Tea Party Patriots: Onward March in Remembrance of Andrew Breitbart

Today is a very sad day because of America's loss of Andrew Breitbart, but he would encourage us to move forward most enthusiastically. For those who have been on the sidelines, it's okay. Pick up your banners and join us so we can finally bring our country to its constitionally limitted authority.

Andrew Breitbart was born in 1969, he leaves behind a very charming wife and four children. He was 43 years old. This is tragic.

I would like an autopsy so we can know possitively that no jihadi can claim responsibility for Andrew's demise, because he put his life on the line for ALL Americans. It is true that his life was in danger for us.

Now it appears the only way to pay tribute to our well respected and tirelessly working friend is to pick up where he left off so what he started was not in vain. I accept this challenge. I am back.

Please contact me if you can help in any way toward our next Tea Party (Long Beach Patriots) on April 15, 2012.

Lastly but NOT leastly. Please pray for Andrew's family, friends, and other loved ones. Please send them words of encouragement. If anyone feels the need to send them angry, obscene words, please remember that God is watching you. I do not have to because God will take care of this family and He will also deal with you. So please stay away if you do not want to be encouraging. Thank you.

May you walk with the LORD always, and when you cannot take another step, may He carry you the rest of the way until you can walk along side Him again.

ANSF leads response to floods, avalanches

IJC Public Affairs Office

KABUL, Afghanistan (Feb. 9, 2010) — Afghan National Security Forces displayed well-coordinated procedures in rapidly responding to several natural disasters over the last two days, including avalanches and flooding, as ISAF forces provided assistance.

In the case of the multiple avalanches in the area of the Salang Tunnel in Parwan province, the main artery that connects the Kabul area with eastern parts of the country, the Afghan National Army transported more than 200 people to safety. Afghan National Army Air Corps (ANAAC) crews and ISAF mentors flew several missions to rescue trapped motorists. Assisted by Afghan soldiers and police on the ground, the ANAAC rescued more than 70 trapped civilians, some of whom were injured, and transported them to Bagram Air Field.

ANAAC helicopters also delivered blankets and other humanitarian aid to the tunnel area based on reports from the tunnel commander of approximately 150 vehicles stranded.

In close coordination with the Afghan officials leading the rescue operations, ISAF air assets helped rescue stranded people as they landed CH 47 helicopters on the main highway several times and ferried stranded motorists to Bagram Air Field. Almost 250 Afghans were brought to Bagram Air Field where they were treated for injuries, provided food, shelter and warm blankets.

In Kandahar province, members of the ANA and ANP deployed to the Zharay district to provide relief for 800 villagers affected by flood waters. Helicopters flown by ANAAC pilots searched the area, rescued several civilians from an isolated village, and transported them to a temporary facility established by local officials to house and feed
displaced people.

In western Afghanistan, the ANA and ANP have coordinated with several international aid organizations to provide tents, clothes and food for affected villagers while the local corps commander used air assets to transport local civilians in Farah province. ISAF helicopter crews transported equipment to be used by ANSF to assist villagers.

"This is another example of the improving capability of the Afghan forces in responding and protecting citizens," said Brig. Gen. Luigi Scollo, ISAF Joint Command director of operations. "The Afghans have clearly been in the lead from planning through conducting the missions. The life-saving accomplishments on the Afghan National Security Forces were particularly noteworthy."

Picture: Sgt. 1st Class Matthew Osborne lets a child who was medically evacuated from the Salang district area avalanche in Parwan province, write with his pen at Bagram Airfield, Afghanistan, Feb. 9.

Related Links to this article
•Air Corps rescues motorists:
•The Afghan National Army Air Corps rescues motorists trapped in the area of the Salang Tunnel in Parwan province, Afghanistan, ISAF helicopters helped rescue people stranded following avalanches. CH-47 helicopters landed on the main highway several times

Source: CENTCOM.

Soldiers give poor Iraqis economic alternatives

by Ben Hutto
367th MPAD

PB HAMIYAH (Jan. 20, 2010) – One-by-one, they filtered into the small room, Jan. 12, filled with hope and carrying sad stories in their hearts.

A 20-year-old widow with five children told how her husband was taken in the middle of the night, three years ago, by "bad men." She told how his body was found a week later and how hard it has been to support her family.

A 17-year-old boy came in wearing a tattered pink jacket. He said he was forced to drop out of school to support his brother's children. When asked why he had to do that, he explained in a sad voice that his older brother and father were both killed by terrorists a few years ago.

The list of the needy went on and on that morning.

Life in Khidr, Iraq, a small village in an area once dubbed "the Triangle of Death" by the American media at the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom, can be hard. The area still doesn't have a local police force, although a police station is under construction.

The 8th Iraqi Army Division maintains security as best they can, but a local shaykh says that financial help from the Iraqi government is slow in making its way to the area.

"All farmers in Iraq have a right to go to the government and ask for help," he said, "but it is never enough for the farmers here, if they get anything at all."

So far, the Americans have been key to taking up the slack, he said.

"The U.S. Forces have been very helpful giving us projects," he said. "If the Americans don't help us, who will? I honestly don't know."

On Oct. 12, the Soldiers of "B" Company, 2nd Battalion, 69th Armor Regiment, working out of Patrol Base Hamiyah, were there to provide much-needed help for the widows and poor of the area.

The battalion brought contracts that will help 70 poor widows and farmers establish turkey farms, bee keeping houses and irrigation wells.

As the applicants signed their names to the contracts, Staff Sgt. Jon Kirkendall, a squad leader in "B" Company, from Portsmouth, Ohio, said he could see many of them finally feeling a glimmer of hope.

"These people are exactly who these programs are designed for," he said. "You can see many of them are desperate for a way to take care of their families. Hopefully, these projects can help them find a way to become self-sufficient."

According to Sgt. Brian Wilson, a Soldier from Fort Lewis attached to "B" Company, the three programs are perfect for the people they are helping, because they are designed to be self-sufficient enterprises that require very little work on the part of the applicants.

"Honey bees thrive in this area," said Wilson, a native of Elk Grove, Calif. "It will really just be a matter of the widows waiting for them to make honey and draining it off. The turkey applicants will receive 30 turkeys that will start reproducing a few months after they arrive. With the feed we will provide for the birds, all the applicants really have to do is feed their animals and wait."

While the cost of starting these projects isn't that high, Wilson said, the benefit of them could potentially be enormous.

"As long as the applicants are allowed to do what the program is designed for, I think they can all be self-sufficient," he said. "Obviously, not all 70 applicants will be successful, but even if ten make it, it will have been worthwhile."

Those ten may not have had much hope outside for the program, Wilson said.

"These programs are reaching a segment of Iraq that, traditionally, has had very few opportunities to support themselves and their families," he said.

As the applicants filed out of the small room, Wilson and Kirkendall gave each a handshake and wished them luck. Wilson told every applicant that they would be contacted around the first of next month to begin the delivery of their animals and equipment.

"It feels good to help folks," said Kirkendall. "You just hope that they all find a way to make it last and take care of their families."

PHOTO: Sgt. Brian Wilson congratulates a farmer in Khidr after he signs an economic project contract that will provide him with 30 turkeys and feed to support them. The contracts, aimed at helping the needy in northern Babil province, will give struggling families a way to support their families without having to turn to terrorist cells for support.

Source: CENTCOM.

May you walk with the LORD always, and when you cannot take another step, may He carry you the rest of the way until you can walk along side Him again.

Prayers for Haiti

There has been an awful earthquake located 10 miles SW of Port-Au-Prince, Haiti Tuesday, January 12, 2010 at 4:53 pm. The electricity is out, there's no phone service, and this is a human disaster. (Data from USGS.)

The earthquake was 7.0 and the after shocks were magnitudes 5.9 and 5.2. There are many houses totalled, a hospital is destroyed, the UN building is destroyed, the castle is partially destroyed. It is a human disaster.

Our thoughts and prayers are with the Haitian people, their families, and their loved ones. Many people live outside of Haiti and are worried about their families. They have no way of contacting of them because the phone lines are down.

Aid is on the way, and our Military is on the way to help. God bless everyone involved. If you would like to help, call 1-866-714-3663 for more information. (Courtesy of Bill Bennett.) Please keep these people in your prayers today as you go about your day. Thank you.

May you walk with the LORD always, and when you cannot take another step, may He carry you the rest of the way until you can walk along side Him again. Digg!

Afghan Women Find Support In Wardak Province

by Pfc. Christopher Baker
Task Force Spartan

WARDAK PROVINCE, Afghanistan (April 21, 2009) – The Afghan National Police worked with U.S. soldiers serving in Task Force Spartan recently to provide 25 women and their families here with humanitarian aid packages. The police, working with the 10th Mountain Division’s 4th Battalion, 25th Field Artillery Regiment, distributed the packages, containing food and stuffed animals, at the Wardak Women’s Center.

Mahtab Jafari, the provincial director of women’s affairs, said the center’s goal is more than just helping women in need. “The first, main goal is to have a safe place for women to go due to any reason,” Jafari said. “The second goal is to have an education center to teach women English, computers, or anything they need. But, the overall goal is for the women to be self-sufficient so they can leave the center and provide for themselves or their families.”

Army Capt. Tammy Lanning, intelligence officer and Wardak Women’s Center liaison, said helping the women of the province is beneficial in several ways.

“I think it’s very important, while at the same time, pretty frustrating,” she said. “There’s a lot of benefit from it. To increase [women’s] rights and make them capable will not only help their family, but also decrease the poverty rate in the area.”

Lanning said the main challenge lies in changing the way Afghan society views women and instilling confidence in women so they aren’t afraid to go outside the home to seek help or education.

Coalition forces hope to help the center accomplish this through a variety of ways.

“We’re going to talk to [U.S. Agency for International Development officials] and see if we can fix up the building, because it’s already in poor shape,” Lanning said. In the short term, fixing a windmill would be a quick, inexpensive way to provide power to the center, allowing use of the building and a women’s vocational school for the longterm, Lanning said.

Jafari said she got the idea for a vocational school from other areas using similar programs.

“In other provinces, there are vocational schools for women,” she said. “Any type of educational classes for women will help, and since other provinces had them already, we wanted to get ideas from them.”

Women’s Center officials said they plan to conduct classes, but also want to show women how to provide for themselves so they don’t have to rely on the center.

“The goal is to make women self-sufficient,” Jafari said. “We don’t plan on using the center as a means to sell items, [but] rather to teach women how to make something they can sell on their own.”

The Wardak Women’s Center has had some success, Jafari said.

“There has been some progress so far, especially for those in need,” she said. “The word is getting out that there is a women’s society, and women are becoming more active in the community.”

The focus is on helping women in and around Mayden Shar, because the women’s center does not have access to villages or districts farther away, Lanning said. Meanwhile, Jafari is working to let the women of Wardak know there is a safe place they can get help. She is working with Lanning to get a column in the local paper, and eventually to produce a quarterly magazine for the women’s center.

“Basically, it’s based on society, on advertising, on promoting women’s rights, to let everyone know that the woman is important,” Jafari said. “That she can work outside of the house and provide for the family.”

Afghan and American troops distribute humanitarian aid at Wardak Women’s Center in Afghanistan’s Wardak province April 8.

Source: CENTCOM.

Cross-posted @ Rosemary's Thoughts. Rosemary's News and Ideas.

Coalition, Afghan Troops Aid Earthquake Victims

Bagram Media Center.

KABUL, Afghanistan (April 18) – Afghan National Security Forces in conjunction with International Security Assistance Force soldiers provided aid to earthquake victims in Sherzad District, Nangarhar province, Afghanistan Friday.

The earthquake, which was reported at 5.5 on the Richter scale, hit at about 4 a.m. Local officials report that 19 people died, 51 were injured and more than 290 families, estimated at 3,000 people, were effected across a total of seven villages. The most damage was reported in Sherzad District.

ISAF’s Nangarhar Provincial Reconstruction Team sent a 5-ton truck with relief supplies such as blankets, tents, food and water to the village. The team had difficulty reaching the site because of the remote location of the most seriously affected area.

Afghan officials were already on scene and had already begun evacuating the injured. Upon the PRT’s arrival, ISAF troops provided medical assistance to victims, while local officials, elders and Afghan National Army troops distributed supplies.

ISAF’s support is part of a joint Afghan government and United Nations response to the disaster. ISAF is prepared to provide additional support if requested by the Afghan government.

Afghan troops unload relief supplies hours after an earthquake hit the Sherzad district of Nangarhar province, Afghanistan April 17.

Source: CENTCOM.

Cross-posted @ Rosemary's News and Ideas.

State slams diplomat for speaking 'truth to power'

Today you will be reading about someone you may never have heard of before, but that does not make him any less significant. This man was...WAS...an ambassador to North Korea. Why do I emphasize 'was'? Condi made sure she tore him a new one, instead of admitting that she was WRONG about Kim Jong Il (as I could have told her before she even tried to buy off the North Koreans. When will these idiots learn that you can't pay off a commie terrorist?).

I would like to start from the beginning, but I'm afraid my knowledge is not that extensive. I will start from when I became aware and started paying attention. This was in the 1990's. I do know that we fought a war between the north and south over there, that we did not declare victory or defeat but instead we called a ceasefire (which means, in essense, we are still at war with them), that there is a demilitarized zone which is heavily armed by both sides, it is constantly compromised by the north, the northerners are constantly trying to escape even though the punishment is death or the gulag, and the south does not want to allow them into their country even though some of them are direct relatives.

There, are we caught up? Good. Now for the problems. Mr. Jay Lefkowitz. He was working for the State Dept. for many years, but he was made to resign. Why? Well, how dare he undermine Condi! He was speaking at the American Enterprise Institute a couple of weeks ago when he stated, 'Noting that it has been more than two years since Pyongyang pledged to abandon its nuclear weapons program, and more than two weeks since it violated the latest deadline to disclose the full extent of that program, Mr. Lefkowitz observed that "it is increasingly clear that North Korea will remain in its present nuclear status when the Administration leaves office in one year."'

Wow. Pretty rough stuff, eh? Too bad the state dept doesn't have to search for bark of a tree to eat for food on a daily basis so they don't starve! This was the purpose of that statement: "Jay Lefkowitz, President Bush's special envoy for human rights in North Korea, has recently pointed out that our current approach to Pyongyang is failing. Lord help a diplomat who tells the truth."

Does anyone, besides me, remember why Bush hated Kim Jong Il so much? Yes, it was on the basis of humanitarian reasons. Of course there is the issue of nuclear weapons that have a role in this, but I would have thought he would take a hard stand on the humanitarian side. Over two million people have already starved to death, numerous have been murdered by the state, and no one says a damn thing. Thanks a heap, Bush. What happened to you? Who took your cajones?

To read the article over at the Wall Street Journal Opinion section, click here. Now if you will pardon me, I feel the need to beat up a pillow...

Posts I've trackbacked to at Linkfest and other sites:

Mark My Words: OTA Open Trackback 01/28/08, Leaning Straight Up: The Obama/Israel Factor: Is There a Problem Waiting to Happen?, and A Newt One: The Similarities Are Frightening, Thanks much to: Linkfest Haven Deluxe.

. Digg!
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Kites are introduced to Afghani children; loving it!

Cross-posted at Rosemary's Thoughts.

This is one of those stories that touched my heart so warmly. Many people look at our Soldiers and see only brutes or men ready to kill you if you look at them wrongly. This is the furthest from the truth. They do not understand the ROE (Rules of Engagement). Many people have no idea about life in the military, this is the story for you.

Let me see if I find just one paragraph to entice you. This seems like the right one:

"It seems like time stopped here 2,000 years ago," said Polish Pfc. Chris Demko, a gunner on one of the giant Rosomak armored personnel carriers. "We see these kids running around with nothing, not even shoes, and we want to change that." [The Real Kite Runners flying the Afghan Skies.]

Bravo for the Polish Soldiers! It just goes to show that loving children and humanity does not stop at our waters edge. :)