Apoligize to Iraq?

Saw a silly protest sign with apologize to Iraq, bring our troops home scrawled on it. So, what is a proper apology?

The Iraqis want 140 M-1 Abrams tanks, army bases made by the Corps of Engineers, and are paying us top dollar for those services. They need us to stick around with our fighter jets and drones until they can get their own. The one thing they don't need is us leaving completely and quickly. The surge troops are home or coming home, more draw downs are expected, and the Iraqis are modernizing their army.

The best apology for the mess is not getting out of Iraq, but helping Iraq take control of itself, like its currently doing. With billions in oil revenue, more production than before the war, and improved infrastructure, I kinda think we already apologized. But a free-trade deal might be nice, a permanent military alliance couldn't hurt, and a promise to smash Iran if it attacks them would seal the deal. Oh, except I doubt that's what the dippy protester had in mind.

Superheroes and Darkness

DC is officially dumb. The Dark Knight does well, and now they think other heroes need to be "dark". Guess what, thats not why it rocked. TDK qas awesome because it never let up, and had a terrifying villian. The darker tone was because of the fact that its Batman and Joker, two very dark characters. Batman never was evil, or even close to being an anti-hero. Trying to plaster his grim mood on Superman is idiotic.

Batman is the only banner character DC has that seems to work. Its because they are scared of being dorky. Marvel revels in dorkiness, releasing movies willy-nilly. Sure, you get Rise of The Silver Surfer, but you also get Iron Man. Superman needs to have a decent villian and I think he
d be OK. Its just that if he's fighting crime its boring, you feel nothing. If he's fighting an equal foe, people would get into it. Darkness belongs in the villian, not the hero. Watching TDK, Batman never gave into any dark urges. Where the heck did they get that idea?

The next two movie are going to be Supermax (which works for the dark idea, and is not a origin story, but a special comic put into film), and The Flash (Dark? No. Emo? No. If either of these are added to this CSI turned super, it will flop.). One of them does work for darker tone, but The Flash isn't a very dark character. DC needs to just tell good stories, not get the idea that because TDK was dark, everything should be.

Russias Joke Army

Comparing the Ukrainian and Russian armies, who use similar equipment, it amazes me that the Ukrainians modernize and upgrade old Soviet tanks, but the Russian don't. Part of that is the designers were based in the Ukraine, and stayed after it left Russia. But much of it is laziness. The Ukrainians use nearly all Russian weapons, but I'm betting that they take better care of them. The Russians often claim to be working on new better equipment, but it doesn't show up. The fact that they failed to get air superiority over Georgia, allowing their commander to be killed by air strikes, show Russian incompetence. The weapons that shot down their most modern fighters and bombers were old Russian SAMs, which they should have expected. They won only through sheer size and brutality.

However, that doesn't mean they aren't dangerous. Though they use older technology, barbarians can win through the laziness of more civilized people. Lets be honest, if no one will use fancier weapons against them, the Russians can use their old crap forever. America is finishing up in Iraq and Afghanistan, which mean we won't help anyone against the Russians. However, the Ukraine has more modern weapons, and while the Russians can play nice to try to be friends, they cannot invade without massive casualties. They probably will be happy to bully smaller countries, so any talk about a resurgant Russia is silly.

On Masks and the new Thugs

The only reason to wear a mask is to hide your identity. However, police and soldiers often go out without a mask. Being a vigilante is usually useless. Defending yourself and spreading the right to self defense are more valuable. In truth, had Thomas Wayne possessed a firearm, Batman would never be created. So then, why do I like movies like Iron Man and The Dark Knight? Because they say that one person can make a difference. Not a superman, just a man with resources and will.

But one policeman could make the difference, one soldier could change history. If people fight, and support those who fight, they might not win, but at least they tried. It is better to give your death for freedom than to waste it on old age. But these days, society acts as if soldiers are dupes and fools, not warriors. They mock the term warrior, as if its some ancient, backwards tradition, but then praise made up heroes who are warriors.

It may be that keeping a mask is necessary, in a world of crippling lawsuits and fickle mobs. One day, even our police might wear masks to prevent certain activists from targetting their families. Already, scientists have found their children threatened by animal-rights activists, and if this spreads to other psycho movements on the far left and far right, we might have to have police forces of Batmen, cowled to protect their families. This will lead to corruption, I would guess, but without it, there would be no police at all.

It probably won't get that bad, as these groups are cowardly, and avoid states with Castle Doctrines, but in states with lesser gun rights, it might develop. With violent activists like Critical Mass and animal liberation weirdos escalating their violence and attacking anyone they view as bad, its hard to stay positive. As I live in the South, however, I probably wont ever see it in my area.