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7.12.14

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Death Is Not Peace From: Dennis Serdel To: Military Resistance Newsletter Sent: July 10, 2014 Subject: Death Is Not Peace Written by Dennis Serdel, Vietnam 1967-68 (one tour) Light Infantry, Americal Div. 11th Brigade; United Auto Workers GM Retiree **************************************************************** Like the old Jewish man rescued from the Nazi Concentration Camp, He says “There is No God because if there was, he would never have allowed this,” as he lives with ptsd flashbacks for the rest of his life. A young 19 year old Jerry,

a replacement Light Infantry Soldier in Vietnam suddenly sees first time what dropping Napalm on a large Village does, everybody walking wounded with one boy with his nose gone, other Soldiers laughing pointing at him as some kind of freak in the Vietnam Concentration Camp. Then Jerry sees for the first time what willie-peter, White Phosphorus does landing on Vietnamese civilians, he never gets used of it like the other Soldiers and isolates himself, not talking very much, thought to be loner by the other guys. Then he sees the other Soldiers die, a machinegunner gets it in his forehead, another steps on a landmine and is blown in half. Another gets caught by the VC and they find him later, crucified with his intestines hanging out, his cock cut off and stuck in his mouth. Jerry now has no doubt anymore, there is No God he concludes because if there is a God, he would never allowed War. As an old man Jerry lived his whole life in post stress and died in his sleep one night from a heart attack when he was dreaming that he was on one knee in the jungle holding his 16 on the ground and a VC is close aiming his 47 at Jerry’s head. His youngest Sister cremates him, she hopes that he can rest in peace now, but death is not peace. Written by Dennis Serdel for Military Resistance

AFGHANISTAN WAR REPORTS

Insurgents Kill Four Czech soldiers July 09, 2014 The News International

KABUL: A Taliban bomber killed four Czech soldiers in an attack in eastern Afghanistan Tuesday, officials said. Czech chief of staff Petr Pavel told reporters in Prague that the bomber was in a crowd of Afghans talking to soldiers who were investigating rocket attacks against Bagram airbase, a major US military facility nearby. Waheed Sediqqi, spokesman for the governor of Parwan province, told AFP that two policemen were killed in the attack as well as the four soldiers.

Sprague Soldier Remembered As ‘Gentle Giant’

Justin Clouse June 11, 2014 by Jim Camden, The Spokesman-Review Justin Clouse, a soldier from Sprague, Washington, who was among U.S. forces killed in a friendly fire incident in Afghanistan, was remembered Tuesday as a quiet leader with a big heart. “On the outside, he looked like a big, mean tough guy,” said Chad Prewitt, who taught high school and coached basketball while Clouse attended Sprague High School. “When you got to know him, he was really a gentle giant.” Clouse, 22, was one of five soldiers killed by a U.S. airstrike called in to help a special operations unit ambushed by the Taliban in southern Afghanistan Monday. “Investigators are looking into the likelihood that friendly fire was the cause. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of these fallen,” Rear Adm. John Kirby, a Pentagon spokesman, told the Associated Press.

Tina Clouse said her son enlisted in the Army about a year after he graduated from Sprague High School in 2010 and was on his second tour in Afghanistan. He loved fishing and hunting, and he played basketball and football in school, she said. He planned to get married shortly after he finished his service next May and talked about using his military benefits to study engineering with the hope of eventually working in the oil business. “He always wanted to serve his country,” Tina Clouse said. Justin was a vehicle gunner, she said. He apparently was part of a joint operation of NATO and Afghan forces in the Arghandab district of southern Zabul province that came under attack from the Taliban and called in air support, the AP reported. One of the other five killed was Aaron Toppen, 19, family spokeswoman Jennie Swartz told the Associated Press from the family’s Mokena, Illinois, home, about 40 miles southwest of Chicago. Swartz said representatives from the U.S. Army came to the door of Toppen’s mother, Pam Toppen, in the middle of the night to deliver the news. Military representatives also went to the home of Justin Helton’s parents in Beaver, Ohio, early Tuesday to inform them of their son’s death, a relative said. Mindy Helton said her cousin specialized in dealing with explosives and was based out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. Justin Helton, 25, had been in Afghanistan about two months and was engaged to be married, she said. He had been in the Army since 2010. The names of the other two soldiers killed had not been released by the Pentagon Tuesday because not all families had been notified. But word of Clouse’s death spread quickly through Sprague, a town of about 550, where he was well-known and well-liked, said high school principal Bill Ressel. Clouse attended the town’s small public schools from fifth grade through high school, said Ressel, who watched him grow from “a little, pudgy grade kid in grade school” to a dedicated athlete. “He loved sports,” Ressel said. “He worked his tail off to get where he was.” For the basketball team fielded jointly by Sprague and Harrington high schools, he “kind of played everything” but was probably most effective as the team’s 5-foot-11 post player, Prewitt said. He was the team captain and the most valuable player his senior year. “He was a quiet leader, he led by example,” said Prewitt, who is now principal at Davenport High School. In his senior year, Sprague and Harrington districts decided to end their long-standing cooperative arrangement in sports. Clouse got up in a room full of adults and urged them not to do it because of the bonds students formed building those teams.

“He was very passionate about what he believed in,” Prewitt said. “This wasn’t going to affect him, he was graduating. It was for the students coming up.” The schools formed new cooperatives with other Eastern Washington schools, taking new names and mascots, so Clouse was among the last of the Sprague-Harrington Falcons. He kept in touch with teachers and coaches, and once told Prewitt he was joining the Army because he thought the military would be a great place and open up doors. His second tour was to end in September. He had dinner with Prewitt’s family a few months ago, before starting his second tour in Afghanistan. The two communicated as recently as Saturday over the Internet. “He said, ‘How you doing old man? How’s the family?’ ” Prewitt recalled. “He’s in Afghanistan and he’s more worried about how I’m doing. That’s the kind of guy he was.”

POLITICIANS REFUSE TO HALT THE BLOODSHED THE TROOPS HAVE THE POWER TO STOP THE WAR

Taliban Offensive Overruns Sada District District falls to Taliban control in Ghor province Jul 09 2014 By Ghanizada, Khaama Press The Taliban militants launched another major offensive in north-western Ghor province of Afghanistan on Wednesday. According to reports, around 300 Taliban militants have taken part in the offensive which led to fall of Sada district to Taliban control. Local officials have confirmed heavy clashes between Taliban militants and Afghan security forces which erupted early Wednesday. Provincial governor spokesman, Abdulhai Khatebi confirmed that over 200 Taliban militants have launched an offensive in Char Sada district. Khatebi further added that heavy clashes are still going on in the area and said there are no reports regarding the casualties so far.

Insurgents Kill Afghan General Jul 10 Ariana News A General of the Ministry of Interior was killed in what is said to be a magnetic mine explosion in Dane Bagh area of Kabul. Two others, including a soldier were injured in the explosion. Spokesman of the Kabul police commander said that a magnetic mine, which had been placed in a Ranger Police car earlier this morning, later exploded on the premises of the second security headquarters of Kabul killing the General.

Insurgents Blow Up 400 U.S. Military Supply Trucks: “The Government Had Stopped Their Vehicles In Paghman Because It Failed To Ensure Security On The KabulKandahar Highway” Jul 5, 2014 By Khawaja Basir Fitri, Pajhwok KABUL: Attackers set on fire 400 fuel tankers trucks parked on the outskirts of Kabul in the Arghandi square in Paghman district overnight, with some drivers and cleaners missing. The trucks were set afire at around 10:30pm and continued to burn through Saturday noon. Officials said the cause of the fire remained unknown, but the Taliban claimed they torched the vehicles carrying fuel for U.S. forces. The drivers also staged a protest demonstration blocking the Kandahar-Kabul road and demanded reimbursement for their losses. One of the drivers, Hayatullah, who was present at the scene, told Pajhwok Afghan News that three consecutive bomb blasts caused fire to the tankers. He said all the vehicles torched were privately owned and confirmed they supplied fuel for foreign military forces.

“All of us are destroyed. Security forces should pay for the losses because they have failed to protect the tankers.” The driver said the price of each tanker hovered between $35000 and $40000 and each carried up to 50 tonnes of oil, all gutted. The Paghman district police chief, Col. Amarullah, told Pajhwok Afghan News nearly 400 tankers had gutted in the fire. He said there might be some casualties among drivers but he had no details in this regard. But Samiullah, who lost his tanker to the fire, said a number of drivers and cleaners, who were asleep inside the vehicles, had been missing. Without giving further details, he said they had recovered the remains of two persons from the burning vehicles. Khan Zaman, whose two tankers were destroyed in the incident, said they had parked their vehicles in the area 40 days ago waiting for security escort, which did not come until their vehicles were torched. He said the government had stopped their vehicles in Paghman because it failed to ensure security on the Kabul-Kandahar highway. He said drivers had staged protests thrice over the past one month but they were not allowed to proceed despite repeated promises by government officials. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. Spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the militants were targeting fuel tankers belonging to foreign military forces.

More Resistance Action 09 July 2014 TOLOnews.com In two separate clashes between armed attackers and the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) in Kandahar province five policemen were killed and 12 others were wounded. Local officials in Kandahar said that on Wednesday at about 11 a.m. two bombers entered two buildings located in front of the Kandahar police headquarter and governor’s office and started firing at the buildings. Eyewitness said, “These men were in a vehicle transporting pipes when the vehicle stopped and the attackers got out and started attacking.” Kandahar Police Chief says that of the bombers, three detonated their explosives while 19 other insurgents fought for over an hour. Taliban have accepted the responsibility of the attack and claim to have harmed security forces during the attack.

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Four Policemen Killed By Three Of Their Colleagues Jul 10, 2014 Reuters In southern Zabul province, four policemen were killed by three of their colleagues overnight. The rogue policemen have since defected to the Taliban with guns and a police vehicle. “The incident took place in Jaldak district of Zabul. An investigation is under way,” Zabul deputy governor, Mohammad Jan Rasoulyar, told Reuters. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the Zabul attack. Earlier on Thursday, Taliban militants entered a house in Shahjoi district of Zabul and killed a woman, accusing her of cooperating with the government, police said.

“‘The Situation Is Bad,’ Said Suliman Shah, Sangin’s District Governor” “The Territory Seized By The Taliban Hasn’t Been Retaken, And The Government Hasn’t Made Any Steps Forward” “The Taliban Will Take Control Of More Territory.” “His Men Had Been Running Out Of Food And Ammunition” “We don’t have weapons or ammunition,” said Ghulam Ali, the Sangin district police chief. “Our eight outposts were under attack last night; we have only two Humvees, and one is broken down.”

July 6, 2014 By Nathan Hodge and Habib Khan Totakhil, Wall Street Journal [Excerpts] SANGIN, Afghanistan—Government forces are stepping up a counterattack against the Taliban after stumbling in their efforts to retake territory seen as critical to preserving Kabul’s hold in the country’s south. A resurgent Taliban last month amassed hundreds of fighters in northern parts of Helmand province—a hotbed in the long-standing insurgency against Afghanistan’s central government and the focus of President Barack Obama’s troop surge in 2009 and 2010. After making little headway in an initial bid to wrest back control, the Afghan government is preparing for a broader offensive in some of the most contested parts of the southwest province. “The situation is bad,” said Suliman Shah, Sangin’s district governor. “The territory seized by the Taliban hasn’t been retaken, and the government hasn’t made any steps forward. The Taliban will take control of more territory.” In Sangin, lightly equipped Afghan police, including village militia outfits known as Afghan Local Police, say they have borne the brunt of the insurgent onslaught. “Our dead were left on the battlefield for a week—nobody could retrieve them,” said Haji Wali Mohammad, a local police commander in Sarwan Kala, one of the most populous parts of Sangin. “The road is closed. Nobody could cross into Sarwan Kala. The area is surrounded.”

Mr. Mohammad met on Saturday with Afghan Defense Minister Bismillah Khan Mohammadi, who held a war council with a top army commander, local officials and tribal elders to discuss retaking parts of Sangin and other districts of Helmand from insurgent control.

In the meeting, Mr. Mohammad said his men had been running out of food and ammunition. “For God’s sake, if you can’t help us fight, just take us out of Sarwan Kala and we will go somewhere else,” he said. “I would rather die rather than live in this situation.” The fighting there claimed the lives of more than a hundred government soldiers and police in recent weeks, said Maj. Gen. Sayed Malook, commander of the Afghan Army’s 215th Corps, which is responsible for Helmand. The village of Sarwan Kala, he said, effectively remained outside of government control. Security has also deteriorated in Now Zad, Kajaki and Musa Qala, three other districts in northern Helmand, the Afghan general said. Afghan officials said 27 Afghan National Army soldiers have been killed and 80 wounded in the recent fighting, along with 81 police killed and 67 wounded. Local community leaders said more than 140 civilians have been killed or wounded in the crossfire, with the bulk of the casualties caused by roadside bombs. The central government has approved 15 million afghanis ($263,000) to assist displaced families. But local officials said that assistance has yet to materialize. The fighting in many respects is a reprise of the combat seen in northern Helmand last year. Then, the Afghan army recaptured checkpoints and outposts lost to the Taliban only after a slow and methodical campaign. Afghan and coalition officials said government forces have done a better job of coordinating this year, but Afghan Local Police commanders in Sangin complained they haven’t always received adequate backup from the better armed and equipped Afghan National Army. “We don’t have weapons or ammunition,” said Ghulam Ali, the Sangin district police chief. “Our eight outposts were under attack last night; we have only two Humvees, and one is broken down.”

Breaking News! US General Nominee To Lead US Forces Sees Only ‘Good News’ In Afghanistan [No, This Is Not From The Duffle Blog]

General John Campbell, the army’s vice-chief of staff and nominee to lead US forces in Afghanistan. Photograph: John Milburn/AP [Thanks to Clancy Sigal, who sent this in.] 10 July 2014 by Spencer Ackerman in New York, Guardian News and Media Limited [Excerpts] Afghanistan’s presidential election may be taking the country to the brink, but the US army general nominated to helm the terminal phase of America’s longest war sees nothing but “good news”. “Everything I see, sir, is good news, and that we’re on a good road, but we just have to get through this kind of 50-meter target and get through the election, identify the president,” General John “JC” Campbell, the army’s vice-chief of staff, told the Senate armed services committee on Thursday. Campbell, who would be returning to Afghanistan for his third tour since 2003, had high praise for the Afghan security forces that the US has cultivated, citing “great progress” by the Afghan soldiers and police and predicting they will “hold firm” during the tenuous presidential transition. Questioning from incredulous senators prompted Campbell to walk back his comments significantly. At one point, Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican on the panel who recently returned from visiting US forces in Afghanistan, corrected Campbell on the composition of that Afghan military, gently telling the general that ethnic Tajiks, a minority in Afghanistan, are overrepresented in the officer corps.

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MILITARY NEWS

[Thanks to SSG N (ret’d) who sent this in. She writes: “Congress gets off Scott free, they didn’t vote Constitutionally for wars since WW II.”]

Iraq Insurgents Kill Sixth Division Commanding General 7/7/2014 Aswat Al Iraq BAGHDAD: Aswat al-Iraq: Baghdad Operations Command announced the killing of the commander of the sixth division of the Iraqi army General Najim Abdullah, east of Garma area, Anbar province. In a press statement, spokesman General Saad Ma’in reported that the commander was hit by a mortar shell during his tour among some Anbar families.

MORE IRAQ:

“Many New Recruits Are Of Little Use On The Battlefield”

“His Own Unit Of Over 700 Fighters Had Come Under Fire After Rerouting From Anbar To Samarra Last Month, And More Than Two Thirds Deserted” “Much Of The Ammunition They Were Given Was Poor Quality, And Water Was Sometimes So Scarce Some People Drank From The River, He Said” “The Officers Brought Us To The Point Where A Soldier Could Either Die Or Flee” Jul 10, 2014 By Alexander Dziadosz, Reuters [Excerpts] The Iraqi soldier says he abandoned the army last week in despair. And while he still plans to fight he will not rejoin the unit he deserted in the western city of Ramadi. Instead, he wants to sign up as a volunteer, alongside tens of thousands of others, to help defend Shi’ite shrines against insurgents who have swept the country’s north and west and who he believes now threaten his sect. “The officers brought us to the point where a soldier could either die or flee,” the 31-yearold said, asking his name be withheld to avoid punishment. With the army’s northern divisions hard hit by desertions as key Sunni cities fell in June, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s government has leaned heavily on Shi’ite militias and volunteers motivated by a sense of religious duty. In some areas, there are now at least as many Shi’ite gunmen and civilian volunteers as there are regular soldiers, volunteers and a militia spokesman said. Some go to the front, while others man checkpoints, guard bases and carry out raids. Many new recruits are of little use on the battlefield.

Most volunteers interviewed for this article were unquestionably enthusiastic - one retired security officer laughingly recalled a narrow escape from a roadside bomb - but even some Iraqi officials question how effective their deployment will ultimately be. One 25-year-old fighter in Samarra, near the front line, said many new arrivals were too young or poorly trained to be useful. One accidentally shot a comrade while riding behind him in a car, the fighter said. Another shot himself dead while holding his rifle between his legs without turning the safety on. “It was a mistake for the government to send them,” the man said over the phone from Samarra, asking not to be named so he could speak openly. “Your fighters need to be ready or you will not be able to confront an organized enemy.” He said his own unit of over 700 fighters had come under fire after rerouting from Anbar to Samarra last month, and more than two thirds deserted. Much of the ammunition they were given was poor quality, and water was sometimes so scarce some people drank from the river, he said. Iraqi officials were unable to provide a breakdown of the ratio of security forces to militias and volunteers in the field.

MORE IRAQ:

The Road To Samarra: “The Iraqi Government’s Control Extending Only A Little Beyond The Side Of The Road, And Sometimes Not Even There” Insurgents “Often Are No More Than A Mile Or So Away” JULY 9, 2014 By ALISSA J. RUBINJULY, New York Times [Excerpts] SAMARRA, Iraq — About 20 miles beyond the northern gates of Baghdad, on the way to the embattled city of Samarra, site of one of Shiite Islam’s holiest shrines, the road empties out as if some invisible barrier has been passed. From this point on boundaries are constantly shifting, with the Iraqi government’s control extending only a little beyond the side of the road, and sometimes not even there.

The 75-mile drive from Baghdad to Samarra plunges the traveler into Iraq’s precarious new reality. It is a world of Shiite militias, where many of the men carrying arms on behalf of the government have only the most tenuous ties to the Iraqi security forces. And it is a world where Sunni militants, who advanced to within 50 miles of Baghdad in their initial burst last month before their drive stalled, often are no more than a mile or so away. Travelers must read signs that would be invisible to a newcomer: Flags and uniforms signal safety or danger. “You are entering a hot zone,” said a gunman at a checkpoint near the town of Balad, about 25 miles south of Samarra. He was wearing cargo pants, a T-shirt, a federal police hat and an ammunition vest. There was no way to tell whom he worked for, but a yellow flag with green printing waved from a pickup truck parked nearby. It was the flag of Kataib Hezbollah, a militia trained and funded by Iran.

MORE IRAQ:

Insurgents In Iraq Seizing Advanced Weaponry “Most Are Humvees, But Antiaircraft Launchers And Mortars Gave Also Been Spotted” “The Iraqi Army’s Antiaircraft Cannons, Which Are Towed Behind Armored Trucks, Have Become ‘The Most Effective Weapon That Islamic State Is Using’” July 6, 2014 By Matt Bradley, Wall Street Journal [Excerpts]

BAGHDAD—As Iraqi soldiers dug in three weeks ago to defend the northwestern city of Tel Afar, they were shocked to see waves of Islamist militants coming to battle in Iraqi military vehicles. The line of Humvees, along with a number of powerful mortars, appeared to have been stolen by the insurgents only days earlier when they seized a sprawling base near the northern city of Mosul, said Ammar Tuma, a member of parliament’s Security and Defense Committee who received regular updates from the battle. Since the group that calls itself Islamic State began its rapid takeover of large parts of Iraq on June 10, military officials and other witnesses have seen stolen governmentissued weapons in battles and military parades in Iraq and Syria, where the group formerly known as Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, or ISIS, also controls stretches of land. Most are Humvees, but antiaircraft launchers and mortars gave also been spotted. After the haul seized from a large military base near Mosul and other smaller installations, military experts say the militants’ arsenal could more closely resemble that of a conventional army than an insurgency. “You lost approximately three divisions worth of equipment and probably at least three depots in that area,” said Anthony Cordesman, a security analyst at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. “What they almost certainly do have now is enough ammunition to support a major campaign and enough small arms and vehicles to move quickly,” he added. Amid the haul are expensive, powerful weapons such as helicopters and tanks. Mr. Tuma said he believed the Iraqi army’s antiaircraft cannons, which are towed behind armored trucks, have become “the most effective weapon that Islamic State is using.” Militants have also already made extensive use of mortars, which are easy to maintain, simple to use and highly effective even in untrained hands, said Col. Mansoor. While defending Iraq’s largest oil refinery at Beiji, Iraqi forces reported spotting dozens of their own Humvees deployed against them, Mr. Tuma said.

MORE IRAQ:

A New FISH Cheer [Thanks to SSG N (ret’d) who sent this in with the headline]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWUi8UXYQfQ

FORWARD OBSERVATIONS

“At a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. Oh had I the ability, and could reach the nation’s ear, I would, pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stern rebuke. “For it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. “We need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake.” “The limits of tyrants are prescribed by the endurance of those whom they oppose.” Frederick Douglass, 1852

Rise like Lions after slumber In unvanquishable number, Shake your chains to earth like dew Which in sleep had fallen on youYe are many — they are few -- Percy Bysshe Shelley, 1819, on the occasion of a mass murder of British workers by the Imperial government at Peterloo.

Home Of The Brave-Land Of Make Believe

Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Portland, Oregon. Photograph by Mike Hastie From: Mike Hastie To: Military Resistance Newsletter Sent: July 02, 2014 Subject: Home Of The Brave--Land Of Make Believe Home Of The Brave--Land Of Make Believe Americans go in the military thinking that America is the greatest country in the world. They come back from war with a mind injury where their make believe use to be. I was lied to! I was lied to! I was lied to! I was betrayed! I was betrayed! I was betrayed! No you weren’t... The birth canal you road in on was paved with milk and honey. Mike Hastie

Army Medic Vietnam July 2, 2014 This is when the truth comes home to the first day you were born... Photo and caption from the portfolio of Mike Hastie, US Army Medic, Vietnam 1970-71. (For more of his outstanding work, contact at: ([email protected]) T) One day while I was in a bunker in Vietnam, a sniper round went over my head. The person who fired that weapon was not a terrorist, a rebel, an extremist, or a so-called insurgent. The Vietnamese individual who tried to kill me was a citizen of Vietnam, who did not want me in his country. This truth escapes millions. Mike Hastie U.S. Army Medic Vietnam 1970-71 December 13, 2004

Iraq Veteran: This Is Not What We Tortured Detainees For!

Pvt. Charles A. Graner Jr., U.S. Army (Ret.) June 19, 2014 G-Had, The Duffle Blog By Pvt. Charles A. Graner Jr., U.S. Army (Ret.)

Like many veterans of the Iraq War, I’ve been glued to the TV lately, and like many of my brothers and sisters-in-arms I’ve been extremely saddened to see pictures of terrorists swarming all over Iraq’s cities, stealing equipment and routing security units. This isn’t the Iraq I or my fellow veterans from the 372nd Military Police Company remember: the Iraq we remember was an orderly place — one of dark cellars full of naked screaming men. Now I have to wonder: was our sacrifice worth it just to ensure that thousands of prisoners were properly threatened with rape or terrorized by working dogs? I don’t know if anyone can answer that question. I first came to Iraq in May of 2003 and left one year later and even today I remember it like it was yesterday. The smell of a prisoner who just shit himself in fear, the feel of a brand-new leash as we buckled it around his neck, the tender touch on my wife’s shoulder as we forced two grown men to masturbate each other at gunpoint. hese are memories that even time and age can’t fade. When I left, I felt that I had done everything that I could do: beaten every detainee until my fists were raw, sodomized as many as I could before the broomstick broke, and of course documented it all to help the soldiers who would follow us continue the good work. At the end of the mission, we could truthfully say that conditions in our little corner of Iraq were probably better than anywhere else. We definitely made an impact on the lives of many Iraqis. ver the years I’ve gotten plenty of thank-you messages from my former inmates, like Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, saying they wouldn’t be where they are now if not for me. I still remember one of those fat little goat fuckers, tears in his eyes, as he begged me to uncuff him from his bars of his cell window where I’d left him hanging. It’s the little moments — or in his case, hours — like that that even Al Qaeda can’t take away, the joy of watching Iraqis crawling across the floor to freedom with the bags of democracy over their heads. But ultimately I don’t think Iraq was about the mission. It was about the man or woman next to you, the one helping you slam someone’s head into a wall, beating a prisoner with a chair, or photographing you posing with dead bodies. That’s what it’s all about. “Non,” as the French would say, “je ne regrette rien.” No matter what happens, I will always fondly look back on my time in Iraq, and one day tell my children and grandchildren about the pride I took in a properly-constructed naked pyramid.

I really wish I could somehow go back and finish what I started. I’m off parole in December, so don’t be surprised if you somehow see me on the TV back in the sandbox after that. Don’t worry though, I’ve learned my lesson. Next time I’m not taking prisoners.

DANGER: CAPITALISTS AT WORK

“The Government’s Water Woes Are The Latest Inconvenience For Venezuelans Already Tired Of Consumer-Item Shortages,

High Crime And Inflation And A Slowing Economy” “It’s Us, The Poor People Of This Slum, Who Are Suffering And Who Will Suffer” “The Government Has No Solutions For Us” “The Country’s Decay Has Caused Mr. Maduro’s Popularity To Fall From 51% Shortly After He Took Office In April, 2013, To 39% In June” July 8, 2014 By Kejal Vyas, Wall Street Journal [Excerpts] CARACAS, Venezuela—Shortages of shampoo and cooking oil are bad enough for residents of this teeming capital, but what they miss most now is water. A drought—and what President Nicolás Maduro’s critics say is bad planning—has prompted the government to ration water across this capital. Nowhere has the shortage been as bad as in Petare, a hillside shantytown that was once a bastion of Socialist support but is now run by the opposition. Petare’s half-million residents say they’ve had little or no running water for nearly three months. “Everyone’s really tired of this,” said José Medina, whose seven-story Petare building is particularly water-starved because of low pipeline pressure. “We all feel like we’re being punished.” The government’s water woes are the latest inconvenience for Venezuelans already tired of consumer-item shortages, high crime and inflation and a slowing economy, issues that helped spark widespread antigovernment protests earlier this year. Venezuela’s ruling United Socialist Party championed the cause of slum dwellers, showering them with social programs for 15 years—first under the late President Hugo Chávez and now under Mr. Maduro—that the government says has lifted millions out of poverty.

But the country’s decay has caused Mr. Maduro’s popularity to fall from 51% shortly after he took office in April, 2013, to 39% in June, according to polling firm Datanalisis, which also found four out of five Venezuelans are pessimistic about the country’s direction. Hidrocapital, which is part of the Environment Ministry, didn’t respond to calls seeking comment. Neither did the Communications Ministry nor Mr. Maduro’s office. Mr. Maduro’s administration has blamed the water shortages on global warming. “Climate change is a reality and we have to prepare ourselves,” Mr. Maduro said during a recent speech, also attributing the problems to El Niño, the Pacific weather phenomenon. Critics say the government should have began rationing water earlier rather than allow the Lagartijo reservoir, one of six supplying this city, to turn bone dry in recent weeks. Caracas residents have come to rely on water trucks as a partial savior. Residents say the IMAS provides them with 400 gallons every few weeks, but say delivery schedules are inconsistent and uncertain since the utility’s small truck fleet struggles to navigate the sprawling slum’s narrow and crumbling roads. People and businesses in well-to-do districts such as Altamira say they buy their water from private services. “This is probably the only business in Venezuela that’s growing,” said Jorge Trujillo, a water-truck driver serving Altamira. Water delivery has also become a risky business in Petare. Some residents have pulled guns on IMAS employees to demand more water, said an inspector, Johnny Castillo. On one occasion, pistol-waiving youths scared off an IMAS worker who was deployed to turn off water in one zone for rationing purposes. Luis Vidal, director of Caracas polling company More Consulting, said water has joined crime and inflation as among the top concerns in Petare. “It’s us, the poor people of this slum, who are suffering and who will suffer,” said Álvaro Páez, a bricklayer in Petare who displayed a 650-foot garden hose that he and his neighbors bought to collect water from a street-side tap. “The government has no solutions for us.”

OCCUPATION PALESTINE

“The Bodies Of Eight Members Of The Al Haj Family, Killed In An Israeli Missile Strike”

Palestinian mourners carry the bodies of eight members of the Al Haj family, who were killed in an Israeli missile strike early morning, during their funeral in Khan Younis refugee camp, southern Gaza Strip July 10, 2014. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Nothing New Here

Mother of three-year-old Saher Abu Namous mourns during his funeral after he was killed by an Israeli attack in the east of Jabaliya refugee camp in the northern Gaza strip, 11 July 2014. According to Palestinian sources, Israeli attacks by air have so far left 98 people dead in the Gaza Strip. (EPA/MOHAMMED SABER)

To check out what life is like under a murderous military occupation commanded by foreign terrorists, check out: http://www.palestinechronicle.com/ The occupied nation is Palestine. The foreign terrorists call themselves “Israeli.”

DANGER: POLITICIANS AT WORK

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