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"I don't want to live in an America where one-third of the population were born elsewhere."
Uhh, every American in our nations history has had to live through this, why do you think you are any different?
We are a nation of immigrants bbotc, like it or not. And our corporate masters demand cheap labor, like it or not.
You're barking up the wrong tree.
If there were not opportunities here for cheap labor, cheap labor would not be crossing our borders. Simple physics, create a vaccum, and watch the air get sucked in.
Democratic Underground - Ron Paul
This is a pretty well known Democratic/Liberal website, and guess who is becoming very popular around there these days?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x29561
Speaking the truth does wonders.
Go Ron Paul!!
Oil Nostradamus Predicts
Oil price for 12-31-07 will be $78.35 US and rising.
Oil price will break the $90.00 a barrel price in 08.
Oil price will break the $110.00 a barrel price in 09.
DTT, Len, Rogue, Got some EFT's today
Thanks for the help and advice. I bought UDN, FXE, and FXY. Still havent been able to find one for the Brazilian Real, but I'll keep looking.
Interesting bagwa.
Now that I think about it, the Governor here in Washington has lowered the flag on a few occasions such as State Supreme court members and State Legislature members passing away.
Good for Arnold if he is dropping the flag for these guys. I think it's a disgrace that we dont mourn every fallen soldier. I think their funerals should all be televised, and that we should celebrate the lives of those who have given everything for our country.
Soldier: Honor troops like Va. Tech dead
I couldnt agree more. The flag should be flown at half-mast everyday until Cheney stops killing our troops.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070423/ap_on_re_mi_ea/afghanistan_flag_complaint
KABUL, Afghanistan - An Army sergeant complained in a rare opinion article that the U.S. flag flew at half-staff last week at the largest U.S. base in
Afghanistan for those killed at Virginia Tech but the same honor is not given to fallen U.S. troops here and in
Iraq.
In the article issued Monday by the public affairs office at Bagram military base north of Kabul, Sgt. Jim Wilt lamented that his comrades' deaths have become a mere blip on the TV screen, lacking the "shock factor" to be honored by the Stars and Stripes as the deaths at Virginia Tech were.
"I find it ironic that the flags were flown at half-staff for the young men and women who were killed at VT, yet it is never lowered for the death of a U.S. service member," Wilt wrote.
He noted that Bagram obeyed
President Bush's order last week that all U.S. flags at federal locations be flown at half-staff through April 22 to honor 32 people killed at Virginia Tech by a 23-year-old student gunman who then killed himself.
"I think it is sad that we do not raise the bases' flag to half-staff when a member of our own task force dies," Wilt said.
According to the Defense Department, 315 U.S. service members have died in and around Afghanistan since the U.S.-led offensive that toppled the Taliban regime in late 2001, 198 of them in combat.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force said that the flags of all its troop-contributing nations are flown at half-staff for about 72 hours after the service member's death "as a mark of respect when there is an ISAF fatality."
Sgt. 1st Class Dean Welch, who works with Wilt at the U.S.-led coalition public affairs office, said the essay is a "soldier's commentary, not the view of the coalition and not the view of the U.S. forces."
Welch added that such outspoken opinion pieces are rare.
Wilt suggested that flags should fly at half-staff on the base where the fallen service member was working and in the states where they hail from. He said some states do this, but not all of them.
He wrote that the death of a U.S. service member is just as violent as those at the university last week, but it lacks the "shock factor of the Virginia massacre."
"It is a daily occurrence these days to see X number of U.S. troops killed in Iraq or Afghanistan scrolling across the ticker at the bottom of the TV screen. People have come to expect casualty counts in the nightly news; they don't expect to see 32 students killed," he wrote.
"If the flags on our (operating bases) were lowered for just one day after the death of a service member, it would show the people who knew the person that society cared, the American people care."
Another Cisco Morris fan?
My wife hates when I listen to him. I have a habit of doing really bad impressions of people with very distinct accents, and Cisco's Minnesota twang is one of my favorites.
We're planting blueberries and raspberries today. Just tilled the garden and got some mushroom compost delivered from Oshtroms. Now the whole yard smells like manure. Ahh... cant wait for those tomatoes to ripen.
Hey littlefishl,
I'm just south of the Nisqually, near Hawks Prairie. Two courses, The Links, and the Woodlands are a stones throw away.
Played nine holes yesterday. Nicest day of the year so far up here. And today looks like it might beat it.
I love spring in Washington, almost makes the winters worth it.
Speaking of psychopaths,
and people who hate America. We have two mass murders in office that have killed alot more innocent people than Choi. And we know they are both off their meds.
bbotc, A couple points.
I dont mean this in a condescending way, but I dont think you understand the true nature of mental illness.
I didnt either until it struck my family.
It has little if anything to do with how you were nurtured, or what relationship you had with your parents. Schizophrenics and psychotics usually dont show all the symptoms of their disease until early adulthood.
They can be rational, intelligent, and thoughtful people one moment, and a deranged, delusional maniac the next. It is very hard to diagnose, and even harder to accept once it becomes obvious.
Choi was diagnosed as mentally unstable, and a potential threat to himself or others.
He didnt hate America, he wasnt beaten by his father, he wasnt a CIA plant. He was a very disturbed young man with a defective brain. And there are more and more people like Choi showing up in our society everyday.
Look at the autism rates in children over the past 12 years, they are skyrocketing. Something is going on in our genetic pool that is causing these illnesses.
DTT, Bob, other Northwesterner's...
I'm an avid golfer. We have a couple really nice courses close by that are fairly reasonable. We could always do a golf/lunch outing and just have a barbeque at the house. Plenty to do there besides golf... like landscaping!
In all seriousness, just name the place. I dont mind driving a little ways to get together.
Downtown Tacoma has a couple nice museums and restaurants that make for a really fun afternoon. We could even catch a Tacoma Rainiers game, or for that matter, a Mariner's game.
DTT, I'm claiming ignorance here.
I'm not the most savvy currency investor, nor do I understand mutual fund expenses. I presently don't own any mutual funds.
EFT to me is Electronic Fund Transfer. Is this what you mean?
Can you please explain for us laymen how to invest in foreign currency?
I'm almost all cash, and I'm really looking to protect against the falling dollar.
Im in.
Vegas is fine, but Chicago is centrally located, and easy to fly too. Subway is cheap from both airports.
We could do September and have an outing in the bleechers at Wrigley. Cheap seats, and Old Style beer.
Whereever we decide, I'll volunteer to help make the arrangements. We should get one hotel with a discount rate, and have dinner one night. I'll even help pay Len's room rate.
I know Bobwins doesnt drink, so I volunteer to help drink all his "thank you" shots. I prefer top shelf tequilla.
"anti-American undercurrent"
As soon as I see this in an article, I stop reading.
Since when is it anti-American to demand that our government tell the truth?
Again, I'm not a 911 conspiracy theorist, at least not to the degree some are. But if our government had acted in a credible manner, then none of this would even be an issue. Why did Bush administration officals refuse to testify? Why did they remove tapes from local gas stations and ATM's and make them classified?
Why did they hide the names of people who were shorting the airline industry in the weeks before the attack?
The list goes on and on.
It seem to me that they wanted the conspiracy theories to be created. They seeded them.
Which tells me they are guilty of something. Its probably total incompetence, but they are hiding it none the less.
Conspiracy theories are anti-government, not anti-American. And I remember the days when "Conservatives" were anti-government, and nobody called them anti-American.
Funny how the times have changed.
Avan, check this out.
I have been reading about ways to protect against the coming economic collapse.
I found this mutual fund, and I'm thinking seriously about putting some money there.
http://www.merkfund.com/?src=aw&grp=foreign_currency_investment&crt=1
Let me know what you think.
I found the video.
I'm sure you could find the transcript if you looked hard enough, but it didnt come back in my first search.
You might get hives going to this site, be careful.
Down on the bottom right.
http://www.johnkerry.com/features/kidsfirst.html
Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer
Cool vid about energy, and Iraq.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-5308196622692748202
OTC.
These articles will put some meat into your sandwich.
Lets chew on these.
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/54748/good_capitalism_and_good_socialism.html
The five weeks of legally mandated paid vacation the Swedish government provides for its citizens greatly lowers the amount of profit businesses can make. When businesses have to pay people not to work their profits go down resulting in downsizing and bankruptcy.
http://www.capmag.com/article.asp?ID=2210
So what's the real scoop?
In truth, the Swedish economy is pretty similar to the politics of its rock bands: avowedly socialist by most outward appearances, but more than willing to embrace the machinery of capitalism behind the scenes in order to make the whole thing work.
You might call it "boutique socialism."
Gingrich vs Kerry on Global Warming
I've always liked Newt as an intellectual. Now that he is out of office, he tends to be very honest, and very real. This is a great example.
Transcript:
KERRY: I’m excited to hear you talk about the urgency — I really am. And given that — albeit you still sort of have a different approach — what would you say to Sen. Inhofe and to others in the Senate who are resisting even the science? What’s your message to them here today?
GINGRICH: My message I think is that the evidence is sufficient that we should move towards the most effective possible steps to reduce carbon-loading of the atmosphere.
KERRY: And to it urgently — and now…
GINGRICH: And do it urgently. Yes.
If I can, let me explain partly why this is a very challenging thing to do if you’re a conservative. For most of the last 30 years, the environment has been a powerful emotional tool for bigger government and higher taxes. And therefore, if you’re a conservative, the minute you start hearing these arguments, you know what’s coming next: which is bigger government and higher taxes.
So even though it may be the right thing to do, you end up fighting it because you don’t want big government and higher taxes. And so you end up in these kinds of cycles. And part of the reason I was delighted to accept this invitation and I’m delighted to be here with Sen. Kerry is I think there has to be a if you will a “green conservatism” — there has to be a willingness to stand up and say alright here’s the right way to solve these as seen by our value system.
Wait a second, you said it was fact.
Now your just asking us to take your word.
You post a bunch of nonsense that has nothing to do with the correlation of Marxism to today's political and economic sciences.
No offense, but I really dont think you understand Karl Marx, or Marxism. Marx was a man of the times. His philosophies were focused on severe imbalances of wealth during a time of feudalism, that was the preceptor to capitalism.
Those factors simply dont exist in todays democracys.
Now, if our economy collapses (and it will), and the majority of us are unemployed, or working as slaves for the prolitariet, then you might want to bring up the subject again.
But until then, your chasing the boogie man.
"This is no conspiracy theory. It is fact!"
Ok, then back it up.
Name one person of credibility who is advocating Marxism as a replacement for religion.
Just one.
Marx died in what? 1887? We hadnt even invented the telephone yet, or the automobile. Marxism isnt even applicable to today's political structure. When Marx was alive, there was no middle class.
This just more dogma from the extreme right, another scare tactic. And the drones are easily duped because they dont really understand Marxism, they just thinks its bad.
Its a shallow argument, and has no basis in 'facts'.
The collatarel damage argument.
Like the drunk driver who says to the judge, "I didnt mean to swerve into the family of 6, your honor"
Murder is murder, you can try and justify it to yourself however you wish.
"You only see the failures on one side despite the facts."
Wrong. I'm just not afraid to face up to the failures of our side.
And again we get the right-wing "anti-American" cacaphony. Anybody who demands America actually represent American ideals is now anti-American, an America hater, the enemy.
Too bad you cant round us all up and put us on the trains.
You're correct, most 3rd graders are taught not to use violence to resolve their problems.
Too bad you and most of the war pigs on the right cant perform the logic of an 8 year old, we would all be better off.
I have trouble understanding how you and the right justify the atrocities you advocate and support. You stand up for life in one breath, and call for death with another. And then you call yourself "Christian" and "moral". You obviously dont have the intellectual capacity to know any better.
The most pathetic part of your argument is that the "civilians" we went to Iraq to liberate, are now your so called "enemies" that you want murdered. So we didnt mean to accidently kill them before, but now that they oppose us, we mean to kill them.
Do you just walk around in circles all day? Because your logic seems twisted.
Since you like the WWII comparison so much, lets remember who started WWII, and who started the war in Iraq. Lets remember how the Nazi's lied and tricked their population into war. Lets remember how the Nazi's used propaganda to create their "enemies". Lets remember the torture, the loss of rights, and the willingness of the population to give up their humanity as a necessary consequence of war.
You're a good Brownshirt, a sycophant, a lemming. So were Manson's followers.
Now you have something in common with hippies.
Foreclosures weighing in.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/industries/realestate/stories/040607dnbusforeclose.3....
Home values, sales prices are expected to sag throughout North Texas
12:13 AM CDT on Friday, April 6, 2007
By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
stevebrown@dallasnews.com
Foreclosure signs are popping up in front of thousands of Dallas-Fort Worth homes for sale this spring.
Besides signaling potential bargains for buyers, a growing number of foreclosure signs in your neighborhood could mean softer residential values.
"I'm finding more of them when I look at the listings in a neighborhood for comparable prices," said Carrollton real estate agent Wendy Hulkowich. "The foreclosure market is definitely affecting our listing price comps" – how agents decide to value homes.
That means when foreclosed homes hit the market at a discounted price, they can trigger lower appraisals for nearby properties. It's no wonder that home foreclosures in North Texas are starting to weigh on the entire housing market. Dallas-Fort Worth has one of the highest home foreclosure volumes of any area of the country.
Last year, lenders foreclosed on more than 18,000 homes in the D-FW area, according to research by Foreclosure Listing Service Inc. During the same period, about 38,000 single-family homes were listed for sale in the multiple listing services. Currently, about 6 percent of the MLS listings in North Texas are identified as former foreclosures. But those numbers don't include nearly all of the repossessed properties, agents say.
Housing analysts are keeping an eye on the situation and expect to see the higher foreclosure volumes reflected in overall sales prices.
"I think the price impact will start showing up this year," said James Gaines, an economist with Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center who tracks housing markets in the state.
"In subdivisions where foreclosures may run as high as 20 percent or more, we can anticipate not just a slowdown in price increases, but price declines and perhaps significant – greater than 5 percent – price declines."
The good news is that unlike the late 1980s slump, home foreclosures haven't been concentrated in particular areas of the city. A study of April's foreclosure postings shows a wide distribution of homes facing forced sale.
"I don't think there is as much risk to the market as we had 20 years ago," said longtime Dallas real estate analyst Ron Witten. "In some neighborhoods, you will see a disruption of prices in the short term."
But if home foreclosures continue to rise – they are up 15 percent so far in 2007 – the resale of these properties will put a damper on home appreciation.
That's more likely to be the case if lenders decide they need to more quickly unload the thousands of homes they are now holding.
So far they aren't dumping foreclosures, agents who sell the properties say.
"They are cutting prices, but so far not a lot," said Connie Zetterlund, a Dallas residential agent who specializes in sales of foreclosed homes. "But because of what is in the pipeline, I think we will be seeing some price cuts.
"When a neighborhood has so many foreclosures, they have to do something to sell the properties."
Getting the homes out of their hands takes time. Agents said that it can be two to four months after a property is sold at foreclosure before it comes up for sale.
"They are hanging onto the properties longer," said Ms. Hulkowich. "They are overpriced.
"Once in a blue moon you can actually find a good deal on a foreclosure property."
She estimates that the foreclosed homes she sees on the market have been discounted from 11 percent to 14 percent to start. But many of the houses need expensive repairs, Ms. Hulkowich said.
Ms. Zetterlund said the lenders she works with who are selling higher-priced homes are more willing to spend money to fix them up.
"But at the lower end, they often won't," she said.
The average home foreclosed on in the D-FW last year was valued at about $145,000, according to Foreclosure Listing Service. That tracks with the average pre-owned home sales price in the area last year.
The breakdown
Collin County had the highest average foreclosed home value at $185,197.
The largest number of foreclosures – about 8,600 homes – was in Dallas County. Tarrant County was second, with about 5,600 homes foreclosed on by lenders.
About 44 percent of the homes posted for foreclosure in 2006 were actually sold at auction to the lender.
Only about 7 percent of the foreclosure auction sales went to third-party buyers who bought the house on the courthouse steps, Foreclosure Listing Service found.
The top lenders taking back properties are all banks.
Wells Fargo Bank, Deutsche Bank, Bank of New York, U.S. Bank and Chase Home Financial had the largest number of home foreclosures during the first quarter of 2007, according to public records surveyed by Foreclosure Listing Service. In the first quarter, these five lenders alone foreclosed on almost 2,000 D-FW area homes.
"The subprime lenders deserve some of the bad rap," said George Roddy, chief executive of Foreclosure Listing Service. "But the foreclosures are widespread among regular lenders.
"A lot of it is home equity loans and second liens."
In some cases the companies foreclosing on the homes just service the mortgages and didn't originally make the loans.
Lenders insist they plan to dispose of their foreclosed homes in an orderly fashion.
"Wells Fargo works closely with local Realtors to understand the local markets in which we have properties listed for sale," Helen K. Bow, a spokeswoman in Wells Fargo's Houston office, said in an e-mail.
"Realtors provide market information that we then use to inform our investors and to make appropriate changes in the marketing of those properties.
"This helps to ensure that we consider the uniqueness of each market and the impacts to the community."
Officials with Fannie Mae, the country's largest source of mortgage funding, say they are working in markets all over the country to make sure the foreclosures they sell don't add to the housing sector's problems.
"We have an economic interest in what is going on in these communities," said Jason Allnut, a vice president for credit loss management with Fannie Mae. "We have lots of loans that are performing right next to our foreclosed assets."
Fannie Mae knows that if it poorly handles its foreclosed houses it can be a drag on the rest of the neighborhood, Mr. Allnut said. And not just because of pricing.
"Foreclosures can – if let alone – be a huge negative impact on a community – not just from a home price perspective," he said. "If you don't secure a home and don't get it back on the market with people living in it, it can become a magnet for crime.
"That's the last thing we want to be doing in these communities."
The Department of Housing and Urban Development currently has about 500 foreclosed homes for sale in the Dallas area.
After pricing the homes and putting them on the market, HUD may mark the price down in 45 days if it hasn't sold, said HUD spokesman Lemar Wooley. If that doesn't work, the home price can be cut again.
"The initial list price is based upon the 'as is' appraised value of a property," Mr. Wooley said. "Approximately 76 percent of our properties are listed at any given time."
But some owners of foreclosed homes may decide to "cut and run" as their inventories of foreclosed homes grow, said William Brueggeman, chairman of the real estate department at SMU's Cox School of Business.
Maybe not as bad
Dr. Brueggeman saw firsthand the impact of lenders dumping foreclosed homes in Texas in the late 1980s.
"I don't see things this time getting that bad," Dr. Brueggeman said. "It's certainly going to flatten things.
"I wouldn't be looking for too much home appreciation," he said. "The entry-level homes are going to see more of the brunt."
Many economists are still optimistic that the overall housing market can shrug off the flood of foreclosures.
"Unlike the 1980s, the general economy is good and housing demand remains relatively strong," said Dr. Gaines. "Job growth is positive, unemployment is low, households are earning more income, and mortgage interest rates are low and may go even lower this year."
Another ingredient for this disaster recipe.
Say your ARM is about to reset, and you decide to move to a fixed mortgage, you need to get your home appraised for its current value.
But now your local housing market is flooded with homes for sale, and no buyers. Your home value is now less than the original loan amount. The bank is only going to lend you the amount of the appraisal, you'll need to cover the rest yourself, or with a second note.
And the chain reaction begins.
The Charles Manson Defense?
Charlie didnt actually wield the knife in the Tate murders, he just convinced enough people that the murders were necessary.
What did the Iraqi people do to us to deserve having 500lbs bombs dropped on them from 30,000 ft? Or have cruise missles go off course into crowed market places?
I remember your 30 odd posts about infanticide.
One man's infanticide is another man's collatoral damage I guess.
Wisconson foreclosure expansion.
Its happening everywhere it seems.
http://www.channel3000.com/money/11551139/detail.html
Point taken Len.
I guess I should have refined my statement to first and second world countries.
As far as the civilized world goes, Cheney/Bush have been out classed as mass murders.
They are at least in the top 5, even including African warlords.
This guy protested, America hater?
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/04/07/MNGTTP4OGN1.DTL
THE FEW. THE PROUD. THE DISILLUSIONED.
Conflict in Iraq: Some active duty troops, while proud to serve, are speaking out and signing a petition against the war
Joe Garofoli, Chronicle Staff Writer
Mike Ergo is a 23-year-old honorably discharged Marine who fought in Fallujah. A tattoo on the inside of his left forearm depicts the first insurgent he killed in Iraq. A tattoo on his right arm reads: "Born to Fight." He loves the Marines, is proud of what he and his colleagues did overseas and is on inactive ready reserve through July 2009.
Yet a few weeks ago, the Walnut Creek native marched near the front of the anti-war demonstration that rolled through San Francisco. Yeah, he said, it felt odd to march among the 9/11 conspiracy theorists and socialists. Still, Ergo said he'd march again to underscore his opposition to U.S. foreign policy in Iraq and would try to bring more than the handful of Iraq War veterans who demonstrated with him last month.
But Ergo knows that the number of soldiers who publicly oppose the war is likely to remain small for now. A chief reason: Unlike the men drafted into military service during the Vietnam War, those fighting in Iraq are volunteers and feel obligated to be patriotic defenders of post-9/11 soil.
Yet a few signs of dissent are appearing in the military aside from conscientious objectors and newly realized pacificists. Last month, a career chief master sergeant in the Air Force wrote an opinion piece in the military newspaper Stars and Stripes opposing the war, and a busload of retired veterans and civilian activists toured military bases in the South, hoping to coax more support from active duty soldiers. Over the past month, more than 1,700 soldiers have signed an online Appeal for Redress -- www.appealforredress.org -- a legally sanctioned way for members of the military to oppose the war.
A couple of underground publications like GI Special at www.militaryproject.org, have sprung up online, and supportive troops have clandestinely dropped hard copies inside military barracks.
Last week, retired Marine Corps Lt. Col. Andrew Horne, who served in the Persian Gulf two years ago, rebutted President Bush's weekly radio address.
Said Horne: "The commander-in-chief has failed to properly lead the troops, and previous Congresses didn't ask the tough questions or demand accountability. The result is the mess we are in today."
These inside-the-fortress expressions of opposition are almost always prefaced with words of respect for the military, of their comrades' patriotic service to their country.
This rhetorical approach is far different from the widespread protests and defiant sloganeering of the '60s and '70s. By the Vietnam War's end, more than 100 underground newspapers were published by anti-war soldiers, and thousands of soldiers had participated in peace demonstrations. Peaceniks established a network of off-base coffeehouses in military towns, giving GIs and peace activists a place to interact casually and foment more opposition to the war.
While opinion polls today show that a majority of Americans oppose the war, "95 percent of Americans haven't been touched by the war. It's not that they don't care," said Air Force Chief Master Sgt. Jeff Slocum, who wrote the Stars and Stripes opinion column supporting the online petition against the war.
But few uniformed opponents have surfaced. Iraq Veterans Against the War, an organization for uniformed opposition, gets only 10 new members a week. The 1,700-plus vets who signed the online petition are a fraction of the 1.5 million who have been deployed in the war on terrorism.
"It would be a tremendous boost to have more active duty demonstrating," said Cherie Eichholz, a veteran and an organizer with Veterans for Peace, "because they have firsthand knowledge of what's going on over there on the ground, and they have a credibility with the public because of their service."
Eichholz, who volunteered for the Army after the Sept. 11 attacks and was discharged after being injured in training, said some vets' peace groups are changing their strategy.
Last month, she was part of a convoy of 25 activists and retired vets who toured military bases in the South as part of a trial effort to aggressively court uniformed opponents. They handed out 5,000 copies of the Appeal for Redress and got a few dozen returned in days. The document states: "As a patriotic American proud to serve the nation in uniform, I respectfully urge my political leaders in Congress to support the prompt withdrawal of all American military forces and bases from Iraq. Staying in Iraq will not work and is not worth the price." The numbers might seem minuscule, Eichholz said, but she is encouraged by the hundreds of off-duty conversations she has had with young soldiers -- so much so that her organization is planning four similar caravans to tour towns near U.S. militaryinstallations this summer.
But the limited expression of anti-war support among the military "just shows that the overwhelming majority of guys are in favor of the mission in Iraq," said Navy Lt. Jason Nichols. An information technology specialist stationed in Iraq, Nichols is asking soldiers to sign an online petition called Appeal for Courage, www. appealforcourage.org, that supports the mission and opposes the Redress appeal. "Most of them (who oppose the war) can't answer the question: So what do we do now?"
Speaking out can be costly, especially for career soldiers. Two weeks after he wrote the Stars and Stripes column, Slocum decided to retire in October, long before he had planned.
"I got to thinking that I don't know if I can continue to wear two hats," said Slocum, 41, a veteran of 21 years in the service who is stationed near Fayetteville, N.C. He began opposing the war after disclosures that the United States went to war based on faulty intelligence. His peers told him to find a way to support the war. "That would be OK," he said, "if I didn't know what I already know."
Ergo, the Marine, believes another factor is behind this reticence: Many returning soldiers are still too overwhelmed with the effects of post-traumatic stress syndrome, one of the war's signature wounds -- including him. Ergo was diagnosed with the condition shortly after leaving the service in 2005.
For months after he returned home, a never-ending clip of the men he saw die and of those he killed reeled through his mind. He enrolled in Diablo Valley College, but within months he was missing class. He'd start driving to school, then turn around, afraid of the people he'd have to deal with there.
"It was this impending sense of something big was about to happen," he said. "The feeling I'd got when we were about to go into combat. I was afraid of dealing with people who would say something against the war, or make me angry. I was afraid of flipping out and maybe hurting someone."
He began regularly seeing a counselor last fall and began feeling better. At the same time, he began to read more about the government's reasons for invading Iraq. He started communicating with vets he found on a MySpace page for the Iraq Veterans Against the War.
"It's hard enough to deal with the experiences that went on in Iraq, let alone to have opinions on it," Ergo said. "When people come back, they'd rather just move on and not remember all that stuff. And not try to live in the past.
"And if you don't live by a vet center, you might just sit around, listen to music and drink. It can definitely be a downward spiral," he said.
His opinion of the war changed shortly after November 2004, when he was involved in fierce house-to-house searches for insurgents in Fallujah. He would kick in doors and often see an insurgent shooting at him from close range. Iraqi women and children would walk down the street, and insurgents would maneuver among the citizens, using them as shields.
The tension was emotionally exhausting.
"You're spending your days driving around the highways looking for people who are hiding, and they blow you up from a mile away with a remote detonator," he said. "Or they shoot at you from a building and put their weapon down and walk through the streets. And if you kill someone, you could potentially turn that town against you whether it's justified or not."
He came out publicly against the war after returning home.
"I was turned off by the apathy of all the people in this area, Walnut Creek, and other upper-middle-class communities who thought things were going fine or are so removed from the war," he said. "Like the people I was going to school with (Diablo Valley College) were just worried about what's on "TRL," MTV's "Total Request Live" program.
Ergo plans to talk about his experience in schools and to speak before other organizations. He is not a counter-recruiter; he urges people to "do their research" before they enlist. And he understands that many active duty soldiers won't speak out.
"They don't want to be associated with a movement they see as entirely leftist or irrational or hippies from Berkeley or San Francisco," he said. "But once people see us on the news, maybe they'll say, 'Hey, that guy has a short haircut, he looks like he could still be in. He wears tucked-in shirts. He doesn't have long hair.' "
Ergo doesn't have to look far to see his own wounds from the war. The man whose face flashes in his mind is tattooed on his left forearm. It reminds him how much he and other soldiers -- and Iraqis -- have sacrificed in this war.
"I have to see it," Ergo said. "So I want everyone else to see it, too."
Words are a powerful thing.
I can see why they bother you. Many on Right would probably like to see these people arrested for voicing their dissent.
Too bad most of what they are saying is correct.
The Cheney-Bush Military Company are responsible for more death in the world than anyone else this century. A very nice way to distinguish yourself.
Not many words to describe what you and the Right stand for, so I chose a picture that doesnt need words. War is easy, its peace that is difficult.
"Do not even compare the Republican response to Bosnia to what the left has done."
Huh? What has the 'left' done? What happened to giving the soldiers in our military a fighting chance, a clear mission, and an exit strategy?
The rest of the stuff you said couldnt be more nebulous.
"To establish a representative democracy in the Middle East."
How are our soldiers supposed to do that? Where do they get this kind of training? How is this a clear objective?
"Maintain a military presence in the region.(Even Hillary understands this)"
We already have a military presence, and since when did you go around using Hillary Clinton to support your positions? I despise Hillary Clinton, not as much as I despise Boy George, but enough that I'll never vote for her.
"Support moderate leaders that want to leave the middle ages behind."
Like Saudi Arabia? Give me a break.
Heres the point OTC. I dont want our kids getting killed in Iraqs civil war, period. They cant win. There is no military solution to this problem. Sacrificing our soldiers to patrol the streets of a country that does not want them there is sickening, pure and simple.
We have been there for 4 years now, and we have accomplished absolutely nothing.
OTC,
Your 'macro' point is granted.
But this is not what our military is designed or trained for. We, as citizens of this country, have a duty to make sure our soldiers have a clear mission, and clear objectives.
For a long time I thought Conservatives had learned the lessons of Vietnam. The mission must be clear, and you MUST have an exit strategy.
Go back and the look at what the Republicans said about Bosnia. Exit strategy. They demanded it every step of the way.
Now we put these kids, and yes they are heros, in an untenable position, without a clear mission, and without an exit strategy. What is our goal in Iraq? I honestly dont know anymore.
"waive the white flag of surrender"
Not trying to be third man in on this one, but I think this is where the right is missing their own success.
We got rid of the WMD's (actually they never existed, but you get my point)
We got rid of Saddam.
We helped the Iraqi government hold elections, and establish a democracy (sort of).
We have poured billions of dollars into the country and sacrificed thousands of American lives.
We won. Bush won. So they want civil war. Let them kill each other, and we can sit on the outskirts and make sure the thing is contained.
How is this surrendering? We kicked ass. (rah rah, go team!)
Why should we sacrifice another American soldier in Iraq's civil war? Our guys are heros.
What more do we want from them?
Declare victory (again) and bring the guys home.
"America needs a good dose of c-c-c-c-courage"
I think Bobby Keith, whoever he is, needs a good dose of courage.
The military is in great need of people like Bobby to go over and stand in the middle of civil war.
Sign up Bobby. Show some c-c-c-courage.
"What has happened to us?"
We all realized that the person giving the speech was a total friggin idiot, thats what happened.
The blond chick is cute.
And I dont think Rosie is totally off base.
I'll repeat what I have been saying about this stuff for the past 4 years, once the government starts playing the secrets game, the conspiracy theories only gather steam.
She is dead on about the run up to the war though.
Priceless
Fence firm hired illegals
http://www.washingtontimes.com/national/20070330-124512-2035r.htm
The head of a California company hired by the U.S. government to help build a fence along the Southwest border to curb the flow of illegal aliens into the United States has been sentenced on charges of hiring illegals for the job.
Mel Kay Jr., 64, founder, chairman and president of the Golden State Fence Co., pleaded guilty in December in federal court in San Diego to felony charges of hiring the illegals and was sentenced Wednesday to six months home confinement, three months probation and 1,040 hours of community service.
Michael McLaughlin, 42, manager of the company's Oceanside, Calif., office, who also pleaded guilty in December to charges of hiring illegals, was sentenced to six months home confinement.
U.S. District Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz in San Diego also ordered Kay to pay a $200,000 fine as part of a plea agreement, while McLaughlin was fined $100,000.
"Prosecution is long overdue in this area," Judge Moskowitz said at sentencing. "Honestly, the government's efforts have been at the border, not with the employer. Obviously, the government has signaled a change with this case."
Judge Moskowitz, in explaining his decision not to impose a possible maximum sentence of five years in prison, said a company "that pays top dollar and did not get a competitive advantage, should receive different treatment."
He said the court could not ignore the background of "hardworking people who treated others fairly. Contrary to the vast majority of people who hire illegal immigrants, there was no abuse [here]."
The company, which built more than a mile of a 15-foot-high fence near the Otay Mesa border crossing in the San Diego area to protect against illegal immigration, agreed separately to pay $5 million on a misdemeanor count -- one of the largest penalties ever imposed on an employer for immigration violations.
Golden State Executive Vice President Gary Hansen said the company was "grateful" the judge chose probationary sentences rather than incarceration.
"Mel and Mike are hardworking men who have worked all their lives to make a better life for themselves and the people around them," Mr. Hansen said. "Their acts were not egregious, nor were they exploitive to the undocumented workers. We believe the court recognized the strength of their character when making its decision."
Golden State was notified in writing in July 1999 that at least 15 of its employees at its Oceanside office were discovered to be illegal aliens following a visit by agents from the now-defunct U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service. At that time, Golden State executives said they were terminating the illegal workers, but in September 2004, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents found that 49 Golden State employees at the Oceanside office were illegal aliens.
Three of those employees were identified as being among the illegal workers listed in the 1999 notice.
In November 2005, ICE agents seized evidence at the company's offices in Oceanside and Riverside, Calif., showing that the two offices had engaged in a pattern of hiring illegal aliens. From September 2004 to September 2005, agents said, Golden State hired more than 10 illegal workers listed in the 1999 and 2004 notices.
The guilty pleas followed a multiyear investigation by ICE.
"This settlement and guilty plea clearly show that employers who knowingly and blatantly hire illegal workers will pay dearly for such transgressions," Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Julie L. Myers, who heads ICE, said at the time.
Golden State currently employs more than 700 workers at eight locations throughout Southern California.
Citibank Chief: Market Correction Looms
Full disclosure: Other than significant PUTS on the housing sector and some junior gold stocks, I am in an all cash position
A market correction is coming, this time for real
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/06246766-dd93-11db-8d42-000b5df10621.html
By William Rhodes
Published: March 29 2007 03:00 | Last updated: March 29 2007 03:00
The recent market turmoil should not have been un-expected. We are living in an increasingly interdependent world. Times have been good, even with the volatility of the past few weeks sparked by the Shanghai market and then fuelled by the subprime sector in the US. We have been living in extraordinary times in a global "Goldilocks" economy - not too hot, not too cold. The macro-economy still looks pretty good but the shaking of the trees over the past few weeks has, it is to be hoped, awakened investors and lenders to the risks in the marketplace.
High growth in emerging markets continues, as exemplified by the tremendous growth in China and India. Western and eastern Europe are growing. The Russian economy, driven by energy, has been strengthened well beyond what was expected a few years ago. The Middle Eastern oil-exporting countries are going through a boom fuelled by oil and gas: it is different from earlier periods of high oil prices because this time a substantial amount of the money is staying in the region, rather than being invested elsewhere as in the 1970s.
Africa is in many ways going through something of an economic renaissance. The Japanese economy also has improved and the US locomotive has continued, maintaining good growth of more than 3 per cent in 2006 notwithstanding the downward revision of fourth-quarter growth from 3.5 to 2.2 per cent.
However, much of the good news has come as a result of extraordinary levels of liquidity pouring into opportunities around the globe. To a large extent this is due to the Federal Reserve's expansionary monetary policies early in the decade and the US administration's fiscal stimulus. The yen carry trade has also facilitated the buoyant expansion of investments and leverage evident everywhere today. The low spreads, the tremendous build-up of liquidity, the reach for yield and the lack of differentiation among borrowers have stimulated both dynamic growth and some real concerns.
Pockets of excess are becoming harder to ignore. Problems in the housing and mortgage area such as the subprime sector in the US are one such example of excess that should come as no surprise. As lenders and investors inevitably become more discriminating, liquidity will recede and a number of problems will surface. Too many countries and companies with vastly different risk profiles are still commanding similar pricing.
It has been my experience that periods of economic expansion tend to last between five and seven years. We are entering the sixth year of expansion in the US. Against that background, I believe that over the next 12 months a market correction will occur and this time it will be a real correction. I said as much last spring during the Inter-American Development Bank meetings in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. Soon afterwards, in May 2006, the markets did experience a correction but it was so mild and short-lived that it was in a way less effective than no correction at all. I say that because it left the inexperienced with the impression that it would be smooth sailing from there on.
Market developments in the past few weeks should be seen as a warning. What has been evident for a number of months is that, in the US, we are seeing lagging inflation and slower growth. Whether this means that we are going to have to fend off recessionary tendencies is not yet clear. However, what is clear to me is that in the next year a material correction in the markets will occur.
During the last big adjustment that started in July 1997 in Thailand and spread to a number of Asian economies including South Korea, followed by Russia in 1998 - and led ultimately to the bail-out of Long Term Capital Management, the US hedge fund - a number of today's large market operat-ors were not yet in the mix.
Today, hedge funds, private equity and those involved in credit derivatives play important, and as yet largely untested, roles. The primary worry of many who make or regulate the market is not inflation or growth or interest rates, but instead the coming adjustment and the possible destabilising effect these new players could have on the functioning of international markets as liquidity recedes. It is also possible that they could provide relief for markets that face shortages of liquidity.
Either way, this clearly is the time to exercise greater prudence in lending and in investing and to resist any temptation to relax standards.
Playing Devil's advocate
Now that Iran has captured 15 British 'enemy combatants', I assume the right supports Iran torturing them, and holding them indefinately without charges.
Sorry, but I have been waiting for the opportunity. It was only a matter of time.
I'm a big fan of Peyton Manning.
And this is too funny.
http://www.glumbert.com/media/peyton