Bizarr-O World: Obama awards Medal of Freedom to top Socialist

[Chuck58]

I never thought Bob Dylan was much of an example of anything but drug and booze abuse.

After retirement, I worked security at a major Santa Fe hotel. Dylan and his band stayed there (1991). At about 3 in the morning, guests were complaining about the ruckus they were making. Two other guards and I ended up having to evict them from the property. They were drunk, high and generally obnoxious. We finally got rid of them.

After, we went into the rooms (they were trashed) and, honestly, if we'd been on the ball we could almost have retired from selling the variety of dope we found in those rooms.

[Odysseus]

I defended the ones I knew of, not the ones I've never heard of before today. Although I don't agree with all of her stances as laid out in this article, I do agree to an extent with her comment about dictators and the US. Samoza, Baptista, Pinochet-nothing encourages a communist revolution in a Banana Republic like an american-supported dictatorship, at least that's how it was in the 70s and 80s.

Somoza was replaced by the Sandinistas and Batista by Castro, so in both cases, the cure was worse than the disease. Pinochet took power because Allende, who was elected with a small plurality of the vote, tried to pull a Hugo Chavez and consolidate power through illegal means. The result of Allende's intended coup was widespread civil disobedience and a general strike against him. His response was to attempt to suppress the dissent the way that Marxists always do, via naked force, but the army refused to comply and ousted him. His supporters then mounted a campaign of terror. Pinochet's government fought that campaign and won, and instituted market reforms and eventual political reforms. He voluntarily stepped down and was followed by free elections.

The reason that communist revolutions occurred in American-allied states is because the Soviets backed the communists in order to drive out our allies. Note that Soviet-backed dictatorships never had communist insurgencies, even when they were not communist states. Nasser's Egypt, Assad's Syria and Qadaffi's Libya are prime examples. Communists don't care about freedom, they care about power and advancing the goals of their patrons. If Pinochet had been made the right noises about socialism and the USSR, he'd have been a hero of the left, even if his policies had been the same.

So, no, her argument is just more propaganda on behalf of the communist totalitarians that she supports.

[Odysseus]

No doubt.

In 2007, Bush gave it to Harper Lee who wrote that awful book about the liberal lawyer trying to get a rapist off.

Bush also gave one to Charlton Heston and, get this, Reagan gave one to Frank Sinatra. Guess it's for socialists and hollyweird types.

Milton Friedman '88
William F. Buckley '91
Friedrich Hayek '91
Elie Wiesel '92
I.M. Pei '93
Norman Rockwell '77
John Wayne '80
John Steinbeck '64
Aretha Franklin '05
B.B. King '06
Ansel Adams '80

That's right, one bad apple, one recipient we don't agree with, cancels out all the rest. President Romney (fingers crossed) better just cancel this "Freedom" medal.

Damn you, Obama!

Very impressive. You've managed to be ignorant and obnoxious at the same time. The argument is that Obama's choices denigrate the award and reduce its value, just as the Nobel Committee's award of the Peace Prize to Yasir Arafat, Rigoberta Menchu, Al Gore, Mohammed al Baradei and Obama have permanently tainted that award. The recipients that you've cited are American icons, each of whom has enriched the United States in clear and compelling ways. Dolores Huerta has not. She is a labor cartel organizer who has spent her adult life undermining the political and economic systems of the United States. She is an admirer of communist totalitarian mass-murderers and a blatant liar and demagogue. She does not deserve this award.

[NJCardFan]

You're arguing with a troll Ody.

[Odysseus]

You're arguing with a troll Ody.

I know. But Arroyo and Wei seem to be busy with the Obama campaign, so I'm taking my fun where I can.

[AmPat]

No doubt.

In 2007, Bush gave it to Harper Lee who wrote that awful book about the liberal lawyer trying to get a rapist off.

Bush also gave one to Charlton Heston and, get this, Reagan gave one to Frank Sinatra. Guess it's for socialists and hollyweird types.

Milton Friedman '88
William F. Buckley '91
Friedrich Hayek '91
Elie Wiesel '92
I.M. Pei '93
Norman Rockwell '77
John Wayne '80
John Steinbeck '64
Aretha Franklin '05
B.B. King '06
Ansel Adams '80

That's right, one bad apple, one recipient we don't agree with, cancels out all the rest. President Romney (fingers crossed) better just cancel this "Freedom" medal.

Damn you, Obama!

Which ones on your list are anti-American POS like Huerta? Things that make you go, Hmmm.

Try again numb nuts.

[noonwitch]

Somoza was replaced by the Sandinistas and Batista by Castro, so in both cases, the cure was worse than the disease.

I'm not denying that, but we could have had a better strategy than holding up a dictator that none of the people want as a leader-it just feeds the communists' arguments in those situations.