I actually agree with Richman....To an extent. Most folks realize that politicians like Lindsey Graham, (and a host of other politicians on the opposite side of the aisle!) are buffoons, and pay little attention to their rhetoric.
Having said that, experts believe that IS now has the capability of producing 300 to 500 barrels a day of oil, daily, generating as much as $2 million per day in black market oil sales for the IS Economy....Nothing to sneeze at, especially when you consider that IS has no overhead; no economy to speak of; no populace or infrastructure to support or maintain. All of IS's revenue streams are for the sole purpose of weaponry, and/or to somehow strike their opposition, and IS has made no secret of who they believe is its "Targets"; the United States in particular and "Western Europe/Israel/Western Society" in general. I don't think there is anyone (save some idiots) who believes that IS or the "IS Levant Army" (whatever you wish to label them) is necessarily a "Direct" threat to the Continental United States. By the same token, it would be foolish to overlook any entity who directly threatens our Nation-State, and has the ability to inflict actual damage and casualties.....Especially as brutal and threatening as the IS has appeared to date. The CIA estimates the IS Army to be somewhere between 25,000 to 31,500; again, something to take note of and be aware of. Moreover, IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi has made said publicly on more than one occasion that it is IS's intent to strike the United States on its own shores, in our cities and towns; at the very heart of the United States. I guess my question to Mr. Richman would be: "What do you expect our politicians and leaders to say or do?" Sit quietly until there is an actual strike upon our shores? Does Mr. Richman feel as though the media should not cover this story? There is no doubt in my mind that the American public should be very well aware of the threat that IS poses, and be cognizant of this threat. On Thu, Oct 16, 2014 at 9:19 AM, MJ <[email protected]> wrote: > > > *"When will the American people learn? If in a republic the people are the > ultimate check on government power, a gullible, easily frightened public is > a disaster waiting to happen. Where is the derisive skepticism Americans > are reputed to feel toward politicians? A high-ranking official and, say, > CNN’s Christiane Amanpour need only say “Boogeyman!” and Americans line up > for orders." *October 16, 2014 > > *The Politicians Are Scaring You Again *by Sheldon Richman > > They are doing it again. “They” are the war-party politicians, Democrats > and Republicans. “It” is scaring you into supporting another war in the > Middle East. > > When will the American people learn? If in a republic the people are the > ultimate check on government power, a gullible, easily frightened public is > a disaster waiting to happen. Where is the derisive skepticism Americans > are reputed to feel toward politicians? A high-ranking official and, say, > CNN’s Christiane Amanpour need only say “Boogeyman!” and Americans line up > for orders. > > “Americans are increasingly concerned that ISIS represents a direct terror > threat, fearful that ISIS agents are living in the United States, according > to a new CNN/ORC International poll. Most now support military action > against the terrorist group,” CNN reported > <http://www.cnn.com/2014/09/08/politics/cnn-poll-isis/> in September. > “Seven in 10 Americans believe ISIS has the resources to launch an attack > against the United States.” > > Administration officials leave the impression that the Islamic State > (ISIS), which holds territory in Iraq and Syria, directly threatens > Americans at home, although when pressed, these officials won’t say this > outright. In interviews President Obama says there is no “immediate > intelligence” concerning a threat, but he insists the U.S. military must > strike ISIS now or else… Obama wants it both ways: to scare the people into > supporting a new American war in Iraq and Syria, without creating a panic. > “We will not tolerate safe havens for terrorists who threaten our people,” > Obama said > <http://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-we-will-not-tolerate-safe-havens-from-terrorists/> > . > > Obama’s Republican critics show no restraint. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), > for example, goes to absurd lengths to frighten Americans. “This president > needs to rise to the occasion before we all get killed back here at home,” > Graham said > <http://www.mediaite.com/tv/sen-graham-obama-must-stop-isis-before-we-all-get-killed-here-at-home/>. > He forecast the deaths of hundreds of millions of Americans if something > drastic is not done. > > Thirty thousand ISIS fighters are going invade and kill 319 million > Americans? > > What about terrorism? > > Veteran foreign correspondent Reese Erlich, who has been in northern Iraq > recently, debunks the fearmongers in “ 10 Myths about Obama’s Latest War > <http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/10_myths_about_obamas_latest_war_20141001> > ”: > > IS [ISIS] is a vicious, un-Islamic, ultra-right-wing group that poses a > real threat to the people of Syria and Iraq. But those people will defeat > IS, not the U.S., whose motives are widely questioned in the region. IS > poses no more of a terrorist threat to the American people than al-Qaida > and its offshoots. > > Clearly, ISIS has its hands full fighting Syrian, Iraqi, and Kurdish > forces, so why the hysteria that some new and unprecedented threat faces > the American people? Because irresponsible politicians know that public > fear breeds public acquiescence. > > Yet the Obama administration must have thought that ISIS wasn’t > threatening enough, because during the first airstrikes in Syria, U.S. > bombs also hit a hitherto unknown group said to be planning an imminent > attack on America, the Khorasan Group. The first reason for skepticism is > that the administration has redefined imminent also to mean > <http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/04/16843014-justice-department-memo-reveals-legal-case-for-drone-strikes-on-americans?lite> > not > <http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/04/16843014-justice-department-memo-reveals-legal-case-for-drone-strikes-on-americans?lite> > imminent > <http://investigations.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/02/04/16843014-justice-department-memo-reveals-legal-case-for-drone-strikes-on-americans?lite> > . > > A second reason is that hardly anyone had heard of the Khorasan Group, and > it seemed to disappear as quickly as it arose. Glenn Greenwald wrote > <https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2014/09/28/u-s-officials-invented-terror-group-justify-bombing-syria/> > in the Intercept, > > But once it served its purpose of justifying the start of the bombing > campaign in Syria, the Khorasan narrative simply evaporated as quickly as > it materialized.… Literally within a matter of days, we went from > “perhaps in its final stages of planning its attack” (CNN) to “plotting as > ‘aspirational’” and “there did not yet seem to be a concrete plan in the > works” (NYT). > > It turns out that the Khorasan Group was just an al-Qaeda cell, not some > unique new threat against the American people, as it was presented. “There > are serious questions about whether the Khorasan Group even exists in any > meaningful or identifiable manner,” Greenwald writes. > > This does not mean that ISIS-inspired terrorism inside the United States > is inconceivable. But the threat does not remotely approach the > existential, and ISIS has no need to dispatch agents to, or set up sleeper > cells in, America. Indeed, the Department of Homeland Security warns that > “lone wolf” terrorism by “self-radicalized” Americans is more to be feared > than an ISIS plot. > > The best way to avoid terrorism is to stop dropping bombs on Muslims. > Meanwhile, everyone should take a deep breath. The risk of being a victim > of terrorism is miniscule > <http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/04/16/eight-facts-about-terrorism-in-the-united-states/> > . > > > > http://fff.org/explore-freedom/article/the-politicians-are-scaring-you-again/ > > -- > -- > Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. > For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum > > * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ > * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. > * Read the latest breaking news, and more. > > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "PoliticalForum" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "PoliticalForum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
