Payback, the Threat, and Jackassery

From Fox news:
"BAGHDAD — Thousands of U.S. and Iraqi troops pressed forward for the second day Wednesday with an operation aimed at clearing out a Sunni insurgent stronghold northeast of Baghdad. The U.S. military said at least 30 Al Qaeda fighters were killed and several bombs and weapons caches destroyed as the soldiers fought their way through the streets of Baqouba.
The U.S. military operation that involves some 10,000 American soldiers in Diyala province, an Al Qaeda bastion to the north and east of Baghdad, matched in size the force that American generals sent against the insurgent-held city of Fallujah 2 1/2 years ago. By late Tuesday, the military had reported only one American death, a Task Force Lightning soldier killed by an explosion near his vehicle."

Thank goodness the Army has finally found some teeth, working some payback, and are taking the fight to the enemy. It has been frustrating watching the Army convulse from inaction while the insurgents continually pound away at us. I guess the Army finally found its "De Cohones Acero".

Speaking of the threat out there...this is from a Time Magazine article due out this week. It is probably the most descriptive I've seen to demonstrate what your armed forces are facing on a daily basis.:
"Saif Abdallah says his inventions have helped kill or maim scores, possibly hundreds, of Americans. For more than four years, he has been developing remote-control devices that Sunni insurgents use to detonate improvised explosive devices (IEDs), the roadside bombs that are the No. 1 killer of U.S. soldiers in Iraq. The only time he ever felt a pang of regret was in the spring of 2006, when he heard that the Pentagon, in a bid to fight the growing IED menace, had roped in a team of scientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Abdallah, an electronics engineer by training, once dreamed of studying for a Ph.D. there. "I thought to myself, If my life had gone differently, who knows? I might have been on that team," he says, his eyes widening as he imagines that now impossible scenario. Then he shrugs. "God decided I should be on the other side."
...The insurgents have upgraded their weaponry. A field commander of the Islamic Army told me his men had produced "hundreds" of huge IEDs more destructive than the armor-piercing bombs that, the U.S. believes, are being smuggled into Iraq from Iran. He said the new bombs are being buried deep in dirt tracks on the outskirts of Baghdad that are likely to be used by American patrols. Some of the bombs are planted in sewers and irrigation culverts; their concrete lining would direct most of the force of an explosion upward — enough to "turn an Abrams tank into an airplane."
...General Richard Cody, Army vice chief of staff, told Congress in April that finding and defusing roadside bombs is not a long-term solution. "The real issue about defeating IEDs ... is not at the point of impact," he said. "We have to go and find the guys making them and kill them. We have to find the guys who are getting ready to place them and kill them. That's how you defeat IEDs." Abdallah concurs. "They are not going to defeat me with technology," he says. "If they want to get rid of IEDs, they have to kill me and everyone like me." If they don't, Abdallah is only going to get better at what he does, with deadly consequences for American soldiers. The terrorism geek has come a long way since our previous meeting. To demonstrate his prowess, he produces a black briefcase-size device with Japanese markings and flicks a switch on its side. He claims that the device is similar to those used by U.S. troops to block cellular signals around IEDs and disable bombs wired to detonate with a cell-phone call. Abdallah says he was given the device by a Saudi militant who asked him to find a way around jamming signals. He invites the four people in the room to try to use their cell phones; none of us can get a signal. "I've jammed you all," he says, tapping the black device. But his own phone, a cheap Nokia, shows a full-strength signal. "I made a few small changes inside," he says, holding up the phone and grinning triumphantly. "It took me just one day to figure it out." It is grim evidence of the perils facing the U.S. in Iraq that men like Abdallah can still make killing Americans look easy.

The other Jackasses who are killing America are Sen John Kerry and Sen Edward Kennedy. I have previously mentioned the Immigration topic is going to be a hot button of debate and campaign trails. These two have captialized on the misery of one woman and are using it to grandstand the Immigration topic. If you read the following, it's obvious they dug this one out like the underhande swine that they are:

WASHINGTON — The wife of an Army specialist missing in Iraq could be deported because she is an illegal immigrant, but U.S. authorities say they have no intention of doing so in the foreseeable future, FOXNews.com has learned.
Army Spec. Alex Jimenez, 25, has been missing since May 12, when his unit was ambushed by insurgents. His wife, Yaderlin, was a resident of the Dominican Republican and entered the country illegally in 2001. The two married in 2004 and now live in Lawrence, Mass.
Procedures that could lead to her deportation began in 2006, but U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials alongside the Jimenez family attorney halted those proceedings before a deportation order could be issued, ICE spokeswoman Jamie Zuieback told FOXNews.com.
Yaderlin Jimenez's lawyer says she could still face deportation because ICE could reopen the case, but the case is in an inactive status in a New York immigration court, Zuieback said. "There would have to be a proactive effort to reopen it, and that's not something that's been done in the last year and a half," and there are no plans to do so, Zuieback said.
The case has drawn the interest of Massachusetts Sens. John Kerry and Edward Kennedy, both Democrats. Kerry on Wednesday sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security asking that Yaderlin Jimenez not be deported while the search for her husband continues, and Kennedy said he has been in contact with DHS and is "very concerned" about the situation.

I am anxious to come home from this tour. I am however, disgusted by the state of our country.

Too many people are overly concerned about what's happening in their soap operas, the life of the rich, spoiled actors, and what's happening on their favorite comedy show on Fox or the WB. Jay Leno goes out to the streets to make fun of people who have no idea of geography or current events.

While all this is happening, colossal asses like Kennedy and Kerry run amuck soiling our country with their antics...amoung many other members of Congress. The fact they are elected by the people to represent the people baffles me and makes me wonder what type of people are actually voting for these low lifes.

The worst part of all is the number of kids whose ultimate sacrifice, in the name of freedom and democracy, has paid for their fellow Americans to be apethetic and free to not give a s#!& about what's really important and worth caring about.