An 82nd Airborne Military Vet Speaks Out: What Can Obama Do?

by Larry Naron
VIEW Issue 11, Feb. 2009: I hate being pessimistic, but do you ever wonder why Obama is being painted to resemble the second coming? Don't get me wrong, I voted for this wellspoken educated man. The issue I see is that people are placing way too much confidence in the ability of any president to clean up the current mess. This Article: http://bit.ly/2eOhETb

We have an unfinanced war eroding our economy and adding trillions to the national debt. Obama has no ruby slippers to click his heals and immediately end that economic drain. All the reports I've listened to say, even with the will to leave, it's not feasible to immediately divest ourselves for at least eighteen months. This would not be a full-scale pullout but rather a gradual withdrawal. I've also heard that, because of escalating battles in Afghanistan, we will be diverting forces there.

"I respect Obama but personally I don't think he has the political will to resolve these issues."

This is an economic quagmire we will be embroiled in for some time to come that costs several billion dollars every month. Did I mention, aftercare for wounded veterans and dependent family members of dead and severely wounded veterans, who will need support for years. Not our problem? They volunteered? Well, if that is your attitude, then when all the social problems that combat stress engenders knocks on your door, remember you read about it somewhere a long time ago in a free paper. Drug addiction, alcoholism, domestic violence etc. are all manifestations of war.

The CIA Director at the time we invaded Iraq (George Tenet) wrote a book that we had absolutely no proof of Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) and Bush was made aware of this before the infamous We need to kick the Iraqis’ butts speech. When the CIA, who was directly responsible for coups in Guatemala, Chile, Cuba, Vietnam and many other places we don’t know about, tell you "No weapons of mass destruction" perhaps you need to listen.

"If you were unfortunate enough to purchase something made in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea or Japan you knew it was junk."

We fund the CIA to the tune of several billion dollars for spy satellites, spies, and a network of brilliant minds to analyze said intelligence data. At a whim the President, whose father was the former Director in Chief of the CIA, chooses to ignore the Iraqi WMD data….Does anyone get it or am I the only one in the dark. I repeat what can Obama do?
I think that most people believe the mortgage crisis is totally responsible for the meltdown, so I needed to throw out the financial strangulation caused by unfinanced wars before I lept into the other unacknowledged problem of our current economy.
Economy 101 for Business Success;
You need to have a product people are willing to part with their hard-earned greenbacks to acquire. For a country this is finished goods or raw materials. Luckily our country had, at one time, both in abundance. Then some financial whiz said "Hey, I figured a way to save on production costs." No, he didn’t invent a new machine that did it automatically.
He realized that most industrialized nations have the highest labor costs.

Let’s build it elsewhere... When I was a kid growing up this would have never worked. We always checked the Made in label. If you were unfortunate enough to purchase something made in Taiwan, Hong Kong, Korea or Japan you knew it was junk. If it lasted more than a couple of days you were ecstatic about your good fortune. The quality of goods produced in these countries has steadily risen and we have become a throw-away-society. We no  longer expect a wrench to outlive us but if we are guaranteed a new one if we bust it, that suffices for the quality we once expected.

"People need to have jobs to buy houses, cars, boats and other things they need to support their families."

After NAFTA, I watched whole manufacturing plants auctioned off and sold to cross-border or across-the-globe business interests. I worked for McDonnell Douglas in Long Beach on the MD80 line during the mid-eighties. I remember the company offering workers free trips to China. The only catch was that you had to train the Chinese Workers how to build the plane. I explained to fellow workers at the time, that it was economic suicide and some actually listened. Far more went to China. There is certain technology you never give out in any manufacturing process. This is called core technology. If you do give away this technology, even in a partnership, you have betrayed your employees as now their job security is threatened.

"...about trade imbalances; yet I don't remember the government stepping in and quashing that deal."

You always hear the government complaining about trade imbalances; yet I don’t remember the government stepping in and quashing that deal. Oh, yeah, that was before the Chinese air force forced one of our planes out of international airspace and ransacked it.
Back to the point, that we need manufacturing in this country. We need automobiles, boats, airplanes, tools, appliances etc. made in the USA. People need to have jobs to buy houses, cars, boats and other things they need to support their families. Without the manufacturing and jobs that come with it, we will forever be a debtor nation and never escape this economic quagmire.

"White Collar Crime needs to be prosecuted with a new zeal so average Joe can actually believe in justice again."

The next thing we need is protection from the Ken Lays of this world. White Collar Crime needs to be prosecuted with a new zeal so average Joe can actually believe in justice again. The fact that Kens' family was allowed to keep his ill-gotten gains because he died after his conviction, but before his appeal was heard is unacceptable.
Bernie Madoff, who ruined countless peoples lives, needs to be incarcerated; not mailing an estimated $1,000,000 (one million dollars) in jewelry from his $7,000,000 (seven million dollar) New York apartment while he awaits trial.

"Institute a farm labor green card program for agriculture only."

Maybe Obama can do this. Stop exporting jobs. End the wars. Punish the white-collar criminals responsible for the meltdown. Institute a farm labor green card program for agriculture only. If an illegal immigrant is doing construction, truck-driving, working in fast food or the myriad of other jobs there are plenty of Americans for, they should lose their green card and future SSN benefits. I respect Obama but personally I don't think he has the political will to resolve these issues.
– Larry Naron

This Article: http://bit.ly/2eOhETb

SOURCE: VIEW Issue 11, Feb. 2009

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