As always, the contents of this blog are a compendium of various media reports supplemented by my personal opinion where indicated.
I was nonplussed by the most recent “No Kings” demonstrations. This was the third iteration, and the organizers are predicting (threatening) additional rallies prospectively. According to the Guardian, on March 28 over eight million people attended some 3,300 “No Kings” rallies in the U.S. and around the world, making it likely the largest single-day protest in U.S. history. I am continually amazed, appalled and even frightened by the dearth of some Americans’ knowledge of even the basics of current events, history and just general awareness of world events, and how easily they are continually manipulated by the radical left and the mainstream media, whose primary goals are to denigrate America and its system of government and divide the country. The organizers are radically left, highly organized, and well-funded. Many, if not most, of them are located offshore in communist/socialist countries.
With respect to the “No Kings” movement even the name is an absurd moniker that has no basis in reality. Trump is not a king, has not been acting as a king, and has no desire to be a king. He is not aiming to be president for life. After the 2028 presidential election he will leave the presidency just like all previous presidents have.
Most of the demonstrators don’t have the foggiest idea of the issues against which they are railing and don’t particularly care. All they know is that it is a protest against President Trump. What for, they don’t know or care. Some Dem politicians have even stated they are rooting against America just to hurt Trump. In my opinion, many of those who are protesting the war against Iran couldn’t even find it on the map much less have an understanding of the underlying and immediate issues.
Based on what I have bene able to glean from various news reports the major reasons for the protests are as follows:
- The Iran War
- High gas prices
- Inflation
- ICE overreach
I maintain that they are ignorant of the context of these issues. I have discussed each of these in recent blogs, but I will endeavor to provide a brief review at this time.
- The War – The overriding purpose of this war is to ensure that Iran does not develop nuclear capability. No sane person wants that. We know Iran was merely weeks from achieving that goal. How? During the ongoing peace negotiations, they bragged as much to our representatives. We are highly confident that once they developed nuclear weapons, they would have no hesitation to use them. Their most likely targets would be Israel and the US, but they would have constituted a truly existential threat to the entire world. So, we are engaged in a limited war in the present to avoid a larger war in the future. If you think I am exaggerating the danger, review the history of the 1930s and the ill-conceived, ill-advised, and unsuccessful appeasement of Hitler. The people that are complaining that the war is “unnecessary,” “it’s not our fight,” and “we weren’t attacked” are woefully ignorant of the historical facts. In reality nothing could be further from the truth. The fact is we have been at war with Iran since 1979 when the radical lunatic mullahs took control of the country. Iran has established an unknown number of terrorist cells in the US. Through its various proxies it has coordinated a plethora of attacks against both Israel and the US. It has planned and attempted the assassinations of various US officials including President Trump. So, this limited war is definitely necessary to prevent a significantly larger war later. Remember that old expression, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Rather than being vilified for his actions Trump should be applauded for having the courage to do what he is doing.
- High gas prices– It is true that the price of oil has skyrocketed since the advent of the aforementioned war, and that is a financial burden on virtually all Americans. However, this is a necessary short-term situation that will be resolved as soon as the war is over, which should be in a matter of weeks. As I write this, according to Trading Economics and Bloomberg.com West Texas Crude oil is selling at approximately $104 per barrel, which is way too high, but, for perspective, in March 2022 during the Biden Administration the price was even higher, $130 per barrel. Furthermore, today’s price is due directly to Iran’s closing the Hormuz Strait whereas the price in 2022 was self-inflicted due to the Biden Administration’s ill-advised prolific spending.
- Inflation – The current inflation of 3% is too high, but to be fair, Trump did not cause the problem. He inherited it. He was in the process of addressing that issue before the war threw everything out of kilter. The price of energy affects the entire economy. After the war when the price of oil is under control the rate of inflation should decline to more acceptable levels.
- ICE Overreach – Briefly, the “left” has been complaining that ICE has been too aggressive in hunting down and deporting illegals. While there have been a few isolated incidents of violence these have occurred in sanctuary locales where the local law enforcement has exacerbated the situation by hindering, rather than helping the process. The larger point is that the illegals broke federal law just by entering the country. In addition, many of them were the dregs of society in their home countries and have continued to commit violent crimes in the US against US citizens. The perception is that the Dems favor the rights of illegals over those of American citizens.
Conclusion
Due to the foregoing, Trump’s current approval rating this month is the lowest it has been since his reelection. The fallout from the current problems is threatening to undue all of his prior accomplishments. With the midterm elections looming both he and the country need a quick and decisive end to the war. If the Dems were to take control of even one of the two houses of Congress nothing of substance will be accomplished going forward. His programs will be thwarted, and he may even be impeached again.
We are literally fighting this war for the sake of our children and grandchildren. Do we want to leave them a planet that is perpetually under the risk of nuclear war or one that is safe? That was a rhetorical question. I know the answer. Do you?
We Built It Blog by Larry Jacob 