The Afghan Plan

So last night Obama rolled out his new plan for Afghanistan. Paraphrased it was, "We're going to send a bunch more of you military types over there to die before we surrender." Obama was also very careful to not give his handpicked General the number of troops he asked for. I mean god forbid that it look like he was bowing to the military. He saves that for foreign royalty. Well royalty and the far left of his party that is.

I would really like to know what the hell happened to the Roosevelt Democrats. I fear they are an extinct species. Here I thought the libs were all over preserving endangered species... Guess you all dropped the ball on that one huh?

9/11 + 8

Source

I rose this morning, fully steeled to commemorate the passing of another 9/11. Going about my morning as I usually do, I rolled out of bed, rubbed the grit from my eyes and then switched on the television in the bedroom to the news channel. That is what I do every morning, listen to the news as I prepare for my day.

This morning however, I was struck with an unexplained melancholy, a wistful inexplicable ache. For me there was something I couldn't put my finger on... Something more amiss than on previous 9/11's.

I resolved to find and wear my traditional "Remember 9/11" lapel pin as I pondered what was effecting me so oddly.

Then I sat transfixed as Barack Obama's commemorative address at the Pentagon issued from the television. His words meandered and danced artfully around issues and possible phrasings that might offend one group or another. The sentences seemed hours long, intricate and complex; a woven tapestry of platitudes and side steps with a very sparse smattering of periods.

It was then that the difference hit me square in the face. This is the first commemoration of 9/11 that has not been presided over by George W. Bush. It just felt odd.

I hope that all but the most partisan can lay down the criticisms for a moment and realize that in this moment eight years ago, President Bush became the most popular president in American history. When he surmounted that mound of rubble at ground zero and resolutely pronounced, "I hear you, the rest of the world hears you and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon"; his approval rating skyrocketed to levels that no other president in history ever enjoyed. Sure, he did a lot of things that some disagree with. (He even did things that I disagree with!) But in this moment, eight years ago, he was the man that unified the resolve of this nation and voiced our collective sorrow and rage.

I have to admit to getting teary eyed at the realization. President Obama's lack-luster speech somehow lacked George's simple steely resolve. That is another thing that all but the most partisan must admit. You never had any doubt in your mind that when he spoke, he was speaking from his heart and truly meant what he said. He may not have followed through. He may not have been expressing sentiments that you shared, but GWB was a man who said what he meant and meant what he said. There wasn't room for flowery rhetoric and relying on a teleprompter, like his successor might have saved him from more than a few fumbled words or phrases... but everyone knew the man believed in what he was saying. I miss that.

My wife tearfully interrupted my work preparations on several occasions this morning. I think she was feeling it too.

President Obama never mentioned the word terrorism in his speech, but renewed his commitment to pursue Al Quaeda. I remembered hearing the words of Master Sergeant Bernard, the father of the fallen hero Lance Corporal Joshua Bernand. He criticized the irrational R.o.E. (Rules of Engagement) the President had saddled his son with, and blamed them for his son's untimely demise. I have to wonder if the president is going to combat Al Quaeda by embedding those same artfully crafted platitudes, intended to offend no one into the rules of engagement thus tying the hands of our valiant troops abroad.

In the end, many things have remained unchanged since Obama took the oval office. P.O.W.'s are still housed at Guantanamo Bay. Al Quaeda still lurks in the seedy underbelly of the trash heaps and dung piles of third world shit holes, plotting acts of atrocity. Our troops are still dying in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Some things however have changed and drastically so... All those protesters that once feverishly hounded the president for housing P.O.W.'s at Guantanamo and having our troops in Iraq & Afghanistan... They've fallen largely silent. The rules of engagement that recognized the priceless value of the lives of our troops and the inherent right to defend one's self when fired upon... gone in a vaporous spray hero's blood.

As I made my way into the door at work, I resigned myself to the thought that my tiny little lapel pin was probably again, going to be the only outward sign of recognition of the date that I'd see. Then, as I was speaking with a coworker however, I noticed a odd smattering of small battery operated candles dotting the dividers between the cubicles. There was one on the desk of D. (who's pretty much my right hand, utterly indispensable). So I asked her, "What's up with the candles?" "Well Duh!" She replied, "they're for 9/11!" That made my day... Well that and DI's comment to my post, "The Voice of Consent".

An Atmosphere of Fear

Prior to the election of the sainted Barack, any time the specter of terrorism arose in political discourse our liberal foes would lower their crooked, boney fingers accusingly and shriek the words "fear monger!" Indeed we had been attacked. In fact, more people died in the attack on 9/11 than died during the attack that launched this nation into World War II. Of course the libs denied in droves that it was terrorists that perpetrated that attack. It was of course our own government that killed all of those people they posited.

This perception that we were "using fear" was bolstered by the fact that the much hated president Bush had been so very effective at preventing further attacks. Our men and women in uniform had taken the fight to the terrorists' home turf and kept them busy there. Our national security agencies had managed to break up every attempt to cause us further harm. The libs were lulled into a false sense of security.

Well now that atmosphere of fear mongering has of course subsided. The holy Hussein has ascended his throne and now everything is goodness and light, right?

Well no. Obama is trying to shove trillion dollar spending packages down our throat so fast that no one can look under the covers to see what a bitter pill that package truly is! He tries to sell it as an economic stimulus package. Of course no one is stupid enough to believe that a trillion dollars worth of condoms, dog parks, butterfly resorts, gifts for perpetrators of voter fraud and STD research is going to stimulate a damned thing (except for the egos of the liberal legislators that take their seats in the Kremlin of the new USSA). Everyone with a clear mind sees that this "stimulus" package is nothing more than a tool to cram pork and liberal societal engineering experiments down our throats.

What is Obama using as a shoe horn to cram this thing down our throats? Why nothing but good old fashioned fear mongering of course! If you don't pass the "stimulus" package then the economy is going to crater and "500 million Americans" a month are going to lose their jobs (never mind the fact that there are only about 300 million Americans Ms. Pelosi). The economic Aramagedon will of course be horrendous if Barry doesn't get his raft of needless spending.

What is the specter he is trying to avert? Why a recession of course. What is a recession really? In my mind a recession is nothing more than the American consumer getting a piss poor attitude and deciding to hold on to their cash. It really isn't anything more than that. Some glitch happens in the markets and the consumers get spooked and stop spending. There is no systemic flaw that causes a recession there isn't anything that can be done to stop it from happening beyond changing the mind set of the consumer. How does tossing all of this needless fear mongering about positively effect the attitude of the consumer? Simply said, it doesn't. In fact it makes it worse.

So when we raised the specter of a real determined enemy that wants to do us true harm we were worthless fear mongers but when Barry-boy tries to cram a trillion dollars worth of spending and social engineering down our throats using fear of nothing more than a bad attitude, that's perfectly OK! Mass-murderers are not to be feared, but a consumer with a piss-poor attitude that is dire! Right!

The American voter isn't that stupid. Support for the "stimulus" bill initially started out being very high. Many pollsters placed the support level at 78-80%. But as soon as the details of what this sham of a deal contained were released the support rocketted into the cellar. Now the pollsters place the support for this monstrosity down around 30-35%. Of course it doesn't matter what the hell the American people want. Washington is deaf to our pleas! Washigton has been deaf to our pleas for decades and the election of Barry-boy will not do a damned thing but deepen that trend.

Speaking of those terrorists that want to do us harm... What has the wunderkind been up to in that arena? Why of course he's stopping the prosecution of them of course. Sending the message that if you slaughter American service members then you will not face any retribution.

During the election we were not supposed to mention Obama's close ties to islam, but now that he's in office he's running around the world himself touting them as strong suits and kissing muslim ass on al-Jazeera. He is actively proving that he detests our military service members. He counts their sacrifices for nothing! On the other hand god forbid that some muslim terrorist pig fucker is inconvenienced by having to hang out in Gitmo or by being tried for planning the murder of American sailors!

Shame on you Barry and shame on you America for allowing this idiot into office.

9/11 + 6

Never forget the passing of our heroes. Remember to avenge their passing, as you would want yours avenged.

9/11 Thoughts

I've just finished watching United 93. I waited on purpose to watch it today. The weight of the film still rests on me. I had quite forgotten the utter rage that I felt as I watched the events unfurl that day five years past. This movie roused that anger once again. As the film drew to its inevitable conclusion I was literally screaming at the screen.

"Beat that fucker's head into a bloody mush with the fire extinguisher!"

"Good, now move on, you've got to go!"

I pictured myself, were I in the same position. I have a beautiful wife and two small boys still at home that I simply adore. I can't imagine the anguish at being forcibly removed from them and knowing that they would suffer my loss.

I too have sat nervously in an airplane more times than I can count. I'm not a good flier. I'm one of those people who's nervous about sitting in the passenger seat of a car and sitting in an airplane makes me even more uneasy.

The audacity of these animals; stealing these people from those that love them. These weren't soldiers who might expect a life-threatening situation to arise at any moment. These were simple people just trying to go about their lives.

Some time ago I made a flight into Fargo North Dakota on business. On the return flight, one of the engines just outside the window where I was seated literally exploded while we were aloft. I knew it was a serious incident because even the flight attendants ran for their seats and buckled themselves into their jump seats. The plane immediately turned back to make an emergency landing in Fargo. As the plane lurched through the air over the frozen landscape below, I repeated to myself "Just put me back on the ground" over and over again.

I imagined what it must have been like for those souls on that plane five years ago. In my situation on the flight from Fargo, it was an accident. I knew that the situation was dire, but I also anticipated a very good chance that I would live to see my loved ones again. How must it have been for them sitting on that other plane, knowing that if they did not act they would die, but knowing full-well that if they did act it was very likely that they still would die.

Five years ago today, 19 brutal animals rose up to bite the hand of those far nobler than themselves. In their bitterness they tore 2,973 bright stars from the from sky and extinguished their warming light forever, thinking the world a better place without the beauty that they supplied. These animals still roam, seething at the heavens and plotting the demise of every point of light that dares pierce the sullen black... the same black that inhabits their heartless chests. They've sold their hearts, minds and souls to figment of their imagination that they call Allah.

Earlier today I sat in a Marine Corps recruiting office and signed the final papers that allowed my eldest son to enlist. I wore an understated pin on my lapel that bore the image of old glory and the simple words "remember 9-11-01". Interestingly, the recruiter was the only person who noticed it all through the day. As we tended to the paperwork, we spoke at length of my prior service and I expressed to him my utter dejection at being side-lined for this conflict. It really does eat at me not being able to stand on the line and man a gun. It feels like I'm AWOL for a deployment. I told the recruiter this and he said, "Sir, you've done quite enough for one lifetime. Your generation managed to defeat the Soviets and then you personally were thoughtful enough to rear children with a mind to service in a time when people would rather see their children pursue the almighty dollar than pursue honor and duty. It's time for you to stand down old-timer and save a little glory for the next generation." I think I might have blushed a little in his adulation (even though I bristled at being called an "old-timer") but I still feel quite cheated and envy my son's opportunity.

As a bit of an explanation, my son decided to spend his last school year with his mother in Germany since he'd lived with me since he was eight.

So when I spoke with him by phone to let him know that I had finished up his paperwork, he told me for the first time about an incident that happened while he was in San Antonio a few months ago to initiate his enlistment. His recruiter had taken him out to a local fast food restaurant for lunch in uniform. While they were eating, some woman approached them and spat on the master sergeant and exclaimed to my son "Run they just want to get you killed."

What in the hell has this country come to? On the fifth anniversary of the single deadliest attack our country has ever experienced the only conversation regarding that attack that I witnessed (blogs and news excluded) was an armed services recruiter noticing my memorial pin. Beyond that... In this day and age, assaulting a member of the armed services for doing their duty while attempting to dissaude another from doing their civic duty, passes as civic activism.

You can not reason with these animals! They've sold their soul all in the hope of getting an opportunity to rape 99 innocent virgins in another life. How can you compete with that? I mean believing in attaining that sort of reward is just short of the lunacy of believing that you can reason with such creatures.

What then will you do when these bad people come-a-knocking? You've spat on all of those who would defend you! Do you think that these people will perhaps ratify your desire to allow men to marry men? HAH! They hang gays. Do you think they'll permit your abortions of convenience? Again you delude yourself, they stone rape victims for having sex out of wedlock. Do you think they'll support your alarmist claims of separation of church and state? In their eyes the church IS the state! You will worship this figment Allah or you will die!

You claim that you have a better way of dealing with them and when pressed on the subject, you put forward plans of retreat and attempts to reason with the unreasonable. My previous post dealt with an impending drought, do you not see the grapes withering on the vine right before your selfish eyes?

I used to live in a country that had people who could disagree, but yet they were united in their belief that this nation was a grand thing, worthy of sacrifice. I fear that she has died. I fear that our dreams of Camelot have expired under the weight of self-centeredness just as surely as those 2,973 souls expired at the hands of 19 soul-less beasts.