Bowe Bergdahl, in case you’re not aware, is a United States soldier who has been held as a POW by the Taliban since being captured in 2009.  The US was in talks with the Taliban to exchange prisoners and get him back; unfortunately, the ever-so-diplomatic goat-lovers over in Afghanistan decided to call off talks this week.

The leadership of the Islamic Emirate has decided to suspend the process for some time due to the current complex political situation in the country,” according to the statement. “The process will remain suspended without the exchange of the prisoners until our decision to resume.

In other words, we changed our mind, we’re keeping Bergdahl, and we’ll let you know when we decide to play ball again.  Definitely sounds like a defeated enemy, right?  Not to mention a triumph by the US State Department.  Good thing we have such a strong SecState.   Never mind the obvious issue with the fact that the US government had planned to trade Guantanamo-held terrorists for Bergdahl.  Because no one held in Gitmo ever killed Americans after getting out, right? /sarcasm

Our hearts go out to Bowe, and our prayers continue to be with his family.  Weekend links below the fold.

Blackfive has info on the Vietnam Veterans Recognition Day in NYC.  Welcome home, and thank you for your sacrifices for our nation.  We can never repay any of you.

Bruce Schneier put up a post about online lie detectors (creepy!?) that you should check out.

If you’re following the Ukraine crisis (and you should be), The Guardian has live updates.  Since it’s not like you’ll get decent coverage by any American news media.  They’re too busy covering The First Bovine’s trips to visit Jimmy Fallon.

The SecDef doesn’t know this administration’s policy on Iran’s nuclear program.  Naturally, this does not stop him from talking about it.  As my father used to say, he’s about as useful a teats on a bull…which, oddly enough, still makes him slightly more competent than the rest of this administration.

The last surviving sibling of the original Von Trapp singers died at the age of 99.  As someone pointed out in the comments, her family gave up everything to escape total control government, and a few decades later here we have the unwashed masses begging to have the government control them.

Bill Maher, jerkface extraordinaire, was on Rachel Mad-cow’s show to give her some ribbing about her ‘obsession’ with Bridgegate.   He refers to it as “MSNBC’s Benghazi,” then clarifies by saying Bridgegate is a real scandal while Benghazi is not.  In related news, the families of Chris Stevens, Ty Woods, Glen Doherty, and Sean Smith beg to differ.  Maher is not fit to lick the boots of the men killed that day, and every time I see his smirking, arrogant mug I want to kick it repeatedly with my boot.  But I digress.

Former SCOTUS Justice John Paul Stevens, now retired, says in his new book that we need to change the Second Amendment, because it puts too much emphasis on individual liberty.  No, I am not making this up. He wants to reword the amendment so that the right to bear arms is only non-infringable if you serve in the militia.  Which is amusing, since militia groups are pretty much target #1 for the DHS right now.   The fact that this man actually spent years on the Supreme Court of the United States responsible for interpreting the Constitution, and so blatantly misunderstands the very material he was charged with ruling on, makes me want to send a letter to John Roberts offering my German Shepherd’s services as a court Justice.  I’m pretty sure she’d do a better job.

And finally, here’s a tidbit that might give you a tiny bit of hope.  Arizona, land of the Constitutional firearm carry law (eat that, Stevens!), is also considering a bill that would nullify the NDAA.  Not only does the law declare any detainment of Arizona residents under “laws of war” unconstitutional and illegal, but it also demands that county sheriffs report to the Governor and State Legislature any attempts by the federal government to invoke those laws.

You’re now caught up on (some of) the news!  Go enjoy your day, and stay tuned for Part 2 of our series on Disengaging From the Matrix, coming later today.