Via John of Aargghh! comes news of another innovative charity whereby those of us watching the War on Terror from the sidelines can help the young men and women who are fighting to keep us safe.

It's called Adopt a Sniper, and it's run by a former police sniper who's committed to making sure our guys have the best equipment they can possibly have. Because he knows the kind of gear these people need, and where to get it, he fills a gap other civilian groups can't.

Sain said he was inspired by the close-knit “sniper fraternity,” whose military and civilian police members are unusually interwoven. “A lot of SWAT [members] are former military, and a lot of them are reservists who are now going over” to Iraq and Afghanistan, Sain said. “And even if you’re not military, getting shot at is getting shot at, no matter where you are.”

Sain said he knows “what it’s like not to have the equipment you need.” In 1994, Sain said, “I watched a guy hold a baby out a door through my sniper scope. I couldn’t see [well enough to shoot the man]; it was dark and I didn’t have night-vision equipment.” As Sain watched helplessly, the man shot the baby in the back.

Sain said he is determined to make sure no deployed military sniper will ever be in that spot — unable to do his mission or worse yet, in danger, because he doesn’t have the right gear.

There's more information at the web site, in case you know of someone who might need equipment. And please consider sending them your spare change.

Posted by: Attila at 11:02 AM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Kelley sums up what we're all thinking.

My husband and I took advantage of our one-week break in The Sopranos to start watching The American Revolution on Sunday nights (this is the A&E production on same, and it's a good one). The idea is to start it around now, be in the thick of it around Flag Day in mid-June, and finish up by July 4th--at the rate of one episode a week--so we can know what we're celebrating on Independence Day. Every year, especially once we have kids. As a matter of fact, depending on when the final Sopranos season finishes up, we might be able to get Band of Brothers in for the few weeks before Memorial Day. I truly love that show, and I'd love to see it every year as well.

* * *

(And I'd say the appeal of Band of Brothers is 98% being absorbed in the events, and in awe of the men who made these sacrifices--and only 2% finding the two male leads amazing . . . actors. Really good actors, Damian Lewis [as Major Richard D. Winters] and Ron Livingston [as Captain Lewis Nixon]. I mean, what if I had to act in a scene with the two of them, and there was this contrast of Lewis's fairness vs. the Livingston's dark, dark hair? I wonder if they have any bisexual tendancies . . . ?

Sorry. And me married and everything! Long walks and cold showers. And cornering one's spouse.

Remember when they told you female sexuality would peak at 30-35? It isn't so much a peak as a plateau. You've been warned. Long walks, cold showers. And have a husband who is persuadable at a moment's notice.

Enough red-blooded American female talk. But you know our soldiers died so it could be okay for women to be human, and treated as such. Especially in our current war, the one against Islamo-fascists. They don't like red-blooded American girls. Not at all.

As has been pointed out by far cleverer bloggers than I, the fact that we have choices, and flexibility, and openness--all the stuff of freedom, whether it's picking out music or being able to dish about how sexy certain actors are--is a debt we owe our young men--and some women--in uniform. No matter how mundane the choice--or even ignoble the thought--we have it [or can articulate it] because of these people.)

So we're back full-circle: freedom isn't free, and there are many who paid dearly so we could live normal lives in safety across the water.

Posted by: Attila at 12:18 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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