Jeff Schmidt: Things that matter to me

Badwater 2008: 135 Miles in 39 Hours 31 Minutes!

2008-07-20T12:14:00.008-04:00

(From www.badwater.com): Badwater is recognized globally as "the world's toughest foot race." This legendary event pits up to 90 of the world's toughest athletes, runners, triathletes, adventure racers, and mountaineers against one another and the elements. Covering 135 miles (217km) non-stop from Death Valley to Mt. Whitney, CA in temperatures up to 130F (55c), it is the most demanding and extreme running race offered anywhere on the planet. The start line is at Badwater, Death Valley, which marks the lowest elevation in North America at 280' (85m) below sea level. The race finishes at Mt. Whitney Portal at 8360' (2533m). The Badwater course covers three mountain ranges for a total of 13,000' (3962m) of cumulative vertical ascent and 4,700' (1433m) of cumulative descent. Whitney Portal is the trailhead to the Mt. Whitney summit, the highest point in the contiguous United States.

First, some explanation is necessary: Badwater is different from almost every other race in that there is no support (water, food, etc) available along the course. Instead, each runner brings a "crew" of 2-6 persons and vehicles to help them along the way. Crew vehicles are stocked with hundreds of pounds of water, ice, food, medical supplies, and other necessities allowing the runner to move through this harsh environment.

Saturday, July 13:
My Crew and I left Columbus for Las Vegas. Given the pathetic state of the US Aviation Industry, I was pleasantly surprised to find all flights running on time (and at capacity). My Crew consisted of my lovely wife of 3 months Vivian, my brother Dave, my best friend Chris, and experienced Ultrarunner and good friend Dan.

Vivian, Dave, and Chris had absolutely no idea what to expect out of this whole thing! I'm sure they thought I was crazy with this whole "running through Death Valley in July thing" but fortunately were willing to indulge. Poor Vivian had no idea what she had married just a few months earlier!

(At the airport on Saturday)

We got into Vegas on time, picked-up two matching Chevy TrailBlazers at Avis, and drove an hour West to Pahrump, Nevada. Pahrump, home of the closest Wal-Mart to Death Valley, would be our home base prior to the race. We stocked-up on supplies, readied the vehicles, and relaxed for the evening. Vivian, being the Greek Goddess that she is, over-bought food and supplies to the point where the 5 of us could have wandered the desert for 41 years!

While I went to bed early and Dan worked responsibly, Chris proceeded to corrupt my new wife and young brother by teaching them how to gamble at The Golden Nugget in Pahrump. I feared a Chevy Chase-style run to Las Vegas during their 10 hour crewing breaks!

Sunday, July 14:

We jumped into one TrailBlazer and drove an hour into Death Valley for the pre-race meeting. This was Chris and Dave's first time in Death Valley; Vivian and I spent some time there last summer and Dan had passed through previously. Incidentally, during our trip late last summer, Vivian and I managed to save the lives of a stranded older couple - but that is another blog post!

We also drove the first half of the course - to Panamint Springs - to gain familiarity. Amazingly, recent rains created standing water at the bottom of Panamint Valley (where Panamint Dry Lake usually is). We returned to Pahrump, had our "Last Supper" (Mexican food), made final preparations, and went to bed early. We saw a rainbow in Pahrump that evening - always a Good Omen.

(A Good Omen the night before)

Monday, July 15 (Race Day #1):

Left Pahrump at 5:30 am to get into Death Valley in plenty of time for a leisurely breakfast in Furnace Creek prior to making our way the 18 miles to the start at Badwater.

(My Crew and I at the start)

(The 8:00am Starting Wave - I'm on the right)

Monday went quite well. My Crew was awesome. I did much better than I expected in the heat - all of those hours in the sauna paid off. I had no stomach problems, no significant blistering, and no heat issues - allowing me to move along quite nicely through the first two checkpoints (Furnace Creek and Stovepipe Wells) in nine hours flat - covering 42 miles.

All four Crew members were with me for the first 18 miles from Badwater to Furnace Creek. This allowed everyone to learn from Dan's experience and generally get the hang of things as a team. At Furnace Creek, Vivian and Dave were off-duty until their next 10 hour shift began at 6:00pm; I ran the rest of the daylight hours with Chris and Dan. The high temperature was 117F just before Stovepipe Wells.

I got into Stovepipe Wells at 5:02pm and we changed crew shifts on-schedule shortly thereafter at 6:00pm. At Stovepipe begins the first big climb: an arduous 18 miles up 5,000 feet to Towne's Pass. Vivian paced me on and off for several miles during the climb. Fortunately, the heat had broken by now; I made it to the top of Towne's Pass around 11:00 pm where I took a 15 minute nap and enjoyed the cool temperatures and the clear night sky.

Tuesday, July 16 (Race Day #2):

I took advantage of the downhill and cool night temperatures to run at a good clip down the back of Towne's Pass and across the flat bottom of the Panamint Valley to the next checkpoint: Panamint Springs. Unlike Furnace Creek and Stovepipe Wells which are little villages owned by the National Parks Service, the Panamint Springs Resort is a neat little privately owned resort/oasis inside Death Valley National Park. At 72.3 miles, Panamint is also just past the halfway point. I hit Panamint well ahead of my expectations at 2:17 am and started the next climb: 15 miles and 3,400' up and out of Panamint Valley. At 4:00am Vivian and Dave were off and Chris and Dan were on.

(Vivian at the bottom of Panamint Valley - where Panamint Dry Lake usually is!)

Shortly after Chris and Dan took over, I hit the top of the pass and took another short nap at Father Crowley Point, a scenic overlook just before the steep downhill begins.

Dan's experience as an ultrarunner paid off in this section as he pushed me through the downhill and eventual flat to the Darwin checkpoint. I hit Darwin, the 90 mile point, at 8:19 am, just over 24 hours after I started. During this section, Dan single-handedly took an hour off of my finish time.

At Darwin, I really started to slow down. I knew I had my precious buckle at this point, and my left Achilles Tendon was really starting to bother me. Knowing that the extreme uphill at the end would further aggravate my Achilles, I wanted to take it easy - but keep moving of course. I made it across the long and annoying flat of the Owen's Valley and into Lone Pine at 6:00pm exactly. Vivian and Dave took over at 2:00pm and were wonderful at keeping me going. Vivian paced me for about 6 miles, and Dave for about 3.

Lone Pine is the closest thing to civilization along the course; it is a reasonably-sized town at the foot of beautiful Mt. Whitney. Nothing longer than a potty break in Lone Pine as I wanted to start the climb as quickly as possible. Dan and Vivian were on-duty for the climb and did a spectacular job getting me up that mountain. It took just under 6 hours to complete the 13 mile, 4,600' climb to Whitney Portal.

All of us crossed the finish line together at 11:31 pm Tuesday evening, 39 hours, 31 minutes after we started.

I truly couldn't have done it without my crew: Vivian, Dave, Chris, and Dan: you were each amazing. You each filled your role perfectly and energetically. You kept me hydrated, fueled, positive, and moving. You are each a huge part of this 39 hour time. I can't show my appreciation or thank you enough. I owe a fifth of my buckle to each of you.

Because it was quite cold on the mountain during my midnight finish, my team thoughtfully waited until the hotel parking lot in Lone Pine to douse me in Champagne - only a few feet from a warm shower!

Bonus:

After hanging out at the finish for a bit and cheering on other runners, it was time to head back to our hotel in Lone Pine. About a half mile into the drive down, we came across my good friend John Radich who was just about to finish (note that he started two hours later than I did). I had crewed for John the past two years and he crewed for me at Western States. As the road is too small for a quick vehicle turn-around, I said "let me out" and I began to chase John up the hill yelling and screaming encouragement! After about 50 yards it hit me - I must have lost my mind as here I am running up Whitney again! Fortunately, Vivian got the vehicle turned around quickly; she picked me up and drove me to the top where I cheered-on John's 38 hour finish.

(John and I after finishing)

Recovery:

Aside from my Achilles, I'm not in bad shape. Relatively minor blistering on both feet and "normal" soreness (normal after an ultra that is).

Epilogue:

All in all a wonderful experience. My immense gratitude again to my crew, family, and friends for helping me through this each step of the way. Particularly Vivian, my wife of only 3 months: from tolerating my long hours of training to massaging my disgusting blister-oozing feet to the point of nausea (literally), I love and appreciate you more than you know. Now that you have an understanding of this odd sport I love, I look forward to future adventures!

Notes:

Hammer Perpetuem was the only source of fuel and it worked beyond wonderfully. My energy level was relatively constant with no real lows or crashes. Two scoops per hour administered in two hour bottles. No significant other food. Drank mostly plain water with 2 Hammer Endurolytes every other stop during the heat of the day. Heed didn't agree with my stomach early on and I never went back to it. Same with Sea Salt shots. Changed shoes and socks 3 times and did the Towne's climb in the Baer shoes. Slept less than an hour total in naps of less than 15 minutes.

Alternative fuels - the water requirements

2008-05-02T15:27:00.002-04:00

While I've long been suspicious about the true energy efficiency of "alternative fuels," I hadn't considered the efficiency with respect to water consumption. As major population centers far from fresh water continue to grow, efficient use of water will be a huge issue globally.

While burning food (ala corn ethanol) never seemed like a great idea to me, consuming a bunch of precious water to boot seems like an even bigger problem:

http://www.vwrrc.vt.edu/watercooler.html

We're Married!

2008-05-02T15:22:00.004-04:00

March 29 was the Big Day! And it was Perfect!

I'm such a lucky guy!

Vivian did an amazing job in planning and execution - truly a once in a lifetime experience for participants and guests alike!

Celebrating...

2007-10-29T22:55:00.000-04:00

...we don't need an excuse to celebrate!

Vivian and I are so fortunate in our lives in so many ways - every day is an opportunity to celebrate...

...and be silly!

I'm Engaged!!

2007-10-21T22:37:00.000-04:00

On September 26, I had the good fortune to get engaged to Vivian Valtas! Vivian is an absolutely amazing woman; it took us a while but finally I'm lucky enough to be engaged to my best friend.

The venue was the estate of a beautiful castle north of Frankfurt, Germany, where we also spent the night.

Our rose garden:

Vivian yawning to show-off her new hardware:

Going out to dinner that night to celebrate:

Why do airlines lose bags?

2007-07-27T13:41:00.000-04:00

Seriously. The state of the art (FedEx, UPS, DHL, etc) is to pretty much never lose anything. FedEx's ability to get something I drop off at 9p in Ohio to the west coast the next morning is nearly magical. Moreover, they have an amazing logistical system that knows precisely where every package is at all times and they make this real-time data available via the web.

The airlines, however, seem to consistently delay or lose about 1% of folks bags. Worse, if you've ever lost a bag, you know that it takes them about 12 hours to even figure out where it is! And you hear lame excuse after lame excuse from the airlines about aircraft weight and balance, cargo capacity, weather, etc.

Last time I checked, FedEx flies the same airplanes and is subject to the same weather and weight issues - and yet they find a way to get things where they need to be.

Airlines: please, please, please: hire someone from FedEx and solve the problem! We know how to do this, why make us frequent travelers continue to suffer with delayed and lost bags?

Set Your TiVo: Western States on NBC this Sat!

2007-07-26T02:01:00.000-04:00

NBC was at the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run I ran in June.

NBC World of Adventure coverage of the 2007 WS 100 is scheduled for this Saturday, July 28th, at 3 p.m. ET on NBC. Go to: http://www.worldofadventuresports.com/schedule_view.cfm?schedule_id=38 for more information.

Don't expect to see me in the video; 400 people ran this thing!

John Radich @ Badwater: Another year, another PR!

2007-07-25T14:23:00.000-04:00

Hey from the Panamint Springs Resort in Death Valley! You know we're living in the Internet age when there is a WiFi Hot Spot (backed by satellite) in the middle of the desert! ;-)

Just a quick note to let everyone know that John ran another stellar race. 33 hours, 8 minutes, 58 seconds. A new Personal Record (PR) beating last year's time by 30 minutes! Pictures and more details will follow when I get access to a faster Internet connection.

Congratulations, John!!!

Western States: 100 miles in 29 hours!

2007-07-16T12:59:00.001-04:00

On June 23-24, I ran the Western States Endurance Run, a 100 mile run through the mountains of Central California from Squaw Valley (Lake Tahoe) to Auburn, CA.

I couldn't have done it without my fantastic crew and pacers - Thank You!

All in all, the race went surprisingly predictably. Hammer Perpetuum provided a constant supply of calories, and my hydration and electrolyte intake was perfect as my weight never fluctuated by more than 2lbs. My Hardrocks were spectactular as always. Heat was not extreme and I handled it well, feeling surprisingly strong through the whole race (except for my usual late night low-spot).

The only issue was an early blister on my right heel. I actually started to feel the hotspot on the way up Squaw. I taped it up when I met my crew at Robinson Flat which kept things in check until the river crossing. Against my better judgement, I changed shoes & socks after crossing the river to keep the blister and covering dry. This turned out to be a mistake because my swolen feet disagreed with the new shoes and by the end of the race my left toes were pretty well beaten up. Fortunately, the foot/shoe/blister issues were minor and never close to becoming debilitating.

For this, my first Western States, the strategy was to take it easy until Foresthill, and pick things up from there. My primary goal was to finish, and I wanted to make sure I didn't push myself to a point where finishing was ever in doubt. There was so much I didn't know about this race that I figured a conservative strategy was best. I had enough left after the heat of the day and the big climbs out of the canyons to fly on the 9 mile downhill out of Foresthill - I even outran my pacer for about 20 minutes! After sprinting to the finish line, I certainly had gas left in the tank - so I know next time I can go harder.

Yes, there certainly will be a next time! Knowing what I know now, I look forward to the next Western States!

Me entering the Robinson Flat aid station:

John and one of his friends:

Me at the Finish Line Plaque on the track at Placer High School (the next day):

Television's "Mr. Wizard" dead at 89

2007-06-13T01:10:00.000-04:00

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- Don Herbert, who as television's "Mr. Wizard" introduced generations of young viewers to the joys of science, died Tuesday. He was 89.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/12/obit.mr.wizard.ap/index.html

This is sad: I grew-up watching Mr. Wizard and remember fondly how fun and accessible he made science.

Discovery Channel's Mythbusters is a fantastic adult-version.

We need more shows to remind folks that science is cool and fun. And less Paris Hilton coverage.

Saturday Night Live on the TSA

2007-06-03T12:48:00.000-04:00

Every good joke contains a grain of truth. Hilarious SNL skit about the TSA:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykzqFz_nHZE

WS100 Training Weekend - Bonus Day 4 (Tuesday)

2007-05-30T17:02:00.000-04:00

According to Tim (Twietmeyer), we covered a total of 77 miles over all three days - this includes the "off-course" runs to and from buses and aid-stations not a part of the regular course. I woke-up Tuesday feeling great and figured it would be fun to do a few more!

The only part of the course we didn't cover is the first 30 miles - from Squaw Valley to Robinson Flat. As it was yet another beautiful sunny day in California, I decided to drive out to Squaw and do the first climb from the Squaw Valley floor (elevation 6,200 feet) to Emigrant Pass (elevation 8,750 feet), a climb of 2,550 vertical feet in the first 4.5 miles of the race. I need the hill training - particularly running downhills.

I covered the 9 miles - 4.5 up and 4.5 down - with plenty of lollygagging on the way up but a hard, non-stop run down. By the time I got to the bottom, I was ready for dinner at a little outdoor restaurant at the ski resort!

This brought my 4 day total to 86 miles covering all the major climbs and descents of the race. As I sit in San Francisco writing this on Wednesday afternoon, I feel surprisingly good!

Visually, the climb is daunting. You're literally running up a ski slope!

Aside from the occasional thigh-deep snow over the last mile or so, it was a beautiful and peaceful climb to the top. Somehow I missed the Emigrant Pass monument, but I did find a nice little FAA VHF retransmission station at a peak my GPS said was 8,881' so I figured I'd completed the spirit of the climb! :-) The geeky pilot in me later confirmed that I had indeed found the FAA's Squaw Valley RCAG (Remote Communications Air-to-Ground).

Rapidly melting snow provided several dramatic waterfalls along the way:

Looking down onto Lake Tahoe to the East (I had no idea that thing is 1,500' deep in the middle!):

The view to the West... The trail continues somewhere over there!

And finally the larger, snow-covered mountains to the South:

WS100 Training Weekend - Day 3 (Monday)

2007-05-30T16:14:00.000-04:00

For Monday, we ran the final 21 miles of the race from the river crossing to the finish in Auburn. This is a very nice, relatively flat, and runnable section of the course. This was also my second time running this portion - useful as this is the part I'll be running at night. Yet another beautiful sunny day with a starting temperature of about 75, warming-up nicely to around 90 by the time we reached the (American River) Confluence area. After I worked out some initial stiffness and soreness over the first few miles, I felt surprisingly good and ran the section in just under 5 hours - a 23 hour pace for the full 100.

The North fork of the American River flows under the Foresthill Bridge just prior to the confluence with the Middle Fork about 3 miles from Auburn. The Foresthill Bridge is the tallest bridge in California and is often used in films, commercials, and (legal and illegal) bungee and base jumping.

Also in the Confluence area is the famous No Hands Bridge. The name "No Hands" stems from the fact that the bridge was originally a railroad crossing and as such did not have handrails. When it was converted to a pedestrian/equestrian bridge, handrails were eventually added - probably after someone fell off and sued. The bridge, at mile 96.8 of the 100 mile race, is certainly a welcome sight for weary runners! This pic shows runners on the No Hands bridge; the Foresthill bridge is visible in the upper left.

A rare picture of me! After crossing No Hands and already logging 74 miles in 3 days, I'm ready for the final 3 mile climb into Auburn!

WS100 Training Weekend - Day 2 (Sunday)

2007-05-27T19:39:00.000-04:00

Woke-up this am feeling great - quads only a tad sore from all the hills yesterday. On the agenda today is 20 miles from Foresthill to the river (Rucky Chucky) and painful 3 mile a climb out to White Oak Flat. According to Tim Twietmeyer the first 8 miles out of Foresthill are the fastest in the entire race - very runnable downhill - and should be used to make-up time. I wanted to run this section hard so when I get here in June I'll know I can do it - I did the section in just under an hour (7 minute miles). With lollygagging and a 30 minute detour/party in the river (who knew 60 degree water would feel soooo good!), did the day in just over 4 hours.

Yup, we're in the right spot!

An hour later we were swimming in this river!

WS100 Training Weekend - Day 1 (Saturday)

2007-05-27T18:46:00.000-04:00

What a great day! On Saturday's agenda was a 32 mile run from Robinson Flat back to the campsite at Foresthill. This is the most difficult section of the course as it traverses 3 canyons (steep downhill in, then a steep uphill out) including the two most difficult climbs of the entire race: Devil's Thumb and Michigan Bluff.

The first 13 miles are generally downhill, but after that it gets interesting! Elevation Profiles for the next 20 miles (through the canyons) are below (note that the mileage on the horizontal axis are short for some reason):

It was tough, but certainly doable. Even lollygagging about taking pictures and jumping into all three rivers at the bottom of the canyons (very cool and refreshing!) I completed the section in just over 7 hours, which is faster than a 24 hour finish for all 100 miles. Felt great! I even ran about 6 miles with ultra legend Tim Twietmeyer - until he lost me on the climb up Devil's Thumb! He gave me a ton of useful advice for June.

We arrived at Robinson courtesy of yellow school buses:

There was snow at the top! Wish we could have taken some with us - would have come in handy down in the 90+ degree canyons!

Fires went through this area several years back; as such, this area of the trail was exposed to the direct sun:

This is the actual "Devil's Thumb" rock formation - several of us hiked a bonus 1/2 mile to get this picture!

I'll be sleeping well tonight under the stars and looking forward to the next 20 mile section of the course tomorrow!

Western States Memorial Day Weekend Training

2007-05-25T23:20:00.000-04:00

I'll be running the last 70 miles of the Western States 100 Mile Endurance Run over Saturday, Sunday, and Monday. This will be my first time on some of the eastern parts of the trail - I am very excited!

The actual race is June 23-24 and runs 100 miles along the famous Western States Trail (an old prospector trail) from the Squaw Valley Ski Area (Lake Tahoe) Westward to Auburn, California. www.ws100.com

My home for the weekend; elevation of my front door: 3,111'.

The Wild Wild West 50k

2007-05-06T11:48:00.000-04:00

In beautiful Inyo County, California at the base of Mt. Whitney this weekend for the Wild Wild West 50K!

Since I spend so much time in hotels, I thought it would be a welcome change of pace to camp. My friend and fellow ultra-runner John Radich was also camping - so I'd have company.

However, the weather provided an unexpected twist: while heat is usually the issue (90+ degree temps), this year it was cold and 30+ MPH wind gusts!

Fortunately, my tent held-up nicely; in fact the rustle of wind overnight was quite peaceful!

My view the other way:

The wind was incredible driving-up from LA Friday evening. Saw two 18-wheelers on their sides, and I don't think my poor little rental car made it out of 3rd gear the whole way! Drove through a dust storm:

While the course is incredibly beautiful, the wind and cold didn't let-up. Equipment-wise, I was woefully unprepared for the cold/wind; fortunately, I had a sweatshirt with me and John had extra gloves - both proved to be lifesavers.

The race is billed as: "one tough trail race that goes through the great Alabama Hills and the foothills of Mt. Whitney." The unique and breathtaking scenery is the backdrop of many western movies from Roy Rogers and Hopalong Cassidy to Gladiator and Star Trek. I learned that just about every stereotypical truck commercial (you know the ones - rugged vehicles navigating forbidding rocky terrain with ease) is filmed here!

I'm very happy with my performance: 5:50 which placed me somewhere in the top 15 overall. Next up: 70 miles on the Western States Trail over Memorial Day Weekend!

UPDATE:

(Badwater) Ben Jones' excellent photo album is here. Thanks for the great photos, Ben!

At mile 7, just about done with the first big, long climb: John, Me.

At mile 22, Ben waiting at the top of yet another climb: John, Me.

The fastest path to peace

2007-02-24T20:01:00.000-05:00

Last week was a sad time in U.S. history as in a time of war our own Congress passed a resolution that serves no purpose other than to give hope and aid to our enemy. We are allowing the enemy to define and win the Public Relations war.

Our supposed elected representatives have lost their spine (many seem to have been born sans spine).

These nuts are not "criminals" deserving of rights and due process, they are non-citizen religious extremists who have been crystal clear about their desire to kill or convert every American (that means YOU and ME) to their breed of radical Islam.

If anyone needs a reminder about what kind of enemy we face, watch the Daniel Pearl beheading video, video of the planes hitting the Trade Towers, and the Al-Qaeda propaganda (particularly their latest 'Holocaust of the Americans in Afghanistan' "documentary").

They are all available at: http://www.liveleak.com/

They will not stop until you and I are either dead or praying to Muhammad 17 times a day. They have said this plainly. A literal reading of the Qur'an says this plainly. Ahmadinejad, the President of a foreign state (Iran, incidentally also in overt pursuit of nuclear weapons), has said this plainly - along with his intention to "wipe out" a sovereign state - Israel.

The enemy's intentions are not at all unclear. The longer it takes us Americans to fully grasp this, the more people will die. The reality is that we are at war and we must kill or be killed.

This is not a Democratic or Republican position. This is the Realistic position.

Even Syria understands that Islamo-nutjobs can be defeated with decisive, overwhelming force. I mentioned Syria's 1980s terrorist crackdown in conversations with some of you recently. The first paragraph of Friedman's "Hama Rules" article summarizes it nicely:

In February 1982 the secular Syrian government of President Hafez al-Assad faced a mortal threat from Islamic extremists, who sought to topple the Assad regime. How did it respond? President Assad identified the rebellion as emanating from Syria's fourth-largest city — Hama — and he literally leveled it, pounding the fundamentalist neighborhoods with artillery for days. Once the guns fell silent, he plowed up the rubble and bulldozed it flat, into vast parking lots. Amnesty International estimated that 10,000 to 25,000 Syrians, mostly civilians, were killed in the merciless crackdown. Syria has not had a Muslim extremist problem since.

Syria, Egypt, Algeria and Tunisia have all faced Islamist threats and crushed them without mercy or Miranda rights. They no longer have problems with these nuts.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hama_Massacre
http://www.mafhoum.com/press2/63P58.htm

We have faced extremists before too. In WWII, thousands of Japanese kamikaze pilots, fiercely (fanatically?) loyal to the emperor of Japan, executed successful suicide attacks against American assets. To end the war, we crushed Japan with overwhelming, nuclear force yielding unquestionable victory. General MacArthur occupied Japan and imposed Democracy, guaranteed basic freedoms and civil liberties, and most importantly removed the emperor from political involvement. Certainly not minor changes. A mere 60 years later, Japan has the second largest economy in the world and is one of America's closest allies.

With the advent of politically correct warfare, decisive victory is no longer popular. We fight those who want to kill us with one hand tied behind our backs and wonder why it is taking so long. We have the most powerful military in the world and yet we choose to fight handicapped. As a result, wars are actually longer and more people - friend and foe - die in the end.

When law enforcement makes an arrest, they know that the best way to prevent a bad guy from fighting is to confront him with overwhelming force such that the only choice is submission and peaceful surrender.

It is a mistake to think that we are fighting a civilized or reasonable enemy who can be negotiated with. We are not. They have demonstrated their barbaric desire to kill Americans - man, woman, child, civilian, and soldier. We must crush them. Overwhelmingly, unquestionably, and quickly. This is the fastest path to peace.