The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.
The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.
The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.
I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..

Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."
"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."

"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."

PLEASE, Would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.
LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN
30th Naval Construction Regiment
OIC, Logistics Cell One
Al Taqqadum, Iraq

Thought you might like to know what happened in a little town north of Bakersfield , California.

After you finish reading this, please forward this story on to others so that our nation and people around the world will know about those who laughed when they found out about the tragic events in New York, Pennsylvania, and the Pentagon.

On September 11th, a Budweiser employee was making a delivery to a convenience store in a California town named McFarland.

He knew of the tragedy that had occurred in New York when he entered the business to find the two Arabs, who owned the business, whooping and hollering to show their approval and support of this treacherous attack.

The Budweiser employee went to his truck, called his boss and told him of the very upsetting event!

He didn't feel he could be in that store with those horrible people. His boss asked him, "Do you think you could go in there long enough to pull every Budweiser product and item our beverage company sells there?

We'll never deliver to them again."

The employee walked in, proceeded to pull every single product his beverage company provided
and left with an incredible grin on his face.

He told them never to bother to call for a delivery again.

Budweiser happens to be the beer of choice for that community. Just letting you know how Kern
County handled this situation.

And Now The Rest Of The Story:

It seems that the Bud driver and the Pepsi man are neighbors. Bud called Pepsi and told him. Pepsi called his boss who told him to pull all Pepsi products as well!!! That would include Frito Lay, etc.

Furthermore, word spread and all vendors followed suit! At last report, the store was closed indefinitely.

Good old American Passive-Aggressive A$$ Whoopin!

Pass this along, America needs to know that we're all working together!

If you can read this, thank a teacher...

If you are reading it in English.... THANK A SOLDIER!!!

The bombing of the al-Askari Mosque by Al Queda in Iraq touched off violence and retribution between Sunni and Shiite Muslims that neary escalated into a full blown civil war.

That action in unstable Iraq seriously jeapordized America's ability to contain violence, which has only now shown a measurable drop since the Surge has shown success.

A new threat has emerged that has the potential to set the clock back once again. This time it is being perpetrated by non other than the Speaker Of the House of Representatives of the United States Government, Nancy Pelosi, Democrat.

Speaker Pelosi is planning to bring a resolution branding the killing of Armenians by the Ottoman Turks as "genocide" to a vote in the House. Turkey reportedly killed up to 1.5 million Armenians in the period around World War One.

At issue is not the validity of the resolution, but the timing. Turkey currently facilitates transit of much of the US military's logistic support of the war effort in Iraq, and that hospitality could be in jeopardy in the wake of an affirmitive vote on the resolution. Also at issue is Turkey's desire to invade northern Iraq to counter Kurdish rebels.

Like the bombing of the al-Askari Mosque touched of a cycle of violence, the consideration of this ill-timed resolution may cause the same. The US House of Representatives and Nancy Pelosi do not exist in a vacuum and if they vote and pass this resolution, they will be responsible for the results.

How could we the people know?

Did you know that 47 countries' have reestablished their embassies in Iraq?

Did you know that the Iraqi government currently employs 1.2 million Iraqi people?

Did you know that 3100 Iraqi schools have been renovated, 364 schools are under rehabilitation, 263 new schools are now under construction and 38 new schools have been "completed" in Iraq?

Did you know that Iraq's higher educational structure consists of 20 Universities, 46 Institutes or colleges and 4 research centers, all currently operating?

Did you know that 25 Iraq students departed for the United States in January 2005 for the reestablished Fulbright program?

Did you know that the Iraqi Navy is operational? They have 5 - 100-foot patrol craft, 34 smaller vessels and a naval infantry regiment.

Did you know that Iraq's Air Force consists of three operational squadrons, which includes 9 reconnaissance and 3 US C-130 transport aircraft (under Iraqi operational control) which operate day and night, and will soon add 16 UH-1 helicopters and 4 Bell Jet Rangers?

Did you know that Iraq has a counter-terrorist unit and a Commando Battalion?

Did you know that the Iraqi Police Service has over 55,000 fully trained and equipped police officers?

Did you know that there are 5 Police Academies in Iraq that produce over 3500 new officers each 8 weeks?

Did you know there are more than 1100 building projects going on in Iraq? They include 364 schools, 67 public clinics, 15 hospitals, 83 railroad stations, 22 oil facilities, 93 water facilities and 69 electrical facilities.

Did you know that 96% of Iraqi children under the age of 5 have received the first 2 series of polio vaccinations?

Did you know that 4.3 million Iraqi children were enrolled in primary school by mid October?

Did you know that there are 1,192,000 cell phone subscribers in Iraq and phone use has gone up 158%?

Did you know that Iraq has an independent media that consists of 75 radio stations, 180 newspapers and 10 television stations?

Did you know that the Baghdad Stock Exchange opened in June of 2004?

Did you know that 2 candidates in the Iraqi presidential election had a televised debate recently?

OF COURSE WE DIDN'T KNOW! WHY DIDN'T WE KNOW?

OUR MEDIA WOULDN'T TELL US!

Instead of reflecting our love for our country, we get photos of flag burning incidents at Abu Ghraib and people throwing snowballs at the presidential motorcades.

Tragically, the lack of accentuating the positive in Iraq serves two purposes:

It is intended to "undermine" the world's perception of the United States thus "minimizing" consequent support, AND it is intended to "discourage" American citizens.

---- Above facts are verifiable on the Department of Defense web site http://www.defenselink.mil/

From the Jerusalem Post:

Proof of cooperation between Iran and Syria in the proliferation and development of weapons of mass destruction was brought to light Monday in Jane's Defence Weekly, which reported that dozens of Iranian engineers and 15 Syrian officers were killed in a July 23 accident in Syria.

According to the report, cited by Channel 10, the joint Syrian-Iranian team was attempting to mount a chemical warhead on a Scud missile when the explosion occurred, spreading lethal chemical agents, including sarin nerve gas.

Read the rest here.

Citing recent success with the surge, President Bush said last night in a speech to the nation that he would start withdrawing troops from Iraq soon and be back to pre-surge levels by July 2008.

"The principle guiding my decisions on troop levels in Iraq is: return on success," the president said, trying to summon the nation's resolve once again to help Iraq "defeat those who threaten its future and also threaten ours." source FoxNews.com

Fresh from calling General Petraus a liar, Democrats say that returning to pre-surge levels is not progress, not realizing that if the surge was failing, there would be no withdrawals, and the President would be asking for even more reinforcements.

The change of strategy Democrats demanded 6 months ago; new Generals, new Secretary of Defense, new rules of engagement, have been put in place, but are being ignored despite promising signs of success.

It is obvious that the Democrat Party strategy is organized around winning the Presidency, not winning the war. They cannot afford to support their own Country's war effort because that would lend support to Republicans in the race for the White House. So they continue to criticize and second guess at every turn.

When the President is committing to withdrawing troops on success and the Democrats say no, what are they saying? They are saying they want to withdraw the troops on failure and defeat, regardless of the consequences in human lives and to US interests in the region.

Is it an accident that the recent Bin Laden tapes seem to echo many Democrat Party themes?
Here is an excerpt of a blog post by Christopher G. Adamo on the California Conservative that points out some interesting similarities.

In light of Osama Bin Laden’s videotaped message to the West (Or was it a press release from DNC Chairman Howard Dean?), one might be given to muse that liberal abhorrence for the President’s surveillance of incoming phone calls from known terrorists might ultimately stem from self-interest. Perhaps they simply do not want to be monitored as they share strategies and talking points with the Al Qaeda leader.

Furthermore, the DNC may decide to keep a copy of the Bin Laden tape, which could come in handy during the 2008 campaign season. Just as aspiring politicians feel compelled to pander in Spanish to the increasing numbers of “undocumented voters,” so might Dean and the Democrats want to remind those “Jihadist-Americans” in their native tongue which party will best ensure that their interests are served.

While such satire may be deemed overly harsh, in truth it fails to fully convey the depths to which the current Democrat leaders, along with their cronies in the media and the blogosphere, have sunk in their efforts to promote their anti-American cause. And as one outrageous example after another unfolds before the American people in the liberal/Democrat attempt to demean and undermine the war on terror, the case for their sedition becomes ever more crystal clear.

Read the rest here.

When I got up this morning and reached for a T-shirt in the dark, I was suprised that I had grabbed my twin-towers T-shirt. I don't wear it much these days, but it seemed fitting for today so I put it on.

Thinking of the attacks of 9/11/2001 rekindles my anger. It makes me wish to wreak havoc on those who caused it.

Perhaps that is the real point of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to wreak havoc. The price being paid in the Muslim world by now has been many times over the havoc caused in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania six years ago today.

Realize this; There would never have been the political will in America to make war in the middle east without the triggering events on September 11, 2001. In this way Osama Bin Laden is responsible not only for the attacks here, but also for response. Is Bin Laden a hero to the Muslim world? For he has surely brought much death and destruction upon them.

When people in the Middle East remember, and no doubt cheer their great victory against America, let us hope they remember the price they've paid, and continue to pay, and ask themselves if it was worth it.

A quotable quote in Reader's Digest attributed to Hugh Downs says:

To say my fate is not tied to your fate is like saying your end of the boat is sinking.

This brings to mind the Democrat strategy to win the Presidency in 2008. They believe they must be relentless in their criticism of the war regardless of how it might embolden the enemy into believing they can win.

My first question is will this work? My second and more important question is, can the damage they are doing to America be repaired by the next President, regardless of which party wins?

Sporting a freshly dyed beard Osama Laden implored America to convert to Islam in his recently released video.

His unusually conciliatory language should make it clear that radical Islam is intent on taking over the world, and is using a multi-pronged strategy to do so.

No struggle for world domination is fought on one single battle field with one single strategy.

Notice that while Al Qaeda engages us in Iraq, and elsewhere around the world, in Sweden, clerics are demanding the government there be more tolerant of Muslims. Notice that in Europe, the Christian and secular white majorities are shrinking, while their Muslim populations are growing. Notice that in the US, local governments and schools offer special consideration to the needs of Muslims, while purging the public square of anything that hints at Christianity.

The radical Clerics teach violence and hate in their Mosques, and publicly scoff at the notion that they do so. Meanwhile the mainstream Muslims, the majority, are frighteningly silent.

Those of you who dismiss these things should become aware that Islam is creeping like a vine and it's tendrals are reaching world wide. Since those of you who deny this are generally liberals and progressives that champion women's and gay right, you should pay particular attention to how Islamic law treats those two groups. You might also notice how dissent is handled if you disagree with, or disobey their laws.

The world has seen the struggle between Christianity and Islam ebb and flow over the centuries. Now it has expanded to a struggle between Islam and western secular culture (which Islam abhors).

It would be foolish to think it can't happen here. It is also foolish of anyone who does not want a very wide and bloody war to keep their rights and culture later to understand the threat now, and act accordingly.

This was received in an email without attribution so while the author is unknown, the truths of it speak for themselves.

A man whose family was German aristocracy prior to World War II owned a number of large industries and estates. When asked how many German people were true Nazis, the answer he gave can guide our attitude toward fanaticism "Very few people were true Nazis "he said," but many enjoyed the return of German pride, and many more were too busy to care. I was one of those who just thought the Nazis were a bunch of fools. So, the majority just sat back and let it all happen. Then, before we knew it, they owned us, and we had lost control, and the end of the world had come. My family lost everything. I ended up in a concentration camp and the Allies destroyed my factories."

We are told again and again by "experts" and "talking heads" that Islam is the religion of peace, and that the vast majority of Muslims just want to live in peace. Although this unqualified assertion may be true, it is entirely irrelevant. It is meaningless fluff, meant to make us feel better, and meant to somehow diminish the specter of fanatics rampaging across the globe in the name of Islam.

The fact is that the fanatics rule Islam at this moment in history.

• It is the fanatics who march.
  
• It is the fanatics who wage any one of 50 shooting wars worldwide.
  
• It is the fanatics who systematically slaughter Christian or tribal groups throughout Africa and are gradually taking over the entire continent in an Islamic wave.
  
• It is the fanatics who bomb, behead, murder, or honor-kill.
  
• It is the fanatics who zealously spread the stoning and hanging of rape victims and homosexuals.

The hard quantifiable fact is that the "peaceful majority", the "silent majority", is cowed and extraneous. Communist Russia was comprised of Russians who just wanted to live in peace, yet the Russian Communists were responsible for the murder of about 20 million people. The peaceful majority were irrelevant. China's huge population was peaceful as well, but Chinese Communists managed to kill a staggering 70 million people.

The average Japanese individual prior to World War II was not a warmongering sadist. Yet, Japan murdered and slaughtered; its way across South East Asia in an orgy of killing that included the systematic murder of 12 million Chinese civilians; most killed by sword, shovel and bayonet.

And, who can forget Rwanda, which collapsed into butchery. Could it not be said that the majority of Rwandans were "peace loving"?

History lessons are often incredibly simple and blunt, yet for all our powers of reason we often miss the most basic and uncomplicated of points: Peace-loving Muslims have been made irrelevant by their silence. Peace-loving Muslims will become our enemy if they don't speak up because, like my friend from Germany, they will awake one day and find that the fanatics own them, and the end of their world will have begun.

Peace-loving Germans, Japanese, Chinese, Russians, Rwandans, Serbs, Afghans, Iraqis, Palestinians, Somalis, Nigerians, Algerians, and many others have died because the peaceful majority did not speak up until it was too late.

As for us who watch it all unfold; we must pay attention to the only group that counts; the fanatics who threaten our way of life. Lastly, at the risk of offending, anyone who doubts that the issue is serious and just deletes this email without sending it on, contributes to the passiveness that allows the problems to expand.

The headline from the Drudge Report reads: Iran Prepared to Fill Iraq Power Vacuum

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) - President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad warned Tuesday that a power vacuum is imminent in Iraq and said that Iran was ready to help fill the gap.

"The political power of the occupiers is collapsing rapidly," Ahmadinejad said at a press conference in Tehran, referring to U.S. troops in Iraq. "Soon, we will see a huge power vacuum in the region. Of course, we are prepared to fill the gap, with the help of neighbors and regional friends like Saudi Arabia, and with the help of the Iraqi nation." source: Breitbart.com

Credit goes to the Democrat Party who's incessant calls for immediate troop withdrawal and Maliki's resignation emboldens the Iranians and Al Qaeda, and prolongs the war.

When has a Democrat ever advocated cutting a benefit to force personal responsibility? Usually Democrats want to give benefits out like candy in the form of programs, and bristle at the suggestion that the recipients might be required to step up and act on their own behalf. They have even suggested that illegal aliens receive benefits, so that if and when they receive amnesty and legal citizenship they will remember who delivered the candy, and vote for them.

Last night after President Bush's speech about his new Iraq War strategy, Congressional Democrats gave their response. Dick Durbin said America should do less for Iraq so they will be forced to be responsible for themselves.

"More American forces prevent the Iraqis from doing more, from taking more responsibility for their own future." -Dick Durbin

It's obvious that the President's new plan lacks a key ingredient needed to gain support of the Democrats. Bush should have offered the Iraqis the right to vote in American elections, and then the Dems would be lining up in droves to support his plan.

Meet the new Axis of Evil:

After watching both George Bush and Dick TDurbin, I know one thing; we are in trouble.

Going in to the speech you were either for the war or you were against the war. I have been saying that something needs to happen. Well folks, tonight something did. Our Commander in Chief who's sworn duty is to protect us, laid out a plan to do so. He did the following:

-Admitted we need a change
-Took responsibility for the mistakes and failures in Iraq
-Laid out a plan for success
-Put the Iraqi government on notice that they need to step up as the Americans will not always be here

Bush is calling for 21,000 additional troops to be deployed in Iraq. I feel this plan will succeed. He has made extensive changes in the leadership and has a plan for success. When asked if the plan fails what happens, numerous senior White House officials are saying clearly, "We won't need a plan B, period". I have not seen this kind of conviction or confidence coming from this White House in quite some time.

Senator Dick Durbin had his five minutes in which he stated "Tonight President Bush acknowledged what most Americans know — we are not winning in Iraq ... indeed the challenge is grave and deteriorating."

Durbin also joined a statement made with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer.

"The president had an opportunity tonight to demonstrate that he understood the depth of the concern in the country, make a long overdue course correction, and articulate a clear mission for our engagement in Iraq. Instead, he chose to escalate our involvement in Iraq's civil war by proposing a substantial increase in the number of our forces there," they said.

If the Congress or Senate block or attempt to block this move or as Kennedy threatened, pull the funding, the American people need to know that will be the end. We will have lost the war. If we pull out of Iraq now, as Presidential Candidate Tom Vilsack suggests, then we are creating a breeding ground for terrorism. Going to Iraq, stay at hotel Al-Queda...

Bottom line, support our troops, get them what they need; more of them!

11:25pm Update--CNN is reporting they will have video footage and pictures very shortly. Once CNN management has reviewed the footage, they will show what they deem "appropriate".

Once available, we will get them up.

CNN and FOXnews are both reporting that Saddam has been executed. The former Iraqi dictator is no more...

More to follow...

Back in August, I wrote a post talking about a TV mini series called Sleeper Cell. Showtime is releasing their next installment of the hit show Sleeper Cell. This is debuting next week. The Sacramento Republicrat has been given the privilege to be a VIP Insider for Showtime and preview this awesome show.

So, check back tomorrow or Friday for my review...

Well it appears that Cindy Sheehan and a group of her comrades have gone on a diet.

On July 4, we launched an historic hunger strike called TROOPS HOME FAST in Washington, DC in front of the White House. While many Americans expressed their patriotism via barbeques and fireworks, we're fasting in memory of the dead and wounded, and calling for the troops to come home from Iraq. Read an interview with Diane Wilson to learn more. We're inviting people around the world to show their support for this open-ended fast by fasting for at least one day. Please sign here to to support us and encourage your friends to do the same.

Code Pink

Here is what the fasters are asking for:

FASTERS DEMAND...

The fasters are demanding that we bring our troops home from Iraq. They want
the White House and Congress to call for:

* The withdrawal of all U.S. from Iraq;
* No permanent bases in Iraq;
* A commitment to fund a massive reconstruction effort but with funds going
to Iraqi, not U.S., contractors.

Code Pink

Cindy Sheehan, whose son was killed in Iraq, said she would drink only water throughout the summer, which she said she would spend outside President George W. Bush's ranch in Crawford, Texas.

You have to wonder who is funding all of her trips? Who is paying for all of the tents, supplies and food?