English 101, and reflections on humanity.
Liberals have forgotten, or are pretending to have forgotten what certain words mean.
Orson Scott Card provides definitions so that the Leftists in the country can stop embarassing themselves by misusing certain every-day words that any grade school child can define, under ordinary circumstances.
Not much happening in my neck of the woods.
OK, that's a bad metaphor for Iraq.
Not much happening in my neck of the barren, desolate wasteland.
You've been in Iraq too many times when the 'incoming' warning (hooked up to a counter-fire radar) provokes the response, "So what, Hajji can't shoot" and people who immediately go for a smoke break in the open. It's been almost 5 months since Hajji hit the Camp anyway.
Leader's Recon for our replacements is in progress. *happy dance* As much as I love Iraq, with it's picturesque (desolate) scenery, unique (trashy and poorly constructed) architecture , and wonderful (bugnuts insane) inhabitants, it is getting to be time to return to the United States so that I can make leftist liberals uncomfortable by my very existence. Wearing a uniform in public does that.
Personally, I find that whether people support or oppose us, we aren't really real to most folks in the United States. We are. . . I don't know, some sort of genericized metaphor-made-flesh. If you're agin' us, we are all cardboard cutouts of American Imperialism, baby-killers, rapists, and into wierd games with pyramids of naked dudes (personally, not so much so, and if I were, it wouldn't be smelly Arabic detainees, thankyouverymuch). Or perhaps we are all ignorant dupes who were brainwashed by George Bush (he being the source of all evil in the world), or are too stupid to make a go at civilian life.
To those who support us, we all are supporting cast in a John Wayne movie.
I'm not quite that perky, most days.
Somehow, our individuality and humanity get lost in the process. Ironically, the Federal Government pays me (using your tax dollars!) to dehumanize myself and those around me to the point where I can find emotional fulfillment in killing Mr. Hajj. Then sticks me in a job where I don't even get the chance to do THAT very often.
Once I retire, I'm going to send some therapist's kid to college.
One other point:
cMad, your cute little snarky comments equating Christianity and Islam are, I am sure, quite amusing to you as you publish them. I'm sure they make you feel nice and superior to all us ignorant believers.
I don't want to deal with moderating comments. I will, however. This is your polite request not to mess on the carpet. If you wish to set up your own blog and publish little snippets sneering down your nose at anyone with any sort of faith, you are free to do so. Stop doing so in my venue.
Orson Scott Card provides definitions so that the Leftists in the country can stop embarassing themselves by misusing certain every-day words that any grade school child can define, under ordinary circumstances.
Not much happening in my neck of the woods.
OK, that's a bad metaphor for Iraq.
Not much happening in my neck of the barren, desolate wasteland.
You've been in Iraq too many times when the 'incoming' warning (hooked up to a counter-fire radar) provokes the response, "So what, Hajji can't shoot" and people who immediately go for a smoke break in the open. It's been almost 5 months since Hajji hit the Camp anyway.
Leader's Recon for our replacements is in progress. *happy dance* As much as I love Iraq, with it's picturesque (desolate) scenery, unique (trashy and poorly constructed) architecture , and wonderful (bugnuts insane) inhabitants, it is getting to be time to return to the United States so that I can make leftist liberals uncomfortable by my very existence. Wearing a uniform in public does that.
Personally, I find that whether people support or oppose us, we aren't really real to most folks in the United States. We are. . . I don't know, some sort of genericized metaphor-made-flesh. If you're agin' us, we are all cardboard cutouts of American Imperialism, baby-killers, rapists, and into wierd games with pyramids of naked dudes (personally, not so much so, and if I were, it wouldn't be smelly Arabic detainees, thankyouverymuch). Or perhaps we are all ignorant dupes who were brainwashed by George Bush (he being the source of all evil in the world), or are too stupid to make a go at civilian life.
To those who support us, we all are supporting cast in a John Wayne movie.
I'm not quite that perky, most days.
Somehow, our individuality and humanity get lost in the process. Ironically, the Federal Government pays me (using your tax dollars!) to dehumanize myself and those around me to the point where I can find emotional fulfillment in killing Mr. Hajj. Then sticks me in a job where I don't even get the chance to do THAT very often.
Once I retire, I'm going to send some therapist's kid to college.
One other point:
cMad, your cute little snarky comments equating Christianity and Islam are, I am sure, quite amusing to you as you publish them. I'm sure they make you feel nice and superior to all us ignorant believers.
I don't want to deal with moderating comments. I will, however. This is your polite request not to mess on the carpet. If you wish to set up your own blog and publish little snippets sneering down your nose at anyone with any sort of faith, you are free to do so. Stop doing so in my venue.
posted by Just A Decurion at 9/10/2006 08:54:00 PM
7 Comments:
Understood.
These blogs are your space.
I respect it.
Wow! I'm glad to see that cmad acknowledges that this is your blog. I think you're wrong about how people view the military. I think your average American views you as heroes, except in very rare cases (pyramid-players)! It's just we're not as loud about it as some of the others you mention.
The "heroes" part is probably what he means by characters from John Wayne movies.
My personal _relatively limited_ experience was that soliders tend to be more complex, multidiminsional and varied than even the "heroes" tag implies.
Well, of course, we all know that John is multi-diminsional...just spend 2 seconds reading his blog!
I don't think the word hero is synonymous with John Wayne, but maybe that IS what John is saying. Is it?
A "hero" is merely a person who has a duty to a cause greater than him/herself, and that person endeavors to accomplish that task, even when such efforts may not be in his/her own selfish interest. The caveat to that statement is that the cause has to be a moral one.
So a person who runs into a burning building is a "hero"--if his cause is to rescue people. If his cause is to rob the place blind before the authorities show up, he is a "criminal".
So, the activity is heroic only if a) the activity requires personal sacrifice, and b) the cause for engaging in that activity is a moral one.
People who have a problem defining morals (cmad is an example) don't understand heroism--part B. And so they haven't a CLUE about part A. By their lights any person who engages in any activity that is not in their own personal self-interest is a "fool" not a "hero".
Many of these are intelligent, articulate people who really, really, really haven't a clue about how to engage in any activity that is not in their own self-interest. Their expectation is that the rest of humanity is the same as them. Consequently they think the heros are fools or worse. In reality, they are just narcisstic, self-centered and utterly clueless about issues of duty.
If he who vails his identity behind the nom de plume "nerdasaaurus" wishes to check his assumptions ... you know how to reach me, Chris.
I'm not going to argue with you about this in the Decurion's (or the Decurion's better part's) blog.
Hey John, any chance of getting you to attend Dragon Con? You and the Missus (will that be Missus Cadet Atkinson by then?) need to come out here and immerse yourselves in Con Goodness.
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