Tag: Obama

Russian Belligerence/American Weakness

  

The Russian Bear is sharpening its claws again. Vladimir Putin is doing his best to resurrect the old Soviet empire. His strategy of “protecting” Russian-speaking peoples has just landed him the Crimean Peninsula that legally belongs to Ukraine. Will he be satisfied with Crimea only? Why not the rest of Ukraine? After all, it used to be in the Soviet orbit. Rumors are now circulating that there are others who need “protection,” such as Russians living in the Baltic countries… Read more »

The Russian-Ukrainian Crisis

  

I’ve refrained until now from commenting on the situation in Ukraine. I know this is a tough situation with few easy answers. The history of tension between Ukraine and Russia goes back a long ways. One of the worst episodes in twentieth-century history occurred in Ukraine in the winter of 1932-1933 when Josef Stalin was the undisputed leader of the Soviet Union. During that winter, Stalin, in an attempt to strangle Ukrainian resistance to his destruction of independent farmers, removed… Read more »

The Romeike Reversal

  

Many of you, I’m sure, have heard that the German homeschooling family seeking asylum in the U.S. has now been told it can stay. In an amazing turnaround, the Department of Homeland Security contacted the Romeikes to inform them they have been granted “indefinite deferred status,” which is bureaucrat-speak for permission to remain as long as they don’t break any laws. I am delighted for them, as are a whole host of others. They never should have been threatened with… Read more »

Parental Rights & Obama

  

According to the Supreme Court, the battle is over for the Romeike family. The Court denied the request for a review of their case. The Romeikes, for those who may not know or have forgotten, are a homeschooling family from Germany who came to the United States for the freedom to teach their children in the way they believe God intended. They were fleeing their native country because Germany has a law that requires all children to attend government-sponsored schools…. Read more »

Oscars & the Celebrity Culture

  

Last night was the Oscar extravaganza. I see a lot of comments about it on Facebook this morning. That, and other news reports, is how I’ll get my info on what happened. I stopped watching this Hollywood self-congratulation “look-at-us-we’re-stars” self-esteem movement years ago. No, I’m not a film curmudgeon, but there’s enough smugness in the world without spending an entire evening viewing the preening and self-admiration of a largely narcissistic community. Actually, I love movies. My first degree was not… Read more »

A Foreign Foreign Policy

  

Secretary of State John Kerry certainly takes his job seriously. He always seems to be in a foreign country. And he’s always giving speeches or making statements that can grab the headlines. Last week, in the midst of a crisis in Ukraine, the growing threat of Al Qaeda in Syria, the Iranian drive to develop nuclear weapons, and the Venezuelan crackdown on the massive protest against its socialist dictatorship, what does he decide to focus on? While Americans are digging… Read more »

What About Impeachment?

  

Talk of impeachment is beginning. President Obama’s latest power grab, declaring publicly that he will act without Congress to get done what he considers his priorities, is rankling those who are committed to the delicate separation of powers established by the Constitution. Is this just talk? Are there sufficient grounds for impeachment? Is it even politically feasible? Impeaching a president is a big step. Two presidents have been formally impeached: Andrew Johnson and Bill Clinton. A third, Richard Nixon, resigned… Read more »