Texas A&M University students definition of political correctness:
"Political Correctness is a doctrine, fostered by a delusional, illogical, liberal minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a turd by the clean end."
Thursday, December 06, 2007
Monday, July 02, 2007
It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the radical, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is sometimes draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag. -- Father Dennis Edward O'Brian, USMC
The War on Terrorism is no where near an end. No matter what some may want to say, this is not about just Iraq. Believe me, terrorists are EVERYWHERE because we allowed it to go on for so long. It was a growing cancer since the 1970's. On this July 4th, we have a great deal to be grateful for. I don't need to tell you that. But I will say this.
The Declaration of Independence was and is an incredible document. But what good would a piece of paper have been, if it were not for the men who fought in the Revolutionary War? It would have meant nothing. Same applies today.
Following is the Army Posture Statement of 2006.....not much has changed.
Happy 4th to all.....and God Bless America.
Army Posture Statement 2006:
We remain an Army at War. It is a war unlike any other in our Nation's history, prosecuted not by states, but by extremists employing irregular means to erode our power and resolve. Our adversaries threaten the ideas that form the bedrock of our society, endangering our freedoms and way of life. Fueled by an ideology that promotes intractable hatred, this war will endure in some form for the foreseeable future. The Army, in service to the Nation, must therefore be prepared to sustain operations during a period of persistent conflict -- a blurring of familiar distinctions between war and peace. This is the most significant aspect of the 21st century security environment.
It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the radical, who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is sometimes draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag. -- Father Dennis Edward O'Brian, USMC
The War on Terrorism is no where near an end. No matter what some may want to say, this is not about just Iraq. Believe me, terrorists are EVERYWHERE because we allowed it to go on for so long. It was a growing cancer since the 1970's. On this July 4th, we have a great deal to be grateful for. I don't need to tell you that. But I will say this.
The Declaration of Independence was and is an incredible document. But what good would a piece of paper have been, if it were not for the men who fought in the Revolutionary War? It would have meant nothing. Same applies today.
Following is the Army Posture Statement of 2006.....not much has changed.
Happy 4th to all.....and God Bless America.
Army Posture Statement 2006:
We remain an Army at War. It is a war unlike any other in our Nation's history, prosecuted not by states, but by extremists employing irregular means to erode our power and resolve. Our adversaries threaten the ideas that form the bedrock of our society, endangering our freedoms and way of life. Fueled by an ideology that promotes intractable hatred, this war will endure in some form for the foreseeable future. The Army, in service to the Nation, must therefore be prepared to sustain operations during a period of persistent conflict -- a blurring of familiar distinctions between war and peace. This is the most significant aspect of the 21st century security environment.
Friday, March 02, 2007
One of the best truism's from the past.
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his persons safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.” - John Stuart Mill, 1806-1873
"War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his persons safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.” - John Stuart Mill, 1806-1873
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Nuclear is for Western Democracies ONLY!
Any dealings that the West has with Iran must be based upon the fact that Iran is a religious dictatorship that has little to no respect for individual human rights, property rights as well as freedom of religion nor freedom of the press. Nations that do not respect these rights should never be permitted to possess the tools needed to develop Nuclear weapons and those tools would include Nuclear power stations. If you're not a real democracy then you don't get to go Nuclear. Why? Because going Nuclear implies possessing the power to destroy hundreds of thousands of people and if you don't respect your own people then you can't be expected nor trusted to respect other humans in other Nations. In fact, we can and should expect that you will use your Nuclear arsenal as leverage to advance your lack of respect for Humanity. That is precisely why Iran would want to pursue Nuclear technology.
And this is why the current U.S. and E.U. methods for dealing with Iran and their pursuit of nuclear technology will not work, not now - not ever. Toying with the political words surrounding Nuclear technology itself is a waste of time. We need to use human rights issue to paint Iran into a corner where it must acknowledge and deal with its constant abuses of its own people. Presenting Iran the no Nuclear argument alone is easily refuted by the clever doublespeak of Iran 's leaders and brilliant photo shopped propaganda. The regime must be confronted with its major failings to its own people. Those failings are the ones that we consider to be Democracy's greatest achievements.
For example, I get to write my blog and not get imprisoned, tortured then beheaded. You get to read this without fear of your family being turned out of their home before you too are sent to a kangaroo court.
Any dealings that the West has with Iran must be based upon the fact that Iran is a religious dictatorship that has little to no respect for individual human rights, property rights as well as freedom of religion nor freedom of the press. Nations that do not respect these rights should never be permitted to possess the tools needed to develop Nuclear weapons and those tools would include Nuclear power stations. If you're not a real democracy then you don't get to go Nuclear. Why? Because going Nuclear implies possessing the power to destroy hundreds of thousands of people and if you don't respect your own people then you can't be expected nor trusted to respect other humans in other Nations. In fact, we can and should expect that you will use your Nuclear arsenal as leverage to advance your lack of respect for Humanity. That is precisely why Iran would want to pursue Nuclear technology.
And this is why the current U.S. and E.U. methods for dealing with Iran and their pursuit of nuclear technology will not work, not now - not ever. Toying with the political words surrounding Nuclear technology itself is a waste of time. We need to use human rights issue to paint Iran into a corner where it must acknowledge and deal with its constant abuses of its own people. Presenting Iran the no Nuclear argument alone is easily refuted by the clever doublespeak of Iran 's leaders and brilliant photo shopped propaganda. The regime must be confronted with its major failings to its own people. Those failings are the ones that we consider to be Democracy's greatest achievements.
For example, I get to write my blog and not get imprisoned, tortured then beheaded. You get to read this without fear of your family being turned out of their home before you too are sent to a kangaroo court.
Friday, February 16, 2007
Refusing Islam
I'm just a lonely blogger. One or two of my friends have looked at some of my blogs. I don't exactly blog much. What does my contribution mean? Will it be here 20 years from now? 100 years from now? 1,000 years from now? Not if Islam takes over it won't. Because despite my patience and analytical mind, I can honestly say that I will NEVER adopt Islam. And this small blog is a very small statement of my declaration of refusal to submit to Islam. I am no Christian fundamentalist. I go to Church maybe four times a year. I was brought up in a staunch Christian household. That experience taught me the dangers of religious supremacy.
If this blog is here one hundred years from now then I think it safe to say that Islam lost this round and The Renaissance won.
I'm just a lonely blogger. One or two of my friends have looked at some of my blogs. I don't exactly blog much. What does my contribution mean? Will it be here 20 years from now? 100 years from now? 1,000 years from now? Not if Islam takes over it won't. Because despite my patience and analytical mind, I can honestly say that I will NEVER adopt Islam. And this small blog is a very small statement of my declaration of refusal to submit to Islam. I am no Christian fundamentalist. I go to Church maybe four times a year. I was brought up in a staunch Christian household. That experience taught me the dangers of religious supremacy.
If this blog is here one hundred years from now then I think it safe to say that Islam lost this round and The Renaissance won.
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
Amir Taheri New York Post Op-Ed
This is what the main stream media would never admit.
The good news comes in slowly. The bad news from the MSM is relentless but still - wrong.
This is what the main stream media would never admit.
The good news comes in slowly. The bad news from the MSM is relentless but still - wrong.
The West is in Denial
As of today this is my general statement about the stupidity of our (US) foreign policy as pertaining to the ongoing denial that we are fighting an ideology of hate spawned from a religion that professes peace but that generally advocates violence and hatred of our peaceful and just Western principles. Sooner or later, we are going to have to face the same choices that were forced upon the West during World War II. Are we going to force our righteous and just system of governance and civility upon our enemy and their failed culture? Are we going to defeat them by imposing our workable systems upon them? Are we going to kill them until they accept those egalitarian systems? Are we going to use the bomb or not? Our culture is better than theirs. They must accept our system of democracy, justice and individual human rights. If they don't, they'll be destroyed.
As of today this is my general statement about the stupidity of our (US) foreign policy as pertaining to the ongoing denial that we are fighting an ideology of hate spawned from a religion that professes peace but that generally advocates violence and hatred of our peaceful and just Western principles. Sooner or later, we are going to have to face the same choices that were forced upon the West during World War II. Are we going to force our righteous and just system of governance and civility upon our enemy and their failed culture? Are we going to defeat them by imposing our workable systems upon them? Are we going to kill them until they accept those egalitarian systems? Are we going to use the bomb or not? Our culture is better than theirs. They must accept our system of democracy, justice and individual human rights. If they don't, they'll be destroyed.
Friday, January 19, 2007
Courageous Good People Sign Up For The Army
Here is a link to why one brave soldier signed up for the Army that you must read in its entirety.
Army 2nd Lt. Mark J. Daily, 23 went to Iraq and was killed.
What he wrote, I wish I wrote. What he did, I wish I did.
Those are wonderfully eloquent words of wisdom from a courageous young man. Through his writing you get to know who he was - he was a good man who held high ideals and lived according to his morals.
It is a shame that a volunteer military only takes in those men and women who want to sign up because too many of them die and we are left with a society full of those dregs who don't want to go because they are not the sort of the person that this great man, as an example, was.
Instead we are surrounded by shallow, selfish fools who say they support the troops but if they ever met these individual troops they supposedly support they would never agree with that troop's thinking.
God Bless and Rest in Peace Mark J. Daily
And here is another courageous woman who gave here life for others. A civilian.
God Bless and Rest in Peace Andrea Parhamovich
Here is a link to why one brave soldier signed up for the Army that you must read in its entirety.
Army 2nd Lt. Mark J. Daily, 23 went to Iraq and was killed.
What he wrote, I wish I wrote. What he did, I wish I did.
Those are wonderfully eloquent words of wisdom from a courageous young man. Through his writing you get to know who he was - he was a good man who held high ideals and lived according to his morals.
It is a shame that a volunteer military only takes in those men and women who want to sign up because too many of them die and we are left with a society full of those dregs who don't want to go because they are not the sort of the person that this great man, as an example, was.
Instead we are surrounded by shallow, selfish fools who say they support the troops but if they ever met these individual troops they supposedly support they would never agree with that troop's thinking.
God Bless and Rest in Peace Mark J. Daily
And here is another courageous woman who gave here life for others. A civilian.
God Bless and Rest in Peace Andrea Parhamovich
Friday, November 10, 2006
Here is why I continue to support the Democratization of Iraq. Do you? Would you ever support an American invasion of another country to remove an evil, murderous dictator and bring - say even attempt - to bring freedoms, liberties and happiness to another group of people?
There will always be evil people in the world. And there will always be evil systems. That is to say, political groups, religious groups, national groups, splinter groups of people. Over time, many of those benign, well intentioned groups evolve into entities that they were never intended to be in the first place. Sometimes they involve into better groups, sometimes not. That does not change the fact that they do evolve and sometimes evolve into evil groups. Evil groups end up containing evil people. They may not have been evil to begin with but they became evil and the individuals within those groups often think of themselves as being good, doing good and belonging to a good group. But they're not.
So how do I know if you are good or I am good? And how do you or I know if we belong to good or bad groups? Scrutiny under rational thought processes. So spare me your moral relativism.
The more I see of what's happening in the great nation that is the USA the more depressing it seems right now. We have just entered into a regressive period. The collective group think (Democrats and Republicans, liberals and some conservatives) is that the war in Iraq was a mistake and that we should have left it all alone. Why else would Democrats be able to take control of the House and Senate? When the outrage against global evil is not there and people are not aware of the risk to their future. When a majority believes that democracy is only good for us and, no matter how bad things might be in another part of the world, it is just not worth giving, even attempting, to give what we have to "them". It is just not worth 3,000 US soldiers lives, 50,000 Iraqi's lives, whatever the number, it's not something we want to give anyone else. I call it selfishness.
Due to that, we (the peoples of the USA) will have to suffer another huge attack. Then we will be reminded that all of our selfishness will have actually made us less safer than if we had been loving and saw ourselves as human as all humans are. But I fear that the peoples of this Earth will have suffered much greater and for far longer before we (the USA) get truly involved. Nations are going to be destroyed or overrun and millions may die before the USA wakes up. The sleeping giant is sound asleep - hibernating. So sad for those unlucky enough to not live inside the sleeping chamber.
When that brave soldier took his own talisman and gave it to a small girl he was doing what every one of us should take and live as a defining principle. He was equal to her and he was as human as her. She deserved what he had. He was only able to give her a small gift but what he was really giving was something beyond. It was liberation. If was freedom. It was social. It was civil. It was just. It was good. It was loving. It was selfless.
So many of our soldiers are selfless. Why are they called murderers?
As things look like on the ground right now, if we depart Iraq within the next five years, we will be letting it return into the hands of monsters. If the current Iraqi government wants us to leave earlier, that is one thing. But if we decide that we will give or let it back early into the hands of tyranny, violence, the criminals, then we will have forgotten that we are human and that all deserve what we have.
There will always be evil people in the world. And there will always be evil systems. That is to say, political groups, religious groups, national groups, splinter groups of people. Over time, many of those benign, well intentioned groups evolve into entities that they were never intended to be in the first place. Sometimes they involve into better groups, sometimes not. That does not change the fact that they do evolve and sometimes evolve into evil groups. Evil groups end up containing evil people. They may not have been evil to begin with but they became evil and the individuals within those groups often think of themselves as being good, doing good and belonging to a good group. But they're not.
So how do I know if you are good or I am good? And how do you or I know if we belong to good or bad groups? Scrutiny under rational thought processes. So spare me your moral relativism.
The more I see of what's happening in the great nation that is the USA the more depressing it seems right now. We have just entered into a regressive period. The collective group think (Democrats and Republicans, liberals and some conservatives) is that the war in Iraq was a mistake and that we should have left it all alone. Why else would Democrats be able to take control of the House and Senate? When the outrage against global evil is not there and people are not aware of the risk to their future. When a majority believes that democracy is only good for us and, no matter how bad things might be in another part of the world, it is just not worth giving, even attempting, to give what we have to "them". It is just not worth 3,000 US soldiers lives, 50,000 Iraqi's lives, whatever the number, it's not something we want to give anyone else. I call it selfishness.
Due to that, we (the peoples of the USA) will have to suffer another huge attack. Then we will be reminded that all of our selfishness will have actually made us less safer than if we had been loving and saw ourselves as human as all humans are. But I fear that the peoples of this Earth will have suffered much greater and for far longer before we (the USA) get truly involved. Nations are going to be destroyed or overrun and millions may die before the USA wakes up. The sleeping giant is sound asleep - hibernating. So sad for those unlucky enough to not live inside the sleeping chamber.
When that brave soldier took his own talisman and gave it to a small girl he was doing what every one of us should take and live as a defining principle. He was equal to her and he was as human as her. She deserved what he had. He was only able to give her a small gift but what he was really giving was something beyond. It was liberation. If was freedom. It was social. It was civil. It was just. It was good. It was loving. It was selfless.
So many of our soldiers are selfless. Why are they called murderers?
As things look like on the ground right now, if we depart Iraq within the next five years, we will be letting it return into the hands of monsters. If the current Iraqi government wants us to leave earlier, that is one thing. But if we decide that we will give or let it back early into the hands of tyranny, violence, the criminals, then we will have forgotten that we are human and that all deserve what we have.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Global Warming - How to Fix It
Today I digress into one of my other pet peeves with the ignorant world of humanity.
Global Warming - oh my god! We're all going to die!
Well maybe not, and maybe global warming is real but the Greenies of the world won't let us use the most likely energy producing candidate for solving our global warming problems.
Basic knowledge of physics points to nuclear and solar power as the two most efficient ways to get us out of any global warming problem we might have.
But look at this news article from Australia. So a reasonable politician suggests that nuclear power is a great way to help solve global warming but no we can't do that.
Bob Brown proves just how disconnected he is from reality when he says that the primary reason that nuclear power is bad is because John Howard is still in power. It is Bob Brown who is using tired old last century Chernobyl style scare tactics. Nuclear power and solar power are the ONLY forms of energy production that are going to get us out of our global warming problem. The sooner the "greens" work that out and can get past their own slavish pursuit of power, the better for all of us.
Today I digress into one of my other pet peeves with the ignorant world of humanity.
Global Warming - oh my god! We're all going to die!
Well maybe not, and maybe global warming is real but the Greenies of the world won't let us use the most likely energy producing candidate for solving our global warming problems.
Basic knowledge of physics points to nuclear and solar power as the two most efficient ways to get us out of any global warming problem we might have.
But look at this news article from Australia. So a reasonable politician suggests that nuclear power is a great way to help solve global warming but no we can't do that.
Bob Brown proves just how disconnected he is from reality when he says that the primary reason that nuclear power is bad is because John Howard is still in power. It is Bob Brown who is using tired old last century Chernobyl style scare tactics. Nuclear power and solar power are the ONLY forms of energy production that are going to get us out of our global warming problem. The sooner the "greens" work that out and can get past their own slavish pursuit of power, the better for all of us.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Dumb soldiers make great comedians
Look at this picture. What a great picture! Admire it. A brilliant executed combination of wit and withering critique.
If you're laughing, take a moment to thank a soldier.
If you’re not laughing, you’re not American.
If you’re an American citizen and you're not laughing then you’re un-American and don’t understand the value and importance of the very freedoms you have that allow you to have the thinking that is not making you laugh. Take a long hard look at yourself and say "Something is wrong with me because I should be laughing".
Oh, but Liberals don't like self examination.
He's a communist, Benjamin!
He's a communist, Benjamin. Communists don't change. It's a terminal illness." - Private Benjamin The Movie 1980
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Look at this picture.
Before the US and allies invaded Iraq and removed Saddam Hussein, this is exactly what I advocated setting off in the middle of the Persian Gulf. Give 48 hours notice to all shipping in the region to get out of the area. Then we would set off a nuclear weapon right there and let it be a warning to the middle east to sort itself out.
Now watching the Iraq war for a couple of years. Having intently watched as US soldiers have laid their lives down instead of using their own tax payer funded hitech superior weaponry to defend themselves. Having restrained ourselves, nay, twisted ourselves like pretzels to accomodate vicious, religious barbarians, I am reiterating my original position. Nuke 'em!
Sad to have to do it. Grave moral responsibility taken onboard. Illegal, of course. But ultimately, successful. And success is the sweet smell of victory.
When only just last week a 14 year old Iraqi boy was held down by four "insurgents" and summarily executed by beheading. His only crime being that he said admitted he was a Christian (and proudly too). When snipers are able to pick off our soldiers one by one. Or suicide murderers destroy groups of poor people at a city market who only want a job. Isn't it time that we just admitted that we need to get serious about destroying the enemy, accept the "collateral damage" and get the whole Islamic worlds attention with a nuclear detonation that kills at least 100,000, hopefully more. Hopefully, in the sense that the death of innocent, good people is horrible but those deaths MUST occur for the enemy to take notice and be defeated.
Take a look at that picture and imagine the stunned silence afterward. That is the silence heard when a nation, a religion and their rulers are forced to face a fundamental philosophical shift. We won, you lost. You're not going to succeed. Your mind set has failed you. We're right, you're wrong. Now, we tell you what you're going to do.
You either play nice in the world or we WILL destroy you.
The only alternative for us is to wait and let it to happen to us.
Nuke 'em! NOW!
Before the US and allies invaded Iraq and removed Saddam Hussein, this is exactly what I advocated setting off in the middle of the Persian Gulf. Give 48 hours notice to all shipping in the region to get out of the area. Then we would set off a nuclear weapon right there and let it be a warning to the middle east to sort itself out.
Now watching the Iraq war for a couple of years. Having intently watched as US soldiers have laid their lives down instead of using their own tax payer funded hitech superior weaponry to defend themselves. Having restrained ourselves, nay, twisted ourselves like pretzels to accomodate vicious, religious barbarians, I am reiterating my original position. Nuke 'em!
Sad to have to do it. Grave moral responsibility taken onboard. Illegal, of course. But ultimately, successful. And success is the sweet smell of victory.
When only just last week a 14 year old Iraqi boy was held down by four "insurgents" and summarily executed by beheading. His only crime being that he said admitted he was a Christian (and proudly too). When snipers are able to pick off our soldiers one by one. Or suicide murderers destroy groups of poor people at a city market who only want a job. Isn't it time that we just admitted that we need to get serious about destroying the enemy, accept the "collateral damage" and get the whole Islamic worlds attention with a nuclear detonation that kills at least 100,000, hopefully more. Hopefully, in the sense that the death of innocent, good people is horrible but those deaths MUST occur for the enemy to take notice and be defeated.
Take a look at that picture and imagine the stunned silence afterward. That is the silence heard when a nation, a religion and their rulers are forced to face a fundamental philosophical shift. We won, you lost. You're not going to succeed. Your mind set has failed you. We're right, you're wrong. Now, we tell you what you're going to do.
You either play nice in the world or we WILL destroy you.
The only alternative for us is to wait and let it to happen to us.
Nuke 'em! NOW!
On September 11, 2001 we paid a price for our apathy. Today is a day to remember those who lost their lives. However, today (9/11 - ed) is also a day to remember why we do what we are doing in Iraq and Afghanistan and what we may have to do in the months and years ahead.
This is not something that is just going to go away with a battle here or a battle there, or an arrest in London, Rome, or New York. No. This is going to take a major war. America and the rest of the world will have to wake up to that fact. The build-up of aggression and arms and Islamic fascism is extraordinarily similar to pre-WW2 Germany. We are in the opening stages of WW III. I hope I am wrong. But I doubt it. The cancer may have grown but we still have time to destroy IT before IT kills us.
This is not something that is just going to go away with a battle here or a battle there, or an arrest in London, Rome, or New York. No. This is going to take a major war. America and the rest of the world will have to wake up to that fact. The build-up of aggression and arms and Islamic fascism is extraordinarily similar to pre-WW2 Germany. We are in the opening stages of WW III. I hope I am wrong. But I doubt it. The cancer may have grown but we still have time to destroy IT before IT kills us.
What's the sense of sending $2 million missiles to hit a $10 tent that's empty? --George W. Bush, private Oval Office meeting, September 13, 2001
Take a moment and go to http://attacked911.tripod.com and watch the clip of the men, women, and children who died on September 11, 2001. Five years later and the pain and anger is still there. Watch the entire clip. You may have seen this already. But there is nothing like a reminder like this to put our lives into perspective. Over 100 men and women jumped from the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. A woman, 7 months pregnant, working in the World Trade Center jumped to her death on September 11, 2001 because of the intense flames and heat. That is a jump of 1200 feet. If you have skydived or were a paratrooper you know that falling from that height you have enough time to deploy your parachute and live. 3,200 children lost a parent on that day. Most people who died were men between the age of 30-45 years old. Most of these men had wives, children, a thriving career, and a mortgage payment. Sound familiar?
What happened on September 11, 2001 was a cancer growing while America was sleeping. In the 70's during the Carter Administration, American Embassy occupants in Iran were kidnapped for over a year. We did nothing. During the Reagan Administration, terrorists killed about 300 Marines in Lebanon. We did nothing. At the end of Ronald Reagan's presidency, Reagan admitted that this would come back and bite us in the butt. During George Bush's Senior Administration terrorists were growing and we did not complete the mission during Operation Desert Storm as we should have. During the Clinton Administration, he practically dismantled the Military, crippled the CIA, turned the FBI into his puppets, turned a blind eye to Somalia, the USS Cole, the World Trade Center bombing in 1993, and the twin bombing of the US embassies in Africa. We did nothing. We were all too busy making money and living as if in a cocoon during the 90's here in the USA.
On September 11, 2001 we paid a price for our apathy. Today is a day to remember those who lost their lives.
Take a moment and go to http://attacked911.tripod.com and watch the clip of the men, women, and children who died on September 11, 2001. Five years later and the pain and anger is still there. Watch the entire clip. You may have seen this already. But there is nothing like a reminder like this to put our lives into perspective. Over 100 men and women jumped from the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001. A woman, 7 months pregnant, working in the World Trade Center jumped to her death on September 11, 2001 because of the intense flames and heat. That is a jump of 1200 feet. If you have skydived or were a paratrooper you know that falling from that height you have enough time to deploy your parachute and live. 3,200 children lost a parent on that day. Most people who died were men between the age of 30-45 years old. Most of these men had wives, children, a thriving career, and a mortgage payment. Sound familiar?
What happened on September 11, 2001 was a cancer growing while America was sleeping. In the 70's during the Carter Administration, American Embassy occupants in Iran were kidnapped for over a year. We did nothing. During the Reagan Administration, terrorists killed about 300 Marines in Lebanon. We did nothing. At the end of Ronald Reagan's presidency, Reagan admitted that this would come back and bite us in the butt. During George Bush's Senior Administration terrorists were growing and we did not complete the mission during Operation Desert Storm as we should have. During the Clinton Administration, he practically dismantled the Military, crippled the CIA, turned the FBI into his puppets, turned a blind eye to Somalia, the USS Cole, the World Trade Center bombing in 1993, and the twin bombing of the US embassies in Africa. We did nothing. We were all too busy making money and living as if in a cocoon during the 90's here in the USA.
On September 11, 2001 we paid a price for our apathy. Today is a day to remember those who lost their lives.
Monday, September 18, 2006
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -14th century Byzantine emperor Manuel II PaleologusDuring a speech in Germany, Pope Benedict XVI quoted the above statement from a 14th century Byzantine emperor.In Gaza City some Christian churches were blown up, Muslims came out and protested death to Christians in many cities across the world including in London outside Westminster Church, and an Italian nun was shot in the back several times in Somalia....women dressed in burkas carried signs saying that the Pope has lost his mental and moral balance....excuse me? you put your women in burkas and stone them to death if they do not obey and you are calling the Pope unstable....? what is wrong with this picture? If this religion is one of peace then why all the violence because of words? To all my liberal American friends out there....(okay i don't have any) ..listen up...this is what Islam and the Moslems will do to you if they were running the United States or any European country. Your opinions, your open lifestyle, your artsy fartsy thinking would be a thing of the past. Oh, and that little thing we call the Bill of Rights would be in history books and taught to your children as something evil. Your idea of the Patriot Act somehow infringing on your Civil Rights would be something you would welcome with open arms, and you may even say, "Bush was right." If Moslems ruled the world.Someone was quoted as saying, "Stop flying airplanes into buildings, stop shooting nuns in the back, stop setting fires everytime your itty bitty little feelings are hurt over the slightest of slights -- and we'll stop with the "demonizing", OKAY?"....AMEN
Thursday, August 24, 2006
Associated Press and Language Hijinx Designed to Confuse You
Violent criminal activity intended to cause political change is the basic definition of terrorism. Therefore, we have to approach the problem with both law enforcement action and military action – wherever it’s needed. One problem as I see it is that law enforcement and the military have both been hamstrung by political correctness in many areas.
Take the example of politically correct (well incorrect actually) double-think language that intentionally or unintentionally hides the true nature of our terrorist enemies.
Look at the attempted bombing of two German trains two weeks ago (August 2006). Which by the way, did not get very much media coverage.
The men who were the ONLY suspects were Young Middle Eastern Men but you certainly would not know that from the way Associated Press reported it.
When I read the three articles on Foxnews (sourced from AP) I was struck by just how much avoiding of the - damn well obvious - is going on. Or is this language contorted gymnastics being done intentionally?
The first report came out declaring that there only MIGHT be a terrorist link to bombs being planted.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,209238,00.html
The investigators found a ripped up piece of paper with phone numbers and Arabic script on it. Yet they couldn’t bring themselves to say it was “terrorist” related. Regardless of the Arabic script, it was a bomb on a train - right? Taking terrorism by definition, I don’t see how anyone could put a bomb on a train and it would NOT be an act of terrorism. Interesting that there was Arabic script in the bag though.
Here’s another little gem from the article:
“Investigators released a video showing two suspects, both men, coming up an escalator with heavy wheeled luggage in Cologne station, which both trains passed through. They were believed to be between 20 and 30 years old.”
Meanwhile somewhere in the bowels of the Associated Press editor’s office I can see the hand wringing going on:
Well you can mention that they appear to be young, and you can mention that they appear to be men but DON'T WHATEVER YOU DO mention that they appear to be of Middle Eastern descent.
Then there was this follow up article when the police caught up with one of the YMEM (young middle-eastern man).
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,209238,00.html
And look at this amazing snippet:
“Chief prosecutor Monika Harms said he [the YMEM] apparently had planned to flee the country, but she did not say where he wanted to go.”
Meanwhile somewhere in the bowels of the Associated Press editor’s office I can see even more hand wringing going on:
Well you can mention that he intended to flee the country but whatever you do, don’t ask the prosecutor which country he actually intended to flee to if it is a MIDDLE EASTERN COUNTRY!
And then there’s this right below:
“Prosecutors said the suspect was identified with the help of the surveillance footage, from Cologne station, and DNA traces from one of the suitcases in which the bombs were found.”
Notice how AP has written this line in a manner that attempts to give credit to DNA evidence for busting the creep. But in fact, DNA evidence can only be used to confirm the identity of the creep AFTER the police have busted the creep using identity information gleaned from the camera surveillance footage. That is, young, middle-eastern and male - gotcha! Or, put another way, I would be willing to bet that unless this creep was already in the German police DNA criminal database, there is no possible way that the DNA had anything to do with them capturing this creep. It is all about the pictures - mate!
Well you can mention that they identified the suspects from camera surveillance footage but no one can say they are being singled out for attention if you follow up with a note about the DNA evidence because we all have DNA – right?
And how about this piece of brilliant AP translation from German to English:
“Joerg Ziercke, the head of Germany's Federal Crime Office, told reporters in Kiel he was confident that "we caught the right suspected bomb planter here in Kiel today."
Now here’s my question, do German prosecutors call terrorists “suspected bomb planters”? Or do AP reporters translate terrorist into “suspected bomb planters”. Well, granted there are often concerns regarding calling suspect’s names for fear that the prosecution of the crime could be jeopardized by name calling. But surely there is no fundamental difference between a suspected terrorist and a “suspected bomb planter”. Right? Oh by the way, terrorist in German is spelled “TERRORIST”.
Finally, in the third report, Chancellor Merkel's Office finally gets a word in. And yes, the conservatives call it what it is - terrorism. Read here for yourself.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,209453,00.html
So what does all of this mean? Basically, what I’m trying to get across is that if somebody plants a bomb on a train there is a very high likelihood that it was put there by a terrorist. And, though it’s politiclly incorrect to have to say it, most of the terrorists in the world right now happen to be Young Middle-Eastern Men and we should stop pretending otherwise. All this playing around with semantics only leads to a dumbed down understanding of the threat we face. Furthermore, press services such as Associated Press ought to be using the English language the way it should be used. And that is, call a “suspect spade” a “suspect spade” and not a “suspected hole digging implement”.
Violent criminal activity intended to cause political change is the basic definition of terrorism. Therefore, we have to approach the problem with both law enforcement action and military action – wherever it’s needed. One problem as I see it is that law enforcement and the military have both been hamstrung by political correctness in many areas.
Take the example of politically correct (well incorrect actually) double-think language that intentionally or unintentionally hides the true nature of our terrorist enemies.
Look at the attempted bombing of two German trains two weeks ago (August 2006). Which by the way, did not get very much media coverage.
The men who were the ONLY suspects were Young Middle Eastern Men but you certainly would not know that from the way Associated Press reported it.
When I read the three articles on Foxnews (sourced from AP) I was struck by just how much avoiding of the - damn well obvious - is going on. Or is this language contorted gymnastics being done intentionally?
The first report came out declaring that there only MIGHT be a terrorist link to bombs being planted.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,209238,00.html
The investigators found a ripped up piece of paper with phone numbers and Arabic script on it. Yet they couldn’t bring themselves to say it was “terrorist” related. Regardless of the Arabic script, it was a bomb on a train - right? Taking terrorism by definition, I don’t see how anyone could put a bomb on a train and it would NOT be an act of terrorism. Interesting that there was Arabic script in the bag though.
Here’s another little gem from the article:
“Investigators released a video showing two suspects, both men, coming up an escalator with heavy wheeled luggage in Cologne station, which both trains passed through. They were believed to be between 20 and 30 years old.”
Meanwhile somewhere in the bowels of the Associated Press editor’s office I can see the hand wringing going on:
Well you can mention that they appear to be young, and you can mention that they appear to be men but DON'T WHATEVER YOU DO mention that they appear to be of Middle Eastern descent.
Then there was this follow up article when the police caught up with one of the YMEM (young middle-eastern man).
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,209238,00.html
And look at this amazing snippet:
“Chief prosecutor Monika Harms said he [the YMEM] apparently had planned to flee the country, but she did not say where he wanted to go.”
Meanwhile somewhere in the bowels of the Associated Press editor’s office I can see even more hand wringing going on:
Well you can mention that he intended to flee the country but whatever you do, don’t ask the prosecutor which country he actually intended to flee to if it is a MIDDLE EASTERN COUNTRY!
And then there’s this right below:
“Prosecutors said the suspect was identified with the help of the surveillance footage, from Cologne station, and DNA traces from one of the suitcases in which the bombs were found.”
Notice how AP has written this line in a manner that attempts to give credit to DNA evidence for busting the creep. But in fact, DNA evidence can only be used to confirm the identity of the creep AFTER the police have busted the creep using identity information gleaned from the camera surveillance footage. That is, young, middle-eastern and male - gotcha! Or, put another way, I would be willing to bet that unless this creep was already in the German police DNA criminal database, there is no possible way that the DNA had anything to do with them capturing this creep. It is all about the pictures - mate!
Well you can mention that they identified the suspects from camera surveillance footage but no one can say they are being singled out for attention if you follow up with a note about the DNA evidence because we all have DNA – right?
And how about this piece of brilliant AP translation from German to English:
“Joerg Ziercke, the head of Germany's Federal Crime Office, told reporters in Kiel he was confident that "we caught the right suspected bomb planter here in Kiel today."
Now here’s my question, do German prosecutors call terrorists “suspected bomb planters”? Or do AP reporters translate terrorist into “suspected bomb planters”. Well, granted there are often concerns regarding calling suspect’s names for fear that the prosecution of the crime could be jeopardized by name calling. But surely there is no fundamental difference between a suspected terrorist and a “suspected bomb planter”. Right? Oh by the way, terrorist in German is spelled “TERRORIST”.
Finally, in the third report, Chancellor Merkel's Office finally gets a word in. And yes, the conservatives call it what it is - terrorism. Read here for yourself.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,209453,00.html
So what does all of this mean? Basically, what I’m trying to get across is that if somebody plants a bomb on a train there is a very high likelihood that it was put there by a terrorist. And, though it’s politiclly incorrect to have to say it, most of the terrorists in the world right now happen to be Young Middle-Eastern Men and we should stop pretending otherwise. All this playing around with semantics only leads to a dumbed down understanding of the threat we face. Furthermore, press services such as Associated Press ought to be using the English language the way it should be used. And that is, call a “suspect spade” a “suspect spade” and not a “suspected hole digging implement”.
Sunday, April 30, 2006
It is curious that physical courage should be so common in the world and moral courage so rare." - Mark Twain
This weekend I saw the movie United 93...
Those brave men and women on flight United 93 had moral courage. They knew what was about to happen and did their very best to prevent it from happening. They lost their lives and saved others. They were the first soldiers in the war against terror. True patriots!
Seeing the movie made me at first very sad and I cried. But then I became angry and realized that this sort of situation would never happen again in our country because even a woman like me - Ms. Connecticut girly girl who gets annoyed when she breaks a nail - would beat the crap out of any terrorist that ever tried that stunt again on a plane that I flew on!
However, our job is not done. We have to stay the course and do our very best to ensure that this does not happen again in any way for our freedom's sake and for our childrens' sake.
If you have not seen the movie I recommend that you do. It is portrayed accurately and fairly and commends our military for doing the best they could have done under the circumstances. No liberal bias here. Just the facts. LET'S ROLL!
This weekend I saw the movie United 93...
Those brave men and women on flight United 93 had moral courage. They knew what was about to happen and did their very best to prevent it from happening. They lost their lives and saved others. They were the first soldiers in the war against terror. True patriots!
Seeing the movie made me at first very sad and I cried. But then I became angry and realized that this sort of situation would never happen again in our country because even a woman like me - Ms. Connecticut girly girl who gets annoyed when she breaks a nail - would beat the crap out of any terrorist that ever tried that stunt again on a plane that I flew on!
However, our job is not done. We have to stay the course and do our very best to ensure that this does not happen again in any way for our freedom's sake and for our childrens' sake.
If you have not seen the movie I recommend that you do. It is portrayed accurately and fairly and commends our military for doing the best they could have done under the circumstances. No liberal bias here. Just the facts. LET'S ROLL!
Monday, April 24, 2006
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time, with the blood of patriots and tyrants" - Thomas Jefferson
During the revolutionary war over 25,000 American soldiers and minutemen died.
During the civil war over 400,000 northern and southern American soldiers died.
During WWI 100,000 American soldiers died.
During WWII 500,000 American soldiers died.
During the Vietnam War 60,000 American soldiers died.
On Sept 11, 2001 three thousand men, women, and children were killed because they were simply at work or on a plane.
Every year 100,000 Americans die on the road because of car accidents.
Every year 500,000 Americans die from cancer.
Let's try and keep that in perspective when it comes to the war against terrorism. As Americans we like to think everyone in the world is the same as us and thinks and lives like we do. We are sadly mistaken. There are a large number of terrorists and fundamentalist Muslims out there who just want us dead. There is no reason, no logic; there is no answer to us asking - Why? The West must come to understand that it simply comes down to us or them...our survival is dependent on that thinking. These people are like aliens from another planet. They are out to destroy America as well as the rest of the West that has come to enjoy freedom and democracy thanks to the American soldier who died for them. Thank you is not expected. We do what we do and hope other countries get it and yet, some of us here in the land of the free, home of the brave, have become weak and feeble. We have become Canadians, or worse, French!
Although each, any and every soldier dying in battle is a tragedy, these brave soldiers chose to serve our country under ANY President. And although even one life is precious, they died an honorable death. We are all going to die. That much is inescapable. Therefore, let's make sure we live an honorable life in and for their memory and preserve our freedoms and all the great things this country stands for. Our troops will come home when their mission is complete and they will be ready to take up the next mission for freedom.
During the revolutionary war over 25,000 American soldiers and minutemen died.
During the civil war over 400,000 northern and southern American soldiers died.
During WWI 100,000 American soldiers died.
During WWII 500,000 American soldiers died.
During the Vietnam War 60,000 American soldiers died.
On Sept 11, 2001 three thousand men, women, and children were killed because they were simply at work or on a plane.
Every year 100,000 Americans die on the road because of car accidents.
Every year 500,000 Americans die from cancer.
Let's try and keep that in perspective when it comes to the war against terrorism. As Americans we like to think everyone in the world is the same as us and thinks and lives like we do. We are sadly mistaken. There are a large number of terrorists and fundamentalist Muslims out there who just want us dead. There is no reason, no logic; there is no answer to us asking - Why? The West must come to understand that it simply comes down to us or them...our survival is dependent on that thinking. These people are like aliens from another planet. They are out to destroy America as well as the rest of the West that has come to enjoy freedom and democracy thanks to the American soldier who died for them. Thank you is not expected. We do what we do and hope other countries get it and yet, some of us here in the land of the free, home of the brave, have become weak and feeble. We have become Canadians, or worse, French!
Although each, any and every soldier dying in battle is a tragedy, these brave soldiers chose to serve our country under ANY President. And although even one life is precious, they died an honorable death. We are all going to die. That much is inescapable. Therefore, let's make sure we live an honorable life in and for their memory and preserve our freedoms and all the great things this country stands for. Our troops will come home when their mission is complete and they will be ready to take up the next mission for freedom.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
