ArtCatDom
Posts: 478
Joined: 1/20/2005
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ORIGINAL: DelightMachine
Art, if we recognized Russia and China rather than invaded them, that was because we had sense enough not to engage in nuclear war. It's an apples-to-oranges comparison you're making, OK, buddy? Also, I notice that the left has become much more critical of Russia and China the more capitalist those countries have become. No coincidence.
It's apples to apples. We still enforce the embargo on Cuba as though the Cold War didn't end over a decade ago. We are still using Cold War policies. I hear surprisingly little criticism of Russia despite the fact that they are renationalizing numerous industries and that the remnants of the KGB have utterly infected the "new" government. The only time we push back on China for its human rights abuses is in stump speeches and when the "liberal" media grabs on to a "good story". If it's OK to look the other way for these countries and to assert its ok to have normalized relations because the Cold War is over, it's nothing but base hypocracy to continue our policies in the Americas based on Cold War premises.
And I agree with you on one thing at least: The left makes it seem like having profit motive is akin to planning a child prostitution ring.
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I'm trying to unravel where the morality is supposed to lie here. If you slaughter your own people, that's supposed to be all right if they don't struggle against you, but if the U.S. intervenes to remove these regimes it's "utterly unacceptable and unethical." Actually, there are people who have struggled against Castro. Many of them are in jail. Others had to escape on boats. They come to America and your fellow lefties call them nuts.
Quickly, I'm not a leftie. I've no desire for a nanny state. Politicians do not know how to take care of me better than I do. I'm certainly no rightie either. I've no desire for a police state. Politicians can't be trusted to follow basic campaign rules, let alone be trusted to watchdog broad sweeping police powers.
Oh come on now, I know you can read better than that. I didn't say that invading to depose despots was necessary immoral. I said suppressing resistance to despots is "utterly unacceptable and unethical". Preventing democratic and republican reform because we don't like the popular sentiments is vile.
Some anti-Castro people are absolutely out of their gourd. A lot of them are just foul, like those dirty SOBs who used Elian in a game of political football. We've harbored quite a number of Cuban dissident terrorists over the years. To Gee Dubya's credit, during his term we've cracked down quietly but hard on arms smuggling and known vicious terrorists among the Cuban population in the States. To be sure though, Cuba is an oppressed country under dictatorial rule. I make no illusions Castro is a "good man".
By the by, my comment about their vaccine production was intended to be paired with Ven.'s oil capacity. These are cash strapped nations who despite all rhetoric would be more than grateful to participate in America's hungry market. Both are nicely located in areas easily defended by the US and involve significantly lower production and shipping costs than other sources. The routine vaccine shortages the US suffers would be heavily allieviated by Cuban medicines, which are proven to be cheap safe and effective. (As ironic as it may be, Cuba is among the most active nations in humanitarian work, particularly in the delivery of medicine and medical staff.)
Focusing more on South America for natural resources, especially oil, is of strategic importance I believe. In my *opinion*, better to fund some socialists than to fund the Wahabi and Salafist (Islamic fundies) Saudi Princes who fund the radical mosques throughout the Near East. Better to give the money to a filthy communist nation than to a country run by Sharia law like Saudi Arabia. It just makes sense to deal with countries with have much greater geographical and cultural ties to the United States. Secular Christian neighbors or fundementalist Islamic nations across the world ... doesn't seem like much of a difficult choice to me.
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And by the by Delight: F*@k you.
Thank you for the offer, Sweetheart, but I'm wearing a collar of consideration. You'll have to see my Mistress about that. I have to tell you that I'll be recommending to her that she refuse because you're just not my type.
Dang it, I'd thought I'd try some hot man on man action! ;)
More seriously, sorry but you really hit a nerve. Doubt my patriotism if you will, your perogative. But, to say I *hate* this country is of deep personal offense. I am very passionate about political issues because of my deep love for this country, warts and all. to say or imply I despise the States is a world away from the truth.
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I've bled in service to this country. Literally.
Sincerely, I thank you for your service.
I have no doubts of your sincerity, but no thanks are required. I served because I believed it was the right thing to do. Despite my experiences, I still believe it was the right thing to do. It made me a libertarian. It made me more aware of the world. It matured me. It made me very much appreciate the rights, priveleges and comforts most people take for granted.
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No, Art, it's not speaking out that's the duty. THINKING is the duty. That involves more than spouting off. You have a feeling that America is doing bad things in the world far in excess of the good. You actually do put forth reasons for that, and I give you credit for it, but they're not well-thought-out reasons. If you actually tried to approach the question of what's best for people in America and outside of it, without preconceptions, and started doing a little more thinking, I believe you'd be better off. I don't think you're stupid or completely closed minded. You do seem to come down against America all the time, though, and you've expressed no concern for this country's legitimate security needs. Sounds like hate to me.
Agreed, some thought needs to be invested. I disagree that my positions are not well thought out. They are exceedingly well considered.
However I do believe America has ventured down a path that is quite wrong. When we involve ourselves in conflicts like the conflict between Russia and Afghanistan, we need to follow through on our promises to help them rebuild and restore infrastructure. When we provide leadership and military training to Central and South Americans, we need to provide them with actual diplomatic and tactical training, not Orwellian propaganda and terrorism training. On the domestic side, behaving like the Bill of Rights actually exists would be a good start. That means if a church will marry a gay couple, there's not boo the government should be able to say about it. We need to stop criminalizing personal and interpersonal behavior (drug use, etc.) that's obstensibly protected by the 9th, 10th and 14th Amendments when all it does is create crime and makes the private prison industry rich. (The real addiction in the War on Drugs is the addiction to the War on Drugs funding so many agencies and police departments practically grovel for at times.)
What has America done right? We have (unless they fubar it & go for amnesty, again) one of the best immigration systems in the world. We have a low unemployment rate. The Fed has kept the economy remarkably balanced. Despite the sharply limited rights (compared to the Constitution's promises), we enjoy a remarkable freedom in the United States. The internet we're using right now was the baby of American military men and academics. The United States has some of the most advanced medical care available in the world. We have a justice system that while perverted by the influence of money is exceedingly fair in comparison with almost any court system on the planet. We toppled the Taliban. We lead the NATO offensive against Milosovic. We fostered a wonderful environment for the tech boom. We've demanded greater accountability and internal policing at the UN. We provide a staggering amount of foreign aid. We're free to vote our conscience, even if the candidate is a member of the KKK, the tinfoil skywatcher club or the Communist Party (roughly all in the same neighborhood of loony by my count). I'm free enough here to say our President is a dirty rotten coke addled scumbag of a cockroach turd without facing jail or civil penalties. The list of good reaches just as far as the list of bad.
*meow*
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RE: Emerging Superpowers the downfall of American domin... - 
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