TMR: Kerry Says Troops Could Be Deployed To Iraq, Philadelphia To Decriminalize Weed, DHS Asks Stores To Watch Customer’s Buying Habits
The liberty train keeps on rolling! Here is your Thursday edition of The Morning Roar!Kerry Says Troops Could Be Deployed To Iraq It appears that Secretary of State John Kerry and President Obama might not be on the same page regarding their policy toward utilizing ground troops to combat ISIS in Iraq.Stripes.com reported on John Kerry’s ambiguous statement:
Kerry made the comment during a news conference after a day of meeting with Iraqi officials, who he said hadn’t requested or shown any desire to have U.S. troops or forces from any nation in Iraq to confront the Islamic State, the extremist organization that’s now in control of more than a third of the country’s territory.Kerry reiterated that Obama has said no U.S. combat troops would be deployed to fight the Islamic State in Iraq, before adding, “Unless, obviously, something very, very dramatic changes.
Unless something changes. I wonder what that could mean?Yesterday evening Obama addressed the nation and announced expanded military actions against ISIS in Iraq. But he made no mention of troops on the ground in Iraq. He made no mention of which circumstances could change that would lead to ground troops in Iraq.Here is a portion of Obama’s remarks to the nation (added emphasis mine):
Now, it will take time to eradicate a cancer like ISIL. And any time we take military action, there are risks involved –- especially to the servicemen and women who carry out these missions. But I want the American people to understand how this effort will be different from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. It will not involve American combat troops fighting on foreign soil. This counterterrorism campaign will be waged through a steady, relentless effort to take out ISIL wherever they exist, using our air power and our support for partner forces on the ground. This strategy of taking out terrorists who threaten us, while supporting partners on the front lines, is one that we have successfully pursued in Yemen and Somalia for years. And it is consistent with the approach I outlined earlier this year: to use force against anyone who threatens America’s core interests, but to mobilize partners wherever possible to address broader challenges to international order.
It would be reasonable to assume that the President of the United States and his Secretary of State would be on the same page with a decision so visible.Politics are not reasonable.It doesn’t take a genius to understand what’s going on here. Obama is the President of the United States. He is not going to run for office again. It really doesn’t matter if he gets called a liar or a manipulative phony. Secretary of State John Kerry on the other hand has political aspirations. Perhaps he thinks he could be the next Vice President or maybe even President. He needs to avoid speaking in absolutes in order to leave wiggle room to preemptively mitigate against judgments made with the benefit of hindsight.When “something very, very dramatic changes” and troops end up on the ground in Iraq, Kerry will be able to point back to his speech on Wednesday and claim he never ruled out boots on the ground.If we understand that these politicians are lying to us in order to prolong their careers, then why for a second do we believe that they are interested in defending individual rights domestically or in foreign lands?When we look through recent history it easy to see the destruction the U.S. government has caused in Iraq, which has led directly to the rise of ISIS. U.S. government leaders cannot be trusted because they do not prioritize protection of individual rights over the survival of their own political life. They place their own agenda and the wishes of the special interests ahead of protecting individual liberty.Philadelphia To Decriminalize MarijuanaThis week Philadelphia became the largest city to decriminalize marijuana. Philly Mayor Michael Nutter will sign a bill into law within the next two weeks that will soften the offense for marijuana possession from possible jail time to a $25 fine.The Huffington Post reports:
Nutter wasn't a fan of the bill in the past, but he told KYW Newsradio that he agreed to sign the bill -- with a caveat -- because he's seen too many of his citizens slapped with charges for small amounts of pot."So I think the agreement ends up putting the city and our citizens in a much better place," Nutter told CBS News, noting that signing the bill won't be the same as condoning marijuana use.Though earlier reports have stated that Nutter would sign the bill this week, it'll likely take another two. He arrived at a compromise with City Councilman Jim Kenney, who originally sponsored the bill in May. Nutter's tweak will tack on a $100 fine for smoking in public, which can be waived with a few hours of public service. Kenney's bill will be amended Thursday by the council and get a final vote two weeks later before it shows up on Nutter's desk again.
Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter deserves some kudos for signing this bill into law. This is a victory for liberty, but it is important to point out that decriminalization of marijuana does not go nearly far enough. The entire War on Drugs needs to be ended immediately.Individuals that have been locked up in a cage as a result of the drug war and had their lives ruined should be made whole by the government that violated their individual rights. This goes for all nonviolent victims that have had years of their lives stolen in the name of the War on Drugs.DHS Asks Stores To Watch Customer’s Buying HabitsBe careful next time you go shopping. The DHS is asking stores to watch what you are buying and report “suspicious purchases” back to them.From The Washington Times:
While saying the government cannot prohibit sales of some everyday materials, Mr. Johnson said retailers should be trained to look for anyone who buys a lot from what he described as a “long list of materials that could be used as explosive precursors.”He said it was an extension of the “If you see something, say something” campaign launched by his predecessor, former Secretary Janet Napolitano, which tries to enlist average Americans to be aware of their immediate environment.“We can’t and we shouldn’t prohibit the sale of a pressure cooker. We can sensitize retail businesses to be on guard for suspicious behavior by those who buy this kind of stuff,” Mr. Johnson said during a question-and-answer session after a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations.
Welcome to the new DHS policy, we’ll call it: “If they buy something, tell us, so we can pass their names on to the NSA and they’ll monitor their entire life.” It doesn’t quite roll offthe tongue like, “If you see something, say something”, but I’m sure they’ll work out the kinks and have a new slogan ready to go in a couple weeks!Read The Morning Roar every weekday Monday-Friday!The Lions of Liberty are on Twitter, Facebook & Google+Receive access to ALL of our EXCLUSIVE bonus audio content – including “Conspiracy Corner”, “Degenerate Gamblers” and the “League of Liberty Podcast” by joining the Lions of Liberty Pride and supporting us on Patreon!
