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Reminds me of a funny story...

I was in a bar in San Diego once. You know the sort of place, bad lighting, no windows, one jukebox stocked only with music from the 60's and not because they like it but because they are just stuck in some sort of rut. The kind of place where beer was the only thing served from behind the bar.

There I was, standing at the bar enjoying the general ambiance and couple of underage beers when I heard the unmistakeable sound of 50 people suddenly going quiet in a very unnatural way.

Why? because a group of Jarheads in back had decided to poke fun at a couple of swabbies at the next pool table. The last words I heard before the dust flew was something about "glorified chauffeurs". I have to assume the Navy took offense to that comment and responded in a decidedly unfriendly way to the Jarheads because all of a sudden pool cues, balls, tables, small Navy guys, beer mugs and all sorts of debris began flying around the bar.

At that point, there was only one thing to do. I jumped over the bar for cover and continued drinking with the bartender and my civilian friends, helping him fend off the occasional uniformed interloper who thought of using some part of the expensive parts of the bar as a weapon or a place to hide until the Shore Patrol arrived.

Which is sort of what this exchange on Powerline between Mark Steyn and Ralph Peters reminds me of.

Best not to jump in and take sides in a fight like this. Its best to stay out of the way and let the boys have at it for awhile.

Posted @ November 26, 2006 03:46 PM

Comments

As an ex sailor I can understand the fight between the jarines and the swabbies, the Steyn vs Peters is a different matter. Of course my money is on Steyn (by a whisker).

Posted by: Wayne at November 26, 2006 07:57 PM

I just had this image of two guys essentially on the same side kicking each others teeth in because of a slight that doesnt exist. If these two got together over a beer, they would see that is the case and write a very funny article about it.

(IMHO: Steyn is correct in this case, Peters has missed his target ever so slightly).

Posted by: frank martin at November 26, 2006 10:00 PM

Steyn's right. The aging Euros don't really have a dog in this hunt. You can see the same psychology here in the US with the social security issue. The seniors (aka 'Greatest Generation') just don't care about long term solvency. They're primarily interested in the next 5-10 years. The Euros apparently have this attitude in spades.

Posted by: tommy at November 27, 2006 07:14 PM