Free Minds Wondering (April 2005)

Sgt. Paul Smith
Sgt. Paul Smith is a name we should all know by now. Why you ask? Sgt. Smith was awarded the highest military honor this country bestows: The Medal of Honor. Sgt. Smith is only the third person since the Vietnam War to earn this honor. On April 3, 2003, despite being outnumbered and having inferior firepower, he held his ground resisting advancing enemy forces until a bullet ended his life. Smith’s actions saved the lives of an unknowable number of lightly-armed American soldiers who were ahead of his position near Baghdad International Airport. Smith’s widow and his eleven-year-old son accepted the medal from President Bush on Sgt. Smith’s behalf exactly 2 years later.

It seems that we know the names of all of the people who shoot up schools, kill, rape, and steal but why don’t we know the names of those who protect our country? Soldiers, police officers, firemen and others who do a great service to this country seem to receive very little attention from the media. Sgt. Paul Smith’s story should be told. I’ll be waiting anxiously to hear the rest of his story.

Sandy “the burglar” Berger
Why isn’t this a major news story? Sandy Berger pleads guilty to stealing and destroying one-of-a-kind classified documents while preparing for testimony before the 9/11 Commission. His punishment? A $10,000 fine and suspension from security clearance for 3 years! By the time his suspension expires, Sandy Berger could find himself in a Hillary Clinton administration rather than four years into a ten year prison sentence and paying a $100,000 fine.

I understand that there have been a lot of other big stories in the news such as the death of Pope John Paul II, the death of Terri Schiavo, and the on-going Michael Jackson media circus, but couldn’t the news media bring just a little more light to this story? Had it not been for talk radio and the Drudge Report I would probably have never heard this story. If the story was about Condoleezza Rice or any other person in the Bush Administration, you know damn well that this story would be on the front page of every newspaper and a priority topic on every news broadcast (and rightfully so).

It seems to me that a former National Security Advisor destroying classified documents regarding national security is a big story. Oh, silly me. Sandy Berger worked in the Clinton Administration; he’s one of the ‘good’ guys.

A few thoughts on Pope John Paul II
I am not going to pretend that I know a great deal about Pope John Paul II; I am an outsider when it comes to the Catholic faith and its traditions and I did not follow his career (?) closely. From what I do know, he seemed like a decent enough person. He did at least admit that the Catholic Church had made mistakes in the past including the Church’s refusal to intervene against Nazi Germany’s persecution of the Jews. Pope John Paul II also called anti-Semitism a sin; he saw first-hand the plight of the Jews as a young Polish boy. There are several other areas that I am very critical of this Pope; I reserve those comments for another day. It seems inappropriate to speak ill of him in this time of mourning.

The Bitch Can’t Count
Jane Fonda made the following comment in a 60 Minutes interview with Leslie Stahl explaining her treasonous antics in Vietnam: "Listen, we'd been saying to Richard Nixon, 'Stop this' for eight years. Millions of people had protested. You know, students had been shot at Kent State and still it went on…"

Anyone else notice an obvious factual error in her comment? My understanding of history is that first of all, Didn’t LBJ (some argue JFK) start the war? (a little detail the Left tends to leave out; somehow Vietnam was all Nixon’s doing.) Secondly, wasn’t Nixon forced to resign because of the Watergate scandal? Obviously, at the time that Jane Fonda was betraying her country giving aid and comfort to the enemy, Nixon wasn’t even close to have been in office for eight years. In-fact, after ending the Vietnam War years later, Nixon never completed his second term. Not only is Jane Fonda still a pinko-commie bitch, she is a stupid pinko-commie bitch who apparently can’t count.

Thank You Florida
Florida just passed a law which allows citizens to use deadly force against criminals who use deadly force against them. How very thoughtful.

Every Bit the Patriot
Sgt. Robert Stout, who earned a Purple Heart for being wounded in his service in Iraq, wants to continue serving his country. So what might prevent him from doing so? He happens to be gay. Under the current “don’t ask, “don’t tell” policy Sgt. Stout cannot openly continue to serve his country. This discriminatory policy costs the U.S. taxpayer an additional $200 million a year - money that could be spent better protecting our troops (yes, even our gay troops). Sgt. Robert Stout is every bit the patriot as his heterosexual counterparts. This intolerance is costing us some talented soldiers.

Poetic Justice
Kurdish leader Jalal Talabani was sworn in as Iraq’s new interim president as the deposed dictator Saddam Hussein witnessed the event, watching his television from his prison cell. The Kurds suffered for decades at the hands of Saddam; now the Kurds have the opportunity to bring their oppressor to justice. That’s what I call a happy ending!

Blogroll Additions
I added a number of links to my blogroll. Some of the additions are long overdue. Though I tend to post once a week, I periodically add content to the blogroll that I believe my readers will enjoy so come on back, ya hear!