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The apology used to show character

Edited for extreme brevity:

First, there is no reason to apologize repeatedly — especially when one has done nothing wrong
Second, don't apologize for the sins of others long past
Third, money or personal enhancement should not factor into public acts of contrition
Fourth, it is a bad idea to apologize for one's country while overseas
Fifth, war is the wrong time to start apologizing

I have been cogitating on this theme for some time, and here VDH comes around and sums up my thoughts in one article. Curses! :-) This is a must read.

Media shockingly ignorant of Muslims among us

I would substitute the word "Willfully" in that headline.

Canadian held for deserting U.S. marines in 1968

Allen Abney, who was born in the United States but became a Canadian citizen in 1977, was arrested at a border crossing on Thursday while trying to enter Idaho from southeastern British Columbia.

He has probably crossed the border before, but now networked databases identified him.

He is the third marine from the Vietnam era to be arrested this month, and Toronto lawyer Jeffrey House believes the marines are trying to make examples of deserters to discourage those who might think of avoiding the Iraq war.

"They've got 8,000 deserters from the Iraq war, those are the official numbers, and my take on it is they are trying to send a message to marines who are actually in the forces now that they will never be forgiven," he said.

True, but incomplete. There are always desertions from the military, and the rate of desertion is down since the war started. Given that retention is up, recruitment is up, service is voluntary and morale is high, I find it disengenuous to make claims like these. Also not mentioned is that Jeffrey House is the lawyer for Jeremy Hinzman, a fact which CBC is well aware.

Marines are an all-volunteer force, and have been since before the Republic was founded. The Marines are also very aggressive and almost certain to see combat even in 'peace'. Why would anyone join the Marines only to desert before deployment? I think there is more to the story than simple unwillingness to fight.

Landlocked navy prepares to put to sea

Cute story. Bolivian navy, which has no access to the sea, practices in case the new socialist president of Chile agrees to give land to Bolivia allowing access to the sea. Here s the real meat:

"A railway gives Bolivians access to the sea, but only under the close supervision of Chilean customs officials."

Shazaam. The REAL reason Bolivia wants access. They want to export drugs more easily.

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I took the test, and came up with Independent Analyst.