Expat Texan

‘Cause it’s true.

Or at least it WOULD be funny, if not for the fact that an international news organization has dropped all pretense of objectivity in a quest to be sure their preferred candidate is elected in November.

Background here.

Perhaps it would be useful to pause and remember the sacrifices made to protect freedom of speech, and other basic human rights.

“We are on high ground overlooking the front and have a grandstand view of the battle up ahead. We have a wonderful artillery barrage and swell support from the Typhoons and Spits of the R.A.F. and R.C.A.F. They sure make a grand sight with their rockets, bombs and cannon. No air opposition and very little flak.”

Of course, some would prefer we forget the sacrifices made and rewrite history to be much more sympathetic to the “other side”.

…it is Ferguson’s revisionist view of the tactics applied by the Allies in World War II that is likely to raise the hackles of those who have always believed in the “necessity” of bombing German and Japanese civilians, culminating in the atomic attacks on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, to end a war we did not start.

“I think it’s very hard for those who have imbibed the idea of a ‘great generation’ that what the Allies did to defeat the Axis was in some measure to adopt totalitarian tactics,” Ferguson says in a Q&A on PBS’s Web site.

Ferguson, obviously, does not abide my any such nonsense as a “greatest generation“.  From Ferguson’s perspective, it’s OK to admit that Hitler was bad - as long as we accept that the allies were just as bad - if not worse.

That’s gonna leave a mark.

I’ve always thought Clark was an odious human being.  His smarmy “getting shot down and tortured doesn’t prepare you to be President” comment just confirms it.  And does Clark (or any of Obama’s surrogates, for that matter) REALLY want the American public to start looking closely at their candidates qualifications to run the good ol’ USofA?  Methinks not (the article is typical Chicago rah-rah for Obama, as the author tackles an op-ed that questioned whether Barack is ready for the presidency - but read the comments).

Typical leftist gone wild.  Blah, blah, blah - don’t hate the military, just Bush’s illegal war.  Don’t you dare question my patriotism, etc.  Gore Vidal is a disgusting man - in oh so many ways.

Asked what he thinks of McCain, Vidal calls him a “disaster,” then tells Deborah Solomon, “Who started this rumor that he was a war hero? Where does that come from, aside from himself? About his suffering in the prison war camp?”

Solomon replies: “Everyone knows he was a prisoner of war in North Vietnam.” To which Vidal responds: “That’s what he tells us.” (my emphasis)

I would pay good money to see a Vidal-McCain cage match.  It would be short, but maybe Vidal would suffer just a fraction of the pain the McCain went through.  An “author” who never risked anything in his life denigrating a man who fought and paid a heavy price to preserve the freedoms that Vidal takes for granted.  Like I said - disgusting display by the oh so brave Vidal.

War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.

John Stuart Mill

What say you now?

A young girl carrying explosives that killed her, an Iraqi captain and injured four soldiers was blown up by remote control, officials said today.

The usual suspects will continue to scream about the US invasion of Iraq, the baby mudering US soldiers, the war crimes of Bush and Cheney - all the while ignoring and remaining completely silent when it comes to the real baby murderers.

An eight-year-old girl was strapped with remote-controlled explosives and used as a human bomb by Iraqi insurgents in a blast that killed an Iraqi commander earlier today.

An Iraqi captain was killed and seven other soldiers were injured in the explosion which took place in the town of Youssifiyah, south of Baghdad.

Remember, Jihad means peaceful inner struggle, and we must not allow women to appear in public unsecorted by male family members or without appropriately concealing garb.  However, the brave “freedom fighters” Michael Moore and his ilk are so proud of don’t hesitate to blow up little girls and mentally disabled women - because they know that US and coalition “sensibilities” about the modesty of Muslim women will be respected, allowing the unwitting, unwilling “suicide” bombers to get closer to their targets.

Question - are you a suicide bomber if you have no idea that you are carrying explosives, and are murdered by the blast along with your “targets”?

Notice that the brave mujahadin are referred to as insurgents.  I know that the media have style guidelines to follow - but just once could we call them murdering, cowardly bastards to more accurately reflectthe reality on the ground?

Never Let the facts get in the way of your narrative.  Especially if that narrative involves the impotency of the US military in Iraq.

The AP Version:

Iraqi police say gunmen have released the 42 college students they kidnapped earlier in the day near the northern city of Mosul.

Brig. Gen. Khalif Abdul-Sattar says the gunmen initially released the only two girls aboard the hijacked bus. They later set free remaining occupants after making sure they were not members of the security forces.

The official MNF report on the incident:

Iraqi Security Forces rescue 42 kidnapped students

MOSUL, Iraq – The Iraqi Army rescued 42 college students after they were kidnapped by insurgents in southwestern Mosul April 6.

The Iraqi Army detained one suspect, and Iraqi Police are currently searching for additional suspects.

After Iraqi Security Forces reported the kidnapping, a Coalition force aircraft spotted a suspicious vehicle thought to contain the students.   The insurgents fled the scene after the vehicle was stopped.

Some of the students left the area but were picked up by Iraqi Security Forces while others made their way a nearby Iraqi Security Forces combat outpost.

All 42 students are accounted for and are safe.

The Iraqi Army detained one of the insurgents at a nearby house. Iraqi and Coalition forces continue to search for others individuals involved in the kidnapping.

“Today’s efforts by the Iraqi Security Forces display not only their commitment to tracking down insurgents, but also their ability to secure the future of Iraq,” said Maj. Gary Dangerfield, 3rd Armored Cavalry Regiment spokesperson.

The incident is under investigation by the Iraqi Security Forces.

I suspect which one of these narratives would define whether you are a person hoping for success or failure in Iraq.  One dealing with an impotent military unable to prevent a kidnapping and relying on the magnanimous nature of “insurgents.  The other suggesting a competent joint military/Iraqi force that quickly responded to a crisis and rescued 42 innocent people.

So, which version better suits your view of the Iraq war?