From The Emails 081508

A Man who would have made a good President

Hey folks,

It is FINIALLY Friday. One more day to go for me and I get a bit of a break. Sunday is my Birthday, so I'm looking forward to friends and family joining me and, well, a little Vacation I need so desperately. But fret not. I WILL be here.

Since it is Friday, it's time to go to the Emails. I truly believe that Fred Thompson would have made a good President. He has the potential of becoming a GREAT President. What happened? My guess is as good as yours. He got in to late? He did not have the Millions to keep up with the others? The Mainstreme Media would not give him the time of day? Who knows. But THIS is an example of what I mean. Here is what he has to say about the Russia / Georgia War, and the state of Foreign Affairs in general. Why We NEED a STRONG Leader.

Dangerous Times In Georgia Demand Serious Leadership

My mind goes back to August 2002 in Tbilisi, as I visited Georgia with John McCain. I remember it feeling rather dark and secretive, with the former-Soviet Union’s heavy hand still making its presence felt. President Eduard Shevardnadze, formerly Soviet minister of foreign affairs, presented a friendlier face to the United States, but was beset by economic problems and corruption charges. At the time I did not fully appreciate the power of the democratic impulses that were just beginning to bubble up and would lead to the democratic Georgian government we now see threatened.

What has happened in Georgia since that time should not be surprising to anyone. Certainly Russia has tried to pretty itself up: it renamed the KGB and even gave its 21st century strongman Vladimir Putin a new title.

But for some time we’ve seen Russia sliding back to its authoritarian comfort zone. Murder, imprisonment and property confiscation are back in vogue for any perceived troublemaker. Former Soviet provinces have faced all forms of intimidation, from thuggish trade shakedowns to cyber attacks that shut down communications with the outside world. And whether a former satellite like Poland or a longtime western ally like Germany, Russia has made overt threats over plans to bring eastern European countries into NATO or to deploy a U.S.-provided missile defense system.

Russia is not above using anything at its disposal to make its point. It is a wealthy nation, built on a petro-economy that provides oil and gas to dependent European nations, which are petrified of having their energy supplies disrupted and are now in their own economic doldrums.

Given all this, Russia’s incursion into Georgia is a logical extension of Putin’s autocratic words and deeds and Russia’s regional ambitions, which must be leaving those nations closest to Russia’s borders – the Baltic states and Ukraine – nervous about a bitter and uneasy winter.

All the while, in Eastern Europe some of America’s staunchest friends are watching to see what the reaction of the U.S. and the west will be to Russia’s latest gambit. The U.S. and others use the word “unacceptable,” undoubtedly with the same effect that we get when we use it with the Iranians. So do we threaten Russia with denial of the membership in the World Trade Organization that it so covets? Do we expedite Georgia and the Ukraine’s entry into NATO? Do we cut off the tens of millions that we send into Russia to – hopefully – provide for security of nuclear materials? Everything should be on the table.

But the one thing we must not do is allow Russia to feel it can get away with, let alone feel rewarded for, this invasion of a sovereign democratic nation that has also loyally supported coalition efforts in Iraq.

While this crisis plays out we should also note that these events give evidence of a larger reality: the next American President is going to face an international landscape that is more difficult and treacherous than we have ever faced. By now most Americans appreciate the dangers of international terrorism and the fact that a small number of people can wreck unimaginable havoc upon our country and our people if they get their hands on the right kinds of weaponry. What is less understood is that some of the older, traditional kinds of threats are still very much with us, only heightened because of the increasing availability of nuclear weapons and other weapon technologies.

Who wasn’t impressed by the sea of Chinese performers, smiling and perfectly synchronized at the opening ceremony of the summer Olympics, demonstrating to the world their discipline and “organizational skills”? Or their ability to present to TV viewers beautiful fireworks displays that don’t really exist? What isn’t an illusion is that China is engaged in a rapid military buildup, the extent of which we do not know. With hundreds of missiles pointed toward Taiwan, experts say China is developing the capability to take Taiwan before the U. S. has the ability to respond.

Pakistan and India are still belligerently staring each other down over Kashmir. Both countries, of course, have nuclear arsenals, and Pakistan is of questionable stability with a segment of its intelligence community supportive of the Taliban.

The Iranian nuclear threat proceeds apace.

Link

Welcome to reality folks. He nailed it. A lot different than singing Kumbaya, and hoping the rest of the World joins in, don't you think?
Peter

Note: "From The Emails" is a weekly segment in the Friday edition of the OPNtalk Blog. If you care to send in News Articles, Comments, Stories, or anything else you may wish to share, please feel free to send it to opntalk@netscape.net As always, you never know what you are going to see here.

I HAVE to Share This Article.

Hey folks,

A friend of ours here at the OPN , Joe, sent me this article from World Net daily -Media fear of Fred Thompson By Melanie Morgan

Can you see it? Can you feel it? The excitement over Fred Thompson's potential candidacy for president is capturing the imagination of conservatives across the nation.

The "Run Fred Run" phenomenon is important to talk about not because of Thompson himself, but more because of what it says concerning the mood of this nation and the public's frustration with a lack of leadership in both the conservative movement and the Republican Party.

ABSOLUTELY!!

The allure of a Thompson for President campaign is even evident among some Reagan Democrats who are weighing in on the blogs – and feeling the heat from their liberal colleagues for even considering the notion of crossing party lines.

There is a really BIG fear of this right now. One The Dems are trying to please their LWL {Left Wing Looney} base. However, by doing so, the REAL Democrats are starting to loose faith in their own party. Although the LWL is tiny, regardless of what they tell you, they are well funded and well organized. The will attempt to shut down, intimidate, or silence these TRUE Democrats if the go too far. As we have seen time and time again. They eat their own. You go against them, they will destroy you.

They truly fear someone like Reagan bringing some of these SANE and reasonable Dems to the "Dark Side." To a lot of people, Thompson seems closer to a true Conservative than all the rest right now.

Unlike the current crop of declared Republican and Democrat candidates, who have spent years plotting and scheming about how they could win their way to the White House, Fred Thompson is truly being drafted to run by people who are sick of abandoned principles and lack of a moral center.

When moments like this occur, occupants of the political and media establishment seem to shudder with convulsions. It ain't pretty, but it isn't surprising.

Vogel's column in The Politico should be the canary in the coalmine for Republicans. Why? Because it demonstrates the current crop of Republican presidential candidates haven't figured out that their problem is not Fred Thompson's potential candidacy. The problem they should be addressing is the failure of the current candidates to connect with the American electorate.

WELL said.

Fred Thompson's campaign would not even be a blip on the radar screen if not for the fact millions are fretting about our current choices for the White House.

Columbia University journalism professor and Washington Post columnist Richard Cohen has demonstrated the media establishment's discomfort with the Thompson boomlet as well.

Writing an op-ed piece titled, "We Knew Both, And Thompson Is No Reagan,"

"If Thompson's name came up in some sort of free association game, he would be a genuine stumper: Thompson and what? There is no Thompson Act, Thompson Compromise, Thompson Hearing, Thompson Speech or Thompson Anything that comes to mind. No living man can call himself a Thompsonite. … Instead, Thompson came and went from the Senate as if he was never there, leaving only the faint scent of ennui."

What a pity Fred Thompson doesn't have more to show for his time in the Senate! Let's see, what are the members of this current Congress best known for?

John McCain, Ted Kennedy and Jon Kyl are the co-authors of the current amnesty-for-illegal-aliens bill under deliberation. That piece of legislation is a real political winner. The shamnesty bill is killing Sen. McCain's presidential aspirations, driving down Ted Kennedy's approval ratings within the Democrat Party, and has ignited a backlash against Sen. Kyl in his home state of Arizona.

Would it please the members of the old-line media if Thompson had made a name for himself authoring such a piece of legislation?

I suspect it would, only because they are too stupid to see what everyone else in America recognizes – no one wants the damn bill.

The other major item under consideration by Congress is the war on terrorism.

Perhaps Richard Cohen and the whiny Washington wonks in the press bureaus would be happier if Fred Thompson were better known for telling our troops in Iraq that they had "lost." That's what Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has become famous for. Gee, I wonder why Sen. Reid's approval ratings are now at 19 percent. Hard to figure, huh?

{Laughing hard}

Instead, Fred Thompson has ignited a fury of interest in his potential candidacy because since leaving office he has spoken articulately on the issues of illegal immigration (he wants to stop it) and the war on terrorism (he's determined to win it).

Thompson's plainspoken candor and basic conservative principles have led many to see similarities between him and Ronald Reagan.

That comparison irks those who are predisposed not to like Thompson. But there is something insincere about the Thompson-bashing that's going on.

Consider this assessment offered of Ronald Reagan's candidacy during his first term:

"But in a somewhat larger sense, the president seems to cast no shadow. It is true that he has an economic program and some startling congressional victories to prove it, but Wall Street, not to mention Main Street, has not seemed to notice. There is next to no confidence in the program, no sense, say, that things would be worse if there was no Reagan program. It just does not seem to matter."

If those words used to describe Reagan sound similar to the words being used to critique Fred Thompson, they should.

Both of those passages I've cited were written by Richard Cohen in his columns – 25 years apart.

Right now Fred Thompson's candidacy is like a Rorschach inkblot.

People see what they want to see, and time will tell if Thompson is the kind of conservative leader many of us are hoping for.

But it speaks well of Fred Thompson that the best arguments his critics can come up with are the same tired and hollow complaints they lodged against Ronald Reagan a quarter of a century ago.

As is most of the Liberal talking points, "tired and hollow," lacking any actual fact or substance. I just had to share this with you folks, GREAT article. Thank you again Joe.
Peter