Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/26/2002 12:51:00 AM (Archive Link)
Not too long ago, Texas’ Democratic candidate for Senate, Ron Kirk, made a rather interesting comment about the armed forces. He lamented how the minority and lower class representation in the services was disproportionate to that of the general population. He further stated that the powers that be would be less enthused about attacking Iraq if it were their children in the army. I find this yet another example of liberals thinking that everything and every institution needs to have absolute equality across all races, ethnicities and classes. I don’t find it at all troubling that the less fortunate compose most of the armed forces. This is because the services are places were the underprivileged can advance themselves socially and economically. Recruits can learn discipline and real life skills that can be transferred to the civilian sector. Additionally, upon being discharged, they can make use of the GI Bill to finance a college education. Instead of viewing the armed forces as pits for the down and out, they should be seen as bastions of opportunity… opportunity that these young people may not otherwise have.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/22/2002 12:32:00 AM (Archive Link)
You'll have to excuse the recent lack of posts. I was having a few technical issues with Blogger that I just now straightened out. You'll notice the last post was supposed to have shown up on Tuesday.

More to come soon!

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/17/2002 01:19:00 AM (Archive Link)
I must say that I’m very interested in how the whole Iraq situation is shaping up. I couldn’t have been more pleased with Bush’s speech to the UN last week. It really was a master stroke of politics. By putting forth the argument that Iraq had flaunted UN resolutions instead of just annoying America and by asking for UN multilateral action, Bush directly challenged the authority and the effectiveness of the UN. This left the organization with one of two choices.

The first choice is to do nothing. This certainly would have been the preferred option among most delegates as they generally don’t want to invade Iraq. They’ve all been content to stand on the sidelines decrying America’s unilateral stance and demanding UN legitimacy… never thinking the U.S. would actually ask for it. They thought that no matter how Bush would state the invasion case, they could still pooh-pooh the idea and thereby make the U.S. look all the worse for invading Iraq despite UN opposition. Since Bush did ask, however, and because of how he stated the case, this left the UN in an uncomfortable position as it put the ball squarely in their court. While they were standing on the sidelines, Bush effectively tossed the ball to them and they surely weren’t expecting it and nor were they prepared for it. Now, if they do nothing, it will definitively expose the UN as the weak willed, irrelevant debating club into which it’s been developing. No action on Iraq, where the evidence is obvious, would cause future villains to merely yawn at UN resolutions. In my opinion, there are few things politicians hate more than appearing irrelevant. Like any good legislative, political body, the UN was forced to uphold its legitimacy and relevance. This left them with option two, which is to support action against Iraq… or at least to start talking tough. All of a sudden, countries started warning Hussein to allow in weapons inspectors. They all knew what Bush was saying… put up or shut up. I love Bush for that UN speech because he deftly laid out the rules for how the world will play this particular brinksmanship game instead of allowing the world to do it for him.

Now, if you’ve read the news, Hussein has said that he’ll allow weapons inspectors into the country and give them unfettered access. This is, of course, a delaying tactic. Iraq had the upper diplomatic hand until last Thursday when Bush trumped him. Saddam started seeing world opinion turn against him and he saw the writing on the wall… allow inspectors or the UN (led by the U.S.) would force him to do so. And this time, Saddam wouldn’t stick around for the ending. So yes, now he’s stalling for time until he can figure out what his next move is. Happily, the Bush administration isn’t falling for the ruse and is continuing to put immense pressure on Iraq and is still pressing for a very strict new resolution from the UN Security Council. As I said, Bush has laid out the rules and is forcing Iraq and the UN to play by them. He won’t allow the U.S. to be fooled by old Iraqi tricks.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/11/2002 08:35:00 AM (Archive Link)
You always remember where you are when something monumental happens. I did not yet have such an experience until last year. I remember exactly where I was… I was headed to work, going east on a city road and was about to turn south. The DJ on the radio said something about a plane flying into the World Trade Center in New York but she didn’t give any more specifics than that because at that point, nobody really knew what was happening. I sped to work so I could play with my desk radio’s dial or see if I could get into an online news site. The national sites were inaccessible due to traffic, but local news stations’ and newspapers’ sites were still up. I was appalled by the pictures I saw. I recall the radio saying that one of the towers had collapsed and I remember thinking that it was only the part of the tower above the impact that had come down. I couldn’t fathom that the entire building was destroyed. Not too much later, we found an old TV and set it up in the empty cubicle across the aisle from me. My day at the office was spent in a loop of doing a little work and then staring at the TV or talking with co-workers who were constantly cycling in and out. Finally, I went home early. I couldn’t concentrate and with the emotional and physical distractions, I was accomplishing nothing. So I packed up my laptop and left.

I took care of some house cleaning while I was home and I remember that it was a sunny, beautiful day in San Antonio. I even opened up the blinds and slid open the balcony door. I couldn’t help but feel the strangeness of it all… here I was experiencing a gorgeous day while on the TV in front of me, hell had been unleashed in New York. Hell had been unleashed in my country.

What were my emotions that day? An odd combination of tremendous grief and absolute rage. Several times I almost started crying and it was because of both feelings at once. My sadness came from the fact that my fellow citizens were dying and my rage came because they were, in fact, being killed. I hated the people who did it and I still do. I remember feeling as if my hate alone could smite them. My hate and rage, though, wallowed in frustration and helplessness. These horrible events were unfolding, I didn’t know what more may come, and I could nothing but watch. Seemingly, the powers that be could only do the same. I took grim satisfaction in knowing that our military would come to bear against whoever had done this and that politics, domestic or international, would not hinder us or second guess us. The first part is done, but this war doesn’t have clean beginning and end dates. It’s ongoing, and I hope we don’t lose our resolve.

Occasionally, I still feel some of those same emotions that I first felt on the 11th. It usually occurs when I’m reading stories related to it, especially those concerning the aftermath of families or personal recollections. Several weeks ago, while I was at the airport, I bought U.S. News and World Report's special edition on 9-11. I read a few articles but had to put the magazine down because I couldn’t handle any more than that at one time.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/11/2002 08:34:00 AM (Archive Link)
I’ve decided to post the e-mail’s I exchanged with my fiancée that day. These are some of my thoughts and emotions as the day went on and are those raw, unhewn sentiments I mentioned in an earlier post. Here they are in chronological order:

____________________


From: EWERT, DANIEL C
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 9:23 AM
To: Anne
Subject:

In case you haven't heard, turn on the TV and turn to CNN.

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: EWERT, DANIEL C
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 10:13 AM
To: Anne
Subject:

Good God.

There were tens of thousands of people in those buildings.

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: EWERT, DANIEL C
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 10:18 AM
To: Anne
Subject:

I can hardly remember more anger and sadness. I can't wait for the U.S. to wreak holy vengeance on whoever is responsible and at the same time I want to cry.

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: EWERT, DANIEL C
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 10:27 AM
To: Anne
Subject:

For all practical purposes, business is shut down. Nobody here at the
office is paying much attention to what we have to do. We're just cycling in and out of the empty cube across the aisle from me where we set up a TV. We're getting Fox News. I just found out they're posting guards all around our building. We may be leaving soon. Everything everywhere is being locked down. No chances are being taken. While it's of course highly unlikely a terrorist would hit our building, it's a terribly open target. Our sister tower houses Department of Defense accounting and there's a gigantic open parking area beneath it. All the air force bases in town are on high alert. Toni in Oklahoma City has already gone home. For obvious reasons because of past experiences, this is all making her very uncomfortable and "weird" as she described it They're closing down streets there. I wouldn't be surprised if that's happening a little farther downtown here.


I love you.

-Dan
~~~

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: Anne
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 10:28 AM
To: EWERT, DANIEL C
Subject: Re:

My mom called me this morning. She is really freaked out. My dad left yesterday for Korea. Amanda came in and told me to turn on the TV. I started shaking. I thought my dad left today so when she told me they had hijacked planes I got really scared.

The military bases are all on super high security level. One level down from nuclear war. A bunch of schools and buildings in SA are being shut down.

This is the worst thing I think I have ever seen. New York looks like Beirut.

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: EWERT, DANIEL C
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 2:45 PM
To: Anne
Subject:

I'm at home now. Are you ok?

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: Anne
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 2:55 PM
To: EWERT, DANIEL C
Subject: Re:

Yeah. I'm fine.
Are you okay?
Did they send you home?

I love you
Anne

____________________


-----Original Message-----
From: EWERT, DANIEL C
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 2:59 PM
To: Anne
Subject: RE:

I'm ok. I decided to come home. If for no other reason than because it was too distracting at the office. The TV was set up right across the aisle from me where I could easily see it and people were constantly cycling in and out. So I'm working from here instead.

I love you!

-Dan
~~~

____________________


[This next one is from a friend of mine. It’s the account of one of his former co-workers who was in New York that day -DE]

-----Original Message-----
From: Anne
Sent: Tuesday, September 11, 2001 9:34 PM
To: EWERT, DANIEL C
Subject: Fw: Message from my friend Michael in New York

Hey guys,

I got this message earlier afternoon from my friend Michael in New York. He was one of the original Atension guys and I worked with him for about a year and a half before he moved to New York. I knew he worked in lower Manhattan, so I was concerned about him this morning. It turns out he is okay. Here is a message he sent out to everyone describing his morning. I can't even imagine. Feel free to forward this to whoever.

- Adam

------

Hello everyone.

Thank you all for your notes and well wishes. NYC is in a crazy state at the moment. I'll just briefly share my morning so that you don't all have to ask.

I take the 1/9 and 2/3 trains into work(they run up and down the west side of manhattan where I take them). The 1/9 runs under the WTC and this morning the trains were slow because of "an emergency at the cortlandt station" which is the station under the WTC. I figured someone had fallen onto the tracks or something else that's unfortunate but relatively minor. Those things occasionally happen.

So I got out of the 2/3 at Wall Street and walked over to Broadway. I noticed that the air smelled weird, they were evacuating the NYSE building, there were burnt pieces of paper on the ground, and people were just milling around.

When I got to Wall Street and Broadway and looked where everyone was looking, I saw both the WTC towers on fire. People were talking about "planes flying into the buildings" and such and I just couldn't comprehend what was going on. Emergency services were rushing to the towers and, I heard later, a lot of personnel were already in the buildings. Well, I decided that standing within relatively close view of the WTC was a bad idea and after I got about 10 steps down towards the south end of Manhattan along Broadway(battery park) I looked back and saw the top of the tower just start to fall in on itself and there was all this debris falling out and it looked like there were people jumping off the observation deck/upper floors and it was on fire and then this huge cloud of smoke started barreling down the street towards everyone and the next thing I know there were thousands of people screaming and sprinting down broadway towards the end of the island where, I thought, the clouds would disperse. This was the most horrible and frightening and soul shaking experience of my life so far. I hope it is the worst I'll ever see.

So, I was really scared and paranoid and decided not to walk to the end of the island with all the people because I though that "if I were a terrorist wanting to kill people, I would drive all the people to one location and set off some explosives." So I walked through the clouds of debris and got absolutely covered in white stuff while burnt papers were falling down and there was a horrible smell in the air. I went to the east side of the island trying to go north, but the FBI and local police weren't letting anyone go north at that point, so we were hearded to the brooklyn bridge. But I didn't want to be around a large group of people and I headed north at the first street I could. So I walked up the east side where lots of vendors and retailers had pulled their water coolers out to help people and these nice folks brought out a soap bucket and a hose and I washed the soot off my hands and out of my eyes.

Not much later I was stopped looking at the other tower when it suddenly started to collapse and a lady fainted and started crying and it was horrible all over again because you know how many innocent, hard working, early rising people were trapped and unable to flee and then snuffed out.

Eventually I got home, though all along the trip people had radios blaring in the street with the news and everyone knew that an additional hijacked plane had crashed into the pentagon. So every time a plane flew over, people would flinch and duck. However, I don't think they were commercial planes. I saw a couple of F-16's flying overhead along the way so I felt better.

I'm still very very scared. There's no way to really know that another attack hasn't been planned. I'm just hoping that things are OK. There are throngs of folks in Times Square watching the news as it comes in on the large screens there.

Thank you again for all your thoughts and wishes. The city has already started pulling itself together and I know we'll all be OK in the long run.

Much love for you all,

-Michael

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/11/2002 08:33:00 AM (Archive Link)
I don’t personally know anybody who was directly affected 9-11… and by that I mean anybody who was there or anybody who lost a relative. However, it still affects me and the answer is simple…

I am American.

That is my race, ethnicity, and nationality. I know no other. This is the country that raised me, that taught me its values, that taught me justice, that entrusts me with its safety.

I am American.

This is the country that gave birth to my mind. As I am a part of it, it is a part of me and I hold it close.

I am American.

I am part of a family… a collective whole with my fellow citizens.

I am American.

When part of this country hurts, I feel the pain. When it is damaged, I bleed. Those who damage it are my enemies and I will do what I can to oppose and defeat them.

I am American.

I will defend and uphold my country’s values, laws, and integrity in both word and action. I will put my efforts toward guiding it on a right and just course. I love my country.

I am American.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/10/2002 11:34:00 PM (Archive Link)
I read a letter to the editor in Sunday’s paper in which somebody complained about the sanctions on Iraq and how they were hurting people and killing children and how a war with Iraq would exacerbate both. This is ridiculous nonsense. For one thing, I take issue with the degree of the suffering. You must keep in mind that the information is coming from a totalitarian dictatorship and a state controlled media… that means it’s propaganda with the purpose of advancing Iraq’s PR cause. Some of the true leftists would say that the U.S. is putting out propaganda against Iraq. What amazes me is that these people are more inclined to agree and sympathize with a ruthless dictator than with a free, democratically elected government. They don’t seem to understand that a bad man only tells you what he wants you to think and that it’s for an appropriately bad purpose.

Secondly, any suffering comes directly from Saddam Hussein himself. He somehow found the money to rebuild the country’s infrastructure, military, and his own personal palaces, which some say number about a hundred. When he built out a Chinese fiber optic network connecting radar stations and missile batteries, I don’t think he did so with change he found in his couch. Iraq has plenty of money to go around, both from legal oil sales and plenty of illegal oil smuggling. The problem isn’t the flow, it’s the spigot. There is only one man who controls where the cash goes and he has decided to put it towards his own megalomaniacal purposes while punishing his citizens. This gives him the added bonus of crying about the people’s suffering and blaming it on others. Of course, a man who puts anti-aircraft guns on the roofs of elementary schools is hardly above using his people as pawns.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/10/2002 12:40:00 AM (Archive Link)
One of the columns I like to read is Tongue Tied on FoxNews.com. It's usually updated every Monday and you can find this week's edition here. Sometimes I'm convinced that Berkeley, California, is located on the outermost circle of hell.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/10/2002 12:36:00 AM (Archive Link)
Over a day later and I'm still amazed at the ending to the Chiefs game yesterday. You can read about it here.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/08/2002 03:50:00 PM (Archive Link)
The EU makes much of their supposed highmindedness in respect to international affairs. They consider their diplomatic talking approach to be more enlightened than America’s somewhat more action-oriented thinking. However, I find the European method troubling on both a conceptual level and a practical level.

For the conceptual part, let’s face a fact… humans can be brutal. We kill, we steal, we war, we torture, we lust, we envy, we hate, etc., etc. The world has seen greater and lesser degrees of such base behavior over time and even in the Pax Americana era, people in many countries suffer from it daily. Those who don’t extensively experience it, surly know of it in isolated, non-destabilizing instances, e.g. a woman getting her purse stolen in Cedar Rapids. The point, though, is that at his base, man is…well… a base animal. It’s the primal, conscienceless thoughts that will always be a part of humanity and cannot be exorcised. The Europeans, however, have a notion that this isn’t the case. They feel that educational enlightenment and a high standard of living will prevent people or nations from taking up arms, from being in any way belligerent, and from exhibiting the aforementioned behaviors. For them, a global utopia is possible. This is absurd. You cannot eliminate baseness and violence from humanity any more than you can remove speech, art, or religion… they are all basic components of the human personality and identity. Nor can baseness and violence be controlled. Remember that we are talking about the dark side of humanity. It’s been said that if you dance with the devil, then you’re certainly not the leading partner. While the highminded elite may think they are controlling the base, the reality is the reverse… the base is controlling the elite because the base is manipulative and crafty by nature while the elite has grown ignorant of that which they oppose. The base sets the rules of the game and the rest are forced to play in it.

The practical level very much springs from the conceptual. We must remember that the belligerents of the world (the base) understand both their oppositions’ (the elite’s) strengths and weaknesses, while the same cannot be said of the elite’s understanding of the belligerents. They know the elite’s desire to talk things out and they also know of the elite’s fear of violent conflict… an unfortunate combination. As such, the belligerents will use the elite’s behavior against itself. If the elite complains to the belligerent about an action they are undertaking, then the belligerent will speak to assuage the elite, but speaking is all they will do. They will not fear the elite as the elite has no military will. If the mean-spirited child knows they will receive no more than a verbal scolding from an adult, then why stop mean-spirited action? The belligerents are men of action and such individuals only respect and respond to action from others. Anything less is humorous and utterly ineffective.

When all of this is put into practice, it’s obvious why I prefer American diplomacy. Americans are willing to face and accept the fact that there are bad people out there and those bad people are opposed to us. We also recognize that these people do not fear words, but they do fear missiles. The U.S. does not allow the belligerents to set the rules of the game in which it must play… we establish the game itself. As TR said, America speaks softly and carries a big stick. The EU only does the former.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/08/2002 03:49:00 PM (Archive Link)
One of the things I keep reading in the news lately is that the U.S. shouldn’t attack Iraq unless it demonstrates proof of its accusations against Saddam. I find this strange and amusing… “proof.” What exactly is acceptable proof for them? Would they prefer a signed affidavit from Saddam Hussein in which he admits developing, producing, and stockpiling weapons of mass destruction as well as aiding and harboring terrorists? Oddly enough, I don’t think even this would convince some. They speak of proof without stating what would be sufficient. Hussein has empirically resisted and impaired any and all attempts of the international community to investigate his WMD programs. Using the inspection method, proof is impossible. If we use spy photos, these will not be enough for the doubters. Hussein has done well at hiding his dirty laundry and even if we identify WMD facilities or weapons, the doubters will only say we have misidentified them. So no proof is sufficient, but frankly, I find it irrelevant. There is far and away enough circumstantial evidence to support our case and most of that evidence has been supplied by Hussein in the past. We know what he’s done and we know what he’s tried to do. A megalomaniac doesn’t change his ways.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/08/2002 03:47:00 PM (Archive Link)
I am a happy man as my beloved Kansas City Chiefs just won against the Cleveland Browns, 40-39, in a true heart attack game with an exceptionally wacky ending. I would like to thank Browns' linebacker Dwayne Rudd for strangely removing his helmet and throwing it on the field during what was supposed to be the last play of the game. The resulting penalty gave the Chiefs one last chance to score (with 0:00 left on the game clock) and so they did with the winning field goal.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/06/2002 12:01:00 AM (Archive Link)
A thought just came to me while I was thinking about action against Iraq. It reminded me of the Punic Wars. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, these were a series of three wars between the ancient Roman Republic (before the empire) and Carthage in North Africa… roughly 264-146 BC. You might remember the Second Punic War… it was the one with Hannibal and the elephants crossing the Alps and all. What brings this all to mind, though, is the Third Punic War. Carthage had rebuilt its wealth and a little power after its defeat in the second war (although Hannibal did give Rome a run for its money… the phrase, “Hannibal at the gates!” was often used by mothers to scare their children) and it had built a special harbor for warships. Rome saw the potential threat in Carthage’s military buildup, especially considering the first two conflicts, and decided to eliminate the threat. The famous senator Cato was known to end all of his senate speeches, no matter the topic, by saying, “I also think that Carthage should be destroyed!” In one speech, in an act of bravado, he released a collection of fresh dates from his toga, declaring they had been picked in Carthage only two days prior. We can only assume they got the point. Ultimately, the Romans razed Carthage, killed most of its citizenry and sold the rest into slavery. Ok, so we shouldn’t be anywhere near that brutal in dealing with Iraq, but it goes to show that the old Roman folks knew how to take preemptive action.

Posted by Dan Ewert : 9/05/2002 11:59:00 PM (Archive Link)
As you know, the one year anniversary of September 11th is approaching and I’m not sure how I feel about it. Not the date itself, mind you, or my personal feelings concerning the event. I’ll blog about that on the 11th. No, what bothers me, is all the attention surrounding it. The networks will be full of sentimentality, ceremonies without number will take place. A big topic in the news lately has been just how the media will show honor to the day. Our national grief, for the most part, will be shared while huddled around the TV. I suppose what bothers me about this is that it almost seems like manufactured sentiments and that the media is to decide how we feel about the 11th. If our own emotions are out of step with their presentation, then we’re out of step with the proper national mood. I don’t really want Dan Rather telling me how I should feel about things. I don’t want Peter Jennings giving me a practiced stern gaze while discussing the tragedy in a classic anchorman cadence. I want something raw, something unprocessed and something that hasn’t been made slick and glossy. I want grit. I don’t want art but the rough unhewn material from which the art is made. I don’t know… I suppose I have my own memories and feelings of that day and I don’t want them polluted by what the media wants me to remember and feel.