We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html Fri, 06 Jan 2012 18:34:26 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2012 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification "Mother, how will you keep them down on the farm now that they've seen Paree?" By Gary Skidmore 1st Brigade What do you do with 55 Afghanistan army and policemen after they've completed their training exercise with the U.S. Army at Fort Riley? That's easy, you take them to Kansas City's Bass Pro Shop, Wal-Mart and the local Chipotle Mexican Grill. "We gave them a taste of American culture," said Maj. Dan Palmer, plans officer for the Directorate for Cultural Influence and Counter Insurgency. [Heh. When I was at Fort Riley, we din't have no fancy-pantsed sounding directorates! I see... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html Tue, 17 Jul 2007 07:14:59 -0600 No one dissed Wallmart, simply a question of is this what you regard as being Americas "finest" effort? http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62322 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62322 Wed, 18 Jul 2007 17:12:35 -0600 Yes...the point is, you can get anything you want at any time from walmart. You can furnish your home, feed your family, fix your car, clothe your body and get entertainment all at one convenient place, any time, any day at a fairly reasonable price with a fairly large selection with money back guarantees. You can't get that at many places around the world. Also, I think the real point is that freedom of thought and freedom of movement and freedom of capitalism means employment, money and prosperity. Where else can a backwoods self employed man become a millionaire selling the AMerican dream? That is what Walmart represents. However kitschy and tacky you think it is. IT IS the AMerican Dream. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62293 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62293 Wed, 18 Jul 2007 04:09:13 -0600 And what, pray tell, is wrong with Walmart? I love that place; I'm not some kind of shopping snob. Look... it's a matter of convenience, and fair prices. I can get all the family shopping done in a single trip, including everything from pharmacy items, insecticide for my lawn, food, etc. Yes, the night-time crowd can get a little weird when you do the shopping at 2AM (hail, my fellow night-shifters), but most of them keep to themselves. Guarantee they've got nothing even remotely resembling a WalMart in Afghanistan, and we'd do well not to take our modern consumer conveniences for granted. Very few people in the world live like we do. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62291 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62291 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 19:12:29 -0600 Yes please clarify, the claim is in fact that "Wallmart is America at its finest" please. I would have picked many many things not Wallmart as being finest. I merely seek information here. Evidently I'm going to have a learn a new "culture" as well as language before I visit. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62290 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62290 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 17:37:26 -0600 Don't diss Wal-Mart now! Thems fightin' words here in the heartland of squarestates! But looky who this post dragged down from the rafters! 8^ ) http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62288 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62288 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 15:19:40 -0600 HF6, that's exactly what I thought! http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62287 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62287 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 15:00:25 -0600 Oooo. You fight dirty, Damian! http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62285 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62285 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 12:57:49 -0600 Ah, c'mon, Damian. You guys are just the 51st through 63rd (10 provinces and 3 territories, right?) states. Consider yourselves lucky we aren't, or you'd be saluting John Kerry as Commander In Chief right now. From anyone other than you, those would be fightin' words...OK, it'd be a short fight, but we'd go down puttin' the lumber to you!]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62284 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62284 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 12:44:16 -0600 Seriously? Wal-Mart is "America at its finest"? God, help us. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62283 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62283 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 12:18:19 -0600 Ah, c'mon, Damian. You guys are just the 51st through 63rd (10 provinces and 3 territories, right?) states. You just haven't woken up to that fact yet. ;^ ) http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62281 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62281 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 11:50:12 -0600 By taking them to the Bass Pro Shop, they were experiencing a unique American store that you can only see in America... I beg to differ. My son and I wandered through the Bass Pro Shop in Vaughan, ON (one of the 'burbs north of Toronto) just this past weekend. Only in North America, perhaps...]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62280 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2007/07/afghan_soldiers.html#comment-62280 Tue, 17 Jul 2007 10:51:58 -0600