Marines.Together We Served

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Ground Zero Et Al

My mother used to make some great spaghetti when I was a kid. But what intrigued me most was her method of determining when the spaghetti noodles were properly cooked. She would take a fork and carefully snag one of the noodles from the pot of boiling water. Then with a quick flick of the wrist the hapless noodle would sail through the air, ending up with a “splat” against the kitchen wall. If the noodle was suitably cooked, it would stick to the wall. On the other hand, if it fell off the wall, then the noodles needed more time to cook. I found this to be most entertaining.

I’m also finding the various things happening in the news around our country to be much like spaghetti noodles being tossed against the wall. With all of the nonsense and tomfoolery going on it’s as though various situations erupt which grab our attention for a few days, only to be quickly forgotten as soon as the next crisis emerges. The following are a few of the “spaghetti strands” I’m talking about.

For instance, there’s the illegal immigration issue in Arizona. The federal government is suing the Grand Canyon State for attempting to enforce its recently established State Senate Bill 1070, authorizing the state to enforce federal laws currently on the books in order to protect the state from the overwhelming problem of illegal immigrants coming across their border from Mexico. U.S. citizens have been murdered on their own property by people coming into the country illegally. Many others are simply terrified of going outside after dark, even in areas that are 80 to 100 miles north of the border! The length of the border with Mexico is 389 miles – no small distance to protect. Supposedly 1200 National Guard troops are being sent to help “monitor” the illegal immigration issue. One problem – they are there to observe and report any illegal activities going on – nothing more. Only 524 members of the National Guard are to be sent in August. This seems an illogical, even a dangerous decision. You’re asking American military personnel to do nothing as people cross illegally into our country. Suppose those same soldiers are witness to a crime, such as attempted murder or rape or drug trafficking. Do they call the local authorities? What happens if one of these guys finds it too difficult to sit by and do nothing? Do we get into a shooting war with illegals and drug runners from the south? Does this not exacerbate an already volatile situation? And 1200 troops? Are you serious? Even if all 1200 were “trigger-pullers,” there is simply no way to cover a border of nearly 400 miles. Constitutionally, the federal government has an obligation and responsibility of protecting its citizens. Amazingly, that simply is not happening!

Then there’s the British Petroleum (BP) busted oil well spewing thousands of gallons into the Gulf of Mexico. This disaster dragged on for more than three months before the said oil company was able to place a cap on the offending oil leakage. My, how our president talked tough toward the CEO of BP, saying he was looking for someone’s posterior to kick! Makes you proud, doesn’t it? This whole thing has been a debacle from the outset. The only people who seemed to have any idea of the right thing to do were the folks in Louisiana – the ones most affected by the oil spill. Once again, the federal government wanted to focus on blaming BP – all the while ignoring the continued requests of the governor and other state leaders to provide the essential items necessary to protect their shoreline from the pollution that was certain to cripple their fishing industry for some time to come. Many in the federal government were painting doomsday scenarios for the Gulf region, only to have recent reports come out stating that the oil is virtually gone! What is the government doing? Looking for political advantage and more people to blame!

And of course we have the Islamists who plan to build a mosque in close proximity to Ground Zero on Manhattan. Initially, this decision to build a mosque rubbed a lot of folks the wrong way – including me. I still believe it is very bad form on the part of those Muslims in New York. By this action, they are showing that they do not care about the sensitivities of New Yorkers in particular, and Americans in general, by building a structure that is too closely associated with the evil that was brought upon us as a nation on 9-11, a mere nine years ago. Adding insult to injury, the ground-breaking is to commence on 9-11 next year, the ten year anniversary of the most infamous and heinous attack leveled against us as a nation since the British burned Washington D.C. in 1814. Make no mistake – this is a free country. These folks have the right to build a mosque close to Ground Zero. It’s perfectly legal – but it is definitely not wise! If Muslims expect Americans to be open and accepting of their religion by rubbing our noses this way, they are proving to be very ill-advised. Does the federal government investigate the leader of this mosque? No. This imam rants against our nation and its freedoms, and threatens us with Sharia law. Sounds like a terrorist to me. But our government gives him a pass!

In Egyptian mythology, the phoenix rose out of the ashes to live again. We need a rebirth in America of leadership – true leadership! It pains me to say that what currently passes as leadership at the federal level, is pathetically embarrassing. We cannot allow our nation to be systematically destroyed this way.

We’re better than this, America.

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