On Wednesday, General David Petraeus was on the Hill to brief Congress on Afghanistan. You know, that place where we are still fighting one of two wars, even though Democrats have stopped screeching that No War For Oil line ever since Obama became President. I suppose they figure that he has enough to worry about, what with busily trying to improve his golf handicap and perfecting the art of woeful incompetence and all.
Two more American soldiers lost their lives in Afghanistan today, which makes 33 killed in June so far. At the time of General Petraeus’ briefing on the Hill, the total was at 31. In addition, the Taliban is regaining strength. So, what did Congresswoman Giffords (D-AZ) ask about when she got her turn to question the General?
Hey, man. What are you doing about, you know, super cool renewable energy and stuff at our bases in Afghanistan? No, really (video after the jump)
There are two wars being fought? But, what about Mother Earth™! The US Air Force is totally icky; they use the most energy on the entire planet! This must be taken care of, never mind the people who are fighting and dying to protect everyone else on that planet. I’m only surprised that she didn’t suggest combat fatigues be made from hemp and that MREs be made vegan.
General Petraeus, the man behind the successful surge strategy in Iraq, is concerned with the men and women fighting under his command. He’s concerned with protecting them and with ensuring that the loss of America’s bravest is as few as humanly possible. He’s trying to win two wars. He’s concerned with actual threats to this country, not made up scams like “climate change” cured by magic windmills.
It’s not surprising, though. She must have gotten the idea from her fellow Democrat, Senator Barbara Boxer, Ma’am, who said last week that not terrorism, not wars, not potential economic collapse, but climate change will be the leading cause of conflict for the next two decades.
“I’m going to put in the record … a host of quotes from our national security experts who tell us that carbon pollution leading to climate change will be over the next 20 years the leading cause of conflict, putting our troops in harm’s way,” Boxer said.
Islamo-fascism, the Taliban, North Korea? No big whoop. At least, nothing that some solar paneling and windmills won’t fix!
Earlier this week, another Democrat snidely suggested that there should be pre-vote skirt checks because she can’t tell if GOP women are actually women by the way that they vote. Well, I don’t care to check for gender, because I think not being able to tell gender by a vote is a good thing. But, they make the ability to discern something else very easy for me.
I can tell one thing that they are based on the way they both vote and speak:
Damn fools.
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(cross-posted from NewsReal)
Steve Maley
Caleb Howe
Jeff Emanuel
Moe Lane
Dan Spencer
Politicians should have a flashlight check.
Tbone (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 9:32AM EDT (link)As in shine it in one ear and see if it comes out the other.
That would get rid of about 80%.
Envisioning when all that is Left is the Right.
*does double take*
pamela1631 (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 10:01AM EDT (link)Aren’t pysch evaluations mandatory in Congress?
If not, they should be. Sorry, you two have just moved out of the “a little tetched in the head” category of nuts to the ” Uh, get the jacket and meds ready, she’s talking about making breathing out illegal” category of nuts.
What does the vaporware carbon pollution and climate change scary bedtime story have to do with a bunch of crazed killers stuck in a seventh century mind set?
For the love of God, let the man do his job!
Oh, wait God’s not allowed. Someone might have their feelings hurt or be offended if invoked.
This republic was not established by cowards; and cowards will not preserve it. ~~Elmer Davis
I am stone forged from the fires of creation into flesh ~~Pamela1631
The greatest civilization is one where all citizens are equally armed and can only be persuaded, never forced.~~Maj. L. Caudill, USMC (Ret.)
A world at war. Temps rise 1/2 degree,
johnt Saturday, June 19th at 10:02AM EDT (link)nations fly at each others throats, terrorists demand electric fans, our military disburses emergency air conditioners to the needy.
And leftists continue to prove that to walk and chew gum does not require even minimal intelligence.
Not even when they run for Congress or advise the president.
“a man’s admiration for absolute government is proportinate to the contempt he feels for those around him”. Tocqueville
Giffords is most likely reaching out to a key part of her base
smagar (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 10:17AM EDT (link)She’s probably appealing to the green crowd, which is a major part of her base in metro Tucson. CD8 is slightly Republican overall, with a strong Democratic base around the University of Arizona. I’ll bet Giffords is trying to appeal to them, in preparations for November.
In all fairness, Giffords actively supported Vets For Freedom in their 2007 national tour. (Also in all fairness, VetsForFreedom is supporting one of her GOP opponents, Jonathan Paton, this fall).
Green issues—especially solar power—-are also major issues for Giffords, so I’m not surprised to hear her say this.
Plus, if you want to get national attention, you don’t ask the same kinds of questions that all the other Senators and Representatives are asking. You ask something different.
It’s sound political tactics.
“Who will stand/On either hand/And guard this bridge with me?” (Macaulay)
Petreaus handled it better than I would have
m_quick Saturday, June 19th at 10:30AM EDT (link)I would of just stared at her in disbelief for a few minutes, then gone on to answer someone else’s question
That's because he's a professional. She's a goon. (nt)
bannedtroll Saturday, June 19th at 10:41AM EDT (link)I’m a banned Democrat who came here to promote the idea that Republicans are racists for disliking Barack Obama.
He didn't really handle it well
Raven (Diary) Sunday, June 20th at 12:07AM EDT (link)He just treated it like it was a serious question worthy of a serious answer.
That would have been the perfect time for a, “Ma’am those energy expenditures are in the service of this nation and freedom in a pair of wars ordered by this chamber. We are doing what we can to get the most efficiency and effect from that energy, but that energy, and more, is necessary if we are to achieve victory,” type counterattack.
“If you do not have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.”
Luke 22:36
Artist needed
melatr7 Monday, June 21st at 10:17AM EDT (link)I see two guys in a foxhole amid sniper fire and with bombs and rockets lighting up the sky. The first guy yells “DAMN” and moans in agony. The next guy anxiously asks if he got hit. The first guy responds, “Nah, I forgot to turn off the light on our way out…”
Lol melatr7, reminds me of the Bill Mauldin cartoon...
nessa (Diary) Monday, June 21st at 10:43AM EDT (link)“What’s it say?”
“Say’s we gottas take a 1000 mile detour…”
“If you love wealth more than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, depart from us in peace. We ask not your counsel nor your arms. Crouch down and lick the hand that feeds you. May your chains rest lightly upon you and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen.”—Samuel Adams
Contributor to Unified Patriots
teh twitter
???? nt
Raven (Diary) Monday, June 21st at 4:18PM EDT (link)“If you do not have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.”
Luke 22:36
As to the MREs
tngal (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 10:49AM EDT (link)Since there are already vegetarian varieties, she probably let that vegan request slide for a while. Although I could see her requesting more biofuel ingrediants in napalm, use of recycled metals in the bayonets, and buddy showers to save on water.
Could it be?
SteveLA (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 11:16AM EDT (link)Lori
While Democratic Congress Critters are easy targets, and the stupidity of save the earth is part of their mantra do you know that DOD is a leader in Federal government for alternative energy? Did you know that CongressCritter Giffords home district is where Davis Montham AFB is located and where the one of the largest Solar power installation is located? AF News Link.
The average DOD base back here in CONUS has high electric bills just like everyone else, in desert climates even more so, and figuring out ways to cut that bill is a way to have more money to support the actual mission of our armed forces? I don’t know the actual numbers for electric cost, but I have read that a typical SW CONUS base has an electric bill of over $1 Million a month, big dollars that have to come from some budget line.
Far as how this applies to SouthWest Asia, every gallon of fuel not used to generate electricity to keep the living quarters for troops comfortable is a gallon of fuel that does not have to be shipped in the combat area leaving more shipping capacity to ship fuel for tanks and airplanes, and other supplies for conducting operations.
Yea this topic seems silly, and maybe it is, but providing alternative energy sources in CONUS and in the field makes sense in both dollars and from logistics points of view and General Petraeus gets that point. Throw in that this CongressCritter is probably trying to get some publicity for her work in securing the solar installation at DM, does this line of question does make sense, yep it does.
______________________________________
Competency over ideological purity and litmus tests
DOD facilities can be the crunchy's best friend
smagar (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 3:10PM EDT (link)You can order residents of DOD base housing, or workers in DOD facilities, to use waterless urinals and other green-friendly things. It’s much harder to compel private residents to forego swimming pools or nice gardens in their privately-owned retirement homes.
The San Pedro River basin runs near FT Huachuca and the neighboring town of Sierra Vista. The river rarely has water in it, and environmentalists routinely list it as an endangered natural area.
However, southern Arizona environmentalists have been supportive of FT Huachuca—-probably because they realize that it’s better to have an Army base (whose residents you can order around) on the site of FT Huachuca than another Sun City (whose residents can and will litigate).
“Who will stand/On either hand/And guard this bridge with me?” (Macaulay)
DOD is way ahead on environmental stuff
SteveLA (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 3:19PM EDT (link)I’ve been in briefings where local DOD environmental folks are more aware of the fauna, the lizards, the butterflies and the desert tortoises than the environmental wackos. They do this work because it’s a lot easier to get permission from the regulatory agencies to do stuff when you already have a program of environmental stewardship in place.
It’s a very smart and very pro-active approach. Throw in that once upon a time, there was a lot of stupid stuff done on some bases when it comes to the environment, think plumes of nasty stuff heading for the water table from draining fuel tanks and other dumb anti environment stuff that is now being mitigated and it’s easier to get with the program than fight the wackos.
______________________________________
Competency over ideological purity and litmus tests
It also helps
aesthete (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 5:44PM EDT (link)That, as an international presence, they have had to research such issues to remain in accordance with their host countries’ respective laws on the environment. In my experience, the USAF is the branch most attuned to these issues, closely followed by the Navy, but all of them are quite used to such matters.
“It is a popular delusion that the government wastes vast amounts of money through inefficiency and sloth. Enormous effort and elaborate planning are required to waste this much money.”
-P.J. O’Rourke
But you've missed the ones
Raven (Diary) Sunday, June 20th at 12:14AM EDT (link)Where Montham AFB discusses having wasted billions for the wind and solar power facilities that don’t provide sufficient or reliable power production for the installation and the fact that their costs in electricity are as high now as they were before those power facilities were built.
Or so your posts would suggest, anyway.
The Air Force has several installations in this position. They wasted entire fortunes trying to “go green.”
My old man, greenie that he is is still enough of a number cruncher that he fought it with every tool at his disposal for most of his career. It’s wasteful spending. It’s fraud. It’s abuse of the public trust and of the USAFs mission.
“If you do not have a sword, sell your cloak and buy one.”
Luke 22:36
Another Pelosi Puppet
teapartypatriot Saturday, June 19th at 2:55PM EDT (link)Puppet giffords will absolutely, positively LOSE re-election in November. Jesse Kelly, an outstanding conservative with the support of duncan, pence, arpaio and dozens of other well-known conservative leaders, will win the Repub primary in August and will be the next representative from the AZ’s 08th Con district. Kelly will undo giffords’ vote for the d-crat socialist healthcare nationalization, taxation, rationing and abortion atrocity and he’ll ensure that gifford’s doesn’t get a chance to support any more d-crat AMNESTY for ILLEGALS legislation.
Yes, how about if we just retire Giffords
deano64 (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 3:00PM EDT (link)come November? This is one of the seats we have a very good chance of taking back.
Precinct Committeeman before it was cool.
“The American Republic will endure until the day Congress discovers that it can bribe the public with the public’s money.”
Alexis De Tocqueville
Don't hold your breath
smagar (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 3:20PM EDT (link)Giffords won her seat in 2006 when long-time Republican Rep Jim Kolbe retired. The GOP had a competitive primary—and the Dems ran ads in the GOP primary, in hopes of weakening the most electable candidate. It worked. The least-electable GOP candidate won the primary, and Giffords coasted to the seat. In 2008 she won reelection easily, against a well-respected GOP candidate, who had been President of the State Senate.
This year, Giffords is unopposed within her party and has plenty of money. Our primary is in late August, and FOUR people are running for the GOP nomination. The Tucson press is solidly pro-Giffords, and she knows it.
Expect Giffords and Democratic supporters to play as much havoc as they can in the GOP primary. If the eventual nominee emerges bloodied and cash-poor, expect Giffords and her Democratic allies to unload on him the day after the primary ends. He may not have the time or resources necessary to get back on his feet.
Don’t be surprised if Gabrielle Giffords weaves her way to reelection. Especially if the four candidates for the GOP nomination in CD 8 savage each other during the primary. (Expect the Tucson and Phoenix press to give those four gentlement EVERY OPPORTUNITY to savage each other in between now and August 24th—let’s hope the candidates can exercise enough self-control and decline the offers).
“Who will stand/On either hand/And guard this bridge with me?” (Macaulay)
RS should seriously consider supporting Jesse Kelly
aesthete (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 5:52PM EDT (link)This is a winnable race, and the only reason we lost the last time is because the guy who ran against Giffords ran exclusively on social issues and the border. Giffords does have plenty of cash, but Jesse Kelly’s a strong candidate, the seat has traditionally skewed Republican, and it’s anti-incumbent season. If we get our act together and consolidate support around one candidate, we have a good chance at beating the astronaut’s wife.
“It is a popular delusion that the government wastes vast amounts of money through inefficiency and sloth. Enormous effort and elaborate planning are required to waste this much money.”
-P.J. O’Rourke
Folks, the antidote to Gabrielle Giffords
aesthete (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 5:57PM EDT (link)is Jesse Kelly. The guy’s an OIF Marine Corps vet, smart, and a good fit for the district (think suburban district). I’ve talked to him personally, and he’s the real deal. I lived in the district for two years (and now have the “privilege” of being “represented” by Raul Grijalva; what a frakking improvement), and this guy can pull through with our help. Throw some chips his way here.
“It is a popular delusion that the government wastes vast amounts of money through inefficiency and sloth. Enormous effort and elaborate planning are required to waste this much money.”
-P.J. O’Rourke
Some background info on Gabby Giffords:
aesthete (Diary) Saturday, June 19th at 6:15PM EDT (link)She basically got elected on a competent/smart/common-sense platform and on fiscal issues (ha!). The Republicans probably could have won if they hadn’t put up the absolute worst candidate in the primary (Randy Graf) to run against her on issues that were non-issues in ’06, namely, illegal immigration (kind of an issue; Gabby fudged on that one in the debate we had here, and Graf was painted as a Mexican-hating psycho, though he didn’t cover himself in glory during the debate) and social issues (total non-issue at the time). Right now, she’s mildly well-liked because of her constituent service (which is pretty good; I got an Air Force Academy nomination via Congressional appointment through her office, and her staff was much more competent than McCain or Kyl’s), and some of the greens like her focus on solar energy (she’s brought a lot of pork related to solar energy our way). That said, she isn’t indomitable: Democrat turnout will be lower in ’10, and she got a lot of people riled up by voting for ObamaCare. The Tea Party movement in Tucson is strongest in her district, and as I said, it’s a Republican district. We can win if we unite around one candidate, and Tucson isn’t punitively expensive to run in, unlike the populated Eastern Seaboard and Cali. Every dollar brings us closer to victory, so drop some of your beer money on beating Giffords.
“It is a popular delusion that the government wastes vast amounts of money through inefficiency and sloth. Enormous effort and elaborate planning are required to waste this much money.”
-P.J. O’Rourke
Things that are true
kylegh (Diary) Monday, June 21st at 5:14AM EDT (link)-We do not have a budget deficit
-The military does not make up a large portion of our budget
-The military does not pay 100+ per barrel of oil
-The military does not use a large amount of oil
-Many large trucks are not required to keep bases supplied with oil
-These many trucks do not make many trips to keep said bases supplied
-These many trips are not targets for attacks
-A way to reduce the amount of trips would not make our men and bases safer
-We should do nothing to change how our men get energy in the field
-Anyone who mentions alternative energy should be ridiculed
-Generals are not already talking about this or implementing this
-DARPA does not give any money to alternative energy research
-oil 4 life
Its cause we're green
Kudzu (Diary) Monday, June 21st at 8:00AM EDT (link)We’re so environmentally conscious that we stop training if we come across a cocked red-headed woodpecker. I mean just walking on a foot march. We see that stupid bird pecking away at a dead pine tree with a white stripe of paint around and we have to stop where we’re going and go the other way.
Spill some oil (or other POL) on the ground. Immediately pour absorbent on the ground and call the Environmental Control Office to come conduct a damage assessment. Failure to do so could result in your unit and you paying for the damage.
We have to do environmental impact statements on everything before we actually build something on land that we’ve owned for years. We pick up brass and recycle it and sell it back to the country (see those reloading stories from early Obama time that talked about ending this practice). We have low-flow toilets everywhere and yes in the next year my unit will be forced to move towards those new light bulbs. We use solar energy where appropriate and able.
What Rep Gifford don’t know or doesn’t care to actually look up but solar panels (least the ones we could afford on the taxpayer’s dime) don’t like sand and grit scratching that near diamond-like surface. And I haven’t yet met a solar panel that could withstand the shock and roll of a concussion wave from an exploding rocket or mortar.
Please people… kick out the idiots in Congress.
It always did take two of you to take down one of me. – Jo Bob Priddy, North Dallas Forty.
Now on at http://kudzu630.wordpress.com/
Gifford
1stsgt Monday, June 21st at 4:20PM EDT (link)These people go congress and immediately become experts on every thing. Like the one several years ago that proposed every motorycle be equipped with seat belts. Tar and feathers sounds good but it is against the law. So everyone go to the polls and evict the idiots from congress.
No Don Quixote reference?
tanstaafl1019 Tuesday, June 22nd at 3:34PM EDT (link)Honestly, when I saw the reference to fighting and windmills, I thought there would be a comparison to Don Quixote. I’ll have to do some thinking about that–there may be something profound I just haven’t seen yet.
The two highest achievements of the human mind are the twin concepts of “loyalty” and “duty.” Whenever these twin concepts fall into disrepute—get out of there fast! You may possibly save yourself, but it is too late to save that society. It is doomed.
Be wary of strong drink. It can make you shoot at tax collectors–and miss.
To Power Future Battles, DARPA Wants Combat-Tough Solar Cells
kylegh (Diary) Thursday, June 24th at 8:24PM EDT (link)In recent years, the U.S. military has been making small strides toward a greener energy standard – the Navy wants to create a green strike group by 2012, while the Air Force has been testing biofuels in its aircraft. But for troops on the ground relying on electronic devices, solar is the way forward. With that in mind, DARPA has assembled an industry-academic team of photovoltaic leaders to create the next generation of battle-ready solar cells that achieve 20 percent conversion while standing up to harsh combat conditions.
http://www.popsci.com/technology/article/2010-06/power-future-battles-darpa-wants-combat-tough-solar-cells
Soldiers in the field have salt in their Meal, Ready-to-Eat packages. Urine could also be used to power the device
http://www.nationaldefensemagazine.org/archive/2010/May/Pages/AncientBatteryTechnologyAdaptedforModernBattlefields.aspx
those are alternative and they save lives.
kgh