DAAD offers a new program for students exchange between english-speaking contries and Germany: see RISE.

We offer there a topic for an internship at DFKI: see here and will be happy to work with you for some weeks or months here at DFKI in Kaiserslautern.

The average economic output per person in China is set to jump 14% next year, a government think tank says…. From BBC News. Full story

This site may contain information about: hongkong china. The blog is also related to: china economy.

The Rise of the Rest

Global Ties Under Stress

Caste System Continues in India

Annotated Bibliography

Congolese football heads back to the big time… From BBC News. Full story

This site may contain information about: football shirt. The blog is also related to: european soccer championship.

Football clubs in the Champions League have made on average 50m euros from this season’s competition, research says…. From BBC News. Full story

This site may contain information about: football player. The blog is also related to: soccer videos.

NEWS

Economic reports point to gradual recovery
By Martin Crutsinger and Tali Arbel
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — A report on unemployment claims and a forecast of U.S. economic activity pointed Thursday to an economy mending slowly, without the job growth needed to fuel a vigorous recovery.

The number of newly laid-off workers filing claims for unemployment benefits unexpectedly rose last week. But the four-week average for jobless claims, which smooths out fluctuations, fell. That was an encouraging sign that the pace of layoffs continues to decline. The four-week average is now at its lowest point since late September 2008, when the financial crisis hit with full force.

Separately, a forecast of economic activity rose for the eighth straight month in November, a private research group said, signaling the economic rebound will continue into next year.

Still, employers across the country remain reluctant to ramp up hiring.

“People who have already lost their job are having incredible difficulty finding a job,” Dan Greenhaus, an economist at Miller Tabak, said in a research note Thursday.

A big problem is that companies lack confidence in the strength and sustainability of the recovery. FedEx Corp., for example, offered a tepid outlook Thursday for the quarter that ends in January. The package delivery company expects the recovery to continue next year. But FedEx questioned whether demand for its services will stay strong after the peak holiday-shipping season.

Stocks fell on concerns about a still-weak job market and after FedEx’s forecast fell short of expectations. In mid-afternoon trading, the Dow Jones industrial average was down 98 points, or about 0.9 percent. Broader stock averages also fell.

The Conference Board said its index of leading economic indicators rose 0.9 percent last month, up from 0.3 percent in October. The latest reading beat the 0.7 percent rise that economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected.

The board forecasts economic activity by measuring claims for unemployment aid, stock prices, consumer expectations, building permits for private homes, the money supply and other data. Improvements in financial conditions, housing permits and the labor market boosted the index, said Conference Board economist Ataman Ozyildirim.

Some analysts cautioned that the eighth consecutive gain in the index of leading indicators was overstating the economy’s underlying strength.

Ian Shepherdson, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics, noted that the index did not adequately reflect smaller companies.

“The index takes no account of the dire state of the small business sector, which … remains in deep recession,” he said.

The Labor Department’s report on unemployment claims said the number of new claims rose to 480,000 last week, up 7,000 from the previous week. That was a worse performance than the decline to 465,000 that economists had expected.

But the four-week average dipped to 467,500, the 15th straight decline. By comparison, jobless claims peaked this year at 674,000 in March. The improvement is seen as a sign that job cuts are slowing and that hiring could pick up early next year, boosting the economy.

Analysts say initial claims for jobless aid would need to fall to about 425,000 for several weeks to signal the economy is beginning to add jobs.

The government said that the number of people continuing to receive regular benefits rose by 5,000 to 5.19 million for the week ending Dec. 5. That figure does not include millions of people who have used up the regular 26 weeks of benefits typically provided by the state and are now receiving extended benefits for up to 73 additional weeks.

The people receiving extended benefits jumped to 4.73 million for the week ending Nov. 28, an increase of 143,759 from the previous week. That big rise reflected the fact that 17 states are now processing claims for the extension of benefits that Congress approved last month.

Economists worry about whether economic growth in 2010 can match that of the second half of this year, with unemployment high, credit still tight and the effects of government stimulus programs ending.

David Wyss, chief economist at Standard & Poor’s in New York, said he thought the economy in the current quarter is probably growing around 3 percent, close to the 2.8 percent growth rate of the third quarter. But he’s forecasting that growth will slip for most of next year to around 2 percent.

Wyss said the slowdown will occur because of the fading of government efforts to rejuvenate the economy, from the Cash for Clunkers incentives to the tax credit for home purchases to the $787 billion economic stimulus program.

“Even though the spending will continue, it won’t give the economy the surge it did when the programs kicked in,” he said. “For that reason, we are expecting slower growth in 2010.”

Wyss predicts unemployment, now at 10 percent, will keep rising until the middle of the year, peaking at around 10.5 percent, and then declining slowly. He said he expected the jobless rate by the end of next year to stand where it is now – 10 percent.

© 2009 The Associated Press

THE market odds have moved firmly against an interest rate rise by the Reserve Bank in February.

The sharp change in direction, which began on Tuesday after the central bank revealed its December 1 meeting minutes, accelerated yesterday following a speech by RBA deputy governor Ric Battellino.

Mr Battellino signalled that rates could stay on hold when the RBA next meets in February, saying the “overall stance” of monetary policy was “back in the normal range”.

His comments, at the Australian Finance & Banking Conference in Sydney, surprised the markets, triggering a slump in the Australian dollar to below US90.

Last night the dollar was hovering around US89.70.

Financial market betting on a 25-basis point rate hike in February retreated from a 67 per cent chance to 45 per cent.

Mr Battellino said that although the cash rate still seemed “unusually low” at 3.75 per cent, monetary policy was back “in the normal range” because the current level of deposit, housing and business lending rates made the cash rate equivalent to a “before the crisis” level of 4.75 per cent.

“Taking these considerations into account, it would be reasonable to conclude that the overall stance of monetary policy is now back in the normal range, though in the expansionary segment of that range,” he said.

The deputy governor’s remarks were made half an hour after the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed economic growth in the September quarter was weaker than expected.

The national accounts showed GDP edged up just 0.2 per cent in the three months to September, half the pace of growth expected by the market, for an annual rate of 0.5 per cent.

The main drag on growth was a slump in exports which coincided with a jump in imports.

However, demand from households, businesses buying more equipment and government investment was solid.

ANZ acting chief economist Warren Hogan said the GDP figures indicated there was little urgency to get official interest rates back to a neutral setting, adding that Mr Battellino’s comments had “dealt a solid blow” to the prospect of substantial gains in the cash rate over coming months.

“Put another way, the emergency setting for interest rates has now been removed and policy will be adjusted as and when required by economic conditions,” he said.

Westpac chief executive Gail Kelly told reporters after the bank’s annual meeting in Melbourne yesterday that the RBA was likely to raise rates “very carefully” in 2010.

However, she said the official cash rate was not quite yet at a “normal” level.

Mrs Kelly said she remained cautious about the economic outlook while the bank’s chairman Ted Evans said a “V-shaped” recovery for Australia was unlikely.

“It will be a long recovery and that’s what our plans are based on,” he said. 

Source  :  www.news.com.au

Our traditional view of leaders—as special people who set the direction, make key decisions, and energize the troops—is deeply rooted in an individualistic and nonsystematic worldview. Especially in the West, leaders are heroes—great men (and occasionally women) who rise to the fore in times of crisis. So long as such myths prevail, they reinforce a focus on short-term events and charismatic heroes rather than on systematic forces and collective learning.

Leadership in learning organizations centers on subtler and ultimately more important work. In a learning organization, leaders’ roles differ dramatically from that of the charismatic decision-maker. Leaders are designers, teachers, and stewards. These roles require new skills: the ability to build shared vision, to bring to the surface and challenge prevailing mental models, and to foster more systematic patterns of thinking. Leaders are responsible for building organizations where people are continually expanding their capabilities to shape their future—that is, leaders are responsible for learning.

My Consultancy–Asif J. Mir - Management Consultant–transforms organizations where people have the freedom to be creative, a place that brings out the best in everybody–an open, fair place where people have a sense that what they do matters. For details please visit www.asifjmir.com, and my Lectures.

NEWS

Fed holds rates at record low to fuel recovery
By Jeannine Aversa
AP Economics Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Federal Reserve has decided to hold interest rates at a record low and pledged to keep them there for an “extended period” to keep the recovery going and drive down double-digit unemployment.

But in a more upbeat assessment, the Fed says the economy has “continued to pick up” and that “deterioration in the labor market is abating,” a nod to the recent slowdown in the pace of layoffs.

Despite some improvements, Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke and his colleagues said there’s still reason for caution. Spending by households, while growing at a moderate pace, remains “constrained” by the weak job market, slight wage growth and tight credit, Fed policymakers said.

Against this backdrop, the Fed kept its target range for its bank lending rate at zero to 0.25 percent, where it’s stood since last December. And it repeated its pledge, first made in March, to keep rates at “exceptionally low levels” for an “extended period.”

In response, commercial banks’ prime lending rate, used to peg rates on home equity loans, certain credit cards and other consumer loans, will remain about 3.25 percent. That’s its lowest point in decades.

Super-low interest rates are good for borrowers who can get a loan and are willing to take on more debt. But those same low rates hurt savers. They’re especially hard on people living on fixed incomes who are earning measly returns on savings accounts and certificates of deposit.

Noting improvement in financial markets, the Fed also said it expects to wind down several emergency lending programs – set up during the height of the crisis – when they are set to expire next year.

The central bank also didn’t make any major changes to a program, set to expire in March, to help further drive down mortgage rates.

© 2009 The Associated Press

NEWS

Weak economy caps inflation as housing starts rise
By Jeannine Aversa
AP Economics Writer

AP Photo/Mark Lennihan

WASHINGTON (AP) — The economy is weak enough to keep inflation in check but strong enough to increase the pace of home construction and raise hopes for a sustained recovery.

That was the picture sketched Wednesday by government data showing an economy growing, however slowly.

Higher energy prices sent overall consumer prices higher in November. But after stripping out volatile energy and food prices, inflation disappeared last month. That gives the Federal Reserve, ending a two-day meeting Wednesday, leeway to hold its key interest rate at a record low to aid the recovery.

At the same time, home construction rebounded in November after a setback in October. And applications for new building permits – a gauge of future activity – rose more than economist had predicted. A housing recovery is critical to the overall economy.

Also Wednesday, the government said its broadest measure of foreign trade posted a sharp increase in the July-September quarter, signaling higher demand for foreign goods. That, too, is seen as a sign of a strengthening economy.

The current account is the broadest measure of trade because it includes not only trade in goods and services but also investment flows among countries.

For last month, the Consumer Price Index, the most closely watched inflation barometer, rose 0.4 percent. That was up from a 0.3 percent increase in October, the Labor Department reported. But “core” inflation, which excludes energy and food, was flat, signaling that inflation isn’t rising through the economy. It was the first time core inflation was unchanged after 10 straight monthly increases.

“Aside from the surge in energy prices … there were few signs of any inflationary pressures,” said Paul Ashworth, economist at Capital Economics Ltd.

In the months ahead, companies will likely find it hard to raise prices because consumers are expected to remain cautious, the job market is weak and the recovery is sluggish.

Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke says he thinks slack in the economy – meaning idle plants and the weak job market – will keep inflation in check. The Fed is expected Wednesday afternoon to announce that it’s leaving interest rates at a record low. It may also strike an upbeat note about the economy’s progress.

The government said energy prices rose 4.1 percent last month, reflecting more expensive fuel oil and gasoline. Energy prices, though, are already in retreat. Oil prices are down about 10 percent this month.

Food prices, meanwhile, edged up 0.1 percent for the second straight month. Falling prices for dairy products and nonalcoholic drinks helped blunt small increases for meat, cereals and baked goods, and fruits and vegetables.

Elsewhere, prices for clothing fell as retailers struggled to lure shoppers. Costs for recreation and for shelter dipped. But prices for airline fares, new cars, medical care and tobacco products all rose.

The uptick in inflation last month, however slight, ate into Americans’ already-weak wages. Average weekly earnings, adjusted for inflation, dipped 0.7 percent from November 2008, according to a separate Labor Department report Wednesday. It was the first such drop this year.

On Tuesday, the government said its Producer Price Index, which measures the costs of goods before they reach stores, jumped 1.8 percent in November. That was more than double the gain analysts had expected. Higher-priced energy products and trucks drove the increase.

In the Commerce Department’s report on housing starts, it said construction of new homes and apartments rose 8.9 percent in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 574,000 units. The gain represented strength in all areas of the country, though the rise was slightly lower than economists had expected.

Applications for new building permits rose 6 percent, a stronger showing than predicted.

The government is spending an unprecedented amount to prop up the housing market. The money includes about $111 billion by year’s end to shore up mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac – plus roughly $15 billion for a tax credit for homebuyers.

In addition, the tax credit is being extended until spring at a cost of $8.5 billion. And the cost of bailing out Fannie and Freddie could ultimately soar as high as $300 billion, according to Barclays Capital.

Separately, the Fed has helped keep mortgage rates down by spending $1.25 trillion to buy mortgage-backed securities. These purchases are expected to be completed by spring.

For the third quarter, the current account deficit in goods grew to $132.1 billion, up from $115.5 billion in the second quarter. At the same time, the U.S. surplus in services – such as airline travel, shipping and financial services – widened to $34.8 billion from $34.2 billion.

Exports of products rose 7.2 percent, driven by automotive products, heavy capital goods and consumer products. But imports of goods rose at a faster rate, led by foreign oil and autos.

The rise in exports has been helped by a decline of about 10 percent in the value of the dollar against major currencies. A weaker dollar makes American products cheaper for foreigners to buy.

© 2009 The Associated Press

So for the past couple weeks I have had an infatuation with making bread. Ever since Thanksgiving when Dan said out loud at the table… “Why can’t you make buns like this!” Well its on! Its the best thing ever! Its been so cold the past couple weekends and it warms the house up and the smell is just unbelievable. The only problem is that I can’t get the bread right! Here is my recipe I’ve been using.

Red River Bread
 1/2 cup Red River Cereal
1 1/2 cups water
2 cups lukewarm water
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 tbsp salt
1/4 cup canola oil
6 1/2 cups flour (approx.)
1 tbsp instant yeast (equals one package)

Boil cereal in 1 1/2 cups water until cooked. Set aside and let cool. In a large mixing bowl, combine water, sugar, salt, oil and cooked cereal. Add 2 cups of flour and yeast. Mix well. Add the rest of the flour gradually until dough isn’t too sticky to handle. Turn out onto a floured surface, kneeding the rest of the flour in by hand. It may take a little more or less. Knead until the dough feels soft, but not sticky and bounces back when pressed, about 8 to 10 minutes. Shape dough into a ball, place in a well greased bowl, turning once to grease surface. Let rise until doubled in size or about an hour. Punch down dough and turn out onto a greased surgace. Divide into 2 or 3 equal portions and place in greased bread pans. Cover with cloth and let rise again until bread has risen 1 inch above the pans, about an hour.  Remove cloth and bake loaves at 350F for 30 to 40 mins until browned.

You may notice, I have no picture.. I’m almost ashamed to put one up because the bread flopped so much. I mixed it good and everything. When I let it rise the first time I warmed up my oven to 200 then turned it off. I think it was almost too hot and it killed the yeast because after I punched it down and set it in the 2 bread pans it didn’t get the round top to it and didn’t rise as well as I had hoped. And it stuck to the cloth so when I went to take it off the bread fell… How do I fix that? I definitely think I have rising issues and I know how to fix those, but how do you get the bread to not stick? Any answers?

Pickard a goalie on the riseDecember 14, 2009

Photo: Darren Abate

by Lindsay Kramer || NHL.com

Milwaukee Admirals goalie Chet Pickard got burned by the wrong kind of hat trick on his team’s six-game swing through Texas from Nov. 20-28.

Three times, Pickard walked out of his postgame shower, grabbed a towel and got more than he bargained for.

“I went to wipe off my head. There was shaving cream in my hair,” Pickard said. “I didn’t pick up on it.”

Ah, rookies. Sometimes they don’t learn so quickly. Sometimes they do.

Let’s go back to that road trip. Pickard played in all six games, and overall the Admirals potted a mere 11 goals. Yet thanks to the newcomer’s performances in a series of close shaves, Milwaukee won nine of a possible 12 points on the jaunt with a 4-1-0-1 record.

Guess the shaving cream didn’t blur his vision.

“He took the ball in Texas,” said Admirals coach Lane Lambert. “That was a real important stretch for him. He had an opportunity to really grow at this level. That’s what happened on the trip.”

Pickard’s growth this season has expanded even beyond the wide borders of the Lone Star State. The Nashville Predators’ No. 1 pick in the 2008 draft has taken over as the Admirals’ stopper, going 7-4-2 with a .910 save percentage and 2.37 goals-against average.

If you want to see cool personified, you could watch Pickard, who just turned 20, skate into his crease. Or, you could catch him on one of his many community appearances reading to local school children. A recent visit had him reading “Dino-Hockey” to first-graders, a book that featured several tricky dinosaur names. Pickard handled it like he was making an uncontested outlet pass.

“I have fun with it. I know the kids enjoy it because they get a break from class,” he said.

Pickard has been quieting tough crowds for many years. Playing for Tri-City of the WHL, he won league goaltender of the year honors for the second-straight season in 2008-09, becoming first netminder since Mike Vernon (Calgary, 1982-83) to pull that off. He also won a gold medal with Canada at the 2009 World Juniors, going 2-0-0 with a 0.50 goals-against average, .958 save percentage and a shutout.

“He’s a mentally strong goalie from the experiences he’s been through. What it manifests itself into is poise,” Lambert said.

“There’s times when I’ve been nervous before a game. That’s a good thing. If you are nervous, you are ready,” Pickard said. “I’d play all 82, or 80 games (in the pros) if I could. All we have to do is work for 60 minutes. Tired is just something in your head. I feel like if you are tired, you should be able to block it out of your head.”

Sometimes it’s not only what you know, it’s who you know. The 6-foot-3, 216-pound Pickard has developed in a goaltending cocoon. His younger brother, Calvin, is a top goalie prospect now playing for Seattle of the WHL.

“I don’t know who the better goalie is. I hope I am. I have a few years on him,” Chet said. “We share info back and forth. I try to help him out as much as I can. He’s pretty strong mentally. If there’s something wrong with the way he’s playing in a game, he’ll ask me. We have a lot of stuff in common.”

Pickard’s tenure in Tri-City overlapped with Carey Price’s for a couple seasons. Pickard was Price’s backup, then took over when Price went on to star with Hamilton and now Montreal. The two became and remain close friends, and compare notes frequently. Pickard admires his buddy’s ascension, and is candid when asked if he can duplicate it.

“He helped me work on my game a lot. I think we have a lot of similarities. I always watch his games. If I see something I like, I try to put it in my game. It could be something as little as a tape job on his stick,” Pickard said. “I think for sure one day I could be that good. I just have to be patient. I saw him do it. I know I can do it.”

Pickard was randomly assigned No. 37 at Tri-City. Interestingly enough, that was the number of former NHL goalie Olaf Kolzig. Kolzig also is an owner of Tri-City. He became yet another mentor for Pickard, and now, with the Admirals, Pickard wears that jersey in his honor.

“You have to beat him with a pretty good shot. He’s a pretty big kid,” Kolzig said of Pickard. “And when you try to pass it around him, he has the athleticism to get across the crease. He’s going to make you earn every goal you get.”

Kolzig was even more impressed with how Pickard reacted following one of his rare failures. Immediately after Kelowna bumped Tri-City out of the WHL playoffs last season, Kolzig checked in on his young goalie. He saw a player in despair to the point of tears.

“You want to see how a kid responds in those situations. He had a lot of success in his junior career. He wanted to go out at least having a shot at the Memorial Cup,” Kolzig said. “He could have said, ‘Oh, it’s time to go look at the pro level.’ He knew his junior career is over. He didn’t get all the (success) he wanted out of it.”

Pickard’s bounce back has been quick in Milwaukee. So far, he’s milking the pro game for all its experiences, from rookie initiations to eye-catching debuts.

“I’m a pretty competitive guy. Every game I get here, I go out and battle as hard as I can,” he said. “If I’m here all year, hopefully I go out and just give our team a chance to win every night. That’s the goal. When I make it to the NHL, I want to stay there.”

Lindsay Kramer, the AHL correspondent for NHL.com, profiles an up-and-coming player each Monday during the season, and his AHL notebook appears each Thursday on NHL.com.

Krahn named top goalie for NovemberZaragoza sack Marcelino

London retailers enjoy their best monthly sales levels for more than three years, raising hopes ahead of Christmas, latest figures show…. From BBC News. Full story

This site may contain information about: usa shopping. The blog is also related to: window shopping.

Wales’ new first minister says a rise in education spending is affordable despite budget challenges…. From BBC News. Full story

This site may contain information about: classes. For a different topic see soup recipes. The blog is also related to: school k-12.

Rise of the Tower

Sitting around looking for something to pass the time, I came upon the game “Rise of the Tower”, described as a strategy based game. When I first began the game, it looked easy enough; arm a tower well enough to defend off enemies. I didn’t read the tutorial, and decided to try it on my own. That was a mistake, as my tower was decimated in the very early going.

After a few more attempts of staging my ultimate defense system, I began to get the hang of it. Enemies on the ground are taken out relatively quickly by machine guns and cannons, and anything in the air couldn’t handle the lasers. Well, as easy as this seemed at the time, the enemies quickly came in with waves of helicopters and tanks, and made quick work of the tower yet again. I’m still playing the game as we speak, which speaks out to the games relatively good replay value. It’s definitely in the correct category of being a strategic game, and you can expect to be hooked to this game for quite a bit of time if you plan on mastering it. Between managing the weapons you want to set up with the amount of money available, it takes an analytic mind to get this game down pat.

Rise of the Tower is definitely worth a shot!

“You wait your turn, you’ll be last in line
This is the beginning
Get out the way, ’cause I’m getting mine
This is the beginning
God helps the ones that can help themselves
This is the beginning
May be too late as far as I can tell
This is the beginning”

prettyprophet: So…..this was supposed to be released a while ago. You know, the promised release before the end of November?

funny_bunny: So so sorry!

prettyprophet: Yes. Thanks to this motherfucker, and several other motherfuckers, things got delayed. Lots of things. ak and Ghost were busy themselves, but I wouldn’t count them in the motherfucker category.

funny_bunny: Now I must say, it is not MOI’s fault that a succubus suckled nde’s lifejuice out of his penis. Cute, that.

prettyprophet: Right. Exactly what happened.

funny_bunny: No worries! BACK IN GEAR!

prettyprophet: Not really. Practically everyone’s got finals or some shit; real headache. So December’ll be a slow month.

funny_bunny: No specialness! Totally quiet!

prettyprophet: How many people you think believed that?

funny_bunny: Why Prophet, I do not know what you mean! Oho.

prettyprophet: Ha.

funny_bunny: Fufu.

prettyprophet: BROLEN X RABBITS, circle Nyankotei’s PI.

funny_bunny: Persona FOUR disc jockey! I mean doujin. SHI.

prettyprophet: DJ P4 feat. EVERYONE. Except for 3/4 the social links. But hey, main cast is there. Mostly.

funny_bunny: It’s 4-koma! PANELS! FOUR OF THEM.

prettyprophet: Gin Kurogane……I remember he did Fate doujinshi or something.

funny_bunny: YOU DID??

prettyprophet: Fuck off.

funny_bunny: Doujinshi! Fun stuff!

prettyprophet: Anyways, here’s another P4 doujinshi. “Pi”. Comedy. Uh, don’t know what else to say.

funny_bunny: MORE P4 DOUJINSHI? NOPE.

prettyprophet: More scanlation? Nope. It’s the end.

funny_bunny: MERRY LUNAR CHRISTMAS. Time for L4D2??

prettyprophet: I’m going to read “Chew”.

funny_bunny: Rabbit end…WITH A WHIMPER.

prettyprophet: Too bad Rabbits don’t whimper.

funny_bunny: We SASHAY.

Additional links:

On Depositfiles
On Mediafire
On Megaupload
On Brolen

PSP:

On Mediafire

There is a melodic punk rock band called Rise Against. Though the bands conformist, hard left politics always annoyed me, I was able to look beyond that and appreciate the music. Sadly, I can no longer even do that. With the song Hero of War, they have taken away my ability to even reluctantly enjoy their music. The song in question paints the tale of a soldier who is a patriotic cliche who goes off to war and does bad things, with no context as to why he might be there. It paints soldiers as men who torture, murder and brutalize the innocent. It’s a cheap tune designed to appeal to leftists who’ve bought into the false narrative that, if it wasn’t for the ugly Americans the world would be all rainbows and kittens. It’s disgusting to see somebody like Tim McIlrath who has never sacrificed a damn thing is out their slandering all soldiers. It’s not like he’s ever done a song on the good that soldiers do, but that’s because it wouldn’t fit into his narrow political mindset.

This cliche portrayal of soldiers is nothing original. It can be seen in a number of Hollywood films and in your local university classroom. It’s an attitude born out ignorance. These leftists rarely see war on the news, unless the US is involved. As a result, they assume the rest of the world is as wonderful and peaceful as their San Fransisco coffee house, until the ugly Americans show up. It’s as much the medias fault as their own, that they turn a blind eye to the suffering of people living in “peace” around the world. Women who loses their faces to acid, because they weren’t sufficiently modest or people who suffer horribly in Iranian prisons because they simply want a little liberty and freedom. For the leftist, who takes the freedom earned by their forefathers through blood, sweat, and tears for granted, it’s far too easy to ignore the injustice others must suffer, while they crusade for the rights of cows. Another band meets my trash bin because their musical talent is vastly overshadowed by their naivety and progressive posturing. Congrats guys and enjoy the bin.