More on the American Sniper: Pure Hoex

I heard a few things about this Kyle guy after I watched American Sniper. I decide to do more research on him to see who really he was. As I indicated in the movie related post, I was not very impressed by the movie. There were two reasons that I wanted to watch it:

1- It's made by Clint Eastwood.

2- It's about Iraq War. Unlike many I was not and am still not that sorry for Iraqis and what happened to their country. 8 years of my childhood and teenage years were spent during Iran-Iraq War, a devastating which was started by Iraqi forces invading Iran in Sep. of 1980. I believe that there was no tie between Iraq and Al-Qaeda not for the same reason that mostly believe. Al-Qaeda was established by Americans when they wanted to help the so-called Afghan Mujaheddin to fight the Soviets. But weapons of mass destruction were at the very stages of development by Iraq years before the US invaded. So I was not unhappy that Iraq's infrastructure was destroyed, its army was wiped out and their civilians were killed. I saw footage of Iranian POW being shown in Iraqis streets while people cheering and jumping up and down! Something never an Iranian did to one single Iraqi POW during the devastating 8-year-old war. 

Nevertheless I also believe that wars such as Iran-Iraq are created between nations by the US and its allies to weaken countries so they could be ruled easily. We're not going to go to the detail here though. 

With this introduction I was directed to what a few people said about this Chris The Lair Kyle guy. Jesse Ventura, the former Governor of Minnesota and the one who had a role in one of my all time favorite movies, Predator, have said interesting things about this guy. Being a Navy Seal himself, Ventura said: Who could Kyle be a hero? Who could someone who shot others from a hide-out be hero? He was a soldier and was trained for that. So what's the big deal? Could  an Iraqi sniper who shot our soldiers be called a hero by Iraqis then? The other interesting thing is the lawsuit that Ventura had again this lair lair, pants on fire. There's no doubt that this guy was an average Texas boy who normally goes to bars to drink, pick up girls, fight and such. I mean, who wouldn't in the US? Then he was probably bored and out of work and said to himself: Let's try this. He goes and due to his physical and mental strength, no doubt, he becomes a Navy Seal and is deployed to Iraq. What's going in there is in his book but it doesn't matter what he says in his book because now we know that he was a liar so we can't trust what he has written! I was going to buy his book to see what he has written and how it is different from Eastwood's movie but now I know I wouldn't have to waste that few bucks! 

How do we know he was a lair? Trough Ventura's lawsuit. He claimed he had punched Ventura in a well-known Navy Seal club (or similar social gathering place) and had knocked him down. I even watched part of his interview and he said he had done it with a smile on his face. Obviously he never did and for that reason Ventura filed a defamation lawsuit against him. He died or better to say was killed before the verdict comes out but Ventura won. He was not even in that place at the time Kyle the lair and other his fake witnesses claimed that he had been knocked down. So he fucked up but average Americans don't know that because what he mainstream media broadcasts is what the rulers of the country want. They wanted to make a hero out of him similar to Tillman and Lynch, two other faked tools and they quite succeeded because you probably have seen clips of his funeral in Texas where people are lined up at both side of the street waving American flag. I also saw the reaction of people when I was watching it in a movie theater. There was a fat huge fella with his probably temporary one-night, maximum a few month stand girlfriend and he was explaining each part of the movie with excitement to the girl and they were watching the Kyle guy with admiration.

Another story of him is that he claimed to be on the roof of a dome in New Orleans shortly after Hurricane Katrina hit and damaged the area, shooting looters! There's nothing more stupid than this someone could ever say! Since when looters are shot from distance without even being charged and prosecuted? Maybe he follows the footsteps of Obama who sends drones to kill people without charging and putting them on trail! 

In addition to that Kyle did not have a good relationship with his wife. Now was that because she repeatedly asked him not to go back to Iraq, as they showed in the movie or there were other reasons. We know that people in North America, especially the young, when get get married, they are very intolerant of each other. One slip and they are separated. So I'm not surprised that they had issues and they wanted to split. 

Overall this guy was a big screw up and a giant hoax. As Ventura said Pentagon wanted to make a hero out of him and sell it to the public and they succeeded but no doubt he was another lie similar to many others that the US Government have provided so far so they could rule the country and everywhere else much easier.

I wanted to buy the book and see how different it was from the movie and I also had the plan to purchase the DVD when it came out but know I cancel both. There's no way I waste a few bucks on a lair' story. 

(Photo: Who do you think this guy is?)

Higher Cost of Food

I did a little grocery shopping the other day in a Safeway supermarket. The following is what I bought:

1- A dozen Eggs, $2.99

2- Monterey Jack Cheese, .0.0825 Kg, $9.99

3- Jar of Olives, $10.42

4- Four Gala Apples, $3.08

5- A bag of 4 Lbs. Orange, $3.99

The total cost was $30.47 and you see that I have not purchased any meat, vegetable or Topical fruit, Chocolate or packed snack, and Ice Cream or novelties. I used to buy Lucerne Yogurt from Safeway too: $2.5 for each cup, different types and of course I never eat disgusting sugary so-called fruit Yogurt but the bastards has increased the price of those to $3.18 for each cup. So I said fuck it!

They previously had this excuse that the transportation cost is. Now that the price of Crude has gone below $50 and gasoline is sold for a little over $0.93 per liter, I don't know what their excuse is! This time for fruits and vegetables which come from the US they might say the US dollar is stronger but what about Yogurt, bastards? The milk is from Canada and the transportation is in the Canada. So what the fuck is your problem?! $30.47 for 5 non-major items.

Now look at what I purchased from another supermarket, this one Calgary Co-op:

1- Vanilla Whole Grain Loaf, $4.99. This truly is a good item and is on sale at times for $3.99. Not very big but makes 4 or 5 servings for an individual. I put Peanut Butter and Honey on it and eat it with coffee. Sometime without them. Not offered anywhere else as far as I have seen.

2- One large Red Grapefruit. $1.49.

3- Tomato Hot House, 0.37 Kg, $1.62

4- Four large Avocados, $3.92 ($0.98 each).

5- Two Astro 2% Yogurt, $5, $2.5 each, on sale, normally more expensive. I bought them instead of that bastard Lucerne Yogurt.

Total: $17.02. Again there is no fancy or major item in this list. I really do not know what to do any more. Have cut any possible cost, I could have.

(Photo: I took this picture in Basha's Dine Market in Chinle, northeastern Arizona. Unlike what is expected at this corner of the state, everything was available and mostly at a reasonable price, including Iceberg Lettuce which is my favorite. Here in Alberta you can not get for less than $1.49 for each and that's when it's on sale and it's old. Normal price is over $2 for each. Some blame drought in vegetable-growing areas of the US to be the reason. Wonder why it has no effect on the lettuce in Arizona?!)

Arizona Road Trip (4): Sedona to Chinle, Long and Scary(!)

The drive to Chilne in the northeastern part of the state was scary, long and exhausting. If the car had been broken, I would have been in the world of shit, particularly after Flagstaff. From Sedona to Flagstaff I was on the same Inter-State highway (I-17) and kept myself to the rightest(!) possible. Having the previous experience now(!) and being day, it was much easier to drive. 

I had a short stop at Flagstaff to go to restroom at a Mobil gas station and huge liqueur store. Then drove east and then north and northeast started. Roads were so remote and empty that you could drive for minutes without seeing a single car. No service and only Native people houses on the land as it is all Navajo Nation Reservation. I was scared to death about gasoline as the gauge was showing half-empty (One might want to say half-full!) until I reached this place called Burnside and bought more than 3 gallons of gasoline (that's how they measure) from this Chevron gas station. 

From there it was easier because I had gas and I was on a major road, US State 191. Native dwellings all at both sides of the road could be seen. Mostly run down. Cows and horses scattered all over seem to be one of a few businesses that the Navajo people are involved with. No sign of planting something, no agriculture maybe due to weather or soil. Wonder what they ate 1000 years ago when there was no supermarket to go to. There was also a Burger King adjacent to the gas station and a few other businesses all ran by Natives and customers both Natives and passengers from different states who were going to Chilne or further up north in the state. It was also a meeting point for the people who were going to New Mexico in further east. 

I stopped at this gas station right before turning towards east in Flagstaff to use the restroom. It was not believable the number of different alcoholic beverages they had and the variety of them. It is the same with the supermarkets. Wonder that is why Americans drink much although not sure who drinks more: Americans or Canadians but I do no that nowhere in Canada alcohol is as available as the US. Gas Stations are provided by different companies and each have a different price. There's a Sinclair across from the street that you can see its sing in the photo. None of them operate in Canada

I ordered a cup of Joe from this Burger King place that I just described. There was a Native man, probably around 280 Lbs. and I'm not making fun of him but seemed that ordering coffee was out of ordinary at that corner of the state but he accepted my order very politely and went to the back with a cup while had one finger almost in it(!) and came back with the coffee after a few seconds! I wanted to throw it out and believe me I guess I was charger close to $2 for that coffee but drank it! 

(Photo, top: I like this photo and all of the photos I have taken from Arizona. Who says desert is not beautiful? Stranagly-shaped rocks, cliffs and mountains, birds, animals and other creatures. All of both sides of the road almost everywhere I was to in Arizona was separated by a barbed wire fence meaning it was a private property, unless it was a national park or a national forest. This private property as explained above belongs to Navajo Nation, the Native Americans who have been living in the Arizona for generations. You can see the fence at the right side of the picture and a few of their homes in distance at the same side. I didn't know what their reaction would have been, had I taken a picture from their property from a close distance. Probably would have not been so good. I didn't want to be shot so I refrained from doing that and limited myseld to shots similar to the above)

Arizona Road Trip (3): Sedona and Surrounding

I woke up early morning and went down for a breakfast. The hotel is nice and quiet but I didn't sleep very well as my bed had been changed. Breakfast was OK. Nothing special. There were plenty but sub-par. You know American food: The quantity is always high but quality is not. They had cold boiled egg(!) toast, disgusting white floor bagel which not only sticks to your teeth but your inner wall of stomach! Coffee was not bad, Jelly and peanut butter as well as Orange Juice and Yogurt in cup. All in artificial best way of them!

There are plenty of nice places that you can eat in (At least they look nice from outside!) but I stuck with the breakfast that I have paid for! Then I checked with the information center just across from the hotel to see what else is available around. The guy gave me a few good tips but when I asked him about Canyon De Challey National Monument he said he had never been there.

So head out and then I could see the real Sedona as the night prior to that I had just driven in absolute dark. My first stop was Chapel of Holy Cross and it was by accident! I had read about that but didn't include it in my plan. I said that's just a church and probably nothing to see but I ended up in a car line going up a road reaching the church! There was an old gentleman guiding the vehicle on the top and I had a little chat with the poor lad who looked like he was above 60. He complained a bit about being tired and I showed a little sympathy. He said he had woken up at 05:00, cleaned the chapel and now he's here! I asked him what the admission was and he said nothing. I thanked him and threw a couple of God Bless(es) in my chat and left for the parking spot.

The good thing about this place that it is probably the only place in the entire Sedona that you can park for free and take photographs from around! And of course if you're a good Christian (and I assume Catholic because I saw the Pop's material) you can pray and buy a religious gift. I guess I spent a good 20 min. before getting out and checking another Arizona Tourist Information Center. This guy simply said that he had not even heard of Canyon De Challey National Monument before! So I realized that these guys either do not want to help or don't really know! I wanted to go to Red Rock National Park after that but I thought I could check the places that the guy referred to. He mentioned Dry Creek Road so when I went there I remembered I had read about this ancient settlement of Native Americans called Palatki and decided to go there. I was a long drive in the middle of the desert and mountains and they charge $5 but I still think it worth it. it might have been a settlement years ago but it is in the middle of nowhere now and these guys are US National Forest people and the majority of them volunteers. I have to write about this volunteering in North America which make the wheel of many industries, mostly services, moving. Anyway it was an amazing experience. Guess I spent a good 40 min. there apart from driving. There are dwellings of the Native people which is assumed was 2 stories at the time and hand-driven signs or pictographs which mean something. There was a gentleman, a volunteer named Mike White who was explained everything and communicating with everyone very well. There are two ladies, one older and I guess I saw a total of 3 National Forest Service people, all very nice and helpful.

Amazing pictographs of Native Americans in northwestern Sedona. The area is called Palatki and used to be a settlement for the people of Native origin. They were farmers and had orchards. And that goes back to the time which water was not so scarce in the area, some 800 years ago. Later on Caucasian/European settlers selected the area for living for a period of time after the Natives migrated to another place.

From there I drove back to Dry Canyon Road and decided to do a little hike of Devil's Bridge. This again was mentioned by the Information Center person by the hotel and it was quite a nice one. The hike is not challenging or anything. It's just heat that exhausts you. I guess mine took about 1 hour to reach this naturally-made bridge and includes frequent stops for photography. I didn't go on the bridge because I guess I have no more balls for this kind of stuff(!) but people go over and take photos. The return of course is much easier and took about 45 min.

Generally there are lots of activities that you can do in Sedona. From renting a jeep and going to the trails (in fact part of road to the trail-head of Devil's Bridge could be driven on a 4x4 or ATV), riding a Jeep or Hammer, riding horses, riding bikes, playing golf, zip-lock and basically everything you can imagine is available here. Not to mention all the bars and restaurants, gift shops, art galleries and such. Americans spend plenty for their pleasure and entertainment I saw motor-homes in camp ground of Arizona as big as a one bedroom apartment and they bring everything with them: From bikes to barbecues! That's why camping is so popular in the US (and maybe in Canada as well although I have not seen that luxury and completeness in Canadian campers yet). I have never done that but understand that when you have everything you can simply camp at the side of a road, may be not too close(!), and enjoy yourself.

(Photo, top: It's not a good picture due to the darkness on the bottom but shows the natural rock bridge called Devil's Bridge in northwestern Sedona) 

Arizona Road Trip (2): Race to Sedona(!)

Immediately after I left Lost Dutchman State Park, I set up my GPS for Views Inn in Sedona and headed north. In fact I first headed west to Phoenix and from there to north. It was a very scary drive. First off people drive like maniacs and the speed limit is 65 miles/hour and gets to 75 miles/hour at some spots. I drove 60 mile per hour at the most and I was not comfortable! There are not basically many rest areas on the road or you have to get completely out of the highway and I was worried for both my check-in and getting lost. Some damn hotels clearly say in their booking information that they would not let you in past certain hours. When we went to Newfoundland last year it took longer than usual from Placentia to Twillingate. We stopped at Terra Nova National Park on our way and at Gander for dinner. It was a very difficult drive from Gander to Twillingate due to poor lighting of the road, unfamiliarity with the area (our first time to NL, like this is my first time to AZ) and stupidity of the damn GPS! I finally was able to find the road and got ourselves to the Inn and the amazing guys had left a note for us and the left the lobby door unlocked. Unlike those people some hotels, as I mentioned, have indicated what I just said above so I just kept one eye on the road and one eye on the GPS and one foot on the gas pedal and kept going. 75 miles per hour is no joke. Not even is 65! It's 125 km and 104 km/h respectively! Besides highways in Arizona or generally in the US (not that I have been to any other though) are huge! Four very wide lanes and with all sorts of signs and exits and merges. It would have been very hard to get to Sedona, Had I not installed and set up my GPS. So here's where you can see why the US is a high consumer of gasoline, not that any other country is not but long drive requires lots of gasoline and although automakers have spent millions of dollars of their budgets on research and development of low consume engines, people like to drive big pick up trucks and SUV and those damn things eat lots of gasoline. It's no the road warriors time in the US because the gasoline is cheap. It's measured per gallon in the States which equals to 3.78 liters. I guess I saw some $2.26 or similar per gallon. I drove for hours and hours and paid $20 only to get gasoline for my half-empty tank but I have to add that it was a small car, a Ford Fiesta. Other would have spent much more. The highway, which is later I learnt was an Inter-state one and No. 17 is called is well-lit but you miss an exit or take a wrong lane and you're done. I several times wanted to stop and rest but was scared! What would have happened, Had the GPS failed somehow?! I would have been able to find the road but with much difficulty. Eventually I realized that I had to get off I-17 and head towards west. I get off the highway and found myself in this narrow and dark but well-maintained road. It didn't take long that I turned north and reached Views Inn. Fortunately there was still a girl at the lobby and she helped me to check in. That was past 22:15 or something! 

(Photo: Sign shows the north-band of Interstate highway number 17 in Arizona. Of course I took this later when I was driving to Flagstaff) 

Arizona Road Trip (1): Lost Dutchman State Park

I finally started my Arizona trip in the early morning of Sun. Unlike what I was thinking, A TSA agent stamped my passport just after a few questions.The plane was shit. Small seat and no roam for arms and legs. The entire time of the trip they served two beverages which had been predicted. Food was available for purchase but there was no entertainment system. I guess that's because you can do whatever you want to do with your computer during a certain time of the trip, In fact you could rent an iPad for $10! I have to mention that I'm referring to Air Canada. Last time I flew with this airline it was Oct. of last year and the entertainment system was still available.Nevertheless the real shit happened when we finally landed. I was very tired and frustrated both because of the damn seat (I was in between, the bastards as soon as they saw my name and realized I was not Caucasian did that) and I was bored and hungry. We landed and it appeared that we had parked in the wrong spot! The pilot was a very polite guy and apologized a few times but I know that's their protocol. After a few shitty minutes, the plane was towed and parked at the original spot! I think Phoenix airport messed that up.

It was not hard to find where the rental car place was but I had to ask a couple of guys who happen to be very friendly, polite and helpful. You get a shuttle to go to the car rental place which is about 10 minutes drive. So I'm there and there's this huge line. A guy from the neighbouring rental places calls me and tells me that he would match the price. Obviously I don't want any time wasted so I accept. After a few minutes of talking finally I realized what M. C. was talking about renting cars being expensive. I then go down a huge escalator to rental car parking and get the car. Coming out of the parking I realize how could the desert be. You can barely open your eyes. I head east because I know that's where Lost Dutchman State Park is located and on the way stop somewhere and find the place on the GPS which is now set to miles. The park is some half an hour east of Phoenix. Admission in $7 which I didn't expect but I have to pay since I have flown and driven this much! I change quickly and hit the trail.The goal here is Flatiron as part of Superstition Mountain which is not a very tall peak. The trail seems easy but after almost 1 hour I realize I'm on a loop not the path which goes to the top! Stupid me had a map given by the crew people and I paid no attention as usual.The park is amazing with all sorts of wildlife, plants, flowers and giant cactus. I head back and get myself on the trail which goes to a basin first and then the peak. The trail is very steep and I'm very tired and hot. Most of the people I see on the trail are in shorts and girls of course with a top. Time is some 14:00 and extremely hot. I climb up the rocks and struggle I'm constipated too! I haven't had anything but a cup of stupid coffee and small glass of water since last night. It's more than 16 hours! I'm not hungry but very thirsty and my digestion system is bothering me. At one spot I sit to take a break and that's where I'm certain that I'm on the track. A guy with a big jar of water comes and he sits a few meters away from me. He cannot secure the jar and it goes a few feet down, breaks it sealed cap and spills half of it! I tell him jokingly that I would pay $20 for whatever was left! I only have a little water and there's a long way up. He grabs the jar and offers it to me stating that he is tired and cannot go up. He has been there 5 times he adds. I fill up one of my bottles and drank the rest and start going up. The damn heat, exhaustion from lack of enough sleep in the past few days and constipation all help each other to drag me down and prevent me from going up. It's very frustrating and embarrassing I have been to many hikes and passed people 10 to 15 years younger than me and never got tired like this. Here of course I passed a few but not many. Even taking my shirt off does not help much. The damn pants is too hot to but I can't walk up in underwear! I then think to myself that it was getting late and I have to go to Sedona which is at least 2 hours from here. I give up eventually and head down.Going down is not that bad. I pass the basin and get myself to a flat area. On the way back I find a banana which someone probably has put there and I eat most of it. Too late to help. By the time I get to the parking lot, the sun has gone down below Downtown Phoenix. Very beautiful place and I enjoyed a lot but not satisfied completely.
(Photo: Superstition Mountain in the park. Even if you have impaired vision you can see this from anywhere in Phoenix)