Letters to the Editor
-
re: Anonymous, two questions. - Your answers
Susan Wood,
"First, in what way is the surge working? It may be achieving tactical advantages on the ground, but its stated goal was to allow the Iraqi government time to reach certain "benchmarks" that would make the country stable. How far have they progressed toward that goal? And how much good will the tactical successes accomplish if the government can't meet those benchmarks?"
The benchmarks are just that - benchmarks...things to determine whether or not the government is making progress on the timeframe given. Apparently it is not..but that does not mean progress is not being made. Further, it appears the civilians are taking part in resisting Al Qaeda which IS a good thing. How far has they progressed? Forgive me, but I was under the impression that any progress was a good thing. I only say it is good news...I am not judging whether or not it is a good thing for the National Guard to be there.
"Second, do you notice a slight difference between the material advantages, political and social connections, and educational level of the white, suburban, Republican Californians taking refuge in a sports stadium and those stranded in the Superdome and Convention Center of New Orleans? And with those differences in mind, is it reasonable to blame the latter group for their own problems?"
You ask if it is reasonable to blame those with limited material advantages, political and social connections, and educational level. OF COURSE it is. The last time I looked, none of those governed civiliity, being law-abiding or acting like a human being. If you do believe that, then you are condoning anyone who is from a poverty stricken area or lacks education or political/social connections to act like a barbarian and further condone criminal activity of same. I cannot do that myself.
-
re: I believe in Santa Claus
orbitboy,
"Everything's great in Iraq. Everything's great in California.
The earth is flat. A human being can stay alive inside the belly of a whale. Bigfoot just delivered my mail.
I'm a Republican."
Not really...you are, though, a VERY sarcastic person...and really aren't that amusing either.
-
@Anonymous 8:36
Is Qualcomm stadium completely hemmed in and isolated by fire so that the stadium is unreachable? Were food, water and other supplies able to be trucked in in sufficient quantities to deal with the crisis? Were refugees just left to fend for themselves with limited resources? Did those supplies get shipped in immediately, or did they trickle in gradually on a too little too late basis over the course of days? Considering there were no resources to distribute, what were people in New Orleans supposed to volunteer to do? Will a vast majority of the evacuees have a home to return to when it's all over, or are they aware already that their homes, their entire ward has been destroyed and they have nothing to return to? Do the bathrooms work? Were people who tried to walk out of the stadium forced back into the stadium at gunpoint? Are you really equating having a fully functioning road and other infrastructure advantages with having those same roads for miles around being feet-deep underwater?
Are you really as smug and clueless as you seem to be, or are you just an asshole? It's a yes or no question.
-
re: "Weekend Warriors"
mizbinkley,
"The National Guard are our weekend warriors. They have outside jobs but still serve their communities for natural disasters and rescue efforts, and, if absolutely necessary, supplement the troops on the battlefield.
Right now, there are over 40,000 (I've seen varying numbers) National Guard members serving in Iraq. There have been 430 National Guard casualties (icasualties.org). Their rotations can be long, with insufficient time at home in between rotations. If they're lucky enough to have time at home, they get to battle wildfires in California. And they still have obligations to family, their full-time employers and to their own mental health after their time in Iraq.
Aren't we asking a bit much of them?"
Perhaps...but you have made a slight error. If the National Guard members ARE mobilized to fight the fires after deploying from Iraq, then the timeframe in which they can be redeployed to Iraq must be altered to start at the end of the deployment for fighting fires. In other words, they will not have the time fighting fires ignored between deployments.
Now if they are on leave during the fighting of the fires and are pulled in to help, their leave time stops until they return home.
Just wanted to let you know.
-
re: Hmmm...
Strangely Enough,
"Obviously, not a SoCal resident. I guess in GOP terms, that makes you eminently qualified to pontificate on the subject."
I merely make the comparison of how San Diego is handling a crisis vs. how it was handled during Katrina.
"Funny how a troll can turn a thread about war porn fans attacking Boxer for saying the obvious into "the surge is working." And, one month of lower casualty numbers, if the Pentagon is to be believed, does not a trend make."
I simply said what was in the LA Times and the NY times and various other news outlets as well as the CBS news and Icasualties.org. Now, it appears you are upset the casualties are in decline...but what I SAID was, we can take comfort that the surge appears to be working. Further, it appears to be a GRADUAL decline in numbers - and this is the second month of the downward trend, BTW.
"October is on course to record the second consecutive decline in U.S. military and Iraqi civilian deaths and American commanders say they know why: the U.S. troop increase and an Iraqi groundswell against al Qaeda and Shiite militia extremists." CBS News
Now if you have evidence that the Pentagon is fudging numbers of casualties, I would like to hear it.
-
re: Just wanted to let you know.
If the National Guard members ARE mobilized to fight the fires after deploying from Iraq, then the timeframe in which they can be redeployed to Iraq must be altered to start at the end of the deployment for fighting fires. In other words, they will not have the time fighting fires ignored between deployments.
I'm note sure that this qualification matters when the Pentagon has abandoned its active duty limits for the National Guard.