Background

This article has been in the making for some time now.  What has prompted this post is a recent debate, which oddly started in a blog topic not at all related to the subject matter. For a little historical reference this debate can be read at the AmericanMissive.com. However, I intend to go into more depth here.

A cautionary note is also needed. This article is not intended to offend but it is also in no way politically correct. In fact, it is by it’s very nature politically incorrect.  Those of you that are like minded as I am may want to read a interesting speech on the subject of political correctness.  This topic flies in the face of political correctness because it deals directly with Islam, war, and culture.  Further, I recognize that if my beliefs were believed more broadly it would probably lead directly to more immediate bloodshed.  However, as is often the case with the difficult, waiting to solve a problem doesn’t make the problem’s solution any easier.

Finally, I will point out here that I recognize the difference between a people and an ideology.  In America we have the freedom to debate and argue back and forth.  At this time in this country there is no need or excuse for violence (although perhaps non-violent resistance is in order) of any type against those with a different ideology.  Those that carry out violence against Muslims in this country sicken me and will get what they deserve.  If in the history of man the ideology of Jihadist Islam comes to control our capitol, dictate our debate, or restrict in ANY way our freedoms perhaps strategies would have to change.

Summary

Islam was born out of war.  The often used term Jihad means struggle.  Islam comes to us for the last 1400 years carrying a sword.  We are therefore at war with a large portion of Islam (the religion not the people) whether this is open war, cold war, or a cultural war does not matter.  Further, Islam and the following theocratic governments in the Islamic world by their very nature are fascist.  It is for these reasons that I theorize Islam must be confronted in a very particular kind of way. It is my intention to outline my reasoned response to Islam which is a need for a response of the sword, the pen, and the economy.  Tomorrow President Obama will ignore the history of Islam.  He will deny it’s threat to the west and he will enhance their belief in the Muslim’s superiority.  He will cause neither change in the Islamic world nor wake the west out of their catatonic slumber.  He will ignore the warnings of history and further endanger our freedoms.

In the course of human history the powers that wage war for our hearts and minds take form on this earth in order to oppress the freedoms granted by God. In so doing only vigilance and sacrifice will secure us and our posterity from greater difficulty and threat of further separation from truth and freedom. Without vigilence and sacrifice lovers of truth and freedom (true freedom) will pay more dearly then ever.

“We are met together at a time when great exertions and a high constancy are required from all who cherish and sustain the Liberal cause. Difficulties surround us and dangers threaten from this side and from that. Exultant enemies are gathering: weak friends are nervous or disheartened. Voices are raised in counsels, both equally unwise, of impatience or of lassitude. From such a situation you may emerge triumphant, but to do that there will have to be, in leaders and in followers, shrewd clear plans of action, true stout-hearted comradeship, and unwearying determination.” – Winston Churchill

Islamic Fascism

The term Islamic Fascism is batted around today but seldom do I hear a speaker say this term in a way that implies they understand it’s roots; neither do I hear a response that reasonably refutes this term.  The common response to Islamic Fascism is that it is politically incorrect.  It is indeed unfair to compare somebody to Hitler or shoot out the term of fascism without thought.  It is so brutal an accusation as to easily close the ears of the more soft hearted.  However, to allow the debate to end because of soft-heartedness or political correctness is dangerous to say the least.  It takes reason, logic and fact out of the debate and without reason we are indeed doomed.

Fascism as a political movement (as opposed to economic fascism) is broadly defined (and oft debated) as a political movement that stirs a group through a belief in their superiority or the inferiority of others.  When this belief enters government a fascist state emerges. 

Islam is fascist in it’s nature.  While it holds provisions for non-believers (Jews, Christians and others) it requires of non-believers (dhimmis) to pay tribute to the Islamic state and openly acknowledge Muslim supremacy for personal safety (note nothing else; no rights or other liberties are granted).  These following legal, social and religious restrictions highlight non-believers inferiority.  As most Islamic nations are theocratic in nature these fascist type beliefs of inferiority and superiority are ingrained the State. 

Part of the reason why this is the case (in my opinion) is due to Islams views on psychology.  They believe Adam and Eve fell from the garden but that they were fully forgiven by Allah.  Therefore, unlike say Christianity man is unfallen creating a certain superiority of the Muslim here on earth.  This leads strength to their sociological views of the oneness of church and state and therefore into their political views of the design for a global theocratic state, which has often been expressed through their historical views as historical determinism (i.e. Jihad).

As a VERY important side note Christianity does not hold a superiority doctrine. Christianity states that Christ is the only way to heaven.  A Christian is saved by grace.  This grace or mercy shown by God does not in anyway make a Christian superior to a non-christian.  In fact, the Bible unlike the Qu’ran is quick to point out we are all sinners and therefore all equal.  It is my God that is superior not myself.  Further, currently we do not live in a politically fascist state (perhaps economically facist) and I would never support this.  I believe in the seperation of church and state. Religion should be an individual and personal thing and NOT a state thing.

Islam and the many Islamic states that are fasicst therefore pose a very dangerous and a very unique threat.  Thankfully or unfortunately depending on timing and perspective we have historical examples of fascist states and how the battle is waged and won against such dangerous ideological foes. 

A Little History 

Islam was born of the sword.  Mohammad was financial oppressed and early on in his “struggle” he and his followers made war against other Arabs that were making their financial trade difficult. 

He waged war for 8 years until his death.  In context the final 8 years of his 22 Qu’ranic years were in war.  Nearly 50% of the prophets time was at war.  Compare all other major religions of the world and find one that was written in so much bloodshed.  Only Judaism comes close until one factors in the centuries of nomadic peaceful life and oppressed slavery whether in Egypt or by the Romans to name a few. 

It is obvious Islam was born of the sword and is dangerously unique in this way.  Further, Islam has shown it’s true nature for 1400 years going directly from Mohammad’s war-faring ways to the Caliphate and subsequent “Golden Years” of Islam to piracy and now to terrorism. Please, take a minute to look at how deep and wide the Caliphate spread Islam in this 90 second quality multimedia production it’s important to watch a least up to 1200 AD (45 seconds or so).

At the end of the reign of the Caliphate and the “Golden Age” of Islam it had spread over much of ancient Christendom encroaching into Christian Europe and Mongol Asia.  Put simply Islam was taking over the world.

This brings me to a second important side point.  Often the blame for Islam’s modern hate of the West is pointed at the Crusades. Don’t believe the hype!  This is often just an easy target for the anti-Christian to attack Christianity.  By 1200 AD Islam was a serious threat to Christian Europe  as it had conquered all of Ancient Christendom and encroached on Europe via the Iberian peninsula (modern day Spain).  It also wasn’t just Christian Europe that was threatened but Mongol Asia as well (as an aside Mongol Asia was all but completely defeated culturally by Islam). 

The Crusades were not unprovoked attacks on a benign and hapless peaceful people but a response to a very real threat.  It wasn’t until the black plague ravaged the Islamic Caliphate that Islams power dissipated and was subsequently placed under various European protectorates.  If it hadn’t been for the black plague we may very well be living in a very different world.  Saladin defeated Europe in the Second Crusades (Note: Watch the movie Kingdom of Heaven for a fun little history lesson) and the balance of power by my estimation had all but tipped in the favor of Islam.

The Modern Threat

Here in Christian America we are asleep at the helm.  Islam is conquering the world once again and at the current growth rate of Islam my grandchildren will be Muslim before they reach their life expectancy (2096).

 But what if the world population continues to slow it’s growth (as it has been doing lately) and what if Islam continues to advance it’s growth (as it has been doing) by only half for the world population and only 1% for Islamic growth(conservative assumptions):

Then you and me, my kids, and my grand kids will all be Muslims before we die.  Please, note I didn’t do any trending on the data so it could be slightly worse then what I predict here (or better although I used conservative assumptions).  I used the most conservative growth rates for Islam and started Islam at a lower population then some analysts have Islam at currently.  The following are where I obtained my data:

Islamic Population and Growth: http://www.religioustolerance.org/growth_isl_chr.htm 

World Population and Growth: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Population_growth

Culturally Islam is winning.  Take for example the fall of Europe in it’s many various forms and most recently the fall of the freedom of speech in England.   Yet, while England and Europe face conquest by Islam by refusing to confront it directly and therefore conceding the fight they still are under heavy attack.

The dangers of political correctness hampering the argument are a serious problem.  I wrote about it recently as the United States has foiled one terrorist plot after another this year.  Not only the plot in New York but the plot in Chicago are important to note.  It gives us a perspective on the cultural battle.  You have to read so deep into the articles and really pay attention to find out that these are actually Muslim Terrorists.  This is Islam attacking us.  Yet our media seems to try and hide the fact we are at war with Jihadist Islam.  Our leaders call Islam a “religion of peace” and pronounce “We are not at war with Islam.”  Yet a large portion of Islam is at war with the world. 

Please note the above number doesn’t include combat related fighting but only deadly terrorist attacks (therefore, reducing the above number by taking out fighting attacks and non-deadly attacks).  While a good number of these terrorist attacks are taking place in Iraq and Afghanistan currently there are attacks taking place in Israel, Gaza, Pakistan, Thailand, India, Chad, Philippines, Somalia, Chechnya, Jordan, and Algeria just to name a few of the most common over the last couple months.   This leads me to ask what are our leaders are thinking when the do and say the following things:

• President Bush’s claim that Islam is a religion of peace when it is a religion of the Sword as much as anything else.
• President Obama’sstatements that we are “not at war with Islam” when much of Islam is at war with the West and has been for 1400 years. 
• President Obama’s bow to the King of Saudi Arabia, which is a sign of submission and fealty.
• President Obama preparing to give the Palestinians $900 million in aid (as Bush also did). When this Government report from the GAO raises some concerns about Obama funding terrorism.

Not only are our leaders doing this we are doing it to ourselves. 

“If global oil dependence (“The Petroleum Economy”) continues at over 85 million barrels per day, and the price of oil remains around $50 per barrel, the global economy will pay out over 1.5 trillion dollars per year for oil. With 40¢ of every dollar going to OPEC, Islamic nations will take in about 600 billion dollars per year from the oil they sell.” – American Energy Independence

It would be one thing if we were using that oil to produce and then be thrifty with that money we make from production but we aren’t.  We’re squandering it on bailing out Wall Street, bad mortgage loans to people who can’t afford homes, forcing credit card companies to lend to poor payers, and bailing out bad car companies.  Then on-top of the government squandering our money our companies are doing the same thing (why the need for bailouts if this wasn’t the fact).  Companies have been raising their debt-to-equity ratios for two decades and going. And ontop of the government and corporations doing this individuals are doing it too (why the need for “stimulus” money and new credit card laws).   Suffice it to say we’re selling ourselves into slavery.

Seriousness of the Threat

It is my understanding there are quite a few religious leaders even among Sunni that support the concept of Jihad. Also, it is my understanding among Sharia Law and Islamic jurisprudence that the meaning of Jihad is warfare against non-Muslims. Sunni and Shi’a Muslims make up the majority of the 1.6 to 1.8 billion Muslims worldwide and while not all leading Muslim authorities preach Jihad their is a large enough portion that preach it worldwide as to greatly endanger the world. Taking from a 2006 PEW research poll and estimating that somewhere between 20-40% are ok with attacks on civilians at least sometimes or rarely this is still in the hundreds of millions that are ok with the concept of Jihad.  Hundreds of million is a serious threat.  With Jihad Islam racking up over a hundred kills (non-combat) a day across the world this problem is serious.  I suppose with the hundreds of millions of Muslims who are ok with the concept of Jihad we are lucky the number isn’t much larger.

In the United States if somebody kills somebody because “God told them to do it” they are mentally unstable. Islam’s mentally unstable rate seems to be very high.  Simple examples of this are how can the Palestinian people elect Hamas? How can the people of Iran and Syria tolerate their leaders?  How are moderate Islamic nations responding to the threat?

I believe as long as the following conditions exist Jihadist Islam poses a clear and present danger:

• Denying the individual the freedom of choice to leave Islam
• The concept of Jihad and various calls to violence through out Islamic text
• The psychological belief of unfalleness
• The belief in Muslim superiority
• The silence of moderate nations against the previous four points
• The missing concept of love for one’s enemies

The Solution

Unfortunately, much of the Islamic moderate world is not doing much of anything to counter act Jihadist Islam, whether out of fear or due to the difficulty in mounting a counter argument it appears the the religious and state leaders throughout the Middle East are as complacent as China was against the rise of fascist Japan, as Europe was to the fall of Albania to fascist Italy, and when Germany annexed Austria at the turn of the last century. 

I have a difficult time, though I search,  finding great Islamic leaders calling for the expulsion of Jihadist concepts from the Islamic texts, or a denunciation of Muslim superiority, or most importantly a scriptural call for Muslims to love their enemies.  Instead the Islamic leadership appears ready to continue to “ride the tiger” of national sentiments in order to maintain their power and wealth.

So what then is the solution.  Do we sit ideally by and let Islam conquer the world therefore strengthening their view of superiority and the value of Jihadist revolution?  Or should we act in the face of evil to secure freedom for us and our posterity?  I believe we should act.  Fortune forever favors the bold and the brave. 

The theortical solution prepose is three-fold.  It is the sword, the pen and the wallet.

The Wallet

First, we must change our primary economic structures to enable the land of the free to have even greater economic freedom and to be competitive on the world stage.  We must move away from oil dependence and towards future oil independence.  Therefore, economic policies should be two fold taxation changes and energy changes.  As this is neither a post on energy policy or economic policy I’ll remain brief here even though this is of utmost importance.  Energy independence primarily will come through unleashing the power of human ingenuity and entrepreneurial expansion.  But nothing should be left off the table including American oil expansion, alternative energies, and very importantly nuclear energy.  Currently, we seem only capable of trying to come up with a forced alternative even though most innovation historically is not forced. 

As for true economic reform this comes in the form of taxation.  Currently, our convoluted, oppresive and counter-productive tax structure is a mess.  The 16th Amendment must be repealed and a new system should be designed.  It should be comprehensive and replace the current tax structure in a way the encourages thrift as opposed to squandering by taxing spending, not income and by taxing luxary, not investing and savings.  It should still provide protection in a progressive type of nature to ensure no American pays taxes on spending up to the poverty level and it should provide for dollar-for-dollar federal revenue neutrality.  It should be easily implemented and administered.  It should be fair, efficient, transparent, and intelligent in order to truly unleash economic liberty by allowing workers to keep their paychecks, retirees to keep their pensions, create fair global competition, bring absolute transparency and accountability to tax policy and close all loopholes bring fairness in taxation.

The only way to bring this about is through our vote.  Politicians will not bring this change as they are indebted to K-Street lobbiest that buy bailouts, tax rebates, and much more.  A fair tax policy would turn K-Street into a ghost town overnight and they know it.   This is an internal battle we must have amongst ourselves but in order to win the war against Jihadist Islam we cannot be slaves to debt and cowardice internally.

The Sword

Let me say that the way to fully win the war against Jihadist Islam is not fully military, but the military must play a role in this war.  Iraq was a strong first step but it must be followed up.  Winning the war starts at home (primarily in our economic structure but also in our culture as well), but due to the passive complacent nature of the world and moderate Islam it must also be confronted in their capitol’s.  Culturally (i.e. winning by the pen) dropping books on a culture that is oppressed by current Shri’a law and either their complacent governments or oppressive theocratic regimes will not bring change.

Iraq was a strong first step and a great target of opportunity.  Having a democratically elected government that provides for a level of freedom and choice to it’s people should provide the opportunity for a culture to evolve (if it ever will).  Helping establish a free Iraq that can translate it’s own books and integrate a broader culture into itself to me is one of the best bets to make and something VERY justifiable for the long term stability of the U.S. (I’m talking decades down the road if not centuries here). Of course perhaps it fails, perhaps it works, or perhaps it even backfires but the Islamic Jihad culture never evolves.  Jihadist Islam will not evolve of it’s own 1400 years and counting is proof enough. It has great abilities to with stand cognative dissonance and currently it has very little cognative dissonance.

The #1 Principle of Warfare as pointed out so aptly by Neapoleon is that a battle is never one on the defense. It is much better to try to defend ourselves and push change onto Islamic Jihad then it is to wait for Islamic Jihad to come change us by the sword.  Of course democracy is not always the antidote.  Palestine did elect Hamas.  However, what we must defeat is the view that Muslims are superior.  We must defeat this concept on the battlefield in order to open the minds so they seek alternatives to this view on a logical level.  Our advantage is we have the pen AND the sword. Islam has only a sword.

It is important to point out that even though Iraq was a strong start just because we “liberate” the country doesn’t mean we have won the war.

Vast amounts of research has shown that the most dangerous time for a soldier or a police officer is when the battle is won or the criminal is arrested. The soldier and police officer are trained for warfare or a gun fight – they know how to handle this. After the battle is when it becomes dangerous or when the criminalin the back of the car has had time to let reality sink in. Great bodies of evidence show the advantage of counter-strikes and injured policemen as they lead the criminal up the steps of the jail. Our guard is down.   If we think setting up a democracy is the only step we need to take we are in trouble. I don’t think our militaries guard is down though they are building hospitals, schools, libraries, and many things in Iraq let’s hope it works.  The cost of freedom is vigilence! As long as the idea of “Americanism” is an ideal based on truth, liberty and justice no “anti-Americanism” should be tolerated because all it takes for the evil and unjust to succeed is for the good to do nothing. Why would we tolerate evil?

One of the greatest modern military strategists was Alfred Mahan who served in the Civil War and later wrote broadly on navel military strategy. His ideologies influenced much of our navel fleet prior to WWI and enabled us to have a strong upper hand in that war (he is still studied broadly today at the navel academy). Alfred was the person that originally termed the phrase “Middle East”. One of his most famous sayings was

War once declared must be waged offensively, aggressively! The enemy must not be fended off, but smitten down.

However, it is important to realize you can’t “fight” people into liking you. You can fight people into thinking about the benefits of the ideologies they hold though.  One of the MOST famous strategist who helped in the defeat of Neopolean was Carl von Clausewitz a Prussian who went to Russia to work to defeat Neopleon he had three keys to conducting the offensive actions of war:

(a) To conquer and destroy the armed power of the enemy;

(b) To take possession of his material and other sources of strength, and

(c) To gain public opinion.

Now, I’m not an expert but I study this stuff for business. I’ve been studying Sun Tzu and the minds that have followed him since high school. It is my understanding that these principles in coordination with another principle are in order of importance.  Notice the third principle.  How does one gain public opinion?

Clausewitz theorized that to gain public opinion one had to win great victories (shock and awe, not his words but it does correlate) and one had to occupy the enemies capitol. Now, I understand that Bagdad isn’t the capitol of Islam so we’re kind of in a different realm here but it is a first step I think.  It is important that we continue to take the fight to Jihadist Islam including Iran, Afganistan, and Syria. 

We should also demand of moderate Islamic nations to do the same internally.  America doesn’t tolerate the neo-Nazi or the KKK they are scorned in our media and our public.  Moderate Islam should not tolerate Jihadist Islam, the Muslim superiority belief, they should refute the apostacy doctrine of Islam (i.e. death in countries like Saudi Arabia and Iran), and create a scriptural call for the love of ones enemies.  However, only a focus on economic thrift and expanded energy policy would enable us to demand change without the fear of sacrificing oil and therefore our economic well-being.  Currently, it appears we will choose the easy route of selling ourselves slowly into slavery.  However, taking an outside-in view would probably be the only way to force change upon ourselves which is to say act first and “become the change” (Ghandi) you want to be.

Further, I theorize that in defeating fasiscm controlling the capitol is more critical then in a war over resources or territory or some such tangible thing. WWII being a prime example of this necessity. Germany didn’t fall until the very end and Japan, well, we didn’t occupy the capitol we had to do something much harder and worse.

Why is this? Think about the root of fascism it is seated in a belief that their ideology or race or whatever is superior and because of this they can’t be defeated. The only way to defeat fasicsm therefore is to completely defeat the enemy as long as they stand their “ideology” is self-fulfilling. It won’t self defeat because it is rooted in it’s belief of superiority. It is not based on reason. You can’t culturally debate it until you physically defeat it and they are forced to look for a reason for their defeat. They must be first forced to conclude that ideologically the Muslim is not superior to the non-Muslim.  Until they are forced out of their comfort zone they cannot and will not self correct.  I am not aware of any historical context of a fascist belief being defeated with reason as it is by it’s nature culturally superior.

 The Pen

The Islamic world has only translated something like 10,000 books into Arabic in the last century.  While the entire country of Spain does this many books into Spanish every couple of years and English, well, we won’t even go their.  Islamic nations need to be fighting hate and illogical fascism with ideological free thinking.  Building schools and libraries is critical to our success in Iraq.  But it is something that the Islamic world needs to be taking up on it’s own.  It should be encouraging free thinking, free reading, and a balanced liberal education.  Liberal arts are the study of broad subjects.  Currently, Arab countries focus primarily on strong religious education and not on broader comprehensive worldview education and other various subjects.  Starting a modern rebirth of thinking in Islam will be hard to stimulate but by defeating the ideology of Jihad and superiority held by many Muslims they can be forced into open out-of-the-box thinking that is drastically needed. 

 In the meanwhile, we should be supporting institutes like the American Univeristy in Kuwait and in Lebanon for example.  It is also important that we provide what assistance we can to help with the liberal education of those throughout the Middle East.  We should take interest in our Muslim brothers political leaders and support those that stand for openness, freedom, equality, and the love of one’s enemies. 

Thankfully and confusingly enough, the Qu’ran is not a closed book Allah is “open to all types of plans”.  It’s own text allows for editing and adjustments over time.  The Muslims can change their religious text if they so desire.  What is confusing to me is why this has not yet been done. 

My Dire Concern

I put this to warning to the world.  IF Islam was ever able to unite again under a common banner (al la, a new Salidin or Mohammed) we would be in serious trouble.  Bin Laden of course thought that this would be him; thankful it wasn’t.  There is even Christian Theological debate that holds that Islam will be united under something similar to a modern day Caliphate in accordance with Christian religous prophecy.  At the growth rate of Islam perhaps my dire concern will be visited upon the world sooner rather then later.  Jihadist Islam must be confronted now waiting only will broaden not lessen the problem.

In Conclusion

Jihadist Islam counting for hundreds of millions of Muslims worldwide is at war with the west.  They are a threat to our freedom and culture.  President Obama will be speaking to the Islamic world tomorrow will he call for revolution, will he express his concern for their treatment of those that are inferior to them, will he challenge their leadership to expand on liberal education, will he call for the moderates to stop sitting on the sidelines and confront Jihadist and superiority extremism, will he challenge their religious leaders to seek out scriputural support for the love of enemies, or will apologize for the West’s failure to “understand” Islam and in so doing feed their belief in superiority and Jihad? 

We must focus on internal change ourselves, we must confront evil illogical reason on the battlefield when it holds deadly intent, and we and our peace loving Muslim brothers must take up the pen against tyranny, fascism, and the hate of our enemies.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – No one at the Federal Reserve advised Bank of America chief Kenneth Lewis on any disclosure issues, Fed spokeswoman Michelle Smith said on Thursday.

“No one at the Federal Reserve advised Ken Lewis or Bank of America on any questions of disclosure,” Smith said in an e-mail responding to a question. “It has long been the Federal Reserve’s view that questions of this nature are best addressed by individual institutions and their legal counsel, as they are in a position to understand clearly their obligations and responsibilities.”

New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said on Thursday that Lewis was pressured by senior federal officials Henry Paulson and Ben Bernanke to accept a merger with troubled Merrill Lynch & Co or lose his job.

The banks are of course in the pockets of the Fed and Treasury.  They are nationalized.   They didn’t want the money and were forced to take it.  They wanted to pay it back and aren’t allowed.  CEO’s can be fired at will (See AIG and GM). 

The government now runs our banks, car manufacturing industry, health care, and energy industries.  We live in a fascist state.  This is fact.  The people being oppressed are the successfully rich.  Who is next?

I want no part in fascism. 

You may say this was under Bush’s watch which is true but to think it’s not being ramped up under Obama’s is naive and stupid.  Geithner and Obama are just if not more guilty according to CBS.

“When asked if he would leave open the option to pressure a bank CEO to resign, Geithner replied: “Of course.”

First, they come after somebody you don’t know.  Maybe some fat cat in Wall Street.  Then they oust a manufacturing CEO.  Then they tell the banks what rates they can lend at and to whom they should lend.  Then they come after your neighbor.  Who is next?

People – It’s important that we let the world know what is happening.  Fascism is not a road we want to head down.  Obama may be a bigot towards the successful and rich, but it doesn’t mean we have to buy into the bigotry.  It doesn’t mean we shouldn’t oppose a fascist regime.  Whether elected by the majority or not.  Just because the majority says fascism and bigotry is ok doesn’t mean we can stand against them. 

It’s only going to get harder for us from here on out.  Even if we are able to change the power in D.C. in 2010 and 2012 power corrupts and D.C. now has almost absolute power.