reigny

Thanks for sharing. It takes guts to post almost anything now-a-days

Well, evidently my drink is too grown up for this forum

I'll take a Red-Headed ****... Please No, really. It's a good drink

My initial instinct was to cash in just some if it rv'd under a dollar and hold out to watch if it continued to go up in value... However, at this point, I'll be perfectly content with anything. Especially anything over $.50. I've never been a gambling girl... And with the way things are going, I want my property, house, and my son's college fund secured before our economy can be dealt further damage. I understand risk can lead to big rewards, but I don't want to be left standing with a bunch of expensive wallpaper if I miss some sort of "window" to exchange.

Of course I'd share! Too many people with hopes and dreams riding on this not to

If the RV had happened two days ago, my husband would have been on a plane home from Al Asad by now. :\

I didn't post this in the news section, as it's an Opinion Editorial, but I still thought it was worth reading. My favorite paragraph (italics are mine): "The quality of Iraq's economic management is visible in the soundness of its macroeconomic picture. Inflation is under control at 5% per year, the government budget will likely be balanced with increased exports in 2011, and the Iraqi dinar (soon to appreciate as exports take off) has held steady against the U.S. dollar since early 2009. GDP growth, forecast by the International Monetary Fund to be 11.5% for 2011, is already among the highest in the world, with the investment boom barely in its infancy and the export surge yet to begin." Someone over there agrees with us!! The Coming Iraqi Business Boom

They are not for sale at Al Asad. My husband has been there since 4 Sept (ish), and they have never offered them there He was able to purchase them at both Q-West as well as Camp Delta, but that was back in Feb and June respectively. They routinely ran out at Q-West and there was a strict limit at Delta. Seems like all bases are different. Keep checking and letting us know. Thanks for the post

This would be the best Christmas present ever... It would mean my husband could come home from Iraq and spend Christmas with his 3 year old son (and me) for the first time in 2 years... I'm trying so hard not to hold my breath, but it's really hard when my son asks me every day, "Is daddy coming home yet? I miss my daddy." If it doesn't happen, we're still blessed to have our health and a roof over our heads. Merry Christmas, and may God Bless you all... ~Melissa

I already have a ridiculous butterfly "tramp stamp" that I got for college graduation... Does that count?

In the corner the article says "Updated 5 hours ago" Another user pointed out it looked like it was a slightly updated article that was re posted to be current.

I can't help but hope this is true... Otherwise my husband leaves to go back to Iraq this week after only 6 weeks home So even though the possibility certainly exists that it won't happen, I'm going to pray it does.

From the AP just 35 minutes ago... Click here for article UN calls on Iraq to take steps to end sanctions By EDITH M. LEDERER (AP) – 36 minutes ago UNITED NATIONS — The U.N. Security Council called on Iraq Thursday to address all outstanding issues related to Kuwait, oil-for-food program contracts, and disarmament so it can cancel sanctions and more than 70 resolutions adopted after the 1990 invasion of Kuwait. In a resolution adopted unanimously extending the U.N.'s civilian mission in Iraq for a year, the council said it recognized "the importance of Iraq achieving international standing equal to that which it held" before the first resolution was adopted immediately after Saddam Hussein's invasion. Iraq's U.N. Ambassador Hamid al-Bayati told the council Wednesday that "the most important issue facing Iraq ... remains to get rid of the burden" of resolutions adopted under Chapter VII of the U.N. Charter, which can be militarily enforced. But there are still outstanding issues with Kuwait, including demarcation of the border, accounting for 600 missing Kuwaitis and the $24 billion debt Baghdad owes Kuwait as reparations for the invasion. In May 2003, weeks after the U.S. invaded Iraq, the council lifted economic sanctions against Iraq, opening the country to international trade and investment and allowing oil exports to resume. In June 2004, it lifted an embargo on the sale of conventional weapons to the government. But there are still limits on some activities related to the possible production of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons, and missiles with a range of more than 150 kilometers (90 miles) are still banned. The Security Council welcomed Iraq's decision to adhere to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty's additional protocol that allows unannounced inspections and reaffirmed the importance of Iraqi ratification "as soon as possible." It also welcomed Iraq's intention to join The Hague Code of Conduct against Ballistic Missile Proliferation. The council called on the Iraqi government "to take all other necessary steps to meet its outstanding obligations, including to work with due haste and diligence to close the oil for food program." The $64 billion oil-for-food program, which ran from 1996 to 2003, aimed to ease the suffering of Iraqi civilians living under sanctions imposed by the council after the Kuwaiti invasion. It was the biggest humanitarian program in U.N. history, but a U.N.-sanctioned investigation found widespread corruption, involving thousands of parties, that bilked the program of $1.8 billion. Al-Bayati said a ministerial committee recommended paying 26 disputed oil-for-food contracts partially or entirely and to resolve the remaining 39 disputed contracts in the coming months. He said Iraq had expected — and still expects — the Security Council to lift all restrictions on disarmament, weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missiles because of the many steps the country has already taken. He cited a letter in March from the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency informing Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon of the government's "excellent cooperation" on nuclear inspections. Al-Bayati said the government, in addition, has decided to voluntarily adhere to strengthened nuclear safeguards, adopt the additional NPT protocol, and set up a committee of experts to liquidate chemical residues from the country's former chemical weapons program. It also decided to join the ballistic missile code and adopted "a strict mechanism" to control so-called dual-use items which can be used for both civilian and military purposes, he said. As for the outstanding issues with Kuwait, al-Bayati said that because of "the importance and sensitivity" of the issues, both countries have agreed to deal with them after the formation of a new Iraqi government. The Security Council resolution called on Iraq's leaders to form a new and inclusive government "as quickly as possible" and stressed the importance of "political dialogue and national unity" to improve security in the country. Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

So I'm wondering if anyone else is going to have a wee tiny bit of trouble sleeping tonight...

Fair enough about the KBR directive... but I was *so* hoping that the sign coming down wasn't merely for aesthetic purposes.