Rants Archives
Bob Herbert
By Townie 76
I rarely agree with Bob Herbert of the New York Times while a very knowledgeable man, I find his trendy liberalism hard to take—most of the time. However, there are occasional exceptions, today’s piece by Herbert entitled “A Fearful Price” is one of them (New York Times, December 8, 2009. Page 37). Before commenting on his commentary, here are two quotes from his piece:
"The idea that fewer than 1 percent of Americans are being called on to fight in Afghanistan and Iraq and that we’re sending them into combat again and again and again—for three tours, four tours, five tours, six tours—is obscene. All decent people should object.”
“The air is filled with obsessive self-satisfied rhetoric about supporting the troops, giving them everything they need and not letting them down. But that rhetoric is as hollow as a jazzman’s drum because the overwhelming majority of Americans have no desire at all to share in the sacrifices that the service members and their families are making. Most Americans do not want to serve in the wars, do not want to give up their precious time to do volunteer work that would aid the nation’s warriors and their families, do not even want to fork over the taxes that are needed to pay for the wars.”
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Politicans and the Troops
By Townie 76
Soldiers, Sailors, Airman, and Marines are not political props.
Whether announcing a new strategy at West Point or proclaiming Mission Accomplished on the deck of the Abraham Lincoln, politicians regardless of party need to stop this practice. It is disingenuous to our democratic principles as it gives the appearance of a stamp of approval by the military of the President’s policies.
It is wrong, as those in uniform have only one choice to salute and execute the President’s policies—they are not free to dispute the policies of their political leadership. (Yes I know they do have other choices they can resign or disobey and face courts martial.)
Life in paradise as Guantanamo Four take a dip, eat ice cream, and plan first Uighur restaurant in British territory of Bermuda
By John
This burns my ass for two reasons.
1) It significantly degrades our already fragile relationship with the British.
2)
Pelosi and the CIA
By Townie 76
I am putting this under the heading of rants, because I find the behavior of the Speaker of the House this week towards the CIA loathsome. She is a political opportunistic and seeks to appease her liberal base in San Fransisco, who are out of the mainstream of American politics. In today's Washington Post, David Ignatius take the Speaker to task for playing politics with the CIA. If there is one aspect of this sordid behavior which deserves commending is the response of the CIA Director Leon Panetta who made it clear in his response that the Speaker was not being truthful.
Unfortunately for our nation, unlike VMI, there is no single sanction for lying in American politics.
How we stopped being wise...
By John
Not military related per se, but it's perhaps the most succinct, condemning treatise on the dangers of excessive bureaucracy/regulations that I've seen. 20 minutes is a mouthful, I admit -- but scouts honor on this one: Mr. Schwartz makes it worth every second.
Oh, and if you've ever served in the military -- you'll be on your feet like an evangelical revival.
My favorite quote? Wise people are made, not born.
Stupid People
By Townie 76
I enjoy shooting. Friday, my wife and I stopped at a local shooting range, it is run by a gun store owner and has about 15 firing points ranging from 15 yards to 100 yards.
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Real American Heroes
By John
You know what I think won the Cold War? It wasn't SDI or perestroika or the MX missile, but MacGuyver. You know, before Richard Dean Anderson shaved his mullet, put on dress blues, and went off fighting aliens. Yeah Reagan could field a new bomber, or sub, or ICBM.... but it's not like the Sovs hadn't been countering our kit for the past few decades.
Sorry, but I can just see Gorbachev sitting in his dacha, watching pirated satellite tv, and thinking "what effin' good is a T-72 tank when this asshole is building jetskis out of coffins?" After spending eight years having the love juice kicked out of him by Afghani nomads whose logistical infrastructure consisted of a couple of donkeys, imagine the pscyhological impact of watching MacGuyver turn microwaves into neutron bombs and chemical engineering nitramines out of shit you find under your kitchen sink. Sorry Charlie, but if you can think of a more successful PSYOP initiative, I'm all ears.
And let's consider dates here. MacGuyver ran from the frosty heart of the Cold War 80s until May 1992. That's right. Less than five months after the USSR collapsed, so went our gadget-toting hero. Just enough time to finish out the season. Sans the mighty Soviet bear, the world no longer needed a man who could hold the Fulda Gap with a roll of duct tape and a dirty look.
This guy was perfect. Recognizing wasted talent, White House and Hollywood execs pulled him right off of that crappy military sitcom Emerald Point N.A.S. and stuck him on a propaganda show that intelligence officials knew would strike right into the icy heart of the Soviet Union. A tv drama that reminded the Soviets, even though we're whupping your ass in the arms race, all we really need is a swiss army knife and a bottle of Draino.
So I salute you, Richard Dean Anderson. The world may not know how you single handedly toppled communism, but here at OPFOR, we'll keep a cold one waiting.
Next up: how the A-Team was a front for the Contras in Nicaragua.
