of few words and more action, especially towards America’s enemies.  America is tired of towering talk and flowing phrases. It is past time to stop talking and starting doing.

J. D. Longstreet 

Democrat Code Words for Socialism

Democrat Code Words for Socialism

Fairness, Fair Share, income inequality, etc

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Wouldn’t it be nice if the Democrats would simply drop their façade and admit they have morphed into some sort of American breed of a socialist political party?

In the past few months, even years, my teeth have been set on edge when I have listened to their rhetoric about “fairness,” in this or that, and their use of the words “fair share” to drive a wedge between the American classes, and especially the words, or phrase, “income inequality” which seals the deal.  

When a nation seeks income equality it is assuming socialism as its core philosophy.  Income inequality is the clarion call for redistribution of a nation’s wealth. It is as simple and as basic as that.

In the past two decades I have slowly come to the realization that the dumbing down of Americans is near completion.  It has taken approximately 50 years to realize, but the leftist movement in America successfully infiltrated and gained control of America’s public education system.  Now we have a full generation and most of a second generation who have no clue what America is about.  They don’t have a clue what their freedom cost.  They don’t have a clue that the federal government was created by the states to serve the states as an agent.  They have been taught -- and they believe -- that the people of the states are subservient to the federal government.  They do not understand that the Bill of Rights is a protection for the American people from their federal government.  Those ten amendments restrain the federal government in the interest of the people. 

Most of our young Americans today don’t know the difference between the Declaration of Independence, the US Constitution, and the Bill of Rights.  Don’t believe me?  Ask ‘em!

I have mentioned in previous articles that as a solider in the US military I was trained to meet and combat socialism on the battlefield.  It was rightly recognized as an enemy of freedom.  It was recognized as a form of government that was destined to fail, but before its demise, it would enslave the people of any nation that was so utterly stupid as to even try it.  No nation has yet survived socialism.

Europe is teetering on the edge of complete disaster simply because they have run out of other people’s money with which to pacify their populace after decades of coddling and teaching them to depend on their government for their very existence.

The USSR is now a footnote in history.

Yet, despite the fact that America was nearly crushed under the weight of a mere sampling of socialism, the left persists in their socialist agenda for America.

In 2008, they managed to elect a socialist as President of the United States.  In 2010 the people of the political right in America successfully blunted the socialist left’s endeavor to shove America deeper into socialism.  Conservatives were successful in retaking a majority of the Congress.

Now we have a chance to solidify conservative control of the American government by refusing to reelect the socialist in the White House this November. 

It was clear after the President’s State of the Union address that their next step is to incite a class war in America.  The great-unwashed masses in America must be taught to hate the “patricians” and the “plutocrats” – the very people who financed -- and continue to finance -- America’s success as the greatest nation in the history of mankind. 

The wealthy Americans must be brought low and their wealth confiscated and redistributed to the – ahem – less fortunate among us.  That is what I like to refer to as: BOVINE SCATOLOGY!

Nevertheless, their efforts to incite class warfare has been more successful than most think. It ought to be.  It has been an underground movement for at least nine decades now.  With the left’s capture of the Oval Office the socialist were emboldened to rise to the surface and ram their agenda through the national legislature. 

But the right stopped them in 2010.  That, dear reader, is why we now see the President’s abuse of the power of the Executive Order.  Obama is intent on diluting democratic freedom in America by infusing socialism into every agency and administration under the control of the executive branch of the government.

Americans must retake control of their government in November and free it from the clutches of the socialist elite who have dipped their fangs into America’s bloodstream and are sucking her dry.

America needs a champion who will lead from the front.  A leader who take a stand on the deck of our sinking ship of state, much as the Father of the US Navy, Captain John Paul Jones, when his ship was blown to bits and sinking from enemy fire.  When asked if he was prepared to surrender Jones famously replied:  “I have not yet BEGUN to fight!” Against all odds, Jones won the battle and took the enemy ship.

THAT is the spirit we need, indeed, the spirit it will take to lead America out of the muck and mire of socialism, put her back on course, trim her sails, and stir for the safe harbor of capitalism and freedom.

It is a life or death decision we Americans will make in November -- the life or death of America.

J. D. Longstreet

Obama And Romney Tied

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

Rasmussen reported yesterday (January 5^th, 2011) that Obama and Romney are tied in their polls.

“The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of Likely U.S. Voters finds Obama and Romney each earning 42% of the vote.  Eight percent (8%) prefer some other candidate, and another eight percent (8%) are undecided.” (SOURCE)

However, Rasmussen goes on to say,  “Last week, Romney held a 45% to 39% advantage over the president, his biggest lead yet and the largest lead a named Republican candidate has held over Obama to date.  However, the two candidates have been essentially tied in regular surveys since January 2011.  The report continues:  “A generic Republican candidate now holds a narrow lead over Obama as has been the case in all but three weekly surveys since late May.” (SOURCE)

The same report also says:  “Voters identify all of the leading Republican presidential contenders as ideological conservatives but see Romney and Texas Congressman Ron Paul as the least conservative of the group.”

(SOURCE)   

Ok.  So what to make of all this?  The truth?  I haven’t a clue!

You have heard the old saw that polls are only a snapshot in time -- and that is true – but they certainly help to identify trends.  Even so, those trends are, too, snapshots in time.

I remain deeply concerned that Obama will win a second term.  I fear for my country.

Some months ago, I warned that the Mainstream Media would soon begin to make “upbeat” reports on the nations economic situation.  It has already begun.  Frankly, it is mostly Bovine Scatology.  They would have us believe the unemployment rate is 8.6% when, in reality, it is closer to 12%. 

The MsM would also have us believe that the economy has begun to improve when; in fact, if there is any improvement it is miniscule.  Just yesterday we learned that Boeing is planning to lay off 2,100 workers from a Wichita Plant -- and Obama is reported to be preparing to cut tens of thousands of US military troops from our ground forces.  All these people will some be looking for jobs that simply do not exist.

I mentioned the two instances of coming lay-offs above because they are linked.   Boeing says they are closing the Wichita plant due to “defense budget reductions.” (SOURCE)

Look:  My crystal ball is extremely cloudy these days – but even without it -- it is plain to see that the US is staring down the barrel of a regional war in the Middle East -- and soon. When the balloon goes up, we are going to need those ground troops.  Is Obama planning on reinstating the draft?  I would not be the least bit surprised.

According to the Jerusalem Post, thousands of US troops will be deployed to Israel this spring for Israel’s largest ever missile defense exercise. The J-Post says: “Last week, Lt.-Gen. Frank Gorenc, commander of the US’s Third Air Force based in Germany, visited Israel to finalize plans for the upcoming drill, expected to see the deployment of several thousand American soldiers in Israel.” (SOURCE)

Now here’s the really interesting part of this story: “The drill, which is unprecedented in its size, will include the establishment of US command posts in Israel and IDF command posts at EUCOM headquarters in Germany – with the ultimate goal of establishing joint task forces in the event of a large-scale conflict in the Middle East.” (SOURCE)

It appears to this scribe that the world is edging ever closer to a conflagration in the Middle East that will affect the entire world.  It all seems eerily familiar to the conditions prior to the Second World War.

This is what happens, dear reader, when America withdraws from its role in world leadership.  Obama’s “Leading from behind” simply does not work -- and it is dangerous.

America is at a point in world history when we need a strong leader -- a leader not afraid to assert America’s leadership.  Obama is NOT that person.

I am very afraid there is no one vying for America’s leadership today any stronger as a national or world leader. 

In a recent column, Thomas Sowell said:  “The 2012 Republican primaries may be a rerun of the 2008 primaries, where the various conservative candidates split the conservative vote so many ways that the candidate of the mushy middle got the nomination – and then lost the election.”   I think he pegged it.

I will be genuinely surprised if America is not involved in what passes for a world war these days -- within the next four years. I plan to vote accordingly. 

J. D. Longstreet

ABUSE OF POWER

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

We have said many times that Obama envisages Congress as an inconvenient impediment to his agenda to create a strong socialist central government in the United States of America.  If there was ever a single iota of doubt in the minds of Americans that Obama is seeking to assume all US government power unto himself, then his recent actions in naming a head for the controversial Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and three new members to the National Labor Relations Board and totally by-passing Congress to make those appointments – while the Senate was still in session – should remove all doubt.

What we have here, dear reader, is a full-out raw power grab by the Executive Branch of the US government.  This move by Obama is an abuse of power. It is arguably unconstitutional -- and should be grounds for impeachment.

If the US Congress does not take immediate steps to stop the power hungry mob in the White House then the US will, very soon, find itself the newest tin-pot dictatorship with a petty tyrant in total control of the government.

(A reminder:  Only days ago the media was asking why Americans were buying so many guns. You have just seen the answer to that question.)

Look:  We have a would-be emperor on our hands right here in America, the world’s last hope for democracy.

Obama’s disrespect for the US Constitution is breathtaking.  Not only does he disrespect it – he defies it!

As we continue to see Obama’s tentacles spread through the government with his new agencies, Czars, and a myriad of additional rules and regulations handed down by his henchmen – is it too far a stretch to predict that by next fall the Obama Administration will declare a national emergency and suspend the election set for next November?  No, I am not kidding -- and I fear it is NOT an exaggeration.

Americans are in serious trouble and I don’t mean with out national economy.  We are in critical danger of losing our freedom and liberty as a country.  I would not be surprised, any day, to see the news channels suddenly break in with a bulletin that Obama has dissolved the Congress and placed the country under martial law until a date uncertain, far in the future, when our economy has been, er, stabilized.  

Farfetched?  Really?  I mean – REALLY?  We have a branch of our government out of control, people.

This in-your-face move by Obama demands action by Congress to stop his abuse of power in its tracks.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, said:  “Although the Senate is not in recess, President Obama, in an unprecedented move, has arrogantly circumvented the American people,” (SOURCE)

 Senator McConnell is absolutely right.

John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio and Speaker of the US House of Representatives, said Obama’s action was: “an extraordinary and entirely unprecedented power grab by President Obama that defies centuries of practice and the legal advice of his own Justice Department”


“The precedent that would be set by this cavalier action would have a devastating effect on the checks and balances that are enshrined in our Constitution,” (SOURCE)

The fact is – Obama has spat upon those constitutional checks and balances referenced by Speaker Boehner.  The longer Obama stays in office the more America resembles a banana republic, with a tin pot dictator holding the reins of power.  Move over Hugo Chavez!


Of course Obama’s defiance of Congress is an integral part of his political campaign for reelection.  But this time he has gone to cussed far. There can be no question now that Obama is a threat to the freedom of the American people.  His seeming thirst for power begs the question:  Is Obama the American Putin??


Here we have a man in the Presidency who is, I believe, constitutionally unqualified to be President by reason of the circumstances surrounding his birth.  His father was a citizen of Kenya and not an American citizen. The Constitution declares a candidate for US President must be a natural born citizen of the United States, which means -- BOTH mother and father must be American citizens.
 
We Americans know less about Obama than any other President in US history.  Is his name Barack Hussein Obama or Barry Soetoro?  Was he born in America – or Kenya?  Whose Social Security number does he really have? A number of other people have, or have had, the same number. The record of his education is blurry at best.  He is reported to have been a college instructor on the US Constitution, yet he seems to totally ignore it when it gets in the way of his insatiable thirst for power over the American people.

Let’s face it.  Obama is a truly scary figure in American politics today.  I am convinced he has a dark agenda for America and that agenda is a threat to the freedom of the people of America.


J. D. Longstreet

ObaHill?

ObaHill?

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

There is speculation all over the Internet that Biden is out and Hillary is in as Vice-President.  All this is projected to happen in time for the full-out Presidential Campaign in 2012.

Oh, theorists say that Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton will actually swap jobs – Hillary to Vice-President and Biden to Secretary of State.

Yesterday, I went to my favorite barbershop for my too frequent haircut, and that was the topic of conversation.  There was no shock.  There was no concern.  There was nothing but the collective conclusion that Obama would do anything to win… including putting his former arch-adversary on the ticket with him.

The whole thing springs from a piece by Robert Reich entitled: “Get Ready For An Obama-Clinton Presidential Ticket.”  You will find it HERE.

Reich says:  "My political prediction for 2012 (based on absolutely no inside information): Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden swap places. Biden becomes Secretary of State — a position he’s apparently coveted for years. And Hillary Clinton, Vice President.

So the Democratic ticket for 2012 is Obama-Clinton.

Why do I say this? Because Obama needs to stir the passions and enthusiasms of a Democratic base that’s been disillusioned with his cave-ins to regressive Republicans. Hillary Clinton on the ticket can do that."

As far-fetched as it may sound, at first, after thinking about it for a few minutes, I can see where Mr. Reich may, indeed, have a point.  But, what I don’t get is why the seeming panic in the Obama camp? 

I must be the only commentator on the right who thinks Obama stands an excellent chance of winning another term in November of 2012.  As excruciating to my friends on the right to hear such prognostications coming from a fellow conservative – there it is.

My reasoning is this (and I have said it ad nausium):  I am simply not convinced the GOP has a candidate currently running who stands a snowballs chance in Hades of beating Obama in 2012.  It has been a very long time; in fact, in my lifetime (over 7 decades) I cannot remember a weaker GOP ticket going up against an incumbent President – especially one with weak poll numbers.

The number one complaint I hear from fellow republicans is -- we have no one running, I can vote for.”  Granted, I’m in the southern part of the United States and maybe it is a “southern thing” – but, honestly, I don’t think so.

I just do not see Romney doing well in the south.  Once the primaries move into the southern tier of states, I expect Gingrich to begin picking up a few states.  Of course, his recent decline in the polls would indicate otherwise.

I mean, just stand back, and take an objective look at the GOP candidates.  The GOP’s favorite son is, without doubt, Romney.  But the record so far indicated by the polls is that the party and the voters do not share that admiration for Romney – especially in the South. 

When you consider the way voters have gone through the GOP candidates, one by one, it is clear the electorate is in an “anybody but Romney” mood. Well, maybe “anybody” is too strong.  Maybe it should be “SOMEBODY” other than Romney.

Conservative voter in my neck of the woods are STILL searching for a candidate they can get behind.  And, frankly, they have come to resent the GOP’s obvious and persistent promotion of Romney.  An angry electorate is not good for the party, especially when that anger is directed at the GOP and not at the democrat candidate. 

The enthusiasm is simply not there, and that spells HUGE trouble for the GOP at the polls in November.

It ought to tell you something when a candidate, Mr. Romney, has been running for President for fully five years and he STILL has not been able to win over the electorate in numbers that would translate into a victory in November of 2012.

Southern conservatives see Mr. Romney as a northeastern liberal-to-moderate candidate acceptable to voters in the northern tier of states but distinctly unpalatable where the word “conservative” seems to mean something entirely different than it does in the North. 

Those southern votes that support Obama’s leftist/socialist agenda are already aboard Obama’s campaign.  It will make very little difference to them whether Joe Biden remains as Obama’s running mate or he is replaced with Hillary Clinton.  They are going to vote for Obama – period.  They are, as we say, a lock.

There is no candidate in the GOP stable with a lock on the electorate and that would seem to hold true in a huge portion of the United States.

Nothing I have seen and heard, so far, has changed my belief that Romney, if chosen, will lose, and lose convincingly, to Obama in November 2012.

J. D. Longstreet                   

Iran Threatens The Straits Of Hormuz Again

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

I sometimes wonder if Iran actually enjoys being a boil on the world’s backside.  They have been a pain in the posterior, most especially of the US, since the decade of the 1970’s. 

America spends millions upon millions of taxpayer’s dollars to patrol the shoreline of Iran in an on-going attempt to keep the oil flowing through the Persian Gulf.  Only a portion of that oil is bound for the US, which means the US is acting, again, as the global police. 

What is it with nations like Iran and North Korea?  They seem to feel they must continuously stir up trouble so the rest of the world won’t forget they are there.  Like a spoiled child “acting out” to get the attention of his parents, these rogue nations will scream and stamp their feet and wail like banshees until somebody notices them.

Recently, Iran has outpaced North Korea with their spoiled brat theatrics.

Once again, Iran is threatening to close the Straits of Hormuz.  Although the Straits are approximately 20 miles wide at the narrowest point, the sea-lanes are only 4-miles wide with a two-mile wide partition between the incoming sea-lane and the outgoing sea-lane. 

Yes, Iran has the capability of closing the Straits.  She can attack oil tankers while they are in the straits, sink them, and create a blockage of the waterway.  But there is little doubt, if any, that the US would strike Iran, with all barrels blazing, if Iran was dumb enough to execute a military strike on unarmed merchant vessels within the straits in a bid to close the Gulf and stop the flow of oil out of those waters through the Straits of Hormuz. 

Some 40 percent of the world’s oil, transported by sea, passes through the Straits of Hormuz.  Thus, effectively closing the Straits would create a worldwide shortage of petrol and petroleum based products… and that is nearly everything.  I don’t think it is really possible, at this point in world history, to estimate the damage to the global economy such an act would cause.

To say there would be an increase in gas prices would be an understatement of enormous proportions.  It would, no doubt, push many of the world’s nations over the brink, upon which they are tottering today, and into the abyss of economic collapse.  There would be chaos on a global scale. 

And there would be war.

There seems little doubt that most of Iran’s naval assets would be destroyed before they ever cast off their lines or hauled in their anchors.  Her submarines, (old Kilo class subs) are of special interest to the US Navy (as are all submarines) and, we suspect, they would be destroyed almost immediately.  Besides, operating a submarine in the shallow waters of the Gulf presents special problems for even the best submariners and, frankly, we have doubts about the proficiency of Iranian sub crews. 

So, what about Iran’s ship killer missiles?  Well, they have them -- and they reportedly are mounted on those so-called “fast attack” boats we became so familiar with during the Iran-Iraq war. The missile is reportedly a hybrid.  They are said to be a cross between the old US Harpoon missile and the old French Exocet missile.  They are made -- you guessed it – in China.

Iran should understand that any unprovoked attack on shipping in the Straits will bring an instantaneous counter attack by the US Navy and, certainly, the navies of other countries whose oil supplies would be severely curtailed or cut-off completely. The advantage to Iran of any such attack is difficult, if not impossible, to discern.

But if, as the theology experts warn us, Iran is determined to pave the way for the return of the 12th Imam, the Madi, which is said to depend upon worldwide chaos, then such an unprovoked attack is certainly within the realm of possibility and, frankly, probability.  In any event, the US -- and the world -- should be prepared.

The other troubling aspect of our current state of relations between the US and Iran is what many Americans define as weak leadership coming from the Office of the President of the United States.  This concern was underlined when our Commander-in-Chief did not order US troops to recover the lost reconnaissance UAV aircraft that, apparently, landed itself in Iran recently.  Even a missile attack on the drone to insure it’s destruction and prevent our top secret intelligence gathering electronics from falling into the hands of Iran, Russia, China, and North Korea, would have been preferable to Obama’s reaction, which was, shamefully, NO action.

The point of all this is simple.  Even though we are celebrating the return from Iraq of US forces this month, and family reunions at Christmastime, we must keep our forces well trained, well equipped, and leaning forward … because we WILL be forced to return to war in the Gulf region soon … very soon.

J. D. Longstreet

Southern Democrats Worried That Obama Will Be Reelected

Southern Democrats Worried That Obama Will Be Reelected

A Commentary by J. D. Longstreet

In the Southern States of the US, there are still a vast number of conservative democrats.  I know.  I was raised with them, went to school and church with them, dated with them (as a teenager) – in other words—I lived with them.  And I still do.

My US Congressman is a conservative democrat … a “blue dog” democrat.

I make this point because -- knowing I am a conservative republican – they know I am greatly interested in seeing that Obama does get a second term, and they are so embarrassed by the man, and so angry with him, that they, too, want him out of the Oval Office --  and they want me to know they are going to do all they can to see that he does not get his coveted second term as President of the United States.

See, in the South many voters inherited their membership in the Democratic Party.  No.  I am NOT kidding.  They are democrats because their parents and grandparents and great-grandparents were democrats.  Until the Nixon Administration, it was southern tradition to be a democrat.

As far back as pre-Civil War, the democrats controlled everything in the southern states.  Yeah, these were the folks in charge when slavery was in full force in the south.  Of course, they’d rather you did not know that, just as they would rather you not know that the Ku Klux Klan was a sort of enforcement arm of the southern   Democratic Party.

The South was a fiefdom of the Democratic Party until Nixon changed all that with his southern strategy.  It was only then that southerners realized that being a Republican did not mean you were consigned to Hell upon your death. 

See, Republicans were placed into southern governments by the occupying forces of the United States of America during Reconstruction immediately following the Civil War.  Many republican officials were former slaves who, in many instances could not read and write.  It happened in my home state of South Carolina.  In Wilmington, NC it finally boiled over and riots (known as the Wilmington Insurrection of 1898, also known as the Wilmington Massacre ... or the Wilmington Race Riot of 1898) ensued in which a number of republicans were killed and others run out of town. This event is the only instance of a municipal government being overthrown in US history.  In the Wilmington Insurrection, Democratic white supremacists illegally seized power from an elected government, running officials out of the city, and killing many blacks in widespread attacks.  (SOURCE) 

The whole Reconstruction mess left an enduring bad taste in the mouths of southerners for well over a hundred years.  We have very long memories.

As a result, even though many southern voters actually believed in the platform of the Republican Party, they felt they must honor their families by registering and voting as democrats.  A rather large portion of the southern population still believes that.  But they are no longer in the majority.

However, a huge portion of southerners, beginning in the 1960’s, began to realize they had much more in common with conservative republicans than with the democrats.  LBJ was a huge boost to the Republican Party in the South.  Jimmy Carter came along and embarrassed all of us -- both southern democrats and republicans alike. Mr. Carter made the GOP much more appealing to southern democrats than before.

Then, of course, came Bill Clinton and southerners were aghast at his sexual hijinks. Once again Southern conservative democrats were embarrassed and infuriated at the same time.  Again, the Republican Party in the south was the recipient of a host of democrats who changed their party affiliation saying enough was enough.

Now, southern conservative democrats have been hit with a socialist President sailing under the colors of the Democratic Party. 

Southern conservative democrats are, many for the first time, noticing that the party of their parents and grandparents has, itself, been slowly adopting much of the socialist philosophy and even a bit from the communists, as well.  Obama has been a rude awakening for them.

Now, southern conservative democrats are just as worried as southern conservative republicans that Obama will be reelected.  The very thought is abhorrent to them.

Many of them have expressed to me their disappointment at the stable of Republican candidates for President.   When they do, which is often, I commiserate with them and tell them I am just as disappointed as they are. In truth, I am far more disappointed in my own party than they. 

At a time in US history, when the table is set for a Republican take-over of the US government, we have to choose between Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich?

I get the feeling that the GOP believes Americans are so fed-up with Obama that they are willing to vote for anybody but Obama.  I, on the other hand, am not so sure.  In fact, I think the GOP is making a terrible mistake and, as a result, will make possible a second term for Mr. Obama.

I think Americans will look at Romney and say why vote for an imitation when they can vote for the real thing … Obama.  I think the same American voters will look at Newt, and Newt’s baggage, and decide Newt represents too large a risk to chance placing him in the White House.   Either scenario will hand the Democrats and Obama a second term and, I am afraid, hand over control of the US House of Representatives to the democrats – and -- solidify the democrat’s control of the US Senate.

Many southern conservative democrats would vote for a conservative republican candidate they respected.  Problem is, there’s not one running!  And to be truthful, many southern conservative republicans feel the very same way.

I am very concerned that, come November of 2012, once again, the GOP will have managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory.

J. D. Longstreet