pretty lame article in terms of dealing adequately with foreign policy, but I do agree that China poses a far more serious challenge for the US and world than Japan ever did.

If Biden downplays China, that would indeed be a worry.

I hope Americans are au fait with all the wisdom of foreigners, including the experts on OLO, because they are the only people who get to for a president. They alone will choose their next president, not the wafflers and warblers in Australia, whose leader is not elected by voters, but by his party mates.

As a matter of interest, not argument, what do people think about the fact that our system precludes us from electing the country's leader directly?

Listened in full to the last debate, where Biden was actually allowed to finish a sentence, occasionally. He was quite clear on foreign policy! And would move it back to one the allies of America could once again depend on!

I heard a lot of unproven allegations from Donald, most of which would seem to be supported by blatantly false Material/allegations, that seem to be falsified and emanating from foreign sources with a rep for interference in the electoral cycles in democracies?

Given I listened carefully, can say the entire premise of this article at best, is based almost entirely false premise and at worst is a completely without merit, an entire work of unsubstantiated political invention, with a bias that is clearly on display? Da?
Alan B

I have had great concern for the lack of clarity on foreign policy direction coming from the Democratic Party. Concerns (as an Australian) because US policy has a direct effect on Australia’s national interest. The Republican Party has been very clear in both policy and, importantly, direct action for both the Asia/Pacific region and for the Middle East.

The past 4 years has delivered clear and deliberate progress for Australian national interest our region by finally, directly, engaging India, Japan South Korea (and hopefully Taiwan) and the ‘smaller’ pacific rim Asian nations.

The Republicans administration has demonstrated astonishing progress in the Middle East by currently engaging the more pragmatic of Arab nations with, I suspect, Saudi Arabia and Jordan soon to follow.

However, the last Democrat (Obama) administration may deserves most of that credit for this undeniable progress by embracing and supporting the Iranian regime and its’ terrorist proxies (hamas ISIS etc). Joe Biden was directly instrumental In laying the policy groundwork creating a Tremendous fear amongst those smaller Arab states, leading them to embrace a peacefull and mutually beneficial relationship with the most militarily strong, democratic and trustworthy state in the region (Isreal).

I cannot but totally agree with Mr. Singer’s concern and objections to the debate commission ignoring, with naked partisan intent, on ‘hiding’ The Democrat administrations abject failure and directionless foreign policy. The intent of this being a further attempt to hide the Biden family corruption in this area.

The Clinton’s’ ‘hiring’ of the Lincoln bedroom in the white house for overnight stays to the highest paying customers is child’s play compared to the Biden family corruption.

Of further and of equal/greater concern to Mr. Singers comments on the debate commission attempting to hide Biden’s foreign policy actions is the fact that ‘Twitter’ and ‘Facebook’ are blocking/removing comments and direction to mainstream media articles revealing the Biden family interests in Russian/Ukrainian/Chinese business arrangements. Whilst it has always been there, I am unsure that it is even slightly possible to “drain the swamp” currently infesting both parties in the American polity.

Of course what is really missing in everything that David Singer writes, and all of the phony "debates" about US foreign policy is the real situation in Zionist Israel, both past and present.
See the truth-telling essay Israel Unbounded by Judith Deutsch on the Counterpunch website.

Ttbn,

Do you mean, electing a Snake-Oil Salesman and Show-Pony failure like Trumpf ?

Christ no. Thank god we've got more sense.

Less than twelve days to go, thank god.

Joe

The peace deals and lack of wars again splattering egg over all those with tds. Still no reporting from abc of Hunter's deal? Of course not after 4 years of fake news and lies they ignore how totally corrupt Obama and Biden were/are.

Joe,

No. I don't mean voting for someone you obviously don't like to lead the country. You would have a choice. You would vote for some lefty wacko as you do now, and I would vote for someone who suited me. No matter which candidate won, we would both have had a say in who we wanted as our country's leader. It would not be left to politicians as it is now.

ttbn,

I actually like the system we have. I am not a monarchist, but don't see the need for change.

Chris,

The voting system isn't connected to the Monarchy. The UK, the heart of the Monarchy doesn't have our system of voting; it's first past the post there. Only Papua New Guinea and Fiji share preferential voting with us. Pretty embarrassing! The Poms might like the opportunity to elect their Prime Minister, too.

On the Monarchy, I'm not a Monarchist either but, like you, I see no need for change. I admire the Queen; but her successor is an idiot, and the younger ones are sticking their noses into politics - a no no for the Royals. I think that, when Her Majesty dies, the would-be republicans will be in with a chance.

Frankly, I don't think that Australians have the sort of national pride that the republicans think they have. We are are now a mongrel country, wrecked by multiculturalism and immigration. There is nothing unique or particular about being an Australian any more.

ttbn. Agree in part with your take. However, if the new system, we the people embrace, doesn't include primaries where we the people select the candidates from all parties. With the one winning more the 50% moving forward and or the two leading candidates facing off in a winner takes all, head to head contest. Then no!

We need to eliminate the backroom deals and those who organise/pursue them, that make a mockery of the term, Democracy. Which could easily read, De-mock-crap- see. And I agree that we the people should elect the leader/PM.
Cheers mate, Alan B.

11 more days to go! Then we can wait for all the BS challenges to begin and drag on and on, as the loser seeks to have the will of the people overturned in the supreme court!

Not exactly what the US needs now in the middle of a pandemic and massive, consequent economic downturn! Nor where we could be on the brink of a war, started as an opportunistic preemptive strike? By you know who?
Alan B.

Ttbn & Chris,

Yes, I think I'm a sort of left-conservative: i don't think things should be changed if they don't need to be - in fact, Lord Falkland (1610-1643) wrote that if there is no real need to change, then there should not be change, we have to oppose it.

The bottom line is the preservation of society, no matter how faulty. But change if it's possible and obviously necessary without doing more damage than it prevents.

If anything, I suspect that some of the extreme-right would be happy for a sort of Gotterdammerung, an overthrowing of the entire society if it means that they can start to rebuild their Utopia all over again, after the necessary extermination of all enemies. A sort of fascist-anarchism.

And I fear that some in the US are planning for just that, if Trumpf loses. And that, in turn, some dumb-arse 'left' anarchists are already preparing to 'respond', maybe proactively. And being quite paranoid, I also fear that there are extreme-right undercover agents in that dumb-arse 'left' and African-american movements who are stirring things up already.

Only 11 days to go :) Oh joy, oh rapture !

Joe

Thanks for the article David Singer. Sad that articles giving the perspective of the right are rarely found coming out of universities.

As to ttbn and electing our own leader. Respectfully I agree with Chris Lewis in this case. If we were able to elect our own leader it would be easier for "Globalist Agenda". Monarchy is based on "Localist" and "Culturalist" principles.

Alan,

I would never suggest that we follow the US system.

CM,

"If we were able to elect our own leader it would be easier for "Globalist Agenda". Monarchy is based on "Localist" and "Culturalist" principles."

I have to admit that I don't understand what you mean there.

Alan B,

Good point: who would be in control of the country in the period between the election and the inauguration, if one or both contenders claimed they was robbed ? Who would have the job of containing the virus which will probably be raging during that time ?

And if the Covid deaths really start to mount between now and election day, will Trumpf try some stunt like postponing the election ?

Joe

Joe Biden gets about 1 to 6 people at his rallies. President Trump gets thousands.
How come the polls show Biden ahead?

I saw it suggested on a utube interview that the Democrats are making it look like
Biden is doing better than he is, because it won’t look suspicious when they challenge the election results. I thought that makes sense.

It also allows the Democrats to forge more votes because people are being led to believe they are already getting those votes.

Biden undeniably has some sort of dementia or other early onset age related induced cognitive impairment. It’s been getting worse for months.

It won’t matter about his ability to deal with highly important foreign policy issues, let alone anything else. He’s cooked, in a few weeks Miss VP may have taken over by then anyway especially noting the growing realisation Hunter’s briefcase is the ticking time bomb the DNC has been dreading.

Then again there’s still time to change him out and put that lovely Clinton woman on the ticket, you know her, Killary is her name, “We came, we saw, he died...chuckle chuckle...

Lovely thought that, but then again Trump may just surprise us all again and win, that would be the ultimate irony eh!
Galen

Commentators living in America keep saying "ignore the polls". Australians think Americans are "just like us". They are not. The US is vast and varying. One veteran political reporter pointed to bumper stickers rather than polls. At the last election, Clinton bumper stickers were few and far between.

A consummate politician of Ancient Rome, Marcus Cicero,described as a fool anyone who thought that they could predict the results of a election. There were a hell of a lot fools around prior to the last US Presidential election, and they still can't believe the result.

ttbn.
Yes, if the polls were even half correct, rather than half-witted, we would have had a President Clinton and there would be no Brexit, just to mention a couple, among dozens of glaring examples.

Joe. Yes mate, agree with your take and we wait with trepidation for all hell to break loose and a state of emergency declaration that delays the result indefinitely? Until and unless the democrats can get up off of their arses and organise equivalent registering, and some law enforcement officers that are non-partisan, keeping peace at the polls!

Just 10 more days to go and in the key electorates, the republicans are registering republican voters in record numbers! As the Democrats have all but shut down their activity in this area.

And we can be sure there will be intimidation at the booths by the KKK, neo-nazis, white supremacists, rednecks and those whose IQ is/has tested negative, i.e., most if not all the aforementioned. No names no pack drill, but I'll let you "run" with that.
Alan B.

Ukrainian, Russian, and Chinese business interests!? Sorry, just politically motivated crap! And proven to be so, minus a single validated example! Just a rumour based on yet more, he said, she said, unproven rumour!

President Trump on the other hand had a Chinese bank account and a Trump Tower in Moscow. And may well be the big guy referenced in some of the Rusian originated emails.

Big guy could be one of a dozen billionaires, with questionable character, who we know little about? And because we will not deploy, covertly deployable, space-age, unbeatable lie detection! Something that could happen with the stroke of a minister's pen!
Alan B.

It would be good if Australians took as least as much interest in their own elections and politicians as they do in the US scene. Of course, we are in a rarified atmosphere on OLO, and perhaps the average voter is nothing like us.

ttbn. What I've suggested, looks nothing like the US model!

Candidates would nominate on a reasonable fee and say 500 minimum signatures. And then stand for whatever whoever they want or are most closely aligned to? Or as an independent. Then join a party, if they are so inclined?

Then the electors in that electorate, decide in a primary runoff, all candidates who they prefer. That's is what a primary is and totally democratic. If w like could settle for two only six-year terms for any and all winning candidates?

If one candidate gets more than 50%? Is Automatically the elected candidate, if not the two with the highest number of votes, goes on to a secondary winner takes all contests, with that candidate with the highest final vote winning the seat. It's still a preferential system, but one that can't be mugged in dirty deals done in the dead of night in backrooms!

Senate selections cold be done on a similar basis where a quota would be filled for the division, by those candidates that self select then win enough votes to win a quota.

And should make their commitment and promises strapped to a lie detector!

And until the entire state quota had been filled. This then lets the electors decide who gets the right to run/preselection, not branch stacked branches or corrupt power brokers/party officials!

And then who wins a guernsey? It's also a preferential proportional representation system but one that is front-loaded by the voters alone, not a tiny minority of diabolically devious party members, gaming the system! And as such bears absolutely no resemblance to the American system that has the finest democracy money can buy!
Alan B.

Back to the virus:

At the risk of seeming to be a supporter of the ABC in any way, this is a brilliant summary, point after point, of the situation in the US, and what can (or won't) be done about it, no matter who wins the election:

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-10-25/how-do-you-save-united-states-from-coronavirus-covid-19/12789616

I truly weep for America.

Joe

David are you a US citizen?
If not then who the hell do you think you are trying to impose yourself of the US political system?
You don't even get a vote.

"Justifying billions of dollars being expended on the military annually at the expense of other worthy internal and foreign assistance demands where there is never enough money to go around."

- So let me get this right - You demand the US government spends more money on you instead of its own citizens?

Let me ask you are you a terrorist?
Why are you trying to demand financial recompense from US citizens?
Hasn't Israel taken enough from them?
Doesn't Israel get enough weapons from the US government for free?

Trumps peace plan sux.

If you want a peace plan, you should give back everything you've taken in the last 100 years, apologise and provide compensation to every man woman and child and then leave the land that you took with violence and force.

Then apologise for imposing your crap on every other nation in the time in between.

To ttbn-

I re-read the posts in this thread and found that your position on the Monarchy was more nuanced than my first glance.

As to the following...

"CM, "If we were able to elect our own leader it would be easier for "Globalist Agenda". Monarchy is based on "Localist" and "Culturalist" principles." I have to admit that I don't understand what you mean there. Posted by ttbn, Saturday, 24 October 2020 12:17:49 PM
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There are those that believe that government and principles should be applied from the "top down" (universalist/ globalist/ Locke Liberal) and those that believe that government and principles evolve from the "bottom up" (localist/ Traditional).

Those that believe in universalist global principles include Communists, Global Capitalists.

Locke Liberal's believe in the principles of the father of liberal democracy- John Locke- who wrote "Two Treatises Of Government".

Other philosophers that were involved with creating the principles of liberal democracy- John Stewart Mill- On Liberty (On Freedom- Negative Freedom), Thomas Hobbes- Leviathan, others. As with all philosophical discussions there is some subtlety.

Other philosophers such as Aristotle, Alexis de Tocqueville, Traditional Culture see different strategies to the management of societies as being more valid.

Prof Patrick Deneen wrote "Why Liberalism Failed"

http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/latenightlive/the-death-of-liberalism/9380788

http://www.patrickjdeneen.com/why-liberalism-failed-reviews

Tied up in the philosophy of liberalism is the Mill Freedom concept in society- the idea that people should be free to do whatever they want as long as it doesn't affect others- the problem is it always affects others. Aristotle on the other hand says that people that are slaves to their baser natures are in fact- not free- and people need to learn to be free- this is similar to the original intention behind the Liberal Arts- the Art of Learning to be Free.

These are both related to the beliefs that man is "naturally good" or "naturally bad". If man is naturally bad then he needs to be trained to be good over time- society in this regime should perhaps be vetoed by the older wiser members of the society.

There are other ideas..

Posted by Chris Lewis- "I do agree that China poses a far more serious challenge for the US and world than Japan ever did. If Biden downplays China, that would indeed be a worry."

Answer- Good comment- demonstrates a good subtle understanding in the context of history. Kudos+