Still Fighting the Cold War…

Why is it that we seem to be preparing for a threat that no longer exists? Russia is not really the threat they were back in the good ol’ days of Reagan and Gorbachev. Why do we still have 50,000 American troops stationed in Germany? There’s nothing wrong with Germany. Every service-member I’ve ever known that has been stationed there has absolutely loved it. Still, the economic boost that Germany receives from our soldiers’ money being spent in their economy could be better used here at home. The point is not really an anti-Germany one. It’s more of a pro-reality one.

The reality is that the European Theater is no longer the threat they were when so much of our foreign policy was created. It’s time for less stuff and more agility. This always seems to be a talking point during election campaigns but nothing ever gets done. Candidates talk about all of the changes they will make, yet none of them follow up on any of it when eventually elected. I’m not running for President so I feel fairly confident that no one will come digging up my deep, dark secrets over suggesting a few things. (In case I’m wrong, I will go ahead and let you all know that my birth certificate is readily available in both short and long form. I can unequivocally prove where, when, and to whom I was born if needed. Just saying….) It’s time we take more of an “engage” versus “contain” approach to our foreign policy decisions. Obama is a foreign policy disaster so his opinions and debacles won’t even be addressed here. I’m talking about America as a whole, not the individual man who has convinced himself he has more than a fleeting clue as to what the people he “leads” want.

In the past, America has stepped back and looked at a potential threat as it materialized and taken a containment approach. We worked with allies to defeat threats and enemies in Europe, but then we stayed. We assumed that future threats would also come from that section of the world so we committed assets, time, resources, and people to the region. We made nice with all the countries we bombed and we helped them to rebuild after the haze of lunacy was lifted from their governments or lands. The stories of heroism are not only the stories that we tell, but stories that Europe celebrates as well. The American men who died on the beaches of Normandy did not do so with the hopes that we would leave their successors on that same soil for another half-a century. With dozens of bases and thousands of troops still in the area, it has almost become one of those unquestioned truths in our country. We don’t give much of a thought to the fact that we still have close to fifty thousand men and women working and living in a country that no longer poses a threat to us. I guess you could say that Mexico left people in San Antonio to help rebuild after the damage they caused there, but I don’t think their efforts can be compared to the efforts we have put forth in Germany over the past fifty years. Plus, I’ve never heard, even in Spanish, one of our “citizenship challenged” friends from the south say that they were here for reunification reasons.

 

It’s time to realign our military deployment patterns. Right now, we are spending $638 BILLION per year to defend our country. While that number is staggering by itself, it’s even more staggering when compared to the defense budget of another so called super-power. China spends only $91.5 Billion (USD) to defend it’s borders. Admittedly, China is probably not paying their soldiers as much as we do, nor are they providing them with the individual comforts and benefits afforded to the brave men and women of our own forces, but still……nearly a five-hundred-fifty- BILLION dollar difference? Per year? What the hell are we spending that money on? Defense is one thing, but blind spending is another and it has got to be stopped or there will be nothing left to defend. That sounds cliché, but maybe that’s because logical men have been shouting it for years and no one has listened.

The threats our children and grandchildren will face are not going to come from Europe any more than the names of the men responsible for 9-11 were Sven, or Erik, or Hans. No, the wars coming to our children will come from the Asian / Pacific Theater, yet we do nothing to protect ourselves on that front. I’m not suggesting pre-emptive violence against anyone or any country. That would be foolish and would go against everything the Americans in Europe fought so hard to defend. I’m suggesting that we redeploy assets. Existing assets. We don’t need to keep building new ships, and outfitting those ships with the latest in technology when all we have to do is relocate the ships we have.

“But how will the rest of the world view those actions? We’ll come across as if we’re picking a fight.” said the pacifist liberal with a wedgie and a pocket protector.

“Tell you what, Saxton (or any other overtly “progressive” name you can think of)…..I don’t really give a crap what the world thinks of me as long as they can’t stage an attack against me. Why don’t you go practice saying "’I’m sorry, sheikh’ in Arabic while we make big-boy decisions, okay?”

I suggest we expand the tactical intelligence capabilities of our agencies to meet the changing battlefield on which our enemy seems so comfortable. If that means slapping a few whiney lawyers across the mouth and using common sense over manipulation of law, then so be it. I suggest we greatly enhance the authority of our Special Forces. This does not mean that Bubba from Appalachia gets to start blasting anyone who doesn’t look just like him and his brethren. It means that we start selecting and training our Special Forces with much more scrutiny. Again, lawyers be damned. If someone doesn’t get selected, it’s because they sucked. Period. It had nothing to do with the color of their skin or the type of reproductive organs underneath their fatigues. We also need to start a real policy of burden sharing with like-minded countries around the globe. There are plenty of countries out there facing similar situations that are not currently considered ‘strong allies’ of the U.S.. India and Vietnam are two perfect examples. Let them share some of the burden we face in protecting not only ourselves, but the world from terrorism and hippies.

Of course there are economic factors that must be considered. All of these suggestions are fine but not if we get so arrogant that we offend or turn away the very sources of income on which we have come to depend. We will have to nurture free-trade agreements that continue to be mutually beneficial. We should also probably broaden our horizons a bit and include a few countries with whom we don’t currently share a vast trade agreement. Explanation of our intentions should quell the tensions stirred in the bellies of our allies by our rearrangement of military assets. With that in mind, there are probably a few countries we could sever ties with. Not naming any names but the one that immediately comes to mind rhymes with “Sand in my labia".” Our beliefs and our goals have changed over the years. Geography, ideology, and religious affiliations have separated our two countries for years yet we continue to try to force a relationship. Why? We as Americans don’t even do that in our marriages so why then do we keep trying to mend a broken relationship with a country that has no interest in our well-being as long as our oil dollars keep arriving? It’s time to step up, get rid of anyone accepting special interest payoffs in exchange for foreign loyalty, and take back our country before someone else takes it away from us. Engage the enemy before they engage us. Don’t wait for a law to be explained…..go prevent an attack. Don’t wait for poll numbers to tell you what to do……go prevent an attack. Don’t wait to see what’s trending on…..oh screw it, you get the picture.

Sure, there are several candidates in the 2012 Presidential Election who believe in similar visions, but they are slaves to a corrupt and broken system that has simply spun out of control. When logical, life saving ideas are shared, the media responsible for disseminating those views to the anxiously waiting public is more interested in sexual histories, religious backgrounds, hairstyles, and poll numbers. Folks, I am not asking any candidate; nor will I ever ask a Presidential candidate to style my hair, spiritually advise my family, or make sweet love to me. All I will ever ask of them is that they LEAD! Not look down their arrogant nose at me and tell me what I want, but LEAD. Not ignore religious customs set forth in the very foundation of my country, but LEAD. I guess I should be fair and point out that our current President is, in fact, leading us. It just happens to be away from the goals and visions we all have for our futures!

If you do nothing else in your lifetime, be able to truthfully tell your grandkids that you were one of the 70-85 million people who voted against Barrack Hussein Obama and all his little cronies in 2012.

 

As always, thanks for playing!

 

JRG1