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"This Is Manifestly Not Saigon" and Our Society of Lies
Townhall.com ^ | August 17, 2021 | Dennis Prager

Posted on 08/17/2021 5:50:25 AM PDT by Kaslin

I wrote about the moral, diplomatic, international and American tragedy of abandoning Afghanistan a few months ago, so here I will address only the comment by Secretary of State Antony Blinken on ABC's "This Week" -- and what it says about our country.

Commenting on the American helicopters picking up Americans from the roof of the U.S. embassy in Kabul, Blinken said, "This is manifestly not Saigon."

That statement sums up the state of the United States of America. We have become a Society of Lies. As I have known since I studied the Soviet Union and communism at the Russian Institute of Columbia University, truth has never been a left-wing value. There are honest and dishonest liberals; there are honest and dishonest conservatives. But truth is both a liberal value and a conservative value. It is not a left-wing value. People on the left are committed to saying whatever furthers their agenda, true or false.

I have debated the question of whether leftists believe the lies they utter for much of my lifetime. And I have concluded that they generally do -- in part because they just don't ask themselves the question: "Is what I am saying true or false?"

(Excerpt) Read more at townhall.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: afghanistan; bidenadmin; taliban
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1 posted on 08/17/2021 5:50:25 AM PDT by Kaslin
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To: Kaslin

If Kabul had happened first they would be telling us Saigon was not like Kabul now.


2 posted on 08/17/2021 5:55:10 AM PDT by AndyTheBear
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To: Kaslin

>We have become a society of lies.

Political correctness is communist propaganda writ small. In my study of communist societies, I came to the conclusion that the purpose of communist propaganda was not to persuade or convince, nor to inform, but to humiliate; and therefore, the less it corresponded to reality the better. When people are forced to remain silent when they are being told the most obvious lies, or even worse when they are forced to repeat the lies themselves, they lose once and for all their sense of probity. To assent to obvious lies is to co-operate with evil, and in some small way to become evil oneself. One’s standing to resist anything is thus eroded, and even destroyed. A society of emasculated liars is easy to control. I think if you examine political correctness, it has the same effect and is intended to.

— Frontpage Interview with Dr. Theodore Dalrymple: Our Culture, What’s Left Of It - interviewed by Jamie Glazov [August 31, 2005]


3 posted on 08/17/2021 6:01:17 AM PDT by FreedomPoster (Islam delenda est)
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To: Kaslin

4 posted on 08/17/2021 6:01:34 AM PDT by Travis McGee (EnemiesForeignAndDomestic.com)
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To: Kaslin

“I have debated the question of whether leftists believe the lies they utter for much of my lifetime.”

~~~

I don’t know about the leftist intellectual elites, but on the street level, they are believers. The belief is emotional and associative. They can repeat all of the rationale, but they only ever get angry when you point out their hypocrisies. Instant psychological defense mechanisms that are easy to trigger. They refuse to engage in conversation that flushes out their truer impetus/impeti for allowing themselves to be converted over to a whole doctrine. Most of them started out as single issue democrats, and perhaps in the beginning, aside from the one issue, had very few fully leftist proclivities.


5 posted on 08/17/2021 6:06:47 AM PDT by z3n
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To: Kaslin

Our Society of Lies

*****************

Indeed it is. We live in an ocean of lies, deceit, exaggeration, and excuses. Its all around us 24X7.

Truth and facts are seen as unwelcome intruders in today’s world.


6 posted on 08/17/2021 6:07:20 AM PDT by Starboard
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To: Kaslin

I vividly remember the large planes leaving Saigon with people falling to their deaths from the wheel wells of the planes. I remember crowds trying to get on the planes. I remember the helicopter air-lifts. I also remember what came afterwards.

Afterwards we will get pictures of the Taliban marching through the streets in small groups. An informant leading the way. They will pick out certain houses, take someone or everyone from inside the house and murder them right there in the middle of the street. A bullet to the back of the head while they kneel on the street.

I hear this is already happening. And its all America’s
fault. We told these people to change for us. And those who did will be murdered. We put our values, as unnatural as they are, against might makes right. And those who followed will be killed for it. Our military has no moral authority. Our government has no moral authority. The Russian and Chinese governments are the same as ours. The style of corruption and abuse and tyranny is different. But they are there in all three.


7 posted on 08/17/2021 6:09:32 AM PDT by poinq
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To: Kaslin

Blinken can say “This in manifestly not Saigon” with a straight face because the geophysical coordinates are manifestly disparate.


8 posted on 08/17/2021 6:11:00 AM PDT by Fester Chugabrew (No audits. No peace.)
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To: Kaslin

Several of the comments I have heard suggested that Biden abruptly pulled out of Afghanistan because he thought he could garner political points for making it happen. I did not hear his speech and only heard snippets of news clips, so I confess my opinions are based on 2nd and 3rd hand information.

As an analogy, it is a beautiful and wonderful thing when a man makes love to his wife. Done the right way, both are gratified by the act. They endear themselves even more to each other and are drawn closer to each other as a result. But if the man goes about it the wrong way, it can be an atrocity, a violent and evil act.

So it is with a withdrawal of the military from Afghanistan: done in the wrong way, it becomes an atrocity and an act of evil. If, in fact, Biden acted purely to score political points, he has committed an atrocity and an evil act because he has traded the lives and future of many to gain points of popularity. This is very disturbing insight into the amoral mind of Joe Biden. It is hard to get more disgusting than that.


9 posted on 08/17/2021 6:15:09 AM PDT by RatRipper ( Democrats and socialists are vile liars, thdieves and murderers - enemies of good and America.)
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To: Kaslin

Glad he clarified that for us. Were it not ‘manifestly’ different, it would look exactly like Saigon...


10 posted on 08/17/2021 6:18:19 AM PDT by drwoof
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To: z3n
Instant psychological defense mechanisms that are easy to trigger.

I've seen that up close, but what is amazing to me is they can also be vicious about wanting you to affirm their lies. It's to be point of bullying sometimes. If they get wind that you disagree they are absolutely relentless no matter how you try to diffuse (and by the way facts do not matter).

11 posted on 08/17/2021 6:19:33 AM PDT by Bearshouse
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To: RatRipper

Biden acted purely to score political points,

………

And his speech was pure politics. Straight reading from a script .

Delivered with the patented Biden lecture “ come on man “ dead fish voice

All the lives lost in the past and what is and will occur ignored.

A disgrace as the alleged leader of the free world


12 posted on 08/17/2021 6:28:43 AM PDT by patriotspride (Third generation Vet. Never forget the true cost of freedom)
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To: Bearshouse

“...I’ve seen that up close, but what is amazing to me is they can also be vicious about wanting you to affirm their lies. It’s to be point of bullying sometimes. If they get wind that you disagree they are absolutely relentless no matter how you try to diffuse (and by the way facts do not matter)....”

Yep. Been there, done that. I no longer even try to converse with em...it’s pointless. As someone once said, it’s like trying to play chess with a pigeon. The pigeon just walks all over the board knocking pieces over while crapping all over the board and thinks it’s won.
It’s a debilitating, chronic, no-cure mental disease that will eventually kill the nation and most everyone in it IF not held in check. We’ve more than reached that point where we can no long co-exist with these insane bassturds. It’s not sustainable. It’s no longer IF, it’s WHEN. It’s just a matter of time before something triggers it and it explodes exponentially.


13 posted on 08/17/2021 6:36:49 AM PDT by lgjhn23 (Pray for America....)
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To: z3n

I have found left-wing nutcases to be the type that is easily influenced by the last opinuion they hear.

So, a diet of steady propaganda from CNN is ALL THEY KNOW.

Some of them can be convinced otherwise, if they can get past their liberal mantra of “conservative bad, liberal good’ and actually listen to you.

I am always surprised when I get a liberal to agree with me and then try to tell then THAT’S A CONSERVATIVE POSITION- THAT”S *NOT* WHAT YOU ARE VOTING FOR WHEN YOU VOTE DEMOCRAT


14 posted on 08/17/2021 7:01:07 AM PDT by Mr. K (No consequence of repealing obamacare is worse than obamacare itself)
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To: RatRipper

Xden’s immoral mind has been on display for decades!


15 posted on 08/17/2021 7:04:23 AM PDT by milagro (There is no peace in appeasement! )
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To: Kaslin

“This Is Manifestly Not Saigon”

OK, looks like the talking libtard heads hired a geography tutor. Good for them


16 posted on 08/17/2021 7:29:17 AM PDT by trailboss800
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To: Kaslin

Well technically it’s “Ho Chi Minh City” now.


17 posted on 08/17/2021 7:30:13 AM PDT by dfwgator (Endut! Hoch Hech!)
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To: Travis McGee
Bagram was the linchpin of the defense and stabilization of Afghanistan
18 posted on 08/17/2021 7:42:07 AM PDT by rdcbn1
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To: Kaslin

I sent this essay to my email buddies with this introduction:

“All,

“After you read Dennis Prager’s essay, you will understand why I refer our political enemies as ‘LIEberals!’

“Not all ‘liberals’ are ‘LIEberals;’ Wikipedia: ‘Classical liberalism is a political ideology and a branch of liberalism that advocates civil liberties under the rule of law with an emphasis on economic freedom.’

“WE conservatives are the “classical liberals” this definition refers to.

“Washington, DC, and ALL “Blue” cities, counties and states are infested with LIEberal varmits, and we MUST ensure that they are removed FRom power in the 2022 and 2024 elections!

“And replaced with classical liberals — IOW, CONSERVATIVES!

“FReegards,

“FRank”


19 posted on 08/17/2021 8:09:28 AM PDT by Taxman (SAVE AMERICA!)
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To: Travis McGee
Thank you for posting that. I've been looking for the fool who made the decision to close Bagram. I'm sure there were his lacky subordinates who suggested it, but Milley is responsible.

Of course, Milley can now claim he had no idea the Taliban could move so fast, as they took everyone by surprise. So he's off the hook. Personally, I put more blame on the DIA, CIA, NSA, NSC and others for not knowing or ignoring the Taliban's capabilities. Epic fail on their part.

20 posted on 08/17/2021 10:37:07 AM PDT by A Navy Vet (USA Birth Certificate - 1787. Death Certificate - 2021. 8/15/2021 - Afganiscrap falls.)
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