Thursday, October 07, 2004
Before I go off on the vice-presidential debate, let me forewarn you all that I am not a poli sci major, I know very little about politics and what is happening in our world today, and I wasnt able to fully pay attention throughout the debate. So, if I say anything incorrectly I apologize, and feel free to TACTFULLY correct me. :)
So...one of the mind-boggling questions I was left with after watching Edwards and Cheney go at each other's throats was how Kerry/Edwards plan to fight terrorists before they attack, yet they believe the war in iraq was wrong. Is that not an oxymoron? Isnt that what we did with Saddam? I understand that Bush claimed there were mass amounts of WMDs, which we have only found 2 little things, but still...Saddam was a threat to America and other nations, and Iraq is a much better place now thanks to us and the other Coalition forces. Am I wrong? So...I was all heated up afterwards (and Cheney going off many times talking about wrong facts, poor service as a senator, etc to Edwards got me all excited) so when I got home I emailed Austin (my friend in Iraq). I vented to him and said I wish America knew how the soldiers feel about Iraq. Kerry would like to compare it to Vietnam, but it is not at all the same. Different war, different reasons, different leaders...but lets just talk about the attitudes of the soldiers. People are lining up CHOOSING to go to Iraq, WANTING to go...KNOWING the risk on the line and choosing it anyway. Would they lay their lives down for a cause they didnt believe in? NO! Sure, there may be some soldiers who joined the military before 9-11 and happen to disagree completely. but, for the most part, that is not the case. Austin joined the military 4 months before 9-11 and graduated from boot camp 2 weeks after 9-11. He did not sign up to retaliate after the attacks, and he did not sign up hoping to go to Iraq. however, he fully supports our efforts over there and constantly tells me about the great things we never get to hear. Here is another man who is in the same boat:
for those aggies who read the 12th Man magazine in the batt today, the article on Josh Amstutz was amazing. He is someone who joined the military in 1999 and was serving in Washington at the time of the terrorists attacks. He was deployed to Iraq shortly after getting married, was shot in the leg in an ambush, and is now a member of the Fightin Texas Aggie football team. He went to try-outs to be a walk-on and made it. How he runs at all after being shot inches above and to the side of his knee, I'll never know. But, on his experiences he said:
"I'm proud that I was a part of that. I'm proud that I also served my country, and it was an awesome experience for me to help liberate the people. After Sept. 11, we know there is a terrorist threat. Fighting in Iraq has drawn many of those terrorists into Iraq and kept them out of America. Taking the fight to them instead of them taking the fight to us. And I'm proud to be an Aggie. I love what this school represents, and I love the opportunity just to be able to practice with the team and represent this student body in the best way I can."
Sorry for that little blurp on my sentiments towards the war. I have very strong feelings about this war and this election, though I know very little about either and am fairly inactive regarding both. But, get my started on either and I'll blow off some steam you've never seen.
So, as far as an update on me. :) Sorry it has taken so long. Last week I had 2 tests (which i am sure i vented about already) but I found out I made A's on both! Yay! Thursday night was...well...a mistake. Friday I went to the volleyball and soccer games to watch us BTHO tech and ok state. whoop! After that I drove home with my whining kitten to get all of 2 hours of sleep. thanks mom and brian. :) saturday brian, brandon, lindsey and I drove to Dallas to visit my dad's wonderful (though interesting) family. On the way there we saw an awesome bumper sticker: THE TERRORISTS AGREE: KERRY FOR PRESIDENT. :) Pretty awful actually...not even a tactful slam. but funny. :) The drive was good...considering I slept for all of it with the exception of stopping for beef jerkey in centerville. :) when we got to dallas we had lunch, visited, and I slept some more! For dinner my grandma (an 87 yr old fireball) took Brandon, brian, lindsey, me, my aunt laura, uncle bert and aunt carol, and cousin brooke out to dinner. We went to a restaurant new to the dallas area, which no one had been to, but it was fun. I was not tuned into much of the dinner conversation cause my eyes were glued to the television watching my ags BTHO k state. whooop! what a good weekend for aggie sports! After dinner Lindsey and I went to a sleepover-pj party her 26 yr old sister was having. It is something her and her friends do annually to make sure they still have lots of youthful fun even though they are "grown ups" now. It was fun, but it sure solidified my hopes that at age 32 (or 26 for that matter) i hope to be a lot more settled and grown up than them. Nothing wrong with how they live their lives...I just hope to live mine differently. honestly, hats off to them for being able to enjoy life so freely. I just know I couldnt. Sunday we went back to my grandmas, ate, watched some good ol' Texas football (and the texans won!!!) and then headed back to houston. Short trip, but well worth it. I got to visit a lot with my grandma and aunt, got the "family gossip" and had a nice time with my brothers and sister-in-law. Ok...I need to get better at typing "sister-in-law" cause it takes way too long as of now. :) Anyhow...that was my weekend. exciting, I know.
Now I am sitting at my computer at 2:35 trying to decide on my next move. To the right I have a nice, clean, comfortable bed that is calling my name. To my left there are french notes and books to prepare for my timed writing in 7 hours. Directly behind me there is a suitcase in desperate need of packing before I leave for that timed writing because I wont be coming back here. And, clanking around in the hallway are my pants in the dryer, waiting to be hung. Do I listen to my head, my body, the buttons of my pants, or...well, no analogy for my suitcase. :) Basically I am saying that what I have come across here is a conflict of interest. I want so badly to sleep, but need so badly to stay up. And what do I do when there is a conflict of interest??? BLOG!!! :)
I just finished watching Along Came Polly. GREAT MOVIE! What took me so long??? I am going to need to purchase that one! Thanks for letting me borrow it Cole! I absolutely adore jennifer anniston and ben stiller in ALL their movies, and they worked so well together! It wasnt even a big love story, but it was the first love story in years (no joke...years) to make me have that soft feeling in my heart and sappy smile on my face. pathetic, i know. but it was weird...i didnt think i'd like it that much but i thought it was so awesome.
Well, I guess the game plan is: finish packing, practice writing, fold clothes, and THEN sleep. either that or cancel the last one and move on to tomorrow's plans. :( I am almost done packing...sad when you take 2 bags stuffed full for a 3.5 day vacation. :) But one bag is full of books since I have about 8 hours of traveling ahead of me. Hopefully I can get to bed by...oh heck...no bed tonight. :( Hope you all have an excellent weekend, tune in to see the ags btho iowa state, and be safe! think of me as i am having a blast in indiana!!! :) love ya bunches! muah!!! au revoir
So...one of the mind-boggling questions I was left with after watching Edwards and Cheney go at each other's throats was how Kerry/Edwards plan to fight terrorists before they attack, yet they believe the war in iraq was wrong. Is that not an oxymoron? Isnt that what we did with Saddam? I understand that Bush claimed there were mass amounts of WMDs, which we have only found 2 little things, but still...Saddam was a threat to America and other nations, and Iraq is a much better place now thanks to us and the other Coalition forces. Am I wrong? So...I was all heated up afterwards (and Cheney going off many times talking about wrong facts, poor service as a senator, etc to Edwards got me all excited) so when I got home I emailed Austin (my friend in Iraq). I vented to him and said I wish America knew how the soldiers feel about Iraq. Kerry would like to compare it to Vietnam, but it is not at all the same. Different war, different reasons, different leaders...but lets just talk about the attitudes of the soldiers. People are lining up CHOOSING to go to Iraq, WANTING to go...KNOWING the risk on the line and choosing it anyway. Would they lay their lives down for a cause they didnt believe in? NO! Sure, there may be some soldiers who joined the military before 9-11 and happen to disagree completely. but, for the most part, that is not the case. Austin joined the military 4 months before 9-11 and graduated from boot camp 2 weeks after 9-11. He did not sign up to retaliate after the attacks, and he did not sign up hoping to go to Iraq. however, he fully supports our efforts over there and constantly tells me about the great things we never get to hear. Here is another man who is in the same boat:
for those aggies who read the 12th Man magazine in the batt today, the article on Josh Amstutz was amazing. He is someone who joined the military in 1999 and was serving in Washington at the time of the terrorists attacks. He was deployed to Iraq shortly after getting married, was shot in the leg in an ambush, and is now a member of the Fightin Texas Aggie football team. He went to try-outs to be a walk-on and made it. How he runs at all after being shot inches above and to the side of his knee, I'll never know. But, on his experiences he said:
"I'm proud that I was a part of that. I'm proud that I also served my country, and it was an awesome experience for me to help liberate the people. After Sept. 11, we know there is a terrorist threat. Fighting in Iraq has drawn many of those terrorists into Iraq and kept them out of America. Taking the fight to them instead of them taking the fight to us. And I'm proud to be an Aggie. I love what this school represents, and I love the opportunity just to be able to practice with the team and represent this student body in the best way I can."
Sorry for that little blurp on my sentiments towards the war. I have very strong feelings about this war and this election, though I know very little about either and am fairly inactive regarding both. But, get my started on either and I'll blow off some steam you've never seen.
So, as far as an update on me. :) Sorry it has taken so long. Last week I had 2 tests (which i am sure i vented about already) but I found out I made A's on both! Yay! Thursday night was...well...a mistake. Friday I went to the volleyball and soccer games to watch us BTHO tech and ok state. whoop! After that I drove home with my whining kitten to get all of 2 hours of sleep. thanks mom and brian. :) saturday brian, brandon, lindsey and I drove to Dallas to visit my dad's wonderful (though interesting) family. On the way there we saw an awesome bumper sticker: THE TERRORISTS AGREE: KERRY FOR PRESIDENT. :) Pretty awful actually...not even a tactful slam. but funny. :) The drive was good...considering I slept for all of it with the exception of stopping for beef jerkey in centerville. :) when we got to dallas we had lunch, visited, and I slept some more! For dinner my grandma (an 87 yr old fireball) took Brandon, brian, lindsey, me, my aunt laura, uncle bert and aunt carol, and cousin brooke out to dinner. We went to a restaurant new to the dallas area, which no one had been to, but it was fun. I was not tuned into much of the dinner conversation cause my eyes were glued to the television watching my ags BTHO k state. whooop! what a good weekend for aggie sports! After dinner Lindsey and I went to a sleepover-pj party her 26 yr old sister was having. It is something her and her friends do annually to make sure they still have lots of youthful fun even though they are "grown ups" now. It was fun, but it sure solidified my hopes that at age 32 (or 26 for that matter) i hope to be a lot more settled and grown up than them. Nothing wrong with how they live their lives...I just hope to live mine differently. honestly, hats off to them for being able to enjoy life so freely. I just know I couldnt. Sunday we went back to my grandmas, ate, watched some good ol' Texas football (and the texans won!!!) and then headed back to houston. Short trip, but well worth it. I got to visit a lot with my grandma and aunt, got the "family gossip" and had a nice time with my brothers and sister-in-law. Ok...I need to get better at typing "sister-in-law" cause it takes way too long as of now. :) Anyhow...that was my weekend. exciting, I know.
Now I am sitting at my computer at 2:35 trying to decide on my next move. To the right I have a nice, clean, comfortable bed that is calling my name. To my left there are french notes and books to prepare for my timed writing in 7 hours. Directly behind me there is a suitcase in desperate need of packing before I leave for that timed writing because I wont be coming back here. And, clanking around in the hallway are my pants in the dryer, waiting to be hung. Do I listen to my head, my body, the buttons of my pants, or...well, no analogy for my suitcase. :) Basically I am saying that what I have come across here is a conflict of interest. I want so badly to sleep, but need so badly to stay up. And what do I do when there is a conflict of interest??? BLOG!!! :)
I just finished watching Along Came Polly. GREAT MOVIE! What took me so long??? I am going to need to purchase that one! Thanks for letting me borrow it Cole! I absolutely adore jennifer anniston and ben stiller in ALL their movies, and they worked so well together! It wasnt even a big love story, but it was the first love story in years (no joke...years) to make me have that soft feeling in my heart and sappy smile on my face. pathetic, i know. but it was weird...i didnt think i'd like it that much but i thought it was so awesome.
Well, I guess the game plan is: finish packing, practice writing, fold clothes, and THEN sleep. either that or cancel the last one and move on to tomorrow's plans. :( I am almost done packing...sad when you take 2 bags stuffed full for a 3.5 day vacation. :) But one bag is full of books since I have about 8 hours of traveling ahead of me. Hopefully I can get to bed by...oh heck...no bed tonight. :( Hope you all have an excellent weekend, tune in to see the ags btho iowa state, and be safe! think of me as i am having a blast in indiana!!! :) love ya bunches! muah!!! au revoir
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