The Patriot Post® · Wednesday Short Cuts

Upright: “There was a revealing moment Sunday at the G20 summit in Turkey: As all stood for a moment of silence to honor the victims of the Paris terror attacks, Barack Obama walked in late. This is the president who made the start time for the Chicago Bulls home opener just fine, mind you. Still, tardiness has been the norm for the duration of Obama’s presidency. The country and the world are always meant to wait for him, for both revolve around his leisure.” —Stephen Miller

Observations: “Some financial institutions may be considered ‘too big to fail,’ but contemporary Western society may be too frivolous to survive. The Romans had bread and circuses to keep the masses passive and unthinking. We have electronic gadgets, drugs and pornography. Like the Roman Empire, we too may decline and fall. What happened in Paris may be just the beginning.” —Thomas Sowell

For the record: Obama could have addressed the nation, calmed nerves, and quietly reached out and explained things. Instead, he took to the world stage to announce that there really is nothing we can do to stop ISIS and he’s not much inclined to change his strategy. The only choice the American people have, given the above, is to turn their back on refugees because the American people cannot and do not trust that President Obama’s Administration is able to exercise sound judgment and discretion relating to who gets into our country.“ —Erick Erickson

Good question: "How exactly do the #Dems propose to ‘vet’ the potential terrorists hidden among the #horde? Same way they ‘vetted’ the #Tsarnaevs?” —tweet by actor James Woods

Non Compos Mentis I: “[W]e cannot allow ourselves to become like those who want to destroy us. We cannot resort to the tactics of the barbarians.” —Fox News anchorhead Shepard Smith (We’re talking about measures to ensure those coming into our country are not surrogates for the Islamic State masquerading as immigrants. We are not proposing to cut their heads off.)

Non Compos Mentis II: “I think the president is right to recognize that there is a limit to the potential of American military power in the region, that the reason that ISIS exists is in part of because of 10 years of U.S. boots on the ground.” —Sen. Chris Murphy (The Islamic State rose when Obama took boots off the ground.)

Friendly fire: “Where was the anger in that Obama press conference? I’m in Paris. His words fell shamefully short of sentiment here.” —Roger Cohen of The New York Times

And last… “To destroy ISIS, President Hollande has said that he will form a big unified coalition. But [Monday] President Obama said it would be a mistake for the U.S. to send troops to Syria. So the international community agrees on two things. One, the only way to wipe out ISIS is to send in ground troops. And two: ‘Not it!’” —Stephen Colbert