Republican Presidential Charge Into the Abyss

Uncertainty over the qualifications of the Republican candidates for President was removed by the CNN YOUTUBE debates last week. They are all unqualified as much as CNN is to sponsor such debates. Apparently there were over 5000 candidate questions submitted by the public---CNN chose two on gays and one on the bible and none on Iran, Palestine/Israel or threat by Jihadists---the declared winner by the pundits after the dust settled was Reverend Governor "SLIM FAST" Hukabee.

From my view point Reverend Hukabee would be the hands down choice if the voters were looking for charm, a channel to God Almighty or a testimony to a weight loss; but that is the last type of leadership needed in our times of troubles..Now if the Rev Huckabee could channel to Allah that would be worth considering, but he would have to prove it first.. He would have to have bin Laden struck by a lightning bolt to get my vote. Or even with his current bible thumping, if he could organize God Almighty to strike bin Laden down, I might reconsider my repulsion of mixing religion with politics.. On the present course, electing holy rollers as US presidents, it is just a matter of time before we end up like Jihadists when religion becomes government.

Despite the fact GW Bush's name was only mentioned twice during the the two-hour debate, most of his agenda was warmly embraced by all the candidates except Ron Paul... The Republican Party left Ron Paul years ago and it ain't going to return .Paul makes more sense than any of the candidates in both parties, but like Pat Buchanan he is shunned by party king makers, because they cannot control him--and ironically that is what makes the two attractive to savvy voters; realistically, old line state party organizations are necessary to get out the vote and Paul does not have them.

Boy Scout Romney came off flaccid. He defended himself well against against Rudy's junk yard dog attack on illegal immigrants working at his Massachusetts Governors mansion, but he permitted Bomb Bomb McCain rip his face by not outright rejecting water boarding as torture. Rudy is ethnic guy from the tough streets of NYC with family connections to thugs.. McCain, to survive five brutal years as a POW, had to adopt to Darwinian survival of the fittest, so his and Rudy's world outlook is similar, albeit forged from different circumstances--both instinctively prefer to attack rather than to think. Unlike President Reagan, there is no Marquis of Queensbury sense in either of them. We have have had nearly 8 years with two unfinished wars promoted by "Bring Em On" GW Bush; the US is in greater danger now than ever before by using force indiscriminately. The US is already feeling the painful consequences economically and politically.

Uncertain what single-issue legal immigration candidates Tancredo and Hunter have to do with being a president, but they keep the illegal immigration issue front and center much to the chagrin of big business, agro conglomerates, and Bomb Bomb McCain. In the main, their presence in the debate formation just sucks up questions to which they respond repeatedly with the same answers. Another bit player in the Republican entourage is Fred Thompson. Previously a character actor, he turned to be a mediocre senator, finally developing into a steady TV and film supporting actor. His most recent gig was to head the Scooter Libby Defense Fund which is enough to make anyone decent gag and flee from him. His manner is laconic and boring; his looks, without stage make up, appears to be that of a blood hound; with make up, that of a basset hound--he is not Abe Lincoln by a long shot, despite his sad looks. He really needs a new script writer

9/11 Rudy appears to get in more trouble daily as more of his rutting conduct as NYC mayor comes to light--his latest reported frolic is his use of city funds to visit his love nest and squire his amorata around the city and to her parent's Pennsylvania home. Unbelievably, his federally indicted stooge Bernie Kerik has tried to defend him. "Sex in The City" the NYC tabloids are headlining.. 9/11 Rudy has lots of sins for his evangelical Republican base to forgive. My sense is that Rudy's goose is cooked as a presidential candidate.. Democrats should have a raucous field day with "Rutting Rudy" as will the Republicans have with" Wild Bill Clinton's" salacious public dalliances. If Rudy and Bill, via his wife, finally run for president, our nation will have their choice of sleaze balls.

Bomb Bomb McCain told us three times in two hours on the stage that he visited our troops in Iraq this Thanksgiving.. At least he spared us his usual "I Love America" super patriotism.. I have yet to understand how five years as POW signing an anti American statement provided by his captors qualifies him for anything other than a long rest and gratitude for his service as a non lethal hero.. US President? Give me a break! The Vietnamese have a sculpture of him outside Hanoi by the Lake of Tranquility surrendering, with his arms in air. During the debate he told Ron Paul that ending the Iraq war is equivalent to supporting Hitler. Paul rebutted this baloney forcefully. Bomb Bomb has been pathetically brainwashed by the neocons. For a neocon, every enemy is Hitler or an Islamo Fascist--if you negotiate with a neocon's enemy you are a Neville Chamberlain. Poor thing's remained locked in WWII anti fascist rhetoric, still apparently dented by the brutal holocaust events. McCain sadly has bought into this sick drivel and as such, his qualifications, even as a senator, are questionable. His sycophant neocon advocacy to bomb Iran is even more demented in face of the latest National Intelligence Estimate that indicates Iran stopped pursuit of nuclear weapons in 2003. McCain seems wound up tight... His next suit may be a straight jacket.

US Iraq war is a colonial war for oil resources in a post colonial period. European imperial powers learned that their conquests cost more than benefits accrued through sustained occupation. Their colonies were dumped mainly after WW!!. when they realized, losing money, that their imperialism became inverted. Last colonial war fought by the US was the Spanish American War.. US learned quickly it could not crush Cuban independence and got out. More years later the US departed the Philippines with the help of volcano ash suddenly covering Clark Air Force Base and outrageous lease demands for naval facilities at Subic Bay by the Filipinos. Puerto Rican remains a US possession from the war as a self governing commonwealth under the US territorial clause. The US is prepared to grant independence or statehood to the island,.but the majority of the Puerto Ricans want neither--in the last few years the Puerto Ricans demanded and closed the US Vieques/ Roosevelt Roads Naval complex - Puerto Rico provided some very brave servicemen for the US military over the years--five congressional medal winners, but this in no way can justify the continued, annual 17 billion dollar plus expenditure from the US treasury. No federal income tax is paid by Puerto Ricans living on the island. Another case of inverted imperialism when the conquered benefits more than the conquerer... As far as the ongoing US colonization of Iraq, Iraq expenditures by the US have already exceeded its value as an oil producing US colony. Except for the Kurds, do not expect the Sunnis and Shiites to accept the US yoke without continuing a costly long term insurgency.

Thirty seven US troops were killed in November as opposed to 38 killed in October. You have to figure statistically five times more were wounded with a little less than 50 per cent of those losing body parts, permanently impaired. The Iraq central government is still ineffective with little prospects for success. US oilmen and Israeli operatives are crawling all over Kurdistan to exploit it, while the Turks are shooting up parts of the country... Whether the surge is working now is academic nonsense, a moot point, but let GW Bush speciously define it as victory. With this definition, use it as an excuse to redeploy the troops elsewhere. GW Bush owes the American people bin Laden's head. If he does not collect it, the president with his "me-too" Republican Party is a fraud and electorally doomed--Colonel Robert E Bartos USA Ret