McCain to Russia: "There'll be hell to pay." Reagan to McCain: "You're a dumbass."

[TrollBuster9090]

Okay, here we go again. We may as well head the Republican talking points off at the pass, before they gain any traction.

1. Republicans want to raise hell over the fact that Russian armed rebels shot down a civilian airliner. Well...32 years ago THE SOVIET UNION ITSELF shot down a Korean airliner WITH A U.S. CONGRESSMAN on board. Saint Ronny did nothing (but make a speech on the teevee). Republicans thought that was enough. Not Russian-armed surrogates...THE SOVIET UNION ITSELF, and they killed a U.S. Congressman! The GOP said 'don't hassle it.'

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/KAL_007#Political_events

2. Republicans are whining that Obama is letting the Israel/Palestinian situation get out of control, and that Israel's invasion of Gaza is proof of that. Well...33 years ago Israel made a ground invasion of LEBANON to try and expel the PLO. Nevermind a piffling invasion of the Gaza strip...they invaded a foreign country, and shelled Beirut for days. Again, Saint Ronnie and the GOP said 'don't sweat the small stuff.'

3. Republicans think Obama's middle eastern policy is a disaster because of BENGHAAAAZI!!!!. Well...32 years ago, Hezbolah bombed the U.S. Marine Barracks in Beirut, killing nearly 300 Marines. No, not four americans...nearly 300! Again, Saint Ronnie and the GOP said 'Isn't that awful!?' And that was the end of it. No...no Democratic Party-controlled House investigations. No Democratic equivalent of Daryll Issa throwing out conspiracy theories about how the Reagan Administration WANTED it to happen. Just...a SANE response from the opposition party.

[MADem]

1. I remember that time--I was flying all over Asia when that happened, and it was

a bit nerve wracking, particularly for military aircraft. In a quirky not-so-fun fact, that event is the reason that we can fire up our Garmins and Tom Toms and go where-ever...no more stopping at gas stations to ask for directions!

KAL007--a real tragedy. It was shot down by a Russian pilot. They let him do it, they thought he had a bead on a P-3 or something...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Korean_Air_Lines_Flight_007

Korean Air Lines Flight 007 (also known as KAL007 and KE007[note 2]) was a scheduled Korean Air Lines flight from New York City to Seoul via Anchorage. On September 1, 1983, the airliner serving the flight was shot down by a Soviet Su-15 interceptor near Moneron Island, west of Sakhalin Island, in the Sea of Japan. The interceptor's pilot was Major Gennadi Osipovich. All 269 passengers and crew aboard were killed, including Lawrence McDonald, representative from Georgia in the United States House of Representatives. The aircraft was en route from Anchorage to Seoul when it flew through prohibited Soviet airspace around the time of a U.S. reconnaissance mission.
The Soviet Union initially denied knowledge of the incident,[2] but later admitted the shootdown, claiming that the aircraft was on a spy mission.[3] The Politburo said it was a deliberate provocation by the United States[4] to test the Soviet Union's military preparedness, or even to provoke a war. The White House accused the Soviet Union of obstructing search and rescue operations.[5] The Soviet military suppressed evidence sought by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) investigation, notably the flight data recorders,[6] which were eventually released eight years later after the collapse of the Soviet Union.[7]
The incident was one of the tensest moments of the Cold War and resulted in an escalation of anti-Soviet sentiment, particularly in the United States. The opposing points of view on the incident were never fully resolved. Consequently, several groups continue to dispute official reports and offer alternative theories of the event. The subsequent release of KAL 007 flight transcripts and flight recorders by the Russian Federation has clarified some details.
As a result of the incident, the United States altered tracking procedures for aircraft departing Alaska. The interface of the autopilot used on airliners was redesigned to make it more ergonomic.[8] In addition, the event was one of the most important single events that prompted the Reagan Administration to allow worldwide access to the United States military's GNSS system, which was classified at the time. Today this system is widely known as GPS....

[TrollBuster9090]

4. Yes, but apparently it didn't stop US from mistaking an Iranian Airbus for an Iranian fighter jet

six years later, when the USS Vincennes shot down an Iranian Airbus full of 274 civilians.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_Flight_655


The Soviet Union never fully came clean with their own collective conscience over KAL 007, and we never fully came clean with our own collective conscience over IAF 655. Apparently this is just the sort of thing that we have to accept as 'the cost of doing business' in a world that exists in a state of heavily armed paranoia.

There has got to be a better way.

[MADem]

7. Nope, it didn't.

That was absolutely OPERATOR ERROR. No doubt.

[randys1]

2. You are a god trollbuster

I am lifting this word for word for another liberal message board if you dont mind

will provide link for them so they can come here and also call you a god

[TrollBuster9090]

5. Be my guest!

[malaise]

3. I'm still waitng for justice for my friend who died

when Cubana was blown up off Barbados in 1976.
Duck John McCain

[elehhhhna]

6. I was 16 then, and remember it. Shocking.

[napkinz]

8. ...

[TrollBuster9090]

9. It won't be so bad. (Remember....a ratio of ten females to each male.)

Thanks!