CALIFORNIA YANKEE

Blaming Romney, not terrorists, Obama fuels Middle East bloodshed

Like many Americans I spend time on September 11 contemplating the terror attacks. This year my contemplation didn't end on the 11th. I have spent the entire week watching as riotous Muslim mobs, first in Egypt, then Libya, Tunisia, Yemen and Sudan attack U.S. embassies espousing hate for American values and belief.

It got much worse. The hateful Muslim mobs multiplied throughout the Muslim world, even in countries not considered Muslim, such as Britain and Australia. And al Qaeda went on the offensive.

Under the cover of the rioting Muslim mobs in Benghazi, terrorists viciously attacked the U.S. consulate killing four Americans including Ambassador Christopher Stevens. That was the first time an American Ambassador had been murdered in the line of duty since the Carter administration.

Al Qaeda didn't stop there. They attacked the American-lead multinational peacekeeping force in the Sinai. They also attacked a U.S. Marine base in Southern Afghanistan in an effort to kill Britain's Prince Harry. So there was much to contemplate on this extended anniversary of 9/11.

The lessons to be learned from the terrorists' 9/11/12 offensive are despite Obama's protestations to the contrary the War Against Terror is not over, and Governor Romney was right to criticize Obama for sending mixed signals about the violence of the hateful Muslim mobs.

Obama is so wrong here. His naivete has always been there for us to see. On November 21, 2007, presidential candidate Obama said, "The day I'm inaugurated Muslim hostility will ease." He actually thought he could just say nice things, and because he had lived in an Islamic country during his youth and his half-sister is Muslim, the Muslim hate for America would dissipate. Well perhaps the Muslim hate for America didn't diminish while President Bush was prosecuting the War Against Terror. But we never saw an uprising or offensive like this during his war, because those that hate us respect strength.

Obama sees things differently. His administration says "the war on terror is over," and Obama won't even use the term "war on terror."

So yes, Governor Romney was entirely correct to criticize Obama's incoherent response to the Cairo debacle, and to question Obama's now discredited policies of appeasement and apology that have left us so dangerously vulnerable in the Middle East and still hated in the Muslim world.

The most important lesson of the week is that we now know that the Obama Administration has put us right back where we were 11 years ago before 9/11. 

That is why yesterday we saw Obama's Press secretary flat out said that the hateful Muslim uprising -- formerly known as the Arab Spring, and the murder of an American ambassador was exclusively the result of a silly amateur video - despite the evidence to the contrary.

This statement and appearance was a turning point. Why? 

Not because it flies in the face of the evidence.  But because it shows EXACTLY why we're in the position we're in under Obama. Team Obama just doesn't understand that terrorists hate America, not a "video" that was used as a diversion to kill Americans. This video of makes this point.

Obama doesn't care; 9/11 edition

I wasn't going to publish political posts today. I have been up since 2:00 a.m. and spent the wee hours of the morning contemplating the events of September 11, 2001.

Then I saw this:

Barack Obama's first Tweet today (posted at 10:07 a.m.):

"@BarackObama
The election is in 8 weeks. Sign up to volunteer:

11 Sep 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite"

Mitt Romney's first Tweet today (posted at 9:10 a.m.):

"@Mitt Romney:
On this most somber day, America is united under God in its quest for peace and freedom at home and across the world.

11 Sep 12 ReplyRetweetFavorite"

Obama didn't send a more politically correct 9/11 Tweet until 12:47 p.m.

It gets worse. This afternoon my RedState colleague, Ben Howe, posts "Obama Does Radio Interview on 9-11. No Mention of 9-11." about the Obama's interview this morning on 106.7 FM with DJ Laz AKA "the pimp with the limp."

At the Miami Hearald, Marc Caputo, originally wrote that Obama "avoided talking about 9/11 on 9/11’s anniversary, but made time to mock the Dolphins bad record." That  statement was subsequently updated with a footnote stating that Obama campaign said the interview was recorded two days ago. You can listen to the interview here.

Perhaps Obama didn't know the interview would be broadcast today. But shouldn't Obama or a staff person  have made sure the interview wouldn't be broadcast on 9/11? Or perhaps, as evidenced his first Tweet of the day, Obama doesn't care. Just like Obama didn't care to tour the Hurricane Isaac storm damage until six days after the storm made landfall and three days after Mitt Romney inspected hurricane damage with Governor Bobby Jindal.

A day for remembering - September 11, 2012

Below I have republished my first written remembrance of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks as well as a piece my son wrote. There are a few other pieces I have posted about 9/11 that I recommend:

• The falling man
• Victims
• The AP's today in history for September 11th [published in 2008]
• 9/11: the day the world stood still Tthe 9/11 tribute produced for the RNC, which so offended Keith Olbermann]

[Originally posted September 11, 2004. I have also reposted "Flame Of Hope" which was written by my son and originally posted on September 14, 2004.]

Remembering

It was such a gorgeous day. I remember driving to the office and saying out loud to myself "what a beautiful day!" I don't remember ever doing that before, or since.

I was out of my office, but in the building, when I was told that a plane hit the World Trade Center. I was thinking how could a pilot hit the World Trade Center in such perfect weather. I thought of the Army B-25 bomber that crashed into the Empire State Building in 1945.

When I got back to my office I was told that both towers had been hit by planes. I still didn't get it. I was still thinking small private planes - then I saw a replay of the second plane, a 757, crashing into the South Tower of the World Trade Center. That's when I realized the world was different.

We were short staffed, two attorneys were attending a conference in New Orleans, and I still had a lot work I wanted to get done, but I kept going back to the television. We watched the burning smoking towers.

The brother of one of our attorneys was working in the south tower, she was worried. I kept trying to reassure her, telling her how tough the towers were. I spoke with my wife. I tried to reassure her and she had been doing the same with worried friends.

We heard that the Pentagon was attacked. Then we heard reports [just bad information] that there was an explosion at the State Department. The news coverage was confused. Hell, no one knew what was going on.

Then the towers fell. I just couldn't believe it. We didn't understand how many firefighters were lost in the towers, but the firefighters did. One of my most vivid memories of 9/11 is of fire fighters withdrawing to the West Side Highway after the towers fell. The TV broadcast I was watching showed one of those firefighters take his helmet and throw, no slam, it to the ground many feet away. That act captured all the anger, frustration and fatigue both physical and emotional.

I remember more, I remember the President reassuring the nation, more than once. I remember watching Palestinians dancing in the street. There is more. I remember my co-worker's relief when she learned, hours after the towers fell, that her brother got out of the tower and was safe. I remember the people streaming out of New York. I remember the hospitals staffing up to treat the thousands and thousands of injured we all anticipated would be pulled from the ruble. I remember the burning rubble. I remember more.

I especially remember how happy and relieved I was to get home and to just be with my wife and children. These are the things I think of first whenever I think of 9/11. I wish I was able to convey the emotions the memories conjure up in me, but I'm sure you know how it felt.

Alan Jackson captured all those feelings in his "Where Were You (When The World Stopped Turning):"

Where were you when the world stopped turnin'
that September day?
Out in the yard with your wife and children;
Or working on some stage in L.A.?
Did you stand there in shock at the sight of that black smoke
Rising against that blue sky?
Did you shout out in anger in fear for your neighbor
Or did you just sit down and cry?

Did you weep for the children
that lost their dear loved ones?
Did you pray for the ones who don't know?
Did you rejoice for the people who walked from the rubble
and sob for the ones left below?
Did you burst out in pride for the red white and blue
And the heroes who died just doin' what they do?
Did you look up to heaven for some kind of answer?
And look at yourself for what really matters?

[. . .]

Teaching a class full of innocent children;
Driving down some cold interstate?
Did you feel guilty 'cause you're a survivor
in a crowded room did you feel alone?
Did you call up your mother and tell her you love her?
Did you dust off that bible at home?

[. . .]

Did you go to a church and hold hands with some strangers?
Stand in line and give your own blood?
Did you just stay home and cling tight to your family
Thank God you had somebody to love?

[. . .]

Where were you when the world stopped turnin'
that September day?

Flame Of Hope

[My son, then a freshman at George Washington University, wrote this after attending a 9/11 vigil on September 14, 2004. I thank him for sharing it with us.]

I just returned from a vigil at University Yard, remembering the victims of September 11. Services like these always hit home; especially for events remembered firsthand.

We each received a candle upon arriving at the yard, surrounded by a plastic cup to keep the wax from our hands. At the conclusion of the service, after speakers and prayers, messages and memories, we lit the candles and stood in silence. Gradually, people drifted off; it was, after all, a Saturday night. I waited, with my roommate, a friend from PE Wild, and her friend from American. We remained until 9:12, allowing for a minute of silence at 9:11 as I remembered doing back home. While waiting, I let my mind wander inside itself a bit, doing its usual pondering about life, the universe, and everything; about existence and reason, emotion and liberty, life and freedom. I'd like to share those thoughts that stuck out.

A breeze started about the time of the candle lightings. It wasn't particularly strong, but it was chilly enough to force notice. It also required paying attention to the candle, lest the wind extinguish it.

As I'm sometimes wont to do, I made a little metaphor. The candle reminded me of the often-used phrase, almost cliché now: the Flame of Hope, of Freedom, of Life itself. It required an effort on my part to maintain the flame's strength. I found that, after letting my mind wander for a minute early on, the wind extinguished the flame, and I required someone else's candle to ignite it again. Such is often the case with Hope. When faced with an unusual situation, one that discourages and scares us, humans cling to this concept of "Hope," a belief that the storm will pass. Sometimes, when the storm continues to batter us, that hope begins to wane, even dying completely. In those situations, we require the presence and support of others. Through their strength, we can rekindle our own Hope, reignite its flame.

A second time, I caught myself gazing at the sky. The clouds which had eclipsed the stars during the vigil now began to move elsewhere, and the lights of the heavens began to shine through. When I glanced down at my candle, however, I found the flame almost dead. Cupping my hand around it, I shielded it from the chill and strength of the wind, allowing it to remain. It reminded me of our Freedom, such a fragile concept. When our grip on the concept slackens, when we let the idea slip to the background, it can disappear far too quickly. Each of us has to realize the concept, to live it every day, lest that Flame die as well. Freedom is a much harder flame to reignite once it dies.

Before those in attendance lit their candles, the names of nine GWU alumni killed on 9/11 were read aloud. At each name, Omar, the president of the Student Association lit a candle, placing it on a table in front of him. The wind picked up as he tried to light the first candle, and I actually felt my pulse pound as I prayed the light would not go out. Each candle here symbolized a life, and Omar refused to let the lights of those lives burn out. He made sure each candle caught before replacing it, and not once was the wind able to extinguish a flame. Though the lives those candles symbolized had already ended, their memories carried on through the flames. Not even the cold acts of terror, which ended their mortal existence, could erase the marks they as people left upon the Earth and their fellow humans.

We all require assistance at times. Hope can falter, but others can right it. Lives may end, but others will remember the deeds done. Freedom may fall under attack, but those who live it and believe in it can save it.

Cherish your freedom, the life you live, and the hope you carry, for yourself and all those who follow. May all Humanity one day relish in the joys of freedom, from fear, from oppression, from terror. Live your life, and realize you don't have to do so alone.

Happy 'Deficit Day'

You are familiar with the Tax Foundation's "Tax Freedom Day" -- the date by which the average American has earned enough to pay his taxes for the year. This year Tax Freedom Day finally arrived on April 17th. To borrow a phrase from President Obama, let me be clear, on average Americans, must use every penny they earned from January 1st until April 17th to pay their taxes for the year.

One of my favorite economists, Professor Antony Davies, and his colleague, James R. Harrigan, suggest we also celebrate what they call "Deficit Day" to focus Americans' attention on the on fact that we are headed to bankruptcy. They explain it all in an excellent article they published at Real Clear Markets.

"Deficit Day" is the date by which federal tax revenues run dry and the federal government begins adding even more debt on top of our exploding $16 Trillion national debt. This year Deficit Day falls on September 10th.

According to Davies and Harrigan, everything the government spends from now until the end of the year will be borrowed. They say we haven't seen a balanced budget since the Eisenhower administration:

Conventional wisdom holds that the Clinton administration ran surpluses. But this is a twisting of the facts. It is true that the debt held by the public-which excludes money the government borrows from the Social Security trust fund-declined by $433 billion from 1997 to 2001. But, over those same years, the government borrowed $827 billion from the Social Security trust fund. In other words, the only way to claim that the Clinton administration ran surpluses is to admit that the government has no intention of paying back that $827 billion it borrowed from Social Security.

You wouldn't believe how broke the U.S. already is. We simply cannot continue to tax and spend and borrow as we have. I have previously written that Professor Davies calculates the debt and unfunded obligations of the federal government to total $64.09 trillion. An amount greater than the "economic output of the entire planet." That's right, the entire planet.

If current trends continue, the U.S. will become operationally bankrupt in 2037 and will be actually bankrupt in 2047.

Happy Deficit Day.

Vetting Obama; Wright was wrong

At RedState, Eric Erickson reminds us that the main stream media did not adequately vet presidential candidate Obama's connections with Jeremiah Wright. He is correct. As you may recall, CNN's John Roberts went so far as to declare CNN  a "Rev. Wright-Free Zone."

Because of the inadequate vetting, we still do not fully understand the relationship between Obama and his long time spiritual adviser, Jeremiah Wright. The media's vetting failure has also resulted in many believing President Obama is a Muslim.

Erickson also points out that the very same media, also known as the biased media wing of the Democrat's party, has now decided they should vet Mitt Romney's religion:

Then there was Bill Keller of the New York Times. He thinks candidates for President should be grilled on their religion. Except, he’s only doing this now, after Barack Obama got elected President.

[. . .]

Now, NBC News has run a special introducing Americans to Mormons. Not in 2010, when Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was running for re-election, but now. Meet the Press felt compelled to get Mitt Romney to discuss it.

In an effort remind the press and voters that they never really seriously examined Obama's spiritual past, My RedState colleague, Ben Howe, has produced the accompanying video of some of Wright's more memorable quotes interspersed amongst softball questions of Obama during an interview.

It is important to recall how we learned about Wright's extreme views. They came to light during the bitter, no holds barred fight for the Democrats' 2008 presidential nomination between Obama and Hillary Clinton. At the time Gallup reported that Gallup finds race was the issue that divides the Democratic electorate more than any other:

After the Wright quotes came to light, on March 18, 2008 Obama gave a speech, touted as an effort to bridge the Democrats' widening racial divide -- actually an obvious attempt to control the damage resulting from the hate-filled speech of Wright.

In his speech In his speech, Obama said Reverend Wright’s comments aren’t simply controversial, Wright's preachings are a "profoundly distorted view of this country — a view that sees white racism as endemic, and that elevates what is wrong with America above all that we know is right with America; a view that sees the conflicts in the Middle East as rooted primarily in the actions of stalwart allies like Israel, instead of emanating from the perverse and hateful ideologies of radical Islam."

Nevertheless, Obama refused to dissociate himself from this preacher of "profoundly distorted" views.

It took six more weeks of political damage and the fear that Hillary would win both the Indiana and North Carolina primaries before Obama threw his long-time spiritual adviser under the bus. Obama held a press conference and claimed he was now "outraged" by Wright's comments and attempted to dissociate himself from the radical cleric: you can watch Obama throw Wright under the bus here.

Obama's outrage would have been much more believable if it had been said six weeks earlier. When Obama finally got around to being outraged about Wright's preaching, it sounded simply like the politics it was.

It took another month for Obama finally decided to do what most people of sound judgment would have done much, much sooner -- on May 31, 2008, Obama finally resigned as a member of the Trinity United Church of Christ.

If Obama's politically motivated attack of sound judgement wasn't so pathetic, it might be funny:

• Obama didn't see fit to resign from this radical church when Wright called on God to "damn America."
• Obama didn't see fit to resign from this radical church when Wright preached that we support state terrorism against the Palestinians.
• Obama didn't see fit to resign from this radical church when Wright said we invented HIV:

Wright was wrong to say those things and Obama was just as wrong when he refused to disassociate himself from Wright. Even worse the mainstream media was wrong not to adequately vet Obama.

Thanks to Erick Erickson and Ben Howe for reminding us.