Mondays Missives

my cubicle in the Al Anbar office. Click to enlarge

• My house sets only about 12 miles from the weather station for my area so reports are generally dead on- as in when the weather says a cold front will move through at around noon- you could set your watch by that.








• I've scared a couple of people with stories of the horrors I was associated with in Iraq and this is part of the reason some of my closest friends haven't heard the worst.








• We called being there being Downrange.








• I don't understand how an author/historian could ever attempt to alter history to bend to their views. For instance, just this morning on the histroy channel site there was a sentence that read to the effect regarding the Battle Of The Bulge: "Nazi atrocities abounded during this period including the murder of 72 American prisoners of war at Malmedy." I don't know where to start with this statement but, the Malmedy Massacre as it has become known as far as I know is now regarded by every historian on both sides as a horrible, unfortuante event that started with the shooting of a few escaping prisoners which devolved into a mass escape attempt by the Americans who believed they were being executed without cause. The shooting of an escaping POW was both legal and engaged in by all parties 100% of the time. Early in the war though the Germans were known for their magnanimity in dealing with
  American casualties and prisoners which surprised and often had a deep impact on US GIs because of the German reputation for fierceness in battle. The German forces would often be the first to broker battlefield deals to allow casualty collection and body removal- even when they had the upper hand. Medics would report their surprise they could move through a hail of fire as if they were invisible- they were simply not being targeted by the German soldiers. One incident which did work toward changing the way Germans acted on the battlefield though was the murder of two German medics who had commandeered an American jeep and were rushing a wounded German and American soldier back to their field hospital. The American soldiers shot both of the medics and dumped the wounded German in a ditch to die. The term "Nazi soldiers" is also perjorative and a bit misleading- it was a political party that until late in the war most soldiers were prohibited from belonging.





• Contiue to be curious about the controversy surrounding President Obamas color. He is half white and was not exactly raised in the ghetto.





• I think it would be easy to perceive that he will be able to do nothing right because so much is expected of him and he has so many problems to deal with but, I think the truth will be unless he really steps on something he will be viewed as if he could do no wrong.





• When I first got out on my own I think it was generally accepted it was cheaper to eat well and healthy than not- I believe the opposite is true today.