Nothing says clueless....

Like being shown the fool that you are by a Marine.

Case in point, Chris Matthews, who has absolutely no clue of the role that the National Guard plays in the GWOT. Newsbusters points us to a Chris Matthews interview with Major General Arnold Punaro, Chairman of the Commission on the National Guard and Reserves:

Matthews: "Do we have the troops to dramatically increase our complement of troops in Iraq, sir?"

Punaro: "Absolutely. Between our active military and the number of troops we have in the Guard and Reserve, should the Commander-in-Chief, on the advice of the combatant commanders in the field and with the concurrence of the Congress make the decision that we want to increase the size of the force in Iraq, we certainly have the ability to surge those forces."

Whoops! Matthews tried a tactical retreat, thinking he might achieve his goal by denigrating the abilities of the non-active military: "What about the National Guard people and the Reservists, are they the kind of people it's appropriate to send into house-to-house combat in the middle of that huge city of Baghdad, where they'll be getting shot at every moment and where they'll be killing Arabs. Is that the right place for them?"

Again, the Major General wouldn't sing Matthews's song: "First of all, over 550,000 Guard and Reserve personnel have been mobilized since 9-11. Many of them have served extensive tours in Iraq and Aghanistan. They've been side-by-side with their active components. They've been in the thick of the combat. The Marine Corps and Army ground forces are trained the same as their active duty counterparts. They're every bit as capable of closing with and destroying the enemy as their active counterparts."

Matthews gave it one last try: "And you believe that's an appropriate use of Guardspeople to put them into house-to-house like we're talking about? We're talking about going in and cleaning out Baghdad, something that the Iraqi forces haven't been able to do, that the 17,000 regular Army and Marine forces haven't been able to do. You're saying throw in the National Guard to do it?"

Punaro: "Well the question you first asked was are they capable of carrying out those kind of missions, and the answer is 'yes'."

Surge that, Chris.

I always love it when a terrorist-loving, American Armed forces-hating lib gets his ass handed to him on a silver platter. Our son is in the Guards, and has been in the thick of combat since arriving in Iraq this past March.

(big h/t to Ice Palace reader Sara)

A "must have" for your Christmas list!

If CAIR hates it, it's gotta be good:

A U.S. Islamic advocacy group Tuesday called on the country's largest retailer to stop selling a video game it says glorifies religious violence and could negatively affect interfaith relations.

The game, "Left Behind: Eternal Forces," is described on the game's website as a real-time strategy game based on the best-selling book series "Left Behind."

It allows gamers to "join the ultimate fight of good against evil, commanding Tribulation Forces or the Global Community Peacekeepers, and uncover the truth about the worldwide disappearances" - a reference to the end-time rapture.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which says it received complaints about the game, charged that players are rewarded for either converting or killing people of other faiths.

In a letter to H. Lee Scott Jr., CEO of Wal-Mart, CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad said the game was promoting a message of "religious intolerance."

"The game's enemy team includes people with Muslim-sounding names," Awad said, urging Scott not to sell the game.

Ahhhh... now we get to the meat of the matter.

Word to CAIR: You want folks to quit associating the word, "Islam" with "enemy?"

Then QUIT SUPPORTING TERRORISM!


Aside from that, CAIR remains consistent in never missing an opportunity to be wrong:

Frichner said CAIR's stance was "based on hearsay."

He acknowledged that in the "Left Behind" book series the Tribulation Forces are Christians but said that was not mentioned anywhere in the game.

Frichner said the game encourages players to avoid conflict, because "if you end up having to defend yourself ... you actually are penalized as well."

"So it's really just the complete opposite of what people have written and reported about."

On the "convert or die" allegation, Frichner said there was no element of people of other faiths being forced to convert to Christianity or die.

The game called for people to join the Tribulation Force rather than die at the hands of the anti-Christ. "You're trying to save other people from that and ultimate judgment by God," he said.

Of course, I haven't heard CAIR or any other of the anti-Christian zealots caterwalling about this game or this game. The anti-Christian bigots are perfectly fine with a steady diet of porn and/or violence. But a Christian-based game??? Why that's just over the top!

Consumers who have bought the game love it, he said, because they can play it with their kids instead of "all the yuck that's out there."

Frichner charged that there was a "religiously motivated bias" in calls to boycott the game. Those pushing for a boycott were not boycotting other games - even though there were "some terrible games out there."

So, even if you're not into video games, why not go to your local Wal-Mart and purchase this one (and thank them for carrying it, for that matter).

If for no other reason than to give the Islamo-Fascists and other anti-Christian bigots the proverbial finger.

Zucker-punching the Iraq Surrender Group...

Danny Bonaduce Bitch-Slaps a self-important Twit...

Gotta love this:

Back by popular demand...

Yeah, this is cooler than cool..

But man, it would be a bit difficult to live with 24/7...

I can hardly wait...

Bring out the popcorn:

New Zawahiri video expected within 72 hrs

WASHINGTON, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- Analysts who monitor jihadi web sites say a new video message from al-Qaida's number 2, Ayman al-Zawahiri is expected within the next few days.

Al-Qaida's audio-visual distribution arm, the As-Sahab Media Institute announced the upcoming release of the new video Monday, saying it was titled "The Facts behind the Conflict between Islam and Non-Belief."

To tell you the truth, outside of informing us of his intentions of gorging himself to death on camel manure, or of sucking the exhaust out of a humvee, I couldn't give a flying crap in a rolling donut what Zawahiri has to say. But, given that Señor Scumwad has gone through all the trouble of making a video to send out a "message of love" to the masses, the least I could do would be to respond in kind.

So, without further ado,

Hey Zawahiri--here's my message to you:

"May the fleas of 10,000 camels infest your groin area. May you die a slow, excruciatingly painful death, entrapped in a vat of porcine-variety entrails. May each of your "72 virgins" weigh over three bills; be nicknamed "Bubba," be forever horny, call you "bitch," and think you have a "purty mouth."

BTW--your "god" sucks.

There's your love, scumbag.

On Blogging Lite...

My apologies for not blogging on a more regular basis lately. Our son has been back home on leave from Iraq for the past week; and much of my time (when not working) has been spent with him.

To tell you the truth, I haven't been following a lot of politics this past week.

Doug will be leaving to go back in a few days, so I'll probably pick up the pace of my blogging in the next week or so. I have something new cooking in the works as well, with a couple of my blogging partners from Murtha Must Go!.

For now, the money I put in my Salvation Army Kettle is getting pretty lonely--if you care to drop some coin for a more-than-worthwhile cause, feel free to click on my kettle in the sidebar.

But for now, I'll leave you with this... another great moment in comedy:

A letter from John Kerry...

This is no joke. When John Kerry delivered his so-called "botched joke," I made it a point, as a parent of a deployed soldier, to send him an email signifying my outrage at his comments. To tell you the truth, I didn't expect a response:

December 7,
2006

Mr. Leo Pusateri
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dear Mr. Pusateri:

Thank you for writing to me about the botched
joke about President Bush I made on October
30th. I appreciate the opportunity to clarify
my statement.

First, it was a dumb joke and I slipped up,
dropped a couple words, and made it worse. I
take responsibility for my misstatement.

I still believe this Administration didn't do
its homework before going to war and didn't
study the lessons of history. But I shouldn't
have made a joke about it.

First and foremost, I regret that the men and
women of our military were swept into the
political spin storm that followed my
misspoken joke. The White House and their
allies spent a lot of time and energy trying
to convince our troops that I meant to insult
them.

American troops have done a remarkable job in
Iraq and Afghanistan, and all of America
should be proud of their selfless service to
our country. I have had the opportunity to
visit with our soldiers abroad and was always
impressed by their high level of
professionalism, dedication and skill.
As a combat veteran, I was dismayed that my
misspoken joke about the President was taken
as an insult to our troops. I would never
intend to do anything but praise our troops.
My poorly stated joke was not about and never
intended to refer to any service member. I
personally apologize to any service member,
family member, or American who was offended.
I was also disappointed that my comments
detracted from the real tragedy; the
inadequate planning for the war, insufficient
body armor, and no real plan for success. I
will not be dissuaded from pressuring the
Administration to find a direction in Iraq to
get the policy fixed and bring our troops
home from an Iraq that's stable.
Thank you again for writing me with your
concerns. Be assured that I am committed to
our troops and their families, and will
continue fighting for their safety and well
being.

Sincerely,

John F. Kerry
United States Senator

After reading this correspondence, I felt compelled to respond:

Dear Senator Kerry:

Thank you for response.

I wish that I could tell you that I accept your "apology," but I could not begin to do that in good conscience. For to accept an apology is to accept the notion that the person making that apology is sincere.

Your insincerity is apparent immediately at the outset of your correspondence. You continue to maintain that the incident in question was a "botched joke." Mr. Kerry, if you had a history of true support for our troops, I may accept that explanation at face value; but your very history, both short- and long term, screams otherwise. Rather than support our troops, you are someone who has repeated ad nauseum that their mission has been a mistake (at least as soon as you found it politically advantageous to do so). Given also the grave disservice you did to our brave Vietnam veterans during your "Winter Soldier" testimony, I have no choice but to question the veracity and depth of your alleged sincerity.

I have seen the videotape of your "botched joke." Usually, when one tells a "botched joke," especially one so potentially damaging, one usually gets a sheepish look on one's face; and in recognizing the folly takes immediate measures to correct the verbiage on the spot. What I saw on the video was a man who told a joke, smiled, and waited for rimshot laughter connected to the punchline (laughter which, thankfully, never came). No attempt was made to correct nor clarify. While I have no doubt that the dearth of positive accolades in response to your "botched joke" made for an awkward moment, I nonetheless am led to believe that you meant every word you said.

To add insult to injury, you continue in your correspondence to perpetuate your disingenuousness and condescension by blaming the Bush administration for our troops' justified reaction to your "botched joke." Our troops (inclulding my son) are more intelligent and independent-minded than you think, Mr. Kerry. Make no mistake. In staging the now-infamous "Halp us Jon Carry" sign viewed 'round the world, our troops read your comments (and your sentiments) loud and clear.

You speak of the "real tragedy" of the Iraq war. Yes, in every war, tragedies happen. I have wept at the funerals of brave, young soldiers from my son's outfit who have made the ultimate sacrifice for a cause in which they believed; a cause that they were more than willing to die for.

Make no mistake; those are tragedies. But with respect to being an American, the "real tragedy" of this war is the fact that you, Jack Murtha, and other elected representatives of the People of the United States of America continue to dishonor our soldiers' efforts for reasons of political gain; and in doing so, give aid and comfort to our enemies. You have not once, to my knowledge, gone out of your way to proclaim any good that is being done in Iraq. Not once did I hear you talk about new schools being built. Not once did I hear you talk about new hospitals being built; or of infrastructure being not only replaced, but improved upon. Not even once did I hear you talk about any soldiers who heroically saved an Iraqi family from attack, or saved their platoon from slaughter, although such stories are no doubt legion. Rather, in your arrogance, you choose to portray them as "terrorizing Iraqi women and children in the dead of night."

Mr. Kerry, until this past year, never in my life would I have thought that I would live to see the day when elected officials would, during wartime, so cavalierly, publicly and seditiously go out of their way to speak ill of our soldiers' mission; while in the same vile sentences have the unmitigated gall to proclaim that they "support the troops."

Freedom of Political Speech, a gift given us not only by our Founding Fathers, but by the lifeblood of every Soldier, Sailor and Marine since the founding of our Nation, is a multi-edged sword that can cut in varying directions. A prudent, judicious American will recognize that with such an awesome freedom, comes an equally awesome responsibility to use it wisely. You sir, have wielded it with a reckless abandon befitting not a statesman, but a brigand.

Once again, Senator Kerry, at the very least, I wish to thank you for taking the time to respond to my correspondence. But accept your apology?

Thanks, but no thanks.

Sincerely,

Leo J. Pusateri

Okay--I'm back...

Let's just say that the "troll" and I have come to an "understanding" and leave it at that.

Having said that, the outpouring of support that I've had from my friends in the MOB and elsewhere has been nothing less than humbling. A day or two after making my "farewell" post (well, when you have a dimunitive traffic level for the most part, it takes a few days before anyone notices that you're gone), I received emails of support from all over the place, as well as supportive posts here, here, here, here,, here, here, here, here, and here. Just suffice it to say that I was overwhelmed; and it has cemented my notion that there are a shitload of good people in our community of bloggers that far outweigh the jerks.

Thanks to all-- it is more appreciated than you'll ever know.

P.S.--thanks, Mitch.

Happy Trails, from the Ice Palace...

As of the past month and a half, I have been receiving hatemail and threats from a lefty troll, up to, and including threatening my livelihood. This person portrays himself to be a military ground intelligence officer; but that's all I'll say for now.

As of this point, I am looking into legal action against this person, should he pursue his threats.

I got into blogging because it was fun; I enjoyed being up on things; it was a creative outlet, and I have met some wonderful people.

But when you get someone who lives an otherwise joyless existence, whose only raison d' etre is to make your existence a living hell, the fun is gone, and it's time to hang it up.

I may be back; then again I may not. I guess it just comes down lately to having better things to do with my time.

From the bottom of my heart, I thank all of you who at one time or another took the time out to read my screeds. It meant (and means) more to me than you'll ever know.

-Leo-

Dennis Miller on the six Imams....

h/t Jawa Report

Our son will be coming home tomorrow...

For two weeks R & R...

Although I'm overjoyed to see him, it will, at the same time, be strange. I mean, what do you say? What do you talk about?

In my mind, since he'll only be here for two weeks, it would seem that Iraq would be the last thing he wants to talk about... I'm wondering if the best thing to do (as of now) would be to talk about the future (our other son will be getting married in May; talk about his plans for school, etc.)..

If anyone has any advice, thanks in advance.

Hey dude, where's my blog?

One of my favorite blogs, I fear, is on the endangered list...

Hey Dr. Jonz, Indyjonz & AngryGuy--where's my fix?

I couldn't do this if I walked down the lane and knocked 'em over with my hands...

From here:

Esther Medley of Centralia is legally blind, but when she bowls she can glimpse a bit of the floor to line up with the lane.

Medley, 94, can't see straight ahead, so her 86-year-old husband Ralph tells her which pins are left after her first ball.

That's how Medley recently bowled a score of 244, which included eight strikes, at Fairway Lanes in Centralia. It was the second-highest score of the year for her league.

The Medleys have been bowling in the senior league since 1979.

Ninety four years old? Legally blind? Bowling 244?

Must've been the Little Friskies.

Can Political Correctness Kill?

The Palm Beach Post yesterday had an editorial that chided U.S. Airways for its treatment of the "six Imams":

US Airways is standing by the decision of one of its crews to kick six Muslim clerics off a flight last week in Minneapolis because some passengers believed that the men behaved suspiciously.

Some details about the incident remain murky, but two points are clear: More than five years after 9/11, Americans still have little confidence in how the government screens fliers; and Americans know so little about Islam, and are so quick to reach for the worst stereotypes, that even acts of prayer can take on sinister interpretations.

These weren't Roman Catholic nuns fiddling with rosaries. As a matter of fact:

By most accounts, the six bearded men were behaving suspiciously at a time when airports were on high alert for sky terror during the holidays. "There were a number of things that gave the flight crew pause," an airline spokesman said. According to witnesses and police reports, the men:

• Made anti-American statements.

• Made a scene of praying and chanting "Allah."

• Asked for seat-belt extensions even though a flight attendant thought they didn't need them.

• Refused requests by the pilot to disembark for more screening.

Also, three of the men had only one-way tickets and no checked baggage.

Hardly just "praying" now, were they? It remains unbelievable that, after having lived through the events of 9/11, not to mention the first WTC bombing in 1993, a newspaper editorial board would pretend like a similar event perpetrated by like-minded people could never happen again:

Given the heightened screening procedures in recent months, it's hard to imagine what plausible threat the six men - one of whom is blind - posed to the other 140 people aboard the plane.

And it is even more difficult to imagine that an editorial board of a newspaper that was in existence during 1993 has so conveniently forgotten that it was a "blind sheikh" who masterminded the 1993 WTC bombings, among other atrocities, both planned and carried out.

In terms of subtlety, the imams' behavior was hardly something out of the terrorism playbook. Their public expression of faith was also an expression of innocence that some passengers chose to ignore.

Again, their public expression of faith was not the main concern here (although admittedly, public expressions of faith have been known to be in quite a few terrorism playbooks). it was their expression of faith, coupled with failing to sit in assigned seats, taking no luggage on the plane, spouting anti-American rhetoric--well-- you do the math. Not to mention:

"Omar Shahin is one of the imams removed from a flight in Minneapolis. He was involved with Kind Hearts, which has been closed down for its connections to Hamas. He also acknowledged a connection to Osama bin Laden in the 1990s in a September 28, 2001 story in the Arizona Republic."

But that still doesn't seem to be good enough for the likes of the self-righteous, pompous elites at the Palm Beach Post; who, if all indications are correct, would rather see another September 11th occur than offend the sensiblities of a few suspicious-acting Imams with a history of terrorist involvements.

I personally took the time today to email U.S. Air, to praise them for their courage (it took a lot of it in the face of today's politically-correct climate), and for putting customer safety above all else. I also let them know in no uncertain terms that the next time I fly, it will be on their airline.