just strap a bomb to your chest.

Don't act like you forget the atrocities of Hitler. He ignorantly had innocent people killed simply based on sexual orientation, ethnicity, and religious preferences. In school, we came to realize that such acts are outrageous and should be dealt with. About a half century later, a man comes to power and what does he do? He has his citizens gassed, raped, and murdered based on their ethnicity and religious preferences. Even after we know all of this information, many are still against what our troops are dying for in Iraq. What pisses me off is that our politicians are saying that this war is being fought in vein and that we are losing, and worse than that they are using the war as leverage to win support in the elections. What is worse than a dictator committing ethnic cleansing? What's worse is the fact that the citizens of our country are willing to let our troops die in vein.

I don't want Clinton or Pelosi say "we" are losing. When given a mission, our troops are not losing until they are unable to complete their ultimate task. And our troops are still performing their tasks; it may not be easy, but since when was war easy or predictable? America should stay involved in this war until Iraq is stable and there is not a civilian strapping a bomb to himself, his kids, or his wife in an effort to kill those who are trying to build a country. If you want to say the Iraq war is a failure, do your servicemen a favor and don't use the word "we." If you don't support the war, don't speak like you are involved in any way, because there are people over there hungry, tired, soar, and bloody who know a little more than what you do. Unless you are willing to see first hand what it is like to live and die in Iraq, keep your mouth shut.

This war is not about politics, it's about families who live in fear every day wandering if they can go to the supermarket without getting blown up. If America pulls out of Iraq, both America and Iraq lose. More importantly, the families of our fallen troops lose.

pain and gain.

The recent weather change stirred up memories that lay in my unconscious for most of my waking hours. The smell of burnt rubber took me back to going to the racetrack with my pepaw, something that rarely happened. But looking back I wish that I would have taken more time to be there with him and show him that I really did care. And now it is too late and all I can do is hope that I never leave the feeling of emptiness in somebody when they pass on. All I can do is think about what could have been different when he was alive, even up to 15 minutes before his death.

The smell of nature took me back to my backyard when I was little and my parents seemed happy together, maybe it was an illusion but it was an illusion that should have lasted a lifetime, because now every once in a while I have to hear about court dates pertaining to two lives that took separate courses while their child was ripped in two. And every once in a while I have to go home and look my dad in the eyes when he tries to say that he will support my decision for going in to the Marines but I know that in reality he needs a good woman to keep him company so he doesn't fret about it too much. I still recall episodes of my parents divorce and the extremes they went to while trying to gain control of my life, when in reality my life was out of control. I remember my dad calling me pretending to be Santa Clause, and I believed it and told him that I loved him… Something that was easier to say to a fictional character than it was to say to my own father, not because I didn't love him but because I was a child and I knew no better. Nonetheless, it's something to think a bout. My mom worked so hard just to feed me, and I remember the point at which I realized that she was doing her best and even though I didn't have a Prime Rib, I at least had a mother that would have done anything to get that for me… But she wasn't able to.

Life is not about having Prime Rib Steak; it's about having somebody who would do anything to keep you fed. It's not about having fun all the time and blowing off people you truly care about, it's about blowing off fun to show somebody you care. It's not about having all the nice and expensive items to be happy, it's about being happy with what you have. I cannot go back in time to go to the racetrack with pepaw just to show him I cared. I cannot go back in time and tell Santa thanks for the presents but I love my dad, not you Santa. And I can't go back to the kitchen table and tell my mom that love is more important than having a hot plate. But what I can do is learn from those moments and make sure that I never live with regrets again. Because I cannot change the past, but I can change the future.

Maybe changing seasons hurt for a reason. To me, they are a reminder that I can change myself. And the pain of the changing seasons is well worth that lesson.

immigration debate.

what makes a person believe that they are entitled to an amount ofland simply based on being fortunate enough to be born in a free andopportune country? the american people came to this land and commited ethnic cleansing and suddenly believe that no other race may come here to live.

hypothetical situation: lets say you were born in a poor countrywhere you had to see your family starving every day, what would you do to help your family? i know that if you have half a heart you would do anything you could, am i wrong? so does that make hispanics such bad people, that they are willing to come to a land of excess wealth so they can support their family? and guess what, many of them are doing this for their family. man, those damn mexicans. theyre so greedy right? fuck that.

if you live here in america and make over 200 dollars a year, you are more wealthy than 97 percent of the worlds population. think about how lucky you are to be here and try to put yourself in somebody elses shoes... and remember, they may not be as comfortable as what you are used to.