Mark West
Truly defending America
By Mark West
I received an email this week that requested that I deal with some foreign policy and national security issues. This person must have been reading my mind! How did they know that my plan for this week is to unveil my ideas about foreign policy and national security?
Denial and forgetfulness are two problems that plague many in the United States today. People who don't support the Bush doctrine generally fall into one of two categories. Denial that the events of 9/11/01 awakened this slumbering giant to the reality that we have been hibernating in the face of war has gripped many who oppose the Bush doctrine. Terrorists declared war on America long before 9/11/01. Many people deny the fact that 9/11/01 changed the way that we view the world. They refuse to acknowledge the fact that the world has changed. That is a fantasy world if ever I saw one. Forgetfulness is the other option that opponents find themselves in. They have forgotten what they vowed not to forget. Our friends, neighbors, and relatives died on 9/11/01 on United States soil! This wasn't an embassy in a far off land. This wasn't a battleship in a gulf on the other side of the world. This was New York City, New York, the United States of America. It was our homeland! We must vigilantly pursue legitimate options that will prevent such a tragedy from happening on our soil again.
Unilateral pre-emption, though Iraq isn't a unilateral effort, is proposed by the Declaration of Independence. The United States may make an appeal to the other nations of the world before taking action, however we don't require their approval before doing so. If our Founding Fathers had waited for international approval before declaring our independence, we would still be an English colony today paying unfair taxes to the Queen! If given the choice, I would rather face the enemy on their turf than on my own. In football, a home loss is demoralizing, a road win is inspiring. I advocate a road win in order to prevent future home losses.
Diplomacy has a place and is a means for securing our nation, but is not the only means and should not be used to our national detriment. Saddam Hussein had ten years to comply with 17 United Nations resolutions. He failed to comply and it was time to hold him accountable for it regardless of weapons of mass destruction. Please note, if Hussein is allowed to continually stonewall the international community, other nations will be emboldened to stonewall the international community as well. Leaders lead by example and President Bush, agree with him or not, took the lead in making sure that the Axis of Evil (Iran, Iraq and North Korea) knows it will be held accountable to the international community. Lost in the fray is the fact that Libya has disarmed because the President took action in Iraq. We have to defend ourselves, it is our right as citizens of the United States and it is the responsibility of our President.
Homeland Security is important and I believe it is being done wrong. I have a C.A.B. plan for homeland security. Coasts, airways and borders! We need to commit the national guard to patrolling our coasts, borders and airports. A two-pronged effort to combat terrorists in this world isn't merely a good idea, but is absolutely necessary to protecting the United States. While we pursue our enemies overseas, we must prevent enemies from breaching our borders. Our Mexican and Canadian borders are entirely too porous and we must do more to close them. I believe that immigration is great, but it must be controlled immigration, not this amnesty policy that the President has supported.
You want to be a citizen of the United States? Learn the language, establish a residence, support the country! Otherwise, get out, stay out and don't come back! The United States is the great melting pot in which people from many nations come and are assimilated into our culture. Today we are told that the melting pot is wrong and that respect for other cultures must override assimilation, essentially we need to be like the third world countries where each region speaks a different language. The United States would lose its identity and I believe this is bad for our nation.
NAFTA and outsourcing have become two demonized issues in this election. The North American Free Trade Agreement opened up our borders with Canada and Mexico for trade with the United States. I don't have a problem with free trade so long as it is on a level playing field. We can't compete with factory workers in other countries working for a third of what they do here at home. We can't compete with nations that hide the fact that their money is inflated and use it against our money at unfair rates. We must be committed to leveling the playing field in the international world. Outsourcing is only a slight problem when we consider that we insource more jobs than we outsource. I believe the major problem is creating a equal playing field in the world for the United States to compete on.
Where I stand?
I believe that we must secure our coasts, borders and airways while simultaneously pre-emptively pursuing our terrorist enemies across the world. I believe that immigration must be geared toward assimilation. I believe that international trade is fine so long as we are competing on an equal playing field.
Where do the candidates stand?
President George W. Bush (Republican Party) believes that the best way to defend America is to be on the offensive against terror. Recognizes that 9/11 gave us the reality of pre-emption. Offers an amnesty-style idea for controlling the border with Mexico. Strong supporter of NAFTA. I give President Bush a A (11 points).
Senator John F. Kerry (Democrat Party) believes the best way to defend America is through stong alliances and passing a global test before taking action. Opposes NAFTA. I give Senator Kerry a B (8 points).
Michael Badnarik (Libertarian Party) believes the war on terror to be too vague but did support retaliation for 9/11. Opposes NAFTA. I give Badnarik a B (8 points).
Michael Peroutka (Constitution Party) believes in strict isolationism. I give Peroutka a C (5 points).
David Cobb (Green Party) believes in less military spending. Get out of Iraq. Supports UN peacekeeping as good use of military. I give Cobb a D (2 points).
Ralph Nader (Independent/Reform Party) believes we should be out of Iraq in six months. Supports closing the border but shouldn't criminalize the border. Opposes NAFTA. I give Nader a D (2 points).
After four rounds: President George W. Bush (Republican Party) 40 points, Michael Peroutka (Constitution Party) 38 points, Michael Badnarik (Libertarian Party) 29 points, Senator John F. Kerry (Democrat Party) 10 points, David Cobb (Green Party) 6 points, Ralph Nader (Independent/Reform Party) 4 points.
© Mark West
I received an email this week that requested that I deal with some foreign policy and national security issues. This person must have been reading my mind! How did they know that my plan for this week is to unveil my ideas about foreign policy and national security?
Denial and forgetfulness are two problems that plague many in the United States today. People who don't support the Bush doctrine generally fall into one of two categories. Denial that the events of 9/11/01 awakened this slumbering giant to the reality that we have been hibernating in the face of war has gripped many who oppose the Bush doctrine. Terrorists declared war on America long before 9/11/01. Many people deny the fact that 9/11/01 changed the way that we view the world. They refuse to acknowledge the fact that the world has changed. That is a fantasy world if ever I saw one. Forgetfulness is the other option that opponents find themselves in. They have forgotten what they vowed not to forget. Our friends, neighbors, and relatives died on 9/11/01 on United States soil! This wasn't an embassy in a far off land. This wasn't a battleship in a gulf on the other side of the world. This was New York City, New York, the United States of America. It was our homeland! We must vigilantly pursue legitimate options that will prevent such a tragedy from happening on our soil again.
Unilateral pre-emption, though Iraq isn't a unilateral effort, is proposed by the Declaration of Independence. The United States may make an appeal to the other nations of the world before taking action, however we don't require their approval before doing so. If our Founding Fathers had waited for international approval before declaring our independence, we would still be an English colony today paying unfair taxes to the Queen! If given the choice, I would rather face the enemy on their turf than on my own. In football, a home loss is demoralizing, a road win is inspiring. I advocate a road win in order to prevent future home losses.
Diplomacy has a place and is a means for securing our nation, but is not the only means and should not be used to our national detriment. Saddam Hussein had ten years to comply with 17 United Nations resolutions. He failed to comply and it was time to hold him accountable for it regardless of weapons of mass destruction. Please note, if Hussein is allowed to continually stonewall the international community, other nations will be emboldened to stonewall the international community as well. Leaders lead by example and President Bush, agree with him or not, took the lead in making sure that the Axis of Evil (Iran, Iraq and North Korea) knows it will be held accountable to the international community. Lost in the fray is the fact that Libya has disarmed because the President took action in Iraq. We have to defend ourselves, it is our right as citizens of the United States and it is the responsibility of our President.
Homeland Security is important and I believe it is being done wrong. I have a C.A.B. plan for homeland security. Coasts, airways and borders! We need to commit the national guard to patrolling our coasts, borders and airports. A two-pronged effort to combat terrorists in this world isn't merely a good idea, but is absolutely necessary to protecting the United States. While we pursue our enemies overseas, we must prevent enemies from breaching our borders. Our Mexican and Canadian borders are entirely too porous and we must do more to close them. I believe that immigration is great, but it must be controlled immigration, not this amnesty policy that the President has supported.
You want to be a citizen of the United States? Learn the language, establish a residence, support the country! Otherwise, get out, stay out and don't come back! The United States is the great melting pot in which people from many nations come and are assimilated into our culture. Today we are told that the melting pot is wrong and that respect for other cultures must override assimilation, essentially we need to be like the third world countries where each region speaks a different language. The United States would lose its identity and I believe this is bad for our nation.
NAFTA and outsourcing have become two demonized issues in this election. The North American Free Trade Agreement opened up our borders with Canada and Mexico for trade with the United States. I don't have a problem with free trade so long as it is on a level playing field. We can't compete with factory workers in other countries working for a third of what they do here at home. We can't compete with nations that hide the fact that their money is inflated and use it against our money at unfair rates. We must be committed to leveling the playing field in the international world. Outsourcing is only a slight problem when we consider that we insource more jobs than we outsource. I believe the major problem is creating a equal playing field in the world for the United States to compete on.
Where I stand?
I believe that we must secure our coasts, borders and airways while simultaneously pre-emptively pursuing our terrorist enemies across the world. I believe that immigration must be geared toward assimilation. I believe that international trade is fine so long as we are competing on an equal playing field.
Where do the candidates stand?
President George W. Bush (Republican Party) believes that the best way to defend America is to be on the offensive against terror. Recognizes that 9/11 gave us the reality of pre-emption. Offers an amnesty-style idea for controlling the border with Mexico. Strong supporter of NAFTA. I give President Bush a A (11 points).
Senator John F. Kerry (Democrat Party) believes the best way to defend America is through stong alliances and passing a global test before taking action. Opposes NAFTA. I give Senator Kerry a B (8 points).
Michael Badnarik (Libertarian Party) believes the war on terror to be too vague but did support retaliation for 9/11. Opposes NAFTA. I give Badnarik a B (8 points).
Michael Peroutka (Constitution Party) believes in strict isolationism. I give Peroutka a C (5 points).
David Cobb (Green Party) believes in less military spending. Get out of Iraq. Supports UN peacekeeping as good use of military. I give Cobb a D (2 points).
Ralph Nader (Independent/Reform Party) believes we should be out of Iraq in six months. Supports closing the border but shouldn't criminalize the border. Opposes NAFTA. I give Nader a D (2 points).
After four rounds: President George W. Bush (Republican Party) 40 points, Michael Peroutka (Constitution Party) 38 points, Michael Badnarik (Libertarian Party) 29 points, Senator John F. Kerry (Democrat Party) 10 points, David Cobb (Green Party) 6 points, Ralph Nader (Independent/Reform Party) 4 points.
© Mark West
The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.
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