Or, "What's going on here?"
I thought Barack Obama hadn't done much in the Senate but it seems he has -- done something, at least. Something that would cause a huge change in US economics.
That something is a bill, S. 2433, that would require (not suggest or call attention to, but require) the President of the United States "to develop and implement a comprehensive strategy to further the United States foreign policy objective of promoting the reduction of global poverty, the elimination of extreme global poverty, and the achievement of the Millennium Development Goal of reducing by one-half the proportion of people worldwide, between 1990 and 2015, who live on less than $1 per day." Please notice that the concern here is not for the USA but for the entire world.
All very well and good, I'd say, EXCEPT that something like this has to come with a price to the US taxpayer. That price could be pretty steep. Like, $845 BILLION. And since the US President is the one charged with implementing it, that should come to around $8,000 per US taxed household. I don't know about you, but that kind of addition to our tax bill would come painfully close to putting me in the category of having to live on less that $1 per day.
And, since we're not talking just the US here, or SE Asia or Africa but the entire world, who's going to administer all this money. The UN? They certainly haven't proved responsible -- they still haven't totally cleared up their Food for Oil scandal.
If you think this sounds outlandish and preposterous, check it out. According to Thomas.com on 4/24/2008 the bill was placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders, Calendar No. 718. This means it can come up for a vote at any time. If Congress passes this, it's gonna cost us.
Friday, May 30
Saturday, May 10
Thoughts
What a hoot this election season is! It is absolutely the best in the more than half a century I've been involved in politics. I hope it never ends.
The Democrats have such a great talent for dredging up interesting candidates. Of course Obama's candidacy was predictable four years ago when he, unknown and not even elected to a national office, made a major speech at the Democratic Convention. Famous politicos kill for that privilege and here comes a nobody. I was astounded at the time and commented to friends that this guy had some strong "back room" politicos behind him. I have to admit it never occurred to me that he and those pushing him had so little respect for the office of President of the United States, though. I expected to hear of him doing grand things in the Senate first -- but it seems he spent those three years running for President.
Are the American people so stupid that they will elect a person to the most powerful office in the world without knowing who will be advising him (since he has no foreign OR domestic experience? So far I haven't heard anyone asking the questions -- who WILL advise him in the various areas in which he has to make decisions?
And what do we know of him personally? Other than his total concentration on personal ambition, I mean? How does he make decisions? Is he able to listen to the opinions of people who oppose his views or is he closed-minded? How is he under pressure -- does he act quickly or does he need time to think? Is he cool and clear-minded under pressure or does he have a tendency to act first and think later? When has he ever been under serious pressure and what did he do?
Obama says running for President is his way of expressing his patriotism. I'm sorry, but to me it looks like his way of expressing his ambition. He has not sacrificed anything -- time, treasure or person -- for his country. Or our country -- he doesn't express patriotism in any recognizable way so I'm not sure this is HIS country.
What has he done to serve ALL Americans? He has done some small-time community work to serve the underprivileged but nothing spectacular. The President serves ALL Americans -- rich, poor, middle-class, comfortable, struggling and every degree in between. It is the welfare of every American that falls into the hands of a sitting President.
His first oath is to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and yet he says he is for judges who have "The empathy to understand what it's like to be poor, or African-American, or gay, or disabled, or old. And that's the criteria by which I'm going to be selecting my judges." The assumption that judges have been selected in the past who didn't know such things assumes an extremely gullible and downright stupid audience.
There are two serious problems with Obama's candidacy -- actually there are more, including Michelle Obama, but we'll stick to two here: First, he makes erroneous assumptions and bases his campaign on those -- that Americans are downtrodden and oppressed (like Hitler told the Germans, except the Germans really were -- we're not). And he has sold his soul to some devil. He could not have been a millionaire by the time he was 45 and could not be running for President with the kind of money he has if he hadn't. That's all right -- EXCEPT that when he has to pay the Devil his due, it's the American people who will suffer.
The Democrats have such a great talent for dredging up interesting candidates. Of course Obama's candidacy was predictable four years ago when he, unknown and not even elected to a national office, made a major speech at the Democratic Convention. Famous politicos kill for that privilege and here comes a nobody. I was astounded at the time and commented to friends that this guy had some strong "back room" politicos behind him. I have to admit it never occurred to me that he and those pushing him had so little respect for the office of President of the United States, though. I expected to hear of him doing grand things in the Senate first -- but it seems he spent those three years running for President.
Are the American people so stupid that they will elect a person to the most powerful office in the world without knowing who will be advising him (since he has no foreign OR domestic experience? So far I haven't heard anyone asking the questions -- who WILL advise him in the various areas in which he has to make decisions?
And what do we know of him personally? Other than his total concentration on personal ambition, I mean? How does he make decisions? Is he able to listen to the opinions of people who oppose his views or is he closed-minded? How is he under pressure -- does he act quickly or does he need time to think? Is he cool and clear-minded under pressure or does he have a tendency to act first and think later? When has he ever been under serious pressure and what did he do?
Obama says running for President is his way of expressing his patriotism. I'm sorry, but to me it looks like his way of expressing his ambition. He has not sacrificed anything -- time, treasure or person -- for his country. Or our country -- he doesn't express patriotism in any recognizable way so I'm not sure this is HIS country.
What has he done to serve ALL Americans? He has done some small-time community work to serve the underprivileged but nothing spectacular. The President serves ALL Americans -- rich, poor, middle-class, comfortable, struggling and every degree in between. It is the welfare of every American that falls into the hands of a sitting President.
His first oath is to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution and yet he says he is for judges who have "The empathy to understand what it's like to be poor, or African-American, or gay, or disabled, or old. And that's the criteria by which I'm going to be selecting my judges." The assumption that judges have been selected in the past who didn't know such things assumes an extremely gullible and downright stupid audience.
There are two serious problems with Obama's candidacy -- actually there are more, including Michelle Obama, but we'll stick to two here: First, he makes erroneous assumptions and bases his campaign on those -- that Americans are downtrodden and oppressed (like Hitler told the Germans, except the Germans really were -- we're not). And he has sold his soul to some devil. He could not have been a millionaire by the time he was 45 and could not be running for President with the kind of money he has if he hadn't. That's all right -- EXCEPT that when he has to pay the Devil his due, it's the American people who will suffer.
Saturday, January 12
Progress In Iraq
by Catherine Moy
Darkness surrounded her as the helicopter lifted, whipping the air around her with a reverberating thump, thump, thump. A tall blonde in a war-torn Middle Eastern land, Debbie Lee felt a familiar ache in her heart.
She stood in a Western Iraqi city where her son, Marc Alan Lee, gave his life. He was the first Navy SEAL to die while fighting terrorists in Iraq.
As she stepped onto the sand where her son was killed, Debbie Lee became the first mother to visit the city where her son died for America in the Iraq War. She walked through Camp Marc Lee and saw where her son slept and ate.
“I feel very blessed,” Lee said. “It was a miracle to me to be where Marc was, to see what he saw and walk where he walked.”
Lee was part of a contingent from Move America Forward (MAF), the nation’s largest pro-troop nonprofit group. MAF’s mission was to deliver 226,000 Christmas and Hanukkah cards to American troops and to report on America’s successes inside Iraq. They spent days outside of the relatively safe Green Zone in Baghdad and other cities that, until the troop surge, were hotbeds of radical Muslims.
Melanie Morgan, chairman of Move America Forward Said, “Our troops know exactly what they are doing. They are surgically removing bad guys and giving hope to Iraqis while helping secure American security from radical Muslim jihad.”
The troops’ gains apparently aren’t news these days. All sides, including the white-flag brigade, admit Gen. David Petraeus’s Troop Surge has reduced violence and given breathing room to Iraqi politicians.
Iraq’s plummeting violence are a yawn for the mainstream media. During the first 10 months in 2007, 47 percent of the press coverage in Iraq focused on violence. Only 4.6 percent dealt with “optimistic themes,” according to a Pew Research Center study.
If terrorists fall in Iraq and nobody hears them, do they still make a sound? Only if you read new media who have the backbone to see the truth and report it.
Ignoring success in Iraq doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. MAF found children playing in new parks, built by the United States, and new stores open with a variety of goods. On one street alone, 150 new stores and businesses opened where only 11 previously operated.
MAF staffers witnessed soldiers visiting Iraqi homes, where they were welcomed with hot tea. Troops handed out soccer balls, school supplies and candy to children.
Battles are still waged. Body armor is still essential. But Gen. Petraeus and his troops are taking it to the enemy and making friends with the locals.
“They are making a difference now,” said Mary Pearson, MAF deputy executive director.
Pearson, MAF Communications Director Danny Gonzalez and Debbie Lee embedded with the Army's 1st Squadron of the 4th Cavalry, or the 1/4 Cav. They worked out of a Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Western Iraq, unnamed for security purposes, and traveled on daily missions where they spoke with Iraqi citizens and interviewed Iraqi and American soldiers.
They did not witness Iraqi citizens welcoming American troops with flowers and candy. It was much more personal. Iraqi mothers sent their children out to hug U.S. soldiers. Iraqi men invited soldiers into their homes for tea prepared by their wives and daughters.
MAF’s never feared for their lives. The long haul that American troops and our allies began on March 19, 2003, has changed the landscape of the Muslim country once ruled by a brutal dictator and sworn enemy of the United States, Saddam Hussein.
“I figured I was with the finest. There was no reason to worry,” Pearson said. “These faces were like my sons.”
The MAF staffers spent Christmas Day in Baghdad where they walked the streets and saw peaceful scenes that carried the message from 2,000 years ago when Christ was born in Bethlehem.
“We witnessed a large group of children playing on the new slide and park that had just been constructed 3 weeks before. It was amazing how packed the streets were with people,” Lee said. “I’ve never seen streets in America that had such a large percentage of people out in their neighborhoods. It was an amazing turnaround from the pictures we saw in the briefing when we first arrived.”
Pearson captured pictures of the children laughing and playing at the park. And she saw something else that will forever remain burned in her memory just like the photos she clicks with an artist’s eye.
“I saw men and women, couples, walking up and down the streets together,” Pearson said. “They were strolling, like in an old fashioned movie. They were enjoying the day. It was so beautiful.”
The Iraq trip was the last leg of MAF’s “Honoring Heroes for the Holidays” tour, which crossed the country and stopped in 40 cities. People came out to deliver the thousands of cards they made or bought for American troops. Cards are still pouring into MAF’s Sacramento, Calif., headquarters.
“The huge response to our trip by the American people, and the resulting smiles and hugs in Iraq, prove that most of America supports our troops and their mission,” Morgan said.
“I think we came close to passing out cards to most of the 8,000 troops stationed at this Forward Operating Base in Baghdad,” Lee said.
Pearson, Lee, and Gonzalez flew on a helicopter to Western Iraq in a town that was once overrun by terrorists, insurgents and outsiders from Iran whose welcome wagons included powerful bombs and other lethal arms.
This is where Lee’s son made his last stand and gave his life. This is where a camp was named after Marc Lee. This was an emotional stop.
Loss is a part of life, but it is not natural for a mother to lose her son. Parents should go first. In Iraq, violence still scars the countryside. But Pearson, Lee and Gonzalez witnessed the light that our troops have given the world with their sweat, professionalism, tenacity and their lives.
“These men and women, our sons and daughters in the Armed Forces, have shown a selflessness and grace -- even after we have asked so much of them -- that is truly remarkable,” Gonzalez said. “They have gone to war for their country and taken up arms in defense of a fledgling nation of people they have never known before, sacrificed time and time again, and sacrificed so much, and ask nothing in return. ”
We are winning in Iraq. But, more importantly, we are safer because children hold our soldiers’ hands. They play on new slides. They go to school. Shops are open. These children and their families will not forget the Americans who saved them first from Saddam Hussein, and then from the terrorists who came to steal their lives.
Everything Ms. Moy writes here is confirmed by the telephone calls our family receives from my grandson, who is a platoon leader in Iraq. He speaks of calling in the air force to bomb houses they find that are filled with caches of explosives and of giving chewing gum, teddy bears and school supplies to Iraqi children. They find and blow up IEDs by day and as they work to make communities safe, they see Iraqis returning to their homes.
It's still a dangerous place. But our soldiers are proud of what they're doing. They see the progress that's being made and take great pride in each job well done. It's a crying shame that the US media hate George Bush so much they refuse to give our troops the support and praise they so richly deserve. In fact, it's barely short of treason.
Darkness surrounded her as the helicopter lifted, whipping the air around her with a reverberating thump, thump, thump. A tall blonde in a war-torn Middle Eastern land, Debbie Lee felt a familiar ache in her heart.
She stood in a Western Iraqi city where her son, Marc Alan Lee, gave his life. He was the first Navy SEAL to die while fighting terrorists in Iraq.
As she stepped onto the sand where her son was killed, Debbie Lee became the first mother to visit the city where her son died for America in the Iraq War. She walked through Camp Marc Lee and saw where her son slept and ate.
“I feel very blessed,” Lee said. “It was a miracle to me to be where Marc was, to see what he saw and walk where he walked.”
Lee was part of a contingent from Move America Forward (MAF), the nation’s largest pro-troop nonprofit group. MAF’s mission was to deliver 226,000 Christmas and Hanukkah cards to American troops and to report on America’s successes inside Iraq. They spent days outside of the relatively safe Green Zone in Baghdad and other cities that, until the troop surge, were hotbeds of radical Muslims.
Melanie Morgan, chairman of Move America Forward Said, “Our troops know exactly what they are doing. They are surgically removing bad guys and giving hope to Iraqis while helping secure American security from radical Muslim jihad.”
The troops’ gains apparently aren’t news these days. All sides, including the white-flag brigade, admit Gen. David Petraeus’s Troop Surge has reduced violence and given breathing room to Iraqi politicians.
Iraq’s plummeting violence are a yawn for the mainstream media. During the first 10 months in 2007, 47 percent of the press coverage in Iraq focused on violence. Only 4.6 percent dealt with “optimistic themes,” according to a Pew Research Center study.
If terrorists fall in Iraq and nobody hears them, do they still make a sound? Only if you read new media who have the backbone to see the truth and report it.
Ignoring success in Iraq doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. MAF found children playing in new parks, built by the United States, and new stores open with a variety of goods. On one street alone, 150 new stores and businesses opened where only 11 previously operated.
MAF staffers witnessed soldiers visiting Iraqi homes, where they were welcomed with hot tea. Troops handed out soccer balls, school supplies and candy to children.
Battles are still waged. Body armor is still essential. But Gen. Petraeus and his troops are taking it to the enemy and making friends with the locals.
“They are making a difference now,” said Mary Pearson, MAF deputy executive director.
Pearson, MAF Communications Director Danny Gonzalez and Debbie Lee embedded with the Army's 1st Squadron of the 4th Cavalry, or the 1/4 Cav. They worked out of a Forward Operating Base (FOB) in Western Iraq, unnamed for security purposes, and traveled on daily missions where they spoke with Iraqi citizens and interviewed Iraqi and American soldiers.
They did not witness Iraqi citizens welcoming American troops with flowers and candy. It was much more personal. Iraqi mothers sent their children out to hug U.S. soldiers. Iraqi men invited soldiers into their homes for tea prepared by their wives and daughters.
MAF’s never feared for their lives. The long haul that American troops and our allies began on March 19, 2003, has changed the landscape of the Muslim country once ruled by a brutal dictator and sworn enemy of the United States, Saddam Hussein.
“I figured I was with the finest. There was no reason to worry,” Pearson said. “These faces were like my sons.”
The MAF staffers spent Christmas Day in Baghdad where they walked the streets and saw peaceful scenes that carried the message from 2,000 years ago when Christ was born in Bethlehem.
“We witnessed a large group of children playing on the new slide and park that had just been constructed 3 weeks before. It was amazing how packed the streets were with people,” Lee said. “I’ve never seen streets in America that had such a large percentage of people out in their neighborhoods. It was an amazing turnaround from the pictures we saw in the briefing when we first arrived.”
Pearson captured pictures of the children laughing and playing at the park. And she saw something else that will forever remain burned in her memory just like the photos she clicks with an artist’s eye.
“I saw men and women, couples, walking up and down the streets together,” Pearson said. “They were strolling, like in an old fashioned movie. They were enjoying the day. It was so beautiful.”
The Iraq trip was the last leg of MAF’s “Honoring Heroes for the Holidays” tour, which crossed the country and stopped in 40 cities. People came out to deliver the thousands of cards they made or bought for American troops. Cards are still pouring into MAF’s Sacramento, Calif., headquarters.
“The huge response to our trip by the American people, and the resulting smiles and hugs in Iraq, prove that most of America supports our troops and their mission,” Morgan said.
“I think we came close to passing out cards to most of the 8,000 troops stationed at this Forward Operating Base in Baghdad,” Lee said.
Pearson, Lee, and Gonzalez flew on a helicopter to Western Iraq in a town that was once overrun by terrorists, insurgents and outsiders from Iran whose welcome wagons included powerful bombs and other lethal arms.
This is where Lee’s son made his last stand and gave his life. This is where a camp was named after Marc Lee. This was an emotional stop.
Loss is a part of life, but it is not natural for a mother to lose her son. Parents should go first. In Iraq, violence still scars the countryside. But Pearson, Lee and Gonzalez witnessed the light that our troops have given the world with their sweat, professionalism, tenacity and their lives.
“These men and women, our sons and daughters in the Armed Forces, have shown a selflessness and grace -- even after we have asked so much of them -- that is truly remarkable,” Gonzalez said. “They have gone to war for their country and taken up arms in defense of a fledgling nation of people they have never known before, sacrificed time and time again, and sacrificed so much, and ask nothing in return. ”
We are winning in Iraq. But, more importantly, we are safer because children hold our soldiers’ hands. They play on new slides. They go to school. Shops are open. These children and their families will not forget the Americans who saved them first from Saddam Hussein, and then from the terrorists who came to steal their lives.
Everything Ms. Moy writes here is confirmed by the telephone calls our family receives from my grandson, who is a platoon leader in Iraq. He speaks of calling in the air force to bomb houses they find that are filled with caches of explosives and of giving chewing gum, teddy bears and school supplies to Iraqi children. They find and blow up IEDs by day and as they work to make communities safe, they see Iraqis returning to their homes.
It's still a dangerous place. But our soldiers are proud of what they're doing. They see the progress that's being made and take great pride in each job well done. It's a crying shame that the US media hate George Bush so much they refuse to give our troops the support and praise they so richly deserve. In fact, it's barely short of treason.
Thursday, January 10
What REALLY happens in Bagdad
From Chuck Holton, Former Army Ranger now a reporter embedded with our troops in Bagdad.
As I prepare to return to my family, I wanted to put together the top ten most memorable moments of this Iraq embed. Here they are, in no special order.
1. Listening to a breathless Iraqi Captain describe confirming that a dump truck turned in by a local citizen was indeed wired to explode. When we complimented him on his bravery, he simply said, “We came here to fight, not to sit.”
2. Watching a U.S. Army medic bandage the finger of a little Iraqi boy. It’s not that the wound was so grievous, but that the medic was willing to take the time even for something as small as a band-aid.
3. Walking through Jurf-A-Sukhr without my Kevlar helmet, haggling over the price bananas with the owner of a shop who sixty days ago wouldn’t have been able to sell his produce on that street due to violence. It was an intensely human moment and wonderful to be able to do something so mundane among he people of this war torn country.
4. Spending a night atop a roof along the limit of the U.S. advance the other side of the street was still considered “no go” Al Qaeda Country. Sharing a meal with the “Concerned Local Citizens” by lamplight, learning that they were both Shia and Sunni, and had until recently been the enemy.
5. Watching an Iraqi citizen shinny up a disused lightpole with an Iraqi flag clamped in his teeth. Listening to his compatriots cheer as the flag was unfurled atop the pole. A supremely hopeful moment.
6. Helping a combined team of U.S. Soldiers and Iraqi citizens form a human chain and pass sandbags from one to the other as they fortified a checkpoint providing a perfect picture of U.S.-Iraqi cooperation.
7. Standing atop a windswept hill overlooking the mountainous desolation of the Iranian border. Seeing the hand-dug trenches stretch away to the horizon in both directions as a chilling monument to the miseries of the Iran/Iraq war.
8. Listening to the varied stories of the interpreters that I worked with throughout the trip. One was an Iraqi whose father had been murdered by Saddam’s henchmen. Another was an Iranian who had been tortured by his own government and had escaped from prison and then was smuggled across the border into turkey by friends. These kinds of stories are a constant reminder of just how soft I really am, and renews my commitment to share the wealth I’ve been given with those less fortunate.
9. Attending a reenlistment ceremony at Al Faw palace in Baghdad, where almost 300 soldiers of the third infantry division volunteered to continue this fight. Though most of them received bonuses in the neighborhood of $6,000 per year for five years, the ones I interviewed had deeper reasons for reenlisting. One sergeant told me, “the army changed my life, and I love what it’s done for me.” Many of those who reenlisted did so with “indefinite” contracts, meaning they’ve pledged to go all the way and serve at least twenty years. These men and women believe in what they are doing.
10. Watching the live feed from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle as a hellfire missile dropped out of the sky and vaporized the vehicle of a known bad guy as it sat in his driveway. Imagining what must have gone through the man’s mind when his car disappeared in a ball of flame for no apparent reason.
I have thoroughly enjoyed being here with the troops and seeing the tremendous progress that is being made here with my own eyes. I have several more “dispatches” to get out and will post them when I get time. In the meantime, have a merry Christmas, and please continue to remember these brave men and women in your prayers as they continue to serve through the new year apart from their families.
–
Chuck Holton
As I prepare to return to my family, I wanted to put together the top ten most memorable moments of this Iraq embed. Here they are, in no special order.
1. Listening to a breathless Iraqi Captain describe confirming that a dump truck turned in by a local citizen was indeed wired to explode. When we complimented him on his bravery, he simply said, “We came here to fight, not to sit.”
2. Watching a U.S. Army medic bandage the finger of a little Iraqi boy. It’s not that the wound was so grievous, but that the medic was willing to take the time even for something as small as a band-aid.
3. Walking through Jurf-A-Sukhr without my Kevlar helmet, haggling over the price bananas with the owner of a shop who sixty days ago wouldn’t have been able to sell his produce on that street due to violence. It was an intensely human moment and wonderful to be able to do something so mundane among he people of this war torn country.
4. Spending a night atop a roof along the limit of the U.S. advance the other side of the street was still considered “no go” Al Qaeda Country. Sharing a meal with the “Concerned Local Citizens” by lamplight, learning that they were both Shia and Sunni, and had until recently been the enemy.
5. Watching an Iraqi citizen shinny up a disused lightpole with an Iraqi flag clamped in his teeth. Listening to his compatriots cheer as the flag was unfurled atop the pole. A supremely hopeful moment.
6. Helping a combined team of U.S. Soldiers and Iraqi citizens form a human chain and pass sandbags from one to the other as they fortified a checkpoint providing a perfect picture of U.S.-Iraqi cooperation.
7. Standing atop a windswept hill overlooking the mountainous desolation of the Iranian border. Seeing the hand-dug trenches stretch away to the horizon in both directions as a chilling monument to the miseries of the Iran/Iraq war.
8. Listening to the varied stories of the interpreters that I worked with throughout the trip. One was an Iraqi whose father had been murdered by Saddam’s henchmen. Another was an Iranian who had been tortured by his own government and had escaped from prison and then was smuggled across the border into turkey by friends. These kinds of stories are a constant reminder of just how soft I really am, and renews my commitment to share the wealth I’ve been given with those less fortunate.
9. Attending a reenlistment ceremony at Al Faw palace in Baghdad, where almost 300 soldiers of the third infantry division volunteered to continue this fight. Though most of them received bonuses in the neighborhood of $6,000 per year for five years, the ones I interviewed had deeper reasons for reenlisting. One sergeant told me, “the army changed my life, and I love what it’s done for me.” Many of those who reenlisted did so with “indefinite” contracts, meaning they’ve pledged to go all the way and serve at least twenty years. These men and women believe in what they are doing.
10. Watching the live feed from an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle as a hellfire missile dropped out of the sky and vaporized the vehicle of a known bad guy as it sat in his driveway. Imagining what must have gone through the man’s mind when his car disappeared in a ball of flame for no apparent reason.
I have thoroughly enjoyed being here with the troops and seeing the tremendous progress that is being made here with my own eyes. I have several more “dispatches” to get out and will post them when I get time. In the meantime, have a merry Christmas, and please continue to remember these brave men and women in your prayers as they continue to serve through the new year apart from their families.
–
Chuck Holton
Tuesday, October 2
Book Review: SUPREME DISCOMFORT
SUPREME DISCOMFORT, The Divided Soul of Clarence Thomas
by Kevin Merida and Michael A. Fletcher
Doubleday NY
This is a difficult book to rate. It's easy reading -- obviously written more to entertain than to inform -- and it's highly biased against the subject yet presented in such a way as to pretend to be balanced. It is character assassination in print.
The subtitle, "The divided soul of Clarence Thomas" is not proven by the discourse. It is obvious that Thomas has a very clear idea of who he is and what the law should be. He is staunch in his beliefs and true to his conscience. There is nothing divided about him.
Justice Thomas seems to have figured out what most of his peers (and definitely the authors)haven't: That affirmative action has proved to be a double-edged sword, as harmful to blacks as it has been useful. It is obvious that Thomas simply considers himself a man, neither black nor white, as he gazes at life and law through clear glasses. To many blacks (and obviously to the authors) this is the Unforgivable Sin.
Thus they portray Justice Thomas as almost manically introspective, weak and flawed. They emphasize the pain he endured over the years from racial slurs and imply that he is almost useless on the court because he can't forget Anita Hill's attacks during his confirmation trial before Congress. I use the word trial intentionally here.
I had wondered why Justice Thomas was publishing a memoir at this time since it would necessarily bring Hill to the forefront again. This book must be the reason. He knew this would be what it is when he refused the authors access to himself and his memorabilia. He was right. The prejudice against him here is almost hysterical.
One of the points the authors belabor again and again is their contention (and yes, it has been said by others) that Thomas is a lackey to or clone of Justice Scalia because they vote the same way. I believe it was Jan Crawford Greenburg (author of the newly published "Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Control of the United States Supreme Court”), who said in an interview on Book TV just last weekend that she had gone through all the records specifically to determine whether there was truth in that particular assumption. She says in most cases Thomas voted first and that it might be more accurate to say that it was Scalia who followed in Thomas's footsteps. The material she found in her research was available to these authors had they cared to check their facts.
Since their prejudice against Justice Thomas is so pronounced and their indictments of his character so repetitious I can't help but wonder what material they left out from their massive second-source research. It would not be presumptuous to assume that they were highly selective in order to prove their thesis that Thomas is so flawed that he is ineffective on the Court (something that isn't said but is strongly implied in these pages).
One of the things they object to most about him is the fact that he seldom asks questions during court sessions. They don't seem to realize that when one is talking, s/he isn't learning. Justice Thomas says someone always asks the questions he would, so he just listens until the answer surfaces. That is wisdom.
What they object to most, however, seems to be that Thomas is a Constitutional originalist. That is, he believes in the Constitution as written and is suspicious of re-creating it "to fit" contemporary times. He is less inclined to use stare decisis (respect for precedent) when considering cases and he believes strongly in the rights of states to handle most social issues. That conservatism truly irks the authors and I believe these are the reasons they have chosen to emphasize the negative and present such a biased smear.
Almost every page and certainly every chapter belabors the anger and pain that Justice Thomas presumably harbors from his growing up years (in addition to the Hill episode). He would be have to be insane if he wasn't hurt and the fact that he has risen above the destiny presumed by his birth and has served so honorably at various levels of government, including the highest court in the land, shows the mettle of the man.
Justice Clarence Thomas is a great American and a noble jurist who is doing his best. We can ask no more of anyone.
by Kevin Merida and Michael A. Fletcher
Doubleday NY
This is a difficult book to rate. It's easy reading -- obviously written more to entertain than to inform -- and it's highly biased against the subject yet presented in such a way as to pretend to be balanced. It is character assassination in print.
The subtitle, "The divided soul of Clarence Thomas" is not proven by the discourse. It is obvious that Thomas has a very clear idea of who he is and what the law should be. He is staunch in his beliefs and true to his conscience. There is nothing divided about him.
Justice Thomas seems to have figured out what most of his peers (and definitely the authors)haven't: That affirmative action has proved to be a double-edged sword, as harmful to blacks as it has been useful. It is obvious that Thomas simply considers himself a man, neither black nor white, as he gazes at life and law through clear glasses. To many blacks (and obviously to the authors) this is the Unforgivable Sin.
Thus they portray Justice Thomas as almost manically introspective, weak and flawed. They emphasize the pain he endured over the years from racial slurs and imply that he is almost useless on the court because he can't forget Anita Hill's attacks during his confirmation trial before Congress. I use the word trial intentionally here.
I had wondered why Justice Thomas was publishing a memoir at this time since it would necessarily bring Hill to the forefront again. This book must be the reason. He knew this would be what it is when he refused the authors access to himself and his memorabilia. He was right. The prejudice against him here is almost hysterical.
One of the points the authors belabor again and again is their contention (and yes, it has been said by others) that Thomas is a lackey to or clone of Justice Scalia because they vote the same way. I believe it was Jan Crawford Greenburg (author of the newly published "Supreme Conflict: The Inside Story of the Struggle for Control of the United States Supreme Court”), who said in an interview on Book TV just last weekend that she had gone through all the records specifically to determine whether there was truth in that particular assumption. She says in most cases Thomas voted first and that it might be more accurate to say that it was Scalia who followed in Thomas's footsteps. The material she found in her research was available to these authors had they cared to check their facts.
Since their prejudice against Justice Thomas is so pronounced and their indictments of his character so repetitious I can't help but wonder what material they left out from their massive second-source research. It would not be presumptuous to assume that they were highly selective in order to prove their thesis that Thomas is so flawed that he is ineffective on the Court (something that isn't said but is strongly implied in these pages).
One of the things they object to most about him is the fact that he seldom asks questions during court sessions. They don't seem to realize that when one is talking, s/he isn't learning. Justice Thomas says someone always asks the questions he would, so he just listens until the answer surfaces. That is wisdom.
What they object to most, however, seems to be that Thomas is a Constitutional originalist. That is, he believes in the Constitution as written and is suspicious of re-creating it "to fit" contemporary times. He is less inclined to use stare decisis (respect for precedent) when considering cases and he believes strongly in the rights of states to handle most social issues. That conservatism truly irks the authors and I believe these are the reasons they have chosen to emphasize the negative and present such a biased smear.
Almost every page and certainly every chapter belabors the anger and pain that Justice Thomas presumably harbors from his growing up years (in addition to the Hill episode). He would be have to be insane if he wasn't hurt and the fact that he has risen above the destiny presumed by his birth and has served so honorably at various levels of government, including the highest court in the land, shows the mettle of the man.
Justice Clarence Thomas is a great American and a noble jurist who is doing his best. We can ask no more of anyone.
Sunday, August 5
Repeat A Lie Until Everyone Believes It
It's been a long time since I "blogged" here. We've bought a new house, made a long distance move and I've had knee-replacement surgery -- all since the last post. So now I'm back.
Thoughts: I'm deeply saddened and utterly horrified at the turn political discourse has taken in this country. I blame the National Education Association for a good deal of it. For the past thirty+ years we have not taught children to think for themselves. We have allowed -- even encouraged -- them to believe the first thing they read; to take the media at face value and not to question what they're told by so-called "experts." We haven't taught them the most rudimentary facts about government -- the statistics on what the average "man.woman in the street" knows about current events, American history and politics in general are frightening. Frightening because these people vote!
The past few years I've been a poll worker at elections -- primaries (very sparsely attended) and national as well as local elections. Too many voters say they haven't had time to read about more than one or two issues or candidates so they just guess at the rest.
I like to watch The View on television -- it's a rather shallow program that ABC touts as serious discussion. I say shallow because it's mainly a forum for espousing the political stands of the Democratic Party. They have a token Republican to give the impression that they're "fair and balanced" but the guest list leans heavily to the left politically and most of the opinions offered by the hosts simply spout the Democratic line.
The shallowness of so much of the discussion is typified by Joy Behar, who recently criticized Michael Chertoff (US Secretary of Homeland Security) because she didn't like his looks. Behar states her opinions as if they were facts, i.e. "Everyone knows the war in Iraq is a mistake." No, Joy. EVERYONE includes me and many of my friends and we do NOT believe the war in Iraq is or was a mistake. I believe it was a necessity. But I remember how Saddam Hussein defied the UN for decades, shot at American planes and used weapons of mass destruction against the Kurds in his own country.
“A lie told often enough becomes truth” said Vladimir Lenin. Actually it doesn't become truth, but people begin to believe it. Joseph Goebbels, Hitler's propaganda minister not only believed that, he acted on it and proved it to be true. That's the theory Behar operates under whether she realizes it or not. I suspect she's not bright enough to understand what she's doing. She certainly has not come up with an original thought when I've been watching the show.
Barbara Walters, whose opinions also seem to favor leftist politics, at least gives the impression that she has the ability to listen and evaluate. Elizabeth Hasselbeck defends conservative positions with vigor and enthusiasm but she, too, seems limited to the same old conservative arguments.
The most alarming thing about political discussion, however, is the hate talk.
It comes from both sides. although the strongest and loudest seems to be from Democrats who hate the President. They feed rumors and outright lies to each other, repeating them again and again until they are convinced that the President is the problem when, in reality, they are. No one dares say that on the dailykos.com, for example, or to Behar.
The question is, will we destroy our American republic because we insist on believing rumors and half-truths?
Thoughts: I'm deeply saddened and utterly horrified at the turn political discourse has taken in this country. I blame the National Education Association for a good deal of it. For the past thirty+ years we have not taught children to think for themselves. We have allowed -- even encouraged -- them to believe the first thing they read; to take the media at face value and not to question what they're told by so-called "experts." We haven't taught them the most rudimentary facts about government -- the statistics on what the average "man.woman in the street" knows about current events, American history and politics in general are frightening. Frightening because these people vote!
The past few years I've been a poll worker at elections -- primaries (very sparsely attended) and national as well as local elections. Too many voters say they haven't had time to read about more than one or two issues or candidates so they just guess at the rest.
I like to watch The View on television -- it's a rather shallow program that ABC touts as serious discussion. I say shallow because it's mainly a forum for espousing the political stands of the Democratic Party. They have a token Republican to give the impression that they're "fair and balanced" but the guest list leans heavily to the left politically and most of the opinions offered by the hosts simply spout the Democratic line.
The shallowness of so much of the discussion is typified by Joy Behar, who recently criticized Michael Chertoff (US Secretary of Homeland Security) because she didn't like his looks. Behar states her opinions as if they were facts, i.e. "Everyone knows the war in Iraq is a mistake." No, Joy. EVERYONE includes me and many of my friends and we do NOT believe the war in Iraq is or was a mistake. I believe it was a necessity. But I remember how Saddam Hussein defied the UN for decades, shot at American planes and used weapons of mass destruction against the Kurds in his own country.
“A lie told often enough becomes truth” said Vladimir Lenin. Actually it doesn't become truth, but people begin to believe it. Joseph Goebbels, Hitler's propaganda minister not only believed that, he acted on it and proved it to be true. That's the theory Behar operates under whether she realizes it or not. I suspect she's not bright enough to understand what she's doing. She certainly has not come up with an original thought when I've been watching the show.
Barbara Walters, whose opinions also seem to favor leftist politics, at least gives the impression that she has the ability to listen and evaluate. Elizabeth Hasselbeck defends conservative positions with vigor and enthusiasm but she, too, seems limited to the same old conservative arguments.
The most alarming thing about political discussion, however, is the hate talk.
It comes from both sides. although the strongest and loudest seems to be from Democrats who hate the President. They feed rumors and outright lies to each other, repeating them again and again until they are convinced that the President is the problem when, in reality, they are. No one dares say that on the dailykos.com, for example, or to Behar.
The question is, will we destroy our American republic because we insist on believing rumors and half-truths?
Friday, May 11
Father's Day and Global Warming
I can hardly wait for Father's Day!
My husband, who was a NASA scientist back during the Apollo and Gemini days (he pioneered the photography of earth from space) will adore what I plan to get for him. It's a feature-length documentary plus additional interview material with some of the world’s leading climate scientists.(You can find some of them and their factual information at www.sepp.org.)
Seems a Canadian TV producer has come out with the "definitive response to Gore's Inconvenient Truth" with the true facts about global warming. Now lest you, Dear Reader, are not familiar with my position on that stance suffice it to say that, as the wife of a conscientious scientist who does careful research into things like this I can simply say that blaming human "carbon footprints" is, to put it politely, hooey, nonsense and baloney.
If you're not afraid of hearing another side to the GW (Global Warming) story, here's more info on the DVD: "A DVD of the film, The Great Global Warming Swindle, will be available in the next few weeks (despite the strenuous efforts of those who support the theory of global warming to prevent its release). The DVD version will be an expanded and improved version of the film broadcast in the UK on Channel Four. A great deal more interview material has been added, covering a broader range of subjects than was possible in the broadcast film..
However, we urge those interested in hearing the case against the theory of man made global warming to dig deeper. The main purpose of this site is to point people towards key scientific papers, books and other relevant material.
We have received literally thousands of emails scientists and others expressing their support and encouragement. These emails are also often very useful, steering us towards new studies in many different areas. Please keep sending them.
The email address is: gw@wagtv.com."
If we could cease and desist all carbon producing activity by human beings all over the world we would only reduce earth's emissions by 14%. That simply doesn't touch it. What we need to do is cap the volcanos and eliminate forest fires to begin to make an impact.
But now let's approach the issue really simplisticly. First, global warming does occur -- yes, it's been going on (and off) since the end of the last Ice Age. Things that truly do affect it are volcano eruptions, forest fires, etc. C'est, as the French like to say, la vie!
Anyone who has studied earth science knows that it's cyclical. In fact, much of life is cyclical from seasons to women's periods to a 24-hour day -- even diseases. ABC News Science Editor Michael Guillen has pointed out the absurdity of "scary headlines" about the hottest weather in 120 years of record-keeping. "It would be like this," Guillen said, "If I watched you for 70 seconds, monitored your body for 70 seconds, and used that information to determine what your body's going to do for the rest of your life, that's pretty much what we're doing right now with [temperature] records." And anyone who watches ABC news knows they're one of the greatest supporters of the global warming panic hype.
I think the worst thing about it all, however, is the name calling the Democrats and pseudoscientist do about those who disagree with them. They accuse dissenting scientist of supporting the oil companies for profit -- another inaccurate generalization unsupported by anything as mundane as fact.
So please don't panic. Do "go green" but not because you believe you can affect the atmosphere. Do it because it's healthy and it's better for the earth. But don't do it to stop something you can't stop.
My husband, who was a NASA scientist back during the Apollo and Gemini days (he pioneered the photography of earth from space) will adore what I plan to get for him. It's a feature-length documentary plus additional interview material with some of the world’s leading climate scientists.(You can find some of them and their factual information at www.sepp.org.)
Seems a Canadian TV producer has come out with the "definitive response to Gore's Inconvenient Truth" with the true facts about global warming. Now lest you, Dear Reader, are not familiar with my position on that stance suffice it to say that, as the wife of a conscientious scientist who does careful research into things like this I can simply say that blaming human "carbon footprints" is, to put it politely, hooey, nonsense and baloney.
If you're not afraid of hearing another side to the GW (Global Warming) story, here's more info on the DVD: "A DVD of the film, The Great Global Warming Swindle, will be available in the next few weeks (despite the strenuous efforts of those who support the theory of global warming to prevent its release). The DVD version will be an expanded and improved version of the film broadcast in the UK on Channel Four. A great deal more interview material has been added, covering a broader range of subjects than was possible in the broadcast film..
However, we urge those interested in hearing the case against the theory of man made global warming to dig deeper. The main purpose of this site is to point people towards key scientific papers, books and other relevant material.
We have received literally thousands of emails scientists and others expressing their support and encouragement. These emails are also often very useful, steering us towards new studies in many different areas. Please keep sending them.
The email address is: gw@wagtv.com."
If we could cease and desist all carbon producing activity by human beings all over the world we would only reduce earth's emissions by 14%. That simply doesn't touch it. What we need to do is cap the volcanos and eliminate forest fires to begin to make an impact.
But now let's approach the issue really simplisticly. First, global warming does occur -- yes, it's been going on (and off) since the end of the last Ice Age. Things that truly do affect it are volcano eruptions, forest fires, etc. C'est, as the French like to say, la vie!
Anyone who has studied earth science knows that it's cyclical. In fact, much of life is cyclical from seasons to women's periods to a 24-hour day -- even diseases. ABC News Science Editor Michael Guillen has pointed out the absurdity of "scary headlines" about the hottest weather in 120 years of record-keeping. "It would be like this," Guillen said, "If I watched you for 70 seconds, monitored your body for 70 seconds, and used that information to determine what your body's going to do for the rest of your life, that's pretty much what we're doing right now with [temperature] records." And anyone who watches ABC news knows they're one of the greatest supporters of the global warming panic hype.
I think the worst thing about it all, however, is the name calling the Democrats and pseudoscientist do about those who disagree with them. They accuse dissenting scientist of supporting the oil companies for profit -- another inaccurate generalization unsupported by anything as mundane as fact.
So please don't panic. Do "go green" but not because you believe you can affect the atmosphere. Do it because it's healthy and it's better for the earth. But don't do it to stop something you can't stop.
Saturday, March 17
SPANISH NEWSPAPER ARTICLE
This belongs in the "ain't it da troof" category:
Just one man's opinion, but it seems to have some
validity in today's world.
SPANISH NEWSPAPER ARTICLE
KEEP IT FOREMOST IN YOUR THINKING THAT THIS WAS
WRITTEN BY A SPANISH WRITER ABOUT SPAIN AND EUROPE .
"ALL EUROPEAN LIFE DIED IN AUSCHWITZ"
By Sebastian Vilar Rodrigez(*)
I walked down the street in Barcelona, and suddenly discovered a terrible truth - Europe died in Auschwitz.
We killed six million Jews and replaced them with 20 million Muslims. In Auschwitz we burned a culture, thought, creativity, talent. We destroyed the chosen people, truly chosen, because they produced great and wonderful people who changed the world.
The contribution of this people is felt in all areas of life: science, art, international trade, and above all, as the conscience of the world -- these are the
people we burned.
And under the pretense of tolerance, and because we wanted to prove to ourselves that we were cured of the disease of racism, we opened our gates to 20 million
Muslims, who brought us stupidity and ignorance, religious extremism and lack of tolerance, crime and poverty due to an unwillingness to work and support their families with pride.
They have turned our beautiful Spanish cities into the third world, drowning in filth and crime.
Shut up in the apartments they receive free from the government, they plan the murder and destruction of their naive hosts.
And thus, in our misery, we have exchanged culture for fanatical hatred, creative skill for destructive skill, intelligence for backwardness and superstition.
We have exchanged the pursuit of peace of the Jews of Europe and their talent for hoping for a better future for their children, their determined clinging to life because life is holy, for those who pursue death, for people consumed by the desire for death for themselves and others, for our children and theirs.
What a terrible mistake was made by miserable Europe.
And yet, in spite of all this, Europeans and Americans insist on being politically correct and tolerant while our culture collapses all around us. It's sad, truly sad.
Just one man's opinion, but it seems to have some
validity in today's world.
SPANISH NEWSPAPER ARTICLE
KEEP IT FOREMOST IN YOUR THINKING THAT THIS WAS
WRITTEN BY A SPANISH WRITER ABOUT SPAIN AND EUROPE .
"ALL EUROPEAN LIFE DIED IN AUSCHWITZ"
By Sebastian Vilar Rodrigez(*)
I walked down the street in Barcelona, and suddenly discovered a terrible truth - Europe died in Auschwitz.
We killed six million Jews and replaced them with 20 million Muslims. In Auschwitz we burned a culture, thought, creativity, talent. We destroyed the chosen people, truly chosen, because they produced great and wonderful people who changed the world.
The contribution of this people is felt in all areas of life: science, art, international trade, and above all, as the conscience of the world -- these are the
people we burned.
And under the pretense of tolerance, and because we wanted to prove to ourselves that we were cured of the disease of racism, we opened our gates to 20 million
Muslims, who brought us stupidity and ignorance, religious extremism and lack of tolerance, crime and poverty due to an unwillingness to work and support their families with pride.
They have turned our beautiful Spanish cities into the third world, drowning in filth and crime.
Shut up in the apartments they receive free from the government, they plan the murder and destruction of their naive hosts.
And thus, in our misery, we have exchanged culture for fanatical hatred, creative skill for destructive skill, intelligence for backwardness and superstition.
We have exchanged the pursuit of peace of the Jews of Europe and their talent for hoping for a better future for their children, their determined clinging to life because life is holy, for those who pursue death, for people consumed by the desire for death for themselves and others, for our children and theirs.
What a terrible mistake was made by miserable Europe.
And yet, in spite of all this, Europeans and Americans insist on being politically correct and tolerant while our culture collapses all around us. It's sad, truly sad.
Sunday, February 11
One Mystery Writer's Take on Anna Nicole Smith's Death
Consider this:
A man notes that a certain ex-model/playgirl is worth a half a billion dollars. She's also promiscuous so bedding her is no problem. He devises a plan to get the money.
All he has to do is get her pregnant and wait for the baby to be born. When that happens he poisons first her son (legal heir) and then her. Maybe even the poisoning of the son was an accident -- a poisoned chocolate he expected her to eat but that her son ate instead, for example. (There are several poisons that are not able to be detected after a very short time in the human body.)
He whisks the baby away and all he needs now is a DNA test that proves he's the father. Voila. . .1/2 billion dollars.
Easy.
If anyone's interested in poisons and their effects. Writer's Digest has a book for writers that covers the subject pretty thoroughly. Even ground up potato sprouts would do it.
A man notes that a certain ex-model/playgirl is worth a half a billion dollars. She's also promiscuous so bedding her is no problem. He devises a plan to get the money.
All he has to do is get her pregnant and wait for the baby to be born. When that happens he poisons first her son (legal heir) and then her. Maybe even the poisoning of the son was an accident -- a poisoned chocolate he expected her to eat but that her son ate instead, for example. (There are several poisons that are not able to be detected after a very short time in the human body.)
He whisks the baby away and all he needs now is a DNA test that proves he's the father. Voila. . .1/2 billion dollars.
Easy.
If anyone's interested in poisons and their effects. Writer's Digest has a book for writers that covers the subject pretty thoroughly. Even ground up potato sprouts would do it.
Rambo
This from a friend of mine who knows the soldier in question personally, so
I take it that it's probably quite accurate. We need more of this
perspective in media. (The soldier's name was removed for security
reasons.)
MS
Hi everyone.
I'm still alive but freezing my tail off. We got 8 inches of snow last week
and it reached 5 degrees below zero that night. That's not why I'm e-mailing though.
You may have heard about a suicide car bomb attack in Kabul last Thursday. It was at one of our FOB's (Forward Observation Bases) about 27 miles from here. But the real story -- the story you won't read in the American media -- is why no one was killed.
We employ several thousand Afghans on our various bases. Not to mention the economy that is fed by the money these locals are making. Some are laborers and builders, but some are skilled workers. We even have one Afghan that just became OSHA qualified, the first ever. Some are skilled HVAC workers.
Anyway, there is this one Afghan that we call Rambo. We have actually given him a couple of sets of the new ACU uniforms (the new Army digital camouflage) with the name tag RAMBO on it. His entire family was killed by the Taliban and his home was where our base currently resides. So this guy really had nowhere else to go.
He has reached such a level of trust with US Forces that his job is to stand at the front gate and basically be the first security screening. Since he can't have a weapon, he found a big red pipe. So he stands there at the front gate in his US Army ACU uniform with his red pipe. If a vehicle approaches the gate too fast or fails to stop he slams his pipe down on their hood. Then once the gate is lifted the vehicle moves on the 2nd gate where the US Army MPs are. So he's like the first line of defense.
Last Thursday at 0930 hrs a Toyota Corolla packed with explosives and some Jackass that thinks he has 72 Virgins waiting for him approached the gate. When he saw Rambo he must have recognized him and known the gig was up. But he needed to get to that 2nd gate to detonate and take American lives. So he slams his foot on the gas which almost causes the metal gate to go up but mostly catches on the now broken windshield. Rambo fearlessly ran to the vehicle, reached thru the window and jerked the suicide bomber out of the vehicle before he could detonate and commenced to putting some red pipe to his heathen ass. He detained the guy until the MP got there. The vehicle only exploded when they tried to push it off base with a robot but no one was hurt.
I'm still waiting for someone to give this guy a medal or something. Nothing less than instant US citizenship or something. A hat was passed around and a lot of money was given to him in thanks by both soldiers and civilians that are working over here.
I just wanted to share this because I want people to know that it's
working over here. They have tasted freedom. This makes it worth it to me.
I take it that it's probably quite accurate. We need more of this
perspective in media. (The soldier's name was removed for security
reasons.)
MS
Hi everyone.
I'm still alive but freezing my tail off. We got 8 inches of snow last week
and it reached 5 degrees below zero that night. That's not why I'm e-mailing though.
You may have heard about a suicide car bomb attack in Kabul last Thursday. It was at one of our FOB's (Forward Observation Bases) about 27 miles from here. But the real story -- the story you won't read in the American media -- is why no one was killed.
We employ several thousand Afghans on our various bases. Not to mention the economy that is fed by the money these locals are making. Some are laborers and builders, but some are skilled workers. We even have one Afghan that just became OSHA qualified, the first ever. Some are skilled HVAC workers.
Anyway, there is this one Afghan that we call Rambo. We have actually given him a couple of sets of the new ACU uniforms (the new Army digital camouflage) with the name tag RAMBO on it. His entire family was killed by the Taliban and his home was where our base currently resides. So this guy really had nowhere else to go.
He has reached such a level of trust with US Forces that his job is to stand at the front gate and basically be the first security screening. Since he can't have a weapon, he found a big red pipe. So he stands there at the front gate in his US Army ACU uniform with his red pipe. If a vehicle approaches the gate too fast or fails to stop he slams his pipe down on their hood. Then once the gate is lifted the vehicle moves on the 2nd gate where the US Army MPs are. So he's like the first line of defense.
Last Thursday at 0930 hrs a Toyota Corolla packed with explosives and some Jackass that thinks he has 72 Virgins waiting for him approached the gate. When he saw Rambo he must have recognized him and known the gig was up. But he needed to get to that 2nd gate to detonate and take American lives. So he slams his foot on the gas which almost causes the metal gate to go up but mostly catches on the now broken windshield. Rambo fearlessly ran to the vehicle, reached thru the window and jerked the suicide bomber out of the vehicle before he could detonate and commenced to putting some red pipe to his heathen ass. He detained the guy until the MP got there. The vehicle only exploded when they tried to push it off base with a robot but no one was hurt.
I'm still waiting for someone to give this guy a medal or something. Nothing less than instant US citizenship or something. A hat was passed around and a lot of money was given to him in thanks by both soldiers and civilians that are working over here.
I just wanted to share this because I want people to know that it's
working over here. They have tasted freedom. This makes it worth it to me.
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