The old man is snoring ...

It's raining, tornado season has officially hit in full swing. Kentucky and Tennesee (next door) have been ravaged as well as the midwest. The wind from the thunder and lightning storm last night sent rod-iron lawn furniture flying down the hills and overturned metal benches. Today, it is simply raining. I know where my umbrella is, I could tell you its exact location - Byron Bay Australia. Lot of good it is doing me there, and everytime I go to the store I forget to pick up a new one. That said, I haven't been to the store since February but who's counting.

Last week was killer, assignments due every day. I finished them all but only to my own amazement. I wrote a 10 page paper on Colin Powell in less than 10 hours. One quote that I picked up from my research got me to thinking ...

Powell once said "Many of my generation, the career captains, majors, and lieutenant colonels seasoned in that war (Vietnam), vowed that when our turn came to call the shots, we would not quietly acquiesce in halfhearted warfare for half-baked reasons that the American people could not understand".

That makes me wonder that if Colin Powell had become president 6 years ago, which by all national polls he could have - by a landslide, then would we (US and coalition of the willing) be trapped in a war we can't seem to get out of without doing serious detriment to our international status or reputation. I know that shouldn't be the reason why we stay in - to save face, but anyone with two braincells to rub together knows it is. If we pull out it will be seen as a victory for those who we are fighting. But the longer we stay and the longer our tactics become more devoid of transparency and accountability, the more our allies continue to question our intelligence. For anyone over the age of 35, this is a case of dejavu. Vietnam was a war with no exit strategy, a war where the common people joined the soldiers against us. The only hopeful difference in this war is that when it finally does end the soldiers don't get spit on or ridiculed for only doing their jobs. It is the decision makers who send soliders into dangerous situations, while it is their choice to pull the trigger the alternative is often guaranteed to be fatal.

In two years I will be back in Oz, voting by mail to choose a new president, a woman may run but if she isn't qualified I won't vote for her. The Democrats have a once in a century chance to take power - the American people are ready and willing to vote out the current regime (and more importantly the current mindset). But whether or not the Democrats will do any better is unknown - and only understood in hindsight.