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Blog Entry 161 of 208 The Subversive Liberal
"If by a "liberal" they mean someone who looks ahead and not behind, someone who welcomes new ideas without rigid reactions, someone who cares about the welfare of the people — their health, their housing, their schools, their jobs, their civil rights and their civil liberties — someone who believes we can break through the stalemate and suspicions that grip us in our policies abroad, if that is what they mean by a "liberal," then I'm proud to say I'm a "liberal." – President John F. Kennedy...................... Some people find me and that sentiment subversive. I'm here to set the record straight and offer the real typical liberal point of view. Some call it subversive, I call it patriotic.

Blog Url: http://denver.yourhub.com/~BingVanGorden

I want a leader wiling to talk to radicals
Contributed by: Bing Van Gorden   on 4/17/2008

Bush's foreign policy has had a consistent theme. No talkie to people we not likie. Part of the Bush Doctrine has been to not engage in any dialogue, diplomacy or even research into the motives of those who wish to do us harm. These days the simple practice of considering why someone would engage in terrorist activities is akin to coddling them. It is perceived that if you talk to terrorists you must condone their actions or you sympathize with them. Some go as far as to suggest you are giving comfort to our enemies.

The opposite is true. We'd have a much better handle on intelligence in countries like North Korea and Iran if we had engaged them long ago. It's a hell of a lot harder to spy on a country when you cut off diplomatic relations. Chest thumping, obnoxious and indignant fools who think we can solve our problems with military might alone are as deluded as those who believe we can simply kill all the people who hate us. Obviously we can't. We don't have a choice but to engage in dialogue. You keep your friends close and your enemies closer.

Recently the Democrats have been willing to get back to a little diplomacy and of course have been jeered for it. Jimmy Carter talks to Hamas and it's viewed as some kind of treasonous act. As I said before, just because you talk to someone doesn't mean you agree with them. If you want to be sinister about it think of it like this, we can manipulate our enemies easier if we allow them to believe we actually give a rat's arse about them. Eh? You get my drift? All this group think the neo cons glom on to, about how diplomacy's for suckers and we can bomb any one into submission anyway so should just impose our will militarily to solve our our problems has got to go.

I hear criticism of some of Barack Obama's past associates. His former reverend is a black separatist, a racist, anti-semetic. He knows someone from the terrorist group the Weather Underground. There's other third and forth removed conspiracy theories of a Manchurian candidate. Barack Obama has never in his public life, in his speeches or his books has ever implied he agrees with either of these figures. Let's be reasonable. Barack has never made any statements that would lead me to believe he harbors the same beliefs as his acquaintances that so many people find objectionable. To believe he is, and is hiding it from the world is a little crazy. We can go on and on about who met who, and well one knows someone else all day long. So and so knew so and so. His mother's uncle is the great grandson to the 14th cousin of Charles Manson.

Who people know is important. Who people hang out with is important, sure. But at the same time, we can't be afraid to try and understand where someone else is coming from. I like a leader who is not afraid to talk to radicals. Don Rumsfeld met with Saddam Hussein as a dignitary and guest back in the early 80s after all. This philosophy would be considered heresy in the halls of the White House. JFK said that we should never negotiate out of fear, but never fear to negotiate. George Bush and John McCain say do what we want or we will destroy you.


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Submitted By: Michael Rule
posted on 4/20/2008 @ 7:16:49 AM
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His mother's uncle is the great grandson to the 14th cousin of Charles Manson. Really???? Wow. And I heard it first here. LOL Good to have you back, Bing-ster.
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Submitted By: Doug Wray
posted on 4/19/2008 @ 12:24:21 AM
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"... do what we want or we will destroy you..." - they've made that threat clear to the American citizen by outsourcing jobs , endangering our banking system and whipping the lunatic fringe of their party into yipping, snapping and frothing fits.
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CONTRIBUTOR INFORMATION

Bing Van Gorden

Longmont , CO

Bing Van Gorden has posted 208 blog entries and 985 comments since joining on 3/28/2007. Bing Van Gorden 's average blog rating is 3.47.
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