Threats Threats & More Threats

Apparently the NY Times wanted in on the last thread.  Today on the Opinion pages a five part discussion on What’s The Greatest Threat To U.S. National Security  Read the article and pick a side or two and have at it.  Vote in poll and expand in the comments.

 

About Jamie

Retired Writer Editor - Loves Books, Musical Theater, politics for a good argument, genealogy, Scotland and owls
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64 Responses to Threats Threats & More Threats

  1. Flatus says:

    The greatest threat? This attitude:
    I’ve got mine, screw you.

    Like

  2. blueINdallas says:

    Ditto that, Flatus. IMO that includes corporations who make decisions that hurt people and the environment because they’ve bought politicians to write laws that legalize their bad behavior.

    Like

  3. Tony says:

    Jeb Versus Trump, Game On
    by Taylor Marsh
    http://www.taylormarsh.com/2015/09/jeb-versus-trump-game-on/

    ““I like Jeb,” Trump said. “He’s a nice man. But he should really set the example by speaking English while in the United States.” [Breitbart]
    EVERYONE IS asking what is Jeb! thinking? I’d say once Donald Trump said he had low energy, the “emasculating” of Jeb Bush finally hit home. Then came the story of fundraisers reportedly bailing on Bush, which was the through line on social media and cable, even if Jeb! tried to rebut it.

    So, what is Jeb Bush thinking by getting in a verbal brawl with a skunk?

    From Molly Ball

    At the heart of this debate is a larger question about political campaigns and consulting. Bush’s strategy is predicated on a fundamental faith in the effectiveness of a traditional political campaign—issue attacks, oppo research, and so on. His critics believe that only works on a traditional political candidate, not on an uninhibited celebrity like Trump.
    But it’s Rich Lowry who hit the strongest note. From Politico

    In the argument with Trump over mass deportation, clearly Bush is right. But the split screen with Trump doesn’t necessarily do him any favors. Trump is such a forceful communicator that he comes off as some sort of throwback alpha male, whereas Bush is such an earnest wonk he looks and sounds like a sensitive dad from a contemporary sitcom. It’s like watching a WWE wrestler get a stern talking to from Ned Flanders.
    I’m more interested in what Carly Fiorina could bring to the debate stage now that she’s going to be able to tangle with Donald Trump one on one. Good move by CNN, no matter how they had to fudge their criteria to include her.

    “I don’t think walls are particularly effective,” [Carly Fiorina] said. “I mean, if that’s what it took to do it, I would do it, North or South. But I think technology has advanced to the point where it is far quicker, far less expensive, and actually far more effective to deploy technology.” [BuzzFeed]”

    Like

    • patd says:

      and trump-ed comeback to gnarly’s “far more effective to deploy technology” will be (in the best jersey accent) a nasty misogynistic slur referring to her hewlett-packard debacle.

      Like

  4. patd says:

    as to the threat topic, I fear the internal divisions are/will be our downfall. flatus and blue, you both are right on. we seem to no longer work together for the common good, but for the common greed. we’ve lost the art of compromise and found the craft of graft. crumbling roads, falling bridges and failing schools are the harbingers of this unhappy future.

    Like

  5. patd says:


    here’s a taste of kareem’s excellent op piece which it’s entirety is well worth the read:
    Americans may flirt with the preppy life of the frathouse partier because he’s poked sacred cows, said stuff we all wish we could say (except that reason keeps us from doing it), and acted buffoonishly entertaining. But when you wake up the next morning and he’s saying you’re now in a four-year relationship, reason comes rushing in, and it is time for the “it’s me, not you” speech.

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/09/02/kareem-abdul-jabbar-this-is-the-difference-between-donald-trump-and-bernie-sanders/

    https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/09/02/heres-how-donald-trump-responded-to-my-essay-about-him/

    Like

    • Pogo says:

      Rand… right about Trump but all over the place and wrong about the clerk. The state doesn’t issue marriage contracts, Rand, the state issues licenses. When married under those licenses there are important rights and obligations that are granted and imposed by law that do not apply to “contractual marriages” that are not sanctioned by the license of the state.

      (I can’t believe I’m saying this, but) Carly F has spoken sensibly about it – if issuing mariage licenses to people she doesn’t agree with viiolates her religious beliefs, she needs to quit and find a job that doesn’t have duties that require her to violate her beliefs. Yes, exactly.

      Like

  6. rebelliousrenee says:

    YEEEEEEHAAAAAAW!!!!!!

    Tom Brady is FREE!!!

    Like

  7. Tony says:

    Dan Savage: KY Clerk Is ‘Waiting to Cash In’ on Anti-Gay Marriage Stand
    by Matt Wilstein
    http://www.mediaite.com/tv/dan-savage-ky-clerk-is-waiting-to-cash-in-on-anti-gay-marriage-stand/

    Like

  8. Pogo says:

    Re: the topic of the thread, I agree with Haas. Isis, Russia, Iran and China each pose threats to the US, but the threats each poses is limited. Russia is the potential exception from a military standpoint, and China poses the greatest economic threat while Isis and Iran pose limited, terror-based threats that in terms of numbers of Americans at risk are the most limited. Our internal political divisions make us less able to deal with any of those threats than any rationally governed country should be, particularly the most powerful country in the world economically and militarily. Congress has effectively become a two party parliament, with neither party having the votes to implement their respective agenda, at least so long as the current minority party presidency and < 2/3 majority in the Senate exists. That scism elevates the power of the president (See, e.g. the Iran nuclear deal) – which is exactly what the current majority party fears the most. Ironic, isn't it?

    Like

    • Flatus says:

      If/when the shit hits the fan, both parties will unite to form a common front in the blink of an eye. As that is occurring, the president has absolute authority/obligation/tools to protect the republic.

      Like

  9. Flatus says:

    Does Kentucky have a super-max?

    Like

  10. patd says:

    https://news.yahoo.com/kentucky-clerk-same-sex-marriage-dispute-found-contempt-172500299.html
    A county clerk in Kentucky who refuses to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples on religious grounds was found in contempt of court by a U.S. federal judge on Thursday and taken into custody.

    Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis was led away by U.S. marshals.

    “The court doesn’t do this lightly,” District Court Judge David Bunning said in ordering she be taken into custody.

    Like

  11. patd says:

    interestingly, seems the judge opted for jail because fines would be an insufficient penalty and would probably be paid for by outsiders, not by the contemptful clerk. listen for his reasoning part way into this report
    http://www.msnbc.com/msnbc/kentucky-clerk-heads-court-refusing-issue-marriage-licenses

    Like

  12. patd says:

    Jamie, more of your favorite show according to http://dailycaller.com/2015/09/03/msnbcs-morning-joe-will-now-be-four-hours/

    “God, help us.
    MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” is adding an hour to its show, making it a whopping four hours long, according to a report from Mediaite‘s Joe Concha.”

    Like

  13. Did you know the court clerk in question has been married 4 times

    Like

    • Pogo says:

      I understand she got religion after the 3rd marriage – I guess she thought what she’d done before didn’t work, so might sas well add religion to her marriage stew and see if it would work the 4th time (apparently 3rd time was not a charm)

      Like

  14. Pogo says:

    Although it’s buried in an update to the rube article posted by patd, Judge Bunning invited Ms. Davis to enjoy her new lodgings in jail. The martyrdom (and gravy train) begins.

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/defiant-kentucky-clerk-could-be-found-in-contempt-thursday/2015/09/03/34e50f08-51af-11e5-9812-92d5948a40f8_story.html

    “A county clerk who refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples was found in contempt of court Thursday and taken into custody.

    ““The idea of natural law superceding this court’s authority would be a dangerous precedent indeed,” U.S. District Judge David L. Bunning told Rowan County clerk Kim Davis.

    “Thank you, judge,” she replied before being removed from the courtroom by U.S. marshals.

    “Davis, an Apostolic Christian, had said it would violate her faith to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and had directed her office to withhold marriage licenses to anyone, gay or straight. “

    Like

  15. Sounds like the reason Boner says with the orange look is because it’s better than the dissolute
    look

    Like

  16. What’s next for Huckabee — he looks like he is gong to stamp his feet and hold his breath until he turns blue and of course is nothing but drivel

    Like

  17. Pogo says:

    Maybe the thread should be renamed to “Tom’s Free, Kim’s Not” 🙂

    Like

  18. Flatus says:

    Oh, goodness, now a major fundraising email from Jim Webb has just arrived…

    Like

    • Flatus says:

      Well, I have made a modest donation out of consideration for the commitment Craig has made to that effort. But, I’m not going to chase around twitter feeds, etc., to find out what the campaign plan is all about–I want to read about it in the major national press.

      Like

      • Jamie says:

        I’ll probably toss something in the coffers out of respect for fearless leader, but still have the feeling Webb is on a book tour not a political campaign.

        Like

  19. Pogo says:

    Sarah Palins’ pay channel goes belly up.

    http://www.thedailybeast.com/cheats/2015/07/07/sarah-palin-s-channel-goes-bust.html?source=HuffPoFacebook&via=FB_Page

    Now who could have predicted that? (At the same cost as a Sirius subscription – which has 150 plus options as opposed to one – I could)

    Like

  20. Jamie says:

    If Dane drops in be nice to him. I won’t try to explain the soap opera relationship, but he is a very nice young man with lovely wife, great kids, patriotic occupation, and a fine mind.

    Like

  21. blueINdallas says:

    Wow, Trump signed that chicken-poop oath. He promises to endorse anyone who ends up being the GOoPer nominee, no matter who it is. Why on Earth would anyone sign something like that? I doubt if it’s legally binding, right? Isn’t it just so they can call him a liar if he doesn’t fall in line?

    Interesting that Republicans would do such a thing since Jesus warned against pledging oaths.

    Like

  22. blueINdallas says:

    Ha! Jeb! Raffling off a Colbert Late Show seat, without authorization, and pocketing the money for his campaign.

    Colbert’s response to do the same but give the money to a veterans’ organization (that Jeb’s daddy & brother sent to be wounded) was perfect.

    Like

  23. Jamie says:

    As horrific as the refugee pictures are, does anyone want to discuss how much lower numbers led to establishment of Israel in 1948 or how now considering global population, we could waste millions of human beings and only the relatives would miss them.

    Like

  24. Tony says:

    Disband the Benghazi Committee
    By ADAM B. SCHIFF

    “Whatever their original purpose, the Select Committee’s leaders appear no longer to have any interest in Benghazi, except as the tragic events of that day may be used as a cudgel against the likely Democratic nominee for president.

    The committee is solely concerned with damaging her candidacy, searching for something, anything, that can be insinuated against her. With all of the committee’s obsessive focus on Mrs. Clinton, you would think that she was a witness to the killings, instead of half a world away.

    Some of my colleagues think this is just good politics. And already, other ambitious committee leaders are hoping to get in on the act with their own inquiries and attacks on Mrs. Clinton. This is a terrible mistake, and it would be no less offensive if it were a Democratic majority going after a Republican candidate. Do we really want to see future select committees ginned up to attack other likely presidential nominees?”

    Like

  25. Tony says:

    RENÉE GRAHAM
    Kim Davis follows the footsteps of George Wallace
    http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2015/09/03/renee-graham-kim-davis-follows-footsteps-george-wallace/4Hqsf6bhQoXMwhjLu0cMLO/story.html
    “Davis is just the latest in a long, infernal line of fanatics to contort their so-called faith into an excuse for hatred and division. Religion has been misused to justify the Crusades, slavery, apartheid, the Holocaust and — more recently — terrorism and extremism around the world. If faith is a comfort to some, for people like Davis it’s a cudgel to scold and threaten anyone with whom they disagree.”

    Like

  26. Tony says:

    Pat Robertson Blames The Gays For The Stock Market Plunge
    You’re gonna need to be a little bit more convincing, Pat.
    Curtis M. Wong
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/pat-robertson-links-stock-market-plunge-to-gay-marriage_55e8969ce4b0b7a9633c4d6b

    Like

  27. Tony says:

    Hillary’s Aide Was Right to Plead the Fifth
    Yes, big headlines because of that IT guy’s invoking of the Fifth. But here’s a question for you: Why was he even called in the first place?
    http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/09/04/hillary-s-aide-was-right-to-plead-the-fifth.html
    “Some witnesses have wanted to testify in public, the better for all of us to judge, but Gowdy said no. Former Clinton aide Cheryl Mills saw her requests to testify in public this week rebuffed by the Republican majority, so she is testifying in private—complying, even though she knows very well that doing so means that her testimony will probably be leaked selectively and out of context. She will presumably demand that the full transcript be released, as Sid Blumenthal did, and the committee will say no, as it has with Blumenthal (technically, the majority has just ignored the minority’s request for a vote on the matter).”

    Like

  28. Tony says:

    Hell is 4 hours of “Morning Joe”: Why MSNBC just made a horrible & disappointing mistake
    MSNBC is in reinvention mode — so why is it giving a boost to it’s most insulting & predictable program?
    JACK MIRKINSON

    http://www.salon.com/2015/09/04/hell_is_4_hours_of_morning_joe_msnbc_just_made_a_horrible_disappointing_mistake/

    Like

  29. Tony says:

    “Hillary likes ‘Parks and Recreation’”: The media’s breathless email scandal coverage reaches new nadir
    A week’s worth of digging into her personal email reveals less than nothing. How much longer will this go on?
    ERIC BOEHLERT, MEDIA MATTERS
    http://www.salon.com/2015/09/04/hillary_likes_parks_and_recreation_the_medias_breathless_email_scandal_coverage_reaches_new_nadir/
    “The truth is, the wind continues to go out of the email “scandal” sails. As the Associated Press reported this week, experts agree there’s currently virtually no chance Clinton faces any criminal jeopardy over the handling of her emails.

    Indeed, after speaking with “half-dozen knowledgeable lawyers,” longtime Washington Post foreign affairs columnist David Ignatius recently broke from the D.C. pack and concluded the email “‘scandal’ is overstated.”

    So with the criminal element of the so-called scandal evaporating, the press is left to dwell on the perception and the optics of the controversy. And the press remains mostly in heated agreement that it’s all very bad news for Clinton, insisting this summer that her polling has gone “under water” because of it. (Note that a national survey released Tuesday showed Clinton maintaining a 35-point lead in the Democratic primary race, the same large advantage she enjoyed the previous month.)

    “Clinton” + “email” has become media shorthand for big, big news. But with each new batch of emails released, it’s becoming impossible to defend that formula.”

    Like

    • Jamie says:

      With all the changes I now tune in to Smirk & Jerk to see what they have line up. Once they start the daily Hate Hillary rinse and repeat, I just switch to CNN.

      Like

  30. rebelliousrenee says:

    Jamie…
    with all due respect to Craig… I’m with you on not being totally convinced that Webb is actually running for president. A local paper listed all the places the candidates are appearing in NH this Labor Day weekend. Turns out that all of them on both sides of the aisle will be here… the only exception… Jim Webb. I went to his website to see if he’s chosen to be in Iowa instead…. nope. On his Events box it just says “stay tuned for upcoming events”.

    Like

  31. Flatus says:

    Jamie, “As horrific as the refugee pictures are, does anyone want to discuss how much lower numbers led to establishment of Israel in 1948…”
    The weight of centuries of ritualized discrimination culminated by the pogroms and genocide of the last two centuries led to the establishment of the Jewish homeland. Indeed, refugees did not need to cross a border to be free, they had to fight for that freedom–several times over, after creating that border.

    Like

    • Jamie says:

      I was talking about the whole aftermath of WW II and the refugee situation. The easiest way to absorb the survivors of the death camps was the fulfillment of the Balfour Declaration. Of course this was preceded by the flood of “Aliyah” going through Greece, Cyprus and finally what was then Palestine. But it was a guilty world that led to that 1948 UN vote and of course, they have been fighting to hang on to it ever since.

      Like

  32. patd says:

    blue, re the pledge, it seemed a bit unseemly for him in parody of the pledge of allegiance smirk “I will be totally pledging my allegiance to the Republican Party and the conservative principles for which it stands” [see http://www.thefiscaltimes.com/2015/09/04/Trump-Signed-Pledge-Masterstroke-or-Disaster ]

    it lends itself to a political cartoon depicting school children (one of which looks like trump) hands on hearts saying the same pledge to a redesigned flag. or something like this from darcy:

    Like

  33. patd says:

    from http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=157&sid=36360920&title=with-clerk-jailed-gay-kentucky-couple-gets-marriage-license&fm=home_page&s_cid=topstory

    Meanwhile, clerk Kim Davis remained jailed. The licenses were issued only after five of her deputy clerks agreed to issue the licenses, the lone holdout from the office being her son, Nathan Davis. Her office was dark Friday morning as the license was issued to Yates and Smith, with a sheriff’s deputy standing guard in front of it.

    U.S. District Judge David Bunning had offered to release Davis if she promised not to interfere with her employees issuing licenses, but she refused, citing her Christian beliefs.

    Speaking to reporters Friday morning, Davis’ husband, Joe Davis, said his wife was in good spirits after her first night in jail.

    Holding a sign that says “Welcome to Sodom and Gomorrah,” Joe Davis said his wife would not resign from her position and would stay in jail for as long as it takes.

    Davis’ son supported his mother and was warned by the judge on Thursday not to interfere with his fellow employees. The judge said he did not want “any shenanigans,” like the staff closing the office for computer upgrades as they did briefly last week.

    “That would show a level of disrespect for the court’s order,” Bunning said. He added: “I’m hoping that cooler heads will prevail.”

    Davis’ son sat stoically as the judge questioned the clerks Thursday, some of whom were reluctant.

    “I don’t really want to, but I will comply with the law,” deputy clerk Melissa Thompson said, weeping while she stood before the packed courtroom. “I’m a preacher’s daughter and this is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life.”

    “I don’t hate anybody,” she added. “None of us do.”

    Bunning indicated Kim Davis would remain in jail at least a week, saying he would revisit his decision after the deputy clerks have had time to comply with his order.

    Like

  34. patd says:

    from http://edition.cnn.com/2015/09/04/politics/hillary-clinton-emails-campaign-andrea-mitchell/index.html
    “I’m not going to address any of the political questions around my friend Joe Biden,” Clinton said in an MSNBC interview with Andrea Mitchell. “He has to make a really difficult decision. You can see him struggling with it, and I just wish the best for him and his family.”
    In the wide-ranging interview, Clinton said she intended to give Biden room to make up his mind, and others should do the same.
    “If he gets into this race, there’ll be plenty of time to get into the debate and the back and forth, but I think everyone should give him the space and respect he deserves to make what is a very difficult choice for him and his family,” Clinton said.

    media seems to forget that joe is still grieving, that beau’s wife and children are still grieving. there’s plenty of time (up to the last minute that the dems go to convention if push comes to shove or a candidate drops out due to health or judicial matters). media is just interested in the horse race, not the man mourning the loss of a beloved son.
    grieving is a long process. according to
    https://hospicenet.org/html/grief2.html
    “How long and how difficult the grieving period is depends on the relationship with the person who dies, the circumstances of the death, and the situation of the survivors. The length of time people grieve can be weeks, months, and even years. One thing is certain: grief does not follow a timetable, but it does ease over time.”

    Like

  35. Even Anton Scalia says Kim Davis should do her job or quit
    so STFU Fat ass Hucksterbee and well known constitutional expert Turd Cruz apparently only applies his factual understanding in certain instances what an ass

    Like

  36. Tony says:

    Huckabee On Kentucky Clerk’s Jailing: Even Serial Killer Jeffrey Dahmer Got Bail!
    http://talkingpointsmemo.com/livewire/mike-huckabee-serial-killers-kim-davis
    What a big liar and scumbag!

    Like

  37. Tony says:

    Caitlyn Jenner Tells Ellen She Used to Oppose Same-Sex Marriage: ‘I’m a Traditionalist’
    by Matt Wilstein
    http://www.mediaite.com/tv/caitlyn-jenner-tells-ellen-she-used-to-oppose-same-sex-marriage-im-a-traditionalist/
    ““I’m a traditionalist,” she said. “I’m older than most people in the audience, you know. I mean, I kind of like tradition and it’s always been a man and a woman.”

    “But as time has gone on,” Jenner continued, “I think, like a lot of people on this issue, I’ve really changed [my] thinking here to, ‘I don’t ever want to stand in front of anybody’s happiness.’ You know? That’s not my job. OK? If that word ‘marriage’ is really, really that important to you, I can go with it.”

    DeGeneres seemed surprised that her guest is still hesitant to fully embrace this issue, explaining to her, “Obviously ‘marriage’ is an important word because marriage is marriage and equality is equality, so we want the same word everyone else has.”
    I am so over Caitlyn! Like many Republican’s, Cheney and many more, when it affects them well she can change, a little.. Please, so sick of her, traditionalist..

    Like

  38. Caitlyn like most entitled rich people do what they want with little or no consequence and if there is a problem they just throw money at it.

    Like

  39. It’s not my Cruz to bear……….another dipshit thrashes around in the shallow water…….

    Like

  40. blueINdallas says:

    If the refugees get to Austria, will they be more welcome there than in Hungary?
    Individually, each person is important. That is their life.
    Jamie is right, though. So many people in the world. Where do they all go. Where are the jobs, housing and other resources to support them?
    The rest of the world certainly failed them by allowing their homelands to go to hell. Leaving is hard, so if fleeing is the only answer it must’ve been hell.
    It’s much easier to for me to feel for an individual than a group. Sad or not, what does the world do with them? What does the world do to stop more people from needing to flee?
    WWIII???

    Like

  41. The Hungarians are getting a bit of a bad rap — they were enforcing European Union rules not their own. It does appear that some countries are doing better than others at meeting their own pledges to take refugees

    Like

  42. blueINdallas says:

    Kim Davis’ hubby #4 said that just cuz 5 SC justices decide something, “doesn’t mean it’s the law.” ((sigh))

    PatD – Liked that Trump cartoon.

    Like

  43. rebelliousrenee says:

    NEW THREAD!

    Hey… I had to upgrade my Mac to Yosemite in order to bring you that youtube song. I did it all by myself… didn’t ask Rick for any help… 🙂

    Like

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