Manchurian Candidate and Lines of Attack

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Sunday October 05, 2008 · 6:40 AM PDT

2008/10/05 · 06:40

I get forwarded a lot of "just sayin’" or "mebbe it’s true" emails about Barrack Obama and his past associations (or not) – most of which are pretty blatant lies – but do go around the Internet over and over. It seems though, that Mrs. Palin is reciting the old saw about William Ayers, who was involved with the Weathermen when Obama was eight years old and is now a professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago (you’d think the FBI would pick him up if he was a terrorist). One might contrast the Ayer’s-Obama association with the Palin-Palin association, her husband being a participating member of a pro-secessionist party. But, if we were to want to study events back during the Vietnam era, it may be fair to have a look at the history and conduct of the other candidate and his main claim to fame. There is still a small but dedicated bunch of families in America that have a less-than-fond view of former POW McCain and his efforts to shut down POW investigations.
--more after the jump--

Jeffzed

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Monday August 04, 2008 · 7:52 PM PDT

2008/08/04 · 19:52

My wife pointed out this concise, but harrowing account of one person in the church at the time of the Unitarian Church shooting: Salvador Dali's LiveJournal. A fuller account can be found on numerous news sources, like Reuters at "Two Dead, 7 wounded..."

The gunman was tackled by church-goers and taken into custody by police. He was charged later with first-degree murder, but police declined to give a motive for the shooting and the Tennessean newspaper said his motive remained unknown.

The gunman apparently concealed a 12-gauge shotgun until he entered the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church and then fired several shots before being subdued, police said.

Jeffzed

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Tuesday October 17, 2006 · 3:34 AM PDT

2006/10/17 · 03:34

From Condi's State Department briefing of October 16th, at: www.state.gov

QUESTION: Madame Secretary, there is a strain of criticism against the Administration out there which I'd like you to address and tell me why, if it's wrong, why it might be wrong. This strain of criticism points to the President's statements back in 2003 saying that a North Korea that is a nuclear power is unacceptable a (...), it is making the Administration less effective in dealing with North Korea and with Iran, the other two members of the "axis of evil".

SECRETARY RICE: Well, first of all, I think the President clearly had the diagnosis right about states that were pursuing outside of international norms troublesome policies. Iraq is in a category by itself. Let's remember we were in a suspended state of war with Iraq after 1991. Read More

Congressman John Carter Lets Go of a Secret in Iraq

Jeffzed

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Thursday June 22, 2006 · 3:57 AM PDT

2006/06/22 · 03:57

I was suprised to hear Congressman John Carter list the metrics for success and withdrawal from Iraq in a public conference call Wednesday night. He gave an answer I never expected to hear from a Republican. Read More

Private Security Details Hearing last week

Jeffzed

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Sunday June 18, 2006 · 8:12 AM PDT

2006/06/18 · 08:12

The house Armed Services Subcommittee on Reform held a hearing on private security contractors in Iraq last week. The lack of accountability was stunning. This entry is the first of two, cross-posted to IAVA to bring them out into the light of day. Read More

Death of a Thug

Jeffzed

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Thursday June 08, 2006 · 10:54 AM PDT

2006/06/08 · 10:54

Today American Special Forces and the United States Air Force killed the thuggish leader of al-Quaeda in Mesopotamia, Abu Al-Zarqawi through a combination of tips, ground work and surveillance, and two bombs dropped from F-16 Air Craft. This is certainly a very positive event for all involved but I feel it has quickly grown out of context. Read More

Priorities

Jeffzed

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Tuesday June 06, 2006 · 5:06 AM PDT

2006/06/06 · 05:06

I might have been late to work as a civilian at Fort Hood this morning, having a hard time driving in to Fort Hood because of smoke from all the burning flags obscuring the huge processions of cars from all the gay marriages here. Somehow I did make it in though but found the staff consumed by worries about Mississippi train tracks. Read More

Ensign for the Confederacy!

Jeffzed

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Tuesday May 23, 2006 · 8:25 PM PDT

2006/05/23 · 20:25

The transcript does not seem to be up yet but the junior senator from Nevada, John Ensign was on Scarborough Country on MSNBC this evening and made some outlandish statements about the country and Americans exercising free speech. Read More

Army Warns Troops & families About HBO Documentary

Jeffzed

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Saturday May 13, 2006 · 2:14 AM PDT

2006/05/13 · 02:14

On Sunday, 21 May, at 8:00 pm HBO will air Baghdad ER for the first time. It will air periodically after that. The website is here at HBO: Baghdad ER.
A bit from the synopsis says

"BAGHDAD ER allows viewers to experience the physical and emotional toll of war by capturing soldiers and care providers in personal moments amidst intense crises inside the 86th Combat Support Hospital. Located in Baghdad's Green Zone, the facility was formerly the site of an elite medical center for Saddam Hussein's supporters. Thanks in part to the skill and dedication of trauma center teams like the one depicted in the film, wounded troops in Iraq have a 90 percent chance of survival - the highest rate of war survivors in U.S. history. The selflessness and dedication of those caring for wounded Americans and Iraqis stands in sharp contrast with the chaos of war."

Jeffzed

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Friday May 12, 2006 · 4:22 AM PDT

2006/05/12 · 04:22

A New York Times story today discusses the Physical Training and Rehabilitation Program at several posts where basic training is conducted and in particular highlights abuses at Fort Sill. It is a serious story with some terrifying specifics and should be considered by any young person or their parents when thinking about joining the military. But I think it's also important to not blow the incidents up any more than they are or apply too broad a brush to all such units or to all the trainers in the Army.

A civilian spokesman at the fort, Jon Long, said an investigation had substantiated "misbehavior" by a drill sergeant who, soldiers say, kicked a trainee with stitches in his knee. Mr. Long said the sergeant had been suspended and reassigned, along with another drill sergeant who, soldiers complained, had repeatedly awakened injured trainees throughout the night for uniform changes and formations.

Jeffzed

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Thursday May 11, 2006 · 4:15 AM PDT

2006/05/11 · 04:15

The Congress is beginning to work out the nuts and bolts of the 2007 budget. It is similar in many ways to that of 2006 - long on talk and tax cuts and short on delivery of service to those fighting at the Nation's behest. Congressional Quarterly reported that, while monies were added above the levels of 2006 (which left over a billion dollar shortfall), the amounts are still far short of that needed. Read More

Iraq Commander Works to Free KBR Slaves

Jeffzed

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Sunday April 23, 2006 · 7:32 PM PDT

2006/04/23 · 19:32

A Chicago Tribune article details a new order from General Casey in Iraq ordering contractors to stop enslaving people from other nations, known as "third country nationals" in Iraq. My commander in Iraq always warned us to treat them decently because "there is no faster way to make a terrorist than to piss off a TCN." In the end though - they were still dehumanized and not well treated and no one took the time to ask many questions about how they got there and how they lived. Read More

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Manchurian Candidate and Lines of Attack

TVUUC Shooting First Person's Account

Did I say "mushroom cloud? I really meant `finish your war'."

Congressman John Carter Lets Go of a Secret in Iraq

Private Security Details Hearing last week

Death of a Thug

Priorities

Ensign for the Confederacy!

Army Warns Troops & families About HBO Documentary

Rehab Hell

House Scrimps on Veteran's Care While Troops Remain Untreated

Iraq Commander Works to Free KBR Slaves