Uncommon Honesty

Interesting personal diary on Daily Kos. After visiting an Army recruiter this dude decides he doesn't have it in him to enlist.

My fellow Americans were dying in a far off land and I was sitting in my nice house doing nothing.

That I heard a guy/gal was going back for their second, third, and now even fourth tour just didn't seem right. Maybe I ought to do something.

But when the time came to get serious I was gutless. I couldn't do it.
I found it was easier to talk about projecting force, then actually picking up a gun and doing it myself. This realization made me feel really, really small.

It is something I have only mentioned to one person. Not something I am proud of. But something I won't ever forget about myself.

OYE Comment: There's something strangely admirable in this. Sure, he didn't 'man-up' and enlist, but his honesty with himself in realizing he doesn't have it in him to serve is certainly more brave than anything Peter Beinart or Anthony Mantova are capable of.

Admit it, Peter, you're a cheerleader

Washington Post Columnist, Peter Beinart, offered his thoughts on the success of The Surge in Iraq.

But if Iraq overall represents a massive stain on Bush's record, his decision to increase America's troop presence in late 2006 now looks like his finest hour. Given the mood in Washington and the country as a whole, it would have been far easier to do the opposite. Politically, Bush took the path of most resistance. He endured an avalanche of scorn, and now he has been vindicated. He was not only right; he was courageous.

It's time for Democrats to say so. During the campaign they rarely did for fear of jeopardizing Barack Obama's chances of winning the presidency. But today, the hesitation is less tactical than emotional. Most Democrats think Bush has been an atrocious president, and they want to usher him out of office with the jeers he so richly deserves. Even if they suspect, in their heart of hearts, that he was right about the surge, they don't want to give him the satisfaction.

OYE Comment: Poor Peter, life as a journalist without credibility must suck. Whether he's right or wrong we don't care. Mr. Beinart has been a pro-war blowhard the entire decade and, being only 37 years old, he's still eligible to serve in uniform if he chooses. So basically his opinions are about as useless to us as a Magnum sized condom is to him.

Anthony Mantova Update: A candidate for the Army Fat Farm?

Yellow Elephant Anthony Mantova has returned home to Humboldt County, California, trying to make some money by selling then-Sen. Barack Obama [D-IL]'s business card on Craigslist. He's asking $600/or best offer.

To find out more about Mantova, just Search This Blog on his surname. It's a hoot!

We think it's time for the good people of Humboldt County to encourage Mantova to shape up, exercise and Be A Man! Enlist! Nothing short of putting his fat a-- on the line will give him a shot at the leadership credibility he clearly seeks, and at which he, so conspicuously, falls short.

Wesley Clark joins Operation Yellow Elephant

Taking Command: Actually, Democrats and the military can get along. Here's how. [from The Washington Post, Sunday, December 21, 2008, B01]

To some Democrats, the armed forces appear, in the words of one New Hampshire activist who chided me in 2003, to be an "authoritarian, hierarchical, male-dominated" institution that's out of touch with liberal values. A small number of Democrats can usually be counted on to oppose any use of force and occasionally go after the institution that makes the use of force possible. (I sometimes hear concerns on college campuses that the make-up of our all-volunteer force is not "representative" of America, but I don't see the students rushing to volunteer themselves to redress the balance.)

OYE Comment:

Our military is open to all heterosexuals who meet other requirements. If liberals and Democratic Party supporters really care about America, it's time to Be A Man! Enlist!

from the Obama Administration

and the White House website:

Leadership from the Top: President Obama and Vice President Biden will inspire a new generation of Americans to serve their country, whether it be in local communities in such roles as teachers or first responders, or serving in the military to keep our nation free and safe.

and more:

Expand our Diplomatic Presence: To make diplomacy a priority, Obama and Biden will stop shuttering consulates and start opening them in difficult corners of the world -- particularly in Africa. They will expand our foreign service, and develop our civilian capacity to work alongside the military.

The Inauguration

Off topic, but please forgive us.

The crowds.

The crowds.

The crowds.

Wow!

As the Bush Administration concludes . . .

Operation Yellow Elephant welcomes President-elect Barack Obama and wishes him, his Administration, and our country all the best. We note that Senator Obama, during the campaign, promised to ask Americans to serve in our military, among other ways to serve.

To our knowledge, President George W. Bush never asked Americans to volunteer for military service [if eligible], or to encourage their eligible relatives and friends, their circles of influence, to consider serving in our military.

We are disappointed that President George W. Bush's strongest supporters, the College and Young Republicans, with certain exceptions, failed to mobilize in this manner, and fulfill their own national leadership responsibility to set a good example for the rest of us.

It is thus no surprise to Operation Yellow Elephant that the American people have chosen the loyal opposition, the Democratic Party, to run both political branches of our government. The College and Young Republicans chose to miss out on this opportunity and must accept the consequences of their decision.

We are still in Iraq and Afghanistan. Real American patriots, military and civilian, continue to serve overseas to accomplish our national objectives. As the Bush "43" Administration concludes, please don't forget them. President Obama will need our support as he confronts significant challenges ahead.

Thank you.

Who is this person?

Please let us know in the Comments. Thank you.

Gays to serve openly in The Military?

We hope so.

President-elect Barack Obama will allow gays to serve openly in the military by overturning the controversial "don't ask, don't tell" policy that marred President Clinton's first days in office, according to incoming White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs.

The startling pronouncement, which could re-open a dormant battle in the culture wars and distract from other elements of Obama's agenda, came during a Gibbs exchange with members of the public who sent in questions that were answered on YouTube.

"Thadeus of Lansing, Mich., asks, 'Is the new administration going to get rid of the "don't ask, don't tell policy?'" said Gibbs, looking into the camera. "Thadeus, you don't hear a politician give a one-word answer much. But it's, 'Yes.'"

OYE Comment: Let's face it, there's less ignorance in the United States now than in 1993, and it's long overdue for this policy to go the way of prohibition. Although "don't ask, don't tell" is still far from being overturned we are pleased the topic has once again been brought into the discussion during a time when The Military needs more personnel. If overturned it will also give institutions like Columbia University no cover for refusing to offer ROTC. We look forward to do what we can to help all patriotic Americans serve in uniform if they choose.

Needing to learn the words "I'm full"

The Army may possibly begin a "fat farm" to help overweight recruits get through the rigors of boot camp. LT. Nixon has more.

The Army has been dismissing so many overweight applicants that its top recruiter, trying to keep troop numbers up in wartime, is considering starting a fat farm to transform chubby trainees into svelte soldiers.

Maj. Gen. Thomas Bostick, head of the Army Recruiting Command, said he wants to see a formal diet and fitness regimen running alongside a new school at Fort Jackson that helps aspiring troops earn their GEDs.

Not Fat, Just Big-Boned

Army recruiting has been benefiting from the waiver program that permits overweight enlistees to Be A Man! Enlist!

"We support any service who comes up with a scientifically defensible way of expanding the market [of recruits]," says Curtis Gilroy, director of accessions policy for the Pentagon. Such waivers had been studied for years but the program wasn't implemented until fiscal 2007, when it admitted about 1,500 individuals through the program (just a small slice of about 80,000 recruits). Recruits must pass a special battery of tests, including a "step test," and do a number of push-ups to demonstrate their physical abilities. If they pass and are enlisted, they have a year to comply with the Army's physical requirements, measured by "body mass index," a formula that estimates body fat based on weight and height.

OYE Comment: We do thank those that were admitted through this particular waiver program for stepping up, and we wish them success in the Army, but let's be honest here; if The Army wasn't having difficulty recruiting this program would never have been instituted. On the bright side it does take away one of the many excuses from Rob Port.

Looks like Private Pyle was born 2 generations too late.....

I think they meant "Strike Out"

The conservative website, Red State, has designed a insignia for their supporters if they are interested in "being a part of the Army of Redstate Activists"

From VetVoice:

Like many chickenhawks who struggle with what it means to be a man in the modern era, Erickson and the "soldiers" in his budding "Strike Force" have again tried to imitate serving in the military without actually having to don a uniform, pick up a weapon, or sacrifice much of anything at all. However, by creating this make-believe world in which RedState activists are members of a military-like "Strike Force," they're actually quite a lot like the Dungeons and Dragons fans LARPers.......

OYE Comment: As Whiskey Fire alluded to it could be a lot like the Kiss Army without guitars, groupies, fans, and the patch isn't as cool either.