AKC

I think it's horrible that police are killed regularly in our country- I guess if I adopt your way of thinking we could remove them from the streets and make life safer for police. Better yet, do you realize that over 400,000 people died in car accidents in the United States alone last year? Many of those people are members of our armed forces- where do autos rank on your list of ways to save Americans- wouldn't applying your plan by banning the automobile INSTANTLY save nearly a HALF MILLION American lives every year? Maybe you're on to something! 1500 is hardly an insignificant number- but then again it's less than the number of people murdered in New Yok City every year. Protecting our own shores has a cost, a cost that surely when put into perspective should not draw anywhere near the focus of the out of control death by even innocent means and worse the rampant violence within our own society. When you start marching against those I'll help you do your recruiting ;-)

I've PM'd you details- let me know if you've got a particular specialty (food/Indian Leg Wrestling, etc.) and we'll get you a project-

You've got it- of you don't have the balls to serve your country honorably you should at the very minimum have the good sense to keep your trap shut when in the presence of one who risked their lives for you. If you somehow are so driven by your selfish cowardice that you must mouth off about things you have no grasp of (your painting of all our fighting forces with the misconduct of a few is disgusting) at least do it in the company of other jellyfish and not in front of those that deserve all of our honor and respect.

If you're in Southern Cal and interested in attending a Stadium Wall Draft Party including WNY foods, a draft board managed by famed TSW racounteur Bob Lamb and Kiper-grade analysis of every pick by Kelly the F&B Dog, preceded by our inauguaral Golf Tourney, please give me a heads up so we can get you pointed in the right direction. Not recommended for those with liver conditions.

The determination of the point at which it becomes the only option is too subjective to revisit and find an answer acceptable to everyone. In this case you have those whose opposition has been reduced to whining about "WMDs" and on the other side what seems to be a very logical argument in the fact that we as a country are facing a regional enemy and it was absolutely necessary that we establish a front in that region to lessen the likelihood of further attacks on our own soil. Not only does that argument make perfect sense to me, it's perfectly reasonable to conclude that results confirm this.

With regards to gays in the military and true support for our fighting persons that would be a good starting point for you.

The ability to revise your position in real time is a very American trait, to avoid becoming entrenched in a position and refusing to consider new developments.

War should never be "promoted", instead it should be understood as the final and necessary arbiter of conflict which resists all other solution. It's not something that's in the grasp of everyone. Speaking of nonsense, Lamby and other WNYers will be attending the annual SoCal TSW West draft party on the mountain- reserve your room at the earliest possible time.

You are a patriot and one of the reasons we are beneficiaries of the greatest experiment in government in recorded history.

You should never let knowledge frighten you. Instead embrace elements of any discusion you don't understand so that you limit foolish outbursts like your uninformed "gays in the military" reference without considering other sides of the argument. There are, after all, points of view more informed and contrary to yours.

I'd be suprised if you ever served in the armed forces since you fail to realize the major difficulty of supporting an openly gay person in your own division. However "enlightened" you belive yourself to be, the miltary is not about "you". Your ability to function at the highest level requires a submission to the overall team. While some of us would be able to function with an alternative lifestyle soldier in the mix, you betray the upbringing of a large number of those who do have the courage to join the military who come from the outposts of America, form small towns in the South and Midwest. You'd in your ignorance require that these kids be FORCED to shower and bunk literally right next to an openly gay person simply to forward your political biases. You'd go so far as to blame them and their parents reliance on religion, etc., for being ignorant. But the reality is that these elements can seriously upset the ability of a fighting unit to function at its peak. You say YOU'D be OK with it yet you won't even sign up to serve! Hypocrisy is rampant in the weakest of our society!

We apparently won't have any chance to watch Owen Pochman kick the ball for the seriously overmatched Galaxy but there is the opportunity to watch a player of ours who will NEVER make our NFL roster. Kellen Brantley isn't even physical enough for the minors- he's getting knocked all over the field. You might get away with it at DB and catch a roster at the 4th or 5th spot, but there's not a chance to move up at LB.

New Vegas is a little to pastuerized for me, the only place on their Vegas list I like to slip into is the Double Down. The best bar in Vegas, albeit a great American Dive Bar, is called Pogos. I have to warn you to dress down though- this is where the second and third generation of Vegas natives go to play Cheers. I also rarely drive by Dino's without stopping in to see what flotsam has washed up on any given night. Given just one bar to go to the balance of my life I'd pick the awesome Bar Monkey in Playa Hermosa, Costa Rica.

There's no comparison between the war Kennedy secretly dragged us into with absolutely no public discourse and no Congressional consideration. Vietnam was the most dishonest action our governemnt could have brought upon us and it forced the public discourse to take place after we were commited. Iraq is exactly the opposite- a long public discourse preceded nearly every member of our COngress to say "Let's Roll". At that moment the only way to support the troops was to cease any public discourse dissenting from the action that could affect those who might consider contributing to the mission. Just as awful is that every one of these brave kids will return to an America where many in their age group will have adopted the position of the gutless cowards who lead the antwi-war movements and consequently the legacy of our brave and honorable heroes will be a life-long undercurrent of snide disgust from many of their peers. It's a horrible thing- instead of a national heros welcome it will only be those who truly and honestly "support the troops" who will offer them the honor they deserve. Every time some jackass in a bar says to one of our returning heroes "Yeah, you were probably in Abu Ghraib" it will be the voice of the gutless who have protested the war that will bear the full responsibility. I'm ashamed as a vet, as an American and as a human being.

The Pope's not American- he should say anything he wants at any time he wants to say it. Your presumption about the influence of the Anti-war movement is completely contradicted by the facts regarding recruiting- it's rural states where dissent is minimal where the largest percentage of recruits come from while the mega-cites (which are the targets of the terrorists) send pitiful percentages of soldiers by comparison. Some call it enlightenment, I call it cowardice. To let other's children protect your liberal cities is a sickness in our society. It stems from a lack of belief, among some even a hatred of America that is nurtured in those same liberal cities IMO.

I hate to trample on your Presidential icon as he and I served in the same division of the Nuclear Navy, but I have to tell you Jimmy continues even today to make questionable decisions. You can be forgiven for not realizing this if you're too young to have been around for his Presidency ;-)

If you were to don that prior to the near unanimous decison by Congress to go to war it could be true, once action begins you become Just Another Unpatriotic American. Now there's a shirt you could wear AND be accurate!

Denying history does little to excuse your position. Fortunately you have family who can help you to grasp the fact that being unpatriotic in wartime is exclusively a phenomenon of the left. As a centrist myself your false accusations against your political opponents are amusing, you might not find rightwingers so indifferent about those types of lies though.

I'd say the developing pattern here suggests the guilt level of the antiwar losers is so high that they are prone to comparing everyone with a different viewpoint a "Nazi". Bravo!

Consistent with my position throughout the string and under the circumstances you've listed in this post, you've really done nothing that is hurting our mission except perhaps offering encouragment to others considering unpatriotic acts. How dare you compare the gutless actions of Antiwar Protestors to the Courage and Honor of a fallen soldier. You should be ashamed of yourself. Patriotism doesn't necessarily include the ability to discern between good and evil. Your comparison of the United States to Nazi Germany is another shameless and ignorant comment on your part. On the other hand anyone who spent time in Dachau would find the similarities to Hussein's Iraq quite consistent. Yes, your message is clear- shame on America for liberating 70% of the people of Iraq from the Hitler-like Hussien. You've obviously learned nothing from your family history which has led to your utter failure to appreciate the United States or it's right to defend itself against a regional threat. What's clear is you have it too good, you live in the greatest nation on this planet and render your distaste for it, going so far as to compare it to one of the most ghastly in history. One thing that is inarguable is that were we able to drop you off for a few weeks in Nazi Germany your apprecation for our democracy would immediately benefit.

You seem bright enough to grasp this, I'll give it one more shot- If, as you've alluded to, you've publicly opposed the war and been involved in anti-war activity you are part of the movement that has negatively impacted our military's recruitment of soldiers. When our recruiting is degraded by people like you, those who HAVE chosen to fight either are placed under greater strain to make up for less qualified recruits being accepted and unmet levels of recruitment. This makes the mission longer and requires more loss of lives. It's the simplest of concepts. Regardless of any guilt you suffer over your family's Nazi past you should make the most of your second chance in this country by recognizing your responsibility to the United States. I'd recomend you consider the awful thing you've gotten yourself into (much like your uncle) by putting a greater burden on our troops and immediately cease the activities that harm our troops.

We should always as a free country challenge our intellect and consider as many forms of action as we did. In fact, in this action that's exactly what was done- the country had a long and considered discussion after which our congress voted OVERWHELMINGLY IN A BIPARTISAN FASHION to enter Iraq. At that moment Americans had the choice to be Patriotic and do everything possible to make the life of our fighting forces as protected as possible. Another choice was to continue debating the issue already decided upon by our elected officials. Choosing #2 guaranteed consequences that would negatively effect our fighting forces, and the proof is overwhelming today that that is exactly what has happened. Now in their embarrasment those responsible choose to hide behind lies like "I supported the troops but not the war". It's shameful, it's unpatriotic, but unfortunately for us all it's not at all unAmerican. During WWII dissenters for the most part held their toungues, but our culture has changed now to the point where the selfishness of political aspirations have become the styrofoam foundation upon which unpatriotic activities are reasoned. To your second question- do I believe this has an effect on recruiting? All I can say if you don't recognize that it has negatively affected recruiting, especially in our big Metropolises WHICH ARE THE TARGETS OF TERRORISM, I will concede that I would not be blessed with ability to explain the shamefully and painfully obvious to you.

Of course everyone involved in a movement does not take the action of the fringe- but conversely it is those actions of the whole IMO that create the atmosphere necessary for the fringe to operate. As far as public protest of a military situation like Iraq, the damage both today and in the future to all who have and will serve is a shared responsiblity. I realize it's very common for those in a movement to attempt to distance themselves from any undesirable results of that movement, but as I've said before in my mind that's simply textbook denial.

I'm not convinced. You're saying that the anti-government ranters who preceded the OK City bombing have absolutely zero culpability in the atmosphere developing that led to that? That the anti-abortion marchers can erase any guilt over the killing of clinic staff under an equally weak and cowardly argument that "they meant no harm to individuals"? Not for me- if I enter into something that goes wrong I must accept it and do something about ceasing to support that which has gone wrong and possibly making restitution. Apparently your moral code allows you to replace responsibility with denial. If I were to stand by and watch a crowd rape a woman without doing anything to stop it, I'd be haunted for the balance of my life. I guess others can "compartmentalize" so far as to justify actions that they participate in that cause harm to others. As far as CBS, I haven't wasted time with their news for many years, you might want to check out some of the cable offerings today who at least offer some variation from the left-of-center network fare.

You're confusing intent with results. 'Nam Vets being spit on upon returning home had zero to do with anti-soldier protests, it clearly falls 100% on the public cries against the war. Are there Antiwar protesters who feel their decrying the war are today doesn't hurt the soldiers? Sure there are, but naivete is no excuse for the result: More kids will die because some of the best prospects have been influended by the Anti-war movement The climate for the returning soldiers has already been irretrievably damaged by the Antti-war movement. These heroes wil NEVER receive their full honor from the whole of our society because of the Hate Spew of those who refuse to recognize the consequences of their Anti-patriotic actions.