CatHouse Chat

Tragedy strikes Iraq the Model

Iraq the Model has been fairly quiet recently, and now we know why:

Last week our little and peaceful family was struck by the tragic loss of one of its members in a savage criminal act of assassination. The member we lost was my sister's husband who lived with their two little children in our house.

He was a brilliant young doctor with a whole future awaiting him, the couple were the top graduates in their branch of specialty. They had to travel abroad to get their degrees and the war started while they were there but months after Saddam fallen they decided to come back to help rebuild the country and serve their people.

We welcomed them with all love and care, we would sit and talk everyday about our hopes and dreams for a better future for the new generation and for their two little children. We realized that time is needed before they could have a secure and prosperous life and we were satisfied with the little we could make because we believed in the future.

He was not affiliated with any political party or movement and spent all his time working at the hospital or studying at home and he was dreaming of building a medical center for his specialty to serve the poor who cannot afford going to expensive private clinics.

We didn't know or anticipate that cruel times were waiting for a chance to assassinate the dream and kill the future.

It was the day he was celebrating the opening of a foundation that was going to offer essential services to the poor but the criminals were waiting for him to end his life with their evil bullets and to stab our family deep in the heart.

My heart and my prayers go out to this brave family. To have such a compassionate and promising young man - a husband, father, brother, and doctor - killed in such a callous and destructive manner is a true tragedy.

Nevertheless, Mohammed (certainly an honorable bearer of that name) and his family demonstrate the true spirit of freedom and liberty:

The terrorists and criminals are targeting all elements of life and they target anyone who wants to do something good for this country…They think by assassinating one of us they could deter us from going forward but will never succeed, they can delay us for years but we will never go back and abandon our dream.

We have vowed to follow the steps of our true martyrs and we will raise the new generation to continue the march, these children of today are the hope and the future.

What a difference between those who work to preserve life and those who work to end it…it's terrorism and crime and there are no other words to describe these acts.

They will keep trying to steal life from us and we will keep fighting back and we will keep exposing them but not with bullets and swords, we never carried arms and we will never do because we are not afraid and because we are not weak unlike those cowards who know no language but that of treason.

Please join with me and lift up this family in prayer. Follow their example and stand firm against terrorism and real intolerance wherever you find it - because you never know when it may target you and yours.

Stand for truth, justice, and freedom now, lest it be taken away from your children and grandchildren.

Crossposted at the Cotillion

Oh, yes!

The Delftsman posted this last week, and I just saw it today - perfect, perfect!!!

Please also swing by his blog to wish him well: he's in the hospital with some serious issues, and he needs prayer, too!

"Lord, hold our troops in your loving hands. Protect them as they protect us. Bless them and their families for the selfless acts they perform for us in our time of need.I ask this in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior.

Amen.

When you read this, please stop for a moment and say a prayer for our troops around the world. Pass this request to all who might pray. Do not let it stop with you, please - of all the gifts you could give a US Soldier, Sailor, Airman, or Marine deployed in harm's way, prayer is the very best!!!

Thank you.

"The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer;
The God of my strength, in whom I will trust;
My shield and the horn of my salvation,
My stronghold and my refuge;
My Savior, You save me from violence" (2 Samuel 22: 2, 3, NKJV)

"Amen," indeed! Pass it on!

How obscene and disgusting can you get?!

The RedHeaded Infidel over at Euphoric Reality points me to Dead Soldier’s Home Vandalized.

For the family who lives in   a modest home in Kokomo, the fatal Iraq attack came last week.

Then the attack at home followed.

Vandals defaced the home of Sgt. Rickey Jones' family. Eggs were thrown and flags were stolen. Sgt. Jones, a Kokomo High School graduate, was one four soldier's with the 101st killed west of Baghdad last week.

So who, one week before his burial in his hometown, would vandalize a fallen hero's house?

Neighbor Robyn Ousley is at a loss to explain. "I have no idea, somebody pretty, pretty awful."

Another friend, Bill Swaggerty, says there is more than vandalism for the family to deal with. They're calling here and saying, 'I'm glad your son is dead' and it's wrong."

Indeed it is wrong. It's sick, twisted, and absolutely evil. People who do such callous,  destructive, and dishonorable things ought to be publically horsewhipped!

Frankly, folks, our Founding Fathers would be horrified at this abuse of our First Amendment rights! They were very civilized men, and this sort of barbarity would have shocked them deeply.

God help us, that we have fallen so far from our founding principles.

Saddam never supported or encouraged terrorists!

Oh, yes, he damn well did.

Three cheers for Iraq!

All my prayers go out to the Iraqi people, as they elect their perminant government.

You have come so far in the past three years - keep up the excellent work!

So-Damn Insane shows his nuttiness

Gee, like we're surprised? The man is a meglomaniac and has delusions of omnipotence. Nevertheless, telling the judge 'Go to Hell', really doesn't seem to get him anywhere.

Want an example of his insanity? Here you go:

He complained that he had no fresh clothes, and that he had been deprived of shower and exercise facilities.

"This is terrorism," he said.

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! Ohmigosh, that's rich! This from a guy who gassed the Kurds, imprisoned countless innocents, killed indesciminately, forced his troops to go up against far superior forces and be wiped out, invaded a peaceful neighbor without provocation, offered support to Al-Quaeda, and sired two sociopathic murderers who have already gone to meet their Maker (just a quick list, right off the top of my head).

"Terrorism." Ooooooo, aren't we all holier-than-thou now?

Chief Judge Rizgar Mohammed Amin cut him off, saying proceedings will resume on Wednesday.

Saddam then told the judge and "all the agents of America" to "go to hell" and said he would not return to court.

Awwwww, did we throw a widdle tantrum? I think Soddy needs to take a "time out" so he can think about his attitude. Perhaps a nap would help?

One of the witnesses described the torture he endured, as well as the conditions in the prison, which

...prompted an outburst from Saddam, who complained of his own conditions in detention. He said the court had time to listen to the witnesses' complaints "but does anyone ask Saddam Hussein whether he was tortured? Whether he was hit?"

He urged the judge to investigate his conditions because "it is your duty as judges to investigate the crime at its scene."

"I live in an iron cage covered by a tent under American democratic rule. You are supposed to come see my cage," he told Amin. "Please, Mr. Judge, do not accept any insult to Iraq. It doesn't matter if he insults Saddam Hussein, because the Americans and the Zionists want to execute Saddam Hussein. What does the execution of Saddam Hussein matter? He has given himself to Iraq from the day he was at school and has been sentenced to death three times already. Saddam Hussein and his comrades are not afraid of execution." (emphasis all mine)

*gasp!* Soddy was tortured? Hit? He lives in an iron cage?! Gee, sounds too good for him, if you know what I mean.

Oh, and isn't it just precious, how Soddy uses the third person when referring to himself? It just shows how special he is, doesn't it?

Here's another little scuffle:

Earlier, Mohammed said he was told that Saddam asked a 15-year-old boy if he knew who he was. "He said 'Saddam'. Then Saddam hit him in the head with an ash tray."

The testimony drew an angry response from Saddam, who suggested that Mohammed needed psychiatric treatment and accused the court of bowing to American pressure.

"When the revolution of the heroic Iraq arrives, you will be held accountable," Saddam warned the chief judge.

"This is an insult to the court," Amin responded. "We are searching for the truth."

Saddam told Amin he hoped "that you will endure my frankness."

"How can a judge like yourself accept a situation like this?" Saddam asked. "This game must not continue. If you want Saddam Hussein's neck, you can have it. I have exercised my constitutional prerogatives after I had been the target of an armed attack.

When Mohammed objected to some of Saddam's remarks, the former president snapped: "Do not interrupt me, son."

"Son." SON! Somebody hit this nutcase on the head with an ashtray!

Oh, this has all the elements of serious comedy, if the circumstances weren't so tragic. It is wonderful to see this monster tried for his crimes, and delicious to see his pathetic attempts to wield power that is no longer his. God willing, this trial will be over soon, and Soddy will be swinging from the hangman's noose.

(UPDATE - So, of course, today he's pouting. Poor Soddy! So alone, so misunderstood! [puke, gag])

Yep, I love Big Lizards, too!

As Dafydd ab Hugh would say "slither hither, o wise," and see what he had up on Big Lizards yesterday: “The Anbar Effect”. He talks about the difference between the "beggar" politicians in Iraq and our "protégés," the Iraqi Army.

Far from being beggars, the Iraqi Army were trained by Americans, fight alongside the Americans, and have increasingly been in charge of battles, campaigns, and holding cities recaptured from the terrorists. Everything they now know about modern combat they learned from us. And they have learned extremely well: Bill Roggio, once and future proprietor of the Fourth Rail and now blogging from Iraq over at ThreatsWatch, who is currently in Husaybah -- say, wasn't that a combat zone just a couple weeks ago?  How (son of) flime ties -- described the performance of the Iraqi Army troops occupying Husaybah thus:  "Other than their uniforms, they were virtually indistinguishable from their Marine counterparts.  [Emphasis added {by Dafydd}]"

They take casualties -- and take cities.  They've earned their tremendous respect, not just in blood but in victories. The new Iraqi Army are not the recipients of American charity. Rather, they are our protégés.

He does, as always, an excellent job of describing and explaining the situation - Dafydd is a superb writer and a great teacher. So, I'd suggest you go on over and read it, if you haven't already, because there's lots of good information and interesting reading.

Michael Yon on the Congressional floor!

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R- TX) quoted at length from Michael Yon's blog, and also displayed his famous picture of a US soldier carrying a mortally wounded little girl away for medical attention after a cowardly act of terrorism.

Michael is in the States briefly, and will be interviewed extensively over the next few days, I think.

Congratulations, Michael! Keep up the superior work of getting the real picture of our honorable troops out to the world.

God bless each and every one of them

Yesterday, the Pentagon released information about the 2,000th soldier to die in Iraq, SSG George Alexander. As Faces from the Front points out, the "number" of the soldier isn't important: what IS important is that they died for something they believed in: freedom and democracy.

Numbers 2,000, 1,999 and 1,997 also strapped up every day to stand on a wall many in America are willing let crumble. And to those who would let that wall crumble, they are just numbers.

They are not men of action and conviction, to the anti-war faction, they are merely numbers of sufficient quotient to send a press releases and hold press events.

I asked Marines all across Al Anbar province two questions:
1.  If something goes bad and you die here.  What would you think of people who used your death to protest the war.
2.  After being here, and knowing what you know, would you still join the Marines/volunteer for this deployment?

The answers were invariably the same.

They did not want their death to be used as a prop and they would make the same decision all over again.  These young Lance Corporals and Non-Commissioned Officers volunteered to join the Marines, many with the intent of coming to Iraq.  And while few would say they like war, they all recognize the necessity of it.

bRight and Early also says it very well:

Two thousand soldiers have not died in Iraq. It is one soldier with family, friends and loved ones who has paid the ultimate price. An individual who had likes and dislikes and a personality all their own. An individual who's life is worthy of our honor and respect. A real person with a name. One soldier who volunteered. One soldier who gave the people of Iraq the freedom to vote, the freedom to choose, the freedom to hope. One hero. Repeated two thousand times.

Those who have died are not just numbers for the news and their sacrifice is not a reason to run, but to stay.

Indeed.

Each and every man and woman who has died in the service of our country to further the cause of freedom and democracy ought to be given the full honor and deep respect that they deserve - the same honor and respect that the liberal media and the loony lefty moonbats deny them.

I understand that we don't want our men and women to die. I understand that there are familes and friends left behind in grief.

But I also understand that each and every man and woman had the choice - and they chose to serve their country.

UPDATE - Partisan Pundit also has a post up, well worth the read:

The sad truth is that sometimes war is necessary. Sometimes the evil of war is outweighed by the evil it seeks to expunge.

Nearly 3,000 people were killed in the space of a few hours on September 11th, 2001. Innocents, unarmed civilians. ON. OUR. SOIL.

In the battle for Okinawa, 12,000 soldiers, sailors and marines were killed in just three months of fighting. During the Battle of the Bulge in Germany during WWII, 19,000 US fighting men were killed in a month and half of fighting. All told, in 5 years of conflict, WWII cost the United States 413,000 dead. In nearly two and a half years of fighting in Iraq, we have lost…2,000.

Even during WWII, there were those pacifists and apologists who counseled capitulation, compromise, said that the conflicts “weren’t our problem.” Even after the attacks on Pearl Harbor, in which 2,472 people died, there were those who said that we had brought it on ourselves. Sound familiar? Maybe we did, maybe we didn’t, but did our actions warrant that level of response? Did we really have THAT coming?

And what if we had bowed our head to the attackers? What if we had let them have their way in the Pacific? Today there would be no Australia, no New Zealand. No Alaska. No Hawaii. Who knows what our country might look like today?

Can a country of 250,000,000 people absorb the loss of 2,000 of its military men and women? I propose that this is the wrong question.

In a fight against a zealous, global enemy, one that has declared unrestricted war on us, an enemy that knows no restraint, sees no value in the Geneva Convention, one who sees our very culture and way a life as a threat to their own, can we afford NOT to risk the loss of 2,000 to save 250 million?

Congratulations to Iraq!

Iraq has taken yet another step on the road to democracy: Draft Constitution Adopted by Iraq Voters.

As the Puppy Blender himself says, "Obviously it's 'another setback for Bush."

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Oh, that's right, Iraq is supposed to be a "quagmire." Ooops, my mistake. [/sarc]

Congratulations to Iraq!

How wonderful it is to see Iraqis participate in the delightful brawl of compromise and give and take that is the heart of democracy!

FoxNews says participation is estimated to be around 61% or so, which is a fantastic turnout for that troubled country, and that ratification is very likely. In some areas, turnout was almost universal, while admittedly some regions' was only around 10%. Nevertheless, the average was excellent, and support for the new constitution seems strong, and should certainly be celebrated.

I am also very happy that, in spite of threats, the murdering-scum-terrorist-pig-bastards are failing - and failing miserably (well, "miserably" for them - I love their failures!)

All of this is another major defeat for the al Qaeda and anti-government forces. These two groups have not been able to stop any elections, and their efforts are weaker with each round of voting. Al Qaeda's efforts to goad the Shia Arabs into a civil war with Sunni Arabs has not worked either, although it has caused a lot of ill-will and violence in areas where Shia and Sunni live close together.

The AP points out, however - with typical cynicism and pessimism - that

If the constitution is approved, Iraqis will choose a new parliament in Dec. 15 elections. Parliament then will select a new government, which must take office by Dec. 31. The constitution's apparent victory was muted, though, by the prospect that the result might divide the country further. (emphasis mine)

Now, why can't they just give this courageous people their due? Yes, of course there will be other hurdles to get over, but - good lord! - our great experiment in democracy is over two hundred years old, and we're still working on it! It would be courteous at least to allow the Iraqis ten or so years to figure things out, right? I mean, especially since media had the utter bad taste to give So-Damn Insane a pass for the mistreatment and torture of his people that he aided, abetted, and in which he participated for so long.

Fortunately, the Lame Stream Media no longer has a choke-hold on information. The day before the election, Mohammed at Iraq the Model wrote a bit about what this vote means to Iraq.

Approving this draft is not the end goal, it’s a step among others in this process of evolution in Iraq and it’s going to be the gate to more steps until we reach the day when we have a constitution that satisfies and serves the greatest majority of the people.

He discusses quite a bit more about the concerns and debates and considerations of the "man-on-the-street" Iraqi, and it's an enlightening article, well worth the read. You should also check out his post from Saturday about the voting.

One Marine's View has a look at Saturday

Now as the country has made a milestone achievement they have democracy in motion. As Americans we want things done yesterday and have little patience for things not produced now. Patience is what is needed here and the coward left wing bed wetters won’t understand that. Iraq is where the US was 200 yrs ago. Will their constitution change? Yes of course as ours still changes to this day. Will there be continued fighting? Yes, there are plenty of scumbags here that need to be delt with as they recognize that their days are numbered now since they couldnt alter the elections...

Murdoc Online outlines how Saturday is certainly not a worst case scenario by any means!

Or Does It Explode? has a beautiful statement:

Three years later, October 15 sees another election. This time, thanks to a relative lack of terror attacks, we get to see civil society in action on a national scale. The results of the constitutional referendum are not guaranteed - and so individual Iraqis seem to understand that their vote makes a difference in determining the outcome. And even if the constitution indeed passes, various interests groups will be able to continue to shape its form through parliamentary debate and negotiation. (italics mine, bold in the original)

Gee, that sounds a lot like... democracy in action!

My heart and my prayers go out to the Iraqis. I rejoice with them in this step, and I wish them well in their on-going quest for a democratic society. I am glad that our President is willing to stand by their side and help them until they can stand on their own.

To those who are shouting, "Quagmire! Quagmire!"

STFU. *ahem*

(UPDATE - 11Oct05, Submitted, with gratitude, as one of my two debut posts at the Cotillion Ball! Oh, this is gonna be FUN!) (Oops, Also hosted by WonderWoman at her site)

Straight from the horse's mouth, a Multi-National Force-Iraq briefing shows how far that is from the truth (all emphasis mine):

One of the great pieces of information we got recently is 80 percent of the al Qaeda network in the north has been devastated. And those are not our figures, those came from the last six leaders in Mosul , al Qaeda leaders that we captured; they informed us of that. We also had a letter that was captured from Abu Zaid (sp) going to Zarqawi .  We recently killed Zaid (sp) and we had that letter, and it also talked about the desperate situation for the al Qaeda and the insurgents in Mosul and in the north.  And then also, sources we have inside the al Qaeda network up here have also informed us of that.   

...

And then we have the population, I think is the most significant change I've seen over the last 11 months, from a population clearly on the fence, not sure -- they want freedom, but they weren't really sure what freedom was, and they were clearly intimidated, to a population that clearly understands they want freedom; they are absolutely sick and tired of the terrorists, the brutal acts against innocent civilians, and they want a brighter future for their children.  And we've got a lot of statistics to back that up.  Like when we first got here in October, there was -- no hotline existed.  We opened a hotline; we got about 40 calls a month prior to January.  The last six months, we're up to 400 calls a month. Every day the citizens are stopping us on the street telling us where a potential suspicious individual is who may be a terrorist, and telling us where they tried to plant IEDs and those type of devices.  So the population is clearly very confident.

...

Finally, the government has really improved their legitimacy. They've had significant economic recovery up here, excellent political participation in Nineveh province from a security council where no one would meet before the last elections to now we recently had a regional security conference with some-300 participants and 400 in the southern part of Nineveh province, so a lot of folks participating, very excited about the future. 

Yup. We're killing or incapacitating the terrorists, the enemy is in severe disarray, citizens are stepping forward to help make their country safe and free, the Iraqi government is getting closer and closer to a proper constitution...

Uh-huh. Sure sounds like a "quagmire" to me - NOT! Go read the whole thing - because, as my Dread Lord Emperor Misha I says,

“I Bet You They Won’t Tell This Stuff in the Media”

(Crossposted to And Rightly So!)

Is the investment worth it?

The other day, Raven of And Rightly So! posted "This is not a business this is a civilization!" She links a letter to the editor in the New Hampshire Union Leader from a Marine who is serving in Iraq:

I AM a U.S. Marine serving in Iraq. I am in the utilities field, installing temporary power grids and purifying water for the U.S. forces in my area of operation. I hear a lot of news about why we should be here and why we shouldn’t.

Well, I am tired of reading the same news about the fact that we are here. The truth is that the decision was made to come here and now it is time to stop bickering about if it was a right or wrong decision. The decision was made, and there are only two options the elected officials of our country face.

One is to pack up and leave everything as it sits right now. The second is to see the decision through and make a thriving country with the potential to succeed.

You ought to go read the whole thing.

However, Raven got a comment on that post from "Fun Monkey," who wrote in part:

Great so the Marine on the ground can take orders, supports his commanders and provides a beneficial service to previously oppressed people that have lived without democracy for so long. Its very easy to put forth feel good patriotic stuff for the masses, but at the end of the day, we also need some reliable information to give us the long term faith to realise the benefits of a stable Islam-democracy in Iraq. Otherwise the masses start complaining, e.g. dems and everyone else with a grudge.

How and when does our investment pay off?  Any ideas?

Very good question, and a very important one. Here (with a fair bit of editing and expansion) is how I replied:

Iraqi compassion

Little Green Footballs posts Iraqi Soldiers Donate to Katrina Victims.

What a generous sacrifice these soldiers are making! After three years of hard work rebuilding their country, and with more hard work to come, they reach out to help us:

The amount of money is small in American dollars - roughly $680 - but it represents a huge act of compassion from Iraqi soldiers to their American counterparts, said U.S. Army Maj. Michael Goyne.

“I was overwhelmed by the amount of their generosity,” Goyne said. “I was proud and happy to know Col. Abbas, his officers, NCOs and fellow soldiers. That amount represents a month’s salary for most of those soldiers.”

Thank you so much, Col. Abbas - you and your men are a blessing to us!

Project VALOUR IT

A call for help....from Kathleen at The Middle Ground, a very worthy project:

Hello friends, family and fellow bloggers, I'm emailing you to let you know about a new project for wounded soldiers through that fantastic organization Soliders' Angels and ask for your assistance. The new project is called Project VALOUR IT (Voice Activated Laptops for OUR Injured Troops). This project is to help get laptops with voice activated software to our wounded troops recuperating at military hospitals. From Soldiers' Angels: "Project Valour IT, in memory of SFC William V. Ziegenfuss, provides voice-controlled software and laptop computers to wounded Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines recovering from hand and arm injuries or amputations at major military medical centers. Operating laptops by speaking into a microphone, our wounded heroes are able to send and receive messages from friends and loved ones, surf the 'Net, and communicate with buddies still in the field without having to press a key or move a mouse. The experience of CPT Charles "Chuck" Ziegenfuss, a partner in the project who suffered hand wounds while serving in Iraq, illustrates how important this voice-controlled software can be to a wounded servicemember's recovery."

To find out how you can help, please go visit Kathleen for more details. I work with patients who use the voice activated laptop systems...it's amazing what can be done and it's another way to say THANK YOU to the troops. Cross Posted @ Flightpundit, And Rightly So, Vince Aut Morire & Merri's Musings

& Caos Blog

Watch this video NOW!

(HT to Michelle Malkin)

Dean Esmay, on Iraq

Excellent post! Dean's World - Victory. And, check out the Macromedia Flash banner at the bottom; it sums things up beautifully.

Iraq asks the World and terrorists: "Can you hear us NOW??"

(Thanks to Bill at INDCJournal for this particular image.)

(none of these are mine - they came from the Web, and they ALL show the spirit and courage of the Iraqi people)