911 Hijacking Catastrophe

 Yours is not to do or die but yours is to always question why!

911 Hijacking Catastrophe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2YTDb86bK4

Feel Good News

Most mainstream local and national news are what I call saccharinized to meet the expectations of a low information audience that loves the feel-good look of feel-good sugar- coated news. They do not want to and even many cannot understand complexity which our times dictate one must have to understand why our nation does what it does.

News is reported by the winners here and reports at the other end go unexamined. Our more than aggressive foreign entanglements are rarely dissected to see just what it is our nation is doing and why we are doing it by looking at it from all sides.

The powerless both here and abroad are at the mercy of the forces of massive money and Herculean power against which they, sadly, can never compete much less prevail. Many do not even realize that they are being manipulated, in many cases duped and elect those who do not care at all about them creating a quagmired uncompromising Congress on steroids ready to ditch at the speed of light the interests of the sick, the troubled and the dispossessed.
100% of us should be in this together but alas the 2% richest will steal food from most all the rest while never paying their own fair share.

If you do not realize by now the reasons that Democrats must retake the Senate, the House and keep the presidency then you never will. It is important as life and death that a Republican not go near the echelons of power and only we, through our Democratic vote can make this so!

SDDS

"European Union Army Plan Aims to Protect Continent from Russia, ISIS"

Story here or at the link below.

My Comment:  Post WWII American foreign policy continues to spin out of control.  The US has not won a war since the big one against Nazism and the forces allegedly aligned against the west in the form of Russia and ISIS may approach that kind of threat. 

Much of Europe and the world considers the US politically impotent with 1/2 of its Congress willing to subvert the nation because they will not play nice with others. Many abroad see the US in one word -- nuts!

I do not blame Europe for wanting to protect itself in a world without US help. Republicans will not let this president breathe and even fragment themselves about their own policy.  They are 100% crazed with hate for this president, writing letters to Iranian mullahs geared to subvert his life-saving attempt at quelling dangerous Middle East nuclear proliferation. It strains credulity.  No wonder many see the US as a failing state deeply in debt with its Defense (War) Department gone lone wolf wild. 

How in god's name are we going to get a rancid, unpatriotic, and near treasonous Republican majority Senate and a Republican-controlled House to play well with others when they cannot even play well with themselves. They are ruthless, mean, racist and violent.  Yes, Europe, you would do well to construct your own defense.

The US military is spread too thinly all over the globe costing trillions in debt while it maintains a war footing everywhere.  Add to this the Republican psycho-pathological repertoire of climate change denial and one gets a Republican majority hell bent on killing us all.

When 1/2 of the nation believes the earth is flat it suffers from SDDS (Science Denying Derangement Syndrome.) It is a recipe for Europe to protect its own interests as the US is quagmired stuck perhaps unable to even protect itself let alone its friends!

Remedy:  Elect Democrats all over the nation!

http://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/could-joint-european-army-protect-nato-russia-isis-n322841

TRUST

While Jim Phillips, Middle East analyst for conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation is correct Iran has infused in its philosophy extreme anti American rhetoric (see NBC story below) and has killed plenty of Americans, the same can be said for American policy. In addition to the CIA unseating a democratically elected beloved Iranian leader Mosadeq in the 1950's and replacing him with the dictator the Shah, the US, in recent history, has invaded a country, Iraq, under false pretenses. Iraq had done nothing to it. The US has killed hundreds of thousands and made refugees of millions in Iraq and in many other parts of the Middle East as well. Iranians and Middle Easterners in general have long memories.

 

The greatest most profound error the Bush admin made was in not knowing or certainly underestimating the sectarian violence its war in Iraq would and did unleash while disbanding the Iraqi Sunni army of Sadam with its weapons intact. The destabilization of a tinder box Middle East leaves us the mess we have now and with the establishment of the brutality extreme of ISIS and Al Qaeda never in Iraq before the US invasion.  A note of community interest: Sadam Hussein, the man the US deposed (for those with short memories) loathed Al Qaeda.

 

I am among the guilty ones initially in supporting the Iraq War because of the horror of 9/11. I knew nothing about sectarian hatred, thought nothing about unleashing the tigers within, and thought nothing about the quagmire and the explosiveness (literally) that would ensue. But I am NOT in Washington or anywhere else making policy. The Bush admin certainly the CIA, and every other American institution with geniuses connected to foreign policy should have known.

 

This is, in my opinion, the worst foreign policy blunder in US history perhaps for all time and the extremist rightwing nationalist Republican Party now does this nation no favors by subverting those who want to bring peace to this most dangerous part of the world especially with respect to a nuclear Iran. We must work with those who were/are unfriendly to us no matter how much we may not trust them. As much as we do not trust them they do not trust us!

"Iran's Qasem Soleimani Is Guiding Iraqi Forces in Fight Against ISIS" link to story here.

GET OUT IN 2016 TO VOTE FOR SMART AND PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS ALL OVER THE NATION!

'Still Alice' Writer-Director Richard Glatzer Dead At 63--Our Conundrum

I am crying at 7:00 a.m. as I read this wonderful man's obit pasted below.  He was the writer and director of "Still Alice," a film about the ravages of Alzheimer's for which Julianne Moore won the Best Actress Oscar.  What a beautiful mind, heart and what a beautiful relationship he had. The will to live is perhaps man's strongest instinct and Richard Glatzer had that, too, in triplicate.

We humans are in one way blessed because we get to see and appreciate this beautiful planet but cursed in that we understand death both our own and loss of those we love so much. It is perhaps the price we pay for our big brain ensuring our survival. We see the glories of existence and its ugliness -- the brutality of man against himself and against the nature that brought him into the world in the first place. It is the conundrum of our life.

Voting and voting Democrat is the only hope for our survival and the survival of our nation and our planet!

   |  By LINDSEY BAHR

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Richard Glatzer, who co-wrote and directed the Alzheimer's drama "Still Alice" alongside his husband, Wash Westmoreland, while battling ALS, died Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 63.

Diagnosed in 2011 with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, the pair took on the project of "Still Alice" in a very early stage of Glatzer's disease.

During the 23-day shoot, Glatzer communicated with one finger using a text-to-speech app on his iPad. By the time of the press tour for the film in late 2014, Glatzer was only able to communicate by typing on the device with his big toe.

Their film earned star Julianne Moore her first Oscar for her portrayal of an academic suffering from early onset Alzheimer's. Unable to attend the ceremony, Glatzer watched Moore's win Feb. 22 from a hospital, where he had been taken two days prior for respiratory problems. Westmoreland watched by his side.

"I am devastated. Rich was my soul mate, my collaborator, my best friend and my life," Westmoreland said in a statement Wednesday. He added that he takes consolation in the fact that Glatzer saw "Still Alice" delivered to the world.

"Richard was a unique guy— opinionated, funny, caring, gregarious, generous, and so, so smart. A true artist and a brilliant man. I treasure every day of the short twenty years we had together," he said. "I cannot believe he has gone. But in my heart and the hearts of those who loved him he will always be alive."

A New York native, Glatzer started out his career in academia, earning a doctorate in English from the University of Virginia before turning his attentions entirely to film and television.

He met Westmoreland in 1995. The couple collaborated on four films as co-writers and directors, including the 2006 Sundance Grand Jury Prize and Audience winner "Quinceañera."

Glatzer also worked on a number of television shows including "Road Rules," ''Divorce Court" and "America's Next Top Model."

But it was "Still Alice" that seemed to be Glatzer's crowning achievement.

"It's ironic that in my deteriorated state I'd be able to make a film that was creatively everything I'd ever wished for," Glatzer reflected to The Associated Press in late 2014 while promoting the film.

The parallels between Glatzer and their lead character's degenerative diseases helped to inform the adaptation of author Lisa Genova's best-seller.

"Many of the neurological appointments that Alice had in the book echoed appointments that Richard had had when they were testing to see if he'd had a stroke — like what's today's date, where are we, all that stuff. It was eerily similar," Westmoreland said during the same interview.

"Rich is an incredibly strong person, and never let the disease get him down. He always wanted to keep life as normal as possible," he added.

Moore was particularly moved by the similarities and how Glatzer's condition made the story much more personal and emotional.

"It's about the universality of our own experience and what we care about and that we all live and we all love and we all are going to go away some day. To look at that and to really examine that, but to also be present in it, is kind of an extraordinary thing to do. I think that's what Wash and Rich are doing with this movie," she said.

While the logistics of co-directing a film while suffering from ALS proved challenging, the entire production was committed to supporting Glatzer throughout.

"We had a little personal agreement that Richard has to be heard, even if it's inconvenient, even if it's longer to wait," Westmoreland said.

Glatzer, who was in good spirits sitting next to Westmoreland, also weighed in.

"I felt very much heard by everyone, every day. And it's so very important if you're struggling with a disease like this to feel you still matter," Glatzer said.

What I wrote to Hillary Clinton

I'm IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

:)

The New Creed

Judge Keeps Obama Immigration Policies On Hold-- (See link to story below)

Comment:

Nothing the antiObama racist Republicons do surprises me anymore. When the nation lives up to its Statute of Liberty creed I will faint! "Give us your tired your poor, your huddled masses ... yearning to breathe free ..." Instead Republicans think it should read send your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free back from whence they came!  The nation is uglier maybe the ugliest it has ever been since the Civil War.

Send Republicons to Antarctica to set up their white Utopia. Their color will blend in to the surroundings!!

GET OUT TO VOTE.  IF YOU DID THE UGLIEST REPUBLICAN PARTY EVER WOULD NOT BE IN HIGH OFFICE.  YOU, THE VOTER, ARE THE ONLY WAY WE CAN GET THIS REPUBLICAN FLYPAPER OFF OUR SHOE AND THE ALBATROSS OFF OUR NECKS!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/09/obama-executive-action-immigraton_n_6831506.html

My Letter to the President

Sir, the 50 year commemoration of the Edmund Pettus Bridge walk for voting rights was one of the most moving events I have ever witnessed. The speech that you gave was so moving I was reduced to tears.

The Republican obstructionist Congress is SHAMEFUL in its treatment of our Chief Executive. They have insulted you, been rude and dismissive to you while they advocate for policies to ensure our president fail. But, Mr. President, you have NOT failed despite the unbridled recklessness of a Congress that has gone racist insane.

Just so my stats are clear I am a white Jewish woman who loves you and wishes you could run for another term with a Congress that is human and not bought by corporate interests. You, Mr. President, are amazing for keeping your composure under tremendous stress and I aver even treason by a Republican controlled Congress that goes behind your back to work against our nation and a Congress that pays lip service to loving the nation but sows only discord and division. There are millions who love and support what you do because your policies are based on thoughtful reason and intelligence.

The picture of you walking down the Pettus bridge holding Congressman Lewis's hand and the hand of elderly woman in a wheelchair on the other side of you, is on my desktop and I will keep it there.

NEVER GIVE UP, NEVER GIVE IN TO REPUBLICAN CONGRESSIONAL TREASONOUS DISCORD AND KNOW THERE ARE MILLIONS WHO THINK AND FEEL AS I DO.

FULL TEXT OF SPEECH

 Here or below


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/07/obama-selma-bloody-sunday-transcript_n_6823642.html

WE--A GORGEOUS MOMENT

CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW

OR HERE


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/

Reflections on Selma--A Long Road Traveled

The president’s speech commemorating the 50^th anniversary of the march across the Edmund Pettus Bridge by persons of color to secure voting rights was nothing less than magnificent.  If you did not hear it or see it I urge you to do so. 

The irony in the name of the bridge “Edmund Pettus” is not lost to history as the bridge is named after a general in the Confederacy and a distant cousin to the Confederacy president, Jefferson Davis.  In addition to that “illustrious” career, Pettus was named Grand Dragon of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan and dedicated himself to the crushing, literally, of blacks in their quest for equal rights.  It is strange irony, indeed, that the commemoration of that march 50 years later is recognized in our time on that bridge named for a racist and that our first president of color delivered his speech on it.  It is, for me, immensely satisfying!

I thought, too, of my own trajectory to this day and waxed incredulous at the long road I and many who share my political views have traveled as well.  My earliest Civil War understanding was at age 10 when I learned the Confederacy wore a grey uniform and the Union a blue one.  At age 10 I won a trip to Disneyland in California.  In Disneyland they were selling Civil War military caps colored Union blue and Confederate grey.  I urged my parents to buy one for me but I could not decide on the color I wanted and did not understand the significance of it.  Incredulous to me now I believe I chose grey. 

At age 15 during the riots in the black urban ghettos of the mid-sixties I was told and believed those riots were inspired by Communists.  It could not be, of course, those riots were fueled by vicious racism and centuries of discrimination against blacks the etiology of which was fueled since the nation’s founding by deep racist principle and the money that could be made on the backs of slaves.  I never questioned what I was told – not once – during those years.

It was not until the late 1960’s that my educational experience at Boston University opened a window onto the national madness.  Our nation was founded on the backs of slaves, brought here chained against their will from Africa and treated not even as well as one would treat a beast of burden.  It was not until this time that one of my black professors told of his experience fighting in WWII only to be denied service at a “whites only” lunch counter when he returned home.  It was a rude awakening, indeed, one prefaced by an African American high school classmate running for class secretary.  She told me she did not have a chance.  When in my naiveté I asked why she said “Because I am colored.”  I did not believe her then but, clearly, she was right.  She could not win and did not. Four decades later a black man named Barack Obama won the presidency against John McCain, a white military man.

It has been a long road traveled through 1965 Selma, Alabama transcending the history of the slave trade to the first African American president of our time; a very long road, indeed!

An Unwelcome Guest

Fox No News News signed Alveda King, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s niece, as a contributor (see story below.)  There always seems to be some one in the family who somehow did not inherit the humanitarian greatness gene of their famous relative. 

Although gay rights was not a prominent issue when Rev. King fought for his humanitarian nation-changing work, he was always on the side of human rights no matter whose human rights they were. I think I can safely predict that Martin Luther King, Jr. never would have worked for Fox News nor would he say, as his niece did, that the gay rights movement was tantamount to genocide.  It is clear that his niece does not understand just what genocide means although one would think she certainly should.

 

It staggers me when a member of a much maligned, aggrieved and discriminated upon group as persons of color have been cannot translate that hurt to other groups who suffer the same unfair fate.

MLK's niece should be ashamed of herself for accepting Fox's No News News's offer , although I am sure money had something to do with it. Moreover, she should study up on the realities of human sexuality, psychiatry which long ago took homosexuality off its list of disorder s and genetics which in many cases has seen a genetic link to its occurrence.

Over and above those reasons MLK's niece should identify with the quest for all human rights instead of promulgating a toxic philosophy that has had for some suicidal consequences.  Perhaps, her purpose is to rid the world of homosexuals. If so she would find herself in good company with the anti-immigrant nativists , white supremest light Republican Whip Stephen Scalise and David Duke's KKK although she might find she would be a n unwelcome guest at their cross burning parties.

ANOTHER REASON TO WORK FOR PROGRESSIVE DEMOCRATS IN 2016

Fox News Signs Alveda King, Niece of Martin Luther King Jr., As Contributor

Fox News has signed Alveda King, the niece of civil-rights icon Martin Luther King Jr., as a contributor, Fox president Roger Ailes announced today. King will provide regular social and cultural commentary across the network lineup.

“Alveda has brilliantly carried the legacy of the King family to the next generation and has been a source of inspiration for many Americans," Ailes said in making the announcement. "Her passion and mission for social change will be a valuable contribution to our network.”

King is a prominent anti-abortion activist and serves as director of African-American outreach at Priests for Life. She has also courted controversy by speaking out against LGBT rights proclaiming in 1998 that "God hates homosexuality and comparing gay marriage to genocide in a 2010 speech.

Why George W. Bush should NOT march in Selma -- by Vincent Intondi

I 100% agree with the author for all the things he enumerated in his opinion linked here or below. 

I take further issue with any Republcan who considers commemorating that day. The Republican Party is filled with those who would never, if they were alive then, have supported the things for which Dr. King stood. The Republican Party is in line now with racists, obstructionists and nullifiers of anything the first African American president does and who, if they had the chance, would return to an 1850 America.

These Republican charlatans and political opportunists should not have the glory of attaching themselves to a cause because it simply looks oh-so-good and they think it proves they are not racist or because they have a person of color or two in their district. The essence of the Republicon Party is the essence of its whip -- Stephen Scalise -- who had no problem speaking before a group that supported former KKK leader, David Duke.

A member in good standing of the Republican Party should not even think about trodding the ground upon which Dr. King walked unless and until he/she rejects in totality the platform of its Republican Party of racists!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/vincent-intondi/why-george-w-bush-should-not-march-in-selma_b_6774654.html?utm_hp_ref=politics&ir=Politics

The Day After -- Will We?

Some think much of my writing dark. Admittedly, there is some truth to this. If my views are so often about the darkness of the human condition it is because, I believe the immunization through its knowledge is the only way to keep the contagion of it from generationally spreading. Immunization against the disease means seeing its unpleasantries before our eyes no matter the difficulty. The Holocaust is an example of this. It must be kept alive to impress upon generations of humankind of that which man is capable hoping that if one knows it one will keep from repeating it again.

Netflix offers much. If you have it I urge you to search on it for "Hiroshima" and then view it. It is half documentary and half docudrama precisely written with interviews of those who experienced it, from both sides. The American airmen Brigadier General Paul W. Tibbets, pilot of the Enola Gay, who dropped the A bomb named "Little Boy" and other Americans were interviewed who were involved it it. Some of the Japanese of Hiroshima who were on the receiving end were interviewed as well. Not many are, of course, left.

The film, brilliantly done, illuminates in detail what it really means to, as some so cavalierly say about American adversaries "just nuke em." What does "just nuke em" mean? I suspect most who say that know not what they say and further have no understanding what dropping a nuclear device really means. There is no comprehension of a day after for those who say such inane and brutal things. Netflix "Hiroshima" will show one what it means. You, your children and your children’s children should see it at a time maturationally possible and know precisely what nuclear war means and why those who would want to subvert discussions about its spread should stop before it is too late.

The end of the film presents a modern view of Hiroshima and discusses in real time both sides of the Hiroshima argument. The question: Did America have to drop the atomic bomb? The opinions come from both those who dropped the bomb – politicians and airmen alike – to those who were the recipients of it. The film also showed Americans dancing in the streets with glee at war’s end. Few knew then the enormity of what we had just done to end it and few knew what it would mean for generations the day after.

Stephen Hawking, the eminent physicist, was asked recently: “What is the most dangerous threat to face mankind today?” He did not say climate change as I expected but he did say human aggression. We should never forget that and we should always remember but will we?

And the Leaks Keep coming

http://www.nbcnews.com/…/radioactive-fukushima-water-leak-w…


Radioactive Fukushima Water Leak Was Unreported for Months: Official

TOKYO — The operator of Japan's tsunami-stricken Fukushima nuclear power plant admitted it failed to report a radioactive rainwater leak from the facility fo...
nbcnews.com

What is happening at MSNBC?

I am hearing things I do not want to hear. I am hearing that they are pushing MSNBC away from its progressive format. They are I have heard but do not know if it is true that Chris Hayes may be given the door. I HOPE this is not true. I ask you to write MSNBC or call MSNBC (phone number is easily available if you Google it) and show him and MSNBC support as they broadcast now.

I have heard too that Joy Reid whom I love is going to do other formats and that Al Sharpton's job is in the crosshairs. DO NOT LET THE CORPORATISTS do what we all feared they would when Olbermann left and Comcast bought MSNBC out. If you let them they will decimate the ONLY major cable network that speaks for the 98%. Their reporting and progressive commentary is spot on correct and excellent.

If you think the Tea Party has been duped and hoodwinked by this corporatist agenda you are right. They have and they do not even realize it. The Republican Party is NOT about most of them. It must appeal to the lesser angels of their human nature. It is racist, mendacious and inhumane. Our nation is being taken over by them. DO NOT LET IT. IT IS WHY YOU MUST VOTE BEFORE you will not have a nation for which to vote!

The Roots of Terrorism -- A Response to Stephen Kinzer editorial

The February 15 Globe article by Stephen Kinzer entitled "A root of terrorism grew from Europe's colonization" was spot on correct.  My letter to the Globe was printed in today's edition.  It is as follows.

As western head-scratching occurs trying to figure out why so many Muslims are so angry and so violent to us, it seems impossible for the west to admit that history counts. The legacy of colonialism and its brutality, while, perhaps, not felt at first, did rear its ugly head later.  It is pitiful that the media rarely makes mention of it.  The gargantuan mistake of the Iraq War based on lies is simply another example of western historical amnesia.  The US illegally invaded a foreign nation, Iraq, that did nothing to deserve it.  Colonialism and it have had disastrous consequences as American go shopping or watch the Superbowl and almost instantaneously forget the consequences of that history.

Human beings resent conquerors and they resent being slaughtered especially when they are guilty of nothing except having the world's most voluminous supply of oil and the west's insatiable appetite for it.  You want to know why the ugly barbarism of ISIS exists I suggest you remember Shakespeare's immortal lines:  "The fault dear Brutus is not in our stars but in ourselves."

I am hearing things I do not want to hear.  I am hearing that they are pushing MSNBC away from its progressive format.  They are I have heard but do not know if it is true that Chris Hayes may be given the door.  I HOPE this is not true.  I ask you to write MSNBC or call MSNBC (phone number is easily available if you Google it) and show him and MSNBC support as they broadcast now.  I have heard too that Joy Reid whom I love is going to do other formats and that Al Sharpton's job is in the crosshairs. DO NOT LET THE CORPORATIST Phil Griffin do what we all feared he would when Olbermann left and Comcast bought MSNBC out.  If you let them they will decimate the ONLY major cable network that speaks for the 98%. Their reporting and commentary is spot on correct and excellent.  If you think the Tea Party has been duped and hoodwinked by this corporatist agenda you are right.  They have and they do not even realize it.  The Republican Party is NOT about most of them.  It must appeal to the lesser angels of their human nature.  It is racist, mendacious and inhumane.  Our nation is being taken over by them. DO NOT LET IT.  IT IS WHY YOU MUST VOTE BEFORE you will not have a nation for which to vote!

Remember -- short narration by Meryl Streep

Always remember, never forget and apply it to all people for all time!

"And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up."  Deuteronomy 11:19

http://www.downfacebook.com/download-facebook-video-10153051883204805.html

Think on what will happen if in 2016 the Republicans occupy a majority in the House, in the Senate and the presidency.  Everything you know that makes human life better in this country for the middle class can be eradicated in a heartbeat minute.  The vote is the ONLY thing we have between us and true tyranny against blacks, against women, against Hispanics, against the poor, against the middle class, against unions and against all things that act as safety nets for those of us who are not billionaires.  Think on it and then do what you must -- VOTE Democrat!

I was an American sniper, and Chris Kyle’s war was not my war

My Note: Another View: Just who is a "savage" and who is not?

Feb 21, 2015 · Garett Reppenhagen, VoteVets.org

I spent nights in Iraq lying prone and looking through a 12-power sniper scope. You only see a limited view between the reticles. That’s why it’s necessary to keep both eyes open. This way you have some ability to track targets and establish 360 degrees of awareness. I rotated with my spotter and an additional security team member to maintain vigilance and see the whole battlefield. I scrutinized every target in my scope to determine if they were a threat.

In a way, it’s an analogy for keeping the whole Iraq mission in perspective and fully understanding the experiences of the U.S. war fighters during Operation Iraqi Freedom. No single service member has the monopoly on the war narrative. It will change depending on where you serve, when you were there, what your role was, and a few thousand other random elements.

For the past 10 days, “American Sniper” has rallied crowds and broken box office records, but if you want to understand the war, the film is like peering into a sniper scope — it offers a very limited view.

The movie tells the story of Navy SEAL sniper Chris Kyle, said to have 160 confirmed kills, which would make him the most lethal American military member in history. He first shared his story in a memoir, which became the basis for Clint Eastwood’s film adaptation. Kyle views the occupation of Iraq as necessary to stop terrorists from coming to the mainland and attacking the U.S.; he sees the Iraqis as “savages” and attacks any critical thought about the overall mission and the military’s ability to accomplish it.

This portrayal is not unrealistic. My unit had plenty of soldiers who thought like that. When you are sacrificing so much, it’s tempting to believe so strongly in the “noble cause,” a belief that gets hardened by the fatigue of multiple tours and whatever is going on at home. But viewing the war only through his eyes gives us too narrow a frame.

During my combat tour I never saw the Iraqis as “savages.” They were a friendly culture who believed in hospitality, and were sometimes positive to a fault. The people are proud of their history, education system and national identity. I have listened to children share old-soul wisdom, and I have watched adults laugh and play with the naiveté of schoolboys. I met some incredible Iraqis during and after my deployment, and it is shameful to know that the movie has furthered ignorance that might put them in danger.

Unlike Chris Kyle, who claimed his PTSD came from the inability to save more service members, most of the damage to my mental health was what I call “moral injury,” which is becoming a popular term in many veteran circles.

As a sniper I was not usually the victim of a traumatic event, but the perpetrator of violence and death. My actions in combat would have been more acceptable to me if I could cloak myself in the belief that the whole mission was for a greater good. Instead, I watched as the purpose of the mission slowly unraveled.

I served in Iraq from 2004 to 2005. During that time, we started to realize there were no weapons of mass destruction, the 9/11 commission report determined that Iraq was not involved in the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center, false sovereignty was given to Iraq by Paul Bremer, the atrocities at Abu Ghraib were exposed, and the Battle of Fallujah was waged.

The destruction I took part in suddenly intersected with news that our reasons for waging war were untrue. The despicable conduct of those at Abu Ghraib was made more unforgivable by the honorable interactions I had with Iraqi civilians, and, together, it fueled the post-traumatic stress I struggle with today.

My war was completely different than Chris Kyle’s war. That doesn’t mean his war is wrong, and mine was right. But it does mean that no one experience is definitive.

The movie depicts compounded action scenes with very little political and regional context. It was a conscious decision by Clint Eastwood, apparently, to leave out the cause of the U.S. invasion and subsequent occupation of Iraq. It was a conscious decision, apparently, for multiple characters to describe the Iraqis as “savages” and never show any alternative. When I heard of the bigoted reaction some Americans had after watching the film, I was disgusted, but not surprised. Audience members are mistaking Chris Kyle’s view of the war as “the” story about the war. No wonder someone tweeted that the movie made them “want to go kill some ragheads.” It’s sad that such a nearsighted portrayal of Iraqis has caused more people to fear Arabs and glorify violence against them.

It would be refreshing if a big Hollywood movie would take on the task of creating a less dramatized, more nuanced version of warfare. There are some incredible documentaries on the subject. “Occupation: Dreamland” and “Restrepo” capture the life of a service member in a modern deployment without sugarcoating the hard political environment that is a backdrop to the conflicts.

The responsibility to make a picture that takes into account all of the political and social dynamics might not rest on any individual filmmaker. After all, it is just a movie. But that means the public should treat it like that, and educate themselves before jumping to a conclusion that the whole war was just like that. Especially if they support the democratic ideals that Chis Kyle, me and every veteran who put on a uniform swore an oath to defend with our lives.

If you really want to be a patriotic American, keep both eyes open and maintain 360 degrees of awareness. Don’t simply watch “American Sniper.” Read other sources, watch other films about the conflict. Talk to as many veterans as you can, get a full perspective on the war experience and the consequences. Ensure the perceived enemy in your vision is what it seems.

Oscars in Summary

Lady Gaga was amazing. She was wonderful. I agree that Oscars in general was hugely boring and SO much wasted time on junk. Many speeches were much too long. There should be a rule NO thanking your entire family, cast and crew. Just a simple thank you limited to four people and that's it. No one remembers or cares. Many categories are irrelevant to most.

Having said that there were some wonderful films that won and I was thrilled they did not give a reward in the form of an Oscar to a killer who boasted of 160 kills of human beings, American Sniper. They froze that film I boycotted out nearly completely except for one irrelevant film edit. Clint Eastwood will NEVER be recognized again after the what he pulled at the Republican convention insulting the president. Hollywood is not going to recognize him or films that laud killers ... real killers.

All those who won should have won. Julianne Moore for "I'm Still Alice" and Eddie Redmayne for The "Theory of Everything." It is wonderful that they won as they deserved it. Best pic "Birdman" I have not seen but will. It is supposed to be exceptional. So they spread out the gold and that was fine.

THE WORST MOMENT AND BY FAR THE MOST RIDICULOUS MOMENT WAS NEAL PATRICK HARRIS IN HIS UNDERWEAR!! Second worse moment at the end with his stupid briefcase predictions was a waste of time.  No one cared and the jokes fell flat.  Third worst moment when Neal Patrick Harris made a joke at the end of a woman who told of her child's suicide--awful. It was wasted time times ten. Who thinks up these idiotic moments for a three year old who probably is not even watching Harris in his underwear and for this moment should not be watching? It was inane.  The moments about Selma were fine and glad "Glory" won it for best song. Other than that I agree with the Huffington it was boring.

Oh yes one more thing do not run out to see these films except for Redmayne in "The Theory of Everything" and Julianne Moore for "I'm Still Alice." The other films will be on Netflix for free if you get Netflix which for $8.99 a month is so worth it but I do like to reward exceptional films at the box office i like such as the "Theory of Everything" and "I'm Still Alice."  The rest theaters will NOT see my money at $9.00 ticket and popcorn that you need a loan to afford. Movies are much too expensive to go to when you can get it elsewhere for so much less and sit in the comfort of your living room.

Oh yeah, almost forgot. KUDOS to Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras for their documentary "Citizen Four!"


Someone PLAHLEESE cut the time of the Oscars down at least an hour. And BTW, why no mention of I n Memoriam to Joan Rivers and Elaine Stritch?! Bad errors. Someone from the Academy should apologize.