Contrast This

UPDATE (DEC. 18, 2016): Muted U.S. Response to China’s Seizure of Drone Worries Asian Allies
Across Asia, diplomats and analysts said they were perplexed at the inability of the Obama administration to devise a strong response to China’s challenge. It did not even dispatch an American destroyer to the spot near Subic Bay, a former American Navy base that is still frequented by American ships, some noted. ...  “Allies and observers will find it hard not to conclude this represents another diminishment of American authority in the region,” said Douglas H. Paal, the vice president for studies at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

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Note: All color emphasis below has been added by Molten Eagle's Vigilis.

What explains the disparity in Obama response to national security issues versus Trump's response? 

Contrast the facts, circumstances and responses to CASEs (1) & (2), then decide for yourselves.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

CASE (1)

ALLEGATION of MALICIOUS FOREIGN INTERFERENCE

with Sovereign Process

"The allegations of Russian interference were raised during the presidential campaign won by Republican Donald Trump last month. But the issue re-erupted last week after Obama ordered an intelligence review of malicious cyber activity by foreign powers in the last three presidential elections."  source

ADMISSION of WRONGDOING by an ALLEGED FOREIGN STATE

NONE: President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin has denied the allegations, and U.S. President elect Trump has disputed the unanimous consensus of 16 intelligence agencies headed by Obama appointees and the Department of Homeland Security. "If Russia, or some other entity, was hacking, why did the White House wait so long to act? Why did they only complain after Hillary lost?" he tweeted Thursday. 

U.S. PRESIDENT'S DELAYED RESPONSE

(three election cycles or 12 years)

Dec 16, 2016 |  WASHINGTON — President Obama promised to retaliate against Russia for its attempts to undermine the U.S. elections process, saying that the United States would take action "at a time and place of our own choosing."  

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

 

CASE (2)

ALLEGATION of MALICIOUS FOREIGN INTERFERENCE

with a Sovereign Process

 The Chinese navy seized the US underwater research vessel in the South China Sea on Thursday [15 DEC 16], the US alleges.  "The UUV [unmanned underwater vehicle] was lawfully conducting a military survey in the waters of the South China Sea,"  Pentagon spokesman Capt Jeff Davis told reporters. "It's a sovereign immune vessel, clearly marked in English not to be removed from the water - that it was US property."

U.S. PRESIDENT-ELECT'S QUICK RESPONSE

(President-elect Donald Trump blasted the seizure.  POTUS OBAMA drags his lawyerly feet, as lawyers commonly do.)

ADMISSION of WRONGDOING by an ALLEGED FOREIGN STATE

China said Saturday [17 DEC 16] that its military seized a U.S. Navy unmanned underwater glider in the South China Sea to ensure the "safe navigation of passing ships," in one of the most serious incidents between the two militaries in years.  source

Dec 17, 2016 |   BEIJING — The Pentagon on Saturday said that Beijing had agreed to return an underwater drone seized by China in international waters, an indication that the two countries were moving to resolve an unusual incident that risked sharpening tensions in the run-up to the inauguration of President-elect Donald J. Trump.

Obama will be out of office in 33 DAYS 21 HOURS and 48 MINUTES as of this writing.

Submarines are always silent and strange.

Beyond Popular Reach

Why I never vote for lawyers

(1)

The Vetting Problem

"Jimmy Carter was a famed micromanager, often at odds with his own advisers, and he caught a lot of Beltway criticism for his focus on policy details." - Neil King Jr. and Jonathan Weisman, Aug. 12, 2009,  wsj.com/news/articles, A President as Micromanager: How Much Detail Is Enough?

Carter had been one of Admiral Rickover's hand-picked nuclear propulsion engineers in the submarine navy. In the middle of Carter's presidency the Three Mile Island accident, a partial nuclear meltdown occurred on March 28, 1979.

In May of 1979, President Jimmy Carter gave governors the power to regulate gasoline sales in their states --  including the power to impose odd-even rationing. Lines extended miles past stations and people had to wait hours to fill their tanks for over two months.

By 1980, Carter's popularity had eroded. He survived a primary challenge against Ted Kennedy for the Democratic Party nomination in the 1980 election, but lost the election to the Republican candidate.

How did a micromanager like Jimmy Carter ever get vetted by his party to become a loser president? The DNC's leaders WERE, AND ARE STILL lawyers.   Why Lawyers Can't Manage is linked below.

The criticism is not leveled at Democrats alone. Consider a Republic lawyer, Richard M. Nixon, for instance. I'll let you decide why the RNC vetting of Nixon was equally lacklusrter.  Guess what profession is part of and exerts great influence on the RNC.  

(2)

The Management (Leadership) Problem

 

Traditionally, lawyers are poor managers.  Take it from a Philidelphia lawyer: "Why Lawyers Can't Manage" - Daniel B. Evans (originally published by the Law Practice Management Section of the American Bar Association in Law Practice Management, Vol. 19, No. 7, p. 26 (October 1993).  

President Obama has two leadership problems. From what profession does the president himself and the majority of his cabinet and agency appointments come? They too are lawyers, of course.

(a)

The flawed launch of Obamacare (the Affordable Healthcare Act):   Although it appeared to be up and running, users quickly encountered numerous types of technical problems,^[3] and by some estimates only 1% of interested people were able to enroll to the site in the first week of its operations.^[4] Even for those that did manage to enroll, insurance providers later reported some instances of applications submitted through the site with required information missing.^[5] In its third week of operations, technical problems continued.

Apparently, neither the president nor the various geniuses advising him on launching Obamacare had ever heard about testing new software.  Users of the internet have probably known about beta testing for years:

A very early version of a software product that may not contain all of the features that are planned for the final version. Typically, software goes through two stages of testing before it is considered finished. The first stage, called alpha testing, is often performed only by users within the organization developing the software. The second stage, called beta testing, generally involves a limited number of external users. - webopedia.com

(b)

The IRS  501(c)4 scandal  (a bi-partisan outrage): U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) said, "We should not only fire the head of the IRS, which has occurred, but we’ve got to go down the line and find every single person who had anything to do with this and make sure that they are removed from the IRS and the word goes out that this is unacceptable."

The current past and interim IRS Commissioners under Obama (Werfel, Miller, Shulman) have been, of course, more lawyers.

Submarines are always silent and strange.



  

Tribute to John Paul Jones

Background

The John Paul Jones Memorial is in Washington, D.C.. The memorial honors the United States' first naval war hero and only naval officer to receive a Congressional Gold Medal during the American Revolutionary War. Commodore Jones shouted his famous taunt, "I have not yet begun to fight!", during his battle with HMS Serapis (the Battle of Flamborough Head) in which Jones's Continental Navy squadron engaged a superior (72 guns) force of Royal Navy escorts protecting a large British convoy.  Ultimately, Jones forced the captain of the British vessel to surrender and took command of HMS Serapis.^[17]



Fast Forward to July 4, 2013 (Stardate 91111.) TODAY

Look at today's Stardate (obtained here when today's writing commenced).  Does 91111 looks ominously familiar?  Caution seems especially appropriate this year for U.S. patriots, like John Paul Jones.
Perhaps we may interpret the excess of 1s in today's Stardate as symbolic of a new revolution, for revitalization of our diminished and endangered freedoms on this Independence Day.

 

We need another Leader Like John Paul Jones

Descriptions like courageous, cocky and up to the challenge were probably understatements when applied to J.P. Jones (read the linked articles). "I am determined never to draw my sword under command of any man who was not in the Navy as early as myself, unless he has merited a preference by his Superior Services and abilities," Jones writes in one letter.  [source]

Yet, Jones was also a visionary. Writting to Benjamin Franklin, in France at the time, Jones inquired about the possibility of getting French-built ships.
"At present we have no Navy System or Board of Admiralty without which we can never have a respectable Navy," Jones wrote in one letter. In another, he outlines "A plan for the regulation and equipment of the Navy." In it he suggests three shipyards be built — one in New England, one in the Middle Atlantic states and one in the South.  [ibid]

John Paul Jones, born in 1747, began his maritime career at 13 years of age. In 1768, Jones's career quickly  advanced when both the captain and first mate suddenly died of yellow fever. Jones managed to navigate safely  back to port. As reward for his impressive feat, the vessel’s grateful Scottish owners made him ship's master, giving him 10 percent of the cargo.^[1]

Jones left for Philadelphia shortly after settling in North America to volunteer his services to the newly founded Continental Navy. During this time, around 1775, the Navy and Marines were being formally established, and suitable ship's officers and captains were in great demand. With help from influential members of the Continental Congress, Jones was appointed a 1st Lieutenant of the newly converted 24-gun frigate Alfred in the Continental Navy on December 7, 1775.^[7]

Submarines are always silent and strange.