Zenister

i'm refering more to the infrastructure, not specifically related to oil...there are lots of 'life support' providers.. but who do you think got the contract? KBR. of course they have been doing it for years, and were likely in the best position to spin up quickly, but that isnt the point.... the point is if its money (oil) it gets pushed thru without any real issues or red tape..... to bad soldiers lives are not valued so highly... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

you make a good point.... if we werent at war, and if this administration had not used that reasoning to set the precedent for expedited contract awards and approvals ala Halliburton via KBR... guess there arent any relations to the armor industry in the current inner circle... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

actually we could admit we were wrong to the international community, and ask for help to fix the mess we have on our hands... this would certainly go along way towards showing the 'average iraqi' that we arent empire building.... McCain should have run 8 years ago... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

because the people who built and designed the parachute (even the very first designed by da Vinci) used sound, demonstrable scientific principles we can repeat any where any time with minimal variance...as opposed to the multitude of fireside stories primitive man used to make himself feel better in the deep cold night, many of which we can prove to be complete fabrications... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

there are certainly worse places to go in that direction than Qatar... at least one other DZ.comer is in Qatar now (Jazzjumper) there is a good chance i'll be there next year some time as well.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

I don't understand where you get the idea the armor isn't being supplied. Apparently it is being supplied as quickly as it can be manufactured. http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/2004/tr20041209-1765.html That's not what one manufacturer said on the radio last week. He said his plant could supply a lot more, but it hadn't been ordered. Which manufacturer? Please provide a link. I'm very surprised the press hasn't jumped on an inconsistency like this. they have.... that is the Ohio manufacturer... here is the one in AZ.. the 'emperor' isnt simply nude... he's also full of shit... they havent been in full production for 2 YEARS... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

In restrospect, I'm surprised I made it through my teen years with all my fingers and both eyes intact... Maybe I'm a natural. Today, I'm not sure a lot of people would have been allowed into college because of things no one bothered too much about 20 years ago. raises hand I've had discussions with several of my long time friends about how much jail time (and who'd show up at our funeral after an overzealous public servant shot one of us ) we'd be doing if we were in jr high/high school/college now.... and some people think we arent losing freedom everyday... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

little women rock! pours after work cocktail.... cheers! dont worry lisa its almost over.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

ok i fully agree on the pocket knife, (i dont feel complete when i have to give it up on airliners) but where/how do you carry all of that other gear without it becoming a nuisance/problem? ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

"love at first sight" is a chemical reaction triggered by circumstance it may or may not have anything to do with the person themselves it just happened to be good timing...the combination of place, time and a willingness to look.... IMO 'real' love is a conscious choice to place someone else's feelings and wellbeing above your own... if your just basing it on 'feelings' we can give you a shot of any number of drugs that will change those feelings rather dramatically... if you've made a conscious choice, a commitment to another then no amount of chemicals or drugs will affect it.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

ok so we've got a three way on the same day..... where shall we have the 'Aries' boogie at??? ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

just got it and the Shovels DVD in the mail... watched them out at the DZ (since the playstation DVD player sucks and doesnt like them, need a real DVD player soon anyway..) some good tunes, nice footage and some ugly carnage... but as a wanna be BASE jumper i'm impressed... LOTS of exits at a large variety of locations... i'd say its worth it definately, add to that i ordered mine after seeing your post and checking out the trailer and they showed up yesterday....very nice customer service too.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

good thing he doesnt surf thru here ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

would have been funnier to watch him pull and the voting box fly out... that was just stupid... even a wuffo should have seen that his chute came out from where he 'stowed' to box.... lame lame lame.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

ignorant fucks who refuse to see that they are in fact ignorant or that it is a bad thing they could easily do something about.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

Now are putting words in my mouth, and those words smell of shit... you clearly have issues with reading compression... I'm done attempting to explain to you how and why it is nessesary to perceive the world in terms less absolute than the simple ‘black hats’ and ‘white hats’ movie perspective you have.... there are very few absolutes in life, and you'll get allot farther if you attempt to understand the REAL motivations that drive people to fight, die and kill from THEIR perspective, and how far they will go to achieve THEIR ends, instead of the only one you know, the only one you can comprehend.…. but the FACTS are you have no clue what i have 'decided' and clearly cannot read or comprehend what I have actually said and have been trying to explain to you... but if you believe for an INSTANT I'm supporting the insurgents or that i believe they are the 'Good Guys" you can fuck right off... and i will gladly tell you that to your face... it was a nice discussion until you decide and ignorantly assert that because i DO understand something you do not, cannot, that i am siding with them.. DONT ACCUSE ME OF BEING A TRAITOR... EVER what the fuck have YOU done today, last week, or even last year to make a difference in this conflict?? WTF do you think you know from your armchair perspective and mass media sources??? Clearly not very fucking much…. and it saying that gets me banned so be it, but some statements are simply intolerable... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

beautiful...simply beautiful.. i wish i could have seen that... those sort of stealthy events were what i lived for when i was really into rappelling off anything i could attach a rope too... and I agree, dont worry about the rope.. it will get used elsewhere guarantied. particularly since it sounds like you cut it near the top... but that crew wont leave any hanging anymore for a while…and shouldnt have in the first place (but that your gain and their loss)..... look at it this way.. it could have been some drunken idiot doing a 'hey yall watch this" climbing attempt.. as happened to an ATL cleaning crew that resulted in serious injury and some job loss for a few people i knew in the business... just read it again... nice very nice..... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

tell that to the Indians... oh wait we won... so i guess we were right... what do the Neo-Cons say whenever anyone attempts to teach our children what REALLY happened?? What did/do your high school history books say about Manifest Destiny? does the word genocide pop up often?? not really, we pretty much only have the Roman side of the story, accurate accounts of the motivations and cultural values of the Gauls do not exist, were replaced by those of the victors.. we can make guesses about them and the different path society might have taken if the Gaul’s had won based on archeological evidence, but we cannot view the outcome through any filter other than the one left by the prevailing culture..the culture ours grew out of.... we are also talking about how this war and its participants will be viewed tomorrow... to determine that we have to know who will be the one writing the history... who's cultural paradigm will prevail... But what were the revolutionaries fighting for? A free and independant state, democracy. Apparently that was the way to go since much of the world adopted it since. Would tyranny under an empire been better just because the Brits may have won? History books, no matter who wrote them, do not change the intrisic "rightness" or "wrongness" of a conflict, they just allow the victor to explain themselves. Not true.. the only reason you can say that, can even think of it in those terms is because we WON, and our culture has taught its children those values are held in higher regard than obedience to the crown....... if we had lost it would have been described as rebellion against the lawful governance by the British Empire... So we'll fight how we fight, according to our standards, no matter what? Wouldn't that make it almost pointless to understand our enemies? no we still fight by our standards, our principles, but by understanding their mindset and motivations we can 'get inside' their decision cycle.. this allows us to predict and in some cases prevent them from exploiting our behaviors in an effective manner, and modify those behaviors (within our standard of conduct) to minimize the results of their propaganda ‘spin’ and its affect on the moderates, those we are trying to ‘win over’ to our side… it also means we can predict and react to what they will most likely do on a military level before they do it... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

you could use those terms, but they are not very accurate even from inside our culture... 'freedom fighters' do not invade and occupy... you are trying to say that because they use tactics and means we find despicable and morally corrupt that THEY could not possibly be fighting for the freedom to practice THEIR way of life... we are fighting to impose OUR idea and ideals of 'freedom' on their culture/country ..what you still fail to see is the broader picture.. there is no objective reality in war... truth is written by the victors... but of course you need a broad understanding of politics and history to see that... tell me who was 'morally right' the Romans or the Gauls? does it even matter now???? i suppose you believe the British Empire (having defeated the American Revolutionaries) would not have refered to Washington and crew as 'terrorists' and 'insurgents' from a historical perspective??? as to modifying our tactics (ie adapting theirs), no not at all... i guess you cant read where i clearly stated we MUST accept the tactical disadvantages imposed by fighting in 'our' way in order to maintain the moral high ground and be able to create the free society we envision for a democratic Iraq... as soon as we lower ourselves to their level, by adopting their means and values...... WE LOSE, even if we kill everyone of them, man woman and child..... again.. this conflict will NOT be resolved by simple military force... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

but they ARE 'freedom fighters'. It is just not OUR 'freedom' they are fighting for..They are fighting for the freedom to continue THEIR way of life, the life they chose to accept, without interference from the west. We are attempting to change that concept for the 'average' Iraqi, to give them a broader, more western understanding of 'freedom' and the possibilities available to them......and they use the best, most readily available weapons and tactics they can... they obviously are not stupid.. Stupid would be attempting to fight us on OUR terms... something everyone seems to want them to do and calls them cowards when they dont... The British once said the same of the American Revolutionaries.. WE too used tactics that to them were cowardly and despicable, not at all the 'honorable conduct of war'. you know what the difference was? We WON.. IF (and i sincerely doubt it will, and am contributing my efforts daily, to see that it doesnt, but look at it in a broader perspective) THEY WIN this conflict EVERY death on their side (willing or not) will be seen as a 'hero' and a 'martyr' for their country... It is about perspective and who's paradym will rule in the future of Iraq... i'm addressing far more than your comments in every post, a web board isnt simply a conversation between two people, even when only two people are currently carrying the thread... so stop taking them personally, if you read up you'll see exactly where I am responding to those who cannot seem conceive of a 'hero' except as someone that fights for our side... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

that picture still amazes me... those are the lowest quality knee pads you can get EVEN FOR LAYING FLOORING... that some idiot jumped with them is proof of darwin's theories... great rigs! you've got good taste in color schemes too... I'll have to post a picture of the container Chris made for me when i get a canopy in it so its not looking all flat and unfulfilled like it is now.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

it isnt 'perfectly ok', by OUR standards it is cowardly, dishonorable conduct. But it is a fact of War and particularly this war. It is ignorant to presume that they (their leaders such as they exist) do not understand and exploit the differences in our cultures in exactly the manner that makes it difficult for us to address... Understanding your enemy is a key factor in being able to defeat them (but we have FAR more we have to accomplish than the simple military 'defeat' in order to have achieved anything.....) we have made several major mistakes in this conflict so far, one huge ongoing error is the pretense that we do not have to fight "for hearts and minds" (even if/when it leaves us at a significant tactical disadvantage) and the more we continue with heavy handed tactics that play perfectly into to the propaganda they use to recruit, the more basically ignorant and misguided, but just as sincere (and perhaps more so as it is THEIR COUNTRY) soldiers we create to struggle for what they believe is right. just as you paint their actions with simplistic "evil" motivations, they do the same thing to ours, and every time we play into the hands of the zealots, helps convince those on the edge, and alienates the moderates... I'm not mistaking you two at all. I have the greatest respect for the work Josh is doing, and i do not question that he and the majority of our soldiers are doing the absolute best they can.. I (and a great many others, both in the military and out) DO question our overall strategy and approach as dictated by the CIVILIAN leadership.... what you seem to fail to grasp is the 'rightness' of a cause (as determined by history, always written by the victors) has NOTHING to do with heroism.. there are genuine heroes on the opposing side, just as their were a great many genuine hero's serving the Nazi party and even in ranking positions in the SS.. if you dont believe so you need a better education in history, war and what really occurs in the conduct of it....dont mistake the soldier for the politicians that pull the strings.... "Hero" is determined by elements and character of the individuals involved and the actions, circumstance and sincerity of belief by that individual, not by who's culture ultimately triumphs... seeing the other side is CRITICAL to being able to predict and prevent surprises, to being able to plan and reach an eventual compromise that the moderate majority (and the majority of ANY population falls in the middle of the belief, not the edges) will agree to and support... we are alienating that majority, even inside the individual tribal and religious divisions that make up the 'country' of Iraq...... more and more every day... this is not a conflict that will EVER be won by simple military superiority.... if it was it would already be over... just as Bush expected it to be..... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

you'd be more accurate if you said "the majority of those who voted Democrat had little voice in who ran." None of the "Get out the Vote" campaigns were targeted before the Primaries... the party leadership didnt want that, they never do, it would mean the people chose who would run instead of the party puppet masters... yet another reason why the current two party system is fucked... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

when you go spend some time on the ground, when you participate in daily briefings, and talk to those who are STILL OVER there doing the job you claim to be so knowledgeable about, EVERYDAY let me know ok?? it IS ok with them... it is perfectly acceptable to sacrifice their own to win. WE have a different standard of conduct, and as long as you and others like you in our administration attempt to view their motivations through the lens of OUR culture. We will continue to fail to grasp their actual motivations and goals or to sway the majority of the people that our cause is just.... since you obviously you know soooo much more about the mind set of our enemy, maybe we can offer you a job in intelligence? after all our fearless leader likes to think the same way.. and we can clearly see how well that is panning out...... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.

rotflmao.... ____________________________________ Those who fail to learn from the past are simply Doomed.