Drones on Terror - 21st Century Warfare

President Obama gave a speech today explaining why Drone attacks are important to protect US national security.

I agree with everything President Obama said in defense of targeted Drone attacks, presented in today's speech.  American Drones are strategically attacking our terrorist enemies, those who are involved in Al Qaeda and spin off networks. We must protect our nation against these groups, attack them in their hiding places, because, given any opportunity, these radical networks will kill us.  

The Caucus blog asks:

Now that President Obama's speech is over, one of the outstanding questions is just how transparent the Obama administration will be about drone strikes in the future. Will administration officials begin to publicly confirm strikes after they happen? 

Of course. Americans must know about the frequencies and reasons for specific Drone attacks.  Transparency is essential to protect against abuse of this clandestine war technology.  Stealth Drone attacks are highly technical, but they don't happen without human control.  Americans need to know why Drone attacks are necessary so the human command and control over the "joysticks" don't somehow become overly powerful, leading to unnecessary use.

There was no mention of in the President's speech (and it's telling)  about the C.I.A., at all.  Therefore, this seemingly deliberate omission indicates that Drone operations in Pakistan, Yemen and elsewhere won't be declassified anytime soon.

Nevertheless, C.I.A. notwithstanding, the Drones are essential if America and our allies ever hope to win the international war against terrorist groups.  We can't let our guard down, because terrorists count on war fatigue to gain advantage over us.  They patiently wait their turn to kill, attacking when and where we least expect to find them.  Incredulous as it sounds, we must kill them first.  Of course, the flip side of using strategic Drone strikes can lead to the rise of zealots who, like the angry Boston terrorist Tsarnaev brothers', want to attack where they believe the U.S. will be weakened, like in New York City and Boston.  

Although the war on terror seems driven by religious fervor among some radical Muslim fringe groups, we must never allow bigotry to stereotype this enemy.  Americans must remember the name of the executed Oklahoma City bomber, Timothy McVey, who was a Christian. 

International terrorism won't be won with "boots on the ground". 20th century war strategies are already antiquated, like equipping infantry soldiers with horses.  War will never, in our lifetimes, be managed using rules of engagement. Terrorists are experts in gorilla tactics.  Consequently, Drones are essential to strategically target the "cells" that control terrorism and its deadly activities.

Unfortunately, the war on terror is a new international state of being.  I can't see a time when we'll be assured of peace.  If I'm (sadly) correct, this means Drones are essential to protect American lives, whether they're military fighters or civilians living at home. 

If it's even possible to win the fight against terrorism, the means to that end requires battles waged under the cover of darkness, with strategic Drone strikes, using night goggles worn by expert military snipers and supported by clandestine stealth technologies.  

Drones on terror are the only ways our military can protect people from terrorist networks, those that are bent on killing Americans. Drones save the lives of our military and civilians, while strategically protecting our national security.

Let's use Drones to our military strategic advantage; but always with the advantage of transparency about when and why they're deployed to attack and destroy our overt terrorist enemies.  

President Obama Leads a Political Trilogy with Oklahoma Executives Governor Mary Fallin and Lt. Governor Todd Lamb

President Obama will visit the tornado devastation inflicted on Moore Oklahoma on the Sunday prior to Memorial Day.

Thankfully, President Obama will combine common sense compassion with executive outreach by personally meeting the Oklahoma people, post the horrific May 21 tornado that descended on Moore with  the highest F5 damage velocity.  

When President Obama meets with the Oklahoma victims, I hope he'll also meet and demonstrate support for the state's articulate Republican Governor Mary Fallin and the Lieutenant Governor Todd Lamb.  These two state executives are diligent about providing timely media communications for the purpose of keeping the world informed about the tornado's damage and recovery efforts. 

White House spokesman Jay Carney says President Obama will view the tornado damage first-hand. He also plans to meet with victims and rescue workers. The monstrous tornado barreled through the Oklahoma City suburb on Monday afternoon, demolishing an elementary school and reducing homes to piles of rubble. 

State authorities say two infants and eight children were among the 24 people who perished in the twister. The town of Moore is a community of 41,000 people located about 10 miles south of Oklahoma City. Residents of Moore continue returning to what's left of the rubble that was once their homes, to access the damage and retrieve what property they could.

It might seem like magical thinking, but a powerful political healing trilogy could be led by President Obama with Governor Fallin and Lt. Governor Lamb. Their joint extension of compassion to tornado victims could also have the impact of breaching the seemingly growing partisan divide of Americans who polarize nearly everything imaginable, including whether or not President Obama is an American citizen.

An executive healing leadership trilogy could even invite Oklahoma's Senator Coburn and Senator Inofe to join their meeting.  Both Oklahoma senators have been critical of federal disaster relief funding spent in other tragic events.  

Regardless of their past obstructionism, the two senators, with the executive trilogy, might come to understand how the Federal Emergency Management (FEMA) money is essential to the people's recovery.  Oklahoma certainly can't afford the estimated 2 billion dollars needed to help the  state's devastated people to recover. Government support through FEMA is essential to help Oklahomans.

Although sad, the loss of life in the Oklahoma tornado is mercifully less than one would expect in an F5 event. Nevertheless, the Moore devastation is a leveled landscape of tumbled matchsticks.  

Little is physically left of Moore Oklahoma. But, the uplifting faith of the people and their relentless will to recover is like kinetic restoration energy.  

Americans must help our faithful fellow citizens to achieve their recovery goals. Let's applaud an executive trilogy led by President Obama with Governor Fallin and Lt. Governor Lamb. We must support their compassionate leadership. By affirming our dedication to provide disaster relief to the tornado victims during their people's grief, we might also help Americans bridge our partisan divides in other political recovery efforts.  Let's begin that particular journey by working to protect Americans from death and destruction during future tornadoes. By rebuilding the Moore community with government unity, we might, hopefully, also find a way to  repair our partisan divides.    

Senator Coburn Creates Angst Over Oklahoma Assistance

What is Oklahoma Senator Coburn thinking? (He's obviously NOT.)

His response to tornado relief reported in the National Memo is badly timed, to say the least, and cruel, at worst.

"Oklahoma Senator Demands Spending Cuts In Exchange For Disaster Relief,"- oh really? 

Why doesn't Senator Coburn  begin by cutting his generous government paid salary and benefits?

Dealing with the catastrophe aftermath of an F5 tornado should bring Senator Coburn in front of television cameras to praise the rescue efforts.  Thankfully, Oklahoma's well spoken Governor Mary Fallin is saying and doing all the right things to support Oklahoma and the victims of the tornado, while Senator Coburn creates angst. Shame on him!

On the other hand, while Coburn bristles politics, during his constituents' grief, President Obama has responded generously and appropriately. President Obama said:

"In the aftermath of the massive tornado that devastated Moore, Oklahoma on Monday, President Barack Obama promised that, 'As a nation, our full focus is on the urgent work of rescue and the hard work of recovery and rebuilding that lies ahead,' and told the victims, 'You face a long road ahead, but you will not travel it alone. Your country will travel it with you'.”

Apparently, that sentiment wasn't shared by Oklahoma senator Tom Coburn (R). Just hours after the storm hit, Senator Coburn (R) told CQ Roll Call that he would not support providing disaster aid to his own constituents, unless it's offset by other federal spending cuts.

Although the tornado damage in Moore, near Oklahoma City, is still being assessed and the death toll is expected to rise, Coburn (R-OK) jumped to the conclusion that federal disaster aid to his suffering state must be paid for with cuts elsewhere.  This circular reasoning is incredulous. He shows complete insensitivity for the suffering of his Oklahoma constituents.
Coburn insists, according to National Memo, that he will fight to make sure disaster funding from the federal government is paid for. It’s a position he has taken repeatedly during his career when Congress debated emergency funding for disaster aid.

On Tuesday, after Coburn’s stance attracted widespread criticism, the senator’s office released a statement slamming those who say he's more concerned with ideology than with the economic reality or the well-being of his constituents.

Rather than his first statement to the press be an apology for his statement, or, (God Forbid) sympathy for his constituents, Senator Coburn, instead, defended his stupidity:

“It is crass for critics to play disaster aid politics when first rescuers are pulling victims from the rubble,” the statement reads, ignoring the fact that Coburn himself barely waited before announcing his preemptive opposition to the still-undefined aid package.

Oklahoma's senior Senator Inofe pushed back on Coburn's negativity.  Senator, Jim Inhofe (R), declined to endorse Coburn’s position during a Tuesday morning appearance on MSNBC’s Morning Joe. Inhofe, who had called the Hurricane Sandy relief bill a “slush fund” before voting against it, insisted that the situation in Oklahoma is “totally different.” (Oh paleeeze! Really....????)

Well, both of Oklahoma's senators need to learn communications. They must take lessons from their state's governor Fallin, who clearly knows how to support her devastated citizens.

Perhaps, hopefully, one progressive outcome of the terrible Oklahoma tornado might be that voters will finally remove their two entrenched and highly paid senators. They need to be put out of office. (Especially, considering how Senator Coburn lied about recently debunked Benghazi emails, creating myths about another tragedy. Certainly, his deceitful behavior is grounds for censure.)

Meanwhile, Americans are emotionally united in support of the Moore, Oklahoma victims and all who were in harms way on Monday, May 20th, when the F5 destroyed their lives, forever.

Americans Must Reach Out to Help Tornado Victims in Moore, Oklahoma

How to help. 

United in outreach to meet Oklahoma's needs!http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2013/05/oklahoma-tornado-how-to-help/

Moore, Oklahoma F4 tornado with 200 mile an hour wind inflicts horror and devastation:  A devastating, mile-wide tornado touched down near Oklahoma City on Monday, killing at least 37 people and decimating homes, businesses and a pair of elementary schools in the suburb of Moore, OK.  According to the state's medical examiner, the death toll was expected to rise.  (Seven of the deaths so far reported are children.)

At times, when this tornado was on the ground, the reports are that it was as much as 2 miles wide, reports Rachel Maddow on MSNBC.  It's a national and an international headline story, because of the devastating randomness of this kind of horrible weather tragedy.

Fortunately, Americans put political differences aside during disasters, but it's truly unfortunate that it takes horrendous incidents to unite us, in times like these.  Obviously, we must stand in support of the victims of the Moore, Oklahoma F4 tornado. Thousands of families are dealing with the grief, and loss of their property, as well as, in many instances, injuries, and death of friends, family members and animals. Victims need help, and we should rally to meet their needs while they work on search, rescue and recovery.

There's no way to prevent tornadoes.  But, we can prevent as much loss of life as possible by creating advance weather bulletins, giving people time to find shelter.  This kind of advanced weather reporting requires investment in advanced scientific meteorology.  There comes a point when government must invest in protection of citizens by creating sophisticated advanced weather reporting systems.  Moreover, people living in tornado zones must comply with safety measures to protect themselves and others, when danger warnings are issued.

Meanwhile, in the aftermath of all traumatic weather incidents causing injury, and loss of life, Americans must come together in grief and reach out to support the victims.

Twitter Voyeurs and Myth Creators Give Right Wing Lift Power

Twitterzens Alert! 

Anyone who enters into the Twittersphere social networking quickly learns to shed thin skin. Indeed, the Twitterzen barrage of name calling, labeling and fear mongering I've experienced, as a result of putting facts in the face of myth creators, makes me wonder if these voyeurs are Hades underworld demons, let loose from Dante's inferno. 

An energized group of evil Twitterzens have escaped Hades. Like cockroaches, they've found fresh nests to inhabit on Twitter.

Every day brings a renewed infestation of these social demons. Under the guise of electronic anonymity, they craftily use the 140 character message limit to spread lies too fast to create an informed response. Even worse, they gleefully demonize those who rebut their venom with truth.

Recent, media hyped scandals, coming out of Washington DC, have an incendiary impact on these Hades escapees. Their cauldron bubbles with opportunities for them to spew too many lies for any mentally healthy persons to respond to. I've tried to exterminate the myths they declare, as evidence of their world gone wrong. Not one shred of "evidence" these myth creators spew would be admissible in any court. Even a Kangaroo Court would reject them. Nevertheless, these relentless predators of free speech create lies, because they can, and execute an electronic extermination on anybody who exercises our Constitutional rights to push back on their lies. So, here are the current hot lies those Hades escapees are perpetrating as I write this blog:

Hot Lie #1: The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is controlling Obamacare (lie). This leap of reasoning is preposterous, but without push back, the myth morphs and becomes too big to fix. Let's try to simplify this ridiculously large leap from IRS to DHHS. First of all, Obamacare, aka "Health Care Reform", set to be implemented in 2014, is the responsibility of an executive cabinet official, the Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebilius. The IRS is not responsible for the control of Health Care Reform. Rather, the IRS is involved because a number of corporations formed, as a result of the law. Many new corporations are requesting tax exempt, or 501(C), status, which is a request the IRS must review and, either, accept or reject. Republicans are furious about the connection between the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Health and Human Services oversight of the Health Care Reform, because, government money is attached to the contracts being awarded under "Obamacare". Republicans want their rich friends to reap the benefit of these contracts and they don't want IRS interference with the flow of these contracts. Therefore, Republicans are feeding the hungry media with myths about how the Internal Revenue Service is controlling Obamacare. I'm frustrated because there's nobody pushing back on this myth. My futile Twitter education efforts are treated like fresh meat, cast in front of a pack of rats. I'm the victim of truth.
Hot Lie #2: Talking points on the Benghazi consulate attack of September 11, 2012, and the complicated ripple of lies resulting from the incident. Republicans claim the talking points, developed between the White House, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the State Department, were changed to describe the attack on the Benghazi consulate as something less than a terror attack. This point of view ignores the facts that four people were killed during this violent incident. There's no way the Obama administration can change this deadly fact. Among the four people who died was Ambassador Stevens, who died, despite rescue efforts, as a result of a fire that erupted during an attack on the consulate. Republicans don't really want any facts about Benghazi, unless their myths about their opinions are substantiated. A big fact we should know regarding the fatal attack is for somebody, with authority, to reveal the reason why Ambassador Stevens left the security of the embassy in Tripoli to travel to Benghazi, on September 11, 2012. Why don't we know this? Nevertheless, the absolute fact is that all officials, managers and bureaucratic people (anybody who writes statements for the press) engage in making changes to talking points. The issue is the intention of the changes. Did the Obama administration deliberately change the taking points to favor the 2012 election? Or, were changes recommended (or required) because communications officials wanted to keep information about the incident from falling into the hands of those who perpetrated the attack? Instead of finding truthful information about what happened in Benghazi, the Republican myth makers are feeding the media, including Morning Joe on MSNBC, with a misinformation campaign, led Senator Tom Coburn of Oklahoma. Coburn deliberately claimed that Benghazi email messages were either missing or lies. Later, it was revealed that Republicans perpetrated the lies about Benghazi, but there's been no apology by Senator Coburn, or by Joe Scarborough, who let this lie go by on Morning Joe, without challenging the misleading statement.

Although lies, spun from scandals of the week, usually die a humiliating death, this demise hardly ever occurs with the fanfare of the original incident that started the spiraling misinformation.

Meanwhile, until political lies are debunked, they provide air lift to Right Wing extremist groups that thrive on spinning misinformation.

Obviously, the best way to prevent the twitter voyeurs, myth creators and air lift to Right Wing extremists is to completely eliminate political scandals. Hmmmm. Oh well! I'll just keep pushing back on those Twitter demons. At least, these Hades escapees are teaching me to grow very thickly resilient political skin, in defense of the boiling social media oil they're pouring in my direction.

Media Creating News - Diseminating Lies Before Finding Truth

News about a controversial Benghazi email was given main stream media credibility when CBS reported the false communication as being fact.  

In fact, the email at the core of the (false) Republican case said that the White House fixed the Benghazi talking points, in the immediate aftermath of the attack on our US consulate, in order to edit out any reference to terroris'.  It was supposedly done to minimize public concern about the attack in the weeks before the 2012 election. But the email that Republicans spread lies about is a fake.  The actual White House email, far from proving an attempt by the White House to spin Benghazi for political purposes, shows a concerted effort between the White House, with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and the State Department jointly concerned about getting the facts right. 

But CBS spun it differently.

Mark Twain aptly described the consequences of this CBS leap into yellow journalism when he described how a lie travels halfway around the world before truth puts its shoes on.

There's some media duplicity in this situation, as well.  Although American journalists are justifiably screaming in outrage about the Justice Department subpoena of Associated Press phone   records related to national security leaks, they're somewhat moot about the CBS email lie.

Contributing to this spiraling email lie was Joe Scarborough, on his "Morning Joe" program when Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn went unchallenged when he raised the spectre of a clandestine Benghazi email.  Frankly, Scarborough allowed Coburn to engage in tangential thinking about the now discredited email would eventually be revealed.  Scarborough didn't challenging Coburn to validate his claims.  It turns out, Scarborough was remiss in his responsibility to challenge Coburn. As for Senator Coburn, his lie should lead to a censure from the US Senate.  

Outrage about recently reported White House scandals involving the Benghazi emails, the subpoena of Associated Press phone records and the Internal Revenue Service targeting certain non-profits, should also include a scolding of CBS for spreading a lie.

What goes around comes around, is an age old truism.

As the media leaps to a hot lead for the purpose of gaining competitive advantage, as the first to report, they must also accept responsibility for contributing to Republican muckraking of current    scandals. 

CBS owes the American people an apology.  Likewise,  a "muzzle whistle" should be included in the Morning Joe program, so Scarborough can block Senator Coburn the next time (and there will be one) he goes into tangential lying mode.  

There's an abundance of media time to fill up these days, but none of it should accommodate lies.  

Where's the Help? Americans Must Ask how Republican Scandal Obsessions Supports Middle Class and Poor

Americans are deluged by 24/7 news coverage whereby political scandals du jour captures headlines, while detracting from the debate needed to protect the economic needs of majority of middle Class and poor Americans.  

In other words, Congressional Republicans are deliberately ignoring the stupid sequestration, a series of fiscal cuts whereby working class people are subjected to the impact of cuts in government contracts. These cuts are forcing federal employee furloughs and reductions in funding programs for underprivileged children, like Head Start. Republicans can't even respond to the desire of 85 percent of Americans who want the Congress to do more to protect us against gun violence.

Instead, Republicans, who preach fiscal austerity, apparently have no problem wasting taxpayer money by building myths around real or perceived scandals. They demand ridiculous emails and documents to create doubt about administrative responses to the tragic outcomes in Benghazi. Their rhetorical questions that won't bring back four Americans killed in an attack on the US Consulate and where Ambassador Stevens died as a result of the violence.  

Included in wasteful Republican Congressional time are futile and repeated efforts to repeal health care reform, aka Obamacare.

For some unknown reason, Republican refuse to accept the results of the 2012 election and the victory of President Barack Obama.  Although Republicans are certainly capable of counting the number of voters who opposed their candidate - Romney, (many Democrats waited hours to cast their ballot for President Obama), they have, nevertheless, decided to follow a strategy to obstruct all of President Obama's progressive agenda.

Obstructionism and muckraking scandals does nothing to help ordinary Americans.  Of course, why would Republicans want to help ordinary Americans, who voted against them in 2012, in support of re-electing President Obama?   

In fact, all elected leaders take an oath to protect and defend the US Constitution, which means abiding by the will of the people.  Our US Constitution begins in the preamble with the phrase, "We the people....." .  This Democratic document does not begin with "We the Congress.....".  

Although the Congress recently began a practice of reading the US Constitution, a ritual at the opening of new sessions, the readers don't seem to understand the importance of the first sentence.

Average Americans need help protecting good paying jobs from being outsourced to cheaper labor markets.  Americans need help to protect our retirement income and Social Security safety net.  Americans need access to affordable, and quality health care to protect our well being against chronic diseases and debilitating infections.  Americans need safe infrastructure in our communities including good roads, reliable public transportation and a national policy to provide everyone with access to wireless technology.

Incredulously, Republicans simply can't find a way to rise above the 2012 election results  Instead of showing Americans how their leadership can improve our lives, they choose, instead, to create chaos. They're like the Cervantes character, Don Quixote, in Man of La Mancha, the man who fights windmills, thinking they're dragons.  Yet, instead of windmills, the Republicans are creating political dragons, by inventing myths and conspiracy theories, about real and imagined scandals. Moreover, Republicans soak up tax paid salaries, while doing nothing to lift the stifling, stupid and needless budget sequestration. 

Since Republicans don't get what happened in the 2012 election, it's time they receive an even more emphatic message in the 2016 elections. Americans must politically punish Republicans who won't (a) compromise on issues we care about, like improving gun safety, (b) don't seem interested in supporting the will of the people who elected President Obama, and (c) continue to be engaged in obstructionism by not lifting the sequestration (and blocking progressive programs that require raising taxes on the rich and super rich). 

It's time Americans demand accountability from Republicans. They must explain how they intend to help Americans, rather than create fear, obstruct progress and protect the rich from paying their fair share of taxes. Obviously, Republicans can't explain anything unless the facts are shrouded in lies and myths. 

Entrenched Republican politicians must go the way of Don Quixote, who died in a feverish sate of delusion.