Saturday, April 21, 2007

Training Iraqi troops no longer driving force in U.S. policy


Remember that bullshit line....."When they stand up, we can stand down"....just another example of totally fucked up planning!


WASHINGTON - Military planners have abandoned the idea that standing up Iraqi troops will enable American soldiers to start coming home soon and now believe that U.S. troops will have to defeat the insurgents and secure control of troubled provinces.
Training Iraqi troops, which had been the cornerstone of the Bush administration's Iraq policy since 2005, has dropped in priority, officials in Baghdad and Washington said.

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

Letter I Sent to My Two Senators Today


I don't really know what else to do at this point.....



Dear Senator:


My wife and I recently travelled from Denver back home to Fresno on Amtrak and had a great trip. On the train we dined with a couple coming from Florida. They said they could not take the southern route across the country because the tracks had been wiped out by Katrina and there was no plan to rebuild them. This hit me as just another example of how we are wasting money in Iraq that should be spent at home!! Please STOP THE IRAQ FUNDING and bring the soldiers home now!!! We also dined with a couple from England. I apologized to them for what our government has done to the rest of the world the past 6 years. They said EVERY American they have met has told them the same thing and they just wonder how Bush got elected. I won't get into that, but the point is, he is insane and must be stopped! We have nobody to count on but the Congress. Protests (which we have done many of) have no impact on lunatics like Bush and Cheney. YOU are our only hope to restore some sanity to our leadership. PLEASE do not equivocate or compromise (sell out) with this madman! The murder must be stopped. Thank you!

Fresno Tennis Great Sounds Off!


Here is Alan's letter from yesterday's Bee....



Recently Sen. John McCain visited Iraq along with Rep. Mike Pence. After the visit, Sen. McCain remarked that the good news in Iraq was not being reported and that the surge is proving fruitful.
As evidence, Sen. McCain said he was able to drive through Baghdad and visit an open-air market where he shopped -- albeit wearing a flak jacket, escorted by more than 100 soldiers, a couple of helicopter gun ships and armored vehicles. Rep. Pence commented that it was like being in an open-air market in Indiana. Really?
We already have our answer on how well a surge will work. Since the surge, attacks have escalated. The Iraqi parliament was attacked Thursday. Are supporters of the surge as delusional as Sen. McCain and Rep. Pence?
Sen. McCain says give the surge a chance. Haven't we been giving it a chance for the past four years? Republicans say that specifying a withdrawal date will only embolden our enemies, and they will just wait for our defeat. In the past four years, with no withdrawal set, have they been less bold? If we stay, do we think they will give up? You only have to look at the Israeli/Palestinian conflict.
Alan Cheah
Oakhurst

Sunday, April 15, 2007

Iacocca: Bushies are "gang of clueless bozos"


Right on Lee!


Am I the only guy in this country who's fed up with what's happening? Where the hell is our outrage? We should be screaming bloody murder. We've got a gang of clueless bozos steering our ship of state right over a cliff, we've got corporate gangsters stealing us blind, and we can't even clean up after a hurricane much less build a hybrid car. But instead of getting mad, everyone sits around and nods their heads when the politicians say, "Stay the course."
Stay the course? You've got to be kidding. This is America, not the damned Titanic. I'll give you a sound bite: Throw the bums out!
You might think I'm getting senile, that I've gone off my rocker, and maybe I have. But someone has to speak up. I hardly recognize this country anymore. The President of the United States is given a free pass to ignore the Constitution, tap our phones, and lead us to war on a pack of lies. Congress responds to record deficits by passing a huge tax cut for the wealthy (thanks, but I don't need it). The most famous business leaders are not the innovators but the guys in handcuffs. While we're fiddling in Iraq, the Middle East is burning and nobody seems to know what to do. And the press is waving pom-poms instead of asking hard questions. That's not the promise of America my parents and yours traveled across the ocean for. I've had enough. How about you?
I'll go a step further. You can't call yourself a patriot if you're not outraged. This is a fight I'm ready and willing to have.