Transterrestrial Musings

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Given the magnitude of Jimmy Carter's lack of insight and past failures his opining now is truly the height of arrogance. Why would anyone give him any credence at all?

Posted by MikeD at June 3, 2006 03:04 PM

This b00b was my Commander-in-Chief. When everyone in the military was ready to march into he11 to get those hostages out, he sat for 400 plus days and did nothing, nothing, nothing. He is, was and will die a coward and an idiot. ONLY the BBC and ABC would consider him any kind of expert on Iran.

The very mention of his "expertise", beyond his ability to be a bad example of a leader, shows what the media thinks of our ability to intellectually separate the wheat from the chaff.

What next Bill Clinton as an expert on truth, ethics and marital fidelity?

I could go on, but I have to go kick something.

Posted by Steve at June 3, 2006 03:36 PM

I remember a great line from those animated shorts on Saturday Night Live. The premise was a group of Ex-Presidents as crime fighters...the money line:

Former President Carter: "I think you should let me take to these Taliban, after all, I have exeperience dealing with Arab and muslim nations"

Former President Reagan: "Yeah, I know. That's how I got elected"

Ouch

Posted by synder at June 3, 2006 03:53 PM

Carter is the epitome of the left-wing intellectual elite. The good news is that you never have to wonder if he's correct or not ... if his lips are moving, he's dead wrong. For years I've thought that he was a Reagan campaign plant, installed four years earlier to help Ron win the Presidency. Karl Rove should take lessons!

Posted by at June 3, 2006 04:20 PM

I'm not surprised that this blog and comments find Carter's comments somehow funny. After all solving a problem without a war dance isn't appealing to Anericans is it? Carter didn't bomb Iran when he could have for one principled reason : international law. He also had a botched rescue to deal with due to military incompetence. Fodder for the flag wavers. Too bad if this "oh so yummy" war you guys were fantasizing about with Iran doesn't come to pass. Then you might even have to hate Condi for messing up your party. Oh Oh.

Posted by Fumanchu at June 3, 2006 05:17 PM

Fumanchu,

Nothing is solved by doing NOTHING.

The ideology of NOTHING solves nothing.

It takes an intellectual to work out that doing NOTHING is doing something.

In one hundred years, what will Jimmy Carter be remembered for? Clinton?

NOTHING.

Posted by Rich at June 3, 2006 05:46 PM

Fumanchu---

Using force to break into an embassy of another country and taking the occupants as prisoners is not only a violation of the Precious and Most Holy International Law, but is also, under that same blessed International Law, considered to be an act of war.

Posted by tcobb at June 3, 2006 05:54 PM

Rich - Jimmy Carter does a heck of a lot. Unfortunately for those who would like to rattle sabres, most of it is helping people who are poor deal with life. Whether it is refugees or the homeless, he is one of the most active ex-Presidents ever. Hardly one who does NOTHING.

tcobb - You are of course right, The Iranians certainly violated international law. The difference was that Carter didn't stoop to their level.
Look, Carter had some real bad luck. He could have waged war but didn't. And if you read his writings and books you will see that this is based very much on the words of Jesus Christ. Unfortunately we claim to be a Christian nation but have a hard time practicing it, Carter tries and of course that makes him a laughing stock. Bush on the other hand, full of holy bliss and piety, has sent thousands, both Americans and others to an early grave. Who is better?

Posted by Fumanchu at June 3, 2006 06:08 PM

Stoop to their level??? When someone commits an act of war and a sovereign state responsds to defend itself and its citizens - you consider this stooping to their level? When someone attempts to beat you over the head, please don't "stoop to their level"...just absorb the blows, as it appears you may have already done.

Typical lefty morally superiority complex - get bent.

Posted by Fumanchu Blows at June 3, 2006 06:20 PM

Typical lefty moral superiority complex - get bent.

Posted by Fumanchu Blows at June 3, 2006 06:20 PM

Look, Carter had some real bad luck. He could have waged war but didn't. And if you read his writings and books you will see that this is based very much on the words of Jesus Christ.

I'm not a Christian. Whether or not Carter's words were based on those of Christ (that's probably disputable), I expect him to defend me as an American president, not as a "Christian." He failed to do that (and I'm speaking as someone who voted for him, and considers it one of the worst votes of my life, self-forgiven only because of my youth and naivety--what's your excuse?).

His pusillanimity was the first act in the most recent war against us by the Muslim world, and he did nothing, except appease them, ultimately (along with similar indulgences by Reagan, Bush I, and Clinton) resulting in the mess we're in now.

Posted by Rand Simberg at June 3, 2006 06:22 PM

Oh don't forget Jimmy's great management of the 'National Malaise.' Give me a break. Do something. I got my first mortage under his excellent leadership at 11.5%

Jimmy was good at managing the Whitehouse tennis courts.

Do you know the hostages were released by the afternoon of Reagan's inaguaration?

-ps

Posted by Paul at June 3, 2006 06:24 PM

Good post FB.

I would just add that this hippy Fumanchu doesn't understand that thousands have been SAVED by our country's actions in Afghanistan and Iraq. Just take the number of people Saddam killed in an average year, subtract the number that are being killed now by his moronic dead-enders and Islamofacists, and the result (a positive number) is the number of people who owe their lives to us chest pounding Americans. War waged for the right purposes is a good thing - and both these wars are good things - for us and the world. The fact that people like Fumanchu don't like them makes me all the more supportive of the action - it means we are right.

Eat some more granola, take a bong hit, and call it a day Fumanchu.

Posted by A Hendrici at June 3, 2006 06:25 PM

Fumanchu--

I wonder how you would feel if a common thug assaulted you and the local police didn't care to stop them because they didn't want to "stoop to the level" of the attacker? Would you praise the cops for their high-minded virtue? I doubt this. In all probability you would just consider the officer in question to be an incompetent moron.

And that's what I think about Jimmy Carter, both then and now.

Posted by at June 3, 2006 06:39 PM

In 100 years, what will Carter be remembered for?

Giving away the Panama Canal.

Posted by Ken Mitchell at June 3, 2006 07:05 PM

"I'm not a Christian. Whether or not Carter's words were based on those of Christ (that's probably disputable), ."

Very disputable as Christ instructed his followers to sell their robes and buy swords, busted up the concessions at the temple and most importantly instructed his followers to render unto Caesar.

Posted by Mike Puckett at June 3, 2006 07:48 PM

FOO on you Fumanchu!

I believe Jimmy Carter is a Christian; I won’t question his beliefs or whether he is a good Christian. That will be decided, when he dies, by the God he believes in, if he and I and many others are right in our beliefs. But Mr. Carter used his religion as a shield when he should have been praying for the strength of convictions to take the correct actions to free the hostages. He was not made of the stuff to carry out that office, and he proved it repeatedly.

When any of the citizens of the country are in danger all the armed services are there to stoop to the level of the bullies that threaten them. Or I missed the point when I took the oath when I joined the Navy. A similar oath to the one Mr. Carter took when he joined the Navy and the one he took when he was inaugurated.

Defending oneself is not necessarily a bad thing. Defending your country is never a bad thing. I’ll go so far as to say that Mr. Carter had every right to turn his own cheek, BUT NOT THE COUNTRY’S!! You sit in the country with the most freedoms of any. Do you think that you, or any of us, would have this forum to speak, if the Nazis or Communists had taken over?

Fu, Mr. Bush says he is a Christian, as does Mr. Carter. Which is the better Christian, Carter who did nothing to defend us based on his beliefs and oath? Or Bush who is defending us based on his beliefs and oath? How do we decide who is right, when two men claiming to hold the same beliefs, do completely different things based on those beliefs?

As to Mr. Carter’s post White House work, BFD!! He gets no points from me for his presidency based on something he did after he left office. Homes for poor people. Look into Habitat for Humanity’s rules. Find out who owns those houses, after the person it’s built for lives there and pays the mortgage. Find out who gets the house when that person dies.

Look it up Fu, but here’s a clue, Habitat owns it.

Not the poor person who did the work, not the poor person who painted the walls, not the poor person who donated time toward other houses, not the poor person who paid all taxes, and certainly not the heirs of the poor person, Habitat owns it. Look it up Fu.

Jimmy Carter, that great God fearing man, that great scion of the left is the world’s greatest plantation slumlord.

LOOK IT UP!!!

Posted by Steve at June 3, 2006 07:48 PM

Carter did in fact wage a very short very small war against Iran.

He was not very good at it.

Posted by M. Simon at June 3, 2006 10:56 PM

I won't attempt to evaluate Carter's Christianity, either - except to note that he seems to have misunderstood some instructions.

Christ commands that if we are smitten on the cheek, we must offer the other cheek to the smiter.

He never said we had to bend over and spread 'em.

Posted by Adjoran at June 4, 2006 03:04 AM

Adjoran,

You are right but Christ's particular meaning is more subtle. He said when hit on the right cheek offer the left. This means when hit with the back hand of a righty aggressor, offer the left and in so doing demand ththe respect of an open-handed hit from this righty.

It was Carter's Xian duty to demand respect of the Arab world. His failure is paid in lives to this day.

Posted by joe at June 4, 2006 07:36 AM

Many people don't realize how big a role luck plays in presidential administrations. For example, Jimmy Carter was extremely unlucky that he sucked.

Posted by iowahawk at June 5, 2006 09:16 AM

M Simon: Carter did in fact wage a very short very small war against Iran. He was not very good at it.

The most courageous thing Jimmy Carter ever did as President, in fact the only courageous thing he did as President, was to give the go ahead to attempt a rescue of the hostages held in Tehran. Charlie Beckwith was even impressed with Carter in that moment. That the effort failed was in no way his fault (although he told Beckwith he would take full blame were it to fail), other than possibly the general neglect of the military under his watch, which could have lead to some of the helicopter failures experienced during the mission. I am a confirmed and unapologetic Carter basher but on this one issue I do have to give him some credit.

Posted by Cecil Trotter at June 5, 2006 06:05 PM

That the effort failed was in no way his fault...

Actually, as I understand it, the mission was poorly planned largely as a result of restrictions placed on its planners by ... Jimmy Carter.

Posted by McGehee at June 6, 2006 08:28 AM

Per Charlie Beckwith’s book "Delta Force" that wasn't the case at all. A number of helicopters had to drop out of the mission due to mechanical problems (as I said, this may be traceable to Carter ultimately) and then there was the collision with the Hercules. The root cause for that collisions being that the pilots involved in the mission were not trained for the type of flying that was required of them. So as a direct result of that accident the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment was formed so as to have pilots and aircraft specifically trained/suited for such missions.

Posted by Cecil Trotter at June 6, 2006 09:21 AM

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