2013. I want my jetpack.

So in theory, we've got 24 months before we are supposedly 'done' in Afghanistan. Leaving aside the distinct possibility that we'll have a lingering US presence here, what are we supposed to accomplish here in the next two years that we haven't done in the last (Flying Spaghetti Monster help us) eleven years ( Read more... )

Visibility less then 200m today, all day long. Bitingly cold constant winds, with heavy dust-storm conditions. At noon, the sun was a barely perceptible wan disc at the peak of the sky.

Not helping is that this is what's stuck in my head today:

Young British Soldier

If your officer's dead and the sergeants look white,Remember it's ruin to run ( Read more... )

Christmas In The Trenches

Belleau WoodMerry Christmas to all. An appropriately Silent Night here. Nothing happened during the day, and tonight should stay quiet too. Hallelujah ( Read more... )

And boy, is that nice ( Read more... )

"Can't anybody here play this game?"

"On Brave Old Army Team"For Pete's sake, its been 11 bloody years in a row of this ( Read more... )

After a chilly pre-dawn flight all over Helmand province on a CH-53 Super Stallion that leaked hydraulic fluid all over the passengers, I arrived at Camp Leatherneck for what I optimistically hoped would be a quick stay to get my expiring ID card renewed ( Read more... )

Always love a chance for a Python joke. Or how about "Once More With Feeling" for a Buffy one ( Read more... )

Tired. Head aches. Counting down. Leaving Basrah for Kalsu in a few days. Found a LJ post of a friend that had this quiz. Whee. Wish I was home already. The last 30 days are always the longest.

Which philosopher are you?
Your Result: Aristotle

Truth does not exist in some transcendent realm. We get to truth by applying reason to the physical world ( Read more... )

There's a lot of mordant irony in sitting in a chow hall in Basrah and watching the news when the top story is "The Last Combat Troops Are Out Of Iraq ( Read more... )

There are a few Phalanx-like automatic air-defense guns around COB Basrah, and when they open up on incoming rockets, it sounds like the world's largest chainsaw is right next door ( Read more... )