H&I* Fires, 26 APR 2007

Open post for those with something to share, updated through the day. New, complete posts come in below this one. Note: If trackbacking, please acknowledge this post in your post. That's only polite.

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I agree with the title of the editorial, the idea behind the title, and that’s it. Many American’s don’t trust the State owning a monopoly in this realm.
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A couple of things that just seem to belong together in my mind:
1) Hate mail against the Patriarchy with rat poison.
2) A call for smarter and more effective monitoring of bent on violence radicals in the US by a Congress Critter.

I see other events, recent ones at that, which point to a need to re-examine how we deal with wackos of all political stripes and ‘righteous revolution’ ideologies.(h/t to Orbusmax)
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First they came for my ham sandwich.
--ry

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A pilot Dusty and Bill could relate to - especially Bill (because he's been there, done that):

Although his own aircraft had been hit by shrapnel, Gibbes went to the aid of his downed fellow pilot. With the rest of his formation providing cover, he landed and taxied his single-seat Kittyhawk across the rocky desert for a mile until stopped by a depression. He jettisoned the external fuel tank to reduce the weight of his aircraft before pacing out a take-off strip as his comrade evaded Italian troops and ran to meet him.

Gibbes ditched his own parachute to allow his friend to sit in the seat before climbing in after him and sitting on his lap. Then, as he took off, his undercarriage hit a small ridge, and he watched in horror as the port wheel fell off.

Read more about Wing Commander Bobby Gibbes, who has died at age 90. He was one of Australia's greatest fighter pilots, an archetype of the breed, and this is classic brit-style obit writing at the Telegraph. H/t, CAPT H.

Professor Hanson on Whither the War on Terror?

The answer seems to be “no” for an increasing number in the West who are weary over Afghanistan and Iraq or complacent from the absence of a major attack on the scale of 9/11.

...This thinking may seem understandable given the ineffectiveness of al Qaeda to kill many Americans after 9/11. Or it may also reflect hopes that if we only leave Iraq, radical Islam will wither away. But it is dead wrong for a number of reasons.

First, Islamic terrorists plotting attacks are arrested periodically in both Europe and the United States. Just last week a leaked British report detailed al Qaeda’s plans for future “large-scale” operations. We shouldn’t be blamed for being alarmist when our alarmism has resulted in our safety at home for the past five years.

Second, have we forgotten that Nazi Germany was never able to kill 3,000 Americans on our homeland? Did Japan ever destroy 16 acres in Manhattan or hit the nerve center of the U.S. military? Even the Soviet Union couldn’t inflict billions of dollars in damage to the U.S. economy in a single day.

Read the rest here at National Review Online. -the Armorer

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Since my posting is depressing (at least to me) today - we need something to spark a grin. But make sure you're in a safe environment, because there's a full moon in the sky. Who knew Maggie flew in a Douglas A26 Invader? -the Armorer

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Redstate is reporting from Iraq. I particularly liked the one about foreign journalists embedding with our soldiers and learning to respect them.

“Absolutely amazing,” said David Beriain, the reporter (and the only one who spoke English), of the young Cavalry troops. “In Spain, it’s embarrassing – our soldiers are ashamed to be in the army. These young men – and they seem so young! – are so proud of what they do, and do it so well, even though it is dangerous and they could very easily be killed.”

I wonder if this reporter has had much interaction with his own army, either? Then again, maybe the shame is because they were pulled out of Iraq after the bombing of the train?

Senator McCain has a few words for Senator Reid

I would also like to point you towards the Small Wars Journal where they posted about the DoD discussing making a single toothpick out of a giant redwood using a $2 billion laser.

And on another subject near and dear to the hearts of many here, (where the motto is Wahhabis Delende Est), religion in warfare: a new matrix with different connotations for "small wars" or the same old same old?

-kat