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Site contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com
Retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel Buzz Patterson announces the release of his new book, War Crimes: The Left’s Campaign to Destroy the Military and Lose the War on Terror, posting short excerpts over at The Corner.
Buzz has spent the last couple of years building his case for War Crimes, in his many interviews with military and MILBLOGGERS on Rightalk Radio, and his dedication to amplifying the wattage of MILBLOGGER voices. He’s been guest of our inaugural MILBLOG Conference, and a guest contributor to MILBLOGS. All that, and he very graciously quoted me from one of my anti-media tirades, sent me an early draft for review, and invited me to contribute a blurb for the book jacket. (Suffice to say, this won’t be an entirely objective review. That’s okay. I’m not a journalist even if I don’t write in my pajamas.)
Buzz saw War Crimes as a mission he could accomplish: to give the American public an opportunity to hear military voices responding to media ignorance, apathy, hostility, and other journalistic malpractice and malfeasance. Here’s how he sees the current media climate, and his solution:
Realities on the ground often go unnoticed or under-appreciated. The American soldier has often lacked a voice to articulate his mission and his successes amidst the cacophony of defeat in Congress and public opinion polls. I invited warriors to weigh in with their perspectives, interviewing hundreds of soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines, many on the battlefields of Iraq. Together, their interviews constitute much of War Crimes: The Left’s Campaign to Destroy the Military and Lose the War on Terror. And the picture they paint of their fellow citizens at home is anything but rosy.Read Buzz’s posting, or better yet, check out his book for what soldiers have to say about the war within.
(Lots more commentary and review of War Crimes over at Dadmanly.)
The Army has a daily (well, Mon. - Fri.) electronic news roundup publication called "Stand To!". One of the features is called WHAT'S BEING SAID IN BLOGS and occasionally something I have written on my blog gets a nod... although not usually when I put up a rant... and especially when the rant is aimed at the Army. But I can always tell when my blog is linked because my site meter details has loads of pentagon, government and military addresses.... so I was a bit surprised that my latest rant about the treatment of Invisibly Wounded was linked.
It just boggles my mind that with all the attention and focus in the press and in Congress and at DoD on PTSD and TBI -- and after all the studies, recommendations, howling and shouting and all the press releases about how they take PTSD seriously and how they will care for these Wounded Warriors, that when the rubber meets the road, the Army still doesn’t get it.
Then again, maybe they were just interested in the link to the insurgent video (multiple angles) of the "holy $%^!&*" sized VBIED attack that wounded my son and one other two years ago?
All of it over at Some Soldier's Mom
Sources of Afghanistan information categorized here. Special guest appearance by Task Force Phoenix. Heh.
So I guess I have two questions: how did that leak to the Seattle Times (rhetorical) and is anybody in trouble for the contracting?
I once worked for a guy who complained that we in the Navy would send a blueshirt to mast for taking a government van through a McDonald's at the wrong time, but lose billions or lives in acquisition and nobody gets spanked. Look at A-12's ending. Who got fired, lost money within a decade, or went to jail? I looked into the problem, and it's a very hard one; the system is structured such that decisions made on the operator level cannot be done. That's a real shame.
There are good GOFO, average GOFO, and "others." Now and then you happen upon a great General Officer or Flag Officer. A true gem for his generation. I had the opportunity to briefly work with and talk with this man (and I mean that in its best definition) - and this email tells you a lot about his character - and why almost everyone who has known him would follow him anywhere.
On Chucks second anniversary of having been dead...he happened upon a piece of it...
About the time we finished, a very nice lady stood up from her table and told all of us thank you, and ordered us all to get a slice of pie on her. Turns out the restaurant also makes truly tasty pies--I had a slice of raspberry pie that tasted like they somehow filled a fully cooked pie crust with fresh raspberries. It was a perfect slice of pie.Our checks came, and about the time I realized my $8 lunch was way too cheap for the quality, the server came by and scooped up the checks--for all of us. She explained that some of the regular customers had already paid for us.
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Original content copyright © 2006 by the respective authors
