There is nothing wrong with what General Clark said (updated)

I cannot believe that the media and the Obama campaign are buying into the bullshit line that Gen. Wes Clark said anything wrong yesterday.

"In the matters of national security policy making, it's a matter of understanding risk," he said on CBS' "Face the Nation." "It's a matter of gauging your opponents and it's a matter of being held accountable. John McCain's never done any of that in his official positions. I certainly honor his service as a prisoner of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands and millions of others in the armed forces, as a prisoner of war.

"He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee and he has traveled all over the world, but he hasn't held executive responsibility," Clark said. "That large squadron in the Navy that he commanded _ that wasn't a wartime squadron."

The McCain campaign, the media and now the Obama campaign are comparing this to the attacks against Senator Kerry in 2004. Now termed swiftboating thanks to the name of the 527 Group that paid for and ran the ads.

Swiftboating implies that lies were told and that the honor of someone's service has been called into question which was done to Senator Kerry. No one has lied about Senator McCain's service or suggested that his time in uniform wasn't honorable.

Can someone please tell me how being a POW qualifies you to be president?

Do I respect his service? Do I wish he hadn't be captured and tortured? Of course. Does it mean that he knows horrors that few, if any of us will ever have to experience? Unforetunatly for him, yes.

Does it mean that he has leadership qualities? Does it mean that he has good judgement? Does it mean that he knows anything about foreign policy or strategy? NO.

If I had a car accident does that mean that I am qualified to run a pit crew at Indianapolis? Should I be head of the Department of Transportation? Of course not.

Are you belittling my pain, trauma or capabilities as a driver by saying so? Of course not.

How is what General Clark said any different?

General Clark and many of us simply want to have someone explain how his experience has prepared him to lead the country. A very fair question and one that Senator Obama and this campaign should continue to ask.

If Senator Obama doesn't feel comfortable asking that since he hasn't worn the uniform then Gen. Clark and many other veterans can and should keep asking the question on the campaign's behalf.

Side Note --I know that this will tick a lot of people off, but in my book being a POW doesn't qualify you as a hero. We are way too quick to label someone a hero. Going through a trying experience or an ordeal that you had no choice about does not make you a hero. Surviving something isn't heroic. If that was the case then the men at Gitmo are heroes. I am certainly not making that argument, but if you apply the same logic then they are too. They just happen to be our prisoners instead of the Viet Cong's. They got captured by the enemy, put in prison and are being subjected to harsh treatment and interrogations.

All wars and all sides have POWs. They are all unlucky SOBs, not heroes.

There are prisoners who have acted heroically. Risking your life to help other prisoners escape or blinking messages in Morse code is heroic (but still not a qualification to lead the country though).

Getting captured, following the Code of Conduct and enduring makes you a good soldier doing your job. Doing your job is not heroic, it is expected. As Chris Rock quipped you don't get special credit for doing what you are supposed to do (talking about fathers, not POWs).

UPDATE (7/3/2004) -- After 4 days of distortion on this story with McCain surrogates and media personalities defending the senator over attacks that weren't ever voiced by Gen. Clark it makes sense to quote Mr. McCain himself on the subject of military service and its connection to being prepare to be president. When asked if "military service inherently makes somebody better equipped to be commander-in-chief." McCain said,

"Absolutely not. History shows that some of our greatest leaders have had little or no military experience- Abraham Lincoln, Franklin Delanor Roosevelt. Harry Truman was in the artillery in World War I, which was magnificent. Ronald Reagan did most of his active duty in the studio lots in California. It might be a nice thing, but I absolutely don't believe that it's necessary. [National Journal, 2/15/03]

Source

TPM posted this video which is a nice montage showing what was actually said and how distorted the media and McCain campaign's response to it was



The poor guy who the Fox host (that word doesn't seem appropriate to how she treats a guest, but the other words that I would use to describe her just aren't polite) keeps interupting is Jon Soltz. He is the head of VoteVets.org and if he had been allowed to talk perhaps some of his interesting points might have made it onto the air. He did write a rather interesting piece this week that you can read here.

I've been running VoteVets.org for a couple of years now. In 2006 and in2008, we've endorsed a number of Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for Congress. It's still a story that the press is largely interested in, and when they call me to talk about it, I always -- always -- get the same first question: What is it about their honorable service in Iraq and/or Afghanistan that qualifies them to go to Congress? It's a legit question, and neither I, nor any of the candidates, take any umbrage at it.

So why won't John McCain answer the question?

HBO Carlin Tribute

HBO Comedy just started a 12+ hour marathon of George Carlin standup specials. He did fourteen comedy specials for HBO, so I'm not sure which three they aren't airing or why, but they are showing eleven of them. Hopefully they will have them all available On Demand because I'm not planning to stay up until 4:30AM.

George Carlin had a "Negative Patient Care Outcome"

One of the greats is dead. Carlin was smart, brutally honest, fearless and hysterical.

I have a hard time picking my favorite Carlin routine, but one of the things that was most appealing to me was the way he dissected language. Yes, he could be crude and often said things that made people cringe, but he was truly an artist with the language. This video is an example of all of the above.

WARNING - This video is from his 1990 HBO special "Doin' It Again," so it is "R" rated. This is the man who made famous the "Seven Words You Can't Say on Television" after all.....


"If crime fighters fight crime and fire fighters fight fires, then what do freedom fighters fight?"

It takes much more than a comedian to be able to point out how Shell Shocked became Battle Fatigue which became Operational Exhaustion which became Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.

This video is 18 years old and still so relevant with regards to PTSD and how our government thinks about and deals with it. Don't think so? Please read this or this or this.

I've spent much of the day watching and listening to him on YouTube while doing my exercises.

Thanks for the laughs Mr. Carlin. Rest in peace.

A video to explain the dangers of allowing gay marriage...


(Thanks to Daily KOS and Americablog for posting this video)

I know that my marriage is TOTALLY threatened because Del Martin (87) and Phylis Lyon (84) were finally allowed to marry yesterday after a FIFTY year engagement period. I am not at all ashamed to say that I wept when I saw this photo and read the story of their wedding. To finally have their relationship recognized for the beautiful institution it is after 50 years is so awesome. God bless them for their patience, for their continued activism, and for their witness that love is stronger than hatred, bigotry, and intolerance.

Latest Doctor's Appointment

It's been six weeks since I last saw Dr. Ove, so I had a follow up appointment today. Started out with the usual x-rays to see how things are healing and actually had them taken in a standing position for a change. Dr. Ove wasn't thrilled with how the top of my tibia looked (the side that was crushed) and is obviously concerned that I'm not able to bend it very far still. He started talking about some pretty drastic steps, but wants to give the JAS splint a chance to work. So I have until July 14th and then it looks like he is going to recommend manipulation, which is a fancy way of saying knock me out and force my knee to bend while I'm unconscious.

Clinically, manipulation is defined as using techniques to force a joint beyond its presumed physiological barrier and up to its anatomical barrier. Essentially these techniques are beyond the conscious control of the patient. In other words, once the manipulation has been initiated it can’t be stopped. Joint manipulation involves sudden, high velocity thrusting type movements that are often accompanied by an audible clicking, cracking or popping sound. (source)

He also said that even if I get the range of motion gains by manipulation (or on my own) that I may still have a great deal of pain due to the amount of damage within the joint from the initial injury. From day one he always said that a knee replacement was in my future, but he was talking about 10-15 years and now he is starting to sound like it may be much sooner than that. It sounded as if he was wrestling with whether or not that would be something he may be recommending very soon. So for my part I'm going to continue to do my exercises twice a day and use the JAS splint three times a day and hope for the best. We'll see where things stand in a month and find out what Dr. Ove recommends.

There were some positive developments too though. Dr. Ove said that since the bone is healed that I didn't have to wear the knee brace anymore. It provides stability and support, but even though it is hinged I can bend my knee much more without it on. The other positive development is that I can now also walk with only one crutch. This is something that Jessica tried to have me do weeks ago and I was unable to do it. Friday I decided to give it a try again since my leg is so much stronger and I was able to do it. So I don't need to be waited on nearly as much. I can carry my own dish from the kitchen to the table or get myself a drink without it needing to be in a travel coffee mug. Little things yes, but progress that helps my moral.

Update on my leg

JAS Splint
I got my JAS splint last Wednesday afternoon and have been using it for a week now. The representative for the company came at the end of my PT appointment last Wednesday and spent an hour and a half, fitting it, showing me how to use it and taking me through my first full session with it. I used it once a day for a few days, twice a day for a few days and today will be my first day of three sessions. Actually I didn't use it at all on Saturday, but more on that in a bit.

So far I'd say it is going fairly well and it isn't nearly as bad as you might imagine looking at the picture posted in my previous entry. It's a little hard to put on myself and pretty uncomfortable around my thigh are the worst things I'd say about it so far. As long as I follow the instructions that the rep. gave me it isn't painful. The idea is that you do six five-minute progressive static stretches. I crank the ratchet until I start to feel the scar tissue stretch and then stop. I wait five minutes and then assess whether the stretch has intensified, stayed the same or decreased. If it is worse I back off, rest a bit and then re-crank until I start to feel a stretch again and do another five minutes. If it is the same I wait another minute, without backing off. Hopefully it has decreased at the end of five or six minutes. If it has I crank it a little further and hold there for another five to six minutes. So in thirty or forty-five minutes I've gotten six good stretches.

So now that I'm up to three sessions this takes two and a half to three hours of time blocked out each day for the JAS Splint in addition to the two hours worth of "normal" PT exercises that I still do each day. So rehab is just shy of a full time job, so its good that I'm still on medical leave or I'd never have the time to do all of this.

Overdid it this Weekend
Friday night was our Relay for Life (not too late to make a donation if you wish to) and we had a great time as always. It was extremely hot when the event started at 6PM and even though I wasn't able to walk around the track any where near what I have done in years past I was up and around on my crutches a lot more than most days. I helped run the live auction this year by manning the sign up table, recording the winning bidder number and price and acting as cashier at the end of the auction (a job that I could do sitting down). I walked the team lap at the beginning of the relay and walked around a good bit during the luminary ceremony. The relay lasts all night and ends at 6AM, but I didn't stay all night this year. I went home at about 1:30AM this year because I had a youth group event scheduled for 8:30am on Saturday.

Our team ended up as the second place fund raiser this year and nearly surpasses our team totals from the last three years combined!

So with five hours sleep I headed down to the church to supervise the youth who were scheduled to work with the Sweat Equity volunteers. I didn't have many options, but the first day of summer for the youth was apparently not a great day to choose. Only two from our group showed up, but they were a big help and we got a pretty big section of the basement floor poured in the house that we are renovating on the church property. My job was filling a bucket with water to be added into the cement mixer with the concrete. Still even with a seated job I found it hard to stay put and ended up traipsing all around campus and on my feet way more than I should have been. I stayed until about 2PM. The heat, the lack of sleep, the amount of time I spent on my feet Friday night and Saturday morning took its toll on me. By the time I got home I was spent and my leg was throbbing. I had lunch and then crashed. I slept right through Hillary's speech and missed the last leg of the Triple Crown. I did no exercises and didn't use my splint at all on Saturday. This was the first day that I've skipped completely since my PT began. I awoke on Sunday to find my leg still aching and the rest of my body screaming for more rest too. I decided that I would forgo church services and give my tired muscles and injured knee time to recuperate.

Therapy This Week
It was 96 degrees on Tuesday when I arrived at therapy to see a sign on the elevator door in the lobby that said "No Step Down Patients, A/C is broken." (Step Down Patients are those that come in to use the equipement on their own because they have graduated from working one-on-one with a therapist. So they were trying to limit the number of bodies generating heat in the office.) When I got to the thrird floor, I found the lights off and portable fans everywhere. Honestly it wasn't half as bad as I expected. But my therapist had gone home early so another therapist was going to work on me. Amanda is the new director of the PT Department who just moved here from California. She told me that she was doing an evaluation on a new patient, so I should do my exercises and she would work on my leg at the end instead of the beginning of the appointment. I wasn't that happy to think about the painful pushing on my leg happening after my exercises instead of before as usual. So after I went through my routine and Amanda finished with her other patient she comes over and says "I've been waiting for a chance to see what I can do with this knee." (She's the one who suggested the JAS splint to Jessica). Then she ups the ante even more by saying "I'm a bit more aggressive than Jessica." Not exactly words to make me relax. She was pretty effective though and managed to get my knee to bend to 70 degrees. She noticied that my knee cap wasn't moving much and showed me how to work on it to loosen it up since that is a crucial part of bending. So I've been doing that a lot. She also took the last bit of relaxation in my appointment and turned that into 10 more minutes of torture...I mean productive time working on my knee. I now spend my last 10 minutes of the appointment with ice on my knee also strapped to the table leg just like I do with the heat for the beginning of each appointment.

Jessica was thrilled to hear that I got to 70 and she and Amanda took turns pushing on my leg and discussing technique at my Thursday appointment. With Amanda leaning across my lap to keep my hip from coming off of the table (and after each had taken a few turns) Jessica got my leg to bend about 80 degrees. They didn't actually measure it, but they both agreed it was at least 80, maybe even 85 degrees. We were all three very pleased, but man it was PAINFUL.

"Not too important" that our troops come home!

War could last 100 years, but John McCain doesn't really care if they EVER come home...

Main Stream Media, where are you????

Last night at approximately 7:30PM Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) took to the floor of the House of Representatives and for over 4 hours read his 35 Articles of Impeachment against President Bush. It was a true Mr. Smith Goes to Washington moment in history.

Strangely (not) there has been no mention of it on the evening news or even the 24 hour news channels. I couldn't find it mentioned on their web sites either. NO ONE but the liberal bloggers are discussing this. Even there the community is split as to whether this is a great thing or a foolish waste of time. Personally I come down on the side of this being a great thing. Whether or not this gets any traction I think that it is fantastic that someone has the guts and sense of patriotism to get it into the official record of the Congress.

ARTICLES OF IMPEACHMENT FOR PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH Resolved, that President George W. Bush be impeached for high crimes and misdemeanors, and that the following articles of impeachment be exhibited to the United States Senate:Articles of impeachment exhibited by the House of Representatives of the United States of America in the name of itself and of the people of the United States of America, in maintenance and support of its impeachment against President George W. Bush for high crimes and misdemeanors.In his conduct while President of the United States, George W. Bush, in violation of his constitutional oath to faithfully execute the office of President of the United States and, to the best of his ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States, and in violation of his constitutional duty to take care that the laws be faithfully executed, has committed the following abuses of power.

Follow the link above to read all 35 articles and see Rep. Kucinich's supporting documentation.

UPDATE: Finally, Keith Olberman covers this on his show tonight!

Why I'm supporting Obama

As we all wait to see what will happen with the final two primary contests today and the constant back and forth about whether the Clinton campaign will concede or not tonight I would like to share my thoughts on these two historic candidates. Back in February I was fortunate enough to see both of their complete stump speeches before the "Crabcake/Chesapeake/Potomac Primary" (pick your favorite DelMarVa nickname). When it comes to policy and their stance on the issues I was unable to find much if any daylight between where these two stand. I found myself nodding and clapping throughout both speeches and so refreshed and relieved by the possibility to change course from the last seven and a half years.

I will happily vote for either of them in November and I'm betting that we will soon have party unity behind our candidate. I'm confident that even those saying "my guy/gal or I'm voting for McCain" will not cut off their noses to spite their faces. There is far too much at stake for anyone to even consider that for a moment. The potential Supreme Court appointments, the war, the current economic situation, the damage to our Constitution and reputation around the world are not safe in the hands of John McCain. We must come together and ensure victory in November.

While their core beliefs were so similar, there was an obvious difference. I made my choice between what I saw as a capable experienced politician who will work for things that I feel are important and one who will do that, but also inspired me to get involved and made me feel like he wanted and needed me to come along and do it with him. I felt like she was saying "vote for me - I can handle the responsibility and I share your values." I could then go back to my life. Obama, on the other hand was saying "vote for me, join the movement, imagine what we can do together." He was inspiring and leading while she was applying for the job of most qualified bureaucrat.

Hilary went to PA and Ohio and talked about hunting as a little girl and drank a boilermaker in a bar and Obama went before Cuban-Americans in Florida and the United Auto Workers in Detroit and said things that they didn't want to, but needed to hear.

I have the utmost respect for Sen. Clinton and her husband is my favorite president who served during my lifetime. I feel for her supporters who are frustrated and looking for any possible angle to win the nomination. After Gore and Kerry it is encouraging to see the passion and tenacity that is within our party, but it is time to turn that towards our true opponent and ensure that the Democrats are victorious in November.

The following video is from the end of Obama's final primary stump speech and if you've never heard him explain how his campaign got it's rally cry it is well worth a listen. One voice can change the world and enthusiasm is contagious....

Are you FIRED UP? READY TO GO?

Primary Math