And Euro-Socialism is Supposed to be a GOOD Thing, President Obama??

NATO faces 'dim' future: U.S. defence secretary

The United States' military alliance with Europe — the cornerstone of American security policy for six decades — faces a "dim, if not dismal" future, U.S. Defence Secretary Robert Gates said Friday in a blunt valedictory address.

In his final policy speech as Pentagon chief, Gates questioned the viability of NATO, saying its members' penny-pinching and lack of political will could hasten the end of U.S. support. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization was formed in 1949 as a U.S.-led bulwark against Soviet aggression, but in the post-Cold War era it has struggled to find a purpose.

"Future U.S. political leaders — those for whom the Cold War was not the formative experience that it was for me — may not consider the return on America's investment in NATO worth the cost," he told a European think-tank on the final day of an 11-day overseas journey.

Gates has made no secret of his frustration with NATO bureaucracy and the huge restrictions many European governments placed on their military participation in the Afghanistan war. He ruffled NATO feathers early in his tenure with a direct challenge to contribute more front-line troops that yielded few contributions.

Even so, Gates' assessment Friday that NATO is falling down on its obligations and foisting too much of the hard work on the U.S. was unusually harsh and unvarnished. He said both of NATO's main military operations now — Afghanistan and Libya — point up weaknesses and failures within the alliance.

"The blunt reality is that there will be dwindling appetite and patience in the U.S. Congress — and in the American body politic writ large — to expend increasingly precious funds on behalf of nations that are apparently unwilling to devote the necessary resources or make the necessary changes to be serious and capable partners in their own defence," he said.

Without naming names, he blasted allies who are "willing and eager for American taxpayers to assume the growing security burden left by reductions in European defence budgets."

Sometimes, Doing Nothing IS Doing Something

With today's passing of the Stimu-Socialism package, I have to agree with the likes of Juan Williams when he says the best answer to our economic mess is to do nothing.

It made me put bring back the TrekMedic nom-de-blog for a few minutes today as I pondered the ramifications of doing nothing to accomplish a goal. Fellow medic bloggers like Ambulance Driver and Tim the Rogue Medic would understand.

Its a time-honored tradition amongst us "seasoned and experienced" (read: bourbon and Zoloft-soaked) paramedics to try and trip up "newbie" (read: piss, vinegar, and adrenaline-fueled) paramedics. This is the classic:

You're presented with a patient complaining of a splitting head, dizziness, and extremely high blood pressure. The inexperienced response is to "DO SOMETHING!" The first thing in your arsenal in Nitroglycerin. It's pharmacokinetics make your blood pressure drop (that's why its good for heart attacks - its makes your heart work less). Lower blood pressure should = less headache. Sounds like a good plan on paper, right?

WRONG!!!

In this case, causing a sudden and uncontrolled drop of the patient's blood pressure will, at worst, kill the patient and, at best, cause a massive hemorrhagic bleed in the brain (a stroke) that will most likely cripple the patient.

The best thing to do? DO NOTHING!

Well,..actually, give oxygen, monitor the patient's symptoms, and run like a bat outta hell to the ER to let the higher-trained medical people treat this patient.

Hmmm,..does the patient sound like Uncle Sam? Is that newbie-medic a guy with a funny name? You tell me,...