The media, Hillary and McCain are full of crap. Small town America, opportunity and Iraq (Updated) [View All]

[ProSense]

Small U.S. towns bear scars from Iraq

Updated 2/19/2007 4:21 PM ET

By Kimberly Hefling, Associated Press

MCKEESPORT, Pa. — Edward "Willie" Carman wanted a ticket out of town, and the Army provided it. Raised in the projects by a single mother in this blighted, old industrial steel town outside Pittsburgh, the 18-year-old saw the U.S. military as an opportunity.

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When Carman died in Iraq three years ago at age 27, he had money saved for college, a fiancee and two kids — including a baby son he'd never met. Neighbors in Hawthorne's mobile home park collected $400 and left it in an envelope in her door.

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Across the nation, small towns are quietly bearing a disproportionate burden of war. Nearly half of the more than 3,100 U.S. military casualties in Iraq have come from towns like McKeesport, Pa., where fewer than 25,000 people live, according to an analysis by the Associated Press. One in five hailed from hometowns of less than 5,000.

Many of the hometowns of the war dead aren't just small, they're poor. The AP analysis found that nearly three quarters of those killed in Iraq came from towns where the per capita income was below the national average. More than half came from towns where the percentage of people living in poverty topped the national average.

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Diminished opportunities are one factor in higher military enlistment rates in rural areas. From 1997 to 2003, 1.5 million rural workers lost their jobs due to changes in industries like manufacturing that have traditionally employed rural workers, according to the Carsey Institute.

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Tell us how http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/4/1/85359/24244/36/488126">NAFTA helped? Tell us how the Colombian trade deal will help? Tell us how 5 years of an illegal war helps?

US GIs in Iraq suffer worst week of '08

By ROBERT H. REID, Associated Press Writer 2 hours, 59 minutes ago

BAGHDAD - A roadside bomb killed an American soldier in Baghdad on Saturday, capping the bloodiest week for U.S. troops in Iraq this year. Clashes persisted in Shiite areas, even as the biggest Shiite militia sought to rein in its fighters.

At least 13 Shiite militants were killed in the latest clashes in Baghdad's militia stronghold of Sadr City, the U.S. military said. Iraqi police said seven civilians also died in fighting, which erupted Friday night and tapered off Saturday.

The U.S. military said the American soldier was killed in a blast Saturday morning in northwestern Baghdad but did not say whether Shiite militiamen were responsible.

The death raised to at least 19 the number of American trooper

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US military deaths in Iraq at 4,031

The outrage is phony, and Hillary knows all about being a phony:

http://tpmelectioncentral.talkingpointsmemo.com">Hillary Responds to Obama's Comments on the People of PA (Video)

http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/2/23/14417/7638/731/434555">Hillary to Obama: 'Shame on you' (Video)

Hillary Clinton Joins In (Video)

Update:

A ‘bitter turn’ — Clinton goes nuclear, Obama goes on the defensive

Posted April 12th, 2008 at 4:45 pm

When it comes to the political world, I get the sense “bitter-gate” — yep, the story apparently now gets a “gate” — went from zero to 60 in just a couple of seconds.

Obama is pushing back hard…

(Video)

…while Clinton is sounding an awful lot like a Republican candidate.

(Video)

It’s unfortunate, but in some ways, this flap reinforces why a prolonged Democratic primary process is bad for the party. We now have two dominant forces — the Republican machine and the Clinton machine — simultaneously arguing, vehemently and loudly, that the likely Democratic nominee is an elitist, out-of-touch liberal who doesn’t like working families and embraces un-American values. It’s absurd, but that’s exactly the message dominating the political landscape right now.

As Noam Scheiber put it, “Strange how the Clinton approach to strengthening the Democratic Party is remarkably similar to the GOP’s approach to strengthening the Democratic Party.”

Now, it’s probably not quite that simple. Clinton smells blood in the water, and figures this is arguably her last real chance to bury the frontrunner.

But therein lies the biggest problem: Obama’s remarks were clumsy, but the forced outrage is excessive and disproportionate.

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Hillary has perfected the Reub hissy fit.




Edited title, change PA to America.