The Good: US casualties are down for Feburary from a small increase in January. While every death of a US service member is a tragic loss, it's helpful to look at long-term casualty trends to get a feel for the security progress or lack thereof in Iraq. Sadly, according to iCasualties, the Iraqi civilian deaths have slightly increased from Jan., but I'm going to wait on a report from the Iraqi Ministries to get the actual numbers. More details on the scheduled execution of the tyrant Chemical Ali, who must be executed within 30 days by Iraqi law.
The Bad: Chaldean Archbishop Rahho has been kidnapped by a group of thugs in Mosul after his bodyguards were killed. Christians have been the target of significant extremist violence as Sunni terrorists and Shi'ite militias alike see them as sharing the religion of the crusader.
The Ugly: The symbol of gross misappropriation of taxpayer dollars and Bush administration hubris, the US embassy, is being investigated by Rep. Waxman. Also, there are allegations that the monstrosity is more prone to catch fire than Richard Pryor freebasing coke.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Aging Hippie Douche of the Weekend Pic
From Zombie, by way of Little Green Footballs. I never understood why the far left would sympathize with a group of terrorist thugs like Hezbollah (Reason explains). Perhaps they were upset with Imad Mugniyah being assassinated, or perhaps they ally with whatever interest, no matter how nefarious, in their conquest to lambaste the American capitali$t--zionist regime. I don't understand this irrational thought process. Are they supporters of AIDS, since it kills Americans? I hope that these people are a small faction of a generation on it's way to geezerdom, but I fear these types of people have always been around and will always be around to make a mockery of themselves. I wonder if in the 14th century there were aging drug-addled hipsters wearing berets with signs about the Bubonic Plague destroying imperialist knight crusaders...we can only speculate.
Which Diva Wore It Better?
Rihanna and Kelly Rowland They both wore this hideous Zac Posen's feather explosion but Rihanna still look chic in this foolishness so she wins.
Erykah Badu and Jada Pinkett-Smith
They both rock'd these fabulous YSL Tribute Leopard Peep-Toe Pumps. Jada wins because you have to wear these funky pumps with something simple because they are the showcase. Erykah Badu has too much going on.
Vivica Fox and Mary J. BligeI hated this hideous solid gold dress by Emanuel Ungaro when Mary first wore it and I certainly don't care for it on Vivica so no one wins!
Drew Barrymore and Rihanna
This Gucci dress looks too much like a girls scout outfit but Rihanna looks chic in hers so she wins.
Jessica Alba and Naomi Campbell
The Dolce and Gabbana t-shirt is both fun and cute but Naomi wins with her seven jeans and white fitted blazer.
Rihanna In Paris
John Galliano Show
John Galliano Show
Fendi Party
Chanel Show
Sonia Rykiel Show
Sonia Rykiel Show
Okay, news is slow. Rihanna was spotted all over Paris at the John Galliano show, Fendi party,(love her Giambattista Valli shoes) Chanel and Sonia Rykiel Fall 2008 shows. Say what you want to say but this girl is front row at these fabulous shows at the age of 20...just fabulous!
Who says a War Zone can't be mildly entertaining
Ron Burgundy is a sure fire way to pimp out any humvee and get the ladies.
These jokers may have never been to Iraq, but I have to agree...5 years and billions of dollars later, it is probably the best war ever.
If you don't know what BOHICA is an acronymn for, think about repeatedly dropping the soap in the shower while doing time in prison.The Sadr City Pub Crawl shirt is a coveted item, but I have been unsuccesful in locating one. Some Spring Break Baghdad '08 shirts may be in order. What do you think?
Iraq News 29 Feb
The Good: The Iraqi Presidency council has approved the execution of Saddam's cousin, Chemical Ali. He was involved in the genocidal Anfal campaign and I don't think many people are going to be missing this guy. The Arba'een pilgrimage in Karbala has finished up and the Prime Minister has declared that "We have suceeded in eliminating sectarianism", a bit optimistic but it's a helluva lot better than report of mass casualties due to intrasect violence like the last pilgrimage in Karbala in August. Also, Turkey has actually listened to international diplomatic pressure and withdrawn its forces from northern Iraq.
The Bad: On a selfish note, as Jason mentioned on his most excellent blog, today is the 29th of Feb in a leap year, which means one extra day of deployment in Iraq for me and everyone else. You win this one, US military, but I'll get you back, I won't forget this!
The Ugly: While Afghanistan and Iraq are usually in the limelight, let's not forget about our other strategic defense interests in the rest of the world. Admiral Keating discusses the resource drain at PACOM.
The Bad: On a selfish note, as Jason mentioned on his most excellent blog, today is the 29th of Feb in a leap year, which means one extra day of deployment in Iraq for me and everyone else. You win this one, US military, but I'll get you back, I won't forget this!
The Ugly: While Afghanistan and Iraq are usually in the limelight, let's not forget about our other strategic defense interests in the rest of the world. Admiral Keating discusses the resource drain at PACOM.
No one will be shedding tears for this guy
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Fabulous Bathrooms
In this week of home decor, I am focusing on bathrooms because they are spaces for everyone to unwind after a hard day work. Divas, draw a luxurious bubble bath, light your scented candles and pour a glass of wine and relax and thank God for making you beautiful!
Celebrities At Paris Fashion Week
She attended the Swaroski party in Paris. The poor girl doesn't get any rest and it shows on this pic, she looks tired!
Kanye and Alexis at the Givenchy dinner. 
Kanye and Alexis at Stella McCartney Fall 2008 fashion show.
Kanye, Alexis and Roberto Cavalli at Cavalli's Paris store opening. They were all over Paris for fashion week and they look fabulous! Alexis is finally growing on me.
Vivica Fox...just fabulous!
Vivica Fox and Roberto Cavalli
Vivica is looking more modern everyday or is it just because she is in Paris?
Eve
I love her avant -garde jacket; it's perfect for Paris!
Lucy Liu
She looks chic. She attended the Dior show.
Monica Cruz (Penelope Cruz's sister)
She looks better than Penelope!
Muddled over Ahmadinejad
The big news out here is that Ahmadinejad is coming to Iraq on March 2nd (Iranian media is calling it historic). Once again, the complexities of this war have presented me with a bit of a conundrum. Our stated mission is to assist with security and economic development, and good Iraqi-Iranian relations are helpful in achieving this. Believe it or not Iran has done some constructive things for Iraq such as planning to build a 320-MW power station for the city of Najaf. There are also numerous Iranian pilgrims taking part in the pilgrimage to Karbala (certainly I don't have anything against the people of Iran). But the reality of malign Iranian-backed militias wreaking havoc throughout Iraq is indisputable (EFPs, assassinations, etc.) That and the fact that Ahmadinejad is holocaust-denying nut. I'm guessing the Iraqi leadership will try and get Iran to halt it's nefarious violence, while encouraging its political and economic assistance. That or Ahmadinejad is going to turn the whole visit into a bitch session about "The Great Satan Occupation" of which I am part of. This goes to show how sometimes it is best to sit back and watch what happens. Your guess is as good as mine at this point. Maybe I should take a bunch of pep pills ala Saved by the Bell to study up on Iranian-Iraqi relations over the past three millenium so I can better understand this.
Not Quite as excited as Jesse Spano when she took those pep pills
Not Quite as excited as Jesse Spano when she took those pep pills
Bush Sends a Zinger at the Senate
The Prez. Despite the fact that I'd jump off a cliff if the guy ordered me to, I'm not in the business of heaping praise upon Bush. After all his administration did give us a skyrocketing deficit, an overused-understaffed military, and a distrust for conservative values that will take years to repair. But I did like what he had to say at today's White House press conference about the Senate bickering over Iraq (via Bloomberg):
“Congressional leaders are still sounding the same old call for withdrawal. I guess you could say that when it comes to pushing for withdrawal, their strategy is to stay the course.”
The situation in Iraq changes rapidly. Last week it was whether or not Sadr would unleash the wrath of the Mahdi Army (he didn't). Then it was whether or not Turkey was going to invade northern Iraq (they did). Who knows what'll happen next week. Maybe Ahmadinejad will start break dancing at President Talabani's residence when he visits Baghdad. The fact of the matter is that the US leadership needs to stop being so damn intellectually lazy and start figuring out what's going on over here. Only then will we be able to begin the process of getting out of this place leaving behind a stable country. The bipartisan schism on Iraq of we need to withdraw now or we need to have permanent bases doesn't provide a solution to the mission at hand.
A not-amused POTUS
“Congressional leaders are still sounding the same old call for withdrawal. I guess you could say that when it comes to pushing for withdrawal, their strategy is to stay the course.”
The situation in Iraq changes rapidly. Last week it was whether or not Sadr would unleash the wrath of the Mahdi Army (he didn't). Then it was whether or not Turkey was going to invade northern Iraq (they did). Who knows what'll happen next week. Maybe Ahmadinejad will start break dancing at President Talabani's residence when he visits Baghdad. The fact of the matter is that the US leadership needs to stop being so damn intellectually lazy and start figuring out what's going on over here. Only then will we be able to begin the process of getting out of this place leaving behind a stable country. The bipartisan schism on Iraq of we need to withdraw now or we need to have permanent bases doesn't provide a solution to the mission at hand.
A not-amused POTUSWednesday, February 27, 2008
Iraq News 28 Feb
The Good: Millions are in Karbala for the Arba'een pilgrimage. For those that think life was great under Saddam's "secular" tyranny of genocide should heed this quote from the AFP: "Under Saddam, those who went to Karbala were killed or had their legs shot so they could not walk again." It should be noted that sectarian strife was not a Cheney conspiracy to gain greater control of oil fields as some on the far-left have mentioned. There is talk about the Sadr trend turning the Mahdi Army into some kind of cultural/humanitarian organization. While Mr. Sadr's people aren't going to be waving American flags anytime soon, this is a welcome change of behavior from the violence preceding the ceasefire in August '07.
The Bad: WaPo is running a front page article slamming the US alliance with the Sons of Iraq (just in time for that debate about Iraq in the Senate, not coincidentally). It's not enough that American media are out to get these guys, but the Iranians are apparently conspiring to target the mostly Sunni-group of Al-Qaeda killers too. I anxiously await Mr. IraqPundit's response to this. Update on the fiasco with Turkey here, and the entire operation may be a clever ruse to divert the Turkish public's attention from...headscarves?
The Ugly: Gross incompetence is apparently the standard when providing Marines on the front lines with the gear they need. The Pentagon is establishing a probe into why it took 18 months to get them lasers that are utilized at checkpoints. This culture of draggin' ass is a complete embarrassment in a time of war.
The Bad: WaPo is running a front page article slamming the US alliance with the Sons of Iraq (just in time for that debate about Iraq in the Senate, not coincidentally). It's not enough that American media are out to get these guys, but the Iranians are apparently conspiring to target the mostly Sunni-group of Al-Qaeda killers too. I anxiously await Mr. IraqPundit's response to this. Update on the fiasco with Turkey here, and the entire operation may be a clever ruse to divert the Turkish public's attention from...headscarves?
The Ugly: Gross incompetence is apparently the standard when providing Marines on the front lines with the gear they need. The Pentagon is establishing a probe into why it took 18 months to get them lasers that are utilized at checkpoints. This culture of draggin' ass is a complete embarrassment in a time of war.
That's a lot of pilgrims!
Stephens Burrow Spring/Fall 2008
Stephen Burrows (Designer)Stephen Burrows has 40 professional years under his belt and he is not slowing down for anyone. He graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology in 1966. Four years later he had his own in-store boutique at Henri Bendel in New York which was rare for a young African-American designer. I just want to applaud him for featuring beautiful African-American models in his runway shows. His pieces are elegant with a unstructured fluidity and simply fabulous!
The Sons of Iraq and Other Random Oddities
The Sons of Iraq: This is the newest name for the Sahwa movement, who are the Sunnis in Iraq who have risen up to protect their neighborhoods and struggle for political power in post-invasion society. Teflon Don of Acute Politics notoriety has an excellent piece on the Long War Journal discussing their effectiveness at counter-insurgency. Rolling Stone has another take on them in Baghdad (thanks Iraqi Bloggers Central) portraying them as a racketeering goon squad. Toy Soldier offers up his first hand account of their poor handling of weapons, while Fuzzilicious Thinking talks with a soldier who has a more optimistic outlook. I've heard a lot of stories about these guys. I can only imagine the frustration of soldiers having to play diplomat, judge, politician, and enforcer out in these tribal areas, and I have found their stories the most interesting concerning this new technique in Iraq that began in Anbar province. All I can do is analyze the effect of this type of warfare, and this article may offer some insight on the troubled Diyala province entitled "Iraqi Ghost Town comes back to life":
In a corner of his barber shop Ahmed trims the moustache of a customer covered in a white cloth, as nearby broken window panes stand proof of a battered city in the dark of the night. "Thanks to the young men who are guarding the streets, I am no longer afraid to keep my shop open late into the night."
Small victories are important in some ways.
Random De-Motivators: A couple things that don't make me happy are the American economy getting its ass whooped by the Euro and Fox News (except for Red Eye):
I have nothing bad to say about Alex P. Keaton, but there has to be something more important to a national news network. I'm no snob, but man, this is torturous.
The Life I Should've Lived: There's pictures of some gutter punks, in what looks like Portland, from Social Daily News (thanks Moonbattery) .
Sure these poorly-fed, possibly-diseased, yet very attractive young ladies may not be appetizing to some. But looking around at my current lifestyle, I'm certainly not above it. At least there would be an element of freedom to it, and I find the homeless/grunge look common amongst Northwestern gals very seductive for some reason. Maybe I've just been in the Navy too long.
In a corner of his barber shop Ahmed trims the moustache of a customer covered in a white cloth, as nearby broken window panes stand proof of a battered city in the dark of the night. "Thanks to the young men who are guarding the streets, I am no longer afraid to keep my shop open late into the night."
Small victories are important in some ways.
Random De-Motivators: A couple things that don't make me happy are the American economy getting its ass whooped by the Euro and Fox News (except for Red Eye):
I have nothing bad to say about Alex P. Keaton, but there has to be something more important to a national news network. I'm no snob, but man, this is torturous.
The Life I Should've Lived: There's pictures of some gutter punks, in what looks like Portland, from Social Daily News (thanks Moonbattery) .
Sure these poorly-fed, possibly-diseased, yet very attractive young ladies may not be appetizing to some. But looking around at my current lifestyle, I'm certainly not above it. At least there would be an element of freedom to it, and I find the homeless/grunge look common amongst Northwestern gals very seductive for some reason. Maybe I've just been in the Navy too long.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Iraq News (27 Feb)
The Good: The massive Arba'een pilgrimage is ongoing in Karbala to honor Imam Hussein, and so far so good in reports from the holy city, despite some atrocities on the pilgrimage route. Coalition forces and Iraqi security forces are working hard to make sure that violence is kept to a minimum for the millions of travelers. General Casey, Army Chief of Staff, may announce reduction in combat deployments from 15-month to 12-month tours. While the Army will remain overburdened, this is certainly a welcome change.
The Bad: Violence in northern Iraq as a suicide bomber kills 8 by detonating his suicide vest on a bus near Tal Afar. Tal Afar is west of Mosul in Ninawa province, which is the only province that has not seen a decline in violence similar to the other 17 provinces after the Surge was implemented. One of the British contractors that was kidnapped last May at the Ministry of Finance in Baghdad by a group of thugs has gotten air time on Al-Arabiya. Note to Al-Arabiya, you're not helping with the release of the hostages and only making things worse.
The Ugly: The Iraqi government in Baghdad tells Turkish forces to get the hell out of our country as diplomatic uneasiness progresses concurrent with this questionable operation against the PKK. Also, Clinton-era Secretary of State Madeline Albright says the reputation of the US sucks on international TV.
Madeline not helpin' with furthering diplomatic relations for the US, nice broach BTW
The Bad: Violence in northern Iraq as a suicide bomber kills 8 by detonating his suicide vest on a bus near Tal Afar. Tal Afar is west of Mosul in Ninawa province, which is the only province that has not seen a decline in violence similar to the other 17 provinces after the Surge was implemented. One of the British contractors that was kidnapped last May at the Ministry of Finance in Baghdad by a group of thugs has gotten air time on Al-Arabiya. Note to Al-Arabiya, you're not helping with the release of the hostages and only making things worse.
The Ugly: The Iraqi government in Baghdad tells Turkish forces to get the hell out of our country as diplomatic uneasiness progresses concurrent with this questionable operation against the PKK. Also, Clinton-era Secretary of State Madeline Albright says the reputation of the US sucks on international TV.
Madeline not helpin' with furthering diplomatic relations for the US, nice broach BTWMidweek Eye Candy Morris Chestnut
Morris Chestnut 
Morris Chestnut was born in Cerritos , California on January 1st 1969. Having given up his dream of becoming a professional football player, he gained recognition debuting in "Boyz 'N The Hood" and of course by favorite movie of all time "The Best Man". Besides Denzel Washington, he has been the hottie since 1991. Morris gorgeous chocolate skin and his sincerity makes him even more irresistible.
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