Popularity: 16% [?]

The first week of school is over and I’m starting to feel incredibly old. My freshman year at Northern Illinois University was in 1997/98. Ten years later, I’m graduating. But I forgot to account for the fact that I’m also ten years OLDER than most of the other students. They all look like little kindergarteners to me! And it’s really obvious that it’s a new generation who’s swarming into the school. I swear that they talk different. Oh! And they’re ruder than I ever was. I can’t count the number of times I was shoved or pushed in the hallway during everyones massive shuffle to their next class. Is it just that I didn’t notice it before when I was that age? Or is it because I don’t have the same patience I once had?

Also, the classes are PACKED. Full to the brim. Spilling with students.

NIU is clearly banking on their recent success in collegiate football. The extremely high enrollment is being credited to the one friggin’ season NIU football was ranked nationally. They suck now, of course. But for one brief shining moment they rocked America’s socks. Now all these newbie high school graduates are begging to come to NIU. Because of a football season?? It really blows my mind. The decision making process of the masses. (I hear they’re asses.)

In all of my classes I have to make a point to show up at least 15 minutes early… just to get a seat! They’ve allowed so many people to enroll that by the time class starts there’s literally no extra seats. IN FACT, there always seems to be 1 or 2 people who either have to sit on the FLOOR or go scavange a seat from another room. People are paying thousands of dollars to sit on the floor???

I’ve been told that come enrollment in the fall, they’ll be turning people away even if they meet all the school’s requirements. Can you imagine? NIU being picky about it’s student body. gasp! But in the mean time, I may just have to strap one of those fold-out chairs to my back in case of emergency.

Popularity: 14% [?]

So, here’s the update on that story of the contractor calling his U.S. army convoy security cowards.  I’m not really sure why I’ve become so inflammed by his allegations (that the U.S. army vehicles abandoned the convoy… leaving 3 contractors dead).

This article seems more like the truth to me:

 

Convoy leader details Iraqi ambush

As many as 100 to 150 Iraqi insurgents attacked a supply convoy escorted by Virginia Army National Guard soldiers last year, the convoy commander estimates.

[...]

Hand grenades, gunfire from AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades rained down on the convoy from rooftops, garages, bushes and culverts along the narrow, quarter-mile-long “kill zone,” Herron said.      

The fire was so heavy that the Virginia gunners were firing back with automatic weapons in both hands, he said.

Three American contractor drivers died and three others were wounded in the attack on Sept. 20, 2005, as was one of Herron’s soldiers from the Guard’s 1173rd Transportation Company.

[...]

ABC News obtained a videotape showing Herron’s Humvee racing away after insurgents opened fire and disabled four Halliburton trucks.

“I do not know who the driver was of that Humvee, but he abandoned us,” civilian driver Preston Wheeler of Mena, Ark., who taped the footage, told ABC News.

[...]

The convoy was made up of 12 trucks from contractor KBR, part of the Halliburton company. Fifteen Virginia soldiers 14 men and one woman — riding in five armed and armored Army vehicles escorted the KBR trucks.

Misled by an error on their maps, the convoy turned into the village of Ad Duluiyah in the dangerous Sunni Triangle, according to Capt. Michael Waterman of Virginia Beach, who commanded the 1173rd in Iraq.

Herron, a mechanic with the National Guard in his civilian life, said: “We’re trained, after the initial enemy attack, to push right through. As quickly as you can, get everybody through and . . . return fire on that enemy. That’s what we did.”

(That’s exactly what I said!!)

Overturned tractor-trailers blocked the way for most of the convoy, including two of the Army guntrucks, which were behind Wheeler’s truck, Army officials said.

“They held off the insurgents the whole time,” Waterman said. “What was going on behind Mr. Wheeler was not depicted on the video.”

Herron’s gunner — Spc. Ryan Totten of Sugar Grove — on top of the Humvee was shot through the arm, but Totten continued to shoot back with his .50-caliber heavy machine gun.

At their “rally point” just out of the kill zone, Herron said he immediately sent one of his Humvees back to the ambush site to help protect the trapped drivers.

[...]

A Virginia Guardsman got Wheeler, who was wounded, into one of the Humvees and carried him to the rally point where he was evacuated by helicopter, Waterman said.

An Army investigation of the incident said the soldiers acted bravely and properly, an Army statement said. Complete Article Here.

 

You see.  This is exactly how facts get twisted in the media.  They tell themselves, “This back woods contractor with the one sided video must be showing the whole truth!  Let’s air it without checking our stories, shall we?  I mean, c’mon, the American public drools over anything remotely scandalous.  It’ll be great for our ratings!”

Way to screw the National Guard soldiers, ABC News.

Popularity: 88% [?]