Justice Wins Again

Over the past few weeks, we've seen some landmark court decisions - apparently, the US Constitution applies anywhere and everywhere, regardless of things like "other countries" or silly facts like launching an RPG at American forces; school districts can't implement race-based school assignments for children unless they really, really feel like it (another Justice Kennedy gem); and we can't forget that the 2nd Amendment really does mean an individual has the right to bear arms (if you're interested in that stuff, Scalia's opinion is brilliant, FYI).

But not until today did the US legal system really make a decision that readily impacts the everyday American. I speak, of course, of Janet Jackson's infamous wardrobe malfunction during the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show.

To fill you in, the nipple-hating nerds at the FCC slapped CBS with a cool $550,000 fine. CBS, feeling that this was somewhat extreme, appealed the fine. Today, the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals tossed the fine; thus establishing that nipples are as American as apple pie, and the FCC sucks.

I can't help but remember where I was when Justin ripped off Janet's shirt, and the world witnessed what a surgically-enhanced breast and nipple look like with a crazy sun thing around it. I was sitting in our company HQ in Baghdad at 4 in the morning, watching the Super Bowl halftime show live. Under normal circumstances (not in Iraq), I avoid the half-time show at all costs. But since I was in Iraq and there was literally nothing better to do, I watched it.

To be honest, I didn't realize what happened until 3 seconds after the fact. At which point I was really pissed that the Army did not see fit to issue me a TiVo with my M-16. Not that I have some weird fetish for Janet Jackson, but you've got to understand - after so long in the desert, surrounded by other guys, the slightest resemblance of heterosexual sex is enough to cause a minor riot.

Oh well - mark another "W" for the American people and freedom. Today, I sleep well knowing that shameless publicity stunts for upcoming tours and albums are protected by the Constitution.

Good News: Barack Has a Plan!

Just so we're all on the same page, Barack is now re-affirming his promise to end the Iraq War within 16-months of taking office. This may seem like a blatantly obvious statement, but with the antics of last week, I wasn't sure if Obama was getting ready to Obama-nate on his promise to lead America to defeat.

It took a little longer than I expected, but Obama has formally responded to last week's news that Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki wants a timetable for the withdrawal of American forces. And surprise, surprise - Obama thinks it's a smashing idea. The New York Times graciously lent their Op-Ed page for the response.

Here are the highlights:

- In an effort to tell the 3 people who didn't know this, Barack starts off by reminding us AGAIN that he has opposed the war since the beginning. While not 100% accurate, we'll let him play this little game. In terms of relevance, however, what he thought about the war 5 years ago is completely useless. But he opposed it. In case you didn't know.

- Then Obama actually says that the "surge" is working. But immediately reverts back to his root programming, and says that "...the same factors that led me to oppose the surge still hold true..." Um, I'm confused. Why is he praising the accomplishments of the surge while saying that he still opposes it? Does anyone actually read that and think it makes sense?

- Obama is going to "...consult with commanders on the ground and the Iraqi government to ensure that our troops were redeployed safely, and our interests protected." I wonder what the commanders on the ground have to say. Fortunately, ABC news has answered that question already. They say it's not a good idea and a logistical nightmare. No worries though - the Obamacons will hope and change their way through those pesky logistical details.

- And what Democratic plan is complete without the promise of large sums of money? Yep, Obama will pledge $2 billion to help the Iraqi refugees. So if you're keeping track of all the money Barack is planning on spending once he gets into office, that $2 billion pretty much ensures a tax of rate of 40%+ for everyone who isn't on welfare.

There's other fun little tidbits in Barack's column, but you get the idea. The recurring phrase Obama seems to have latched onto is "end this war." Well, there's only two ways to end a war. Option A - win by beating the other guy so bad that he no longer has the capability or will to fight; Option B - quit early and give the other guy a chance to rebuild his forces.

To kind of hammer that last point home, check out this article by Michael Barone. He draws some comparisons between Truman and the Berlin Airlift and Bush's commitment to the mission in Iraq.

Captain Adam Gives an Interview

My good friend Adam is in Iraq. He's been there for about a year, and he has a few more months before he heads back to the states. This is a link to an interview he did with a local Richmond, VA TV station. He gives an honest, ground truth assessment of what is going on and the progress we are making.

And as always, please keep Adam, his wife Kate, and their son Jacob in your thoughts and prayers.

Captain Adam Gives an Interview

Scroll down to the bottom of the page - you can download the video or stream it.

Obama Doesn't Understand War

George W. Bush has been mercilessly criticized for his apparent stupidity over the course of his two terms in office. He has said some pretty silly things, and his general manner of speaking doesn't help matters. However, most of the fodder for those critics comes from mixing up a couple words in a sentence or simply saying things that could be put a better way. He hasn't really sad things that are factually incorrect or just flat out wrong. And no, you can't use the WMD thing. Every single intelligence agency in the industrial world was saying the same thing. You can't lie if you don't know you're lying. But we'll leave that for another post.

In addition to the militant preacher that wants to kill white people, Barack Obama has said some pretty stupid things when it comes to war and national security. This has led me to believe that Barack really doesn't understand the current U.S. foreign policy, nor is he capable of formulating a plan that would not result in widespread violence in the Middle East and increased terrorist attacks on American soil.

Exhibit 1:
A few weeks ago, Barack said that if he were to pull troops out of Iraq, and then Al Qaeda was discovered to be in Iraq, he would send the U.S. military back in to oust Al Qaeda. Well, Al Qaeda is currently in Iraq, and they were there prior to the start of Operation Iraqi Freedom. So his plan to start removing troops seems somewhat premature considering Al Qaeda is still in Iraq...

Exhibit 2:
Last summer, Barack, in an attempt to appear strong and capable of being Commander in Chief, stated that "if we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won’t act, we will.” Basically, he told Pakistan he would invade them. To do so would cause a major incident and further damage America's reputation around the world, especially in Muslim countries. I thought Barack is going to work to restore our credibility in the world?

Exhibit 3:
In his latest attempt to explain why pulling our troops out of Iraq is a good idea, Barack stated that if a civil war or mass genocide were to occur, he would not hesitate to send American forces back to Iraq. Where to start.....ok, first, the Democratic party and most of the media have already declared OIF to be a civil war. Therefore, if our troops are already there and it's a civil war, what's the point in pulling them out only to send them back right away?

Second, as most military and regional experts will tell you, if the U.S. were to pull out, civil war and genocide is almost certainly guaranteed to occur. Knowing that, isn't our presence justified? If we can stop millions of civilians from being killed or thrust into a civil war, shouldn't we do it?

The most disturbing part of all this is that it's painfully clear that Obama is pandering to whatever his audience wants to hear. These statements demonstrate a dangerous naivety about global politics and national security. If he wants to pull troops out of Iraq, fine. It's a coward's move. But don't sit there and try to appear tough by saying you'll run back in as soon as X number of people are killed or a large enough civil war breaks out, especially when it's common knowledge our current presence is preventing those things.

Barack Obama is a brilliant speaker and remarkable politician. Unfortunately, these qualities do not translate to good President. You cannot simply "hope" that terrorists will not attack us again, and talking of "change" isn't going to prevent widespread violence in the Middle East.