Laugh at Liberals

Laugh at Liberals Archive for October, 2007

WHAT IS A LIBERAL? Part 1

What is a liberal?

First and foremost a liberal is an elitist. They think they are smarter than you. They think you are so stupid and that you can’t think, deduce or act for yourself. That is why liberals want to control government instutions. Liberals view government and schools and other institutions as tools to steer you in the right direction because you’re to stupid to get there on your own. Here is an interesting fact. A Pew Research Poll discovered that five times more journalists identified themselves as liberals than conservative. Another poll of Ivy League professors had 87% identifying themselves as being liberal or progressive. Now we all know the old axiom, those who can do and those who can’t teach, but I would submit to you that this percentage is so extraordinarily lopsided because liberals have an intrinsic desire to shape opinion to their own belief so they gravitate to jobs like journalism and teaching.

Liberals Lie. Whenver liberals compete in the arena of ideas they are soundly defeated. So liberals lie. Remember the recent picture I posted on this web site of the shrieking woman holding up “bloody” hands in front of Condileeza Rice and yelling, “The blood of millions of innocent Iraqi’s are on your hands!!!” The implication is that millions of Iraqis have died in the war. That is simply not true. Dan Rather’s career ended because he and his liberal producer lied about documents they knew were false just so they could attack President Bush. I could easily list statement after statement made by liberals while Bill Clinton was president at how much of a threat Iraq was and how they supported regime change as official United States policy. Either they were lying then or they are lying now. Joe Wilson’s report before the Senate Intelligence committee on his trip to Niger to investigate Iraq’s attempts to get yellow cake uranium was just the opposite of what he now claims. Either he was lying then or he is lying now. The list of liberal lies is to extensive to include here, the point is, liberals lie and distort facts to justify their beliefs.

Liberals don’t believe in freedom of speech. How many times have you seen a story about a conservative speaker being shouted down by liberals? How many times have you heard that happen with a liberal speaker? Conservatives are routinely prevented from espousing conservative ideas or writing conservative columns on college campuses. Look at the attacks on Rush Limbaugh. The entire Democratic membership of the United States Senate tried to threaten the company that broadcasts Rush Limbaugh strictly because of what he says. They don’t want Rush to have free speech.

Liberals are wrong about Iraq. They are wrong about the war on terror and they are always wrong about conservatives. I have to laugh when I’m told b a liberal what I think or what motivates me because it invariably points the finger at their own motivations. What they say about conservatives reveals much about how they think about themselves. TO BE CONTINUED.

DEMOCRATS FIDDLE WHILE CALI BURNS

Sen. Barbara Boxer was all over the media yesterday talking about how the war in Iraq was causing the California fire to burn out of control due to the lack of equipment and manpower available because of National Guard troop deployment. Of course the commander of the National Guard in Calinfornia said they had all the equipment they needed and have received everything they asked for. (I guess he’s a liar just like Petraeus?)

Sen. Harry Reid said global warming was one of the causes of the California fires and of course we all know thats Bush’s fault.

Have these people no shame? Can honest Americans look at this obvious politicization of a horrible disaster and not be disgusted?

A caller to Rush Limbaugh’s program said it best when he asked, Why are’nt the Democrats calling for withdrawl from the fire, just like Iraq? The situation seems similar. A raging fire being pushed by an unstoppable wind. There’s no way we can defeat the fire. Fires have been burning for thousands of years. All we are doing is occupying the fire’s native land. The fire was their first. We’re only there because real estate (oil). All we want to do is control this valuable commodity. GET OUT! Get out now. Our firefighters (troops) are being needlessly sacrificed in a battle they can’t possible win…I mean they’re the best firefighters in the world, don’t get me wrong, I support them 100%, but they are needlessly putting out small, innocent civilian fires, hundreds of them…and in some cases using water to torture the fires until they reveal where other fires are burning….ALL OF THIS APPROVED BY BUSH!….

While thousands of Marines stand-by in Camp Pendleton, waiting for orders to go out and fight the fire, Barbara Boxer wants to bring troops out of Iraq to fight the fire.

Brilliant Barbara, Brilliant!

HYSTERICAL WOMEN, ALSO KNOWN AS LIBERALS

This hysterical, shrieking woman who accosted Sec. Rice could be your next Secretary of Defense.

The Proud Liberal

There lived a lib’ral oh so proud
And a podunker man was he;
He had a love for lying loud
Loud he did and with smiling glee.

His lies were dark, wicked and mean
From deep within his wicked soul.
He spread his filth with words obscene
Sounding just like a lib’ral troll.

Such a troll is a dork enrolled
In a life deprived of the truth.
He spins a tale with Satan’s mold
And trims it with lib’ral abuse.

“I know more things than all mankind,
And I am an expert on war,
This is my word, I have defined
And anything else I’ll just ignore!”

He said the docs were real and true
But then we found they were all fake.
Fake, fake but true, he yelled anew.
So in his head the lie still was secure.

This is the joke of lib’ral rule
And podunkers who go along,
A lib’ral’s a liar and a fool
An axiom that’s never been proven wrong!

PROGRESS IN IRAQ

This report was written by Michael Yon, an independent journalist working in Iraq. He is supported solely by people who send him contributions. http://michaelyon-online.com/

SETTLING DOWN: Rashi In Transition
By Michael Yon

Baghdad — The Rashid district of Baghdad is one of the most dangerous areas of the country. Violence has plummeted in Rashid over the past months but the area remains dangerous. Meanwhile, reconciliation is occurring and I have been able to witness meetings and results first-hand. Certain areas of Rashid that were previously war-zones already are nearly free of violence. This is a direct result of American-led reconciliation and follow-on. There are immediate consequences for those areas that settle down; they begin receiving support in the form of micro-grants, civil projects, and easy dialogue with the government, and so these neighborhoods are getting a head start on those who lag. On a larger scale this has happened at provincial level: The examples of Kurds up north, and the citizens of Anbar more recently out West, are causing Iraqis to pay attention.

The neighborhoods around Rashid are so fractured along sectarian lines that the map looks more like a shattered window that did not completely crumble. The “frontlines” between neighborhoods tend to be a single street, and so the operating environment here is complex. Nevertheless, the years of trial and error in Iraq are yielding results as American battalion commanders truly are operating like tribal leaders. I saw an American battalion commander, LTC Patrick Frank, in a meeting yesterday with 19 local Iraqi leaders. Often the Iraqis would break down into conversations among themselves, but each time the LTC Frank spoke, the room went silent. I have seen this repeated over and over and over in different areas of Iraq. Our battalion commanders are operating in a capacity of local leaders. They get serious respect. Even from enemies. (Perhaps especially from enemies, which clearly is part of the reason so many people are coming to the table.) The battalion commanders are the quarterbacks who are pulling this place together. Their words carry great clout.

The Iraqis know we want to leave and this is working in our favor, and in their favor.

On October 23, representatives from five Iraqi ministries visited various areas of the Rashid district that need attention; a hospital, for instance. The inspector general for the ministry of health accompanied us. Dr. Adel Abdullah talked about the many problems they face, but when I asked him specifically about the violence, the doctor was very happy to report that during September of 2006, about 1,400 bodies were brought to the morgue. This September, on the other hand, only 290 were delivered to the morgue — and the numbers continue to decrease. He told me this month there have been about 4-6 bodies per day, with a “maximum [of] 10.” (This is consistent with many other reports I’ve received from American and Iraqi military and Iraqi police. All are reporting sharp decreases in violence.)

Given the amount of violence I have witnessed in Iraq in 2005 and early 2007, it’s strange to think that under Saddam — since the year 1980, at least — there might have been an average of perhaps twice as many people killed per year. (The victims were just different people, such as Kurds, Iranians, and Iraqis who mostly were not in cities like Baghdad. And there was the invasion of Kuwaiti — and the burning of the oilfields.) It’s difficult to imagine with this war that Iraq might be more “peaceful” today than during Saddam’s reign.

Violence is plummeting. But much of Iraq is a complete mess, a horrible mess. Now is the time to put the foot on the gas. The battalion commanders are not “fishing” for the Iraqi leaders, nor are they “teaching the fisherman to fish.” Iraqis can run their own country again. We only must facilitate the fishermen by helping them with the reconciliation, the infrastructure and economy. But it is imperative that we not stop now; it’s clearly starting to work.

LTG Ray Odierno was out there today and I had the opportunity to speak with him. I asked him about something that has been nagging at me since 2005: reports of large amounts of weapons coming in from Syria and Iran. Specifically, I asked him about Iran. I have been up and down the Iraq-Iran border in 2005 and now in 2007 just returned from the border. I have asked innumerable Iraqi, American, and more recently British commanders if they have ever caught weapons coming in from Iran. No. Not a single commander has ever caught the weapons. “Do you know anyone who has caught them?” The response has always been “no.” It is a fact that we capture weapons in Iraq that clearly appear to have come from Iran, but why is it they we do not catch them coming in? Yes, the border is long and rugged, but we have excellent sources of intelligence and common smugglers are unlikely to be James Bond material. I asked LTG Odierno if we have caught any. He gave me a straight answer: No. (Caveat: LTG Odierno says we have been finding weapons that already are in Iraq.) I have no explanation for the fact that we are not capturing weapons being smuggled in from Iran.

I asked LTG Odierno about the current state of Iraq and went down the list in my head of the important places: Anbar, Baghdad, Diyala, and Nineveh. Parts of Diyala are still problematic, and I predict serious fighting in Nineveh in the upcoming months. Odierno didn’t try to lipstick the pig. Clearly al Qaeda is in trouble, but they are not done yet, and there is still much work to do in Nineveh. Fortunately, the Iraqi Army and Police there are the best I have seen in Iraq.

WHO COULD HAVE KNOWN?

I’ve been taken to task by NutsLikeBush, a regular liberal poster here on LAL, for a column I posted back in 2005. The title of the column was THE WAR IN IRAQ IS JUST, RIGHT AND ALMOST OVER. For my money, the just and right part are still as true today as they were when the war started. By invading Iraq the Bush administration created a “front” in the war against terror. A gamble to be sure, but a master stroke as well. Terrorism cannot fight and win a conventional war and Iraq has forced the terror masters to focus attention and resources in one location.

The ALMOST OVER part is where I was dead wrong. It was a wishful prediction made without the benefit of foresight. After all, who could have predicted the events that would unfold to prolong the war.

Who could have predicted that the Democratic party would have emerged as an ally of our enemy? These were the same Democrats who, under Bill Clinton, proclaimed that regime change in Iraq was official policy, that Iraqi WMD were a looming threat and that voted to authorize Bush’s Iraqi invasion. These same Democrats did a complete about face when election contributions were on the line.

Who could have predicted that the liberal media, lead by the New York Times, CBS news and others, would fabricate stories to damage the war effort and undermine the efforts of our commander-in-chief? For what, journalistic integrity. Please!

Who could have predicted that Nancy Pelosi, third in line of succession to the presidency, would go to Syria, against the wishes of the administraion, to kiss the ring of the terrorist supporter Assad and then months later champion a meaningless House resolution that she knew would enrage our staunchest ally in the muslim world? Who could have predicted that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid would declare the war in Iraq lost and the surge a failure before it even got started.

These things can only be considered in threes ways. They were the acts of those sympathetic to our enemies cause, the acts of those blinded by hate and lust for power or sheer stupidity. I never should have said the war was almost over in that headline because, as I’ve also said on this site, you can’t predict what is going to happen in war. That is the great lie that liberals want you to beleive. That a war can be fought according to a plan and a timetable.

This war in Iraq IS just. It IS right and right now we are winning. We are moving closer to the time when our troop levels can be drawn down, when Iraqis can assume more military and police responsibilities. The political power and stability of the government in Iraq needs to improve and it seems to be doing just thatn, but at a much slower pace than anyone would like.

Right now we are winning….but the Democrats will do whatever they to stop that. Who could have known?

FAKE SOLDIERS: EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS OF AMERICAN ATROCITIES

Our sources in Iraq have, with great personal risk, smuggled these photos out of the quagmire to reveal torture and various atrocities perpetrated by American soldiers.

Here Interrogators force Iraqi insurgents to SEE-SAW untll they reveal the wearabouts of weapons caches’.

Here an American soldier is seen using “Bearding” against a defenseless Iraqi child. This technique causes chaffing and redness. Notice the Iraqi informant holding the childi is grimacing in pain at the mere thought of having fresh stubble rubbed against him.

In this photo a soldier uses a small Iraqi as a human shield.

The controversial interrogation technique of “Shaking” has been abandoned due to lack of VA health care coverage for veterans with bad backs.

Similar to the dreaded “Chinese Water Torture” the “American Forehead Kiss” caused this Iraqi insurgent to reveal the location of her “binky” and may have thwarted an IDB, also known as an Improvised Diaper Bomb .

This photograph reveals clear evidence of forced labor.

What is probably the most effective interrogation technique, “the Tickle Torture” causes facial deformities and emotional scars that can last for life.

One of the most horrific photographs in this collection shows a young Iraqi being hung by his fingertips.

Okay, so we’re having a little fun. But the reality is on any left-wing blog these images would be dismissed as mere propaganda. Only a true hater could imagine somebody ordered these American troops to pose for cameras and interact with these kids. What you see is genuinely American. I’ll leave you with this final image that we’ve posted here before. No jokes, no comments. The picture says it all. God bless our brave troups. God bless America.

WHAT GENERAL SANCHEZ REALLY SAID

No cherry picking here. This is the full text of General Sanchez’s speech to members of the media who cover military issues. Give his words some thoughtful consideration and then tell me who he is really accusing of failure in the Iraq war effort.

GOOD AFTERNOON LADIES AND GENTLEMEN

SOME OF YOU MAY NOT BELIEVE THIS BUT I AM GLAD TO BE HERE. WHEN SIG ASKED ME IF I WOULD CONSIDER ADDRESSING YOU THERE WAS NO DOUBT THAT I SHOULD COME INTO THE LION’S DEN. THIS WAS IMPORTANT BECAUSE I HAVE FIRMLY BELIEVED SINCE DESERT SHIELD THAT IT IS NECESSARY FOR THE STRENGTH OF OUR DEMOCRACY THAT THE MILITARY AND THE PRESS CORPS MAINTAIN A STRONG, MUTUALLY RESPECTFUL AND ENABLING RELATIONSHIP. THIS CONTINUES TO BE PROBLEMATIC FOR OUR COUNTRY, ESPECIALLY DURING TIMES OF WAR. ONE OF THE GREATEST MILITARY CORRESPONDENTS OF OUR TIME, JOE GALLOWAY, MADE ME A BELIEVER WHEN HE JOINED THE 24TH INFANTRY DIVISION DURING DESERT STORM.

TODAY, I WILL ATTEMPT TO DO TWO THINGS - FIRST I WILL GIVE YOU MY ASSESSMENT OF THE MILITARY AND PRESS RELATIONSHIP AND THEN I WILL PROVIDE YOU SOME THOUGHTS ON THE CURRENT STATE OF OUR WAR EFFORT. AS ALL OF YOU KNOW I HAVE A WIDE RANGE OF RELATIONSHIPS AND EXPERIENCES WITH OUR NATIONS MILITARY WRITERS AND EDITORS. THERE ARE SOME IN YOUR RANKS WHO I CONSIDER TO BE THE EPITOME OF JOURNALISTIC PROFESSIONALISM - JOE GALLOWAY, THOM SHANKER, SIG CHRISTENSEN, AND JOHN BURNS IMMEDIATELY COME TO MIND. THEY EXEMPLIFY WHAT AMERICA SHOULD DEMAND OF OUR JOURNALISTS - TOUGH REPORTING THAT RELIES UPON INTEGRITY, OBJECTIVITY AND FAIRNESS TO GIVE ACCURATE AND THOROUGH ACCOUNTS THAT STRENGTHEN OUR FREEDOM OF THE PRESS AND IN TURN OUR DEMOCRACY. ON THE OTHER HAND, UNFORTUNATELY, I HAVE ISSUED ULTIMATUMS TO SOME OF YOU FOR UNSCRUPULOUS REPORTING THAT WAS SOLELY FOCUSED ON SUPPORTING YOUR AGENDA AND PRECONCIEVED NOTIONS OF WHAT OUR MILITARY HAD DONE. I ALSO REFUSED TO TALK TO THE EUROPEAN STARS AND STRIPES FOR THE LAST TWO YEARS OF MY COMMAND IN GERMANY FOR THEIR EXTREME BIAS AND SINGLE MINDED FOCUS ON ABU GHARAIB.

LET ME REVIEW SOME OF THE DESCRIPTIVE PHRASES THAT HAVE BEEN USED BY SOME OF YOU THAT HAVE MADE MY PERSONAL INTERFACES WITH THE PRESS CORPS DIFFICULT:

“DICTATORIAL AND SOMEWHAT DENSE”,

“NOT A STRATEGIC THOUGHT”,

LIAR,

“DOES NOT GET IT” AND

THE MOST INEXPERIENCED LTG.

IN SOME CASES I HAVE NEVER EVEN MET YOU, YET YOU FEEL QUALIFIED TO MAKE CHARACTER JUDGMENTS THAT ARE COMMUNICATED TO THE WORLD. MY EXPERIENCE IS NOT UNIQUE AND WE CAN FIND OTHER EXAMPLES SUCH AS THE TREATMENT OF SECRETARY BROWN DURING KATRINA. THIS IS THE WORST DISPLAY OF JOURNALISM IMAGINABLE BY THOSE OF US THAT ARE BOUND BY A STRICT VALUE SYSTEM OF SELFLESS SERVICE, HONOR AND INTEGRITY. ALMOST INVARIABLY, MY PERCEPTION IS THAT THE SENSATIONALISTIC VALUE OF THESE ASSESSMENTS IS WHAT PROVIDED THE EDGE THAT YOU SEEK FOR SELF AGRANDIZEMENT OR TO ADVANCE YOUR INDIVIDUAL QUEST FOR GETTING ON THE FRONT PAGE WITH YOUR STORIES! AS I UNDERSTAND IT, YOUR MEASURE OF WORTH IS HOW MANY FRONT PAGE STORIES YOU HAVE WRITTEN AND UNFORTUNATELY SOME OF YOU WILL COMPROMISE YOUR INTEGRITY AND DISPLAY QUESTIONABLE ETHICS AS YOU SEEK TO KEEP AMERICA INFORMED. THIS IS MUCH LIKE THE INTELLIGENCE ANALYSTS WHOSE EFFECTIVENESS WAS MEASURED BY THE NUMBER OF INTELLIGENCE REPORTS HE PRODUCED. FOR SOME, IT SEEMS THAT AS LONG AS YOU GET A FRONT PAGE STORY THERE IS LITTLE OR NO REGARD FOR THE “COLLATERAL DAMAGE” YOU WILL CAUSE. PERSONAL REPUTATIONS HAVE NO VALUE AND YOU REPORT WITH TOTAL IMPUNITY AND ARE RARELY HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR UNETHICAL CONDUCT.

GIVEN THE NEAR INSTANTANEOUS ABILITY TO REPORT ACTIONS ON THE GROUND, THE RESPONSIBILITY TO ACCURATELY AND TRUTHFULLY REPORT TAKES ON AN UNPRECEDENTED IMPORTANCE. THE SPECULATIVE AND OFTEN UNINFORMED INITIAL REPORTING THAT CHARACTERIZES OUR MEDIA APPEARS TO BE RAPIDLY BECOMING THE STANDARD OF THE INDUSTRY. AN ARAB PROVERB STATES - “Four things come not back: the spoken word, the spent arrow, the past, the neglected opportunity.” ONCE REPORTED, YOUR ASSESSMENTS BECOME CONVENTIONAL WISDOM AND NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE TO CHANGE. OTHER MAJOR CHALLENGES ARE YOUR WILLINGNESS TO BE MANIPULATED BY “HIGH LEVEL OFFICIALS” WHO LEAK STORIES AND BY LAWYERS WHO USE HYPERBOLE TO STRENGHTEN THEIR ARGUMENTS. YOUR UNWILLINGNESS TO ACCURATELY AND PROMINENTLY CORRECT YOUR MISTAKES AND YOUR AGENDA DRIVEN BIASES CONTRIBUTE TO THIS CORROSIVE ENVIRONMENT. ALL OF THESE CHALLENGES COMBINED CREATE A MEDIA ENVIRONMENT THAT DOES A TREMENDOUS DISSERVICE TO AMERICA. OVER THE COURSE OF THIS WAR TACTICALLY INSIGNIFICANT EVENTS HAVE BECOME STRATEGIC DEFEATS FOR AMERICA BECAUSE OF THE TREMENDOUS POWER AND IMPACT OF THE MEDIA AND BY EXTENSION YOU THE JOURNALIST. IN MANY CASES THE MEDIA HAS UNJUSTLY DESTROYED THE INDIVIDUAL REPUTATIONS AND CAREERS OF THOSE INVOLVED. WE REALIZE THAT BECAUSE OF THE NEAR REAL TIME REPORTING ENVIRONMENT THAT YOU FACE IT IS DIFFICULT TO REPORT ACCURATELY. IN MY BUSINESS ONE OF OUR FUNDAMENTAL TRUTHS IS THAT “THE FIRST REPORT IS ALWAYS WRONG.” UNFORTUNATELY, IN YOUR BUSINESS “THE FIRST REPORT” GIVES AMERICANS WHO RELY ON THE SNIPPETS OF CNN, IF YOU WILL, THEIR “TRUTHS” AND PERSPECTIVES ON AN ISSUE. AS A COROLLARY TO THIS DEADLINE DRIVEN NEED TO PUBLISH “INITIAL IMPRESSIONS OR OBSERVATIONS” VERSUS OBJECTIVE FACTS THERE IS AN ADDITIONAL CHALLENGE FOR US WHO ARE THE SUBJECT OF YOUR REPORTING. WHEN YOU ASSUME THAT YOU ARE CORRECT AND ON THE MORAL HIGH GROUND ON A STORY BECAUSE WE HAVE NOT RESPOND TO QUESTIONS YOU PROVIDED IS THE ULTIMATE ARROGANCE AND DISTORTION OF ETHICS. ONE OF YOUR HIGHLY REPECTED FELLOW JOURNALISTS ONCE TOLD ME THAT THERE ARE SOME AMONGST YOU WHO “FEED FROM A PIG’S TROUGH.” IF THAT IS WHO I AM DEALING WITH THEN I WILL NEVER RESPOND OTHERWISE WE WILL BOTH GET DIRTY AND THE PIG WILL LOVE IT. THIS DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOUR STORY IS ACCURATE.

I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THIS IS WHAT OUR FOREFATHERS INTENDED. THE CODE OF ETHICS FOR THE SOCIETY OF PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS STATES:
…PUBLIC ENLIGHTENMENT IS THE FORERUNNER OF JUSTICE AND THE FOUNDATION OF DEMOCRACY. THE DUTY OF THE JOURNALIST IS TO FURTHER THOSE ENDS BY SEEKING TRUTH AND PROVIDING A FAIR AND COMPREHENSIVE ACCOUNT OF EVENTS AND ISSUES. CONSCIENTIOUS JOURNALISTS FROM ALL MEDIA AND SPECIALTIES STRIVE TO SERVE THE PUBLIC WITH THOROUGHNESS AND HONESTY. PROFESSIONAL INTEGRITY IS THE CORNERSTONE OF A JOURNALIST’S CREDIBILITY

THE BASIC ETHICS OF A JOURNALIST THAT CALLS FOR:

1. SEEKING TRUTH,

2. PROVIDING FAIR AND COMPREHENSIVE ACCOUNT OF EVENTS AND ISSUES

3. THOROUGHNESS AND HONESTY

ALL ARE VICTIMS OF THE MASSIVE AGENDA DRIVEN COMPETITION FOR ECONOMIC OR POLITICAL SUPREMACY. THE DEATH KNELL OF YOUR ETHICS HAS BEEN ENABLED BY YOUR PARENT ORGANIZATIONS WHO HAVE CHOSEN TO ALIGN THEMSELVES WITH POLITICAL AGENDAS. WHAT IS CLEAR TO ME IS THAT YOU ARE PERPETUATING THE CORROSIVE PARTISAN POLITICS THAT IS DESTROYING OUR COUNTRY AND KILLING OUR SERVICEMEMBERS WHO ARE AT WAR.

MY ASSESSMENT IS THAT YOUR PROFESSION, TO SOME EXTENT, HAS STRAYED FROM THESE ETHICAL STANDARDS AND ALLOWED EXTERNAL AGENDAS TO MANIPULATE WHAT THE AMERICAN PUBLIC SEES ON TV, WHAT THEY READ IN OUR NEWSPAPERS AND WHAT THEY SEE ON THE WEB. FOR SOME OF YOU, JUST LIKE SOME OF OUR POLITICIANS, THE TRUTH IS OF LITTLE TO NO VALUE IF IT DOES NOT FIT YOUR OWN PRECONCIEVED NOTIONS, BIASES AND AGENDAS.

IT IS ASTOUNDING TO ME WHEN I HEAR THE VEHEMENT DISAGREEMENT WITH THE MILITARY’S FORAYS INTO INFORMATION OPERATIONS THAT SEEK TO DISSEMINATE THE TRUTH AND INFORM THE IRAQI PEOPLE IN ORDER TO COUNTER OUR ENEMY’S BLATANT PROPAGANDA. AS I ASSESS VARIOUS MEDIA ENTITIES, SOME ARE UNQUESTIONABLY ENGAGED IN POLITICAL PROPAGANDA THAT IS UNCONTROLLED. THERE IS NO QUESTION IN MY MIND THAT THE STRENGTH OUR DEMOCRACY AND OUR FREEDOMS REMAIN LINKED TO YOUR ABILITY TO EXERCISE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS - I ADAMANTLY SUPPORT THIS BASIC FOUNDATION OF OUR DEMOCRACY AND COMPLETELY SUPPORTED THE EMBEDDING OF MEDIA INTO OUR FORMATIONS UP UNTIL MY LAST DAY IN UNIFORM. THE ISSUE IS ONE OF MAINTAINING PROFESSIONAL ETHICS AND STANDARDS FROM WITHIN YOUR INSTITUTION. MILITARY LEADERS MUST ACCEPT THAT THESE INJUSTICES WILL HAPPEN AND WHETHER THEY LIKE WHAT YOU PRINT OR NOT THEY MUST DEAL WITH YOU AND ENABLE YOU, IF YOU ARE AN ETHICAL JOURNALIST.

FINALLY, I WILL LEAVE THIS SUBJECT WITH A QUESTION THAT WE MUST ASK OURSELVES–WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING THE ETHICAL STANDARDS OF THE PROFESSION IN ORDER TO ENSURE THAT OUR DEMOCRACY DOES NOT CONTINUE TO BE THREATENED BY THIS DANGEROUS SHIFT AWAY FROM YOUR SACRED DUTY OF PUBLIC ENLIGHTENMENT?

LET ME NOW TRANSITION TO OUR CURRENT NATIONAL SECURITY CONDITION.

AS WE ALL KNOW WAR IS AN EXTENSION OF POLITICS AND WHEN A NATION GOES TO WAR IT MUST BRING TO BEAR ALL ELEMENTS OF POWER IN ORDER TO WIN. WARFIGHTING IS NOT SOLELY THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE MILITARY COMMANDER UNLESS HE HAS BEEN GIVEN THE RESPONSIBILITY AND RESOURCES TO SYNCHRONIZE THE POLITICAL, ECONOMIC AND INFORMATIONAL POWER OF THE NATION. SO WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR DEVELOPING THE GRAND STRATEGY THAT WILL ALLOW AMERICA TO EMERGE VICTORIOUS FROM THIS GENERATIONAL STRUGGLE AGAINST EXTREMISM?

AFTER MORE THAN FOUR YEARS OF FIGHTING, AMERICA CONTINUES ITS DESPERATE STRUGGLE IN IRAQ WITHOUT ANY CONCERTED EFFORT TO DEVISE A STRATEGY THAT WILL ACHIEVE “VICTORY” IN THAT WAR TORN COUNTRY OR IN THE GREATER CONFLICT AGAINST EXTREMISM. FROM A CATASTROPHICALLY FLAWED, UNREALISTICALLY OPTIMISTIC WAR PLAN TO THE ADMINISTRATION’S LATEST “SURGE” STRATEGY, THIS ADMINISTRATION HAS FAILED TO EMPLOY AND SYNCHRONIZE ITS POLITICAL, ECONOMIC AND MILITARY POWER. THE LATEST “REVISED STRATEGY” IS A DESPERATE ATTEMPT BY AN ADMINISTRATION THAT HAS NOT ACCEPTED THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC REALITIES OF THIS WAR AND THEY HAVE DEFINITELY NOT COMMUNICATED THAT REALITY TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE. AN EVEN WORSE AND MORE DISTURBING ASSESSMENT IS THAT AMERICA CAN NOT ACHIEVE THE POLITICAL CONSENSUS NECESSARY TO DEVISE A GRAND STRATEGY THAT WILL SYNCHRONIZE AND COMMIT OUR NATIONAL POWER TO ACHIEVE VICTORY IN IRAQ. SOME OF YOU HAVE HEARD ME TALK ABOUT OUR NATIONS CRISIS IN LEADERSHIP. LET ME ELABORATE.

WHILE THE POLITICIANS ESPOUSE THEIR RHETORIC DESIGNED TO PRESERVE THEIR REPUTATIONS AND THEIR POLITICAL POWER -OUR SOLDIERS DIE! OUR NATIONAL LEADERSHIP IGNORED THE LESSONS OF WWII AS WE ENTERED INTO THIS WAR AND TO THIS DAY CONTINUE TO BELIEVE THAT VICTORY CAN BE ACHIEVED THROUGH THE APPLICATION OF MILITARY POWER ALONE. OUR FOREFATHERS UNDERSTOOD THAT TREMENDOUS ECONOMIC AND POLITICAL CAPACITY HAD TO BE MOBILIZED, SYNCHRONIZED AND APPLIED IF WE WERE TO ACHIEVE VICTORY IN A GLOBAL WAR. THAT HAS BEEN AND CONTINUES TO BE THE KEY TO VICTORY IN IRAQ. CONTINUED MANIPULATIONS AND ADJUSTMENTS TO OUR MILITARY STRATEGY WILL NOT ACHIEVE VICTORY. THE BEST WE CAN DO WITH THIS FLAWED APPROACH IS STAVE OFF DEFEAT. THE ADMINISTRATION, CONGRESS AND THE ENTIRE INTERAGENCY, ESPECIALLY THE DEPARTMENT OF STATE, MUST SHOULDER THE RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS CATASTROPHIC FAILURE AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE MUST HOLD THEM ACCOUNTABLE.

THERE HAS BEEN A GLARING, UNFORTUNATE, DISPLAY OF INCOMPETENT STRATEGIC LEADERSHIP WITHIN OUR NATIONAL LEADERS. AS A JAPANESE PROVERB SAYS, “ACTION WITHOUT VISION IS A NIGHTMARE.” THERE IS NO QUESTION THAT AMERICA IS LIVING A NIGHTMARE WITH NO END IN SIGHT.

SINCE 2003, THE POLITICS OF WAR HAVE BEEN CHARACTERIZED BY PARTISANSHIP AS THE REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRATIC PARTIES STRUGGLED FOR POWER IN WASHINGTON. NATIONAL EFFORTS TO DATE HAVE BEEN CORRUPTED BY PARTISAN POLITICS THAT HAVE PREVENTED US FROM DEVISING EFFECTIVE, EXECUTABLE, SUPPORTABLE SOLUTIONS. AT TIMES, THESE PARTISAN STRUGGLES HAVE LED TO POLITICAL DECISIONS THAT ENDANGERED THE LIVES OF OUR SONS AND DAUGHTERS ON THE BATTLEFIELD. THE UNMISTAKABLE MESSAGE WAS THAT POLITICAL POWER HAD GREATER PRIORITY THAN OUR NATIONAL SECURITY OBJECTIVES. OVERCOMING THIS STRATEGIC FAILURE IS THE FIRST STEP TOWARD ACHIEVING VICTORY IN IRAQ - WITHOUT BIPARTISAN COOPERATION WE ARE DOOMED TO FAIL. THERE IS NOTHING GOING ON TODAY IN WASHINGTON THAT WOULD GIVE US HOPE.

IF WE SUCCEED IN CRAFTING A BIPARTISAN STRATEGY FOR VICTORY, THEN AMERICA MUST HOLD ALL NATIONAL AGENCIES ACCOUNTABLE FOR DEVELOPING AND EXECUTING THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC INITIATIVES THAT WILL BRING ABOUT STABILITY, SECURITY, POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC HOPE FOR ALL IRAQIS. THAT HAS NOT BEEN SUCCESSFUL TO DATE.

CONGRESS MUST SHOULDER A SIGNIFICANT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THIS FAILURE SINCE THERE HAS BEEN NO FOCUSED OVERSIGHT OF THE NATIONS POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC INITIATIVES IN THIS WAR. EXHORTATIONS, ENCOURAGEMENTS, INVESTIGATIONS, STUDIES AND DISCUSSIONS WILL NOT PRODUCE SUCCESS -THIS APPEARS TO BE THE NATION’S ONLY ALTERNATIVE SINCE THE TRANSFER OF SOVERIEGNTY. OUR CONTINUED NEGLECT WILL ONLY EXTEND THE CONFLICT. AMERICA’S DILEMMA IS THAT WE NO LONGER CONTROL THE ABILITY TO DIRECTLY INFLUENCE THE IRAQI INSTITUTIONS. THE SOVEREIGN IRAQI GOVERNMENT MUST BE COOPERATIVE IN THESE LONG TERM EFFORTS. THAT IS NOT LIKELY AT THE LEVELS NECESSARY IN THE NEAR TERM.

OUR COMMANDERS ON THE GROUND WILL CONTINUE TO MAKE PROGRESS AND PROVIDE TIME FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A GRAND STRATEGY. THAT WILL BE WASTED EFFORT AS WE HAVE SEEN REPEATEDLY SINCE 2003. IN THE MEAN TIME OUR SOLDIERS, SAILORS, AIRMEN AND MARINES WILL CONTINUE TO DIE.

SINCE THE START OF THIS WAR, AMERICA’S LEADERSHIP HAS KNOWN THAT OUR MILITARY ALONE COULD NOT ACHIEVE VICTORY IN IRAQ. STARTING IN JULY 2003, THE MESSAGE REPEATEDLY COMMUNICATED TO WASHINGTON BY MILITARY COMMANDERS ON THE GROUND WAS THAT THE MILITARY ALONE COULD NEVER ACHIEVE “VICTORY” IN IRAQ. OUR SOLDIERS, SAILORS, AIRMEN AND MARINES WERE DESTINED TO ENDURE DECADES OF FIGHTING AND KILLING PEOPLE WITHOUT THE FOCUSED, SYNCHRONIZED APPLICATION OF ALL ELEMENTS OF NATIONAL POWER. THIS WAS A NECESSARY CONDITION TO STABILIZE IRAQ. ANY SEQUENTIAL SOLUTIONS WOULD LEAD TO A PROLONGED CONFLICT AND INCREASED RESISTANCE.

BY NEGLECT AND INCOMPETENCE AT THE NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL LEVEL, THAT IS THE PATH OUR POLITICAL LEADERS CHOSE AND NOW AMERICA, MORE PRECISELY THE AMERICAN MILITARY, FINDS ITSELF IN AN INTRACTABLE SITUATION. CLEARLY, MISTAKES HAVE BEEN MADE BY THE AMERICAN MILITARY IN ITS APPLICATION OF POWER BUT EVEN ITS GREATEST FAILURES IN THIS WAR CAN BE LINKED TO AMERICA’S LACK OF COMMITMENT, PRIORITY AND MORAL COURAGE IN THIS WAR EFFORT. WITHOUT THE SACRIFICES OF OUR MAGNIFICENT YOUNG MEN AND WOMEN IN UNIFORM, IRAQ WOULD BE CHAOTIC WELL BEYOND ANYTHING EXPERIENCED TO DATE.

WHAT AMERICA MUST ACCEPT AS A REALITY AT THIS POINT IN THE WAR IS THAT OUR ARMY AND MARINE CORPS ARE STRUGGLING WITH THE DEPLOYMENT SCHEDULES. WHAT IS CLEAR IS THAT THE DEPLOYMENT CYCLES OF OUR FORMATIONS HAS BEEN TOTALLY DISRUPTED, THE RESOURCING AND TRAINING CHALLENGES ARE SIGNIFICANT AND AMERICA’S ABILITY TO SUSTAIN A FORCE LEVEL OF 150,000(+) IS NONEXISTENT WITHOUT DRASTIC MEASURES THAT HAVE BEEN POLITICALLY UNACCEPTABLE TO DATE. THE DRAWDOWN OF THE SURGE TO PRESURGE LEVELS WAS NEVER A QUESTION. AMERICA MUST UNDERSTAND THAT IT WILL TAKE THE ARMY AT LEAST A DECADE TO FIX THE DAMAGE THAT HAS BEEN DONE TO ITS FULL SPECTRUM READINESS. THE PRESIDENT’S RECENT STATEMENT TO AMERICA THAT HE WILL LISTEN TO MILITARY COMMANDERS IS A MATTER OF POLITICAL EXPEDIENCY.

OUR ARMY AND MARINE CORPS WILL EXECUTE AS DIRECTED, PERFORM MAGNIFICENTLY AND NEVER COMPLAIN-THAT IS THE ETHIC OF OUR WARRIORS AND THAT IS WHAT AMERICA EXPECTS OF THEM. THEY WILL NOT DISAPPOINT US. BUT AMERICA MUST KNOW THE PRESSURES THAT ARE BEING PLACED ON OUR MILITARY INSTITUTIONS AS WE FIGHT THIS WAR. ALL AMERICANS MUST DEMAND THAT THESE DEPLOYING FORMATIONS ARE PROPERLY RESOURCED, PROPERLY TRAINED AND WE MUST NEVER ALLOW AMERICA’S SUPPORT FOR THE SOLDIER TO FALTER. A CRITICAL, OBJECTIVE ASSESSMENT OF OUR NATION’S ABILITY TO EXECUTE OUR NATIONAL SECURITY STRATEGY MUST BE CONDUCTED. IF WE ARE OBJECTIVE AND HONEST, THE RESULTS WILL BE SURPRISING TO ALL AMERICANS. THERE IS UNACCEPTABLE STRATEGIC RISK.

AMERICA HAS NO CHOICE BUT TO CONTINUE OUR EFFORTS IN IRAQ. A PRECIPITOUS WITHDRAWAL WILL UNQUESTIONABLY LEAD TO CHAOS THAT WOULD ENDANGER THE STABILITY OF THE GREATER MIDDLE EAST. IF THIS OCCURS IT WOULD HAVE SIGNIFICANT ADVERSE EFFECTS ON THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY. COALITION AND AMERICAN FORCE PRESENCE WILL BE REQUIRED AT SOME LEVEL FOR THE FORESEEABLE FUTURE. GIVEN THE LACK OF A GRAND STRATEGY WE MUST MOVE RAPIDLY TO MINIMIZE THAT FORCE PRESENCE AND ALLOW THE IRAQIS MAXIMUM ABILITY TO EXERCISE THEIR SOVERIEGNTY IN ACHIEVING A SOLUTION.

AT NO TIME IN AMERICA’S HISTORY HAS THERE BEEN A GREATER NEED FOR BIPARTISAN COOPERATION. THE THREAT OF EXTREMISM IS REAL AND DEMANDS UNIFIED ACTION AT THE SAME LEVELS DEMONSTRATED BY OUR FOREFATHERS DURING WORLD WAR I AND WORLD WAR II. AMERICA HAS FAILED TO DATE.

THIS ENDEAVOR HAS FURTHER BEEN HAMPERED BY A COALITION EFFORT THAT CAN BE CHARACTERIZED AS HASTY, UN-RESOURCED AND OFTEN UNCOORDINATED AND UNMANAGED. DESPERATELY NEEDED, BUT ESSENTIALLY IGNORED, WERE THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC COALITIONS THAT WERE THE KEY TO VICTORY AND STABILITY IN THE IMMEDIATE AFTERMATH OF THE CONVENTIONAL WAR. THE MILITARY COALITION WHICH WAS HASTILY PUT TOGETHER IN THE SUMMER OF 2003 WAS PROBLEMATIC GIVEN THE MULTITUDE OF NATIONAL CAVEATS, INADEQUATE RULES OF ENGAGEMENT AND OTHER RESTRICTIONS ON THE FORCES DEPLOYED. EVEN SO, THE MILITARY COALITION WAS THE MOST EXTENSIVE, PRODUCTIVE AND EFFECTIVE DEPLOYMENT OF FORCES IN DECADES. TODAY, WE CONTINUE OUR INEPT COALITION MANAGEMENT EFFORTS AND, IN FACT, WE ARE FACING EVER DECREASING TROOP COMMITMENTS BY OUR MILITARY COALITION PARTNERS. AMERICA’S “REVISED” STRATEGY DOES NOT ADDRESS COALITION INITIATIVES AND CHALLENGES. WE CANNOT AFFORD TO CONTINUE THIS STRUGGLE WITHOUT THE SUPPORT OF OUR COALITION PARTNERS ACROSS ALL ELEMENTS OF NATIONAL POWER. WITHOUT THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ELEMENTS OF POWER COMPLEMENTING THE TREMENDOUS EFFORTS OF OUR MILITARY, AMERICA IS ASSURED OF FAILURE. WE CONTINUE ON THAT PATH. AMERICA’S POLITICAL LEADERSHIP MUST COME TOGETHER AND DEVELOP A BIPARTISAN GRAND STRATEGY TO ACHIEVE VICTORY IN THIS CONFLICT. THE SIMULTANEOUS APPLICATION OF OUR POLITICAL, ECONOMIC, INFORMATION AND MILITARY ELEMENTS OF POWER IS THE ONLY COURSE OF ACTION THAT WILL PROVIDE A CHANCE OF SUCCESS.

ACHIEVING UNITY OF EFFORT IN IRAQ HAS BEEN ELUSIVE TO DATE PRIMARILY BECAUSE THERE IS NO ENTITY THAT HAS THE AUTHORITY TO DIRECT ACTION BY OUR INTERAGENCY. OUR NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL HAS BEEN A CATASTROPHIC FAILURE. FURTHERMORE, AMERICA’S ABILITY TO HOLD THE INTERAGENCY ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR FAILURES IN THIS WAR IS NON-EXISTENT. THIS MUST CHANGE. AS A NATION WE MUST RECOGNIZE THAT THE ENEMY WE FACE IS COMMITTED TO DESTROYING OUR WAY OF LIFE. THIS ENEMY IS ARGUABLY MORE DANGEROUS THAN ANY THREAT WE FACED IN THE TWENTIETH CENTURY. OUR POLITICAL LEADERS MUST PLACE NATIONAL SECURITY OBJECTIVES ABOVE PARTISAN POLITICS, DEMAND INTERAGENCY UNITY OF EFFORT, AND NEVER AGAIN COMMIT AMERICA TO WAR WITHOUT A GRAND STRATEGY THAT EMBRACES THE BASIC TENETS OF THE POWELL DOCTRINE.

IT SEEMS THAT CONGRESS RECOGNIZES THAT THE MILITARY CANNOT ACHIEVE VICTORY ALONE IN THIS WAR. YET THEY CONTINUE TO DEMAND VICTORY FROM OUR MILITARY. WHO WILL DEMAND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE FAILURE OF OUR NATIONAL POLITICAL LEADERS INVOLVED IN THE MANAGEMENT THIS WAR? THEY HAVE UNQUESTIONABLY BEEN DERELICT IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THEIR DUTY. IN MY PROFESSION, THESE TYPE OF LEADERS WOULD IMMEDIATELY BE RELIEVED OR COURTMARTIALED.

AMERICA HAS SENT OUR SOLDIERS OFF TO WAR AND THEY MUST BE SUPPORTED AT ALL COSTS UNTIL WE ACHIEVE VICTORY OR UNTIL OUR POLITICAL LEADERS DECIDE TO BRING THEM HOME. OUR POLITICAL AND MILITARY LEADERS OWE THE SOLDIER ON THE BATTLEFIELD THE STRATEGY, THE POLICIES AND THE RESOURCES TO WIN ONCE COMMITTED TO WAR. AMERICA HAS NOT BEEN FULLY COMMITTED TO WIN THIS WAR. AS THE MILITARY COMMANDERS ON THE GROUND HAVE STATED SINCE THE SUMMER OF 2003, THE U.S. MILITARY ALONE CANNOT WIN THIS WAR. AMERICA MUST MOBILIZE THE INTERAGENCY AND THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ELEMENTS OF POWER, WHICH HAVE BEEN ABJECT FAILURES TO DATE, IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE VICTORY. OUR NATION HAS NOT FOCUSED ON THE GREATEST CHALLENGE OF OUR LIFETIME. THE POLITICAL AND ECONOMIC ELEMENTS OF POWER MUST GET BEYOND THE POLITICS TO ENSURE THE SURVIVAL OF AMERICA. PARTISAN POLITICS HAVE HINDERED THIS WAR EFFORT AND AMERICA SHOULD NOT ACCEPT THIS. AMERICA MUST DEMAND A UNIFIED NATIONAL STRATEGY THAT GOES WELL BEYOND PARTISAN POLITICS AND PLACES THE COMMON GOOD ABOVE ALL ELSE. TOO OFTEN OUR POLITICIANS HAVE CHOSEN LOYALTY TO THEIR POLITICAL PARTY ABOVE LOYALTY TO THE CONSTITUTION BECAUSE OF THEIR LUST FOR POWER. OUR POLITICIANS MUST REMEMBER THEIR OATH OF OFFICE AND RECOMMIT THEMSELVES TO SERVING OUR NATION AND NOT THEIR OWN SELF-INTERESTS OR POLITICAL PARTY. THE SECURITY OF AMERICA IS AT STAKE AND WE CAN ACCEPT NOTHING LESS. ANYTHING SHORT OF THIS IS UNQUESTIONABLY DERELICTION OF DUTY.

THESE ARE FAIRLY HARSH ASSESSMENTS OF THE MILITARY AND PRESS RELATIONSHIP AND THE STATUS OF OUR WAR EFFORT. I REMAIN OPTIMISTIC AND COMMITTED TO THE ENABLING OF MEDIA OPERATIONS UNDER THE TOUGHEST OF CONDITIONS IN ORDER TO KEEP THE WORLD AND THE AMERICAN PEOPLE INFORMED. OUR MILITARY MUST EMBRACE YOU FOR THE SAKE OUR DEMOCRACY BUT YOU OWE THEM ETHICAL JOURNALISM.

THANK YOU FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY

MAY GOD BLESS YOU AND MAY GOD BLESS AMERICA.

PRAISE BE TO THE LORD MY ROCK WHO TRAINS MY FINGERS FOR BATTLE AND MY HANDS FOR WAR.

THANK YOU.

THE RUSH AMENDMENT

What is it about Rush LImbaugh that drives liberals crazy? It’s the fact that people listen to him. Rush describes himself as the most dangerous man in America and to liberals he is, because people listen to him. Recently several Democrats took the floor in congress to denounce Rush for calling American soldiers, phony soldiers. The only problem with their protestations was the truth. Rush never called American soldiers, phony soldiers. He referred to one soldier, Jesse MacBeth, as a phony soldier. This is the same Jesse MacBeth who claimed to be a decorated corporal in the Army Rangers, suffering from PTSD after tours of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq. He claimed to witness muslim bodies hung from rafters by U.S. soldiers, the murder of innocent civilians in Iraq. Most importantly, Jesse MacBeth claimed to be an a member of the military who was fed up with our policy in Iraq and fed up with George Bush. Liberals lauded him for his courage to speak truth to power. Just one problem. He’s a liar.

Jesse MacBeth never went overseas. He never saw action. In fact, he never made it out of boot camp. After 44 days of service, he washed out. But why should those facts get in the way of good story.

So the liberal media and a few blowhards on Capitol Hill, like Sen. Tom Harkin, ignore the facts and call Rush Limbaugh the bad guy. The floor of the United States Senate, the C-SPAN cameras, used to attack a radio talkshow host.

Why not introduce an amendment to the constitution? Let’s call it the Rush Amendment. It will be designed to counteract the flawed freedom of the First Amendment right to free speech. Al Gore will tell you, our founding fathers never envisioned Rush Limbaugh so how could they have possibly written the constition to address his incredible influence. Burning the flag is mere pyrotechnic child’s play compared to the searing commentary from the tounge of Rush Limbaugh. HE MUST BE SILENCED!

The 28th Amendment to the Constituion: Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, unless it’s Rush Limbaugh. There that should do it.
Of course I also think we need to do some research to see if extended use of Oxycontin can give an individual super-powers. Maybe the 29th Amendment could be….