I found out after lunch, as I leafed through Stars and Stripes. As I always do, I look at the casualty list in the hopes that I wouldn’t recognize any names. Today as I stared dumbstruck at the name on the page I felt a horrible knot in my stomach and was smacked in the face with several emotions. I wrestled with the idea of writing anything public for the better part of the day. After all, there are far more people out there that knew Parten a great deal better than I. What right do I have to feel loss? I have recognized names in the Army Times and Stars and Stripes before. I have also known too many officers I have worked with that passed away due to accidents and even suicide. The difference this time around is that he is…was…IS a comrade and a friend and I do feel the loss of someone special. Writing this, in the hopes that people that never knew him will know what type of man he is, makes me feel better. So I am going to write.

Parten was a larger than life type of person. He thoroughly enjoyed a good joke and was not above debasing himself in the juvenile pursuit of making others break out in spasms of laughter. He was fun to be around and welcome relief in those times when The Suck was taking its toll. He was also a professional dedicated to his craft and of single minded purposefulness in his efforts to eradicate those who had inflicted harm on our nation on 9/11.

I met him at Fort Knox during AOBC. We were in the same platoon during tank, recon and COE phase. After he graduated and I was left at Knox to rot with injury, we emailed as we were both adjutants with our respective units. As with AOBC, we mixed business and stupidity with alarming ease. We commiserated and offered each encouragement through our predicaments, he, waiting for a platoon at Fort Carson, and I, trying to heal my ever-present stress fractures and graduate from BOLC III. He wasn’t ADJ for long and did get the platoon he waited for and seemed more than overjoyed.

One memory I have of Tyler that came to me almost immediately upon learning of the news was our AOBC class’s first mission in the CCTT (a full scale tank simulator). Undoubtedly, we knew we would not fare well and our foreboding was justified. Who was the sacrificial victim that was to be thrown to the wolves, better known as Black 6s? None other than Tyler Parten. Of course, initially we did not do too badly. The 6s and the civilian technicians took it easy on us and we clumsily defeated an enemy tank platoon set on stupid. But soon things went awry and Tyler found himself in a rapidly deteriorating situation where his bravo section was somewhere getting hammered by AT-5s and his driver kept going in circles. Having been thrown into sheer chaos, Tyler forgot the proper reporting format to Black 6 and was fumbling his words. The ever testy SFC Theim, in his most condescending tone, asked if there was another, presumably proper, way of describing the happenstance of Red Platoon being annihilated by an enemy Mechanized Infantry Company and T-80U platoon. Tyler composed himself, undoubtedly took a deep breath, and said, clearly and confidently: “Black 6, we’re FUCKED!” Even the curmudgeonly Theim laughed. Most people would have been horribly embarrassed by the performance and radio feux pas, but not Tyler. As with all things, he merely laughed it off and endeavored to do better the next time (he did).

Those who don’t know people in the military truly have no idea the sacrifice that Soldiers, Airmen, Sailors and Marines make to protect this nation. While fringe nuts and seditious Democratic Congressmen are doing their best to lose our wars, our servicemen and women lead stressed out, exhausting existences in every hellhole found on this sordid globe. Families suffer with their loved ones so far away and live for emails and phone calls. Too many families experience the ultimate pain and most horrific loss. For them the name on the news or in the paper is neither a statistic, nor another numeric measure of success or failure. To them, that name represents the end of their world as they have known it and a future devoid of the warmth and joy of their loved one. We Americans put too much into sports stars and celebrities by calling them heroes. I am no hero, nor is any other Soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan. We are merely doing our jobs. The only true heroes are the brave men and women who will never see another sunrise, smell the sweetness of a summer day or feel the warm embrace of a tearful and joyous reunion.

I leave off with another recollection from AOBC. During dismounted recon STX Tyler and I were tasked with scouting the next rally point/training site. We stealthily covered the 500 meters or so to the coordinates given to us. As we neared the correct grid we saw our civilian instructors pull up to the clump of trees that was our destination, get out, light up a smoke and begin chatting. These men between them had around 50 years of scouting experience and we both resolved to sneak up on them and report back to our platoon. Slowly, and only crawling through the tall grass when the wind shook the branches in the trees, Tyler and I creeped up until, finally, we were within a mere 20 feet of the trio. I radioed our PL and in hushed tones whispered that we had arrived at the rally point and that we had snuck up on our erstwhile instructors (still oblivious). Tyler and I grinned at each other and shared one sublime moment of joint understanding where our newbie self-doubt evaporated. Maybe we were going to do alright at this profession. Maybe we weren’t as hopeless as we were sometimes led to believe. Maybe we would, someday soon, make worthy tank or scout platoon leaders.

Well, it came to pass, at least in Tyler’s case. Though he had to suffer the indignity of serving as battalion adjutant before getting his platoon, he no doubt savored every moment at Fort Carson as an armor officer. He was a fine leader and an even better human being. No person deserves the sobriquet of hero more than him. He will be greatly missed.

I know a hero. His name is Tyler Parten. I will never forget him.

Lay down your burdens brother, it is time to rest. You have strove much and given more. You have given us laughter and you have protected us. Rest now and know we are eternally grateful.

Click here to view the embedded video.

The Army Times article details the recent revelation that certain Farsi speaking insurgent groups have suddenly become equipped with body armor and kevlar helmets as well as vastly improved battlefield tactics and, shockingly, improved marksmanship. Coupled with the huge increase in IED attacks since the fighting season began in the spring, particularly the sharply growing presence of the state-of-the-art EFPs, leads me to believe that the war is about to take an ugly turn for the worse. I think we have a new villain entering the fray in the form of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRG) who, with or without the consent of the Iranian leadership, have taken it upon themselves to institute a major policy shift with regard to Afghanistan.

What has led me to this conclusion despite the DoDs hesitation to come out and verify my hunch? I suppose it is a great deal of speculation considering that there is not a whole lot of hard evidence on the ground to substantiate the theory. However, it does not take a genius to read between the lines. Let us start with the change in battlefield conditions in Afghanistan.

As covered in the Army Times article, US forces recently engaged a large insurgent group in the northwest corner of Afghanistan that possessed advanced equipment to include body armor and kevlar helmets. The soldiers on the ground reported that this group was not fighting like the typical insurgents and used conventional tactics and displayed vastly improved marksmanship (a real surprise considering it is well known gospel that just about everybody in the Middle East can’t shoot for shit). Did I also mention that these folks spoke Farsi? What do these things tell us?

First off, this merry band of cracker jack fucks have some serious financial backing. Body armor and helmets cost a great deal of money, and it may shock some people to know that body armor costs a great deal more than weapons in that part of the world. Whereas one can buy an AK-47 or even RPG for less than $100, body armor will put you back thousands.

Second, someone is taking the time, effort and resources to train these people and values them enough to give them protection. Generally, groups like the Taliban use the peasants that flock to them as cannon fodder. Moreover, the various tribes allied to the Taliban have a history of fighting NATO forces and then becoming disinterested and leaving the conflict as rapidly as they came. This is not a departure from Afghan norms, however the presence of semi-professional soldiers bent on a semi-conventional conflict with US forces (when it suits them) is a radical shift from the seasonal and ad hoc martial tendencies of the typical Afghan rebel.

Finally, though the presence of Farsi speakers is not, in itself, atypical (considering that many tribes speak it in the northwest as well as Uzbek and Tajik groups) , the fact that THESE well armed, and equipped fighters were speaking Farsi is a red flag. We have seen these types of fighters in Iraq and it is well known that they were trained and funded by the Revolutionary Guard. The fighters in Afghanistan fit the bill to the tee.

And what of the increased IED activity? This also lends credence to the notion that an Iranian finger is in the pudding. Historically, the Afghan way of war has been one direct confrontation with enemy forces. This held true through the Soviet War and up to the current conflict.

Anyone that has even a modicum of knowledge about Afghanistan is aware that the Afghans are a martial people that practices warfare on foreigners and each other as a matter of course. Many tribes are built around a cult of personal bravery and victory and, unlike the Iraqis, relish a good firefight. The trend toward the skulking and cowardly act of IED planting is a marked shift from everything we know and have seen from the Afghans to this point. It is either a move in the direction of pragmatism on their part, or an indication that new, non-Afghan groups are increasing their influence in the theatre. Again, the indicators are pointed squarely in the direction of the Revolutionary Guard who have practiced and perfected IED tactics in Iraq.

So if it is indeed the IRG what does this say about the future course of the war? Traditionally, Iran has had little interest in getting involved in Afghanistan and even less love for the Taliban (a Sunni group). Iran’s involvement has been minimal thus far and the intelligence agency most linked to foreign fighters has been the Pakistani ISI maintaining contacts with its former Taliban protégés. If Tehran has decided to take a more direct and overt approach in Afghanistan it would signal a major policy shift. Such a shift would be indicative of three major factors that may have contributed to the decision making process.

1) Their efforts in Iraq have failed and they need a new proxy war, to continue their fight against the great Satan.

2) The weakness of the Afghan central government has become more pronounced as the idiot Karzi has made no progress at unifying the nation and it would be possible to pick up the pieces in the event of a US withdrawal despite a resurgent Taliban.

3) The American people, saddled with their perceived state of malaise and cultural decay, are far less willing to stomach an escalated fight than they have been and continue to grow restless for peace despite the utter lack of sacrifice on their part. The Iranians are no doubt seeing which way the wind is blowing and may feel that the proper application of moderate resources could push the US and NATO public over the edge and effect a withdrawal.

Iranian involvement in Afghanistan at this stage may actually be a low risk, high reward situation. US and NATO withdrawal from the Afghan theatre would increase Iran’s own standing in the region as well as signify a victory for the forces of Islam over the imperialist and decadent pigs from the Christian West. If the US and NATO were to leave in defeat it would be an unmitigated disaster for the civilized peoples of the world. The defeat of the Soviet Army in the 1980’s at the hands of Islamic fighters served to greatly embolden Jihadists around the world and was the definitive and formative event in the creation of groups like Al Qaeda and the Taliban. What would a victory over the Great Satan lead to?

Click here to view the embedded video.

I had always suspected that Obama was going to be a weak leader, but two recent events sealed it for me. First off, the President of France, the irascible Nikolas Sarkozy, opened his big Gallic mouth and quite bluntly called Obama weak and indecisive . Privately, Sarkozy and other European leaders are beginning to rethink their enthusiasm for Change and Hope. How bad must things be if the French are calling us weak? When was the last time that happened? 1979?

If the musings of a wine addled sex-addict were not enough damming evidence on the present state of our affairs than I offer a personal anecdote. As some of you may know, I often take hot baths to help cure mild illnesses like a cold. I caught a cold whilst in Miami, no doubt from the dirty, wretched and unsanitary strippers found at Club Madonna.

While taking the waters, I was reading a book on Afghanistan as it is likely that I will be following in the footsteps of thousands of soldiers who over the millennia attempted to further the interests of their leaders, whether it be Alexander or the ultimate sex-machine Benjamin Disraeli. Naturally, as most of those who came before me came to great grief in the forbidding defiles of that thoroughly undesirable land, I wanted to know as much as possible about the place, in particular how the more recent Soviet failure. I found more interesting, however, how exactly the Soviets came to invade in the first place.

The long and short of it is that the Soviet leadership, headed by former Haggar slacks model, Leonid Brezhnev, were encouraged by Jimmy Carter’s impotence and proven weakness. Stephen Tanner, author of “Afghanistan: A Military History from Alexander the Great to the Fall of the Taliban” writes on the Politburo’s decision to execute the invasion:

Coupled with US’ continued inability to rescue its hostages in Tehran, and the lack of a reaction to the murder of the US ambassador in Kabul at the hands of extremists, the Soviet leadership saw the writing on the wall and were emboldened by Carter’s indecisiveness and apparent unwillingness to use force at any cost.

So, if one considers what occurred the last time the US presented itself as a soft and malleable power, it might be a good idea to slow the pace of Change and Hope. Following Obama’s tour of self-loathing Change of Europe (where they laughed at his pleas for more troops in Afghanistan), the Middle East (he didn’t bow, he really didn’t!) and South America (we are to blame for everything shitty about your shitty countries), it is a wonder that Russia hasn’t invaded the Ukraine, Pakistan hasn’t fallen to the Taliban (yet) and North Korea hasn’t produced a horrible remake of Gone With the Wind with Kim Jong Il as Scarlett O’Hara.

So lets hope that the Wunderkind of Hope tones his hatred of America down a little bit the next time he goes overseas. Pouring blood in the diplomatic waters is one sure way of attracting predators and some of us would rather not follow in the footsteps of the Greeks, Parthians, Bactrians, Scythians, Arabs, Chinese, Moguls, British and Soviets and have our heads paraded through the streets of Kabul on pikes.

From CNN.com:

BERLIN, Germany (CNN) — A polar bear attacked a woman at Berlin Zoo Friday afternoon after she climbed a fence and jumped into its habitat during feeding time, police said Saturday.
The bear attacks the woman during feeding time at the zoo.

The bear attacks the woman during feeding time at the zoo.

One adult polar bit her several times after she plunged into the moat, police said.

Zoo workers tossed rescue rings toward the woman to hoist her out and distract polar bears swimming nearby, said Goerg Gebhard, a Berlin police officer.

“They saved her life,” Gebhard told CNN.

The woman was severely injured and was being treated at a hospital, police said.

It’s unclear why the woman entered the bear habitat, but police issued her a citation for trespassing.

While I’ve tried hard to figure this woman’s logic out, I can’t really come up with anything.

Regardless, this woman should definitely be nominated for a Darwin, or institutionalized.

It looks like Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) has invited Geert Wilders, the Dutch film maker and politician, to present the film Fitna to the United States Senate later this week.

For those of you unaware with this film, it has stirred up international controversy, as it explores Qur’anic motivations for terrorism in the Netherlands and beyond.

If you have yet to see Fitna, here is some of it:

It should be expected that this will draw some protest in Washington and beyond.

Update: Glad to see this story has recieved a good deal of attention!

Since returns are still coming in, I don’t want to delve too deep into any likenesses between their election and the one we just had in November, but please check back over the coming hours as I post updates and any other observations.

If you haven’t followed Israeli politics before, I strongly urge you to try and become immersed in this election as the final results come in.

What’s great about Israel’s electoral system is that unlike the United States, you only need to receive 2% of the vote to be a viable candidate, courtesy of a well organized multi-party system. This means that there is no “absolute control” of government, and alliances are usually a must in order for the government to be successful.

What’s also unique about this election is that this year two parties have been banned from the election: United Arab List-Ta’al and Balad, both Arab political parties. It’ll be interesting to see where that voting block decides to go.

Here are some early updates (from Ha’aretz):

Channel 1:

The Channel 1 poll gave Kadima 30 seats, Likud 28 seats, and Labor 13 seats. Yisrael Beiteinu is predicted to win 14 seats, according to the poll.

Channel 2:

According to the Channel 2 poll, Kadima will hold 29 seats, Likud will take 27 seats and Labor 13 seats. Yisrael Beiteinu will have 15 seats in the new Knesset.

Channel 10:

The Channel 10 poll indicated that Likud will take 28 seats, Kadima will hold 30 seats and Labor 13 seats. Yisrael Beiteinu will have 15 seats.

Real-time Updates:

First, here is a quick rundown of the political experience that Leon Panetta has:

• In 1971, Leon Panetta switched parties, officially becoming a Democrat
• In 1976, Leon Panetta was elected to the United States House of Representatives, representing California’s 16th congressional district
• In 1994, Leon Panetta was appointed as the White House Chief of Staff by former President Bill Clinton.

Based on political positions alone, it’s quite obvious that he doesn’t have the credentials to serve in such a capacity. Even looking back at his committee assignments, the only one he held any leadership on was the House Committee on the Budget. Again, by no means a post that qualifies someone to lead the one of the worlds foremost advanced intelligence gathering agencies.

However, some may find rationale for this appointment by citing his military qualifications. While Leon Panetta did receive the Commendation Medal, his tenure in the United States Military only lasted from 1964 to 1966.

Even looking at his more recent accomplishments, it’s quite evident that he has done very little in the intelligence field. Here is a profile from his organization’s website regarding his activities since he left public life:

Panetta is currently co-directs with his wife Sylvia the Leon & Sylvia Panetta Institute for Public Policy, based at California State University, Monterey Bay – a university he helped establish on the site of the former U.S. Army base, Fort Ord. The Institute serves as a nonpartisan, not-for-profit study center for the advancement public policy, seeking in particular to attract thoughtful men and women to lives of public service.

In addition, Mr. Panetta serves as Distinguished Scholar to the Chancellor of the California State University system. He advises the Chancellor on national issues affecting higher education and teaches a Master’s course in Public Policy at the Panetta Institute.

In 1997, he was also appointed Presidential Professor at Santa Clara University, teaching a course called Studies in Public Policy

Mr. Panetta has served as a leader in numerous community and national public policy organizations throughout his career. In March 2006, he was chosen to serve on the Iraq Study Group, a bi-partisan committee established at the urging of Congress and organized by the U.S. Institute of Peace, the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the Center for the Study of the Presidency and the James A. Baker III Institute. Since 2005, he has served as member of the Independent Task Force on Immigration and America’s Future. In November 2004, Governor Schwarzenegger appointed him co-chair of the Council on Base Support and Retention.

While I understand why President-elect Barack Obama tapped Retired Admiral Dennis Blair to serve as the Director of National Intelligence, I can’t find anything in Leon Panetta’s past that makes him even remotely qualified for this position.

I’m going to keep looking for things that might qualify him for this position, but it appears that this might be nothing more than an attempt by Barack Obama to satisfy his supporters on the far-Left, while still being able to maintain more moderate foreign policies.

Even though some might not like it, the fact of the matter is that Barack Obama is going to be the next President of the United States.

It would be too easy for me to just sit back and attack the prospects of an Obama presidency, so instead of being another talking head, I figure that for the time being, I’ll just call things as I see them. If you’re a frequent reader of this blog, you know first hand that I don’t subscribe to Party talking points.

Rahm Emanuel, 2009 White House Chief of Staff

With that, it brings me no dissatisfaction to praise President-elect Obama in his selection of Congressman Rahm Emanuel as White House Chief of Staff.

Despite that fact that Rahm Emanuel and I disagree on many issues, I think that he brings a point-of-view that will be healthy for setting the tone of the Obama Administration.

Yes, I’m sure you think I’m crazy right about now. However one of the biggest doubts that people have about Barack Obama is whether or not he’ll be able to make the right decision should the United States, or one of our allies face significant conflict.

For those of you who know about Rahm Emanuel, odds are you also know that he comes from a very devout Jewish family (he’s Orthodox) and is one of the most ardent supporters of Israel in the United States Congress. In fact, during the Gulf War, Congressman Emanuel even volunteered to serve with the Israel Defense Forces.

I think it’s extremely symbolic for a candidate who was attacked for allegedly being Muslim and anti-Israel, to make a modern-Orthodox and openly pro-Israel Congressman the first pick of his Administration.

Furthermore, let’s not forget that in Congress his nickname is “Rahm-bo,” due to his aggressive nature of getting things done. Don’t expect him to hide his opinions from President Obama, especially when it comes to issues (like Israel) that he is passionate about.

The Chief of Staff is one of the few people in the Administration that havs daily access to the President, so there should be no doubt that Rahm Emanuel will play a key role in President Obama’s decision making process.

While I don’t think that I’m going to agree with all of President-elect Obama’s choices, I definitely believe that he has started his trek to the White House on the right foot by picking Congressman Emanuel.

One of your foreign policy advisers, Zbigniew Brzezinski, has been an outspoken and harsh critic of Israel. What role would Mr. Brzezinski play on Middle East policy in an Obama administration?

From the first day of the invasion many of Obama’s idealogical allies in Europe, particularly those in Germany and France, as well as many liberals in the US, downplayed the Russian attack. Rather than condemn the invasion as the naked act of aggression that it is, the liberals and Europeans employed the hallowed Obamapolitik principle of moral relativism to render the Russians blameless. For example, many leading European news outlets painted Georgia as an aggressor as Der Spiegel did when it described the Georgian leader as “Mikhail Saakashvili, the young hothead sitting in the president’s chair in the Georgian capital Tbilisi.” Moreover, NBC, MSNBC and others have openly attacked President Bush for “taking sides”in this conflict (apparently this invasion, like rape in Islam, is the fault of the victim’s wicked ways).

Click here to view the embedded video.

       Obama’s Team Attacks McCain For Calling the Russians the Aggressors

Following liberal and European prevecation and denial, came the second Obamapolitik rule in the form of the personal diplomacy of French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Rather than serve the Russians with an ultimatum or some other threat of real punitive action, The EU and UN relied on Sarkozy’s charm to talk the Russians down. The result was a nice photo-op, applause from the liberal media and a cease-fire the Russians have yet to honor.

Finally, Obama himself, as well as his parvenu surrogate, Bill Richardson, weighed in as to the next in dealing with the Russians. As the Russians had the temerity to violate the cease-fire and betray Sarkozy’s trust, it was obvious that stronger measures were necessary to finally intimidate the Russians into withdrawal. With great sterness and a heavy heart, Obama advocated the nuclear option of having the UN (gasp!) condemn Russia for its actions. While Obama and Richardson congratulated themselves for their Churchillian stand they both seemed to forget that Russia has a veto over any UN resolution. Whoops. Score one for the bad guys.

The result of the blitz of Obamapolitik has been very clear. Russia refuses to withdraw from Georgian territory and the West has been made impotent in the face of thuggish aggression. Clearly Russia is not afraid of idle threats or the searing tongue of the EU and UN. Realists, like those in the Kremlin, only heed the threat of force, something Barack Obama is opposed to using, even in the context of securing victory for his own nation. Obama willingly attempted to deny his nation the fruits of victory in Iraq for his own selfish ends. Can we trust this weak and foolish man to not only lead the United States but also the free world? Can Obamapolitik save the world from tyranny?

Men like Putin undoubtedly relish the thought of Barack Obama’s election. Never before (or at least since Jimmy Carter) has the most powerful nation on the planet, and incidentally the primary check against the aggressive tendencies of many a despot, been willing to surrender its power and leave the world to the wolves. To men like Putin, who apparently did not receive the memo on how the world has changed to a hopeful place, Obama is a green light for aggression. An Obama victory on November 4th would be the clarion call for all the world’s tyrants to strike. While Obama plans summits and sit-downs with Hugh Chavez and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Putin and others will be unleashing their well-planned campaigns of oppression. As Vladimir Putin so ably demonstrated this weekend, the great questions of the day, as well as the fates of entire peoples, are not decided by hope, change or Obamapolitik but by blood and iron.