Bush Seeks Coalition Against The Troops

Since the run-up to the war in Iraq anyone who has questioned the Bush administration has had to endure ad hominem attacks on their patriotism and accusations that they don't support the troups. But it has been the Bush administration that has failed to support the troops. If you are like me, when Rumsfeld attempted to justify the lack of adaquate but available armor plating on hum-vees, you were so overcome with rage that you passed out half way through the press conference. The hypocracies and outrages continue even in these late hours of the dark years of the Bush administration as the President has promised to veto an expansion of the GI Bill.

This is particularly significant in relation to war profiteering, the topic an earlier posting on this very blog. The members of the administration who ducked out of military service and their friends and business associates rake in the cash while overcharging the government on essentials for the troops, telling the manufacturers not to include available additional armor, force wounded soldiers to live in decrepid conditions, and deny expansion of the GI bill. When the government is being overcharged here its you and I that are being screwed in the pooper.

These soldiers have taken it on the chin from this administration and continue to step up and volunteer to serve this country. It is a true testiment to the indominable spirit of the United States soldier.

The Lunar Eclipse Of Blood

Tonight across the northern hemisphere the glorious light of the full moon was briefly occluded by the umbra of the earth. Red light, like the menstrual blood of a celestial goddess, flowed down on us and bedlam broke loose. For two hours, in two cities, the only sound the two authors of this post heard were the sirens of first responders scrambling madly to the next emergency. Wondering to themselves if this were really a Wednesday night. Then silence. The snow no longer reflecting the red power of that celestial orb. The darkness had passed and all that remains is the bright, familiar face of the moon. Her light, no longer simply taken for granted, but ignored as useless. - Th'Dave

It's not often that there happens to be a full lunar eclipse. Somewhat less often, a superpower escalates a potentially dangerous situation involving more sophisticated weapons and a new generation of warfare. In case you were outside enjoying the eclipse and weren't glued to the TV, at 9:30 PM Central Standard Time, right about the time white rabbit peaked, the Lake Erie, an American Aegis-class destroyer shot down that satellite, despite warnings from Russia and China about escalating a new race to weaponize and control space. Not really space, mind you, rather those behind this weapons test with a very small tolerance for error would like to move strategic thinking into the orbits around our beloved Mother Earth. I don't watch TV, but the article above seems pretty media polished, so expect the mainstream news media to pick up this wonderfully nationalistic gem of a story in short order.

As an American citizen and a veteran, I understand the rationale behind developing weaponry and doctrine for future conflicts, but nothing happens in a vacuum. When the Chinese Military shot down an aging weather satellite and didn't announce it, the world was supposed to be incensed that there was an ulterior motive behind it, and more it seemingly was reflective of cold war thinking. However, other than press conference, the differences seem superficial. If nothing else, the rest of the world could easily interpret the move as standard 'tit for tat' testing, reminiscent of the Cold War. News at 7!

Perhaps the worst part of this entire episode, is that the military has demonstrated its ability to intercept objects moving just about a hair's breadth above the earth's atmosphere, moving at 17,000 miles per hour. Which are the operational requirements of the missile defense system, so also look to say that we should invest more in this pointless weaponizing of space against terrestrial threats. But those tens of seconds are very hard to replicate.

Surely, the apocalypse is nigh! (I hate arguing for him, but it would seem that Bill was taken out of context here.) - TheRedKap