Over the past few weeks, I have become increasingly concerned about the prospect of Governor Sarah Palin becoming the next Vice President of the United States. Certainly, the idea of Sen. John McCain serving as commander-in-chief is indeed a frightening prospect, but with his advanced age and numerous bouts with melanoma, he is quite likely not to survive four years in office if elected, thus allowing Palin to become President.
The prospect of a Palin presidency (or vice presidency for that matter) is troubling for many reasons. Besides her obvious lack of experience, abuses of power as governor, and apparent ignorance concerning national and international issues, Palin also is a far-right extremist. I have decided to list my Top Ten Reasons why I am convinced that Palin is an ultra-conservative fanatic that makes Pat Robertson or maybe even David Duke look moderate.
1. Sarah Palin and her husband Todd are former associates and long-time supporters of the anti-American, secessionist-based, Alaskan Independence Party (AIP). Supporting a statewide “vote” for Alaskan secession from the U.S., the fringe AIP touts itself as a “states rights party.” As one AIP leader states, the party has "a plank that challenges the legality of the Alaskan statehood vote as illegal and in violation of United Nations charter and international law." AIP’s founder, Joe Vogler, has repeatedly professed his "hatred" for the American government. As reported by ABC News, AIP leaders have claimed that the Palins are former members of the party and attended statewide conferences in 1994 and 2000. Though official records indicate that Palin has been a registered Republican since 1982, nothing has disproved the AIP claim that Palin was an active supporter of this rabidly anti-American party. Besides, one can certainly be a “member” of more than one party simultaneously. More telling is the fact that Gov. Palin sent an official videotaped message to the AIP’s annual convention in early 2008, in which she endorsed their “party’s vision” and referred to AIP as “inspiring:”
2. Palin is a Christian fundamentalist extremist who endorses a church that condones modern-day witch-hunts. For years, she was a member of a Pentecostal church, the Wasilla Assembly of God, which not only speaks in tongues and conducts faith healing, but also believes in exorcisms and witch-hunts. In fact, her former preacher and spiritual mentor, Pastor Thomas Muthee, purposively incited violent mobs in Kenya that physically drove alleged “witches” from various towns and villages. Such activities are clearly sexist and are a centuries-old form of “spiritual warfare” directed against influential women living in traditional communities.
3. Palin is a theocratic extremist who believes that God actively supported the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and even the construction of oil pipelines in Alaska. As she told the Wasilla Assembly of God in June 2008, the Iraq war and the Alaskan pipeline were part of "God's Plan." She also takes pride in the fact that her minister, the witch-hunting Pastor Thomas Muthee, beseeched God to help get her elected governor.
4. Palin is an apocalyptic survivalist who currently attends a church whose main tenet is the belief that Alaska has a “special role” in God’s divine plan for the “last days.” The Wasilla Bible Church, of which she and her family have been members since 2002, actively promotes the radical survivalist view that Alaska will provide a “shelter” as a “refuge state” in the aftermath of the impending apocalypse.
5. Governor Palin has an extreme position on abortion rights. For years, she has advocated the nationwide criminalization of abortion, even in cases of rape and incest. Going beyond the primary conservative approach of calling for the overturn of Roe v. Wade (which would return the issue back to the states), Palin favors national legislation and a constitutional amendment that would criminalize abortion in all states, with only one exception: If the mother’s life is in imminent obvious danger. In fact, she stated as a gubernatorial candidate in 2006 that she would oppose abortion “even if her own daughter was raped.” So if Palin has her way, she would legally force a 16-year old girl who was raped by her uncle to carry the fetus to term.
6. Palin is a rabid homophobic extremist. For starters, her current church clearly advocates the “conversion” of gay men and lesbians into “heterosexual Christians.” As reported by the AP, one of her church’s major theological tenets is known as “pray away the gay,” which Palin apparently supports, judging from her active support of Wasilla Bible Church’s programs and philosophy. More importantly, at the beginning of her administration, Palin actively supported a bill that would have denied state benefits for gay partners of public employees. As governor, she also sought to remove books from public libraries that were gay-tolerant. Like other far-right extremists, she supports a constitutional amendment that would ban same sex marriage nationwide. She also opposes hate crime legislation that includes provisions for sexual orientation. So, this supposedly “Christian church lady” apparently does not think that the law should offer any legal protection to the victims of hate crimes whose attackers were motivated by anti-gay bigotry.
7. Palin is an anti-environmental extremist. She not only constantly demeans science, but also decries mainstream scientific theories of climate change. Disagreeing with her running mate on this position, Palin has repeatedly argued that global warming is not man-made, but rather a “natural” phenomenon. Moreover, she favors opening up Alaska’s entire protected wilderness areas (including ANWAR) to oil exploration and development. In a recent interview, as reported on ABC News, Palin stated, “A changing environment will affect Alaska more than any other state, because of our location. I'm not one though who would attribute it to being man-made.”
8. Palin is a jingoistic bellicose extremist in foreign policy. Like Bush and McCain, she favors rash military action as a substitute for genuine diplomacy and careful negotiations with other countries. Though her ignorance about the Bush Doctrine was revealed in a recent ABC News interview with Charlie Gibson, she nonetheless reaffirmed her belief in American unilateralism and preemptive military attacks on sovereign nations. Moreover, when asked about her response to alleged Russian aggression in Georgia, she indicated that the U.S should consider going to war with Russia if further “unprovoked” incursions occur. If Palin indeed welcomes Alaska’s role in the Apocalypse, then she may get her wish if a U.S.-Russian war is ignited over a small obscure former member of the Soviet Union.
9. Palin is a major “gun nut” who believes that the Second Amendment is absolutely sacrosanct. Like the most extreme members of the NRA, Palin is opposed to virtually all forms of gun control – including waiting periods for gun purchases and bans on assault weapons. As a gubernatorial candidate, she even argued that gun control was “as much of a threat to families as drugs and gangs.” Talk about right-wing erroneous hyperbole. No wonder Palin received the NRA’s “highest possible rating” while running for governor in Alaska. Palin recently claimed that she would be one of the most pro-gun vice-presidents in American history.”
10. Palin has taken numerous other extremist positions on a whole range of issues. For example, she actively supports and promotes “abstinence only” sex education in public schools. She favors the teaching of religious-based creationism in biology classrooms, including the “young earth” theory that promotes the ardently unscientific idea that dinosaurs coexisted with mankind literally thousands of years ago. As one commentator noted recently: “It is quite scary that someone who rejects the fundamentals of basic science, and who shows such a shocking inability to engage in rational thought, could wind up being a heartbeat away from the presidency.”
I don't think John McCain really understands that the United States was founded primarily on the ideals and principles of the Enlightenment, rather than simply "Judeo-Christian values.” Sure, such religious values played an indirect role in the founding of the country, but the fact remains that our founders were convinced that an official state religion should be avoided at all costs. Indeed, several of our founding fathers - including Thomas Jefferson and Ben Franklin - were actually deists rather than traditional Christians.
More importantly, the First Amendment guarantees “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” McCain, who graduated at the bottom of his class in the Naval Academy, probably doesn't even comprehend such important constitutional principles as the separation of church and state. His confusion was certainly evident at Rick Warren's Saddleback Church in California last week, when he declared: "Our Judeo-Christian principles dictate that we do what we can to help people who are oppressed throughout the world."
The main problem with such language is his use of the collective “our,” which implies strongly that American values are synonymous with Judeo-Christian values. Of course, this was not the first time that McCain has used such exclusionary language, effectively rejecting the contributions and values of Americans that do not practice either Judaism or Christianity. As the Boston Globe observed recently, McCain uses such language often and in a variety of contexts. For instance, he recently praised small-town Americans by noting, "The Judeo-Christian values that they hold are the strength of America."
He has even used such language in reference to job training programs. Referring to laid-off workers this past February, he proclaimed, "We've got to educate and train these people. It is a Judeo-Christian values nation and it's an obligation we have and we are not doing it."
Even more disturbing, McCain appeared to embrace a religious test for President in comments he made last year in an interview with Beliefnet, hinting very strongly that non-Judeo-Christians need not apply. As he stated: "The number one issue people should make [in the] selection of the president of the United States is, 'Will this person carry on in the Judeo-Christian principled tradition that has made this nation the greatest experiment in the history of mankind?"
On a practical level, McCain’s theocratic comments have potentially serious repercussions not only for the civil liberties of Americans, but also for U.S. foreign policy and international relations. For example, in justifying the U.S.-led “preemptive” invasion of Iraq, McCain said the following in 2006: "This just wasn't the elimination of a threat to Iraq - this was elimination of a threat to the West, part of this titanic struggle we are in between western Judeo-Christian values and principles and Islamic extremists."
He made similar comments earlier this year about Iran at a town hall meeting in New Hampshire. In reacting to a new intelligence report that had downplayed the threat of Iran's nuclear program, McCain quickly listed other reasons to be distrustful of the Iranians. As he stated: "And they sure don't share our Judeo-Christian values."
It’s really disturbing that McCain is identifying non-Judeo-Christian countries (with predominately Muslim populations) as problematic for the U.S, simply because of reputed differences in religious values. In effect, McCain is framing such countries as part of an ostensible “clash of religions,” as was noted in the Boston Globe article. Much to the chagrin of the Muslim world, McCain constantly conflates Islam in general with the war on terror. He has implicitly referred to Islam as an “alien” faith that is deemed to be threatening to the “Judeo-Christian” world.
Last week, McCain argued in favor of supporting Georgia in its conflict with Russia by noting twice approvingly that “Georgia is a Christian nation.” McCain seemed to be praising Georgia for adopting Christianity as its official religion, implying that predominately Muslim nations and breakaway provinces in the region - such as Chechnya and Azerbaijan – are not as deserving of U.S. support.
McCain's theocratic rhetoric is just one more reason why I am convinced that he is a very dangerous man who would likely start a war with Iran or other predominately Muslim countries for foolish, irrational reasons. Based on such imprudent and ignorant comments, McCain is not intellectually fit to be commander in chief.
The Idiocy of John McCain
Over the past few weeks, I’ve grown increasingly tired of John McCain’s negative and often dishonest attacks on Barack Obama. Among other things, McCain has often accused Obama of lacking “the knowledge and judgment” to be President. This past week’s ad depicting Obama as a vacuous celebrity akin to Britney Spears or Paris Hilton is the most recent example of such sophomoric absurdity coming from the McCain campaign. In reality, Obama is one of the brightest and most knowledgeable candidates for President to come down the pike in decades.
But in this blog I want to focus on McCain, not Obama. It’s high time that McCain is revealed as the one who is truly ignorant and uninformed on a wide range of issues. Despite his vaunted “experience,” it is painfully obvious that McCain is not only unknowledgeable about many important domestic and international issues facing the country, but lacks even a rudimentary understanding of the economy and foreign affairs.
Certainly, all candidates make occasional gaffes in their speeches and press conferences. But in contrast to most politicians, McCain never seems to learn from his misstatements. Instead, he repeats the same erroneous comments over and over again.
It’s high time to list the Top Ten Reasons why John McCain is idiotic:
1. By his own admission, McCain “barely passed” his coursework in college. He also finished at the very bottom of his class in the U.S. naval academy. He was ranked 894th out of 899 among academy graduates in the class of 1958. Can the guy even read and write? I wonder sometimes.
2. One thing we know for sure is that McCain has never really used the Internet and lacks any basic knowledge when it comes to information technology. He revealed as much at last year’s Republican YouTube debate. McCain’s Internet ignorance and technophobia is not only embarrassing, it’s inexcusable for anyone working in government to not know how to use the Internet. Do we really need a modern-day Luddite in the Oval Office?
3. Maybe if McCain could surf the web he might have discovered that Czechoslovakia no longer exists. He has mentioned this “country” several times in recent weeks, even after the media reminded him that the “Velvet Divorce” of 1993 resulted in the end of Czechoslovakia. Of course, his inability to remember such “details” is readily apparent. Ironically, even George W. Bush caught McCain making the same mistake in a 2000 Republican presidential debate. You know it’s pretty bad when Bush’s knowledge of world affairs apparently exceeds that of McCain. I doubt that even Bush believes that Iraq and Pakistan share a border, or that Vladimir Putin is the President of Germany, as McCain has stated recently.
4. Speaking of Bush, McCain was a zealous supporter of the 2003 invasion of Iraq – the most idiotic foreign policy decision in recent American history. By his own admission at a Republican presidential debate in June 2007, McCain voted to authorize the U.S. military invasion of Iraq without even glancing at the formal National Intelligence Estimate. If he had read the report he might have discovered that the intelligence community was divided over whether or not Saddam was developing WMDs. Once again I ask: Can McCain even read?
5. Apparently, McCain never anticipated any kind of insurgency in Iraq. As he famously said at the time of the 2003 invasion, the U.S. military will be “greeted as liberators.” Of course, in recent months McCain has repeatedly confused the Shiites with the Sunnis. His favorite lap dog, Joe Lieberman, had to correct him on the ground in Iraq by whispering the facts into his ear. But then McCain continued to confuse the two sects in the days that followed, even noting erroneously on a couple of different occasions that Iran (which is Shiite-dominated) was supporting (Sunni) al-Qaida in Iraq.
6. McCain’s confusion about Iraq has also been apparent in his claim that the surge of U.S. troops happened before the Sunni (Anbar) Awakening. But as all military experts acknowledge, the Awakening preceded the surge by several months, thus contributing to the current decline in sectarian violence. Despite such facts, McCain’s has so far refused to acknowledge his mistake about the war’s chronology. Not only is he idiotic, but also apparently too stubborn to admit any factual errors.
7. McCain’s ignorance about the Middle East is compounded by his juvenile sense of humor – which could be quite dangerous as President. Echoing Beavis and Butthead, McCain responded gleefully about the prospect of “bombing” another country. Asked at town hall meeting in April 2007 if there was a plan to attack Iran, McCain began his answer by changing the words to a classic Beach Boys' song. As he stated to the crowd, "You know that old Beach Boys song, Bomb Iran?” He then preceded to sing, "Bomb bomb bomb, bomb bomb Iran." Can someone please say “diplomacy for dummies?” Is this sophomoric behavior really what we want or need to see in a future commander-in-chief?
8. For months, McCain has been touting his support of a “gas tax holiday” for the summer months. This particular policy has been roundly criticized by virtually all economists and energy experts as fallacious and ill conceived. But McCain – out of stubborn ignorance or political pandering – has refused to abandon this foolhardy initiative.
9. Of course, by his own admission, McCain doesn’t know much about the economy. As he told the Wall Street Journal in November 2007: “I'm going to be honest: I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues. I still need to be educated.” Judging from McCain’s previous dismal attempts at being “educated” while in college, I don’t have high hopes that his knowledge on economic issues will improve in the Oval Office.
10. When it comes to the economy, McCain never seems to miss an opportunity to tout the Bush tax cuts that have disproportionately benefited the very wealthy. Despite such tax cuts having fueled the largest federal deficits in American history, McCain blithely ignores such facts. Out of ignorance, dishonesty, or both, McCain appears to be totally unaware of the economic damage such uncontrolled tax expenditures have caused.
Well, I’m sure there are many other reasons that could be cited as proof of McCain’s ignorance, idiocy, and ineptitude. Talk about vacuous – the guy reminds me of Grandpa Simpson, or maybe a geriatric version of Beavis from MTV. Let’s just hope that Americans are wise enough to realize that McCain is indeed the latest American Idiot to hit the national political scene. Hmmm…I wonder if McCain is considering Dan Quayle as a possible running mate?
In recent weeks, the McCain campaign has repeatedly argued that Barack Obama is unprepared to engage in international relations as President. These are my top ten reasons why I strongly believe that Obama as President would be highly successful in dealing with foreign policy and national security issues, much more so than John McCain.
1. There's no doubt that Sen. Barack Obama has more global appeal than any other candidate for President. He's the son of an African immigrant and a woman from Kansas, which represents an obvious departure from the past. HIs global popularity is undeniable and would give him additional leverage in encouraging other nations to embrace particular approaches to foreign policy.
2. Obama has lived in other countries and traveled abroad extensively, and as a result fully understands many other cultures particularly in Southeast Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
3. Obama studied international relations in college and consequently understands important nuances of foreign policy. He has brought his academic expertise to the U.S. Foreign Relations committee and has worked in a bipartisan fashion to chart a new American foreign policy. For example, Obama spearheaded the effort – along with Republican Senator Richard Luger - to emphasize the importance of helping eliminate “loose nukes” in Russia and Eastern Europe – a project that had been vastly under-funded by the Bush Administration.
4. He witnessed poverty and related social problems firsthand on a daily basis as a community organizer on the streets of Chicago and will have a greater understanding of comparable Third World issues as a result. His experience at the grassroots level in the U.S. will enable him to devise viable, innovative solutions to global problems as poverty, hunger, lack of adequate health care, worker safety, infant mortality, AIDS, organized crime, and human trafficking.
5. He has incredible credibility (and political capital) in the world because he opposed the Iraq War from the very beginning (unlike John McCain) and understood in 2002 that Bush's pre-emptive war in Iraq would seriously hurt America's standing in the world. After all, the Iraq War is the Number One reason why the U.S. has become so incredibly unpopular in recent years.
6. Obama has clearly demonstrated good judgment in such foreign policy decisions, unlike McCain - who made the worst foreign policy decision in decades when he voted to authorize Bush’s invasion of Iraq.
7. Obama is highly diplomatic in his personal style and never shrill or temperamental (unlike McCain), which will help win back good will around the world. He doesn't lose his cool or cry "shame" when he disagrees with someone. Rather, Obama knows how to bring people together and forge compromises - and this characteristic will help him immensely in any diplomatic initiatives he undertakes with foreign governments.
8. Obama is willing to meet with virtually any leader in the world without unnecessary bureaucratic preconditions (unlike McCain), thereby signaling a new, more open, stance for American foreign policy. He understands that the U.S. never stopped meeting with Soviet leaders during the Cold War, so why should we not meet with our enemies today? He contends that adequate preparation for such meetings is absolutely necessary, but continuing the obstructionist saber-rattling cowboy antics of the Bush Administration (as McCain favors) will get us nowhere.
9. Obama knows how to prioritize national security concerns (unlike Bush and McCain) and will act accordingly in shifting the emphasis in the war on terror back to Afghanistan/Pakistan, where it truly belongs. Of course, he will also use his diplomatic skills to help bring together disparate Iraqi factions and fully involve Iraq’s Muslim neighbors and the United Nations in a multilateral effort to achieve lasting stability in the region.
10. Electing Barack Obama as President will be a clear and unambiguous signal to the world that the U.S. is charting a brand new course. Rather than looking backwards, the U.S. will be moving forward with fresh new ideas and innovative bipartisan approaches in foreign policy.
