tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post3292759240038836349..comments2024-02-11T14:15:58.105-06:00Comments on The Conservative Kitchen Table: Good Riddance. Begone!lady redhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15618584698591777253noreply@blogger.comBlogger37125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-75258177335326043562015-10-02T21:08:05.542-05:002015-10-02T21:08:05.542-05:00Minor correction: earlier I said "de-confront...Minor correction: earlier I said "de-confrontation" when the official non-word is "de-confliction"...but hey I get to invent new words too, eh :-) <br /><br />I've spent a relatively short time at the point of the spear and I never thought "de-confliction" was much of a defense against bullets. But it is an interesting if nonsense construction....when a leader has no real plan for anything nut next weeks golf game...or whatever inane activity du jour. Yeh I erred by using "de-confrontation" but exactly how it that different? Very simply...it isn't. <br /><br />Now let's see him try to "de-conflict" two air superiority fighter jets moving toward each other at 600 mph plus. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-48772670714117746832015-10-01T13:01:20.042-05:002015-10-01T13:01:20.042-05:00Add to all the issues, the muddle head in the Whit...Add to all the issues, the muddle head in the White House. Is it possible that anyone could lead less than that guy? This time around both he and Kerry sound truly surprised, vis a vis Syria, and blather on about "de-confrontation" (??) or whatever. Holy smoke...can we survive 15 more months of this clown? Next thing you know the Russians will have troops in Boston and an airbase in Buffalo. I suppose we can "de-confront" that as well ... sigh. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-44959407941054284432015-10-01T12:44:03.280-05:002015-10-01T12:44:03.280-05:00"When Republicans divide themselves they lose...<i>"When Republicans divide themselves they lose."</i><br /><br />Every time.floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-66887579883478330452015-10-01T12:40:15.491-05:002015-10-01T12:40:15.491-05:00Lady Red ... I am fearful that we cannot continue ...<b>Lady Red</b> ... I am fearful that we cannot continue this charade & risk becoming an autocracy. A do-nothing Congress is part of the problem...that and when they try something it is usually poor strategically...like this squabble over Planned Parenthood with 3 days left before a new budget was due (today)....rather than get a real budget passed and fight the PP issues in 2016. When Republicans divide themselves they lose. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-70877156098492233452015-10-01T10:24:57.407-05:002015-10-01T10:24:57.407-05:00How can we operate like anything else? We ARE a ba...How can we operate like anything else? We ARE a banana republic. It's beyond fixing.lady redhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15618584698591777253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-19770701617871768232015-10-01T08:53:09.488-05:002015-10-01T08:53:09.488-05:00Nothing temporarily joins the various tribes and s...Nothing temporarily joins the various tribes and sectarian groups together more than western intervention...all the actors play nice until we start to withdraw and then they pop up all over again. I cite Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, Yemen, etc...only Egypt has overthrown militarily the fanatic Islamists themselves, and we criticize them for doing it. Say what? <br /><br />We do not have the capability to do all this anymore, as I cited about how hard it is for us to deploy any major forces (that is no joke...it is the design of administrations past and present) anywhere. We have the toughest military but it is shackled to contractors now...a lose-lose set-up. <br /><br />Furthermore, we do NOT have the money to do so either....and a debt that is rapidly going out of any vestige of control. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-72631863786353430292015-10-01T01:15:18.948-05:002015-10-01T01:15:18.948-05:00I also think Putin is happy to drive more "re...I also think Putin is happy to drive more "refugees" into Europe.floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-41588472312816735532015-10-01T01:13:09.688-05:002015-10-01T01:13:09.688-05:00Kerry said we need to have a "deconfliction d...Kerry said we need to have a "deconfliction discussion", WTF? He's sounding and looking more like Lurch every day. I was more concerned with the disdain and dismissal shown to us by the Russians. I don't feel as worried after reading your take on it, Aridog. Syria is just such a mess, do we really want to get more involved? It seems like the only people we've trained who stay to fight are the Afghans, and there have even been huge problems with them (wasn't it one of our Afghan trained security guys who killed the general in Kabul?). I was also taken aback to hear Ash Carter talk about the CR and DoD funding after a few perfunctory words about the Russian's latest moves in Syria. floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-24318177156429180632015-09-30T18:15:51.870-05:002015-09-30T18:15:51.870-05:00It's being reported the CR has been approved.....It's being reported the CR has been approved...and that Obamster will sign it. Hooray for more muddled spending accountability. We continue to operate like a banana republic. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-83366506097067450872015-09-30T17:30:28.468-05:002015-09-30T17:30:28.468-05:00Back to our regularly scheduled programming...the ...Back to our regularly scheduled programming...the CR is still being debated on the floors of Congress. How impotent can be become? Less than 24 hours to go and it is FY 2016. Congress has had a budget to resolve since April...I know that because I helped prepare my unit's portion of it for years...so why the last minute shenanigans? Every dang year for 7 running now? <br /><br />If someone can explain this all to me, please do...I'll sleep better. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-7032974154866793582015-09-30T17:23:56.016-05:002015-09-30T17:23:56.016-05:00Off topic, but where else to put it? There's ...Off topic, but where else to put it? There's a great hullabaloo about the Russians in Syria. Yeah, so? They're supporting a state leader they've been in bed with for years...and you expected what? Yep, they're fighting (first) the "Free Syrian Army"...a direct threat to Assad....you expected what? For one I don't believe a real "Free Syrian Army" exists...it is a weak effort at taqiyah...e.g., ISIL by any other name...funny how the majority of military age men who could support the FSA are those fleeing north to Europe, eh....not interested in fighting for their own nation. Next it is amazing how much equipment and arms we provide our "allied" forces that almost over night turns up in opposition hands...after the "allies" drop them and flee. How often do we need to see this before it dawns on us? We spent some $45 Million training 50 odd FSA fighters, only 10 of which can be accounted for...the others either fled, are dead, or <i>most likely</i> happily in the ranks of ISIL...with all their gear. Give the FSA air-defense capability...right, why not just hand it over to ISIL. <br /><br />Syria is a mess and even Syrian men who should give a damn do not and flee northward. Assad is a brute, but so are many other of our allied leaders. Big whoop. Let the Russians dig a deep hole in Syria, since once they demolish the FSA they will have ISIL at their doorstep. Somewhere along that line the Russians will figure out the ME is tribal with almost irreconcilable sectarian differences. WE did what had to be done in Afghanistan, and should have then left. Same for Iraq in Kuwait, not as if the Kuwaitis are grateful one bit. Iraq 2003 was a mistake, but an honest one...intelligence reports really did say they had or were developing WMD and I know men deployed there who found the chemical & biological variety in quantity....they are intelligence & engineer operators who knew what they uncovered....still jumping in with both feet was a mistake because of the morass it created in a country that even today various tribes/religious sectors hate each other as much as anyone else. <br /><br />Time for us to stop digging in that hole, let the Russians do it....with I suspect the same success they had for 10 years in Afghanistan. If we just bomb snot out of some ISIL folks, do it in Iraq and wherever else they pop up...the Russians will be heavily preoccupied in Syria. I think I've reached that point where I just want to drop out, like my hippie brethren from the 60's...that or I'm turning in to a girl in my old age. I've had enough and my time in war taught me well what works and what does not. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-67714091703733548802015-09-29T13:06:21.906-05:002015-09-29T13:06:21.906-05:00Very good words about the CR. It makes me ill tha...Very good words about the CR. It makes me ill that they have not significantly cut spending anywhere.floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-91169817906689905602015-09-29T12:58:51.559-05:002015-09-29T12:58:51.559-05:00Aridog, I would say there's nothing really wro...Aridog, I would say there's nothing really wrong with him except that he's Boehner Jr., only not as experienced. He was Boehner's protegee, like Cantor before him. I believe he's firmly entrenched in the good ol' boy network but I hope he proves me wrong. I knew Gohmert had no chance but I would have been very happy with Paul Ryan, I think he's terrific, but he's taken himself out of the running.<br /><br />Perhaps it doesn't matter. I know the chance of an outsider to shake things up becoming speaker is slim. I don't know why I still hold out a sliver of hope to have things change in government. Maybe that's just not possible.floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-13444200101391729602015-09-29T09:57:53.005-05:002015-09-29T09:57:53.005-05:00As I type Congress is preparing another, in a long...As I type Congress is preparing another, in a long 7 year line, CR since some Republicans cannot think strategically and let the fight over PP be next fiscal year, which is but one day away now. I'd really hoped for once in over a half decade we could have put a real bi-partisan appropriation budget on Obama's desk. Sadly it's not to be...even if he'd veto it for other reasons (his hubris is all powerful)...at least both houses wold have "done" something and the onus would be on him.<br /><br />I've reached the point where it all seems like Kabuki Theater to me. The unaccountable squandering of fund transfers will continue now under another CR. By mid-year, expect another CRomnibus" with sundry add ons to by-pass the 95% prior period limitations...everything will still be a mixed mis-mash of soup. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-13109897691895216662015-09-29T09:46:50.303-05:002015-09-29T09:46:50.303-05:00Oops...forgot to add my reason for gratitude for t...Oops...forgot to add my reason for gratitude for the "help." All written responses to Congressional Inquiry are reviewed and seen by several senior echelons of federal management, especially DOD ( to make dang sure you DID respond on time and topic)...e.g., she gave me exposure I'd not otherwise have had for issues that bothered me as well...and I didn't have to go all clandestine and blow a whistle. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-30391557878032466862015-09-29T09:40:54.994-05:002015-09-29T09:40:54.994-05:00Truth be told the only Congressional Representativ...Truth be told the only Congressional Representative I pay attention to now and then is Candice Miller (R-MI) who is a representative I've had a bit of contact with (answering her written Congressional Inquires" while with DOD & DA). She always struck me a a forthright Congresswoman who advocates for her constituency....hence the inquires when she felt her constituents weren't being served properly and money she'd sponsored was possibly being misused. However, I do not know enough about her to know if she'd be a candidate for Speaker or even want to be one. I just was impressed with her straightforward representational style...and I always tried hard to accommodate her requests, since they usually involved funds she'd sponsored that were being diverted, and that's one of my pet peeves from my time with DOD...e.g., I appreciated the formal help in an organization that required responses within 72 hours. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-74923007659270496792015-09-29T09:32:44.404-05:002015-09-29T09:32:44.404-05:00As said above, I've really lost interest in DC...As said above, I've really lost interest in DC pols. That's counter productive I know. Your comment made me ask: What is wrong with McCarthy? I seriously do not know anything about the man...but I'l listen. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-51150052140197305192015-09-28T18:38:07.866-05:002015-09-28T18:38:07.866-05:00I regret I no longer care who the Republicans elec...I regret I no longer care who the Republicans elect as Speaker, or the Democrats either (they proved their idiocy by making Harry Reid the Senate leader & Pelosi the House leader), they all seek failure not a remedy of anything. Gawd hep us. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-53047839208857398562015-09-28T18:35:03.523-05:002015-09-28T18:35:03.523-05:00Trump is a phony conservative. He represents the e...Trump is a phony conservative. He represents the establishment, he IS the establishment huckstering at his best, that he now decries...and no amount of "plans" he proposes will ever see the light of day. He constantly yammers on about how he's using his money...establishment money however you slice it. He'd make P.T. Barnum proud...figuratively at least. Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-36797421280660916042015-09-28T17:36:33.938-05:002015-09-28T17:36:33.938-05:00I am in total support of ending the death tax. Onc...I am in total support of ending the death tax. Once and for all.floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-77678469239054081692015-09-28T15:58:34.082-05:002015-09-28T15:58:34.082-05:00I agree with you, lewy. He's very successful ...I agree with you, lewy. He's very successful and not only in real estate but many other areas. What he revealed today about his tax plan sounds good (although I think people making over $25K should pay something). But it was still short on specifics and why won't he reveal who put it together for him? The two things that bother me the most about him is his thin-skinned petulance (which we have NOW but Trump is even worse than Obama with his inability to rise above slights, real or imagined). That character flaw is dangerous for the CiC and for diplomacy in general. The second major objection I have to Trump is his about face on so many issues. I just don't believe he will follow through on his new-found conservatism. Yes, everyone is entitled to "evolve" on their opinions, but most do that gradually.floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-57662655992848644212015-09-28T15:27:13.433-05:002015-09-28T15:27:13.433-05:00I have no doubt that Trump's tax plan will be ...I have no doubt that Trump's tax plan will be more sensible than the status quo.<br /><br />This is because beating the status quo is such an incredibly low bar.<br /><br />Party on, Donald! Indeed, ruffle the feathers and stay fabulous!lewy14https://www.blogger.com/profile/07524380685282662887noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-48096065214004101512015-09-28T11:56:08.969-05:002015-09-28T11:56:08.969-05:00"Um...if you don't pay anything, it's...<i>"Um...if you don't pay anything, it's not a refund. It's income redistribution."</i><br /><br />Hear, hear. lady red.<br /><br /><i>"I am off to check under my pillow for a gift!"</i><br /><br />LMAO!floranistahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11785282868515567825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-48263749795294818772015-09-28T10:36:59.561-05:002015-09-28T10:36:59.561-05:00Not only do the "poor" not pay income ta...Not only do the "poor" not pay income tax, but they receive a federal handout each year. It irks me to no end when I hear "poor" people talking about their "tax refund" check. Um...if you don't pay anything, it's not a refund. It's income redistribution. I don't blame them for taking advantage of the system; who wouldn't? But hey, call a spade a spade.<br /><br />As for Trump? I'm loving how he's ruffling so many feathers. I have a big bowl of popcorn, and I'm enjoying the show. :))lady redhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15618584698591777253noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1038409030829512383.post-75925580527520407822015-09-28T10:30:06.866-05:002015-09-28T10:30:06.866-05:00Yeah, Lewy...old Trumpster does seem to like his a...Yeah, Lewy...old Trumpster does seem to like his arm candy. Trump's "tax plan" is to be "revealed" today, purportedly to tax the rich, etc...right, he's rich, so that idea has the same veracity as the tooth fairy. He talks about a "zero tax rate" for the poor...but, hey, the poor already don't pay taxes to any extent vis a vis income. So where's the difference? I am off to check under my pillow for a gift! Aridoghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18345930150667529742noreply@blogger.com