We need to remain a
superpower, for over the next several decades the
Earth is going to see some dramatic changes. Only
the powerful will survive, but will power be
enough? Will a strong Democracy be able to do what
needs to be done, or will only the Totalitarian
governments have the will and the courage to
survive?
felixthecat
Lansing, MI
State Journal
"Today, we utter no prayer
more fervently than the ancient prayer for peace
on Earth. Yet history has shown that peace will
not come, nor will our freedom be preserved, by
good will alone. There are those in the world who
scorn our vision of human dignity and freedom. One
nation, the Soviet Union, has conducted the
greatest military buildup in the history of man,
building ar senals of awesome offensive weapons.
We have made progress in restoring our defense
capability. But much remains to be done. There
must be no wavering by us, nor any doubts by
others, that America will meet her
responsibilities to remain free, secure, and at
peace.
There is only one way safely and legitimately to
reduce the cost of national security, and that is
to reduce the need for it. And this we are trying
to do in negotiations with the Soviet Union. We
are not just discussing limits on a further
increase of nuclear weapons. We seek, instead, to
reduce their number. We seek the total elimination
one day of nuclear weapons from the face of the
Earth." ~St. Ronny Raygun Second Inaugural Speech
1989
brynb
Lansing, MI
State Journal
[I'm certain beyond a doubt
that President Reagan would not share a scintilla
of the current administration's 9/10/01 mentality
if he were being inaugurated today. Long
live the memory of the greatest president of our
lifetime! -ED]
America is the greatest
Country in the history of the world. Obamabots
want to "change" that.
conservative2
Montgomery, AL
Advertiser
Where's the schizophrenic
apologetic/arrogant double-speak and rhetorical
rampage? I think you attached the wrong
article...
Tacoma41
Montgomery, AL
Advertiser
[That would be Oh-bummer
bowing, scraping and apologizing to any country
that would give him a teleprompter forum while
Joe the Plagiarist tells Wolfie Blister that
we're stronger than ever because he's around
instead of Cheney. Does that make it clear
enough? - ED]
...There are no defense
cuts - Obama is actually proposing about a 4%
increase in defense spending. And Secretary Gates
is proposing that we spend it on programs and
systems that, you know, might actually protect us
from terrorists, rather than the Viet Cong and the
Soviet Union.
Secondly, Obama didn't apologize, except when
taken out of context. It's like the Bible, ya
know? You have to read the whole passage.
But I gotta give you props - "schizophrenic
apologetic/arrogant double-speak" - kinda tossed
in the whole gamut of wingnut talking points,
there, Ed. Proud of you...
Craig51
Des Moines, IA
Register
[I don't read the talking
points, Craig, they jump off the pages of websites
and papers and off the TV screen. You can't make
up the kind of scenarios these amateurs and
has-beens are creating. But I'll volunteer to
write them so they might be more appealing to libs.
Your correction regarding defense spending
presents yet another aspect of Oh-bummer's
schizophrenia in that there are cuts for such
things as missile defense and fighter jet
construction while the intention is to put more
money into "boots on the ground". Didn't this
president run as an anti-war candidate hell-bent
on getting all of the boots OFF the ground? Just
asking. -ED]
There
is an old saying about the flat screen reality
that these folks wallow in; WHAT'S WRONG WITH
BEING A SUPERPOWER. JOE is a good example Garbage
in, Garbage out.
offbase
Wausau, WI
Daily Herald
The problem with being a
Superpower is that it is
super expensive and the only
"friends" you end up with
are those that want
something from you, not
those that like you.
sid01
Fort Collins, CO
Coloradoan
[Oh, so
we're doing things on the
cheap now? But at least
everyone likes us, right? -ED]
The
main job of the government
is to keep us safe. I don't
think you keep a country
safe by weakening our
defenses and appeasing the
world so the "like" us. I
don't care if the world
likes us, as long as they
respect us.
DebiAnn
Fort Collins, CO
Coloradoan
Are
you [DebiAnn] suggesting
that, for instance, the
Swiss approach isn't keeping
the Swiss people safe? Most
of the world pretty much
likes and respects them too
and they definitely don't
aspire to any superpower
status.
Or does "respect" have the
meaning to you that it would
have to a bully or street
gang in that they want to be
feared so they can get away
with whatever they want
without opposition?
I'd prefer the world leave
us alone to run our affairs
and we leave them alone to
run theirs. They have
nothing we really need that
we can't easily produce or
do for ourselves, there is
no safety in being involved
in their issues but there is
a great deal of danger in
doing so (as in 9/11 and
whatever comes along next).
sid01
Fort Collins, CO
Coloradoan
[Sticking with your
neutral-but-prosperous/respected
Switzerland example, sid --
what happens to the Swiss if
some nation or organization
decides to fly planes into
buildings in Berne or Geneva
or if, say, some
Iran-sponsored terrorists
want to use them for dirty
bomb target practice because
so much of the infidel
world's cash is stashed
there? I've seen the
holes in the ground in lower
Manhattan and, at this
point, can only pray that
our government -- whose
primary Constitutional
function is to protect and
defend -- will never take as
naive a view as you do.
Furthermore, if you're as
ready to back the current
administration as I think
you are, then Obama burning
more than his fair share of
jet fuel to bow and scrape
before world leaders begging
for forgiveness, friendship
and aid flies in the face of
your remarks to DebiAnn.-ED]
"What's wrong with being a
Super Power, Joe?" That
question troubled Madeline
Albright when she was
Secretary of State in the
Clinton Administration. She
lamented the fact the U. S.
was the only super power
left after the fall of the
Soviet Union. I don't recall
if it was before or after
the 1994 election when the
republicans gained 8 senate
seats and 52 house seats and
control of the congress.
Richard Gephardt said the
democrats' position would be
one of total opposition.
Bipartisanship died.
GreyCaravel
Montgomery, AL
Advertiser
The
top defense contractors in
this Country have big
overruns, double billing
problems going into billions
of dollars, not to mention
the bribes, "political
donations" to various
congressmen, senators. There
is a big billions and
billions of dollars gravy
train running in the
military, D.O.D and
Pentagon. Yet our men have
no equipment. Where's the
money going? Defense budget
includes billions for greed
that rips us off. It's a
fact. Check the records for
the settlements. Corrupt!
Anonymous