Wednesday, June 28, 2006

Insurgents band together...

And tell us to get our troops the fuck out of their country....

8 of the 10 main insurgent groups have banded together and approached the new Iraqi government with a proposal.  If the US and Iraqi governments can come up with a 2-yr timetable for the withdrawal of coalition(I have to put this because it's not just US troops...yet)troops from Iraq, then the insurgents will stop their devastating attacks.

Now, I know this sort of falls under the parley of not negotiating with terrorists, but hypothetically, if we were to agree to this, we would have 2 years to clean things up before getting our troops back home.  And hey, if they go back on their word and resume their attacks and suicide bombs, we can say, "DEAL'S OFF!"  In my mind, it's a win-win.

Some may say that there are still 2 groups that are not agreeing to this, but I think if the other 8 groups are serious, they will either convince the stragglers or do what they can to keep the agreement.

I know I'm being idealistic here, but even if it's partially possible, I think we should try to meet them half-way...it keeps iraqi and military deaths to a minimum and gives our troops and their families at home something to look forward to...just a thought...

Currently listening:
A Fever You Can't Sweat Out
By Panic! At The Disco
Release date: 27 September, 2005

Flag Burning

As with every other American child, I said the pledge of allegiance every morning in school.  I put my hand over my heart and stared at the flag, reciting the pledge they taught us on the first day of school.  That flag is our symbol to the world.  It shows our stars and stripes, our pride.  To burn that flag is a showing of immense displeasure with our country or its government.  It is a form of protest that gets attention and at the moment, our right to burn the flag as a form of protest is under fire.  Yesterday, the Senate voted to ban flag burning, only losing by one vote.  ONE VOTE??  So pretty much there's a lot of chicken shit senators who want to be reelected at mid term, so they're afraid to ruffle a few feathers.  More importantly, why is flag burning important enough to take up the Senate's time?  We're in the middle of a military disaster, our president is abusing his power right and left, our citizens are yelling at the top of their lungs about jobs and healthcare, and these bastards are wasting time with a flag burning ban!!!??

How did these people get elected?  Why can't we get people in congress who actually want to make this country a better place instead of just helping retarded special interest groups? 

Currently reading:
Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell : A Novel
By Susanna Clarke
Release date: 11 August, 2005

Monday, June 26, 2006

Supporting the Troops

This weekend, I had the fortune to be in attendance at the Armory in Hartford this weekend, among the thralls of people, to see off the 1087 Transportation division of the CT National Guard.  Among them is my brother-in-law, Eran.  First of all, let me just tell you that the building is fairly imposing, even without all of the people in military dress.  We walked into this large gymnasium and, as we entered, we were handed a yellow ribbon and an american flag on a stick.  Finding our seat, I looked around at the gathered masses, all eyes staring at the troops in formation in the center of the floor.  Seeing this site, it was hard not to feel just a bit patriotic.  The ceremony began with remarks by some high ranking CT military people, introducing a state senator, a us rep for CT, our governor, Jodi Rell, the attorney general, Richard Blumenthal, and a couple other people...I'd be more specific, but the soundsystem made everyone sound like adults in the old Charlie Brown movies.  Having no idea what anyone was saying, I was relegated to clapping and waving the flag when people closer did.

After the thing was over, I spent my last evening hanging with my brother-in-law and wished him well.  I told him to be careful, and come home safely to my sister-in-law.  What didn't I say?  I didn't tell him to kill some Iraqis.  Do you ever notice in those old movies about war that the family of the departing are always full of piss and vinegar to have their family member kill someone on the opposite side?  Were people in WWII really so gung ho to "kill some Japs(or Krauts)"?  That's not what Iraq is about...now the paramount concern isn't how many kills...the number should stay as low as possible...the more pressing need is to just come home.

One more thing...while at the armory, I purchased one of those wristbands...you know the ones...Lance Armstrong made the yellow ones so famous with his cancer charity.  The one I got was a camoflauge one that says support the troops.  Since this conflict in Iraq began, I think this is the first time I actively thought about supporting them.  Of course, I want them to know that we want them to be safe and come home and know that we think they're doing a great job, but having Eran on the verge of going over there, support gets a new meaning.  It means that I will pay the 3.00 for the wristband and wear it every chance I'll get, but it also means that I'll double my efforts to make my voice heard about bringing these troops home.  I know it's selfish to be just bringing myself into this now, but I have a vested interest, so here we go

BRING THEM HOME!!

...that's all for now.


Currently listening:
Eyes Open
By Snow Patrol
Release date: 09 May, 2006

Friday, June 23, 2006

Get our troops the hell out!!!

For those who believe in the war and say that if we leave Iraq, the terrorists will just attack us at home, that argument doesn't work because if you read this article, I think it's a little late for that.  So bring the troops home so they can guard our large buildings and national monuments.  Iraq is a lost cause.

I know I sound pessimistic, but my brother-in-law just got deployed, and I'm bummed, and to be perfectly honest, I want him to come back safely. 

Currently listening:
Closer
By Better Than Ezra
Release date: 07 August, 2001

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

The War Over Fluff

Massachussetts, one of the thirteen original colonies, the home of some of the most rabid baseball fans, Massholes(drivers in MA are insane), the site of many historical battles and sites, now the site of one of the epic battles of our time.  The War of the Fluff!

On the floor of the state Senate, a war is currently raging over Fluff...yes, that delectable, delicious sugary treat that goes so well with peanut butter.  It seems that one of the state senators became enraged after finding out that his son had been served a Peanut butter and fluff sandwich at school, and now he is sponsoring a bill to outlaw selling the delicious sandwich as school lunch more than once a week as the primary meal.  The senator, Jarret Barrios, is facing ooey-gooey marshmallowey opposition from Kathi-Anne Reinstein, a fellow democrat, who represents the district of Revere, MA, where the concoction is made.  Instead, Reinstein believes the sandwich should be made the official sandwich of Massachusetts.

This could get ugly...I'm picturing fluff wrestling...whatever the outcome, the only thing that is clear is the pure and simple taste of fluff.  Happy fluffing!!

Here is a link to the original story: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060621/ap_on_fe_st/fluff_fight_3


Currently listening:
Dream to Make Believe
By Armor for Sleep
Release date: 03 June, 2003

Monday, June 19, 2006

A Bit of reflection brought to you by the Rude Pundit

I like to think that most of the time, I come across as an eloquent and insightful writer, but occasionally, I read something that strikes me to the core and I understand that I don't have quite the gift that others do.  The following is taken from today's posting from the Rude Pundit.  You can find his blog at http://www.rudepundit.blogspot.com  I will warn you that he is extremely cruel and profane at times, but he has a point to his madness when he is doing so.  He is a liberal pundit, so if you don't like to see conservatives bashed, it's probably not the site for you.  That said, please check out the following and let me know how you react to this.  I know it struck a chord with me!

FROM THE RUDE PUNDIT:

"6/19/2006



Two Captured American Soldiers and the Implied "What If":
Chances are, maybe even by the time you read this, the two American soldiers,
captured by Mujahideen Shura Council in Iraq, will be dead, probably in some horrible way, probably with their bodies dumped like all the horribly murdered Iraqis in the blood and gore-strewn landscape that are the markers of Iraqi liberation. The Rude Pundit can't help thinking, though, about the implied "What if" of the capture, on the field of battle, of American soldiers, prisoners of war, if you will.

What if we get pictures of the soldiers, nude, cowering, screaming in a corner, shitting themselves on the filthy floors of a makeshift cell, as their captors hold snarling dogs on leashes just out of bite range of the soldiers?

What if we learn that their captors decide that the soldiers can offer intelligence that can be of use to al-Qaeda and, in order to get that information, the captors put the nude soldiers into rooms that are heated to hellish temperatures, followed by rooms that are impossibly cold with colder water tossed onto them? What if the soldiers are made to stand for days on end? Put into stress positions that fuck up their muscles and limbs? Denied sleep? Had loud music played into their cells? Kept in isolation and fed bread and water for days, weeks on end?

What if they strap one or both of those Americans to a board and hold them underwater until their drowning reflex forces them to panic, thrash, claw desperately for air, only to be brought up to breathe and then placed underwater again? And again? Until the captors get the answers they seek?

What if those captors take the nude, sleep-deprived, shit and piss-covered, nearly drowned and dog-frightened American soldiers and handcuff them to beds with women's panties on their heads, snapping photographs and laughing, talking about publishing the photos so that everyone can see the soldiers with their panty-sniffing heads and terror-shriveled cocks, so that all of al-Qaeda can laugh at what pussies Americans can be made to seem?

What if, and, really, does it need to be said, they are made to stand, hooded, with faux electrodes attached to their nuts and fingers, told that if they don't start answering questions, well, testicles only can take so much electroshock before they just pop like squeezed grapes?

What will our government do? What could it do? Could it condemn the actions as not abiding by the Geneva Conventions? Could it call the actions "torture"? Could it demand accountability? Could it demand that the soldiers be treated as POWs? Could it simply say, "Well, we don't do that shit...
anymore"?

And what about the good right-wing punditry? Would Rush Limbaugh look at the photos of the nude, cowering Americans and say it looks like fraternity hazing or some such shit? Would others dismiss it as a media fabrication? Or would they just pathetically overlook everything done in our American names to Iraqis, Afghanis, and others, calling madly for the heads of the captors, not even thinking about the irony of such a statement?

It goes without saying, but, considering the times, perhaps it needs to be said: the Rude Pundit wishes none of this on Privates Thomas Tucker and Kristian Menchaca. He hopes they are found or released safe and sound. But he also wishes none of this on our prisoners, whether in Iraq, at Gitmo, or in secret prisons or countries of rendition where fuck-all can happen with no law, no regulation, no hope to bespeak our putative humanity."


Currently listening:
Foiled
By Blue October
Release date: 04 April, 2006

Wednesday, June 07, 2006

I hate being conscious of what is happening in the political arena!


Those of you who know me have a good idea where I lean on most things, politically speaking.  Yes, I am one of those liberal democrats that the current administration is so intent on convincing you are evil.  So it will probably come as no surprise that the revived fight about gay marriage on the senate floor is completely incensing and offending me.

 I am not a homosexual, but I do have many friends that are, and even if I did not, I support their rights much like my ancestors supported rights for blacks and women.  I believe that scientifically, homosexuality is not a choice, but a state of being that you are born with.  That's my opinion.

Now, there are those out there that would defend marriage as the oldest religious institution that we have, dating back to the Garden of Eden.  In my honest opinion, there are SO many things wrong with that idea. 

First and MOST important, if marriage is a religious institution, then the government should not be debating it in any public arena, let alone the US Senate floor.  It goes back to that whole church/state separation set down many years ago.  Also, I happen to be a Christian, and was married in a church, but what about people who don't get married in a church?  My wife's sister married her husband on a mountain top, and it was presided over by a Justice of the Peace...does that mean their marriage is not legit? 

Some would also say that gay marriage is going to have a negative effect on the meaning and significance of marriage in our country.  To that I say, how can it realistically get any worse?  The percentage of heterosexual marriages that end in divorce is astronomical.  What is wrong with a few more marriages that might actually succeed.  Gay marriage does nothing to destabilize the institution.  Marriage can easily be defined as a life commitment between two people who love each other and want to spend their entire lives together.

Monogamy is monogamy.  There is no slippery slope that the Conservatives are spewing about.  The number of people who wish to practice polygamy or other CHOICES are few and far between. 

I think the most heinous part of the whole debate is using the biblical excuse.  The old testament god, who routinely destroyed cities and the entire world and used a whole fire and brimstone approach toward mankind.  Some think that god is still in charge, but those same people also read the new testament and believe in the forgiveness of sins that Jesus provided. Did Jesus preach hatemongering and discrimination?  No, he was all about inclusion, and love thy neighbor, no matter their differences.  This debate is not, and will probably never be, over.  Hell, there are still many people out there who are racist and sexist, even though women, blacks and minorities are all equal in the law's eyes. 

Thankfully, there are still a few senators who have not lost total control of their faculties.  The democrats, and a few brave republicans are opposing the amendment to impose a ban on gay marriage.  It's not a federal issue.  Get back to important things, like getting our troops out of Iraq.

Currently listening:
Ganging Up on the Sun
By Guster
Release date: 20 June, 2006