Backwards

Of President G.W. Bush, Bill Press said the following on "Washington Journal" on May 24, 2009, "How refreshing to have a president who thinks." I've heard the same statement many times before and it still stuns me. Bush may have thought differently than his opponents on all the issues, but I'm confident he did think.

On "This Week with George Stephanopolous" this Sunday, Donna Brazile supported the possible nomination of Sonia Sotomayor for Supreme Court Justice by saying, "A graduate of some of the best schools in the country. Someone who's not only taken on Affirmative Action but so many other important issues that this country will face." I wonder why the litmus tests for appointments must include attending the "best" schools. Why should that be at the top of the list? In addition, why is support for policies which take race into consideration a plus? I thought we were beyond looking at race in order to determine policy.

Both Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) and President Obama have said that Guantanamo causes terrorists to be recruited. They are a hundred percent wrong. Frank Gaffney (of the Center for Security Policy) has it right. He said (on "Washington Journal") recently that if we close Gitmo it will motivate Al Qaeda into believing it was won a great victory. That would be the recruiting message for terrorists. They will see it as a significant victory against us. Both Durbin and Obama also implied that water boarding three high-profile terrorists to obtain critical information was also a recruiting tool. Actually, the announcement that we will not use water boarding plays into the terrorists' hands. They will become emboldened to learn that they can be captured and not fear anything. That is the true recruiting tool.

Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, Mark Cohen, Mark A. Cohen, conservative blog, Donna Brazile, George Stephanopolous, Sonia Sotomayor, Supreme Court Justice nominees

Keyword Phrases: "Conservatism", "Conservative", "blog", "politics", "political", "Mark Cohen", "Mark A. Cohen", "conservative blog", "Donna Brazile", "George Stephanopolous", "Sonia Sotomayor", "Supreme Court Justice nominees"

Remember Who Said It

Written : May 11, 2009

No matter which side of the aisle you’re on, you should engage a person who’s on the other side in conversation. You may come to better understand what they believe and that’s a good thing. It may shock you, but stay with it. Try it, it might be interesting and you may learn something.

Recently I spoke to a couple of liberals. I asked one acquaintance, a likeable person, if he could explain something to me that I didn’t understand. Why does the left hate George W. Bush so much? I’m not sure if he had spoken with a conservative about politics in recent years because he jumped at the chance to communicate with me. We sat down and spoke softly. He seemed to feel it was multi-faceted but it was mostly about religion. It was about how George W. Bush used religion to justify what the left likes to call “his war”, the conflict in Iraq. He shocked me a little when we discussed the life issue. He said he didn’t know when life really begins, but that wasn’t the shocking part. He maintained that he didn’t really know if a baby was even alive! A baby was a jumble of needs, but is that really life, he mused? I have to strongly disagree and wondered if this guy had ever had children, but just exchanging ideas was actually a good thing. I tried to imagine my six month old grandson as not being alive, and I couldn’t! Trying to empathize with me he suggested that I think that Newsweek and Time magazines are biased to the left. “Correct”, I said.

A liberal friend was not happy about Sarah Palin. He recalled what he had heard on Saturday Night Live (not what Gov. Palin actually said). “I can see Russia from my house”, he repeated in a slow cadence, in Palin’s Alaskan accent, trying to imitate and/or to make fun of her. I believe Tina Fey (the comedian) was the one who actually said it and Fey said it just that way. What Palin really said was, “You can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska.” She said variants of that quote in several interviews, but not what my friend robotically repeated. Palin was only pointing out that the proximity of Alaska to Russia had to be taken into consideration by the Governor in some of her decision-making, but she wasn’t trying to equate that to having foreign policy experience. Liberals obviously disagree with my assessment.

What they say is definitely interesting. However, it usually boggles my mind because I don’t see things their way. Judging from Wanda Sykes’ controversial comments at the recent presidential correspondents’ dinner, there’s much exaggeration. I realize she’s a comedian, but is it really a stretch to imagine the “jokes” being quoted as the people forget who said it, but remember the mean-spirited words?

Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, Mark Cohen, Mark A. Cohen, Liberal friends, liberal acquaintances

Keyword Phrases: “conservative blog”, “liberal and conservative”, “conservative and liberal”, “republican blog”, “From the Left to the Right”, “Mark Cohen”, “Mark A. Cohen”, “liberal friends”, “liberal acquaintances

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Mark

Political Correctness (PC)

Written : Mar. 31, 2009

An old-time game show, "You Don't Say", began with this phrase, “It’s not what you say, it’s what you don’t say”. In the case of political correctness, that’s the real deal.

The Obama Administration is continually telling us what they think they and we should say and what they and we shouldn’t say. It's based on the Bush Administration's invention of new phrases. They want us to forget them, and NOW! I’m starting to develop quite a list:

Instead of “War on Terror”, you say, “Overseas Contingency Operation”.

Instead of recognizing “Terrorism”, they are “Man-made Disasters”!

”Enemy Combatant” has morphed into, “Detainee”

Sensible and educated people find such a twisting of words and phrasing ridiculous, insulting, and intellectually offensive. It's simple to relate them to George Orwell’s famous book, “1984”, which was written in 1948 (he just turned the last two digits around). The “Obama Word Smithing” policy is similar to “double-speak” and “revisionist history” just as Orwell described. It was the left that originally believed the political right would implement the methodology of revising history to suit one’s own political views, but as we can see, it didn’t happen quite that way.

Don't you think it's harder to remember the new, "correct" words than the familiar ones? I don't care what they want me to say, or how they want me to say it. Sorry, but for me it's going to continue to be "War on Terror", "Terrorism", and "Detainee"!

Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, Mark Cohen, Mark A. Cohen, George Orwell, 1984.

Keyword Phrases: “conservative blog”, “liberal and conservative”, “conservative and liberal”, “republican blog”, “From the Left to the Right”, “Mark Cohen”, “Mark A. Cohen”, “George Orwell”, “1984”

(Tea) Party!

Written : Apr. 14, 2009

While listening to what remains of “Air America” (progressive talk) radio in my area this afternoon, I was struck at the vulgar insensitivity bleeding through their station on the subject of the upcoming “Tea Parties”, which are legitimate protests planned for tomorrow, April 15, 2009. Taking on a cavalier attitude, they reminded me of the three bizarre lizards drinking coffee, constantly cracking jokes, and smoking cigarettes in the “Men in Black” break room. Mr. Mario Solis Marich and his crew laugh off the “Tea Parties” as something they just don’t get. They infer these actions of protest are ridiculous from an elitist perch. (They have become their conception of the very Republicans they used to mock.) Their show makes hysterical fun of the idea of ‘parties with tea cups’ and conjures images of Republican men in white suits and women wearing ‘large hats’ rather than discussing the substance of the issue… Stop laughing for a minute and get it, Mario, folks are serious and many are already “fed up”. Most are against the policies of Robin Hood, the redistribution of a worker’s hard earned money. Remember, “Robin” meant “robbing”, and the word ‘hood’ referred to a person who broke the law.

People, and not just the “people on the right”, are already tiring of hearing of and becoming greatly concerned about the huge and steadily mounting deficits caused by “this administration’s” out of control spending. Instead of addressing people’s worries, the defenders of today’s spending of our children’s and grandchildren’s money often accuse President Bush of starting this. They are right, of course. However, the flow is now much faster, much more expensive, and way more out of control than it was during the end of the Bush presidency. The policy makers defend it by saying the gigantic bailouts are “necessary”. Never mind the fact that their own measures taken recently to assess the viabilities of the banks are revealing that the banks didn’t need that many dollars in the first place. Some of the banks are now preparing to return some of the billions!

It’s time for those who stand up for individuality and personal responsibility to step forward, and straighten up, Mr. Marich, this spirit is what America was founded on. In case you have forgotten, one highlight of the American Revolution took place in Boston Harbor in 1773 when people on ships, fed up with large English tariffs, dumped cases of tea overboard into the harbor. No more taxes, at least not in this much abundance. Give individuals a break. To each according to his deeds, not his needs. We simply cannot afford this president’s spending, and it is not good for us. Such staunch defenders of the “power of the people”, “speaking truth to power”, and “the right of the people to protest and criticize their leaders” should not be laughing at a "people's protest" and certainly should understand what’s going on. I hope everyone gets the message, including senators, congressmen, and presidents, and you too, Air America, get with it!

Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, Mark Cohen, Mark A. Cohen, Air America, Mario Solis Marich,

Keyword Phrases: “conservative blog”, “liberal and conservative”, “conservative and liberal”, “republican blog”, “From the Left to the Right”, “Mark Cohen”, “Mark A. Cohen”, “Air America”, “Mario Solis Marich”

Teleprompter vs. No Teleprompter

Written : Mar. 31, 2009

You know the issue. Everyone thinks President Obama is a wonderful orator. He has a “way with words”. It seems that many have been held spellbound by his speeches. For example, a couple of months ago a friend told me he’s “such” a marvelous speaker. But some were paying closer attention and realized he only speaks well when he’s using a teleprompter, or, when he’s reading what he’s saying. It's not a knock on the president; it’s just a fact. I also noticed that when he speaks without reading, President Obama stutters, hems and haws, and used many “uh’s” and “ah’s”. Not that there’s anything wrong with that... and I honestly don’t know if I would do any better at speaking impromptu than he.

That being said, one just cannot criticize this president without feeling the ire of his adoring, supportive media. Rick Sanchez, a CNN anchor, recently interviewed Carlos Mencia, a superb comedian, on “American Morning”. Sanchez felt compelled to run a David Letterman clip. Mr. Letterman injects politics into his late night comedy at times. The text “Teleprompter” appeared and showed Obama giving a moving speech. Next, “No Teleprompter” was shown, and revealed George W. Bush speaking off the cuff and hemming and hawing, saying “uh” and “ah” a lot.

True, the joke was funny and it made me laugh. But Rick Sanchez and Carlos Mencia made fun of the criticism itself, as if it was ludicrous for anyone to have said anything against Obama. When they made fun of Bush afterward, it just made my point that many tend to defend and distort any criticism of Obama into criticism of Bush. (Watch for this in the media, it happens often!) The fact that Obama had trouble without a teleprompter had nothing to do with the fact that Bush had trouble with and without one! That contrast revealed Obama to have been a far better public speaker than Bush. There, I admitted it! Now, let’s lighten up, and may we ever criticize our current leader without an imminent attack on the previous one?

Tidbits

Written : Feb. 17, Mar. 15, 24, 31, 2009

On Feb. 4, 2009, Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) implied the new stimulus bill would cause all our public schools to have solar panels installed. I say let’s remember her statement on the topic, and verify her prediction when the time comes. Anyone taking bets as to whether the oh, so fair and unbiased mainstream media will ever call her on it – or, will we only hear about it on talk radio, “Hannity”, and on “The O’Reilly Factor”?

On “Fox News Sunday” on Feb. 15, 2009, Chris Wallace pressed David Axelrod, a senior adviser to President Obama, about the “Fairness Doctrine”. It was funny to watch Axelrod squirm and try to wiggle his way out. His answer was, “I'm going to leave that issue to Julius Genachowski, our new head of the FCC, to — and the president to discuss. So I don't have an answer for you now.” So, either they’ll abandon the issue, or Axelrod was so aware of the volatility of the subject that he was afraid to answer the question directly.

On Feb. 24, 2009, Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT) asked Ben Bernancke (Chairman of the Federal Reserve), “Do you breathe a sigh of relief that we didn’t privatize social security?” Now, I disagree with the term “privatization”, but wouldn’t it be a super idea to do it now, while the market is depressed? What bargains are out there! Actually, the Bush plan would not have allowed older people to participate, but rather the very young, or folks in their twenties. They would have had a long time for the market to recover, roughly 40-45 years. Historically, our markets have always rebounded. Why did some politicians distort and misrepresent such a fine plan?

Keywords: Conservatism, Conservative, blog, politics, political, David Axelrod, Ben Bernancke, Mark Cohen, Mark A. Cohen, Mad Money, silencing dissent.

Keyword Phrases: “conservative blog”, “liberal and conservative”, “conservative and liberal”, “republican blog”, “From the Left to the Right”, “Chris Wallace”, “David Axelrod”, “Ben Bernancke”, “Mark Cohen”, “Mark A. Cohen”, “silencing dissent”