US President’s weekly Yahoo News updates

Once per week, I consolidate comments I’d posted to recent articles appearing on Yahoo News. I share my views, written as if I actually were the US President. [I’m working on that.] The following – excepting the one I’d written to Rabbi Lerner –  were posted between June 26 and today, though appear below in no particular order. As is my usual custom, if I open with a quoted item, that’s from the article itself.

I hope you enjoy all 18 of these mini-essays/comments.

Posted on Yahoo! News

ONE:

The Greeks should approach the Chinese for a loan [and intentionally default with the EU]. Maybe they could get a better deal than the EU is offering. By approaching the Chinese, and being obvious about that, the EU might suddenly offer more generous, less sovereignty-threatening terms.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“In the world of capitalism, isn’t competition supposed to be the name of the game?”

TWO:

In an earlier article:…one of his French lawyers…[said]: "What [former IMF President] was accused of has no relation to his personality. It was something that was not credible."

(sigh) Talk about a lawyer, referring to the rape charge, walking a fine line. Tell me, counselor, what about a married man having consensual sex with a total stranger, probably for money? Does that have any relation to his personality?

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“If the French elect this Dommy as their next president, former Congressman Weiner should become a French citizen and run for office over there. He’d win in a landslide.”

THREE:

[RE: American citizens held in Greece after attempting to sail to Gaza.]

“The U.S. Embassy wasn't immediately available for comment.”

Of course not. They were on the phone to ask permission from Israel if it would be okay to respond to American passengers’ calls for assistance.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Let’s see if Israel learned anything from the last flotilla incident. Clue: There are a lot of creative ways of stopping a boat in the water.”

FOUR:

We should just go ahead and default. This is a golden opportunity, since we are still in the driver’s seat. If we wait too long and keep on borrowing, we’re going to default anyway and then it will be too late. We won’t have any leverage left due to our weakened condition. Then, China will be in the driver’s seat and I don’t think they’ll be too merciful with our indecisive a$$es.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“No mainstream economist would dare make this proposal, but (really) this is our best chance.”

FIVE:

“… a defiant House overwhelmingly rejected that authorizing [of continued military action in Libya] but stopped short of cutting off funds…”

In that case, the House wasn’t being very “defiant,” now was it? In fact the House, by refusing to cut the funding, lent its de facto authorization to Obama’s renegade actions. As I keep saying over and over again, only when we throw every last Dem/Pub out of the House and Senate will we be able to correct our moral compass – not to mention our financial one.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Too many people are hypnotized into Brand X vs. Brand Y (that is, Dem vs. Pub) thinking. As the old saying goes: It pays to advertise.”

SIX:

"[Michele Bachmann] can say something that's just outrageous and just completely wrong and move on..."

Uh huh...tell you what - that ain't gonna work if she becomes the nominee and squares off against Obama in three televised debates. She'll magically transform into the deer in the proverbial headlights. Barack will turn her into toast.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

"We truly love our oddballs but even this is too much - Bachmann is definitely not ready for prime time."

SEVEN:

"For capitalism to work…financial firms… must be held accountable for their failures," Hoenig said. [NOTE: Dr. Hoenig is one of the 12 Fed Reserve Bank presidents.]

Uh huh…and just now he’s catching on to this?

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Tell me, Mr. Hoenig, is the Fed itself too big to fail? If so, what would you propose?”

EIGHT:

“But Stephanopoulos interjected, insisting that the younger Adams had never been considered one of the Founding Fathers.”

Maybe Bachmann thinks of the younger Adams as a “virtual” Founding Father by “virtue” of him doing what the Founding Fathers really (in her opinion) had in mind to do had they not been so distracted by the prospect of the War of 1812 “immediately” on the horizon (yeah, these mystics could see into the future, yew betcha).

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“There could have been only one reason why the men who agreed that ‘all men are created equal’ could tolerate slavery – and that is because they didn’t regard blacks as human beings.”

NINE:

“The legislation had been approved by Congress at the last minute, and there was no time to fly it to France for Obama's signature before the anti-terrorism powers expired.”

First of all, since Congress approved at the last minute, it would have been Congress’s fault if the expiration of those anti-terrorism powers had been the cause of a successful terrorist plot. The lesson? Don’t wait until the last minute, next time.

Second, do you seriously believe any court would have held anyone liable for using those expired powers? This is the land of look the other way, and throw out inconvenient cases due to technicalities.

Third, suppose that bill had been flown to Obama and he signed it as soon as it left the plane – that is, without him reading every single page. Do you think anyone would have raised a squawk about that?

All Obama had to do was issue a quickie Executive Order declaring that a cover sheet his aides could whip up on the spot would suffice, upon affixing of his signature with his own hand, to be the same as signing the bill itself. After all, when a president signs a bill, he doesn’t sign every single sheet; he signs a cover sheet.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“None of this is rocket science, except to the 21 Pubbers who want to be presidential obstructionists by wrapping themselves in the Constitution – as if the Constitution really mattered any more.”

TEN:

Surrendered his passport? So what? All he has to do is cross the border to Canada, jump on an Air France flight, end of story…I doubt Dommy [Strauss-Kahn] will want this to go to court where he’ll (most likely) try to claim the sex was consensual. Double-doubt that if his wife will be sitting in that courtroom. My money is on either: Case dismissed or he flees.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“The case might not be ‘ironclad’ as first appeared, but he’s still as much of a flight risk [especially since he no longer has to post bail]. What gives?”

ELEVEN:

QUOTE: Legal scholar Garrett Epps… said that a case could easily be made for simply ignoring the congressionally mandated debt limit. [and, debts] must be paid regardless of the political whims of the current congressional majority…

“Political whims?” Is that what we call opposition these days? Sounds like Epps is pulling a rabbit out of a hat. Why is Congressional approval being questioned now? Our long-standing practice for decades was to run this by Congress first. Now that Congress is balking, Obama finds some prostituting lawyer to find a rationale to bypass Congress?

The 14th amendment won’t stop the US from saying “We don’t question the validity of the debts, just the manner and the time in which they are to be paid.”

How about obeying Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution: “The Congress shall have power to…pay the debts…borrow money…to coin money, regulate the value thereof…” Every law school in this country should rise up in opposition if Obama tries to raise the debt limit – on his own authority.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Can you say ‘coup d’etat coming to a theater (of “war”) in your neighborhood soon’?”

TWELVE:

[What follows is part of my response to Stephen M, who challenged my post immediately above.]

I know the word “whims” was said; I questioned the accuracy of that usage. Maybe the president is being “whimsical” by refusing to rein in taxes and make the deep cuts insisted by Congress, which is supposed to “provide for the…general Welfare of the United States…”

You wrote, “he is not raising the debt ceiling…” Say what? In every practical sense, that’s exactly what he would be doing. Furthermore, he wouldn’t be simply “ignoring it,” he would be taking the proactive step of ordering his Treasury sec to (in effect) increase that limit.

I did not interpret what he said as “an attack on Republicans” but as a usurpation of the power of Congress.

It’s not a matter of Congress not doing its job. POTUS and the Congress are equal. If they can’t come to an agreement, then the matter is dropped. Perhaps Congress might feel Obama wasn’t doing his job. And that’s important since Congress holds a power above that of Obama and that of the High Court: It can impeach. Sounds rather final to me…and, no, a conviction for impeachment has no appeal.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Trust me on this one: Obama doesn’t have the spine to bypass Congress on this one.”

THIRTEEN:

“…[Gadhafi] who is a state sponsor of terrorist operations against the [USA] is pinned down and the noose is tightening around him."

“Is” or “was” a state sponsor? Anyway, I don’t seem to recall Obama using that line of argument when we went in. And, don’t believe that part about “no ground forces” or “no casualties.” Our guys who get killed in stealth operations are never acknowledged. If we’re out to get state sponsors of terrorism, wouldn’t you say the more active state these days is Syria? Hmm…maybe Obama’s trying to give us a heads-up.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“All you people who voted for Obama, you never saw this coming, did you?”

FOURTEEN:

Obama can afford to play fast and loose with Libya. No Democrat will oppose him in the primaries, and the GOP’s field looks weak. Obama can take advantage of his lack of opposition to “suggest” Democrats sign up for the Republican primaries and intentionally vote for their weakest candidates. Perfectly legal and this has been done before in isolated incidents. However, since Obama has absolutely no primary opponents, his party can increase the scope of this sabotage.

So, there is no hope…unless…you vote for me. I’m the only independent running on the basis of a written contract. I violate my campaign promises, I lose my office.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Google: Steven Searle US President 2012 ...for my platform.”

FIFTEEN:

Of course the US supports Lagarde. That’s our way of saying, “Thanks for bombing Libya for us, and sorry about that little tiff with Dominique.”

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“How is it that Geithner gets to give US backing to Lagarde? Or is it ‘understood’ that he speaks for Obama, who’s supposed to be solely in charge of US foreign relations?”

SIXTEEN:

[RE: Bank of America’s $8.5 billion proposed settlement with investors…]

QUOTE: For several months, Bank of America battled claims based on estimates "that were much different from ours," Moynihan said.

Before the judge rubberstamps (oops, I mean “approves”) this settlement, he should demand access to back-up docs upon which these estimates were based. “Estimates” don’t just come out of thin air. Somebody – is – lying. All of BoA’s investors and depositors should take their business elsewhere. I assure you, BoA is not too big to fail. We are, and we fail as it succeeds.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“Throw all Dem/Pubs out of Congress and replace them all with independents – then you’ll get ‘and justice for all.’”

SEVENTEEN:

No, Sebouh, the big one is "You shall have no others gods before Me." Not all liberals support Choice and, if push comes to shove and their little girl "gets into trouble," there are fire-breathing Conservatives who believe in abortion - "just this once." Go figure.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

"BTW, it's not 'Thou shalt not kill,' it's "Thou shalt not murder another human being.'"

EIGHTEEN:

[I sent this to Rabbi Lerner, Editor-in-Chief of Tikkun Magazine, but did NOT post on Yahoo]

I strongly disagree...we don't "have to" raise the debt ceiling. I know, I know...the usual suspects like Geithner would have us believe otherwise. But...has anyone truly thought outside the box on this one? Sooner or later, it's going to take some kind of trauma to restabilize the world economic order. Wars often do that. And, just as in the case of war, the outcomes aren't precisely predictable. However, even wars have their upside (I can't believe I just said that!).

Why should we wait for events to spin entirely out of control? We have control now, in terms of proactively refusing to raise the debt-ceiling. Of course, should that happen, the shit will hit the fan. But…sooner or later, that will happen anyway. And I say, better sooner than later. For one thing, people will finally realize the seriousness of the situation: We can't keep borrowing forever.

If the ceiling isn't raised, there will be a national emergency. But it won't be the end of the world. We should recognize default for the blessing it could well turn out to be. Since defaulting will be our doing, we can have a great deal to say about how the dust settles. Again, better now than later when it will be others (the Chinese?) who will call the shots, much to our powerless chagrin.

I am stunned at how many well-intended people follow Geithner's dire warnings without even trying to think outside the box. I am proud to say, I'm not one of them.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

"Declare your independence by voting for Independents. Throw all the Dem/Pub bums out of Congress now."

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

Founder of The Independent Contractors’ Party

“The poet Muriel Rukeyser said the universe is composed of stories, not of atoms. In that spirit, I invite you to contemplate what I’ve written above – and I hope you respond by conjuring some stories of your own” – Steve.

Contact me at bpa_cinc@yahoo.com

Part VI – Presidential candidate’s Yahoo News postings

Once again, I share comments I’d posted to articles appearing on Yahoo News. These were posted between April 29 and today, though appear below in no particular order. As is my usual custom, if I open with a quoted item, that’s from the article itself.

Posted on Yahoo! News

ONE:

The head of the IMF and (possible) future president of France travels to NYC without a bodyguard? He can spend $3,000 a night for a suite and not manage to share the room with (shall we say) a witness? Hmm…$3,000 a night…he must be one of those fiscal conservatives. For that reason alone, if I were French I wouldn’t vote for him.

It’s good he was nabbed before that plane took off since France doesn’t extradite its citizens. As I’ve written before, if Bin Laden had been a French citizen and escaped to France after 9/11, they wouldn’t have extradited him. And what would we have done? Would we have been as nicey-nice with France as we’ve been to Afghanistan? Think about it.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“Come to think of it, I’d toss him in jail for being head of the IMF if I ruled the world.”

TWO:

And how would we feel if a Chinese nuclear armed aircraft carrier appeared off the coast of California? Make that, "more than 12 miles off the coast." Surely we'd understand. Naw, I didn't think so.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Our biggest problem? We're control freaks."

THREE:

What I’m still trying to figure out: Since Rahm [Emanuel] wants to run for US President someday, and to do so he’ll have to at least give the appearance of doing something positive as Mayor, how will that appearance be created?

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“Israel’s man in the White House - the stuff dreams/nightmares are made of.”

FOUR:

[UPDATE: On May 16, I also sent this e-mail, mentioned below, to three different Tea Party groups. Let’s see how desperate they are; let’s see how they respond to this.]

Too bad about Trump bowing out. I was about to send him the same email I’d sent to Palin, Bachmann, and Gingrich this morning.

It said: "candidate for President [should make] the following campaign pledges:

"If elected, I will veto any bill that contains an increase in the debt ceiling. I will also veto any bill containing new spending, new taxes, or new fees.

This same candidate would also pledge:

(1) My campaign pledges will be in the form of a written contract; and

(2) If I were to violate that contract, I would forfeit my office by means of inviting an uncontested impeachment against me. This, too, would be a provision of my written contract."

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“Too bad…Trump of all people, being a businessman, would have fully appreciated the value of a written contract – even a political one.”

FIVE:

Did the arresting detectives actually put their hands on his head to “push” him down when putting him in the squad car? They like doing that.

Also, was this whole thing a set-up? We don’t like getting our noses tweaked. Maybe we decided we didn’t like the way France wouldn’t extradite Roman Polanski so we wanted some payback. If we had wanted more than that, say to sabotage him to help Sarkozy, we couldn’t have had a more cooperative mark. He travels alone, no bodyguard, in NYC for unknown reasons. Voters might decide this man is too stupid to run their country, even if he’s declared innocent.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“I wonder how it is that the cops got to him so quickly before his plane took off.”

SIX:

"...many Socialists voiced outrage at the fact he was paraded, handcuffed and unshaven, before cameras..."

Why even feign outrage? This is what we do in the US: It's called the perp walk, one of our most cherished law-enforcement customs. Surely the French Socialists respect local customs, yes? I mean, we tolerated them shielding Roman Polanski all those years. No, we didn't like it. But at least we didn't send in the SEAL teams to hijack his sick a$$ back to the good old USA. We respected their custom. So they should at least respect ours.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Personally? I've always rather enjoyed seeing some hoity-toity in cuffs. That's just one of my personal customs."

SEVEN:

"U.S. military planners had to take pains to move in and out of the country without having to shoot at Pakistani military forces..."

Be very sure about one thing: We would have opened fire on any Pakistani military that tried to protect its turf against an unknown and unannounced invader. If, for some reason, though, the Pak air force had shot down the SEAL team and killed them all (allowing Bin Laden to get away), our ally could have scolded us by saying, "Why didn't you tell us? Then we would have known not to shoot at you."

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"There were a lot of ways this thing could have gone wrong - and a lot of ways it can still go wrong."

EIGHT:

News Flash: Democrats are conspiring to encourage independents and fellow Democrats to hijack the GOP presidential primary.

"Ask for GOP ballots and vote for the Republican you'd like to see on the ballot" - or so the whispering campaign goes. And why not? Since Obama will be unopposed in his primaries, why not put all those Democratic votes to good use? After all the years we've suffered from the GOP sticking it to us, turnabout's fair play wouldn't you say?

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"And there's nothing the GOP could do to stop this entirely legal strategy. Go for it, guys!"

NINE:

Much is made of the fact that Bin Laden wasn’t armed when killed, and neither were his victims at the WTC. About those victims: No, they weren’t armed but, as taxpayers, they armed others who did things that inspired Bin Laden to take his revenge. There are a lot of ways of looking at who’s to blame. And the web of cause and effect is hard to unravel, especially when past-lives actions are considered.

Karmically speaking, there is no such thing as an innocent victim. Even a new-born babe killed by a gangbanger’s random bullet has a meaning far beyond “sad accident” or “victim of circumstance.” It’s entirely possible that, in a past life, that baby was an adult who had wronged that gangbanger. The hard parts – we’ll never know for sure and karmic retribution rarely works with that kind of one-to-one correspondence.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“But of course, it’s a whole lot easier to just point out what we can readily see – the WTC victims were unarmed.”

TEN:

[NOTE: This is my response to Exmettech, who thought I deserved to get my ass kicked for making the immediately preceding post.]

Exmettech,

Everybody gets what they deserve, sooner or later. Did it ever occur to you that “everyone” you speak of had already kicked the crap out of me in a past life? Maybe that accounts for my current anti-war sentiments.

The problem in the West is they have this belief in the so-called “closed box” system of analysis. Anything beyond what they can immediately sense or experience simply doesn’t exist - like actions taken in past lives. This denial also has much to do with the crushing need of the Modern Man for instant gratification.

I am simply an American expressing my right of free speech and religion. I’ve seen the violence spawned by the Abrahamic faiths (and, yes, I’d include Islam of course), which is why I embrace Buddhism. Your violence is going to eat you and your fellow Westerners alive.

As for “they pay taxes because it’s the law,” there are brave resisters who don’t pay taxes or at least withhold payments that would otherwise be spent on wars. Sometimes it’s okay to violate the law; sometimes it’s a karmic violation to obey the law (without question).

Not everybody in the Twin Towers died on 9/11– and, like it or not, there are reasons for that. Perhaps some very wicked people survived while some very good perished. But those wicked folks might have done some very great good, once upon a time, which resulted in surviving the terrorist attacks. Go figure...no, really, I mean it ... Go figure.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“I dare say what I say because it’s true and I’m not afraid to attach my good name to my opinions.”

ELEVEN:

"The Pakistani intelligence official acknowledged bin Laden's whereabouts may cause problems with the United States, and also embarrass Pakistan."

Oh, the Pakistanis shouldn’t worry too much about that. After all, Israeli spy Jonathan Pollard was responsible for the gravest leak of classified info in our history (Wikileaks has nothing on this guy). And yet, Israeli PM Netanyahu visited Pollard in prison in 2002 and actively seeks his release from a life sentence.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Just as we keep wrapping our ever-luvin arms around Israel, so shall we around Pakistan. But...give us a couple of days to get over their complicity."

TWELVE:

Take one good, long, hard look at the photo tacked onto this article. Petraeus is probably thinking, "Damn...I got kicked upstairs to the CIA, which effectively boots me out of the army. And that will end any undermining talk I might indulge in about US troops being drawn down in Afghanistan depending on the conditions on the ground. Looks like Obama has made up his mind about unconditional surrender...I mean, withdrawal."

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Petraeus will not run the CIA. Panetta didn't. Like all good 'soldiers,' both will do as they’re told. And it's not Obama doing the telling - even he gets told what to do."

THIRTEEN:

"We got beat up for it, but those efforts led to this great day," said Marty Martin, a retired CIA officer who for years led the hunt for bin Laden.

So what Martin is saying is, "The end justifies the means." Hmm...seems there were some guys who thought the same way, and flew some planes into some towers once upon a time. Politics do make some strange bedfellows indeed.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Well, Marty, ask yourself this: 'What did we give up by ignoring our values to get one guy...a guy admittedly no more than a bit player at the end?'"

FOURTEEN:

Why didn't the SEAL team simply leave the Osama's body where they shot him? Let the Pakistani's take care of the remains. As our ally, that would be the least they could have done. I'm sure Saudi Arabia, where bin Laden's kin still live, would have taken his body. No doubt about it. And we could have gotten that body there within 24 hours - easily. I can tell you this much: We had no intention from the get-go of doing anything but burying him at sea and, no, we didn't even bother to ask if any country would accept the corpse.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"I hope, after all our chest-thumping, self-rightenous, bloodlusty cheering dies down, that we will conclude (cost/benefit wise) that chasing down bin Laden was worth it."

FIFTEEN:

[NOTE: This was written in response to an article about 9/11 victims’ families having closure, now that Bin Laden is dead.]

“Closure” is a loaded and deceptive word, for nothing is ever truly and entirely left behind us. Our existence is a continuum, therefore anything we might like to think of as “closed” has a mind of its own and continues its ripple effects. That’s basic karma.

It is much to the preference of Western-style accountants to “close the books” and “move on.” But those are mere conventions of convenience, which have nothing to do with reality. This might also have a lot to do with our current economic malaise but that’s another story.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“Reality has a funny way of morphing and refusing to die, preferring to reincarnate in forms to test men’s souls.”

SIXTEEN:

"Americans have been absorbing the world-changing news..." What's changed, except we've informed the world we shot an unarmed man and that man's wife rushed one of his attackers? So, we've created sympathy for the unarmed and made a martyr of a woman protecting her husband.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Too often in my life, I have found those who seek 'justice' are really seeking vengeance. Too few instances of turn the other cheek or has that turned into another hated Islamic teaching?"

SEVENTEEN:

It doesn't take much in the way of brains to be a late-night humorist, a point [David] Letterman has labored mightily for years to prove. For instance, it didn't occur to any of these jokers that they've just painted a bulls-eye on themselves. And, unlike the secretive SEALS team (smart enough to lie low and avoid bragging), the whole world knows where they live. And all in the name of pandering for ratings.

These puppies are sick, and lack even the brains to have self-preservation skills. A public display of sheer glee is never pretty to look at. What I'd like to see is an audience greeting such "celebratory remarks" with the comedian’s worst enemy: Stone, stark silence. That's worse than being booed. Even that can be converted into a joke.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Careful of joyous escalation - you know what they say about he-who-laughs-last."

EIGHTEEN:

"Whether he has a gun or not really doesn't matter," said Ratner. "You're lawfully permitted to kill combatants."

Ratner expresses a convenient, though rather silly, view. To kill or not to kill should depend, for instance, on whether the subject is combating at the time or not. If, however, Ratner insists on his view, he must also insist that the Nazis had every right to kill every captured enemy soldier during WWII. After all, why should it matter if they actually surrendered or not - they were combatants? And, Lord knows, they might try to escape and kill again.

Also, screw the photos of Bin Laden's body. I want to see the real-time footage taken by the helmet-cams of the SEAL team members. [Didn’t know about that, did you?] BTW, that's why we had to admit Bin Laden was unarmed. If that footage ever got out (due to Wikileaks, for example) showing we lied about Bin Laden being armed, the political fallout would have been devastating.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"I love how the wagons are circling with the usual suspects chanting ‘Everything we did was legal.’ Certain things in this life are very predictable.”

NINETEEN:

Jay,

I was taking issue with Ratner’s general statement, “Whether he has a gun or not really doesn’t matter…You’re lawfully permitted to kill combatants.” Ratner is in effect saying (again, going by his general statement), “It’s okay to execute prisoners of war, even after they’ve surrendered.” That’s the logical extrapolation of his statement. BTW, I didn’t notice Ratner making any exceptions as to whether this was a conventional war or not.

If I were in charge we wouldn’t have been in Afghanistan, Iraq, or Pakistan in the first place. So much for your comment on “footage of SEALS being dismembered.” In fact, we came very close to exactly that scenario with Obama in charge. Remember: Helicopter crashed. Suppose some of the SEALS had been trapped in the wreckage and couldn’t be freed. I’ll let you figure out what would have happened next.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“As for carrying the ‘presidents jockstrap,’ I aim to kick his lying a$$ out of office. We deserve a far better (and more honest) president than this.”

TWENTY:

Jay,

…To kill or not to kill also depends on the circumstances encountered in Bin Laden’s room (which is why I’m interested in the helmet cam footage) as well as the orders the SEALS had. I don’t think you’re going to tell me the SEALS were told, “Go in and do your own thing, you don’t need any orders from brass or POTUS on this.” Surely we had everything to gain by killing him without giving him a chance to surrender. So of course that’s exactly what the SEALS did – POTUS’s orders.

As to, how can you tell if “a person like bin ladin” is surrendering? How can you tell if anybody’s surrendering? [Hands raised in the air? A passive, non-threatening stance? Was he dressed in such a way (thin nightshirt?) that any observer could see he wasn’t wearing any weapons or a suicide vest?] Why are you acting like Bin Ladin is some kind of super human by describing him as “a person like bin ladin?” Why not just blow everybody away and forget about the surrender option? Why don’t we just make that our uniform military and domestic police response?

An option some folks find inconvenient to consider: SEALS could have just tossed in a stun grenade. I know you’re not interested in my “suppose” scenarios, but (hey) somebody’s got to do some planning and ask some questions (preferably in advance). Might as well be me.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“You know, the more posts I read on Yahoo, the more it sounds like people are over-zealously defending the SEALS (no questions asked…what do you think this is, a democracy?)”

TWENTY-ONE:

Namvet,

The wanted poster may have said “Dead or Alive,” but I’m far more interested in what SEAL’s orders were – the ones from Obama’s mouth. Do you really think POTUS would have given any discretion to his hit squad? He or military brass wouldn’t have let them “figure” anything – let alone “figure [Bin Laden] was carrying.”

There wasn’t any way Obama was going to let Bin Laden live. Now I’m sure that’s fine with a lot of people, but I believe in uncovering as much of the truth as possible. Again, I’d like to see the helmet cam footage. Got any problem with that?

TWENTY-TWO:

Bob,

Um...you forgot the last part of the quote: "but at the end, that's God's fate." There are even Christians in this country who saw the WTC attacks as divine punishment for us having displeased Him.

And, by the way, the WTC was a battlefield. To be sure, what went on in those Towers, in terms of expanding US financial power, can be fairly interpreted as a form of economic warfare against the third world. At least, they saw it that way. So, in conclusion, the WTC was a battlefield. This might not be the kind of answer most Americans would like to hear, but all I can do is honestly answer the questions I’m asked.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“We could use a little more (say, a lot more) honesty in the Oval Office.”

TWENTY-THREE:

Bob,

You asked, "Would those Christians be the Westboro Baptist Church?"

Again, all I can do is honestly answer the questions I'm asked. Here goes: At the time of the attacks, I remember reading about a significant number of US fundamentalists who believed God was displeased with the US and showed His displeasure by allowing the WTC attacks to succeed.

As for your question regarding "Westboro Baptist Church," that group wasn't widely known during 9/11 – possibly not even yet in existence [NOTE: I was wrong on this point]. But there were a lot of other groups who saw US decadent lifestyle (gay marriage, gays in the military, flaunted sexuality, greed, exploitation of third world, pollution) as being reason enough to lose the Almighty’s favor. I don’t agree with their assessment, since there is no Almighty (only the Law of Karma). But I admire their openness to interpreting what happened as at least possibly being Divinely approved.

TWENTY-FOUR:

So Team USA World Police “found” porn on computers in Bin Laden's compound. How convenient. Yahoo posters gleefully making Bin Laden sex jokes are conveniently ignoring the part of the article that says, “... unclear who the material belonged to, and there was no way to know whether bin Laden had viewed it.” But we are never ones to jump to conclusions, are we? I still want to see the video footage on the SEAL team members’ helmet cams. Why isn’t the media saying a single word about this?

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“As your next President, I vow to reduce the influence of lamestream media and ignorant Yahoo posters with too much sex on their minds.”

TWENTY-FIVE:

[Professor Stephen] Hawking speaks of the brain but what of the mind? There is more to our minds than that contained within the box of bone we call our skulls. [Tip of the iceberg, and all that.] But he is right about one thing: There is no God, at least no God-Who-Created-the-Universe. Before he passes, I hope Hawking gets a chance to read the Lotus Sutra. Then he’ll see the importance of becoming a Buddha, which even God (if perchance He does exist) is working to become.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
“Professor Hawking’s biggest drawback isn’t his failing brain, it’s his thriving ego.”

TWENTY-SIX:

SEAL mania has gone too far. They're thinking of bringing back that old TV show "Flipper." I know that was a dolphin, but that's close enough.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012
"Instead of bragging about how our bada$$es are badder than their bada$$es, we should take greater pride in our peacemakers. And, no, a SEAL is not a peacemaker."

TWENTY-SEVEN:

How about seeking the arrest of the persons who ordered (and executed) the air raid on a private residence that killed Gadhaffi’s son? That was an intentional violation of the UN mandate.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

“War Crimes Prosecutors can be notoriously selective in their persecutions…er…I meant to say ‘prosecutions.’”

TWENTY-EIGHT:

“ U.S. special forces set out to kill Osama bin Laden and dump his body in the sea…”

And then the article says if bin Laden would have waved the white flag of surrender, they wouldn’t have killed him. Those are the ROE, you know. Well…I hate to burst anyone’s bubble, but that’s not true. If he would have surrendered, he would still have been shot dead. Those were the orders, straight from Obama’s mouth. Anyone paying attention over the past 8 years has seen how, when convenient, we violate our own most cherished values. “We don’t torture.” Yes we do. “Our citizens have inviolable civil rights granted to them by God.” No they don’t.

The only part anyone got right: “We will spend whatever it takes.” I recall one of Bin Laden’s goals was to get us to spend ourselves into bankruptcy. In that, we have been his greatest ally.

Steven Searle for US President in 2012 “Be careful what you ask for.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Steven Searle for US President in 2012

Founder of The Independent Contractors’ Party

“What strikes me about most internet news I’ve read, and comments posted thereto, is how badly and illogically they’re written. H.L. Mencken must be spinning in his grave.”

Contact me at bpa_cinc@yahoo.com