9/11/9 has come and gone, and for many, it is in the rear view mirror until next year.
Not me.
On some levels I quickly went back to normal. On 9/12 my intramural football team won the championship. After that I went to a tea party right near my home.
On 9/13 I enjoyed Week 1 of the NFL Season and the Chabad Telethon.
9/14 might be a lecture featuring Norman Podhoretz. It might be Monday Night Football between the Chargers and Raiders. It might be both.
Yet 9/14 of 2001 was when President George W. Bush hugged that New York firefighter and let the world know that the people who knocked down the towers would hear from all of us.
9/17 was the day that the stock market reopened.
9/20 was the day that President Bush gave one of the greatest speeches in American history, and carried an entire nation on his shoulders.
Therefore, for at least one more day, 9/11 must be remembered beyond the anniversary date.
My 9/11/9 started normal. I was in Oakland, and actually was inside the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum. The game is not until tonight, but I got to experience being by myself in an empty stadium. I was right by the field, an entire stadium to myself.
Yet solace does not last forever. I left the stadium, and the city of Oakland, arriving back in Los Angeles in the afternoon. I drove to Malibu to attend a 9/11 memorial at Pepperdine University.
The memorial event was held at the Pepperdine School of Law. Judge Kenneth Starr is the Dean there. It was put on by the Pepperdine College Republicans in conjunction with the Young America’s Foundation. A pair of College Republicans, Chris Garcia and Zac Parsons, made sure that the event went off without a hitch.
The speaker at the memorial was Colonel Buzz Patterson.
Colonel Patterson was the top military adviser to President Bill Clinton from 1996 to to 1998. He carried the nuclear football. He entered the Clinton White House an apolitical man, but left a conservative. In keeping with military protocol, he kept silent while he served. He retired because he could no longer stay silent.
His next career was as an airline pilot for Delta Airlines. Yet only 10 days into his retirement, 9/11 happened. He continued to serve his country, and is now a best selling author.
With that, I present the words of Colonel Buzz Patterson.
“The moment 9/11 happened, I realized why it happened.”
“I had been retired for 10 days. That day I was preparing to fly from Atlanta to New York as a pilot with Delta Airlines.”
“A lot of Americans want to revert to a 9/10 mentality, including our current President.”
“By law, and rightly so, military personnel cannot have a voice in politics. Retired military personnel can.”
“I hear people pontificating on 9/11 from a very ignorant perspective.”
“From 1996 to 1998, I was President Clinton’s Senior Military Adviser. I was by his side 24/7. It was interesting, to say the least.”
“I could not wait to get out of there. I arrived with an apolitical mindset and a blank slate. Two years later, I was totally disgusted with what I saw.”
“You don’t apply to be the White House Senior Military Adviser. You get called. When I first got the call, I hung up on the White House. I thought it was a neighbor down the hall playing a prank. I did not hang up on them the second time they called.”
“Al Queda was a daily topic. We knew about Osama Bin Laden in May of 1996. We had eight, maybe even ten, chances to kill Bin Laden. President Clinton chose not to. He was worried how it would look. He was more interested in being Commander in Chief, or lack thereof.”
“Let me give you a tip about Iraq. Don’t go in the Summer. I went, and it was 125 to 130 degrees, and even 95 degrees at night. Sand kicks up in your face and hangs there, making it difficult to breathe. I went there in the Summer of 2006.”
“The U.S. military is the most professional and most lethal in the world. It is also the most compassionate.”
“Our soldiers brought milk, diapers, and toys to Iraqi orphanages. That story has not been told.”
“An Iraqi Baathist came up to me. He asked me to bless his daughter. I did not know how to do this, so I asked him how he wanted her to be blessed. This former Baathist looked at me and said, ‘Please bless my daughter with the freedoms you have.'”
“Many people are forgetting the fact that we are at war.”
“Al Queda is not a couple of guys in caves. There are elements of Al Queda in 80 countries.”
“Nazism, Fascism, and Communism were all ideological movements that hated the West. Radical Islam is no different. They think in the 700s, not the 21st Century. They are not going to stop trying until they kill us all.”
“I don’t know if President Obama has the resolve to face this threat.”
“This is not a law enforcement issue, it’s a war. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid just don’t get it. We need to help make them get it.”
“We have had three Democratic Presidents in recent decades. Jimmy Carter was the worst Commander in Chief…until Bill Clinton. As for President Obama, the jury is still out.”
“Clinton was an accident waiting to happen. He lost the nuclear codes. For a couple of days he told me that he had them, and would get them to me. I was the first name on his schedule to talk to him about it on the day the Lewinsky scandal broke. Clinton admitted to me two days later that he lost the codes. He was more concerned about the media not finding out than he was about the nuclear codes being lost. We don’t know how long they were missing. He could have lost them for months.”
“There is not a moral fiber in Bill Clinton’s body.”
“We knew where Bin Laden was 24/7 when I left. The media then revealed that we were tracking his phone. Thanks to our media, he turned his phone off.”
“We debated killing Bin Laden. Clinton worried about the political fallout. He was indecisive. Sandy Burglar (audience laughter) was another one with his own morals, but when it came to killing Bin Laden, Sandy Berger said to do it. Richard Clark did as well.”
“Defense Secretary William Cohen was a zero. In the meetings he said nothing.”
“Janet Reno said no. She was concerned about international law. Madeleine Albright also said no. Clinton kept siding with them.”
“Clinton was so risk averse. He was worried about his poll popularity, and his reputation overseas.”
“Bill and Hillary Clinton are both intelligent. He is charismatic. She is what I call the worst case scenario. She is irrational, and prone to flying off the handle. I have seen it myself.”
“I never want to be a politician. I am a military guy. Leadership is cut and dry.”
“When Harry Reid says that the war is lost, that gets our soldiers killed.”
“The biggest threat we face in trying to win this war are the American media and DC politicians.”
“Leon Panetta was a gentleman. He is the guy who hired me. Yet as far as the CIA job, he had no experience.”
“The detainees at Guantanamo Bay live and eat better than American troops in Afghanistan.”
“I’ve been waterboarded. It was part of my training. I’m fine. We waterboarded three people. They all coughed up information, and they are all walking around fine.”
“My brother is a left-wing wacko. We don’t talk a lot.”
“The U.S. media in Iraq are hanging out trying to do their stories from the bar at the hotel. They lounge poolside. They pay Iraqi stringers to get stories. They pay $300 for a car bomb story, and nothing for good news. Of course the stringers want the $300, so they come back with car bomb stories.”
I asked a question of Colonel Patterson.
“Colonel, thank you for your service. Besides you, Colonel Ralph Peters, and Colonel David Hunt, who are some other voices that we have to know about to get accurate military information?”
Colonel Patterson was very helpful in this regard.
“Michael Yon is very good. So is Ollie North. The military blog BlackFive is another one. The Mudville Gazette is another. Read as many military blogs as you can. We can’t depend on the Katie Courics of this world.”
Colonel Patterson then continued, as the crowd listened intently.
“Gitmo detainees should not be given due process. They are not in uniform. They do not represent a government. They hide behind women and children. They are illegal combatants. The Geneva Convention does not cover them.”
The Democrats used to be the party of FDR, Truman, and even JFK. Now they are the party of Carter, Clinton, and Obama. They don’t believe that evil exists. There is most definitely evil in this world. Terrorists understand strength and might.”
“President Clinton brought us SOmalia and Blackhawk Down. Bin Laen then referred to America as a Paper Tiger.”
“We are going down the same path as we did in 1939.”
When Colonel Patterson was asked about how long we should be in Iraq, he gave an answer that a politician would be too gutless to give.
“I hope we are there forever. We have been in Korea and Germany for a long time. We now have a presence and a foothill in the Middle East near Iran and Syria. We should be there forever.”
“We have built cities the size of Chicago in Iraq. They now have self-determination. We defeat extremism by giving them something else to believe in.”
“I met an Iraqi general and his lieutenants. The General was a Shia. His First Lieutenant was Sunni. His Second Lieutenant was a Kurd. They are all working together.”
Colonel Patterson then answered questions about everything from Israel to other matters.
“Israel may have to take out Iran’s nuclear capabilities. In Iran, we know where the stuff is. Obama won’t have the gumption on Iran. Benjamin Netanyahu will.”
“Americans don’t like to lose. We are still suffering from our Vietnam loss.”
“70% of Hollywood money comes from overseas. No wonder those countries hate us. Much of it is George Soros money.”
“The Generation over there now in Iraq and Afghanistan will be the next Greatest Generation.”
“Medal of Honor winners are never read about in the New York Times. Abu Gharaib was the story 44 days in a row. It is up to us to make sure that their circulation goes back down. The media is already taking care of this itself since we are in a capitalist system.”
“This will be a long generational war. It will be a long, hard slog. It took 50 years to defeat Communism. We have to win the internal war here first.”
“War has not created more terrorists. When you kill them, they go away. Being a terrorist in Afghanistan is not a good job right now. These are not poverty stricken guys. The leaders are educated in the West. They are from wealthy backgrounds. They are engineers and doctors. If you kill their buddy, they go away.”
“We have gone from being a nation under God to being a nation under Obama.”
I then asked Colonel Patterson what he wanted his legacy to be 100 years from now, and how he wanted people to remember Buzz Patterson the person. His answer was touching.
“I want to be remembered as a good father and a good husband. I loved my family and my country. I never set out to write books. I have a lot of friends. I have lost a lot of friends. Somebody has to voice their concerns. In World War II, 12% of Americans were in the military. Today that number is 1/10 of 1%. Educating people about the military will be one of my small legacies. I want people to know why they are there, what they want, what they believe, and what they are accomplishing.”
Colonel Patterson did not mince words, letting the current generation know the truth.
“My generation screwed it up. You’ll have to fix it.”
After the event, Colonel Patterson stuck around for a very long time to answer questions. I got to listen to him and speak with him at length. This was an honor and a privilege.
America is fighting World War III. If we lose, civilization is over.
On September 11th of 2009, I was given a sobering reminder of the horrors of eight years earlier. We must be prepared for a long fight. The military will its job brilliantly. All we need to do is stop the people who are undermining them, and make sure that losses in the media do not overtake victories on the field of battle.
Thank you again Colonel Patterson. Thank you, and welcome home sir.
eric
Wow. This guy’s a regular Jack D. Ripper.
It’s frightening to think how many right-wing ideological zealots serve in todays military.
And he could be a little more honest. Bill Clinton did not “bring” us Somalia. George Bush Sr. did that. You’d think a military man would know that.
And we did not “defeat” communism. Over a fifth of the world’s population still lives in communism.
We are not even really at war. We never declared war. We simply invaded a couple of countries, and the real worst commander in chief ever, George W. Bush, did it so half-@$$ed, so ineptly, so incompetently, so uninformed and misinformed, so cruelly putting profits ahead of the welfare of the troops, so stupidly that we’re still on the “slog” all these years later.
When you work with a hammer you think every problem is a nail. This guy thinks the military is the answer to everything. It’s not. The minute we wake up and realize that, the better off we’ll be.
JMJ
“And he could be a little more honest. Bill Clinton did not “bring” us Somalia. George Bush Sr. did that. You’d think a military man would know that.”
Talk about dishonesty, you know damn well he was talking about the disaster that was Somalia brought to us by Bubba yours truly.
“And we did not “defeat” communism. Over a fifth of the world’s population still lives in communism.”
So what, we defeated it where it threatened us most.
What point does it serve you to run the same old tired argument on the same blog for 3 years now. No one here has bought it yet but you keep harping on it.
We were the main toll in collapsing communist Russia. had it not been for us and Reagan it simply never would of happened. You need oxygen and energy and matter for a fire. We were the energy and the oxygen. Russia was the matter
“We are not even really at war. We never declared war. We simply invaded a couple of countries, and the real worst commander in chief ever, George W. Bush, did it so half-@$$ed, so ineptly, so incompetently, ”
Yea right, its going sooooooooooooooooooo much better now.
“putting profits ahead of the welfare of the troops, ”
Yeah right, whos profits ? What ? Halliburton, some private securioty firms / Hah, that war actually costs more than anyone made. And spare me, I know all about the direction and compartmentalisation of profits, we still came out way on the loosing end of the money train and were still spending.
“When you work with a hammer you think every problem is a nail. ”
In Iraq and Afghanistan it is the military until the resistance sees otherwise
“Talk about dishonesty, you know damn well he was talking about the disaster that was Somalia brought to us by Bubba yours truly.”
Micky, I don’t know what planet you were living on back then, but the UNITAF and Operation Restore Hope started in Somalia in 1992. Clinton was simply carrying on Bush’s policy. It’s okay that you don’t know that, but for a colonel who actuary served back then would be just plain lying in saying otherwise.
“So what, we defeated it where it (communism) threatened us most.”
Communism never seriously threatened us. The “threat” was a lie. “Islamofacism” is not a serious threat either. It’s juat that a lot of Americans are easily frightened, insecure people, and the powers that be know how to play on their weaknesses.
“Yea right, its (the wars) going sooooooooooooooooooo much better now.”
Well, Obama is doing what you guys wanted. Enjoy.
“Yeah right, whos profits (from the wars)? What ? Halliburton, some private securioty firms / Hah,…”
Yes. That’s who profits. Also, miltary contract manufacturers, suppliers, consultants, distributors, etc. The MIC is a huge and powerful sector of interest. So while you little children go on about PETA and NOW, the real powers that be in this country are destroying it.
“In Iraq and Afghanistan it is the military until the resistance sees otherwise.”
Actually, no. That failed already, you just have this blind jingoistic love of the military, like a little bot with his plastic army men. Iraq turned around with the Awakening and the Sons of Iraq and such. Yes, a surge was required, but much of all the violence and misery could have been averted if Bush had applied the Powell Doctrine instead of the stupid, politically expediant, senseless Rumsfeld Doctrine of war on the cheap and “Dead Enders.” Once Bush realized the failure of the Rumsfeld Doctrine, things began to turn around in Iraq. The military is a significabnt part of any operation like this, but they are not the be all end all.
Here’s what a actual mature adult said we should do in Afghanistan from what we’ve learned worked in Iraq, appropriately said on 9/11, ya’ know, that day back in ’01 the Bush administration failed to protect us from the worst terrorist attack in our history: http://www.bradenton.com/politics/story/1702106.html
JMJ
“actuary”???
That’s wierd. Must have insurance reform on my mind! LOL! I meant “actually.”
JMJ
Jersey, I got some news for you, Somalia was not a problem until Clinton let something like 20 of our guys die there… PERIOD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GOT IT ?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
And as far as Afghanistan goes.
Bush wouldnt of let it get this far. He’d of stopped this climb in fatalities a long time ago and ramped up the action one way or another instead of worrying about FREEKING HEALTHCARE !!!!! He has a habit of ramping things up.
The messiah wants to draw down.
Pathetic, disgusting. So dont talk to be about repecting troops, hes letting them die !
And anothet thing.
Name me one war where suppliers , manufacturers, etc didnt make money ? HUH.
Should the troops go without MREs, bullets, Humvees ? HUH ? Should there be no contactors putting the place back together ? HUH ?
Youd be pi$$ing your pants if we werent doing any of that stuff… so shut up.
And no, the military is the only hope in the middle east. Its you morons who keep the inevitable from happening with your stupid appeasement and a$$ kissing BS that we can somehow bargain with these guys, as more troops die in your pathetic attempts
“Jersey, I got some news for you, Somalia was not a problem until Clinton let something like 20 of our guys die there… PERIOD !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
LOL! You don’t have a clue what happened over there, do you? Clinton’s mistake was to continue a policy created by his republican predecessors and exaserbated by the UN. What he should have done was get us out of there.
“Bush wouldnt of let it get this far. He’d of stopped this climb in fatalities a long time ago and ramped up the action one way or another instead of worrying about FREEKING HEALTHCARE !!!!!”
Boy, you conservatives have some pretty strange values. Healthcare? Eh. Insano colonial wars? Now that’s a priority! Obama is attempting to do in Afghanistan the very same thing Bush did in Iraq which helped to turn that situation around, but now you guys have decided that’s a bad idea. Talk about hypocrisy!
“Name me one war where suppliers , manufacturers, etc didnt make money ? HUH.”
I can’t. Why would I? What does that have to do with anything? Of course they make money – and they make a lot more when we actually go to war. The problem is that when they have their puppets in office, we, coincidentally enough, seem to be more eager to go to war in the first place. This is what Eisenhower warned us about all those years ago.
“Should the troops go without MREs, bullets, Humvees ? HUH ? Should there be no contactors putting the place back together ? HUH ?
Youd be pi$$ing your pants if we werent doing any of that stuff… so shut up.”
No I wouldn’t. Unlike you conservatives, I’m not a paranoid wuss who believes America is seriously threatened by every little Third World junta and religious fanatic.
“And no, the military is the only hope in the middle east. Its you morons who keep the inevitable from happening with your stupid appeasement and a$$ kissing BS that we can somehow bargain with these guys, as more troops die in your pathetic attempts”
Hypocrisy, thy name is conservatism.
JMJ
Jersey I know damn well what happened in Mogadishu
but typing is really a bitch fopr me right now so i’m gonna have to cheat and take from my sources
“President Bush the Elder sent U.S. forces into Somalia in December 1992 to aid the United Nations in relieving a massive famine. In May of 1993, four months into his term, President Clinton declared that mission accomplished and pulled out most of the U.S. forces. In a speech on the South Lawn to associate himself with the effort, he extolled the decision to intervene: “If all of you who served had not gone, it is absolutely certain that tens of thousands would have died by now.” It was a “successful mission,” he said, and “proved yet again that American leadership can help to mobilize international action …”
But back in Somalia, with no U.S. deterrent, Somalia’s warlords began fighting again. After a series of bloody attacks on U.N. peacekeepers, Mr. Clinton launched a new mission: In August 1993, he sent in a force of Rangers and Special Forces units to capture the brutal warlord Mohammad Farrah Aidid and restore order.
That force asked for heavy armor — in the form of Abrams tanks and Bradley armored vehicles — as well as the AC-130 gunship, but the Clinton Administration denied those requests. On October 3 on a mission to pick up Aidid, two Black Hawks were unexpectedly shot down; in the ensuing urban gun battle, 18 American soldiers were killed and another 73 injured.
Many military experts believe that if the U.S. forces had had armor, fewer would have died. Secretary of Defense Les Aspin resigned two months after Somalia, having acknowledged that his decision on the armor had been an error. A 1994 Senate Armed Services Committee investigation reached the same conclusion. But perhaps the most poignant statement came from retired Lieutenant Colonel Larry Joyce, father of Sergeant Casey Joyce, a Ranger killed in Mogadishu: “Had there been armor … I contend that my son would probably be alive today …”
Mr. Clinton’s responsibility in Somalia doesn’t stop there. Despite the mistakes that October day, Aidid had been struck a blow. The U.S. military, with 18 dead, wanted nothing more than to finish what it had started. Mr. Clinton instead aborted the mission. The U.S. released the criminals it had captured that same day at such great cost, and the U.N., lacking U.S. support, was powerless to keep order. Somalia remains a lawless, impoverished nation. Worse, the terrorists of al Qaeda interpreted the U.S. retreat from Somalia as a sign of American weakness that may have convinced them we could be induced to retreat from the Middle East if they took their attacks to the U.S. homeland.
Those are the facts. The reason Mr. Clinton can’t blame the events of “Black Hawk Down” on President Bush’s father is because those events had nothing to do with him. They were Mr. Clinton’s responsibility, and his alone.”
Got it ?
Clinto was the one who made Somalia famous but you sure as hell wouldnt guess it if you had to ask Ridley or Bowen
Yeah thats right, Obamas not worrid about your healthcare or mine, hes worried about re election, so spare me the values BS.
The PO is his only ticket to gurantee re election. Its the ole “gotcha “entitlement that liberals and dems have always used to hook the next election. You guys abuse minorities and those without for the sake of votes, thats all you do.
Minorirties are no better off now than they were 40 years ago, still looking to you for a hand out.
But you’ll do just enough to keep em happy while our soldiers die in the middle east
“Hypocrisy, thy name is conservatism.”
Oh the poor tree (kill the baby)
We defeated Communism?
Don’t tell that to the Chinese.
The old Soviet Union is no more..but Russia still exists.
The Ruskies are selling Chavez 100 tanks. They have set up a fund for Venezuela to use if needed. They are building a massive naval base in Syria. They have given Iran the go ahead to do what they please regarding their nuclear program. They have threatened and may in fact have given (sold) S-300 missiles to both Syria and Iran ( to thwart an Israeli-US attack against at least 9 nuke plants, thus sending their enrichment program back perhaps indefinitely ( uranium plants at two locations would be targeted as well as those centrifuges).
So, while Russia complains about our (US) proposals to build an anti-missile defense and radar station, they are not letting any grass grow.
As far as Communism being defeated..the Soviet brand maybe, but
socialism is not dead quite yet. In fact, I have begun calling the US
the Socialist Republic of the United States, thanks to Obama.
According to one website, Israel is prepared to take out the nuke plants in Iran should the US continue it’s “engage” and “talk” policy w/o any significant change in Ahmad’s policy.
Bin Ladin bombed the WTC while Israel was engaging and talking with
the Palestinians. That attack was planned well before 9-11., also, while
the two belligerants were talking.
Israel offered the Palestinians 97% of the West Bank and all the Gaza Strip, AND an equal amount of land in the Negev. Arafat turned it down, claiming the long, non-starter counter that any Arab can move to Israel
proper (right of return).
Bin Ladin said that if only the US abandons Israel, Al Qaeda will make
love with the US. Sure., like in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, etc. which have nothing whatsoever to do with the M.E. conflict.
Clinton was a so-so President, smart, but smart assed. He should have
kept his eye off the ball so to speak. His VP was a dumb dumb.
Bush Jr. fought Islamic-fascism, the way Ronnie fought Communism…
Obama has already signed our death warrant.
“Well, Obama is doing what you guys wanted. Enjoy.”
Another line of disengenuous crap. Keep it up and the debates will end. 1 month after 911 the majority of the country was behind Afghanistan and right now its pretty much a 50/50 split.
The fact is that with Obama running the show its quickly gone down hill.
Dan, despite what you say, you are the most partisan commenter on this blog.
Clinton was attempting to make it safer for the Somali people, to help them get the aid instead of the warlords. He got too involved. Somalia (in part thanks to us and our good ol’ CIA) was (and still is) a completely failed state with no true ruling central authority. Really, it’s a conservative’s paradise, when you think about it! And it’s yet another example of the horrors the Cold War inflicted on the world. But Clinton wasn’t doing anything Bush wasn’t doing before. And that was his mistake. Never do anything a Bush would do.
“Yeah thats right, Obamas not worrid about your healthcare or mine, hes worried about re election, so spare me the values BS.”
Yes, Micky. Only Republicans and private health insurance companies really care about our health and not elections! LOL!
Obama isn’t stupid. He knows how to negotiate. Shoot for the stars, land on the moon. In the end, there wil probably be no “public option” or “mandatory coverage,” but he will be able to get some pretty substatial insurance reform and that alone could bring down costs, get far more people covered and covered securely, and start to stifle the ridiculous inflation of that sector. “Liberals” polled show that they can live without the “public option,” because they, like him, are not stupid. They want the most reform as possible. So they’ll settle for whatever they can get. So Obama doesn’t have much to lose here. All he has to do is get some kind of substatial reforms and it’s a win/win – for him and for us.
“The PO is his only ticket to gurantee re election.”
No. That’s not true. Self-identified liberals were polled recently and only showed a 4% drop in support of reform without the PO. Independents are roughly the same – either way. Conservatives wouldn’t support Obama even if he did exactly as his predecessor, as your rant about Cliton and Somalia above proves. It’s very early in his first term. This will not have that much baering on his reelection chances. That’s why he jumped on it so soon.
Look back at Clinton. Here was a man who was elected president with only 43% of the vote, attempted massive healthcare reform very early on, had zero success, and was reelected with a much better vote in ’96. So you’re assertion is just a conservative pipe-dream/talking point.
“Minorirties are no better off now than they were 40 years ago, still looking to you for a hand out.”
Wow. You really do sound like a racist sometimes. That’s ashame. You really just don’t hear yourself, do you? How would you take it if I said, “Mickies are no better off now than they were 40 years ago, still looking to you for a hand out.” If you conservatives keep talking like that, don’t EVER expect the minority vote.
“But you’ll do just enough to keep em happy while our soldiers die in the middle east.”
Amazing. Pure hypocrisy. You really just don’t hear yourself, Micky.
JMJ
Micky,
Even Oliver North says Obama is doing the right thing in Afghanistan right now. Make up your mind – are you a George Will Republican, or an Oliver North Republican. You’re just being contrarian because NOTHING Obama could ever do would garner you’re support. Pure. Hypocritial. Hatred.
JMJ
To those who peruse this website..it probably appears that the blogger
is unduly involved with a personal matter pertaining to an insult to him at a local hotel.
With all that is going on now, health, 3 wars, the possiblity of a 4th war,
a nuclear Iran threatening the US and our interests within a 1,200 mile radius, an economy that is still in shambles with 20% unemployed or underemployed, 1m homes in California still threatened with foreclosure, one-third of every US homeowner living in a residence with a mortgage greater than the value of the home itself, the stock market only 50% above it’s 3 years low, China hitting back at US for putting a tariff on their
tires, Russia becoming more embolden by the hour…me thinks there are better things to do than get even with or investigate the whys.
Henry Waxman, known affectiontely as Waxboy, is a shoe in to repeat.
It’s just the numbers everyone. He has them. I will vote for Avi David (not he restaurant chain in NYC called Avi and David), just as I voted for John McCain. Realistically his chances are poor of winning. McCain had a much better chance if not for the Democratic-Republican negligence in not regulating Wall Street.
Al Qaeda has a presence in 80 countrie..but they don’t have warplanes, battleships, missiles, or nukes.
Let’s not get carried away that we are in WW3. This is not WW3 by
any stretch. It’s a fight against Muslim zealots with an ax to grind. People
who transfer their own problems to the rest of US.
We are dealing with fanatics..with delusions..who are simply paranoid.
They can be contained..but it will take more than the US marines. This is a worldwide problem..just as Iran is a worldwide problem.
Bush is not responsible for 911..those Presidents before him should be
blamed, most especially Clinton. His approach towards Afghanistan and Iraq was to do the most with as few casualties (troops involved) as possible. I agreed.
Perhaps looking back, we should have had the draft..and beefed up our military by 12m troops ( see WW2 ). But in WW2, the SS alone had 500,000 men. The Reich has over 14m, not including Finland, Austria, Hungary, Romania, etc. Japan had 5m men and women ready to fight to the death in 1945.
Lets not compare these wars, they are not similar.
Hitler planned a conquest of England and the US. He would have used
the London police to round up undesirables..This is a fact. He had people
to “administer” areas in the US. He also had the German American Bund types to help. And I kind of think he would have sought allies in the Irish and German Americans.
Colonel Patterson is a military man. His opinion is just an opinion, nothing more.
We cannot win in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan. It’s time to start withdrawing our troops, not increasing them, in Afghanistan. Let the Afgan and Pakistani people deal with these insurgents. not US.
Not one more US lad should be killed or wounded, not one.
Neither of the above can hold a candle to our US military. 3 nukes from the 3 missile ships in the Persian Gulf, would do wonders to send them a message.
I will say one thing however in praise of the colonel.
Several months ago I happen to talk to an employee of a local
store. He had been in Iraq. His comment to me was, “The US marines
got their asses kicked in Somalia, to my great delight”. The US army
brutalized the poor innocent Iraqi people during the first Gulf War.
The US is behind all the wars in Africa. I want Sharia law as part of the
US jurisprudence. Women have too many rights in the US”.
I sware to God this is what he said.
So, the Colonel has some points.