Article: When Obama Took a Stand

American Thinker has posted our latest article today:

When Barack Obama Stands Firm

It is a follow-up article to our article from last week: When Presidents Stand Firm.

These images hint at the article's theme...

From a FB Comrade:

From Drudge:

From Earl of Taint:

From World News Bureau:

UPDATED 4.2.14 11am:

Posting articles like ours elicits a variety of comments.  At least one libertarian will come in and offer a comment that has nothing to do with the article, like "end the fed" in an abortion article.  At least one Democrat (useful idiot) will hit all caps, "HE'S NOT A COMMUNIST!"   We even had a Nazi leave a comment in our article about Resistance.  Most others, especially at American Thinker, add to the substance of the article or just confirm the writer's intent.  We appreciated this comment from AtALoss:

You are quite right, this is the only issue he has ever stood firm on. Every other issue was pushed on him by Valerie and George S. and he went along. Letting healthy babies lie alone in a hospital room to die unattended will bring Barry an eternity of fiery regret that no water will ever quench. The man is the ultimate coward.

Better Late than Never

In the mail: Dear Reader

Author Michael Malice released his latest book, Dear Reader: The Unauthorized Autobiography of Kim Jong Il. 

Malice brings his unique perspective from growing up in Soviet Ukraine to this study of North Korea.  He is a strong anti-communist and a big fan of Ayn Rand.

He was recently interviewed by Reason.  This is an excellent interview.  We learned a ton in this 54-minute video and Mr. Malice is obviously an expert on the North Korean experiment.



You'll notice this author has a great sense of humor.  I think humor and mockery are the answers to ending communism.  We sensed a similar sense of humor, albeit subtle, in Solzhenitsyn's Gulag Archipelago.  The key is that the humor be grounded in the evil of communism, and this author is spot on.  Just listen to his answer regarding Dennis Rodman about mid-way through.

I can't wait to read this book.

The author's website.

Contribute Comrades!

Use the DONATE button at the left to send $$$ to the best charity on the planet: Liberty in North Korea (LiNK). 

Your dollars will go directly to their operation in China where they help North Korea defectors get to South Korea where they finally are free. 

They average only $2500 per escapee.  Imagine what it would cost if Obama were to setup a government program...

Another Option: just buy one of their cool shirts.  100% of the transaction goes to their operation.

LiNK Store.

There may be a day when you'll need their help to reach freedom....

More Spectacular Democrat Party Corruption

This summary is not available. Please click here to view the post.

The OJT President

The on-the-job-training continues for our dear leader.  Comrade, hat owner and gun-blogger Tam was the only one to catch this one:

Obama:  The United States does not view Europe as a battleground between East and West, nor do we see the situation in Ukraine as a zero-sum game.

Tam:  ....national borders in Europe are absolutely a zero-sum game, what with the last unclaimed territory on the continent vanishing some time in the late Middle Ages. Land there is a finite resource: For a country to get more, another country has to give some up.

It's telling that this icon of modern progressivism, this standard bearer of the Gramscian Long March, doesn't see actual physical lines on a map as a zero-sum game, and yet does see income inequality as a zero-sum game, as though the economy were a RISK board and the only way for Bill the Janitor to get more fiscal territory is for Bill the Software Company Founder to give some up.

And today's Drudge headline tells us what Obama's biggest worry is.... 5+ years into his presidency.

Give him another couple years and he'll want to get spending under control.  He'll tell us it is the most responsible thing to do.

How about we elect someone serious in 2016?  Just try it out for four years...

Tina "Nikita" Fey

It took FB Comrade, Jack, to explain to me that Tina Fey with the Hammer & Sickle adorned ushanka was in costume for the new Muppet movie. 

 I can't remember a time where she didn't project the values of the hammer and sickle.

The comrade on the right is Nikita, one of our lovely Ushanka Babes.

Source: Parade

U/T: Jack

Presidential Leadership

I have an article today at American Thinker: When Presidents Stand Firm. 

Two stories about when Presidents Truman and Reagan stood alone, against the communists, their political opposition in the US, and their own party and advisers to do what was right.

My sources for the article were two books, and a hearty dose of respect (and longing) for our nation's anti-communist presidents.

Daring Young Men, by Richard Reeves, and
The Crusader, by Paul Kengor.

Special thanks to comrade, author, t-shirt vendor and blogger Diann Russell for her valuable proof-reading help.

Illinois Chose Poorly

Here is the one hour debate between our dear leader and Ambassador Alan Keyes in the 2004 Senate race in Illinois.  You don't have to be a conservative, a Republican, or awake to know Mr. Keyes was the right choice.




One day many will ask "When did this slippery slope start?"  This post answers that question.

Crimea: The First Liberation

English Russia has posted a photo album from the first liberation of Crimea - 1944:

A Disappointing Book

Normally I don't mention when I have wasted my time with a book.  The book list at the left is made up of roughly 50% of the books I've read in my study of communism and related topics.  They are worthy of mention.

Further, I have a deep respect for the discipline and focus necessary to write a book and am sensitive to the fact that a bad book review can be mistaken for a bad author review.  This author put in four years of research, and I don't mean to take away from that in the criticisms below.

I recently  mentioned The Phoenix Program by Douglas Valentine.  I served with a Vietnam Vet who assisted with this CIA program, and I wanted to know more.  I also served in Army Psychological Operations (PSYOP) units in the Army Reserves and graduated from the Army's PSYOP Officer's course.  This book looked like a great source - one of very few on the subject.

---

I stopped reading at page 49.  Here is why:

Page 42: the author leads the paragraph discussing a Catholic priest who was decapitated by the communists and how the CIA responded:

CIA psywar and paramilitary officers, their brains bursting with big ideas and their Abercrombie and Fitch safari jacket pockets bulging with big bucks, converged on Vietnam from Cuba, Africa, Greece, Korea, the Philippines, Laos, and Indonesia.

Really?  First, it is "PSYOP," not psywar or psyops.  Second, Psychological Operations is a pretty mild, non-lethal, wartime activity.  What the CIA was doing in Vietnam might have had a PSYOP component to it (leaflets, newsletters, education materials, etc.), the act of seeking, then capturing or killing communists was not PSYOP in any way.  Second, why the jacket brand?  Third, why "big bucks" and not a figure of CIA spending (actual or estimated)?  Fourth, why the list of countries?

It appears the author wants the reader to conclude: the CIA is everywhere, they are brainwashing people with "psywar" tactics, and that they all wear the same jackets.

Pages 50-52: the author lists the events during villiage visits by both communists and the anti-communist Moutain Scouts:

Communists:
1) Start with entertainment,
2) Anti-American speeches,
3) Villager self-criticism,
4) Recruitment,
5) Executions - (In later visits to villages that failed to produce recruits.)

Mountain Scouts:
1) Anti-Communist speeches,
2) Update their maps with villiage location and size,
3) Take communist defectors and leave informants,
4) Leave a head on a pike - (for communist-leaning villiages, the Mountain Scouts would put a Viet-Cong head on a pike as they exited the villiage.  The Viet-Cong solder had been killed in a previous battle.)

These are useful lists to understand the conditions preceding the main Vietnam war.  But the author's presentation suggested these lists as being morally equal when they clearly are not.  The random execution, or the threat of execution, is not the same as using a mutilated body to intimidate.

 Page 49: the author writes about the US Information Service (USIS) and it's "propaganda and censorship functions outside America."

"Propaganda" is a loaded word.  It is best used with the lies and distortions that the Soviets used both internally and in foreign media.  Defined: "information, ideas, or rumors deliberately spread widely to help or harm a person, group, movement, institution, nation, etc."  The author's use of the word "Propaganda" suggests he sees the communist and anti-communists messages in an equal light.  Deeper analysis - ALWAYS - shows that one is full of lies and misleading statements, while the other is not.

"Censorship" is another loaded term.

I'm open to the idea that the US can do wrong, but in this book we're served these loaded words without specific examples.  Had the author presented examples of US lies and censoring, rather than just say these existed, he'd have a better book.

---

I have no doubt this book is a thorough compilation of facts and stories from Vietnam, however it's reletively few 'blame America first' zingers sap the energy necessary to keep turning the pages.  It also felt unorganized, but having stopped so early in the book I would defer to others for a fair assessment.

According to the jacket cover, the author lives in Boston.  It is not a far stretch to think he was writing some sections as if he was talking to some coffee house liberals. His attempt to steer the reader into forming conclusions without evidence, and with loaded words, failed in 49 pages.  I regret I will not learn more from his research.

My copy is now in the trash.

started The Phoenix Program

started The Phoenix Program

started The Phoenix Program

started The Phoenix Program

started The Phoenix Program

started The Phoenix Program

started The Phoenix Program by Douglas Valentine

started The Phoenix Program by Douglas Valentine

Thursday Afternoon Cigar

A Rocky Patel Sun Grown and a good book.

We're reading The Frackers by Gregory Zuckerman.  So far a great book about entrepreneurs in the oil business in the 80's and beyond who, through trial and error, found better ways to exploit oil deposits.  While fracking is obviously part of the story, so is horizontal drilling.  It is great to read about the men willing to risk everything and who caught the big oil companies flat-footed.   I'm in Chapter 3 at the moment and am finding it to be one of those rare books where I can't seem to read fast enough. 

A sad note: The black and white rabbit that is usually in these cigar photos passed away this week.  She was over 9 years old, and had been a key partner in the Ushanka experience.  She was a sweet gal who graced over 100 Ushanka posts since 2006.  She will be missed.

I don't See Sean Penn

or Danny Glover...

A Venezuela food line:

Click over to Capitalism Is Freedom to see more pictures of the Venezuela food lines. 

Will socialism be this orderly in the states?

U/T: WZ

Memory Lane

We're doing some research on presidents as part of an article we hope to publish soon.  We found this gem and just had to share.

What Did You Think Would Happen?

Pennsylvania's Attorney General, Democrat Kathleen Kane (right), replaced a Republican in 2013 and quickly shut down his 3-year sting operation targeting corrupt politicians.

Could this be the reason:

“Sources with knowledge of the sting said the investigation made financial pitches to both Republicans and Democrats, but only Democrats accepted the payments,” said the Inquirer.

Clearly the investigators were absent from recent Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action and Diversity classes.

And clearly the citizens of Pennsylvania are better served now that this witch hunt has been terminated.  Right?

We've said it before and we'll say it again:  Liberals lie, cheat, steal, agitate, and tolerate others who do too.

Sources:
WZ
Liberty Unyielding: Pa. AG shuts down corruption sting when too many fellow Dems caught redhanded
Philly.com:  Kane shut down sting that snared Phila. officials

UPDATED 2:45pm:

Glenn links:  J. Christian Adams at PJMedia asks where Eric Holder was in this scandal.

A question occurred to us:  Were there and Democrats who turned down the bribes?

UPDATED 3.21.14 6am:

MoeLane reports AG Kane is suing media outlets who have reported this story in a bad light.  Apparently, her defimation claim suggests that the irresponsible reporting about her closing down an investigation that found 5 or more fellow Democrats guilty of taking bribes has led some to believe she is corrupt.

For the record, we have made no such claim here at Ushanka.

Tesla

This is a tribute post to the Tesla engineers and their founder, Elon Musk.

Innovation is happening everywhere but we rarely see it.  It mostly occurs in labs, within super computers, and in miniscule increments that we never notice.  When it happens, the human race wins.  When it happens big, the human race celebrates.

Microsoft made the information age possible.
Biotechnology disrupted the pharmaceutical industry.
Glock disrupted the handgun industry.
The iPhone disrupted the mobile phone and PDA industries.
Fracking disrupted the oil industry.
The Commie Obama Hat disrupted the furry hat industry.
And it looks like Tesla will disrupt the car industry.

Check out this 27-min Tesla tutorial, and see what happens when the inventor steps back, asks "what should be?", and then steps forward.




Who hates Tesla's innovation? 
EVERY car company, including those owned by the American tax payers.
Gas stations.
Chris Christie's state, and apparently my backwards state.  (More close-minded liberal states to follow.)
Any environmentalist who knows where electricity comes from.

Tesla delivers the numbers that drivers have been waiting for (except people who go on road trips).

I now see why Apple considered buying Tesla.  Do you?

Flight 370 - 9 Days Later

It has been over nine days since Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappeared.  We suspect Allah, or at least one of his soldiers of peace, is behind the disappearance.  Time will tell.  It will come out eventually.

We were reminded of another missing plane - Korean Airlines Flight 007, August 31, 1983.

In five days, not only did we know what happened, our president also released VERY sensitive NSA intercepts of Soviet military communications to prove what happened (5:20 mark in video below).

We also had a different standard for national leadership back then too:



Clarification: To those who were not born before the 80's, the NSA was a government agency that intercepted communications outside of the US.

More on Flight 007:
At History
At YouTube

The (D) Salute

If Bush is Hitler, then when Democrats do the Nazi salute are they saluting Bush?



U/T: WZ

Tweet of the Day

Gun Blogger Caleb, via hat-owner and comrade Tam:

 Those gun-bloggers seem to lean slightly to the right in their politics....

Ukraine: Recap and Thoughts

I'm just trying to organize my thoughts with this post.  I hope it helps others trying to make sense of this Russia-Ukraine thing.  Let me know if I've missed something.

Events:

1) February 2010 - Ukrainian President Yanukovych wins election on a pro-West platform.

2) November 2013 - Russia outbids the Western alliance option and the Ukrainian president, ignores history and goes with Russia.

3) November 2013 - Pro-Western Ukrainians rise up, proving us wrong.

4) February 22, 2014 - Pro-West protesters succeed and a deposed Yanukovych flees to Russia.

5) February 23 - The Sochi Olympics end.

6) February 28 - Russian forces occupy two Crimea airports.  Wikipedia:

The Autonomous Republic of Crimea is an autonomous parliamentary republic within Ukraine and is governed by the Constitution of Crimea in accordance with the laws of Ukraine.

Russia's military buildup in Crimea, and outside the borders of Eastern Ukraine, continues.

7) March 7 - ZH: An unmarked plane moves Ukraine's 40 tons of gold to the US.

8) March 13 - Secretary of State John Kerry tells Congress that the US and European nations will impose sanctions on Monday, March 17 if Russia takes Crimea.

9) March 14 - ZH: Russia sells $105b in US Treasuries.

10) March 15 - WSJ:

Russia vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution that calls on nations not to recognize the results of Sunday's referendum in Crimea on whether to secede from Ukraine and join Russia.

11) March 16 - The Crimea people are sympathetic to Russia.  They have an military alliance agreement through 2042 that allows for thousands of Russian forces to be based there. And, they are voting today to turn over their sovereignty to Russia. 

The unknown:

1) Does the Ukrainian constitution allow for Crimea to secede, let alone turn over their territory to a foreign country?

2) Will Russia "Liberate" Eastern Ukraine where they are also invited?

3) What are the goals of the threatened sanctions?  And will sanctions work?    

Win a Commie Obama Hat! (limit: 1): Name a time when sanctions alone achieved the exact foreign policy goals they were supposed to achieve.

Fine print:  We won't recognize the sanctions on S. Africa as the sole reason for ending apartheid.

4) Will Crimea be better off with the Russians?  Here is a ZH article that suggests it will.

5) Will Obama 'stir the pot' (aka escalate) in order to distract from Benghazi, IRS, and other crimes and policy failures?


Observations:

1) It appears US voters are not the only ones ignorant of history and who vote for Hope, Change, and Free Stuff.

Like Obama voters, maybe the Crimean and Ukrainian voters deserve what they get...  Twitter Photo from ZH:

2) John Kerry, America's traitor from the Vietnam era, botox aficionado and now the Secretary of State, has given the Russians a deadline for tomorrow.   This.  Is.  Embarrassing.

Does the Secretary of State not know he is a Democrat in a long line of Democrats who have failed at every foreign policy venture tried?  Does he not remember the failed deadlines preceding Iraq wars #1 and #2?  Does he not remember Obama's failed "Red Line" in Syria just a year ago? 

Putin is not Saddam Hussein.  Putin's military might not be up to snuff, but it doesn't have to be.  Putin rules the largest nuclear power on the planet.  Putin can poke the West in the eye all day long.  So long as he avoids a hot war, he will prevail in everything he sets his mind to do.  And sanctions will fail as Europe will cower when Putin threatens to turn off their gas supply.

The only positive to come out of John Kerry's threat is the price of gold.  Gold appears to be the ideal investment for people who have concluded that those in government are there because they couldn't do anything else.

3) We stick by our March 14 predication:

The world will still be here in October, and we'll all hear how we should vote Democrat because Obama saved us from World War III.

4) Let's give credit where credit is due.  Mr. Putin was smart to not store some of his gold in the US.  Remember how the Germans asked for their gold back last year and received only 5 of the expected 30 tons from the US?  By dumping US Treasuries and keeping one of Mother Russia's key assets at home, he has strengthened his hand in foreign conquests like those in Ukraine and Crimea.

5) This is what 20 years of lowering standards has wrought.  In 1991 a US president responded when a country invaded its neighbor.  The US kicked that tyrant out in a 100-hour ground war.   In 2014 we get words, flexible red lines, and threatened sanctions that won't work.


UPDATED 7pm:

Time:

The Crimean Central Electoral Commission announced that 83% of the peninsula’s registered voters had cast their ballots, and 95% of them had voted in favor of becoming a part of Russia.

Question #6:  Why sanctions when nearly the entire country wants to join Russia?

And AP:

The White House said Obama told Putin the Crimean vote violates the Ukrainian constitution and occurred under duress of Russian military intervention.

Observation #7:  In case you didn't catch it...  Our dear leader, who our glorious healthcare program with mandatory enrollment is named after, is lecturing another president on constitutional matters.


UPDATED 8pm:

Found at WZ:

 Hey Everybody - Let's try Communism again! 

Question #7:  What's the worst that could happen?

Of course, Communism won't happen here in the US.  Right?

Uhh, let the record show - and our records at the NSA will back us here - that we just found this article at LewRockwell:

Are you tempted to speak out against US policy in Ukraine; are you tempted to criticize the new Ukrainian regime?

Be careful what you say. Be careful what you write. President Obama has just given himself the authority to seize your assets.

According to the president’s recent Executive Order, “Blocking Property of Certain Persons Contributing to the Situation in Ukraine” (first reported by WND’s Aaron Klein), the provisions for seizure of property extend to “any United States person.”

UPDATED 3.17.14 Noon:

Obama's sanctions:  he freezes the US assets of 7 Russians who apparently do not have assets in the US.

Photo from Drudge.

Dithering

More dithering by those more equal than us.

Here is a picture from ZH of Russian tanks headed toward Ukraine.  Unfortunately, this photo was not taken from the cockpit of an A-10. 

Because drawing red lines is easier than having standards.

New Prediction:  The world will still be here in October, and we'll all hear how we should vote Democrat because Obama saved us from World War III.

Old Ushanka predictions that Putin was not to be trusted: all proven true.

$163k in Student Loans

Sad yes, but no sympathy here.



Go see Captain Capitalism's 27-min video to hear what I'm thinking.

Related, found at 90 Miles:

UPDATED 3.14.14:  

Per the Captain:  supposedly the student in the video above has posted clarification to her statement in the video, and that she is taking responsibility for her actions, regrets taking out the loans, and is not asking anyone else to pay them off. 

The Soviet Story

Our Commie Obama hat model has shared this excellent 1.5 hour video, from PeoplesCube, called The Soviet Story.



Some parts are in Russian and not sub-titled, but this is otherwise a great presentation of the evil of Communism.

The video includes good Nazi-Soviet comparisons too, such as this graph (10:22 mark) comparing the killing efficiency of the Nazis vs the Soviets.

You'll hear how the Nazis and Soviets, both following a Marxist principle, were committed to killing at least 10% of their populations in order to rid their countries of inferior people.  For the Soviets, the Ukrainians in the early 30's were the easy targets.

The good news: this will never happen again.  (If you agree with this, you didn't watch the whole video.)

An Economic Post

Some excellent posts on monetary and economic issues:

Francis W. Porretto at Liberty’s Torch recently published a 3-part explanation of money, currency and the gold standard:

Part 1: The Nature of Money and Currency

Definitions:

money n: A medium of exchange and a store of value.
currency n: a proxy for money often employed in commercial intercourse.—

---

A society's fiscal problems commence when people start to lose the distinction between money and currency.

—

Bitcoin, like the Federal Reserve notes in your wallet, is a currency. It cannot function as a money; it lacks the properties of money.

—

The great financier J. P. Morgan had been asked to testify to that august body on monetary matters. This was the very first inquiry put to him:

    Senator: Mr. Morgan, what is money?
    J. P. Morgan: Gold is money, and nothing else is.

Part 2:  Bimetallism and Gresham’s Law

Read the flaw with a system based on two metals like Silver and Gold (Bimetallism), and the challenges of shifting to the preferred Restricted Bimetallic Standard.  Further, read a case study of how the French Revolutionary Government failed to manage their currency and how the people there switched, illegally, to gold.


Part 3:  The Great Transformation

Read this part to learn how it took a hundred years to transform the dollar’s attachment from precious metals to fiat currency.

…the seeds of disaster had already been sown, in three ways: the income tax; the Federal Reserve Bank; and the rise to national prominence of "the Great Engineer," Herbert Hoover.

---

…the "New Deal" of the FDR years was not an entirely new development. It was in large measure a continuation of the policies of the Hoover years -- and the destruction of the gold standard, begun under Wilson with the creation of the Federal Reserve system, was integral to it.

---

There is no path back to sound money through politics. The political elite would never accept it, and they're too firmly entrenched to be dislodged by anything short of an armed uprising. Unsound money facilitates vote buying, cronyism, and the indefinite expansion of federal power -- and as I've said more than once, he who goes into politics desires power above all other things.

---

We uploaded four videos a couple of months ago discussing our precious metals investing lessons-learned and exploring our Silver-to-Gold Ratio investing ideas.  If you have some time, check them out:  Video 1, Video 2, Video 3, and Video 4.

---

Turning to the economy, our comrade, Captain Capitalism, aka Aaron Clarey, posted this video.  He makes an excellent point: the stock market is not the best economic indicator.  Be ready to voice these facts in the coming election season!

How the Captain Turned to Mockery

We all get there eventually.  Have you seen our hat?

 Our comrade, Captain Capitalism, has a thorough post today explaining his disturbing observation: "The Liberal Zombie," and how the Captain turned to mockery:

…the decaying intellectual capacity of leftists.

The absolute absence of any desire to be honest, truthful, and seeking reality at 20 something parties was just the tip of the ice berg.  It was a symptom of a much larger problem.  Here were presumed "adults," college educated even, who would have a glass of water put in front of them and when told "that is a glass of water" lacked the ability to acknowledge it for what it was.  This delusion or denial was just the first  of many symptoms of a decaying intellect.

—

... that made me realize leftists take everything you say seriously and no longer can tell when you are kidding.  They can't take a joke.  They can't laugh.  They are so serious and insecure about their politics, their intellect no longer has the capacity for humor.

Read it all.  We left the scary stuff out....

Tuesday Afternoon Cigar

A Rocky Patel Edge today.

I just started The Phoenix Program by Douglas Valentine.  It is about the CIA assassination program during the Vietnam War.  I've always wanted to know more about this.

I'm not sure I'll finish it.  I'm a bit turned-off by the author's repeated reminders of how the program ran counter to "American values" of due process, Geneva Convention, operations in Cambodia, blah blah blah.  His examples have not yet convinced me that we did anything wrong.  In fact, I'm encouraged to see that the CIA took the Communist threat seriously, and developed some creative methods to defeat the enemy.

One story had me laughing - the vampire story.

Some commies had a camp on a hill top.  The mission: get them to relocate.  The CIA-led team spread the rumor among nearby towns that there was a vampire on the hill, then waited a couple days for the rumor to migrate up the hill.  Then a SEAL team staked out a trail where the commies were known to patrol.  As a patrol went by, they snatched the last man in the stick, poked two holes in his neck, hung him upside down until all his blood was drained, then set his body next to the trail.  Shortly after his comrades found him, the camp moved.

I smoke today's cigar in honor of the men involved in the vampire operation!

CT says "No" to Hitler

We have a new Hitler video!  This time the furor is knee-deep in the Connecticut gun ban, registration and confiscation mess. 



This Hitler video is different from others for two reasons:

1) Most Hitler videos mark the end of an issue - usually mocking liberal over-reach.  The CT gun issue is far from over, and
2) It is far more appropriate, as Hitler used the same tactics as CT in his gun ban and confiscation.

Excellent work!

U/T: MoonBattery

You Can Hit Reporters in Venezuela

Maybe Sean Penn has something here....  There is a certain logic behind punching reporters...

WZ posts this Penn selfie.  Caption: Useful Idiot.

Speaking of Useful Idiots, where is Danny Glover?

WZ also posts this picture of the new Venezuelan food ration card.  Pssst, don't tell FLOTUS.

The Captain Nails It

The author of Enjoy the Decline is "done being nice" to liberals:



Speaking to those whose only strategy for employment is hoping the economy will turn around - 4:25 mark:

I don't want to hear it. 

"Well, hopefully..." 

"Hopefully" is what you voted that idiot in for, right? 

Hope? 

Hope??

There is no rule that says the losers in the last election have to be sad.  I have found that voting Republican gives me ample opportunities to laugh and yell "I TOLD YOU SO" at the useless idiots that line up to vote for Democrats free stuff.

NOTHING cracks me up more than hearing a liberal relative complain about higher taxes because they've moved into a higher tax bracket. 

We're coming up on Obama's 5th Summer of Recovery.  How many unemployed Liberal Arts majors think this will be the one?

 U/T: Aaron Clarey (aka Captain Capitalism)

UPDATED 12:40:

Doug posts another example of how voting for Democrats free stuff can hurt you more than help you.

Utilities are rising 20% and property taxes 100% in Chicago.

Palin at CPAC 2014

Stalin's Zhukov led the Red Army into Berlin. 

But Ushanka's Zhukov couldn't beat the crowds at CPAC today to see America's Zhukov serve a full plate of red meat.




An excellent end to a great CPAC. 

Guest Post: CPAC 2014, Day 2

Comrade Zhukov sends two sitreps from CPAC:

The first speaker I got to see today was Colonel Oliver North. First joke is about the youth subsidy aspect of Obama care which quickly transitions into a tribute to our military with an accompanying video. Colonel North lists off the sacrifices and the warrior spirit out troops have when he says that our current commander in chief doesn't deserve to lead our military. Ukraine is paying the price for our "leadership deficit disorder". On a shift of topic, Colonel North mentions various 'social' issues such as; abortion and gay marriage and he says they are not social issues, instead they are moral issues and are necessary in the elections.

 Start video at 3:00 mark:

The next speaker is governor Mike Huckabee. He begins by talking about the importance of god in the United States' conception and if we don't let him in we could break up. In a shift toward foreign policy Gov. Huckabee says we don't have a better relationship with any country than we did 5 years ago. He addresses Putin not respecting us and how Putin only shivers when," he's outside in the cold with his shirt off".

No overarching themes so far today. Foreign policy is still a huge topic because Obama's lack of experience and international clout.

--

Rand Paul: the speech of cpac 2014. After looking for a seat for all of 10 seconds it became obvious that it was going to be a standing speech. The room was full. Seats were full. Empty space was full. Then the speech. Senator Paul spoke mostly of civil liberties from government an libertarian red meat policies of smaller, less intrusive government. He mentioned that we should not give up liberty for security now or never. The "stand with rand"ers loved it. rant: The crowd was a slew of Paulbots ready to cheer about anything said from personal liberties to marijuana legalization. The cult of personality the Pauls possess is pretty amazing to see get conservatives, anarchists and hippies to come together. 

People loved the hat when they noticed. Had some stupid bimbos get all uppity and I just told them to read a book. You can keep or remove the rant just thought you'd like to know how the crowd was.

Rand Paul: lovers of liberty. Basically said that he is running for president. Like a 3rd person speech. Had to stand in the back, by far the most attended speaker of cpac so far. Talked against spying. We will not trade our liberty for security, not now, not ever. Be suspicious of government. Rights are from god and no government can take them away. Stand with rand thing. Libertarian red meat.

Thank you Comrade Zhukov!

Book Added to Library: Daring Young Men

We've added another book to our Communism Studies Library at the left.

Daring Young Men: The Heroism and Triumph of The Berlin Airlift June 1948 - May 1949.

We also added a link to our Book Notes.

It was a different time.  Need proof?  How about this Truman quote:

 ...communism must not spread its tentacles into the western zone.  We shall not retreat from that position.  You can fight communism on November 2nd with a Democratic Vote.

 This is a well-written book about an amazing American story of innovation, determination and good will in one of the first battles of the Cold War.  Highly recommended.

Be sure to see our Candy Bomber post from a few weeks ago!

Guest Post: CPAC 2014 Day 1

Zhukov reports:

Missed Cruz's speech and Paul Ryan's. Saw Bolton, Christie, Rubio, and Jindall. The timings were all messed up on the schedule.

Chris Christie:

Governor Christie came out swinging with his track record on unions with some related jokes and about foreign policy. I really like what Christie had to say on foreign policy because of the vacuum of leadership by the Obama administration. I also really liked how Christie spoke in his manners and voice.

Bobby Jindall:

Governor Jindall went heavy on education in content of his speech. He made multiple references to parents knowing best where to send their children to give them the best chance to succeed. Jindall was also really entertaining to listen to.

Sen. Rubio

Sen. Rubio made no mention to his botched attempt at immigration reform; the reason he is completely off my radar as a presidential candidate. He also spoke about education and made some references to the American dream.

John Bolton:

Walked in at the end of his speech and he was talking about foreign policy and how it should be compared to what it is under Obama. He made references to Reagan foreign policy.

Overall themes: foreign policy and education charters or free trade education.

That's all I have for now as far as updates on speakers.

Hardly anybody was there.  We sat in the dark auditorium. Bigger exhibit hall than last year too. Not as busy as last year attendance wise.

See our CPAC 2008 posts:
Roadtrip to CPAC 2008
CPAC 2008 - Main Report
CPAC 2008 - Supplemental Report
Roadtrip from CPAC 2008

How it is Done

Liz Wahl, formerly with RT America:

Photo of the Day

Our dear leader and at least 18 of his commissars discuss the urgent matter in Ukraine four months after the crisis begins and Russian invasion forces dig in. 

We found:

socks

shoes

twizzler

Zakof

Baghdad Bob

teleprompter

Wikipedia

I can't figure out the photo on the teleconference screen.

And how did they photoshop his feet off of the table?  Top editing skills there, Caleb!

What else did I miss?

Found at Twitchy.


A few trivia questions for you:  In 1991, what country did the US president say Iraq could not have?  How long did it take that president to decide:  1 day, 1 week, 1 month, or 1 year?  Liberating that country from the world's 4th largest military took 100 hours, 100 days, 100 months, or 100 years?  Any guess what political party that president belonged to?



Few posts past couple days due to capitalist endeavors.  Ya, we cling to the past.

Gun Control Run Amok

We may look back and say this was the calm before the storm.

The body count in Connecticut's recent gun-control legislation is currently:

Citizens: 0

Law Enforcement: 0

The Connecticut legislature could repeal the unconstitutional laws now and step away from the brink.  They could end the cycle of violence, before it begins.  The ball is in their court, and no revisionist history, including taking Ushanka offline, will be able to hide the fact that the next move will be theirs.  Either way.

And they won't be able to say they weren't warned of the risks.  Just today:

Comrade Bob Owens walks us through the first confiscation,

...you’re overwhelmed by a tidal wave of explosive sounds and feel the first bullets rip into your body. There are stars, so many stars, winking and suddenly, everything goes silent and black and your last conscious thought is a feeling of falling.

Firearms Instructor, James Yeager, walks us, and them, through the options.  All of them.

Yeager's instructor, Reid, filters out the diplomacy from Yeager's statement:




Bob now tells us that New Jersey in considering a gun ban on .22 rifles.

Anyone want to bet a Commie Obama hat that the New Jersey Governor, the Republican speaking at CPAC this coming weekend, will veto this bill if comes to his desk?

UPDATED 3.4.14 10am:

WOW!!!  Comrade Mr. B is offering free storage for CT guns for as long as it takes to overturn the tyrannical laws there.

Let me just say:  I can count the number of people I would trust with my guns on one hand, and Comrade Mr. B. is one of those guys.

This is worth the drive to Indiana folks!  Once you're fully disarmed, you can head up to North Chicago for some Italian Beef (w/ hot peppers) and a cold bottle of Old Style!

UPDATED 3.4.14 11am:

Watch these two CT bureau-douche-rats explain how the state won't pass any more gun-control.  It reminds me of Pol-Pot telling the city residents he moved to the countryside that they'd be back in their homes within 3 days.



U/T: John Cinque and MoonBattery

Movie: The Act of Killing

I just watched The Act Of Killing, a 2012 2-hour movie about the 1965 slaughter of a million people (movie) 500k killed (wikipedia) in Indonesia.  It was very interesting, but I can't recommend it as part of our Communism studies because the movie did not cover the political angle of the time.

This is a documentary.  They bring together several killers from 1965, who are all free today and were never punished, and have them talk about what they did, how they did it and their motivations.  While their targets were "Communists," there was nothing said about the political environment.

You'd think a movie about the murder of Communists and suspected Communists would include politics, but this one does not.  Further, it is implied that to those who killed in 1965, "Communism" was synonymous with "Chinese."  The killers, who are the focus of the movie and who explain their activities in 1965, are seen as having negative feelings toward the Chinese.  The troubling part of this is that all of the Chinese shown in the movie are merchants with their own shops.  In other words, the "Communists" depicted in today's Indonesia by the 1965 killers... are Capitalists.

The movie's absence of political drivers led this viewer, with no historical knowledge of Indonesia political history, to conclude those killed were victims of gang violence rather than political violence.  The interviews start with the killings rather than the motive(s).

Indonesia's Political History

There was a failed coup in 1965, which was blamed on Communists.  The Communist Party in Indonesia was the largest non-ruling Communist Party in the world until it was "crushed" in 1965 and outlawed in 1966.  From this coup attempt Suharto came to power and ruled for 31 years until 1998. 

Movie Criticisms

NY Times, March 1:

JAKARTA, Indonesia — The American director of the chilling Indonesian documentary “The Act of Killing” has won dozens of awards so far for the film and could add one of the movie industry’s most coveted honors Sunday at the Oscars.

But so far, the director, Joshua Oppenheimer, has not succeeded in accomplishing what he considered a greater goal — jump-starting a debate in Indonesia that will compel the government to finally open a formal inquiry into one of the worst mass murders of the 20th century.

South China Morning Post (Jan 21) reports Chinese social media is reacting to this movie - the first most Chinese have heard of the 1965 slaughter of mostly Chinese.

Voice of America (Jan 27) tries to explain why anti-communism is still strong in Indonesia.  I want to think there is more to the hatred of Communists than this.  Could it be anti-Chinese racism instead?

The anti-communist fervor persists, in part, because Indonesia never officially came to terms with this dark period in its history. The government has never apologized to survivors of the massacres, nor prosecuted the perpetrators, including those shown in the documentary.

The commies at Workers.org have posted their side of the coup story, which was the losing side.  The undated article's title:  The Bloodbath.  (Why don't Communists use words like "Bloodbath" when they tell the stories of the Gulag, Hungary, Poland, the Great Leap Forward or Khmer Rouge?  Or Ukraine?)

Other Thoughts

For over 8 years we've been saying here at Ushanka that all organized violence is started by Communists.  We corrected the record recently when the freedom-fighters in Ukraine proved an exception.  God bless them.  We are thinking this rule does not apply to 1965 Indonesia either.

You'll see the Pancasila Youth throughout the movie.  They are a paramilitary group that operated the death squads in 1965.  The killers in the movie were members.  The group is between 4 and 10 million strong today.  It is this group, and the absence of political discussion, that tells us the murders in 1965 were more of a turf war between gangs than a political campaign.  Since the murders were a means to a political end, Suharto, one could also suggest that the anti-Communist forces took a purge page out of the Communist's book.  If so, it worked.

Religion.  It isn't anywhere in the movie other than a mention of "God" here and there.  I'd like to know more about Indonesia's Islam as it compares to the Marxist Islam that exists nearby in Pakistan and Afghanista, etc.  Are Indonesian Muslims anti-Marxist, or just anti Chinese-Marxist?