Posts Tagged ‘Iraq’

Palin’s American-hating pals – “I won’t be buried under their damn flag!”

9 October 2008

So, Sarah Palin was not “really” a member of the Alaska Independence Party, she says. Her husband was. So, she just was sleeping with the enemy.

“Enemy?” you ask.

Yep, enemy, I answer.

How else can you explain these words from the founder of the AIP?

“The fires of Hell are frozen glaciers compared to my hatred for the American government, and I won’t be buried under their damn flag! I’ll be buried in Dawson, and when Alaska is an independent nation, they can bring my bones home.”

You can get an even better idea from “Mudflats”, an Alaskan political blog with an insight into the doings of upper one that is way beyond the understanding of us in the lower 48.

Strangely, in light of this new patriotic furor, the following video has not gained much traction in this election. It surfaced some time ago, and I’ve posted it here before, but its worthy of another look. This is a meeting of the Alaskan Independence Party. The speaker is Vice Chairman of the AIP, Dexter Clark. A partial transcript is below. It’s worth watching in full.

The Alaskan Independence Party believes that Alaska may have become a state against its will. Anyone in the party today, is likely there because they think Alaska would do just fine without the rest of the country being attached to it. The image, on most maps, of Alaska detached from the rest of the country in its own little box works for them just fine.

They don’t like the way the statehood vote was worded, and Clark explains why.

The basic argument of the Alaskan Independence Party has always been the number one plank in our platform – the question of our vote to become a state. So…the most blaring disparity in that vote was the definition of an eligible voter. Among those qualified to cast a ballot were 41,000 American soldiers and 36,000 dependents. Now, to the native population of Alaska, to me, these were occupation troops! And they were made eligible and, in fact encouraged to vote. There were educational meetings held on the military bases. I can’t imagine them telling anyone that anything but that statehood would be very good for the military – in fact they still have 6, 7 big bases and numerous smaller holdings in the state. Statehood would be good for the military. Now can you imagine the international uproar if American troops had all went and got their purple fingers in Iraq?

After Clark’s discussion of the American ‘occupying troops’ getting the right to vote on Alaska statehood, he goes on to say that Alaskans should have been able to vote to remain a territory, become a commonwealth, become a state or become an independent nation. In reality, voters were only given the option: Statehood? Yes or No.

Now, we get to the interesting part, just before 6:00 on the video.

“Our current governor, we mentioned at the last conference, the one we were hoping would get elected, Sarah Palin, did get elected. There’s a joke, she’s a pretty good looking gal, there’s a joke goes around we’re the coldest state with the hottest governor. (laughter) And there was a lot of talk about her moving up. She was an AIP member before she got the job as a mayor of a small town — that was a non-partisan job. But to get along and go along — she eventually joined the Republican Party, where she had all kinds of problems with their ethics, and well, I won’t go into that. She also had about an 80% approval rating, and is pretty well sympathetic to her former membership.

What Clark is saying here, is that Palin’s philosophical loyalties lie with the Alaska Independence Party, but in order to get elected, she had to distance herself from the AIP and pretend to be a Republican, because that was the only way for her to get elected. But not to worry, Clark reassures those in attendance, her heart is still with us at the AIP, and her sympathies are with our agenda, namely, Alaskan ndependence.

He goes on:

If there is ever a time that is right for change, this is it. [snip] The pitfalls of an organized political party – you don’t have any control over who joins that party. They put the X next to it on the registration form, and if they join the — go into the primary, and win that primary, they’re your candidate, like it or not. I think Ron Paul has kind of proven that. He’s a dyed -in-the-wool Libertarian. He came to Alaska and spoke as a Libertarian. And he put the Republican label on to get elected. That’s all there is to it. And any one of your organizations should be using that same tactic to infiltrate.

Palin claims to have been a member of the Republican Party since 1982. Clark is telling us that Palin ‘marked the Republican box”, but she isn’t one. He loves the fact that she got elected. He’s already dreaming about ripping one of those stars off the flag. And though Sarah Palin’s membership is not documented officially, there is no dispute that Todd Palin was a card-carrying member of the AIP as recently as 2002 when his wife was the mayor of Wasilla. After that, he decided to change his registration to “Unaffiliated.”

How does the rest of the country feel about the concept of Alaska secession, especially considering the strategic importance of the oil reserves in Alaska of which Governor Palin is so fond of reminding us? Works well for the nation of Alaska, but not so well for the truncated version of the United States of America it leaves behind.

And finally, here’s the quote of the day from AIP founder Joe Vogler.

“The fires of Hell are frozen glaciers compared to my hatred for the American government, and I won’t be buried under their damn flag! I’ll be buried in Dawson, and when Alaska is an independent nation, they can bring my bones home.”

Reverend Wright suddenly sounds stunningly patriotic.

Sarah Palin, meanwhile, is saying that the fact that Barack Obama served on the same non-profit board as Bill Ayers a Weather Underground member 40 years ago, “is someone who sees America, it seems, as being so imperfect, imperfect enough, that he’s palling around with terrorists who would target their own country.” She continued, “This is not a man who sees America like you and I see America,” Palin said.

Here’s Palin addressing last year’s Alaska Independence Party’s convention.

So, how does Sarah Palin “see Ameirca?” Does she see it as “so imperfect” that one of its 50 states needs to vote on whether it wants to secede from the Union? Should a political party in this state “target its own country,” and if successful, devastate energy reserves, and compromise the national security of the rest of the nation by taking its oil, and leaving? Maybe, maybe not. But you just watched her tell the group whose purpose it is to vote on that issue to “keep up the good work.”

If Senator Obama had made such an address to an Illinois secessionist party, or any other group who wanted to make off with 13% of the nations oil supply, what would be said about his patriotism?

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MoveOn ad (wherein McCain commits your great-grandchildren to the Iraq War)

30 April 2008


Yes, John people were listening and they just might not want want the McCain/Bush ticket.

Fort Worth Peace Vigil Video

21 March 2008

We gathered on the banks of the Trinity River to mark the fifth year of Boy George Bush’s delusional war on Iraq.
Vodpod videos no longer available. from revver.com posted with vodpod

Is it torture…

8 March 2008

to hold Sen John McCain’s feet to the fire to see if he will back up his past claims that the U.S. should not torture? Or his claims that torture is ineffective?

President Boy George Bush has vetoed the waterboarding ban. The only thing that will allow this country to stand tall with honor in this arena is if Congress overrides his veto.

Would it be torture for Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama to engage a game of who can hold McCain most accountable? Maybe Sen.’s Obama and Clinton can argue over how many times McCain has flip flopped on this issue.

The two candidates could flip a coin to decide who gets to argue that if McCain votes McCain/Bush again he puts our own soldiers at risk of torture. According to who? That’s according to Sen. John McCain, before the McCain/Bush ticket.

The loser of the coin toss gets to ask if torture is so effective, where is Usama bin Laden? Why have not we captured bin Laden? What about the promise of justice for all the victims of September 11, 2oo1? Why have they been forgotten?

Either one or both could take the argument that Sen. McCain once again is a Bushbot, supporting President Boy George Bush in his failed three-trillion-dollar war in Iraq. Once again, it is McCain/Bush allying us with the cesspool governments of the world who condone torture. It is a McCain/Bush legacy that has scarred this nation, and left our nation with such a sorry reputation overseas that they only thing holding it up at all the world knowing Bush soon will leave office. However, will McCain/Bush move in with the same zeal for war?

It’s up to Sen.’s Clinton and Obama to do all they can at all costs (even to their own ambitions and egos) to keep faith with the American people and our allies.

It’s McCain/Bush, stupids! Get your heads in the game!

8 March 2008

“I’m not a member of any organized political party, I’m a Democrat”Will Rogers

One Citizen’s Opinion
by
Lee Dunkelberg

Good, God!

Just how much do Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton want to give the White House to McCain/Bush/Hagee? It’s almost as though they are
climbing over each other to tear down what once was an easy hit.

It’s not even just the candidates and the media. The backers of the
two candidates are sniping at each other (at the same time they are
sniping at the news media for the “horse race” coverage, which they are
eating up).

Look, you knotheads! Think of this as an audition. BOTH of you and
all of your disciples turn the circular firing squad around and try a
few shots at the enemy.

In case you don’t know, and from all appearances you don’t, you are
looking at a bloody road to a convention that already is set to
implode. Not only are you going to have a fight inside the convention
hall in Denver, you are going to have hordes of people outside calling
for your heads.

How about you two actually DO something? How about turning around
some of this FISA crap? How about calling McCain/Bush on getting in bed
with John Hagee?

Did you happen to notice the frigging unemployment numbers, thanks to the McCain/Bush policies? Want to talk about that?

Nope. You want to talk about nasty remarks one of the minions made
in Scotland (for Christ sake) or tax returns. Or, you want to enpower a
drug addict megabigot and sit around and whine about cross voting.

Have either one of you knotheads asked your driver what the price of
gas is? Here’s one that stumped Poppy Bush. What’s the price of milk?
Do you know (or care) that it is skyrocketing. Want to give McCain/Bush
a pass on that? Fine. Go ahead.

Don’t whine about horse race coverage when all you are doing is
stupid horseplay that is handing the election to the same people who
have been stripping of our rights.

Rights? Remember them? Well, let’s hear about it, for Pete’s sake.

OK, back to your mudfights. All of you.

At first, I thought we were going to relive 1968 with the peaceniks.
demonstrations, a pasty platform and the evil Richard Nixon. Now, it is
looking more and more like 1972 and George McGovern. I want to welcome
all of you new activists to the Democratic Party. Looks as though
you’ll cut your teeth on the same kind of successes I did when I
started.

There’s another, less known saying of Will Rogers, and it’s never been more true.

You’ve got to be optimist to be a Democrat, and you’ve got to be a humorist to stay one.

 


First published at What’s driving you crazy? blog

 

Bulletin from Texas: Here we go and go and go and go!

4 March 2008

FORT WORTH, TEXAS –Well, the sun is out. The temperature this morning is a crisp (6°/43°), but not prohibitively cold, and the skies are clear across the state. All this means a likely record turnout in a primary election (probably will beat the general election turnout in some years).

What does it mean? Polls show things are very, very tight. The latest is from Zogby.

On the strength of some strong campaigning in Ohio and Texas, Democrat Hillary Clinton of New York has retaken a narrow lead over rival Barack Obama of Illinois in Texas and has dead-locked the race in Ohio, a new Reuters/C-SPAN/Houston Chronicle survey by Zogby International shows.

photo of Barack Obama

This has led one of my friends who is a Barack Obama cheerleader to concede that the senator from Illinois may not give Hillary Clinton the coup de grâce on which the Obamadillos™ were counting (though I question how much mercy might be behind that death blow).

“I unfortunately have to tell you guys that I THINK this will be razor thin,” she said (she often talks in capital letters). “He may win Texas and Vermont, and she will win Ohio and Rhode Island.

“She said last night on Jon Stewart (The Daily Show on Comedy Central – ed.) if its close like it is now she has to stay in for the other big states and said she’d stay in for Pennsylvania (188 delegates-ed), and thats April 22nd.
“So NOTHING will be resolved today!”

photo of Hillary Clinton

How could Sen. Clinton pull off a last-minute touchdown? It’s easier to explain than why someone who is not a sports fan is using a football metaphor. One reason is that Clinton has really put the push on the last few weeks. She and her supporters know it is a do or die situation, and they may get by with a little help from their enemies.

READ MORE

Colonel Bogey – or bring a WWII tradition to the Iraq War

20 February 2008

[display_podcast]
Please click here to hear a bit of music.

Recognize that song? (You can cut to the chase here.)

You probably know it as the theme to The Bridge Over the Rver Kwai. The prisoners marched around all the time whistling the time. Why they did it will be apparent in just a bit, I promise.

If you are of a certain age, you remember it as the jingle for Malt-O-Meal. “Winners warm up with Malt-O-Meal!” As a matter of fact, the advertising world has seized up on the tune for many ad campaigns.

However, the music is the Colonel Bogey March. It was written in 1914 by Royal Marines Bandmaster Lt. F.J. Ricketts. It supposedly is based on a flamboyant colonel who refused to shout “fore” when playing golf. Instead, he would whistle two notes, which are the two first notes of the main phrase. The song was a hit, justifying Ricketts’ scheme to publish it under a pseudonym, K.J. Alford, to get around his military masters and to score some change on the side. Good thing he did, as the song was a hit.

Immediatly, soldiers, sailors and marines took to it right away. Of course, soldiers sailors and marines began to do what soldiers, sailors and marines always have done with new songs. They made up rude words to go along with the tune, especially as it was so easy to carry (we are getting closer to that bit about the whistling). They would sing “[Rude phrase] and the same to you!”, as a for instance.

Enter World War II.

One story goes that a chap named Toby O’Brien thought the tune would make a good propaganda ditty. Perhaps in response to British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain’s classic duping in his policy of appeasement, he composed words to a song that soon becae known as Hitler Has Only Got One Ball.

Here’s a sample of the many versions of the lyrics:

Hitler has only got one ball,
Göring has two but very small,
Himmler is somewhat sim’lar,
But poor old Goebbels has no balls at all.

So, you see, at least the Brits sitting in their theatre seats knew what the whistling was about, as the words certainly could not be used in the movie.

Fast forward to 2008. In the spirit of defeating tyranny, I have composed a few lyrics to go with the tune, suitable for singing (though not everyplace).

Balls toTerror

Osama has only got one ball
Cheney has two that are very small
Karl’s balls are only spitballs
and Dubya has no balls at all.

Connie pretends she has real balls.
Coulter? Well, that’s y’alls call.
Powell can only howl,
as his balls are nailed to Cheney’s wall.

Petraus may have a slight shortfall.
To betray us takes no balls at all.
Lieberman used to have one,
but it fell off and rolled down the hall.

Limbaugh cannot answer the call.
drugs made his balls too small.
Ms. O’Reilly will tell you shyly
that Bill O has no balls at all.

Possible endorsement problems for McCain

18 February 2008

McCain – Endorsement Problems from derDunkelRover on Vimeo.

Hutchison, Burgess and Cornyn just can’t say “yes” to constituents

5 February 2008

Congratulations to the rest of you who live in Texas’ 26th Congressional District, it seems we do not need any economic stimulus. At least that’s what Ol’ Doc Burgess, our so-called representative seems to think. He voted against the economic stimulus package. I guess that means Republicans in Texas’ 26th will be returning any checks they get from the government.

Ken Leach photoFor the rest of us, I have two words for you – Ken Leach. Click here and check out his website. If you like what you see, please click here and go to ActBlue and donate to the campaign. I can’t afford it, but I still made a modest contribution because I can’t afford another term with Bushman Burgess. If you want to volunteer, contact the campaign through the Leach for Congress website or sign up at Leach for Congress at Democracy for America, or just add your name as a supporter.

Just because Boy George Bush is leaving the White House, it does not mean his stench will not linger in Washington. Bushman Burgess would be part of that lingering stench.

In the meantime, enjoy what civil rights you have while you have them. Both of Texas’ senators voted against effforts to put a lid on the Bush Administration’s illegal domestic spying.

Rick Noriega There’s only one thing we can do about that for now; get rid of Sen. John Cornyn. The solution for that is Rick Noriega. Check out the Noriega Campaign website, you can sign up as a supporter, list yourself as a volunteer for the campaign, and/or donate on the website. You also can sign up as a volunteer or as just a supporter at the Noriega Campaign site at DFA. What a concept; someone in the senate who’s actually worn a uniform and been in combat. Wonder how the swiftboating chickenhawks will attack that? (Just ask them – “Where’s bin Laden?”)

We’ll see how to take care of Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison later. We may have a chance to vote against her as governor and “Good Hair” Perry, the toll road king, as senator coming up here soon. (Next time Perry runs for anything, remember what he has done for Texas by driving from Fort Worth to Dallas on toll roads; it cost me $4.00 the other day – thanks to Boy George Bush that’s about $.75 Canadian).

Keep up with major votes with free emails from Megavote at www.congress.org

In drivel, there is truth, if you can see past the flag waving.

4 February 2008

It begins with a photo – stolen without giving proper credit (this came from a US Air Force publication which only states “courtesy photo” a larger version can be found at Snopes).

Sgt. John Gebhardt with baby Iraq insurgent victimThe picture is both chilling and heart-warming enough, seeing the wound and then seeing the peace of both of them sleeping.

Okay, fine. So far, so good.

Then, some numb nut, Reader’s Digest wannabe writer (and I mean that in the most derogatory manner possible) “improves” on the story.

To wit:

The little girl pictured below had her entire family executed by insurgents recently in Iraq . They also intended to kill her, as they shot her in the head. She was found bleeding a day later by U.S. Lt. John Gebhardt, who rushed her to St. John’s Hospital for care. The little girl continued to cry & moan in pain, &she would not sleep at night. Nurses began to realize that the only time she was happy was when Lt. Gerbhardt would visit her, she smiles &plays like a normal 3 year old when he’s around. Also when Lt. Gebhardt stayed overnight one night the littlle girl slept for 11 hours. Realizing what he means to the little girl, Lt. Gebhardt sleeps every night at the hospital with this little girl & as a result her wounds are healing just fine. He is an example of what a hero really is… Lt. Gebhardt & his wife are in the process of trying to adopt the 3 year whom they now call Lily..

He is a real Star of the war.

This, my friends, is worth sharing with the WORLD! Go for it!!

We begin with the most obvious. The man in the picture is wearing the insignia of a United States Air Force Chief Master Sergeant. Besides his regular duties, he volunteered at the hospital where the picture was taken.

It gets better.

The little girl pictured below had her entire family executed by insurgents recently in Iraq

From the 10 November 2006 article in Air Force Link about the famous photo taken a “month ago” – The young infant had received extensive gunshot injuries to her head when insurgents attacked her family killing both of her parents and many of her siblings. – Air Force Link, the official website of the United States Air Force

She was found bleeding a day later by U.S. Lt. John Gebhardt, who rushed her to St. John’s Hospital for care.

Unless Boy George Bush and his band of thugs have screwed up the war even more than we know, USAF medical master sergeants are not pulling combat patrol duty. It is not St. John’s Hospital. It is the medical facility at Balad Air Force Base in Iraq, which is – wait for it – John’s hospital, as that indeed is USAF Chief Master Sergeant John Gebhardt.

Also when Lt. Gebhardt stayed overnight one night the littlle girl slept for 11 hours. Realizing what he means to the little girl, Lt. Gebhardt sleeps every night at the hospital with this little girl & as a result her wounds are healing just fine.

The chief had a knack for comforting her and they often would catch a cat nap together in a chair. – Air Force Link, the official website of the United States Air Force

Lt. Gebhardt & his wife are in the process of trying to adopt the 3 year whom they now call Lily

If you read the article in the Air Force Link, there is no mention of any adoption and the article refers to the “3 year” as an “infant”.

He is a real Star of the war.

This, my friends, is worth sharing with the WORLD! Go for it!!

No argument there. but I do have one caveat. Share the article, but share the truth, as it’s simplicity is far more magnificent than the manufactured schlock. Also, share it for the tenderness and compassion it represents, not to advance some agenda . . . any agenda.

Please read the full article in Air Force Link, from whence comes the picture. Also, feel free to check out the article on the urban myth busters Snopes site.

When the sap is running high in one of these emails, check out Snopes or just do a simple search. You may find a truth far more meaningful than the shallow, trite fiction.

Finally, if you ever have received an email with a photo of a flag-draped coffin being unloaded from an airliner as passengers look on, it probably contained some sorry drivel and flag-waving pseudo-patriotic nonsense. If you really want to read something moving, go to the source. Go the to Rocky Mountain News and read an excellent piece of journalism called “Final Salute”.

You probably will cry.

I did.