Perception is Reality

Written by infantrymarine, posted to me on FreeRepublic, and he asked that I widen the circle of readers.

In light of the current vote in congress for withholding reinforcements to our fighting men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the upcoming antiwar rally to be held at the Vietnam Veterans memorial Grounds, I sent this letter to the editor today.

Letter To The Editor:

Morale and perception of strength are as much weapons of war as are troops and military. Armaments, which some Democrats and their allied antiwar groups are attempting to remove from our arsenal.

The potential for recent 'immediate withdrawal' statements to create doubt in the minds of our military of the public's support and is very dangerous. Should that doubt take root it would be disastrous to them and the nation.

We ask our men and women in wartime to kill on our behalf.

We give them legitimacy, justification, and, most importantly, absolution to do so.

When we give them reason to doubt this justification and absolution, we destroy their morale. When we remove them, we replace them with blame. Blame is quickly replaced by shame, ultimately that shame metastasizes into guilt.

And, GUILT is the one thing that America should never again be allowed to inflict upon another generation of her veterans.

When we destroy the troops morale we dishonor their service and we destroy their honor.

And, we dishonor it, when honor [and personal faith] is, at times, all they have to sustain them through the horrors they must endure and inflict on our behalf.

Honor is essential to character. When you destroy honor, you destroy character.

Destroy that, and you destroy the individual.

Destroy the individual, and you destroy the nation.

Democrats and antiwar activists should think about that before using the mass media again in their attempt to score political points at the expense of the troops. The consequences of their actions are emboldening our adversaries, and in the process they are shooting the nation and themselves in the foot.

More importantly ... they are shooting the troops through the heart.

Myths and Facts About The Military

The link will open the pdf which has multi-colored charts.

H/T to Dragon Master over at Tanker Brothers

Who is Volunteering for Today's Military?
Myths versus Facts
Each year, about 180,000 young Americans enlist for active duty service in the Armed Forces. A number of myths have been perpetuated about those young people who volunteer to serve. The information herein is intended to dispel such myths.
Myth: Military recruits are less educated and of lower aptitude than American youth.
Fact: The opposite is true. Over 90 percent of military recruits have a high school diploma – a credential held by only about 75 percent of their peers. A traditional high school diploma is the best single predictor of “stick-to-it-iveness” and successful adjustment to the military. Recruits with a high school diploma have a 70-percent probability of completing a three-year term of enlistment, compared with a 50-percent likelihood for non-graduates.
Nearly two-thirds of today’s recruits are drawn from the top-half of America in math and verbal aptitudes – a strong determinant of training success and job performance.

Myth: The Military attracts disproportionately from poor or underprivileged youth.
Fact: Military recruits mirror the US population and are solidly middle class.
A recent report shows that more recruits come from middle income families, with far fewer drawn from poorer families (Figure 2). Youth from upper income families are represented at almost exactly their fair share.

Myth: A disproportionate number of military recruits come from urban areas.
Fact: Urban areas are the most underrepresented. Data show that urban areas are actually underrepresented among new recruits. Suburban and rural areas are overrepresented.

Myth: African Americans suffer a disproportionate number of casualties.
Fact: The opposite is true. Continuing the pattern from Desert Storm, African Americans remain under-represented among casualties in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Through November 5, 2005, African Americans represented about 17 percent of the force, yet accounted for 11 percent of deaths. On the other hand, whites accounted for 67 percent of the force, and suffered 74 percent of deaths. The corresponding numbers for Hispanics were 9 and 11 percent.
This pattern results from occupational choices young people make. For example, African American youth choose to serve in support occupations such as the health care field, which tend to feature valuable job training over bonuses or education incentives. These are the choices young volunteers make.

Myth: The military is not geographically representative of America.
Fact: Military recruits are closely proportionate to the general population.
The southern region of the US generates the most recruits, but also has the greatest density of youth population. The south produces 41% of all recruits (compared to 36% of the 18-24 year old population). The northeast generates 14% of new recruits (18% of the 18-24 year old population). The west and north central regions produce 21 and 24% of new recruits (accounting for 24% and 23%, respectively, of the 18-24 year old population).

Myth: The military takes no better than an average cut of American youth when it comes to medical or physical conditioning.
Fact: About half of today's youth are not medically or physically qualified against current, and necessary, enlistment standards.
Everyone joining the military is rigorously screened for a variety of medical and physical factors that bear on successful military performance – often under austere conditions. A number of common maladies among today's youth (asthma, orthopedic injuries, and obesity) are disqualifying. DoD sustains these standards to ensure that U.S. forces are able to meet the demands placed upon them by worldwide deployments in physically challenging circumstances. Nearly one half of American youth tend to be disqualified for health-related reasons, with obesity as the leading cause.

The 5.56 Solution

H/T to Chris P.
"It's a safety issue pure and simple. After assaulting through a target, we put a security round in everybody's head. Sorry al-Reuters, there's no paddy wagon rolling around Fallujah picking up "prisoners" and offering them a hot cup of Joe, falafel, and a blanket. There's no time to dick around on the target. You clear the space, dump the chumps, and moveon.org."

Are Corpsman expected to treat wounded terrorists? Negative. Hey libs, worried about the defense budget? Well, it would be waste, fraud, and abuse for a Corpsman to expend one man-minute or a battle dressing on a terrorist. Its much cheaper to just spend the $.02 on a 5.56mm FMJ.

By the way, in our view, terrorists who chop off civilian's heads are not prisoners, they are carcasses. Chopping off a civilian's head is another reason why these idiots are known as "unlawful combatants." It seems that most of the world's journalists have forgotten that fact.

Let me be very clear about this issue. I have looked around the web, and many people get this concept, but there are some stragglers.

Here is your situation: You just took fire from unlawful combatants (no uniform - breaking every Geneva Convention rule there is) shooting from a religious building attempting to use the sanctuary status of their position as protection. But you're in Fallujah now, and the Marine Corps has decided that they're not playing that game this time. That was Najaf. So you set the mosque on fire and you hose down the terrorists with small arms, launch some AT-4's (Rockets), some 40 MM grenades into the building and things quiet down. So you run over there, and find some tangos (bad guys) wounded and pretending to be dead. You are aware that suicide martyrdom is like really popular with these idiots, and they think taking some Marines with them would be really cool. So you can either risk your life and your fire team's lives by having them cover you while you bend down and search a guy that you think is pretending to be dead for some reason. Most of the time these are the guys with the grenade or vest made of explosives. Also, you don't know who or what is in the next room. You're already speaking English to the rest of your fire team or squad which lets the terrorist know you are there and you are his enemy. You are speaking loud because your hearing is poor from shooting people for several days. So you know that there are many other rooms to enter, and that if anyone is still alive in those rooms, they know that Americans are in the mosque. Meanwhile (3 seconds later), you still have this terrorist (that was just shooting at you from a mosque) playing possum. What do you do? You double tap his head, and you go to the next room, that's what!!!

What about the Geneva Convention and all that Law of Land Warfare stuff? What about it. Without even addressing the issues at hand, your first thought should be, "I'd rather be judged by 12 than carried by 6."

Bear in mind that this tactic of double tapping a fallen terrorist is a perpetual mind set that is reinforced by experience on a minute by minute basis. Secondly, you are fighting an unlawful combatant in a Sanctuary, which is a double No-No on his part. Third, tactically you are in no position to take "prisoners" because there are more rooms to search and clear, and the behavior of said terrorist indicates that he is up to no good. No good in Fallujah is a very large place and the low end of no good and the high end of no good are fundamentally the same .. Marines end up getting hurt or die. So there is no compelling reason for you to do anything but double tap this idiot and get on with the mission.

If you are a veteran, then everything I have just written is self evident. If you are not a veteran, then at least try to put yourself in the situation. Remember, in Fallujah there is no yesterday, there is no tomorrow, there is only now. Right NOW. Have you ever lived in NOW for a week? It is really, really not easy. If you have never lived in NOW for longer than it takes to finish the big roller coaster at Six Flags, then shut your hole about putting Marines in jail for "War Crimes"".

'Gathering of Eagles'

February 09, 2007

Rolling Thunder ® joins "Gathering of Eagles"

ROLLING THUNDER MOTORCYCLE RALLY
WASHINGTON, DC, INC.
UPCOMING EVENTS
CALL FOR SUPPORT

March 17, 2007 Anti-War Demonstration and
March to the Pentagon to Assemble at the
VIETNAM VETERANS MEMORIAL



ATTENTION ALL MEMBERS CRITICALLY IMPERATIVE: MEET AT THE WALL 1000 HOURS / 17 MARCH 2007

IT IS OUR UNDERSTANDING THAT THE PROTESTERS PLAN ON GOING RIGHT THROUGH THE IMMEDIATE AREA OF THE WALL / THREE MAN STATUE/ AND THE WOMEN'S MEMORIAL. IT IS OF UTMOST IMPORTANCE THAT WE PROTECT OUR PRECIOUS MEMORIALS, THE SANCTITY OF THE WALL AND DEFEND OUR TROOPS THAT ARE IN IRAQ AND FIGHTING EACH AND EVERY HOUR FOR OUR COUNTRY.

At the anti-war protest in Washington, D.C. 2 weeks ago there was ALOT of damage done at the Capitol steps. We cannot and will not allow this to happen at The Wall or to any of our memorials.

FOR MORE DETAILED INFORMATION CLICK HERE


By C.J. Raven
U.S. Veteran Dispatch
February 07, 2007

Leftist activists who march to the Pentagon next month will discover that their path won't be as clear as it has been in the past.

The group, led by Cindy Sheehan, Jane Fonda, Ed Asner and their ilk, plan to gather March 17 at the Vietnam Memorial Wall to begin a march to protest America's involvement in the Iraq war. The date marks the fourth anniversary of the war's beginning.

This time, however, protestors will see objectors if they spit on Iraqi veterans again, or throw paint on a war memorial. This time, they will encounter a buzz saw of Vietnam veterans and supporters who will gather to protect the Wall, and show their support for U.S. troops. The counter-protestors are calling themselves the Gathering of Eagles.

"… An eagle knows when a storm is approaching long before it breaks. The eagle will fly to some high spot and wait for the winds to come. When the storm hits, it sets its wings so that the wind will pick it up and lift it above the storm. While the storm rages below, the eagle is soaring above it."

An unknown author wrote that description, but it describes how the veterans see their mission. They are angry that the Wall is being used as a jumping off point for a political protest and they are gathering to protect it from another storm of anti-war activists.

"The anti-war/anti-America group cannot be allowed to use the Vietnam Memorial Wall as a back-drop to their anti-America venom and stain the hallowed ground that virtually cries out with blood at the thought of this proposed desecration ... it must not happen," said veteran Bud Gross. "… All Americans are invited to support our effort, which is intended as a defender of hallowed ground and intended as a non-violent competition between those that would sell out America and those of us who support freedom and keeping the fight with the enemy on distant shores."

The group defending the Wall will be wearing armbands to identify themselves. Those who are unable to stand with the defenders are being asked to wear armbands with small U.S. flags to show their own communities that they abhor the Fonda-Sheehan tactics.

"We'll be there to act as a countervailing force against the Cindy Sheehan-Jane Fonda march from the Vietnam Memorial to the Pentagon," retired Navy Capt. Larry Bailey said. "We will protect the Vietnam Memorial. If they try to deface it, there will be some violence, I guarantee you."

Bailey and thousands of his fellow Vietnam vets are worried that the anti-war protesters will damage the wall, just as they spray-painted the steps of the Capitol at their last march.

The wall is sacred to the men and women who fought in that war.

"It is our contact with our dead brothers -- those who lost their lives in the cause of their country," Bailey said.

And so it is that Washington will see a Gathering of Eagles - Americans determined to stand up against leftist propagandists who denigrate U.S. troops and the mission for which they sometimes sacrifice their lives.

Retired Col. Harry Riley organized the Gathering of Eagles. Organizers hope thousands will show up in Washington from as far away as Hawaii, and they won't only be Vietnam veterans. Families, friends and veterans of other wars, including Iraq, and soldiers still on active duty, will be there to defend the Wall.

"When we say a gathering of eagles, that signifies people who support the American way," Bailey said.

The leftist Web site MarchonPentagon.org describes the anti-war demonstrators this way: "The March on the Pentagon has already attracted more than 1,500 endorsers, including prominent individuals and national and grassroots organizations. Students on college campuses and in high schools will be attending in large numbers. There will be a large turnout from the Muslim and Arab American community, which is organizing throughout the country."

The movement is well-financed. Its sponsor list is lengthy and contains highly recognizable names, as well as those of Fonda and Sheehan:
· Former U.S. Attorney General Ramsey Clark (who offered his services to defend Saddam Hussein)
· Ultra-liberal Congresswoman Maxine Waters
· Former Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney
· Ron Kovic, Vietnam veteran and author of "Born on the 4th of July"
· Mahdi Bray, executive director, Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation
· Waleed Bader, vice chair of the National Council of Arab Americans and former president of Arab Muslim American Federation
· Medea Benjamin, co-founder, CODEPINK and Global Exchange
· Free Palestine Alliance
· Muslim American Society Freedom Foundation
· Islamic Political Party of America
· FMLN (Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front)
· Islamic-National Congress
· Gay Liberation Network
· Muslim Student Association
· Jibril Hough, chairman, Islamic Political Party of America

Retired Air Force Col. Smitty Harris, a former Vietnam POW, doesn't believe Fonda's protests carry the weight they once did. Harris says Fonda's actions at the march last month were "anti-American," just as they were in the 1970s, and won't have much effect on public opinion.

"It was big news during the Vietnam era when they had these marches ... because people didn't have all the alternative ways of finding out what is true and what's not," he recently told Agape Press. "So I don't think it's going to have a big effect." In fact, he says, it could even be counterproductive.

Today, Harris points out, Americans have talk radio and media outlets like the Fox News Channel to hear the voices of those who do not agree with Jane Fonda's point of view.

For more information, visit the Gathering of Eagles message board.

Republicans Block Senate Debate on Iraq

This came via The Drudge Report:
Republicans blocked a full-fledged Senate debate over Iraq on Monday, but Democrats vowed they still would find a way to force President Bush to change course in a war that has claimed the lives of more than 3,000 U.S. troops.
"We must heed the results of the November elections and the wishes of the American people," said Majority Leader Harry Reid.
Reid, D-Nev., spoke moments before a vote that sidetracked a nonbinding measure expressing disagreement with Bush's plan to deploy an additional 21,500 troops to Iraq.
The vote was 49-47, or 11 short of the 60 needed to go ahead with debate, and left the fate of the measure uncertain.

(Senate Minority Leader)McConnell called for equal treatment for an alternative measure, backed by Sen. Judd Gregg, R-N.H., saying Congress should neither cut nor eliminate funding for troops in the field. That measure takes no position on the war or the president's decision to deploy additional forces.

Democrats launched a withering attack on Bush's war policy in the run-up to the vote.

"The American people do not support escalation. Last November, voters made it clear they want a change of course, not more of the same," said Reid. "The president must hear from Congress, so he knows he stands in the wrong place, alone."

Gregg's alternative said Congress should not take "any action that will endanger United States military forces in the field, including the elimination or reduction of funds for troops in the field, as such an action with respect to funding would undermine their safety or harm their effectiveness in pursuing their assigned missions."

The measure advanced by Democrats and Warner said the same thing, but it also says the Senate "disagrees with the 'plan' to augment our forces by 21,500 and urges the president instead to consider all options and alternatives."

Republicans and Democrats carried out their clash as 10 members of "Code Pink, "an anti-war group, were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct during a protest in front of Sen. John McCain's office in a building across the street from the Capitol. "They were absolutely compliant, peaceful," Sgt. Kimberly Schneider said of the protesters.

McCain, a likely Republican presidential candidate, opposes the measure expressing disagreement with the increase in troops.

An Interview with Duncan Hunter

His credentials are impressive, especially so when considering the country is at war. The question is - can he be elected.

Last October, soon-to-be-former House Armed Services Committee Chairman, Congressman Duncan Hunter of California announced his candidacy for the 2008 presidential election. If elected, he would be the first baby-boomer, Vietnam veteran elected president.

Will his distinguished service in Vietnam matter?

Thus far Americans have elected two baby-boomer Presidents. One, Bill Clinton, evaded military service in Vietnam and engaged in anti-war protests. The other, George W. Bush, served in the Air National Guard. Both Clinton and Bush were opposed for election by military veterans - Bush by Al Gore and John Kerry (albeit Kerry later claimed that American soldiers committed war crimes). Clinton by George H.W. Bush and Bob Dole, both World War II veterans.

One of the most frequent criticisms by anti-war protesters of those who advocate the war in Iraq has been that they never served in combat. Liberals and Democrats, such as N.J. Senator Frank Lautenberg, have called President Bush and members of the administration "chickenhawks." This is a derisive term meaning a coward who sends others to war while he would not. These same critics also like to point out that neither of President Bush's daughters is in the military.

Forgetting for a moment the blatant hypocrisy of these critics (after all Lautenberg never called Clinton a chickenhawk when he sent troops into combat that resulted in casualties), one wonders if Hunter's credentials will silence people like Lautenberg.
Hunter favors the war in Iraq and unlike Clinton or Bush or Kerry or Gore or any of the other candidates for President except John McCain - not only is Hunter a decorated veteran of Vietnam who served with the 173rd Airborne Division and the 75th Army Rangers - his son is a veteran of Iraq.

So the Democratic Party smear campaign cannot use the chickenhawk ad hominem. They will try something else.

Hunter is already being labeled "far right."
Presumably by those who think Hugo Chavez is a moderate South American political leader. However, the best thing is for people to decide for themselves.

MPT: You are relatively unknown in the Republican Party and, for that matter, by the American public.
How do you intend to correct that?

Hunter: I have appeared on a lot of national news shows stating my positions on foreign policy especially Iraq and Afghanistan.
I am campaigning in the early primary states of New Hampshire, Iowa and I am running TV commercials in South Carolina.

MPT: You are in favor of the increasingly unpopular Iraq war. How would you proceed in Iraq?

Hunter: I have recommended to the President as early as October 2006 to take the 27 Iraqi battalions that we have trained, and assign them from the more docile provinces to Baghdad before we have a surge of more troops.
Currently, these Iraqi battalions were assigned to the nine most passive provinces where there is less than one attack per day. They were assigned there initially by the command before they knew where the most troublesome provinces were. They are still there and need to be reassigned to the most active provinces.

This will give these battalions the experience they need and it will validate them. It will also establish a link between the civilian government and the military which is needed before the military can adequately protect the Iraqi citizens.

MPT: President Bush has not done much to rally the morale of the American people about this controversial war. What would you do?

Hunter: I think the American people need to be continually reminded of the stakes in regard to Iran and the continuing vulnerability of all free societies to the threat these nations pose.

There has been a history of resistance by the left in this country to using the military for foreign policy purposes while negotiating and they have always been incorrect. During the 1980s, the liberal media condemned President Reagan for deploying Pershing missiles saying he would start World War III. The left organized demonstrations by hundreds of thousands of people.
Reagan deployed them and the result was the Soviet Union wanted to negotiate. The same thing happened in El Salvador where we helped build their military and eliminate the communist threat. Today El Salvador is a democratic nation.

It is important for the American people to know that this will not be easy. We need to develop democracy in this part of the world that was excluded from the Cold War.

I believe in lots of communication with the American people.

MPT: What are your beliefs about abortion?
Partial-birth abortion? Parental notification laws?

Hunter: I am strongly Pro-Life. A nation that spends millions trying to recognize life on other planets should be able to recognize life here on Earth. I voted against partial birth abortion and in favor of parental notification laws.

MPT: What changes would you propose to US trade policy and why?

Hunter: Currently, we are at a disadvantage. If we were to make our trade policy with China, for example, analogous to a football game then China would begin the game with a 74-point advantage.

Chinese businesses exporting to the US receive a 17 percent refund of their taxes. They essentially receive a subsidy of 17 percent. Then any imports from the US are a taxed with a 17 percent. So that is a 34-point advantage.
Then the Chinese devalue their currency 40 percent.
This makes their goods cheaper. That is another 40 points.

So before we even begin the game the Chinese have 34 points plus 40 points for a total of 74 points or a price advantage of 74 percent.

This devaluation of the currency was called illegal by Mr. Bernanhke, who at the time was part of the trade mission. This was before he became Federal Reserve Bank Chairman. Unfortunately, the administration redacted that term.
We can either provide the same subsidies and tariffs for our businesses or the Chinese can eliminate their subsidies and tariffs. Either way before we continue trade with China we have to make it equitable.

Do you realize that our production is much more efficient than China?
We have a steel company in South Carolina, Nucor that has a 20 to 1 labor efficiency advantage compare with China. Nucor can produce the same amount of steel using 800 workers that China can produce using 17,000.
If American companies could receive the trade benefits, the Chinese companies are getting there is no question we could sell more American products.

MPT: What steps would you take to reduce illegal immigration?

Hunter: I was responsible for building the border fence in San Diego and one of my assistance wrote the legislation that made it the law that a 700 mile fence across the Mexican border must be built.

If you control illegal immigration you not only solve illegal workers you solve a crime problem and a terrorism problem.

MPT: What are your feelings about capital punishment?
Gun ownership? School vouchers?

Hunter: I am in favor of all of these.

MPT: During a hearing about Iraq WMD's you asked Iraq Survey Group Director David Kaye if statements made by Democrats in Congress such as "there were no WMDs in Iraq" were accurate. He replied they were not. Yet you never publicized this. Why not?

Hunter: We did publicize it. I was on national television shows talking about the WMD's that were found in Iraq. That is why I asked Kaye if the statement by some Congressional Democrats that were no WMD's in Iraq was correct. He said that it was not correct.

MPT: You stated during an interview that you helped streamline the procurement process for armoring Humvees by working with unions and manufacturers to eliminate a lot of the rules that were impeding the process. Yet, you never publicized this when Secretary Rumsfeld was being excoriated about armoring Humvees.
Why?

Hunter: I did. We have done a lot of work with the unions and the companies to streamline the procurement process and eliminate this big bulky bureaucracy that causes delays.

MPT: Your tangential involvement with Brent Wilkes will probably be used to discredit you. What are you doing to ensure that does not happen?

Hunter: When you have a fund raiser you do not know what one who attends will do in the future. When we learned of what occurred we returned the donation.

MPT: Congressman Hunter, thanks for taking the time for this interview
Hunter: Thanks for asking me.

Michael P. Tremoglie is the author of A Sense Of Duty, available on Amazon.com ©The Evening Bulletin 2007

Romney is building his team.....

but my friends over at VVFTT are talking about this guy...
Here's what NavyNamVet had to say:

"When I was with Duncan last Thursday in Jacksonville he made a statement so different from the Jerks Kerry and Murtha. He said "I am one of you--- just a Nam Vet---- did what I had to do and I am not a big decorated guy."
All the other IDIOTS want to be a hero------ Duncan wants everyone to know HE IS ONE OF US. JUST ANOTHER NAM VET!
With Kerry and Murtha you have the arrogance. With Duncan you have a great guy who you can talk to and feel like you are talking to a BUDDY! This is why I will do everything I can to help Duncan. He has a proven Record in the House.
This is the brotherhood Kerry wished he had -------- Duncan HAS the Band of Brothers"

I know NNV..I respect his opinion and his judgement....

but I heard Ann Coulter likes Romney.....

NEWSMAX.COM is reporting that former Missouri Sen. Jim Talent, who narrowly lost his re-election bid last November, was named a top adviser to Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney.

Talent will serve as domestic policy task force chairman for Romney's presidential exploratory committee, Romney announced Thursday. In his new post, Talent will oversee all domestic policy development for Romney's campaign.

Talent lost a close race to Democrat Claire McCaskill. He recently was named a distinguished fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington.

Romney will headline a banquet on Feb. 10 for the Missouri Republican Party at its annual Lincoln Days festivities in St. Louis.

Looking good so far....and this article from over at Townhall.com's blog space has some good news about Romney, plus some interesting links.

Some senators get it

Senate Republicans yesterday said those in Congress who have turned against the war in Iraq are forsaking the troops on the ground and are ensuring defeat with a resolution condemning President Bush's plan to send in reinforcements.
"This resolution is a resolution of defeat and disgrace," said Sen. Jim DeMint, a South Carolina Republican who, as a member of the House, voted in 2002 for the war.

Sen. John Cornyn, Texas Republican, was not serving in the Senate for the vote authorizing the war but has been an ardent defender of it. He said Congress is sending mixed messages to the troops, to voters and to the world with a "no confidence" vote that carries no force.
"We can't claim to support the troops and not support their mission," he said in a floor speech yesterday. "If we don't support the mission, we shouldn't be passing nonbinding resolutions. We should be doing everything in our power to stop it.
Instead, Mr. Cornyn said, "we should send them the message that, yes, we believe you can succeed and it's important to our national security that you do." He has been drawing up a resolution to do that.

Compromise??? With Whom???

"The primary objective of the United States strategy in Iraq," reads the resolution, "should be to have the Iraqi political leaders make the political compromises necessary to end the violence in Iraq."
Compromises with whom? The al Qaeda forces? What compromises would satisfy them? With the Ba'athist Sunnis? Ditto. With Sunni and Shia militias? Maybe some would be satisfied by "political compromises." But some probably won't.

They don't get it. This is not about politics. This is about madmen who use religion as an excuse to kill people they don't like. This is about pedophiles whose only point of negotiation is the complete and total subjugation of everyone who is NOT muslim.

The only compromise these assholes will accept is our surrender.

Not only do they not get it, they will get us all killed.

and I just heard Nancy Pelosi say "We need to transition the role of the military from combat to training...."
She REALLY doesn't get it.

Disclaimer - The above is the express opinion of a God fearing, USA loving, military supporting, gun toting, conservative leaning, camo wearing, country listening, NASCAR watching, pickup truck driving, blue collar, monogamous, heterosexual, former Marine, redneck, male.
No one says you have to agree.

Open Letter to Our Armed Forces and Their Families

From Ben Stein

Greetings From Rancho Mirage By Ben Stein

Tuesday

Dear Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, National Guard, Reservists, in Iraq, in the Middle East theater, in Afghanistan, in the area near Afghanistan, in any base anywhere in the world, and your families:

Let me tell you about why you guys own about 90 percent of the backbone in the whole world right now and should be happy with yourselves and proud of whom you are.

It was a dazzlingly hot day here in Rancho Mirage today. I did small errands like going to the bank to pay my mortgage, finding a new bed at a price I can afford, practicing driving with my new 5 wood, paying bills for about two hours. I spoke for a long time to a woman who is going through a nasty child custody fight. I got e-mails from a woman who was fired today from her job for not paying attention. I read about multi-billion-dollar mergers in Europe, Asia, and the Mideast. I noticed how overweight I am, for the millionth time. In other words, I did a lot of nothing.

Like every other American who is not in the armed forces family, I basically just rearranged the deck chairs on the Titanic in my trivial, self-important, meaningless way.

Above all, I talked to a friend of more than forty-three years who told me he thought his life had no meaning because all he did was count his money. And, friends in the armed forces, this is the story of all of America today. We are doing nothing but treading water while you guys carry on the life or death struggle against worldwide militant Islamic terrorism. Our lives are about nothing: paying bills, going to humdrum jobs, waiting until we can go to sleep and then do it all again. Our most vivid issues are trivia compared with what you do every day, every minute, every second.

Oprah Winfrey talks a lot about "meaning" in life. For her, "meaning" is dieting and then having her photo on the cover of her magazine every single month (surely a new world record for egomania ). This is not "meaning."

- Meaning is doing for others.

- Meaning is risking your life for hers.

- Meaning is putting your bodies and families' peace of mind on the line to defeat some of the most evil, sick killers the world has ever known.

- Meaning is leaving the comfort of home to fight to make sure that there still will be a home for your family and for your nation and for free men and women everywhere.

Look, soldiers and Marines and sailors and airmen and Coast Guardsmen, there are eight billion people in this world. The whole fate of this world turns on what you people, 1.4 million, more or less, do every day. The fate of mankind depends on what about 2/100 of one percent of the people in this world do every day – and you are those people. And joining you is every policeman, fireman, and Emergency Medical Technician in the country, also holding back the tide of chaos.

Do you know how important you are? Do you know how indispensable you are? Do you know how humbly grateful any of us who has a head on his shoulders is to you? Do you know that if you never do another thing in your lives, you will always still be heroes? That we could live without Hollywood or Wall Street or the NFL, but we cannot live for a week without you?

We are on our knees to you and we bless and pray for you every moment. And Oprah Winfrey, if she were a size two, would not have one millionth of your importance, and all of the Wall Street billionaires will never mean what the least of you do, and if Barry Bonds hits hundreds of home runs it would not mean as much as you going on one patrol or driving one truck to the Baghdad airport.

You are everything to us, as we go through our little days, and you are in the prayers of the nation and of every decent man and woman on the planet. That's who you are and what you mean. I hope you know that.

Love,

Ben Stein


"If It Weren't For the United States Military There Would Be NO United States of America"

"Home of The Free, Because of the Brave"