My Poor, Poor State

I really do like living in California. It's a beautiful place and I've lived here my whole life, so even living in L.A. with it's overcrowding doesn't bother me too much, it's normal for me. However the politics and government of the state/county/city has me wanting to escape at the first opportunity.

Obamacare Passed

NOTE: I wrote this two days ago, right after the vote to enact this POS and it took me two days to clean out all the really bad language.

To my son and my future grandchildren, I'm sorry.

My generation has saddled you with a bill that can never be paid.

Analysis: Health care's political lift uncertain

WASHINGTON – The initial blush of President Barack Obama's health care triumph immediately gives way to a sober political reality — he must sell the landmark legislation to an angry and unpredictable electorate, still reeling from the recession.

Voters may not buy it.

"angry and unpredictable electorate"...Hell yes we're angry. 60% of the people didn't want this bill to pass, but the congresscritters know better than us what we need. Unpredictable? I predict that us stoopids are going to wreak retribution on those that jammed this POS on us.

"We proved that this government — a government of the people and by the people — still works for the people," the president said late Sunday, beginning his sales pitch from the White House one hour after Congress passed the sweeping measure.

So sayeth "the one", they are working for the people, even though the people sayeth "NO!!"

Voters are furious. They hate Washington. They also detest incumbents. They're concerned most about the economy. And unemployment that's hovering near 10 percent. They're also split over whether Obama's health plan is good for a nation with enormous budget deficits and climbing debt.

How those variables play out is anyone's guess.

My guess/hope will be that these asshats get voted out of office at the first opportunity. With unemployment high and no new jobs (except gov't jobs, 16,000 new IRS agents to make sure you pay for Oabamacare). Oh, I get it, jobs created, but who pays the salaries of these IRS workers...the taxpayer, so we'll have to pony up more to pay for these new jobs that create nothing.

"It will end up being the smart thing to do politically because I believe that good policy is good politics," the president said Saturday at the Capitol.

The "smart thing to do politically", he said. Damn straight. Anytime you can give someone something for nothing, you've got a guaranteed vote in the next election.

Ahead of the vote, a Gallup poll showed more Americans believe the measure will make things worse rather than better for the country as a whole and for them personally. And most polls show most people don't like the plan although some surveys showed Americans giving high marks to individual elements.

The hell with the people and what they think. They actually bought into the idea that their elected Representatives where there to represent them. Most American's know that there are needed adjustments to health care coverage, but we also can figure out that putting more people into the system (a lot of them unemployed, be able to cover everything and we will save money, just isn't going to work out the way they are telling us.

Throughout the yearlong debate, the GOP derided the bill as "socialized medicine" and warned that it would be devastating. But Republicans may find themselves looking sheepish given that the status quo won't change for most people for years.

The only thing that changes right off is that our taxes go up. We pay for this for 5 years before the benefits kick in.

Got the word today That this is most likely force the owner of my company to implement a copay on our insurance premiums. Even with all the troubles our company has gone through, he still carried 100% of the cost, Medical, Dental and Vision, but he said this is straw that breaks the camels back. Thank you pResident Obama, you just reduced my income by $3,600 per year.

Is The Delta Smelt Saved Already?

Remember this from way, way back...8 months ago?

California's Man-Made Drought
The green war against San Joaquin Valley farmers.

California has a new endangered species on its hands in the San Joaquin Valley—farmers. Thanks to environmental regulations designed to protect the likes of the three-inch long delta smelt, one of America's premier agricultural regions is suffering in a drought made worse by federal regulations.

The state's water emergency is unfolding thanks to the latest mishandling of the Endangered Species Act. Last December, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued what is known as a "biological opinion" imposing water reductions on the San Joaquin Valley and environs to safeguard the federally protected hypomesus transpacificus, a.k.a., the delta smelt. As a result, tens of billions of gallons of water from mountains east and north of Sacramento have been channelled away from farmers and into the ocean, leaving hundreds of thousands of acres of arable land fallow or scorched.

For this, Californians can thank the usual environmental suspects, er, lawyers. Last year's government ruling was the result of a 2006 lawsuit filed by the Natural Resources Defense Council and other outfits objecting to increased water pumping in the smelt vicinity. In June, things got even dustier when the National Marine Fisheries Service concluded that local salmon and steelhead also needed to be defended from the valley's water pumps. Those additional restrictions will begin to effect pumping operations next year.

The result has already been devastating for the state's farm economy. In the inland areas affected by the court-ordered water restrictions, the jobless rate has hit 14.3%, with some farming towns like Mendota seeing unemployment numbers near 40%. Statewide, the rate reached 11.6% in July, higher than it has been in 30 years. In August, 50 mayors from the San Joaquin Valley signed a letter asking President Obama to observe the impact of the draconian water rules firsthand.

Who'da thunk that the species would be able to turn around so fast...or I guess the reality would be that the Dems are throwing the fish under the bus. Now the news is:


Buying Votes With Water

Politics: The water spigots are back on, at least temporarily, in California's Central Valley. Turned off to protect a tiny fish, they happen to be in the districts of two congressmen "undecided" on health care reform.

One could chalk it up to good fortune or just good constituent service. But in the middle of a contentious health care debate marked by Cornhusker Kickbacks and Louisiana Purchases, we may be forgiven if we find an announcement by the Department of the Interior regarding California's water supply a tad too coincidental.

On Tuesday, the Department of the Interior announced it was increasing water allocations for the Central Valley of California, a region that depends on these water allocations for local agriculture and jobs. The timing adds to our suspicions.

According to the Interior announcement, "Typically (the Bureau of) Reclamation would release the March allocation update around March 22nd, but moved up the announcement at the urging of Senators (Diane) Feinstein and (Barbara) Boxer, and Congressmen (Jim) Costa and (Dennis) Cardoza."

Blue Dog Democrats Costa, who represents California's 20th Congressional District (Fresno), and Cardoza, who represents the 18th (Stockton to Modesto), are both listed as "undecided" in the upcoming vote on health care reform, whether it be on the Senate bill itself or the "deem and pass" resolution known as the Slaughter rule, after Rules Committee Chairman Louise Slaughter.

What a coincidence!!! Two congresscritters with districts with unemployment rates running at 40% suddenly get the water they have been begging for the last year released just before the vote on Obamacare.

The 2-inch-long delta smelt, a fish destined for the Endangered Species list, plugs the drains releasing water to the farmlands. So to protect it, environmentalists filed lawsuits and the decision was made to restrict the water flow and safeguard the smelt, even if that meant turning some of America's best farmland into the functional equivalent of Death Valley.

So, until the Department of Interior releases it's next allocation update, the Delta Smelt is off the Endangered Species List, whereas Reps Costa and Cardoza were on the list and needed a little bakshish.

The Best Of Us

A soldier fights not because he hates what is in front of him, but because he loves what is behind him.

"But You Did Nothing For 8 Years!!!"

Dropped by an old friends site today that I've neglected to visit for far too long. He had the proper response to the above meme:


When The Better Answer Is Still The WRONG Answer…

March 13, 2010 by Blackiswhite, Imperial Consigliere

Instead, the correct answer for every Republican faced with the OUTRAGE!!!!111!!! of leftist plant, member of the Fourth Estate, or Dhimicratic Lawmaker who employs the “YOU were in control for 8 years and did NOTHING!!!11!!!” meme is to look them in the eye, and say calmly, but firmly “You’re right. And do you know why? *pause, to make sure you have their attention* Because it isn’t for the FEDERAL government to address. The question that YOU should be asking yourself Mr. SEIU protester/Olbermann/Congressman Grayson is why you hate the Constitution, think you know better than the men who wrote it, or the wisdom of the voters and the legislators of your own home states? You keep trying to take power that doesn’t belong to you, and despite the Civil War’s net effect of shifting the balance of power between the Federal Government and the individual states, the states still are sovereign entities, and it is up to them to address this issue if the people of their states believe there is a compelling need to do so. Massachusetts showed the way on this, and yet you still persist in a nearly delusional belief that the Tenth Amendment no longer applies, and that we are empowered to forever expand special welfare for some and continue to call it “general welfare” for all. It’s time Congress confined itself to things within the grant of power specifically made to it in the Constitution.”

The More Things Change.....

Bathroom Books - My library of magazines and books that sit in the bathroom to occupy 10 minutes that would be wasted. One of them is "Let's Be Heard" by Bob Grant. The lead page to the third section has this:

WHOSE GOVERNMENT IS THIS, ANYWAY?

The career politicians and bureaucrats, along with the pundits of the left, are currently wailing and keening over what the depict as dangerous "antigovernment" sentiment at loose in the land, but they're way off base. Most people believe strongly in our form of government. We just don't like how it has been perverted and contorted out of shape over the past few decades.

Our dissatisfaction has two main, related causes.

First, government does too many things we don't want it to do. In fact, the general drift of government activism has been to do things that help small minorities and special interests at the expense of the majority.

Second, every time the government does anything, it ends up costing us too much money. The costs nearly always outweigh the benefits.

In other words, the people who pay for government are the people whom government seems least interested in serving. You could even say that we pay government to do things that damage us. But we're not angry at government--just at some of the bozos who run it.

This was written in 1996, but sounds like it could have been penned yesterday.

Where I'm At

Heard a song today and it hit home about what's going on in my life. For some reason I listened to the words and heard them all over again. This song came out back when I was in Jr. High so forgive me if the lyrics had kinda faded into the background.

No Flight For You, Achmed

Truly unbelievable!!

Airport body scanners violate Islamic law, Muslims say

"It is a violation of clear Islamic teachings that men or women be seen naked by other men and women," reads the fatwa issued Tuesday. "Islam highly emphasizes haya (modesty) and considers it part of faith. The Quran has commanded the believers, both men and women, to cover their private parts."

The decision could complicate efforts to intensify screening of potential terrorists who are Muslim. After the Christmas Day bombing attempt in Detroit by a Muslim suspect from Nigeria, some have called for the use of body scanners at airports to find explosives and other dangerous materials carried by terrorists. Some airports are now in the process of buying and using the body scanners, which show in graphic detail the outlines of a person's body.

But Muslim groups say the scanners go against their religion. One option offered to passengers who don't want to use the scanners would be a pat down by a security guard. The Muslim groups are urging members to undergo those instead.

The only reason they are installing these body scanners is BECAUSE of the Muslims. If their religion says they can't go through a scanner like the rest of us are forced to do, then the simple solution they don't fly.

Solves two problems at once. They don't have to risk their modesty and I don't have to worry about some towelhead blowing up the plane. Flying is a privilege, not a right, so they can take their fatwa and shove it.

I'm Baaack!!

All is well in my little piece of the world, I just took a break from blogging. The last month has been routine, but interesting.

I can now talk with my son over in Korea over the internet. The time difference is a bitch, but when I work graveyard it's something to do during that 1 to 3 AM lull. If I'm home, and up, we can use the webcams, though the video delay can be a little disconcerting if you pay too close attention.

It's good to be able to see and talk to him again.

My wife came through town a few weeks ago for a couple of days before heading back to Montana. It was good to see her again, but she's better off up there and I ain't going to live anyplace that has temperatures in the single digits. Not to mention there really isn't a thriving oil industry there.

Had to put my poor 19 year old cat "Belly" down. (I didn't name him) Cancer got him. Even though most of the time it was like we were two roosters in the same hen house, I miss the bastard.

Got another dog. A Pit/Lab mix. Sweet as hell, but she's 1 1/2 years old and full of energy. Shannon was loved by the family I got her from, but her training was a bit on the harsh side so she still cowers if I speak loudly to her. She'll fit in as she gets more comfortable. She's smart enough. Ralph, my other dog, was able to teach her the dog door in one day (Thank the gods)

Here is the best pic I've got of Shannon. If I crouch down to try to snap a shot, she's in my lap and all I get is a close-up of a dog nose. Got plenty of those.



Finally, Here's a pic of the mountains over my little valley from my drive home from freezing my butt of at work last night. 35 degrees at 3AM and for a SoCal boy that's more cold than I like.



That's how I like my snow...UP THERE. It's pretty to look at, but getting up and going out to dig my truck out before going to work...I'll pass.

The Rifleman

I finally break down and get a new machine and what do I get hooked on? A black and white TV show from the '50's.



I went to HULU to find a movie to watch but ran into "The Rifleman", a show I loved while I was growing up. Lucas McCain was my hero. In those 30 minute shows I found a man who was fair, honorable, worked hard for what he wanted and above all loved his son.

In all the years I have watched this program, I had never known how Lucas and Mark got to North Fork, now I do.

Did you know Sam Peckinpah wrote and directed the original screenplay and a lot of the first year episode?

And for you rifle purists, I know that the show is set in the early 1880's and the rifle was produced in 1892...I don't care!

There are 50 episodes on Hulu if you'd like to go back down that trail.

New Toy

I've been gone for a while due to getting a new computer. The last one lasted over 9 years, so I was due.

I am now involved in trying to get all the crap transferred from the old machine to the new one plus adding on some new toys.

I should be able to handle phone and video chat over this system, so I can really talk to my boy in Korea for free and if the video works, I can see what he looks like.

When You Think You've Heard It All

From boston.com

But as a progressive, I would sooner lay my child to rest than succumb to the belief that the use of a gun for self-defense is somehow not in itself a gun crime.

DOUG VAN GORDER
Quincy

This idiot is not only a "progressive", he's a teacher! And not only is he a teacher, he's experienced the horror of being a helpless victim.

I AM a math teacher at Brockton High School, the site of a school shooting earlier this month.

I was mugged once. I was scared, and just wanted the situation to be over, but the more I gave into the demands of the mugger, the more he'd demand, until I finally decided that the next step could/would be to get rid of the witness.

That is the one "no holds barred" fight I have ever had in my life...hell, it's the only fight I've ever had, but the one thing I learned from that experience was that the second I fought back, the mugger was the one conceding position.

Current school security procedures lock down school populations in the event of armed assault. Some advocate abandoning this practice as it holds everyone in place, allowing a shooter easily to find victims.

An alternative to lockdown is immediate exodus via announcement. Although this removes potential hostages and makes it nearly impossible for the shooter to acquire preselected targets, it unfairly rewards resourceful children who move to safety off-site more shrewdly and efficiently than others.

Schools should level playing fields, not intrinsically reward those more resourceful. A level barrel is fair to all fish. [emphasis: mine]

If one dies, we all die, that makes life "fair". He recognizes the danger of sitting and hoping the police show up in time, but is willing to sacrifice the many for the few.

This asshole has to be one of those that worked to forbid games like Dodge ball and Musical Chairs because someone loses, either through guile, speed or luck.

Let's go back to the quote I cited at the top:

But as a progressive, I would sooner lay my child to rest than succumb to the belief that the use of a gun for self-defense is somehow not in itself a gun crime.

First off, I going to guess that this asshat has no children of his own. God help you if you did anything to hurt my boy. I don't care if he is 21 years old and bigger, stronger and faster than me, my duty is to protect him and do everything in my power to see that he lives a long life.

That last line is the best:

than succumb to the belief that the use of a gun for self-defense is somehow not in itself a gun crime

Using a weapon to protect the innocent...is a crime itself. (I'll bet a months wages this spineless sheep voted for Obama.) This guy, DOUG VAN GORDER of Brockton High School in Quincy, Mass. is not going to be like Liviu Librescu at Virginia Tech, he's going to be hiding behind your children hoping HE doesn't get shot.

Army Christmas Party

My son posted this on his Facebook page, so I stole it.

This is from his "Office party".

Good Sign or Bad Sign?

With my son being part of the trip wire defense of S. Korea, I try to keep up on what is happening over there. Now, Chris, who is around 100 miles from the DMZ never hears anything about what the North is doing. It seems the only time the camp goes on any type of alert status is when the South Koreans are protesting something (which seems to be a weekly occurrence).

So it piqued my interest when I read this:

N.Korea calls for end to hostile relations with US

SEOUL — North Korea on Friday called for an end to hostile relations with the United States, vowing to work towards a nuclear-free peninsula seven months after its last atomic test angered the world community.

The call was made in a policy-setting New Year joint editorial of the communist country's state newspapers. North Korean people must learn and memorize the editorial, which is seen as ideological guidance for the year ahead.

"The fundamental task for ensuring peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the rest of Asia is to put an end to the hostile relationship between the DPRK (North Korea) and the USA," the editorial said.

"It is the consistent stand of the DPRK to establish a lasting peace system on the Korean Peninsula and make it nuclear-free through dialogue and negotiations," the editorial said, according to Pyongyang's Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

On the surface, this looks promising...BUT...I just don't trust them.

Our enemies know all to well that we have a weak administration that is happy to talk and talk, give unilateral concessions and tell us that "progress" is being made. Iran and North Korea have been yanking our chain for years buying time to continue their programs.

The other thing that worries me about this is whether this is a set-up? Life isn't getting better in the North, so why not talk peace and get the ROK to ease up and let us relax, then hit hard and fast.

I've not seen a scenario where the North could win a war, but it would be a bloody mess while it lasted.

On the flip side, it could be real. I would certainly love a very scary situation to go away and allow the families that have been separated for 56 years (my entire life) to be reunified.

That said, what would that mean to the 30,000 U.S. troops stationed there? Would they be pulled and sent other places? It doesn't make me sleep better having Chris in Korea, though I am proud of him. As a Dad, I'd be happier with him at Ft. Rucker in Alabama. It could turn out to be a frying pan/fire thing if he gets moved to the ME. He says he could use a deployment to a hot spot if he decides to stay with the Army and he is Gov't Issue, so where he ends up isn't up to either of us.

It's a new year, so right now I think I'll be a little optimistic and hope that this decade brings a little peace to part of the world.

Happy New Year, Y'all!!!

2010

Damn!!!

I never thought I'd make it to the new century and now we're ten years past it. I've got to thank my son for that, he's the reason I've stuck it out this far. Actually far enough that I now have decided that I want to keep going as long as I can, although with this new Obamacare crap coming down, my waning years may not be so pretty, but I'm going to bitch and moan and tell all the young doctors and nurses that I tried to warn the world that socialized anything doesn't work.

Kicking and screaming, that's how I plan on going out. I'm not afraid of dying, I'll have the rest of eternity to be dead, so I'd prefer to hang around here a bit longer.

ALTHOUGH....

I had one of those songs get in my head for no reason today and if I don't purge it soon, death may not come quickly enough.



Or one of you may track me down and waste me for getting it stuck in your head.

2009: The Year In Review: Betrayal Edition

Below is a pure cut and paste (I even stole the picture)of my friend's Blackiswhite's year end post. I post it here so that I have it preserved for posterity and I may stumble across it years from now.


2009: The Year In Review: Betrayal Edition
December 31, 2009 by Blackiswhite, Imperial Consigliere



Once again, we’re at that time of year when everyone examines the year that was with their clever lists, and wry observations. being neither clever or wry, I’ll simply point out where we weren’t a year ago, before the Dawn of the Age of the HopeyChangeyness (now with Skittles-crapping unicorns.)

A year ago, the government wasn’t the owner of two previously privately held auto companies, the largest insurer in the nation, or a large mortgage bank.

A year ago, our President wasn’t buddy-buddy with Chavez or Castro.

A year ago, we didn’t have a tax-cheat as Treasury Secretary.

A year ago, we didn’t have an Executive Order authorizing the immigration and placement of thousands of Palestinians in the U.S.

A year ago, U.S. taxpayers weren’t funding and facilitating abortions in other countries.

A year ago, five percent fewer federal employees made over $100,000.00 a year. It must be nice to get a raise in the worst recession in my memory…especially when you already have the job security of a federal employee.

A year ago, we had a President who wasn’t on record as thinking that the Constitution is “fundamentally flawed”.

A year ago, we had a President who did not bow deeply to the Saudi King and the Japanese Emperor.

A year ago, we had a President who did not avoid the Senate’s advise and consent role by appointing czars in places where they had never been before.

A year ago, we had a President who did not go out of his way to insult average Americans by casting aspersions on their values and the values of their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents.

A year ago, we did not have a Supreme Court Justice who completely and utterly disqualified themselves before appointment with repeated statements calling their integrity and impartiality into question.

A year ago, we did not have government officials threatening private investors who were trying to protect their legal rights in bankruptcy.

A year ago, we did not have a presidentially appointed self-admitted Communist in government.

A year ago, a government official would not have dreamt of quoting Mao in public as a favorite philosopher.

A year ago, our elected representatives would not have dared to ask constituents for ID before answering their questions, or used union goons and police to silence and remove constituents from public meetings.

A year ago, the conventional wisdom would have laughed at the notion that we need hundreds of billions of dollars in stimulus spending that stimulates nothing in order to turn the rising tide of unemployment.

A year ago, the government did not deign to set compensation levels for employees of privately held companies.

A year ago, the idea of government health care for all was the punchline of a Hillary Clinton joke.

A year ago, we didn’t have a President who has informed a whole sector of the energy industry that he wants to put them out of business.

A year ago, the EPA was not threatening to regulate carbon dioxide emissions if Congress doesn’t.

A year ago, INTERPOL could not operate on American soil without regard to the American Constitution and American due process.

A year ago, we didn’t have an attorney general who believed it was appropriate or necessary to try foreign terrorists in Article III courts.

A year ago, we had a President and administration that recognized that we were already in a war on terrorism, because the terrorists had already declared war on us.

A year ago, a statement to the nation about a terrorist act committed against Americans by the President was a duty, and not an annoyance.

A year ago, carbon dioxide was good because it helps plants grow, and not a pollutant requiring taxes by Congress that will be paid by energy consumers.

A year ago, in was understood that the government cannot force me to buy a government-approved health care plan with the threat of exorbitant fines and/or jail time.

A year ago, it wasn’t the priority of one political party to funnel hundreds of thousands of dollars to a group of community activists that have engaged in voter fraud and other criminal enterprises…time and again.

A year ago, the government didn’t fire watchdogs who caught influential friends of the government with their sticky fingers in the government till.

A year ago, we had a President and Leader of the Free World who didn’t sit on his hands and “bear witness” to the brutal repression and murder of people resisting a totalitarian regime that is determined to destabilize the region it is in.

A year ago, we had a President who did not support a leader attempting a coup by vilifying the people who lawfully prevented it.

A year ago, we did not face a government that grows fat and belligerent on our tax dollar, while constantly threatening to take more of our money and freedom from us.

A year ago, we didn’t have a President that accused our soldiers of perpetrating war crimes for political gain, or declared police guilty of acting stupidly while admitting in the same breath that he didn’t have all the facts.

A year ago, dissent was the highest form of patriotism; now it’s racist!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

I haven't been posting lately because, even after my insisting I was going to get in the spirit of the season, it still took a couple of days to get out of my normal Grinch mood...I finally did. Just in time for a minor medical problem to crop up, which being a man, I ignored and denied until it became a big minor problem.

I got to visit our excellent local ER (Verdugo Hills Hospital) yesterday morning because I was in intense muscle quaking pain when I stood, sat, walked or lay down, and you should have seen me when I even contemplated transitioning from one phase to the other.

All is okay now, just semi-infrequent minor pains to remind me of what happens with putting off until tomorrow would be best handled today.

As to Christmas, I hope you have all enjoyed a great day with family and friends. I was hoping that Santa would have dropped off a nice shiny new conceal carry piece, but...maybe next year.

In that vein (and the spirit of the season) I'll give you this video (which, of course they won't let me embed):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-TC2xTCb_GU

When Is The War Crimes Trial?

I haven't heard anything about the impending trial at the Hague for Ban Ki-moon, the Secretary General of the Useless Nitwits for waging a war that deliberately targets civilians.

Report: UN-backed Congo troops killing civilians

JOHANNESBURG – A U.N.-backed Congolese military operation to oust rebels from eastern Congo has caused more civilian casualties than damage to rebels, with more than 1,400 people deliberately killed over a nine-month period, human rights groups said Monday.

Well, you know there is always collateral damage, maybe these guys just can't shoot straight or it's hard to tell who the civilians are...Oh wait...

Human Rights Watch said it had documented "vicious and widespread" attacks against civilians by soldiers and rebels between January and September. Soldiers being fed and supplied with ammunition by the United Nations have killed civilians, gang-raped girls and cut the heads off some young men they accuse of being rebels or supporting the enemy, groups said.

"For every rebel combatant disarmed, one civilian has been killed, seven women and girls have been raped, six houses have been burned and destroyed and 900 people have been forced to flee their homes," British-based organization Oxfam said.

I thought the Useless Nitwits were the good guys, the ones we are suppose to turn our sovereignty over to?

"The U.N. peacekeepers are being put in an appalling situation where they are supporting an army that is attacking its own population," it said.

The allegations come the same week the U.N. Security Council is to deliberate on renewing the peacekeepers' mandate.

Kevin Kennedy, spokesman for the U.N. mission in Congo, said the Security Council has repeatedly expressed support for the offensive against the rebels and for the Congolese army despite "all the risks involved and the potential consequences of cooperating with the FARDC (army)."

And yet...there is no condemnation of this august body supporting genocide.

Protecting civilians is the primary purpose of the U.N. peacekeepers, but they have struggled with a contradictory mandate that also requires them to support the Congolese army.

"Struggle" with a contradictory mandate. And what would that be? Look at them disapprovingly then writing a nasty After Action Report?

It shouldn't go on too much longer now:

Congo's President Joseph Kabila has asked the U.N. to draw up a schedule to withdraw its forces, which have been in the country since 1999. The biggest U.N. accomplishment was overseeing Congo's first democratic elections in four decades, held in 2006. Kabila would have the peacekeepers withdraw before new elections scheduled for 2011.

Then the real killing begins.

I"m Going To Enjoy Christmas, Damn It!!!!

A few days ago I dropped in to full Grinch mode for the season...again. I love Christmas..at least I use to, but for the last five or six years, I get so far and the mood falls away. The commercialism, the fights about even recognizing the holiday, the long cold nights all conspire to put me in a bad mood.

I'll still read the news, which is depressing, but try to remember that I have a job, a house, a kid who is doing well and count my blessings instead of what is pissing me off. Congress goes on their vacation soon, so nothing should get passed until next year.

The last couple of years have been particularly bad. No family around to share the season with, and for the first time in five years, I didn't have to work days. This year I have to work night shift, and my friends in Phoenix invited me to share it with them and my Godson, who is coming home from Louisiana, but I can either go out before Christmas and miss him by one day, or I get there a few hours after he flies home.

BUT, I've decided to put all the negatives behind me. When I finish my day shift on Thursday, I'm going to put up my Christmas lights (I may even turn them on) and get a tree, granted, a little tree, my creche, just some things to remind me that this is a special time and I do have a lot of things to be thankful for.

Merry Christmas to one and all!

Now That There Is Just Funny

Got this through an Email and just had to pass it on:



This was this guy's first boat and he was taking it to the lake, but he

wasn't quite sure of the correct procedure for launching a boat off a ramp.

However, he figured it couldn't be that difficult to do, so he stopped by his

Union office for advice, and they just told him...

"Don't let the trailer get too deep in the water when you're launching your boat".

Well later on, he couldn't understand what they meant by that, as he just could

barely get his trailer in the water!

Here's a picture worth a "thousand' words!

Your gonna love this guy!!!

Some people shouldn't be allowed to get married, have children or vote!

Do I Get Credit(s)

Under Cap and Trade Crap and Tax and/or the EPA diktat on reduction of Green house gases along with whatever BS they come up with in Copenhagen, would I get credit for sending my son to a different country and reducing the amount of energy used in the U.S.? Or could I get hit with an tariff from South Korea for exporting a pollutant to their country?

Could the tax credit offset the tariff, or will one be significantly higher than the other and it will cost me anyway?

If CO2 (breathing) is a greenhouse gas, am I going to have to pay a C&T tax/EPA fee on my animals? Food, water and license for them I understand and pay for willingly, but if I have to pay $100/year because they exhale...well, the dog can stay, but the cat goes...the bird...we'll see.

Christmas Comes Early

I'm gonna live forever.

Beer could be the new weapon against cancer

MEN now have another excuse to go down the pub thanks to new research suggesting that a compound in beer may prevent prostate cancer.
Tests showed that the ingredient, xanthohumol, blocked a biological pathway that allows prostate cancer to be fuelled by the male hormone testosterone.

The disease is commonly treated with drugs that act in a similar way.

Xanthohumol is a powerful antioxidant derived from hops. It belongs to a family of chemicals called flavonoids found in fruits and vegetables that are known to have anti-cancer properties.

Previous studies have already suggested that xanthohumol may block the female hormone oestrogen's ability to stimulate breast cancer. Scientists now believe it may have a similar effect in men.

In laboratory tests, the compound blocked the molecular "switch" that allows testosterone to trigger changes in prostate cells that may lead to cancer.

This Is Boid

That is Boid. He's my computer companion. He sit in his cage kinda behind me at my computer desk and talks to me...constantly.

He really isn't "my" bird. My son was working at a pet store a few years ago and even though we had two cats and two dogs, he decided he needed his own pet and brought the bastard home. I was not thrilled.

Like most teenagers, he was never home and we felt sorry for the poor little creature being stuck alone in Chris' room all time, so we hauled him out to the kitchen and stuck him on top of my filing cabinet.

I had never been around birds before and all I knew about them was they crapped a lot and were noisy. Well he does crap a lot, but noisy he ain't. Outside of mild chirping, either at me or his reflection in his mirror, he's pretty sedate.

There is his once a day freak-out. He'll hang upside down from his perch and rapidly "exercise" his wings, then clamber all around his cage screaming, but this last only about 2 minutes and then he just goes back into chirp mode.

He did escape once about 6 months after we got him. Front door open and bird out of his cage, he saw sunlight and headed for it. Gone in 15 seconds. I just wrote him off as crow food.

The next day I was working in my driveway and kept thinking I heard him, so I started calling his name and every time I said it, he'd chirp back, I just couldn't locate where it was coming from. He'd spent the night in our neighbors eucalyptus tree two door down. I got an extension ladder and managed to catch the bastard. I guess once out in the wide open, he decided his cage seemed a lot less confining.

With my boy in the Army for the foreseeable future, I guess the bird is mine. It seems like all my animals somehow just get dumped on me, but I love them all.

Cockatiels live about 25 years, so I don't know who gonna last longer.

I'd bet on Boid.

It's Cold........As Hell!

This SoCal boy just about froze his butt off last night at work. I've said before that having been born and raised here that anything under 65 degrees is heavy jacket weather for me. It got down to 34 last night, so needless to say, my rounds where done at high speed. It was across the yard, check, adjust and scoot back to the office. Luckily nothing went wrong that required hanging around.

There is snow on the mountains over my house which made for a pretty drive home. That is one of the things that I really love about living here. You want snow? From my house you drive up Angeles Crest Hwy and you can visit it within 30 minutes. Decide you've had enough wet and cold...30 minutes and you're home again.

I've actually gone to the snow in the morning and to the beach (about 45 minutes in the other direction) for the afternoon. The water was too freaking cold to go in, but we could lie out on the sand and work on our skin cancer.

I've been home for almost an hour and my toes still hurt.

Next couple of nights are suppose to be the same, then some rain is forecasted to come though, but I don't care about the rain because I'm off.

In Rememberance

So long ago. Oh Lord, may we remember the sacrifices of our Fathers, Grandfathers, and now our Great Grandfathers who stood up to defend this great country and may we prove worthy of that sacrifice.

Amen

Bookmark

Ran across this at Human Events and wanted to have it marked so if/when I cruise by here again I'll run into it.

Want to know what the Founder's thoughts were on the 2nd Amendment, what is a militia, how much they trusted government? Read this:


From the Horses' Mouths: The 'Politically Correct' View of Our Founders
by Bob Heinritz
11/24/2009


A teaser:

"The Constitution shall never be construed to prevent the people of the United States who are peaceable citizens from keeping their own arms."
Samuel Adams, during Massachusetts' U.S. Constitution Ratification Convention (1788).

Is It Still 2009?

Where the hell did I go?

I said I'd be gone for a few days ...18 days ago.

Had a great time in Phoenix. My friend is not a political junkie like me, so we didn't discuss much politics, and the few things I brought up, we agreed on, which made for short conversations on those subjects.

ME: "Congress is screwing this country royal!"

Friend: "Yep."

ME: "Yep. Need another beer?"

When I got home, I still had five days off and I was in a good mood, so I avoided the news and just skimmed blogs for the next week.

Back to work was night shift...long, boring and cold, then 4 days off and the depression of being alone for Thanksgiving set in. My Mom and brother in Oregon, the wife in Montana and my boy in Korea. There was something good to lift my spirit, my neighbor made me a nice pumpkin pie, which I scarfed in one sitting. (Thank you Alexa!!)

Chris did actually call me on Thanksgiving, the first time I've heard his voice since he left, but I was paranoid of how much it cost him to call, so I kind of cut him short. He wants to come home for a friends wedding in May, and even though I'll probably only get to see him a few hours, I want him to have the cash to make the trip.

I'm getting no joy from football (again) this year. My Raiders...suck, ASU...sucks, any team I decided to root for, just to pick a side, they choose that game to play their worst.

This imbecility out of (surprise) Joy Behar,s mouth got me wound up:



While Whoopi was funny, I couldn't believe that none of them (at least in this clip, and NO! I don't watch The View) really didn't understand that this weekend, the "start" of the Christmas shopping insanity, is the point where stores start to make their profit...going from Red ink (loss) to black ink (profit).

The fact that Behar didn't know what it meant and "ASSUMED" it had some deep racial connotation to it just shows this woman knows nothing about bookkeeping or economics.

Damn near 11 months of running a store and you only make profit on that last month of the year. Working around the Christmas holiday and having to open up your business at 4AM to draw in that extra sale to make the rest of the year worth while.

I just wish the damn liberals could grasp the fact that "Black" can mean something other than a racial pejorative. Most of the time "black" is just a color.

Like You'd Notice

Going to be gone a few days.

I'm bouncing around the house trying to pick up, clean up and pack up so I can get away from here for a few days. My neighbors are going to throw some food at the animals while I'm gone, so as of Thursday morning, I'm outta here!

Four days in Phoenix with some friends that I neglect way too much. Steve is one of my few really close friends, he dates from my attempt at an education at ASU and his lovely...saintly wife, who was is college sweetheart, knows what happens when we get together and try to prove we are still the same as we were (OMG!!!)30 years ago. Of course she knows Steve and I aren't in our 20's anymore and while we brag about all the beer we are going to down...the spirit is willing but our bodies just ain't going to cooperate. Two guys asleep on the couch watching a movie with a PILE of 4 or 5 beer cans (on coasters) strewn before them. (Yeah, laugh it up Pam)

It's just a trip to get out of L.A., but i can ignore politics and responsibility for four days, hell I don't even have to rush home. I don't go back to work until Friday night.

On The Fort Hood Shootings

I have been watching the coverage of the murders that occurred at Ft. Hood for a few days and getting increasingly outraged at the spin the press has been trying to put on this!

First thing was Obo's incredible insensitivity to what occurred. His first statement where what had happened came at a time that interrupted a speech about what a good time they all had at the White House Tribal Nations Conference. (Oh, and Obo-wan, he received the Medal of Freedom..not the Medal of Honor...and you gave it to him just two months ago you dumb fuck!!)

Obo is going to give his condolences and comfort the grieving families...next Tuesday, after he has a few days rest at Camp David from campaigning being President. I guess his schedule is really full and the biggest attack on the U.S. since 9/11 just happened at a bad time.

Now as far as Major Jihadi, there are so many things about this POS, blood is shooting out of my eyes!

First,the Army knew this guy had problems and either ignored them or feared some perceived backlash for calling an anti-American terrorist bastard out on his statements justifying the killing of Americans because he had Palestinian heritage and worshiped a pedophile prophet (racial profiling).

He was using his authority as a doctor to try to convert people to Islam and was reprimanded for it.

They keep referring to him as the "ALLEGED" killer (or gunman, or perpetrator)...The SOB was taken down with the gun in his hand shooting at the cops!!!! He was the only one around, outside of law enforcement, with a gun in his hand! We now have to wait for ballistics, let him sue if it's wrong.

His cousin was going on about how he was being "picked on" about his religion, but I really have to wonder if it wasn't a case of Captain Jihad spouting off about the rights of suicide bombers to "fellow" soldiers and their reaction to someone telling you that you're the one who caused the problem and deserve to die. Kinda like the atheist bringing up how he feels that "piss Christ" is a legitimate piece of art to someone he knows is a Christian and being shocked that they vehemently found it offensive.

While this POS has received (what will be remembered as) the finest medical care in the world, when they get him patched up, just put his ass in with his buddies at Gitmo...or Minnesota...or wherever they're going to water board the bastards next year.

Although he hates this country because they are oppressing "his people/religion", he is more that happy to be in the Army and have them pay for his schooling and give him a salary, when asked to fulfill his contract and do what he was trained for, he decides he really didn't think that doing the job they hired and trained him for was ever going to be necessary.

Sum'bitch!!! It's the same as "Conscientious Objectors" that enlist, use up resources, then say they didn't understand that they might have to deal with putting their butt on the line and protecting the country that gave them the education and/or training for their job. (I'll just leave now and use those taxpayer dollars to further my career).

Anyone who pulls that shit should have their degrees or certification revoked, let them start over on their own dime (future gov't financial aid for education is also forbidden).

Finally, I really want to point out that this pond scum is responsible for the deaths of 14, not 13!!! Francheska Velez, who had just got back to the U.S. from Iraq three days before and was pregnant was killed...along with her child.

Latest News From The Front

Chris just got back from a week long field exercise and posted a pic on his Facebook page and I'd like to pass it on.



Damn! He's still tall and thin (not really skinny anymore), but the size of his arms are amazing.

Any women dropping by, he's conservative and single. LOL

I Now Officially HATE This Effing State!!!

I kinda went into hibernation this last week. Five busy 12 hour shifts in a row just about did me in. I actually slept for 20 hours straight after the final (and hardest)shift.

Yesterday when I finally felt up to checking some news, this is what I run into:

California Outright Steals Worker's Money

LA Times:

Reporting from Los Angeles and Sacramento - Starting Sunday, cash-strapped California will dig deeper into the pocketbooks of wage earners -- holding back 10% more than it already does in state income taxes just as the biggest shopping season of the year kicks into gear.

Technically, it's not a tax increase, even though it may feel like one when your next paycheck arrives. As part of a bundle of budget patches adopted in the summer, the state is taking more money now in withholding, even though workers' annual tax bills won't change.

Think of it as a forced, interest-free loan: You'll be repaid any extra withholding in April. Those who would receive a refund anyway will receive a larger one, and those who owe taxes will owe less.

These SOB's are "borrowing" my money INTEREST FREE to supposedly dig themselves out of the hole they put us in. They won't cut anything, but just keep on spending...probably adding more spending on top, and next April when I file for my refund...they'll still be broke.

I will come close to actually breaking even being whoever calculated the Kalifornia Tax Table for withholding must have graduated from a UC skool, I've always had a little extra State withholding taken out once I realized I was paying about $300 every April. I just have to cancel that extra withholding and the numbers should work out about right.

Dedicated to My Son

You get 'em Kid!

STARK RAVING MAD!!!

This is a personal rant about what a WONDERFUL day I had today, so feel free to skip it if you like.

AN OIL FIELD PRIMER:

The production site I work at has been having problems for about the last 3 1/2 years. The oil wells that bring fluid up have an average cut (water to oil ratio) of 97%. For every barrel (42 gallons in the oil field...I don't know why), we get 32 barrels of water that we have to do something with. Normally we shoot this waste water down another non-producing well at about 1100 psi with the idea of flushing oil through the zone towards some of the producing wells...at least that's the theory. The ideal thing is to produce the maximum amount of oil while being able to get rid of the water so everything stay balanced.

MY COMPANY:

We have severe injection limitations.

The owner wants to produce a sh*tload of oil, as do we all, but he always wants to run the wells that bring the most oil which also bring up the most water. We Operators have come up with 9,000 combination's of maximum oil production and still get rid of the water, but he keeps insisting that "ON PAPER" we should be able to run this new combination that he's worked out.

It doesn't.

WHY I'M STARK RAVING:

Yesterday, the day Operator decided he would run over balanced and "hide" some of the water productions by shunting some of it to a stock tank, thereby getting the production numbers up for his last day on shift.

Well, he forgot to close the shut at the end of his shift, and the night guy after about two hours noticed the production for those two hours was equal to what we normally do in a day. It took him about an hour to find the valve that was cracked.

When I got to work this morning I had 417 bbls (17,514 gals) in the stock tank and and an unknown amount of water that had skimmed from the stock tank to our shipping tank, contaminating the oil (we cannot ship oil that has more than 3% water).

That worked out to another 123 bbls (5,166 gals)...that means I got stuck with 540 bbls (22,680 gals.) extra water to get rid of...and still try to produce oil, so shutting all the producing wells down is out of the question.

My Foreman called in sick this morning (good thing...bad thing?), so I got to make all the decisions about what wells to keep running and what to shut down. I managed to get rid of about 200 bbls but I left my relief right on the edge of disaster, and that is something I just don't like to do.

As an extra added bonus the company that handles our pipeline wasn't completely happy with the accuracy of the machine that records how much oil we ship out and wanted to run another test...out of any day to do this they picked a damn good one. I got us passed even though the bastards showed up 2 hours before they said they'd get there. (Damn, I'm good!!!)

This is not the first time that that Operator has pulled this crap, and I got to talk to the owner about what happened during our morning telephone report. This Operator is the first to talk about "team work" and is also the first to leave you hanging and the first to complain about others not doing something HE feels should have been done. I hung his ass this time, he screwed three people trying to make himself look good. He even left a note saying he would work OT during a guys vacation, not a full shift, but he'd come in for two or four hours....to help out. Damn, if I'm there for 8 to 10 hours, I might as well work the 12.

There...I feel better, tomorrow is another day with more problems and I'll get through it just like I did today.

Sanity In California?

It won't do any good, but at least somebody stood up and said it.



I've got to feel for Lockyer, a Democrat, who has finally come to the conclusion that spending more money doesn't solve the problem of not having the money to spend, and when 3/4 of the stuff you're spending it on is "junk". The man, belatedly, has shown that he does care about what is going on (could we see a conversion to the Dark Side here?).

Universal Health Care Will Make The World Better

I have a very close friend from my attempt at a college education, who is now a PhD in Psychiatry and is an avid proponent of Universal Health Care. I'm agin it and he's fer it, so we don't discuss it in detail often, because we both just piss off the other guy, and our friendship is deeper than this one issue.

He did send me an unsolicited mass Email:
Responding to lies about health care reform

By the way, there is nowhere in the legislation that outlaws private insurance. It just makes another option available. Gee, for people who are supposedly so much into free enterprise, you would think they would appreciate the value of a little competition, especially from a competitor that is as lame (so they say) as the government.

I did respond:

First off, let me make clear that though I am registered Republican, I'm really not. I am a Conservative and Federalist. You may say I'm a Libertarian, but some group took over that title and I don't agree with all they espouse.

We know you and I have different views on reforms for Health Care, so I just want to point out some things. (and I won't hate you if you still disagree...you effing commie, statist, socialist, fascist, nazi bastard!!!!!)

The common point I believe we have is Health Care needs to be reformed.

Like all things the government gets involved in, they start making rules about something that they have little or no knowledge. Their concern is how it plays with enough of the people back home to get reelected.

The problem I have with this bill is that IT ISN'T EVEN WRITTEN YET!

They cranked out something as fast as they could with huge holes in it (to be filled later), and expect us to take their word that it'll all work out right. I don't trust them, they won't give up their health care program to join this miracle of legislation (and the Unions and Federal employees are exempt also).

Everywhere this has been tried, it doesn't work.

MEDICINE AND HEALTH:
Here’s a Second Opinion

I don't see where the country with the highest approval and survivor rates has to go down to a lesser system. How about we bring them up to ours?

It will be different this time? Give me a break. Look at Oregon's state run medi-care.

(Funny video, and it makes the point)

I'm going to close this out with the words of the man that wants us all to enjoy this utopia of medical miracles that awaits us.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5XTi-WdOu2s

I know reform is needed, but details would be nice and Obambi is still in campaign mode and the Dems won't give details and won't let the Repubs even suggest ideas... and 52% is not a mandate.

This exchange took place back in August, and I haven't heard from him since.

Today while bored out of my mind, I was goofing with the internet and ran a search on my friend to see if I could get a hit...I did, and this is what I found on his web site:

Why do you charge so much?

Because our fees look high, people often think we make extravagant amounts of money. In reality, we know skilled tradespeople who earn more than we do. By the time we pay our office overhead, absorb unpaid bills, and cover the costs associated with being a psychologist (licenses, insurance, mandatory continuing education, etc.), there is not as much slack as you might think.

In addition to being clinicians, we also are in a business where our livelihood depends on getting paid for our time and expertise. Since we dedicate large blocks of time to each individual client, the amount of time we have is limited. Furthermore, the expertise comes to us at a high price, with many years of study, sacrifice, and poverty. We also face the constant need to keep up to date and further our training, and we carry a large amount of responsibility as health care providers.

Nonetheless, our fees are much lower than other professionals who also sell their expertise. Lawyers, for example, often charge two to two-and-a-half times as much as we do. Physicians often charge less than we do per contact, but you only get a few minutes of their time. If you look at the hourly rate, theirs is much greater than ours.

Frankly, we value what we do, and we hope our clients do, too. If you are going to pursue psychotherapy, you need to think of it as an investment -- an investment in your life. For less than what you might pay to put new carpet in your home, you can improve the quality of your life, have better relationships, and feel more at ease with yourself.

[emphasis mine]

I know this man, and I know he cares about his patients and wants them to be better, but I also know he has a nice house, and a business that he'd like to keep. I just wonder what his opinion is going to be when Psych care is included under health care and the government sets the price..."your fees are $X per hour, but as a cost saving measure, we'll pay 3/4$X per hour this year until we're over budget next year and then...we'll see how much we have to reduce it then.

Everythings Amazing and Nobodys Happy

How quickly we become numb to the miracles around us.



Along with the things mentioned above that have occurred in my lifetime: color TV...Stereo records...DVD's...Microwave ovens...satellites...Teflon...Permanent Press clothes...organ transplants...joint replacements...nuclear power...

60's Justice

Growing up I loved "Dragnet", and "Adam 12".

The more things Change....

Football Sunday

I'm a Raiders fan.

I was thrilled that my team was going to be on TV today...until the game started. Down 31-7 at halftime, that was the end of my hopes for anything close to a descent season, and I guess CBS agreed as they switched to a different game.

It's going to be another loooong season.

The other thing with football that bothered me today was regarding the news that Rush Limbaugh was interested in partnering in ownership of the Rams. The Players Union voted that they were against his owning a team.


Some NFL players wouldn't work for Rush's Rams

Word that Rush Limbaugh is interested in buying the St. Louis Rams has some African American football players swearing off any future employment with the team.

New York Giants defensive end Mathias Kiwanuka and New York Jets linebacker Bart Scott say they would never play for the Rams if Limbaugh owned the team.

Kiwanuka told the New York Daily News, "I don't want anything to do with a team that he has any part of. He can do whatever he wants, it is a free country. But if it goes through, I can tell you where I am not going to play." Scott said, "He could offer me whatever he wanted, I wouldn't play for him. . . . I wouldn't play for Rush Limbaugh. My principles are greater and I can't be bought." Just what the hapless Rams need: Quality players who refuse to play for them.

Yeah....Right.



Truth to Power Mr. Smith.

Too Funny

These people were always finding water all over their pool deck and furniture, every time they came home, after being away for a few hours. They thought the neighborhood kids were watching for them to leave, and using the pool. However, they could never catch them doing it. So they set up their video cam. This is what they recorded.......



HT to my Facebook Friends Sareda and Linda

This reminded me of one of my dogs, Tori, a Shepard/Collie mutt that I had in High School. My parents had a pool and Tori loved to swim! So much so that in the dead of winter (if there is such a thing in SoCal) when it was night, 40 degrees and the pool wasn't heated, would run out the dog door, jump in the pool, swim a lap, run back into the house...then shake off.

Good thing I loved her, because there's nothing better than a damp dog getting the foot of your bed soggy on a nice winter evening.

10,000 Hits

I finally hit a milestone! Last night at about 11:45 PM I got my 10,000th hit. It took a while (3 years 10 months), but I made it. This will be my 537th post, so I average one about every two days. I'd like to do better, but I doubt that's going to happen. Actually I'm surprised I've kept it up this regularly, this long.

Thanks to all of you that drop by, even the pervs looking for 16 year old Mexican virgins (about 85% of my hits).

They Said We Were Nuts

Got this over at Sig's place.

It's downright creepy!



During the campaign when his photos started showing halos behind him and women started fainting at his speeches we kept saying this was too much of a cult of personality and deification of the man, and we were told how wrong we were. Well now they are addressing their grievances to him in the form of payer.

Deliver Me!!

The Astounding World of the Future

WTH happened to that world that was promised us while we were growing up?

I really believed we would be a lot closer to "The Jetsons" than we are.

A Celebration! UPDATED

My Son turned 21 year old today.

I cannot express how proud I am of him. He has become a fine man.

UPDATE:

In the fine Army tradition, his mates at "The Hump" helped him celebrate his birthday by teaching him not to mix beer, soju (Korean vodka) and Wild Turkey.

The pic below is his signaling that it was a lesson (hopefully) well learned and long remembered.

A Simpler Time?

A friend of mine over on Facebook posted this:



I wish I had a teacher like Red had, and I wish there were more "celebrities" like Mr. Skelton who could broadcast their love of God and Country today.

Even Banks Are Anti-U.S.

Was I stunned that this happened...No.

Does it bother me...You bet!

Bank of America Flag Controversy Illustrates Dangers of Blind Obedience

Last week, a Bank of America branch in Gaffney, SC stirred up controversy by removing American flags from an adjacent sidewalk. The bank later returned the flags, which were intended for a funeral procession for a fallen Marine. But the city isn’t about to forgive the bank

This happens again. I don't understand how an American company can be worried about showing some patriotism, when they didn't even have to put the flags out, is so worried that they might "offend" someone. Who exactly is going to be offended by honoring a fallen soldier being brought home to rest?

I've sent a letter to BofA telling them that they cannot count on my business, EVER!

I am curious as to when you are going to change the name of your bank?

Obviously with the actions of your branch in Gaffney, SC you are afraid that displaying the American flag in honor of a war hero's body being brought home.

"...branch Manager Brandy Tate, who told her the bank’s policy did not allow flags for fear of “offending a customer.”"

What customer is it that you beleive is going to be offended by the display of our countries flag?

“We want to ensure the community knows how deeply proud we are of the men and women who have sacrificed so much in service to our country. The bank does fly the American Flag at our locations throughout the country and flags were displayed in front of our banking center in Gaffney the evening prior to our dedicated Marine returning home. We deeply apologize for any misunderstandings. “

The only misunderstanding here is what country you do business in and that we are the last bastion of freedom that allows any semblance of free trade.

I currently bank with Citi, and I can say I'm not happy with their ability to handle business, so I have been looking around to move my accounts elsewhere. With this news, I can say that BofA has dropped to the bottom of the list.

Since the hippies burned down your branch in Isla Vista in 1970, you haven't stood for anything that might create controversy,

Keep the BofA, just call yourselves "Bank of Anonymous" as you are in fear of someone thinking that you represent America.

Good Riddance.

Maybe it's time to let them know how the people feel again.

FETE

A Good Return For Our Money

Another blogger pointed out this PSA to show that Barney Frank backed ACORN. It's a blink and you missed it shot, but it is in there, and there is enough documentation and records from the Senate floor, and from committee hearings to prove where the dog got his fleas, so I'm not going to quibble.

ACORN Grassroots Democracy Campaign



The part that got me was at 8:25...they, over the last 10 years have given out $15 billion in benefits to people...out of the $85 billion they have received in grants.

Math time: $15 billion/$85 billion = 17.65% goes to the people they are helping and 82.35% goes to the organization.

Sound like the "Cash for Clunkers" program, such a deal $1.22 billion paid out to get "bad" cars off the road....but $1.66 billion for the government to handle the paperwork.

Why, oh why do I not trust the government to handle any program in a cost effective way?

I Gotta Get Me One Of These

I haven't been into models for 40 years, but this is something that could get me back into it.

Go watch this video: Now YOU can own an SR-71
HT: DJ Allyn

I've only flown 1 model plane in my life and that was one of those that you controlled with the strings to fly it by spinning in a circle until it crashed or you got so dizzy that it crashed.

I had two or three when I was a kid and Santa brought me one, but being I was the only boy up at the end of our street, all the Dad's would come out Christmas morning to see what cool toy I got that year and of course they would play with it...it would crash, so I would never get to fly it. I did end up with a little collection of airplane motors sitting in the garage.

9/11/09...A Day After

I was just too melancholy yesterday to post anything. I really didn't get enough sleep the day before and I watched the ceremonies at the Twin Towers and Pentagon in the morning waiting for my shift to end.

Eight years later and I still get that sick feeling in my gut reliving Sept 11, 2001. It's not pleasant, but I refuse to take the PC recommended solution and just let it pass, or like Obambi and his ilk would like to do, turn it into another "Earth Day"..."A day of Service......and remembrance".

NEVER FORGIVE, NEVER FORGET!

They want me to atone for something I feel no guilt about. I AM PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!, I can acknowledge minor flaws of my country, however, they refuse to recognize the major flaws of their "religion".

I AM PROUD OF MY COUNTRY! No other has contributed so much to try to better the world as we have, and we do it willingly and not asking for thanks, and the world has certainly kept that part of the bargain.

I'm not going to embed this video, you go watch it if you think you can. A man, Kevin Cosgrove who went to work and found and found himself stuck on the 105th floor.

Kevin Cosgrove - 9/11


On another side of my life...Before going into work, I was checking my Email and looking to see what my friends had posted during the day, when there was a huge double boom that rattled the windows of my house. The animals quickly showed up for reassurance, while my heart was trying to slow down.

It was the Space Shuttle landing at Edwards AFB. Typically, I had forgotten they were still up there and had forgotten they were suppose to land a few days ago, except the weather in that hurricane prone area sucked (again), so they HAD to land here.

It was a great reminder of what achievements this country is capable of when it wants to. It was a beautiful picture perfect landing, perhaps the prettiest I've ever watched, but then again, I felt a downward feeling when they started talking about it being close to the end of our meager shuttle program.

We have been to the Moon, but once again, we are on the edge abandoning exploration to expand our horizons so that we can "be fiscally responsible" by supporting people that don't like, if not hate, the advantages our country provides to anyone and everyone that is willing to get behind the ideals set down back in 1787 in our Constitution.

Right now I'm watching the Tea Party gathering in Washington D.C., Hundreds of thousands of people that are just fed up with the politicians. Please notice that this event takes place on a Saturday as these are people with jobs, and unlike working for a Union or being a "grass root" unemployed lefty that got $20 to hold up a pre-printed sign and shout back what the "community organizer" is spewing through the bullhorn...these people are unpaid, and most likely laid out a bit of their own cash to attend...and they'll most likely be back to work on Monday.

I can't say it often enough:

GOD BLESS AMERICA, LAND THAT I LOVE

OBSCENE Profits!!!!

I work in the oil industry and I hear it all the time. "They're making to much profit off the poor folk of this country!"

Bullshit!!!

The Congresscritters have been screaming this over the money Health Insurance make and how they are going to tax the hell out them to make it fair. Look at the chart to the left (click on it to make it bigger if you need), the whopping profit brought in is a staggering 3.3%. That rates them at number 86, way below Gas Utilies (#16)and Railroads (#15).

They tell you that they made X billion in profit, but what they never bother to bring up is the multiple billions invested to earn that OBSCENE 3.3% profit.

If the damn government would quit trying to regulate every facet of the industry, you would actually find a real example of a company that could charge less and provide more and probably make a bigger profit.