The Happy Carpenter

Sometimes, it's OK to use the F word.

This Navy man can turn a phrase

Neptunus Lex is new to me but famous within the WarBlogging community.  This is typical of his writing:

The Sunnis know now, they must, that they will never again be able to install a strongman of their choosing atop a cowed Shia majority, and many have now ranged themselves against the al Qaeda-allied foreign fighters with whom once they cast their lots, recognizing at last the smothering austerity of the jihadist vision. Still, feeling disempowered, disenfranchised and petulant they apply the only lever they feel they own and retreat to the kind of perverse political violence which threatens to swallow them up in its consequences.

He calls for the destruction of al Sadr's army.

UPDATE:  You know, the more I think about it the more I think he's put his finger on the problem we're having with the Arabs, except that he's wrong.  Yes the Sunnis "must" know, but they don't.  The whole Arab world is so taken up with denial and conspiratorial thinking that they can deny absolutely anything.  If majorities of Arabs laud Bin Laden for attacking the USA while simultaneously denying Arabs were responsible for 9-11, and they do, then why should it surprise us that Sunnis would deny the impossibility of their ever taking over Iraq again?  On the other hand, his solution, the absolute destruction of al Sadr's army through forthright violence, is what it will take to beat it into their thick Arab skulls.  Like a lot of Americans, I've had about enough of the Mr. Nice Guy Hearts & Minds routine.

Captain Capitalism is going soft

Grandchildren, Captain?  Come on!

The Happy Wife's note to the Principal

I thought this was pretty funny:

Hello Mrs. Apuzzo,

Rochelle, Noel and Renee Thorp will be absent from this Friday December 1st – 16th on a trip to the Islands of Hawaii.  We are visiting the North Island of Kauai for a while for some mountainous exploration and for some whale watching off the North shore, then going down to the island of Oahu in Honolulu for a week for some Pearl Harbor Celebrations and the beach.  The children will be reading a lot and learning about a whole new culture and if you have any suggestions on places to see or visit while we are there, they will definitely be taken into consideration. We have planned this trip for a year from last Christmas and the family has really been looking forward to this.  I have notified their teachers this morning through email. If there is anything else that I need to do please let me know.  We are pretty excited in anticipation and so looking forward to this.

Thank you so much for your support,

Mrs. Hula Girl Happycarpenter

I think the "Hula Girl" is afraid she's going to get in trouble!

Obviously

From the LA Times we learn:

Sunni Arabs say U.S. troops are raiding their communities in coordination with Shiite militias.

And Shiites say that U.S. forces are working with Sunni terrorist groups to conduct strikes such as the devastating car bomb barrage in Sadr City.

It just wouldn't be that hard to say "a pox on both their houses" and leave the vipers to their own tender mercies.

Seen at low tide

Saw this little fellow off the end of the dock yesterday.  He's about 24" long, and had some injury to his right front flipper.  We thought he was dead at first, but after a short nap he went on his way.

Living on the water can be so cool.

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We also had the best dolphin show yet last weekend.  Getting good dolphin pictures is just about impossible without a really good lens, but this horny devil was right next to the boat!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The sqeakiest, cleaniest, goshdarned best congress eva eva I'm so like sure, duh?

I knew Speaker Pelosi's idea to put impeached & convicted former federal judge Alcee Hastings in charge of the House Intelligence Committee was a bad idea, but I didn't know this:

What you may not know is that Alcee Hastings was never convicted in a criminal case because the most important witness against him simply refused to testify. Subsequently, Bill Clinton pardoned the witness.

I hate it when other people impugn the motives of those with whom they disagree, so I won't do that here.  However, this really sucks.  It's enough to make you think that maybe not all the conspiracy nuts are so nuts.  Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean no one is out to get you.

Prisons

From Dear Sister Trish:

  In the U.S., prisons account for a $37 billion economy. There are more than 2 million inmates serving time in the United States, up from 744,000 in 1985.
  America has the world's highest incarceration rate, and the revolving door helps keep those prisons packed: A 2002 study by the Federal Bureau of Justice Statistics found that 52 percent of released convicts were back in jail within three years.
  State prison systems spend more than $30 billion annually, and the Bureau of Prisons budgeted $5 billion for just 182,000 federal inmates this year.

My $0.02's worth:

1. That's $18,500 per inmate per year -- a small price to pay for keeping those cretins off the streets.
2. End the stupid war on drugs* and treat the problem as a medical problem -- end of world's highest incarceration rate.
3. Closing the revolving door is easy -- just stop it with the inmates (except for the drug offenders) inside.  Recidivism solved.
4. Make them pay.  Criminals should have to pay their room & board back.  Details to be announced, but this should be a standard part of their sentence.  Why the heck isn't it?
5. State prison systems are spending under $18k per; the Federales are spending roughly $27k.  Still think National Health Care is a good idea?

*  UPDATE:  92 year old woman killed in Atlanta by police after shooting three detectives in a drug raid.  Less of this, please.

Go Big? Go long? Go now? How about: VICTORY

There is no victory in Baghdad. It lies in Tehran and Damascus.

While we're facing facts, there's no reason to confine our gaze to Iraq; remember, it's the War on Terror.