Great news from the President last night: we’re absolutely, positively, sure-as-shit getting the hell out of Afghanistan. And, as Phil Collins once sang, “we’ve gotta get in to get out.” So, time for 30,000 more of our friends, neighbors, sons, and daughters to get in. Not all of them will be getting out, unfortunately, but if you wanna make an omelet, you gotta break a few eggs, right? Lots of these expendable eggs will be coming from my neck of the woods – Fort Drum, which is about an hour north of me in the now infamous NY 23rd District (not sure if Doug Hoffman knows that or not). Ft. Drum is the home of the 10th Mountain Division (which had the honor of being the “most deployed” army division of the 1990s, and has endured multiple deployments and suffered large numbers of casualties in “Operation Enduring Freedom”), whose mission it is to train to fight in terrain like Afghanistan (not that Watertown, NY is exactly Afghanistan, but it’s pretty rural, gets damn cold in the winter, and has lots of trees and mountains (not exactly the Rockies, of course, but having humped a camping backpack up and down them myself, I’d just as soon not have to carry 120 lbs of military equipment around in them – especially if people were shooting at me). But at least we a have a firm deadline of July 2011 for withdrawal. Well, not a deadline, really. More like a “goal.” And, of course, it’s “tied to events on the ground.” And there’s no actual defined number of troops that will begin withdrawing in 2011. But we’ll pull out in time – “honest, honey.”
After all, as the President pointed out, the number of troops in Afghanistan has paled in comparison to the number in Iraq. So, we need to even all that out. Oh, I suppose we could do that by pulling our guys and gals out of Iraq instead of sending more of them off to die in Afghanistan, but that wouldn’t have been very manly, and Republicans would’ve taunted the President mercilessly. Not now, though – just ask Karl Rove, who said he’d be:
“among the first to stand up and applaud” the President for a troop increase.
…I am glad the president will finally provide General McChrystal with the troops he needs
Hey, if geniuses like Karl Rove and Michael Steele think this is a good thing, it must be. Mustn’t it?
Oh, sure, surrender monkeys like Russ Feingold and Dennis Kucinich aren’t happy, but those guys are always going on about stupid shit like peace and universal health care and whatnot.
As many Obama true believers have pointed out, this decision was “very hard,” and you certainly can’t argue with that. Our last great War President told us being the preznit was “hard work,” after all, and it was one of the few things he ever said that had the ring of truth to it.
For me, though, President Obama’s new master plan for Afghanistan evokes the words of the last generation’s great American War President, Lyndon Johnson, who, in 1966 (when there were “only” 200,000 US troops in Vietnam) said:
Some people ask if we are caught in a blind escalation of force that is pulling us headlong toward a wider war that no one wants. The answer—again—is a simple no…. There is not, and there will not be, a mindless escalation.
Amen, and “…God Bless you, God Bless our troops, and may God Bless the United States of America.”
Actually, it was originally Peter Gabriel, not Phil Collins. “The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway,” which “The Carpet Crawlers” is taken from, was the last album Gabriel did before he left Genesis. Collins took over vocals after that.
And yes, I do feel like a dork for knowing this.
But I would feel like much more of a dork if I told you that I touched Peter Gabriel when I saw him touring behind his second solo album. He was walking through the bleachers in the Kent State gym singing a song during the middle of his set, and he walked right by where I was sitting, so I touched him.
(Not like THAT, you pervs.)
Actually, I knew that Peter Gabriel had written it (or, I was pretty sure he’d written it, but couldn’t find anything real quick like this morning where he was credited specifically), but I thought Phil Collins did the lead vocals on it, and Pete played keyboards and did backing vocals (but maybe that was on the re-release). So I was hedging my bets. Originally, I wrote, “as Peter Gabriel once wrote,” but then figured some smarty pants would call me out on it.
Turns out, I got called out on it anyway. That’ll teach me.
All I know is, Phil Collins may be “popular,” but Peter Gabriel outshines him in every way (except hair; they’re even on that score).
I think it was on at least one of the live albums they released after Gabriel left, so obviously Collins would have been the singer on those. I want to say it was on Seconds Out, but I can’t remember because that was around the time I started taping Genesis albums off the radio or by borrowing them from a friend. My money went toward Peter Gabriel albums instead. More worthy use of funds.
New York lawmakers have rejected a bill to legalize gay marriage.
The Senate decision Wednesday comes after months of delays and arm twisting of lawmakers sympathetic to the bill but representing conservative districts. It follows a referendum in Maine earlier this month that struck down a gay marriage law before it took effect.
Advocates say they aren’t surprised by the decision. Most, including Gov. David Paterson, say they at least wanted a floor debate and vote.
Gay marriage is legal in Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont. A New Hampshire law takes effect Jan. 1.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/12/02/gay-marriage-in-new-york-_0_n_377020.html
I’ve long thought that marriage should be the exclusive province of the church, mosque, synagogue etc and that domestic partnerships, of whatever combination of genders, should be legally recognized and convey all the rights and privileges now given married couples. Marriage should have a religious connotation only.
This is probably the last place on the internet that needs a plug for Marc but his latest show with “guest DJ Chupacabra” got seriously into Morning Sedition territory as far as the funny. Partially scripted I’m sure but a lot of improv and laughs. :rofl2: