15 DEC 05: A LITTLE TO THE LEFT

Downtown Columbus had something unusual Wednesday - an anti-war protest. Well, it's unusual in that no one seemed to be carrying School of the Americas signs.

A small group of protesters showed up at Congressman Sanford Bishop's office, delivering a petition with about 120 signatures on it. The petition calls for all U.S. military personnel to come home from Iraq next year. Everyone else in Columbus apparently already knew the Third Brigade is heading home in two weeks.

The delivery of petitions occurred at other Congressional offices across Georgia. It was organized by the left-wing political group "Move On." Given that name, someone should ask leaders which country the U.S. military should enter next.

At the Columbus media event, Sean Mallion of Move On claimed the President's current plan in Iraq is "going downhill" and heading toward a "losing cause." Yet Iraq is holding national parliamentary elections today - so is this group afraid conservatives will win there, too?

Vietnam veteran Tony Bankston also supports the Move On campaign. He claims politicians don't seem to grasp the importance of each soldier's life. You'd think they would grasp it - since in recent elections, each soldier's vote could have settled some races.

Rep. Sanford Bishop wasn't in the Columbus office to accept the Move On petitions. Aides said he was in Washington - where he can hide in his office and dodge petitioners just as well.

Do the Move On protesters really think Congressman Sanford Bishop will support a quick withdrawal from Iraq? Didn't they see him at God Bless Fort Benning last month? If he wanted an immediate pullout, he would have shown up down the street with SOA Watch.

While Move On calls for an immediate withdrawal, Army spouses at Fort Benning are preparing for the return of the Third Brigade from Iraq. Seminars at Kelley Hill chapel are providing details on how to help soldiers deal with depression. For instance, avoid mentioning the Riverdragons leaving Columbus as long as possible.

One Third Brigade Commander warns at least six percent of the soldiers in Iraq will have to deal with post traumatic stress disorder once they return to Fort Benning. I suspect some "Army wives" already cope with something like this - when they arrive at Big Lots after the weekly specials are gone.

E-MAIL UPDATE: Now for day two of our dog discussion -- one which is NOT sponsored by PetSmart:

Richard,

I was curious about Koreans eating Dog Meat after reading your email, so I just asked one of my colleagues here at the University who is Korean, if this was true or a myth blown out of proportion. The answer was this:

Koreans are not the only people to eat dogs. However it came to be attributed to Koreans after the Korean War. But, Koreans did not start eating dogs just because of the low food supply during that time. They ALWAYS ate dogs and cats. It's put in all sorts of dishes. These days it is considered a delicacy to their people.

I was told that eating Dogs is to Koreans-- what eating Grits is to southerners. Not all of them like dog, just as not all Southerners like Grits, but it is a common part of their culture. however, because it is considered barbaric and disgusting by this society (and illegal). it is kept quiet.

Despite this, Dog eating IS common in America among most Koreans. Although Korean-Americans see nothing wrong with this, they will NOT usually admit eating it to non-Koreans.

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the extra information - and I certainly hope that chat with a colleague occurred well after lunch.

It's amazing to read that some cultures have ALWAYS eaten dogs and cats. You almost wonder if they turned those animals into drinks as well - such as a "cat-a-tonic" state.

I'm glad this writer changed the subject a bit, from dogs and cats to grits. It's been many years since I ate grits - not because I don't like them, but because I lost the directions for my container filled with instant grits. Those things must be loaded with preservatives, to last this long....

(I suppose I could look up the directions for my instant grits online - but is there a web site for such things? You know, an "e-hominy.com?")

LAUGHLINE FLASHBACK: The mix of dogs and Korean culture has crossed our path before. We played a game called "You Pick the Punchline" in the LaughLine edition of 14 Jun 00:

At the historic Korean summit in Pyongyang, the leaders of North and South showed friendship Tuesday by exchanging pet dogs! People who witnessed this exclaimed:

A) "If your dog bites mine, we will consider it a declaration of war!"

B) "What's going on here? It's not Pekingese!"

C) "How embarrassing. They make Hyundais and Daewoos - and we couldn't match THAT?!"

D) "Hold the mayo!" [Thanks for D, Dale Cerbin!]

Now back to the present, for other bite-sized chunks from the Wednesday news:

+ The California Nurses Association released a study, showing Doctors Hospital among the ten worst Georgia medical centers in marking up the cost of care. The markup is estimated at more than 300 percent - so if you're scheduled to stay there, ask the staff to save money and make the coffee from tap water.

+ Russell County High School received a specially-built Hyundai, absolutely free! Only it's built for use in technology classes, not driving down the road - and you knew something was up when Oprah Winfrey didn't appear to give it away.

+ Rhodes Furniture finally disclosed in commercials how long its "quitting business" sale will last. The final day should be December 28 - so you can wait for the after-Christmas half-price discount on top of everything else.

+ Time Warner put its Atlanta baseball team up for sale -- and Ted Turner reportedly is NOT interested in buying it back. After all, salaries are reaching the point where he might lose his fortune paying for the pitching staff.

(Time Warner is also selling the "Turner South" cable channel. If Christa Turner at the Ledger-Enquirer can get a big enough line of credit, her blog could become Turner Loose TV.)

+ Instant Message to Daniel Appliance on Veterans Parkway: About your ad on WLTZ Wednesday night, for a "Memorial Day Sidewalk/Yard Sale" next Monday - that's the most creative way around the Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays debate I've seen yet.

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