I found this interesting article in the December 29th issue of the Arizona Republic Newspaper; Kalahari's hoodia a darling of world dieting industry written by Robyn Dixon of the LA Times. It motivated me to add my comments in rebuttal to the ridiculous amount of buzz that this supposed new "diet wonder drug" is causing.

MARIENTAL, Namibia -

In the article Ms. Dixon describes a plant that she claims resembles something from the Day of the Triffids or some other science-fiction creation: a squat succulent with thick, spiky arms, purple fleshy petals and seedpods like rhino horns. But I liken it to Audrey II, the blood drinking monster plant from outer space that gave Rick Moranis so much grief in the hit movie; Little Shop of Horrors. FEED ME!

Hoodia Gordonii is no beauty, but this humble plant is Africa's latest cash crop, priced almost like a narcotic at $40. an ounce. The plant which grows wild in the Kalahari Desert of southern Africa, was once used by indigenous tribes to suppress hunger and thirst when hunting. Now, as Dixon points out, it's the darling of the international dieting industry and a search for the word nets about 14 million responses! Once again it seems that the overweight among us have discovered a new miracle pill that takes the place of balanced nutrition, self-control and exercise.

The "get rich quick at the expense of the fat and desperate" folks have found a new way to drink our blood just like Audrey II, a metaphor used to illustrate the money that people will spend in the hopes of finding that miracle pill, the one that you take right before bedtime so that you get thin while you sleep. The demand for hoodia is so great that supplies of the plant have been severely compromised, smuggling is rife and farmers in southern Africa are trying to cash in on the trend. One hoodia farmer, Dougal Bassingthwaighte calls it "an impossible phenomenon that is too good to be true." International giant Unilever is licensed to commercialize hoodia but world-wide demand is far outstripping supply and there is a mad race on to get plants to the market. Does anyone remember the old adage; if it's too good to be true, it usually is? But in the hopes that maybe this time there is a pill that really does what it claims, for some, all common sense goes out the window. Unfortunately for farmer Doug the plants that he is currently cultivating as of this writing (some 130,000 seedlings) will take two years before they can be harvested. By that time the "hoodia" being peddled on the internet will have caused a heart attack or stroke, the FDA will have issued a ban and the the entire South Afican agricultural industry will be shut down by a class-action law suit. Use of Hoodia will taper off as all fads do and the impatient dieters of world will move on to the next great get-thin-by-taking-a-pill miracle drug, leaving farmer Doug stuck with a million pounds of Audrey II look-alikes. FEED ME! Read the rest of this entry »

Seems we have another kind of trouble brewing in Iraq other than just figuring out who the enemy is. According to the November 2, 2006 issue of the USA Today there are "troubled troops in no-win plight." This is partly a story about Chris Packley, a top marksman on a Marine sniper team that returned from Fallujah in 2004 who "wanted out." He eventually got his wish and was "expelled" from the Corps and now claims that PTSD was the cause of the unlawful behavior that got him into trouble. As a consequence of his "less-than -honorable" discharge he lost access to the free counseling and medication he needed to "treat the mental wounds left from combat." He now basically is accusing the Marine Corps of  "punishing" him for the behavior that led to his discharge. Can anyone say LAME? According to one Lt. Colonel Colby Vokey who supervises the legal defense of Marines in the western USA, he blames the Corps for these men not being eligible to get treatment from the VA because they did not receive the proper treatment and counseling at the time they needed it. Had the Marine Corps provided this assistance the man would have remained as virtuous as he was when he first set foot on the yellow footprints! Yeah, right! "The Marine Corps has created these mental health issues in combat veterans and then we just kind of kick them out into the streets" Vokey goes on to say. Who is this guy? 

 WHO'S SIDE IS HE ON? The Marine Corps contends that stress disorder isn't a legal defense for misconduct and I would have to agree. What I don't understand is if they feel this way why is a Marine Col. defending a position against it. If the Marine Corps takes a position on something isn't a Marine colonel supposed to go along with it? Yet, he tosses out these catchy comparisons to "Catch-22" and talks like a civilian tort lawyer. There is a dis-connect here and I haven't figured it out yet. However, you can't blame the Colonel for those in the Corps who don't have the guts to take responsibility for their actions. (and I am not suggesting that Packley is one of them.) NOTHING is anyone's fault any more. If you murder 30 people in an Amish schoolhouse, why, that was because your mother drank crack-laced coffee for breakfast. It surely can't be your fault.

But if you are a combat soldier you have to act like one of the other 98% who do. You can't fake it in combat. That's why our government spent all that money to train you and get you ready to face our enemies - not to fall apart at the first sign of blood. Soldiers, especially Marines have to gird their loins for battle. If you are going to talk the talk you better walk the walk. Somewhere I read that some of us Americans have been accused of becoming a want-it-now kind of society but this goes too far, INSTANT PTSD?! It used to take years for those feelings to eat away at you until something snapped and if you were smart, sought help from the VA. Now, it seems you don't have to wait at all, you can get it while you are in combat. Read the rest of this entry »

1. You are not Superman.

2. Suppressive fires - won't.

3. If it's stupid but works - it isn't stupid.

4. Don't look conspicuous - it draws fire.

5. When in doubt, empty the magazine.

6. Never share a fighting hole with anyone braver than you are.

7. Never forget your weapon was made by the lowest bidder.

8. If your attack is going really well - it's an ambush.

9. No plan survives the first contact - intact.

10. All five-second grenade fuses will burn down in three seconds.

11. Try to look unimportant, because the bad guys might be low on ammo.

12. If you are forward of your position - arty will fall short.

13. The enemy diversion you are ignoring is the main attack.

14. The important things are always simple.

15. The simple things are always hard.

16. The easy way is always mined.

17. If you are short of everything except enemy - you are in combat.

18. If you have secured an area, don't forget to tell the enemy.

19. Incoming fire has the right of way.

20. No combat ready unit has ever passed inspection.

21. If the enemy is in range - so are you.

22. Beer math: 37 men times 2 beers each equals 50 cases.

23. Body count math: 3 goomers plus one probable plus 2 water buffalo = 40 enemy killed in action.

24. Friendly fire - isn't.

25. Things that must go together to work - usually aren't shipped in the same container.

26. Radios will fail as soon as you desperately need fire support.

27. Anything you do can get you shot - including doing nothing.

28. If you make it too tough for the enemy to get in - you can't get out.

29. Tracers work BOTH ways.

30. The only thing more accurate than enemy fire is incoming friendly fire.

31. If you can take more than your fair share of objectives - you will have more than your fair share to take.

32. When both sides are convinced they are about to lose - they're both right.

33. Professional soldiers are predictable - but the world is full of amateurs.

34. Any significant military action will occur at the junction of two or more map sheets.

35. When the pin is pulled - Mr. Grenade is not our friend.

36. Don't draw fire - it annoys the people around you.

37. Never tell a Platoon Sergeant you have nothing to do.

LowCarb Marine does not claim originality to these items - only collection and editing - special thanks to Gene at Bluejacket.com

Add your favorite USMC sarcasm and wit to the list.

A friend of mine sent me this article that appeared in the Canadian Press on October 4, 2006

EX-U.S. MARINE, WIFE CLAIM $200. MILLION POWERBALL LOTTERY JACKPOT IN IOWA

(Why does this EX- Marine thing sound so final. It reads like the  ex-poor guy just got ex-communicated from the church instead of winning one of the biggest jackpots in lottery history! It's time we did something about it.) LISTEN UP MARINES!

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - An Iowa couple who bought three Powerball tickets during a pit stop for soda came forward Wednesday to claim the US-$200. million jackpot.Tim and Kellie Guderian bought the winning ticket September 23 at a store in Ft. Dodge, Iowa. They discovered their good fortune the following evening, as Kellie read off the winning numbers to an awe-struck Tim."What a stroke of luck," Tim Guderian said, "It seemed like a dream." (yeah, I have the same dream but when he wakes up in the morning he still has the cash)According to the Iowa Lottery, the odds of winning were about 140 million-to-1. (The only time being number one does'nt work in your favor.) Read the rest of this entry »

FLAGS OF OUR FATHERS: This is the title of the new Clint Eastwood movie that opened on October 20, 2006 about the life stories of the six men who raised the American Flag at the Battle of Iwo Jima, a turning point in WWll. The original black & white photograph was taken on February 23, 1945, the fifth day of that horrific, 36-day battle by Joe Rosenthal, a 33-year old Associated Press photograher.The image of five battle-weary Marines and a Navy corpsman struggling to raise our flag atop Mount Suribachi became an instant classic and is one of the most famous photograhs taken during the war. When the smoke finally cleared 6,621 Americans were dead, 19,217 were wounded and all but 1,083 of the 22,000 Japanese defenders were killed before the island was considered secure. It was of that battle - one of the most celebrated and bloody in Marine Corps history - that Admiral Chester Nimitz, CIC of the Pacific Fleet, said: "Among the Americans who served on Iwo Jima, uncommon valor was a common virtue."

"THE RAISING OF THAT FLAG ON SURIBACHI MEANS A MARINE CORPS FOR THE NEXT 500 YEARS. Read the rest of this entry »