Something to think about

davekc

Senior Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
I seen this article written by Jay Leno, and thought it would be appropriate to post it here. I thought originally I would post it in the soap box, but feel it really isn't political. More of an observation of sorts. Have a read.
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Something to think about from Jay Leno

Somewhat unexpected from Jay Leno....
"The other day I was reading Newsweek magazine and came across some poll data I found rather hard to believe. It must be true given the source, right?
The Newsweek poll alleges that 67 percent of Americans are unhappy with the direction the country is headed and 69 percent of the country is unhappy with the performance of the president. In essence 2/3rds of the citizenry just ain't happy and want a change.

So being the knuckle dragger I am, I started thinking, ''What we are so unhappy about?''
Is it that we have electricity and running water 24 hours a day, 7 days a week? Is our unhappiness the result of having air conditioning in the summer and heating in the winter? Could it be that 95.4
percent of these unhappy folks have a job? Maybe it is the ability to walk into a grocery store at any time and see more food in moments than Darfur has seen in the last year?
Maybe it is the ability to drive from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic Ocean without having to present identification papers as we move through each state? Or possibly the hundreds of clean and safe motels we would find along the way that can provide temporary shelter? I guess having thousands of restaurants with varying cuisine from around the world is just not good enough. Or could it be that when we wreck our car, emergency workers show up and provide services to help all and even send a helicopter to take you to the hospital.

Perhaps you are one of the 70 percent of Americans who own a home. You may be upset with knowing that in the unfortunate case of a fire, a group of trained firefighters will appear in moments and use top notch equipment to extinguish the flames thus saving you, your family and
your belongings. Or if, while at home watching one of your many flat screen TVs, a burglar or prowler intrudes , an officer equipped with a gun and a bullet-proof vest will come to defend you and your family against attack or loss. This all in the backdrop of a neighborhood free of bombs or militias raping and pillaging the residents. Neighborhoods where 90 percent of teenagers own cell phones and computers.

How about the complete religious, social and political freedoms we enjoy that are the envy of everyone in the world? Maybe that is what has 67 percent of you folks unhappy. Fact is, we are the largest group of ungrateful, spoiled brats the world has ever seen. No wonder the world loves the U.S. , yet has a great disdain for its citizens. They see us for what we are. The most blessed people in the world who do nothing but complain about what we don't have, and what we hate about the country instead of thanking the good Lord we live here.

I know, I know. What about the president who took us into war and has no plan to get us out? The president who has a measly 31 percent approval rating? Is this the same president who guided the nation in the dark days after 9/11? The president that cut taxes to bring an economy out of recession?
Could this be the same guy who has been called every name in the book for succeeding in keeping all the spoiled ungrateful brats safe from terrorist attacks? The commander in chief of an all-volunteer army that is out there defending you and me? Did you hear how bad the President is on the news or talk show? Did this news affect you so much, make you so unhappy you couldn't
take a look around for yourself and see all the good things and be glad?
Think about it......are you upset at the President because he actually caused you personal pain OR is it because the "Media" told you he was failing to kiss your sorry ungrateful behind every day.

Make no mistake about it. The troops in Iraq and Afghanistan have volunteered to serve, and in many cases may have died for your freedom. There is currently no draft in this country. They didn't have to go. They are able to refuse to go and end up with either a ''general'' discharge, an ''other than honorable'' discharge or, worst case scenario, a ''dishonorable'' discharge after a few days in the brig.

So why then the flat-out discontentment in the minds of 69 percent of Americans? Say what you want but I blame it on the media. If it bleeds it leads and they specialize in bad news. Everybody will watch a car crash with blood and guts. How many will watch kids selling lemonade at the corner? The media knows this and media outlets are for -profit corporations. They offer what sells , and when criticized, try to defend their actions by "justifying" them in one way or another. Just ask why they tried to allow a murderer like O.J. Simpson to write a book about how he
didn't kill his wife, but if he did he would have done it this way......Insane!

Stop buying the negativism you are fed everyday by the media. Shut off the TV, burn Newsweek, and use the New York Times for the bottom of your bird cage. Then start being grateful for all we have as a country. There is exponentially more good than bad.

We are among the most blessed people on Earth and should thank God several times a day, or at least be thankful and appreciative."
"With hurricanes, tornados, fires out of control, mud slides, flooding, severe thunderstorms tearing up the country from one end to another, and with the threat of bird flu and terrorist attacks, "Are we sure this is a good time to take God out of the Pledge of Allegiance?"

Jay Leno
There are so many people that need to read this and grasp the truth of it all.






Davekc
owner
22 years
PantherII
EO moderator
 

davekc

Senior Moderator
Staff member
Fleet Owner
Your right. I didn't check. It was a false report. But I do in general agree with the thoughts. Since it got forwarded to me I didn't really consider whether it was authored by him. Just agreed with most of the material.









Davekc
owner
22 years
PantherII
EO moderator
 

Twin Pop USA

Expert Expediter
Agreed. We live in the best place in thew world, by far!! We can get any thing we want, any time, anywhere!! How many other countries can say this?? You have 1000 choices for everything; food, clothing, where to vacation, cars, etc... Yet people act like their first born was taken from them when someone says something that is considered "offensive"? We're becoming a nation of thin-skinned whiners.

But we shouldn't sacrifice our brave military defending honorless religious fanatics in Iraq. That's why Bush's rating is so low. He should have realised this four years ago. This is a no-win situation. Our soldiers deserve better. The fact that people volunteer for military service shows how brave they really are. Let's never forget that!
 

marvinkwagner

Not a Member
Yup we live in the Best Country in the World. I dont agree with alot of what the Dum Politicians do, I Take the Oath and Pledge My Allengence to Defend this Country. No matter whom give the orders
Man or Women I Proud to Serve. One thing is for sure. Ya hit it right on the Head. The Media Sure seems to drive this Nation. Whats I thought was Funney Years ago was when we hit the Beaches OOPS Poor CNN cameras Got Broke. Now that was somthing for the Media to Cry about and they did. Hmm Somthing to think about. Yupper Ya know when ya think of funney things like that the Desert dont seem so bad, nope not all all.



Have a Safe One
and God Bless
Kevin
 

greg334

Veteran Expediter
Twin Pop,

This is a vicious circle when you talk about why Bush's rating is so low.

It is not really the Iraq war that has been the cause for this in the ‘public’ polls but rather the media portraying the entire operation as a dismal failed attempt in “dominating the middle east for oil†and making him out to be a person who took over the government right from the start.

Tie this with the concerted effort of the media and liberals who want nothing in the news but doom and gloom from Iraq and the idiots in the congress who think that they elected to stop the war, a war that many people don’t even realize is going on.

I strongly feel that the idea that anyone who has not been there, who does not understand what is actually going on, has even met a middle eastern person or believes the media outlets really needs to learn what is actually going on and what we actually are fighting for.

One problem is we are still executing the operation within the limits of the politically correct world. We try to win their hearts and minds without understanding how they think or what they respect.

The soldiers are caught in the middle between a congress that are contemptuous and hellbent on destroying the administration at all cost and the media who has a dual purpose of portraying the US as a horrible county at the same time siding with the congress in their quest.
 

Twin Pop USA

Expert Expediter
I agree that the soldiers are caught in the middle. But seeing them come home with arms and legs missing because of a 1000 year old conflict between religious sects is unacceptable to me. And they have to fight with one hand tied behind their back. I voted for Bush and am "conservative". But I can't blame the liberal media for this mess. There are MUCH worse injustices in some African governments right now. Why aren't we there, too? Why do we have to be nation builders anyway? Oil makes the world go round.

Here's some "vicious circles": we spend millions to help train and arm Saddam in the 80's. Then fight him in the 90's, and spend billions more to remove him from power. Same with CIA and bin Laden. Companies like Haliburton are raking in taxpayer cash, then move to Dubai to avoid paying taxes. I guess that's considered "liberal thinking" to some. That Rush Limbaugh polarizing crap mentality conservatives got caught up in..
 

greg334

Veteran Expediter
“I agree that the soldiers are caught in the middle. But seeing them come home with arms and legs missing because of a 1000 year old conflict between religious sects is unacceptable to me. And they have to fight with one hand tied behind their back.â€

Twin Pop, I completely agree with you. We failed to take in account what the culture was really about, starting with the split in Islam over 1100 years, the fact that the people view indecisiveness as weakness and anything weak needs to be destroyed and so on.

“I voted for Bush and am "conservative". But I can't blame the liberal media for this mess. “

I also voted for him and think that he failed me and my vote but the alternative to me is worst than what we have today. I think that if anyone wants to impeach him, impeach him on his failure to defend our country through enforcing the laws that closed off our borders or cut off funds to every city that supports these invaders. That is a real reason for impeachment.

I actually put a lot of blame on the liberal media for the distractions, the twisting of the truth and the complete and total lack of self-policing of their profession. If we had a press that backed or at least go in to the conflict as a neutral party reporting everything, I think we would have a better situation over there and here. The thing that many miss is this – the people who hate us, who are what I consider our enemy are much smarter than most Americans because they watch, listen and plan knowing that the media will report things that help them and when things happen like leaks from CIA about classified operations, no one really cares which indicates to the enemy that we are truly dumb.

“There are MUCH worse injustices in some African governments right now. Why aren't we there, too? Why do we have to be nation builders anyway? Oil makes the world go round.â€

Oil has little or nothing to do with this entire thing; if it did we would have invaded a lot of other countries to get the oil we need. Instead we as ‘victors’ don’t force reparations from the very country we invaded, we don’t demand payments for the work we have done and it seems no one really remembers that this also stopped a very horrible thing happening at the UN. One Iraqi I talk to regularly said he can’t figure out why we don’t take the oil; it was expected to happen by many of the Iraqis.

Africa? The UN is to blame for Africa – no one else. I have seen the horrors of an unarmed populous being displaced and killed because of the twisted politics of many African governments. We can not go in there and correct anything because again we fail to understand the culture; in the past we supported the wrong people like Mandela and the ANC and can’t find a way in legitimately. Bono and others who ask for the debt forgiveness for a few countries over there don’t tell us that the money we lent them went into the pockets of the government officials and by forgiving the debt, it prevents any investigation of this theft.

Nation building? Well I don’t like the term as much as I don’t like to hear that we are spreading democracy (first used by Wilson). But what it the alternative? Having the Soviets (flashback) build a country or China?

“Here's some "vicious circles": we spend millions to help train and arm Saddam in the 80's. Then fight him in the 90's, and spend billions more to remove him from power. Same with CIA and bin Laden.â€

OK yes this is one of them which have been going on since Truman. It has happened over and over again and will continue. Reading about Napoleon and the politics of that time in Europe, it happened there too at that time. One thing that I find rather disturbing is the CIA today and how people like Tenet are praised for their work, able to write a book but in truth are solely responsible for failing our country and should pay the price. The funny thing is others feel that way too, like Ed Koch.

“Companies like Haliburton are raking in taxpayer cash, then move to Dubai to avoid paying taxes.â€

Halliburton is not the only company that has made money, there are a bunch of others and I have always said we need to return to the Eisenhower form of accountability which he started in the 50’s to rein in the ‘military industry’. The issues I have is not with Halliburton but the companies that have ties to people in the senate, like Diane Feinstein’s husband and the $600M that was awarded to the company he partially owns. It don’t matter if they are republican or democrat, it should something to really worry about and people need to go to jail.

As for Halliburton running to avoid taxes, not the issue at all and just because they move does not mean they will avoid taxes. They moved for one reason, we stopped using their primary services which had to do with oil and they went were their biggest customer is.

“I guess that's considered "liberal thinking" to some. That Rush Limbaugh polarizing crap mentality conservatives got caught up in..â€

Nope, but I think that people miss the point that Rush and others are entertainers and don’t make a living at real opinion. The one thing that the right media professionals have missed that the left has done really well is they failed to reach people because of their need to make a buck, Rush and Shawn and others need to give access to the public for free.
 
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