11 April 2003 I'm late. I'm late, for a very important ... ah, who am I kidding. A lot of self-important chest beating people are foaming at the mouth on the Fox News (oxymoron) Channel. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the spring heat is upon us in the great state of Texas and a Chinese film playing in the background is putting my teeth on edge. Some guy is singing (or someone drove nail through his ankle, hard to tell which) about a mythological prince in a mythological land who did mythological deeds in the name of mythology.
China, you see, is haunted by ghosts from thousands of years past right up to yesterday, and they all have something to say.
Meantime, down on the farm, Joe Cotton is weeping copiously tears in an effort to save money on watering his cotton fields - which aren't looking too healthy at the moment.
Meanwhile, up in the attic, I'm dreaming of the day when I can slip loose this mortal coil and sail through the air like a bird - No, I don't mean die - I mean out-of-body existence. Wouldn't it be great to be able to enter and exit one's body at will and, in the etheric form, float about with complete control of direction and pass through walls and ceilings as easily as passing through air while falling from a 90-foot bridge?
Well, I did spend a lot of time in California, so you have to allow for a certain amount of self-delusion on occasion.
Speaking of Iraq, things look kind of grim if you're a looter. It seems like the troops are putting their boots down and forcing some free sprited thieves to let go of their ill-gotten gains. This is a catastrophe in the making! How will we earn the respect of this ancient and noble race if we don't allow them a few weeks of all-out looting? It's a disgrace I tell ya. A damn disgrace!
Meantime, back at the office, that's where I'm heading now and that means - I'm out. Have a good weekend one and all.

Dealing with the devil, or a dark alley political lie So another surprise befell me when I viewed an interview with Seymour Hersh, a journalist, and heard that the president of Pakistan, Musharef, made a deal with the U.S. administration to evacuate al-Qaida fighters along with Pakistani generals who were in Afghanistan to train Taliban warriors. According to Hersh, a well-respected reporter, for three days during the battle in Afghanistan, U.S. troops were told to stand down when it had surrounded about 8,000-plus al-Qaida and Taliban fighters in a little town near the Pakistan border. An air corridor was declared off limits for U.S. fighters pilots and the evacuation took place with full knowledge of the Bush White House.
What is going on? Well, it's the old adage of dealing with the devil you know as opposed to the devil you don't know. Musharef needed credibility among his supporters and detractors in the Middle East and the only way he could guarantee his position as president was to show he could manipulate the United States and come through for those terrorists and despotic criminals who asked him for help.
Apparently Bush decided that allowing at least 8,000 Taliban and al-Qaida fighters to escape a sure death was preferable to the Pakistani president being deposed. Why? Because, Hersh said, ties between the U.S. and Pakistan are being nurtured for the long-term fight on terrorism. But the logic escapes me. What if Osama bin Laden was among those evacuated? What kind of policy is it that, on the one hand declares a terrorist our No. 1 enemy but on the other hand allows him to escape certain capture or death?
Point of fact: No one in the administration disputed Hersh's report. No one claimed his facts were fallacious. The best the administration could muster was a "Huh?" from Rumsfeld, who claimed he was unaware of any such deal. But military records show that the report matches orders from on high to leave open an air corridor for three days in and out of that little town in northern Afghanistan that, at the time, was surrounded by U.S. Marines and special forces fighters. Is it really better to deal with the devil you know than one you don't? I propose that it's bad policy for America to protect terrorists who, at some later date, may kill U.S. citizens in the name of a bizarre, blurry political agenda.
And so it goes.
Keep watching, listening and learning.
Peace.

How truly stupid are Iraqi generals? This is question that's vexing me. I saw one of Saddam's generals taking questions for the media today and curiosity got the better of me. So I turned up the sound and, sure enough, this knucklehead actually said "No problem. We have driven the American demons out of Saddam Airport and they've been repulsed from entering Baghdad. Now I realize the guy is probably very busy trying to get his Swiss bank accounts in order and making arrangements for a flight to Bogata, among other things, but you'd think he would at least pretend to be informed and forthright, given the desperate situation the Saddam regime is facing.
Where do these nitwits get their 'intelligence?' Do they get any intelligence at all? Seems to me that they've showed their hand (Jack-high nothing) and they're opponents have a royal flush and a full boat (three aces and a pair of 10s). But they're still betting they can bluff the hand and walk away from the table with the pot. Talk about delusional! Whatever these guys are smoking, please airmail some my way. I could use a break from reality.
If we're very fortunate, the bombs that fell last night on a specific target DID kill Saddam and his evil sons. Would that it were so. We could count on a very fast cessation to the violence if it's true - other than among the truly black-hearted bastards who know they'll be convicted as war criminals and have little to lose by carrying on the fight. But it seems so pointless right now to continue the fight. But then again, I'm not there. It's still 'hot' and the news guys continue to report casualties and planes shot down. So I guess we're still in for a some days of thunder.
My friend, Mike, took me to task about my seeming approval of the war - despite my statements of disbelief toward Bush's rationale for starting the war in the first place.
Yo, Mike. I completely agree with your viewpoint, but I would remind you that I don't see a democracy in the Middle East suddenly growing out of this action. Too much history and corruption in the region to begin to even dream about such a development becoming reality.
But I do hope that perhaps the action will put everyone on notice that the U.S. is prepared to deal with despots and terrorists if we have an underlying interest, e.g. oil and control of same!
Here's hoping the troops come home soon.

Fast moving death in Iraq; slow onslaught in America Well, it's Sunday and the war in Iraq goes forward at a hectic pace, an amazing pace for a warfare! I'm amazed that Saddam hasn't used weapons of mass destruction yet. May he never, please. I'm more concerned everyday that things have gone far too easily and that something terrible is awaiting our troops before this conflict is settled. I hope and pray I'm wrong. But it's odd that, with all the bluster spouted by the Iraqi military leadership, the reaction to the invasion has thus far been, at best, limp. It's worrisome, to say the least. And I think Saddam is the kind of madman who'd be more than happy to unleash whatever awful weapons he may have in his arsenal and go down in a blaze of glory, so to speak. Every article I've read about Saddam says he's a survivor and a megalomaniac who believes he IS IRAQ. Given that rationale, doesn't it make sense that he might reach out from the edge of death and strike his enemies as viciously as possible? Again, I pray it isn't so.
And what if we don't find weapons of mass destruction anywhere in that hellish country? Does that mean the war was for nothing? My answer is, no. We at least removed a terrible man from a position of power and, perhaps, brought new possiblities for the people of Iraq to prosper in the future. Who knows? Not me, certainly. But it's so weird that a military purported to have biological and chemical weapons wouldn't use them against an attacking force. Especially when the regime is aware that its demise a central goal of the American and British action. Perhaps Saddam is dead? Perhaps he's too injured to make sense of what's going on around him? Perhaps his sons have sold him down the river and they've taken to looting his wealth and negotiating an escape ahead of the incoming U.S. troops?
It's a frightening prospect, on the one hand, and on the other, it's wonderful that we've lost so few thus far to gain so much ground. This action has the makings of an historical military strategy that could advance the marital studies for decades or more.
On a less morbid and speculative note, I'm about to go visit with D, my baby, and spend a little time spinning some visions in the air and snacking on something sweet, I hope.
My network setup warped out today for some reason. I don't know if it was a bug or if SBC/Yahoo has cut off my service - at least soon as I disconnect today. I didn't pay the whole amount last bill and it could be that they've shut me down in lieu of payment. I hope not because I can't pay them anything this pay period.
But whatever ... roll with the changes.
That's it for now. Wishing you wondrous dreams that all come true.
Peace.