OBAMA IS NOT YOUR FRIEND

Noam Chomsky isn't afraid to remind us that Obama knows which side his bread is buttered on

I've been surprised -- and then again, maybe not -- at the hero worship going on among some liberals at present.

Message threads for any stories about Obama on The Huffington Post -- a Dem/liberal news site -- have been praising the president's courage and candor, vision and integrity, because "he" got bin Laden.


He's Not One of Us

This is my take: Obama's a politician and a member of the elite. The whole bin Laden thing was conducted in such a way that if another nation had taken similar action on U.S. soil, a great many people in this country would be howling. But since "we" did it, it's okay with a lot of people (and NOT okay with a lot of people as well, I should add), and therefore Obama is the great architect and moral force behind this "necessary" murder.

Now, don't fly off the rails and tell me that bin Laden was a terrorist and murderer. Even though he never went to trial, most of us accept this to be true. But how is Obama not a terrorist and murderer when children in Afghanistan, to name one instance, are being killed by our armed forces/government? Remember: Obama is the Commander in Chief.


Laws are for Everyone

My point is that there are international laws and international bodies and correct ways of doing things. And if the U.S. government truly wants international respect, then the U.S. must treat all other nations, suspected criminals, and citizens everywhere according to international laws and conventions. It's a two-way street.

I say again: Obama's a politician and a member of the elite. I don't know what he came up with and what he didn't in terms of this whole "covert operation." But he certainly rubber stamped it. And now he's on "60 Minutes" and any podium that will hold him, squeezing all that strong-wise-leader juice out of the story and campaigning like a champion. Yes, that's all he's doing. Campaigning. If our politicians actually worked a fifth of the time they spent posturing for us, we'd be in a lot better shape. No, strike that. The corporations would have even sweeter deals. We'd probably still be in trouble.

I don't trust either party or any president I've seen. Why the hell would anybody? These people aren't our friends. Their motives aren't the same as ours. Personally, my allegiance is to the global common good. That's it.


Chomsky Tells it How it Is

Let me quote an extract from an interview with Noam Chomsky that was published in "The New Statesman" in September, 2010. Chomsky is a very astute critic of Obama, and is ever ready to give some factual perspective on the guy so we don't all fall into the trap of thinking that Bush was a demon (for the record, he was) and this guy is our savior (for the record, he's not):

"What are your thoughts on President Obama?

He’s involved in war crimes right now. For example, targeted assassinations are war crimes. That’s escalated quite sharply under Obama. If you look at WikiLeaks, there are a lot of examples of attacks on civilians.

What did you think when he was given the Nobel Peace Prize?

Considering the history of the Nobel Peace Prize, it’s not the worst example. It was given to him before he had the time to commit many war crimes.

Is there any point in us being in Afghanistan?

We wouldn’t have asked in 1985: 'Is there any point in the Russians being in Afghanistan?' The fact is that the invasion was a crime. Then comes the question: 'Is there any point in continuing?' But that presupposes legitimacy. Putting aside questions of morality and legality and simply asking about the goals of the US government is a very narrow consideration."

In another interview with The European Courier in March, Chomsky began his answer to the question "How would you summarize the presidency of Barack Obama as of now?" this way:

"Obama is a man of absolutely no principles. He has two constituencies. One of them is the popular constituency, the people who voted for him. For them he is doing essentially nothing. He has another constituency: the people who financed his campaign, the financial institutions. And they are getting rewarded."

Some food for thought. Bon appetit!

Adrian

IF YOU FOUND THIS BLOG POST INTERESTING you might like to take a look at THE MASS MURDERERS OF WASHINGTON D.C.