RE: Trump’s National Address…Truth or Lies? < click to read >
Russ writes:
I pretty much agree with you on your observations on “The Donald.” He does have an ego a mile wide. It recalls for me the old, old, RCA ad with the dog listening to its master’s voice. However, it is Trump listening to his own voice. This will be the downfall of him yet in not having properly guarded statements that just seem to come out spontaneously. For every positive action he takes, there is at least one other that beggars the mind to its Constitutional grounding. He just doesn’t have an educated foundation on Constitutional principles. He does need to have Congressional backing to turn his executive order actions into Congressional mandates that will be much more difficult to pull apart when the next White House occupier takes a seat.
As for Venezuela, I think that there are definite extenuating circumstances that I wish Pres. Trump would have a fireside chat with the American people. There are some really bad things going on with not only interference in our own elections, but for those world wide. Venezuela gives a crutch to Cuba for its continued existence with a supply of oil and their intelligence agencies work hand in hand with each other. There are the issues with harmful drugs being supplied (but Trump needs to clean out the house at the CIA for that to happen. Venezuela was able to cut into a transatlantic cable to monitor military communications, exposing EVERYTHING that the US military has done over the past 15 years. Venezuela is the hub for spreading marxist operations in the western hemisphere. I could go on, but that is probably enough to show that we need to somehow solve the issue with Venezuela.
You raise a very good point…since Trump is doing so much via Executive Order the next President or 2 or 3 can simply undo his dictates with their own. Just as Trump has undone many of Biden’s EO’s. Executive Orders were originally intended and used for how the federal government was administered. It has seriously changed since then…for the worse. Now they are more like “dictates”, “decrees”, or “edicts”…and it makes my mind wander to seeing it as presidents wielding absolute power. The kind of power that kings, emperors, and dictators have.
Congress is there for a reason…to pass laws on how to govern the country. It was intended for Congress to have to move slow…avoiding wild and/or swings in changes of law. That whole concept is intended to keep the US federal government from seizing too much power based on current political party in power. There is a difference between govern and administer.
What makes it tough is when we like certain Executive Orders, or the President giving them, vs not liking other Executive Orders, or the President giving them. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
Let’s talk Venezuela…they are a bad actor…absolutely. And there are issues there that are quite disturbing. However, we in the US keep talking about principles, ethics, morals, God, and holding ourselves above the maddening international crowd. But, there are moral equivalents. Examples: If we don’t want people messing with our elections…then we don’t mess with theirs.
Consider this…let’s say Venezuela saw an airplane coming from the US to Venezuela and they claimed (without providing proof/evidence) there was a palette of cash onboard that came from the sale of cartel drugs in the US…and the pilots were American and there were 6 American passengers on board. The Venezuelan military sees it and sends a fighter jet to intercept…and they shoot down the plane killing everyone onboard. What would the reaction be of the US, especially under Trump?
The right thing to do would be for the Venezuelan military to track the plane, the Venezuelan police to arrest everyone when the plane landed, verify the evidence, then put them on trial or send them back to the US for trial. Yes? Moral equivalent.
The NSA and the CIA monitor every electronic communication of every military in the world…and foreign diplomats and their governments’ officials. Yes? Is there an exception in morals and ethics for what the US does vs Venezuela (or any other country)does? Consider this: if we don’t want to be spied on then we shouldn’t spy on others. Moral equivalent.
“But we are righteous and good…we never abuse our spying!” Ah, think about that for a minute. Our covert operations are no better, no more righteous than any other country’s. You know enough about history to know that statement is true…simply review Iran/Contra or hundreds of other operations. We can’t expect one type of behavior towards us when we are doing covert operations against others.
Now, do we need to deal Venezuela? Yes. But we need to do it legally and morally. If the boats have drugs onboard…seize the boat when it gets into US waters, arrest the crew, put them on trial, and carry out any sentence if they are found guilty. Our military blowing them up, killing people in the water struggling to not drown is evil. Even during wartime the policy was never to intentionally kill Japanese or German sailors clinging to their ships, boats, and subs as they tried not to drown.
Drug problem in the US; 1) almost 20% of US citizens are addicted to illegal drugs, 2) there are between 80,000 – 100,000 drug overdose death per year. So drugs and drug addiction kill. As for me and our US drug problem…I think we should re-institute the death penalty. Drug dealers in the US, including the mules, should be eligible for the death penalty; actually, the default sentence. Their trial should take place within 30 days of arrest, a 60-day appeal window, then sentence is carried out. Let’s handle the drug problem within the legal system…not have our military blow them up and kill any survivors. It may sound like instant justice and justifiable…but it isn’t…it is murder and cannot be justified in a civil society. We have to be better than that.
As for the Venezuelan oil tankers…yikes! The oil sanctions were put into place by the US (and some other countries) based on claims of Venezuelan human rights abuses and government corruption. So there are no international laws driving that move that I am aware of. So if the sanctions were based on international law then the seizing of the tankers is legal. But, there is a trap here the way we are doing it…or potentially even if it is done via international law.
What if a group of countries put sanctions on the US for human rights abuses and government corruption. I mean, come on, like our federal government can’t be shown to be corrupt on any given day. And look at the US’s human rights abuses over the years. Let’s look at one very blatant example…treatment of blacks during the voting rights and equal rights era…late 1950’s – early 1970’s. Another example would be the treatment of Vietnam War protestors…ruthlessly treated by law enforcement and shot to death by National Guardsmen. Could the international community look at those examples and call it human rights abuse? Of course they could.
So then what…we abide by intentional law, or a few country imposing sanctions, and stop exporting oil? And what would our reaction be if a country seized a US flagged oil tanker under those conditions? Again, especially if it was Trump. You know the answer to that.
What’s my answer? Stay home!!! Stay home, take care of our own problems, cure our own country’s illnesses, and defend our homes, defend our borders, defend our families, defend our freedoms and liberties, clean up our political corruption…and let other countries handle their own business. Stop interfering with all these other countries!!!!!
Simple, we don’t want other countries screwing around with our way of life…we need to stop screwing around with theirs.
Yes, the exception would be something along the lines of WW2…then we get involved. Other than something at the scale…what actual “right” do we have to interfere with other countries…especially their wars? Remember where rights come from.
Yes, deal with Venezuela…absolutely. But lets do so like a moral and righteous people…not like a bunch of high-handed, better-than-thou bullies and killers.
And no, I don’t care about them being a “Marxist Hub”…they are not our real enemy until they cross our borders and attack us. To us, a democracy, are we to consider them an enemy? To them, a Marxist country, are they to consider us an enemy? We must be a moral and righteous people and country; otherwise will God cast us off?
Consider this: did the world pass a law making the USA the international police, or the guardians of morality, or to set the standard for all other governments to live by? No. And we, as a country, are not entitled to assume those powers or roghts…otherwise are we not like any other empire that has tried to rule the world?
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