To the Active and Veteran US Armed Forces

THANK YOU!

Why the Negative Reaction to Killing the Pirates?

You knew it was coming. First story I read this morning on the AP wires talked about reaction from some around the world about how American actions will usher in a new round of violence from the pirates.

It's typical. The pusillanimous reaction from some is sickening. Some have emphasized in the past week that shipping companies prefer to pay the ransoms since they only make a small dent in their profits. Maybe other countries. Not the United States. We do not deal with terrorists, whether they are ideological, religious, or simply gangsters.

The Somali pirates do not pose a danger to the civilized world if we and other countries respond with force. Messing with some countries earns the pirates millions of dollars. Messing with the United States earns them death. Now they know that even Barack Obama will not bow to their foolishness. Our government does not pay ransoms, whether to kidnappers in our own country or terrorists abroad.

Since these are for profit terrorists, they will turn to the path of least resistance. For decades, shipping and cruise line companies have turned to using the flags of small nations with laws that grant great latitude. They did not need the protection of the United States. Piracy, we can be sure, is not going to go away. Ships registered with Panama and Liberia are now under threat. Ships with flags of nations such as the United States and India will be safer since both nations retaliated with decisive force. We should start seeing an increase of ships registered under the US flag. Decisive action protects our interests in the long run. Weakness invites more aggression.

As far as Somalia is concerned, going into that country again should be done in conjunction with other nations. In fact, regional African powers ought to take the lead with the United States providing logistical support. Taking the lead on the ground is risky in any circumstance. Building up a structure in Africa so that they can handle their own problems is a better move than trying to provide for them. Logistics and air support are powerful and appropriate ways to help any Somalia mission.

I would not be shocked to hear of air strikes in Somalia soon. We have taught them a lesson on Easter Sunday. Now we need to make sure that lesson was well learned.

Messing with the United States earns you death.

Proud to be an American

200 years ago Islamic Pirates attacked ships off the world’s coast lines. They captured crews and ships and held them for ransom. It was then and seems to be now the policy of most of the world’s nations to pay the ransom and move on. Let’s face it, it is cheaper than confronting them, but it does nothing to stop the problem.

When the Islamic Pirates tried the same thing with a newly formed nation of the world, they found something different. At first the new nation tried to negotiate. In 1786 Thomas Jefferson and John Adams tried to negotiate with a representative of the terrorist. They were told, “It was written in their Koran, that all nations which had not acknowledged the Prophet were sinners, whom it was the right and duty of the faithful to plunder and enslave; and that every muslim who was slain in this warfare was sure to go to paradise” by Sidi Haji Abdul Rahman Adja.

This didn’t set well with the new nation and they responded in a way that the Islamic Pirates didn’t figure. The young nation sent its Navy to take on the pirates. On August 1^st, 1801 the frigate USS Enterprise engaged and defeated an Islamic Pirate ship in the Mediterranean that had been attacking US shipping. It was the first time that a nation had stood up to the Islamic terrorist. For the next few years the US Navy patrolled the Mediterranean defeating the terrorist on the high seas and US Marines attacked on shore. The battle of Tripoli, Libya is remembered in the Marine Hymn as one if the first overseas battle of the US Marines and it was against the Islamic Terrorist.

Fast forward almost 200 years and Palestinian Terrorist capture the Italian cruise liner Achille Lauro On October 7, 1985. They single out a defiant American in a wheel chair, Leon Klinghoffer, shoot him and throw him overboard. Islamic terrorist are extremely brave. After local authorities negotiated with the terrorist they were allowed to fly to Tunisia as had happened many times in the past with terrorist. This time it was a little different as couple US Navy F-14 Tomcats showed up and forced the plain to land in Italy. Again we don’t react like the rest of the world.

September 11, 2001 America was attacked by terrorist, but once again Americans reacted differently. On Flight 93 with knowledge of what was going on Americans took the initiative and attacked their highjackers. Unfortunately they lost their lives, but they stopped further deaths in Washington. The terrorist never expected Americans to fight back, but they should have.

Off the coast of Somalia, like 200 years before, Islamic Pirates attacked a US cargo ship. They expect the crew to acquiesce like other nations, but true to form the American crew fought back. The captain Richard Phillips allowed himself to be taken hostage to protect his crew and the ship was retaken by its crew. The captain now a hostage escapes only to be recaptured, but the second time he escapes the US Navy, like 200 years before is ready. With Captain Phillips in the water the Navy finished the negotiations for his release with hot lead. Not a result the Islamic Pirates expected.

Problem is, they should have expected it and the rest world should expect it. For more than 230 years we have been reacting the same way, starting with our revolution when a bunch of farmers took on the most powerful military in the world to overthrow tyranny. We believe in freedom and whether we are in the military or not we will defend our freedom. We don’t wait for help to arrive we take the initiative.

I have always been proud to be an American, but today I stand a little taller, walk a little prouder and see the colors of the flag a little brighter. I am not the rest of the world. I am an American.

What Got Lost In the Convention Furor

A lot has been said and written about the West Virginia presidential nominating convention good, bad, and ugly. Some expressed pleasant surprise, others complete dismay. Thanks ought to go out to the team that made it happen. They received a thankless assignment and achieved their goals. They made money, got the state party some attention, and made the West Virginia GOP a real factor on the most important primary day. Beneath the big picture some sore feelings emerged, but at this point it looks as though reconciliation is likely.

The big question no one asked is why did John McCain do so poorly in West Virginia? Those who did not attend might reason that the more evangelical candidate, Mike Huckabee, had the inside track in a heavily Protestant state. Not true. The power of public speaking played a large role here.

Some performed well. Mitt Romney gave a flawless delivery both at his morning breakfast with supporters and later on the floor. He gave a great speech that few Republicans could possibly disagree. Romney has a strong presence in person and one can understand why his supporters back him with such passion.

Others did not. Ron Paul gave a somewhat rambling address. Just when he made a strong point about values that libertarians and Republicans share, he would haul out an extremist comment or historical errors. Historical errors are forgivable. Romney claimed that John Adams wrote the Constitution when Adams was actually serving abroad. That's fine because Romney did not base his policy plans on those errors. Paul asserted that Congress passed laws forbidding "entangling alliances." That actually came from Washington's Farewell Address and many historians believe that he only meant that for the temporary period in which the US would be vulnerable to foreign intrigues. Paul then blundered by forgetting that the United States Navy, not privateers, defeated the Barbary Pirates. His reference to being a Baptist seemed forced.

McCain's guest speaker, former Louisiana governor Buddy Roemer, looked like a great singer who kept hitting false notes. He seemed congenial and had I been a Louisianan I would have enjoyed his speech. Roemer proclaimed that LSU was the greatest college football team in the nation and implied that he'd rather have been in New Orleans than Charleston. Later he made a small joke about Presbyterians while mentioning the different denominations that helped Hurricane Katrina victims. In doing so he omitted the West Virginia National Guard who played a very important role. A delegate behind me asked if he was trying to get people to vote against McCain.

Mike Huckabee spoke extremely well. Coming from a poor small town background in an impoverished mountain state, he knew how to speak to West Virginia Republicans. Contrary to Democrat claims, many current West Virginia GOPers came from poor and difficult backgrounds. Huckabee joked about Lava soap, a product often used to get dirt or grease off the hands. He claimed that it was not until he was about twenty that he understood that a shower was not supposed to hurt. Huckabee was warm and endearing and swayed many delegates to at least see him as a vice presidential possibility.

In many ways the convention proved a success. For me personally it was a fascinating experience. As a student of the history of politics, this was a rare opportunity to witness how our candidates were chosen before the era of primaries. Hopefully the hard feelings that emerged during the convention will pass quickly so we can get to the business of getting our state behind the next president

Hither and Yon

Ever since it was declared that Mineral County should cease development or risk running out of water, God has seen fit to drench the region with rain and snow almost every single day .

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The Grant County Press reported lottery payouts to local governments.

Hampshire, $2,803.63; Hardy, $1,698.89; Mineral, $11,039.98; Pendleton, $157.51; Tucker, $153.15.
Petersburg received a payment of $176.37 and Bayard picked up $21.76.
Some other cities and their payments were: Franklin, $16.97; Keyser, $3,109.46; Moorefield, $401.56; Romney, $301.12: Wardensville, $41.59; and Elk Garden, $127.24.

From the new table games account, Grant, Hardy, Hampshire, and Pendleton each received $242.65. Cities received $57.67.

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Antiwar protesters love using quotations. Ever notice that? They love to drag some quote out of context to try and prove that Founding Fathers or other respectable people share their viewpoints. The Devil can even cite Scripture for his own purposes. People's actions reflect their nature better than their words. Yes John Adams discussed the evil of war, but he built up a United States Navy and sent it to war, as did his successor Thomas Jefferson.

Quotations are easy to memorize and antiwar folks are very good at learning their lines. However, true wisdom lies in knowledge AND understanding. Ron Paul on his website utterly distorts the meaning of Washington's Farewell Address. Knowing the text helps one to under stand that Washington meant only Europe. Understanding the man could lead one to believe that Washington's nature was far from dogmatic. He changed his approaches to problems in life, war, and politics readily. When someone uses a quote alone to argue a point, it may serve as a red flag that he or she has chosen the easy way out and does not truly understand.

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Can someone please explain why that beautiful evergreen tree on the Mineral County courthouse lawn is not decorated for Christmas?

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Sean Penn has visited the dictators of Iran and Venezuela. All three agree that Dennis Kucinich is the right president for the United States. With those kinds of endorsements, who could lose

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All baseball players found to have used steroids need their statistics and awards expunged from the record books. It would be nice to see the fans get their money back from these cheaters.

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The New York Times has a long history of looking the other way in the face of leftist terror. Seventy five years ago last month, their correspondent Walter Duranty reported at the height of the Stalin imposed famine, "there is no actual starvation or deaths from starvation." Reports of hundreds of thousands, even millions of deaths he called "Malignant propaganda." In Ukraine alone perhaps five million died during this crisis imposed by Stalin's desire to communize farming.

At the New York Times, bending over backwards to accommodate dictators has been tradition.

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Don't forget about the Harrison County Republican Club Dinner on Friday December 21. Tommy Phillips and the Harrison County Club have done an outstanding job putting together a Christmas dinner. The food will be terrific, the speakers and good times even better.

2007 Harrison County Republican Club Christmas DinnerDecember 21, 2007

Social - 5:30 P.M. -

Dinner 6:00 P.M.Cottage Corner Restaraunt in SalemGuest Speaker -

St. Senator Clark Barnes (R-Randolph)Auctioneer - Rocky PeckTickets - $20.00 per person

Please contact - HCRC President Tommy Phillips - (304)672-6890

Email - gopguy1980@verizon.net

HCRC Vice President Jack Pringle - (304)669-3781

Also in attendance will be Republican candidate for the 14th Senatorial District Gary Howell.