a great read
the following article cuts precisely to the heart of the iraqi situation in a way nothing else i've seen does.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dy...3-2003Jul1.html

this quote from the article is very telling :

< "I am sorry for America," Sidawi said. "You are stuck. You have become a country of the Middle East. America will never change Iraq, but Iraq will change America. >

it touched off in me the book-length response which follows.



i've stayed away from this forum and topic for quite some time, pissed at both the "evil imperialist america" and "great american savior" crowds.

i personally think the rest of the world ought to be thanking us for doing them a huge favor that no one else would ever have expended such enormous effort to undertake. altruistic as we are as a people we risk our men and our treasure time and time again on the naive notion that people everywhere shall live free without fear of despotic governments or genocide. in truth, some societies simply are not ready to fight for their own freedom, be this because of irrational religious beliefs, extreme racism or tribalism, a fear of change, a desire for security, or any other of a host of reasons.

and so to expect we can simply remove one despot and magically the tendancy towards despotism will disappear is naive at best and idiotic at worst. by investing so much of our national political, moral, military, and financial capital in this thankless and largely untenable action, we have deprived ourselves of the opportunity to act in other situations where our interests are more directly affected.

but now, i think, the american people are getting it. the world wide opposition to action on behalf of everyone is demonstrating clearly that the isolationist position our founders endorsed is truly the only way to operate as a principled and successful nation. our constitution calls for a declaration of war by both houses of congress shall have the power to "declare war" and "To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Invasions ". an act of congress, agreed upon by both houses, is clearly a difficult standard to attain. our founders realized this - and made it so very intentionally. this was not to be an empire. this was not to be nation that was involved with foreign affairs. if the nation was truly at risk, agreement of both houses would not be difficult to come by. if there was any question, it would be very difficult to obtain.

why would this be a good thing? because it would prevent the endless cycle of war and death. the whole of the nation would have to feel personally, directly, and unquestionably threatened for a military action to take place.

but now, with the enormous success of WWII, we have forgotten these lessons. we have shredded this portion of the constitution. a sense of empowerment to change the very fiber of societies for the better has set in amongst the american populous. we are naive. but we are learning. the hard way.

there are hateful, spiteful, evil, irrational people in the world. not an isolated individual or two, like here at home, but whole societies founded on hatred and spite. and in trying to change those socities, we are hurting ourselves. better they be left to wallow in their wretched misery, and hate amongst themselves, killing each other and decaying in their own unproductive filth unassisted than that they bring us down into the muck with them. better we withdraw into the much maligned "fortress america" and defend our borders and our people with the greatest military man has to offer than that we destroy ourselves trying to pull the rest of the world up with us. and most of all, better that we retain the rule of law as written in the contractual founding document of our country than that we turn our governanace over to the whims of a faceless tyrant that, while perhaps benevolent today may be mutated into something we fear in the future.

This one actually hits close to home.

Back in that bygone era of 1998 (or so) i lived in a two-story house in college park, more or less subdivided into two apartments - four guys, four girls, three dogs, a snake, a cat.... fuckin' madhouse really. it was a good time, that joint. the doors that divided the apartments weren't ever really closed, and it was a pretty eclectic crowd. lots o' stories. we had the hot chick, the lesbos (not the hot ckick, unfortunately), the hippie girl, the football jock, the hockey jock (not me), the nerd (there, that's me), and the redneck boxer (around whom the story revolves).

anyways, we threw a number of parties, each successively bigger than the last. started with one keg, and close friends and eventually snowballed into 6-8 keg events with the cops making hourly appearances. we had a huge deck out back - length of the house, and level with the second story. we'd stick a couple of kegs up there, and a couple on the ground below. they were great fun.... until my roommates car got stolen.... and the girls' VCR. that was it, these parties had gotten too big, and we all got together and agreed, as fun and as loaded with wholly illegal profits as these parties might be, we had to put a stop to them. we were deeply saddened, but all good things must come to an end, and these were getting so big that we were bound to get in some trouble anyways.

fast forward to a few months later when the lease is coming to a close. most everybody is taking off, except for me, hockey jock, and the redneck boxer. we have a few discussions about keeping the house, finding new roommates, etc. where redneck boxer mentions the prospect of moving all of his redneck friends in. me and hockey jock are not interested. these assholes regularly crash our joint on weekday evenings, playing pool directly outside our rooms, with the music volume on "deafening" until 3, 4 in the morning. repeated polite inquiries as to whether there might be other places they could engage in such activities result in nothing, and a couple of confrontations ensue. these redneck friends would be hell to live with.

noting our disapproval, redneck boxer decides the proper way to resolve the issue is to go to the landlord, tell him that no one else is interested in staying, and his friends are ready to sign a lease. landlord, not bothering to call the rest of us, agrees, and unbeknownst to me the lease is signed. nothing is said until about two weeks 'til i'm to be out on my ass, when redneck boxer casually brings this up in conversation, leading to one of the greatest shouting/shoving matches of all time (i held, my own, i'll have you know - impressive, cause jackass redneck or no, he was one tough mofo). anyways, i quickly realize that even winning the argument and staying in the house sentences me to a life of living with low-life moe-rons who will do everything in their power to make my life miserable, so me and hockey jock quickly find a third roommate, and find another house.

that's nice, but what about the deck? you say...

patience, grasshopper, patience....

the summer passes, and i run into these punks about college park from time to time. we say "hi" and whatnot, but that's about it.

anyways, beginning of the next semester is party season again, and i head to a particularly lame a-capella party (ah, the excitement that lies in store for little TK), and take off early to hit the bar, get a late burger, a couple of beers, whatever....

soon me and the chick i'm with are caught up talking to the folks next to us about some party they were at where the deck collapsed and all these people were hurt. one girl was taken away unconcious, and a bunch of others left in ambulances. scary shit....

it wasn't until a week later that i ran into one of the chicks downstairs on campus and found out it was OUR old house. luckily no one died, but 10-15 people were hurt, one chick in particular with several broken bones, a broken collarbone, and a puntured lung. last i heard, about a year later, the landlord and all eight guys on the lease were being sued for some ungodly sum of money. sure was glad that dude was dickhead enough to cut us out of the lease.

so, when this happened in chicago, it made me cringe. it's only the whims of fate that it's those kids and not me.

actual snippet from the pravda forum concerning the ongoing action in iraq:

Who is O' Brien of '1984' ?? And WHY had he an IRISH name?
Because G. Orwell DID KNOW the future of the history !!!

Remember O'Brien ??
--------------------------------------------------
What the hell is this. My family comes from the Mulhollands of Northern Ireland.

Our Heritage has us belonging to the Nun's that were part of the protectors of the Bell of St Patrick.

Hell my middle name is Patrick.

So what is your point?
-------------------------------------
Then you have to know the Order of Damon and Phythias. Or a priest Jonathon Edwards.
Search the web about them. They are behind Baptist Church which is the they who made this war.
If you are from Ireland you can find many interesting things.
I just understood it because of the Blair-Bush last meeting in Ireland.

Czech Prime Minister Vladimir Spidla said after talks with visiting Russian State Duma Speaker Gennadii Seleznev on 17 March that relations between Prague and Moscow have improved significantly over the last three years, CTK and ITAR-TASS reported. Spidla said the talks, which focused on bilateral relations and the Iraq situation, were conducted in a "frank and constructive atmosphere," according to ITAR-TASS. Seleznev also met with other senior Czech officials, including Foreign Minister Cyril Svoboda and Senate President Petr Pithart. Pithart said Seleznev was highly critical of the U.S. position on Iraq, adding that he informed Seleznev of the conditions for the deployment of Czech troops in the Persian Gulf. ITAR-TASS cited Seleznev as saying military action against Iraq would be "a conspicuous act of aggression, and the aggressor may end up facing The Hague [war crimes] tribunal." MS


a Russian foreign minister had the gall to go to Prague, of all places, and talk about "conspicuous acts of agression?????"

Q Thank you, Mr. President. As you said, the Security Council faces a vote next week on a resolution implicitly authorizing an attack on Iraq. Will you call for a vote on that resolution, even if you aren't sure you have the vote?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, first, I don't think -- it basically says that he's in defiance of 1441. That's what the resolution says. And it's hard to believe anybody is saying he isn't in defiance of 1441, because 1441 said he must disarm. And, yes, we'll call for a vote.

Q No matter what?

THE PRESIDENT: No matter what the whip count is, we're calling for the vote. We want to see people stand up and say what their opinion is about Saddam Hussein and the utility of the United Nations Security Council. And so, you bet. It's time for people to show their cards, to let the world know where they stand when it comes to Saddam.

liar

let me post this succession to my blog, lest i forget at some time in my life:

National Review - Jay Nordlinger - Impromptus - Feb. 20, 2003

Many of us, I know, are sickened by the repeated denigration of the Eastern European states that have supported the U.S. in this confrontation. A prominent left-wing journalist, as Mark Steyn pointed out, described the former Iron Curtain countries as nations “you can buy on e-bay.” And Mark Shields of CNN said, sarcastically, “Everyone’s feeling better. Albania signed on.”

This struck a nerve with me, as I was in Albania in September. I had never been to that country before. (Few of us Westerners have.) I met with many intellectuals and journalists. I met men who had been in prison for years, because they had dared to dissent from the brutal totalitarian regime that was ruling them. I was terribly moved by their expressions of support for America — and by their gratitude for the American role in opposing Soviet Communism. One intellectual told me that some other Europeans sneered at Albania as “the Israel of the Balkans.” I said he ought to consider that an enormous honor.

I have an Albanian flag — the double-headed eagle — “flying” in my office right now. And I am thrilled by the support and the heart of such people, for they know — more than people in Paris — about tyranny, freedom, and appeasement. In a way, I regard the support of Eastern Europeans as more desirable than the support of comfortable Westerners.

Mark Shields smirked, “Everyone’s feeling better. Albania signed on.” Well, I am.

National Review - Jay Nordlinger - Impromptus - Feb. 24, 2003

Check out this letter from an Albanian-American, typically moving:

“I wanted to say a couple of words about Mark Shields’s comments. For many, many years, I was shocked and surprised that in every election in Italy, the Communist party got 30-35 percent of the votes. That the French Communist party got 20 percent or more. Same in Spain and Portugal. In Greece, there were and still are two Communist parties, with 10 percent of the vote each.

“I was wondering why these people voted for Communism. We were a country of 3 million inhabitants with 30,000 political prisoners, 100,000 in reeducation camps and forced labor, and 10,000 executed. Churches and mosques were destroyed in the cultural revolution of 1968, and listening to rock ’n’ roll was punishable by jail. A family of four was entitled in a month to two pounds of beef, 24 eggs, half a pound of butter, 100 grams of coffee, half a liter of oil, and a pound of feta cheese. If police heard you complain about conditions, you got seven years in jail. In the meantime, millions of Western Europeans voted for Communism, over and over again.

“Four years ago, I bought a house and since then have been flying two flags at the entrance, an American flag and an Albanian flag. Both of them had been flying in my heart for many years, even in middle of a Communist dictatorship. (The Albanian flag, in my heart, was without the Communist star on top.)

“So, 3 million Albanians should mean something to Mark Shields. But, of course, they do not.

“P.S. Six months ago, I went to see a Rolling Stones concert with my brother. A dream came true, and my brother and I left the concert crying. It reminded us that not too long ago, listening to them was punishable by jail. When are people going to know about Communism? When?”

with that introduction out of the way, let me commence with post of substance #1.

i have no money. well, more acurately, i have negative money. don't cry for me, i live very well by my standards. in the past i have borrowed on credit cards i knew i couldn't repay, been late on the rent, lived on beans and rice and free apples from a roomates' parents' apple orchard. now i have tens of thousands of dollars in student loans to show for it, and thus my net worth is negative. but i am finally making an above-average paycheck, eating regularly, establishing a very small at home consulting business, and paying the bills on time with enough money to waste on pursuits such as home brewing left aside. and so i consider investing for the first time in my life. i have two thoughts on the subject. the first being that one cannot get rich without investing. the second being that as long as i am paying interest on debt, i should be paying towards eliminating that.

where the hell am i going with this, you ask, and why the hell should you care? well, i suppose you probably shouldn't care. but i bring this up in the context of this article. now, i am a big believer in the power of market economics as a tool to acchieve the results you want, both on a micro (i.e. not going back to the dry cleaner that ruined your suit) and macro (NAFTA-style) level. And it would cooincide wonderfully with my worldview, morals, market-economic thinking, and personal bank account augmentation to find a way to invest in these developing eastern european markets. i must do further research into the area and see if there is not some sort of mutual fund comprised of investments in these markets. i'd elaborate further, but that'll be enough stealing from my employer for the moment, i am headed home for the weekend.

welcome to egodelphia. i am your host, eric. i will not use capital letters unless for affect. i will drink coffee in large quantities.

those are the rules.

as your host, i shall introduce myself. you may see me trolling these waters on blogs such as "TKNation" from time to time, using the once-clever handle of SoulPole66, which i adopted for myself at some point in my life where i was concerned about internet anonymity. i must retain some slight subconcious concern, for i will not yet divulge my last name. i cannot see how there is anything to fear, as i would be pleasantly surprised if anyone took the time to peruse my blog, but i will remain semi-anonymous this way never the less.

many a blog i have perused here on blogger.com seems to dwell on the fact that there are no readers. one side of me contends that i should somehow be different. the other, much more dominant side, says that i, too, will make a point of noting again and again how i am writing this for no one, and if that turns the occasional reader away, then so be it.

anyways, for those who know me on any level it will not be difficult to figure out who i am. for the great masses of the one or two individuals who stumble in here, however, they will be left with my discription of myself, which of course will be part and parcel a complete fabrication, but what are you gonna do about it? my goal is to write daily, but, undoubtedly, when some poor soul does indeed stumble in here months from now, the cobwebs and dust will have taken over. if not, however, then yay for me!!!

i do not intend this to become a diary, for my life is, taken on whole, exceedingly dull. however, i will relate those events which amuse, enlighted, or distress me greatly as i go along. i intend to comment on news, sports, politics, television, hot chicks, economics, history, and post links to interesting web sites and articles (although i must confess you will be forced to discover the best porn links on your own for fear i confirm everyone's deepest suspicions about my viewing habits.) i had intended to provide a brief exposition to myself, my life, political viewpoints and favoite muppets here, but i think it may be more interesting to develop these things over the course of time, don't you think? if you are still reading, then i am very impressed. i certainly hope you will stick around, for between all the gibberish you are certain to find an item of interest here and there.

if at any point someone does stumble in here, please, i implore you. make my day by dropping an e-mail to SoulPole_66@yahoo.com (an appropriately anonymous e-mail account) and let me know what a dope i am. i thank you in advance.