2015: The Banality of Leadership

“1992 is not a year on which I shall look back with undiluted pleasure ... it has turned out to be an Annus Horribilis.”

                                                         Elizabeth II, Her Majesty the Queen,

speech in London, on November 24, 1992, 

to mark the 40th anniversary of her Accession 

as Queen of England and the Commonwealth.

Her Majesty’s reflections are also an apt description of 2015. The phrase, Annus Horribilis, in the parlance of our time, means a disastrous or unfortunate year. 

‘What the hell is going on out there?’

If you don’t understand it by now, then you are either a parasite or a moron.

Judeo – Christian societies, the foundation of Western Civilization, are lead by feckless leaders, in a banality of leadership. Failed policies and outrageous lies define, by and large, the leadership of our world today. Most prominent are the United States of America (Mr. Obama), Germany (Mrs. Merkel), England (Mr. Cameron), France (Mr. Holland), and the supercilious imperious bureaucrats of the European Union (Messieurs Junker and van Rompuy, et al.).

All seem to engage in expiation and demonstration of an obscene political correctness, in which the enshrinement of social injustice is only the most egregious example. Yet, it should be fully understood, that the liberal secular political agenda is not altruistic, but rather an arrogant, selfish, narcissistic, gambit for power.

Still, it should also be clear, 2015 was not a horrible year for all nations. For the autocratic leaders of Russia (Mr. Putin) and China (Mr. Xi Jinping), 2015 is a year to celebrate. Both nations have successfully expanded their borders without so much as a genuine threat from the world’s democratic leadership. Certainly, one leader preens and prattles on endlessly, but the world has taken measure of the man, and has concluded, for good reason, there is nothing there.

For theocrats, 2015 was an extraordinary year. Iran (Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Mr. Hassan Rouhani) and the Islamic State of the Levant, aka ISIS (Abu Bakr al – Baghdadi), are succeeding in their quest to dominate the western world and establish an Islamic caliphate. Messieurs Obama and Kerry, the Democrats and Establishment Republicans in Congress, the United Nations, and et al. have given Iran the means for a Shia theocracy in the Middle East. Continuation of this path, the Middle East will generate not just in a regional conflict, but also an apocalyptic world on fire.

These men and women are “neroisticly” fiddling with the viability of western civilization. The Ten Commandments, Greco – Roman Civilization, the Sermon on the Mount, the Magna Carta, the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the Enlightenment, are under assault by a 7^th Century fictional cult dedicated to world conquest by the sword.

Some otherwise intelligent people will defend the indefensible, and excuse the corruption and deceit, in their allegiance to a principle(s). Who knows how far and where their mindless devotion will take them? The path to National Socialism is paved with good intentions.

Are we about to ask ourselves again, how could this happen? How could the leadership of the western civilization allow themselves to destroy their own societies?

The answer may be found in an abundance of greed and arrogance, and a paucity of religious conviction. The liberal secular state will be the downfall of western civilization. In good times mediocre conceited leadership is benign, but in bad times, like today, it is disastrous.

Indeed, 2015 was a horrible year. 

Perspective: Deflategate

Much, in this case the term much is an understatement, has already been written about the New England Patriot’s star quarterback, Tom Brady, and the Patriot organization deflating game footballs to get an illegal edge. This is the news of the day, but it is not the real story.

The undeniable fact is that the American culture is morally bankrupt. From sport stars to politicians to celebrities, to the Main Stream Media, the American character of high standards, integrity, God, Country, and the Green Bay Packers, no longer exists. Lying and deceit at the highest level of government have replaced honesty and doing the right thing. Accountability and responsibility are dead. Farce and incompetence are rewarded. Obscenity is applauded. Excuses, straw men, and Aunt Sally are the preferred methods of discourse of today’s progressive political class.

You are not going to find a "smoking gun," to prove Brady's quilt. You will not find video evidence of Brady deflating the footballs. But you do have the "stained blue dress," manifested in Brady's email(s).

Clark Judge, a NFL Hall of Fame Journalist wrote recently: "when he (Brady) had a chance to tell us exactly what happened … he didn’t, and don’t ask me why. But when someone doesn’t respond to inquiries, the presumption is that he’s hiding something." Indeed, Brady stonewalled the investigation, providing some information, but withholding other possible evidence.

This should be clear; this is not just an issue of one man's character. It is a reflection of the Patriot's organizational culture, beginning with the owner, Robert Kraft, and Head Coach, Bill Belichick.

Do you remember the Patriot’s clearing snow off the field of play during a timeout so their kicker would have a better chance to make a game winning field goal against the Oakland Raiders, in the January 19, 2002, infamous "tuck rule" game? And, do you remember in 2007 there was “Spygate, where the Patriots videotaped the opposing team’s defensive coaches in violation of NFL rules? Now, we have “Deflategate,” another violation of NFL rules. This doesn't happen unless an organization's culture condones such behavior. You might say Brady and the Patriots have a few skeletons in their closets.

Yet, there needs to be some perspective here. This is sport -- and players and coaches from the beginning of competitive sport have always looked for an edge. Deflating a football does not rise to the level of Armageddon.

Moreover, the NFL shares an equal portion of responsibility. Allowing teams to handle the footballs used in a game is just foolish and amateurish.

Tom Brady, like Hillary Clinton and her emails, will never tell the truth, because Brady like Hillary will not admit that they did something wrong or illegal. Both are guilty as hell. For both of them, the ends justify the means. Brady wanted a Championship and Super Bowl, and Clinton wants to be President.

Like Brady and the Patriots, Clinton also carries considerable baggage to stain her character. Here’s a reminder: Whitewater (fraudulent real estate, improper campaign contributions, political favors); Cattle-Futures (a $1,000.00 investment netted $100,000.00 in ten months); Chinagate (Clinton – Gore campaign in 1996 took bribes from Chinese banks); Travelgate (White House fired career travel office employees and replaced with Arkansas friends); Vince Foster (death of Clinton colleague and friend apparently of suicide); Filegate (Clinton aide improperly accessed FBI files on individual citizens Hillary viewed as Republican political adversaries); Monica Lewinsky (perjury and that right wing conspiracy); Lootergate (Clintons ship White House furniture to their private home in Chappaqua, NY); White House Pardons (140 pardons on January 20, 2001 for Marc Rich, Clinton’s brother Roger and Whitewater criminal Susan McDougal, Puerto Rican FALN terrorists, and drug dealers); Political Favors (Norman Yung Yuen Hsu for fraud and manipulating the political process); Benghazi (see below); Destruction of Government Property (Emails); and the Clinton Foundation (still to be investigated).

Hillary Clinton doesn’t just have a skeleton in her closet – she has a whole cemetery.

Still, there is at least one huge difference between Brady and Clinton. Brady deflated a football, in a professional sporting event. Clinton got Americans killed.

Clinton was directly responsible for Islamic terrorists murdering the United States Ambassador to Libya and three other Americans, in Benghazi Libya, on September 11, 2012. Clinton put Americans in harm's way and left them to die; when it interfered with her political agenda. Clinton deep-six requests for military support to save the life of her Ambassador and the men who tried to save him, and then lied and destroyed evidence to cover up her acts.

What Clinton did was illegal (destroying government property), despicable (not authorizing military intervention to save the lives of Americans, and then lying to the families about it), unethical (“what difference does it make”), and a cover up (blaming the cause of the attack on the US Consulate office in Benghazi on a YouTube video).

What Brady did was to violate the rules of the game (deflate footballs) and then lied about it (cover up).

It’s that perspective thing again.

I can live with Brady.

I cannot abide by Clinton.

CONUNDRUM

A man walks into a bar in New York City.

The bartender asks the man, "what will you have?"

The man replies, "where am I?"

The bartender brings the man a drink.

What drink did the bartender bring him?

Perspective: American Arms for Ukraine

Arming Ukraine would be good foreign policy. The alternative, to do nothing, is to permit the incipient resurrection of the Soviet Union. To let the Euros handle it is a nonstarter. 

Do you remember the Bosnian War (1992 – 1995)? That ‘war in the time of peace’, was a fight America did not have a dog in. Moreover, it was in Europe’s backyard. The Soviet Union was finished. Without the threat of Russian involvement, certainly the European Union (EU) and United Nations (UN) could take control of this little war in the Balkans. 

But they didn’t, and it didn’t end swiftly or well. The result was death and destruction, and a safe haven and an open door for Islamic terrorists in Europe. In other words, don’t expect the corrupt and incompetent elitist of the EU and UN, to interrupt their 3-hour lunches to aid the Ukraine.

One other history lesson is instructive. Ronald Reagan decision to arm the Afghans and Mujahedeen with Stinger missiles was a game changer. The Soviet Union (Russia) concluded that the fight was not worth the cost. Today, a well-armed Ukraine would cause Russia to recalculate the cost of their aggression. 

Now this is very important, I do not proffer the introduction of any US Military personnel into this conflict. I would not trust the amateurish, incompetent, inept, inferior, clumsy, unqualified, ham-fisted, cack-handed, bush league Obama White House to undertake any military activity in the Ukraine.

Arming the Ukrainians could be a difference maker. At the very least, it will give Mr. Putin something to think about. Thinking is good.

Wake Up! *

"I prefer to die standing than live on my knees."
                                         - Stephane Charbonnier
                                           editor of Charlie Hebdo

"For all we have and are, For all our children's fate, Stand up and take the war, The Hun (Jihadist) is at the gate! "
                                           - Rudyard  Kipling 

The Pope makes a speech in which he philosophically quotes a 14th-century Byzantine Emperor critical of Islam and most of the Islamic world is up in arms - literally. Previously, the Middle East erupts - literally - over a cartoon. These events should not be minimized or ignored as a cultural misunderstanding or the machinations of an Islamic lunatic fringe. It is being used, like the alleged flushing of the Koran at Guantanamo, as part of the propaganda war being orchestrated by radical Islam's Gorings and Goebbels. It is time to stop pretending that the West and the world of radical Islam, where terrorism is seen as a legitimate expression of political opposition, can peacefully co-exist.

When Pakistan's Foreign Minister opines, "Even if our government is pro-west, our
people are increasingly not," we are right to ask, 'Why do they hate us?' There has been no paucity of hand wringing explanations such as poverty and lack of opportunity, but the answer is really very simple. In many cases they hate their governments, which are undemocratic and repressive, and correctly blame the West for supporting these governments. They hate us because their governments through their state controlled media tell them to hate us. They hate that they can't help but admire our modern world, its technological innovations and Hollywood glamour, and we, in turn, respect nothing more of theirs but the oil reserves upon which they sit, eat and pray. But, most of all, they hate us because they have been taught to hate us. Day after day, year after year, young children are taught to hate the infidel. Is there any wonder we are where we are today. Still, why would these Middle East regimes teach their children to hate the West?

One explanation is this. When government is not "of and by the people," and all is not well in the kingdom - then someone or something else must be blamed other than the government. The West, the infidels, the outsiders, have always served this purpose for Middle East rulers. By blaming the West for all that is not right the Ruler cannot be blamed. Their perfidious gambit has been this: on the one hand, behind closed doors and in English, you tell Western leaders how terrible this all is and that freedom of expression is as important to you as them; and on the other hand, you are increasing your funding to the Mullahs so they may spread their venous attacks against the West throughout the Muslim world, speak in Arabic and Farsi, and beat the drums of hatred through your state controlled media. This is a farrago of disingenuousness.

There is a war of civilizations. The first salvos were the bombing of the Marine barracks in Lebanon, the bombing of the US World Trade Center in 1992, the bombing of US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, the attack on the USS Cole, September 11th, the Madrid train bombings in 2004, and the London Subway bombings in 2005, to name some. How many times do we need to hear, read, and experience the ranting and deeds of radical Islam before we accept that their intent is to destroy us?

It is Islam's responsibility to lift its' religion out of the hands of radicals and extremist mullahs. We have yet to hear those other voices in Arabic and Farsi.

Appeasement results from mental laziness. Calls for calm and understanding may be well meaning but they are naive, and prefer the ostrich to the lion. There is no going back the Rubicon has been crossed - the struggle has surely begun. The pundits will proffer that this is only an expression of radical Islam and not the will of the majority of Muslims. Then, where are they? Certainly not in the West Bank or Gaza after Hamas's victory. In how many other Middle East counties, given a fair election, will the extremists win? When will the Iranian citizens take to streets to demand that their government seek better relations with the West? It is foolish to believe that these peace-lovers number in the majority. It contradicts every reality.

"If," said Churchill, "a mad dog makes a dash for my trousers I shoot him down before he can bite". 

* This 0p-ed was written September 2006.

Wake Up! The Jihadist Is At The Gate

"If a mad dog makes a dash for my trousers I shoot him down before he can bite".

                                    - Winston Churchill

In September 2006, I wrote an op-ed entitled, "Wake Up! The Jihadist Is At The Gate." Today, we know, or should know, they are inside. There have been so many wake up calls it is difficult to name them all; 9/11; 7/7; Madrid; Benghazi; Peshawar; Mumbai; Nairobi; Nigeria; Brussels; and now (again) France.

This is only the third time that another Blogger is represented on The Grey Grater. Pamela Geller's "Atlas Shrugs" is not just a blog, but a service to freedom. If you don't read it everyday, you should. The following is Ms. Geller's American Freedom Defense Initiative ("AFDI") plan to stop Jihad:

AFDI 18 POINT PLATFORM IN DEFENSE OF FREEDOM 

– AFDI calls for the U.S. and other non-Muslim governments to recognize officially that Islam is a political movement and so not solely religious in the strict sense of the U.S. Constitution. AFDI recognizes that Islam in it mainstream theological formulations and its dominant form throughout its history, not “extremist Islam” or “hijacked Islam” or “Islamism,” but Islam in the Qur’an and Sunnah as understood by Islamic jurists and theologians, can and should be regarded as an authoritarian and supremacist political system as well as a religion, and thus that Muslim groups should be subject to all the scrutiny and legal requirements of political organizations, without being able to shield their political activities behind the protection of religious freedom.

– AFDI denounces the crippling rules of engagement under which our soldiers are forced to labor. They should be given the freedom to defend themselves and protect their comrades.

— AFDI calls for profiling of Muslims at airports and in hiring in professions in which national security and public safety could be 
compromised.

— AFDI calls for immediate investigation into foreign mosque funding in
 the West and for new legislation making foreign funding of mosques in
 non-Muslim nations illegal.

— AFDI calls for surveillance of mosques and regular inspections of mosques in the U.S. and other non-Muslim nations to look for pro-violence materials. Any mosque advocating jihad or any aspects of Sharia that conflict with Constitutional freedoms and protections should be closed.

— AFDI calls for curriculum and Islam-related materials in textbooks and museums to describe the Islamic doctrine and history accurately, including its violent doctrines and 1,400-year war against unbelievers.

— AFDI calls for a halt of foreign aid to Islamic nations with Sharia-based constitutions and/or governments.

– AFDI denounces the use of Sharia law in any Western court or nation.

– AFDI advocates deportation hearings against non-citizens who promote jihad in our nations.

– AFDI calls for an immediate halt of immigration by Muslims into nations that do not currently have a Muslim majority population.

— AFDI calls for laws providing that anyone seeking citizenship in the United States should be asked if he or she supports Sharia law, and investigated for ties to pro-Sharia groups. If so, citizenship should not be granted.

– AFDI calls for the cancellation of citizenship or permanent residency status for anyone who leaves the country of his residence to travel for the purpose of engaging in jihad activity, and for the refusal of reentry into his country of residence after that jihad activity.

— AFDI calls careful investigation of Muslims resident in non-Muslim country that have obtained naturalized citizenship or permanent residency status, to ensure that that status was not obtained under false pretenses.

— AFDI calls for the designation of the following as grounds for immediate deportation: fomenting, plotting, financing, attempting or carrying out jihad attacks; encouraging or threatening or attempting to carry out the punishments Islamic law mandates for apostasy, adultery, blasphemy, fornication or theft; threatening or attempting or carrying out honor murders, forced marriage, underage marriage, female genital mutilation, or polygamy.

— AFDI calls for the U.S. and other free nations to have jihad, as it is traditionally understood in Islamic jurisprudence to involve warfare against and subjugation of non-Muslims, declared a crime against humanity at the U.N., or to withdraw from the U.N. and have its headquarters moved to a Muslim nation.

– AFDI calls for legislating making illegal the foreign funding of Islamic Studies departments and faculty positions in our universities.

– AFDI demands the repeal of U.N. resolution 16/18 and any other resolutions that might limit the freedom of speech.

– AFDI calls for all Muslim chaplains in prisons and the military to be thoroughly vetted, and dismissed if they have ties to any Islamic supremacist group, or if they advocate jihad.

– AFDI calls for the development of energy policies that will free us from dependence upon oil from Muslim countries.

AFDI establishes a common American/European coalition of free people determined to stand for freedom and oppose the advance of Islamic law, Sharia. Islamic law is not simply a religious system, but a political system that encompasses every aspect of life; is authoritarian, discriminatory, and repressive; and contradicts Western laws and principles in numerous particulars. 

AFDI stand for:

— The freedom of speech – as opposed to Islamic prohibitions of “blasphemy” and “slander,” which are used effectively to quash honest discussion of jihad and Islamic supremacism;

— The freedom of conscience – as opposed to the Islamic death penalty for apostasy;

— The equality of rights of all people before the law – as opposed to Sharia’s institutionalized discrimination against women and non-Muslims.

Are you awake yet?

A New Year Aspiration 2015*

For all that is so fair and good, 
For all our daughters and sons, 
We give our thanks and cheer today at nights' last 
hour come. 

For tomorrow is another day and there is hope all will be well, 
We pray God's continued blessing, 
for all that this New Year tell. 


* Original poem by Lawrence S. Schneiderman first published January 2011.