Sunday May 27, 2012

JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION

Panetta says his Asia visit signals that U.S. forces will be stronger

Politics Oct. 26, 2011 - 12:20PM JST ( 14 )

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14 Comments

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ben4shortOct. 26, 2011 - 12:49PM JST

Slick try, Panetta, real slick, making the ridiculous link between US bases in Japan and al-Qaida. Sad irony is that most Americans believe your despicable lies.
-1

kurumazakaOct. 26, 2011 - 01:05PM JST

Uh, Ben, uh...he was on the Blue Ridge speaking to a US military audience...talking about AQ with US military personell seems perfectly relevant from a Defence Secretary on a tour of the region. Kind of grasping at straws here, aren't you?
-1

Jared NormanOct. 26, 2011 - 01:23PM JST

Why didn't he go to okinawa
-3

ben4shortOct. 26, 2011 - 01:48PM JST

No straws at all dude kuruma. Lap dog Panetta's immediate audience is irrelevant because he knew his speech would get press coverage, as seen by the article here. Duh. Real point being that the warmongering US knows if they keep linking the 'war on terror," however feebly, to US military bases, the naive public will eventually buy into another lie.

What's even more interesting, and mind-boggling ironic, is the fact that the very existence of over 500 US bases throughout the world, "protecting vital US interests," haha, is in fact one of the main ingredients fueling al-Qaida and other terrorists. The smartest move the US could make, if it were really serious about ending terrorism (which is debatable), would be to shut ALL military bases and use that money instead to defend America from within; i.e. ports, borders, potential targets, etc.
-1

kurumazakaOct. 26, 2011 - 03:08PM JST

Yup, shut em' all down, go the isolationist route. Wonder who would step up to fill the role left by the retreating "despicable warmongering lapdogs?" ( "lapdog??")Oh yeah, no one, because only the US plays the geopolitics game, right?
-1

ben4shortOct. 26, 2011 - 03:26PM JST

And what, wise kuruma, might the world look like with the US not the number 1 superpower? Just try to imagine such a scenario and describe it for us. Would we all be speaking Chinese? (Heck, having to borrow 40 cents for every dollar the US now spends from the Chinese (being the great SUPERPOWER we are), we might be speaking Chinese regardless.) Would nukes be striking American cities left and right? Would we lose any of our treasured freedoms such as the Bill of Rights? Just what would daily life look like if America were to go the isolationist route? Would our FREE trade with the rest of the world be hampered? (haha!) Would we have to pay MORE for oil and gasoline? Would we have fewer jobs and less money? And while you're at it, tell me this: are the people living in other modern Western-style free countries such as in Europe, Canada, etc leading lives of such great hardship, poverty and lack of basic freedoms? Isn't the notion that America absolutely must retain its number one superpower status really nothing more than a myth?
-2

ben4shortOct. 26, 2011 - 04:49PM JST

Retreating kuruma, sorry to see your dodge, since I was looking forward to your insightful vision. But my questions had nothing to do with the "present malaise in the US," and would be just as pertinent during the best of times. And it's not really a "debate" either. I would just like someone to explain to me what daily life in the US were to be like in the event that the US turned "isolationist," which I hope you realize is a pejoratively charged word for no reason. Since when is minding your own business and taking care of your own a bad thing?

My original beef with the esteemed senor Pandemic is his insidious attempt at linking US military bases with the misnamed "war on terror." Pros like him know that if you repeat ridiculous comments enough times, people will start to believe them. Talk about "propaganda officers."

Yes I am from the states but I cannot find any reason why I would want to blend in and hide my identity or my position. Am I fearful of being stereotyped by the likes of you, someone who has only tired old cliches to add? Hardly. Meaningless labels are your problem, dude, not mine.
-3

lincolnmanOct. 26, 2011 - 05:57PM JST

Slick try, Panetta, real slick, making the ridiculous link between US bases in Japan and al-Qaida. Sad irony is that most Americans believe your despicable lies.

Inaccurate and misleading. Note the article says he emphasized that US forces would remain in the Pacific. He then separately stated that the US was winning the war against trans-national terrorism. He added this latter comment as forces from the US Navy at Yokosuka have deployed and supported US counter-terror efforts in South-East Asia. The only one linking these two separate issues is you.

And what, wise kuruma, might the world look like with the US not the number 1 superpower?

Off-Topic. The issue isn’t about whether the US needs to be the world’s sole military superpower. It’s about the US maintaining a series of security arrangements with other nations/institutions, having military bases associated with these agreements, and the fact that these agreements further stability and cooperation around the globe.

Real point being that the warmongering US knows if they keep linking the 'war on terror," however feebly, to US military bases, the naive public will eventually buy into another lie.

Inaccurate – see above.

What's even more interesting, and mind-boggling ironic, is the fact that the very existence of over 500 US bases throughout the world, "protecting vital US interests," haha, is in fact one of the main ingredients fueling al-Qaida and other terrorists

Inaccurate. The US maintains security agreements, some bilateral, others multilateral, with a variety of nations and organizations throughout the world. If any of these nations/organizations elected to end these treaties, then the US would relocate its forces outside that country.

My original beef with the esteemed senor Pandemic is his insidious attempt at linking US military bases with the misnamed "war on terror." Pros like him know that if you repeat ridiculous comments enough times, people will start to believe them. Talk about "propaganda officers."

Inaccurate – again, see above.
-2

just-a-guyOct. 26, 2011 - 07:05PM JST

He is just 'threatening' or 'bullying' those countries in asia so called as 'ally'! Everyone knows the US armed forces were kicked out of Iraq and afghanistan after 10 years of high casualties! The Taliban and Iraqi insurgents were never beaten!
2

toguroOct. 26, 2011 - 11:04PM JST

@just-a-guy-A couple of things here. A.) The U.S. hasn't been in Iraq for 10 years, and B.) If the Taliban and Iraqi insurgents haven't been defeated, it can't exactly be said that they've been victorious either. Weren't the Taliban in power at the time of the invasion of Afghanistan? Are they in power now? By in power, I mean the rulers of the country.
-2

Elbuda MexicanoOct. 27, 2011 - 02:14AM JST

America needs to have bases here in Japan, South Korea etc..just look at our Chinese amigo, just a guy's comments, and the Chinese are supposed to be friends of the free world?? Anyway, I digress, Ben4short, lots of stuff, real cool stuff is planned here no the bases PACOM, etc..lots of secret stuff, not too sure if I should even mention here, so I will not, but rest assured AQ in Asia, meaning down in the Philippines etc..are on the move, and we can not just sit here debating that on our PCs, just as we speak, they are planning to kill us etc..but at the same time, our men and women in uniform and many times in secret operations out of uniform are hunting down these bastards who believe in Al Qaeda etc..they need to be neutralized, or the mess up in Fukushima will seem like a walk in the park, meaning god forbid, if one day these terrorists get their hands on nuclear weapons, or take over a nuclear power plant in France etc..France is full of Muslims and how many would it take to love to get revenge against the Christian West?? China has Muslims too and I am sure they must really hate Beijing, so Just a Guy, etc..better watch possible terrorists there in your country too,here in Japan we are lucky, terrorists few, and just plain white or black folk stand out for miles, so it would have to be an ASIAN terrorist to blend in with the Japanese but anyway I do hope and pray this never happens here or anywhere.
0

sfjp330Oct. 27, 2011 - 04:23AM JST

Once upon a time Japan had self-confidence, in a way too much. and caused grief and pain upon the neighboring countries and their own citizens. All that changed sixty years ago when Japan lost the war. Put it bluntly, Japan is now nothing but a cowardly, spineless nation who can't even defend itself. U.S. and Japan needs to revise the article 9. Maybe it is time for the US to move out from the country and let Japan defend itself so that she can finally come out from the "Oh no I can't do it that, it may offend somebody" mentality. It is time for Japan to come out from the nutshell, regain the lost trust from the neighboring countries and take an active role in the peacekeeping in this ever de-stabilising region. While the American government wants all these bases, American people do not. While all this money leaves U.S. to help others, it would be better off keeping the money here to help inner citites. Let the rest of the world deal with their own problems and their people.
-1

WolfpackOct. 27, 2011 - 08:01AM JST

My old ship, the USS Blue Ridge, as flagship of the US 7th Fleet is a floating platform for political and diplomatic PR. Panetta's comments suggesting future strengthening of US forces in the region is pure spin meant to assure the leadership of Japan of the US commitment to mutual security ties. American military resources will soon be severely cut due to the looming failure of the Congressional super committee negotiations next month. Japan and the US need to start planning on ways to do more with less.
-1

realdollOct. 28, 2011 - 11:29AM JST

Meanwhile the next day Panetta talks about how he is going to cut close to 1/2 trillion dollars from defense within the next 5 yrs.. what a joke.