http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305 Over and over again I see people here talking about liberals as appeasers, Liberals as weak on terror; basically, I see a lot of bad information and wrong ideas.&nbsp; So let's take a look at what a hard core Liberal War on Terror might look like: First, we'd set a timetable for Iraq.&nbsp; Lets the Iraqis know we don't plan on staying forever, which is really important right now.&nbsp; Do what we need to do to get out of there and start repairing our military.&nbsp; We're going to need them.&nbsp; Give it a year, get an Iraqi army set up as well as we can and get gone.&nbsp; Maybe leave some support troops and training centers behind for another 6 months. Starting today, we'd actually start fighting terrorism.&nbsp; There are&nbsp;three main&nbsp;fronts where terror can be fought, because the terrorists need&nbsp;three things: Money, Shelter, and Leadership. First: The Money Terrorist groups get their funds from two main sources: drugs and oil.&nbsp;&nbsp; Let's make a plan to be off of foreign oil in 10 years and off of fossil fuels in 20.&nbsp; First thing we'd need to do is double the milage of every car in the US in 3 years and stop the sales of any car that doesn't get at least 40 miles to the gallon.&nbsp; We have the technology.&nbsp; The government would pay the cost to tranistion American factories owned by American companies.&nbsp; If the government needed to seize some patents to do it, I say that more important than gassing up for Osama.&nbsp; Next would be a massive infrastructure change that would swap us over to mostly renewable, decentralized resources.&nbsp; We can't rely on large power plants to carry the load anymore because they make for excellent targets.&nbsp; By decentralizing, you make an attack on our power grid impossible. With drugs we have 2 options: We can either regulate them and produce them domestically, taxing them and providing users with free rehab on demand.&nbsp; Also, draconian punishments are put in place for people who break the laws regarding drug use.&nbsp; The other option is to buy off the farmers who are producing the crops in other countries.&nbsp; They aren't making huge money, and it would save us on cost down the road.&nbsp; I don't have a preference here, but a mix would probably work best. Next: Shelter No more of this cowboy &quot;if you shelter a terrorist, we'll treat you like a terrorist&quot; garbage.&nbsp; Governments can't be held responsible for the actions of a few of their citizens.&nbsp; What we need to do is get in, house by house and make the case that we are the good guys.&nbsp; If we can't do this, we've already lost.&nbsp; That means holding ourselves and our troops to the highest standards.&nbsp; No more playing with being torturers, mucking around the Geneva Conventions or violating our own Constitution.&nbsp; We've got to be able to go anywhere and say America equals Freedom.&nbsp; America is the Gold Standard for behavior.&nbsp; The more we become like the terrorists, the less reason people who shelter the terrorists have to choose us over them. Domestically, this means opening up our own governement.&nbsp; No more paperless ballot voting machines, no more pork barrel politics, no more lobbyist contributions.&nbsp; Clean up our government, cut the pork and the fat. Next, we need better education.&nbsp; A lot of people talk about college, but I think you need to start young.&nbsp; Let's start getting kids into school at 3 rather than 5.&nbsp; Free preschool, mandatory kindergarten where teachers are paid like teachers, not baby sitters.&nbsp; At that age, kids learn fast, and if you don't start them till they're 5, they never catch up.&nbsp; You&nbsp;show me&nbsp;a kid reading and writing at 3, I'll show you a kid that doesn't need a college education unless they want to pursue an advanced degree.&nbsp; You'll also see a kid who knows how to read a newspaper, knows the difference between opinion and fact.&nbsp; You'll also have brighter people for&nbsp;businesses to draw on so you'll advance America more quickly in all fields. It also means Universal Healthcare, taking care of our troops while they fight and when they get home.&nbsp; VA passes good for any local hospital so our vets aren't traveling across the state for a checkup.&nbsp; These folks aren't just warriors, they are our ambassadors and they need to know we've got their back like they had ours.&nbsp;We get better troops&nbsp;and don't have to take these guys with Klan tattoos and the like. The point of the domestic front is to make sure that everyone knows America is not just a great nation, but a good nation as well. Last: Leadership This is not our leadership, which is sorely lacking these last few years, but theirs.&nbsp; It should be the most dangerous job in the world heading a terrorist organization.&nbsp; We need to begin rebuilding our international spy network, starting with renewing our ties to the Pakistani ISI.&nbsp; They created Al-Queda with our help in the 70's and 80's.&nbsp; They know everyone there.&nbsp;&nbsp;And when we find bin Laden, pop in the night, no TV, no 100,000 soldiers, just gone.&nbsp; And on to the next guy. Meantime, we start working with all the international players.&nbsp; If Iran wants to sit down at a table, we sit down with them.&nbsp; We figure out what they are really doing.&nbsp; If they want nuclear power for peaceful purposes, we get the IAEA in there, work out a deal where they buy the uranium rods from us so we can control the content and we get the spent rods back before they get more. If it were me calling the shots, that would be the rough sketch. Any edits you'd like to see? Over and over again I see people here talking about liberals as appeasers, Liberals as weak on terror; basically, I see a lot of bad information and wrong ideas.&nbsp; So let's take a look at what a hard core Liberal War on Terror might look like: First, we'd set a timetable for Iraq.&nbsp; Lets the Iraqis know we don't plan on staying forever, which is really important right now.&nbsp; Do what we need to do to get out of there and start repairing our military.&nbsp; We're going to need them.&nbsp; Give it a year, get an Iraqi army set up as well as we can and get gone.&nbsp; Maybe leave some support troops and training centers behind for another 6 months. Starting today, we'd actually start fighting terrorism.&nbsp; There are&nbsp;three main&nbsp;fronts where terror can be fought, because the terrorists need&nbsp;three things: Money, Shelter, and Leadership. First: The Money Terrorist groups get their funds from two main sources: drugs and oil.&nbsp;&nbsp; Let's make a plan to be off of foreign oil in 10 years and off of fossil fuels in 20.&nbsp; First thing we'd need to do is double the milage of every car in the US in 3 years and stop the sales of any car that doesn't get at least 40 miles to the gallon.&nbsp; We have the technology.&nbsp; The government would pay the cost to tranistion American factories owned by American companies.&nbsp; If the government needed to seize some patents to do it, I say that more important than gassing up for Osama.&nbsp; Next would be a massive infrastructure change that would swap us over to mostly renewable, decentralized resources.&nbsp; We can't rely on large power plants to carry the load anymore because they make for excellent targets.&nbsp; By decentralizing, you make an attack on our power grid impossible. With drugs we have 2 options: We can either regulate them and produce them domestically, taxing them and providing users with free rehab on demand.&nbsp; Also, draconian punishments are put in place for people who break the laws regarding drug use.&nbsp; The other option is to buy off the farmers who are producing the crops in other countries.&nbsp; They aren't making huge money, and it would save us on cost down the road.&nbsp; I don't have a preference here, but a mix would probably work best. Next: Shelter No more of this cowboy &quot;if you shelter a terrorist, we'll treat you like a terrorist&quot; garbage.&nbsp; Governments can't be held responsible for the actions of a few of their citizens.&nbsp; What we need to do is get in, house by house and make the case that we are the good guys.&nbsp; If we can't do this, we've already lost.&nbsp; That means holding ourselves and our troops to the highest standards.&nbsp; No more playing with being torturers, mucking around the Geneva Conventions or violating our own Constitution.&nbsp; We've got to be able to go anywhere and say America equals Freedom.&nbsp; America is the Gold Standard for behavior.&nbsp; The more we become like the terrorists, the less reason people who shelter the terrorists have to choose us over them. Domestically, this means opening up our own governement.&nbsp; No more paperless ballot voting machines, no more pork barrel politics, no more lobbyist contributions.&nbsp; Clean up our government, cut the pork and the fat. Next, we need better education.&nbsp; A lot of people talk about college, but I think you need to start young.&nbsp; Let's start getting kids into school at 3 rather than 5.&nbsp; Free preschool, mandatory kindergarten where teachers are paid like teachers, not baby sitters.&nbsp; At that age, kids learn fast, and if you don't start them till they're 5, they never catch up.&nbsp; You&nbsp;show me&nbsp;a kid reading and writing at 3, I'll show you a kid that doesn't need a college education unless they want to pursue an advanced degree.&nbsp; You'll also see a kid who knows how to read a newspaper, knows the difference between opinion and fact.&nbsp; You'll also have brighter people for&nbsp;businesses to draw on so you'll advance America more quickly in all fields. It also means Universal Healthcare, taking care of our troops while they fight and when they get home.&nbsp; VA passes good for any local hospital so our vets aren't traveling across the state for a checkup.&nbsp; These folks aren't just warriors, they are our ambassadors and they need to know we've got their back like they had ours.&nbsp;We get better troops&nbsp;and don't have to take these guys with Klan tattoos and the like. The point of the domestic front is to make sure that everyone knows America is not just a great nation, but a good nation as well. Last: Leadership This is not our leadership, which is sorely lacking these last few years, but theirs.&nbsp; It should be the most dangerous job in the world heading a terrorist organization.&nbsp; We need to begin rebuilding our international spy network, starting with renewing our ties to the Pakistani ISI.&nbsp; They created Al-Queda with our help in the 70's and 80's.&nbsp; They know everyone there.&nbsp;&nbsp;And when we find bin Laden, pop in the night, no TV, no 100,000 soldiers, just gone.&nbsp; And on to the next guy. Meantime, we start working with all the international players.&nbsp; If Iran wants to sit down at a table, we sit down with them.&nbsp; We figure out what they are really doing.&nbsp; If they want nuclear power for peaceful purposes, we get the IAEA in there, work out a deal where they buy the uranium rods from us so we can control the content and we get the spent rods back before they get more. If it were me calling the shots, that would be the rough sketch. Any edits you'd like to see? en-us Sounds wonderful, but unlikely to work because none of these "fixes" addresses the fundamental flaw in our forign policy, the need to be surerior and our new Imperialist mentality. What we will do is to build an international spy network which will makes us even more feared and hated around the world and which eventually will be turned against our own in America.<br /> <br /> As for  the Paperless" world, it is an insiduous practice that we cannot and will not let go easily even though there are not now and nor will there be soon sufficent safeguards for securing the integrity of information.<br /> <br /> The Educations system will never be what it once was universal education for all because that is no longer the objective in America. What we seek and what the government supports is an elite class to maintain the current balance of the top 3 percent holding the wealth and power and dictating what our lives are destined to be, this both desired and will be maintained at all cost starting with the Presidency of the United States where heredity has replaced intellect. <br /> But the fall of education is well on the way with local politics leading the way. Take KHSD as an example, there expansion policy in the last three decades has produced wanted results and has produced them with the consent of the electorate because the have not divulged their plan to change education with the help of special interests. Developers, builders and politicans not educators will dominate the course education will take in the future as it has in the last three decades. It is not ofr instance KHSD's goal to increase the value of education to the individual child. it is KHSD.s goal to provide the best teachers and facilities to the elite in the City. If they really wanted to do the best job, instead of building new flat top schools with the same builders and developers advice they would look first at improving the schools already in use. Increase the size of the Campus, use new scheduling of classes, pursue first rate teachers who want to teach not just be part of a "new"school in the new elite part of a growing City. But none of this is in the cards, building new school in new elite area's and neglecting old schools is likely to be more successful when an elite 3 percent is the goal.<br /> <br /> As for Universal healthcare, forget it, the top 3 percent  objective would be impossible to maintain.<br /> <br /> What is likely to happen regardless of who is elected is more military and more places to use it. More intelligence and more people to use it against,  less education  but more quality education to maintain the 3 percent, and more religion to have a reason for the our behavior.<br /> <br /> As for solving the energy problem as long as our military is the strongest is the world, oil will not be a problem is our thinking. Plan B of course is that the special 3 percent education will produce results in new energy, but not until it is time, and timing is everything, no more of this cheap energy it creates too much wealth for the lower 97.<br /> <br /> For now, you can look forward to more conquests around the world, more miltiary spending, more intelligence and less personal freedom, more miracle cures for the top3 percent and less healthcare for the lower 97, more educational opportunities for the elite and more drones for the top 3 percent's use and of course another generation of hereditary politics.<br />  <br /> There will be US in the millineum and all those who are unlike us will be TERRORISTS and the country will continue with the current system of top three percent leadership, and a steady  indentured servant 97% population.  http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26820 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26820 Sounds wonderful, but unlikely to work because none of these "fixes" addresses the fundamental flaw in our forign policy, the need to be surerior and our new Imperialist mentality. What we will do is to build an international spy network which will makes us even more feared and hated around the world and which eventually will be turned against our own in America.<br /> <br /> As for  the Paperless" world, it is an insiduous practice that we cannot and will not let go easily even though there are not now and nor will there be soon sufficent safeguards for securing the integrity of information.<br /> <br /> The Educations system will never be what it once was universal education for all because that is no longer the objective in America. What we seek and what the government supports is an elite class to maintain the current balance of the top 3 percent holding the wealth and power and dictating what our lives are destined to be, this both desired and will be maintained at all cost starting with the Presidency of the United States where heredity has replaced intellect. <br /> But the fall of education is well on the way with local politics leading the way. Take KHSD as an example, there expansion policy in the last three decades has produced wanted results and has produced them with the consent of the electorate because the have not divulged their plan to change education with the help of special interests. Developers, builders and politicans not educators will dominate the course education will take in the future as it has in the last three decades. It is not ofr instance KHSD's goal to increase the value of education to the individual child. it is KHSD.s goal to provide the best teachers and facilities to the elite in the City. If they really wanted to do the best job, instead of building new flat top schools with the same builders and developers advice they would look first at improving the schools already in use. Increase the size of the Campus, use new scheduling of classes, pursue first rate teachers who want to teach not just be part of a "new"school in the new elite part of a growing City. But none of this is in the cards, building new school in new elite area's and neglecting old schools is likely to be more successful when an elite 3 percent is the goal.<br /> <br /> As for Universal healthcare, forget it, the top 3 percent  objective would be impossible to maintain.<br /> <br /> What is likely to happen regardless of who is elected is more military and more places to use it. More intelligence and more people to use it against,  less education  but more quality education to maintain the 3 percent, and more religion to have a reason for the our behavior.<br /> <br /> As for solving the energy problem as long as our military is the strongest is the world, oil will not be a problem is our thinking. Plan B of course is that the special 3 percent education will produce results in new energy, but not until it is time, and timing is everything, no more of this cheap energy it creates too much wealth for the lower 97.<br /> <br /> For now, you can look forward to more conquests around the world, more miltiary spending, more intelligence and less personal freedom, more miracle cures for the top3 percent and less healthcare for the lower 97, more educational opportunities for the elite and more drones for the top 3 percent's use and of course another generation of hereditary politics.<br />  <br /> There will be US in the millineum and all those who are unlike us will be TERRORISTS and the country will continue with the current system of top three percent leadership, and a steady  indentured servant 97% population.  Thanks for that.&nbsp; The question then becomes, how do you take control away from the top 3 percent?&nbsp; We still live in a Democracy.&nbsp; How do we exercise it in a way that grants power to a greater cross-section?&nbsp; I'm not good at accepting that our society is unchangeable.&nbsp; But it takes work and knowing how and where to strike to get the most for your efforts. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26823 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26823 Thanks for that.&nbsp; The question then becomes, how do you take control away from the top 3 percent?&nbsp; We still live in a Democracy.&nbsp; How do we exercise it in a way that grants power to a greater cross-section?&nbsp; I'm not good at accepting that our society is unchangeable.&nbsp; But it takes work and knowing how and where to strike to get the most for your efforts. You've got some great ideas there Tom. A few of them are more idealistic than realistic, but I really don't see that as a problem. Everything starts with an idea. The only part that I didn't agree with is the part about Pakistan. I am becoming increasingly worried about them. Ties to Al Qaeda, Ties to the Taliban, Ties to Bin Laden, Has Nukes, Has a military dictatorship in place, and is probably harboring Bin Laden right now. It worries me greatly that Bush is buddy buddy with them, sold them billions worth of military equipment, including some F-16s. There's something going on there behind the scenes that I don't like the looks of. <br /> <br /> All in all, great post. We need to keep putting our ideas out there so people can't say that liberals don't have a plan. I've always found it as rediculous as saying that any american hates the troops. Neither is anywhere close to the truth. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26824 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26824 You've got some great ideas there Tom. A few of them are more idealistic than realistic, but I really don't see that as a problem. Everything starts with an idea. The only part that I didn't agree with is the part about Pakistan. I am becoming increasingly worried about them. Ties to Al Qaeda, Ties to the Taliban, Ties to Bin Laden, Has Nukes, Has a military dictatorship in place, and is probably harboring Bin Laden right now. It worries me greatly that Bush is buddy buddy with them, sold them billions worth of military equipment, including some F-16s. There's something going on there behind the scenes that I don't like the looks of. <br /> <br /> All in all, great post. We need to keep putting our ideas out there so people can't say that liberals don't have a plan. I've always found it as rediculous as saying that any american hates the troops. Neither is anywhere close to the truth. I understand the concerns about Pakistan.&nbsp; We've been sending them fat checks and really good military hardware for a while now.&nbsp; Essentially, we own them.&nbsp; The fact that they are acting the way they are (sheltering Bin Laden, releasing Taliban fighters including those pieces of ****&nbsp;who killed Daniel Pearl) says more about the current conditions of our relationship with them than it does about their character.&nbsp; They obviously have the goods.&nbsp; How much would it cost us to get them?<br /> <br /> As far as idealistic stuff, are you familiar with the Overton window idea?&nbsp; Basically it says that you should propose nutty stuff so that the compromise is closer to what you want.&nbsp; The Republican think tanks mastered it and now we've got the President making a &quot;compromise&quot; that still guts Article 3 and suspends haebeus corpus.&nbsp; Who'd have thought 6 years ago that we'd even be *debating* whether torture was ok? http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26828 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26828 I understand the concerns about Pakistan.&nbsp; We've been sending them fat checks and really good military hardware for a while now.&nbsp; Essentially, we own them.&nbsp; The fact that they are acting the way they are (sheltering Bin Laden, releasing Taliban fighters including those pieces of ****&nbsp;who killed Daniel Pearl) says more about the current conditions of our relationship with them than it does about their character.&nbsp; They obviously have the goods.&nbsp; How much would it cost us to get them?<br /> <br /> As far as idealistic stuff, are you familiar with the Overton window idea?&nbsp; Basically it says that you should propose nutty stuff so that the compromise is closer to what you want.&nbsp; The Republican think tanks mastered it and now we've got the President making a &quot;compromise&quot; that still guts Article 3 and suspends haebeus corpus.&nbsp; Who'd have thought 6 years ago that we'd even be *debating* whether torture was ok? I don't think you'll see a mainstream of kids reading and writing at age three.&nbsp; The ability usually isn't there.<br /> .<br /> But for those kids who <em>can</em> (like yours truly), our schools need to be able to cater to them and bring the best out of them.<br /> .<br /> (But now we're not talking about the war on terror anymore, but&nbsp;about domestic&nbsp;education policy.&nbsp; Oh well.)<br /> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26832 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26832 I don't think you'll see a mainstream of kids reading and writing at age three.&nbsp; The ability usually isn't there.<br /> .<br /> But for those kids who <em>can</em> (like yours truly), our schools need to be able to cater to them and bring the best out of them.<br /> .<br /> (But now we're not talking about the war on terror anymore, but&nbsp;about domestic&nbsp;education policy.&nbsp; Oh well.)<br /> We just okay'd a shipment of F-16's to Pakistan as&nbsp;*REQUESTED* by the terrorists who killed Pearl.&nbsp; Just like we pulled out of Saudi Arabia at bin Laden's request.<br /> <br /> Harbored terrorists?&nbsp; Check.<br /> Nuclear weapons?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Check.<br /> Military dictatorship?&nbsp; Check.<br /> Ties with Taliban?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Check.<br /> <br /> Looks like Bush should be invading Pakistan any day now... http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26833 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26833 We just okay'd a shipment of F-16's to Pakistan as&nbsp;*REQUESTED* by the terrorists who killed Pearl.&nbsp; Just like we pulled out of Saudi Arabia at bin Laden's request.<br /> <br /> Harbored terrorists?&nbsp; Check.<br /> Nuclear weapons?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Check.<br /> Military dictatorship?&nbsp; Check.<br /> Ties with Taliban?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Check.<br /> <br /> Looks like Bush should be invading Pakistan any day now... I would guess the F-16's are hush money to keep the Pakistanis quiet about our nuclear gift to India.&nbsp; Gee, appeasement and tribute have always been a Republican tactic, and they've always worked--right?&nbsp; Ask Prescott Bush... http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26834 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26834 I would guess the F-16's are hush money to keep the Pakistanis quiet about our nuclear gift to India.&nbsp; Gee, appeasement and tribute have always been a Republican tactic, and they've always worked--right?&nbsp; Ask Prescott Bush... Hardliner, I think most kids can, given a good environment.&nbsp; Kids are smart.&nbsp; Again, I'll take a year at age 3 over four at age 18-22.&nbsp; And even though it doesn't seem like part of the war on terror, it really is.&nbsp; An educated populace can find better ways of killing terrorists than bombing whole countries which only creates more terror. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26835 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26835 Hardliner, I think most kids can, given a good environment.&nbsp; Kids are smart.&nbsp; Again, I'll take a year at age 3 over four at age 18-22.&nbsp; And even though it doesn't seem like part of the war on terror, it really is.&nbsp; An educated populace can find better ways of killing terrorists than bombing whole countries which only creates more terror. I think&nbsp;another important thing in the GWOT is to get the terrorists to not want to kill us or blow themselves up any more. I know it's a no brainer, but we aren't doing anything to convince them not to. Bombs only make them more angry. Winning hearts and minds is essential if we ever want this to end. At this point we only seem to want to piss everyone off. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26838 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26838 I think&nbsp;another important thing in the GWOT is to get the terrorists to not want to kill us or blow themselves up any more. I know it's a no brainer, but we aren't doing anything to convince them not to. Bombs only make them more angry. Winning hearts and minds is essential if we ever want this to end. At this point we only seem to want to piss everyone off. <p>We are attempting to stop the flow of money to terrorist groups, and its been effective, tracking the flow of suspicious monetary transactions was useful in the latest British action,  could have been successful before the 9-11 attacks.  How do you stop the threats that are already  here and in place?  Taxpayers paying to transition factories to do what, make more efficient vehicles?  Who will but them?  Do we force Americans to buy certain autos?  Seize patents?  Coming from someone who feels our civil rights are being taken away by this administration, where would the aclu stand on the issue of the US gov. seizing my patent for harnessing granola and wheat grass flatulence at coffee houses? Your drug options sound interesting.  I agree the punishment without quality rehab and employment options are a waste of money and lives.</p> <p>I don't think going door to door in Iran, Syria, Jordan, Yemem.Lybia,etc.telling all that we are the good guys is exactly what you meant and I don't get your statement.   How do you remove someone like Saddam from Kuwait?</p> <p>I agree on your military care programs.  It has to be attractive to draw the best in country. The old "you can't make chicken salad out of chicken sh*t.</p> <p>Advocating changing lobbyists roles and pork barrel spending could be putting your life at risk.  From both sides. <br /> Lastly what if Iran doesn't want to sit down and talk.  What if they do want a nuclear program with the intent of wiping Israel from the face of the earth as stated?  Do we wait until 3 millions are incinerated?  I<br /> I ask in good faith not as a antagonist.</p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26845 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26845 <p>We are attempting to stop the flow of money to terrorist groups, and its been effective, tracking the flow of suspicious monetary transactions was useful in the latest British action,  could have been successful before the 9-11 attacks.  How do you stop the threats that are already  here and in place?  Taxpayers paying to transition factories to do what, make more efficient vehicles?  Who will but them?  Do we force Americans to buy certain autos?  Seize patents?  Coming from someone who feels our civil rights are being taken away by this administration, where would the aclu stand on the issue of the US gov. seizing my patent for harnessing granola and wheat grass flatulence at coffee houses? Your drug options sound interesting.  I agree the punishment without quality rehab and employment options are a waste of money and lives.</p> <p>I don't think going door to door in Iran, Syria, Jordan, Yemem.Lybia,etc.telling all that we are the good guys is exactly what you meant and I don't get your statement.   How do you remove someone like Saddam from Kuwait?</p> <p>I agree on your military care programs.  It has to be attractive to draw the best in country. The old "you can't make chicken salad out of chicken sh*t.</p> <p>Advocating changing lobbyists roles and pork barrel spending could be putting your life at risk.  From both sides. <br /> Lastly what if Iran doesn't want to sit down and talk.  What if they do want a nuclear program with the intent of wiping Israel from the face of the earth as stated?  Do we wait until 3 millions are incinerated?  I<br /> I ask in good faith not as a antagonist.</p> I love the what if scenarios, anything has a what if, and it depends on your point of view which conclusions are valid. We are attempting to stop terrorist groups, some countries consider us terrorists.<br /> <br /> Nobody forces anyone to buy certain autos, but they can for auto makers to build better autoes....unfortunately by buying foreign. I have a Ford my wife has a toyota, her vehicle is far superior to mine, both in efficency, lower maintenance, and&nbsp; utility.<br /> <br /> As for going door to door anywhere in the world, why go at all? These &quot;fanatics&quot; are not stupid just as the Chinese and the Russian are not stupid, they will never try to annhilate anyone much less each other , all they want is a piece of the pie bomb so&nbsp; as they can thump their chests just like we have been doing since WWII. <br /> <br /> As for Israel, they sqatted on others land and they will have to come to a solution with them. The would never be wiped off the map with nuclear weapons unless they used them themselves, the whole Arab world knows and understands that Israel for better or for worse has a lifetime bodyguard, guess who that could be? http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26849 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26849 I love the what if scenarios, anything has a what if, and it depends on your point of view which conclusions are valid. We are attempting to stop terrorist groups, some countries consider us terrorists.<br /> <br /> Nobody forces anyone to buy certain autos, but they can for auto makers to build better autoes....unfortunately by buying foreign. I have a Ford my wife has a toyota, her vehicle is far superior to mine, both in efficency, lower maintenance, and&nbsp; utility.<br /> <br /> As for going door to door anywhere in the world, why go at all? These &quot;fanatics&quot; are not stupid just as the Chinese and the Russian are not stupid, they will never try to annhilate anyone much less each other , all they want is a piece of the pie bomb so&nbsp; as they can thump their chests just like we have been doing since WWII. <br /> <br /> As for Israel, they sqatted on others land and they will have to come to a solution with them. The would never be wiped off the map with nuclear weapons unless they used them themselves, the whole Arab world knows and understands that Israel for better or for worse has a lifetime bodyguard, guess who that could be? Anglo, I agree about the money.&nbsp; We are tracking it.&nbsp; The problem is that we send billions of dollars to corrupt governments.&nbsp; We still need to continue to track the money, but governments that control 90 percent of the capitol in the country are almost without exception corrupt and not accountable to their citizens.<br /> As for the transition, yes, we need to make more efficient autos and if given a choice between spending a dollar on an American factory so we use less oil and spending a dollar in the Middle East to protect our oil supplies, I've got to go with spending it here.&nbsp; And forcing Americans to buy certain cars?&nbsp; We already do.&nbsp; There's a really cool company called Smart owned by Chrysler I believe, that sells great small effecient cars in Europe.&nbsp; They don't meet American standards though so you can't buy them here.&nbsp; Same with the Chinese Chery QQ.<br /> Seizing patents is the best way to allow all the companies to use the best technology available to make more efficient cars.&nbsp; I'd be happy to reimburse the patent owners some amount, but that's hardly an infringement on civil liberties.&nbsp; If the patent holders supported America, they'd probably donate their patents if they thought it could help us win.<br /> Moving on to Saddam, this is why I said we should pull out of Iraq.&nbsp; We need to repair our military.&nbsp; What would happen today if Iran invaded Turkey to chase after Kurdish terrorists?&nbsp; Who would we be able to send to stop them?&nbsp; By going door to door, I mean that you have to communicate directly with people via the media etc.&nbsp; Not like an Amway salesman.&nbsp; :)<br /> <br /> On the places we agree, awesome.&nbsp; I'm taking your chicken salad quote.&nbsp; And we both agree on the lobbyists, so do many.&nbsp; they can't get us all.&nbsp; Finally, we know that Iran wants to sit down and talk.&nbsp; They've asked us repeatedly.&nbsp; Russia proposed a deal like the one I'm talking about, basically calling Iran's bluff and we scuttled it.&nbsp; If they want nuclear power, sell them the fuel rods at less than the cost of producing their own.&nbsp; If they have other intentions, they won't accept the deal and we blow the crap out of any uranium enrichment facility.&nbsp; They have not yet officially linked their nuclear ambitions to world conquest.&nbsp; But we'd get a ton of international support if we did everything we could to enable them to have peaceful nuclear power while cutting off their domestic enrichment programs. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26852 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26852 Anglo, I agree about the money.&nbsp; We are tracking it.&nbsp; The problem is that we send billions of dollars to corrupt governments.&nbsp; We still need to continue to track the money, but governments that control 90 percent of the capitol in the country are almost without exception corrupt and not accountable to their citizens.<br /> As for the transition, yes, we need to make more efficient autos and if given a choice between spending a dollar on an American factory so we use less oil and spending a dollar in the Middle East to protect our oil supplies, I've got to go with spending it here.&nbsp; And forcing Americans to buy certain cars?&nbsp; We already do.&nbsp; There's a really cool company called Smart owned by Chrysler I believe, that sells great small effecient cars in Europe.&nbsp; They don't meet American standards though so you can't buy them here.&nbsp; Same with the Chinese Chery QQ.<br /> Seizing patents is the best way to allow all the companies to use the best technology available to make more efficient cars.&nbsp; I'd be happy to reimburse the patent owners some amount, but that's hardly an infringement on civil liberties.&nbsp; If the patent holders supported America, they'd probably donate their patents if they thought it could help us win.<br /> Moving on to Saddam, this is why I said we should pull out of Iraq.&nbsp; We need to repair our military.&nbsp; What would happen today if Iran invaded Turkey to chase after Kurdish terrorists?&nbsp; Who would we be able to send to stop them?&nbsp; By going door to door, I mean that you have to communicate directly with people via the media etc.&nbsp; Not like an Amway salesman.&nbsp; :)<br /> <br /> On the places we agree, awesome.&nbsp; I'm taking your chicken salad quote.&nbsp; And we both agree on the lobbyists, so do many.&nbsp; they can't get us all.&nbsp; Finally, we know that Iran wants to sit down and talk.&nbsp; They've asked us repeatedly.&nbsp; Russia proposed a deal like the one I'm talking about, basically calling Iran's bluff and we scuttled it.&nbsp; If they want nuclear power, sell them the fuel rods at less than the cost of producing their own.&nbsp; If they have other intentions, they won't accept the deal and we blow the crap out of any uranium enrichment facility.&nbsp; They have not yet officially linked their nuclear ambitions to world conquest.&nbsp; But we'd get a ton of international support if we did everything we could to enable them to have peaceful nuclear power while cutting off their domestic enrichment programs. Anon, don't get started on the &quot;foreign&quot; auto stuff.&nbsp; If you look at how and where cars are made, the American companies lost a lot of quality when they shipped the manufacturing overseas.&nbsp; Most Toyotas that are sold here are assembled here and the important parts are made here.&nbsp; That's why they are good. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26855 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26855 Anon, don't get started on the &quot;foreign&quot; auto stuff.&nbsp; If you look at how and where cars are made, the American companies lost a lot of quality when they shipped the manufacturing overseas.&nbsp; Most Toyotas that are sold here are assembled here and the important parts are made here.&nbsp; That's why they are good. Interesting that you brought up the latest British arrests. A former British Intelligence officer is now casting serious doubt that it is even possible to detonate highly volitle liquid explosives on an airplane, and that we aren't capturing the leaders when we know exactly who and where they are. We arrested the British "terrorists" from information gathered from an informant in Guantanimo.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Sources_August_Terror_Plot_Fiction_Underscoring_0918.html">From Raw Story</a><br /> <br /> <font color="#339966"><em>"The idea that these people could sit in the plane toilet and simply mix together these normal household fluids to create a high explosive capable of blowing up the entire aircraft is untenable," said Lt. Col. Wylde, who was trained as an ammunition technical officer responsible for terrorist bomb disposal at the Royal Army Ordnance Corps in Sandhurst.</em></font> <p><font color="#339966"><em>"So who came up with the idea that a bomb could be made on board? Not Al Qaeda for sure. It would not work. Bin Laden is interested in success not deterrence by failure," Wylde stated.</em></font></p> <p><font color="#339966"><em>"This story has been blown out of all proportion. The liquids would need to be carefully distilled at freezing temperatures to extract the required chemicals, which are very difficult to obtain in the purities needed." </em></font></p> <p><font color="#339966"><em>Once the fluids have been extracted, the process of mixing them produces significant amounts of heat and vile fumes. "The resulting liquid then needs some hours at room temperature for the white crystals that are the explosive to develop." The whole process, which can take between 12 and 36 hours, is "very dangerous, even in a lab, and can lead to premature detonation," said Lt. Col. Wylde. </em></font></p> http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26857 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26857 Interesting that you brought up the latest British arrests. A former British Intelligence officer is now casting serious doubt that it is even possible to detonate highly volitle liquid explosives on an airplane, and that we aren't capturing the leaders when we know exactly who and where they are. We arrested the British "terrorists" from information gathered from an informant in Guantanimo.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.rawstory.com/news/2006/Sources_August_Terror_Plot_Fiction_Underscoring_0918.html">From Raw Story</a><br /> <br /> <font color="#339966"><em>"The idea that these people could sit in the plane toilet and simply mix together these normal household fluids to create a high explosive capable of blowing up the entire aircraft is untenable," said Lt. Col. Wylde, who was trained as an ammunition technical officer responsible for terrorist bomb disposal at the Royal Army Ordnance Corps in Sandhurst.</em></font> <p><font color="#339966"><em>"So who came up with the idea that a bomb could be made on board? Not Al Qaeda for sure. It would not work. Bin Laden is interested in success not deterrence by failure," Wylde stated.</em></font></p> <p><font color="#339966"><em>"This story has been blown out of all proportion. The liquids would need to be carefully distilled at freezing temperatures to extract the required chemicals, which are very difficult to obtain in the purities needed." </em></font></p> <p><font color="#339966"><em>Once the fluids have been extracted, the process of mixing them produces significant amounts of heat and vile fumes. "The resulting liquid then needs some hours at room temperature for the white crystals that are the explosive to develop." The whole process, which can take between 12 and 36 hours, is "very dangerous, even in a lab, and can lead to premature detonation," said Lt. Col. Wylde. </em></font></p> PP2 you and I have two common garage chemicals that combined would cause havoc on a flight 30,000 and over the Atlantic.&nbsp; Not ammonium nitrate and fuel.&nbsp; They are used commonly in delayed arson fires in grasslands. I really don't know if the amount smuggled on in water bottles and baby food packages would take a jet down but I really don't think would should wait and see. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26859 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26859 PP2 you and I have two common garage chemicals that combined would cause havoc on a flight 30,000 and over the Atlantic.&nbsp; Not ammonium nitrate and fuel.&nbsp; They are used commonly in delayed arson fires in grasslands. I really don't know if the amount smuggled on in water bottles and baby food packages would take a jet down but I really don't think would should wait and see. That's the thing. Can the small amount be enough to blow up a plane, does the terrorist have the time to properly mix the chemicals and ignite them without any other passengers catching on, and would anybody notice any odd smells coming from where the chemistry experiment was taking place. One of the explosives took <em>12 hours</em> to make. Even at the time I felt like the news was taking advantage of people's ignorance on the liquid explosive issue to scare the crap out of them even more. We're supposed to be scared. That is the goal here. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26862 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26862 That's the thing. Can the small amount be enough to blow up a plane, does the terrorist have the time to properly mix the chemicals and ignite them without any other passengers catching on, and would anybody notice any odd smells coming from where the chemistry experiment was taking place. One of the explosives took <em>12 hours</em> to make. Even at the time I felt like the news was taking advantage of people's ignorance on the liquid explosive issue to scare the crap out of them even more. We're supposed to be scared. That is the goal here. Sorry but if you want a genuine Japanese product they are stamped on the inside door jamb. Trust me my wife asked for a made in Japan car after an unhappy experience with a bad Buick Regal. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26863 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26863 Sorry but if you want a genuine Japanese product they are stamped on the inside door jamb. Trust me my wife asked for a made in Japan car after an unhappy experience with a bad Buick Regal. Thanks, Adam.&nbsp; I appreciate that.&nbsp; I also like your ideas about schooling.&nbsp; There are some developmental concerns about age, but I think you're right that people mature at different rates and holding people back or pushing them forward based on the Gregorian calendar isn't helpful to the kids. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26880 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_26880 Thanks, Adam.&nbsp; I appreciate that.&nbsp; I also like your ideas about schooling.&nbsp; There are some developmental concerns about age, but I think you're right that people mature at different rates and holding people back or pushing them forward based on the Gregorian calendar isn't helpful to the kids. I think if we do several things, the rest will follow. Like being accountable both here and with our dealings in the rest of the world. Ending our dependance on ANY oil is a huge gain as you stated. Electing Leadership that beleives in negotiation over warmongering. These countries hold our balls in their hands with our dependance on fossil fuels. If we remove that power then we all are on the same footing. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_27196 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_27196 I think if we do several things, the rest will follow. Like being accountable both here and with our dealings in the rest of the world. Ending our dependance on ANY oil is a huge gain as you stated. Electing Leadership that beleives in negotiation over warmongering. These countries hold our balls in their hands with our dependance on fossil fuels. If we remove that power then we all are on the same footing. Man, I have to compliment you.&nbsp; You have a plan!&nbsp; And a decent one at that! http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_28541 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_28541 Man, I have to compliment you.&nbsp; You have a plan!&nbsp; And a decent one at that! Thanks, Marsh.&nbsp; Much appreciated.&nbsp; I think that it's important to draw the lines between liberal ideas and why they are important.&nbsp; Education isn't just about education, it's about developing a stronger nation.&nbsp; Liberals have done a poor job of doing that over the last 2 decades, and it's time we went back to our roots. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_28545 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_28545 Thanks, Marsh.&nbsp; Much appreciated.&nbsp; I think that it's important to draw the lines between liberal ideas and why they are important.&nbsp; Education isn't just about education, it's about developing a stronger nation.&nbsp; Liberals have done a poor job of doing that over the last 2 decades, and it's time we went back to our roots. You must be young if you want to go back to your roots, you just might not like Bakersfield roots, the are the same as today except more blatant. http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_28563 http://people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/TomW/4305/#c_28563 You must be young if you want to go back to your roots, you just might not like Bakersfield roots, the are the same as today except more blatant.