By Nathan Barton
The website TheAntiMedia is screaming about how much more drone bombing Trump is doing than the Wizard O’bummer did, as reported in Freedom Net Daily reporting calculations from a source at the Council on Foreign Relations that “US drone strikes have gone up 432% since Trump took office.”
Now, the CFR is hardly on my list of reliable sources of information (for that matter, Antimedia isn’t either).
But what makes this something to comment about is their analysis, based on these calculations: “During… two terms in office, he approved 542 such targeted strikes in 2,920 days — one every 5.4 days. From his inauguration through today, President Trump had approved at least 36 drone strikes or raids in 45 days — one every 1.25 days.'”
Not challenging the idea that Trump is a warmonger, this sort of calculation is actually not valid. I love calculations, as readers of these commentaries know. But the analysis is not good, not valid. Comparing just a month and a half to a full 96 months just doesn’t work. If this 1.25 day frequency continues for six months, a year, two years, then maybe, but NOT for just 1/100th the time.
Although I do not have a timeline of what the Wizard O’Bummer did as far as drone strikes, I highly suspect that the frequency might have AVERAGED 5.4 days, but was probably a long ways from being uniformly spread out over that eight years. It would not surprise me to find that there were periods where the frequency, for a given 45-day period, was at or even greater than one “every 1.25 days.”
Antimedia seems to be trying to be apologists for the Wizard. Sort of “see, he really was peaceful, at least as compared to that monster now living at 1600 PA.”
Whether or not Trump is MORE of a warmonger, whether or not he is signing off (or giving general authorization) for all these attacks, is not the point. (Indeed, given Trump’s business background, I would not be surprised to find that – unlike the last guy and the guy before – he is NOT micro-managing the worldwide campaign of attacks on wedding parties, markets, anti-American American citizens, and Al Q/Caliphate/etc. war parties: that he has delegated that authority to the SecDef or even the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
No, the point is that ALL American presidents have been and continue to be warmongers, waging aggressive war under the guise of national defense and responding to threats to FedGov allies. Certainly the label of “warmonger” can be given to at least the last thirteen Massas in DC. And many more before that. The frequency and severity of the attacks, of the strikes, is not all that germane to the situation. Any use of military or clandestine force in an aggressive manner, whether one a day or one a month or one a year, is wrong.
IF government has any legitimate purpose (and I’m not saying that it does), that is certainly NOT waging aggressive war against enemies (or even friends!) based on flimsy excuses of supposed potential threats against us or allies or anyone else.
Trump is a warmonger, because he has not stopped FedGov forces from launching drone strikes or other attacks which are not self-defense or real defense on behalf of others. He would be even if there had only been one strike in the first 45 days. And the fact that the Wizard launched just one very 5.4 days, instead of one every 1.25 days does not mean he was NOT a warmonger or a lesser warmonger than Trump. A pox on all their houses.
When people (like AntiMedia) realize the problem isn’t who is government, or the frequency with which they commit crimes (or sins), and recognize that the problem is government: people who claim and exercise power over others – then maybe we can live in liberty, peace, and prosperity.
Like this:
Like Loading...
About TPOL Nathan
Follower of Christ Jesus (a christian), Pahasapan (resident of the Black Hills), Westerner, Lover of Liberty, Free-Market Anarchist, Engineer, Army Officer, Husband, Father, Historian, Writer, Evangelist. Successor to Lady Susan (Mama Liberty) at TPOL.
The Price of Liberty 
Trump the greater warmonger?
By Nathan Barton
The website TheAntiMedia is screaming about how much more drone bombing Trump is doing than the Wizard O’bummer did, as reported in Freedom Net Daily reporting calculations from a source at the Council on Foreign Relations that “US drone strikes have gone up 432% since Trump took office.”
Now, the CFR is hardly on my list of reliable sources of information (for that matter, Antimedia isn’t either).
But what makes this something to comment about is their analysis, based on these calculations: “During… two terms in office, he approved 542 such targeted strikes in 2,920 days — one every 5.4 days. From his inauguration through today, President Trump had approved at least 36 drone strikes or raids in 45 days — one every 1.25 days.'”
Not challenging the idea that Trump is a warmonger, this sort of calculation is actually not valid. I love calculations, as readers of these commentaries know. But the analysis is not good, not valid. Comparing just a month and a half to a full 96 months just doesn’t work. If this 1.25 day frequency continues for six months, a year, two years, then maybe, but NOT for just 1/100th the time.
Although I do not have a timeline of what the Wizard O’Bummer did as far as drone strikes, I highly suspect that the frequency might have AVERAGED 5.4 days, but was probably a long ways from being uniformly spread out over that eight years. It would not surprise me to find that there were periods where the frequency, for a given 45-day period, was at or even greater than one “every 1.25 days.”
Antimedia seems to be trying to be apologists for the Wizard. Sort of “see, he really was peaceful, at least as compared to that monster now living at 1600 PA.”
Whether or not Trump is MORE of a warmonger, whether or not he is signing off (or giving general authorization) for all these attacks, is not the point. (Indeed, given Trump’s business background, I would not be surprised to find that – unlike the last guy and the guy before – he is NOT micro-managing the worldwide campaign of attacks on wedding parties, markets, anti-American American citizens, and Al Q/Caliphate/etc. war parties: that he has delegated that authority to the SecDef or even the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
No, the point is that ALL American presidents have been and continue to be warmongers, waging aggressive war under the guise of national defense and responding to threats to FedGov allies. Certainly the label of “warmonger” can be given to at least the last thirteen Massas in DC. And many more before that. The frequency and severity of the attacks, of the strikes, is not all that germane to the situation. Any use of military or clandestine force in an aggressive manner, whether one a day or one a month or one a year, is wrong.
IF government has any legitimate purpose (and I’m not saying that it does), that is certainly NOT waging aggressive war against enemies (or even friends!) based on flimsy excuses of supposed potential threats against us or allies or anyone else.
Trump is a warmonger, because he has not stopped FedGov forces from launching drone strikes or other attacks which are not self-defense or real defense on behalf of others. He would be even if there had only been one strike in the first 45 days. And the fact that the Wizard launched just one very 5.4 days, instead of one every 1.25 days does not mean he was NOT a warmonger or a lesser warmonger than Trump. A pox on all their houses.
When people (like AntiMedia) realize the problem isn’t who is government, or the frequency with which they commit crimes (or sins), and recognize that the problem is government: people who claim and exercise power over others – then maybe we can live in liberty, peace, and prosperity.
Share this:
Like this:
About TPOL Nathan
Follower of Christ Jesus (a christian), Pahasapan (resident of the Black Hills), Westerner, Lover of Liberty, Free-Market Anarchist, Engineer, Army Officer, Husband, Father, Historian, Writer, Evangelist. Successor to Lady Susan (Mama Liberty) at TPOL.