Monday, July 09, 2007
On the office wall at Alcatraz...
When men of courage and steadfastness lose their lives in the faithful performance of duty, there is little that need be said by those of us who did not face the danger. Their deeds speak far more eloquently.
Saturday, July 07, 2007
Wednesday, July 04, 2007
231 years ago today...
You know, those founding father guys was pretty good writers. You should read this:
When in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.
He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:
For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.
He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, es and conditions.
In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.
We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Toby Keith
Well, he ain't no Merle Haggard in the music department but I like Toby Keith's attitude about what is happening in the world today. Even after five trips to visit our troops in the Middle East, he wonders why people would ask him or any other celebrity their opinion about anything. Thanks, Toby for not losing your reality and thank you for your support of our fighting men and women.
Say what?
Does the Episcopal Church have any qualifications at all for becoming a priest or can any one just hang out a shingle and a white collar and go for it?
Saturday, June 16, 2007
The Duck and the Devil
I never forward emails but this is well-expressed (a little sappy but good) so it will be shared here:
There was a little boy visiting his grandparents on
their farm. He was given a slingshot to play with out
in the woods. He practiced in the woods; but he could
never hit the target. Getting a little discouraged, he
headed back for dinner. As he was walking back he saw
Grandma's pet duck. Just out of impulse, he let the
slingshot fly, hit the duck square in the head and
killed it. He was shocked and grieved.
In a panic, he hid the dead duck in the wood pile;
only to see his sister watching! Sally had seen it
all, but she said nothing.
After lunch the next day Grandma said, "Sally, let's
wash the dishes" But Sally said, "Grandma , Johnny told
me he wanted to help in the kitchen." Then she
whispered to him, "Remember the duck?" So Johnny did
the dishes.
Later that day, Grandpa asked if the children wanted
to go fishing and Grandma said, "I'm sorry but I need
Sally to help make supper." Sally just smiled and
said, "Well that's all right because Johnny told me he
wanted to help" She whispered again, "Remember the
duck?" So Sally went fishing and Johnny stayed to help.
After several days of Johnny doing both his chores and
Sally's; he finally couldn't stand it any longer. He came
to Grandma and confessed that he had killed the duck.
Grandma knelt down, gave him a hug and said,
"Sweetheart, I know. You see, I was standing at the
window and I saw the whole thing, but because I love
you, I forgave you. I was just wondering how long you
would let Sally make a slave of you."
Thought for the day and every day thereafter?
Whatever is in your past, whatever you have done...
and the devil keeps throwing it up in your face
(lying, cheating, debt, fear, bad habits, hatred,
anger, bitterness, etc.)...whatever it is ...You need
to know that God was standing at the window and He saw
the whole thing. He has seen your whole life. He wants you to
know that He loves you and that you are forgiven.
He's just wondering how long you will let the devil
make a slave of you. The great thing about God is
that when you ask for forgiveness; He not only
forgives you, but He forgets. It is by God's grace and
mercy that we are saved.
John Stuart Mill
A man who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Devil went down to Washington
I don’t know how everybody else feels about it, but to me I think Hispanic people in this country, legally or illegally, made a huge public relations mistake with their recent demonstrations.
I don’t blame anybody in the world for wanting to come to the United States of America, as it is a truly wonderful place. But when the first thing you do when you set foot on American soil is illegal it is flat out wrong and I don’t care how many lala land left heads come out of the woodwork and start trying to give me sensitivity lessons.
I don’t need sensitivity lessons, in fact I don’t have anything against Mexicans, I just have something against criminals and anybody who comes into this country illegally is a criminal and if you don’t believe it try coming into America from a foreign country without a passport and see how far you get.
What disturbs me about the demonstrations is that it’s tantamount to saying, “I am going to come into your country even if it means breaking your laws and there’s nothing you can do about it.”
It’s an “in your face” action and speaking just for me I don’t like it one little bit and if there were a half dozen pairs of gonads in Washington bigger than English peas it wouldn’t be happening.
Where are you, you bunch of lilly livered, waist, forked tongued, sorry excuses for defenders of The Constitution? Have you been drinking the water out of the Potomac again?
And even if you pass a bill on immigration it will probably be so pork laden and watered down that it won’t mean anything anyway. Besides, what good is another law going to do when you won’t enforce the ones on the books now?
And what ever happened to the polls guys? I thought you folks were the quintessential finger wetters. Well you sure ain’t paying any attention to the polls this time because somewhere around eighty percent of Americans want something done about this mess, and mess it is and getting bigger everyday.
This is no longer a problem, it is a dilemma and headed for being a tragedy. Do you honestly think that what happened in France with the Muslims can’t happen here when the businesses who hire these people finally run out of jobs and a few million disillusioned Hispanics take to the streets?
If you, Mr. President, Congressmen and Senators, knuckle under on this and refuse to do something meaningful it means that you care nothing for the kind of country your children and grandchildren will inherit.
But I guess that doesn’t matter as long as you get re-elected.
Shame on you.
Pray for our troops.
What do you think?
God Bless America
Charlie Daniels
April 3, 2006
Semper Fi, Bob!
Shortly before landing, Bob Hayden and a flight attendant had agreed on a signal: When she waved the plastic handcuffs, he would discreetly leave his seat and restrain an unruly passenger who had frightened some of the 150 people on board a Minneapolis-to-Boston flight Saturday night with erratic behavior.
"I had looked around the plane for help, and all the younger guys had averted their eyes. When I asked the guy next to me if he was up to it, all he said was, 'Retired captain. USMC.' I said, 'You'll do,' " Hayden recalled. "So, basically, a couple of grandfathers took care of the situation."
The incident on
State Police troopers escorted two men off the flight. Trooper Thomas Murphy, a State Police spokesman, said one of the men was transported to Massachusetts General Hospital for "an unspecified medical issue, possibly mental health."
He said State Police detectives will investigate whether the man's behavior should be treated as a medical or criminal matter. A second man escorted off the plane identified himself as the unruly passenger's brother. Murphy said police would not release the names of the men, who Hayden said appeared to be in their 30s or 40s.
Dean Breest, a spokesman for Northwest, confirmed that "there was an incident that required State Police to come on board the aircraft" but declined further comment.
Hayden said the unruly man's behavior upset some passengers. One told Hayden the man had said, "Your lives are going to change today forever," as he shouted and refused to take his seat before takeoff and at various times during the nearly three-hour flight. He said that at one point the man lay on his back and was screaming, moaning, and thrashing on the floor.
"Some people were crying," Hayden said. "I thought it might be a diversion. I kept scanning the back of the plane to see if anyone was going to rush forward. The flight attendants did a great job, literally surrounding the two guys who were making all the noise. I told one of the flight attendants I was a retired police officer and would be willing to assist, so we agreed on a signal."
When the captain announced preparations for landing, the man jumped up shouting, the flight attendant held up the handcuffs, and Hayden and the Marine came bounding down the aisle. Hayden said he and the retired Marine, whose name he never got, received an ovation from fellow passengers, and "some free air miles."
Hayden's wife of 42 years, Katie, who was also on the flight, was less impressed. Even as her husband struggled with the agitated passenger, she barely looked up from "The Richest Man in Babylon," the book she was reading.
"The woman sitting in front of us was very upset and asked me how I could just sit there reading," Katie Hayden said. "Bob's been shot at. He's been stabbed. He's taken knives away. He knows how to handle those situations. I figured he would go up there and step on somebody's neck, and that would be the end of it. I knew how that situation would end. I didn't know how the book would end."
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
KISS and no makeup for soldiers
I have never been a big KISS fan and even less of a fan of frontman Gene Simmons but I have a new respect for him as he has a new respect for our troops. Some people may say he would only do it when the cameras are rolling but there is no denying he was different when he left than we he went in. Watch the video here...
Monday, May 28, 2007
My hero
I often hear people lament the lack of heroes in our world today and I understand their concern. Where did all the heroes go? In what era did they live and what did they do to deserve being labeled heroes? The dictionary defines a hero as a person noted for feats of courage or nobility of purpose, especially one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life. That definition certainly minimizes the impact of so-called "sports heroes", does it not? Maybe we call them heroes because we, as a society, are in desperate need of having someone to idolize. We realize the importance of someone showing us how to be better than average; better than we are naturally inclined to be.
I submit that we still have heroes today and they are all around us as well as many miles away. They will tell you that they are just doing their job or just following orders. They rarely go into detail about the things that have done or are doing that deserves them the label 'hero". They quietly show courage and nobility of purpose, risking and sacrificing their lives even today and from hundreds of years past. If anybody has ever deserved to be called a hero it is the American soldier. Who better to be idolized and emulated than our nation's fighting men and women, fighting around the world so we do not have to, either here or there. No matter what one's political views or ideas, one has to appreciate the courage and sacrifice that they show every day from door-to-door combat in Iraq to pushing a pencil in North Carolina or cooking meals in Japan. These heroes sacrifice more in a day than most us do in years and I and many others are very grateful.
I have several friends and family members that have served in the military, many volunteering very young and serving bravely in World War II, but one of my favorites is my good friend and hero Bud Elkins. Bud and his precious wife Dorothy go to my church and it is one of the highlights of a Sunday to see and talk to Bud. Bud was one who joined the military very early in life. He says he was just wanting to see the country and get out of his small Pennsylvania town but I recognize in him the natural patriotism that motivated many just like him to allow themselves to be taken to a foreign country away from friends and family to protect those friends and family when they were able to do so. Bud was sent to North Africa to serve on a B-24 Liberator airplane. He has told me stories of being very scared in the middle of heavy enemy artillery seeing planes and friends being blown out of the sky right next to him, wondering when would be his time, but while scared, continuing to do his job and doing it well. No brag - just fact. Just doing his job, he says.
I talked to Bud this morning, this Memorial Day morning. I called him and told him that I appreciated him and what he did many years ago in uniform and for the bravery that he still shows today as an elderly man with lots of aches and pains that he rarely mentions. We were both moved as he quickly shared some war memories that made me even more grateful for his service and for the fact that he is with us today. Bud has told me several times that he is no hero and he gets embarrassed when that honor is given to him but to me that is just more proof that Bud is a hero. He is my hero and I will forever be indebted to him. Thank you Bud!
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Happy birthday to The Duke
"Courage is being scared to death — but saddling up anyway."
John Wayne would have been 100 years old today.
John Bernard Books (The Shootist):
"I won't be wronged, I won't be insulted, and I won't be laid a hand on. I don't do these things to other people and I expect the same from them."
Capt. Rockwell Torrey (In Harm's Way):
"All battles are fought by scared men who'd rather be some place else."
Colonel Madden (Back to Bataan):
"This kind of war, you've gotta believe in what you're fighting for."
John T. Chance (Rio Bravo):
"Sorry don't get it done, Dude."
Friday, May 25, 2007
My ex-girlfriend
I've never been very good with the ladies. I don't know how I married my beautiful wife. This is a picture of me with my first girlfriend. We broke up because I couldn't afford to take her out to eat.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Mama
I've been thinking alot about my mother lately. Mother's Day has come and gone and I never wrote here anything really about her. I make no claims about being any kind of writer but I enjoy expressing my opinions here and would love to write a long, beautiful tribute to my Mother that would really express my feelings for her. How do you do that? How do you put into writing what she has done for me and now my own family for so long? Do I love her? Of course. Do I appreciate her? I'm sure I do but I know I take a lot of things for granted. Is she perfect? Mmm, I'm sure she's not but she's doing better than most. My Mom is very gentle, generous, Godly, and caring. She's also the best listener and cook I have ever met. I'm glad when my kids get to be around her. I also wish you could meet her. I wish I had the words to express it all. Thank you, Mama, for all you have done.
Small amount of controversy won't kill us...
The question is: Can you be a Christian and be a Democrat?
Your response now please...
Your response now please...
I appreciate this guy...
As one who feels passionately about the war and as a guy who cries way too easily, I appreciate Democratic Representative John Boehner for saying what he means with passion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSF4O8BYq4s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rSF4O8BYq4s
Sunday, May 20, 2007
Are humans good or bad?
I received this response to my "Easing back into it" blog:
Read the first few chapters of Romans and then tell me that humans are basically good.
There is no one righteous, not even one;
there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
All have turned away, they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good, not even one.
Their throats are open graves;
their tongues practice deceit.
The poison of vipers is on their lips.
Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood;
ruin and misery mark their ways,
and the way of peace they do not know.
There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Wow, I was not expecting this response at all, especially since these were my exact words,
"I still have faith in people in general and believe that there is good in everyone and I try to look for that good instead of always focusing on the negative."
To begin with, I never said I thought humans were basically good but what is interesting is that I do think humans are good even though that had nothing to do with my point in the original blog. Confused yet? You probably will be soon because to carry this out further, I believe this response was not only an incorrect reading of my blog but also an incorrect reading of the Bible. This passage from Romans 3:9-18 is taken in part from another passage in Psalms and should, like all passages, be taken in context. Without context, many passages can be used to justify almost anything.
I am far from being a Biblical or theological expert and I am not well-educated and I am not even very smart but I am a thinker and as I read this passage and the verses directly after it, I think that this speaks to God's incredible grace more than to our unworthiness of it. In fact, if one reads the two verses immediately following you see that only under the law are we considered to be evil and since we as Jesus-followers are not under the law but as the author Paul says so many times not just in this book but practically all of his other books included in the Bible, like this from Ephesians 2:8 and 9: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
Read the first few chapters of Romans and then tell me that humans are basically good.
There is no one righteous, not even one;
there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.
All have turned away, they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good, not even one.
Their throats are open graves;
their tongues practice deceit.
The poison of vipers is on their lips.
Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.
Their feet are swift to shed blood;
ruin and misery mark their ways,
and the way of peace they do not know.
There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Wow, I was not expecting this response at all, especially since these were my exact words,
"I still have faith in people in general and believe that there is good in everyone and I try to look for that good instead of always focusing on the negative."
To begin with, I never said I thought humans were basically good but what is interesting is that I do think humans are good even though that had nothing to do with my point in the original blog. Confused yet? You probably will be soon because to carry this out further, I believe this response was not only an incorrect reading of my blog but also an incorrect reading of the Bible. This passage from Romans 3:9-18 is taken in part from another passage in Psalms and should, like all passages, be taken in context. Without context, many passages can be used to justify almost anything.
I am far from being a Biblical or theological expert and I am not well-educated and I am not even very smart but I am a thinker and as I read this passage and the verses directly after it, I think that this speaks to God's incredible grace more than to our unworthiness of it. In fact, if one reads the two verses immediately following you see that only under the law are we considered to be evil and since we as Jesus-followers are not under the law but as the author Paul says so many times not just in this book but practically all of his other books included in the Bible, like this from Ephesians 2:8 and 9: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.
We are not under the law but under grace because Jesus died on the cross to pay the price it took to satisfy the cost of our sin. But because we all have that sin nature with which we are born and is a part of us as much as our own personalities in and of ourselves we are evil and that passage from verses nine to eighteen applies to everyone of us. So, in a nutshell, we are not righteous but are saved because of God's love for us anyway.
Now, back to the original blog. I never said anything about righteousness. Please understand the difference between my off-hand comment about there being good in everyone and about humans being righteous. I do believe that there is good in everyone and even though it was not my point, I also believe in a very general way, not Biblically or theologically necessarily, that people are good. Again, I may not be smart but I can see and what I see so many times is people reaching out to people. I see it in my church (you would hope you would see it there) but I also see it in on the news. Believe it or not I see people being good to other people on the news! Sorry, mainstream news stations but in spite of your negative reporting I saw people after 9/11 waiting in line to give blood. After the recent Virginia Tech massacre people from all over the world sent condolences and more to the families of the victims. It does not take a crisis of this nature to bring out the goodness in people either. What about all the people who volunteer in nursing homes or dog pounds or bring presents to orphans? The list is thankfully long of all the good things people do everyday and as I tend to be cynical sometimes I hope we all never forget it and continue to do our part.Friday, May 18, 2007
Not gonna work...
Not long ago, I had the opportunity to drive back through the little town in which I grew up. I drove past our old house, the church, and even my old kindergarten. I pulled into the parking lot of what is now an abandoned school and had memories come flooding back. The memory that made me laugh out loud was thinking about playing chase with the other kids in my class. I only played it one time as I remember. I decided to join in and chase the girls like the other boys were doing. It looked pretty easy. They did not run very fast and spent more energy giggling than running. I remember running and catching some girl right off and quickly formulated a plan in my little brain to become king of the playground. I would just catch the girls and put them all in one spot until all of them were captured and it would be obvious that I was the best chase-player. So, I led the first girl to the nearest tree and put her back against it and sternly told her to stay right there. This was going to be easy! I started off to get the next girl and as soon as I did the first girl just ran off giggling. She did not follow the rules even for a second! It finally dawned on me that none of the girls would follow the rules and this stupid game of chase was just anarchy! What was the point? I walked off the playground in disgust.
Yesterday Congress, Republicans and Democrats both, came together to put together a so-called comprehensive immigration plan. I have not read the document and at approximately six-hundred pages, the document will not be read by me or most other people that do not absolutely have to. Given the track record of previous immigration reform attempts, though, I do not have my hopes up about this one stopping the hemorrhaging into our country of illegal aliens. Supposedly, this would tighten our borders and put restrictions on who comes into our country and imposing fines and penalties on those already here. I am not an expert on this by any means but I do have eyes and I can see that our government has not enforced the laws that we already have on the books and the illegal aliens have no motivation for following the rules. Our borders have become a big playground with the giggling coming from the millions that run away from the law and cross into the United States. How much longer can we expect not to have anarchy?
Yesterday Congress, Republicans and Democrats both, came together to put together a so-called comprehensive immigration plan. I have not read the document and at approximately six-hundred pages, the document will not be read by me or most other people that do not absolutely have to. Given the track record of previous immigration reform attempts, though, I do not have my hopes up about this one stopping the hemorrhaging into our country of illegal aliens. Supposedly, this would tighten our borders and put restrictions on who comes into our country and imposing fines and penalties on those already here. I am not an expert on this by any means but I do have eyes and I can see that our government has not enforced the laws that we already have on the books and the illegal aliens have no motivation for following the rules. Our borders have become a big playground with the giggling coming from the millions that run away from the law and cross into the United States. How much longer can we expect not to have anarchy?
Wednesday, May 09, 2007
For Mothers Day
With Mothers Day coming up in just a few days, I am reminded of some words sung by the great balladist Jerry Jeff Walker who penned these lyrics years ago to pay homage to his mother.
Well,
M is for the mudflaps you give me for my pickup truck
O is for the Oil I put on my hair
T is for T-bird
H is for Haggard
E is for eggs, and
R is for REDNECK
Sniffle, sniffle...thinkin' of you Mama.
Friday, May 04, 2007
Mrs. Overman, is that you?!
This comment is in response to my "Mayday" blog:
Waive or wave? Do not confuse the spelling of waive and wave, which sound similar. Waive is a verb meaning "surrender or refrain from enforcing something": She waived her right to remain silent. They decided to waive the restrictions. The related noun is spelled waiver. Wave is a noun and verb with various meanings, usually involving ridge-shaped or undulating motion, as in the waves of the ocean, radio waves, waved goodbye. The noun waver is unrelated to wave: it corresponds to the verb waver meaning "go back and forth between possibilities."
-- MSN Dictionary
This comment is from someone who says they are Your English Teacher. I assume this person must be Ida Overman from high school and it is so good to hear from her! I always liked Mrs. Overman! She was so sweet and she really tried to help me truly learn, not just pass tests. Mrs. Overman was very gentle and sweet-spirited and so I have to wonder if this is truly her making a comment on my blog. I think, though, that it must be someone else because not only did Mrs. Overman correct me lovingly but she also knew to write in complete sentences. So, Your English Teacher, I am glad you are there to keep me honest with my spelling. If you read more you will probably be very bizzy.
Waive or wave? Do not confuse the spelling of waive and wave, which sound similar. Waive is a verb meaning "surrender or refrain from enforcing something": She waived her right to remain silent. They decided to waive the restrictions. The related noun is spelled waiver. Wave is a noun and verb with various meanings, usually involving ridge-shaped or undulating motion, as in the waves of the ocean, radio waves, waved goodbye. The noun waver is unrelated to wave: it corresponds to the verb waver meaning "go back and forth between possibilities."
-- MSN Dictionary
This comment is from someone who says they are Your English Teacher. I assume this person must be Ida Overman from high school and it is so good to hear from her! I always liked Mrs. Overman! She was so sweet and she really tried to help me truly learn, not just pass tests. Mrs. Overman was very gentle and sweet-spirited and so I have to wonder if this is truly her making a comment on my blog. I think, though, that it must be someone else because not only did Mrs. Overman correct me lovingly but she also knew to write in complete sentences. So, Your English Teacher, I am glad you are there to keep me honest with my spelling. If you read more you will probably be very bizzy.
Wednesday, May 02, 2007
Shameful
Evidently, some of the protests yesterday got out of hand and several people were hurt. What a shame that the police did not take that time to arrest them.
Tuesday, May 01, 2007
Mayday
Mayday: international distress signal used by ships and aircraft. How appropriate that illegal aliens would use this day May 1st, Mayday as they call it, to protest and demonstrate. All over the United States today thousands have gathered to march and waive banners and to waive flags of the United States and other countrys as well hoping to gain support for being illegal. How much longer before our great country is forced to scream, "Mayday, mayday!" in distress when people who have committed a crime are able to assemble and demand their rights? Am I missing something? Am I being insensitive? Look at it this way. What if next month all the baby-rapers marched in the street demanding their rights? Then next month the bank robbers waived their flags and said they wanted "justice". Too harsh of an analogy? Insert any criminal activity in the place of "baby-raper" and it is the same. Criminals forfeit their rights when they become criminals and crossing the United States border without showing proper identification is a crime.
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Easing back into it
( OK, Todd, you can do this. Take a deep breath...) Been a while since I last posted anything. (Come on, big boy, you can do it.) I have been pretty busy lately, ah! that's not the truth!! (Easy, easy!) Actually, I have been busy but that is not the only reason for not writing anything for so long. Please bear with me as I try to get through this as I have alot running through my mind right now and writing without it all spilling out on to your monitor is difficult. (That a boy! One paragraph down, you can do it, I know you can!)
My wife told me I write too much about things that I don't like; things that are bad or that I think are stupid like the show "24" whose ratings are DOWN this season!! HAHAHA Jack Bauer, take th(OK, settle, settle down, deep breath...) So, anyhow, I want to tell you about some good things that have been going on in my world and my goal is to not to dwell on the craziness that I see all around me. To tell you the truth, I wonder sometimes if it is not me that has gone crazy. My therapist says "crazy" is not the right word for it but WHAT DOES SHE KNOW? ALL SHE DOES IS SAY "HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT?" I COULD DO HER JOB AND SAVE ALOT OF (ok, Todd, calm down, breathe, find your happy place.) Sorry. A couple of anger management two-day follow-ups and I'll be right as rain. (Smile, breathe.)
I took a little time off from work lately. My therapist was probably right about my need for that. Something about my co-workers appreciating it. I took my motorcycle for a nine-day southern state tour partly to see my sister and her family in Georgia and partly to silence the voices in my, well, nevermind, I wanted to see some new country. And I saw some gorgeous country, too! And when I have to find my happy place, it could very well be Deal's Gap, North Carolina next to the little brook in the mountains. That is, before it stormed and the tree nearly fell on me in my tent. I survived (but didn't sleep that night) and had some great adventures that I will never forget. My Dad called me an idiot for going. Yes, my own flesh and blood father. But he also told me to make sure I kept gas in the motorcycle so the "idiot" thing sluffed off pretty easily. (Now you're in the flow, kid, keep going, breathe.) Hang on, it makes me wonder about people calling other people names. (Don't go there! Go back to Deal's Gap!) No, of course it's wrong but what's the big deal? People have called other people names since at least Noah's day and only recently have people been so "sensitive" about it. When someone calls someone else a derogatory name or describes them unfairly that says alot about that person saying it. Don Imus is a bitter old man who used his microphone to disparage everybody and my point is: Who cares what he says or even what he thinks? Who is he to cast judgement on anybody? He's the idiot! So quit worrying your nappy heads about what other people that do not even know you say about you or yours! Should everybody that says something unflattering about another person be fired?! THEN GET TO FIRING THE POLITICIANS AND ALL THE KIDS ON THE PLAYGROUND AND SHOOT ROSIE O'DONNELL IN THE BIG, FAT HE--oh, my brain hurts! (take a break, lay down.)
Believe it or not, the list of people I do no like is not a very long one. I still have faith in people in general and believe that there is good in everyone and I try to look for that good instead of always focusing on the negative. I am a very "glass is half full" kind of guy even in these days when just watching the news can be hazardous to your health. I like nothing better to hear about talented and courageous cops, soldiers and teachers who do their job everyday for little pay and everyday are part of at least minor miracles. The problem seems to be that there is not enough time on stations like CNN to run all the news like that. You know, because we need to hear for two straight months about the death, albeit tragic, of a no-talent, physically over-enhanced, blond "bombshell" and, you know, we need to see 24/7 news showing our political leaders demoralizing our troops in Iraq and, sure, we need to spend every spare second FORCE-FEEDING OURSELVES ON THE COTTON CANDY ISSUE OF GLOB (Oh, no, not yet, please stop!) ....... What are we thinking? What kind of garbage are we allowing into our houses and into our minds? Tell you what. You say you care about our kids. You say you support our troops. Turn off the television news and prove it!
I admit I may have some anger issues but I promise that most of the time I am a very laid-back, fun-loving guy who my wife thinks does not worry about much of anything. Most of the time she is right. I find worrying doesn't seem to help much but I do have issues about which I am concerned. I have faith in sovereign God that He will protect me and that nothing will happen to me or my family that He does not allow. I cannot explain how God chooses to work and to tell the truth, that should make us all feel good! If I was able to explain God, He would not be much of a God. I do know, though, that God does not want us to be doormats and patsies lazily sitting on the couch waiting for the world to collapse. Some righteous anger placed in precise places can be as wonderfully effective as dynamite to blow away the complacency of a distracted life. I also realize that because I am human my anger is not always 100% righteous. (OK, sorry Rosie.)
I have realized that with age comes shifting, not dying, passions and with that shift I no longer care as much about how my hair looks (although I did not really have a choice) and I care more about the future. My future, the future of my wife and kids and the future of my country all weigh on my simple brain. I see all of us making poor choices and focusing on things that do not matter and I have to wonder how much longer this country will be the world leader that it is today. How much longer will the world have any respect left for us as a country? God's Word tells us that there are benefits of obedience and consequences of disobedience for us as individuals but also for our country and my concern is the speed at which our love for ourselves is overtaking our basic goodness. It is starting to make me mad and the problem is, I have to be mad at myself just as much as anybody else! (Hey, maybe I'm making some progress here! The first step is admitting you have a problem...) Hopefully, though, I am getting better all the time and I know I am feeling better just writing about it! In fact, maybe I can write about "it" now. (Oh, please be careful!!)
Here goes. (Easy...breathe...easy) I could get very frustrated with "it". (Take it slow...) "It" is the leading cause of my therapist driving a Jaguar. "It " is probably going to make me shoot blood out of my eyes if I hear anymore about it!! (Go to the happy place for a minute...) "It" is...I hate to even say it...I'll spell it. G-l-o-b-a-l W-a-r-m-i-n-g. AAUGGH!! Am I the only sane person in the world or am I the only crazy person who thinks global warming is a scam and a lie?? Let's just talk about the earth getting warmer. OF COURSE IT IS, AL GORE, YOU INCONVENIENT IDIOT, THE EARTH HAS ALWAYS WARMED AND COOLED IN CYCLES SINCE THE BEGINNING OF TIME!!! (Aaahh!! What does an aneurism feel like?) Look, I am no scientist, but I am a thinker and I think it is great to want to save energy and protect the planet but you are not going to save the world by installing different light bulbs and driving a Prius when there are 1.37 billion people in China alone who couldn't care less! Sure, do your part but shut up already about things that you do not know about! (Oh, gee, I think I just pulled a muscle. I could be out again for a while!)
My wife told me I write too much about things that I don't like; things that are bad or that I think are stupid like the show "24" whose ratings are DOWN this season!! HAHAHA Jack Bauer, take th(OK, settle, settle down, deep breath...) So, anyhow, I want to tell you about some good things that have been going on in my world and my goal is to not to dwell on the craziness that I see all around me. To tell you the truth, I wonder sometimes if it is not me that has gone crazy. My therapist says "crazy" is not the right word for it but WHAT DOES SHE KNOW? ALL SHE DOES IS SAY "HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THAT?" I COULD DO HER JOB AND SAVE ALOT OF (ok, Todd, calm down, breathe, find your happy place.) Sorry. A couple of anger management two-day follow-ups and I'll be right as rain. (Smile, breathe.)
I took a little time off from work lately. My therapist was probably right about my need for that. Something about my co-workers appreciating it. I took my motorcycle for a nine-day southern state tour partly to see my sister and her family in Georgia and partly to silence the voices in my, well, nevermind, I wanted to see some new country. And I saw some gorgeous country, too! And when I have to find my happy place, it could very well be Deal's Gap, North Carolina next to the little brook in the mountains. That is, before it stormed and the tree nearly fell on me in my tent. I survived (but didn't sleep that night) and had some great adventures that I will never forget. My Dad called me an idiot for going. Yes, my own flesh and blood father. But he also told me to make sure I kept gas in the motorcycle so the "idiot" thing sluffed off pretty easily. (Now you're in the flow, kid, keep going, breathe.) Hang on, it makes me wonder about people calling other people names. (Don't go there! Go back to Deal's Gap!) No, of course it's wrong but what's the big deal? People have called other people names since at least Noah's day and only recently have people been so "sensitive" about it. When someone calls someone else a derogatory name or describes them unfairly that says alot about that person saying it. Don Imus is a bitter old man who used his microphone to disparage everybody and my point is: Who cares what he says or even what he thinks? Who is he to cast judgement on anybody? He's the idiot! So quit worrying your nappy heads about what other people that do not even know you say about you or yours! Should everybody that says something unflattering about another person be fired?! THEN GET TO FIRING THE POLITICIANS AND ALL THE KIDS ON THE PLAYGROUND AND SHOOT ROSIE O'DONNELL IN THE BIG, FAT HE--oh, my brain hurts! (take a break, lay down.)
Believe it or not, the list of people I do no like is not a very long one. I still have faith in people in general and believe that there is good in everyone and I try to look for that good instead of always focusing on the negative. I am a very "glass is half full" kind of guy even in these days when just watching the news can be hazardous to your health. I like nothing better to hear about talented and courageous cops, soldiers and teachers who do their job everyday for little pay and everyday are part of at least minor miracles. The problem seems to be that there is not enough time on stations like CNN to run all the news like that. You know, because we need to hear for two straight months about the death, albeit tragic, of a no-talent, physically over-enhanced, blond "bombshell" and, you know, we need to see 24/7 news showing our political leaders demoralizing our troops in Iraq and, sure, we need to spend every spare second FORCE-FEEDING OURSELVES ON THE COTTON CANDY ISSUE OF GLOB (Oh, no, not yet, please stop!) ....... What are we thinking? What kind of garbage are we allowing into our houses and into our minds? Tell you what. You say you care about our kids. You say you support our troops. Turn off the television news and prove it!
I admit I may have some anger issues but I promise that most of the time I am a very laid-back, fun-loving guy who my wife thinks does not worry about much of anything. Most of the time she is right. I find worrying doesn't seem to help much but I do have issues about which I am concerned. I have faith in sovereign God that He will protect me and that nothing will happen to me or my family that He does not allow. I cannot explain how God chooses to work and to tell the truth, that should make us all feel good! If I was able to explain God, He would not be much of a God. I do know, though, that God does not want us to be doormats and patsies lazily sitting on the couch waiting for the world to collapse. Some righteous anger placed in precise places can be as wonderfully effective as dynamite to blow away the complacency of a distracted life. I also realize that because I am human my anger is not always 100% righteous. (OK, sorry Rosie.)
I have realized that with age comes shifting, not dying, passions and with that shift I no longer care as much about how my hair looks (although I did not really have a choice) and I care more about the future. My future, the future of my wife and kids and the future of my country all weigh on my simple brain. I see all of us making poor choices and focusing on things that do not matter and I have to wonder how much longer this country will be the world leader that it is today. How much longer will the world have any respect left for us as a country? God's Word tells us that there are benefits of obedience and consequences of disobedience for us as individuals but also for our country and my concern is the speed at which our love for ourselves is overtaking our basic goodness. It is starting to make me mad and the problem is, I have to be mad at myself just as much as anybody else! (Hey, maybe I'm making some progress here! The first step is admitting you have a problem...) Hopefully, though, I am getting better all the time and I know I am feeling better just writing about it! In fact, maybe I can write about "it" now. (Oh, please be careful!!)
Here goes. (Easy...breathe...easy) I could get very frustrated with "it". (Take it slow...) "It" is the leading cause of my therapist driving a Jaguar. "It " is probably going to make me shoot blood out of my eyes if I hear anymore about it!! (Go to the happy place for a minute...) "It" is...I hate to even say it...I'll spell it. G-l-o-b-a-l W-a-r-m-i-n-g. AAUGGH!! Am I the only sane person in the world or am I the only crazy person who thinks global warming is a scam and a lie?? Let's just talk about the earth getting warmer. OF COURSE IT IS, AL GORE, YOU INCONVENIENT IDIOT, THE EARTH HAS ALWAYS WARMED AND COOLED IN CYCLES SINCE THE BEGINNING OF TIME!!! (Aaahh!! What does an aneurism feel like?) Look, I am no scientist, but I am a thinker and I think it is great to want to save energy and protect the planet but you are not going to save the world by installing different light bulbs and driving a Prius when there are 1.37 billion people in China alone who couldn't care less! Sure, do your part but shut up already about things that you do not know about! (Oh, gee, I think I just pulled a muscle. I could be out again for a while!)
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