War as a Primary Export I'm not a big fan of US politics. In fact, I am disillusioned by US foreign policy as it affects the global balance of peace-and-order. Their primary export is not American pop culture like what's wildly adhered to by mainstream media. No, it's not Michael Jackson, Coca-cola or Harley Davidson. The US's primary export is war. Since the inception of the Federal Reserve in 1913, the US has been involved in
30 wars.
Politicians' Lies For the US economy to flourish, they have to bomb ancient civilizations out of the map in the pretext of democracy and freedom. Iraq is the birthplace of the Sumerian civilization, dating back over 5,500 years. It's the oldest civilization on the planet as supported by archeological evidence. Now, it's a pile of rubble with orphans, widows, refugees and countless lost lives in its wake. Why? Because the politicians lied to the unknowing American public that Saddam has weapons-of-mass-destruction (WMA). It is now a foregone conclusion that there never was WMA. But notwithstanding, war continues to rage in Iraq and it has now spilt-over to its neighboring countries - Syria and the rest of the Middle East.
This is not the first lie. Robert McNamara, the Secretary of Defense during the Kennedy years and the administration whiz-kid of the Vietnam War, came out in public in 2003 that the Gulf of Tonkin Incident, the incident that sparked the 20-year Vietnam War, NEVER TOOK PLACE - it was another US pretext to venture into war.
American Military Industrial Complex The American military-industrial complex is simply my metaphor to the big industries that have successfully corrupted the American political process to serve their interest - not the American people. Most industries have followed suit with their wad of money thrown to these politicians who provided lip-service for them. Big Pharma, the oil companies, Monsanto, etc. have all followed the template. America now, no longer subscribes to the vision of the founding fathers.
I was resigned that the US global hegemony through war will continue without change...until Bernie Sanders came along.
Bernie Sanders Biography
September 1941 - Bernard "Bernie" Sanders is born in Brooklyn, New York from middle class parents who immigrated from Poland. He grew up in a small rent-controlled apartment in Brooklyn
January 1962 - Sanders, then 20-years old, leads students opposing segregation in off-campus housing owned by the University of Chicago
August 1963 - Sanders takes the bus together with other activists to hear the historic speech of Martin Luther King Jr., "I have a dream", in Washington
1970s - Sanders wins a U.S. Senate seat in Vermont, followed by winning his second run for statewide office during a gubernatorial election. He eventually replaced Gov. Thomas Salmon
1984 - Mayor Sanders establishes the first municipal housing land trust in the US for affordable housing
January 1991 - Congressman Sanders votes against President George H. W. Bush authorizing him to use military force in the Gulf War
October 1992 - Congress passes Sanders' legislation creating the National Program of Cancer Registries, "the cancer weapon America needs most." Now, all 50 states run registries to help cancer researchers
November 1993 - Sanders votes against the Clinton-sponsored North American Free Trade Agreement which essentially gives soaring corporate profits because it will be even easier for American companies to flee and setup business elsewhere to pay starvation wages
July 1999 - Sanders took on the major pharmaceutical companies by becoming the first member of Congress to take seniors across the border to Canada to buy lower-cost prescription drugs
November 1999 - a full decade before the 2008 market meltdown on Wall Street, Sanders votes "NO" to dismantle decades of financial regulations enacted to prevent the Great Depression from happening again
October 2001 - Sanders votes against the USA Patriot Act as it will undermine basic individual freedoms (think Martial Law!). He also voted against reauthorizing the law in 2006 and 2011
October 2002 - Sanders votes against the war in Iraq
2006 - elected to the U.S. Senate after 16 years as Vermont's sole congressman in the House of Representatives
July 2010 - Together with Republican Congressman Ron Paul, Sanders helped to pass a measure to audit the Federal Reserve which exposed how the independent agency gave $16T in near zero-interest loans to big banks and businesses after the 2008 economic collapse
2012 - won re-election in 2012 to the U.S. Senate with 71% of the vote
April 2013 - Sanders attempts to break up major Wall Street banks so large that the collapse of one could send the overall economy into a downward spiral (think, "too big to fail")
January 2015 - Sanders votes against the Keystone XL pipeline to prevent TransCanada to transport dirty tar sands oil from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico
May 2015 - Sanders runs for President of the United States
Hope With Bernie Sanders, there is renewed hope - even from me, a Filipino, who is now fed-up with scumbag politicians and their empty promises. With Bernie as US president, I see the rise of an emergent leader from the grassroots level to pacify a disgruntled America and one to bring soundness and consensus back to geopolitics.
No Sacred Cow Unlike most politicians who say whatever the voters want to hear, but remain a marionette of Big Business, Bernie attacked the big guys and exposed their manipulative means. He took on the might of the military-industrial complex, he took on Wall Street, he took the fight against the Federal Reserve, he fought head-on against the big pharmaceutical companies, etc. He has always been consistent about defending the interest of the middle class against those who exploit them.
Against Alan Greenspan This is perhaps the Bernie Sanders defining moment for me. Back in 2003, long before Bernie Sanders was a household word, in an era when Alan Greenspan, the then Chairman of the Federal Reserve, wielded unsurpassed power that it was even expressed in hushed-tones that Greenspan was more powerful than the US president, Bernie lacerated Greenspan for being oblivious to the plight of the American people. Below is the video that told it all, included Greenspan's conceding about his flawed model 5 years later, after the 2008 market meltdown.
Bernie already saw what was coming as early as 5 years before and sounded the alarm - nobody listened. In this presidential election, he is once again sounding the alarm. I hope the American voters take heed.
No Blood Money Again, unlike most politicians who talk the talk but ultimately accept massive campaign contributions by Big Business, Bernie refuses to accept money from the big guys. He initiated a grassroots campaign contribution program where the average contribution is $27/person. So far, he has raised $3M. It's an insult to intelligence when these so called "progressive" politicians accept millions in campaign contribution from big business and exclaim that their vote remains impartial. Big Business is not stupid to be giving away millions for nothing.
Ending Thoughts
Bernie stands for universal healthcare and free education, not war. He stands for racial harmony, not unrest. He stands for the little guy who gets bulldozed by big business.
Here in the Philippines, there is a campaign frenzy with presidential candidates jockeying-up for any kind of political mileage, with the election looming on the horizon. I see the parallelism between the two countries. The US is lucky to have a Bernie Sanders. We don't have someone like him - and his kind doesn't happen too often. I hope the Americans realize this and vote him to office. Bernie is good for America, and because the world catches cold when America sneezes, Bernie is also good for the world. Consequently, he's good for the Philippines.
--- TheLoneRider
ps - even before Bernie Sanders became visible on the political radar, I already heard about him from the postings of David Joudrey. I would liken David to be another George Carlin or a Michael Moore. He is an activist who exposes dirty politicians, dirty business establishments and puts soundness into people's thinking. Keep posting David, and I'll keep reading. Thank you for being the MESSENGER.
Dave (Feb 11, 2016) Thanks for spreading the word brother!
Emman Arcenal Maceda (Feb 11, 2016) What we have are Trumps
Pascale Wettstein (Feb 10, 2016) Yes so right Gigit, maybe you should be the next Filipino hero and run for president!
TheLoneRider "maybe you should run for president" -- Pascale Wettstein (Feb 10, 2016) Flattering, thank you, Pascale. Honestly, I've pondered on the thought but my friends think my radical changes are too severe - not in line with the ways of a yogi meditator.
Erica Erica Boucher: International Yoga Travel (Feb 10, 2016) This is a post from one of my friends from the Philippines...a wonderful, heart-centered man who is looking at what is happening here in the U.S. I don't believe any of my friends from outside the U.S. have anything like this to say about any of the other candidates. Because from what I can tell, Bernie is the only one who is about unity, connection, and seeing the human race as one big family. Sadly, I know this scares some people. What scares me more is the alternative.
Erwin Cuenca (Feb 10, 2016) Sadly Gigit, we don't have anyone even remotely like him running for president. All our candidates are more on the Trump and Hillary side of the spectrum. I hope so too that Americans don't pass up that chance.
Feb 9, 2016
Dave 
Emman Arcenal Maceda
Pascale Wettstein
TheLoneRider
Erica 
Erwin Cuenca
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