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George Santayana defined fanaticism as "redoubling your effort after you've forgotten your aim". "Enhanced interrogation", or torture, is the target of the latest salvo fired off by certain partisan fanatics of a particular political bent in their ongoing campaign to purge the nation of any lingering vestiges of Bushism. But with their ( Read more... )

I work in a hospital on Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan.  It's not a bad job--it's a good blend of the exciting and the mundane.  I work with Canadians, Dutch, British, Germans, Australians, New Zealanders, Afghanis, and of course other Americans, as well as a few other nationalities.  As an Army medic--a jack of all medical and soldierly trades ( Read more... )

Okay, what I said before about not voting?  Yeah, I lied.  I sent in my Early Voting Ballot two weeks ago.  I voted straight-ticket Libertarian (Straight-ticket votes are only acceptable for third parties.  If you vote all "R" or all "D" down the line, you're an idiot.  I won't even debate you on how much of an idiot you are, you stooge.) and "no" ( Read more... )

Which state do you live in?  Is your state likely to vote red or blue?  Do you know that your vote is very likely to count for NOTHING?  Literally?  No matter who you favor?  It all depends on where you live.

YOU don't vote for the President.  Your STATE does.  And unless you happen to live in Maine or Nebraska, this means that votes for the ( Read more... )

It's Election Day, and here's my third and final installment of "Elect."  With the first one of these I did, I really was trying to relate a message.  But, in the end, it's all just a bunch of crap that I've pulled off the Internets...some of it amusing, some of it disturbing, most of it downright wrong.  Kind of like this election!  And democracy ( Read more... )

Today is 11 September.  Today is the third day in a row I've had to watch someone die.

Even though it makes perfect sense, I don't understand it.  I've seen more blood and death in the last month at this hospital than I have in all the rest of the time I've spent deployed.

I searched houses in the tip of the Sunni Triangle in Iraq.


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I saw way too many blown-up kids today.

Mixed forces.

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I was tasked to be one of the medics providing coverage for the recent ISAF dog-and-pony show...err...Change of Command Ceremony.  So, rather than scanning the crowd and participants for medical emergencies or the area for threats to Afghani President Karzai, I took the opportunity to snap some photos.


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