Hidden effects of the war

I have been working with an old acquaintance in Saudi Arabia. He and I last worked together over 10 years ago in Los Angeles and while we were occasional pals we eventually lost touch with each other. I walked into our DFAC one day and there he was. That's the way this type of life is. You don't see people for years and then they just pop up.

I found out that he was in the sand box at the same time I was. When I was ducking mortars at Taji he was dodging rockets in the Green Zone. There are 4 of us (OIF Vets) assigned to this project and we really don't talk about the war to anyone else so when we shut the doors we chat.

His experience was pretty interesting also. He met a female Iraqi and married her. She is a Mechanical Engineer and is now employed by the same outfit that employs us. She is CONUS and they have a 17 month old son. On the surface it would seem like she got lucky but when you peel the onion you find that it ain't so.

Her parents were dispossessed of their home and had to flee to Syria. My bud has had to support them for over 3 years now while they are in exile. Their family has lost everything including a son who was killed in the fratricide that followed the invasion. She cannot go home as she married a Christian and would be killed on the spot in her old neighborhood for doing so. She is homesick at times and longs for the familiar to her.

Her family tells everyone she married a Lebanese and that she can't come home because the Lebanese government won't let her. So far this ruse has worked but I wonder what will happen when their son starts to wonder why he only sees one side of the family.

The other side of the family is another issue. They ask her some dumb ass questions like,"Ain't cha glad to be away from all those crazy killers?" "Do you celebrate Thanksgiving in Iraq?" "When are you going to become a Baptist?" "Why are you teaching your son to speak Arabic?"

I invited them to come to my home for our overlapping R&Rs but it won't happen this time. It is Eid and they are very quietly celebrating this at their home. I hope they come at Christmas because if there is any house in Texas where an Iraqi would be welcome at Christmas, it is mine.

The Iraqi people were never the enemy. Their totalitarian government and the Islamofascists are the enemy, not the schoolteacher, the shopkeeper, the mechanic, the bricklayer. The war is almost over and we have won this round. Unless Obama unravels what has been so carefully built it is all over except mopping up and rebuilding.

Maybe one day my buddy's wife will get to tell her story. I hope so. There are so many hidden effects from this war. It definitely changed my life, it changed theirs and it changed the Bidens the McCains and the Palins.

All the candidates except Obama have a son in Iraq. I wonder what their stories will be?

9-11

I wrote this in 2006 but on this day I can still think of no better way to commemorate what we went through. I want us to remember that 9-11 was about people. People died. Buildings came down but people died. Jeffrey Giordano was one of them. Do not forget. I haven't.

Jeffrey Giordano

I know that a lot of folks are expecting me to write about 9-11 and how it not only changed our nation but also how it changed the lives of myself and my family. Not this time. Instead I will concentrate on the memory of a man. He was a man much like me and the same age. I got his name from Project 2,996 which has been sponsored by DC Roe.He is Jeffrey Giordano 46, of New York, N.Y. and he died at the World Trade Center. He was a Firefighter from Ladder 3 in Manhattan and his Memorial Service was held on October 13, 2001.

As I look at his photo I wonder what he was like, what his hopes and dreams were. I look into into his eyes and I see a man who I would have liked to have known, have had a beer with, have called my friend. A man dedicated to public service, a man who understood the concepts of Duty, Honor, Country. A family man who loved his children but still selflessly rushed to the scene of the attack because it was the right thing to do. He is the same type of man as those I meet here, those who have risked all for those same three words; Duty, Honor, Country. I think that there has already been a more fitting tribute written about him than I ever could compose and I offer it here.

Athlete and devoted father lived a life that focused on helping and inspiring others

Sunday, October 07, 2001 By MIKE AZZARA ADVANCE STAFF WRITER Burlington, VT.

Three words that characterize the life of Jeffrey Giordano, 45, of Tottenville, are "compassion in action." Jeff, as he was known, was committed to excellence in everything he did. His great physical and mental strength helped make him a man with strong moral and ethical convictions. When someone would say, "That's good enough," said his wife, the former Marie Scotto, "Jeff's response would be, 'That's the problem with the world -- people think it's OK to accept less than perfect.'"

Mr. Giordano, a firefighter with Ladder Co. 3 in Lower Manhattan, has been missing since the collapse of the World Trade Center Sept. 11. That morning, he called his wife at 6:30 from the firehouse to tell her to awaken the children so they could watch him on television. "I'm going to be on TV with Larry Hoff in a fund-raising promotion benefiting the Firefighters Burn Center Foundation and the Widows and Orphans Fund," he told her. He was an officer of the foundation. "It was as if he knew it would be the last time they would see their father alive," Mrs. Giordano said. Shortly after 9 a.m., he called to say he was on his way to the World Trade Center. Mrs. Giordano said she "could feel the adrenaline flowing as he spoke."

Since Ladder Co. 3 is downtown, it was one of the first units to respond. "When the towers collapsed," Mrs. Giordano said, "I knew he was in one of them." Mr. Giordano, who joined the Fire Department in 1987, was assigned to Ladder Co. 3 from the start. His fellow firefighters became an important part of his life. "Jeff is treasured in the memory of those who knew him as a 'brother,' a fireman whose professional joy was to be among his fellow firefighters," Mrs. Giordano said. "In spite of his singular bravery, it was his habit to give the credit to others." In an interview in the spring, he told the Daily News: "We just pull them out. It's the doctors and nurses who save their lives."

Mr. Giordano was a highly decorated firefighter. Among his many honors and citations was the Albert Johnson Award for saving two people trapped in a blazing building. The Life Saving Benevolent Society honored Mr. Giordano for diving into the East River to save a drowning man. In March, he received the Hero of the Month Award given by the Daily News for saving the life of a 21-year-old woman he found unconscious in a burning apartment. He was recognized for bravery and citizenship by the Fire Department Honor Legion, the American Legion and the City Council. He wore a chest full of medals on his dress uniform.

While living in Westchester County, he was a member of the South Salem Volunteer Fire Department, where his helmet was retired last week at a memorial service. Mr. Giordano, a native of Brooklyn, moved to Staten Island four years ago. A man of powerful focus and endurance, Mr. Giordano participated in more than 15 marathons. He ran daily and logged more than 50,000 miles. Mrs. Giordano said many people, learning he was missing in the World Trade Center collapse, have contacted her with stories of how he inspired them to achieve more in their lives. He was vice president and a member of the board of the New York Firefighters Burn Center Foundation. He was dedicated to raising funds for the New York Presbyterian Burn Center. Mr. Giordano was a devoted husband and father who took his children everywhere. "It was important to him that they be involved in the community," Mrs. Giordano said. He was the soccer coach for the Intrepids, the team his son, Nicholas, played on.

Mr. and Mrs. Giordano were childhood sweethearts who celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary in August. "Life is empty without him but I am thankful he has given me three beautiful children, the greatest gift in the world," Mrs. Giordano said. "I will always feel his presence for when I look at his gift, I will always see him. "Oh, how I miss him and love him." Surviving, in addition to his wife, Marie, and his son, Nicholas, are two daughters, Victoria and Alexandra; his mother, Jessie, and a sister, Debbie Caputo. His brother, Chris, died three years ago.In line with other honors from a grateful community he has had a street renamed after him. It is Jeffrey Giordano Boulevard, located at the southwest corner of the intersection of Hylan Boulevard and Page Avenue.

I see tributes that state, "Never Forget." I won't. I will always remember that day, what I was doing, how I learned about it, and how it has changed me but I still feel that I should remember Jeffery Giordano.

Tomorrow I will be on post and at the time that the first plane flew into the tower the PA will play Taps. I will stop, turn, and salute the flag. At that moment I will remember Jeffrey Giordano the way he should be remembered. You should too. Don't remember him as a victim, remember him as the man he was. I will.

Cluster Weapons

I have been getting some interesting emails from a group called Survivor Corps. They are working to ban cluster munitions. I don't think they will be successful as cluster weapons are designed to kill over large areas and they are very, very good at that. They are also very good at taking out armor, aircraft on the ground and hard points. This is a lot like the land mine debate. The weapons are terrifying and for good reason. That is part of why they are effective.

The problem with both weapons systems is that they don't POP 100% of the time and can lay inert for years until some unfortunate soul who had nada to do with the prior conflict is killed or maimed by one. There are areas of the world where they litter the countryside like poppies. Afghanistan, Bosnia, Lebanon, and Myanmar are a few of them.

Even rifle rounds are not 100%. That is why any good soldier will clean and inspect every round he has in his ruck before he goes into the field. If it looks the least bit dodgy you toss it. Pilots and artillery men are usually the folks operating the delivery systems for cluster munitions and they can't inspect every bomblet as they are sealed in a canister.

Look at their site and make up your own mind. When you are up against bad guys and an A-10 Warthog comes in and drops a few hundred of these on them you love these things. It's when you have to MCAP the place later that you hate them.

The LOGCAP Diaspora

More and more folks are fleeing this way of life and stresses. Until I left I did not really imagine I would be able to function again in a real world situation and in fact I have had some adjustment issues. I don't live in a Khaki world anymore. Everything is not dress right dress. People don't obey rules because rules are in place. Being around weapons and planning for war is not part of the new normalcy.

Some folks are having tough times. Many can't adjust to what amounts to chaos of life compared to the order and linear thought processes of the military. I know many who indeed think they will make oodles of money in the US just because they did so in Iraq. I'm doing very well but that is because I have a transferable skill set. This is when the skills you brought to the table or developed while in theater are usable to companies in the civilian sector.

Some of the retired military types looked down their noses at those who were in support roles like IT, HR, HSE, medical and such but those are the folks having the least amount of problems refitting to the civilian side. PKTSD while being a funny story is sadly enough based on some realities. There were many who did not save a dime and just powered through what they made.

The active duty folks have many ways to reach out and get help. The civilians don't. There are a lot of people who are a bit jealous and say that they don't deserve it as they made a lot of money. Truth is they did not make as much as a lot of people think they did. The combat truck driver made about 80K in a year. He gets a tax break and brings it all home but think about all the danger he faced to make that. When you add up the combat pay, deployment pay, and uplifts to the military this is about what an E-7 or an O-5 brings home too. Who faced the most danger, the trucker out on an MSR every two days or the O-5 who worked as a S-3 planner and hardly ever left the base? Who needs help the most?

The diaspora of the LOGCAPers continues and I keep up with a lot of them by various methods. Some have gone home and have no intention of ever going overseas again. Some have been trying to get another overseas job and some have just melted into the world.

I saw my neighbor's family destroyed by this. He fell victim to the temptations that many faced and most resisted. He made a wad of cash, planned a big vacation, found a new girlfriend and had it all going rosy. That lasted until he was terminated for trying to smuggle out a bullet. That's right, one bullet. The rules say "Don't do it!" I told him as I told everyone who deployed, "Follow the rules." He got caught and was held up in Baghdad until they could finish an investigation. He missed his oldest child's High School Graduation because of this. He came home with his head hanging down and took his family on that expensive vacation they had planned. He figured he would be able to go back with another company in less than a month so he did not worry about his money. They spent it. While on vacation his new girlfriend also came to the vacation spot although she was in a different hotel.

He made excuses and disappeared for a few hours. Everything was just ducky until after their return home. Seems he has been put on a "Do not rehire" list with us and can't get on with anyone else. Since 2006 companies are not desperate for help anymore. They won't just hire you because you are willing to come. If you can't make a single rotation you are a liability and are likely to repeat the behavior. Not only was he now not going back and had splurged all the money but his wife found photos on his digital camera of his girlfriend. Yep, he actually took pics of her at the family vacation spot.

Today he is at home struggling. He had to move out and they are getting divorced. He is working a "make ends meet" job and dreams of returning to the gravy train but knows it is not going to happen.

He is my neighbor but I don't feel sorry for him. He could have obeyed the rules but he didn't. he could have stayed faithful to his wife but he didn't. He could have been smart enough to not have evidence of his transgressions but he didn't. He looks at me and wonders why I made it for 5 years and still have a good overseas gig.

The diaspora of these people will be complete in a few years, sooner of Obama gets elected. I wonder what brainy post grad student will seize on this for a thesis or for a doctoral study in sociology. It will be interesting. The first outsourced war is going to present some very different problems once they are fully recognized by the "experts". I'm no expert and I know the diaspora is bringing new troubles. For many it will be too late before the answers are found.

Ramadan

In Iraq Ramadan was not even a blip on our radar other than the fact that the bad guys seemed to want to die more frequently. They laid low all day and then got fired up after Iftar (The evening fast breaking meal) and came out thinking they were all Billy Bad Ass.

In Kuwait it was a local law and in our compound we were OK but made sure we obeyed the law outside the gates. The bases were not affected at all. We had one case where a girl walked outside the gate with a juice box and was given a 300 KD fine. That is about 1000 USD so it is a whopper. Other than all the restaurants being closed during daylight hours it was not that big an ordeal.

In Saudi Arabia it is something else altogether. Here they are dead serious about it. NOTHING is open. It is like the whole country shuts down. I tried to go to my favorite bookstore yesterday and it usually opens on Fridays at 16:00. When I got there at 16:00 it was closed and the security guard informed us that it would not open until 21:00. I am fast in slumber land by then so I gave it a miss.

We had to shut down the kitchen at work and place the coffee makers, microwaves, etc in a conference room and put signs up warning Muslims that they shall not enter. The hours of the client have been changed from 07:00-17:00 to 08:00 to 14:00 and no lunch break. They only work 6 hours and get paid for 8. Half my staff is on half days also but it is OK as ALL the Muslims leave early and that is when I start getting a lot of administrative duties out of the way.

One of our locals told me that we should all be observing the Ramadan rules but I told him I was a Methodist and we did not practice it. Religion is touchy here and you have to be very careful when discussing it. I explained Lent and how it is somewhat the same. I told him that I would practice Ramadan if we would observe Lent. It is a no go for both of us.

Oh well, only two more lunar phases until it is over and we get back to everything being back to normal....if you can call it that.

Chicagostan

OMG! Thank god the junior senator from Illinois may get the power to call back all the trrops from Iraq. It really looks like he will need them in his own backyard. If this was the case in Texas or in Arizona where McCain comes from the media would be howling.

http://cbs2chicago.com/local/chicago.summer.shootings.2.810166.html

Really Funny LOGCAP Story

I wish I had written this but did not. I know the guy that did and while I was reading this aI just about pissed myself laughing. It is so true that it is sad. I do know folks who were in theater for years and don't have a dime and then there is my sister's boyfriend who is so tight he could rub two pennies together and make Lincoln scream.

FUTURE NEWS STORY

THE TRAGEDY OF PKSD
Date: TBD 2010

Across the United States we are seeing an unexpected result of the Iraq War play out before our eyes.

Many brave, patriotic civilians went to Iraq as part of LOGCAP (Logistics Civilian Augmentation Program), and returned to what they thought would be a normal life back here in the States. However, many of these individuals have since been diagnosed with what is now known as Post-KBR Stress Disorder, or PKSD.

These individuals became addicted to high pay for nominal work, very often in jobs they were totally unqualified to perform; and when they returned to what is known as "the real world" they were unable to adjust. Many have refused to return to whatever jobs they had prior to their tour in Iraq, having given themselves the delusion that they actually were qualified for the positions they had graciously been given while there.

A great number of them have refused to work for fair wages in America after having been spoiled on the pay they received while working (or at least, filling out a timesheet) overseas..

This has caused great stress in many families as sufferers of PKSD have refused to assimilate back into the real world.

Many, for years, only saw their families when it was R&R, fun and vacation. Now they are having to deal with the problems that go along with normal life, and they refuse to do it. Another problem is that when they were home in a vacation frame of mind they had more than enough money to spend on every whim of themselves and the family. They spent money like the cash cow would never stop giving and did not adequately plan ahead. Now that they have refused to go back to work they are frustrated that what money they had saved is now gone and they now face financial devastation. Also, since they are no longer the great financial provider that they once were, it has led to marital problems, in many cases.

For some reason that is unclear until further research can be done, everyone who ever worked in water purification and returned home has turned gay. That's right, they have all become flamers. Researchers say it may take years of study to determine why this has occurred. They have ruled out the chemicals, and now believe it may be the long hours they spent alone together in the ROWPU units.

With the war over in Iraq and things winding down in Afghanistan there is no longer a great need for highly paid, unqualified people in the LOGCAP program.

Former Operations Coordinator for KBR

Many companies that hired KBR HSE Coordinators are still trying to do what they did in Iraq are facing OSHA fines, and some, loss of contracting license

This new phenomena has overwhelmed the mental health industry. But, since these individuals no longer have jobs they no longer have health insurance (unless they are still married and the spouse provides it), so most are SOL..

Most truck drivers from Iraq refuse to go back on the road, claiming it is boring without the threat of roadside bombs and small arms fire. Many more truck drivers could not adjust to not driving in a convoy without a military escort. Almost all say they will not renew their CDL.

The Food Service Industry in the United States is enforcing a total ban on individuals who worked in KBR DFACs due to liability issues. Insurance providers will no longer provide insurance to restaurants, grocery stores or food industry suppliers who employ former KBR employees. Although it has not been confirmed, there are many rumors that some former KBR Food Service personnel are secretly being employed in restaurants that specialize in Indian Cuisine.

Almost 100% of the KBR Security Coordinators who did try to return to work are now overrunning local Wal-Marts, Krispy Creams and Waffle Houses in order to find security jobs in close relation to their experience in Iraq. Many have found these locations to be too dangerous compared to the Indians and Pakistanis they are used to being able to boss around without fear of harm or confrontation. There appear to be no jobs in the US that will allow them to follow around real law enforcement and play cop as they have with US Security Forces (real police) in Iraq. Many spend their time sitting around watching Smokey and the Bandit trying to emulate Sherriff Buford T. Justice, very sad.

Firemen… ? This reporter would not even know where to begin.

And one Home Depot store which hired a former KBR Materials Manager had to close down within 3 months of his hire because of the massive mismanagement of inventory. When asked for a comment, the Store Manager said, "I can't @#$%^&* believe how @#$%^&* incompetent this (&}%^ guy is. We {"+=&% hired him with the @#$%^&* recommendation from his *&^% former *^%$#& employer, but he surely had to be a ("+}^% when he %$#*)+ worked for them, too. He %^&$# things up at light speed. I don't see how his former @#$%^& employer kept from getting slammed by the government." He had more to say about the man's Mother, Grandmother, Great-Grandmother, etc.

Many of the former KBR employees spend long hours at the local convenience stores talking to the Indians and Pakistanis who work there, seemingly trying to re-experience their days of job and financial security. A strange twist is that they will not go to work for a fair wage, but many will readily sweep and mop floors at the local 7/11 for a six pack of beer and the privilege of being able to hang around and bore the owner with their stories of Iraq . This is ironic since in their previous job the South Asians worked as their labor.

Recently, some of these PKSD sufferers caused an international incident. They pooled what little money they had and tried to start a rebellion in Tahiti, in hopes that the United States would intervene with the military and re-expand the LOGCAP program there. However, the poor fools ran out of money drinking in the bar the first night there.

The exception to this problem seems to be individuals who worked for KBR Medical. They are able to readjust on the street as if they never left. Many were smart and knew the well would dry up so they saved money for higher degrees in the medical field and are now making more than they did with KBR (even without up-lift).

An article authored by a KBR Medical person no doubt

Apocryphal but good

I was talking to the daughter of a friend of mine. I asked her what she wanted to be when she grew up and she replied, "I want to be President!"

Both of her parents are liberal Democrats and were standing there. So then I asked her, "If you were President what would be the first thing you would do?" She replied, "I'd give houses to all the homeless people."

"Wow - That's a worthy goal" I told her, "but you don't have to wait until you're President to do that. You can come over to my house and mow, pull weeds, and sweep my sidewalks, and I'll pay you $50. Then I'll take you over to the grocery store where a homeless man panhandles every day. You can give him the $50
to use toward a new house."

She thought that over for a few seconds. While her Mom glared at me, she looked me straight in the eye and asked, "Why doesn't the homeless guy come over and do the work, and you can just pay him the $50?"

And I said, "Welcome to the Republican Party."

Her folks still aren't talking to me.

My Friends

My friends are basically useless, unemployable, and societal pariahs but I love them all. I hope they come to Jason's wedding in Las Vegas. If you don't know about the wedding email me at my gmail address so I can fill you in on the particulars.

BTW - Jason is a liberal and is an Obamaniac. He could have been gay. He could have been a gay Obamaniac. He probably knows one or two. Anyway he is my only nephew and I love him warts and all.

A snoot full of dirt

When I got up this morning I went through my middle east morning ritual of coffee, checking email, taking a crap and then showering before dressing. Even though I take a shower when I get in from all the heat, sand and sweat I still take one every morning just to wake up. I just don't feel right until I have had that shower. I even did this when we lived at the Hotel California at BIAP back in 2003. Of course that was a John Wayne shower but it was a cleansing experience none the less.

Coming outside I saw what I detest. A friggin sandstorm had snuck in overnight and was lingering in the area. This means less heat because of the diffused rays of the sun but it also means limited visibility, everything coated in it and the inevitable snootful of dirt. You can pick some world class boogers over here. I know that most people don't talk about such things but I am always amazed an the footlongs (they seem that big!) that I pull out late in the afternoon. I don't like wearing a dust mask all day and I know from training that more than 99% of the particulates are bigger than 5 microns so they don't get down into the alveoli where long term damage happens. They just coat you nostrils, inner air chambers, back of your throat and cause you to sneeze, cough and dig for gold.

This also brings back a flood of memories from Taji when we would get walls of orange sand blowing down from the North of Iraq and we would get socked in for days at a time. Taji, I think about it all the time. Sand and boogers make me think about Taji, so does Burger King and Pizza Hut.

You may wonder why they do that but it is because that was all the fast food we had for a long, long time. I actually just got sick of both of them and still don't go all that often to either. Especially after getting a nose full of dirt.

I think tonight I will shower, SKYPE Mrs. MiG and little MiG and then put tape along my windowsills. If I get a whopper (not from BK) I'll take a pic and post. Who knows, I might make the Guinness Book of World Records for biggest booger. God, my momma would be so proud.

Obama is Clueless about Iraq

OK, its has been a long time since I posted here. I have been adjusting to my new life and quite honestly I have been trying to distance myself from Iraq and the war. I didn't even look up any of my war zone buddies when I was at home last. I have been changing mentally back into a totally civilian mindset but I do still read headlines about the war when I see them. Most times I shrug and just chalk up the disinformation to the liberal media. I promised before to keep politics out of this website but today I read something that just really ticked me off.

All this Obama worship by the media has made me just wish we could find another Ronald Reagan but we only have John McCain. McCain and Obama. That is the best we can do? That alone is a sad, sad commentary on our society and the ability of the media to manipulate our politics. Obama said things today about the surge that are patently untrue. I know it is untrue. I was there, he was not. For the transcript you can go to Fox at the following link:

Obama has it wrong!

Jack Lucas - A Genuine American Hero

Jack Lucas died today. Funny, most of you don't know him and probably have never heard of him. I never met him but I know that he was of almost mythical status in the Marine Corps. In their eyes he was John Basilone, R. Lee Ermey, and P.X. Kelley personified. He was the Marine that John Wayne wanted to be in The Sands of Iwo Jima. He was the Marine you see in the TV commercials who is dress right dress in his Class 1 Blues with the sabre.

What made Jack Lucas special? Imagine this for a second. A 14 year old kid lies about his age to enlist in the Marines. They take him because they think he is 17 years old. When he really is 17 he gets shipped to Iraq, to Fallujah in 2005 when it was at it's worst. A grenade comes falling into a Humvee and he throws himself on it to save his buddies. It explodes and he almost dies but does not. He fights back and returns to duty. He wins the Medal of Honor. One of the very, very few who is alive to receive it.

This would not happen now but it did in WWII. Jack Lucas won his MOH at Iwo Jima. He won the hearts of all his fellow Marines in the years after because of us unwavering support for the Marine Corps and the Marines in general. He never failed to speak his mind no matter who he was talking to and is the example that should be in the dictionary when the word "Patriot" is listed.

Here is the Citation for his MOH as was read by President Harry S. Truman in October 1945.

The President of the United States takes pleasure in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR to
PRIVATE FIRST CLASS JACKLYN H. LUCAS UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS RESERVE for service as set forth in the following CITATION:

For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving with the First Battalion, Twenty-sixth Marines, Fifth Marine Division, during action against enemy Japanese forces on Iwo Jima, Volcano Islands 20 February 1945. While creeping through a treacherous, twisting ravine which ran in close proximity to a fluid and uncertain front line on D-plus-1 Day, Private First Class Lucas and three other men were suddenly ambushed by a hostile patrol which savagely attacked with rifle fire and grenades. Quick to act when the lives of the small group were endangered by two grenades which landed directly in front of them, Private First Class Lucas unhesitatingly hurled himself over his comrades upon one grenade and pulled the other one under him, absorbing the whole blasting force of the explosions in his own body in order to shield his companions from the concussion and murderous flying fragments. By his inspiring action and valiant spirit of self-sacrifice, he not only protected his comrades from certain injury or possible death, but also enabled them to rout the Japanese patrol and continue the advance. His exceptionally courageous initiative and loyalty reflect the highest credit upon Private First Class Lucas and the United States Naval Service.
/S/ HARRY S. TRUMAN



God loves Marines or else he would not call so many of them to come a sit beside him. This is my last, slow salute for you. Semper Fi Marine.

Two Months

It has been almost two months since I wrote anything here. I have just been living in Saudi Arabia and getting by and have not really put much thought to the war the last couple of months. I am insulated from the war, news of the war and being around the military. I see the guys everyday that were up North with me but we all find that we don't talk about it much. There is a guy here who was with me in Taji for a couple of years. He and I are with different companies but we are very close to each other already. After all, no one else here has laid beside me in a an open field while rockets fell around us and Iraqis ran in circles like Turkeys cornered at a fence line.

I guess all of us know that it is still there looming across the horizon like a bad thunderstorm or even a horse mounted group of Huns, Mongols, or the like. We talk about a lot of different things, mostly what a bunch of dumb asses the locals are but we do congregate and clan up when others are around. They are my brothers.

I dream about it though. I don't have those sweat filled nightmares that some people say they do. Actually I dream about unsettled business and people I miss. I dream about walking in Baghdad with no weapons and no troops around, looking at what we erected from the outside, almost as if I had a different view I could get a different perspective.

I keep getting offers to go back. Some of the money offers are just obscene. I think about it and I think about all the close calls I had. How long does your luck run? How long do you stay bulletproof? How many mortars do they have left with my name on them?

I think about that and I also think about the fact that I am bored silly here. I make great money and work with a great group of guys but it just does not have the same reward as being there, close to the troops, part of the end game. I was there at the beginning, I won't be there at the end.

A day like any other

The day started like the ones before. I got up and made some coffee. I showered, got ready, and then strolled the 50 feet from hooch to office. I walked out to the front and started talking with Big Lou and Billy. We were discussing what we would do with our 43 people that day. We had lots of work, no material, few tools, and big heap of can do spirit. While we were talking one of the ops folks came out to tell me that the head shed in Baghdad was on the horn and that they needed to talk to me.

I went in and picked up the land line handset. The XO in Baghdad was on the line. He was a no nonsense ring knocker from West Point who also had a MBA from the Wharton School of Business. What he told me chilled my blood. "MiG, you have three shot up convoys heading your way. We have been taking fire all over the country on the MSRs since the early hours of the morning. We don't know how many casualties there are or the condition of the rolling stock. Find these men and give them shelter. We have put out a call for Safe Harbor all over the country. Send an immediate SitRep for each convoy through our COSCOM LNO in Balad. Git r Dun." Holy shit, this is a real war. I took a few deep breaths and went out to find my rocks. Where the fuck was Big Lou? What about Bob? Fritz? Billy?

Finding the first convoy was easy enough. They contacted us. They were on the runway at the CSC and were an Army/Civilian mixed unit if HETs (Heavy Equipment Transports). Bob and I drove over and got the head count. Good, all present and accounted for. They were angry and surly and wanted to take it all out on me but I stood my ground. I told them that not only was there a stop move order but that safe harbor means full battle rattle for everyone. They were not wearing their vests or helmets. While I stood there arguing with them 6 mortar rounds walked right across the runway about 200 yards from us. We could clearly see the impact and debris cloud from each round. These rounds were tightly grouped and the blast pattern was round, not concentric. This meant they were impacting almost straight down and were being fired from nearby. The Cav did not have all their aviation assets in yet so we did not have the 24 hour per day Kiowa CAP we had later. Once the last round impacted I turned to the guys who had been arguing with me and I said,"Any more questions Gentlemen?" They all just trudged off and put on their gear. Grumbling was heard but I didn't pay attention to it. Bob and I laughed about this as we drove off but it was that macho fake laughter. The mortar rounds scared us too.

Now to find the others. the second convoy was easy too. They came barrelling in and came straight to our man camp. I had them laager their vehicles in the future CHU locations and come inside our fence. Finding the third convoy was a bitch. Try as we could they just were not to be found on the 27 square miles of real estate at Taji. We kept getting calls that they were on post but we could not find them. We searched frantically. Some how this convoy had been split in two and the head count was messed up. Full accountability of personnel is crucial in times like this. We knew we had dead and missing personnel but we just did not know who yet. We kept being told that there was a missing guy named Joe Markup (name changed). They said his truck was found burned up with a body in it and that they think he is dead. They also told us that Al Jazeera was spreading his name out as the had found some of his effects.

Right about this time we started getting some of the news feeds and I was called to the DISCOM HQ for a briefing. When I got there they told us the plain facts. It was absolute fucking chaos out on the roads. The Shiites who had been very quiet so far had risen up to have a "Tet Offensive" aimed at inflicting enough casualties that they would force us out. Little did they know that this was not the same Army that was in Tet. We were told that we may get no convoys for days so we needed to plan the LSIP.

I went back and sat with my staff. We had to know how long we could hold out with water, food, and other consumables. We figured that we had FFV (Fresh Fruits and Vegetables) for 5 days and enough frozen stuff for two weeks. We also had enough MREs to last us a month. We were good. the ROWPUs were not up yet and we still relied on an NG unit to make all the water. We had warehouse full of bottled water and enough fuel for weeks too. We were GTG.

I reported this back. Most other camps were not so fortunate as us but I still did not have any lumber, wiring, nails, etc even though it had been on order for months. Purchasing was killing us by starving us of supplies. Anytime construction supplies showed (What was not looted in Baghdad by our own people) was sucked up in priority 1 projects. Usually something important like a stadium seating arrangement for the aviation unit or a stage for a USO show that never showed up.

Anyways it was madness, sheer madness. Everyone who acted like they knew what to do was winging it. There was no class at the War College that teaches this. There is no class at business school to tell you what to do with 25% manpower, no supplies, and an angry mob who just want to kill bad guys who, by the way, have all the Goddamn momentum and intel right now. Lot's of fun this. I winged it as well as anyone else I guess.

We found clothes for thew guys, made space for them to sleep, found an old Bedouin tent and had a tent raising party to boot. I turned a blind eye to any booze or other recreation. I was not about to tell these men that some namby pamby back in Washington said they can't have a drink after nearly being killed in one of the biggest Intel fuck ups since WMDs.

We took these guys and put them to work. The mayor called me and told me that the New Iraqi Army wanted their side of the base back and that a 2 story building on the East side of the flight line was to be vacated within 72 hours. His men would leave within 24 but the NIA did not get it for 72. I gathered up the troops and told them what was up. I shut down just about everything except fuel and DFACs and had a group meeting.

"Men, we have nothing and get more of it every day. We have an opportunity to gather up a big batch of material and equipment that may last us a while until we get something. The beauty of this op is that we are going to take back what we never intended to give to the Iraqis. Gentlemen, we have a license to steal and 48 hours to do it in."

These road warriors were hungering for an opportunity to sock an Iraqi in the mouth and this would do for now. It didn't matter that these were our "Allies". They were bigger thieves than the Leesville Mafia in Baghdad. We waited until nightfall and launched "Operation Locust".

They were locusts. They took the ceiling fans, generators, light fixtures, conduit, wiring, light switches, toilets, sinks, faucets, furniture, panelling, and carpets. The only thing they did not take was the paint on the walls. I was so proud. So was Lou and the Mayor. In fact when the Iraqis came bitching and told him how thorough we were he was just tickled shit less. he hated them almost as much as the Mahdi Militia because they were so demanding and did nothing outside the wire. They were nothing but parade ground soldiers and not even good ones at that.

We had forgotten about our missing man and one day we were walking to the DFAC and saw what appeared to be convoy drivers. We hailed them and low and behold, here was our missing group. Not only that but dead man Joe Markup was among them. He did not know he was dead. I hustled him back to the offices and had him call his wife while I called Baghdad ops. This was the best thing that had come out of this mess.

The drivers pitched in elsewhere too. They picked up trash bags, folded clothes at the laundry, made chow mermite runs, worked MWR, they just did anything we asked but they were all itching to get back out there. The call finally came when they were told "go".

Bob and I went to the convoy brief and BUB. The escorts were commanded by a nervous Captain but it was really run by a slow talking Southerner who drawled his way through it. After the captain spoke the E7 said,"Men it's hot out there. The rules are changed. If you see anyone with a long rifle they are a shooter and you drop them without warning shots. If you see anyone with a handgun, or anything that resembles an handgun or a long rifle they are to be considered a shooter and you drop them. If they are within 50 feet of a shooter and appear to be friendly to the shooter then they are an assistant shooter and you drop them too. Any questions?" This was peppered by two of the escorts ending the brief by saying, "Let's go hunting" and giving each other knuckles. I knew they would be OK. This was a different Army than it was three days earlier. this time they would be aggressive and not take any chances. Fuck their hearts and minds. Kill'em all.

The convoy made it safe and the convoy commander called to tell us so. I felt relief. I also knew I would miss those guys. Joe Markups wife made him promise to come home immediately. I promised him that if he hung out 30 days I would rehire him and that he would never have to go outside the wire again. He did and I did. I am gone but Joe is still there. He is an S-3 now and I am damn proud of how he got his start. Those days were bad, bad, bad. I didn't go over the dead. I didn't write about the scared folks and the ones who quit. I don't want to anymore. I want to think about the good ones and the good things that came out of that.

Here is what I learned.

1. You can't look at anyone and tell if they are tough inside.

2. Soldiers are people first and killers second.

3. No matter what is going on people still eat and shit.

4. The best asset in a fight is a strong person on your 6 (Big Lou)

5. Keep them busy and they don't think about the crap going on.

6. You can laugh in the darkest hours.

7. Never cry in front of your men.

8. Lead by example, deeds not words.

9. Nothing feels better than pulling the tail of a 155mm outgoing round.

10. I am a leader.

Waking Up in a Hurry

In 2004 I ordered some brand new CHUs (Containerized Housing Units) for Camp Taji. I had been told that the Division HQ was going to move from Camp Liberty to Taji and to get ready for VIP housing. We spared no expense and dolled up some hard structure 2 story buildings for the Generals and ordered one man, wet CHUs (wet means it has its own toilet and shower) for the other VIPs. Keep in mind that most personnel on post lived 2 -4 to a room. These were full 12x40 trailer houses that would have made Brittany Spears homesick for rural Louisiana.

Well........the Division never moved. They stayed in Baghdad. Their loss, our gain. I moved my staff into the 1 man wets. I had my own living room, bedroom, shower, toilet, and TV. I was in hog heaven after living in GP Medium tents, the Hotel California, and sleeping in an Excursion. This was heaven and I wound up living in that CHU for a year and a half.

My first night in I tucked myself into that brand new full sized bed and went off to sandman land. You know how it is the first night anywhere. You don't really get a good sleep because it is a strange place. You don't know where anything is and just don't feel fully comfortable. I finally dozed off and went nappy.

WHOOM! I was tossed out of bed amidst a crash of thunder. I knew that we were taking incoming and I jumped up out of my destroyed bed to run to the bunker. Keep in mind. I'm in a new place. I did not run to the door. I ran into the door. I hit it so hard I knocked myself backwards and into the destroyed bed again. I then just went to the floor and waited for the next round. I knew that if one had hit this close it was most likely that the next one would land farther away. I waited. I waited some more. I then started to get puzzled.

There was no second round. There was no alarm. I got up and made a crab walk to the door and opened it. Nothing stirred, all was well. I stood up and found the light switch and flipped it up. The room instantly was ablazon with light and I noticed that the bed was all askew but everything else was fine except my nose which felt like it was broken.

I lifted the covers and pulled up the mattress and found out what happened. My big ass moved around during the night and caused the slats to shift which dumped the box springs, mattress and me into the floor. That was the crash and bang I heard. Not incoming, just me and the bed hitting the floor. I drug the mattress into the corner and made a pallet on it. Needless to say I did not sleep well the rest of the night.

Big Lou and Bob thought it was pretty damn funny too. I took a a lot of heat for that until Big Lou had the same thing happen to him. Funny how he reacted to that and got the carpenters to make new slats post haste.

My Saudi Arabian Adventure Blog

OK, I started two new blogs. One is called 'The Magic Kingdom' and it is all about my time in Saudi Arabia. You can find it at:

http://themagickingdomflythemig29.blogspot.com/

The other one is called simply "42", I will use this one for personal ramblings and observations plus my past travels like my 2001 trip to Russia. It is located at:

http://wtf42.blogspot.com/

Happy reading! I just hope I can write enough to keep it all interesting.

Winning the fight, one doll at a time

Here is another Good News Story just completely ignored by the MSM. This is how we win. We show compassion, honesty and our human side to the children. The adults may revile us but the kids won't, especially these kids. For the story go to

http://www.greenbaypressgazette.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080317/GPG0101/803170556/1207/GPGnews

I seen that train a rollin.....

I got an email this morning stating that Camp Taji had a train come in. This is the first train to come in the gates since 2003. I remember the last one. It was a Turkish built model and they were going to use it to haul a flatbed car with a couple of T-55s for war trophies for some National Guard units. The locomotive went south to Baghdad for something and the bad guys promptly blew up the tracks. We never saw the locomotive again.

Well, I saw it this morning. It appears to be the very same locomotive that was there in 2003.

This is another sign that things are getting better but did you hear about this in the MSM? Of course not. No one died, no political candidate could use this as fodder for the gristmill. It is non news except to those of us who have been there. This is the kind of news I like hearing.

For a link to the website with photos try: http://mksviews.wordpress.com/2008/03/15/the-thunder-rolls/

WebCamming

Before I left I bought those fancy, shmansy laptops at CompUSA. The Mrs. and I finally figured out how to link up via Skype and we have been happily webcamming away at night. T-Man thinks it is way cool and he and I conduct our Jedi Light Saber combat via the WWW. he and I back up a few feet and twirl around making "whoosh" sounds while we swing our "Air Sabers". The dogs hear me talking and head for the door thinking that I am at the door to take them for a walk.

I always wanted to do that in Iraq but the insidious firewall there prevented me from being able to do so. I still can't do it from work but since I have Saudi Internet in my room it has none of that protection and I can stream video away. Of course my Norton has stopped two Trojan Horse viruses also that the insidious firewall in Iraq would have blocked. I guess you have to understand security to understand why they do it that way. To have real security you give up some liberties and freedoms. I can deal with that on a temporary basis but not permanently.

I'm at a point right now where I already have to make some decisions. Since this gig is TDY I have to decide what my future course of employment will be. I have several offers on the table. I do NOT want to go back to Iraq and will use that as a last resort unless they pay me scads of money. I do not want to be in any dry country unless it is a set up like here where I can get a beer at least once a week. I'm also really sick and tired of being in hot places all the time. I really desire some seasonal changes other than "Summer" and "Hell". Of course there are working hours too. I don't want anymore 7 days a week, 12 hours a day gigs.

I guess what I really need is for a short war to break out in Poland or Norway. It will then be a Peacekeeping mission with a NATO base so we can have open canteens like Sarajevo had. That or would some one please look for oil in the Bahamas or New Zealand?

I'm here, where's the beer?

OK. It's kind of weird now. No base. No uniforms. No weapons everywhere. No convoys. No PX. No DFACs. No women. Lots of sand and dirt. I knew it would be different but in a weird way I miss the action zone already.

It's OK though. I actually got a day off the day after I arrived. Seems the Saudis have an inviolable law which states that no one works on Friday. This means that the country basically shuts down on Friday. A bunch of the other guys took off for Bahrain for libations but I stayed and slept.

Anyway, I live on a compound that reminds me of a dingy Motel 6 but it's groovy to me. My own room, my own shower, a fridge and TV. Sort of cool but no AFN, just Saudi satellite TV. The Internet in the compound is controlled by them also. I couldn't even get onto Fox Sports because they list it is "Pornography". Seems they take offense to the fact that there are pictures of cheerleaders. I guess that means we won't get any USO shows from the Redskins cheerleaders either.

Oh well, more to come.

Wireless Blogging

I am sitting in the Admiral's Club in Austin, Texas writing this. My flight is delayed so I sit here, linked up and with a cold Shiner Bock beer at my side. I won't get much beer for the next 90 days and maybe none so I am taking advantage of it.

I remember a couple of years ago sitting in the British Airways club in Dubai with Dave from daves-not-here. He pulled out a monster laptop, went online and started a blog feed. I told him that he was such a geek that I needed to go sit somewhere else. Well here I am 2 years later being a geek. I do also remember that Dave moaned about his monster laptop as it was so big to haul around. That does not really bother me as I need all the help I can get reading. Besides, i bought this one more for entertainment than anything else so i don't mind....yet.

My wife, son, and father in law took me to the airport. This trip is a little weird. I am going to a place I have not been to for over 20 years, to an unknown situation, to work with people I don't know. I also found out late that there are very few Americans involved in this operation and that I will be one of a fistfull of Yanks in British controlled operation. I'll be OK. I actually like English Football so I can talk sports with them.

Chat later when I get where I am going.

Bad for CompUSA, Good for me

I was driving down highway 183 in North Austin on Wednesday on my way to the deli and saw a signboard dude with a sign stating that Comp USA was going out of business and had everything 50% off. I went in and they had everything 50% off except laptops and CPUs which were at varying percentages off.

I have been wanting a new laptop to take with me to Saudi Arabia as the company firewall does not allow streaming video so no webcam action will work. I had been hesitating because I am kind of tight with my money right now but I found an HP Pavilion dv9620 for $739.00 This was marked down from $1200.00. I bought it, a wireless router ( Since it is a wireless laptop that makes sense, right?) and a docking station. I came home fearful that Mrs. MiG was going to be all twisted up. Nope, she wanted one too. Since the store was being mobbed by techies from the Central Texas area I hustled in and found one more identical model new in the box. I bought it too. Now we are both armed with wireless, webcam, 17 inch screen laptops with a remote control for the DVD player.

My sister came over and we showed them to her. Her boyfriend is still in Iraq but he calls her every night. She told him what I had bought and he wanted one too. I warned my sister not to be disappointed as stock was running low but we went and were there Saturday morning at 10:00 when the doors opened. Seems they had a little surprise for everyone. They had brought in laptops from all the other stores that closed and they were 50% off. She wound up buying two of the same computers I had bought for her boyfriend. He will leave one in Iraq and one here in Texas and just carry a hard drive with him. This means that we bought 4 of these identical laptops for our family. I didn't seem weird though as I saw one guy who had 6 laptops he was buying for family.

I found two of those big planter speakers for outdoor use sitting in an aisle. They are the type that have a big speaker in the bottom and you actually place a plant in it. Two of these would be perfect for the deck we are going to build. They were marked $379.00 each and I got them for 80% off.

All in all I bought 2 computers, 2 speakers, two logitech wireless keyboard mouse systems, two laptop stands, two laptop coolers, a photo printer, a business card reader, power supply, surge protector, two cases, docking station, 3 digital picture frames, 4 video cameras, wireless router, two PC wireless PCI adapters, a wireless adapter for our printer, and several different software packages plus three video games. All in all I spent about 40% of retail for all of this. I am a happy camper.

My credit card has not seen this much action in a long time so it means that tomorrows flight to Saudi Arabia now has a bigger purpose. I gotta pay for all of this!

I listen

OK,

Heard you all loud and clear and family was verbal about it. Change the title, keep blogging, stay away from politics, talk about re-adjusting to being a regular guy again and definitely write about Saudi Arabia once I get there.

I need a catch all title like Dave has so once I get over the hangover I have I will try and think one up.

One of our best friends came into town for the weekend as he is taking his annual Real Estate CEU class. We have know Todd since my sister and I were starving students at Southwest Texas State University (Now Texas State) in the early and mid 80s. Todd is one of life's challenges and we have stuck by him all these years. It was great to see him as I had not seen him since he came to my house in California about 6 years ago.

The bad part is that the Estancia wine flowed, the Sherry Cask CC flowed, the last of my Cuban cigar stash was smoked and we ate a light dinner. My wife passed out, Todd passed out, T-Man (A non drinker BTW, he's only 6!) passed out and the dogs passed out. My sister and I sat outside in the beautiful evening and just talked until almost midnight which is also when the whisky ran dry.

Thank God that we live in the same subdivision so I didn't get a DUI. There is a benefit to being 4 blocks from my sister! Now I have a headache and have to go outside and play on the new trampoline with T-Man.

What to do?

I had the pleasure of entertaining Dave from daves-not-here at my home last week. He was in town with his galpal and they called me out of the blue. We had them over for dinner and had a great time. I had never met her but had a drunken cell phone converstaion with her once when Dave and I were in Dubai for R&R.

One of the topics of discussion is just what do he and I do now since we are out of the war zone? We both started blogging as a way to share our experiences with everyone about what it is like to live, work, and survive in a modern danger zone. We both have left and hopefully neither of us will have to go back to that God-Awful place.

I am going to Saudi Arabia but that is not a red zone at this time. I want no more of Iraq. I was there for 4 long years and have to wonder if I did not push my luck on that. Those rockets that blasted BIAP last week hit a compound I lived in last year.

Dave and I both agree that we need to change the titles, change the content, or just close these blogs and start new ones. What do you think?

Bar Stool Economics

This is the best explanation I have ever read regards our tax system. I am one of the top 10% even though I am far from wealthy and if I did not spend so much time overseas to get my tax breaks I would be destitue!

Suppose that every day, ten men go out for beer and the bill for all ten comes to $100. If they paid their bill the way we pay our taxes, it would go something like this:

The first four men (the poorest) would pay nothing. The fifth would pay $1.The sixth would pay $3.The seventh would pay $7. The eighth would pay $12.The ninth would pay $18.The tenth man (the richest) would pay $59.

So, that's what they decided to do.

The ten men drank in the bar every day and seemed quite happy with the arrangement, until one day, the owner threw them a curve. "Since you are all such good customers," he said, "I'm going to reduce the cost of your daily beer by $20. Drinks for the ten now cost just $80. The group still wanted to pay their bill the way we pay our taxes so the first four men were unaffected.

They would still drink for free. But what about the other six men, the paying customers?

How could they divide the $20 windfall so that everyone would get his 'fair share?' They realized that $20 divided by six is $3.33. But if they subtracted that from everybody's share, then the fifth man and the sixth man would each end up being paid to drink his beer. So, the bar owner suggested that it would be fair to reduce each man's bill by roughly the same amount, and he proceeded to work out the amounts each should pay.

And so: The fifth man, like the first four, now paid nothing (100% savings).The sixth now paid $2 instead of $3 (33% savings).The seventh now pay $5 instead of $7 (28% savings).

The eighth now paid $9 instead of $12 (25% savings).The ninth now paid $14 instead of $18 (22% savings). The tenth now paid $49 instead of $59 (16% savings).

Each of the six was better off than before. And the first four continued to drink for free. But once outside the restaurant, the men began to compare their savings. I only got a dollar out of the $20, "declared the sixth man. He pointed to the tenth man," but he got $10!" "Yeah, that's right," exclaimed the fifth man. "I only saved a dollar, too. It's unfair that he got ten times more than I!" "That's true!!" shouted the seventh man. "Why should he get $10 back when I got only two? The wealthy get all the breaks!" "Wait a minute," yelled the first four men in unison. "We didn't get anything at all. The system exploits the poor!"

The nine men surrounded the tenth and beat him up. The next night the tenth man didn't show up for drinks, so the nine sat down and had beers without him. But when it came time to pay the bill, they discovered something important. They didn't have enough money between all of them for even half of the bill! And that, ladies and gentlemen, journalists and college professors, is how our tax system works. The people who pay the highest taxes get the most benefit from a tax reduction. Tax them too much, attack them for being wealthy, and they just may not show up anymore. In fact, they might start drinking overseas where the atmosphere is somewhat friendlier.

David R. Kamerschen, Ph.D.

Professor of Economics

University of Georgia

For those who understand, no explanation is needed. & For those who do not understand, no explanation is possible.

I wish these were true

I'm sure these are fantasy especially since the French (See: Cheese eating surrender monkeys) are involved but they are too good to not pass along.

When in England at a large conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an example of empire building' by George Bush. He answered by saying, "Over the years, the United States has sent many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders. The only amount of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those that did not return." It became very quiet in the room.

Then there was a conference in France where a number of international engineers were taking part, including French and American. During a break one of the French engineers came back into the room saying "Have you heard the latest dumb stunt Bush has done? He has sent an aircraft carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What does he intended to do, bomb them?" A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly: "Our carriers have three hospitals on board that can treat several hundred people; they are nuclear powered and can supply emergency electrical power to shore facilities; they have three cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000 people three meals a day each, they can produce several thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each day, and they carry a dozen helicopters for use in transporting victims and injured to and from their flight deck. We have eleven such ships; how many does France have?" Once again, dead silence.

A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference that included Admirals from the U.S., England, Canadian, Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception, he found himself standing with a large group of Officers that included personnel from most of those countries. Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped their drinks but a French admiral suddenly complained that, 'whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn only English.' He then asked, 'Why is it that we always have to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking French?' Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied 'Maybe it's because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies, and Americans arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German.' You could have heard a pin drop!

The Super Bowl was actually...Super

Wow. The first SB I have seen in over 5 years that I didn't get up in the middle of the night to watch. No 03:00 alarm clock. No gallons of coffee. Plenty of beer, food, and family to watch the game with.

I have installed a 42" Panasonic flat screen plasma HD TV. The T-Man calls it a "Flatsma". I installed a Samsung surround sound system and hid all the wiring by going wireless to the back channels and then using raceway to hide the rest of the wiring. It's a lot easier than going through your attic to drop wiring and then fish through the wall for it.

Needless to say we had awesome seats and I revisited one of our old California customs by cooking fajitas to serve at halftime. Of course we had too much food and too much beer but hell, it's the Super Bowl which is really the last bit of the holiday season and the last big winter party.

Lot's of other folks have commented on the "Catch", Manning, 18-1 and so on so I won't pontificate except to say that every person in our house jumped up with joy and high fived when the Giants scored that last TD.

You have to pick a reason to root for or against a team one way or another. When the Rams played the Titans I was really torn. As a kid and young adult I was a die hard Oilers fan and then as an adult I became a Rams fan. Both those teams fled their long suffering and loyal fans for money, money, money and then built up great teams. I wanted them both to lose. I searched and searched for a reason to like or dislike one more than the other. I then looked at the rosters and found that the Titans had 6 players from USC and the their coach, Jeff Fisher, was a former USC defensive back. Done. I rooted for the Titans even though they lost.

For this game it was easier. I'm not a Patriots hater like some others are. I actually like the Giants even though they are not my first choice team. I have seen them play in LA against the Rams and Raiders and once in 1993 I saw them in a playoff game at the Meadowlands. Really, I did!

They were a wild card against the Vikings and I was living in Philadelphia. My roommate and I took a chance and drove up the 90 miles to try and score a ticket. It was about 15 degrees and blowing like mad. We agreed we would spend up to $200.00 each for any kind of ticket just to say we went.

We found a miserably cold guy who had two tickets and was willing to give them to us for face value. We could not believe our luck. We had planned to tail gate whether we got in or not as our fallback plan was to find a Giants friendly sports bar to watch the game. No problem finding one in New Jersey for sure.

We parked next to a family of Ginats fans who are season ticket holders. Grandpa, dad, and son, along with a cousin. We hung out with them and shared our food and beer as did they. They were great folks and true blue Giants fans. Grandpa had season tickets as far back as the polo ground days. They informed us that Giants fans and Jets fans are from entirely different worlds just like the Rams and Raiders had such different fan bases.

When they looked at out tickets they were surprised we got them so cheap and said that while they looked real they did not recognize the seat locatijon. That caused us some trepidation as we now wondered if we had not been hornswoggled.

Game time came and we went to the turnstiles. Yep, the tickets were real and now we just had to find our seats. The usher looked at out tickets and took us to an elevator. We went up and were let out on the club level. Hey! Not so bad! Club level, seat beverage service, covered and no wind. We then found another usher who looked at our tickets, whistled and said ,"Follow me." He led us to the holy land of Gianst Stadium. Yep, we had scored tickets to a luxury box.

We went in and milled around for a few minutes and it was not long before a guy came up and asked us who we were. We were so out of place. We were bundled up for the Iditarod dog races and these folks all had on businesss suits and the girls were dressed to the 9s. We explained how we got the tickets and one of the guys was incensed. He wanted to know the name of who sold then to us. I told him we did not know but that we bought them fair and square and that it entitled us to a seat. He wanted us to leave and we stood our ground and said we just wanted a seat. We did not mean to crash their party but we need a place to watch from. He went to get an usher. While this guy was gone we chatted with some of the other folks who were really friendly. They apologized for the rude guy but said it was his suite and they were some kind of brokers or traders or something. They told us that wew were welcome as it was apparent that we were not the average type fan who buys scalped tickets.

In came a guy in a suit who worked for the Giants. He was super aplogetic to us and showed lots of deference to the suite holders as it was apparent that this suite was ultra expensive. He asked us to wait a minute and we just hung out in the corner while the national anthem was being played. He showed up a few minutes later with two new tickets and siad these were VIP tickets that were not picked up at Will Call. He asked if we would take these instead.

They were 5 rows from the field on the 45 yard line. Oh yeah! We took them. He also escorted us down there, grabbed the usher for that aisle and told him to have some one check on us every quarter to see if we needed anything. Also the suite owner realized that we were just a couple of lucky stiffs who scored tickets and not party crashers so they loaded up our back packs (pre 9-11 days) with beer and sandwiches in wrappers before we left.

Needless to say. Great game, the Giants won. We partied in the parking lot afterward and then drove back to Philly. No one beliveved us when we told them what happened but Mark and I know it really did. I still have the ticket stubs for both seats.

That was my reason for rooting for the Giants on Sunday. The team I wanted to win did. I was surrounded by family. I had legal beer and watched at home on my dream entertainment system. It was all great except for one thing. In the back of my mind during the entire game I thought about my friends in Iraq. I knew they were all bleary eyed, tired and hoarse from yelling at TVs on the other side of the world. I had a beer and when I was outside at the BBQ working the fajitas I had one silent tear come down my cheek. It was easy to hide it as it was smoky and that gave me a plausable excuse for having a weak moment.

Here is to you my brothers and sisters. May you come home soon and have a Super Sunday like I did.

Saudi Arabia

Lots of folks have commented that they think I am bored or just can't stand not being part of the big grind and that this is why I am going to Saudi Arabia. Not true. I am thoroughly enjoying being off for the first time in years and really have no desire to go anywhere right now.

If I go for 60-90 days I can make enough money to put a really bitchin deck in the back yard with a built in kitchen and teak cover over it. I was also told that I will be helping out two other guys who have not been able to get their R&Rs because the rotation schedules have not been kind.

I don't know what I will do afterward. The siren song of Iraq keeps calling me but I have cotton stuffed in my ears instead of being lashed to the mast like Ulysses.

Final 4

So we are down to this. McCain vs Romney and Hillary vs Obama for the right to pummel all of us about the whole enchilada. This really reminds me of 1996 when it was Clinton-Dole. I'm just not excited about any of these candidates. None of them really represent me or get me excited about any issues. They are not even covering real issues, they are sniping at each other and that is too divisive for me.

I sideline root for Huckabee simply because he is the one who signed my Arkansas Traveler certificate which was awarded to me by the 39th Brigade Combat Team, Arkansas NG. He is really a bit too religious for my tastes.

Hillary is a proven liar but at least we know that going in instead of being body slammed by it as we discovered with W. Obama is way too liberal for me and he will get the entire minority vote simply because of skin tone and the Kennedy connection.

McCain seems to be nasty and spiteful and I think he is a closet Democrat. Romney is a Mormon. That alone disqualifies him for me. I worked for a Mormon owned company and listened to their prostelytizing. It is a kooky religion and I'm sorry but I just can't follow a leader who really thinks that Jesus Christ cames to the Indians of upper state NY after he was crucified in Roman Palestine. Oh yeah, there is that whole golden tablet thing which is a big pill to swallow also.

OK. We have to choose. Most of us will simply follow party lines and either vote Republican or Democrat as always. I don't. Even though I am a foreign policy and fiscal policy conservative I am moderate when it comes to individual rights and law. I am liberal when it comes to women's rights and freedom of the press. At the same time I am fierce about my rights to own a weapon even though I have no problems with registration. How weird is all that?

Can't I just vote all four of them in on a power sharing ballot like they do in the UK?

The Worst Nightmare Ever

The Worst Nightmare Ever

In the nightmare I found myself nude in bed, and I was looking at a mirror on the ceiling, and I discovered that I am a Negro,and I'm circumcised! Quickly I sat up, found my pants and looked in the pockets to find my driver's license photo and it was that same color. Black.

I felt myself being very depressed, downcast, sitting in a chair. But it's a wheelchair!! That means, of course, besides being black and Jewish, I'm also disabled!!! I said to myself, aloud 'This is impossible. It's impossible that I should be black and Jewish and disabled.

''It's the pure and holy truth', whispers someone from behind me. I turn around, and it's my boyfriend. Just what I needed!!! I am a homosexual, and on top of that with a Mexican boyfriend. Oh, my God.....black, Jewish, disabled, gay, with a Mexican boyfriend, drug addict, and HIV-positive!!!

Desperate, I begin to shout, cry, pull my hair, and Oh, noooooo...I'm bald!!! The telephone rings. It's my brother. He is saying, 'Since mom and dad died the only thing you do is hang out, take drugs, and laze around all day doing nothing. Get a job you worthless piece of crap... Any job.

Mom?... Dad?... Nooooooooo... Now I'm also an unemployed orphan! I try to explain to my brother how hard it is to find a job when you are black, Jewish, disabled, gay, with a Mexican boyfriend, are a drug addict, HIV positive, bald, and an orphan. But he doesn't get it.

Frustrated, I hang up. It's then I realize I only have one hand!!! With tears in my eyes I go to the window to look out. I see I live in a shanty-town full of cardboard and tin houses! There is trash everywhere.

Suddenly I feel a sharp pain near my pacemaker.... Pacemaker? Besides being black, Jewish, disabled, a fairy with a Mexican boyfriend, a drug addict, HIV positive, bald, orphaned, unemployed, an invalid with one hand, and having a bad heart, I live in a crappy neighborhood.

At that very moment my boyfriend approaches and says to me, 'Sweetie pie, my love, my little black heart throb, have you decided who are you going to vote for in the Primary? Hillary or Obama??? Say it isn't so!!! I can handle being a black, disabled, one armed, drug addicted, Jewish queer on a pacemaker who is HIV positive, bald, orphaned, unemployed, lives in a slum, and has a Mexican boyfriend, but please, oh dear God, please don't tell me I'm a Democrat too....

Thanks to Mighty Fine Dodge for this heartwarming reminder of how good we all really have it. Other than the circumcised part I am none of the above. If this offends anyone I'm sorry. It is just a funny story and we all have to get over being too PC.

Just two weeks ago my sister took me to see the stage production of Tuna Christmas. This is a series of stage plays about a fictitious town in Texas named Tuna and they hold nothing back. Why this time they even made fun of Methodists! That I am!

Back to the Middle East

I just accepted an offer to go TDY to Saudi Arabia for 60-90 days. I will leave in two weeks or so. Crap, just when I was getting the hang of being a regular Joe again. Oh well, I have to make a living. Our income stream fell to zero but our burn rate was still high. New car, new house, new furniture, lots of new projects. It eats at you fast. Gotta recoup the ducats!

Coincidence?

Subject: Roswell New Mexico

July 8, 1947

Many of you will recall that on July 8, 1947, almost 61 Years ago, witnesses claim that an unidentified flying object (UFO) with five aliens aboard crashed onto a sheep and cattle ranch just outside Roswell, New Mexico. This is a well-known incident that many say has long been covered up by the U.S. Air Force and other federal Agencies and organizations. However, what you may NOT know is that in the month of March 1948, nine months after that historic day, the following people were born:

Albert A. Gore, Jr.
Hillary Rodham
John F. Kerry
William J. Clinton
Howard Dean
Nancy Pelosi
Dianne Feinstein
Charles E. Schumer
Barbara Boxer

Shit happens when aliens breed with sheep....

An Army Wedding

We have been invited to a wedding between two officers I know from Iraq. Hell, I didn't even know they were friendly let alone bumping uglies together! The wedding will be in San Antonio and this will be the first time my wife has met many of these folks. She loved the invitation too. It was a Scrabble box with the invitation spelled out with Scrabble pieces. The paper invitation says"Mess Dress with Stetsons and spurs". You gotta love the Cav. They run that western heritage to the hilt and since they are based at Ft. Hood it is almost like they are the Texas Army.

I'm excited. I have not seen a lot of these folks for about two years so I am anxious to finally have a drink with them and celebrate something positive in their lives.

Georgia Frontiere is Dead

I'm not sad about this. I'm not happy either as I am sure that there are many people who are grieving today and her having died of breast cancer makes it even more tragic for them. I though am part of that minority of people who absolutely reviled her. See, I am or was, a Rams fan. Not the St. Louis Rams. The Los Angeles Rams.

I had season tickets, I was an officer of the booster club, I worked charity events, I traveled to away games. I was about as passionate a fan as I could be but when they up and fled SoCal for St. Louis I was just crushed. I was so hurt by this that I have had a love/hate relationship with the NFL ever since. I now watch with interest but very dispassionately.

You may sit back and think that the fans had it coming for not going to games but you have to understand that L.A. was a Rams town until two things happened. Carrol Rosenbloom died and left the team to Georgia and Al Davis brought the Raiders to town. Georgia moved the team to Anaheim and abandoned the core base of fans who were from the San Fernando Valley and West L.A. Anaheim never really owned the Rams, they were just caretakers. Al and the Raiders went after a different fan base altogether, Ghetto love and bangers. Not a nice crowd to be in. I attended a few Raider games and it was downright scary sometimes. They also screwed up beer sales for Trojan fans. Trojan fans (Of which I am one!) could purchase beer for the entire game but Raider fans caused so much havoc in the stadium that they changed policy and quit selling it BEFORE half time. The Rams quickly followed suit and it sure was a different atmosphere.

The Rams were in L.A. for over 50 years. You think losing your team can't happen to your NY Jets, SF 49ers, Chicago Bears, etc? Think again. It happened to the Baltimore Colts (Indianapolis), Houston Oilers (Tennessee Titans), Cleveland Browns (Baltimore Ravens), Dallas Texans (K.C. Chiefs), Cleveland Rams (Yep, they started there first!), Portland Lions (Detroit), L.A. Chargers (San Diego), and Decatur Staleys (Chicago Bears).

Pro football is all about one thing. It is about money. Your money and taxpayer money. I will never vote for a bond election where my tax money is being used to pay for a stadium used 10 times a year for a multi millionaire owner of a team of multi millionaire football players. Sorry Charlie. That is what Georgia wanted from SoCal and they told her to pound sand. They told Al Davis the same thing. Georgia went to St. Louis and took the team she had worn down to a nub and then spent money and drafted players wisely. They won the Super Bowl in 1999 that should have belonged to L.A. Carrol Rosenbloom must have rolled over in his grave that day. Al Davis went to Oakland and not only scalped the fans and taxpayers there, he had them ruin the A's baseball stadium for the sake of 10 games a year. Keep in mind the A's play 82 games a year in that same stadium and you see how out of whack that is. Georgia did the same thing to Anaheim Stadium. After the Rams left the City of Anaheim and Disney spent over 130 million just to fix it for baseball again.

Georgia is dead. I am sad for her family but inside I am gleeful. I know it is wrong and petty to be that way but it seems like a little payback for the pain she put true Rams fans through. Carrol Rosenbloom can roll back over in his grave now.