Tuesday, May 17, 2016

Donald Trump's Top Foreign Adviser, Joseph Schmitz, is a Former Blackwater Executive.

Tom has already covered this subject but I thought this Democracy Now video was very good.

Joseph Schmitz is the complete opposite of me and probably most people, I hope. I try as hard as I can I can't get my head into people like Joseph Schmitz, but I just don't get them.  I have always wanted to try amateur dramatics and that might be good way of getting into other people's heads.

Joseph Schmitz seems to have no problem getting involved with the dirty side of things. This guy is scary.

Some people view extreme selfishness as their right and that it also proper for their class to rule the world, which they see as God given, maybe. For instance, you might think that your class, the ruling class, are particularly clever and so deserves all the merit, when in fact they are just really very cruel and ruthless. This is an extreme form of authoritarianism: These are the guys who are in charge because they should be in charge, because they always have been in charge. They are your rightful rulers and superiors. I think I might have a better understanding of people like Joseph Schmitz now. It's a crazy world view not based on a true meritocracy at all, but Might is Right.

Even most Conservatives tend not to take this view and so Joseph Schmitz got thrown out of The John Birch Society for being far too radically right wing.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-4RYTTGHvI












28 comments:

Matt Franko said...

"so Joseph Schmitz got thrown out of The John Birch Society for being far too radically right wing."

Now THAT'S pretty bad!! LOL

Ryan Harris said...

We use charts like this to keep track of the organic-industrial complex. We need similar charts to keep track of these folks in the military industrial complex and their connections.

Malmo's Ghost said...

Yawn....

Schofield said...

Aggressive viruses = wrong kind of parenting.

Dave Wilcox said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Kaivey said...

This is the sort of response you get when you've had a successful hit.

Tom Hickey said...

It was Joseph E. Schmitz's father Joseph G. Smith, who got expelled from the John Birch Society for extreme rhetoric.

Joseph E. Schmitz has a distinguished career, except.….

Joseph E. Schmitz

A Real Sharia Law Promoter for Peter King to Investigate
By Jeremy Scahill

Former Pentagon Inspector General Joseph Schmitz has tried to use Sharia law to fight lawsuits alleging corporate misconduct that led to deaths of US servicemen.

Anyway, Trump's association with Schmitz makes it further unlikely that many Bernie supporters will vote for Trump rather than HRC based on anti-war sentiment.

See also

MediaMatters
The New York Times' New Myth Is That Hillary Clinton Is More Hawkish Than Donald Trump
Cydney Hargis & Jared Holt

Ryan Harris said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Six said...

"We use charts like this to keep track of the organic-industrial complex. We need similar charts to keep track of these folks in the military industrial complex and their connections."

By "we", do you mean yourself and a few other half-wits who compare what is essentially a marketing campaign ("organic" food) with the U.S. military-industrial complex?

John said...

Having already surrounded himself with a bunch of madmen, Trump picks yet another crazy maniac as an adviser. There are dozens of very competent and very intelligent conservative foreign policy advisers. Why pick an incompetent and dangerous fundamentalist warmonger? How much longer can this be explained away as a meaningless gesture to appeal to the wacky right? Perhaps Trump is in fact unhinged. There's a lot of evidence suggesting just that. There are some who will excuse anything Trump says or does, and refuse to believe that these kind of actions may in fact be unattractive, if not down right offensive. In the meantime, Trump alienates more and more voters.

American voters are being given another "lesser of two evils" candidate in Hillary Clinton. She may be wacko, but Trump is going out of his way to appear totally wacko. Why? Is it an act or is he in fact a wacko? Does he believe the election is going to be decided by the wacko swing voter? The independents in the centre are going to decide this election. Everybody knows that. So why cede the middle ground to Hillary and give everybody the impression that you're utterly deranged? Meanwhile, Hillary will put on a good show by pretending to be sane and moderate. Put every penny you have on it, landslide victory for Hillary.

Ryan Harris said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ryan Harris said...

Actually I noticed your cronies nabbed the lending club guys +1 for that

Ryan Harris said...

In the world of botany, I'd say the organic movement are the big subversives like the Military industrial complex, yes. Granted the world of botany isn't as consequential as the global arms race... but don't discount the war of the grocery store shelves. It's serious cut throat business that operates on hearts and minds.

Joe said...

All you anti-trump ninnies need to grow a pair

Joe said...

All you anti-trump ninnies need to grow a pair

Dave said...

John, I keep reading how Trump is going to landslide, yet every poll I have seen has Hilary anywhere from 48 to 50 percent, and Trump is barely above 40. Of course, I'm disappointed because Bernie would wipe the floor with Trump. But what can you do?

Matt Franko said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
John said...

Matt, perhaps my inability to understand what you are saying is due to the differences in American and British English, but are you calling me a nut job or is it that only "nut jobs" claim that Trump says and does ludicrous things?

Trump clearly does say and do outrageous things. How else would you characterise surrounding himself with dangerous and frankly stupid people, insinuating that Ted Cruz's father was involved in JFK's assassination, that he would invade Libya and reinvade Iraq loot their oil wealth because it would be a fitting tribute to all those Americans who needlessly died, that he would assassinate the families of *suspected* terrorists, that vaccinations cause autism, questioning Obama's citizenship, that US unemployment is 42%, that he personally saw thousands of people celebrate the 9/11 terrorist attacks, etc. These things are either absurd, knowingly mendacious, dangerous or all three. Why would he do or say any one of these let alone very many? It's not unreasonable to suspect that he is a dangerous fantasist. Clearly he's either a true believer or thinks this kind of nonsense will resonate with the electorate. Either of these possibilities is frightening.

No matter what Trump says or does, it's always explained away in some fashion. Trump can choose from any number of coolheaded and sober analysts to advise him. Why choose yet another maniac to add to all the other maniacs advising him? What's the answer? Why not choose sensible people and project competence to the electorate. Fine, many people may not look into who he has surrounded himself with. Others will, maybe many will. Trump needs every voter he can, so why does he seemingly go out of his way to alienate even more people?

Matt, I'll swing by and pick you up on the way to the JFK conspiracy theorist convention. One of Trump's main advisers wrote a book that claimed LBJ had JFK assassinated. As ever, Trump can go one better: he claims Ted Cruz's father was involved in the assassination. This is shameless, embarrassing and disgraceful. If he carries on like this, Hillary's going to win every state except a handful of predictable southern states.

Tom Hickey said...

What you say may all be true, John, but it has little to do with US elections, which are based on emotion rather than reason, belief rather than evidence.

Hillary represents the Establishment that many of the electorate feel strongly to have betrayed them on many levels. Sanders and Trump are protest candidates.

HRC represents the Establishment and everything that many of the electorate are fed up with.

Current polls show Trump possibly beating Hillary, while Sanders would beat Trump. Sanders apparently sends a protest message more in tune with the majority of voters feelings.

Malmo's Ghost said...

I like to keep it simple. Neither Hillary or Trump are Jesus, yet we must choose between the two.

From a worker perspective, which is the main criteria from my end, Trump annihilates her.

From a sordid guilt by association criteria, Clinton is no angel herself. I mean, she has enabled her serial sexual harasser husband for some three decades.

Trump's latest foray into odd associations is troubling, but given is alpha male proclivities, I suspect he's simply ensuring his base will expand for the general, and then he'll disappoint the lion's share of odd associations you all object to. At that point workers of America will have their knight in shining amour.

Tom Hickey said...

At that point workers of America will have their knight in shining amour.

That's what progressive Democrats said about Obama.

Actually, I was just talking about this to a friend. He had stopped by on the way home from a campaign stop by Obama and was all enthusiastic. I reminded him today of where we were in my room at the time, when said to him, "Obama is a snake in the grass." He was shocked, of course, and asked why I would say such a counterintuitive thing. I answered, "Chicago pol."

Jus' sayin'

Matt Franko said...

John NO....I meant "Joe" (Scmidtz)..... SORRRRRY if you mistook it .... Extreme apology....

I just think it's over the top to hear someone actually got THROWN OUT of the Birchers....

Malmo's Ghost said...

Tom,

I get where you're coming from, and I have my doubts too. But between Hillary and Trump it's axiomatic Trump to my mind because there's a better chance with him than her for workers. Simple as that.. Not perfect, but I'm willing to go with my gut here.

Tom Hickey said...

Long time to go yet. The campaign doesn't really begin until after the conventions.

Matt Franko said...

Nut job#1: "Hey Schmitz don't forget about the Bircher meeting we have tonight.... I'll swing by to pick you up at 7:00"

Schmitz: "uhhhh... .... can't go .... they kicked me out...."

LOL!!!

Peter Pan said...

Jill Stein would annihilate Trump if there were a "worker perspective".

John said...

Matt, thanks for clearing that up! Wouldn't want to be thought of as a nut job by you. We disagree on a lot of things, but I've learned a lot from what you've written.

Tom: "That's what progressive Democrats said about Obama."

That's exactly right, and something so many people forget. Presidents are limited in their powers but they are certainly not powerless. Obama could have done so much for workers if he had so wished, but he didn't. He did wish to help Wall Street and his other big corporate backers, and so he did help them. He was successful in doing what he wanted to do. Looked at it that way, his presidency has been a success. If everybody misunderstood his intentions, that's their problem.

Will Trump help the working and middle classes? It's possible, but I very much doubt it. Trump says some amazingly insightful things about many issues, yet within no time says something completely ludicrous and/or dangerous. At least it shows he understands the issues in a schizophrenic way. That's progress, I guess. Hillary certainly won't help the working and middle classes, so I can see the appeal in voting for Trump. If he carries on in the way he has been, I really can't see how he'll beat Hillary.

If Trump makes it to the White House, we can safely say that he will either go down as the worst president in history or one of the greatest. There'll be no in between. Trump will either be the peace, prosperity, health care and jobs president, who fundamentally restructured America and one who proved that all it takes is the will to change things, or the depression, mass unemployment, endless war and authoritarian president (a supercharged Nixon), who'll be remembered as the Mad President who nobody would admit to voting for.

Dave said...

Trump will either be the peace, prosperity, health care and jobs president, who fundamentally restructured America and one who proved that all it takes is the will to change things, or the depression, mass unemployment, endless war and authoritarian president (a supercharged Nixon), who'll be remembered as the Mad President who nobody would admit to voting for.

I think we know which one. And your right, all his supporters, his true believers, will all say " I never voted for him."