Around Germany and back Again

Berg Rheifels

Berg Katze

Schloss Neuschwanstein

Out the Window of Neuschwanstein
Outside Neuschwanstein
I told you...just beautiful.

Made our way around Germany this weekend. From Hessen to Bavaria/Alps in Germany to see Neuschwanstein Castle that was the inspiration for the Disney Castle. Absolutely beautiful area of the world, and the weather was absolutely perfect. After spending a couple of days down there we drove up to the Rheinland-Hessen area to visit our favorite wine ship and pick up some gifts from Stefan the shop owner, who has the be Eiswein in the world. And I'm not just saying that, he really wins the wine competition year after year for his Eiswein. If you have an extra $200 he'll ship you some. Just contact him at: Stefan's Wine Paradise. Of course the Rhein area is where all the Castles are: Katz, Mause, Rheinstein, Rheinfels, Eltz, etc.

Hohenschwangau, Germany

View from the Hotel

Hunter at the Aktiv Hotel Schweiger, Fussen, Germany (in the Alps).

It's all Rosie

First of all in the words of a true poet and artist, Mr. Snoop Dogg: "Fuck Bill O'Reilly...he can suck my cock."

Second Bill O'Reilly, apparently with the number one news show on cable TV (as I'm reminded at every possible opportunity on his show) can't afford a research staff, as Al Franken has pointed out time and time again and I will point out one more time. He must be spending all of the money on loofahs, long distance phone calls, lawyers, and settlements.

Bill, Rosie is right. Building 7 was blown up by admission of Mr. Silverstein the property owner on a PBS documentary Why the Towers Fell. He says in the documentary in order to prevent more loss of life, after talking to fire fighters and structural engineers he decided to "pull building 7." 'Pull' is construction speak for the organized demolition of a building by means of explosives. Mr. Silverstein very clearly states in the documentary that he decided to pull it, and explains what that means to pull a building. Mr. O'Reilly watch something other than your own show, or your own reflection, or the clips and sound bites fed to you by your obviously worthless producers.

I believe this morning's Rosie segment started with a coyfully indignant "Oh no, not again." Please. Like you're really upset that you have to spend a few more minutes on fake news Matt Lauer. Because if you actually had to cover what was going on in the world, your masters as GE might not be too happy with you. We're losing people at a significantly high rate every day, Iraqis are dropping like flies an what's imporatant is an arrogant fake news man commenting on something some TV personality said. Give me a break why dont you do the right thing, do the research that Bill cant afford and prove one side right or wrong. That would require your show to some sort of standard for what is news.

Your 'glib' coverage of the JibJab video pointing out the idiocy of the 24 hour news cycle and the punditocracy was about all I could stomach. Did you not get it? They were pointing out that you dont do your job any more. The fourth estate has fallen.

Cheney: 'Self-appointed strategists' forcing withdrawal

The Penguin Strikes Again.
Hey Mr. Vice President, Darth Maul, Death-Monger in Chief, supereme sith of the Bush-Cheney Neo-Con Death Cult why don't you take a look at the constitution. The Congress isn't self appointed, they are the people's appointed watch dogs. Why dont you try reading a book or two. Congress controlled the purse of the Continental army also. GEN George Washington had to write Senators and Governors to receive more soldiers, money, and equipment.

Hopeless

It seems hopeless over there. I hate to say it but it doesnt seem winnable as the places where my brigade operated and made great strides seem to be slipping backwards to their state prior to our blood, sweat, and hardwork went into making the areas more secure. It seems since we left Tall Afar almost a year ago I've read once a week of a car bomb that kills at least 30 in that medium sized city of Sunnis, Shia, Kurds, and Turkomen. As today I read about the largest attack since the war began killing 160 and wounding 350 in the city that the President touted as the example for all the other cities to follow in his 2006 SOTU address, as my brigade was entering the country and specifically that city. Now that we have done a 14 month tour, 5 months of it there, and are now back home. I look at the news in disgust. Disgust at our leaders for being so ignorant and naive in starting this preventetive illegal invasion and occupation, and disgust at the Iraqis for being so ignorant and ungrateful. In Ramadi, Fallujah, and Anbar Province it seems to be more of the same. All of our hardwork means nothing, because they are back to where they were before we arrived. They want to be in the 7th Century, so pull out and leave them there. Our time, lives, and treasure there, wasted.

Post Operation Disney Leave

We only had a few days of leave after Disney so we drove to Memphis so Hunter could meet his Great Grandparents and Alissa's Uncle and his two babies:

On the way back from Memphis Hunter got really ill. Throwing up every couple of hours or so. By the time we hit Kentucky we decided to take him to the ER where they told us it would be a 2 hour wait before they could see him because they had a trauma coming in. Seeing how it was Kentucky it was probably some dumb hillbilly last heard uttering the phrase "Hey yall watch this," after downing a 12 pack of PBR. So we decided to go 30 minutes up the road to Ft. Knox and then decided to nix the ER plan altogether and just drive straight through to Northern Indiana and get him an appt with his doctor. Everytime we thought it was over he would throw up again. We decided it would be best for him to rest so we stopped in a hotel in Indy overnight. We thought all was clear and were on the phone about to cancel the appt. when we heard the familiar cry of pain from the rocket seat in the pack and then the all too familiar smell of curdled milk. It turned out to be some kind of stomach virus or something because he was all better that night, and the doctor couldn't find anything wrong with him. But it was scary to say the least.

And then I got a tatoo

And finally we are all back "home" in Germany...for now.

Operation Disney Part 2

Let me start by saying Disney is not a vacation alright. It's expensive as hell and you have to make every moment count. I didnt know this before enlisting on this adventure. Disney is like boot camp for parents. And for parents that have been away from their 2 year old child for 14 months it is a wake up call. You cant waste a moment. Every day has to be planned with military precision, and executed accordingly. There is no time to rest and relax. There are 5 theme parks and you have to see every show and ride every ride inside of them. That means you're up at dawn and dont get to bed until hours after the park closes. You really dont have the money to waste time. Adding Univerals Studios to the lineup for first timer like me probably wasnt a good idea either. But there were chances to drink margaritas as we were walking, and all and all I think Hunter enjoyed it as much as I did. I think he's a sadist like that.

Day 2-Disney MGM

We got there as Mater was about to drive away. You dont understand he watches Cars on a loop and loves Mater. Everytime we saw him drive by that day it was a temper tantrum.
Day 3- Universal Studios Islands of Adventure

Day 4-Magic Kingdom Part I

Day 5-Universal Studios

After the Barney show. We had to drag him away kicking and screaming.

Blues Brothers just performed and are driving off.

Day 6-Magic Kingdom Part II

I think the look says it all. It's night six of Operation Disney, the fireworks are going off, the Baby is asleep, and we still have the last ride to go: Space Mountain.

Seeing how we had the money we stayed in Carribbean Beach Resort. It was nice but food ran us at least $100 per day. After six days with two adults and a kid in the same Hotel room with no time to clean up because you are always on the go it doesnt look too good.

Operation Disney Part 1

Operation Disney Day 0- Travel

We made our way from Indiana to Orlando. One long day.

Operation Disney-Day 1- Animal Kingdom

I'm told not the best of the theme parks on Disney, but we still had fun. I'm rollercoaster guy and the Everest ride wasnt that bad. But toting a two year old makes it a daunting task.

Just doing traveling. We leave for the US tomorrow go pick up Hunter. I'll probably once again be out of the loop for a few weeks.

M.

3rd Story of the Port Nigra, Trier, Germany

The Roman Amphiteatheater at Trier

Champagne

Should have internet in a few days. But I thought I would post this thing I wrote in the heat of the 2004 campaign.

Champagne
Marcus Daniel Byrne
October 2004


Sippin’ champagne on the campaign
You sure as hell can’t complain
As you put on a pin stripe suit
Me and a Mother’s son lace up combat boots.
Where were you in ’72?
Was it Harvard Business School?
How long do I have to be here for?
To fight your war
Because I’m poor and couldn’t afford school anymore.
Sent overseas to stop WMDs and set people free
That want to kill me.
Wait there’s a shot...
Pop, pop, pop.
Make your daughters enlist
And put up with this shit.
Oh, aint that a bitch
They’re rich.
Look at the opportunity they’re going to miss.
That’s what the poor are for.
To fight in a war
That closes the door even more
Keepin’ me and my family poor
Old men with grey hair keep makin’ decisions
That decide whether or not I keep living.
Of course, how would they know what it’s like?
When their country called they were AWOL
All the things they keep on preachin’ and teachin’
Love your country because of all it gives to you
It only gives if you are among the connected few
Enron…Halliburton those CEOs aren’t hurtin’
A million jobs and pensions robbed
Take from us to give to you and your band of merry few.
Heart of a lion
Boys around me dyin’
You’re still lyin’
About why I’m here
Mothers cryin’
Still lyin’
How much does your vote matter?
When there’s terrorist chatter and Dirty bombs
And soccer moms with American Flags
On their 4 mile per gallon SUV
Can’t you see the irony as you increase
Our dependency…
oh wait that’s OK…
As long as I wave a flag and say
“Support our troops”
Send them boots, bullets, and magazines maybe someday
My gas will be free
My only hope is that the people listening love the idea of their country as much as me
And aren’t willing
To send it spilling
Over the edge
For a simple pledge
Gas will never be free but the people of this country should be
Around the world our armies roam
While here at home
We live in fear but don’t you dare question
Our method
Oh, and don’t you mind the corporate goons
Lined up like dragoons to cash in
Are we safer than we were four years ago?
Why don’t you ask the soldier in Baghdad on patrol?
How much safer do you feel?
Aim…shoot…kill.
18 years old, full combat gear
A kid can’t even buy a beer
Has to make decisions everyday that decide everyday whether that kid in his sights will keep living
Friend or Foe
He doesn’t know.
Sigh of relief as he runs away
To live another day
How proud the families are that they’ve freed the people in Kandahar
And that women can drive a car.
But here they can’t decide whether or not they should reproduce.
Because of old men with grey hair and pin stripe suits.

Great to back...

...even if it is only Germany.
It's great to be back home. Been back since the 19th. Dont have the internet hooked up yet at my house so time is limited, as is my knowledge of the outside world. Just spending time travelling with the wife before we go pick up the little one. Thanks to all of you for your support, words of encouragement, and just being out there to vent through this awful thing.
More posts to come...hopefully the internet will get connected soon.
M

It's the most wonderful time of the year...

Happy Darwin Day, February 12th 2007.

This picture has nothing to do with that...just trying out new blogger.

Almost out of here 6 more days.....

Top 10 Signs You're a Fundementalist Christian...

I'm sorry but they just make it too easy...

taken from evilbible.com

10 - You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.

9 - You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.

8 - You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.

7 - Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" including women, children, and trees!

6 - You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.

5 - You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.

4 - You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs -- though excluding those in all rival sects - will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."

3 - While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.

2 - You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.

1 - You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history - but still call yourself a Christian.

Taking it to a New Level

The insurgency is taking their fight to a new level, probably sponsored in part by the Iranians who are trying to tie down GWBs swords in Iraq to stop the rattling. So, who's really making things worse over here? The people that want to get us out of here and back to the states, or the people that want to get us out of Iraq and move us straight to Iran?

This is the kind of brazen attack you see from well funded, well trained, clandestine miltary units, much like the US Special Forces. No, half-assed Al Qaeda insurgent could have pulled this off. They abducted 4 soldiers threw them in the back of a truck and drove off with them to execute them later. First of all these soldiers let their guard down and were caught by surprise, hopefully it's a lesson learned. I know, having done Personal Security, for the types of people who do these BILATs that this had to be a breakdown in military bearing and security. That said, it was a clever trick that could exploit even the smallest crack in a security detail like that. The fact that they did a tactical entry on a building, took prisoners, and killed 5 American soldiers, and spoke English, shows these guys were well trained. It would be hard to do dynamic entry into a building with Americans and be able to retreat alive, but to go in shoot them and come out, with prisoners shows they have training.

I recently saw a video captured from a bunch of dead insurgents that shows them assaulting an OP. Most of this video is a recording of the insurgents doing a rehearsal and a rock drill of the assault. Professional military training. Not to mention these guys conducting the assault, from what I could tell, were Persian not Arab. The video ends with them assaulting the OP, most of them dying and the rest being taken prisoner.

This professional military assault is probably why they gave us permission to shoot Iranians. This proclamation is completely bullshit, and is nothing but a political/foreign relations proclamation. First, we don't stop to ask the people that are exhibiting hostile intent towards us or other Coalition forces, whether it be planting IEDs or busting into buildings where we are having meetings and shooting us, whether they're Persian or Arab, Iraqi or Iranian, Sunni or Shia. We just shoot them. Second, we've been killing or taking prisoner anyone who is or might be actively plotting against our efforts here in Iraq. Nothing new. It's sort of the same mission we've had for 4 and half years.

Just having Army uniforms shouldn't have gotten that far anyways. Maybe past an IP checkpoint, but through American security that should have been on the outside of that building no fucking way. There is something wrong here. The unit conducting this meeting would have been here long enough to know who operates in their AO especially concerning the mission at a JCC. This just shouldn't have happened. And the more I think about the more impossible I think it would be.

"We step forward...

...because the US Army never steps back." That's what my Drill Sergeant told me in basic training during our bayonet assault course. I believed it too.
Last week a group of US Army National Guard soldiers were engaged with small arms fire by international felons illegally invading our country. Before I get too deep into this let me just say I am by no means a racist, a xenophobe, or isolationist. There are legal means to enter our country and if you wish to be here you may do so. So, you would think that after they got shot at they would return fire. Nope. They're not allowed to. Wait a second even a private citizen has the right to defend themselves when being shot at.
Let's say you are in your house, some people jump over your fence come into your yard and start shooting at you. If you are a gun owner, experienced marksman, like myself, you shoot back, and you have every right to. You have every right to defend yourself, your property, and your family. It's the same prinicple with the member of the US Army on the border. They are sent there to defend their home, people are jumping over the fence illegally and then shooting at them, how can they not have the right to shoot back? How can they not have the right and the means to defend not only themselves but the sovereignty of the US from these attacks?
This was an attack on our nation, and an assault on our military by invaders, and people just brush it off. Did you know that three times last year that armed Mexican military units clandestinely crossed over the border into the US?
What's it going to take for us to use our military, political, and economic might to secure our border, or just annex Mexico?

Sacrifice???

When the military does your evaluation reports they like things quantifiable. They like numbers here are the numbers on my sacrifice, thus far...
My wife and I have been married for 46 months and have spent 17 of those living together.
We had a child in May 2005 and had to ship him off from Germany where we are stationed to live with his grandmother for three months from the time he was 4 months until the time he was 7 months old. We then had to fly him from Germany back to the US two months later as we deployed to Iraq on a 12 month...no wait, 14 month...what could become a 16 month tour of Iraq because we have to sacrifice. And by the way the Army doesnt pay for him and my mother-in-law to fly back and forth so we were also out almost $6,000 on plane tickets in 2005.
So let's do the math on that one: my son is now almost 21 months old and has spent 15 months living with his grandmother, which is going to be at least 17 out of 23, and could possibly become 19 out of 25 of the most precious first two years of his life.
We're out all the money out of pocket we've had to spend to ensure he didnt get third rate healthcare because my mother-in-law doesnt live near a military base so she cant get a good pediatrician, or use our healthcare at most offices.
So my wife and I have sacrificed being parents to our child whom we love more than anything in the world. And we have sacrificed being companions to one another so we could fight this damned war neither one of us has believed in from the beginning.
We're both hollow shells now. All you have left to take is our physical life, because it doesnt seem that we are ever going to leave this place. We are never going to escape death's shadow. Because you can just keep extending our unit with disregard for the lives that are destroyed by the haplessness of your mistake.

I guess a man who sacrificed the first 40 years of his life to beer and blow, got his cushy assignment in a champagne unit in the Air Guard during VietNam, got his legacy scholarships to Yale and Harvard, got bailed out of failed business after failed business by his dad, and spent 60% of his first 4 years in the oval office on vacation knows all too much about sacrifice though.

I know I signed up for this. No I didnt. I didnt sign up to protect and defend the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iraq, my oath clearly states, "support and defend the Constitution of the United States." And on top of that we have done our time. We did our year plus some. We did our tour of sacrifice, now it is our turn to go home. Let's not have to have one more memorial ceremony for my Brigade. Or any other for that matter. We've done all we can here. It's up to the Iraqi's to sacrifice now, not America. It's up to the Iraqis to defend Iraq, not America.

Thanks

Thanks to all the visitors from Human.

Unfortunately I've had trouble getting on Blogspot. HTTP 404 errors and the internet has been really slow. I will get around to all of your sites eventually, it takes about 10 minutes to load one page.

No, Really, I hate the American Taliban...

For those American Taliban against the display of a pentacle on a soldier's tombstone...

...lest, in the general wreck of superstition, of false systems of government, and false theology, we lose sight of morality, of humanity, and of the theology that is true.
-Thomas Paine, Age of Reason, Part One.

I'm sure Christopher Columbus exemplified the morality of the Christian faith as he enslaved and tortured the natives of Hispaniola. I'm sure the many other Christians following his lead in the genocide of the Native people of the Americas were also only following the venerable moral code of their religion. They, of course, had and have the Christian God on their side and relegated those who did not, to lower forms of humanity, not deserving of decent and equal treatment or recognition. Find me a supposed Christian, who thinks my service, is undeserving of recognition though I am ready to make the ultimate sacrifice for a country that I thought stood for freedom for all, to take my place. Those zealots who would block the display of the pentacle or any other religious symbol in a national cemetery, especially for those that have died protecting the supposed land of the free, are only a small step away from those zealots I fight here in Iraq. People who kill their fellow countrymen without flinching; people who kill their own because they believe differently, and because they believe differently they are less than human, and not deserving of life, respect, or recognition as a human being. Find me that Christian to take my place here in the military, find a Christian to take the place of all of us who fight and don't wave the banner of Christianity. We will give you your dominionist army so that you may carry out your fantasy of a non-secular society. Soon you will flush all of the minority religions out of the armed forces and be able to use your Christmilitialtia to round up all of those who believe differently than you. Who will be your Moqtada Al Sadr? Your utopia is obviously what we are fighting here in Iraq, just with a different name and a paler face. How long before we start finding the bullet riddled bodies of Atheists, Wiccans, Hindus, and others on Main Street in America just the same as we find them everyday in Baghdad? This thinking is not a bridge too far, but is the progressive step of a plurality out of control. If my service to my country is any less honorable because of my religious beliefs, or lack thereof, please find one of yhomogeneousnous own to take mine and my wife's place. When you protest the display of that religious symbol, you reenact the very intolerance and persecution that forced our forefather's father's from their home, and inflames the violence in Iraq today. How long before my family is rounded up by masked men in the night drug out to the street and shot because of our religion? How could you in good conscience as an American deny a soldier who died defending the very freedoms for which he fought? It's wholly fascist and completely un-American. Remember as you say your prayer tonight, and go to the church of your choice on your day of worship: you're denying someone who died protecting that freedom the very same freedom you enjoy openly and without persecution. And you are using the laws of the very country they died defending to disenfranchise them and make their service seem less than honorable. I am an atheist who has been shot at and had vehicles blown up around me, and to this day I hold onto my convictions as tightly as I did the day I deployed. If there is one thing the religious have taught me, it is that there is, indeed, no God. If there is another thing I have learned is that there is no difference between the zealots of all the religions. They seem to work towards the same homogeneous hegemony through endless war based on ignorant xenophobia.

War On Christmas

No one will deny or dispute the power of the Almighty to make such a communication if he pleases. But admitting, for the sake of a case, that something has been revealed to a certain person, and not revealed to any other person, it is revelation to that person only. When he tells it to a second person, the second to a third, a third to a fourth, and so on, it ceases to be revelation to all those persons. It is revelation to the first person only, and heresay to every other; consequently they are not obliged to believe it.
-Thomas Paine referring to religious texts and dogma in Age of Reason, Part One.

This controversy over the disbanding of the Christmas trees in Sea-Tac is such a false controversy in more ways than one. First of all Christmas, as a celebration of the birth of Jesus, would more accurately be celebrated in March or April. Religious scholars and historians agree that Jesus was actually born around that time. The Christmas Tree and Yule log are actually Pagan traditions started before the Roman invasion of the Barbarian lands. So, the Rabbi suing to put a Menorah next to a “Chrisitian” Christmas tree, which isn’t really Christian except in the confused minds over-commercialized populous who have been told it and believe it is so. Just like they were told Jesus was born in December and believe that is so also, when facts point out it is not. I’ve noticed facts don’t matter much to the religious though. All that matters is belief, and beliefs and dogmas inside of organized religion, are as easily misconstrued as the original message at the end of the child’s game of “telephone.”
Does it really matter if a Christmas tree is displayed? Even if we assume that Jesus really was born in December on the Gregorian calendar, and that the tree is really now, and always has been a Christian tradition, is that still what it really means? Aren’t the original enemies of Christmas profiteerism and commercialization? Weren’t they the ones that transformed it into a meaningless Holiday enabled by the Christian majority in our capitalist society? It wasn’t the SP’s as Bill O’Reilly likes to call them in his ridiculous war on Christmas. So maybe Mr. O’Reilly should first ask for the Christian capitalists to restore the religious meaning to their own holiday, then, maybe it might lend credibility to the cause against SP’s railing against this holiday that really has lost all its religious meaning. After all, I am a very cynical atheist and I celebrate Christmas as a joyous holiday family and giving. I guess I celebrate the American watered-down version.

Tread Surely but Lightly

I'm certainly surprised by the Democratic victory in the Legislature as I was fully expecting this election to be stolen through electronic voting apparati. Now, what? With the extreme situations America faces both domestically, and internationally, that is the main question. Dems say we are not out for revenge, which I say, Of course not. We are out for accountability and oversight. If you think investigating the Executive is just nasty partisan politics then you dont understand the mission of the "People's House." If you believe that then you have fallen for the NeoCon Reichwing fantasy of a unitary executive and hopefully you will never again hold a place in the Senate or House. If you had an employee who still worked for your company and you found in the past that they had stolen or used suspect techniques in the execution of your business you would certainly have every right to investigate and punish them as neccessary. It is no different than the relationship between the Executive and Legislative. It is their job to keep the executive in CHECK, through whatever Parliamentary means they have available. Including investigations and drawing up Articles of Impeachment.

To Democrats: If America wanted two more years of abuse they wouldnt have elected you. If America wanted to stay the course in Iraq, on Paris Hilton tax cuts, on minimum wage, on healthcare, on stem cell research, on foreign policy, they would have stayed the course in the Senate and Congress. Dont squander that hope for change on doing nothing, hoping to save it for two years and magically open it up and use it in 2008. The President and the Republicans may balk, veto, and filibuster but this will only point them out for the whiny hypocrites they are. Hence the fight for 2008 begins with the 110th Congress of the United States with a Democrat majority and two Independents who caucus with Dems in th Senate. Show the American people now, the next two years, what accountability means, and what a compassionte government can do. Because if there is one thing Americans appreciate it's justice, not revenge.

Reality's a Bitch

Hahhaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhaaaaaaaaahhhahahahahahahahahhhhaaaaa!!!!!!!
Nov 7th 2006 was my early Christmas present. Thank you America. I knew you had it in you.

The Brownshirts are coming!!!!!

So, a man walks up to a political candidate and asks that candidate question. The man is immediately pounced by supporters of the candidate acting like bouncers at a downtown bar. He is put in a headlock and dragged away from the candidate. Did the scene I describe occur A) 1930's Germany during the Rise of Hitler, Fascism, and the Nazis or B) Yesterday, in Virginia USA? If you picked either answer you are correct.

When a member of our democracy is physically attacked by supporters of a political candidate with no provocation, but to ask a question, however inappropriate, what would you call that? I call it FASCISM. All these people are missing are the Brownshirts, jackboots, and swasitkas. While their agenda might be slightly nativist in nature, their real hatred is for freedom. They abhor Freedom of dissent, free speech, free thought, and freedom of and from religion. Everyone should be and think like them, and if you dont prepare for the beating of your life.

Dont believe they hate freedom and they arent the Jeffersonian Conservatives yet? Did you know the President now has the power to control the National Guard of your state without you or your governors consent?

Neo Con Incompetence

I've come to realize there is an inherent flaw in Neo Cons running a war of stability and support operations (SASO). They lack the morals and values necessary to fight such a war correctly. To fight a an insurgency correctly requires empathy, to know how the people are suffering and being able to correct it before your enemy can. It require an ability to understand complex social structures and networks and work within those networks to achieve compromise amongst the indigenous people. In other words, a war such as this requires flexible diplomacy from the strategic to the tactical level with a common goal. That goal was unapparent in the beginning months of this war and that's when we lost our momentum. The Neo Cons don't even care about the people they supposedly govern, I reference Hurricane Katrina as one example, why would they care about the plight of people who can't unelect them, or have no power to stop them. Someone once said, "Terrorism is the war of the powerless, and war is the terrorism of the powerful." So, what are the powerless going to resort to when they see their grievances, inflicted by us, are not being addressed? The war of the powerless.So, Neo Cons, lacking simple human emotions, morals, and values, and having no other goals but unlimited power, are the wrong people to fight any war, much less a war where the will of the occupied is the center of gravity, and the deciding factor for victory.

Wars of Credibility

What's this new diplomatic SOP where we dont talk to our enemies? I can't understand it. Of course, you talk to your enemies, you know what your friends are doing to hell with them you dont need to talk to them, that's how you find out what your enemies are doing. You know, there are other ways to force your political will on other countries without going to war, without using the military, without violence. You do it through talking. That is such retarded middle school bullshit. "We dont talk to our enemies." Then who the fuck are you talking to. Oh yeah, that's right you have a direct line to God and God tells you which of his people to kill and not kill. What's the number so I can call him and tell him he fucked up? Can I send him a text? I'm sure God has a blackberry. Maybe I can explain the ways of peace and diplomacy to him. Talking to your enemies is the first resort from the strategic to the tactical level. That's what you do first, not shoot them.
I know why they dont talk to our enemies because we have no leverage. We used to be able to leverage our credibility to build worldwide coalitions to force our/the WORLD'S diplomatic will. First that credibility is gone so we cant build a coalition to do a high school science project. Second we have gone so far over the deep end that noone knows what our strategic and national goals and/or will are anymore. And people are afraid to get behind us because we're like lunatic with a loaded gun. They just dont know where we are going to shoot and why.

"So you were attacked by OBL, what do you want to do about it America."
"Well, I think we'll attack Atlantis."
"But Atlantis is fictional Mr. President."
"That's just what the liberal media wants you to think, that's where all the WMD's and OBL are hiding, that's where they harbor all the terrorists."

I mean that might as well have been the conversation with us and the rest of the world the months following 9-11, because what was done in our name makes just as much sense. So, just like the schoolyard bullies I used to piss off with my smart mouth and quick wit our only reaction to any problem of diplomacy is violence. It wasnt hard to outwit the bully, but when I did, he had no other option but to punch me in the face in order to enforce his will upon me. At that point I would gladly give him my lunch money. I got punched all because he couldnt come up with clever scheme to outsmart me out of my money. I guess my point is, When all you have is a hammer every problem looks like a nail.

"Everything that is right or natural pleads for separation. The blood of the slain, the weeping voice of nature cries, 'tis time to part." Thomas Paine on Decolonization

EXTENSION!!!!

We knew it was coming all along...the extension of the 1BDE, 1AD. We have officially been extended to stay in Ramadi because there is no unit that could replace us without violating "dwell time" standards. For OPSEC reasons I wont say which unit or for how long we are extended but it's shorter than most extensions, considering last time 1AD was here it was for 15 months. This news comes on the day when I find these headlines on Army Knowledge Online or AKO for short:

Army Warns Rumsfeld It's Billions Short
An extraordinary action by the chief of staff sends a message: The Pentagon must increase the budget or reduce commitments in Iraq and elsewhere.
By Peter Spiegel, Times Staff Writer

They chose this goddamn war now they want to starve the military that's fighting it. Remember Mr. Secretary, we all know now this was a war of CHOICE. So, you better come up with the fucking money to fight it right.
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Washington Times: September 25, 2006
Army Considers More Combat Units For Iraq
Escalated deployments eyed to tackle violence
By Rowan Scarborough, The Washington Times

Escalated deployments such as for the unit replacing us.
"We'll be greeted as liberators." 2003
"Major combat operations in Iraq have ended." 2003
"I think what we are seeing here is an insurgency in its last throes." 2004
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New York Times: September 25, 2006
Unit Makes Do As Army Strives To Plug Gaps
By David S. Cloud

A story about 3ID training with minimal equipment and time because all of their equipment was torn up by the last deployment, or it got left behind as what is called Theater Provided Equipment. The Army version of hand-me-downs.
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Washington Times: September 25, 2006 Pg. 1
U.S. Soldiers See Inept Output By Iraqi Troops
By Antonio Castaneda, Associated Press

Look these Iraqis are never going to take over their own country they are too afraid. I talk to the Iraqi soldiers here in Ramadi and they are not from here. They are from completely different regions of the country. They tell me that "Ramadi is no good. All Ali Baba." Ali Baba is the word for a thief or a bad person. They dont like the people here and have no reason to want to defend them because they are outsiders just like us being attacked by them. On several occasions I've been asked to attach IA convoys to mine and have refused on the grounds that this is their country and if they are too afraid to drive a convoy at night in their own country then they are never going to take over and we are never going to leave.
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February 2003

I remember it like it was yesterday. It was another cold and brisk, but sunny February day in Muncie, Indiana in 2003. At the time I was attending college, an institution of enlightenment, I was in my second to last year. I was a telecommunications major with emphasis in television, radio, and film production, with a minor in military science. I remember leaving to go pick my future wife up from class right as Secretary of State Colin Powell stepped up to the microphone at the United Nations Assembly. I listened to the local NPR station as they carried the broadcast live. I yelled and screamed, to my wife, or anyone that would listen, “There it is, the proof, he’s laying it all out for you. How can we not go to war now? We must defend America from this grave and serious threat. How can the nations of old, most proximal to this threat, allow it to exist past today with this mountain of proof?” And it was not as if I had no skin in the game because I had been enlisted in the Army Reserve since 1999, and knew how much they relied on the Reserve in the support function in the last war in this same desert. Two life-changing events happened within the next month. On March 8th 2003 I married a woman who would also become an officer, and March 17th the US invaded Iraq.
The most important fact was that my wife and I were both going to be officers. Shortly thereafter I signed my Senior ROTC contract committing me to 8 more years, 3 of those on active duty, to an Army at war. At the time we were being told that the war would be over in no time. I remember seeing pictures of Chalabi, and stories on the Iraqi National Congress. I thought if there is someone willing to take over, let them. Take out the dangerous dictator; put Chalabi, who at the time I did not know was an international felon, in the charge of this country. I signed the line based on the promise of the civilian leadership of the military, and this country that we would be in and out quickly, and the Iraqis would quickly take the reigns of their own country. I was so naïve that I even remember lamenting, with my fellow cadets, that I would be in the Army from 1999 until 2012 and I would miss the chance to go to war. Yet, here it is 2006 and I have been deployed almost a whole year.
I can’t really recall what happened but I woke up. I can’t recall the exact incident or time, but I realized everything that I had been told was bullshit. I know it was later in the year of 2003 when I came to realize I had been duped. It could have been the information that I was gradually getting off the internet since none of the major news networks carried it. Maybe it was because we had been in country almost 9 months, by that time, and there was no sign of WMD’s that were supposedly parked in everyone’s garage, and under every floor mat. Maybe it was because NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING the administration had said had come to be true. Maybe it was because I saw my Commander-In-Chief stand on the deck of a ship and declare “Mission Accomplished,” but my brothers and sisters in arms were still fighting and dying in Iraq, and casualties were mounting in greater numbers than they did during the invasion.
I was not the type of person to question my government, or my commanders but by the end of 2003 a cynic was born, and I realized the grave mistake I had made. My wife and I had both signed the line to fight a war that we were told would be over long before we hit the force. It was a war that I had rooted for. I had gone so far as to counter-protest with my signs stating the facts given to me by Colin Powell. I wasn’t trying to avoid going to war, but if my leadership got so many things, perhaps everything, so wrong about this war how could I trust them for the rest of my tenure as an officer.
If the reasons they had stated to go to war in the first place were all false then why did we go to war in Iraq? If I can no longer trust the intentions of my leaders then how can I continue in this profession? Of course, I had already signed the line; I had and still have no choice but to continue until the end of my obligation. What I once thought was a noble profession, being a leader in the military, has been muddied inside of me by the same inalienable values and convictions that make this profession great, and those who do it great leaders. My conviction to moral principles and dedication to my subordinates and my country are at odds with my duty to obey orders of the Commander-In-Chief, and my superiors. With all the evidence against them, how can I trust what they say is true? How can I know that the orders I get are lawful and legal when the character of their producers is at the very least suspect, if not in violation of my own and the military’s moral code of principles and ethics? I’m sure if I thought about it, in my view, I would find violations of all of the Army’s 7 Core Values by the Commander-In-Chief; Loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage. What are they to them but words that keep me loyal, and to me convictions that keep me bound to service in a conflict where their anithesis is their creator.

A Quick Observation

If things are getting better shouldn't my chances of getting blown up when I roll out the gate decrease, not increase? Just thought that might be a good measuring stick for progress. Throwing it out there. You decide.

Who's the Fascist?

I want someone who advocated the abuse and torture of prisoners to talk to me about fascism. I want an administration that is classifying documents at the highest rate in our history, in a supposedly open government, to speak to me about totalitarianism. I want to be lectured by a government that solves all problems through military force about the dangers of power run amok. I want a government that spies on 20 million of its own citizens to define the fight against despotism. I want a man who has spent his time in public office, in the name of my country, supplying brutal dictators with chemical and biological weapons and contra soldiers to define, for me, the global struggle against fascists. I think the first person to speak out against fascism should be a government that is stripping its own people of “certain unalienable rights” that it hypocritically tries to spread around the world as a guise for its imperialist ambitions. I want a government that has more citizens imprisoned than any other nation in the world to speak of fascism. In a country where peaceful protestors are wrangled into fenced off areas to redress their grievances against their government. It is in this country that political dissenters are put on no-fly lists and harassed by executive law enforcement agencies. It is in America where political protestors have been shot, maced, and gassed without provocation by representatives of the executive branch of our government. A government where day after day the executive violates rules and laws they swore to uphold. The same government that imprisoned its own citizens for years after 9-11-01 with no due process should know full well the dangers of fascism. I want an executive that uses religion to justify its political stance against life saving medical procedures to lecture me about the dangers of religious fanaticism. The fight against fascism needs to start at home. These Orwellian “newspeak” speeches given around the US to unite people in a struggle against the supposed fascists on the outside, while we forget the tactics we use to fight this “enemy” are the creation of the fascists on the inside. These people we fight are not fascists; they are missing one important ingredient…the corporations. Fascism by definition is the blending of corporate interest with public government. I can’t think of anyplace on the planet where it is more the case, than it is in the US. In a country where you are hard pressed to find legislation that is not bought and paid for by corporate interests. Or try to find the individual senator or congressperson that isn’t bought either; it will be a hard find. Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones. If we are going to fight an all out war on fascism we should start at home. Only then will we have the moral authority to demand and end to totalitarianism around the world.

On a More Somber Note

We like to think and say we are making progress over here, but there is one thing I notice as I drive down Iraqi streets. Men wandering aimlessly, staring out at my convoy with a listless, hopeless stare that seems to ask why have we done this to them. These men have nothing to do. Go out at all hours that it is not curfew and you will see all the men just standing outside their homes, or markets staring off into the distance. We want to know why they join the insurgency, its because they have nothing better to do, and no other way to make money. Let's see I can stand here and do nothing to support my family all day, or I can go plant this bomb and make $100. I mean really what would you do? I know the US is doing the best they can, but so are the insurgents (Iraqi and Foreign) at thwarting our every attempt to improve life for these miserable bastards. It just doesnt seem like there is any progress as month after month I see the same dudes starting at me from the same place everytime I roll out the gate. I guess the one bonus is that this means more IA/IP recruits which means more of a chance of the entire military pulling out sooner.

Northwest Union CANT STRIKE

Apparently workers in this country no longer have the right to assemble to redress grievances against their employer. One of the top things that have made America what it is today and give people the opportunity for success are labor unions and their ability to use their mass as a bargaining chip for job improvement. I didnt know that a judge could order people not to strike...not to speak out against their employer. This judge is taking the only bartering chip they have away from them and it cant be constitutional or fair.
FUCK IT. GO ON STRIKE ANYWAY show this government run amok who this country actually belongs to. This is a country of, for, and by the people no the corporation. STRIKE. This, I think is pivotal, to the future of unions and the future of worker rights in this country. I dont care if they're striking because they want caviar and limos, it's a workers right and not a judges business. One judge cant stop all of them.

American Idiots

• Let's start talking about things in the context of reality. Americans are dumb, ignorant, and practically illiterate. You know, most polls are stupid and some just show how stupid we're getting as a country. More people can name the winner of American Idol than can name a Justice of the Supreme Court. Nothing against these idol winners but I think it's fitting that the only talent our American "Idol" has is the ability to sing karaoke. I've seen guys so drunk they can't remember their name, but they can still sing karaoke with the best of them. It's pretty bad because my wife who absolutely hates politics and pays absolutely no attention to it could tell me about Justice Alito and the controversy surrounding his appointment. I love my wife and she's a smart woman, but she pays absolutely no attention to this crap (seems strange huh, considering how impassioned I am about it) and she could tell me about two of the Supreme Court Justices (Justice Bader-Ginsberg and Justice Alito). My point is what kind of vaccuum do you have to be living in to know absolutely nothing about what is happening to your own country. I understand people are probably distracted by Iraq, but 60% of high school graduates couldn't point to it on a world map. Most Americans only read and comprehend at a seventh grade level. What the hell? Americans like to tout that people come from all over the world to attend our universities and colleges. Yeah, that's right they do. But they go to our colleges and they attend a class taught by a professor, more than likely, not from this country either, especially in the sciences and math. I guess the magical being theory just doesn't hold up in college level chemistry and biology, now does it Kansas Board of Education. That's because these foreigners come from education systems where they teach you things like math and science in math and science class, and not fables like creationism. Why dont we just start teaching history from the Bible also?

You know, I'm very libertarian, you Christo-Fascists can have your own schools where you teach your future idiot Bush supporting children that a big bearded man in the sky made the earth magically appear 4,000 years ago, just don't take my country down with you. We want to accomplish things and progress, not retard, our society.

• Another thing. No more medical treatment for anyone pro-lifer or Chirsto-fascists. Because every medicine and procedure probably had people die in the course of its development. I dont want that hanging on your conscience as you take the viagara before slipping into your gimp outfits. That means no more surgeries, no more prescriptions. All you get to do is pray. And if 50% of the country is pro-life then that's 150 million people that we wont have to put on the national health care plan which would really make it cost productive. From now on medicine is only for people who believe in science. You can believe in God and still believe in science, and when you come to that realization then you can have the medicine and the doctors.
• I'm tired of hearing about Islamo-Fascists in the news and never hearing about the Christo-Nazis who want to dismantle our country from the inside out. The real threat is the people who want to turn America into a theocracy and force their beliefs onto everyone because they are so insecure in their own faith they can't live and let live. The American Taliban is no different than the Afghan Taliban other than the fact they don't wear burkahs and the men are a little more clean shaven. But we give them a pass because they look like us.

Mel Wasn't All Wrong...

But how can an unabashed liberal say such a thing. Let me tell you why. Just as our government was hijacked by a group of hawks, mostly of the chicken variety, so has the Israeli government been. The NeoCons of the US, I am positive, collaborated with the Likkuds in Israel to start this war. To say Israel does anything over there without our consent is insane. When they are the #1 purchaser of weapons from the #1 arms dealer in the world (US) with the 4th largest army in the world they sort of dance to our tune.
For whatever crazy reason the NeoCon movement has always had a vested interest in the returning of all Semitic lands to Israel. I dont know why. NeoCons by their doctrine are not religious people, but think religion is something that should be used to con people into putting you into power. (Don't believe me then read Leo Strauss). So its not because of faith or belief. I dont know if the Neo Cons were conned into this policy belief, or what, but it is their driving doctrine. It seems as though they are controlled completely by this policy and will spend whatever American capitial to ensure it happens. But I see no reason why we should have anything to do with Israel's mess. Sure we created Israel with the help of the UN, but if they want to continue to live in a place where they constantly get bombed and killed, NOT OUR PROBLEM. If they want to go on a rampage and try and kill all the Arabs around them NOT OUR PROBLEM. We have bigger problems that directly affect the U.S. to worry about than a safe secure Israel. How about a safe and secure U.S.? or a Safe and secure IRAQ?
And dont give me that tired ass line of well we're fighting them over there so we dont have to fight them here. Uhhh they weren't over here (Iraq) until we made it possible for them to get here. Dont confuse the war on terror with this mistake. Hezbollah. Not our problem. They want to kill Israelis fine let them do it or let Israel kill all of them. I really dont give a shit. I'm just tired of seeing whiny fucking -Bergs and -Steins on television crying about how they are always the fucking victim when the have the complete support of the US government and have all the weapons we have in our aresenal and an army that is better trained but falls a little short on the numbers. You are responsible for the wars there. Quit acting like the victim. Attacking sovereign nations and killing innocent people doesn't exactly make you look innocent and doing it with the equipment provided by the US doesnt make us look any better and doesnt help win the hearts and minds of Arabs and Muslims here in Iraq. So, you are in fact making the situation in Iraq here worse. Example as we have for the past two years been able to quell the Mahdi Militia of Al Sadr they are making a comeback so they can go fight Israelis in Lebanon. If these two fucking bullshit religions want to slug it out for shitty piece of property where some fucking stories from their books of fables took place, fuck it, let them.
The other argument I dont want to hear is, "We cant allow countries to harbor terrorists, and any country that harbors them should be attacked." Well, in that case you are insinuating that America should be attacked as we harbor terrorists here. Or do you just me Muslim terrorists? Example Posada Carilles, who, after nearly annual attempts at extradition by the Venezuelan, Cuban, and Nicaraguan governments for terrorist acts committed in or against those countries still lives the good life in the US under US protection. He was the main conspirator in the bombing of a Cubana Airliner killing 73 INNOCENT people and was also one of the main leaders of the Contras terrorist acts in Nicaragua. So, those who live in glass houses. But I forgot that over the past 5 years we only make rules we dont have to follow them, and the rules we abided by before we dont have to follow if those in power now consider them quaint or contrary to our goals. Like a schoolyard bully we use our brutishness to change the rules so that we can win.

NeoConservative Middle East Peace Plan:
Step 1. Incite as many Arabs in fighting in Israel and Lebanon as possible.
Setp 2. Get involved in as many wars as possible with those Arab countries.
Step 3. Kill all the Arabs and take all their oil.
Step 4. Return all of Israel and ME over to the Israelis
Step 5. Wait for the second coming of Jesus.
Step 6. Use oil for war with China and Iran.

The Angry Middle East Peace Plan
Step 1. Kill all the Arabs/Palestinians
Step 2. Kill all the Israelis
Step 3. Claim all the land in the ME in the name of the US
Step 4. Kill anyone who has a problem with that.
Step 5. Wait for the second coming of Jesus (or first coming of Jesus if you're Jewish).

The Common Sense ME Peace Plan
There isn't one. You might as well face it these people will be fighting until one side or the other is completely annhilated. Hahahahaha. And we can't tell Israel to stop a preventative war because we have no moral ground to stand on in that arena as we are embroiled in the aftermath of a preventative war in Iraq. So all we can say is..."Well, uhhhh be nice and try not to kill innocent people." We've lost our moral standing. We have created a new monster in foreign policy that we can't control. The preventative war. I just wonder when the first preventative war is going to be launched on the U.S.?

In all seriousness I see no peaceful conclusion to this mess I'm in or that one over there and they are both connected.

Iraq...its Hot...its sandy...its Hell...

Well, I am in a certain province that begins with an "A", and city that begins with an "R." My time so far has not been that bad. We've hit a couple of IEDs had a few rounds fired at us but all in all we are doing pretty well. Not too long before we get to go home where we get to redeploy our Brigade first from Iraq to Germany then from Germany back to Texas. No rest for the wicked. But we are over the hump on the downhill slope and from this side of the mountain the downhill side doesnt seem that bad.

There is no Zionist Conspiracy...

The fact that people tell me I'm crazy when I tell them the government at the very least was complicit in the attacks on doesnt give me much hope when I try to convince them that there are people in our government who wholeheartedly believe in the Book Of Revelations and will do anything to insure those prophecies come to fruition. Hence the complete acceptance by this Admin and the rest of the world that it is OK for Israel to conduct terrorist attacks on other nations. The 4th largest military in the world attacking a country that is already weak. My question is, if Israel kills an American in Lebanon do we get to invade Israel? Not to mention the attacking of a Muslim state by Israel, with the support of the US with US weapons and munitions, is not boding well for us over here in Iraq. Call me a cynic, but did Hezbollah ever show proof they had captured Israeli soliders? You would think something like that would be on Al Jazeera. There is not much you can do to stop the march of "Armageddon" now. Just sit back relax, enjoy the light show, and hope they all wipe each other out first.

I'm Still here

Well I'm in Iraq still...long lapse in posts because all of my anger has been vented towards insurgents/Iraqis, whatever you want to call them, the guys trying to blow me up, in a new spot in Iraq. On top of that internet has been scarce. Well we've relocated and are settling in the only downside is my wife and I are split up now. It really sucks because we've been there to comfort each other when we started feeling down about leaving our son behind but now we're too far apart to do that and rarely get to email each other. It sucks. Everyone tells me that now I get a taste of what everyone else has to deal with being separated from their spouse, which is not true at all because they dont have to worry about their spouse getting hit by an IED, or a sniper, or a mortar round. So its not the fucking same at all. The only thing you have to worry about is your spouse choking down too many little debbies from stress and putting on a few pounds before you get back, that's a little different than wondering whether everyday you'll get a call to come to the commander's office and him giving you the bad news.

But anyway the world of politics has gotten beyond my grasp...I dont get it, the guy has no popular support and has broken national and international law and is somehow still the president. What the fuck ever? Then we have his cronies in the White House leaking secret information and still able to keep the security clearances and hang around. Jesus. I dont know what more he has to do to just get impeached. I'm just tired of thinking about it. And really I dont have the time or energy anymore. I've lost all hope for the restoration of our republic.

Oh Yeah if you have a myspace account there is a band on there called Biteboy look them up and give them some money so they can go annoy the shit out of Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church for a day Sunday June 18th. Phelps is the guy protesting at soldiers funerals saying thank god for IEDs and all that happy horseshit. Apparently there is a biker gang that is going with biteboy as support. I dont know, I think kissing a few of those people with an aluminum baseball bat might be worth it. Fuck Fred Phelps and the pseudoChristians of the Westboro Baptist "Church".

Study: Bush tax cuts making rich richer

Some headlines just catch your attention...No fucking shit Sherlock, I thought we learned two things from the 80's 1) Cocaine is not a good meal replacement, and 2) Voodoo economics fucks the lower and middle class. Holy shit...you know when CNN has caught on we just may be onto something, economists have only been screaming this for 25 years.

That is Democracy

People keep asking when will democracy take over in Iraq? When will the big plan of the 5th reaon for invasion come to fruition, when will all the war stop? Fact is democracy has been implaced in Iraq, and the minority doesn't like it. Because what have we as Americans taught the Iraqis about Democracy, if not that, democracy is the tyrrany of the majority. We are trying to avoid handing the Iraqi government over to religious fundementalists who think everyone should be and do as they, but we allow the same type of people with fairer skin, no facial hair, and a different moniker (Pastor, Reverend, Born-Again Christian) to take over the American government. We allow the religious majority to dictate what people can and cant do with their own bodies, and in their own bedrooms because they see it as immoral. Robertson, Falwell, and that group from Missouri aren't any different ideologically than the ayatollahs, imams, and clerics on Al Jazeera. Sure they look more like "us" so we give them the pass, but their message is still one of intolerance and the institution of a theocracy. They have created a tyrannical religious majority that does not want to live and let live, but wants to order and command everyone to live as they wish to live.
I have one question for all the theocrats out there. Supposing that there is a God: Did he not give us the ability to make our own decisions? Or are you saying he made a mistake and that ability should be taken from us based on your lowly interpretation of God's word? So, I guess you work directly for God and know exactly what he wants, and he wants to you to take all free will and all temptation away, so that everyone will live by his word; or at least your interpretation of it. So does God talk to you on a two-way radio, cell phone, or do you have a direct line?
Democracy has taken hold in Iraq the same way it has in the US, the tyrannical majority has taken over. The only difference is the minority in Iraq is not going to stand aside while they are pushed around and subjugated to be second class citizens. Democracy should be majority rule with deference to the minority's opinions and beliefs. This wont happen in Iraq, and it certainly is becoming less and less likely to happen in America, the supposed land of the free, and for some odd reason the plague of religion seems to be the infection that keeps people from being able to live free and work together. Here in Iraq it's Sunni vs. Shi'a in the states it's tyrannical Chritian Aytollahs vs. open minded freedom loving Americans (many regular Christians included). Coinicidence...I think not.

I Just Dont Care

I think I may be able to get into trouble for some of the things I say on here. But I just dont care anymore. These Fascists have gone too far and I took the same oath they did to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, they didn't live up to their oath so IMPEACH them. They have violated the Constitution but they don't care. Make them care Congress. America is behind you. The loonies who think it's alright for the "President" to abuse power are in the minority. At least Censure and have a trial to find out whether or not he comitted an impeachable offense. That's why you are there. IMPEACH this unelected and criminal organization that has taken control of our government. This Cabal should govern no longer. IMPEACH. Do your fucking job Congress, or you wont have one next election cycle.

Troops Morale Hurt by President's Undermining of Democracy

Here's a post for all you brain-dead, flag-waving, red-state, lobotamized Coservative, Republican, Neo-Cons, and TheoCons, especially members of the Straussian Bush-Cheney Neo-Con deathcult. I'm going to try and not use any big words, but go ahead and pull out your dictionaries just in case you need some help, and dig in because its going to be a long one.

"Conservatives" keep spinning Rep. Murtha's comments by saying that he is hurting the morale of the troops. Well, I consider myself a soldier, not really a troop, because I am not officially in a Cav unit, but anyway, I've been in the Army since 1999. I'm a soldier, and I see what John Murtha says as the truth. I'm not signing back up, and almost everyone I talk to isn't, so when he says he wouldn't reenlist, he's following the sentiment of most of the people in my circle, maybe my circle isn't representative of the Army, I dont know. I just know 60-70% of the people I know aren't signing back up. It's sad but true. So, Rep. Murtha is expressing popular sentiment amongst myself andmy peers, and being honest with the American people and expressing his OPINION as someone who has served gallantly in the military for an extended period of time that he wouldn't enlist today. Fair enough. Didn't hurt my morale, as a matter of fact it boosted it, because if someone of his experience in the Armed forces sees the problems I do, 1) he's actually paying attention and listening and 2) he's probably going to work on fixing them.
There have been many reasons given for invading Iraq, it's gone from he was a threat to spreading freedom like it's Avian Flu and once it's in the air it infects everyone it's around, and apparently in Iraq has the same mortality rate, but I digress. So, we are there to institute a Free Iraqi State. OK, I'll buy that for a dollar. I like freedom, and my neighbors seem to like it, so, why the hell not? Just last week it came out that the Federal government has been spying on citizens private phone calls without warrants, not even the bullshit pseudo-warrants issued by the FISA that allow the government to moinitor your calls for three days to collect evidence to have probable cause to get a real wiretap warrant. So, the Federal government with the blessing of the executive is violating the Constitution, specifically the 4th Amendment. The President also had to be coaxed to sign a bill saying we wouldn't torture people, which would seem like a pretty American thing to not do. On top of that the government has been whiddling away our freeedoms bit by bit.
Now, the Murtha comment, I believe came out the same week as the wirtapping fiasco. I am now going to ask a question, in a mostly rhetorical fashion, what hurts the morale of the "troops" more 1) an elected representative of the people speaking his mind and opinion, which, seems to be a mostly true sentiment, or 2) the President of the United States colluding to violate the freedoms that we are supposedly fighting to spread around the world and institute in Iraq by our example, and therefore undermining our credibility on such matters in the face of an already seemingly impossible mission. Therefore, giving us no leg to stand on in the institution of a free and open society in Iraq, ergo making the mission in Iraq infinite.

Police State...

U.S. Supreme Court to Decide if Police Can Barge in Unannounced
The police are becoming willing participants in the creation of a police state. They have decided that the constitution is crap as long as the job gets done. I'm fine with cops, they keep law and order in society and have a pretty rough, scary, dangerous, and sometimes thankless job (that I can empathize with). The only problem is they are not above the law. They cant just go crashing into peoples homes in five man stacks without a warrant, and say that the evidence they found is justification, after the fact. That's like the Office of Pre-Crime in the movie Minority Report.
They may think they have the authority to do it, but we as American citizens must put them in their place. I would hate to condone violence against law enforcment officers, but if that is what it takes for them to get the point that they are not above the law, then so be it. My job, and the job of every American, is to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, when people violate that document they become the enemies of freedom and our country and should be shown NO quarter; especially when executing such actions in a violent and hostile fashion.
It would be one thing if they knocked on the door and pushed their way into his house and started snooping, but they were doing it in a violent fashion, which is the most aggregious abuse of power to destroy the 4th Amendment.
This time they've been caught and it has been appealed to the Supreme Court, but what happens when search and seizure without and warrant, and without probable cause becomes the norm? Or has it already? What happens when you are automatically suspect just for being a citizen? Or are you already? Have your phone conversations been monitored or wiretapped? Are you on the governments No-Fly List or the No-Flay Watchlist? You dont know, do you? And there is no way to find out...

"When I Dream about the moonlight...

...On the Wabash, then I long for my Indiana home."



Not really...when I get out of the Army I'm moving as far away as possible.

"...to defend the Constitution against ALL enemies foreign and DOMESTIC." That's all I'm going to say.

Same story as before

Alright, first of all I dont trust the story of any government official any further than I can throw them, especially over the past 5 years. Well, it turns out there is a fraud being perpetrated by the mainstream media(No, say it isnt so!)...Alpizar in Miami never said he had a bomb, at least not while on the plane. I think two different sources do a good job of 1) debukning the official STORY and 2) drawing paralells to the de Menezes shooting in London.
Remember the original official story was that he was running from police in the London underground before they tackled him and shot him in the head 8 times..when it turns out he was already in a subcar seated???? Hmmmm a bit suspicious.
Well dont take my word for it.

Happy Holidays...no lunch for you.

Well, the Republicons have made the payback for all the money that got them elected. In usual form Republicons in a money laundering scheme on the highest order have shuffled money from those who need it to those who dont. They were able to pass 4 tax cuts worth $100 billion dollars, which will primarily go to the top 0.5% of all people in the nation. No free or reduced lunches, which I used growing up. Cutting of federal loans and grants for higher education, which I used to get through college. Cutting of programs like WIC and welfare programs that help feed kids, and my parents used sparingly when I was a child.
These fucking CRIMINALS are stealing food from the mouths of babes in their very literal FAUSTIAN bargain with the rich that got them elected. FUCK YOU ALL. Conservative, Republican, NeoCon, TheoCon, ChristoFascists whatever you call yourself, you're fucking criminals.
For all of you Christians, that for some odd reason, in fit of hypocrisy, maybe, agree with this administration stealing from the poor to give to the rich. What the fuck are you thinking? You are a disgrace to your religion, and Jesus will most certainly send you to your Hell. You are not Chrisitians...if that is the bargain you want your religious leaders to make to institute a theocracy in America. You'll let them make the bargain that goes against all of Jesus' teachings. Did Jesus say to forsake the lepers and kill the beggars? "As I have loved you love one another." I'm confused you must be following the other Jesus' teachings. Admit it your not Christians, your fascsists using religion as a diguise for your digusting antiAmerican antiChristian agenda. You may win the fight to keep gays from getting married, but, by your own beliefs, you will lose the war to save your own souls. Any time a child goes hungry while a CEO uses a tax cut to buy a $16,000 umbrella stand, you people who support this robbery should feel disgusted and ashamed.
You "Christians" want to stop all these abortions, but you'll let the children starve after you force women to have children they cant afford.
On a more cynical note, we are the only country or civilization EVER to cut taxes in a time of war. How is it the Army and Marines have equipment that is pushed to the breaking point, but the "pro-military" Republicons vote to cut taxes before they fix our equipment. Republicons arent pro military they're pro war there is a difference.

Happy Holidays

Watching Fox News recently I discovered that the biggest news was not the debate over the beginning or the end of the war in Iraq, or the fact that the VP's chief of staff is indicted for a treasonous act, but that "Christmas is under attack." I wouldn't have known this if not for the crack teams at Fox News. Apparently there is war on christmas? I dont know. This war is being fought by "secularists"? Are they like the people that we fought in Panama, like separatists? I dont know. I thought secularism was a good thing but I could be wrong. E pluribus Unum. I only took six years of Latin I'm pretty sure that translates into "Out of many, one." There are more than just Christians in this country, I'm getting fucking sick and tired of hearing about Christian Persecution.

I dont think 90% of the Christian Population was wiped out by "secularist missionaries" between 1492 and 1896, as was the Native population of the US.

I dont think there was a problem with Christians in the US Military getting religious support until 1999, as it was with Wicca. I dont think the current Leader, and I use the term lightly, of the free world has ever said your religion should not be recognized. I dont think there was ever a bill put twice before the Senate to ban Christians from joining the military.

I dont think Christians, although appartently the most violent of all the religions, are stopped and searched every time they take a flight.

And the list goes on and on and on...Christians are the persecutors. Everyday you prosecute the war on the separtion of church and state and religious freedom. You have a religion that is apparently very intolerant and exclusive, which goes against the very ideas upon which America was founded. Whatever happened to "give me your tired your poor?" I guess it's alright as long as they're Chrisitan and their skin tone matches.

The Bush's sent "Happy Holiday" cards, and this gives them one point in my book, so they are now at -1,368,478.36, because they wanted to be "considerate and inclusive." I have to say, I was mighty impressed at this show of respect for other religions and cultures. I began to think, maybe I had this guy all wrong afterall. Then came the ChristoFascists with their bellicose statements of why the cards didnt say Christmas, except this attack on Christmas was coming from "Great and Glorious Leader" so they dare not question. Or did they? So, needless to say there is a big shit storm brewing over what we call this time of year. Why dont we just call it what it has always been called, and was called way before the time of the Chrisitans and Jews...Yule. Since Jesus was actually born in April I think this takes contention down to Hannukah and Yule, and since Yule is older it wins. Why do the "Elitist Exclusivist Christians" want to change the name of my Holiday? Why are they attacking Yule? I've said it more than once and I'll say it again...I HATE PSUEDO-CHRISTIANITY.

Hillary Clinton

First let me state that I am a progressive. I dont think I'm Republican Lite, or Libertarian with half the calories of Republican, I consider myself a Liberal and Progressive. I will not support any candidate that does not run on the platform of progress. That's right, the "extreme" left needs to take control of this donkey and ride it into Washington so we can accomplish something. Just because Hilary puts the big D after her name doesnt mean you have to vote for her. Hilary, just like Bill, is Republican lite. It's been so long that we cant remember, but that is what a moderate Republican looks like. It's been so long that we haven't seen one that doesnt look like a NeoCon, TheoCon, or ChristoFascist, that they're going to lull us into voting for them on a lesser scale. Dont fall for the trick. If you want progress, vote for the progressives, if you want the same old shit...vote Republican or Republican Lite (D).

Traitors???

I hate it when I hear theright spewing filth about people who dissent being traitors, when, if they want to see the real traitors, all they have to do is look at the company they keep. Rush Limbaugh is the biggest culprit of calling people traitors for their dissent, I would just like to restate that Rush Limbaugh denied service to his country by having a family friend sign a statement saying he had a boil on his ass. I've have done a lot of things in the military and a boil on my ass has never stopped me from doing any of them.
But lets get to the real traitor here...the one I've been pointing at all along.

Former Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham (R) California has admitted guilt to taking bribes from a defense contractor MZM. Well, just this past week the Army, Navy, Marines, and Air Force issued a recall for 18,000 IBA's, or in civilian lingo, bullet proof vests. Apparently MZM is somehow connected with the shoddy vests. I say let the Dukestir test all 18000 vests out himself by walking IED Alley next to BIAP.
How much more fucking treasonous do you get Republicons? It is not treasonous to dissent, I do, however, feel it is treasonous to sell out the people who are fighting the war most you wouldn't. I feel it is treasonous to sell out your own soldiers to make a few bucks. This is treason and conspiring against the government...where is the outrage and calls for this man to be hanged by the Republicans. Last time I checked nothing Howard Dean said actually killed anyone, but FUCKED UP VESTS HAVE. You dumb fucking inbred, dumbass, hillbilly, hypocrite, xenophobes. People have been executed for less. So Randy Duke Cunningham if this is indeed true...FUCK YOU ASSHOLE. YOU FAT TREASONOUS SACK OF SNAKE SHIT. I HOPE YOU BURN IN HELL. (I dont belive in Hell, but I know you do, and guess where you're going). And this is were I part from my liberal friends, because I believe in the death penalty for only the most lude and vile of criminals, this would include people such as yourself Dukestir. People that sell out their country to the highest bidder. You and every politician Democrats included that puts the dollar ahead of the ideas and values that made this country great. But it seems to be festering in the Repulican party right now. Where is the outrage Rush??? This guy sold out the troops and his country. Where you fat, drug pushing, hypocrite?

Melancholly Joy

I cant help but be happy as every republican goes down in a blazing ball of fire and the "minority" of the US pounces on them to attack the wounded animal. I mean who in their right mind still believes these subhuman vermin. These people that lie, cheat, and steal at every turn. Put their own personal interests before the welfare of the country, or fellow countrymen.

It's happiness followed by sadness as I think they damage they've done in 6 years to our Republic may be irrepairable.

People touting the power of the "free market" as GM and Ford lay of thousands of workers in order to pad the pockets of already too wealthy CEO's. The final steps in the institution of a fascist, corporate-friendly economy devoid of worker's rights taking us back to the "Gilded Age" of the 1890's when robber-barons ruled the US and were given a free pass.

We should be ashamed as we are the only industrialized nation that doesnt GUARANTEE healthcare to the our citizens. Noone's going to last forever, but this is a benchmark to measure the evolution of a society or culture, how well they treat their own.

What is it these people have against progress? Why do they want to take us back to the dark annals of American history when women were second class citizens and workers slaves to the owners of corporations? Only fascists would wish to enslave their own people.

I'm Baaaaack...

First of all let me start off saying I have been in the field since Sept 11th (let me tell you not the best date to go) but I had fun training. I love the training. It's when you find the weak links and can work on fixing them. But I guess alot has happened in the political world since I've been gone. I've only been able to keep track through the slightly skewed view of Stars and Stripes. Stars and Stripes doesnt do a bad job, but let's face it their audience isnt exactly the Garofalo and Franken loving types.

So we had a couple of victories for governships, and the Terminators proposals got terminated. The presidents approval rating continues to fall as he just keeps twising himself in the barbed wire that is anything his administration tries to do. This administration has just turned into a blazing ball of fire ready to implode at any moment. It isn't even just the Administration it's the entire fucking political party. Oh I think Johnny Cash said it best, "I fell into a burning ring of fire..." You know how it goes.

My internet is out at home because I havent been home to pay the bill, no telling how long that will take to fix in this country. But my wife left to go to the states to pick up my son and bring him back to us. It's only been two months but it feels like a lifetime since I've seen him. Four to 6 months they sure do grow up alot. I'm dreading neither one of us being around to watch him grow up for one whole year.
Cant wait to see the little man...only two more days...