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Thought this was interesting and though it's a long read hopefully those supportive and unsupportive of this govt and whats going on can read and discuss this like Adults
Who's Smarter?
by Cindy Osborne
The Hollywood group is at it again. Holding anti-war rallies, screaming
about the Bush Administration, running ads in major newspapers, defaming
the President and his Cabinet every chance they get, to anyone and
everyone who will listen. They publicly defile them and call them names
like "stupid," "morons," and "idiots." Jessica Lange went so far as to
tell a crowd in Spain that she hates President Bush and is embarrassed
to be an American.
So, just how ignorant are these people who are running the country?
Let's look at the biographies of these "stupid," "ignorant," "moronic"
leaders, and then at the celebrities who are castigating them:
President George W. Bush: Received a Bachelors Degree from Yale
University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He served as an
F-102 pilot for the Texas Air National Guard. He began his career in
the oil and gas business in Midland in 1975 and worked in the energy
industry until 1986. He was elected Governor on November 8, 1994, with
53.5 percent of the vote. In a historic re-election victory, he became
the first Texas Governor to be elected to consecutive four-year terms on
November 3, 1998 winning 68.6 percent of the vote. In 1998 Governor
Bush won 49 percent of the Hispanic vote, 27 percent of the
African-American vote, 27 percent of Democrats and 65 percent of women.
He won more Texas counties, 240 of 254, than any modern Republican other
than Richard Nixon in 1972 and is the first Republican gubernatorial
candidate to win the heavily Hispanic and Democratic border counties of
El Paso, Cameron and Hidalgo. (Someone began circulating a false story
about his I.Q. being lower than any other President. If you believed
it, you might want to go to URBANLEGENDS.COM and see the truth.)
Vice President Dick Cheney: Earned a B.A. in 1965 and a M.A. in 1966,
both in political science. Two years later, he won an American
Political Science Association congressional fellowship. One of Vice
President Cheney's primary duties is to share with individuals, members
of Congress and foreign leaders, President Bush's vision to strengthen
our economy, secure our homeland and win the War on Terrorism. In his
official role as President of the Senate, Vice President Cheney
regularly goes to Capital Hill to meet with Senators and members of the
House of Representatives to work on the Administration's legislative
goals. In his travels as Vice President, he has seen first hand the
great demands the war on terrorism is placing on the men and women of
our military, and he is proud of the tremendous job they are doing for
the United States of America.
Secretary of State Colin Powell: Educated in the New York City public
schools, graduating from the City College of New York (CCNY), where he
earned a Bachelor's Degree in geology. He also participated in ROTC at
CCNY and received a commission as an Army second lieutenant upon
graduation in June 1958. His further academic achievements include a
Master of Business Administration Degree from George Washington
University. Secretary Powell is the recipient of numerous U.S. and
foreign military awards and decorations. Secretary Powell's civilian
awards include two Presidential Medals of Freedom, the President's
Citizens Medal, the Congressional Gold Medal, the Secretary of State
Distinguished Service Medal, and the Secretary of Energy Distinguished
Service Medal. Several schools and other institutions have been named
in his honor and he holds honorary degrees from universities and
colleges across the country. (Note: He retired as Four Star General in
the United States Army)
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld: Attended Princeton University on
Scholarship (AB, 1954) and served in the U.S. Navy (1954-57) as a Naval
aviator; Congressional Assistant to Rep. Robert Griffin (R-MI), 1957-59;
U.S. Representative, Illinois, 1962-69; Assistant to the President,
Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, Director of the Cost of
Living Council, 1969-74; U.S. Ambassador to NATO, 1973-74; head of
Presidential Transition Team, 1974; Assistant to the President, Director
of White House Office of Operations, White House Chief of Staff,
1974-77; Secretary of Defense, 1975-77.
Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge: Raised in a working class
family in veterans' public housing in Erie. He earned a scholarship to
Harvard, graduating with honors in 1967. After his first year at The
Dickinson School of Law, he was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he
served as an infantry staff sergeant in Vietnam, earning the Bronze Star
for Valor. After returning to Pennsylvania, he earned his Law Degree
and was in private practice before becoming Assistant District Attorney
in Erie County. He was elected to Congress in 1982. He was the first
enlisted Vietnam combat veteran elected to the U.S. House, and was
overwhelmingly re-elected six times.
National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice: Earned her Bachelor's Degree
in Political Science, Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from the University
of Denver in 1974; her Master's from the University of Notre Dame in
1975; and her Ph.D. from the Graduate School of International Studies at
the University of Denver in 1981. (Note: Rice enrolled at the
University of Denver at the age of 15, graduating at 19 with a
Bachelor's Degree in Political Science (Cum Laude). She earned a
Master's Degree at the University of Notre Dame and a Doctorate from the
University of Denver's Graduate School of International Studies. Both
of her advanced degrees are also in Political Science.) She is a Fellow
of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has been awarded
Honorary Doctorates from Morehouse College in 1991, the University of
Alabama in 1994, and the University of Notre Dame in 1995. At Stanford,
she has been a member of the Center for International Security and Arms
Control, a Senior Fellow of the Institute for International Studies, and
a Fellow (by courtesy) of the Hoover Institution. Her books include
Germany Unified and Europe Transformed (1995) with Philip Zelikow, The
Gorbachev Era (1986) with Alexander Dallin, and Uncertain Allegiance:
The Soviet Union and the Czechoslovak Army (1984). She also has written
numerous articles on Soviet and East European foreign and defense
policy, and has addressed audiences in settings ranging from the U.S.
Ambassador's Residence in Moscow to the Commonwealth Club to the 1992
and 2000 Republican National Conventions. From 1989 through March 1991,
the period of German reunification and the final days of the Soviet
Union, she served in the Bush Administration as Director, and then
Senior Director, of Soviet and East European Affairs in the National
Security Council, and a Special Assistant to the President for National
Security Affairs. In 1986, while an international affairs fellow of the
Council on Foreign Relations, she served as Special Assistant to the
Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In 1997, she served on the
Federal Advisory Committee on Gender - Integrated Training in the
Military. She was a member of the boards of directors for the Chevron
Corporation, the Charles Schwab Corporation, the William and Flora
Hewlett Foundation, the University of Notre Dame, the International
Advisory Council of J.P. Morgan and the San Francisco Symphony Board of
Governors. She was a Founding Board member of the Center for a New
Generation, an educational support fund for schools in East Palo Alto
and East Menlo Park, California and was Vice President of the Boys and
Girls Club of the Peninsula. In addition, her past board service has
encompassed such organizations as Transamerica Corporation, Hewlett
Packard, the Carnegie Corporation, Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace, The Rand Corporation, the National Council for Soviet and East
European Studies, the Mid-Peninsula Urban Coalition and KQED, public
broadcasting for San Francisco. Born November 14, 1954 in Birmingham,
Alabama, she resides in Washington, D.C.
So who are these celebrities? What is their education? What is their
experience in affairs of State or in National Security? While I will
defend to the death their right to express their opinions, I think that
if they are going to call into question the intelligence of our leaders,
we should also have all the facts on their educations and background:
Barbra Streisand: Completed high school Career: Singing and acting
Cher: Dropped out of school in 9th grade. Career: Singing and acting
Martin Sheen: Flunked exam to enter University of Dayton. Career:
Acting
Jessica Lange: Dropped out college mid-freshman year. Career: Acting
Alec Baldwin: Dropped out of George Washington U. after scandal.
Career: Acting
Julia Roberts: Completed high school. Career: Acting
Sean Penn: Completed High school. Career: Acting
Susan Sarandon: Degree in Drama from Catholic University of America in
Washington, D.C. Career: Acting
Ed Asner: Completed High school. Career: Acting
George Clooney: Dropped out of University of Kentucky. Career: Acting
Michael Moore: Dropped out first year University of Michigan.
Career: Movie Director
Sarah Jessica Parker: Completed High School. Career: Acting
Jennifer Anniston: Completed High School. Career: Acting
Mike Farrell: Completed High school. Career: Acting
Janeane Garofelo: Dropped out of College. Career: Stand up comedienne
Larry Hagman: Attended Bard College for one year. Career: Acting
While comparing the education and experience of these two groups, we
should also remember that President Bush and his cabinet are briefed
daily, even hourly, on the War on Terror and threats to our security.
They are privy to information gathered around the world concerning the
Middle East, the threats to America, the intentions of terrorists and
terrorist-supporting governments. They are in constant communication
with the CIA, the FBI, Interpol, NATO, The United Nations, our own
military, and that of our allies around the world. We cannot simply
believe that we have full knowledge of the threats because we watch
CNN!! We cannot believe that we are in any way as informed as our
leaders.
These celebrities have no intelligence-gathering agents, no fact-finding
groups, no insight into the minds of those who would destroy our
country. They only have a deep seated hatred for all things
Republican. By nature, and no one knows quite why, the Hollywood
elitists detest Conservative views and anything that supports or uplifts
the United States of America. The silence was deafening from the Left
when Bill Clinton bombed a pharmaceutical factory outside of Khartoum,
or when he attacked the Bosnian Serbs in 1995 and 1999. He bombed
Serbia itself to get Slobodan Milosevic out of Kosovo, and not a single
peace rally was held. When our Rangers were ambushed in Somalia and 18
young American lives were lost, not a peep was heard from Hollywood.
Yet now, after our nation has been attacked on its own soil, after 3,000
Americans were killed, by freedom-hating terrorists, while going about
their routine lives, they want to hold rallies against the war. Why the
change? Because an honest, God-fearing Republican sits in the White
House.
Another irony is that in 1987, when Ronald Reagan was in office, the
Hollywood group aligned themselves with disarmament groups like SANE,
FREEZE and PEACE ACTION, urging our own government to disarm and freeze
the manufacturing of any further nuclear weapons, in order to promote
world peace. It is curious that now, even after we have heard all the
evidence that Saddam Hussein has chemical, biological and is very close
to obtaining nuclear weapons, their is no cry from this group for HIM to
disarm. They believe we should leave him alone in his quest for these
weapons of mass destruction, even though it is certain that these deadly
weapons will eventually be used against us in our own cities.
So why the hype out of Hollywood? Could these celebrities believe that
since they draw such astronomical salaries, they are entitled to also
determine the course of our Nation? That they can make viable decisions
concerning war and peace? Did Michael Moore have the backing of the
Nation when he recently thanked France, on our behalf, for being a
"good enough friend to tell us we were wrong?" I know for certain he
was not speaking for me. Does Sean Penn fancy himself a Diplomat, in
going to Iraq when we are just weeks away from war? Does he believe
that his High School Diploma gives him the knowledge (and the right) to
go to a country that is controlled by a maniacal dictator, and speak on
behalf of the American people? Or is it the fact that he pulls in more
money per year than the average American worker will see in a lifetime?
Does his bank account give him clout?
The ultimate irony is that many of these celebrities have made a
shambles of their own lives, with drug abuse, alcoholism, numerous
marriages and divorces, scrapes with the law, publicized temper
tantrums, etc. How dare they pretend to know what is best for an entire
nation! What is even more bizarre is how many people in this country
will listen and accept their views, simply because they liked them in a
certain movie, or have fond memories of an old television sitcom!
It is time for us, as citizens of the United States, to educate
ourselves about the world around us. If future generations are going to
enjoy the freedoms that our forefathers bequeathed us, if they are ever
to know peace in their own country and their world, to live without fear
of terrorism striking in their own cities, we must assure that this
nation remains strong. We must make certain that those who would
destroy us are made aware of the severe consequences that will befall
them.
Yes, it is a wonderful dream to sit down with dictators and terrorists
and join hands, singing Cumbaya and talking of world peace. But it is
not real. We did not stop Adolf Hitler from taking over the entire
continent of Europe by simply talking to him. We sent our best and
brightest, with the strength and determination that this Country is
known for, and defeated the Nazi regime. President John F. Kennedy did
not stop the Soviet ships from unloading their nuclear missiles in Cuba
in 1962 with mere words. He stopped them with action, and threat of
immediate war if the ships did not turn around. We did not end the Cold
War with conferences. It ended with the strong belief of President
Ronald Reagan... PEACE through STRENGTH.
U.S.Navy Capt Oimette, XO of NAS, Pensacola gave this speech earlier this
month.
"America, Wake Up!
That's what we think we heard on the 11th of September, 2001 and maybe it
was, but I think it should have been "Get Out of Bed!" In fact, I think
the alarm clock has been buzzing since 1979 and we have continued to hit
the snooze button and roll over for a few more minutes of peaceful sleep
since then.
It was a cool fall day in November 1979 in a country going through a
religious and political upheaval when a group of Iranian students attacked
and seized the American Embassy in Tehran. This seizure was an outright
attack oln American soill; it was an attack that held the world's most
powerful country hostage and paralzed a Presendincy. The attack on this
sovereign US embassy set the stage foe the events to follow for the next 23
years.
America was still reeling from the aftermath of the Viet Nam experience and
had a serious threat from the Soviet Union when then President Carter, had
to do something. He choose to conduct a clandestine raid in the desert.
The ill-fated mission ended in ruin, but stood as a symbol of Amerca's
inability to deal with terrorism. America's military had been decimated
and downsized right since the end of the Viet Nam war. A poorly trained,
poorly equipped and poorly organized military was called on to execute a
complex mission that was doomed from the start.
Shortly after the Tehran experience, Americans began to be kidnapped and
killed throughout the Middle East. America could do little to protect her
citizens living and working abroad. The attacks against US soil continued.
In April of 1983 a large vehicle packed with high explosives was driven
into the US Embassy compound in Beirut. Whenit exploded, it killed 63
people. The alram went off again and America hit the snooze button once
omore. Then just six short months a large truck heavily laden down with
over 2500 pounds of TNT smashed through athe main gate of the US Marine
Corps headquarters in Beirut. Two hundred forty one US servicemen are
killed. America mourns her dead and hits the snooze button once more. Two
months later in December 1983, another truck loaded with explosives is
driven into the US Embassy in Kuwait, and America continues her slumber.
The following year, in September 1984, another van was driven into the
gates of the US Embassy in Beirut and America slept.
Soon the terrorism spreads to Europe. In April 1985 a bomb explodes in a
restaurant frequented by US soldiers in Madrid. Then in August a
Volkswagen loaded with explosives is driven into the main gate of the US
Air Force at Rhein-Main, 22 are killed and the snooze button is buzzing
loader and louder as US soil is continually attacked. Fifty-nine days
later a cruise ship, the Achille Lauro is hijacked and we watched as an
American in a wheelchair is singled out of the passenger list and executed.
The terrorists then shift their tactics to bombing civilian airliners when
they bomb TWA Flight 840 in April of 1986 that killed 4 and the most tragic
bombing, Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988, killing 259.
America wants to treat these terrorist acts as crimes; in fact we are still
trying to bring these people to trial. These are acts of war! The wake up
button is louder and louder.
The terrorists decide to bring the fight to America. In January 1993, two
CIA agents are shot and killed as they enter CIA headquarters in Langley,
Virginia. The following month, February 1993, a group of terrrorists are
arrested after a rented van packed with explosives is driven into the
underground parking garage of the World Trade Center in New York City. Six
people are killed and over 1000 are injured. Still - this is a crime and
not an act of war? The snooze button is depressed again.
Then in November 1995 a car bomb explodes at a US military complex in
Riyadh, Saudi, Arabia killing seven service men and women. A few months
later in June of 1996, another truck bomb explodes only 35 yards from the
US military compound in Dharan, Saudi Arabia. It destroys the Khobar
Towers, a US Air Force barracks, killing 19 and injuring over 500.
The terrorists are getting braver and smarter as they see that America does
not respond decisively. They move to coordinate their attacks in a
simultaneous attack on two US embassies in Kenya andTanzania. These
attacks were planned with precision, they killed 224. America responds
with cruise missile attacks and goes back to sleep.
The US Cole was docked in the port of Aden, Yemen for refueling on 12
October 2000, when a small craft pulled along side the ship and exploded
killing 17 US Navy Sailors. Attacking a US War Ship is an act of war, but
we sent the FBI to investigate the crime and went back to sleep.
And of course you know the events of 11 September 2001. Most Americans
think this was the first attack against US soil or in America. How wrong
they are. America has been under a constant attack since 1979 and we
choose to hit the snooze alarm and roll over and go back to sleep.
In the news lately we have seen lots of finger pointing from every high
official in government over what they knew and what they didn't know. But
if you've read the papers and paid a little attention I think you can see
exactly what they knew. You don't have to be in the FBI or CIA or on the
National Security Council to see the pattern that has been developing since
1979. The President is right on when he says we are engaged in a war. I
think we have been in a war for the past 23 years and it will continue
until we as a people decide enough is enough.
America has to "Get out of Bed" and act decisively now. America has
changed forever. We have to be ready to pay the price and make the
sacrifice to ensure our way of life continues. We cannot afford to hit the
snooze button again and roll over and go back to sleep. We have to make
the terrorists know that in the words of Admiral Yamamoto, after the attack
on Pearly Harbor, "That all they have done is to awaken a sleeping giant."
Thank you very much."
Who's Smarter?
by Cindy Osborne
The Hollywood group is at it again. Holding anti-war rallies, screaming
about the Bush Administration, running ads in major newspapers, defaming
the President and his Cabinet every chance they get, to anyone and
everyone who will listen. They publicly defile them and call them names
like "stupid," "morons," and "idiots." Jessica Lange went so far as to
tell a crowd in Spain that she hates President Bush and is embarrassed
to be an American.
So, just how ignorant are these people who are running the country?
Let's look at the biographies of these "stupid," "ignorant," "moronic"
leaders, and then at the celebrities who are castigating them:
President George W. Bush: Received a Bachelors Degree from Yale
University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. He served as an
F-102 pilot for the Texas Air National Guard. He began his career in
the oil and gas business in Midland in 1975 and worked in the energy
industry until 1986. He was elected Governor on November 8, 1994, with
53.5 percent of the vote. In a historic re-election victory, he became
the first Texas Governor to be elected to consecutive four-year terms on
November 3, 1998 winning 68.6 percent of the vote. In 1998 Governor
Bush won 49 percent of the Hispanic vote, 27 percent of the
African-American vote, 27 percent of Democrats and 65 percent of women.
He won more Texas counties, 240 of 254, than any modern Republican other
than Richard Nixon in 1972 and is the first Republican gubernatorial
candidate to win the heavily Hispanic and Democratic border counties of
El Paso, Cameron and Hidalgo. (Someone began circulating a false story
about his I.Q. being lower than any other President. If you believed
it, you might want to go to URBANLEGENDS.COM and see the truth.)
Vice President Dick Cheney: Earned a B.A. in 1965 and a M.A. in 1966,
both in political science. Two years later, he won an American
Political Science Association congressional fellowship. One of Vice
President Cheney's primary duties is to share with individuals, members
of Congress and foreign leaders, President Bush's vision to strengthen
our economy, secure our homeland and win the War on Terrorism. In his
official role as President of the Senate, Vice President Cheney
regularly goes to Capital Hill to meet with Senators and members of the
House of Representatives to work on the Administration's legislative
goals. In his travels as Vice President, he has seen first hand the
great demands the war on terrorism is placing on the men and women of
our military, and he is proud of the tremendous job they are doing for
the United States of America.
Secretary of State Colin Powell: Educated in the New York City public
schools, graduating from the City College of New York (CCNY), where he
earned a Bachelor's Degree in geology. He also participated in ROTC at
CCNY and received a commission as an Army second lieutenant upon
graduation in June 1958. His further academic achievements include a
Master of Business Administration Degree from George Washington
University. Secretary Powell is the recipient of numerous U.S. and
foreign military awards and decorations. Secretary Powell's civilian
awards include two Presidential Medals of Freedom, the President's
Citizens Medal, the Congressional Gold Medal, the Secretary of State
Distinguished Service Medal, and the Secretary of Energy Distinguished
Service Medal. Several schools and other institutions have been named
in his honor and he holds honorary degrees from universities and
colleges across the country. (Note: He retired as Four Star General in
the United States Army)
Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld: Attended Princeton University on
Scholarship (AB, 1954) and served in the U.S. Navy (1954-57) as a Naval
aviator; Congressional Assistant to Rep. Robert Griffin (R-MI), 1957-59;
U.S. Representative, Illinois, 1962-69; Assistant to the President,
Director of the Office of Economic Opportunity, Director of the Cost of
Living Council, 1969-74; U.S. Ambassador to NATO, 1973-74; head of
Presidential Transition Team, 1974; Assistant to the President, Director
of White House Office of Operations, White House Chief of Staff,
1974-77; Secretary of Defense, 1975-77.
Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge: Raised in a working class
family in veterans' public housing in Erie. He earned a scholarship to
Harvard, graduating with honors in 1967. After his first year at The
Dickinson School of Law, he was drafted into the U.S. Army, where he
served as an infantry staff sergeant in Vietnam, earning the Bronze Star
for Valor. After returning to Pennsylvania, he earned his Law Degree
and was in private practice before becoming Assistant District Attorney
in Erie County. He was elected to Congress in 1982. He was the first
enlisted Vietnam combat veteran elected to the U.S. House, and was
overwhelmingly re-elected six times.
National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice: Earned her Bachelor's Degree
in Political Science, Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa, from the University
of Denver in 1974; her Master's from the University of Notre Dame in
1975; and her Ph.D. from the Graduate School of International Studies at
the University of Denver in 1981. (Note: Rice enrolled at the
University of Denver at the age of 15, graduating at 19 with a
Bachelor's Degree in Political Science (Cum Laude). She earned a
Master's Degree at the University of Notre Dame and a Doctorate from the
University of Denver's Graduate School of International Studies. Both
of her advanced degrees are also in Political Science.) She is a Fellow
of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and has been awarded
Honorary Doctorates from Morehouse College in 1991, the University of
Alabama in 1994, and the University of Notre Dame in 1995. At Stanford,
she has been a member of the Center for International Security and Arms
Control, a Senior Fellow of the Institute for International Studies, and
a Fellow (by courtesy) of the Hoover Institution. Her books include
Germany Unified and Europe Transformed (1995) with Philip Zelikow, The
Gorbachev Era (1986) with Alexander Dallin, and Uncertain Allegiance:
The Soviet Union and the Czechoslovak Army (1984). She also has written
numerous articles on Soviet and East European foreign and defense
policy, and has addressed audiences in settings ranging from the U.S.
Ambassador's Residence in Moscow to the Commonwealth Club to the 1992
and 2000 Republican National Conventions. From 1989 through March 1991,
the period of German reunification and the final days of the Soviet
Union, she served in the Bush Administration as Director, and then
Senior Director, of Soviet and East European Affairs in the National
Security Council, and a Special Assistant to the President for National
Security Affairs. In 1986, while an international affairs fellow of the
Council on Foreign Relations, she served as Special Assistant to the
Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. In 1997, she served on the
Federal Advisory Committee on Gender - Integrated Training in the
Military. She was a member of the boards of directors for the Chevron
Corporation, the Charles Schwab Corporation, the William and Flora
Hewlett Foundation, the University of Notre Dame, the International
Advisory Council of J.P. Morgan and the San Francisco Symphony Board of
Governors. She was a Founding Board member of the Center for a New
Generation, an educational support fund for schools in East Palo Alto
and East Menlo Park, California and was Vice President of the Boys and
Girls Club of the Peninsula. In addition, her past board service has
encompassed such organizations as Transamerica Corporation, Hewlett
Packard, the Carnegie Corporation, Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace, The Rand Corporation, the National Council for Soviet and East
European Studies, the Mid-Peninsula Urban Coalition and KQED, public
broadcasting for San Francisco. Born November 14, 1954 in Birmingham,
Alabama, she resides in Washington, D.C.
So who are these celebrities? What is their education? What is their
experience in affairs of State or in National Security? While I will
defend to the death their right to express their opinions, I think that
if they are going to call into question the intelligence of our leaders,
we should also have all the facts on their educations and background:
Barbra Streisand: Completed high school Career: Singing and acting
Cher: Dropped out of school in 9th grade. Career: Singing and acting
Martin Sheen: Flunked exam to enter University of Dayton. Career:
Acting
Jessica Lange: Dropped out college mid-freshman year. Career: Acting
Alec Baldwin: Dropped out of George Washington U. after scandal.
Career: Acting
Julia Roberts: Completed high school. Career: Acting
Sean Penn: Completed High school. Career: Acting
Susan Sarandon: Degree in Drama from Catholic University of America in
Washington, D.C. Career: Acting
Ed Asner: Completed High school. Career: Acting
George Clooney: Dropped out of University of Kentucky. Career: Acting
Michael Moore: Dropped out first year University of Michigan.
Career: Movie Director
Sarah Jessica Parker: Completed High School. Career: Acting
Jennifer Anniston: Completed High School. Career: Acting
Mike Farrell: Completed High school. Career: Acting
Janeane Garofelo: Dropped out of College. Career: Stand up comedienne
Larry Hagman: Attended Bard College for one year. Career: Acting
While comparing the education and experience of these two groups, we
should also remember that President Bush and his cabinet are briefed
daily, even hourly, on the War on Terror and threats to our security.
They are privy to information gathered around the world concerning the
Middle East, the threats to America, the intentions of terrorists and
terrorist-supporting governments. They are in constant communication
with the CIA, the FBI, Interpol, NATO, The United Nations, our own
military, and that of our allies around the world. We cannot simply
believe that we have full knowledge of the threats because we watch
CNN!! We cannot believe that we are in any way as informed as our
leaders.
These celebrities have no intelligence-gathering agents, no fact-finding
groups, no insight into the minds of those who would destroy our
country. They only have a deep seated hatred for all things
Republican. By nature, and no one knows quite why, the Hollywood
elitists detest Conservative views and anything that supports or uplifts
the United States of America. The silence was deafening from the Left
when Bill Clinton bombed a pharmaceutical factory outside of Khartoum,
or when he attacked the Bosnian Serbs in 1995 and 1999. He bombed
Serbia itself to get Slobodan Milosevic out of Kosovo, and not a single
peace rally was held. When our Rangers were ambushed in Somalia and 18
young American lives were lost, not a peep was heard from Hollywood.
Yet now, after our nation has been attacked on its own soil, after 3,000
Americans were killed, by freedom-hating terrorists, while going about
their routine lives, they want to hold rallies against the war. Why the
change? Because an honest, God-fearing Republican sits in the White
House.
Another irony is that in 1987, when Ronald Reagan was in office, the
Hollywood group aligned themselves with disarmament groups like SANE,
FREEZE and PEACE ACTION, urging our own government to disarm and freeze
the manufacturing of any further nuclear weapons, in order to promote
world peace. It is curious that now, even after we have heard all the
evidence that Saddam Hussein has chemical, biological and is very close
to obtaining nuclear weapons, their is no cry from this group for HIM to
disarm. They believe we should leave him alone in his quest for these
weapons of mass destruction, even though it is certain that these deadly
weapons will eventually be used against us in our own cities.
So why the hype out of Hollywood? Could these celebrities believe that
since they draw such astronomical salaries, they are entitled to also
determine the course of our Nation? That they can make viable decisions
concerning war and peace? Did Michael Moore have the backing of the
Nation when he recently thanked France, on our behalf, for being a
"good enough friend to tell us we were wrong?" I know for certain he
was not speaking for me. Does Sean Penn fancy himself a Diplomat, in
going to Iraq when we are just weeks away from war? Does he believe
that his High School Diploma gives him the knowledge (and the right) to
go to a country that is controlled by a maniacal dictator, and speak on
behalf of the American people? Or is it the fact that he pulls in more
money per year than the average American worker will see in a lifetime?
Does his bank account give him clout?
The ultimate irony is that many of these celebrities have made a
shambles of their own lives, with drug abuse, alcoholism, numerous
marriages and divorces, scrapes with the law, publicized temper
tantrums, etc. How dare they pretend to know what is best for an entire
nation! What is even more bizarre is how many people in this country
will listen and accept their views, simply because they liked them in a
certain movie, or have fond memories of an old television sitcom!
It is time for us, as citizens of the United States, to educate
ourselves about the world around us. If future generations are going to
enjoy the freedoms that our forefathers bequeathed us, if they are ever
to know peace in their own country and their world, to live without fear
of terrorism striking in their own cities, we must assure that this
nation remains strong. We must make certain that those who would
destroy us are made aware of the severe consequences that will befall
them.
Yes, it is a wonderful dream to sit down with dictators and terrorists
and join hands, singing Cumbaya and talking of world peace. But it is
not real. We did not stop Adolf Hitler from taking over the entire
continent of Europe by simply talking to him. We sent our best and
brightest, with the strength and determination that this Country is
known for, and defeated the Nazi regime. President John F. Kennedy did
not stop the Soviet ships from unloading their nuclear missiles in Cuba
in 1962 with mere words. He stopped them with action, and threat of
immediate war if the ships did not turn around. We did not end the Cold
War with conferences. It ended with the strong belief of President
Ronald Reagan... PEACE through STRENGTH.
U.S.Navy Capt Oimette, XO of NAS, Pensacola gave this speech earlier this
month.
"America, Wake Up!
That's what we think we heard on the 11th of September, 2001 and maybe it
was, but I think it should have been "Get Out of Bed!" In fact, I think
the alarm clock has been buzzing since 1979 and we have continued to hit
the snooze button and roll over for a few more minutes of peaceful sleep
since then.
It was a cool fall day in November 1979 in a country going through a
religious and political upheaval when a group of Iranian students attacked
and seized the American Embassy in Tehran. This seizure was an outright
attack oln American soill; it was an attack that held the world's most
powerful country hostage and paralzed a Presendincy. The attack on this
sovereign US embassy set the stage foe the events to follow for the next 23
years.
America was still reeling from the aftermath of the Viet Nam experience and
had a serious threat from the Soviet Union when then President Carter, had
to do something. He choose to conduct a clandestine raid in the desert.
The ill-fated mission ended in ruin, but stood as a symbol of Amerca's
inability to deal with terrorism. America's military had been decimated
and downsized right since the end of the Viet Nam war. A poorly trained,
poorly equipped and poorly organized military was called on to execute a
complex mission that was doomed from the start.
Shortly after the Tehran experience, Americans began to be kidnapped and
killed throughout the Middle East. America could do little to protect her
citizens living and working abroad. The attacks against US soil continued.
In April of 1983 a large vehicle packed with high explosives was driven
into the US Embassy compound in Beirut. Whenit exploded, it killed 63
people. The alram went off again and America hit the snooze button once
omore. Then just six short months a large truck heavily laden down with
over 2500 pounds of TNT smashed through athe main gate of the US Marine
Corps headquarters in Beirut. Two hundred forty one US servicemen are
killed. America mourns her dead and hits the snooze button once more. Two
months later in December 1983, another truck loaded with explosives is
driven into the US Embassy in Kuwait, and America continues her slumber.
The following year, in September 1984, another van was driven into the
gates of the US Embassy in Beirut and America slept.
Soon the terrorism spreads to Europe. In April 1985 a bomb explodes in a
restaurant frequented by US soldiers in Madrid. Then in August a
Volkswagen loaded with explosives is driven into the main gate of the US
Air Force at Rhein-Main, 22 are killed and the snooze button is buzzing
loader and louder as US soil is continually attacked. Fifty-nine days
later a cruise ship, the Achille Lauro is hijacked and we watched as an
American in a wheelchair is singled out of the passenger list and executed.
The terrorists then shift their tactics to bombing civilian airliners when
they bomb TWA Flight 840 in April of 1986 that killed 4 and the most tragic
bombing, Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in 1988, killing 259.
America wants to treat these terrorist acts as crimes; in fact we are still
trying to bring these people to trial. These are acts of war! The wake up
button is louder and louder.
The terrorists decide to bring the fight to America. In January 1993, two
CIA agents are shot and killed as they enter CIA headquarters in Langley,
Virginia. The following month, February 1993, a group of terrrorists are
arrested after a rented van packed with explosives is driven into the
underground parking garage of the World Trade Center in New York City. Six
people are killed and over 1000 are injured. Still - this is a crime and
not an act of war? The snooze button is depressed again.
Then in November 1995 a car bomb explodes at a US military complex in
Riyadh, Saudi, Arabia killing seven service men and women. A few months
later in June of 1996, another truck bomb explodes only 35 yards from the
US military compound in Dharan, Saudi Arabia. It destroys the Khobar
Towers, a US Air Force barracks, killing 19 and injuring over 500.
The terrorists are getting braver and smarter as they see that America does
not respond decisively. They move to coordinate their attacks in a
simultaneous attack on two US embassies in Kenya andTanzania. These
attacks were planned with precision, they killed 224. America responds
with cruise missile attacks and goes back to sleep.
The US Cole was docked in the port of Aden, Yemen for refueling on 12
October 2000, when a small craft pulled along side the ship and exploded
killing 17 US Navy Sailors. Attacking a US War Ship is an act of war, but
we sent the FBI to investigate the crime and went back to sleep.
And of course you know the events of 11 September 2001. Most Americans
think this was the first attack against US soil or in America. How wrong
they are. America has been under a constant attack since 1979 and we
choose to hit the snooze alarm and roll over and go back to sleep.
In the news lately we have seen lots of finger pointing from every high
official in government over what they knew and what they didn't know. But
if you've read the papers and paid a little attention I think you can see
exactly what they knew. You don't have to be in the FBI or CIA or on the
National Security Council to see the pattern that has been developing since
1979. The President is right on when he says we are engaged in a war. I
think we have been in a war for the past 23 years and it will continue
until we as a people decide enough is enough.
America has to "Get out of Bed" and act decisively now. America has
changed forever. We have to be ready to pay the price and make the
sacrifice to ensure our way of life continues. We cannot afford to hit the
snooze button again and roll over and go back to sleep. We have to make
the terrorists know that in the words of Admiral Yamamoto, after the attack
on Pearly Harbor, "That all they have done is to awaken a sleeping giant."
Thank you very much."
