US Democracy: The Benefits of Looking in the Mirror

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Doesn’t the law apply to everybody? Nearly every Russian knows the folk proverb, “Fools observe no rules”. However, real-life does make its presence known, doesn’t it? By comparison, apparently, the US State Department’s extremely-experienced and highly-qualified staff tends to act in accordance with another principle, from ancient Rome, “What’s legitimate for Jove, isn’t legitimate for oxen”. Although they’re knowledgeable about foreign policy and they’re well-aware of the fundamental principle of international law precluding meddling in the domestic affairs of another sovereign state, US government officials choose to ignore well-known wisdom, despite Russia’s position in the world… it’s no less a power than the American “Jupiter” is.

Now, Washington is dissatisfied with state inspections of Russian NGOs funded from abroad. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs believes, “In all actuality, the USA encourages NGOs to violate Russian law concerning their operation in the Russian Federation”. US State Department spokesman Victoria Nuland voiced Washington’s displeasure with this statement. Evidently, like any other woman, Ms Nuland uses a mirror. In looking at the present situation, what one could describe as a “political mirror” would be more à propos. However, if Ms Nuland and her Washington colleagues looked into this “political mirror”, they’d discover that a law on the registration of foreign agencies, the Russian version of which triggered her tossing off such fiery censure, has been in force in the USA since 1938, and it’s observed to the letter.

The so-called “political mirror” could also reflect other breaches of democratic principles on Washington’s part… which considers itself the guardian of democracy. It’s not hard to imagine what the reaction in Foggy Bottom would be if Moscow expressed “great concern” to the US State Department about the fact that the names of nearly one million American citizens weren’t on the voter rolls during the recent American presidential election. According to election observers, most of these people were Hispanic or black. This wasn’t just an isolated glitch in the American electoral system. Former US President Jimmy Carter stated, “I’m concerned over the frightening risk of growing racism in our country, along with a poorly-concealed phobia against blacks”. We should “sound the alarm” concerning democratic principles in the USA, especially, as Americans claim a monopoly in having such. Nonetheless, there’d be nothing disturbing about self-appointed Washington Goody Two-Shoes reserving the right to preach to others about this-or-that personal failing, if these so-called “sermons” remained within the USA and if they didn’t impugn the nitty-gritty of international law and threaten its foundations. Given the situation, however, it’d be useful for the USA to remember that such political canoodling doesn’t wash with Russia.

13 April 2013

Valentin Zorin

A View from Moscow

Voice of Russia World Service

http://rus.ruvr.ru/2013_04_09/O-polze-zerkala/

http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_04_13/US-democracy-the-mirror-effect/

Editor’s Note:

Do remember the old saw, “Follow the money”. When you do, it leads you to interesting places, doesn’t it? Read the criticisms of Stalin found in certain American Orthodox circles in that light… always bear in mind, “He who pays the piper, chooses the tune”. Always note who worked, works, or shall continue to work for the US government or for rightwing stink tanks… rank stuff, ain’t it?

BMD

A Reflective Romney Emerges from Seclusion, Rips Obama

This is why Wet Willy lost… any questions? He refused to condemn the racism in the Republican Party (especially amongst white Southerners)… he paid the price. God sees and judges, doesn’t He?

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Four months after his bitter election defeat, a reflective Mitt Romney said it “kills” him not to be president and admitted that he made mistakes in his losing White House campaign… particularly, his failure to win over minority voters. In his first television interview since November’s loss to US President Barack Obama, Romney levelled a fresh blast of criticism at Obama for failing to lead and putting politics ahead of results in the confrontation with congressional Republicans over the budget and spending cuts. Romney said in an interview on Fox News Sunday, “It kills me not to be there, not to be in the White House doing what needs to be done. Obama’s still campaigning rather than bringing people together to craft a deal. I don’t see that kind of leadership happening right now. The hardest thing about losing is watching this critical moment, this golden moment slip away with politics”.

Romney’s interview was the first step in a slow public re-entry for the former Massachusetts governor, who’s been largely secluded at his southern California home with his wife Ann since the November loss. In two weeks, Romney will make his first public speech since the election, to a conference of conservative activists in Washington DC (shall JP and Potapov and their drooling konvertsy pals going to be there? Perspirin’ minds wanna know: editor). In the Fox interview, taped last week and aired on Sunday, Romney mostly avoided questions about the heavy criticism he has received from his fellow Republicans for running a lacklustre and gaffe-prone campaign. He said, “I don’t spend my life looking back”, adding he wouldn’t run again, but he’d still be active in public life. He said that he should’ve done a better job in appealing to minority voters including blacks and Hispanics, calling his failure “a real mistake”. Romney, who called for “self-deportation” of illegal immigrants during the Republican primaries, lost the vote of more than 70 percent of Hispanics to Obama. Most of the illegal immigrants in the USA are Hispanics.

4 March 2013

Voice of Russia World Service

http://english.ruvr.ru/2013_03_04/A-reflective-Romney-emerges-from-seclusion-rips-Obama/

Editor’s Note:

Note well that Willy doesn’t mention his cowardice in the Vietnam War… how he got his gazillionaire daddy to buy him a phony clergy deferment so that he wouldn’t have to serve in the forces. All of the Republipukes holler about their patriotism. If that’s so, I’d ask them, “Why did you vote for a shameless draft-dodger (Romney) and why do you take credence in two others (Rush Limbaugh and Bill O’Reilly)?” Yes… why do they lionise unpatriotic greedy SOBs who’ve done nothing but rip off this country? That’s what this perspirin’ patriotic leftist wants to know… and I’m NOT alone in wanting that. Russia put Khodorkovsky in jail for attempting to sneak money abroad to avoid taxation… bully for VVP! That’s what we need to do with Romney… he boasted about his millions in “tax haven” money, didn’t he? Tells you volumes about the Republiphonies and their duped supporters, doesn’t it? They LOVE a man who boasts of illegality… fancy that. I think that I’m going to hurl to clear my system of rot…

BMD

25 December 2012. You Can’t Make Shit Like This Up… Mitt Romney’s Son Says He Never Actually Wanted to Be President

Romney never criticised the racism in the GOP… any questions?

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Editor’s Foreword:

Read the following. It’s mind-blowing in its self-centred pity and angst…

BMD

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Mitt Romney‘s palpable discomfort during the 2012 election season has mostly been attributed to the fact that he’s (very likely) a robot. However, in a lengthy Boston Globe piece about what went wrong with the campaign, Romney’s eldest son Tagg offers a different explanation for his father’s poor performance… “He wanted to be president less than anyone I’ve met in my life. He had no desire to … run. If he could’ve found someone else to take his place… he would’ve been ecstatic to step aside”. The statement certainly seems to serve as a great “I told you so” moment for all those Republicans who endorsed genuinely fired-up people like Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum during the primaries, though the story also suggests the Romney campaign‘s issues extended well beyond his supposed lack of enthusiasm for the task.

The Globe‘s Michael Kranish (co-author of The Real Romney) confirms that those closest to Romney, such as Tagg and wife Ann, clashed with his staff over strategy, especially when it came to humanising the candidate. The story blames campaign manager Stuart Stevens for the unremitting focus on the dreary economy and the reluctance to share some of the more appealing elements of Romney’s biography with the public. When Tagg finally convinced RNC organisers to feature the grateful parents of a terminally-ill 14-year-old Mormon boy Romney once comforted, they were put onstage before any of the big networks even tuned in {Big deal. If the kid wasn’t a Mormon, that’d be news. It just proves that many Mormons are good to their own, but view us “Gentiles” as two-legged cockroaches: editor}.

There are also criticisms of the campaign’s infrastructure… the organisation employed a mere 500 paid workers nationwide (less than the Obama team dedicated to Florida alone) and failed to make good use of social media and other technology. As Romney’s digital director Zac Moffatt explained, they simply didn’t have as much time as Obama did to prepare. Moffatt recalled worrying about early on, “Can we do 80 percent of what the Obama campaign is doing, in 20 percent of the time, at 10 percent of the cost?” Tagg also told the Globe that his father hopes to use what he learned during the campaign to help Republican leaders make changes to the way the party is run, saying, “Having been through it, you know so much more than when you haven’t”. Perhaps, the first thing Romney should suggest for the next go-around is picking a nominee who actually wants to be there.

23 December 2012

Andre Tartar

New York

http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2012/12/mitts-son-says-he-never-wanted-to-be-president.html

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Editor’s Afterword:

”I really didn’t want to be president!” If that were so, why did Wet Willy run? Why did he spend millions of his own money and millions of the Republican Party’s money? Why did he order fireworks in Boston, as he was convinced that he was going to win? In short, GIGO all around. Wet Willy’s nothing but a spoilt brat who never grew up. His corporate daddy bought him a phony “clergy” deferment in the Vietnam War and gave him the seed-stake to enter business… that is, Wet Willy had the ways greased for him and he never had to do anything for himself. This story tells you volumes about the Romneys. Aren’t you glad that the Prez did win the election? After all, Willard didn’t want it… his son said so…

What a bunch of sore losers and incompetent tossers…

BMD

Patriarch Kirill Believes that the Obama Administration would Strengthen Relations between Russia and the USA

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Patriarch Kirill Gundyaev of Moscow and all the Russias congratulated Barack Obama on his re-election as US President. His Holiness said in a telegram to Mr Obama, “The choice made ​​by the American people shows their confidence in your political course. This places upon you a special responsibility for the fate of millions of people, who’ve entrusted to you their hopes for a better life”. Patriarch Kirill expressed his belief that President Obama’s second term “would see a continuation of the development and strengthening of the relations between our two nations. It’s encouraging that the Russian Orthodox Church receives its due respect in the USA, as it’s been in America for more than two hundred years. God willing, the authorities will pay attention to the needs of our believers”. His Holiness wished President Obama would receive “strengthening of his mental and physical powers, God’s help, and success in his work in his high state office, and that the American people would have peace, prosperity, and security”.

8 November 2012

Interfax-Religion

http://www.interfax-religion.ru/?act=news&div=48794

Editor’s Note:

There’s been much rumbling amongst the konvertsy set and amongst the woollier Vlasovtsy in the ROCOR about the results of the late election. This sets it straight. HH blessed President Obama in the past and he hasn’t rescinded that blessing. HH wishes the President success in his endeavours… that puts paid to all the rightwing caterwauling by the groups that I mentioned above.

The Church isn’t “the Republican Party at prayer”… ‘nuff said.

BMD