Hey! Let’s Move ALL Those Loser Military Retirees ~ Maybe Even Active Troop Families ~ TO OBAMACARE!!

You knew it was coming.

Budget experts: Move Tricare beneficiaries to Obamacare

The Defense Department could slash its enormous health care budget by requiring Tricare beneficiaries not on active duty to get health care coverage through Affordable Care Act exchanges, according to several current and former congressional budget experts.

AND the money quote from DoucheBag central ~ which is going to be a HUGE SURPRISE to all us military types who completed THEIR “OBLIGATION” with the understanding that the United States of America would fufill what they promised was the country’s “OBLIGATION” to us:

“…And, John Mayer, a military health and energy analyst with Booz Allen Hamilton, added the Pentagon should be under no obligation to continue providing “free health” care to those who have retired from military service and have access to health care either through their employers or the Affordable Care Act.

“Having a program where they can go in and get free health care, and do it as often as they want seems to be a burden that the American public shouldn’t have to bear,” Mayer said, speaking of the military retiree population who uses Tricare.

There is so much WRONG with those two sentences, it’s all I can do not to sit sputtering in a fury.

“As OFTEN as they WANT to”? RATIONED CARE is what that says. Or implying we’re all hypochondriacs. ExCUSE us for going to the doctor. Frankly, you can KMA for this household’s sake, because we rarely use our privilege for other than yearly check-ups (‘Cause you know, beancounting asshat, WELLNESS actually SAVES money!) and emergency things, like my gall bladder, or the skin cancer they’re carving off my gourd in January. Forgive us for seeing a doctor. The NERVE of YOU.

And the idea that somehow we all magically have a person in the household EMPLOYED is LAUGHABLE considering WHO is President and WHAT he’s done (or NOT done, as the case may be) to the economy to foster getting those LOST jobs back. (And they’ve been LOST in this household, as well as many of the other military retirees we know.) Especially EMPLOYED FULL TIME ones WITH employer provided insurance? Surely you jest. I feel like he’s playing Circle Jerk, because everyone knows ObamaCare has pretty much boned employer provided insurance for the majority of Americans, so we’re back to the beginning.

And before you scream about “Democrats”, blahblahblah, please know some Republicans like the sainted Paul Ryan are also BIG proponents of a move very much like this.

Merry Christmas.

Remember

How Politically Incorrect! **sniff**

Wonder if any ISIS members want to drop by and join my book club @ScoutMedia pic.twitter.com/Wft72YYM0I

— Dakota Meyer (@Dakota_Meyer) December 3, 2014

Oh, I could just EAT HIM UP, couldn’t you?! 😉

LOVE this guy!

Our President’s Vaunted Obtuse Emperor’s Wand Strikes Again

EVERYTHING he waves it over ~ from race relations to Olympic bids to healthcare ~ immediately turns to SHIT for somebody who truly deserved to be left out of it. Case in point: his immigration power grab. Great for ILLEGAL FAMILIES in the country, but if you DID THE RIGHT THING/FOLLOWED THE RULES/ACTUALLY CONTRIBUTE A SKILL IMMEDIATELY?

YOUR family’s boned.

Immigration Policy Reversal Denies Residency to Some Military Spouses

President Obama made his executive order on immigration weeks after a recent reversal of a U.S. immigration policy that will separate some military and Veterans Affairs employees from their spouses.

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service reversed a policy whereby it automatically granted legal residency status to spouses of doctors and those with critical language skills who came to the U.S., joined the military and were fast-tracked to citizenship.

The reversal will force spouses to go back to their country of origin, stay there two years, and then apply to come to the U.S., just as any foreign visitor or student in the U.S. would have to do.

“They did just notify an Army doctor in Baltimore and another in Kansas City that their spouses’ green-card applications are going to be denied and the spouses will have to go ‘home’ for two years,” said Margaret Stock, a retired Army Reserve officer who pitched the Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest program to the Army in 2008.

“This will end up working out to a three-and-a-half year separation because … the spouses will have to re-apply for green cards from overseas after two years, and it is taking [the State Department and Department of Homeland Security] about a year-and-a-half to process [the] applications,” she said.

Citizenship and Immigration Services should be embarrassed by the policy, Stock said.

Oh, I’m sure they’re mortified. NOT.

Requires “A Different Set of Skills”?

First off, Chuckie HAS no skills. That’s a drawback.

But, secondly, I have NO IDEA WHERE Obama’s going to dredge up a more malleable mushroom than this guy.

Hagel Said to Be Stepping Down as Defense Chief Under Pressure

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel is stepping down under pressure, the first cabinet-level casualty of the collapse of President Obama’s Democratic majority in the Senate and a beleaguered national security team that has struggled to stay ahead of an onslaught of global crises.

…The officials described Mr. Obama’s decision to remove Mr. Hagel, 68, as a recognition that the threat from the Islamic State would require a different kind of skills than those that Mr. Hagel was brought on to employ. A Republican with military experience who was skeptical about the Iraq war, Mr. Hagel came in to manage the Afghanistan combat withdrawal and the shrinking Pentagon budget in the era of budget sequestration.

But now “the next couple of years will demand a different kind of focus,” one administration official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity. He insisted that Mr. Hagel was not fired, saying that he initiated discussions about his future two weeks ago with the president, and that the two men mutually agreed that it was time for him to leave.

ths update: I see people feel as I do… 😉

At this moment, all of DC is shocked to learn of the news out of the Pentagon that Chuck Hagel has been Secretary for the past two years.

— jimgeraghty (@jimgeraghty) November 24, 2014

Duncan Hunter Eats Chuck Hagel

…alive.

Thanks to Ebola for the find.

Happy 239th Birthday to My Beloved…

UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS!

~ Our Gramps

OO-RAH and Semper Fi!

ths update: I thought I’d run the finest commercial EVER made past you all again as well. Brings tears to my eyes EVERY time.

Exactly. How I LOVE my Marine Corps.

Heartbreak

Bush League Lies and WMD Thoughts to Chew On

…from Ebola:

Imagine that you are witnessing a trial for public endangerment and a parole violation; the suspect is a prior convicted murderer and is a capable gunsmith, who killed his prior victims with a very specific and unique type of firearm. As part of his plea deal during the last set of murders he committed, the suspect agreed to give up his weapons not already seized or destroyed, all ammo and any facilities or utilities used in the production of weapons. Under this agreement, scheduled followups are made to check that he had indeed removed his arms and capability of creating more.

Through a grueling process over the course of a decade, the authorities have been witness to the suspects attempting to hide information and materials related to the violation his plea agreement. Recently, a family member has come forward and confirmed that not only is the suspect hiding ordnance he was supposed to have gotten rid of, but is reacquiring the items necessary to create more.

Under the premise that the man is a possible threat to the public safety, the authorities secure a search warrant and force entry into the house, leading to conflict with the suspect. Inside the house the authorities find weapons, ammunition and gunsmithing utilities the individual was supposed to have removed and actively hid from inspection; they find limited evidence to indicate that he has actively created or attempted to create additional ordnance in the meanwhile. Fearing the weapons might pose danger to their agents and the public, the authorities use controlled detonations to destroy the evidence. It sounds like a straight forward case, but the argument put forward by the defense has a very strange twist, they argue that the suspect is innocent. They base this on the fact that there were no new firearms or munitions, even though the evidence itself, outside of pictures, is destroyed. The logical disjunction from the charges and basis for the original warrant is staggering: welcome to Von Clausewitz post-2003 Iraq politics.

The popular argument, flying in the face of empirical evidence from over a decade of conflict, has been that no WMDs, general term, were found or used in Iraq, by either Iraqi forces or insurgents. The oft quoted pretext for war or the search warrant, in the earlier analogy, is put before the UN by President Bush on Sept 12, 2002. Let’s take a recent example of this type of defense citing the Bush speech, in a response to the New York Times article covering the massive amounts of chemical weapons, a WMD, found in Iraq over the last decade:

But on Septmeber 12, 2002, President Bush described a different threat while making the case for the 2003 Iraq invasion: “Right now, Iraq is expanding and improving facilities that were used for the production of biological weapons.” The Times’ investigation doesn’t mention any findings of biological weapons.

He went on, “The regime is rebuilding and expanding facilities capable of producing chemical weapons.”

According to the investigation, the chemical weapons discovered by U.S. soldiers after the 2003 invasion were all manufactured before 1991.

Directly addressing the United Nations General Assembly, Bush continued, “We have been more than patient. We have tried sanctions. We have tried the carrot of ‘oil for food’ and the stick of coalition military strikes. But Saddam Hussein has defied all these efforts and continues to develop weapons of mass destruction.”

–No, Chemical Weapons in Iraq Do Not Prove That Bush Was Right to Invade, Jessica Schulberg, New Republic.

It doesn’t take a logician to recognize the obvious red herring: the expansion and improvement of a facility does not equate to the actual production of arms, any more than our fictitious suspect having ownership of an ammo press means that ammo had been and continued to be produced. Another common usage of red herring is purposeful contextual misrepresentation. Miss Schulberg is purposely leaving out the next reason for invasion, specifically stripping it of context to continue the ”production” red herring.

Miss Schulberg’s version in No, Chemical Weapons in Iraq Do Not Prove That Bush Was Right to Invade :

“…He went on, “The regime is rebuilding and expanding facilities capable of producing chemical weapons.”…”

Direct from the speech:

“United Nations inspections also reveal that Iraq likely maintains stockpiles of VX, mustard, and other chemical agents, and that the regime is rebuilding and expanding facilities capable of producing chemical weapons.”

I’ve italicized the portion of the sentence that Miss Schulberg has misrepresented to make a point: this is feckless, purposely misleading politics posing as pseudo-journalism. Miss Schulberg is in no way unique, articles from Salon and other outlets have spoken in the affirmative that there were no WMDs, sometimes while actually including bits about WMD encounters, for virtually the entirety of the occupation and afterward. There has been regular media-Alzheimers, on all sides, for the past decade concerning the fact that there was plenty of documentation that Iraq had continued its development, while under sanction and inspections, into these weapons or that even before the New York Times piece, estimates on destroyed weapons caches put the numbers from five hundred weapons to well into the thousands.

The repeated assertion that the weapons were of pre-1991 manufacture is also entirely conjecture, especially given the documentation supporting the continued study of these weapons, due in large part that the evidence was purposely destroyed because of the threat it posed to allied troops. More importantly, it’s an inane case to forward due to the fact that the mere possession of these purposely hidden items vindicated the reasoning for invasion. It also raises the specter of what would have occurred as Saddam’s grip over the region continued to wane if we had not invaded.

President Bush’s rational for invasion was typically simple: Hussein had agreed to disarm and prove that he had disarmed, while removing his capability to rearm in the future. Hussein had proven with the invasion of Kuwait that he was willing to make unprovoked attacks in blitzkrieg fashion on his neighbors when the opportunity was presented. Hussein had made multiple agreements concerning human rights inside Iraq, then broke them. Iraq agreed not to sponsor terror, yet continued to hunt down and assassinate it’s dissenters and attempted to assassinate President Bush Sr, to which President Clinton made Tomahawk strikes against Iraq in response. After the defection of General Kamel al-Majid to Jordon, the Iraqi government admitted that they had retained a large bioweapons package from anthrax to botulin in violation of the agreed terms; these weapons were never accounted for. Iraq retained a large stockpile of chemical weapons, beyond their declared and then destroyed stockpile, which the New York Times account continues to show recent evidence of and examples of insurgents now using the weapons. President Bush pointed out that it had been four years since UN inspectors had been ejected from the country, “The history, the logic and the facts lead to one conclusion. Saddam Hussein’s regime is a grave and gathering danger. To suggest otherwise is to hope against the evidence. To assume this regime’s good faith is to bet the lives of millions and the peace of the world in a reckless gamble. And this is a risk we must not take.”

The questions these journalists should be asking is why the administrations involved ignored almost three thousand years of military maxim to create a quagmire, with further bungling down the line, after a successful surge strategy mopped up the majority of the original strategic error. They should be asking why the Bush administration failed to defend themselves, outside the 2006 Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence report, that WMDs had indeed been found along with materials and research for making any number of CBRN (Chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear) weapons in the future. Of course, given articles like Miss Schulberg there is more empirical evidence that the media simply wouldn’t allow that message to go forward leading to the populace believing largely that there was no vindication for the invasion.

To conclude, the vast majority pretense presented in the case for invasion has been vindicated. However, the populace has been spun to believe that these are not the things we went to find after years of “journalism” by those like Miss Schulberg, regardless of political stripe. The press, instead of asking pertinent questions on policy and execution thereof, attempted to force creation of non-legislated mob based policy: to the dishonor of this nation, they succeeded. I’ll leave you with a little more of President Bush’s speech.

“If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately and unconditionally forswear, disclose and remove or destroy all weapons of mass destruction, long-range missiles and all related material.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately end all support for terrorism and act to suppress it, as all states are required to do by U.N. Security Council resolutions.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will cease persecution of its civilian population, including Shi’a, Sunnis, Kurds, Turkomans and others — again as required by Security Council resolutions.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will release or account for all Gulf War personnel whose fate is still unknown. It will return the remains of any who are deceased, return stolen property, accept liability for losses resulting from the invasion of Kuwait, and fully cooperate with international efforts to resolve these issues as required by the Security Council resolutions.

If the Iraqi regime wishes peace, it will immediately end all illicit trade outside the oil-for-food program. It will accept U.N. administration of funds from that program, to ensure that the money is used fairly and promptly for the benefit of the Iraqi people.

If all these steps are taken, it will signal a new openness and accountability in Iraq. And it could open the prospect of the United Nations helping to build a government that represents all Iraqis — a government based on respect for human rights, economic liberty and internationally supervised elections.”

“Don’t Worry, We Got This” Update

The first Ebola patient diagnosed in the U.S. has died.

The two health care workers who were brought back from Africa and survived were brought back under extraordinary circumstances, with the best medical care and an experimental vaccine ~ one we are currently out of of. What you haven’t heard much about is the two Spanish priests who received that vaccine and still perished.

…It is unclear why the rare drug is being given to the Norwegian woman rather than critically ill Thomas Eric Duncan, a Liberian man diagnosed in the US, and the decision could prove controversial.

Two Spanish missionaries treated with ZMapp died and it is impossible to tell whether it helped cure the other patients or their recovery was down to other factors.

This Ebola patient and the NBC cameraman were/are receiving another experimental vaccine, whose development had nothing to DO with Ebola, but WHAT THE HELL. Give it a shot when it’s ALL YOU’VE GOT, right?

UN: OK to use untested Ebola drugs in outbreak

You know what I hate? I hate the thought that’s whapping ’round in my head right now.

We have FOUR thousand American troops headed over there ~ NOT medical professionals, but TROOPS. Do you know what they are? Guinea pigs. Lab rats. Because WHAT can a soldier, sailor or Marine NOT do? Refuse experimental treatment, nor can they sue for malpractice damages, regardless of DOD language saying a member “must give informed consent.” I vividly remember the explosion about the experimental anthrax vaccines (Section G) they started pumping into our guys when the first Gulf War started ~ both me and major dad, who WAS on his way to Saudi Arabia, were active duty United States Marines. (I believe there was a Supreme Court decision as well ~ or a refusal to hear ~ basically reasserting the govt’s rights to do as they saw fit.)

Just yesterday, General Rodriguez of AfriCom had to walk back statements he made (I heard them live and about pooped ma drawers) that (Get this):

General: U.S. military could be in Liberia for one year to help contain Ebola outbreak
Gen. David Rodriguez, commander of U.S. Africa Command, said nearly 4,000 U.S. service members will have direct contact with victims. Military personnel will provide logistical support to Liberia.

He scuttled backwards faster than a crab from boiling water about 40 minutes later.

But WHO you gonna believe?

ths update: Re: checking sniffly noses and puke bags at a couple airports. Let me add one more cheerful thought for your day, from someone whom I respect immensely:

SOUTHCOM Commander: Ebola Outbreak in Central America Could Cause Mass Migration to U.S.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The head of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) warned an Ebola outbreak in Central America or the Caribbean could trigger a mass migration to the U.S. of people fleeing the disease and implied established Central American illegal trafficking networks could introduce the infected into the U.S., during remarks at a Tuesday panel on security issues in the Western Hemisphere at the National Defense University.

“If it comes to the Western Hemisphere, the countries that we’re talking about have almost no ability to deal with it — particularly in Haiti and Central America,” SOUTHCOM Commander, Marine Gen. John F. Kelly, said in response to a question of his near term concerns in the region.

“It will make the 68,000 unaccompanied minors look like a small problem.”

“Almost NO ability to deal with it” and that’s saying we DO… 🙁

October 7th

A damn good day.

Bring Out Your Dead!

And make sure they’re packin’ HEAT!

EVEN AN OZARKS CORONER GETS SURPLUS MILITARY GUNS

Doug Wortham used a Defense Department giveaway program for law enforcement to stock his office with an assault rifle, a handgun and a Humvee – even though the people in his custody are in no condition to put up a fight.

They’re dead.

Wortham is the Sharp County, Arkansas, coroner. He says the Humvee helps him navigate the rugged terrain of the Ozarks foothills, but he struggled to explain why he needs the surplus military weapons he acquired more than two years ago.

“I just wanted to protect myself,” he said.

From the coming ZOMBIE APOCALYPSE the CDC is lying about, too!

I mean, it IS the Ozarks…

Semper Latte Aside

YOUR President was REALLY on his game in New York

Obama Praises Muslim Cleric Who Backed Fatwa on Killing of U.S. Soldiers

Research is hard when he has so MUCH important stuff to say.

Who’s The Cowboy Now?

Mr. Smart Power Peace Prize goes off to war

(CNN) — The United States and several Arab nations rained bombs on ISIS targets in Syria on Tuesday — the first U.S. military offensive in the war-torn country and a forceful message to the militant group that the U.S. would not stand by idly while it carried out its rampage of terror.
The airstrikes focused on the city of Raqqa, the declared capital of ISIS’ self-proclaimed Islamic State. But other areas were hit as well.
The operation began with a flurry of Tomahawk missiles launched from the sea, followed by attacks from bomber and fighter aircraft, a senior U.S. military official told CNN.
‘There are five Arab nations involved’
The goal: Taking out ISIS’ ability to command, train and resupply its militants.

Evul Schtupid Illegal Bush: Congress Approval? Check. UN Approval? Check.

Unicorn Whisperer Obama: I won.

It’s Lovely to Be a Superior Being

That way you get to be dismissive of all SORTS of normally worthy folks who might otherwise be regarded in a different light.

“…You know what that is? That is not a scandal. Because we have this notable and important thing in this country in which the guys in uniforms, no matter how many medals and stars and fancy hats and all those things that they have, they do not get to decide whether or how the United States conducts a war…”

Rachel Maddow is one such “superior person” apparently.

A Paragraph

…from today’s Washington Examiner Op-Ed…

Reality rains on President Obama’s foreign policy parade

…The relatively stable Iraq that Obama exited in haste during his re-election cycle is now being overrun by a well-funded and possibly self-sustaining terrorist army – arguably more powerful than anything America faced in al Qaeda. ISIS has amassed an increasingly advanced arsenal and is attracting thousands of new recruits through its successes, its pretensions to statehood, and even its widely broadcast atrocities. Osama bin Laden is dead, and ISIS is fulfilling his vision.

…dovetailed nicely with something I’d seen this morning that Megyn Kelly had posted.

Oh, GOSH. If ONLY someone had thought to tell Obama…

They Are Reclassifying Our Precious War Dogs as “EQUIPMENT”

…and LEAVING THEM TO DIE in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Like the BASTARDS don’t have a cargo plane they can put a cage or two on.

Jonah Goldberg: No military dog left behind

We’ve all heard the expression: “A man’s best friend is his equipment.”

You haven’t? Well you must not work for the Pentagon. There, military dogs are considered mere “equipment” and as such can be left behind when the troops come home.

…Legislation pushed by Rep. Walter Jones, R-N.C., that would require military dogs to be retired only upon return to the U.S. has been languishing in Congress for years. Politically, and morally, it’s understandable that the top priority must be given to providing human veterans with adequate care, particularly amid the horrific Veterans Affairs scandals plaguing the Obama administration. No politician wants to be accused of caring more about dogs than people. But that’s largely a false choice. The cost of finding room on military transports is negligible, according to many. Private organizations can handle the rest.

From Patrick at Popehat:

If you believe it’s wrong for the army to abandon its dogs in the wilds of Iraq and (coming soon) Afghanistan, why not call your congressional representatives to let them know you support Walter Jones’ bill prohibiting such practices, and may vote accordingly come November?

Great Truisms in Life: If You Overdose, Don’t Call One of the Olsen Twins BeFORE Dialing 9-1-1

…and, if you need a hostage rescued, DON’T call Obama.

Senior Pentagon official just confirmed to me that "hesitation" by President Obama delayed July 4th #Foley hostage rescue mission

— Toby Harnden (@tobyharnden) August 29, 2014

Kirsten Powers Points Out That You Only Get Aid From Obama If You Have a Bitchin’ Name

If it’s just white-bread “Christian”, you’re Shiite out of luck.

Kirsten Powers: Obama’s inattention to Iraqi Christians

White House not addressing their persecution equally.

…Finally, later that night — and two full months after the crisis began — President Obama announced airstrikes in Iraq and for the first time acknowledged that Christians are being driven from the homeland of their faith. But the Christians garnered a passing mention, while the religious minority of Yazidis seems to be what moved the president to act.

An Iraqi Christian leader lamented to me that his people would have to convert to get the administration’s attention.

Homeless Christians

The Yazidis deserve protection and humanitarian aid, but so do the Christians who number in the hundreds of thousands in Iraq. While the Yazidis received air drops of food and water, nothing has been dropped to the Christians who are homeless and in dire need of food and water. Each day that passes is a matter of life and death.

I watched his initial announcement about the airstrikes and supply drops and damn near fell out my chair when “Christian” passed his lips for the VERY FIRST TIME EVER. It WAS only ONCE in the speech and I haven’t heard it since.

To her credit, Kirsten Powers angrily noted the same the next day on Fox’s Outnumbered:

God BLESS you @KirstenPowers !! "This is NOT a humanitarian President!" #Christiansiniraq #Outnumbered

— tree hugging sister (@treehuggingsis) August 8, 2014

I’m Gonna Be Looking for This

IF This News Report is True

…it just confirms what we already knew about the President. But it still makes me squirm in embarrassment and disgust, like I just overheard a snot-nosed punk talking down to a vet on the street.

Come to think of it, that’s exactly what happened…

In Leaked Tape, Hostile Obama Tries to Force PM to Accept Truce

US president markedly unfriendly, interrupted prime minister as he attempted to push unfavorable truce on Israel.

Damning evidence has emerged of US President Barack Obama’s dismissal of Israel’s position in favor of supporting the position of Hamas and its allies during ceasefire talks.

A “senior US official” leaked an audio recording of a telephone conversation between Obama and Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to Channel One. In it the 35-minute conversation, which took place on Sunday, the US President appears downright hostile at points, and even cuts off Netanyahu in the middle of his protestations over a one-sided truce proposal which would have seen Hamas receive all its key demands, but that Israel ultimately rejected.

Obama: I demand that Israel agrees to an immediate, unilateral ceasefire and halt all offensive activities – particularly airstrikes.

Netanyahu: What will Israel receive in return for a ceasefire?

Obama: I believe that Hamas will stop firing rockets – silence will be met with silence.

Netanyahu: Hamas violated all five previous ceasefires, it is a terrorist organization which is dedicated to the destruction of Israel.

Obama: I repeat and expect Israel to unilaterally stop all its military activity. The pictures of destruction from Gaza distance the world from Israel’s position.

Netanyahu: Kerry’s proposal was completely unrealistic and gives Hamas the military and diplomatic advantage.

Obama: Within a week of the end of Israel’s military activities, Qatar and Turkey will begin negotiations with Hamas on the basis of the 2012 understanding [following the end of Operation Pillar of Defense – ed.], including Israel’s commitment to removing the siege and restrictions on Gaza,

Netanyahu: Qatar and Turkey are the biggest supporters of Hamas. It is impossible to rely on them to be fair mediators.

Obama: I trust Qatar and Turkey, and Israel is in no position to choose its mediators.

Netanyahu: I object, because Hamas is able to continue and to fire rockets and to use tunnels for terror attacks…

Obama – interrupts Netanyahu mid-sentence: The ball is in Israel’s court – it is obligated to end all military activities.

ths update: Whole lotta “It’s a fake! It’s a fake!” going around, with a healthy shake of “But…” on top. Could well be, as Allah speculates, SOMETHING got said, translated, re-translated and then again. I like that theory.

Ebola Has a Thought or Two Concerning a HotAir Headline:

…”Why Rand Paul Likes to Fight About Foreign Policy”:

The inference that Senator Paul’s major foreign policy mistake is that he’s against non-Congress sanctioned engagements is ignorant; purposefully or otherwise. One need only read the differences between his 2013 Platform to Revitalize America and the 2014 version to watch him stumble left and right on that issue, military funding as well, which still doesn’t show the issue that is Paul’s primary foreign policy flaw.

Sen. Paul, like his father, has been talking about downgrading, severely, the American presence overseas, all the while using our “strike anywhere” capabilities and prior demobilizations as primary premises for that debate. Unfortunately for Paul, that argument is innately fallacious: fast response with sufficient military assets is directly linked to a logistical supply chain that would evaporate with the degradation of forward bases throughout the world, both on allied and US territories. Sen. Paul seems to forget that there is a necessary logistical supply chain allowing these activities to occur. A prime reference for this was the materiel movement issues in the early years of Afghanistan for resupply, as our limited basing and restrictive airspaces of neighboring countries not favorable to the US put significant squeeze on the ability to project power into the area in the short term. His continuing wish to “scale back”, seeming code for “largely remove”, foreign allied or “friendly” operations would exponentially compound the initial supply difficulties in Afghanistan to worldwide dilemma at a near exponential level, instead of a limited AOR issue.

The prior demobilizations, which Paul references repeatedly as a defense of his projected cuts, then oddly removed in 2014, resulted in training surges that left troops poorly fitted and prepared for mobilization in a conventional conflict. Spin up time was something the United States could afford when crossing international distances required quite a bit of time, like WWII and even into Vietnam. With increasing technological reliance, spin up time on the materiel end is increasing, rather than decreasing in time on the general scale; concurrent with troop and operator training. Scaling back on defense purchases would further increase both R&D and line production for the weapon systems, EO targeting, etc necessary for the modern warfighter. Sen. Paul also has a huge issue in that he tries to argue the military budget, ignoring that he calls for cuts in 2013 PRA, then argues for restoration of sequestered funds under the guise that they will now “keep the military complex of yesterday in check.” I’m personally left questioning how removing funds, then returning funds, keeps anything “in check”.

“The budget adds back more than $126 billion to defense, above the sequester amount, but it continues to keep the large military complex of yesterday in check…”
Sen. Paul, A Clear Vision to Revitalize America, http://www.paul.senate.gov/files/documents/FY2014Budget.pdf

Statements like these would rapidly raise eyebrows with our Marines serving at embassies, as their sole detail is not simply to secure TS documents and HDs. The entire detail does not simply fall in for destruction or securing of classified materials. The reasoning is simple: if you’re under attack, collecting documents without overwatch gets everyone killed. To quote the MSESG Mission Statement:

” The primary mission of the Marine Security Guard (MSG) is to provide internal security at designated U.S. diplomatic and consular facilities in order to prevent the compromise of classified material vital to the national security of the United States. The secondary mission of the MSG is to provide protection for U.S. citizens and U.S government property located within designated U.S. diplomatic and consular premises during exigent circumstances (urgent temporary circumstances which require immediate aid or action).”
http://www.mcesg.marines.mil/About/MCESGMission.aspx”

The inane exercise of cross-analyzing the US military budget against the Chinese and broadly declaring the US budget is six times the size shows a callous misunderstanding of military funding. A simple example is the fact that the Chinese can more cheaply produce arms, due to state manufacturing infrastructure and lower pay, while paying a 3M strong active military force far less per capita than the US due to lower standards of living. Further, and more disturbing, is the fact that he makes an apples to apples comparison based on gross expenditure, while the Chinese budget does not cover R&D, acquisitions, their 1M strong paramilitary units and other huge categories of military expenditure.

As for the WMD bit, we found plenty of things in Iraq, simply no nuclear material. That is readily glossed over along with little to no interdiction on routes into and out of Syria, which we know were being used both during and after the buildup by our forces.

There are considerable other issues in his 2013/2014 documents alone, on the foreign policy front, but I’ve typed too long for my comfort.

Ebola on July 18, 2014 at 5:29 AM

The “Lion of Fallujah”

What a story.

What a MAN.

Legendary Marine Maj. Zembiec, the ‘Lion of Fallujah,’ died in the service of the CIA

In the foyer of the Central Intelligence Agency’s headquarters, there is a marble wall covered in stars. They are carved divots that represent those who have fallen in the service of the CIA. Below them, jutting out from the polished rock, is a black book entombed in a case of glass and steel. The book is a guide to the stars, giving the names of some of those who died and withholding the names of others.

On the pages of the CIA’s Book of Honor are 111 hand-drawn stars organized by the years those officers died. For 2007, there is a single, anonymous star.

It belongs to Marine Maj. Douglas Alexander Zembiec.

Long thought to be an active-duty Marine when he was killed in Baghdad, Zembiec was actually serving with the CIA’s paramilitary arm. While the CIA would not comment on whether Zembiec worked for the agency, former U.S. intelligence officials said in interviews that he died in an alley in Sadr City on May 11, 2007, as a member of the Special Activities Division’s Ground Branch.

…Zembiec was also awarded the Bronze Star for valor for rushing into the middle of a machine-gun-raked street to get the attention of an Abrams tank supporting Echo Company. Abrams are equipped with small radios on the rear to allow infantrymen to talk to the tank crew while behind the safety of 60 tons of steel, but for what­ever reason the radio, or “grunt phone,” wasn’t working, so Zembiec scaled the tank while bullets ricocheted off its hull.

After he knocked on one of the hatches repeatedly, the crew of the tank finally opened up. Zembiec then loaded a magazine of illuminated tracer rounds and began shooting from the top of the tank to mark the building from which his Marines were being shot.

The tank swung its turret and without warning fired its massive 120mm gun. The blast threw Zembiec into the air and onto the street below.

It’s a great story, full of GREAT stories.

Fire Control

They could use a little more of it in Chicago.

Authorities: Military service member with concealed carry permit shoots attacker
Gresham man injured, charged after firing on group leaving party, prosecutors said

A Gresham man fired on a group of people leaving a party, only to be shot himself by one of the victims, a military service member with a concealed carry permit, authorities said.
…One of the victims had noticed a cup of liquor on top of her vehicle and asked attendees of a party next door who it belonged to, Hain said.

When she removed it, Denzel A. Mickiel approached her, shouting obscenities and threatening her and her friends, according to Hain and court records.

Mickiel, 22, went into the residence, returned with a gun and began firing at the group, she said.

As Mickiel fired at the victims’ vehicle, the military member retrieved his gun and took cover near the vehicle’s front fender, according to Hain. Two unidentified people also shot at the group, she said.

The military service member fired two shots and struck Mickiel twice, she said.

I’m sure Rahm will find some way to prosecute the defender.

100 Years Ago On Saturday…

the fellow on the right started WW I