Republican Party and PNAC leadership failures

Will Americans rise to the challenge? I think they can with the right leadership.

Here's a typical assessment of the problems with leadership.

It's not all that hard for the better leadership to do a better job:

Devote the human resources needed to do the job

If we don't have the national will or commitment to either spend the money or assign personnel, then we no longer have the foundation to support that objective.

The worst thing the Administrating did was implement a plan using a war of choice, but stretched the resources so thinly that it now no longer can sustain the infrastructure and training needed to keep that system going.

Again, this is a war of choice, to which they failed to plan, and continue to under-assign needed resources to do the job.

Moreover, there's really no reason to "reform" something that gave the President accurate information: That there were potential threats in advance of 9-11; and that there were no WMD.

All they're doing is rearranging the deckchairs on the proverbial Titanic.

They're not just chasing fires, they're creating new ones.

This is a leadership-management problem, just like Enron. The President didn't learn the lesson from his colleagues in the Energy Community.

Leaves me wondering why he's bothering to focus on Cox as SEC -- Latham and Watkins also have the proximity to provide advice. It remains unclear whether the advice is flawed or unlawful. Something to be gleaned through discovery. There's no privilege when the communications can be gleaned through other methods. They exist.

Having Negroponte as "the Czar for Intelligence" is just an excuse to commit more abuses. His legacy in Honduras and Iraq both show he'll do much to make up the rules as he goes along, going so far as to create new systems so that he can have "better control" over them.

The intelligence community's problem are more than simply CIA, but also go into DHS, formerly Customs. These issues are well known.

I'm not sure what's worse: Having a Constitution and ignoring it; or knowing what the problems are, but still creating new distractions to justify not implementing the needed-known solutions. Again, this isn't rocket science -- it's called leadership.

If they existing systems are truly broken, then it's time to start with something that's both going to work; and something that the country is willing to support in terms of manning and resources.

The disadvantage of high technology is that the time to convert these systems into something workable takes just that: Time.

It's been 4 years since 9-11 [almost]. Just think back to WWII. 4 years after 1941, the war was over.

It's almost like this President sat on his ass waiting for the attack; and is now waiting for another attack to "start mobilizing."

Bluntly, if you haven't figured it out: The country doesn't have enough people in combat positions to sustain foreign requirements; not does it have the requisite talent and leadership in place to organize those resources; nor does it have the national commitment to ensure the needed funds are allocated to ensure the existing troops are trained.

Apparently, this President is waiting for another 9-11 in order to 'get around' to being a leader. He's overstayed his welcome.

Remember, the "personnel turnover problem" isn't the problem: That's a symptom of a larger problem: Poor management, failed plans, ineffectual coordination between resources/plans/requirements.

Who needs to worry about a "foreign threat" when you have a system that is broken.

People are leaving because they are not respected; and their leadership has failed. This is no different than how Rome imploded.

The physical space called the United States will remain. What remains to be understood is what method of organizing the system will prevail.

Ideally, the Constitution would have the requisite resources to protect it; and not be distracted by the messes we've created abroad.

The current approach of "our way or no way," does little to inspire confidence in the notion of compromise. I'm not convinced that the world necessarily hates the idea of freedom.

It hates people to who use "freedom" as the excuse to be arrogant, undemocratic, corrupt, and no different than those who are "not free."

What could be done

People need to see tangible results. And at the same time, they also need to see that nations can come together to solve problems, not make the situation worse.

Ideally, the US could work with various other nations and have constructive impacts on people's lives, both at home and abroad.

Some suggest that the current "legal distractions' are a distraction. But that is not the case. As both war and the rule of law can work in harmony.

This nation's constitution included both diplomacy and defense; they were foreseen; and it is a function of government to engage in foreign affairs and defense.

This leadership is making a mess of it. It bit off more than it could chew. It has nobody to blame but itself. And for that, it hopes to avoid responsibility.

These "leaders" are nothing more than Wall Street CEOs who, like corrupt leaders, hope to hide problems.

They did not choose wisely. Now, because of their abysmal leadership, the messes they create are piling up just as fast as the "normal problems" they face.

What needs to be done

There needs to be a clean-up of Washington. There are plenty of lines of evidence available in public for alot of people to get swept away.

But, in the meantime, there needs to be a parallel effort to actually get things back in order. Once the new leadership is brought in, they need to be up and running and getting things on a course that is prudent and constitutional.

It's time to do more than simply blame, but come up with some credible initiatives that are going to solve these problems with leadership, resource allocation.

It might be appropriate to examine whether the current goals can be sustained; how these foreign objectives are to be scaled back.

Remember, even though the money might be "spent on foreign interests," the real funding could very well be for US citizens at home. In other words, you can't simply cut back on requirements with the expectation that things will solve themselves; there are some real employment issues.

The analogy is that the US's interests and overseas "responsibilities" have grown faster than what is sustainable.

The "solution" has been to violate the constitution, take away the 4th Amendment for domestic surveillance, and step on people's rights . . .thereby fueling the problems which originally drove the mismatch between requirements and resources. It feeds on itself. The system either expands to an unsustainable level and collapses; or it consumes itself from within.

Unfortunately, both are occurring in the United States. And this is like a collapsing carcass.

The vultures have landed.

And "positive thinking" doesn't reverse gravity, much to the dismay of those in a falling elevator with a broken suspension wire.

Real solutions

They need a draft. They don't have enough people to do the jobs.

The US needs to work on some common programs with China, Russia and Iran to build up some societies and do something phenomenal. For example, there's a solvable issue in Africa. The nations could simply agree to disagree, but focus their energies on the most in need.

There needs to be some debt restructuring and writeoffs, with more grants. There are issues of bond swaps with excess capacity in Asia that could be allocated to Africa.

People need to start listening to feedback, rather than yelling and threatening others with loss of benefits. Supervisors need to quit their bullshit and start listening to employees that have the ideas.

The Constitution will survive. The question remains whether America is determined to do the same. I see little evidence America is serious about getting on firm ground. I do not believe America has awoken to the challenge despite the catalyst of 9-11.

The window of opportunity is rapidly closing. America does alot to dig itself into a hole. This time, those with the shovels are laughing as America digs itself deeper.

Why would anyone stop the Republicans from destroying something? Up until now, many enjoyed the reckless ride.

I hope you can appreciate the stakes. But know that you are not alone. What's needed is some leadership, not something that simply feigns ignorance and pretends to lead.

The leaders need to set a steady course, not embark on lawless, reckless adventures.

We chose the latter. We need the former.