Afghan and Coalition Forces Kill 80 Taliban

Afghan and Coalition forces were attacked by Taliban fighters while on routine patrol. The good guys immediately engaged and used close air support to kill 80 of the bad guys. Our forces know how to fight and we are taking it to the bad guys. The good guys were engaged in a six hour fight and were victorious in the end.

A combined Afghan-coalition forces patrol was conducting reconnaissance when Taliban fighters engaged them with rocket and small-arms fire. The combined patrol immediately returned fire, maneuvered, and employed close-air support, resulting about 80 Taliban fighters killed during a six-hour engagement. During the battle, the combined force exchanged small-arms fire with the fleeing attackers, quickly putting them on the defensive. [DOD News]

We continually have successes on the battlefield and need to have continued success on the battlefield here at home in a place known as Congress.

Big Dog

Did John Edwards Cause this?

A Houston man killed himself rather than be evicted from his home after the loan company foreclosed on him. James Hahn threw Molotov cocktails at police and survived tear gas attacks and only took his life when police were moving in on him. Hahn stated he would never be taken from his home alive and it appears he was correct.

I wonder if John Edwards, champion of the poor, had anything to do with this foreclosure? Edwards has been involved with companies that are foreclosing on many home loans.

In all reality, Hahn is one of a growing number of people who made bad decisions about their finances. People got caught up in the housing boom and spent more than they could afford in order to buy a home and now they are unable to keep up the payments. Some mortgage companies are setting the rates at the introductory level or slightly above rather than the higher rate that should have taken place. This costs them money but it avoids the foreclosure process.

The housing problem is indicative of the financial problem in America. People want something and they want it yesterday. They do not save and they do not spend within their means. Eventually they end up with a pile of debt and no savings. There is talk that the government is looking for ways to bail these folks out. That is an inappropriate use of taxpayer money. If people make bad choices they should have to live with the consequences of those choices.

People are responsible for their choices. John Edwards just helps them be more aware of the ones they have made.

Source:
Chron.com

Big Dog

Others discussing similar items: Outside the Beltway, Stop the ACLU, Perri Nelson’s Website, , Stix Blog, Right Truth, The Populist, Shadowscope, Stuck On Stupid, Leaning Straight Up, The Amboy Times, Pursuing Holiness, Adeline and Hazel, Right Celebrity, third world county, Woman Honor Thyself, The Uncooperative Radio Show!, Pirate’s Cove, The Pink Flamingo, Right Voices, Church and State, Lost Paradise, Blog @ MoreWhat.com, AZAMATTEROFACT, A Blog For All, 123beta, guerrilla radio, Adam’s Blog, The Bullwinkle Blog, Cao’s Blog, Jo’s Cafe, Conservative Cat, Conservative Thoughts, Nuke’s, Diary of the Mad Pigeon, The Crazy Rants of Samantha Burns, Walls of the City, The World According to Carl, Blue Star Chronicles, Republican National Convention Blog, CORSARI D’ITALIA, High Desert Wanderer, The Yankee Sailor, and Gone Hollywood, thanks to Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

Project Valour IT

Ladies and gentlemen, it is once again that time of year where we all work together to solicit donations for Project Valour IT. What is Project Valour IT, you ask? It is a program that purchases laptop computers for our wounded warriors. These laptops are fitted with special software that allows our troops to communicate and to use the computer despite their serious injuries (Voice-Activated Laptops for OUR Injured Troops).

This year I have joined the Army team and have placed the widget so that it will show next to the first post of this page until the campaign is over (11 November 2007). While we have teams and there is friendly competition, the only real winners here are our warriors who benefit from your generosity.

I know that this is the time of year where everyone asks for some of your money and I know that there are more hands out than there are dollar bills. All I ask is that when you are looking at the list of who you wish to donate to, please consider helping our wounded warriors.

Thanks and God Bless

Big Dog

Let the Families Decide

The Flag folding ceremony of veterans has been around for quite some time. The meanings of the folds, not part of the Flag Code, have been read by veterans while honoring a fallen hero. Now there is an edict that the meanings of the folds are not to be read at veteran’s funerals at federal cemeteries because there was a single complaint about the words used when describing some of the folds. Here are the meanings ascribed to the 13 folds:

  1. Symbol of life.
  2. Symbol of our belief in the eternal life.
  3. In honor and remembrance of the veteran departing our ranks who gave a portion of life for the defense of our country to attain a peace throughout the world.
  4. Represents our weaker nature, for as American citizens trusting in God, it is to Him we turn in times of peace as well as in times of war for His divine guidance.
  5. A tribute to our country, for in the words of Stephen Decatur, “Our country, in dealing with other countries, may she always be right; but it is still our country, right or wrong.”
  6. Represents where our hearts lie. It is with our heart that we pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
  7. A tribute to our armed forces.
  8. A tribute to the one who entered in to the valley of the shadow of death, that we might see the light of day, and to honor mother, for whom it flies on Mother’s Day.
  9. A tribute to womanhood.
  10. A tribute to father.
  11. In the eyes of a Hebrew citizen, represents the lower portion of the seal of King David and King Solomon, and glorifies, in their eyes, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
  12. In the eyes of a Christian citizen, represents an emblem of eternity and glorifies, in their eyes, God the Father, the Son, and Holy Ghost.
  13. When the flag is completely folded, the stars are uppermost, reminding us of our national motto, “In God We Trust.”

Press Enterprise

The problem seems to stem from the last few where God is mentioned and there is acknowledgment of our Judeo-Christian heritage. Someone who attended a military funeral took exception to these words and complained about them prompting the National Cemetery Administration to ban the words at all of the cemeteries it oversees. The Administration claims they are just trying to ensure uniformity but there can be no mistake that this edict is a reaction to the complaint.

The person who made this complaint seems to feel the funeral was all about him. The funeral is a ceremony honoring the dead and it is for the dead that we perform the ceremony. The ceremony is also to bring family and friends together in order to honor the life that was lost. One thing a funeral is not is a place for some self centered idiot to make a political statement.

Here is my idea. Why don’t we allow the families of the fallen to decide if they want the words read during the Flag folding ceremony? The families can see the words beforehand and decide if they want the words read. After all, the funeral is part of a benefit afforded a fallen member of the armed forces and it is in our best interests as a country to allow the families, not some bureaucrat or sensitive bystander, to decide.

This is just another example of certain people in our society trying to cleanse any mention of our Judeo-Christian history. It is a misapplication of the First Amendment which guarantees us freedom of religion, not freedom from religion. In any event, the decision should rest solely upon the family of the fallen and not on the whims of a bureaucrat trying to appease some malcontent.

Certain veteran’s groups have decided to ignore the edict. They fought for the right to free expression and they damn sure have the right, no the duty, to fight any assault upon our freedoms.

Against all enemies foreign and domestic so help me God.

Empty Promises of the Democratic Party

There is a segment of society that believes people are entitled to everything in life at no cost whatsoever. These people have been around for quite some time but they have multiplied in numbers since the 1960s when LBJ and his policies created a group dependent upon government for everything. These policies helped to breed new generations of people who believed that they were entitled to anything they wanted from health care to college free of charge, paid for by the government. Unfortunately, those among this group who chose to go to school were failed by the educational system that did not teach them that whatever the government gives away is taken from others who have worked hard to earn it.

Those in the government, particularly the Democratic party, who espouse higher taxes and wealth redistribution believe that this is only proper and that it is our duty to care for those less fortunate. People like John Edwards, Martin O’Malley (Maryland Governor), Hillary Clinton, and B. Hussein Obama believe that we should all contribute to these programs or that we all have to sacrifice. They use euphemisms to mask what is really taking place and that is extortion. We do not make contributions and we are not sacrificing because these are acts that are voluntary. We are relieved of our money under threat. Our money is coerced from us under the strong arm of the government and the jack booted IRS who will crush us and put us in jail if we refuse to pay those who are extorting from us. A bigger problem is that the federal government can increase the amount we are required to pay at any time and we either take it or go to jail, or we find ways to earn less money so that we do not pay as much to the tax collector.

The Democratic hopefuls for the office of President have all expressed their desires to raise taxes on those who work so that those who do not may reap benefits from our hard work. I do not believe that people are entitled to free heath care and they are not entitled to a free college education. Of course, it would only be free to them because someone, those paying taxes, would have to pay the bills.

I believe that people are entitled to affordable health care and affordable education. I have, many times, written about health care and how it could be made affordable. My plan involves less government intervention and requires people to be responsible for their choices. I also believe that education should be affordable and that people should be able to take out low cost loans in order to get an education. None of these items requires taxpayers to foot the bills. Of course, in order for people to be able to get a good college education we must overcome the dismal performance of public schools in preparing people for college.

Another issue is Social Security and this is also an area where the Democrats do not want people to have a choice. They are content with raising the rate or cap upon which SS is based in order to pay out meager retirement checks and thus keep the elderly beholden to the government. Social Security should be privatized so that people can make their own retirement decisions. Any plan that involves retirement money should allow people to pass their savings on to their heirs, something the Democrats oppose.

No matter how it is sliced the Democrats espouse class warfare with social programs that force those with money to pay for those without. Unfortunately these programs have a stifling effect on production and growth and cause more and more people to become dependent upon the big nanny government. The Democrats know this and that is their end game. The more people beholden to them the more votes they can count on.

The unfortunate reality is that most people who vote Democrat do not see the error of these kinds of policies. They go through life blind to the realities and as long as they get their checks they do not care.

Related item:
Concord Monitor
My Way