The Next Baltimore

No one can predict when another city or town will erupt. Ferguson, Missouri exploded based on the "hands up" lie. We do not know at this point whether the Baltimore police caused or are culpable in the death of Freddie Gray. We do know Barack Obama has not bridged the racial divide in America. If anything, race relations have worsened under Obama. Are riots going to ensue every time a black dies in a police incident? Obama pledged as a candidate that he would be a "post-racial" President. In the event of governing for more than six years, Obama has been the most race-conscious and anti-police President America has ever had.

Calming Down Baltimore

Baltimore sustained rioting on a scale that is thankfully rare in the United States. For some reason, the mayor did not impose a curfew on the first night of looting and burning. The mayor came to her senses and has now put a curfew in place. Baltimore has now deployed not only local but state police, and law enforcement brought in on mutual assistance agreements from other cities. The National Guard has been called up as well to help restore calm. The city is not out of the woods yet, with agitation for violence continuing from some quarters. The massive police presence and the deployment of the Guard make continuing street violence less likely, but these are short-term measures. Broader fixes will have to be implemented to insure no repeat of the senseless destruction recurs when the reinforcements leave.

Hiding from Press

Hillary Clinton is not forthcoming with the media. Every reporter would consider a Hillary interview a "get". Hillary is not taking advantage of her opportunities for free exposure. The only plausible reason for this is that she can not or will not answer questions. Hillary fears having to answer for Benghazi. She does not want to talk about not using State Department email when she was Secretary of State. She does not want to answer questions about directing her emails through her own server that she has now evidently erased. Hillary is reluctant to make herself available because she has plenty to hide.

Baltimore Breaks Down

A black man named Freddie Gray died after an encounter with Baltimore police. What exactly happened to Gray is in dispute. What is not in dispute is that Gray is dead. If Baltimore police used excessive force or violated Gray's civil rights, with a black mayor, a black attorney general of the United States, and the first black US President, do you not think the death of Gray will be thoroughly investigated? The mayor of Baltimore abdicated her duty by giving those rioting over Gray's death "space to destroy". If you want society to disintegrate in a hurry, have a few more political leaders allow protesters to run riot. When the honest citizen sees lawful authority will no longer protect him and his property, he must protect himself. Law is then replaced with vigilantism.

Our Militarized Police

The local Louisville FOX-affiliate aired a report boosting police snipers. The story talked up local SWAT teams and compared their training and actions to the movie "American Sniper". I am skeptical about the militarization of local police. The people in hometown USA are not suicide bombers in Iraq. Years ago, when I was living in Nashville, I watched the TV coverage of a local policeman who was vying for the affections of a female officer and had a fight with another male officer who was his romantic rival,firing random shots in a neighborhood near homes, a church, a school, and a daycare. In spite of the fact that the cop was endangering hundreds of lives, his colleagues who were surrounding him never fired but talked him down until he dropped his weapon. I have also watched reports of Nashville Metro police killing suspects without hesitation who were not armed with anything but the vehicle they were driving. I am deeply troubled by hyper-aggressive policing that treats the public as the enemy of police.

Help Nepal Now

Even in the best of circumstances, parts of Nepal are difficult to traverse. Now, Nepal has been hit with an especially devastating earthquake. Certainly, hundreds are dead, but because of communication disruption, the death toll may be much higher. Nepal needs our prayers. Nepal needs relief funnelled through legitimate aid organizations. The world must rally for stricken Nepal.

Time Not Money

Has a person that paid a fortune to be preserved by cryogenics ever been brought back to life? Some people could only afford to have their heads frozen. If science ever advances enough to reanimate those who have opted for cryogenic preservation, what will become of those who only preserved their heads? I do not imagine many people walking around a couple of centuries from now will offer their bodies to bring back their eighth generation grandpa. How about those millionaires who had just enough wealth to freeze themselves but not enough to freeze their spouse? When I go, I guess the worms will have a feast. I am perfectly OK with that.

Just as Dead

Al-Qaeda captured a pair of Westerners. They were taken hostage but unlike so many other innocents caught by Wahhabi terrorists, they were not paraded to an execution ground. They were not summarily beheaded. They were not brutally tortured in public for the amusement of Sunni fanatics. They were not dowsed with gasoline and burned alive in cages. They were not released by the captors. They were not rescued. American and Western intelligence was so bad that US forces were not aware the hapless American and luckless Italian were even being held at a terror camp America was determined to attack. The US launched a strike that tragically left two innocent "infidels" dead. In the fog of war, some mistakes are inevitable, but that in no way mitigates the pain of families whose loved ones died not at the hands of mad jihadists, but due to friendly fire.

Climate Change Church

There are some folks who believe the human species is causing the earth to warm. They are as firmly convicted in their belief that man has climate crushing powers as worshippers are in any church. What they actually are is sadly deluded. They have such hubris as to think that if they only drive an electric car or ride the city bus, they will have taken a large step in saving the earth. Climate is changing. It has changed constantly through time. The earth has changed from the Ice Age to the Little Ice Age, and no one was driving an SUV back then to cause the changes. I only wish we were powerful enough to tailor the climate but that is well above the pay grade of collective humanity.

Another Dying Institution

Sears was one of America's and the world's great retailers. Now, Sears idea of customer service is to transfer customer calls abroad to representatives that are not conversant in English. Even if they were fluent in our language, they are not empowered to actually assist the customer. It is beyond frustrating to call Sears headquarters in Illinois and have the call immediately transferred to Manila. Email is also foreclosed because Sears does not make email addresses of their executives readily available. Sears is unreliable. I can no longer shop with Sears.

The Day's Snooze

Would it not be wonderful to watch a news telecast and find no cataclysm had befallen anyone? Would it not be lovely to hear that no one had been slaughtered for practicing the faith their conscience dictated? Would it not be great not to hear reports that driving my car or firing up the backyard grill was not changing the climate to the detriment of all humanity? Would it not be a joy to hear the US government had no debt and was not constantly running up a larger deficit? Would it not be a blessing to hear that Greece was financially strong at that austerity measures were not going to be imposed on anyone? Would it not be spectacular if the only news was good news for once?

Lest We Remember

We are fed a steady diet of bread and circus by the mainstream media, not to inform us of what is important but to distract us from it. Many Americans are over-prescribed psychoactive drugs so that they can escape or avoid reality. America's children are labeled as hyperactive and given drugs for a condition that used to be merely thought of as "childhood". Instead of going outside to learn about and explore the world, our children find themselves seated in front of video terminals, playing games that often desensitize them to violence. There are real concerns that are ignored while America focuses on celebrity worship. The media masters not only shield us from the horrors of the world that we should be preparing to face, but from the beauty of creation that we may appreciate by simply going outside, away from the slickly produced profit machine that is poisoning our minds and killing our spirits.

What Is Home?

Is home where the hearth is?// Is home where the heart is?// Is home where you are?// Is home where you yearn to be?// Is a house a home?// Or are restless hearts always bound to roam?

A Cheap Stunt

Can you believe it? Hillary Clinton flew coach and carried her own bags through an airport. Why she is just as regular as one of us. Hillary is not the type of person not to tip at Chipotle, except that she did not tip at Chipotle. Hillary would never orchestrate appearances where almost the entire shipped-in crowd is stacked with her supporters, except the Iowa tour to meet the people, which is pretentious in itself, is a carefully produced "reality show" being conducted exactly in that "managed" way. Hillary does not relate to work-a-day Americans. Hillary and truth seldom meet.

An Elusive Candidate

Do you know when Hillary Clinton will interact with Americans who are not already her partisans? When will Clinton answer questions from voters or even Republican US Representatives and Senators about Benghazi or vanished emails? When will Clinton be asked about why she coordinated the cover-up of her husband's serial philandering and sexual harassment? When will Hillary be called to account for the re-emergence of Russia as an enemy and threat after she could not even figure out how to say "reset" correctly in Russian? Will Clinton be queried about how the Arab Spring she fostered and encouraged has become a bloodbath? Will anyone try to ascertain why Clinton did not back the revolution that would have mattered most in a Muslim country with Iran's Green Movement that could have freed Iran from the mad mullahs being left to swing in the wind without substantive US backing when Clinton was Secretary of State? Will anyone ask Hillary why she is hardly ever genuine about anything?

The Hillary Bandwagon

I can not imagine that a stale candidate with stale ideas will appeal to many people. If Hillary had a stellar record of achievement, she might have greater appeal. Hillary has accomplished very little, either as Senator or Secretary of State. Her failure in Benghazi is most noteworthy as Secretary of State. Hillary was tasked with organizing a national health care program as First Lady. Hillary failed at that too. Gentle reader, if you are able to list the great things Hillary has done, please list them in the comment section.

The Rubio Bust

If Ted Cruz had no conservative principles, he would be very much like Marco Rubio. The Florida Republican Senator is one of that party's great moderates. Rubio is not a hawk on immigration like Ted Cruz. Rubio is not determined to reform our system of taxation by eliminating the Internal Revenue Service like Ted Cruz is. Rubio is not determined to reassert our fading Fourth Amendment rights like Ted Cruz and Rand Paul both are. The only two positives I see in Marco Rubio is that he is slightly to the right of progressive fellow Floridian GOP aspirant Jeb Bush and he is not Hillary Clinton.

Not a "Shootout"

The main stream media has in certain instances taken to calling police shooting down unarmed civilians "shootouts". For purposes of clarification, a "shootout" involves two armed sides firing weapons at each other. When an African-American woman with a baby in her car is gunned down by trigger-happy police in Washington, D.C., no "shootout" has occurred, no matter what reporters say. If the woman had a gun and fired it before police shot back, that would be a shootout. When a terrified and confused woman, has her foot slip off her brake and her car inches forward and then several officers fire numerous rounds at her, that is not a "shootout". Police have recently killed several other unarmed people with so-called journalists saying "shootouts" have occurred. When the police are the only ones doing the shooting, it may or may not be justified, but it is definitely not a "shootout".

The Smear Machine

One tool Hillary has in her pocket is a smear machine the likes of which has rarely been seen in American politics. Hillary will employ paid liars and dumber ones who merely volunteer to lie on her behalf. They will mercilessly attack anyone who dares criticize their repugnant candidate. Remember how Ken Starr was besmirched as a "sex pervert" when he was tasked with investigating Hillary's lothario husband. Recall Hillary's persecution fantasy about a "vast right-wing conspiracy" out to get the Clintons. Hillary and/or her surrogates will lambaste anyone who tells the truth about Hillary's horrible performance as US Secretary of State. Hillary Clinton failed in Benghazi. Hillary deliberately obscured her correspondence from oversight and then destroyed the emails that mattered to make sure there was no evidence trail. Clinton was so ineffective as Secretary of State the she did not prevent Russia from transforming back into an enemy. Since Clinton has no laurels to rest her campaign on, she will do what her nature compels her to do. She will smear and lie about her critics and her political rivals.

Hillary as Goliath

Hillary Clinton will have money, labor unions, and the massive campaign apparatus of the Democrat Party behind her as she announces her candidacy for the Presidency of the United States. What she will lack is honesty. What she does not have is charisma. What no spinner will be able to imbue upon her is personality. What Hillary has lost is the vigor of youth. What Hillary has gained is not the wisdom of age, but perfection at deceit. I do not want a decrepit, vicious liar to be President of my country.

The Alarmed Clock

What do you do when your baby will not sleep? What do you do when an infant starts crying the moment Momma puts him down? What do you do when a baby wants to nurse an hour straight? When a baby is clean, well, and fed, why is she inconsolable? `How long does it take for a baby to learn to sleep at night and in the wee hours of the morning? Will this stop when she is six months old? Will he still be up all night when he is one?

Ron Paul Juggernaut

Ron Paul announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for the Presidency of the United States. Paul immediately surged ahead of Democrat aspirant Hilary Clinton in several battleground states. The Kentucky Republican Senator is an authentic conservative but a libertarian-leaning one. Paul would make an excellent President. This is not to say that Ted Cruz, Rick Santorum, and Scott Walker are not equally qualified. Any of these gentlemen would be far superior to Hillary Clinton in our nation's highest office.

Another Insider Attack

Yet another American has been murdered in Afghanistan by someone in the uniform of our so-called "ally". These insidious ambushes by Afghans we liberated have claimed hundreds of US lives. My advice to those deployed in Afghanistan is never be without a loaded firearm. Never turn your back on an Afghan who is or may be armed. If you suspect an Afghan in the garb of a friend has ill-intentions, go with that gut-feeling and watch him like a hawk. If he makes a sudden hostile move, kill him. I would much rather live to face court-martial than hesitate and end up dead.

The Shock Market

Whenever American stocks inevitably start to correct to reflect what they are truly worth, many investors will be in for a bloodbath. With so many people seeking something that would yield when safer vehicles like savings accounts were yielding nothing, many bought shares. Some of them have never seen (been invested) through a crash. When the coming correction erupts, these novice investors will panic and sell, when they should be bargain hunting and buying. They will act hastily and sell, trying to preserve as much as they are able, but perversely will drive markets down that much more because they panic. Stalwart investors steady themselves through the rough times, but they will be a pronounced minority when the correction happens.

Slaughtering the Innocent

Christians are certainly not the only targets of jihadi maniacs. Today, those who butcher in the name of Islam abducted three hundred Kurds. These Kurds were not fighters, but they will likely suffer the same fate as if they were. It is long past time that those who oppose the nihilism that is aggressive Wahhabism band together to defeat it. If the majority of Muslims, both Sunni and Shia, who would never shed the blood of peaceful people of any faith would oppose, condemn, and fight the fanatics, the fanatics could not win. If the Christians and Jews under threat from the fanatics would join with the vast majority of Muslims who respect innocent life, the Islamic State, Boko Haram, al-Qaeda, and al-Shabab would not stand a chance. The problem is though that until those who respect innocent life stand up en-masse, there will always be fanatics around to murder the few who dare to oppose them.

Drenched in Blood

Easter, a time that should be marked by peace, is soaked in the blood of believers from Syria to Kenya. Christians have been victimized, persecuted, and murdered by Muslims across Africa and the Middle East. The ancient Christian community of Iraq has almost been obliterated. America has done little to protect besieged Christians. Europe has done even less. Few voices are even raised in support of beleaguered Christians. Why is the world mostly silent about the slaughter of Christians that is now approaching a holocaust?

Flood and Fire

I am in Louisville now. This marvelous city has just been struck by massive flooding. A huge plant of one of the world's largest companies, GE has just had a massive fire. What has visited Louisville almost sounds biblical. I wonder which pestilence will follow next. I do not want to see famine hit the city in which my baby was so recently born. Maybe someone should start selling "plague insurance".

Obama's Chamberlain Moment

Barack Hussein Obama and his hapless Secretary of State John Kerry have accepted the preliminary framework for an agreement on the Islamic Republic of Iran's nuclear program. The deal really will remove the sanctions that have slowed Tehran's atomic ambitions. The problem is that Iran is not brought to heel, but will be able to continue the mad mullahs' march toward nuclear weapons. Even in the best case, that the Iranians comply with every aspect of the agreement, they are only delayed, not denied the nuclear arsenal they covet. I know Iran will obfuscate and not comply in any event, just as North Korea did after they were granted concessions by the US. Economic sanctions against Iran will be removed by this horrible deal, but Iran will continue to construct nuclear weapons and delivery systems that compromise Israel's very existence, imperil the Sunni states around Iran, and threaten America and the rest of the world as well.

Dancing in Minefield

Barack Hussein Obama thinks he will be able to seal a grand bargain with the theocratic tyrants of Tehran and the thug enforcers they employ to keep them in power by crushing the aspiration for freedom that abides in the hearts of most Iranians. Obama believes if he gives enough, Iran will change. The mad mullahs are not prepared to accept what Obama is able to give. Obama can not hand Iran a nuclear arsenal on silver platter. Any concession short of that and the Iranians will walk away from the negotiating table, or if they do not bolt, make agreements they have no intention of keeping, just as North Korea did as they armed up with nukes. As weak as Obama is, even he can not concede as much as Iran demands. Obama will not act to declaw Iran even though the talks in Switzerland will not keep Iran from developing nuclear arms. That is why it will be left for Israel to do as much damage to Iran's nuclear effort as possible in a preemptive attack. The world though will not view such an Israeli first strike as self-defense but as naked aggression, and will condemn and sanction Israel as the aggressor.

April Fools' Day

I have decided not to publish "despotinwaiting" for the first time since I started my blog in 2008 as my joke du jour. I will not write a word all day. I will not mention that today would have been my grandfather Isadore's one hundred and seventh birthday. I simply will not open my laptop. I will not press a single key. I have no special wisdom, news, or commentary to offer on this first day of April. Nope, not going to type out a column today. Oh wait. . .