Beyond Borders

Just got back home from seeing Beyond Borders with Alex. It was avery powerful film for us almost reducing us to tears throughout. If you are a sheep I would not recommend seeing it as it isn't an entertaining movie. It is instead a movie that forces you to realize the reality that is beyond our happy, comfy borders of McDonalds, malls and fast cars.

It made me want to do something even more, as it did Alex. He said he would leave right now if it weren't for the kids. I understand for I'd be out there if it weren't for my family. I don't know how I could leave my mom behind but I feel this calling in a way that has been growing steadily for about 2 years now.

Where do I go...how do I even begin?

On a different note, the army once again fucked up.

Fort Ord Burn Out Of Control
1,270 Acres Of Thick Brush Burned

POSTED: 3:30 p.m. PDT October 24, 2003
UPDATED: 9:29 p.m. PDT October 24, 2003

SEASIDE, Calif. -- A prescribed burn at the former Fort Ord has blackened 1,270 acres and is out of control, Action News reported Friday afternoon.


The burn started about 8:30 a.m. and the smoke from it could be seen for miles as it drifted out over Monterey Bay and into some communities.

About 500 acres of thick brush was scheduled to be burned in an effort to remove thick ground cover so that crews can reach dangerous unexploded ordinance that lies beneath.

Earlier in the day, a spokesman for the company in charge of the burn, Firestop, said it was a successful burn, although not everything went as planned. Officials said the blaze did escape the fire line at one point, forcing engineers to change their plans, but that it was not out of control.

"Wildfire is sometimes unpredictable. It has a tendency to do the things it wants to do ... all we can do is plan for those contingencies, which we did, and bringing it back into line when it gets outside of what expected," Firestop spokesman Rich Foster said.

More than 80 personnel, including 12 helicopters, are on hand to battle the flames.

Army officials said there are no more burns scheduled at the site until next summer.

...Not out of control MY ASS! We drove by it coming home and there were massive flames dangerously close to homes in Seaside. Interesting how we got a notice that the fire was 90% contained at like 11am.

A Late Update

NAVY SEALS ACCIDENTALLY STARTED FIRE
Fort Ord: Blaze rages as crews work to contain it

"...A military spokeswoman had said Thursday that no training was going on near the fire's origin at the FBI's Military Operations on Urban Terrain area -- a compound of buildings and streets nestled in a wooded area off Eucalyptus Road near Barloy Canyon Road.

But on Friday, Installation Commander Lt. Col. Jeffrey Cairns said a team of Navy special forces was on the site on Thursday and unintentionally started the blaze while preparing to leave about 3 p.m.

"There was training involving blank ammunition and smoke grenades," Cairns said. "We believe a smoke grenade likely started it yesterday afternoon."

SEALs were finishing up training and were setting off ammunition and smoke grenades that had not been used during their training, said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Bender, a spokesman for the Navy's Special Warfare Command Center in Coronado. He would not say how long the team had been at the site, but nearby residents reported hearing machine-gun fire and explosions beginning on Tuesday."

This was the headline last Saturday on the front page of the paper. When you are right, you're right.

How Ironic

There's a fire burning pretty close to my house. As of 11 pm it was up to 1000 acres. Guess where it is. Yep you guessed it, right next to the forbidden city. Alex and I when we heard the news were taking bets on whether it was started by a wayward shell or flare or some such other nonsense they were playing with up there.

Of course they won't directly say they caused it and gee it's so funny how they, all of a sudden, stopped shooting after 4 whole days once the fire started. Bastards. They can't even work on containing it right now cause it's in an area of unexploded ordinance and stuff is blowing up all over the place.

Awake and Not in a Good Way

Thank you Forbidden City.

Thank you for firing explosives after midnight. Thank you for deciding someone can play post apocalyptic urban soldier in the middle of the night. I realize it's for the benefit all of the US of A when the rest of the world comes gunning for us. I don't mind feeling like I'm in Iraq or being able to count how many rounds you guys are shooting off. Yeah, I'm sure the kids don't mind either....Grrrrrr

For those that don't know I live on a massive former Army base, half of it is still Army property..the other half a university. Ironic isn't it? Anyway, there's an area up in the mountains called the Forbidden City. It's a scale replica of a city made entirely out of cinder blocks complete with a sewer system. High up military types, CIA, FBI, Navy Seals get to go play GI Urban Assault Joe and shoot like crazy up there. Usually at night cause jeeze we like to shoot people at night don't we? I've even seen those yucky silent huge ass helicopters fly in a formation over campus housing a few times. Gotta love big brother.

Tonight isn't just assault riffle rounds, it's bomb blasts. I would appreciate it if they leave the bombing out of it.