Response to Wildfires by Military not Hampered by Deployments
Oct 30, 2007 Link Fest, Military
It did not take long for people to blame George Bush for the wildfires in California because of his [past] opposition to global warming and because of a general hatred of the man. People compare the response to the wildfires with the response to Katrina and there are those who believe that the wealthier Californians made out better than the poor folk in New Orleans. The fact is, all response starts at the local level and then rapidly involves state resources. The local responders put their plans into effect quickly in California and the state rapidly became involved. The National Guard responded proactively by moving planes equipped to fight fires closer to the action by placing them on training missions until they were requested and the official request could be initiated.
The state asked for help early and it got that help. Unlike the leaders of New Orleans and Louisiana, the leaders of California acted responsibly and did not wait for the federal government to swoop in to help. Had Mayor Nagin and Governor Blanco acted as quickly and decisively there might have been a better outcome in New Orleans. I heard someone state, on one of the news shows, that the response of the military (especially the National Guard) was hampered because of the deployments of our reserves to the war on terror. The truth is, a very small portion of California’s National Guard members are actually deployed and those deployments did not hamper the efforts in fighting the wildfires. In fact, the military was in place and had to wait to assist because the system had to play catch up with other entities necessary for the military to assist.
In fact, the Defense Department was so aggressive in responding to the dozens of wildfires that scorched nearly 500,000 acres this week that military pilots and crews were in place and set to fly a full day before they were finally allowed to do so, McHale explained.
~snip~
Some 2,500 National Guard soldiers were deployed to help fight the fires, McHale said, as were 350 active duty and civilian Defense Department employees. An additional 17,000 National Guard troops were on standby for activation to the fire lines should they be needed, he said.
“The military response to the wildfires in California was not inhibited in any way, to any degree, by deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan,†McHale said. “The capabilities that we needed in Southern California were fully available from our domestic inventory of resources, and those capabilities were made available as fast as was humanly possible.†[DOD News]
Proper leadership is necessary in response to any disaster and the leaders in California demonstrated how it should be done. While I certainly realize that the disasters in New Orleans and California were two completely different entities, I also have heard and read the complaints by people who compared the two events. There is this feeling that California fared better because of its demographics and that is simply not true. There are many ILLEGAL immigrants in the Southern part of California (who hope to find jobs rebuilding the place) so the poverty vs well off does not completely wash, though there were many more rich people affected in California than New Orleans. Additionally, wildfires progress differently than floods and are a different beast to tame all together but since people brought it up…
The overarching theme is that proper leadership in the time of disaster is key to providing the best possible outcome and California outclassed Louisiana in that arena. California leaders gave firm evacuation orders and people obeyed. New Orleans gave half hearted orders and did not enforce them and certain parts of the population did not take them seriously. People died because the leadership of New Orleans and the state of Louisiana failed the people who they were elected to protect.
Let us hope that Bobby Jindal can change the culture of corruption and welfare entitlement that is pervasive in Louisiana, particularly in New Orleans, and get that once great state back on its feet.
BTW, contrary to what people think, arsonists and not global warming, were to blame for the wildfires.
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Tags: californians, fight fires, katrina, Link Fest, mayor nagin, national guard soldiers, new orleans, war on terror, wildfires in california
Clinton Cat Fight?
Oct 21, 2007 Political
Will Hillary have to defend her extreme makeover to a softer image now that it has been reported that she gave away Socks the cat when she left the White House? The report is that Hillary got Socks to soften her image and make her look like a good mom while she was in the White House. When she and Bill left 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue it seems the only thing they did not take with them was Socks who they gave to Betty Currie. Is this another instance of Hillary using something for political gain and expedience and then discarding it when it no longer served a purpose? Probably not, but who knows.
Perhaps the Clintons decided that they could not care for a cat with their busy post White House lifestyle. Chelsea was off to college and work and there would not be staff members around to care for it. Given that Bill took Buddy with him one could make the argument that Socks the cat was just a convenient prop that was discarded when no longer needed. Given that Buddy ran in the street and was hit by a vehicle, it might be a blessing for Socks to have been given away.
I believe that Hillary Clinton is cold and calculating and that she does not do anything unless there is a political motive. Getting the cat was probably one of those calculated moves but giving it away might have been nothing more than giving it to someone who liked it and could care for it much better than the Clintons could. Betty Currie was an obvious choice because she had a history of cleaning up Clinton messes.
Socks is better off than Buddy and Hillary can always borrow the cat or get a new one should she feel the need to express her softer side.
Of course, if she wants to look soft she should get a porcupine. Even Hillary would look soft next to one of those.
Source:
Times On Line
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Tags: Democrats, Hillary Clinton, Link Fest, President, Republicans, socks, white house
Wayne Gilchrest Must be Voted Out
Oct 20, 2007 Political
Wayne Gilchrest is the Congressman who represents Maryland’s 1st Congressional District. Gilchrest is a Republican but he has been a disgrace to his party and to the voters of his district. I have documented Gilchrest’s poor voting record and the number of liberal issues that he agrees with. It is beyond me why this guy even runs as a Republican when he is pro choice, and is involved in things that are not conservative.
Recently, Wayne Gilchrest voted to override the President’s veto of the huge expansion of S-CHIP. Let us make that clear, the President vetoed a huge expansion of the program. His veto did not get rid of the program and there are still plenty of services out there for poor people. Wayne Gilchrest voted with Democrats to override this veto and in so doing indicated that he feels it is OK to spend taxpayer money on insurance for people who make 3 or 4 times the poverty level. This should surprise no one because Gilchrest is not a fiscally prudent. He spends like a drunken sailor on shore leave and he continues to waste taxpayer money. He even voted against stripping earmarks (PORK) from the FY 2008 Financial Services and General Government appropriations bill. To Wayne it is OK to spend our money with little or no regard to being prudent with how it is spent.
Andy Harris is running against Gilchrest in the Republican primary. I have been talking to family and friends in the 1st District and I believe I have a lot of people who are looking for change and are ready to dump Gilchrest and put Andy in Office. If you are in Maryland’s 1st Congressional District you need to take a look at Wayne Gilchrest’s voting record and you will rapidly see this is a record to run from, not on. Andy Harris is the future of our District and we need him to take Conservative leadership to DC and replace that milquetoast RINO Gilchrest.
I have a list of things to accomplish and on it is “send a letter to Wayne Gilchrest after his defeat.” I really want to check that one off after the Republican Primary. I hate to have to go to my fall back plan of voting for the Democrat in the General election but I absolutely will not vote for Gilchrest no matter what. All my readers in the 1st, please vote for Andy Harris.
Wayne, enjoy it now because you will soon be a lame duck.
**Big Dog receives no compensation from any political party or candidate.
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Tags: Andy Harris, congressional district, conservative leadership, general government appropriations, Link Fest, republican primary, veto, Wayne Gilchrest
Hillary’s Birthday is Just Another Reason to Break the Law
Oct 15, 2007 Uncategorized
There will be a big gala next week to celebrate the 60th birthday of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the next Queen of America and ruler of all her subjects, you know, the little people. This will be a star studded event that might actually bring in between 1 and 2 million dollars for her campaign. Billy Crystal will be the emcee (who ever heard of this for a friggin Senator) and he will, no doubt, be funny with his dated humor. Elvis Costello will be singing but I am not sure who is responsible for bringing the weed and the bongs but my guess is Bill is handling the show girls (literally).
What I am wondering is if Hillary will violate any laws like she did when they threw a big fund raising bash to raise money for her Senate run while honoring her hubby. I do not know if any of you have heard this story but Hillary is on tape committing several felonies with regard to election law. Of course, she lied about having any knowledge of the events but she is on video and it is quite obvious that she was well aware of the events and that she solicited a performance by Cher, a violation of the law.
So has Hillary been involved in planning this event? Has she solicited any donations in violation of the law? I am quite sure she has just as she did the last time. The previous event is tied up in the courts but the prosecutors and judges were appointed by Bubba so they will likely not uphold the law. The video and her association with Hsu all add up to deliberate graft and criminal behavior.
Folks, she thinks she is above the law. Her crimes are documented with letters, video, and news stories. She is guilty as sin, though sin has a different meaning for the Clinton clan.
Rob Reiner, the left wing lunatic from Hollyweird will be throwing her a smaller party the next day where donors with deeper pockets will attend. Reiner played Mike on All in the Family and Archie always called him Meat Head. At least that part of the show was accurate.
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Tags: felonies, Hillary, Hsu, Link Fest, Peter Paul, Political Commentary, Stan Lee
Sadly, No Humans Exist There
Oct 15, 2007 Uncategorized
My friend Raven wrote a piece where she questioned whether a soldier who claimed PTSD actually suffered from the condition. She did not state that he did or did not, she only asked the question. Unfortunately, a group of malcontents from the website, SadlyNo, invaded her site and left vile comments. Instead of exercising any rational thought, they attacked her and called her names. I read the comments at Raven’s and was going to comment myself but the comments were closed. You know how liberals are, they attack the troops and condemn them for everything and then have this mock indignation when a conservative says anything about the troops. They do it to shelter their own loathe for the troops.
So, I went to the site that sent its mouth breathers to Ravens and I left a comment indicating that attacking a person for her views was wrong and that they should stick to attacking the argument. Of course, this set off a firestorm of stupidity with the obligatory name calling. I was civil there (except to Billy Joe who you all know from here) and I was civil because that is not my site and I am not paying the bill. This however, is my place and I can say what I want. There is a guy named Bubba who is a good argument for evolution. This guy is probably the missing link.
Billy Joe had to jump in and he made false accusations and portrayed me in an unfavorable light in order to get the attention he craves. He ridiculed my work with GOE and said that I was ready to protect a monument but not join to fight in the war on terror. This is a blatant attempt to deceive. BJ knows that I served for 24 years and I am retired from the service. However, if they called me back to active duty and I passed the physical (might be the hardest part) I would go where they sent me and be honored to do so. How dare this little chicken choking puke question me and my service to this country. I have more time in a class A uniform than he has in the service because he did not serve. He sits around with one thumb in his rectum and one in his mouth and every few minutes he switches them.
This sorry excuse for a human said that I lie in fear of Islam and wet myself. Funny, I offered to meet him and let him say this to my face and he refused. I guess his pants were too wet. That is an open offer BJ and I look forward to meeting you in person one day.
I find it interesting that these cretins would attack a person who was extremely civil but it does not surprise me. The liberals lack any original thought. They cherry pick and they try to make people believe that it is OK to do whatever they want, kill babies, smoke dope, molest children, as long as it feels good.
Billy Joe wrote his last comment here. The rest will end up in the spam bucket where they belong. I tried to give him a chance to at least be civil but for him to distort things like that at this other site so he can feel good in front of the mouth breathers is the last straw. He. like the rest, lack the ability to attack the argument.
As for the site, I tried to comment and they called me a troll so I told them I would leave. They think that they can insult me and I will come back and comment as if I need their attention. I only went there to address the Raven post and had her comments been open, would never have visited but this is how they treat people who visit them. If you do not march in lockstep like a mindless drone and do as they say, they call you a troll. Amazingly, they made a big stink about me being able to comment there but Raven closed her comments. Yes, I could comment there but they resort to name calling instead of intelligent discussion. Trolls are unwanted so if I am a troll I can stay away but the least they could do is act like human beings. I really hate these kinds of liberal retards. If they were on fire I would not piss on them to put them out.
The people at that site are what you get when they throw away the baby and keep the afterbirth.
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Tags: Democrats, flame wars, General, Liberal retards, Link Fest, Raven