Saturday, October 23, 2010

The Liberal Perspective


A web site address was sent to me by a couple of my liberal friends. I’m not sure what the impetus was… my column about needing more Boehners or just an honest desire to show me the other side of the story.
Either way, I appreciated it and checked it out. There were nine stories on the home page. Following is a brief “out-take” from each. Just so I won’t be accused of pulling inflammatory comments out of context, I’ve included the site address at the end of this article. You can read each article in its entirety.

The fact-resistant faction… on Ronald Reagan:

Some of the worst crimes of the American Presidency were committed at the exact time that the aforementioned 1981 Inaugural Address was being given: the Hostages were being released in IRAN in exchange for arms to finance the Contras. Reagan destroyed the government and economy, created fear, crime and worse.

Newt Gingrich: America’s Greatest Unsung Hero?

Before Rush, before Beck, before Hannity (when he was still just a young pup, learning how to act like a smart-ass little frat-rat you’d love to beat to death with a tire-iron), before Billy “Big Bad Bill” O’Reilly decided he hated being alive, when Ann Coulter was a decently healthy young girl with feelings, and Sarah Palin was laying around the house watching “Thirtysomething,” drinking beer and eating frozen candy bars while her husband painted her toenails, we had “The Man,” the one and only Mr. Newt Gingrich.

Why the “Pledge To America” Should Motivate Us All

Another thing people can expect with a Republican takeover is to see radical cuts in government spending that would hurt America. Several candidates, including Rand Paul, Senatorial candidate for Kentucky, Angle, Ken Buck, Senatorial candidate for Colorado and others said departments like energy and education need to be abolished because they are “unconstitutional.”
That would be devastating for America, as it would make a move to make education a privilege for the rich and allow big oil to grow and grow, while screwing more people through pollution and price gouging at the pump.

Oh those teabaggers!

Oh those teabaggers. Angle. O’Donnell. Paul. Miller. Lee. Buck. Bachmann. The list is endless. They are scary, and most of them appear to be psychotic. They say the darndest things! (Such as:) You can make more money on unemployment than you can going down and getting one of those jobs that is an honest job, but it doesn't pay as much. And so that's what's happened to us is that we have put in so much entitlement into our government that we really have spoiled our citizenry and said you don't want the jobs that are available." -- Sharron Angle

Beware of the Party of Hardships

The financial priorities of the Republicans are highly distressing and extremely alarming, to put it mildly. While they would abolish even the slight improvements Obama has managed to get passed re: health care if they could, they see nothing wrong with the high expenses the Iraq war has been causing. Some of them would have been willing for Americans to pay for 100 years more. And at the same time, they would raise hell over wealth and stock exchange taxes while they see nothing wrong with people being made homeless and getting deprived of sufficient welfare. They want a balanced budget at the expense of those whom they have most disadvantaged and whose rights they would further abridge.

Questions Republicans won’t Answer

There are questions that I've found that Republicans do not like to answer for some reason. Those who are at least brave enough to respond typically only do so to criticize the question, divert attention on an unrelated issue or to deny any accountability brought on by the question.
So I will ask these questions again and again and again until a Republican is honest enough to address the issues bound to the question. Glenn Beck wants you to tell the truth, because the truth will set you free. I agree, the truth will set you free. So let's start by answering the questions you have continously avoided for the past two years that I've asked these questions in addition to questions other have asked.
I hope Democrats take the opportunity to add to ask these questions of their Republican friends as frequently as they like. Perhaps someone will get an answer to the questions below.
Democrats, please feel free to add additional unanswered questions previously asked of Republicans that may not be found within the questions below.

1.     Since your hatred of the President Obama is obviously not about race, then where were you during the Bush Administration?
2.     Why do Republicans continually vote against themselves by voting for the GOP ?? (Credit: Fay Easter)
3.     How can you justify deriding the ideals of being an American yet claim to be true Americans? (Credit: Tom Shephard)
4.     Why is the Republican Party made up overwhelmingly, which means not exclusively, but has a very predominate number of its members and supporters coming from a single group of people?
5.     If you are such a supporter of the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, and you so want to tie yourself to the few lines you know about Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., then why do you want to repeal the 14th Amendment?
6.     Are you being truthful when you say you judge people by the content of their character and not color of their skin?

Welcome Home

One event did happen that I will tell my children and grandchildren about. I was able to vote for President Barrack Hussein Obama, and watch his swearing in ceremony, while I was in that hospital in Iraq. He promised to bring all of us home from Iraq. He has kept that promise. While many in the military treat him with disdain, and those of us who support him and question this war and the war in Afghanistan are vilified, I am proud that I was able to make cast my vote, and help change America for the better. For all I had to give up, and for all that I lost, my health, and some of my sanity, that one act makes me proud to be an American. To be able to vote for a president who chooses diplomacy over bombast and rhetoric, and who values peace over war is certainly one of my proudest moments as a soldier, and an American. Thank you, President Obama for keeping your promise to those of us who give up much, and some who give up their very lives, to keep America free.

Trial of the Voiceless, Part 1

For 17 years the United States military has enforced a law which prohibits homosexuals from serving their country openly. Since "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" was enacted in 1993, 13,000 gay men and women have been kicked out of the Armed Forces based on nothing but ignorant bias. As a homosexual male serving in the United States Navy, I can attest to the unwarranted hatred against men and women that defend the very people who attack them so vehemently. Everyday as I wake up to reveille playing over the loudspeaker and change into my uniform, I can't help but wonder, "Will this be the day?" The day being the day that I will lose my contract and be thrown out on my rear for no good reason. That thought permeates everything throughout my day. I can not speak the way I want to, discuss that which interests me, profess my love for someone, the list goes on and on. Fear. It really is the cornerstone of the gay service member's military life.

Serving with Gay & Lesbian Soldiers

As a soldier, people often ask me how I feel about gays in the military, or the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. After having served many years in many different capacities for the United States Army, I have learned many things. One is that every unit has at least a few gay and lesbian soldiers in it. The other is that there is no cure for those who are against gay and lesbian soldiers serving openly, no matter how honorably they served. This is not the fault of the gay, lesbian and bisexual soldiers, but rather their fellow soldiers who seem to have forgotten some of the basic truths about military life. Take care of your buddy, no matter who he or she is.

There is, of course, a lot more, but I wanted to give you a sampling of the stories I read. Some give a true and impassioned perspective of the liberal perspective of our society. Others? Well, I’ll let you decide for yourselves. You can read all the stories in their entirety at the following:

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