The Makaha Surf Report

The Blog of War hits stores today

2006-09-04T23:23:00.000-10:00

I was lucky enough to be a part of this awesome project. It hits the shelves today, grab it while you can, some of the stories in it will remain with you forever.

Go today, buy it...........
You will not be sorry..........
I anticipate some serious troll infestations in the next few days I might have to shut down the comments section

Dear Dear Leader,

2006-07-06T19:12:00.000-10:00

I just wanted to let you know,YOU MISSED!!!!!!!!!

Can you believe it? It took a diminutive pissant like you to bring me back from my self imposed blogging moratorium. I can only imagine what would cause you to fire a missile at my home, I know Hawaii is expensive bro, but don't get all missile happy because the Japanese have outpriced you on a Maui villa.

That's right, your little shitty fireworks show has made me come back to blogging, I've been away too long, I let too many other issues divert me from this awesome experience called life. I feel reborn thanks to your missile test, it reminded me to stop navel gazing, there are still monsters in this world that would kill my family and myself if they could. I'd like to thank you and the butchers of the two soldiers in Iraq, you have reignited my flame to do something about people such as yourself. You and those like you that seek to kill, steal, and commit every horror under the sun on the innocent must not be allowed to survive. You are vermin, pure and simple, vermin must always be exterminated, and I forgot that. I got so wrapped around the axle with my own demons from Iraq that I forgot what it is I am fighting against. Thanks for taking the time to fire your shitty little missile at me.

To the blogging community, I say, I missed all of you and it's good to be back.

Democrats ready to surrender

2005-12-08T14:36:00.000-10:00

At least that's what the new republican attack ad will say according to the Drudge Report.

IMHO it's about time someone nailed the Dems to the wall with their constant schizo games of "we support the troops while we try to ensure their defeat."

Today's Democratic party wants us to lose in Iraq and elsewhere as they hope it will win them midterm elections. There I said it, they are the defeatist party that would sacrifice our military for elected office.

Now some troll make a comment about Bush lying about the war, or I'm a simpleton or some other nonsense. I'm not the one on the side of the people pulling for a terrorist win.

Home and ready to reflect.

2005-12-08T13:07:00.000-10:00

I've been back from Iraq for a little bit now and I have finally caught up on house issues, spent some quality time with the Missus, and had time to reflect on what my third tour in Iraq taught me. You see each time I go "over there" life teaches me a lesson that I think makes me a better human being. I learned two things this time in Iraq that I want to share.

I was on a Blackhawk flying from Kirkuk to Sulaymaniya and then down to Tikrit and I remember the feeling of freedom that comes with flying in a vehicle with no doors 100 feet off the ground at 150 miles per hour. You are so completely vulnerable at that time and have no control over your life until you regain the ground. But I realized that you have no control of your life under normal circumstances. Sure you can decide what to wear to work, or what to eat at lunch or even if you read this blog or not, you can even decide to take a sick day for no reason and go to the beach instead, but in the end we aren't in control. God is in control of our lives, he knows the hour of our birth and the time of our death, it is his will as to how long we live in this earthly realm. In that moment I realized that no amount of fear, no amount of bargaining, and even no amount of prayer would save me if an insurgent took that helicopter out. Some people would be given to thoughts of despair or despondency, but I was happy. In fact, I was giddy like a kid in grade school, I had accepted a universal truth of life in a place where death stalked you every day. I remember the freedom I had in the rest of my tour in Iraq, that feeling that I was free to do all that I could to make things in Iraq better and that come what may I knew that I had no control of it. That giving up of control to something greater than yourself can also be found in members of the military. To my colleagues on the left they see spirit crushing militarism when they look at the Armed Forces, I see redemptive freedom, the freedom to exist in the moment to be part of a noble endeavor where everyone struggles together to make something better than it was, or to preserve it for what it is. Many people say the military is the repository of a nation's moral values. I agree to a point with that statement, but I also believe that the military of the U.S. is the spirit of our country reaching for a better world or as Ronald Reagan put it, that shining city upon the hill. In that moment on that Blackhawk, I realized that I wasn't a contractor trying to survive a helicopter flight, I was an American and moreso a Christian experiencing the freedom that comes with acceptance of God's will over my life.

The second thing I learned I already knew it, but I forgot it. You see, Iraq is clarity, clarity in a way that someone that has never been there can never ever experience. Everything about Iraq comes through to a person so much more forcefully than in the world of home. Iraq is like a whole different world, things seem more real than they do now that I'm back. I have seen other bloggers talk about it before and they are correct, Iraq heightens your senses and expands your consciousness. Look at me, I sound like Timothy O'Leary talking about a good LSD trip, but it's true. Only in Iraq have I experienced sheer terror while laughing my ass off in rapturous delight. Only in Iraq have I felt like I wanted to cry out of loneliness, but felt so overwhelmed with pride at serving my country. Only in Iraq have I actually had to confront my own mortality head on, to live in that moment knowing that the next moment I could be dead. Some people might think that living in that moment is impossible with the Sword of Damocles we call death hanging over us at all times. But those of you that haven't been to Iraq can't understand, again I'm going to use that word freedom, the freedom you have when you accept that your fate is not yours to decide is intoxicating. I went on several more missions outside the wire than my wife us aware of, not because I had a death wish or that I was some "gung-ho" fool. No I did it because it was the right thing to do, doing the right thing matters more when it might be the last thing you ever do. But more importantly, I might never be back in this place at this hour doing these things, so if I don't experience it now, I never will. The experiences one goes through in a war zone are unable to be duplicated back in the "real world", and as a result when you leave you crave it a little bit. Iraq is almost like a drug in that regard, I have been home now a little while and I would be lying if I said I didn't have small pangs of wanting to be there right now. Even with the heat, the crappy food, the dangers of indirect fire, IED's and the death of friends, part of me wants to be there right now. I suspect part of me will always want to be there. Some might call me insane, I know my wife thinks I'm a little bonkers for wanting that, but there are reasons. That clarity I talked about earlier when you feel so free and you feel so "GOOD" is absent in this world. By good, I mean that feeling that you are on the side of right, that you are righteous and that your cause is the cause of justice for humanity. In the U.S. sure I can volunteer for charity groups, and sure I can donate to worthwhile causes, but most of those deeds pale in comparison to the conviction that your work has led to a people becoming free. To know that you destroyed a tyrant and his regime is a feeling that is impossible to recreate in this world. That doesn't mean you shouldn't do good things here, but it does mean that they might not be as satisfying as bringing freedom to the lost who have lived their entire lives without it.

I learned a few other things in Iraq, but I haven't formulated my thoughts yet on those issues. I need time to reflect and digest what I went through to make it coherent to people. That having been said I must conclude with this; I am a student of history, (I'm no genius, but I know a thing or two) I have never seen nor read, nor heard of any nation's military at any time in the world's history whose members believed they were fighting for a better world. American armies have always fought for geopolitics, or resources, or even idealism, but this is relatively new. The military of today believes it is not only righteous, but just to bring freedom to oppressed people. The torch of liberty has been passed to a new "Great Generation" that believes it is their destiny to accept the mission of bringing freedom and light to the darkest corners of oppression. I pray our media and certain members of our nation let them finish the mission they have been inspired to begin.

As always linked over at Mudville Gazette.

Let's use hate speech to protest what we think is hate speech

2005-12-08T12:35:00.000-10:00

You have to hand it to liberals, their logic train left the station long ago and they still expect to be taken seriously. Ann Coulter (who I have several disagreements with, but also agree with on certain other issues) was giving a speech at UCONN and the campus whackadoo left came out to protest her. No problem using freedom of speech to tell someone you don't like their ideas, but there's a problem with the following from the article;

Just before the event, Students Against Hate held an alternative event focusing on discrimination at UConn and intended to provide "balance" to the Coulter talk. During the talk several students from various racial groups and of various sexual orientations spoke about how harsh words have wounded them.

That by itself would have been fine, but during the speech the following resulted;

After waiting with her bodyguard on stage for several minutes for the music to stop while a section of the audience chanted "You suck, you suck," an irritated Coulter said she would not finish her speech.

So let's have a session where we talk about how harsh words have wounded us and then let's go engage in harsh words to hurt another. WOW!!!!! Only a leftist would see this as fair and balanced, let's console each other and then go bash someone we hate.

Also from this article I have learned the term Asian chick is no longer appropriate to be used in casual conversation.

Hana Kim, 20, of Stamford, cried as she recalled her experience hearing two young men express shock and disapproval in a loud conversation that a friend was dating an "Asian chick."

I don't think Ms. Kim is going to enjoy the real world very much. Imagine her encountering the following things.

Census forms

How would she identify herself, is female ok, is person of Far Eastern Hemispheric descent ok?

Restaurants

Would she refuse to eat at a restaurant that was Chinese or Persian? What if the restaurant was titled "Food made from items and recipes found in the eastern hemisphere of planet earth where people of a Sino ethnic group live"

Grocery stores

Could she handle going into an Asian market? Or a Greek Deli? Would she fight to have them called Market of food for people that come from the region known as the far east or a Deli with food from people who developed Western Civilization? And what the hell would she do if she thought Western Civilization was evil and it's name offended her.

The point is the whackadoo left is so bizarrely insane that they see the terms Asian chick as hurtful and they see Ann Coulter as hateful so any insanity they resort to in the fight against such things is justified.

And they wonder why we on the right are always laughing at them as we win election after election.

Love us as we love you

2005-12-07T13:49:00.000-10:00

I found this poem over at Blackfive and wanted to share it with anyone that might not have seen it. The more cynical among you might laugh at the hokeyness or cheesiness of this poem. Some of my left wing readers might laugh at what they see as a simplisitic emotional mess. Well go screw yourself, this poem puts into words what I believe is happening in this war, why these brilliant young men and women fight so hard.

It's a shame we have so many on the left that claim to love the soldiers and then act in direct opposition to those soldiers.

A DIFFERENT CHRISTMAS POEM

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,

I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.

My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,

My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,

transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,

completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,

Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.

In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,

So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,

But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.

Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,

Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,

And I crept to the door just to see who was near.

Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,

a lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,

Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.

Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,

standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,

"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!

Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,

You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,

Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..

To the window that danced with a warm fire's light.

Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,

I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."

"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,

That separates you from the darkest of times.

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,

I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.

My Gramps died at 'Pearl on a day in December,"

Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."

My dad stood his watch in the jungles of 'Nam,'

And now it is my turn and so, here I am.

I've not seen my own son in more than a while,

But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,

The red, white, and blue... an American flag.

"I can live through the cold and the being alone,

Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,

I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.

I can carry the weight of killing another,

Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..

Who stand at the front against any and all,

To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."

"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,

Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."

"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,

"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?"

It seems all too little for all that you've done,

For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,

"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.

To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,

To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,

To know you remember we fought and we bled.

Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,

That we mattered to you as you mattered to us.

We're from the government, and

2005-12-05T14:21:00.000-10:00

we're here to help you, all 8,000 of us. Am I the only person that finds 8,000 bureaucrats meeting in Montreal funny? There are 8,000 of them wasting God knows how much energy, telling us that the U.S. is the only problem enviromentally.

This stuff writes itself.

To answer a critic

2005-12-05T12:42:00.000-10:00

Here at TMSR I rarely indulge my critics with a response. But since this person acted like an adult to a degree, I feel obliged to answer their charges.

The following quotes in italics and bolded are from a person named REALITYPLEASE that posted in my comments section.

Hey! I know. Lets not talk about the enormous cluster that is Bush/Cheney's Iraq debacle. Dont talk about firing your own generals and going w/ your own "plan". 2100+ dead solders. $6 Billion a month. Instead, lets throw mud at a women who has the audacity to speak out againt the war after losing her son. Here's a couple of other items to discuss.

Dear realityplease, what enormous cluster? I've actually been to Iraq 3 times and see success after success after success. That doesn't mean Iraq is the land of Rainbow wishes and chocolate dreams, but it's better than it was under Saddam Hussein. Millions of Iraqis voting for freedom don't lie, tens of thousands of brave Iraqis standing up to fight terrorists are not an illusion, and democracy in the Middle East is happening despite the naysaying of you, members of my family, the treasonous media or the Judas, Cindy Sheehan. Make no mistake she is a Judas, she cares not for the troops at all, most communists see the military as a tool of the petty bourgeois class structure. Where did I find such a quote? From the very website of Cindy's buddies in San Francisco, the revolutionary communist party. It's funny that someone that gnashes her teeth and wails about the "poor soldiers" would involve herself with those who hate the very idea of the American military. But your feeble mind can't see past your own hatred of the president to see the greater truth; Cindy Sheehan actions have disgraced her dead son. No matter the son's political views, I'm sure he is revolted by her siding with Maoists, the greatest murderers of the 20th century.

Let's dissect your other arguments, shall we? Generals are relieved if they shame themselves, the military, or the nation. We have a civilian command structure for a reason. Bush going with his "own plan" is what a president does. He outlines the overall strategy for victory and then has the military fill in the details and make it happen. It has always been thus, who are you to criticize the very successful American way of war that has dominated for 200+ years? As for the combat losses, each one is a tragedy that I would not wish upon anyone, but they were soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines. Their sole job is to be that thin line that protects us all from peril. That means fighting and fighting means killing and both sides lose people in war. No one was drafted against their will, and if you look at the year, it's 2005, almost 2006, you might learn something from the following. Most enlistments are 4 year ones, it has been nearly 4.5 years since 9/11, and it has been nearly 3 years since we invaded Iraq. The forces we put in the field now are made up of a majority of people that want to fight this war. The reenlistment numbers bear this out quite well. In a 4 year period nearly anyone who wanted out of the military could get out, and yet we are experiencing record reenlistment rates. Here's one quote from the article Every one of the Army's 10 divisions Â its key combat organizations Â has exceeded its re-enlistment goal for the year to date. Those with the most intense experience in Iraq have the best rates. The 1st Cavalry Division is at 136 percent of its target, the 3rd Infantry Division at 117 percent.

That must stick in your craw that a defeatist like you can't stand that the soldiers are voting with their feet to fight this war and to win it. You address cost, 6 billion a month you say, to that I respond with this; Who is the grotesque one here? You who are willing to put a prictagge on freedom, or me who knows that true freedom has no price that isn't worth paying. So yes I'll continue to "throw mud" aCindydSheehanan or anyone else who claims to have the best interests of soldiers in mind, when their actions betray their true hatred for those same soldiers.

So now on to your other its of wisdom you wanted to share with me.

Bogus aluminum tubes, remote winged aircraft, mobile chem labs

Ramped up pre-war bombing

Diverting of funds from Afganinstan to Iraq

Forgive me if I take them a few at a time, I have a sensitive stomach that doesn't handle trash very well.

Bogus aluminum tubes???? As someone that has spent nearly 1/3 of my life dealing with intel, let me say this; We get bad info all the time, you act on what you have, sometimes you are right, sometimes you geembarrasseded. I'd rather bembarrasseded and have acted than not acted and pay a terrible price later.

Ramped up pre-war bombing? As someone who was in those invasion columns that rode into Iraq, let me say this loud and clear. GOD BLESS THE AIR FORCE!!! They took out large chunks of the Iraqi army in that pre war bombing. It ensured I and many thousands of other ground troops survived. I doubt you find many American military members that are upset about the bombing campaign. Our job is to kill the enemy anyway we can and I have no feelings of shame about killing them before a Congressional vote. Killing is never a good thing, but if the choice is premetpive bombing to protect American lives or no bombing that leads to more American casualties, what do you think the American people would prefer?

Diverting of funds? Well, we have ten times the number of troops in Iraq versus Afghanistan, so diverting of funds sounds like a damn smart idea to me. The more funds we can get into Iraq the better. Afghanistan is doing much better overall than Iraq, so why would you object to sending money to where it is needed more?

Pat Tilman

Jessica Lynch

Gonzolez memos labelling quaint & not
applicable the Geneva Convention guidelines for prisoner treatment.

Abu Grape

Pat Tillman died an American hero and was killed in a tragic accident. There is this thing called the fog of war, sometimes we know exactly how someone died, sometimes we get it wrong and we tell an inaccurate story of a person's death. Usually after time we get it right. Cmon, don't tell me that Pat Tillman's death is Bush's fault? More logic from the Cindy Sheehan school of blaming Republicans.

Ditto for Jessica Lynch, she was captured, she survived, we got part of her story wrong, as more evidence came out, the PENTAGON revised it's version of events. Don't tell me you're one of those people who watch a war movie on TV and think it's really easy to follow the action in actual combat.

Gonzalez memos.......... too touchy feely for me and most military members I know. If we are going to hurt people, let's do it the right way, and take what information they give us and use it.

Abu Ghraib, well let's see, those who tortured were punished, and new guidelines were put in place to prevent a repeat performance? What else is there to say?

Using the troops in staged "news" events

Joe Wilson smear

Valerie Plame outing

Libby indictment

Exactly how are the troops used in staged events? Bush travels to military bases to hear from the troops and to encourage them. It is a war, should he act differently?

Joe Wilson is a coward who is using his partisan beliefs to smear a President, you got the smear part right, but the wrong target.

Valerie Plame was not a covert agent anymore. Again as a former intel person, I know the rules on this one. If someone has not been at a foreign station for five years, they are no longer a covert agent. Here let me help you see the light, get it through your noggin, she was not a covert agent, if this case ever goes to trial it will likely be thrown out once we get down to the brass tacks of the matter.

As for Libby, poor Scooter, it looks like he lied and if convicted he must pay. I have no sympathy for him, he probably did something wrong, he got caught and that's the end of the story. Not like a certain former president who was charged with perjury and obstruction ojusticece and kept his job. Libby, if guilty will pay and that's that.

CIA secret prisons - E.U. warning that any E.U. country discovered to have hosted CIA prisons will face "serious consequences," including losing its E.U. voting rights.

Fake & restricted town hall meetings

Bush speaking to captive audiences only

Promising to fire anyone involved in the CIA leak

My wife and I had this very talk the other night, CIA secret prisons make me feel warm all over. Unlike you, I have seen the actions of these animals firsthand. Were I the leader of America, secret prisons would be the nicest thing these assholes received. You see the difference is, in Iraq and Afghanistan, the terrorists plan whole missions dedicated to killing innocent civilians. We, accidentally kill innocents and then do what we can for surviving family members. If I had it my way, these bastards would not be drawing breath any longer than their useful intelligence value required them to.

Fake and restricted town hall meetings? I have yet to see a fake one, I'm sure on your feverish leftwing site you have found something you have latched onto to. As for restricted meetings, does not the President have the carte blanche to speak to whom he wants? He holds press conferences, he speaks to congress at least once a year and goes on numerouforeigngn policy trips, don't get your panties in a twist if he doesn't speak to "Democrats Committed to Imprisoning Bush" whenever you guys want to throw feces at him.

Captive audiences you say? What branch of the Federal govt. is holding the people at gunpoint forcing them to listen to W's drawl? If you know what branch, can you tell me, I'd like to hold people hostage and make them read Greek and Roman classics and I could use a little Federal muscle to make it happen.

Finally, you said promising to fire anyone involved in the CIA leak. Well how can you fire a guy if he resigns, so far Scooter Libby is the only person implicated and indicted. He resigned, but in your little world, you just know Karl Rove and Cheney are involved, no matter that Pat Fitzgerald has said nothing about either one. Try living in the reality based world instead of your little dementia, oops I mean dimension.

One note: I did delete a few more quotes from REALITYPLEASE, but they involved the usual tin foil hat nuttery of "Bush served plastic turkey to the troops", and the "downing street" memos which have been discredited by anyone with a 3rd grade reading level.

Linked as always over at Mudville Gazette

Army/Navy GAME THREAD

2005-12-03T10:52:00.000-10:00

10:53 LOCAL

NAVY LEADS 14-10

ARMY TRIES TO DRAW THEM OFFSIDE ON A 4TH AND 1 AND NAVY DOESN'T BITE

ARMY PUNTS AND NAVY SETS UP SHOP AT THEIR OWN 34 YARD LINE

NAVY COMPLETION FOR 17 YARD GAIN

10:55

NAVY DRIVING WITH 40 SECONDS LEFT IN THE HALF

10:57

NAVY WITH A FIRST AND GOAL AT THE ARMY 8

11:00

NAVY SCORES THE TOUCHDOWN WITH A 2 YARD RUN
THEY GO INTO HALFTIME LEADING ARMY 21-10

HALFTIME

ON AN UNRELATED NOTE MY TEXAS LONGHORNS ARE WHIPPING THE EVERLOVING CRAP OUT OF COLORADO 70-3 GOING INTO THE 4TH QUARTER

GETTING READY FOR THE SECOND HALF

11:25

FIRST HALF RECAP

AM I THE ONLY ONE THAT IS REALLY REALLY HAPPY WATCHING THIS GAME. SO MUCH OF THE LIVES OF OFFICERS AND OFFICERS IN TRAINING IS FOCUSED ON SERIOUS THINGS. WATCHING THEM JUST BE FOOTBALL FANS MAKES ME FEEL GOOD.

KICKOFF TO ARMY FIRST AND TEN ON THE ARMY 19

11:28

9 YARD GAIN BY THE FULLBACK ON A PASS RECEPTION

3RD DOWN AND 1 AND NO GAIN

BLACK KNIGHTS WILL PUNT

NAVY IN BUSINESS 1ST AND 10 AT THEIR OWN 25 YARD LINE

11:35

UGH HUGE GAIN BY NAVY 25 YARD GAIN 1ST AND 10 AT THE ARMY 40

11:37

NAVY JUST MISSES A TOUCHDOWN SCORE

SCRATCH THAT TOUCHDOWN NAVY 28-10

COULD SOMEONE PLEASE TACKLE THE NAVY RUNNING BACK.

11:46

NAVY GETS THE BALL BACK, ARMY IS STARTING TO STINK UP THE JOINT A LITTLE

11:52

NAVY IN THE RED ZONE AGAIN MAN THIS IS GETTING UGLY

11:56

Navy Scores 35-10

12:05

HOLY JEEBUS, ARMY SCORES A TOUCHDOWN ON A BUSTED PLAY

35-17

12:11

CRAP NAVY LONG RUN FOR A TOUCHDOWN
HEY BLACK KNIGHTS, THE GUY IN WHITE IS THE BAD GUY, TACKLE HIM. SHEESH!!!!!!!!

NAVY 42-17

12:28

Looking like this game is about decided. Navy is settling for keeping Army bottled up.

Still 42-17

12:45

Army driving, now inside the red zone 1:36 left in the game, it's about over, but Army could recover some honor by scoring a touchdown.

12:48

Army scores a touchdown

42-23

Game ends 42-23Good luck next year Black Knights

Cindy Sheehan has a secret

2005-11-30T15:56:00.000-10:00

Good afternoon ladies and gents, I hope you are all having a great day. I have been surfing the net trying to find the truth about Cindy Sheehan's politics. Since this past summer she has been all over the media with her story of her son Casey who was killed by Iraqi terrorists working for Shia cleric and well known rotund dimwit Moqtada Al-Sadr. Casey as we all know by now was an American hero who reenlisted in Iraq and volunteered to go on the mission that killed him. His mother has been waging her own personal jihad against George W. Bush since Casey's death. A bereaved mother is allowed her grief and an American citizen is allowed to protest. Both of those things are sacrosanct to Americans. But, when a woman uses her son's death to advance her own political agenda, that is not a right, that is disgusting and most be fought at every turn.

What people don't know about Cindy Sheehan is that she openly sides with and allows herself to be photographed with people that have pledged solidarity with Iraqi insurgents. Not only photographed with them, but aiding their causes and giving speeches for them with no shame for who they are and what they stand for.

Whoever am I talking about? Well the Revolutionary Communist Party of course. The Revolutionary Communist Party is dedicated to a violent proletarian revolution in the U.S. and the establishment of a People's Republic. These are Maoists, as in Mao Tse Tung, as in the greatest mass murderer in the 20th century, Mao killed more innocents than Stalin and Hitler put together. According to one site Mao killed between 40-72 million people, and these are the people Cindy Sheehan calls allies.

These people trash the U.S. military, their website claims 9/11 was an inside job and they have a plan to drive out the Bush White House. So the RCP is a party dedicated to overthrowing the legally elected government of this country by violence if possible and that seeks to attack our military while they are fighting a war by giving aid and comfort to the enemy. And these are Cindy Sheehan's friends, at the rally in the pictures Cindy Sheehan had the following to say.

The people that are being killed in Iraq are not terrorists. They're citizens of Iraq, they're members of the human race. They're our brothers and sisters. And last year, I worked really hard to defeat George Bush. But you know what? He refuses to be defeated, because if he loses, he cheats. And so he cheated himself into a second term. And I wrote a letter on April -- I mean November 4th. You know, I took a day off -- I was very devastated, very depressed....

So the people that kill children asking for candy are not terrorists, the people that rape and kill women for trying to vote are not terrorists, and the people that killed her son are not terrorists? WOW HOLY FRICKING CHRIST IN A GOLF CART THIS WOMAN IS FLAT OUT INSANE. But even worse knowing all of this I'm not supposed to call Cindy Sheehan a traitor, I'm supposed to play the role where I respect her grief, only thing is her grief is being used to attack all that I love about this country. Well folks, those days are over. I'm calling a spade a spade, Cindy Sheehan is a traitor to America, her son Casey was a hero to us all. It sickens me that our sycophantic media has latched on to a Maoist (or at least someone who has no problem being associated with Maoists) and tried to present her as Betty Fricking Crocker of Middle America. She is a radical that has no qualms whatsoever about allying herself with people who cheer on the people who murdered her son and 2100+ other American heroes. How pathetic is our media when they side with communists that are also terrorist activists over those fighting to keep us safe. So I'm asking any bloggers that want to, call Cindy what she is. Only when Middle America rises up and says enough is enough will those who seek to harm our soldiers in thought and deed be repelled. Enough is enough!

P.S. In case there is any dispute over Mother Sheehan's political leanings, here are the photos of those who attended the rally. Thanks Zombietime, you are a warrior for us.

Sheehan/communist rally

More of the Rally

As always linked over at Mudville Gazette

For anyone that's a fan of the TV show lost

2005-11-29T13:37:00.000-10:00

Disturbing, nutty and funny at the same time.

Crazy crap

A blog to watch

2005-11-28T14:55:00.000-10:00

For anyone interested in animals there is a new blog out there for you Animal Intelligence. It's written by my wife the awesome Janimal. Now before anyone starts rolling their eyes over an animal intelligence blog, let me tell me she is a true renaissance woman, she is a veteran, and a Bush supporter. She has a red hot dislike for PETA and other fringe groups that exploit animals for their own purposes. She'll eat a steak with the best of them and in the words of a Texas good ole boy, she ain't no tree hugging, granola eating, hippie. So check it out if you have the time, but beware she is passionate about her beliefs.

The trolls pop up and the trolls get shot down

2005-11-28T13:33:00.000-10:00

Well it seems those crazy folks at Democratic Underground have decided they don't like me exposing them for the vermin they are and so they are sending trolls at me to spam my comments section. That's cool, I can hang. I even saw an appearance by my family member troll. Since her only reason to come here is disruption, she was banned again. If she comes back with her negative attitude we will do a full range IP ban and if the problem persists, ISP's will get involved. This site is for me and my views, all opinions are welcome and will always be tolerated. That being said outright harassment or posting only to flame me will not be tolerated. We can discuss anything rationally, I have several liberals that comment frequently that I get along with and we have disagreements but are still civil to one another. Act like an adult and follow my rules and you'll do just fine. If not out comes the ban stick and away you go.

A picture says a thousand words

2005-11-27T21:11:00.000-10:00

This is priceless, known antiwar activist, bereaved mother, and known batshit insane leftist Cindy Sheehan was photographed in Crawford, Texas at a book signing for her book. Unfortunately it seems not many people want to have her autograph, nor waste their time listening to her rants.

Cindy all alone

What a disgrace

2005-11-25T11:48:00.000-10:00

This week, we have seen the Democratic Party engage in treachery most severe. We have seen them hew and haw for months that we need to get out of Iraq and then back off from that statement. They advance and retreat this theme whenever they want to get the media headlines back under their control. This week, a respected Democratic House member call for a withdrawal from Iraq, the Republican party asked the democrats to put their money where there mouth was and vote for withdrawal and the dems refused. In fact the man that called for withdrawal, Jack Murtha voted against withdrawal himself. The Democratic party tried to claim this was a cheap political stunt, my question is what is cheaper; To say one thing and then do another or to actually be forced to put your opinion on the record and have our fighting forces judge you as the cowards that you are. Furthermore, what does this mixed message send to my friends, to me and to the hundreds of thousands of other Americans who have fought and still are fighting around the world to rid us all of the evil of our time?

Non-military members will never understand, soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines live to serve this nation. They spend every minute of everyday in service to something greater than themselves. They honestly believe they are fighting for a better America, and a better world. What must they think when they see the antics of the democratic party? I'll tell you what they think, most soldiers feel betrayed, they feel that our country is turning against them and nothing will destroy a soldier more than for him or her to believe their country is against them. I rarely swear or lose my temper, but today I have, so bear that in mind when you read the following.

It's a fucking disgrace that one political party would betray our fighting forces in the middle of a war. When you are in a war, you fight to win, you fight to destroy the enemy, you fight and you kill and you bring maximum violence to your enemies, because that violence will bring you home to that which you hold most dear. As a veteran of this war, I know one thing, that the way home lies in the destruction of as much evil as possible.

Now we have elected leaders doing their damnedest to poison the relationship between the military and the country. It's poison to let soldiers think they are unappreciated, it's poison to let wounded veterans believe the war was wrong, they have given blood and bone for God's sake. A very piece of themselves has been destroyed forever to make us all safer and yet we have elected leaders of one party who wish to take a shit all over that sacrifice. Soldiers want nothing more than to be loved by their country, for their country to love them as much as they love it. They believe in the notions of honor, sacrifice and above all else love. The love military members have for this country allows them to get up every day for a year and go out and face evil. Day after day after day, they wake up, put on pounds and pounds of heavy, stifling gear, pick up their weapons and go forward to find, fix and kill an enemy that is so vile, so utterly disgusting, it will viciously kill children playing with toys or rape women doing nothing more than trying to teach people how to vote. This is what we are fighting to destroy, this is the evil that exists in the world, this is the force responsible for 2100+ dead American men and women, and yet we have a political party in our country that wants to "bring the boys home", to yank them away from that fight, to retreat in the face of evil and give evil a victory over free peoples. How dare they, how dare the Democratic party betray those fighting for us. I am a good Christian and I'm not supposed to judge, but in this case I believe I must. The Democratic Party of today is on the cusp of betrayal of America's military, ironically for the second time in my lifetime. They are not for the troops, if they were for the troops, they would be advocating victory, not withdrawal. Victory and this nation are what soldiers fight for, they don't fight for withdrawal schedules or vote getting strategies. Soldiers on the ground more than members of Congress understand the evil they are fighting, and now those same men and women in uniform are forced to listen to a debate that has been generated by fringe groups that hate this country and are using one political party to achieve defeat. What a disgrace that the military is getting criticisms from a fat slovenly coward of a filmaker from Flint, Michigan and a psychotic bereaved mother of a dead soldier that has sold her soul to Anti-American organizations. What a disgrace that the members of one political party elected to lead us are cowards, unwilling to finish this fight. What a disgrace that these leaders would sacrifice the morale and esprit de corps of our military to gain political points. What a disgrace to continuously call for the withdrawal of our troops and then when forced to vote for that idea, to reject it en masse. What a disgrace that our men and women in uniform must watch from 7,000 miles away as one party in our government works to destroy all that they have fought, bled, and died for.

I am ashamed that I voted for a democrat at age 18, I am ashamed that nearly half this country would vote for cowards such as these, I am most ashamed at what this cowardice does to our fighting forces, nothing will destroy their morale faster than the belief that this country does not believe in their mission. The cowardice of the democratic party will echo and reverberate within the ranks of the military causing doubt and depression to replace confidence and the belief that our mission is just. What a disgrace.

Linked over at Mudville Gazette

More proof not all cultures are equal

2005-11-22T15:24:00.000-10:00

From time to time, one will hear an argument that all cultures are equal and we as americans shouldn't judge another culture for the actions its members engage in. And to shut naive little fools like that up, I usually post something like this.

A village council in Pakistan has decreed that five young women should be abducted, raped or killed for refusing to honour childhood "marriages".

So begins an article in today's Telegraph a British daily. Read it for yourself and tell me again that all cultures are equal and we shouldn't judge.

Dueling views on Iraq

2005-11-22T10:37:00.000-10:00

When people ask me about Iraq, I make sure to list the good with the bad. I tell them about the inspiring feeling of having seen people striving to have their voices heard, I talk about the loss and absolute emptiness that comes over you when you lose a friend in combat. I talk about the thanks the Iraqi people give American forces and I talk about the people that just want us to leave. The point is I try to paint a fair and balanced picture. In most of the reporting about this war, there seem to be two competing schools of thought. The Pro-Victory side tells about all the good going on in Iraq while acknowledging the mistakes that have been made as well as mourning the losses we and the Iraqi people have suffered. The Anti-War wing seems to be in love with the idea that nothing is going right, that Iraq is a quagmire that is destroying our military and that we are losing badly.

So with that in mind I came across the following two letters, both from Ramadi in Al Anbar province. One is from the Washington Times and it is an account of a father explaining what his son went through in Ramadi as a Marine. The father recounts through the son's words how our weapons are faring over there, how our tactics are working and what the enemy is doing to counter it. He also describes who the Marines believe they are fighting and the success they think they are having. He also highlights what isn't working for our forces and does so in an honest way. Here are a few of the quotes both good and bad:

The M-16 rifle: Thumbs down. Chronic jamming problems with the sand over there, which is like talcum powder. The sand is everywhere. You feel filthy two minutes after a shower. The M-4 carbine version is more popular because it's lighter and shorter, but it also has jamming problems. Marines like the ability to mount the various optical gunsights and weapons lights on the picatinny rails, but the weapon itself is not great in a desert environment. They all hate the 5.56mm (.223) round. Poor penetration on the cinderblock structure common over there and even torso hits cannot be reliably counted on to put the enemy down

The M2 .50 cal heavy machine gun: Thumbs way, way up. "Ma deuce" is still worth her considerable weight in gold. The ultimate fight-stopper, puts their d**** in the dirt every time. The most coveted weapon in-theater

The M243 SAW (squad assault weapon) .223 cal: Big thumbs down. Drum-fed light machine gun. Universally considered a piece of s***. Chronic jamming problems, most of which require partial disassembly. That's fun in the middle of a firefight

The new body armor: Thumbs up. Relatively light at approximately six pounds and can reliably be expected to soak up small shrapnel and even stop an AK-47 round. The bad news: Hot as s*** to wear, almost unbearable in the summer heat, which averages over 120 degrees. Also, the enemy now goes for head shots whenever possible. All the bull**** about the "old" body armor making our guys vulnerable to improvised-explosive devices was a non-starter. The IED explosions are enormous and body armor doesn't make any difference at all in most cases

Next it is discussed who we are fighting, how the insurgents fight, and how we are doing, again a few quotes:

Who are the bad guys? Most of the carnage is caused by the Zarqawi al Qaeda group. They operate mostly in Anbar province -- Fallujah and Ramadi. These are mostly "foreigners," that is, non-Iraqi Sunni Arab jihadists from all over the Muslim world and Europe. Most enter Iraq through Syria -- with, of course, the knowledge and complicity of the Syrian government -- and then travel down the "rat line" which is the trail of towns along the Euphrates River that we've been hitting hard for the last few months. Some are virtually untrained young jihadists who end up as suicide bombers or are used in "sacrifice squads."

The insurgent tactic most frustrating is their use of civilian non-combatants as cover. They know we do all we can to avoid civilian casualties, so therefore schools, hospitals and especially mosques are locations where they meet, stage for attacks, cache weapons and ammo and flee to when engaged. They have absolutely no regard whatsoever for civilian casualties. They will terrorize locals and murder without hesitation anyone believed to be sympathetic to the Americans or the new Iraqi government. Kidnapping of family members, especially children, is common to influence people they are trying to influence but cannot otherwise reach, such as local government officials, clerics or tribal leaders, etc.

According to [name redacted], morale among our guys is very high. They not only believe they are winning, but that they are winning decisively. They are stunned and dismayed by what they see in the American press, whom they almost universally view as against them. The embedded reporters are despised and distrusted. They are inflicting casualties at a rate of 20-1 and then see s*** like "Are we losing in Iraq?" on television and the print media.

For the most part, they are satisfied with their equipment, food and leadership. Bottom line, though, and they all say this: There are not enough guys there to drive the final stake through the heart of the insurgency, primarily because there aren't enough troops in-theater to shut down the borders with Iran and Syria.

All in all pretty fair it contrasts the highs with the lows and paints an honest picture of a military engaged in a death struggle against evil in the sands of Mesopotamia.

Now contrast that with Paul Rieckhoff's latest "piece of work". I don't care what people think, I don't much care for Mr. Rieckhoff, I know who he is and the organization he helped found, but I can't excuse him for the company he keeps. I'm a veteran as well and would never ideologically find myself on the same side of an issue as some of Mr. Rieckhoff's associates. In that regard he reminds me very much of Cindy Sheehan and both Mr. Rieckhoff and Ms. Sheehan seem to have no problem being tied to groups that supportive of Iraqi insurgents attacking American troops. Mr. Rieckhoff has done good in the world and for that I am supportive and I honor his service. I take exception to the company he keeps and the doom and gloom message he seems hellbent on portraying in Iraq. So the letter he received was also from an officer friend in Ramadi. It is your basic wild eyed rant from a very stressed soldier or marine, it is also going to be cannon fodder for the Left to use. I have a few problems with the writer of this letter for a few reasons, you see I was in Ramadi for several months in 2004 from the time of the execution style killing of the 4 Blackwater contractors in Fallujah through the battle for Ramadi and into the summer of 2004 when the insurgency gave us a good fight. I know very well how the living conditions are at FOB Blue Diamond or FOB Junction City and they are not as bad as the letter writer states. My first problem with the letter is this

We *can* make a difference here, and I believe in the mission as it looks on paper. But your president and his brain-dead colleagues aren't even trying to give us what we need to do it

It starts off well, but devolves into a typical Bush rant and I find the use of the term "your president" a strange one to use as Paul Rieckhoff doesn't seem like a Bush fan. The letter writer continues to complain and has this to say:

Speaking of contracts, KBR is a joke. I can't even enumerate the problems with their service, but I guarantee they do not receive less money based on how many of the showers don't work, or how many of us won't eat in the chow hall often because we get sick every time we do.

I would never in a million years work for KBR, but this is just sour grapes. I've eaten at that chow hall for months and the food isn't making you sick. Maybe washing your hands would help with that. The food isn't exactly 5 star cuisine but it is hot, filling and nutritious. You can eat as much as you like 3-4 meals a day, they serve meat, vegetables, fruit, bottled water, salad, ICE CREAM, Sodas, Near Beer as well as other things. You can get a submarine sandwich, a baked potato and even pizza on most occasions. So again I'm throwing down the bull**** card. I have walked in this persons shoes to a degree and I'm not seeing what he is seeing. From there we go full well into Bush is screwing us mode.

There is so much. I could go on forever. the worst thing, which we have discussed, is that they are playing these bullshit numbers games to fool America about troop strength. If they stopped paying KBR employees $100,000 to do the job of a $28,000 soldier, maybe they'd have enough money to send us enough soldiers to do the job. As it stands we have no offensive capability in the most dangerous city on earth

What exactly are "these bullshit numbers game"? I know the troop strength in al Anbar and Ramadi, what is the author trying to say that we do not have a Brigade of Army troops specifically for Ramadi? A brigade is usually what's assigned to a Metro area Ramadi's size. We have 1 Brigade in Kirkuk, a city of similar size, we have 1 Brigade of troops in Mosul, a Stryker Brigade from Alaska and until recently Mosul was just as dangerous if not more so than Ramadi is. Why the need to rag on KBR again? It's a well documented Leftwing moonbat meme that KBR is the source of evil in Iraq, why would an officer make this charge while he is ranting about troop strengths, there really is no comparison between the two. Finally we get to the part that is most confusing to me;

Where are the AC-130s? The apaches? They have them in FAR less active AOs (areas of operations). All we ever get is a single Huey and Cobra team, both of which are older than I am. it's such a joke. They're not even trying. At all. They have apaches in Tikrit but Hueys in Ramadi.

I debated how to answer this one for a while and this is what I decided upon. First of all, Apaches are an Army platform, Al Anbar is a Marine AO. The Army Brigade assigned to Al Anbar is task organized to the Marine Corps which means you get Marine Corps air power. Guess what kind of choppers the Marine Corps uses? Anyone........... Anyone...............Bueller? That's right the Marines use Cobra's and Huey's, the Marine Corps does not have Apache's, not a single one. Secondly, the Marine Corps would be loath to ask for Army Apache helicopters to move through their AO in large numbers. As for the AC-130's there are a limited amount of them in theater, and I'm sure the chain of command doesn't want AC-130's buzzing Ramadi all day long to root out some insurgents. People get kind of pissy when you use a 105mm Howitzer to ring the doorbell, and does the author want us to inflict more civilian casualties if we don't have to? I am a bit puzzled that an officer (if he's Army) doesn't know the equipment breakdown of the force he is working with. Give me a break, even privates would know what kind of equipment their unit has. If he is a Marine officer and he's asking where the Apache's are, I think he might be a little green around the gills if you get my meaning. He concluded with a little nugget of his personal wisdom;

I wish every American could see this for him/herself. Registering your frustration at the ballot box isn't nearly enough. There should be jail terms for this.

First things first, I don't think a military officer should be envisioning jail terms for his commander in chief or his chain of command. If he is serious he can resign his commission and face the music. Dissenting is fine to a point, but not in the military and especially not in an officer, supposedly a leader of men in combat. If he is honest and true, he should resign his commission and face whatever punishment that would entail. Don't send anonymous letters to a known anti- war activist and have it be used for grist by the UMCCODF (United Moonbat Collective Commune of Dangerous Fool). Finally I want to express one point; I too wish every American could see what we are doing in Iraq. They would see thousands of the sons and daughters of America helping those who can't help themselves, sacrificing blood for others they do not know. The American people would see the inherent sense of justice that Americans have. Our men and women want nothing more than to kill the tyrants and terrorists and go home. The people of this country would see true nobility in action, thought and deed in the daily struggles of our armed forces. They would see young Americans clawing and scraping and bleeding and dying to give freedom to people of another land and a different faith. Our men and women in uniform, heroes, every last one of them deserve the nation to see them
at their noblest in the midst of this struggle. They are our best and we owe them everything.

Linked over at Mudville Gazette. As always Greyhawk and Mrs. G. thanks for the space to share our thoughts.

Antiwar hero looks like a liar.

2005-11-06T07:57:00.000-10:00

Sergeant Jimmy Massey has been one of the darlings of the antiwar left, telling group after group what barbarians Americans fighting forces are, how callous they, how they relish gunning Iraqis down for no reason. He has a book out in France about this very subject that is quite popular. There's only one problem. Jimmy Massey is lying. Today there are two articles that talk about his smears against our brave and heroic fighting forces. One is from the St. Louis today newspaper and the other article comes from the Bradenton Herald. Apparently most of Mr. Massey's stories of the butchery he claims to have witnessed American soldiers taking part in never really happened at all. I'm never one to pile on a person, but in this case, I believe Mr. Massey deserves what he gets for trying to destroy the image the American people have of their military. If this was just a mistake I could forgive him, but he penned a book and profited off of his lies about the men and women fighting to protect us from evil. Of course, the antiwar left and their friends in the media did nothing to check his stories out, they believed him because they already believe our military is full of criminals, murderers, sadists and worse of all to them Bush voters. First there was the debacle of Cindy Sheehan and now the antiwar forces will have to deal with this man and his lies. So the left defends liars that smear brave soldiers, the left defends a woman that used her son's death to promote her political agenda and the left defends the insurgents in Iraq. Like I asked yesteday, who is evil?

Project Valour-IT

2005-11-05T04:35:00.000-10:00

Want to do everything possible to help soldiers? Want to make a difference for some of our wounded heroes? If the answer is yes, then check this link out. Project Valour-IT is a project that provides voice-controlled software and laptop computers to wounded Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines recovering from hand and arm injuries or amputations at major military medical centers. Operating laptops by speaking into a microphone, our wounded heroes are able to send and receive messages from friends and loved ones, surf the 'Net, and communicate with buddies still in the field without having to press a key or move a mouse. Those who have given the most are going to be given the best to allow them to have normal fulfilling lives. We as Americans must not let these brave men and women down. In the struggle for freedom and justice these men and women have sacrificed with blood and bone, this is a chance for us to repay a small part of that debt.

Now in the long tradition of intraservice rivalary the 4 branches are running 4 different teams. Of course the Army team is being led by blackfive, but anyone can donate. If you are an army blogger and want to help out, go here and sign up. Remember people we can't let the Squiddies, the Zoomies or the Devil Puppies beat us. Just kidding everyone, just donate to this noble and worthy cause if yo can.

Moonbat Central happy Contractors are killed in Iraq

2005-11-04T09:03:00.000-10:00

Well, well, well, it seems the loony left has taken a step closer to the abyss known as insanity. I was surfing through the slime over at Democratic Underground, and I came across this gem of a thread. Apparently the moonbats are as stupid as they are evil. Being divorced from reality is hard, but the true moonies do it with style. Apparently they are ignorant when it comes to the various roles contractors play in Iraq. A few of my favorite quotes are:

matt819: These folks are mercenaries, pure and simple. You can attach other labels to make it sound nicer - private contractors, for example - but they are in it for the money, they carry weapons, and they kill people. That makes them mercenaries. Sorry folks, not a lot of sympathy here.

leesa: So it goes, no sympathy

bluestateguy: Kind of makes you wonder about the wisdom of going to war for profit
They should take a hint and get out of Iraq. Unlike the troops, they have a choice, and they are making a hell of a lot more money than the troops are too.

Vidar: Good riddance

The hatred the left has for some Americans in Iraq is on full display in this thread. Not that I'm at all surprised, but when I come across things like this, it reinforces my beliefs that the democratic party, at least the left wing that is almost half of their numbers is truly batshit crazy and hate filled.

So a few facts for the deranged left wingnuts;

1. Most contractors in Iraq love their country and are motivated by patriotism and service, don't get me wrong, the money is a benefit, but it's rarely "all about the money". I have been three times to serve my country, the money made it easier, but I'd go back for much much less.

2. The DUmmies, did get one thing right, most of us are former military that are retired, joined the private sector out of the service, or are just veterans that still want to give. I guess they only care for the soldiers that they can use as props for their poisioned agenda and don't care about contractors that do not allow them to score political points.

3. Most contractors do not carry weapons, most are unarmed when they leave the FOB's, of course the PSD guys are always armed as are some of the groups training police, but most of us are not armed, or some arm themselves without their companies knowing. And I can say that contractors rarely kill, self defense is everyone's right, but if you follow the DU logic, contractors are scum and they should not be allowed to defend themselves.

4. What the loony left always forgets is that we all have a choice, no one MUST join the military, people volunteer to do so and when they take that oath, they know full well they stand a great chance of going to war. When a contractor takes a job, he or she volunteers and can leave, but at the loss of much of the money, the job that sent them there and in many cases they suffer a blacklisting in their community. Granted soldiers cannot leave at all, but to say that contractors have a choice where soldiers don't is ridiculous. Everyone that is in Iraq or Afghanistan volunteered to be there, saying anything less is disengenious.

Everyday over at that site, there are message threads dedicated to the deaths of contractors, or wishes for Bush to be killed, or for enough soldiers to die that the public turns against the war. You rarely see anyone wishing us victory, or lauding the troops for fighting terrorists or support for the War on Terror at all. The hypocrisy of the left in these matters is beyond question and yet everyday like tireless automatons they decry and denounce the Republican Party as the party of hate and evil. All the while they defend anti-semites, terrorists, and communists, so who's evil again?

Sorry I've been gone so long

2005-11-04T08:43:00.000-10:00

My time in Iraq is nearly over and I was training my replacement the last few weeks, but now I am in a place where I can blog a little more and soon I'll be home and able to write at will. More to follow.

News of the weird

2005-10-17T16:02:00.000-10:00

Ok, for those of us who know our political scandals, or happenstances.

Does anyone find this terrifying?

Anything having to do with possible death by drowning and Ted Kennedy saving you should give a person pause if they have pissed off God or not.

Update on the Constitution #2

2005-10-17T15:47:00.000-10:00

Salahdin province voted down the Constitution 78% said no 20% said yes. So that means the 2 provinces of Iraq that had the most to lose with Hussein being overthrown have now decided they want to remain poor and downtrodden in the new Iraq. Both Salahdin and Al Anbar are where most of Saddam's terror soldiers came from, Fallujah was known as the place where Republican Guard officers came from, Tikrit was Saddam Hometown and the primary recruiting place where Special Republican guards came from. They had the most to lose with Saddam's overthrow and have reacted like spoiled children. Mosul by contrast which was a place many Regular Army officers came from approved the Constitution by a wide margin, showing that only the thugs, tyrants, and former criminal leaders of Baathist Iraq want to see the country fail. Unless MASSIVE voter fraud is uncovered, we can put this baby to bed, the people of Iraq voted with their hearts, they voted for an end to terror, for freedom, and for the future of their children.

On a side note, there is talk of voter fraud here in Iraq in the Shiite South and the Kurdish north. The reason? 90% or more voter turnout. Call me a skeptic, but if I had lived under a dictator for nearly 25 years I would sure as hell make sure I voted for a Constitution that erased the dark legacy of that man. The Shiites and Kurds have been persecuted in Iraq for centuried by whatever country ruled this place, now that the power is in their hands, people are surprised that they voted almost universally as a group? Give me a freakin break!

Watch the antiwar moonbat crowd at DU spin this into the next non story. They will probably believe it as gospel just like they believe 10,000 American soldiers have died here and that Bush used Chemical weapons in Fallujah. But hey, don't believe me, just go to their site and watch the moonbats howl.

Late to the Tag Dance, but gonna play anyway

2005-10-17T15:02:00.000-10:00

My good friend over at Ma Deuce Gunner tagged me with 7 questions to answer, I'm a little late in getting the news. Desultory Butterfly had to tell me I had been tagged. I've been a little busy and thought no one cared enough to tag me. I was wrong, so now I shall do my best to answer deez questions.

Seven things I want to do before I die:
1. Write a book about my 10 years of experiences in and out of the military in some of the world's most dangerous places
2. Scuba Dive in Palau
3. Be the best husband I can
4. See the band Dredg in concert
5. Start my own church (but a cool one where all are welcome and we talk about being better people in life instead of focus on dogma)
6. Run for political office in Hawaii
7. Live everyday of my life to its fullest, knowing that when I die I earned the life I was given

Seven things I can do:
1. Fix an ASAS computer (computer used by military intelligence)
2. Give you a history lesson on any war in human history
3. Grill any meat known to man to perfection
4. Scuba Dive
5. Car Dance like a mofo
6. Spend money like a woman (Yeah I know)
7. Predict football game winners with 95% accuracy rate. (Tis true honestly)

Seven things I cannot do:
1. I cannot spell the word voicerferously
2. Make coherent thoughts on my blog, it all seems so random and jumpy to me
3. Understand the difference between Net and Gross income
4. Understand libertarianism (It all seems so selfish and amoral to me)
5. I cannot eat Broccoli, no matter how much cheese is on it
6. I can't run long distances anymore
7. I cannot see myself with another woman for the rest of my life. I got one, she's perfect.

Seven things I say a lot :
1. That's a whole different kind of gay you've got going on.
2. Right on
3. Sorry, I'm not going to be your dancing monkey today.
4. I truly believe our mission in Iraq is one of the most noble things I've ever seen our country do
5. I miss my wife.
6. I miss my dogs
7. God, give me the strength to do my duty, the patience to deal with the people I despise, and the faith to know that our mission here will not be in vain. Amen

Seven things I find attractive in a female:
1. My wife, but for the purpose of science I'll try to think outside the wedding ring
2. Curly hair
3. Tall women
4. Dolphin trainers
5. Intellifunny
6. All of these apply to my wife
7. I could not think outside the wedding ring afterall

Seven celebrity crushes? (My wife thinks it's healthy that I have celeb crushes so here goes)
1. Eliza Dushku
2. Miranda Otto
3. Nicole Kidman
4. I think that's all
5. But I can't really think of anymore
6. My wife probably could
7. But shes's not here

Update on the Constitution.

2005-10-16T13:00:00.000-10:00

I have some raw numbers about the status of the Iraqi Constitution. It looks like I was right on the money in how it was going to breakdown so far. Results are only in for 8 provinces, but 3 of the 8 were crucial to the success of the Constitutional Referendum.

Al Anbar
Yes: 3 percent
No: 97 percent

Let's start with Al Anbar province, heartland of the Sunni insurgency, turnout was minimal in all areas except Fallujah. It looks like almost every voter in Al Anbar voted against the draft document, no surprise there.

DIYALA
Yes: 280,000 (70 percent)
No: 80,000 (20 percent)
Disqualified: 40,000 (10 percent)

Diyala province which is a Sunni majority province (not by a lot though), but also home to a lot of Shia and Kurds was one that I believed would be a bellwether for the referendum. And it was approved despite recent attempts by the insurgents to suppress the voters in Baquaba and other cities in the province. Of note is that 10% of the ballots were disqualified for an unknown reason.

NINEVAH (Mosul)
Yes: 326,774, (78 percent)
No: 90,065, (21 percent)

Nineveh province was the one I mentioned would have the greatest chance of being a strong Sunni majority province that favored the Constitution. I was right, one factor was that many of the Iraqi Islamic Party (a Sunni group that supported the Constitution) are from Mosul in Nineveh province. I said Nineveh would vote to approve, but I'm surprised at home strong the approval is in the raw numbers. Apparently the Sunnis voted Yes in large numbers. One thing of note about Nineveh province is that it is the province where the Coalition has made the most progress in destroying the insurgent networks. Local Iraqis in this province have been ever more supportive of U.S. forces as the insurgency has been taken apart piece by piece. I credit 1st Brigade 25th Infantry Division and the 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment as well as the brave Iraqi Army soldiers and Commandos as well as the Iraqi people of Nineveh who have recognized that U.S. forces offer hope and economic betterment for all, while the insurgents only offer death and misery.

TAMIM (Kirkuk)
Yes: 341,611 (63 percent)
No: 195,725 (36 percent)

I was surprised at the low percentage for approval in Tamim province (Kirkuk). This is where I am sitting typing right now, I expected it to be higher. My guess is that many of the Turkomen here sided with the Sunni Arabs against the Kurds to lower the percentage of the Yes voters. The turnout here was very high, nearly 80% of the registered voters showed up at the polls.

The other four provinces were all in the Shia heartland of the south of Iraq. No surprises at all in those provinces.

BASRA (Basra)
Yes: 640,200. (97 percent)
No: 19,800. (3 percent)

DHI QAR (Nasiriyah)
Yes: 415,000 (90 percent)
No: 46,000 (10 percent)

KARBALA (Karbala)
Yes: 417,715 (95 percent)
No: 21,985 (5 percent)

WASIT (Kut)
Yes: 494,950. (95 percent)
No: 26,050. (5 percent)

So with nearly half of Iraq's provinces reporting the totals for the vote, here is what I think. There are 5 Shiites provinces still to report in, of which all will pass the Constitution, the 3 Kurdish provinces will due likewise, meaning if the Constitution is to fail Salahdin will have to vote it down as well as Baghdad. I only have one thing to say about that; "NOT GONNA HAPPEN" Salahdin may very well vote it down, but I'm not seeing that right now, and Baghdad will pass it just due to demographics within the city. So the only province to outright reject the referendum is Al-Anbar, what a coincidence, the home of the insurgency, the one area that supports Zarqawi and the one area with nothing to gain from a cessation of violence. What this shows is that a percentage of moderate Sunni Arabs supported this Constitution in clear support of moving Iraq forward.

Personally I believe we will now slowly, start to see a collapse of the insurgency in all areas except Al Anbar. I believe Al Qaeda in Iraq will turn on the Sunnis, so in Sunni Arab areas we will see a spike in violence against civilians as Zarqawi and his cronies lash out at the group they feel has betrayed them. I have done three tours in Iraq now, and I can honestly say there is a faint glimmer of hope in the air, that the insurgency is on its last legs. That doesn't make them less dangerous, in fact it makes them more dangerous as any cornered animal will lash out with all the violence it is capable of. That being said, you can feel the hope radiating from the Iraqi people I see on a daily basis. The long night of the insurgency might be passing into the dawn of peace and freedom. Time will tell.

Caelestis

Information compiled from various sources including Al Jazeera and the AP.

Hat tip to the Mudville Gazette and Right on the Right for the open post.

A Great Day Dawns Tommorrow

2005-10-13T23:45:00.000-10:00

From the port of Um Qasr to the highlands of Zahko on the Turkish border, the people of Iraq face a historic day. Tommorrow as millions of Iraqi citizens flock to the polling places, they have a choice before them that no Arab state has ever put to its citizens. The representatives of the Iraqi people have written a Constitution, take a second and reread that sentence. The ELECTED representatives of an ARAB state have written a governing document for ALL the people of Iraq. It wasn't written by a King who rules a country named after his family's surname, or a military strongman, or a Orwellian authortarian, the people in Iraq elected the men and women, yes women to write this most sacred of documents for a nation state. There were Sunnis Arabs, and Shiites, Christian Arabs that took part in writing this document, and of course the ethnically separate Kurds, Turkomen and Assyrians, I even believe A Chaldean took part. They spent a hot sweltering Mesopotamian Summer much like our founding fathers did in Philadelphia in 1781, engaged in vociferous debates over the future of the Iraqi state. They engaged in deal making with totally disparate groups in Iraq that in the past they would have never sided with. Compromises were made to be as inclusive as possible, while still being true to what their constituents wanted. Is it a perfect document? No, of course not, but neither was our own Constitution, what it is, is a document that could just hold Iraq together long enough to defeat the forces of al Qaeda while the people forge a bond with each other that goes far beyond what the framers of the Iraqi constitution believed possible.

So how will the vote go down? For the Iraqi Constitution to fail, 3 or more provinces in Iraq will have to vote it down by a 2/3 margin. It could fail, but I believe it won't. To start with Iraq is comprised of 18 provinces, only 3 of which are heavily Sunni Arab (we'll return to these 3 in a minute), the group most likely to vote the document down. 3 of Iraq's provinces are Kurdish and are going to vote overwhelmingly YES. Baghdad being a hodgepodge of all Iraqi religious factions and ethnicities, as well as being the home of the most secular Arabs will also vote yes. 2 provinces, Kirkuk (formerly known as At-Tamim) province and Diyala are not demographically Sunni Arab enough to reach the 2/3's needed to reject the Constitution. The 9 remaining provinces of Iraq are heavily Shia and will overwhelmingly approve the Constitution. So that leaves 3 provinces which could still cause the Constitution to be rejected overall, the provinces are Al-Anbar, Salahdin, and Nineveh province. Al-Anbar which is the heart and soul of the insurgency includes the cities of Fallujah, Ramadi, Haditha, Hit, and Al Qaim, the province is over 90% Sunni Arab and represents the best chance for a province to defeat the referendum. Salahdin province is home to such cities as Tikrit, Samarra, and Bayji and is overwhelmingly Sunni, but with the recent changes that were made to the Amendment process for the Constitution many of the Baathists that may have voted against the process may now be having second thoughts. Right now I say it's 50/50 that 2/3 of the Sunni Arabs will vote NO. Finally we come to Nineveh province, home to Mosul and Tall-Afar. This province is also heavily Sunni Arab, but not to the degree of Al-Anbar or Salahdin. It also is populated by not insignificant groups of Kurds, Turks, and Chaldean Christians. Recently the Coalition forces have taken the fight to the insurgent groups in Nineveh province, and seriously crippled their abilities to effectively influence events within the province. I think Nineveh province is the greatest chance to see a majority of Sunni Arabs vote in favor of the Constitution. For what it's worth, I don't see the Constitution failing, but that's the magic of democracy, we won't know right away, and the people are always in charge.

So, what will passage of the draft Constitution do for Iraq? Well for starters it reinforce the belief among the majority of Iraqis that Democracy works. The Shia and Kurds want this version of the Constitution and with the recent changes it is even palatable to a percentage of Sunni Arabs. It will provide a deathblow to the insurgent forces, primarily to Al Qaeda in Iraq. Zarqawi is the biggest loser in this drama, with defection of some Sunni Arabs from rejectionists to supporters of the draft document the number of people willing to support him and his murderous ideologues will shrink. I don't see him being a spent entity in Iraq, but the success of the referendum will seriously damage his credibility as a formidable force in Iraq. Personally, I wouldn't be surprised if Zarqawi doesn't take out his anger on Sunni Arabs for their perceived defection from his camp. Secondly, the passage of this Constitution will further cement the disparate elements of Iraqi society into a more cohesive group. Everyone that votes Yes will understand that as a group, Iraqis can achieve anything they desire. Much as our own Constitution was a glue that bound early American society together, this document will give all of its supporters a stake in a prosperous, peaceful Iraq. Sunni Arabs will finally see that taking part in the democratic process is in their best interests and perhaps a few of the Baathist influenced insurgent groups will lay down their arms and take up the pen instead of the sword. Finally, this will give the fledgling Iraqi govt. momentum going into the December elections for Parliament.

In my own humble opinion the passage of this Constitution will be seen as a watershed moment in the history of the overthrow of Saddam Hussein and the restoration of Iraq to the community of free nations. The Iraqi people will approve a document that guarantees their rights as a people, that acknowledges their freedoms under the law, acknowledges that Iraq is a federation of various ethnicities and religions, and ensures that women are more free here than in any other Muslim country.

Like I said in the beginning, this is a historic moment not to be thought upon lightly, for me personally my belief in the success of our mission here has been renewed. With that renewal comes the belief that sooner rather than later our victory will be complete and we can return home for good, safe with the knowledge that Iraq is free and prosperous.

Thanks to Mudville Gazette for the open post.

The 10 songs of the Hummingbird

2005-10-08T16:52:00.000-10:00

My wife and I met over 8 years ago on an Army exercise. Our first date was to see the movie "Con Air" with Nicholas Cage. In the movie Nick's character calls his wife his hummingbird, I thought it was pretty cool, so I started calling my wife (girlfriend at the time) "Hummingbird". With my southern drawl, it was something she loved, so it stuck as a name I use to express my love for her. As I've said a couple of times, I'm quite a geek that makes lists, and compiles statistics, so I put together a 10 song list of songs I listen to when I think about my wife and our life together. I'm a little worried how in touch with my feelings I am. I need to go kill a cow and roast it over open flames or something, that would make me feel manly. Anyway here's the list with a brief explanation of each song. These songs are in no order.

10. Bryan Adams-----Heaven
This song was on the first CD I ever borrorwed from her, I told her I lost it, but I really just scratched it and was too embarassed to tell her. I still have this CD.

09. The Cure----Pictures of you
Just a great song, I listen to this one and look at my pictures of her.

08. Foo Fighters----My Hero
My wife grew up in a semi-poor family. She graduated high school, joined the Army, got her degree and made something out of herself in circumstances that would have crushed other people. She and my dad are my 2 greatest heroes.

07. Kelly Clarkson----Breakaway
This song to me is a tribute to both of us, small town kids that went and did something so different and spectacular from our peers. Last year we made a break with everything we knew and stepped off of a giant cliff by moving to Hawaii. It was something we both wanted, but the risks were enormous. We prayed about it, and our faith led us to take that first step. This song to me is about that first step.

06. The smiths----Ask
She might not remember this one, but my memory is long and vast. I had a "the best of the smiths" album and this song was on it. I remember the first time I played this song when we were going somewhere. I have a painful confession to make beforehand. I'm a car dancer, I have a serious case of car dance fever. If there is a song on that I like, I'll "shake it like a Polaroid picture" in the car. Well anyway the first time I played this song, my wife got a case of Car dance fever. Up until that point in our lives, it was one of the cutest things I'd ever seen her do. She has since surpassed this level of cuteness, but as Metallica says "the memory remains".

05. Dashboard Confessional----Hands Down
In this song, the lead singer describes a date with a girl and all the emotions and feelings he is experiencing. This song reminds me of when we were dating before we were married. All of those emotions of not knowing what's going to happen next, the butterflies in your stomach towards someone you truly love. The uncertainess of being, life and love, the hot rush that washes over you at the moment of that first kiss......

04. Evanessence----My Immortal
This song is special to me, because my wife sang it to me once. My God my wife has a voice! At one point she was looking at acting or singing as a career when we were dating, but she found another love in life as a dolphin trainer. I just remember that one moment in time when she sang most of this song to me on a drive home from my parents house in the Texas Hill country.

03. Tonic----If you could only see (Acoustic version)
This was our song, I think it was OUR FIRST song. And for that it makes the list.

02. Ever Stays Red----I'll Let the Whole World Know
My wife has always worn her faith on her sleeve, unafraid to express her love for God. I was not very religious when we met, I had faith, but was cynical. She didn't give up on me, she let me find God on my own. Now he is central to what I believe our lives are about. In the song, there is a line about "God being the one real truth", I think that without my wife I never would have realized that. And as a result of her patience and love, I now am unafraid to "let the world know" about my love for God.

01. 311----Amber
I don't think my wife even really likes this song, but it reminds me of our life in Hawaii. I have a compilation on my IPOD called Hawaii Dreaming, and this is the first song on the list. I close my eyes and I can see us on the beach near our little Hawaiian cottage in Makaha just watching the waves. One more month and I can stop imagining and start living this dream.

Anyway that's the list.

Caelestis

P.S. Hey hummingbird, the night before we go on vacation I want us to check into a Hotel and go hit the dance clubs. <---this doesn't really belong on the blog, but that's amore.

These are the times....

2005-10-07T12:17:00.000-10:00

It should end with "that try men's souls", but I'm not sure that's an apt statement. It's been a strange few weeks for me with regards to my political beliefs. The drumbeat of anger that poured forth from the Libertarian and Fiscally conservative wing of the Republican party over Federal relief for the victims of Hurricane Katrina was very distressing. I consider myself a strong Christian and watching the President on TV tell the nation that he would lead an effort to rebuild the Gulf Coast filled my heart with the joy that serving her in Iraq has done. As a Christian I believe sacrifice and compassion are two of the legs that hold up the Christianity table. So watching the criticism that poured forth from the blogosphere was incredibly hard to read about. I see the victims in New Orleans, I see the kids in Kirkuk, they are the same in my eyse. Both of them have had their lives destroyed by forces outside their control, both of them are in pain that is both physical and mental. The people of New Orleans and Mississippi are human beings, and we as their fellow human beings have a duty to appease their suffering. The fact that these people are American citizens makes it all the more our duty. I have avoided writing about Katrina because I was embarrassed that some many of my "so-called" ideological soulmates were more concerned about their pocketbook and less concerned with the responsibility of helping people. I know that many will now label me a "big government conservative" or even a leftist, but you know what labels from strangers don't mean anything to me when I see a chance for my country to right a wrong. The wrong isn't important, some people say race, some say poverty, some have other opinions. The point is, that correcting the wrong matters more than naming the wrong. It's hard to fight the good fight in Iraq when I see so many greedy bastards back home, more concerned with how much is in the bank of man and have not one care in the world how overdrawn they are in the Bank of God.

What I was listening to in September

2005-10-04T03:58:00.000-10:00

Technology is awesome and it allows a statistic geek like me to see what I have been listening to on my IPOD for a month. So the Caelestis Top 25 Countdown for September goes like this:

25. Heaven's a lie---by: Lacuna Coil
24. Pictures of you---by: The Cure
23. Warm Machine---by: Bush
22. Feel Good Imc.---by: Gorillaz
21. Let Go---by: Frou Frou
20. Such Great Heights---by: Postal Service
19. Somewhere over the Rainbow---by: Israel "IZ" Kamakawiwo'ole
18. Best of you---by: Foo Fighters
17. Somewhere out There---by: Our Lady Peace
16. American Soldier---by: Toby Keith
15. Enjoy the Silence---by: Depeche Mode
14. Fractions---by: Emery
13. Crash---by: Dave Matthews Band
12. Amber---by: 311
11. The Canyon Behind Her---by: Dredg
10. Bizarre Love Triangle---by: New Order
09. Passive---by: A Perfect Circle
08. Return to Innocence---by: Enigma
07. What it is to Burn---by: Finch
06. Take a Picture---by: Filter
05. Speed of Sound---by: Coldplay
04. Studying Politics---by: Emery
03. Mezmerize---by: System of a Down
02. I'll tell the World---by: Ever Stays Red
01. Bug Eyes---by: Dredg

Musings of a muddled mind

2005-09-29T04:29:00.000-10:00

I really enjoy reading Jay Nordlinger's Impromptu's over at National Review. So I thought I'd post a short one of my own. This was an email to my wife, it was her idea for me to post it to my blog, so here goes................

I'm sure I might offend a few people, but I am what I am. I believe in social justice, just not that liberal pansy ass way of doing it. If it takes a war and money to free people, then surely God's reward in the Kingdom of Heaven for having fought the good fight must mean more than a little extra money in your pocket.

I'm actually leaving for tikrit in a few hours here, might stay until Saturday, don't know yet. Anyway, absolutely nothing to do anymore in Kirkuk, so I surf amazon and check out stuff I might want in the future or just read what other people have to say about stuff I like. I bought another thing or two off of amazon but it's not expensive. I think I have spent like 80 dollars total on amazon for like 5 things. I am going to stop as I think I have everything I want. I smacked my thumb on something, one side of it hurts, who knows what I did to it, but I did something.

Anyway don't sweat work, it's a learning process, every trainer went through it. I know you are doing as awesomely as you can, I believe in you, I personally know you could do anything in the world you want to. I have a deal to make with you, I'll work on my blog as often as I can when I get home if you sing more. I don't care if you sing to me in the car or sit down with your guitar and just sing church songs or whatever you know. I just want to hear you sing. I learn a lesson everytime I come over here, it's kind of weird and amazing and scary and cool all at once. The lesson I am learning this time is to always say exactly what I mean and to not hold anything back. You think at the age of 30 I would know that, but alas I don't. Hence the reason for God teaching me. :)

I also want to make sure that I do everything in life that I want to. It does make you wonder, what part of us programs our brains to not try everything in life we want to. At a certain age we stop trying new things and settle into a rut we call a routine and somehow convince ourselves we are happy there. Well I don't want that to happen to us, so let's make sure we always understand that life is a never ending series of adventures that enrich us whether we win or lose at them. I was going to say succeed or fail, but I don't know how to spell succeed, so I went with win or lose.

On a side note, I have noticed myself less and less in love with "conservatives" that I use to think of as fellow sojourners. That's not to say that liberals make me feel any better, and the terms "independent" or "moderate" aren't really indicative of what I believe in. I think I am either going to have to invent my own political label or something. The thing about liberals I don't like is that they have been bamboozled into thinking that not helping others in need or facing oppression is the same thing as being a pacifist. It's not! It just means that you are so naive that you cannot see the evil forests of tyranny and oppression for the trees of Saddam and Bin Laden. Moderates just want everyone to get along and that's not always possible. As for conservatives, there are two kinds that I have only recently seen the differences between. There are the fiscal conservatives whose God is money and selfishness and there are the Christian conservatives who are willing to bear the burden to achieve social justice, whatever the personal cost. Many in the military seem to socially conservative, if only the general population was as noble, you know what I mean?

EDIT: I am still a conservative and I do realize money doesn't grow on trees, but the fiscal attitude of some of my conservative brothers and sisters is disheartening.

Something else I have realized recently, well two things actually; Number one, if two men or two women want to get married, why should I care? I hope they are happy with each other and have a long and happy marriage. I used to be against gay marriage, but how can I claim to be fighting or supporting the fight for freedom for all of God's children if I am going to say that some can't get married because they are the same gender. Am I hypocritical much? The same goes for abortion, I am personally against it, but it's no one's business other than a woman, her doctor, and God. The three of them can work it out without my scorn or Government's permission. Again how can I want freedom for the women of Islam, (something I have written about a few times) if I am trying to control women in America? The truth is I can't feel that way about abortion if I want all women to be free to make their own lives.

Sorry I know this is a bit rambling, but I had a lot on my mind today......Yeesh get me listening to some mellow and haunting Bjork songs and I wax philosophical.

Enough of that, tommorrow is payday, so a big holla back for that. It means that in 2 more paydays I'll be on my way out of here and back to you and our little family. I am officially under 30 days by my calendar, so that is exciting in a "time moving slow as a glacier" kind of way. I miss you horribly and can't wait until we are just able to hold each other. That would be nice wouldn't it. BTW do you realize we have spent 25% of our lives together? How's that for a noodle baker?

Dallas Stars are looking good, lots of young guys playing this year. I would ask for the hockey package, but with the time difference from Hawaii to Texas I don't think it matters.

Emailed my mom and got a response, Port Arthur, Groves and Port Neches took a real beating, the eye went right over them. It's depressing to know that my childhood home has been changed forever. Memories of places that no longer exist or are damaged beyond repair. I wonder how the football stadium held up.

One more thing from the musings of my muddled mind. I love Hawaii and we are going to stay as long as we want to, but I miss the sky of Texas. I was watching "Friday Night Lights" which was shot around Austin, and they have these panoramic shots of the sky and it is so blue and open and the clouds are amazing. I miss it, I miss Austin! The sky here isn't even blue, it's this brown smudge with a trace of blue in the morning and I haven't seen a cloud since I left El Paso. Anyway there's that.

Just wanted to say hello and I love you. I'll send a "I'm here" when I get to Tikrit.

Love you,
XXXXXXXX

P.S. The Bjork song is "Pagan Poetry" off of her Vespertine album. Not you cup of tea, but it is haunting and makes me feel better. So I believe that's good. Love you my hummingbird

Numbers

2005-09-22T01:51:00.000-10:00

I actually had time to stop and think about the last 2 and a half years and I realized a few things, I am meticulous at keeping details, so I thought I'd share some things with everyone out there.

1472 Number of days since 9/11 happened
916 Number of days since Operation Iraqi Freedom started
537 Number of days I have served away from my family on operations in support of the War on Terror
4 Number of countries I have been deployed to in the War on Terror
3 Number of the anniversary's I have missed in the 4 years since 9/11
3 Number of my wife's birthday's I have away for during the 4 years since the war started
77 Number of indirect fire attacks I have been in in my three tours of duty in Iraq
2 Number of IED's I have had go off within 150 meters of me in my three tours in Iraq
5 Number of times I have been shot at with direct fire in my three tours of duty in Iraq
1 Number of rockets that have hit the building I was sleeping in in my three tours of duty in Iraq
4 Number of wounded Seabees and Army soldiers I helped treat and load onto Medevacs when they were hit by Indirect fire last year in Ramadi
3 Number of personal friends I have lost here in Iraq
50 million The number of free Muslims since 9/11
1 Number of convictions it will take to execute Saddam Hussein the butcher of the Middle East

I didn't compile this list for my own edification, but it does make me think, I have given up so much in these last four years, but what I have lost is nothing compared to the 2100+ men and women that have fallen in this war. They gave everything of their mortal souls, their families will never see them again, their wives and husbands will have to tell their sons and daughters of the sacrifice of their mother or father. That spouse will have to live with a lifetime of memories and thoughts of "what if" in many cases this moment will be remembered as one of the most tragic in the survivors lives. The fallen men and women did have a choice, no matter what Cindy Sheehan or Phil Donahue say, the fallen volunteered to be here. And isn't that something that makes America special? The men and women of our country actually believe in doing good, not for riches, power, or conquest, isn't that statement a marvel to read. A small group of Americans believe in going to another place and doing whatever it takes to ease the suffering of a group of people they know little about. They give their hearts and souls and their sweat and blood, because of the feeling that they get when an Iraqi child smiles because they have been given crayons or a soccer ball, I know that feeling, it is the most peaceful joyous feeling in the world. That soccer ball might be the only toy that child possesses, and for one moment in time that child isn't feeling malnourishe or afraid of the monsters that move among the Iraqi people. That child feels happiness and we feel it with them, not because we gave them the toy, but because the feeling of love and caring for another human being especially an innocent is a universal feeling. We who have everything risk it all to give to those who nothing, going against the dictates of our popular culture. The people of Iraq were brutalized, victimized and traumatized under the rule of Saddam Hussein, the children of America live the life of the most advanced, wealthiest society in Human history and some of them find more peace and happiness in coming here and giving to the Iraqi people than they do in the life of materialism that our society offers and even encourages over sacrifice and civic duty. Again reread that sentence and let me reiterate, there are some among us who have found our true inner selves on this journey into the heart of darkness. I know "heart of darkness" must sound cliched to some of you, but that's what's here the heart of darkness and evil. Muslims are not evil, Muslims that like strict Islam are not by definition evil, but the people that are fighting us here in Iraq, well many of them are evil. I have said this before, but I'll do it again for emphasis. Evil is waiting until the coalition builds a playground and then firing rockets at it as soon as it is open for children to play on. Evil is taking over towns lining up anyone that does not agree with the insurgents and gunning them down. Evil is kidnapping a female election worker, raping her, record the rape and send a copy of it to her husband. These people in Iraq are evil, I call myself a Christian and have a hard problem with bloodlust, but in this case evil must be destroyed. I find happiness when I hear we have captured or killed an insurgent that attacked Iraqi women and children or my comrades in arms. They are either confessing their sins to Allah or they going to be talking to the walls in Abu Ghraib, either way I feel peace at those thoughts. The scum of the earth have no place in a society of innocents seeking a way out of their 25 year nightmare, the insurgents are going to fail. I have always been confident Iraq will be all it wants to be, but I have never been as confident as I have these last few months, seeing the Iraqis in action and the people's hatred for the insurgents, I truly believe Iraq will win its struggle against the monsters of humanity's dark soul.

I have been changed by my experiences in Iraq, last year I sought counseling for PTSD, last year I saw friends die in front of me and nearly lost my own life if not for divine intervention and I belive that's what it was. I'm not special, nor does God favor me, but it was not yet my time. I had many of the classic symptoms of PTSD and my wife and I went through some hard times. Through her help and my acceptance of God back into my life we have triumphed. I was told to avoid coming back here, I disobeyed my therapist and came anyway. This third time has exhausted me like nothing else in my life, but like a marathon runner I have gotten my second wind and a few things have been revealed to me.

1. No matter how Iraq votes on its constitution or its next govt. it is a triumph of the will of the beautiful Iraqi people. If the Sunnis reject the Constitution, guess what? Democracy worked! If the people chose an Islamic govt. I personally will be upset, but this isn't my choice, or Cindy Sheehan's choice, or anyone's choice except for the Iraqis. Democracy is messy, their destiny is in their hands, we can sit next to them and help them if they need it or we can do what our moral cowards want and abandon them to the virus that is Islamic terrorism.

2. I miss my wife a lot more this time than ever before. We have been married 7 years now, but it is only recently that I discovered what it is to be a good husband and a good man, I want to share that with her. I want us to be together whenever possible as much as possible. She truly is my everything in life, without her I would not be half the man I am today.

3. My feelings about Americans in the military has been reaffirmed yet again. Everywhere I look I see heroes, they go out on patrols, they change oil in Humvees, they sit behind computer screens for 12-15 hours a day. They are quite simply the most amazing people I have ever known in my life. They believe in a better world made through the efforts of their own hands, they truly are the children of America. If you read this and see a service member, say hello or buy their meal or just talk to them, they appreciate anyone just talking to them. The patriots of America are not the shrill fanatics you will see in Washington D.C. this weekend, the true patriots are eating a meal in a dining facility at least 5000 miles from the people they love most, they are manning a checkpoint that has been attacked already this week while thinking of their wifes eyes or smile, or they are treating a wounded comrade, doing everything in their power to keep that friend alive to see a son or daughter he does not know. If only the people against the war knew more about those fighting the war, one wonders if they would still be so full of hatred if they knew the love of soldiers.

I will close with a lyric or two from a song named "Bug Eyes" by a band named Dredg, they are a progressive rock band, but almost everyone of their songs touches my heart and my soul.

It's been ten years strong, that's much too long
It's time to do something good for my health
Time to do somethin' good for myself
It's been ten years strong, that's much too long
It's time to do something good for my health
Time to do somethin' good for myself
I've wasted all this time, I've wasted all this time

Your journey back to birth its haunting you it's haunting you
Your departure from the earth, it's haunting you, it's haunting you

Like Macarthur I have returned

2005-09-22T00:50:00.000-10:00

Due to the mission tempo of my job and the lack of a good secure internet connection, my postings have been few and far between. I will be an everyday poster again when I am back in Hawaii in November. I'm probably going to purchase my own domain and I am thinking of making my own podcast with music, politics and my stories of the war on terror. I see I have a new troll, welcome Keesha, I can assure you I am not a fake, but the more important question is what is your agenda? Tell Uncle Caelestis what troubles you. Anyway I'll be blogging a bit today and then back to whenever I can, but November is not that far off, and home is calling me.

The Wheels Fall Off The Recovery Vehicle

2005-08-28T14:35:00.000-10:00

To be completely honest, I thought anyone that came to my blog knew I was a contractor. It's not something I hide or try to deflect attention from. I take great pride in my job, it's a job that allows me to give back to my country which took me in, gave me a skill that few people possess, and made a man out of me.

Unfortunately some people seem to have a problem with my career field. Most of the time I ignore them, but in the case of Kirk over at the recovery vehicle I am unable to ignore his post. First of all I will be correcting a few errors that kirk assumed about me, and secondly I relish the chance to share a few words with him.

Kirk, obviously we are on opposite ends of the political spectrum and that makes us not very likely to see things eye to eye. I noticed several inaccuracies when you were talking about me and my post. First of all Kirk, Caelestis is Latin for heavenly or celestial, I was unaware of the greyhound story and I don't play RPG games. I picked the name as an homage to God, without him nothing in this universe is possible. But that's neither here nor there. My first problem with your post was this quote:

His post sounds like it is a really gritty, on the front lines post from a guy in the military serving in Iraq. Like he is going to give me the grunt's eye view of what is going on. And then it suddenly veers north to the cool country of Bosnia and little children and stuff. Pretty soon it is sounding like it was written by Carl Rove and I'm thinking, "can this guy really think this way."

I am in the habit of giving a first person perspective of the men and women I am fortunate enough to serve with. And I do serve with them, I have twice before and will continue to do so now and in the future. My views are exactly that, my views, but my posts are rarely about me, instead I try and put the focus where it belongs; On the troops. I guess the "cool country of Bosnia" is your euphemism for my description of the heroes I am blessed to be able to know and help. Their work is the stuff of legend, name me an example in human history when a nation selflessly sent its young men and women to other lands to aid the dispossessed. We are not here to conquer or to steal their oil (which I'll address shortly), or even to impose our values upon these people. Are you aware Kirk, that George W. Bush is the greatest liberator of Muslims in human history? A Conservative Christian has freed more worshippers of Allah than any other figure in history. Finally YES I can really think this way, I and tens of thousands of soldiers here on the ground "think this way", hundreds of thousands of our fellow citizens back home feel the same way. I can understand you not understanding this way of thinking, you acknowledge yourself that you never served in the military, and therefore it is no fault of your own that you cannot fathom what we feel or think about our sacred duty. And since we are on the subject of military service, this quote of your's was also troubling to me.

But - he isn't in the military. He is a mercenary. Oops, I mean a contractor. So he's making, what? 20 or 30 times as much as a GI? Oh, and he can leave whenever he wants.

I tell you what, when he donates his contractor pay back to an aid group in Iraq to the point that he is taking home the same pay as a sergeant, say, then he can wrap himself up in the flag and all his purple prose about the lofty, philosophical goals America is in Iraq to accomplish.

Oops Kirk, I was in the miltary, five proud years. I have served in combat units Kirk, I have served in tactical and strategic units Kirk, so does that make me any more worthy to you? As for pay, 20 to 30 times more than a soldier? What are you smoking and can I have some. My service here isn't about money, it never has been, but since you brought it up, let's talk about it. I'll be honest, I make more than a private or sergeant, but less than a Sergeant Major or a General. Are they also worthy of your scorn? I am here as a volunteer, but I can hardly leave when I want, I'm not sure where you are getting your facts on contracting, but you are wrong on every count so far. I do not make a fortune here, nor would I serve here if I did. I am here to give back to my country and to my Army. That Army took a nineteen year old kid and changed him from a piece of crap that only cared about himself and made him a man that understood the concept of duty, honor, and sacrifice. I was taught a skill that few possess and when my wife and I both left the service I immediately took this job. This job allows me to continue to give back to the organization that made me what I am today. Instead of sitting my ass at a desk in Seattle or Austin, I took a military job in the dust and heat and danger with the men and women I have come to love. Finally why would I donate my pay to an Aid group, do you work for free Kirk? Do the soldiers work for free Kirk? I am paid to share the same sacrifices that most soldiers here in Iraq shoulder. Most soldiers live with the heat and bad food, so do I, most soliders are away from their families for a lengthy period of time, so am I (Not nearly as long as the soldiers, who truly bear a burden I do not). Most soldiers are subject to IDF attacks, as am I. And many soldiers leave the safety of the FOB to do their jobs, as do I. I don't talk about what I do for OPSEC sake, but let's just say that what I do is vital to the war effort in way's you couldn't imagine. Not that I am important, for I am a peon and a nobody compared to the heroes I work with everyday. But the work I do alongside them is important in its own right.

Sorry had to get that off my chest, nothing chaps my ass more than someone thinking I do this for the money or as a mercenary, I do this job because it allows me to continue serving even when I am not able to be in the active force anymore.

Another of your points that bothered me Kirk was this one:

America is in Iraq because of the oil and for revenge following a plan based on faulty intelligence, myopic analysis and planning by yes-men who have never been to war. Think about that - none of those guys has actually been to war. Except for Colin Powell. The man who had been to war, the person on the Bush team who actually wore a uniform in the field, was marginalized and ignored while spin doctors and autocrats assured us of what would and wouldn't happen

I have explained why we are here ad nauseam, but for you I'll do it again. If we were here just for the oil, I ask this. Why did we not make an accomodation with Saddam instead of overthrowing him? If Bush is about oil and money, why risk destroying, crippling or even endangering so much oil and the wealth that comes with it? Saddam would have been more than happy to sell it to us, and in our past we have made such accomodating deals with other despots. Why would we risk so much for something we could have so easily? Secondly why fight here? Iraq's oil is notoriously of a low quality full of sulfides which makes it more expensive to refine? Why didn't we go after Iran or Saudi Arabia, both of which have much more pristine petroleum fields? Thirdly, revenge? For what, Saddam not getting his ass kicked hard enough in the First Gulf War? What exactly was the faulty intelligence? The fact that every major foreign intel agency also believed Saddam had these weapons? Also Kirk, why does it matter if the weapons were here or not, the people of Iraq are free, free for the first time in their histroy, free to forge their own path, to be an Islamic state or a Jeffersonian Democracy, or something in between, the point is they are free to decide for themselves. That is something only the Muslims of Afghanistan can also say, no one else under the flag of Dar Al Islam can say the same, so why are you fixated on weapons and why are you missing the bigger story about free Arabs? I bet it has to do with the fact you get your news from the media, who couldn't report the truth in Iraq if was swimming in the pool of their fortress hotels. And finally what do you mean Colin Powell was the only one to see war? Ever hear of Tommy Franks, and Gen.William Wallace, for starters? The list of senior military men that advised the President that have seen combat is very extensive. I guess you forgot about those guys didn't you?

Next you said something we both agree on and for that I salute you.

At 50 I'm old enough to remember Viet Nam - at least from a civilian's perspective. There were a number of things to feel shameful about in that war and one of the worst, in my opinion, was the way we treated our soldiers.

Yes we did treat them poorly in Vietnam, my father was one of those men that was spit on in the San Francisco airport and called a baby killer. But things have improved and only the pure leftists such as Code Pink and United for Peace and Justice seem to be against the soldiers.

Next you go back into strange territory with this rant:

Opposing the war, and holding the Bush administration responsible for it, does not mean that I agree with simply leaving either. George Bush needs to leave. His administration needs to leave. Because they have failed miserably. They have failed the Nation and they were unacceptably slow to support the troops when they needed it. Their insensitivity continues. Were Bush capable of actual leadership a meeting between him and Cindy Sheehan early on at Crawford could, could have been a moment for actual healing and unifying much of the divide in the country. A time for all of us to come together and grieve our losses. Grieving doesn't mean we all have to agree about everything.

Exactly how has George Bush failed? Is Saddam in power? Has Al Qaeda struck us again? By any measureable metrics are we losing the war in Iraq? The answer to all three questions is no. I'm at a loss how Bush has failed to support the troops when they needed it? Have you been to Iraq, Kirk? The troops here are well taken care of, of course they want to go home, we all do, and of course there were some mistakes made and no life isn't perfect and we all want a Starbucks and a Taco Bell on every FOB. But your assertion that Bush has failed to support the troops rings hollow to those of us who have lived here with the troops. The enemy we fight is a dynamic one and I can tell you from experience when I was here in 2003 for the invasion, IED's were a term that had not yet been invented and extra armor was something not envisioned as being needed. Hell, none of us had body armor then, not me or the soldiers I rode into war with. (And yes Kirk I have seen war up close, being in a ground convoy in a manuever element during the invasion means you saw some action.) The enemy adapted and went after a weakness we had, we countered as quickly as possible, the enemy adapted again, we countered again. This will go on for as long as we are here in Iraq. That's what happens in a war Kirk, the enemy tries to get better at killing you, and you try to get better at responding to his adaptations. And finally we come to the Cindy Sheehan moment, this is where we disagree the most Kirk. President Bush already met this woman once, now she wants a chance to embarass him in front of the world to feed her own ego, sorry charlie it doesn't work like that. Now we are hearing she has blamed Israel for her son's death, and we have heard her call Iraqi insurgents freedom fighters, the people that killed her own child are not freedom fighters, they are monsters that rape women, and set their bombs off next to children playing. She has also stated that America is not a country worth dying for, and that George Bush and the U.S. military are the largest terrorist groups in the world. And for the grand finale she has hinted that she believes Osama Bin Laden is not behind 9/11. (It does make me wonder what Casey Sheehan would think of all this) If you want links for these quotes Kirk just do a search for them, she said all of them and she said more. Let's see if you are intellectually lazy, or blindingly partisan.

Oh what the hell, I'll do the work for you.

Cindy Speaks

Cindy Speaks some more

Finally you ended with this gem

We are still in Iraq and we will be in Iraq for a long time to come and it is going to be far more expensive in terms of blood and money than we are willing to admit. Just like all the other Crusades before.

Supporting the men and women in the military is not the same thing as agreeing with the President. Pointing out the fallacies of his positions is not siding with the enemy. Saying the Emperor has no clothes is not un-Patriotic. It is part of a search for a rational course acknowledging the reality of the world around us.

Do you really think this is a Crusade or were you just playing fast and loose with the facts? And no criticizing the president is not unpatriotic, it is freedom of speech, something I and millions of others like me have fought for since our nation was created. What is wrong is saying you support the troops and not the war. The troops here are reenlisting in numbers never before seen in wartime. They want to be here, they want to engage and kill the enemy. They want to see the children of Iraq stop being used as targets for the terrorists. The reality of the world around us is a little muddled when I view it through your eyes. I criticize the President for things that I think he has screwed up on, but the war ain't one of them. It's obvious the soldiers feel this way when they recommit themselves to the fight instead of voting with their feet by leaving the service. It's obvious we aren't going to see eye to eye Kirk, so let's just agree to disagree, ok?

P.S. Hat tip to Dadmanly and Greyhawk and Mrs. G for defending me and shining some light on little old me. I appreciate it sincerely.

Happy Birthday beautfiul

2005-08-26T09:26:00.000-10:00

Dear Jan,

Another birthday has come and yet again I am off on some adventure in search of fulfilling my idealistic beliefs. I just wanted to write a few words to tell you how my life has changed since we met.

That first time I saw you at that meeting on Fort Hood where you asked General Scwartz that question about the hot water in your barracks, I knew I loved you. Love at first sight is such a cliche in our society today, but that's what it was. I approached you after the meeting and asked you some dumb random question that I don't even remember now. I just wanted to be near you, to hear your voice sweet and light tinkling like bells. I asked some people in your unit about you and they told me you had a boyfriend and I remember being crushed. Then fate threw me a curveball and assigned us to work the same shift in the same location during a Communications Exercise. I remember walking by your office that first night and seeing you in there, I remember trying to talk myself into actually going up the steps and just starting a casual conversation with you. What I never told you is I walked by that open door 10 or 15 times before I actually mustered the courage to come and say hi. I was as nervous as my first date in high school, I had sweaty palms and felt flush in the face. All of that and I was just sitting there watching your CNN feed while you typed that email. Of course I couldn't resist reading over your shoulder and I saw you talking about the Tongdaemun Market in Seoul, South Korea. AHA!!! I had my opening, having spent a year in Korea myself I now had something to talk about with you. I remember we were on shift from 1900 to 0700 and we must have talked from Midnight til about 0600. We learned so much about each other in six hours, I found out yes you had a boyfriend, but he was in California and you weren't happy with your relationship. I remember trying to not get too excited at that news, I remember promising myself that I wouldn't try and "steal" you. I remember we had so much in common we decided that maybe we should hang out as neither one of us had a lot of friends. I remember sneaking out to your car ( you described it perfectly BTW) and leaving you a note with my phone number and telling you I thought we were going to be great friends. Of course Karma was already working on us, as you had done the same and left a note on my car.

I remember our first hang out "date", but "not really date". You were moving from your old barracks into the new ones and I volunteered to help you move. You scratched and dented the hood of my car and you were so horrified, I remember laughing my ass off. Anyway we moved your stuff and went to Appleby's the finest cuisine in Killeen, Texas. A few days later I went on a trip to Arizona for a few weeks and we talked by phone everyday. What I never told you was that I was eating fast food to pay for the phone bill, but it was worth every Mcnugget. While I was gone you and your boyfriend broke up and we decided to go out and see if we clicked. I came home, we went out and now we fast forward 8 years.

We have been married 7 of those 8 years now baby, and you are without a doubt the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. You are my sunrise and my sunset, my muse and my inspiration, when we are apart I hear your voice on the wind and keep thoughts of you in my heart. I am truly blessed to have such an incredibly beautiful, smart, sexy, funny, amazing woman like you in my life. You are the other half of me and when we are apart, the lonesome part is all that's left of me. As I said in a previous post, you are my wife, my life, and my love. Soon this Iraq trip will be over and we'll be back together, and I don't think I'm leaving you again for a while. It's not the heat, or the bugs, or even the bad guys that make these deployments so hard, it's not getting to seeing your face in the morning, it's not being able to kiss your lips goodnight, and it's not being able to hold you when you nap on the big couch. Those are the things I miss most and desperately want back.

It's your birthday beautiful, know this: Someone in Northern Iraq loves you with all his heart and misses you terribly. 51 days until I board that bird for Kuwait and in 60 I'll be home. Happy Birthday my hummingbird,

Love you with my mind, body,and soul

J

In the company of heroes

2005-08-26T08:45:00.000-10:00

I dream of rain, I dream of gardens in the desert sand-----Sting (Desert Rose)

That song is so much more poignant now that I have spent another summer here in Mesopotamia. The climate here is like nothing most Americans have ever seen, let alone imagined. The sun rises at 0600 or so and the first thing you notice in the light is the amount of dust in the air. You can tell whether it will be hell to breathe or if the heat is your only elemental enemy of the day. The sun rises into the sky like an orange disk, then yellow, then white hot as 0900 approaches. The tempature in the summer rarely dips below 80 degrees at night, and as the sun climbs, the mercury in the thermometer chases after as if the the sun and the tempature are in some macabre race. By 1030 the tempature is already hitting 105 degrees, by noon 115 is in sight and by 1400, we have hit our usual summit of 120-125 degrees. It remains that tempature until about 1900 when night blessedly falls over the FOB and the scorching sun is no longer there to torment us. There hasn't been a cloud in the sky in 3 months and we are still another month or two from an actual raindrop or two. Just another 45 days or so of the merciless yellow orb and the blast furnance it creates day after day.

People often ask what it feels like, of course I am happy to tell them what it's like. Imagine standing in front of your stove, turn it up to 130 degrees, now get inside of it, take your hair dryer and put it on full blast in your face. Don't forget to take a 500 watt light bulb and have it reflect off of sand colored surfaces into your eyes, no matter which diection you turn. For variety throw some talcum powder quality dust in your face. To complete the effect put on a 25 pound torso encompassing ceramic and syntehtic vest, add an 8 pound ceramic helmet, a T-shirt, long sleeve tunic, full length pants, wool socks and boots. Now imagine doing that everyday for 7 months, which is about the equivalent of the Iraqi summer. 130,000 men and women do it every single day, they don't do it for money, they don't do it for fame, they do it because they believe in something. They believe in an idea, an idea that America has a responsibility to do what we can to fight hatred, oppression and evil. We are a blessed nation to have so many give so much for so little in return. I am inspired everyday I am with them.

They come from everywhere and nowhere, little towns, our largest cities, and countries near and far. They joined for many reasons, money, adventure, education, and patriotism. But ponder this; On September 11th, 2005 it will have been four years since 9/11, most military enlistments are 4 years in length for the initial term. That means that the men and women in uniform today (a majority of them) are here because they want to be. They are here to fight and to win, the bear this out, while the Army is having a small problem with initial recruits, it is having no problems whatsoever in retaining its combat veterans. Ponder fact number 2: The U.S. military now has the largest pool of combat veterans in the world today. Since 9/11 we have cycled nearly one million total soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines through Iraq, Afghanistan, and the other fronts in the War on Terrorism. These combat veterans by and large are electing to stay and continue the fight. That speaks of the American character and the uniqueness of the American experience.

Throughout our history we have been a nation of rejects and castoffs. We as a people are the ones the rest of the world tried to persecute, or the ones that wanted more than the rigid social castes of much of the globe, or we were daydreamers and adventurers. We found all that we wanted and more in America, we found a land where birth did not equal status, where a poor man could become rich if he worked hard and was a little lucky, and we were a land where one's belief's didn't matter. The heart of a man or woman was judged by the actions of that person. You find that spirit in the Army today(the branch I am most familiar with), I have seen Russian boys and Nigerian girls transform from castoffs of the Old world into models of American character. I met a young man from Lebanon that joined the U.S. Army after 9/11 because he could not understand the level of evil it took to attack the beacon that is America. In my travels I have met men and women that believed so greatly in our country they were willing to risk their lives just to be one of us. I have never been prouder to be an American as when I am in their company, yet at the same time, I feel a small amount of despair. The despair is in the fact that so few of our own young people are willing to put their life on the line for liberty and freedom. We still have enough that are willing to do their duty for our nation, but it still troubles me.

I have spent nearly a year in Iraq in my three tours here, and my spirits are always buoyed by watching my countrymen and potential countrymen at work and at play. They go out everyday and face mortal peril, they go out and have to confront the evil of our time, they go out and see friends killed or maimed for life. They do that and still they smile much more than they scowl, they show love and compassion to the Iraqi people instead of fear and hatred. They still believe in the mission even after nearly 1900 of them have been cut down in the sands of Mesopotamia. Being here with them reinforces my beliefs in humanity and my idealism, with brave and selfless men and women such as these, anything is possible. The fires of human passions are often at their hottest in war, the fires of evil seek to scorch and destroy all that is good, in our men and women I see the fires of righteousness in action. Good done for the sake of good, selflessness for the sake of your brothers and sisters in arms, sacrifice in the name of love, and honor in a battle against those without honor. I truly have been blessed these last 2 and 1/2 years, I have lived in the company of heroes. Heroes of America, heroes to the downtrodden and dispossessed, heroes to the persecuted and brutalized, heroes descended from the peoples of every nation under heaven.

HONOR THEM

In response to Steve

2005-08-15T16:42:00.000-10:00

I don't often respond to people that leave comments, but this is a special case, so I decided to take some time and address this properly. Apparently Steve and I disagree about Cindy Sheehan's nutbaggery that she is demonstrating in Crawford in her quest to smear our President. Steve and I talked about what would happen if America and Iraq's roles were reversed, would I support the foreign army in our country. Steve had the following to say.

First, let me repeat the scenario on which I ended earlier and the question which you did not answer: if America was under the thumb of someone as evil as Saddam, and a foreign nation showed up and sent him scurrying into a spider hole--as you, I, too, would welcome that intervention--if that same foreign power began building permanent military bases in our country, wouldn't you wonder what they had in mind?

Not at all, I would understand the foreign power in question understood that for my country to be safe and a free member of the international community, an occupation would be necessary. Germany and Japan still house U.S. troops as well as Italy; we built permanent bases in those countries to ensure that our sacrifices would not need to be repeated. Permanent bases are a way for our country to permanently keep an eye on the country we fought. It ensures us a base for future operations in the theater, as well as giving us the power to ensure that the vanquished nation doesn't give itself an ideology harmful to our own country.

Steve then broke out the oil argument.

But if they didn't pack up and go, but instead appeared to want to hang around and influence what happens next, wouldn't you grow suspicious of their intentions in our land--especially if their own culture is known around the world for its insatiable thirst for oil and beneath our soil a veritable ocean of oil (and a mountain of money!)is just waiting to be got? What would you do to see that those foreigners got the heck out of our country?

I personally would do nothing to see those foreigners get out of my country. If they came in a noble and true form as we came to Iraq, I would do everything in my power to help them achieve their ends. What does oil have to do with anything? I stated earlier, if we truly wanted Iraq's oil at its highest production level, ewe would not have invaded. Had all we been after was the oil, we would have reached a deal with Saddam as all countries that are pragmatic do. Instead we chose to overthrow a dictator that could have destroyed most of the oil producing infrastructure had he chosen to do so. Why would we fight a war that had the potential to destroy that which you claim we were after? Saddam has shown in the past he was willing to destroy the oil, why would an oil man such as Bush risk losing that? Finally if it was about oil, we sure are doing a shitty job protecting that resource. Third string Iraqi troops are guarding all the infrastructure, refineries, and pipelines. If we were after the oil, why aren't U.S. patrols and Base camps setup along the oil pipelines and among the refineries. I am on my third tour of Iraq and I can tell you that we almost never go anywhere near the oil facilities as we have more important missions to conduct. Oil is not and never has been the major reason we are here.

At this point Steve moved back onto the Cindy Sheehan story.

Now as to Sheehan making a mockery of her son's death, it seems to me that the "sacrifice" of one's life or loved one is reduced to "senseless loss" if the cause for which that life is given is even a smidge less than absolutely necessary. In that urgency of mission, it seems to me, we find nobility and the highest definition of what "sacrifice" is all about.

Who is defining the cause as less than absolutely necessary? Casey Sheehan reenlisted while in theater, he told his sister before his death that he was "exactly where he wanted to be." To my mind that is the highest nobility, someone who wanted to be here, who volunteered a second and third time (volunteered to reenlist and volunteered for the mission that killed him). Ms. Sheehan can speak her mind, this isn't about that. But if her son was proud to be here, why would the mother tarnish that memory of him. Casey Sheehan was not drafted, he wanted to be here and his mother apparently has decided to not honor his memory in line with how he lived his life as a soldier.

Next we hear the old canard about Saddam and 9-11 not being connected.

This brings up the reasons Bush gave us for pre-emptorily invading a country that had nothing to do with 9-11. Honestly, were you afraid of Iraq before the administration began selling us the story about the smoking gun mushroom clouds, a story, by the way, they apparently knew was false!

Steve, I know Saddam had nothing to do with 9/11, I have never claimed that. And was I afraid of Iraq before? You better believe it! I rarely talk about myself and my previous career, but I was an intel analyst that specialized on the Middle East when I was in the Army. I was terrified of what Saddam was up to as the sanctions continued to fall. I was terrified that Saddam was increasing his aid to terror organizations. He avoided Al Qaeda, but all terror organizations are evil, worthy of the death of all of their members. I was worried about what kind of terror groups were training in Iraq, I was worried if those WMD's were not being given to those same terrorists. As for those WMD's they are somewhere, there is unaccounted for material, maybe they were destroyed, but I doubt it. I am more convinced they are hidden in the Western Desert somewhere where people have either forgotten about them or don't care to retrieve them. When I was here last year, we found an entire artillery battalion, (18 Self propelled Howitzers) hidden in the sands of western Iraq,they had been there for 5 years, and those pictures have since been on the Internet. If one man can hide something the size of an artillery battalion, how hard would it be to hide 55 Gallon drums of Chemical agents?

Again Steve goes back to Ms. Sheehan's beliefs.

This is where Sheehan is coming from, I think. The sacrifice of her son's life appears to her to be no more than a senseless waste of his life for a cause far less than noble. The people across the road from her were described as being "Pro War" yesterday in the paper. I don't know how anyone could be "Pro War," especially when that war was a war of choice, as this one was.

First of all I am Pro war, not pro-war as in I love war, but as in I believe it necessary to engage and destroy any who dare to oppose or threaten America. By engage I mean to kill them ruthlessly, without mercy, and with no regard for their feelings, living conditions, or social beliefs. They threaten my country and my family and my way of life, ergo they must die. People that volunteer for the military since the Iraq invasion understand this, many volunteered after 9/11 for this same reason. Cindy Sheehan can believe what she wants, she has that right that has been given to her and protected for her by people like her son. He apparently thought the cause was worth it, his mother apparently thinks differently. The bottom line is that President Bush did not kill her son, Moqtada Al Sadr holds that honor. Yet Ms. Sheehan has not once mentioned that man. Furthermore, Cindy is becoming a self parody, with her rant yesterday about not paying taxes, demanding Israel leave Palestine and that Bush be impeached, she just lost what credibility she had built in the previous week out at Camp Casey. She has firmly entrenched herself with that leftist fringe element that thinks Israel is akin to Satan and that Bush is Hitler. I went from wishing to console this woman to actually loathing her. She has become nothing more than a pawn of the left wing moon bats. I hope in the afterlife if her son has questions for her actions that she has good answers for trying to sabotage our war effort, a war that he, I and tens of thousands of other soldiers believe in.

Steve concludes with a his opinion about the oil situation in Iraq.

Finally, there was no way Saddam could have destroyed the oil beneath Iraq sand. He could have taken out the wells, as he did in Kuwait, but that oil was still going to be there and you know it. But why buy it when we can own it ourselves? Doesn't it strike you as telling that while all the looting was going on, the one building we did look after was the oil ministry there in Baghdad?

When I say he could have destroyed the oil, I mean the process to pump it and ship it. Saddam taking out the wells, the pipelines and the refineries would have made that oil unobtainable for a number of years. (BTW he also destroyed a lot of the wells in southern Iraq in 1991) Secondly, we don't own the current Iraqi oil wells, the Iraqis do. As for the ministry of oil being guarded, it's exactly what I would have done, that ministry contained much of the information regarding the running of Iraq's oil industry. That oil industry is the one thing that could make Iraq a prosperous free nation. The only other thing I would have guarded besides the oil ministry would have been the museum of antiquities.

Anyway Steve, we see Iraq through wildly different eyes. I have spent a lot of time here and have seen why it is worth it. I have seen the beauty in the Iraqi people and how grateful they are that we are here. I have seen our own news media try to snatch defeat from our victory. And I have seen Cindy Sheehan make a mockery of our president and our military with some of her rants. I have seen the mother of a dead soldier ally herself with people that say that the people that killed her son and other insurgents like them are heroes. IF you have been to Iraq I apologize, but if you haven't been here, I would say other than your opinion you don't really know what's going on over here. That being said, I appreciate the feedback and the comments, I'm not looking to make enemies with anyone, I just get tired of trying to get people to see the truth in Iraq, not the media edited version of the truth.

What will it be?

2005-08-11T13:05:00.000-10:00

Recently the U.S. military here in Iraq has taken some hard hits, the Marines in Al Anbar province, the 48th National Guard Brigade from Georgia, and the 42nd Infantry Division in Samarra all took larger than normal casualties. And like some grotesque clockwork nightmare, the anti war crowd stepped up their rhetoric to bring "the troops" home now. I am sick and tired of hearing that siren call to bring us all home. Apparently the people that believe this have no idea what will happen if we do what they want. The effect will be two fold if we cut and run right now.

1. If we leave Iraq, militant Islam will understand that 2000 American military deaths are all we can sustain before we cry uncle. They will understand the key to defeating us is to kill a few thousand of us and we will wring our hands and say it isn't worth the price we are paying. It shows how far we have fallen as a country when whole segments of our society are not willing to pay the price or victory. Our cowardice if we leave now will be the most important victory militant Islam has ever experienced. Our humiliation will be complete as the few muslim moderates that exist will realize that we do not stand for anything if it will cost us lives. Our defeat will be complete and total. Never again will we have the chance to destroy the plague that is militant Islam. In fact their numbers will swell as many realize the one beacon of freedom in the world will flee if you bloody its nose.

2. The second effect will be felt by the Iraqi people. If we leave, the militants aren't just going to go home, their nihilistic behavior will carry over to attacks on the Iraqi people. Those deemed not religious enough, or not Arab enough will be the first to suffer. The rape rooms of Srebenica will pale in comparison to the degradation of women that will take place here. The killings in the Yugoslav civil wars will be but a pittance as the secular Kurds are left to fight the Sunni militants as well as the Iranian backed terror groups. What few liberals exist in Iraq will flee or die, women will be enslaved, girl children sold off as brides at age 9 and ten, and the black abaya will be everywhere. Men that don't grow their beards in accordance with Islamic law will be shot in the streets, boys will be taught hatred from birth. They will also be taught that women are property, not worthy of respect or love. Iraq, once a potential beacon of democracy will become a California sized country where 26 million people will live in the darkness of a tyranny worse than the one we freed them from. Iraq will cease to be a nation and its people will know only misery and despair.

That's what your cowardice will give the people of Iraq, those of you who don't understand the stakes we are playing for need to know this. Defeat in Iraq will bring the terror of 9/11 to our shores again. It will bring it to us, because terrorists will know once and for all we are cowards who do not understand that they the terrorists will never quit once they have caused us to flee Iraq.

Our only other option is to continue the struggle, 130,000 Americans are fighting the good fight today. Our men and women in uniform are our best line of defense. Victory in Iraq will be a death blow to militant Islam. Everywhere they will be facing increasing hatred of their twisted beliefs, deprived of victory in Iraq, these so-called "holy warriors" will be cornered and can be destroyed once and for all. So far over 1800 of our best and brightest have fallen in Iraq, their sacrifices should not be forgotten because some in our country are cowards unwilling to do the hard work necessary to defeat the evil of our time. Make no mistake about it, we are the force for good, we are fighting evil. Perhaps the greatest evil we have seen since Adolf Hitler himself, our enemies are willing to kill children at play to meet their aims, they are willing to rape and kill women that dare to help organize elections, they are willing to use a rusty knife to saw the head off of those who only wish o aid and comfort the Iraqi people. There is no negotiating with these people, there is no compromise with such fanatics. One can only dispatch them to their twisted visions of paradise.

What will it be America, will we have the strength of our forefathers and fight this evil to the ends of the earth, or shall we surrender and watch the horror unfold before us because we lacked the courage to do what was right?

Dear Cindy Sheehan,

2005-08-11T12:04:00.000-10:00

I have had the chance to read what you have to say about our president and about the death of your beloved son Casey. I think you are in error ma'am about some important facts regarding this issue.

First of all I cannot imagine the pain you live with everyday knowing your son is dead. True I have lost close and dear friends to this same war, but my loss is nothing compared to yours. That being said I think in your grief you have allowed your mind to trick you into what the facts are.

The first fact is that your son was a volunteer in the Army. He was not drafted, he was not forced to fight or even to be there. He was there because he wanted to be, obviously he thought this land was worth fighting for. In fact your daughter was quoted as saying here that:

That’s all he wanted to do was serve God and his country his whole life,” “He was a boy scout from age 6 or 7 and an Eagle Scout. It was kind of a natural progression to go into the military from that. He said he was enjoying the military because it was just like the boy scouts but they got guns."

So apparently Casey was where he wanted to be, the same article mentioned he volunteered for the mission that killed him. Again Ms. Sheehan this letter is not to mock your loss, or belittle it, but to draw attention to the facts, facts that you seem to have forgotten in your anger and grief due to your loss.

A second point I have seen you claim is that President Bush killed your son. Well last time I checked President Bush was not living in Baghdad plotting our soldiers deaths everyday. If anyone is to blame for Casey's death, it is Moqtada Al-Sadr, the fat arrogant shia religious leader who ordered his forces to rebel in Sadr city. How can the leader of our country be responsible for the murderous orders of a religious thug that relishes attacking American soldiers? I'm sure if you and I were talking about this you would say something about this being the "wrong war, at the wrong time, or that we were lied into it" or some other rubbish like that. Well Ms. Sheehan I have been to Iraq three times now myself and I see nothing like what is described by our media. To be sure, death and sorrow do exist here, buthope and progress live here as well. I have seen Iraq in 2003 be a bombed out wreck where people on the streets begged for food and water, in 2004 there were less people begging and more people working to improve their country, and now in 2005 a country that only knew dictators for the last 30 years now knows democracy and they love what they know. Of course there are many challenges ahead and of course failure is almost as likely as success, but the point is this Ms. Sheehan, this war that cost you so much is going to improve the lives of so many. Iraq will make the world safer if it is a success, other people's sons and daughters will be spared if we do this right. I will not call you selfish, because the price of a dead child is incalculable, but Ms. Sheehan surely you know that President Bush did not plot the death of your child and he even tried to comfort you, while the real killer Moqtada Al-Sadr still plots the deaths of other sons and daughters of American parents.

Finally Ms. Sheehan I want to ask about some of the groups you are hanging out with. A few groups have expressed their solidarity with the insurgents in Iraq, these are the same insurgents that killed your son. The New York Sun took this poll last year and this is what they found.

Code Pink, Veterans for Peace, and Military Families Speak Out all have representatives on the steering committee of United for Peace and Justice, an anti-war umbrella group. They share that distinction with the Communist Party USA. UPJ organized the march during the 2004 Republican Convention in New York, at which a New York Sun poll of 253 of the protesters found that fully 67% of those surveyed said they agreed with the statement "Iraqi attacks on American troops occupying Iraq are legitimate resistance."

So Ms. Sheehan, your friends on the left (well at least 2/3 of them) think attacks like the one that killed your son are legitimate. Why would you side with people that support the murderers of your son over the people that truly cared about him? In conclusion Ms. Sheehan, I just want you to think about the following three questions.

1. If your son volunteered and seemed to love the military, why would you denigrate that same military?
2. How is President Bush guilty of killing your son for defending our country, but you have not lashed out at Moqtada Al-Sadr who actually ordered the uprisings?
3. Why would you ally yourself with people that think the murder of American soldiers is not only legitimate, but cheer on those murders?

Please know that you will be in my prayers.

Caelestis in Kirkuk

LATE EDITION According to the Drudge Report Cindy Sheehan's family is asking her to please stop her behavior.

It's been a while

2005-08-11T11:58:00.000-10:00

Well the magic carpet ride I call Iraq has kept me from the blog for some time. I've been riding helicopters around the AO, popping in on FOB's and doing my job. Finally I ahve things where I want them and can finally settle down and write again. So let's head down that same old road again, there is so much to talk about, one hopes I have the time to say all I want to say

Squaring Bob away

2005-07-21T01:07:00.000-10:00

Well I made it to Kirkuk. Lots of Helicopter flights were involved, but here I am, safe and in one piece. I was catching up on the blogs and came across this courtesy of BLACKFIVE. Apparently Bob is a tad bit concerned that every member of the military is plain evil.

Well Bob, let me get my headphones on, my IPOD pumping with "Caelestis's blogging mix" and let me square you away mister. You see Bob, the military is made up of men and women that have decided to be part of something greater than themselves. Unlike many of their peers, they show discipline, service to country and selfless sacrifice as worthy attributes. Many of their peers are greedy, lazy, uncaring bastards. How do I know this bob? Well old caelestis has lived on both sides of the equation, I have served my country proudly and then left that service. I spent one year as a LFC (Lazy Frakking Civilian) before I was hired at my current job which allowed me to reensconce myself in that familiar cocoon of military life.

Bob, you seem to have some misconceptions of military life, you said

that's what the military wants. Obedient, robot-like killers. Slaves who will take it any way their superiors decide to give it to them. Go off on suicide missions, murder civilians by the hundred, even abuse and kill their own. I pity the young men who get suckered into this system. Me, I'll take my freedom. And please, don't give a bunch of crap about how the military protects my freedom.

If the military wanted robot-like killers, why train them on the rules of war or humanitarian relief? Why would robotic killer soldiers be trained to give first aid to each other or to helpless civilians? And bob, are they robot killers or slaves? Slaves means that are forced to serve against their will. Last I checked we had a volunteer Army, slaves would revolt against their masters, robots would not. So are they slaves or robots? And Bob C'mon suicide missions? That's Al Qaeda's modus operandi, not ours. How many U.S. suicide missions have there been Bob? Where can I see the Martyrs gallery of our robotic slaves that killed themselves? Also bob, when have our robotic suicide slaves killed hundreds? I have served in theater three times now and I keep talking to soldiers everyday looking for these robotic suicide slaves, so far I have not come across any robot suicide slaves with a panache for massacring hundreds of kids to gratify their overlords. You know bob, this sounds like really bad Sci-Fi, you know bob, the kind of Sci-Fi the Sci-Fi channel shows at 3 A.M. before Mansquito but after Attack of the Sabretooth. You also pity the young men and women that give you your freedom, that's your right Bob, but they don't pity you. They protect you everyday they are in Iraq. They protect you from men that would gladly saw you head off Bob, they protect you from men that would love nothing more than getting their hands on a nuclear weapon and setting it off in downtown L.A. or New York. They protect you from evils you can't even see in your nightmares. That's why they are better than you Bob, they don't sit around and pity people, they serve and protect all of us, even those of us that pity them.

If you had stopped right there, you would have just been another idiot that doesn't get it. I would have shaken my head, laughed at your ignorance and moved on. But you had to add this little gem.

And as for the "noble" quality of the US soldier, here's a website featuring testimony of Vietnam vets which hangs that myth out to dry. The American fighting man is one of the dirtiest soldiers ever sent into combat because he is trained to think and act that way by the fruitcakes in charge

website

Bob, the noble quality of the U.S. soldier is something a person like yourself could never understand. We save lives, our enemies take them, we greet children with candy and school supplies, our enemies bring pain and death. We try to honor the Iraqi people's customs and laws, our enemies break every law of Iraq, they destroy mosques on purpose and attack women and children and they do these things with no restraint. As for us being dirty fighters or not, it real easy to evaluate our men and women from your couch ain't it bob? They fight and they win Bob, they treat the wounded among our enemies, our enemies kill our wounded if given the chance. Our men and women try to inflict as little damage on civilians as possible, our enemies use our restraint as a weapon to kill as many innocents as possible. You know what Bob this is a pointless exercise, if you see our men and women in uniform as evil, I have nothing further to say.

P.S. Bob, the robot suicide slave soldiers are really under the control of the Greys in alliance with the Reptile Lords of Sirius. I hope your head explodes.

What Sci fi character are you?

2005-07-17T19:16:00.000-10:00

Being a Sci-Fi geek I took this test.

Interestingly enough, I view myslef as Aragorn in a way. I definitely make my own rules to better the lives of everyone.

FOB Danger

2005-07-17T18:02:00.000-10:00

Tikrit is where I'm at today, still not Kirkuk, but much closer. Tikrit looks the exact same as when I was here in 2003, the 42nd Division is in the same palace that 4th ID and 1st ID was in, maybe I'll take a few pics. Anyway, no time to expand on my thoughts, hopefully I'll be in Kirkuk in the next little while.

Caelestis

How do you work this here interweb???

2005-07-16T19:53:00.000-10:00

Apparently last night, I had an attack of moron disease. I was reading a quote from my wife and from the mary hunter and I clicked on the little tic tac toe symbol. POOF comments go bye bye. So I apologize, but apparently the interweb was smarter than I last night.

Mary hunter, thanks for your kinds words, it's a good feeling to know I have people like you watching my back.

Jan, you know I love you, I'll talk to you soon.

EDIT: Apparently a lot of blogs are having haloscan problems with their comments. Maybe I don't have MIUAS (Moronic Internet User Application Syndrome)

Trying for Kirkuk again

2005-07-16T16:19:00.000-10:00

I'll be trying to get to Kirkuk again in the next few days. This time I have an alternate means of going there. Let's just say it's not my favorite way to travel.

Spotlight on Denmark

2005-07-15T00:43:00.000-10:00

I always seem to find myself taking about American military personnel, so I thought a weekly feature should be a spotlight on what our brave coalition allies are up to. A Danish poster named Tamara correctly reminded me I forgot to include Denmark in my post about our coalition versus the Islamic fundies. So for your kind words about my post Tamara, the first spotlight will be on your fellow Danes.

Denmark is a country of about 5.5 million people that is governed by a Center Right coalition between the Venstre (Liberal) party and the Det Konservative Folkeparti (Conservative People's Party). The Prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen supported the U.S. invasion of Iraq and according to this article the Danish people still support the mission there, even though they believe it makes them more of a target to Al Qaeda.

The Danish men and women in uniform have performed admirably, but equally important is the bravery of the Danish people. Denmark is not a large country, but the people are descendants of explorers and Viking Warriors, Danes have almost always done the "right thing". This article gives an example of Danish bravery. Also Denmark and America have deep feelings for each other, this article shows the respect Danes and Americans have for each other.

As for the Danish military, they patrol daily, arresting insurgents and seizing weapons caches. Currently, Denmark has deployed a battalion to MND (SE), operating out of Southern Iraq . The battalion comprises in total approximately 500 soldiers and consists of a Light Armoured Reconnaissance Squadron, an Armoured Infantry Company, a HQ & LOG Company, a CIMIC Detachment, a MediÂcal Platoon, a Mine Clearing and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit, a Military Police Detachment, an EngiÂneering Detachment, and staff and liaison officers for the combined headquarters. In addition to the battalion, Denmark has deployed a National Support Element.
Furthermore staff personnel are embedded with the MND (CS) HQ, the MNF-I and to the Protection Teams in Baghdad and Basra . Finally Denmark also contributes to the NATO Training Mission in Iraq (NTM-I).

All I can say about this is, TAK SKAL DU HAVE DENMARK! When it was time to stand and hold the line against evil, the Danish people stood with honor and on the side of right. I salute the people of Denmark.

There are no heroes among the insurgents

2005-07-14T22:39:00.000-10:00

Among the left we often hear that the insurgents are "Arab minutemen" or they are heroes in their own right. I have a message for our friends on the left; heroes do not kill children. Heroes do not bring misery and suffering to people on purpose. Heroes act nobly, protect life, do the right thing.

Let me explain it further so that the braindead that occupy the left understand. The brave men and women of the American military go out beyond the walls everyday and one of the few things that brightens their day is interaction with Iraqi children. American soldiers everywhere have always had a soft spot for children, in Germany after World War II, our grandfathers fed children from their own rations, gave them candy if they had it, and gave whatever medical care they could. They did this for the children of our enemies, the children of the butchers of Buchenwald and Auschwitz. Why? Because they understood children are innocent, they should not have to pay for the sins of their fathers. In Korea and Vietnam, our own fathers did the same thing for the children of Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia. This is the definition of a hero; men and women who leave their family and friends far behind and serve a great and noble cause. These men and women have compassion, they have heart, THEY CARE, in my opinion, this is America's greatest gift to the world. Our people are a good and righteous people, of course we have bad apples, there is no such thing as a perfect people or a perfect nation, but we are close. Juxtapose that against the insurgents of Iraq, the animals who kill children to get at us. These are not heroes, they are not even men, these are cowards. That's right, it isn't a brave man that drives a car into a crowd of children, a brave insurgent would fight us face to face, but why should I expect men that want to enslave women to be brave.

Also overlooked by the left is that we,America, send our best and brightest to the sands of Iraq to bring peace and prosperity to a people that were physically, mentally and spiritually raped for 25 years. The insurgents send the most evil and the most twisted to this fight. They send them to kill children receiving candy, they send them to execute election workers who's only crime was helping democracy. They send the moral and religious cowards to strike terror in the hearts of good people not only in Iraq, but in Bali, New York, London, Madrid, and Moscow. Where we bring life and light, they bring darkness and death. There is no comparison in our cause versus theirs, any on the left that DARE to morally equate the two sides are as guilty as insurgents, yet their guilt is one of ignorance. Ignorance is an evil in its own right, you cannot support our troops and call the insurgents Patriots, you cannot support our troops and believe that the insurgents are minutemen. And you cannot support our troops if you want them to leave Iraq, our troops care about the men, women, and children of Iraq. You want to support them? Keep sending candy, and toys, and shoes,and school supplies. Those items will be taken by our men and women and given to the needy people of Iraq. These Suicide Cowards will not stop us from helping the Iraqi people, if anything these reprehensible acts will strengthen the bond between the Iraqi and American people.

Let me state one more time, killing children is the basest evil one can commit, children are innocent and the side that butchers them wantonly deserves whatever revenge our soldiers and the Iraqi people unleash upon them. I will not feel differently about this issue until every last suicide coward is captured, deserts Al Qaeda or is killed. My words are harsh, but what kind of society would we be if we did not take the harshest possible attitude towards the murderers of the most innocent.

Everybody's working for the weekend

2005-07-14T05:31:00.000-10:00

And you thought your day was bad? This photo was taken today during a raging sandstorm at the Pax (passenger) terminal at BIAP (Baghdad International Airport). Anyone wanna guess if I made it to Kirkuk or not?(Here's a hint, I didn't) Looking at this picture, I can't stop thinking of that Loverboy song.

Sorry not much time to post

2005-07-12T08:05:00.000-10:00

I am getting ready for the final push up to Kirkuk and I have little time. Hopefully after I get settled in at FOB Warrior, I 'll have a lot to say.

2005-07-12T08:03:00.000-10:00

Ben and Jerry's ain't got nothing on Baseem and Jaleel

2005-07-12T07:54:00.000-10:00

A view from Al Faw Palace

2005-07-12T07:47:00.000-10:00

A quiet night in Baghdad

2005-07-12T07:45:00.000-10:00

Caelestis in Al Faw palace. This is probably the nicest place I ahve ever been in here in Iraq.

2005-07-10T09:15:00.000-10:00

Thinking of Home

2005-07-10T09:13:00.000-10:00

Tactical chicken

2005-07-10T09:07:00.000-10:00

Damn it's good to be a gangster

My first banning

2005-07-09T16:26:00.000-10:00

It was a position I had to debate for quite a while and I'm sure it will only give the individual more cannon fodder, but they were being disruptive. This is my house, the rules are be nice to people and don't insult the host with ad hominem arguments or strawman bullshit. We can have heated debate at anytime and people's emotions can run rampant, hell even the best of us lose our cool. But, a line is crossed when you're only reason for coming here is to insult me, or try to say that my ideals aren't real or to promote your own hate filled agenda. I abhor censorship, but I felt this was neccessary

Our Coalition versus Theirs

2005-07-09T00:11:00.000-10:00

First of all I am in Baghdad in temporary quarters until I can get a flight up to Kirkuk. The best part is I am staying with some people I know and they have a dedicated internet connection in their set of trailers. Man I wish everyone had this! Now on to my thoughts.............

I was in the Corps DFAC this morning watching the news out of London when I looked around the DFAC and saw the most inspiring sight. In case people don't know Camp Victory is home to the MNC (Multi National Corps) Command structure, all nations of the coalition are represented here. I saw a grouping of people from the free world watching the coverage of the cowardly acts in London and there was anger on their faces. But what was truly amazing was how everyone was seated. American enlisted sat next to Polish officers, Korean NCOs and Australians sat together, Mongolians and Slovakians were together, as well as Albanians and Macedonians. I thought about last nights meal in the DFAC and I saw the same thing then too. The nations of the free world (those with the courage to stand and be counted) are so similar and so strong. Culturally we couldn't be more different, but the same ideals drive us and fill our hearts. All of us, Italian, Brit, American, Bulgarian, whatever country we are from, all of us would rather be with our families, but we are here at the front lines of freedom doing our duty. All of us have left our families to be here doing this noble thing. We are here to provide peace, and build schools, and cure children of life threatening ailments, we are here to bring justice to a people that dwelt in darkness, we are here for Iraq and for ourselves for when Iraq is free we are stronger and the terrorists are beaten. Every soldier and civilian of the Coalition is a force for good and human decency, our purpose is noble and just, compare and contrast that with the coalition of our enemies. They came to Baghdad and Kabul and London and Bali and New York they came to bring death and suffering and misery, they came to take the freedom that we have all shed blood to provide.

Their coalition is built upon the belief that all men and women are NOT created equally, that slavery is not only accepted but encouraged, especially if your slave is an infidel. Their beliefs are based on their interpretation of religious texts that they believe gives them permission to behead innocents, to kill women for the way they dress, and to attack children who receive candy from infidels. They rage against us and say we are committing holy war upon them, but which coalition quotes religion at every turn? Which coalition talks about peace and freedom and which one talks about destroying all infidels?

Our coalition values and respects life, we believe in the freedom of the individual to make his own way in life, to make mistakes and learn from them, they believe that certain mistakes must be punished by death. The Coalition of the West and its allies are a culture of life, love and freedom, the Coalition of Islamic Fascists is one of death, hate and oppression. Yet in their eyes our love of life and freedom is the very thing that makes us so hated, in their eyes our freedoms are tools of Satan, and we are the agents of Satan come to pollute the purity of what they believe Islamic culture should be. How twisted must one's mind be to believe that the freedom to make ones way in life is evil. What kind of god do they worship that believes killing innocents is acceptable and encouraged? What have they become to be so enraptured with death and hate?

In closing I want to say that the men and women of the coalition are a reflection of the free societies they represent. To the men and women of the Armed Forces

United Kingdom, Australia, Hungary, Slovakia, Estonia, Poland, Italy, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Georgia, Lithuania, Latvia, the Czech Republic, Japan, South Korea, Mongolia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Romania, El Salvador,(any country I have forgotten and of course the United States of America, you and the men and women of the Iraqi armed forces are the true face of freedom.

Calling all bloggers

2005-07-07T20:23:00.000-10:00

I am in the market for a skin for this blog, if anyone has any hints, tips, or would consider assisting me, I would be eternally grateful. Any help or guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Caelestis

Quick post

2005-07-04T17:43:00.000-10:00

I have arrived in Kuwait and I am awaiting a flight to my final destination. Thank each and everyone of you for your kind comments, it fills my heart with pride to see that many of my fellow Americans understand the stakes we are playing for. I forsee no reason why I won't be able to blog from Iraq, it will just be 3 or 4 days before I can get settled into the unit and actually have something to say. I also signed up for Picassa and bloggerbot so I think I'll have a few pictures to post soon. God bless each and everyone one of you and your families.

Caelestis

P.S. everyone have a happy 4th.

Happy 4th of July

2005-07-02T07:35:00.000-10:00

in case I don't have a chance to say it in the blogosphere due to internet restrictions in Kuwait. Happy 4th of July! To all American military personnel, past and present, you are what makes America free. Remember that and pray for all of our military personnel in action now. I will be back on as soon as possible, probably from Iraq itself.

Caelestis

Today I leave for the war

2005-07-02T07:23:00.000-10:00

Well it's time to go and do what I have been called to do. Today I head for to the war for the third time and I have some things to say. To me this is a blessing, a calling from God to do what I can to help our brave men and women in uniform. Also this post is for my family as some of them still don't understand why I am on my third trip to Iraq. First of all:

K, you have been the best sister a brother could ever have, you and I had some good fights when we were kids, but you were always there if I truly needed you. We don't see eye to eye on anything political, and you are one of those people calling for our troops to come home now. I love you, but you are wrong in this count, you have three boys and if we don't do this right, it will have to be done again and it could be your boys next time. When I'm in Iraq, I think about my three nephews and how I don't want to see them in DCU's in the next decade, I want to fight our enemies in their country until they either surrender or become so ineffective they aren't a threat to any of us. I don't want my nephews fighing a fight that I couldn't finish, I want them to go to college or play professional soccer, or be beach bums. However,if they choose to become soldiers I would be proud to be in the same chain that links all military personnel past present and future, the chain that holds America together. That being said I would prefer they not have to fight the war I have seen, I would prefer they not lose any friends like I have and I wish that they would never lose their innocence by having to kill another human being. War takes so much out of a person, it changes us in ways that are almost never positive and I would not want your boys to have to go through what I have. I hope one day you understand, that I don't do this for the money, that Bush is not Hitler, and that the people of Iraq deserve as much a chance at a better life as we were given. You and G and the boys will be on my mind the entire time I am in Kirkuk.

Mom, I was the baby of the family and I know you still view me as that little boy that wouldn't eat his green beans and only wanted peanut butter. I am still that little boy inside, but I am so much more now, I am a husband and a veteran, and now a successful man with my own family. I chose to go back to Iraq this time, because I believe in a better world. At 30 I am more of an idealist now than I was at 20, I believe one person can make a difference. I know you will worry about me the entire time I am gone, but you won't tell me how scared you are. I just wanted to say it's ok, I am on the path that brings me the greatest happiness. No matter what happens to me, I am doing what I believe is my destiny, I come from a family of warriors, your family and Dad's were all warriors, it's what they knew. I am a product of their collective service to nation, this isn't about adventure or money or some deathwish, it's about doing the right thing. The men and women and especially the children of Iraq are worth fighting for, when I see them I know that any sacrifice I can make is worth it. What kind of man would I be if I refused to help someone in need? How could I live my life knowing that someone was being tortured and I stood by and sipped my latte and refused to get off my ass? I don't know if you will ever understand what drives me Mom, just being able to help one Iraqi is worth my life. People on this planet are so hell bent on persecuting others, they are so concerned with appearing strong that they prey on the weak and the helpless. Mom, the people of Iraq were helpless and being crushed by a petty clone of Adolf Hitler, now they have hope where before they had none. Iraq is a mess, but it is a mess because freedom is messy, we had to fight a Civil War that nearly killed 500,000 of us just to make all men and women free. Iraq is already having to fight a soul searing conflict with itself to find itself. How could we abandon these people to this chaos? I will continue to support this cause until we win, we lose, or I am knocked out of commission. I cannot call myself a man and abandon the men, women and children of Iraq to brutal butchers, I've made my choice. You'll be in my heart everyday.

Dad, you are my hero, I don't know if I've ever told you that, but you are. You served in Vietnam and came back and made a life for yourself and your family. You did everything you could to provide for K and I, you worked extra hours to make sure we never went without. You never took sick time even though you were out in the elements everyday, you are the definition of what a man is, I hope one day I am half the man that you are. I think you understand what drives me and why I have to keep doing this job. When you were here in Hawaii to visit me and you told me you were proud of me was a moment I'll never forget. I can't let the people of Iraq suffer without doing something, I know I am only one person, but you were only one person and you did so many things in your life. I want to be like you, but I want to do so much more, I know I'm not going to "save the world", but everyday I can do a good deed, whether in Iraq or in Hawaii is a day that I feel like I have done my job as a man and an American. I know you understand!

Jan, my wife, my love, my life, this has got to be the hardest on you. This is the third time I have asked you to take a leap of faith and believe that no harm will come to me in Iraq. Three times I have left you and our puppies behind to pursue some quixotic belief that I can make the world a slightly better place. Three times I have left you behind to pay the bills, and manage the house and so many other things that no one should be forced to do by themselves. I have not been with you for 3 of our seven anniversary's because of my commitment to this. All I can say to you is thank you! I will always love you for your patience and your support of me and my ideals. I know that I make your life hard with these deployments, and for that I am sorry, I wish that it were easier to be away from you,but it's not. In fact, each deployment it gets harder and harder for me to say goodbye, I've lost friends now and had a few close calls myself, but I can't quit doing this. You know why, you more than anyone else understand why. You and I both believe it is our destiny to do whatever we can to make the world better. We are two tiny fish in the enormous universal ocean, but we both know one person can make a difference. When I am in Iraq I know you are in my heart at every moment and that our faith and love protects me. I firmly believe God has a plan for both of us, we are his instruments to do what we can to make the world better. So don't worry about me this time, I am doing what I was meant to do, and I have never been happier. So go and find my molly-molly and give her a scratch behind the ears.

For anyone that reads this; yes I am a 30 year old idealist, at 20 I was a cynic, but now I have a mission in life and a purpose. I found God, but I am far from a religious fanatic, I found a God that inspired me to do good deeds just for the sake of doing good. I can feel his prescence in everything around me, the sunset, the waves crashing on a Hawaiian beach and even in the evening breeze that is laced with plumeria. I would call myself a soldier of God, but not in any way that says he favors me or my cause. I am a soldier of our lord because I choose to serve the side of good, good is opening a door for a stranger, or helping your neighbor empty his trashcan, or going to Iraq because you want to help a people find their voice and feel what we feel when we think of our freedoms. The most fundamental question I ask myself everday is: If I have the chance to do good, even if there is a terrible price to pay, why wouldn't I? I wish more Americans would ask themselves this question, if you can do good, what on earth would stop you from following through?

Finally I just wanted to state one more time, Iraq is the whole bag of marbles, if our ideas win there, then militant islam will wither on the vine and eventually die. If we lose in Iraq, the world will become a much darker place where the evils of the past such as slavery and holy wars will become the norm. I ask the people of America this question; We are the last hope for this planet to realize its potential, the europeans are too weak to do it, what kind of world do we want for our children to live in? I made my choice, and now I leave to do what I believe is my duty. God bless my family, God bless our brave men and women in uniform, God bless all Americans and God bless America.

Caelestis

P.S. Love you my hummingbird

The Deployment Begins

2005-06-27T17:51:00.000-10:00

I have left Hawaii and I am TDY en route to Kuwait with a one week stopover in El Paso to attend CRC training, I will highlight the week's events.
CRC Day One:

Well 0400 comes mighty early and even after 10 years of this stuff, it still is quite a shock
to actually get up that early, the mind remembers but the body isn't in the mood to obey. The drive in to the fort was quiet and dark, it finally hit me, I actually did volunteer to go to Iraq for the third time. A quick formation and a short bus ride later and it was breakfast time Army style. Breakfast was the one meal I always enjoyed in the military, french toast, hard boiled eggs, juice, toast and fresh fruit, what's not to like. The portions are of a good size and best of all it's free, again what reason would someone have to complain. It seems hard to believe it was 10 years ago that I was a young E-1 calling out my last 4 of my SSN because the drills couldn't pronounce my last name, and yet here I am I have come full circle back to the beginning and yet not really the beginning. I have been around a little while now, and the young privates and specialists look like kids that should be at prom or on spring break, even the Lieutenants and Captains look so young and eager to do their duty. Robert E. Lee once commented that "it is good war is so horrible, or else men would grow to love it", I have seen the war twice now and upon my return from this trip I expect to hang up my campaign hat and enjoy a nice quiet life far from conflict and bloodshed. A piece of land by the beach, my wife, and my dogs and I would happily never return to war after this trip. Anyway let me get off my soapbox and continue to tell the average non military person what CRC is like.

Breakfast ends and we proceed to the SRP center to get briefing after briefing and reams of paperwork to fill out. After the paperwork we got the preventitive medicine briefing telling us what to eat and what not to eat in theater, as well as what the local flora and fauna wil do to us. During the briefing someone (a green suiter) apparently had a grand mal seizure, the local medical staff responded quickly and it appears he was ok as he was led away on a stretcher. Finally the briefings were over and it was time for some real fun.

Standing in line is an art form the military has taken to the extreme degree. We are always in a hurry to get somewhere to sit down and play an insane version of musical chairs. It appears the chairs are given to make comfort a possibility, but with the constant sitting half standing shuffle from one chair to another, I think this is an idea that needs to be re-thought. So it's a quick medical screening to determine your needs and then off to the shot room. The Army loves to give personnel vaccines whether they actually need them or not. I got off lucky this trip to the sandbox, I only needed three shots as well as a TB test. I closed out oy Hepatitis A and B shots and I am now good for the next 5 years, along with those two Typhoid was on the menu today. The typhoid shot actually burns a little when it goes in, not nearly as bad as anthrax but it is still irritating. Along with those shots I had blood drawn for HIV testing, G6 testing (to see if I am allergic to the current anti-malaria drug) and (add in later). So now that I have about 6 holes in my arms they decide it's time to get my eyes looked at to see if I am blind in a gas mask or not. Apparently the last two times I passed the vision test weren't enough, so we went through it again . Anyway I can apparently see without my glasses so I moved on to the next station, and for the first time today I actually hit a SNAFU. My blood sugar test I got done in Hawaii was processed incorrectly and I now need to go out and get another one. The trick will be to get it done in enough time to meet the deployment needs, as of right this minute I am undeployable until I fix this issue with my blood sugar. The good news is that I have until Saturday as I am not flying with the majority of the other personnel here. My company takes care of our travel and puts us on commercial flights on large carriers. This time I get Lufthansa (German Airline) and if I'm lucky I can use my skymiles to get an upgrade to business class, if not then the bulkhead seat will do just fine.

After the medical section it's on to Administrative issues, such as your Will, Power of Attorney, the Chapain's services, and other assorted bits of paperwork. A long wait to finalize these events and then it's off to First Aid training.

I'll give the Army credit, I went through Basic and AIT 10 years ago, and yet the medical training stayed with me. The first aid training was several blocks of instruction on different types of injuries and how to treat them. Each block of instruction was oncluded with a written test for the first few parts and then we had a hands on Practical exercise on Head injuries, sucking chest wounds and severe extremity wounds. Eeerily enough when it was time to apply the bandages, dressings and tourniquet, I remebered how to do it as if Drill Sgt Thompson was over my shoulder yelling at me. The Army knows how to train people, it's amazing what you remember from the dark recesses of your brain when memory kicks in. Anyway that's all for today, we have completed our training and as of right now we are in hurry up and wait mode, so we can find out when tommorrow's formation will be. Tommorrow looks just as insane, as we have to see the teeth doctors and the CIF people. That's all from Fort Bliss for now.

Caelestis out

Iran bets the farm on fraud

2005-06-21T11:37:00.000-10:00

I have to admit, I don't talk about Iran much as I am not very informed on the dynamics of the Iranian society, back when old SPEC 4 Caelestis was an intel analyst, I dealt primarily with the Arab states and North Korea. That aside, I have to say today's New York Post column by the always brilliant LTC(ret.) Ralph Peters is a grand slam. Registration is required to the post so I'll post the salient points.

The first round of Iran's presidential election was as phony as Howard Dean pretending to care about our troops.
On the other hand, Iran's doctored election results must have been inspiring to our domestic left. The fundamentalist Guardian Council in Tehran did what American intellectuals have dreamed about doing for decades. When the voters rejected them, the hard-liners changed the vote count.

The way it went down was as shameless as a Donald Trump bankruptcy. On election night, Hashemi Rafsanjani, an old fox trying a new approach, led the pack. The white-knight reform candidate, Mostafa Moin, ran second. A moderate, Mehdi Karroubi, placed third.

There wasn't a religious fascist within sight of the finish line. And the regime panicked. Pushing aside the Interior Ministry, which bore the responsibility for tallying the votes, the Revolutionary Guard jumped in to "help" count ballots. The fundamentalist Guardian Council announced the results before the counting was done.

With chutzpah worthy of a celebrity lawyer, the hardliners even inflated the number of voters by 10 percent

Are you paying attention Democrats, the Iranians apparently can outdo the formidable Chicago (Daly) machine, not only can they win elections, but they can create 10% more voters than actually exist. Take a note Howard Dean, a trip to Iran could be rewarding. Why would the Mad Mullahs risk such a blatant attempt to steal this election? Col. Peters goes on to explain why he thinks it happened.

The tough guys lost their nerve. A cleric himself (if a cynical one), Rafsanjani is the one man who could out-maneuver the entire Koran-thumping pack in the ruling theocracy. Old Hashemi may not be Iran's Thomas Jefferson, but he's a devilishly capable political operator who senses the pulse of the people better than Bill Clinton.

If elected president, Rafsanjani will do a Vladimir Putin, bribing the people with social freedoms and economic progress while consolidating his own political power at the expense of the old guard who tried to deal him out of the game.

Imagine that, frail old men, the leaders of a totalitarian state act like cowards when confronted with the chance for freedom for all. How many times in history have we seen this reaction from men whose only real power lies in the amount of terror their tyranny can dish out to the people? So where do we go from here? Again Col. Peters gives us the answer;

The good news is that the hardliners are still going to lose out unless they engage in electoral fraud at a level not seen since the Soviet collapse. If the hard-liners stuff so many ballot boxes that their utterly unpopular candidate "wins" the next round, they'll trigger a level of unrest unseen since the revolution that overthrew the shah.

Whether or not a big fix would result in immediate violence in the streets, the regime would be forever discredited in the eyes of the average citizen and the world (well, maybe not France).

One caution: don't expect an easy transition in Iran. The dying regime has a nasty core of supporters, just as Saddam did. But change is coming. The desperate vote rigging is likelier to hasten it than to delay it.

The hard-liners are going to pull out all the stops to elect their man in the run-off voter intimidation, bribes, phony ballots, miscounts and every other ruse they can think of. But in a paradoxical turn of events, pro-democracy Iranians now have a critical chance to make a difference.

To paraphrase my man W. Freedom is on the March, we might not see a modern secular democracy in Iran, but anytime the Mullahs lose power and social freedom improves, then the people of Iran are on the right track. Can you imagine an Iran that is on the path to democracy coupled with a democratic Iraq, a democratic Afghanistan and a democratic Lebanon? Put those together with the baby steps being taken in Egypt and Kuwait, and the other Gulf states, and very soon a pattern emerges. Before 9/11 none of this had come to pass, in less than 4 years 55 million Muslims have been freed from dictators and have established democracies (Afghanistan, Iraq and Lebanon), and a further 160 million Muslim (Egypt, Iran, Bahrain, Kuwait, Palestinian territories, Qatar, UAE, and Oman) are on the path to freedom if they can seize it for themselves. Imagine very soon, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will stand alone if the Muslim people of the previously mentioned countries can rise to the challenge and seize their destinies. Col. Peters ends the column with a bit of irony.

The gunslingers aren't really the two candidates who'll face each other, but one battle-scarred candidate Rafsanjani and Iran's Grand Poobah of Religious Doodoo, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who believes it's been all downhill since the seventh century. Khamenei's man, the mayor, can't win without massive fraud. If the regime declares him the winner after the next round, the transparent disregard for the people's voice will further weaken the regime, not strengthen it.

The rigging of the first-round vote was foolish on another count, too: lacking a choice, reform voters will flock to Rafsanjani. He'll become an even stronger president than he otherwise might have been.

It's a strange world, when we find ourselves rooting for one of the original "Death to America" boys to become Iran's next president. What's even stranger is that he may be the man who spells death to the rogue regime he helped create.

It will be interesting to watch Iran. The Mullahs short term need to appear powerful might actually reveal the weakness of their position and bring the whole rotten structure of theocratic Iran down. I hope the people of Iran have the bravery to kick in the door.

Milbloggers list

2005-06-21T10:57:00.000-10:00

Blackfive has a great list of military bloggers broken down by military branch, don't miss it, I found about ten blogs to add to my links list.

A poor 11 year old boy whose father had been killed in Iraq.....

2005-06-20T12:19:00.000-10:00

First off, let me apologize for the gap in posting, I'm leaving for CRC and then Iraq on Saturday so I have been trying to tie up all my loose ends and get some quality time with my wife and also my parents who have come to Hawaii to visit me.

So last week, I wrote about the antiwar crowd that disrupted the Cambridge, Massachusetts Army Birthday celebration. I wrote about how the son of SFC Paul R. Smith (Congressional Medal of Honor winner, posthumously) was booed by the crowd when he led the pledge of allegiance and I also wrote about how the towns deputy mayor was angered over the celebration of the Army's birthday.

It looks like the antiwar crowd just doesn't know when to shut up, apparently Joseph Gerson a man who was arrested at the event is as clueless as the rest of the protestors. Here's what he had to say:

The Army increasingly unable to recruit young women to kill and to be killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, had secretly planned another offensive. A Blackhawk helicopter, the Under Secretary of the Army, parachutists, and other military hullabaloo would descend on Cambridge Common, ostensibly to celebrate the Army's 230th anniversary. The piece de resistance would be the televised induction of new Army recruits in the Red Soxs Fenway Park. Maybe Leni Riefenstahl had risen from the dead to produce more military propaganda!

So apparently celebrating the Army's 230th birthday on its original muster field with a little bit of showmanship is Nazi propaganda. Maybe I'm stupid, but I would think that 230 years of continuity in service to the greatest nation in the world's history is a cause for celebration. Either the author is choosing to make the Nazi comparision out of ignorance or he is unaware of the significance of Cambridge Common in American history. But there's more ignorance to be read.

I found myself near the stage where the Secretary of the Army, a poor 11 year-old boy whose father was killed in Iraq, and others would be speaking. I stopped and stood with my protest sign. I wasn't blocking anything, but I could certainly be seen. Others saw and joined me with their peace signs. Then the first of several soldiers and police came ordered us to move.

Ok first off, what rock do you have to be hiding under to have never heard of Paul R. Smith or his wife and son? Reading this article that phrase in bold just stuck with me and to me embodies all that is wrong with the antiwar movement. They claim to support the troops wholeheartedly and yet one who is published on a site like Common Dreams and who actually attended this event is unaware of who David Smith is? I have a feeling that he was identified before he stood up to give the pledge and yet this author is so consumed by his delusions that he totally misses the identity of that young man? The antiwar crowd does not support the troops if they did, they would have known who David Smith is and they would have applauded his sacrifice, not booed him. Secondly Mr. Gerson, you were doing something wrong, I've been to protest rallies and police don't just order you to move for no reason whatsoever, so I'm gonna have to call BS on you here my man. Unfortunately this story didn't end with his arrest, apparently Mr. Gerson took the self righteous stance we have come to expect from the anti war crowd and decided to share his thoughts with the judge at his arraignment.

Meditating in my stuffy cell the statement I wanted to make to the judge came to me. In court, he refused to allow it leaving me little to do but to call out illegal war and Nuremburg.

Heres what I had planned to say:

1.If the President of Harvard has the right to graze his animals on Cambridge Common, a 30-year resident of the city has the right to walk there, even to carry a sign condemning an illegal war.

Fortunately the judge had a dose of common sense and decided not to humor this deranged fellow. But I'll respond to the charges. No one stopped you from carrying your sign Mr. Gerson, you have that right as an American, a right provided to you by the millions of American veterans and the current crop of heroes we have in our military services, especially SFC. Paul R. Smith. You were arrested Mr. Gerson for trying to upstage this event. Apparently you forgot to check out the Boston Globe story on your activities. According to them your crowd was near the stage disrupting the ceremony, so either the police, military and the Globe are lying or you are. Given your next statement I think we all know who is lying.

2. I went to protest an illegal war. As the Secretary General of the U.N. has recently reiterated, the invasion of Iraq was illegal. The Nuremberg Principles are clear: those who fight an illegal war are by definition war criminals, and silence is consent.

No offense Mr. Gerson but I don't care what Kofi "Kickback" Annan has to say about the war. For me and a majority of American citizens, our Congress and our President gave the war the only legality it needed: their approval. Also you are accusing nearly 1 million American citizens of being war criminals, that's how many men and women have served since the invasion began in March of 2003. Are you on favor of setting up a tribunal for all those men and women, or is this just another knee jerk anti Bush diatribe? How can you support the troops when you say that anyone who served in Iraq is a war criminal? Check this out Mr. Gerson starting in early July I'll be a 3 time participant in the war. am I a three time war criminal? I value my society, my country and the young men and women I am forutnate to serve beside, I don't use them as props for my own quixotic crusdae to "smash the state" while also accusing them of being war criminals. For shame Mr. Gerson.

3. I went to protest the cynical harvesting of our city's youth to serve as cannon fodder in a criminal war, which even senior Pentagon figures are now saying may never be won. We need to protect our children.

Protect them from what? Their own free will? I tell you what Mr. Gerson, I'll make a deal with you, no recruiters on campus if teenagers are prohibited from getting abortions (unless the mothers health is in danger or she was raped, and if abstinence is taught as the main form of birth control. Let's protect them from those things as well as the free will to choose to join the military.

4. I went to protest a military occupation of my home town which was to have had the pageantry of a fascist rally and which was organized in secret. We must protect what remains of our constitutional democracy.

The Army's birthday is not a military occupation, the fact that you can hate your country this much is provided by the statement that a celebration of freedom is fascism in disguise. Secondly the Army's birthday is never organized secretly. I don't know what planet you live on, but every year on June 14th, the Army celebrates its birthday, some years it's more low key, some years it's very festive and patriotic. Now for the third time in the same article you have compared our Army and its members to either Fascists, Nazis, or war criminals. And again I ask you, how on earth do you think you support the troops? People who call the celeration of the Army's birthday a fascist rally DO NOT SUPPORT THE TROOPS, people who call the men and women who have served in Iraq war criminals DO NOT SUPPORT THE TROOPS, and finally anyone who would dare to boo and harangue the son of a deceased Congressional Medal of Honor winner DOES NOT SUPPORT THE TROOPS. And yet the antiwar crowd wonder why most military members vote Republican?

5. We all need to do more to stop the killing. Civil disobedience is not the only way to protest, but people who oppose the war, oppose the harvesting of our young for the killing fields, and oppose the subversion of democracy must put more of our life energies into resisting. Signing Internet statements and turning out for vigils and demonstrations are necessary, as is lobbying our Congressional representatives to cut funding for the war. But, we must use our imaginations to find ways to do more if we are to become the political force that turns our nation around and provides real security for our and future generations.

Yes we do need to do more to stop the killing, 500,000 dead in Darfur, 1 million dead in North Korea in the last decade, and an unknown number of dead in Iran, you're right we do need to do more to stop them killing. Where is your outrage Mr. Gerson for the dead in these places. Where is NION and Moveon.org and the other colaitions against tyranny? When is the next rally in Central Park to denounce Kim jong Il or the leaders of the Janjaweed militias of Sudan? Why not fight real tyranny instead of hating your homeland, why haven't you been arrested for protesting genocide Mr. Gerson? Why are you a coward that boos children whose parents were killed in the service of freedom Mr. Gerson. Why?

Antiwar protestors mar Army's Birthday

2005-06-15T11:22:00.000-10:00

How low can antiwar protestors go? It seems that antiwar protestors really do hate the military if they didn't why protest at an Army birthday celebration? How bankrupt is the left when they act like this?

''They are just ignorant, and they don't know what they are doing," said Brigit Smith, whose husband, Sergeant First Class Paul Smith of Tampa, was killed in Iraq in April 2003. He was the first soldier awarded the Medal of Honor in the Iraq war for his courage in the Battle of Bagdad Airport. The couple's 11-year-old son, David, led the Pledge of Allegiance yesterday afternoon to a backdrop of boos and sneers.

Great this kid lost his father, a hero in every sense of the word and yet the protestors couldn't resist booing him during the pledge of allegiance. How did this even start?

What started as a peaceful march by more than 100 sign-waving antiwar demonstrators quickly heated up after a group of protesters refused to move away from the stage and onto a grassy area designated by police. After several warnings, police lined up shoulder to shoulder, shoving some members of the group back behind jersey barriers and arresting others who refused to budge.

''They didn't have to push me," said 70-year-old Judy Summersby. ''They kept saying 'We have our orders,' and one woman out there called me trash

Judy, if you are on the side of people who booed the child of a Congressional Medal of Honor Winner, trash is the nicest thing I would call you. Here's a hint Judy it rhymes with Craterous Rucking Pitch. But the stupidty wasn't just limited to Judy:

Aligned with the demonstrators was Councilor Marjorie Decker, who called the event a veiled attempt at captivating youngsters as the Army copes with recruitment woes.

Decker, who also serves as the city's vice mayor, said she was deeply suspicious of the Army's motives, adding that members of the City Council did not know the event was happening until last week. ''There was no communication in the City Council to decide if this was an appropriate time to hold a celebration," she said.

Hey Marjorie check this out But Cambridge Common was the site where 230 years ago many servicemen came together when the Continental Congress formally established the Army, organizers pointed out. On July 3, 1775, General George Washington arrived on Cambridge Common and took command of the newly formed Continental Army

So now the Army birthday celebrated on the same day every year is a nefarious attempt to brainwash children into serving? And the part in bold is my favorite. The anniversary of the creation of the United States Army where the United States Army first mustered at Cambridge is not an appropriate time to celebrate the Army's birthday?

WOW and this woman holds public office! Not to insult any Massachusetts republicans, but this is the same state that produced Michael "the unemotive gnome" Dukakis and the Very Haughty French Looking John Kerry who by the way served in Vietnam.

I tell you what folks, the antiwar crowd has done more to give sustenance to Al Qaeda than rich Saudis. Their behavior at this event shows their true repulsive goals.

Finishing up my Pre-Iraqi deployment stuff

2005-06-14T16:14:00.000-10:00

Very busy getting shots, seeing the dentist and trying to spend some time with family.

How blessed are we?

2005-06-08T21:32:00.000-10:00

How blessed are we as a nation that in this age of million dollar sports stars and selfishness, of crass hollywood stars and colleges that are hostile to the men and women in uniform that we continue to find heroes to fight this battle?

Some people say Randy Moss and other spoiled pampered rich sports stars are the face of America.

I think Sgt Paul smith and Sgt. Rafael Peralta are the real face of America.

These men and women don't get paid millions, they are away from their families for at least one year at a time and everyday they are in harm's way is a day they could die. Why do they do it and where do they come from? I believe they do it because they honestly believe in making the world a better place. This fight in Iraq is about the Iraqi people but it's about so much more than that. This fight I believe is about what kind of world we give to our children and grandchildren, will it be a world of hope and peace where all people have the freedom to live without fear or suffering, or will it be a world where violent struggles over pointless ideologies turn children into victims, women into property and men into animals? Those who wear the uniform of this country's military have taken a stand, a stand to do what's right and to do what is just. To be an American warrior today is to know that you will rarely see your family, rarely sleep in your home and rarely do the things 289 million other Americans take for granted. It means you will live in a foreign probably hostile land, that you likely face mortal combat against a cowardly foe that hides behind women and children and that you will lose people you care about. You will do all of this for not much more money than a teacher earns and you will do this while friends outside the military live normal sedentary lives. It's amazing that people still join given all those obstacles, but they do still join.

What could these people possibly see in risking one's very life in such a way? Some see a ticket to a better life through hard work and sacrifice which is the base of the American dream. Some see money for their college education to get out of the ghetto where they grew up, or the factory town where the factories are all gone or even the farm where heavy combat is cutting the south forty by lunchtime. Those of us who have served or continue to serve all did it for something that was personal to us. I also think a greater reason compels people to join, moreso today than at anytime since perhaps World War II. I have talked to dozens of soldiers and marines since my first tour in Iraq during the 03 invasion and many of the soldiers tell me they have a desire to serve their nation and to do what's right. To them doing what's right means to hunt down those who attacked us and their allies wherever in the world they hide, to them doing what's right means whenever possible helping oppressed people find their own voice and decide their own destiny free of murder, mayhem and despotism. Now 2 plus years after the Iraqi invasion and nearly 1700 dead Americans later and I still see that zeal in their eyes to do whatever is necessary to protect this nation and protect the infant Iraqi nation until it can fight its own enemies. They do what we ask, no matter the cost and they do it with a smile on their face, how blessed are we?

Bush not trying hard enough to be Hitler

2005-06-08T13:26:00.000-10:00

It seems that hardly a week goes by when some left-wing nutjob starts foaming at the mouth and accuses President Bush of being like Hitler or being worse than Hitler. Well being the student of history that I am I decided to do some research on this claim. My results will show that Bush is no Hitler, and if he wants to achieve maniacal dictator status he needs to get off his butt and really commit some genocide.

To make this as simple as possible, I'll be using some Wikipedia information to prove or disprove various points. The first charge people often hurl at Bush is that he stole his way into power with the 2000 and 2004 elections both being fraudulent elections. Well in case anyone cares to know Hitler achieved power in a far different way:

During the November 1932 elections the Nazis lost votes although they remained by far the largest party in the Reichstag. Since Papen had failed to secure a majority, Hindenburg dismissed him and appointed General Kurt von Schleicher, who promised he could secure a majority government by negotiations with both Social Democratic labor unions and the dissident Nazi faction led by Gregor Strasser.

Papen and Alfred Hugenberg (Chairman of the German National People's Party, the DNVP, which before the Nazis were Germany's principal right-wing party) conspired to persuade Hindenburg to appoint Hitler Chancellor in a coalition with the DNVP, promising they would be able to control him. When Schleicher was forced to admit failure in his efforts to form a coalition and asked Hindenburg for yet another Reichstag dissolution, Hindenburg fired him and appointed Hitler Chancellor, Papen Vice-Chancellor and Hugenberg Minister of Economics in a cabinet which included only three Nazis, Hitler, Goering and Wilhelm Frick. On January 30, 1933 Adolf Hitler was officially sworn in as Chancellor

So some feverish liberals draw a connection between Bush and Hitler with the selected not elected theme of 2000. Well that would be true except Bush won the electoral college vote which is the way we decide elections in America. It doesn't matter if Candidate A beats Candidate B by 10 million votes, if Candidate B wins 270 electoral votes he wins. If you don't like it, change the Constitution, and let me know how that goes.

A second charge hurled at Bush is that he is creating a police state and silencing his dissenters. Well here is the scorecard versus Herr Hitler in that regard.

After the Reichstag was set on fire (and the communists were blamed for it), the Reichstag Fire Decree suspended civil liberties. Subsequently, in the March 1933 elections the Nazis received 43.9% of the vote. The party gained control of a majority of seats in the Reichstag through a formal coalition with the DNVP. The Enabling Act, passed by the Reichstag after the Nazis expelled the Communist deputies, gave Hitler dictatorial authority. Under the Enabling Act the Nazi cabinet had the power to pass legislation just as the Reichstag did. The Act further specified that the cabinet could only approve measures submitted by the Chancellor (Hitler) and that it would lapse after four years time or upon the installation of a new government. The Enabling Act was dutifully renewed every four years, even during World War II.

A series of decrees followed soon after the passage of the Enabling Act. Other parties were suppressed and all opposition was banned. In only a few months Hitler had achieved authoritarian control. President Paul von Hindenburg died on August 2, 1934. Rather than have new presidential elections, Hitler's cabinet passed a law combining the offices of President and Chancellor, with Hitler holding both offices (including the President's decree powers) as "Leader and National Chancellor." This consolidation was claimed by the Nazis to be approved by the electorate in what was actually a show election (the outcome was 90% "approval") in mid-August 1934. Then, in an unprecedented step, Hitler ordered every member of the military to swear a personal oath of allegiance to him.

Let's make a checklist on this one, has Bush burned down the Congress? Unless Congress is now meeting on a movie set, then Congress still stands. Have civil liberties been suspended? Lots of liberals say they have, but I dare them to find one civil liberty that has been suspended. 9 times out of 10 they are pissed off at a Patriot Act that gives law enforcement the tools to fight the terrorists that many on the left sympathize with. Has Bush suppressed other political parties and outlawed dissent? Well Howard Dean is running around the country screaming like a fool and Ralph Nader wants to impeach Bush so you tell me on this one. As for the military having to swear an oath, apparently those Storm troopers have to swear one to the Constitution to uphold and defend it. So far Bush is doing a horrible Hitler impression.

Recently Bush has been accused of fostering hatred at home towards Muslims. But is this accurate in any way?

The SA, SS and Gestapo (secret state police) were given a free hand. Thousands disappeared into concentration camps. Many thousands more emigrated, including about half of Germany's Jews. Under the 1935 Nuremberg Laws, Jews lost their German citizenship and were expelled from government employment, the professions and most forms of economic activity. They were also subject to a barrage of hate propaganda. Few non-Jewish Germans objected to these steps. Restrictions were further tightened later, particularly after the 1938 anti-Jewish operation known as Kristallnacht. From 1941 Jews were required to wear a yellow star in public. Between November 1938 and September 1939 more than 180,000 Jews fled Germany and the Nazis seized whatever property they left behind.

Can someone find me the number of Americans of Muslim descent that have disappeared into American concentration camps? When did we start stripping Muslim-Americans of their citizenship, taking away their jobs or subjecting them to state sponsored hatred? I guess I miss this stuff on a daily basis, I miss all of this as well as the green crescent moon we make all Muslims wear. Seriously people, so far we haven't found one instance in which Bush even resembles Hitler. All this counter evidence and still the loony left screams out that we are sheep and we are living in Bush's Reich.

Finally let's look at the Holocaust, apparently Guantanamo Bay a camp run to incarcerate the enemies of America is akin to a concentration camp. Apparently a few hundred terrorists are morally equivalent to 11million Europeans. Only liberals could even try to say that Bush and Hitler are similar in this regard. What does the record say?

Between 1942 and 1945 the SS, assisted by collaborationist governments and recruits from occupied countries, systematically killed approximately 11 million people(6 million of whom were Jews)in concentration camps, ghettos and mass executions, or through less systematic methods elsewhere. Besides being gassed to death, many also died of starvation and disease while working as slave laborers. Along with Jews, alleged communists or political opposition, homosexuals, dissenting Roman Catholics and Protestants, Roma, the physically handicapped and mentally retarded, Soviet prisoners of war, the Polish intelligentsia, Jehovah's Witnesses, anti-Nazi clergy, trade unionists, and psychiatric patients were killed. The industrial-scale genocide of Jews in Europe during this period is referred to as the Holocaust.

So in 4 years the Nazis killed 11 million people. 11,000,000, look at the number, 11,000,000 men women and children, in four years. September 11, 2005 is the fourth anniversary of 9/11 and Americas war on terrorism. According to some organizations Bush has killed 30,000 people in Afghanistan and 100,000 people in Iraq (Both numbers are complete bullshit but people buy into it because it validates their tin foil hat theories)so that makes 130,000 if leftists are to be believed. Bush has exactly 90 days to kill 10,870,00 people to be like Hitler. So let's have fun with math. In 90 days Bush has to order the deaths of 120,777 people a day everyday for the next 90 days. I guess Bush is going to have to break out the nuclear weapons isn't he? Bush is failing miserably at industrial genocide.

I have reviewed the facts and Bush gets failing marks in all areas when compared directly to Adolf Hitler.

Seized power like Hitler: F Bush failed because he won the electoral college in 2000 and won both the electoral college and the popular vote(By a lot) in 2004.

Creating a Police State: F Bush fails in this regard as not one civil liberty has been curtailed, he hasn't even burned down congress yet or made the military swear allegiance to him. What a pathetic excuse for a Fascist.

Fostering hatred towards a scapegoat minority: F Not only is bush refusing to foster hatred towards Muslims, he's reaching out to them. He's not imprisoning them, he's not deporting them or seizing their homes. A total failure in this regard.

Conducting Industrial Genocide: F Bush is the biggest failure in this regard. Hitler killed 11 million in 4 years, Bush has barely killed 1% of that number, if he has even killed that many. If there was a worse grade than an F, I would give it to George W. Bush in this category.

Bush is a horrible failure at being like Hitler, you would think leftists who pride themselves on being smarter than us conservatives would want to be accurate with such a charge. It's not like they are trying to demonize our president are they?

For anyone with a broken sarcasm meter, I am very happy MY PRESIDENT in no way resembles Adolf Hitler

Global warming quest abandoned due to Snow

2005-06-03T12:02:00.000-10:00

Apparently two global warming activists were trying to cross the Arctic Ocean to bring attention to evil dangers that are associated with global warming. Apparently they had to scrap the idea due to Unexpectedly Heavy Snow Storms and Ununsual Ice conditions in June. I promise I'm not making this up, in fact I couldn't script this stuff better.

Just remember kids Global Warming kills with cold.

Defense Contractors: Proud Patriots or Scum of Fortune?

2005-06-01T18:22:00.000-10:00

First off let me say that I am going to keep this as civil as possible, but I am a little ticked off.

Apparently leaving the military and serving as a contractor in Iraq means you aren't serving your country and in fact you are a bloodsucking Judas only working for your 30 pieces of silver. Well at least that's what IRR soldier thinks of yours truly (At least he said this was his homepage, but who knows the internet is full of cowards). This started when I was conversing with a third blogger about some things he had posted I disagreed with. I believed he and I were having a civil discourse in his comments section, when The counter recruiter chimed into our conversation. Apparently, I am only in Iraq for the money, I don't love my country, I don't respect the Constitution, and I'm not a patriot. I also learned that I love to profit off of human misery and suffering and I enjoy a perpetual state of war. Finally I apparently do not deserve any body armor when I go to Iraq, and I am a disgrace. This guy sure figured me out without knowing one thing about me or the motives behind my going to Iraq. I wish this guy would stop bottling it in and tell me what he really thinks of me or get a job with the Psychic Friends Network, whichever he thinks is best.

Well Counter Recruiter, let's discuss what I have to do to get my 30 pieces of silver. First of all I have to get all the shots the soldiers get, to include smallpox, anthrax and all the other fun germs pumped into my body. I am subject to CRC training which includes Convoy training, Mine clearing, reacting under fire, UXO marking and disposal, and a host of other training deploying soldiers receive. That is nothing compared to what the men and women of Iraq are going through, but for someone that is motivated by greed, where's the payback? After I complete the CRC training I fly to Kuwait, and then into Iraq. I travel in convoys just like the soldiers do, sometimes a few times a day to different remote FOB's to do my job. Here's the kicker Counter Recruiter, I am unarmed, at all times. Due to my Geneva Convention status I am not allowed to carry a weapon. Does that make me better or more a person than soldiers? OF COURSE NOT, but a greedy person must also be crazy to roll through Iraq like that. I'm pretty sure you have never been to Iraq counter recruiter, or else you would not be so critical of someone that has.

I mention to people that this is my third time, not to get sympathy, but out of pride. I am proud of what I do, I have been doing it for 5 years now, well before 9/11, so your claim I do this job for profit and perpetual war rings false. I do this because I love my country. I love soldiers, they are the finest men and women I have ever known. I am proud to serve with them in ANY CAPACITY. If I was cooking the food for them, I would be just as inspired by them as I am now. The money is nice, I am nothing but honest, but I go because of them. Everyday they get out there and they protect OUR freedoms, that's right, yours and mine. They protect our freedoms and they fight our enemies. EVERY SINGLE GODDAMN DAY! They get out there and they fight, they miss their wives, and their children and their parents, but they do their duty. They do more than we expect with less than we give them to do it. And people like you are a germ on our society, you are entitled to free speech but they provide it, sites like yours disgust me. You apparently take great delight in the current recruitment problem, you who claim to be a veteran, someone who defended freedom are now working to deny the freedom to our military recruiters to recruit on school campuses. What kind of dirtbag serves his nation and then helps the enemies of that nation to cripple the military recruiters trying to do their duty?

You questioned my patriotism without even knowing me, you know nothing about me and yet you judged me. Well I now know a lot about you by your attack on a fellow veteran. I am a patriot, I serve because I believe, I believe in a world made better by the good deeds of a good nation, I believe our actions in Iraq represent pure nobility of purpose, something I daresay you could never understand. I believe in a better world than we have ever seen before, where all lovers of freedom are free to live and worship as they wish. I believe in a world free of the theocratic fascism of militant Islam, I am willing to go to Iraq once a year until that goal is achieved. I believe in the Iraqi people's future, a future where they are free of tyranny and terror. And finally I believe in America as a good nation of good people trying to do good things for people elsewhere. A wise man once said if you have the power to change the world and do good, why on earth would you not do?

IRR soldier, I know my worth and I know the worth of my fellow contractors. The actual soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines are the heroes of our struggle in Iraq, they along with the Iraqi people are to be held in the highest regard. I am just an ordinary man doing my part to be 10% as heroic as they are. I know I am a patriot and I know I love my country. Forgive me if I feel the same about you as you feel about me.

Freedom isn't free IRR soldier, if you cared, you'd be defending it in Iraq instead of trying to tear down our recruiters.

So for all the readers of this post please sound off and tell me if you think contractors are serving proudly or not.

Caelestis

2005-05-28T13:30:00.000-10:00

They sacrifice so we can be free

This former soldier has something in his eye

2005-05-26T10:46:00.000-10:00

Excuse me while I wipe some liquid from my eyes.

For Love and Country

June 25th

2005-05-25T15:59:00.000-10:00

Well that's the day I leave for a little bit of CRC training. And then I'll be celebrating Independence Day in the Middle East, how appropriate. From then on this blog will be titled The Makaha Surf Report (Forward Deployed). Until then I'll be posting about anything I think of, after that date, I'll be focusing directly on events directly related to the AOR.

Congress to let military do its job

2005-05-25T14:55:00.000-10:00

Well, well, well, it seems those good idea fairies that masquerade as our legislative branch finally got one right. The GOP-controlled House decided Wednesday to let the Pentagon continue deciding military jobs for women, as long as defense officials give Congress advance word on any changes.

Now I'm a die hard conservative, but I was furious that Congress was going to butt in and decide what jobs women could and could not do. I was worried for a split second that the GOP had given in to reverse feminism, in other words that Republicans had decided to ignore the sacrifices of thousands of young women in our armed forces. I'm probably one of the few veterans that favor women being able to be on the front lines, and my reason has nothing to do with feminism or some asinine liberal PC scheme. I have been to Iraq twice, I have been fired at by insurgents and I have seen men and women equally perform above and beyond their rank, age or gender. How dare Congress try and tell the military where it can and can't assign its people. Last time I checked Congress was not in charge of the day to day functions of the United States military nor was Congress in charge of PERSCOM. I think women in our armed forces have earned the right to man a .50 cal on a convoy or be a combat medic on a patrol and anyone that disagrees needs to pick up a rifle and take their place.

Don't get me wrong, I was in the Army and I don't believe the military should be used as a laboratory for social engineering on gender equality, but at the same time I don't believe that the sacrifices made in war should only be made by those with a Y chromosome. Our nation is 229 year old this July, what better gift can we give to ourselves than a country where both the men and women are not only willing but ABLE to shed blood in the defense of freedom and the pursuit of the American ideal of Liberty and Justice for all.

Sorry for the lack of posts

2005-05-24T16:56:00.000-10:00

This prep for my deployment to Iraq is taking up almost all my time. As soon as it's done I hope to have a normal scheldule again

Howard Dean on Russert on Sunday

2005-05-20T12:28:00.000-10:00

Howard Dean is going to be on Meet the Press Sunday. Can the Democratic party sink any lower than they have with this buffoon? In case you forgot, here is his greatest hit.

Dean Scream (remix)

A Picture is worth a Thousand Words

2005-05-17T12:12:00.000-10:00

This is the Girls Softball team in Baghdad celebrating their victory over a team from Diwaniay. The sacrifices of American soldiers and families in partnership with the Iraqi people made this possible. These girls can celebrate a softball game today instead of hoping Uday or Qusay Hussein don't spot them on the street and decide to rape them or kill them. These girls aren't wear burqa's, they are wearing uniforms of a game they obviously enjoy playing, a game Saddam outlawed as an American Imperialist tool. For me this one picture speaks volumes about the good that has been done in Iraq. It's such a small thing, girls playing softball, but to me it means hope. Tell everyone you know about this, pictures like this are being kept from the American people by a media establishment that seeks to denigrate everything we have sacrificed in Iraq and everything good and decent we stand for.

Hat Tip to Ferid the Great

According to my IPOD

2005-05-17T11:27:00.000-10:00

The top 25 songs I have listened to this month are the following:

25. Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order
24. Chop suey by System of a Down
23. In the Burning by Something Like Silas
22. Breathe by Re:Zound
21. Sueno by Shakira
20. Hands Down by Dashboard Confessional
19. Temptation by New Order
18. Ya Shosla S Uma by T.A.t.u.
17. Enjoy the Silence by Depeche Mode
16. Yay by Nancy Ajram (Lebanese singer)
15. The Quiet Things no one ever knows by Brand New
14. Phoenix with a Heartache by Kids in the Way
13. The Canyon Behind her by Dredg
12. Crawling by Linkin Park
11. Bloodflowers by The Cure
10. Shadow on Me by Project 86
09. From Within by The Chemistry
08. Paperthin Hymn by Anberlin
07. The Story of Our Lives by The Echoing Green
06. Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwo`ole
05. Bug Eyes by Dredg
04. Breakaway by Kelly Clarkson (Bite me if you are laughing)
03. Hero by Superchick
02. Under Pressure by My Chemical Romance (Queen Remake)
01. I'll tell the World by Ever Stays Red

Yeah I know

2005-05-17T11:19:00.000-10:00

I'm not getting as much posting done as I would like, but to quote my man G.W., getting ready to deploy to Iraq is hard work. Hopefully I'll have more time when all this paperwork and other crap is done.

Deploying as a Contractor

2005-05-13T20:33:00.000-10:00

Since I am leaving for Iraq in less than 60 days, I thought I'd talk about what it takes for a contractor to deploy. In a lot of ways it's like a SRP for soldiers, plus some added benefits and challenges. First of all, since I am not in the military I need a Visa for the country I am flying into before I stay in Iraq. In this case I need a Kuwaiti visa, so off my passport goes to the Kuwaiti embassy in D.C. Then I need to draw any needed gear from CIF (Central Issuance Facility) on whatever post I am working on. Usually we get brand new stuff straight out of the plastic. In one way it's ironic that when I was a soldier I got the oldest rattiest TA-50 known to man, but now as a contractor I get brand new stuff. Definitely a lesson in there about priorities of some people in the military hierarchy. I get a full draw of equipment, sleeping bag, Rucksack, JLIST suits, E-Tool, you name it they give it to us, and we also get a few extras. The best or worst part depending on your feelings about military spending are I get to keep a lot of this stuff. I've been to Iraq twice and I own 3 rucksacks, a full sleeping bag kit, an e-tool, and some other things I'd rather not mention on the net. (Let's just say I can see in the dark, I tried to return the item, but was told it was to be kept in case I went back) I get everything except for Body Armor which I get from my company and then a set of military issue when I get to Kuwait, it looks a little something like this.

Anyway back to predeployment, I then get to receive a bunch of vaccinations, that's right I keep a shot record just like a military person does. Hep A, Hep B, Smallpox, Anthrax (when they were giving it) you name it, I get it. I go to an SRP just like the soldiers do, I get a power of attorney, I can make a will, I get shot and bloodwork, and then I get to begin packing my gear. We don't wear uniforms in Iraq, we wear civilian clothes, so choosing th right wardrobe is quite a task. Do I pack music group tshirts and jeans, or do I go with straight white cotton T's and khakis. Well here are two examples of the way I dress in Iraq. Here I am in one of Saddam's palace in Tikrit

and here I am pimping with two of my friends in the Kuwaiti desert before our convoy north into Iraq.

So I start packing and then I ask my company for a cash advance, mostly this is used to buy things that are desperately needed in Iraq such as laptops, MP3 players and anything else to fight off the boredom that comes with living on a FOB. So by now my passport has returned with the Kuwaiti visa in it and it's time to leave.

Say goodbye to my wife at the airport and then begin the 24 hour saga of trying to get from the U.s. to Kuwait. I board the plane and I wake up at Camp wolf or Camp wolverine or whatever the hell mammalian name they are calling it these days. I get picked up by my company's site lead in Kuwait, and taken to a luxury apartment the company rents until I can catch a C-130 from the APOD into Baghdad or Kirkuk or Balad or wherever. The apartment looks like this

So now I get my promask from Camp Doha, pick up any last minute hajivision movies in town and then it's time to get onto that steel bird to take me to freakytown for 3 months. And that's how a contractor deploys. As I get closer to my deployment date, I'll tell you about what I do once I get to the FOB.

My take on Iraq

2005-05-11T14:36:00.000-10:00

As many of you may or may not know, I am a former Intelligence Analyst for the Army. I never really thought to actually give my analysis because it seems so many people out there are already giving theirs. After some thinking, I decided to throw my hat in the ring and offer my analysis on current hot spots in the world. No one can toot your horn better than you can yourself, so without further ado.

Since January 30th and the historic election in Iraq, the insurgency seems to have split into three groups all with different ideas of how to achieve success at the tactical and strategic level.

The first group is made up former Baathists and officers from Saddam's Republican guard forces. I'm not sure what to make of these people, it seems that since the election they have taken a wait and see attitude with regards to continuing their fight with Coalition forces. Their main operating bases seem to be north of Baghdad, mainly in the Taji, Baqubah, Tikrit triangle. Their main weapon was the IED and they rarely attacked Iraqi civilians or Iraqi security forces, it seems that American military forces were their main target. However, the election seems to have taken the wind out of their sails as attacks in the before mentioned area are down noticeably since the elections. If I ventured a guess, I would say these guys are waiting to see how the new Government decides to treat former Baathists and Middle Ranking Republican guard officers. If the Jafaari Government is lenient towards these individuals, I expect they will lay down their arms and side with the new govt. In fact I would say they would be very effective at countering Zarqawi's forces.

The second group is made up of common criminals, gangsters, and other nihilistic types in Iraqi society. These are the people doing most of the kidnappings that don't result in loss of head from body. They are in it for the money, or the violence, or the power, take your pick, they truly are not much better than gang bangers here in the states. They see an opportunity and they take it, they'll attack us, Iraqi forces or Iraqi civilians, to them it doesn't matter what anyone is fighting for or against, as long as they are getting paid or they get street cred, they could care less. Unfortunately they are also the most irritating to fight against as one day they are giving you tips on some real dirtbags Al Qaeda types and the next day they are shooting 82mm into your FOB because the said Al Qaeda dirtbags gave them 50 bucks and some smokes. Truly these guys piss me off, but they will exist long after we leave, the trick is to learn when to pay attention to them and when to ignore them.

Finally we come to the real scum of humanity in Iraq, the Zarqawi network, foreign jihadis, and other assorted trash that kills "supposedly" in the name of God. These are who we are most commonly engaging, especially in Al anbar province, Baghdad, and Mosul. These are the foot soldiers of Zarqawi, they attack who he tells them to, when he tells them to. These are the ones massacring Iraqi soldiers on leave, the ones blowing up women and children when they come out to visit American soldiers on patrol, and the ones that videotaped the beheading of Nick Berg and others. These men are evil, there are no two ways about it, they commit murder because they delusionally think God tells them it is ok. Originally it was ok to kill infidels, and then it changed to collaborators, and recently apparently anyone that believes in a free Iraq is a target to these dirtbags. When these clowns are chased out of Iraq, Al Qaeda will be finished, let me explain why.

It appears that recent Coalition operations are aimed at strangling the Euphrates river valley supply network that has been keeping the insurgency alive and kicking. The Marines actions in western Iraq are aimed at denying supply, rest and refitting bases to the insurgents. In the past, after a battle like Fallujah the insurgents could retreat to Al Qaim or Husaybah or even cross over into Syria and rest reorganize and even recruit new members. Operation Matador seems intent on denying them this while at the same time inflicting as many casualties as possible on the insurgent forces. The joint Army/Marine operation appears to be rolling up the Euphrates valley that the insurgents have been using as a highway, it also appears to be convincing the insurgents to meet us force on force where they are sure to lose and lose big. So far it appears that at the loss of less than 10 Marines, over 150 insurgents have been killed and dozens more captured. The two questions that I will look forward to answering a few weeks from now are: Did this operation put a serious stranglehold on Zarqawi's forces and their ability to operate in Western Iraq? and Does the Iraqi public in Al Anbar province take this as further proof that we are there as protectors and rebuilders and Zarqawi's people are there only to destroy and cause misery?

I for one hope that the answers are yes, time will tell the tale.

DU says Al Qaeda does not exist.

2005-05-11T13:57:00.000-10:00

Good afternoon loyal readers, my latest expedition to Democratic Underground has uncovered the greatest conspiracy theory of all time. And that conspiracy is Al Qaeda does not exist! That's right folks, Al Qaeda is not real, they are a Bush/Rovian concoction they do not exist. The paranoid moonbats over at DU have outdone themselves this time, I mean this one takes the cake. The world's most dangerous terrorist organization is not real in the minds of the fevered leftists that call that site their home. Think about what that means, apparently 9/11 was staged by someone other than Al Qaeda since Al Qaeda does not exist, apparently Zarqawi is not real since he is part of a terror group that is pure fiction. And apparently Osama bin Laden is really a kindly old grandfather that is a scapegoat for imperialist American foreign policy. I have only one thing to say about all of that. Holy Freaking Shit Batman, how many bong hits do you have to take to come to the conclusion Al Qaeda is not real? How insane and demented do you to have to be to come to these conclusions? . On the other hand, these are the same people that think Bush stole the election, that the very French looking John Kerry is a war hero and that Bill Clinton did not stain the Oval Office with his shenanigans. So you think old Caelestis is lying to you? Well go read this if you think I'm pulling your leg.

A lot of times when I'm cleaning off the slime and muck from my visit to DU, I take the time to actually reread the comments that come out of their mouths. It provides for an interesting experience in altered states of reality, I mean how crazy do you have to be to be happy that Pat Tilman died, or to actually rationally conclude Al Qaeda is a myth? Ponder that question for a minute while you check out these quotes:

ElsewheresDaughter:(Al Qaeda is) on the bushco payroll

dbeach: All CIA Duh..thanx for polling 9/11/01 to 4/11/04 = 911 days, its all black ops so the Nazis could slowly rise to power and complete the coup which began 11/22/63 and on to 11/00 to 9/11/01 to 11/02/04 to 5/10/05 when Real IDs passed..the US Constitution and Bill of Rights are gone..

Fredrik: Yes, the "terror cells"... That was always complete bullshit. Be afraid, very afraid

oblivious: It's an administrative convenience

carnie_sf : A republican front that's trotted out whenever the administration needs to scare the populace into submission

Jara sang: CIA no question about it.

yella_dawg: A real terrorist organization that was organized, trained, and funded by the US with the original goal of sabotaging the Russian effort in Afghanistan, and later used to execute "constructive" violence in the Mid East. Osama met with CIA higher-ups only a few months prior to 9-11. A documented cash transfer, in the same time frame, from CIA to the terrorists, via Pakistani intelligence emphasizes this connection. Al CIA-da is the more proper spelling.

sloppyliberal : Al Qaeda - Allegedly involved in US embassy attacks in 1998. Allegedly involved in the attack on the USS Cole. Alleged to have carried out group of hijackings 9/11. No claims of responsibility. Its just simply not the MO of a terrorist organization.

So from the mouths of idiots we get that Bush is behind Al Qaeda, when I go to DU, I never know whether to laugh at the level of insanity that passes for rational thought there, or whether to cry that so many of my fellow Americans are so deluded and so hateful towards their own country. It's really tragic that so many people hate our soldiers, hate our President and hate our country. I hope one day they understand that America is the good guy. I sincerely hope they realize that most basic of truths.

Once more unto the breach

2005-05-07T13:44:00.000-10:00

Well, apparently "ask and you shall receive" means God is listening to me. On Thursday night my wife and I went out to a dinner party with some friends and on the drive home I was talking about my hopes for the Iraqi people. My wife asked me if I would ever want to return ( FYI: I have been to Iraq twice for my job as a defense contractor), I told her yes, and she asked me why. Why would I want to go back somewhere fraught with so much danger and uncertainty?

Well probably because I believe in the mission that we are committed to over there. I believe an Iraqi has just as much right to a better life as I do. I believe as an American it is my duty to help others whenever I can. That doesn't mean we as a nation should go forth and "slay every monster" that exists in the world, but if we can do something why shouldn't we? I post on a lot of forums including Sean Hannity's website and Protest Warrior and I get into a lot of arguments with my fellow conservatives, usually libertarians, about the role the United States should play in the world. Many libertarians are isolationists or at best non-interventionists, while I definitely fall into the Neoconservative camp, needless to say we cannot stand each other and arguments are always breaking out at these forums.

I was there in 2003 for the invasion of Iraq, I was attached to the 4th Infantry Division as an ASAS contractor. The ASAS is a product that the company I work for supports. In the garrison enviroment we work with the soldiers on a daily basis, in essence we become an extra member of the S-2 section, we go with them to the field, we attend NTC and JRTC rotations and provide around the clock technical support. In a wartime enviroment, we deploy directly with them, we are issued all of the basic load that a soldier has, except we wear no uniforms. We are not armed due to our Geneva convention status, but we do have all the protective gear to include body armor (the new stuff is fantastic) and Pro-mask. Anyway I deployed with 4th ID to Iraq and spent several months in Tikrit, Iraq doing my job. It was a very worthwhile mission and it made me proud to be an American. The Iraqi people are beautiful and are worthy of our friendship and our aid.

I returned to Iraq in March of 2004, this time to Ramadi Iraq to support the 1st Brigade of the 1st Infantry Division that was working at supressing the insurgency in Al anbar province in joint operations with the 1st MARDIV. The second trip was definitely a different animal than the first trip over, daily indirect fire attacks combined with the huge insurgent offensive in early april made for a few sphincter clenching moments. A few of those mortar and rocket shots landed closeby, with once even hitting the building I was living in. Needless to say Al anbar was a mess. I returned from there last summer and I asked my company to transfer me from Texas to Hawaii. I got the transfer and now my wife and I have settled into our life here in Hawaii. Until Friday morning that is.

My boss called me friday morning and said he needed someone to go to Iraq in 60 days. I asked where and he said Kirkuk, supporting the 116th Armored Brigade, a National Guard formation out of Idaho. I didn't hesitate to say yes, I would go. Imagine that, the night before, I was telling my wife I wanted to go back and friday morning I got my wish. I'll say one thing for God, for some reason he listens to what I have to say. I'm not so sure if that is good or bad. Anyway, I got home and told my wife yesterday I was going back in July. She was upset, but he is also an Army veteran, so she knows the score. She did ask me why, and this is what I told her:

I'm going back because I believe in the mission, it is my duty as an American to do what little I can to make the world a better place. I'm not doing it for the extra money, although that does help, I'm not doing it because I love war, in fact I hate war. It kills too many of the best and innocent, but it is a neccessary evil. I'm willing to go back, because I think the children of Iraq deserve the same chance at a better life that I was given. I know that mistakes have been made and that we as Americans have accidentally killed innocents, but I also know that the Iraqi people are better off than they were under Saddam. I have seen that country with my own eyes on two seperate occasions exactly one year apart, I saw destruction and fear the first time, optimism and hope the second time. I can't wait to see what is going on this time.

I also believe it my duty as a Christian to do what I can to change the world for the better. Christian, Muslim, Jew, it doesn't matter to me, we are all God's children and he loves each and everyone one of us equally. I don't want to be 40 and realize I did nothing with my life to make a difference. This is my chance to say I stood up to be counted, I defended the freedom of my country and helped the establishment of it in another country. The people of the middle east deserve freedom, all of them, I am willing to help them achieve it. I have lost friends in this war and seen people I know die right in front of me and I still think this war is worth it.

So in July, I will return for a third time and do my duty. I intend to blog from Kirkuk and give the ground truth that is coming from that area. Anyway that's all for now.

Waves of change part 1

2005-05-03T15:40:00.000-10:00

There are those who think Iraq and Afghanistan are worse off now than before their totalitarian governments were overthrown by U.S. and Coalition forces. To these doubting liberals I offer the following stories: I will look to post a list like this about once a week or once every two weeks at the latest. So grab a drink, relax in your chair and check out these waves brah.

Afghanistan

Afghan religious leaders call for end to ethnic strife

HERAT, April 9 (Pajhwok Afghan News) -- Following three days of discussions, some 150 provincial Ulema Council leaders or Islamic Religious scholars, agreed to put an end to racial, tribal and factional discriminations, which were the root causes of many of the factional fighting under the leadership of the Taliban and the Mujahideen, officials said at a seminar.

Afghan girls do it for the kicks

KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – From the corner of a Kabul basement, next door to a barber shop, come high-pitched and most unusual sounds. A small posse of Afghan girls shout "heey-ya!" as they practice karate jabs, kicks, and punches.
The eldest of the bunch, Nargas Rahimi, returned to her Afghan homeland last year after growing up in Iran. "I saw that Afghan women didn't have the faintest idea about exercise. So I came here to act as an example for Afghan girls and to help them take part in Afghan society," she says.

In Afghanistan, comedians joke their way to civic renewal

KHOST, AFGHANISTAN – Mubariz Bidar would give Robin Williams a run for his money. He's an Afghan comic who has this city - once ruled by severe Taliban - howling at their former oppressors.
His spot-on impressions of everyone from a Taliban soldier to an Afghan drug addict would have even Mullah Omar giggling into his turban.

Burqa no barrier for women in Taliban heartland

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan - She can’t leave the house without an all-covering blue burqa, many of her relatives are scandalised, but Shahida Hussain is preparing to stand for parliament anyway.
The 50-year-old women’s rights activist who lives in the Taleban spiritual heartland of Afghanistan is one of at least two women in the southern city of Kandahar who are preparing to stand for elections in Afghanistan’s parliamentary polls on September 18.

Persian New Year puts aside differences

MAZAR-E SHARIF, Afghanistan -- "Looking at the audience, I see that you are all Kandaharis," the singer said into the microphone as he surveyed a sea of heads sporting the sparkly caps and long-tailed turbans common to that southern city. "But my Pashto is not strong, so I hope you will enjoy our music in Dari." The tourists crowded into the Ahmadi Supermarket and Restaurant applauded encouragingly.This northern city might seem an odd destination for travelers from Kandahar, which, after all, is the ethnic Pashtun stronghold where the repressive Taliban movement originated. Mazar-e Sharif, a city dominated by ethnic Uzbeks and Tajiks, was one of the last holdouts against the Taliban.

Karzai seeks ban on forced marriages

Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday called on the country’s Islamic clerics to help stop forced marriages of young girls. At a religious gathering in Kabul, Karzai urged Afghan scholars to follow the lead of Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah al-Sheikh, who earlier this month termed forced marriages un-Islamic and said violators should be jailed.

That's all for now, next week we shall check out the waves from Iraq, I bet those buggahs will be huge.

Who Knew May 10th was betray your oath to the Constitution Day?

2005-05-03T13:41:00.000-10:00

Well who was responsible for sending out the invitations to this event. I didn't get one, does this mean I can't crap all over my sacred duty and cross over into treasonous behavior?

Aidan Delgado speaks the Gospel according to Sean Penn

2005-05-03T12:25:00.000-10:00

By now many of us know who Aidan Delgado is, he is an Army reservist that is telling people ( Most especially the New York Times) that American soldiers in Iraq are barbarians. He accuses them of doing all sorts of banal things to poor Iraqi civilians. The story comes to us from here that bastion of truth and decency the New York Times.

BTW what the hell is up with people named Delgado anyway? I mean first there was Carlos Delgado and his refusal to stand for God Bless America and now this. Back to the point,Aidan Delgado had the following to say about our brave men and women in uniform.

Guys in my unit, particularly the younger guys, would drive by in their Humvee and shatter bottles over the heads of Iraqi civilians passing by. They'd keep a bunch of empty Coke bottles in the Humvee to break over people's heads."

He said he had confronted guys who were his friends about this practice. "I said to them: 'What the hell are you doing? Like, what does this accomplish?' And they responded just completely openly. They said: 'Look, I hate being in Iraq. I hate being stuck here. And I hate being surrounded by hajis.' "

Wow Aidan, it really sounds like you have done your homework on how the left is trying to color the war. Shatter bottles on people's heads? Give me a freaking break, there are two problems with that Aidan, first when were you ever going slow enough in a neighborhood to break the bottle over someone's head. I've been to Iraq and most of the time we were doing 40-60 miles per hour, not going 5MPH so that we could break a bottle on a kid's head. IED's and ambushes kind of dull the enthusiasm for pranks of this sort, you know that whole death thing kind of makes you focus on survival, not a game of "Bean the Iraqi". The second problem with your story is that NCO's and Officers if they are worth their weight would have put a stop to this the very first time it happened. Lack of discipline in the ranks not only hurts morale, it gets people killed. And I can tell you from my own experiences in leadership positions that the last thing a leader wants to do is write a letter home to PFC Snuffy's family because their son was killed while playing a game of grab ass.

Now if you had stopped there Aidan, I might have just believed you were a disgruntled troop, but you had to add this gem:

Mr. Delgado, who eventually got conscientious objector status and was honorably discharged last January, recalled a disturbance that occurred while he was working in the Abu Ghraib motor pool. Detainees who had been demonstrating over a variety of grievances began throwing rocks at the guards. As the disturbance grew, the Army authorized lethal force. Four detainees were shot to death.

Mr. Delgado confronted a sergeant who, he said, had fired on the detainees. "I asked him," said Mr. Delgado, "if he was proud that he had shot unarmed men behind barbed wire for throwing stones. He didn't get mad at all. He was, like, 'Well, I saw them bloody my buddy's nose, so I knelt down. I said a prayer. I stood up, and I shot them down.' "

I'm going to ignore the whole aspect of the Times trying to bash religion and save that for another day, but basically Aidan, you just equated someone following the rules of engagement with murder. In case you were asleep that day at the pre-deployment training, it goes a little something like this. When lethal force is ordered it means do what is neccessary to end the situation up to and including killing those that seek to do you harm. A riot could quickly spiral out of control, and American soldiers could be hurt or killed if they did not resort to lethal force. So basically you are outraged that an fellow soldier killed a rioting prisoner when those orders were given. Orders, by the way, that were given to protect your life and the lives of the other American soldiers at the prison. You know Aidan, you really don't know how to thank a guy for doing something that might have saved your life. Next time instead of going the Jane Fonda route and asking a soldier "are you proud that you're a killer" why not just say "thanks brother, you just did something that was hard and unpleasant, but I am eternally thankful that you did your job." Imagine that Aidan, thanking him instead of trying to play on his emotions for having to take a life, what a quaint concept, no wonder the left doesn't understand this war.

God Bless Texas

2005-05-03T10:41:00.000-10:00

It seems the media has been having a field day recently documenting the woes of the National Guard and Reserves even coming close to meeting their recruitment goals. Well I have one word to shut up the mealy mouthed liberals that try to pass themselves off as objective journalists: TEXAS. It seems Texas exceeded its quota for recruits for this past year, in fact it exceeded the quota more than any other state in the country. Don't believe me? Then go check it out and see for yourself.

Why has this happened? Well as a native Texan I can tell you, some of the most intensely patriotic people I have ever met come from my home state. America has patriots everywhere, but in Texas and the South in general I usually find it more prevelant and more vocal. I remember sitting around the table at my Grandma's house and listening to my dad tell his stories about Vietnam, my Uncle Jimmy would talk about his service at NATO command in the 60's when it was still in France, and they would all tell me about my Dad's cousin Frank who spent 18 months in a North Korean Prisoner of War camp and most especially my Grandfather who had fought in the First World War in the trenches of France and had been wounded twice. I remember those stories and the effect they had on me, I joined the Army myself and spent several years there until I got out for personal reasons. I found a way to still serve though, I am currently a defense contractor with two tours of Iraq under my belt and I don't know if I will ever truly be happy in a job that isn't involved with the military.

So back to my original point, to those in the media who take joy in seeing the military have troubles in recruiting, I submit this as exhibit A, in Texas the fires of liberty still burn brightly in our sons and daughters. And as long as some are still willing to serve, our nation will be great.

God bless the brave men and women who serve in our armed forces no matter what state they are from, but to my fellow Texans in uniform, you have never made me more proud and I am proud to stand with you.

I've got some DU on my shoe

2005-05-01T17:34:00.000-10:00

In the dark corners of the internet there are fevered swamps full of conspiracy theories, where George W. Bush is the ultimate evil, and the men and women serving in Iraq are paid killers that hate all brown skinned people. Most of the realms of the deranged are leftwing in thought and deed. Among the worst is Democratic Underground; a pit of delusion and deception where any moonbat-far-left-wing theory is considered the truth, a sacred gospel according to Michael Moore or Sean Penn. Every week I make it a personal misson (or supreme sacrifice depending on your point of view) to mount an expedition into the native denizens in their enviroment of hatred and lunacy. After visiting this place I usually need a long hot shower, and some disinfectant. Afterwards I am forced to burn the clothes I wore out of fear of lethal contamination from the diseases of moonbat syndrome . My proverbial mud-wading boots are fouled with a filth created out of left-wing sympathy for terrorists and their hatred of America. It's quite an unnerving experience and few believe my tales of insanity. So as a public service I have decided to post the findings of my various expeditions into the heart of liberal darkness.

01May05

Today I attempted to delve deeply into the latest breaking news biome, and my findings were shocking. Recently Sergeant Hasan Akbar was sentenced to death for murdering fellow American soldiers in cold blood before the invasion of Iraq. You would think everyone with a sense of justice would applaud the sentence handed down to the man that betrayed his fellow soldiers. Well DU found reason to take exception to his sentence, just follow me down the rabbit hole and see how mad they truly are. To be fair, there are a number of people applauding this death sentence, but it is the ones outraged by it that demonstrate the overall moral deficiency Democratic Underground is famous for. Here are a few of the more choice comments with a rebuttal by me afterwards:

shadowknows69: I think his color and heritage totally have to do with it.
I don't see them executing Private Jones or Baker.

caelestis: Right, because Private Jones and Baker tried to kill their chain of command...... The point is, Sgt. Akbar went after his fellow men in uniform in a calculated manner. Ethnicity and religion have nothing to do with this, several white service members have been court martialed and given serious punishments for their actions. But only those on the left would try and make Sgt. Akbar a poster child of racism, much like their failed attempt with Mumia Abu Jamal

LynntheDem: And when they murder Iraqis (or Canadian troops), they get a slap on the
wrist. Oh that's right; Americans = uber menschen

Caelestis: Lynn you are my favorite specimen on DU, you claim to be the wife of a military officer, yet every chance you get, you call American soldiers war mongers, murderers, war criminals, and the deviants of society. If you are the wife of an American Army officer, I pray to God everyday that I was not forced to serve with your husband as you say your theories all come from him. But what's more important, Lynn, is that American Air Force pilots were punished for killing those Canadians and several American have been punished for killing Iraqi's. You who are suppose to embody the virtues of a military spouse failing to see that an American soldier killing his brothers is not more heinous than the aforementioned cases frightens me. It required a stronger punishment because it is a worse crime, the incident with the Canadians was an accident, the various Americans convicted of crimes in Iraq were in many cases misunderstandings of the rules of engagement, this is cold blooded murder Lynn, an American NCO set out to kill as many of his fellow soldiers as possible. That is worse, far worse than any other crime that has been commited by American military personnel whether purposeful or accidental. God help the men that serve with your husband if these views are truly his as you claim.

Dangerman: OK, let me get this straight...A bunch of guys got cleared for murdering innocent IRAQI civilians, yet this guy got the DP for murdering AMERICAN soldiers?This doesn't make sense.

Caelestis: Which American guys set out to murder Iraqis premeditativly and got away with it? Can you enlighten me to these stories? Any help would be appreciated as I have failed to find an instance where an American soldier or marine set out to kill as any Iraqis as he could. I guess I missed the court martial and the media firestorm from the premeditated act of barbarism, could you help a brother out?

So, there you have it, some of the more exotic creatures at DU are actually upset that Sgt Akbar got the death penalty for murdering his fellow soldiers. That's it folks, I need a hot shower, reading that tripe makes me feel so dirty. I really am speechless after I leave that place, especially when I see people siding with a man that murdered his brothers in arms. Sometimes I have to turn off the computer and remember that even psychotic moonbats that hate their country deserve free speech. They do deserve it, but sometimes I have to wonder if they realize how lucky they are to live in the land of free and the home of the brave. Until the next expedition, I'll be in the shower with a scrub brush and some clorox.

Back from the weekend

2005-05-01T17:33:00.000-10:00

Living one block from the beach here in Hawaii makes it hard to blog on the weekends.
But I'm back.

No Gender Gap in wartime

2005-04-28T14:55:00.000-10:00

Just a quick post today, I'm actually quite busy with work. I joined the military right when they integrated basic training by gender. I was happy to train with women and to serve with them. This veteran personally believes if a woman can meet the Male standard (which should just be called the standard) then she should be able to serve in combat units. If she can hump a 90 pound ruck, shoot worth a damn, and pass the other MOS specific requirements, I say let her serve. We as a nation were created with equality for all being our guiding principle. So with that being said, women are already fighting on the front line in Iraq. This article from USA Today highlights a few of them. Take a second and go see that heroes are not gender specific, check it out here.

To all my fellow veterans and those still on active duty, we must always remember our sacrifices keep this country free, man or woman if you wear the uniform you are a warrior.

"Always Out Front"

Hollywood foot in mouth disease

2005-04-27T16:14:00.000-10:00

Another new feature here at TMSR (The Makaha surf Report) for the acronym challenged. It seems like actors and actresses in Hollywood have a congenital disease, they are always sticking their feet in their mouths and saying something bad about our great country or displaying their own lack of intelligence. So for the first installment, we'll call it a young actress triple play.

First and foremost, Eva Green the young French woman playing opposite Orlando Bloom in the Crusader Flick "Kingdom of Heaven" has some opinions about Americans critical thinking skills. In that left wing rag some people call the New York Times, Ms. Green said she hopes the movie wakes up us dumb Americans, in her words she hopes the movie will "make us more open and tolerant of the Arab people." She really said it, check it out here.

So Ms. Green I guess that whole 9/11 thing should be forgotten, right? I mean if only we were more open and tolerant like France we might have the peaceful lifestyle the French have with their muslims. Of course Ms. Green, if we were only more open and tolerant we too could have millions of angry unemployed muslims attacking people on the streets. Tell you what Eva just keep smiling that smile and looking pretty on the big screen and leave the politics to people that live in reality.

Next up we have Ms. Maggie Gyllenhaal who last week at the tribecas film festival made it clear she's been to the Sean Penn and Michael Moore School of American History. According to Ms. Gyllenhaal, we the United States caused 9/11. Don't believe me, check it out. So I guess with Ms. Gyllenhaal's deductive reasoning we can conclude the following; America caused 9/11, Saddam is just misunderstood, and Osama Bin Laden is really a kindly grandfather that the evil American government is trying to kill. I actually heard Ms. Gyllenhaal tell some people recently at a dinner party that it really was over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor.

And finally we have the Cameron Diaz/ Drew Barrymore double play of immense ignorance. According to CNS Diaz and Barrymore broke the moron barrier once only the domain of Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins in record time. A few of their insightful comments were:

Barrymore: Actress Drew Barrymore, who reportedly earns $15 million a film, told MTV viewers in one episode that after spending time in a primitive, electricity-free Chilean village, "I aspire to be like them more." Barrymore, apparently enthralled by the lack of a modern sanitary facilities, gleefully bragged, "I took a poo in the woods hunched over like an animal. It was awesome."

Hey Drew, I was "poo-ing" in a metal can we made out of an Iraqi oil drum for months at a time back in 2003. Awesome is one word I would not choose to assign to the experience. Unsanitary and Gross are closer to the truth. But I must remember don't have good judgement skills, you did date Tom Green.

Diaz: The 32-year-old Diaz, who earns a reported $20-million a movie, boasted that the cow-dung slathered walls of a Nepalese village hut were "beautiful" and "inspiring," and she called the primitive practice of "pounding mud" with sticks to construct a building foundation "the coolest thing." Diaz also criticized the lifestyles of many Americans after visiting an indigenous village in Chile. "It's kinda gotten out of hand how much convenience we think we need," she said

WOW , so a little fecal matter on the walls and you are right at home? Man girl, you are nasty. You know I really can't comment on this one, I'm just speechless. Cameron when you aren't dazzling me with your butt shaking skills in Charlies's Angels, you are showing off your private side when you talk about your love of feces covered dwellings.

That's all folks, I can't take anymore, and to think these people (minus Eva Green) are America's face to the world, and we wonder why they hate us.

Trial lawyers wet dream and worst nightmare all in one

2005-04-27T15:43:00.000-10:00

Apparently a gay club tried to keep African Americans from entering. Is anyone else enjoying watching the Gay community destroy the democratic party? Check it out here.

Article is from the Atlanta Journal Constitution (registration required) make sure to use bug me not to bypass the registration.

In Defense of Debbie Schlussel

2005-04-27T10:07:00.000-10:00

Recently I wrote something about Marla Ruzicka and her anti-American activities. I used a piece by columnist and former talk show host Debbie Schlussel that was published on FrontPage Mag, David Horowitz's website that gave me most of my material. I found it an interesting read where Ms. Schlussel pointed out Marla Ruzicka's dealings with Code Pink a Pro-Castro anti-American organization. If you want to read Ms. Schlussel's article, go here and check it out for yourself.

This brings me to the point of this post, everyone's least favorite antiwar, anti-Israel, anti-American, conspiracy nut Justin Raimondo has published a piece where he calls for the ostracizing of Ms. Schlussel. Before I continue I think a few things about Justin should be discussed. First of all Justin is a gay man, not that there is anything wrong with that, but I could understand his hatred of Ms. Schlussel. I mean what gay man doesn't feel threatened when a beautiful intelligent blonde like Debbie is in the neighborhood. Don't worry Justin I'm sure Ms. Schlussel isn't going to go after any of your boy toys. Secondly Mr. Raimondo is a nut of the first class, some of his more interesting claims are that The Patriot Act installed a dictatorship, his personal favorite crackpot theory that Israel is really our enemy and that they had a hand in 9/11. Instances of this delusion can be found here, here, here and here. Mr. Raimondo also believes that Conservatives of today are fascists who seek to destroy America. Finally we come to today's piece, basically he wrote a hit piece on Debbie Schlussel, where Mr. Raimondo launches into delusional tirade after tirade. I'll post some of his rants and then give a little rebuttal myself.

Raimondo: Yeah, Debbie, Marla was a real blonde, unlike your haggish self. And she was young , again, unlike yourself, in spite of the few pounds of makeup you slosh on your tired old forty-if-you're-a-day face.

Caelestis: Justin, have you looked in a mirror lately my man? You are an old bitter gay man that lives in San Francisco. You have smoked until your face looks like beef jerky that's been left out in the desert. As for Ms. Schlussel, she's quite attractive but like I said earlier I do understand why a gay fella like you, might feel intimidated by a woman like Debbie.

Raimondo: I want to apologize to my readers for making them wade through Schlussel's river of sh*t , but we have to look straight in the face of evil if we want to be able to overcome it

Caelestis: You are finally right about something Justin. We do have to look at the face of evil to overcome it. But you are that evil Justin, you and people like Marla Ruzicka, not people like George W. Bush or Debbie Schlussel. You Justin are the one saying Israel had a hand in 9/11, you are the one saying that America is becoming a fascist nation even though there is no proof, you Justin are the piece of trash saying Our brave men and women in uniform are killing Iraqis for sport. You even admit you are not on the side of our military. Well thank you for miracles lord, an anti-American idiot actually admits he has taken the side against our soldiers. You are the evil Justin, you are infected with the disease that is rampant in the American left, hatred of this country is going to destroy the left and you Justin are going down with them.

Raimondo: Schlussel dances on Marla's grave, defying all the rules of logic and moral sense, shrieking all the while that the death of this young saint is "justice." This is brazen evil: an uglier sight would be hard to imagine.

Caelestis: I don't know Raimondo, calling our soldiers murderers and openly stating you aren't on their side is pretty ugly. Telling the President to Go F*%k yourself is pretty ugly Justin, asking our soldiers to disobey the orders of the President in wartime is treason Justin, that's as ugly as it gets.

Raimondo: That a woman like Schlussel has any voice, any forum, in which to broadcast her hate is scary in and of itself.

Caelestis: Really? Is it any scarier than a guy like you Justin that has a voice to spread lies and hate about Israel, supporters of the President, and a blond Jewish woman that called an anti- American spade like Ruzicka a spade?

Raimondo: It's time to draw the line against this increasingly assertive evil by making an example out of Schlussel. Her piece goes way over the line, and those who posted it and approved it have to take a share of the responsibility.

Caelestis: "Are you serious comrade? Shall we use our power to silence this woman from practicing her first amendment right? It's a very good plan comrade, while we are silencing her right to free speech, maybe we can burn her at the stake for daring to tell the truth about someone like Marla Ruzicka. That would be excellent comrade, by the way I picked up these shirts for you, I hope they are brown enough and that they fit you." Come on Raimondo, I thought you were a "old school libertarian conservative" shouldn't all speech be protected? Or are you really like a typical leftist ( a claim that you deny) and you want to silence those who disagree with you.

Raimondo: Schlussel has a column at "Conservative Town Hall" and she writes frequently for the New York Post. Write to these folks, send them a copy of Schlussel's "dance of death" column, and politely inquire as to whether this is the sort of columnist they think ought to be gracing their pages.

Caelestis: Interesting, yes let's work to get a woman fired for having her own opinion. At least you know how to behave like a totalitarian leftist, if someone says something you don't like, go after their livelihood. Good job Mr. Raimondo, at least there are no doubts about you and your true political affiliation.

So, there you have it, Justin Raimondo, founder of Antiwar has come out of the closet , No, not the sexual closet, he did that a long time ago, he came out of the closet with his beliefs. He has defended those who support insurgents in their quest to kill American heroes, he has routinely called one of our staunchest allies an enemy of America, and he has acted in a typically leftist fashion and asked for a woman to be punished for expressing her opinion, something he says the GOP is always trying to do.

People like Justin Raimondo used to worry me, until I realized a basic truth. Raimondo, you and people like Chomsky and Alan Bock and Lew Rockwell are jokes, you are on the fringes of American society and no one takes you seriously. How pathetic are you, to attack a woman for doing nothing more than trying to shed some light on a fake hero created by the media to champion their own left wing biases. Now be a good little leftist and go hug an Islamic fundamentalist, you have a lot in common.

The Morning Swell

2005-04-26T11:26:00.000-10:00

Zarqawi narrowly escapes U.S. forces

WASHINGTON - U.S. forces in Iraq believe they just missed capturing most-wanted terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi in a February raid that netted two of his associates, a senior U.S. military official said Tuesday.

U.S., Iraqi forces detain 130 insurgents

BAGHDAD, Iraq -- U.S. and Iraqi troops detained more than 130 suspected militants and seized weapons in a series of raids across Iraq this week, the U.S. military said Tuesday. At least 94 of those captured came from the Baghdad area, said Lt. Col. Clifford Kent, a spokesman for Task Force Baghdad. Both weapons and munitions were seized, he said. "You name it, we have it," Kent said. Most of the militants detained in Baghdad were believed to be directly involved in recent attacks in the capital. Two were "specifically targeted as members of an execution cell," the military said in a statement.

Sunnis drop demands to include ex-Baathists

BAGHDAD — Sunni Muslim politicians made a bid to get more ministries by dropping their demand Monday to include former members of Saddam Hussein's party in Iraq's new Cabinet.
As leaders of Iraq's main Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish factions continued backroom wheeling and dealing, Prime Minister-designate Ibrahim al-Jaafari again put off his long-promised Cabinet announcement.

Danes to keep troops in Iraq

DENMARK will keep its troops in Iraq for at least eight months after their current mandate expires at the beginning of June, the foreign ministry said today.It should be possible to reduce the number of Danish troops in Iraq gradually from the current 530 after parliamentary elections there in early 2006, the ministry said in a report on the Danish military role in Iraq.

DC Cleric convicted of Urging Holy War

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - An Islamic scholar who prosecutors said enjoyed "rock star" status among a group of young Muslim men in Virginia was convicted Tuesday of exhorting his followers in the days after Sept. 11 to join the Taliban and fight U.S. troops. The convictions against Ali al-Timimi, 41, carry a mandatory minimum sentence of life in prison without parole.

Memo to Dems: Bush won the election

If Democrats weren't afraid to admit the real reasons they are obstructing the nomination of John Bolton to be our next United Nations ambassador, they wouldn't be interposing such embarrassingly lame objections as "John Bolton once yelled at an insubordinate subordinate."
But they are afraid, because their true objections have nothing to do with Bolton's temperament or even his temper, other than that it has sometimes been directed at wimps advocating the wimpish policies liberals adore

Bush signals support for Delay

President Bush will travel on Air Force One today with House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, a public show of support for the Texas Republican whom Democrats are accusing of ethics violations.

Air America's Year of Decline

The latest radio ratings are in, and they show continued bad news for Air America, the liberal talk-radio network featuring Al Franken, Randi Rhodes, Janeane Garofolo, and others. While it is difficult to pinpoint Air America's ratings nationally — it is on the air in about 50 stations across the country, and has been on some of them for just the last few months — it is possible to measure the network's performance in the nation's number-one market, New York City.

Yao, Mcgrady power Rockets to 2-0 lead versus Mavericks

DALLAS (AP) -- Tracy McGrady had a secret. The only people who knew what he was going to do in the closing seconds of a tie game were his coach and his big man. Pulling off a plan arranged during a previous timeout, McGrady surprised the rest of his Houston Rockets teammates, and all of the Dallas Mavericks, by not stopping the clock and going straight up the court with 10.4 seconds left. With Yao Ming doing his part by setting a screen near the 3-point arc, all McGrady had to do was bury his shot -- which, of course, he did.

Afghanistan to send troops to Iraq

2005-04-25T11:00:00.000-10:00

File this in the "Freedom is on the March" folder. Afghanistan has decided to send troops to Iraq, no numbers are available yet, nor is a timetable in place. That being said, let's examine this for a minute. Afghanistan a country that 4 years ago was under the dominion of the Taliban is now going to join the U.S. and the Coalition in the efforts to sustain the new Iraqi democracy. I have always felt that Afghanistan was going to blossom into a state that realizes that some things are worth fighting and dying for. Iraq is one of those things, or more to the point the Iraqis are worth it. In both of my tours in Iraq I came to know and embrace the Iraqi people, they want what the rest of us (including the brave Afghans ) want. We all want a chance at a better world, a world that embraces the freedom to live one's life as he or she sees fit, a better world than has ever been seen before where men and women live in mutual respect of each other, not fear or hatred of the other sex. Iraqis and afghans want a better world for their children, something all good people around the world want for their offspring.

This is historic, it's one of those little news blurbs that no one pays attention to but should be remembered as a turning point in this war. Afghan soldiers who just a few short years ago were at the mercy of an evil regime that would kill you if your beard was too short or if they caught you dancing are now standing with the forces of freedom in Iraq. The soldiers of the ANA are crossing over to stand with those who have stand for freedom, who stand against the moral degeneration that is Islamic fundamentalism. They are joining those of us who seek out the best in mankind, not the worst, history has called all men and women of righteousness to stand up and be counted against a dark force that desires nothing but death for its foes, that worships nothing but hate, and provides nothing but destruction and despair. Soldiers of Afghanistan, I salute you for your bravery and your dedication to the cause of freedom.

If I was a British voter, how would I vote?

2005-04-25T10:08:00.000-10:00

Well Tony Blair has called an election in Merry Olde England, Labour looks like it will squeak out a win, but the Tories are in the thick of it. This website gives you the chance to see how you would vote if you were a Brit. This poll has been taken by a few million Brits and more see themselves as Liberal Democrats (what we in America call Socialists) than Labour or Tories. I took the test myself and surprise, surprise, surprise, I am a Conservative with a positive 63 rating. I am a negative 96 rating for the Liberal Democrats and a -24 For Tony Blair's Labour party.

Take it and see where you stand.

So what am I listening to on my IPOD

2005-04-25T02:43:00.000-10:00

This seems to be the vogue thing right now on blogs, you post your musical favorites at this time and let other people tell you how much your musical taste sucks. So I thought I'd post the top 20 songs on my IPOD right now.

20. New Order: True Faith
19. Something Like Silas: In the Burning
18. Dredg: Move On
17. Coheed and Cambria: A Favor House Atlantic
16. Toby Keith: American Soldier
15. Journey: Only the Young
14.Brand New: The Quiet Things No One Knows
13. Ever Stays Red: I'll Tell the World
12.New Order: Bizarre Love Triangle
11. Mazzy Starr: Fade into You
10.AC/DC : Thunderstruck
9. Dashboard Confessionals: Screaming Infidelities
8. Radial Angel: Beautiful
7. Re:zound: Breathe
6. A Perfect Circle: The Hollow
5. Tool: Aenima
4. Emery: Walls
3. Depeche Mode: Enjoy the Silence
2. Dredg: The Canyon Behind Her
1. Emery: Fractions

Good news from Iraq part 26

2005-04-25T02:28:00.000-10:00

Where would we be without the blogosphere? Well unless you had served in Iraq or had a family member or close friend who did, you'd probably be an America hating zombie, just like the "Mainstream Media" wants you to be. Excuse while I retch, I have a habit of vomiting everytime I have to type the words Mainstream media. Anyway Arthur Chrenkoff is bringing us another update from his blog. He is probably one of the best bloggers out there at giving us the real skinny on happenings in Iraq and Afghanistan. We have a multi billion dollar free press and yet the best source for the ground truth from the frontlines of the War on Terror is a guy blogging from his house in his pajamas. Or whatever it is Mr. Chrenkoff prefers to wear while he types. Anyway the new installment on the positive work being done in Iraq can be found here. Check it out and see what the media refuses to tell you.

Oahu Surf Report 4/25

2005-04-25T02:15:00.000-10:00

Yeah I even post the surf report from time to time. Ok so the Surf Report for Oahu on 4/25 is as follows:

The northwest swell with overhead sets holds through Thursday. A small southerly bump is expected Thursday. Another big northwest swell is expected over the weekend

Surf along north facing shores will lower to 3 to 6 feet Monday.
Surf along west facing shores will lower to 1 to 3 feet Monday.
Surf along east facing shores will be 2 to 4 ft through Monday.
Surf along south facing shores will be 3 to 5 ft through Monday

Good surf for Grommets and other newbies