Miserable Donuts

Now that Major(P) John is back we can post about less important things. I have a rant.

Did I miss a memo or something? When did we start standing for God Bless America?

When I was in DC last June we went to a baseball game (it wasn't' my idea). They played the National Anthem, of course and some of the people stood up and stood still, some put their hands over their hearts, and a very few of us actually sang along. I was pretty upset at the lack of respect for our National Anthem.

Immediately afterwards, they played God Bless America. Now I'll grant you, that is a better song and easier to sing along with, but MORE people stood up, more stood still and FAR more sang along. Some even put their hands over their hearts.

Why am I bringing this up, five months later? We had a memorial service at church yesterday which included a Veterans' Day service. At the end they sang God Bless America and everyone stood up!

Maybe it's me. I'm I crazy? Have we always been standing for God Bless America?

Even if we are, it isn't the National Anthem. I think we should treat the National Anthem with MORE respect.

Labels: music

The kids questions ranged from slightly goofy to fairly well asked. I was glad to be able to do my part in answering them.

On a more serious note, I think I now rank somewhere in the middle of the family military pantheon. None of us comes close to Jack Devore Dunn, an astonishingly heroic flyer in WWII. And, of course, I still have my favorite veteran to thank:

Thanks, Dad!

I'm Home.

More to follow later - I'm just enjoying it right now...

New President, historic election, we knew that. Now let's see what we didn't know. What's going to come of this?

What do you think?

I put some of my opinions on Illini6, but let me sum up here:

I'm nervous.

Everybody calm down!

Labels: Illini6, News, President

Sometime over the next couple of days, I will be landing in the good old US of A. I am sooooo ready to come home!

Once I get home and settled a bit, I will post the appropriate thank yous and deep thoughts on the whole deployment.

But for now, it is travel time!

I'm stuck in a camp I had never been to before - I might be here a few more days, and I am not happy about it. There isn't a lot to do - sure, it is better than Iraq, sort of. But we have been herded into large transient tents and having a cot with 50 other guys in the same tent just isn't what I am looking for at this stage of the game.

I guess I am getting a bit crabby, as I am not as well rested as I thought I might be, and therre is nothing for us here. I want to get the stateside part over with and go Home.

The last two times I redeployed, it went faster than this. I wish I even knew who I should be upset with...

Stage one down. Now, if I can just get to Kuwait...

I'll see if there is net access where I will be, in Kuwait. I'll probably be stuck there a for a little bit.

Nobody marches to salute Saddam. Nobody maintains the "glory" of his works. Dead by the ruling of the judiciary in a representative government that has washed away the power, the privilege and position of his party. His sons wiped away like any other criminal scum who go down shooting. His enemies make a tourist stop of his former place of follower-worship.

Despair, ye "mighty". Despair.

War Memorial in Baghdad. They need no more of these, please. Now if their neighbors in Iran and Syria would lay off, they could get to the point where these become historical curiosities, rather than recent additions to the landscape.

One thing I am sure that does not occur to the average US voter, is the number of positions that will be in play this Election. And by that, I mean the ones in the Department of Defense. When the new CinC is sworn in, whomever it may be, they will make their mark on the DoD by filling the positions in the Department that set policies for EVERYTHING.

Just the Office of the Secretary of Defense alone is quite an imposing structure:



Here are some of the positions in the Department will be selected by our next CinC:

Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics
Director of Defense Research and Engineering
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition and Technology)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Logistics and Materiel Readiness)
Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (Nuclear and Chemical and Biological Defense Programs)
Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Acquisition Reform)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Advanced Systems and Concepts)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Environmental Security)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Industrial Affairs)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Science and Technology)
Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)/Chief Financial Officer
Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller)
Director for Program Analysis and Evaluation
Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Force Management Policy)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Health Affairs)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Reserve Affairs)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Readiness)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Program Integration)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Planning)
Under Secretary of Defense for Policy
Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Policy)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (International Security Affairs)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Strategy and Threat Reduction)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Policy Support)
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Technology Security Policy)
Defense Advisor, U.S. Mission NATO
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Command, Control, Communications, and Intelligence)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Legislative Affairs)
Assistant Secretary of Defense (Public Affairs)
General Counsel of the DoD
Director of Operational Test and Evaluation
Assistant to the Secretary of Defense (Intelligence Oversight)
Director of Administration and Management
Director of Net Assessment

Can your choice for President fill these positions with the right people? It is a question I am afraid few to none ask themselves when they consider a vote. I realize it is a bit narrow a question - but we are at war, and this may matter more than in "normal" times.

I had previously encountered the breadmakers of Afghanistan:
Traditional, darn tasty, and only 4 afghani each. The above is in the city of Charikar, Parwan Province.

This time around, in Baghdad Iraq, I found a similar bread - but with some differences:

These fellows had the mobile version of the traditional bread oven. Still good stuff, they just bring the oven to you...