Sunday, April 29, 2007

Jon Stewart on journalism, "The Daily Show," and blogs.

Bill Moyers tells Jon Stewart that for all his protestations that "The Daily Show" is not journalism, it's "acting like" journalism and a lot of young people consume it as journalism. Stewart responds:
I can assure them they're not getting any journalism from us. We are, if anything — I do believe we function as a sort of editorial cartoon. That we are a digestive process, like so many other digestive processes that go on. The thing about you know, there's a lot of young people get this and you know, young people get that from me. People are very sophisticated consumers of information, and they're pulling all different things.

It's the same argument people say about the blogs. The blogs are responsible. No, they're not. The blogs are like anything else. You judge each one based on its own veracity and intelligence and all of that. And if you like, you could cherry pick only the things that you agree with from various things. Or, if you want, you can try and get a broader perspective, or you can find people who are absolutely out of their minds, or find people that are doing incredibly complex and interesting and urgent journalism. And the same goes for our show. It's a prism into people's own ideologies, when they watch our program. This is just our take.
...

I started writing this post three hours ago. Why couldn't I finish it? I had my usual instinct that there was good material here and set it up in my usual way, but then, reading it over, trying to think of a way to add a few lines of my own, I just couldn't get anywhere.

Stewart has a funny way of seeming direct and then circling around and trying out different angles as if he might get somewhere. Note how the first sentence is a straightforward denial. Then he tries two different metaphors -- cartooning and digesting -- and I think he indicates that he realizes that the second one creates the image that the show is shit when he says "like so many other digestive processes that go on." Then he starts to try to deal with another problematic implication, that young people are idiots. He gropes toward a way to say that that they somehow know how to understand what part of the digestively processed material can be understood as news. They're sophisticated! Like those blog readers, who do... whatever the hell it is they do... use the blogs as "a prism" to see what they actually believe or something.

But I like Jon Stewart. I've been watching his show again. I'm just saying he has a strange way of speaking that shows up in the transcript form. It's pretty charming and entertaining on the show, where he presents himself as sort of confused and troubled by everything. He's the interviewer there, searching for answers, so it all makes sense. But if he's being interviewed and he's the one providing the answers, it's weird and evasive.

(Via Memeorandum.)

Saturday, April 28, 2007

7/7 ‘mastermind’ is seized in Iraq

The perfect example presented itself this morning, of Media Bias in America.

People try to deny it but usually those are the same people that suffer from Bush Derangement Syndrome, as does Wapo and NYT which we have shown dozens of examples of over the past months.

Here is another example, see the title of this piece, that comes from TimesOnline, and here is the story that goes with it... following that you will see how Wapo and NYT headlines it.

The al-Qaeda leader who is thought to have devised the plan for the July 7 suicide bombings in London and an array of terrorist plots against Britain has been captured by the Americans.

Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi, a former major in Saddam Hussein’s army, was apprehended as he tried to enter Iraq from Iran and was transferred this week to the “high-value detainee programme” at Guantanamo Bay.

Abd al-Hadi was taken into CIA custody last year, it emerged from US intelligence sources yesterday, in a move which suggests that he was interrogated for months in a “ghost prison” before being transferred to the internment camp in Cuba.

Abd al-Hadi, 45, was regarded as one of al-Qaeda’s most experienced, most intelligent and most ruthless commanders. Senior counter-terrorism sources told The Times that he was the man who, in 2003, identified Britain as the key battleground for exporting al-Qaeda’s holy war to Europe.

Abd al-Hadi recognised the potential for turning young Muslim radicals from Britain who wanted to become mujahidin in Afghanistan or Iraq into terrorists who could carry out attacks in their home country. He realised that their knowledge of Britain, possession of British passports and natural command of English made them ideal recruits. After al-Qaeda restructured its operations in Pakistan’s tribal areas he sought out young Britons for instruction at training camps. In late 2004 Abd al-Hadi met Mohammad Sidique Khan and Shehzad Tanweer, from Leeds, at a militant camp in Pakistan and, in the words of a senior investigator, “retasked them” to become suicide bombers.

They were sent back to Britain where they led the terrorist cell that carried out the 7/7 bombings, killing 52 Tube and bus passengers.

Pakistani intelligence sources said that Abd al-Hadi was also in contact with Rachid Rauf, a Birmingham man now in prison in Pakistan and alleged to be a key figure in last summer’s alleged plot to blow up transatlantic airliners in mid-flight.

Abd al-Hadi has also been linked to a number of other foiled al-Qaeda plots to carry out attacks in Britain. But the Security Service, which has previously sent officials to question detainees at Guantanamo Bay, may not have the opportunity to question him directly.

The Government’s recently adopted position in favour of closing Guantanamo Bay is likely to act as a bar on agents travelling there. British Intelligence would have to rely on relaying questions it would like asked by American interrogators.

Security sources said they assessed Abd al-Hadi as a key operational commander, high up the chain in the al-Qaeda structure who was behind many key plots in the UK.

He had a close link with another arrested al-Qaeda figure and, the sources said, would have “a wealth of information”. He is thought to have been in contact with Osama bin Laden before his capture and might be able to provide information about his leader’s whereabouts.

Bryan Whitman, a Pentagon spokesman, said that Abd al-Hadi had been classified as a “high-value detainee” at Guantanamo, and joined 14 others, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the 9/11 mastermind, as the most senior terror suspects at the Cuba prison.

Mr Whitman refused to say when or where he was captured, or by whom. “Abd al-Hadi was trying to return to his native country, Iraq, to manage al-Qaeda's affairs and possibly focus on operations outside Iraq against Western targets,” Mr Whitman said.

He added that he was a key al-Qaeda paramilitary leader in Afghanistan in the late 1990s, and between 2002 and 2004 led efforts to attack US forces in Afghanistan with terrorist units based in Pakistan.

In a lecture this week Deputy Assistant Commissioner Peter Clarke, commander of Sctoland Yard’s Counter-Terrorism Command, said that the central al-Qaeda leadership was behind a spate of terror plots against Britain.

He said: “We have seen how al-Qaeda has been able to survive a prolonged multinational assault on its structures, personnel and logistics. It has certainly retained its ability to deliver centrally directed attacks here in the UK. In case after case, the hand of core al-Qaeda can be clearly seen.”

Sources said last night that few figures had been more important at the centre of the revived al-Qaeda. Abd al-Hadi is credited with forming its alliance with the insurgency in Iraq.

US officials said he was associated with leaders of other extremist groups allied with al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and Pakistan, including the Taleban.

Michael Scheuer, former head of the CIA’s bin Laden unit, told The Times that catching Abd al-Hadi was important but that it did not spell the end of al-Qaeda.

He said Abd al-Hadi had been an important figure in developing al-Qaeda’s strategy in the insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan and also helped to redirect its terrorist strategy in Europe.

Mr Scheuer, a senior fellow at the Jamestown Foundation in Washington, said: “It is a blow for al-Qaeda, especially in Iraq, where it will have consequences.

“But al-Qaeda always plans for succession, and there will have been someone lined up to take his place. It is nonsense to think that al-Qaeda is dead.”


This is the man we caught and just transferred to Gitmo.

Here is how OUR media chooses to headline this important capture:

C.I.A. Held Qaeda Leader in Secret Jail for Months

CIA Held Al-Qaeda Suspect Secretly

Bush Derangement Syndrome ladies and gentlemen in its unguarded form.

Don Surber caught the ommission immediately as shown in his title "London bombings? What London bombings?".

The U.S. announced on Friday that it captured the mastermind behind the 7/7/2005 bombings in London.

But you would not know it by reading the New York Times, the Washington Post or the Associated Press.

None of them mentioned the London bombings in reporting on the capture of the man who organized that attack, Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi (aka, Abu Abdallah).

Instead, reporters concentrated on where this major player in the war on terrorism was held after his capture.

Incredible.


Not really surprising though is it Don?

Seems that either Wapo's or the NYT reporters were too lazy to get the story on who this guy is or they simply didn't care because capturing a terrorist means NOTHING compared to another chance to cover old ground with a political agenda and show off their BDS.

They prove our point once again.

Instapundit
makes a very good point also here:

Hey, wait -- an "al-Qaeda leader" who's also a "former major in Saddam Hussein's army"? But I thought there was no connection between Saddam and Al Qaeda. Or between Al Qaeda and Iran


On his update he points to a comment from Captain's Quarters:

Ed Morrissey comments: "All of these papers had hours after the Times of London report to get the London bombings into the story. The Times goes to bed at 7 pm ET and hits the feeds and wire services. None of the American media bothered to check on Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi. Readers should ask themselves whether that comes from a lack of intellectual curiosity, or whether it comes from a bias that puts the circumstances of the detention of a terrorist at a higher priority than the terrorism itself."


Ya think?

Thats what Bush Derangement Syndrome does to people, they suddenly become more concerned with a terrorists "rights" that the rights of the victims that he killed.

They care more where he is held, than the crimes he committed.

They care more about bashing our administration than reporting the actual news of who this man is and what he has done.

Media Bias folks in its finest moment.

From other headlines we can see that they also care more about who is screwing who and who has been paying for it!!!! (OH MY), instead of doing some actual research into who Abd al-Hadi al-Iraqi is and what he has done.

Once again our media disappoints but also proves everything we have been saying about them this whole time.

This type of reporting is the reason that papers such as the NYT is showing declining profits they blame on lack of advertisers, well of course their profits are suffering, and their advertisers are going elsewhere,their paper cannot be trusted, especially after the fiasco of showing a soldiers death ON VIDEO before his family had even been notified, not to mention the leaks the often report without regard for our troops safety in the field.

These are among the long list of reasons that the liberal media is suffering decling profits and will continue in their downward spiral.

They cannot be trusted anymore.

Sad, but they keep proving it, so true.

[Update from commenter Bob] Do not fear the enemy, for your enemy can only take your life. It is far better that you fear the media, for they will steal your HONOR. That awful power, the public opinion of a nation, is created in America by a horde of ignorant, self-complacent simpletons who failed at ditching and shoemaking and fetched up in journalism on their way to the poorhouse."

ACLU President: Conviction of Chief Aide?

Originally posted at Maggie's Notebook

Nadine Strossen
Professor of Law
President, American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU)
UPDATE: ACLU President Nadine Strossen's office is still dodging confirmation of her Chief Aide's conviction of explicit sexual online chatting, and attempting to arrange a meeting with a 12 year old boy, who was actually a police investigator.

Another telephone call to Strossen's office this morning: no statement. I was told someone would "...get back to me."The direct phone number to Professor/ACLU President Nadine Strossen is 212-431-2375; this from the New York Law School page where Steven C. Cunningham still appears as Strossen's Chief Aide.

Last week I was referred to an attorney: Dale Liebeck (sp???) 202-207-3630 for a statement. I did speak with Mr. Liebeck and he said he would get back to me. No return call, of course. Another call to him this a.m. left only an option for voicemail. I left a message.

THERE IS NO PRESS ON THIS:
Several bloggers are attempting to find reporting of this connection to Strossen's office. It appears there is not one report in the main stream media - NOT ONE. Nothing from New York media, where resides the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) headquarters. Nothing in the New York Daily News, The New York Post, the Wall Street Journal, New York Sun or the New York Observer - at least that I can find. The The Jersey Journal did the original reporting. Cunningham lost his license to practice law in New Jersey, BUT, he is still licensed in the state of NEW YORK.

Nadine Strossen did not commit this crime, so does it really matter that no one is confirming this or even reporting it? Well, I think it does and I've given my reasons in an earlier post. For all the details plus information on another ACLU board-member-arrest on child porn charges against a high-ranking, former, but still closely-connected, ACLU chapter president, read: ACLU President Silent on Chief Aide's Conviction.

I've also forwarded this information to Bill O'Reilly.

Interested in the mess the ACLU is making of our civil liberties? Check out Stop the ACLU.

Technorati Tags:

.

ACLU President: Conviction of Chief Aide?

Originally posted at Maggie's Notebook

Nadine Strossen
Professor of Law
President, American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU)
UPDATE: ACLU President Nadine Strossen's office is still dodging confirmation of her Chief Aide's conviction of explicit sexual online chatting, and attempting to arrange a meeting with a 12 year old boy, who was actually a police investigator.

Another telephone call to Strossen's office this morning: no statement. I was told someone would "...get back to me."The direct phone number to Professor/ACLU President Nadine Strossen is 212-431-2375; this from the New York Law School page where Steven C. Cunningham still appears as Strossen's Chief Aide.

Last week I was referred to an attorney: Dale Liebeck (sp???) 202-207-3630 for a statement. I did speak with Mr. Liebeck and he said he would get back to me. No return call, of course. Another call to him this a.m. left only an option for voicemail. I left a message.

THERE IS NO PRESS ON THIS:
Several bloggers are attempting to find reporting of this connection to Strossen's office. It appears there is not one report in the main stream media - NOT ONE. Nothing from New York media, where resides the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) headquarters. Nothing in the New York Daily News, The New York Post, the Wall Street Journal, New York Sun or the New York Observer - at least that I can find. The The Jersey Journal did the original reporting. Cunningham lost his license to practice law in New Jersey, BUT, he is still licensed in the state of NEW YORK.

Nadine Strossen did not commit this crime, so does it really matter that no one is confirming this or even reporting it? Well, I think it does and I've given my reasons in an earlier post. For all the details plus information on another ACLU board-member-arrest on child porn charges against a high-ranking, former, but still closely-connected, ACLU chapter president, read: ACLU President Silent on Chief Aide's Conviction.

I've also forwarded this information to Bill O'Reilly.

Interested in the mess the ACLU is making of our civil liberties? Check out Stop the ACLU.

Technorati Tags:

.

Revisiting an oath

I'm not much of one for repeating myself. Never have been. It's a personal quirk.

That being said, I'm going to repost one of my first postings for this site because I think that there are several out there who have forgotten their oaths, words that didn't apply just for a period of time to be discarded and left behind, but an oath that follows some of us for the rest of our days.

Some of you know exactly what I mean by this. I'd dare say the Gathering of Eagles is a PRIME example of what I mean. They know full and well what I mean when I sign off with my signature "Once and Always..." Others seem to have FORGOTTEN the words that so many of us have spoken, the oath we made, and the honor to maintain that oath. For those of us who remember, we remember it and live it with pride. To those of you who seem to have lost your way, let me remind you, so that maybe, jussssssssttttttt maybe, you can remember what it means to have honor.

These are words, an oath, a commitment, that follow to the grave. And it goes like this:

I am an American fighting man. I serve in the forces which guard my country and our way of life. I am prepared to give my life in their defense. I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command I will never surrender my men while they still have the means to resist. If I am captured I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy. If I become a prisoner of war, I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners. I will give no information or take part in any action which might be harmful to my comrades. If I am senior, I will take command. If not I will obey the lawful orders of those appointed over me and will back them up in every way. When questioned, should I become a prisoner of war, I am required to give name, rank, service number, and date of birth. I will evade answering further questions to the utmost of my ability. I will make no written statements disloyal to my country and its allies or harmful to their cause. I will never forget that I am an American fighting man, responsible for my actions, and dedicated to the principles which made my country free. I will trust in my God and in the United States of America.

I first uttered these words over twenty years ago when I was sworn in to the armed services, the army being my choice, in Memphis, TN. As I look back, now, on the years in between and the things that have happened, I sit sometimes and I wonder what it was that prompted me to enlist in the armed forces, what motivated my thinking, and my acting upon said thought processes. In doing so, I’ve spoken to other veterans through the years, asking them the same questions that I asked of myself. The answers varied, of course, from individual to individual, some having been drafted and having found a home and a way of life that they could understand and appreciate, some of us, like me, volunteers in an era after the draft had long been done away with.

My own plans were to have retired from the army, however, thanks to the budget cuts enacted by the Graham-Rudman-Hollings Act; my plans were drastically changed as the army began eliminating some of us “big boys” who had gone into service under the maximum weight, LOST weight, and were discharged for being OVER weight after the Act went into effect. I won’t go into how that made me feel at the time, or the resentment I still feel over it now, because that isn’t the purpose of this piece. I was asked if I would write a piece on the heart and mind of the American soldier, and drawing from my own experiences and the conversations with others through the years, that’s what I’m going to attempt to do.

From as far back as I can remember, I wanted to be a soldier. I could not, and still can not, see the flag waving proudly and hear the national anthem being played without feeling a lump in my throat and my eyes misting at the heavy weight of what it means to me to be an American, and the pride that I have in our country and our way of life, along with the realization of the sacrifices made by others before me for us to have our rights today. I believed in the ideals of our country, our nation, from my earliest memories. My thoughts, my beliefs, where and still are that our way of life was and is to be defended and upheld, for ourselves, for our families and loved ones, for our children and our children’s children. I know that those are some deep thoughts for a child, but I was always a child of deep thought, a state that has followed me into my adult years. When I was younger, I had difficulty expressing my thoughts in the spoken word, again, a condition that sometimes gives me trouble still, but if I could sit down long enough to think, and to write, I could put forth my ideas in what could be, more or less, a comprehensive format for others to follow and understand what was on my mind.

I’m rambling.

The heart of the soldier is the heart of someone who is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom of others. Most often, the most immediate thoughts are of those comrades in arms on the battlefield and loved ones back home when the soldier is confronted with the possibility of death. This doesn’t undermine the deep rooted belief of the soldier in ideals and principles worth fighting for, and in some cases, worth dying for. The belief that life should be lived freely is a common bond amongst those who enter the armed forces of our country, no matter if the service is entered for college money or for other reasons. Freedom, and the love of freedom, motivates the majority of us to commit our lives, or a portion of our lives, to our nation’s defense. Our very precepts were established by men willing to fight and die for a cause they believed in, a struggle to be free of an oppressive and overbearing government. Thomas Jefferson put these beliefs into words with the Declaration of Independence when he wrote them, stating “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…” The truth and meaning of these words, and the words preceding and following them, are just as applicable today as they were when our fledgling nation was in it’s infancy, when the thought of the United States was merely a concept, not a reality. The spirit of these words has been the driving force behind our nation’s military membership since the days before we WERE a nation, when we were still colonies under British rule fighting for independence.

We stand ready, soldiers past and present, to fight to defend our way of life, our freedom, our rights as citizens of this nation to live freely, to think freely, to believe, to live, to love, and to die as free men and women. The marines have a saying, “once a marine, always a marine.” I find this to be true of the majority of veterans in regards to their branches of service. I am as much a soldier today as I was when I was in uniform, ready and willing to fight and, if need be, die for the cause of freedom for my countrymen.

There are those out there, still today, who despise us for what we are, what we do, what we stand for, calling us names, degrading us, despising us. That is their right, and their choice. As they make that choice, it would do well for them to remember this one key fact: they have those rights because American servicemen and women have served to ensure that those rights are preserved.

The words may have changed in recent years to become more “inclusive” and politically correct to “I am an American Soldier,” but the spirit still stands the same as the words I recited, with pride, over twenty years ago when I was sworn in to service. I was, and still am, an American fighting man…

HCdL

Gathering of Eagles, fly high and fly proud. Those of you currently in service, my hat is off to you, you make those of us who give a damn proud, and we'll gladly stand behind you and beside you. The rest of you, the cut and run crowd, the surrender and retreat crowd? If you're a veteran and you've reread that oath and can't get yourself into a spot where you can get behind our younger generation, get the HELL out of the way, at the very least, instead of being a stumbling block on the path.

Hooowah.

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man

.

Revisiting an oath

I'm not much of one for repeating myself. Never have been. It's a personal quirk.

That being said, I'm going to repost one of my first postings for this site because I think that there are several out there who have forgotten their oaths, words that didn't apply just for a period of time to be discarded and left behind, but an oath that follows some of us for the rest of our days.

Some of you know exactly what I mean by this. I'd dare say the Gathering of Eagles is a PRIME example of what I mean. They know full and well what I mean when I sign off with my signature "Once and Always..." Others seem to have FORGOTTEN the words that so many of us have spoken, the oath we made, and the honor to maintain that oath. For those of us who remember, we remember it and live it with pride. To those of you who seem to have lost your way, let me remind you, so that maybe, jussssssssttttttt maybe, you can remember what it means to have honor.

These are words, an oath, a commitment, that follow to the grave. And it goes like this:

I am an American fighting man. I serve in the forces which guard my country and our way of life. I am prepared to give my life in their defense. I will never surrender of my own free will. If in command I will never surrender my men while they still have the means to resist. If I am captured I will continue to resist by all means available. I will make every effort to escape and aid others to escape. I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy. If I become a prisoner of war, I will keep faith with my fellow prisoners. I will give no information or take part in any action which might be harmful to my comrades. If I am senior, I will take command. If not I will obey the lawful orders of those appointed over me and will back them up in every way. When questioned, should I become a prisoner of war, I am required to give name, rank, service number, and date of birth. I will evade answering further questions to the utmost of my ability. I will make no written statements disloyal to my country and its allies or harmful to their cause. I will never forget that I am an American fighting man, responsible for my actions, and dedicated to the principles which made my country free. I will trust in my God and in the United States of America.

I first uttered these words over twenty years ago when I was sworn in to the armed services, the army being my choice, in Memphis, TN. As I look back, now, on the years in between and the things that have happened, I sit sometimes and I wonder what it was that prompted me to enlist in the armed forces, what motivated my thinking, and my acting upon said thought processes. In doing so, I’ve spoken to other veterans through the years, asking them the same questions that I asked of myself. The answers varied, of course, from individual to individual, some having been drafted and having found a home and a way of life that they could understand and appreciate, some of us, like me, volunteers in an era after the draft had long been done away with.

My own plans were to have retired from the army, however, thanks to the budget cuts enacted by the Graham-Rudman-Hollings Act; my plans were drastically changed as the army began eliminating some of us “big boys” who had gone into service under the maximum weight, LOST weight, and were discharged for being OVER weight after the Act went into effect. I won’t go into how that made me feel at the time, or the resentment I still feel over it now, because that isn’t the purpose of this piece. I was asked if I would write a piece on the heart and mind of the American soldier, and drawing from my own experiences and the conversations with others through the years, that’s what I’m going to attempt to do.

From as far back as I can remember, I wanted to be a soldier. I could not, and still can not, see the flag waving proudly and hear the national anthem being played without feeling a lump in my throat and my eyes misting at the heavy weight of what it means to me to be an American, and the pride that I have in our country and our way of life, along with the realization of the sacrifices made by others before me for us to have our rights today. I believed in the ideals of our country, our nation, from my earliest memories. My thoughts, my beliefs, where and still are that our way of life was and is to be defended and upheld, for ourselves, for our families and loved ones, for our children and our children’s children. I know that those are some deep thoughts for a child, but I was always a child of deep thought, a state that has followed me into my adult years. When I was younger, I had difficulty expressing my thoughts in the spoken word, again, a condition that sometimes gives me trouble still, but if I could sit down long enough to think, and to write, I could put forth my ideas in what could be, more or less, a comprehensive format for others to follow and understand what was on my mind.

I’m rambling.

The heart of the soldier is the heart of someone who is willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the freedom of others. Most often, the most immediate thoughts are of those comrades in arms on the battlefield and loved ones back home when the soldier is confronted with the possibility of death. This doesn’t undermine the deep rooted belief of the soldier in ideals and principles worth fighting for, and in some cases, worth dying for. The belief that life should be lived freely is a common bond amongst those who enter the armed forces of our country, no matter if the service is entered for college money or for other reasons. Freedom, and the love of freedom, motivates the majority of us to commit our lives, or a portion of our lives, to our nation’s defense. Our very precepts were established by men willing to fight and die for a cause they believed in, a struggle to be free of an oppressive and overbearing government. Thomas Jefferson put these beliefs into words with the Declaration of Independence when he wrote them, stating “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…” The truth and meaning of these words, and the words preceding and following them, are just as applicable today as they were when our fledgling nation was in it’s infancy, when the thought of the United States was merely a concept, not a reality. The spirit of these words has been the driving force behind our nation’s military membership since the days before we WERE a nation, when we were still colonies under British rule fighting for independence.

We stand ready, soldiers past and present, to fight to defend our way of life, our freedom, our rights as citizens of this nation to live freely, to think freely, to believe, to live, to love, and to die as free men and women. The marines have a saying, “once a marine, always a marine.” I find this to be true of the majority of veterans in regards to their branches of service. I am as much a soldier today as I was when I was in uniform, ready and willing to fight and, if need be, die for the cause of freedom for my countrymen.

There are those out there, still today, who despise us for what we are, what we do, what we stand for, calling us names, degrading us, despising us. That is their right, and their choice. As they make that choice, it would do well for them to remember this one key fact: they have those rights because American servicemen and women have served to ensure that those rights are preserved.

The words may have changed in recent years to become more “inclusive” and politically correct to “I am an American Soldier,” but the spirit still stands the same as the words I recited, with pride, over twenty years ago when I was sworn in to service. I was, and still am, an American fighting man…

HCdL

Gathering of Eagles, fly high and fly proud. Those of you currently in service, my hat is off to you, you make those of us who give a damn proud, and we'll gladly stand behind you and beside you. The rest of you, the cut and run crowd, the surrender and retreat crowd? If you're a veteran and you've reread that oath and can't get yourself into a spot where you can get behind our younger generation, get the HELL out of the way, at the very least, instead of being a stumbling block on the path.

Hooowah.

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man

.

Friday, April 27, 2007

Message from Democratic Debate: We Will Surrender

Wapo, NYT ABC, and AP all have different articles about the Democratic Debate.

Wapo and NYT, of course does the cheerleading, AP discusses the fact that the presidential candidates from the debate used private jets and ABC says there is no breakout candidate.

TigerHawk live blogged the Debate, Don Surber has an interesting take.

What I got from watching it was that the Democratic candidates all tried to outdo each other denouncing our actions in Iraq, the same thing they did for the 2006 elections, hoping it will work for them again.

The other thing that came through loud and clear was that that they would surrender to our enemies in the global war on terror, they will not fight to keep America safe and our allies are shit out of luck if they need our military help, EVER because we will not help others in need again.

From what I saw, Hillary, out of those there, might have more balls than they guys, if military might is ever needed. MIGHT.

She was the only one that didn't appear "as weak as the others" on National Security.

All in all, by most accounts, it was quite unimpressive and all the candidates used some time to Bash Bush because they understand that their "base" is full of Bush Derangement Syndrome Voters.

It was pretty much exactly how we expected it to be.
.

Thursday, April 26, 2007

The Left's Inability To Be Honest

A couple of articles in Wapo today, once again, shows good examples of the left's inability to be honest about their own party.

Starting with David Broder's piece that starts like this:

Here's a Washington political riddle where you fill in the blanks: As Alberto Gonzales is to the Republicans, Blank Blank is to the Democrats -- a continuing embarrassment thanks to his amateurish performance.

If you answered " Harry Reid," give yourself an A. And join the long list of senators of both parties who are ready for these two springtime exhibitions of ineptitude to end.

This is a great example of my title here.

I am sure many guessed Harry Reid was the answer, but how many would admit Broder is right?

From the right, I agree 100% that Gonzales showed an incredible inability to explain the attorney firings in a comprehensive manner which, in turn, led to the witch hunt that the democrats are now on.

See? We, on the right, have no problem admitting when one of our own screws up and the only reason I believe Gonzales should not resign is because he gives the left someone to "go after", after his original bumbling explanations, he should have to deal with the fallout and not run away so that the democrats can then focus on their next victim.

We have just shown, again, OUR ability to call one of our own out for stupidity, yet further in the article, we see a fine example of the left NEVER being able to admit when one of theirs do wrong.

As if that were not mind-boggling enough, consider the mental gyrations performed by Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) as he rationalized the recent comment from his majority leader, Harry Reid, the leading light of Searchlight, Nev., that the war in Iraq "is lost."

On "Fox News Sunday," Schumer offered this clarification of Reid's off-the-cuff comment. "What Harry Reid is saying is that this war is lost -- in other words, a war where we mainly spend our time policing a civil war between Shiites and Sunnis. We are not going to solve that problem. . . . The war is not lost. And Harry Reid believes this -- we Democrats believe it. . . . So the bottom line is if the war continues on this path, if we continue to try to police and settle a civil war that's been going on for hundreds of years in Iraq, we can't win. But on the other hand, if we change the mission and have that mission focus on the more narrow goal of counterterrorism, we sure can win."

Everyone got that? This war is lost. But the war can be won. Not since Bill Clinton famously pondered the meaning of the word "is" has a Democratic leader confused things as much as Harry Reid did with his inept discussion of the alternatives in Iraq.

Nor is this the first time Senate Democrats, who chose Reid as their leader over Chris Dodd of Connecticut, have had to ponder the political fallout from one of Reid's tussles with the language.

Hailed by his staff as "a strong leader who speaks his mind in direct fashion," Reid is assuredly not a man who misses many opportunities to put his foot in his mouth.


Chuck Schumer, excuses, explains and tries to rationalize BAGHDAD REID'S idiocy, instead of simply showing the courage of honesty and saying, "yeah, he screwed up".

Lets look at how the left reacts to Broder calling Baghdad Reid out on his fumbling big mouth.

NewsHoggers:

So David Broder continues his assault on incompetence in Washington by going after... Harry Reid. This is exactly the kind of crack reporting we've come to expect from the fuzzy old man of the columnist corps!


No need to look farther than the title alone at The American Street to show their inability to #1. Focus on the issue of Reid and Gonzales as the original Broder article does before they sink back into their Bush Derangement Syndrome. #2. To demonstrate why they cannot be trusted to police their own party.

If you cannot admit when one of your own screws up, especially after seeing our soldiers public reactions to Baghdad Reid's words, then what hope can we have for the party itself?

Their title "With logic like this, who needs drooling blather?"

Those two are simply thrown out there as the example of how the left has no ability to be "honest" when it is about one of their own.

The next article is a Wapo piece also, written by Joe Lieberman, and anyone who reads this blog regularly knows I kinda like Joe, I disagree with him on quite a few issues and agree with him on some, but he doesn't walk lock step with the Democrats OR the Republicans, he casts his votes according to what HE believes, he has principle, which is why quite a few on the left despise him.

He explains why he feels we only have one choice in Iraq, it is a two page article, but he makes a statement in it that I take issue with.

When politicians here declare that Iraq is "lost" in reaction to al-Qaeda's terrorist attacks and demand timetables for withdrawal, they are doing exactly what al-Qaeda hopes they will do, although I know that is not their intent.


I take issue with this because I personally DO think that it IS their intent. I think they make these statements, not giving a damn that they demoralize our troops and encourage our enemies, in fact, I will go one step further, I think they make the type of statemets that Baghdad Reid made on purpose, knowing full well that they will be encouraging the enemies to fight even harder, knowing full well, that if he can demoralize our troops enough they may lose the edge needed and get themselves killed, because THEN Reid can use those deaths yet again to further his own "political" agenda.

The Democrats in Congress and the Senate pass a bill knowing that it will be vetoed, they deliberately hold off with our troops funds so that they have time to make the appropriate television commercials to play their political football game with our troops lives.

Captain's Quarters, once again, states it perfectly:

The difference is that the Bush administration understands the catastrophe in store for the region if the US yanks the troops from Iraq, while the Democrats have played this new strategy strictly for political gain. The same party leaders that scolded Bush during the election last year for listening to Donald Rumsfeld rather than his field commanders now won't even bother to attend a briefing with Petraeus before setting out on this course. They set the vote up in order to coordinate campaign commercials while declaring defeat from Capitol Hill. They have made themselves into a disgrace in less than four months in power, reminding the nation why they locked them out of power for the previous six years.


So the left not only doesn't have the moral backbone to admit when one of their own does wrong, but they also have no compunction about endangering our troops lives so that they can score a few political points in a vote that passed with such a slim majority that it has no possible way of withstanding nor overriding a Presidential veto and they do it as a "show".

All in all the left and the democratic party prove time and time again every word we say about them, they do often and they do it with no regard to the facts to the contrary.

I am going to show you something I posted on yesterday and then ask a question.

BASH: You talked several times about General Petraeus. You know that he is here in town. He was at the White House today, sitting with the president in the Oval Office and the president said that he wants to make it clear that Washington should not be telling him, General Petraeus, a commander on the ground in Iraq, what to do, particularly, the president was talking about Democrats in Congress.

He also said that General Petraeus is going to come to the Hill and make it clear to you that there is progress going on in Iraq, that the so-called surge is working. Will you believe him when he says that?

REID: No, I don't believe him, because it's not happening. All you have to do is look at the facts.


What facts is Baghdad Reid speaking about? The "facts" that he sees in the newspapers? If he has no interest in hearing the true "facts" from the Commander ON THE GROUND in Iraq, where on earth do you get the "facts"?

Seriously, think about it.

Where do you go to get the facts of a military operation? The Military? The soldiers? The Commanders on the ground? Or the media?

Where IS Baghdad Reid getting his facts if not from the people there in Iraq?

Same goes for Pelosi, how can she ever speak to the "facts" on the ground in Iraq if she doesn't even have the courtesy to meet with commanders running the operations on the ground?

So we now have the Democratic politicians that are claiming they know the facts on the ground but no one can establish where they are getting the facts!!!!!!!!!!

They certainly aren't getting their facts from the commanders or the soldiers because we have shown you dozens and dozens of emails, letters and correspondence with our troops which completely contradict those that the Damascus Diva and Baghdad Reid are spewing forth.

The democrats are getting their information from THE MEDIA!!!!!!!!!!!

So.... where do you get YOUR facts folks?

(NOTE: To commenters, agree or disagree, but when commenting on THIS post, it is required that you answer that last question first or your comments will not be accepted and you will be told to try again. Trying to distract from the question will not work here.)

.

Monday, April 23, 2007

Bank of America Boycott Update

From email:

Bank of America Boycott supporters:

I just spoke with a source in Washington that tells us that Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citibank have all of their lobbyists swarming members ofCongress and pushing them to legalize the majority of illegal aliens in America. If they accomplish this, the illegal aliens will have no trouble banking with Bank of America or any bank in America. American consumers will have no options of banking with banks that do not support illegal aliens.

All eyes are now on DC. We leave tomorrow to join a historic and unprecedented coalition trying to stop this Amnesty Open Borders plan. It is time for all Americans to stand up and speak out against these plans that will only bring more illegal aliens into our nation.

You are welcome to join us. We also need your help from home! We need the phone lines ringing off the hook in DC starting at 9am Monday morning through Thursday April 23,25,25

Please help us with this. You can see video and text reports blogged live from these historic events and you can sign up to help at www.HoldTheirFeetToTheFire.org

----

Please read this important release. This may help you to put a stop to this amnesty attempt. We need you to forward this article to all of your contacts, members of the media, elected officials, and online communities.

Please read and distribute

Why the illegals must go!
April 19, 2007
by William Gheen
President, Americans for Legal Immigration PAC (ALIPAC)
www.alipac.us

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2098&mode=thread&order=1&thold=0


Thank you for your continued support of the Bank of America Boycott. We are
having an impact and you will receive important news soon about some of our
successes.


Kind Regards,


William Gheen
www.alipac.us
www.BankofAmericaBoycott.com
www.illegalimmigrationboycott.com
www.holdtheirfeettothefire.org

Bank of America Boycott Update

From email:

Bank of America Boycott supporters:

I just spoke with a source in Washington that tells us that Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and Citibank have all of their lobbyists swarming members ofCongress and pushing them to legalize the majority of illegal aliens in America. If they accomplish this, the illegal aliens will have no trouble banking with Bank of America or any bank in America. American consumers will have no options of banking with banks that do not support illegal aliens.

All eyes are now on DC. We leave tomorrow to join a historic and unprecedented coalition trying to stop this Amnesty Open Borders plan. It is time for all Americans to stand up and speak out against these plans that will only bring more illegal aliens into our nation.

You are welcome to join us. We also need your help from home! We need the phone lines ringing off the hook in DC starting at 9am Monday morning through Thursday April 23,25,25

Please help us with this. You can see video and text reports blogged live from these historic events and you can sign up to help at www.HoldTheirFeetToTheFire.org

----

Please read this important release. This may help you to put a stop to this amnesty attempt. We need you to forward this article to all of your contacts, members of the media, elected officials, and online communities.

Please read and distribute

Why the illegals must go!
April 19, 2007
by William Gheen
President, Americans for Legal Immigration PAC (ALIPAC)
www.alipac.us

http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=News&file=article&sid=2098&mode=thread&order=1&thold=0


Thank you for your continued support of the Bank of America Boycott. We are
having an impact and you will receive important news soon about some of our
successes.


Kind Regards,


William Gheen
www.alipac.us
www.BankofAmericaBoycott.com
www.illegalimmigrationboycott.com
www.holdtheirfeettothefire.org

NRA update 23APR07

Important Second Amendment Legislation Moving Forward
in the Volunteer State!
Please Contact Your State Representative Today!

Two important Right-to-Carry reform bills will be heard before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday, April 25.



House Bill 132, sponsored by Representative Mike Bell (R-23), would allow a person with a handgun carry permit to possess a firearm in all public hunting areas, refuges, wildlife management areas, and national forests managed by the state; and



House Bill 2184, sponsored by Representative Frank Niceley (R-17), would allow any resident, who has a valid handgun carry permit, to possess his or her handgun while within the boundaries of any state park.



Please call the House Judiciary Committee today at (615) 741-1351 or 1-800-449-8366 and urge them to support and vote “YES” to HB 132 and HB 2184.



House Judiciary Committee Members:

Representative Rob Briley (D-52), Chair: (615) 741-2184; rep.rob.briley@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Kent Colman (D-49), Vice-Chair: (615) 741-6829; rep.kent.coleman@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Janis Sontany (D-53), (615) 741-6861; rep.janis.sontany@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Eddie Bass (D-65), (615) 741-1864; rep.eddie.bass@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Frank Buck (D-40), (615) 741-3817; rep.frank.buck@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Tom DuBois (R-64), (615) 741-7444; rep.tom.dubois@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Henry Fincher (D-42), (615) 741-1875; rep.henry.fincher@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Jon Lundberg (R-1), (615) 741-7623; rep.jon.lundberg@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Judd Matheny (R-47), (615) 741-7448; rep.judd.matheny@legislature.state.tn.us

Representative Eric Watson (R-22), (615) 741-7799; eric.watson@legislature.state.tn.us


Also, House Bill 1285, the “Emergency Powers” legislation could be heard before the full House any day.



HB 1285, sponsored by Representative Dolores Gresham (R-94), would protect our Second Amendment rights during a state of emergency by prohibiting any government agency from regulating the lawful sale, possession, transfer, transport and carry of firearms.



Please call your State Representative at 1-800-449-8366 and urge him or her to support and vote “YES” to HB 1285.

If you need help identifying your State Representative, please click here.



To find further contact information or help identifying your legislators
please use the "Write Your Representative" feature found at www.NRAILA.org.



NRA JOINS IN DAY OF MOURNING



The National Rifle Association joins the entire country in expressing our deepest condolences to the families of Virginia Tech, and to all who have been affected by this horrible tragedy. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families and friends who lost loved ones to this senseless act.

This is a time for people to grieve, to mourn, and to heal. This is not a time for political discussions or public policy debates.

Virginia Governor Tim Kaine has declared today a day of mourning; as a Virginia based organization, we respect and abide by this declaration.

We will participate in this discussion at an appropriate time. In the interim, our thoughts and prayers continue to be with the victims, their families, and the entire Virginia Tech community.

Gathering of Eagles update...22APR07

Preliminary AAR from Greensboro RallyApril 21st, 2007

Larry Bailey called in to report that there were approximately equal numbers of Eagles to protestors. The rally was well-attended by both the Patriot Guard and Rolling Thunder, and the Eagles had bullhorns in their designated area. Bailey says a fantastic time was had by all.


Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket


From Channel 14 News in Greensboro:

Hundreds protest war in Iraq

4/22/2007 12:23 PM
By: Stephanie Stilwell

GREENSBORO, NC -- Hundreds of protestors from all over North Carolina took the streets in downtown Greensboro to voice their opposition to the war in Iraq. It started with a march and ended with a nationally known activist speaking to the crowd.

(Personal note: won't he be so PROUD of those beautiful little girls when they learn how to give the finger JUST LIKE DADDY?)

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

“My brother was a disabled American Vietnam vet and he died.. So it's kind of personal for me I don't want another family to go through what we did and watching him spend 30 years dying from the wounds that he emotionally received in Vietnam,” said protestor Renita Courts.



Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Organizers at the rally had a nationally known activist to help get their message across, Cindy Sheehan.

(...)

Those against Sheehan’s calls for the end of the war say, “I don't believe in what she is trying to say, Killing is not nice but it's either over there or here” said Dan Wyatt, an anti-protestor.



Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

These counter protestors said they remember when radical protestors affected policy in the '60s. They said that's not something they want to see again.



Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket


Thanks to Yakfisher of Military Appreciation Day for the pictures found at photobucket .

Again, to Cindy Sheehan, I say you dishonor your son and his sacrifice for his country and for something he believed in. You should be ashamed of yourself.

Eagles, fly high, fly proud!

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man



[Update]- (Spree) -From GOE:

The Gathering of Eagles together with the Conservative Women’s Voice of UNC-Chapel Hill is proud to announce a pro-America event!

UNC and GOE will unite and Support our Troops, Support their mission, and Support the United States of America!

This event is NOT a counter-protest. This is our time to make our voices heard! This is our time to speak out, and let the world know that we are PROUD to be Americans, that we are PROUD of our military, that we are PROUD to live in the Land of the Free because of the Brave!

What the GOE along with Rolling Thunder and others did on March 17th was a spectacular beginning. We will show the world that we are here to stay! We will be the Silent Majority NO MORE!

WHEN: Saturday, April 28th, 2007
Noon-3:00PM
WHERE: Polk Place, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Come join us for live music and speakers, including Iraq war veterans and UNC students. Check back for more details on presenters and musician–coming soon!

Of course, the event is free and open to the public, so if you are in the area or plan to be, feel free to join us! We are still trying to raise money for the event as well. Please consider a contribution to the Gathering of Eagles, or directly to the Conservative Women’s Voice of UNC. For GoE contributions, see the sidebar on the right. For CWV contributions, contact Anthony Stevenson via CWV -at- unc -dot- edu.

That’s CWV@unc.edu!

Checks may be sent to Gathering of Eagles, Box 291; Chocowinity, NC 27817. They should be made payable to “GOE” and noted “For UNC Rally.”

Directions to UNC-CH can be found here:
http://www.unc.edu/visitors/directions.html Information on parking
will be here available here soon, so check back for updates.

Polk Place is located off South Road on campus, next to the Wilson Library. An interactive campus map can be found here:
http://www.unc.edu/tour/LEVEL_2/polk.htm

The Eagles Will Soar–Again!

[End Update]




Gathering of Eagles update...22APR07

Preliminary AAR from Greensboro RallyApril 21st, 2007

Larry Bailey called in to report that there were approximately equal numbers of Eagles to protestors. The rally was well-attended by both the Patriot Guard and Rolling Thunder, and the Eagles had bullhorns in their designated area. Bailey says a fantastic time was had by all.


Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket


From Channel 14 News in Greensboro:

Hundreds protest war in Iraq

4/22/2007 12:23 PM
By: Stephanie Stilwell

GREENSBORO, NC -- Hundreds of protestors from all over North Carolina took the streets in downtown Greensboro to voice their opposition to the war in Iraq. It started with a march and ended with a nationally known activist speaking to the crowd.

(Personal note: won't he be so PROUD of those beautiful little girls when they learn how to give the finger JUST LIKE DADDY?)

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

“My brother was a disabled American Vietnam vet and he died.. So it's kind of personal for me I don't want another family to go through what we did and watching him spend 30 years dying from the wounds that he emotionally received in Vietnam,” said protestor Renita Courts.



Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Organizers at the rally had a nationally known activist to help get their message across, Cindy Sheehan.

(...)

Those against Sheehan’s calls for the end of the war say, “I don't believe in what she is trying to say, Killing is not nice but it's either over there or here” said Dan Wyatt, an anti-protestor.



Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

These counter protestors said they remember when radical protestors affected policy in the '60s. They said that's not something they want to see again.



Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket


Thanks to Yakfisher of Military Appreciation Day for the pictures found at photobucket .

Again, to Cindy Sheehan, I say you dishonor your son and his sacrifice for his country and for something he believed in. You should be ashamed of yourself.

Eagles, fly high, fly proud!

Once and Always, an American Fighting Man



[Update]- (Spree) -From GOE:

The Gathering of Eagles together with the Conservative Women’s Voice of UNC-Chapel Hill is proud to announce a pro-America event!

UNC and GOE will unite and Support our Troops, Support their mission, and Support the United States of America!

This event is NOT a counter-protest. This is our time to make our voices heard! This is our time to speak out, and let the world know that we are PROUD to be Americans, that we are PROUD of our military, that we are PROUD to live in the Land of the Free because of the Brave!

What the GOE along with Rolling Thunder and others did on March 17th was a spectacular beginning. We will show the world that we are here to stay! We will be the Silent Majority NO MORE!

WHEN: Saturday, April 28th, 2007
Noon-3:00PM
WHERE: Polk Place, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Come join us for live music and speakers, including Iraq war veterans and UNC students. Check back for more details on presenters and musician–coming soon!

Of course, the event is free and open to the public, so if you are in the area or plan to be, feel free to join us! We are still trying to raise money for the event as well. Please consider a contribution to the Gathering of Eagles, or directly to the Conservative Women’s Voice of UNC. For GoE contributions, see the sidebar on the right. For CWV contributions, contact Anthony Stevenson via CWV -at- unc -dot- edu.

That’s CWV@unc.edu!

Checks may be sent to Gathering of Eagles, Box 291; Chocowinity, NC 27817. They should be made payable to “GOE” and noted “For UNC Rally.”

Directions to UNC-CH can be found here:
http://www.unc.edu/visitors/directions.html Information on parking
will be here available here soon, so check back for updates.

Polk Place is located off South Road on campus, next to the Wilson Library. An interactive campus map can be found here:
http://www.unc.edu/tour/LEVEL_2/polk.htm

The Eagles Will Soar–Again!

[End Update]




Sunday, April 22, 2007

An American Soldier

Cross Posted From YankeeMom with permission.

has some things to say.

And because the MSMspit won’t give such thoughts airtime and the anti-war, anti-military, anti-America sheeps will just continue to lie about our military to further their political games, and too many of our elected idiots are doing everything in their power to make our military “losers“, I’m going to post here what this American Soldier has to say.

I hope you too will spread his thoughts.

He has given so much ~ and I for one will not sit quiet and let him be silenced or cast aside or disrespected.

*****************


Just Watch

American Soldier says,

Video Here

I don’t understand the stance that the populace has taken towards
our military. I feel as if I went off and did the wrong thing at times.
Why can’t people see that we fight for a greater cause? We sacrifice so
you can have freedoms. We don’t die and get maimed because we have done
something wrong or our society has accepted something wrong. We fight
the global war on terror. You all remember 9/12/01. You know what it
felt like to lose people or feel helpless.

The days after 9/11 I went to ground zero and I helped savage what I
could. I helped in the various rescue missions. I did what I could. I
felt helpless like everyone else. People cried out towards me to help
them. I could do nothing then but I swore I would do what I could in
the days to follow.

It wasn’t more than a year later that I volunteered to enter the
service again and soon after be deployed to fight for my country. I did
what I did to help those who asked me those long days after 9/11. I
swore it to them and I swore to myself that I would do what I needed to
do.

Now, 6 years later I feel like the public is turning their back on
me. Why do I feel this way? I know there is a community who will
support me always but I reach out to those who oppose me. Why do you
try to hurt me? Why do you try and take from my fellow brother who is
forward and outside the wire right now?

I came so close to dying that I feel as if I’ve been given a second
chance at life. I look back and I clearly remember how close it came. I
could have been one of the many grave scenes in the film above. However
I am not. I am alive and breathe life in and exhale my compassion. You
wish I would just go away but I won’t. I am a warrior and I may die an
old man who wore his Iraq Veteran hat with my many medals on it. Just
like the generation before me.

Don’t hate me with such vile hatred. The bad man in the middle night
will not hurt you because I have taken his life before he could reach
you….remember that!

******************


Also:

Some People Piss Me Off
(warning - soldier language, which doesn’t bother me but it may offend you. Which I normally wouldn’t care about except that this is a public forum.)

(see comment #2 ~ self righteous *bad word*)

*******************

The Meaning of Things RedAlpha2 has something to say too.

*******************


Act of disrespect
The post that started it all ~

******************

And you betcha I question their “Patriotism” ~ every damn time!



THANK YOU YANKEEMOM!!!!

.

An American Soldier

Cross Posted From YankeeMom with permission.

has some things to say.

And because the MSMspit won’t give such thoughts airtime and the anti-war, anti-military, anti-America sheeps will just continue to lie about our military to further their political games, and too many of our elected idiots are doing everything in their power to make our military “losers“, I’m going to post here what this American Soldier has to say.

I hope you too will spread his thoughts.

He has given so much ~ and I for one will not sit quiet and let him be silenced or cast aside or disrespected.

*****************


Just Watch

American Soldier says,

Video Here

I don’t understand the stance that the populace has taken towards
our military. I feel as if I went off and did the wrong thing at times.
Why can’t people see that we fight for a greater cause? We sacrifice so
you can have freedoms. We don’t die and get maimed because we have done
something wrong or our society has accepted something wrong. We fight
the global war on terror. You all remember 9/12/01. You know what it
felt like to lose people or feel helpless.

The days after 9/11 I went to ground zero and I helped savage what I
could. I helped in the various rescue missions. I did what I could. I
felt helpless like everyone else. People cried out towards me to help
them. I could do nothing then but I swore I would do what I could in
the days to follow.

It wasn’t more than a year later that I volunteered to enter the
service again and soon after be deployed to fight for my country. I did
what I did to help those who asked me those long days after 9/11. I
swore it to them and I swore to myself that I would do what I needed to
do.

Now, 6 years later I feel like the public is turning their back on
me. Why do I feel this way? I know there is a community who will
support me always but I reach out to those who oppose me. Why do you
try to hurt me? Why do you try and take from my fellow brother who is
forward and outside the wire right now?

I came so close to dying that I feel as if I’ve been given a second
chance at life. I look back and I clearly remember how close it came. I
could have been one of the many grave scenes in the film above. However
I am not. I am alive and breathe life in and exhale my compassion. You
wish I would just go away but I won’t. I am a warrior and I may die an
old man who wore his Iraq Veteran hat with my many medals on it. Just
like the generation before me.

Don’t hate me with such vile hatred. The bad man in the middle night
will not hurt you because I have taken his life before he could reach
you….remember that!

******************


Also:

Some People Piss Me Off
(warning - soldier language, which doesn’t bother me but it may offend you. Which I normally wouldn’t care about except that this is a public forum.)

(see comment #2 ~ self righteous *bad word*)

*******************

The Meaning of Things RedAlpha2 has something to say too.

*******************


Act of disrespect
The post that started it all ~

******************

And you betcha I question their “Patriotism” ~ every damn time!



THANK YOU YANKEEMOM!!!!

.

Saturday, April 21, 2007

My Interview With Dave Gaubatz

The Spectator has done an article with Dave Gaubatz, it is three pages and well worth the read.

A few months ago, I did an interview with Mr. Gaubatz, but being very new to blogging, I knew I would not be able to get the interview seen until I had a little more traffic under my belt.

Disclaimer: I have no way to personally verify this information, but Mr. Gaubaltz did provide me with a few emails that do verify portions of his answers.

History:

Paul “Dave” Gaubatz, former Federal Agent, is a U.S. State Department-trained Arabic linguist and Counterterrorism specialist. He has acquired over two decades of experience while working on assignments in Middle-Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan, and Iraq. Currently Chief Field Investigator with the Dallas County Medical Examiner, Dallas, Texas, Mr. Gaubatz created Gaubatz Arabic & Counterterrorism Lecture Services in December, 2004.


More History via Confederate Yankee:

In 2003, he received awards for his 'courage and resolve in saving lives and being critical for information flow'. In 2001, he was decorated for being the 'lead agent in a classified investigation, arguably the most sensitive counter-intelligence investigation currently in the entire Department of Defence' and because his 'reports were such high quality, many were published in the Air Force's daily threat product for senior USAF leaders or re-transmitted at the national level to all security agencies in US government'.


He also forwarded me emails pertaining to WMD's in Iraq between him and some of our politicians at that time.

The emails are available upon request.

Interview With Dave Gaubatz: (12-22-06)

I appreciate your time in talking with me and agreeing to provide insight to the WMD issue in Iraq and your offer to provide emails from the appropriate parties to back up your statements.

#1. Approximately what percentage of WMD suspected sites have been searched in Iraq?

ANSWER: 10% or less of all suspected sites identified by U.S. intelligence officers were ever physically inspected by the Iraq Survey Group.

#2. Are the 4 sites in your article the only suspected sites that our intelligence have made the government aware of?

ANSWER: No, there are hundreds of sites identified as possibly containing chemical, biological, or nuclear related weapons/materials. I have recently talked with citizens currently living in Iraq and one of the primary reasons many Iraqis do not now trust America is because we told them the U.S. was going to remove the WMD. Many Iraqis risked their lives and many gave their lives at the beginning of the war to come forward and tell U.S. intelligence officers the locations of WMD. The Iraqis and intelligence officers are frustrated and still waiting for them to be searched.

#3. Since May of 2006 has there been any further contact with you from anybody in our government in relation to searching these sites?

ANSWER: I met with the DIA in Nov 2006. The information was also provided to Congressman Virgil Goode (Virginia) during this time as well. I firmly believe the DIA wants to have all sites inspected, but now politics are involved and they are being prevented from taking action. I have been told this from U.S. Govt. officials. Searching for WMD now is not politically good for Republicans nor Democrats so it will not happen. U.S. Special Agents located only two miles from the sites in southern Iraq are not being allowed to search the sites nor to monitor them.

#4. Is this declassified information from June 2006 where they found 500 weapons munitions, degraded, but classified as WMD's, one of the sites that you are talking about in your article?

http://powerlineblog.com/archives/Iraq_WMD_HPSCI_Negroponte4.php

ANSWER: I wrote an article about the 500 weapon shells found by "Hoekstra and Santorum". This is not from one of my sites. This junk was sitting in Iraq since day 1 and everyone knew about these shells. This was politics in high gear before the elections. My article is on my web site in the Articles section. (also my website is being updated)


#5. Is this biography of you accurate and up to date?

http://www.davegaubatz.com/files/Paul_Dave_Gaubatz_Biography_pdf.pdf


ANSWER: In late Sept 2006 I left the Dallas County Medical Examiner to take a position in Richmond, VA. I am not at liberty to discuss my current position.

#6. Has your insistence on bringing this to the publics eyes brought about any negative consequences in your life?

Answer: It has not been a pleasant experience. Many Congressmen are upset because I came forward about their lack of action. I have received threats from some of their high ranking staff; which had been filtered down from the Congressmen involved. I have received threats from Middle Easterners who support terrorist. My worst experiences have been with some of the news organizations who are supposed to report without politics being involved. If some of my answers did not fit into their political motives, then the interview did not move forward. I have lost friendships I had for years with other Federal Agents who were in Iraq. These Agents wanted to come forward as well, but since they are active duty were military Federal Agents, they were told to be silenced (and were). Russ Caso (Chief of Staff for Congressman Curt Weldon) personally phoned some of these Agents who wanted to come forward. They ended up being disciplined for wanting to come forward. Everyone should keep in mind that I was the only "civilian" Federal Agent on the ground in Iraq at the start of the war. All others were active duty military from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI).

#7. Who is actively involved in the 2007 Intelligence Summit that you will be speaking at this coming year?

ANSWER: There will be attendees from our Govt., law enforcement officers from many departments/organizations, and other former active Intelligence officers. I will be speaking with Ryan Mauro (worldthreats.com). For security reasons I can't name the guest speaker who is invited to speak with me, but he is a former Iraqi police officer and a very good friend.

#8. Can you supply emails from the relevant parties to back up these claims?

ANSWER: I have numerous emails from Congressmen, their staff, Federal Agents, and more. I will share some of them.

(NOTE from Spree: Emails available upon request, email wakeupamerica.spree@gmail.com)

#9. Are you still associated with WorldThreat.com?

ANSWER: My only association with WorldThreats.com has been my contact with Ryan Mauro.

#10. If yes: In March of 2006, Ryan Mauro did an interviews saying :

(Mauro: The tapes are extremely significant in that they prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that as of the year 2000, Saddam Hussein had a secret plasma program to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons, or "special bombs" as he calls them. The Duelfer Report previously concluded that this type of enrichment program ended in the 1980s, but here we have Saddam and his top advisors discussing using a power plant in the area of Basra for the program. The scientists involved in the program are not known to the UN, leaving Western intelligence clueless.

On the tapes, you hear Saddam discussing the assistance of Russia and Brazil in dealing with the United Nations. He laughs off inspections, as his son-in-law who later defects, Hussein Kamil, reports how as late as 1995 their chemical and biological programs were being hidden from the world. They also discuss keeping the ingredients for these weapons separate, so that should they be found, they will be looked at as innocent dual-use items. They were not destroyed in 1991 as the Duelfer Report concludes. There are even indications on the tapes that Iraq may have had a role in the 2001 anthrax attacks.)

Do you have access to those tapes for my readers to listen to?

ANSWER: I do not have access to these tapes. One of the sites that many Iraqis identified as having WMD is near Basrah. I provided the exact site coordinates to Congressman Curt Weldon, Congressman Pete Hoekstra, DOD, DIA, and the CIA. The site still has not been excavated. One Iraqi risked his life to take me to this location. Since that time he has received threats against his life and is now in hiding.


Followup:

Factual evidence that WMD was moved from Iraq to Syria before the war...There have been senior Iraqis, Iraqi citizens, and others who have advised WMD was taken from Iraq to Syria. In order for the public to ever know the truth the U.S. Government would have to go into Syria and search various locations. This is unlikely to ever happen. If ISG did not search WMD locations in Iraq when they had ample opportunities, we should not hold our breaths that Syria will be searched. Unfortunatley the "smoking gun" pertaining to WMD will be the day terrorists unleash WMD on American troops in Iraq or worse yet in American cities where our children are. There is no doubt Saddam Husein had WMD hidden in Iraq and still does. Iraqi citizens died by providing us the intelligence on the WMD locations. We owe it to them, our troops, and America to search all sites. WMD is not a political matter, but rather a national security matter.

Additional information to add: The U.S. has the best military, law enforcement, and best government the world has to offer, but unless they are trained and educated to understand the mindset of Islamic terrorists we will suffer another Sept. 11th type of attack in the very near future. We can't play the political correct type of war that many Americans want to fight. Terrorists have various weapons and the one they count on more than any other is to be able to influence Americans and Israelis to fight amongst themselves. We are doing this in America. We are becoming a divided nation and this is one of the goals of terrorists.

As your website indicates it is time for America to wake up. thank you, Dave Gaubatz.


Others discussing the Spectator article and Dave Gaubatz:
Captain's Quarters, Hot Air, Power Line.

.

My Interview With Dave Gaubatz

The Spectator has done an article with Dave Gaubatz, it is three pages and well worth the read.

A few months ago, I did an interview with Mr. Gaubatz, but being very new to blogging, I knew I would not be able to get the interview seen until I had a little more traffic under my belt.

Disclaimer: I have no way to personally verify this information, but Mr. Gaubaltz did provide me with a few emails that do verify portions of his answers.

History:

Paul “Dave” Gaubatz, former Federal Agent, is a U.S. State Department-trained Arabic linguist and Counterterrorism specialist. He has acquired over two decades of experience while working on assignments in Middle-Eastern countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Jordan, and Iraq. Currently Chief Field Investigator with the Dallas County Medical Examiner, Dallas, Texas, Mr. Gaubatz created Gaubatz Arabic & Counterterrorism Lecture Services in December, 2004.


More History via Confederate Yankee:

In 2003, he received awards for his 'courage and resolve in saving lives and being critical for information flow'. In 2001, he was decorated for being the 'lead agent in a classified investigation, arguably the most sensitive counter-intelligence investigation currently in the entire Department of Defence' and because his 'reports were such high quality, many were published in the Air Force's daily threat product for senior USAF leaders or re-transmitted at the national level to all security agencies in US government'.


He also forwarded me emails pertaining to WMD's in Iraq between him and some of our politicians at that time.

The emails are available upon request.

Interview With Dave Gaubatz: (12-22-06)

I appreciate your time in talking with me and agreeing to provide insight to the WMD issue in Iraq and your offer to provide emails from the appropriate parties to back up your statements.

#1. Approximately what percentage of WMD suspected sites have been searched in Iraq?

ANSWER: 10% or less of all suspected sites identified by U.S. intelligence officers were ever physically inspected by the Iraq Survey Group.

#2. Are the 4 sites in your article the only suspected sites that our intelligence have made the government aware of?

ANSWER: No, there are hundreds of sites identified as possibly containing chemical, biological, or nuclear related weapons/materials. I have recently talked with citizens currently living in Iraq and one of the primary reasons many Iraqis do not now trust America is because we told them the U.S. was going to remove the WMD. Many Iraqis risked their lives and many gave their lives at the beginning of the war to come forward and tell U.S. intelligence officers the locations of WMD. The Iraqis and intelligence officers are frustrated and still waiting for them to be searched.

#3. Since May of 2006 has there been any further contact with you from anybody in our government in relation to searching these sites?

ANSWER: I met with the DIA in Nov 2006. The information was also provided to Congressman Virgil Goode (Virginia) during this time as well. I firmly believe the DIA wants to have all sites inspected, but now politics are involved and they are being prevented from taking action. I have been told this from U.S. Govt. officials. Searching for WMD now is not politically good for Republicans nor Democrats so it will not happen. U.S. Special Agents located only two miles from the sites in southern Iraq are not being allowed to search the sites nor to monitor them.

#4. Is this declassified information from June 2006 where they found 500 weapons munitions, degraded, but classified as WMD's, one of the sites that you are talking about in your article?

http://powerlineblog.com/archives/Iraq_WMD_HPSCI_Negroponte4.php

ANSWER: I wrote an article about the 500 weapon shells found by "Hoekstra and Santorum". This is not from one of my sites. This junk was sitting in Iraq since day 1 and everyone knew about these shells. This was politics in high gear before the elections. My article is on my web site in the Articles section. (also my website is being updated)


#5. Is this biography of you accurate and up to date?

http://www.davegaubatz.com/files/Paul_Dave_Gaubatz_Biography_pdf.pdf


ANSWER: In late Sept 2006 I left the Dallas County Medical Examiner to take a position in Richmond, VA. I am not at liberty to discuss my current position.

#6. Has your insistence on bringing this to the publics eyes brought about any negative consequences in your life?

Answer: It has not been a pleasant experience. Many Congressmen are upset because I came forward about their lack of action. I have received threats from some of their high ranking staff; which had been filtered down from the Congressmen involved. I have received threats from Middle Easterners who support terrorist. My worst experiences have been with some of the news organizations who are supposed to report without politics being involved. If some of my answers did not fit into their political motives, then the interview did not move forward. I have lost friendships I had for years with other Federal Agents who were in Iraq. These Agents wanted to come forward as well, but since they are active duty were military Federal Agents, they were told to be silenced (and were). Russ Caso (Chief of Staff for Congressman Curt Weldon) personally phoned some of these Agents who wanted to come forward. They ended up being disciplined for wanting to come forward. Everyone should keep in mind that I was the only "civilian" Federal Agent on the ground in Iraq at the start of the war. All others were active duty military from the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (AFOSI).

#7. Who is actively involved in the 2007 Intelligence Summit that you will be speaking at this coming year?

ANSWER: There will be attendees from our Govt., law enforcement officers from many departments/organizations, and other former active Intelligence officers. I will be speaking with Ryan Mauro (worldthreats.com). For security reasons I can't name the guest speaker who is invited to speak with me, but he is a former Iraqi police officer and a very good friend.

#8. Can you supply emails from the relevant parties to back up these claims?

ANSWER: I have numerous emails from Congressmen, their staff, Federal Agents, and more. I will share some of them.

(NOTE from Spree: Emails available upon request, email wakeupamerica.spree@gmail.com)

#9. Are you still associated with WorldThreat.com?

ANSWER: My only association with WorldThreats.com has been my contact with Ryan Mauro.

#10. If yes: In March of 2006, Ryan Mauro did an interviews saying :

(Mauro: The tapes are extremely significant in that they prove, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that as of the year 2000, Saddam Hussein had a secret plasma program to enrich uranium for nuclear weapons, or "special bombs" as he calls them. The Duelfer Report previously concluded that this type of enrichment program ended in the 1980s, but here we have Saddam and his top advisors discussing using a power plant in the area of Basra for the program. The scientists involved in the program are not known to the UN, leaving Western intelligence clueless.

On the tapes, you hear Saddam discussing the assistance of Russia and Brazil in dealing with the United Nations. He laughs off inspections, as his son-in-law who later defects, Hussein Kamil, reports how as late as 1995 their chemical and biological programs were being hidden from the world. They also discuss keeping the ingredients for these weapons separate, so that should they be found, they will be looked at as innocent dual-use items. They were not destroyed in 1991 as the Duelfer Report concludes. There are even indications on the tapes that Iraq may have had a role in the 2001 anthrax attacks.)

Do you have access to those tapes for my readers to listen to?

ANSWER: I do not have access to these tapes. One of the sites that many Iraqis identified as having WMD is near Basrah. I provided the exact site coordinates to Congressman Curt Weldon, Congressman Pete Hoekstra, DOD, DIA, and the CIA. The site still has not been excavated. One Iraqi risked his life to take me to this location. Since that time he has received threats against his life and is now in hiding.


Followup:

Factual evidence that WMD was moved from Iraq to Syria before the war...There have been senior Iraqis, Iraqi citizens, and others who have advised WMD was taken from Iraq to Syria. In order for the public to ever know the truth the U.S. Government would have to go into Syria and search various locations. This is unlikely to ever happen. If ISG did not search WMD locations in Iraq when they had ample opportunities, we should not hold our breaths that Syria will be searched. Unfortunatley the "smoking gun" pertaining to WMD will be the day terrorists unleash WMD on American troops in Iraq or worse yet in American cities where our children are. There is no doubt Saddam Husein had WMD hidden in Iraq and still does. Iraqi citizens died by providing us the intelligence on the WMD locations. We owe it to them, our troops, and America to search all sites. WMD is not a political matter, but rather a national security matter.

Additional information to add: The U.S. has the best military, law enforcement, and best government the world has to offer, but unless they are trained and educated to understand the mindset of Islamic terrorists we will suffer another Sept. 11th type of attack in the very near future. We can't play the political correct type of war that many Americans want to fight. Terrorists have various weapons and the one they count on more than any other is to be able to influence Americans and Israelis to fight amongst themselves. We are doing this in America. We are becoming a divided nation and this is one of the goals of terrorists.

As your website indicates it is time for America to wake up. thank you, Dave Gaubatz.


Others discussing the Spectator article and Dave Gaubatz:
Captain's Quarters, Hot Air, Power Line.

.