My Benghazi take...It seems it is about time to focus on the timeline from an average American's perspective

First, since it seems a lot of the mainstream media have only recently began re-focusing on the Benghazi attack of September 11th, 2012 because of this sex scandal involving Gen. Petraeus. It is a shame that a soap-opera-esque event has to bring our national security concerns and faults to the forefront of the mainstream media's decision to report on this very tragic event. Let me start with September 12th, as this is where my concern lies.

My Facebook posts on September 12th...

It is a shame that American Ambassador Chris Stevens died, however I am listening to Sec. of State Clinton say, "Both American and Libyan security forces battled the attackers together." This is a political spin, and I really don't want to make light of the situation, I am really tired of career politicians lying to make the situation look better than it is. In this article, http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/12/13824089-us-ambassador-3-others-killed-in-attacks-on-libya-mission?lite "On Tuesday in Benghazi, a large mob stormed the U.S. consulate, with gunmen firing their weapons, said Wanis al-Sharef, an Interior Ministry official in Benghazi. A witness said attackers fired automatic weapons and rocket-propelled grenades at the consulate as they clashed with Libyans hired to guard the facility. Outnumbered by the crowd, the Libyan security forces did little to stop them, al-Sharef said." So why is Clinton saying that our security and Libyan security (hired guns) battled the attackers together? The only reason I can think of at this point is our national security (which is being dismantled and the defense budget has been cut by 50%) and how strong our security is for our embassy and consulate workers. I would think we would have Marines on duty in countries that are new to the political arena. Libya change in government is very recent, and in Iraq we spent years and years after the government changed. Why would Marines not be present in Benghazi? Now a special Anti-Terrorism unit of Marines is en route to Tripoli as added security. So, we cut our defense budget to protect our citizens, but I AM SURE WE SEND MILLIONS IF NOT BILLIONS IN AID TO THESE NEW COUNTRIES! Not to mention hiring local hired guns, why not hire American contractors as private security??? I am sure there are a few gun-toting Americans that would be happy to get paid to protect our Diplomats since our government believes that military spending is something than can be cut. If you want to cut the military, then pull the diplomats and their staff! Especially in a hostile environment (ie newly founded governments). I find this type of government oversight appalling. My government has very few things that I demand, and I wish they would just stick these per our founding fathers. "We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America" Common defense, yes this meant international relations and our military throughout the known world. This administration, Congress, and even the Supreme Court are really getting on my nerves lately. And the sad thing is, Mitt Romney is just as bad, if not worse...Pretty much I am pissed off and fucked over without recourse...Just thought I would share and try to stop the spin... Just now Romney started his comment on this situation, again, the fact that he even is doing a press conference is politically motivated. He is talking about leadership, and attacking Obama's administration on commenting on "sympathizing with the mob in Cairo," how the hell does he think using this as a political pedestal. WTF is wrong with these idiots we have in Washington, or wanting to go there??? FML

This was my original post posted at 8:21 AM Chicago time on September 12th, 2012, and the comments that I posted shortly after as news reports began filtering out to me via Internet, and mainstream media video outlets

Posted at 11:44 AM September 12th, 2012:So now news reports are stating that this was a planned attack that used the protest outside as a scapegoat to do the attack, which means it was a separate group. Government officials also had intelligence stating there could be possible attacks against friendlies in Libya, and yet they send an Ambassador from a secure location at the embassy in Tripoli, to an unsecured consulate office in Benghazi? I find that a bit odd, plus without sending a personal security detachment. I am also reading conflicting reports about him being there to open a cultural center, while another says he was trying to evacuate his staff from there. HMMMM, and here come the lies that start wars/conflicts/security measures etc. Of which, all result in a loss of my freedom, more of my fellow Americans in harms way doing no good protecting those that want nothing more from the US but free money that we have to borrow from some other foreign country at high interest rates, which in the end is not paid back and we wash the debt out of kindness for their failing economy. BULLSHIT!

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2012/09/the-global-note-chris-stevens-r-i-p-extremists-here-extremists-there-the-film-the-filmmaker/

There are other posts I made that day, but they were my opinions and insight into why I thought this was happening. They are not important in discussing the event itself, more a rant and rave about American politics, which irks me to no end.

How is it that an average American in Chicago was able to attain most of the truth from outside news sources, the ones I posted were American media sources, but there was information coming from the BBC and Al-Jazeera that was in direct conflict with what the Obama Administration was trying to spin for the next couple weeks following this tragedy.

I was really surprised to learn that there were no Marine/Special Forces units available for assistance to help these Americans under attack. The attack went on for over 14 hours, and Leon Panetta had later said (paraphrase) that the military does not send in forces to hostile areas when the information about the attack is unknown. However, conflicting reports about an unmanned drone flying overhead gathering intel via video, and the Navy Seals who were killed had laser sight on enemy positions and called in for an airstrike. Panetta and other officials have said the reinforcements were too far away, well the trip from Milan in Northern Italy (most northern major city in Italy) is just under 1000 miles. A c-130 flies at just over 400 miles an hour, so it would have taken 2 1/2 hours to get there from the most northern point in Italy, and I find it hard to believe we had no other units closer than Milan. There is a a serious problem with the story being spun up to this point. CNN was able to get to Benghazi before the FBI and retrieve Ambassador Stevens' diary. Are Americans' short term memory that bad that people forget this little fact? If the attack went on for 14 hours, it is impossible for me to believe that we could not get a special forces unit in there to rescue those under attack.

Pure speculation on my part here, but these Navy Seals seem to have been working with/for the CIA and foggy news stories about gun running to Syria from the US and Al-Qaeda via Benghazi have been touched on. These stories just are trying to fill the gaps in intel, but they should be investigated. If we are running guns to Syria, that should be brought to light. If we were watching Al-Qaeda run guns to Syria from the large stockpiles of Ghaddafi supplies, this should be reported and brought to light. It seems that the CIA are at the forefront of this entire issue, which is why I believe these Seals were told to stand down when they heard the attack on the consulate just a mile or so away. These two Seals were able to make two trips to the consulate, saving many of the Americans there, but unable to save Ambassador Stevens. What happened to showing the Ambassador being dragged out of the consulate by these rebels who were chanting, "Praise Allah", when at first CNN reported and interviewed the doctor who supposedly was called to try to resuscitate him. That video has disappeared also. These initial videos were actually made by the attackers, not the people trying to save Ambassador Stevens as the media was trying to project. "Praise Allah" was not being chanted because they save him, but instead because they had captured him. They tore of his shirt, and took pictures with his almost dead body in the street. Those images are seared into my brain, and since I speak Arabic, I know full well when I see a propaganda stunt versus a rescue attempt. What happened to all these videos? What happened to the CNN reporting after they were forced to turn over the diary of Stevens'? Where is the video of the interview of the doctor that worked on Stevens' when he arrived at hospital? The point they pulled this guy out of the consulate, the CIA annex was under attack a mile away, and shortly after those Navy Seals died on the roof while laser tagging the enemy positions for an air strike. The air strike never came. They were in contact with their superiors, someone knows the truth, the American public, the taxpayer deserves this truth to come to light.

How is it that I know about this, and yet the President of the USA and his staff spun this story about a protest and a video for weeks after the event. The news stories above discount these lies. Yet they ran with it, and the American short term memory allowed it to take hold as the narrative. Now with this sex scandal, Benghazi is back on the forefront. How the FBI is investigating a bunch of emails and not Benghazi, I have no idea! There are far too many questions, and the coincidences of the situation do not match up to the lies being told by the Administration or the media.

Here is another issue for you to digest, news reports say that the CIA had a unit arrive 25 minutes at the Annex after the attack ended. They were able to get there and clean out the Annex, but they left the consulate unsecured. Why? How could the CIA get there but our own reinforcements couldn't in this time frame? I smell a cover-up, whether it is the CIA or if it goes higher into Obama's Administration means little me. I just want the truth, and if I have to wait for the FOIA to be available to me in 25 years, then so be it. We can revisit this in 2037!

http://www.kansascity.com/2012/11/01/3896877/us-says-cia-sent-security-team.html

I have to attend to my daughter, will finish in a bit...hopefully

I have returned, a day later, but returned nonetheless

I am currently watching the hearings unfold about this attack on Capitol Hill. It is 2PM, CST November 15th, 2012, and I was watching CNN report that our Representatives in Congress are currently watching a video. Then, I got pissed off again, why? Well, the anchor woman begins asking questions related to some constituent/reporter from New York grilling John McCain about blame being placed on Republicans for not approving Defense spending, which supposedly would have given the Government enough money to have Marines at Benghazi...Let us discuss this minor lie by the media, yet again.

The issue: Why was Ambassador Stevens not given a Marine detail to protect him when he traveled to Benghazi to meet the Turkish diplomat?

The spin: The Republicans cut funding to Embassy security funding

The Truth: The State Department is responsible for Embassy security, which includes consulates. They have a discretionary fund totaling, State Department Budget '11,'12,'13 and explanations of how the State Department spends their money(OCO is the acronym you need to look for, AKA Overseas Contingency Operations)

The truth of the matter is the State Department had the funding, but instead as you can see by their own paperwork, they also use this money for other things like funding "The Arab Spring," which goes back to earlier points relating to this issue, why do we give away free money when we are going broke??? Why the hell would I want to pay more taxes when we are just giving it away to people I will never meet, nor do I care about at this point? Yes, I am callous, there is good reason for it! I do not apologize for my opinions, they are exactly that, opinions! So why the hell is the story being spun to blame the Republicans for the debacle? It is because the media wants to deflect and distract our attention from the Administrations and the various Intelligence agencies oversight into this tragedy!

The President needs to own this, I am not stupid, nor am I conspiring with the far right on this, I am merely seeing the truth of the matter for what it is! Something stinks here, and I will keep pushing the truth so more and more people gather together to clamor for it to come out.

Let us now look at the next issue concerning today's events, I happened to flip to MSNBC, yes I actually watch all the media outlets because I am trying to find the truth, even if it is skewed politically, same reason I watch Fox from time to time. Anyway, I flip to that station, and their only coverage on the hearings taking place today was a bunch of clips of Congressmen/women yelling at each other about this issue. Right calling President liar, Left defending President wholeheartedly, blah blah blah...How is the yelling match the most important part of all the news/video clips you have at your fingertips? Is that the story? NO, the story is the hearings, the testimony, the issue: BENGHAZI!!! This is ridiculous to continuously have to sift through the spin on National Security Issue where people died! If President Obama can use drones to kill militants in foreign countries at the drop of a hat, how the hell could he not get a "hot" drone in the air above Benghazi to fire on the mortar positions that the Seals had lasered??? How could a copperhead from the various Navy ships on the Mediterranean not fire to those given coordinates? How could the the Navy Group in the Mediterranean not have Marines ready to go into Libya??? There were ships in the area, and they would have been a lot closer than moving troops to Tripoli from Germany. I am still smelling a rat, and I don't like it!

Prison reform, NOW!

http://t.news.msn.com/us/prison-factories-caught-in-private-biz-debate

This is why we need prison reform. There is obviously a problem with the government using inmates to manufacture goods sold in the free market, when their wages are a few dollars a day. I understand that inmates want to work while they are in because they need money to purchase goods through the commissary, this is not my argument, my argument is the control that the government has in putting people in prison, such as excessive sentencing for drug offenses.

Wouldn't it make sense to increase those going to prison, which in turn would increase workers, which in turn would increase profits, which in turn make the prison system more profitable? This means locking people up makes more sense than solving the problem of criminal activity and/or recidivism. There is too much room for error here.

Illinois used to make Pyramid cigarettes in its prison system, which were sold outside of the system. Now most of the Illinois industry makes products that are used inside the prison, sort of like keeping the costs of upkeep in-house. With private prisons being operated by corporations, this is also a problem. I find it very similar to sweatshop work. Inmates should not be making items sold in the free market. License plates, and other state or federal needs are different. They are doing time for violating the laws per those entity(ies). However, allowing them to make goods sold for a fair price in the free market, and only paying them a few dollars a day, while there are people being laid off making the same product, while some company increases its profit margin is wrong.

This problem will grow, along with the prison populations, if this is allowed to continue. Why not lock up all the working class so products can be manufactured at a low cost, sold at regular price in the marketplace to those not incarcerated because they have the social status to not do manual labor. This is the beginning, and the also the government will increase and widen its use of prisons for debtors. It is already beginning with child support payments, and IRS evasion. Debtors prison is illegal, and was made because of this issue. It is a legal form of slavery!

Haven't been here in a while, but updates are always good.

I probably should visit here more often, but life takes it toll on the time it takes to do any specific task. Well, I am here now, even if it may only be for a minute or two.

What has been happening?

I have a beautiful daughter named Madelyn Rose Kirschnick. She is almost 6 months old now and is beginning to do all the things a baby does. She is flipping over by herself, holding her own bottle, trying to talk, and one thing I am definitely proud of is her beautiful blue eyes. They are similar to mine, and I do believe they will break many a heart. She won a costume contest last week. The first prize was an ipod, not that it will do her much good, but the competition shows the beauty of her smile and her personality. She is her own person already. She is slowly becoming a beautiful American girl. She has a lot to learn, and I hope I live long enough to teach her everything I have learned about life, people, society, and academics. This will include the good and the bad, as they both need understanding in order to maneuver through this thing we call life.

As for my life, well beyond the daughter and the family I am trying to support, I have taken up a 2nd job. I work about 70 hours a week, and both jobs are manual labor. They both include driving, which we all know I love to do. I drive trucks for AT&T during the graveyard hours downtown Chicago, and of course still do the local moving job. I had hoped that my M.A. in Communication would allow me to garner a high paying salary job by now, but to no avail.

Our politicians irritate me to no end. I do wish I was in a better position to run for office, but for now it is not possible. The issues are not being addressed, and I get increasingly angry at the media for not focusing on the issues. Instead the media, the elections, and the politicians themselves are using a soap-opera format. I do not like reality tv, I do not like partisan media coverage, I especially do NOT like Obama or Romney. I stand by my 3rd party ideology. I want truth, not lies. I want solutions, not attack ads. I want to believe that my elected officials are actually doing what they are supposed to be doing.

I believe in small government. I think I should just focus on helping my community here in suburban Chicagoland. I think I get the most angry when I try to look at the big picture. The big picture is fucked up because people spend so much time trying to satisfy everyone at once. It doesn't work that way. My village and my children's school district are operating within a budget. They are making a balanced budget year after year. Most of it is supported through local taxes and good governance. There are not excessive loans being taken out to cover the daily operation costs, instead they are managing the funds within the means of the community that it governs. Why is the Federal government not doing this? It is because Corporate America has taken over the legislature. Why the politicians don't just place their corporate sponsors on their suits like NASCAR is beyond me.

The election on Tuesday is not going to be a turning point for America. It is just another stop on the long winding road to bankruptcy. How the Fed can consistently borrow, write off bad debt, and continue to spend is well beyond my comprehension. If I ran my checkbook like they run theirs would result in legal action against me. I cannot write off my bad debt and still borrow year after year. I am still trying to catch up with my student loans, 100,000 in catch up. The current President says he wants to increase education spending, but what does that matter when I sit here with a graduate degree unable to find a job in my field. Instead I am stuck working 2 manual jobs just to pay the bills. This is not why I went to school, and this is not where I expected to be when I got my degrees. This sickens me to no end. I am truthfully disgusted by the rhetoric. Post-secondary education is important, but it is useless if these kids come out of college without opportunities for employment. This falls on both Dems and Repubs. I am voting for Gary Johnson, the Libertarian candidate for President. We need to stop spending, and cut taxes, decrease the size of government, lower the expectations of the government being responsible for my welfare.

Our entitlement society has allowed this Nanny State ideology to take hold. I don't agree with the current welfare programs because there are too many opportunities and loopholes to allow for mismanagement and "practically" criminal" behavior. If someone gives you money regularly, and you are not required to do anything for it, will you really want to try to find a job? I do not think so, there is no incentive for it. Changing from free money to money you have to earn is not an "optimal" choice for those abusing the system. The other aspect of this is the underground economy, where drug dealers collect a welfare check, get food stamps, and still make a lot of money selling drugs on the street corners. You can disagree with me if you want, but I will debate the subject of the "War on Drugs" as being a plague on our society. Remove it by legalizing the drugs, taxing the drugs, selling them at Walgreens where you can regulate who buys them. ie over 18 or over 21. Do you think a drug dealer on the West side of Chicago can compete with a private company producing heroin, cocaine, marijuana, etc.? No, they couldn't, the price would be too low for them to be selling on the corner. Plus, it would lower the HIGH homicide rate in Chicago. Most gang violence is based on drug sales. This started in the 1980s and it continues today. The unemployment rate would soar if you took everyone off welfare, and legalized drugs. Then all these morons that think things are getting better would be slapped in the face with a 15% unemployment rate, yet things would get better over time because of these changes. People would become competitive.

This is not a race thing either, this is an American ideology gone awry. I could care less if you are white, black, brown, etc. I don't see our problems that way, if you want to play the victim role that is your business. I could play that role. I am an ex-felon, yet I don't cry about it. I don't complain about the fact that my felonies resulted from my misdirected youth activities. I liked to party, I liked to get high, and the result of that allowed me to fill a supply and demand gap. Well, I am paying for it now, by not being afforded equal opportunity for employment versus someone with my degrees without felonies. I am NOT a victim though, and I don't want my government to assist me because I believe myself to be a victim. My family came here in 1926, well after slavery ended. My family is not responsible for what happened here in the 1800s. I will not apologize, nor agree with giving someone extra assistance because of some wrong society committed almost two centuries ago. I stand on my own two feet, and I believe that my government needs to quit addressing the hands out approach. My hand is not out, I do not want a break, I want a job. I want policy change in drug laws, and prison reform. The sentencing for drug use and possession is flawed, and it is excessive. It needs to be changed.

I believe in ground up policy change. If someone wants to get high, it doesn't bother me, if someone steals from me to get it, then that should be the issue at hand. This life I live has taken me down many paths. Get off your ass and quit expecting someone to come along and save your ass. If I could turn my life around as I have, then there isn't anyone who can't also do it. I slept for months outside in the middle of winter being homeless, I didn't get a handout then, and I made it just fine. QUIT expecting my tax dollars to help your lazy ass. I have friends of all colors that still live of the government, so again this IS NOT a race opinion. I am not racist. I am tired of hearing about things being based on color. Life sucks, but I did something about it, and again I do not get a bunch of "extra" chances at success because I am white. I lost that privilege with the felonies.

This whole nation's approach at fixing things sickens me. I don't know where the government came up with the notion of taking care of people. Who pays for that? How much larger can the Fed get before nobody is paying for its actions? If everyone is working in the government, and the government is taking care of everyone, who is paying the bill?

The other issue I have is with the Benghazi issue and the fact that the media is choosing to not address the facts. There are countless outlets for news that I use, mostly international agencies, that actually do have a handle on it. I think there is something serious that is being kept from the American people until after the election, well, that is just the saddest thing I have seen from supposed "journalists". The media bias is very apparent, and that sickens me too. The media should be the demilitarized zone, focusing on facts, not political agendas. I knew what had happened on September 12th. I posted the international news stories that backed up the true accounts, yet the government spun it as a protest about a video for two weeks. How did I get the truth 24 hours later? And the president and his staff didn't for 2 weeks? BULLSHIT! It is a sad state of affairs, not to mention not sending in reinforcements to airlift those Americans out of there. I know we have the capabilities for it, and it wasn't done. I do NOT need the facts anymore, I know something got fucked up, I just want the people responsible to come forward and accept their punishment. If the rumors about the CIA running armaments to Syrian rebels (Al-Qaeda backed) through Libya in Benghazi are true, there will not be enough resignations to fix the trust lost with the American people. I believe some of the rumors, as there is always a bit of truth to every rumor.

Just to be clear, I voted for Kerry in 2004, and I was complaining about Bush when no weapons of mass destruction were found in Iraq. I couldn't stand Bush, and his torture, and Gitmo, and the lack of Due Process, and the USA Patriot Act, the illegal wiretaps, but this presidency is no better. The government lies, I don't care who is in control, and it is a shame that Obama ended up in the same boat as Bush. I am always a skeptic with this shit, and I can't believe some of the shit I have seen recently.

Anyway, I am going to keep working, and maybe I will have something else to add after the election and the masses get the truth which I have been consistently searching for in the past 2 months.

/Vote 3rd party, because the 2 main parties are not looking out for your best interests.

Thanks for stopping by.