The Impacts of 9/11 Part II – The Spending Burden

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There can be no denying it.  Our reactions to the horrific 9/11 attack allowed certain individuals in this country to carry out a second tragedy. A massive increase in defense spending & a huge expansion of military adventurism have left us on the brink of doing to ourselves what we did to the Soviet Union.

Spending so overly much on defense & the military that the economy falls apart and takes the country itself with it.  Effectively, this would also accomplish the stated mission of the most hated man in the last 20 years. The terrorist garbage Osama bin Laden stated several times his primary goal was to get us to spend ourselves into oblivion.

The cumbersome burden of  $1.46 trillion in unpaid debt from two wars that were  largely mismanaged and of questionable necessity. The total defense budget now exceeds $1 trillion dollars annually. The country with the next highest defense spending is China at roughly $100 billion. We are spending around 10 times that of the only country that poses any real risk to us militarily.

This is a very dangerous path to continue down and because of this burden, Republicans have seized on the lie that what we are over-spending on are social programs that help those Americans who can least help themselves. Meanwhile the idea of getting this dangerous level of military spending under control is demonized as unpatriotic.

If we continue to embrace the lies instead of electing politicians that are in favor of reigning in this dangerous military spending level, then the 9/11 attack will have succeeded in doing what no enemy has been able to do for over 200 years, to end the United States as it is known today.

I’m confident no American wants this.

– “Left of Center”

Related articles

• 9/11 aftermath: Costs still permeate U.S. economy (marketwatch.com)

Osama Bin Laden Killed by US Forces in Pakistan

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President Barack Obama announced in a press conference shortly after 11:30pm EST on 05-01-11 that US forces had killed Osama bin Laden and taken custody of his body.  Reports are that this occurred several days if not a week ago, but announcement was held pending confirmation of a DNA test result.

May the families who lost loved ones in 9-11 finally begin to find some peace and be able to put that horrible day behind them. May the country find again and keep the spirit of patriotism and togetherness that we remembered we had in the weeks and months following the tragedy.

– “Left of Center”

Related Articles

• White House: Osama Bin Laden is Dead (benzinga.com)
• News Of Osama Bin Laden’s Death Spreads Like Wildfire On Twitter (techcrunch.com)

Injunction Against “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”, Part II – The Reaction

 

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Earlier, I covered the facts regarding “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” and the Federal Judge’s ruling. Now let’s review what the predictable Conservative reaction will be. This one is too easy. The primary vector the Republican Tea Party and it’s associated talking heads will use will be nothing more than two words – “judicial activism”.  This very statement gives light to their sad and obvious irrational misunderstanding of how our Federal Government is structured.

As anyone who passed high school history (and/or government) class should have learned, there are three branches to our government. The Legislative Branch is comprised of the House of Representatives and the Senate. This body writes bills and votes on them. The Executive Branch – The President, Vice President and their respective cabinets and staff. Once Congress passes a bill, it’s sent to the President to be signed. Once the President signs the document, it is considered officially law.

Here’s where the Conservatives that constantly throw around the idea of “judicial activism”. The next branch of our government is the Judicial Branch. Their job is to review bills passed into law by the other two branches and decide based on the Constitution (and precedent set by previous rulings) if the items in question are legal! So when Conservatives whinge about “judicial activism”, they are protesting the fact that the Judicial Branch is doing it’s Constitutionally appointed duty!

So, despite that reality, individual Americans who subscribe to the Republican Tea Party mantra are under educated in matters of civics, political science will still echo the cries of “judicial activism” coming from the likes of Rush Limbaugh, Glenn Beck, Sean Hannity, et al. What excuse do those individuals have? Do they not understand the function of the Judicial Branch any better, or are they intentionally ignoring the reality of their job for the purpose of making people afraid and angry? Has anyone else noticed that Conservatives only cry “judicial activism” when it’s a decision they don’t agree with, but they seem to have no complaints or concerns about the Citizen’s United decision?

– “Left of Center”

Injunction Against "Don't Ask, Don't Tell", Part I – The Decision

 

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In a surprising, but completely proper decision, U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips has issued a “worldwide injunction” against the US military preventing any further enforcement of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”. For 17 years many have been stating the obvious about this legislation. It is flatly Unconstitutional.

The Judge ruled that because service members have been discharged for the contents of private communication, prevented from discussing their off-duty activities, and most importantly have had to skip joining political action groups that support their views for fear of reprisal. This constitutes, in her legal opinion, preventing individuals from petitioning the government for redress of grievances.

Aside from these findings, to anyone rational and clear thinking, that this law abridges the freedoms of some Americans by creating a separate but equal group of individuals. This is an obvious violation of the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment. The law also infringes on the 1st Amendment free speech protections of gay and lesbian Americans by forcing them to keep their personal lives veritably classified for risk of being both disgraced and essentially fired from their job, regardless of their disciplinary record.

Continued…

– “Left of Center”

Sources: AOL News | Christian Science Monitor | Full Text of the Ruling