I know my liberal, Dem friends don't want to talk about the debacle going on in the Arab world right now. Most on the left seem to believe that the world really DOES love President Obama. That was the line back in 2008 when they were busy calling the Bush Administration a bunch of cowboys. I think, much as you hate him, Ole Rush pretty much nails it:
It's this morning, two hours ago. There's a graphic at the bottom of the screen, and you know what the graphic says? "White House compares Middle East upheaval to the Berlin Wall falling." I said, "What in the world, the Berlin Wall falling? This is more like 1979. The Berlin Wall falling meant freedom. We got tyranny spreading across the Middle East. They didn't burn the embassy in Berlin. Now they're burning the embassy in Pakistan.
Now, that story's over. Everybody's admitting that Susan Rice was sent out to try to establish a narrative on the Sunday shows that the video was the reason for all of this, and that's imploded. So their narrative has imploded. But they are continuing to apologize. Somebody said, "Well, you know, the embassy in Pakistan is just a bunch of neophytes as the embassy in Cairo." It's not the embassy; it's Obama. This is his show. He's giving the orders. It's his culture that has been established in this administration.
It cost $70,000. Yep! It cost the embassy 70 grand, $70,000 to run that. The White House is comparing the Middle East upheaval to the Berlin Wall coming down? In their dreams! Either they don't understand what happened at the Berlin Wall or else they're depressed about what happened at the Berlin Wall. (laughing) There's probably a little bit of that. (you have to wonder how my liberal friends REALLY felt about the failure of communism)
You know, he's on Fox. He has to spout the regime line, and the regime line is "Osama's dead and GM's alive," and that means Obama's the best-qualified president ever or what have you. And apparently Bob Beckel kept repeating, "GM's alive, Osama Bin Laden is dead," to which Andrea Tarantula said, "So is our ambassador in Libya." Ouch, and double ouch.
There might be some of that in the State Department. There might be some thinking along those lines. If you blame the terrorists, then you are admitting that your foreign policy's in shambles. If you blame the terrorists, it mean your security isn't up to snuff. If you the blame the terrorists, it means they got away with it. If you blame the terrorists, it blows to smithereens this whole notion from 2008 that it was never gonna happen anymore because Obama's in there.
"The world loves Obama. Obama gave the speech in Cairo. Everybody loves the guy, unifies the world, makes America loved again!" Uh-oh. In the middle of the campaign, 9/11 anniversary, terrorists try to blow up our embassy in Cairo, and they wreak the damage and the murder and mayhem in Benghazi. So this guy, the president of the United States, takes the easy way out and blames some irrelevant video on YouTube for this.
So anyway, this "rant" isn't meant to sway any of my liberal friends. I know you can't admit the Apologizer in Chief is a failure on foreign policy this close to the election and you'd much rather rant about some off the cuff remark made by Mr. Romney. I get it.
I did hear one fellow who pretty much DID explain the Obama Doctrine on foreign policy. His explanation came in three words and as far as I can tell, he is dead on. The Obama Administration's doctine on foreign policy is, "I'm Barrack Obama."
That's exactly right... his mere presence is enough to make rainbows and lower the oceans. Obama has done nothing in the ME except make indirect apologies and tell the folks who hate us that we will no longer be the strongest kid oon the block, that we want to equal the playing field (bring the US down to average level) which can only be interpreted as weakness. That's great when dealing with allies, but when dealing with enemy states, it's a huge tactical error that will do nothing but harm future generations of US citizens. Peace through strength doesn't win you any Nobel Peace Prizes.
The left is angry because they are now being judged by the content of their character and not by the color of their skin.
That "apologizer" meme has been proven time and time again to be another phony story that never happened. But you guys keep regurgitating it. In the Rightie echo-chamber it's always good to keep the ignorant masses riled up.
Well, it didn't take long to find the truth... The usual hatchet job by The Heritage Foundation and FauxNews:
Fact Checker: Obama's 'Apology Tour' Washington Post
The Facts
Most of the criticism stems from a series of speeches that Obama made shortly after taking office, when he was trying to introduce himself to the world and also signify a break with the Bush administration with new policies, such as pledging to close the detainee facility at Guantanamo Bay.
This is typical of many new presidents. George W. Bush, for instance, quickly broke with Clinton administration policy on dealings with North Korea, the Kyoto climate change treaty and the international criminal court, to name a few.
Rove built his case around four quotes made by Obama:
Mr. Obama told the French (the French!) that America "has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive" toward Europe. In Prague, he said America has "a moral responsibility to act" on arms control because only the U.S. had "used a nuclear weapon." In London, he said that decisions about the world financial system were no longer made by "just Roosevelt and Churchill sitting in a room with a brandy" -- as if that were a bad thing. And in Latin America, he said the U.S. had not "pursued and sustained engagement with our neighbors" because we "failed to see that our own progress is tied directly to progress throughout the Americas."
In none of these cases does Obama actually use a word at all similar to "apologize." The Latin American comment might have resonance with Rove's old boss, since that was Bush's charge against the Clinton administration in the 2000 campaign. The Prague and London quotes are not apologies at all. The Paris quote, which is often cited as an apology, is taken out of context.
In Paris, Obama was trying to rebuild relations with Europe, where opposition to the Iraq war had run high. The quote in Paris often cited by conservatives is this: "In America, there's a failure to appreciate Europe's leading role in the world. Instead of celebrating your dynamic union and seeking to partner with you to meet common challenges, there have been times where America has shown arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive."
That doesn't sound like much of an apology, more of a statement of fact that few international-relations experts would quarrel with. But Obama was making the case that both sides had misunderstood each other, and so he also said: "But in Europe, there is an anti-Americanism that is at once casual, but can also be insidious. Instead of recognizing the good that America so often does in the world, there have been times where Europeans choose to blame America for much of what's bad."
The two sentences are a matched pair; there is no apology.
The Heritage Foundation list is also a stretch. Again, nothing akin to the word "apology" is ever used by Obama. In most of these cases, Obama is trying to make a clear distinction with his predecessor, much as Ronald Reagan did with Jimmy Carter, or George W. Bush with Clinton. Guantanamo or the war on terrorism figures in four of the so-called apologies -- and it is noteworthy during the 2000 campaign that Obama's GOP opponent, Sen. John McCain, also had said he would close the facility. Obama's comments express a disagreement over policy, not a distaste for the nation.
Another Heritage example is a speech Obama gave in April 2009 to the Turkish parliament, in which he was trying to urge that country to come to terms with its tragic history with the Armenians: "The United States is still working through some of our own darker periods in our history. Facing the Washington Monument that I spoke of is a memorial of Abraham Lincoln, the man who freed those who were enslaved even after Washington led our Revolution."
But compare what Obama said to what George W. Bush said at Senegal's Goree Island in 2003. Bush called the U.S. constitution flawed and said that America is still troubled by the legacy of slavery. This does not seem like an apology, either -- but it is even more sharply framed than Obama's comments.
“The claim that Obama repeatedly has apologized for the United States is not borne out by the facts, especially if his full quotes are viewed in context,” Washington Post fact checkers wrote in 2011. “Note to GOP speechwriters and campaign ad makers: The apology tour never happened.”
As for the claim that Obama “abandoned” Czechoslovakia, that country was dissolved in 1992 — over 16 years before he took office.
Imagine my surprise... Another load of lies from the usual sources... God, don't you wackos ever get tired of spouting easily disproven garbage from your FauxNews/Heritage Foundation/Karl Rove bullsh*t sources?
I think it is a smart idea for the US government to publicly distance themselves from the anti Islamic videotape. Other cultures don't understand American freedom of speech. They think for a video to get out our government would have to approve it. These nations shut down and censor the Internet at whim.
Thomas Sowell: There are no solutions, just trade-offs.
FredHayek wrote: I think it is a smart idea for the US government to publicly distance themselves from the anti Islamic videotape. Other cultures don't understand American freedom of speech. They think for a video to get out our government would have to approve it. These nations shut down and censor the Internet at whim.
Fred, I think it is a smart idea for you to shut the fuck up. Other cultures have not landed men on the moon. Go suck a toe.
FredHayek wrote: I think it is a smart idea for the US government to publicly distance themselves from the anti Islamic videotape. Other cultures don't understand American freedom of speech. They think for a video to get out our government would have to approve it. These nations shut down and censor the Internet at whim.
Fred, I think it is a smart idea for you to shut the fuck up. Other cultures have not landed men on the moon. Go suck a toe.
Curious what putting a man on the moon has to do with what Fred posted? Or did you just feel like telling someone to STFU?
Pakistan has nukes and the government plays a dangerous game keeping the radicals placated and staying in power. The ignorants who want to cut off aid or not run the ads might wind up handing AQ the material to destroy LA or DC.
Thomas Sowell: There are no solutions, just trade-offs.
Showing strength and confidence is different than being arrogant and belligerent. As a nation we cannot afford to play the bully when there are enemies out there who do have the capability to cause us harm. Keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.
