A Return to Basics - Stan Henning

Our country needs to include civics (the interaction of civil and military affairs) in the education system of our country nationwide as soon as possible. It is crucial to survival of our nation. We are sadly lacking in this field which, if taken seriously, will help develop citizens who will be more in tune with the serious issues  that can make or break our wonderful nation. We need people who, in situations of extreme danger, will be willing to make decisions  favoring our national interests as opposed to the preferences of monied interests who manage to get people elected, expecting that that those they have supported will support actions that, in actuality, serve foreign interests and fail to serve US national interests. If we don't get this straight soon we will go the way of Greece and Rome and become history. Wake up fellow Americans and focus on the realities of international politics.

An example of what this means is - don't try to declare "Victory" in Iraq. Instead, tell the Iraqi's that real victory will only be realized if Iraqi's focus on doing the right thing to include acceptance of multiethnic participation. Final "victory" lies with Iraqi's, not Americans. Admittedly, we have expended our resources so Iraqi's might find a better way, but that better way is their responsibility.

Actually, the same applies to Afghanistan - if the present government cannot manage and the Tailiban takes over and follows its established path, to include supporting Al Qaida, then we may be forced to level the place, which will actually be more easily accomplished than the approach we are taking now. 

We need to be more realistic, preserve our own resources, and quit following paths that drain our resources and cannot succeed. And we need to re-look our education system and attempt to instill a sense of responsibility that seeks to do what is right for our country as opposed to the desires of monied interests. This will likely require us to find a better way to support our electoral process as well, to include reconsidering the recent Supreme Court decision that overturned a ban on using corporate cash to finance political ads.

 Stan Henning

 

 

Comments

[walrus]

Stan, we are in furious agreement, but it maybe too late to do this the "easy" way you propose. I think I am not alone in believing that the moneyed interests would regard an informed and articulate general populace as a threat and any attempt to create one as a declaration of war.

[William R. Cumming]

I hope everyone understands that Pakistan's nuclear weapons status is of absolutely no use as 1/5 of the country is flooded and damaged perhaps for centuries. In fact the weapons stockpile will in fact slow the relief effort. It also is of interest that Pakistan is seeking outside assistance. China with largescale flooding also is seeking none. Not sure of the significance but of interest. How much effort of all the US billions invested in Pakistan over te years has been put into domestic civil response and recovery systems in Pakistan. I now have several friends with PhD expert in natural disaster response and recovery and mitigation that are in or on their way to China hired by the Chinese for developing long term civil crisis managment systems. It may not happen bu then again as another administration here fails to do the same it seems quite remarkable to me. Obama is clearl unlucky. He got the BP catastrophe and others. Well if he gets the "Big one" in California or something similiar don't ask why the US effort looks like Pakistan's. Did you know the Chinese imprisoned several officals responsible for ignoring seismic safety for schools after the Sichuan Earthquake?

[lina]

". . .to include reconsidering the recent Supreme Court decision that overturned a ban on using corporate cash to finance political ads."

This will now require a Constitutional amendment. Good luck with that.

[MRW]

William R. Cumming,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (Hong Kong) issued a statement on Sunday;

It has been reported earlier that the US Air Force has denied the relief agencies use of the Shahbaz airbase for the distribution of aid and assistance. Soldiers of the Pakistan army, a federal minister and the administration of Sindh province are blamed for the incident involving Shahbaz Airbase at Jacobabad district in Sindh province in which it has been reported that flood waters were diverted in order to save the airbase. The diversion of the floodwaters is blamed for inundating hundreds of houses and the displacement of 800,000 people. According to the media reports, the Federal Minister of Sports along with soldiers from the army and a contingent of officials from the Sindh provincial government breached the Jamali Bypass in Jafferabad district of Balochistan province during the night between August 13 and 14 to divert the water entering the airbase which has remained in US Air Force hands since the war on terror started in 2001.

Mr. Ejaz Jakhrani, the Minister of Sports, while explaining the situation to the media said that if the water was not diverted the Shahbaz Airbase would have been inundated. Mr. Jakhrani himself was present along with the district coordination officer of the Jacobabad district, district police officer and other officials when the breach was made. It is reported in the media that Mr. Jakhrani was assigned to protect the air base by officials at the Pakistan army’s headquarter as he was elected from Jacobabad district.

A former prime minister, Mr. Mir Zafar Ullah Khan Jamali said that in order to save Shahbaz Air Base, Jamali bypass was demolished and the town of Dera Allahyar was drowned. Mr. Jamali said that if the airbase was so important, then what priority might be given to the citizens. He blamed minister Jakhrani, DPO and DCO Jacobabad for deliberately diverting the course of the floodwaters towards Balochistan.

The rest of the statement is here:
http://www.ahrchk.net/statements/mainfile.php/2010statements/2755/

[Fred]

The rights of corporations as 'persons' should be overridden. Congress made them, not God.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corporate_personhood

[graywolf]

Just who are the "monied interests"?
All those 401K's make well over 50% of the work force members of the investor class.
Maybe, just maybe, our country is really going down the drain led by the parasitic inside-the-beltway political class.
As for Iraq it's future is not tied all that closely to our well being.

[Grimgrin]

graywolf:

http://www.demos.org/inequality/images/charts/dist_usstock_thumb.gif

http://www.demos.org/inequality/images/charts/dist_uswealth_thumb.gif

The two big slices that say "Top 1%" and "Next 9%" are what people are talking about when they say "monied interests", the small minority that controls most of the wealth in the country.

Hope this helps clear up any confusion on that point.

[Frabjous]

"The rights of corporations as 'persons' should be overridden"

The really sick thing is that the concept of corporation as person was introduced into US law through an obiter dictum or clerk's note, to the Santa Clara county vs. Southern Pacific Railway case, in 1886 (the shite has been accreting ever since). A consitutional challenge can/should be mounted against obiter dicta in general and its utilization in the aforementioned case in particular.

Mark

[graywolf]

Grimgrin:
Are those numbers households or individuals?
Given the name of the website, I'm not confident of it's factual value.

[Grimgrin]

Households.

Fair enough. The figures may be wrong, and I did get them from a source with an axe to grind.

https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/fields/2172.html

Here's the CIA's measure of the GINI index. Now this measures income inequality rather than wealth but it's the same basic point.

[Fred]

Greywolf,

I'm an investor, just like Bill Gates, the Walton family (Walmart), David Koch, John Puason etc. and the rest of the 'investor class'? Boy do I feel empowered. Somehow I think they get better access and advice, which he can certainly afford, than I do. I'm sure that I and the 50% of the workforce can each individually negotiate with Fidelity/Vanguard etc? Our purchasing power versus thiers? Get real.

When pension funds were 'over funded' in the '80s the 'excess' was given to wall street. Now when pension funds are under funded wall street demands relief. That is IF you have a pension plan as corporate leadership demanded movement out of defined pension plans into 401Ks, without providing adequate compensation to employees

Here's a little trip down memory lane:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cash_balance_plan
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/01/06/business/main1182706.shtml
http://www.pionline.com/article/20070122/PRINTSUB/701220715

My heart bleeds for the sacred rich. Lets start taxing thier stock trades for a change. That would put an end to market volatility quick. I wonder how soon we could pay off the national debt with a 1% tax?

[Lt Col Bob Foessett, USAF (Ret)]

Stan: You are right on all counts. Back in 1997 when I attended Brookings for APCSS (I worked with you) the panel concluded that by 2020, internal and external forces would pit us against another superpower that would likely supersede American dominance militarily and perhaps economically. Stan, I enjoyed our time together and wish I was back in Oahu. Currently in Las Vegas and hope you are doing well.