[Allan from Fallbrook]

Veritas: Thank you. I remember reading a book on the German Army in WWI, and reading that they marched into battle with belt buckles that read “Gott mit uns” (God is with us).

I served with NCOs who were products of Vietnam and they were fervently convinced that the most brutal soldier was your average middle class American 19 year old.

We are a very violent, warlike country and do a great job covering that fact up. Like I said, I wish I had something more compelling to say in terms of what we should do, but, in truth, I don’t know.

I do know that I remember watching the footage of what they did to Daniel Pearl and thinking that just dropping a couple of 50 megaton nukes on selected targets in the Muslim world didn’t seem like a bad idea. A buddy of mine in Baghdad told me he misses the Soviets and the good old, bad old days of the Cold War. He said the world seemed a lot simpler and a lot less dangerous than it is now.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Veritas: Thank you. I remember reading a book on the German Army in WWI, and reading that they marched into battle with belt buckles that read “Gott mit uns” (God is with us).

I served with NCOs who were products of Vietnam and they were fervently convinced that the most brutal soldier was your average middle class American 19 year old.

We are a very violent, warlike country and do a great job covering that fact up. Like I said, I wish I had something more compelling to say in terms of what we should do, but, in truth, I don’t know.

I do know that I remember watching the footage of what they did to Daniel Pearl and thinking that just dropping a couple of 50 megaton nukes on selected targets in the Muslim world didn’t seem like a bad idea. A buddy of mine in Baghdad told me he misses the Soviets and the good old, bad old days of the Cold War. He said the world seemed a lot simpler and a lot less dangerous than it is now.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Veritas: Thank you. I remember reading a book on the German Army in WWI, and reading that they marched into battle with belt buckles that read “Gott mit uns” (God is with us).

I served with NCOs who were products of Vietnam and they were fervently convinced that the most brutal soldier was your average middle class American 19 year old.

We are a very violent, warlike country and do a great job covering that fact up. Like I said, I wish I had something more compelling to say in terms of what we should do, but, in truth, I don’t know.

I do know that I remember watching the footage of what they did to Daniel Pearl and thinking that just dropping a couple of 50 megaton nukes on selected targets in the Muslim world didn’t seem like a bad idea. A buddy of mine in Baghdad told me he misses the Soviets and the good old, bad old days of the Cold War. He said the world seemed a lot simpler and a lot less dangerous than it is now.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Veritas: Thank you. I remember reading a book on the German Army in WWI, and reading that they marched into battle with belt buckles that read “Gott mit uns” (God is with us).

I served with NCOs who were products of Vietnam and they were fervently convinced that the most brutal soldier was your average middle class American 19 year old.

We are a very violent, warlike country and do a great job covering that fact up. Like I said, I wish I had something more compelling to say in terms of what we should do, but, in truth, I don’t know.

I do know that I remember watching the footage of what they did to Daniel Pearl and thinking that just dropping a couple of 50 megaton nukes on selected targets in the Muslim world didn’t seem like a bad idea. A buddy of mine in Baghdad told me he misses the Soviets and the good old, bad old days of the Cold War. He said the world seemed a lot simpler and a lot less dangerous than it is now.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Ex-SD: Funny you mention Feinstein. I was a kid during her reign as Mayor of San Francisco (after Mayor Moscone was assassinated) and then a teenager when she was elected Senator.

She was the driving force behind the notorious Proposition 15 gun ban. It emerged during this time that she was carrying an unlicensed handgun in her purse. When asked by a reporter about this, she replied: “Well, it’s not like I’m a common citizen or anything”. That’s the attitude that scares me.

I grew up in a gun culture (my dad was a former Marine) and my dad went to great lengths to de-mythologize guns. He treated them as a tool, and nothing more. You took care of them, you handled them properly and safely and you mastered their use.

I don’t know much about Obama, but when it comes to guns, yeah, my choice would be McCain, too.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Ex-SD: Funny you mention Feinstein. I was a kid during her reign as Mayor of San Francisco (after Mayor Moscone was assassinated) and then a teenager when she was elected Senator.

She was the driving force behind the notorious Proposition 15 gun ban. It emerged during this time that she was carrying an unlicensed handgun in her purse. When asked by a reporter about this, she replied: “Well, it’s not like I’m a common citizen or anything”. That’s the attitude that scares me.

I grew up in a gun culture (my dad was a former Marine) and my dad went to great lengths to de-mythologize guns. He treated them as a tool, and nothing more. You took care of them, you handled them properly and safely and you mastered their use.

I don’t know much about Obama, but when it comes to guns, yeah, my choice would be McCain, too.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Ex-SD: Funny you mention Feinstein. I was a kid during her reign as Mayor of San Francisco (after Mayor Moscone was assassinated) and then a teenager when she was elected Senator.

She was the driving force behind the notorious Proposition 15 gun ban. It emerged during this time that she was carrying an unlicensed handgun in her purse. When asked by a reporter about this, she replied: “Well, it’s not like I’m a common citizen or anything”. That’s the attitude that scares me.

I grew up in a gun culture (my dad was a former Marine) and my dad went to great lengths to de-mythologize guns. He treated them as a tool, and nothing more. You took care of them, you handled them properly and safely and you mastered their use.

I don’t know much about Obama, but when it comes to guns, yeah, my choice would be McCain, too.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Ex-SD: Funny you mention Feinstein. I was a kid during her reign as Mayor of San Francisco (after Mayor Moscone was assassinated) and then a teenager when she was elected Senator.

She was the driving force behind the notorious Proposition 15 gun ban. It emerged during this time that she was carrying an unlicensed handgun in her purse. When asked by a reporter about this, she replied: “Well, it’s not like I’m a common citizen or anything”. That’s the attitude that scares me.

I grew up in a gun culture (my dad was a former Marine) and my dad went to great lengths to de-mythologize guns. He treated them as a tool, and nothing more. You took care of them, you handled them properly and safely and you mastered their use.

I don’t know much about Obama, but when it comes to guns, yeah, my choice would be McCain, too.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Ex-SD: Funny you mention Feinstein. I was a kid during her reign as Mayor of San Francisco (after Mayor Moscone was assassinated) and then a teenager when she was elected Senator.

She was the driving force behind the notorious Proposition 15 gun ban. It emerged during this time that she was carrying an unlicensed handgun in her purse. When asked by a reporter about this, she replied: “Well, it’s not like I’m a common citizen or anything”. That’s the attitude that scares me.

I grew up in a gun culture (my dad was a former Marine) and my dad went to great lengths to de-mythologize guns. He treated them as a tool, and nothing more. You took care of them, you handled them properly and safely and you mastered their use.

I don’t know much about Obama, but when it comes to guns, yeah, my choice would be McCain, too.

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Dukehorn: I wanted to address just one of your points here. That is the one related to gun ownership. Obviously, this is very topical given the recent Supreme Court decision, but it is also near and dear to my heart. I’m a gun owner, but for me the issue is more related to individual rights and responsibilities.

I noticed that Obama tried to skirt the issue, and then he did an adept fenceline straddle by claiming the middle ground between individual rights and the government’s “right” to regulate.

What I wanted to address was your comment about semi-automatic handguns being intrinsic to freedom. I got the sense you were being tongue-in-cheek with this, but there is an important context here.

“Fear the government that fears your guns” is a popular slogan with the NRA, but a correct one, sentiment notwithstanding. The 2nd Amendment (in my own interpretation) speaks directly to our individual right to possess a firearm, and not within membership of a militia. The Founding Fathers were all very clear in their writings on this topic and for good reason. With the specter of George III hanging over their heads, the idea of an armed and activist citizenry was a must in preventing absolutism. One can argue that times have changed, but my response is that we need to assert individual rights and civil liberties now more than ever.

This “It takes a village” mommy socialism that the lefties bring to the table is even more insulting due to the fact that it presupposes I lack the requisite intelligence to make good decisions and therefore need the government to help me by preventing me from purchasing something potentially injurious to my health. While Bush’s creeping fascism needs to be stopped, so does the hard Left’s creeping Socialism (and not the hand wringing French sort, but the rock ribbed Italian variety, circa 1935).

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Dukehorn: I wanted to address just one of your points here. That is the one related to gun ownership. Obviously, this is very topical given the recent Supreme Court decision, but it is also near and dear to my heart. I’m a gun owner, but for me the issue is more related to individual rights and responsibilities.

I noticed that Obama tried to skirt the issue, and then he did an adept fenceline straddle by claiming the middle ground between individual rights and the government’s “right” to regulate.

What I wanted to address was your comment about semi-automatic handguns being intrinsic to freedom. I got the sense you were being tongue-in-cheek with this, but there is an important context here.

“Fear the government that fears your guns” is a popular slogan with the NRA, but a correct one, sentiment notwithstanding. The 2nd Amendment (in my own interpretation) speaks directly to our individual right to possess a firearm, and not within membership of a militia. The Founding Fathers were all very clear in their writings on this topic and for good reason. With the specter of George III hanging over their heads, the idea of an armed and activist citizenry was a must in preventing absolutism. One can argue that times have changed, but my response is that we need to assert individual rights and civil liberties now more than ever.

This “It takes a village” mommy socialism that the lefties bring to the table is even more insulting due to the fact that it presupposes I lack the requisite intelligence to make good decisions and therefore need the government to help me by preventing me from purchasing something potentially injurious to my health. While Bush’s creeping fascism needs to be stopped, so does the hard Left’s creeping Socialism (and not the hand wringing French sort, but the rock ribbed Italian variety, circa 1935).

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Dukehorn: I wanted to address just one of your points here. That is the one related to gun ownership. Obviously, this is very topical given the recent Supreme Court decision, but it is also near and dear to my heart. I’m a gun owner, but for me the issue is more related to individual rights and responsibilities.

I noticed that Obama tried to skirt the issue, and then he did an adept fenceline straddle by claiming the middle ground between individual rights and the government’s “right” to regulate.

What I wanted to address was your comment about semi-automatic handguns being intrinsic to freedom. I got the sense you were being tongue-in-cheek with this, but there is an important context here.

“Fear the government that fears your guns” is a popular slogan with the NRA, but a correct one, sentiment notwithstanding. The 2nd Amendment (in my own interpretation) speaks directly to our individual right to possess a firearm, and not within membership of a militia. The Founding Fathers were all very clear in their writings on this topic and for good reason. With the specter of George III hanging over their heads, the idea of an armed and activist citizenry was a must in preventing absolutism. One can argue that times have changed, but my response is that we need to assert individual rights and civil liberties now more than ever.

This “It takes a village” mommy socialism that the lefties bring to the table is even more insulting due to the fact that it presupposes I lack the requisite intelligence to make good decisions and therefore need the government to help me by preventing me from purchasing something potentially injurious to my health. While Bush’s creeping fascism needs to be stopped, so does the hard Left’s creeping Socialism (and not the hand wringing French sort, but the rock ribbed Italian variety, circa 1935).

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Dukehorn: I wanted to address just one of your points here. That is the one related to gun ownership. Obviously, this is very topical given the recent Supreme Court decision, but it is also near and dear to my heart. I’m a gun owner, but for me the issue is more related to individual rights and responsibilities.

I noticed that Obama tried to skirt the issue, and then he did an adept fenceline straddle by claiming the middle ground between individual rights and the government’s “right” to regulate.

What I wanted to address was your comment about semi-automatic handguns being intrinsic to freedom. I got the sense you were being tongue-in-cheek with this, but there is an important context here.

“Fear the government that fears your guns” is a popular slogan with the NRA, but a correct one, sentiment notwithstanding. The 2nd Amendment (in my own interpretation) speaks directly to our individual right to possess a firearm, and not within membership of a militia. The Founding Fathers were all very clear in their writings on this topic and for good reason. With the specter of George III hanging over their heads, the idea of an armed and activist citizenry was a must in preventing absolutism. One can argue that times have changed, but my response is that we need to assert individual rights and civil liberties now more than ever.

This “It takes a village” mommy socialism that the lefties bring to the table is even more insulting due to the fact that it presupposes I lack the requisite intelligence to make good decisions and therefore need the government to help me by preventing me from purchasing something potentially injurious to my health. While Bush’s creeping fascism needs to be stopped, so does the hard Left’s creeping Socialism (and not the hand wringing French sort, but the rock ribbed Italian variety, circa 1935).

[Allan from Fallbrook]

Dukehorn: I wanted to address just one of your points here. That is the one related to gun ownership. Obviously, this is very topical given the recent Supreme Court decision, but it is also near and dear to my heart. I’m a gun owner, but for me the issue is more related to individual rights and responsibilities.

I noticed that Obama tried to skirt the issue, and then he did an adept fenceline straddle by claiming the middle ground between individual rights and the government’s “right” to regulate.

What I wanted to address was your comment about semi-automatic handguns being intrinsic to freedom. I got the sense you were being tongue-in-cheek with this, but there is an important context here.

“Fear the government that fears your guns” is a popular slogan with the NRA, but a correct one, sentiment notwithstanding. The 2nd Amendment (in my own interpretation) speaks directly to our individual right to possess a firearm, and not within membership of a militia. The Founding Fathers were all very clear in their writings on this topic and for good reason. With the specter of George III hanging over their heads, the idea of an armed and activist citizenry was a must in preventing absolutism. One can argue that times have changed, but my response is that we need to assert individual rights and civil liberties now more than ever.

This “It takes a village” mommy socialism that the lefties bring to the table is even more insulting due to the fact that it presupposes I lack the requisite intelligence to make good decisions and therefore need the government to help me by preventing me from purchasing something potentially injurious to my health. While Bush’s creeping fascism needs to be stopped, so does the hard Left’s creeping Socialism (and not the hand wringing French sort, but the rock ribbed Italian variety, circa 1935).

[Allan from Fallbrook]

pablo: I definitely agree with the sentiment that our following certain rules of conduct won’t affect the way al Qaeda treats US or Western POWs one iota. I doubt very much that our admittedly abhorrent behavior at Abu Ghraib was the motive factor behind Daniel Pearl being decapitated.

That being said, I would also say from personal experience that allowing American soldiers to freely use torture and questionable interrogation techniques degrades not only the soldiers involved, but the entire military. Having participated in interrogations, I will tell you that you gain more valuable intel with a pot of coffee and a couple of packs of cigarettes than you ever gain with torture. Are there hard cases out there that won’t give up information no matter what? Yup. And that is where it gets tricky. Alan Dershowitz wrote an excellent article regarding the approved use of torture in a situation (“the ticking bomb” scenario) where a detainee had information regarding a bomb that would kill thousands of Americans and the only way to get this information is through torture. Hard to argue that one away, but it does put you on the slippery slope.

As of late we’ve seen some pretty deplorable practices used by American personnel to gain information. We pay lip service to “we don’t torture”, but we all know about rendition. I do think it demeans us in the eyes of the world, and rightfully so. However, there will always be certain circumstances where it proves necessary. I’m not smart enough to pretend to know where that line is.

I realize this is more of a non-answer than an answer, but, as a former soldier, it is wrenching to watch we’ve become, what with places like Gitmo and Abu Ghraib. I know we are fighting a determined opponent that does not play by the rules, but I also know the dangers when you start trading civil liberties for “security”. The current climate of “you are either with us, or against us” reeks of a nascent fascism and our inability as a nation to remember the importance of those freedoms we are losing is alarming, to say the least.

I think we close Gitmo. I think we stop renditions. I think we allow soldiers in the field to make decisions regarding interrogations, but give them clear guidelines as to what is and is not acceptable. As careworn and clunky as the Geneva Conventions are, they’re better than no alternative at all.

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