Pay It Forward.

The summer I was 19 I was taking classes at the University of Hawaii. My father called to tell me that one of my high school boyfriends, Keith, had been killed. He had stumbled drunk out of a bar on the side of a two lane highway and stepped in front of an 18 wheeler.

Yeah. Pretty horrifying.

2 years previously when we had only been dating a few weeks, I stopped by Keith's house to drop off something that he had left in my car. I hadn't been to his house before. It was a small run down place in a poor neighborhood. I stepped up to the front door that was open. Through the screen door I could see Keith's father sitting in a lounge chair in the dark watching TV. I knocked but he didn't move. I could see that he wasn't sleeping so I knocked louder and said, "Excuse me. Hello." Very slowly his head turned. I knew something wasn't right and a shot of fear ran through me. He got up even more slowly and staggered to the door. I instinctively stepped back as he approached. It was clear now that he was very very drunk.

It was 3:00 in the afternoon.

I mumbled something and left quickly. when I told Keith, he was mortified and asked me to never come by his house again. He wouldn't talk about his father, but the whole time we dated I never saw Keith drink. Not even one beer. When I went away to college Keith and I broke up and I never saw him again. Sometime after that I suppose he found his way to the bottle that so many parents leave for their kids.

I was too far away to attend the funeral, but when I got back Keith's best friend Robert came over to give me some letters and songs Keith had written about me. I became very upset. My mother came in to see what was wrong and asked Robert to leave when I wouldn't calm down. She comforted me, but I never told her what had upset me so much. In one letter Keith had written this:

"If I died tomorrow, my life would have been worth it because you believed in me. Even when I messed up. You believed in me. It would have been worth it because someone like you, someone so good, loved someone like me."

Over the years I have reflected on the unfairness of life that time ran out for Keith before anyone else could believe in him. He was a sweet boy with a generous heart and a gentle nature. He didn't deserve the life his parents gave him and I didn't deserve the feelings he had for me.

I can't honestly say that everytime I was faced with the choice of doing something right when I really wanted to do something wrong and I did the right thing, it was because of Keith. I can't say that every time I helped someone or volunteered or tried so hard to be a good wife and mother that it was because of Keith. I can't say that. But I did think of him from time to time, feeling like I needed to live up to be the kind of person that he believed me to be.

That 17 year old girl who was just a silly fun girl who liked a very cute boy, didn't deserve his admiration. But, my greatest hope has always been that this grown woman just might.

The Hillary machine.

The following stars donated to Hillary Clinton recently

Tom Hanks, Jennifer Lopez, Owen Wilson, Chris Rock, Bette Midler, James Caan, Rob Reiner, and Billy Crystal.

Other donors included Donald Trump's ex-wife Marla Maples, Walt Disney Co. CEO Robert Iger.

And then there were these sports names. Baseball's home run king Hank Aaron, New York Knicks assistant coach Herb Williams, and New York Rangers goaltender Mike Richter.

Does anyone still believe that it is the Republicans that are the party of the rich?

Hillary has $43 million in donations so far. No one is going to take away the Democratic nomination from this woman. Not even the crafty and cute John Edwards.

Oh yes, there is this. Records show two bills for unidentified campaign worker travel at the Hampton Inn in Des Moines, Iowa, the state with the first caucus in the presidential nomination process.

But according to a spokesman for Hillary that was just a "clerical error."

Right.

via Fark

WTC

John Miller at NRO say screening of a screening of "World Trade Center" last night and said it was very good, but get this part:

"One of the most talked-about parts of the movie will be a pair of short scenes in which Jesus, holding a bottle of water, seems to comfort one of the cops: Some will interpret it as an acutal visitation, others will see it as a hallucination. It is, at the very least, a case of Hollywood taking faith seriously and respectfully. "

How cool is that?

Understanding this war.

NRO brings a bit of Rick Santorum's speech to the National Press Club. He sums up what we are fighting. Most excellent:

We are not fighting a War on Terror anymore than we fought a war on blitzkrieg in World War II. Terror like blitzkrieg is a tactic used by our enemy, not the enemy itself. We are fighting against Islamic fascists. They attacked us on September 11th because we are the greatest obstacle to their openly declared mission of subjecting the entire world to their fanatical rule. I believe that the threat of Islamic fascism is just as menacing as the threat from German Nazism and Soviet Communism. Now, as then, we face fanatics who will stop at nothing to dominate us. Now, as then, there is no way out; we will either win or lose.

He also says:

The largest piece of this mosaic, the keystone of the Islamic fascist structure, is Iran. It’s a complex mosaic, stretching across the world, but Iran is the central piece, touching all the others in one way or another. Iran not only supports these organizations — it created Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad, and is the driving force behind Hamas — but it is a threat to the civilized world all by itself.

Wonders never cease.

Bill Maher gushes over Bush:

"I have to say, watching George Bush talk about Israel the last week has reminded me of a feeling that I hadn't felt in so long I forgot what it felt like: the feeling of pride when your president says what you want your president to say, especially in a matter that chokes you up a bit. I surrender my credentials as Bush exposer - from the very beginning - to no man, but on Israel, I love it that a U.S. president doesn't pretend Arab-Israeli conflict is an even-steven proposition."

via Newsbusters

Malkin wrong on this one.

Malkin says that with Bush speaking to the NAACP he missed an opportunity to "hit back hard at the race exploiters who shamelessly accused him of hating black people and suppressing black votes and causing Hurricane Katrina."

No. This was not an opportunity to seek some kind of revenge. That is not President Bush's way. His speech was perfect. As a child who grew up in Mississippi during the civil rights movement, I would have written the exact same speech. Bush gets it. It really does. It is a crying shame that most black Americans don't understand how the Republican party better represents them in so many ways.

Malkin has the "conservative" part down, but she could take lessons from Bush regarding the "compassionate" part.

On a somewhat related note, someone sent me this link to an old Dave Chapelle Show regarding black reparations. I never watched the show so I have to say I am pretty surprised at how insulting some of his comedy is to blacks. But what do I know? You decide.

Liberals can be funny too!

This is funny. "..it looks more like mr. spock’s “vulcan nerve pinch”.

Of course some are just bozos:

"With regard to your posting at Boing Boing, isn't the legal term for what Bush did to the German Chancellor "assault & battery"? Although I do understand that those in power are above the law, I think it's always helpful to remember what they might be arrested for in a real democracy, don't you? [smirk]"

via boing boing

More prominent liberal pundit....

dishonesty.

You would never catch Malkin or Reynolds pretending to be someone else on a blog to defend themselves or repeat talking points. Geeze.

Armageddon?

Iraqi The Model thinks that may be just what some in the Middle East might have in mind:

"I'm not going to claim I know exactly what Hizbollah's or Hamas's hidden motives are because I don't live there but I know about those of the regime in Iran and its arm in Iraq; both Ahmedinejad and Sadr are devout believers in the 'Savior Imam' of Shia Islam who is the 12th grandson of prophet Mohammed, also known by the name 'Imam Mehdi' hence the name of Sadr's militias 'the Mehdi Army'.

I must point out though that some factions of Sunni Islam also believe in the rise of the Imam but they have their own different version of the story.

Both Ahmedinejad and Sadr believe it is their duty to pave the way and prepare the ground for the rise of the Imam whose rise, according to their branch of Shia Islam, requires certain conditions and a sequence of certain events; the story is too long to discuss in one post so I'll just move on to offer my observations…

We are seeing some signs here that make us think that Iran and its tools in Iraq are trying to provoke the rise of the imam through forcing the signs they believe should be associated with that rise. One of the things that do not feel right is the sudden appearance of new banners and writings on the walls carrying religious messages talking specifically of imam Mehdi. These messages are getting abundant in Baghdad and in particular in the eastern part of the capital where Sadr militias are dominant and a special number can be seen in the area of the interior ministry complex.

The interesting part is that these banners appeared within less than 24 hours after Hizbollah kidnapped the Israeli soldiers. Coincidence?

I don't think so."

More:

"I went to a guy who knows quite a lot about this salvation war so to speak and asked him if the texts mention anything about the timing of the war and whether it's supposed to begin before or after the rise of the Imam and the answer was "After" but he added that chaos and rampant violence in the region are supposed to be among the signs and that the main battle would be "lead by the Imam himself".

And then this:

"Here we're most likely going to see a new maneuver and I expect that the "imminent" arrival of the Imam is going to be announced through the Mumahidoon (those who pave the way for the Imam) and that's what Sadr and followers describe themselves and that's the word they use for a title of their website. That's if they didn't claim they were receiving messages from the Imam via a messenger."

Good grief. If you know Iraqi The Model, he is not one to go off on strange theories. He is very logical. ( he is a dentist I believe) This is pretty scary stuff imo. Let us all hope he is wrong on this one.

Hhmmmm....

I was reading one of the new blogs over at the Houston Chronicle called Gazawia. It is written by Hadeel Assali, a Palestinian-American originally from Gaza. I was struck by this post where she describes the Huda, the girl whose family was killed on the beach in Gaza. Hadeel says:

"I know this footage was not shown on CNN or Fox News, and I hope to include a link to the video that was played and replayed in Palestinian homes and memories."

The only problem with this is that Israel not only denied it was their bomb, it has proven that it was not:

Dr. Michael Bayme wrote his friends:

Some of you may have been following the tragic story of a Gazan family that was destroyed by some sort of bomb last friday. The world of course chose to blame Israel - without verifying any facts. The fact that Israel immediately accepted all the victims to its hospitals was seen as an admission of guilt, and not as a humanitarian gesture.

There is now incontrovertible proof that Israel did not cause the tragedy - shell fragments extracted from one bomb victim match the types of bombs made by Hamas - and not Israeli artillery shells. How do I know? I received the victim last Sunday (at 2:00 am), operated on her until 5am, and have re-operated every night since. Now she's out of danger, and will survive to rejoin her family.

P.S., Richard Landes asks have the fragments been tested? The answer is yes. "The head of the Israeli inquiry, Major General Meir Klifi, also said that shrapnel taken from two wounded Palestinians treated in Israeli hospitals was not shell fragments."

Also see, a full translation of the German paper's expose: "Seven casualties in Gaza beach: Was it a shelling attack by Israel? Or an exploding Palestinian land mine? An example of how Palestinians sometime>s bend the truth," by Thorsten Schmitz

Garlesco: I cannot disprove Israeli findings

Here is the latest details on shrapnels and such. Apparently "Physical proof exists that the seven members of the Rhalia family who died on a Gaza beach 12 days ago were not killed by an Israeli shell."

The commander of the IDF technological division explained further. “We carried out a check of the metal and found the explosives that were on it," said Lt. Col. Eran Toval. “In total, we carried out three independent analyses. The result was that the explosive was standard, but not characteristic of Israeli or American explosives in IDF service, and was not an IDF shell."

source: History News Network


Was the Palestinian blogger aware of this? I don't know. But it shows that she is angry over something that is not true. I left a comment there with this news link and quote. It will be interesting to see if she posts it.

Bush vetos bill on funding stem cell research.

As he should have.

I have been putting together a post in my head on this. Trying to figure out the best way to persuade someone why Bush is right on this. But then I read this post from the Captain that does a better job than I ever could.

The death of an Iraqi boy inspires an American boy to give back.

It all started here, a soldier in Iraq blogging about an Iraqi boy who had come to mean a lot to his unit:

"..Every once in a while Jimmy gave us, and a few other units, information about insurgent activity in his village. He wasn't looking for payment or gifts he just wanted his family to be safe and to live without fear.

A few weeks ago we learned from the intel team that Jimmy and his ten year-old little brother were brutally murdered. He was killed by insurgents for cooperating with Coalition Forces. Their bodies were dumped along the fence-line of the camp as a message to any who would dare defy them."

Upon reading this story, a student named Kevin Knodell decided to begin a project in Jimmy's memory, that is how Project Adnon began.

His story here.

The story just gets better and better. This is from Kevin:

"One of the best parts of the project has been the participation and cooperation of Christians and Muslims (as well as a few Jews). My church as a history of working with Bilal Mosque.
There are two Mosques working on this project (one is Sunni, the other is Shia).

We assembled 90 school kits, 33 handmade blankets, 12 stuffed animals, 17 tarps, and 20 reams of extra paper. We heard about Operation Iraqi Children through Michael Yon's website, and they were able to take our donations and get them over to Iraq for us. This has by far been the most important thing I have ever done, and I'm thankful to have had this opportunity."

The best thing about this story? The terrorists thought that with their evil they would make us afraid. It is frightening to imagine such monsters would brutally kill two young children. This is who we fight. But people took this tragedy and made it into a project that brought Christians, Muslims (of both stripes) and Jews together. Together. The very thing that the terrorists would HATE.

Who says we aren't winning? .........:-)

A Golden Opportunity?

Charles Krauthammer gives us this prospective:

"Every important party in the region and in the world, except the radical Islamists in Tehran and their clients in Damascus, wants Hezbollah disarmed and removed from south Lebanon so that it is no longer able to destabilize the peace of both Lebanon and the broader Middle East. ...

Everyone agrees it must be done. But who to do it? No one. The Lebanese are too weak. The Europeans don't invade anyone. After its bitter experience of 20 years ago, the United States has a Lebanon allergy. And Israel could not act out of the blue because it would immediately have been branded the aggressor and forced to retreat.

Hence the golden, unprecedented opportunity. Hezbollah makes a fatal mistake. It crosses the U.N.-delineated international frontier to attack Israel, kill soldiers and take hostages. This aggression is so naked that even Russia joins in the Group of Eight summit communique blaming Hezbollah for the violence and calling for the restoration of Lebanese sovereignty in the south.
But only one country has the capacity to do the job. That is Israel, now recognized by the world as forced into this fight by Hezbollah's aggression."

So everyone agrees that Hezbollah must go. But no one wants innocents killed. Which is kind of difficult since Hezbollah hides behind women and children. On the one hand if Israel goes full force, innocents will be killed because they are basically used as shields here. On the other hand, if Israel doesn't kill Hezbollah then Hezbollah continues to kill innocents and terrorize. A compliant Israel will not stop Hezbollah and we all know that.

So either way innocents are killed. Am I right? That is the simple truth that no one seems to want to face. Innocents will be killed EITHER WAY. Wouldn't we rather the end result be the elimination of Hezbollah?

Tell me how I am wrong.

via The Captain

Oh, the hypocrisy of it all!

Check out this t-shirt over at Sadly, No! I hope to never hear lefties condemning Ann Coulter for her vitriolic speech. At least she doesn't advocate the blanket murder of liberals.

Patterico lays this all out while pointing out Glenn Glenn Greenwald's hypocrisy from the other day. He quotes Misha, an over-the-top conservative blogger with a well-known schtick of saying outrageous things, as saying the following:

Five ropes, five robes, five trees.

Some assembly required.

Greenwald went crazy condemning it. But one of the sites he linked to, Sadly, No! was selling the t-shirt above at their online store!

More from Patterico:

"Gavin at Sadly, No! is obviously embarrassed about having decided to sell this T-shirt. When I posted a link to the online store, he altered the merchandise being sold so you couldn't see it or so he thought.

He tried less drastic measures first, including saying many things that weren't true. (I should note that I think he can be a funny guy. However, being funny doesn't give you a license to say untrue things seriously.)

For example, he came on to Xrlq's comments and first tried to deny that the store existed:

You're referring to the shirts we are not actually selling, in the store which
hasn't even opened yet?

..Because the only way you could have gotten there is
via a link that says we Âre not selling those shirts.

Patterico, Patterico.

That's the old 'pretending not to know things' trick.

Actually, the store did exist. I got there by clicking on store on the main page for Sadly, No! The link did not say they were not selling the shirts. And I somehow managed to get the screenshot shown above. Other people saw the shirts for sale. As Pablo said at Xrlq's:

It looks to me like you could check out just fine with one of those shirts that isn't for sale. Of course, it ain't worth the $20.00 to test the thesis, but I call bullsh*t on the We are not selling them claim.

Yup. Oh- and the Googlebot saw the store too, and recorded this cached image."

Of course now, the merchandise at the online store has miraculously changed and they are making all kinds of excuses.

via Cassandra

Rightwingsparkle Commenter Rules.

As suggested I am going to list my rules here and link it to the sidebar.

1) No "F" word, "s" word, or "G-D."

2) No personal insults to the host (which would be me)

3) No personal insults to other commenters (I give a bit of leeway here because of the heat of some debates, just try and behave)

4) No disgusting remarks. Try and remain civil at all times.

5) I warn you once. Then you are out. No second chances.

6) No copy and pasting of entire articles in the comment section. If you want me to read something link it.

7) Do not "sock puppet." Use a screen name and stick with it. Don't hide behind another name or anonymous.

This can't be good.

From LGF:

This doesn’t sound good at all: Ahmadinejad promises Muslims will ‘rejoice’ soon.

"Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Tuesday promised a “rejoicing” for Muslims in the Middle East “soon,” the Islamic Republic News Agency reported.
Speaking to university officials in the town of Mashhad, Ahmadinejad said the “volcano of rage” at the “arrogant powers” was “on the verge of eruption.”
Referring to escalating violence in Lebanon and northern Israel, he was quoted as saying, “The Zionists themselves have realized that they have launched a risky move and are aware that the flame of the fury of the regional states will set them ablaze.”

I tell myself that no one could be so stupid as think they can defeat Israel or the U.S. But then I remember that we are talking about the President of Iran who said in April that Israel is a “rotten tree” that would be “annihilated with one storm.”

And then I realize that he is that stupid.

*This is interesting*:

Tehran, Iran, Jul. 18 – Hard-line Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has invited Iraqi President Jalal Talabani to Iran, a government-run news agency reported.

Open Thread.

Life keeps getting in the way of my blogging!

I want to have a vote. Who wants me to ban those who don't add anything to the discussion but blather? I miss citizenkan. Why did her hubby have to be so rude? And where is Dumbya? Did he leave just cuz he lost our bet? My kingdom for a civil liberal!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Remembrance reunion.

Remembrance reunion event First Air Force, (Air Forces Northern), and the Continental U.S. NORAD Region 9-11 Remembrance-Reunion is scheduled for Sept. 9 and 10 at Tyndall Air Force Base, Fla. The event includes a wreath laying ceremony, Combined Air Operations Center/F-22 tour and mission briefing, remembrance-reunion dinner and a religious service.

This event will remember and honor those who served on Sept. 11, 2001, and also recognize service members who continue to defend the nation through OPERATION NOBLE EAGLE. For more information, visit http://www.1staf.tyndall.af.mil/911/index.htm or call (850) 283-8659 or DSN 523-8659.

Israel and it's enemies.

Here is an excellent article that outlines the problems for Israel. If you are like me and not fully informed about all the parties involved in this fight and why, this article has a good overview of that. Including Iran's role. Here is an excerpt:

"Hizbullah is always ready to attack Israel. That is what it exists to do. As its leader Hassan Nasrallah makes clear every day, Hizbullah sees the destruction of Israel as a central battle in the global jihad. And jihad is all that matters to Hizbullah.

In this, Hizbullah is no different from Hamas. Hamas (and Fatah for that matter), defines itself by its goal of destroying Israel and conquering Jerusalem in the name of jihad. Both Hamas and Fatah have used all their resources to build up their political, social and military capabilities to fight Israel.

Because these groups exist only to destroy Israel and advance the cause of global jihad, they cannot be deterred. They have no interest other than war and there is nothing they are not willing to sacrifice in order to win. Since they cannot be deterred, the only thing that Israel can do is destroy their ability to fight by demolishing their military capabilities."

More here.

Very cool.

Malkin has created a conservative group at YouTube. As soon as I figure out how to upload video I will join in!

You have to get over to Atlas Shrugged...

She live blogged the pro-Israel rally in NYC. (She has great pictures up) She says that Elie Wiesel thanked God Bush was in the White House with Hillary Clinton standing right there. She says Hillary was booed when she first started to speak. You have to feel sorry for liberal Jews now a days. I bet you they don't know how to vote!

Here is the transcript where she called into Rush about the rally. It's so sweet and funny how excited she is! I would be exactly the same way.

Oh, I love it when this happens.

I was reading an excellent article by Mary Katherine Ham over at Townhall.com and I got to the end of the article and there was a link to me. I just LOVE it when writers I admire mention me!! The article is basically how the left side of the blogosphere tends to demonize anyone who compromises with the right in any way. The left seem to be alienating the moderates, whereas we on the right tend to welcome you even if you only agree with us part of the time.

One glaring example is how the left is treating Joe Lieberman:

"Hewitt has called Chafee an “alleged GOP Senator,” “shortsighted,” and knocked him repeatedly for not voting for Bush, and for various obstructions in the Senate, but it hasn’t gotten much nastier than that. I imagine Lieberman would smile to get such courteous treatment on a big liberal blog these days."

The example she used that included me was this:

"If politically hybrid bloggers can be seen as the swing voters of the blogosphere—if a Jeff Goldstein is a guy who could conceivably be convinced to vote the other way if the Dems would assuage his doubts on certain issues—who do you think is more convincing showing up on his virtual doorstep?

Deborah Frisch, the liberal who threatens his child, or Right-Wing Sparkle, the conservative who has read his site for years and comes to his defense upon Frisch’s attack?"

Mary Katherine Ham makes an excellent point. The truth is that Jeff is as liberal as he is conservative on an array of issues. Do you think the left will ever get him back? Do you think he will ever vote for a Democrat? After the way they have treated him in disagreements compared to the way the right has, I think not.

Read the whole thing.

Give me a break.

I was reading about Bush speaking to Blair privately at a luncheon (Video-WMP Video-QT) and didn't see what a big deal it was, so I decided to check and see what the left was saying.

This is FDL: While munching on a roll, George Bush had a conversation with Tony Blair about Hizbollah cutting out their "shit." So much for that born-again veneer.... this deciderating and Presidenting is hard work. (And the fact that the curtain gets lifted from the "moral majority" act for public consumption is just a side bonus.."

Is this guy serious? Saying the world "sh*t" means that you are obviously just pretending to be a Christian??? Does he honestly believe that? Christians are suppose to be perfect and never utter a curse word??? What world does this guy live in? No. If FDL would like an example of true Christian hypocrisy he need look no further than Bill Clinton walking up the steps to Church on a Easter Sunday while lusting for his real "service" time later that day with Monica Lewinsky. That my leftie friend is a "born again veneer."

Fireworks of a different kind.

On the news last night I watched missiles light up a night sky in a far away land. They look just like 4th of July fireworks. I imagine a child there looking up in the sky, but not feeling the excitement that an American child feels at seeing fireworks. This child feels fear and sadness.

Our worlds are as different as the sparks that light our skies. America lives in safe cushy place. Even after 9-11, we aren't afraid. We weren't afraid then. Only angry. Somehow we knew that this was a sucker punch. We knew they wouldn't hit us again. Afterwards we got on the planes as usual. We didn't hide. We didn't look up at the sky wondering. We knew how strong we were. I ask people around me what they think of all this going on in the Middle East. I hear the same answer. They have fought forever and there is nothing we can do.

I wish I could talk to a Palestinian mother. I would want to know if all this was important to her. Or if it is like I imagine, that what is important to her is the same thing that is important to me; the happiness of our children and the hope that we can always provide for them what they need. It is the same for the Israeli mother and all mothers.

If only mothers ran wars. There would be no wars.

How many times have my children looked up into a starry sky and seen magnificent fireworks? Every 4th of July. Every Disney World vacation. Every New Year's eve. If they saw a missile they wouldn't recognize it. They would point and exclaim, "Why is someone lighting fireworks?"

It is the innocence of America.

They grow up in freedom and peace. They are not afraid of their neighbors. Their churches preach love. Such a different world than the child watching the night missiles so very far away.

What do I wish for that child? I wish a nation built on the belief that opportunity is what you make of it and where your voice is heard. A nation where laws protect against discrimination and violence. A nation of laws. A nation by the people, for the people, with liberty for all. I would wish that no one would teach him to hate anyone.

That is what I wish for.

America is not perfect by any means. If I could wave a wand and change America tomorrow, there would be many things I would change. But for all our faults, we are a nation where when a child looks up in the sky and sees a shower of sparkles, they never think of a missile, only a holiday.

Fifty Easy Answers From A Republican

BigDog sent me this:

"Robert J. Elisberg asks what he calls 50 Easy Questions to Ask Any Republican, apparently in an effort to reduce said Republican to a conversational puddle."

The questions just REEK of the smug self righteousness of the Democrats. I was going to answer the questions myself, but this guy did a pretty good job. Plus, the questions are just stupid.

Sickening.

Saw this at Jeff's:

"Looks like the NYT has decided to go with neutrality over objectivity—essentially severing ties with their own country in the service of what they believe is a higher journalistic good: Pulitzer Prizes.

Writes Times assistant managing editor for photography Michele McNally of a photo taken by NYT photographer Joao Silva showing an al-Sadr army sniper in the act of firing on US troops, “Right there with the Mahdi army. Incredible courage.”

Incredible courage? Well, far be it for me to question such self-congratulatory enthusiasm, but it seems to me that actual “incredible courage” would have entailed, say, Joao Silva getting word to US troops, or bumrushing the sniper and beating him unconscious with a heavy telephoto lens."

Good Grief.