Jasper Journal

I am terribly saddened by the disparate and weak leadership coming from this White House in the face of a genuine uprising in Iran.  I cant help but think of other  recent occasions when the west stood by when budding attempts at freedom were brutally squashed: Hungary, Tiananmen Square, the Shia uprising in Southern Iraq.  We can also look at when the west did nothing in the face of the Cuban counterattack at the Bay of Pigs. It doesn’t make you feel good to think that others may have been counting on us for support; or even moral support. Unfortunately, foreign policy experience was the most lacking of many lacking traits of this president. His consolation prize secretary of state is no heavyweight in this arena herself. Her limited experience and self aggrandizing personality makes her the worst choice to advise the president. So who does that leave? Joe Biden? Rahm Emanuel?  Jeremiah wright?  I am afraid the young people of Iran have looked at this president and thought he was one of them: hopeful, ready for change, ready to challenge the status quo? As it turns out, this president has yet to show that he can deal with this or any complicated foreign policy issue. But oh, can he tell a good joke, and doesn’t he look sharp, and what a good speaker.

  I pray a backbone develops quickly in someone before we have to look on this as yet another case of letting our friends down. We need someone of the character of Ronald Reagan. Someone who can stand up to dictatorships.  He may have started as an actor but he was a true leader. Today we have an actor masquerading as a leader. I hope it is not too late.

Tonight I don’t know what I am most appalled by:  Obama,  the Congressional Black Causus,( A clearly racist group that offends me),  or Al Sharpton.  As they would say in the F-15 community, we have a target rich environment.

Ok here is my lightning round of outrage.  First, Obama bowing to the Saudi king and the white house denying he bowed. How stupid do they think we are? Was he admiring his shoes? Did his back suddenly give out? It is embarrassing the way this guy screws up our country and our image.

Second the congressional black caucus going to Cuba and salivating over Fidel Castro. It was nauseating listening to their praise of Fidel , his wife, his simple home, how much in touch the Cubans are, how he was like family, and how much the dear leader wanted to know about Martin Luther King. One of the idiot congresswomen even said parts of Cuba were better than her district. Actually seeing who they chose to represent them, maybe she was right there.

Third , Reverend Al. He is upset over the sheriff in Maricopa county Arizona for enforcing the laws against illegals. Al is leading a team of activists and ACORN  “volunteers to challenge the Sheriff. I hope the sheriff accords the Rev Al a stay in one of his outdoor tents and has him in pink underwear as well. I would contribute to that!

Well, as steamed as I was tonight, I couldn’t help but smile after watching a wonderful video sent to me by my friend Bob in Florida. So to all of you who are angry, upset, disillusioned, or  just plain outraged by what is happening today, watch this video. I guarantee you will feel better.

True Believer by Scott Carmichael is a fascinating look at a little know “home grown”  spy, Ana Montes.  Her case broke shortly after 9/11 and was quickly overshadowed by events. Additionally, she spied for Cuba ‘which in the minds of some, is not looked on with a great degree of concern. After all, how will Cuba harm the US?

This short book however is packed with facts and  figures , discusses the damage caused, and provides an insiders perspective on  how a spy hunt works.  Montes worked at DIA for 16 years. She kept below the radar and worked her way up the chain to a senior level in the Latin American analytical world. As such she was privy to information within DIA and from other intelligence agencies, which due to the high tech nature of the business,  and her security access, was virtually limitless. Would Cuba use this information to overthrow the US government? No.  But would they use it to thwart US plans in Latin America that run counter to theirs? Yes. Would they trade or sell information to other adversaries of the US like China, Russia, Venezuela,  or the FARC ? Yes. Could US military personnel have been killed as a result of her actions? Possibly. 

 Carmichael  suggests that her activities in El Salvador during a time when US Special Forces were actively advising the government  there may have directly or indirectly led to the death of a US Green Beret.  His evidence is not conclusive.  He also suggests that her actions   contributed to the shootdown of two  Brothers to the Rescue aircraft  in international waters off of Cuba in  1996 . This caused  the deaths of four people, three of whom were American citizens. Again , this is hard to prove conclusively, but the possibility is there.

When caught, Ana was unrepentent. She did not do it for money, but rather because she believed in the ideology of Cuba . She believed  what America was doing was wrong. Her threat was that she was  a homegrown spy. She did not neatly fit the pattern so often used of what a spy should be. She had a typical American education,  was raised by a good family in typical middle class areas, had none of the typical vices, and was just an average everyday bureaucrat . She was one of us, yet chose to betray her country.

Was ego part of it?  Possibly. In these cases you have to have an ego to think you are better , smarter and more clever than others. Overall, an excellent study in modern day espionage.   A good takeaway from the book is the statement read by the judge at her sentencing hearing:  ” If you can’t love your country, then at the very least you should do it no wrong.” Montes is serving 25 years in a prison in Texas.