Internal Army Poll: Only 26% of Officers Say Army Headed In Right Direction Under Obama, “Political Correctness” Cited…

Weasel Zippers  "An internal Army survey that was conducted in 2011 and published this year discovered that only 26 percent of active-duty Army officers say yes–and that one of the two main themes cited by those who say no is that the Army is now adversely impacted by “political correctness” imposed by both outside policymakers and senior Army leaders."

"...political correctness or the influence of politics in the Army is a reason the Army is not headed in the right direction. These comments generally cited the negative influence of government policy makers (outside the Army) as being detrimental to the future of the Army, and indicated that senior Army leaders themselves felt the need to bow to ‘politically correct solutions’ to appease policy makers, or to ‘play politics’ within their own organizations.”

Bill Whittle Video:“Obama, the Incredibly Shrinking Man.”

Chicks on the Right  "As always, Bill is dead ON, especially when he reiterates that we’ve had to deal with “President Kardashian” for the past four years."  

A notable quote from this video: "..a base, petty, small little man"...

Rush Contrasts Story Of Romney Helping Premature Girl With Nations #1 Supporter Of Infanticide Obama:  
"The comparison is telling; the reactionary left will no doubt jump to hear racial dog whistles, despite the fact that most aborted babies are black."
Hat tip to Conservative Blogs Central

Charles Krauthammer: The ‘deterrence works’ fantasy

Jerusalem Post

Charles Krauthammer  "Iran’s clerical regime rules in the name of a fundamentalist religion for whom the hereafter offers the ultimate rewards. For Soviet communists — thoroughly, militantly atheistic — such thinking was an opiate-laced fairy tale.

"For all its global aspirations, the Soviet Union was intensely nationalist. The Islamic Republic sees itself as an instrument of its own brand of Shiite millenarianism — the messianic return of the “hidden Imam.” "  ...."The classic formulation comes from Tehran’s fellow (and rival Sunni) jihadist al-Qaeda: “You love life and we love death.” Try deterring that."

Jerusalem Post

....Israel is a “one-bomb country.” Its territory is so tiny, its population so concentrated that, as Iran’s former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has famously said, “Application of an atomic bomb would not leave anything in Israel but the same thing would just produce damages in the Muslim world.” A tiny nuclear arsenal would do the job.

..."The confident belief that [the Iranians] are like the Soviets is a fantasy. That’s why Israel is contemplating a preemptive strike. Israel refuses to trust its very existence to the convenient theories of comfortable analysts living 6,000 miles from its Ground Zero."

MSNBC reporting from outer space

MSNBC’s Obama Shill, Chris “Tingles” Matthews, Goes Off His Rocker on “Morning Joe” Show, Attacks RNC Chairman Reince Priebus (video)

Chris Matthews gets into confrontation with GOP delegates

Rush Limbaugh: The Bigotry and Racism of MSNBC  "The singular focus of MSNBC for the past six days has been racism.  There's one subject that they're talking about: racism.  The racism of Romney; the racism of Ryan; the racism of every speaker at the convention; the racism of the Republican Party; the racism of every Republican and conservative.  It's all they're talking about.  It's laughably hilarious, except to them." 

Urban Legend: President Obama Did NOT Confuse Wisconsin State Flag for Union Banner

Truth or Fiction

Summary of the eRumor:  This is a forwarded email that says that while speaking at a Master Lock factory in Milwaukee, Wisconsin President Obama mistook the state flag for a union banner, pointed to it and said, "A Union shop since 1848."

The Truth:  President Obama did make a speech at the Master Lock plant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on February 15, 2012 but he never said this.   The transcript and video of his visit are posted on the White House website.    Click here for transcript and video.   At first, we believed that this was someone's attempt at political humor but it turned out that there actually was a misidentification of the Wisconsin state flag for a union banner by Politico contributor Donovan Slack, who covered the event in [her] February 15, 2012 blog. The article was corrected and this notice appeared below it: An earlier 44 blog post about Obama’s visit to Wisconsin incorrectly identified the Wisconsin state flag.

Snopes has this to say about it.

LOL! Politico’s Donovan Slack Thinks Wisconsin State Flag Is Local Union Flag

Slack is referred to in this post from Big Journalism:  "Well, for the same reason Politico's Donovan Slack excludes the most important journalistic context in her own piece of hackery that blames Citizens United for Obama shattering the record for most presidential time spent at fundraisers:"...

(Left)  Donovan Slack

That latest Navy SEAL's book controversy UPDATED

Newsmax; Pentagon Tells Ex-SEAL He Could Face Legal Action Over Osama Bin Laden Raid Book, 'No Easy Day'   Will they try him and Obama together or separately?
"It added that it is considering legal action against all those "acting in concert" with the SEAL on his book, "No Easy Day," which is scheduled to be released Tuesday."

American Thinker; Pentagon may prosecute ex-SEAL for bin Laden book  "However, erring on the side of caution is always a good thing. We just don't know what nuggets of info might fill in a piece of the puzzle our enemies are constructing from several different sources and reveal something that would be damaging to our security -- or threaten the lives of our operatives.
"The book is no doubt compelling and a good read. But Bissonette should have submitted the manuscript for review before publishing."

Navy SEAL Author Rejects the Pentagon's Legal Threat
Update: "Former Navy SEAL Matt Bissonnette is going to tell his version of events surrounding the death of Osama bin Laden, even if the Pentagon sues him for every last penny."

Blackfive; CLASSIFIED INFO REVEALED BY BIN LADEN RAID BOOK  "But the problem is that Obama can declassify anything he wants, and apparently has to make himself look good and to get that move out in time for the election. But if this dude said one thing that is not officially declassified he is done."

'No Easy Day': SEAL Memoir Contradicts Official Account of Bin Laden's Death  "In other words, bin Laden wasn’t reaching for a gun, nor did he make any effort to defend himself against the SEALs. Those details were key factors in the U.S. administration’s narrative of the raid, which also includes an anecdote — false, by Bissonnette’s account — of a prolonged gunfight between the SEALs and bin Laden’s operatives outside the compound." "

Let's HOPE we can CHANGE it back!

http://terrellaftermath.com/

How To Guarantee Four More Years of Obama   "This is convention week, and the GOP should be building enthusiasm and consolidating behind Romney. Even better, the Libertarians should be mending fences with the GOP, and Ron Paul should be calling for his followers to support Romney as well."  Anybody else out there as tired of Ron Paul as I am? I still carry a grudge against Ross Perot for the Clintons.

Heritage; We Can Change America’s Course "The debate in Tampa this week raised a number of issues, including preserving the American dream of working hard to achieve success. The Heritage Foundation has extensive research and policy prescriptions on each of these issues:"....
"To put America on a path toward preserving and growing freedom, Spalding says, “The first step is to reduce the size and scope of government and unleash the engines of economic productivity and the institutions of cultural renewal.”"

 

Sweetness and Light; Obama: I Didn’t Sell Stimulus Enough   " President Barack Obama says his re-election might help end the political stalemate in Washington, much like “popping a blister.”
"In an interview with Time magazine, Obama says he expects Republicans in Congress to work more cooperatively in a second term, since his re-election would no longer be a factor."  

Oh, well then, I feel so much better about voting for Mr. Obama now.

American Thinker; The Problem with Barack  "Yet this man seriously seems to believe he is a king, free to pick and choose the laws and statutes he will obey or enforce, duly empowered to impel or forbid action by executive decree, without legislative approval."....

http://zappatrust.deviantart.com/gallery/#/d57cwf1

"Yet he is still nothing more than a small man -- so afraid people will see -- a man loath to allow those who would dare the freedom to do what they have always been free to do -- pre-Barack, of course." 

The Salesman  "Make no mistake … Obama has the salesman thing down cold.  He doesn’t need to work on his sales pitch; that managed to con millions of Americans into putting him in the White House!  The fact that his policies aren’t working is bad enough, but it’s frightening to think that this man truly believes his biggest weakness is his sales pitch."  Neal Boortz.

Alan Caruba: Civility? From the Democratic Party? You Gotta Be Kidding!

Warning Signs   "Television ads claiming that Mitt Romney caused a woman to die from cancer or portraying Paul Ryan as pushing on old lady in a wheelchair off a cliff are not my idea of civility if the definition of civility also includes telling the truth. 

"Taking their cue from a President who is currently lying about everything from “our plan worked” to “the private sector is doing fine”, the Democrats are stuck with this blatantly false message.

"I want you to watch and listen to the level of Democrat hysteria that will follow Mitt Romney’s acceptance speech. It will tell you everything you need to know about the weeks ahead between now and Election Day."  (Emphasis in the original)

Even Romney’s lame birth-certificate joke provokes charges of racism  "Yet this is “some of the basest, most despicable bigotry we can imagine.” Clearly, if that’s the worst we can come up with, the state of racial tolerance in America has never been better."

 

Dateline Tampa: Racists of the Mainstream Media   "Racism is stalking the Republican Convention in Tampa. But it’s not from the Republicans. It’s from the mainstream media.

"First it was MSNBC treating convention speakers Artur Davis, Mia Love, and Ted Cruz like nonpersons. And now it’s Yahoo! Washington Bureau Chief David Chalian getting caught on an ABC webcast saying Mitt Romney would be “happy to have a party when black people drown.” "

Stupid progressive tricks

Liberal Women Speak with a Whole New Voice  "As a group, Democrats provide tons of fodder for humor. But by far the most ridiculous thing liberal women have done to date is dress up like female genitalia to make a statement at the RNC." 
....".Rest assured, the women wearing pink genital suits are the same ones who, under different circumstances, would be offended if men viewed them as, well, walking vaginas."

Disturbing Video: Code Pink Moonbats Sing And Dance In Their Vagina Costumes…  "These people have the maturity level of a six-year-old."

Take what to the RNC?

Code Pink tries to get Condoleezza Rice arrested for war crimes at RNC


Code Pink's Vagina Protest: Where Was the Diversity?

Code Pink Chicks Are Gross
"Why should Congress respect these women, when they clearly don’t have any self-respect? They want free, on-demand abortions. These women are MORONS, and I’m ashamed to share the same GENDER as them."


So they want American troops killed but support Islamists!

New conservative ad: The faded Obama poster on the wall

Hot Air; "....Much like the Democrats’ Mediscare tactics, this ad is designed less to get a core constituency from the other side to cross over, I think, than it is to convince them to stay home on election day. Because let’s face it: If young adults, of all people, are willing to back O’s negligence on Medicare more than any other age group, their votes really aren’t gettable. They’re locked in. They bought the Hopenchange myth, to the point where some of them are still darned proud of that faded poster."

Iran’s Supreme Leader Praises U.S. ‘Occupy’ Movement

CNS News  "The Ayatollah Ali Khamenei – the “supreme leader” of Iran –  praised America’s “Occupy Wall Street” movement on Thursday, calling it a reflection of people around the world who are “losing their patience” with the dominance of the United States and Israel in the international community."

Bing

150 Years ago: The Campaigns of Second Manassas to Antietam (Update)

August 27-27; Second Manassas  and the defeat of Gen. John Pope.  "A heavy, soaking rain fell across northern Virginia on the night of August 30-31, 1862. Despite the storm’s intensity, it could not wash away the bloodstains that reddened the fields and wood lots along Bull Run creek. On the two previous days, more than 100,000 Northerners and Southerners had killed and maimed each other.

If General Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia had a single crucible that forged it into one of history’s finest commands, it was perhaps this familiar killing ground at Manassas." (Video)    Numerous excellent links at this site.    NPS Historian Ray Brown explores the intense fight between Fitz John Porter's Federals and Stonewall Jackson's Confederates at the Deep Cut at Second Manassas on August 30, 1862.  

Some background on why Lincoln wanted to remove the Army of the Potomac from the dithering McClelland and his unfortunate choice of John Pope as the solution;

   The Cabinet of Mr. Lincoln found itself, in the spring of 1862, in the very difficult position of having called to the chief command of the army an officer in whom it did not place entire confidence. The attitude of General McClellan on many points was disliked; his political affiliations were distrusted; his extreme caution, so far as his own movements were concerned--his easy confidence when the matter at stake was the safety of Washington--his startling plan of removing the army to the Peninsula--all combined to awaken alarm, and to deprive him of that cordial support which his great undertaking required in order to be successful. He had even attempted to evade the orders of the President, by taking with him to Yorktown troops supposed to be needed for the defence of Washington; the Government had promptly interfered by detaining the entire corps of McDowell; and, though two divisions of this corps were afterward sent to McClellan, the fact remained that he did not have at the outset of the campaign the overwhelming force on which he had calculated. The irritation caused by this found abundant expression in his correspondence with the President and the Secretary of War.

The Battle of 2nd Manassas  Various reports and situations linked to here for the student.

The destruction of the 5th New York Zouaves   "Just after 4 p.m. that afternoon, a Confederate advance started toward the grassy slope just south of the present day Lee Highway.  The 5th New York regiment rushed to form a line to stop the oncoming assault, but they were quickly overrun by the oncoming Rebels.  In less than ten minutes, 123 members of the regiment were either killed or mortally wounded. 

"One Union veteran referred to the Southern counterattack that day as a "hurricane of death." That was the single greatest loss of life suffered by any Union infantry regiment in any single action during the Civil War."     More on the 5th New York and 2nd Manassas

150th Anniversary Battle of First Manassas Part 3 (Known also as Bull Run)

The Union tended to name battles after the nearest river while the South used the name of a nearby town. The North named the Battle of Antietam after the creek on the battlefield; the South called it the Battle of Sharpsburg, the town there. So also with their armies; Union armies were generally named after rivers and Confederates after states. (Army of Tennessee was Confederate; Army of the Tennessee was Union.

Left: The Stone House, or Matthews’ House, located along the Warrenton Turnpike, was constructed 

circa 1848.  It served as a hospital during the First Battle of Manassas and the Second Battle of Manassas.

Below; the stone house today.

• Fighting in the Twilight at Brawner Farm  The battle opens. Follow the trail of markers
• Second Manassas Campaign by Virginia Historical Markers
• The Guns of Second Manassas
• Get a battle app.   I kid you not.
• General Pope's battle report
• The Case of the Missing Manassas Cyclorama
• Frank Harrell's Civil War History Mr. Harrell was first webmaster of Manassas  National Battlefield Park

 (Left) Uniform of the 5th New York  "Clad in colorful garb modeled on the uniform worn by french colonial troops, the 5th New York Infantry, or "Duryée's Zouaves", was one of two regiments in Colonel Gouverneur Warren's brigade that bore the brunt of Longstreet's onslaught on August 30, 1862. cought in a deadly crossfire that one survivor likened to "the vortex of Hell". In less than ten minutes the regiment lost 330 out of some 550 men taken into action. At least 120 Zouaves were killed outright or died of wounds, the greatest fatality sustained in a Civil War battle by any single Union infantry unit."   

Below, Don Troiani's "The 5th Texas, Second Manassas, August 30, 1862"

Army of Northern Virginia Order of Battle - Second Manassas
Union Order of Battle - Second Manassas
AmericanCivilWar.com; The Battle of Second Manassas

Second Manassas - Morning of Delusion from Civil War Trust on Vimeo.  Hat tip to CyndisList.com  for this and the following.

Second Manassas - Prelude (1 of 14) from Civil War Trust on Vimeo.
"Historian Scott Patchan talks about the failings of Union high command on August 30 1862 and how they impacted the Battle of Second Manassas."

Update: The weight of war–a 150th musing

"This is an image of Lt. Colonel Joseph McLean of the 88th Pennsylvania–his shirt unbuttoned, shoulders slumped, face heavy with sadness or fatigue. Precisely 150 years ago this afternoon–almost to the minute as I write this–McLean fell in the swirl of fighting on Chinn Ridge, at Second Manassas. About most who fell in this war, we know little beyond the official record–little of their life, their being, or their death. But of this man, Lt. Colonel Joseph McLean of the 88th Pennsylvania, we know a good deal."
More...

Hat tip to James Sullivan, Tampa, FLA