militaryhistory

Over the last couple of weeks, we have seen Israel actively assault Hamas militants in Gaza. There are very mixed reactions to Israels actions in Gaza. Though if one lived in southern Israel, I think the answer to their reaction would be much clearer. Imagine you live in the far north suburbs of Chicago, and a militant faction in Wisconsin was launcing rockets into your hometown. It s highly probable that one would expect the Ilinois National Guard, if not the US Military to stop the activity. In the case of the present situation in Gaza, Israel has in fact been a target of extremists groups since its inception.

Ideally, the ultimate resoluton should be a diplomatic one. All hostilities should cease, all warfare stopped and all weapons silenced, however, diplomatic solutions have been tried repeatedly and failed in violence and bloodshed. And it seems that somewhere out there a program exists with an agenda to destroy Israel and to destroy western interests worldwide, and no one knows for sure what would replace democracy, should the west fall.

So it is with this in mind, that one must examine history for an answer. But what is the question? The question is “how can we finally stop the violence in the mideast”? Considering that organizations such as Hamas and Hezbolah have continued to utilize violence as the means to the ends, when in fact, the end result has now been more violence on a grand scale. Yes, Violence committed by a “standing army”, being the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). An action that many people of come to dread and fear. There is probably nothing more freightening that being invaded by an organized and well armed miltary force. This however has been a fact for many throughout history, war is war, and in the words of General W.T. Sherman, “war is all hell”.

So now the question is “how do we define victory”? A study of military history provides an easy and definitive answer. Victory is the result of surrender, or “capitualtion or inihaltion of a military opponent.  So the answer becomes that Hamas must surrender, for the good Gaza, for the good of its own people, for the rebuilding of its state and the safety of its children, Hamas must surrender. Like the Japanese in world war two, Hamas has the chance to be honorable, to show the world that it cares about all of our childen, to show that they desire real peace, that they desire to be a good neighbor to Israel, that they desire to see their young people live and not to be used as walking time bombs. Surrender is an option.

Israel is once again moving troops in its own defense. An increase in rockets attacks against Israel as prompted the Israeli military to conduct pre-assault air strikes against key Hamas targets softening the underbelly of another terrorist organization. The IDF(Israeli Defense Forces) has activated approximately two brigades and put 6500 reservists on alert.

Hamas and the Palastinian cause has failed to recognize the favorable position that they were in, after the Gaza was turned over to them by the Israeli government. Hamas fails to realize that it is in violation of the laws of common sense. The civilized world militaries follow rules of engagement and laws of war under the various world agreements and only egage enemies when given the authority to do so. Hamas follows no rules and fails to create constructive dialouge that could be the foundation for real peace in their region.

The main philosophy of extremists in the region, including Hamas and Iran are based on a doctrine of the destruction and removal of Israel from the region. Hamas is the key of the Iranian influence in the Gaza, a fact which is widely understood by Israel and the United States. The  doctrine of destruction is nothing short of unreasonable and unrealistic. Israel is a democratic entity in the middle east and a will be supported by the United States in the most tenuous of situations. Hamas must realize this and stop the bloodshed, display the white flag and meet on the field of honor like men to negotiate a true peace. There is no dishonor in peace, there is no dishonor in saving the lives of your children and there is no dishonor in breaking bread with your enemies for a greater good.

I was sad to see yet another story of suicide in the army. It was reported that at least four army recruiters from the same brigade had committed suicide over a four year period. All were Veterans of Iraq. According to the story, the recruiting command was pushing unrealistic quotas and a work agenda that may have added to the stress.  But one thing that stood out in their pattern of stress, was the alledged abuse from people that they encountered, particularly the over protective parents of young perspective recruits.

The young widow of one soldier/recruiter had reported that her husband had experienced open hostility from parents, and that she felt that this most definetly added to what he was already feeling. The end result was that he went to his garage where he hung himself with a dog leash. Not a fitting end for a soldier, veteran and servant to our country.

The present world situation is very tragic in many ways. In my opinion, the most tragic part is the fact that the government failed to actively involve the American Citizen in the war on terrorism,  a war which is not over by any stretch of the imagination. When the Commander-in-Chiefs response to the disaster of 9/11 was to “go shopping”, all was lost to the terrorists. But perhaps Bush knew more about Americans than I realized. Perhaps going shopping is all the average citizen knows how to do, or wants to do.

After all, we hand off all of our problems to someone else, bury ourselves in instant gratification and find ways to increase our already overweight obese bodies. We have become a nation of enablers, a band of excuses, a sad example of humans, not a band of brothers. We expect to be coddled for our mistakes, set free when we commit crimes and take no real personal responsibility when we screw up.

A large majority of Americans have never served their country or their community. Many Americans do not even want to pay their fair share of taxes, and yet then they criticize those who have more courage than they do. They put down those who have paid the price so they can walk free and arrogant on the streets of the United States. We hide in our homes and try to ignor everyone elses problems. We think that just because a war is thousands of miles a way, that it should not involve us. Men like Adolf Hitler would have a field day with present day America.

So go ahead,  continue to hand off your problems to someone else. Go to McDonalds, get a Big Mac and enjoy your holiday. Thats what we brave ones want you to do. We want to see you happy and content, warm and safe in your houses and most of all we want you to go shopping. After all, we brave ones also love to go to Walmart, so your not alone there. But do me a favor, give a soldier or a recruiter a break. If you don’t want your family to go to war, have a discussion with your own. Don’t blame the soldier or the recruiter. He does’nt want to go to a war zone either, he just hopes that some of you will decide to take some responsibility and help out.

If you see a soldier or recruiter, thank him or her. Tell them that you appreciate what they do. Tell them that you pray for them and their families. Tell them that you pray every day for peace. This way, we can all get to Walmart and put some gifts under the tree.

By the way, I am in the Army National Guard, and my daughter is in the Regular Army. I am very proud of my family, you should be too.

Lemonade Nominee

I’m flattered that my blog has been nominated for the lemonade award. I have worked very hard on the blog, though I’m also very pleased to be writing. For many years, I desired to write and have that writing in the public eye. The internet has provided a medium for me to work in. The internet an avenue which has made it possible for me to learn and become a better Writer.

Thanks for the nomination

Gene

My Nominee’s are;

http://inquiringminds.today.com/

http://welcome2myworld.today.com/

http://creatinglife.today.com/

http://libertarianvegan.today.com/

http://conservativepolitics.today.com/

http://spinningfacts.today.com/

http://charslifeandtimes.today.com/

http://coolingstar9.today.com/

http://politicalanimal.today.com/

http://freelanceralph.today.com/

Dick Cheny is not the first Vice President to shoot someone while in office, the honor of being the first in this category goes to Aaron Burr, who was Thomas Jefferson’s VP. He shot Alexander Hamilton to death in a duel, and was severly criticized for being such a fool. Speaking of fools,  I’m damn near positive, that George W. Bush is the first US President to have a pair of shoes thrown at him, unless we count those Bill Clinton days when Monica flung off her high heels while being stimulated with a cigar. 

I was at work when another employee walked up to me and mentioned that GW had been assualted by a hostile Iraqi citizen with a pair of shoes, and he asked, “so whats with the shoes? When they first invaded Iraq, there was the video footage of Iraqis hitting Saddam Huseins statute on the ground with their shoes. Are the shoes some part of a daily ritual”?

I replied, well……mmmm, I guess it must be a cultural thing, Something akin to kicking a fool in the ass without going through the trouble of even raising your foot off the ground. Consider an attacking enemy who gets the whole foot, shoe and all, in the gut, right before the bayonet is driven into his chest. A fool just gets the shoe and nothing more. Or perhaps another interpretation might be, “hit the road jack, heres a pair of shoes to help you leave”.  I have personally experienced the later interpretation in arguments with my wife, and if I was telling an asshole to leave, I just might use the same technique.

But whatever the methodology used for the communication, the interpretation or the size and style of shoes used in the execution of the operation, the message is still the same. And one lone person, just some no account Iraqi Citizen, communicated in a more concise manner, in a few short seconds, than George Bush has in the last eight years. And that small fact is a very  sad thing to say about our Commander-in-Chief. But unfortunately, its time to leave, so lets all get on those shoes or those sand colored boots and get our troops home, or redeploy them to where they can be more effective against terrorsim. But either way, its time to let Iraq deal with her own problems. By the way, when I woke up this morning, the first thing I saw was a news story that indicated that several suspicious packages had been sent to Guard and Reserve Offices, some of which contained inert substances. We obviously have some homegrown issues to consider at this time.

It may be Christmas time, but  that’s not whats causing gun and ammunition dealers across United States to run out of stock and see sales doubling.Gun owners accross the nation are afraid that their rights of gun ownership will be threatned. Limits were placed on high-capacity clips and hand-guns, not to mention semiautomatic assault weapons under the presidency of Bill Clinton. The assault weapons ban became law in 1994. When it expired in 2004, President  Bush did not reinstate it.

The FBI is reporting that criminal background checks required to purchase a gun were up Forty One percent for  compared with the same period last year, and up forty nine percent the week that Obama was elected.The rise in firearm purchases since the election prompted the president-elect to reassure gun owners during a press conference a week ago that he won’t take away their weapons.

“I believe in common-sense gun safety laws and I believe in the Second Amendment,” Obama said. “And so lawful gun owners have nothing to fear. I said that throughout the campaign. I haven’t indicated anything different during the transition. I think people can take me at my word.”

But more than that, people do not feel safe at this time. They fear both the government itself and those who would seek to exploit others weaknesses, as the economy ceases to function correctly, jobs are lost and less food is available to those in need, crime rates wil surely soar.

The government has repeatedly lied to the people of the nation and now it appears to being seizing control of the financial systems, which has all the makings of a failed system. Words such as socialism and communism are flowing on talk radio and in social circles, as people are beginning to realize that the United States may not survive as we know it.

Rumors have been circulating for two or three years now, of the possibility of a one world government, backed by one currency and/or a hybrid north American currency, thus dragging down the United States as a national entity and stripping the country of status.

Adding to this, has been unchecked immigration and the minimalization of workforce pay and benefits, as many states adopt an “employee at will” doctrine, which essentially strips employees of any type of rights or due process when they speak out against injustice in the workplace, and face termination for the smallest of infractions. The end result being the destruction of the middle class and the inihaltion of a free market economy.

In the last few weeks, we have been witness to a historic change in political administration, which was followed by a very unusual threat from one of the elusive leaders of Al Queda. The threat was deeply insultive to president Elect Obama and if the threat is real, was also a slap in the face to the voters in the United States.  Adding to this pressure is the fact that the defacto leader of Afghanistan Ahmed Karzi is calling for a limitation of civilian casualties in the conflict. This in itself is a major aggravation in that the is the leadership in Afghanistan that has allowed a massive deterioration of their own political, social and religious foundations.

Pakistan is quickly becoming a haven for Islamic facism. Recent attacks in Mumbai and Pakistans refusal to cooperate with India to bring the perpetrators to justice surely places Pakistan in the number one slot of rouge nations. Adding to this is the recent attack on supply depots and the burning of 106 miltary vehicles that were scheduled to be sent into Afghanistan, many of which were Humvees that were to be issued to American troops on the ground. This act in itself would have historically been viewed as an act of war in other time periods of the past. But besides making the news, no official response from the US government has been issued.

On going news intelligence indicates increas an increase in military forces in Afghanistan is imminent. The situation on the ground in Afghanistan has been deteriorating and coupling this with recent events in Pakistan suggests that core terrorist activities are now centered in the Afghan and Pakistan areas, a place where the war on terrorism was began and perhaps the key to the entire conflict since 9/11.

Over the last few days we have been witness to another well coordinated attack by extremists in India. Reports indicate that hundreds have been killed and/or wounded. These attacks serve as a reminder that the world is indeed a very unsafe place during this time. The primary target(s) of these attacks were westerners.This fact unto itself is very unfortunate, as Americans just went to the polls and proved that this is the most compassionate, the most free and the best place in the world to raise a family. The last election is a direct indicator of how Americans view their neighbors, no matter what the race or religious background may be. When we went to the polls, we told these maniacs that “yes we hear you”, we know that our occupation of Iraq is wrong. We know that the continued push into your national politics is wrong. And yet, the extremists refuse to hear us. It seems that our message has fallen on deaf ears. This last fact can only mean that it is not the present situation in Iraq and Afghanistan that is causing the hostilities, or our bad foriegn policy that is driving the armed response that we have now recieved. It can only mean that these Islamic extremists have placed a price on the heads of westerners as a referendum on our way of life.

So what should our response be? How does a civilized society deal with this type of hostility? At this point, one can only think, that any further negotiation, any type of dialouge or any type of good will, can only serve to endanger westerners more than they already are. Should the political dialouge now include a larger armed response by the United States and her allies? And as for our allies who backed away, because of the war in Iraq, do they now know that this problem is not going to go away on its own? Do they now know that our way of life is truely endangered?

What these terrorist factions do not understand, is that the United States is still the sleeping tiger that it was prior to world war two. We are fighting the current terrorist threat with one hand tied behind our back. Should the United States decide to do something like activatng the draft, and the infrastructure for this is already in place through the selective service registration. The result of this would give the Army the ability to activate divisions of troops within a year of doing so, rather that field brigade size units. How would the Pakistani government feel if we sent two divisions into the country? Considering the fact that they are a countrty out of control, and most definetly in possession of nukes, no one the world community could blame the U.S for seizing control of a rouge nation that is armed with such weapons. At this time the dooms day clock as moved that much closer to midnight, it is the duty of the civilized world stop the threat by whatever means necessary.

Over the last few decades, there has been and overt effort to rewrite American history. Revisionists have made an effort to make the settlement of the north american continent by europeans a crime equal to the holocast against the jews. In one recent news story, a native american mother stated; “that having their school children wearing pilgrim hats and indian bonnents is the same as having them wear Nazi uniforms and jews wearing striped suits”. This position is not only  just a popular myth, but sadly misinformed. And when people make such statements, they reveal their own ignorance and lack of education. Most americans have never studied history in any form and take their information from media outlets and the opinions of other talking heads who fail to do complete primary sourceresearch to locate correct information. The truth about american settlement is not as simple as saying that whites were bad, and everyone alse was their victim. These uneducated blanket statements are in themselves racist in nature and fail to reveal the real truth.

The truth lies in the real research, and tells us that, yes in fact there was warfare between whites and native americans. However, long before whites arrived on the continent, there was ongoing warfare between native american tribes and very few examples of true cooperation between indigenous peoples. The biggest examples are the loose confederations of tribes such as the Illini confederation, which is a good example of daily living cooperation between tribes, Techumse’s Confederation which was a militaristic cooperation and the later cooperation of plains indians during th late 19th century. In a book (The Hunting Pioneers 172-1840 by Robert John Holden) the author Robert John Holden tells us that no matter what the circumstances, the lives of native americans were going to change.  Holdens book explains that the downfall of the native american was partly his own fault as well as that of white settlement. He gives us three primary reasons. The first is the fact that native americans never had a united front to stop or slow settlement, the second is their dependence upon trade goods. Native americans came to desire trade goods such has axes, metals pots and pans and firearms and lastly their own willingness to sign treaties for trade in goods and money.

What is not mentioned in popular history is the fact that a majority of land was not taken from the native american by conquest. It was however obtained through treaty (as mentioned by Holden) and payment to native americans. A good example of this concerns the Ojibway (Chippewa) people who live in northern Wisconsin. The Ojibway had settled in what is now the Apostle Islands area on Lake Superior. The Ojibway had fled there because they had been victimized by other tribes in tribal warfare and wished to live in peace. As white settlement began to spread into that area, various treaties were signed by the Ojibway in which they were literally given milions of dollars in monetary payments, as well as annuities in the form of goods and supplies. The Ojibway in northern Wisconsin take pride in this fact and live today in harmony with their white neighbors. They have also successfully maintained their tribal rights to fish and hunt and live as they wish. This they accomplished by utilizing the US court systems, and like any american citizen gained their rights by doing so. The only exception to this was the fact that they were not allowed to practice their religion for approximately ninety years. This too has turned around as better relations are fostered. This is the type of success story which should be presented as a good example, rather than continually beating the war drum of discontent.

The truth about Thanksgiving is that it is a celebration of success not of conquest. It is a reminder that we all need to be thankful for everyday that we all see the sun rise. It is a celebration of the fact that we can find common ground with anyone of any race, creed, color or religion.  It is a success story, not a story of failure and certainly not a story of crimes against humanity.

-Happy Thanksgiving

Most people think pirates are a thing of the distant past, live in Fairy Tales, wear a patch over one eye and sport a hook on one hand. At one time, part of this may have been true. Whats even more real,  is the fact that pirates still exist. Not only that, it seems they have never been a thing of the past.

In 1980, I was deployed in the Gulf during the Iran Hostage Crisis on board the USS Wichita AOR-1. After our stay in the Gulf, we sailed towards Thailand for some liberty. During his time there were messages coming in indicating that Viet Nameses refugees were being picked up in sea lanes near the Thai coast. It was only five short years since Saigon had fallen and people were still trying to get out of the country. So much for communism.

While sailing into Thailand we encountered a boat load of refugees. Coincidentally as we were approaching their boat with the intent to rescue, they were being pushed away from a Thai fishing trawler. The Thai fisherman were not trying to assist the refugees, but had changed roles and were now pirates who were robbing the Viet Namese who were on board this small boat. The Thai Pirates had stripped the refugees of everything they had left in the world, except the clothes on their backs. So hearing of the recent piracy committed by Somali Pirates, comes of no surprize to me.

The Somali Pirates have been very busy over the last few years, and according to various news services they have triggered an entire new enconomy on the Somali coast. They have seized large cargos including oil, and the companies who have lost cargo and goods to the Pirates are more than happy to pay large sums of money for Ransoms that are in the millions of dollars to retrieve cargo and the crews of the ships that are being held hostage. It has also been reported that the hostages are being treated well and the pirates have even gone as far as hiring caterers to prepare western style food for the hostages. Not a bad idea from a political standpoint.

In an even stranger twist, right wing radio icon, Rush Limbaugh reported that he had given the pirates the idea of increasing their ransom demands. Claiming that he had mentioned this in one of his afternoon radio shows, saying that the pirates were not asking enough for the cargo that they had taken. He also alluded to the possibility that the information was  picked up by the pirates who followed his suggestion, by demanding an increased ransom on an oil tanker that they had recently siezed. This story is however unconfirmed and strictly rumor at this point.

The pirates are also using a mix of old time tactics and modern technology to complete their objectives. The Indian Navy reported that they had intercepted an sunk a “mother ship” that the Somali Pirates were using as a base of operations, and dispatching smaller vessels to intercept target ships. Once they arrive at their target, (Much like their 17th and 18th century predecessors) they use fast boats, grappeling hooks and weapons to board the undefended merchant ships which fall as easy prey against such an attack.

It is unclear at this point as to what the international communities response will be to the situation. Both international law and maritime law can become complicated when (and if ) the situation comes to an armed response. So it may be some time before the Pirates are stopped and/or brought to justice.

In another story, it was reported that Somali Pirates had also been attacking Thai fishing vessels, I guess all is fair in love, war and piracy.