Painfully Inadequate

NRO ^ | 5 June 2008 | Thomas Sowell

[Rummyfan]

Now that the two parties have finally selected their presidential candidates, it is time for a sober — if not grim — assessment of where we are.

Not since 1972 have we been presented with two such painfully inadequate candidates. When Election Day came that year, I could not bring myself to vote for either George McGovern or Richard Nixon. I stayed home.

This year, none of us has that luxury. While all sorts of gushing is going on in the media, and posturing is going on in politics, the biggest national sponsor of terrorism in the world — Iran — is moving step by step toward building a nuclear bomb.

The point when they get that bomb will be the point of no return. Iran’s nuclear bomb will be the terrorists’ nuclear bomb — and they can make 9/11 look like child’s play.

All the options that are on the table right now will be swept off the table forever. Our choices will be to give in to whatever the terrorists demand — however outrageous those demands might be — or to risk seeing American cities start disappearing in radioactive mushroom clouds.

All the things we are preoccupied with today, from the price of gasoline to health care to global warming, will suddenly no longer matter.

Just as the Nazis did not find it enough to simply kill people in their concentration camps, but had to humiliate and dehumanize them first, so we can expect terrorists with nuclear weapons to both humiliate us and force us to humiliate ourselves, before they finally start killing us.

They have already telegraphed their punches with their sadistic beheadings of innocent civilians, and with the popularity of videotapes of those beheadings in the Middle East.

They have already telegraphed their intention to dictate to us with such things as Osama bin Laden’s threats to target those places in America that did not vote the way he prescribed in the 2004 elections. He could not back up those threats then but he may be able to in a very few years.

The terrorists have given us as clear a picture of what they are all about as Adolf Hitler and the Nazis did during the 1930s — and our “leaders” and intelligentsia have ignored the warning signs as resolutely as the “leaders” and intelligentsia of the 1930s downplayed the dangers of Hitler.

We are much like people drifting down the Niagara River, oblivious to the waterfalls up ahead. Once we go over those falls, we cannot come back up again.

What does this have to do with today’s presidential candidates? It has everything to do with them.

One of these candidates will determine what we are going to do to stop Iran from going nuclear— or whether we are going to do anything other than talk, as Western leaders talked in the 1930s.

There is one big difference between now and the 1930s. Although the West’s lack of military preparedness and its political irresolution led to three solid years of devastating losses to Nazi Germany and imperial Japan, nevertheless when all the West’s industrial and military forces were finally mobilized, the democracies were able to turn the tide and win decisively.

But you cannot lose a nuclear war for three years and then come back. You cannot even sustain the will to resist for three years when you are first broken down morally by threats and then devastated by nuclear bombs.

Our one window of opportunity to prevent this will occur within the term of whoever becomes president of the United States next January.

At a time like this, we do not have the luxury of waiting for our ideal candidate or of indulging our emotions by voting for some third party candidate to show our displeasure — at the cost of putting someone in the White House who is not up to the job.

Senator John McCain has been criticized in this column many times. But, when all is said and done, Senator McCain has not spent decades aiding and abetting people who hate America.

On the contrary, he has paid a huge price for resisting our enemies, even when they held him prisoner and tortured him. The choice between him and Barack Obama should be a no-brainer.

— Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution

[neverdem]

1972 was the first presidential election in which I could vote. I couldn’t vote for Nixon either. McCain is awful, but I’ll hold my nose.

[LeGrande]

I am not a member of the “haghani circle conservative” movement that wants to destroy this country so that the “hidden conservative” shall reappear.

I am not either. I just think that gridlock is the best that we can hope for, at least for the next four years anyway.

The other question is do we want or think that McCain will nuke Iran, because that is probably the only way to stop Iran from developing nukes.

[Jeff Head]

Obama's ardent followers are not swayed be logic, reason, or truth. To them, regardless of his positions, his gaffes, his past, or his associations, he is an idol.

Nothing you can say or do will convince these people otherwise...


Because I am the one they and I have been waiting for...and I am lovin' it.

Those wild eyed people represent the millions of Americans raised in the government day-care and indoctrination centers we call public schools who did not have, or would not listen to, parents and others who tried to counterweight the garbage they heard at school...who have been raised on 60 second sound bite time spans and know no better.

You have other tens of millions on the dole who will vote for him regardless of position because he promises to keep pilfering the public largess for them.

Still othes of millions will vote for him simply because he is black.

Other millions will vote for him because they know exactly who he is and what he represents and agree with his anti-American positions.

The first three are all what is termed, useful idiots, a term coined by Lenin for the dupes he got to support him.

Against this it is left to us to educate, arouse, and amass the tens of millions of Americans who understand and hold fast to the foundational principles our constitutional republic rests upon...many of them the bitter, rural Americans clinging to their guns and religion that Obama so arrogantly spoke of.

Finally, note this comparison:

A populsitic, charismatic, self-serving individual has a way of mesmerizing foolish people looking for an idol...then and now.

Barack Hussein Obama is the apex of the hate-America, domestic enemy in this country. His election as president would be the greatest coup any enemy has ever scored against this country and could easily lead to the worst, horrific disaster in our nation's history.

THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH ABOUT BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA

[Perdogg]

The main cause of Sino-japanese war was that China was weak and failed to modernize, thus creating a power vacuum while Japan was modernizing and expansionist. Dpending on the US political situation in the next decade, if China preceives the US as being weak, then we could be head for war. There are no power vacuums in the world. Once one exists it is quickly filled.

[Christian4Bush]

bump (though i think i already did)

[mojito]

If Obama wins, the Israelis will attack Iran by the end of the year. Both the Iranians and the Israelis will arrive at the same conclusion: Obama does not represent a credible threat of nuclear deterrence, or any kind of military deterrence, for that matter. The Iranians will see an Obama victory as a victory for the revolution, and as a sign that they will have a free hand to destroy Israel. The Israelis will be forced to act, before the Iranians do. Because Bush will still be in the White House, the Israelis can at least figure that the US will have their back at the time of the attack. President Obambi will then have a month or so to figure out how to appease the enemy.

[BlueMondaySkipper]

Whom I cast my vote for is the person, not the party, that I think will represent ME the best while in office.
I can tell you right now, that isn't Obomba OR McCain.

The fallacy of this argument is that no one other than McCain or Obama is going to be in office. I won't be voting for McCain, I'll be voting against Obama.

[quant5]

Perhaps, but still miles ahead of Obama.

[r9etb]

"Our choices will be to give in to whatever the terrorists demand — however outrageous those demands might be — or to risk seeing American cities start disappearing in radioactive mushroom clouds.

Hm. Although Mr. Sowell is quite correct about the fact that "dealing with Iran" is going to be the One Biggest Challenge to the next POTUS, I simply don't buy this dire prediction.

For one thing, the Iranians have shown themselves to be a lot more canny than resorting to this sort of brutish threat, to which we have the means to respond in kind. There are better, more subtle ways to use a nuclear threat ... such as a nuke-backed hegemony over the Middle East, and thereby a large portion of the world's oil production capability.

For another thing, Sowell's scenario doesn't dwell on anything beyond the threat -- for example, putting the threat into action. In other words, what's the delivery mechanism for this threat?

[Constitutions Grandchild]

He hasn't responded because by May 2009 the universal identification chips will be mandatory in all driver's licenses in the U.S. By 2011, all of the UK will be chipped and by 2017 the rest of the world will be chipped with Universal I.D. It was supposed to go forward this May, but there were delays. Don't you guys read. He's not hurrying to build the fence or reinforce the borders because in about 12 months, you won't be able to buy toilet paper without that I.D. As each of your licenses are renewed, you, too, will have the universal I.D.

No matter where you go, you will need that I.D. to do anything to keep body and soul together. When that becomes as useless as the social security numbers because of fraud, the only way to secure your identity from fraud will be implanted chips in humans.

[Teacher317]

I think total [war] with China will probably happen in the next decade.

Quite wrong. China cannot build nearly enough military power to defeat just our Navy in ten years.

That being said, China is likely taking a long-term approach. Sun Tzu's definitive treatise on War expressly dictates that one should not attack if one does not need to. When your force is over-matched, delay and parry. China can afford to sit and watch its economic might skyrocket (they actually do their level best to LIMIT their economic growth, so as to control potentially rampant inflation), while we slowly allow the Lunatic Left to decay every basic ideal that relates to a nation's traditional definitions of strength (energy production, industry, economy, military, morale, unity,etc). Wait 30-40 years, and then they can re-assess whether they are in the superior position for a victory. If not, wait some more. It's an exceptionally brilliant and simple strategy. No global power is even close to ascending the way China is. Looking ahead 50-75 years, they have no competition if all things continues as they are.

[Constitutions Grandchild]

I know, there are those who think it’s crazy, but something evil this way comes, and the reason nothing changes no matter who we elect is because who we elect is irrelevant.

[PerConPat]

There are many things to consider; and, as usual, Sowell addresses quite a few important points in a clear and concise manner. However, for me the permutation of all of the elements in play are fast becoming a blur. Might not the real possibility of McCain being putty in Rat hands justify the election of BO in hopes that some Pub members of Congress would then apply an effective brake to Dim policies that would otherwise be unchecked? When applied to issues such as border security, global warming, judicial appointments, free speech etc.; the previous question certainly creates reservations as to the benefits of a McCain presidency.

On the other side of the equation are McCain's military experience, stand on abortion, support for the Second Amendment, understanding of what's at stake in Iraq etc.. Obama has no qualifications in these areas that one could even discuss. This weighs heavily on me, and I am no McCain fan.

If my state is clearly in the Red or Blue category come Nov.8, I'll be spared the agony of voting in the presidential election. If things should be otherwise, I will have to seriously consider McCain on the basis of the POTUS' duties as Commander-in-Chief.

[Robert DeLong]

At a time like this, we do not have the luxury of waiting for our ideal candidate or of indulging our emotions by voting for some third party candidate to show our displeasure — at the cost of putting someone in the White House who is not up to the job.

As always Thomas Sowell speaks with reason and clarity.

[Joya]

Thanks.

[apocalypto]

Yes, John Sidney McCain has aided and abetted people who hate America. He is Mr. Amnesty. He voted AGAINST barring terrorists from US. He supports foreign interests over US.

[Joya]

post 83; women’s response to Hitler/Obama

[Robert DeLong]

Very well stated. I just cannot believe these peoples arguments that they think somehow this will drive conservatism to the forefront. We conservatives are fighting a long battle, much like the war on terrorism. This is because we have allowed our schools, at all levels, to become totally copntrolled by liberalism. I honestly wonder if we will ever come back. One thing I know for sure, we will not get there by letting Obama and the liberals take total control. I for one am not ready to throw in the towel in hopes of a more conservative candidate in the future. Doing so may jeprodize the future. I will vote for McCain this election and hope for the best.

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

The left will easily blow off this kind of stuff as fear mongering...like we’ve heard before they’ll say and people will believe them.

Professor Sowell isn't talking to "the left" - he's talking to you. He's saying that if you live in a state that might go to McCain, in an election in which the issue was in doubt, you should consider no option but voting McCain.

As for me, I live in NY - there is essentially no possibility of my state's going for McCain unless McCain is winning by a landslide in the rest of the country. Therefore I have a free vote; I'll vote for anyone you suggest - it simply doesn't matter.

But if you live in Ohio - or Florida or Pennsylvania or Michigan or Virginia - your duty is to vote for McCain. Painful tho it be.

[ichabod1]

There are many vices we could analogize to the Livy thesis. But I’ll limit myself to our current credit crisis for right now. So very many people are groaning under the strain of ever mounting debt that they aren’t going to be able to pay off in this lifetime. Yet, who is ready to face the consequences in terms of the massive depression and realignment of society that is going to take place when the credit monster pitches us from its back like a snorting bull in the rodeo. No one, that’s who.