Retired Generals and admirals supporting Trump

88 retired generals and admirals have endorsed Donald Trump. Their letter of support says, in part,

“Hillary Clinton has made clear she is running as a staunch defender of the status quo when it comes to the issues facing our military, and she has shown through her foreign policy decisions and her mishandling of classified information that she lacks the judgment to do the job,” Lt. Gen. Mike Flynn added in the press release. “Mr.Trump’s deep and growing support in the militrary community and his thoughtful proposals show he’s the right person to lead our men and women in uniform.”

Read more here.

Forcing an anti-religion ideology on the military and law enforcement

Debra Heine writes about this at PJ Media. She links to this post at First Liberty

Master Sergeant (MSgt) Charles “Chuck” Roberson is a USAF veteran who retired on April 3, 2016 at Travis Air Force Base. A month before his retirement, Roberson saw Rodriguez perform the flag-folding speech at a friend’s retirement ceremony. Moved by the speech, Roberson personally asked Rodriguez to give the same speech at his own retirement ceremony. Rodriguez readily agreed. Read a script of the speech.
When Roberson’s unit commander discovered that Rodriguez would be delivering the flag-folding speech, which mentions “God,” during the ceremony, he attempted to prevent Rodriguez from attending. After learning that he lacked authority to prevent Rodriguez from attending, the commander then told Roberson that Rodriguez could not give the speech. Rodriguez asked Roberson what he should do, and Roberson responded that it was his personal desire that Rodriguez give the flag-folding speech as planned. Watch Roberson tell his story.

Roberson and Rodriguez tried to clear the speech through higher authorities at Travis Air Force Base, even offering to place notices on the door informing guests that the word “God” would be mentioned. They never received a response from the authorities. As an Air Force veteran himself, Rodriguez stood firm on his commitment to Roberson.

Heine explains,

The Obama administration has in recent years aggressively forced an anti-religion ideology on the military and law enforcement throughout the United States.

She gives examples here.

America owns the future!

Get to know a conservative today, and have some fun!

Bookworm Room writes today about how progressives stifle humor and free speech with their political correctness obsessions. Read the whole thing here.

"Provide for the common defense"

Jim Talent and Jon Kyl write,

The defense sequester was the worst possible thing to do to the military, at the worst possible time, in the worst possible way. Coming on the heels of the reductions from 2009–2011, it has resulted in large cuts to the Pentagon accounts that support day-to-day readiness. The Navy is routinely cancelling deployments. Earlier this spring, the Air Force grounded one-third of its fighters and bombers. The Army has curtailed training for 80 percent of the force. Our strategic arsenal—the final line of national self-defense—is old, shrinking, and largely untested. All this is happening at a time when the recognized threats to America—from China, Russia, North Korea, Iran, the inaptly named “Arab Spring,” and a resurgent and spreading al-Qaeda—are manifestly rising.

Then in 2011 a President was in power who questioned the efficacy and even legitimacy of American power, and a Congress panicked by the specter of rising deficits came to power. Without a clear understanding of why defense was important, they gave way to the assumption that it was only one in a set of competing priorities. The gradual decline in American power became an unprecedented rush to reduce the defense budget, with little long-term analysis of the impact on military strategy or national security.

“Peace through strength,” the cardinal and bipartisan principle of American politics since World War II has all but collapsed. So has the “Reaganite” corollary, which had remained the nucleus of the larger consensus coalition. For generations, leaders of both parties agreed: American strength was a good thing, and the first purpose of the federal government. If there is any bipartisan agreement now, it is that defense spending can and should be reduced.

The problem is that America’s leaders never explicitly adapted the strategy to the circumstances of the post–Cold War world. Yet mitigation of global risk is even more important today than it was during the Cold War years. The information revolution has knitted the world together both socially and economically in an unprecedented way; what happens in the Middle East, Southern Asia, and even Africa matters directly to America’s security and quality of life. At the same time, asymmetric capabilities, further enhanced by the information revolution, have increased the direct threats to the American homeland. Nuclear weapons are easier to develop, and cyber weapons and bioweapons are available even to nascent radical movements, much less nation-states.

North Korea, an economic basket case, is already a major threat to its neighbors, and will become a direct threat to the American homeland if it continues to improve its missile capabilities. China’s claims to the South China Sea threaten sea lanes through which much of the world’s shipping must travel, and China is already regularly attacking the American economy through cyberspace. If the Pakistani government becomes unstable, or is taken over by Islamists, the danger of war with India will grow, and Pakistan’s substantial nuclear arsenal will be up for grabs. Iran, the world’s chief sponsor of terrorism, is approaching nuclear capability. The fact that Egypt is now in turmoil has further isolated Israel and increased the danger of war in the Middle East. Yemen’s failed government means that the country may become a staging ground for terrorism. Al-Qaeda has not been defeated; it has returned to Iraq, spread to North Africa and Yemen, and is now run by Ayman al-Zawahiri, a medical doctor who was in charge of bioweapons laboratories that were operating in Afghanistan before the American invasion.

The U.S. Navy is the smallest it has been since 1916. The Air Force is smaller than at any time since the inception of the service. Today, the Administration is planning to reduce the number of soldiers and Marines by 100,000, despite the fact that the war in Afghanistan will continue through 2014. The Administration’s missile defense plans are in disarray, as is America’s national nuclear infrastructure.

Believe it or not, my post is a mere excerpt of the paper written by Talent and Kyle. They go on to write about the threats of Islamist movements, China, The Iranian nuclear program, the Arab Spring, and the growing isolation of Israel, increasing competition for resources, and the number of nations that are weak and growing weaker. They end by making suggestions about how to rectify the problems outlined above.

Forgotten Heroes

Guest post
by
Suzann Darnall

My husband and my grandson both have denim vests with a patch on the back honoring our Fallen Heroes. In the center it shows an American eagle head with the emblems for our five military services underneath, all imposed over a portion of the American flag. Above and below are the words. "In memory of our troops . . . Defenders of our freedom". In a circle around that center portion is the phrase, "The nation that forgets its defenders will itself be forgotten." At the center bottom of the patch are the words, "Fallen Heroes".

My husband found those patches and I sewed them onto the vests. I thought about the message with each stitch. I am an Air Force wife AND an Air Force brat, so the words and pictures mean something to me. Something important. It is why wounded warriors, returning veterans, and old soldiers should be thanked for their service. It is why we must keep faith with our military. We must support our troops. We must give them the tools they need and help them care for their families. We have an obligation to them for what they give for us. Their time, their service, their sacrifice, and sometimes their life.

So, as I listened to the State of the Union address and came away with many questions about much of what Obama proposes, there was one thing in particular that jumped out at me: the military once again being given the short end of the stick! Our troops and their families again being treated as second class citizens by a president who espouses equality and fairness with almost every other breath he takes. But, it is once again something he says which is not true. He only extends his version of equality and fairness to those he believes deserves it. While I was not surprised that Obama once again breaks faith with a portion of our population, I was once again dismayed that our defenders will be shortchanged and denied what they have earned.

Oh, Obama gave much lip service to our military. He praised our troops . . . as well he should! But, much of it is just empty rhetoric to make political points. The uniforms in the room at the State of the Union are just window dressing for Obama to try to fool people into thinking he has respect and concern for our troops. When push comes to shove, his actions speak ever so much louder than his words!!!

If you doubt that he really does not care about our military, just consider the following actions he has taken or intends to take. Actions that show his lack of consideration for the military versus the civilian population.

Obama is planning to increase the federal worker minimum wage. One of the reasons he states is "because if you cook our troops' meals or wash their dishes, you shouldn't have to live in poverty". My main question is, "What is he doing to improve economic conditions for our military troops, veterans, and retirees"?

Will those who are serving and have served be given a cost of living increase? Will they again receive their promised benefits? Will base housing availability be increased so servicemen have decent places for their families to live? Will veterans and retirees have adequate access to free healthcare as originally promised? There are many more questions of this type, but I simply cannot list them all.

Obama and the Progressives have, over the past decades, eroded so much of the military "benefit package", as well as denying the military the simplest of pay raises to keep pace with the cost of living and/or inflation rates. I cannot remember how many times I watched Congress deny the military a pay raise or only allow a 3.5% to the troops while giving themselves a 35% pay raise!

While I realize that Obama, his administration, and his Congress are not responsible for all that has been taken from or done to the military, I do take offense at him stressing the need to do more for others while ignoring the deficiencies the military and their families face! He cannot just drag out the occasional wounded warrior as a showpiece or mention the Joint Chiefs of Staff and get a pass for his lack of effort to improve the overall military condition.

One thing that has happened recently is that ObamaCare allows civilian parents to keep their adult children on their medical insurance until the age of 26. However, military parents are denied this option. Military families' adult children are kicked off their sponsors' insurance coverage at age 21, unless they are full-time college students, in which a case they can be covered until age 23. Not only are the ages 3 to 5 years lower than the civilian option, but there is no college requirement for the civilian coverage. Where is the fairness in that? Are our military dependents less deserving of consideration than civilian families?

When my husband was on active duty we knew numerous families who qualified for food stamps, free school lunches, WIC, and the like. Most of the enlisted families lived below the poverty level. And, this situation has not improved in the years since my husband retired.

A lot of the troops Obama "praised" are earning less than the minimum wage he proposes for federal workers. Some active duty military have adult children who are struggling to go to college full-time, work part-time, and cope with health issues while not having the safety net of medical insurance coverage under their parents' policies. This does not seem like it falls in line with Obama's stated support of our troops.

Wounded warriors and veterans are often facing unconscionable delays in getting the medical care and benefits they were promised and deserve. Frequently the widowed spouses and orphans of our fallen warriors have to jump through endless hoops and fill out ridiculous amounts of paperwork to gain the benefits to which they are entitled. Does this seem like Obama is truly honoring our troops and our obligations to them? Despite promises to slash through the backlog, there are actually steps and requirements being implemented into the process that slows it all down even more. Some requirements seemingly geared at denying benefits to those most entitled to be cared for by their government. A government that should be grateful for the service and sacrifice rendered by military members and their families. Sacrifices that all too often include the loss of life, limb, or loved one.

Even retirees are having their benefits cut, through a back room deal done in Congress. Despite the fact that they essentially made a contract with the United States when they swore their oath. If a civilian company tried to do to their employees and retirees what the US government does to their military, veterans, and retirees, it would be unlawful. And, Obama did not take this opportunity to stand with the troops and speak out against the cut. Even more disturbing, while military pensions are being affected by the budget cuts, federal retirees are exempted. But, again, it is apparently okay to screw the troops . . . past, present, and possibly future!

While I agree with Obama praising our military, I want to see him actually live up to his words and the government's promises. I want to see him extend the same economic concern to our military as he wants to extend to federal workers and civilians. I want to see him show the same concern for military families as he does for others. I want him to live up to his fairness and equality policies in regards to the military. And, by military, I mean active duty, veteran, and retired!

Our military literally puts life and limb on the line to protect and defend. Even those who do not go in harm's way pay a price just because of the military way of life and relatively low wages. Our troops pay the true cost of freedom. Does their sacrifice not buy them right to have the promises made to them be honored?

I think so. I only wish Obama and the Progressives did, too!

© Suzann C. Darnall, JANUARY 2014

Will the media attack Bob Gates?

Driving to work the other day I heard an ABC News reporter scolding Bob Gates like a mother would scold her child. I have been worried that the media will come after Gates with a full barrage in attack mode. However, this piece in Politico by a Georgetown Law Professor named Rosa Brooks seems fair:

I served at the Pentagon myself from 2009 to mid-2011, and generally had a similar reaction: Though there were notable exceptions, many of those on President Obama’s national security staff showed little knowledge of how the Pentagon and the military worked, and less interest.

The candle light service at the new age church

Last night after work I went to a candle light Christmas Eve church service at the Mile High church in Lakewood, Colorado. A fellow employee at work invited me. He has been very kind to me. I had recently apologized to him for making fun of his new age beliefs. I prefer Victor Davis Hanson to Deepak Chopra.

He asked me to meet him in the parking lot of a church just west of where I work. He said that church was a "sin and fear" church on the north side of the road. That church was dark, having already had its candlelight service two hours earlier. I parked my car there under a light, and he drove me into Lakewood, which was about an hour away.

The Mile High church tells its audience members that "you are the ones you have been waiting for!" I audibly winced and almost jolted out of my seat when I heard those words come from the pastor's mouth. I thought I was listening to Barack Obama!

Divine? I know that I am one hundred percent human, and zero percent divine. I am real clear about that. If there is any divine in me, it is the Holy Spirit, not me. I want the Holy Spirit to be able to make me a gift of His grace to others, but I know the difference between divine and human.

Peace on Earth? Not as long as there are jihadists killing Christians and preparing nuclear warheads aimed at Israel. Not as long as there are brutal totalitarian regimes building up their militaries while we scale down ours.

The church was packed to its 1100 seat capacity. The music was fabulous. The cellist was superb, as was her fellow acoustic musician who played several guitars. There was also an organist/piano player who was excellent, and a drummer who was outstanding. There was a large exuberant choir and a smaller children's choir. One of the children had the most beautiful, pure soprano voice, and she sang a breathtaking version of O Holy Night. There were several other soloists who were first rate. My favorite was the black man who led us in singing Joy To The World, which was the most rousing rendition I have ever participated in. Throughout the hour and one-half music and dance was interspersed with the new age message from the various pastors.

I was wishing my three children would have been with me. They have been going to a Catholic Church with Colleen in Santa Fe. They hate it. "Boring" is always how they describe the experience. Colleen loves it, though. The priest is an escapee from North Korea, and she admires him greatly. She also like the reverence and discipline of the service. She believes church is a place where you go to worship God, not be entertained. The kids would have enjoyed Mile High church, though.

One God, one truth. Rejoice and be glad!

Who sports "I support our military" on their bumper stickers and shirts?

Guest post by Curt Dale

I am thinking that if every person who sports “I Support our Military” on their bumper stickers, shirts, and caps, were to truly get behind the GIs, we could have an enormous impact. You see, Obama and Chuckie Hagel, his ditzy Sec Def, are laying plans to cut the pay of our military members and to close the Military Commissaries where our military members, the wives and military retirees shop for their groceries.

I saw the announcement of this effort by Obama to further degrade our military and break faith with the military at almost the same time I learned of his scandalous plans to make open end payments, up front, to health insurance companies, betting on the come that the insurance companies will be honest with the government. See, the government doesn't know what it will cost to get private insurance companies to bail out his failed planned for a while. The insurance companies don't know what it'll cost either, so the Government will just estimate it, send Billions of dollars to the insurance companies to cover them, then let the insurance companies figure out what will be fair compensation and send back any excess. Isn't that a laugh? No, I didn't make that up. That is an Obama plan, put out yesterday, to try to keep Obamacare alive on the back of the taxpayers, AND I SHOULD ADD THE U. S. MILITARY. I couldn't not even conjure up such a stupid, devilish concept.

By cutting the pay of the military and closing commissaries, he can get a few more dollars to throw away on Obamacare and play to his Liberal base of non-working, non-contributing voters.

How can Obama conceive such a witless plan when honest, intelligent people cannot? Here's my thought! He is so dishonest, conniving and larcenous that he could care less whether the government gets a square deal from those insurance companies-- just so long as he can salvage or appear to salvage his precious OBAMACARE Legislation, his last gasp for any kind of legacy. Apparently he is the only one who doesn't know that it's already a major disaster from any direction it's evaluated. He will waste more on his Obamacare Rollout Repair and un-Constitutional adjustments that he assures us will make the rollout and Obamacare workable, than will be derived from the military pay cuts and commissary closure. But does he care? Of course not. He is the president who detests the military even more than Bill Clinton, and that's really saying something.

NOW ABOUT THOSE OF US WHO CHAMPION SUPPORTING THE MILITARY! It seems to me that every person who has an "I SUPPORT OUR MILITARY" BUMPERSTICKER on their car, or house or shirt, should be writing their Congressman, Senators, the Pentagon and drowning the White House Switchboard with protests at any pay cuts for the military, retirees and to stop making the military Obama's first target of frontal assault when he wants to appear to be saving money and becoming frugal. I am sick of hearing this empty claim from Obama, Congressmen, Senators and Chuck Hagel of how they support the military. I think I can count on my fingers the members of Congress who REALLY do.

So, this is an Open Letter to my Congressman Cory Gardner, to the Colorado Senators Udall and Bennet. Then I'll start sending it to as many others as possible.

Please join me in lighting a fire on this.

Colonel Curtis D. Dale, PhD, USAF (Ret) ©4 December 2012