One thing that we have not heard much about since January 20 is Iraq and Afghanistan. There are new rules of engagement for both countries. In Iraq, there is also the anticipation that the Iraq security forces will take over most of the security in the major cities. With the bombings in Bagdad yesterday, it is time to look at Iraq and Afghanistan and see how we are doing.

While President Bush was in office, the news media told us every day that the policies that the Bush administration had taken were failing. Every day they gave us body counts on how many American soldiers were killed and injured. They also included totals for Iraqi citizens as a total, not separating out civilians and terrorists. It was all designed to show that George W. Bush was failing. Since Barack Obama has taken office, there has been a virtual news blackout. You would hear a story every now and then. But for all intents and purposes Iraq and Afghanistan have almost ceased to exist.

Yesterday, there was a series of bombings in Bagdad that has killed at least 75 people and wounded 300. Had George Bush been President, we would have almost non-stop news coverage. With Barack Obama as President, it is reported, but not pumped up. The bombings do bring into question the Iraq strategy of having the Iraq Security Forces supply security in the populated areas of the country.

In listening to the Mike Broomhead show on KFYI, I learned the rules of engagement for our soldiers in Afghanistan. The soldiers are not to fire unless they can GUARANTEE that there are no civilians in the area that will be hit by a stray bullet. The priority for the soldiers is to withdraw from the scene. The nonofficial term would be retreat. American soldiers do not retreat, they withdraw. The effect is the same. We are perceived as weak by the Taliban and others that we are fighting when we withdraw instead of fight. There is nothing worse for a soldier than withdrawing when the soldier knows he/she can win the fight. That will destroy morale more quickly than anything you can imagine. I am not sure that is the goal of the Obama administration, but it sure seems like it from where I sit.

I am not privy to all the ins and outs of the rules of engagement. All I know is what I hear on radio, TV and the internet. But, I put what I lean from those sources with what I see happening with the rest of the country under Barack Obama and a pattern becomes very clear, very fast. Every time Barack Obama has a chance to put Americans first, he puts them second. Every time there is a chance to advance the interests of the United States, he rejects it. Every time there is a chance to improve the economy of this country, he tries to destroy it. That, to me, is a pattern. The pattern I see is not good. I would have to say that from the pattern I perceive Barack Obama does not have the best interests of the United States at heart. I could be wrong. There may be some plan going on that I am not able to perceive at my level. But, every time Obama has a chance to boost Americans he cuts them off at the knees. Every time he has a chance to boost our long time friends and allies, he cuts them off at the knees or ignores them. Every time he has a chance to help our enemies, he gives them a hand. When a friend and ally acts within its Constitution, he comes out for the person who wanted to be a dictator. It is like we went through Alice’s Looking Glass on January 20. In Lewis Carroll’s, story about Alice and the Looking Glass, everything was backwards when she went through the looking glass. I am getting that impression more and more as time goes on.

One good thing that is happening right now is that Americans are waking up. Americans are standing up to their elected representatives and telling them that they are going too far. This is gratifying to me. It makes me think that there is hope that we will get out of this backwards land at some future time.

Over the weekend an Iraqi reporter threw his two shoes at President Bush. This was done as a protest to the Iraqi leaders that follow what President Bush says without question.

The protest raises a lot of questions that do require some answers. The first and most important is: where was the secret service when this reporter threw his first shoe? Where were they when he threw the second shoe a couple of seconds later?

A report I read said that the Secret Service had checked everyone for weapons and because the room was small, put a small presence in the room. Still, when this reporter raised the shoe to throw it, someone had to see it. If they saw the man raise his hand, nobody reacted to the action of someone throwing something at the President of the United States. They still had not reacted when this same man threw a second shoe. Then, the Secret Service showed up and tried to protect the President. They also showed up and wrestled the Iraqi reporter into submission.

I thought that the job of the Secret Service was to keep the President safe at all costs, including the loss of your own life. Not one Secret Service Agent reacted fast enough to get between a man throwing a shoe from 15 feet away and the President. The President had time to duck away from the shoe, so the shoe was not thrown at high velocity. The tape shows that the first agent shows up six seconds after the Iraqi throws the shoe at the President. That is much too slow. They should have identified that there was a threat when the man started moving his arm and started a reaction. I think that they thought there was no possibility of danger and relaxed. This relaxation almost cost the President his life. I know the shoe was not a danger, but it just as easily could have been a bomb. The President could have been injured by the shoe striking him in the eye. That would not have looked good for the Secret Service. As it is, they do not look good, but there is no harm done.

Many have asked the question, what would have happened if this had been Barack Obama? I think that the Secret Service would not have been asleep at the wheel. When the Iraqi raised his hand, someone would have been in front of Obama in an instant and the shoe thrower would have been taken out by another agent or more. The shoe thrower might have been able to deliver one shoe, but not two. But, the shoe would have been delivered at a Secret Service Agent, not the President.

Why do I say these things? I believe that the Secret Service protecting President Bush believe that their job is almost done and are relaxing on the job. They think that they just have to run out the clock and the President will have been protected on their watch. This is much like the Buffalo Bills on Sunday. They had to run out the clock to defeat the New York Jets. Instead of taking care of the ball and doing their job, they decided to run a risky play. The risky play failed and they lost the game. The same thing can happen to the Secret Service if they are not careful in this last month before President Bush leaves office. They almost fumbled the ball. They got lucky this time. They might not be so lucky next time. There are a lot of people in this world that have Bush Derangement Syndrome and wish the President was dead. How many want him to actually die is unknown. How many could do something about it is unknown. That is the job of the Secret Service to make sure that nobody gets a chance to do something about killing the President. This time they dodged the “bullet”. Will they do so next time? Will there be a next time? I hope that President Bush lives a long and happy life like his father. I also do not wish ill for our new President when he takes office, January 20, 2009. I did not vote for him and do not want him to serve, but that is not my choice at this time. He was elected by the people and so for the next four years, Barack Obama is the President.

I just wish President Obama would show us his birth certificate to prove that he really was born in Hawaii. He should not leave that question open. Every other candidate produced their birth certificate in this election season, except Obama. He will still be President, just let us cross off all the questions. It will help morale in the country.