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.
You're advertising here, we should get an ad at your place...
Time to add a new caveat, because from email it's not clear to some folks (mind you, if you don't read this it won't matter...) Being an open post, people (collectively, the Denizens) other than I post in the H&I. They sign their work (most of the time) - keep that in mind when you want to flame someone in email please - if it doesn't say "The Armorer" or "John" then I didn't write it! And honestly - if you don't like something said or posted... leave a comment, and hash it out (within the context of The Rulez which are clearly posted on the comment form, I would add).
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Stop The ACLU has a new look - drop in and give them your opinion.
The Castle is getting very close to going live with our redesign, which is intended to upgrade the back-office, which should improve things for posters and commenters, and clean things out that have accumulated over time - and to give us a cleaner look that will hopefully make things easier on people with slower connections. Additionally, we're adding all those buttons for the post-sharing services. Take a look here - it currently functions best in Firefox, but the other implementations are being worked, too. Let us know what you think. -the Armorer
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CJ, writing over at A Soldier's Perspective, reminds us that Staff Sergeant Maupin is not the only missing soldier from the war:
As you hail and celebrate the recovery of Matthew Maupin, please remember those who are still missing:Sgt. Ahmed Altaie, also an Army Reserve soldier, was forcibly taken by masked gunmen in a Baghdad neighborhood Oct. 23, 2006, while visiting family. The Army said Altaie had gone on his own outside the fortified Green Zone to see his Iraqi wife, whom he had married before deploying to Iraq, when he disappeared. Altaie, 41, is an Iraqi-born resident of Ann Arbor, Mich.
Spc. Alex Jimenez, 25, and Pvt. Byron Fouty, 19, disappeared after a May 12, 2007, ambush south of Baghdad that also took the lives of seven fellow soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter.
Six of the soldiers were killed at the scene, and the body of a seventh soldier who had been missing since the attack was found May 23 in the Euphrates River.
Jimenez and Fouty are assigned to 4th Battalion, 31st Infantry Regiment at Fort Drum, N.Y.
Until they *all* come home. -the Armorer
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The Department of Defense blogs... the America Supports You blog debuts. My fave of the current front page is "Last Wish." As this effort on the part of DoD develops, those of you who have been fighting the Good Info Fight - here and in your own blogs, or just as readers... this new site on the part of DoD exists because we all, in a sense, *willed* it into existence. You can take some pride in that. And here's hoping DoD can make a success of it... 'cuz remember, there are billions and billions of blogs in the blogiverse... and most are dead spaces. It's not easy getting noticed and staying that way in this biz! -the Armorer
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While I'm pretty sure she's only going to let us own machineguns over her dead veto, the Governor of Kansas did sign this one today:
Sebelius signs bill banning funeral picketingTo ensure the privacy of Kansas families as they mourn the loss of their loved ones, Governor Kathleen Sebelius has signed a bill banning funeral picketing.
“I appreciate the legislature moving swiftly on this issue so we can protect the privacy of families in their time of mourning,” Sebelius said. “As we honor the memories of those Kansans who we’ve lost, we wish to shield their families from the despicable and disgraceful displays of those seeking publicity.”
SB 226 prohibits protests from being within 150 feet of a funeral for one hour before, during and two hours after the service. It will also be unlawful to block a public street or sidewalk. Violators will be subject to fines and six months in jail.
Similar legislation was passed and signed last year, but was struck down by the Kansas Supreme Court. The aspect of the legislation identified by the Court in its rejection has been removed from this version of bill.
This bill goes into effect upon its publication in the Kansas Register. Governor Sebelius has signed 37 bills and vetoed one during the 2008 Legislative Session.
Take that, Phelps' Ugly Whelps! Hey! P-UW! -the Armorer
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Don't forget, Gen. Petraeus is in town next week
a little something, something on the proxy war with Iran (I am continuously amused by people who scream about the potential of "escalating the war" by attacking Iran which is either extremely naive to imagine we aren't in a proxy war with Iran or a rather backhanded and slimy way of saying that it's okay if the Iranians kill our men and women in a slow drip drip in Iraq if it means we don't have to cross the borders to put boots and crosshairs on the ground.)
For those who have spoke here about illegal aliens and the necessity of the wall down south, some info from NRO: 40% of "illegal aliens" arrived here first through either temporary worker, educational or tourist visas. Where do we build a wall to stop that? -Kat
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Canada to stay in Afghanistan, France is sending a battalion to the "eastern" provinces (ie, Helmand) and the US marines have landed. -Kat
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