1 Which makes me think they have suicide vests in abundance. Willing volunteers seem to be lacking. Mullahs need to ramp up their poisonspeak.

2 I have a 21 year old nephew Marine in Anbar Province in Ramadi. We, of course, have to read everything regarding Ramadi. His poor mother and family are on pins and needles.
 
My nephew as already lost some friends and one night he was talking on a satellite phone with his mom and suddenly he dropped the phone and hit the ground with the sound of an explosion heard on the other end of the phone line. Moments later he picks up the phone and tells his mom that the mortar barely went over his head and exploded a short distance away.
 
Pretty rough in Ramadi and I wish we would stop fighting this war like Vietnam and use OVERWHELMING FORCE.
 
Therefore, I have mixed emotions on Rumsfield resignation. I don't know if he is the problem or our military generals are the incompetent ones for failure to ask for greater troop strength from day one.
 
Some of the retired military high up military echelon that I have seen on TV don't impress me much. It seems that many are just like their civil counterparts in government, i.e. a typical bureaucrat, who perhaps Kerry should have directed his stupid "joke" too.
 
Very few of our Generals and Admirals, if any, are like the Pattons and MacArthurs of the past. Such real courageous and INTELLIGENT military leaders are a rare find. Most are just bloated bureaucrats with medals for duration of service who probably don't know which end of a gun to use nor has never seen a war, but for perhaps the war of the forms.
 
General Casey in Iraq has not asked for more troops and Bush is relying on his assessment on the ground.
 
I think we need an assessment of General Casey.
 
I'm not for "cut and run" even though it would be very easy to support such Democratic faux-paus when you have a loved one in the center of the hellhole called Ramadi, particularly when the government civil and military leadership seem to lack the will to win.
 
Rather this Iraq war is like WWI. Each side in trenches with each side content to slowly kill each other off from day to day. To hell with that, the military and civillian leadership need to pull their Vietnam head out of their behinds and obliterated the enemy using all force, troop stength, and ruthlessness necessary to win.
 
Doing so without mercy. And by the way, it is an act of war for Syria and Iran to give military aid & comfort to the insurrgents for the very purpose to kill our men and women in uniform.
 
Iran and Syria need to be decimiated.
 
Happy now...got that off my chest. 

3

But...but...but, We would lose the "moral high ground"!!!/sarc off

 

4 If the 40% turnout of eligible voters is correct then I'm beginning
to feel that there is an awful lot of free loaders being protected
by our troops. Too bad we can't come up with some method of
encouragement for that other 60%. Like vote or fight.

5 Oh and don't forget about Afganistan.
 
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20061109/ap_on_re_as/afghan_violence
 
But then again, the media felt to put their standard line about More than 3,000 people have been killed, mostly militants to make sure we still think things aren't going well.

6 Nationwide voter turnout has not yet been finalized but it was exceptionally high. I am guessing closer to 60% than to 40%

7

You're absolutely right FLLaw. Overwhelming force is exactly what we need to finish this fight. But the pace and intensity of this war is dictated by the media (just ask Israel), and our military brass is much to gunshy for fear of drawing some bad press. The result is, our more-than-capable military is over there fighting with both hands tied behind their backs while not offending their tender religious sensibilities in doing so They are also tasked with trying to win hearts and minds which is a waste b/c it is in their very culture to hate us . God forbid we kill too many insurgents! Bush said at the outset of the war that we were going to come after the terrorists and the countries that harbor them. Bullshit. We are sitting stagnant in Iraq letting them come to us. We need to be rolling through these countries (Iran & Syria namely) one at a time like shit through a goose leaving nothing behind but dead terrorists and anyone else who gets in our way. And then we need to leave a note on the door on our way out saying "If we have to come back, then things will get really bad for you." The performance of our military leaders does need to be examined, and the duds thrown out on their asses. Strap on a pair of balls or write parking tickets.

8 "Coalition Forces killed four terrorists and detained"

I bet that really pisses Greg off! Hah hah hah hah ha ha ha ha

9 Dear Jack's Smirking Revenge:
 
Amen!
 
Just got terrifying news today that my newphew and his buddies nearly "got it", one at least did a 19 year old.
 
My details are sketchy for I did not talk directly to him, but got this from his mother, who told her mother (my mom too) who told me.
 
But what I was told, some Marines were ambused by a bunch of insurgents in the Ramdai area. It was instant chaos. My nephew and three of his buddies ended up on one side of the knoll which was the WRONG side of tht knoll. He said he was so close to the enemy that he could read a "name tag or label" on the shirt of that insurgent (less than 10 meters away). It took like eternity for them to get to the other side of the knoll for they were pinned down, but they did. My nephew stated that he was able to kill a sniper.
 
The only way they were able to escape from this town or part of town was to break in from house to house, using weapons to destroy the locks on the doors, hurding the residences into a room, regroup, then go to the next house down the row and do the same until they finally got to the end and out.
 
Sadly, my nephew lost one of his best buddies (one of many) when the 19 year old stepped on a EID (Explosive Improvised Device) that was remote controlled. My newphew had been in that same spot and was very nearby when the device did go off. My nephew remained uninjured.
 
My nephew's thoughts were "please save me God and put your angels around me...please save me" during this ambush for it was hell.
 
After his buddy was killed, he cried out to the Lord " oh please God take some of the angels you have around me and put them around my buddies please protect them and me".
 
I don't have any further details as to the total number lost, beyond the one 19 year old and the extent of other injuries, if any. I will be looking in the news today and tomorrow to see who this 19 year old is when the report comes out.
 
After their escape from the ambush, he finally went back to "base" which is not much of a secure base. Their base, from what I understand, is pretty much were they all gather to huddle. He was so dirty for he had not showered in 28 days and he was extemely hungry, but all he could do was remove his boots and use some wash towelettes we sent him and clean his feet from all the water he had to walk through to avoid "trench foot" type problems. Water comes from major air strikes that busted water mains in the area that have been flowing for many days as I understand it.
 
He collapsed and slept for 18 hours solid. Then was so GRATEFUL for some of the food goodies that his grandma (my mom) had sent him. You know we can't send pork for that would be "insensitive" to their culture? We are a "F...ed" up nation.
 
When he talked to his mother she knew something was wrong and finally he unloaded letting it all out for an hour and a half over the satellite phone. It also stated, "it is really hell here".
 
His four years with the Marines were almost up, before he went over there a few months ago, and they were not going to send him there with his 4 years up in February 2007. But he insisted and agreed to extend his time with the Marines a few months to March 2007 so that they would send him so he could be with his buddies and not left behind as they fought risking their lives.
 
But with seeing his buddy blown up and it being "hell there", I wonder if he regrets going? If so, he has never said and continues to fight like there is no tomorrow. I just pray for him and his buddies there are tomorrow's and many more to come. 
 
My parents and his mother are on pins and needles. My dad is a loving Christian man who loves to sing for the Lord. When I saw my mother, she was gasping like she was about to hyperventalate due to the anxiety after having just been told the story of the ambush. My dad looking upward with eyes whelling up in tears cried out  "God forgive me, but I Hate these people".
 
And I do too....Dear God please damn these people...Damn Islam...Damn them all to hell and thank God there is a hell.
 
I know that is wrong to feel that way, but I'm human and with everyone of them who is shot dead, like the sniper, I sadly get satisfaction that they are in hell with his "prophet" Muhammad.
 
God I hate these people and I despise the people that give them support from the Iranian donating some of his wages to support the insurgents, the Muslims who march in the streets for them, and the American Congressman who wants to give them "RIGHTS" and treat them like "accused criminals" in a law enforcement action. As far as I am concerned, "waterboard and more" them all. Better yet kill them in the field so they don't get a lawyer paid by me or a quran handed to them at Gitmo by Americans wearing white gloves so not to offend their sensiblities for it is not proper for an infidel to handle a quran, because we don't want to offend. Like I said, "we are one F..ked up nation".
 
Oh for the old days of bombing like Dresden and Tokyo where we firebombed them all. As far as I am concerned, one American soldiers', airmans', or marines' life is worth more than a million of the enemy, including their men, women, and children. None of them are worth my nephew...my marine.
 
Thank you for letting rant...I feel a little better now.
 
I look forward to the day we can kill them here or at least deport them. That day is coming and may God damn them, but without Christ they are damned already.
 
Note I did not use the Lord's name in vain for I mean it.

10 Died Tuesday, November 7, 2006:
 
"Marine Lance Cpl. Ryan T. McCaughn, 19, of Manchester, N.H., was killed while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, Iraq, according to Department of Defense. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment, 2nd Marine Division, II Marine Expeditionary Force, Camp Lejeune.
 
http://www.newsobserver.com/102/story/508099.html
 
I understand he recently turned 19.
 
And I will spare the graphic details (for my nephew was there) of what they found when they were able to return to collect what was "left" of his "body", just in case a family member should per chance see this post.

11 "was killed while conducting combat operations in Anbar province, Iraq"
 
Sounds so clinical...so neat & tidy...

12 In that I.E.D. explosion, I just learned that 3 or 4 other Marines got thrown by the explosion. One Marine got thrown OVER a house and over to the street at the NEXT BLOCK. My nephew advised that the Marine thrown had a concussion and is not taking what happened very well. I think he is the youngest in the group, but then again my nephew is 21 and the other Marine buddies of his call him "old man".
 
It was nice to talk to him today. I asked him if we needed MORE troops there, and he said in Ramadi we need at LEAST TWO MORE BATTALIONS. But what does he knows, he is just a grunt and General Casey is the genius (sic).
 
President Bush should be firing a few Generals and I would start with Casey, because Bush said if the generals need more troops Bush would authorize it and Casey doesn't ask for them.
 
Yet I know one Marine who is in the worst of the worst part of it in Ramadi who says otherwise.

13

Glad to hear your nephew made it out alive and in one piece. I'm no soldier, but in my opinion, we don't need two more battalions in Ramadi. We need a couple MOABs (google it) and C-130s to drop them out of. Why risk American lives over a stinkhole like Ramadi? Lets give the citizens 24 hours to vacate, and any military aged male trying to leave the city must have a family. After that, just level the entire area. Set up tent cities for the refugees and call it a day. To hell with clearing house to house like we did in Fallujah. Why risk American lives over mud huts? Ramadi is the new Fallujah, and it needs to be demolished with extreme prejudice.  

14 Dear Jack's Smirking Revenge:
 
I agree wholeheartedly. To hell with door to door.