Independent thinking – Part 1 of ?

A brief history with the struggle I’ve had with myself.

When I first started getting into politics and current events around the world I found myself directed to the right wing with some liberal views. When the presidential campaign began, I found myself drawn towards Rudy and then eventually Ron Paul (my views had changed a bit you could say). While I then and now disagree with Rudy – not that it matters, I find myself agreeing with Dr. Paul and now still do if the world and people were perfect. If everything was good and just, people were not ignorant of others beliefs, if no one was race/sex/whatever-discrimination-word-you-want-to-use, Ron Paul would be my prime selection for President. But we don’t live in a perfect world. Companies take advantage of people. People kill people over the stupidest more redundant things and are intolerant of opposing views over their own moral high-ground opinion.

I learned a bit more in the last semester of college and found myself with the fundamental liberalism of Obama – views change once again? This political roller-coaster led me even further, while I still support Obama, and don’t think he’s perfect. I’d just like to state why I would like to declare myself an Independent. Moreso updating the Northmore Doctrine or just once again, explaining my current mode of thinking.

Healthcare: Is it something we are all entitled to? Yes, we should all have HealthCare (HC)to enable us to learn, work and live. This should be a fundamental right in our country, as it is in every industrial and information age nation. Now, should private enterprise or the government control it? Both, if that is possible. The VA hospitals stories broke a few years ago, of the abomination of care we were providing our returning vets (more on this later) makes me think the government could never run a system for all the people. But the way HC is operating now, people can lose their financial lives in attempting to pay for it. I have a friend whom at the young age of 21 is in thousands of dollars of debt for a weeks worth of hospital testing, in which they have failed to diagnose his problem, but prescribe and temporary fix. How is he supposed to pay this enormous amount of money, for so little help?
Now, if the government controlled this, he might be forced to see one doctor over his personal choice, he might not, who knows, but something should be done so the American dream can truly prosper, or at least give him the opportunity to do so, without worrying about which test or medication he can afford. I wish their was a middle of the road, but there isn’t at this time.

Current wars: Big topic, I’ll try to go as quickly as I can. The current Iraq/Afghan wars were started to get back at those who attacked us on 9/11 (which by the way was a massive intelligence failure – I don’t play into the conspiracy theories). Saddam had WMD’s, propaganda groups were started to lure us in and every liberal talking point can be inserted in here. So, do we roll with the McCain or Obama course? I don’t know. Even with every single problem we’ve had, every single thing you can bring up against the war – which is easily stated for some AFTER a vote to goto war or AFTER intelligence failures (I guess Saddam, really didn’t have WMD’s), the success of the surge, though not accomplishing its intended goals, is working. Why haven’t there been the number of reports on the war as seen before the first or even second Patreaus/Crocker report in congress? Because things are going well, or least to say, better than they were in 2007. The Sunni-Shia-US forces war is dissipating, Al-Queda is dying off and Iraq’s parliament recently asked for the US to start withdrawing because we have given them some of the required opportunity to govern and protect themselves and are now interfering with their national sovereignty (someone wants permanent bases). Our troops have performed amazingly, though their goals have changed and their strategies have adapted to the problems they face.
I bring you to my problem.
We invaded, destroyed their country, ousted a dictator, replaced him an initial relatively weak government, thousands are worse, some are better, but do we leave? Do we face an obligation to help these people for our actions?
Yes.
Can we sustain this war?
No.
Our falling dollar attributes to this. We’re borrowing money to sustain ourselves overseas (more on money later). Our dollar falls, oil/barrel skyrockets and all goods (transported by truckers) are rising and will go higher. What are we to do? We’ll hopefully get a true preview on January 20th, 2009.

(Not exactly finished with these topics, but I need sleep)

Tomorrow: Finish these up, the Economy & Veterans benefits.

Seriously, WTF is wrong with America..

I sit here clicking links off drudge and yahoo news, looking for some sort of positive news to share with anyone whom reads this, just to vent, or just for some reason I feel the need to give a opinion on something with my limited knowledge.

What I find is more bad news, more terrible things, more people using the same old euphemistic bullshit. More excuses, no real answers, no real news, just the same old opinionated analysis that I am sick of reading.

Bush today was quoted in saying he has no doubts about launching the unpopular war in Iraq despite the “high cost in lives and treasure,” arguing that retreat now would embolden Iran and provide al-Qaida with money for weapons of mass destruction to attack the United States.

Well Mr. Bush, another great piece of insight from your usual rhetoric battle chest. We’re in Iraq until we win. How do we win? A question I asked in my first post on this blog and despite no one really addressing the question, this will war will not end until until you have achieved 2 things. One, in which we have already succeeded in, our world reputation being completely shot and two either until we officially cannot send any more money over or until you leave office.

Actually, either way, we’re not leaving. Democrats have changed their position from the “Enders of the War” to the “People who will end the war kinda soon, as long as few things are achieved and we don’t look bad”. Well neither can be met.

Listening to Jay Diamond host the Alan Colmes show on FOX News talk he brought up a point I never thought of. He stated that the next president should dig up all the secrets this administration has concealed, reveal them to the world and apologize for the war mongering imperialism we have continued to act on since entering this godforsaken place. Before we came to Iraq, IED’s, Car bombings and suicide bombers did attack the people, but not at this rate. Every-fucking-day, all I see is “Great security gains, but no Political reconciliation”, 9 more Iraqi’s die from a mentally handicapped person in a wheelchair used as a explosive device. What else are we going to put up with? I believe it was the Associated Press (AP) whom reported that 54% of the US people agree we are doing good in Iraq. I do not think this is a accurate representation of the mindset of the people of this great country. We know we are just saving face in Iraq. This war is impossible to “win”. There will always be danger in the middle east, there has been since time and morium, yet Bush & Co. believe we can be the godsends to come in rid the area of violence.
As soon as Bush posted his “Mission accomplished” sign behind one of our great destroyers, the gods descended upon our grand leader with holy might, filling him with the power to fix all of the problems in the various cultures. They peoples all rejoiced in peace and held hands, all problems solved, no more religious vendetta’s and all terrorist groups disbanded and become altruists. We broke bread and shared a table with all who has been healed.

Except that didn’t happen. We got a mugshot of a criminal president wearing a fighter pilot uniform. Washington and Eisenhower refused to wear the military uniform based on common decency. When they became president, they were no longer soldiers of our great nation, but the political leader. They knew this, yet Bush didn’t. Maybe it’s because of his less then stellar grades at Yale. Who knows.

/sigh

Another rant written, more energy expunged on something that is useless to write except for my own personal self-edification or just to fucking rant. I, amongst millions are so sick of this damn war and we still haven’t been given a cogent premise that hasn’t been proven fallacious after being investigated.

Okay. Enough “America bashing”. Anymore and Sean Hannity will have to make another bumper sticker to ruin the country even further.

The Supreme Court is ruling properly in stating that Americans have the right to bear arms. We do, if you don’t believe so, too bad. Now, am I saying everyone including criminals, clinical psychopaths do? No. I believe that if you fit the standards to serve Jury Duty (sadly too many do though..) you can own a gun. If you are sane, not a mass murderer who suddenly was found insane and got off, and are at least somewhat competent you can protect yourself in your dwelling. Can you carry guns on you 24/7 while you fill your gas tank or grab a bite to eat? I personally don’t support this. I believe you have the right to defend yourself at home, but not in everyday public areas. If we had stiffer penalties for those “packing heat” in public, I believe it would lead to a safer societies. There should be no reason your carrying a beretta to get groceries. But what about those “drug gang-bangers” and hooligans who could kill me at any moment. Well, there’s two issues in it self. I’ll tackle the gun issue first. Those gang bangers and hooligans would HOPEFULLY decline if stiffer laws were imposed. You can have all your guns on your property and make a fortress inside if you deem it necessary. Conversely, doesn’t this seem better then having a entire populous packing a mack-10 of .50 caliber deagle? One thing leads to another and you have bar fights blasting away at each other and it turns into a Godfather like shootout because someone stepped on another persons kicks or spilled a drink on someone.
Second, those damn drug dealers. Menaces to society. They need to be destroyed… RAWR. Ok. Lets examine this a little more without the sarcasm. People get wasted off brew and whiskey yet it is deemed legally acceptable as long as they have a DD and don’t drive. Yet smoking marijuana isn’t? A analogy Dennis Leary made in Stuff magazine a few years ago I feel is the best way to describe my position.

Alcoholics get drunk, start fights, make us regret the previous night, and make us do things we would not do if we had been sober. I feel thats a nice way of putting drunken sex and pregnancy excuses.
People who smoke the herb aka stoners, sit in their basement, get high, listen to some Led Zeppelin and Kotten Mouth Kings, eat doritos and maybe even a pizza.

But what about Reefer Madness! If you smoke weed you go insane and going on shooting rampages. No thats people mentally unstable people snapping and the rampage is the end result. You smoke a joint and you mellow out and sometimes become strangely philosophic, at least that is my experience.

Another part to add to this little argument. People who sell pot sell a variety of other hard drugs. Coke, Heroin, Extasty, and PCP to name a few. Well if weed was legalized would we be socializing with these people in the first place? Even MEDICINAL marijuana is illegal in most places and strangely legal under the strangest circumstances in other situations – vending machines in Cali ring a bell? How fast were those things robbed/vandalized?

I should really rename this blog to “News story + random tangent”, because that is what I feel I am writing. Everytime something new or whatever happens, I state what an article says and go off on my own line. But do ya blame me? According to 60minutes I believe, or another one of the primetime news shows – not sure which exactly. My generation wants to feel important, feel involved, feel like we’re doing something. But its kinda hard with healthcare costs while in college, working for shit wages, paying for student loans into the time when we conceive children.

/sigh #2

Topic of my next rant – The Expulsion of the Conservative party when the baby boomer generation has died off.

Just because you think your views are the best and the most righteous, doesn’t mean they are, and SPECIFICALLY doesn’t mean someone can legislate those views for all. God – I mean Astral Non-secular omnipotent being, what the fuck were you people thinking.