It revolves around the last battle of the War of 1812, how Jackson won that battle, some miraculous aspects of it, and some of Jackson’s background, including how he came from very humble roots to become an American congressman and President, as well as a war hero.
I also asked Brian some questions about current events.
President Obama spent half of his recent national security speech dealing with why he doesn’t call the ideology of the biggest terror threat “radical Islam”. Republicans have noticed that he has refused to use that term for years, and he finally addressed why. But are his reasons reasonable? And why is calling the threat by this name such a big deal?
I’ll explain why it is such a big deal. And I’ll have to break my self-imposed time limit to do so (but not by much).
In the early morning hours of Saturday, November 14th, ISIS terrorists attacked Paris, France. They did so from 7 different locations at the same time, including a theater where a concert was going on, and the soccer stadium where a game was going on, and French President Francois Hollande was in attendance. When the shooting and bombing was done, 129 people had died. Paris went on lockdown, issuing the first curfew since the 1944 Nazi bombings, and they closed the borders.
The Right got upset when the summit was called “Countering Violent Extremism”, not mentioning the very real, global threat we face today; Islamic extremism. What’s in a name? Well, if you won’t call it by name, you run the risk of ignoring the main threat and inflating other, smaller ones. The Administration has done just that.
Do you want a President who didn’t finish his last semester of college, or one that turned a state’s economy around? You can have both, actually.
How about those low gas prices? Who can we thank for them? Well, a number of people, none of which, however, are in the Obama administration. The “Drill, baby, drill” policy of the states have worked; something that Obama said was a lie.
But first, a follow-up on a story last episode about the Atlanta fire chief that published a book with his Christians views, and was docked a month’s pay and suspended. Upon returning from that suspension, he was promptly fired. Another shot on the religious liberty front.
And finally, we have a bounty on the head of a terrorist that we used to have in Guantanamo. I think it might have cost less just to keep him incarcerated.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has accused Republicans in the House of Representatives of obstruction by not passing bills. What he’s not saying (and what you’re not hearing, depending on your source of news) is that there are hundreds of bills they’ve passed that are sitting on Reid’s desk waiting for a vote in the Senate. How many and how many pass unanimously? Well, you’ll have to listen in.
Leon Panetta, who was head of the CIA and later the Pentagon, during the time of our fight with an ascendant al Qaeda and with Iraq, has written a book, “Worthy Fights: A Memoir of Leadership in War and Peace”. In it, he’s brutally honest as to his assessment of the Obama administration’s war policies. Some of his observations about them coincide with what conservatives have been saying.
And a Name That Quote segment that could be Name That Column (but isn’t; I only have 10 minutes or less).
The President has, in the past, said some things about the situation in Iraq and some of the players that he’s had to take back recently (or at least ignore). Now, we all know that Presidents can’t be perfect prognosticators. They have aids that specialize in different areas who try to anticipate issues before they get out of hand. But there is someone that perhaps President Obama should’ve hired who made a prediction back in 2007.
Obama has proclaimed over and over, over the course of years, about how he promised to end the war in Iraq, and he did. The question is, was it a good promise to make?
And I ask the question again; where’s the anti-war crowd? They’ve been conspicuously absent while a Democrat has been in the White House. What do they think about this new “surge”, so to speak? Their silence speaks volumes.
This time, I spent all my time on one topic, but it’s one that spans over 30 years. (But I’ll still be done in 10 minutes or less.)
During the presidential debates between Mitt Romney and President Obama, Obama mocked Romney’s thoughts on what was the biggest geopolitical threat. Romney said “Russia”. Fast forward to today, and it turns out he was right. With a little history as the backdrop, today’s foreign policy looks like it could use a little help from Ronald Reagan.
Are the Crusades typical of most wars? (Hint: No.)
The school voucher program in Louisiana is a fantastic success. The high school graduation is significantly up, and the poorest are benefiting the most. So, of course, Obama’s Justice Department is suing to stop it on the ground of … diversity? Really? (Yes, really.)
Would you believe that Antarctic ice is at a 35-year record level, and that temperatures have stopped rising? And this in spite of the fact that CO2 is being added to the atmosphere at a record pace? You should. Because, y’know, it’s true.
Is religion the major cause of war? Are the Crusades just one of many examples of how religion has caused so much conflict over the course of human history? I’ve got the stats for you.
A very high-profile supporter of foreign aid to Africa has had his mind turned around upon learning what capitalism has done for the continent. Aid is a stop-gap measure, not a cure. See if you can figure out who it is before I spill the beans.
The anti-war movement has had its resolve tested by being given virtually identical scenarios about war-making; one with a Republican President and one with a Democrat. The outcry should be the same, if the stance they take is on principle rather than on politics. Listen in to see how they measure up.
