"There are no accidents in politics"

Some things just don't make sense....if you stop to ponder them.

I'm not an astute political analyser, but I'm pretty good at finding good ones. Political analysis is mostly taking known, sometimes little known, information and forming some logical coherence to it all. Even then, it's often not that accurate. And I have my own thoughts which I ponder, and this is a simpler method for me, when it works.

Take the overblown hullabaloo about John McCains VP choice of Palin, a fast developing puzzle. I'm not going to get cerebral about this sad state of affairs. But I am going to go with one thought: Accidents seldom happen at high political levels. "There are no accidents in politics", remarked Joseph P. Kennedy to a reporter in 1960. (full quote:"We're going to sell Jack like soap flakes. There are no accidents in politics.") LBJ and FDR have been purported to have said the same thing.

So...if McCain's choice of VP, with its soap opera media frenzy, is pondered, I really wonder it this is for real. I think it could very well be a distraction, and planned this way.

Ponder a few things along with me....
1. McCain, as is obvious, is too old to be a globe trotter. Not that he often needs to be; a president has a large staff to do the footwork and running, including a VP. But he must travel upon occasion. Not to mention the high demands of chief executive work, even from an office. There is serious, and justified, question about McCains physical and mental abilities.
2. The choice of Palin is also more than a bit illogical. Yes, it has its logic from several standpoints, but overall it is a logical disaster.
3. For decades, the Republicans have played dirty tricks to sink the Democrats. The Dems seemed to have caught on to this and have not been blindsided to this point. But then, maybe the Reps see this, and are taking a different strategy....

Keeping in mind the thought "there are no accidents in politics" (at high levels), would it make sense for McCain to head the Republican ticket against a strong runner as Obama with Biden? And then to choose such a controversial VP running mate? I think not. I'm looking for something to happen, and fairly soon, which might well be a 'blind sider', to wit:

- A possible invasion of Iran by Bush, with his 'extending' his own presidential term of office by decree. Almost certainly preceded by a false flag op, giving him his excuse for the invasion. This possibility has been warned of for some time.

- A surprise candidate taking McCain's place after he "pulls out of the race". Perhaps due to a medical condition etc.

- Yet...it could be as simple as Sarah Palin pulling out, as suggested by another. And replaced by someone more embraced by the Right. But if that's the case, who in the world chose Palin and vetted her? Can't be just McCain, could it? Who dropped the reins, then? Something ain't right there.

- Even if the Republicans lose this one, even if big time, the elites running the show have an approved man in office, to wit: Barack Obama. Don't think for one moment that Obama would have gotten anywhere near this far without approval from (way) on high, the real elites. Certainly, "foreign policy" plans will continue, and the encroaching fascism may be camouflaged, but not stopped.

A different singer singing the same song, so to speak; the song written by those actually holding the reins. As it always is.

But nothing at this level will be left to accident or chance. Or, did one of the lieutenants really drop the reins with Palin? Stay tuned; this story changes by the hour, and there's more coming.

What a Soap!

The ballot system here...

The system here, in place since at 1811 (thanks to Napoleon) is for everyone to register at city hall in the town/area in which they live. This supplies answers to many needs, including census, and all is kept up to date. Each birth, death or moving into/away from the city/area is recorded. Each civil document is connected to this info: Wedding licences, drivers licenses etc. I just sent in my application for another 10 year extension of my residence permit (I'm not a Dutch citizen because of the complexities with the U.S. government, or I would hold dual citizenships). I had to go to city hall to get a document stating my address and family members, all kept up to date. This original document took 15 minutes to obtain, including waiting time in line (seated) and was printed out by computer. Cost €11.00, for which I pinned. Of course, I had to identify myself; my passport did this nicely. This is proof positive that I am who I say I am, and I live where I do, and with whom. This is a key bit of info, and proof, for my residence permit.

This same system is used to send out ballots. Pretty secure. Everyone has a ballot sent to them, together with voting info. Anyone may request and use an absentee ballot, and a fair amount of people do. All voting stations, typically schools and churches, are within 1 kilometer walking distance, so all are easily reachable by walking (except the rural areas).

BTW, because of this system, I could trace my family name and make the connection to the names they used before this. On 20 August 1811, my great, great, great grandfather established our family name permanently; it was taken from, but not at all the same as, the name of the farm on which they lived for over 100 years. I have a photocopy of that original entry, obtained from the provincial records. Before 1811, our family often used the name of the farm as their last name for some years, and more often, the patriarchal system. Thus, our family name was Duitlaar (farm name), Gerrits, Jansen, Willems, Hendriks, Alberts etc., all first names of male family members.

Can't Happen in the U.S.

If the Nuremburg Trials were to be held today, a number of top U.S. government officials, including Bush and Cheney, would be indicted and found guilty. The neo-cons knew this before they invaded Iraq, and that explains why they refused to take part in the ICC. They knew what they were doing and going to do was breaking many international laws, including the Geneva Conventions. The fact the the U.S. government goes its own way following the wishes of a neo-con minority (who fulfil the wishes of the few financial top elite)is not lost on the world. The author of this article has it 100% correct when he writes: "While the United States is a country like any other, its citizens no more special than any others on the planet, Americans still react with amazed surprise at the suggestion that their country could be held responsible for something as heinous as a war crime." Most Americans do not make the connection between all the poverty and violence in the world and the overwhelming part that their own government plays in this. Most Americans believe what their government tells them through the controlled mainstream media; and believe that they are a peaceful, democratic country that only means to help others in a world filled with enemies. This majority of Americans hasn't a clue as to what goes on in the world, and especially the overwhelming part their own government plays. Michael Parenti, political scientist and author, says it well: "The enormous gap between what US leaders do in the world and what Americans think their leaders are doing is one of the great propaganda accomplishments of the dominant political mythology." The name of the game has been the same for centuries now: The killing and destruction and pillaging of other peoples and countries to feed the wealthy elite, and enrich the economies of the aggressors, mostly Western White Societies, where the U.S. stands head and shoulders above the rest since WW2, leaving Great Britain in a distant second place. Follow the money ie: Look where the resources such as oil and minerals (including fresh water) are to be found. Also, geography comes into play for strategic and economic gain, such as for pipelines, ports and military bases. That's where these few aggressive countries invade, and always under a cloak of lies. In the name of peace and prosperity, they bring death, destruction and poverty. That also explains the horrific conditions in many of the so-called third world countries. Their governments are nothing more than puppets of the West, colonies by proxy. And yet, Americans were always taught that it was because of their own wonderful country, it's capitalisitic economy, its "Christianity", its freedoms won by their god-like "founding fathers", and its democracy that it had become so prosperous. Indeed, the U.S. did enjoy the world's best economy for a few decades following WW2; but that is also diving these last years, and has nowhere to go but down, and rather rapidly. If Americans only realized that their economic system was based on destruction, death and pillaging and economic slavery of other countries, they would have long ago made some changes. The American people are no different than any other; they are not inherently stupid. But they have been subjected to the most widespread and effective cloak of propaganda in the world, and so they have been blinded to reality. This matrix has become their reality; they know no differently. What happened to the Native Americans in the beginning of U.S. history has not stopped. It has gone on, often outside of its own shores. It isn't because God blesses America, or that capitalism is so wonderful, or Americans are special, that the U.S. has prospered until recently: It's mostly because of the pillaging of other countries, including denominating all oil sales in U.S. dollars, that keeps the U.S. economy subsidized, and the wealthy elite reasonably content. But Americans have to know what is really happening before they can overcome the many decades of the most effective propaganda and media control the world has ever seen. Let's hope this does happen before it's too late. The window of opportunity is getting very small, and the hour very late. The majority of Americans need to see their beliefs for what they are: Beliefs based on misinformation. Propaganda. Thank goodness that some Americans are already awake, but their numbers are too few, and they are too terrified of their own government.

Inaccurate information

All of us make a mistake at times, and I'm no exception. Most of the time, these are 'innocent' mistakes and do little harm as well. But in the case of something publicized, even 'innocent' mistakes need to be corrected.

I got a message from a fellow blogger at another blogging website, whose blog I had been to earlier for a brief look. Seeing the brevity of my visit (after midnight, which is why) I did not arrive at any definite conclusions from his site, but he struck me as being orientated towards the political Right. In such cases, I say little or nothing and visit again at a more opportune time. The blogging website is one where all visitors are clearly identified, so we both knew who the other was.

But what really struck me the next morning is that, while calling to my attention the fact that one of my posts was inaccurate and was an "urban legend", he did it in a decent manner. Having been heavily involved in political debate and also blogging on internet for some six years now, this was a first for me. I have never been decently criticized by someone from the Right in the U.S., but have often been bashed, and most of the time unfairly and inaccurately. So this was a first.

Now, my post was a piece about U.S. presidential IQs, and I should have known better, for the website that hosted it, as well as its contents, was clearly suspicious to me for a number of reasons. Yet, because of the "dumb George" image floating around the world, and a higher regard for the intelligence of other presidents, I did post it without thinking further; I just joined in the poking fun of an obviously 'challenged' puppet politician.

The website source, and its material, is false, with the exception of Jimmy Carter. My own reactions to it should have alerted me, but I just went along. This is confirmed by Snopes.com, which I have in on a "My Yahoo" news sources page along with other mainstream news sources, and which the fellow blogger also pointed out. Here's my article:
http://earl1940.stumbleupon.com/review/5124914/
And here's the Snope link:
http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/hoaxes/presiq.htm

My whole point with this post is to express both surprise at the decency of this fellow blogger whom I assume is a Rightie, and to simply point out that the post should not be taken as accurate.

Nonetheless, as I mentioned to him in a quick reply late last night, the numbers published are an indication, even if exaggerated or inaccurate. I left it still posted, for it does have some entertainment value to it, and is not entirely wrong. Besides, I wish to refer to it with this post.

That said, I know what my own IQ is, having had it thoroughly tested years ago by a highly regarded psychologist. It's not on the low side, but I am NOT impressed by IQ numbers, and feel they do not give an accurate indication of someone's true capabilities, or the ability to use them. They are a good indication of potential and some other attributes, but no guarantee of many things. I know that from my own experience. Our own character traits and what we experienced in our lives have a great deal to do with the level of our abilities and 'accomplishments'. And then, much of this is not at all valued in a money orientated and often superficial society.

All this aside, I am still of the opinion that G.W. Bush is the worst president of the U.S. in my lifetime, is intellectually limited, and also the most dangerous. The fact that he is still in office does not speak well of the political process in the country, either.

Enough said

Election Fraud

Remember the U.S. elections of 2000 and 2004? Here's a repeat.

First, get a lot of untraceable electronic voting machines produced, the kind that are easily hacked.

Second, hack them, and change the results in favor of the elites.

Third, claim victory early and loudly.

Sound familiar?

Read it here.

The Religious Clash of Egos

As always, it's a matter of power and/or money.

It's Not About the Interests of Jesus, Muhammad or God

The Religious Clash of Egos

All the founders of world religions made it perfectly clear that religion is only about how we treat ourselves and each other, and that God does not benefit from religion.

God's priority is human interests. It's not about God.

If we look closer, all religious disagreements can be boiled down to ego and power.

The rabbis did not disagree with Jesus about the Ten Commandments, but about what the Gospel means for rabbinical power.

Christian Rome did not disagree with Muhammad about the Ten Commandments (the Koran confirmed them), it was about the control of the Middle East.

Jews, Christians and Muslims expect Jesus to come once Jerusalem has become a big metropolis. Well, now it has.

So what are they going to do when Jesus comes and tells them that there is nothing to clash about?

Source:
http://cytations.blogspot.com/2006/07/its-not-about-interests-of-jesus.html

Back again (?)

My main politics blog website has been drastically changed and limited as to bandwidth, so I am thinking of coming back here for my blogging, and using the other one for links. Within a short time, I'll come up with a solution. Meanwhile, I'm back....

Stretched

As is obvious, I haven't been posting at this blog lately. I'm still posting, but my blogs have take a different turn lately, and this blog is a 'lite' version of my regular politics blog, anyway.
For my regular politics blogging

For my general blogging

For those not familiar with Stumble Upon, it is almost a whole world unto itself. Best viewed with the Firefox browser, by the way.

And a new blog with several writers contributing, the chief writer being a known author/analist, Richard K. Moore.


Earl
Amsterdam

Calculating the Risk of War in Iran

A comprehensive essay looking at all the facets.

In the past weeks media reports have speculated that Washington is ‘thinking the unthinkable,’ namely, an aggressive, pre-emptive nuclear bombardment of Iran, by either the United States or Israel, to destroy or render useless the deep underground Iranian nuclear facilities.

The possibility of war against Iran presents a geo-strategic and geopolitical problem of far more complexity than the bombing and occupation of Iraq. And Iraq has proven complicated enough for the United States. Below we try to identify some of the main motives of the main actors in the new drama and the outlook for possible war.

The dramatis personae include the Bush Administration, most especially the Cheney-led neo-conservative hawks in control now of not only the Pentagon, but also the CIA, the UN Ambassadorship and a growing part of the State Department planning bureaucracy under Condi Rice. It includes Iran, under the new and outspoken President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. It includes Putin’s Russia, a nuclear-armed veto member of the UN Security Council. It includes a nuclear-armed Israel, whose acting Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert, recently declared that Israel could ‘under no circumstances’ allow Iranian development of nuclear weapons ‘that can threaten our existence.’ It includes the EU, especially Security Council Permanent Member, France and the weakening President Chirac. It includes China, whose dependence on Iranian oil and potentially natural gas is large.

Each of these actors has differing agendas and different goals, making the issue of Iran one of the most complex in recent international politics. What’s going on here? Is a nuclear war, with all that implies for the global financial and political stability, imminent? What are the possible and even probable outcomes?

Read on . . . .