Mengkaji Urgensi Rudal Permukaan-Udara Jarak Jauh untuk Pertahanan Udara Nasional Indonesia

by Lundy Orlando

“To have command of the air means to be able to cut an enemy’s army and navy off from their bases of operation and nullify their chances of winning the war.” — General Giulio Douhet

 

Seperti yang sudah kita ketahui bersama, Indonesia adalah negara kepulauan terbesar di dunia yang terhimpit diantara dua samudra dan dua benua dengan luas total 1,904,569 km2 yang memiliki komposisi luas daratan 1,811,569 km2 dan luas perairan 93,000 km2. 

 

Dengan daerah seluas itu dan kondisi geografis pulau yang terpisah-pisah dengan laut, tentunya kedaulatan Indonesia terutama kedaulatan atas ruang udara menjadi sangat rentan terhadap ancaman-ancaman dari luar. Banyak sekali pelanggaran terhadap kedaulatan kita atas ruang udara yang merupakan wilayah blank spot terjadi. 

 

Di sini penulis tertarik untuk membahas ancaman udara yang sangat mungkin mengganggu kedaulatan negara kita dan seperti yang sudah kita ketahui bersama kedaulatan penuh atas ruang udara tidak hanya berasal dari jumlah dan kualitas pesawat tempur, jumlah dan kualitas radar, tetapi juga Surface to Air Missile (Rudal Permukaan-Udara) sebagai pertahanan udara di permukaan. 

 

Dulu pada jaman Perang Dunia ke II, dimana ilmu pengetahuan tentang computer embedded, sensor, dan rudal belum benar-benar matang, ada istilah “The bomber will always get through” yang berarti pesawat pembom pada masa itu selalu berhasil menembus pertahanan kota dan melakukan pengeboman oleh sebab itu pertahanan terbaik pada masa itu adalah dengan menyerang pangkalan militer lawan sebelum pesawat pembom menyerang kota. 

 

Setelah Perang Dunia ke II ilmu pengetahuan akan radar, computer embedded, rudal dan sensor yang berkembang pesat menyebabkan lahirnya rudal pertahanan udara / meriam pertahanan udara yang berpemandu radar menyebabkan kecilnya kemungkinan pesawat pembom dapat mencapai target mereka. Inilah masa dimana rudal pertahanan udara mulai memegang peranan yang sangat penting dalam menjaga ruang udara dari ancaman seperti pesawat pengebom strategis. Taktik peperangan-pun berubah dimana pada saat perang dingin, pesawat pembom tidak lagi dijadikan sebagai andalan serangan melainkan rudal balistik dengan hulu ledak nuklir.

Pada jaman keemasannya dulu di tahun 1960-an, TNI pernah memiliki rudal pertahanan jarak menengah S-75 Dvina (SA-2 Guideline) yang menjadi salah satu andalan dalam pertahanan udara TNI dan bahkan sempat mendeteksi sebuah pesawat high altitude surveillance U2 Amerika Serikat yang terbang di langit Jakarta tetapi sejak terjadinya pemberontakan PKI yang berakhir pada renggangnya hubungan Indonesia dengan Soviet saat itu maka S-75 menjadi tidak aktif dan hingga saat ini tidak ada lagi rudal pertahanan udara jarak menengah ataupun jauh dalam sistem pertahanan udara Indonesia. Sekarang, rudal pertahanan udara Indonesia hanyalah berupa SHORAD / VSHORAD (Very Short / Short Range Air Defense) berbentuk MANPADS (Man Portable Air Defense System) seperti QW-3, RBS-70, Igla, ataupun yang mounted di KRI seperti Mistral Simbad, Sea Cat dan Strella yang berarti bentuk penggelaran pertahanan kita masih berupa point defense (pertahanan titik) bukan areal defense (pertahanan area). 

 

Point defense sendiri adalah pertahanan terhadap suatu objek atau area terbatas seperti kapal, bangunan, bandara dan objek vital lain dari ancaman yang biasanya berasal udara dan senjata point defense cenderung memiliki jarak jangkau yang terbatas. Tidak seperti areal defense yang lebih luas area cakupannya daripada point defense dan dapat membersihkan ruang udara dari ancaman-ancaman udara.

 

 

Adapun keadaan Asia Timur dan Asia Tenggara yang memanas seperti permasalahan garis perbatasan negara di LCS (Laut Cina Selatan) yang masih tak tentu antara Cina, Filipina, Malaysia dan tidak menutup kemungkinan Indonesia, uji rudal balistik jarak jauh Unha-3 dan kondisi perang terhadap Korea Selatan dan NATO oleh Korea Utara, menegangnya konflik kepemilikan di pulau Diayou/Senkaku oleh Cina dan Jepang, adanya rencana pembangunan pangkalan militer Amerika Serikat di Darwin, dan adanya arms race pada negara-negara di kawasan Asia Tenggara. 

 

Semua ancaman ini walau merupakan ancaman tidak langsung tetapi tetaplah merupakan suatu ancaman bagi Indonesia yang disebabkan posisi Indonesia yang terjebak antara negara-negara yang memiliki kepentingan di kawasan Asia Timur dan Tenggara. Tentunya hal ini harusnya bisa menyadarkan kita semua bahwa tidak aja jaminan bahwa Indonesia bebas perang. Apalagi Indonesia tidak memihak pihak manapun yang mau tidak mau menuntut Indonesia harus mandiri dalam membela kedaulatan atas wilayahnya.

Negara-negara tetangga Indonesia sendiri seperti Singapura, Malaysia dan Australia dalam menghadapi keadaan di Asia Timur dan Tenggara yang tidak tentu sudah memiliki solusi pertahanan udara yang sesuai dengan kebutuhan mereka masing-masing seperti Singapura dengan SPYDER dan Aster yang di letakkan pada formidable class frigate mereka[2], Malaysia dengan Jernas, dan Australia dengan Rapier 2000-nya. Indonesia sebagai negara yang besar sudah seharusnya memiliki solusi pertahanan udara jarak jauh yang cocok dengan kondisi geografis Indonesia untuk menjaga kedaulatan yang penuh terhadap wilayahnya.

SAM SPYDER Singapura

Keunggulan dari rudal pertahanan udara jarak jauh adalah keefektifannya dalam menjaga ruang udara agar bersih dari ancaman apapun. Keefektifannya sendiri terletak pada waktu siap tempur yang relatif lebih singkat daripada mencegat ancaman dengan menggunakan pesawat tempur yaitu 5 menit dan ±10 detik untuk akusisi sasaran (S-300). 

 

Bandingkan dengan menggunakan pesawat tempur sebagai pencegat (Untuk pesawat pencegat penulis memakai pesawat tempur Sukhoi Su 27/30 sebagai bahan perbandingan) sukhoi selalu siap mencegat ancaman dari Hasanuddin dalam waktu 5 menit tetapi butuh waktu puluhan menit untuk mencapai target/ancaman yang berada ratusan kilometer. 

 

Memang perbandingan ini tidak apple-to-apple sebab rudal pertahanan jarak jauh dan pesawat tempur memiliki peranan yang berbeda dan memang dirancang untuk saling co-exist bukannya saling menggantikan peran. Selain itu, efek deterrence dari rudal pertahanan jarak jauh oleh Indonesia akan membuat para pelaku black flight di wilayah blank spot takut untuk memasuki wilayah udara Indonesia tanpa ijin. 

 

Keunggulan lain dari rudal pertahanan jarak jauh sendiri adalah kemampuannya sebagai anti rudal balistik. Suatu hal yang sangat sulit tapi tidak mustahil dilakukan oleh pesawat pencegat (interceptor). Sejauh ini baru F-16 Amerika Serikat dengan program NCADE saja yang mengembangkan kemampuan ini dan program NCADE sendiri hanya dipakai oleh Amerika Serikat. 

 

Keefektifan rudal pertahanan udara jarak jauh yang tinggi terutama dalam areal defense menyebabkan rudal pertahanan jarak jauh menjadi satu-satunya sistem yang feasible sebagai anti rudal balistik apalagi Indonesia dihadapkan pada kenyataan dimana Korea Utara dapat mengirimkan rudal balistiknya hingga ke Darwin (Australia) mau tidak mau memaksa Indonesia untuk dapat mengintercept rudal-rudal balistik Korea Utara itu jika suatu saat benar-benar melintasi ruang udara kita.

Jernas Malaysia

Oleh karena itu, sebuah sistem rudal pertahanan udara jarak jauh yang memiliki kapabilitas anti rudal balistik dan sanggup menyediakan areal defense haruslah menjadi sebuah kewajiban untuk merealisasikan Indonesia yang berdaulat penuh atas ruang udaranya.

Referensi:

[1] https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/id.html accessed 11/06/13

[2] http://www.naval-technology.com/news/news91328.html accessed 11/06/13 http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000314562 accessed 11/06/13

[3] http://www.strategycenter.net/research/pubID.93/pub_detail.asp accessed 11/06/13

[4] www.dtig.org/docs/SA-12.pdf‎ Ochsenbein, Adrian “Das Boden-Luft Lenkwaffenssystem SA-12/23 GLADIATOR/GIANT”

[5] http://www.raytheon.com/capabilities/products/ncade/

  ● Lembaga KERIS  

Indonesia Akan Terima Hibah Kapal Selam Setelah ada Kepastian dari Russia

Menteri Pertahanan Purnomo Yusgiantoro menyatakan pemerintah sedang menunggu kepastian hibah kapal selam dari Rusia. "Saat ini kami menunggu surat resmi dari Rusia," kata Purnomo kepada wartawan di Landasan Udara Ranai, Natuna, Rabu, 30 Oktober 2013.

Surat itu, dia melanjutkan, berisi kepastian berapa kapal selam yang akan dihibahkan Rusia. Termasuk bagaimana keadaan fisik kapal selam itu dan seberapa banyak perbaikan yang diperlukan. Sebab dalam hibah alat utama sistem persenjataan, negara pemberi pasti menyaratkan seberapa besar perbaikannya. "Tapi katanya masih bagus kondisinya," kata dia.

Soal berapa pagu anggaran untuk biaya 'up-grade' kapal selam ini, Purnomo belum mau menjawab. Sebab saat ini yang ditunggu oleh pemerintah adalah kepastian jadi atau tidaknya hibah kapal selam dari Rusia.

Menurut informasi awal yang Purnomo peroleh dari Duta Besar Rusia di Indonesia, negara Beruang Merah itu akan menghibahkan 10 kapal selam jenis Killo Class Namun hal itu bisa saja berubah. "Sebab negara tetangga, Myanmar juga mendapat satu (kapal selam) hibah dari Rusia."

Purnomo sendiri menyatakan bahwa TNI memerlukan hibah kapal selam dari Rusia itu. Sebab, kapal selam merupakan alutsista strategis untuk menjaga arus laut kepulauan Indonesia. Saat ini Indonesia baru punya dua unit kapal selam, KRI Cakra dan KRI Nanggala. Pemerintah telah memesan tiga unit kapal selam Changbogo dari Korea Selatan. "Kami butuhnya lebih dari lima itu," kata Purnomo.

Terlebih, dia melanjutkan, Kepala Staf Angkatan Laut Laksamana Marsetyo menyatakan bahwa dia membutuhkan kapal selam yang mampu meluncurkan rudal dari bawah permukaan air ke udara. Kemampuan itu merupakan salah satu kelebihan kapal selam Kilo Class milik Rusia.

Sebelumnya, Sumber Tempo di Kementerian Pertahanan menyebutkan bahwa pemerintah Rusia tak serius menghibahkan kapal selam. Buktinya, perwakilan Indonesia yang dipimpin KSAL Laksamana Marsetyo tak mendapat jawaban yang pasti soal hibah ini saat bertandang ke Rusia.

Menurut Sumber Tempo, pemerintah Rusia mengaku tak punya rencana untuk memberikan hibah kapal selam ke Indonesia. Bahkan Sumber Tempo menyebut KSAL Indonesia tak bisa bertemu dengan KSAL Rusia.

Menanggapi hal ini, Menteri Purnomo tak mau berkomentar berlebihan. Dia mengaku tak tahu persis apa yang terjadi di sana. Menurut dia, setiap pejabat pasti punya kesibukan masing-masing. Bisa saja KSAL Rusia sedang sibuk hingga tak bisa temui perwakilan Indonesia.

Bahkan Purnomo menyebut perwakilan Indonesia sudah bertemu dengan pejabat penting Rusia. Termasuk pihak yang mengurus segala urusan jual-beli senjata Rusia, Rosoboron. "Pokoknya tunggu dulu surat resmi dari Rusia." (Tempo)

Indonesia Protes Keras Fasilitas Intelijen Kedutaan AS di Jakarta

“Indonesia tidak dapat menerima dan mengajukan protes keras terhadap berita tentang keberadaan fasilitas penyadapan di Kedubes AS di Jakarta,” ucap Menteri Luar Negeri, Marty M. Natalegawa, menanggapi pemberitaan di surat kabar harian Sydney Morning Herald pada tanggal 29 Oktober 2013 tentang keberadaan dan penggunaan fasilitas penyadapan di Kedutaan AS di Jakarta.

Menteri Luar Negeri Marty M. Natalegawa

Penyadapan telepon dan komunikasi oleh intelijen AS tak hanya ditujukan untuk para pemimpin di Eropa. Ternyata, penyadapan juga dilakukan oleh NSA di Indonesia. Informasi tentang keberadaan fasilitas penyadapan di Kedubes AS di Jakart dibeberkan oleh surat kabar harian Sydney Morning Herald pada 29 Oktober 2013.

Fasilitas pengawasan elektronik ini ditempatkan di kedutaan-kedutaan besar AS dan konsulat di seluruh Asia, demikian informasi yang diungkapkan oleh intelijen whistleblower Edward Snowden. Snowden membeberkan sebuah peta rahasia  yang berisis daftar fasilitas mata-mata AS di seluruh dunia, termasuk fasilitas intelijen komunikasi di kedutaan besar di Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Phnom Penh dan Yangon. Snowden menegaskan, pada 13 Agustus 2010 silam peta itu tidak menunjukkan fasilitas yang dimaksud di Australia, Selandia Baru, Inggris, Jepang dan Singapura  yang merupakan sekutu terdekat AS.

Peta yang awalnya dipublikasikan secara penuh di website Der Spiegel, tetapi kemudian diganti dengan versi yang disensor, memuat daftar khusus fasilitas Layanan Koleksi di 90 lokasi di seluruh dunia, termasuk 74 fasilitas berawak, 14 fasilitas dioperasikan dari jarak jauh dan dua dengan dukungan teknis dari pusat. Secara jelas disebutkan, fasilitas intelijen ada di kedutaan di Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Bangkok, Phnom Penh dan Yangon.

“Kami telah berbicara dengan Kepala Perwakilan Kedutaan AS di Jakarta untuk menuntut penjelasan resmi Pemerintah AS atas pemberitaan dimaksud. Perlu ditegaskan bahwa jika terkonfirmasi, tindakan tersebut bukan saja merupakan pelanggaran keamanan, melainkan juga pelanggaran serius norma serta etika diplomatik dan tentunya tidak selaras dengan semangat hubungan persahabatan antar negara,” tambah Menteri Luar Negeri. (JN)

TNI AU Butuh Tambahan 34 Radar Untuk Jaga Kedaulatan Udara Indonesia

Menteri Pertahanan (Menhan) Purnomo Yusgiantioro menjelaskan, saat ini Indonesia sedikitnya membutuhkan sebanyak 34 radar. Radar dibutuhkan untuk menunjang pengawasan TNI Angkatan Udara (AU) dalam menjaga wilayah udara di seluruh Indonesia.

"Jadi radar TNI AU itu radar primer, kalau sekunder itu buat komersil. Untuk kekurangannya, kami hitung sekitar 32 sampai 34 radar untuk seluruh Indonesia," kata Purnomo di Markas Komando Latihan Angkasa Yudha 2013 Lanud Ranai, Natuna, Kepulauan Riau, Rabu (30/10).

Purnomo menegaskan, saat ini yang menjadi prioritas penambahan radar dipusatkan di bagian timur Indonesia. Semua dilakukan demi pengawasan arus penerbangan yang maksimal.

"Wilayah barat sudah sebagian terpenuhi. Kalau wilayah timur ya bertahap. Untuk renstra (rencana strategis) pertama ada empat yang harus dipenuhi," ujar Purnomo.

Namun demikian, pemenuhan radar yang kurang tersebut akan dilakukan secara bertahap. Semua dilakukan sesuai renstra dan masterplan yang sudah ada.

Dijelaskan, selain dilakukan bertahap, pemenuhan radar tersebut juga menunggu persetujuan dari kementrian keuangan (Kemkeu) dan Badan Perencanaan Pembangunan nasional (Bappenas).

"Untuk renstra pertama sampai 2014 ini, kami rencana beli 4 radar harganya total US$ 150 juta," ungkap Menhan.

Penguatan alat utama sistem senjata (Alutsista) juga tetap akan menjadi prioritas. Kemhan saat ini masih utamakan alutsista bergerak, baru pemenuhan alutsista tidak bergerak seperti radar.

Komandan Satuan Radar 212 Lanud Ranai Mayor Electronika Feri menuturkan, radar yang sudah terpasang di Lanud Ranai jangkauanya mencapai hingga 540 Km. Akivitas radar sangat diperlukan untuk mengintai arus penerbangan yang melewati udara di Natuna.

"Jangkauan radar ini bisa sampai kucing (wilayah bagian Malaysia)," kata Feri.

Saat ini, radar di Lanud Ranai yang menjadi pintu gerbang terdepan pertahanan Indonesia dijaga sekitar 47 Personil. 47 itu terdiri dari perwira 12 dan anak buah 35.

"Mulai Januari hingga Oktober hanya ada penerbangan kapal Tiongkok, tapi setelah dicek berkas lengkap, itu terjadi April 2013," ucapnya. (BeritaSatu)

"Huge" Explosion Reported At Syrian Air Defense Base

Huge Explosion Reported At Syrian Air Defense Base

A Syrian air defense base near the coastal city of Latakia was reportedly destroyed Wednesday night, with multiple Syrian and Lebanese sources speculating that an Israeli strike from the Mediterranean was to blame.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported a loud explosion in a Syrian army base, and Twitter users quoted eyewitnesses who said the blast occurred near Snobar Jableh, just south of the city.

Unconfirmed reports suggested the explosion was the result of a missile strike from the sea. And social media exploded with posts alleging that Israel was responsible

The coastal strip of Syria, encompassing the cities of Tartous, Latakia and Baniyas, is part of a predominantly Alawite portion of the country which remains loyal to the Assad regime.

Earlier on Wednesday the Lebanese government news agency reportedsix Israeli aircraft flying through Lebanese airspace along the coast north of Beirut.

Abbas Vows There Will Be No Peace Agreement Unless All Prisoners Go Free

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said Wednesday that there would be no agreement with Israel as long as even one Palestinian remained in Israeli prison.

Abbas was speaking during a reception at the Mukata presidential compound in Ramallah for Palestinians released from Israeli prison.

After hugging and kissing each one of the freed prisoners, Abbas vowed to pursue his efforts to secure the release of all inmates.

“We welcome and salute our veteran heroes who were behind bars and have now entered the world of freedom,” Abbas told the released prisoners and their families.

Abbas strongly denied that he had agreed to continued construction in the settlements in return for the release of prisoners.

He said that “unpatriotic” people were behind the rumors about a “prisoner-for-settlement” deal.

“Settlement is null and void,” Abbas said.

The PA condemned the Israeli government’s decision to build new housing units in West Bank settlements and east Jerusalem neighborhoods.

Israel, meanwhile, was angered and concerned by the celebrations that greeted the freed terrorists in Ramallah.

“Every time we see the celebrations in Ramallah for people who are guilty of the most heinous crimes against innocent people – civilians, the elderly and children – this is problematic and always raises questions about whether the Palestinians have really turned the corner,” Mark Regev, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s spokesman, said, pointing out that the Palestinians had committed themselves under the Oslo accords to no more terrorism.

“But instead of condemning terrorism, they are celebrating terrorists,” Regev stated. “I would ask the Palestinians what message they are sending to us when they celebrate their murderers, when they put them on a pedestal. And what is the message they are sending to Palestinian youth if they turn these people into heroes?” 

Perbatasan RI-Timor Leste Berpotensi Memicu Konflik

Kupang: Pemerintah Provinsi Nusa Tenggara Timur berharap masalah perbatasan Indonesia-Timor Leste segera diselesaikan guna meredam konflik antara warga kedua negara.

Wakil Gubernur Nusa Tenggara Timur Benny Litelnoni mengatakan itu kepada wartawan seusai menghadiri pertemuan terkait masalah perbatasan RI-Timor Leste di Kupang, Selasa (29/10). 

"Kami menjaga jangan sampai masyarakat di perbatasan kedua negara terlibat bentrokan (lagi)," katanya.

Pada 14 Oktober lalu sejumlah warga Indonesia Desa Sunsea, Kecamatan Naibenu, Kabupaten Timor Tengah Utara mengusir dan melempari warga Desa Kosta, Distrik Oekusi karena membangun kebun melewati garis perbatasan. 

Bahkan kebun warga Timor Leste masuk hingga 500 meter ke wilayah Indonesia.

Akan tetapi konflik ini tidak meluas karena berhasil dicegah aparat keamanan kedua negara.

Sumber : Metrotvnews

Approaching Tyranny And The Approaching Rapture

As stated before, it seems that every day brings certain themes to the news (which alone is interesting, but that is another story for another day). I actually dislike those days in which the news all points to the tyranny which is rapidly approaching, because it is so ominous and so scary. I'd prefer to just focus on Jesus and His coming, but the news is just unavoidable. Today we see both.

Check out this new movie which is being released. It may be one that you could watch with neighbors, friends, or other unsaved individuals. It looks like it may be a graphic presentation of the Rapture of the Church and as a result bring the reality to those who remain ignorant of what is just on the horizon. 

Final: The Rapture

Iran Nuclear Program Immune To Air Strikes Once Arak Reactor Starts Up

In the foreground of the nuclear talks between Iran and Western powers that got under way in Geneva this month were centrifuges, yellowcake and enriched uranium — all elements of what Iran calls a peaceful nuclear-energy program and what the West worries is a route to a nuclear weapon. But Iran has also charted a second route, one that could produce fuel for a possible bomb not from highly enriched uranium but out of plutonium, a product of the heavy-water reactor nearing completion in the hills outside the city of Arak, 300 km (190 miles) southwest of Tehran. Heavy water is water with an extra neutron, useful in moderating a nuclear reaction.

Because it is not yet up and running, the Arak heavy-water reactor has remained in the background of the nuclear controversy. But it looms larger every day. The reason: once Arak goes online, the option of destroying Iran’s nuclear program with air strikes becomes moot. The reactor is essentially invulnerable to military attack, because bombing one risks a catastrophic release of radioactivity. In the words of Israel’s last chief of military intelligence, Amos Yadlin, who piloted one of the F-16A’s that cratered Iraq’s Osirak heavy-water reactor in 1981 before it was due to become operational: “Whoever considers attacking an active reactor is willing to invite another Chernobyl, and no one wants to do that.”

Ephraim Asculai, a scientist retired from the Israel Atomic Energy Commission, warns that Iran may have no intention of carrying out a dry run at all. It may be a cover story, he posits, for a plan to rush the installation of live fuel rods and heavy water instead — essentially getting the Arak facility “hot” before the outside world expects, at which point it becomes invulnerable to military attack. There might then be no way to stop Iran’s nuclear program short of invasion.

“At that point, they are in the ‘zone of immunity’ as it’s called,” says Asculai, who has also worked at ISIS; he is currently a senior research fellow at the Institute for National Security Studies, a think tank at Tel Aviv University.

EU Member States Endorse EU-Wide Public Prosecutor

The prosecutor would have the power to conduct, prosecute, and bring to justice its own EU-wide investigations in co-ordination with member state authorities against people suspected of defrauding the EU.

Our Public Masters

Polls indicate that the public is so disgusted with Washington politicians of both parties that a surprisingly large proportion of the people would like to get rid of the whole lot of them. It is certainly understandable that the voters would like to “throw the rascals out.” But there is no point in throwing the rascals out if we are just going to get a new set of rascals to replace them.
In other words, we need to think about what there is about current political practices that repeatedly brings to power such a counterproductive set of people. Those we call “public servants” have in fact become public masters. And they act like it.

They squander ever more vast amounts of our tax money, and still leave trillions of dollars of national debt to be paid by our children and grandchildren. They intrude into our private lives with ever more restrictions, red tape, and electronic surveillance. And they turn different groups of Americans against each other with class-warfare rhetoric and policies.

What we have today that we did not have in the early history of this country is a permanent political class in Washington — a Congress and an ever growing federal bureaucracy composed of people who have become a permanent ruling class.
The United States was not founded by career politicians but by people who took time out from their regular professions to serve during a crucial time in the creation of a new nation — and a new kind of nation in a world ruled by kings and emperors. In the nineteenth century, there was a high rate of turnover in members of Congress. Many people went to Washington to serve one term in Congress, then returned to their home state to resume their lives as private citizens.

The rise of the permanent political class in Washington came with the rise of a vast government apparatus with unprecedented amounts of money and power to control and corrupt individuals, institutions, and the fabric of the whole society. 

There are now people in Washington whose entire adult lives have been spent in government, in one role or another. Some begin as aides to politicians or as part of the sprawling empires of the federal bureaucracy. From this they progress to high elective or appointed offices in government. Turnover in Congress has been reduced almost to the vanishing point. Political alliances within government and with outside special interests, as well as the gerrymandering of congressional districts, make most incumbents’ reelection virtually a foregone conclusion.

White House Orders Insurance Companies Not To Criticize Obamacare

During a segment on CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360 last night, Griffin revealed that insurance companies had been told to “keep quiet” about the fact that millions of Americans are being told that they cannot keep their existing policies, contradicting Barack Obama’s promise that, “If…you like your plan, you can keep your doctor, you can keep your plan.”

“Basically, if you speak out, if you are quoted, you’re going to get a call from the White House, pressure to be quiet. Several sources tell me and my colleague Chris Frates that insurance executives are being told to keep quiet,” said Griffin, adding, “Sources (are) telling us they fear White House retribution.”

The fact that the White House is threatening private companies with undisclosed forms of “retribution” if they criticize government policy is a shocking display of authoritarianism that wouldn’t look out of place in countries like Communist China or Stalinist North Korea.

As Griffin explains in his report, the Obama administration is trying to keep a lid on the dirty little secret that millions of Americans are losing their coverage as a result of Obamacare, illustrating how Obama blatantly lied when he made assurances that people could keep their existing policy.

Back Door Gun Control

There are numerous alarming reasons why the US government and the military have been buying up all the ammo. Here’s one of them. Obama and the EPA just shut down the last lead smelting plant in the US. They raised the EPA regulations by 10 fold and it would have cost the plant $100 million to comply. You can own all the guns you want, but if you can’t get ammo, you are out of luck.

Remember when Obama promised his minions that he was working on gun control behind the scenes? Welcome to it. Now, all domestic mined lead ore will have to be shipped overseas, refined and then shipped back to the US. Not only will ammo now be even harder to come by, the demand and the process of supply will cause the price to skyrocket even more. And ponder this… there is an excellent chance that Obama will rig the market to where all ammo has to be purchased from a government entity instituting de facto ammo registration. So much for the Second Amendment. There has not been a peep about this in the major news outlets and it is done. With the US no longer producing lead, all supplies will now have to come from China, Australia or Peru, with the overwhelming emphasis on China. More redistribution of wealth; more economic and liberty crippling of the US on tap.

The smelting plant has known since 2010 this was coming. They couldn’t stop it and no one else rose up to stop it either. The business had been in production for 120 years and now goes the way of our auto industry.

The military’s obsession with ammo was related to security and supply. They knew this was coming too, so they bought up all they could get before the plug was pulled. Screw the average American. It’s as Chris Muirsaid, he’s not as worried about where the bullets will come from, as much as how the government will deliver them and I’m right there with him on that one.

So, back door gun control is moving forward and while we are all distracted with shiny stuff, our Second Amendment rights are just about gone. Obama is one Marxist dictator who is savvy at political chess. He has flanked the Second Amendment. Now it’s our move.

Articles: Can We Finally Stop Pretending?

So, can we finally stop pretending that the left has a positive plan for the United States? Can we stop pretending that the president meant to do anything other than destroy a system he has hated since his socialist-influenced youth? Can we dispense with the unhinged rants about dog whistles and face up to the fact that conservatives have been right about this all along? Can we finally openly discuss that the left's own hatred and bigotry are largely to blame for where we are now, not just regarding ObamaCare? They have protected, helped and worshiped an illusion, with pure malice toward those who have loved and fought for this country, and are entirely complicit in the damage now being done to every fiber of our nation. They have intentionally derailed reasoned opposition to purposefully detrimental policies, and have exploited hatred and bigotry to do it. Their own hatred, now so clearly shown to be unfounded, doesn't just inform the left with regard to health care, or opposition thereto. It informs everything the left does, every position they take, every feeling they have. It is their malignant security blanket.

Maybe there is enough intellectual honesty left in some of them to finally understand the extent to which they are misled, misinformed, manipulated, and misrepresented by those who pretend to stand for anything constructive or beneficial to their country or its future. The very same people angrily uttering those lies proudly voted to impose ObamaCare upon them, along with financial hardship and the loss ofhealth insurance. Pathological liars are not especially selective. They lie about 

Can we finally stop pretending that they are not also lying to us about everything else? Can we stop pretending they are not lying to us about guns, and abortion, and voter fraud, and voter ID laws, and taxes, and the economy, and the environment, and education, and energy, and job creation, and national security, and international relations, and Islam, and their assault on Christianity, and amnesty, and entitlements, and stimulus, and recovery, and Fast and Furious, and Benghazi, and the IRS scandal, and a war on women, and our borders, and domestic surveillance, and weakening us militarily, and their supposed loyalty as Americans, and their phony patriotism, and American Exceptionalism, and our history, and our national character, and the historical good our country has done, and what they really have planned for us, and what we will achieve when we are out from under the heel of burgeoning socialism and despotism?

The Flight From America

FATCA – Washington’s Tool for Global Dictatorship

The building of a society in America which is increasingly taking on totalitarian characteristics has already gone through several stages. The most recent one is connected with the U.S. Congress passing a law in 2010, often referred to by the abbreviation FATCA, on the taxation of foreign accounts. This law will come into full force in mid-2014.

Now the U.S. Internal Revenue Service is required to monitor every move of U.S. individuals and legal entities in any part of the world. It doesn’t plan to do that itself; it plans to require foreign governments, banks and financial institutions to provide it with all the necessary information about American taxpayers who hold deposit or other accounts, stocks, shares in capital, etc. That is, it proposes that other governments and their financial institutions should act as tax agents for the American government. And if they cannot or don’t want to perform these functions, it threatens serious consequences. FATCA, which is of a clearly extraterritorial nature, is a prime example of Washington’s global dictatorship. I have already written about the reaction of other states on the passing of this law, as well as that of foreign banks and financial organizations. But how are Americans themselves reacting to FATCA? After all, for them this law is dictatorship squared.

Many Americans are already beginning to realize what kind of a tax trap the U.S. government is trying to drive them into. And they are beginning to act. As The Wall Street Journal reported in August of this year, Americans are more and more often renouncing their U.S. citizenship or «green cards». In 2011 there were 1781 such people. And in the first half of 2013 alone, 1809 people abandoned their U.S. citizenship or permanent resident status. America is gradually losing the image of the Promised Land. Commenting on the «flight» from U.S. citizenship, experts predict that the exodus from the U.S. will accelerate in 2014, when the law on taxation of foreign accounts comes into full force…

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