Posted on 03/24/2007 10:39:57 AM PDT by woofie
TAOS— This small mountain town is known for leaving its celebrities alone. That's why Julia Roberts can shop for yarn at La Lana Wools and Anthony Hopkins (aka Hannibal Lecter) can thumb through the pages at Brodsky Bookshop undisturbed.
But Donald Rumsfeld, former Secretary of Defense? That's a different story.
While living in Taos, Rumsfeld has suffered a number of public indignities, from being burned in effigy to being refused a hot chocolate by a bartender.
But last week's description of a verbal fracas aimed at Rumsfeld by writer Jeff Conant, posted on an Internet political newsletter at www.counterpunch.org, may have been the most unpleasant.
Happening across Rumsfeld, who was sitting on an outdoor deck at the Taos Ski Valley, Conant wrote that he raised his voice, saying, "Well lookee here! If it isn't Donald Rumsfeld, our favorite local war criminal!"
Conant added a few more comments before Rumsfeld's guests, who appeared to be two female Secret Service agents, stood and started toward him. Moving into the restaurant, Conant announced that Rumsfeld was outside, if anyone wanted "to tell him what you think of his war."
On Thursday, workers at the ski area were blasé about Rumsfeld and his appearances there.
"He was here at the hotel for lunch, maybe a month ago, wearing a baseball cap," said Greg Jaramillo, who was working the grill on the outdoor deck at the St. Bernard lodge. "People aren't real psyched he lives here, but I don't know that anybody really notices him much."
His co-worker, John Woolery, added, "I think there's people in Iraq who'd like to talk to him. But that's why he likes this place— nobody cares."
(Excerpt) Read more at abqjournal.com ...
I can't believe this punk actually considers himself some kind of war hero for taunting an old man and running away when a couple of girls looked at him. Nobody with a grain of self-respect would even admit this kind of behavior.
Either that, or women find him to be completely foreign and highly repugnant.
He looks like a fascist.
Fine job based on what? The increased secretarian violence throughout 2006? Even the White House admitted operation TF had failed.
Rumsfeld had a great vision for the military. He didn't have one for the war.
I don't know what was his fault and what wasn't. But when things aren't going well, you need to change things, and sometimes that means key personnel.
Actually, I am more inclined to think that they were smiling because they would have a chance to meet Secretary Rumsfeld in person and that thier kids got the chance as well. Oh and also because this LOSER Jeff Conant had just publicly made a total jackass out of himself.
[Side bar: if you don't want a home cooked meal, we will go to Jack Willies on us]
I hope this post pi$$es off somebody out there in cyber space.
5.56mm
I attended a corporate board meeting where Dr. Harold Brown, Sec of Defense under Carter was involved.
He was not at all impressive.
I thinks it's very easy to scapegoat Rummy. But remember, he didn't send the army home or fire the government. That was the State Department. When you send an army home with guns and no way to feed their family, you've got to expect trouble.
One hundred and forty years ago, British philosopher John Stuart Mill (1806-1873) wrote: War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things: the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth a war, is much worse ... A man who has nothing which he is willing to fight for, nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety, is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself. [Dissertations and Discussions Political, Philosophical, and Historical: Volume 1]
The man has served his country for more than forty years.
What service has Conant done?
These people make me sick.
Well .. If Rummy is fair game to shout at .. then I guess that means the Hollywood crowd is fair game to scout at also
Not great business PR for for the town if that happened
maybe i'm just crude, but all i want is to see what those two ss agents, dressed up as ski bunnies, look like. also, curious as to what they may be packing. can they talk to strangers when on the job? (love girls with guns).
I would be proud and honored to have him as a neighbor. All Liberty loving Americans already have him as a friend.
I've been wondering who gets secret service protection?
Former presidents do. Their wives and underage children do unless the wife remarries. Oh, and under a new law, Bush will be the first president who's protection is limited to 10 years after leaving office.
Candidates for president do (but that seems to depend on how serious their candidacy is)
Vice Presidents and former. People in line for Presidency? Pity the secret service agent who 'gets' to protect The Nancy. But even more pity to the ones guarding The Pantsuit.
But other people, like former Secretaries of Defense, etc.?
Does anyone know. A lot of this is at the discretion of the President.
I agree and I want Rumsfeld to know that there are plenty of New Mexicans that admire him...
Personally, I doubt his account.
It's too much like Wisconsin second dimmest* Representative Steve Kagen's BS story of telling off Rummy.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1766578/posts
*He may be an imbecile, but he's not even close to Gwen Moore.
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