A Visit by the Beast?

I think Sitemeter is messing with my head. When I looked at the summary this morning, it said visits for the week were "666". Freaky.

When I looked again just now visits for the week were ... "666".

Freaky. Very freaky.

Anybody else getting this?

What a Great Weekend

Another great FReep at Walter Reed, the end-of-season race banquet, a visit with some terrific soldiers at Malogne House, and a half a day with LCpl. Pete, USMC! Whew, I'm beat and I've still got laundry to do...

I already posted about the Sheehag - she's done - but I've been corrected as to which bathroom she used; it was the lower floor and not the second (thanks CBob!). The FreeRepublic folks are truly awesome and its such a pleasure to hang with them every week. Their enthusiasm and dedication to the troops is inspiring.

I went with some friends to the Malogne House to deliver a few items we'd bought for the wounded warriors. We met SSG Luther Richardson who is in charge of lodging for the entire complex. He's been dealing with his own injuries and complications while looking after the housing requirements of on average 900 patients. "Rich" has a terrific "I can handle anything" attitude.

We spoke with Spc. Ben Perez who is recovering from a gunshot wound to his abdomen. During his second tour in Iraq, Perez survived 7 IED attacks, but one day a sniper's 7.62 round went through his body armor and tore through his mid section. The long, angry scars he showed us told of the difficult surgeries he's endured. The soft spoken 22 year old from Michigan credited his sergeant, Joseph Caron, with saving his life. Caron exposed himself to the sniper in order to get the immobilized Perez to safety, taking two bullets himself in the process. It was great to listen to him.

I talked with several other soldiers but like an idiot, I forgot to ask if I could write about them. I'm still in awe of these guys and forget important stuff like that. I'll do better the next time.

Saturday night was the Woodbridge Kart Club 2005 Season Banquet. The hall was packed with 210+ racers, families, and assorted riff-raff, some in Halloween costumes. It was the typical rowdy party and this year the hotel kicked us out an hour early 'cause we were "disturbing the other guests." Whatever.

And finally, I got to spend some quality time with my adopted Marine, Pete. He's not supposed to be exerting himself, but the guy is too full of energy to just sit around. We had a great time doing undisclosed activities with my buddy Mike and his girlfriend at an undisclosed location where people are often seen wearing "eyes" and "ears".

Sheehan Leaves "Support" at Walter Reed

She came. She peed. She left. Yes, Mutha Sheehan's support for the wounded warriors consisted of a trip to the potty. No "Get Well" cards, no words of wisdom, nada. She slipped in and out of the facility so fast I didn't even get a pic, darnit!

She and a driver parked on the street and walked in thru the gate. Eye witnesses say she went to the second floor, entered and exited the ladies room, went back out thru the gate, and drove off. There was no one from the press, large or small, and I think this must have been a huge disappointment to the Mutha. I'd say her 15 minutes are OVER!

It was still an eventful evening. The festivities got underway when a couple of 100 year old hippies decided to park right in front of our side of the street and refused to make a U-turn and park on the commie side (which at that point was completely devoid of cars). We didn't make too much of a fuss, and even helped one of them out of the car.


Rolling Thunder made an appearance in the persons of Smitty and his lady. He was making his way to Fran O'Brien's for the 2nd anniversary of the restaurant's weekly dinner provided free to a bus load of WR patients and families. Rolling Thunder raised $10,000 in donations to help fund the continuation of this terrific program.

Smitty went across the street to try and engage "Squeegie" in conversation, but "Squeegie" remembered the last time he confronted these folks and decided to pretend Smitty didn't exist.





I didn't see even one U.S. flag on the commie side tonight. They usually bring a token one. I always assumed that it was made of asbestos since they hadn't burned it. Must have been wrong.






A couple of shy supporters.













New sign.











Another celebrity.









Karl joined us again tonight. I wonder who this sign is meant for?


The Group "W" bus also made another appearance, sans the "I 'heart' Gitmo" sticker it was sporting two weeks ago. The driver also decided to park the behemoth where he could keep an eye on it this time. Trouble was, he parked illegally.



FReeper Kristinn decided to point this travesty out in what was surely a familiar manner to the professional protesters of CodePink.






"Squeegie" in high dudgeon again as several Freepers join Kristinn in his "sit-in".










Gael Murphy actually seems pleased to have us over.









CodePinkos call for HELP! Make the Freepers go away!








As usual, the D.C. Cops got everything squared away with little fuss. These guys and gals are real pros.




Andi's got more pics and recounts her conversations with a few of the Pinkos.

Too Little Time

Harriet Miers Withdraws

Moonbats Invade DC

"Mutha" Sheehan to Appear at Walter Reed

Volcker discloses $2 billion paid to Saddam by French & Russians

And I'm swamped at work and home and can't blog about stuff! Damned inconvenient neocon work ethic...

Another Fired-Up Marine

WarriorJason is at war with the bad guys in Iraq and some equally scummy folks back home. Two posts THE REALITY OF THE HARD LEFT and The media strikes again with an "IED" of its own are great examples of the frustration our guys and gals feel when they watch or read the MSM.

Leave him a comment of support. Then go to all the milblogs on your own link list and leave the same kind of supportive comment. Then go check out Milblogging.com and find some more folks who are on the front lines and send them comments as well.

It doesn't cost anything but a few minutes of time to let them know how much they are appreciated.

And a Fired-up Soldier:

CJ at A Soldier's Perspective is also PO'ed at the MSM and certain members of Congress who view him as a "tool" of sorts. In The Significance Of 2000 he blasts those who seem to be celebrating this eventful number:

2000 is just a number. But that number is a soldier. People all around the country are trying to use this number as some sort of milestone. It just so happens that Staff Sgt. George T. Alexander Jr. (yes, “#2000″ has a name) died of a roadside bomb, something I’ve dedicated the past two years trying to keep from happening.

Tanker Jokes

Man, these guys play rough! REDSIX may not have been the instigator, but he played right along with a dastardly joke SSG Terry played on two other poor sergeants. Check out Atomic Sit-Up Revenge over at Armor Geddon.

"Horde" Dreams

Aha! I found the source of my dream of trebuchets and hordes that Fmragtops so professionally analyzed. It was a premonition of SecDef Rumsfeld's visit to Mongolia.

Mongolian Defense Minister Tserenkhuu Sharavdorj presented Rumsfeld the brown horse with a black mane during the secretary's Oct. 22 visit to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia's capital city. The visit was the first by a U.S. defense secretary to this former communist country, home of the legendary 13th century warrior, Genghis Khan.

In Mongolia, where the horse is highly revered and legends of 13th-century Mongols galloping behind Genghis Khan onto the world stage still bolster national pride, the gift of a horse to Rumsfeld represented an ultimate symbol of friendship and cooperation.

Mongol hordes are best known for their amazing abilities to wage war from horseback. Kahn and his top general Subedei taught and trained the Mongol cavalry by staging hunts that resembled battles they would face with the enemy. Steven Den Beste's post The Mongol Horde describes the training exercises and how the discipline translated onto the real battlefield.

On the occasion that a castle or walled city refused to surrender right away, a siege would begin. Though he doesn't say if the trebuchet was employed, Den Beste says they used some kind of juggernaut.

During their campaign in some of the Arabian nations, they would approach a city and give it a chance to surrender. If it did, it would be accepted into the Mongol empire. If it refused and resisted, then the Mongols would lay siege (using siege engines built and operated by Chinese combat engineers who accompanied the Mongols in the campaign) and once the city fell the inhabitants would be completely slaughtered. Word of this spread and surrenders became the norm, as the Mongols intended.

Obviously, I've been using inferior catapults not made in China!

Also following Mongolian tradition, the secretary asked the horse's herder to watch over Montana until his next visit, and in return, presented a useful gift, in this case, a black-and-yellow flashlight. Rumsfeld also presented Sharavdorj a Civil War pistol.

Uh...a flashlight? I'm going to have to sleep on that one.

Commies and Dirty Diapers

Ever have one of those days when you just are too freakin' pissed to write what's in your head. Well, today is my lucky day. Capt. B says exactly what my duct-taped head needed to read. I'm just going to repost the whole thing 'cause its brilliant.

THE SPIRIT & THE SWORD

If this boot fits, wear it. Cmon America you have you wake up and make a difference! You are strong people, it’s inside you, it might be deep but its there. The enemy knows he can’t beat the Coalition forces here in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, he will try to beat you back in the states; Scare tactics, threats and bad propaganda are just some of his tools. You have to respect the threats but squash the bad propaganda. Im tired of being nice, I don’t have to be nice, as a matter of fact Im getting to like being mean. Its about damn time you get a big ass belly full of anti American press and put your foot down. We are America and if you want to walk up and punch us in the nose, talk trash about the umbrella that provides you security you can stand the hell by for a good ol fashioned ass whooping. That’s right America every now and then you have to “click off safe” and stand up for what you believe in and pile drive to the BS into the deck. What’s that, you’re having a bad day and you really don’t feel like going to work??? We’ll suck it up cupcake and smell freaking roses. Life isn’t fair and you need to get tuff and press on. Its important that you make a creditable contribution to society. So all you “Im going to milk mommy and Daddy for everything they have” brainyacks need to go get a freaking job! We have to fight the enemy as one team because I can tell you this, the enemy is bonded together to fight us and he is committed to winning or die trying here in Iraq and “HELLO” in the United States. That’s right there in the good ol US. (click here to read more about attacks) So all of you anti war, Dr Phil watching, tree hugin mother scratchers that want to run crying home to mommy now cause you never want anything bad to ever happen, better open your eyes and join the team against terrorism. Terrorism is real and it wants to destroy your butt and the US by attacking you in the open or through the press. So if you think the enemy have plopped out lawn chairs, lit a cigar and called it quits you are sadly mistaken. Take charge, put an American flag in your yard and remember how you felt on Sept 11th when all those Americans were murdered! Who me? I can’t make a difference………….Monkey shit! One person always makes a difference and that can start something great! We are at war are you doing all you can? Marines are conducting operations throughout Iraq conducting house to house searches disrupting, capturing and destroying the enemy. We will take the garbage out here. YOU have to take care of yourself by being discipline, get organized and work together. There is nothing more that the scumbags love seeing is us against each other. There is the Spirit and the Sword and the Spirit will always win! Semper Fi

Capt. B is taking care of business in Iraq, and we need to back him up here. That means NOT BEING AFRAID OF COMMIES!!!!

What's the worst that can happen if commies and cry-babies with soiled diapers have a chance to speak? Are they going to convince you that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were mistakes? Who are they going to convince that America sucks and that we need to abdicate our place in the world? Your neighbors? Your kids? Your co-workers? Your best freind? What would happen if you came right behind these freaks and simply told the truth about why we fight? Wouldn't that be a helluva lot better than simply trying to shield those around you from the commies?

Let 'em spew their hate - then smack them down!!!!

A Visit to Malogne House at Walter Reed

Once again it was a rainy, dreary evening out in front of WRAMC, but the Freepers turned out to voice their support for the wounded warriors in double the numbers that the commie Pinkos managed to dredge up.










"Squeegie" with another Pinko and a sign describing their "support". It seems to me that the troops already have jobs. They have benefits and the best damn health care in the world right inside the gates of Walter Reed.

With signs like "Bring the Troops Home Now" it seems to me they want to put a lot of people out of work.





Real support means believing in the job the troops are doing.












We believe. We support. We love our brave men and women in uniform.



Please check out the official FreeRepublic.com After Action Report from last Friday, October 14th written by BillF. Lots of great pictures and commentary.

A Gearhead's Guide to Tools

Friday funny stuff. Everyone who likes to wrench on their own wheels can easily (or painfully) recognize these definitions.

a. DRILL PRESS: A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching
flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it smacks you in the
chest and flings your beer across the room, splattering it against
that freshly painted part you were drying.

b. WIRE WHEEL: Cleans rust off old bolts and then throws them
somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light. Also removes
fingerprint whorls and hard-earned guitar calluses in about the time it
takes you to say, "Ouch...."

c. ELECTRIC HAND DRILL: Normally used for spinning steel pop rivets in
their holes until you die of old age

d. PLIERS: Used to round off bolt heads.

e. HACKSAW: One of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board
principle. It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable
motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more
dismal your future becomes.

f. VISE-GRIPS: Used to round off bolt heads. If nothing else is
available, they can also be used to transfer intense welding heat to
the palm of your hand.

g. OXYACETYLENE TORCH: Used almost entirely for lighting various
flammable objects in your garage on fire. Also handy for igniting the
grease inside a brake drum you're trying to get the bearing race out
of.

h. WHITWORTH SOCKETS: Once used for working on older British cars and
motorcycles, they are now used mainly for impersonating that 9/16 or
1/2 socket you've been searching for the last 15 minutes.

i. HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK: Used for lowering a motorcycle to the ground
after you have installed your new front disk brake setup, trapping the
jack handle firmly under the front fender.

j. EIGHT-FOOT LONG DOUGLAS FIR 2X4: Used for levering a motorcycle
upward off a hydraulic jack.

k. TWEEZERS: A tool for removing wood splinters.

l. PHONE: Tool for calling your neighbor to see if he has another
hydraulic floor jack.

m. SNAP-ON GASKET SCRAPER: Theoretically useful as a sandwich tool for
spreading mayonnaise; used mainly for getting dog-do off your boot.

n. E-Z OUT BOLT AND STUD EXTRACTOR: A tool that snaps off in bolt
holes and is ten times harder than any known drill bit.

o. TIMING LIGHT: A stroboscopic instrument for illuminating grease
buildup.

p. TWO-TON HYDRAULIC ENGINE HOIST: A handy tool for testing the
tensile strength of ground straps and brake lines you may have
forgotten to disconnect.

q. CRAFTSMAN 1/2 x 16-INCH SCREWDRIVER: A large motor mount prying
tool that inexplicably has an accurately machined screwdriver tip on
the end without the handle.

r. BATTERY ELECTROLYTE TESTER: A handy tool for transferring sulfuric
acid from a car battery to the inside of your toolbox after
determining that your battery is dead as a doornail, just as you
thought.

s. AVIATION METAL SNIPS: See hacksaw.

t. TROUBLE LIGHT: The mechanic's own tanning booth. Sometimes called
drop light, it is a good source of vitamin D, "the sunshine vitamin,"
which is not otherwise found under motorcycles at night. Health
benefits aside, it's main purpose is to consume 40-watt light bulbs at
about the same rate that 105-mm howitzer shells might be used during,
say, the first few hours of the Battle of the Bulge. More often dark
than light, its name is somewhat misleading.

u. PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER: Normally used to stab the lids of old-style
paper-and-tin oil cans and splash oil on your shirt; can also be used,
as the name implies, to round off Phillips screw heads.

v. AIR COMPRESSOR: A machine that takes energy produced in a
coal-burning power plant 200 miles away and transforms it into
compressed air that travels by hose to a Chicago Pneumatic impact wrench
that grips rusty bolts last tightened 40 years ago by someone in
Sindelfingen, and rounds them off.

w. PRY BAR: A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding that clip or
bracket you needed to remove in order to replace a 50 cent part.

x. HOSE CUTTER: A tool used to cut hoses 1/2 inch too short.

y. HAMMER: Originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays
is used as a kind of divining rod to locate expensive parts not far
from the object we are trying to hit.

z. MECHANIC'S KNIFE: Used to open and slice through the contents of
cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well
on boxes containing seats and motorcycle jackets.

A Gut Feeling of Opposition

When I heard the President suggest that the U.S. Military should be deployed on U.S. soil to aid in disaster recovery and to quarantine areas affected by fatal outbreaks of disease, my initial reaction was "no f*ing way!". Then I stopped and questioned that reaction. What was I afraid of?

In a speech given from the Rose Garden on Sept. 15th, the President said

It is now clear that a challenge on this scale requires greater federal authority and a broader role for the armed forces -- the institution of our government most capable of massive logistical operations on a moment's notice.

Uh, lets not forget that certain areas of Mississippi were wiped out, but because of responsible state and local leaders, were able to start recovery efforts immediately without waiting for the Feds to literally bail them out. Maybe challenges on this scale just need leaders who will plan ahead, and then actually implement the plans when disaster makes it necessary.

Walter E. Williams discusses some reasons not to accept the President's proposition in A Nation of Sheeple.

The Posse Comitatus Act (18 U.S.C. 1385) generally prohibits federal military personnel and units of the U.S. National Guard under federal authority from acting in a law enforcement capacity within the United States, except where expressly authorized by the U.S. Constitution or Congress. Enacted during Reconstruction, the purpose of the Posse Comitatus Act was to severely limit the powers of the federal government to use the military for local law enforcement. Would Americans tolerate such a gigantic leap in the federalization of law enforcement? I'm guessing the answer is yes. In the name of safety, we've undergone decades of softening up to accept just about any government edict that our predecessors would have found offensive.

Even more frightening would be the possibility of abuse by a future President *shudder* Clinton. That combination of megalomania and utter contempt for the military could be catastrophic. James Carafano of the Heritage Foundation suggests some alternatives in Critics of the Hurricane Response Miss the Mark in Focusing on Posse Comitatus.

Deploying the military faster, —making it a more agile and flexible instrument to respond to all kinds of domestic security needs, —is a question of force structure and policy. It does not require tampering with the sovereign responsibilities outlined in the Constitution. There are better solutions.

But he envisions something that I also find disquieting:

Mix National Guard and Reserve forces. The Army Reserves, like the National Guard, are cit­izen soldiers. However, the Reserves are federal forces, meaning that they do not belong to the states in which they are based. Since assets indis­pensable to disaster relief are scattered through­out the Reserve components (both the Reserves and the Guard), disaster relief efforts should integrate both components resources and clarify lines of authority in a manner that preserves states autonomy in accordance with Posse Com­itatus. Rather than amend the law to expand Federal authority, Congress could consider adding a provision that would allow federal Reserve units to function under state control during a natural disaster or other emergency situation. Under such a provision, states could draft their own emergency response plans and submit them to the Department of Defense (DOD) and Depart­ment of Homeland Security (DHS). In an emer­gency, the DOD could then marshal the resources and logistical support necessary to support state authorities. Such an arrangement allows states to tailor plans to their individual needs, to maintain unity and continuity of com­mand, and to allow for coordinating the needs and costs of responding to disasters and other contingencies before the event.

I don't like the idea of giving someone like Kathleen Blanco or Ray Nagin the use of Army reserve units! If we have reasons to retain restraints on what the CIC can do with the troops here at home, shouldn't we have even more reason to keep State leaders hands off of them? How could we ever rest assured that some nimrod governor wouldn't abuse this new authority?

Gov. A: I'm warning you - don't build another casino within 50 miles of my border! You're purposely draining my tax revenue!

Gov. B: Screw you! This is payback for your refusal to raise cigarette taxes to match mine.

Gov. A: That's it! You are presenting an eminent threat to my state and I'm calling in airstrikes on the next casino construction project you start!

Gov. B: Oh yeah? Just try it beotch, and watch how well your precious new amusement park stands up to a bunker buster!

I think the authority to use the military at home should remain extremely limited, and in the hands of the executive office.

Ammo Ammo Ammo!

Hooray! Only a month 'til


From TylerD, a very Special Natl' Ammo Day:

A cool twist on National Ammo Day is to go to your local Wally-World and buy out their stocks of a single caliber of Winchester White Box value packs. They usually don't carry many(5-10 boxes)

Date: November 19th, 2005 @ 15:30 (3:30 P.M.)

Tyler has links to the history of this twist. Remember, ammo makes a great stocking stuffer for Christmas! OK, maybe the stocking falls off the fireplace mantle, or the bottom rips out, but she'll love the gift anyway.

I Love Fall

Early morning fog - from Mom's house on Lake Anna.

Took Mom to the hospital this morning. She had her mascectomy. Everything is fine! The doctor said she'd be able to get back to her normal activities within a few days. Whew! Thanks to everyone who commented and had good thoughts leading up today. It worked.

Milblog Linky Love

I've added a bunch of new milblogs to my "Officially Issued Guns" list recently. They all deserve lots of traffic.

I already featured Capt. B of One Marine's View, but he's so good he deserves another plug. Every post has something eminently quoteable, like

"America maintains a strong military force always ready to monkey stomp someone's ass when needed, regardless of when."

"I don't pity the scumbags who tread our area as they will get that one-way ticket to Allah."

"Reporter’s countrywide saturated the area days prior to the elections to hopefully catch the US forces failing. Well too damn bad it didn'’t happen so pound sand!"

Capt. B is a lot more than just a hardassed Marine. He is a thoughtful, intelligent, competent leader who can teach us all a lot.

Next is Firepower 5 and his blog Firepower Forward from Afghanistan. Along with lots of cool pictures, he's another smart guy who's well written and reasoned posts are very illuminating. Sometimes even really funny.

The room seemed to move around me and I felt unsteady even though I was sitting. I've never had low blood sugar before, and as I tried to steady myself through the vertigo with a hand on my desk, I wracked my brain. Had I skipped dinner last night as well? How long HAD it been since I'd eaten? Am I going to have to have someone drive me to the medics for an IV?

Just then, the Operations NCO stuck his head through the door. "Sir, you can't stay in the building during an earthquake, we need to move outside."

B is also in Afghanistan and writes the blog Going Down Range. His writing style is very business like, doesn't say much about himself, and doesn't write nearly often enough. Lots of cool pics with every post, and each post is packed with info and other links to articles or sites.

Again, from Afghanistan (do you see a pattern emerging?) is SC Eagle with A Storm in Afghanistan. He's in Malta with his family on R&R right now, AND IS STILL POSTING! Anyway, SC Eagle writes about all the little things (not insignificant things, just everday neat stuff) and some activities that break my heart. In his post The War Marches On he talks about losing a friend in a Chinook crash, what happens when there's a KIA, and extraordinary ramp ceremony he attended to send off the angels.

Meanwhile back in Iraq, Lieutenant K left a comment here today and of course I went to check him out. Holy Cow! I'm beginning to think all of our brightest minds are in the middle east getting shot at or risking being blown up. Wordsmith At War is similar to T6 at 365 and a Wakeup in that he's a real writer. Not that everyone else is a slouch, but the title he's chosen for his blog is quite appropriate. Just read this post, A Letter to the Republic for Which We Stand and see if you don't agree.

Lastly, check out Milblogging.com, JP Borda's brainchild for cataloging all the milblogs in the world. Anybody can register as a user, then add milblogs you find, choose your favorites (kinda like voting) and find ones you've never heard of to visit.

And now for a cool pic I stole from SC Eagle's site.

LCpl Pete, USMC - An Update

Pete's OK! His doctors still don't know what's wrong with him, but he seems to be nearly back to normal.

What happened: while running at camp he developed severe chest pains, passed out, and stopped breathing. It was not a heart attack, but the cause has yet to be determined. He was in and out of conciousness until he fully awoke at Landstuhl a week after the incident.

I think it was the damned cigars I sent him. Anywho, this is Pete and his beautiful wife. He's going to be in town at least a few more days while tests are done, so I may get to dote on him some more.

Karen & Dwight, two of Pete's most dedicated supporters, flew out from Wisconsin to meet him. They are really terrific people who I'm very glad to have met.

Purple Fingers

Defenselink Special Report
Capt. B Looking Good
in Afghanistan, Going Down Range Favor, NATO, virgins and store

10/16: WarriorJason's Recent Operations

Fun With Buses at Walter Reed

This was a fun night. Great weather, great friends, great pizza and great antics!

We had a visit from 4 people with British accents who swore they were from "Channel 4" and not the BBC. They spent some time talking to us, but I wasn't in the tight bunch around the reporters and camera crew so I don't know much about the interviews.




They seemed nice, but they were asking antagonistic questions that started out with "There were no WMDs, so why do you support the war?"

Whatever.






We had some new signs this week. Many of them got wet and soggy in the rain last week.

Someone spent some time on this one.







A bunch of new signs and justanobody hiding behind the ferns,








LandryFan's newest sign.











concretebob and allrightallthetime with a creative new "love note" to CodePink. heh








iraqikurd with a sign made by TroopRally. If you want to read a terrific essay by a very patriotic immigrant, check out this post at FreeRepublic.com by iraqikurd. It is his "after action" report of the September 23-26 Support the Troops Weekend and is a powerful testament to the Troops and to his adopted home.







iraqikurd and Dustin. Dustin is a wounded warrior who's facing a long stay at Walter Reed. He's a great young man and we're thrilled to have him come out and hang with us.

We had lots of encouragement tonight from troops leaving the hospital. Honking, waving, shouts of "Thank you", and even a really loud "OORAH! SEMPER FI" that brought a huge cheer of THANK YOU! from all of us.



And we had some fun with this bus. I call it the Cindy Sheehan Group "W" bus. It drove up and down Georgia Avenue to the delight of the commie Pinkos and the derision of the Freeps.





Then the driver decided to find a parking spot and turned down a narrow street behind us. It couldn't make the turn. It tried this way and that way and was stuck in a "quagmire!" HAHAHAHA!

Naturally, a bunch of us went down to help. HAHAHAHAH! We took lots of pictures.



That's my car that it almost hit. No, I did NOT volunteer to move it. HAHAHAHAHA!







Here's a Freeper lending a hand. I'm sure this poster helped get them out of the "quagmire!"







Andi getting into the act. Her excellent report is here.

Meanwhile, someone accepted a dare and snuck around the back of the bus and attached a love note from us.









Back of the Group "W" bus.









Love Note. HAHAHAHAHAHA!







Hippies singing tired '60s songs out of tune.






Hippy signs







Channel 4, not BBC, interviewing hippies. One of the reporters crossed back over to our side and I commented that he'd been with the commies for a long time. He responded that they talked slower than we did. I commented that they're not too bright.


YAY! I finally got a picture of the bus bringing the wounded warriors back from Fran O'Brien's! There were a lot of folks on the bus tonight, and we cheered, waved our flags and yelled "USA, USA, USA" at the top of our lungs!



A very good night. Then again, its always a good night at Walter Reed. I just wish the Pinkos would go away!



Note: bold name are FreeRepublic screen names.

Linked on Stop the ACLU Sunday Open Trackbacks

New Warriors Step Up

From today's Wash. Times comes a great story about Iraqi Army forces taking it to the terrorists.

BAQOUBA, Iraq -- Joint Iraqi and U.S. security forces foiled an attempt by terrorists to ambush a truck delivering ballots to the nearby city of Muqtadiya yesterday, one in a series of attacks ahead of tomorrow's vote on a permanent constitution.

A decoy convoy -- disguised to look like it was carrying ballots from the Iraqi Electoral Commission and heavily armed with Iraqi forces -- drew fire from terrorists hiding in a palm grove outside of Baqouba at midday.

Unknown to the enemy, three ordinary pickup trucks carrying the real ballots already were delivering the precious cargo to the city of Muqtadiya, an hour's drive away.

Thirty Iraqi soldiers, accompanied by a reporter-photographer for The Washington Times, were assigned to the dummy convoy. It was an all-Iraqi operation. No U.S. soldiers were present.

I love the pic. It shows these guys are getting better all the time at taking care of business (although the 'cover' should have been on the guy's head instead of the pavement).

"This mission is dangerous. Any civilian car moving between our cars should be seen as a threat," Lt. Hayder said before the mission got under way.

The attack began with the bone-jarring explosion of a roadside bomb followed by a barrage of rocket-propelled grenades and rifle fire. Within seconds, Iraqi soldiers responded with a wall of automatic-weapons fire. The terrorists ran.

Later, U.S. Kiowa helicopters arrived to escort the convoy to Muqtadiya. Back at Forward Operating Base Normandy in Muqtadiya, which U.S. Army Task Force 1-30 shares with an Iraqi unit nicknamed "Tiger Battalion." Lt. Col. Roger Cloutier reflected on the day's events.

"These [Iraqi soldiers] are ordinary guys that rose to the occasion. In their lifetime, they have never experienced freedom, and now they're defending it with their lives," said Col. Cloutier, commander of the task force.

I think the elections are going to go well this weekend. I'm looking forward to lots of purple fingers Saturday afternoon, and lots of happy and proud military and police forces that have done a spectacular job of making the vote possible.

Random Stuff 'n Things

I'm all out of ideas. I'm really bored with the Miers nomination, Tom Delay, Bush's poll numbers, eating, thinking...you know, life. I want to do another "Beverly Kennedy" episode, but Teddy hasn't done anything spectacularly stupid lately. Or any more stupid than usual. I still don't know what's going on with LCpl Pete, USMC and that has me distracted. Oh well, blah, blah, blah.

Dr. Phat Tony is running strolling for Constable of Huntsville and Insolublog is his chief advisor/Karl Rove evil genius. Bwwwaaaahhhaaahhaaa! I'm Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, but somehow I think the Peter Principal is in play here (pun intended, lamely - you know, Gen. Peter Pace?) and I can't think of where to take this.

Mr. Completely (*new link* - see Good Guys. Well, go on...) sent me word that a "virtual" cousin of mine, LouG (G for Gunn) has set up his blog - Mad Gun. He won't be posting regularly for a while yet, but might have some travel pics and stories.

Jean-Paul Borda is trying to take over the blogododecahedron. He's got three, count 'em three new blogs/sites. My sidebar contains a "Jean-Paul Borda's World" section with picture links to SoldierFoto (photos taken by aliens, I mean soldiers) and MilBlogging.com, your one stop shop for all the milblogs on the net. Check them ooouuuttt! as JP would say. Then go over and leave teh funny in the comments on Hooah.net. He doesn't have a logo for that one or it would be in the "World" section, too. Hooah replaces the National Guard Experience, but JP is slowly putting up posts from the old site on the new one. Plus, there's new funny!

For something really scary and funny at the same time, read the English translation of the letter from al-Zawahiri to al-Zarqawi. These guys are sick! (like you didn't already know that).

Spoiled Brats

I'd love to be a curmudgeon like Thomas Sowell when I get, eh...older. He's so smart and such an impeccable researcher that its hard, if not impossible, to argue with the guy. Plus he's a great read.

Check out his column at TownHall.com today titled Spoiled Brat Politics: Part II for a dose of Dr. Sowell's prescribed treatment for the eradication of liberalism.

GWOT: Just a Reminder

The President gave a wonderful speech on Thursday (10/6). I didn'’t get to hear it live, but I found the transcript and read it with delight. He said things I'’ve waited years to hear, but much of the language I've heard many times over the last four years. He may say it in different ways just to keep the media interested, but when it comes to describing the enemy it all means the same thing. When people ask the "who" question, they'll always receive a response such as:

Yet while the killers choose their victims indiscriminately, their attacks serve a clear and focused ideology, a set of beliefs and goals that are evil, but not insane.

Some call this evil Islamic radicalism; others, militant Jihadism; still others, Islamo-fascism. Whatever it's called, this ideology is very different from the religion of Islam. This form of radicalism exploits Islam to serve a violent, political vision: the establishment, by terrorism and subversion and insurgency, of a totalitarian empire that denies all political and religious freedom. These extremists distort the idea of jihad into a call for terrorist murder against Christians and Jews and Hindus -- and also against Muslims from other traditions, who they regard as heretics.

This is the strongest language he has used yet in describing the terrorists. Mr. Bush also took a swipe at his predecessor with: "They hit us, and expect us to run. They want us to repeat the sad history of Beirut in 1983, and Mogadishu in 1993 -- only this time on a larger scale, with greater consequences." I've never heard him come close to criticizing a former President like this, though he did temper it with a reference to a Reagan era bombing. I'ts about time.

Bush reiterates this description of our enemies in nearly every speech he gives about the GWOT. He has been rock-solid and consistent since 9/11 in his identification of those who wish to do us harm. On September 20, 2001 he said:

Al Qaeda is to terror what the mafia is to crime. But its goal is not making money; its goal is remaking the world -- and imposing its radical beliefs on people everywhere. The terrorists practice a fringe form of Islamic extremism that has been rejected by Muslim scholars and the vast majority of Muslim clerics -- a fringe movement that perverts the peaceful teachings of Islam. The terrorists' directive commands them to kill Christians and Jews, to kill all Americans, and make no distinction among military and civilians, including women and children.

In his famous "Axis of Evil" speech on Jan 29, 2002:

We have seen the depth of our enemies' hatred in videos, where they laugh about the loss of innocent life. And the depth of their hatred is equaled by the madness of the destruction they design.
...These enemies view the entire world as a battlefield, and we must pursue them wherever they are.

And from a speech to the U.N. delivered Sept. 23, 2003:

By the victims they choose, and by the means they use, the terrorists have clarified the struggle we are in. Those who target relief workers for death have set themselves against all humanity. Those who incite murder and celebrate suicide reveal their contempt for life, itself. They have no place in any religious faith; they have no claim on the world's sympathy; and they should have no friend in this chamber.

The President and his Cabinet have also been consistent in the "how long" question. His new Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, Marine General Peter Pace, gave a speech at Mount Vernon, October 11th at a ceremony to present Purple Hearts to 8 soldiers wounded in Iraq and Afghanistan:

Pace told the family and friends of those at the ceremony that there are similarities between George Washington's time and today. He said that when Washington left Mount Vernon to take command of the Continental Army in 1775, he did not know how long he would be gone or how long his task would take. "It lasted eight years," Pace said. "We don't know how long this struggle will last, but like General Washington and his soldiers, we will stay with it as long as it takes."

We've only been at it for four years and the enemy we face is evil incarnate rather than true soldiers of a foreign govermnent. SecDef Rumsfeld follows on with answers to the "why" and "how" questions in a TownHall type forum at MacDill AFB this morning:

"And you can tell them something else: that America is not what's wrong with this world," he added. "What's wrong with this world are the terrorists, the 'beheaders,' the hostage-takers, the assassins -- the people our forces are fighting every day in a number of locations -- they're what's wrong with the world. And our country's finest men and women are out there meeting them every day."

Rumsfeld said it is not the mission of the U.S. military to "cower behind illusory defenses" because "defenses don't work." The only defense, he said, is to go on the offensive, to stop terrorists before they attack America.

"Your mission is to be on the offense; it's to go on the attack," he said. "And that's what our forces are doing: they're engaging the enemy where they live so that they do not attack us where we live."

Rummy would have to come up as a pitbull in the dog quiz. The U.S. and Iraqi forces are on the offensive. A DefenseLINK article from Oct. 11th is astonishing in the numbers it reports. Over a three day period (Oct. 9 -11), just around Baghdad, coalition forces completed hundreds of missions that netted 98 terror suspects, killed at least two bad guys, collected thousands of rounds of ammo, bomb making materials, weapons, and certainly intel. "Iraqi soldiers and police conducted nearly 370 of the missions themselves and teamed with coalition forces on 50 others." How's that for getting the Iraqis up-to-speed? They really are taking on more and more responsibility.

We are making progress. We are winning.

Milblogger Breaks Quiz

OK, some wise guy decides to take the Muppet quiz and breaks it! Capt. B of One Marine's View ended up with a Muppet that no one else could possibly get.

He most likely got this Muppet by giving answers like these:

"If you never met a Marine, sit down we can be overwhelming and a bit extreme, deal with it."

"I've said it once and I’ll say again, give war a chance."

"...there's no such thing as a fair fight and its OK to go big and ugly early."

" There is a strange phenomenon in this area where loud speakers seem to attract 5.56 size bullet holes, especially in the Fallujah area, we can't figure out how it happens…"

Keep your eye on this new milblogger. He's going to become very popular very quick!

Another Quiz - Muppets Anyone?

You are Sam the Eagle.
You are patriotic and devoted. And extremely anal.

HOBBIES:
Patriotism, Being appalled at what everyone else is
doing.
FAVORITE MUSIC:
The National Anthem of America

FAVORITE MOVIE:
"An American In....America"

LAST BOOK READ:
"Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus,
Eagles are from America"

QUOTE:
"Please stop that now! It's un-American!"


What Muppet are you?
brought to you by Quizilla


I think these things must be rigged! The questions didn't have anything to do with Patriotism. It's quite right, of course, but I'm just sayin'...

Thanks: Peakah

Holiday Monday

Like all good government contractors in the D.C. area, I have off today. Yipee!

Went down to Burke to have lunch with my Mom and baby sister. "Baby" as in youngest, but quite accomplished. Got to see the brother-in-law's new/used Sportster. Niece and Nephew (11 and 9 years old) are crazy about it and want Dad to take them for rides all the time. Both kids take after thier father in that they don't know the words "slow down". Especially "the boy" who is balls-to-the-wall on anything that moves. I have 8 nieces and nephews, but these two are my favorites. Great kids. Great parents.

Speaking of parents, Mom disclosed that she has breast cancer. Again.

30 years ago she had a radical mascectomy and many courses of chemo. Obviously she survived. What always impressed me during that time was how well she handled the whole thing. She was rarely off her feet from the treatments and never seemed down. But, that's kind of the way she always is. She's the kind of person who loves to laugh, loves being around other people, loves her family and heaps praise upon her kids and grandkids. She's without a doubt the strongest person I know. A visit with Mom does me more good when I'm blue than anything else. It did today, too, even with the bad news. Now I get to take care of her like she has always done for me.

The cancer is just a tiny mass, undetectable by feel. She sees the surgeon on Wednesday and will find out what kind of surgery will be necessary. I'm fairly certain it will be minor and tried to convince her that she's not going to have anywhere near the mess she had before. As usual though, I think she's going to end up pulling me thru this, rather than the other way around! Mom's are great that way.

Dog Person Quiz!

What Common Breed of Dog Are You?
brought to you by Quizilla

Finally a quiz for Dog Lovers! And I even scored as one of my favorite breeds. Whodathunk?

HT: Silent Running

Advice from a Cop

Wyatt Earp of Support Your Local Gunfighter has some suggestions for those who are planning on being dead during his shift. For example:

Make sure you're dressed. Mom always said to wear clean underwear - and a pair of pants wouldn't be a bad idea, either.

Stop on by and give him some support.

Even in the Rain, A Good Night at Walter Reed

Neither rain nor snow nor gloom of night, will keep the FReepers from their fight - against the tyranny of commie-Pinkos that haunt the gates of Walter Reed. Not surprisingly, there was a pretty sparse crowd tonight, but the faithful showed up in sufficient numbers to again out-do the hippies.







Code Pink rousted about 10 people to brave the inclement weather.





FreeRepublic had twice that many. We also had visits from several wounded warriors. Dustin and Oscar, two battle buddies wounded several months apart, hung out most of the evening with us. Oscar rebuffed the many attempts by all the women to shelter him with an umbrella, give him a rain poncho, give him food or something to drink. He said the cool rain felt good.




Dustin spent some time talking to one of the Pinkos, and with every point Dustin made, the Pinko merely replied "I agree." Dustin wasn't fooled. Seems the commies have been coached not to appear argumentative with the vets.

At one point it seemed as if the entire D.C. and Silver Spring, MD Fire Departments passed in front of us. Truck after truck came roaring past, sirens blaring, racing north to some raging inferno. Then one by one they came cruising back, waiving at us and giving thumbs-up from their open windows.

Staying true to their M.O. the Pinkos gathered for their group-hug at 9pm while we serenaded them with "Na na na na, Hey hey hey, Goodbye!". They soon split up and left.

I left soon afterwards. Couldn't stay for the bus from Fran O'Brien's tonight 'cause the dog was without a sitter. I'm glad I went and stood in the rain. The brave men and women inside the hospital (and those standing with us) are worth getting wet for any evening.

Update: Andi has more pics and links from Friday night in Raining on CodePink's Parade. She also reprints a stirring letter from Sgt. Leach in Afghanistan who describes his thoughts about the commies at WR.