While watching the State of the Union address Tuesday night, I have come to the conclusion that either President Obama is such an extraordinary visionary, a man before his time who has seen what the world looks like many years into the future and he is morally compelled to lead America through an incredible transformative period.
That he has such a strong belief in his view of what America should be or will be that he is willing to go it alone despite how difficult it may be or how much it is against the will of the American people. In this capacity, it seems as though he is completely at peace with enacting his own personal agenda rather than the needs and wants of the majority of Americans.
The other conclusion is that he just doesn’t know what the devil he is doing or worse, what he has done.
I will give him some kudos though. He does know how to speak in gross generalities, highlight issues and topics that spur people into action and motivate supporters to believe in his Hope and Change mantra. Which, by the way, is very similar to being a community activist or perpetual campaigner and in that sense that is how I felt as I watched the State of the Union speech. I could have sworn it was 2008 all over again or maybe I had been transported back in time to one of his community activist meetings in Chicago.
Either way and to use his common phrase, “let’s be clear,” I am focusing this piece on one item that he addressed Tuesday night – national security. Which, by the way, I think he is dead wrong on his view and policy position.
To the point, one doesn’t have to sit in top-secret briefings or receive CIA intel reports daily to have situational awareness as to what is occurring on a daily basis around the world. We don’t have to look very far to see what is happening. Just take a look at San Bernardino and Philadelphia, for example.
To date, radical Islam and the terror and death it brings has spread to more than 19 countries and has religious fanatics the world over joining the ranks of ISIS/ISIL either directly or indirectly through their pervasive social media recruiting tools. It is threatening countries and people the world over. Places like, well the list is too long for this article, frankly, but to name only a few places where attacks have occurred in the past year– Paris, San Bernardino, Philadelphia, United Kingdom, Nigeria, Russia, the Philippines, Israel, Afghanistan, India and on and on.
As a matter of fact, according to the Global Terrorism Database, in 2014 and 2015, terrorist attacks where more than 100 people were killed increased 500 percent over the period from 1978 to 2013. That’s just the big attacks, not to mention all the rest where less than 100 are routinely killed.
But despite the ever-present evidence, this president downplays this very serious national and global security issue. You might remember when, in 2012, he called ISIL a “JV team.” Well, they aren’t. He said that our military is the most capable in the world and that we could destroy ISIS at any time. Then why hasn’t he done that?
He said Tuesday night that our approach to this issue has not been smart in the past and he is the one who knows the smart way. He claimed Tuesday night that the people most responsible for all this bloodshed and terror are simply “killers and fanatics.”
Well, he got that right. These killers and fanatics will kill anyone not beholding to their perverted version of a religion.
But what he got wrong and what he refuses to acknowledge is that these killers and fanatics are motivated by religion. They are not just some killers or common criminals motivated to carry out their atrocities based upon greed or other criminal motive. They are people who are waging war based upon religion and their specific view of their religion.
American people should know and need to know that the growing and unchallenged radical Islam problem is a threat to everyone despite their political affiliation. And for the so-called leader of all Americans, the president, to continually downplay the significance of the threat is irresponsible.
Furthermore, this conflict is not ending anytime soon. That is what military and intelligence experts are saying about this threat. We are going to be engaged in this clash of cultures for many years to come. That’s just the unfortunate truth and will be the reality if we don’t acknowledge and confront it in the manner necessary to destroy it completely.
Make no mistake that if we don’t change our posture, our attitude and approach toward defeating this growing and extremely violent problem, incidents like those that occurred in Philadelphia and San Bernardino and Chattanooga will be everywhere in the U.S.
Viper One Six – Out.
VIPER ONE SIX |David Shearman 
I cannot wait until he gets out of office!
Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android
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I second that vote, sir! But at the same time I am gravely concerned that Americans have not learned or even more dreadful that socialism has taken root so deeply in this past 7 years that HC or Bernie will get elected. If that is the case, hang it up. 2016 is such a critical year in our country. I just hope the other 319,999,999 other people think so.
Thanks for the comment Big Mike!
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Dave, Thanks for your insights – spot on. To me, the threat of radical Islam is a very dangerous threat and a very unique one for Americans because radical Islam is driven by religious teaching/ideology and for many Americans who have been taught to be “politically correct” religious tolerance they fail (or fear) to ask relevant questions about this religion and the motives/source/history of radical Islam and thus we treat it like a some minor threat; like a bunch of thugs, a gang, or misguided youth. If we look at history; we’ve been at war with radical Islam for centuries. Most Americans are unaware of the fact that over 200 years ago, the United States had declared war on Islam, and Thomas Jefferson led the charge. Radical Islam, claiming the primacy of Sharia law over any other law or government; took US ships, inhumanly killed crews or made slaves of the rest. Any Muslim who seeks to make Sharia Law higher than US laws or the constitution is a threat to what America stands for; religious freedom, individual rights, etc. President Obama does not mention it but this radical Islam IS about the religion of Islam.
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Steve, Thanks for the input and great historical insight on this serious issue. Yes, you are indeed correct on two fronts, first historically: President Jefferson did order the Marines to fight the Muslims of the Barbary Coast who were attacking American ships in the Mediterranean Sea. As you know since your are a retired Master Gunnery Sergeant USMC, one of the famous leaders for Marines was Lieutenant Presley O’ Bannon who commanded the Marines in the Derna campaign against the Barbary Muslim pirates from Tripoli who were capturing US naval vessel and sailors in 1805. In fact, the ruler of Tripoli was Yusuf Karamanli and his brother, Hamet Karamanli, was an America supporter/sympathizer. After the battle where the Marines kicked some proverbial ass he presented O’ Bannon with the elaborately designed sword that now serves as the pattern for the swords carried by Marine officers. The phrase “to the shores of Tripoli,” was derived from this battle and is in the official song of the U.S. Marine Corps.
Secondly, unfortunately most Americans are more concerned with pop stars and the latest gadget to even remember last week so they don’t know or even care the historical significance of this issue and more importantly that this extremely serious threat is the reality to day and will become a very intimate reality for America as a whole if we don’t take committed action against it. This is a clash of cultures and societies. It has in the past and it is now today. Interesting note – Prince Charles from Britain shocked the world the other day when he gave a speech of declarative posture where is said that if people thought they were going to come to England anymore and attempt to change their values and traditions they are dead wrong. Moreover, in remarking about Christianity and the extermination of Christians in the Middle East (ISIS territory specifically) he said “Christains were in that land many hundreds of years before Muslims. Extraordinary statement by the Prince – but much needed and indicative of the honest feelings and opinions of even the royal family.
Semper Fi and God Bless the United States Marine Corps!
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Dave, nice commentary and I think you are right on the mark with regard to Obama and how he sees the world and how he has attempted to “transform” the America with his vision during his presidency. It reminds me of Neville Chamberlin of Great Britain prior to WII and how he tried to appease Nazi Germany with his vision and we saw what that got us. Lets hope the next president has the experience and strength with a vision based in reality to lead the effort that will be needed get America back on track and lead the world against these radicals who threaten our way of life as well as many other freedom loving countries of the world.
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