Pakistani arrests are multi-level message, but mostly its a warning

Bill O'Reilly's talking points is correct, it's an insult to the U.S. for Pakistan to arrest five of the informants who helped us to take down Osama bin Laden. More than that, it's a public effrontery that, not only have they arrested this individuals, but that they have made the arrest public knowledge. Where O'Reilly stops short is in considering the question, "Why? What message is Pakistan trying to send and to whom?"

There are several answers to these questions. Who are the recipients of the message? Of course, we've already considered ourselves. Then there's Russia and China, which, as O'Reilly points out, are interested in courting Pakistan, as well. For Russia and China, the message is, "This relationship with the U.S. is not exclusive."

Then, there are the people of Pakistan who haven't universally sided with the U.S. against Al-Qaeda. This is more than just face saving for the Pakistanis; this is the stuff wild celebrations in the street are made of.

Of course, it's also a message to Al-Qaeda and the Taliban: "Don't worry, we're still friends."

I think Al-Qaeda and the Taliban understand the Pakistani/U.S. relationship better than our people in Congress and the White House. While meeting in caves somewhere, or compounds close to Pakistani security forces, they discuss how funny it is that their good friends, the Pakistanis, have actually received $20 billion from the U.S. over the years to pretend that they're allies. "Yes, yes, the Pakistanis only complain when the Americans hit our people with drone missiles. Allah understands."

Of course, the message does more than that; it also warns Pakistanis of the dire consequences of actually working with the Americans against Al-Qaeda and the Taliban: "You five fools - are you as stupid as the Americans? Did you really think we were trying to help them? It's all a game. We take their money and make a show of support here and there. We don't really want them to succeed. Now, off with your heads."

Walsh looks even better by a Dold light

Someone made a pretty good point yesterday after I posted my comments about Rep. Joe Walsh (R-IL) and the exemplary manner in which he has not forgotten the promises he made during the campaign. He is well deserving of the praise, particularly since, when people in public office screw up, I'm among the first to jump on that.

However, as was pointed out, I failed to mention Rep. Robert Dold (R-IL). During the campaign, Dold had a clever little campaign ditty that played off the similarity between his name and former Presidential Candidate Robert Dole. Otherwise, Dold was very similar to Walsh in terms of the promises given. As was pointed out, that's apparently where the similarity ends.

Where Walsh has demonstrated limited-government, fiscal-conservative backbone, Dold has apparently sold out on virtually all of his campaign promises. The way it's been explained to me, it wouldn't be out of the realm of possibility to find out that Dold was a liberal progressive plant from the start only masquerading as a conservative. I understand he has a voting record that would make Nancy Pelosi proud.

In a sense, I regret highlighting Dold's 'accomplishments' since arriving in Washington, D.C. My intention was that I felt Joe deserved the limelight unencumbered by the likes of a charlatan spewing patriotic rhetoric as though he means it. I regret the decision because, in reality, Dold's behavior makes Joe's all the more noteworthy.

Just a couple days ago, a conservative I know complained that, Republican or Democrat, they were essentially all alike - out for themselves and screw the nation. With people like Joe Walsh in Washington, D.C., I was able to respond, "Well, not quite all of them. Sure, we've got our Dolds but we also have our Walsh's, and thank God for that."

Fear and Panic - Obama's greatest allies

I have an old friend I chat with from time to time on Facebook. I've found that our discussions help to clarify my thoughts. Such was this case when I was speaking about Obama, Rahm Emanuel and FDR. Suddenly, the pieces all fit together.

Emanuel is well known for his statement, "A good crisis is a terrible thing to waste." Of course, he was referring to the economic crisis of the Great Recession. But, as I realized while chatting with my friend, it was more than the economy; it was the panic that economic fear engendered.

In a crisis, those who keep their heads are usually the winners. If you've ever seen the movie "The Unforgiven" with Clint Eastwood and Gene Hackman, you'll probably recall they speak about this. It's not the best shot or the one who is fastest with a gun that wins in a gun fight. It's the one who keeps his head - assesses the situation coolly and aims carefully, the one who doesn't shoot himself in the foot.

Without fear and panic, Obama probably would not have been elected, Obamacare would have been DOA, Congress would have reacted appropriately from the start to all these czars and agencies setting up a shadow government. We wouldn't have sat back while our president went around the world back-seat apologizing for our history.


I'm clearly not a big fan of FDR's but, he was right when he told America, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself." He was telling people not to panic. FDR believed he could achieve his aims through the American system. Oh, he intended to circumvent the Constitution from time to time, but he was still an American at heart.

Obama hasn't truly tried to calm the waters, has he? Why not? Panic and fear are Obama's greatest allies. Panic and fear is what convinced people to buy into his "Hope and Change" in 2008, even though people didn't really realize what they were buying. All they knew was the economy was in the toilet and that Bush, utterly demonized by the lamestream media, was to blame.

Our job, between now and November of 2012, is to clear away the fog of fear and panic. People need to see clearly even if they're afraid. They need to realize, if they aim carefully in the ballot booth they won't shoot themselves in the foot again. FDR was right. Fear is the one thing we must fear the most.

My new Patriotic blog and facebook page.

Along with this, my new and improved blog site in defense of the Constitution, I have created a new fan page for the cause. I welcome patriots everywhere to visit both and welcome your feedback, both in regards to the format of these pages and to the current and future content. To visit the new facebook page, please click here.

Thank you