INFLUENCE

I got this email a few days ago:

Hello from Iraq,

I just wanted to write you to say thanks for all the support. The letters and care packages that we received brought us not only items that we needed, but also gaves us a special feeling of Honor. It makes us proud to be able to serve for a country as great as ours. It’s people like you that makes our country the great nation that it is.

From myself and all of the Marines of HMLA-367 “SCARFACE”, I say thank you and God Bless!

GySgt Keller, James R.
UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS


INFLUENCE

DROP A PEBBLE IN THE WATER,
AND ITS RIPPLES REACH OUT FAR;
AND THE SUNBEAMS DANCING ON THEM
MAY REFLECT THEM TO A STAR.

GIVE A SMILE TO SOMEONE PASSING,
THEREBY MAKING HIS MORNING GLAD;
IT MAY GREET YOU IN THE EVENING
WHEN YOUR OWN HEART MAY BE SAD.

DO A DEED OF SIMPLE KINDNESS;
THOUGH ITS END YOU MAY NOT SEE,
IT MAY REACH, LIKE WIDENING RIPPLES,
DOWN A LONG ETERNITY

You and all the Marines from "Scarface" are so very welcome GySgt Keller.

I am eternally grateful.

Semper Fi!

Battle for Fallujah

Bing West and his son, Owen, are being interviewed on Fox about their soon to be movie, "Battle for Fallujah" based on Bing's book, an account of the battle as it unfolded. Michael Shamberg is producing this film, and I like Michael, but as I said, this movie is being re written to include more KIA, and I find Hollywood's involvement to be both hypocritical and disingenous!

Bings hopes that the movie causes people to say "Holy Smokes we have great warriers, who are fighting this war on terror, and thank God we have them".

A noble sentiment, Bing, but frankly, the 52% of Americans that feel this way already, do not need a Hollywood version of a true battle that recently occured to echo those sentiments.

As for the others that disagree- this movie will only feed their "anti war, anti Bush, we should have never done what we did in Iraq, its all one big failure" feelings.

Bings intentions are honourable and understandable....but this Hollywood Refugee distrusts the all too left leaning Hollywood elites, and what they will do with this wonderful story makes me very nervous. Not to mention the idea that Hollywood community which has NEVER supported this war, and never understood the purpose, the cause, the bigger picture, would make money off the blood of these Marines, make me sick!

Having said that, and knowing this project is moving forward, I can only hope that it turns out to be a tribute of the highest honour to those Marines that fought this battle...especially those that paid the ultimate price.

Living Divine Love.

Love has been on my mind, elusive, sensitive, easily misunderstood, the food of life!

Love that is of a spiritual nature is God's love among mankind. Since my entire live is a spiritual journey, my daily experiences are intertwined closely with spiritual principals. Love is my goal: not just human love, or sexual love, but DIVINE love. My primary and most important relationship is with God, so there are times when I am lonely...bit I am never alone.

Because my love for God is everything to me, my love for my loved ones, and all of life, increases.

The way to God is ever within the heart, within the loving heart.

Love comes to those who serve God and in turn serve life.That is my credo...I chose to give back to life..by serving life. Not just through the vocation Ive chosen, but also through the service I give to Make A Wish Kids, as a wish granter, for terminally ill kids, and through the emails,letters and care packages I send to deployed Marines and soldiers.

I know that throughout our lives we all suffer, but the happiness, majesty and splendour of God's love helps me through those challenging times...and I don't have to look very far to see God's divine love made manifest...ITS everywhere....in a childs hug, a puppy's eagerness to play, in the blooming of flowers, the rise and setting of the sun. I've learned to take long walks alone...I call them my sabbath walks. I can more clearly hear the voice of God in the sounds of nature. There is a plan to living. There is order. You've just got to love and let God love you.

I've also come to understand that the more we accept God's divine love, the more we receive. Accepting is only half of it, the other half is giving IT back through service!

There is no doubt that Gods love can seem to be elusive, but its attainable when we realize that divine love comes through giving, and in no other way. Maybe this is the meaning of Jesus statement: " I am the ONLY way" You come to God, come to feel God's divine love, when you do as Jesus did: Give to others and serve life.

Seeing. Seeing, they see not; hearing, they hear not. For only those with love do!

I think we now live in a time of unequaled spiritual opportunity. The unrest in the world is a fact of history; individual freedom will always be attacked by nations, rulers and individuals that crave power. I have no illusions about the dark side of being.. about the darkness that resides in some mens hearts and can only be extinguised by God or by death. But that doesnt dampen my my love of life...I love life because of the spiritual potential it offers.

A wise man once shared with me that" life is for giving and loving, which fosters the nobility of spirit". The daily struggles that life presents are opportunities to cultivate spiritual grace.

I am compelled by my love for God to serve others, but I am inspired by the selfless acts of love and courage displayed by people like Lt. Col Mark A Smith, USMC, the commander of 2/24 in Iraq. He serves God and life by giving of himself to his Marines, to their families, to the Iraqi's, to his country, and to his family. He is representative of all the great men and women in the military who serve us all, even when we fail to understand the greater purpose of their actions.

I'm inspired by his wife Sheila who loves and supports her husband unwaveringly and in doing so also supports and serves her country with tremendous courage and grace.She is an example of spritual grace. She is representative of all the wives and girlfriends and parents and siblings of those who serve in the Military and are now deployed. They themselves are not fighting the insurgency directly, but they are doing so emotionally. Their sacrifices are great, and are only surpassed by their great courage and love for humanity.

I'm inspired by his kids, Nichole and Brittani, who support their dad, his men, and the families of those who serve under Mark. They too have sacrificied much. An absent dad who is not at the soccer games and dance receitals and birthday parties,nor with them at Christmas, but who is instead halfway around the world with the fathers and brothers and sisters and sons and daughters of people they have never met, and yet they do not complain. They know he loves them..and they understand his service to a higher cause doesn't diminish his deep love for them. And, like their parents, they too are selfless. Their decision to donate their Christmas gifts to children more needy as a way to honour one of their dad's fallen hero's belies a generousity so great it serves as a living example of God's divine love, and is only surpassed by their personal courageousness as they live with the knowledge that the work daddy does is dangerous, but nececssary. They are representative of all the kids of our deployed men and women, and the represent the future of America. And what a great future that will be!

To paraphrase Adlai Stevenson " They would rather light candles than curse the darkness, and their glow has warmed the world"

They are examples of divine love in action, and they shine the bright light of God's love in a world that appears at times to be filled with hate, rage, ugliness, divicivness and darkness; and it is this light of God that that shines through them , that illuminates us all, and inspires me to live a full rich life of love and service to God and others.

I Have Seen The Future of Music..........and its Wilco!

For the past few years, I've raged against the music industry's decision to deal with the issue of downloading and file sharing music by suing the fans themselves, and justifying this decision by calling those of us , "thieves". I have always believed, and myriads of surveys prove, that the most downloaded songs, become the most purchased CDs.

I have also felt, that the music biz elites behind this stupidity of lawsuits, would have been better off, finding an innovative way to use this technology and to work with their fans in a way that would benefit everyone, rather than alienate and anger the very people you want BUYING your product. I knew that wasn't likely, and that in the end, some band would find a way to find harmony with the technology and the fans that use it.

Wilco is that band!

Wilco dumped Reprise, their record labal, after Reprise decided their 4th album was shit, and released the tracks on the internet. Reprise was wrong, the album was downloaded and fileswapped by fans who know great music when they hear it,and the internet buzz was so hott that a sold out 30 city tour followed. This resulted in th rights being bought back by another WB labal, at 3x the original price! ROFLMAO!



Quoting, Jeff Tweedy, Wilco's softspoken leader, " Music is different, from other intellectual property. The artist controls just part of the music making process, the audience adds the rest.Fans imagination makes it real. Their participation makes it live. We are the troubadours, the audience is the collaborator. We should be encouraging their collaboration, not treating them like thieves". Jeff Tweedy cannot understand why fans need to be punished!!


A- fucking- Men! SOMEONE finally got what Ive been saying, and put it work! And boy did it work!!! In an article in Feb's Wired magazine, Lawrence Lessig writes about Wilco, and how they have continuet use the Net to find peace and harmony with fans: They performed the first ever live MPEG4 Webcast, a docu abou the band was funded and screened via the net, bonus songs, live recordings tied to CDs, and streaming their latest CD, A Ghost is Born, 3 months prior to its commercial release. When songs from the CD appeared on fileshare networks, it was the fans that raised more than $11,000 and donated it to the bands favorite charity.

Now that's music to my ears!

Jargon Watch and Hot Trends

Hillbilly Armor/Hillbilly steel: Steel welded onto vehicles as make armour by US Forces in Iraq
Buttnumbathon ( This one is my favorite- but its been around for awhile)


Blogging your book.
iPhone (iPod is SOOO yesterday )
Custom printing on your M & Ms
Stay at Home Dads




* Wired Magazine Feb 2005

Hollywood Vs. America

As Fox explores this theme tonite in a special hosted by John Gibson, I am reminded that I met many "closet" conservatives who worked in Hollywood during the time I did, and who were concerned of "Hollywood style retribution" should their conservative politics and values be made known!

The bond between Acting and Activism was born in the 60's. Being "right wing" during that time was the kiss of death, and it still is today. I have chatted on line with a certain "hott" actor, who hiding behind the mask of a screen name, is more than willing to share his right wing conservative political perspective and christian religious beliefs, but fears his career will be jeopardized if he comes out from behind the anonymity of a screen name.

But does the fact that Hollywood is more liberal than conservative mean it's not in touch with the America?

We need to remember that not all Americans are republicans, conservative, or christian. Clearly, Hollywood can't be that out of touch .... it's a $7 billion industry!

What's fair to say is that collectively Hollywood, like the MSM, has a liberal bias,a very BIG liberal bias. So by fiat, she ( collectively Hollywood is referred to in the feminine) filters her stories through a liberal lens.

Advancing a conservative agenda in Hollywood is challenging but not impossible.
There are many conservatives working in Hollywood.
There is a large conservative market waiting to be tapped, as evidenced by the huge audiences that both country music and talk radio attract, and which generate huge revenues.

Therefore, there is no reason why conservative themed films and tv shows, that reflect conservative values about family, home, religion, politics, lifestyle, in a positive light, rather than condescending and disparaging way Hollywood traditional portrays conservatives, can't be hughly successful.

"Touched By An Angel" "Highway to Heaven" and most recently, one of the highest rated shows on the WB Network, "7th Heaven" about a minister dad and his stay-at-home wife, who are busy raising 7 children and caring for their various friends, boyfriends and girlfriends who pass through the Camden home, and remain balanced while dealing with today's problems, from teen suicide to gang violence, by focusing on conservative family values and having a strong faith in God; have all proven to be hughly successful in attracting audiences and generating revenue!

And no matter what the message is, Hollywood always follows the money!

Potential Impact Of Blogging On Gov't

Sgt.Chris Missick wrote an excellent commentary on the above topic. Head over to his blog to read it entirely. He ends his post with the following:

Perhaps it will be blogs that bridge the gap of winning the minds of Americans that I was speaking about a few days ago.

No matter who we are in life...we always understand it through the lens of our own preconceived ideas...but if every piece of information you receive is tilted only in one direction, that view will always remain skewed.

What I find is that most people are too damn lazy to inform themselves by researching out diverse opinions: its easier to be spoon-fed ideas, thoughts, opinions especially when they resonate with whatever personal ideas, thoughts, opinions one may hold.

What University taught me was how to seek out the information I needed; how to educate myself- how to research effectively, listen to diverse opinions and how to decimate truth from hype...to recognize a hidden agenda.

What life has taught me is that the Only constant is change.

Once an opinion is formed, I am willing to let it go when when time, and altered circumstances, reveal something deeper or different.

In the 60's the credo was: tune in -turn on -drop out!

Today the credo is: log on-seek out-join in

Only when one is willing to do just that,can one truly be informed and be made privy to a broader landscape and a more balanced narrative.

In order to have a relationship with knowledge and truth, one must have the Will to pursue it and the Grace to receive it.

What the fuck did we do?

I have no idea why all the liberal backlash has been so vitrolic over the resignation of Eason Jordan. Calling bloggers a "fanatical angry lynch mob" is a great way to deflect from the reality of the situation: Anyone reading Bernard Goldbergs two books "BIAS" and "ARROGANCE" should know that liberal bias in the MSM is a fact of life, and that it is through that distorted lens of liberal bias, that "facts" are presented.

Fact: CNN has a HUGE LIBERAL BIAS! FULL STOP! Eason's remarks not only reflect his personal liberal bias- but the networks' agenda aimed at undermining Pres. Bush and the credibility of the Iraqi elections, the war on terror, the many successes in both Iraq and Afghanistan, the spread of democracy and freedom, and at denying the highest standards to which over 99% of the 300000 troups operate within as part of their day to day credo, so it should come as no surprise that those of us who know the truth no longer allow journalists and editors, to not be held accountable for their words and actions.

Eason Jordan's comments strongly implied that the military deliberately and willfully, with full knowledge and intent, targeted and murdered reporters, and have engaged in a massive cover up of these actions.

That is a reprehensible accusation to make...and is complete baseless!
Eason knows that ! Thats why he made the comment in the sheltered environment of Davos-rather than in a very public venue or even as part of an investigative report for CNN.

And let me assure everyone that if Eason has said that Jews or Blacks deliberately targeted reporters and killed them.....you bet that everyone in those two communities, led by the ACLU and the Jewish Defense league, would have "lynched" Eason; demanding his resignation immediately under the threat of defamation lawsuits.The fact that he accused the Military of such actions does not exonorate him.

I see nothing wrong, or indicative of a "hate mob", in what bloggers did pursuing this story, and asking Eason to come clean, to own up and offer irrefutable proof of what he said, and then to substantiate his allegations.

The fact that the blogger who was present at Davos felt the need to report what Eason said BECAUSE he KNEW that NO ONE else would since "they protect their own" speaks volumes to what was truly said and implied by Eason.

Its appalling to me that liberal Americans will allow terrorists, who are hell bent on killing Americans and destroying America values, the same legal protections that all law abiding Americans are entitled too; but when outraged bloggers demand an investigation into what Eason said and demand that he substantiate his accusations with proof, the MSM and liberals describe us an angry lynch mob that had no justification for what we did!!
What the fuck did we do?
Did we demand his resignation?
No!!!!!!
We simply asked that the tapes be made public to acertain the truth and that the Eason be held accountable for his comments by providing UNEQUIVICABLE PROOF to support his allegations.

The fact that Eason resigned without even attempting to offer up proof of his innocence and has yet to offer proof of his allegations is NOT the fault of the bloggers,but rather the RESULT of Eason's own biased incompetent actions, misleading allegation, and baseless accusations.

Gunners Palace

Michael Tucker, who's soon to be released documentary "Gunner Palace" now has clips one can view online, poses a great question when he wonders how the Iraq experience will be defined in twenty years; "Will the voices of those who were there shape the collective narrative or will we see the experience through lens of Hollywood? "

Having come into the knowledge that "No True Glory" was changed to include MORE deaths than really occured.( and should now be named " Its Too Gory"),I know that if the Iraq experience is only be seen through the lens of Hollywood..then the distorted image presented will be an insult to the men and women that served bravely, especially to those that paid the ultimate price.

I am hopeful that in this new age of "bloggers" the voices of those that are there now, will grow louder, and continue to honestly shape the narrative well into the future.

If you want to ask Michael Tucker questions relating to the docu...head over to Blackfive's site(www.blackfive.net) to learn how to email in your questions.

Terrorizing Tinseltown

Thats right.....next week Hollywood heavyweights may be running for the hills - the Hollywood hills that is....as Bill O'Reilly takes on tinseltown...

No Spin Zone meets All Spin Zone....just like when matter collides with
anti matter.......its gonna be one helluva explosion!

EasonGate and Bloggers

An article appeared on in the New York Times today yet againg addressing EasonGate.

It would seem that Mr Abovitz, whose column at www.forumblog.org broke the story of Mr Easons comments,when he concluded that other journalists at Davos were not going to report his comments because journalists wanted to protect their own, now says he hoped bloggers could develop loftier goals than destroying people's careers. "If you're going to do this open-source journalism, it should have a higher purpose," he said. "At times it did seem like an angry mob, and an angry mob using high technology, that's not good."


How utterly disappointing coming from a man who felt Mr Easons comments were disturbing and chose to share them with the world.

What he fails to understand is that Mr Eason has resorted to crucifying the men and women who serve this country in order to secure a better BUSINESS position for CNN in countries that harbour anger and hatred towards America.
He sold our Americans and our soldiers and marines in harms way so CNN could open offices in those countries.

Mr Eason distortions and actions fuel the fires of hatred towards the US, its citizens, and our men and women serving in harms ways.

Yet the man that broke this story, now seems to feel sorry for Mr Eason.

Mr Abovitz has called us' a dangerous angry mob' - well I think he would be wise to remember that we bloggers have for the most part become sick and tired of biased liberal unsupportive anti american media representatives, like Mr Eason, who are hellbent on undermining the brave, noble and very effective efforts of our troups in war on terror, who have ridiculed, play down, and at times, down right denied the success of the elections in both Afghanistan and Iraq, and have appeared to go out of their way to lend psychological support to the terrorists.

Yeah...Im angry! I'm fucking angry ...at the MSM and now at Mr Abovitz!

If Mr Abovitz feels bloggers should "have a higher purpose," it begs the question...what higher purpose is there than seeking out truth, and bringing to light injustices, distortions, lies; to hold someone accountable for their actions and their words? That is the noble actions that we bloggers took in both Rathergate and Easongate! Is not the pursuit of truth a noble action?

He wants bloggers to serve a higher purpose...what about CNN or Mr Eason..shouldn't they also have to serve a higher purpose than distorting the truth, supporting the insurgents, and presenting the worst possible news while chosing to ignore all news about the many positive wonderful succesful endeavers and accomplishments of our deployed troups, and our efforts in the war on terror.

Mr Eason sold his integrity to the devil and he is finally paying the price for the CHOICES HE MADE .

Compared to the much higher price our deployed men and women have paid, some of whom have paid the ultimate price, I think Mr Eason got off really easy!

God and Evolution

Nicholas D. Kristoff wrote this Op - Ed piece for The New York Times, which appeared Saturday Feb 12th: ( I'm printing it out entirely since the link will be useless after one week)

An "analysis" of Democrats and Republicans from the Ladies' Home Journal in 1962 concluded: "Republicans sleep in twin beds - some even in separate rooms. That is why there are more Democrats."
That biological analysis turns out - surprise! - to have been superficial. Instead, modern science is turning up a possible reason why the religious right is flourishing and secular liberals aren't: instinct. It turns out that our DNA may predispose humans toward religious faith.
Granted, that's not very encouraging news for the secular left. Imagine if many of us are hard-wired to be religious. Imagine if, as a cosmic joke, humans have gradually evolved to leave many of us doubting evolution.
The notion of a genetic inclination toward religion is not new. Edward Wilson, the founder of the field of sociobiology, argued in the 1970's that a predisposition to religion may have had evolutionary advantages.
In recent years evidence has mounted that there may be something to this, and the evidence is explored in "The God Gene," a fascinating book published recently by Dean Hamer, a prominent American geneticist. Dr. Hamer even identifies a particular gene, VMAT2, that he says may be involved. People with one variant of that gene tend to be more spiritual, he found, and those with another variant to be less so.
There's still plenty of reason to be skeptical because Dr. Hamer's work hasn't been replicated, and much of his analysis is speculative. Moreover, any genetic predisposition isn't for becoming an evangelical, but for an openness to spirituality at a much broader level. In Alabama, it may express itself in Pentecostalism; in California, in astrology or pyramids.
Still, it's striking how faith is almost irrepressible. While I was living in China in the early 1990's, after religion had been suppressed for decades, drivers suddenly began dangling pictures of Chairman Mao from their rear-view mirrors. The word had spread that Mao's spirit could protect them from car crashes or even bring them sons and wealth. It was a miracle: ordinary Chinese had transformed the great atheist into a god.
One bit of evidence supporting a genetic basis for spirituality is that twins separated at birth tend to have similar levels of spirituality, despite their different upbringings. And identical twins, who have the same DNA, are about twice as likely to share similar levels of spirituality as fraternal twins.
It's not surprising that nature would favor genes that promote an inclination to faith. Many recent studies suggest that religious people may live longer than the less religious. A study of nearly 4,000 people in North Carolina, for example, found that frequent churchgoers had a 46 percent lower risk of dying in a six-year period than those who attended less often. Another study involving nearly 126,000 participants suggested that a 20-year-old churchgoer might live seven years longer than a similar person who does not attend religious services.
Partly that's because the religious seem to adopt healthier lifestyles - they are less likely to smoke, for example. And faith may give people strength to overcome illness - after all, if faith in placebo sugar pills works, why not faith in God?
Another possibility involves brain chemistry. Genes that promote spirituality may do so in part by stimulating chemical messengers in the brain like dopamine, which can make people optimistic and sociable - and perhaps more likely to have children. (Dopamine is very complex, but it appears linked to both spirituality and promiscuity, possibly explaining some church scandals.)
Evolutionary biologists have also suggested that an inclination to spirituality may have made ancient humans more willing to follow witch doctors or other leaders who claimed divine support. The result would have been more cohesive bands of cave men, better able to survive - and to kill off rival cave men.
Of course, none of that answers the question of whether God exists. The faithful can believe that God wired us to appreciate divinity. And atheists can argue that God may simply be a figment of our VMAT2 gene.
But what the research does suggest is that postindustrial society will not easily leave religion behind. Faith may be quiescent in many circles these days, or directed toward meditation or yoga, but it is not something that humans can easily cast off.
A propensity to faith in some form appears to be embedded within us as a profound part of human existence, as inextricable and perhaps inexplicable as the way we love and laugh.

God hardwiring humans so that they may come to know Him. Interesting thought!

"Paper Clips"

What happens when students from a middle school in Whitwill, Tenn, a Southern Baptist town, of mostly white christians, with no Jews, and lacking in any real diversity, attempt to study the Holocaust?

Nothing short of a miracle. They are forever changed as are their parents and teachers, they transform hearts and minds around the world, break down stereotypes, and create a living memorial dedicated not just to the Holocaust victims, but to breaking down prejudice.

The school principal in an attempt to get her students to open their eyes to the diversity of the world outside their town, teaches them about The Holocaust. Responding to something completely foreign to them and to what they could only comprehend on an intellectual level, they come up with the idea to collect six million paper clips as a way to more deeply comprehend the magnitude of this event, and to honor every soul that was was victim of the Holocaust. They chose paper clips because they had been worn by Norwegians during the war as a form of silent protest.

This simple yet truly profound act, would forever alter the lives of everyone in that town and reach out to open the hearts of others around the world.

The kids put the word out but not nearly enough paper clips were initially collected...that is until two German journalists assigned to cover the White House contacted the students, offering to help.

The project received national publicity, with an article in the Washington Post and a segment on “World News Tonight,” and all told 30 million paper clips arrived, attached to stories, in some 25,000 pieces of mail!

Each letter was documented and filed.

Suddenly this tiny town, (pop.1600) with no real ethnic or religious diversity suddenly, became the gathering place for Holocaust survivors, their families and the families of victims to share their stories; and a place where they all found hope and healing. As these events unfolded, not only did one teacher ,admitting to his own racism, have a remarkable change of heart, but the entire town underwent a transformation!

However, this uplifting and riveting story doesnt end there. (Altho by now I had gone thru an entire box of kleenex)

A living memorial was created, when a railcar that had been used to transport Jews to the camps, was brought in from Germany, and now houses the paper clips. Its a truly uplifting living memorial, in the schoolyard, where children and tourists come to listen and learn from these remarkable students of Whitwell Middle School.

Everyone in Whitwell, as well as all those that took part in this endeavor over a three year period, undergoes a personal journey and spiritual transformation, and I have to believe that this powerful, riveting, emotional documentary about hope redemption joy and promise will not only uplift but also transform the hearts and minds of all who view it, as it shatters stereotypes about Southern Christians and Christian Jewish dyanmics.

"Paper Clips" touched my heart and my soul, and I am forever inspired by the lesson that the world can be changed....... "one classroom at a time".

GO AHEAD...... MAKE MY DAY!

You know what kills me about all this crap over Lt. Gen Mattis' comments?

The left wing media and Hollywood unintelligentsia all LOVE movies that have bloodshed, violence, buildings being blown apart,the "enemy" being ripped apart, gunned down, and blown up, while the good old American doing all that rides around in a Hummer puffing on a cigar.

Its awesome ....its totally kewl..... to hear Dirty Harry say " Go Ahead Make My Day" and watch him blow the head off some guy, but GOD FORBID that the Man who leads Marines into battle should actually say the same thing, causing the MSM and "Traitorwood" (borrowed that name from LtCol Mark A Smith -my favorite Mad Ghost) to get on their hypocritical high horse and start vilifying him.

FUCK THEM!

Let me tell you why this bullshit really has me PISSED off!

I got wind of the script for "True Glory", which will star Harrison "I do not support this war but hell I'll take $20 mill to star in a movie about it"Ford and it seems that "Traitorwood" didnt feel that the real Battle of Fallujah had enough bloodshed and deaths...so they ADDED MORE!
Yeah thats right...... they ADDED MORE! Why? Because...thats what sells!!!!

So in the Hollywood version of the Battle of Fallujah MORE Marines and 'insurgents' die under this glamourized version of General Mattis then actually did under his command!

Its interesting to me how killing is totally kewl, and the love of killing is totally macho in Hollywood when it attracts box office dollars; but gosh darn, the real thing is just too hard to swallow! Freaking hypocrites!

And if you ask me what other reason motivated them to add more bloodshed and deaths to the movie version -apart from the truth that it sells more - I would suspect that its yet another attempt at pushing their left wing disdain for Pres Bush and covertly undermining the war in the hearts and minds of Americans by sending the message "Look at how many of our YOUNG men died thanks to Pres Bush and Gen Mattis, and for no good reason because hell there were no WMD's and Saddam never posed a threat to us" *rolls eyes* But hey that won't stop them from making millions of dollars off the blood of those Marines who actually died - oh no sir! But damn that Gen Mattis for saying how he good he feels about killing those who behead people,rape women,use mentally incapacitated Iraqi's as suicide bombers, threaten to kill anyone who votes, fake injuries to blow up our soldiers as they attempt to administer aid, and fly planes with innocent civilians into building with more innocent civilians.

Apparently Hollywood,the left wing media and liberals can celebrate silver screen heros who express the same bravado as Gen Mattis did, but find it unacceptable and choose to vilify General Mattis for ACTUALLY saying "He likes to Brawl - the REAL life version of "Go Ahead and Make My Day"

Life imitating art....go figure!

And jerk who runs CAIR has the audacity to claim that Gen Mattis comment show an "indifference for the value of human life" when his muslim radical brothers used someone with DOWN SYNDROME as a suicide bomber??? When they behead people, rape women, use civilians as shields, hide weapons in mosques, walk into Mess Halls to commit suicide/homicides - its bad enough on the battlefield but it a place where people gather to eat a meal - and HE thinks Gen Mattis comments display an indifference to life???

OMG...He's as insane as that "Vehicular Manslaughterer" Sen. Ted Kennedy!

Lt. General Mattis " one of this country's bravest and most experienced military leaders" to you sir I say OOOOOOORRRRAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! GET SOME!

Laws of Lifetime Growth

Always Make Your Future Bigger Than Your Past.
- Continually use your past only as a foundation for what lies ahead and ensure that your future is always bigger than your past.

Always Make Your Contribution Bigger Than Your Reward.
- Always focus on creating new kinds of value for larger numbers of people and ensure that your contribution is always greater than your reward.

Always Make Your Learning Greater Than Your Experience.
- Look at all life as a school and every experience a lesson, transforming your experiences into new lessons, makes each day of your life a source of growth, so your learning will always be greater than your experience.

Always Make Your Performance Greater Than Your Applause.
- Continually work to surpass everything you've done so far, and your performance will always be greater than your applause.

Always Make Your Gratitude Greater Than Your Success.
- Focus on appreciating and thanking others, and the conditions will always grow for your increased success.

Always Make Your Enjoyment Greater Than Your Effort
- Approach everything you do with this sense of play, and you will always ensure that your enjoyement is greater than your effort.

Always Make Your Confidence Greater Than Your Comfort
- Continually strive for higher goals and achievement, and your confidence will always be greater than your comfort.


By Dan Sullivan, Visionary and Founder of The Strategic Coach.

The Courage of Ordinary People

I've had time to contemplate the historic, momentous democratic election that took place in Iraq on Sunday.

Its a fundamental turning point, not just for Iraq, but for all Arab nations!

Iraqi's have repudiated the terrorists, and delivered the message loud and clear to the ENTIRE world: A new Iraq has been born, a new nation has been created, freedom is more powerful that fear.

The images of Iraqi's voting and dancing in the streets joyous, excited and filled with pride, overwhelms me.

With the exception of the dems that for the most part are still upset about losing the US election, so many people in Canada, the US and Europe, (including those less than supportive often cynical journalists in the main stream media) have been moved, and their spirits lifted, by the courage and determination of the Iraqi's who voted under the real threat of death, and of the tenacity of the US troups, who have been strong in their resolve to risk their lives to spread freedom and democracy in the heart of the arab world.

The terrorists can no longer claim any moral justification to continue their assault on Iraqi's and in turn Americans, and trust me, these terrorists, KNOW this. It was one of the reasons they wanted to prevent these elections.

It would be naive to assume that even without moral justification, they will cease their assault on Iraqi's, Americans, democracy and freedom. They won't, but the longer they continue, the more they will anger and alienate the Arab world. These terrorists cannot prevent the spread of democracy through intimidation and fear, and thats got to scare them, because that was their most powerful weapon!

Early on in his presidency, Mr. Bush outlined his very ambitious vision for the Middle East. In his Inaugural Address on January 20th, his theme focused on the spread of democracy and freedom. Some Dem\ocrats, Europeans, Canadians, and Arabs, laughed, derided and mocked both his vision for the Middle East, and his recent inaugural address; yet a close examination of what's transpired throughout the Middle East bears review.

On Sept 11, 2001 Terrorists waged war on our soil and set into motion their own destruction.

The Taliban have all but disappeared, Afghanistan has a democratically elected gov't and it's citizens lives have changed in great postive ways.

Women now have the right to vote, are learning to be self sufficent in farming, and along with Afghanistan's youth are being educated and taught to read; music, art and literature are flourishing, highways and roads connecting the country have been constructed, an Afghani security force is in place which is getting stronger and bigger.

The seeds of democracy were planted in Afghanistan, took root, and have now blossomed. I have no doubt they will continue to bear fruit!

Iraq has held its first real democratic election, and Iraqi's will now begin to form their first constitution;George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln would be so proud. I have no doubt they are smiling down on all Iraqi's!
Men, Women, Sunnis, Shias, Kurds, have all voted and demonstrated courage in the face of extreme danger . The silent majority, those that have been hostile to America's presence in their country, viewing them as an occupation force, stood up nonetheless and said we will not have terrorists deny us the right to shape our country as we see fit - we will not be intimated! Freedom is intoxicating and more powerful than fear!

Over 3/4 of the provinces in Iraq are safe, the infra structures in those areas are running relatively well, and I have great hope that this new found feeling of empowerment now experienced by the Iraqi's will enable them to continue to stand up for themselves, and work with US forces keep these terrorists at bay by providing intelligence as to their whereabouts.

We do know that in certain areas, Soldiers and Marines, who have given toys candy and gifts received from generous Americans, Canadians, and Europeans, to Iraqi children, have formed a bond of friendship and trust with the children and its the children that are providing our troups with intelligence!

As the follow the troups around when they are on patrol, they will point out where IEDS are hidden, and send a covert subtle signal to our troups as to where the terrorist are hiding when they suddenly stop following them into certain parts of the city! We have won over the heart and minds of Iraqi children who are the future of a free and democratic Iraq!

The death of Arafat, who stood in the way of any peace process between Isrealis and Palestians, occured and a newly democratically elected leader has signalled a message of hope and reconciliation between the two countries, and now Isreal, with Egypts help no less, is working towards honestly resolving long standing hatred and issues with the Palestians. I can't help but feel that Pres.Bush's vision was so powerful that divine intervention took care of Arafat.

Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine, have recently undergone incredible changes, and the ripples and echoes of these changes are being felt in all Arab nations. . Some arabs are pro actively engaging in dialogue to bring about democracy in their own countries. The meme of democracy and freedom is spreading!

Since there exists a phoney democracy in Iran, Iranian Shiat Leaders are well aware of the implications this momentous day in Iraq poses for their country. Its only a matter of time until the winds of change blow through Iran scattering the seeds of democracy and freedom and as those seeds take root in the hearts and minds of Iranians, a true democracy will come to fruition.

This is a great beginning,but as the euphoria of the Iraqi election subsides, we need to remember that the path to democracy is a slow and messy process, that still requires trust, faith, tenacity and patience on the part of Iraqi's, Europeans, Canadians, Americans, Our Troups and Coalition Partners.

President Bush reminded us that freedom is the permanent hope of mankind, the hunger in dark places, the longing of the soul.

On Jan 30th, 2005, the courage of ordinary people helped light the flame of democracy in what had once been a very dark corner of the world, and today the entire world is a much brighter place.