Category: Uncategorized

So now not only am I stupid, but I also have no career options:

I want to make it abundantly clear: if there’s anyone who believes that these youngsters want to fight, as the Pentagon and some generals have said, you can just forget about it. No young, bright individual wants to fight just because of a bonus and just because of educational benefits. And most all of them come from communities of very, very high unemployment. If a young fella has an option of having a decent career or joining the army to fight in Iraq, you can bet your life that he would not be in Iraq.

Let me guess, it was a botched joke.

What started his tirade you ask? It was this commend and question from Chris Wallace:

Congressman Rangel, you caused quite a stir this week when you said that you’re going to introduce a bill to reinstate the draft. Here’s what you said this week in a newspaper article. Let’s take a look. “The great majority of people bearing arms in this country, for this country in Iraq, are from the poorer communities in our inner cities and rural areas.”
But a recent and very detailed study by the Heritage Foundation, Congressman, found the following and I’m going to put that up: 13 percent of recruits are from the poorest neighborhoods. That’s less than the national average of people living in those neighborhoods. Ninety-seven percent of recruits have high school diplomas. Among all Americans, the graduation rate is under 80 percent. And blacks make up 14.5 percent of recruits for the military; the national average is 12 percent.
Congressman, in fact, contrary to what you’ve been saying, isn’t the volunteer army better educated and more well-to-do than the general population?

Rangel is an idiot and like many of the Democrats he can’t come to grips that this is not a 1968 military anymore. His demographic stereotypes of the US military do not match reality. White males are over represented in combat arms branches (slightly) while blacks are over represented in combat support elements. Not that there is anything wrong with that because everyone volunteers for the job they do in the army. Hispanics are the demographic most widely over represented in combat arms branches and I don’t hear hispanics complaining. Maybe because once again they volunteered for the positions. Rangel’s claims that blacks are some how over represent in combat arms branches while the white males are hiding in college like in 1968 are groundless and borderline race baiting just like his claims that people join the military because they have no other options.

The military is an all volunteer force, highly educated, and very professional. I for one like what I do and will go back to Iraq again if needed. It is a shame that some in the US government are determined to slur it and tear down those of us committed to defending this country.

HT: Milblogs

I guess if they can’t concrete over it, they will at least concrete under it. From the Marmot’s Hole:

In a telephone conversation with Yonhap, a government official revealed that the government is considering building a mall complex—complete with shops, restaurants and movie theaters—under what is now the U.S. garrison at Yongsan, which is supposed to be returned to Korea in late 2008.

Plans to turn the land above ground into a huge citizen park remain unchanged, however.

Seoul City is not happy about this—it feels that the plan doesn’t fit with the spirit or ecology of the planned park, and it’s particularly worried that the government may later use its prerogative to develop above ground as well.

And to think I was under the impression that U.S. base land was so toxic it was burning holes to California. Who knew?

I am going to continue to maintain that by the time it is all said and done, the top of Yongsan is going to see plenty of concrete as well.

The cab driver from this assault has decided to speak out about the incident from the hospital he is currently admitted to. From the Stars and Stripes:

“It is not an assault case, but an attempted murder case,” Baek said through a split lip, an ugly black bruise spreading across his neck and fresh gauze taped across his eye. “Now I am just thankful to God that I am alive.”

Two U.S. soldiers, 18-year-old Anthony Justin Faulkner and 20-year-old Justin Ronald Brown, were questioned in connection with the case, according to South Korean police. Police officials said they would forward the case to prosecutors, who must decide whether to charge the soldiers.

While the U.S. military would not confirm identities, officials said two soldiers belonging to a subordinate unit of the 19th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) were under investigation.

Police said the soldiers admitted attacking the taxi driver, saying he verbally assaulted them.

But Baek said the soldiers are lying and that he has no clue why he was attacked.

Baek said he was standing at the urinal when one of the soldiers grabbed him from behind and pulled him off the ground in a headlock. Choking and unable to breathe, Baek said he momentarily lost consciousness.

He said he came to after being smashed into a door and dragged into a toilet stall.

“At the moment, I thought … I was to become a dead man,” he said.

What a bunch of idiots. Even if they were verbally assaulted it is no excuse to give the guy the beating that he was given. They better be getting their blood money ready because they will be paying for this cab driver’s next holiday to Guam.

Any bets that alcohol was involved in this?

More over at Lost Nomad.

Code Pink leader Medea Benjamin who was recently in Korea, you know Cindy Sheehan’s friend that can’t spell, has an interview in Oh My News posted. I’ll warn you now that you will need a strong stomach and I do mean a really strong stomach to read it. After reading the article I don’t know who the bigger Israel hater is, the interviewer Christopher Brown or Benjamin? Nancy Pelosi is not even enough of a liberal wacko for these people, so you have been warned, read with caution.

UPDATE: More details have come out that the soldier’s death was possibly a suicide. It is the holidays so take extra effort to look out for each other during this time of year.

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Not many details out yet, but a 2ID soldier has died at Camp Eagle:

A 2nd Infantry Division soldier was found dead at Camp Eagle on Saturday, according to Army officials.

Pvt. Gristen Buttrey, 23, was discovered by his roommate in his barracks room, a 2nd ID spokesman said. The cause of his death is under investigation, a spokesman said.

Buttrey was an ammunition specialist with the 1st Battalion, 2nd Aviation Regiment, 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade.

An old icon of the DMZ is being moved:

“It’s very sad to see this kind of history rot away in the DMZ,” said Han, 80. “But I’m very happy for what they are doing today.”

On Monday, a crane lifted the locomotive on to a flatbed truck and took it to Imjingak, where it will be spruced up in accordance with its standing as a South Korean national cultural property.

Workers will spend up to two years preserving what is left of the train, but they will not be restoring it to its original condition.

To do that they would probably have to replace most of the original material, which is heavily corroded after 56 winters of inactivity.

“We will use chemical techniques to maintain the locomotive as it is, to slow down corrosion,” said Jeong-seok, Cultural Heritage Administration spokesman. “This will preserve it for the next generation to see.”

The locomotive will be treated in a public glass enclosure at Imjingak, the Imjin River train station that now serves as a tourist park. Imjingak is only about a mile from the restricted access Tong-il “Unification” Bridge, which leads to Camp Bonifas and the United Nations Joint Security Agency.

The locomotive will then be returned to the DMZ, one bridge away from the final South Korean checkpoint and one mile from the military demarcation line that separates the two Koreas.

I think Nomad is right, maybe Cindy Sheehan did want to get some Taco Bell after all. From the Stars and Stripes:

Peace activist Cindy Sheehan and a handful of other Americans on Tuesday afternoon held their passports in front of South Korean riot police outside a main gate onto Yongsan Garrison, requesting a meeting with U.S. Forces Korea’s commanding general.

Their blue booklets and their chants for the U.S. military to halt base expansion plans south of Seoul went unanswered during the 40-minute long protest.

“My father served at this base,” Sheehan said as she stood in front of Gate 5 at Yongsan Garrison. “I have the right as an American to come onto this base.”

No Ms. Sheehan you don’t have the right to enter a US military installation because only US military ID card holders are allowed on post or you can have a valid ID card holder sign you in on post. Better yet maybe you can become a Yongsan housekeeper; that appears to be the easiest way to get an ID card now a days. Then again that would mean you would have to work for living instead of getting your free hand outs from your rich liberal puppet masters. If she is getting all this money through a non-profit I would love to see the book keeping because aren’t non-profits supposed to disclose their finances? I would love to see if she pays any taxes on anything considering the lifestyle she is now living.

Secondly you should be deported from Korea because as the lawyer Brendon Carr noted, foreigners on a tourist visa cannot conduct political activity in Korea. I’m sure the Korean government is just letting her get away this because they don’t want to get any bad press and figure she will just go away as quickly as she popped up.

According to the Economist it is:

The Economist weekly has ranked South Korea 31st and North Korea 167th or dead last in its global democracy index. In a special edition titled “The World In 2007”, the U.K. magazine looked at the state of democracy in countries around the world using 60 indicators across five broad categories such as free elections, civil liberties, functioning government, political participation, and political culture. The index classified the nations surveyed (165 independent states and two territories) into four groups: 28 full democracies, 54 flawed democracies, 30 hybrid regimes and 55 authoritarian regimes.

South Korea scored 7.88 out of a possible 10 to land in 31st place and was classified as a flawed democracy. It scored a high 9.58 for free elections but did worse than advanced nations in the rest of the categories: 7.14 in functioning government, 7.22 in political participation, 7.5 in political culture and 7.94 in civil liberties. North Korea was last with a paltry 1.03. The Economist did not produce a democracy index for each country last year.

(Note: sarcasm on) I wonder why Korea’s lowest score was for a functioning government?

UPDATE: The Marmot’s Hole now has more on “Pyongyang Cindy” as well.

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Who in Korea approved her entry into South Korea?:

Anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan visited a village near Camp Humphreys on Monday night in a show of “solidarity” with local residents opposing the installation’s expansion.

Sheehan was part of a group of about 20 activists from the United States who are in South Korea this week to oppose the expansion project and a proposed South Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement.

The camp is set to triple in size in coming years and become the U.S. military’s main installation on the peninsula.

Some local residents backed by South Korean anti-US activists have been resisting the expansion since 2005.

What does Cindy Sheehan know about South Korea? Absolutely nothing. As Pelgasius noted, she can’t even make up her own signs. This picture is absolutely priceless:

Her is my favorite quote from Sheehan’s sister:

Sheehan’s sister Dede Miller, of Los Angeles, told the audience, “I’m just very sorry for what my country is doing to yours.”

(Note sarcasm on) Yes I as an American am very sorry about everything the my country has done to Korea as well, especially the ending of 35 years of Japanese colonial rule that costs hundreds of thousands of lives during World War II, the sacrifice of 33,000+ lives during the Korean War to save the country from communism, 55 years of peace, security assistance, and economic development that has brought South Korea’s to the 11th strongest economy in the world and one of the best global standards of living. Yes we as Americans have a lot to be ashamed of.

Do these wackos know that the US is reducing it’s military footprint in Korea from 41 camps to 10? Do they know the Koreans are making a huge net gain in land from all the USFK base closures including some of the most valuable property in all of Korea, Yongsan Garrison in downtown Seoul? Do they know that the vast majority of Daechu-ri villagers left freely and that the majority of the people of Pyeongtaek want the base consolidation and they also want the protesters gone. Has she even seen polls that show that 8 in 10 Koreans oppose the protesters while 7 in 10 approve of the camp consolidation? Does she and her cronies know that they are being used by people linked to North Korean spies? Than again she is friends with Hugo Chavez so why shouldn’t she be friends with Kim Jong-il as well?

Oh My News also has more on the Cindy Sheehan visit:

The sign she is holding says from my limited Korean skills something like renegotiate the Camp Humphreys expansion. Native speakers feel free to correct me if I’m wrong.

Mark’s comment at Lost Nomad best summarizes this whole thing:

Maybe she can go up north and pose on a nork 57mm antiaircraft gun wearing a nork helmet?

Is there anyone more hypocritical and self absorbed than this woman? Make sure you read more at Lost Nomad and DPRK Studies.

Just to show taxi cab related incidents aren’t a purely 2ID thing, from the Stars and Stripes:

South Korean police said they are investigating two U.S. soldiers for assaulting a taxi driver Friday night.

The 51-year-old taxi driver said he was attacked in a public rest- room in Itaewon at about 11:20 p.m.

Police said the driver, Park Gwang-yong, remained hospitalized Monday and might require surgery.

Police said the soldiers fled to nearby Yongsan Garrison after the assault, and that U.S. military authorities brought them to the off-base police station for questioning about 11 hours later.

Remember this is Korea, guilty until proven innocent.

HT: Nomad