I heard it on…Princess Bride?
October 4, 2008 by Aspen Eggimann · 1 Comment
“Do you always begin conversations this way?”
The most humorous conversations are peppered with quotes from the classic movie Princess Bride. If you haven’t seen it, stop reading and go watch it. Like any good classic it gets better and more applicable each time seen.
What can we learn from this classic? Let me point out a few lessons that I think fit perfectly with our times.
1. When I hear our presidential candidates use the word “change” every couple of minutes, unfailingly Indigo’s voice comes into my head saying, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.”
Change is not being in Afghanistan versus Iraq, or visa versa. It is getting out of foreign nations we shouldn’t be in.
Change in education is not working on “No Child Left Behind” as was suggested in the VP Debate. Change would be getting the Federal Government out of education and and giving that power back to the parents and states.
2. As for the bailout just passed in Congress;
“Think it will work?”
“It would take a miracle.”
One senator, after changing his vote to yes on the economic bailout, said that the fear on Wall Street was going to affect Main Street.
Maybe it is time that Wall Street be afraid.
As a nation we cannot continue on in our current economic situation. We have become a nation that consumes more than it creates, spends more then it earns, and takes more then it gives.
Wall Street does affect Main Street, so let us start the process of changing our economic strategies as a nation. Having the government there to catch business when it falls only prolongs and extenuates the long range problems we will face.
3. Longfellow said our nation was a “ship of state” and that all humanity hung upon its fate. If that is the case where is the watchmen crying, “Look! The cliffs of insanity!”
4. I always get a funny feeling when I hear someone in government make statements about easing the burdens of the American people, having the government look out for the middle class and defending the common workers of America. For as the Dread Pirate Roberts said, “Life is pain… Anyone who says otherwise is selling something.”
It is human nature to tend to fall into a trap of wanting things to be easier, to not have to think about problems and to let someone else do the dirty work for us. But it is better to do the work then buy up the services of the government and let it run our lives.
In closing, “Let me explain — no there is to much — let me sum up.”
First, understand that the current debates between presidential candidates are not about change in policy; they are about change in approach.
Second, as uncertain as the future of our economy is right now, “bailouts” aren’t going to help. Ronald Reagan once said that you can talk to a child until you’re blue in the face about spending — or you can cut their allowance. Giving more money isn’t going to cure the mismanagement of it. Our $700 billion dollars is only a band aid on a gaping wound.
Third, lets listen to people who are telling us we are headed towards disaster.
Fourth, now is the time to reclaim the responsibility of self-governance and watch over our nation and communities. Lets stop abdicating our responsibility to others in exchange for convenience.
And next time you watch Princess Bride, think about government — I promise you’ll learn a lot.
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Copyright © 2008 by The Cause of Liberty. All rights reserved.
A Statesman’s Solution To Terrorism
October 2, 2008 by Stephen Palmer · Leave a Comment
While the neo-conservative “solution” of war-imposed “democracy” continues to fail and bankrupt America, former Congressman and UN Ambassador Mark Siljander has been quietly, yet steadily, building bridges of love, tolerance, peace, and understanding in the Middle East.
His new book, A Deadly Misunderstanding: A Congressman’s Quest to Bridge the Muslim-Christian Divide, offers hope and genuine reconciliation between cultures and religions and answers to centuries-old conflicts.
An experienced statesman at home and abroad, Mr. Siljander serves on the Board of George Wythe University. In this revelatory book he recounts his amazing spiritual odyssey from anti-Muslim Christian conservative to pioneer in discovering uncharted, ground-breaking common roots between Islam and Christianity, while trailblazing a unique diplomatic path for bringing the two communities together.
This is not just another book; there are many interesting books filling our shelves. Nor is it an academic thesis or political agenda. This story inspires hope in our increasingly desperate world, uncovering compelling common ground for followers of these two super-power religions.
“No Christian or Muslim will be unaffected after reading this book. Siljander’s paradigm-shifting discoveries could radically shift the contemporary religious landscape and help heal the rift between Islam and the West.” -Christianbook.com
At our root are basic misunderstandings of concepts like “religion” and “conversion.” Siljander breaks down and re-assembles these concepts through study of the ancient Semitic languages of both religions, making paradigm-shifting discoveries that unite rather than divide us. His findings are drawn from twenty-seven years of study and practice in a real life journey. Wherever he and his praying partners travel among Muslim nations, the outcome of their quiet diplomacy is respect, trust, love of friends and enemies, and significant real-world breakthroughs in crisis situations of which few are aware.
His book offers explosive models based on ancient truths, proven to powerfully affect people, conflicts, countries, and potentially change cultures. This is the kind of “change” future presidents must strive for. This seemingly implausible path to peace dismantles the engine of terror without firing a single shot.
Click here to learn more and to purchase your copies now. Readers are encouraged to purchase copies on October 7th, which is the official release date of the book.
“Rumors indicate that the Siljander book … has angered … the influential ‘war lobby’ depending on decades of religious conflict.” -Veterans Today
About the Author
Mr. Siljander represented Michigan for fifteen years, which includes three terms as a Member of the United States Congress, where he served on the International Relations Middle East Subcommittee and was Ranking Member of the Africa Subcommittee. He was the primary sponsor of the African Famine Relief Act. Mark was later appointed by President Reagan as a US Ambassador (Alt. Delegate) to the United Nations in New York, where he served as a member of the Middle East and Africa Strategy Group of permanent representatives.
Ambassador Siljander is a student of several languages, including Chinese, Spanish, Arabic, Aramaic, and Hebrew, and has spent over ten years studying the three Holy Books of the Abrahamic faiths. With over 26 years serving in the power circles of Washington and semi-official travel to nearly 130 countries, he has generated unique opportunities for frequent access to world leaders. These experiences have led him to develop a unique paradigm for the peaceful resolution of conflict that has been successfully applied in several challenging areas of the globe.
Mark Siljander reinforces his conflict resolution efforts through regular travel overseas with Congressional and high-level delegations.
Purchase your copy now to get on the cutting edge of the Middle East conflict and find real solutions to terrorism.
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Conquering the World; Losing Our Soul
September 17, 2008 by Stephen Palmer · 8 Comments
“For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?” -Mark 8:36
Let me get this straight — we’re spending $12 billion a month to tame Iraq, while our own financial infrastructure is crumbling and we’re adding AIG’s blunders to our credit card to the tune of $85 billion?!
Our military is deployed in over 150 countries (out of 195 total countries), with more than 369,000 of our nearly 1.4 million active-duty troops serving outside the United States.
Meanwhile, the standard of living for those in the bottom 10% of our population was lower here than other developed nations except the United Kingdom, which has the lowest standard of living for impoverished children in the developed world. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2001 the bottom quarter of families in the United States had zero net worth. The bottom 90% of families had less than 20% of the net wealth, and the top 10% owned 80.7% of all the net wealth.
The wealthiest man in America, Bill Gates, has more wealth than the bottom 45% of American households combined.
In 2001 our annual military expenditures were $333 billion. The requested figure for 2009 currently stands at $706 billion. We’ve increased our military expenditures an average of 8.775% per year since 2001. Add that to the facts that America’s military expenses represent 48% of the entire military spending around the world. All of Europe combined represents 20%, with a 2008 bill of $289 billion. China comes in third with $122 billion, representing 8% of the world’s military funding.
One country, representing 4.56% of the world’s population and 7% of the globe’s land mass, accounts for almost half of all military spending.
“Of all the enemies to public liberty war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes … known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few.… No nation could preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare.” -James Madison
Meanwhile, the total federal debt burden is $52.7 trillion, with your share of that being $175,000. The sum of America’s unfunded liabilities and unfunded, off-the-balance sheet entitlement promises currently exceeds three times the size of the entire U.S. economy. Health care costs are more than twice as high per capita in the United States as in the rest of the developed world. Half of America’s youth in urban areas and 30% of all young Americans do not graduate from high school.
And on top of all of that, our culture is rotting like a corpse. There are more outlets for hard-core pornography in the United States than McDonald’s restaurants. The Wall Street Journal estimated that total revenues from pornography during 2001 was likely between $10-20 billion, which means that it exceeds revenues for any professional sport. We’re kissing sewage and we like it, to borrow from a degenerate hit song by Katy Perry.
And need I mention anything about our failed education system?
Can somebody PLEASE tell me why we think we’re morally superior enough to spread our brand of “democracy” across the globe? Can somebody please tell me that I’m dreaming? Can somebody please tell me how to stop the madness?
Are we consoling ourselves by saying that although we have our problems, we’re still better than the rest of the world? Is that really how we measure our success — by freedom and prosperity relative to countries who don’t even have a fighting chance at what we have? Shouldn’t we measure ourselves against a better scale — what we could and should be relative to the legacy we’ve been given?
What will America be profited if we gain the whole world and lose our own soul?
Move the Cause of Liberty by (1) subscribing to the Sentinel, a free weekly newsletter boldly illuminating the principles of freedom in a darkening nation, and (2) pledging your Life, Liberty, and Sacred Honor to the Cause by signing the Declaration of Dependence.
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Copyright © 2008 by The Cause of Liberty. All rights reserved.
Growing, or Dying?
August 26, 2008 by Adam Hailstone · 5 Comments
Al-Qaida’s Post-Iraq Strength
Make no mistake — the “surge” is working. US combat deaths are at their lowest levels since the beginning of the occupation. Political steps are being made. Iraqi police and military forces are improving. Locals are rising up against terrorists.
Although I was against the war in the first place, in part for the same reasons Dick Cheney was against going into Baghdad during Desert Storm, I feel that leaving, after stirring up the hornet’s nest, would make the Iraqi people victims of not only Saddam’s regime, but another. We should not walk away now.
However the long term goal is not just a politically free and prosperous Iraq, as good as that may be, but winning the war on terror. Despite US gains, a major debate in political and military circles is whether or not al-Qaida is becoming stronger or weaker.
A Shift in Focus
The subgroup al-Qaida in Iraq (AQI) has definitely seen its setbacks, with increased coalition troop levels and a backlash from Sunni populations that used to support the terrorist organization. However disturbing trends and parallels have arisen recently that make us question our real progress.
Many leaders and recruits of AQI have been leaving the Iraq war zone for Afghanistan and the mountainous/tribal regions of Pakistan. This sounds like a retreat. However they have not stopped fighting. They have taken it to another place where US troops are stationed. There, they are making new gains.
AQI trained fighters are the most experienced of al-Qaida’s forces. They have designed more powerful IED’s and more lethal suicide-bombing than ever seen before. They are the most ruthless and pitiless fighters in the world. Most of all they have experience fighting the best military on the planet, US troops.
Now that they are regrouping in a relative “safe haven,” tribal Pakistan, they can continue testing their arsenal against us. This is not good in terms of the Afghanistan front, even if NATO leadership can convince member nations to commit troops for an Afghan version of the surge. With the added benefit of a retreat into a politically volatile Pakistan, and with the experience of Iraq behind them, al-Qaida will have their best in Afghanistan to fight NATO at every turn.
Jihad Parallels
According to the Koran a Jihad is justified in two circumstances. One, a “defensive Jihad” when a Muslim country is being attacked, then all “believers” must seek to defend it. The second can be read, and is by most extremists, as the justification of un-provoked attacks against non-Muslims. However the first is seen, by most Muslims, as more acceptable.
In 1978 the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. Many Muslims, believing in the principle of Jihad, left their homelands and joined the effort to repel the Russian occupation. One of these was Asama bin Laden. By the time this war was over in 1988, bin Laden and many of his fellow fighters formed al-Qaida with the vision of overthrowing all Muslim nations that did not have a “Taliban style” theocratic government. The strategy was to attack the west and then Muslim nations with pro-western governments would slowly fall apart as the west retreated from their support.
Although we have seen the opposite response from many western nations, the US invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan has inspired a new Jihad with thousands of recruits coming from around the world. Just like bin Laden and his comrades once did. However this time there is a complex and well funded organization to welcome them.
On August 12 of this year a US National Intelligence Officer (NIO), Ted Gistaro, reported:
“…al-Qaida is identifying, training, and positioning operatives for attacks in the West, likely including in the United States. These operatives include North American and European citizens and legal residents with passports that allow them to travel to the United States without a U.S. visa.
“Al-Qaida’s ability to establish and manage links to other affiliated terrorist groups and facilitation networks is a key indicator of its organizational health. These links help bolster its operational and propaganda reach”.
The adage “if we fight them over there, they will be less likely to fight us here” may be true for now, but that very fight is creating a new group of fighters. Once we leave, like the Soviets did, even with a free and prospering Iraq, a new group of 9-11 type terrorists will be plotting further attacks against the United States and its allies.
Losing in Iraq, Consolidating Elsewhere
Ted Gistaro also reported:
In September 2006, al-Qaida consolidated jihadist forces in North Africa under its banner by merging Algerian and later Libyan terrorist groups into al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM). AQIM has continued to focus on Algerian government targets…since the merger, AQIM has conducted at least eight attacks against Western interests in the region, including two simultaneous suicide car bomb attacks in Algiers in December — including one against the UN building that killed nearly seventy people. AQIM is training growing numbers of operatives from every country in the Maghreb and the Sahel.
In Saudi Arabia, authorities continue to detain al-Qaida linked extremists…Yemen is rapidly reemerging as a jihadist battleground and potential base of operations. A March mortar attack against the U.S. embassy and two attacks against the president’s compound in late-April underscore the al-Qaeda threat there.
These reports, and many more like them that stretch from Morocco to Indonesia, show that al-Qaida is organizing and becoming more powerful. I do not believe we can, or should, invade each of these nation-states.
My Question for You
Though we are seeing success in Iraq and have not had a Jihadist terrorist attack in the United States since September 11, 2001, we are seeing the terrorist organization responsible for that attack spreading. In future posts I will go into more detail on what I think the US strategy should be. However, please give us your thoughts below on what you think the US strategy should be in the war on terror. Let’s get a conversation going.
Move the Cause of Liberty by (1) subscribing to the Sentinel, a free weekly newsletter boldly illuminating the principles of freedom in a darkening nation, and (2) pledging your Life, Liberty, and Sacred Honor to the Cause by signing the Declaration of Dependence.
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Copyright © 2008 by The Cause of Liberty. All rights reserved.
Smart Foreign Policy
August 23, 2008 by Stephen Palmer · 4 Comments
I’m not sure who this guy is, but he’s got some really great ideas for a sensible foreign policy. Some think tank should track him down and hire him.
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