Terrorism Is Not a Threat

I’ve been saying this ever since 9/11 occurred and finally have read someone who agrees with me at The American Prospect:  Terrorism is not a serious threat to Americans.

I contend that the events of 9/11 were an act of symbolic aggression.  If al-Quaeda (or whoever else) wants to disrupt Americans’ daily lives and instill fear among us, they would have done better and saved a lot of money simply by sending their 19 hijackers into 19 different American cities and towns and having them detonate in buses, public markets and subway cars.  There would be no stopping such a tactic.  Ask Britain or Israel.

GOP drops Christian values when it comes to health care reform

In 2009, death counts as a pre-existing condition

If the biblical story of Lazarus took place in the United States in 2009, it would go a bit differently. For starters, Jesus would need to run some tests and make sure the boy’s really dead. Lazarus and his family will receive a separate bill for each test, all of which confirm what they already knew — he was, in fact, dead.

Next, Jesus asks the boy’s family how they intend to pay for the necessary procedures. Lazarus’ father gets insurance through his job, but the Son of God is out of network. So Jesus writes a strongly worded letter to the insurer. They refuse again. Death counts as a pre-existing condition. Lazarus’ family will have to pay out of pocket. To prove their good faith, our Lord and Savior asks them to pay some cash up front.

At great cost, Jesus performs the procedure and Lazarus awakens, only to feel guilty for being alive at all – his family is saddled with debt and routinely harassed by a collection agency.

Now, if you can understand what makes this story particularly blasphemous, you get the point. Republicans, typically over-eager to invoke the name of Christ and declare a mission in His name, on issues ranging from marriage rights and family planning to declaring a candidate fit for public office have been giving Him a curious silent treatment. Anyone familiar with the shouting match over health care reform might have noticed that the halls of Congress no longer echo with the righteousness of His cause.

When it comes to universal, guaranteed health coverage for all Americans, the self-styled party of Judeo-Christian moral correctness has no Judeo-Christian moral argument for upholding the status quo, roughly 50 million Americans uninsured and countless others denied services they thought they were paying for.

The Republican party has turned away from its Christian-based moral messages because any half-way intelligent American knows Jesus wouldn’t approve of an insurer-based system that places profitability ahead of the people in need. Instead Americans are told by Congressman Paul Ryan, R-Wisconsin, “We want to give them [the uninsured] the dignity of private health insurance that everybody else in America is enjoying.”

The Republican moral argument is based on providing a Americans with a sense of “dignity.” Rep. Ryan says it comes from the ability to purchase a product “everyone else” has. He left out the dignity we all feel when entering an emergency room and being immediately asked financial questions, or the great dignity that comes with being denied a claim. More interestingly, Rep. Ryan’s statement suggests a belief that American moral values are based on keeping up with the Joneses. These strong moral values come from a man who voted for Christian Coalition-supported items 90 percent of the time in 2007-2008 – that’s down from 100 percent in 2002.

In abandoning Christian-values talking points, Republicans instead tell us it’s too expensive and will lead to more government debt. Why weren’t these same lawmakers — and protesters — worried about fiscal responsibility when the United States rushed headlong into invading Afghanistan and Iraq? Four thousand dead soldiers and, according to the Washington Post, more than $3 trillion dollars later, one should wonder what our humble Lord and Savior must think of a government that commits so many public funds to the bombing of Afghani wedding parties while denying basic health care to a significant portion of the population?

Even if we found a way to pay for a universal, government-provided system of coverage, Americans were told by Republican party chair Michael Steele that it would smack of “socialism.” (Whatever that even means in 2009.) If publicly funded services equate to socialism then Mr. Steele no doubt intends to stop driving on the Interstate and let his home burn down should it ever catch fire. Based on his statements, dialing 9-1-1 for police and fire protection sounds like a scheme masterminded by Hugo Chavez himself! Of course, Mr. Steele has not sought to end farm subsidies or close national parks, public schools or libraries, so I guess he’s a socialist too!

This whole Republican concept of “big government” is selective, to say the least. Where was the rending of garments and gnashing of teeth over President Bush? He oversaw the largest government expansion of my lifetime, creating the curiously named Department of Homeland Security. And where is Mr. Steele, or his opponent for the hearts and minds of conservative Americans, Rush Limbaugh, in decrying the approximately 800 US military facilities located around the globe? It’s tough to see how government can get much bigger than that.

While there are valid arguments against universal, single-payer health care, those put forth by the GOP seem disingenuous in light of the party’s stances on other issues. What should be most appalling, however, is the way it casually drops all pretexts of being the party of Christian values. In doing so, the party displays arrogance and callous disregard for the deeply held beliefs of its most loyal constituents, somehow convincing many of them to support a cause antithetical to the teachings of Christ himself. Perhaps more puzzling, they see political capital in denying Americans the right of access to quality medicine.

Buying Media Access is a Daily Occurrance

Nobody will be surprised to hear this, but I want to have it out there all the same.

At the Mayborn Literary-Nonfiction Conference this past weekend, I sat in on a presentation/lecture from Joy Sewing, a fashion reporter at the Houston Chronicle. After showing us (with some small amount of embarrassment) how newspapers have become increasingly trivial in their content through the embracing of top-10 lists and shopping suggestions, she dropped this little gem:

If Macy’s buys an ad then guess what?  Macy’s is in my story.

In a room of reporters and non-fiction writers, nobody but me and a friend thought the admission strange.  We looked around in amazement, marveling at the passive acceptance of this reality.  During Q&A, nobody brought it up.  We all know it goes on, but to hear it said out loud, unlamented and unquestioned was upsetting to both me and my friend.

(On a side note, props to This American Life’s Ira Glass for an amazing presentation after dinner.  He put a lot of work into what could have been a simple speech.  Instead he gave us a private version of his radio show, complete with audio clips and music, and all perfectly executed on two switch-boards by the man as he talked.)

Why you’re in debt

Here it is, clear as day, courtesy of “Who Rules America“

Figure 7: CEOs’ average pay, production workers’ average pay, the S&P 500 Index, corporate profits, and the federal minimum wage, 1990-2005 (all figures adjusted for inflation)

Powered by ScribeFire.

Glenn Beck’s Nine Principles

With an article titled “We Surround Them,” Beck sounds downright Marxist before laying out his Nine Principles, playing to public frustrations and insecurities and suggesting that the unwashed masses outnumber the schmucks at the top.

Then he lays down these points that sound good, but not the way he means them. As a bonus, he gives us the Boy Scout Law in a sidebar!  A revolution for sure!  Here are the nine points with my commentary in bold:

1. America is good.  That’s why we forcibly invade countries like Iraq and commit torture against foreign nationals.  In fact, it’s so good, 40 million of our citizens can’t afford health care!

2. I believe in God and He is the Center of my Life.  Gee whiz!  If everyone else in America sees that I believe God, we’ll take down those nasty ol’ communists for sure!

3. I must always try to be a more honest person than I was yesterday.  Then you’d have to stop believing in point number one.

4. The family is sacred. My spouse and I are the ultimate authority, not the government.  But if the government says your boys and girls need to die in Iraq, stop asking questions.

5. If you break the law you pay the penalty. Justice is blind and no one is above it.  Then why aren’t you pushing to have Bush and Cheney, as well as their administrations, indicted for their roles in torturing foreign nationals?

6. I have a right to life, liberty and pursuit of happiness, but there is no guarantee of equal results.  Translation: Those commies will all force us to have life and liberty, but what if I don’t want ‘em!?

7. I work hard for what I have and I will share it with who I want to. Government cannot force me to be charitable. This is anti-health care propaganda, framing the argument as “forced charity” instead of every citizen’s right to life, which he says we have in point six.  Cognitive dissonance, anyone?

8. It is not un-American for me to disagree with authority or to share my personal opinion.  Unless you think we should withdraw from Iraq.  Then you keep your mouth shut and put on this flag pin.

9. The government works for me. I do not answer to them, they answer to me.  Let’s hope the government never answers to Glenn Beck

The Picture of Republican Ignorance

The Republican diehards may be a shrinking crowd in the US, but they sure are tenacious.  It’s old news, but somehow, people like Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh, despite providing no evidence, have convinced these people that “liberals” and the “liberal media” are coming to take away their Constitutional rights.
My  mother, one of these diehards, called last night to tell me all about the so-called “tea party” she attended in Charlotte. She sent me the above picture, in which, amazingly, someone said, “Can I trade my new Obama for a used Bush?”

That should tell you how ignorant 25 percent of Americans can be.  But in case you still need proof, here’s a snippet of the conversation I had with my mom.

My mother: “These people [liberals] want to take away our freedoms and constitutional rights. They rush through legislation so quickly that nobody can read it.”

Me: “You mean like the Patriot Act?” Mother:

“What are you talking about? How did that take away our rights? Did they rush that through?”

Israeli soldier shot American activist in face with tear gas can

US military aid goes to Israel so that US citizens may be injured while protesting Israeli militarism. Your tax dollars at work, America

more about "Israeli soldier shot American activis…", posted with vodpod

Emails from my expat dad

Last November my father moved to Saudi Arabia to work through the recession that nearly killed his business here in the US.  I tell him all the time he should have a blog, but he never takes up the idea, preferring to send irregular emails instead.  It’s too bad as he usually has an interesting story to tell.

Today he sent my brother and I an email and I felt compelled to post it here myself, complete and unedited.

May we all appreciate those who bring us happiness, no matter their age.:

There in the compound, since moving in, has been the cutest little four year old boy. I learned his name once or twice, but because of it’s Indian dialect, pronounciation would escape my tonguge before I could sound out the first vowel.

Everyday upon getting off the bus and returning to the compound, the little fella would be there to greet me. The youngest son of our compound manager, Katar…    often times I would entice the boy to my door step so he could pet Maggie. He was so scared of Maggie. I even got him to walk her about the compound, reassuring him he would be rewarded with my usual bribe…  chocolate bars…

Last night around 7:30 PM my phone rang. It was my friend Fred. He sounded beat up and distant, yet managed to explain to me that there was some bad news. He followed on with the saddest words I have heard in my life. My little candy bar buddy had fallen into our compound pool and drown…

I told myself when I got home, to go jump into the pool for a dip. I had been in for ninety minutes just the day before. It was cold for the average thin blooded Arab. Some 67 degrees. But, with my lining of fat it was but brisk. If only I had taken that dip, perhaps this tragedy may of not unfolded. It haunted me all night and has depressed me deeply. Oh the pain poor Kartar must be going through…  he drown just shortly after I got home from work…

I have two sons and wish in my life that they outlive me my many a decade.

My heart is with you boys today.

Dad

The Great Contraction

When the housing bubble began to burst more than a year ago, it was only the first of many bubbles.  In the “easy credit” economy, perhaps it’s best to imagine industries as a collective head of foam on a beer.  Everything was propped up by the illusion of credit.  As a few bubbles began to pop, more followed.  We aren’t there yet, but I believe our country’s economy and suburban landscape is going to look a lot like a glass of flat beer.

I recall as a young teen, when my family moved from a small Rhode Island town, with no big box stores, to the St. Louis metro area and then to Charlotte, NC, when it was the fastest growing city in the US.  Everywhere we looked we saw new retail chain stores and restaurants and suburban sprawl, growing growing growing.  I’d never seen anything like it before.  It was like some kind of weird retail Disneyland.  We would go to Best Buy in our Sunday best.

Meanwhile, developers were pouring their beer too quickly and that was the foam forming.  Think about it, how many Wal-Marts are necessary in a rural county?  How many Chili’s restaurants?  And why was there so much demand for bland food and cheaply made products?  Now the curtain has been pulled back and we can see that this retail fantasy was just that.

What’s happening?  I call it the Great Contraction.  Here is one sign of it:  Deadmalls.com. The folks at Deadmalls.com will be updating their site quite frequently in the near future, I think.

But it will affect more than shopping malls.  Think of all the things that Americans complain have gotten too expensive.  Tickets to movies and sporting events are the two things that come to mind. What family will be able to afford nine dollars per ticket for an evening at the cinema, plus four-dollar sodas for everybody?  People will stay at home, as they have already begun doing for the last decade, and enjoy their flat-screen TVs and surround sound systems that they also acquired with the same easy credit.

And what about sports?  Who will be able to justify $400/game for season tickets in the new Dallas Cowboys stadium (or anywhere else, for that matter)?  Jerry Jones just gambled on the easy credit economy and lost big time.  He built more luxury boxes than Texas Stadium had, but what companies can afford to buy them?  How can it be justified if they are receiving bailouts or TARP money?  Same with the new Yankee Stadium in New York.

Everything Americans spent money on was a bubble of its own, just a little bubble in the big head of foam that is now going flat.

Why should we pay taxes?

I generally am not a fan of forwarded emails — usually it’s a parade of the same lame-ass inspirational kitten photos and jokes my mom thinks are funny –  but this one makes its point. It was apparently printed in a newspaper somewhere, though I’m too lazy to check at the minute.

The saddest part is, it’s  not even  shocking.  I think somewhere along the way Congress entered what Bill Simmons calls the Tyson Zone:  Nothing any member of the House or Senate does would really surprise me at this point (especially with Limbaugh running the show for the Republicans, eesh!)

Dear IRS,

I am sorry to inform you that I will not be able to pay taxes owed April 15, but all is not lost.

I have paid these taxes: accounts receivable tax, building permit tax, CDL tax, cigarette tax, corporate income tax, dog license tax, federal income tax, unemployment tax, gasoline tax, hunting license tax, fishing license tax, waterfowl stamp tax, inheritance tax, inventory tax, liquor tax, luxury tax, Medicare tax, city, school and county property tax (up 33 percent last 4 years), real estate tax, social security tax, road usage tax, toll road tax, state and city sales tax, recreational vehicle tax, state franchise tax, state unemployment tax, telephone federal excise tax, telephone federal state and local surcharge tax, telephone minimum usage surcharge tax, telephone state and local tax, utility tax, vehicle license registration tax, capitol gains tax, lease severance tax, oil and gas assessment tax, Colorado property tax, Texas, Colorado, Wyoming, Oklahoma and New Mexico sales tax, and many more that I can’t recall but I have run out of space and money.

When you do not receive my check April 15, just know that it is an honest mistake. Please treat me the same way you treated Congressmen Charles Rangle, Chris Dodd, Barney Frank and ex-Congressman Tom Dashelle and, of course, your boss Timothy Geithner. No penalties and no interest.

P.S. I will make at least a partial payment as soon as I get my stimulus check.

Ed Barnett

Wichita Falls

New York Times says we should spend more

Whip out your credit cards and wipe out your retirement plans, ’cause the New York Times wants you to keep spending money.

That’s the impression I got, anyway, after reading this feature about the wane of Japanese consumerism.  My favorite line comes in the lead paragraph:

As recession-wary Americans adapt to a new frugality, Japan offers a peek at how thrift can take lasting hold of a consumer society, to disastrous effect.

That’s right, America, you’d better quit saving and paying off debt.  Being thrifty is a disaster!

The article practically berates the Japanese people for not picking up the slack by spending money to balance out the country’s huge trade deficit.  According to the article, domestic consumption is outpaced by the rate of exports.  Now that export consumption is slowing down, the economy is in “free fall.”  What this really means is certain companies’ ledger books are in free fall and so Japanese people will be losing their jobs because they aren’t spending enough money to keep their employers in business.

The piece focuses on the Takigasaki family, whose thrifty lifestyle includes “vegetable rationing.”

Although the family has a comfortable nest egg, Hiroko Takigasaki carefully rations her vegetables. When she goes through too many in a given week, she reverts to her cost-saving standby: cabbage stew.

The framing of the above paragraph is suspect.  The Times could have said “… Takigasaki carefully sticks to a budget when buying groceries.”  Instead they gave us the desperate sounding “rations her vegetables.”  Such a phrase makes it sound like thriftiness is only for those living on a desert island or trying to survive in a bomb shelter.

The reporter’s choice of economic indicators also shed light on the consumerist bias of this story.

Today, years after the recovery, even well-off Japanese households use old bath water to do laundry, a popular way to save on utility bills. Sales of whiskey, the favorite drink among moneyed Tokyoites in the booming ’80s, have fallen to a fifth of their peak. And the nation is losing interest in cars; sales have fallen by half since 1990.

There are three things worth questioning in this paragraph:

• Maybe if Americans were more willing to take such steps with their water consumption there wouldn’t be water shortages facing so many areas around the country.  Then again, there’s no real example to back up this assertion, just an anecdote to make the Japanese people sound desperate in their thrifty behavior.
• Next I must ask why whiskey sales are such an important economic indicator.  No context is given for this statistic, only that they drink it less than in hte ’80s.  Are Japanese people drinking less alcohol in general, or just whiskey?  Perhaps saki sales are through the roof, at the expense of whiskey sales.  Perhaps they prefer other drugs over alchol.
• The same problem exists with the mentioning of a decline in car sales.  We’re supposed to chalk it up to the desperate thriftiness of Japanese people.  No mention is made, for example, of their super highspeed trains, or of the island nation’s need to make the most of available space.  Or perhaps the population is increasingly moving to urban areas where automobiles and other forms of transportation are much less of a necessity.

The story ends with this anecdote about a woman forced to watch TV on a cathode-ray tube set (the horror!)

The family … still watches a cathode-ray tube TV. Mrs. Kobayashi has her eye on a flat-panel TV but is holding off.

The message is clear to Amermicans:  If you’ve still got a CRT hanging around your house, it’s time to max out your credit card and upgrade already!

Ubuntu advice needed

I have been an Ubuntu user since 2005 when I suffered the last Blue Screen of Death I ever wanted to see.  I’ve been running it on two computers, one a Pentium III 1.1Ghz machine with Xubuntu.  Since verision 6.10 it’s been getting progressively slower and I want to revive the poor machine.  Ultimately I’d like to get a new motherboard and processor but for now I’m stuck with this old one and need some advice on a new distro.  Two things to keep in mind: a) I presently have no internet access on this computer ; and b) I want to do a clean install but be able to re-load most of my old software via Synaptic.

I’ve found several VERY light Ubuntu-based distros but I still need Firefox and OpenOffice.org and these come with less versatile apps like Beaver, Abiword (which I admit is a good program) and Dillo.

I would like to use U-Lite but the install process was somewhat vague in its instructions and I soon found I could easily muck something up if I wasn’t careful.  So a graphical installer would be pretty nice.  Thanks in advance for any recommendations

Record Review: Friend or Foe by The Forces of Evil

I was buying a textbook from Amazon.com and needed to spend a few more bucks to for free shipping, so looked around and found this record by a ska band called The Forces of Evil.  The two reviews were really glowing, the cover art was hilarious, and to top it off, the listing said it featured members of one of my all-time favorite bands, Reel Big Fish.  Seems like a slam dunk, right?  Almost.  It came in the mail today and I immediately gave it a listen.  Twice, in fact.  Now I’m reminded why I download free music.  If I really feel like I’ve discovered something worthwhile I usually end up buying the record.  If there are only a couple tracks I like, I didn’t just blow $10.  This record isn’t that bad, but I wouldn’t have bought it if I’d already given it a listen (my fault, Amazon even lets you do that.)

The CD was recorded in 2003 and features Reel Big Fish lead singer/guitarist Aaron Barret as Aaron Evil (all the members are re-named Evil.  There’s Chris Evil, Derek Evil, Jay Evil, John & Jonny Evil and Justin Evil).  I wasn’t aware of which RBF guys would be on the record but I figured out it was Barrett pretty quickly.  The first song (and the next, and the next, etc.) sounded like it came off of RBF’s first major record release, Turn the Radio Off.  That’s not exactly a complaint, as I am not a huge fan of the directions RBF has taken over the past few records and it’s nice to do some old-fashioned skankin’.  Even so, it sounds like Aaron Barrett took complete control over the creative direction of this record due to its similarities to older RBF recordings.  The horn riffs, the harmonies and even Barrett’s guitar sound exactly the same (seriously, does the guy even own a second distortion pedal?).

Getting really precise, it sounds like a transition between Turn the Radio Off — which was much more properly ska with its reliance on offbeat guitar and catchy horns that you’d sing along with — and Why Do They Rock So Hard? — wherein Barrett began to play with a heavy-metal mentality and take the lead from the horns.  With FOE, the horns get their share of catchy riffs, but Barrett’s guitar is always laying licks underneath and bringing the extra oomph! on the power chord-driven refrains.  Again, I’m not complaining as this is my favorite phase of RBF, I just wish it didn’t take a whole new band for Barrett to re-discover this sound.

Where I’m disappointed is the lyrics, which had the same spirit as every RBF record but seemed somehow to lose their edge, in spite of the pent-up anger/frustration in every original song on the record (there are two covers that stand out lyrically, even though I wasn’t sure on my first listen if either was a cover).  I think the angry lyrics are possibly meant to be comedic, as they’re so over the top:

I’ve got friends but they don’t know me/I want to tell the world to blow me/Fuck all you mother fuckers, fuck you!

Not exactly subtle.  Barrett’s lyrical work in RBF conveyed this attitude without telling the world to blow him outright.  “Say Ten,” the RBF song that cleverly lampoons vegans, takes a much more nuanced approach to telling a group of people to fuck off:

She’s not eating bacon/not eating sausage/and she won’t eat eggs …

But I just can’t help feelin’ sorry/for this poor little lettuce head/You know I can’t stop cryin’/’cause I know this broccoli’s dead.

That’s how you trivialize somebody’s worldview.

And even when he did get more explicit, it was in smaller doses that just made you laugh.  “You Don’t Know” never fails to get a smile from me, if only because he sings “Shove your head back up your ass” in a song with a somewhat gentle melody.  FOE is a lot of straightforward shouting.  I wanted to sing along with the catchy tunes, but I really couldn’t bring myself to sing “Fuck all you mother fuckers” ad nauseum.

After some reading on the band’s Wikipedia page (they’ve been broken up since ’05), I learned that FOE was apparently Barrett’s attempt at ska revival and the record wasn’t made for a year or more after the band’s conception, during which time they played most of these songs live.  On that note, I can say without a doubt that if I was 17 and going to a ska show in some dive joint, these guys would own. They bring more energy than many other ska bands and their horns and guitars are bigger and louder.  Hell, even now they’d probably be better than many live bands and I’d probably be more likely to sing along loudly after a few beers than I am in my car.

All in all, not a total waste of $10, but I’d recommend you give it a try before you buy it.

Awesome Website: OpenCongress.org

I just want to bring attention to a really great little website I just found, opencongress.org.  It’s exactly what we should want for keeping track of our representatives in the House and Senate.  If you sign up with a free profile then you can get RSS feeds from all of your representatives (and any others you want to follow).  As if that’s not enough, it allows you to track all bills and resolutions, share them with your friends, etc. etc.  I’m amazed we didn’t already have something like this but it seems like  it’s a pretty new creation.

HR 676: Universal healthcare for Americans

I was listening to the radio the other day and it was mentioned almost in passing that Americans have a universal health plan on paper with at least 90 sponsors in the House, including some Repulicans (and two from here in Texas!).  It’s House Resolution 676 and I urge you to write your representative in support of this resolution.

The bill has support from Physicians for a National Healthcare Plan and can be read in its entirety here.  (Worry not, it’s only 30 pages and the first 10 give you the basics).

Who’s afraid of the big bad Dick?

I just read this article at Politico about Dick Cheney, basically a greatest-hits collection of his terrorist fear mongering.  Does anybody out there believe a word this guy says?

If I was a part of the previous administration, I think I would be hiding in a bunker somewhere and avoiding the press, ashamed at the state in which I left the country.  Even idiot Bush figured that out.

Kyrgyzstan closing US air base

This isn’t something you read every day. Al Jazeera reports that Krgysztan has decided to close a US air base.

“Eight years has passed since the agreement was signed. Over that period the threat that existed has been removed. This is one of  the fundamental reasons for the cancellation of the agreement,” the  Kyrgyz government said.

“The thread that existed has been removed.”  Too bad Europe and Japan haven’t said the same regarding the Soviet Union.

Ever been arrested?

This video is why I have a hard time appreciating police in this country …

Bail out the Big Three?

Yesterday I was listening to a Diane Rehm podcast from NPR and she was talking to representatives from the Big Three automakers on the possibility of bankruptcy and government bailouts.  They kept saying again and again that they were more important than other industries because of all the unemployment that would result from their demise.

This is a pretty savvy argument at first, until you stop and think:  If the government is willing to give money out, why not give it to the autoworkers who will be out of jobs, instead of to the mis-managed car companies who resisted to change their business models and over-invested in SUVs and trucks?  I know somebody will complain “that’s socialism!” but it seems like it’s socialism either way, and I’d rather see money given to people who need it instead of rewarding mis-management.

Any thoughts?

Obama and the military-industrial complex

I’m a big fan of John Taplin’s blog, he maintains a pretty level-headed approach to politics and the economy.  He has a post up talking about Obama’s need to contract the American military by closing foreign bases and hopes Obama will tell the military-industrial complex to pound sand if they don’t like it.  I agree with Taplin, this needs to be done, but to quote Taplin himself, “I am not even sure Barack is aware he’s going to have to fight it.”  Obama’s own campaign website talks about more investment in the military and increasing the total size of American forces (bolded italics are mine for emphasis):

Build Defense Capabilities for the 21st Century

• Fully Equip Our Troops for the Missions They Face: Barack Obama and Joe Biden believe we must get vitally needed equipment to our soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines before lives are lost. We cannot repeat such failures as the delays in deployment of armored vehicles, body armor and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles that save lives on the frontlines.
• Review Weapons Programs: We must rebalance our capabilities to ensure that our forces have the agility and lethality to succeed in both conventional wars and in stabilization and counter-insurgency operations. Obama and Biden have committed to a review of each major defense program in light of current needs, gaps in the field, and likely future threat scenarios in the post-9/11 world.
• Preserve Global Reach in the Air: We must preserve our unparalleled airpower, swiftly respond to crises across the globe capabilities to deter and defeat any conventional competitors, and support our ground forces. We need greater investment in advanced technology ranging from the revolutionary, like Unmanned Aerial Vehicles and electronic warfare capabilities, to essential systems like the C-17 cargo and KC-X air refueling aircraft, which provide the backbone of our ability to extend global power.
• Maintain Power Projection at Sea: We must recapitalize our naval forces, replacing aging ships and modernizing existing platforms, while adapting them to the 21st century. Obama and Biden will add to the Maritime Pre-Positioning Force Squadrons to support operations ashore and invest in smaller, more capable ships, providing the agility to operate close to shore and the reach to rapidly deploy Marines to global crises.
• National Missile Defense: An Obama-Biden administration will support missile defense, but ensure that it is developed in a way that is pragmatic and cost-effective; and, most importantly, does not divert resources from other national security priorities until we are positive the technology will protect the American public.

Here’s hoping the new administration sees these goals in a different light.  We need to stop pouring money into an imaginary war.  However, Obama’s stated support for missile “defense” gives me little reason to hope for change.  I’m not holding my breath.

***(As long as I’m knocking Obama, I should give a little credit for his attention to military contractors and reforming their legal status.  Then again, there’s much more political will behind such a position):

[An Obama-Biden administration] will establish the legal status of contractor personnel, making possible prosecution of any abuses committed by private military contractors.