Pinwheels and Orange Peels

Headlines that make you go "Duh"

That was my first thought when I saw this headline on Fox News:  "Zimbabwe Diamond Mine Violates Human Rights."  No kidding.  You don't say. 

I could have a heart attack and die from NOT SURPRISE!

Commitment

I'm a car nut (just ask this lovely gal).  That fact doesn't usually collide with my staunchly conservative, pro-family values, but when I saw this commercial I was shocked to see such a strong pro-family statement within:

Wow.  "Whatever happened to commitment?  To standing by our decisions?"  Contrast that with the Ford Motor Co's ardent support of gay activism.  Ford's support of the gay agenda eliminates any Ford, Volvo, Jaguar, Mazda, Lincoln, Mercury, or Land Rover from my consideration.  My sis-in-law is considering Hyundai's new Veracruz SUV.  And I like the look of the forthcoming Genesis.  What do you think?  Does (or should) a pro-family commercial affect your potential likelihood of choosing a particular brand?

Manipulation

As Meryl says,

Watch it, and be horrified, as you see “Green Helmet Guy” direct the taking of pictures of the victims of Qana.

I wish I could say I'm shocked, but I'm not.

Icky

Guam, our previous assignment, was a great two-year break from US politics and the strife that currently engulfs our great nation.  Honestly, I was burnt out on politics after the presidential election, and it was good to get away to a place where US politics mattered hardly at all.  Now that I'm back, and the country is in even worse shape two years later, I've found I'm even less interested in what folks have to say about it.  It seems that no one has a good answer for the problems we're in.

I'm especially disheartened when I see things like this:

You’d think the Republicans would be the ones in need of professional help. This is a party burdened with a president so unpopular he barely has a base to stand on—Bush seems to be bypassing the lame-duck stage and heading straight for dead duck—a Vietnam-scale quagmire in Iraq and a post-Katrina rot of incompetence and corruption that is infecting the very foundations of the presidency and the GOP’s control of Congress. Not surprisingly, the Republicans are at each others' throats over this loss of prestige and popularity. Neoconservatives and traditionalists are fighting bitterly over foreign policy. Moderates and conservatives are battling over immigration and deficits. And when the maverick John McCain declares his candidacy for 2008 sometime in the next year, the Republicans will be shrieking at each other in public over abortion and other social issues.

I can't even disagree with that.  I'm sick of my own party and the other one.  The thing that's most chilling in that quote is the "V" word.  Not "V" for victory, but "V" for that war everyone wants to forget.  Now, I'm not in Iraq, and I haven't been to the AOR, but this:

The Iraqi parliament shut down briefly in only its second full day of business after a brawl broke out over a cell phone ring.

...makes me wonder if the Iraqi political leaders have perhaps taken too much influence from US politics.  Come on, people!  The person with the phone should have turned it off or changed the tone, and the thin-skinned attacker should think about the greater good of the country.  Arguing about cell phone ring tones is something a stable government can afford to do (not really, but you get the point), not a fledgling democracy that can't even control its own streets.

Well, I'll get a chance to see it first-hand in a few months.  I've got my deployment notification and will be reporting for duty in Iraq in September.  I pray the new government makes some progress before I get there.

Pirates!

Told ya so:

The US navy says it has captured a number of suspected pirates in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Somalia.

Got a little too big for their britches, and called the big dawgs down on themselves.

Pirates

I'm don't typically blog about surface transportation, but the situation off the Somali coast has crept into my peripheral vision over the last few weeks.  Numerous vessels have been attacked by small bands of heavily armed pirates.  Now, it appears the pirates have stepped up the attacks, with five in a week.  This is incredibly dumb for a couple of reasons.

First, the increasing frequency of attacks has exposed the mothership to identification and potential discovery.  Once the authorities know what to look for it's only a matter of time.

Second, the attacks have focused the media's attention on the region's troubles, and I suspect the world will begin to crash down on these pirates.  Pirates like easy prey.  The prey in the waters off Somalia will be getting bigger teeth shortly.

The pirates have escalated the conflict for unknown reasons.  As the Taliban and Al Queda have learned, it's one thing to deal in small, isolated incidents, but another to declare war on the big dogs.   I'll be watching this story closely.  It could be that a small covert operation by US, British, and Australian special operators will shut this operation down quickly and silently.  Or, the international community will dither for months while more ships and hostages are taken to fund more piracy.

I know which option I'd choose.

Justified

In his essay titled Sanctuary, Bill Whittle addressed the terrorists' complete destruction of the laws of war.  Those laws are designed to protect the innocent and establish guidelines for the killing of combatants.  In last weeks shooting of an apparently innocent civilian, the terrorists add yet another death to their scorecard.  There is lively debate all over the net.  For a couple of good essays, check out Steve's post at Hog on Ice.

  A quote:

Menezes would ordinarily have had the right to be subdued without deadly force, and to be interrogated at leisure. That was before terrorists took those rights away from him, by strewing body parts over three bombing sites. The terrorists killed him, and so did the treacherous Muslim morons who quietly applaud them in their homes in the U.S. and Britain.

Or check out Captain Ed's post.  No quote; go read the entire post, and the associated comments. The man came out of a house where suspected terrorist activity was taking place.  He wore a long coat in the warm weather, and ran toward a previously bombed transportation hub when policemen ordered him to stop.

I'd shoot, too.

200 Minutemen

That's all it's taken to stem the flood of illegal immigrants trying to cross the Mexico/Arizona border.  200 citizens fed up with the millions of illegal border crossings each year.  If the news articles are correct, 1.1 million illegals are caught each year, half of them in Arizona.  I had no idea they were catching that many.  The article I linked to above says 400 people a day cross the border where the Minutemen have set up watch.

Mexico declared war on the US years ago, and the Minutemen are standing in the gap.  Who will join them?

Even better, if all it takes is 200 more bodies, why haven't we beefed up the Border Patrol by that and more?

Democrat with a brain

I was disappointed when Virginia elected Gov. Mark Warner, but he did make a step in the right direction with this:

Virginia Gov. Mark Warner yesterday signed into law a measure that denies illegal aliens public benefits, including access to Medicaid, welfare and local health care services.

Hat tip to Pardon My English.  There's the usual grumbling, but this is a good move.  I'd like to see more states take this step.

Airpower

As of Jan. 6, AMC aircraft and aircrews had delivered more than 1.66 million pounds of cargo and 748 passengers supporting tsunami-relief operations.

In ten days the US military organized, deployed, and lifted 1.66 million pounds of cargo.  While pundits whined about the slow response, bases around the world leaned forward and forecast their potential deployment responses.

It takes time to organize a response of this scale.  Essentially responding to an entire theater within five days, the US military has proven once again we have what it takes to go anywhere, anytime.

Edward Fox, USAID’s assistant administrator for legislative and public affairs, said "the one thing that distinguishes the United States from the rest of the world is its military, especially the Air Force and its airlift capability." He said Air Force airlift is a central part of any relief effort of this magnitude. "To be able to provide the type of emergency response needed to save lives, the Air Force logistical capability is indispensable to USAID and others in the international relief area, because we don't have those types of assets," Mr. Fox said. "We are extremely delighted and proud to be working side by side with the U.S. Air Force."

I love being in AMC.  The acronym may stand for "Another Missed Christmas," but the satisfaction of moving so much so quickly is enough for me.