Ominous Events
by Ron Beatty
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Exclusive to TLE

The first month of the new year is over, and I have to say that I have never noticed so many ominous events in one single month. Now this may be because I am paying more attention lately, but considering the way the world has been trending for the last 2 years, and five months, we should at least take note of some of these events.

First, the State of the Union address. Without specifically saying so, Bush admitted that he had lied, repeatedly, in regards to WMD possessed by Iraq. In addition, he made several statements that seemed to imply that the only way our country can make the 'right' decisions is to put our children in schools that will indoctrinate them in the 'proper' morals and ways of thinking. In essence, he wants to put our children in a thought control prison where they can be brainwashed and controlled. One other thing: To me, the entire speech implied that the only way our country can be 'right' is if we are all fundamentalist Christians, thinking and acting the exact same way. It sounded very much like he was laying the ground work for a theocratic form of government, or government oversight. You say it can't happen here? The First Amendment won't let them do that? Well, why should they pay attention to THAT? Our government, in one form or another, violates every single one of the Bill of Rights every day. Think I'm joking? What happened to the Fourth Amendment at airports? What about the First, when the president comes to town? No need to even mention the Second, since even the Supreme Court refuses to address the issue for fear of causing waves in our government. Due process? Forget about it. Double jeopardy? Happens every day, when a trial doesn't go the way the government wants it to. Right now, our government is totally out of control, and all we would need to happen is for there to be a terrorist attack with a weapon of mass destruction. That would be all the justification needed for the Constitution to be scrapped, totally, and not provide even the thin veil of protection it's ragged remnants provide now.

War in Iraq. The one thing that I have not seen on any network news program is this: Our military is so debilitated by the debacle in Iraq that if there should be a major threat anyplace else in the world, we are up that well known creek without a paddle. Our army is demoralized, the Air Force and Navy are at very low levels after years of government mismanagement, and the only valid quick reaction force that is available are the Marine Expeditionary Forces, which are designed for quick insertion, a lightning strike, then re-inforcement by heavy follow on units. Right now, those units are either involved in Iraq, reconstituting after deployment in Iraq, or trying to become combat ready again. It has become so bad that an experimental unit, the Stryker brigade, has been deployed before all tests and unit tactics reviews have been completed. The Stryker itself is an interesting concept, but it cannot be considered a proven weapon of war, being too heavy, too complicated, and without the long term experience and use which could have revealed any major problems before it was deployed. Even if units were available for reinforcing the Marines, if a crisis arose, how would they be transported? We simply don't have enough bulk carrier capacity to make a rapid deployment of heavy forces possible. Even in Iraq, the attack was preceeded by MONTHS of troop and equipment build up, and that was in an area where we had POMCUS sites with equipment already available in theater! And all of this on top of an administration that seems hell-bent of ticking off the rest of the world!

Also, to me, it seemed obvious that both Bush and the Democraps were pandering to the military. It was as if they were both attempting to swing the military to 'their' side, just in case they needed it. Why would they need military support? Think about it.

Am I paranoid? Probably. But remember the old saying: You're not paranoid if they really ARE out to get you. Both political parties have engaged in a pattern of behaviour that is totally at odds with our Constitution, our history, and our traditions. Dissent is discouraged. Speak your mind and you will be investigated. You might lose your job. You might find that your phone and computer are being tapped. Think I'm joking? I'm not. All of this and more has happened to me since I began writing for TLE. Am I going to stop? HELL NO!!!

I am a libertarian, a cajun, a Texan, and a service brat. All four of those are typically hard headed, any one of which can give a mule lessons in stubborn. I've spent most of my adult life working in security, law enforcement, investigations, and nuclear security. None of these are conducive to being a door mat. I am going to keep speaking my mind, doing what little I can to stop or slow the decay of this once great country. Is it enough? Probably not. No one man can do it alone. L. Neil Smith has been beating his head against a wall for years, and he is far more persuasive than I am. The same goes for Aaron Zelman, Angel Shamaya, Kathryn Graham, Mike Williamson, and a host of others who write, lecture and live libertarian. But MAYBE, if enough of us start writing,and speaking, and voting, eventually we can rescue what is left of our homeland from it's government. All we can do is try, and be ready when or if it becomes necessary to defend ourselves against tyranny.

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