A little more on Cindy Sheehan

I'm not a big fan of Cindy Sheehan by any stretch, but recently she had really gotten close to the fine line between protester and treason in my book. Also at the same time she makes her case against the war in Iraq she is trashing the memory of her dead son Casey who I thought she loved, but now believe she sees him as more of a tool.

A few months back on her blog (I can't seem to find the exact entry at the moment) she talked about the day Casey died, at least the way her mind sees it as she nor I were actually there. She started her popularity talking about Casey as a victim of the Bush regime etc etc. But one post in particular talked about Casey's actions that day. Basically she says he was dragged kicking and screaming to his death by superiors as they board Humvees to help out other Soldiers who were in trouble.

Now protesting the war and your son's death is one thing, but making him out to be a whinny, punk bitch in the moments leading up to his death is just about the most awful thing a parent can do. It's likely in Cindy's delirium she has lost sight of the fact how her words about her sons are seen by others and in what light they paint him. It's my hope Casey went out like a Soldier.

Before I get into the next part of why I have problems with Cindy Sheehan, a brief word about the memory of Soldiers and how they are shaped by the people left behind. As I mentioned the memory of Casey Sheehan will live on through his mother (his father has been noticeably absent for most of the aftermath). The same is true in most respects with Pat Tillman. Those who have spoken about Tillman since his death have taken on an anti-war attitude with regards to Iraq and have put those same words in Tillman's mouth. I wonder if that's how he really felt? He certainly joined the Army with a wealth of patriotism behind him and interviews given right before 9/11 show he was keenly aware of the sacrifices made by family members in other wars. I just wonder now that he and Casey are gone, and people who may have taken on a negative attitude about war and military life speak for them, if their words and beliefs are now forever twisted.

Now my second part about Cindy. a post from a couple months ago urged Soldiers who were in combat support roles to refuse service. Really? In some ways it's a good thing her 15 minutes of fame ended with her attempt to run for U.S. Senate which crashed and burned. Otherwise this may have actually gotten some press. Urging Soliders to refuse combat orders is walking a mighty fine line around treason if you ask me. Certain the case could be made that by fomenting distrust among the military you are giving aid and comfort to the enemy. One of the cornerstones of treason. She also basically calls everyone who served in Afghanistan or Iraq murders in some many words, and that these combat support people are accessories to murder. She also mentioned Lt. Ehren Watada as an example of someone who refused to go and faced no punishment. What a fucking joke. One day I will probably blog about what a piece of shit Lt. Ehren Watada really is so using him as an example is a joke.

I guess what it comes down to is, Cindy is shitting on the memory of her son and the military in order to get her name out there. I hope one day she finds peace and goes back to the family she has abandoned for the sake of popularity.

Tiger and the Media

It's been a real long time since I have had the type to post anything, and over that time alot has happened. Somethings have pasted, some haven't. One thing that has been lingering with me for awhile is Tiger Woods and the continued media pressure that has been swirling around him these past few months.

I have heard a number of times what Tiger "owes" the public. He "owed" them a public press conference in which he answered all the questions everyone has about his personal life, starting with the car crash on Thanksgiving. The press had said that his silence was deafening after the crash and how he shunned the media and practically everyone for months. Then when he finally held his press conference, albeit highly control ed, everyone initially said he did well. He didn't offer excuses, he accepted all the blame and defended his family.

Once people had a few days to digest the press conference however, it was like it never happened. People, or should I say the media, said it wasn't enough. And with the media its never enough. Now they are all gearing up fro the first tournament he plays, outside of the controlled environment that is the Masters, so they can pepper him with questions. The circus that will follow will make sports writers more like TMZ writers.

I can say this about the whole situation. Tiger doesn't "owe" me a thing. The only thing I want to see Tiger do is play golf and win majors and beat Jack Nicklaus' record. Now I have to admit, my feelings towards Tiger have changed and I'm not really going to know how I real feel about him until he's leading on the back nine on Sunday at a major tournament and then my gut will tell me how I really feel.

The one thing I hate about the media, and believe me there's more then one thing, is how they circle the wagons when one of them is attacked by the person they cover. Everybody in the media took acception to the comment Tiger made during his press conference which attacked those members of the media aka paparazzi who photographed his daughter going to school. The reaction from the media was, "Well that's the price of fame." But does it really have to be that way? I wonder how some of these media folks would feel if their kids were the subject of stalking by photogs? I bet they wouldn't like it one bit.