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America isn't America anymore
Wednesday, February 6, 2008 6:54 AM PST
Just imagine what any U.S. Marine who gave his life on Tarawa, Guadalcanal, Saipan or Iwo Jima would say if he could see from the grave what his country is like today:
My great-grandson wants to marry another man? My great-granddaughter is aborting her baby? My God! What happened to the U.S. I fought and died for?
I mean, just look at it. Foreign invaders illegally entering the country and taking over without firing a shot, while average Americans are being foreclosed out of their homes because they aren't rich!
Homeless veterans living in the streets while draft dodgers get elected president and live in the White House!
Politicians more crooked than they've ever been and our military leaders can't even defeat the enemy in small-fry countries like Vietnam and Iraq!
It took the Marines only a matter of days or weeks to secure any of the Pacific islands in World War II, and the Japanese were far superior soldiers than any bunch of slimy terrorists in the Middle East.
When I was in Vietnam, we weren't allowed to kick butt because we had to follow too may rules while the enemy followed only one rule: kill Americans!
I can only imagine what that Marine surmised of it all: "I feel so ashamed of my country! I feel let down!"
The red, white and blue still waves over the land, but the American spirit — its values and morals — are a thing of the past. I just hope and pray we can bring them back.
John Cooper
Stockton
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Brian wrote on Feb 9, 2008 3:21 PM:
Lodian wrote on Feb 9, 2008 1:26 PM:
Lodian wrote on Feb 9, 2008 1:17 PM:
Lodian wrote on Feb 9, 2008 1:17 PM:
danielh wrote on Feb 8, 2008 2:05 PM:
danielh wrote on Feb 8, 2008 2:04 PM:
Today, wars are fought on behalf of the UN, NATO or other regional government. In these wars, either the fighting nations carry the flag of the regional government or they conceal their objective by carrying their own flag.
In these wars, "rules of engagement" are established so that these end in stalemate with the regional government in power.
Troops are told that they are defending their own country, whereas in the 1991Gulf War, VP Quayle informed the grieving mothers that their son died for the UnitedNations. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 7, 2008 7:54 PM:
voter wrote on Feb 7, 2008 6:51 PM:
sam wrote on Feb 7, 2008 9:37 AM:
sam wrote on Feb 7, 2008 9:34 AM:
girard74 wrote on Feb 7, 2008 12:03 AM:
Aside from his inability to control his basest instincts, his dismantling of the military during the time when terrorist attacks were increasing against Americans and American interests around the globe will not be recorded favorably.
As CINC, he failed to adequately respond to virtually every overt threat including the USS Cole, for which there was no response whatsoever.
I am concerned that Hillary Clinton, if elected president, will be equally as impotent. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 11:53 PM:
The fact is, however, fairness aside, it usually falls upon that big desk in the Oval Office - someone has to take the blame even when there is so much to go around and so many on which shoulders it should rest. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 11:50 PM:
Real estate values evened out and then began to drop. Equity evaporated and those sub-prime people couldn't refinance to stop the increases in interest rates. Foreclosures have multiplied exponentually. This sure didn't help an already-fragile economy. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 11:44 PM:
Unpopular as this may sound right now, there is a school of thought that believes that the economy is not as bad as the media would make us believe. Unfortunately, the congress, the president and every candidate running for the White House have also bolstered that idea. At some point it doesn't matter anymore because Wall Street reacts to some pretty unusual events to send the Dow south. The dominoes fall and it's pretty tough to stop them. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 11:39 PM:
As far as Bill Clinton's administration, there is absolute proof that the economy was already heading toward a problem during his last year or so in office. It wasn't identified until after W took office. Economies do not go bad instantaneously, unless something very dramatic occurs.
Enter 9/11. That attack changed our way of life like nothing has in our history. Wars have a way of draining the governmental coffers. Both wars were supported by the majority of both houses. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 11:34 PM:
JFK, Reagan, George H.W. Bush and G.W. Bush all knew that the raising of taxes usually has an adverse affect on governmental income as well as on the economy itself.
There is no doubt that the allowing of runaway spending helped to cause the current economic downturn. Congress has a hand there. "
OTH wrote on Feb 6, 2008 9:28 PM:
OTH wrote on Feb 6, 2008 9:20 PM:
Leonard wrote on Feb 6, 2008 7:06 PM:
Leonard wrote on Feb 6, 2008 7:05 PM:
You can't rewrite history just to make it support your ideology. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 6:10 PM:
sam wrote on Feb 6, 2008 5:29 PM:
sam wrote on Feb 6, 2008 5:28 PM:
"
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 3:50 PM:
However, I do contend that presidents are usually unfairly saddled with the lion's share of blame when an economy slides; unfair as it may be, however, that's simply the way it goes. The ingredients that go into a failing economy are complex, many are difficult or impossible to identify. "
OTH wrote on Feb 6, 2008 3:38 PM:
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 1:07 PM:
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 1:03 PM:
Let's review that a little. Prior to WWII, our nation went through the worst financial disaster in history. Hoover was pilloried for not solving the situation, much in the same way presiding presidents receive blame for difficult economic times.
As for values and morals, prior to the 60s, blacks in the south couldn't eat at restaurants or even drink from the same water fountain as whites.
Yeah, really great back then. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 12:46 PM:
Cooper is badmouthing those in power today, but makes no reference to the references made shortly after Pearl Harbor that it was known by FDR (a Democrat) that the attack was coming. Things haven't changed much over the years.
I appreciate your complimenting my intelligence; I really do wish I could return the compliment. "
Taxpayer & Citizen wrote on Feb 6, 2008 12:02 PM:
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 9:59 AM:
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 8:59 AM:
Here is a clear example of why authors need to proof-read their letters. From what I can tell, Cooper is still alive. The Lodi News-Sentinel should also attempt to identify these types of errors by at least inserting a [sic] here and there when obviously warranted. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 8:53 AM:
If you are referring to the current 'crisis' in home loans. This is mostly as a result of loans that should never have been made. Teaser rates incredibly low that rise dramatically after a relatively short time have found many unable to keep up. Those who had sub-standard credit going into the loan have been unable to improve that credit sufficiently enough to qualify for a better deal when those rates started to rise.
Illegal aliens have nothing to do with this problem. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 8:50 AM:
Cooper, don't be disingenuous. We've never had a 'draft dodger' as president.
It's not easy to determine why certain people who are homeless remain that way. Impirical research reveals that most veterans are out there as a result of drugs or mental illness. Regardless, there are solutions through the VA, but these veterans either need to be found and identified, or they need to come forward on their own. "
girard74 wrote on Feb 6, 2008 8:44 AM:
Guadalcanal, the first major battle of the Pacific in WWII, took six months to complete. Casualties on both sides were incredibly high. 72 million people died as a result of WWII. Glorious? I don't think so.
In WWII, we knew who the enemy was - they wore uniforms. The world 'has' changed. "
danielh wrote on Feb 6, 2008 7:43 AM:
"
Taxpayer & Citizen wrote on Feb 6, 2008 7:39 AM:
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