Remembering Their Sacrifice!

By Findalis
Monkey in the Middle

On other National holidays the nation takes to the streets in joyous celebration.  On Memorial Day we are to take time to remember and mourn those men and women who gave their lives for this country.  So many did over the years.

War	Dead	Wounded
Revolutionary	25,000	25,000
1812	20,000	4,505
Mexican-American	13,283	4,152
Civil	624,511	281,881
Spanish-American	2,446	1,622
Philippine-American	4,196	2,930
World War 1	116,516	204,002
World War 2	405,399	670,846
Korea	36,516	92,134
Vietnam	58,209	153,303
Gulf	258	849
Afghanistan	1,803	31,965
Iraq	4,477	41,936
Totals	1,312,614	1,515,125

We should pause and remember them.  But instead most Americans will go to sales in malls, go to the beach and have cook outs.

The sacrifice these men gave entitles these Americans to do that.  It is our Freedoms and the Freedom of the world that they sacrificed their lives.  The liberation of Europe, not once but twice.  The liberation of Iraq from the tyranny of Saddam Hussein and Afghanistan from the Taliban.  The Freedom of Cuba from Spain, the Philippines, the Battle of New Orleans and Brooklyn Heights.  They sacrificed at Shiloh, and Gettysburg.  The Wilderness and Fredricksberg.  And the nation they fought for survived and thrived.

To the families of those who have died:  Thank You.  There is no monetary settlement, no honors we can give you to heal the pain.

Days Of Infamy!

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

9/11, December 7th.  Days that will foreve live in our hearts and memories.

These were dates in which the United States asked itself Why?  What did we do to Japan to warrant their attacking our military without warning, without provocation, with a declaration of war.  That was the one in which angered the American people the most.  There was no Declaration of War by the Japanese before they attacked Pearl Harbor (their Declaration actually came after the attack had been underway for a while).  The American Fleet stationed at Pearl Harbor (with the exception of the Aircraft Carriers) was decimated and very nearly wiped out (as was the Air Group at Wheeler Field).  16 Medal of Honors, 51 Navy Crosses, 53 Silver Crosses, 4 Navy and Marine Corps Medals, 1 Distinguished Flying Cross, Distinguished Service Crosses, 1 Distinguished Service Medal, and 3 Bronze Stars were awarded to the American servicemen who distinguished themselves in combat at Pearl Harbor.

The nation was plunged into a war that would engulf the whole world.  A fight for Freedom, Decency, and Democracy.  Fought by the Greatest Generation this nation ever produced.

A war in which the enemy was considered evil (both civilian and military).  There were no outcries from the Press of the "Poor Innocent Civilians".  Of how we shouldn't bomb them.  We as a nation knew there was a job to do, and we did it.

And we won!  We conquered both Japan (who attacked us on Dec. 7th) and Germany who declared war on us.  In doing so we killed thousands (maybe even millions) of civilians.  This is a price civilians pay for being the backers of armies.  This is one of the prices of war.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

On 9/11/01 we asked ourselves the question again.  Why?  What did we do to warrant this attack?  What type of religion would sanction an attack on innocent civilians and still claim the moral high road?  We are still waiting for the answer to that question.

Unlike Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor, the attacks on 9/11 by al-Qaeda were not carried out by any one nation or government.  Al-Qaeda is nothing more than a bunch of thugs trying to be self-important, but in reality they scurry from a real fight like cockroaches scurrying from a light.  They mooch off of any quasi-nation (Sudan, Somoza, Afghanistan under the Taliban) as long as they can (or until Civilized nations attack to dislodge them).  Their weapons are fear and intimidation.  The weapons of the bully.

And yet, when the United States went to the UN, and demanded that the Taliban who controlled Afghanistan, surrender Osama bin Laden and the members of al-Qaeda, the US was told no.

Once again the US has sent her sons into battle against evil.

This time evil just might win.  For this time we have a President who will cut and run from a fight rather than commit to finishing the job and bringing Freedom to the people of Afghanistan.

On this anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, it is best for not only our leaders to remember the date, but for our enemies to remember it too.  For on December 7th, 1941 the United States awoken into anger.  An anger that couldn't be contained until we had complete victory over our enemies.

Anger that lead to this over 2 Japanese cities:

And resulted in this:

Remember that well supporters of the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

You have been warned!

Bring Out Your Dead

Cross posted by Findalis of Monkey in the Middle
It is said that whatever you do will eventually catch up to you. Some call this Karma, others fate. What ever you call it, for good or evil, it will bite you on the butt. Just as it has done to members of AQLIM (al-Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb).

At least 40 al-Qaeda fanatics died horribly after being struck down with the disease that devastated Europe in the Middle Ages.

The killer bug, also known as the plague, swept through insurgents training at a forest camp in Algeria, North Africa. It came to light when security forces found a body by a roadside.

The victim was a terrorist in AQLIM (al-Qaeda in the Land of the Islamic Maghreb), the largest and most powerful al-Qaeda group outside the Middle East.

It trains Muslim fighters to kill British and US troops.

Now al-Qaeda chiefs fear the plague has been passed to other terror cells — or Taliban fighters in Afghanistan.

One security source said: “This is the deadliest weapon yet in the war against terror. Most of the terrorists do not have the basic medical supplies needed to treat the disease.

“It spreads quickly and kills within hours. This will be really worrying al-Qaeda.”

Black Death comes in various forms.

Bubonic Plague is spread by bites from infected rat fleas. Symptoms include boils in the groin, neck and armpits. In Pneumonic Plague, airborn bacteria spread like flu.

It can be in the body for more than a week — highly contagious but not revealing tell-tale symptoms.

The al-Qaeda epidemic began in the cave hideouts of AQLIM in Tizi Ouzou province, 150km east of the capital Algiers. The group, led by wanted terror boss Abdelmalek Droudkal, was forced to turn its shelters in the Yakouren forest into mass graves and flee.

The extremists supporting madman Osama bin Laden went to Bejaia and Jijel provinces — hoping the plague did not go with them.

A source said: “The emirs (leaders) fear surviving terrorists will surrender to escape a horrible death.”

Read the full story here.

The bubonic plague is an infection of the lymphatic system, usually resulting from the bite of an infected flea. The fleas are often found on rodents, such as rats, and seek out other prey when their rodent hosts die. Once established, bacteria rapidly spread to the lymph nodes and multiply. Yersinia pestis can resist phagocytosis and even reproduce inside phagocytes and kill them. As the disease progresses, the lymph nodes can hemorrhage and become necrotic. Bubonic plague can progress to lethal septicemic plague in some cases.

The most famous symptom of bubonic plague is swollen lymph nodes, called buboes. These are commonly found in the armpits, groin or neck. The bubonic plague was the first step of the ongoing plague. Two other forms of the plague, pneumonic and septicemic, resulted after a patient with the bubonic plague developed pneumonia or blood poisoning.

Other symptoms include spots on the skin that are red at first and then turn black, heavy breathing, continuous blood vomiting, aching limbs and terrible pain. The pain is usually caused by the actual decaying, or decomposing of the skin while the infected person is still alive, when death begins the person will get spasms.

According to the World Health Organization, there are 1,000 to 3,000 cases of bubonic plague worldwide each year. There are no known cases in Australia or Europe. Areas where cases occur are in Russia, the Middle East, China, Southwest and Southeast Asia, Madagascar, southern and eastern Africa, the Andes mountains and Brazil.

Treatment is usually given as soon as symptoms appear. Streptomycin or tetracycline are the standard antibiotics given. A vaccination is available to prevent this disease.

The Taliban and al Queda both shun vaccinations as being from Satan and therefore anti-Islamic.

I expect that the Taliban and/or al Queda will be issuing statements condemning the US and claiming that the Americans are using biological weapons.

But what can you expect when you live in a cave and never bathe?

View at YouTube

Sorry I just couldn't resist. And the set does look like an average Taliban town.