To be in a hostile land...

With all the recent craziness going on in the Mid-East, from the murder of our Ambassador in Libya, rioting in Cairo and across the region, to more of our troops in Afghanistan being killed by supposed friendlies, I keep thinking about how very vulnerable our citizens are in these areas that are so inflamed. I can't imagine how scary it must be to be a civilian trapped inside a compound, listening to the angry mobs crushing in, getting closer and closer. The Iranian Hostage Crisis, that horror show that riveted our nation for over a year, comes to mind. Times like this are why God made the Marines.

While I don't know what it's like to be a civilian under attack in a hostile land, praying for rescue, I do know what it's like to be in a Mid-Eastern country operating under the highest of threat levels. During Operation Desert Shield and into Operation Desert Storm, while my unit was camped at King Fahd International Airport in Riyadh, we were targeted by terrorists on several occasions. I never thought much about those instances until fairly recently. All these infiltrations of our bases in Afghanistan and killings of our troops that I keep reading about really get me. How the hell does that happen?

I'm writing a book about my experience going through the Persian Gulf War with the 101st Airborne's very last Huey unit. I call it "Riders on the Storm." The story below is my last addition, written about a month ago, before all this craziness erupted.

The Visitors

One night during Operation Desert Storm, just before my unit deployed north for the ground invasion, my friend Barstow and I landed guard duty together. Our post was the main entrance to the compound at King Fahd International Airport in Riyadh. With the air war going on, we were at DefCon 4, the Army’s highest threat level. Shit was real. Upon manning our post, we were given orders to not let any foreign nationals into the compound. Easy enough, I thought.

We started our shift at 11 p.m. The air was biting cold and it was pitch black. Flood lights lit the area around us and down the road a bit. We couldn’t see a thing beyond that. Everything was still and quiet for the most part. So many soldiers had moved up north towards Iraq already that the area was a virtual ghost town. At that hour, those who remained were mostly asleep. As one minute seeped into the next, I thought about everything feeling different again, changing quickly; countries, temperatures, encampments, threat levels. Within days we would be moving north, to a whole new environment and situation. What lay ahead, I couldn’t even begin to imagine.

Armed with a silly grin and lots of ammo, Barstow was ready for action. He stood behind the wall of sandbags eagle-eyed and locked and loaded; such a Boy Scout. He was being goofy, cracking jokes as he scanned the vast darkness beyond. I think he was trying to amuse himself as much as he was trying to entertain me. Dude was always cracking me up, no matter where we were or what we were doing. Like randomly walking by his hooch, he’d call out after me, mimicking a drill sergeant, “left, left, left riiight left!”

  

Sometime late into our shift, a small, white Toyota pick-up truck approached. The driver brought the truck to a slow, dusty stop as I moved out from behind the barricade. Holding my M-16 tightly, I flipped the safety off as I neared the driver’s side window. As the glass came down I got a good look at the driver and his passenger; both slim, young Arab men in rumpled civilian clothing. They looked to be in their mid-twenties, tops.

Barstow had my back, standing behind the wall of sandbags with his weapon pointed at the driver. I could tell the guy was nervous; his eyes darted between me and Barstow as he gripped the upper steering wheel. His pal riding shotgun sat as still as a statue, looking straight ahead. I asked the driver what their business was. He looked up at me with brown saucer eyes and told me in good English that they were Saudi policeman and they needed to get onto the compound. I asked him for ID but he said they had none. I smelled a rat. “You hang tight,” I said. “I’ll be right back.”

Why would Saudi policemen not have any ID? And wouldn’t they know we had strict orders about who could enter? It sounded hinky to me. I moved away from the truck and waved Barstow over. I told him what they said. We agreed that without any ID, they’d have to see our First Sergeant before they got anywhere near inside our compound. Our landline was down, of all times, so Barstow had to double-time back to our area to tell “Top” what was going on and to bring him back. Before Barstow left, I walked back to the truck and told the driver what was happening and that they’d have to wait. He acknowledged, nodding sullenly.

I walked around the truck and stood about three feet in front of it. I raised my weapon and aimed for the drivers’ head. I held that position for what seemed like forever. If that guy revs the engine at all, I thought, or makes a move, I’m taking them both out. No hesitation. No bullshit.

I could see the driver leaning slightly toward his passenger, lips moving, his eyes locked on mine. Shotgun guy listened, and then nodded cautiously. They were agreeing on something. I tickled the trigger of my M-16 with my finger tip, hoping the guy wasn’t planning to get stupid. I really didn’t want to kill two people that night; and I didn’t want to see that kind of hideous mess. The fact was, though, I was absolutely ready to do just that – if I had to. There was no way I was letting any unauthorized people into our compound and near my unit.

It was a strange and powerful feeling knowing I literally had someone’s life in my hands; being a breath away from possibly killing someone. And not just one person, but two. If the situation called for using deadly force, though, I had absolutely no problem with it. We were at war and I knew that our enemies were very real. As real as those who attacked and killed 220 of our Marines in Lebanon back in ’83. There are times when deadly force is the only option; and I was ready.

Suddenly, I heard the crunch of sand and saw the truck’s front tires slowly turning. The driver reached out the window with his left hand and motioned to me that they were leaving. I waved the barrel of my rifle, signaling for him to proceed. I kept my aim as he made a very slow U-turn, picked up speed and disappeared into the darkness. Once the truck’s taillights faded from sight, I lowered my weapon and put the safety back on.

I walked back around the barricade, leaned up against it and lit a cigarette. I took a long drag and exhaled, wondering what the hell just happened and who those men really were. I took another drag and blew a couple smoke rings up into the beam of light particles floating down from above. It suddenly hit me that I wasn’t even cold, like I was before our visitors arrived. The adrenaline must’ve jacked up my body temperature. 

Glancing back toward our unit, I could see Barstow quickly approaching. I finished my cigarette and put it out as he made his way over to me. Before I could ask him where “Top” was he said, “What happened? Where’d they go?”

“I have no idea what all that was about,” I said, shaking my head. “Guess they decided whatever they came here for wasn’t so important after all.”

“Huh,” he grunted, staring straight ahead into the darkness. “Seems to me those boys were up to no good.”

I nodded. “Yah and they were in such a big hurry, too. They said they were Saudi police. If they really were Saudi police on some mission, don’t you think they would’ve waited for the First Sergeant?”

“Damn skippy.” 

Perry: "Here we come South Carolina!!!"

Perry Tweet

After a poor fifth place showing in Tuesday's GOP Iowa caucuses and saying he'd reassess his campaign, Texas Governor Rick Perry is now saying he'll forge on to the South Carolina primary. After discussing his prospects with wife, Anita, and going for a run to "clear his head," he Tweeted: "And the next leg of the marathon is the Palmetto State...Here we come South Carolina!!!"
Surely there will be much gnashing of teeth over Perry's seeming reversal. By the time the sun came up this morning, the MSM had almost universally declared his campaign over.
Could Perry's decision to soldier on have anything to do with a private"emergency" meeting being called for next weekend in Texas? According to Politico, e-mail invitations are going out now and will be hosted by movement conservative leaders including Focus on the Family founder James Dobson, Don Wildmon, former chairman of the American Family Association and Gary Bauer, a former failed presidential candidate. Their focus will be which conservative candidate to get behind in order to stop Mitt Romney's candidacy.

FD HIDDEN DIV

Bachmann's Waterloo: candidate leaves race after last place finish



Image Source Page: http://jeffersonsrebels.blogspot.com/2011/03/michele-bachmann-current-united-states.html

Minnesota Congresswoman Michele Bachmann has formally dropped out of the race for the 2012 GOP nomination after finishing last in the Iowa Caucuses. The Iowa native and self-styled leader of the Tea Party claimed a meager 5 percent of the vote. She held a press conference in Des Moines today and said, "Last night, the people in Iowa spoke with a very clear voice, and so I have decided to step aside." She did not endorse any other candidate in her remarks.

The race for 2012 begins tonight

After months and months and months of GOP campaigning and debates, and a constantly changing slate of front-runners, the moment has arrived. Tonight is the Iowa Caucus, the official kick-off for the race to determine who the 2012 Republican nominee will be. I'm already worn out.
The race boils down to three factions fighting for the top spot in Iowa and the big 'mo that follows: the establishment pick (Mitt Romney), the outsider (Ron Paul) and the evangelical standard-bearer (?). As of today, it's being reported that some 40 percent of (mostly evangelical) voters are still undecided. With that big a number of undecideds, it's just about impossible to say who the top tier going into New Hampshire will be.
Conventional wisdom and polls now say former Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum (Flavor #5) has a strong shot at landing in the top 3 tonight. It's possible. He's put more time and effort into winning over Iowa's electorate, especially its social conservatives than any other candidate, save Ron Paul. And Iowa is known for picking religious fundamentalists with no real shot. If Santorum doesn't come in third place, at least, he's done.
It looks like it will be a showdown between Mitt Romney and Ron Paul, with the former holding a very slight lead in the polls. However, Paul's support could be underrated because many of his supporters use cell phones and aren't polled as much as older voters with landlines.
The big question is who will evangelicals support? Will they go for Santorum, who has no money and no game beyond Iowa? Will God bestow a real live miracle on Michele Bachmann's crashing campaign and keep her in the game to New Hampshire? Or will these voters coalesce around Rick Perry (who does have the machine and money to get through to Super Tuesday)?
And then there's Newt Gingrich (Flavor #4)... no matter where he winds up in tonight's total, he won't drop out. He's got books to sell and big-money speeches to make; and being a candidate gives him a spotlight PR money can't buy. He's also still, for whatever reason, polling high in states like South Carolina and Florida. Tonight could change that, though, if he fails to crack the top 4.
I predict Paul will win the Iowa Caucus with Romney coming in second. I also predict Perry will beat expectations and come in third or fourth. With an unfriendly SC primary looming, that would be Romney's biggest nightmare.

Iowa wild card: Christian conservatives

Image from Washingtonpost.com

With two weeks to go until the Jan. 3 Iowa Caucus, the great unknown in that race continues to be who evangelical Republicans will get behind. According to Boston.com, the majority of them are still undecided and torn between Ron Paul (TX), Michele Bachmann (MN) and Rick Santorum (PA).
The article did a good job of barely mentioning Rick Perry (TX), who's spending these final weeks before the Caucus on a bus tour of the state, focusing on these very voters. The media has completely written him off. That may be a mistake. If he gets in there and starts connecting with values voters on the ground, as a fellow Christian and governor, he may appeal to them far more than Paul, Bachmann and Santorum combined. He speaks their language on faith, foreign policy and limited government, has a record of executive leadership and honestly, he's not a woman (with this crowd, it does matter).
At this point every one's envisioning and girding themselves for a Paul upset in Iowa. For good reason. He's got a lock on the ground game and the most passionate supporters. At the same time, all the big guns are blazing away at Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich for epic flip-floppery and corruption, destroying voters' trust in them and cancelling each other out.
If evangelicals decide at the last minute that Paul is too off his nut on foreign policy and Bachmann and Santorum are just too weak, they could easily coalesce around the candidate that most comprehensively appeals to their vision of a leader - that male, conservative Christian, Southern governor. At this point, a win for Perry in Iowa isn't just possible, it would be the biggest upset of all.

Romney snags endorsement from the Des Moines Register

Photo by Darren McCollester/Getty Images North America

I don't know what's more exciting, Christine "I'm not a witch" O'Donnell's endorsement of Mitt Romney or the one he just got from Iowa's largest newspaper, the Des Moines Register. The paper acknowledges it didn't endorse Romney in 2008, but that was then and this is now. Now it's all about his "sobriety, wisdom and judgement." This year it's "a different field" (read: full of pandering psychos) and he's matured as a candidate. The paper tries weakly to explain away his myriad flip-flops by claiming he's evolved politically - and besides, they all do it! In closing ranks with the establishment, they argue Newt Gingrich is an alienating, unelectable bomb thrower and Ron Paul would bring about "economic chaos and isolationism." While they may be right about Gingrich and Paul, it's still fun to watch the establishment squirm over the possibility of Dr. No taking Iowa. It would be the right-leaning version of  OWS, occupying the Iowa Caucuses. There would be no greater discombobulation. And if that happens, expect the MSM to go into collective hyperdrive to (a.) diminish the Iowa victory by claiming the Caucuses no longer matter and (b.) by going "Dean Scream" on Paul to shut down his momentum. Here's the memo to come: He can't win! He can't win! He can't win! Got it?

From the So What? dept.: SC gov. Nikki Haley endorses Romney

South Carolina governor Nikki Haley (R) has endorsed Mitt Romney for the GOP nomination. My first thought when I heard that was, really? How politically dumb can she be? I agree with this writer at TPM, who suggests the endorsement won't do much for Romney in the Palmetto primary. Haley isn't exactly popular down yonder these days, even among Republicans. And SC conservatives just do not like or trust Romney, so it's a mistake to think her endorsement will help him. Maybe Haley's angling for the VP spot with Romney?

Rolling Romney $tyle

Image from The Washington Post

The colors are coming home: US military officially ends war in Iraq

President Barack Obama can cross off the list his greatest campaign promise - to end the war in Iraq and bring our troops home. Nine years after the invasion and ouster of Saddam Hussein, and with the loss of 4,500 of our service members, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta took part in a ceremony packing up the flag U.S. forces fought under.

NDAA (indefinite detention bill) no longer faces veto threat from White House

The White House has withdrawn its veto threat of the National Defense Authorization Act which states the U.S.A. is a battlefield (WOT) and okays the detainment and indefinite detention of U.S. citizens identified as terrorists or terrorist sympathizers. The White House rescinded the veto threat after changes were made to the controversial provision. Those changes take the power of who to detain away from the Department of Defense and gives the authority to the president. Our founding fathers would be rolling in their graves if they knew just how much of our rights and freedoms we've given away since 9-11. As Ben Franklin said, "He who sacrifices freedom for security deserves neither.” 

Doing delegate math with Mittens!

Here's your word problem for the day: Based on the delegate math, his performance in 2008 and the cosmic variable unknown, can Mitt Romney overcome a possibly hostile early primary schedule to win the GOP nomination?

Is Mittens the Hillary Clinton of 2012?

From an interview with Ben Smith and Maggie Haberman at Politico:

"When the (Des Moines register poll) came out showing Romney in third I actually had a shot of PTSD,” said one former Clinton adviser. “Four years ago, (the) biggest factor was opposition to Bush - and Obama skillfully managed to paint Hillary as timid on Bush … Now (the) biggest thing is hatred of Obama, and Gingrich … makes Romney seem timid. Or he seems it himself. So that’s why Romney is in the box of being third in Iowa. And counting on a New Hampshire firewall that is shrinking away.”

Newt/Romney a lock on Iowa? Don't bet on it

Image: http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2011/09/08/am-the-republican-debate-social-security-and-minimum-wage/

As we get closer to the Iowa Caucuses Jan. 3, most folks are laser-focused on the slug fest that is Newt/Romney. I blame the political chatteratti for that. They conveniently forget there are a few other contenders in the race. The race could go down as predicted by most polls, showing Mitt Romney's support crashing and Newt Gingrich's surging from Iowa to Florida. But then again, being the strange and volatile season it is, other weirdness could ensue.
Take Ron Paul. His rising poll numbers in Iowa now have him in second place. His base is probably the most passionate and his ground operation is well-organized and strong. He's also been making a lot of noise with a great TV ad campaign that appeals to young voters and skeptics of Newt/Romney. Dr. No may be one of the oldest guys to ever run, but the kids love him. He shouldn't be underestimated in Iowa.
Then there's Rick Perry. Most everyone in the media has written him off because of his gaffes and space-outs. Sure, that dopey behavior puts off the elites and freaks out a lot of regular folks who still watch the news. But in Iowa, and especially South Carolina, those aren't exactly the voters Rick Perry is gunning for. Unlike Romney and Gingrich, his primary focus from now until Jan. 3 will be winning over the Hawkeye state's Christian conservatives. They are legion. If they decide they can't trust Romney and that Gingrich is too foul, Perry seems far more likely to be their candidate. And if he takes Iowa, he probably takes SC, too.
Then there's Jon Huntsman and New Hampshire. He's put all of his eggs into that crazy, independent basket. Who can really know which way Granite state voters will go? Not even the Magic 8-Ball has an answer for that one.
I know this much, if Paul or Perry pulls an upset in Iowa and Huntsman comes in first or second in New Hampshire, it will throw the race and entire media narrative into a realm of political weirdness we have not witnessed in decades. If political junkies thought the race between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in 2008 was epic, they could be in for yet another nominating spectacle for the ages if the battle goes down to a brokered convention in Tampa.
I'm tempted to bet 10 Large Perry winds up with the nomination.

President Obama trailing GOP front runners?

I'm not buying the numbers being offered in a new round of USA Today/Gallup polls.They surveyed registered voters across 12 battleground states: Romney 48 - Obama 43; and Gingrich 48 - Obama 45. I'll bet you $10,000 they surveyed a bunch of older voters on land lines, leaving out the youthful multitude of voters who use cell phones. I'd love to see those numbers.

House, Senate agree on defense bill authorizing indefinite detentions of U.S. citizens

Donna Cassata at The Huffington Post reports: House and Senate negotiators late Monday agreed to a sweeping $662 billion defense bill that requires military custody for terrorism suspects linked to al-Qaida, including those captured within the U.S., and indefinite detention without trial for some suspects.
The big question now is whether President Barack Obama will follow through on his threat to veto it.

Savage offers Gingrich $1 Million to drop out of GOP race

Image: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/2011/03/gingrich-prepares-to-make-his-move.html

Conservative radio host Michael Savage has offered "fat, old, white" Newt Gingrich, current GOP front runner, $1 million to drop his candidacy "for the sake of the nation." At his web site, Savage lists the reasons why he opposes Gingrich and mentions terms to the agreement. Gingrich has 72 hours to accept.

Taibbi discusses the declaration of Battlefield U.S.A.

The elites are feeling the heat from Occupy Wall Street and are striking back using their useful idiots in congress. If the National Defense Authorization Act passes (including the provision declaring the U.S.A. a battlefield), any U.S. citizen deemed by the government to be a terrorist or terrorist sympathizer could be detained indefinitely by the U.S. military. That means possibly anyone involved in domestic protest (OWS, Tea Party). All it would take to go after protesters is for an act of domestic violence to occur and be pinned on whatever movement it chose. Protesters could be accused of being in collusion with "associated forces." Make no mistake, this legislation has little to do with terrorists, but a lot to do with  crushing dissent.

House bill could make diplomacy with Iran illegal

The Orwellian/NeoCon nonsense continues. Reps. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) and Pete Stark (D-CA) warned colleagues in a letter that the Iran Threat Reduction Act (H.R. 1905), expected to pass this week, would make it illegal for U.S. officials to negotiate with Iranian officials in certain cases. In Nov., Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) also warned that "the sanctions against Iran mandated by this legislation are definite steps toward a US attack on Iran."

NDAA: Handing our nation's enemies the biggest victory ever

According to a new article in The Huffington Post:

A measure that Congress will likely pass this week allowing indefinite detentions of Americans by the U.S. military will mark a significant loss in the war on terrorism, says a former admiral who ran the Navy legal system.

The National Defense Authorization Act, passed by the Senate just over a week ago after a heated debate, includes a provision that requires the military to hold foreign-born terrorism suspects, and also lets the military grab U.S. citizens for indefinite detention.

The House and Senate are expected to release the final legislation as soon as late Monday, and in spite of a personal lobbying effort by President Obama, it is expected to include the controversial language.

A growing list of current and former government officials and national security experts oppose this measure. One of them is Adm. John Hutson, Judge Advocate General of the Navy from 1997 to 2000 and dean emeritus of the University of New Hampshire School of Law. The way Hutson sees it, the United States chipping away at one of its fundamental principles of civilian law enforcement is a win for terrorists.

"The enemy is just laughing over this, because they will have gotten another victory," Hutson told The Huffington Post. "There'll be one more victory. There won't be any bloodshed or immediate bloodshed, there's not a big explosion, except in a metaphorical sense, but it is a victory nonetheless for the enemy. And it's a self-inflicted wound."

Romney jabs at Gingrich, gets punched right back

Earlier today, a desperate Mitt Romney challenged Newt Gingrich to return the money he received from consulting with Fannie and Freddie.
Newt's reply: "I would just say: if Governor Romney would like to give back all the money he's earned from bankrupting companies and laying off employees over his years at Bain, then I would be glad to then listen to him. And I will bet you $10, not $10,000, that he won't take the offer."
Oh, snap!