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See all 86 CommentsNEW YORK - On the fourth day of the 1967 Arab Israeli War, the
intelligence ship 'USS Liberty' was steaming slowly in international
waters, 14 miles off the Sinai Peninsula. Israeli armored forces were
racing deep into Sinai in hot pursuit of the retreating Egyptian army.
'Liberty,' a World War II freighter, had been converted into an
intelligence vessel by the top-secret US National Security Agency, and
packed with the latest signals and electronic interception equipment.
The ship bristled with antennas and electronic 'ears' including
TRSSCOMM, a system that delivered real-time intercepts to Washington
by bouncing a stream of microwaves off the moon. 'Liberty' had been
rushed to Sinai to monitor communications of the belligerents in the
Third Arab Israeli War: Israel and her foes, Egypt, Syria, and Jordan.
At 0800 hrs, 8 June, 1967, eight Israeli recon flights flew over
'Liberty,' which was flying a large American flag. At 1400 hrs, waves
of low-flying Israeli Mystere and Mirage-III fighter-bombers
repeatedly attacked the American vessel with rockets, napalm, and
cannon. The air attacks lasted 20 minutes, concentrating on the ship's
electronic antennas and dishes. The 'Liberty' was left afire, listing
sharply. Eight of her crew lay dead, a hundred seriously wounded,
including the captain, Commander William McGonagle. At 1424 hrs, three
Israeli torpedo boats attacked, raking the burning 'Liberty' with 20mm
and 40mm shells. At 1431hrs an Israeli torpedo hit the 'Liberty'
midship, precisely where the signals intelligence systems were
located. Twenty-five more Americans died. Israeli gunboats circled the
wounded 'Liberty,' firing at crewmen trying to fight the fires. At
1515, the crew were ordered to abandon ship. The Israeli warships
closed and poured machine gun fire into the crowded life rafts,
sinking two. As American sailors were being massacred in cold blood, a
rescue mission by US Sixth Fleet carrier aircraft was mysteriously
aborted on orders from the White House. An hour after the attack,
Israeli warships and planes returned. Commander McGonagle gave the
order. 'prepare to repel borders.' But the Israelis, probably fearful
of intervention by the US Sixth Fleet, departed. 'Liberty' was left
shattered but still defiant, her flag flying. The Israeli attacks
killed 34 US seamen and wounded 171 out of a crew of 297, the worst
loss of American naval personnel from hostile action since World War
II. Less than an hour after the attack, Israel told Washington its
forces had committed a 'tragic error.' Later, Israel claimed it had
mistaken 'Liberty' for an ancient Egyptian horse transport. US
Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, and Joint Chiefs of Staff head, Admiral
Thomas Moorer, insisted the Israeli attack was deliberate and designed
to sink 'Liberty.' So did three CIA reports; one asserted Israel's
Defense Minister, Gen. Moshe Dayan, had personally ordered the attack.
In contrast to American outrage over North Korea's assault on the
intelligence ship 'Pueblo,' Iraq's mistaken missile strike on the USS
'Stark,' last fall's bombing of the USS 'Cole' in Aden, and the recent
US-China air incident, the savaging of 'Liberty' was quickly hushed up
by President Lyndon Johnson and Defense Secretary Robert McNamara. The
White House and Congress immediately accepted Israel's explanation and
let the matter drop. Israel later paid a token reparation of US $6
million. There were reports two Israeli pilots who had refused to
attack 'Liberty' were jailed for 18 years. Surviving 'Liberty' crew
members would not be silenced. They kept demanding an open inquiry and
tried to tell their story of deliberate attack to the media. Israel's
government worked behind the scenes to thwart these efforts, going so
far as having American pro-Israel groups accuse 'Liberty's' survivors
of being 'anti-Semites' and 'Israel-haters.' Major TV networks
cancelled interviews with the crew. A book about the 'Liberty' by
crewman James Ennes' was dropped from distribution. The Israel lobby
branded him 'an Arab propagandist.' The attack on 'Liberty' was fading
into obscurity until last week, when intelligence expert James Bamford
came out with Body of Secrets, his latest book about the National
Security Agency. In a stunning revelation, Bamford writes that unknown
to Israel, a US Navy EC-121 intelligence aircraft was flying high
overhead the 'Liberty,' electronically recorded the attack. The US
7) The degradation of prosperity began in 1913 when Congress and Wilson signed the Federal Reserve Act. Since then the Fed has increase the money supply to the point where $1 in 1913 is now $22 today. The Fed is not owned by the government. It is as Federal as Federal Express. It is not accountable to anyone and is not audited by the government. The Fed is owned by the money cartel, wealthy families that span back hundreds of years. They make money out of thin air and it is not backed by gold. The Fed trades the newly printed money for newly printed government bonds. The Fed then collects interest on the loan (serves as a consistent earnings stream for the Fed). Now more money is in circulation which causes the money to become de-based (i.e., losings its value)and leads to goods and services prices. The interest rate for borrowing will inevitable increase as our debt increases. We will become Greece if we continue this path. 98 years of this scam is enough.
There are several inconsistencies in this interview. One inconsistency is when Obama describes the prosecution of Wall Street. Obama states that he has no influence on the Justice Department to pursue action against Wall Street for the financial crisis. Last time I looked Eric Holder was in Obama's Cabinet. Regardless, Wall Street did not violate any laws as Obama points out so the point of no influence is an empty statement. So what does this statement accomplish?
The only means to improve our quality of life is to grow the economy and pay down on the debt. Many politicians focus on the former and ignore the latter. And they do this because most of them are influenced in some manner by the money cartel (i.e., the banks that make up the Federal Reserve). The money cartel is the core issue our country needs to address first. But not to distract from this post I will stay on point. The steps we need to take are in contrast to the spending plan Obama has submitted in his annual budget proposals. They are:
1) Create a balanced budget amendment. This law would control spending and ultimately control the growth of government. Thomas Jefferson and other key liberation pioneers of our country understood this very well. Liberty is limited by government. Reducing government influence on our daily lives is a necessity for prosperity. Big government is a precursor to socialism. Look where Greece is today. We are 10-15 years away if we continue to travel on the path we are today.
Organizations such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the National Labor Relations Board take personal accountability away from us when we make poor decisions and they unfairly distribution the ramifications of those poor decisions on the tax payer that did their homework first. For example, if you sign a mortgage loan where the interest rate adjusts after so many years then you better make prognostic efforts for worst case circumstances. When your monthly payment increase to 80% of your adjusted earnings why does it have to become my problem? Do your homework first, take responsibility for the unfavorable outcomes, and lean from your mistakes. So in essence these organizations consume tax payer money and eliminate personal responsibility.
2) Reduce corporate taxes to make manufacturing in the US attractive. Businesses are in business to make a profit. Although many believe businesses are in business to provide jobs. Providing jobs (i.e., opportunities for prosperity) is a consequence of business success. Success is making profits, not by paying taxes where the money will be spent on those that cannot support themselves because they made poor decisions to put them in the situation they are in today. Yes, there are special circumstances for unfavorable situations. But when compared to the general population they are small. You can't spend more than you earn.
3) Level the tax rate for all Americans and Businesses. This makes it fair for everyone. This makes everyone accountable for themselves because the big government will not be there to support those make the choice not to improve themselves to be job market competitive.
4) Cut entitlement programs. We can't continue to pay for services and goods because the systems do not have adequate funds. Make companies such as health care provides compete for price and the level of service. Our current Medicare program does not encourage health care providers to compete because Medicare does not force them to compete for price and service.
5) Reduce corporate regulations. Yes, there are some basic levels of regulation that are necessary. But to layer regulation complexity the ability to grow and prosper will be hindered and ultimately limited. If businesses want to take excessive risk then the ramifications of these actions need to be real. These businesses know that Uncle Sam will bail them out. There is no incentive to make sound decisions based on good risk management.
6) Taxing the rich does not come close to reducing the debt (now at approximately $15 trillion). If Obama could strip way, not just tax but complete strip away, the total wealth of the top 1,210 billionaires in the world, not just American but the world, we would only have enough to pay down approximately 1/3 of our total debt (estimate to be $4.5 trillion). So taxing the wealthy Americans at a higher rate does nothing to pay down the debt.
to be continued in another post...
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