Wednesday, February 22, 2017

Fight ignorance, fight hate

It was nice to read about Muslims conducting a fund raiser to repair a vandalized Jewish cemetery today, very uplifting. This got me thinking about how great our country is and can be when we come together to aid one another, especially against bigotry. Now consider the situation.
This is from a group Trump Supporters believe is nothing but terrorists. Ignorance can be deadly, it is like a breeding ground for hate. Hate can be attributed to many things but fear is probably one of the biggest. Fear of the unknown can make a person leery of things and or people. To conquer fear you try to learn about what you fear when people refuse to seek out for themselves from the source others will fill in wrong information created from their own fear and hate begins its burn, it will grow until extinguished by truth or erupt in an all consuming holocaust that will not only destroy the individual from in whom it was set alight but innocents as well.

Saturday, February 18, 2017

Trump on the Russian blog repost from 2016

Trump on the Russian plan. Here we are a little over a month away from electing our next president, and things are looking bright and dark. The bright side would be choosing the highly qualified former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The dark part? Well, we are dwelling in the penumbra ever since the Grand Old Party nominated Donald Trump as their candidate for president, a man not fit to run for dogcatcher. (And not just because of bone spurs in his heels) Yes, Trump and the Alt-Right are darkening this election cycle, and if they win or lose, we will still face darker times. How can we face darker times if Hillary Clinton wins? I will tell you it will have nothing to do with the Policies Secretary Clinton has purposed; it will be the workings of Donald Trump and his Alt-Right which has not just festered it has become an abscess that will rupture spreading toxin through the body of our Nation.
Since early 2016 I have researched Donald Trump and his Russian connection. Why? Because when a man running for the presidency of the Unites States praises Vladimir Putin and says he would not come to the aid of our NATO allies should they be threatened by Russia a red flag went up in my mind. NATO is way more valuable than Trump gives it credit. I could spend a whole blog explaining why but that is a matter for another day. As for Trump’s praise of Vladimir “I give my enemies polonium as a going away gift” Putin? Putin has offed more reporters and others than the mafia offed during prohibition. Putin has ambitious plans for his country, but his methods are those of your despicable dictator.  While looking into Mr. Putin (Trump’s man crush) I found a few sources that provided some fascinating insight, not just into Putin but the political methods he uses to advance his agenda in Russia and abroad. I studied a few papers published by The Chatham House Organization Royal Institute of International, the Russian political scientist Aleksandr Dugin’s Foundations of Geopolitics and Houston Institution senior fellow John B. Dunlop’s review of Dugin’s book and others. Since this is just a blog and I will not be quoting directly, I will not be citing references. If you feel, I have plagiarized any work let me know in the comments below.
When Putin succeeded Boris Yeltsin in May 2000, he seemed to be a smart and reasonable leader who would collaborate with the West. Things seemed great, no more Cold War with a Russia western countries could work with, primarily to combat terrorism. As things went on in world and nations that were either part of the Warsaw Pact or part of the former USSR started to grow closer to the West and NATO, Putin changed, or rather he stopped hiding his real feeling, becoming anti-western, Russian-centric, and tough on dissidents who opposed him. He and his cronies manipulated the Russian economy for their benefit. The government cracked down on a free press; opposition leaders wound up dead in Russia or other countries. It is fairly obvious the death were not coincidental or accidental, I mean how does a person get poisoned by the radioactive element in Britain? Impossible unless it was a deliberate action carried out by a state like Russia.
Mr. Putin began creating a false narrative about how the West, especially America, was creeping in on Russian Nationalism threatening the Russian way of life. This activity spread to ethnic Russians living in the Baltic states of the former USSR and those in the Ukraine. Like Hitler before WWII Putin uses the “marginalization” of ethnic Russians in territories he covets. He feeds the fears and manipulates through his state sponsored media and political groups that are pro-Russian. Mainstream media is said to be full of lies by Russia discrediting it in the eyes of many who lean towards Putin. The Russian Intelligence elements stir up political and social unrest any way they can to push communities with a large ethnic Russian population to taking action. Once disorder occurs in places targeted with Russia’s new social-political war machine, Putin steps in claiming to do so in the name of ethnic Russians that have been disenfranchised by the nation they reside. A good example of this is the Crimea annexation and the territories of Eastern Ukraine.
So social or political issue is beyond being exploited by Putin and the Kremlin for the purpose of expanding power. Putin appeals to ultra-nationalists and racists to use to subjugate and eliminate any and all groups that oppose him.  This is not new in our history but its use in this age is very disturbing and extremely more dangerous than in days past, why? The internet can spread racist ideas at the speed of light. Russia is using its political and social scientists like A. Dugin to conduct a war of ideologies in countries it believes pose the greatest threat to Russian expansion and a new world order with Russia, headed by Putin, at its head. We know America is the power that keeps Russia from expanding its power base and that is a good thing considering Putin’s history. No one can believe a world with Russia as the chief power would be good for anyone.
How is Russia using the methods created by Putin’s advisors such A. Dugin in America today? If I have to answer that one, then you probably a Trump supporter. Just Kidding. Seriously, Putin has found either an unwitting or a willing puppet in Donald Trump. (With Trump’s behavior I believe he could be a very willing creature) Mr. Trump has used the False Narrative to accomplish two things with his supporters. First, he has built himself up, in the eyes of many, as a successful businessman, a billionaire, smarter than other people in finance. (Yes, I laughed when I wrote that.) Something that Trump uses to inflate his already bloated self-image further is to say he started with a small loan from his dad, uh no. The second part of Trump’s false narrative is he makes false claims that the US economy is in the toilet, unemployment is at ridiculously high rates, businesses are leaving the country, and other nations are taking advantage of us. Oh, I forget he also brings up the national debt that he pays zero taxes to help bring it down. Yep, he has created quite the BS of False Narratives. Why do his followers believe this? A few reasons actually. One- Fox News, the only news source most of the Trump Train, (it figures a closed minded bunch would pick something that is limited by the rails it has to travel) has criticized President Obama’s Administration never giving him credit for pulling the country out of the recession left to us by the last Bush administration. Fox plays over and over Trump’s claims and interviews Trump surrogates who repeat and try to justify the validity of those claims. (Since Fox News is Trump propaganda central facts are irrelevant there) Speaking of the Great Recession, that is another reason Trumpkins believe their Orange God of lies. Though we are eight years displaced from the Recession, it is fresh in the minds of some, either for the severe losses suffered or the fact they lost the only job they were qualified for during the financial collapse. Is this Obama’s fault? No, but it seems Trump’s followers have that bad habit of transference.  When you consider the facts, facts, not the ones Trump pulls from his butt (he has to, his head is there) Trump’s Narrative concerning the economy is a bunch of bull!
Trump has tried to play the false narrative with a portion of America that will not fall for his BS, the Black Community. Trump has said black people are worse off now than they have ever been in history. Are you kidding? Smart big orange headed racist Oompa Loompa must have failed history.
An interesting and very evil tactic Aleksandr Dugin recommended for Russia was to foment racial unrest in the America. He suggested stirring up the white supremacists and other hate groups to cause problems across the nation. (Dugin was a little extreme suggesting Russian special forces should conduct terrorist operations on American soil and frame various other groups to further civil unrest) So far we have witnessed attack minorities blaming them for the problems faced by this country. This message was not intended for anyone but his white nationalist supporters and those with racial bias. It should be noted that the only time Trump tries to reach out to minorities is when poll numbers show he has a chance to win, even then his attempts to bridge the gaps have been half-hearted and racist in nature. Trump goes only far enough to not turn off his core supporters, the very racist Alt-Right.
Going back to Trump’s false narrative, among his core followers he has maligned the Mainstream Media to such a degree it is not considered trustworthy, and this poses a major dangerous problem. Trump has repeatedly stated the election will be rigged and since his core believes the MSM is corrupt there is no effective way to show to that rigging a general election is virtually impossible. On top of this, he has called for his mainly white base to “monitor” polls in areas that have large minority populations. This cannot be considered anything other than a dog whistle for his supporters to intimidate black people at the polls. We had already seen Trump’s racist try instigate trouble such as when Tristan Rettke (a diehard Trump supporter) donned a Gorilla mask and tried to hand out bananas at a Black Live Matter demonstration on the campus of East Tennessee State University. One could feel a book, a large book, with the offensive actions Trump’s supporters have committed online and off.
Trump has even targeted those he believes will help him by playing on patriotism and community service. (which is odd because he is not patriot and God knows he will never do service for a community unless there is something in it for him) Trump has used the recent shootings of unarmed black men to gain support from Law enforcement entities by taking a stance that the Black Lives Matter is nothing more than a terrorist organization and that liberals are anti-law enforcement. Black Lives Matter is not a terrorist anti-law organization; they want social change, so the few people in law enforcement who are racially biased are removed from positions where that bias could be dangerous. They also want a change in training standards to stop the belief “Black men are the most dangerous” from being passed down to new officers joining the force. I support law enforcement, and I know the majority are excellent it is the few that give them a bad name that needs to be addressed. As for the military and patriotism he claims, he is fake, and the fact that many follow him is because of the false narrative he created. It does not help that Fox News seems to be the only news channel allowed on the TV in many military installations.
Trump has sown the seeds into his follower's minds that the election will be rigged and Russia is providing the water and fertilizer for it to not just sprout but blossom. How? Using two methods.
First, the hacking of the DNC and release of emails by Wikileaks that showed the DNC chair at the time had a bias against Bernie Sanders running as a Democrat. Though suggestions were put forth, no action seems to have been implemented. Still, this has put doubt in the public's eye. Recently Russia has tried to hack the voter systems of many states, though nothing was manipulated it still is a cause for concern. Those who support Trump do not care about facts they just know what Trump tells them. Trump says to his supporters no one knows who hacked the DNC computers or the voting systems in various states; he puts forth China, Korea, or a 400 lb fat man sitting on his bed, but always defends Russia and Putin. What his supporters hear is “It was probably a liberal trying to rig the election. So now we are faced with a mainly racist group that distrusts mainstream media who know for sure the election is rigged.
I want everyone to consider the group Donald Trump has targeted the most with his message and sees his ideology as one with his or her own, the Alt-Right. For a refresher and for those who do not know I will name a few groups that make up part of the Alt-Right and a few others to be weary of around election time. Neo-Nazi, White Nationalists, White Supremacists, preppers (extremists), Gun owners who believe the 2nd Amendment give them the right to overthrow the government is corrupt or tyrannical, Gun owners under the false belief Hillary Clinton wants to repeal the 2nd Amendment, extremist pro-life groups, Christian groups with extreme views, (I am a Christian, but I disavow Trump and Christian Groups that share his philosophy), people that believe they are the ultimate patriot that share Trump’s views, anarchists, and more. These all pose a danger to our political process, and Trump loves them all pretty much.
Why would Trump want to cause chaos before or post election? For his puppet master, Putin, who knows that if America is in turmoil because of racial and political processes then it would be less able to come to the aid of NATO or the Ukraine if Russia were to invade. Russia is already taking actions to divide the EU, shore up its military in the Ukraine, and throw away various treaties. Putin is preparing for action and the closer we get to Nov 8, the bolder his actions will be. Even North Korea is preparing to act to take advantage of the turmoil of the upcoming election.
It may seem paranoid to some people when you suggest that a political candidate could be under the control of Russia but with Trump’s actions it is just common sense to be suspect.

Friday, February 17, 2017

Feeling out the political climate in the military and the danger of Trump

I observed a couple of military forums. I wanted to get a feel for how the military feels about Trump, active and former military. Those who deal with the strategic side, the big picture are worried about how screwed up Trump is. These are the people who look at what is the greater threat to the country more than just ISIS.
Those that focus or just deal with tactical issues, seem to like him. The thing is these guys, nothing against them, don't get the big picture because they concentrate just on the battle at hand, you know the fire fight.
The key is Tactics win battles but strategy wins wars. Trump and his Ilk have made ISIS into a greater threat than it actually is while playing down the biggest threat, Russia.
Russia can do more damage to America, and trust me Putin wants to, than ISIS. I am not talking about nuclear weapons here. Russia, using it political science guys have conducted damaging campaigns to not just the US but in Europe and Asia. They also want to topple the US economy and they know Trump's policies will do just that. I posted a blog on this that I need to repost that goes in depth about Russian geopolitical aspirations.
Russia is using a lesson learned from World War 2 to accomplish their goal. What is that lesson? If your adversary is controlled by a madman, you leave him in power.
Where am I going with this? There was one good reason Hitler was not assassinated during WW2, his military incompetence was one of the allies greatest strategic assets. Hitler was not a military strategist, he was a political opportunist. He was an idea man and a charismatic leader but when it came to military matters he was still a corporal trying to command an army.
You ask,"what about the early victories in Europe and the success of blitzkrieg?" The only planning input Hitler did in the beginning was to say "I want this country and that country.." it was Generals that planned the attacks, the tactics they used. The Generals learned from Germany's defeat in the entrenched slug fest that was the First World War and they did not want a repeat of that debacle. The young officers that remained in the German Army studied new tactics of the combined arms offensive, they even studied the writings of military leaders of the allies who defeated them. The result of their efforts was BlitzKrieg "Lightning War" which was very effective during the first part of the war. France and the allies were still fighting the last war, believing that a second war in Europe would be trench warfare so they were totally unprepared for what occurred next even though they had superiority with certain military assets. All this success went to Hitler's head (I almost wrote Trump's head their) and Hitler's ego, plus all of the sycophants around him convinced him he was a military genius and from that point on he took more and more control over military planning which frustrated his Generals. He attacked Russia thinking it would be a pushover but the Russians fought back harder than Hitler believed they could. Instead of retreating to fight another day he made his Generals stand and fight only to have his armies surrounded by the Russian army. When this happened the tide turned but Hitler kept control of the military disregarding what his Generals recommended. When the allies learned that Hitler was the one calling the shots for The German military they cutback their efforts to have him assassinated because they realized if he was gone then a real military strategist would take over and make the war harder on the allies.
Now we have a geopolitical war and Russia helped put a madman in office of the US president, man they know to have a large ego, whose business expertise are not as great as he thinks, a person who has had his ego stroked by syncophants, someone easily blackmailed and manipulated, and even if they could not control him they knew the man would be like Hitler and disregard every experts advice. Their man is Donald Trump. Russia studied the political climate and knew there was an element in America that disliked Obama for one reason or another so they helped generate fake news stories, hired bots to post to forums, Facebook, news sites, Twitter and other social networks to stoke the fire. They even used the the recent killings of black men by police to stir tension and made sure Trump used it. They tapped into all the hate in America they could, hacked the DNC, had Trump and other make claims of a rigged election because they knew if Trump lost his supporters would not just protest but bring guns to protest throwing the country into civil and political disarray, something that would weaken America. Some how Trump won. Now Russia had him in charge of their adversary and knew full well that if Trump implemented his policies, especially the economic ones, that within a year or so the American economy would be shot to hell and the civil situation worse because Trump supporters would blame some other people just like Hitler did and so did his supporters. They had their version of the little corporal calling the shots for America. The funny thing is Hitler was a corporal while Trump was a cadet at a military school.
I am praying Russia miscalculated the resilience and intelligence of the American people as a whole. I am praying our level headed leaders in the military and government can counter Trump's stupidity. I am praying that the GOP wakes up to find they are being led by a "military school cadet" and a liar.
So far seeing what the strategic people think of Trump gives me hope. Now is the time for the experts, the high ranking officers to come forward to say they have no faith in Trump and that he poses a danger to our servicemen and women along with nation. If you know a Flag officer talk to them, have them get in touch with Congress, especially the Republican members, to tell them how unfit and dangerous Trump is. Pardon any misspellings and typos.

Thursday, February 16, 2017

Trump is already a danger to our military

TRUMP HAS ALREADY ENDANGERED THE LIVES OF AMERICAN SERVICEMEN AND WOMEN .
If you think that having a Russian spy ship, an AGI, off our coast is no big deal you obviously don't have a clue about security when it comes to naval matters. The same can be said of a Russian fighter buzzing a destroyer.
Let me discuss the Russian AGI off the east coast as I have experience in such matters. Why? Because I served on SSBNs during the last part of the Cold War and one of my collateral duties involved keeping track of those guys.
The AGI and Trawlers Russia uses have multiple purposes. The primary is to monitor Naval activities like Submarines entering and leaving port, their mainly concerned with Strategic assets, Ballistic Missile Submarines. They wait of the home ports of Trident subs and wait just outside the boundary between our national waters and international water for a Sub to leave or enter port. They then listen electronically and acoustically to gather as much information as they can. The information they gather is passed on to their intel guys for evaluation to try and find ways of breaking encryption or finding our Submarine when they submerge. This information goes to their attack Submarines you then tail, as quietly as they can, our Submarines.
If they are tailing a Trident Submarine they have effectively neutralized a strategic asset. If during a time of war, or if Russia wanted to attack first they would have their attack Submarines take out our Trident Submarines which are the most important part of the nuclear triad and what Russia fears most. If they plan it right, they could take out a Trident Submarine in such away it would look like an accident. That is until the wreckage is found and compared to acoustic recordings. Trident Submarines patrol in such a way that no one knows exactly where they are except those onboard who navigate the ship. Radio transmissions from a Trident sub are restricted to a minimum, basically emergencies. The Sub itself constantly receives radio broadcasts but does so in a way as not to reveal its position, it just listens. I will leave it at that. Now if there is now emergency beacon deployment the loss of a Submarine could go unnoticed for sometime, during that time a Russian Sub could clear datum and nobody would know it was even there. This is just one danger.
Another is Russian Trawlers and AGIs will purposely put themselves in the way of Navy ships and Submarines. This is to harass the crews and to see if they can provoke a response. They will even risk collisions because they know that a collision will damage a Submarine or Ship that would then have to return to port for repair. Don't think they would? I have seen them do just that. Many times another US Navy ship or Coast Guard vessel is used to keep the AGIs clear but the Russian skippers still try. They would like nothing more than to sideline one of our Subs for month while it is repaired. They would gladly trade an AGI or trawler to damage a Submarine. I have known air assets scrambled to drive off AGIs. They don't like being buzzed by low flying jets either.
Why are they doing this if they have Trump in their back pocket? They are testing their man to see how far he will let them go, and judging by Trump's response that is pretty far. When a man is worried more about why he didn't win the popular vote than Russian assets harassing our Navy you have to wonder what is wrong. First, setting aside the fact he is a traitor, it shows how unsuited for the job he is. Second, it shows he doesn't give a crap about the men and women under his command because he didn't do anything really to show he is looking out for them. You want to feel low? Consider how you would feel if you were put in a dangerous situation and your CO could careless. If you don't think a Submarine colliding with something is dangerous you obviously failed physics. Even a Submarine put putting around has quite the inertia to overcome just to stop, now imagine that tonnage stopping in a short distance. Things and people go flying on the inside and people get hurt, some have even died. I never have been in a collision on a Submarine but I have been in a situation that had people thrown across the compartment, not fun.
So yeah, Trump is putting our people at risk because of his actions and you don't know just how much. What do you expect from a man who has a pee-pee party tape, or worse, being held over his head? Do you expect he is going to stand up to the man blackmailing him?

Reactivating this blog after a break.

Well I decided to reactivate this blog after the recent news about Trump and Russia. After the election I became so disgusted by the situation I shut this down. This being the first time I logged in since November I was surprised to see my posts have vanished. I intend to repost the blogs written before the election pertaining to Trump and Russia soon. But for now I will publish a few new ones.
Thanks for reading! Charles Parmele