Subscribe!Recently while perusing my news sources (on this occasion, the Drudge Report, I saw an ad that caught my ad. The ad was calling for Congress to Censure Jimmy Carter.
I thought to myself, why would anyone want to Censure the former President and 2002 Nobel Peace laureate? So, out of curiosity I followed the link. Turns out it is a group of people who don't believe in logical or diplomatic solutions. They level the accusations that President Carter "has repeatedly undermined U.S. foreign policy, criticized the missions of the men and women of the United States Armed Forces, as well as embracing known terrorists and terrorist organizations." Let's examine some of their so called "evidence".
They state that he "Praises Hamas", the terrorist group that recently was elected to power by the Palestines. He has never praised them, but instead is attempting to recognize the legitimate results of a legitimate democratic election. Sure, we might not be happy that they were elected to power, but the fact remains that they were and we have to accept that. It does no good to refuse to recognize the Hamas government because we don't like the result of, once again, a legitimate democratic election. By witholding financial aid from the Palestinian government, we have created a vacuum into which Iran has happily jumped in, giving them a foothold right next to Israel. I actually commend President Carter for having the courage to speak up on this issue. Also, what better way to demonstrate to the Palestinian and Islamic world as whole that we adhere to democratic ideals than to recognize the result of a democratic election. What a novel concept, no?
What about the accusation that he has "criticized the missions of the men and women of the United States Armed Forces"? I say, what's wrong with that? I question the missions. A great many people do. The former President, myself, and millions of other people are not criticizing the men and women of our military, but the policy behind the missions they are told to carry out. I believe we have the finest military in the history of the world, but it is unfortunately in the hands of an incompetent baffoon and his cronies. If anyone should be censured, it is George Bush.
Former President Jimmy Carter should be praised for his humanitarian work, his work to promote human rights around the globe, and his ability to think critically about political situations rather than the shallow thought process so prevalent today.
