Redacted

Youputyourrightfootinyouput
I was listening to the radio whiners today, and they were doing publicity for a movie called "Redacted".
Until today, I knew very little about it. It is about the rape/murder of a young girl in Iraq by a crew of American troops. This is a sorry episode, but the sort of thing you can expect in a war. I am surprised we have not had more stories like this. When the My Lai affair came to light and Lt. Calley was court martialled, a frequently quoted defense was "this happens all the time".
A prominent radio whiner named Michael Medved doubles as a movie critic. His opinion of "Redacted" was liberally quoted today, and through the miracle of internet copy paste it is available for my use.
For the record, Mr. Medved was draft age during Vietnam. To quote his biography "Medved enrolled in Yale Law School after winning a generous fellowship, while teaching 7th and 8th grade three hours a day to earn an "occupational deferment" with the Vietnam era Selective Service System."
Backted to "Redacted". Mr. Medved has evolved into a self proclaimed conservative, and a supporter of the War in Babylon. He did not appreciate "Redacted". This is his right as a pundit/critic, although in the legal system this conflict of interests would cause him to excuse himself. Where Mr. Medved goes too far is with this comment:" Nowhere does DePalma indicate that the chief victims of the so-called insurgents aren’t US forces, but Iraqi civilians. All reputable sources show Iraqi terrorists taking the lives of far more of their countrymen then American troops have claimed, and there’s no sane basis to expect that this murderous rampage will magically cease once our soldiers come home. The idea that the US remains in Iraq in order to torment and dominate Iraqis – rather than to protect innocent civilians from the monstrous cruelty of Islamo-Nazi killers – remains one of the big lies of the anti-war movement."
Huh? Holy rhetoric Batman. If it weren’t for the American invasion, would there be insurgents? Or, for that matter, foreign fighters aka Al Queda? Maybe these fighters are offing more Iraqi Civilians than Americans. That doesn't justify the rape/murder of a teen age girl by American forces.
The Iraqi people, who are fighting back, also note this brutality by Al Queda. This is the one part of the much vaunted surge success that I can believe, that Al Queda has gone too far. The simple truth remains that the primary reason these fighters are in Iraq is to fight Americans...if there had not been an invasion, these fighters would be somewhere else.
I have no plans to see "Redacted", despite all the lovely publicity from the wingnut fringe. Of course, if this post makes someone want to see the movie...
Spell check suggestions for this feature:
Lai-Al, La, Lao, lay, laid,lab, lad, lag, lap, law,
Calley- called, caller, caleb, alley, galley, valley
martialled-marital, marmalade
Medved- meddled
DePalma- deplane, diploma
wingnut- WinNT

fame

megabittage Andy Warhol needs a bit of modernizing. What he meant to say, in the future, everyonte will be famous for 15mb.

spotlightplease Ted Haggard recently claimed the spotlight to go back in the closet.
One of my favorite charactars from that affair was the "acting senior pastor" at the megachurch that Mr. Haggard
fooled led. I reckon he forgot to comment on this latest twist

conservatism On my way home from work, I was listening to a "conservative" radio show hosted by Mr. Micheal Medved. He was interviewing someone, and the recent demise of Anna Nicole Smith was mentioned. The guest made a joke about how he would always remember where he was when he heard about it.
Now, I scarcely know who Ms. Smith is. I seldom watch tv, and don't pay much attention to tabloid celebrities. Still, for a "pro life" talkmonger to make light of her demise is distasteful.
Of course, this "pro life conservative" supports the slaughter in Iraq. Which is odd, because he got a draft deferment during the vietnam killing party. That was before Roe vs Wade. Conservatives have always been for war and against abortion. Life is sacred, unless it is an asian peasant, or a child whose dictator was the next Hitler.




MercyKilling Fish sandwiches are now 2 for $4 at arby's. Panhandlers were working the line at the drive thru.

Open Letter

OpenLetter The following is a letter to radio talkshow host Micheal Medved
You were talking yesterday about taxes. You asked for anyone who thinks we should pay more taxes to call in. Now, with my job, calling in is not an option for me. I do,however, have some ideas about why we should pay more taxes.
Now, this is not economic, although that is always a factor with taxes. This is a moral argument.
We should pay more taxes as a way to participate in the war in Iraq. (I should note that I couldn’t bring myself to use the phrase "war on terror". OIF is a war on people, in a country eight time zone away.)
The burden of this war is being carried by a small part of the population. The troops, and their families, are bearing the entire load. The rest of us get off by talking. This is not right. The burden of this war should be shared more equally, and a way to do this is to raise taxes.
Maybe if OIF were affecting us in the wallet, then supporters of this war would think twice about their bluster.
I should note that I have been opposed to the War in Babylon since day one. I never believed the talk about wmds or al queda, and considered Mr. Hussein to be relatively harmless. In fact, by serving as a counterweight to Iran, he was doing us a service.
Of course, the decision to invade and occupy has been made, and we have to live with it. An abrupt withdrawal would do harm. Our continued presence is doing harm, and will need to end some day. I don't know what the answer is.
One thing to do is share the burden of this ghastly war.
One way to do this is with a tax increase.
This letter will be posted at my blog, http://www.chamblee54.blogspot.com/.
Cam Mckinnon
Atlanta GA
The spell check suggestions for this feature
Wmds…wads weds
Queda…quad quid
presense...presence prisons prissiness pretense persians persons