Speaking of the Marine Corps...

Saw this on Uncooperative Blogger's blog...

The Final Inspection

The Marine stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.

"Step forward now, Marine,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"

The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.

There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the Marine waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.

"Step forward now, you Marine,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."

- Author Unknown -

'Jarhead' Not A Veterans' Day Movie

Yesterday was the 230th birthday of the U.S. Marine Corps, and today is Veterans' Day. If that puts you in the frame of mind to check out the new Gulf War movie "Jarhead", Oliver North says forget it. He writes...

The film has absolutely not one character or scene containing any redeeming virtue or value. It is an excessively vulgar movie without a moral or a point. With our nation at war this film is not just anti-war or rotten to the Corps - though it is certainly that - "Jarhead" is anti-everything that is good and decent.

During a week when Americans honor the Corps and thank their veterans, "Jarhead" cheapens and distorts the heroism, warrior spirit, superior intellect and selflessness of America's fighting forces. Those who participated in making this nihilist flop deserve nothing but scorn in return.

Valerie Plame Outed... By Herself and Husband

It's looking more and more like the special counsel investigating the outing of Valerie Plame's CIA employment is unnecessary. Seems more people are coming forward with the knowledge that they knew Plame was a CIA employee long before the supposed outing by Robert Novak. And just how did they know it? They were informed by Plame and her husband, Joseph Wilson. And those who have come forward, including Andrea Mitchell, NBC News Chief Foreign Affairs Correspondent, say that many others were aware of Plame's secret identity.

Wayne Simmons, a 27-year veteran at the CIA, told Fox News Radio: "As most people now know, [Plame] was traipsed all over Washington many years ago by Joe Wilson and introduced at embassies and other parties as 'my CIA wife.'"

Andrea Mitchell told CNBC that Plame's occupation "was widely known among those of us who cover the intelligence community."

Of course, Special Counsel Patrick Fitzgerald has never interviewed these people. None of them have even been contacted by his office. That makes sense. His goal through all this seems simply to have been to hang some charges on some high-ranking members of the Bush Administration. Never let the facts get in the way of a good witchhunt.

Does Atlanta Deserve The NASCAR Hall of Fame?

Former crew chief and Fox Sports announcer Larry McReynolds says no, and as much as I hate it, I think I agree with him. While the facilities are second to none, and the racing is the fastest (and often the closest) in Nextel Cup, there's one thing missing. Where are the fans? Why can't they sell out the two races each year?

The race just does not have the fan support. When you look at the size of metropolitan Atlanta, it's incredible that those grandstands can't be filled twice a year.

Don't get me wrong. There was a good crowd, but there were still a lot of empty seats. That confirms for me that Atlanta should not get the hall of fame. And that's nothing against Atlanta Motor Speedway, but for whatever reason, the people just do not jump on the bandwagon. I know that there were people are down there screaming, "We need the hall of fame! We want the hall of fame!" OK people, are you going to support the race weekends?

The people at Darlington jumped up and down for two years. "Don't take one of our races!" Then, get out there and support the race. If you want to benefit from the business that comes to Darlington twice a year, get off your butt, get out there and support this race. That's what will save the races. I don't know that less than 100 percent attendance was the whole deal in Darlington losing a race, but it certainly would have helped.

But as far as the Atlanta Motor Speedway is concerned, the track officials have created a great facility, and I hope that they don't touch that race track. Don't even paint a stripe across it. We've got great racing there. The speeds are fast, and they've got everything that they could possibly want there. It's a very fan-friendly track, but I just don't understand why both races don't sell out. It ought to be like Bristol. Fans ought to be waiting in line to buy tickets.

How can you disagree? Why should NASCAR choose to locate their shrine in an area that doesn't sell out it's races each year? Especially when those races tend to be some of the most exciting races of the entire season.

Today's Public School Idiocy

This zero-tolerance horror story comes from Desoto, Texas. An eleven year old and two of her classmates were ordered transferred to an alternative school for 30 days for violating the school's weapons policy. The girl's crime: she folded a piece of paper into the shape of a gun. Here's the "weapon" in question:



To their credit, the Desoto Independent School District reviewed the charges, and revoked the punishment.
(Thanks to ZeroIntelligence.net for the heads-up.)

High-Tech Sonic Weapon Warded Off Pirates

The cruise ship that came under attack from pirates off the African coast last weekend used a new sonic weapon to defend itself. The device uses a 150 decibel, highly directed burst of sound to repel attackers. Ain't technology great?

Random Links

A few neat sites, just for the heck of it...

A woman is selling her Denver, Colorado home on eBay for $600,000. She's part of the package, though. The house apparently comes fully furnished, complete with its own housewife.

Professor Solomon, Finder of Lost Objects, will use his 12 principles for finding lost objects to help you find anything you've lost.

For Peanut Butter Lovers

The World's Largest Petition

What you drink gives a woman an immediate idea about what kind of man you really are. Dang it, sweet tea isn't listed.

Big Win For Georgia Southern

A huge win Saturday for my Georgia Southern Eagles over our hated rival Furman, who just happened to be ranked number one in the nation in I-AA. With one game left (against Morehead State), not only are our playoff hopes brightened, but suddenly we're back in the hunt for the Southern Conference title. It'll take some help, but it could happen. The Eagles showed some of that good old option football that's won us so many national championships. Woo hoo!

The WMD Lie (from the Left, that is)

Jack Kelly writes that, despite the wishful thinking of the Left and the carefully crafted reporting of the mainstream media, evidence does link Saddam to WMD programs and terror groups.

No Public School Bias In LA? Well...

A rally was held by against the policies of President Bush in Los Angeles on Wednesday. Adults were urged to attend, and to hold their children out of school so they too might attend. I have no problem with that. I don't believe it's in the best interests of the kids, but parents have the right to make those choices.

You know there's a BUT coming, don't you?

It seems the Los Angeles Unified School District allowed more than 800 high school students to walk out of classes to attend the rally, sending staff and school police with the students. Public school buses were even used to transport some of the students.

That's right. Taxpayer funds were used, and public school staff took part. Think there's any chance they'd make staff and buses available for students to attend a pro-Bush rally? Yeah, right.

Some Budget Cutting

The U.S. Senate today approved cutting about $36 billion in spending over the next five years. Got to say, it's a nice start.

CBS Skews Polling Data

In a CBS News opinion poll released Wednesday night, President Bush's approval rating was given as 35%. As Noel Sheppard of the NewsBusters blog shows, the methodology for the poll is skewed against Republicans. Don't yell at me folks, the math backs it up...

NewsBusters reported Wednesday evening, a new CBS News poll pegged President Bush's job approval rating at 35 percent. Tom Bevan of Real Clear Politics posted an analysis of this poll's methodology at his blog last evening (hat tip from a NewsBusters reader named "Jsemby"). What his figures show is that CBS polled 46% more Democrats in its weighted sample than Republicans:

New CBS News poll out tonight. Highlights:

· Bush job approval at all time low of 35%

· Bush favorable rating at 33%

· Right track 27%, wrong track 68%

· Congress job approval 34%

· Congressional Dem favorable rating 41%, Congressional Republican favorable rating 35%

Now for the numbers behind the numbers. Take a look at the composition of the respondents:

Total Respondents (Unweighted) = 936
Republicans = 259 (27.67%)
Democrats = 326 (34.83%)
Independents = 351 (37.5%)

Now look at the weighted sample:

Republicans: 223 (23.80%)
Democrats: 326 (34.79%)
Independents: 388 (41.4%)

The result is a 35% job approval for the president, which is roughly 4-8 points lower than the other polls out right now.

To put these numbers in proper perspective, according to the November 2004 exit polls, the nation's current party affiliation is 37 percent Democrats, 37 percent Republicans, and 26 percent Independents. As such, the polling agency involved in this result fell 36 percent short in sampling Republicans while over-sampling Independents by 59 percent.

This demonstrates what many statisticians have been saying about polls for years: If you are trying to ascertain a certain answer to a question, all you have to do is ask the right people.

Recommended Reading From Military Blog

I've added a couple of new links to the menu over on the right. They are military blog: A Soldier's Blog and Major K. I wish I'd discovered these sooner, as they are great looks at what's really going on, and how are soldiers are getting by, in Iraq.

From Major K's blog, I feel compelled to share this post of his from October 11th. He lets us know how the activities of the Left affect the troops involved in the War on Terror. He pulls no punches.

Against All Enemies...

"I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the Army of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

-Oath of Office (DA Form 71, 1 August 1959)

I swore this oath in 1992, then a young Second Lieutenant. In the past few weeks as I watched and read about the latest round of war protests, I thought about Sun Tzu, the legendary Chinese Strategist, who made it very clear how important it is to "know your enemy" in order to be victorious. This war has many enemies and many fronts both at home and abroad. Iraq is only one, but over the past two years, it has become the centerpiece. As I listened to the same old slogans come from the same people like Jane Fonda, George Galloway and recent media darling, Cindy Sheehan, I am reminded of Tokyo Rose. I have had my fill of hearing enemy propaganda from my own homeland. I do consider them an enemy. They might as well be arhabi recruiters.

When a Soldier is asked what he thinks of these protestors by a reporter, he will usually say something to the effect of, "I'm glad they have the freedom to do that in the USA. Most of the places we go, they kill people for things like that." What the Soldiers don't say, but overwhelmingly think is: "I wish they would quit working against us and abusing their freedom." I don't speak for all fighting men anymore than Cindy speaks for all of our parents. But I can tell you that I have spoken to more than she has, and very few of us here like her, and we wish she would honor her son, Casey's noble sacrifice. He truly was a hero.

While many of us have questioned the wisdom of coming here at one time or another before our arrival, I can say that most everyone that I have spoken to and commiserated with has become a believer in the mission since arriving here inspite of the cost. How we execute the mission can often be the subject of much debate and discontent, but seeing the kids run to our HMMWV's, or cleaning up after a VBIED that has killed numerous innocents has a tendency to make one believe in the mission. This is what I think of when I have the urge to gripe - the mission. Through all the tactical errors, diplomatic mistakes, corruption in the interim government, and fallen brothers, the mission remains constant. It is the among the most sacred things we have here.

While mistakes are made, and bad seeds do bad things, I do not see the value in wallowing in public pennance. Bad things happen in wars, on all sides. But the amount of good we are doing and attempting to do here far outweighs them. I think everyone has seen enough pictures from the Abu Ghraib scandal, and yes, the arhabi do use them in their propaganda. How is giving them more going to help anyone except them? I have distant, vague memories of the ACLU being a good organization that stood for justice. What happened? They have become a disgrace.

I received an e-mail from someone who asked how best to support the troops if he was against the war. My response is this. Pray for a swift and victorious conclusion. The die has been cast. The war has been enjoined. The time for protests was before the shooting started. If we stop before we are finished, we will cause the deaths many thousands more and have yet another war to fight, bloodier, and not too far down the road. The first battle of that war, may again be on our home turf. By all means, vote your conscience. Write your Congressman. Discuss your views with your friends. Better yet, donate to a charity like Operation Iraqi Children, but please don't be a propaganda pawn of the arhabi via the nearest media outlet.

This is a monumental undertaking. It is worthwhile. It is frustrating and painful. It is at times irritating and annoying. It is good and right. It will take time. No one said it would be easy.

Fun New Book

Author Peter Schweizer has a very interesting new book, Do As I Say (Not As I Do). Basically, it delves into the apparent hypocrisy of many of the far left's leading voices. Some of the juicier tidits...

Filmmaker Michael Moore has declared that he owns no stocks, isn't a shareholder in any companies. But Moore's tax returns show that he actually owns hundreds of thousands of shares of stock, including 2,000 shares of Haliburton.

Ted Kennedy favors racial set-asides on federal contracts. But when it came to his own investment in an entire city block of Washington, DC, he got his political friends to help him waive an affirmative action set-aside.

Nancy Pelosi has made supporting labor unions a cornerstone of her public career. Yet the vineyards and hotels that comprise her $35 million fortune have one thing in common: they won't use union labor.

Of course, this stuff isn't exclusive to the liberal Left. It's just so much more fun when it's them!

Bush's New Supreme Court Nominee

President Bush has nominated federal appellate Judge Samuel Alito to the U.S. Supreme Court to replace retiring Justice O'Conner. A pretty good choice, too. Blogger Keith Burgess-Jackson looks at what kind of battle to expect, and why it's important to fight it.

The Waffle Returns

Sounding like a man who's planning another run for president, John Kerry delivered a speech recently at Georgetown University. It's mostly the same old song and dance from the '04 loser. He's even showing a little bit of the John Kerry we last saw during the campaign.

On the subject of American troop presence in Iraq:

"When they could have listened to General Shinseki and put in enough troops to maintain order, they chose not to. They were wrong."

Then later:

"...Our military presence in vast and visible numbers has become part of the problem, not the solution. And our generals understand this. General George Casey, our top military commander in Iraq, recently told Congress that our large military presence 'feeds the notion of occupation'".

So which is it? Did we send in too few troops or too many? You can't have it both ways. Oh yeah, it's Kerry. As the Wall Street Journal's Best Of The Web puts it, "Apparently Kerry was for more troops before he was against it."

More PC Idiocy

This story of political correctness run amuck comes from the U.K. Seems British banks are banning piggy banks because they might offend Muslims, who view pigs as unclean animals.

"The next thing we will be banning Christmas trees and cribs and the logical result of that process is a bland uniformity," the Dean of Blackburn, Reverend Christopher Armstrong, said. "We should learn to celebrate our difference, not be fearful of them."

To his credit, one Muslim member of Parliament recognized the nonsense of the ban, saying, "I doubt many Muslims would be seriously offended by piggy banks."

500 Could Be The New 50

A British researcher says it's possible that people alive today could live 1,000 years or longer. He has a simple, seven step procedure. One of the steps... cure cancer. Sounds simple enough.

Not A Bomb, Just An Anti-Alien Device

A mysterious object found in a Davenport home, which prompted a visit by the local bomb squad, turned out not to be a bomb. Instead, it was a device that was supposed to scare off aliens believed to be living under the ground. The device had been left by a previous homeowner, who got it from a friend of a relative.

About the friend: "He's an astrologer who believes aliens live under the ground... He was a little off his rocker."

Do ya' think?

Sounds Great, If He Means It

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said his department aims without exception to expel all those who enter the United States illegally. It's about time the problem of illegal immigration was addressed this way. Of course, Chertoff saying this and the practice actually being done are two totally different things. The article correctly mentions that this idea lies in sharp contrast to the U.S. policy on illegal Cuban immigrants, which permits those who actually reach U.S. soil to stay in the country. Still, it's a great start if it holds true.