Mike's Vacation

Dear Readers, Our Format Explained

2010-05-18T11:09:00.001-07:00

Dear Readers,

Mike's Vacation will be publishing regular travelogue and political/economic editorial.

Each Issue will be be accompanied by a YouTube.com hosted video attachment.

The video portion of each issue will be a summarized version of each article. If the viewer desires to read the script for our issue, he will then have access to our in depth article as well as our bibliography.

There are many viewers who do not have time to read a complex article and attached bibliography. This is why we will be summarizing all of our articles in a video format.

This same format will be used for all articles being either Travel, Politics, or Industry.

Thank You,
Michael Miller

THE LAST OF THE COOL PEOPLE-- A LOST AND TROUBLED GENERATION

2009-07-15T10:57:00.001-07:00

I graduated high school in 1986. I attended a small Midwestern high school, not unlike many others of its day.

I believe that your most formative years are your years in high school. That is when your character is cemented.

Your trials and tribulations during this period are the training grounds for how all the remainder of your life's challenges will be met.

At the end of the eighties, we had real problems facing us. For one thing, we had all just recently survived the farm crash, the factory crash, and a giant recession. I remember the county I lived in had endured a trough of unemployment of 27%.

We also lived with the daily threat of total annihilating nuclear war with the Soviet Union. Every day our evening news was watched for information about our "enemy" who legitimately had the strength to deal us such a heavy nuclear blow that we would not ever fully recover.

Aids was also a burgeoning threat, there were no miracle cocktails, and there was little correct information at hand over what was likely to spread it and what wasn't. ( beyond mere blood and body fluid precautions) It was assumed that a single encounter with an "aids infected" or "HIV infected" woman would automatically lead to an aids death months later.

It seems that our two worlds (east and west) were kept in balance by the other. Our world of western privilege and advantage was a plate spinning on a stick, only kept in alignment by our nemesis' similar counter-rotating world.

When the Soviet Union collapsed, their world crumbled, and their own spinning plate of a universe bounded off into their own never land across the ocean, essentially unable to provide the political balance to our own world.

Our world of righteous beauty and plenty began to accelerate in political rotation until we also quickly became a "tilted universe" unto ourselves.

Everything we knew about good and bad, right and wrong fast became passe'. It seems we have left our own stable and logical world behind, only to live in a new and sick cartoon like plane of existence.

Our modern world resembles to me a "roger rabbit" like "toon town" of a dimension. The personal encounters of my daily life seem "fake and animated" and "unreal".

I am living in this tilted universe, this fake, creepy cartoon like dimension with only my 1986 character and strength to guide me and help me survive.

The children and young adults of our modern age, have not known any other plane of existence, and can't imagine what our "real world" was like. There is a serious generation gap between anyone that graduated from high school in or before 1986 and our chronological descendants.

America before the Soviet Collapse was both a gentler and more sophisticated time. We didn't have the large scale social decay or the Orwellian eye blinders of modern false liberalism to imprison us as our modern young people experience.

I have included a few 80's era music videos for you to enjoy, maybe it will take you back to your original dimension. Maybe for a few seconds you too can remember who you were when you had the promise of the future, and a little bit of your own innocence remaining.

Mike's Vacation
Indy- 2009

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14IRDDnEPR4&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4J4M6BXDLs
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=78pQOkLTdFo

The Patriotic War

2009-05-10T06:28:00.000-07:00

May 9 commemorates the victory by the Soviet Peoples of the Patriotic War.

Mikes Vacation feels great reverence for this monumental occasion.

We would like to honor the Soviets who survived and died during this horrible war.

It would be possible to present hundreds of hours of video for these same Soviets.

It would be possible to write thousands of words to honor their memories.

But today, we will honor their memories by a simple and succinct video posting.

We believe that Russian President Medvedev's message will be a correct message for Mikes Vacation to endorse, and publish.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQn8Oyhu5ZA

Its About F@#%ing Time!!

2009-05-04T04:09:00.000-07:00

Well somebody in this country has finally grown some balls and gotten their sense back when it comes to unruly children. http://www.newsweek.com/id/195119?Gt1=43002

Mikes Vacation is naturally against "child abuse". However we are worldly enough to make a distinction between good old fashioned discipline, and "abuse".

Mikes Vacation also believes that our national movement against parents and schools spanking kids was started by the pharmaceutical manufactures that make drugs such as "Ritalin".

When it becomes illegal to spank your kids, the only method to control them is to drug them. Hence our recent industry of drugging kids with mood and behavior altering drugs to get them to behave, as opposed to augmenting positive re-enforcement with a good whipping from time to time.

A good friend of Mikes Vacation has proposed very strong and through arguments against the corporal punishment of children. He contends that the only time a child needs to be whipped, or spanked is when a parent has failed in their duties to teach and monitor a child. He contends that violence begets violence, and that statistics have shown that violence and abuse has been a major contributory factor to the millions of citizens now incarcerated in our jails and prisons.

The man making this argument to Mikes Vacation is a highly educated, and intelligent man. His opinions are not to be taken lightly. While sometimes he is wrong, it is not usually in matters of science. His opinions in the areas of human behavior are frequently correct, but not absolutely so. Needless to say he is credible enough to have his opinions take very seriously.

What has happened to our country in the past 30-40 years in the general area of gentility, or lack of it, could be likened to a power vacuum.

For a long time in America we had a problem with a very few "exotic" cases of child abuse being far and away beyond what could be construed as "discipline" or even "harsh discipline". We had a situation where a mentally or emotionally unstable parent could abuse a child at will, with virtually no recourse.

During the Late sixties and early seventies the hippie movement's use of mind altering drugs, and Hollywood's unveiling of films portraying children as "evil" or "possessed" led to an unprecedented string of "exotic abuse/murder" cases of children being killed by their emotionally unstable parents.

During this same time period Americas began to become even more mobile and transient in regards to their geographic locale than ever before.

This set the stage for public outcry against "abuse of children". Mikes Vacation is against the abuse of children. We naturally endorse the gentle and patient rearing of children.

However what has become of our well meaning movement to "not abuse" children has not been effectively replaced our old standard methods of spanking kids when they needed it.

Let me explain a little further. Prior to 1970 or so, virtually all of America was raised in the same general fashion. Disrespect to parents, teachers, and elders was a universally accepted taboo. Violating this taboo led to corporal punishment. As a general rule, this didn't lead to death, torture, or prison, it just led to a sassy kid getting whipped and brought back into line.

Since we have entered the period of criminalizing the spanking of children, we have not entered into what I would call the "pseudo-Utopian intellectual period" of child rearing.

Mikes Vacation tends to agree with the gentleman who believes that children could very well be raised without ever spanking them, and that two intelligent intellectuals with all the time in the world to supervise their child could raise a prodigy, without ever raising their hand once to that same child. Mikes Vacation both agrees with this "concept" and we like the idea of it.

HOWEVER: This modern forward thinking model of child rearing is not likely to be adopted in America anytime soon. The fact is that we are a country of very average people. These same people are too tired, too simple, and often too sub-collegiate to be able to function as "cerebral and educated" non-violent parents.

As a result of the criminalization of parents "spanking" children when necessary and the lack of a "universally implemented " non-violent model for child rearing our nations children have been raised in a "power vacuum" where they have been allowed to turn into little, and now large monsters.

The only method left to parents is to take their child to a psychiatrist and get "drugs" prescribed to help control unruly behavior. Is this our American dream, a nation of chemically restrained children? Is this better than an occasional whipping? I don't think so.

Who profits from our modern child abuse laws? Children as a group do not profit from being allowed to grow up without respect and consequences for their actions. Parents do not profit from suffering delinquent and unruly kids. Society itself doesn't profit from having our newest generation imbibe on pills to control their behavior. Perhaps there are some children in our country who don't die of abuse because of our new laws against the spanking of kids.

How do we quantify the days, months and years of our nations youth lost to reform school and ultimately jail because of their unchecked delinquency and emotional maladjustment? Is this not a price of our reliance on behavior altering drugs as opposed to an occasional whipping?

But lets consider for a moment who actually profits from a national policy criminalizing the spanking of our children. THE DRUG COMPANIES PROFIT!!!!!

THE DRUG COMPANIES ARE BEHIND THE NATIONAL MOVEMENT TO "PROTECT CHILDREN FROM ABUSE"!!!!!

Mikes Vacation believes that it will ultimately be proven that Drug Companies have financed the lobbying of our politicians to criminalized the corporal punishment of kids. They are the sole entities that have profited from our modern "no-spank" model of child rearing.

In summary, America had a very effective child rearing model up to the early seventies. We built a society that raised industries, and won wars, we engendered generations of heros, intellectuals and artists. The bulk of all that is great about America was raised under this model.

Our current model of drug pushing, and no spanking will not breed great men. It will only produce slackers with no souls.

We as a society need to construct a model, at least as productive as the one used to make this nation great. We need to be wary of the predators that would abuse this new model, predators such as drug companies and crooked politicians.

You can't replace a system that has been effective for 300, 500, or even 5000 years with something dreamed up in the marketing office of a drug company.

Time for Some Study and Reflection on Communism

2009-05-02T13:16:00.001-07:00

Here at Mikes Vacation we enjoy viewing the kinds of videos you see posted below. We believe that it is good for the reader/s to review some of the source documents, persons, and manifestos that brought our beloved Soviet Union into being.

Mikes Vacation doesn't believe the Soviet Union was perfect, but we do believe she was grand and should be remembered with respect, and she should be studied for the lessons of her failures as well as for her successes.

Please enjoy our video compilation on Communism, Karl Marx, and the Communist Manifesto. In America, as well as the world, all we have is time. Mikes Vacation believes it is OK to remember the foundations of our grand Soviet Union's philosophies.

Communism Ruleshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2NGzpV8bD4&feature=related

Lecture on Karl Marx http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoZp177HDJ8

The Relevance of Karl Marxhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0rldJqYIp0Y&feature=related

Karl Marx Biographyhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VkjxyxktRs&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 1/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5EMqMgx03iM&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 2/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mYmIGL13GXo&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 3/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QMkk-EXxorM&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 4/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OX_f7VsyP0Y&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 5/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cwPY6n8I8M4&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 6/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4kzAQNUHZ0&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 7/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYCO1tuEKWE&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 8/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1ftwayZnL0&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 9/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Setz1lj-9k&feature=related

Communist Manifesto 10/10http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paELtIwYOtk&feature=related

VASILY GORIN-- RUSSIAN HERO!!!!

2009-05-02T12:40:00.001-07:00

Here is a short documentary describing the idyllic conditions on a Russian collective dairy farm.
The lives of the workers are excellent, life should be this good in the rest of Russia, or for that matter, America and the world!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eoeLA_bzvMw&feature=channel

Erroneous Juxtaposition Impedes Democracy

2009-04-23T05:23:00.000-07:00

I am interested in Soviet Era history as well as current events in Russia and Belarus. When I discuss any subject relating to the Soviets, or modern Russia I frequently hear disparaging remarks about Stalin, Putin, and Lukashenka.

I am a supporter of Putin, and Lukashenka, and a student of Stalin. I don't feel I know enough about Soviet issues and history to make final determinations about the character of Joseph Stalin.

It is very easy to attack a dead man. It is very easy to attack a man whose ideas are "out of fashion".

Mikes Vacation believes that Joseph Stalin led the Soviet Union to many successes, and he allowed for many sacrifices to achieve the same.

We must stop attacking heads of state without empirical and well thought evidence of their failure.

Attacks upon Joseph Stalin have traditionally been vehicles for sub-democratic policies here in America. When Stalin is referenced, his failures are juxtaposed against the speakers favored ideas. Frequently this is done to insight an emotional response on the part of the listener. When successful this can only allow a "new idea" or "inspirational thought" to not be scrutinized completely. This allows for "sub-standard" ideas to sometimes flourish. If done on a grand or national scale, this prevents the public from fully contemplating these ideas, and undermines the foundation of democracy: CAREFUL CONSIDERATION OF IDEAS.

Anyone who advocates an empirical examination of the debated facts at hand is assumed to be fond of Stalin's wrongdoings.

The Soviet Union did achieve some success during Stalin's tenure. Can we not learn something from these victories that is useful here in America?

When a politician or leader juxtaposes an idea he is supports with Soviet Era failures, the American public should have screaming Klaxon Horns going off in their minds alerting them to think carefully about what they are hearing.

I have included some media that attack and flatter Stalin. You will see both the glory and horror of Soviet bygone days.

You will also please note there are two attachments about the United States. They expose our glory, and our poverty. (only a fraction of glory and problems)

These media are not intended to present an exact chronological comparison of the two countries. It is not possible to compare the Soviet Union with the United States at virtually any specific time period and be able to make an "apples to apples " comparison. This is because our two countries were in different conditions at different times owing to war, industrial development, literacy, etc.

However, if comparisons are made allowing for these developmental differences you can see that in our limelight and glory America still had problems.

Is it not possible for the Soviet Union to have had some "limelight" to go along with her problems?

Glory to Stalin http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9ScChTcCag

Joseph Stalin and Communist crimeshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aBvEUiU5-ZI

Soviet People and Their Liveshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwPG-HstVEg&feature=related

Kolymahttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9J8mFAhHDC4&feature=related

FRANKLIN D ROOSEVELT'S "D-DAY PRAYER TO THE NATION" (JUNE 6,1944) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l7YZtCViLt8

The Dirty '30s: poverty in a nutshellhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kx_OM3AZoIc

THE DESTINY OF MAN

2009-04-23T04:39:00.000-07:00

OBAMA'S GREATEST CHALLENGE

2009-04-17T06:20:00.000-07:00

The greatest challenge to any modern president of the United States will be to hold the union together without resorting to murder, torture, or other draconian measures.

The United States is confronted with multiple problems ranging from a failing currency, lagging economy, and a gentility vacuum. These problems are a result of the American people being unwilling to intellectually confront complex issues and instead allowing special interest "fiefdoms" to come to power over Washington. These special interest "fiefdoms" have taken advantage of the intellectually lethargic American public and trained the public via clever media campaigns and subversive social engineering programs to be reactionary and impressionable. The vast majority of our population is conditioned to respond in an emotional rather than cerebral way to "artificial issues" placed before us by our politicians in Washington, at the inspiration of the special interest "fiefdoms".

The American public could snap its fingers and fix these problems, but as stated above, most of them are not sophisticated enough to understand what is wrong, much less make corrections.

Small democracies have an easier time managing their federal governments. When politicians serve millions it is harder for the little guy on the street to get his opinion noticed by them.

When citizens are faced with hundreds, or thousands of miles between them and their leaders it is also difficult for them to have their opinions heard.

Ultimately people must begin to ask themselves whether or not they would be better off not being attached to a broken democracy. Freedom loving, intelligent Americans must ultimately decide whether or not they want to be "held back" or "oppressed" by the venom and sloth of those who choose to make substandard choices.

Countries and empires collapse because the central governments fail the people they serve. Populations decide they no longer want to be "yoked" or "stifled" by the mistakes of a broken political machine.

Economically stable and prosperous countries do not collapse. If America begins to feel the pain of a fallen currency, combined with an anemic economy, we must begin to decide whom is to blame.

The ironic, catch 22 of blaming Washington DC is that we as Americans are actually behind the failure of our own system. We can't blame Washington for endless blunders when we elect the same men we find fault with.

What if Texans or Vermontonians want to change their lives for the better? What if the rest of the country decides to remain members of the personality cult of special interest "fiefdoms"?

It may ultimately be the correct decision for some states to go forth by themselves.

This was the cause of the Civil War. The name "civil war" is actually a misnomer. Our country's most devastating war wasn't a "civil war". It was an attempt at succession by the south. This was caused by the impending economic disaster. This same disaster was due to the lifting of tariffs on European textile products that would have destroyed the economy of the south.

The greatest challenge to Obama, or any future president will be to hold our union of states together without resorting to methods perpendicular to the reasons our forefathers embarked on the same union.

The Russians for years have been predicting our demise as a union of states. While it may be true that some of their nay saying may simply be geopoliticly inspired propaganda, they also have identified many serious problems that could become deadly malignancies to our union.

We now have the governor of Texas actually discussing issues about succession. An open discussion by such a prominent man will undoubtedly inspire the same discussion to happen in the general population. This is an important first step for the dissolution of our union.

MikesVacation believes that if our country is correctly run, and our democracy is maintained by a cerebral populace, we are stronger together than separate. Our entire population of 300 million people will be better off standing united.

MikesVacation also believes that Texas and Vermont would likely function better broken off as their own county's if conditions in the United States continue to progress in a negative fashion.

Obama must begin an emergency program to fix the state of broken democracy we now endure. He must begin to imagine conditions that would cause our union to dissolve, and implement their immediate fixture.

America is not on the verge of collapse, Texas is not going to succeed tomorrow, Vermont is not ready to stand alone. However the precursor elements of an American collapse not unlike that of the Soviet Union are in place. These same elements must be negated with education, industry and honest statesmanship.

If our early malignancies are not addressed immediately, Obama, or future another future president will have the choice of passively seeing our country dissolve bit by bit, or of using methods averse to our normal constitutional process to slow or stop the process.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,504384,00.html
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30252723/?gt1=43001
http://www.freestateproject.org/

OBAMA'S FIRST FAILURE

2009-04-16T20:29:00.000-07:00

Dear Reader/s,

A very sad day in American history has come to pass. After the long "dark age" of the Bush administration, our newest and greatest hope has failed us.

The war crimes that were committed by the CIA will not be prosecuted. This is decreed from our new president Obama.

War crimes must be punished, because their punishment serves as a warning to future perpetrators. War criminals of the future must know that they will not be able to escape their deeds.

No one man may give another permission to commit war crimes, or crimes against humanity. If the Justice Department gave the CIA permission to torture POW's or kidnap victims, this doesn't absolve CIA war criminals for their deeds. It is impossible for any orgainization to give permission to any individual or organization to commit war crimes.

Hitler's Gestapo had full authorization for the tortures it carried out, the SS running concentration camps had full authorization for its atrocities. This does not absolve them for their deeds.

The very nature of WAR CRIMES and CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY is that they cannot every be "authorized, legalized, or absolved".

As a constitutional scholar President Obama should be aware that the war crimes committed by the CIA are dangerous not simply because they were crimes committed against undesirables.

These same crimes were threats against the American People's freedom from similar tortures and intrusions. These crimes and their precursor elements were unnecessary attacks against the safety of Americans against the same.

When it becomes legal for the CIA to slap, cramp, sleep deprive, etc Muslim undesirables, it also becomes just a little bit easier for an over zealous policeman to "mugg" a suspect, or plant evidence on him.

When the President of our nation allows these offences to go without retribution, it will ultimately engender Muslims who were sitting on the fence to become sympathetic with those that have been mistreated and their radical causes.

If our President were to pursue level headed prosecution of those that have committed crimes, our nation would begin to regain much desperately need respect in both first and third world arenas.

There is also the problem of what will happen should the United States fall into the hands of another ethically vacuous and malevolent president such as George Bush. If previous offenses are allowed to be forgiven, what motivates future CIA agents from committing similar crimes?

Our nation has failed to demand from Obama a promise to bring CIA criminals to justice before he was elected. Our nation will likely fail to inspire him during his tenure to reverse this decision and correctly punish the correctly guilty.

Obama is for all intents and purposes a decent and intelligent man. As a nation we will now begin to pay the price for his first failure.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30249847

Merry FESTIVUS, or Happy Festivus, err FESTIVUS!!

2007-12-25T09:02:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

The editors, writers, and producers of Mike's Vacation (the guy that found the laptop),

Are faithful enjoyers of the "seinfeld" comedy series. One episode describes the homemade Christmas holiday of "festivus".

It seems one of the characters George Castanza has a rather colorful and creative father who invented the holiday of "festivus" to be an every mans Christmas holiday .

Watch the following links, and enjoy "A FESTIVUS FOR THE REST OF US!!"

Folks, while these might not be the most traditional video clips to watch on Christmas, we here/me here at Mike's Vacation believe that if you are actually looking at this blog on Christmas, you are ready for FESTIVUS!!!!!! LOL LOL. :) :)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=I-wm9N0KiAs&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=HQFLqMyo0fo

Mike Miller aka
Mike Castanza,
aka
Mike Pekar,
aka, ho ho ho. :) :)

Indiana,
2007

Remember the micro moments with your loved ones, these micro moments are so easy to rush through, undersell, and forget. However they are indeed, exactly what life is all about. When it is all said and done, all of our money, and time, and health are really just vehicles to help us live innumerable micro moments of technicolor high quality, and vibrance, and hopefully to remember and cherish the same.

Winter Festival Christmas and Christian Christmas

2007-12-23T07:46:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

As most of you are aware, I have been on a long and pleasurable conversion to Judaism.

You are also likely aware that I have traditionally, and hopefully will , always enjoy Christmas. These ideas might seem to conflict with one another until I define just exactly what I mean by "enjoy Christmas."

Firstly, let me STATE EMPHATICALLY that I have ABSOLUTELY NEVER had any personal belief in the religion of Christianity. When I was very young, I didn't "have faith" or otherwise recognize its validity as the surprme monotheistic religion.

As an adult, not only do I not believe in it as a religion, I don't like it as a religion. I don't begrudge my Christian friends their right to believe in what ever religion they please, to include Christianity, but it just simply isn't for me.

As an American, I find the Christmas season to be a powerful and colorful holiday. I have been able to identify two distinct, and yet sometimes intertwined holidays celebrated here in America during our "Christmas season".

The first and foremost is what I call "Winter Festival Christmas." The second is "Christian Christmas."

Christian Christmas is fairly obvious to identify, it involves conscious and considered religious devotion to the birthday of the Christian messiah Jesus. The celebration of Christian Christmas might have some or many trappings of Winter Festival Christmas as decorations, but it is essentially a religious celebration of the birth of the Christian messiah.

Winter Festival Christmas is all of the color and pageantry of the American Christmas season to include, SANTA CLAUS, lights, presents, egg nog, many Christmas Carols, the Christmas tree, and among other things ,the wonderful feeling of happiness and good will towards men that seems to readily come forth during this holiday. This is the Christmas I love and heartily celebrate!!

I truly love Winter Festival Christmas!! It is a beautiful, fun, and American holiday. It is true that other countries celebrate some form of Winter Festival Christmas in addition to Christian Christmas, however Americans have made this particular holiday into a super duper experience unrivaled by any other holiday globally. I am speaking of Winter Festival Christmas when I say "super duper".

Most countries have their religious holidays, and I am not comparing one religion to another in this article. I am merely trying to make distinct for the reader just exactly what kind of Christmas I enjoy.

If you have any doubts over whether or not Winter Festival Christmas is a real or worthy holiday, please see the below video links...
http://youtube.com/watch?v=vPaGQEskSKM

http://youtube.com/watch?v=XSH9ryRzHQ4

LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, MAY I PRESENT FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE, A "SUPER DUPER " MOVIE--- THE CHRISTMAS STORY!!!!!!!!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=uZieW2F90Is
http://youtube.com/watch?v=-8GDTqsAl_U&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=UZ6HCcEIURU&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=huhh2jw5UUg&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=utM_Uk3aA9c&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3d3u5l-dqx0&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Sz4lC7XH5S0&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Mz9HkyowGb8&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=5Dl2mWJjlUE&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=_53Ie8jOSl8&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=L7yaV4dPD-Q&feature=related

Merry Christmas !!!!
Ho Ho Ho!!!!
Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

THE COOLEST WHITE MAN IN THE WORLD--LOUIS PRIMA!!

2007-12-18T11:42:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

Mike's Vacation has always loved the music, and culture and lore of the great Louis Prima!

His music lives on forever, and will NEVER DIE!!

Here are some cool links about the master, and as a side note, if some of you are ever interested in purchasing music by the master, I suggest buying a LaserLight CD. This was K-marts brand of music that was sold in the discount bin at the back of the store for about 1 dollar.

Laser Light as produced a cd of old Louis Prima, including some stuff that you can't find in a record store. Anyway, enjoy the following links, take yourself and a loved one out for some pasta, and let some real pinache and style flow through your veins even if it is only for a while .

Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present for your viewing and listening pleasure,, LOUIS PRIMA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Urw6e0aCDJc&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=G-8CLaKPEfU&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=VC-4dF2UFnI
http://youtube.com/watch?v=QTO5jc71fbE&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=WxBYC3gEnZs&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=nnlKBBj_o_8
http://youtube.com/watch?v=G-8CLaKPEfU&feature=related

Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

THE WAR OF BROKEN HEARTS

2007-12-15T21:52:00.000-08:00

Most thoughtful Americans are now shaking their heads in shame and embarrassment when discussing our criminal invasion of Iraq.

Perhaps we are too busy to be organizing massive protests and starting grass roots movements to prosecute and punish our countrymen who are culpable, but we are sharing our shame with friends and loved ones freely and in agreement.

Most of us are ashamed of the rockets and missiles and bullets and bombs that have been thrown at the Iraqis, and the same that have killed and crippled our own soldiers and marines.

Many of us are worried about our international reputation today, and in the years to come.

Some people talk about terrorism being fostered and provoked instead of destroyed.

Most of us are aware of the tangible aspects of the physical and economic and political destruction that has been wrought in this criminal adventure.

What about our nations broken hearts? What about all our soldiers and marines who haven't seen their wives, haven't had the opportunity to hold and love them? What about the pain of our soldiers who have to imagine playing with their children instead of actually feeling and touching them?

What about the divorces and broken homes that will be the result of so many men away from their wives for so long?

What about the kids that will be raised in broken homes because husbands and wives have grown apart from the distance, and time and stress?

What about these same kids that won't have lived in a nuclear family model and will now be more likely to fail at their future marriages because of this same negative familial inertia they are raised in?

I won't even bother to describe the broken hearts of the Iraqi's, decorum in this article doesn't permit me to describe what life must be like in modern Iraq for a little girl without a daddy, or a woman without her husband.

Was any of this pain and misery really worth the luxury of a nation too inebreated in its intellectual sloth to not have stopped all this madness before it happened?

Are we as a nation proud of the fact that a giant percentage of us were seduced by a South Texas accent, an expensive haircut, and a glad handed smile with nothing else to offer.

Are we not tired of being political "serfs, pawns, and slaves" to whatever evil machination has hijacked our military and federal government?

When are we going to develop a national conscious that prevents war criminals from ordering our sons to sack weaker countries for nebulous causes?

When you are watching the news and see explosions, and the physical injuries of war, remember that there are other injuries to this war, wounds harder to photo and graph.

What is the real cost of a broken heart? How many of our countryman's hearts are now broken?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=AHbcGeIilss

Dear Readers, I hope that Mike's Vacation doesn't attract any readers stupid enough to think that it is OK for our soldiers and marines to be suffering in this war because it is "their duty". I hope that no reader of mine would actually mouth the words "well they signed up for the military understanding the risks". I honestly hope I have nobody that damned dumb reading my blog. In case there are some of you that hear these trite sentiments uttered, please kindly remind the offenders that our soldiers and marines volunteer for duty to serve and protect our country and are willing to give their lives if necessary, however none of them signed up to participate in a "war crime". None of them signed up to defend a patriot act "soured democracy", none of them signed up to defend a constitution amended to oxidize their rights at home to make easier their suffering in a criminal adventure. There is a social contract signed by our government with our soldiers that largely includes the idea that our military will be used for the violent protection of our land and interests. This social contract also provisos that the government will be judicious in is employment of this same violent force and will not allow our sons and brothers in uniform to suffer unnecessarily, or for a criminal and erroneous cause. Our country's "salt of the earth" sons and brothers comprise the bulk of our nations enlisted ranks. These men are raised to have a sense of right and wrong, and of fair play. For this trust to be betrayed, and for the "handshake agreement" that seals the aforementioned "social contract" to be violated is no less than an absolute outrage.

Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

THESE RUSSIANS WILL DO ANYTHING FOR A DRINK!!

2007-12-10T10:26:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

Here is an interesting piece about wreck diving in the arctic sea.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=_A0pVK6v1IM&feature=user

Now that is what I call chilled vodka!!

Na Starovia!!
Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

LAUREL AND HARDY, GENIUS IN BLACK AND WHITE

2007-12-04T22:16:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

Mikes Vacation endorses the watching of Laurel and Hardy in glorious black and white.

Any comedy that was done in good taste almost a hundred years ago, and can still entetain today is pure gold!

Our country is richer for the likes of Stan and Oliver. When you have nothing to do, and it is dark, and time for bed, but you have a few minutes of energy left, share some time with the celluloid ghosts of days gone by.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=64o6s8PmnoE

http://youtube.com/watch?v=lOpP70-IyjE&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Arajua9lxYA

http://youtube.com/watch?v=nNjPgE1muTM&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=jDVO1R-7I7Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpvxTyzOM_A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j7mq-wzFovw&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=0yoPb-amgbs&feature=related

damn it boys, why did you have to up and die on us!? !? !? (:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=fjQIEepbfPA&feature=related

Dear Stanley and Oliver, on behalf of our silly country, thanks for the laughs!!
Mike Miller,
Indiana,
2007

REMEMBER THE PARTISANS!!! FRENCH, BELARUSIAN, IRAQI !!

2007-12-04T20:30:00.001-08:00

Dear Readers,

Partisan forces have played a role in most wars throughout history. Their presence was fiercely felt during WW2/The Patriotic War.

The French Partisans played an important role before , during and after D- Day . They blew up supplies and linkages, assassinated troops, and helped downed Allied airmen evade capture. Their methods were often unconventional, and when captured they were mostly tortured horribly, then executed.

The Belorussian Partisans played a larger role in destroying Nazis, as their numbers were larger, and they enjoyed a much greater natural protection from the dense virgin forests of Belarus. They also were tortured, and executed when captured.

In order to "capture" a Partisan, either French or Belorussian, the Germans used informants, collaborators, and spies. Sometimes persons merely suspected of ties to the Partisans were arrested and tortured, and mostly murdered.

Any invading force will face Partisan resistance if their invasion is against the will of the people. The level of resistance faced by an invader is proportionate to the criminality of their invasion and the degree the native peoples desire their exit.

Collaborators have historically been murdered and tortured by Partisans when discovered. This is because the collaborators themselves are ultimately responsible for the same treatment of Partisans by the primary criminal invaders.

Has anyone noticed that the History Channel has not been airing any documentaries about WW2 era French Partisans lately? You should think about this.

It is very convenient to label anyone in Iraq opposing our criminal presence there as a "terrorist", or an "insurgent". However, could their individual politics and their combat techniques not sometimes more precisely qualify them as "partisans". ?

It is correct to say that the "legitimate partisan resistance" faced by US forces in Iraq is in direct proportion to our level of legal and criminal legitimacy in the same country.

It is not correct to "imprison without trial, torture, or murder" men conducting "legitimate partisan actions " against a criminal invader (that's us) on their own home soil.

The first video is dedicated to Russian Partisans in the Patriotic War/WW2. The next link takes you to an older issue of Mikes Vacation where the Belarusian film COME AND SEE is reviewed with links so you can view it.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=vcTJ_JKV3tc

(just kindly cut and past this in the address bar, I'll fix the link later)
http://mikesvacation.blogspot.com/2007/08/come-and-see.html

This video is about the French Resistance in WW2.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Wyt2OD5qfeY

Mikes Vacation dedicates the following music video to the "legitimate partisans" conducting actions against US military forces that would have been considered "legal" for the French or Belorussians to conduct against the Nazis. This video is not dedicated to terrorists, and it is not intended to celebrate the tragic loss of innocent American life as a result of this criminal invasion.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=0KL_fgWgK40&feature=related

Mikes Vacation dedicates this video to the innocent American soldiers that have been maimed or killed as a result of our current criminal invasion of Iraq.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=sTRBPCcJwhE

Readers please note: Mikes Vacation was recently contacted by one of our readers who didn't agree with this piece. He said that the French and Russian Partisans weren't out torturing collaborators, and cutting their heads off. He also felt that the US occupation of Iraq is a lot more legitimate than the Nazi occupation of France and Russia. He also made the point that while there was a potential for "legitimate WW2 grade partisans, and partisan actions existing in Iraq", there was much evidence that attacks on US troops were not the work of "legitimate partisans". He felt that a lot of the attacks on US troops were the work of "insurgents" who only wished to draw American blood regardless of the legality or illegality of the current US occupation.

Mikes Vacation agrees with the above readers opinion and applaudes him for correcting the imprecise nature of our current Essay. However we at Mikes Vacation must remind the reader that the US occupation of Iraq can easily and clearly be measured as a criminal invasion, and a war crime in and of itself. The United States for all of our problems and failings are no where nearly as evil as Hitlers Third Reich, in fact, we are not even the same species. However, regardless of how cushy and white bread we are compared to the Nazis, a war crime is a war crime, and a criminal invasion is just that. After the fact, we have attempted to be as gentle as possible to the general Iraqi public, however just because we aren't the Third Reich, doesn't mean the Iraqi population is any less entitled to seeing to our exit. Just because there are many insurgents in Iraq who are there only for blood sport and hatred, and can't be considered Partisans, doesn't mean we are legitimated by their presence.

Let me repeat that one more time, our presence in Iraq is not legitimized by the illegitimacy and presence of insurgents only there for mindless hatred and cruel sport.

We thank our above reader for his comments, and corrections. However Mikes Vacation still feels that a legitimate partisan presence exists in Iraq, and their operations against our troops are not only legal according to international standards, but bonna fide and reasonable considering the circumstances.

Mikes Vacation is broken hearted to feel the above facts are true and correct.

May G_d have mercy on all our souls.
Mike Miller,
Indiana,
2007

TIME FOR A FEW NEW THOUGHTS ABOUT POT

2007-12-04T19:23:00.001-08:00

Mikes Vacation is against the use of drugs. We believe that Marijuana has a detrimental effect on our society as a whole not because it is dangerous in nature, but because it ISN'T immediately dangerous in nature.

Pot smokers don't become violent, or have heart attacks, or commit heinous crimes while high on pot. Pot doesn't produce horribly dangerous psychic conditions as do hard drugs such as PCP, Cocaine, or Methamphetamine.

However, Pot does produce an environment of laziness, and the marijuana culture has developed a very lazy and non-industrious group identity.

Pot is making America a little bit less productive, a little bit lazier, and it is wasting the youth of its users puff by puff. Therein lies the problem, it is a drug which is essentially weakening the industry and motivation of America one young person at a time.

However our young people aren't dying horribly because of it, and there are essentially no ghastly side effects save hunger and the mild to moderate obesity that go with the same.

When Americans tell their kids to be careful of Pot, warning them of its dangers, they are in effect assisting the "gateway drug process". Marijuana can be called a "gateway drug" because it is essentially the first illegal substance most people try.

Here is the big problem, for all of a child/youth's life, they are warned to stay away from drugs, "drugs are baaaad"!! Marijuana is cited along with cocaine, heroin, pcp and what have you.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=BNbExvU42q4&feature=related

As Marijuana produces essentially no life or even immediate health threatening effects, the first time user ultimately extrapolates the semi-logical conclusion, that if Marijuana wasn't all that bad, then maybe the other drugs are benign as well.

Obviously the drug problem in America won't be solved by simply re-assigning Marijuana a new description, but continuing to persecute marijuana for possessing sins similar to hard drugs won't do either.

We need clever social engineering to raise our collective productivity and quality of life. Mis-labeling marijuana, and punishing its offenders according to these archaic notions of the drugs harm potential isn't going to work either.

Our country's youth need ACCURATE and HONEST information about marijuana if we as adults are going to have any credibility about the dangers of hard drugs.

Ruining the lives of pot users isn't going to get us anywhere either. Our country is in a state of "witch hunt mania". We are stupidly and earnestly looking for a "monster to burn" all the time.

We need to come to grips with the fact that there is no real freedom without risk. We can't be a "free society" and absolutely control and micro-manage the personal decisions of our cultures diaspora.

Here is a link to some interesting information about what you have just read.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/CollegeAndFamily/Advice/WhatIllegalDrugUseCanCostYou.aspx

If you are a pot smoker, try to take it easy on the stuff, you are only getting lazier, and broker, and fatter.

If you are not a pot smoker, remember that everyone who is a user, is someones loved one and they deserve the respect that you would have given to your own dearest if they choose a alternative path in life.

Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

HAPPY CHANUKA !!! DECEMBER 5, 2007

2007-12-04T16:31:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers,

Chanuka starts tommorow, December 5, 2007.

There are some very interesting links below. The first link is from the Jewish Virtual library. It gives some very basic information about Chanuka.

I am a long way from being able to teach anyone about Chanuka, however there are some very important points that should be remembered.

Chanuka is not the distant cousin of Christmas, it isn't the Jewish answer to Christmas. Here in America Chanuka has taken on sort of a Christmasy feel, because American Winter Festival Christmas and Christian Christmas are such powerfully celebrated holidays.

However, Chanuka is a celebration of a military miracle that happenned in antiquity. The Greek army was attempting to conquer and throughly Hellenize ancient Jews of the time.

There was only a small amount of olive oil left in the sacked temple to last for one night, but by divine intervention the oil lasted for 8 days.

A female Jew assasinated the leader of the Greeks, and the Jews of antiquity won this war.

This military victory to include the assasination of the Greek general is celebrated by a symbolic lighting of 8 candles to symbolize the entire victorious military campaign, and also the miraculous olive oil that lasted 8 nights instead of only 1.

So, Chanuka is a celebration of divine intervention, and of military victory AGAINST ASSIMILATION, or Hellenization of the Jews by the Greeks.

It is moderately ironic that modern American Chanuka has become celbrated in a Christmasy spirit so to speak. (for lack of a better description).

However, even though modern American Chanuka has become celebrated in a somewhat similar manner as Winter Festival Christmas, it is obviously not the free for all glutinous orgy that has become both Winter Festival Christmas and Christian Christmas.

Enjoy the links below, and may this posting find all of you enjoying the best of health, welfare and happiness.

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Judaism/holiday7.html

http://howtojew.org/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MK2J-G8uGM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5v3PY-vfd9Y

WAIT, HOLD THE PHONE, now you know that Mike's Vacation is not going to have a Chanuka article without the good Reb Sandler,, now you just know that wasn't going to happen!!!!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Vrd9p47MPHg&feature=related

Mike's Vacation would also like to wish a very wonderful Chanuka to the Reb Goodman and his family living in Pinsk, Belarus. His stories of life in what remains of the Settlement of the Pale can be viewed at BEINGHAD.COM
Michael Miller
Indiana,
2007

JEWISH LAW-- SUPURB DOCUMENTARY OF MANCHESTER ENGLAND'S ORTHODOX JEWISH COMMUNITY

2007-12-03T23:04:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers/(reader) ,

Here is a wonderful series of videos obtained from (you guessed it) youtube.com.

This video series is in two parts, with each part containing 5 chapters. Among other things you will be interested to listen to Orthodox Jews speaking with British accents.

I was impressed with the sincerity the schochets conveyed both as professionals, and as animal lovers/respecters.

There is about 100 minutes of brilliant Jewish culture and societal footage here, please enjoy!

JEWISH LAW

episode 1 (1of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7GyWxHN0fcs&feature=related
episode 1 (2of5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=aZVF4_TJjX8&feature=related
episode 1 (3of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=oAEDDMO3MII&feature=related
episode 1 (4of5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=nOtmVpKL7Cc&feature=related
episode 1 (5 of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=XhuaRM90NHM&feature=related

JEWISH LAW EPISODE 2

episode 2 (1of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=dvquJEN7EHg&feature=related
episode 2 (2of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=kHcUWrS-FtM&feature=related
episode 2 (3of5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=pIKC7IjD8xU&feature=related
episode 2 (4 of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=vwTFgFf-opM&feature=related
episode 2 (5 of 5)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=iKxlWGKRawg&feature=related

Now folks, if you have watched the following video clips, you have now brushed up on the basics of Jewish law. We all agree that Jewish law is important, and beautiful. It is the position of Mike's Vacation that a sincere study of Jewish law is complimented by many smiles, and laughs. :) :) :)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=GUxDxI68xpc
G_d Bless Each and every one of you!
Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

BELARUS AND CHERNOBYL 2

2007-11-30T16:00:00.000-08:00

The bulk of the fall out from the Chernobyl disaster fell on Belarus. A giant percentage of the arable land was ruined by radiation.

Life goes on in Belarus, people live, die, fall in love, have children, and proably even sometimes forget about this disaster for a few minutes, hours, or days.

Life is good in Belarus. People there are cash poor, brave, honest, and kindhearted.

Life is good in spite of the problems that will be discussed in the following videos.

Celebrate and love the people of Belarus, for they are a surpreme example of what excellent mankind has to offer!

http://youtube.com/watch?v=HXt0yyc4izc

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Cae1u2XQmrI

http://youtube.com/watch?v=LOt038oxJFQ

Mike Miller,
Indiana,
2007

BELARUS AND CHERNOBYL

2007-11-30T15:36:00.000-08:00

Here is a video taken in the ghost town of Pripyat. This was the industrial city created in the Ukraine to house workers attached to the Chernobyl nuclear plant.

This was a model Soviet industrial city. It is hauntingly interesting to see the skeleton of a modern city that has been evacuated in a hurry.

Mikes Vacation has extreme sympathy for those that lost their lives and their homes during this disaster.

However, there is something more than grim sadness that can be gleaned from the following video. There is a small amount of hope, and some happiness that can be seen here.

Pripyat was a very credible attempt by the Soviet Union to build a HAPPY, FUNCTIONAL , MODERN industrial city for its citizens. This city was not designed as a "showplace". There was no propaganda value to this city. It was simply a good place to live.

The people that lived there had GOOD lives. They were obviously happy. The Chernobyl disaster occurred because of innocent human error, and a nuclear powerplant design that was inherently flawed. This was not the fault of communism.

As all of you remember we had a little problem called 3-mile island that could very easily have been a giant disaster on American soil. We have been very lucky in America.

When you look at the following video, please be reverent for the lives that were destroyed, and lost. But it is also ok to have some happy feelings for the sweetness of the same lives before they were lost.

The ending for Pripyat was sad and tragic, that isn't all of the story. People lived and loved here. They raised kids there, fell in love, had dreams and adventures. And the city that all of these lives unfolded in was engeneered to help them have good lives. The Soviets were obviously attempting to spend some of their wealth and resources towards giving some of their workers a great opportunity for health and happiness.

Please view this video with revernce, sadness, but also some respectful happiness, for obviously life was good in Pripyat before the disaster.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=gpoVzAArUN0&feature=related

Michael Miller
Indiana,
2007
Dear Readers, please see the attached page for photo artistic work done by our new friend markr. His comments can be seen below also.
http://www.nikongear.com/Chernobyl/Chernobyl_1.php

IT IS A SHAME WHEN THE WORLD NEEDS TO DEFEND ITSELF AGAINST AMERICA

2007-11-30T09:46:00.000-08:00

There was once a time when the United States was considered the "good guy". Even when we were wrong, there were elements of our foreign policy that seemed to "make sense".

There was once a counterbalance to absolute global domination, this was the Soviet Union.

There is an INVERSE RELATIONSHIP between the level of U.S. global influence, and our level of constitutional rights and freedoms today. It seems that the more power Washington has, the lower the level of our citizens rights will be.

It is the opinion of Mikes Vacation that we were never as free in America as we were in the early to mid 70's when the Soviet Union was at the peak of her power. It is almost as if the U.S. government needed the competition to remain honest to her people.

Mikes Vacation hopes for the safe return of all our service men in Iraq, we support no malice to our soldiers and marines abroad.

However, it is obvious to Mike Vacation that if we "WIN" in Iraq, then we "LOSE" here at home.

The global conscious should understand that a state of "broken democracy" exists here in America. There is no effective mechanism for the people to control the war criminals in our government and from the special interests (war profiteers) that control and support them.

It is a sad day at Mikes Vacation when the freer peoples of the world should be advised to "arm themselves" if they do not wish to become our victims. It is a terrible state of affairs when the smaller and weaker countries should be wise to purchase "Russian weapons" if they do not want to become our "next victim".

Perhaps if the people of Iraq had owned a sufficient quantity of the Pansir-1 weapons system, some of their deaths could have been avoided. The United States will not attack any country that has a potential of defending itself.

A criminal war such as what was perpetrated upon Iraq cannot survive public opinion if there are enough America losses that the "broken democracy" that exists here in America is fixed by the grieving families of our soldiers and our country as a whole demanding sensible consequences to our leaders for their crimes.

However, small losses that aren't severe enough to jolt public opinion to action are deemed just a risk of doing business for the George Bush's and the Haliburtons of the country.

So, sadly, I must state that if a country does not want to become our next victim, they should arm themselves .

http://youtube.com/watch?v=5EErUMjjA7c&feature=user

Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

HOW ABOUT A LITTLE BIT OF LOVE, AND HOPE, AND HAPPINESS!

2007-11-28T20:40:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers/(reader or whatever),

It is obvious that my current situation is pretty dismal. That much we can all surely agree with. However, Mikes Vacation is not about quitting, giving up, knuckling under, or whinning ALL THE TIME.

Sometimes we celebrate the LOVELY, WONDERFUL, AND THE BRILLIANT. You see, here at Mikes Vacation, we know that sometimes life sucks, but we endeavor to never forget that things can get better, we also want you the reader, to never forget this as well. :) :) :)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=5PHH6erYCBQ
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Iu5OTGb7UI0&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=4xBhbDgJtAE
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7fQh38yKkJI&feature=related
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ErrzjGCi3gY
http://youtube.com/watch?v=4g7Q04hRIXY
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ftiIPJky_Vs
http://youtube.com/watch?v=wKkBEOOzIjk&feature=related

May all of you have a happy and wonderful evening, and wonderful lives!!
G_d Bless each and every one of you!!

Mike Miller
Indiana,
2007

DEAR READERS/(reader), THIS IS MY JOB

2007-11-28T16:35:00.001-08:00

http://youtube.com/watch?v=-yf54p1UwQ8

http://youtube.com/watch?v=W_YnaHNcISw

http://youtube.com/watch?v=bH-TSSQg7WY

Yes, that about summarizes my job satisfaction. While I am not actually (not yet anyway) a Brittish alkie , or a librarian in a petroleum jelly factory, or in a Chinese stamping plant. The British lady, Tom Hanks, and the stamping Chinese very closely describe how I often feel.

Mike Vs The Volcano,
Indiana,
2007

Lets end with a little Charlie Chaplain. :)

http://youtube.com/watch?v=qDnDaDYZ2AQ

MY LIFE ON THE TRAIN

2007-11-28T15:50:00.000-08:00

http://youtube.com/watch?v=d058fO_hg8U
http://youtube.com/watch?v=-hu21NmpPfE
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZehTjlO4a1U&feature=related

Yup, thats my life on the train.

lol.
M, Indy, 2007

THE OFFICIAL POSITION OF MIKES VACATION ON RELIGION AND HUMANITY

2007-11-28T11:13:00.000-08:00

Dear Readers/(reader) ,

The following 3 links can be literally interpreted as the Mikes Vacation "manifesto" on religion, politics, and the state of the human condition.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=2Pt8Nk95Yfk

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BYRsH3hogXw

http://youtube.com/watch?v=3kBFOsHpyWQ&feature=related

Mike Miller
L'chaim!
Indianapolis,
2007

MIRIAM AND SHOSHANA

2007-11-27T21:25:00.000-08:00

I was discussing the Miriam and Shoshanna video with my Jewish friend who attended an all girls school/yeshiva in Queens, NY.

It seems there are a few things that I have overlooked when I endorsed this video in an earlier article.

My friend explained to me that the kids who attend orthodox private schools are leading very sheltered lives and that they aren't plagued with the type of social ills that other kids currently deal with.

She also reminded me that it is against Jewish law for women to sing in groups of less than 4.

I believe this video is very funny and clever, however I think it is important to try to represent all points of view when possible, and according to my friend, this particular music video is offensive to orthodox Jews for multiple reasons.

People have rights to be creative, and to make their own statements as they see fit. And I still do think this is a clever video, and I still think it is funny.

When I was watching and analyzing this video, I felt that there was a credible statement being made that orthodox Jewish girls are undergoing the same type of social ills that the rest of society suffers from. Apparently according to my friend, this is simply not the case.

According to my friend, orthodox Jews are currently expending great efforts to protect their children from the problems that are endemic to modern teenagers.

This being the case, this video is not as socially relevant as I once believed.

When I endorsed the video, I perceived it as the story of two mischievous teenage girls who are immersed in the sleaze and filth of modern LA teenage society. I believed this video was a sweet story of two high spirited teenage girls who thumb their nose at the drugs, and petty rivalries, and the social ills they are forced to face every day at school, and on their way to and from school.

The final ending of this story is that the two sisters, who are each others best and possibly only friends, finally quit playing pirate/rap stars and go home to their decent family sabbath.

I asked myself how I would feel if I had two teenage daughters who acted and behaved the way that Miriam and Shoshana did. With the exception of locking a rival girl into the trunk of a car, and the mild profanity, I would not be ashamed to have 2 daughters that dealt with modern pressures the way these two characters did.

There lies the conflict. According to my friend, orthodox Jewish girls don't have to deal with the pressures of drugs, bulimia, or most other social ills that mainstream teenagers do.

This makes the Miriam and Shoshana video a harmless, albeit greatly exaggerated portrayal of modern teenage orthodox social condition.

As this video portrays orthodox teenage girls as having a small drug culture, and a moderate amount of social ills, I believe this video is moderately slanderous to the image of orthodox Jews.

As this video portrays its "protagonists" as orthodox Jewish girls who while high spirited, end up shunning drugs, shunning bulimia, and going home to their functional nuclear family sabbath, I feel this video flatters orthodox Jewry.

So this video is a clever and funny video, it is entertaining, however some of its entertainment value comes at the expense of breaking Jewish laws, and unfairly lampooning Orthodox teenage female Jewry.

I must somewhat decrease the level of my endorsement for this video, although I do feel it is still highly creative and funny.

I searched youtube.com for some clips of modern orthodox teens going about their lives and activities, but I didn't find any.

I wanted to post something very positive about orthodox Jewish teens that might offset the exaggerated portrayal of this cohort group by Miriam and Shoshana.

I didn't find anything to fit this description. However I did find a very positive video about the Maccabi Teen Olympic games that gives a very realistic view of young Jewish Athletes from America and the Globe. This video doesn't state their individual branch of Judaism. I believe the reader can make those judgements for himself if they are important at all.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=BwITd5-qy4E

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

A friend of mine has been reading the Miriam and Shoshana articles, and she is the lady who is mentioned above. Here is what she said in a recent email:

Okay so I read the article and here is what I think. First off let me explain that women cant sing in groups of I cant remember not four I think its more like ten to be honest and secondly I'm not sure where bulimia comes in to play. Jewish women I'm sure suffer from that as religion has nothing to do with body image or wanting to be thin so bad to attract the opposite sex. What I meant by Jews not singing or participating in activities like rap songs on the web is because orthodox Jews are supposed to separate themselves as to not give the outside world reason to criticize them. We are not supposed to give the "goyim" ammunition to use us as a scapegoat. "Oh look at those Jews, they make fun of women with bulimia and they make fun of people on drugs and the language they use is atrocious. We should all hate them." Judaism is about modesty and when you sing and use profanity it is not modest. This is not my opinion of the video though this is just what I think orthodox jews are thinking about it and that's why they have voiced an opinion of disapproval.

As this is an evolving essay, I thought I might also post an interesting article from The JewishJournal.com. You can see what they had to say about Miriam and Shoshana by clicking the next link.

http://www.jewishjournal.com/home/searchview.php?id=18479

The final position of Mikes Vacation on the Miriam and Shoshana music video is that while this video has elements that border on bad taste, and aren't appropriate for children, it ultimately does more good than harm in that it make people feel good by laughing and smiling.

Most American humor draws its punchline from "taboo" elements of our society. There is usually something abraisive, abusive, or sexual behind most jokes in America. The question is whether or not these "off color" jokes are motivated by hatred, or simple ribald style poor taste.

In the case of Miriam and Shoshana, the orthodox Jews are taking their turn in being the "butt" of the Joke, but on the same hand they are not hatefully portrayed, and their collective reputations are not being so damaged that intelligent person will not understand that this video is only intended to give a few laughs, not document the actual real world condition of an entire people.

This video makes people laugh and feel good, and that is solid gold these days, we as Americans need a few laughs, and as long as no one is credibly damaged, or hurt, then why not let the Orthdox take their turns every once in a while?

The rest of America and the world is all essentially accessible and agreeable to being made fun of once in a while, so why not the Orthodox Jews?

DEAR READERS /(reader)

2007-11-18T18:27:00.000-08:00

The thrust of my blog has turned from grinding out editorials on the subject of Belorussian politics to simply documenting my own personal life.

Every once in a while, I may elect to publish something related to world events, but basically I am tired of assailing everyone else's articles, (mostly crap that they were) and I am interested in telling my own story.

My attraction to studying Judaism was generated from an unlikely path. If you are a reader of the blog, you will see multiple references to Nazi/Communist/Socialist related topics.

I always wrote my objections to the holocaust from the point of view that the Jewish victims of the Third Reich were Soviet Citizens who happened to be Jewish.

My heart pained over the torment done to Soviets who were Jewish, rather than over Jews who lived in Eastern Europe. Maybe I was wrong to feel this way, but that is what I felt.

Maybe my essays are crap, and maybe some of them have a value, but for every one of them, I spent several/many hours of Internet surfing and reading and sub-collegiate researching.

During all of the above preparation for my Nazi/Soviet/Jewish essays I began to learn the basic tenets of the Jewish religion.

I had also worked in a Jewish health center a while back, and I have had some friends that were Jews also. But I never really had any desire to formally learn and study this religion until about 4-6 months ago.

I am a long way from being finally converted, and I probably make a lot of mistakes along the way, and there are people who are likely offended that I would desire to make this change in my life.

If I ever publish anything which is LEGITIMATELY INJURIOUS to Judaism, and I am aware of it, I would unpublish it and apologize for the same.

However, as I am entering a religion where there are many different groups who often criticize and scrutinize each other, I believe it is likely that I also will receive this same scrutiny.

There will be at any one moment between 1- millions of Jews who disapprove of what I do and say. I endeavor to listen to their complaints and adjust my actions and words if their arguments and complaints seem valid.

However I can't become ruffled and get my feelings hurt every time someone who happens to be Jewish criticizes me or my decision to convert.

Life is too short to let people splatter you with their mud. You have got to move forward and be the best man you can be and keep trying to open your heart to those decent to you and to your G_d.

As Mikes Vacation is not about censorship, those who wish to either compliment or criticize me are free to do so.

Its a little early to be promoting Hanukkah per se, but it is never too early to liven the mood up with Adam Sandler and his Hanukkah song!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=5Hmr5YOewww

I wish everyone Peace.

Mike Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

THE REAL MISTAKES IN IN LOVE

2007-11-10T12:17:00.000-08:00

A friend was reminding me of some of my poor choices in love and life that I have made in the past 20 or so years, not maliciously, but out of genuine curiosity.

I was a bit taken aback by the questions, and a little bit depressed by them, but rallied when I remembered my hard won maxim:

THE REAL MISTAKES IN LOVE THAT A MAN MAKES ARE NOT THE WOMEN HE MARRIES, BUT THE WOMEN HE DOESN'T.

MARRIAGES SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED DISPOSABLE, PEOPLE ARE NOT REPLACEABLE, HOWEVER IF A MARRIAGE DOESN'T WORK OUT IT CAN BE FIXED BY THROWING MONEY AT IT IN THE FORM OF A DIVORCE.

BUT IF YOU FAIL TO LOVE OR MARRY A WOMAN OF QUALITY, YOU CAN'T FIX THIS MISTAKE BY THROWING MONEY AT IT. YOU CAN'T TURN BACK THE CLOCK WITH CASH.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=x1X7hfx9BT0

http://youtube.com/watch?v=xlKpXFnwOSA&feature=related

http://youtube.com/watch?v=N_9QxAQLY6g&feature=related

Dear Readers, Mikes Vacation believes in love and in happy endings, however things just didn't turn out that way for our friend Emmet Ray, he finally lost Hatty for good, and when he tried to retreive her, she was happily married to another man, with a baby on the way. Emmet finally did become the greatest guitar player of all time, he finally played with real emotion, but he was never the same, and never loved again.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=9E6RPkM8Hg4&feature=related

May G-d forgive you Emett, you poor stupid bastard. (:

Mike Miller
Indy,
2007

ID LIKE TO DEFINE MYSELF A LITTLE BIT

2007-11-09T11:24:00.000-08:00

AS I AM ON THE CONVERSION ROAD, I FREQUENTLY SURF YOUTUBE FOR JEWISH CULTURE ITEMS.

WELL, I FOUND ONE.

I AM NOT SURE HOW I FOUND THIS, BUT I FOUND IT ALL RIGHT.

I WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT IT IS ABSOLUTELY HILARIOUS, AND MIRIAM AND SHOSHANA ARE SUPER COOL, AND ULTRA CLEVER, AND THEY ARE A CREDIT TO MODERN JEWISH HUMOR.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=8RJ-2FUz7xo
PEOPLE NEED TO BE ABLE TO LAUGH AT THEMSELVES A LITTLE BIT, AND THESE GIRLS HAVE CERTAINLY DONE THAT.

G_d bless Miriam and Shoshana for their wonderful sense of humor.
I personally adore this video, but my sentiments are not shared by this gentleman, you may agree with me, or him, or neither.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=scsihtJlZo4

Here is another attacker of this video, and again, perhaps you will find his arguments compelling against the video, I do not.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=OYXeF9uihvw

Like all religions, Judaism has many different points of conflict and agreement. The following two videos are not connected in any way with Miriam and Shoshana, however they represent methods of expression and conflict resolution not bonna fide by Mikes Vacation. Perhaps all the parties in the below two videos have good ideas, and maybe they all have something valid that should be listened to by the other party.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=7xBu3RpwIR0

http://youtube.com/watch?v=_KxsMad9eHM

Mikes Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

MY LIFE AS A JEW

2007-11-06T23:23:00.000-08:00

I have undertaken a life changing challenge and opportunity to convert to Judaism. I am happy with my life, and am pleased and at peace with the place my heart has gone.

I have made some nice Jewish friends, and have begun to follow weekly Pasha readings and am studying Talmud on my own. I would like to be in a Talmud study group, but so far I am not.

I haven't evolved to what kind of Jew I will be. Sometimes I think I will be Conservative, and sometimes I think I will be some kind of hybrid California Jew like Neil Diamond.

My sense of humor has improved, as I am often in many awkward and humorous positions relating to my conversion process.

Today I told the cook where I work that I would like to decline his offer of pork chops smothered in some kind of pecan glaze. He was disappointed until I explained that I was in conversion, and that while I am not living a completely Kosher life just yet, I am at least laying off the Treif animals.

Its funny,, I have yet until this moment neglected to thank even in my own mind the Rabbi who helped me in my fragile earliest days. His name is Arnold Bienstock. I talked with him several times, and when I asked him whether or not I was actually in conversion, or just in a curious stage, he told me that I was in fact, in conversion.

That was a very pivotal moment in my life and to have an actual Rabbi declare that I was in conversion somehow gave me the support that pushed me forward through a time that I could have lost energy and momentum.

I guess you are either in conversion or you are not, however there are people you meet who either hinder you or help you, and Rabbi Bienstock really gave me some energy when he declared that I was not just window shopping, but actually in the process of a conversion!

I feel good, and I am proud of the fact that I made this decision entirely of my own volition. There were no third parties pressuring, or manipulating me, or in any way altering my sense of direction.

I am at a cultural impasse regarding how to celebrate Christmas. I have had several friends tell me that as a Jew the Christmas holiday should be forever forgotten and put out of my life.

I have explained to them, that as I have never been any sort of Christian, I always have understood the holiday as a winter time yule holiday with absolutely no religious meaning to me whatsoever, so why then should I reject a perfectly good holiday just because I was converting to Judaism.

I have gotten several answers ranging from the mildly fanatical " Christmas celebrates the birthday of a man for whose death our people have been persecuted for 2 thousand years." To the more reasonable " when you convert to Judaism you promise to raise your future children as Jews, and exposing them to a full blown Christmas in your home will likely confuse them religiously about who they are."

I tend to agree with the second explanation of how Christmas should be viewed. I do plan to have children, and I will raise them as Jews, and I certainly don't want them confused. So while a little yule time cheer, and few catchy songs, and some lights and a few presents and a tree wouldn't confuse or injure me per se, at the point when I have children, I need to cut out all the Christmas propaganda, and keep a Jewish home uncomplicated religiously for the sake of the kids. This I understand.

I always felt the myth of Jesus was less credible than Santa Clause himself, and I have NEVER had any belief or emotional tie to Christianity, but I don't have a heart made of coal, so I always enjoyed our American Santa oriented winter holiday, and frankly, I really like this holiday.

So, I have cut out the Treif animals, I still look forward to Christmas, and I am eagerly studying Talmud. Life is strange and wonderful.

By the way, in my quest for many things Jewish, I ran across a most elegant version of Hava Nagila sung by Harry Belafonte! This song is decorated by someones family slides of their kids and thier wedding, and their lives are most festive! :)

Please click on the link below and enjoy!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=tvDQZH2VWhc
On my private road to conversion,

Mike Miller
Indiana, 2007

THE AUSCHWITZ ALBUM

2007-09-27T21:15:00.000-07:00

Maybe this photo album will help identify some Nazis still in hiding.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7011371.stm

But just as important as the Auschwitz players themselves, is the MACHINE THAT ENGINEERED AND CARRIED OUT THE PRECURSORS TO THE GENOCIDE.

I have said it once and I will say it again, without the PRECURSORS to the Nazi and Imperial Japanese genocides, these two countries would have simply carried out brutal and extremely heavy handed occupations.

From what I can tell it takes about 10 years of brutality training and hate mongering to produce a country , or a legion of men that are hateful and callous enough to kill en mass in a genocide mode. This is about the amount of time the Nazis and the Imperial Japanese spent grooming their soldiers and their populations to be capable of genocide.

This is what I call the "precursors to genocide."

A normal man or woman will cry and be destroyed by the mere TV image of a fictional murder. As Americans we are de-sensitized to these violent acts, and we almost need them in our media consumption menu to feel fulfilled and normal.

However, this is not a natural state of humanity. A natural human will cry at the sight of a murder, or of a violent act. This instinct has to be trained out of the human animal. To a certain extent this de-sensitization is good, we can't all go around crying at every violent thing we see, and our soldiers can't be full of tears in battle.

But the Nazis and the Imperial Japanese implemented the "precursor elements" to their individual genocides up to 15 years before the events themselves. This is why as a civilization, we need to identify THE PRECURSOR EVENTS TO A GENOCIDE for the purpose of seeing one coming down the road before it arrives.

The Auschwitz album will be telling, however, I am moderately concerned that Anti-Semitic holocaust revisionists may somehow use this as a propaganda tool citing the relaxed poses of the SS. If these relaxed and happy poses of the SS are interpreted to mean they did not witness horror every day, then this will impeach the actual historic facts of the event.

The album is interpreted to mean that these SS were so hateful and so callous that they were able to relax at the end of the day in spite of their crimes, then this will assist history to validate their individual inhumanities. Individual facts surrounding the Holocaust are dangerous to the memory of the murdered because if new facts are discovered that impeach long standing beliefs, then there is a tendency on the part of those wanting to turn away from the awful nature of the holocaust to do so.

For example, if the gas chambers in Auschwitz are not in their original condition, or if they show tampering or re-engineering, it could be hatefully argued that the volume of the murder victims is actually less than the historic maxims.

The fact is that a giant number of persons were murdered by the Japanese and Germans, and whether the publicized numbers are over or under the actual numbers by any percentage doesn't detract from the nature of the crime.

The crime wasn't that only that 4 or 6 million Jews were murdered, or that they died awfully, the crime was also that such a large amount of human destruction was wrought that it will be impossible to absolutely calculate and name the victims and their methods of death and disposal.

There is a man posting on youtube.com named DAVID COLE JEWISH TRUTH SEEKER. http://youtube.com/watch?v=2Y_zdhH6dEo

He has about 100 minutes of youtube footage where he is attempting to subvert the magnitude of the holocaust.

I have watched enough of him to understand that he is neither Jewish, nor a truth seeker. I have a feeling his movies on youtube are sponsored by a country, or entity.

His arguments while somewhat well engineered, are clearly not the arguments of a 20 something disenfranchised Jewish homosexual. Which, if he is Jewish, he is likely a queer from what I can tell.

His voice has been replaced by some kind of a robot, which leads me to believe the writers and producers of the David Cole series aren't even able to speak English fluently enough to make a film. David Cole, appears to have olive skin, and dark hair, but his facial features are not distinct enough for him to "look Jewish", if I may be so plebeian. There is nothing classically Ashkenazi or Sephardic about him that I could absolutely discern from the youtube footage.

Another words, he could have rode to Auschwitz on a camel. Or he could have died his blond hair black.

Anyway, the David Cole series is obviously sponsored by either a Nazi or Arabian/Persian anti-Semitic group.

The dialogue and production and organization are far too sophisticated to have been produced by a 20 something angry kid as the film vaguely hints Cole is.

As you know, I am good at constructing and deconstructing arguments. And the arguments made in the David Cole series are very well engineered to attack the validity of the crimes at Auschwitz in the minds of an impressionable audience.

I am only interested in understanding what entity has sponsored "David". I am also interested in understanding the techniques of very polished anti-Semitic holocaust revisionists. David Cole, or Iran, or the American Nazi party, or whoever is actually sponsoring the David Cole series, is obviously comprised of some very clever writers and debaters.

As you know, I am essentially fooled by nothing , or at least very little. But like I said, this kind of hateful revisionism is important because there are a percentage of people who don't think on a very high level, and they are susceptible to having their minds twisted. And they will warp the ideas of their children by imparting "the spirit" of David Cole's message to them, and in some small measure the victims of the third Reich will be injured just a little more in that their memories are revered just a little less.

David Cole bullshit is out there, and he/they/them are the types of people/countries/organizations that would try to misuse/abuse the new Auschwitz Nazi photos for their own benefits.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

IRANIAN PRESIDENT SHOULD NOT VISIT GROUND ZERO

2007-09-23T15:20:00.000-07:00

Mikes Vacation supports the decision by New York City officials to deny the Iranian President his request to lay a wreath at Ground Zero.

Mikes Vacation believes that the Iranian President had no personal culpability for the attacks on September 11, 2002, however it is my belief that the parties ultimately guilty for these attacks, would view his arrival at this site as some kind of triumph, and this wrongly perceived "triumph" would only serve to bolster their confidence and possibly inspire their strength and possibly aid future attacks against Americans.

The Iranian President has made a sincere request, and Mikes Vacation believes he would arrive at ground zero with a feeling of sorrow and solemnity in his heart for those lost on 9/11.

His request was sincere and legitimate, made for the purpose of showing respect to those who were murdered.

However, his personal security simply can not be assured by New York City officials as there are literally thousands of New Yorkers who might believe he is somehow mocking the dead, or that he had somehow played a part in the tragic deaths of their loved ones.

It is in the nature of the dead and grieving to not always think logically, and to want to take revenge on those they believe could "possibly" be somewhat responsible for their loved ones loss.

It would be reasonable and understandable for a New Yorker with a broken heart to attempt to assassinate the Iranian President at the ground zero memorial. It would not be difficult for one or even several persons to attempt to shoot the Iranian President with a hunting or sniper rifle from a nearby building. This would be easy for them to do, and difficult for the New York City officials to prevent. This same attack would become an international incident, and it would have long standing and terrible repercussions for New York City, and for Americans in general, and obviously for American Soldiers already under fire in Iraq and Afghanistan.

The Iranian President has made a reasonable request that cannot be reasonably granted by the City of New York.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20942057/

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

THE IRONY OF BASHING ANTI-WAR MONGERS

2007-09-19T05:30:00.000-07:00

Americans have forgotten a few important things about supporting wars and supporting soldiers.

Firstly, there is an important distinction between supporting a war and supporting a soldier. At the onset of our current War Crime Fiasco in Iraq, there was a lot of political sloganing about supporting soldiers under the main guise of not letting our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan face some of the "nasty anti-soldier sentiment" that faced returning soldiers from Vietnam.

This was George Bush's attempt to gain support for an invasion of Iraq by confusing Americans into thinking that by blindly supporting this current war we could somehow undo some of the negative experiences experienced by soldiers returning from Vietnam.

There was an uneasy feeling in the air in America that if you didn't somehow endorse a criminal invasion of Iraq, then you agreed to spitting on Vietnam vets and calling them "baby killers".

A giant part of America fell for this sham.

Before we look at the current war in Iraq, lets take a second look at the war and anti-war movement surrounding the Vietnam war.

Most men can agree with the standard definition of a "hero" as a man who charges a machine gun nest, or throws himself on a grenade to save his buddies. A hero could be a soldier or a Marine who shows no fear in the face of the enemy and rallies his friends in the field to extraordinary acts of courage and "saves the day". I agree with these standard images of what defines a "hero" . A hero is a man who uses unusual bravery and personal energy to cause more of his buddies to survive a war and come home to their families, often through personal sacrifice, or death. Heroes deserve medals, heroes save lives.

However, I think it is time to expand our idea of what defines a "hero of the Vietnam era." I think it is time to expand our minds on what or who actually saved lives in the Vietnam war.

As stated above, heroes come in a military form, but what about persons not in the military. Can they be considered "heroes" also? If the definition of a "hero" "a man who uses unusual bravery or personal energy to cause more of his buddies/fellow citizens to come home alive, often through personal sacrifice or death, then is a peach demonstrator of the Vietnam era a "hero" also.

A peace demonstrator, a hippie, a flower child, or whatever you call them didn't jump on any grenades, they didn't stand up against any machine gun fire. They didn't see anyone die in their arms. They bear no mental scars of witnessing a violent disaster every day. They don't wake up crying, or suddenly remember their hearts are still broken over their teenage friends that died in Vietnam.

How can a hippie, a flower child, or a peace demonstrator be mentioned on the same page as a "hero" , a real traditional hero from the Vietnam era?

The answer is that our mainstream political machine was in no hurry to bring our troops home from Vietnam. If it were up to them, we would probably still be there, still bleeding, and still dying. It was largely from INTENSE domestic political pressure did our government feel the need to pull our soldiers from Vietnam. Every day that the Vietnam war ended early SAVED LIVES!!

The Vietnam war was a difficult war to fight because our enemy used non-traditional methods of attack such as putting bombs on kids and having them run up to soldiers. Our soldiers were faced with the horrible task of sometimes firing at kids they suspected of carrying bombs. Sometimes our soldiers were correct, and sometimes they made mistakes. Our soldiers were ordered to raid villages at night, forced to fire into the darkness to kill an enemy before they could fire their weapons. Sometimes enemies were killed, sometimes Vietnamese civilians were killed. This was a dirty and heartbreaking war for our often teenage soldiers tasked to fight it. There was no clean or good way for our soldiers to survive the Vietnam war. They did exactly what the soldiers of any land would have done in their position.

Our bombers targeted enemy villages, sometimes they killed enemies, sometimes they killed innocent civilians, and sometimes both.

Returning soldiers from Vietnam were sometimes "spit upon" and sometimes called "baby killer". These same soldiers had recently come home after being in deadly jungle combat only days or weeks ago. Our country was not prepared to mend the psychological wounds of very young men who had recently been in terrible situations.

Our media and popular culture has confused a Vietnam era "peace protester" with the same kind of insensive ignorant clod who would "spit on" or yell "baby killer" at a returning veteran.

Our modern culture feels terrible about the lack of attention and the mistreatment of our Vietnam era veterans. And we should feel terrible about many aspects of their treatment.

However, modern culture has incorrectly lumped "peace protesters" and "anti-war mongers" together with the clods whose treatment of our returning Vietnam era vets have become some kind of a "hateful congealed mirage" that represents "all peace activist" and "all anti-war protesters".

This confusion on the part of modern America opened up a giant opportunity for the Bush war machine to "shame America" into not organizing an effective "anti-war machine" to resist his criminal actions in Iraq.

The idea that America shouldn't spit on or harass its returning soldiers is correct. The idea that protesting a war isn't helpful in saving soldiers lives is not correct. These are two completely different genre's of thought and action.

The irony of bashing , even subtly our countries anti - war mongers, or peace protesters is that they are partially responsible for saving the lives of our soldiers in Vietnam.

It is correct for Americans to be repulsed at the image of some drunken hippies yelling "baby killer" at a lonely Vietnam vet when he steps off the greyhound bus trying to get home to his mother. This is a sad and troubling image.

It is also correct to be similarly repulsed at the idea of some clod yelling "babykiller" at some guy in a small military parade when he returns home from "surving" in Vietnam.

However, it is Ironic and sickening that our own draft dodging President Bush should enjoy enjoy his war crime fiasco being protected by a morphed image of these jerks abusing vietnam era vets, and legitimate peace protesters of the same period.

Bush has piggybacked our country's shameful treatment of Vietnam era vets into a shield protecting his war crime.

This is Ironic because legitimate peace protesters in the Vietnam era saved lives in no small measure, and modern war protesters are saving lives in a similar fasion.

So when the Bush machine is denying the validity of an anti-war protester, he his denying life and survival to a certain number of soldiers currently in Iraq.

Michael Miller

WERE WE EVER REALLY THIS YOUNG?

2007-08-09T11:19:00.001-07:00

HOW DID WE GET FROM POINT A TO POINT B

2007-08-09T09:41:00.000-07:00

HOW DID WE EVER GET SO FAR? HOW DID WE GO FROM HAVING BEAUTIFUL BULDINGS IN NEW YORK, TO HAVING THE LARGEST TWO BURNED TO THE GROUND BY MONSTERS?

HOW DID IRAQ GO FROM BEING A SECULAR AND FUNCTIONING STATE THAT ESSENTIALLY DIDN'T LIKE US, TO A PLACE WHERE NO AMERICAN WILL SAFELY ENTER FOR DECADES?

WHO IS AT FAULT, A PUPPET, OR HIS MASTER?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bXzMt2QarrM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKB4UMdwvZI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXw53yJc0Hc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R29YqCf1E3A&NR=1

MICHAEL MILLER
INDIANAPOLIS
2007

JAPANESE MOURN OVER AMERICAN ATOMIC BOMBS

2007-08-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

IT WAS A HORRIFIC DECISION TO USE ATOMIC BOMBS ON HIROSHIMA AND NAKASAKI.

SOME PEOPLE FEEL IT WAS MILITARILY NECCESSARY TO WIN JAPANESE UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER, OTHERS FEEL IT WAS SIMPLY CRUELTY ON THE PART OF TRUMAN AND THE US WAR MACHINE.

SOME PEOPLE FEEL THAT AMERICA USED THESE WEAPONS TO SOMEHOW PREVENT THE COMMUNISTS FROM TAKING OVER JAPAN AFTER WW2. THEIR THEORY IS THAT IF CONVENTINAL METHODS WERE TO HAVE BEEN USED, THEN THIS WOULD HAVE GIVEN THE SOVIETS TIME TO TAKE PART IN A JAPANESE INVASION, AND THUS GIVE THEM ENOUGH INFLUENCE IN THE COUNTRY TO STEER IT TO SOVIET SOCIALISM.

MIKES VACATION BELIEVES DROPPING THE A-BOMBS ON JAPAN WAS THE CORRECT DECISION. THIS DECISION SAVED AMERICAN AND JAPANESE LIVES.

MIKES VACATION ALSO BELIEVES THAT LEIGONS OF JAPANESE WAR CRIMINALS WENT UNPUNISHED, BECAUSE TO DO SO WOULD HAVE POSTPONED JAPANESE RE-CONSTRUCTION SUFFICIENTLY LONG ENOUGH FOR THE SOVIETS TO GRAPPLE FOR INFLUENCE ON THE ISLAND. EMPEROR HIROHITO SHOULD HAVE BEEN PUBLICLY EXCECUTED. THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN THE CORRECT DECISION. THIS WOULD ALSO HAVE REDUCED AMERICAN INFLUENCE ON THE ISLAND. IT WAS A MISTAKE TO ALLOW SO MANY JAPANESE WAR CRIMINALS TO GO UNPUNISHED FOR THE SAKE OF REGIONAL INFLUENCE.

this link features iris chang, author of "the rape of nanking"
http://youtube.com/watch?v=V8fzbUoQdio
this link is an interview with Aussie harry leslie, pow held by the japanese
http://youtube.com/watch?v=bBsryUaH-ps
this link is of the japanese mourning us atomic bombs
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20190749/

MIKE MILLER
INDIANAPOLIS,
2007

TORTURE AS DESCRIBED BY WIKIPEDIA

2007-08-09T06:38:00.000-07:00

AMERICANS MUST BEGIN TO ORGANIZE FOR THE PURPOSE OF NOT ALLOWING OUR WAR CRIMINALS TO GO UNPUNISHED.

EXECUTING AND TORTURING POWS, PARTISANS, AND ENEMY CIVILIANS DEFIES THE SPIRIT OF AMERICAN AND GLOBAL HUMANITY.

WW2 ERA NAZI WAR CRIMINALS BELIEVED THAT BECAUSE THERE WAS NO LAW AGAINST THEIR CRIMES, THEY WERE LEGAL AND WOULD GO UNPUNISHED.

THE EUROPEAN VICTIMS OF NAZI GERMANY HAVE LITTLE TO CONSOLE THEMSELVES WITH, EXCEPT THAT PRECEDENTS WERE ESTABLISHED DURING THE NURNBERG WAR CRIMES TRIALS PROVIDING FOR WAR CRIMES TO BE FOREVER PROSECUTED AND PUNISHED.

THE NAZIS COULD NOT PASS LAWS IN GERMANY LEGALIZING WHAT THEY WOULD DO TO THEIR VICTIMS IN EUROPE. NO MAN CAN LEGALIZE A WAR CRIME OR A CRIME AGAINST HUMANITY.

WASHINGTON'S LEGALIZATION OF TORTURE AND OF WAGING WAR UPON NATIONS AT PEACE, CAN NOT BE BONNA FIDE HERE OR GLOBALLY. WASHINGTON CAN NOT LEGALIZE WHAT BY NATURE CAN NEVER BE FORGIVEN, OR PARDONED.

AMERICANS NEED TO BEGIN DEVELOPING METHODS FOR THE PROSECUTION OF OUR WAR CRIMINALS, WE NEED TO PROVIDE FOR SEVERE PUNISHMENT TO THOSE WHO WILL DESTROY EVIDENCE OF THESE CRIMES OR OBSTRUCT THEIR PROSECUTION.

MIKES VACATION IS FULLY AWARE THAT MANY CITIZENS OF IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN ARE GUILTY OF WAR CRIMES AND CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY. THESE MEN SHOULD BE TRIED AND PUNISHED BY THE VERY SAME MACHINE THAT SHOULD BE USED AGAINST OUR OWN WAR CRIMINALS.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Torture

HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN COMPUTER

2007-08-06T07:26:00.000-07:00

THIS IS A GREAT 5 PART SERIES ON HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN COMPUTER.
Enjoy, Mike Miller

http://youtube.com/watch?v=z8KVF0EPSQQ&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=xTmgSCxdZ48&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=POMkeUekTfE&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=43g2FPvPwNg&mode=related&search=

http://youtube.com/watch?v=I52Ys2QLq6c&mode=related&search=

READERS PLEASE FORGIVE ME

2007-08-05T20:41:00.000-07:00

Dear Readers, There was always something that bothered me about Mr. Krol, I just couldn't put it into words, and I still can't.

http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/pix/amb/portraits/eur/24564.htm

http://images.google.com/images?q=reinhard+heydrich+photos&hl=en&um=1&sa=X&oi=images&ct=title

Ambassador Krol’s home state is New Jersey. He attended St. Peter’s Preparatory School in Jersey City, New Jersey

This sentence is taken from section 7 of the below document "Between 1948 and 1950 over 200 Belorussian Nazis arrived to South River, NJ with their families.

http://www.geocities.com/dudar2000/Bcc.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_A._Krol

The highest ranking Belorussian Nazi of WW2 was Radislaw Ostrowski, he was brought to America with the hopes he might assist with the overthrow of the Soviet Union. He lived to a ripe old age and is buried in New Jersey. I am very curious if there is some connection between Ostrowski, and the good Mr. Krol. I am not sure what the connection could be. Perhaps Mr. Krol knew of him, and was ashamed of his presence in America. I find it very odd that the American Ambassador to Belarus would not be aware that New Jersey was full of Belorussian Nazis or their children and grandchildren. So, if Mr. Krol was aware of this problem, why did he do nothing to see these monsters deported to Justice in Belarus?

http://encycl.opentopia.com/term/Radasłaŭ_Astroŭski

As long as we are discussing Embassy related issues, can anyone please explain to me just exactly why the U.S. embassy in Belarus is translatable into Belorussian and not RUSSIAN.

According to recent election polls, most Lukashenka supporting people in Belarus speak RUSSIAN. Lukashenka's opposition is skilled with Belorussian. So perhaps the U.S. embassy in Minsk only wants their rhetoric understandable by those that speak Belorussian. Perhaps the U.S. Embassy has posted things on its web site that are so ludicrous that if the majority of the Belorussian public were to understand their accurately translated meanings, the State Department and its "DIPLOMATIC MISSION" to Belarus would be embarrassed beyond timely repair? ! ? .
http://belarus.usembassy.gov/index.html

Dear readers, I got the following message from my long time friend and fellow Belarus advocate Adam Goodman of the BEINGHAD.COM web page and blog. Adam responded " Interesting post and there are some good links but I am not sure why you make the connection between the current ambassador and a dead Nazi collaborator.

Adam, There is no actual connection, there is a physical similarity, at least according to the photos. The Ex-Ambassador had been subverting Belarus by attacking Lukashenka. But frankly, there are the gnawing facts about all those (200) Nazi's settling in Jersey. I just have a real suspicion that American Belorussian Diaspora is corner stoned and led by either the original Belorussian Nazis that settled here, if they are still alive and viable, or their children. And I while I have no evidence of this, I feel that these same groups play a heavy lobbying/bribing role in seeing to the appointment of Ambassadors to Belarus that will serve their interest, and for that matter these same groups likely play an impactful steering role in SETTING what the mission of the state dept to Belarus actually is. You can see this same phenomenon in a more open fashion when you observe the effects that the Cuban exiles living in Florida have on current U.S. policies towards Cuba. Obviously the Belorussian Americans have some other things to consider, like potential deportation for war crimes etc. These looming threats likely keeps them from being as vocal and outrageous as the Cuban diaspora in Florida. However, the current Belorussian Diaspora probably would like to make financial claims against property and or business currently located and operating in Belarus. These claims would be fruitless unless a pro-capitalist/anti -communist leader and government were installed in Belarus. I feel that the extreme physical similarities between Krol and Reinhard Heydrich serve to promote an abstract and imaginative examination on the part of the reader of the facts of the case surrounding the real motivations of what our "diplomatic mission " actually is in Belarus. I also find the physical similarities downright creepy.

Michael Miller

Indianapolis, 2007

COME AND SEE

2007-08-04T15:21:00.000-07:00

As you are aware, I am a big fan of Belarus, and of Soviet and Partisan triumphs during WW2 / The Patriotic War.

I found this incredible movie on youtube.com. Parts of it are dubbed into English, but from what I can tell it is the story of a boy who joins the Belorussian Partisans in their fight against the Germans of WW2.

I recommend that you visit this web page prior to viewing COME AND SEE. This page is the Belorussian government's official Katyn web page. This page will be self explanatory.

http://www.khatyn.by/en/about/

This film has great acting, great costumes, it is shot on location in Belarus, and is very relevant to my prior Jerzy Kosinski blog because the forested area and topography of this film is very likely exactly and precisely the type of area, if not near the exact setting of Kosinski's story The Painted Bird.

This film is highly relevant on its own accord, and I only mention its connection to The Painted Bird in that a reader and interested party of the Painted Bird can now see some very realistic costumes, sets, and topography of almost, if not EXACTLY the area that Kosinski was describing in his book.

This may be a little bit confusing to the reader, however Kosinski's book is very likely "docu-fiction" . The book is a combination of his lifes events, historical accuracies of the period, cultural markers, and plain fictionalizations on his part. If The Painted Bird were to be accepted as an accurate biography of Kosinski's ww2 experiences as a child in Poland, then it very likely took place on parts of what is now Belarusian territory. According to Kosinski, he was sent to the country on a dark adventure, that according to him, was represented in his book. Therefore, with the reference to a giant marsh land, and the fact he was sent away from the Nazis, or east, he would have been describing the marshes and forests inside the borders of present day Belarus. Portions of pre-WW2 Poland were incorporated into what are the modern borders of Belarus.(remember the yalta conference of 1945). Kosinski referred in his book to persons who spoke a dialect variant from the standard Warsaw Polish of the day. This dialect could very well have been a forest version of Polish, or it could have been a forest version of Belarusian. It is possible that these language dialects were intermingled in some regions of the deep forest on the border of what was pre-war Poland and pre-war Belarus.

If the reader of The Painted Bird chooses to accept this book as "docu-fiction" , then this book could have been set in multiple rural areas to include rural Poland, rural Belarus, Rural russia and Rural Ukraine. That is to say the peasant lives described took could have taken place in these countries. Some chapters of The Painted Bird specificly are set in Warsaw by name. One of the topographical clues as to the books setting, regardless of how you classify it is that the book describes of course thick forest, but also large marsh and swamp type areas. Modern Belarus has within its borders an area called the Pripyat Marshes, however these same marshes cross into parts of the Ukraine as well. Infact parts of pre-war Poland were close to these same marsh type areas.

The book largly describes wartime life for peasants living in an isolated and backwards slavic community. ( i am sorry if you are offended at this point, i acknowledge that many polish persons are offended over how Kosinski choose to portray them in his book, i choose to accept his book as "docu-fiction" and accept that there may be portions of the peasants characters and habits that are either under represented by Kosinski, or exaggerated for the sake of drama. ) There are not enough cultural or historic markers in the book to absolutely identify the peasants as being either easter slavic or western slavic.

come and see 1 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=RfQWxoJYwwY&mode=related&search

=come and see 2 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=0hMCKQDdLps&mode=related&search

=come and see 3 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=YXn0oSBv0Dg&mode=related&search

=come and see 4 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=qOvyR97n3Pc&mode=related&search

=come and see 5 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=RpbiuTr3lCw&mode=related&search

=come and see 6 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=38lQjdLajVU&mode=related&search

=come and see 7 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=S1PVbczaIJ8

come and see 8 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=WcO4lmhTDrE&mode=related&search

=come and see 9 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=SCMoVQQHoOc&mode=related&search

=come and see 10 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=NsSfRRRcxK4&mode=related&search

=come and see 11 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=ZxQEK8EQKTs&mode=related&search

=come and see 12 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=Vbzblw3MF6w&mode=related&search=

=come and see 13 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=scjUVBFjhlQ&mode=related&search

=come and see 14 of 14http://youtube.com/watch?v=c6P9P8VmB9k&mode=related&search=

http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/cteq/02/20/come.html http://www.smart-popcorn.com/reviews/595/http://movies.go.com/come-and-see/d810426/foreign

The men that made this film obviously put their hearts and souls into its creation. Thank you for taking the time to watching this film via my blog and for being patient with my likely imperfect viewpoints published in this essay.

Mike Miller
Indianapolis
2007

THE PAINTED BIRD POSTULATE

2007-08-04T14:11:00.000-07:00

If a man is either a Jew or a Gypsy, a Pole, a German, a Russian, a Belorussian, or a Ukrainian,

If a man is not clearly a member of these groups, but he has powerful emotions towards them, such as love or hate......

He must at some point in his life, willingly let his emotional guard down, and take this little boy by the hand and walk with him through his journey....

This same man must bravely keep his eyes open and his primary innocence unguarded,,, if he is able....

After this same experience is over,,, if it ever really is....

This same man must return to his own real world and undertake a logical and scholarly examination of the actual and true life of Jerzy Kosinski,, his failures and triumphs,,,

And after all this is over and done.......This man must attempt to be an excellent citizen of the world....

I could describe and critique the links below, but if you are a Jerzy Kosinski fan, then you will simply want to watch every one of them. They are all relevant to Kosinski's life and his impact on the modern and future world.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

http://youtube.com/watch?v=q0Mf9_CejQ8
http://youtube.com/watch?v=ytvTcWeGa0M&mode=related&search=
http://youtube.com/watch?v=IvcAnv89CRY
http://youtube.com/watch?v=raidKJDNoIM
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3m0eZP07_rE
http://www.wtamu.edu/academic/fah/eng/wc/jk.htm
http://www.geocities.com/~cheshyre/kosinski.htm
http://www.leaderu.com/ftissues/ft9610/myers.html

CUBAS HEALTH CARE SYSTEM

2007-08-04T11:13:00.000-07:00

Cuba's health care system has been widely discussed lately. It is very apparent that the Cuban state apparatus has gone to much time and trouble to engineer and construct conditions that support health care for its population that represents a fair and conscientious use of available resources.

No one can pretend that Cuba's health care system can be perfect, or that all is rosy in every hospital bed in Havana.

However, the Cuban people are currently enjoying the benefits of many decades of doctor cultivation and the affiliated medical education mechanisms that have produced them.

Cubans should be applauded for having something of value to sell or trade, IE parts of their health care system. Cuba and Venezuela are currently bartering doctors for oil and both parties are better off for this arrangement.

I find it troubling and embarrassing that a representative of the United States would have the unmitigated gall to attempt to invalidate the legitimacy of such a barter.

The United States would cry if weapons were being sold or traded between our adversaries, our officials would find some method to impeach a trade in air or sand also. But when such benign resources such as raw oil and medical services are being traded, shouldn't this be encouraged, or at least not insulted?

The Cuban people would do well to not only embrace current sanctions against their small country, but themselves propose further sanctions at the United Nations. It appears that parts of Cuba have flourished without U.S. approval and intervention. Perhaps given more time, and less dependency on U.S. approval than is needed today, they Cubans will reach future goals that seem impossible today.

The United States has many escaped and expatriated Cubans living in Florida , and there is a strong anti -Castro political lobby active in Washington.

The Cubans living in Cuba don't have the benefit of the same lobbying apparatus, so their opinions and voices are unheard to the U.S. public and our leaders.

Education costs money, the Cubans have been investing in an educated public for many years and to deny them the benefits of their labors is ludicrous.

Mikes Vacation applauds the efforts that have produced such positive results for the Cuban people in spite of the economic rival ism they have endured from the United States.

If I wanted to have my appendix taken out and I had the choice of a major U.S. hospital, and a Havana hospital I would choose America.

If I wanted to have any complex and life threatening ailment treated, I would prefer to be in America instead of Havana.

However, if I was a random citizen in Mexico, the Caribbean, central or south America with all the resources a randomly selected citizen would have, and I had to choose between being treated in Havana, or through whatever health system is available to my same random self, I would ABSOLUTELY choose Havana, and be grateful and happy for the ability to do so.

Here is an interesting video hosted from youtube.com that discusses and describes some positive aspects of the Cuban health system. This video does not describe the negative aspects that an intelligent person can guess are there. However, you can deduce from this video that there have been positive and worthy achievements made in Cuba in the area of health care.

This video has poor sound editing, however the sound is crisp and understandable. The graphics are good.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8ms8emcoWZM

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

FARANGS IN THAILAND NEED TO ORGANIZE

2007-08-04T08:53:00.000-07:00

The Thais on some level are going to need to decide just exactly whom are their friends, the farangs who live there and visit, or the outside interests attacking these same farangs.

It is sad but true that here in America out government is influenced largely by special interest groups, and often these same groups have their power not because they represent a large portion of the population, but they are simply well funded, well organized and have had time to make political contacts in Washington.

I believe that the Thai visa revision rules that followed the Karr arrest are connected to this same phenomenon.

Farangs visiting and living in Thailand contribute outrageous amounts of money and positive influence to Thailand, but so far only their financial contribution to the economy is recognized.

Regardless of the sexual politics of western farangs visiting Thailand, they represent an upper class element of their own countries society.

International travelers as a whole are persons who have jobs, education, and preserved assets sufficient for the same travel. Therefore they almost always bear the markers of being of an upper element of their home countries.

As Thailand is full of western tourists and residents, Thailand benefits not just from the money spent by these people, and it is probably billions , but they receive untold cultural advantages also.

Thailand receives the benefit of their "average in country education level" being lifted by the addition of these same western minds.

While it is true many westerners are only on vacation in Thailand and are not attempting to contribute to the "brain trust" of the country, they actually do .

When a westerner takes a bath in the morning, and brushes his teeth and goes out on the street and buys a newspaper, or politely buys breakfast somewhere, he has contributed to the overall literacy and decency of the environment around him.

If a westerner is sitting in a beer bar and is trying to describe to a bar girl about his life in New York or London, for a few moments that same country girl is getting a culture lesson from a patient teacher that she would no doubt not get picking rick back in Issan.

Western Farangs as a group are a random composite of characters, but even in our most humble moments, we are adding to the socio-cultural "futurism" of Thailand.

Western Farangs are frequently legitimately nice people, and attempt Thai style politeness and diplomacy in their daily dealings not because they are trying to avoid a mugging, but because they are seriously interested in not talking down to the locals, and learning about their culture and getting along with them.

Anyone who discounts the cultural contribution made by Western Farangs in Thailand on holiday simply isn't considering factors that are abstract, and difficult to observe on a spread sheet.

As a group, we farangs should not consider ourselves superior to the Thais, but we need to collectively recognize that we are positively adding an upper class western feel to this place, even if it is given in the form of single men on holiday unwinding from their daily stress.

The western man has been talked down to enough by "moralizing special interest groups" in America and elsewhere.

We need to recognize ourselves as a legitimate demographic, and put down our beers long enough to come up with a plan for our own equitable treatment while we are residents, or on holiday in LOS.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=MQcJGcMCg8E

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

AMERICANS NEED TO VIEW OFFICIAL COMPLAINTS FROM TERRORISTS

2007-08-02T18:23:00.000-07:00

The United States of America is involved in a very new form of war fighting.

We have recently been involved in fighting on 2 distinct battle zones, these being Iraq, and Afghanistan.

We have been fighting against traditional standing armies, these being the Army of the late Sadam Hussein, and the army of the now out of power Taliban government.

We have sent our military to engage two distinctly different enemies. Saddam Hussein was not friendly with the Taliban of Afghanistan, and they represented two distinctly different cultures, and two distinctly different versions of Islamic religious interpretation.

Secondary to our to our conventional military opponents of Saddam Hussein's Iraq, and the Talibans Army, we have been engaged in fighting against many different groups of people whom our government has labeled "Terrorists". Our government has not publicized its definition of exactly what a "terrorist" is.

Mikes Vacation defines a "terrorist" as one man, or a group of men who attack non military affiliated civilians, or soldiers at peace, for the purpose of intimidating the countrymen of the victim into changing the way they think, vote, or behave. This same intimidation could also be directed at any non military affiliated civilians, or soldiers at peace in any country. The measurement tool to be met by a "terrorist" is that intimidation of a non-war fighter is his goal.

It is the view of Mikes Vacation that the military attack against the Taliban government of Afghanistan was legal, and warranted because they harbored persons/terrorists/al quaida/osama bin laden who were very likely guilty, if not absolutely guilty in the murder of those civilians in New York, and those passengers that crashed in Pennsylvania on 9/11.

It is also the view of Mikes Vacation that the military and civilian persons who died at the Pentagon were at a state of "peace" with Al Quaeda as Al Quaeda had not publicized a formal declaration of war against the United States government. The United States government had not published a formal declaration of war against Al Quaida at this time either. Therefore the Pentagon victims also were victims of "terrorism".

These same acts of "terrorism" against the victims involved in this case were "crimes against humanity" as they were savage murders of large civilian populations or soldiers at peace.

The question remains to be debated as to whether the acts of 9/11 could be labeled as "war crimes". War crimes are by definition crimes committed during a state of war. If it could be shown at some time that a "state of war" had been declared openly by either the United States or Al Quaida before the 9/11 attacks, then the non-military civilian deaths could be labeled as war crimes also. However, as I have stated, if the events of 9/11 were fairly war crimes, then they could not have been terrorist acts also.

Mikes Vacation does not believe that the events of 9/11 could be simultaneously war crimes, and acts of terrorism. Although it is obvious that these events constituted crimes against humanity due to the large civilian population that perished as a result of the same.

The United States government should not be held liable for a precision or perfect or humane attack upon the Taliban government of Afghanistan. The Taliban should of kept Osama Bin Laden and Al Quaida under control if they were going to provide them with shelter, or hospitality, or sanctuary. As Al Quaida was living in the house of the Taliban, the Taliban bears responsibility for their guests.

The attack upon Sadam Hussein and his government is another different matter. Hussein was never any friend of the Taliban, or Al Quaida, and while he is no innocent party, he was hardly culpable in the events of 9/11.

The U.S. attack and invasion of Iraq was a criminal and poorly construed idea, executed while an impotent and intellectually slovenly country did nothing as its military went into dubious history. Our attack against Iraq constituted a "war crime" because it was a military attack against a country at peace. It is debatable about whether Iraqi civilians that have died as a result could be clearly labeled as either victims of "war crimes" or victims of "crimes against humanity" . It is very likely that the U.S. military had taken reasonable steps to limit Iraqi civilian casualties to a minimum. However it will be up to history to decide of this minimum civillian death toll that was surely planned for as a result of our invasion should or could constitute "war crimes" . It is very unlikely that the U.S. government could be guilty of "crimes against humanity" in our criminal invasion of Iraq. The U.S. government to include George Bush does not promote or tolerate in any way the wanton mistreatment of what it believes to be "innocent civilians". There have been isolated cases of rogue U.S. soldiers committing "war crimes" and "crimes against humanity" against small numbers of Iraqi's , but these are isolated cases compared to the scope of the invaded area and the conditions of the U.S. troops and the civilian population.

Even some of our most infamous Abu Ghabi abuse cases used as their evidence the naked bodies of POW's. While I find the Abu Ghabi events criminal and disgraceful, it should be noted by the world body that very few pows can be displayed "naked " by their captors due to bruises, whip marks, broken bones and excessive injuries. Furthermore, while no American POW should ever desire Abu Ghabi style treatment themselves, most of our living pows would probably be eager to trade the treatment they have received themselves for the treatment received by American controlled POW's at Abu Ghabi.

That being said, if there were significant numbers of Iraqi nationals willing to act as "partisans" or "insurgents", then this indicates that a minimal level of loyalty to Saddam Hussein had existed prior to our invasion to negate the idea that this country was full of a dictators innocent victims needing to be liberated.

It is reasonable that multiple parties in Iraq should view American soldiers as criminal and heavy handed invaders. It is also reasonable that any puppet government installed and controlled by Washington be viewed with equal ire.

It is also reasonable to believe that many Iraqi's are not only tolerant of U.S. soldiers and influence, but grateful and loyal to the same.

The Average American should ask ourselves what we would do if Saddam Hussein were to invade our country. What would our response be to these invaders and anyone our hearts and minds labeled as their "collaborators".

Our government led by George Bush is so criminally culpable for the destruction of Iraq that they will never willingly come clean and openly discuss the facts and ideas you have read.

It is up to the people of America to open their minds and imagine the positions of many different persons living with in the borders of Iraq.

It would behoove us a a country to read the complaints against us by the "terrorists" and the "insurgents" our soldiers are fighting against.

If we the people of America were to agree that some of these groups have credible complaints, we could pressure our own government to remedy these issues.

If we the people of America were to find these same complaints groundless, trumped up or just plain wrong, we could validate and galvanize ourselves as a nation to more fruitfully support our governments efforts in Iraq.

It is not simply adequate for us to see horrific pictures of bombs exploding and to see the carnage and merely believe this is all the work of maniacal islamafascist terrorists.

As a country we need to collectively face the complaints of those who attack us.

Our current situation is that we are paying in our nations blood and money and reputation but none of us is sure what we are fighting for, or who we are fighting, or why we are being attacked by them, or vice versa.

Mikes Vacation recommends and supports a U.S. government sponsored and advertised web page to post the complaints and manifestos of those who attack us. As Americans we need to be proud of the political and intellectual positions our military is fighting and dying for, and the positions that are responsible for untold Iraqi deaths, or we need to change our positions and policies to those we as a nation can be proud of and understand.

I have posted a video that documents graphically the effects of bombs. It shows in ghastly technicolor images of those killed by explosions and violence.

The reader should decide for themselves which slides represent "terrorist" acts, and which slides represent legal and legitimate partisan actions.

It is the opinion of Mikes Vacation that ALL of the images you will see are of legitimate "terrorism". They are all of civilian casualties.

This particular video is anti- Islam, and anti Arab.

Mikes Vacation does not agree with the conclusions implied by this video. This video implies that Muslims and Arabs as a whole are murders and terrorists.

Mikes Vacation believes that Muslims and Arabs desire life and happiness the same as any other people on the earth, however, Mikes Vacation does recognize that a large number of "terrorist" acts are committed by persons of Arab descent, and of the Muslim faith.

Mikes Vacation certainly DOES NOT feel as though these "terrorists" represent the consciousness of the Arab and Muslim world.

The video hosted here is hosted for its technically clean graphics, and not applauded for its conclusions against the Arab and Muslim people of the world.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aE7BMNBWAJc&NR=1

This next video is also hosted on youtube.com and is a "documentary" article about the abuses at Abu Ghab prison. I am not posting this video because I am in agreement with the conclusions drawn in it. This video is decoration for the point of my essay. This video reminds the American public the extreme dishonesty and criminality that our current government has decided upon by its refusal to openly and completely disclose the names and coutries of origin of our POW's/ Detainee's/Kidnap Victims.

Mikes Vacation doesn't possess a crystal ball, and it is impossible for me to propose the guilt, innocence or even the potential military value of holding the persons we possess.

However, due to the proven dishonesty displayed thusfar by the U.S. government surrounding the entire Iraqi fiasco, it is the opinion of Mikes Vacation that they can be trusted only to serve their own best interests, not the best interst of America, and not the best interest of our military in theatre.

This video has certain implied conclusions camoflaged into it. These conclusions would be that the men in U.S. custody are innocent. That these same men are grossly mistreated and tortured. That the U.S. government has "tortured" its victims. All of these allegations may be true, but this video does not prove them. This video is a composite of shocking and revolting images cleverly narrated to lead the reader to form the aforementioned conclusions.

I am a Licensed Practical Nurse by trade. I am skilled at assessing the health and and illness of patients. I am skilled at inspecting wounds and sores and bruises. I am not Americas finest at these things, but I am certainly no novice.

I would like you to note the following things about these pictures. Firstly, I would like you to notice the large amount of body/belly fat present on several pictures. Starved men don't have belly fat.

Second I would like you to notice the men in positions to receive whippings or canings. Please notice no whip or cane marks on their flesh.

You will notice multiple nude photos. Please note the relative cleanliness of the men's skin.

You will notice many men wearing hoods. Please note the "newness" of these hoods. The newness implies these same hoods are not worn 24/7.

You will not several photos of a man covered in Feces. This condition is not de regeur for the rest of the prisoners. This leads a logical reader to believe the feces has been self applied. This is not unheard of for severly psychotic patients to do.

You will notice many men wearing ropes, handcuffs or other restraints about their hands. Please not the condition of their skin around these same cuffs. Please not the dogs in the photos used to scare the prisoners. However, there is no photographic evidence, or even rumor of a dog actually biting a prisoner. Even the dogs in the picture do not look to be taking an aggressive stance. In one photo the dogs face appears to be "smilling". The dog does not look to be taking a violent, threatening or aggressive postute. You will also not several photos of dogs standing in front of a hooded prisoner. This leads a logical party to believe that the guard holding the dog is in control of the dogs movements and the prisoner is in little actual danger of a dog bite.

You will see a clip of prisoners being forced to "masturbate" in the shower. I am not a controlled custody expert, but I am sure that most POW's are not going to be "emotionally scarred for life" from this experience. Unpleasant at the time proably, weird, definetly, evidence of a sick mind in charge-- oh yea, torture-- uh no.

As you watch this video, please compare the condition of the prisoners to the condition of our own POW's held by the Japanese in ww2, compare their condition to our POW's of the Vietnam era. Compare their conditions to the conditions of many, many POW's from relatively modern history.

America has shamed ourselves by our mistreatment of these same POW's. Our government has shamed itself by not properly seeing to their custody.

It is likely that many of the prisoners in our custody have been violently and roughly and harshly treated, proably some have received LEGITIMATE torture, and some have even accidenly died or been murdered/excecuted in this process.

However, attempt to seperate what you can extrapolate as truth from your knowledge of the facts, from what is presented in this video.

This video proves very little. If anything, this video is a testimony to the relative "good condition" of the bodies of the prisoners.

This video is not hosted here to prove torture. This video is hosted to illustrate the ingenuous nature of the Bush Regeime, and to inspire the American public to investigate the facts of our Iraqi adventure for themselves by reading what our "enemies" have to say.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Ru0bxSqWMdo

Mike Miller
Indianapolis
2007

HITLERS INJURIES TO MODERN LIFE

2007-08-02T06:55:00.000-07:00

History has attempted to catalog the physical injuries that Adolf Hitler inflicted on the peoples of Eastern and Western Europe (and America also). These things should be remembered regularly to help prevent their future recurrence .

But one injury that Hitler has perpetrated on the modern world, that hasn't been documented is the following political phenomenon.

Hitlers rise to power and vise-like grasp on it, were due in no small part to his skills as a public speaker. Hitler utilized powerful gestures and vocal skills, such as dramatic volume increases and dramatic tonal variances combined with powerful and energetic body language and hand gestures to obtain his followers interest.

Hitler felt passionately about the messages he was conveying to large crowds, and to air wave listeners of the day. His oratory sills or his "oration" was a tool if you will, to mobilize public opinion in favor of his causes.

Obviously his "causes", were mainly the theft of physical property from conquered peoples, and his methods were the en masse deaths of his civilian and military opposition. (many people also died who were not old enough, or young enough to oppose Hitler in any way)

Our modern world remembers Hitler with a pained shudder, as well we should.

However, are there not socio-political issues today that should be passionately spoken of?

Do we not have a need for politicians who are willing to energetically use clever and perhaps forgotten speaking techniques to energize the public?

Politicians of today do not use ultra-powerful oration techniques because they would somehow resemble Adolf Hitler, and their messages would somehow be considered as "fascist" , "radical" , or "racist".

The American public, and for that matter the global public is afraid of a passionate politician or leader. Our global sub-conscious tells us that any man who comes to a podium with a powerful message delivered with skilled and energetic body language is somehow similar to Hitler.

We are currently being injured by this false perception here in America. We desperately need a strong and honest politician to come forth and tell us unpleasant things about ourselves. We desperately need a leader with the speaking and oration skills of Adolf Hitler, but bearing the composite intellectual and moral attributes of Woody Allen, Roberto Benini, Albert Einstein and George Washington , to help us correct our multiple socio-economic mistakes that are currently poisoning our present lives, and our countries future.

There is no perfect race, color or creed here in America. We have positive and dreadful aspects to all of our sects and sub sects.

We need a leader, to come forth and honestly expose our failures to us, regardless of his own personal demographic, and we as a nation, need to be mature enough to listen to his plans for our correction, and not resent him or her just because he is not identical to us individually.

We are in a state of broken democracy here in America, clearly we are more democratic than some other countries, but we are also obviously broken. It will take every gram of oration and speech writing skills an honest man has, to energize us from our defeated coma like conditions, and cause us to come together as a country and address difficult issues whose solutions may be immediately stressful, and insulting, and difficult for all of us to swallow.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

METHODS FOR DEMOCRACY-- THE FOURTH OF JULY

2007-07-04T12:23:00.000-07:00

The global conscience regularly goes on a "pro-democracy" crusade targeting any country that is not in the "Washington-friendly" clique.

Democracy in and of itself is an old, interesting, and sometimes effective and beneficial form of government. The ancient Greeks were the first pioneers in designing democracies, and every time the common people of any land began to show signs of being too powerful for their overlords to absolutely control, either they were slaughtered and thinned out, or their complaints and desires were somehow addressed and placated.

Here in America we enjoy the benefits of the democratic ideal, we are not a true, efficient, or even esteemed democracy in the eyes of the citizens of our land, or of other lands.

That being said, we do enjoy certain freedoms, rights, and privileges that exist because the founding fathers of our country endeavored to invent our country as a democracy, and even through our multiple mission shifts along the way, we do still enjoy the benefits of their grand experiment.

Our population being geographically isolated from Europe is also somewhat intellectually and socially isolated from European history, and common European ideas.

We tend to have a very sophomoric understanding of the history of Christianity, and therefore are very likely to be seduced by any idea that contains a "christian undertone". Europeans can walk everyday past Milena old churches and glorious christian relics, but they must also walk past the dark and sinister historic markers of this same religion. This benefits Europeans in that they never lose site of the fallibility of their own main religious sect. Americans however have been allowed to forget about the dark side of our primary religion, thus allowing us to only see Christianity as a powder blue, benevolent, sing-songy, heavenly fantasy that is often followed blindly by people who are too busy, and or intellectually lazy to investigate her history.

Europeans should understand this when they are assisting Washington to bring democracy and religious freedom to countries targeted for the same. Europeans should remember that America itself doesn't represent any admirably modern model of democracy, and her people don't have a sufficiently cerebral understanding of the history of Christianity to be lobbying for its advancement into other countries.

Global acceptance of U.S. currency and a general ignorance in third world populations as to the nature of the real value of the same is responsible for our high quality of life. Or at least our relatively large amounts of disposable cash. Most Americans can buy virtually any reasonable luxury or comfort that pops into their heads without the painful saving and scrimping that would happen in a third world country. This advantage isn't a result of "democracy", rather it is a result of the worlds acceptance of our "fiat currency" regardless of our likely hood to make good on our national debt in the years to come.

American citizens intuitively understand the wrong in forcing our military into other lands, we understand the concept that not all peoples are better off in a democracy, but most also can't put these concepts into words, and most people certainly can't have their conclusions and true hearts opinions reflected by the actions of our government.

Essentially, Americans are far too busy earning a living to take the time to make their feelings known and respected by our government. Many Americans have been intellectually engineered to be be illiterate , and helpless regarding the very subjects that are right now affecting the lives of future generations.

We have been engineered in America to believe many things such as the infallibility of Christianity, the integrity of the press, the fairness of our law enforcement and judicial system, the evil of the former Soviet Union, the evil of Arabs and Muslims, and the pseudo divinity of whatever decisions are taken by our ally Israel, are but a few of the sacred maxims drilled into the psyche of a modern American.

America was for a long time an apartheid state, with our black population being imprisoned at the bottom of our caste system.

While I strongly disagree with the conditions that we have negligently allowed to engulf our blacks, I also strongly disagree with the methods used to remedy these pitiful conditions.

Desegregation in America has in a large part ruined and injured our country. The black neighborhoods have not been uplifted, and the black people have only benefited by having the use of more fiat currency to purchase trinkets and baubles at walmart. They have not been engineered to be more "equal" to the whites, and they are in a much worse condition to produce anyone who is "excellent" in his own right.

Desegregation has only served to line the pockets of suburb builders, and the financiers who lended money for their construction.

Cities should be designed for living, what kind of living can a family do when their children are bussed all over town, and the parents have to work 50 hours each to pay for a mediocre home in a neighborhood that is "safe". What is really meant by "safe" in America is "safe from blacks".

When a white person talks about a safe neighborhood, they mean few if any blacks. Our blind and stupid plan to "help" blacks by desegregating them has only hurt them, and hurt us. When a man has to drive an hour in traffic each day just to afford a home that he is "safe" in, or safe from blacks in. There is really something wrong with the country as a whole. This same man, tired from working himself to death, tired from driving all over town, comes home to a tired, worn out wife, cranky kids, and has to eat quickly, and get to bed at a reasonable hour to be able to get up tomorrow and fight it out again.

How can this same man be able to think about complex issues regarding government policy, foreign affairs, or even when or if he can find the time to vote in the next election. This is a formula for "broken democracy".

Oh yes, we have democracy in America, we can vote for whoever we choose, but who has the time to think about who to vote for, much less has the time to talk to his friends, meet at a bar and discuss affairs of state, or god forbid, run for office himself?

Our black people are not the cause of American problems, they are the victims of a poorly engineered, and suddenly divested apartheid state. They are however living in a post apartheid societal power vacuum essentially in political equality with the whites, and they now bear equal responsibility for the success or failure of our nation as does the white man.

Americans are themselves responsible for the state of America, we were given a giant glorious land, we were given the framework of a democratic country, and we have allowed ourselves to become intellectually, and spiritually, and culturally vanquished, all for baubles, trinkets, cheap parlor tricks, and all without one single president ever standing up to work for more rights for the people, every president we have had for the last 80 years has agreed to the atrophy of the citizens rights.

Does anyone in their right mind care about the tacky sexual antics of the Clinton family? Is there anyone who is happy with with how the Bush mafia family has mugged the people of Iraq using American tears, sweat and blood as the grease for his oil pumps?

Isn't it high time we as a people stop being seduced by a full head of hair, a pretty wife, a clean criminal record, and a sweet southern accent?

Half of our nations voters are women, and it is our collective shame that they are not substantial enough as judges and sages, to use criteria higher than physical looks, or presence or absence of embarassing vice, to pick their favorite candidate!

Somehow we have gone wrong with the way we have coddled, spoiled, and intellectually hobbled our nations daughters. We are all wrong for not training our daughters to the same moral and emotional standards of our sons. Now we pay for our sloth ,as our nations daughters vote for their favorite candidates, using the same genre of criteria as our children use to decide whom to invite to their birthday parties!

We dare to export democracy to other countries from A to Z. We are a long way from perfecting, or making operational the same ideas here in America.

As a nation we need to remember that sometimes life under a good king is better than that under an evil president.

We forget that other forms of government are often times more suited to a population and culture than what results from a "democratic revolution" or from a forced military expulsion of a leader unpopular to us.

We collectively forget that some people are actually living well, compared to how the will be living under a fledgling and most likely crooked democracy.

If we as Americans barely have control over our government with all our "money" and experience with "democracy" ,, how can we expect the peasants of Africa, south America, or the cash poor educated persons of Eastern Europe to control their "new " democracies.

If the people of Europe want to advance "democracy" globally, they would be wise to first correct it here in America. Help the poor to find justice in court, help establish political science and economics universities which are free and accept all students. Give amnesty with witness protection benefits, to any U.S. policeman, soldier, CIA officer, or government official who comes forward to blow the whistle on violations of America liberties.

If the people of Europe were to help us gain real democracy here in America, our people could begin to intellectually and socially develop into a citizenry that could actually bring freedom to the oppressed of the world and make the planet a better place.

It is almost diagnostic, that as a broken and sickly democracy exists here in America, any U.S. efforts to promote democracy globally are either fraudulent in nature, or incomplete enough to be effective.

Imagine what kind of trouble the U.S. government would be in if we tried to build a democracy in another country that had better system than our own!! That is why we never attempt to correct countries in Western Europe, Australia, Costa Rica, New Zealand, Iceland, Scandinavia, to name a few. If our people started comparing the specific rights enjoyed by citizens of foreign countries, they would be outraged at their relative oppression.

If there is anyone in Europe who cares about global democracy, then PLEASE, PLEASE, I IMPLORE YOU,,,,, HELP US GET DEMOCRACY HERE IN AMERICA!!!

Help the American black to become excellent, help the white man to be free from skewed and co-dependent decisions based around the black man. Help our women to be wise and just. Help us to pick politicians who will not rob and betray us. Help us to develop mechanisms where we the people ,have virtually real time control over how our politicians vote! If you help us to become educated in the areas of economics and geopolitics, we will no longer be ignorant, and we can use our economic and military might JUSTLY!!! Right now we are a nation of heavily armed ignorant peasants with pocket fulls of fiat currency. Help us to become excellent, and then we will help make the world EXCELLENT!!!

Please help us break out of our chains and become free men again. Please give help us gain our independence again.

Michael Miller
Independence Day,
2007

IS BIGFOOT REAL?

2007-06-27T08:05:00.000-07:00

Does anyone remember the golden age of pseudoscience? Remember back in the early 70's in the United States, when a number of pseudoscience "documentaries" were produced discussing everything from Bigfoot, to the Loch Ness monster, to ESP to UFO's?

These were great "documentaries"! I enjoyed them then, and I enjoy them now. However, there never was enough legitimate science contained to have made a C+ on any natural history, evolution, or biology class in any real university in the country.

Still, they are great old movies to watch, and I think they have added to my "intellectual" development as a kid, as well as to everyone else's"intellectual development" that watched them as a kid in the 70's.

MSN.com is currently running an article about some scientists in Michigan that are out to prove the existence of Bigfoot. I haven't smoked anything this morning, so I can honestly say that it is unlikely Bigfoot will be discovered in Michigan.

However, my sarcasm and cynicism being stated, I would now like to propose my own theory of what Bigfoot could or might be should such a creature actually exist.

My theory is simple and to the point. Bigfoot, should he exist is simply a HUMAN BEING/HOMO SAPIEN that has one or more genetic defects/alterations/deviations that make his/her appearance from a distance or through thick Washington State brush resemble an ape like creature.

I was working as a nurse one evening about 6 years ago, when a visitor came to the hospital to see a patient. This lady happened to suffer from Gigantism. This means obviously that she was larger than a usual woman, but more specifically, she had very large limbs, hands, and an over elongated jaw. When she spoke, her voice and prose gave every indication that she was at least of average and probably above average intelligence and education. She was in every measure a perfect lady in her words and manners.

Her physical appearance was startling, and I hope that my actual facial and voice reactions did not reveal to her inner feelings of surprise.

I am not trying to be funny, or crass, but this lady was of African American descent, and if she had been walking naked in the dusk in the woods of Washington State, there is no doubt she could have been mistaken for a "bigfoot".

Has anyone recently watched daytime TV and seen the "werewolf" children from Mexico? There is a genetic disorder which produced hair all over the body. The victim of this genetic disorder will have hair on his body that resembles what Hollywood has been presenting to us as a "werewolf ".

If a human being were to have both genetic disorders, gigantism, and the werewolf gene, and they were to be living in the wilderness of the great Northwest, you could have yourself a scientific explanation to what a "Bigfoot" is.

If there were a tribe/colony of these people who had survived time for 10-20 thousand years, they might have learned the benefits of staying clear of the standard/mainstream humans/Indians/Us.

If they lived that long outdoors, they would be able to stand the effects of the elements, and would likely have good vision, and good hearing, as well as a language that was as developed and clever as any stone age tribe from mainstream history.

I am not trying to imply that Bigfoot exists, or doesn't. I am merely trying to propose a possible explanation for the mystery.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

Dear Readers, P.S. This essay and the footage below are not intended to be taken seriously. This essay is to lighten the mood of this web page. :) :) :) Mike

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/19443010/?GT1=10056
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtPG1OokzGo http://youtube.com/watch?v=YktEWmLVTvM&mode=related&search=http://youtube.com/watch?v=Ceb1HWH1ZgQ http://youtube.com/watch?v=noTCZtPNnzQ http://youtube.com/watch?v=9Om8LCtT6Kg

POLITICAL CORRECTNESS

2007-06-15T08:32:00.000-07:00

Political correctness is a sugar coated fiefdom enabler.

Political correctness is the precursor to an American Orwellian Nightmare.

Political correctness is the vehicle by which our country has allowed itself to be dumbed down.

Political correctness has lamed the American spirit on college campuses and churches and has turned the media into a witch hunt machine looking for a monster to burn.

Political correctness sufficiently sickened the American soul to the point that George Bush was able to have committed the war crime of using our military to mug Iraq for the benefit of his Texas oil mafia buddies. He should have tried the same stunt in 1972 when the country still knew the difference between right and wrong.

THE SOVIET ARMY--SOVIET REVENGE!!

2007-05-17T23:32:00.001-07:00

THIS IS A GREAT VIDEO, MANY IMAGES OF THE PATRIOTIC WAR, WITH A CLASSICAL MUSIC BACKGROUND. ENJOY!
http://youtube.com/watch?v=AERslaQyEHg

EINSTEIN AND HIS LADY FRIEND!!

2007-05-17T23:05:00.000-07:00

HERE IS A VERY CLEVERLY TRAINED AFRICAN GREY PARROT AND HIS LOVELY AND TALENTED ASSITANT, OR TRAINER. :)

ENJOY!! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7ht0a2-OnA

HOW ABOUT A LAUGH!!

2007-05-17T22:49:00.000-07:00

IF YOU DON'T SMILE A LITTLE AFTER THIS VIDEO, THEN YOU ARE PROBABLY DEAD. :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jY3T84ae1Eg

RFE/RL CIS: Behind An 'Information Curtain' --RED LINE EDITORIAL

2007-05-15T23:10:00.000-07:00

THIS ARTICLE WAS SOURCED FROM RADIO FREE EUROPE/RADIO LIBERTY.

May 2, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- In a historic March 1946 speech, Winston Churchill painted the stark image of an "iron curtain" descending across the European continent. HOWEVER, IT SHOULD BE NOTED, THAT CHURCHILL HAD NO PROBLEMS HAVING THE SOVIET UNION AS AN ALLY TO DEFEAT THE THIRD REICH. WINSTON CHURCHILL FORGETS THAT IT WAS THE TSAR SYSTEM WHICH HAD REPRESSED AND BACKWARDIZED ALL OF RUSSIA FOR SO MANY HUNDREDS OF YEARS. IT WAS ACTUALLY THE COLLECTIVE EFFORTS OF SOVIET CITIZENS ALL WORKING TOGETHER AND SACRIFICING THAT LED THE FORMER SOVIET PEOPLES TO SO QUICKLY TRIUMPH OVER THE HUNDREDS OF YEARS OF NEGATIVE MONARCH CONTROLLED SOCIAL AND POLITICAL ENERTIA THAT WAS IN PLACE. CHURCHILL SHOULD ALSO REMEMBER THAT THE ROMANOV'S, AS CHARMING AS THEY WERE ON FILM, WERE FRIENDS OF BRITONS OWN WINDSOR FAMILY.
On the far side of that Iron Curtain, a closed and repressive system of governance was rapidly taking hold, in which dissent was ruthlessly suppressed, economic life rigidly managed by communist authorities, and media used exclusively as an instrument of the state.THE OPEN AND STATED GOALS OF THE WEST HAVE BEEN TO HINDER, CONFUSE AND SABOTAGE SOVIET COUNTRIES SINCE THEIR INCEPTION. IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF LOGICAL SELF PRESERVATION FOR THESE SAME COUNTRIES TO BE CLOSED TO THE WEST. MOREOVER, THE ECONOMIC PROSPECTS OF RUSSIAN AND SOVIET CITIZENS WERE DRAMATICALLY ENHANCED BY THE INCEPTION OF SOVIET RULE. AFTER WW2/THE PATRIOTIC WAR ENDED, THE SOVIET UNION WAS IN SUCH A DESTROYED AND INJURED STATE THAT IT IS A COMPLIMENT TO THE PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT OF THE SOVIET STATE THAT THE SOVIET UNION WAS ABLE TO RALLY IN ALL SPHERES TO THE DEGREE THAT IT DID. IT WAS SIMPLY NOT POSSIBLE FOR POST WAR SOVIET CITIZENS TO MOVE TO THE SUBURBS AND START LISTENING TO ROCK N ROLL MUSIC. It took decades for the Soviet experiment to collapse under the weight of its own contradictions, in an economic and political meltdown that ended the Cold War and brought the promise of greater freedom and openness to tens of millions of formerly captive peoples. WHILE IT IS CORRECT THAT THE SOVIET UNION DISSOLVED POORLY, YOU SHOULD REMEMBER THAT EVERY SINGLE STANDING BUILDING, EVERY SINGLE EDUCATED MAN, EVERY SINGLE FUNCTIONING GOVERNMENT ORGAN THAT EXISTS TODAY IN THE FORMER SOVIET UNION WAS ENGINEERED, PAID FOR, AND CONSTRUCTED BY SOVIET EFFORTS. THE WRITER ALSO FORGETS TO MENTION THAT WITH THE POWER VACUUM THAT FOLLOWED THE SOVIET COLLAPSE, CAME RAMPANT CRIME, ECONOMIC DESPAIR, MASSIVE THEFT OF PUBLIC ASSETS, IT WAS NOT ALL BLUE JEANS AND VISA FREE TRAVEL FOR ALL. Hopes ran high that these openings would permit all of the fundamental freedoms to emerge and flourish, including freedom of the press. I BELIEVE WALKER IS REFERRING TO FREEDOM OF CIA PAID PRESSES, PROBABLY NOT PRESSES CRITICAL OF WASHINGTON.
In fact, in the period immediately preceding the Soviet collapse and in its immediate aftermath, the flowering of open expression and a nascent independent press suggested a durable and institutionalized Fourth Estate might materialize. SADLY, THE SPIES AND PROVOCATEURS OF THE WEST ABUSED THESE NEW POWERS SUFFICIENTLY ENOUGH TO PROVOKE CIS COUNTRIES INTO RESTRICTING THEIR POTENTIAL FOR DAMAGE TO THE GENERAL GOOD.
Freedom House's most recent findings show that 10 of the 12 CIS states are ranked "Not Free," indicating these countries do not provide basic guarantees and protections in the legal, political, and economic spheres. ANOTHER WORDS, THESE SAME CIS COUNTRIES ARE NOT GOING TO ALLOW CIA SPONSORED AND CONTROLLED MEDIA SOURCES TO CAUSE REVOLUTIONS, AND SPONSOR PUPPET CANDIDATES AT EVERY WHIM OF WASHINGTON.
The Soviet era's waning days saw the exertion from below of significant pressure for greater freedom of expression and a diverse and independent reporting of news. In most of the former satellite countries of Central Europe a free press rose from the ashes of what for 40 years had been known as the Eastern bloc. For the former Soviet republics, however, with the exception of the Baltic states, the promise of the opening in the late 1980s and early 1990s was short-lived. I WONDER IF THE RUSSIAN POPULATIONS IN THESE SAME BALTIC STATES WERE POLLED AS TO WHETHER OR NOT THEIR RIGHTS ARE UPHELD.
New Methods To Achieve Old Results
Across most of the former Soviet Union today, an "information curtain" has descended that in some aspects differs from that of the Soviet era, but in important ways is imposing a no less repressive news-media environment. THE WORLD IS NOW VERY AWARE OF THE METHODS THE US GOVERNMENT USES TO INSTALL PUPPET LEADERS, TO INCLUDE USING "FREE" PRESSES TO ATTACK INCUMBENTS, AND SUPPORT "DEMOCRATIC" CANDIDATES THEY LIKE.
Gone is the smothering, all encompassing ideological control across wide swaths of Europe and Eurasia. IT IS NOW IMPOSSIBLE TO MAKE THESE WILD ACCUSATIONS WHEN ALL THE WORLD CAN CLEARLY SEE THEY ARE LIES, SO NOW WE MUST UPDATE OUR PROPAGANDA. A more geographically circumscribed area -- Russia and most of the countries on its periphery -- now lies behind a new curtain that effectively shuts off the majority of people in these lands from news and information of political consequence. NO, THESE SAME COUNTRIES JUST WON'T TOLERATE SPOOKS PRINTING LIES TO DISTURB AND ALTER THEIR NATIONAL POLITICS. Today, methods for dominating news media are different, based on state-enabled oligarchic control, broadcast monopolies of presidential "families," and mass-media manipulation intended to create a veneer of democratic practice without its substance. THIS SOUNDS LIKE HOW CBS,NBC,ABC AND FOX DOMINATE THE AMERICAN NEWS BUSINESS. DOES ANYBODY THINK WE HAVE A QUALITY DEMOCRACY HERE IN AMERICA? IF DEMOCRACY IS MEASURED BY PUBLIC TRUST AND PUBLIC APPROVAL OF A PRESIDENT THEN RUSSIA AND BELARUS MUST BE THE MOST DEMOCRATIC COUNTRIES ON EARTH. MAYBE THAT IS WHAT BOTHERS WASHINGTON.
Putin (right) meeting with leading Russian newspaper editors in June 2006 (epa)Unlike the Soviet era, some intrepid journalists now do manage to report independently. However, absent the rule of law and meaningful legal protections, the former Soviet Union is today one of the world's most dangerous places for journalists. PROBABLY NOT AS DANGEROUS AS IRAQ, OR AFGHANISTAN. Reporters willing to investigate issues such as political and corporate corruption are confronted by powerful vested interests that strive to muzzle news professionals. I AM CURIOUS AS TO WHETHER OR NOT CHURCHILL WOULD BELIEVE IT WAS NEWS PROFESSIONALS CHASING LADY DIANA THE NIGHT SHE WAS KILLED, MAYBE SOME PEOPLE IN THE NEWS BUSINESS ARE NOT SO PROFESSIONAL. Intimidation, physical violence, and even murder of reporters and editors have become commonplace. IT IS MODERATELY IRONIC THAT YOU SHOULD COMPLAIN SIMULTANEOUSLY ABOUT STRONG GOVERNMENT LEADERSHIP IN CIS COUNTRIES, AND OF SLAIN JOURNALISTS. IS IT NOT STRONG GOVERNMENT LEADERS THAT PROTECT JOURNALISTS? YOU CAN'T ADVOCATE TO WEAKEN THE POWER OF A PRESIDENT WHO PROTECTS THE PEOPLE , AND THEN COMPLAIN WHEN YOU ARE KILLED BY MOBSTERS AND HOODLUMS.
Journalists in virtually every former Soviet republic have been victims of contract killings or otherwise met death under suspicious circumstances. THE KEY WORD HERE IS "FORMER" SOVIET REPUBLICS. Russia, for example, has been a deadly place for journalists in both the Yeltsin and Putin eras. IT IS TOO BAD YOU DIDN'T MENTION THAT IN THE GORBACHEV YEARS THE STAGE WAS BEING SET FOR THIS VIOLENCE. Since President Vladimir Putin assumed office seven years ago, at least two dozen journalists have been killed, including Paul Klebnikov, editor of "Forbes-Russia," who was shot nine times with a semiautomatic weapon on the street outside his Moscow office in July 2004; Anna Politkovskaya, an investigative journalist who wrote for "Novaya gazeta," who was executed in the elevator of her apartment building in October 2006; and Ivan Safronov, a defense correspondent for the "Kommersant" newspaper, who in very unclear circumstances plunged to his death from his apartment building in Moscow in March. Rarely are serious investigations pursued or perpetrators brought to justice. Impunity is the standard. THAT SOUNDS LIKE WHAT HAPPENS IN AMERICA WHEN A POOR PERSON, OR A MINORITY IS SHOT BY THE POLICE. SINCE RADIO FREE EUROPE COVERS IRAQ, WAS THERE AN ARTICLE WRITTEN ABOUT THE TORTURE/RAPE/MURDER OF THE IRAQI FAMILY BY THE MARINES ON PATROL IN BAGHDAD? I BELIEVE THE BODIES WERE BURNED WITH GASOLINE AFTERWARDS. WAS THAT MENTIONED HERE ON THIS WEB PAGE?
To ensure regime security and shield from public view all-pervasive official corruption, the post-Soviet authorities seek to limit scrutiny of their decisions and activities by silencing the independent press.
Entertaining, But Not Informative IT ALSO HELPS TO PREVENT CIA OPERATIVES FROM PRINTING LIES TO DISTURB A POPULATION AND START AN UNNECESSARY REVOLUTION JUST TO INSTALL A FRIENDLY PUPPET.
This modern variant of media control is a more sophisticated, distant cousin of the raw and overweening institutional censorship of the Soviet era. The stodgy, Soviet era broadcasting diet has in large measure been cast aside. NO MORE MUNSTERS HERE EITHER.Today, modern media fare, rich in entertainment and news programming of high technical quality and production values are staples, especially in Russia. THAT ACTUALLY SOUNDS PRETTY GOOD, HOW COME WE DON'T HAVE THAT HERE. While the contemporary media menu in Russia offers a wide assortment of entertainment options, it for the most part excludes alternative views and analysis on news and public affairs, particularly where it counts most, on national television broadcasts, from which most citizens continue to get their information. ARE YOU IMPLYING THAT WE HAVE ANYONE CRITICIZING GEORGE BUSH HERE? A SECOND OPINION COUNTED MOST BEFORE WE MUGGED IRAQ, BUT THAT WASN'T ALLOWED BECAUSE J.R. EWING/GEORGE BUSH OUTLAWED AND PREVENTED IT. REMEMBER THE PATRIOT ACT?
All of Russia's major national television channels -- RTR, Channel One, and NTV -- are now effectively state controlled. SO INSTEAD OF 5 CORPORATIONS TAKING THE PROFIT FROM TV HERE IN AMERICA, YOU ARE CRITICIZING THE PEOPLE OF RUSSIA FOR OWNING THEIR OWN MEDIA? Commenting on the troubled condition of Russia's news media, former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev observed: "The one thing I can say is that it's pointless today to watch television [in Russia]." HAS GORBACHEV TURNED ON TV HERE IN AMERICA?
Putin's tenure has seen a systematic muzzling of independent reporting. Current methods of news media control rely on the imposition of state ownership on media companies whose editors are replaced by Kremlin supporters. YES, IT IS OBVIOUS THE WEST REALLY ABUSED THEIR WELCOME AFTER THE FALL OF THE USSR, AND NOW WE ARE WHINING ABOUT NOT BEING ABLE TO STIR UP ANY MORE TROUBLE IN RUSSIA. Gazprom-Media, an arm of the state-controlled gas behemoth, has taken control of a number of previously independent news outlets and either closed their doors or summarily abolished independent reporting. Today, journalists at the Russian News Service, Russia's largest nonstate radio network (owned by businesses close to the Kremlin), work under a "50 percent rule" imposed by station management to ensure that at least half of the network's total reporting on Russia is "positive." NEGATIVE VIBES DON'T SELL. HOW MANY PEOPLE HERE IN AMERICA BUY A PAPER TO BE MISERABLE?
The repressive media landscape in the former Soviet Union is illuminated by findings from "Freedom Of The Press 2007," Freedom House's annual survey of global media independence. FREEDOM HOUSE, NOW THAT DOESN'T SOUND LIKE IT IS CONTROLLED BY THE US GOVERNMENT. The Russian authorities are not alone in forging a media environment that filters out critical voices. HOW MANY US NEWS SOURCES PRINT CRITIQUES FROM NORTH KOREA, OR WERE PRINTING CRITIQUES FROM PMI/PRE MUGGED IRAQ? The survey's most recent findings show that 10 of the 12 CIS states are ranked "Not Free," indicating these countries do not provide basic guarantees and protections in the legal, political, and economic spheres to enable open and independent journalism. ANOTHER WORDS, THEY ARE GETTING PRETTY GOOD AT SPOTTING CIA OPERATIVES TRYING TO STIR UP TROUBLE BY STARTING A PAPER UNDER THE GUISE OF "FREE PRESS".
Moving In The Wrong Direction
IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT WHEN THE UNITED STATES ALLOCATES 40 MILLION DOLLARS TO SUBVERT THE EFFORTS OF LEGALLY ELECTED GOVERNMENTS, LIKE THE BELORUSSIAN GOVERNMENT, A SYMMETRIC PROTECTIVE RESPONSE IS ONLY SENSIBLE AND PRUDENT. Of the 10 Not Free countries, none is moving in the direction of more freedom and most have a decidedly downward trajectory. Of the 193 countries examined in the survey, three of the 10 worst press-freedom abusers --Belarus, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan -- are in the former Soviet Union.
An Internet user in Minsk (bymedia.net file photo)The Internet has emerged as the principal alternative and challenger to media hegemony in the former Soviet Union. Despite the authorities' dogged efforts to control it, the Internet and other news media set today's Soviet successor states apart from their Cold War ancestor. Blogs are stimulating debate and discussion, and domestic and foreign news websites offer an alternative to state-controlled or -influenced news outlets. However, while the Internet holds further promise and connectivity is growing at an impressive rate, it remains a medium through which only a small fraction of news is obtained. It is also fast becoming a target of greater interest for new regulatory intervention by the authorities. IS THAT LIKE PREVENTING US SOLDIERS FROM ACCESSING MYSPACE AND YOUTUBE?
Through a revitalized crackdown on press freedom, post-Soviet leaderships have managed to draw the media back under control. Only a decade and a half after the end of the Cold War, freedom of the press for tens of millions of people across the former Soviet Union has come nearly full circle. In post-Soviet states that suffer from ill-conceived policies, (EDUCATION, FREE MEDICAL CARE, SAFE STREETS, CLEVER SOCIAL ENGINEERING, THAT ALL SOUNDS PRETTY BAD TO ME. )entrenched corruption, and unaccountable governance, denial of the indispensable role played by the free press in allowing critical scrutiny is bound to delay, possibly indefinitely, progress toward true and vibrant democracy. HOPEFULLY IT WILL DELAY, AND DENY US GOVERNMENT ATTEMPTS TO INSTALL PUPPET PRESIDENTS FOR THE PURPOSE OF ROBBING THE PEOPLE OF THEIR COLLECTIVE ASSETS, AND MAKING THEM VICTIMS OF US ENGINEERED ARTIFICIAL SOCIAL TRAGEDIES LIKE WE SUFFER FROM HERE IN AMERICA.

THIS ENTIRE ARTICLE MAY BE VIEWED AT http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/5/7D8B74B8-7CAB-4726-90CD-8F95617430F3.html

Christopher Walker is director of studies at Freedom House. Freedom House's annual survey of global media independence, "Freedom Of The Press 2007," was released on May 1.

Great Cross Country Skiing Video- Shot in Belarus

2007-05-15T21:32:00.000-07:00

This video looks like it has incorporated some home movies from the 80's into the original scenes. The video progresses to a man skiing very fast through the Belarusian forest. There is a minor special effect at the end where the man sort of disapears a few times. This is a fun winter skiing video. Enjoy! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XjqMpcZP9cI

MY FAVORITE RUSSIAN ARMY MUSIC VIDEO!

2007-05-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

NOW THIS VIDEO IS COOL!! My russian language skills suck, I can carry on very simple conversations when my Russian victims help me along a little bit--and thank G_d for the politeness and kindness of them!!

I actually don't know what is being said in this video, because of my aforementioned sucky russian skills, but it is clear the star of this video is sort of the Russian equivalent of our "Gunny" from the History Channel's program Mail Call.

There is a snappy beat, good photography, and best of all, I like that the Russians haven't forgotten the value of displaying some junky, and well worn training equipment.

For example, (and on a side note) when the United States was in the early stages of its criminal invasion of Iraq, the Russians had found some old explosives still stashed in some of their buildings from WW2/The Patriotic War. These explosives were meant to be detonated with invading Germans inside the buildings should they actually have been able to take Moscow. So, the ancient and proably now inert c-4/plastique was displayed in an international news story. But the message from the Russians wasn't in the C-4/plastique, it was in the hands of the man holding it. This explosive was held by the roughest and strongest looking hands you have ever seen. These hands looked like they could have done any kind of work without gloves and never feel pain.

The message from the Russians was clear to anyone who was paying attention. "You Americans might have all kinds of fancy and expensive weapons, and you are obviously willing to use them to mugg Iraq, but if you ever try that little trick here in Russia, we have forgotten more about repeling criminal invaders than you people will ever know" That message was made crystal clear by the "discovery" of the ww2 era explosives that were being displayed by the rouhest hands I have ever seen.

So, getting to this modern music video, it is shot with ancient and junky Russian Army training tools in the backround, but it is just their well worn nature that blends very well with the modern music and format to give this video a chilling and inspirational, and quite upbeat flavor.

Enjoy!!http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oOaGgY2yUHw

THE SOVIET ARMY- SOVIET REVENGE!!

2007-05-15T20:53:00.000-07:00

Here is a great video in black in white with inspirational classical music in the backround. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AERslaQyEHg

THE BELARUSIAN NATIONAL ANTHEM!!

2007-05-15T20:50:00.000-07:00

Has anyone ever wondered what the Belaruisan National Anthem sounds like? Here it is on youtube.com
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Teugz_gvL2M

THE NATIONAL LIBRARY OF BELARUS

2007-05-15T20:45:00.000-07:00

Here is a cool video of the National Library of Belarus, sadly this video is without sound, but it does display the ability of the new building to make a wonderful and impressive light display at night. Here is the youtube.com link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTFg7jO0sFo

SUPER VIDEO OF THE MINSK CIRCUS!!

2007-05-15T20:38:00.000-07:00

I found a great video of the Minsk circus! There is everything in this video, father frost, a trained bear, marching poodles, acrobats galore, and the music is tasteful and appropriate. I reccomend everyone check out this fun video hosted by youtube.com.
Here is the address http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6FNvqq3_h_w

Cuba! The Land of Hemmingway, and Castro

2007-05-05T20:49:00.000-07:00

I am proud to recommend to you a web page called CUBAMIGO. For those of you that are not used to Spanish, this name translates to CUBA-FRIEND. This is a wonderful web page with many great photos. There is a very good explanation of the cost of living, to include the wage per month for the common Cuban workers. This cost of living explanation includes explanations for food cost, health care and education. I have been arguing for years that it is likely the people of Cuba have a very tenable situation with Castro as their president, and the information contained in this web page validates my opinion.

To be fair, I have never been to Cuba, yet. I would like to go there and see for myself just exactly what is fact, and what is fiction. But that is on my things to do list, sadly behind pay rent and survive.

This is a great web page for anyone interested in the quality of life in modern Cuba, as well as some very credible small scale discussions of some complex socio-economic issues.

Please see this great web page and enjoy!
http://cubamigo.com/

Red Line Editorial-- RFE/RL Belarus: The Lonely Life of "Europe's Last Dictator"

2007-04-29T22:38:00.000-07:00

THIS ARTICLE BY HEATHER MAHR IS A BOOK REPORT WITH PROPAGANDA SPRINKLED IN. SADLY, I HAVEN'T HAD AN OPPORTUNITY TO READ DAVID WALLINSKY'S BOOK ENTITLED "TYRANT: THE WORLDS 20 WORST LIVING DICTATORS. HOWEVER, I DO HAVE THE BENEFIT OF HEATHER MAHR'S ARTICLE BELOW.
February 8, 2006 (RFE/RL) -- Belorussian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka in recent weeks has alternately defied Russia, flirted with Europe, and stressed his determination to go it alone.
HEATHER, THANK YOU FOR REMEMBERING THAT LUKASHENKA IS THE PRESIDENT OF BELARUS, PLEASE REMEMBER THAT 86% OF HIS COUNTRYMEN VOTED FOR HIM LAST SPRING. LUKASHENKA HAS NOT DEFIED RUSSIA, HE HAS SIMPLY NOT BEEN WILLING TO ACCEPT UNFAVORABLE GAS PRICES TO BE FORCED UPON BELARUS WITHOUT EVERY POSSIBLE DIPLOMATIC AVENUE BEING EXPLORED. AND HE HAS NOT FINALIZED THE UNION STATE AS EQUITABLE AND SYMMETRIC CONDITIONS HAVE NOT YET BEEN AGREED UPON WITH RUSSIA. LUKASHENKAS EUROPEAN POSITION HAS NOT CHANGED, HE HAS ALWAYS BEEN WILLING TO DO BUSINESS WITH EUROPE, BUT HE WILL NOT ACCEPT LOPSIDED ECONOMIC CONDITIONS IMPOSED ON BELARUS. BELARUS IS A SOVEREIGN COUNTRY, AND IT IS SAD WHEN THEY MUST ONLY RELY ON THEMSELVES WITHOUT THE BENEFIT OF OUTSIDE ASSISTANCE, BUT LUKASHENKA IS CORRECT THAT IN THE AREA OF TRADE AND ASSISTANCE, IT IS QUALITY THAT MATTERS MORE THAN QUANTITY. MAYBE THAT IS WHAT YOU MEAN BY HIS "GOING IT ALONE"
Some prognosticators may be predicting the imminent demise of Belarus's beleagured leader. LUKASHENKA IS NOT BELEAGURED BY ANYONE BUT THE WEST. HIS PEOPLE GIVE HIM APPROVAL RATINGS GEORGE BUSH WILL NEVER DREAM OF SEEING. But Alyaksandr Lukashenka begs to differ. In an interview this week, he suggested rumors of the death of his political career have been greatly exaggerated. LUKASHENKAS POLITICAL CAREER HAS NOT YET REACHED ITS APEX, AND IT IS CLEARLY NOT IN DECLINE.
"If God gives me strength to fulfill all that I have promised to the Belorussian people, if health permits me and I achieve my goals, if I am still as active as you say I am, then I will tell you honestly, I will not abandon political struggle," Lukashenka told Reuters.
Is "Europe's last dictator" that dedicated to his job, or simply loathe to consider the alternative? IT IS IMPERTINENT TO CONTINUE TO REFER TO A LEGALLY ELECTED PRESIDENT AS A DICTATOR. HOW DOES A DICTATOR GET RE-ELECTED BY AN 86% APPROVAL MARGIN?
Self-Preservation
In fact, autocratic leaders like Alyaksandr Lukashenka, irrespective of political philosophy, all share a key instinct -- keeping themselves in power. ALEXANDER LUKASHENKA DOES WIELD A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF POWER IN BELARUS, HOWEVER IT IS NOT CORRECT TO LABEL HIM AN AUTOCRAT. THE POWER IN BELARUS IS CENTRALIZED WITH THE PRESIDENT TO PREVENT THE SAME SORT OF POWER VACUUM PROBLEMS THAT ROBBED MANY OF THE CIS COUNTRIES OF THEIR ASSETS IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE FALL OF THE USSR. THERE IS NO OTHER SENSIBLE ALTERNATIVE TO ENSURE THE BELARUSIAN PUBLIC ASSETS AND INSTITUTIONS DON'T GET STOLEN IN THE NIGHT OTHER THAN A CENTRALIZED POWER BASE. THIS IS NOT AN EXAMPLE OF SELF PRESERVATION OF A SINGLE MAN, IT IS AN EXAMPLE OF SELF PRESERVATION OF A COUNTRY.
"If he's having trouble with the Europeans, and he's having trouble with the Russians, he'll do what a lot of other dictators doAMERICA AND THE WEST HAVE MADE A SPORT OF PERSECUTING LUKASHENKA SIMPLY BECAUSE HE WILL NOT ABANDON MANY OF THE SOVIET SYSTEMS WHICH ARE WORKING WELL IN FAVOR OF SOCIO ECONOMIC ANARCHY. RUSSIA HAS MADE AN INCORRECT CHOICE TO PUT PROFITS ABOVE FRIENDS AND BLOOD, – he'll turn to the Chinese, he'll turn to the Iranians, he'll turn to that whole world of dictators who try to help each other." IT IS SENSIBLE FOR BELARUS TO TRADE AND BE FRIENDLY WITH ANY NATION NOT ACTIVELY ATTEMPTING TO DESTROY HER. IF BELARUS FINDS FRIENDSHIP AND GOOD TRADING WITH NATIONS WHO ARE OUT OF VOGUE WITH THE WEST, THEN BELARUS SHOULD CONSIDER HERSELF LUCKY TO HAVE THESE GOOD FRIENDS FOR THEIR OWN SAKE.
That's according to U.S. journalist David Wallachinsky, the author of "Tyrant: The World's 20 Worst Living Dictators," a detailed account of presidents, kings, and princes who rule their countries with an iron fist. THE PHRASE IRON FIST REFERS TO VIOLENCE USED TO SUPPRESS AND CONTROL A NATION. HOW HAS LUKASHENKA VIOLENTLY SUPPRESSED HIS PEOPLE. LETS EXAMINE LEVELS OF VIOLENCE IN AMERICA WITH LEVELS OF VIOLENCE IN BELARUS. WHICH SOCIETY SUFFERS FROM VIOLENCE MORE?
Wallachinsky divides dictators into three categories.
There are those who inherit their power from a family member, like Syria's Bashir al-Assad. There are those, like Cuba's Fidel Castro, who take over the country by force. IF CASTRO IS GOING TO BE TERMED A DICTATOR, I DISAGREE WITH THIS LABEL, BUT IT SHOULD BE NOTED THAT CASTRO CAME TO POWER BY OVERTHROWING A DICTATOR, A DICTATOR THAT WAS US SUPPORTED. IF ANYONE IS INTERESTED IN ATTACKING CASTRO, THEY SHOULD NOTE THE QUALITY OF LIFE INDICATORS ENJOYED BY THE CITIZENS OF CUBA, AND COMPARE THESE SAME INDICATORS WITH OTHER LATIN PEOPLES WHOSE LEADERS HAVEN'T BEEN LABELED AS DICTATORS.
And then, Wallachinsky says, there are those who simply rise up through the political ranks to take power LUKASHENKA WAS CLEANLY AND FAIRLY VOTED TO OFFICE, AND ONLY BECAME LABELED AS A DICTATOR WHEN HE REFUSED TO SUBMIT BELARUS TO ECONOMIC SHOCK THERAPY. -- as is the case with Lukashenka and other post-Soviet autocrats.
"In the case of Lukashenka, Islam Karimov of Uzbekistan, [Saparmurat] Niyazov of Turkmenistan, et cetera -- these gentlemen were lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, when communism collapsed in the Soviet Union," Wallachinsky says.
"They were able to transform themselves into the symbol of a new, independent country while retaining quite a bit of the old Soviet system." IT IS A FAILURE OF THE WEST THAT WE HAVE NEVER ATTEMPTED TO CLONE SOME OF THE SUCCESSFUL FEATURES OF SOVIET SOCIALISM. THIS WOULD NOT HAVE MADE US COMMUNISTS, BUT IT WOULD HAVE HELPED US TO OVERCOME MANY OF OUR ENDEMIC SOCIAL PROBLEMS.
Bad Company
Wallachinsky, who refreshes his list each year, ranks his subjects from one to 20, one being the worst. IF THE PEOPLE OF AMERICA, AND IRAQ, AND AFGHANISTAN WERE ALLOWED TO VOTE AND THUS CONTRIBUTE TO THIS LIST, WHICH LIVING "PRESIDENT" WOULD LIKELY BE THUS INCLUDED?
Lukashenka (right) with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez in Minsk in July 2006 (official site)The ranking is based on criteria such as violations of free speech and religion, rigged elections, an corrupt judiciary, and the inability to stage public protests or criticize the government without punishment. IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO NOTE QUALITY OF LIFE INDICATORS FOR ALL COUNTRIES AND SEE HOW MANY OF THE 20 COUNTRIES LISTED AS DICTATORSHIPS ACTUALLY ENJOY HIGHER QUALITY OF LIFE THAN THE REMAINING "DEMOCRACIES" IF THE UNITED STATES WAS NOT NOTED FOR HAVING A CORRUPT JUDICIARY, THEN WALLACHINSKY HAS SIMPLY IGNORED BASIC FACTS KNOWN TO MOST OF AMERICA.
In this year's list -- due to be published February 11, Lukashenka ranks 14th, the same position he held in 2006. SO WALLACHINSKY FEELS THAT BELORUSSIANS ARE AS OPPRESSED AS THE SAUDI'S. PERHAPS WALLACHINSKY THINKS BELORUSSIAN WOMEN WOULD LIKE TO TRADE PLACES WITH THE SAUDI WOMEN. OH, NO WAIT A MINUTE THEY ARE 9 LEVELS APART. BUT IF THE SAUDI'S ARE SO MUCH WORSE THAN THE BELARUSIANS, HOW COME THERE ISN'T A SAUDI ARABIAN DEMOCRACY ACT?
This puts the Belorussian leader slightly ahead of Karimov at No. 8, and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia at No. 5. DOES RADIO FREE EUROPE HAVE ANYTHING TO SAY ABOUT SAUDI ARABIA?
But it leaves him below a newcomer to the list, Russian President Vladimir Putin, who enters the ranking at No. 20 -- nudged in, perhaps, thanks to the space vacated by Niyazov, last year's No. 8, who died in December.
The absolute worst living dictator, according to Wallachinsky, is President Omar Hasan Ahmad Al-Bashir of Sudan, who has been accused of orchestrating the murder and displacement of hundreds of thousands in his country's Darfur region. IT WOULD BE INTERESTING TO NOT HOW MUCH MONEY HAS BEEN WASTED TRYING TO DESTROY BELARUS, AND HOW MUCH MONEY HAS BEEN SPENT TO GIVE LEGITIMATE AIDE TO THE VICTIMS OF DARFUR.
Other world leaders on Wallachinsky's list are North Korea's Kim Jong-il (No. 2),FEW WESTERNERS WOULD LIKE TO LIVE IN MODERN NORTH KOREA, BUT HAS ANYONE FORGOTTEN THAT UP UNTIL VERY RECENTLY SOUTH KOREA WAS ITSELF A BRUTAL DICTATORSHIP. IT IS ASSUMED THAT THE HARD TIMES ENDURED BY NORTH KOREAS POPULATION ARE SINGULARLY BECAUSE OF ITS LEADER KIM JONG-IL, but please remember that all post soviet countries have suffered severe economic problems after the fall of the soviet union. This would lead the logical observer to conclude that these same soviet countries BENEFITED ECONOMICLY from the soviet union. Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (No. 3), IRAN IS ANOTHER PLACE I WOULDN'T CHOOSE TO LIVE TODAY, BUT LETS NOT FORGET THE PREVIOUS LEADER OF IRAN WAS THE SHAH, HIMSELF A NOTORIOUS AND BRUTAL DICTATOR, DOES ANYONE REMEMBER WHO THE SHA'S BIGGEST SUPPORTER WAS? China's Hu Jintao (No. 4), CAN ANYONE IMAGINE WHAT TYPE OF HUMANITARIAN DISASTER WOULD OCCUR IF THE COMMUNISTS WERE TO LOSE POWER IN CHINA? DOES ANYONE WANT THIS? ALSO, WE SHOULD REMEMBER THAT CHINA HAS ENJOYED MOST FAVORED NATION STATUS WITH THE U.S. FOR YEARS, AND THE MILITARY AND ECONOMIC ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THIS SAME COMMUNIST COUNTRY WOULD LIKELY NOT HAVE BEEN POSSIBLE WITHOUT THE HARD CURRENCY THEY HAVE EARNED BY THE SALES OF THEIR ITEMS TO AMERICA. Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe (No. 7), and Pervez Musharraf of Pakistan (No. 15).
Track Suits
Of all the figures on Wallachinsky's list, Lukashenka is the only leader whom the journalist has had occasion to observe up close and in person.
At the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, Wallachinsky witnessed the Belorussian leader several nights in a row in a section of the ice hockey arena reserved for elite guests. YUP, LUKASHENKA LOVES HOCKEY. VIP SECTIONS ARE NOT UNIQUE TO JAPAN, DO YOU THINK BUSH SITS IN THE NOSEBLEED SECTION AT ANY GAME?
"I got the impression that he was kind of ashamed of his background, that he wanted to be the sophisticated world leader, and if you met his wife you'd know where he really came from." WHAT A DIPSHIT REMARK. HOW COULD THE PRESIDENT OF ANY COUNTRY BE ASHAMED OF WHERE HE REALLY CAME FROM. LUKASHENKAS PERSONAL LIFE IS NO SECRET. AND ANY PLEBEIAN NATURE HE EXHIBITS LIKELY ONLY ENDEARS HIM TO HIS COUNTRYMEN. WHAT DOES HIS WIFE HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING? WHY DRAG HER INTO THIS.
His overwhelming impression, Wallachinsky says, was that Lukashenka looked and acted like a "gangster." WHAT DOES A GANGSTER LOOK LIKE? THIS IS SIMPLY HATEFUL SLANDER.
Lukashenka at an inline-skating competition in Minsk in July 2001 (TASS)"On the first couple of evenings, he showed up dressed in a suit and tie, as befits a world leader. And his bodyguards were dressed similarly," he says. "And then suddenly they started showing up in sports outfits -- you know, track suits. THATS WEIRD, WEARING WARM UPS TO A SPORTING EVENT. NEVER HEARD OF THAT BEFORE. [But] in no way did it change their appearance. They still appeared to be a political mafia." IT IS VERY IRONIC FOR WALLACHINSKY TO BE REFERRING TO LUKASHENKA AS A MAFIA TYPE FIGURE. A GIANT PART OF LUKASHENKAS POLICIES AND PLATFORMS ARE ENGENEERED TO PREVENT MAFIA'S FROM TAKING POWER IN BELARUS. MAFIA'S TAKE POWER WHEN THERE IS A POWER VACUUM. IF WALLACHINSIKY THINKS LUKASHENKA IS A MAFIA FIGURE, PERHAPS HE SHOULD ATTEMPT TO DO BUSINESS IN A COUNTRY LIKE RUSSIA OR THE UKRAINE, AFTER THAT EXPERIENCE MAYBE WALLACINSKY WOULD HAVE SOME RESPECT FOR THE ANTI ORGANIZED CRIME POLICIES THAT ARE IN EFFECT IN BELARUS.
In his research on dictators, Wallachinsky looks not only at the oppressive policies they impose on their citizens. LUKASHENKA HAS NOT IMPOSED ANY POLICIES ON THE PEOPLE OF BELARUS, LUKASHENKA HAS BEEN A LEADER, AND SIGNED INTO LEGISLATION ONLY WHAT THE PEOPLE AS A WHOLE DESIRE. He also examines details from their personal lives. WALLACHINSKY HAS NOW GONE FROM AMATEUR POLITICAL ANALYST TO COMMON GARDEN VARIETY PAPPARAZZI, IF PRINCESS DIANA WAS ALIVE, I WONDER IF SHE WOULD FIND THE PERSONAL LIVES OF PRESIDENTS A CREDIBLE READ?
He says he does this to remind readers of the disturbing fact that these are real people, not invented monsters. HE PRINTS THE PERSONAL LIVES TO SELL HIS BOOK TO PERSONS INTERESTED IN READING TABLOID DETAILS OF WORLD LEADERS.
While researching Lukashenka's private life, Wallachinsky hit a dead end trying to find a picture of the president's wife. WHAT THE HELL DOES LUKASHENKAS WIFE HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING. THIS IS SIMPLY HARASSMENT OF A WORLD LEADER, WITH LITTLE CONCERN FOR THEIR FAMILY. THIS GUY NEEDS A RESTRAINING ORDER. When he asked a group of Belarusian sports journalists at the Olympics, they said they had never seen her, or even a picture of her. THIS IS A STUPID COMMENT, FIRST OF ALL WHO THE HELL CARES IF HER PICTURE IS COMMONLY AVAILABLE, AND SECONDLY IT DOESN'T PROVE ANYTHING IF SOME GUYS HANGING AROUND AT THE OLYMPICS KNOW WHO SHE IS, WHAT OLYMPICS, WHAT YEAR? THIS DUMB ASS COMMENT IMPLIES THAT CITIZENS OF SMALLER COUNTRIES COULD OR SHOLD BE ABLE TO COMMONLY IDENTIFIY THE FIRST LADY AS READILY AS WE CAN HERE IN AMERICA. NOT ONLY THAT, BUT IT IS A DESTRUCTIVE AND FUTILE IDEA TO MEASURE A LEADER BY UNIMPORTANT DETAILS ABOUT THEIR PERSONAL LIFE. ON BEHALF OF ALL OF AMERICA, WE HAVE LEARNED THAT LESSON AS IT RELATES TO BILL CLINTON.
Wallachinsky found this missing link bizarre. He now says it helped him develop a theory about Lukashenka's personal demons. DEMONS, WHAT DEMONS?
"I got the impression that he was kind of ashamed of his background, that he wanted to be the sophisticated world leader, and if you met his wife, you'd know where he really came from," he says. IS THIS SOME KIND OF INSULT TO LUKASHENKAS WIFE? IT IS COMMON KNOWLEDGE WHERE HE CAME FROM. FOR YOUR INFORMATION WALLACHINSKY, LUKASHENKA IS ABOUT 20 TIMES MORE SOPHISTICATED THAN THE CLOWN/WAR CRIMINAL THAT WE HAVE IN OFFICE NOW.
In fact, Lukashenka's wife, Halina, has never officially served as first lady. YOU KNOW WHAT, IT IS REALLY SHITTY TO DRAG LUKASHENKAS WIFE INTO THIS BOOK. She lives alone in the small Belarusian city of Shklou, where Lukashenka held a job at the beginning of his career. ON BEHALF OF ALL OF AMERICA, WE ARE REALLY FUCKING SICK AND TIRED OF SEEING THIRD RATE PAPARAZZI AND BOOK HACKS LIKE YOU STALKING ANY PRESIDENT FROM LUKASHENKA TO CLINTON.
Lukashenka is now believed to live with a mistress, with whom he has a young child. But this side of his life is kept under wraps as well. THE HACK JOURNALISM JUST DOESN'T STOP
No Easy Out
So what does the future hold for the 53-year old Lukashenka?
Tyranny expert Wallachinsky more like tabloid book hack than tyranny expert, says this is a difficult time for the Belarusian leader, as he struggles to find a balance between the country's almost crippling economic dependency on Russia and growing pressure from the West to end its self-imposed isolation. BELARUS AND RUSSIA ENJOY GIANT TRADE TURNOVER, AND BELARUS ISN'T IN SELF IMPOSED ISOLATION. THERE ARE JUST SO MANY SPIES AND INSTIGATORS PAID FOR BY THE US GOVERNMENT CONSTANTLY TRYING TO CAUSE TROUBLE FOR BELARUS, THAT SHE MUST BE WARY OF WHO SHE CAN TRUST.
Lukashenka (right) with Iranian President Mahmud Ahmadinejad in Tehran in November 2006 (official site)But Lukashenka's autocratic style is going to be a problem if he tries to forge new friendships, Wallachinsky predicts. LUKASHENKA IS ONLY A PROBLEM FOR THE PEOPLE TRYING TO ROB AND RUIN BELARUS.
"Lukashenka's in a difficult situation, because this is not an era in which the European powers are willing to overlook human rights violations,"THEY HAVEN'T HAD MUCH TROUBLE GETTING OVER THE COUPLE HUNDRED THOUSAND PEOPLE WE HAVE KILLED IN IRAQ. he says. "He just stands out like a sore thumb in Europe. To be a dictator like he is is to be part of times gone by, from a European point of view." THE EUROPEAN ANTI SOVIET LOBBY IS VERY STRONG, AND FANNED BY THE US GOVERNMENT, AND THEY WOULD LIKE NOTHING MORE THAN TO STOMP OUT THE LAST REMAINING HEARTBEATS OF SOVIET SOCIALISM.
So where does it leave Lukashenka if he is rejected by both his traditional ally, Russia, and a Europe that refuses to do business with a politician of his ilk? RUSSIA HASN'T REJECTED BELARUS, BUT THEY ARE IN DIFFICULT FINANCIAL TIMES THERE ALSO, AND THEY HAVE MADE AN INCORRECT DECISION THAT HAS INJURED THEIR DEAR FRIEND BELARUS.
In such a scenario, Wallachinsky believes, Lukashenka will do what many besieged dictators do when they need help -- look to others who are just like him. BELARUS SHOULD TRADE AND BE FRIENDLY WITH ANY NATION THAT IS WILLING TO DO THE SAME.
"If he's having trouble with the Europeans, and he's having trouble with the Russians, he'll do what a lot of other dictators do – he'll turn to the Chinese, he'll turn to the Iranians, he'll turn to that whole world of dictators who try to help each other. ACTUALLY AMERICA HAS NO TROUBLE TRADING WITH THE CHINESE, AND WE WILL HAVE NO MORAL OBJECTION TO TRADING WITH IRAN IF THEY SELL THEIR OIL AT A GOOD PRICE. WE HAVE GOTTEN ALONG PRETTY GOOD WITH PAKISTAN WHEN WE NEEDED TO INVADE AFGHANISTAN, AND WE HAVE NO TROUBLE IGNORING AFRICA, BUT IF WE GET SHORT ON OIL, WE MAY HAVE TO TAKE AN INTEREST THERE ALSO. And he'll increase trade with China, with Pakistan, with Iran, with certain African nations if they have anything that he can use."
Lukashenka, in fact, has already forged ties with the leadership of countries likes of Iran, Cuba, and Venezuela. It's unclear, however, if those alliances will be enough to sustain his reign as "Europe's last dictator." CHAVEZ IS A GREAT PRESIDENT WHOSE POLICIES HAVE ONLY ASSISTED THE COMMON MAN IN VENEZUELA GET MEDICINE, EDUCATION, AND A CHANCE AT A DECENT LIFE. THE ONLY VENEZUELANS WHO OPPOSE CHAVEZ ARE THE VERY RICH WHO CANT IMAGINE THE PAIN OF THEIR PEASANT CLASS.

WHERE DID THE BOOK REPORT START, AND WHERE DID THE PROPAGANDA END. THIS CONCLUDES ANOTHER RED LINE EDITORIAL, WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS, DON'T BE AFRAID TO THINK FOR YOURSELF!

MICHAEL MILLER
INDIANAPOLIS,
2007

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/02/623acea5-27b4-40c6-808e-54f482df6419.html

Red Line Editorial--FROM RFE/RL BELARUS: U.S. Ambassador Highlights Economic Potential

2007-04-29T19:29:00.000-07:00

April 25, 2007 (RFE/RL) -- For the last four years, U.S. Ambassador to Belarus Karen Stewart has focused on Belarus. She was in Minsk before as deputy chief of mission at the embassy. Then she served as the director of the U.S. State Department's Office for Ukraine, Moldova, and Belarus in Washington, D.C.
Back again in Minsk since September 2006, she talks to RFE/RL's Belarus Service about Belarus political prisoners and the country's chance to embrace economic reform.

FIRSTLY, I WOULD LIKE THE READER TO NOTICE THERE IS NO REPORTER OR JOURNALIST OF RECORD NAMED FOR THIS ARTICLE.

PERHAPS THIS MEANS THERE IS NO SINGLE JOURNALIST OR REPORTER CREATING THESE QUESTIONS. IT IS OBVIOUS THE "QUESTIONS" ARE MERELY RFE/RL SIMPLY DOING WHAT IT WAS TASKED TO DO, THAT IS PUBLICIZE PROPAGANDA THAT WAS WRITTEN IN WASHINGTON TO SERVE THE BENEFIT OF WASHINGTON AND THE BIG MONEY THAT ULTIMATELY SUPPORTS IT.

I BELIEVE THIS MEANS THAT AN "INTERVIEW" HAS NOT ACTUALLY BEEN CONDUCTED HERE. RATHER RFE/RL IS SIMPLY ASKING KAREN STEWART SOME PRE-FABRICATED QUESTIONS FOR THE PURPOSE OF GIVING HER AN OPPORTUNITY TO STATE PRE-DETERMINED RESPONSES.

ALSO PLEASE NOTE THAT RFE/RL HAS CAREFULLY ENCLOSED MULTIPLE "STATEMENTS" INSIDE THEIR QUESTIONS. AS KAREN STEWART ANSWERS HER "QUESTIONS" THE STATE DEPARTMENT'S POSITION WAS PRE-VALIDATED BY THE ACTUAL "STATEMENT" THAT FORMS THE BASIS OF EACH "QUESTION" WATCH AND YOU WILL SEE WHAT I MEAN.

RFE/RL: The U.S. government has numerous times called on the Belorussian authorities to release prisoners of conscience. Have you met with any prisoners of conscience in Belarus or their families? If so, what impression did these meetings leave you with?

BELARUS HAS NO PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE. BELARUS DOES HAVE PERSONS INCARCERATED THAT HAVE RECEIVED INSTRUCTIONS IN ESPIONAGE, AND TREASON BY THE CIA AND ITS OPERATIVES. RFE/RL IS VERY INTERESTED IN IMPLYING BELORUSSIAN GUILT AT THE ONSET OF THIS INTERVIEW.

Karen Stewart: You've touched on one of the issues that are most important for my embassy and for my government -- seeking the release of political prisoners. Belarus has no political prisoners, but there are some traitors imprisoned, traitors that have taken instruction from their CIA handlers in how to start riots and revolutions. By our count, we're up to 11 Belorussians who are in prison or otherwise detained on politically motivated charges. how many political prisoners has the U.S. held without trial or justice in Cuba and Iraq? I have met a couple of these gentleman and have met several who were previously in prison and are now released and I've had a couple of occasions to meet with the families, to bring the families together, including a Christmas party last December. when will the Christmas party be for all of the prisoners in Guantanamo, will you Karen Stewart be willing to meet with their families like you have met with the families of the Belorussian "political prisoners"/traitors? All of us at the embassy are so impressed by the courage of the political prisoners and by the courage of their families who have to wait and watch and suffer for these years, analogous crimes in America would have brought life sentences. waiting to be reunited with their loved ones.
'It's important to continue assistance to political-party development, to civil society, and independent media.' What Karen Stewart means is that the CIA and the state department will continue to give money to any political party that will benefit them, but is it legal for foreign governments to help small political parties in America come to power? And the independent media she speaks of is only media that will give favorable coverage OF America. Will the State Department give money to an "independent" media that supports Alexander Lukashenka? It would be very possible for Lukashenka to have many supporters who would like to receive financial assistance in their private media endeavors. How much will the State Department give to these media outlets that criticize Washington?

RFE/RL: Summing up U.S.-Belarusian relations in 2006, you noted that, on an official level, there was very little positive to report. it is obvious that Washington sees nothing positive to report, they tried to start a revolution in a peaceful country, and failed! If they were to report too much the general public back home in America would ultimately realize how their tax dollars were being spent! But if one were to speak about nonofficial contacts, contacts between individuals, NGOs, etc., is there any reason to be more optimistic? another words, the traitors the CIA is paying off, and the subversive organizations that are funded by American tax dollars are still nodding and smiling in the direction of the embassy. Now theres a surprise.

Stewart: Yes, I am more optimistic about the personal contacts. yes, the Cia's contacts in the region that haven't been convicted of treason are still pretty friendly. I think they are really the basis for the long-term development of relations between our countries. Karen is hoping that these guys can come to power because frankly, it is really hard to have a good relationship with an administration that you have recently tried to subversively put out of power. The embassy encourages contacts between individuals and between organizations as much as we can through our exchange programs, through our cultural events, through our support for nongovernmental organizations. how else are CIA operatives supposed to recruit and maintain our contacts. But there are also a number of private American organizations who are active in Belarus in humanitarian assistance with Chernobyl children or even just privately visiting and that's also a wonderful way to build up understanding between our two peoples. yes, Chernobyl was a catastrophic tragedy, and every opportunity is taken to send spies to the region under the cover or humanitarian aid workers, ministers, or any other non-spook sounding job description.

RFE/RL: You've articulated the U.S. position regarding the crisis that erupted between Belarus and Russia over gas prices by saying that: countries should not use their energy resources as political weapons in international relations. now lets be clear, we have used actual weapons to secure OUR energy, but when two great allies like Russia and Belarus are disagreeing over gas prices, and their strengths are therefore divided, this can't but help a criminal long term position. Belorussians lose money and political backup, the Russians lose political clout with their best friend, Washington couldn't have dreamed up a better scenario than that! We hear that there will be negative consequences for Belarus as a result of the increase in energy costs. What positive effects might ensue from Belarus having to contend with higher gas and oil prices? the state department couldn't be happier that Russian greed has harmed the economy of Belarus, but notice attempts to try to sugar coat the actual opinion. the actually make believe that a free market economy and corporate greed will help Belarus.

Stewart: You've accurately noted that the U.S. government is opposed to using energy as a political lever against other countries. Mikes vacation would like to know how many vodka shots were needed to say that with a straight face! America just invaded Iraq for the purpose of mugging their oil from them! An entire country has been destroyed, hundreds of thousands killed, wounded, imprisoned and tortured. Seriously, were you smoking crack before this "interview"? But economically the best result is when countries are buying and selling resources at world prices as long as the adjustment to those world prices was phased in over time. does that mean you advocate the repletion of import tariffs for cars coming into the U.S.? does this also mean you are against any u.s. farm subsidy? this is a modern version of Reaganomics, it didn't work in the 80s and it isn't valid now. When you have a new country with limited cash reserves, how can drastically increased fuel prices help the people? If the increase in gas prices were "phased in" over 30 years, maybe this wouldn't have been so painful. there are somethings more important than just a corporate bottom line. like the lives of the general public! The advantages to Belarus of being on the open market for energy prices are increased efficiency, just exactly how much wasting of energy is going on right now! it will be an incentive to conserve energy, again, just where and what energy is wasted in BELARUS! [and] it will be an incentive to diversify sources of energy. Also, as industries in Belarus have to operate without subsidies, Belarus can see which industries have the most competitive advantages, ANOTHER WORDS, THIS MAY HELP TO ECONOMICALLY CRIPPLE CERTAIN COMPANIES THAT CAN BE PICKED UP FOR A SONG BY RUSSIAN OLIGARCHS OR EUROPEAN CONGLOMERATES. where investment should be, and I hope that would also lead to the government adopting policies that would make Belarus more attractive for foreign investors. NOW THAT RUSSIA IS NOT STICKING UP FOR BELARUS SO MUCH, WASHINGTON WILL ATTEMPT TO BULLY THEM JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE! WHY THE HELL SHOULD BELARUS WANT TO ALLOW INVESTORS INTO ITS MOST PROFITABLE AND SURVIVABLE COMPANIES? BY DEFINITION, IF A COMPANY IS GOOD, BELORUSSIANS SHOULD WANT TO NOT SHARE ITS OWNERSHIP WITH ANYONE BUT THEMSELVES! FOREIGN INVESTORS DON'T WANT TO LOSE MONEY, THEY ONLY WANT TO BUY INTO COMPANIES THAT HAVE GREAT POTENTIAL FOR PROFIT AND EXPANSION. WHY SHOULD THESE SAME COMPANIES NEED WESTERN PARTNERS IN ORDER TO GAIN ACCESS TO FAIR CONDITIONS IN WESTERN MARKETS!!

RFE/RL: The mandate of the Belarus Democracy Act was recently extended. What will this mean for the democratic community of Belarus as a result of this? [The Belarus Democracy Act of 2004 is designed to promote democratic development, human rights, and the rule of law in Belarus, as well as encourage the consolidation and strengthening of Belarus sovereignty and independence.] Among other things, the Belarus democracy act means that the hard earned money from the American taxpayer will be used to subversively fund political parties that are friendly to Washington, and this same money will also be used to fund "media" interests in Belarus that will agree with Washington, and slander the Lukashenka Administration and ATTACK socialism in general. As Belarus clearly enjoys the "rule of law" already, the CIA intends to help persons breaking Belorussian laws to get sympathetic press coverage and lighter prison sentences as long as the laws being broken were done so at the encouragement of a CIA handler, or their equivalent. It is therefor OK for us to promote treason, espionage, bribery, rioting, slander, and ultimately revolution. By sovereignty and independence, Washington actually means a puppet government that will go along with whatever scheme Washington cooks up.

Stewart: American legislation can be very confusing. The Belarus Democracy Act does not actually appropriate additional resources for assistance. But it does tell us where [the U.S.] Congress thinks it's important to use our assistance. revolutions, demonstrations, spies, spooks, propaganda radio, its all good. And so the executive branch of the U.S. government, as we decide where to allocate assistance on a very tight budget year, we know that Congress thinks it's very important to continue to support democratic development in Belarus and that has meant that we have maintained the same level of assistance when other countries were being cut. so even though Lukashenka won the election, the state department and the CIA will continue to harass him, and to try to stir up trouble in Belarus. So the act tells us it's important to continue assistance to political party development, to civil society, and independent media. again, that means potential puppet politicians, laws that benefit us, and any media that will not print bad news about America!

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/4/66C6B0D9-A39F-4130-A3B4-D4D52FE5F77D.html

NEW METHOD FOR EDITORIALS

2007-04-29T19:17:00.000-07:00

GREETINGS READERS,

MIKE'S VACATION WILL BE USING A NEW METHOD OF ANALYZING PROPAGANDA GENERATED AND SUPPORTED BY THE U.S. GOVERNMENT AND ITS AGENTS AND AFFILIATES.

WE WILL BE REPRINTING ARTICLES IN THEIR ENTIRETY AND INSERTING OUR EDITORIAL COMMENTS IN BOLD RED LETTERS INTO THE SAME ARTICLE.

THIS WILL ALLOW THE READER TO SEE THE EXACT ARTICLE BEING REFERENCED, AND TO SEE A WORD FOR WORD RESPONSE TO THE ARTICLE FROM MIKE'S VACATION

WE HOPE THIS NEW FORMAT WILL BE EFFECTIVE.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION IN THIS MATTER,

SINCERELY, MICHAEL MILLER

INDIANAPOLIS,
2007

THE CHO TAPES SHOULD HAVE BEEN FOREVER KEPT A SECRET!!

2007-04-18T19:21:00.000-07:00

All of America, and proably most of the world is aware of the trajic mass murder that has occurred recently at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg Virginia.

This sad event was our nations largest mass murder.

Today NBC received a package from Cho himself, containing a video and written statement that has been called his "manifesto".

NBC immediately turned this evidence over to the FBI.

Our entire nation has been watching this tape this evening, and it is the opinion of Mikes Vacation that this is a graven mistake on the part of NBC and the FBI.

It is extremely poor judgement on the part of NBC and the FBI to allow even the mere existence of this material to become known to the American public.

Americans have a right to know what is going on in their country, however this evidence from the killer Cho will do nothing to help his victims achieve justice or their families find closure.

It is the opinion of Mikes Vacation that this material could serve to motivate other unhappy and mentally ill individuals to now videotape "manifestos" and commit copycat style crimes.

Mikes Vacation believes that the combination of this incident being the largest mass murder in United States history, and simultaneously having a nationally broadcast "manifesto" is a terribly dangerous cocktail.

This lethal combination of potentially glamorizing Cho's crimes to tens of thousands of mentally imbalanced and unhappy individuals in America by allowing them to watch what undoubtedly will be hundreds of hours of national television discussing this crime, has the POTENTIAL of inspiring them to commit similar crimes in hopes of being nationally known themselves.

It is very rare that Mikes Vacation would support the United States government and a large corporation in a purposful act of repressing information from the general public, however in this case to do anyting but just that, has simply put the American public at risk for a similar attack, without the potential for any redeeming benefit to them.

I am not a law enforcement official, or a forensic psycologist, but I find it intuitively obvious that this "manifesto" should have been reserved for the FBI mindhunter division, and even its very existence should have been classified.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis, 2007

THE RUSSIAN AUSCHWITZ EXHIBIT SHOULD ACCURATELY REFLECT THE RUSSIAN SOUL AND CONSCIENCE

2007-04-15T18:30:00.000-07:00

The width, breadth, and depth of the trajedies that occurred at Auschwitz were so numerous and of such a vile nature, that no memorial park run by any country will ever begin to assist the victims in achieving any real measure or justice or closure. How can a murder victim receive justice? How can millions of victims receive justice?

Excecuting some high level war criminals in Nurnberg was proably better than nothing, but how do a few swinging nazis make up for all the damage done?

The sad and insidious truth about genocide is that when only a few class A war criminals can be ultimately excecuted, there is no real justice that can ever be achieved in any post genocide venue.

Genocides must be PREVENTED! Because, obviously there is no manner of redress after the fact that is even microscopicly equitable to its victims.

The goal of preserving an Auschwitz memorial should be to assist future generations with PREVENTING analagous trajedies from happening and to preserve the historical integrity of the physical premises so it will not be destroyed by time enabling it to educate and motivate our descendents to recognize potential genocide precursors and remember what such genocides look like in real life, or as close to real life as possible.

It is not correct for Poland to use its current custodial perogitives over the Auschwitz Trajedy Memorial to "sensor" or "frusterate" the Russian people's collective consciences from being expressed within the Russian exhibit of this international memoral park.

Nazi objectives were not only to murder Jews, but to expand the German state to include "slavic" or "Soviet Lands". (Libensraum=Living Room)

While it is undeniable that Jews were the main minority group targeted by Nazis, it is also true that robbing and murdering Jews was far from the only criminal goal of the Third Reich.

Any historian will acknowledge that while millions of Jews died in concentration camps, if were not for "soviet" soldiers, all slavs both eastern and western would have had a fate under Nazi control, that any citizen of today would term either "murder or slavery".

Nazi attrocities and crimes were partially enabled by an enviroment of political and artistic CENSORSHIP. (enforced by coersion, torture, and murder)

The Russians have paid with their blood for the right to dsiplay an Auschwitz exhibit without it being "edited" or "CENSORED" by Polish authorities.

If the Russians choose to remember the Auschwitz victims as "Soviet Citizens", then this is their perogitive, and it is unprofessional of the Polish authorities to attempt to obstruct the Russians in their choice of words.

The Auschwitz memorial should be visited and studied for time immortal so that future generations can learn about the results of unbridled human cruelty.

It is possible that many different countries, Russia and Poland included, may choose to alter the wording on their exibits at Auschwitz and other Genocide memorial sites. This should be accepted as a soverign right of any state that has shed blood winning WW2/The Patriotic War.

Polish censorship of Russian political opinions at Auschwitz is not going to help prevent a future genocide, and it will not add any justice or closure to the memory of Auschwitz victims.

Michael Miller

MONEY MUST NOT DIVIDE RUSSIA AND BELARUS

2007-03-14T20:07:00.000-07:00

I just finished reading Adam Goodman's (Being Had) article "Isn't it Ironic...". I liked the beginning, but I don't like nor agree with his absolute stance on Putin and the Gazprom dilemma.

Of course I like and respect Chavez.

Whether or not you agree with management of the Belarusian gas subsidy, you must acknowledge the fact that Putin has prudently managed the difficult problem of Russian asset management quite nicely.

Putin is a great president, and I am sorry that he is not great enough to be able to assure and orchestrate continued Belarusian comfort via future gas subsidies.

If you are going to judge the credibility of a president, any president, you must first consider the condition of his people, consider the assets at his disposal for their welfare, and consider the foreign and domestic pressure he is facing.

I think you forget to enter the variable of Russian political stability into your equations when you chide president Putin. Is it possible that Putin could have done more for Belaurs, yes it is. It is very possible he could have worked to ensure energy subsidies. Of course ! But what is he doing with the extra money Belaurs must pay?

He invests in the Military, he invests in Russia becoming more and more a global power every day as the power of Gazprom grows. He invests a giant amount of money into Russian industry via the continued subsidy the Russian people enjoy.

Putin's most important administrative task as President of Russia must be to
ABSOLUTELY ENSURE that the oligarchs do not fulfill their socioeconomic destinies and become the deified robber barons in Russia for the next 200 years. He must do this in such a fashion that he retains some reasonable margin of error and some measure of insurance of success.

What I mean is that while Russia could possibly help Belarus with continued subsidies, the extra money they earn from not doing this is not shot into the veins of foreign financial interests. It is not likely wasted on projects that don't build the overall fitness of his country.

Putin must simultaneously reign in the oligarchs, strengthen the states power, increase military strength, and provide for as much social welfare at home as he can AND RETAIN a socioeconomic margin of error so that no matter what happens, his path with the engineering and reconstruction of a modern post soviet Russia can continue.

Putin is not the enemy of Belarus.

The bottom line is this, I have told you several times, and I will tell you again. The Soviet Union made a terrible mistake by disintegrating and not instead evolving.

Belarus managed to persevere through good character and work to her Soviet assets.

Russia and the other CIS countries just simply didn't enjoy the same degree of success in this area.

Now Russia must count on Belarus to be a loyal friend and Soviet and post Soviet family member in spite of the fact that the assets preserved by Belarus is going to be needed to help restore the whole of the CIS sphere even in areas where the population weren't as Soviet, or as diligent, or as industrious as were the Belarusians.

I say Belarusian assets must be utilized because her relative stability is a beacon for hope and homeostasis in the region. Belarus must continue to be a beacon to the region, and provide stability for others even if it will be at her own expense.

There is a metaphor between the Patriotic war and what is happening now in post soviet space. Errors were made by Stalin and his administration immediately preceding and during operation Barbarosa that were clearly injurious to the overall strength of the Soviet Union.

All parties of the Soviet Union were called upon to help pay for these mistakes by a few soviet leaders.

The Belarusians have not made the errors in character, and esprit de corps and in general economic engineering that the rest of the soviet union made a after the soviet breakup, but the Belarusians must continue to be good friends of Russia even if the Russians are not at this time reciprocating in the same fashion.

The relationship between Belarus and Russia should be judged on its average value over the past 80 years, and not upon the level of immediate injury and inconvenience that will be suffered in the next 3-10 years.

One should also imagine the continued positive cooperative benefits that will be had by all over the next 80 years in spite of the current differences in economic policy that will be injuring and hampering that Belarusians.

Mike

ERNST ZUNDEL- A HATEFUL AND USEFUL MAN

2007-02-26T03:30:00.000-08:00

That zundel is a hateful bastard.

Anyone who quotes wartime "red cross" reports to validate their position needs to be in jail.

As you know, the RED CROSS is a SWISS organization and you know the SWISS were "neutral", but in this case"neutral" means they were Hitlers Bankers.

Zundel must be addressed because there is another generation that could be tricked by his lies. It is like the "holocaust debates" that took place in Iran recently.

These things must be logically addressed and not simply just ignored.

People are not just numbers, if you can imagine only 1 murdered man who dies with a broken heart, you will need hours or days to consider his case. But when you imagine 100 of the same, then it becomes almost impossible to correctly empathize with the victims because there isn't time.

Now imagine 1000 of the same, now these "lives" are simply numbers without stories or faces.

The attack against Jews in Germany and Eastern Europe was not the only evil machination of Nazi era Fasism. To deny all of the evil of the Third Reich is to allow for it to not be remembered and thus allow for its replication by later regeimes.

Zundel is obviously wrong to attempt to lessen the memory of those who suffered. But his offense to Germany and Austria and America is not that he is attacking the memory of Jews.

His offense to modern Germany is that he accidently leads a logical reader to understand that all of the destruction of Europe was not simply about the murder of Jews.

A clever reader will ultimately understand that the true nature of fasicm is not persecution of the Jews, but it is about theft and control of assets. It is about forgery and deception and lies.

Anotherwards, the Jewish victims of the Nazis were a giant population group. Their numbers are in the millions. 2,4,6,7,8,10 million. It is impossible to exactly calculate their numbers, and an exact calculation is not important to understand the gravity of the crime.

Zundel tritely recognizes the impossibility of an EXACT or PRECISE body count of Jewish victims of WW2 and he cleverly attempts to invalidate the severity of their suffering by implying that because the "numbers don't precisely match up" that there was no giant episode of muder and suffering called the Holocaust.

Zundel has hatefully collected minutial data about just EXACTLY AND PRECISELY how many jews were murdered, and where and how.

But that isn't why he is in trouble with Germany. Nobody in Germany or America or perhaps Canada wants to discuss the fact that entire industries and financial empires exist today because of WW2 era fasism.

Obviously this facism took a giant toll on Europes jews. That is where Zundel's hateful propaganda makes him famous but his actual tort is the fact that people will now discuss other aspects of German fasism and they will be led by their own intellects to indict those responsible.

Ultimately a clever reader has to imagine that the destruction of Europe was not just about Jews. And then this same reader must imagine the industries and institutions that allowed for the destruction of europe and the jews.

Then the reader must be led to imagine what industries and leaders and empires of modern Germany and America and Europe exist today in spite of and as a result of their wartime efforts.

That is what Germany is upset over, Germany is upset over the hundreds and thousands of Wallbergs and such that survived their crimes and flourished to power. They are upset by BMW and Mercedes and Volkswagon being so deeply embroiled in Nazi germany.

America is obviously upset by our power brokers that got rich from the Nazis, such as IBM who came up with the "inventory control system" that would ultimately be the tattoos on the concentration victims forearms. The Bush family and many other prominent families that have their fortunes stinking of ww2 blood. We are ashamed of all the Belarusian Nazis we brought over knowing their histories.

Ernst Zundel is just a hateful , heartless propaganda monger and conman. He is obviously supported by Neo-Nazi money. I say Neo Nazi money because he is a stone in the shoe of real Nazi's with real Nazi money. He just accidently causes the world to continue to imagine Nazi issues to include financial and industrial asset issues. The only people dumb enough to support him would be skinheads, or Neo/New Nazis.

Zundels lies should be openly discussed and logically discredited. This will not be difficult. And after his lies are discredited, the global public should begin discussions about the true nature of Nazi Fasicsm.

The world should recognize that the Jews of Europe were not hurt by Nazi Fasism itself, they were killed by PRECURSOR elements engeneered into Germany society by the Nazis. These precursor elements were the brutalization of German children in Hitler Youth camps. These precursor elements were the propaganda that de-humanized Jews and Slavs prior to their attack by the Nazi's.

Hate itself isn't deadly. Bigotry is simply a distasteful trait. EFFECTIVE PRECURSOR elements to a genocide must be woven into a society before it is capeable of mass murder or genocide.

It is these precursor elements that must be discussed and identified by a civilized modern world to prevent them from being replicated onto an unsuspecting society for the purpose of enabling another Holocaust or Genocide from taking place.

Michael Miller

2 RUSSIAN WOMEN MURDERED IN PATTAYA, THAILAND

2007-02-24T22:47:00.000-08:00

I recently concluded four essays about my observations while on vacation to Thailand.

One of the Thai cities I visited was Pattaya. This city is interesting because it is the flagship city for Russian tourists coming to Thailand.

CIS citizens , primarily Russians like to come to Thailand because they can arrive visa free from their home countries. Thai Airways offers reasonably priced flights from Moscow to Bangkok. The flight time is about 12 hours.

Pattaya is primarily geared towards English speaking tourists, however there are about 10-15% of the business that cater to Russian tourists.

There is even a "Russian District" at the end of Walking Street. Walking Street is long and commercialized nightclub and restaurant and souveneer district that borders the beach.

The Russians that are in Pattaya are all in their mid 20's to mid 40's.

Russian women do not come to Thailand on vacation without their husbands or boyfriends.

There is a very small population of Eastern European prostitutes living in Pattaya.

It is extremely unlikely that 2 Russian women would be murdered on a Thai beach by Thai citizens.

It is unlikely that these 2 Russian women were victims of simultaneous domestic violence ending in their joint deaths on the beach.

It is more likely that these two women were killed because they were either trying to flea their lives as prostitutes, or perhaps they were somehow stealing money from their employers/captors.

The Russian tourists this writer observed did not appear very sociable or happy, or in love, but they did not look to be on the verge of murder either.

Multiple crime families from multiple ethnic backrounds have financial interests in Pattaya businesses.

It is not unreasonable to assume that these two Russian women were murdered because of some association with organized crime in the Pattaya area.

It is this writers hope that the Russian FSB will look into the health and welfare of its citizens living abroad and will work with the Thai authorities to bring some measure of appropriate closure to this sad case in Pattaya.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
2007

500 VOICES FOR BELARUS-- A SELF REVIEW

2007-02-05T01:59:00.000-08:00

500 VOICES FOR BELARUS is a documentary film I wrote, directed, and produced. Its running time is 1 hour and 42 minutes. It was shot in HDV PAL format.

500 VOICES was a project that I wrote for the purpose of creating discussion about the former future presidential election in the Republic of Belarus.

It is obvious that my favorite canidate was and is Alexander Lukashenka.

It is also obvious that if I made a documentary film whose purpose was creating discussion about the Belarusian election, I desired for this discussion to favor Alexander Lukashenka.

I decided for the film to be shot in May of 2006 in time for the scheduled Belarusian elections, but when the election time was moved forward, I had to choose between shooting my film on no money, with no crew, or allowing my completed script to be wasted and never filmed.

I decided to go ahead and shoot this film on nickels and dimes. I shot this film with no money, no crew, and no film experience on my part save actually being a movie buff and having been to literally hundreds and hundreds of movies.

This film had the benefit of a very strong screenplay/script and every portion of what is said in my film is highly defendable and arguable.

This film did not have the benefit of money, or talent, or even good luck.

I will say to my credit that I did finish this difficult project and I ultimately did produce a "turnkey" finished product that was complete with movie posters, CD covers and the whole nine yards.

It was the nature of this project that it would be highly unlikely the people of Belarus would actually derive any benefit from it, and it was also understood by me when I was making it that proably no one would ever see it.

I made this movie because I couldn't stand to waste the script, and because I couldn't just sit on my hands while the people of Belarus were under attack from outside western forces, namely the U.S. government.

This film is absolutely RIFE with flaws and failures. For instance in the second scene I ACTUALLY MISPRONOUNCED Alexander Lukashenkas name 8 times!!! I didn't realize this until my editor was putting it all together for me, and at that point, there was no way to change anything. There was just no more time or money.

There were multiple camera wobbles, multiple sound failures. The list of cinamatographic failures goes on and on. There is literally one stupid classic mistake after another in this documentary!

There were essentially no paid for sets, no paid costumes, no paid crew except for my editor at M3M films who saved the project in the very last days with his film expertise.

I did the best I could. I had no experience, no knowledge, no anything but a sturdy script and a sense of urgency and enthusiasm to complete this project.

It was the darkest of times in my mind, there were LITERALLY 10,734,134 Belarusians with their lives and their futures hanging on the outcome of this presidential election. This election was the showdown between good and evil. This election was an example of the west attempting to stomp to death the final and last heartbeats of Soviet Socialism that existed in Europe.

Maybe Soviet Socialism wasn't the greatest form of government in the world, but watching it stomped to death by the CIA and the STATE DEPARTMENT wasn't something I was prepared to witness without DOING SOMETHING!

What can a little guy in America do if our government is off on some crazy witch hunt or war crime? Absolutly Nothing! Who can you call? Who can you complain to?
What can any little guy JOE CITIZEN do when he sees his country preparing to MUGG yet ANOTHER VICTIM?

The only thing I could think of was to write and shoot 500 VOICES. I just couldn't sit on my hands in good conscience and watch another witch burning and another village zippo raided without at least attempting to interveen somehow.

So, I did my best, I wrote a good script, and then shot a really crappy documentary film which did absolutely nothing to affect the Belarusian election WHATSOEVER!

Would I do it all over again? I think so, because I feel that my movie while it was a total and dismal failure, may teach future film makers some important lessons about what not to do. It may also inspire more talented and better funded filmmakers in the future to get into the action and at least try to make a difference in the world.

I am happy with the AMERICAUST CHRISTMAS portion of 500 Voices, and I am happy with the creative way my editor from M3M FILMS saved the third to last scene.

The third to last scene was sort of a roundtable interview between myself and 2 of the fellows that had joined me to make this film. The only problem was that the microphones went fuzzy and all of our sound was recorded as having some kind of weird "hiss" in the backround. This sound problem was unfixable without re-shooting the scene. We were out of time and money, and the scene was candidly shot without scripts. It could never be duplicated.

It was my idea to then "antique" the scene into chalky black and white and insert some ghostly scenes of historic Belarus into the scene in microsecond intervals. This was accented by gunfire added to the backround noise. This scene deserved an A+
as an example of how to save an absolutely ruined scene. It really bound the whole film together at the end and it looked as if it was suppossed to have been there all the time.

Anyway, my documentary film 500 VOICES FOR BELARUS is so full of flaws and failures that I proably don't know about all of them, and you don't have time to read about them.

500 VOICES was never intended to be played on European Prime Time Television, but it was intended to foster some discussion about certain subjects that nobody really seemed to want to talk about at the US government during and past the time of the Belarusian Presidential election.

Ultimately I was never able to secure any type of distribution for this film even though I approched numerous sources. I wasn't really surprised, but I at least wanted to give the film the benefit of multiple exposures to potential venues for its release.

I am in the process of copyrighting it and as soon as that is finished, I will offer it for sale at cost over this blog to anyone who would like to view it.

I would encourage anyone with any ideas to make a documentary film about their passions to go for it and take the risk. Ultimately my personal bottom line was affected less than 10K USD by the making of this film. But my personal self respect for finishing a difficult project went way up and I am satisfied with what I have done.

I am right now working with some friends on the production of another film, although this one will not be political in any way.

I am interested in making a drama or a comedy this time. Lets face it, there is nothing funny or entertaining about a documentary on the Belarusian Election and Alexander Lukashenka made by yours truly. 500 VOICES is DEFINETLY NOT a first date movie. If you play this movie on a first date you are GUARANTEED to get "no love". LOL

So, there are other works in the fire, and maybe my next picture will have fewer failures than the first, and maybe, just maybe it will be ENTERTAINING instead of intensely informative.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis
February, 2007

A PLASTER FOR 10,000 BROKEN HEARTS

2007-02-03T22:55:00.001-08:00

Statistics vary from source to source, but at any given moment there are approximately 10,000 western men in Thailand on any given day.

Some are tourists, some retiree's. Some are on business, some are just on vacation.

A large portion of these men are Americans. I believe that their behaviors in Thailand should not be considered as "bad" or "wrong" or "perverse" and I also believe that any persecution of these men would only make our country weaker and not stronger.

The behavior of American men in Thailand should be considered as a "barrometer" of our American social condition.

It could be argued that American society is in good condition becuase of the relatively low number of men engaged in some form of sex with prostitutes.

It could also be argued that a giant portion of American men would like to be in Thailand paying for sex with prostitutes and this would clearly signal a large social problem in America.

I believe that regardless of whether you believe the glass is half full, or half empty, there is a situation that needs to be addressed.

Traditionally the U.S. government would address men seeking the services of prostitutes in a punitive and destructive manner. Remember that prostition is a criminal offense in virtually all of America and this criminal offense is dealt with by the courts and the police. I believe a more creative and cleaver approach is warranted at this point in our countries history.

Men that have traveled to Thailand with sexual tourism even in their possible travel itenerary are suffering from lonliness and often from broken hearts at home.

You can't cure a broken heart with a bloody nose.

Men that are in Thailand in consort with a prostitute often feel distanced from their country or from their cohort groups at home.

If a man finds himself in Thailand without friends or family, he will be lonely and vulnerable. It is natural at this point for him to seek comfort in others, and "others" often means "hookers".

There are many different phases a mainstream tourist to Thailand or a novice sex tourist must go through before finally becoming a "dyed in the wool sex tourist" .

I believe many American men who go to Thailand ultimately have some form of encounter with a prostitute and that the novelty of this type of sexual encounter quickly wares off.

But the problem is, what is the man to do with his time and his emotions after the initial "thrill" of sex with a prostitute is gone?

Not every man that goes to Thailand is an amateur social scientist and a novice journalist like yours truly. Some men are caught up in the process and never even understand that there is a "process" that they are caught up in.

I believe that the U.S. government should sponsor a low cost restaurant and social club for male American tourists only. No French, No Thais, No Women, No Europeans, just for American male tourists. It could be called THE MAIN STREET BAR AND GRILL.

This social club should orchestrate mainstream tourist fjords and trips to non-sexual destinations that are exciting and stimulating and economical.

This club should have a bar, pool tables, comfortable couches, and be staffed by friendly American voulnteers that "have been there".

American men need a place to go in Bangkok that isn't hooker oriented, or expensive. They need to be assisted to come home to America in their minds.

It would also be helpful for these American men if there were internet dating counselors available to help these same men construct singles ads and post their photos on American singles sites for the purpose of finding American girlfriends and wives and helping them to find romance and sex in their own country.

I believe this club should also have a large TV that plays a regular schedule of American Comedy from Seinfeld, to the Simpsons, and also plays American Movies that are comedies.

I think that we as a country can "bring home" a large portion of our men who have made decisions to experiment with the Thai sex scene. We can bring them home to our offshore club in Bangkok , and we can help them to come home in their minds.

I am not advocating large scale counseling for men in Thailand, but I am advocating that if there were a well advertised "club" for American men to go to, many of them would have their experiments in the Thai sex scene greatly shortened.

There needs to be trust on the part of the American male population that this club is not going to be used in some kind of governmental sting, and that their identitites are going to be protected there.

This club should be well advertised around large prostitution zones and it should be proximal to central bangkok so the American tourist could easily find his way there when he is ready.

The staff should be friendly and conversative, possibly including ex-military chaplains that have dealt with the emotional issues faced by men abroad.

I believe that the U.S. government could change the involvement of American men in Thailand in relation to the sex scene by addressing the underlying emotional needs of the typical male tourist in Thailand. IE- the need for security, comfort, love, acceptance, friendship, etc.

Morover, our US Customs and immigration should prominently place placcards around U.S. departure zones notifying American male tourists that there IS an alternative to vice and sin in Thailand, and that he will be welcome there and protected and assisted, not judged.

I envision this to be sort of a cross between a military E-club, covenaant house, and neighborhood bar and grill.

The purpose of this type of club should not be to decrease American involvement with Thai hookers. The involvement of Americans with Thai hookers is a SYMPTOM of our American condition, not the problem itself.

The purpose of this club should be to help Americans in Thailand to remember that their country loves and values them, and that there is a better world waiting for them at home than there is outside Patpong or the Nana, or wherever.

We need to help our men to come home to America, we need to help them fix their lives, and then you will see a giant decrease in American involvement with Thai hookers.

If we Americans take this first important step to apply a plaster to the lonely and broken hearts of our brothers abroad, many other countries will quickly follow our lead and while the Thai flesh trade will never die, at least we will have taken steps to limit our own national emotional caries that make some of our men its customers.

In my opinion it doesn't matter that tonight 3,000 American men are spending their money and time with hookers in Thailand.

It does matter that these same men are salvageable and viable and they should be spending their money and physical energy building lives and love with American women here at home.

Lets not worry about stopping the "Sin" in Thailand. The "sin" in Thailand is really no big deal.

Lets worry about stopping the "Sinful waste" of our fellow American men not loving our fellow American women. Because that is the "real sin".

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
February, 2007

FAMILY VALUES and THE AMERICAN WAY

2007-02-03T21:09:00.000-08:00

As a child growing up at the tail end of the cold war, I remember the good guys and the bad guys. I remember right and wrong. As I got older, and learned about the world, I realized that the Russians weren't the devils I was led to believe, and I also learned that we Americans were not always the good guys.

Along the path to becoming more geopolitically aware, I too have lived, loved, and lost. Sometimes my failures in love and romance were my own stupid fault, and sometimes they were the fault of others.

I have been exposed to a catalog of American political views, some I agreed with, and some I did not. I have noted that sometimes our political viewpoints polarize us from one another and sometimes they even obstruct our fondest hearts desires.

Does it really matter whether or not I am a republican, or a democrat or even a communist? Does it matter whether or not I like or dislike guns, whales, or gays?

When I am dead and turned to dust, will it have mattered whether or not I wanted my daughter to date an American black man, or whether I fought my whole life to prevent just this.

Does it really matter whether or not I liked or disliked tacki internet porn? Does it matter whether or not I prayed to Jesus, Budda, Hindi, Mohammad or Abraham? In the end we will all be dust in about 100 years, and only a scant few of us will be remembered even historicly.

I believe what really matters is "how did we live the days of our lives". We Americans are living in a Golden and Magical and Gilded age. What did we do with all of our wealth and privledge?

Did we spitefully hate and avoid those different than us? Did we do nothing but abuse our modern benefits of Jet Travel, Antibiotics, Family Planning Science and Cellular Phones?

What was the BEST thing I have accomplished with all of my wealth and privledge? Cavort with hookers? Eat rich food? Look at internet porn? Lust for fallen women who would only care for my money? Or did I take a different path? I hope I have accomplished more than just vice and food and baubles. I endeavor to maximize my value to the world and limit my sins, but, truth be told, I often fail in this goal.

Imagine what the Sages and great men of history could have done with internet access, or with the power to be transported safely around the world on only a few weeks wages. Would they have wasted these gifts? Would Mark Twain, or Thomas Jefferson have been interested in hookers and cheap shishkabobs? Would their actions with my advantages have made me look spoiled and shallow? I hope that I would not have TOTALLY dissapointed our American icons from Jefferson, to Franklin, to Twain, to Laurel to Hardy, but I am what I am.

What should really be important for any American to do with their advantages is to somehow make the world a better place. Our pursuits should not be simply to feed ourselves, or mate ourselves, as well as we can on our "fiat money" allowances.

American men are not guilty without accmplice in not fully utilizing our gifts and benfits. We have our accomplices and culpable twins. American women are no less guilty for the condition of America, and the shameful waste of our American Dream at the peak of its power.

American women have been socially engeneered to be intellectually frivilous and hollow. For the giant bulk of our countries history we have trained our daughters to be "silly" or "cute" or "dizzy". We have not collectively striven as a population to engeneer our daughters to be geopoliticly perceptive, or to value individual character over glitz and fluff.

We Americans are now stuck in a situation where a giant portion of our female population is "first generation out of the kitchen" AND often frequently in positions of responsibility and power.

We have allowed our America to become a country where two professional level incomes are neccessary to allow a family to live a clean, safe, and fruitful life.

What did we Americans do with the days of our lives? How did we maximize our collective national interests when we were at the apex of our economic and military power? We will never be as rich as we are today. We will never be as powerful as we are today. Our collective hearts and souls will never be as innocent as they are at this moment. What have we decided to do with all of our glory.

Some of us have built quality lives and been industrious. Some of us have choosen to seek out the younger and more beautiful mate at every turn of the corner. Some of us have hurt others for our own gain, never displaying repentence even in our most private and solitary moments. Some of us have been terribly injured, and choose to use these injuries as an excuse to cavort with hookers in Thailand, or to have cheap affairs with men from the office. Very few of us have lead lives of example.

We allow superficial and meaningless political feuds between warring factions to prevent us from finding love and building decent lives.

How many men are there in America that harbor anger towards "feminists" or "modern women" because of real or imagined injuries they have sustained from the same?

How many men hear an intelligent woman speak and because of her views on local or national politics decide that she would be "cold" or a "bitch" or that she would automaticly reject them or somehow purposely steal from them or injure them?

How many women hear a man attempt to articulate a difficult opinion about American race relations, or gun control and suddenly decide after 2 minutes that this man is a "bigot" , a "racist" or an " uncivilized right wing redneck" ? How many women have forgotten that the security to voice their opinions and their ability to safely close their eyes at night is due in no small part to the fact that very many American men have "guns" and would be effective in using them against a foreign occupying force.
How many women ignore the man with only a blue-collar job and believe he is not good enough for them?

In the end we here in America only have each other. We might have feelings for the Thais, or the Belarusians, or the French or any other fancy and colorful nation. But in the end, in the very end, we only have each other.

I propose that American Family Values and the American Way consider the benefits and limitations of what I call "STRANDED POLITICS".

"STRANDED POLITICS" refers to what our interpersonal and sexual politics would be if we were suddenly stranded in the middle of a giant forest with no hope for escape or rescue. If a strange man and woman of reasonable age were to suddenly find themselves stranded in the wilderness, with no rescue possible. How should the man treat the woman? How should the woman treat the man? Does it matter at this point whether or not the woman loved the Clintons, or that the man was a surfer or played with remote control cars? Winter is coming, there are wild animals out there that will eat these two people. How should they treat each other in order to be as happy in the future as possible?

Should the woman not learn to use a firearm? Should the man not coddle and take care of her when she was pregnant with his child? Should the woman help hunt and kill a deer? Should the man not nurture and help care for their baby? Should they not pick and preserve food together? Is "cross training" in the ways of the wilderness not the smartest method to ensure their survival? Should the woman not allow herself to be taken care of and fed when she must stay close to their cabin with their young child? If you take the most rabid and militant American feminist who today professes she does not even like men, in the darkest of cold forest nights would this same woman not respond to the security and love of her forest husband? Would this hard and cold American "era" supporter not also ultimately give the most sincere love in return to her "forest husband and small child"? Would the most unlikely pair not ultimately love and cherrish each other after only a short time in wilderness seclusion?

What functional form would "stranded politics" take when it had evolved between a man and a woman in this environ?

Would the man ultimately beat, rape or hurt his companion? Would he force his strength and size upon her and make her only his submissive prisioner?

Would the woman sabatage and delay the families progress? Would the woman poison and injure their baby? If the man was attacked by a cougar, would the woman watch him being killed without firing a shot? If the mans leg was broken, would the woman not assist him back to the cabin and feed and care for him until his health was mended?

If two strangers would come to love and care for each other in a cold forest in the middle of nowhere, and "stranded politics" were to become the order of the day in making their lives as decent as possible, then why is our modern American political politics such a large factor in deciding whether or not love will bloom or die?

Why should the Bush's or the Clintons need to be a central galactic feature in the minds of Americans looking for love? Why does it matter what church one goes to or how much money one makes when a potential nuclear family can be created?

Why can we Americans not accept each others small differences and understand that in 50 or 100 years, we will all be ashes anyway? What did we do with the days of our lives?

We Americans have been gifted the most bountiful and plentiful country the world has ever known. It seems that most of us can only bicker among ourselves and hide ourselves amongst artificial tribes or cliques.

American men running off to Thailand to have sex with hookers are an embarrassement to America. American women displaying equally lonely or destructive sexual habits at home or abroad are equally embarrassing.

If you are a man you should remember that regardless of how ridiculous and pompus some American women look and act, they are lionhearted in their core. You should not judge the character of 150 million women based upon the words and deeds of a few lonely and sometimes greedy individuals.

If you are an American woman you should remember that regardless of how caddy some mens behavior is ( to include behavior with Thai hookers) they would all proably take a bullet for you in an instant if you were threatened. They would all proably jump into a freezing lake to pull you to the shore, and they would all fire a gun with VERY STEADY hands at a foreign enenmy who threatened you.

Our collective task as Americans should not be to correct or sanction abhorent behavior on the part of male vacationers abroad, or the behavior of women who would embarrass a cosmo editor. Rather our collective national task should be to "socially engeneer" a country where the citizens are so busy loving their husbands or wives that they could no more consider taki or scandalous behavior than they would consider putting their bare foot on a hot coal.

People that are in love don't display stupid behaviors.

We need more people in love here in America.

Michael Miller
Indianapolis,
February, 2007

AN EMERGENCY TIME OUT FOR THE SUPERBOWL

2007-02-03T18:33:00.000-08:00

For decades now the American public has willingly shared their sunday afternoons with the NFL and the SUPERBOWL.

But it seems that now the NFL has threatened American Churches with civil prosecution for holding NFL parties!

I was on my way to work today and noticed a blue and white Santa hat with the Indianapolis Colts emblem displayed on it.

If the Colts (local football team) think it is OK to advertise their team logo on what is clearly an American Christian/Christmas item, then why is it now forbidden for any American Church to hold a "superbowl party" on Superbowl Sunday?

The superbowl exists in its present form because the American public has been willing to "share our Sundays" with the NFL.

But now, the NFL believes that American Churches should not hold "Superbowl Parties"?

Well folks, let me tell you something, I think about as much of the NFL as I do of Church on Sunday, that is to say they are both an equally ridiculous waste of time and money.

However, I do think that I have a sense of fair play, and a decent sense of what represents prudent "social engeneering". I am not sure what kind of society we are engeneering at a Church Superbowl party, but it has got to be better than what kind of world we are engeneering if we allow the NFL to tell us we can't have a church superbowl party.

Our illustrious President, and all of our Govenors and all of our leaders need to go to their nearest church and take part in a "superbowl party" on general principal.

I think it would be better if all of America would just turn off the superbowl, and play cards or go for a walk. But realisticly, as I know the game will be watched on Sunday, it is better to just not only ignore the NFL's warning, but to TAUNT and LAMPOON this warning on all levels possible.

Like I said, I essentially despise football, and church. However, I am so offended at the GREEDY, and SHALLOW, and ARROGANT nature of the NFL for attacking American Church sponsored "superbowl parties" especially "this late in the game" that I am considering putting on some socks and underwear, maybe a belt, maybe even one of my "bought in Bangkok" ties, and going to "church" somewhere and paying attention to whatever minister is speaking. And then signing up for some church activity at whatever random church I land and enjoying the festivities during the superbowl time.

If I have a choice between supporting church on sunday, and the superbowl, can you guess what I will choose.

I realize that church is in the morning, and the kickoff is in the evening, but that isn't the point!

As flawed and ridiculous as it is, an American Church Superbowl party is so much more socially redeeming than the NFL, that it is like comparing what is a better animal, a golden retriever, or a barn rat, and you can guess who is the barn rat in this analogy ?

Michael Miller
Live from Indy,
February 3, 2007

The Flesh Game

2007-01-27T22:52:00.000-08:00

Sex for sale in Thailand comes in many different forms.

At the bottom of the pecking order, you can meet a prostitute known as a freelancer. A freelancer is a woman who sits in a bar, or after hours club, or a mainstream disco such as the Hard Rock Cafe disco trolling for a fare. A freelancer also can be found walking the street looking for a customer. A freelancer has the option of refusing to go with the customer, morover the freelancer is often the aggressor in commencing the sexual business transaction.

You can also go to a common brothel, or a special brothel known as a "soapie" . A soapie is a brothel where the prostitute takes a soapy bath with you before giving you a soapy body massage on an air mattress next to the bathtub, this soapy body massage is followed by sex in a bed in the same room as the bath and body massage. Both brothels and soapies offer the customer the opportunity to pick whichever woman he wants, and the prostitute has little or no control over whether or not she goes with the customer that favors her.

There is also the common and well advertised go-go bar where the girls are dancing around a pole setting which is very similar to an American "strip-joint". The girls in this enviroment are paid a salary of about 225$ per month for dancing every day at the bar for 6-8 hours. The costumes range from bikini bathing suits to topless, to nude. The girls wear numbers so the customers can point them out to the "mama-san" or manager to identify them as being pretty or interesting. After the dance routine is over, the mama-san will direct the girl to sit with the customer at which point the girl will attempt to be charming and make small talk. The customer will be encouraged, and sometimes pressured to buy the girl a lady-drink. This is a 2-3$ glass of coke or juice. The girl will receive a portion of this lady-drink price as a bounus on her check at the end of the month. The go-go girl is under pressure to receive approximately 100 lady drinks per month from male visitors to the Go-go bar. There is an interesting relationship that exists between the go-go bar, and the go-go dancer. The go-go bar makes its money from selling drinks to the customers, to include lady drinks. The go-go bar also makes a small profit from the "barfine" paid for a go-go dancer to leave the bar with a customer. But this is where the relationship stops being intuitively obvious. If a man likes one of the dancers, he will negotiate with her a price for either "long time" which means all night, or "short time" which means up to two hours in his hotel room. The go-go girl will negotiate her price with the customer and she will receive all of the money paid to her for her services. The go-go bar will not receive an override or "cut" of her fee for services. If the customer and go-go girl have agreed on a price, then the customer must pay a fee to the go-go bar called a "barfine". This is a fee intended to compensate the bar for the girls wages for the night she will not complete work. The go-go girl will receive a portion of the bars fee, or barfine in some case as high as 40% of the go-go dancers "barfine" will be added to her check at the end of the month. Some go-go bars require that the go-go dancer "go" with at least 5 male customers per month, and some go-go's do not require the dancers to be barfined or "go" with any minimum number of customers. The go-go girl has a large amount of control over whether or not she leaves the bar with a customer. She can inflate her fee to a ridulous level so her suitor or potential customer will not agree to the transaction . If the mans appearance and demeanor please the girl, she can accordingly lower her fees to a level which promotes the sale beyond the normal fee. There appears to be a small amount of pressure on the girls to go with customers, however the girls are not forced to leave with a man if they do not want to go. The relationship between go-go girl and go-go bar is similar to the relationship that an American hairdresser has with the beauty parlor. The go-go girl has applied to work at the go-go bar for the purpose of being well viewed by the male public. She desires to be well viewed because in doing so she can more easily obtain the highest grade and most desireable of the male clientele available. The go-go bar needs and wants many beautiful girls to be dancing to attract male customers to buy overpriced standard and lady drinks. In the beginning of the evening, the go-go bar is not enthusiastic about the girls being "barfined" because their abscence decreases the amount of overpriced drinks that may be sold. However, later in the evening when drink sales are going to be predictably lower, the go-go bar is interested in seeing the dancers "barfined" because the bar will then recoup approximately 150% of the girls daily salary in the form of a "barfine" from the customer.

The girls involved in this flesh trade are in themselves a large population group. Some of the girls are kind and good hearted. Some of them are cold and unfeeling. Some of them have backrounds of acute trajedy and emergency financial need, and some of them simply do not wish to accumulate assets in a slower fashion that would be possible from a mainsteam job. Some of these girls are very pretty, and some very ugly. Most are only poorly educated, and most of them come from rural backrounds where little opportunity for making money or getting ahead is possible. Most of the girls come from a world where women are not given the same social status and power that women in western industrialized countries enjoy. Many are divorced, have dependent children, or dependent families that rely on the money they earn to make ends meet. The life of a Pattaya prostitute is not entirely sad, or desperate, but it is clearly not the life I would choose for my own daughter if I had one. However, there are obviously good parts to any job, and advantages and disadvantages to any life choice. Virtually all of the prostitutes in Pattaya are very conscious of safe sex practices, and have been very well trained in the use of condoms during sexual acts.

The male customers in the Thai Flesh trade are a large and diverse group.

Many different countries are represented, and many walks of life abound.
It would be inaccurate to say that the male/western customers of Pattaya prostitutes are only interested in sex. This is a large population group of western men and while some are clearly interested in only sex, it is obvious that many are also looking for love, or like, and general companionship. The term GFE is commonly used in western parlance when discussing the sex scene here. GFE means "girl friend experience". "GFE" is most often used to describe a multi day "romantic" experience where a male customer contracts with a favorite prostitute to stay with him for several or many days for the purpose of sex, compaionship, and to enjoy the mainstream tourist attractions that Thailand offers in abbundance.

The male customers of prostitutes include sexual feinds who are so usuary and offensive when discussing the local women, that this writer found it hard to not get into a verbal argument with one of the because of his vulgar and tasteless references and attitudes.

You must understand that I am very open minded and to offend me you have to be pretty over the top.

Well, sadly, I have met this man in Thailand, he was mid 50's, well established financially, and had a crass manner of referencing and discussing his desire for "anal virgins". This means that he was constantly looking for prostitutes that had not yet engaged in anal sex. He was proud that when offererd enough money, most prostitutes would succomb and agree to anal sex with him. I found this man to be creepy and vial. I was almost instantly angered by his attitudes. His lifelong pursuits include nothing more than sexual encounters with prostitutes. As I said, this individual was sad, creepy, and distressing. I only met him for about an hour and a half. I did not learn his life story, I did not have the opportunity to find out if there was anything redeeming or kind about him. I remember him harshly. Perhaps I am wrong, perhaps this man has qualities that will keep him out of hell someday, but I didn't see them.

You have now heard about the absolute worst westerner I have met while in country. While I make no excuses for a mans lifestyle or personal choices, rest assured that most westerners are essentially good and decent, or at least not as bad as the first fellow I told you about.

Western men have many reasons for sex with prostitutes. Perhaps the most obvious reason is "biological need" or horniness. It is normal that a man would want sex with a woman, and when given an opportunity to have sex with a "pretty woman" most men would acknowledge the fact that their mind responds to the physical markers of health and beauty displayed by many Pattaya prostitutes.

However, physical need does not account for all or even most of the sex trade here.

Before you read further, you must understand something about Thailand itself.

Thailand is proably the worlds finest tourist destination. It is economical, beautiful, exotic, the people are friendly, what can I say, Thailand is great! Sure there are problems here, but pound for pound and dollar for dollar Thailand is crammed full of mainstream travel conveniences and attractions.

There is an interesting relationship between the Thai Flesh trade and the rest of the tourist industry. Each one promotes the other. It is proably correct to say that Thailands current state of tourist industry would not exist in its present form if it not for its prostitution industry. However, it is also very true that the prostitution industry would not survive two seconds without the mainstream tourist attractions orbiting around it. Whether or not you believe me, it is true that Thailands tourist industry is totally interdependent on its Flesh trade. Thailands economy is largely and some say totally supported by tourism, so obviouly the welfare of the country is partially dependent on the continued flesh trade. I am not trying to approve this industry, only to put it into perspective for you.

So now you understand that Thailand is a great tourist destination with a thriving sex industry.

Only NOW you can begin to understand the men who come here and WHY.

I have come to Thailand 3 or 4 times now, and I have a quick and dirty rule to explain western behavior here. (if a man comes all the way to thailand for the purpose of sex with prostitutes, there is proably something very wrong with his personality, or his life in general. AND if a single and unattached man finds himself in thailand for any signifigant length of time and doesn't at some point forget himself with one of the local prostitutes, then there is proably something wrong with his personality and his life in general) Whether you agree or disagree with this thought is up to you, but now you have a quick and dirty rule about thailand.

You should also remember the time differences between Thailand and American Eastern Standard Time. When anyone from the East Coast of America arrives in Thailand at 1050pm or thereabouts, his body's internal clock is set to American Eastern Standard time, which is exactly 12 hours opposite Thai time. This means that at 10pm Thai time, an Americans body thinks it is 10am in Boston, or New York. Obviously this tourist can not sleep, and there are only limited mainstream tourist attractions open in Bangkok at this time. This means that your tourist friend from Boston, or Baltimore will likely find himself in venues that are proably not family oriented to say the least, and when a man finds himself in these types of questionable situations, he is more likely to engage in the activities offered.

What kind of man has used the services of a Thai prostitute? Well we have already discussed the worst, so lets look at others and examine their situations.

There is Alex, a man from Maryland whose wife is not sexually interested in him anymore. Alex is late 40's and is about 5'7" tall and weighs about 204lbs. Alex is friendly and decently mannered. He has a high school education, and earns about 55K usd per year. Alex is in Thailand because he is sexually frusterated with his wife, and does't know how to find sex in America within his present marriage situation. Alex's wife understands his need for sex and cosents for him to come to Thailand for the purpose of sex with prostitutes.

Klaus is a 54 year old swiss airline steward in Thailand for his vacation. He is physically presentable, friendly, well spoken, well dressed, and humerous. He enjoys drinking beer and chatting with the local girls in various bars, and sometimes pays one of them for her services. He is divorced and has 2 teenage daughters in Switzerland.

George is a middle aged American executive who is too busy to find a girlfriend in Los Angeles and who has complaints about American women being "too fat" or "too bitchy". George is not happy with the sexual politics on his job in California and believes that American women are all either "fat" or "bitchy". George is divorced, and essentially lives a fast paced life in L.A. He earns about 115K USD per year. George likes to pay Thai prostitutes for sex and is happy when he is in the company of a prostitute. George is not a bad fellow, but he obviously has been emotionally injured in previous relationships and never properly healed from the same. Today he finds comfort in the form of contracted sex with hookers.

Emilio is a low level businessman from Kansas City. He is a slight fellow who speaks both Spanish and English. He is physically presentable, and smiles easily. He is intelligent and honest looking. He earns about 45K usd per year. He is living in Thailand. Emilio would like to have a nice wife someday, and he is not jaded against American women. He is worldly and clever. But he is posted in Thailand on business and he finds occasional recreation in a soapie.

Taylor is a bank manager from Chicago, he earns 75K usd per year and is married with children living in Chicago. He suffers from decreased self esteem resulting from being rejected for sex by his wife. Taylor loves his wife very much, and says she is a good woman. She just constantly rejects him for sex. Taylor is 6'4" tall and has red hair and a red moustache. He is obvioulsy very strong, but is about 50- 60lbs overweight. Taylor works many hours at the bank as a manager and has a part time job on the weekends to make ends meet. Taylor his in Thailand looking for sex to "save his marriage" Obviously Taylor would be happier with more sex from his wife whom he says is beautiful and loving. Taylor feels using the services of Thai hookers is helping him "recharge" or "get caught up" in his sex life. Taylor feels that his hostility for his wife will be decreased if he can simply relieve some sexual tension. Taylor laughs easily and has a college education.

Tom is a mid 30's truck driver from Denver. He came to Thailand several years ago when he won an airline ticket in a company christmas raffle. He says he never had "yellow fever" and never really wanted to come to Thailand in the first place because he thought it would be "dirty" and "nasty". Tom remembers his first experience with a prostitute as an accident. He arrived to town late and went to a go-go bar for entertainment. He says he was shy, but when an "almond eyed beauty" slid up to him and took his hand and looked into his eyes, he could not resist taking her back to his hotel room. Tom now says he likes Thailand and enjoys coming here, but could "care less" about hookers. He says he could "take them or leave them" Tom just enjoys the country of Thailand and says "maybe he will go with more prostitutes, and maybe not."

Lets not forget the "textbook sex tourist" . This is a man who specificly seeks out sexual encounters with prostitutes and feels this "hobby" is normal and dignified. He is known in his circles as a "monger", this is short for whoremonger. This dyed in the wool sex tourist communicates with his fellow "mongers" on organized and highly technical web pages such as Club Hombre and Pattaya Talk . These web sites are designed to facilitate communication between fellow "mongers" about the subjects of where sex tourism is available in the world, and how much various services cost, and what the quality is for the same.

The stories go on and on, stories of broken hearts, low quality lives, sometimes the stories are of happy men who are simply looking for vacation in an exotic land.

It is impossible to catagorize all the western "johns" into one specific box. There is a giant population group of westerners here who are looking to prostitutes for everything form love , to sex, to companionship, for someone to to protect, occasionally someone to oppress and mildly brutalize.

The bulk of the western men here are just simply lost in their own countries, or just lost on vacation.

Often these men begin their association with the Thai Flesh trade looking for sex, but morph their tastes to "looking for Thai culture and sex" then morph again to "looking for a vacation getaway with the possibility of maybe utilizing a prostitutes services". Sometimes a variety and combination of these and other reasons promote a western man to engage in sex with a local prostitite.

Is it right or is it wrong? Is it good for America? Is it good or bad for Thailand? Are the Thai prostitutes victims getting used and abused? Or are they undereducated feminists utilizing their bodies as they see fit?

What is the definition of a prostitute? Is an American prize fighter a prostitute? He clearly abuses his body for money. Is an American woman who desires to only date a "man with money" a prostitute, she will not give her love for free. How many American women have been extra friendly or "flirty" at a bar in America knowing that by doing so she will be offered a "drink" by one of the men at the bar. This same woman knows the fancy drinks at an American bar cost 5-8$ each, and she knows she could never enjoy very many of them at that price, but she can enjoy them if they are paid for by a strange man with whom she has no intentions of knowing on any level. How many American women are interested in what kind of "car" a man drives, or what brand his "shoes" are ? YOU DECIDE if these attitudes are not similar to the attitudes of a prostitute looking for a "john" in a Pattaya go-go bar.

What is the definition of a "customer or John"? Is an American man who purposely displays his wealth in order to attract a mate a "JOHN". He is not satisfied in being judged only for his personality and his physical attributes? What about all the American men who have purchased sports or luxury cars specificly to attract a mate or date? Maybe this man's transportation needs could have been met on the bus, but he finds a need to "flash" his wealth to attract a woman, or to attract the right kind of woman. How many American men have taken their "dates" to expensive restaurants for the purpose of ultimately "getting some" or "finding love" ? How many American men have managed to surpress their "flinch" response to a giant tab at these same restaurants for the purpose of not appearing "poor" to their "dates" ?

What is right and what is wrong? These and many other questions and issues will be addressed in my upcoming essays about the Thai Flesh Trade as it relates to Family Values, and the American way.

*DEAR READERS OR READER, PLEASE NOTE: I HAVE SLIGHTLY ALTERED THE NAMES AND BIGRAPHICAL DATA ON ALL OF THE MEN THAT YOU HAVE READ ABOUT. I DID THIS BECAUSE I DID NOT CONDUCT FORMAL INTERVIEWS WITH ANY OF THEM. I ONLY LISTENED TO THEIR STORIES AND ASKED GOOD QUESTIONS OF THEM. I DO NOT PRACTICE AMBUSH JOURNALISM AT MIKES VACATION. IF A MAN IS KIND ENOUGH TO GRANT ME A FORMAL INTERVIEW, I WILL NOT PUBLISH HIS COMMENTS OUT OF CONTEXT OR WITHOUT HIS PERMISSION. IF A MAN IS NOT AWARE THAT WHILE I AM MAKING FRIENDLY CONVERSATION WITH HIM THAT I AM ALSO GATHERING INFORMATION FOR AN ESSAY, HE WILL NOT BE PUNISHED FOR HAVING HIS GUARD DOWN. ANOTHERWORDS, ALL NAMES AND BIGRAPHICAL DATA THAT YOU JUST READ HAVE BEEN SLIGHTLY ALTERED BY ME TO PREVENT ANY OF THE MEN WHO SPOKE TO ME IN THAILAND FROM BEING SOMEHOW INJURED IN EITHER THEIR PERSONAL OR PROFESSIONAL LIVES.

Michael Miller
Ko Chang, Thailand
January, 2007

Family Values, The American Way, and The Thai Flesh Trade

2007-01-23T13:48:00.000-08:00

Greetings Readers, I am writing to you live from Pattaya Thailand, the home of the largest concentration of prostitutes and sex workers in the world.

Pattaya is also an excellent vacation place with many stimulating mainstream tourist attractions, but Mike's Vacation is not really a travel guide, we strive for much more than that here, so we will leave the family info for the travel channel. I will tastefully go into some depth about subjects that are not automaticly pretty or easy to discuss.

I am not here in Pattaya to moralize or preach to you. I am not here to pass any kind of judgement on the hookers or their "JOHNS".

Moreover, I am here in Thailand to rest and relax from the grind of my life in America, and as long as I am here, I feel that I have a great opportunity for understanding and communicating to my readers/reader about the subjects of what is actually going on here in Pattaya regarding the controversial subject of commercial sex.

I am not a moralist, I am not particularly religous, some people say I am very mainstream and often conservative in my personal views, but I am also a realist, and an out of the box thinker who believes first in fact and logic, and maybe later in emotion and decoration.

I will be reporting over the next few days my observations about what is and is not happening here in Pattaya, and also relating my findings to certain subjects more closely related to life in America, such as social engeneering, political freedoms, and family values, or ( where are we Americans going with all our laws and rules and government intervention, and what should our collective resources and efforts really be put towards.)

So for now, dear readers, (or reader), I must say goodbye as I prepare to present you with some essays and observations and ideas that will hopefully add to the quality of your life, the quality of life in America, and hopefully make the world just a little bit better. Please remember that I don't feel I need to apoligize for the content of this or any of my essays, but perhaps I need to thank the reader in advance for their patience in the upcoming weeks. The subjects at hand will be difficult to read for some, but if I don't speak the truth at Mike's Vacation, if Mike's Vacation is afraid to make credible observations and write honest reports, then WHO will?

At Mike's Vacation I lost my fear a long time ago, I only have my future, and this future is nothing if not honest and credibly constructed.

Live From Pattaya Thailand,
Michael Miller
Indianapolis and the World, 2007

MIKES VACATION WELCOMES SERGEI NEVERIN

2006-12-24T18:48:00.000-08:00

(dear reader or readers, sergei neverin had a very critical comment to my previous article, so i decided that my response to him should actually be an entire blog article. i will always attempt to give similar courtesy to any persons in the future that would like to disagree or agree with what i have written)

Dear Sergei,
Firstly, I would like to thank you for reading my blog and for taking the time to respond in such depth to my article. I am not a professional writer and so I do not have all of the technical and support resources available to me that many large blogs or web pages do. However, I do endeavor to speak from the heart and compose lucid arguments and essays.

You said you are typical Belarusian, but 86% of your countrymen voted for Lukashenka in the election. Perhaps your political preferences are "typical" for only 14% of your countrymen.

Your English language skills are also very good. Perhaps typical Belarusians are fluent in American English and have regular enough access to the internet to be current in the English Language Blog world.

Sergei, small businesses in America have a giant failure rate. The business climate for the little guy is very difficult here. You will have to be more specific about your complaints over persecution of small businesses. As I didn't reference small business issues, I don't know whether to agree or disagree with you.

I take GREAT OFFENSE and OBJECTION to ANYONE stealing the peoples assets. Do you have proof of your accusations against Lukashenka?

I am sure that Lukashenka has a budget of between 5-10 million USD to manage his entourage of media and security and support staff. He proably also enjoys some luxuries not common to the population.

But by "modern" or "current" global presidential standards, amounts like this are modest and don't meet the benchmarks of modern state theft or excess.

The Union-State has taken a long time, and this is proably because there are many fluid points to be negotiated during the process. I am not an expert.

I am happy that you conceed that Lukashenka was elected three times based on promises he made to the people. Your acknowlegment of his election negates many of his detractors accusations of his being a dictator, because we both agree dictators don't hold elections.

Russia's "pulling the Gazprom strings" as you say is not a result of Lukashenka's "empty promises" to Russia as you suggest. I believe that Gazproms decision raise prices is simply an incorrect decision made with the motivation of a variety of reasons from helping the Russian people, to corporate greed. As I said in my article, there is no ONE bottom line in this matter.

Perhaps during Soviet times such a decision would not have been taken against the people of Belarus.

The premise of my article is that the Union-State should move forward regardless of the Gazprom price hike. I do not propose that my opinion is synonmous with the Belarusian popular opinion, rather I believe this is what SHOULD happen for the good of both Russia and Belarus. I am not on the ground in Minsk as you are, but I do have my opinion.

It is my opinion that the Lukashenka administration is not the only party in the Union-State negotiation process so they are not the only ones responsible for the timely completion of the project. But, where Lukashenka has slowed the process, I believe he has done it for the good of the People of Belarus and he has very likely been correct in his methods.

Gazprom didn't raise prices because of Lukashenka. Lukashenka might have stalled the Union-State over Gazprom however. This would be reasonable for him to do.

I saw an old Soviet era propaganda poster (maybe circa 1936) that was advertising caviar and trains and factories and the poster said " SOVIET MEANS QUALITY" To me this was a clever and somewhat accurate catchphrase. I am impressed with Soviet items of quality, planes, machines, cars, weapons, education, foreign aid to needy countries to be a few.

I am sorry you do not think that Soviet means quality. Many people in the world would disagree with you.

Sergei, you have a nice command of English, were you trained in Belarus? If so, then you demonstrate the results of a quality Soviet education, and regardless of your like or dislike of Lukashenka, you are obviously worldly and well spoken. Are these traits not still promoted in modern Belarusian education? Is this not evidence that SOVIET MEANS QUALITY?

Belarus is not Romania, but it would be interesting to take a poll of all Belarusians and all Romanians and ask them if they would like to trade countries.

Morover Sergei, if you are so interested in democracy and liberty, maybe you should know that sometimes democracy deteriorates the overall quality of life for the general population. It is almost a maxim in the mind of most english speakers that Democracy equals a high quality of life, but this is not actually true in all cases.

English speakers would be more precise to consider Democracy as a tool to POTENTIALLY and MAYBE achieve a high quality of life as oppossed to fantasizing it is some mythical Valhalla to be achieved at all costs, including the destruction of valuable assets and systems that are operational and producing good results.

For example, how many Russians today would prefer life in the USSR to their current conditions?

Democracy and Liberty are just words, frequently misused for evil purposes.

I am sorry you don't like my article Sergei, however I would like to ask you a question about Belarus. What % of the Belarusian population can fluently understand written Belarusian? If one can read written Russian, then can one also fluently understand written Belarusian?

You are welcome to submit an article or essay to my blog. You may submit an Anti-Lukashenka article or essay if you wish, but I must warn you that I will harshly critique your essay in my next posting.

Mikes Vacation is about freedom of expression and debate and new ideas. I would hope that submissions to my blog are pro-Lukashenka, but they don't have to be.

Again Sergei, I encourage an essay from you- but if it is Anti-Lukashenka, I will attempt to harshly confront it in my next essay. Also, I will not headline all of your comments, but I will try to publish your essays for the purpose of logiclly defeating anti-Lukashenka positions and thus helping the common people of Belarus pursue happiness and prosperity.

Very Sincerely Yours,

Michael Miller