Lil' Kim, Mark Sanchez and Gandalf Walk Into a Bar

Ruining the lives of people who commit non-violent crimes is an integral part of our criminal justice system. Whether their chances of employment are fucked, their reputations are ruined, or they serve actual jailtime, these people are generally not a threat to society and the penalties far outweigh the crimes. The most common example of this can be seen in drug cases, but also prostitution and sexting come to mind. Reason's Radley Balko, who has been guest blogging for the Instaprophet this week, writes about the "boneheaded logic behind treating "sexting" teens are child pornographers." The headline pretty much sums it up, "Ruining Kids in Order To Save Them." Another example of this would be the case of child services depriving a child of his or her parents cause mommy and daddy were smoking pot. Maybe these kids should get this judge to preside over their case.

We've been going through a rough spot in international relations. The British are starting to doubt our relationship and I need not mention Israel. However, the most remarkable (or unremarkable) diplomatic misstep is our response to what's going on in the Korean peninsula. Lil' Kim's torpedo attack on a South Korean naval vessel is a blatant act of war. We are treaty-bound to support South Korea, with military force if need be. As of now, we're urging the South Korean government to exercise caution, even move on and focus on broader issues. 46 Sailors killed in a deliberate attack, and the message from the leader of the free world in response is to just take it. What kind of message does that send our other allies? Will Israel wait for US cooperation before it takes action against a nearly nuclear Iran? What about our enemies? From the above linked, Gordon Chang says:

"Deterrence looks like it might fail soon. The Cheonan incident could convince Chairman Kim and other potential aggressors that they will pay no price for committing horrible acts. Even in such a clear-cut circumstance as the sinking of the South Korean frigate, the international community is having trouble imposing punishments on the aggressor."

Clear-cut incidents such as a nation's official military attacking another sovereign nation's official military. It doesn't get more clear-cut than that. This isn't a terrorist organization acting out of havens in otherwise friendly-ish countries (i.e. Pakistan). Austin Bay sums it all up at strategypage.

"South Korea must demand reparations for the Cheonan, but if the North fails to comply, what then? Talk does not faze mass-murdering dictators. When Adolf Hitler militarized the Rhineland, the Western allies flinched -- and the Nazis became more audacious. The Rhineland was a strategic probe of allied will. Sinking the Cheonan is a probe of the U.S.-South Korean relationship and ultimately a probe of U.S. President Barack Obama's commitment to mutual defense. His diplomatic track record, and his personality, incline toward appeasement.

South Korea is mulling tough economic and political sanctions. North Korean elites, however, shield themselves from the consequences of sanctions, and any truly effective sanctions regimen requires rigorous Chinese support. Securing firm support is unlikely as long as Beijing sees South Korean and U.S. leadership as too supine for military action."

Our enemies have been constantly testing the mettle of our young, inexperienced President, much like they did with JFK in the 60's. So far, this administration has been failing that test. Fun fact about Lil' Kim's regime: North Koreans roughly 3 inches shorter than South Koreans... creepy.

Time for another look at the way the military academies are run? If I were to have gone the officer route, I would've chosen ROTC for sure. That's irrelevant though, because I'd never be a sir; I work for a living.

Why the media and democrats have jumped on Arizona and decided to make their law an issue is beyond me (actually, it's not: identity politics and the latino vote). Plenty of other states, as well as the federal government have the same or similar laws on the books. In Virginia, it seems to be working. Don't tell Obama, but he required proof of citizenship for people who's offense was wanting to shake his hand. OUTRAGE!!!!11!!1! RAWR!

Governer of AZ, Jan Brewer, tells the Feds to do their jobs, and also has put out a funny little ad knocking the fools who haven't read the bill but feel compelled to criticize it. My favorite quarterback in the NFL, who happens to be a Mexican American, gives his two cents on the immigration issue. Marky Mark Sanchez, you rock even more than I thought (and I thought you rock pretty hard). J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS, baby!

I leave you all with Gandalf's Journey to Bel-Air, hat-tip: Anne Althouse guest posting on Instapundit.

Comments

[HP]

Yeah, 'cause four years to get a degree, getting a commission, two years spent learning to fly, and then getting mission qualified and upgraded, then going to combat is totally NOT working for a living...

But I digress. It's easy to point fingers at the Academies, and yes, there's a lot of silly and frustrating things. But let's have somebody who's actually gone through one, come up with a better way of doing it - oh, wait, we've had graduates running the Academies for decades, and they haven't come up with much better ways, either.

They've got their flaws, like anywhere, and manage them pretty well - but when you task an institution with commissioning better officers out of teens, and get them a four-year degree in the process, and run it all with a finite staff and getting upperclassmen leadership experience by leading their latter years...there's only so much you can do. This is nothing new. As The Last Psychiatrist would say, all this has happened before, and all this will happen again.

[The Viking]

Haha I was just kidding around, the whole working for a living line is an old joke that our NCOs throw at us when we call them "sir." My reasons for not trying to get into an officer program are personal; basically, the job I took was only offered to enlisted. Any other job in the military, I'd rather go the officer route.

Your point is well taken though, thanks. I've met great officers from ROTC and great officers from the academy.

[HP]

My personal stance is that it's all about potentials.

I've seen good and bad officers from the Academies, from ROTC, and from OTS. Sometimes you get people that you couldn't turn into a better officer no matter what their commissioning source, and sometimes you get born leaders who will be great no matter who throws a bar on their shoulder. But for a given person, I think the Academies offer the greatest potential and opportunities for training and experience on the way to commissioning.

And much as I sometimes grind my teeth at the image of the lazy, know-nothing officer who has to be led around by the hand by his wise, hard-working honorable NCOs...well, I've known a few of those, too.