I'm exploding!!! I had to take the day off to write this RANTafter receiving an email

[NoSheep]

from my little sheltered, uninformed Republican neice. I was so incredibly angry and frustrated. She was a memeber of the College Republicans in her all girl Southern Baptist college. She just graduated last year and is still smoking the Kool-Aid. What follows her letter is the rant I took the day off work to write. All references are from Wikipedia except the one that quotes the PNAC website. Here is her email:

Hey Everyone!



Sorry to bring sad news, but I feel like this is something that I really

need to share with everyone!



Chris XXXXX, YYYYY's BEST FRIEND, died Tuesday in Iraq. YYYYY is

devastated, and it's been a very SURREAL experience for us both. I've

spent a lot of time with Chris, and I spent the weekend with him when he

came home for two weeks back in October! He is one of the strongest,

glowing, and positive persons that I've ever met. You never sat at a

table with him without laughing to tears AT LEAST once! He was so

passionate about what he was doing over in Iraq. That is all he talked

about when he came home, and although he was glad to be home and

couldn't wait to see his family, he couldn't wait to get back to serving

his country! He believed that in places such as Iraq where there was

soooo much hate, violence, and blood shed that there was also a lack of

God and the Gospel. When you spoke with him, he always had a sense, and

strong grip on the fact that he may die, but he seemed to always carry a

peace about it, b/c he KNEW exactly where he would go if he did.



My friends and I got the pleasure of meeting Chris, and I know that all

our lives are blessed for that. There have been a lot of people in my

life that I look up to, but I can really say that now I have met, and

been blessed to be in the presence of a TRUE HERO! I think we've all

sat at the evening news and listened to the soldiers that die EVERYDAY,

and we just shake our heads and say how bad it is. BUT last night, as I

watched the evening news with Jeremy I realized what all those families

go through. The heart wrenching reality that the one you love is never

coming back. It's almost too much to put your mind around! So I ask

you, from now on, when you see those men and women on TV that have died

for our freedom, that you take a minute and pray for them and their

families. I know I will, b/c every time I see those in the future, I

will KNOW the feeling that someone, somewhere is feeling.



I have been touched by this situation, and I pass this along and ask

that you please keep Chris and his family in you thoughts and prayers!



Jeremy and I last spoke to Chris last Thursday, Thanksgiving, when he

called from Iraq. We both spoke with him and told him that we missed

him and couldn't wait for him to get back. The last thing that YYYYY

said to Chris was, "Stay Safe, I'm praying for you..... Love you man!"

And that is what YYYYY will hold on to forever. So take the time to

tell everyone that is special to you how you feel, and NEVER leave it

unsaid. You never EVER know when it might be your last CHANCE!



LOVE YOU ALL!

END OF LETTER-Here's the rant:

It is so incredibly hard to believe that in the richest country in the world, a child can graduate from college and be this uninformed; this naive and dumbed down by propaganda. This is the kind of thing that makes it nearly impossible for me to sit with my feet under the same table as people who think this way. It makes me feel like a liar and an accomplice to a hideous crime. I think I could sit down, and in about an hour, lay out an ironclad case for why someone this delusional about the world they live in should be locked away in an asylum. As is evidenced by the death and destruction this kind of blind allegiance to power is, clearly a person with such thoughts is a danger to herself and others.


Long after it has been proven time and time again that this theifdom of an administration lied about it's reasons for going to war; after all the incompetent bumbling; after anyone who possesses simple math skills can cipher that the presence of the United States in Iraq has caused more bloodshed than the "evil regime" it pretended to seek to overthrow; after the predictions of more than half of this country have borne out the truth that this kind of "cowboy diplomacy" has contributed far more recruits to terrorism than it has deterred; after it has been shown that billions of American tax dollars have been funneled into the pockets of Halliburton; even after the majority of Republicans now agree, finally, that this invasion of Iraq was a huge mistake....after all this.... a person, seemingly with all their faculties, can STILL be in denial about the real reasons behind the death of this soldier.


If anyone is still in a coma regarding the reasons we are in Iraq, let's look at 2 things: The first is the HOW. And herein lies the irony of the so called fight for our "freedom". Several times in the note my niece sent me, she says this boy died for our freedoms. I wonder which ones she is talking about. I wonder if she even understands what freedom means. And I can’t help but wonder: was that boy’s life not worth her taking the opportunity to learn the facts surrounding this administration’s origins and its invasion of Iraq? I would say the sad fact is, he seems worth more to her as what she must now feel is a bragging right. She now, personally, knows a HERO who DIED for her freedom! In her note at the bottom of my email, she sounds nothing less than thrilled to the teeth.


What seems to have escaped my brainwashed niece and others like her is all just a simple matter of known facts regarding the genesis and motivations of the Neo-Conservative movement; a privileged political insider force that has clearly shown it intends to squash personal freedom in the name of private gain. A brief read around and it is plain: all the major players in this administration have ties to some of the darkest pits of evil known in our country.



We as “free” citizens are supposedly guaranteed the right to fair elections of our representatives. I would say this is the first pillar of our democracy. However, the so called freedom-loving neo-cons have stolen 2 presidential elections by having their allies strategically placed in seats of power to insure their victory. In the first, “Katherine Harris, as Secretary of State for the State of Florida, presided over the contested 2000 US presidential election in Florida. There were allegations of conflicts of interest and partisan, unethical behavior by Katherine Harris during the 2000 campaign. Harris had been named as Bush's Florida campaign co-chair the year before.



Harris certified that the Republican candidate, then-Texas Governor George W. Bush, had defeated the Democratic candidate, Vice President Al Gore, in the popular vote of Florida and thus certified the Republican slate of electors. Her ruling was challenged and overturned on appeal by Florida's Supreme Court; this decision, however, was itself reversed by the U.S. Supreme Court in Bush v. Gore. That Court ruled (5-4) that Gore's request to extend Florida's statutory deadline for ballot re-counts had no merit, because no Florida law at the time provided for that option. This ruling nullified the state court's decision, upholding Harris' certification. The decision foreclosed any further court challenges by Gore and resulted in Bush's margin of victory in Florida being officially tallied at 537 votes. Therefore, Florida's electoral votes — and the Presidency — went to George W. Bush.”



The above information is known fact to those who care to pay attention. And it is clear to see, all you have to do to win the presidency, is just have someone on the inside, preferably the secretary of state or chief elections official, manipulating the votes! Gore lost the presidency on a technicality (!) and this was made certain by Bush’s accomplice on the inside, Katherine Harris and no doubt his own brother, governor of the state of Florida, Jeb Bush. The following link contains information that illustrates the kind of honesty Ms. Harris is familiar with. It is interesting to see that Harris, who always claims ignorance of these crimes she is accused of being party to, stands in sharp contrast to her cohorts, who are found guilty and imprisoned. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Katherine_Harris



For anyone who doubts the second election was stolen, you must not have realized what was well understood far before the 2004 election. Due to voter demographics and the obvious closeness of the race, the winning candidate had to succeed in Ohio in order to hold the office of president. Again, this was well understood before the election. And you must not have read about this man or know about the state that stole the second election for Bush:



John Kenneth Blackwell (born February 28, 1948), currently serves as the secretary of state for the U.S. state of Ohio.

Blackwell gained national prominence for his dual roles as Chief Elections official of Ohio and honorary co-chair of the "Committee to re-elect George W. Bush" during the 2004 election. Allegations of conflict of interest and voter disenfranchisement led to the filing of at least sixteen related lawsuits naming Blackwell. Regarding voter disenfranchisement, the US Court of Appeals ruled, in agreement with Blackwell, that provisional ballots cast in the wrong polling location should not be counted in the election.





Take that and add it to this:



Diebold, Inc. Electronic Voting machines (God HELP America)

Days after the 2004 Presidential election, Diebold agreed to pay $2.6 million to settle a lawsuit filed by the State of California alleging that they had sold shoddy voting equipment.<2> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diebold#_note-1#_note-1>

In December 2005, Diebold's CEO Wally O'Dell <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wally_O%27Dell> resigned following reports that the company was facing securities fraud <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fraud> litigation surrounding charges of insider trading <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Insider_trading> . <3> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diebold#_note-2#_note-2>

In May 2006, a registered lobbyist for Diebold Election Systems contributed the individual maximum of $10,000 to the election campaign of Republican <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_%28United_States%29> Ohio <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio> Secretary of State Kenneth Blackwell <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth_Blackwell> - whose office approved Diebold's selection as a vendor and negotiated the price of its machines for county election boards.<4> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diebold#_note-3#_note-3> One month earlier, Blackwell claimed that his purchase of 178 shares of Diebold stock had been the result of an oversight by his financial manager.<5> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diebold#_note-4#_note-4>

The 2004 presidency was won with the illegal assistance of the chief of the board of elections in Ohio, who also just happened to be the honorary co-chair of the re-elect George Bush campaign and the one who secured the installation of electronic (therefore rig-able)voting equipment and who won voter disenfranchisement suits on another TECHNICALITY!



Knowing this, do you now feel more free? Or less free?



From the first stolen election, with their man in, the PNAC had the stage to set their plans in motion. Their vision reads no less than a self interested plan to dominate the world. If you think you are free under this administration, you must not have heard of the PNAC. http://www.newamericancentury.org/



Is another boy’s life worth the time it will take to read it?



Here below is their Statement of Principles copied from their own website. Note the date. They’ve been planning this for some time. Note the members. Do YOU know how many served or are currently serving in the Bush administration?

************************************************

June 3, 1997

American foreign and defense policy is adrift. Conservatives have criticized the incoherent policies of the Clinton Administration. They have also resisted isolationist impulses from within their own ranks. But conservatives have not confidently advanced a strategic vision of America's role in the world. They have not set forth guiding principles for American foreign policy. They have allowed differences over tactics to obscure potential agreement on strategic objectives. And they have not fought for a defense budget that would maintain American security and advance American interests in the new century.

We aim to change this. We aim to make the case and rally support for American global leadership.

As the 20th century draws to a close, the United States stands as the world's preeminent power. Having led the West to victory in the Cold War, America faces an opportunity and a challenge: Does the United States have the vision to build upon the achievements of past decades? Does the United States have the resolve to shape a new century favorable to American principles and interests?

We are in danger of squandering the opportunity and failing the challenge. We are living off the capital -- both the military investments and the foreign policy achievements -- built up by past administrations. Cuts in foreign affairs and defense spending, inattention to the tools of statecraft, and inconstant leadership are making it increasingly difficult to sustain American influence around the world. And the promise of short-term commercial benefits threatens to override strategic considerations. As a consequence, we are jeopardizing the nation's ability to meet present threats and to deal with potentially greater challenges that lie ahead.

We seem to have forgotten the essential elements of the Reagan Administration's success: a military that is strong and ready to meet both present and future challenges; a foreign policy that boldly and purposefully promotes American principles abroad; and national leadership that accepts the United States' global responsibilities.

Of course, the United States must be prudent in how it exercises its power. But we cannot safely avoid the responsibilities of global leadership or the costs that are associated with its exercise. America has a vital role in maintaining peace and security in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. If we shirk our responsibilities, we invite challenges to our fundamental interests. The history of the 20th century should have taught us that it is important to shape circumstances before crises emerge, and to meet threats before they become dire. The history of this century should have taught us to embrace the cause of American leadership.

Our aim is to remind Americans of these lessons and to draw their consequences for today. Here are four consequences:

• we need to increase defense spending significantly if we are to carry out our global
responsibilities today and modernize our armed forces for the future;

• we need to strengthen our ties to democratic allies and to challenge regimes hostile to our interests and values;

• we need to promote the cause of political and economic freedom abroad;

• we need to accept responsibility for America's unique role in preserving and extending an international order friendly to our security, our prosperity, and our principles.

Such a Reaganite policy of military strength and moral clarity may not be fashionable today. But it is necessary if the United States is to build on the successes of this past century and to ensure our security and our greatness in the next.

Elliott Abrams Gary Bauer William J. Bennett Jeb Bush

Dick Cheney Eliot A. Cohen Midge Decter Paula Dobriansky Steve Forbes

Aaron Friedberg Francis Fukuyama Frank Gaffney Fred C. Ikle

Donald Kagan Zalmay Khalilzad I. Lewis Libby Norman Podhoretz

Dan Quayle Peter W. Rodman Stephen P. Rosen Henry S. Rowen

Donald Rumsfeld Vin Weber George Weigel Paul Wolfowitz

******************************************

“Moral clarity”????? Look at the people who invented what we now know as America’s foreign AND domestic policy!!! I say foreign and domestic, because under the guise of protecting us from “terrorism”, these animals are taking away individual freedoms granted by the constitution. There’s that old bugger freedom again! Let’s examine their reputations.

**Dick Cheney – VP of the USA and former CEO of Halliburton, Inc. who provides technical products and services for oil <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil> and gas <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Natural_gas> exploration and production, and the KBR <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kellogg%2C_Brown_and_Root> subsidiary is a major construction company of refineries <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_refinery> , oil fields <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oil_fields> , pipelines <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pipeline_transport> , and chemical plants <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemical_plant> . Company 2005 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005> revenues <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenue> were US$ <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_dollar> 20.99 billion. Halliburton was granted a $7 billion no-bid contract in Iraq. One would need to be a complete idiot not to see the screaming conflict of interest here! Oddly, for such a war monger, he’s not much of a patriot. During Vietnam, Cheney did not serve in the war, applying for and receiving five draft deferments. Cheney remains a major stockholder in Halliburton. It is also worth noting Halliburton has been under investigation for fraud in Iraq. Read this, if you think another boy’s life is worth it: http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Civilians_testify_to_Halliburton_fraud%2C_coercion

** Donald Rumsfeld – US Secretary of Defense and former CEO of Searle Pharmaceuticals. It was under Rumsfeld that Searle got the Food and Drug Administration <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_and_Drug_Administration> 's approval for the controversial <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_sweetener_debate> artificial sweetener <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Artificial_sweetener> , aspartame <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aspartame> , which it marketed as NutraSweet. It is widely believed that the FDA had to have been paid off to allow the use of aspartame. From January 1997 until being sworn in as the 21st Secretary of Defense in January 2001, Donald Rumsfeld was Chairman of the Board of Gilead Sciences <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilead_Sciences> which is the developer of Tamiflu (Oseltamivir <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oseltamivir> ) which is used in the treatment of bird flu <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird_flu> .

(I can just hear them saying: “Get that virus ready boys, we could sure use an epidemic right now!” Now THAT, is chemical and biological warfare and corporate welfare all rolled into one!! Good show old chap! He must have to get up very early in the morning to be THIS efficient!)

As secretary of defense, Rumsfeld has repeatedly ordered the direct violation of the Geneva Conventions in order to torture prisoners. Hundreds are being held today without right to a trial. This violates one of the basic principals of our Bill of Rights, habeas corpus. Innocents are now suing the government because they were tortured in numerous cases of mistaken identity.

Basically, by using the term “enemy combatant” the administration seeks to deny basic rights to its enemies. Bad enough as it is, this could be anyone who gets in their way!! I could be called an enemy combatant if I dared to interfere with this administration’s policies where “terrorism” is concerned. That’s what the illegal wiretapping is about. They ARE spying on Americans. Why wouldn’t they? There are billions of profits at stake. Where do you draw the line? This is fascism at its finest! This isn’t freedom. This isn’t what American’s have thought they “died for” in past wars. And freedom is not why we are in Iraq now. How could it be when currently, freedom is being taken away from us not by anyone in the Middle East, but by our own leaders?

Let’s look at a few other members of the PNAC:

** Lewis "Scooter" Libby Jr. (born August 22 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_22> , 1950 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950> ) is the former Chief of Staff and assistant for National Security <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_security> Affairs to U.S. Vice President <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vice_President_of_the_United_States> Dick Cheney <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Cheney> and a former presidential advisor. His "constant presence behind the scenes in the Bush administration" brought him the nickname "Dick Cheney's Dick Cheney."<1> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Libby#_note-0#_note-0> <2> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Libby#_note-1#_note-1>

Libby has been indicted on 5 felony counts by a grand jury for leaking information about the secret identity of CIA agent Valerie Plame. THIS was clearly a case of the administration punishing its enemy with absolutely NO regard for national security (which I think is supposed to protect our freedom!). Valerie Plame is a specialist of non-conventional weapons (read Weapons of Mass Destruction) In the lead up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq> , President <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States> George W. Bush <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush> stated in his January 28, 2003 State of the Union Address <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/State_of_the_Union_Address> that "The British <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Britain> government has learned that Saddam Hussein <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saddam_Hussein> recently sought significant quantities of uranium <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yellowcake_uranium> from Africa <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Africa> ."<1> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plame_affair#_note-stateunion#_note-stateunion>

In late February of 2002, responding to inquiries from the Vice President's office and the Departments of State and Defense about the allegation that Iraq had attempted to buy enriched uranium yellowcake from Niger <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Niger> , the CIA had authorized a trip by Joseph C. Wilson <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joseph_C._Wilson> to Niger to investigate the possibility. He concluded then that there "was nothing to the story," and presented his report in March of 2002.<2> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plame_affair#_note-senatecommittee#_note-senatecommittee>

Wilson happens to be Valerie Plame’s husband!

After the March 2003 invasion of Iraq <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003_invasion_of_Iraq> , Wilson wrote a series of editorials questioning the basis for such an action (See "Bibliography" in The Politics of Truth). In an editorial published in the New York Times <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_York_Times> on July 6 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/July_6> , 2003 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2003> , Wilson argues that, in his State of the Union Address, President George W. Bush misrepresented intelligence leading up to the invasion and thus misleadingly suggested that the Iraqi regime <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sadam_Hussein> sought uranium <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uranium> in order to manufacture nuclear weapons <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_weapons> .<3> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plame_affair#_note-wilsonoped#_note-wilsonoped>

**Paul Wolfowitz -may be most famous as a prominent architect of the foreign policy <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foreign_policy> of the George W. Bush <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush> administration known as the Bush Doctrine <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_Doctrine> , which resulted in the invasion of Iraq. That’s about all I need to know about this demon. But here is a noteworthy quote from this political genius:

“There has been a good deal of comment - some of it quite outlandish - about what our postwar requirements might be in Iraq. Some of the higher end predictions we have been hearing recently, such as the notion that it will take several hundred thousand U.S. troops to provide stability in post-Saddam Iraq, are wildly off the mark. It is hard to conceive that it would take more forces to provide stability in post-Saddam Iraq than it would take to conduct the war itself and to secure the surrender of Saddam's security forces and his army - hard to imagine." P.W.

But what’s interesting is, he got out of the administration and the harsh spotlight of Iraq and is now PRESIDENT OF THE WORLD BANK! I wish I could get promoted to a position of handling the world’s money after such evidence of wildly poor judgement. I certainly couldn’t do it without being connected!

**Elliott Abrams (born January 24 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/January_24> , 1948 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1948> ) is an American <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States> lawyer who has served in foreign policy positions for a number of Republican <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republican_Party_%28United_States%29> U.S. Presidents <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/President_of_the_United_States> , most recently George W. Bush <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush> .

During Bush's first term in office, he was appointed the post of Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director on the National Security Council <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_National_Security_Council> for Near East and North African Affairs. At the start of Bush's second term, Abrams was promoted to be his Deputy National Security Advisor <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Security_Advisor_%28United_States%29> , responsible for advancing Bush's strategy of advancing democracy abroad. A leading Straussian <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_Strauss> neoconservative <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoconservative> , Abrams' appointment by Bush was considered highly controversial due to his involvement in the Iran-Contra Affair <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran-Contra_Affair> , over which he subsequently pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor counts of unlawfully withholding information from Congress <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congress> .

Here is a guy who has already been convicted in a government scandal!! Yet Bush gave him an extremely important job anyway!

So much for “moral clarity”.

**George Weigel - Iran Contra scandal again. Critics allege that while Weigel was president of the James Madison Foundation during the Reagan administration <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reagan_administration> it received funding from the federal government's U.S. Institute for Peace to monitor what it called "peace groups." Weigel was also a principal at the Puebla Institutehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citing_sources> >. The Puebla Institute received U.S. government funding channeled through Weigel's National Endowment for Democracy to the contra front group Prodemca <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prodemca> . Along with Carl R. Channell's National Endowment for the Preservation of Liberty (NEPL), both the Puebla Institute and Weigel's National Endowment for Democracy were important conduits for funds from the contra supply network coordinated by Oliver North <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oliver_North> . Also alleged is that the Puebla institute's investigation of purported Sandinista <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandinista> government religious persecution was conducted in close coordination with the CIA <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CIA> and its Contra <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contra> directorate.

In case you are fuzzy on the Iran Contra Scandal: It involved several members of the Reagan Administration <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reagan_Administration> who in 1986 helped sell arms <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arms_trade> to Iran <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran> , an avowed enemy, and used the proceeds to fund the Contras <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contras> , an anti-communist <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Communism> guerrilla <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guerrilla_warfare> organization in Nicaragua <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicaragua> .

CONGRESS DID NOT AUTHORIZE IT. IT WAS DONE ILLEGALLY.

After the arms sales were revealed in November 1986, President Ronald Reagan <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan> appeared on national television <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television> and denied that they had occurred.<3> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Contra_Affair#_note-2#_note-2> But a week later, on November 13 <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/November_13> , he returned to the airwaves to affirm that weapons were indeed transferred to Iran. He denied that they were part of an exchange for hostages. <4> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Contra_Affair#_note-reaganspeech#_note-reaganspeech>

You can look up the others yourself. They are a gallery of very well connected crooks and liars who have been at this game for a very long time.



Iraq was planned long ago. They just had to figure out how to do it. So much for fighting for Freedom as defined by the US Constitution and democratic rule of law. These people are willing to break every law they can in order to gain power. That’s the “how”. Next comes the “why”.



The 2nd issue. The WHY = MONEY. And more money. Very Christ-like, don't you agree?


Here's a website where you can invest in this damn war on terror!!!http://investorideas.com/Companies/HomelandDefense/IndustryResearch.asp

I'm writing this email because I just can't bear keeping silent to protect the feelings of the deluded and insane. I have to share my family with these people, who to me, are nothing less than enablers of pure evil. They've been bought by the cover story that this is a Christian administration. If only my grandmother were alive. What. Is it the abortion issue? Thou shalt not kill? So okay. A poor woman is forced to have unwanted pregnancies only to be called a freeloading welfare mother when she can't feed her children. What this administration prefers is slow death by humiliation, disease and finally starvation over the termination of an unwanted pregnancy. With abortion, if there is any in the eyes of God, the blood is on the mother's hands, without it, the blood is on the hands of society. Yet the bleeding continues. What about the Iraqi's? I guess they don't count! They did nothing to provoke us, yet we arrive there and commit cold blooded, eyes-wide-open murder. Not to mention rape and torture. Was this child soldier so insane that he thought his religion was superior to others'? Does he really believe his white anglo-saxon priveledge makes his particular brand of belief in God superior to another's belief in God? Imagine how it would feel if you woke up one morning and your streets were on fire and you had people holding guns to your head, raping your daughter and saying you need to get right with the LORD!!!!! Isn't that what my neice is saying? No. I guess not. Because she is too uninformed. All she knows is what the corporate owned media and her own blind pride will let her understand. This is almost too much for the logical mind to bear much less the spiritual heart.

Is it the gay thing that sways Christians to blindly support this kind of hubris? Has science just become a big joke? Or is it only considered when one's own personal well being is at risk? Homosexuality is as natural as the leaves on the trees and that being said, let me be the first to step up and tell you, everyone who molested me as a child was a full bore heterosexual.

What is my responsibility to these children and to society as a whole? Is it my responsibility to tell them what I know is true? And speaking of God, am I forgiven by God for keeping my mouth neatly closed while others die?

How can I go on living the lie that I must live in order to tolerate what to her, if she and those like her saw it from an informed point of view, would term the work of the devil himself?

The wolf in sheep's clothing story was lost on this one. And the greater part of her generation. I am truly sick.

[jgraz]

1. K&R for effort

Lots of good stuff -- thanks for taking time to write this.

[Ian David]

2. She and her parents sent him there. His blood is on HER hands.

She helped kill him.

Tell her not to bother praying for him.

Tell her to pray that god forgives HER.

[valerief]

3. She may not read all this, so you can send her a postcard saying

"Why aren't you in Iraq?"

[Ellis Wyatt]

4. her letter

I didn't see anything so incendiary from her email that warranted your response. She didn't mention Bush, encourage anyone to support the war, or anything political or right wing at all.

All she asked is for everyone to pray for the families of those who lost loved ones. All she wanted to convey is that people are dying in this war, that their families will never see them again, and how horrible it is for everyone involved. How on earth could disagree with that? How on earth could you use that as a platform to tear into her in such a manner?

It actually seems like a pretty heartless and callous move on your part to respond to her email with such venom.

I know you have stuff you want to get off your chest, and you have opinions you want to share, which is fine. But I just don't think this was the manner to do it.

And on an unrelated noted, your points will carry much more weight if you source the direct source rather than Wikipedia. Wiki just doesn't carry any weight as a definitive source for information since it's easily manipulated.

[NoSheep]

8. There's at least one in every crowd. Congratulations on being the first to speak up.

I did not send this to her. I suppose I should make that clear.

[Ellis Wyatt]

11. Oh, OK

That's a big difference.

I thought you were tearing into her.

[NoSheep]

21. I should have made that clear. Here's the scoop:

I was so offended by the giddiness in her voice. And the fact that I know she is insanely ill-informed. Also, she has absolutely no respect for any culture other than her own and just believes the people in Iraq are godless and beneath her. She wears her "faith" on her sleave like she's better than everyone else. She's very materialistic and I'm sure knowing a "hero" is merely a feather in her cap. She has no genuine feelings other than those she is instructed to have. I truly feel like I am being a bad aunt for not helping her with this stuff but it just makes me so angry. Also, her mother and my brother would stop speaking to me if I spoke the truth about this out loud. It is so hard for me to have to spend holidays with people like this. it breaks my heart because my mother is getting old and I want to enjoy being with her but our visits are BS because of the Repukes in the family.

[Javaman]

37. Ahhh, never mind my reply down a few. LOL nt

[LittleClarkie]

44. I see the giddy. No offense, but is she like that in person too?

She sounds like she's still in high school, and hasn't really gotten the giggle out of her voice.

[NoSheep]

56. She's either moody and pouty or giddy. It's all about her.

[baby_mouse]

75. These infuriating people never stay that way for long.

I'll come across as all wise and patronising, but I think it may be better to be there for the flip when she realises the world's bigger than her. These types tend to go either better and more normal or they turn into TOTAL freaks, i.e. they become fundies.

[nashville_brook]

70. *knowing a "hero" is merely a feather in her cap* -- there's a LOT in this

until i met people like this (at a xtian publication i worked for), i wouldn't have believed they exist.

she's crowing about her brush with greatness and blind to the tragedy of his death. yikes.

btw -- i too was a little skeeved by the idea of this CHILD receiving such truth all at once. thanks for clarifying.

[barbtries]

109. i sooo know how you feel

i haven't spoken to my brother, a man i really love a lot, since our last phone conversation several months ago. it went like this:

me; well, andy got kicked out of the navy for having pot in his piss - and i am so against this war, i'm happy it happened

bro: if you'd lost a child in the world trade center you wouldn't feel that way.

me: why? there's no connection between iraq and 911

bro: there are connections...

me: well, jim, i love you, gotta go

************

i know my brother. he's not going to hear the truth from me. i can only hope he's turned off fox and started turning to some alternative sources for his information. in the meantime, i need to keep my distance because godammit this is really serious! and it frustrates tooooo much to have to maintain silence in the face of willful ignorance. there is too much information out there for anybody to claim ignorance and pretend it was or is unavoidable.

barbara

[No Exit]

134. I feel for you. I've had similar experiences. But I lucked out recently...

I, too, have had such experiences dealing with friends/relatives who just can't seem to see the truth about this mal-administration.

However, I had a stroke of luck the day after the election. Our friend--kool-aid drinker--called up long distance. I jokingly said, "Oh, are you calling to share the joy of the election?" To his credit, he laughed. He said, er, no, not exactly, just calling to tell you my wife got a better-paying job. I congratulated them. Then, inevitably, we drifted into talk of politics. I mentioned how military recruiters hound young men these days. (I have young men in my family.) He actually said, "Well, they are in MORE danger of being recruited by homosexuals--homosexuals recruit, did you know that?"

Absolutely hilarious! After my raucous laughter ended, I came back with, "Look, the only person I've heard of who was 'recruiting' young men in that way was YOUR party's head of the Missing-and-Exploited-Children commission--YOUR party's Mark Foley!"

My dumbass friend (soon to be a former friend) experienced a rare moment of speechlessness.

I haven't had occasion to speak to him since then. For some reason, I don't feel inclined to call him.

Wow, Our President is such a "uniter, not a divider."

[geardaddy]

141. Wow.

That's amazing that they kick out much needed help for smoking pot. Seems like they'd let that slide just to keep someone in.

[barbtries]

143. navy and marines:

to my knowledge, the last two branches practicing zero tolerance. andy just got kicked with an "other than honorable" discharge. a friend of his in a different unit was court martialed jailed for a month and given a dishonorable discharge

[oxbow]

111. My $0.02:

I treat people like her the same way I would treat the people in Iraq who are supporting the insurgency. They have yokels over there who don't understand the big picture, and so do we. They have people who are too blinded by their religion's indoctrination to see the callousness and suffering that this violence is causing, and so do we. We are more alike than we like to think.

Show her compassion and speak from your heart if you do ever plan to confront her on this. In my experience, facts and data don't go very far with people who are wired this way.

oxbow :)

[mistertrickster]

136. Yup. I'm in the same situation. But I think the thing we have to remember

is that the right-wingers think the same thing about us--we're the people with blood on our hands for the death of 45 million aborted "babies."

And who knows, they might be right. I'm not sure when life begins, and nobody else is either.

The right-wing has reasons for believing what they believe. They're not good reasons from our point of view, they justify a lot of nasty smears and vicious attacks (cf. swift boat liars and anything by Ann Coulter), but still these people are Americans and our friends, neighbors, and family.

If we demonize them, we demonize ourselves.

This is not a criticism of what you wrote, I totally agree. But once the tone becomes condemning and rebuking, we've already lost.

Our long-term goal has to be "persuasion" (from the Latin for "soft"), not vindication. We've already been vindicated of our opposition to Bush beyond our wildest dreams. This pResident is a "catastrophe that walks like a man" (Bill Maher). But vindication doesn't help our country.

What the country needs now is reconcilation and hope for a new path.

[Seabiscuit]

138. Perhaps you need to refocus your anger away from your niece and

keep it fixed on the neocons and the corporate media that brainwashed her. She could use your help. If you approach her with the kind of anger expressed in your rant, you would merely drive her away into an even more rigid form of ignorance.

Meanwhile, it is tragic that someone can graduate from any college in this country so ignorant and misinformed about the world they live in.

[musette_sf]

35. which part of this line is not incendiary?

"He believed that in places such as Iraq where there was soooo much hate, violence, and blood shed that there was also a lack of God and the Gospel."

this is disgusting on so many levels, that i don't blame the OP for being driven over the edge to compose a cogent response.

[JacksonWest]

45. I'm jealous. I'd be happier if I could convince myself life was so simple.

Why ruin it for her? Don't tell her that the terrorists we are "fighting" make the same assumptions about us.

I'm sorry for her loss, no matter what the reaction. And I will pray for the soldiers family, and the families of every soldier. I hope they can all come home safely and soon.

[Ellis Wyatt]

49. wish it were that easy

Because to her, you make that point, and she'll just say "well, yeah, but they are wrong". And you say, "yes, but they think you are wrong with just as much conviction as you think they are wrong" and she'll say "yes, but they are ACTUALLY WRONG."

And then you bash your head against the wall.

[JacksonWest]

50. I know. I don't try to convince people that they're wrong about God

anymore. It's a waste of everyone's time, and bad for walls. And heads.

I guess her response didn't bother me. It seems sincere, and is probably the way someone deals with death for the first time. Oh well.

[Ellis Wyatt]

48. THAT'S incendiary?

Please. Ignorant, sure, but you need to look up the definition of "incendiary". If that's incendiary, then what is the speech that Hitler spoke or the KKK? Don't bastardize the language by assigning words that don't belong.

There is hate. There is a lot of blood and violence there.

They aren't Christian there, they don't follow the Gospel, nor do they believe in HER God. So she's a recruiting Christian. It's an ignorant thing to be, but that's got nothing to do with Iraq, or Bush, or the war.

Regardless, my point was that he shouldn't have teared into her in an email, which he didn't, so the argument is moot.

[ayeshahaqqiqa]

52. One small correction, please

Muslims believe in the God of Abraham, which is the God of Jesus; Christians are considered "People of the Book".

And if you ask a Sufi, they might very well answer, "There is only God-so her God is mine."

[NoSheep]

57. I think it has Everything to do with Bush, God and the war. Bush says

he talks to God!!!! Many American people believe we are right and god is on our side and this administration has exploited that to the hilt. That is how they justify their crimes. It has absolutely EVERYTHING to do with it.

.


BTW, NoSheep is a woman. :hi:

[donheld]

126. "Bush says he talks to God!!!!"

When is God going to tell him how to get out of this mess? :banghead:

[musette_sf]

67. yes, it is an incendiary statement

to state that the lack of belief in the Christian Gospel is the reason why Iraq is full of "hate, violence and (sic) blood shed".

if i were an Iraqi and read that, i'd think it was even MORE incendiary than progressive little me keyboarding away in NorCal thinks it is.

one of the prime tactics of narcissists, abusers and controllers is to rationalize and minimize the damage and wrong that they do. god-botherers are the textbook examples of narcissism, abusers, and controllers. "my G-d is the only G-d, you must worship my G-d exactly as i do, and if you don't agree you will burn in Hell."

and on the heels of the OP's outrage at such statements sent to her in email, now we have an elected representative spewing the same Christo-Fascist crap:

http://www.bluenc.com/robin-hayes-says-we-will-win-in-iraq-by-spreading-the-message-of-jesus-christ-there

[Binka]

83. Hey Guys Use Search

It is helpful.

[musette_sf]

87. you're right

it was very enlightening.

[NoSheep]

88. I'm missing something here....

[musette_sf]

92. check your Inbox n/t

[qanda]

94. I'm removing my post

Because I hate agreeing with...... (I did a search)

[Time for change]

106. I don't believe it's accurate to say that

"All she wanted to convey is that people are dying in this war, that their families will never see them again, and how horrible it is for everyone involved."

Specifically, she said that they are "dying for our freedom". I believe that because of that alone the OP is justified in saying that she is incredibly misinformed. And I agree with the OP that that is a terrible shame.

[Maraya1969]

112. What was striking to me about her email is what she said about

Iraq's. She said the Iraqi's were the ones with hatred and violence and acted as if the war we started was the will of God.

There is an inherent problem with he whole attitude and that is the belief that Americans are superior than others, especially people from the middle east. It is racist and ignorant. And it is people like her who spread this type of racism through means that they may not even recognize. I've seen it before.

I think you were really hard on the OP.

[WinkyDink]

131. Her over-use of exclamation marks betrays a war-mongering oaf.

"He's DEAD! But we said, 'Take care, man!' He died for US! Wheeeee!!!"

[mrcheerful]

5. Slow down man. After all stuff like these E-Mails are meant for one purpose, to enrage and anger

the reader. Those of us who think for ourselves are angered over the stupid reasoning or lack of, that we get all worked up. Those who buy into these garbages E-Mails, well lets just say look at freeper land and you see what they E-Mails true intentions are. Just like the "war" on christmas angers the brain dead, they are trying to prop up support for what they know is BS.

[NoSheep]

82. It wasn't a chain email. It was a personal experience from my neice.

[mrcheerful]

124. Sorry, I just read what your kin wrote to you and to be honest it sounds like a chain Email

and I mistook it for what it sounded as. Then again, your kin folk could be making up a story to prove her view on the war is righteous. Fundies do that all the time when they are trying to justify their beliefs when they discover that they are wrong in the belief. I can understand your rant, how can someone be that blind to fact. I think it's something religious schools teach them and they don't have the ability to question the teaching because they are following on blind faith which stops them from seeing facts. This is the way it is accept it without doubt. Doubting is a sin and leads one down the path of damnation.

[onecent]

6. Whoa!!! I'm printin' this one and taking it for Christmas, after I

finish reading it all. What I've read so far is wonderful! We are going to the son and daughter-in-law's tonight. Can you say evangelicals?..I expect wings to sprout out of their spine to match their halos. We will probably pray for winning the war and for the souls of the dead soldiers and say we must stay so their death wasn't in vain.

I will read this on the drive over. They had a praying party for Bush the night of the election. They are so young and STUPID.

The sad this is they have 3 children ages 8 to 4. Oh my

K & R - Have a Merry Christmas.

[NoSheep]

29. Thanks. I tried to include what I thought was essential. I did not

intend to send it to her. Only wrote it just to get all my ideas for my argument down against people like her.

[cdnwannabe]

98. Wow! And people wonder why I consider other parts of the U.S.

to be foreign lands instead of Europe or some other part of the world. These people might as well be aliens.

[Little Wing]

7. People who write with scattered upper case words are typically foolish blowhards

anyway

[seriousstan]

135. That is over half of the posters on this thread, including the OP you realize.

BuT ThAt Is JuSt My TaKe On It.

[Little Wing]

139. Yes, I realize that

and I said words, not letters

[havocmom]

9. Thanks for posting

[NoSheep]

10. THIS WAS NOT SENT TO HER. It was what I had to write to keep from blowing up to her at christmas.

I wrote it for my benefit to get these thoughts down. Sorry that wasn't clear.

[Midlodemocrat]

15. You are more restrained than I. I probably would have sent it.

I do reply all the time when I get emails celebrating the 'victory' in Iraq. :eyes:

Nice work. :applause:

[blm]

76. I think you came through, loud and clear. Maybe folks are reading too fast.

I think you did an amazing piece of work, here, NoSheep. I'm giving it a KandR because this piece DESERVES it.

[NoSheep]

78. Thank you. The truth is all that matters, but it does no good when

people stick their heads in the sand. Many many others will die as a result of all the yellow ribbon wavers. It just makes me sick.

[Jcrowley]

12. K & R n/t

[alcuno]

13. I probably wouldn't send your email.

I know you are upset, but so is she. I read her original email and I don't think it merits a rant this extensive. This is just my two cents, but I think you'd accomplish more if you just said that you are very sorry to hear of this loss and pray that no more Americans suffer for the bad decisions of our government. And let it go.

Her email was primarily about this young man and, while she may be a kool aid drinker, she did not write a rah rah email about the government and the war but rather she wrote a rah rah email about this young man and about family.

Please consider my advice.

[truedelphi]

18. Alcuno - very well put

This isn't the time. Offer her your sympathy.

The guy died - if he had died in a NASCAR event - would you go on a rant about NASCAR? (Equally pointless deaths in my view - but at least NASCAR drivers aren't bombing families out of their homes)

If you did, you would be seen as not being sensitive enough.

[NoSheep]

28. Never planned to. It was for me to avoid choking her at xmas.

[truedelphi]

14. Look - she's in a cult

You could no more convince her that our country needs to
get our of Iraq than you could get Squeakie Fromme to think
that killing Sharon Tate was wrong. (Well actually now that Fromme has served years in prison, she now realizes right from wrong)

These "Christians" don't know what you and I know - they probably don't even know what Haliburton is.

All they know is that Jesus loves George and talks to him and tells him which countries have the bad, UnChristian people and so those bad countries need to be attacked.

You might want to point out that Iraq had the most Christians in its population than any other Muslim country - and that now they are just as dead, wounded and homeless as the rest of the population there!

[NoSheep]

17. I agree totally. It's a cult of stupidity and greed. It really is a cult.

[truedelphi]

22. And you have my sympathy - I am not in a loop

With people like your relative - usually I am able to avoid these overly religious overly "patriotic" nut cases.
But when I am in contact with them, they make me wanna drink vampire blood and
storm the cyclone fences of the military bases and pin the service people in Boot camp down and Fart on their heads!

But they will still believe in their worthless cause, and I will have wasted some perfectly good FARTS!

[NoSheep]

30. You are fortunate not to have to see people like this on a holiday.

[truedelphi]

65. Well Yes and no

We are not able to travel due to my working over the holidays - at this point I would take enduring the most patriotic relative in the world if I could see the others who make sense

And remember, sooner or later, people will get it (usually)

I willl keep you in my thoughts that you have an baundance of strength to deal with your situation

[NoAmericanTaliban]

16. Remember - Repukes don't look at facts for their arguments K&R

you may confuse the poor thing with all these facts. They use emotion & fear to support their view points.

Thanks for the hard work you put into this. Have you gotten a response back?

When you do, send them to this link to look up an army recruiter, I'm sure there is one nearby they can visit.

http://www.goarmy.com/contact/find_a_recruiter.jsp

[NoSheep]

62. That's a great idea. Just so you know...

I don't intend to send it. I did it to get it off my chest so I wouldn't try to poison her at xmas dinner.

[NoAmericanTaliban]

66. I'm sure it will not be long before you get a chance to send it

There are always right wing emails sent _ usually blaming Clinton _ and it will not be long before you get a chance to send this rant off. Store it in the - to be used soon - file. I've seen a lot worse than the email you received, but I guess this one was the straw that broke the camel's back.

I've got right wing relatives too. They live in Rochester NY and the last time I visited them they were saying things like - "You know , Hillary is a lesbian" My response was that

"So is Cheney's daughter, but I would rather have a competent lesbian running things than an
incompetent drunk" You should have seen the looks I got. :)

[NoSheep]

72. Good for you! And yes, I expect I'll get an opportunity to send

this in the future to people who really need a good dose of truth.

[bluerum]

19. You expect your intellectually "light weighted" niece to read AND

comprehend that?

She is obviously in denial - clearly in a state of religious fantasy like so many RW fundies are.

Let her go.

[Not Sure]

110. You have seeded an idea...

You know those Sunday School "comics" for kids? Somebody should do a PNAC to Iraq version of one of those. Or a Schoolhouse Rocks version. We'd probably just laugh along with it, but you know, it might just be at a low enough comprehension level to make the single-cell Repugs see some light...

[vincent_vega_lives]

20. How does one "smoke the kool-Aid" anyhoo? (n/)

;)

[NoSheep]

24. I'm not sure how but they clearly do. A mixture of

"smoking crack" and "drinking kool-aid"

[DesEtoiles]

23. send it to her, for the love of God! send it!

[NoSheep]

31. I would never see my brother again. That's the problem. If I offend

her, I lose my relationship with him.

[Javaman]

39. That's a tough line to walk...

I guess a lot of it also has to do with his politics, no?

[NoSheep]

40. He's just a godfearing Christian. A nice guy. But not at all one to think

a vote will count for anything. He just hopes he gets out of here alive so he will have his body in heaven I guess. poor guy.

[Javaman]

53. Ouch, my sister is like that, sometimes it's hard to believe we came from

the same family.

[kineneb]

103. perhaps that is not so bad

I have a whole bunch of relatives that I have never met... and I am sure that my politics would not set well with them...
Heck, I haven't seen my biological father for several years and have only talked to him a half-dozen times. He also suffers from being brainwashed.

The best family is the one you create yourself. They don't have to be related by DNA.

[Contrite]

123. Let me ask you a question ...

Does the niece understand your political persuasion?

On edit, I ask this because if she knows where you stand, then she sent an e-mail that she knew would probably perturb you. I have a friend who proclaimed to me she was a "lifelong Dem" prior to the 2004 election but kept sending me all manner of "let's pray for the troops" and "let's thank the troops", flag-waving stuff until finally I just began sending her "enlightenment". She stopped sending me that stuff but she still corresponds with me. Of course, it's not a family relation, which makes a difference. In my experience, starting up with family leads to a lot of ill will. But if she knew how you'd probably feel about this, I say, she deserves your informed response.

By the way, I argue with my younger brother about politics constantly. He is ultra-wealthy and so naturally sees things through a different lens than I do. He voted Libertarian in 2000 and then Democrat in 2004. Still, I remember two years ago telling him there was war on the middle class and he laughed at me, saying that corporations "need the middle class". Guess he understands differently about that now. More things I told him have proven true that he disputed earlier, as well. Everybody's gotta learn, sometime. I guess I don't mind taking some heat while educating others.

[IA_Seth]

25. I guess I dont see anything wrong with her email...

Perhaps some of her 'holy holy' stuff might have gotten to you, but otherwise she sounds like someone who is proud of someone they just lost...

I guess I don't see the need for a sick day and gigantic rant...although it was pretty good, I'll give ya that!

[The Stranger]

47. The whole Crusader thing -- fighting the infidel for "God and the Bible" is too fucking sick.

These people have got to be stopped -- they are a danger to themselves, others, the whole world.

[NoSheep]

63. Agreed. We have all the evidence we need to support that claim.

[rodeodance]

26. my 16 neice had a tee shirt that said: He is not my President. It about

blew my mind when I saw it as I had never thought of her--or her friends as involved in politics.

I should never assume. It made my day.
Have a good Christmas day now that you ranted.

[Parche]

27. awesome letter

This is a fantastic letter

People need to realize the 'Why' and 'How' Bush and company got us into this mess
and this is a start.


Sometimes you cant reach the brainwashed right with anything but this

[judaspriestess]

32. Excellent letter

I am glad you did not send it to her niece, her head probably would have exploded from the truth.
May God have mercy on her soul.

[NoSheep]

41. Yes. I feel the same. May God have mercy on her soul.

[Danger Mouse]

121. Whoa. Uh...

You know. Uhm. What was that thing about uh...'he who is without sin?' Uhm. 'Judge not, lest ye be judged?'
Get over yourselves.

[WinkyDink]

132. So God SHOULDN'T have mercy on her soul? All-righty, then.

[Danger Mouse]

147. That's not what I meant...

...when I hear the phrase 'may God have mercy on your soul,' it tends to be in reference to a terribly evil person, like a murderer who is about to be condemned or something like that. It's a pretty harsh expression of judgment, in my book...and one that in this case, is completely unwarranted.
Yes, I think God should have mercy on this young lady's soul, but not in the sense that I think she's some kind of horrible person. Just case, you know...God should be merciful with everybody. The amount of anger and hate that has manifested in this thread thus far directed at the niece is incredible and more than a little disheartening.
I stand by my earlier statement: 'get over yourselves.'

[nini]

33. You took a day off and wrote all this because she is sad about a death?

hmmmm She may be in the dark about things but THAT particular email didn't warrant a reaction that extreme. I'm sure you are ranting because of built up frustration with her but seriously.. you're going to give yourself a stroke.

If she has added crap about standing behind Bush and his bullshit policies etc.. I might understand, but getting that upset about an email asking to remember a grieving family - I'm not quite this should be the one to set me off.


If anything, Let's hope seeing how these deaths we see on TV destroy families may help open her eyes.


btw: your info and rant is good, I just wonder why it all came from an email such as the one you showed us

[NoSheep]

38. Because she's an idiot. I know her. She's a college repuke. She loves Bush.

She doesn't question the obvious evil of this adminsitration. See post #21. She's a racist, little bitch who thinks anyone who doesn't have blond hair and blue eyes is beneath her.

[nini]

46. I don't know what to tell you..

seriously. This email obviously set you off and it's been building inside of you.


If she's that far gone and you don't want to ruin your relationship with your brother just ignore her. But do not let it ruin your day - or upset you like that - if she is like that then she's not worth it.


Have you asked her why she hasn't volunteered for duty? :evilgrin:

[NoSheep]

59. I plan to at Christmas. But that is all I plan to say about it if she brings it up.

[nini]

61. give her some enlistment papers in a card

:D

[maggiegault]

71. I'm A Member of A Military Family

We don't want a Bushlover's sympathy, nor do we need it.

I am not willing to let a braindead bimbo like this off the hook simply because "she meant well." It's the same idea when Kevin Tillman mentions that they are without proper equipment, but a drawing from some child they don't even know is supposed to make everything A-Ok, peachy keen, and hunky dory.

I don't care if she means well. Our soldiers are fighting and dying in a war for oil. Children are being left without parents. Parents without children. And you want to defend trite gestures like some moronic moralistic jibberish from a person who made all of this possible in the first place?

[NoSheep]

73. exactly.

[CoffeeCat]

34. Besides her horrendous grammar...

...what bothers me the most is her suggestion that Chris "died for our freedom".

Iraq is not tied to "our freedom". It never was. It still isn't.

That realllly bothers me. It's very pathetic and sad that BushCo managed to sell
this perverse military abomination--under the guise of securing our freedom. It's
so revolting.

Furthermore, devastated family members are in shock when a loved one dies in Iraq.
They need to feel comfort and peace through the pain. The denial kicks in and an
inability to grasp that thie loved one, "died for our freedom". and not in vain.
To acknowledge their pain, shock and loss---combined with the evil reality of this
lie-based, farcical catastrophe--is unbearable to them. It's just too much.

So, they go along with the lies to quell the pain.

This person is operating from a point of pain and grief--not strength and wisdom.
After the shock and initial grief wears off, maybe some reality-based thinking
will start happening.

[NoSheep]

43. That is one thing to hope for. That she will see through the haze

eventually. She has no idea what freedom is and how we are being stripped of it every day. It's offensive and dangerous.

[lolly]

116. Freedom:

Freedom apparently means the "freedom" to live in a world where nobody ever disagrees with you or interferes with the making of money by large corporations.

[Javaman]

36. Nevermind. :) nt

[WorseBeforeBetter]

42. "Your freedom was never at risk...

and Chris's blood is on your hands" fits on a postcard. Nice rant, but no wingnut I know would EVER take the time to read that. And even if they did, they wouldn't believe any factual information presented in it. If it's contrary to what they already believe, they don't want to hear it (la la...not listening!).

Perhaps asking her to hold her government accountable so that there would be no more Chris's might get through to her. Or not.

I don't know where she lives, but what about asking her to volunteer in some way with wounded soldiers and the soldiers' families? Maybe that would open her pretty little eyes to the reality of war.

[madmusic]

51. Was Chris a real friend or was this a chain letter?

That would matter.

[NoSheep]

54. No. Her boyfriend's best friend.

[twenty4blackbirds]

55. *hugs*

*pat on the back* Good on you.

Is it possible to ask your niece to 'get to know a muslim' as she got to know Chris? Then she can find out that muslims have God and Religion; it is not an exclusive domain of christians.

I read "A History of God" by Karen Armstrong. It is a comparative religion book - Judaism, Islam, Christianity. It is quite dense. I attempted it three times before reaching the end. I found it very informative about the differing aspects of the 3 religions, and sub-aspects and explained Shi'ite vs Sunni.
She may not get past the first chapter, if she is as you described her. However if she does, and comprehends the author's words rather than reinforcing her own view of Christianity, her mind will be more informed.

Good luck, and Merry Christmas.

[NoSheep]

60. Thank you. I know there are many others who will have to see relatives

who are misinformed and blind to the truth. I know I'm not alone, unfortunately. Merry Christmas to you too.

[GeorgeGist]

58. Another unnecessary failure...

brought to you by the false promise of religious faith.

[maggiegault]

64. On Behalf...

...of my family and all military families everywhere who have loved ones fighting in AWOL's game for oil, please respond with one message, and one message only:

SHOVE IT.

"Chris" is DEAD. Do you get what that means, you trite little bimbo? HE IS DEAD. GONE. NO MORE.

And to add insult to injury, I believe that the "Chris" she is referring to may be the young man from my brother's platoon that was killed. Don't quote me on that, but the young man was named "Kristofer" (or some variation) and the timing sounds about right.

If it IS that "Chris," the bimbo in her braindead Bushloving babbling, neglected to mention that he left a young widow and two heartbroken little girls behind.

[NoSheep]

69. I can't believe you took the thoughts right out of my head!!

It literally occurred to me that she doesn't even realize he is DEAD. She doesn't even know what it means. I think you are the first response that expressed it exactly like I feel it. It makes me sick. I have a feeling you could hear what I heard in the tone of her email.

"Hey everybody!!!! I've got a new notch in my belt!!!!"

As if she'd gotten a new puppy or something. It's sooo sweet and sooo cute and god bless it...blah blah blah.

TOTALLY out of touch with reality. How could she not mention her anger at this if she was living on the same planet as I am??? How can she not be outraged?????

[lolly]

115. Yeah, exactly--like with 9/11

You hit the nail on the head here, and I've been feeling this way about the whole conservative, "heartland" reaction to 9/11 for 5 years now.

All those people with their kitchy little "memorial placques" and self-serving speeches and prayers--they seemed to be wallowing in this because it made them feel good. They could be victims of evil terrorists now, and feel noble and superior because of it. Of course, the real victims--many of whom were foreigners or even (gasp!) liberals were invisible to them.

It all crystallized for me on election night 2004 while watching Jon Stewart (of course!)

He was responding to some inanane pundit who said something to the effect that the red-staters were more realistic than those effete blue-staters because red-staters realized what a real threat terrorism was (remember the comments that Democrats just wanted to offer terrorists therapy? Something along those lines) and that's why they voted for someone who would get tough with terrorist instead of coddling them. Stewart obviously had to work hard to keep up his detached persona as he spat out through clinched teeth--"Yeah, those of us in Blue State New York know nothing about the reality of terrorism."

It gave word to what I was feeling about these people. 9/11 was all about them! All about heartland conservative Americans! It gave us complete freedom to feel noble and victimized yet self-righteous in our desire to kill people. OOoooo! Goody goody!

[go west young man]

68. Great post and letter! It says everything I have wanted to say

in so many debates/arguments with my family. The best point made for me is that people who support the NeoCon agenda really never inform themselves of who controls what and why.

[spoony]

74. Reflection on losing a friend should not be met with

unbridled hostility. Save it for another day and another fight. I know you didn't send this post but if you pursue it at all, you'd might as well pick up a sign and protest soldiers' funerals with those whackjobs.

[NoSheep]

80. I think I understand what you say here but there is NO MORE IMPORTANT

fight than stopping these idiots from killing more people because they think God is on their side. The fundies are the ones protesting the soldier's funerals. For a reason so convoluted I can't even remember why.

[spoony]

85. I'm totally getting that, I promise I'm with you, I just

wouldn't poke at it right now, it just doesn't seem right to me. There are a lot of people we can get this message to who don't have open wounds though. If you do talk to her about it, I know you'll be mindful of whatever grief the two of them are experiencing.

[NoSheep]

89. Of course. But I promise you, she ain't grieving. She's basking in what

she perceives is a limelight. Sad but true.

[Danger Mouse]

122. The people that are doing that...

...are Fred Phelps' people. They protest funerals because they really REALLY hate gays, and because they think that gays cause all of America's problems, they think our troops deserve to die, because they believe God hates America.
Uh. It's all pretty sick stuff.
They're even more demented than the average fundie. I don't understand what makes someone THAT bitter and hatefilled...but oh well...they've gotten pretty warm welcomes, wherever they decide to stick their foul asses.

[LSK]

77. or you could have just forced her to read the 1st 3 chapters of Fiasco

Fiasco is a must read for all the kool-aid heads out there.

[NoSheep]

79. I'm not familiar with that. I'll google it.

[LSK]

81. it is a great book

http://www.amazon.com/Fiasco-American-Military-Adventure-Iraq/dp/159420103X/sr=1-1/qid=1166736897/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-7358291-6561555?ie=UTF8&s=books

[tblue37]

84. I hate to say this,

but I can guarantee that she did not read it.

[NoSheep]

91. LOL! So can I, because I didn't send it to her!

}(

[Rex]

86. Wow. A truly wonderful rant!

I could barely read her letter, the part about him dieing for our freedom makes me really sad. How can people graduate from college and not know squat about reality? She must go to a sheltered college.

Rant = A++

:thumbsup:

[NoSheep]

90. Thanks, And yes. A Baptist girl's school.

[OllieLotte]

93. Yawn. n/t

[Binka]

128. Go Play Tennis Dude If You Are So Bored n/t

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

95. There Is Such A Thing As Letting Politics Overcome You A Bit Too Much, And Going Too Far.

After reading the OP and your responses within it, I'm a bit appalled at how bitter and angry you are at your niece. I'm astounded that you were so worked up that you actually had to take off work to write this. That to me is a sign of beginning to take politics way too seriously in life and letting it consume you, when an email such as this enrages you to that degree.

I also found it a bit disturbing that you have called your niece, your own family, such horrendous names in this thread just because she doesn't think like you do or agree with you on issues important to you. She does have a right to think for herself and learn things in her own way and in her own due time while walking down her own path, whether you agree with those things or not. As she grows older maybe she'll begin to align more with your political views. Who knows. But I think the viciousness you've thrown at her for currently thinking differently, yet independently, was completely uncalled for.

Little more love, patience and understanding; little less hatred. (And this thread is consumed with far too much hatred. I'm outta here.)

[maggiegault]

99. "Bitter and angry"?

Try having a loved one deployed over in AWOL's war for oil. You'll learn what "bitter and angry" truly looks like.

And incidentally, "family" is what you make it, it is of your own choosing, and it need not have anything to do with shared DNA.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

101. Yes. That's What I Said. You Read It Correctly.

Glad we were able to clear that up.

[qanda]

100. I agree completely

Well said.

[Danger Mouse]

120. Excellent post...

honestly, it seemed like quite an overreaction to me as well.

[Duppers]

125. with your sensibilities and sentiments

I want to know why do you post on DU? To quote: "Letting Politics Overcome You A Bit Too Much" !

If we can't speak out to our relatives, then whom should we speak to? And just who will speak to them?

To me, this forum is an agent of change, not just an echo chamber. I copy and paste info and posts here everyday and send them to folks I know. I HAVE changed some opinions with my emails--I'm proud to say I have converts!

Good for the OP, NoSheep! She has the background on this girl and I trust her judgement. She needed to vent here and collect her reasons, though I agree she may have to dumb down the rant before presenting it to this Baptist-educated relative.



To NoSheep:
You go, Girl! Thanks for the tight collection of info; I'll add it to mine.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

145. It Is Quite Clear That You Failed To Comprehend The Premise Of My Post.

[Danger Mouse]

146. Seems like it...

But I understood.

[Duppers]

149. this is just more of your condescension

I know you posted about tolerance and loving one's family. Duh!

But telling a fellow DUer to calm down about politics?! Really.

To hell with one's family (my extended one included) if they continue their ignorance and support for the people responsible for deaths and for the destruction of this country and this planet.

And, I must add again, I trust the OP's perception of her niece; you don't.

To repeat myself -- principles, the lives of innocent people, this country, and our planet should come before mute tolerance of anyone, family included.
We obviously differ on many issues, OMC, and you're in a catch 22 of exercising that tolerance here.

[OPERATIONMINDCRIME]

150. No It Isn't. It's More Of My Accurate Depiction Of Reality.

I call it like I see it. The attitude towards this niece was monumentally more hateful and over dramatic then is warranted. I will also never trust in anyone's bitter hatred towards another.

It is also perfectly acceptable to be condescending towards those that issue such rampant unwarranted hatred, as no respect should be given for such animosity. I did also laugh a bit at the hypocrisy you show by even preaching about condescension when you are guilty of the same in your post. Big difference is that I'm defending tolerance and rationality, whereas you are defending inexcusable intolerable hatred. I much prefer the side that I'm standing on, with all due respect.

Bye now! :hi:

[Danger Mouse]

151. And it's also alarming how many DUer's...

showed up to the hate party.

[cornermouse]

96. Cool off a couple of days, take another look at what you

posted here, edit it so that she gets the facts without the anger and send it to her.

Personally, I don't understand how anyone can look at Abu Ghraib and still support Bush, but that's just me.
:shrug:

[Uncle Joe]

97. I would suggest

speaking to your niece from where she is coming from. Turn her own justifications on their heads using Jesus as a reference, and keep it as civil as possible. If you get too emotional or upset with her, she will build a wall and block you out entirely. For example, she may not believe Bush to have stolen elections or lied about going to war, but if you bring up false prophets or biblical deceivers, and then show her some evidence exposing the neocon's hypocrisy as you have shared with us, you might open her mind to other considerations. If she doesn't accept it all on the first try, back off let it sink in and wait until your next opportunity.

I don't know whether this will work, just a suggestion. Good luck to you.

Kicked and recommended

[Brewman_Jax]

102. Well done!

Tho' I doubt that any freeper brain possibly understand all of that. Every freeper I know is not a veteran, and the vets I know are liberal or vote democratic. The freepers have had free reign for too long and they need to be called on it everytime they spew their freeper lies.

[Maestro]

104. I had to do the same for my freeper Uncle.

Good on you! Kicked and rec'd.

[mzmolly]

105. Those of us who were right about the war have a hard time biting the ol' tongue

under circumstances such as these. My sister used the same "he died fighting for our freedom" language when she informed me of her cousins death in Iraq. I wonder if this is what is said to families when they are informed?

I had a really tough time not responding in an educational manner myself, but I said simply: I have never agreed with this war, but I do support our soldiers and I am sorry for your loss.

I think your response is great, and I hope that your niece will take some time to "think" about what you had to say. Personally, because the loss to my sister (we have different mothers) was so personal, I decided to open the door to discourse gently.

Peace, and thanks for being a "change agent" in a world where we need many more.

:toast:

[EC]

107. This bothers me:

He believed that in places such as Iraq where there was

soooo much hate, violence, and blood shed that there was also a lack of

God and the Gospel. When you spoke with him, he always had a sense, and

strong grip on the fact that he may die, but he seemed to always carry a

peace about it, b/c he KNEW exactly where he would go if he did.

How is that different than the suicide bombers belief of 72 virgins for martredom? He's fighting to bring his god to them and if he dies he'll go to a better place for it? Is that what he believes?

[bleedingheart]

108. Experience is the best teacher...encourage her to enlist

sometimes kids learn the hard way. I can't tell you the number of folks that I know that learn that way and then come to tell me that I was right all along.

[madrchsod]

113. that was a lot of work! very well done.

it is really sad that good honest people were lied to about why we are at war with a nation that was no threat to us. good honest people who believe that they could never be lied to by such an "honest" man. to the con men who run this government they are "rubes" and to the rest of us they are americahermanns that deserve better.

sometimes people do need a weatherman to keep them out of the rain.....

[lala_rawraw]

114. that's not a rant, that is an indictment... great research!!!

[Initech]

117. Wow, excellent rant!

[The Backlash Cometh]

118. Please keep up posted, because you just KNOW that sides will

be taken in your family over this.

You're welcome to come spend Christmas with us if things get too chilled over at your end.

[Danger Mouse]

119. The whole e-mail has a weird tone to it...

...she seems to be very immature. However, considering the lead-up, the e-mail itself was rather anticlimactic. The 'lack of God and the Gospel' comment was just plain retarded, but just about the only thing in the e-mail I found offensive.
Cause. You know. Christianity solves EVERYTHING. Look at the U.S. We have God and the Gospel here, and there's no violence, racism, or crime...right? Right?

[karash]

129. On the subject of weird tones...

That email had such a weird tone, that it sounds like one of those propaganda pieces that the government writes up for dissemination amongst the citizenry. Remember, a while back, they were writing those up and having soldiers sign them and mail them into newspapers, under order? The spacing of the capitalized "I'm so EXCITED about..." words and the way God, hero, Christian, etc. are juxtaposed throughout that letter make it seem more like a marketing device than an actual person's writing. It has a specific beginning and end to the story, it is easily understandable, and it even includes a special meal shortly before the death, sort of like the last chummy scene where you see a movie character before s/he bites it in an emotional end.

Now, I know it's possible that someone at one of our modern college could have become so indoctrinated that they can truly think that way ("communications" or "marketing" major?), but that letter was so particularly plastic that I wonder if you might check to make sure your niece actually wrote it, and wasn't just sending it to you as an example of a good letter, or something like that.

Of course, I believe advanced press kits and religious societies out there have forms that help you write things like that--maybe she put it together with a kit...?

[vssmith]

127. Jesus asked his followers not to return violence with violence.

Gandhi was on to something when he said: "I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."

[WinkyDink]

130. Do I know you? Because that is MY niece, in a manner of speaking

(different denomination).

The most polite comment I have is to say this young adult has no sense of what it means to write about another's death. Her tone is almost giddy.

[exlrrp]

133. You're demanding way too much from a youngster

I read her whole email several times over to try and figure out what you hate so much about it and really couldn't see it. Your lengthy rebuttal (?) seems way over done, IMHO.
Doesn't seem to me like a real political statement, just concern over her friend (or friend of a friend) that was killed. This may have been the first person this young woman knew to have been killed
hey, I was young once too, was all gung ho for war, WENT TO WAR, and then came back and changed a lot. I'd hate to get nailed over and over for foolish things I said when young, there were lots of them. I was in a war I later protested but when I was in the war I believed the propaganda they gave us then. Only much later did I find out how wrong it was. Do you think this was "drinking the KoolAid?" Then I invite you to micturate up the nearest flagpole. I did what I had to to survive, same as everyone else in a war, I make no apologies.
I think youre making way too many assumptions about this person based on your own political persuasions. She doesn't agree with you and say things the way you want? well, thats what happens in an open society. There may be other good points about her that you seem to want to ignore.
Whats your choice: loving and accepting her because she's part of your family? Or rejecting her because of her political views? Its YOUR family, think a long time about this one.

[ourbluenation]

137. Nosheep - write her back and say I'm so sorry for your loss but...

sadly he did not die for our freedom. He died on a fool's errand. Which will no doubt make his death even more heartbreaking for you dear niece and I'm here for you.

[opihimoimoi]

140. K&R...the unfortunate thing is there are 30,000,000 to 50,000,000 more just like her in America

Compulsive Bush Supporters... CBS....They think backing Bush is a way to save themselves from the Fear of Terrorists. But Bush is playing their hand and fostering the FEAR...listen to his language, his speeches, his goals...its not about US, its about his agenda, his wish to be the WARRIOR LEADER aka THE WAR PRESIDENT....when in fact, Bush is an ABUSIVE, Dominating BULLY, Wimp...all rolled into one....a nutcase who is obssessive in his narcissism.

His supporters swallow the BS and believe Bush will be the Savior of our culture/way of Life/Nation/etc. and yet, look at the evidence....he is empty as his language. Them GOP had better grow a BRAIN instead of the spine they THINK they have.

[GOPFighter]

142. I have a niece like this

And I know why you flipped. The content of the email is just the tip of the iceberg. When you read the email it brought back memories of all the other emails and discussions you've had with your Kool-ade drinking family members. My family is the same way. Last time we went out to a restaurant together as a family, my three brothers and sister ganged up on me and made such a scene that other people left the restaurant. They are fanatical Fundies whose religion and politics are one and the same. Their politics comes right from the pulpit and it reeks of "we're God's chosen Country...We can do no wrong 'cause God is leading us...President Bush is the first President we've ever had who listens to God rather than man...you liberals are the cause of everything that is bad about our country...etc. God, God, God. Not an original thought in their heads!

Your frustration comes directly from the fact that there is nothing, absolutely NOTHING, anyone can say to them or show them that will change their minds. Nothing. They are locked tight in the delusions of their comfortable fictional world where it is so COOL to know a real dead soldier killed in Iraq.

[Contrite]

148. That's why I think she should send the e-mail

Why is it "okay" for "them" to gang up on us but when we respond to the contrary (with facts) we are somehow being "unpatriotic", etc. I say "fight fire with fire" and damn the consequences. If you let them continue on in their wrongheadedness and allow them to bully you with it, they deserve a response in kind. Although it may or may not "sink in" it's still wrong not to answer them and at least try to set the record straight.

[rinsd]

144. You took off work to rip a niece who you say is clueless?

Carrying around that kind of anger is unhealthy.