I've just discovered this blog, Green.....again, written by a Marine officer in Iraq. His writing is quite powerful. In the piece below he writes about young grunts he's serving with.
March 22, 2006
The Boy Grunt
I see him, or one like him, almost daily, standing in line at the mess hall, waiting his turn at the phone center, or sometimes even at the base chapel on Sunday. He lives out in the city, sleeping on floors, on rooftops, or in the walled courtyards of Fallujah with his buddies, surviving on adrenaline and MRE’s. He comes back to the camp periodically to get a shower, a hot meal, a haircut, and some clean cammies. Maybe even a day off to send home an e-mail or make a telephone call. But it never lasts. Soon enough, he’s back outside the wire, doing what grunts do.
Sometimes his youth is almost astonishing. His face shows the teenager that he is. He laughs and jokes and talks loudly about his girl back home, or his car, or how PFC so-and-so made a fool of himself while out on the last operation. He’d probably never been away from home prior to joining the Marines. Probably still has a room at his parents’ house back in the states, waiting for him when he gets out after his enlistment or goes home on leave.
I look at him, and he seems just like a kid coming home from high school football practice sweaty and tired, but happy. Only this kid didn’t just come from football practice. He just came in from standing a security post where he didn’t know whether or not a sniper was sighting in on him from the back of a shadowy room, away from the window so as to be invisible. Or he might have came in from manning a vehicle checkpoint, where every car that rolled toward him may or may not have carried a vehicle borne improvised explosive device, about to detonate and send him and his buddies all to their maker. Or maybe he just came off a long, hot day of foot patrols through streets where the children of the neighborhood smiled and waved, but none of the adults did. And yet there he is, full of smiles and jokes, acting as though there was never really any danger at all. Is it courage? Bravado? Blissful ignorance? Or is it living in the moment simply because he never knows which day might be his last?
Occasionally I see him with reality in his eyes. Usually right after he pulls up at the surgical unit to drop off one or more of his buddies, broken and bleeding from a firefight or an IED. It’s then that he no longer looks eighteen years old, shaken by the realization that he is not immortal. There’s no talk of cars or girls or video games. It’s at these times that the visage of youth is gone, replaced by one of stark reality. The reality that we are all made of flesh, blood, and bone, and anyone can die on any given day.
At these times there’s often something else in his expression that he cannot hide: anger; outright rage that someone did that to his friends, and with it an unquenchable thirst for payback. The need to bring violence and punishment upon the enemy because he desecrated one of the most cherished things a Marine has: the friendship of his buddies. It’s a need that I hope he gets a chance to satisfy.
I look at this boy, a young man really, and wonder what will become of him. Will he go home, get out of the Marine Corps when his hitch is up, and go to college? Will he be the guy in class who is a few years older than his peers, who’s seen and done things that those other kids will never understand? Maybe he’ll try to explain, or then again maybe he’ll just try to blend in and never bring it up. Or he might just get a job somewhere and be the young war veteran who gains the instant respect of his co-workers. Will he go home to his family and his old friends and not know how to act around them because he thinks they would never understand him again? Or worst of all, will his tour end tragically? Will my team answer a call one day to send this young man home, while back in the states his parents answer a dreadful knock on the door to find two Marines in dress uniform bearing terrible news? But then again, maybe he’ll be just fine, going home to catalog his wartime experiences as an important, defining time of his life, and simply move on.
Whatever the conclusion, one thing is perfectly clear. Despite all the naysayers, America is still perfectly capable of making young men who willingly set aside the frivolities of youth and step up. They sacrifice their personal lives, put their ambitions on hold, and say goodbye to their friends and family, only to subject themselves to untold pain, hardship, and perhaps even death. Boys one day, grunts the next.
http://greenagain.typepad.com/green_again/
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Fun With Hand Grenades
I was trying to post a comment at the blog in the title but something is amiss at blogger today because it can't recognize that I really am typing in the word to prove I'm not a bot, so I'm posting it here. This guy is a good writer and has a different perspective. His blog is worth a visit. Anyway here's the comment I was going to post, but couldn't.
=============================
I just came across your blog and you are a great writer. I read a lot of Military Blogs and yours is now going to be on my daily list.
I especially like your "Military Terms and General Guide" section. It's instructive as well as being very funny.
I used to be in the Canadian Army but never saw action and at the time I was young and dumb enough to want to go to war. I can relate to your gripes about military bullshit. I imagine grunt life hasn't changed much since the days of Marcus Aurelius.
And as for propoganda you hit it right on. Everybody's doing it. The left. The Right. It's hard to strain out the Bullshit. That's why I started reading blogs like yours.
I want to thank you for your service. I believe that the war in Iraq was the right thing to do. America was backing down on too many issues like the pull out from Lebanon after the Marine Barracks was blown up, Somalia, The American Embassy bombings the USS Cole, the first World Trade Center bombing, crazy f***ed up islamist jihadis were at war with America way before September 11, 2001.
You obviously knew the chances of going to Iraq were extrememly high when you signed up for a full term, when the Army is offering two year contracts. I admire a man who wants to serve his country with a machine gun.
Stay as safe as you can. I hope you make it to your goal of becoming an E-5. God bless.
P.S.I'm going to link to you on my pathetic blog.
http://funwithhandgrenades.blogspot.com/
=============================
I just came across your blog and you are a great writer. I read a lot of Military Blogs and yours is now going to be on my daily list.
I especially like your "Military Terms and General Guide" section. It's instructive as well as being very funny.
I used to be in the Canadian Army but never saw action and at the time I was young and dumb enough to want to go to war. I can relate to your gripes about military bullshit. I imagine grunt life hasn't changed much since the days of Marcus Aurelius.
And as for propoganda you hit it right on. Everybody's doing it. The left. The Right. It's hard to strain out the Bullshit. That's why I started reading blogs like yours.
I want to thank you for your service. I believe that the war in Iraq was the right thing to do. America was backing down on too many issues like the pull out from Lebanon after the Marine Barracks was blown up, Somalia, The American Embassy bombings the USS Cole, the first World Trade Center bombing, crazy f***ed up islamist jihadis were at war with America way before September 11, 2001.
You obviously knew the chances of going to Iraq were extrememly high when you signed up for a full term, when the Army is offering two year contracts. I admire a man who wants to serve his country with a machine gun.
Stay as safe as you can. I hope you make it to your goal of becoming an E-5. God bless.
P.S.I'm going to link to you on my pathetic blog.
http://funwithhandgrenades.blogspot.com/
Thursday, December 01, 2005
199 Reasons NOT to Vote Liberal
Here are 100 reasons I cannot vote Liberal this coming election.
1. Cancelling the Sea King replacement
2. Sponsorship scandal
3. Gun Registry
4. HRDC boondoggle
5. Problems with Transition Job Funds program
6. Tainted blood
7. Radwanski Spending Affair
8. Pearson Airport
9. GST Flip Flop
10. Airbus Investigation
11. Voting against Red Book promise of independent Ethics Commissioner
12. Irving fishing lodge stays/travel on Irving jets for cabinet ministers
13. Martin traveling on private corporate jets as Finance Minister
14. Don Boudria’s stay at Boulay owned chalet
15. Denis Coderre staying with Boulay
16. Alfonso Gagliano being appointed Ambassador to Denmark
17. Shawinigate
18. Claude Gauthier (PM’s friend)’s Transelec getting CIDA grant that was
questioned by the Auditor General and even CIDA.
19. Liberal fundraiser Pierre Corbeil charged with fraud by RCMP after he
approached several Quebec companies seeking federal job training grants and
asking for payments to Liberal Party, having gotten the names from senior
Quebec Liberal Minister, Marcel Massé.
20. Michel Dupuy, Heritage Minister, lobbying the CRTC.
21. Tom Wappel refusing to help blind veteran
22. Gagliano’s son benefiting from contracts from his father’s department
23. Gagliano’s former speechwriter, Michèle Tremblay was on a $5,000 a month
retainer with the Canada Lands Company to provide speeches for the Minister.
Former President John Grant let her go saying "we got nothing in return."
Grant claimed that all Crown Corporations reporting to Mr. Gagliano were
told to put Ms. Tremblay on a monthly retainer.
24. Iltis replacement
25. Purchase of new Challenger jets for the Prime Minister and cabinet
26. NATO Flying Training program contract
27. Liberal friends appointed as IRB judges being investigated by RCMP
28. Hedy Fry’s imaginary burning crosses
29. Maria Minna’s improper municipal vote
30. Minna giving contracts to two former campaign staffers for public
relations work for a conference that had already been held
31. Lawrence MacAulay and contracts directed to Holland College
32. Lawrence MacAulay and Tim Banks
33. Lawrence MacAulay hired his official agent, Everett Roche, for $70K, but
Roche never did any work for it. (Oct 2002)
34. Art Eggleton and contracts to his ex-girlfriend
35. Copps’ aide Boyer’s spending habits
36. Collenette resigns for breach of ethical guidelines involving a letter
he wrote to the Immigration and Refugee Board
37. APEC Inquiry
38. Andy Scott's 1998 resignation that came eight weeks too late, after a
media circus wore him down for indiscreetly shooting his mouth off on an
airplane.
39. Anti-American comments by Liberal MPs, officials, and the former
Minister of Natural Resources.
40. Rock and the Apotex/Cipro affair
41. Rock giving Health Canada contract to car cleaning company.
42. Manley lobbying CIBC on behalf of Rod Bryden
43. Manley’s fundraiser suggesting donors to his leadership write it off as
a business expense.
44. Manley using his pre-budget consultations as Minister of Finance to
solicit support for his leadership bid.
45. Coderre’s relationship with Group Everest
46. Martin’s fundraiser/employee of Finance Jim Palmer
47. Martin’s "blind trust" and his relationship with CSL.
48. Gerry Byrne requesting fundraising money be sent to his home address,
with no records kept.
49. Gerry Byrne pouring bulk of ACOA money into his own riding.
50. Virginia Fontaine Addictions Foundation
51. Prime Minister’s former assistant, Denise Tremblay’s huge travel
expenses on Veterans Review and Appeal Board as Minister pleaded poverty to
veterans’ widows.
52. Chrétien appointing Hon. Roger Simmons (former Trudeau minister
convicted of income tax evasion) as Consul-General in Seattle
53. Chrétien trying to bring hit-and-run driver Carignan back into caucus.
54. The RCMP is investigating possible fraud and bribery within Industry
Canada, involving possible "overpayments" to recipients of federal business
grants. The probe centres on the National Research Council, which hands out
federal grants to small- and medium-sized businesses.
55. More than half a dozen bureaucrats have been "removed" from their jobs
at a Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) in Toronto following a police
investigation into projects funded under one of the department's grants and
contributions programs
56. Revenue Minister Elinor Caplan called in the RCMP and ordered a sweeping
security review after four tax department computers were stolen containing
confidential personal information on more than 120,000 Canadians.
57. More than $7 billion stashed in Foundations by Finance Minister Paul
Martin with little or no accountability
58. Dhaliwal overseing Richmond-airport-Vancouver transit line while being
owner of the airport limousine service
59. Tom Rosser, former Dhaliwal advisor lobbying Natural Resources
department and minister on environmental issues only months after leaving
government.
60. $5.3 million GG northern travel
61. GG budget doubles in 5 years
62. Robert Thibault giving a grant as ACOA minister to a wharf and boatyard
where his brother-in-law has a monopoly.
63. Royal LePage contract, which the government was forced to cancel in the
wake of serious concerns being raised.
64. Shutting down the Somalia Inquiry
65. Home heating rebate, which was sent to prisoners and deceased.
66. Martin firing Bernard Dussault, Chief Actuary of CPP
67. Ethel Blondin-Andrew buys fur coat on government credit card
68. Chrétien’s imaginary homeless friend.
69. Liberal MP Rick Laliberte’s extensive travel budget
70. Liberal Senator Thompson living in Mexico
71. Vendetta against former BDC President François Beaudoin
72. The flag give-away – which estimates suggest might now have cost $45
million instead of the promised $6 million, and reportedly involved fake
invoices.
73. Gagliano’s two week trip, at taxpayers’ expense, for a two day event
with the head of the Royal Canadian Mint and Maurizio Caruso.
74. Secretary of State for multiculturalism and status of women Sheila
Finestone using government car (which junior ministers are only allowed to
use for government business) to drive home to Montreal, which even Sheila
Copps criticized. (Ottawa Citizen, May 22, 1994)
75. Liberal MP Jag Bhaduria’s hate mail to his former employers, wishing
that they had been shot by killer Marc Lepine
76. Liberal MP Jag Bhaduria making false claims about his academic
qualifications.
77. Paul Martin and Maria Minna attending fundraising dinner for group
linked to Tamil Tigers in May 2000 (National Post, Sept. 8th, 2001).
78. David Anderson, as National Revenue Minister, suing the government for
lost wages after being removed as IRB appointee by Conservative government
seeking $454,000 from a deficit-ravaged federal treasury. (Vancouver Sun,
July 24, 2004). Anderson eventually agreed to drop the suit.
79. David Anderson suggesting that the BC doesn’t need extra House of
Commons seats, because they wouldn't be worth much given the poor quality of
most West Coast MPs. (Vancouver Sun, July 24, 2004)
80. A consultant on an executive interchange program persuaded Natural
Resources to undertake a $700-million reorganization of its research
facilities for which no business case had been made. The program was
fast-tracked because he had developed a social relationship with the deputy
minister. He was eventually charged with diverting $525,000 to a numbered
company he controlled. (Globe and Mail, May 30, 2005)
And the list continues under Prime Minister Martin:
81. Raid on reporter Juliet O’Neill’s home by RCMP
82. Permanent Resident Cards
83. Judy Sgro going on vacation as cards became mandatory and landed
immigrants were left stranded
84. Minister Frulla’s renovations
85. Pay raises for chiefs-of-staff in ministers offices, while spending is
frozen for public service.
86. The government’s changing numbers on how much money has gone to CSL
87. Lobbyists in Paul Martin’s transition team being allowed to return to
lobbying immediately, after being involved in process of picking new cabinet
and senior staff.
88. Minister Comuzzi’s anti-Quebec comments
89. Martin government using closure after only six days in the House of
Commons, followed by using time allocation in the Senate.
90. Problems with DND’s contracts with Compaq Computers that may have cost
taxpayers up to $159 million for work not performed.
91. Martin using government jets to tour the country campaigning before
election, spending up to $1 million for air travel alone.
92. Martin’s relationship with Earnscliffe
93. Questionable contracts to Earnscliffe
94. The appointment of former Liberal MLA Howard Sapers as the Correctional
Investigator of Canada
95. Pierre Pettigrew’s flip flopping on health care
96. David Dingwall’s expenses as head of Royal Canadian Mint
97. Liberals planning to give David Dingwall a severance package after he
resigned
98. The secret National Unity Fund reserve
99. Calling an early election after earlier promising first to get to the
bottom of the sponsorship scandal
100. Martin suggesting changes to legislation and introducing bill that
benefited CSL, despite concerns from his own Deputy Minister that he was in
a conflict-of-interest (Ottawa Citizen, May 26, 2004)
And here are 99 more
101. $99 million Public Works contract that went to company overseen by
Liberal fundraiser and future Senator Paul Massicotte (Montreal Gazette,
June 26, 2004)
102. Parliamentary Secretary Dan McTeague’s 3-person, $224 trip to a
Pizzeria
103. Immigration Minister Judy Sgro’s staff being allowed to stay on
"extended travel" benefits, letting them bill taxpayers’ for thousands of
dollars in hotel rooms and meals, because they didn’t want to move from
Toronto to Ottawa until after the election.
104. Correctional Service of Canada Commissioner Lucie McClung’s travel
expenses
105. Contracting irregularities on more than two dozen projects at DND worth
tens of millions of dollars, showing over-billing, profit excesses,
unauthorized additional work, lack of accounting records, spiralling cost
overruns, etc. (Globe and Mail, July 14, 2004).
106. ACOA Minister Joe McGuire canceling ACOA loan and grant to ABL
Industries Inc. because it would compete with company in his riding.
(Fredericton Daily Gleaner, July 17, 2004).
107. Andy Mitchell’s chief of staff’s $22,000 in expenses to commute to
Ottawa (Toronto Star, August 2, 2004).
108. André Ouellet’s travel and hospitality expenses at Canada Post.
109. Government delaying release of audit on Ouellet until after the
election (Globe and Mail, July 31, 2004).
110. Martin’s principle secretary Francis Fox’s sister getting untendered
contracts (The Province, July 27, 2004).
111. Continuing problems in advertising files at Public Works (Ottawa Sun,
July 26, 2004).
112. A Liberal Party of Canada fundraising letter signed by Paul Martin,
asking potential contributors to offer $7,000, $7,100 or $7,200 in
contributions – far in excess of donation limits passed by the very same
Liberal government
113. Liberal Senator Raymond Lavigne violating municipal bylaws.
Municipality pursuing legal action against him. (Ottawa Citizen, August 19,
2004).
114. Spa Days for inmates approved by the Correctional Service of Canada,
which on Aug. 21 invited inmates at the Grand Valley Institution for Women
in Kitchener, Ont., to dabble with manicures, pedicures and aromatherapy,
not to mention cups of tea served in fine china, all accompanied by a harp
serenade. (National Post, September 9, 2004).
115. Five employees in the ''overwhelmed'' immigration section of Canada's
embassy in Iran have been fired over the past year after they each were
caught breaching federal ethics rules (National Post, September 13, 2004).
116. Questionable contracts and spending from the Canada Investment and
Savings group set up by Martin in 1996 (Globe and Mail, September 13, 2004)
117. Questionable contracting practices at Canada Information Office (The
Hill Times, September 13, 2004).
118. A top Canadian diplomat based in China has resigned amid reports he is
being investigated for allegedly taking bribes to help Chinese nationals
enter Canada illegally. (Vancouver Sun, September 22, 2004).
119. Abuse of government credit cards by staff at Fisheries Department (CP
Wire, September 24, 2004).
120. Canada’s questionable hiring of the niece of Syria's foreign affairs
minister to work at the embassy in Damascus (Globe and Mail, October 5,
2004)
121. Hélène Scherrer using Challenger to fly to Banff during election to
give partisan speech
122. Abuse of Challengers by Paul Martin and various ministers (eg. Andy
Mitchell, Claudette Bradshaw)
123. Abuse of Challenger jets for political business instead of government
business (Le Devoir, October 4, 2005)
124. Paul Martin taking Challenger jets to Liberal fundraisers
125. Challenger food bill of $508 per flight
126. Expenses during election filed by aide to Ralph Goodale
127. Questionable expenses during election filed by aides to Judy Sgro
128. Ongoing problems and safety concerns with the submarine program
129. Various federal departments reported in excess of $1.1 million in theft
of computers in 2003, but the information is potentially more valuable than
the hardware (Vancouver Sun, October 14, 2004).
130. According to the latest public-accounts-of-Canada reports for the
period March 2004 and March 2005, over 700 laptops, desktops and central
processing units went missing from 35 federal government agencies -- worth
$6 million. (The Province, October 19, 2005)
131. Federal government has lost track of $587 million a year in EI
overpayments and underpayments at the Department of Human Resources. (Ottawa
Citizen, October 12, 2004). However, the government defends itself by
stating that in fact it has only lost track of $25 million a year and
collects the other overpayments. (Ottawa Citizen, October 13, 2004)
132. $133,000 grant to a Toronto film company that used classified ads to
search for the "perfect" thingy. (National Post, October 14, 2004).
133. Man convicted of fraud against government hired to teach ethics course
to public servants (National Post, October 20, 2004).
134. Public Works selling confiscated grow-op equipment to drug traffickers.
(National Post, October 21, 2004).
135. Pressure by Liberal MPs and ministers on ACOA to make funding decisions
based on politics (New Brunswick Telegraph Journal, October 25, 2004).
136. Paul Martin’s Director of Communications Scott Reid insulting Premier
of Newfoundland and Labrador (Toronto Star, October 28, 2004)
137. The Martin government spent $127,223 on a poll last February testing
ways to diffuse negative reaction to the bombshell auditor-general's
report -- which included the finding the Liberals ignored their own rules
prohibiting the use of tax dollars on partisan polls (Vancouver Sun,
November 8, 2004).
138. Judy Sgro’s campaign volunteer (a stripper) getting ministerial permit
139. Sgro’s senior policy advisor going to strip club to meet with owner to
discuss bringing more strippers into Canada. (National Post, November 25,
2004). Subsequent revelations indicate that he went to at least one other
strip club to conduct similar meetings (Toronto Sun, December 7, 2004)
140. Sgro giving out details of private immigration files, violating Privacy
Act
141. Allegations that Sgro broke the elections law in failing to properly
identify the source of a campaign contribution. (Toronto Star, December 8,
2004).
142. Revelations that the program to bring in foreign exotic dancers was
created under pressure from organized crime (National Post, December 18,
2004)
143. Irwin Cotler appointing his former chief-of-staff to federal court
(National Post, November 23, 2004).
144. Heritage Minister Liza Frulla giving grant to magazine that put her on
the cover and made her honourary president (Ottawa Citizen, November 25,
2004)
145. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
Liberal MP John Harvard as Lt-Governor of Manitoba, in order to get him to
step aside for "star" candidate Glen Murray.
146. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
Liberal MP Yvon Charbonneau to UNESCO, in order to get him to step aside for
Martin crony Pablo Rodriguez.
147. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
former Liberal MP Karen Kraft-Sloan as Ambassador for the Environment.
(Department of Foreign Affairs Press Release, February 16, 2005).
148. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
defeated Liberal candidate Dave Haggard as the chair of a newly created
Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship. (OIC 2005-0001)
149. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointed
his friend Dennis Dawson to the Senate
150. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointed
his former Principal Secretary Francis Fox to the Senate
151. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointed
disgraced former cabinet minister Art Eggleton to the Senate
152. Martin and his wife complaining about having to live in 24 Sussex
(Edmonton Journal, November 17, 2004)
153. Millennium Bureau spending done with same lack of controls and
oversight of sponsorship program
154. The RCMP has charged a senior Immigration Canada manager and four
accomplices in an alleged bribes-for-status scheme in which Arab immigrants
paid up to $25,000 to have their claims fast-tracked and approved (National
Post, December 17, 2004)
155. Making widows of RCMP officers killed in the line of duty pay for their
husbands’ funerals (Under pressure from the Conservative Party, the
government reversed this policy)
156. Martin patronage-appointee Jim Walsh breaking ethics guidelines and
attending Liberal Christmas Party (St. John’s Telegram, January 20, 2005).
157. Port authority losing more than $60,000 in public funds on the stock
market. When Central Cape Breton Community Ventures took over the port in
Iona in 2000, the private agency deposited only $5,000 of the $245,000 it
received from Transport Canada into a designated bank account. The federal
funding was meant to cover the port's maintenance, insurance and
professional services costs (Chronicle-Herald, January 31, 2005).
158. Canadian flag lapel pins being made in China. Only under pressure,
Scott Brison flip flops and agrees to have them made in Canada again.
159. Questionable dealings around the privatization of the Digby Wharf,
which even Liberal MP Robert Thibault wants the RCMP to investigate
(Chronicle-Herald, February 10, 2005).
160. Adrienne Clarkson spending $17,500 to evaluate cleaning at Rideau Hall
(Ottawa Sun, February 19, 2005)
161. Martin patronage appointee Glen Murray breaking ethics guidelines and
attending Liberal Convention as delegate
162. Martin ignoring parliamentary committee and appointing Glen Murray as
chair of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy
163. Marlene Jennings, the Parliamentary Secretary for Canada-U.S.
relations, making anti-American remarks
164. Government knowing about details of torture and murder of Zahra Kazemi
back in November and still sending ambassador back to Iran
165. Government knowing about details of torture and murder of Zahra Kazemi
back in November but doing nothing
166. Tens of thousands of dollars were spent on questionable acquisitions at
CFB Borden (Ottawa Sun, April 18, 2005).
167. Joe Volpe keeping stripper visa program operating, despite having
promised to shut it down (CTV.ca, March 5, 2005)
168. Jean Lapierre acting as lobbyist without registering
169. Joe Volpe trying to intimidating Sikh community
170. In the spring of 2003, the RCMP investigated allegations that Liberal
MP Gurbax Malhi had requested favours and financial support for Paul
Martin's 2003 leadership campaign in exchange for helping Indian nationals
get these temporary resident permits (Globe and Mail, March 10, 2005).
171. Liberals spending $443,237 to change the name Passport Office to
Passport Canada (Montreal Gazette, April 21, 2005).
172. Ken Dryden’s chief of staff charged with careless driving (Ottawa
Citizen, March 22, 2005)
173. Liberals trying to buy off Conservative MPs with offers of patronage
positions
174. Liberals handling of the submarine program
175. Public Service Integrity Officer’s travel expenses (Ottawa Sun, May 4,
2005)
176. Liberal Senator Michel Biron going to hearing to support killer Karla
Homolka (CTV News, June 9, 2005)
177. Public Works contract watchdog Consulting and Audit Canada violating
contracting rules (Toronto Star, July 4, 2005)
178. Technology Partnerships Canada rules being violated to pay lobbyists
(Globe and Mail, June 24, 2005)
179. Former Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Robert Nault is working as
a paid lobbyist for Nelson House First Nation in what some allege is an
apparent violation of a federal code of conduct. Among the federal
departments Nault is lobbying is the Indian and Northern Affairs department
he headed until December 2003, according to a lobbying report Nault filed
with the federal government. Nault registered as a lobbyist for Nelson
House, now known as Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation, on July 18, 2005 -- one
year and seven months after leaving his cabinet post. Under the Conflict of
Interest and Post-Employment Code for Public Office Holders, Nault is barred
from working for any entity with which his department had "direct and
significant official dealings" for two years after leaving office. He is
also barred for two years from lobbying his former department or any of his
former cabinet colleagues (Winnipeg Free Press, September 14, 2005)
180. According to documents obtained by the Globe and Mail, Pierre Pettigrew
billed Canadian taxpayers for $10,000 for trips for his driver in 2001 and
2002. Pettigrew took his driver to South America and Europe, even though the
driver didn’t do any driving on the trips. (Globe and Mail, September 14,
2005)
181. Joe Volpe’s questionable hospitality expenses (Globe and Mail,
September 21, 2005)
182. According to media reports, Industry Canada has frozen federal
financing for research projects by an Ontario biotechnology firm pending the
outcome of an investigation into the company's agreement to pay $350,000 in
lobbying "success" fees to former Liberal cabinet minister David Dingwall.
Such contingency fee payments violate Technology Partnership Canada rules.
(Globe and Mail, September 23, 2005)
183. Expenses of chairman of the Royal Canadian Mint Emmanuel Triassi, who
also approved David Dingwall’s expenses (Globe and Mail, October 4, 2005)
184. Last week, Public Works was also silent on details of another case
involving forensic accounting. Government accounts published on Thursday
showed a department employee had embezzled $3.45 million from Public Works
office in Koblenz, Germany. Even though the employee was convicted and
jailed in Germany, Public Works will not name him or give any details of the
crime (Ottawa Citizen, October 4, 2005)
185. The federal government inadvertently revealed yesterday that it is
conducting a large-scale forensic accounting probe into "possibly criminal
matters" when it published details of a contract intended for a Quebec
accounting firm. The notice awarding a $2-million contract for forensic
accounting services was published on the government's tendering website,
MERX. It gave notice that Consulting and Audit Canada was planning to award
the sole-source contract to Leclerc Juricomptable, a Quebec City firm
specializing in forensic work and litigation support. The contract award
notice said the work had to be sole-sourced to Leclerc because it is "not in
the public interest to jeopardize the current investment in the
investigation or to significantly increase the risk to a successful
completion of the investigation into possibly criminal matters." A spokesman
for the Department of PublicWorks and Government Services said yesterday
that the notice was published "prematurely" and would be withdrawn last
night. He could not say, however, what is under investigation, but said the
contract was not tied to another scandal that has kept Quebec forensic
accountants busy over the past years. "It's not related to sponsorship or
Gomery, that I can tell you," said spokesman Pierre Teotonio (Ottawa
Citizen, October 4, 2005). It was subsequently revealed that the department
involved was CIDA (CP Wire, October 4, 2005)
186. Questions about campaign funds from Raymond Chan’s campaign going to
his companies (Vancouver Sun, October 7, 2005)
187. Questions about a possible conflict-of-interest between Chan’s
activities as minister on behalf of possible business associates (Vancouver
Sun, October 7, 2005)
188. Questions about the report that Chan filed with the Ethics Commissioner
(Vancouver Sun, October 7, 2005)
189. Government giving out contract that specifies no paper trail to be left
in government offices (Vancouver Province, October 11, 2005)
190. Questionable travel expenses at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans
(CP, October 16, 2005)
191. Two employees at DFO fired for making fraudulent travel claims (CP, The
Province, October 18, 2005).
192. Lobbyist registrar Michael Nelson has launched investigations of four
people for eight possible breaches of the ethics guidelines for lobbyists,
the first such investigations ever launched under the code. (Globe and Mail,
October 18, 2005)
193. According to media reports, the federal government has terminated two
contracts with a consulting firm that used to be run by Liberal MP David
Smith and now run by his wife, following a forensic audit of the contracting
practices at a federal agency (Globe and Mail, October 19, 2005)
194. ATI requests by prisoners for information on prison system and guards,
when information is actually disclosed
195. Liberal candidate Richard Mahoney lobbying for satellite radio company
for a month before registering (Ottawa Citizen, October 19, 2005)
196. Delays and ballooning costs mean a giant software project at National
Defence will eclipse its original budget and won't meet its goals until
2011 -- if at all. An internal audit obtained by Canadian Press raises red
flags about a new system designed to streamline computer tracking of
military inventory and purchases. MASIS -- or Materiel Acquisition Support
Information System -- started in 1997 as a $147-million undertaking. What
began as a focused effort to cover a single equipment category in each of
the navy, army and air force soon mushroomed. By 2003, Defence officials
estimated MASIS would be in place by 2006 at a cost of $325 million, more
than twice its forecast budget. A full introduction of the complex software
has now been extended to 2011. The heavily censored May 2005 internal audit,
released under the Access to Information Act, catalogues a litany of
"revised planned milestones.'' "The prime contract has been amended six
times, each time increasing amounts for professional service fees,'' it
says. (CP, The Record, October 24, 2005)
197. Hospitality and travel expenses of executives at CMHC (Journal de
Montréal, October 24, 2005)
198. Questions about Squamish land deal lease (The Province, October 26,
2005)
199. Liberals handling of tainted water at Kashechewan First Nation
P.S. I got this off of a fishing site, and I don't know who the author is, but I sure have to congratulate him.
1. Cancelling the Sea King replacement
2. Sponsorship scandal
3. Gun Registry
4. HRDC boondoggle
5. Problems with Transition Job Funds program
6. Tainted blood
7. Radwanski Spending Affair
8. Pearson Airport
9. GST Flip Flop
10. Airbus Investigation
11. Voting against Red Book promise of independent Ethics Commissioner
12. Irving fishing lodge stays/travel on Irving jets for cabinet ministers
13. Martin traveling on private corporate jets as Finance Minister
14. Don Boudria’s stay at Boulay owned chalet
15. Denis Coderre staying with Boulay
16. Alfonso Gagliano being appointed Ambassador to Denmark
17. Shawinigate
18. Claude Gauthier (PM’s friend)’s Transelec getting CIDA grant that was
questioned by the Auditor General and even CIDA.
19. Liberal fundraiser Pierre Corbeil charged with fraud by RCMP after he
approached several Quebec companies seeking federal job training grants and
asking for payments to Liberal Party, having gotten the names from senior
Quebec Liberal Minister, Marcel Massé.
20. Michel Dupuy, Heritage Minister, lobbying the CRTC.
21. Tom Wappel refusing to help blind veteran
22. Gagliano’s son benefiting from contracts from his father’s department
23. Gagliano’s former speechwriter, Michèle Tremblay was on a $5,000 a month
retainer with the Canada Lands Company to provide speeches for the Minister.
Former President John Grant let her go saying "we got nothing in return."
Grant claimed that all Crown Corporations reporting to Mr. Gagliano were
told to put Ms. Tremblay on a monthly retainer.
24. Iltis replacement
25. Purchase of new Challenger jets for the Prime Minister and cabinet
26. NATO Flying Training program contract
27. Liberal friends appointed as IRB judges being investigated by RCMP
28. Hedy Fry’s imaginary burning crosses
29. Maria Minna’s improper municipal vote
30. Minna giving contracts to two former campaign staffers for public
relations work for a conference that had already been held
31. Lawrence MacAulay and contracts directed to Holland College
32. Lawrence MacAulay and Tim Banks
33. Lawrence MacAulay hired his official agent, Everett Roche, for $70K, but
Roche never did any work for it. (Oct 2002)
34. Art Eggleton and contracts to his ex-girlfriend
35. Copps’ aide Boyer’s spending habits
36. Collenette resigns for breach of ethical guidelines involving a letter
he wrote to the Immigration and Refugee Board
37. APEC Inquiry
38. Andy Scott's 1998 resignation that came eight weeks too late, after a
media circus wore him down for indiscreetly shooting his mouth off on an
airplane.
39. Anti-American comments by Liberal MPs, officials, and the former
Minister of Natural Resources.
40. Rock and the Apotex/Cipro affair
41. Rock giving Health Canada contract to car cleaning company.
42. Manley lobbying CIBC on behalf of Rod Bryden
43. Manley’s fundraiser suggesting donors to his leadership write it off as
a business expense.
44. Manley using his pre-budget consultations as Minister of Finance to
solicit support for his leadership bid.
45. Coderre’s relationship with Group Everest
46. Martin’s fundraiser/employee of Finance Jim Palmer
47. Martin’s "blind trust" and his relationship with CSL.
48. Gerry Byrne requesting fundraising money be sent to his home address,
with no records kept.
49. Gerry Byrne pouring bulk of ACOA money into his own riding.
50. Virginia Fontaine Addictions Foundation
51. Prime Minister’s former assistant, Denise Tremblay’s huge travel
expenses on Veterans Review and Appeal Board as Minister pleaded poverty to
veterans’ widows.
52. Chrétien appointing Hon. Roger Simmons (former Trudeau minister
convicted of income tax evasion) as Consul-General in Seattle
53. Chrétien trying to bring hit-and-run driver Carignan back into caucus.
54. The RCMP is investigating possible fraud and bribery within Industry
Canada, involving possible "overpayments" to recipients of federal business
grants. The probe centres on the National Research Council, which hands out
federal grants to small- and medium-sized businesses.
55. More than half a dozen bureaucrats have been "removed" from their jobs
at a Human Resources Development Canada (HRDC) in Toronto following a police
investigation into projects funded under one of the department's grants and
contributions programs
56. Revenue Minister Elinor Caplan called in the RCMP and ordered a sweeping
security review after four tax department computers were stolen containing
confidential personal information on more than 120,000 Canadians.
57. More than $7 billion stashed in Foundations by Finance Minister Paul
Martin with little or no accountability
58. Dhaliwal overseing Richmond-airport-Vancouver transit line while being
owner of the airport limousine service
59. Tom Rosser, former Dhaliwal advisor lobbying Natural Resources
department and minister on environmental issues only months after leaving
government.
60. $5.3 million GG northern travel
61. GG budget doubles in 5 years
62. Robert Thibault giving a grant as ACOA minister to a wharf and boatyard
where his brother-in-law has a monopoly.
63. Royal LePage contract, which the government was forced to cancel in the
wake of serious concerns being raised.
64. Shutting down the Somalia Inquiry
65. Home heating rebate, which was sent to prisoners and deceased.
66. Martin firing Bernard Dussault, Chief Actuary of CPP
67. Ethel Blondin-Andrew buys fur coat on government credit card
68. Chrétien’s imaginary homeless friend.
69. Liberal MP Rick Laliberte’s extensive travel budget
70. Liberal Senator Thompson living in Mexico
71. Vendetta against former BDC President François Beaudoin
72. The flag give-away – which estimates suggest might now have cost $45
million instead of the promised $6 million, and reportedly involved fake
invoices.
73. Gagliano’s two week trip, at taxpayers’ expense, for a two day event
with the head of the Royal Canadian Mint and Maurizio Caruso.
74. Secretary of State for multiculturalism and status of women Sheila
Finestone using government car (which junior ministers are only allowed to
use for government business) to drive home to Montreal, which even Sheila
Copps criticized. (Ottawa Citizen, May 22, 1994)
75. Liberal MP Jag Bhaduria’s hate mail to his former employers, wishing
that they had been shot by killer Marc Lepine
76. Liberal MP Jag Bhaduria making false claims about his academic
qualifications.
77. Paul Martin and Maria Minna attending fundraising dinner for group
linked to Tamil Tigers in May 2000 (National Post, Sept. 8th, 2001).
78. David Anderson, as National Revenue Minister, suing the government for
lost wages after being removed as IRB appointee by Conservative government
seeking $454,000 from a deficit-ravaged federal treasury. (Vancouver Sun,
July 24, 2004). Anderson eventually agreed to drop the suit.
79. David Anderson suggesting that the BC doesn’t need extra House of
Commons seats, because they wouldn't be worth much given the poor quality of
most West Coast MPs. (Vancouver Sun, July 24, 2004)
80. A consultant on an executive interchange program persuaded Natural
Resources to undertake a $700-million reorganization of its research
facilities for which no business case had been made. The program was
fast-tracked because he had developed a social relationship with the deputy
minister. He was eventually charged with diverting $525,000 to a numbered
company he controlled. (Globe and Mail, May 30, 2005)
And the list continues under Prime Minister Martin:
81. Raid on reporter Juliet O’Neill’s home by RCMP
82. Permanent Resident Cards
83. Judy Sgro going on vacation as cards became mandatory and landed
immigrants were left stranded
84. Minister Frulla’s renovations
85. Pay raises for chiefs-of-staff in ministers offices, while spending is
frozen for public service.
86. The government’s changing numbers on how much money has gone to CSL
87. Lobbyists in Paul Martin’s transition team being allowed to return to
lobbying immediately, after being involved in process of picking new cabinet
and senior staff.
88. Minister Comuzzi’s anti-Quebec comments
89. Martin government using closure after only six days in the House of
Commons, followed by using time allocation in the Senate.
90. Problems with DND’s contracts with Compaq Computers that may have cost
taxpayers up to $159 million for work not performed.
91. Martin using government jets to tour the country campaigning before
election, spending up to $1 million for air travel alone.
92. Martin’s relationship with Earnscliffe
93. Questionable contracts to Earnscliffe
94. The appointment of former Liberal MLA Howard Sapers as the Correctional
Investigator of Canada
95. Pierre Pettigrew’s flip flopping on health care
96. David Dingwall’s expenses as head of Royal Canadian Mint
97. Liberals planning to give David Dingwall a severance package after he
resigned
98. The secret National Unity Fund reserve
99. Calling an early election after earlier promising first to get to the
bottom of the sponsorship scandal
100. Martin suggesting changes to legislation and introducing bill that
benefited CSL, despite concerns from his own Deputy Minister that he was in
a conflict-of-interest (Ottawa Citizen, May 26, 2004)
And here are 99 more
101. $99 million Public Works contract that went to company overseen by
Liberal fundraiser and future Senator Paul Massicotte (Montreal Gazette,
June 26, 2004)
102. Parliamentary Secretary Dan McTeague’s 3-person, $224 trip to a
Pizzeria
103. Immigration Minister Judy Sgro’s staff being allowed to stay on
"extended travel" benefits, letting them bill taxpayers’ for thousands of
dollars in hotel rooms and meals, because they didn’t want to move from
Toronto to Ottawa until after the election.
104. Correctional Service of Canada Commissioner Lucie McClung’s travel
expenses
105. Contracting irregularities on more than two dozen projects at DND worth
tens of millions of dollars, showing over-billing, profit excesses,
unauthorized additional work, lack of accounting records, spiralling cost
overruns, etc. (Globe and Mail, July 14, 2004).
106. ACOA Minister Joe McGuire canceling ACOA loan and grant to ABL
Industries Inc. because it would compete with company in his riding.
(Fredericton Daily Gleaner, July 17, 2004).
107. Andy Mitchell’s chief of staff’s $22,000 in expenses to commute to
Ottawa (Toronto Star, August 2, 2004).
108. André Ouellet’s travel and hospitality expenses at Canada Post.
109. Government delaying release of audit on Ouellet until after the
election (Globe and Mail, July 31, 2004).
110. Martin’s principle secretary Francis Fox’s sister getting untendered
contracts (The Province, July 27, 2004).
111. Continuing problems in advertising files at Public Works (Ottawa Sun,
July 26, 2004).
112. A Liberal Party of Canada fundraising letter signed by Paul Martin,
asking potential contributors to offer $7,000, $7,100 or $7,200 in
contributions – far in excess of donation limits passed by the very same
Liberal government
113. Liberal Senator Raymond Lavigne violating municipal bylaws.
Municipality pursuing legal action against him. (Ottawa Citizen, August 19,
2004).
114. Spa Days for inmates approved by the Correctional Service of Canada,
which on Aug. 21 invited inmates at the Grand Valley Institution for Women
in Kitchener, Ont., to dabble with manicures, pedicures and aromatherapy,
not to mention cups of tea served in fine china, all accompanied by a harp
serenade. (National Post, September 9, 2004).
115. Five employees in the ''overwhelmed'' immigration section of Canada's
embassy in Iran have been fired over the past year after they each were
caught breaching federal ethics rules (National Post, September 13, 2004).
116. Questionable contracts and spending from the Canada Investment and
Savings group set up by Martin in 1996 (Globe and Mail, September 13, 2004)
117. Questionable contracting practices at Canada Information Office (The
Hill Times, September 13, 2004).
118. A top Canadian diplomat based in China has resigned amid reports he is
being investigated for allegedly taking bribes to help Chinese nationals
enter Canada illegally. (Vancouver Sun, September 22, 2004).
119. Abuse of government credit cards by staff at Fisheries Department (CP
Wire, September 24, 2004).
120. Canada’s questionable hiring of the niece of Syria's foreign affairs
minister to work at the embassy in Damascus (Globe and Mail, October 5,
2004)
121. Hélène Scherrer using Challenger to fly to Banff during election to
give partisan speech
122. Abuse of Challengers by Paul Martin and various ministers (eg. Andy
Mitchell, Claudette Bradshaw)
123. Abuse of Challenger jets for political business instead of government
business (Le Devoir, October 4, 2005)
124. Paul Martin taking Challenger jets to Liberal fundraisers
125. Challenger food bill of $508 per flight
126. Expenses during election filed by aide to Ralph Goodale
127. Questionable expenses during election filed by aides to Judy Sgro
128. Ongoing problems and safety concerns with the submarine program
129. Various federal departments reported in excess of $1.1 million in theft
of computers in 2003, but the information is potentially more valuable than
the hardware (Vancouver Sun, October 14, 2004).
130. According to the latest public-accounts-of-Canada reports for the
period March 2004 and March 2005, over 700 laptops, desktops and central
processing units went missing from 35 federal government agencies -- worth
$6 million. (The Province, October 19, 2005)
131. Federal government has lost track of $587 million a year in EI
overpayments and underpayments at the Department of Human Resources. (Ottawa
Citizen, October 12, 2004). However, the government defends itself by
stating that in fact it has only lost track of $25 million a year and
collects the other overpayments. (Ottawa Citizen, October 13, 2004)
132. $133,000 grant to a Toronto film company that used classified ads to
search for the "perfect" thingy. (National Post, October 14, 2004).
133. Man convicted of fraud against government hired to teach ethics course
to public servants (National Post, October 20, 2004).
134. Public Works selling confiscated grow-op equipment to drug traffickers.
(National Post, October 21, 2004).
135. Pressure by Liberal MPs and ministers on ACOA to make funding decisions
based on politics (New Brunswick Telegraph Journal, October 25, 2004).
136. Paul Martin’s Director of Communications Scott Reid insulting Premier
of Newfoundland and Labrador (Toronto Star, October 28, 2004)
137. The Martin government spent $127,223 on a poll last February testing
ways to diffuse negative reaction to the bombshell auditor-general's
report -- which included the finding the Liberals ignored their own rules
prohibiting the use of tax dollars on partisan polls (Vancouver Sun,
November 8, 2004).
138. Judy Sgro’s campaign volunteer (a stripper) getting ministerial permit
139. Sgro’s senior policy advisor going to strip club to meet with owner to
discuss bringing more strippers into Canada. (National Post, November 25,
2004). Subsequent revelations indicate that he went to at least one other
strip club to conduct similar meetings (Toronto Sun, December 7, 2004)
140. Sgro giving out details of private immigration files, violating Privacy
Act
141. Allegations that Sgro broke the elections law in failing to properly
identify the source of a campaign contribution. (Toronto Star, December 8,
2004).
142. Revelations that the program to bring in foreign exotic dancers was
created under pressure from organized crime (National Post, December 18,
2004)
143. Irwin Cotler appointing his former chief-of-staff to federal court
(National Post, November 23, 2004).
144. Heritage Minister Liza Frulla giving grant to magazine that put her on
the cover and made her honourary president (Ottawa Citizen, November 25,
2004)
145. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
Liberal MP John Harvard as Lt-Governor of Manitoba, in order to get him to
step aside for "star" candidate Glen Murray.
146. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
Liberal MP Yvon Charbonneau to UNESCO, in order to get him to step aside for
Martin crony Pablo Rodriguez.
147. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
former Liberal MP Karen Kraft-Sloan as Ambassador for the Environment.
(Department of Foreign Affairs Press Release, February 16, 2005).
148. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointing
defeated Liberal candidate Dave Haggard as the chair of a newly created
Advisory Committee on Apprenticeship. (OIC 2005-0001)
149. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointed
his friend Dennis Dawson to the Senate
150. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointed
his former Principal Secretary Francis Fox to the Senate
151. Despite promising an end to cronyism and patronage, Martin appointed
disgraced former cabinet minister Art Eggleton to the Senate
152. Martin and his wife complaining about having to live in 24 Sussex
(Edmonton Journal, November 17, 2004)
153. Millennium Bureau spending done with same lack of controls and
oversight of sponsorship program
154. The RCMP has charged a senior Immigration Canada manager and four
accomplices in an alleged bribes-for-status scheme in which Arab immigrants
paid up to $25,000 to have their claims fast-tracked and approved (National
Post, December 17, 2004)
155. Making widows of RCMP officers killed in the line of duty pay for their
husbands’ funerals (Under pressure from the Conservative Party, the
government reversed this policy)
156. Martin patronage-appointee Jim Walsh breaking ethics guidelines and
attending Liberal Christmas Party (St. John’s Telegram, January 20, 2005).
157. Port authority losing more than $60,000 in public funds on the stock
market. When Central Cape Breton Community Ventures took over the port in
Iona in 2000, the private agency deposited only $5,000 of the $245,000 it
received from Transport Canada into a designated bank account. The federal
funding was meant to cover the port's maintenance, insurance and
professional services costs (Chronicle-Herald, January 31, 2005).
158. Canadian flag lapel pins being made in China. Only under pressure,
Scott Brison flip flops and agrees to have them made in Canada again.
159. Questionable dealings around the privatization of the Digby Wharf,
which even Liberal MP Robert Thibault wants the RCMP to investigate
(Chronicle-Herald, February 10, 2005).
160. Adrienne Clarkson spending $17,500 to evaluate cleaning at Rideau Hall
(Ottawa Sun, February 19, 2005)
161. Martin patronage appointee Glen Murray breaking ethics guidelines and
attending Liberal Convention as delegate
162. Martin ignoring parliamentary committee and appointing Glen Murray as
chair of the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy
163. Marlene Jennings, the Parliamentary Secretary for Canada-U.S.
relations, making anti-American remarks
164. Government knowing about details of torture and murder of Zahra Kazemi
back in November and still sending ambassador back to Iran
165. Government knowing about details of torture and murder of Zahra Kazemi
back in November but doing nothing
166. Tens of thousands of dollars were spent on questionable acquisitions at
CFB Borden (Ottawa Sun, April 18, 2005).
167. Joe Volpe keeping stripper visa program operating, despite having
promised to shut it down (CTV.ca, March 5, 2005)
168. Jean Lapierre acting as lobbyist without registering
169. Joe Volpe trying to intimidating Sikh community
170. In the spring of 2003, the RCMP investigated allegations that Liberal
MP Gurbax Malhi had requested favours and financial support for Paul
Martin's 2003 leadership campaign in exchange for helping Indian nationals
get these temporary resident permits (Globe and Mail, March 10, 2005).
171. Liberals spending $443,237 to change the name Passport Office to
Passport Canada (Montreal Gazette, April 21, 2005).
172. Ken Dryden’s chief of staff charged with careless driving (Ottawa
Citizen, March 22, 2005)
173. Liberals trying to buy off Conservative MPs with offers of patronage
positions
174. Liberals handling of the submarine program
175. Public Service Integrity Officer’s travel expenses (Ottawa Sun, May 4,
2005)
176. Liberal Senator Michel Biron going to hearing to support killer Karla
Homolka (CTV News, June 9, 2005)
177. Public Works contract watchdog Consulting and Audit Canada violating
contracting rules (Toronto Star, July 4, 2005)
178. Technology Partnerships Canada rules being violated to pay lobbyists
(Globe and Mail, June 24, 2005)
179. Former Indian and Northern Affairs Minister Robert Nault is working as
a paid lobbyist for Nelson House First Nation in what some allege is an
apparent violation of a federal code of conduct. Among the federal
departments Nault is lobbying is the Indian and Northern Affairs department
he headed until December 2003, according to a lobbying report Nault filed
with the federal government. Nault registered as a lobbyist for Nelson
House, now known as Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation, on July 18, 2005 -- one
year and seven months after leaving his cabinet post. Under the Conflict of
Interest and Post-Employment Code for Public Office Holders, Nault is barred
from working for any entity with which his department had "direct and
significant official dealings" for two years after leaving office. He is
also barred for two years from lobbying his former department or any of his
former cabinet colleagues (Winnipeg Free Press, September 14, 2005)
180. According to documents obtained by the Globe and Mail, Pierre Pettigrew
billed Canadian taxpayers for $10,000 for trips for his driver in 2001 and
2002. Pettigrew took his driver to South America and Europe, even though the
driver didn’t do any driving on the trips. (Globe and Mail, September 14,
2005)
181. Joe Volpe’s questionable hospitality expenses (Globe and Mail,
September 21, 2005)
182. According to media reports, Industry Canada has frozen federal
financing for research projects by an Ontario biotechnology firm pending the
outcome of an investigation into the company's agreement to pay $350,000 in
lobbying "success" fees to former Liberal cabinet minister David Dingwall.
Such contingency fee payments violate Technology Partnership Canada rules.
(Globe and Mail, September 23, 2005)
183. Expenses of chairman of the Royal Canadian Mint Emmanuel Triassi, who
also approved David Dingwall’s expenses (Globe and Mail, October 4, 2005)
184. Last week, Public Works was also silent on details of another case
involving forensic accounting. Government accounts published on Thursday
showed a department employee had embezzled $3.45 million from Public Works
office in Koblenz, Germany. Even though the employee was convicted and
jailed in Germany, Public Works will not name him or give any details of the
crime (Ottawa Citizen, October 4, 2005)
185. The federal government inadvertently revealed yesterday that it is
conducting a large-scale forensic accounting probe into "possibly criminal
matters" when it published details of a contract intended for a Quebec
accounting firm. The notice awarding a $2-million contract for forensic
accounting services was published on the government's tendering website,
MERX. It gave notice that Consulting and Audit Canada was planning to award
the sole-source contract to Leclerc Juricomptable, a Quebec City firm
specializing in forensic work and litigation support. The contract award
notice said the work had to be sole-sourced to Leclerc because it is "not in
the public interest to jeopardize the current investment in the
investigation or to significantly increase the risk to a successful
completion of the investigation into possibly criminal matters." A spokesman
for the Department of PublicWorks and Government Services said yesterday
that the notice was published "prematurely" and would be withdrawn last
night. He could not say, however, what is under investigation, but said the
contract was not tied to another scandal that has kept Quebec forensic
accountants busy over the past years. "It's not related to sponsorship or
Gomery, that I can tell you," said spokesman Pierre Teotonio (Ottawa
Citizen, October 4, 2005). It was subsequently revealed that the department
involved was CIDA (CP Wire, October 4, 2005)
186. Questions about campaign funds from Raymond Chan’s campaign going to
his companies (Vancouver Sun, October 7, 2005)
187. Questions about a possible conflict-of-interest between Chan’s
activities as minister on behalf of possible business associates (Vancouver
Sun, October 7, 2005)
188. Questions about the report that Chan filed with the Ethics Commissioner
(Vancouver Sun, October 7, 2005)
189. Government giving out contract that specifies no paper trail to be left
in government offices (Vancouver Province, October 11, 2005)
190. Questionable travel expenses at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans
(CP, October 16, 2005)
191. Two employees at DFO fired for making fraudulent travel claims (CP, The
Province, October 18, 2005).
192. Lobbyist registrar Michael Nelson has launched investigations of four
people for eight possible breaches of the ethics guidelines for lobbyists,
the first such investigations ever launched under the code. (Globe and Mail,
October 18, 2005)
193. According to media reports, the federal government has terminated two
contracts with a consulting firm that used to be run by Liberal MP David
Smith and now run by his wife, following a forensic audit of the contracting
practices at a federal agency (Globe and Mail, October 19, 2005)
194. ATI requests by prisoners for information on prison system and guards,
when information is actually disclosed
195. Liberal candidate Richard Mahoney lobbying for satellite radio company
for a month before registering (Ottawa Citizen, October 19, 2005)
196. Delays and ballooning costs mean a giant software project at National
Defence will eclipse its original budget and won't meet its goals until
2011 -- if at all. An internal audit obtained by Canadian Press raises red
flags about a new system designed to streamline computer tracking of
military inventory and purchases. MASIS -- or Materiel Acquisition Support
Information System -- started in 1997 as a $147-million undertaking. What
began as a focused effort to cover a single equipment category in each of
the navy, army and air force soon mushroomed. By 2003, Defence officials
estimated MASIS would be in place by 2006 at a cost of $325 million, more
than twice its forecast budget. A full introduction of the complex software
has now been extended to 2011. The heavily censored May 2005 internal audit,
released under the Access to Information Act, catalogues a litany of
"revised planned milestones.'' "The prime contract has been amended six
times, each time increasing amounts for professional service fees,'' it
says. (CP, The Record, October 24, 2005)
197. Hospitality and travel expenses of executives at CMHC (Journal de
Montréal, October 24, 2005)
198. Questions about Squamish land deal lease (The Province, October 26,
2005)
199. Liberals handling of tainted water at Kashechewan First Nation
P.S. I got this off of a fishing site, and I don't know who the author is, but I sure have to congratulate him.
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Ma Deuce Gunner Sounds Off Against the Anti-War Crowd
I became a fan of MDG late during his posting to Iraq. To me he typifies all that is right about the modern American Soldier. He's back home with his family now and what follows is something he had to get of his chest. If you haven't been reading MDG but you do support the troops, you should get aquainted with him. Here's his post:
Monday, November 14, 2005
An Open Letter to the Anti-War Crowd
To my loyal and supportive readers...this is not directed towards you. I know that you all support, encourage, and agree with me, the leadership of this country, and this war.
To all you anti-war folks, I have to get something off my chest.
You all are a disgrace to the country you call home. You abuse the freedoms that I, and many others, have sweated and bled to protect with your vitriolic rants and seditious acts and statements.
You hide behind the First Amendment, claiming the bile you spew forth is protected under the right to free speech. Some of you claim that you "Support the Troops, but not the war". I submit to you that this is a preposterous assertation. In order to truly and honestly support the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen who have sworn to "Uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America", you must also support the endeavor that they are currently undertaking. Our job is to safeguard you, to kill, disable, or catch the human scum who have made it their mission in life to blow you into chunks of human gore, sever your head from your torso, incinerate you, collapse your office building, gas you on the subway, or murder your children with television cameras rolling live.
Their aim is to scare you into submission. Scare you so much, inject so much fear into your mind that you willfully throw your freedoms out of the window in the name of 'security'. If we can kill them, disable them, or catch them before they are able to inflict the horrors of their idiom on you, then you should be grateful.
I am not attempting to heap praise upon myself. The words you are reading are not for my glory, nor are they intended to glorify anyone, but to show the fallacy of your words and actions. True, you are free to believe what you wish and to voice your opinion as such, but I am also free to do the same.
The words on your screen that you are reading now are intended to cause you to think about the ideology to which you cling. To make you see that folks like 'Code Pink', Fred Phelps, Cindy Sheehan and their ilk are morally bereft individuals. Dark, vile people who do not want others to have their freedoms, but abuse the same to do the shouting.
Your inability to understand the gravity of the situation in which we, as a nation, are embroiled is appalling. In my eyes, you do not understand what dangers this country faces from these terrorists, nor do you understand what it takes to protect you from this peril.
I think back to the Jews who were led out of Egypt whined that they were tired of eating manna, trekking through the desert, facing the danger of wild animals, desert heat, and uncertainty as to what the next mile in the sand might bring. They longed to be back in bondage, slaves to the Egyptians, with full stomachs, roofs over their heads, and a place to call home. They would have rather been forced to perform manual labor by Draconian task-masters rather have their freedom. They knew that they would be fed, have a permanent house, regardless of the way they were treated, as slaves doing forced HARD labor.They were not willing to travel the hard road, to fight for their freedoms. It was easier to go back and be oppressed by the Egyptians rather than press forward and fight for their own nation, for their own freedom. I use the word fight. I mean the term both militarily and in simple reference to the struggle to maintain resilience of spirit.
Some of you will immediately discount the previous reference for the simple fact it is Biblical. Regardless of what you believe spiritually, the parallel draws the conclusion. People who are willing to trade freedom for security are sorry individuals. Freedom is costly to maintain, financially, but also costly of life, resolve and dedication.
Some of you will argue that Iraq has nothing to do with 9-11. It has everything to do with that terrible fall day. The terrorist action on that day was not simply an attack against four airliners, two high profile structures and the people in the planes and buildings, but on the sovriegnty and safety of the USA. In the Declaration of Independence, we all know the clause, "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness". The terrorists want nothing more than to take those rights from you, and they did, from almost 3000 people on that day. A great majority of the terrorists were from Saudi Arabia. That is one of the anti-war crowd's talking points. The concept which I believe you fail to grasp is that they were part of a larger network, a community of evil people who despiseus. Let us use illegal drugs as an example.
For instance, if a person is arrested for selling drugs, do the law enforcement agencies stop there?? Do the stop with the person who carries out the crime at the lowest level?? No, they attempt to take down the whole network, and go as high as they can to try and eradicate the problem at the top. They go to the mid-level suppliers, then the clearinghouses of the nation, the couriers, the financiers, and the kingpins and cartel bosses. An investigation that starts somewhere say, Cleveland, could lead to Chicago, thenMiami, then Cuba, and then to Bogota. The trail could branch anywhere in the chain, and in our instance, the trail led to Iraq.
Another parallel can be drawn from the example of narcotics. A proactive stance is essential in taking care of the problem. We can sit back inside our borders, hoping to catch the drug runners at the borders, or we can go on the offensive, find the problem at its source and deal with it at its origination. Similarly, do we set up treatment centers and simply hope that addicts will happen to decide to come in for help with their problems, or do we seek them out, advertise, reach into the community and try to bring aid to them??
Our expedition into Iraq and Afghanistan is the exact same concept. We are attempting to stop the terrorists where they breed, where they are steeped in their radicalism, where they do not harm OUR citizens, my family and yours. It may seem callous, but I mean no insult towards anyone of different nationality. Another hypothetical example...a ship is sinking. A seaplane lands to rescue the people on board.The seaplane is owned by a ficticious nation...let's use Atlantis. The seaplane is capable of carrying 30 people other than the aircraft crew. There are 34 people in need of rescue. Thirty of the passengers on the ship are Atlantean. Who are the crew of the plane going to take with them?? The Atlantean's, of course. They will rescue their countrymen first, and if possible, they will come back for the others, if possible. You take care of your own. You protect your countrymen, protect your homeland and its people. Not to say that others are worth any less as human beings, but you take care of your own.
We are taking care of our national interests. Making sure that OUR borders are safe, fighting the enemy in their homeland, not ours. I would rather fight the enemy where they do not put American civilians at risk. It is my job to fight the enemy and remove his ability to attack Americans. Would you rather wait and have us fight in the streets of St. Louis or New York or L.A. or Smalltown, USA, or would you rather we kill them before they can even pose any danger to you in your hometown??
We removed a regime that supported terrorism. He supported an ENEMY of the United States of America, and was an evil person. Saddam Hussein was a terrorist in his own right, against his own people. A friend of my enemy is my enemy.
So, enough with your venomous, acrimonious rantings. If you don't like the fact that your government is making aCONCERTIED EFFORT to preserve your freedoms, go somewhere else. You are parasitic dregs, stealing from the people who secure yourfreedoms, abusing the freedoms to malign them, all the while being behind the shield of protection they so willingly provide.Let me define parasite for you :
"something that resembles a biological parasite in dependence on something else for existence or support without making a useful or adequate return"Now, ask yourself...does this in any way apply to you??
You are stealing my blood, and you should be ashamed of yourself. Go back to your dark holes and brood, for you and your logic isnot welcome, and many more people than you think feel the same way I do. You are evil, as evil as our enemies.
This is something I have wanted to get off my chest for a long time, but I did not think that while I was in Iraq I should post this. Now that I am home, and see and hear the anti-war crowd and their message through a different set of eyes, I believe my words are appropriate. Jen over at Jennifer's Musings emailed me a month ago and asked me for my opinionand what I would say to the Anti-War protestors. She posted it here. You will find many sentiments in this article were echoed in that one, as that post kind of became a rough draft for this one.
Thanks.
SCOUTS OUT!!!
MDG...OUT.
http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=8234857
Monday, November 14, 2005
An Open Letter to the Anti-War Crowd
To my loyal and supportive readers...this is not directed towards you. I know that you all support, encourage, and agree with me, the leadership of this country, and this war.
To all you anti-war folks, I have to get something off my chest.
You all are a disgrace to the country you call home. You abuse the freedoms that I, and many others, have sweated and bled to protect with your vitriolic rants and seditious acts and statements.
You hide behind the First Amendment, claiming the bile you spew forth is protected under the right to free speech. Some of you claim that you "Support the Troops, but not the war". I submit to you that this is a preposterous assertation. In order to truly and honestly support the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen who have sworn to "Uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America", you must also support the endeavor that they are currently undertaking. Our job is to safeguard you, to kill, disable, or catch the human scum who have made it their mission in life to blow you into chunks of human gore, sever your head from your torso, incinerate you, collapse your office building, gas you on the subway, or murder your children with television cameras rolling live.
Their aim is to scare you into submission. Scare you so much, inject so much fear into your mind that you willfully throw your freedoms out of the window in the name of 'security'. If we can kill them, disable them, or catch them before they are able to inflict the horrors of their idiom on you, then you should be grateful.
I am not attempting to heap praise upon myself. The words you are reading are not for my glory, nor are they intended to glorify anyone, but to show the fallacy of your words and actions. True, you are free to believe what you wish and to voice your opinion as such, but I am also free to do the same.
The words on your screen that you are reading now are intended to cause you to think about the ideology to which you cling. To make you see that folks like 'Code Pink', Fred Phelps, Cindy Sheehan and their ilk are morally bereft individuals. Dark, vile people who do not want others to have their freedoms, but abuse the same to do the shouting.
Your inability to understand the gravity of the situation in which we, as a nation, are embroiled is appalling. In my eyes, you do not understand what dangers this country faces from these terrorists, nor do you understand what it takes to protect you from this peril.
I think back to the Jews who were led out of Egypt whined that they were tired of eating manna, trekking through the desert, facing the danger of wild animals, desert heat, and uncertainty as to what the next mile in the sand might bring. They longed to be back in bondage, slaves to the Egyptians, with full stomachs, roofs over their heads, and a place to call home. They would have rather been forced to perform manual labor by Draconian task-masters rather have their freedom. They knew that they would be fed, have a permanent house, regardless of the way they were treated, as slaves doing forced HARD labor.They were not willing to travel the hard road, to fight for their freedoms. It was easier to go back and be oppressed by the Egyptians rather than press forward and fight for their own nation, for their own freedom. I use the word fight. I mean the term both militarily and in simple reference to the struggle to maintain resilience of spirit.
Some of you will immediately discount the previous reference for the simple fact it is Biblical. Regardless of what you believe spiritually, the parallel draws the conclusion. People who are willing to trade freedom for security are sorry individuals. Freedom is costly to maintain, financially, but also costly of life, resolve and dedication.
Some of you will argue that Iraq has nothing to do with 9-11. It has everything to do with that terrible fall day. The terrorist action on that day was not simply an attack against four airliners, two high profile structures and the people in the planes and buildings, but on the sovriegnty and safety of the USA. In the Declaration of Independence, we all know the clause, "Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness". The terrorists want nothing more than to take those rights from you, and they did, from almost 3000 people on that day. A great majority of the terrorists were from Saudi Arabia. That is one of the anti-war crowd's talking points. The concept which I believe you fail to grasp is that they were part of a larger network, a community of evil people who despiseus. Let us use illegal drugs as an example.
For instance, if a person is arrested for selling drugs, do the law enforcement agencies stop there?? Do the stop with the person who carries out the crime at the lowest level?? No, they attempt to take down the whole network, and go as high as they can to try and eradicate the problem at the top. They go to the mid-level suppliers, then the clearinghouses of the nation, the couriers, the financiers, and the kingpins and cartel bosses. An investigation that starts somewhere say, Cleveland, could lead to Chicago, thenMiami, then Cuba, and then to Bogota. The trail could branch anywhere in the chain, and in our instance, the trail led to Iraq.
Another parallel can be drawn from the example of narcotics. A proactive stance is essential in taking care of the problem. We can sit back inside our borders, hoping to catch the drug runners at the borders, or we can go on the offensive, find the problem at its source and deal with it at its origination. Similarly, do we set up treatment centers and simply hope that addicts will happen to decide to come in for help with their problems, or do we seek them out, advertise, reach into the community and try to bring aid to them??
Our expedition into Iraq and Afghanistan is the exact same concept. We are attempting to stop the terrorists where they breed, where they are steeped in their radicalism, where they do not harm OUR citizens, my family and yours. It may seem callous, but I mean no insult towards anyone of different nationality. Another hypothetical example...a ship is sinking. A seaplane lands to rescue the people on board.The seaplane is owned by a ficticious nation...let's use Atlantis. The seaplane is capable of carrying 30 people other than the aircraft crew. There are 34 people in need of rescue. Thirty of the passengers on the ship are Atlantean. Who are the crew of the plane going to take with them?? The Atlantean's, of course. They will rescue their countrymen first, and if possible, they will come back for the others, if possible. You take care of your own. You protect your countrymen, protect your homeland and its people. Not to say that others are worth any less as human beings, but you take care of your own.
We are taking care of our national interests. Making sure that OUR borders are safe, fighting the enemy in their homeland, not ours. I would rather fight the enemy where they do not put American civilians at risk. It is my job to fight the enemy and remove his ability to attack Americans. Would you rather wait and have us fight in the streets of St. Louis or New York or L.A. or Smalltown, USA, or would you rather we kill them before they can even pose any danger to you in your hometown??
We removed a regime that supported terrorism. He supported an ENEMY of the United States of America, and was an evil person. Saddam Hussein was a terrorist in his own right, against his own people. A friend of my enemy is my enemy.
So, enough with your venomous, acrimonious rantings. If you don't like the fact that your government is making aCONCERTIED EFFORT to preserve your freedoms, go somewhere else. You are parasitic dregs, stealing from the people who secure yourfreedoms, abusing the freedoms to malign them, all the while being behind the shield of protection they so willingly provide.Let me define parasite for you :
"something that resembles a biological parasite in dependence on something else for existence or support without making a useful or adequate return"Now, ask yourself...does this in any way apply to you??
You are stealing my blood, and you should be ashamed of yourself. Go back to your dark holes and brood, for you and your logic isnot welcome, and many more people than you think feel the same way I do. You are evil, as evil as our enemies.
This is something I have wanted to get off my chest for a long time, but I did not think that while I was in Iraq I should post this. Now that I am home, and see and hear the anti-war crowd and their message through a different set of eyes, I believe my words are appropriate. Jen over at Jennifer's Musings emailed me a month ago and asked me for my opinionand what I would say to the Anti-War protestors. She posted it here. You will find many sentiments in this article were echoed in that one, as that post kind of became a rough draft for this one.
Thanks.
SCOUTS OUT!!!
MDG...OUT.
http://www.blogger.com/post-create.g?blogID=8234857
Friday, November 04, 2005
The Fallen
The price of freedom is a heavy one. I believe that what is happening today in Iraq will ultimately determine whether or not the Western World remains free. People are dying on a regular basis to preserve these freedoms. Every now and then we are given a gut wrenching glimpse of who the fallen are, up close and personal, and what they mean to there comrads in arms and to the cause of freedom. They must never be forgotten.
Here are but a few names, followed by links to their eulogies.
COL William W. Wood
CPT Michael MacKinnon
CPT Raymond Hill
SPC Shakere Guy
http://thunder6.typepad.com/365_arabian_nights/2005/11/all_souls_day.html#comment-10883281
http://currierd.typepad.com/centurion/2005/11/soldiers_have_f.html#comments
"High Flight"
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew -
And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.
Pilot Officer, John Gillespie Magee, Jr.
Here are but a few names, followed by links to their eulogies.
COL William W. Wood
CPT Michael MacKinnon
CPT Raymond Hill
SPC Shakere Guy
http://thunder6.typepad.com/365_arabian_nights/2005/11/all_souls_day.html#comment-10883281
http://currierd.typepad.com/centurion/2005/11/soldiers_have_f.html#comments
"High Flight"
Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of earth
And danced the skies on laughter-silvered wings;
Sunward I've climbed, and joined the tumbling mirth
Of sun-split clouds - and done a hundred things
You have not dreamed of - wheeled and soared and swung
High in the sunlit silence. Hov'ring there,
I've chased the shouting wind along, and flung
My eager craft through footless halls of air.
Up, up the long, delirious, burning blue
I've topped the wind-swept heights with easy grace
Where never lark, or even eagle flew -
And, while with silent lifting mind I've trod
The high untrespassed sanctity of space,
Put out my hand and touched the face of God.
Pilot Officer, John Gillespie Magee, Jr.
Thursday, October 27, 2005
Time to Get Out The Wood Chipper
According to Reuters and Agence-France Presse, the Jihadi's best friends in the media next to Al-Jazeera, the announcement that Saddam's legal team has resigned due to security concerns, makes it "doubtful that Saddam can receive a fair trial". These of course are the concerns of Amnesty International and other loonie-left "human rights" groups. If these groups were so concerned about human rights they would be making a stink about the murderous acts of barbarism committed by terrorists in Iraq and Israel on a regular, bloody, basis.
It's a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation with Saddam. My own belief was that they should have shot him out of hand when they found the bastard. But I can understand the dilemma the American administration was facing at the time with respect to former allies in Old Europe and Democratic critics at home.
I don't know what current Iraqi law is, but here in Canada, a defense team would be assigned to the odorous piece of slime and the trial would proceed. Hopefully the same happens in Iraq.
Then, try him, find him guilty, and bring out the wood chipper. The only humanitarian question here is whether Saddam gets to go in the chipper head or feet first. I'm voting for feet first if there's a vote.
Time to end it.
It's a damned if you do and damned if you don't situation with Saddam. My own belief was that they should have shot him out of hand when they found the bastard. But I can understand the dilemma the American administration was facing at the time with respect to former allies in Old Europe and Democratic critics at home.
I don't know what current Iraqi law is, but here in Canada, a defense team would be assigned to the odorous piece of slime and the trial would proceed. Hopefully the same happens in Iraq.
Then, try him, find him guilty, and bring out the wood chipper. The only humanitarian question here is whether Saddam gets to go in the chipper head or feet first. I'm voting for feet first if there's a vote.
Time to end it.
Thursday, October 13, 2005
My Review of Colby Buzzell's "MY WAR"
This has been my first experience witnessing the birth of an author. The experience is all the more compelling, knowing I have witnessed the metamorphosis of a talent unleashed during the chaos of the war in Iraq.
I first stumbled on CB’s blog, “MY WAR”, in the last days of August 2004, I don’t recall how, when he had already published the infamous post “MEN IN BLACK”. This post was his account of the surreal, chilling, mind-numbing events he participated in, while being ambushed, by who else, as many as 100 foreign fighters, all dressed in black. This was in the city of Mosul on 04 August 04.
“MEN IN BLACK” recounts CB’s experience as a contradiction of the CNN version of events. His stream of consciousness style of writing is so powerful you can feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins, while he relives the insanity of being caught in the middle the of the first all out, coordinated attack, by foreign terrorists in Iraq to date.
“MEN IN BLACK” was the entry that started lighting up Colby’s blog like the Fourth of July and finally started ringing alarm bells all the way to the pentagon. He shut his blog down voluntarily not too much longer after that. And the rest is history.
Interesting blog posts do not necessarily translate into interesting books. Fortunately, in this case they do. CB has a wicked sense of humor that is infectious. I read the first two parts of the book with a big smile on my face, when I wasn’t laughing out loud. This is the work of a natural writer, and as I alluded to at the top, writers are born, not taught, at least not formally. Colby is very well read. Probably more so than most of his contemporaries are, which is why, at 26 he found himself drifting from one dead end job to another, not fitting in anywhere, and thinking there’s got to be more to life than this.
His telling of the events that led up to his joining the army, to literally “be all that I could be” are hilarious. Especially his dealings with the Army recruiter who lured him away from the Marine recruiting office next door with the magic words “signing bonus”, an episode which caused me to laugh out loud.
This is a very well written book. The book’s basis is the story of how Colby Buzzell talked himself into the war in Iraq, his adventures during army training, which he found to be the “best job I ever had”, through the reality of serving with Bravo Company 2nd Platoon (the Tomahawk Battalion), 23rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd (Arrowhead) Brigade, 2nd infantry Division, in boredom and in battle, in Iraq.
It’s also about how he managed to talk himself out of the army, amidst all the flak he was getting form nervous superiors, with an Army Commendation Medal after serving the full two years he signed on for and not getting in the deep shit for pissing off higher command so royally.
Incidentally, CB’s Stryker Brigade was the very first of it’s kind to be deployed in the field. One of my favorite parts in the book is when he first saw a Stryker retrofitted with the “birdcage” an ugly but very effective piece of additional armor. Here’s how he describes the way the “birdcage works:
“ The birdcage, in theory, works the same way as the chicken-wire fence in the Blues Brothers did. In case you have no appreciation for fine cinema and have never viewed this classic, or maybe you’ve just forgotten the scene I’m referring to, It’s the part where Jake and Elwood get the band back together, and they have that gig at that Okie redneck bar that plays both kinds of music, country and western, and they open up the set by playing the song “Give Me Some Lovin’,” and the stage that they’re playing on has a chicken-wire fence in front of it to shield the band form the incoming Budweiser bottles being thrown at them by the local rednecks. The bottles impact and explode on the chicken-wire fence first, rather than on Jake or Elwood as they try to play. The birdcage around the Stryker works the same way.”
If you are familiar with CBFTW and his blog, or if you are interested in what the reality in Northern Iraq was in 2004, or better yet if you just want to read a good book, buy “MY WAR: Killing Time in Iraq” by Colby Buzzell. You’ll be glad you did. Hell yeah.
I first stumbled on CB’s blog, “MY WAR”, in the last days of August 2004, I don’t recall how, when he had already published the infamous post “MEN IN BLACK”. This post was his account of the surreal, chilling, mind-numbing events he participated in, while being ambushed, by who else, as many as 100 foreign fighters, all dressed in black. This was in the city of Mosul on 04 August 04.
“MEN IN BLACK” recounts CB’s experience as a contradiction of the CNN version of events. His stream of consciousness style of writing is so powerful you can feel the adrenaline pumping through his veins, while he relives the insanity of being caught in the middle the of the first all out, coordinated attack, by foreign terrorists in Iraq to date.
“MEN IN BLACK” was the entry that started lighting up Colby’s blog like the Fourth of July and finally started ringing alarm bells all the way to the pentagon. He shut his blog down voluntarily not too much longer after that. And the rest is history.
Interesting blog posts do not necessarily translate into interesting books. Fortunately, in this case they do. CB has a wicked sense of humor that is infectious. I read the first two parts of the book with a big smile on my face, when I wasn’t laughing out loud. This is the work of a natural writer, and as I alluded to at the top, writers are born, not taught, at least not formally. Colby is very well read. Probably more so than most of his contemporaries are, which is why, at 26 he found himself drifting from one dead end job to another, not fitting in anywhere, and thinking there’s got to be more to life than this.
His telling of the events that led up to his joining the army, to literally “be all that I could be” are hilarious. Especially his dealings with the Army recruiter who lured him away from the Marine recruiting office next door with the magic words “signing bonus”, an episode which caused me to laugh out loud.
This is a very well written book. The book’s basis is the story of how Colby Buzzell talked himself into the war in Iraq, his adventures during army training, which he found to be the “best job I ever had”, through the reality of serving with Bravo Company 2nd Platoon (the Tomahawk Battalion), 23rd Infantry Regiment, 3rd (Arrowhead) Brigade, 2nd infantry Division, in boredom and in battle, in Iraq.
It’s also about how he managed to talk himself out of the army, amidst all the flak he was getting form nervous superiors, with an Army Commendation Medal after serving the full two years he signed on for and not getting in the deep shit for pissing off higher command so royally.
Incidentally, CB’s Stryker Brigade was the very first of it’s kind to be deployed in the field. One of my favorite parts in the book is when he first saw a Stryker retrofitted with the “birdcage” an ugly but very effective piece of additional armor. Here’s how he describes the way the “birdcage works:
“ The birdcage, in theory, works the same way as the chicken-wire fence in the Blues Brothers did. In case you have no appreciation for fine cinema and have never viewed this classic, or maybe you’ve just forgotten the scene I’m referring to, It’s the part where Jake and Elwood get the band back together, and they have that gig at that Okie redneck bar that plays both kinds of music, country and western, and they open up the set by playing the song “Give Me Some Lovin’,” and the stage that they’re playing on has a chicken-wire fence in front of it to shield the band form the incoming Budweiser bottles being thrown at them by the local rednecks. The bottles impact and explode on the chicken-wire fence first, rather than on Jake or Elwood as they try to play. The birdcage around the Stryker works the same way.”
If you are familiar with CBFTW and his blog, or if you are interested in what the reality in Northern Iraq was in 2004, or better yet if you just want to read a good book, buy “MY WAR: Killing Time in Iraq” by Colby Buzzell. You’ll be glad you did. Hell yeah.
Tuesday, October 04, 2005
Gods and Generals and The Killer Angels
Sometime last year I was chatting on-line with a military history buff and the conversation turned to the American Civil War ( sometimes referred to these days by some Southerners as The War of Northern Aggression.) This was a subject with which I was only vaguely familiar and I asked for the recommendation of some reading material. It was suggested that I would do no better in understanding the nature and the substance of the conflict than by reading the historical novel 'The Killer Angels' Michael Shaara's 1974 Pulitzer prize winning novel.
Circumstances delayed that until one day the week before last, when I was browsing in my favorite used book store and put my hand on a copy of Jeff Shaaara's 'Gods and Generals' purely by accident. For those who don't know, Jeff is Michael's son and his book is a prequel to his fathers book. The book deals with the issues leading up to the war, starting in 1855 and deals primarily with four main characters: Robert E. Lee, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, William Scott hancock and Joshua Chamberlain. All, except the latter, were graduates of West Point and decorated veterans of The Mexican Wars. The book is riveting and very hard to put down. It leads us through build up to and the first battles of the war, all victories for the South, up through the Battle of Chancellorville.
'Gods and Generals' is the perfect introduction to 'The Killer Angels', both of which provide an understanding of the times, the history, the morals and the character of those involved. Currently I am engrossed with 'The Killer Angels' which deals with the first three days of July 1863: The Battle of Gettysburg.
General Norman H. Shwarzkopf said of this book: "The best and most realistic historical novel about war I have ever read." You'll notice he doesn't qualify which war. High praise indeed.
This is a bit of a delicious dilemma for me as today's mail brought a copy of 'My War: Killing Time in Iraq' by Colby Buzzell, best known to the blogosphere as CBFTW.
I had written a post about Colby's book and was kindly offered an advanced copy by John Lawton of the book's publisher Putnam. I am really keen on roaring thorugh Colby Buzell's book, but I can't leave Longstreet and Lee as they are about to commit themselves at Gettysburg. So I'm going to have to finish it hopefully tonight and then turn my attention to 'My War'. It's a good day.
P.S. My writing 'style' such as it is, isn't normally this flowery, but I can't get my head out of the South of 1863.
Circumstances delayed that until one day the week before last, when I was browsing in my favorite used book store and put my hand on a copy of Jeff Shaaara's 'Gods and Generals' purely by accident. For those who don't know, Jeff is Michael's son and his book is a prequel to his fathers book. The book deals with the issues leading up to the war, starting in 1855 and deals primarily with four main characters: Robert E. Lee, Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, William Scott hancock and Joshua Chamberlain. All, except the latter, were graduates of West Point and decorated veterans of The Mexican Wars. The book is riveting and very hard to put down. It leads us through build up to and the first battles of the war, all victories for the South, up through the Battle of Chancellorville.
'Gods and Generals' is the perfect introduction to 'The Killer Angels', both of which provide an understanding of the times, the history, the morals and the character of those involved. Currently I am engrossed with 'The Killer Angels' which deals with the first three days of July 1863: The Battle of Gettysburg.
General Norman H. Shwarzkopf said of this book: "The best and most realistic historical novel about war I have ever read." You'll notice he doesn't qualify which war. High praise indeed.
This is a bit of a delicious dilemma for me as today's mail brought a copy of 'My War: Killing Time in Iraq' by Colby Buzzell, best known to the blogosphere as CBFTW.
I had written a post about Colby's book and was kindly offered an advanced copy by John Lawton of the book's publisher Putnam. I am really keen on roaring thorugh Colby Buzell's book, but I can't leave Longstreet and Lee as they are about to commit themselves at Gettysburg. So I'm going to have to finish it hopefully tonight and then turn my attention to 'My War'. It's a good day.
P.S. My writing 'style' such as it is, isn't normally this flowery, but I can't get my head out of the South of 1863.
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