Quotes of the Month: November 2015

Quote of the Month:"Hillary is running for a lot of reasons—one of ‘em is because she wants to stay out of jail."

-Donald Trump

Stupid Quote of the Month:"There's something different about what happened from Charlie Hebdo, and I think everybody would feel that. There was a sort of particularized focus and perhaps even a legitimacy in terms of -- not a legitimacy, but a rationale that you could attach yourself to somehow and say, okay, they're really angry because of this and that. This Friday was absolutely indiscriminate. It wasn't to aggrieve one particular sense of wrong. It was to terrorize people."
-John Kerry

And the rest...
"I have to call a murder a murder and I have to call the murderers the murderers.”
-Quentin Tarantino on police officers

"By every measure that we define success in this country this guy had it, great looking guy, well educated, great career, plenty of money, beautiful loving wife, beautiful children, great house, he had everything. He's a drug addict and he couldn't get help and he's dead."
-Chris  Christie
"For what you should never do: Don’t bite my teeth!”
-Rhonda Roussey
“Don’t be a slave like I was.”
-Carrie Fisher
"I don't really have any respect for anyone who thinks those films are good. They’re not. (They’re) a monumental misunderstanding of what the (original) three films are about. It's an exercise in utter infanticide ... (like) George Lucas killing his kid."
-Simon Pegg
"I don't think they're gaining strength. What is true, from the start our goal has been first to contain and we have contained them."
-Barack Obama one day before the Paris attacks
"Why can't we take out these bastards?"
-Reporter to Obama
"Our goal was to come in here and make the 'Red Rifle' look like a Red Ryder BB gun, and I think we did that.”
-JJ Watt on Andy Dalton
“The terrible events in Paris were obviously a terrible and sickening setback.”
-Barack Obama
"My heart can take the pounding, my mind can handle the grind, but my body knows it's time to say goodbye."
-Kobe Bryant

Quotes of the Month: April 2015

Quote of the Month: "America has shown to me as an immigrant, that it is the land of opportunity. And I appreciate America so much and this is why it was so important for me to give something back. And we have to keep it the #1 country in the world. So I want to say thank you to America; that you have given me everything that I have."


-Arnold Schwartzenegger

Stupid Quote of the Month: "we also gave those who wished to destroy space to do that as well."


-Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake

Typo of the Month: …"she’s fought children and families all her career."


-Hillary Clinton presidential announcement

　

And the rest...

　
"We were on Nixon's hit list and now we're in the Library of Congress. Ironic?!"


-John Densmore

"I think he had dinner reservations or a concert to play in."


-Torii Hunter on Country Joe West

"This is embarassing."



-Barack Obama on the Loretta Lynch nomination

"I am a woman."


-Bruce Jenner

"There is a liberal fascism that is dedicated to going after believing Christians who follow the biblical teaching on marriage."


-Ted Cruz

'You think the Middle East is chaotic now? Imagine what it looks like for our grandchildren. That's how Americans should view the deal.'"


-George W Bush

"I have faced many different obstacles in my life, and have always maintained a strong belief that no matter the circumstances, I could overcome those obstacles. While this diagnosis poses a new kind of challenge for me, I intend to stay true to my beliefs. With the support of my family and friends, I will meet this challenge with the same determination and unwavering intensity that I have displayed in all of my endeavors in life. I look forward to being back at the ballpark as soon as possible."


-Kirk Gibson

"If Sue loves Joe and Tom loves Joe, Sue can marry Joe but Tom cannot, why isn’t that a straightforward case of sexual discrimination?"


-John Roberts

Quotes of the Month: February 2015

Quote of the Month: "A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP"


-Leonard Nimoy

Stupid Quote of the Month:
"Because Michael, face it -- the guy was basically average in terms of size, strength, speed, jumping ability, all the things that you seem to think make a great player."


-Bill Walton on Michael Jordan


Dueling Confusion of the Month:
"When the final accounting is done, 2014 will have been the most lethal year for global terrorism in the 45 years such data has been compiled."


- Director of National Intelligence James Clapper
"Despite ISIL, despite the visible killings that you see and how horrific they are, we are actually living in a period of less daily threat to Americans and to people in the world than normally; less deaths, less violent deaths today, than through the last century."


-John Kerry
　


and the rest...
"Unless we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place,

remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible

deeds in the name of Christ."


-Barack Obama at the 2015-national-prayer-breakfast
"The only problem we’re going to have is running out of fuel and bullets."


-King Abdullah
"In attempting to reduce the importance of one great talent over another, you make a mockery of all musicians and music from every genre, including your own."


-Shirley Manson to Kanye West
"They were killed simply for the fact they were Christians."


-Pope Francis I
"I am my own man."


-Jeb Bush
"No religion is responsible for terrorism, people are responsible for violence and terrorism."

-Barack Obama

"I do not believe, and I know this is a horrible thing to say, but I do not believe that the president loves America."


-Rudy Giuliani
"If we looked around the world and say long-term we cannot kill every terrorist around the world nor should we try, how do you get at the root causes of this? Look, it might be too nuanced of an argument for some like I’ve seen over the past 24 hours some of the commentary out but it’s really the smart way for Democrats, for Republicans, military commanders, our partners in the Arab world think we need to combat it."


-Marie Harf

Quotes of the Month: January 2015

Quote of the Month: "Je suis Charlie"


Stupid Quote of the Month: "We were taught snipers were cowards. Will shoot u in the back. Snipers aren't heroes. "

-Michael Moore


And the Rest...
"As I write this, it is not clear that I will ever play guitar again."

-Bono

"Congratulations to the president for turning a two year recession into a six year one."

-Kimberly Gilfoyle

"You have to be careful about drinking around me."

-Bill Cosby

"I hear the sound of time roaring past me, and there is no time to lose. "

-Robert Plant

"Pussy Nation."

-Bill Maher on American Progressives

"What we've said all along, and have been called bigots for it, is when there's this many bad apples, there's something wrong with the orchard."


Bill Maher on Islam

 "The Prophet is avenged."

-Charlie Hebdo terrorists

"Well, this is surreal. I am completely knocked out. Thank you to the Academy for this incredible honor. I am very proud and lucky to be a part of Birdman and can't believe it came to this. I am so fucking excited. Are you allowed to say fuck when you're making a statement for the Oscars? I'm just really fucking excited."

-Emma Stone

"Some think that, excuse me if I use that word, that in order to be good Catholics, we have to be like rabbits. No. Responsible parenthood."

-Pope Francis I

"I have no more campaigns to run. ... I know because I won both of them"

-Barack Obama being a dickhead

"I was in The Tea Party before there was a Tea Party."


-John Boehner

"To state the obvious, the past six years have been really, really hard for this country."


-Joe Biden

"Get out of here, you low-life scum."


-John McCain to Code Pink protesters trying to arrest Henry Kissinger

Quotes of the Year: 2014

Sports and politics are not included in the mix...separate posts for those.

Quote of the Year: "We are Groot."

-Groot


Stupid Quote of the Year:

"What do we want? Dead Cops! When do we want it? Now!"


-Protesters led by Al Sharpton

　

and the rest...

"All right, good night."


-Last words from the missing Malaysian airliner

 "Our Western partners headed by the United States prefer not to be guided by international law in their practical policies, but by the rule of the gun. They have come to believe in their exceptionalism and their sense of being the chosen ones. That they can decide the destinies of the world, that it is only them who can be right."


-Vladimir Putin

"So, if we’re all going to be outraged, let’s be outraged that we weren’t more outraged when (Sterling’s) racism was first evident. Let’s be outraged that private conversations between people in an intimate relationship are recorded and publicly played. Let’s be outraged that whoever did the betraying will probably get a book deal, a sitcom, trade recipes with Hoda and Kathie Lee, and soon appear on ‘Celebrity Apprentice’ and ‘Dancing with the Stars.’ "

-Kareen Abdul-Jabbar

  "Nirvana defined a moment, a movement for outsiders, from the fags and the fat girls to the shy nerds and the goth kids in Tennessee and Kentucky, for the rockers to the awkward to the too-smart kids and the bullied. We were a community."

-Michael Stipe

  "Drug addicts and alcoholics are always, 'The world is a harsh place.' My mother was in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany. I don't want to hear f**k all about "the world as a harsh place." She gets up every day, smells the roses and loves life. And for a putz, 20-year-old kid to say, 'I'm depressed, I live in Seattle.' F**k you, then kill yourself."

-Gene Simmons

"We do stories on food stamps, but only to the extent that we prove the cast that they’re needed, without also examining well-established fraud and abuse. We look at unemployment but only to the extent that we present sympathetic characters showing that benefits should be extended rather than examining, also, the escalating cost and instances of fraud. We cover minimum wage but only to the extent that we help make the case for raising it, without giving much due to the other side, which argued it will have the opposite effect than intended."

-Sharyl Attkinson

"He's really batshit crazy."

-James Spader on Ultron

"God, I’m going to sound like a grumpy old man. Modern music, to me, is very formulaic."

-David Gilmour

"Unapologetically, this is for the generation that wants to put its headphones on, lie in a beanbag, or whatever, and get off on a piece of music for an extended period of time. You could say it’s not for the iTunes, downloading-individual-tracks generation."


-David Gilmour on the new Pink Floyd album

‘Your country will turn on you. The liberal media will turn on you. The people will grow tired of this. They will turn on you – and when they do, you are going to be abandoned.’"


-Khalid Sheik Mohammad to his captors

"We had 50 years of white Bonds because Bond is white. Bond was never black. Ian

Fleming never created a black Brit to play James Bond. The character was always

white. He was always Scottish. He always drank vodka shaken not stirred and all

that."


-Rush Limbaugh

"If I'm dead do I still have to pay taxes?


-Axl Rose on rumors of his death 

Quotes of the Month: October 2014

Quote of the Month: "We do stories on food stamps, but only to the extent that we prove the cast that they’re needed, without also examining well-established fraud and abuse. We look at unemployment but only to the extent that we present sympathetic characters showing that benefits should be extended rather than examining, also, the escalating cost and instances of fraud. We cover minimum wage but only to the extent that we help make the case for raising it, without giving much due to the other side, which argued it will have the opposite effect than intended."


-Sharyl Attkinson

Stupid Quotes of the Month:

"To be very, very honest with you, the South has not always been the friendliest place for African-Americans," Landrieu said. "It’s been a difficult time for [President Obama] to present himself in a very positive light as a leader. It’s not always been a good place for women to present ourselves. It’s more of a conservative place, so we’ve had to work a little bit harder on that."


-Senator Mary Landrieu

"That is the worst kind of politics. And we are gonna escort whore out the door."


-South Carolina Democratic Gubernatorial Candidate Vincent Sheheen

"It would be wonderful if we were able to give this man all of the power that he needs to pass the things that he needs to pass."


-Gwyneth Paltrow on Obama

　

and the rest...

"Most of our Democrat voters aren't aware there's even an election on November 4."


-Barack Obama

"I think we're looking at a 30-year war."


-Leon Panetta on ISIS

"There is a feeling that the president has given up on the big issues facing this country."


-Leon Panetta

"It's not really about asking for the raise, but knowing and having faith that

the system will actually give you the right raises as you go along."


-Satya Nadella of Microsoft

"This is the beginning of the long goodbye."


-Roger Daltrey on the 50th Anniversary tour

"It sucked."


-Michael Keaton on why he did not do Batman Forever

"Honestly, the whole thing is just showing the beginning signs of fraying around the edges. It’s a little bit old. Last summer there were five or seven different ones out."


-Robert Downey Jr

"Cocaine is terrific if you want to hang out with people you don't know very well and play ping pong all night. It's bad for almost everything else... the day after cocaine is rough."


-Amy Poehler

"Completely. Not only Mitt and I are done, but the kids are done. Done. Done. Done."


-Ann Romney

"It's time to start offending people."


-Chris Christie

"Don't touch my girlfriend."


-A stupid voter to Obama

"He's really batshit crazy."


-James Spader on Ultron

'Don’t let anybody tell you that it’s corporations and businesses that create jobs."


-Hillary Clinton

"Make no mistake, these policies [of mine] are on the ballot, every single one of them."


-Barack Obama

"This administration has been more dangerous to the press than any in American history."


-Susan Page on the Obama Administration

"The thing about Bibi is, he’s a chickenshit."

-The Obama Administration on Israeli P.M. Benjamin Netanyahu

"There are, on occasion, electoral races in which both candidates are of high quality and high integrity and conduct a tough but fair campaign about the issues. Fair-minded voters have a difficult choice, but they can know that, no matter who is elected, they'll be well represented by someone who won't embarrass their community. The election for the House of Representatives seat in the 11th New York Congressional District is nothing like that."


-Staten Island Advance

Quotes of the Month: September 2014

Quote of the Month: "Israel was using its missiles to protect its children. Hamas was using its children to protect its missiles."


-Benjamin Netanyahu

　
Stupid Quote of the Month: "My son as attorney general, the year in Iraq, came back and that’s one of the things that he finds is, was most in need, when he was over there in Iraq for a year, people would come to him and talk about what was happening at home, in terms of foreclosures, in terms of bad loans that were being, I mean these Shylocks who took advantage of these women and men while overseas."


-Joe Biden

　

and the rest...
"We will follow them to the gates of hell until they are brought to justice. Because hell is where they will reside. Hell is where they will reside."


-Joe Biden
"Rock is finally dead."


-Gene Simmons
"If you threaten America, you will find no safe haven."


-Barack Obama
"Hello Iowa---I'm ba-ack!"


-Hillary Clinton
"One cannot win the war with blankets."


-Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko
"The man's got a point, they can be cold...especially when I'm looking at a serial bomber."


-Megyn Kelly responding to Bill Ayers
"The same mistakes can never be repeated."


-Roger Godell
"I played my last game at shortstop."


-Derek Jeter

Quotes of the Month: August 2014

Quote of the Month:"Don't ever second guess me again on Hamas."

-Benjamin Netanyahu to John Kerry and Barack Obama

 Stupid Quotes of the Month: 'First of all, let me tell my friends from Africa, I do not whip people!'

-Steny Hoyer
"One problem that I've had today is keeping my Wongs straight."

-Harry Reid at the Asian Chamber of Commerce

and

"We don't have a strategy."

-Barack Obama on ISIS
Chilling Quote of the Month: "It's best not to mess with us."

-Vladimir Putin

and the rest...
"They just lied to people."

-Barney Frank on The Obama Administration and health care.
"Don't do stupid stuff is not an organizing principle."


-Hillary Clinton on Barack Obama's foreign policy
"Drug addicts and alcoholics are always, 'The world is a harsh place.' My mother was in a concentration camp in Nazi Germany. I don't want to hear f**k all about "the world as a harsh place." She gets up every day, smells the roses and loves life. And for a putz, 20-year-old kid to say, 'I'm depressed, I live in Seattle.' F**k you, then kill yourself."


-Gene Simmons
"I am you, I will protect your right to protest."


-Ron Johnson
"Michael Brown's blood is crying from the ground, crying for vengeance, crying for justice."


-Rev Charles Ewing
"I'm sorry for being such an idiot."


-Mark David Chapman

Quotes of the Year: 2013

Quote of the Year: "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?"

-Francis I

Dumb Quote of the Year: ““She is older than her chronological age” she was ”as much in control of the situation.”

-Judge G. Todd Baugh on a 14-year-old rape victim

Slam of the Year: "He’s about as mean as a (expletive) kitten, I think he doesn’t realize he’s white and not black, that’s a huge problem."

-Sharon Osbourne on Justin Bieber

“It’s like Django unchained! It’s exciting!”

-Marc Lamont Hill on spree killer Christopher Dorner

"I am the father of the destruction of Western civilization"

-Jerry Springer

“I snorted half of Peru.”

-Steven Tyler

"Strength of mind and body are necessary, strength which in the last few months has deteriorated in me to the extent that I have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me.”

-Pope Benedict XVI

 “Please don’t let me die.”

-Hugo Chavez

'I would like to see a church that is poor and is for the poor'

 -Pope Francis I

"American popular music is our only art form. It's our most important export, period. And since time began, it's been handled not as an art form but as a commodity.”

-Huey Lewis

“I was 'abducted by aliens' in the desert two weeks ago.”

-Baron Davis

 “I am the shooter.”

-Nidal Hassan

"A socialist egalitarian system based on the massive redistribution of wealth, heavy taxation of corporations and massive responsibility for energy companies and any companies exploiting the environment. I think the very concept of profit should be hugely reduced. David Cameron says profit isn't a dirty word, well I say profit is a filthy word." 

-Russell Brand

"It seems like, to me, a vagina -- as a man -- would be more desirable than a man's anus."

-Phil Robertson

"Oh, this is ridiculous. Yet another person claiming it's racist to have a white Santa.’ And by the way, for all you kids watching at home, Santa just is white."

-Megyn Kelly

Sci Fi History: The Brotherhood of Mutants (1964)

Magneto formed the Brotherhood of Mutants in order to promote and permeate mutant superiority over humanity. The group’s goals have morphed from world domination to thugs to terrorism thereby matching the era. They have been continually thwarted by the X-Men. In a sense, they are the evil version of the civil rights movement.

Quotes of the Month: September 2013

Quote of the Month: "I'll tell you the difference with Green Eggs and Ham is when Americans tried it, they discovered they did not like green eggs and ham and they did not like Obamacare either. They did not like Obamacare in a box with a fox, in a house or with a mouse."

-Senator Ted Cruz

Stupid Quote of the Month: “She is older than her chronological age” she was ”as much in control of the situation.”

-Judge G. Todd Baugh on a 14-year-old rape victim

And the Rest…

"I would think the mayor of a city that recently experienced a deadly bombing attack would be more sensitive and not use the phrase 'blow up.'"

-Mayor Bing about the Mayor of Boston's comments about Detroit

"Some people could find a flaw in Bo Derek,”

-Jim Leyland on Max Scherzer’s idiotic critics

"And as RKK would say, if you're a turd, it's going to come back to you."

-Tom Brady on Johnny Manziel

"Let Allah sort it out."

-Sarah Palin on Syria

"Kerry can be forgiven for being at odds with the president. The president, in the space of his 16-minute address, was often at odds with himself... Nuance can sound a lot like a muddle."

-Dana Milbank

"This has been one of the most humiliating episodes in presidential history.”

-Anonymous Democratic Strategist on Obama’s Syria policy.

"If you don't comply, it is treason."

-Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer

“They see it as an act of provocative weakness on America's part.”

-Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham on Obama’s Syria deal

"It is extremely unrealistic, to presume that the peaceful nature of the nuclear program of Iran could be ensured through impeding the program via illegitimate pressures.”

-Iranian President Hassan Rowhani

“It’s on the president’s head, he’s got to lead, he’s got to talk.”

-Bob Woodward on the debt ceiling and failure of the CR

Quotes of the Month: August 2013

Quote of the Month: "I picked the wrong vice. I should have picked alcohol. I should have picked drugs or I should have picked up beating up my wife or girlfriend because if you do those three, you get a second chance."

-PETE ROSE

Dumb Quote of the Month: “The fact of the matter is we will be running on Obamacare in 2014. In fact, we set it up to run on it in 2014."

-JAMES CLYBURN

“I am not a monster.”

-Ariel Castro

"Bud Selig is trying to alter his legacy from the commissioner who tacitly condoned steroids to the one who tried to stamp them out."

-Bob Wojonowski Detroit News

"Not worth it at all."

-Mark McGwire on steroid usage

“I am the shooter.”

-Nidal Hassan

"Federal Election Commission can't do anything about it; they want the IRS to fix the problem. 'So everybody is screaming at us right now, 'Fix it now before the election. Can't you see how much these people are spending?'"

-Lois Lerner on Tea Party Groups

“First of all, you got to be a good liar, a good lowlife, and an imbecile. You gotta take steroids. You must take steroids! And anybody that takes steroids is a garbage pail.”

-John Gotti 1998 (tape recently released)

“the ACA as presently written could “destroy the foundation of the 40-hour work week that is the backbone of the middle class.”

-Labor Leaders on Obamacare

“If you do watch the Al-Jazzera America equivalent of "60 Minutes" and you hear a "Tick-Tick-Tick" sound from the TV, dive out of the room.”

-Dennis Miller

"The indiscriminate slaughter of civilians, the killing of women and children and innocent bystanders by chemical weapons is a moral obscenity."

-John Kerry

Quotes of the Month: April 2013

Quote of the Month: “This is our [expletive] city, and nobody is going to dictate our freedom. Stay strong.”

-Boston Red Sox player David Ortiz after the terror attack on the Boston Marathon

Stupid Quote of the Month:

“We have to break through our kind of private idea that kids belong to their parents or kids belong to their families and recognize that kids belong to whole communities.”

 -Melissa Harris-Perry on MSNBC

And the rest…

“Drudge hurts what we are trying to do.”

-Obama Advisor Dan Pfeiffer

"I'll see you at the movies."

-Roger Ebert

“She also happens to be, by far, the best looking attorney general in the country.”

-Barack Obama

 “We're in deep doo-doo."

 -Dick Cheney on North Korea

"I think Carlos Quentin went to Stanford, something like that? I heard there's smart people at Stanford. That wasn't too smart."

-Matt Kemp after Quentin charged Zach Greinke

“Is everyone else sick of this shit?”

-Craig Ferguson on terrorism

"CAPTURED!!! The hunt is over. The search is done. The terror is over. And justice has won. Suspect in custody."

-Boston P.D. Tweet

Do you know my name?

 -Reese Witherspoon to cops after her husband was stopped for DUI

 "There was a time in my life when I wasn't likely to be found at a library, much less found one."

 -George W Bush

 “That we expanded freedom at home by raising standards at school and lowering taxes for everybody, that we liberated nations from dictatorship and freed people from AIDS. And that when freedom came under attack, we made the tough decisions required to make the American people safe.”

 -George W Bush

“I’m not the same Muslim Socialist I used to be.”

-Barack Obama

"The truth of the matter is, Barack knows it, I know, had the economy not collapsed around your ears, John, in the middle of literally--as things were moving--I think you probably would have won.”

-Joe Biden

“I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay.”

-JASON COLLINS

“I should just pack up and go home.”

-Barack Obama

Quotes of the Year: 2012

Quote of the Year:

"She's such a nightmare. Her career is over, I can tell you that. She looks like a fairground stripper."

-Elton John on Madonna

And the rest…

"Jack, you are my best friend. We had fun together. I will miss you. I will talk to you in my prayers. I love you Jack. Love, John."

-One of Jack Pinto’s classmates (Pinto was a victim in the Sandyhook shooting).

"It's not much different to being 109."

-WWI Vet Florence Green on what it’s like being 110

“The fact is, I’m gay.”

-Anderson Cooper

"She's a trampire!"

-Will Ferrell

"There’s disobedience and there’s obedience to God. I’ve been being disobedient."

-Josh Hamilton

 “She certainly didn’t break the group up, the group was breaking up.”

-Paul McCartney on Yoko Ono

“Israel has opened the gates of hell.”

-Qassam Brigade

“Get a ****in’ beer!”

-Pete Townshend at the 121212 concert for Sandy Relief

“Put the harps back in the closet.”

-George H.W. Bush following reports of his impending death

Quotes of the Month: November 2012

Quote of the Month:

"I remember when I went to the ownership meetings in Colorado in August, and I was walking back from dinner with Tony La Russa (retired Cardinals manager) and we're talking about statistics and about WAR. And, no offense to the player, but when I woke up that morning they had on the (ESPN.com) site that Darwin Barney that day was ranked ahead of Miguel Cabrera in WAR. And I don't mean anything against Darwin Barney, but there wasn't a person in Major League Baseball who on that particular day would have traded Miguel Cabrera for Darwin Barney. So, when people say WAR is all-encompassing, that loses the argument to me right there."

-Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski

Stupid Quote of the month:

“Thank God for Hurricane Sandy!”

-Chris Mathews

And the rest…

“All white folks are going to hell.”

-Rev Joseph Lowery

"There's never been a day in the last four years I've been proud to be his vice president."

-Joe Biden

 “Obamacare is the law of the land.”

-John Boehner

“Israel has opened the gates of hell.”

-Qassam Brigade

“I thought you were going to win, then the hurricane happened, and gave the president a chance to be presidential, and to look bipartisan.”

-Bill Clinton to Mitt Romney

“Our Lord and savior Barack Obama.”

-Jamie Foxx

2009 Story of the Year: The Return of the Terrorists

While President Obama wishes to focus on health care and other domestic priorities, his administration is increasingly distracted by the specter of terrorism. The terrorists are coming out of the woodwork like cockroaches. Perhaps the terrorists feel safer to emerge now that Bush is out of office. Maybe it is coincidence. Whatever the reason, the terrorists seem to be back and in force both at home and abroad.

This year, the government has broken up terror plots in Texas, New York, and killed a radical Imam in a shootout in Dearborn, Michigan. Homegrown terrorists have sought help abroad. The Pakistan Military arrested five Americans that tried to join El Queda. They should be charged with treason. There seems to be an increase in domestic arrests with would be terrorists.

While the government has broken up terror rings at home, the country suffered the first terror attack since 911. On November 5, an Islamic terrorist attacked the Fort Hood. The alleged terrorist was a soldier that could not reconcile his faith with his career. This was not the actions of a deranged lone gunman. This was thought out rationally. He decided to go on a jihad and murdered 13 and wounded 30. It appears political correctness intimidated those that could have come forward to report this fellow’s behavior. He is currently charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder and 32 counts of attempted murder under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. Unfortunately, Congress refuses to hold hearings on the matter in order to avoid possible embarrassment for the Administration.

While America suffered its first terror attack on the homeland in eight years, Iraq seems relatively secured. However, the terrorists have been on the move in Afghanistan. The Pakistan military has hammered them and they have probably moved back into Afghanistan. All the while, President Obama agonized for months over a decision to send more troops to combat terrorists. He eventually decided to increase troop strength, but does not seem to know what else to do. It is entirely probable that the delay in deciding to send troops cost American lives and perhaps wasted an opportunity to nail some terrorists.

Lastly, Obama has decided to close the prison at Guantanamo Bay and ship its prisoners stateside and elsewhere. There is some concern over what happens should some of these terrorists escape. Additionally, some detainees will be tried in civilian court despite pleading guilty in military tribunals. The administration has promised convictions even if the accused are found innocent. So, the integrity of the trials are questionable at best. Meanwhile, other detainees will stay in the tribunals. In both cases, the administration is making moves for propaganda purposes.

2009 will be remembered as the year terrorism reemerged. Every couple months it seemed the government was busting up another terror ring. The country also experienced the first terror attack since 911. On top of this, Afghanistan dominated much of the news as Obama dithered on whether or not he wanted to win the war there, if the war was winnable, and what victory meant. The administration even played politics with terrorists in captivity. If 2009 is any indication, there will be an upswing in terror violence on American targets over the next couple of years.

Presidential Legacies: Civil War and Reconstruction

This next grouping is intimately tied to the Civil War and Reconstruction. The war began in 1861 and ended in 1865 consuming Lincoln’s Presidency. Lincoln toyed with Reconstruction in the occupied South. However, he died before being able to start Reconstruction in the South. The Reconstruction issue dominated Johnson’s Presidency and led to his impeachment. In the North, Reconstruction waned as an issue in the Grant Years before ending with the election of Rutherford B. Hayes.

Abraham Lincoln (1861-1865): We know the story. The South left the Union and Lincoln brought them back. Lincoln knew he had the edge, but could not find a general to win the war. They all wanted to be Napoleon. Instead, he got guys like Ambrose Burnside. Eventually, he found Grant and the South was pounded into submission.

While on the way to reunification, Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation. Technically, this freed no one, but Lincoln turned the war into a battle against slavery. This undercut the South. They were now the bad guys and the Civil War became a moral war. Lincoln worked on the 13th Amendment to end slavery. He died before it passed.

Andrew Johnson (1865-1869): At first, Johnson appeared to be the right man to punish the South. He talked tough and announced tough policies. Then, he worked to get the Southern states readmitted as quickly as possible with the pre-war status quo. This angered the Republicans. A war between the executive and legislative branches began.

During the 1866 Congressional Elections, Johnson went campaigned against the GOP. Presidential campaigning was unheard of. They were supposed to sit at home and rest on their records while others campaigned. People were suspicious. He compounded his miscalculation by giving the same speech from stop to stop. It was reprinted in the papers. The audience in Cleveland recited the speech as Johnson tried to give it. He melted down. The Republicans won a decisive victory and Johnson was irrelevant.

The Republicans worked to help blacks in the South while Johnson worked to undermine their rights. The two branches of government continued to collide and Johnson was finally impeached. He survived conviction in the Senate. Johnson’s interference in Reconstruction gave a defeated South new life. It helped lead to the Ku Klux Klan, Night Riders, and other paramilitary terror groups in the South. The country remained at war despite the peace at Appomattox. As a result of Johnson’s actions, the South continued to resist and eventually reclaimed the South and instituted Jim Crow. Perhaps if Lincoln had survived, a second Reconstruction in the 1960s would not have been needed.

U.S. Grant (1869-1877): Grant’s Administration avoided Reconstruction where possible to concentrate on economic development. As money flowed from the Feds, a series of scandals rocked the Grant Administration. Grant’s presidency suffered from the most presidential scandals until the Clintons came to town.

While the administration dealt with scandal, it dealt with a destabilizing force in the South. The Klan was running wild. Grant sent in the troops, declared martial law, and crushed the Klan. The KKK would not be a problem again until the 20th century. However, once the economy tanked, and Northerners decided it best to let the South decide their own fate, Grant was powerless to stop Klan-like groups from emerging in Mississippi and spreading throughout the South.

Rutherford B Hayes (1877-1881): Rutherford B. Hayes lost the popular vote in 1876. However, three states had suspicious returns. Without Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina, Samuel Tilden was one electoral vote short of the presidency. Hayes needed all three states to be president. Democrats worked hard in these states to suppress the vote and stuff the ballot box. Republicans cried foul. Eventually, the two parties cut a deal. Hayes would be president. In return, the military occupation of the South would end. This is a case where the president’s legacy is tied directly to something out of his control. Hayes was a good president and became a hero in Paraguay. However, he is best remembered as Rutherfraud B. Hayes and the Compromise of 1877.

Bush 2008

Struggles continued between Bush and Congress over the War on Terror, Iraqi War, and presidential power. The Congress rightfully outlawed torture. Bush vetoed the bill because it banned water boarding. One definite stain on the Bush Administration is the use of such tactics, euphemistically called “aggressive interrogations.” Information obtained from such tactics is unreliable. Therefore, the use of such is unnecessary.

Bush did win a couple of victories. The wiretap bill passed. This angered the left which complained that it monitored Americans. However, it is a strong tool that can be used to nail bad guys. The left may have helped the terrorists in this battle. Their initial complaints about the monitoring of people in Afghanistan that happened to call America tipped off the terrorists.

In addition to the wiretap bill and water boarding veto, Bush also won the battle on war funding. Democrats threatened to defund the Iraq War. Many on the left begged and pleaded for it. The Democrats were caught in an interesting quandary. They could take money away from American troops in the field or they could anger their base. The troops got their funds thereby ensuring the continuation of the Iraq War. At present, the war is won. So, those that voted for the funding did the right thing.

While Bush was winning his final political victories against the Democrats, the Supreme Court handed him a defeat. The court cancelled Bush Administration guidelines at Gitmo. The detainees could appeal their detentions. Legally, this is probably the correct decision. Practically, it is moot. Obama has promised to close the detention facility.

On the foreign policy front, Russia invaded Georgia. The Russians were looking to flex their muscles and regain super power status. So, they picked a fight with their smaller, weaker neighbor. They used the same logic that Hitler used to invade Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland. (For some absurd reason, many on the left argued Georgia was as responsible for the conflict as Russia.) Bush handled the situation as well as could be. American troops began to appear in the region which forced Moscow to back down after their initial war aims were met.

The other major issue in 2008 was the economy. Early in the year, gas prices spiked to over $4 a gallon as a result of speculators. Prices eventually collapsed as a result of the worldwide economic crisis. OPEC has vowed to cut production to raise prices. In the US, there was a lot of talk, but no action by the administration and congress. Bush appeared helpless, Republicans and some Democrats talked about a gas tax break, while the left opined that the timing was wrong for a massive gas price hike.

Obama was one of those in favor of price spikes. He wants to eliminate fossil fuels and move to alternative energies. That is fine, but price spikes hurt people. Despite his support for high gas prices, Obama won the presidency with 52% of the vote. The vote was anti-Bush, but more importantly, John McCain ran a terrible campaign, and the economy collapsed.

As the year ended, Israel launched air strikes on the Palestinians. The Hamas Government had been lobbing rockets into Israel which is an act of war. Israel responded with devastating effect. The Israelis probably felt pressure to retaliate before the new pro-Palestinian American Administration took power. All out war may have begun.

Moving into 2009, Bush is trying to punt where possible to give Obama some latitude in action upon assuming the presidency. Obama will be handling the worst economic situation since Jimmy Carter’s Administration. The situation has the potential of being as bad as the 1930s. Also, Obama will have to deal with Afghanistan and wind down the Iraq War.

Bush: 2006

2006 was another poor year for Bush. Although Zarqawi was killed and Saddam executed, Bush continued to suffer setbacks in Iraq. The insurrection continued to grow.

Meanwhile, illegal immigrants and their allies had their own insurrection. In several cities, there were protests and walkouts for illegal aliens’ rights. This angered many and pushed Bush to support immigration reform in 2007.

The courts began to push back as well. The Terrorist Surveillance Program was ruled unconstitutional. This ruling basically gave constitutional rights to terrorists worldwide. The program monitored terrorists’ communications worldwide. Idiots that opposed the program believed that it opened the door to spying on Americans. Of course, we know that did not happen. It was an attempt to bloody Bush some more. Bush did not appeal for whatever reason.

The high court also ruled that military tribunals were a no-no. This reversed a World War II decision allowing such tribunals. The tribunals were controversial as some believed the terrorists would not receive fair trials. This has proven false. However, it the controversy demonstrates the difficulties surrounding the incarceration of multi-national enemy combatants as opposed to soldiers in a national army.

Also pushing back were the Iranians. The fascist government of Iran wants to build a nuclear bomb. Their program is buried deep underground. As a result, it is probably safe from a strike. This problem goes back at least a decade and will continue into the Obama Administration. Obama has promised to drop nukes on Iran should they attack Israel.

Bush had two achievements of note in 2006. First, the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands were named a national monument creating largest marine preserve in US History. Second, Samuel Alito was nominated to the Supreme Court.

In November, the Democrats took over both houses of Congress for the first time since 1994. Bush was a drag. More importantly, the Republicans had been involved in several scandals and stuck their noses into the Shiavo case in 2005. The biggest bomb came at the 11th hour of the election when Rahm Emmanuel released information on the Mark Foley scandal. This turned a Democratic tide into a landslide.

Bush and Iraq

In 1991, Saddam promised to leave Iraq open to inspectors. Failure to comply opened the door to further military action on the part of the coalition. Saddam kicked out the inspectors. This led a post-911 paranoia in the American Administration. Saddam must have something to hide. All the major intelligence agencies believed he had WMD. The US pushed for an invasion. There had been nearly 20 UN resolutions, a Clinton-era statement that regime change in Iraq was the goal of the US government, a force authorization from Congress, and the 1991 cease fire agreement. Despite protestations of the left, the war was legal.

Many have accused Bush of lying about WMD to justify the war. The big lie was not about WMD, but that Bush lied. Everyone believed Saddam had WMD. Saddam himself said he was planning on restarting his nuclear program and nuclear materials were taken out of Iraq in 2008. There was no lie on Bush's part. However, the administration did juice up the information. Also, they gave a half dozen reasons to go to war. One of which was WMD.

Whatever the reason for war, the initial invasion resulted in a quick defeat for the Iraqi army. The US blitzkrieg known as "Shock and Awe" ended the conventional war in record time. Bush would declare victory on an aircraft carrier under a banner titled "Mission Accomplished." It was only the end of the first round in Iraq and Bush later admitted the banner and victory declaration was a mistake.

The success of the invasion led to the fall of the Hussein government and celebrations throughout Iraq. Uday and Qusay Hussein died in a shootout with American troops. Saddam was captured in his "spider hole." The crimes of the Hussein regime were brought to light. Iraq had been liberated. The US did not know what to do next. Then, an insurgency began.

In 2004, a pesky insurgency expanded. The Bush Administration did not have a plan to deal with this contingency. They went to war with too few troops for occupation duties. They sent the Iraqi Army home. The dismissed Iraqi army could have been used to maintain the peace. Instead, their weapons went to the insurgents.

By 2006, the insurgency had grown into a major problem for Bush. The insurgent leader, Al-Zarqawi, was killed, but the insurgency breathed still. Despite his death and Saddam's execution at the end of '06, the Bush Administration showed no vision for victory in Iraq. In November, the Democrats retook congress due to GOP scandals. Bush had to act.

In 2007, Bush ordered a surge. Democrats declared it a failure immediately. However, it succeeded. As of today, Iraq is safer than before the surge. The future of the conflict will soon be in Obama's hands. Bush has helped setup a Democratic Iraq. If that becomes a stable democracy, then his legacy improves dramatically.

The fact Bush attempted to "nation build" and "spread democracy" to the Middle East is another paradox. During the 2000 campaign, he attacked Clinton-era nation building. These types of policies usually come from the left. Bush resembles Woodrow Wilson. Many Bush speeches during this period sound like they were written by Wilson during World War I. Wilson wanted ethnic determination and to spread democracy to end the chances of another global conflict. Bush has proposed similar policies. If you like Wilson, you should love Bush!

What is the Bush legacy in Iraq? That is to be determined. One lesson reiterated by this war is the country can not wage war with too few troops. Despite the initial success, boots were needed to maintain order. Iraq is now a fledgling Democracy and that is a positive step. However, the future is unwritten and Iraq's future is still clouded.