As most of you know, I’m an animal lover.  Of both the tasty and cuddly varieties.  And so I feel it is my duty to show you what some Marines in Afghanistan have been doing to some kittens.  I must warn you, it’s not for the faint of heart.

Pweese Don't Eats Me!

That’s right.  What you see here is a big bad Marine about to make out with a kitten.  Do you know what that could lead to?

This.

Sleeping With The Natives

You can see what a toll this is taking on the local kitten population.  Just look at this poor kitteh.  So worn out he fell asleep under a hat.

So very tired

I would tip the hat to Jezebel, but it might disturb the feline.

And here is the contact information for an SPCA initiative that helps bring these animals to safety! You can donate online to Operation Baghdad Pups.

We’ve seen kids punished for finger pistols and sketches all in the name of the No Tolerance policies.  And now, green plastic Army men.

Christan Morales says her son just wanted to honor American troops when he wore a hat to school decorated with an American flag and small plastic Army figures.

But the hat ran afoul of the district’s no-weapons policy because the toy soldiers were carrying tiny weapons.

Because the molded plastic really poses a threat to the other students.  I heard some of them might even have a shoulder thing that goes up. Maybe they’ve watched too much Toy Story.

No tolerance policies are what you do instead of something.  Maybe they should drop their pants and throw a puppy at it!

A Real Danger to Students

Thank you to those that allowed me the freedom to spend yesterday with family and friends.  The freedom to step away from my little corner of the internet and speak instead to people in the real world.  Thank you for the freedom to step out on my own patio without fear.  Thank you for the sacrifice that gives me so many opportunities available no where else in the world.

I can never thank you enough.

I couldn’t resist another song rewrite.  Apologies to the Andrews Sisters.

They were just plain ol’ infantrymen from the United States
Doing what their told by Dr. Robert Gates
As they were drivin’ through the town
All the kids would run out, poverty gettin’ them down
But look at ‘em now, such generosity
They’re the big hearted Santa boys of Company B

Soldiers Deliver Toys to Iraqi Children

BAGHDAD — Two Soldiers with Company B, 252nd Combined Arms Battalion, recently organized a surprise toy delivery for children living here just outside the walls of Forward Operating Base Falcon.Spc. Michael Petro, an infantryman, said he had the idea to start collecting goodies for the children after driving past their neighborhood during missions in the Baghdad area.

“It’s one of the poorest areas that we drive through,” Petro, of West Chester, Pa., said. “Every day that we drive through that area the kids come out running and waving … there’s plenty of kids and families that have a lot less than we do.”

Spc. Garrett Manis, a fellow infantryman, said he had similar sentiments about the area and wanted to help.

“We drive by that area all the time, and they’re frequently bare footed … and they always run out, waving their hands, hoping we’ll stop and give them something; and you think, ‘That’s really not a whole lot to do,’ and it could potentially have a tremendous impact in some kid’s life,” Manis, of Chapel Hill, N.C., said.

Petro said it all started with an email.

“I just sent my mom an email just basically saying, ‘Instead of sending me stuff, send stuff for the kids,’ and then she forwarded that along, and that got forwarded along and it was really just an avalanche,” he said.  “What was originally intended to be just a few boxes here and there turned into [a two-and-a-half ton cargo vehicle] full of clothes and school supplies and toys.”

The Soldiers said the idea spread across the home front, growing bigger than they ever imagined.

“People at home really went above and beyond what I had ever envisioned,” Petro said. “Going down to mail-call every day and five more boxes came in, seven more boxes came in, eight more boxes came in; it was really kind of unbelievable how it snowballed.”

“My aunt did a drive; she’s an administrative assistant at Durham Academy,” Manis said. “She sent like ten boxes or so that they collected from the school. I got a lot from all over. It kind of just took off; it started as just an idea to get a few things together.”

The shipments started arriving in September, and the duo collected the boxes in a larger storage room in their barracks, waiting for the chance to hand it all out. Petro said because of the company’s busy mission schedule, it took a while before they had a chance to make the stop. After much anticipation, they finally got their chance; just in time for the Christmas holiday.

“I was actually hoping to do it a lot sooner, but just because of our mission schedule and the way things worked out, it happened to be closer to the holidays, which is kind of nice,” Petro said.

(By Spc. Kelly LeCompte, 30th Heavy Brigade Combat Team)

This is just awesome.  Going above and beyond.  Merry Christmas to our troops.

Even Google got patriotic today

Thank you.  Thank you for your sacrifice.  Thank you for keeping us free.

Thank you for being the rough men (and women) standing guard.

Freedom is not free.  Our veterans paid for it.  Thank you.

Happy 234th Marines!

Prayers for those so hurt by this monster.  Prayers for the families.  Thank God for the woman that took him down.

There are many, many questions.  We may never have the answers.

In spite of what the press is saying, I do not believe this was PTSD.  He’d never been deployed.  He didn’t snap because he didn’t want to go to war.  He planned to attack these soldiers.  He felt justified by his twisted belief system.  He gave away his possessions.  He intended to be a martyr.  He believed their was honor in that.

And he survived.  It took a local police officer bravely jumping into the fight to save the day.  The soldiers were not provided the means to defend themselves.  They only carry weapons for training exercises.  It’s yet another massacre in a gun free zone.

Our soldiers are supposed to be safe at home.  The authorities that ignored the warning signs let these soldiers down.