Jason A. Tetrault, Marine Lance Corporal -- Rest In Peace

Jason A. Tetrault, 20

Marines, Lance Corporal
Based: Twentynine Palms, Calif.
7th Marine Regiment, 1st Marine Division
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: July 9, 2003
Not reported, Kuwait
Gender: Male
Hometown: Moreno Valley
High School: Moreno Valley High (Moreno Valley)
Burial: Riverside National Cemetery

Tetrault was already planning out his month of leave back in Moreno Valley. He wanted to go bungee jumping and skydiving and couldn't wait to see the Pacific Ocean again, his mother said. He planned to spend a week at the beach and wanted to see family and friends again.
"He didn't like having to sit; he liked to go, liked to play," Carriere said. "He was just always on the move. He liked being outside."
Tetrault planned to join the football team at the base in Twentynine Palms and to study computer programming in college. But his mother said he hadn't been looking too far into the future.

"Jason was the type of person that didn't make long-term plans," she said. "His theory was: You never know what life is going to throw at you."

Please go here for photographs and remembrances of Lance Corporal Jason A. Tetrault; and here to read more and visit his guest book here.

New Black Panther Black Cracker

Sneaky Little Devil

H/T NRO

Chronicles Interlude: 2 Chronicles 7:14

Krista Branch
I Am America

Second Chronicles 7:14
King James Bible
If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.

2 Crónicas 7:14 Spanish: Modern
si se humilla mi pueblo sobre el cual es invocado mi nombre, si oran y buscan mi rostro y se vuelven de sus malos caminos, entonces yo oiré desde los cielos, perdonaré sus pecados y sanaré su tierra.

I Am America



Via Texas For Sarah Palin -- where else?

Available on iTunes.

Sarah Palin's Mother Grizzies and Pink Elephants

Standard refrains around here are:

"Hope is for chumps,"
and
"Hoping ain't coping."

That's partly because we strive to remain in reality, in the here and the now, eschewing the hopeful for the real.
Still, sometimes we admit to getting a little hopeful.
Texas For Sarah Palin posted this pleasing vid today, and like Jerry Lewis gives hope to some on Labor Day, Mrs. Palin is giving us hope everyday.

Devout Dames Don Palin Wig -- Posh Beckham and JAniston Dumped Into The Wig Crypt

Jennifer Rubin Reports in Contentions:
Sarah Palin wig proves to be a hit among Orthodox Jewish women

In Brooklyn's Borough Park, an area heavily populated by Hasidic men wearing black hats and long beards and women dressed in long skirts and long-sleeved shirts, stylist Gail Rosenzweig said half of her Orthodox Jewish clients want Palin's style.
"It's a fashion statement," said Rosenzweig as she worked on a Palin wig. Even though Palin is a Christian from Alaska, where Jews make up less than 1 percent of the state's 670,000 population, Rosenzweig said her clients "like her classic look. It can be worn up or down."
Shlomo Klein, an Orthodox Jew and vice president of wig maker Georgie Wigs, said he sold more than 50 of the "Sarah P" wigs across America in recent weeks to women wanting wigs either for medical or religious reasons.
Married Orthodox Jewish women do not show their real hair in public for modesty reasons and can spend between a few hundred to several thousand dollars on wigs, he said.
The Palin look had replaced previous popular looks among Orthodox Jewish women such as Victoria Beckham's "Posh Spice" look and Jennifer Aniston's "Friends" cut, he said.
Esther Melamed said she paid more than $700 for the human hair Palin wig to wear for a recent Jewish holiday

Read the article from Haaretz.

No demand for any of the sporadic Hilary Rodham unwomanly wiggery. Whew.

William River Emanuel IV, Army Specialist -- Rest In Peace

William River Emanuel IV, 19

Army, Specialist
Based: Schweinfurt, Germany
1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: July 8, 2004
Samarra, Iraq
Single
Gender: Male
Hometown: Stockton
High School: Enterprise Alternative (Clovis)
Burial: San Joaquin Catholic Cemetery, Stockton

"I was a single parent and I worried a lot," his mother said. "... He knew he and his sister were the world to me, and they were very protective of me. I wanted them to be happy, but as a mother, I always had that fear. I wanted them to come home, to keep them safe with me."
Two weeks ago, Emanuel left a message on her voicemail, telling her that he was sending money, that he was fine and that he loved his family.
His mother tried to recover the message from her answering machine Thursday, a week after the 19-year-old Army specialist and four other soldiers were killed.
"I try to listen to it, but I can't get it back," his mother said, weeping. "I don't even have my last message from my son. I'll never hear his voice again."
Emanuel was killed when insurgents attacked a military headquarters with mortar rounds in the town of Samarra, north of Baghdad. The five soldiers killed were members of the 1st Battalion, 26th Infantry Regiment, 1st Infantry Division, based in Schweinfurt, Germany.

Read more about Army Specialist William River Emanuel IV here, here and here.

NPR Reaches 57 States -- One More To Go

Obama voters.
Hey, some of my closest friends voted for Obama.
And though none are in this video, some of them could be and most claim they'd do it again.



Hat Tip to Don Surber, via Grouchy Old Cripple.
Other Obama voters in the news here.
How Obama Got Elected.

And who is Barney Frank anyway? Oh yeah, the Congressman who's kept boyfriend Stevie Gobie ran a call boy service out of the Congressman's house.

retlouC ennA

I had to spell that backwards. A couple of my faithful readers' heads explode when they see the shedevil's name.

Obama hasn't ramped up the war in Afghanistan based on a careful calculation of America's strategic objectives. He did it because he was trapped by his own rhetorical game of bashing the Iraq war while pretending to be a hawk on Afghanistan.

At this point, Afghanistan is every bit as much Obama's war as Vietnam was Lyndon Johnson's war. True, President Kennedy was the first to send troops to Vietnam. We had 16,000 troops in Vietnam when JFK was assassinated. Within four years, LBJ had sent 400,000 troops there.

In the entire seven-year course of the Afghanistan war under Bush, from October 2001 to January 2009, 625 American soldiers were killed. In 18 short months, Obama has nearly doubled that number to 1,124 Americans killed.

Republicans used to think seriously about deploying the military. President Eisenhower sent aid to South Vietnam, but said he could not "conceive of a greater tragedy" for America than getting heavily involved there.

As Michael Steele correctly noted, every great power that's tried to stage an all-out war in Afghanistan has gotten its ass handed to it. Everyone knows it's not worth the trouble and resources to take a nation of rocks and brigands.

Based on Obama's rules of engagement for our troops in Afghanistan, we're apparently not even fighting a war. The greatest fighting force in the world is building vocational schools and distributing cheese crackers to children.

There's even talk of giving soldiers medals for NOT shooting people, which I gather will be awarded posthumously. Naomi Campbell is rougher with her assistants than our troops are allowed to be with Taliban fighters.

Read all of Miss Coulter here.

Grandpa John's -- New Signs In The Heartland

See it at Grandpa John's, please.

Alternate versions available, among them are these:

que no marque el 911

prohibido el paso ... los infractores se rodará ... sobrevivientes se disparó de nuevo

Money For Nothing -- Anime Interlude

H/ T Lucianne.

Roberto "Junior" Causor Jr., Army, Specialist -- Rest In Peace

Roberto "Junior" Causor Jr., 21

Army, Specialist
Based: Ft. Bragg, N.C.
2nd Battalion, 505th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: July 7, 2007
Samarra, Iraq
Single, 1 child
Gender: Male
Hometown: San Jose
High School: William C. Overfelt High (San Jose)
Burial: Oak Hill Memorial Park, San Jose

Causor occupied a special spot in the family hierarchy. Not only was he Roberto and Rocio Causor's firstborn, and their only son, he was the first grandchild on his mother's side of the family, so he never lacked for attention.
Growing up in San Jose, he was the giggling, outspoken boy who loved to play with toy guns and argued, fruitlessly, for his father to let him buy a real one. The kid who never liked to do his homework but who studied hard the last two years of high school so he could graduate early and join the Army. The tough but loving mentor to his younger sisters, Ruby, Mitzy Yareli and Wendy.
The plan was for Causor to return in October for good, to marry Contreras and then move together to New Mexico to live for a time with his parents. In March, he gave his father $11,000 to help him pay some of the bills that had accumulated since his parents' clothing store was forced to close.

*****

The son of Mexican parents, Causor was born in San Jose and spent many of his childhood and teen years here. He was proud of his roots and his family's adopted country where several relatives started their own construction and electrical businesses, said his uncle Francisco Causor.
By joining the military when he graduated in 2004 from Overfelt High School, "in a way that was kind of a payback, in gratitude," for the success and freedom many of his relatives enjoyed in the United States, Francisco Causor said.
Read the rest here.

More about Army Specialist Roberto "Junior" Causor Jr. here and guestbook here

He was my soldier and a good one at that. Never complained and always did as he was told. He has a beautiful baby girl that he never got to meet. We all miss him. Here is a picture so he will not be forgotten.
SSG Jason Wheeler

Sarah Palin -- Levi Johnston -- Gay Heartthrob Admits He Lied

TUESDAY, JULY 6, 2010

Levi Johnston admits he lied about the Palins

Levi Johnston has admitted in a statement via People magazine that he lied about Sarah Palin and her family in media quotes and magazine interviews:

"Last year, after Bristol and I broke up, I was unhappy and a little angry. Unfortunately, against my better judgment, I publicly said things about the Palins that were not completely true. I have already privately apologized to Todd and Sarah. Since my statements were public, I owe it to the Palins to publicly apologize."

"So to the Palin family in general and to Sarah Palin in particular, please accept my regrets and forgive my youthful indiscretion. I hope one day to restore your trust."

Like we didn't know he was troubled and bearing false witness.
Read it all at Texas For Sarah Palin.

Sharia Star Wars -- The Wrong Stuff

More on Stedman Holder Bolden and the Right Stuff

perhaps foremost, [Obama] wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering.
-- The idiotic NASA Chief Bolden

All praise to Stacy McCain for From Mecca to the Moon!

Previous to current.

Remember when real men were in abundance in America?

BP -- Beltway Punks -- Photo Evidence

Top 20 Photos From the Gulf that Obama Doesn’t Want You to See

POSTED AT 9:33 AM ON JULY 4, 2010 BY DIRECTORBLUE 


It’s Day 74 [76] and President Barack Obama is laser-focused — spending every waking moment — on the Gulf oil spill.
Uhm, plus comprehensive immigration reform.
And firing general officers who insult his battered image. Oh, and regulating CO2 emissions, too.
Although Obama appears to have ordered a media blackout of the Gulf disaster, a relative few shocking photos have leaked out thanks to enterprising area residents. You won’t be seeing these in your local paper, that’s for sure.
See 'em all here

.

H/T:
NRO Newsletters . . . Morning Jolt . . . with Jim Geraghty ... July 6, 2010 ... Subscription required.

Previous BP/Bellway Punks posts here, here, here and here.

Stupid Or Subversive, You Be The Judge

Some days it's difficult to discern the difference between ignorant and wicked evil.

NASA's new mission: Building ties to Muslim world
By: Byron York 
Chief Political Correspondent

July 6, 2010

"When I became the NASA administrator, [Obama] charged me with three things," NASA head Charles Bolden said in a recent interview with the Middle Eastern news network al-Jazeera. "One, he wanted me to help re-inspire children to want to get into science and math; he wanted me to expand our international relationships; and third, and perhaps foremost, he wanted me to find a way to reach out to the Muslim world and engage much more with dominantly Muslim nations to help them feel good about their historic contribution to science, math, and engineering."

Read more at the Washington Examiner:

More here from Bryan York,  in defense of formerly heroic Bolden.

You'd be hard-pressed to find an American who doesn't know that the "S" in NASA stands for "Space." Since the race to the moon in the 1960s, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration has been one of the most storied agencies in the U.S. government. Now, under President Obama, its mission is changing -- and space isn't part of the story.

Me? I don't really care if the Muslim World feels good about itself -- or it's historic contribution to aviation.

_____________________

Updatery:
CB, over at Another Black Conservative, has a few choice words in his post: Houston, We Have A Problem:

For the life of me, I certainly cannot understand the need for the extra attention to the Muslim world. The Muslim world is still oppressing women, brutalizing people who exercise free speech and cannot get control of its own religious fanatics, yet making them feel good about their ancient contributions to math and science is suppose to be a priority for our space agency? It seems pretty clear to me that the Muslim world has a few more pressing matters that need attention then their self esteem.

Nicolas H. J. Gideon, Army Pfc -- Rest In Peace

Nicolas H. J. Gideon, 20

Army, Private 1st Class
Based: Ft. Richardson, Alaska
1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division
Supporting: Operation Enduring Freedom
Died: July 6, 2009
Forward Operating Base Salerno, Afghanistan
Engaged
Gender: Male
Hometown: Murrieta
High School: Chaparral High (Temecula)
Burial: Riverside National Cemetery

His family last saw Gideon in early June when he came home from Afghanistan on leave. "It was so awesome," his mother recalled. They celebrated his stepfather's birthday. And Gideon proposed to his high school girlfriend, Wendy Herman.
"We took so many pictures," Carol Tyndale said. "We had so much fun. Then a week and a half later, he was gone."
In addition to his mother, stepfather and fiancee, Gideon's survivors include five siblings and his father, Hugh Gideon of Las Vegas.

The convoy bringing young Nicolas Hugh Joseph Gideon home included 60 motorcycle escorts from the Patriot Guard Riders, a volunteer group that met the casket on its arrival from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware. The group accompanied the family home, then to Gideon's funeral at Cornerstone Community Church and burial at Riverside National Cemetery.
Read more about Pfc. Nicolas H.J. Gideon here and here.

As of July, 2009, Nicolas Gideon is the 13th service member from Southwest County to have died while serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The others are:
- Marine Capt. Aaron Contreras, 31, of Temecula
- Army Pfc. Daniel Parker, 18, a 2002 graduate of Elsinore High School
- Marine Cpl. Matthew Matula, 20, of Murrieta
- Marine Staff Sgt. Jorge Molina Bautista, 37, of Sun City
- Marine Corps Lance Cpl. Justin Hunt, 22, a 2000 graduate of Elsinore High School
- Marine Corps Maj. Kevin Shea, 38, of Temecula
- Army Sgt. Stephen Saxton, 24, a 1998 graduate of Temecula Valley High School
- Army Sgt. Nathan Bouchard, 24, a 1999 Elsinore High School graduate
- Marine Staff Sgt. Dexter Kimble, 30, of French Valley
- Marine Lance Cpl. Jeromy West, 20, a 2004 graduate of Hamilton High School in Anza
- Army Capt. Brian Freeman, 31, of Temecula
- Army Specialist Mary Jane Jaenichen, 20, of Temecula

Experience ... Mexico

Visit Mexico! - watch more funny videos

Aww. Don't be so thin-skinned -- on either side of the frontera.
It's funny.

IDF Rocks to ke$ha -- TikTok

Carl in Jerusalem sends us notice of the vid of Israeli Soldiers dancing to ke$ha's pop video.



Apparently this is scandalous, these young men dancing.
Yet, I remain unscandalized.
Not like they're beheading anyone in the name of Allah.
Daniel Pearl.
Or shooting a hostage in the neck. Allahu Akbar.
Fabrizio Quattrocchi
And no, I didn't know ke$ha before this morning.
ke$ha? Just more faux scandal in the pop world.
It is kindda a catchy song, though.
She does have an odd sluttish appeal.
Makes ya wanna get up and groove like the old days, ain't it?

Happy Monday System -- ハッピーマンデー制度 -- Happī Mandē Seido

The Happy Monday System

was a decision by the government of Japan to move a number of national holidays to Mondays, creating a three-day weekend for those who normally have a full work week.

Holidays which were changed include:
Coming of Age Day: January 15 → 2nd Monday of January (as of 2000)
Marine Day: July 20 → 3rd Monday of July (as of 2003)
Respect for the Aged Day [!!!]: September 15 → 3rd Monday of September (as of 2003)
Health and Sports Day: October 10 → 2nd Monday of October (as of 2000)

Several holidays could not be moved to a Monday, such as The Emperor's Birthday, New Year's Day, Vernal Equinox Day, Autumnal Equinox Day.

Don't know about you and yours, but around here, every Monday is a happy Monday. Oh yeah.
Fed holidays in the USA.

James M. Ahearn, Major -- Rest In Peace

James M. Ahearn, 43

Army, Major
Based: Ft. Bragg, N.C.
96th Civil Affairs Battalion, 95th Civil Affairs Brigade
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: July 5, 2007
Baghdad (southern part), Iraq
Married, 1 child
Gender: Male
Hometown: Concord
High School: Clayton Valley High (Concord)
Burial: Arlington National Cemetery

During Baghdad duty in 2003, Ahearn, who spoke Arabic, met and fell in love with an Iraqi woman. He brought her to the U.S. in 2005, and they married and had a baby girl.
When Lena agreed to marry him, he set out to convert to the Muslim faith so the ceremony could take place. Then he worked to bring her to the U.S.
His father, retired Phoenix-area FBI head James F. Ahearn, helped him snip through immigration red tape, eventually enlisting the assistance of Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.).

More about Major James M. Ahearn here, here and here.

Justin A. Casillas, Army Pfc -- Rest In Peace

Justin A. Casillas, 19

Army, Private 1st Class
Based: Ft. Richardson, Alaska
3rd Battalion, 509th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division
Supporting: Operation Enduring Freedom
Died: July 4, 2009
Combat Outpost Zerok, Afghanistan
Single
Gender: Male
Hometown: Dunnigan
High School: Pierce High (Arbuckle)

In addition to his mother, Casillas is survived by his father, Charles Casillas, his stepfather, Joe Casillas, and younger sisters Victoria and Ashleigh.

By: Matthew Keys FOX40 News
July 6, 2009
Justin Casillas, 19, fatally wounded in action during combat operations in Zerok, Afghanistan
DUNNIGAN - On a day most Americans set aside to celebrate freedom and independence, family and friends in a small California town are mourning the loss of a 19-year-old hometown hero.

Michelle Malkin writes of Justin A. Casillas here.
More here.
Life Magazine photographs here.

DOVER, DE - JULY 06: Members of a U.S. Army carry team carries the flag-draped transfer case containing the remains of U.S. Army Pfc. Justin A. Casillas of Dunnigan, California during a dignified transfer on the tarmac at Dover Air Force Base on July 6, 2009 in Dover, Delaware. Casillas was killed July 4, 2009 while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan when insurgents attacked Combat Outpost Zerok using small arms and indirect fire.

Will Not Say Goodbye -- Danny Gokey

That Aint My America -- Lynyrd Skynyrd Interlude

Van Zant Interlude -- These Colors Don't Run

Red, White and Blue Gift -- PBR

Around here we have love gifts, or, luv gifts.
If we're out shopping, even if shopping for ourselves, we pick up and bring home a luv gift, something for the loved ones back here on the compound.
Today I've been presented with a Red, White and Blue gift.
Happy Birthday, America.
And, thanks, JMax!

These colors don't run.

Rogelio A. Ramirez -- And His Gold Star Family

Thinking about this picture taken at the Veterans Day Parade last November, standing curbside at the Ritchie Valens Rec Center in Pacoima, when the Ramirez family motored by, offering all of us there a moment to view this portrait honoring their beloved Lance Corporal Rogelio A. Ramirez, age 21.

Been thinking about the Ramirez family, thinking of their unspeakable grief, their familial pride, their own bravery, been thinking about young Rogelio Ramirez, since that day.

Independence Day weekend seems an appropriate time to post this Gold Star photograph.

Ramirez's father came to the U.S. from El Salvador. He had been a member of a local militia during the civil war there and tried to talk his son out of enlisting. But Ramirez was determined, working two years to retire debts and even removing a small gang tattoo from his hand with scissors.
--Times obituary

When he walked out that door, he walked out whole. He had himself together. He had purpose. He was determined. I wouldn't have taken that from him.

— Irene Ramirez, mother

Requiescat In Pace.

Rogelio A. Ramirez, 21
Marines, Lance Corporal
Based: Camp Pendleton
1st Battalion, 1st Marines, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: August 26, 2007
Saqlawiya, Iraq
Single, 1 child
Gender: Male
Hometown: Pasadena
High School: Pasadena High (Pasadena)
Burial: Mountain View Cemetery, Altadena

If you'd like additional words, or more information about Lance Corporal Rogelio A. Ramirez, look here, here or here.

Shabbat Shalom -- Sarah Palin Files

Faoa L. Apiner, Marine Reserve, Staff Sergeant -- Rest In Peace

Faoa L. Apineru, 31

Marine Reserve, Staff Sergeant
Based: San Bruno
Headquarters Company, 23rd Marines, 4th Marine Division, Marine Forces Reserve
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: July 2, 2007
Veterans Affairs Palo Alto Health Care, USA
Single
Gender: Male
Hometown: Yorba Linda

Apineru, died on July 2, 2007, at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Palo Alto, where he was being treated for traumatic brain injuries suffered May 15, 2005, when a roadside bomb exploded near his Humvee in Anbar province, west of Baghdad.

They called him the mayor of the hospital....If a new soldier moved into the hospital, my brother would make sure he was comfortable, like he worked there....He was speaking on behalf of injured soldiers and comforting them and their family. He didn't care about himself.
— Selemaea Apineru, brother, on Apineru's stay at a Veterans Affairs hospital

i want to show how sorry i am to hear abt this great loss, i know a little bit abt this family when their parents were a minister at vaipu'a, my mom's from there but also i went to school in samoa with liki.
may the loving father in heaven help the family in this time of need!
much alofaz!
— pule leota!
September 10, 2008 at 2:30 a.m.

Read more about Marine Reserve, Staff SergeantFaoa L. Apineru here, here and here.

Fête du Canada -- Uno de Julio

Canada Day

Celebrate Canada Day in style by making a trifle that resembles the Canadian flag. This cake is simple to prepare and it looks absolutely fantastic.

Preparation time: 15 minutes
Ready: 4 hr 30 minutes
Serves: 12

Michael L. Ruoff Jr., Army Staff Sergeant -- Rest In Peace

Michael L. Ruoff Jr., 31

Army, Staff Sergeant
Based: Schweinfurt, Germany
1st Battalion, 77th Armor Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division
Supporting: Operation Iraqi Freedom
Died: July 1, 2007
Ta'meem, Iraq
Married, 2 children
Gender: Male
Hometown: Yosemite

He died before I was 11. But I know he is in heaven.
— Danielle Ruoff, daughter in the Colorado Springs Gazette

I served with Mike at Ft. Carson and Ft. Bliss and he was an amazing person and soldier. We rode and crashed dirt bikes at Bliss and made the move to Colorado together. I saw Mike go from wild child to loving husband and father. He was a great friend and will be missed by all. Brave Rifles.
— Jeremy Mathews
August 5, 2009

At home, Michael Ruoff was never far from his daughters, Grace and Danielle, and his wife of 11 years, Tracy. Dozens of pictures displayed at the service showed the four together, always smiling.
Parrish said that smile carried over to Ruoff’s life in the Army where he was known as someone others could count on.

Read more about Army Staff Sergeant Michael L. Rouff here and here.