The dead civilians surely knew about the roadside bomb. If they had told the marines that the bomb was there they would have been killed by the insurgents. Whatever story is true, they bore responsibility for the death of the marine. If there was any small arms fire from any nearby house, the marines would have been fools not to use overwhelming force to protect themselves. In was there is very seldom time to analyze the situation. If you are taking fire you have to kill everyone in sight. If you don't you will be killed. Silly-ass liberals just don't get it.

If you watch the history channel at all, you will see early movies of life in the rapidly industrializing US. Twelve hour days on an auto production line or steel mill were the norm. Earlier than that of course we had the textile mills of New England where women and young children worked long hours. As in China today these jobs were a huge step up from the alternative. As a young entrepreneur 50 years ago I recall working 80 plus hours a week. My partners and I considered an eight hour day on Saturday as a short day, at least compared to the 12-14 hours we spent during the week. It wasn't a desk job, but physically demanding and hazardous work. I was divorced, but both of my partners wives asked me about their husbands girlfriends, since they had not had sex for six months. I was stunned, the job took everything we had. And it was the most fun we also ever had. As the Chinese boss said, this was entry level and the women were expected to do better in the future. Devotion, while you are young to an enterprise that might work you to exhaustion, is a positive good that most Americans are missing to their detriment. It also keeps you thin and good looking, another positive good.

When our daughters were young we flew light planes. The only place you can pull over is at an airport. Potty stops have to be carefully planned as landing, pottying, and taking off again consumes an hour. Then of course when you stop for the night it has to be at an airport where there is a way to get to a motel without renting a car, if one were even available. We were once weathered in at an airport in Michigan. The airport was so new that there were no services, or even a human being. Except of course for the grader driver, who was about to leave in his huge truck with his grader on the back. We got a ride into town with our two little daughters, and were dropped off at the diner. Luckily the waitress owned a motel and she took us there after we ate. After a second night there the weather lifted enough to fly 50 miles to Bay City where there was a little more do to. So even though it took only 16 flying hours to fly from PA to OR, we spent five days doing it. But light planes are very sleep inducing to small children, so all in all it was OK. When the weather was good, which is usually was, it was nice to cruise a 175 MPH watching the traffic below.

The same Saudi-Texas oilmen who own the Republicans, of course. Saudi-Texas oilmen wil end up controlling and making the money from Iraq oil. It's just a little more difficult than they expected. A lot of that money goes to politicians of both parties. No one can be elected president without that money, and only to the Congress with great difficulty. The left wing of the Democratic party has to be neutralized so that there is at least a fighting chance of getting back the disaffected middle class. We will be in Iraq until either the Russians or Chinese kick us out, so making that an issue in the next election is hopeless, unless Democratic politicians can bring themselves to rationally discuss the "Great Game" we are involved in in Central Asia and the Middle East. Bush and the Republicans have managed to totally spin the real reasons, and the Dems are following their scenario. Of course if the real reasons were brought into the election, the American people would ask what's in it for them? If the profits from Iraq oil were distibuted to all of us, there wouldn't be much left for the Saudis and Texans, so politicians of both parties have no interest in an honest discussion. But that could bring back the disaffected.

Also read the Baburnama, the auto-biography of Babur who conquered Afghanistan and India 500 years ago. He established the Moghul Empire. Babur was a descendant of Tamerlane, or Timur the Lame, so they were known as Timurids. He was a first rate ass-kicker.

I went grocery shopping at Walmart yesterday. It's only half a mile beyond Albertsons, which is the nearest store. We have read the propaganda against Walmart, but all in all I think that Walmart is doing a real service. The people who work there are marginal employees and the training that Walmart gives them improves their ability to get a better job. Walmart is actually breaking up local monopolies in banking and now in medicine. Who can be against bringing bankers and doctors into the real world? Walmart has reduced the cost of living for many poor people, and given them better jobs than they could have gotten before Walmart. Whenever I hear how unfair something is to the average citizen, I ask myself whose ox is really being gored? It's generally a group whose excessivley high income is threatened by something new. We are each worth exactly what our replacement will work for, not one cent more. TFL.