Commentary – After Boston . . . . where are we??

 

. . . . . we’re in trouble . . . .

I suspect this post could well turn into a rant. I’ll just have to see the final result once my fingers have stopped moving and my thoughts have stopped flowing.

I think the “tea has finally cooled in my saucer” from last week’s violence. My emotions and thoughts have quieted a bit so I believe I’m ready to take a bit more clearheaded look at the events of last week.

So, what came from last week . . . .?

Nothing good came of it . . . . nothing. I’ve read bloggers and friends that have tried to find the silver lining . . . . there isn’t one. Let me attempt to put form and structure to my thoughts. I want to break things up into different areas of concern and what information “Boston” adds to the mix.

The Global War on Terror

First, I wish we’d get rid of the whole GWOT thing. It is NOT a war on terror – it is a war between a murderous Islamic ideology that is intent on dominating the world . . . . and everyone else. It is, IMNSHO, WWIII - simple as that.

The “homeland” for the Islamists extends in a band from western Africa to the Philippines. There are territories that are omitted but it is, by in large, an intact Islamist stronghold. The “capital” is Mecca that resides in a strictly Wahhabist country with strict adherence to Sharia Law. This country is also the financial center of the Islamist expansion throughout the world.

The spread of the Islamist culture has accelerated throughout the “west”. While words of tolerance are spoken in the halls of power – words of power, domination and conquest are preached at Friday prayers. Recent attacks on US diplomats in Benghazi and Afghanistan simply emphasizes the continued distain Islamists have for the US and its “power”.

Over and over I hear the argument that you can’t hold all Muslims accountable for the actions of “a few”. Yet these “moderate Muslims” remain quiet, still, silent – while their brethren slaughter freely worldwide. I have tried to convince myself that their silence is out of fear. I have come to believe that it is because the actions of “the few” are condoned by the vast majority of those following Islam – and its quest for world domination.

We are at war . . . . and yet, after Munich, the Achille Lauro, the Marine barracks, TWA 809, the Cole, Kenya, WTT ’93, 9/11, Benghazi, the fall of Libya, Egypt, Gaza and Lebanon into the hands of the Islamists . . . . to name just a few Islamist attacks that rolled out of my fingers . . . . we still do not understand the battle, the battle field or the combatants. We will continue to pay a high price for our willing blindness . . . .

National Defense

In the words of UBL: “They are the weak horse!” And, we are. Driven by a Democrat party intent of our unilateral disarmament, the majority of or aircraft carriers lay dockside, whole air wings are being grounded, the ranks of all branches are being drastically reduced, training is being curtailed, missile defense systems sidelined, next generation aircraft development underfunded (or misguided), soldiers in the field being stretched to the absolute limit . . . . all the while trying to convince ourselves that the Islamist threat has diminished and continues to weaken. The state of our national defense is pathetic driven by a willfully ignorant ruling class. We will pay a terrible price for our negligence.

Border Security

“Please . . . . come kill us!!” That is the cry sent around the world when I look at our “border” security. And I mean so much more than the US/Mexico border. I include the vast Canadian border, our port system and our immigration system as well. The Boston bombers were known to immigration officials, were known by the FBI, were flagged by the Russians as people we should watch . . . . And yet, out of an abundance of cultural tolerance, excuses were made, investigations dropped, eyes turned away . . . . and people were killed and maimed by the scores. We are vulnerable. We are at great risk. We are weak. Again, this weakness will come at a great price to us all.

Civil Rights

I watched the police take on these guys – and kill and capture them. They lost one of their own. I am sick in my heart that the new networks are filled with stories of these Islamist Terrorists – yet there are only a few passing stories of the scores injured, the three killed and the MIT cop who gave his final measure to his community. My soul hurts.

That said – I can’t remain silent of my fears of the process . . . . the manhunt . . . . the lockdown . . . . and how much damage I believe it did to our civil rights as a nation.

Laws are put in place to provide firm boundaries to our behavior . . . . all of our behavior . . . . civilian, cop, government and military. The cornerstone of our rights as citizens of our nation, the foundation, the core – is the US Constitution. If a citizen breaks a law – they pay a price. If the government breaks the law – should not some price be paid as well??

Where I am going with this is the columns of armored vehicles and armored and well-armed police doing house-to-house searches without the benefit of a search warrant. Enough video and photographic evidence has surfaced to make it clear that our government and the law enforcement officers under their orders willingly violated the 4^th Amendment rights of an enormous number of Boston area residents. The obvious argument to this approach is” “Well, it saved lives, didn’t it??” That’s not the purpose of the Constitution. Its purpose is to preserve our rights and liberties as citizens. Not to guarantee our safety. Our rights took a massive hit during that day and a half in Boston. The Boston PD’s actions were defended, applauded, embraced by the media and the country as a whole (I think, time will tell). It established a “new norm” that can easily be referred to the next time a mortal threat is seen in a community. For example: what if Diane Feinstein’s dream comes true and “military style weapons” are banned, registered and confiscated? Yes, yes – I know – we “won that fight”. It’ll be back – over, and over, and over . . . As a nation, we are probably less than 5-30 votes away from this reality on any given day. An attempt will be made once again after the next Columbine or Aurora or Sandyhook or Boston. There will be more of them . . . evil doesn’t rest . . . . the Islamists are clear on their ultimate goal . . . . Then what? When a Governor, or a President or a watch commander gives the command to go door-to-door and “get the guns” . . . . will the cops stand down? Or will that be our Lexington?

I did a post awhile back on decisions made “in the heat of the moment”. The lockdown was one such decision. “Something had to be done.” And shredding the 4^th Amendment was stunningly easy. You might want to chew on that a bit.

There has been much talk about the surviving bomber’s (and NO, I WILL NOT USE HIS NAME), Miranda Rights. They were not read and the argument is that he is an “enemy combatant”. That may well be true. He may well have been trained and sent by some Islamist group in Chechnya. And yet . . . . and yet . . . . he IS and American Citizen. Does this now mean that the government can simply point a finger and declare that an individual is an enemy combatant without due process? Let’s reference my above scenario and all “military style rifles” are to be confiscated. If I refuse – could I be declared an enemy of the state? An enemy combatant? Without due process?

It appears that the US government knew much more about these two brothers than we were first told. They had been flagged, warned about, investigated . . . . and they were still granted citizenship. I do not believe it should be so ease to ignore their citizenship just because it’s convenient. I can’t ignore laws that are inconvenient to me – why should the government be able to do so? Why should the Boston PD be able to?

So where are we?

We’re wounded. In our heart, in our soul, in our spirit. We are drifting away from our God given rights, affirmed in our Constitution towards an easy tyranny that ebbs and flows with the happenings of the day.

This is dangerous ground . . . .