MONDAY, MARCH 7, 2011
Dear Mr. President....
Dear Mr. President,
Many people are blaming you for the fire sweeping the arab world, and for the position the US finds itself today, both economically and politically. To be honest, you inherited a difficult situation. And to be brutally honest, you have mismanaged nearly everything on your plate. If any of this is incorrect, please accept my apologies.
At the beginning of your presidency you travelled to Egypt, embraced your long term ally, Hosni Mubarak and spoke with sincerity to the muslim world. I watched the speech. You then looked him in the eye and gave Mubarak a warm handshake. What followed is history. In the blink of an eye, Mubarak was thrown under a bus, insulted and humiliated by your excellency on national TV. This was preceded by the now infamous trip to Saudi Arabia. Imagine that, Mr. Obama, bowing to King Abdullah. The same king, who recently watched your (in his eyes) betrayal of his fellow dictator, Mubarak. I wonder what he must be thinking today? In fact, what are all US allies thinking today?
So why did Mubarak refuse to take calls from the White House? Unimportant you say. Not to US allies, its not. Maybe we are looking at the situation through CNN eyes. Could it be possible that Mubarak and the rest of the dictators have a pretty good idea of what is out there. For example, Sheik Yusf Quaradawi, the most important cleric in Islam banned for decades by Egypt returned to adoring crowds in Tahrir square. His most famous quote "Hitler put them in their place". (Please read further Dr.Harold Brackman's report for The Simon Wiesenthal Centre on The Brotherhood - outstanding).
Maybe, just maybe, Mubarak was well aware of some of the animals in his country who cheered his downfall by sexually assaulting Lora Logan during their celebration, screaming Jew, Jew, Jew! What you definitely do know, Mr. President, is that black peoples of all races are regarded as inferior class humans under Islam, in keeping with Adolf Hitlers Mein Kampf. You also know how many American lives have been saved by Mubarak's intelligence services in the war against terror. Your CIA would also have informed you that Mubarak was dying of a terminal disease.
So in case his excellency doesn't get it yet, lets try it from a westerners point of view. Democracy believes in two things. Peace and freedom. Democratic transitions tend to be the work of generations. …. Mubarak was an authoritarian leader, but he was prudent enough to understand his people's interest in peace (and his own interest as well). In fact, Mubarak was slowly building a middle class. Note all the doctors, lawyers and accountants at the demonstrations. His son, Gamal, was NOT a member of the military, and in his own corrupt way intended to continue the slow march to democracy. The Egyptian economy has been growing by 6-7% p.a. over the last years.
What should you have done Mr. President? ( a popular question often posed by many.) The answer is easy. You should have supported a transition to democracy led by your ally Mubarak. This could have been easily accomplished considering the man is ailing, had already announced his intention not to stand, and together with US aid as leverage.....Well, all it takes is leadership.... Worst case, Mubarak would have fallen, leaving the army in control. Todays situation. The difference being, sir, is that you would not look like a back stabbing, self serving politician being led by the nose by CNN and other "experts" in the media.
Lets jump to other decisions. The decision to press Israel to freeze settlements for ten months, using the old story used by your ex-allies in The Middle East, and by Tom Friedman of the NYT.. "The settlements are the key to the problem. Remove them and you will have peace", looks more ridiculous by the moment. Sane people mentioned that Israel had removed the settlements in Gaza and was rewarded when thousands of missiles were fired into the south of Israel. Bottom line, The Palestinian Arabs declared a "Day of Rage" against the US, last week, calling you "The black hands in Washington".The settlement freeze only made things worse, giving birth to further arab demands.Another success.
Economically, the decision to focus on your health plan and not on jobs and small business, led to a crash at the polls. Then along comes the new budget plan, and guess what? The plan is once again geared to spending and the next election. When will it become clear to his excellency that the vast majority of Americans are fearfull of a future for their children repaying this enormous debt, and prefer to take the pain now. Astounding that most of the planet have realised this. The "Nation of Islam" have realised this and see it as the right time to strike. The Chinese and Indians are watching in awe as US foreign policy crumbles. Yet you continue to zig zag all over the map trying to get reelected. You sir, are no Bill Clinton or Ronald Reagan.
Some free advice, for what its worth, Mr. Obama. Try to clear the air on what you really think. How about statements to the world press that read something like this:
1. I, the president of The United States will do what is necessary to ensure the future of our children, even if it means that I am only a one term president.
2.The United States will not tolerate the rise of extreme radical islamic regimes under the guise of democracy, and will prevent this, using force if necessary.
3.Israel is not an Apartheid State and anybody who thinks so, is delusional.
4.The settlements in Judea and Samaria, as much as I oppose them, are not the reason that peace talks in that area have broken down. Rather, it is the Palestinian refusal to come to the table, that is the core of the problem.
5.The United States will oppose any regime in the Middle East that uses arms and terror to subdue their own populations, for example Libya, Hamas, Hizbullah, Syria and Iran. The leaders of these regimes should leave office right now!
6.The Israel - Palestinian "problem" was created by the dictators and tyrants as a tool to divert the attention of their oppressed populations from the real problem. Today we are witnessing the results.
And the kicker, Mr. Obama
7.The way forward economically, Is for Arab leaders to sign and enforce peace agreements with the only true democracy in the region, Israel. Imagine if all that money spent on weaponry was used for the good of the people.
Keep it simple and stick to the truth. Otherwise the most popular slogan in the next election will be "President Obama, you should leave...right now!"
The first rule of holes: when you're in one, stop digging - Molly Ivins
Many people are blaming you for the fire sweeping the arab world, and for the position the US finds itself today, both economically and politically. To be honest, you inherited a difficult situation. And to be brutally honest, you have mismanaged nearly everything on your plate. If any of this is incorrect, please accept my apologies.
At the beginning of your presidency you travelled to Egypt, embraced your long term ally, Hosni Mubarak and spoke with sincerity to the muslim world. I watched the speech. You then looked him in the eye and gave Mubarak a warm handshake. What followed is history. In the blink of an eye, Mubarak was thrown under a bus, insulted and humiliated by your excellency on national TV. This was preceded by the now infamous trip to Saudi Arabia. Imagine that, Mr. Obama, bowing to King Abdullah. The same king, who recently watched your (in his eyes) betrayal of his fellow dictator, Mubarak. I wonder what he must be thinking today? In fact, what are all US allies thinking today?
So why did Mubarak refuse to take calls from the White House? Unimportant you say. Not to US allies, its not. Maybe we are looking at the situation through CNN eyes. Could it be possible that Mubarak and the rest of the dictators have a pretty good idea of what is out there. For example, Sheik Yusf Quaradawi, the most important cleric in Islam banned for decades by Egypt returned to adoring crowds in Tahrir square. His most famous quote "Hitler put them in their place". (Please read further Dr.Harold Brackman's report for The Simon Wiesenthal Centre on The Brotherhood - outstanding).
Maybe, just maybe, Mubarak was well aware of some of the animals in his country who cheered his downfall by sexually assaulting Lora Logan during their celebration, screaming Jew, Jew, Jew! What you definitely do know, Mr. President, is that black peoples of all races are regarded as inferior class humans under Islam, in keeping with Adolf Hitlers Mein Kampf. You also know how many American lives have been saved by Mubarak's intelligence services in the war against terror. Your CIA would also have informed you that Mubarak was dying of a terminal disease.
So in case his excellency doesn't get it yet, lets try it from a westerners point of view. Democracy believes in two things. Peace and freedom. Democratic transitions tend to be the work of generations. …. Mubarak was an authoritarian leader, but he was prudent enough to understand his people's interest in peace (and his own interest as well). In fact, Mubarak was slowly building a middle class. Note all the doctors, lawyers and accountants at the demonstrations. His son, Gamal, was NOT a member of the military, and in his own corrupt way intended to continue the slow march to democracy. The Egyptian economy has been growing by 6-7% p.a. over the last years.
What should you have done Mr. President? ( a popular question often posed by many.) The answer is easy. You should have supported a transition to democracy led by your ally Mubarak. This could have been easily accomplished considering the man is ailing, had already announced his intention not to stand, and together with US aid as leverage.....Well, all it takes is leadership.... Worst case, Mubarak would have fallen, leaving the army in control. Todays situation. The difference being, sir, is that you would not look like a back stabbing, self serving politician being led by the nose by CNN and other "experts" in the media.
Lets jump to other decisions. The decision to press Israel to freeze settlements for ten months, using the old story used by your ex-allies in The Middle East, and by Tom Friedman of the NYT.. "The settlements are the key to the problem. Remove them and you will have peace", looks more ridiculous by the moment. Sane people mentioned that Israel had removed the settlements in Gaza and was rewarded when thousands of missiles were fired into the south of Israel. Bottom line, The Palestinian Arabs declared a "Day of Rage" against the US, last week, calling you "The black hands in Washington".The settlement freeze only made things worse, giving birth to further arab demands.Another success.
Economically, the decision to focus on your health plan and not on jobs and small business, led to a crash at the polls. Then along comes the new budget plan, and guess what? The plan is once again geared to spending and the next election. When will it become clear to his excellency that the vast majority of Americans are fearfull of a future for their children repaying this enormous debt, and prefer to take the pain now. Astounding that most of the planet have realised this. The "Nation of Islam" have realised this and see it as the right time to strike. The Chinese and Indians are watching in awe as US foreign policy crumbles. Yet you continue to zig zag all over the map trying to get reelected. You sir, are no Bill Clinton or Ronald Reagan.
Some free advice, for what its worth, Mr. Obama. Try to clear the air on what you really think. How about statements to the world press that read something like this:
1. I, the president of The United States will do what is necessary to ensure the future of our children, even if it means that I am only a one term president.
2.The United States will not tolerate the rise of extreme radical islamic regimes under the guise of democracy, and will prevent this, using force if necessary.
3.Israel is not an Apartheid State and anybody who thinks so, is delusional.
4.The settlements in Judea and Samaria, as much as I oppose them, are not the reason that peace talks in that area have broken down. Rather, it is the Palestinian refusal to come to the table, that is the core of the problem.
5.The United States will oppose any regime in the Middle East that uses arms and terror to subdue their own populations, for example Libya, Hamas, Hizbullah, Syria and Iran. The leaders of these regimes should leave office right now!
6.The Israel - Palestinian "problem" was created by the dictators and tyrants as a tool to divert the attention of their oppressed populations from the real problem. Today we are witnessing the results.
And the kicker, Mr. Obama
7.The way forward economically, Is for Arab leaders to sign and enforce peace agreements with the only true democracy in the region, Israel. Imagine if all that money spent on weaponry was used for the good of the people.
Keep it simple and stick to the truth. Otherwise the most popular slogan in the next election will be "President Obama, you should leave...right now!"
The first rule of holes: when you're in one, stop digging - Molly Ivins
