My Sandmen: April 2006

Saturday, April 29, 2006

What Is Being Left - The Parallax Projection...

Mr.Atos

Projection noun: The attribution of one's own attitudes, feelings, or desires to someone or something as a naive or unconscious defense against anxiety or guilt.

New York City, ca April 29, 2006

Parallax noun: An apparent change in the direction of an object, caused by a change in observational position that provides a new line of sight.

New York City, ca. September 11, 2001

Friday, April 28, 2006

The Fighting Keebees...

Mr.Atos

Ed of Captain's Quarters has united with other affiliated bloggers to form a new civilian defense regiment,

... Frank J of IMAO, Derek Brigham of Freedom Dogs, and I have decided to create -- for real -- the 101st Fighting Keyboardists and adopt the chicken hawk as our mascot. First of all, the term "fighting keyboardist" describes our efforts pretty well, and we think the pseudo-military terminology is pretty danged amusing. Derek himself designed the logo.

And why the chicken hawk? When we looked into it, it turns out that the chicken hawk is a pretty impressive predator. It's the largest of its family. This species vigorously defends its territory, getting even more aggressive when the conditions get harshest. It adapts to all climates. Most impressively, it feeds on chickens, mice, and rats.
Make of that what you will.

To the list of prey, we'll add talking monkeys as My Sandmen have reported for duty with The Fighting Keebees.

Booyah!

Thursday, April 27, 2006

Major Mike

"Vote, or I’ll Steal Yo Money"

I caught this link early in the week and I am going to have to post on each of the first two articles. Roger Freidman out-sleuths the GAO in uncovering that the, apparently now defunct 2004 “Vote or Die” campaign organized and pushed by the likes of Sean “P.Diddy” Combs, seems to be missing hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Of course they found plenty of dollars to pay their cronies…as the Dems always seem to be able to do.

“For a not-for-profit that operated only a short time — from April to November 2004 — Citizen Change had some walloping expenses.
Mark Seliger charged them $100,000 for photography. They spent another $541,000 on advertising and $252,000 for billboards. Citizen Change's total expenses came to over $2 million even with Burkle's largesse, and came in at $23,000 in the red.”

I think it is becoming obvious that, more and more people are beginning to look at the wildly flailing Democrat machine, and viewing it as an opportunity to enter the “business” of politics. The closer the Dems embrace these kinds of efforts, the more scrutiny they themselves deserve. Dems seem to be are increasingly operating in the margins of fundraising, and seem unashamed when they get caught. Additionally, they are not very shy about passing the favors around once in office…embarrassing and near criminal. Lincoln bedroom. Rob Reiner.

Dixie Chicks Hit #1...On IPod Downloads

Finally it looks like the D Chicks have some momentum with their new single, "Not Ready To Make Nice", in fact, they have hit #1 on the IPod download list, and are cracking the top 30 Billboard singles list. Good luck with that. I am sure most Americans have forgotten Natalie Maines slammed the President, in front of an overseas audience, soon after our troops crossed the LOD.

Yeah, they probably forgot, but I haven’t.

“Maines told the London concert audience: "Just so you know, we're ashamed the President of the United States is from Texas."”

I am sure she meant that in the best way. I am sure Texas is WAY proud of you!

Actress Quits Broadway Production…Baldwin Blamed

The highly regarded actor, Alec Baldwin, seems somewhat responsible for the hasty departure of Jan Maxwell from the NY revival production of “Entertaining Mr. Sloan.”

“Maxwell's departure was first reported Wednesday in the New York Post, which obtained a copy of an e-mail the actress sent to a friend about Baldwin. In the note, the actress declared that the "bottom line was my physical safety, mental health and artistic integrity -- none of which Roundabout was supporting."”
“Maxwell said Baldwin put his fist through a wall and was "throwing things around with all of us cowering," and Maxwell accused Baldwin of giving the Roundabout an ultimatum: refusing to go on with her.”

Doesn’t sound like the even-tempered Baldwin we know…does it? Come to think of it he was a little short with Sean Hannity.

Maybe it was jealousy…

"In "Sloane," she received mostly positive notices for her portrayal of a sex-starved woman vying with her brother, played by Baldwin, for the attentions of her hunky tenant. The Associated Press said Maxwell gave "a hilarious, tremulously determined performance."”

I don’t ever recall the hugely egotistical Baldwin ever receiving a review like that…but, he was very good in The SpongeBob Square Pants Movie.

GOP and Christmas in May

Ding-dong Republicans are attempting to buy votes this fall by trying to entice voters with $100. Nice…I’ll take the money, but I won’t vote for any Republican who votes for such an obvious ploy. Also, I won’t be donating to the NRC until they can figure out that they are not Democrats.

There is nothing in the Constitution that requires our government to smooth out all of the bumps in the road for us. In the end, this type of income re-distribution, is only a clever disguise for socialism…and I don’t find that word ANYWHERE in the Constitution.

Republicans…listen to Hugh Hewitt, and quit doing a combination of “the Bump,” the Limbo, and the Macarena in an effort to get elected in the fall. Grow up and act like Republicans.

Arlen Spector Switches Parties

In a bold move today, Arlen Specter, likely after signing on as a sponsor for the $100 Socialistic Rebate Bill, decided to switch party affiliations. He is a confused as anyone. His first official act…clamping down on the President’s wiretapping initiative. Specter (D-PA) laid down the law with the President today…

"Institutionally, the presidency is walking all over Congress at the moment," Specter, R-Pennsylvania, told the panel. "If we are to maintain our institutional prerogative, that may be the only way we can do it."

Nice work dude…attempt to restrict the Presidential War Powers while we’re fighting the GWOT, AND split the party in an election year. Why is this dufus still the Chairman of Judiciary? Not another dime to the RNC, until they can clean up this kind of silliness.

Journalist in Training

The MSM will likely be recruiting at Harvard this summer. A rising literary star, Kaavya Viswanathan…ooops, sidetracked by that nasty plagiarism thing. No worries, convenient and viable excuses are readily available. She is well equipped with the non-excuse excuse…

“She has already shifted blame to her subconscious, saying on "Today" that when she read McCafferty's books in high school, they "spoke to me in a way that few others had."”

And a perfectly logical explanation…

"When I was writing, I genuinely believed each word was my own."

Nice work…it could happen to anyone…I often write exactly like Victor Davis Hansen after reading him…of course that skill seems to fade in time…I wonder why.

Don’t fret…I am sure the NYT will pick her up as a writer, or any of the large networks will pick her up as a producer…she’ll be fine.

Democrat Painters Fail to Finish Contract Work At UNC-Chapel Hill and NC State - Union Workers Irate

Employees of the North Carolina Employee's Union filed a grievance with the State's Labor Relations Board today for failing to use union employees to paint the ROTC buildings on each campus. The non-union painters failed to meet established State standards according to one source close to the story. Union leaders on campuses across the country have been trying to snuff out scab labor on painting contracts, as well as some custodial contracts. Michelle Malkin has photos of the non-union activities taking place at NC State, UNC-Chapel Hill where the painting dispute is taking place. And she also has an update on the scab labor used for an illegal grounds clean up at Northern Kentucky University.

Photos taken after the UNC, NC State episodes reveal shoddy workmanship, several OSHA violations, and failure to clean the job site to union standards.

A Midshipman who wishes to remain annonymous commented..."I was just happy to see them spell most of the words right, this is a public school, you know...sir."

I guess all you Seventies Throwback Types are getting all A's, and that your parents are very proud of you and your latest effort.

I rest easy at night knowing that behind the doors you painted, men and women are being trained to protect this nation. And that those selfless souls will endure many more hardships than you can imagine. And that when their time comes to defend us, yes, even you chucklehead idioclones, they will do so, and succeed. You should also know that you made less than zero impact on their commitment, and that you only embarassed yourselves in the process. Ideo-idioclone chuckleheads.

Visions of Die Sturm...

Mr.Atos

Die Sturm have struck again. Michelle Malkin reports the latest acts of violence executed by the Left. The most recent target is UNC-Chapel Hill's ROTC armory vandalized in the name of peace(?)

Inspired by certain evasive Liberal provocatuers, it seems fitting to now chronicle every episode of their decent into the rancid pits of human depravity from wence the worst atrocities Man has ever known, have emanated. Welcome to our newest regular feature here at My Sandmen... Visions of Die Sturm.

Thank you Sir Godwin of Flee. Remember that your delusion only works if I choose to sanction its folly.

I do not give such sanction!

UPDATE: 04.28.06.06:51

Just in case you are tempted to accuse me of hyperbole, either for this new feature, or for my ongoing warnings to my former fellow Democrats about What Is Being Left, it took no more than one commenter to illustrate the danger building in the hate-filled vortices of Die Sturm...

Quote: "More is deserved here than just ‘property damage’...Executions... are what are in order here."

It goes on. And why not, the rancid insect makes my point better than I.

Take note. Take heed. Because it is exactly what is being Left...

Tuesday, April 25, 2006

The Fifth Column...

Mr.Atos

For anyone attempting to gain a grip on the quickly unfolding story of betrayal and treason that is engulfing the latest news cycle, Allahpundit has summarized it to date over at Hot Air Network with a fabulously detailed article titled, CIA Leak: A Blog Primer.

This is one of those stories where, if you miss the first 48 hours, you end up feeling so far behind the curve that you tune it out and never bother with it again. So here’s a round-up of news and blog coverage which, while longish, will bring you up to speed. As of this writing, McCarthy “categorically denies” being the leaker, according to former counterterrorism official/Kerry campaign staffer Rand Beers. So the jury’s still out – although government sources are telling Newsweek to fret not, for the leaker is most definitely she.

Indeed. This story is unfolding fast, with a depth that might make Alice fret. Wretchard has been contributing typically good analysis as well over at the Belmont Club.

This is fascinating. We are watching a real, live game of Spy vs Spy. Except that in this case the players are not, or I think are not the Rooskies versus the Americans. The players are wearing different jerseys. Like In From the Cold, I wonder when this game started. What did Ariel Durant say? "A great civilization is not conquered from without until it has destroyed itself from within."

This tale is eerily beginning to resemble the epic assualt of Troy... only without the Horse. Trojans, in the role of State Department insiders, journalists, and elected officials, who despise both Priam and Hector, have slipped out in the night to slice throats and open the gates to enemy beyond. In this case, the butchers outside are not quite as heroic as Homer's Greeks. And yet the betrayers are somehow more loathsome than the barbarians.

Emilio Mola Vidal, called them his 'fifth' column. I called them the 'enemy within.' Either way, clearly we are fighting a war on both sides of the wall and there is no option to fall back. We are at a climax in our existence. Someday, an epic historian will give this episode a name. Do let's hope that historian, as with Homer, is not recording a fleeting recollection of our tragedy from the triumphant perspective of the enemy...

...long after we are dead.

Monday, April 24, 2006

Arguing the Unarguable, and Getting Away With It

Major Mike

Competitive debate is judged. It is the responsibility of the judge(s) to consider the presentation made by both sides, and determine whose arguments… based on logic, reasoning, coherency, supporting evidence, significance, and myriad of other factors… carry the day. It is the responsibility of these judges to clear their mind of their own prejudices, track the flow of the debate, weigh the persuasiveness of each side, and decide which side has established the most credibility for their arguments, and determine a winner.

Typically this is done millions of time a day without judges…at home, in business, in politics, in the newspapers, and regrettably, by the pundits on TV. I’ll get back to that. But people make logical, coherent arguments everyday. Persuasive and logical arguments move businesses, run households, and are the basis for all rational change in the world. But rarely do people argue the unarguable.

There was a time when right was right, and wrong was wrong. The “wrong” was unarguable. Lying is wrong. Stealing is wrong. Stealing classified documents is wrong. Having sex with an intern in your office is wrong. Releasing classified documents to the press, breaking your oath of office, for partisan and individual political gain is wrong.

But, I guess that was before the Les Mis age, before the age of moral relativism, before the politically induced class war we now have here in America. And, well before we had to actually argue about the meaning of the word “is.”

Taking ones’ property without permission used to be called stealing, and it used to be wrong. But in today’s age of moral relativism, we now find ourselves defending this black/white view, against the Les Mis crowd, who would argue that it is perfectly okay to steal if you are hungry, and trying to feed your family. There may be myriad of other good reasons to steal private property…to overcome poverty, to balance the inequities in our capital based economic system, and for simple personal gain that may help you skip several rungs of the ladder…on your way to the top. All enticing…all…wrong

So what prompted this short dissertation? Not simply that Mary McCarthy, a partisan political player and former CIA employee, who intentionally leaked potentially damaging classified documents to the press, but it was Juan Williams’ impassioned defense of her actions on Fox News Sunday that made me apoplectic.

Although I have yet to find the transcript for that portion of the panel discussion (with Brit Hume, Mara Liason, and Bill Kristol), Juan’s impassioned defense of the indefensible was a thing of beauty. At one point the camera cut to Brit Hume who had one hand over his eyes, as he couldn’t believe what Juan was saying.

I’ll have to paraphrase, but I think I have earned the trust of our readers to do so, also…any other Fox News Sunday viewers please back me up…Juan was clearly saying that it was perfectly okay for this sworn CIA employee, who had signed dozens and dozens of confidentiality agreements, covering myriad of classified programs, to violate those oaths … “if she felt the administration was wrong, and if she felt it was the right thing to do.” Or words to that effect.

I believe this was the exact moment that Brit was closely checking the lines on the palm side of his left hand. Juan had come unglued in his defense of the indefensible. This is what caused me to pause. Juan Williams came out his chair to make the point that it was perfectly okay for a politically connected, Democrat contributing, oath taking, CIA officer to leak classified material to the press if they “felt” it was the right thing to do. He was arguing the unarguable, and he plainly was comfortable with doing so.

There is no scenario in which the illegal leaking of classified material is defensible, regardless of the recent spat of Pulitzers rewarding such behaviors. And it is this turn in the MSM that most clearly highlights their liberal bias. When an officer of this nation steps out of the bounds of their office, there is no argument about the right or wrong of it. It is wrong on a hundred levels, but when the press uses their access to the airwaves to defend the indefensible, simply to damage the Administration, they have gone (further) beyond the pale. Juan Williams is just showing us the way of the rest of the MSM. He is showing us that the MSM has clearly taken itself out of a position to judge, they are now arguing on their own.

Let us get over this pretense of neutrality and impartiality, Juan Williams put these notions to rest this weekend. The MSM is moving closer and closer to becoming the communication arm of the Dem Party, and Juan Williams provides us the evidence. When it becomes impossible for reporters to easily distinguish between right and wrong, it is time for them to cease being reporters...if they truly ever were.

Update, 1636 PST: Found Fox News Sunday transcript, and the Juan Williams inanity...HT Grandaddy Long Legs who found it at NewsBusters.

I have bolded the points that make my case...enjoy the defense of the indefensible...

BRIT HUME: That is not an exercise simply of First Amendment rights. This was a violation of her oath and her responsibility.
CHRIS WALLACE: All right. I'm going to...
JUAN WILLIAMS: Let me -- no, let me...
CHRIS WALLACE: No, no, no. No.
WILLIAMS: Let me just quickly respond.Brit, she took a risk. She was very aware of what she had signed. She is now bearing the cost of having broken that pledge.
WALLACE: So this is an act of conscience?
WILLIAMS: And so in that sense, yes, I do believe it's an act of honor.
WALLACE: And if it's an act of conscience, then why did she do it surreptitiously?
WILLIAMS: What?
WALLACE: Why did she do it surreptitiously?
WILLIAMS: She did it because she wanted to get the word out.
HUME: Why didn't she just walk out, stand on the street corner, and pass it out?
WILLIAMS: She could have, but she had a reporter...
HUME: But she didn't.
WILLIAMS: ... that she had a relationship with.
HUME: I know why she didn't. She didn't because that way she would have become known. She wanted to do it and not get caught. That's why.
WILLIAMS: The United States should not be engaged (my emphasis...Williams' personal beliefs showing through here) -- I mean, you can have the argument about what we need to do to combat terrorism.But the establishment of secret prisons -- and if she felt that this was a violation of our principles as a country and was untenable in terms of her conscience working for the U.S. government, why shouldn't she act?
WILLIAM KRISTOL: She should quit.
HUME: Well, she should quit, then.
WILLIAMS: Well, I don't know what she did -- what her decision was...
HUME: She didn't quit. She just got canned.
WILLIAMS: It doesn't have to be that she could quit. She could say you know what, I just want to get this information out any way I can. And she did, and now she's in trouble for it. She's bearing the cost, there's no question.
WALLACE: Please address all of your letters to Juan Williams.

Wallace gets it...he doesn't want to jump on that grenade for Juan.

Update: Great Mark Levin piece at NRO. HT Michelle Malkin.

Thursday, April 20, 2006

What Is Being Left - Sturmabteilung ...

Mr.Atos

The Sturmabteilung, translated as 'storm division' or 'storm troopers', were originally specialized units of assault troops used by the Germany forces in World War I. Instead of a large mass assault, typical of the times, the Sturmabteilung were organized into small teams of a few soldiers each, deployed along the lines for rapid infiltration assaults of enemy positions that proved more effective.

The term was revived after the War by civilian paramilitary organizations of the German Nazi party playing a key role in Adolf Hitler's rise to power in the 1930s. Often known as brownshirts from the color of their cheaply available recycled uniforms, the SA carried out numerous acts of violence against opposition groups throughout the 1920's and into the 30s. The SA grew in importance within the Nazi power structure, eventually being re-organized as the infamous SS.

Today, despite the ongoing hyperbolic, vitriolic rhetoric vomited forth by the Left relating Conservatism to Nazism and comparing President Bush to Adolf Hitler, it is they who actually employ those methods that delivered such atrocities as Kristallnacht. Die Sturmabteilung have indeed assembled again. In places like The University of California at Santa Cruz, youthful idiots have adapted the tested tactics of those odious thugs to personify the contemporary nature and intent of what is being Left.

April 11: Military recruiters packed up their displays and left a UC Santa Cruz job fair Tuesday after several protesters attempted to force themselves inside the fair while others blocked the entrance over the course of a tense hour-long standoff.
April 17: Vandals struck at least six sport utility vehicles Saturday night on the Westside, slashing tires and spray-painting politically charged messages such as "Oil equals blood" and "Guzzle" on the side of the vehicles, authorities said.
One of the victims, Andrea Muzzi, who lives in a house at King Street and Berkshire Avenue, said she saw a group of 30 to 40 young men on bicycles ride away after using a knife to slash the four tires on her brand-new GMC Yukon, which was parked in front of her house.
April 17th: After reporting on these stories, online journalist Michelle Malkin begins receiving abusive messages and threats; Like that from so-called Jake Daab of Chicago Illinois... "I guess it's time... To post not only YOUR personal information on the web, but that of your family as well...After all, Michelle, it's only fair. Hmmm...who should we start with and where shall we post it? You are a reprehensible excuse of a human being." jaked1963@yahoo.com is one of the kinder ones.
April 19th: Threats escalate against Michelle Malkin as her family's private home address, phone numbers, photos, and maps of her neighborhood are spread among the new Sturmabteilung websites... for use at their discretion.

Like Portland talk radio host, Lars Larson before, Michelle Malkin and her family have become a target of what is being Left. Using threats, coersion, and ultimately violence, the new Sturmabteilung intends to silence all opposition against their desired political and ideological ambitions.

In previous posts, I warned of gathering storms. Wake up and play close attention, America! ... especially rational Democrats. The core mentality that is demanding a return to power in this Nation, and in the name of the Democrat Party, represents neither your interests, nor American values. The fringe obscenity that is what is being Left in the absense of reason - born of 60's radicalism, and 20th century nihilism - worships violence over voice toward its ends of control by means of destruction, violence, aggression... or frankly by any means necessary. For what is being Left has already been discarded once by civilized Man... at the cost of some 62 million lives and unimagineable destruction.

It dare not be recycled by means of tolerance for the likes of these primordial denizens of chaos and anarchy that curddle at the fetid core of what is being Left.

(Edited for clarity 04.21.06.09:05)

Wednesday, April 19, 2006

A Lesson About War

Major Mike

This post began as a comment to Mr. Atos’ superb piece below, but it grew into its own post as I pondered a bit further.

I found it interesting that between my “Greatest Hits” post below, and Mr. Atos’ “Storm Warning,” little has changed...even though some of the posts in my compilation are over a year old, and Mr. Atos’ piece is over eighteen months old. Why are we recycling our posts? Fair question, sadly the answer is…because nothing has changed. Unbelievably...

We still have citizens who still fail to acknowledge the gravity of the many threats that target this country everyday.

We still have citizens helping the enemy, because they politicize every aspect of the conflict we are in.

We still have citizens that don’t have the will to protect their own freedom against these threats.

Simple as that. After nearly five years of responding to a declaration of war by sociopathic Islamist extremists, we have people… refusing to acknowledge their existence or the veracity of their threats, willing to help them for political gain, and we have people who would rather curl up in a ball and let these evil forces dominate our culture, our country and our world. Incredible.

In an effort to make the problem real easy for the mouth-breathers to understand, I offer the following course of instruction below.

Threat Recognition 101. Anyone with a gun is a threat. Anyone who attacks you with a gun is a threat. Anyone who blows up your embassies, attacks your troops in the field, attacks your ships, kills your citizens, flies airplanes into your buildings…is a threat. Anyone with a nuclear weapon is a threat. All sociopaths are a threat. Any insane, sociopath running a country that has or seeks nuclear weapons, is a big threat.

Aiding and Abetting 101. If you provide the enemy food or ammo, you are helping him. If you provide the enemy, or allow him to otherwise obtain, money to buy food and ammo, you are helping him. If you know what the enemy is trying to do, and you assist him in doing it, you are helping the enemy. If you undermine the efforts of your forces in the field, for any reason whatsoever, you are helping the enemy. If you execute a play, that the enemy is hoping you will run, in favor of a short term political gain, you are helping the enemy.

Democracy 101. Democracy=voting. Islamafacsism=no voting. Democracy=freedoms. Islamafacsism=freedom to worship Islam...only. If you don’t fight for deomcracy, you will lose it. At some point in time, all of our citizens will have to fight for their freedoms, in order to protect them; if we don’t we WILL be dominated by nuclear weapons possessing, Muslim extremist sociopaths, who will show you that Islam is not the “Religion of Peace” when it comes to annihilating westerners, western beliefs, and western culture.

Comparative Civilizations 101. People who murder innocent people with airplanes…bad. People who have free elections, free press, freedom of speech…good. Sociopaths who threaten to annihilate their neighbors with nuclear weapons, simply because they are Jewish…bad. People who keep people with nuclear weapons from annihilating their neighbors with nuclear weapons…good. People who suppress and abuse women because of their culture…bad. People who allow women equality in society…good.

Pop Psychology 101. You can negotiate the gun away from the sociopath, but you can’t negotiate away his problem…he is still a sociopath. Remember, all sociopaths are threats…see Threat Recognition 101 above. Talking about a problem with a sociopath usually only delays the final, necessary conflict. Talking about their problem with someone who wants to kill you, will only delay your death by a few minutes. Understanding someone else’s problems does not make you friends, allies, or buddies.

It is still unbelievable to me that most of our country doesn’t get that we are at war, and that this war will last a long time. They don’t get that it will cost some American lives…military and civilian. They don’t get that this war is extremely difficult to execute (notice we still don’t have a detailed plan from the left on how to win the GWOT). They don’t get that mistakes will be made. They don’t get that American solidarity behind the effort is a key factor for success. And they don’t get that …THERE IS NO APPEASING AL-QAEDA, THE IRANIAN SOCIOPATHIC MULLAHS, OR ANY ISLAMIC EXTREMIST…they will not be deterred through negotiation, appeasement, or sanctions. They don’t get that Islamic extremists, regardless of where they live, or what they call themselves…that they, and their will, must be destroyed by a focused and determined west. A west that understands that these maniacal sociopaths are bent on destroying our culture and our democracies, and that they’d be happy to slay a few peaceniks along the way.

Wake up America, your life depends on it.

Class dismissed.

Tuesday, April 18, 2006

"Storm Warning..."

Mr. Atos

NOTE: I first posted the following essay here in September of 2004. At that time, and in the midst of the Iraq and Presidential campaigns, the political aggression of the American Left seemed to be conspiring (for all intents and purposes) with the violent aggression of fanatic butchers in a growing storm that threatened to ravage the defenses of this Nation in one of its most critical hours. Today, in the face of yet another emminent threat, the Left continues its rampage, even as the danger has escalated from a tempest of terrorist aggression to a maelstrom of global armageddon. It is as clear now as ever it was that America faces one unified enemy both without, and sadly within. The warning was sounded during the 2004 election. Now in 2006 before another pair of critical campaigns, the storm is upon us...

... and the aftermath is very, very uncertain.

Growing up in Texas, it was exciting to watch the great thunderstorms come rolling dark and ominous out of the northwest sky. They were fast and frightening to be sure, yet quite safe to watch right up to the last minute, when the crash of the thunder united with the flash of lightning, and the eerie green glow warned of the eminent danger that was upon you.

But, the storms did not always make a deliberate approach across a 200 mile horizon at 60 miles an hour. At times, they erupted overhead... the air ripe to seeding the very tempest that approached. Suddenly, the danger was not eminent. It was among you, growing in the very space you occupied; wind, rain, lightning above and beyond, trapping you where you stood, exposed and in peril.

Since September 2001, Americans have been watching the horizon for the storm's inevitable approach, preparing refuge and reaction. But, like a surprise summer storm, the atmosphere about us is seeding a threat that has already engulfed the Nation. CBS's rather absurd memo debacle is merely the thunder and lightning warning in unison that danger abounds. The enemy is without and now within, and we are suddenly engaging the conflict in every manner and from all directions.

The enemy-without is clear enough and ever present beyond the gates. It uses terror to paralyze. The more horrible is the atrocity the better, for it's weapon is fear. It negotiates with shrapnel bombs that disintegrate flesh. It tortures and executes school-children. It flies passenger jets into towers serving as offices/apartments/daycares. And when traditional methods of terror become passé by the it's own standards, the enemy-without regresses to the saracen barbarism of individual beheadings. This may surely be followed by an aztecan approach involving the flaying of victims and dancing about in their fresh skin (Reference). Perhaps that enemy will descend into more stygian depths of lovecraftian horror, and simply devour Western victims in front of Al Jazeera's cameras... the official network of cthulhuan vulgarity.

Yet, if the self-righteous purveyors of mainstream news flow in America consider themselves any better than their primeval counterpart, their complicity in sabotage proves different. They are equally guilty of their own brand of journalistic vulgarity. CBS is but one insurgent body exposed. Like the enemy-without, the enemy-within dispenses with fundamental principles governing it's existence, to manifest desired changes that are imperative to a preferential reality. The favored ends justify questionable means. In fact, the method makes it an enemy of it's own cause by detaching it forever from any semblance of moral justification that renders reason possible. Just as a cancer is a body's own tissue turned deadly, so to has the fourth estate, become a fifth column where mainstream American journalism is concerned. Behaving like saboteurs, partisan journalism works to undermine the fabric of principle that unites the people of this nation to fundamental ideology on which the foundations of civilization is built.

The CBS network’s latest foible is not the beginning of the process. It is merely the most readily observant sham, in a long history of pretense that has stretched back nearly 40 years (Reference). Toto (in the form of a handful of bloggers) pulled back the curtain of the latest charade to reveal but one charlatan who has been making fools of the American public - possibly since his career began. It begs the question... How many other times has a member of the press manufactured the story of the news, according to their fictional image based on cultural and ideological bias?Indeed, Anne Morse, in her recent piece at National Review Online demonstrates that this is not the first time that Mr. Rather has been exposed as a fraud. She recalls the controversy surrounding his 1988 CBS ’documentary ‘ that made Michael Moore a veritable historian by its standard of journalistic malfeasance. Could it be that Dan Rather was merely the ‘Jason Blair’ that didn’t get caught? Fool us twice, Mr. Rather, shame on us, to be sure. But, how fitting it is for Dan's career to end with he as the biggest fool of all. Nevertheless, dare we assume that he and Blair are alone in their endeavor to undermine arguably the most critical institution of American Democracy? To do so, would make us not merely fools, but imbeciles to boot.

Imbeciles do however, make more manageable subjugates; a fact not lost on CBS orJohn Kerry for that matter. Likewise do intellectuals devoid of the capacity for judgment. Discrimination has been chiseled away from contemporary sensibilities. Grouped with words like 'prejudice' and 'intolerance', the tools of logic have been abandoned to a linguistic slag heap of unacceptable profanities that ironically includes no actual profanity. And so, we have surrendered discrimination to tolerance without judgment. We are told that our nation is evil, that our neighbors are confused, stupid and degenerate, that pride must be divested from personal identity, and esteem is a gift of benevolence bestowed on the unworthy. We are warned that we have more to fear from our brethren than from the butchers of global terror. And we are expected to believe without question. Ignorance is clearly the perfect environment for monsters. Is it any wonder that schools are under attack in Beslan and Afghanistan?... and in America as well?!

The enemy-without invades the schools of children, taking them hostage to torture and murder them before our eyes. The enemy-within imbeds itself inside the system and destroys our children's minds by the systematic obliteration of knowledge, values, and principles. It teaches that justice is subjective, equality is determined by outcome, convictions are subordinate to consensus, gender is neutral, ethics are personal, and religion is repugnant. Outright murder might be more humane than the tortured existence of a conflicted, relativistic, proto-human aberration that is dispensed into a rational universe that refuses contradiction. Survival in that state is virtually impossible. Good judgment does not simply require the recognition of the difference between food and poison, but acknowledges the quality of sense not to eat the one that will kill you. Lacking that judgment, one is left dependent exclusively on fate... trusting blindly in the charity of friends, and the mercy of villains. It is a recipe for suicide. The enemy-without wants to slice our throats.

The enemy-within implores us to slice our own throats.The storm converges on all aspects of civilization simultaneously. Once the impact has undermined the stability of structure and foundations, it can dismantle components with ease. The enemy-without ignores legality altogether; civil relationships among men, being an inconvenient anathema to violent persuasion. Their code consists of one article: "Agree with us or we'll kill you." The enemy-within alters legality by semantic confusion to render a despotic precedent that states: "Agree with us or we'll sue, fine, fire, or jail you." Compulsion being the preferred form of violence, the enemy-within manipulates the system accordingly. It infiltrates our courts and mires due process. It hijacks legislative authority to implement mandate by rogue edict. It destroys justice by substituting the moral concept of liberty with an indefinable abstract called fairness. The enemy-without practices violence with no law. The enemy-within uses the law to justify violence in the form of tyranny.

Like the arrival of hail, the CBS debacle is the final indicator of eminent demise from a storm that has ripened in conditions of degenerating perfection... the meeting of fruit and rot in a celebration of violent putrifaction with Dan as it's worm. The enemy-without finds our very existence, repugnant. Likewise, the enemy-within detests humanity and it's perceived global impact while thriving on human ignorance. It despises wealth and a free-market economy. It diminishes the primacy of individual identity and subordinates choice to prescription. The enemy-within surrenders the conviction of leadership to the consensus of collective approval. It undermines the mandate for decisive action by incessant challenge. It superimposes an ambition for political power over the necessity for national security. It indulges fear, suspicion, hyperbole, rage, and malfeasance as means to its ends; blinding it to the consequences of those actions, and its own collusion with monsters. The enemy-without places bombs in trains and police stations to destroy the spirit of resolve and demoralize a population. The enemy-within dissents without contribution (Reference), and quashes free speech (Reference). It destroys property and commerce (Reference). It produces video propaganda(Reference) and distributes it via production companies or even mass email and on to friends and co-workers and says, “...isn’t this interesting and disturbing,” without mentioning that the depiction is factually incorrect. Propaganda does the job of an I.E.D. while preserving the semblance of integrity... if only in the mind of it's distributor. Both are the tools of mayhem, deployed by an adversary. Like the violent storm, forces converge upon an unsuspecting nation to deliver destruction within its midst as one united front.

That storm is not coming... it is upon us, now.

Shotgun Tuesday...Too Good to Wait Until Friday

Major Mike

Get This Boghie Off My Six

If you get a chance stop by BoghieOnYourSix. He does a great job of keeping up with the issues, and provides some great links to those stories, that you won't find referenced other places. We'll be blogrolling him as soon as we can schedule some site maintenance time.

I'd like to get him some addtional traffic, since he seems obsessed with picking on me...probably because I am his only regular visitor. You also may notice he is a bit touchy about blog title lengths...I go out of my way to accommodate him on this, by keeping my titles extra short...see above.

Also you may catch that he has some quirky kind of pyramid fetish on his blogroll list, but if you can get past those minor detractors, you'll find he is in touch and up to speed on the issues. Also, if he is distracted by other visitors, he may get off my case. Enjoy the site.

Too Good to Be True...Jane Fonda Update

Jane Fonda is turning over the reigns of her protesting career to Cindy Sheehan. I guess this explains why her and her vegamate fuels loser bus, has yet to make it tp Portland. Her reason, this is rich,..."she has too much baggage." I thought that was the reason for the bus. Take a rail car, 747, something...

''I wanted to do a tour like I did during the Vietnam War, a tour of the country,'' the Oscar-winning actress said Monday. ''But then Cindy Sheehan filled in the gap, and she is better at this than I am. I carry too much baggage.''

Could it be the real reason is that the anti-war movement doesn't exist? Seems more likely that she realizes that there is no energy in the anti-war movement and she would look like a fool trying to rally crowds of 250. She probably also realizes that today's generation of protesters are not about to be lead by some has been actress, trying to look 35, who couldn't inspire someone dying of thirst to drink water.

Tick, Tick tick...11 minutes of fame left...and counting.

Dixie Chicks Update

"Not Ready to Make Nice" still hasn't cracked the Billboard Top 25 on the Country Charts...I guess those pre-orders aren't just flying in for their new "hit".

I did catch this review...which is somewhat positive...I noted with interest that

"Sony is simultaneously taking the song to adult top 40, adult contemporary and country."

Wow, I am sure this is exactly the demographic they were going for. Maybe Jane Fonda will buy a copy.

Neil Young...half Jane Fonda, half Dixie Chick

Just in time. Just when Jane was giving up her war protesting career, and the Dixie Chicks are trying to crack the Over-60 Contemporary Adult Billboard Chart for War Protesting Singles; they get some competition from aging rocker(?) Neil Young. For a moment there I thought all the wind was going out of the anti-war movement. Apparently he is also trying to crack a niche market in one of the the many Billboard charts...Metal Folk Protest

"I think it is a metal version of Phil Ochs and Bob Dylan ... metal folk protest?"

I predict great things...I think Neil will soon be seranading Cindy Sheehan in Crawford, TX with the other 15 Metal Folk Protest fans.

Good luck with that. Sounds...promising.

Monday, April 17, 2006

"...against all enemies, foreign and domestic..."

Major Mike

I am glad to see that more general officers are coming out in support of Secratary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. It looks like Generals Crosby, McInerney, Moore, and Vallely are appropriately initiating the counter-offensive to the wildly irresponsible, politcally charged, demands by a few former general officers that Mr. Rumsfeld should resign. This step is welcome, and I urge ALL retired general officers to publicly comment on the wrongness of the actions of these renegades...much as Gens. Crosby, McInerney, Moore and Vallely did here...

"In The Wall Street Journal article, the four retired generals wrote, "We do not believe that it is appropriate for active duty, or retired, senior military officers to publicly criticize U.S. civilian leadership during war," and called the Rumsfeld critics' feelings "irrelevant.""

The reason (as I have already pointed out below) is because an acrimonious political season plays into the hands of our enemies and only encourages them to outlast our will...which I might add, appears to be at an all time low in this country. If we could get up the same gumption we have for protecting baby seals, trees, owls, albino rhinos, and who knows what else, to protect ourselves, we could easily have enough will to win this war...without any significant civilian casualties here at home...but, I digress.

When retired military officers stir the political winds with their insubordination, they are blocking for the only play that has defeated us in the course of our history...outlasting the public will, and defeating America. The shot in the arm that these insubordinate generals gave to the terrorists will eventually be calculated in lost lives and limbs, as the enemy, infused with hope, pushes forward, regardless of their increasing casualties. They do this because they know, we will politicize the issue, divide our country, and eventually collapse our will.

The traitorous generals gave them the morale equivalent of nuclear weapons...they see victory on the horizon.

The size, shape, and roles of our military has evolved drastically over time. Weapons development, strategic capabilities, tactical innovations, our actual and perceived enemies and their capabilities, have all combined to radically change the size, shape, orgaizations and capabilities of our forces. Some changes have worked...some have not, Regardless, it is the obligation of the President, through SecDef, to shape the military for the threats of the future, not to acquiesce to the egotistical will of some "rice bowl" protecting generals. Bush and Rumsfeld may be wrong, but you can be certain that each and every CinC, service Chief, and the JCS have had their say. It appears that these malcontents have a problem with the chain of command, as evidenced by this extract from their letter today...

""Much of the acrimony expressed by Secretary Rumsfeld's military critics appears to stem from his efforts to 'transform' the military by moving to a joint expeditionary force that is lighter and more mobile in nature to meet the nation's current and future threats," the article said. "Many senior officers and bureaucrats did not support his transformation goals -- preferring conventional weapons of the past ... which prove practically useless against lawless and uncivilized enemies engaged in asymmetric warfare," the writers continued."

After they have had their input, it is the DUTY of these generals to execute their orders and assist the President and the SecDef to accomplish their desired changes, not to get in their way or be ruinous to their efforts. It is their oath to their country.

"Officer Oath: I, A.B., do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God."

Since all officers remain under their oath and serve at the will of the President, they have broken their oath to this country and should be ashamed.

I urge ALL former flag officers to sharpen their pens and get their letters to the Pentagon, and to their local papers...if we are going to win the war for the will of the Ameican people...it is going to take some good generalship to overcome the bad generalship that has put our troops, and our victory, in peril. Live up to your oaths and help vanquish these domestic enemies.

Friday, April 14, 2006

Et tu Brute?

Major Mike

I am going to start with this simple statement…I am disgusted at the behavior of the traitorous generals, who in a time of war, are calling for the SecDef to step down. Yes I said it, traitorous.

When you take a page from our enemy’s playbook and run it for them…what would you call it? Our enemies, having learned the lessons delivered by the likes of Walter Cronkite, Jane Fonda, HHH, McGovern, et. al., are counting on fissures in the fabric of our commitment to the war, and these generals, dishonoring their previous oaths and the caliber of their service, have played trump for them.

The only way that America “loses” this war, is to walk away and leave our dead and wounded on the field. The only way this happens, is if America quits on a commitment that their elected representatives voted overwhelmingly to support. The left has been looking for validation of their wavering for the past couple of years, and these lame “military” men have just presented them with their cake. They have, in fact, begun to cut a facet, that may in the end, lay to waste all of the sacrifices made by their men and women in the field. Shame on them.

You ask…what’s up? First, you have to understand the nature of generalship. Most of those that serve, such as myself, serve for the immediate mission at hand. What is my job? What do I need to do to do a good job? And what do I need to do to be a good leader to my troops?

There are those among us, who either start with that view, and shed it over time, or there are those whose mission was never focused on such altruistic values…there are many who join who simply desire to be generals from the get go. They are pretty easy to spot. “Punching tickets” was the vernacular of the times. They stayed in jobs just long enough to make an impression, but never staying long enough to suffer the repercussions of their short-sighted and self-serving decisions. That was left to dufusses like me, who happily engaged the troops and junior officers at every opportunity, and who became leaders of Marines. Not generals.

I shared a tent in Aviano, Italy with three other Majors. I was the Aircraft Maintenance Officer. Ninety-five per cent of the enlisted Marines and ten officers worked for me. The other three Majors led a total of ten Marines. One of those Majors is now a two-star general.

As the OpsO he could’ve supported my efforts in getting my many of my Ordnance Marines medals for their efforts in safely loading and handling of over four million pounds of ordnance in five months. He could have actually made the case for me; but he declined when the Commanding Officer offered resistance, as did the other two Majors. I, doing the right thing, vigorously, and I mean vigorously, confronted the CO and his poor leadership decision. Eventually, the other three Majors all proceeded in their careers, one now a two-star general. I am forever Major Mike.

Risk avoidance is often rewarded. Risk avoidance is a technique to move on. Risk avoidance, buys time for idiots like me to do the right thing, pierce the skyline and take the heat…thus eliminating competition…thus increasing their chances for future selection. Risk avoidance allows an officer to continue to get selected, neither “sticking out the top,” nor appearing as a bottom feeder.

Generals have egos. Huge egos. In all of the services, longevity is only gained through promotion. It is up or out. By the time one is selected for general, he/she has conquered over 90% of their classmates, often higher percentages. How can you keep ego out of it? Impossible. They command vast resources with unmatched lethality. Their power dwarfs that of CEOs. They HAVE egos…big ones.

Eventually, successful generalship requires vision, character, leadership, positive inter-personal relationships, and good followership. Good followership is the art of acquiescing to a higher authority’s decision, once you have fulfilled your moral obligation to voice any objections you have to the intermediate decision. Once a final decision is made, the good follower, and the good leader, take their direction and execute it to the best of their ability…for in the end…this is the duty of the subordinate. All military members are subordinates to their civilian leadership.

The backlash you are seeing in the press, is the carping of passed over generals, who have proven themselves to be inadequate subordinates. They found themselves on the “outs” with the direction that the current civilian leadership desires for the military. Consequently, they were not chosen to continue to with their careers. And they are BITTER.

Bitter enough to sell out the efforts of their troops in the field by executing plays out of the enemy playbook. Each has had their opportunity to voice their objections to the tactical and strategic issues at hand, so why are the complaining in public? Self before country. Self before the sacrifice of your troops. Self before doing the right thing. Their egos are showing through their thinly veiled “concerns.”

The actions of these generals are reprehensible, and I hope they come to realize the nature of their betrayal. I fear they won’t, for even one of our greatest generals, Douglas MacArthur, failed to yield to the desires of the civilian leadership, and failed to recognize the gravity of the actions that ultimately caused his relief.

His five-star ego was too big for him to act as a good subordinate. I fear there are some additional star-wearing egos that are manifesting themselves as the inadequate subordinates they appear to be. Your fifteen minutes is up. Quit betraying your oath and your troops...Brute.

OBTW… All of the awards that were written for my Marines were awarded. They deserved them, and I probably got what I deserved...such is the nature of the game.

Major Mike's Greatest Hits...Iraq; Part One

Major Mike

I was inspired by Lt. Zirkle, a guest on the Hugh Hewitt show yesterday, and a co-founder of Vets For Freedom, to review some on my previous writing on Iraq. Upon further review...most of it wasn't half bad...here are some extracts. Some are reprinted from My Sandmen and others are reprinted from my original Major Mike site.

A collection of my finest prose on the subject of Iraq...

From my first post on the now retired Major Mike site...

January 6, 2005..."Winning Asymmetric War"

"The final, but most important factor for success in Iraq is to maintain and cultivate a strong national will. Sorry to say, but our individual and collective will have been in decline since we completed the settlement of the west. Our national will has indeed ebbed and flowed over the years, but each time it has been tested in the last fifty years, it retreats farther from its previous mark. This has largely been influenced by the now unabashedly, left leaning press, and the continuous stream of negativism that it spews. Americans MUST be convinced that the fight for peace and freedom is righteously occurring in Iraq. Americans cannot let their collective will be polluted by the anti-Bush negativism that is flowing like the Euphrates from Iraq through the US media.

The enemy has the Ho Chi Minh playbook, and they are counting on the American press to do their part,…and the press is. They are counting on the erosion of our unit effectiveness and morale,…this will not happen. They are also counting on the American public to do their part and become weary of this fight, righteous or not, in order to seal their victory and our defeat, this CANNOT happen. Toughen up America. Our future really does depend on winning in Iraq.

Got Will?"

January 7, 2005..."Gut Check America"

"Today, courage is expected only of those who have volunteered for dangerous occupations. It is time for us to become brave and courageous. It is time to find our inner toughness. It is time to do a “gut check.” It is time to discover what we are made of. It is time to rediscover that it takes courage to maintain our dreams of opportunity and freedom.

The heroes of Flight 93 showed us how to defeat terrorism. Fight back. We must fight not only as a nation, but also as individuals. We must be toughened by this tragedy. We must be reinforced by our anger at the terror and injustice these individuals bring into our lives. We must recognize that true “self-preservation,” at times, requires aggressive and dangerous, and even perhaps, mortal action.

I continue to salute the heroes of Flight 93. I salute their courage; a courage equal to those that have earned medals in combat. I salute them for showing America that, as with Gettysburg, a scarred hillside in Pennsylvania is again the turning point in a desperate fight for true freedom, freedom from fear."

January 9, 2005..."Iraq Is Not Another Vietnam"

"We clearly need to guard against a protracted low-intensity conflict in Iraq, but the final solution will ultimately be a political one. The Iraqis will have their freedom, and hopefully they will have the will to keep it. Regardless of the ultimate outcome, our participation in Iraq will reveal itself to be less a post-colonial folly, and more a necessary attempt to fight the next battle in the war on terrorism, a battle that is effectively reducing the capability of terrorists. At its worst, it has been a battle that has stopped the murder and torture of hundreds of thousands, and freed millions in the process.

Iraq is Iraq. Vietnam was Vietnam.

Got History?"

January 13, 2005..."Comments Posted On Belmont Club On Troop Strenghts In Iraq"

"The reasons for post-invasion occupation success are as varied as the situations in which they have occurred. Docile and defeated populations, free from outside agitation, have been relatively easy to pacify. Divided nations where the unpopular will of an outside nation is being imposed, have been costly and deadly to occupy. I doubt this will change in the near future, regardless of the amount of strategic analysis that occurs. I submit that our current force structures, with our ability and experience in task organizing, our weaponerring, and our advanced military educational programs, can provide workable solutions long into the future without major force or structural changes. In the end, it will be our mastery of the operational art that will be the difference between success and failure, not mathmatics."

February 1, 2005..."Courage America" (Comments about a statement that commentator Chris Wallace made about him not having the courage to stand in a line and vote in an Iraqi election.)

"What would Chris have done if he had been on flight 93 as it was heading back to DC? Protecting our freedoms takes a firm resolve of ALL of our citizens…men, women, and maybe children. If our citizens ever fail to vote because they simply fear for their personal safety, we are through as a nation. We have to KNOW that we would vote, regardless of the personal risks. It is this kind of resolve that protects our democracy.

Failing to participate out of fear will open the door to myriad of anti-democratic forces. Imminent? No, but exercising our rights is what keeps our system functioning, just as physical exercise strengthens the body.

Our Defense Department only protects the citizens, the citizens protect the democracy. We need to understand that voting IS worth any risk. And while the physical risks in defending our democracy are usually borne by our soldiers, everyone needs to be prepared to assume some of that risk should the time come."

March 30, 2005..."We Have Bad News Or No News"

"Which brings me back to a point I have made time and again…the MSM players are doomsdayers and naysayers, and by covering only the negative aspects of Iraq they fail to give the military the credit they deserve for making the difference. As the US policy proves to be more and more successful, and Iraqis begin the process of governing themselves, coverage drops to nil. Conclusion, the MSM hates good, or even neutral, news.

Extending my argument a bit here…this is why their “body count” approach to “keeping score” in Iraq disrespects the sacrifices made by our troops. Because the payoff from those sacrifices is not reported, and just the raw carnage is, the press is using these images and numbers to sell papers, not to honor those who have helped achieve success. Their pictures of soldiers re-habilitating were not published as compelling human-interest pieces, but in my mind, as additional imaging that helps paint the negative picture that they intend to project. A balanced approach would ensure that the sacrifices made by our troops in the field were honored with appropriate reporting of the follow-on successes.

Shame on the MSM here…report both sides with equal enthusiasm and you will find balance and an audience. Continue to negatively slant your representations of the situation in Iraq and you continue to lose market share, credibility, and eventually, as your papers go out of business, your jobs. Get the clue."

May 23, 2005..."Good David Brooks Piece"

"The sobering conclusion…

“Finally, they are strategically ruthless. Jeffrey Goldberg of The New Yorker, who has spent years reporting on extremists, says they use manufactured spasms of hatred to desensitize their followers. After followers spend a few years living through rabid riots and vicious sermons, killing an American or a Jew or even a fellow Muslim seems no more consequential than killing a mosquito.

That's how suicide bombers are made…These are the extremists, the real enemy. Let's keep our eye on the ball.”

Good idea."

Comments April 14, 2006,...lest we forget our enemy.

August 29, 2005...My Sandmen, "Playbook For Defeat"

"Did the Defeatists of Vietnam take responsibility for the resulting deaths of the Communist takeover and “re-education” camps? For the atrocities that occurred in Cambodia after the region was destabilized? At some point, wouldn’t a few thousand more American deaths be worth the millions that actually died after the Defeatists game-plan was actually executed. Isn’t this just a liberal form of white elitism? A few thousand of us are worth millions of you….

This is not about the 1400+ combat deaths, note the subtraction of over 400 non-combat deaths. This is about the Defeatists wanting to win elections, not doing the right thing. The Vietnam protests were more anti-Nixon than they were anti-war. The war was the excuse to turn up the heat. And, as the current Sheehan movement starts being infiltrated by Dem operatives and opportunistic politicians, it will be more about elections and less about the war and its dead. We have probably already crossed the fulcrum on this.

The current Defeatists aim to saddle another generation with the loser malaise that was predominate post-Vietnam. They have no shame in doing this, and they revel in it…much like hooking the poor on welfare. They are attempting to create another generation of self-loathing losers who will dependent on the liberals to lead them out of the falsely created darkness. They are attempting to build a constituent base at the expense of the actual people they are claiming they are trying to protect.

Lastly, let’s don’t lose sight on the fact that it was America that has rose to defeat fascism and communism in the last century. And that this effort required determination and resolve. In fact, our occupying forces still add to the stability of western Asia and central Europe. We are not attempting to annex any part of the Middle East…we are simply adding more nations to the list of the democratic and protecting millions as we go. What is there to mock in that?

What is there to defeat?"

Wednesday, April 12, 2006

Responding to Hugh Hewitt's "Arguments Against Striking Iran" Post

Major Mike

My reply to Hugh's request for thoughts on his post entitled "Arguments Against Striking Iran"...

The Arguments Against the Arguments Against Attacking Iraq

False Assumption #1…The Military is Incapable of doing the job.

Conventional Wisdom…there is more than one way to skin a cat.

Destruction, denial of use, barricade, harassment and interdiction…are all ways to preclude the use of a facility or an operational site. Destruction is not the only way to preclude the Iranians from continuing their development of nuclear material.

Access to and from known sites can be denied through direct air interdiction, air-delivered scatterable mines, continuous harassment, site blockading, and supply vehicle targeting. Eventually a combination of these activities will result in the “virtual” denial of use of the facility; stymieing or halting production of nuclear material. Targeting entrances, ventilation systems, electrical service systems and power generation systems would all have the same…denial of use, result.

The activities listed above also assume that we still have not cracked the nut on deep penetrating conventional munitions. Although I am not privy to any specific weapons programs relating to the development of such weapons, I know enough about the compartmentalization of classified programs to know that such programs would be “black” enough that the likes of Korb and Alter would have no clue about their existence.

And if such programs were viable, simply keeping their existence unconfirmed would be a critical priority. The secrecy of such a program would be critical in building an overconfidence in our enemies about the security of their underground facilities. The more we “fail” at development of penetrating weapons the more secure our enemies feel about the safety of their existing facilities, and the more vulnerable their facilities become to our weapons. This would be the merging of Psychological Operations and Operational Security in order to make the chances for success of an operational attack logarithmically greater. Korb and Alter likely think that most of us were last in our class in some public University, and not capable of complex operational planning, or the devious recombination of weapons, in order to make the seemingly impossible, possible.

Name one military technological problem that we have focused on for over 20 years that we have failed to solve. Just because the program has yet to be leaked to the NYT and Korb, doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.

Possibilities include… rocket assisted, hyper-sonic penetrators, with time delayed tail fusing systems; sonic systems that target sensitive equipment, Electro-Magnetic Pulse weapons.

False Assumption #2…Striking Iran will cause Iran to strike against our troops in Iran.

Conventional Debating Requirement…Significance is an essential element of an argument.

There is little more that Iran could do in Iraq to support the insurgency than they are already doing. The nature of the insurgency, a semi-guerilla action, necessarily keeps the force levels low for the insurgents. Elevated levels of activity expose their cells to a higher level of detection.

Greater numbers of Iranians in Iraq would require higher levels of food, ammunition, explosives and other supporting equipment. As Napoleon knows, this stuff does not just show up at the right place, at the right times, and in the sufficient quantities without a significant logistical effort. The more significant level of activity, the easier the detection.

For all of you who are about to say…”What about Vietnam?” There is no triple canopy protection. Our sophisticated detection equipment would be able to detect the significant increase in cross-border traffic necessary to significantly ramp up the activity against our forces.

The amount of increased activity against our forces is necessarily limited by the need for the insurgents to avoid detection…it is a natural trade off in this type of conflict and they could not significantly step up their activity.

In debate…no significance to the harm, no argument.

Additionally, their internal political future is not entirely secure…should they weaken their position by fighting outside the country, it is possible that their internal opposition will cause considerable political instability at home…something they have shown little tolerance for, and is potentially risky to their government. They are not likely to get bogged down outside of Iran.

True Assumption #3…An attack on Iran will unleash Iranian-sponsored terrorism around the world.

How would this be significantly different than what is occurring today? We are living under the threat of Iranian-sponsored terrorism everyday…I am in no hurry to face this same threat with a state that has a nuclear weapon.

I see no change in the ultimate threat to the West by denying Iran the opportunity to blackmail us with nuclear weapons. I’d rather fight terrorists that have conventional weapons, than those armed with nukes.

False Assumption #4…America’s position in the world will crumble if we attack Iran.

Conventional Wisdom to my daughter…do the right thing, don’t care what others think.

A diminishing of our status, amongst a zillion no count countries in the world, and the idiots in the EU, would hurt us exactly how?

I am not sure what the idea of “status” has in this debate. There is a country, that everyone acknowledges, will likely use nuclear weapons if they complete the development of them, and ZB is worried about the “status” and prestige of the US in the world? What status will the 200,000 victims of their first strike have? What will be their epitaph? “They died to preserve American status”?

False Assumption #5…There are other ways of deterring Iran’s nuclear program.

Conventional Wisdom…yeah right. UN resolutions? Food for Oil?

No half-hearted measures are going to deter Iran from their goal. They know one thing…if they get a nuke, they have a chip in the big game, and they can bring us, the UN, the EU, the gulf region, and Israel to the table as equals. Be prepared to live the remainder of your life with a nuclear weapon pointed at your head. This is precisely why they want it, and precisely why they will NEVER be deterred, no matter how many times JEC, ZB, Korb, Alter and the rest, visit the Magic Kingdom. They will only be stopped if they are physically prevented from continuing.

The world was changed forever when we dropped the atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. It became infinitely more complex, and the study of “nuclear” politics became a mind bending conundrum that could turn the most brilliant political scientist into Rainman. But the easiest part to understand about nuclear proliferation and nuclear politics in the modern age is…you CANNOT have crazy people with nuclear weapons. There is no way to escape this reality.

The left, as brilliantly dissected on your (Hugh Hewitt Radio Show) show the other day by Dennis Prager, view the world as a struggle of the weak against the strong, not the right against the wrong, or the good against the evil, so consequently, they will see nothing wrong with letting Iran have “one little nuke” because we have thousands. They will expose themselves as knowing little about international politics in the nuclear age and they will unwittingly put us at risk by their naiveté.