Well, it's been quite a while since I wrote a political blog on this website. I made a commitment which took effect on Thanksgiving Day that all of my blogs up until New Year's would stay away from politics. And I must admit, for the Christmas holiday period that was a smart move. It kept the blood pressure down and the Spirit merry but, being the political animal that I am, I decided that after the first of the year I would again write some political blogs, but not most of the time. So, I made a New Year's resolution (you can see it two blogs back) and included therein a commitment to limit political blogs to once per week. And there is no better day of the week to do so than Wednesday, for this weekly blog will be titled Hump Day is Trump Day. And while they won't be all directly about Trump, although some very certainly will, all will lean toward my conservative approach to politics.
So, what is my topic for today? Well, I thought about comparing leadership between a real leader and a political hack or even a discussion about the impact of the new tax law, but I decided instead to briefly discuss something which really just surfaced in the last few days with a big bang. I'll discuss the other items on a later Wednesday post but, for today, we'll focus on what's happening in Iran.
Tyranny and oppression have a way of naturally drawing disfavor, even in those societies that rule by an iron fist and Iran is a great example. Ruled under a theocratic system by Mullahs who want to exert their ways on not just the Iranians but the world as well, the Iranian people are once again speaking out. This also happened in the recent past when students rebelled on the streets in 2009 but were quickly and brutally put down. But there is a difference in what is happening today.
Today's demonstrators are not students limited to university locations. The actions are taking place across the country and are led by average, middle class and blue collar people who have seen what the Mullahs have done to their economy. And unlike the 2009 uprising when the United States President and State Department condemned the student actions, the Trump Administration has warned the Iranian government about the dangers of using force against citizens who just want a decent quality of life. That touch, including Trump's tweets, sends a message of hope to those brave citizens that America is aware of their plight and it provides moral support.
Look, I get that everyone is afraid to provoke Iran because of their rapidly increasing nuclear capability which, incidentally, they have used to assist the rogue state North Korea as well. But when the Obama Administration locked itself into a deal concerning nuclear weapons that really accomplished nothing for America while advancing Iran's interests, conflict of some type is now unavoidable. So the question becomes, would we rather have the Iranian people rise up to demand their government support their needs rather than world ambitions or be forced into a shooting war with the Mullahs? That's exactly what we are faced with, and it's similar to North Korea where America ignored the reality of the situation (I am including the administration's of recent Presidents of both parties) and we now find ourselves faced with a dangerous future.
And I'm not even going into detail about our paying a ransom for five hostages with a plane loaded with cash (in different national currencies) delivered to Tehran under cover of darkness. But I will note that it is not the policy of the United States to pay ransom but, then again, that may be the reason for the cash payment in secrecy. There is no total secrecy in the Swamp that is Washington, although in this case I'll take it.
Love him or hate him, President Trump is right on this issue. Weakness never works. We saw it with Neville Chamberlain, we've seen it in recent years when Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama tried to bribe North Korea with food and needed supplies, and we'll see it again unless we decide enough is enough. Trump is the first one to call the hand and it's time we do so. Let's just pray that it's not already too late, but I have an optimistic feeling that we may have awakened to the reality of the situation before that fateful hour. Time will ultimately tell.
And that's my Hump Day is Trump Day commentary for this day and week. Next week we'll focus on leadership with a comparison of a good leader and one with no leadership capacity at all. They'll be from entirely different occupational areas and lifestyles but I think it will be a worthwhile effort. In the meantime, my blogs on nature, life, my faith and memories will continue all week. I hope you enjoy them and have a blessed day.
So, what is my topic for today? Well, I thought about comparing leadership between a real leader and a political hack or even a discussion about the impact of the new tax law, but I decided instead to briefly discuss something which really just surfaced in the last few days with a big bang. I'll discuss the other items on a later Wednesday post but, for today, we'll focus on what's happening in Iran.
Tyranny and oppression have a way of naturally drawing disfavor, even in those societies that rule by an iron fist and Iran is a great example. Ruled under a theocratic system by Mullahs who want to exert their ways on not just the Iranians but the world as well, the Iranian people are once again speaking out. This also happened in the recent past when students rebelled on the streets in 2009 but were quickly and brutally put down. But there is a difference in what is happening today.
Today's demonstrators are not students limited to university locations. The actions are taking place across the country and are led by average, middle class and blue collar people who have seen what the Mullahs have done to their economy. And unlike the 2009 uprising when the United States President and State Department condemned the student actions, the Trump Administration has warned the Iranian government about the dangers of using force against citizens who just want a decent quality of life. That touch, including Trump's tweets, sends a message of hope to those brave citizens that America is aware of their plight and it provides moral support.
Look, I get that everyone is afraid to provoke Iran because of their rapidly increasing nuclear capability which, incidentally, they have used to assist the rogue state North Korea as well. But when the Obama Administration locked itself into a deal concerning nuclear weapons that really accomplished nothing for America while advancing Iran's interests, conflict of some type is now unavoidable. So the question becomes, would we rather have the Iranian people rise up to demand their government support their needs rather than world ambitions or be forced into a shooting war with the Mullahs? That's exactly what we are faced with, and it's similar to North Korea where America ignored the reality of the situation (I am including the administration's of recent Presidents of both parties) and we now find ourselves faced with a dangerous future.
And I'm not even going into detail about our paying a ransom for five hostages with a plane loaded with cash (in different national currencies) delivered to Tehran under cover of darkness. But I will note that it is not the policy of the United States to pay ransom but, then again, that may be the reason for the cash payment in secrecy. There is no total secrecy in the Swamp that is Washington, although in this case I'll take it.
Love him or hate him, President Trump is right on this issue. Weakness never works. We saw it with Neville Chamberlain, we've seen it in recent years when Presidents Clinton, Bush and Obama tried to bribe North Korea with food and needed supplies, and we'll see it again unless we decide enough is enough. Trump is the first one to call the hand and it's time we do so. Let's just pray that it's not already too late, but I have an optimistic feeling that we may have awakened to the reality of the situation before that fateful hour. Time will ultimately tell.
And that's my Hump Day is Trump Day commentary for this day and week. Next week we'll focus on leadership with a comparison of a good leader and one with no leadership capacity at all. They'll be from entirely different occupational areas and lifestyles but I think it will be a worthwhile effort. In the meantime, my blogs on nature, life, my faith and memories will continue all week. I hope you enjoy them and have a blessed day.
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