It all began with an April 24, 2008 column in The Washington Post by Dana Milbank.  It began, "Lt. Col. Billy Hall, one of the most senior officers to be killed in the Iraq war, was laid to rest yesterday at Arlington National Cemetery. It's hard to escape the conclusion that the Pentagon doesn't want you to know that."

Today, more than two months later, Milbank returns to the story—with news that the public affairs director at Arlington seems to have agreed with that assessment, and has now been fired, quite possibly as punishment.

The scandal of not allowing images of returning coffins and many other images of war, as I have often written, has percolated since the beginning of the Iraq conflict.

I've just returned from my polling place in Arlington, VA (South Arlington, west of I-395) and there was a constant stream of people into the polling place.  Things of note:

My wife went at 8AM this morning and there were >50 people there, and the wait was an hour long!

I went at 10:45AM and there were ~30 people in front of me in line to vote.

It took 25 minutes for me to get to the front of the line.

The length of the line stayed a constant 30 people deep the entire time.

From my very unscientific observations while I was in line, the ratio of Democratic ballots to Republican ballots taken was about 7 to 1, but our neighborhood (and in fact most of Arlington) is very Democratic.

The age, economic, and racial makeup was all over the map, I saw it all as I waited, very encouraging!

So if nothing else, it appears that people are are at least involved, and this bodes well for the Democratic party in November!

Hat tip to MB at Blacknell.net found via leftyblogs.

Hey all you rabble rousers! Don't you get it! Being manly is it, and the way to be IT, is to obey the "lawful authority!"

Obedience to lawful authority is the foundation of manly character.

- (Confederate) General Robert E. Lee

Yup, and now you should know that that quote now graces the new Arlington County automobile decal.

But it gets better! Apparently they hired George Orwell Design LLC (actually it was a student competition).

Because the quote is superimposed over the American flag, along with an image of the pentagon!

JINGO was his NAME-O!!

More righteous indignation after the jump!

HONORED GLORY

"Here lies in
honored glory
an American soldier
known only to God..."

Here, lies are solemn.

Here, lies are told
in the cadence of boot heels ringing on stone,
in the snap of a bolt shooting home
in the breech of a polished rifle, held at port arms
in white gloved hands.

Here, we fold our flag
and tell ourselves
the soldier died bravely
in a just cause.

Something I put on Youtube. I went to the Wall and Arlington in '05. The pictures are mine and this video conveys my feelings of that moment. The song is "The Green Fields of France."

Crossposted to Blue Mass Group
I’m at the Westin Arlington Gateway Hotel in Arlington, VA at the 2007 Department of Peace Conference. I just flew down this morning to participate in the Student Peace Alliance’s agenda.

There’s a movement afoot to create a US Department of Peace. This is my first foray into the DoP movement, as most of my political activity has been devoted to electoral politics up until now.

The objective of this and subsequent blog entries is to tell you what’s happening at the conference and to spread the word about some wonderful organizing already in place. The Peace Alliance already does a great job at discussing the legislation.

I found an interesting article in today's Richmond Times Dispatch on the shift of politics in Northern Virginia. Think Virginia isn't shifting from "red" to "purple?" Consider this: In 1996 Senator John Warner (R) defeated Mark Warner (D) in Fairfax county by 53,000 votes. Move ahead 10 years to November 2006, and George Allen (R) was defeated by Jim Webb (D) in Fairfax by 64,000 votes. In 2000, George Allen (R) lost the city of Alexandria, and the counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun, and Prince William by a combined 42,000 votes. This past November he lost them by a combined 120,000 votes.

Teacherken wrote  http://www.dailykos.com/...
about the "exciting" 11/3/06 fundraiser for Jim Webb in Arlington, Virginia  yesterday evening. Michael J Fox and Wes Clark joined Jim Webb at a "people's" event ($25.00 for students and government employees).

I found a short video http://www.youtube.com/...
at http://securingamerica.com/

and decided to post it here because there was so much excitement in the room and Wes Clark and Jim Webb and Michael J. Fox were so inspiring I thought people would enjoy seeing this.

The video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmPkCUXyVjY

As we all know, this filthy war perpetrated by criminals has only sacrificed the limbs, the futures, the lives of thousands. Hundreds of thousands.

For what?

The organizers started putting up the crosses at 5 am Memorial Day. There were 2,465, one for each US soldier killed in Iraq since fighting began there, and each had the name of a soldier attached. Some visitors found family members and friends who had been killed in action.

The police showed up at sunrise and told group leader Michael Jones that he had to have a permit, but bystanders talked the officers out of taking any action. The display stayed up all day.

More photos at montereycountydemocrats.org

Today, violence exploded in Afghanistan.  That place that Bush and the Republicans tout as such a success exploded in riots, after a "cargo truck in a coalition convoy had suffered a mechanical failure and hit as many as 12 civilian vehicles at a busy intersection. He said the coalition was investigating." Afghanistan people were screaming "Death to America." Some success story.

http://www.cnn.com/...

Violence exploded in Iraq. Two CBS journalists were killed and one is in critical condition and a soldier died today. http://www.cnn.com/...

I heard Bush speaking at Arlington Cemetery today. I did not write down his remarks, but the gist of them was that the cemetery reminds them all of why the United States is always so reluctant to involve itself in war. I heard these remarks, but did not see the speech, and I wonder if the family members of any soldiers killed in IRaq were there.  

I'm waving the flag today out of respect, and in Memoriam

So few still alive who fought in the great wars

President Bush in a moment of prayer at West Point


Santa Monica, CA (APE) - President Bush yesterday delivered his traditional commencement address to graduates form the West Point military academy. During the address, he framed the war on terror as the next cold war, and contrasted his dismal polls and current political situation with beloved President Harry S. Truman. Bush implied that history would remember him as the president who took the initial unpopular steps in a long and grueling "War on Terror" which would ultimately be won by another president. Ironically, the senior class, after the address, presented Mr. Bush with a plaque as a joke honoring him as the "Worst President in History".

Ads link homosexuality, child abuse
on Virginia TV
Commercials featuring 'ex-gays' funded by church

By KATHERINE VOLIN
Friday, December 02, 2005

http://www.washblade.com/....

Critics of a new series of television commercials sponsored by a local church claim the ads imply a link between homosexuality and sexual abuse, a contention disputed by the pastor at the church.

Lynn Carter, associate pastor at Arlington Assembly of God, in Arlington, Va., said the ads were intended only to extend a welcome to people who might have felt demonized by Christianity.

The commercials spotlight at least two "ex-gays." One commercial features a man, the other features a woman, and each says they were sexually abused as a child and later lived a "gay lifestyle." Both commercials end with the person claiming they are now heterosexual and Christian.

Gay activist Wayne Besen, author of "Anything But Straight: Unmasking the Scandals & Lies behind the Ex-gay Myth," said that linking sexual abuse with homosexuality is a familiar message from ex-gay groups.

This is a short diary, but I want to provide these haunting photos as a visual reminder of the cost of war. Click on the links below the fold.

Lest we forget...

I've spent the last couple of days very happy that I live where I live.  I was able to see living history.

On Saturday I visited Arlington West.  This is a sometimes-mobile exhibit that has taken up a semi-permanent residence on the beach in Santa Monica, just off the Pier.  Over 2,000 miniature gravesites, complete with white crosses, Jewish stars or Muslim crescents, now dot the beachscape.  Each one specifically represents a member of the Armed Forces killed thus far in the Iraq War.  They also have a smaller plot for those who have died in Afghanistan.

Hello all,

I'm organizing a DNC "National Organizing Kickoff Meeting" for Tuesday November 15th from 6 to 8pm. The DNC is holding thousands of these across the country on the 15th in advance of the 2006 elections. We won big in Virginia and come learn how we'll win big all over the country next year.  Click here for contact info and to learn more.

Today was just another Sunday for me.  I'd slept in, the kids were restless, and my biggest problem turned out to be where to take the kids so my wife could vaccuum.  Seriously.  

I figured we'd go down to the Santa Monica Pier.  You can't miss with that, as far as keeping the kids happy, if you don't mind parting with some cash.  

I parked in the big lot just to the right of the pier.  When I noticed all the little crosses stuck in the sand.   Countless little white crosses.  We went over there right away to check it out, and I wanted to share it with people here.  It's probably been blogged here before, but if so, it deserves it again.   The men and women who put it there deserve it.  

It was "Arlington West, Irarq War Memorial", put on by the Veterans for Peace, Los Angeles.

Photos and more after the break