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Thursday, May 5

Elderly Woman Beating in DC
by
bnlowkey
on Thu 05 May 2005 06:14 AM EDT

I saw the most sickening video tape the other while watching the news. I saw a man brutally beat an elderly woman and rob her. According to the Washington Post D.C. police yesterday released a security videotape that shows an 83-year-old woman being punched, kicked and stomped during a daylight robbery this week in Northwest Washington. The woman, who was in stable condition yesterday with a broken cheek and nose, works as a street vendor, selling hats, T-shirts and umbrellas. Police declined to release her identity or say how much was taken in the robbery If you a familiar with the DC Metro subway system, you would see this lady selling her merchandise right at the Foggy Bottom Metro stop (Blue and Orange Line. DC Police released the tape in hopes someone would identify the terrorist who committed this god awful act. However no one including the TV media nor the Washington post released a description of the man. Looking at the tapes he looks like he is black. My guess is had this been a white man committing this crime you would gotten a description plus a composite sketch of an white male who looks like Bo Bice of American Idol. This is sickening I hope they catch that terrorist soon and lock him up for long time. But this is DC we are talking about……….. He probably would get community service UPDATE: D.C. Vendor, 83, Robbed, BeatenBy Spencer S. Hsu Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, May 9, 2005; Page B01 District police charged a man yesterday in Tuesday's beating of a Foggy Bottom T-shirt seller known as "Grandma," officials said.
Monday, May 2

Anniversary Ramblings Part III
by
bnlowkey
on Mon 02 May 2005 09:00 PM EDT
My First Month in Iraq June 1 s t, 2004 marked my first month in Iraq; My previous year in the Middle East was spent Saudi Arabia and Kuwait With the time spent most of in Kuwait to include during “Operation Iraqi Freedom”. The only taste of Iraq I had was a one day trip to Um Qasar (pronounced Umm Kasar) which is right outside Kuwait border with Iraq. Fast forwarding to the present. I remember like it was yesterday leaving the DC area. I flew from Andrews Air force Base to the country of Qatar. Qatar is home to the main body of the US Central Command (CENTCOM). CENTCOM’s main focus is to protect, promote and preserve U.S interests in the central region. With an Area of Responsibility (AOR) larger than the continental U.S., stretching more than 3,100 miles east to west and 3,600 miles north-to-south. The AOR includes 27 culturally and economically diverse nations located throughout the Horn of Africa, South and Central Asia, and Northern Red Sea regions, as well as the Arabian Peninsula and Iraq. My stay in Qatar lasted two days. When it was time for me to board the plane to Baghdad from Qatar, I was fully dressed in my battle fatigues along with my combat gear looking astute (ATTENT HUT) as I boarded a military plane to Baghdad. My seat on the aircraft was adjacent to a few Military vehicles (2 Hummers) to include military equipment along with our luggage which was palletized and secured to the hull of the aircraft. There were no windows nor was I offered any peanuts. The seat that I was sitting in had the look and feel of an old folding lawn chair, and if I may add it very uncomfortable if. As I mentioned I was in full battle gear my M4 rifle positioned between my legs with my General Patton war face on. I wasn’t expecting to see combat but just in case I was fully prepared for the worst. Overall the plane ride was very uneventful. Once I stepped off the plane to take a look low and behold, there was Baghdad! I stood ramrod facing toward the control tower. Like a camera pan scanning the horizon. I stood in complete silence. Inside my mind I was singing a song written by the Doors called “The End”. As part of the words to the song go “Can you picture what will be…So limitless and free….Desperately in need...of some...stranger's hand…In a...desperate land” The melodic groove of that song has a hypnotic sound that puts me at ease. However this time I was overcome with uncertainty plus the fear of not coming home. I walked toward the pickup and threw my things in the back. Once I got inside the truck, I realized, I must move on. The path that I am traveling is down a dusty desolate road. The irony behind this was, I felt like Joseph Conrad’s character, Marlow, traveling down “The HEART of DARKNESS” is this the redux?

Ole Sarge's input
by
bnlowkey
on Mon 02 May 2005 08:45 PM EDT
Aiden Delgado might be the next Ward Churchill in waiting. Ole Sarge was reading my conservative sister Juliette Ochieng and Outside the Beltway blog. The topic was about a Aiden Delgado who was stationed in Iraq as a mechanic at the infamous Abu Ghraib prison complex. Pvt. Delgado was honorably discharged as a conscientious objector (Army Regulation AR 600–43) His story makes for good fodder for any lunatic leftist who is too scared to bring their ass to Iraq and find out what the hell is really going on for themselves. Ole Sarge does admit that the one thing in which I can be found guilty of was using the term “Haji” or “Hadji” From my understanding was the word relates to a person who has made the “Haj” (5th Pillar of Islam) The accusations of soldiers hitting soldiers in the head with coke bottles is complete nonsense. Besides the cans of Mountain Dew I don’t recall ever seeing any coke bottles. As stated on Outside the Beltway “ I meant to note in the original piece that, of course, the mission in Iraq is different now and sensitivity to such things is vital. One doesn't wish to dehumanize the local civilian population of a country one is trying to pacify and democratize. The fact that our soldiers have to be diplomats one instant and warriors the next is a unique characteristic of stabilization operations. “ Look at the Great Seal of the United States of America. You will notice the eagle with an olive branch in one talon and arrows in the other Bello vel Pace Paratus No one loathes war more than the soldier. The Soldiers sole duty is to fight. Peace is the end but the means to it must be met first. In an ideal world, peace can be achieved just by talking about it. However, reality dictates the opposite. In this country we have the talkers and the walkers. the talkers talk about peace but the walkers take peace along with them and walk to what corner of the planet that needs it. It is the soldier who does the marching. Updates and Links: For more info follow PoliPundit , Blackfive , SFC Ted , Michelle Malkin, Rich Lowry

Tea Time in Baghdad
by
bnlowkey
on Mon 02 May 2005 06:06 AM EDT
This is the second part to of my anniversary series about my times in Baghdad last year. I posted this several months ago on my Herald site. This was the first time I had encountered some Iraqis Tea time in Baghdad The Vietnamese Buddhist monk and philosopher, Thich Nhat Hanh (pronounced Tick-naught-han), writes about enjoying a good cup of tea. The other day in Iraq, I had gone to the Airport formerly know as Saddam International. I was with a few Contractors who work for General Dynamics plus one other soldier with whom I work with. As the rest my group left to do a little shopping, I chose to stay in the terminal area and smoke a cigarette (yes you can smoke inside) and to catch a look out of the window to see the Iraqi Airline planes that seem to be perfectly intact and ready to fly the clear blue skies. Afterwards I sat down in the lounge chair to finish off my cigarette. When suddenly 3 older Iraqi gentlemen sat in the seats adjacent to me. At first I started to move but my instincts told me to remain seated. I noticed one of the Iraqi gentlemen was carrying a tray with 4 small glasses of hot tea. Since there was an extra glass it was offered to me. Of course I accepted because it would have been offensive in their culture if I chose the contrary. The tea was good if you might have asked. We finished our tea with a cigarette followed by an enjoyable conversation. The only problem I had was the fact that I am left handed (the left hand is considered unclean in Islam) and in the past I had struggled mightily when using my right hand to hold a cup to drink tea or coffee from. I managed and if I can say so I did a good job. I left the airport feeling good about myself and rightly so. The group that I was with jokingly said that I have a future as an Ambassador. I would say I agree. Finally, I could have easily fallen towards my comfort zone and used the left hand. However life is all about sacrifice. I am willing to change what I am comfortable with to make a difference and so are the hundred of thousand other men and women who the media ignores. Therefore it truly pains me to read and hear about the bad things that the soldiers are doing. The disdain for the media is what fuels me work harder and furthermore, ensure that the peace is won. It was probably the spark I needed to flawlessly use my right hand to drink that tea. Life is truly like a good cup of tea.
Sunday, May 1

Sweet Home Taladega (Alabama)
by
bnlowkey
on Sun 01 May 2005 06:45 PM EDT

Jeff Gordon led 139 laps, which allowed him to miss both multi-car accidents, on his way to victory in Sunday's Aaron's 499 at Talladega. It was his 72nd career win, leaving him four behind Dale Earnhardt for sixth place all-time. Gordon drove the hell out of the 24 Chevy to give him his second restrictor plate race win this season, the first being the Daytona 500. This was his third win of the season plus his 4th top ten finish. Jeff Gordon has moved up to 3rd in the drivers standing putting him 151 points behind his Hendrick Racing teammate points leader Jimmie Johnson (Lowes 48 car). Defending Nextel champ Kurt Busch who is currently second in points finished the race in 7th place. All in all this was a very exciting race. I ma looking forward to next week race under the lights at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina.
Friday, April 29

Akbar Sentenced to Death for Grenade Attack
by
bnlowkey
on Fri 29 Apr 2005 06:32 AM EDT
Wednesday, April 27

Abu Ghraib: My reflections from my journal
by
bnlowkey
on Wed 27 Apr 2005 07:27 PM EDT
My anniversary of when I first step foot on Iraqi soil is approaching. I will be publishing a few pages out of my personal journal. I volunteer last year to go to Iraq as the communications NCOIC (Noncommissioned Officer in Charge) for the Iraq Survey Group (ISG). The ISG was task by the President of United States to survey Iraq to find WMD and to a certain extent the whereabouts of CPT Speichier (the pilot who was shot down during the first gulf war) Recently and according to the Washington times Inspector Charles Duelfer, who heads the Iraq Survey Group (ISG), made the findings in an addendum to his final report filed last year. He said the search for WMD in Iraq -- the main reason President Bush went to war to oust Saddam Hussein -- has been exhausted without finding such weapons. Iraq had stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons in the early 1990s. Reading my Conservative friends Booker Risings’ Abu Ghraib: One year Later and Expertise Abu Ghraib: 1 year later Their posts gave me the idea to republish this entry from my journal The Media’s WMD I would have thought that the recent discovery of a chemical artillery shell with the presence of the nerve agent sarin in Iraq generate the type of press the media was dying for. Especially when the insurgents used the same rig sarin shell as a roadside bomb or what we like to call them IEDs (Improvised Explosive Devices). From the looks of things and according to my sources that are familiar with this particular situation, those same insurgents apparently “didn’t know what they had”. My intuition tells me that they (the insurgents) now know what they have and may try to figure out how to use it against the coalition forces. Oddly enough, the media has been reporting about the WMDs in Iraq. You say? “Demond a few lines ago you were complaining about lack of press being generated with the sarin find”. You are absolutely right. However, the WMDs ole Demond is talking about are those Wretched Military Dummies (WMDs) at Abu Ghraib prison. I wanted to use the word dumb plus the equivalent of a donkey but this is a family oriented newsletter so dummies will suffice. I was extremely appalled with the actions of the Wretched Military Dummies. Those hideous pictures that were shown presented such an anathema to the quest of winning the trust of the Iraqi people. The media treated this as if it was some sort smoking gun by broadcasting those images repeatedly. After several apologies from the administration condemning this repugnant behavior and the first of several Court Martials why are we still talking about this? As bad as it was, it is worse for the thousands of service members who are doing the right thing day in and day out. The mistakes that were made are an aberration of the highest order compared to the daily acts of kindness the military show to the Iraqi people on a daily basis. Keeping this in perspective, I am awfully concerned about the discovery of the nerve agent sarin in Iraq. But what really scares me the most is the new WMD that I’ve discovered……… Woeful Media Demagogues. 
Tuesday, April 26

Marvel Universe hits the Middle Eastl
by
bnlowkey
on Tue 26 Apr 2005 10:08 PM EDT

USATODAY.COM On Thursday at the Pentagon, Marvel Comics will unveil a custom comic book to be distributed free in May to U.S. forces in Iraq and around the world. Featuring the Avengers, Fantastic Four, Spider-Man and other Marvel heroes, the comic will have a mammoth print run of 1 million copies. The first 150,000 will go to soldiers in the Middle East. I doubt that this book would be a collectors item. This is solely based on the print run of this book. I am an avid comic book collector and Marvel Comics is my favorite publisher. When I was in Iraq, I spent some of my time on E-bay buying comics, since the Exchange didn’t have any. "I am a Vietnam vet, and our people in uniform can never get treated well enough," says Marvel vice chairman Peter Cuneo. "Many are comic-book fans, and these are the heroes they grew up with. If you're in a foxhole, it's going to get passed around." Just like the bootleg Spider-man 2 movie we bought from an Iraqi. Afterwards we had set up a projector, connected it to a laptop with speakers and beamed the filmed off the side of one of our trailers …. I have to make some phone calls in order to get my copy!
Sunday, April 24

Semper Fi Chairmen
by
bnlowkey
on Sun 24 Apr 2005 07:53 PM EDT
President Bush nominated Marine Corp General Peter Pace to be the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. If confirmed, General Pace would be the first Marine Corp General to serve as the nations top military officer. General Pace would replace General Richard Myers as chairmen.
"The first thing America needs to know about Pete Pace is that he is a Marine," Bush said. "To the American people, 'Marine' is shorthand for 'can do.' And I'm counting on Pete Pace to bring the Marine spirit to these new responsibilities." Note to the Democrats, as the President says, General Pace is a Marine that means in the past he might have yelled at a few people from time to time. Hopefully his confirmation will not be the spectacle like John Bolton’s.

Carolina Blues!
by
bnlowkey
on Sun 24 Apr 2005 06:18 PM EDT
As a diehard Tarheel fan, this time of the year is what most Tarheel fans dread. What Tarheels fans dread is the press conference to announce that I am going to NBA. We have seen James Worthy, Michael Jordan, J.R Reid, Jerry Stackhouse, Rasheed Wallace, Vince Carter, Antwan Jamison leave Chapel Hill to fulfill their dream of playing in the big league. Rashad McCants, Raymond Felton, Sean may, and Marvin Williams have all recently announced their intentions. With that said you can add their name to the list of Tarheel basketball players leaving school early. With seniors Jackie Manuel, Melvin Scott, and Jawad Williams graduating, North Carolina are losing 7 players from their 2004–05 Championship team. That is roughly 98 percent of their offense.
As Thad Williamson (InsideCarolina.Com) writes The sky is still Carolina Blue … and no, it hasn’t fallen either, in the wake of Friday’s confirmation that Raymond Felton, Sean May, and Marvin Williams are joining Rashad McCants in taking their ample talents to the NBA. Ole Sarge couldn’t agree more. Mission accomplished for those players. The Tarheels will win it all again next year For those of you who say players should stay in school. Think about this, Ole Sarge went from high school straight to being a pro………………. A professional Soldier HOOOAH!
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