It's fun when I write for our local paper and one of the locals come back with a Letter to the Editor that shows little beyond how much they depend on Fox News for their information. A few weeks back I wrote an article for our local paper, the Bakersfield Californian, and argued that President Obama should ignore the far right when it comes to foreign policy.
To make my point I explained how the far right has pretty much gotten the world wrong over the past 35 years. Because they've gotten the world wrong I wrote that when it comes to the big foreign policy issues of our day that the far right should be ignored. Here's one response to my article, which came out in today's Bakersfield Californian.
Where do I begin?
I know, let's start with this ...
If embassy attacks are a sign of presidential weakness then President Bush is the weakest president, ever. More specifically, thirteen (13) "Benghazis" occurred on Bush's watch. Yet the far right - and Fox News - effectively said nothing when Bush was president.
As for the causes behind the Benghazi attack, which the GOP loves to use to whip up the Fox News masses, the NY Times' in-depth report on the issue - "A Deadly Mix in Benghazi" - makes two things very clear: First, neither al Qaeda nor any other international terrorist group(s) had anything to do with the Benghazi attack. Second, the attack was "fueled in large part by anger over an American-made video denigrating Islam."
The NY Times' article also helps to clarify another important issue.
The only reason Benghazi has been in the news is because Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) has been running an investigative clown show ever since he became Chair of the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee (another issue for another day). In reality - unless you want to talk about the GOP-led efforts to cut back on embassy security budgets - Benghazi is a Red Herring when it comes to foreign policy.
There's more I could add, but the arguments of the Letter to the Editor don't get any better (actually, they get worse). So let me end with this.
Me explaining why the far right has been wrong on foreign policy over the past 35 years isn't "anti-American". It never will be. Arguing that this is the case is simplistic and only shows why the far right doesn't understand foreign policy. They don't do their homework and, worse, are prepared to believe anything that Fox News tells them to believe.
Sigh ...
- Mark
In response to Mark Martinez's Dec. 27 article, "Obama needs to ignore the far right on foreign policy matters," it would appear that U.S. foreign policy has a varied interpretation, depending on ingrained biases, I assume.
To call claims about Benghazi outlandish is disingenuous at best and anti-American at its worst. A U.S. consulate was invaded, an ambassador and three others killed and all was blamed on a ridiculous video for days until grudgingly the administration agreed that it was terrorism. We have done nothing effective in bringing the perpetrators to justice. Hillary Clinton asked, "What difference does it make?" regarding exact motives for the attack ...
Where do I begin?
I know, let's start with this ...
If embassy attacks are a sign of presidential weakness then President Bush is the weakest president, ever. More specifically, thirteen (13) "Benghazis" occurred on Bush's watch. Yet the far right - and Fox News - effectively said nothing when Bush was president.
As for the causes behind the Benghazi attack, which the GOP loves to use to whip up the Fox News masses, the NY Times' in-depth report on the issue - "A Deadly Mix in Benghazi" - makes two things very clear: First, neither al Qaeda nor any other international terrorist group(s) had anything to do with the Benghazi attack. Second, the attack was "fueled in large part by anger over an American-made video denigrating Islam."
The NY Times' article also helps to clarify another important issue.
The only reason Benghazi has been in the news is because Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) has been running an investigative clown show ever since he became Chair of the House Oversight & Government Reform Committee (another issue for another day). In reality - unless you want to talk about the GOP-led efforts to cut back on embassy security budgets - Benghazi is a Red Herring when it comes to foreign policy.
There's more I could add, but the arguments of the Letter to the Editor don't get any better (actually, they get worse). So let me end with this.
Me explaining why the far right has been wrong on foreign policy over the past 35 years isn't "anti-American". It never will be. Arguing that this is the case is simplistic and only shows why the far right doesn't understand foreign policy. They don't do their homework and, worse, are prepared to believe anything that Fox News tells them to believe.
Sigh ...
- Mark
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