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I am Spartacus Unless I’m Not
Responsibility used to work this way. When a group of us playing ball broke a neighbor’s window, the kid who took responsibility had to pay for the window. Action –> Consequence = Responsibility.
Well, luckily we are free of such restraints in modern Washington. Indeed, over a month after the predictable and possibly preventable deaths of four Americans at the US Consulate in Benghazi, Hillary Clinton said “I take responsibility.”
What does that mean?
Hillary did not take responsibility on September 11 when the attacks took place. She instead made self-serving statements about bravery (of others) and sacrifice (of others).
Between October 3 and October 12 Hillary made no public statements at all about the Libya disaster, allowing others to bleat in her place.
Hillary did not take responsibility at recent Congressional hearings. She did not even show up. She sent others to testify. Not a one of them said Hillary was responsible, or even involved, in the deadly mistakes State made. None of them mentioned her by name.
Hillary did not take responsibility during the Vice Presidential Debates.
BlameResponsibility was assigned to the anonymous “intelligence agencies” by the Vice President and Hillary sat quiet.If Hillary is now indeed responsible, let’s see her resignation. Better yet, she can start to act responsibly. Let’s hear her publicly and unambiguously tell us what her role in the decision-making was. Let’s see her demand the State Department’s own Accountability Review Board, now five weeks after the attack, issue a report sometime this decade (or at least before the election.) Let’s hear her exonerate the loyal troops sent to have their heads taken off by Congress last week. Let’s have Hillary state publicly that the witch hunting and scapegoating inside Foggy Bottom will cease because she alone will take the hits, ’cause inside the building the buck isn’t stopping.
Anything less just rubs our noses further into this craven, desperate electioneering crap.
BONUS: State’s other Spartacus-wanna be, Pat Kennedy, told the House last week in defense of Susan Rice that “If any administration official, including any career official, were on television on Sunday, September 16th, they would have said what Ambassador Rice said,” i.e., that the attack in Benghazi was not a pre-planned terror attack but instead merely a reaction to that anti-Islamic video.
Only Pat lied.
On September 12 in an unclassified, half-hour conference call with staff aides to House and Senate lawmakers from relevant committees, and leadership offices, Pat said that he was convinced the assault was planned due to its extensive nature and the proliferation of weapons.
What is Important
Isn’t there a single reporter who will ask Hillary why only now has she determined that she is the responsible one, and challenge her that her “claim” is nothing but party politics?
Will no one ask Obama (or Hillary) to comment on Obama’s July 2012 statement “As president of the United States, it’s pretty clear to me that I’m responsible for folks who are working in the federal government and you know, Harry Truman said the buck stops with you… one of the things you learn is, you are ultimately responsible for the conduct of your operations.”
As for Pat Kennedy, don’t you have any shame at all? Trick question.
Also, anybody else expecting Obama to drone kill some poor random Libyan and claim justice has been done, right before the election, in a weak attempt at an October Surprise?
Anyway, I take responsibility for it all, what the hell, why not.
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pitchfork said...
1quote: “I take responsibility for it all, what the hell, why not.” unquote
ummmm, no, you are not responsible, at least as an ex State employee Peter. But yes, like myself, and the rest of this nations citizens, we ARE responsible as citizens. You know why? Because WE voted Obama into office, who appointed Hilary. So, yes..we as a nation are responsible. And that’s what is so sad about everything that is going on. WE did it. We allowed it. And WE are responsible for every last human being obliterated off the face of this planet. Shame on US. As a whole, WE are truly monstrous. WE are murderers. And WE will be held accountable..one way or another. Frankly, as one citizen, I say to the world…I am ASHAMED of our nation. We have allowed ourselves to lie, steal, cheat, permanently detain with no due process, torture, and yes, murder thousands and thousands of human beings on this planet. Not the soldiers. Not the spokesman. Not the politicians. US. Because WE employ them. WE ARE WHERE THE FUCKING BUCK STOPS. And that is the problem. Until WE decide NOT to give our Politicians the BUCKS…WE will continue to be RESPONSIBLE..PERIOD.
10/17/12 12:52 PM | Comment Link
Rich Bauer said...
2Since the Benghazi blunder is still seen as a reaction to a bad film, the “Spartacus” reference is telling: like Rome, we impose our will by force but still lack ideas.
“Spartacus 2012”
Spartacus – good
Romans – bad
Americans – stupid
10/17/12 2:40 PM | Comment Link
teri said...
3Or, just for the hell of it, let’s bomb a COUPLE of countries. http://news.yahoo.com/white-house-mulls-strike-over-libya-attack-173210396–election.html
And pretend we weren’t the ones who brought al Qaeda to Libya (and Syria) and armed them in the first place. Or the ones who invented al Qaeda in the first, first place.
It’s all the same to the guys who peddle weapons; just all part of the re-e-eally big shew they got going on for us. So who to vote for? Jill Stein got arrested last night for daring to ask to participate in the debate.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/10/16/green-party-candidate-jill-stein-arrested-outside-debate/#.UH6HlwqTHzc.email
Turns out, a candidate has to get at least 15% in the polls to be invited to the debates, so they just don’t include the third party candidates on the poll questions. Democracy in action.
How about this? Why not just let the corporate sponsors answer questions at the debates and be done with this sham? You can vote for Exxon, Raytheon or Monsanto, take your pick. (Hillary used to be a Monsanto lawyer, BTW, which may clarify the mystery of her absent morals for us.)
10/17/12 3:21 PM | Comment Link
Eric Hodgdon said...
4Mathematics, A Universal Language ?
Taking Peter’s original equation, we assign them to variables, roughly so, to obtain:
Responsibility = Action x Consequence
Action = Responsibility / Consequence
Consequence = Responsibility / Action
Then adding an additional variable, Cost, to the public or country, we obtain further ways to render such past or future events.
Cost = Action(2) / Consequence
Cost = Action x Responsibility
Cost = Responsibility(2) / Consequence
Responsibility = Cost / Action
Responsibility = sq.root of Cost x Consequence
Action = Cost / Responsibility
Action = sq.root of Cost / Consequence
Consequence = Responsibility(2) / Cost
Consequence = Cost / Action(2)
Note: (2) = squared
10/17/12 4:41 PM | Comment Link
pitchfork said...
5Mathematics 101
MILITARY + CORPORATIONS + INCOME TAX= GLOBAL TYRANNY
10/17/12 5:28 PM | Comment Link
Rich Bauer said...
6It is amazing that so much attention has been given to who-said-what-when about Benghazi when the focus should be on the incompetent intelligence analysis of the threat on the ground which created the blunder. And let’s keep the FBI out of this, as it has been over its head before in matters of intelligence: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/10/science/10anthrax.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
10/18/12 1:26 PM | Comment Link
jhoover said...
7The Two Americas
Senator J. William Fulbright, Conclusion in The Arrogance of Power
Random House, 1966
10/18/12 10:45 PM | Comment Link
Eric Hodgdon said...
8@ Jhoover
What a minute.
Lincoln, while somewhat famous, ‘saved the Union’ and ‘freed the slaves,’ but in doing so, ended our Republic.
Teddy Roosevelt was an interesting person who had some good ideas, but he seems to have helped the transition to Nationalism/Imperialism.
Stevenson, was he the ‘I’m prepared to wait until Hell freezes over, if that’s what you want.’?
10/19/12 4:06 AM | Comment Link
John Poole said...
9Hillary steps forward but not down. Obama palms the buck but only so he can remind us that it is always best to move forward not go backward. Jeez! Who knew that we were in a period where the moral currency has been allowed to float?
10/19/12 12:24 PM | Comment Link
Rich Bauer said...
10Issa is a Manning up:
http://thecable.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2012/10/19/issa_s_benghazi_document_dump_exposes_several_libyans_working_with_the_us
http://oversight.house.gov/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/DEI-to-BHO-10-19-2012-attachments.pdf
10/20/12 2:46 AM | Comment Link
jhoover said...
11Hell freezes over, if that’s what you want.’?
Eric Hodgdon said…
NO 100%, I wished that US what they done for Germany and Japan done it for Iraq.
Sadly, after 35 years of tyrant regime who destroyed every single life and the country, Iraqis looks to US as the moon in the darkness, but that moon the dreamed of vanished, they left behind…waiting until Hell freezes over
10/20/12 6:36 AM | Comment Link
Rich Bauer said...
12It’s only a matter of time when Issa gets his stinger caught in a honeypot.
10/21/12 12:54 PM | Comment Link