MoveOn.org....come on now....

MoveOn.org....

On its surface MoveOn sounds somewhat noble. From their own website...
The MoveOn family of organizations brings real Americans back into the political process. With over 3.2 million members across America – from carpenters to stay-at-home moms to business leaders – we work together to realize the progressive promise of our country. MoveOn is a service – a way for busy but concerned citizens to find their political voice in a system dominated by big money and big media.

Progressive promise....progressive is good, right? Giving concerned citizens a way to find their political voice in a system dominated by big money and big media. Gee that sounds good too. So, one might conclude this group would be a forum for action and information that stands above the mudslinging so typical of political campaigns. After all, I have to think that most Americans would not believe that our "promise" as a nation is best served by manipulative, deceptive politics. Treat us like adults! Tell us the truth! Stop the lies, cross bridges, and get some freaking work done in Washington! Well if this is your idea of the "promise" of America, then you might want to think twice about supporting MoveOn.

For all the feel good language in their "about us" page, MoveOn.org's deeds are just more of the same that many Americans are disgusted with. Lies, half-truths, and hyperbole are the hallmarks of many of MoveOn's ads that they've funded. Just read the text of an ad (plus supporting "facts") targeting McCain for escalating the war in Iraq. http://pol.moveon.org/iraqad/facts.html The "facts" cited in support of their claim are taken out of context, and misleading at best....deceptive propaganda at worst.

Call me crazy, but I see just a few flaws in their arguments:
1) The surge while advocated by McCain was not solely "his" idea.
2) Equating McCain's statement "the presence of additional brigades should be tied to completion of their mission rather than to some arbitrary deadline.…A time-limited deployment would have, on a smaller scale, the same negative effects posed by a national timetable for withdrawal.” [AEI Speech, 1/5/07] with the assertion that he plans to keep troops in Iraq with no timetable for bringing them home....come on! Technically yes, no timetable...McCain did not cite a specific date for withdrawal or drawdown. But, he's not saying leave troops at current surge levels indefinitely forever and ever. He's saying keep them in place only as long as necessary to complete their mission. Now perhaps a clear definition of that mission is in order, but if that's the quibble, make it. Don't take the giant leap and falsely imply an intent to escalate and keep troops in Iraq indefinitely.
3) The surge was intended to address a key complaint of the Rumsfeld doctrine toward Iraq....many military leaders warned that we did not go in with enough troops to secure the territory and keep the peace once Iraq's military had been defeated/disbanded and Saddam removed from power. For years after the 2003 invasion the security situation in Iraq decreased in part because we did not have sufficient forces to deal with the aftermath. Say what you will, but the surge stabilized and improved the security situation in Iraq.
4) McCain has gone on record numerous times expressing the opinion that troops in Iraq should be brought home as soon as possible. Something MoveOn fails to mention. Frankly his words are quite similar to statements made by both Hillary and Obama. The difference (besides party affiliation) is in defining "as soon as possible".

MoveOn....move over....you've become as corrupt and manipulative as the "establishment" that you set out to oppose.

Something fun...

I'm not sure why, but this made me smile.


My early support for the War in Iraq has waned somewhat in recent years. The bungling of Rumsfeld and the attempts to police a country with far fewer forces that we brought to Gulf War I caused endless headaches. Yet our soldiers sucked it up and made the best of the situation. I think we've turned the corner, and congressional response to General Petraeus's upcoming report should be interesting. Now doubt both the Republicans adn Democrats will pick it apart each certain that the report 'proves' they were right. Eveyone keep some open ears and listen for yourself.

My brother-in-law is on his 3rd tour...fingers crossed, and hopeful prayers that he'll return safely and not have to redeploy. The thing is, I know he'd go again if asked. He doesn't like it there, but knows there's work to be done. He's a soldier...an American soldier. May we be so lucky as to have thousands more like him...in times of peace and times of turmoil. Let's just see if we can't get a few of those fellows some dance lessons :-) Who knows maybe it's cut down on the PTSD.....check the vid.

Sad but true.....

I was stuck in an airport due to a missed connection....no this isn't the sad part. The airline gave me some courtesy vouchers for food as a token for my inconvenience. (Tip to Northwest, next time just push the gate back to the plane. The time spent dealing with four irate passengers...nearly 10% of the possible load for the CRJ...all even more irritated since the plane was still at the gate...could have been better used to get us and our carry-ons onto the plane.) But I digress again...this isn't the sad part either.

I chose to use part of my courtesy vouchers for a meal at good old Mickey D's in the terminal. Now pay attention...we're getting to the sad part. The tab came to $7.98. The vouchers were in $5.00 denominations. Unsure just how long I might be stuck or whether I could get change, I opted to use one $5.00 voucher, and pay the balance in cash. I handed the cashier one $5.00 voucher and one $20 bill. Now quick...how much change should I have received? Got the answer....good. Took you what...2? 5? 15 seconds to work it out? You now know where this is going...

The SAD Part
The cashier was stumped. First she asked whether I had any smaller bills. I assured her that I didn't. After staring at her register for a few more seconds, time to call in the support. Evidently their register/terminals didn't have a button for the vouchers (which I'm sure they get all the time), so she had to resort to using her elementary arithmetic skills. Yeah right. A quick call to the manager on duty. He too had difficulty with the task. They eventually worked out this complex calculation and dutifully handed me $12.02. I politely pointed out that they still owed me another $5.00. Momentary "deer-in-the-headlights" look, and then a moment of recognition/annoyance by the manager, and I'm handed my other $5.00.

Now, sure I've had those brain-fart moments where even simple math momentarily stumps me. We all have. But two people back to back? I took my order (and my change) and headed to my table silently wondering whether these two slipped through the cracks of their educational institutions, or if they were just plain dumb. But the sad story doesn't end here.

As I'm seated, I notice a pool of water (or some other fluid) leaking from underneath the self-serve soda fountains. There are two other McDonald's employees (presumably on break) sitting at a table a few feet away. One of them also notices the fluid and gets up to put a couple "Wet Floor" warning cones near the fluid....and then sits back down...maybe she told someone on duty to get a mop and I missed it. I don't know. As I'm eating, I'm glance over and notice the puddle has breached the boundaries of the bright yellow cones. A few moments later, the employee who placed the cones sighs, and gets up heading behind the counter. Finally...someone's getting a mop...or is she? No, our intrepid and resourceful employee returns with 2 more yellow "Wet Floor" warning cones. She adds the two new cones and and readjusts the originals, forming a type of barrier surrounding the puddle. You can imagine how much more effective this is than a mop. Content that she has this time stopped the flood, our employee returns to her table to finish her break.

I finish my meal, get up, navigate my way around the cones (and the puddle which is again threatening to breach the invisible barrier established by the cones), dump my tray in the trash, and leave....slightly amused, but also slightly depressed by what I had just seen.

If it weren't so damn pathetic, it would have been really funny. I had just witnessed several common stereotypes for bad service, and uneducated fast-food employees in a single visit to THE epitome of the fast food joints. Thankfully I didn't order anything with Mayonnaise. The way my luck was going, that stereotype/urban legend would have surely come true as well. While someone with some talent and wit might have turned this into an amusing comedy sketch, what I had seen was REAL. Two people (one a manager) had failed to perform some simple math necessary to complete a retail transaction. Another had twice attempted to contain a leak using invisible force-fields between some plastic cones. At least she tried SOMETHING....however ineffective it may have been. Several other on-duty employees witnessed the mini-pond growing near the soda fountains, and did nothing.

Lastly though....I did nothing. I didn't call for help, didn't point out the inconvenient and marginally hazardous situation with the water, nor did I chime in right away with the amount of change I was owed. While I was saddened by the apparent incompetence of these employees and the possible issues with society and/or education that contributed to their incompetence, I've come to realize that I'm probably most saddened that I didn't do or say something. I'm neither incompetent, nor dumb. It didn't have to be mean...it might not have mattered....but I had the potential and opportunity to change things, yet I didn't. What does that say about me?