What is it about Radical Islam that drives seemingly rational nations to adopt a policy of appeasement at record speed?

In an effort to secure the release of 20 South Korean missionaries being held capitive by the Taleban in the remote regions of Afghanistan, the South Korean government has proven once again that we as a people have learned nothing from history. The government in Seoul has promissed the Islamic Radicals that it will removal all South Korean troops from Afghanistan and will actively work to stop future South Korean missionaries from coming to the war torn country.

The message is clear both to the civilized worl as well as to the world of the Radical Islamist. These terrorists have again learned that their evil deeds will be rewarded and thus the risk to others in Afghanistan has increased. Having been succesfuly in forcing teh Seoul government to capitulate, it is likely the Taleban will try again and they have every reason to belive that they will be successful. Just as they were with Spain and Italy, the Koreans will hold the blood of future terror victims on their hands.

Perhaps we shouldn't be surprised by South Korea's actions, in its dealings with North Korea we have seen a propensity for appeasement unrivaled since the days of the Betrayal at Munich. Who is the South Korean president these days? Neville Kim?
Link to Reuters News Article

Apparently Idaho Senator Larry Craig (R) becomes only the latest politician to be found wanting when it comes to the matter of practicing what he preaches. Craig apparently was arrested on June 11th after apparently attempting to solicit anonymous homosexual sex in an airport bathroom, not unlike former New Jersey Governor James McGreevey, who apparently preferred his anonymous sex in truck stops. The fact is this latest incident of political indiscretion, highlights both the hypocrisy of the media and politicians and not a double but triple standard when it comes to the sexcapades of Washington politicians. There are three standard one for Democrats (the lowest standard), one for Republicans and one for any affair involving homosexuality.

Had this incident involved a Democrat in a heterosexual relation ship its doubtful it would have ever made the news, but since this was gay sex, all of a sudden the fair weather moralists are filled with indignation. How many Washington political leaders are guilty of adultery? It would be no surprise to hear that a majority are indeed guilty, yet this selective outrage for certain indiscretions and not others continues. Those who view this behavior as sinful or immoral would be well advised to recognized that their behavior is no different.

Craig is the latest hypocrite to be exposed, while Craig portrayed himself as some type of “social conservative” trampling on state’s rights with the farce of a marriage amendment and refusing to adopt an anti-discrimination pledge vis-à-vis homosexuals in his office, we no see Craig for the true self loathing bigot that he is. During a hastily prepared news conference, Craig declared he wasn’t gay…Sure. Craig also declared he had done nothing wrong, Sure, and I supposed a US Senator well versed in the inner workings of our legal system simply plead guilty for the hell of it…that’s certainly believable…now tell us the one about the Easter Bunny. The soon to be former Senator would be well advised to resign immediately.
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2007/08/28/ap4062287.html
http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2007-08-28-craig-fallout_N.htm

Can there be any shock when one is regaled with stories of the gross stupidity of your average American, given the overwhelming ignorance of many in our nation can there be any question why many of the Founding Fathers regarded true democracy as a recipe for disaster. At the Ms. Teen USA pageant, the contestant from South Carolina was asked what accounted for the fact that many Americans could not identify the United States on a map and her response highlighted the fears of the framers in living color.

Now one would expect a cutesy answer to that question in a pageant type setting, an answer that wouldn't address the actual problem. For that you would need to turn to the Phalanx. After all as long as most people are ignorant and content to be so and as long as most American children continue to attend their local public schools, where catering to the lowest common denominator has become an art form, few should be shocked at the geographic ignorance of our countrymen.

What the audience viewing this mind numbing pageant heard was nothing less than pure gold as the clearly moronic Ms. Teen South Carolina attempted to answer the question to such an extent that to describe it would be a disservice. The unintelligible answer must surely make her parents proud, having raised such a profound imbecile.


See for yourself:

One would like to think that the NAACP has some legitimate reason for unflinchingly supporting Michael Vick in the face of mounting evidence and...a guilty plea. One would like to think that but apparently all that is required to earn the NAACP's support in this day and age is your skin color. President R.L. White the Atlanta chapter of the once esteemed civil rights organization asserted in a news conference this week that Vick's decision to plead guilty to dog fighting charges, had nothing to do with his guilt or innocence but was simply a role of the Dice.

In White's mind, Vick simply weighed the odds and decided that given the growing chorus of condemnation coming from the court of public opinion, he stood little chance of being exonerated and thus opted to plead guilty.

That's right it wasn't the overwhelming evidence or the planned testimony of Vick's co-defendants that swayed Vick, in fact to hear White tell the story it was nothing short of a grand conspiracy that led Vick to make his decision. Apparently the NAACP has opted to take a flying leap off the deep end. But then again that decision was made weeks ago when NAACP went out of its weigh to defend Vick in spite of the and now even in the face of a guilty plea, the organization stand firm behind its foolhardy decision.
www.ajc.com/search/content/sports/falcons/stories/2007/08/22/0823_vicknaacp.html

Video of RL White's Comments:
http://www.wsbtv.com/video/13952429/index.html

Much has been made of Barack Obama’s foreign policy inexperience, after all so many of our past presidents have been foreign policy experts…lets see since Theodore Roosevelt too office in 1901 we’ve had quite a few governors to become president, including Wilson, Coolidge, F. Roosevelt, Carter, Reagan, Clinton and GW Bush, well there certainly a great deal of foreign policy experience to be had there oh then there have been, all the remain men who have served as president were members of Congress with the exception of Hoover and Eisenhower. Among them perhaps only Taft and Eisenhower could be said to have in real foreign policy experience having served as Secretary of War and NATO Commander respectively.

Perhaps if we would just settle on a candidate with common sense that would be a marked improvement. Nonetheless, Obama has received a great deal of criticism in the last few days for suggesting that the US should consider relaxing the embargo with Cuba. For this suggestion Obama has been lambasted by the right and the left, but has anyone considered that Obama’s position is correct, at least in this particular matter. The Cuban embargo has been and continues to be the height of diplomatic hypocrisy. Since it’s inception over 40 years ago, Cuba has been isolated economically and politically from the United States.

Albeit true Castro and company are brutal tyrants with no regard for the concept of liberty or freedom but then again the same can be said of China, Russia and a host of other nations that we eager trade with and maintain full diplomatic relations. Perhaps not country has less regard fro human life than the People’s Republic of China, yet China is one of America’s largest trading partners. Nonetheless, our political leaders continue to assert the long held belief that through engaging brutal regimes like China and the Soviet Union before them, that we can eventually bring them into the fold of civilized nations, if this assertion is true, then why one set of rules for tyrannical regimes like Saudi Arabia and China and another set of rules for Cuba?

There isn’t a single documented case in all of human history where a trade embargo has played even the slightest role in toppling a dictatorship, not in Iraq, not in fascist Italy and certainly not in Cuba, even anything embargo’s serve only to embolden a tyrant giving fuel for their propaganda machine and at the same time ensuring the people remain entrenched in squalor and poverty. For we can rest assured that Fidel and brother Raul aren’t wanting for anything. The Cuban embargo has no place as a tool of US foreign policy, Obama should be applauded for challenging the concept. To be sure, Obama like most of his leftist companions, who’s socialist tendencies are without question, is quite undeserving of the office of president, it is not because of his position on Cuba.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/08/21/obama.cuba/

Previous Posts:
http://www.thephalanx.com/2005/10/communism-would-have-fallen-years-ago.html

In yet another study on world health it appears that life expectancy in the US is lagging behind a number of industrialized nations. According to the latest figures, a child born in 2004 can expect to live 77.9 years. As any learned individual can attest statistics can be manipulated quite easily, often reflecting the vantage point of the messenger. While it is certainly true that the US now ranks 42nd amongst the world’s leading industrialized nations, one would assume, based on the wording of this report that the US life expectancy had declined. In fact US life expectancy has consistently risen throughout the years. Yes it would be nice to be number one in the rankings but lets take a look at these rankings and what they do and do not reveal about America.

According to an article from CNN “Countries surpassing the U.S. include Japan and most of Europe, as well as Jordan, Guam and the Cayman Islands.” Not to nit pick but Guam is the United States, secondly, do a Google News search on US life expectancy, why do you suppose that in none of these articles do they show the actual rankings for each of the 41 countries ranking higher than the United States? We do know that Andorra had the highest ranking at 83.5 years but we have no idea how most of Europe and Asia faired. Perhaps, just perhaps it has something to do with the difference between most of these 42 countries is statistically insignificant, but conveniently ignored in order to cast the US and its healthcare system in the most negative light possible.

So what accounts for this disparity, well if you are sit on the left the answer is obvious, it lies in the fact that 45 million Americans lack health coverage. If that were the case then why is it that the US ranked among the top 15 countries 2 decades ago when poverty rates in the US were higher? The fact that many American who chose to squander opportunities, or have children as teenagers or drop out of school or otherwise waste the opportunities this nation affords and thus lack health has little to do with the US ranking.

The fact is lifestyle is greatest single factor influencing life expectancy in the United States. Americans are growing more and more overweight as a gluttonous lifestyle gradually takes its toll on the US population. The fact is if many Americans consume too many fried foods and get little or no exercise such actions are personal decision and have nothing to do with high quality of care offered by the vastly superior US healthcare community. The fact also remains that the US has one of the highest crime rates in the world, drunk driving, domestic violence, drug use and so is also a significant factor. These factors of course have nothing to do with health care, but reflect values, or lack thereof amongst many Americans. Regardless of what so many leftists would have you believe, if you get sick pray its an American hospital you are going to…
http://www.cnn.com/2007/HEALTH/08/13/life.expectancy.ap/index.html

Nearly two years after Hurricane Katrina attempted to do what no police or charitable organization has ever been successful in doing: clean up New Orleans streets, it seems all hope for progress has long since been stalled in the Big Easy. According to Postal Service figures, which must be highly reliable given the USPS track record, the New Orleans area has recovered nearly 2/3rd of its pre-Katrina population. As anyone who has visited the city can attest such a figure is not necessarily good news.

Crime in the city is stratospheric and basic government services, never a pillar of strength in the best of times, are in dire straits. Police and Fire are short changed and public schools are sorely lacking, though one must question, what person in their right mind would send their child to a New Orleans public school, under the best of circumstances, much less in their present form.

There simply is no logical reason to continue to pour tax payer money into the cesspool that is New Orleans, the fact that the city remains below sea-level and is destined to suffer a similar fate in the future is a strong incentive to relocate, but aside from this glaring reality lies the fact that government administration in the Big Easy is a joke to say the least. Those who have left would be better off in their new homes, except from the vantage point of those in Houston and Atlanta who have seen a disproportionate number of the Katrina dregs inhabit their fair cities…
http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20070813/a_nobenchmarks13.art.htm?loc=interstitialskip

Former Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich, a man with more negatives than Hillary Clinton and a hopeless choice for president, if he chooses to run, makes a good point about the nature of our government bureaucracy.