Levity Ain

Getting Away (really isn't)


Telluride, Colorado	Entrance to Royal Gorge Park

It appears that Dean Barnett (“Soxblog”) is back in the saddle after a Colorado vacation and is once again bailing out Hugh Hewitt on Hugh’s Townhall.com website. I use the term “bailing out” tongue-in-cheek, because I fully appreciate Hugh’s hectic schedule that precludes even the most remote opportunity for full-time blogging.

One of the advantages to living in Colorado is that you don’t have to fly on United Airlines to get here, an experience that Dean lamented in his article entitled Irrelevant Vacation Notes. It is likely that Mr. and Mrs. Soxblog were traveling many of the same Colorado highways and byways, and at the same time, that my better half and I were last week, along with our son Aaron, his wife Dawn, and a delightful 15-year old visitor from Germany named Robert were. Robert is enjoying his first trip to America, and we have spent much of the summer trying to satisfy his insatiable desire to see and learn new things while trying to convince him that everything to see in America is in Colorado. He has experienced Rockies baseball and a junior competitive soccer tournament, NASCAR races and the Frontier Days Rodeo in Cheyenne, July 4th fireworks and the Denver Art Museum, a symphony concert at the Red Rocks Amphitheater and the Molly Brown Museum, traveling over eight or ten major mountain passes in Colorado, Rocky Mountain and Mesa Verde National Parks, the Air Force Academy, and his first experience with fishing. Of course, there was a method in our madness—some day we hope to make a genealogical visit to Germany, and we will expect reciprocal treatment.

Despite being three hundred miles from home and enjoying the immense beauty, the political junkie in me was never too far submerged. Two experiences in particular brought out an urgent desire to get back to my Dell DIM4500 and put my thoughts on the screen. The first of these occurred during our visit to the ski/resort town of Telluride. If you are not familiar with the town, it can best be described as an Aspen or Vail in waiting. As with those towns, it is infested with Liberal vermin. The city’s Town Council recently passed a symbolic resolution, the first of its kind (at least in Colorado), calling for the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney. The Denver Post recently described the town as “[A]n independent-minded historic-mining-town-turned- resort without a single Republican in office. Democrats, Libertarians and Green Party members fill every elected chair.”

Nonetheless, we entered this den of iniquity to see the rustic downtown set among the majestic San Juan Mountains and to enjoy the western atmosphere. As we passed one of the many local real estate offices, I noticed advertisements for homes and land that were for sale in and near the town. The smallest and oldest homes began at about a half a million dollars, and a rather nice, modern log home of decent size was advertised for over $9 million. The rest of the homes for sale ranged in price between those two.

We later stopped at a small restaurant on the outskirts of town, and similar homes with large balconies dotted the landscape. I could not help but envision John Edwards or Al Gore sitting on one of those balconies “worrying” about the poor and middle-class people of the “Second America”, as if they had any idea whatsoever of what it would be like to be poor or middle-class and not be able to afford to live in this beautiful part of Colorado. I thought about the sheer hypocrisy of the Telluride Town Council, the voters who put them in office, and liberal politicians in general who look down from their verandas at poor and middle class America, telling them “I feel your pain.”

The second special event of the trip involved the opposite end of the political spectrum. On the way home, our last stop was at the Royal Gorge Park in south-central Colorado. The first time I visited this park, many years ago, it was a pristine setting with a beautiful suspension bridge crossing more than a thousand feet above the floor of the Arkansas River Canyon. The view was magnificent even from the road approaching the bridge from either side. Park visitors could enjoy this aesthetic wonder either for free or for a very small price.

It now more closely resembles Disneyland, with large, multi-colored buildings, fences, and a noisy amusement park blocking any and all views of the canyon unless you pay an exorbitant fee to pass through gates to get to the bridge. For a mere $118 per person, you can get a 12-minute flight in a helicopter that buzzes back and forth across the canyon. In effect, crass commercialism now prevents many families from seeing this beautiful site that was once one of the major tourist attractions in the state, and what they would see is a noisy, hustling, and bustling tourist trap that this Coloradan will never visit again.

While I support free enterprise and the capitalistic system, there should be a limit placed on where it can be practiced, especially on such a scale. America is blessed with many natural wonders to be shared and enjoyed by all. If we allow these treasures to be despoiled by commercial development such as that which has taken place at the Royal Gorge, we will lose them and future generations will no longer be able to enjoy those special places that we take for granted today.

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Levity Ain't No Joke

Everyone needs a little humor from time to time, and since our policy here at The Drum and Cannon is to meet our customers' needs, today we will depart from our in-depth and award-winning attempts to convert diehard liberals back to the path of righteousness and rationality. If we poke a little fun at them, it's only because we love them and want them to learn how to occasionally laugh at themselves.
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The other day I went downtown and went into a shop. I was only in there for about 5 minutes. When I came out there was a cop writing out a parking ticket. I went up to him and said, "Come on, man, how about giving a retired person a break"?

He ignored me and continued writing the ticket. I called him a "Nazi." He glared at me and started writing another ticket for having worn tires. So I called him a "doughnut eating Gestapo." He finished the second ticket and put it on the windshield with the first. Then he started writing a third ticket. This went on for about 20 minutes. The more I abused him, the more tickets he wrote.

Personally, I didn't care. My car was parked two rows over. The car that he was putting the tickets on had a bumper sticker that said "Hillary in '08." I try to have a little fun each day now that I'm retired. It's important to my health. (Sent to me by a friend who is a fellow retiree).
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Hugh Hewitt reports tonight about the anti-war activist who tried to trip up Mitt Romney at a campaign forum today by asking if any of his five sons would demonstrate support for the war by enlisting in the military. The guv provided a very good answer, but the darker side of me wishes that he had responded thusly, “Oh, I don’t know, you will have to ask them. They’re adults, you know. Maybe it’s for the same reason that you and your friends haven’t joined al Qaeda yet, although you apparently support that group.”
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And yet another one that I received in my e-mail from a friend, but it originally appeared in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. It is about that American Legend, Yogi Berra. We all know that Yogi’s mastery of the English language is superseded by only Mark Twain and Winston Churchill. The following is but one example. I cannot vouch for its accuracy, but it sounds vintage Yogi. Yogi was addressing the graduating class at St. Louis University in May of this year, where he had also just received an Honorary Degree.

Thank you all for being here tonight. I know this is a busy time of year, and if you weren't here, you could probably be somewhere else. I especially want to thank the administration at St. Louis University for making this day necessary. It is an honor to receive this honorary degree. It is wonderful to be here in St. Louis and to visit the old neighborhood. I haven't been back since the last time I was here. Everything looks the same, only different. Of course, things in the past are never as they used to be.

Before I speak, I have something I'd like to say. As you may know, I never went to college, or high school for that matter. To be honest, I'm not much of a public speaker, so I will try to keep this short as long as I can.

As I look out upon all of the young people here tonight, there are a number of words of wisdom I might depart. But I think the most irrelevant piece of advice I can pass along is this:

The most important things in life are the things that are least important.

I could have gone a number of directions in my life. Growing up on the Hill, I could have opened a restaurant or a bakery. But the more time I spent in places like that, the less time I wanted to spend there. I knew that if I wanted to play baseball, I was going to have to play baseball. My childhood friend, Joe Garagiola, also became a big-league ballplayer, as did my son, Dale. I think you'll find the similarities in our careers are quite different.

You're probably wondering, how does a kid from the Hill become a New York Yankee and get in the Hall of Fame? Well, let me tell you something, if it was easy nobody would do it. Nothing is impossible until you make it possible.

Of course, times were different. To be honest, I was born at an early age. Things are much more confiscated now. It seems like a nickel ain't worth a dime anymore. But let me tell you, if the world was perfect, it wouldn't be. Even Napoleon had his Watergate.

You'll make some wrong mistakes along the way, but only the wrong survive. Never put off until tomorrow what you can't do today. Denial isn't just a river in Europe.

Strive for success and remember you won't get what you want unless you want what you get. Some will choose a different path. If they don't want to come along, you can't stop them. Remember, none are so kind as those who will not see.

Keep the faith and follow the Commandments: Do not covet thy neighbor's wife, unless she has nothing else to wear. Treat others before you treat yourself. As Franklin Eleanor Roosevelt once said, 'The only thing you have to fear is beer itself.'

Hold on to your integrity, ladies and gentlemen. It's the one thing you really need to have; if you don't have it, that's why you need it. Work hard to reach your goals, and if you can't reach them, use a ladder. There may come a day when you get hurt and have to miss work. Don't worry, it won't hurt to miss work.

Over the years, I have realized that baseball is really just a menopause for life. We all have limitations, but we also know limitation is the greatest form of flattery. Beauty is in the eyes of Jim Holder.

Half the lies you hear won't be true, and half the things you say, you won't ever say.

As parents you'll want to give your children all the things you didn't have. But don't buy them an encyclopedia, make them walk to school like you did. Teach them to have respect for others, especially the police. They are not here to create disorder, they are here to preserve it.

Throughout my career, I found good things always came in pairs of three. There will be times when you are an overwhelming underdog. Give 100 percent to everything you do, and when that's not enough, give everything you have left. 'Winning isn't everything, but it's better than rheumatism.' I think Guy Lombardo said that.

Finally, dear graduates and friends, cherish this moment; it is a memory you will never forget. You have your entire future ahead of you.

Good luck and Bob's speed.'

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Marine General Points Out Successes in Iraq

The situation in Iraq is rapidly changing according to civilian media reporting as well as official military reports. Those of us who support the war find the optimistic news encouraging, while those who oppose the war either find the same news discouraging, either admitting that it will cause "a real big problem" for the Left (Rep. James Clyburn D-SC), or downplaying the credibility of the news to a level of simple propaganda (Sen. Harry Reid and Rep. Nancy Pelosi). On July 10, 2007 the Commandant of the Marine Corps, General James T. Conway, gave a straight-forward assessment of the progress of the war as part of the George P. Shultz Lecture Series at the Marines’ Memorial Association and World Affairs Council. Whether you agree or disagree with the war, you owe it to yourself to objectively read the General's comments and then form your own opinion. More likely than not, you will join the once-again increasing number of Americans who, according to recent polls, support the war. You can read the General's speech in its entirety here.

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The War in Iraq 101: a basic course for the War's critics

As time moves on and the disagreements over the course of the War in Iraq continue, it becomes more and more obvious that the events that took place early in the war become distorted and what was fact becomes fiction, while what was fiction becomes fact. Critics on the Left, for example, frequently state that the Administration falsely tied the Iraqi government under Saddam Hussein to the 9/11 attacks as an excuse for invading Iraq. Nothing could be further from the truth, but it is widely believed nonetheless, thereby distorting and inflaming what might otherwise be civilized discussion. Another false impression is that the coalition forces disbanded the Iraqi Army after Baghdad was taken, thereby eliminating a potent force that could have helped stabilize the country early in the war. In August of 2004, PBS Frontline interviewed Walter Slocombe, the former director of national security and defense in the Coalition Provisional Authority. This was the U.S. organization charged with overseeing Iraq's reconstruction and transition to democratic rule.

In the interview, Slocombe describes what really happened to the Iraqi Army during and after the push to Baghdad. He talks about what was not planned for in the aftermath of the war and describes the challenges in training Iraqi security forces following the almost total disappearance of the Iraqi Army. He describes it thusly:

Well, the United States government had expected that there would be substantial Iraqi military units which were intact, which were sitting in barracks with their commanders, with their weapons, with their physical facilities intact, in effect waiting for orders. That just didn't happen. The entire Iraqi army vaporized. They simply all went home as the fighting went forward. And that meant that a lot of the initial things we would have to do, both good and bad, didn't have to be done because there was no army to deal with.

I wasn't completely surprised. If you think about it, I think the central issue why the army disappeared is that it was a conscript army. And as soon as it was clear that the organized military resisting us was collapsing, the officers lost most of the control of their troops, and sometimes the will to try to control them.

Slocombe also describes the status of the military infrastructure shortly after the fall of Saddam Hussein:

[A] lot of the stuff that was in the facilities was stolen; almost all the nontactical vehicles, trucks, jeeps, cars, that kind of stuff were almost stolen. And then almost every government-related facility in Iraq was ransacked and looted by the local population. So the military bases practically, without exception, were in ruins. The walls and the roofs were often intact, but everything else was ripped out or burned, and that was also true of government offices, courthouses, police stations all around the country.

A little known yet important aspect of the story is that the Coalition later paid former Iraqi military personnel to allow them to provide for their families.

We didn't disband the army. The army disbanded itself. ... There was no army to disband. We were not sending people home who were doing useful work or failing to put them to work cleaning streets or whatever. ... What we did do was to formally dissolve all of the institutions of Saddam's security system. The intelligence, his military, his party structure, his information and propaganda structure were formally disbanded and the property turned over to the Coalition Provisional Authority. And in addition, former and formal military ranks were abolished. But we also said at the time that we would make payments to former officers or to former military personnel, and we actually set up that system within about six weeks and have, in fact, continued to pay the former officers. And we even made a one-time payment to the conscripts. That's the story on the so-called disbanding.

Saddam's Army was, for the most part, organized in such a way so that the majority of the conscripts were Shi'ites while the officer corps was made up primarily of loyal Sunnis, many of whom were active Baathists. It was only natural that there would be questions regarding the loyalty and dependability of the Army's leaders.

Furthermore, even if they had come back, as I said, all the facilities were trashed. And you can't run an army without places for the troops to sleep and eat and take care of bodily functions, much less without equipment so you can move them and train them and communicate with them, all those sorts of things. ... In order to have an army that can do anything, you've got to have a structure; you've got to have facilities for them; you've got to have arms; you've got to have a leadership that they will follow.

And then there is the problem that using a badly trained, ethnically unacceptable army with very dubious, politically loyal leadership to do a critical security job is a formula for disaster.

The only logical solution was to begin building a new military from the ground up, taking advantage of the experience and skills that were still available, especially among lower echelon officers and non-commissioned officers. The function of the new army would be radically different from that for which the former army was trained, namely internal security and counter-insurgency rather than conventional warfare. Advancement would be the result of performance rather than loyalty to a dictator. In essence, it was a totally new military paradigm, one for which the old army of Saddam Hussein was not suited. And it was a correct decision made by the Bush Administration and American military leaders.

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