RETRO POST: April 17, 2007
JOHN FROM CINCINNATI EDITION: I took this photo with my new razor phone; I had just switched to AT&T in anticipation of the Iphone. I was working on John From Cincinnati in Imperial Beach, CA the date was April 17, 2007. In the photo I'm standing between the characters Vietnam Joe's van and Billy Jacks (Ed O'neill) truck. This photo got me thinking about what was happing back on this day in Iraq. As it turns out April 17,2007 was the very last day on this planet for a very young boy named Richard Peter Langenbrunner is obituary is here as published in the Fort Wayne Newspaper. PFC Richard Langenbrunner was only 19 years old the day he was killed in Iraq.   19 years, wholly shit, Dubya would have just unleash the hounds of hell if that was my son. Richard was born not far from where I was working that day in San Diego and grew up in Fort Wayne Indiana. The photo and obituary gets me thinking about how George Bush is so dead certain about his legacy and how in 50 years he will be looked at as a successful leader.   The incoherent logic of this rational just doesn't mesh up.  I just can't help thinking that in fifty years the collective human spirit of the world can overcome any fuck up or disaster or failed state.   I guess in retrospect Hitler really brought The European Union together 50 years later, should he be commended for his failed twisted policy?   Hell HBO is going to be a lot better place to watch television series in the years coming thanks to "John from Cincinnati" That was an utter failure, but in 50 years it will be looked at in awe.
As Rachel Maddow says, here is a story from Iraq and life during wartime. Published in the Fort Wayne Newspapers on 4/25/2007.   PFC RICHARD PETER LANGENBRUNNER, 19, of Fort Wayne, died Tuesday, April 17, 2007, in Iraq. Born Feb. 9, 1988, in San Diego, Calif., he was an Armor Crewman on the M-1/A-1 ABRAMS TANK with C Company 2nd Battalion, 69th Armor, 3rd Infantry Division. "He enjoyed the outdoors especially turkey hunting and bow hunting." Surviving are his parents, Rick and Mary Langenbrunner of Fort Wayne; sister, Crystal G. Langenbrunner of West Lafayette; grandfather, Richard Claytor of La Mesa, Calif.; three uncles; four aunts; and two cousins.

December 17, 2007

As one example of how I have lost the war I'll show that while I was busy shooting interviews on the USD campus in San Diego, California on December 16 th, The Herald was busy printing the next days papers that contained this article for the December 17, 2007 edition.

As reported at

The US military in Iraq has lost track of another 12,000 weapons, including more than 800 machine-guns, and everything from 2100 new electricity generators to half a dozen garbage trucks.

The latest gap in record-keeping follows a report by the US government's accountability office in the summer which revealed that 190,000 Kalashnikov assault rifles and automatic pistols earmarked for Iraqi government forces had gone astray in 2004 and 2005 and could be in insurgent hands.

The US Defence Department said an audit between March and May this year could trace only £41m-worth of armoured vehicles and other equipment worth more than £500m which was supposed to be part of Iraq's police and army training and outfitting package.   Cont.....

So as you can see I Lost the War!

Archived Entry

June 15, 2006, While I was busy yelling at a production assistant to find me some quarter orange to throw in front of a key light on a production in Old Town San Diego. It seems that a very horrific, regrettable milestone had been reached in the war.   The unflappable Tony Snow took the occasion in stride and continued to spin the spin for the spinsters in D.C.  

Press Briefing by Tony Snow

James S. Brady Briefing Room: started at 12:23 P.M. EDT

Q Tony, American deaths in Iraq have reached 2,500. Is there any response or reaction from the President on that?

MR. SNOW: It's a number, and every time there's one of these 500 benchmarks people want something. The President would like the war to be over now. Everybody would like the war to be over now. And the one thing that we saw in Iraq this week is further testimony to the quality of the men and the women who are doing that, and the dedication and determination to try to ensure that the people of Iraq really do live in a free, effective democracy of their own creation and design.

Any President who goes through a time of war feels very deeply the responsibility for sending men and women into harm's way, and feels very deeply the pain that the families feel. And this President is no different. You've seen it many times. You saw it, you saw it when he was in that ballroom, Terry, and you had this crowd of servicemen and women who were cheering loudly for the President, and he got choked up. So it's always a sad benchmark, and one of the things the President has said is that these people will not die in vain.

And part of what happened this very week when the President went to Baghdad, and he sat down with the Prime Minister and he sat down with the cabinet, and he sat down with the President and Vice President, he sat down with the national security team, and he sat down with the leaders of all the major political parties, what he saw now is that after all of this, what you have in Iraq is a freestanding government that has been elected by the Iraqi people. It has a Prime Minister who is going to be there for four years, who is determined to act as a Prime Minister, who is determined to lead, who is setting priorities, and he's somebody we can work with. You have a Minister of Defense who has significant experience and is already working with his colleagues, not only here at the Pentagon, but also General Casey and others in the field. The President understands that those deaths cannot be in vain, and you've got a government now that can help ensure that that is not the case.

Q Was he told about the benchmark, the President?

MR. SNOW: I don't know. I'm sure he will hear about it.   

Read it all here.....

MARCH 18, 2006

On Saturday, March 18 starting at 12:00 PM I was shooting camera at the Dominican Republic vs Cuba Semi-Final Game of the World Baseball Classic at Petco Park, San Diego.  It was a good game that Cuba won, over a strong mini all-star Dominican Republic team that included M Tejada, A Pujols, D Ortiz, A Beltre, M Alou, and others. (Cuba 3 - Dominica Republic 1)  Like most of the people in Petco Park that day my life has never seemed to be impacted by the Iraq War. So I took some time to look up what was happening in Iraq on that very day. The sad news is that two men had experienced their last day on this earth on March 18, 2006. They were killed in western Iraq while conducting combat operations. Like a bad movie in a few days two families were about to get a phone call that would rip tier lives apart also. This Bush administration has seemed to pull off an unbelievable feat by taking us to war that very few are participating in. The few that are participating are so removed from popular culture that it sometimes seems the only thing happening in Iraq is the systematic pillaging of our national resources that no one can or will ever try to stop. My condolences go out to Staff Sgt. Ricardo Barraza and Sgt. Dale G.M. Brehm's families may you find meaning in the loss of your boys lives. The press release from: RELEASE NUMBER: 060321-03 DATE POSTED: MARCH 21, 2006 PRESS RELEASE:  Two Rangers killed in Iraq U.S. Army Special Operations Command FORT LEWIS, Wash. (USASOC News Service, Mar. 21, 2006) -- Two Army Rangers assigned to the 75th Ranger Regiment died recently in western Iraq of wounds sustained while conducting combat operations. Staff Sgt. Ricardo Barraza and Sgt. Dale G. M. Brehm, both assigned to 2nd Battalion, 75th Ranger Rgt., Fort Lewis, Wash., were killed by enemy small arms fire during the mission.  Read on
Staff Sgt. Ricardo Barraza Learn more about this man here.	Sgt. Dale G. M. Brehm Learn more about this man here.

Maybe this can explain how I lost the war.

The Great Iraq Swindle Rolling Stone Article by Matt Taibbi

Great Moments in Military Might!

Paul Bremer was awarded on December 14, 2004 the Presidential Medal of Freedom, America's highest civil award for "especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors." "He was also presented with the Department of Defense award for Distinguished Public Service and the Nixon Library honored him with the "Victory of Freedom Award" for "demonstrating leadership and working towards peace and freedom."

Get a load of these liars.

John Kerry talks to Keith Olbermann about the Bush Administration's attempt to blame Democrats for its failure in Iraq.

Visitor since 12/24/2007

Hit Counter