[quote=urbanrealtor]
Granted you have said a few doozies (eg: “Vietnam was a good idea”, “we won Vietnam”, “the Chinese cannot be trusted”) but Obama to Hitler is a new one for you.
The difference with totalitarian regimes (as opposed to authoritarian, oligarchic, or democratic) is that they legislate what you think. Putting cctv cameras in public places does not even register on my paranoia radar. If you start postponing elections or listening to private conversations between citizens, that is different.[/quote]
Dan: Couple of other things: (1) Militarily, we did win Vietnam. Inarguable fact in that US forces never lost a single major battle in the entire war. Vietnam was lost on the home front, not on the battle field. If you read an objective military history on Vietnam (i.e. NOTHING written by Karnow or Halberstam), you’ll realize that the Viet Cong was destroyed as an effective fighting force during the Tet Offensive of 1968 (a clear cut American victory and one that Walter Cronkite, among other American newsman, cast as an American defeat) and the North Vietnamese Army wasn’t able to mount effective operations in the field until 1972 (nearly four years later).
(2) The US Government is listening to its citizens and on a daily basis. Yes, its wonderful that the warrantless wiretapping issue has been dealt with, but what about listening programs like NSA’s Echelon and Carnivore, or SAIC’s adaptive listening software (which has helped us track down foreign al Qaeda operatives, but has been used domestically as well).
Before you start making accusations as to me stooping to some new low, read what I said and then comment accordingly.
