Tuesday, September 29, 2009

Gutless Disgrace

Recent consternation about incivility in politics is lost on me. I’m thinking our politicians are much too polite. Our early leaders often worked out differences fighting duels. President Andrew Jackson took office with two bullets still in his body. Vice President Aaron Burr shot former Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton. There’s a place for diplomacy, certainly, but too much isn’t good and we’re way over the limit.

It’s hard to stay quiet and be “polite” while listening to someone lie. It’s impossible if one must work with the person or live with him. The most diplomatic we should get is talking to him privately after - and we should only do that once. If there’s a next time, we must confront publicly. To sit quiet is to abet deceit and silence implies assent. Lying - when everyone in the room knows it - challenges us. If we don’t react, what are we?

Which brings us to the United Nations. It started off well back in 1945, dealing seriously with problems in Cyprus, Israel and Korea, but the UN today is useless. North Korea has ignored every UN resolution since 1993 while it built nuclear weapons and ICBMs - and it’s led by a nut-case. Meanwhile, Israel is forced to defend itself against Iranian terrorist puppets Hezbollah and Hamas, which rockets Israel daily. Iran ignores UN resolutions, lies to the world about building nuclear weapons, develops long-range missiles with North Korea’s help, denies the Holocaust, then promises to perpetrate another one by repeatedly threatening to wipe Israel off the map. What good is the UN?

In the face of all this, President Obama gave a speech filled with naive cliches like “No nation can or should try to dominate another nation.” What? Has he ever opened a history book? Ask Poland, Czechoslovakia or Hungary if a nation can try to dominate another nation. Ask Tibet. Ask Georgia. Ask Ukraine. Nobody is going to argue about the “should” part, but the can part? Who is going to stop them? The United Nations? Don’t make me laugh. I thought this guy was supposed to be smart.


Obama was followed at the podium by Libyan President Moammar Ghadafy, who - and I’m not making this up - tried to pitch a Bedouin tent on Donald Trump’s lawn the night before. After complaints from neighbors, he was kicked out by code enforcement officers. This is the guy who ordered one of his minions to hijack and blow up Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland killing 139 Americans, then gave a hero’s welcome to the conspirator in Tripoli a only weeks ago after he was inexplicably released by the Scots. In his 96-minute diatribe, Ghadafy had the gall to say: “It should not be called the [UN] Security Council, it should be called the ‘terror council.’”

Diplomats listened politely.

Evidently, he was pleased by Obama’s remarks because he kept referring to him as “our son” and said, “We are content and happy if Obama can stay forever as a President of United States of America.” So are Hugo Chavez, Fidel Castro and Vladimir Putin. It’s the American people who are nervous about him.

Ahmadinejad spewed his lies that night.

The next day, President Obama chaired the UN Security Council and said he envisioned a world without nuclear weapons. What? Last week, he scrapped the anti-missile system planned for Poland and the Czech Republic - knowing Iran had recently launched a satellite into space with a missile that can double as an ICBM. He also knew that Iran has built a second uranium processing plant and is close to making a nuclear weapon. Poland and the Czechs accused Obama of selling them out. Envisioning a world without nuclear weapons is fine if you’re some kind of mystic, but Obama is our commander-in-chief. We rely on his judgement for our security, even our very existence, in a dangerous world.

After listening to Obama’s remarks, French President Sarkozy said: “President Obama dreams of a world without [nuclear] weapons . . . but right in front of us are two countries doing the exact opposite. . . . We live in the real world, not the virtual world. And the real world expects us to take decisions.”

You know it’s bad when the President of the United States has to be lectured by the president of France about courage.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s turn came next. To the UN General Assembly - most of whom sat politely through speeches by terrorist murderers Ghadafy and Ahmadinejad - Netanyahu said: “. . . to those who gave [Ahmadinejad] a hearing, I say on behalf of my people, the Jewish people, and decent people everywhere: Have you no shame? Have you no decency? . . . a mere six decades after the Holocaust, you give legitimacy to a man who denies the murder of six million Jews while promising to wipe out the state of Israel? What a disgrace! What a mockery of the charter of the United Nations.”

Now, to save itself, Israel must confront Iran alone because the UN doesn’t have the guts to do it, and neither does our president. It’s time to quit this useless organization and kick them out of New York City. Let them practice their “civility” somewhere else.

Meanwhile, let’s look around for another Andrew Jackson.

9 comments:

Geoff Diehl said...

President Jackson is the only president in United States history to have paid off the national debt. Bring back Old Hickory!

Anonymous said...

"Civility" as shown at the UN can render a nation helpless in the face of raw agression. It is time for plain speaking on the part of our President who was supposedly elected to represent all the people of the USA, not his own naive Marxist agenda. If the Israeli President can speak the truth why cannot our own President?

Anonymous said...

the UN is NOT our friend!!! Laurie from Bartlett

Anonymous said...

Terrific article, Tom!! I was cheering Netanyahu for finally speaking the truth to that feckless organization. But, I think in the heat of writing , you wrote inextricably instead of inexplicably and gaul instead of gall.

ChristygirlB said...

I agree the UN is not our friend & our taxes should not be thrown away each year to support the UN and their agendas.

Anonymous said...

Hey Tom

I like your article, as usual. But I'm growing REALLY concerned about your obsession with that picture of nekkid Kim Yong Ill.

And you remember what happened last time, right?

Now promise you won't do that again!

Dawn said...

It's funny I heard loads about the speeches of the nut cases but hardly anything about Netanyahu. His speech should have been broadcasted over and over again.

The world is a farce. The nations of the world knew what Netanyahu said was truth but truth has nothing to do with it.

Germany, France, the UN, the US and Great Britian will not be able to do anything against the crazy Iranian ruler. He's a religious fanatic and hell bent on destroying Israel. Nothing is going to stop him.

When Israel goes first, after Iran, watch what happens as the nations of the world condemn Israel...even the U.S. under Obama.

Nathan Pitts said...

If I had had my way that outfit would have been run out of NYC years ago. It should be set up someplace in Africa where it would fit right in.

Any US President disgraces our country by participating in this charade!

Tom McLaughlin said...

Thanks for the Anonymous tips on my spelling. You're right. I was in a hurry to post it Wednesday morning and drive 150 miles to Bangor, Maine to do a commercial as a public school teacher against homosexual "marriage." I made the corrections.

Don't think I've heard a presidential candidate advocate leaving the UN, nor a senatorial one or even a congressman. It's time.

And Ralph, I'll include an advance warning next time I use the Kim Jong Il image. Promise.