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A War Weary America Gives Romney’s Cowboy Diplomacy Redux a Rousing Thumbs Down
The sustained use of mood altering constituents or behaviors despite adverse dependency or neurological impairment is addiction, and the habits and patterns associated with it are characterized by immediate gratification (short-term reward) coupled with deleterious long-term costs. Republicans have myriad addictions, but chief among them is world domination. It is no surprise then, that the Republican candidate for president, Willard Romney, a man whose religion informs a Mormon president initiates the religion’s world domination, combines the Republican addictions into one catch-all disorder; religious world domination.
Romney has garnered a reputation as an arrogant elitist and control-freak extraordinaire, and he projects that dysfunction on America every time he says, “the 21st century must be an American century” and that it is America’s responsibility to steer the world towards “the path of freedom, peace, and prosperity.” In a foreign policy speech yesterday, Romney outlined his plan to steer the world according to America’s will, and it can be summed up in two words; cowboy diplomacy, especially in dealing with Muslim countries. It is little wonder Romney parroted the Bush neo-con plan for the Middle East that includes interference in Muslim nations’ internal affairs, perpetual war, and foreign policy dictated by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Romney’s foreign policy problem is rooted in his neo-con advisors from the Bush administration and his pledge of obedience to Benjamin Netanyahu, and it portends multiple wars in the Middle East dependent on direction from Israel’s Prime Minister. Experts on addiction warn that addictive personalities often only need one or two instances of immediate gratification before they are forever bound to the dangerous behavior resulting in long term injury and devastating costs. Bush neo-cons only took America into two wars against Muslim nations, but it was just enough to get them hooked on pre-emptive war and imperialism that has cost America thousands of lives and over $4 trillion dollars with no end in sight. Since Romney is desperate to display foreign policy credibility with conservatives, he enlisted Bush warmongers for advice and gave his ear to Israel’s neo-con leader Netanyahu.
Pundits accuse Romney of changing positions on issues at the same rate most Americans change their non-magic underwear, but when it comes to protesting to send Americans to fight and die while his family hides behind the Mormon religion, he has remained steadfast. Romney’s warmongering speech at Virginia Military Institute was rife with accusations that President Obama was weak on foreign policy, but he did little more than show Americans he is still groping for specifics that are not founded in lies and talk of war. Throughout Romney’s speech, he projected hegemony and bluster that embroiled America in two wars, and typical of a Willard speech, it was mendacious and non-specific.
One of the Romney’s lies was that drawing down combat forces in Afghanistan would abandon “the Afghan people to the same extremists who ravaged their country and used it to launch the attacks of 9/11,” but it was not the Taliban who launched the terror attacks on America, it was Al Qaeda. Romney also parroted a quote from George W. Bush that he would “use America’s great influence to shape events in ways that secure our interests, further our values, and make the world better;” translation, “If you’re not with us, you’re against us,” and for nearly eight years it cast America as a bully in the eyes of the world. Romney plans to perpetuate “America as a bully” when he said he would push NATO allies to “devote 2 percent of their GDP to security spending” at a time when member nations are struggling in a down economy brought on by Bush-Republican economic folly and deregulation.
Romney spent a fair amount of time blubbering on about America’s commitment to funding Israel’s military by working “with Israel to increase our military assistance and coordination,” and to convince Americans they “must have confidence in our cause, clarity in our purpose and resolve in our might” that no friend of America will “question our commitment to support them… no enemy that attacks America will question our resolve to defeat them… and no one anywhere, friend or foe, will doubt America’s capability to back up our words.” To that end, Romney said he will “organize all assistance efforts in the greater Middle East under one official with responsibility and accountability to prioritize efforts and produce results,” and based on Romney’s statement during the Republican primary, that official is Benjamin Netanyahu. Romney said, “I’d get on the phone to my friend Bibi Netanyahu and say, ‘Would it help if I said this? What would you like me to do?” It cannot be overstated or repeated often enough that his foreign policy is not furthering peace in the Middle East, but expanding “our ties to Israel and our abiding commitment to its security.” Apparently, funding 21% of Israel’s defense budget is insufficient and one wonders how much more Americans are expected to sacrifice to prove America is committed to Israel.
Romney claimed he would “recommit America to the goal of a democratic, prosperous Palestinian state living side by side in peace and security with the Jewish state of Israel,” but in the secretly taped video where he labeled 47% of Americans parasites, he said “I look at the Palestinians not wanting to see peace, so what you do is kick the ball down the field and hope that ultimately, somehow, something will happen.” During his speech yesterday, Romney criticized the President’s Middle East policies and said “hope is not a strategy,” unless it is said in secret to multi-millionaire campaign donors. The truth is that Romney has no policy to promote a “prosperous Palestinian state living side by side with Israel,” and it is more proof Romney is devoid of foreign policy his advisors complained leaves them confused as to which camp he is in. Last week a Romney advisor said, “As messy as the world looks, it’s not voters’ primary concern,” but a new survey found a majority of Americans (55%) do not support an Israeli attack on Iran and 53% said America should stay neutral.
Americans are weary of war, and after two unnecessary and extremely costly neo-con forays to “shape events in ways that secure our interests, further our values, and make the world better,” Romney is saber-rattling, promising to increase military spending, and sucking up to Israel parroting rhetoric he proffered in his previous foreign policy speeches. It was a promise to return to Bush cowboy diplomacy from a cowardly draft dodger who believes sending other Americans to die to further the neo-con dream of American imperialism and Mormon domination equates to American exceptionalism. It also portrays Romney as a hapless foreign policy backwater and Netanyahu lap dog.
If Romney is so intent on feeding the neo-con addiction to hegemony and doing Netanyahu’s bidding in the Middle East, his first action if he wins in November is enlisting his sons in the U.S. Army, give them a supply of magic underwear, and march the five of them into Tehran to show the Mullahs and Ayatollahs America’s “resolve to defeat them” so that “no one anywhere will doubt America’s capability to back up our words.” If he is unwilling to do that, then he needs to shut his lying mouth and crawl back to his Cayman Island tax haven to count his money, and while he is counting, he should ask Al Qaeda for their appraisal of his contention that President Obama is weak on terrorism, or survey Osama bin Laden’s wives to get their take on just how resolved this President is to kill America’s enemies.
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clarence swinney
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 10:34 am
Cynicism about our government
Some are blinded by ideology and pursue policies that are not for the common good.
For example, send entire industries to foreign nations to make a few more bucks without thinking of long term effect on our economy and people. The board accomplishments of our government far over shadow the weaknesses.
Government addresses our serious economic, social, environmental problems
and alleviates much of our human suffering .
I am tired of the Inequality where my teachers get laid off while corporations and banks make record profits after we bailed them out.
It is time to reunite the people to demand a fair shake. We had great growth of middle class 1945-1980
where a worker could afford a nice home, educate his children, care for his sick, and look forward to a happy retirement.
Which leadership can do it? Do you see one?
stenc
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 2:19 pm
The neocons call it “shared sacrifice”.
Judith L Rankine
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 10:50 am
How about a combination of Michael Bloomberg and Bernie Saunders 2016?
stormskies
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 10:56 am
Watching buffoon Romney is like watching a pre-programed automaton who acts out whatever microchip is put into his brain.
Reynardine
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 11:24 am
A microchip wouldn’t fit in his brain.
@damspahn
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 11:09 am
Reminds me of Richard Nixon.
A Walkaway
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 3:20 pm
Nixon is a piker compared to Romney.
William Colby
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 11:31 am
This idiot (Mitt the Fitt)should be locked up somewhere so the only person he can do harm to is himself..
Even his wife has said she fears for his mental state.
I know I’m voting for Mr. Obama on shear fact I don’t want some nutball as a president!!!
stenc
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 1:10 pm
More false flag terrorism on America’s shores. More war, more American boys and girls coming back from an unnecessary war in body bags.
The neocons will do it again, given the opportunity. The Project for The New American Century is still out there, still a formidable enemy of America, and rest assured they will be a big part of Romney’s Administration if he finds his way in to power. Translation: More Dick Cheney, more Jeb Bush, more Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, Libby, and William Bennett.
VERY DANGEROUS MEN.
Olga Pina
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 1:18 pm
Mitt Romney is irresponsible and is sending mixed messages as the leader of the free world. The guy is not even President and he is ruffling feathers already.
He is a buffoon who does not understand Foreign Policy and thinks Russia is our enemy!
To ask someone that he will say whatever they want if it helps them? He is a mouthpiece and has no brains to think for himself much less this country!
harris stein
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 1:22 pm
The neo con hegemonists just don’t get it. America is an exceptional nation only when our leaders use its military power wisely. Starting wars of convenience is not wise, it’s foolhardy.
Using America’s military power to keep developing nations down on the farm, so to speak, is a slap in the face to the founders who realized that military power is only to be used in self defense.
The nazis in Germany in 1928 and 1932 used the same argument about shaping world events to favor German domination of world economics and politics. Then they used psychological tools like the big lie repeated over and over again until the German people believed whatever the nazis said and especially what the fuhrer Hitler said.
Romney’s policy has the smell of Rumsfeld and Cheney all over it.
stenc
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 2:00 pm
And the sickest thing of all of this is: NONE OF THESE CHICKENHAWKS EVER FOUGHT ANY WAR, ANYWHERE!
CHENEY: FIVE DEFERRMENTS TO STAY OUT OF NAM
BUSH: HIDDEN SOMEWHERE IN THE “NATIONAL GUARD”
ROMNEY: FOUR DEFERRMENTS TO STAY OUT OF NAM. In fact, no one in Romney’s family ever fought in any war.
When asked why none of his five sons ever fought in Iraq or Afghanistan, Ronmey stated, “They’re serving their country by helping me to get elected President.”
BUT THE CHICKENHAWKS HAVE NO PROBLEM AT ALL SENDING YOUR CHILDREN TO THEIR CORPORATE OIL WAR.
AMAZING.
stenc
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 2:04 pm
I should, however, at least give credit to John McCain. At least he served his country with honor.
ibwilliamsi
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 2:44 pm
This is only a problem for Romney if he expresses his plan accurately during the foreign policy debate.
clarence swinney
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 3:13 pm
Mitt Romney wants to give $5 trillion tax cut, averaging $250,000 to every millionaire in this America, including himself, while raising taxes on 18 million working families ending tax breaks for college, children and earned income. He opposed the payroll tax cut for taxpayers and called President Obama’s payroll tax a “little Band-Aid.” He grew debt in Massachusetts by 16.4 percent while raising taxes and fees by $750 million a year on middle-class families and businesses. He said he’s “not concerned about the very poor.” (Watch video here.) He has proposed to overhaul the tax system so that the foreign profits of U.S. firms are not taxed in the United States. To avoid paying taxes Mitt Romney has money in foreign banks including Switzerland, the Cayman Islands, Luxemburg, Ireland and Bermuda. He wants to drop all tax rates by 20 percent, bringing the top rate, for example, down to 28 percent from 35 percent, eliminate capital gains tax for families making below $200,000 and cut corporate tax to 25 percent from 35 percent.
President Obama opposes cutting millionaires’ taxes, especially by eliminating medical research projects into things like cancer and Alzheimer’s disease, kicking children off of Head Start programs; asking students to pay more for college; or eliminating health insurance for millions of poor and elderly and disabled Americans on Medicaid. He put a $1,000 back in the pockets of hardworking Americans by cutting payroll taxes, and he just extended it through 2012. President Obama has no foreign bank accounts and pays federal taxes on his entire financial holdings. He wants to raise taxes on the wealthy and ensure they pay 30 percent of their income at minimum. He supports extending Bush-era tax cuts only for everyone making under $200,000, or $250,000 for couples.
clarence swinney
Oct. 9th, 2012 at 3:40 pm
We’re fighting wars we cannot win without any exit strategy
We are creating terrorists as we attempt to fight them with our drone planes – bombing unknown people in countries like Pakistan
We are bleeding money through our balance-of-trade deficit, always in the red, with no end in sight
Our trade deficit (difference between imports and exports) is now around $600 billion. This means we are sending $1.2 million out of the country every minute, on average
This money comes back not to buy our products (as we don’t make products they can’t make themselves) but to buy our companies
2012 national budget deficit is over $1 trillion
Accumulated national debt is over $16 trillion
Total consumer debt in the U.S. is $11 trillion
Student loan debt is over $867 billion
1 in every 5 homes loans is financially under water
We have no way to pay these debts!
Our priorities are all wrong. Our armies are all over the world – in Afghanistan, Korea, and Saudi Arabia, among other countries – yet our country is crumbling. Our infrastructure is in shambles, yet we spend our money building infrastructure in Afghanistan while our enemies are shooting at us.
We will never be able to pay back these debts as long as we continue to misuse our military and pursue outrageously misguided “free trade” policies which are proven to be disastrous failures.
Simply put, free trade allows unrestricted, uncontrolled access to our economy for goods made overseas at labor costs far below ours, sometimes as low as $2 per hour, tariff- and duty-free. We cannot compete with these labor costs, so we must outsource our manufacturing and watch our factories go bankrupt. This renders us uncompetitive and unproductive, sending the middle class jobs we once depended on overseas, devastating our economy.
We must demand better policies from our elected officials. Clearly the way we are living is unsustainable and it will only get worse if we do not rethink our failed trade…