DEMOCRATS SHOULD CONDEMN MOVEON

Former NewYork City Mayor Ed Koch is a friend who is a liberal democrat who I respect and often disagree with. This, his newest editorial though is spot-on and a must read as far as I am concerned. Don Bendell
By ED KOCH
September 13, 2007 — DAVID Petraeus is a highly decorated four-star general. He has been designated by the commander-in- chief to lead the young men and women who comprise the great U.S. force of 160,000 soldiers and Marines serving on the battlefields of Iraq, at great danger to themselves and to the officers who lead them.

Most soldiers, in pointing out their military honors, will cite the Combat Infantry Badge - which the general wears, as he does those medals awarded to him for personal bravery in combat.

Gen. Petraeus has sworn, as do all our military officers, to defend the Constitution of the United States and to carry out the orders given to him by the president - who, under that Constitution, is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. He is trying to lead our troops to victory.

The Congress asked the general to testify before both Houses and to provide his assessment of the situation on the ground in Iraq. This he has done.

There are people in our country who have different views on what U.S. policy toward Iraq should be. MoveOn.org, a radical group of opponents of the Iraq war, took a full-page ad in The New York Times of Sept. 10, the day he was to testify before the House of Representatives. Under his photo, a banner headline stated, in a play on words, “General Petraeus or General Betray Us?”

It is vile on the part of MoveOn to charge the general with betrayal of our country, even before he testified.
The Republican candidates for president have denounced MoveOn for its unfair attack on Gen. Petraeus. Most of the Democratic presidential candidates declined to do so when asked.

While I believe we should leave Iraq immediately, I respect the opinions of those who have come to a different conclusion. We are at war. The Iraqi insurgents and al Qaeda operatives want to kill us - not only U.S. military personnel in Iraq, but Americans wherever we are, including those of us in the United States.

There are those, like President Bush, who believe we are safer fighting them there than here, where they will surely ultimately follow us.

In my opinion, the Democratic candidates declined to denounce MoveOn because they fear themselves becoming the victims of a similar onslaught from the radical left. This is a cowardly position, which I hope they will rethink. It takes more than intelligence to be a good or great president. It takes integrity and courage, as well.

This is not the only wartime foolishness perpetrated by Democrats. This silence of the Democratic presidential candidates is similar to the damage to the country perpetrated by all but one of the Democratic members of Congress from New York City. They, with the exception of Rep. Anthony Weiner, voted against an amendment by Rep. Peter King (R-Nassau) which will protect passengers boarding planes who in good faith report suspicious activities of other passengers to airline personnel and police.

The need for the King amendment arose when several air passengers reported to airline staff suspicious activity by six Muslim imams who boarded the plane in Minneapolis. The imams sued those passengers who “saw something and said something defending themselves would require them to spend many thousands of dollars.

King explained, “While boarding, passengers and flight staff witnessed these six individuals demonstrating suspicious behavior, including not sitting in their assigned seats, but rather sitting in a configuration similar to that used by the hijackers on 9/11; requesting seat-belt extenders but not using them; and speaking loudly about Osama bin Laden and the United States’ role in the death of Saddam Hussein.”

Under the law, of course, Move.On has the right to libel and slander the general - a public personality - with impunity, and be protected from lawsuits. Nevertheless, decent people have an obligation to come to the general’s defense and denounce Move.On by no longer supporting it and withholding any future financial contributions to it.

THE LAND OF DAVY CROCKETT

QUESTIONS ABOUT AMERICA – THE LAND OF DAVY CROCKETT 

            Years ago, Uncle Sam turned into Big Brother, but now it is no longer Big Brother: It has become Big Smother. We are smothered by taxes, strangled by regulations, and suffocated by the leadership of a multi-headed, beady-eyed dragon, which has been castrated and had its heart removed. I wore a Green Beret and fought for the principles of freedom and justice, the very foundation upon which our nation was built, and now two of my sons also wear Green Berets and serve for those same principles, but none of us fought for the burden of intrusion or for federal regulations filled with esoteric legalese. Our government is supposed to simply be a convenience for Americans to help administrate each of us, as we practice and celebrate our individual freedoms. It is not our employer, supervisor, principal, nor should it ever be our warden. We must run the government, and not allow the government to run us. But Fellow Citizen, Neighbor, my Friend, run us it has through the elected representatives we sent to Washington, most of who are obviously hell-bent for election to feather their own nests and are morally-challenged and leadership-deprived.

            I ask you? Whatever happened to Congressional leaders like Davy Crockett?

Davy’s motto was, “Make sure you’re right, then go ahead.”

Today’s Congressional credo is, “Make sure it is politically-expedient and politically-correct, then go ahead, unless the polls change overnight.”

We are, “One nation under God,” but many of our pseudo-leaders think our motto is  “One nation under the thumb of Beltway lawyers, lobbyists, and legislators.” No thanks. I actually prefer being “under God” and my own free will. That is why God gave me that free will, as well as a brain and two hands. Washington did not do that for me, but I am very surprised they have not demanded the amputation and immediate mailing in of three or four of my fingers. And before you tell me “There is no God,” I tell you, “God does not believe in atheists, so therefore atheists do not exist.”

            And regarding the Global War on Terrorism, specifically Iraq and Afghanistan; if you must get into a fight, any fight, you win, period. Any other scenario is surrender. Try any rose-colored glasses you choose, but there is simply no other way to paint that picture. Pull out and we, the United States of America, have been defeated by a bunch of heathens who beat women at whim, decapitate prisoners, don’t use toilet tissue, and kill innocents, but then cleverly manipulate our own naïve media to portray themselves as the victims, so that our plastic Hollywood geniuses or some greedy left-wing industrialists will try to hold hands and be their friends (By the way, Superstar, make sure it is the right hand you hold). If we pull out and simply give up because it is too tough, then we will have become a nation of cowards. Want to pass that on to the grandkids? I sure won’t.

No matter how hard we wish, we have only two choices: We can either fight the fanatical jihadists here on our soil, or we can fight them in some other countries overseas, but we must fight them and defeat them, because they will not stop attacking and killing us until we do. We cannot appease them, reason with them, or coexist with them. That is totally against their religious dictums, and they believe killing us gets them into paradise easily.  We must win, or we will perish. There is no other way. The foundation of Dar el Islam, the Nation of Islam, is to spread Islam worldwide and borders do not count, and the pre-seventh century mindset of al-Qaida is to destroy all Christians and Jews.  When will our congressional leaders, and the world, realize that; regardless of the reasons, we invaded the two countries of Iraq and Afghanistan, fought, and won. Now, we are the occupying army, and we can do whatever the hell we choose to do, including putting down insurgencies with swift, powerful force? When will we realize we cannot be every country’s buddy?  Friend, this ain’t rocket science. We are occupying Iraq, and if we do not like the sandal-dragging of those we allowed to be put into power by free elections, which we set up and monitored, then we remove them and say, “Nice try, but not good enough. Try again, but If your new government does not act swiftly and in the best interests of the United States, then we will remove that one and try again, or if you would rather, we will simply take over your entire country and run it the way we want. What is your choice?”

What are we afraid of: That some angry Muslims in foreign countries will protest and burn our flag and burn our President in effigy? Hell, they will do that anyway even if we buy everyone an ice cream cone and an I-pod.

The nay-sayers claim it is all about oil: So? With Iran it most certainly is about oil, for Iran controls has no modern oil refining capabilities  itself, and simply must rely on the conquest of its neighbors to become a major oil power. Look at the price-gouging the free world endures at the hands of the Mideast oil mullahs, our pals. Why wouldn’t Iran want a big piece of that or even total control?  But we are the occupying force, so why don’t we simply take over the oil industry in Iraq? Seriously, why not? Oil prices would come down significantly. We would effectively control the price of oil worldwide, not some sultans with 20 wives each, five Bentleys, and three private jets, while I am shaking my head and paying over one hundred bucks to fill the tank of my Chevy one-ton pickup. One hundred bucks! When I was a younger man I bought cars for a hundred bucks.  How many $ 100 gas refills do we want to go through before we pull our collective heads out of our gas tanks and act aggressively for our own self-preservation? Shall we wait until the cost of filling a gas tank buys some sultan in Saudi Arabia or Yemen another ruby to put in one of their rings, or should we wait until the mullahs in Iran depose and replace those pampered oil barons of our supposed Muslim allies? What will the cost of filling your tank be then? When will the price-line be crossed before Americans finally say, “Enough! Now you’ve pushed the envelope too far!” Or shall we just keep handing them jars of petroleum jelly?

            My question for our leaders is simple: When will you do what you were elected to do? When will you start doing the job we hired you for? We hired you, and we will fire you and kick your sorry butts to the curb if you cannot do the job, just like in the real world where the rest of us live. We must insist on leaders who take a firm hold on the reins of government, not grabbing onto the saddle-horn and just hanging on for the ride, as it gets bigger, stronger, wilder, and more out of control.

            The last four letters of “American” are “I can,” not “I can’t.” We can do anything we set our minds to, and we can spin this horse around by simply controlling the bit. We can make this all work out smoothly for America. We simply need leaders who act more like Davy Crockett than Davy Crackpot or Davy Cricket, and the rest of us have the power to vote to either put them there or remove them when they start their incessant nonsensical chirping. Recently, phone calls and emails killed the unpopular amnesty bill and even overloaded and shut down the Congressional phone system, and we can still take charge and force other needed changes. Americans have free will, because we still are one nation under God. Let’s make sure it stays that way. It only takes the common sense and courage of a man who wore a coonskin cap. A man who had what is called the pioneering spirit of America. We all have it but most have kept it hidden away under layers of apathy, self-absorption, and anxiety. We simply need to pull it out now and use it, or if we wait a little bit longer, someday a scarf-wearing fanatic will yank it out and cut it off with a scimitar. The choice is ours.

  

HONOR GOES BOTH WAYS

HONOR GOES BOTH WAYS

Opinion by
Don Bendell

 

            Dear President Bush: Today, as I write this, six Muslim males were just arrested as they bought dummy weapons they thought to be M16 and AK-47 fully-automatic rifles. Their goal? To enter and gun down as many US soldiers as possible at
Fort Dix, New Jersey, an American army base . . . on American soil! A few short weeks ago, one lone demented man plotted, then executed dozens of innocent college students at Virginia Tech, and how did we handle it? The American news media splashed his name, photographs, videos, and writings over and over. Why wouldn’t anybody with a grudge and a character flaw or two want to pull off a similar act? They can get their “fifteen minutes of fame” guaranteed. But now, without even watching how this plays out, I know the electronic media will barely discuss the six Muslim plotters, the very story that should get the publicity to raise our awareness.

            Not always agreeing with your methodology, I have staunchly defended, with my pen and words, you, our commander in chief, and strongly believe those in the hallowed halls of Congress should do so all the more, in order to provide a united front before all our enemies. To me, it is sickening the way lawmakers of both parties abandoned you, Mr. President, in droves and most for political expediency, nothing more. It is not surprising some Congressional members are sweating bullets over the possible disclosure of the names held by a
Washington madam, as so many in Congress are simply political whores. The TV media are their pimps.

            But Mr. President, that loyalty you most rightfully deserve during a time of war goes both ways. Those brave men and women who guard our borders trying to interdict the locust-like invasions of those who would exploit our freedoms and want our riches without the responsibilities of citizenship along our  porous southern boundary need your loyalty, too. They are always susceptible to automatic weapons fire, explosives, and stabbing by ruthless drug-smugglers, blood-letting gang members, even al-Qaida infiltrators dressed like and posing as Mexican nationals, let alone ruthless coyotes who prey upon the hopes and dreams of their fellow citizens.  Our freedoms are so great, our riches so bountiful, that we are the only country in the world building a fence to keep people out, not to imprison our citizenry within.

            Mr. President, a horrible American injustice has occurred and little children and wives, let alone brave Americans suffer while you hold in your hands the ability to correct this wrong, today. Not months from now, or weeks, or tomorrow, but today.

Border Patrol Agents Jose Alonso Compean and Ignacio Ramos – two loyal Americans of Mexican descent – spotted an illegal alien Osbaldo Aldrete-Davila, in a van, smuggling 743 pounds of marijuana into the
United States. That is drug-smuggling, Mr. President, which almost always involves weapons, lots of them and shootings. Aldrete-Davila ran and Jose Compean headed him off, while Ramos chased him. Both men thought they saw a gun in Davila’s hand, so being prudent law enforcement officers pursuing a running drug smuggler, both Agents fired.

Davila was hit in the buttocks, a portion of the body which was later  extensively used by federal prosecutors in deciding how to handle this case. Davila made it to a van and sped away making it to safety in
Mexico. It was a story played out many times with dedicated Border Patrol Agents along our southern border, but the two men did not know they hit him with a bullet.

Safely in
Mexico, Davila hatched a plan and called a childhood friend who was an Arizona-based border patrol agent Rene Sanchez and complained that he had been illegally shot and mistreated by Ramos and Compean.

Sanchez made contacts and subsequently an investigator for the Inspector General’s office, presumably one who does not risk his life daily facing the dangers of our southern border, believed the known Mexican drug smuggler, had him taken to a hospital in El Paso for free medical treatment of his wounds, and gave him immunity to testify against Compean and Ramos, and then US Attorney Johnny Sutton piled charges on against the two agents.

They have been jailed with sentences harsher than many pedophiles and even killers receive, for shooting a running drug smuggler, who was an illegal alien, and they did not even kill him, which is what Border Patrol Agents will be more wont to do from now on, since they have the message our government will abandon them when the chips are down.

If our American fighting men and women and all those charged with protecting us from another 9-11 cannot get total loyalty from their chain of command, why should they want to serve our nation, Mr. President? This ain’t a Rodney King beating; and simply looking at the facts, it ain’t exactly brain surgery to figure out. There is honor in our society and there is dishonor, and they both flow uphlll and downhill.

Mr. President, the wife of one of these men has already lost their house and their families have suffered other hardships, while politicians continue to push their individual agendas on our border problems, and the television network news media focuses on whatever is the latest sparkle, whether it be a serial killer’s exploits or the latest rantings of breast-enhanced, drug-addicted high society brat. Somebody has got to care about honor and about justice, and it must begin with you, Sir. If you want to take months to review the case and only concern yourself with the letter of the law, then you must also immediately arrest and prosecute every illegal alien in the
US to offer balance. Use your common sense, Sir, and send a strong message. I implore you to pardon Compean and Ramos today.

We can always find Americans with the courage to protect us and our way of life. That is what our country produces, men and women of courage and valor. But, Mr. President, our way of life will only continue to exist if our leaders always protect those among us who are brave patriots, like Compean and Ramos, and not feed them to the wolves. If you want your plunging poll numbers to rise again, please take this step, and they will leap, for we are all sick of weak-kneed politicos and this is a definitive way to separate yourself from the pack. Or should I say the flock?

 

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POSTURING

Did you ever watch a group of dogs when they get together? They are much like republicans and democrats gathered together in a setting, such as Congress. Of course, each is always sniffing all over their cohorts and enemies alike, smelling for previous dalliances, possible wounds that could be weaknesses, powerful odors which could intimidate  lesser pack members, or a possible mate. They each select a territory, as large as each dares and then mark it by peeing on trees. If anyone comes anywhere near this marked territory, then there is barking, growling, popping of teeth, and even occasionally actual biting, especially if another gets too close to the territory that is already marked out.

If a person starts yelling at me or gets very angry for any reason and begins talking disrespectfully, I picture them as one of the dogs in the pack and seldom hear their actual words. Some are little tiny things much like chihuahuas with high squeaky voices, while others, with jowels swinging from side-to-side, are like big fat Saint Bernards with deep bass growls.

Every once in a while though, a big majestic well-muscled German Shepherd shows up, intelligent eyes, and proud stance, making the rest of the pack stare in envy and awe, and they jump to his bidding when he seems to even glance in their direction. Such are the rare leaders in our government, very rare; but oft-times, many members of the pack are so busy barking, growling, and snapping, they don’t even notice that a leader has come into their pack.  Others bark at him just because he intimidates, but the rest of the pack should bark them down, yet seldom do.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we simply had a government of individuals who were more like the German Shepherd, with a quiet strength and regal bearing, who realized that in a pack like our Congress all of the males are Alpha males, and all the females are Alpha bitches. But being secure, confident dogs, eash decides to get along with all the rest for the sake of the pack’s survival. 

Wouldn’t it be nice?

Manipulation of the Clueless

I am an American cowboy, a real cowboy with a real horse. Real American cowboys believe in simple things, starting with truth, filled with tenacity, and ending with faith. When I was a bachelor, decades ago, and much younger, dumber, more insecure, and self-absorbed; I lived in a beautiful rustic apartment overlooking a nice pristine lake. I went through one of those heartbreak periods, where I was trying to set records on dating, and this abode was a wonderful place to take the newest date to try to weave some kind of spell that would hopefully somehow make me feel better about myself as a man. They each would comment on what a good housekeeper I was, and I could hardly keep from laughing out loud. “If she could only see the dirty dishes I hid in the linen closest, the canned goods drawer, and even in the clothes dryer,” I thought, “or if she would only look at all the junk or dirty clothes I kicked under my bed or crammed into closets, I would be exposed as a phony.”

The cadre of the liberals has much the same mindset, but there is one big, big difference: As I got older, I got wiser and much more principled, but they still closet secrets and continue to seduce with no thought to morality or character. That is the kind of housekeeping being done by many in the democratic party leadership: Hide all your own dirty items in expedient places so you can go on the attack and try to charm the unsuspecting voters into a seductive bed of new dreams, a better world, and a government who actually cares. Don’t really clean your own house. That takes commitment and effort. And if that is the strategy of the party of liberalism, then the majority of the world press are indeed their pompous pimps, wearing a fedora halo cocked to the side, and doing the “gangsta” lean on the right armrest of their computer chair.

Ever since George W. Bush has been President, for the first time under any Administration, democratic or republican, I have not been treated like a bastard stepchild at the Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center, VAMC, or the Pueblo VA Clinic. I never have to wait long for appointments, I am treated with the quiet dignity and respect I feel I have earned as a Vietnam veteran, and the attitudes of VA employees, on the whole, has been exemplary. Going to VA under Bill Clinton was especially bad, and was as much fun and fulfilling as sending your twin sisters out on a date with the late-sons of Saddam Hussein. Under the nation’s “first black President,” whose Cabinet was cracker-white like all Cabinets until GWB’s, our military was downsized and trashed and so were our VA facilities to a point where it will take years to recover. Now after the Walter Reed debacle, I know the liberal “beanbag” guns (They won’t use real guns as they are harsh and kill enemies instead of the sensible tactic of “loving them to death”) will now come out and blast away at George W. Bush, the entire Department of Veterans Affairs, and the entire military medical care system. More heads will roll. Why? So the American voters will awaken from “this horrible nightmare” created by the media pimps and liberal pundits and put a democratic President into office to save us from our horrible, hated, demonic leader Dubya. Why is he so hated? Simple: Our money says, “In God We Trust,” but we do not really want him or any of our leaders to actually mention God out loud too much. Maybe it will make the muslim imams get mad at us and not like us like they would under a democratic savior. Or maybe it will just make us feel insecure and anxious.

Here is the classic of the democratic leaders right now: “I support our troops, but not the war. We are going to cut down their funding,” (and the unspoken part): “so they will feel even more betrayed by us and will be in even greater danger. But, unfortunately, that is what we will do so we can win the election. That is what is of the greatest import, winning the election, not the war. Maybe we don’t like to be so cold, but we can live with 1,000 more Americans dead because of us closing the bank. First of all, we can simply spin it and blame it on the President anyway. The anti-war crowd, the al-Qaida, Hamas, the PLO, they all learned after studying the Vietnam War how to turn it around. Just repeat the same lies over and over, discount all common sense and truth, and keep repeating the lies. If we can get airplay on CBS, ABC, or NBC, most of America will buy it in time. After-all, those TV anchors let us know they are the tops in journalism and are our real authorities. Think I am lying? Just ask Tim Russert, Chris Matthews, the deep-voiced Tom Brokaw, Katie Couric, or any of those authorities. That way, most of you Americans don’t have to think or investigate the issues. We’ll do it all for you. Trust us. Besides Americans have become soft. We are the quick-fix society; take a pill, push a button, turn your back, and all our problems simply go away.”

Our enemies have learned this. Professional politicians have learned this. The media has learned this. And they all play us and kick us around like flesh-covered hacky-sacks. I am tired of being kicked around by so-called leaders and pundits who daily violate many of the premises of integrity and morality I hammered into my children’s brains and hearts, for votes or power.

I have a solution, simple and straightforward. John Wayne is the only dead actor in history to consistently be listed in the top ten list of favorite and most respected celebrities even though he’s been gone for years. There is a reason for that. He did his own thinking and stood up for what he believed in and did not waiver. Why don’t we? Or have we sold out so much for convenience sake that we have forgotten how? I don’t think so. We are, each; after-all, still Americans.

Blessings,
Don Bendell

Hello world!

Welcome to Don Bendell’s Blog. I did not know what to write and a friend cautioned me to drop the Alpha male personna, be more politically-correct, professorial, and not offend the sensibilities of those who think of Colorado as flyover country, and view cowboys chewing “cud,” roping goats, and so on, so I simply paste here the response in part that I wrote:

“Some cowboys stupidly dip snuff or chew tobacco, but they do not chew cud. That is what cows chew after they regurgitate what they previously ate. They also do not rope goats. That is a female rodeo and 4H activity. They team-rope steers or individually rope calves. I am an alpha male and I am an American cowboy and am proud of it. I will not be something I am not so that I can assuage the feelings of NYC or LA elitists. If you feel the cowboy line under the title is inappropriate, I will try to think of a new line, but I will not pretend to be professorial so people will like me. That is why our country is so screwed up. That is why I decided to write westerns again. I got sick of buying into everyone telling me “westerns are dead.” It is incumbent upon me to help bring them back to life and to bring the image of the American cowboy back to a level of respectability, so people do not lump me in with a stereotypical image of a bumpkin that some hicks have portrayed, instead of the heroic image the American cowboy has been throughout US and film and television history. Marshal Matt Dillon did not chew tobacco, nor did Roy Rogers, nor do I. They were American cowboys, as most of the world viewed them, and I am following in their boot tracks. I still have no clue what my first entry should be like, and that was my question.”

I guess I do have a clue what my first will be. This is it, and this is me. Welcome.

Blessings,
Don Bendell