WTF? The Star-Spangled Banner in Spanish??

It's not bad enough that U.S. border policy is an absolute joke, and that the problem, which politicians refuse to address, gets worse every day. It gets worse when the people that came here illegally, in violation of our laws, stage illegal protests, refuse to go to school/work and threaten to "tie-up" the country on march 1st. It's sickening that these same people want to suffer no punishment for their actions, and, in fact, are calling anyone who suspends Latinos who leave work/school on March 1st, "racist." Now they are releasing the Star-Spangled Banner...in Spanish, no less! AOL News - 'Star-Spangled Banner' in Spanish Draws Criticism

Are you kidding me? The song, called "Nuestro Himno" or "Our Anthem" will be released Friday, and the promoters are urging Hispanic radio stations across the country to play it at 7 p.m. to show "solidarity".

It's time for the rank and file of this country, who have largely remained silent about the immigration debate, to stand up and demand that our government do something, anything! The walk-outs on March 1st, and things like this anthem, only encourage more illegal immigration, pushing the system past the already reached breaking point. We must close the border and stop illegal immigration into this country immediately.

And if you want a Spanish version of the anthem, feel free to write one...for Mexico!

First Australian Casualty

Private Jacob Kovco, from the Sydney, Australia, based 3rd Battalion, Royal Australian Regiment, arrived home today, after delays when his body was misplacedin Kuwait. And making things even more confusing for his family and fellow Aussies, the cause of his death was recently changed. It had been initially reported that he had committed suicide, but now sources are saying that it was an accidental shooting. An investigation is continuing.

Admirably, the Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, while denying a cover-up, accepted full blame for the death of Kovco. "He died in Iraq. He died as part of a military mission for which the government and me-I in particular-accept full responsibility." Wow! That, ladies and gentleman, is called leadership.

We need our allies, especially those as steadfast and resolute as Australia. Private Kovco, we hope that you and your family find peace.

Police Pursuits

Two car chases gained national attention yesterday, and even rated air time on Fox News. The first, in the Los Angeles area, ended when a murder suspect was killed by police. The second, in the Dallas, Texas, area, resulted in the arrest of the suspect with no injuries. Listening to the commentary on Fox News and some local channels, I was struck by the way people seem to perceive these pursuits (and not for the first time!).

I've been involved in dozens of pursuits personally, on both the freeway and city streets, and I can tell you firsthand how scary they are. My agency, and most others in California, provides pursuit training all the time, and any police officer involved in one must continually assess the need to apprehend the suspect against the need for the safety of officers and citizens. It's not always an easy choice to make, especially when things like ego, tunnel-vision and other officers become involved. But it must remain the decision of the officers involved, whether to proceed or not.

It's certainly a tragedy when a pursuit ends in a traffic collision, as some urban pursuits do. And inevitably, there is loss of life. And trust me, when that happens, no one feels worse than the cops. I've been there, and I know. But what is the alternative? To not chase? To simply let criminals run freely? If the authority to pursue criminals was taken from the police, anarchy would ensue. Anyone, from the lowest traffic violator to the most violent felon, would flee whenever they were approached, and the cops would have to sit and watch. Now which is the greatest danger to the community at large?

The only way to deter these things (and we'll never end them wholly), is to give stronger sentences to these Adam Henrys when we catch them. Right now, though fleeing in a vehicle can be a felony, the charge is often dropped in a plea bargain deal. The crook simply pleads out to the original charge, say stealing a car, and the evading charge goes away. This has to change! The D.A.'s office must prosecute these cases to the fullest extent, seeking the largest penalty. We must also pass new laws with tougher sentencing requirements, to help these prosecutors. And we have to work to educate the public, and gain their support.

But most importantly, we have to let our officers do their jobs.

Memorial for Flight 93?

On September 11th, a day I hope that none of us ever forget, Flight 93 crashed in a Pennsylvania field, killing all onboard. It seems obvious to me that at least some of the passengers on that plane resisted the hijacking and ultimately caused the plane to crash, rather than flying into its intended target in Washington, D.C. Family members of those that died on the flight now want federal funds to build a memorial where the plane crashed....totaling more than $5 million dollars!

Some of the families of those that were killed on 9-11 have received compensation and benefits in the million dollar range, and memorials are in the works for those that died in New York and Washington, D.C., that day. While no one can deny the heroism and sacrifice of the police officers, firefighters and military personnel that died as a result of the terrorist attacks, everyone else was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. As tragic as that day was, most died simply because they showed up to work.

But where are the million dollar packages for the families of the servicemen/women that have died in Iraq and Afghanistan? They raised their hands, took an oath and voluntarily stepped into harms way to protect their country, their families and each other. Yet, those they leave behind get a package in the $100,000 range. Quite a distance from the million plus that some have gotten for sitting in an office on the 123rd floor. And where are the memorial proposals for these men and women? Not a damned peep!

Why aren't the American people up in arms over this outrage?

"The Unit"

Have you seen this show? It follows a troop of Delta Force Operators as they travel hither and yon, spreading joy throughout the land. Pretty good, actually, although they do "Hollywood" it up to keep the non-believers happy. Tonight the troopers were the guests of "SERE" school, which, for you civilians, stands for "Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape." They even got some of the details right, such as the "graduation" ceremony. The show is right about one thing...those guys really are supermen. I'm sure CSM Haney is pleased.

One note, on my sons behalf: kill more Tangos!

New Usama Bin Laden Tape

Doesn't Bin laden remind you of a gopher? You don't hear from him for months on end, then suddenly he sticks his nose out, sniffs around a bit, then oozes back into his hidey-hole. In his most recent tape, he called for the surrender of offensive Danish cartoonists, complained about the U.S. blocking the "government of Hamas" and encouraged Jihadists to wage war against the U.S. in Sudan. While his messages get lots of play on Arab networks such as Al Jazeera, is anyone even listening? He sounds more desperate with every message and one can only hope that our most excellent special forces operatives are close at hand. Time to give him a good dose of gopher-be-gone.

Death for Moussaoui?

Jurors will soon decide whether Zacarias Moussaoui will get the the death penalty for his role in the September 11th, 2001, attacks that killed some 3,000 people in New York, Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania. Originally, I supported the death penalty for this scumbag, thinking along the lines of stoning or public hanging. But recently, I've given the life-in-prison argument some thought. The idea of Moussaoui rotting in some prison, living to a ripe old age while being thumped and buggered routinely by other convicts, has a certain appeal to it. Sentencing Moussaoui to prison would give him the opposite of what he wants: a slow, agonizing slide into the minor footnotes of history.

However, a promptly executed death sentence would send the message to the run-of-the-mill-wannabe-terrorist that we are serious about this kind of thing. It won't change the minds of the hardcore zealots and whackos out there who want to destroy everything western, but it might scare the Terry Nichols types. And killing Moussaoui won't make him a martyr, although he seems to believe to the contrary. I doubt that Al Qaeda or its operatives are watching this case at all.

So I say deliberate, discuss and decide, jurors. Then sentence this guy to what he deserves: death! Of course, a death sentence in our justice system is tantamount to life in prison anyway, when you consider the appeals process. So maybe that's the best of both worlds!

More on McKinney...

The hits just keep on coming for Cynthia McKinney. Today she was caught on tape calling one of her aide's "a fool," then returned to warn the interviewer not to use the remark, once she realized she was still "miked-up." She still refuses to aswer questions about why she assaulted a Capitol Hill Police Officer, calling the entire incident a "misunderstanding." With McKinney as a shining example of Democratic leadership, Republicans have nothing to worry about. Now we'll just sit back and wait for the grand jury to indict her.

Where are Matt Maupin and Scott Speicher?

On April 9th, 2004, Army Sgt. Keith "Matt" Maupin was taken prisoner by gunmen in a suburb of Baghdad, Iraq, after they ambushed his fuel truck. Maupin, from Batavia, Ohio, is still listed as "missing and captured," even though terrorists later released a videotape of what appeared to be Maupin's execution. However, since his body has never been recovered, the U.S. Army and Maupin's family continue to search. Maupin is the only servicemember unaccounted for in the Iraq War, part II.

On January 17, 1991, Lt.Cmdr. Michael "Scott" Speicher, U.S. Navy, was shot down on the first day of Operation Desert Storm. He was listed as KIA/BNR-Killed In Action/Body Not Recovered-until, nearly two years later, it was learned that he had successfully ejected from his plane and had probably been taken captive. There is evidence to indicate that Speicher was still alive and captive in Iraq as recently as 2003. He is now listed as Missing/Captured and his family also continues to search. Friends Working to Free Scott Speicher

Every American owes these men, and every veteran, a debt that can never be repaid. Leave no man behind!

BOHICA!

Bend over, here it comes again... Gas prices are on the rise again, reaching more than three dollars a gallon in California, New York and Washington, D.C. Prices are now at the highest rate since 1981, the year of the Iraq-Iran war, and are only expected to rise. Some experts are even predicting five dollars a gallon by the end of the summer. Now I'm not smart enough to understand all that supply-demand stuff, or how the problems in Iran and Nigeria are affecting the stock market, but I do know that oil companies are making record profits these days. And it seems to me that Iraq should be doing a lot more to ease this burden, since it was our troops that liberated their country when they didn't have the guts to do it themselves. And a special thanks to all the environmentalists and lobbyists that have made these prices possible. Good thing our government has a plan for such contingencies. We do have a plan, right?

Army suicide rate climbs.

According to the U.S. Army, the number of soldiers who took their own lives last year rose to the highest level in thirteen years. In 2005, 83 soldiers committed suicide, compared to 67 in 2004 and 60 in 2003. The rate is especially high among combat troops and those deployed overseas. Stress, failed relationships, long deployments and financial problems were common among suicide victims. According to an Army spokesman, Col. Joseph Curtin, "Although we are not alarmed by the slight increase, we do take suicide prevention very seriously."

Not alarmed by the "slight" increase? That, in a nutshell, is the Army's problem. Denial. When I was in the Army, they didn't exactly encourage you to come forward and talk about your feelings and personal problems. We need to be doing much, much more for these young soldiers, who are sacrificing so much for all of us, not just when they are on active duty, but when they leave the service, as well. Oh, and the Colonel who isn't alarmed....you need to find a new job because you're a lousy spokesman and a deplorable leader!

MySpace disgrace...

On the anniversary on the Columbine High School massacre, police in Riverton, Kansas, arrested five high school students for plotting a violent rampage. Police learned of the shooting when a warning was posted on the MySpace.com website. The teens apparently planned to wear black trenchcoats, ala Columbine/The Matrix, and disable security cameras. Ensuing searches yielded guns, ammo and a variety of coded messages. The students had apparently been planning the assault for some time, and had intended to shoot at least one teacher, as well as several students. MySpace.com representatives declined to discuss the investigation, as per their usual practice when their site is involved.

All of which makes me wonder: don't these kids have parents?

A week of anniversaries...

One hundred years ago this week, San Francisco was rocked with a major earthquake that registered nearly 8.0 in magnitude, killing approximately 3,000 people, and nearly leveling the city. A similar quake today would cause untold damage and death, and experts report that it's a "not-if-but-when" scenario for those of us on the San Andreas fault. If it wasn't for McKinney, I might move to Georgia!

Also, today is the 11th Anniversary of the bombing of the Alfred Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, leaving nearly 1,000 dead or injured. The real crime here is that they didn't execute Nichols alongside McVeigh! But hopefully, he's being bent over and rooted senseless several times a day, just as a reminder. Happy Anniversary there, Terry!

And Ranger Pat Tillman also had an anniversary of sorts this week. Maybe someday the Army will tell his family what really happened on that hill in Afghanistan. We owe them that much, at the very least!

Adam Henry: Rep. Cynthia McKinney

According to a police report released today, Rep. Cynthia McKinney, D-Ga., punched a Capitol Hill police officer with her fist during a confrontation last month. The officer was working at a security post when McKinney tried to get past without the proper identification. McKinney immediately played the "race card", but seemed shocked when fellow Democrats, including those from the Congressional Black Caucus, refused to support her. She later offered something vaguely resembling an apology, but still refuses to accept blame for her role in the incident. Incredibly, this woman, who assaults uniformed police officers and disregards security checkpoints, is also on the Armed Service Committee, which generally oversees the Department of Defense. Do the people of Georgia even read the papers? Congrats McKinney, you're the Adam Henry of the month!

Iran, I ran so far away...

...couldn't get away!

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad kept up the rhetoric this week saying that Iran will not retreat "one iota" in its pursuit of a nuclear program. He also proclaimed that Israel will be wiped out by "one storm". Hmmm. Nuclear program. Wiped out by "one storm." Anyone seeing a pattern here?

Time to play hardball, folks!

Potterheads take note...

According to The Leaky Cauldron: All Things Harry Potter. the seventh and final Harry Potter book will "probably" be released next year. Fans can also expect the Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix movie to be released on July 13, 2007. It's a long time to wait for Potterheads everywhere, but the countdowns are already starting. Constant vigilance!

Bad News Bonds

Is it just me, or is Barry Bonds getting more pathetic be the day? First, he's dodging syringes on the field, then he's crying on ESPN...Now he's under investigation for lying to the grand jury back in 2003. He actually stood before the grand jury and said that he never "knowingly used steriods." Huh. I imagine the conversation went like this:
Bonds/cheat/liar/drug user: "Hey, trainer, what's this mystery substance that you're giving me that makes me bigger, stronger and a total asshole?"
Trainer/drug-dealer: "Don't ask, Barry, don't ask."
Although the government will probably never be able to prove that he lied, I think baseball fans can decide for themselves. To mention his name in the same sentence as Babe Ruth and Henry Aaron is a disgrace. Major League Baseball should be ashamed of the way it has handled this entire situation.

Rangers Lead The Way!

April 22nd marks the two-year anniversary of the death of Army Ranger Pat Tillman, 2nd Ranger Battalion, in Afghanistan. Tillman, who turned down a multi-million dollar NFL contract to join the Army, volunteered for the Rangers, and served in Iraq before he was killed in a firefight in eastern Afghanistan in 2004. The fact that he was killed by friendly fire has done little to diminish his legacy, although the Army has been less than forthcoming with the facts about what really happened that day. Unlike Cindy Sheehan, his family has resisted the anti-military movement sweeping democratic circles, and instead opted to start the The Pat Tillman Foundation to help foster their sons legacy. Rangers truly do lead the way, and Pat Tillman was one of the finest. Rest well, brother.

Life in these United States...

People all over these United States took to the streets again today, demonstrating against the utter futility of America's immigration and border-control policies. Cities as large as Los Angeles and as small as Garden City, Kansas, fell victim to "rallies" of as many as 100,000 people, by some estimates. And still, our politicians cannot decide what to do.
It's as simple as this, America:

1. Close the border, NOW! Build a fence, post the National Guard, anything! Just keep the problem from getting any phreaking worse!
2. Create a guest-worker program. If you come here legally and want to work, fine. Register, follow our laws, learn to speak English...and one day you can become a citizen, too.
3. Make it illegal to hire unregistered aliens. If they can't get work, they will either a) register or b) leave.
4. Make it a Felony to be an unregistered alien, and put them in prison or kick them out. PERIOD. It's not rocket-science, people!