Here we go again

I will try my hardest not to rant about the meaning of Christmas and how commercialized it has become and how desensitized we are to the real reason we celebrate, blah, blah, blah. I do, however, want to point out one thing that has already ruffled my feathers this ehem…”Holiday Season”.

Every morning I walk 2 blocks from my parking garage to my office (ok…smarty pants…my cube. I was using “office” as a euphemism for “place of work”. But nooooo…you had to rub it in that after 6 years I am still in a cube!!). Anyways, I pass by the world famous Neiman Marcus each day, specifically, I pass by their large glass storefront displays. Neiman’s takes a lot of pride in their Christmas displays and their Christmas catalog. Even if you haven’t seen their storefront, you are certainly familiar with their Christmas catalogue…you know the one, with the $1MM submarine for sale or some such other extravagant item on that special someone’s wish list. Well, last week they had their grand unveiling of their Christmas displays. The best I can tell, this year’s theme is “gold”. All the manikins were wearing gold, driving a gold moped, and eating gold (ok - maybe not eating gold). And now here comes the ruffled feathers - front and center in the middle of the store, in front of a massive window is a giant 25 foot tall Christmas tree. Covering this beautiful tree (fake - no doubt - so as not to harm a real living tree) is wads and wads of….cash! That’s it! - A massive Christmas tree with no lights, no ornaments…just oversized $100 bills for decoration.

Spare me. I know the Christmas tree is a pagan symbol and has nothing to do with the actual birth of Christ. But just because the wise men didn’t bring pine trees doesn’t mean that it is a meaningless symbol. I know Nieman’s is in business to make money. They make money by selling high priced items. But couldn’t they just spare the Christmas tree and not bastardize it like they and others have done to the rest of Christmas? Wasn’t it enough that the nativity scene is no longer welcome in public and Christmas has been replaced by “Holiday”? Why did they have to go ahead and decorate the Christmas tree with nothing but cash? This is depressing. I have to fight that much harder to make sure my children know the meaning of Christmas. They sure as heck aren’t going to learn about it in school, or see any representation of it in the stores, or at the town square.


Here is another sign that the end is near – Chicago has banned the “Nativity Story” ads during their Christmas festival. Lord...forgive them for they know not what they do.

Higher Minimum Wage - Bad Idea

Here is a real-world example of what happens when government tries to interfere in business (from the Economist.com):

Referring to the riots in Tonga: “Agitation by civil servants forced the government to raise public-sector pay by a massive 60-80% last year. But this placed unsustainable pressure on the government's finances, eventually requiring the administration to counter the pay rise by cutting the number of civil-service jobs.”

When you force wages to go higher than the market dictates this is what you get – higher unemployment. Why is this such a difficult concept to understand?

When you include tip income, less than 1.1% of all workers earn the minimum wage or below. Without tip income, it increases slightly to about 1.5%. Those earning only the minimum wage tend to be young. According to the Department of Labor, 53% of those minimum wage earners are between the age of 16 and 24. The picture of the typical minimum wage earner is something like this: white, female, working part-time, family earns about twice that of the poverty line. But to hear the Democrats tell it, raising the minimum wage will wipe out poverty or some such – ridiculous!

Which Way?

I am in the midst of making a life changing decision, one that will alter my work life, my friendships, my family, everything. I wish I could tell you what it is, but I can’t. The decision isn’t really mine to make – yet. But all signs are leading to that point. I ask that you keep me in my family in your prayers and ask God to continue to give me guidance.

How about this analogy: Do you remember when you were younger and you wanted to be somebody really bad? Perhaps you wanted to be a super hero, but as you got older you realized that there were not any super heroes - just mere mortals. But then, what if when you were older you find out that yes, there are super heroes and the super hero department found out you wanted to join them and they are considered you for their team. Unfortunately though, they tell you that the super heroes don’t really work and live where you live, and they don’t really get paid much, and they don’t get to tell anyone that they are really Clark Kent. What would you do? Well, I choose to pray. I pray that even though I may want to be a super hero, God may have a different plan for my life. And even though lots of people want to be super heroes and that the fact that the super hero department only calls on a select few…just because you get that call doesn’t mean that is the right choice for me, or you or anyone. That is where divine guidance comes in. So I ask that those of you who read this blog, and who are the praying types, please ask God to show me the way. Does “the way” lead to a cape, a web, and a mask or does it lead somewhere else?

Oh yeah…while your at it. Ask God to show the Republicans in Congress the error of their ways so that we can take back the House and Senate in 2008.

"..not a war to win.."

This just in from the new Speaker of House, “It’s not a war to win, it’s a situation to be solved.” - Pelosi

The video here. From Hot Air / Michelle Malkin

As one soldier responded upon hearing this statement, “My M1 Abrams has a lot of problem solving skills.”

Ladies and gentleman – you who voted to “send the Republicans a message”, THIS IS WHAT HAPPENS when you hand the defense and security of this nation over to liberals like Pelosi! Where is the trash can…I am about to be sick!

Rummy out

So Rumsfeld is gone. The timing of this is terrible! He should have stepped down two weeks ago and given those Republicans who are pro-war but against the way it has been prosecuted a reason to vote, or a reason not to switch parties (as if there was a real reason to switch parties in the first place). This really ticks me off now that I think about it. I know why he left today. It has nothing to do with his ability or lack of to handle the war effort. It has to do with the Dems owning both houses and him knowing that his coming days were going to be filled with witch hunts, subpoenas and all manner of liberal bashing. And given that, his ability to lead would be seriously damaged. But come on! The writing has been on the wall for a month now (regarding Dem takeover). If he wasn’t going to tough it out he should have stepped aside earlier! And now we get an Aggie running the show! Let the jokes begin. In all seriousness though, I think Gates may do well. He gets mixed reviews for his time at CIA, but he is fresh in a sense that he has been away from Washington for a while. Maybe that’s good, maybe not.

Just another day

I woke up this morning the same way I always do…to my son’s pointy elbow planted squarely in the small of my back (note: the fact that my four year old still sleeps in our bed is a topic for another day – feedback on getting him to his own bed greatly appreciated though). Despite the loss of the House and likely the Senate the world still goes ‘round. I will need to start planning though for the Democratic agenda.

First thing I will do is increase my savings rate this next year to cover the increase in taxes that will take effect when the Democrats raise them by expiring the Bush tax cuts. Oh…you didn’t know they were going to do that? Interesting that remarks by Charlie Rangle were not widely publicized when he said that there is not one of the Bush tax cuts that will continue when he becomes Chairman of the Ways and Means Committee. So, that’s first – save for the higher taxes I get to pay.

Second thing I will do is purchase stock in the major agriculture corporations. As disappointed as conservatives have been about the Republican efforts to control the border, the Democrats will do even less. Most Democrats have voted against every major border security bill this past year. They are in favor of near blanket amnesty and the liberal wing of the party (redundant) is in favor of an open border policy. So who benefits? The big business types who live off the below market wages paid to the millions of illegal’s crossing our border. I might as well hedge my bets and ride the corporate profits on up. I will need those extra dividends to cover the increasing cost of medical care, education, etc that results from the burden that illegal immigrants place on the system.

The third thing I will do is pray. I will pray that the liberal leadership will not carry through with their cut and run strategy in Iraq. I will pray that they do not stop funding the war effort like they did in Vietnam. I pray that they do not force our troops to come home with their tale between their legs like they did in Vietnam and more recently in Somalia. UBL knows this is our history. He has called our military a “paper tiger” based on the Somalia “Black Hawk Down” conflict. An early withdrawal will be another piece of reinforcing evidence to this idea. The Democrats are controlled by the Kennedy, Kerry, Murtha, Pelosi, Schumer, Durbin wing (I could list about 50 more) who see no problem with leaving the Iraq people to fend for themselves against anti-democracy forces. Forces who think nothing of stoning women for being raped; who execute those who are Christian, who don’t allow women to be educated, much less drive a car. Forces who have not only vowed destruction to America, but to anyone who dares question their extremist religious views. This is no longer about whether or not we should have gone to war in Iraq. We are there now. It is about winning. It is about doing what is right – now. Do I have confidence that the Democrats will honor our commitment to Iraq and to our troops? No, not really. They bath mouth our soldiers and equate them to Nazi (Durbin), terrorist (Kerry), and “managers or rape rooms” (Kennedy). Why should they be trusted with our military?

Conservatives didn’t lose the elections last night – Republicans did. Republicans have two years to decide if they are going to come back to the party of Ronald Reagan or if they are going to be nothing more than democrats who happen to be strong on defense.
I have plenty more to say, especially concerning the voters who were anti-abortion prior to election night and miraculously decided to all the sudden become pro-abortion. More later…but life goes on.

I'm awake now

I have been awoken from my blogging slumber by the sound of disrespect for America’s finest. My last post was around two months ago. My hiatus was brought on by a combination of burn-out, busy work schedule, and a shift in my interests from politics to foreign policy. I have spent the last several months engrossed in foreign policy study and am quite certain that out of the four people who read this blog, only maybe one is interest in foreign policy – so why bother. But, I suppose the real reason for this blog is not for others, but for me to hone my writing skills; so in that regard, I suppose I have let myself down? Not that this is a political blog either as I have posted other light-hearted things as well…..I digress.

So what was the alarm clock that ended the hibernation? I wouldn’t do it justice if I paraphrased it, so here it is in its unedited form:

“You know, education, if you make the most of it, if you study hard and you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, uh, you, you can do well. If you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.” – John F. Kerry, (D) Massachusetts

And that ladies and gentleman, is the “October Surprise”, coming on the last day of October to be precise.

The delusional Senator from Mass. was speaking to a group of college students in California as part of a campaign boost to the Democratic candidate for California Governor. According to a reporter who was there, upon making this elitist statement, some laughed while others gasped. Folks, when a room full of liberal Democrats “gasp”, you know that statement must be bad. Of course, Kerry goes on the offensive after being called on the carpet for this saying that he was really trying to insult the President and not the troops. He said it was a “botched joke”. I recall that the President had a slightly better GPA at Yale than did Kerry and also has an MBA from Harvard. How was Kerry attempting to discredit the President’s education? He wasn’t. His disdain for the military came through yet again. As if his 1970’s anti-American, anti-soldier statements were not enough. As if his 2005 Meet The Press statements referring to our soldiers in Iraq as terrorists wasn’t enough – he opens his mouth once again and defames those in our all volunteer, highly educated armed forces.

Currently, 99.9% of enlisted forces have a high school education, 49.2% have advanced or professional degrees, 39.4% have masters and 1.3% have doctorates. All of this is lost on Kerry and other Democrats who want to portray our armed service as a place of last resort for those with no other options. Watch me as I reach into my back pocket and pull out the B.S flag and throw it onto the field!

Congratulations Democrats. You just snatched defeat from the jaws of victory – or so it seems.

Now its time for me to hit snooze and get back to more important things. You can count on one thing though, and that is I am guaranteed to write something on November 8th – one way or another. Til then…..

When is it too much?

I don’t look old. I don’t feel old. I don’t think old. But evidentially I am old. Case in point – I was walking through the living room and noticed that the wife was watching something on MTV called “My Super Sweat 16” - and here is where I get old.

The kids these days!

I have never seen such gross, embarrassing show of shallow materialism on display in all my life. Here is the show’s premise; an MTV crew documents the 16th birthday party of a kid who was “fortunate” enough to be born to parents of massive wealth. This aint no pin the tail on the donkey, swing the piñata, and open up present type of party I remember. This is a fully catered, ballroom rented out party complete with exotic animals and exotic cars. A party where the birthday boy is carried in on a camel while African tribal people dance among him playing drums and chanting his praises. This is a party where every kid in attendance talked only about “how cool” this guy was because he was “so loaded”. I never heard one person say anything of substance about this kid’s character or about how he did anything worthy of this praise. At the end of the party, this kid gets a $60,000 car as a present! Are you kidding me? Who in their right mind gives a 16 year-old a $60,000 car?

Maybe I am getting old. But I can’t recall this type of materiality worship when I was this age. I remember thinking how lucky I was just to get these really cool “platform shoes” that were suppose to make me jump like Michael Jordan. I never felt less of a person because I didn’t get a new car or didn’t have 300 of my “closest friends” chanting my name.

My wife tells me the previous episode showed an equally insane party, but this time the girl didn’t get a $60,000 car – she got two! TWO!?! Do these parents think they are doing their kids a favor by lavishing them with these gifts? What happens when they are on their own – or is the plan to never make them go on their own. I’m not sure which is worse - the slap in the face by reality when they are forced to fend for themselves in the real world…or the pathetic life that awaits those who are never faced with that reality slap and instead remain tied to their parents umbilical cord of wealth their entire life.

This isn’t a poor mans diatribe against those of wealth. I realize that it is a natural expectation that those who make more money will spend more money. I know that the gifts I buy my kids are more expensive than the gifts some of my nieces and nephews get. I also know the price tag is not representative of the amount of love behind those gifts. But that doesn’t mean the expenditure slope is linear – always increasing with no logical cap. I mean, at some point, don’t you draw a line between making sure your kids get what they need as opposed to what they want. And if you are fortunate enough to have the ability to give them what they want, don’t you have a responsibility to teach them what is reasonable and what is not? I would love to hear the “responsibility” argument from the parents who bought their teenage daughter two cars.

The trickledown effect is that ever kid in America watching this show now has to try and live up to this standard. MTV is one of the worst influences on our youth today. And, yes, I realize that by saying that – it does in fact mean that I am old!

The AJ Crowd

Here lately, I have attempted to expand my daily reading regiment - diversify if you will. In addition to the daily stop down at Powerlineblog.com, BlackFive.net, CounterTerrorismblog.com, Drudge and others, I have added BBC.com and AlJazeera.com to the list. It is the Al Jazeera website that has me so amused.

AJ has a unique format among major media outlets (and let there be no doubt that they are the biggest in that region) in that after most of their “news” stories they allow the posting of comments. This gives their website “blog-like” characteristics, while still maintaining a news reporting format. The comments are the main reason I visit AJ. The news pieces are heavily anti-Israel, anti-American, but provide enough unfiltered facts to be somewhat useful. The comments provide something more useful – a look into the mindset of the Middle Eastern “street”.

Regardless of the topic of the story – everything, and I do mean everything, is the fault of Zionists or Americans. This mentality permeates their entire being – it defines who they are. From the fall of the Ottoman Empire, it appears that every bad thing that has happened to Muslims is of no fault of their own. It is the ultimate victim mentality. The blame game also morphs into the conspiracy theory game. Their theories will put even the Michael Moore/Soros crowd to shame. A sample of comments includes ideas such as: 9/11 was planned by Israel, the Holocaust never happened, the recent London bombing plot is made up – conveniently timed to give neocons a lift in the upcoming elections, and lots more.

I realize a lot of this has to do with their lack of open and free news sources. Although, I have to think that if they have access to the internet and AJ, surely than can check out CNN for Fox News – cant they? Not that they would if they could – they think the US media is in bed with the President – aint that rich! The US MEDIA, a secret supporter of THIS administration?! That might be the best kept secret ever.

I will continue to read the comments and post well reasoned replies. I have been successful so far about 50% of the time in getting my comments past the screener and posted to their website. Hopefully I can add a little sanity to an otherwise insane world.

Profiling update

As a follow-up to my earlier post on terrorist profiling – it seems like England is much, much less concerned over hurting the feelings of a group of people than we here in the States are. Strangely enough, they would rather take the extra steps needed to increase airline safety, even if that comes at the expense of…gasp…making someone of Middle Eastern decent answer a couple of extra questions! The nerve of those Brits!!

Who will Sacrifice?

We are engaged in a war – though most of us are in complete denial. The “Global War on Terror” (GWOT) is a phrased that is tossed about so often these days that I believe it has lost its meaning. We all know what “global” means; this is a “global economy”, the “global markets” and even “global warming”. We recognize the word “terror” and know how to identify terrorism and terrorist acts. But what we have failed to completely wrap our mind around the word “war”.

The word war is used to convey that this is not a one sided struggle. This is not a police action, this is not a single battle - this is a war. Webster’s defines war as: “A state of open, armed, often prolonged conflict carried on between nations, states, or parties.”

In the past, both Republican and Democratic leadership alike has treated the threat of terrorism as a nagging concern, as a police action. We appeared more concerned about being able to prosecute the terrorist in a court of law once they were caught, than we were eliminating them entirely. But this is not the Global “Conflict” with Terror – this is the “War” on Terror. We are in a “state of open, armed and (to be sure) prolonged conflict.”

In other wars throughout history, Americans have been asked to make sacrifices for the good of the country. Not a single person living in the Colonies during the Revolution was untouched by that war. Durable goods like steel and rubber as well as the juice that makes the world go ‘round, oil, gas were heavily rationed during WWI and WWII. Women left their role as stay at home moms during WWII to work a shift at the factory making airplanes that would bomb Germany into submission. During Vietnam, the draft ensured that many able bodied men would serve in some capacity to help defeat the spread of communism – they sacrificed as did their families left behind. What is our sacrifice today? What are we, who are not called Army, Navy, Air Force, or Marine doing? Are we making sacrifices in our daily life? If not us, who?

In order for the recent terror plot in London to have been disrupted, think about the sacrifices that were made. Someone had to leave their family at night to make contacts with sources of intelligence. Their family ate dinner alone while they were roaming the underground for clues. Someone had to spend hours at the office going through the raw intelligence that was being collected. Someone missed their brother’s birthday because they were following a suspected terrorist across the globe. Someone was manning a listening terminal for 24 hours straight when they intercepted a key terrorist phone call. Someone was called away from their son’s school play because they had to lead the team that was to arrest these terrorist within the hour to prevent the loss of life. And think about those family members left behind while their husband, wife, son was away doing these things. Think about their sacrifice, about their waiting up all night not knowing what they were doing or even sometimes where they were.

But think about the 3,000 people who were to be on those 10 planes who now get to go home to their son’s play, or their mother’s birthday. Think about the young man flying that day from London to New York who was going to see his fiancé after being gone on business for the last week. Think about the surgeon returning from that London conference who can now save hundreds of lives back at home.

So what sacrifices are we making to ensure this way of life? This life that is so hated by a group of people that they will stop at nothing to snuff it out. This is a war. And if we are given the opportunity to serve this country – no matter how big or small – who are we to say “no thanks – I’m too comfortable to help out” or “I cant afford to take that pay cut and go join the army” or “I don’t want to be separated from my family right now”. There were 3,000 people in New York on 9/11 that was separated from their family – forever. And then there are 3,000 people flying from London to the U.S. who were not – because of the sacrifices made along the way.

What sacrifices are you ready to make? Or is your life just too comfortable right now and this is just not your problem? We can’t all be soldiers, but we can all be something. We can all send that care package, or donate to that military support group – we can all do something.

How to make money in the airline business

Simply. Be the only airline to promise that you will use profiling to ensure the safety of that flight. That is the airline I want to fly!!


For more on "profiling" the likely terrorist threat.....full article found here


Let's pause a moment and review....

In 1968 Bobby Kennedy was shot and killed by: (a) A salesman from Utah (b) An construction worker (c) A college student on Spring Break (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1972, 11 Israeli athletes were killed at the Munich Olympics
by: (a) Your grandmother (b) A Midwest auto-parts dealer (c) A mom and her 6-year-old son visiting from Indiana (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1979, the U.S. embassy in Iran was taken over by: (a) A bluegrass band (b) Dallas Cowboy fans (c) A tour group of 80-year-old women (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

During the 1980's numerous Americans were kidnapped in Lebanon
by: (a) A family on their way to Disney World (b) Jesse Ventura
(c) A Boy Scout Troop (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1983, the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut was blown up by: (a) A pizza delivery boy (b) The UPS guy (c) Geraldo Rivera making up for a slow news day (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1985 the cruise ship Achille Lauro was hijacked, and a 70-year-old disabled American passenger was murdered and thrown overboard by: (a) A girls' choir (b) A hardware store owner (c) A secretary (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of
17 and 40.

In 1985 TWA flight 847 was hijacked at Athens, and a U.S. Navy diver was murdered by: (a) A Marine officer with two weeks leave
(b) A plumber going to visit his mom (c) A Catholic nun (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

In 1988, Pan Am Flight 103 was bombed by: (a) A college-bound freshman (b) A cardiac surgeon on his way to Houston (c) A waitress (d) Middle Eastern Islamist males between the ages of 17 and 40.

Bonding

What we in Texas call a “cold front” this time a year is a brief respite from the 100+ heat to something more manageable, like say 90. It was during one such recent cold front that I took some time to sit outside and have a talk with my youngest son. The oldest was out with his cousin for a few hours, so I headed out back and asked Jacob to come on out and help me with the grill (cooked up some nice stuffed chicken breasts).

The evening was perfect. The sun was down behind the house and the temperature was down in the mid 80’s with a nice breeze floating through; nothing big, just enough to ruffle the leaves of the big oak just beyond the fence. The pair of red birds that hang out back in the creek were there that night, like clockwork. As I shut the lid to the grill, I pulled up one of the bar chairs outside and sat down, motioned for my son to come sit down next to me in the other chair.

It was the ideal setting – the two of us, just sitting there, enjoying the weather, enjoying the smell of chicken cooking on the grill. I would ask his opinion on the current political climate, about the trouble in the Middle East and about how to handle Iran. He would just sit there, not saying much. I even talked to him about the birds (but not the “bees”) flying over head and about aviation, and cars. He really speaks volumes through his silence.

After a while I realized that he wasn’t really saying much at all – regardless of the topic, but I could clearly tell he was listening to me. Like when I said something about the planes flying overhead, and how they might be bringing back some of America’s heroes from Iraq, he pointed up and mumbled something unintelligible. But, at least I knew he and I were on the same wave-length.

After about 30 minutes of father-son bonding, the chicken was ready and so was my stomach. Only one thing left to do before heading inside – needed to take the sucker out of my son’s mouth, wash his hands and change his wet diaper. For the life of me – I can’t understand why 1.5 year olds are so helpless.

Three cheers for fiscal responsibility

“Give us your tired, your poor, your huddled masses…and we will give you a medical bill as long as my arm…you no good mooching rascals!”

Ok, not quite the historical quote you had in mind – but I can imagine the Parkland Hospital power players uttering something like this in one of their recent strategy meetings – and who can blame them?

First, a couple of weeks ago, Parkland scored major political points with many by stating that the hospital would be sending medical bills to Mexico (and other foreign countries) for the cost of treating their citizens. This also includes sending bills to surrounding counties for treating their citizens as well (Collin County…you know who you are).

Parkland Hospital is a Dallas County hospital – and once you get past the structured chaos of the emergency waiting room, it happens to be one of the best trauma centers in the world. I venture to say that the indigent of Dallas County receive better care than some of the well-to-do citizens of other areas. But here is the problem – people outside of Dallas County know this. People know that they can get treatment, top treatment, for free or reduced price at Parkland simply by lying about their residency or income. And after years of don’t ask don’t tell policy toward treating illegal immigrants (they don’t ask if you are hear legally and you don’t dare tell them you aren’t) Parkland has finally decided to drop the political correctness stance and send those countries (and counties) a bill.

I say bravo Parkland. And bravo for the latest development – going after those who lied about their income in order to qualify for reduced/free treatment. To those who can afford to pay – make em pay. For those who can afford something – pay “something”. We (tax payers in Dallas County) are then left footing the bill for the poorest of the poor and not the “poorest of the rich”. I know there is the whole HMO, cost of drugs, malpractice insurance issue the weighs heavily on the cost of healthcare, but so does the cost of treating for free all those who don’t really “deserve” free treatment. It’s the same reason my car insurance costs so much, part of my premium goes to cover those who don’t have insurance.

In practice, Parkland won’t see a single dime from Mexico. They are in business to export their poor to the U.S. If they were going to take care of their population they would be doing it in Mexico. I do think they can have some success collecting from the surrounding counties and from those dead-beat’s who lied about the income. “Yeah, I know my company offers insurance…but the deductible is just too high to participate…I would rather just get free treatment from Parkland”. And this quote or something like it comes from the mid-level manager who can afford daily $3 mochas, a $150 cell phone bill and a $6 six pack on the weekends – but cant “afford” to carry insurance.

Hopefully Parkland will collect some back due money and enhance their already top-notch services. And if for some reason I am injured on the way home from work today…I live in Dallas and I only make $5/hour!

Magic...sort of

I occasionally get these odd-ball gifts from other companies trying to curry favor with me, as if I have the ability to decide who my company does business with. The gifts usually take the shape of some type of “squeeze ball” which I suppose it to help relieve stress. Funny thing, they actually work better when you paint a picture of your boss or Dwayne Wade on the ball and then proceed to SQUEEZ!

But I digress. The last two gifts have been pretty cool. This one company from the northeast specializing in corporate restructuring sent me last month a first aid kit (to tie into their marketing idea that they “don’t just provide a band-aid solution”). But my favorite is what they sent me last week – the Magic Eight Ball.

You know what I’m talking about - the big black ball with the number 8 on it. You turn it upside down and it tells you the answer to the question you are asking. Since I don’t believe in all that psychic crap, I play a slightly different game with it. I turn it upside down and see the answer and THEN make up a question.

Answer: “Ask me again”
Question: “What does my wife have to do to get me to take out the trash?”

Answer: “Very doubtful”
Question: “Will I ever get to sleep in just one morning between now and when the kids are out of the house?”

Answer: “Without a doubt”
Question: “Will I get yelled at for always having my wife ‘ask me again’ to take the trash out?”

This Magic Eight Ball is a lot of fun. Of course, I have no idea how this ties in to their marketing, but I guess should I ever need to restructure my corporation then I will know who to call.

Interesting Demand

“Insurgents Demand Withdrawal of U.S. Forces in Iraq in 2 Years”

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,201295,00.html

This is hilarious! I took this headline from FoxNews.com on 6/28/06. You can look up and read the story yourself – but that is not the point. I find it funny (in a disgusting kind of way) that the people who are attacking our troops in Iraq want us to stay longer than Jack Murtha (D – Idiotsville), Ted Kennedy (D - Runk), etc! The bad guys want us there for two years and the Senator from Massachusetts wants us out now!

Here is what people fail to see. The people attacking us over there are in two camps (as a manner of oversimplifying things for discussion purposes): the Al Queda type who hate us just because (and who are mostly foreign to Iraq), and the former Bath Party loyalists who are pissed that they are no longer in control as they were under Sadam. The Bathists hate the AQ terrorists because they would just as soon kill innocent Iraqis as they would Americans. In fact, that was their game plan for a while – in order to start a civil war. The former Bathists are starting to realize that a free democratic society is in their best interest, but they don’t want the ugly American infidels telling them how to run their country. Of course – as the headline points out – they don’t want the ugly American infidel to leave either because the AQ types will unleash unfettered chaos on innocent Iraqi people. Now that all Iraq government seats are filled, the Bathist know that their only means of survival is to join the political (which equates to peaceful) process.

The news out of Iraq gets better every week. And despite the weekly loss of American life that still continues over there, the fruits of their labor is becoming more and more clear to those who will just pay attention.

Musical Review

So I’m sitting at the matinee showing of Les Miserables (in Texas that is pronounced Less Miserable…as in “going to the theatre is ‘less miserable’ than getting your teeth pulled) at Fair Park Music Hall this Sunday, taking in the scene. I thought it a good idea to take my wife out somewhere that neither of us has ever been. The destination was not as important as the fact that we were escaping from unit 470 of the Bentson Road lock-up facility. You know the one – guarded at all times by the strong arm tactics of a 1.5 year old and a very canny 3.5 year old.

Anyways, for some reason I thought a famous Broadway musical would be just that unique experience we were looking for. We arrive about 15 minutes early and head for our seats. I was willing to spring for some nice lower level, but they were all sold out. Who would have thought that after playing these last 50 years or so there would still be this many people wanting to see it? Clearly, I underestimated the “performing arts” crowd here in Dallas. So we make our way to the balcony and sit down in the seats – just right of center stage and about 15 rows from the top. Apparently, the Fair Park Music folks purchased these seats from the same maker of the Cotton Bowl seats – talk about tiny! I don’t know what was the more amazing performance - the opening “Soliloquy of Jean Veljian” or the fact that this 350lb guy was able to sit down in a single seat just in front of us.

The first half (that is Act 1 for those keeping track at home) was not bad...a little slow at times but what did I expect – I’m at a MUSICAL for crying out loud! One thing did kind of catch me off-guard, the applause after each stirring performance. I think I even heard a “bravo” coming from the lady behind me - the same lady who was singing along out loud to half the songs. Yeah, lady, we get it. You come here often. You’re a big fan of the arts. You were the lead role in your high school play, etc etc. But I didn’t pay $30 ticket to hear you sing.

In Act II, they all pretty much die, but not before a couple of good action scenes. The cast comes out to a standing ovation – 3 times! They deserved it – they were all pretty dang talented. My favorite was the drunk, thieving tavern owner and his equally inept, yet impressive wife. They were the comedic element and were both very good. Next to the lead role, and the little kid, they got the biggest applause.

We both decided we wanted to come again. We want to try something a little more modern next time (I hear the Producers was good). I would recommend the experience for those wanting to do something different and break out of your comfort zone. The enjoyment factor would probably go up a bit if we had better seats, but oh well. I don’t guess my $5 donation to the Dallas Arts gets me access to “those” seats.

Observations:
- In the concourse area during intermission, next to the $10 liquor, $9 wine, $6 beer was a $4 box of Junior Mints. Nothing says classy upscale quite like Junior Mints.
- The Music Hall is directly across from the African American Museum. We were, unfortunately, unable to locate the White Man Museum.

Eat more chicken?

My drive from the new house is not so bad after all. I found a pretty good back route that keeps me off of the dreaded stretch of I-35 headed south into Dallas. I am getting to work in about 40 minutes, which aint bad considering it’s a 31 mile drive.

But despite all that, I am thinking about changing my route. Every morning this week I have been freaked out by the sight of a cow standing on its hind legs - starring at me at the stop light - waving and holding up a sign wanting me to “Eat more Chicken”. And no matter how many times I see it, each time my eyes catch the first glimpse of this “cow”, it totally freaks me out.

It’s as if for a nano of a second, my brain sees this and processes it as a real cow or something. I don’t know what it is – but for that short period, my heart races and I do a double-take. Maybe it’s the way he stares at me as I drive buy, as if to say, “I can see you. And if you don’t pull through the drive-thru then I will track you down and milk all over your floor.” I usually follow up the heart palpitation with a silly little laugh at myself for being stupid and go on down the road. But then I repeat the same thing over again the next morning. My brain has not yet figured to that cows really can’t stand on their hind legs and wave at people. Deep down I KNOW that there is a minimum wage worker in there just trying to make a buck.

I use to like that eating establishment (especially now that they offer tomatoes on their already perfect chicken sandwiches) – but I may have to boycott until someone can do something about that cow.

A killer must die!

On May 16th, Sean O’Brien’s execution was stopped, pending an appeal that Texas’ use of lethal injection is cruel and unusual punishment. Please read below the accounts of that night and tell me if you think lethal injection (which first numbs so that the killer feels no pain, then paralyzes, then stops the heart) is cruel and unusual.



Jennifer Ertman and Elizabeth Pena were 14 and 16 years old, respectively. They were friends who attended the same high school in Houston, Texas, Waltrip High School. On June 24, 1993, the girls spent the day together and then died together. They were last seen by friends about 11:15 at night, when they left a friend's apartment to head home, to beat summer curfew at 11:30. They knew they would be late if they took the normal path home, down W. 34th Street to T.C. Jester, both busy streets. They also knew they would have to pass a sexually-oriented business on that route and so decided to take a well-known shortcut down a railroad track and through a city park to Elizabeth's neighborhood.

The next morning, the girls parents began to frantically look for them, paging them on their pagers, calling their friends to see if they knew where they were, to no avail. The families filed missing persons reports with the Houston Police Department and continued to look for the girls on their own. The Ertmans and Penas gathered friends and neighbors to help them pass out a huge stack of fliers with the girls' pictures all over the Houston area, even giving them to newspaper vendors on the roadside. Four days after the girls disappeared, a person identifying himself as 'Gonzalez' called the Crimestoppers Tips number. He told the call taker that the missing girls' bodies could be found near T.C. Jester Park at White Oak bayou. The police were sent to the scene and searched the park without finding anything. The police helicopter was flying over the park and this apparently prompted Mr. 'Gonzalez' to make a 911 call, directing the search to move to the other side of the bayou. When the police followed this suggestion, they found the badly decaying bodies of Jenny and Elizabeth. Jennifer Ertman's dad, Randy Ertman, was about to give an interview regarding the missing girls to a local television reporter when the call came over a cameraman's police scanner that two bodies had been found. Randy commandeered the news van and went to the scene that was now bustling with police activity. Randy Ertman appeared on the local news that evening, screaming at the police officers who were struggling to hold him back, "Does she have blond hair?Does she have blond hair?!!?" Fortunately, they did manage to keep Randy from entering the woods and seeing his daughter's brutalized body and that of her friend Elizabeth.

The bodies were very badly decomposed, even for four days in Houston's brutal summer heat and humidity, particularly in the head, neck and genital areas. The medical examiner later testified that this is how she could be sure as to the horrible brutality of the rapes, beatings and murders. The break in solving the case came from, of course, the 911 call. It was traced to the home of the brother of one of the men later sentenced to death for these murders. When the police questioned 'Gonzalez', he said that he had made the original call at his 16 year-old wife's urging. She felt sorry for the families and wanted them to be able to put their daughters' bodies to rest. 'Gonzalez' said that his brother was one of the six people involved in killing the girls, and gave police the names of all but one, the new recruit, whom he did not know. His knowledge of the crimes came from the killers themselves, most of whom came to his home after the murders, bragging and swapping the jewelry they had stolen from the girls.

While Jenny and Elizabeth were living the last few hours of their lives, Peter Cantu, Efrain Perez, Derrick Sean O'Brien, Joe Medellin and Joe's 14 year old brother were initiating a new member, Raul Villareal, into their gang, known as the Black and Whites. Raul was an acquaintance of Efrain and was not known to the other gang members. They had spent the evening drinking beer and then "jumping in" Raul. This means that the new member was required to fight every member of the gang until he passed out and then he would be accepted as a member. Testimony showed that Raul lasted through three of the members before briefly losing consciousness. The gang continued drinking and 'shooting the breeze' for some time and then decided to leave. Two brothers who had been with them but testified that they were not in the gang left first and passed Jenny and Elizabeth, who were unknowingly walking towards their deaths. When Peter Cantu saw Jenny and Elizabeth, he thought it was a man and a woman and told the other gang members that he wanted to jump him and beat him up. He was frustrated that he had been the one who was unable to fight Raul. The gang members ran and grabbed Elizabeth and pulled her down the incline, off of the tracks. Testimony showed that Jenny had gotten free and could have run away but returned to Elizabeth when she cried out for Jenny to help her. For the next hour or so, these beautiful, innocent young girls were subjected to the most brutal gang rapes that most of the investigating officers had ever encountered.

The confessions of the gang members that were used at trial indicated that there was never less than 2 men on each of the girls at any one time and that the girls were repeatedly raped orally, anally and vaginally for the entire hour. One of the gang members later said during the brag session that by the time he got to one of the girls, "she was loose and sloppy." One of the boys boasted of having 'virgin blood' on him. The 14-year-old juvenile later testified that he had gone back and forth between his brother and Peter Cantu since they were the only ones there that he really knew and kept urging them to leave. He said he was told repeatedly by Peter Cantu to "get some". He raped Jennifer and was later sentenced to 40 years for aggravated sexual assault, which was the maximum sentence for a juvenile.

When the rapes finally ended, the horror was not over. The gang members took Jenny and Elizabeth from the clearing into a wooded area, leaving the juvenile behind, saying he was "too little to watch". Jenny was strangled with the belt of Sean O'Brien, with two murderers pulling, one on each side, until the belt broke. Part of the belt was left at the murder scene, the rest was found in O'Brien's home. After the belt broke, the killers used her own shoelaces to finish their job. Medellin later complained that "the bitch wouldn't die" and that it would have been "easier with a gun". Elizabeth was also strangled with her shoelaces, after crying and begging the gang members not to kill them; bargaining, offering to give them her phone number so they could get together again. The medical examiner testified that Elizabeth's two front teeth were knocked out of her brutalized mouth before she died and that two of Jennifer's ribs were broken after she had died. Testimony showed that the girls' bodies were kicked and their necks were stomped on after the strangulations in order to "make sure that they were really dead." The juvenile, Venancio Medellin, pled guilty to his charge and his sentence was reviewed when he turned 18, at which time he was sent to serve the remainder of the sentence in prison. The five killers were tried for capital murder in Harris County, Texas, convicted and sentenced to death.

Where is the service?

Customer service is dead. The referee has counted to 10 and the bell had rung. The upper cut of our “all about me” society has landed squarely on the chin of customer service. I have no idea what happened - but very few people seem inclined to offer more than a “thanks for shopping” motto that they try and pass off as “going the extra mile for the customer”. To make a long story short - I will no longer be shopping at Home Depot and I would recommend to anyone considering having them install wood floors – don’t do it!

Ok, just when I thought the world was made up of people and businesses who didn’t give a darn about me I go off and eat at Hard Eight in Stephenville and buy some furniture at Rooms to Go in Grapevine. If you are looking for some of the best BBQ in Texas or if you want to be treated like you are the only customer in world interested in furniture then you should drive down to Stephenville for lunch and drive up to Grapevine for furniture. Both places no how to offer a good product and great service.

But back to Home Depot for a second...I realize most of my problems revolve around the wood floor installers who do not officially work for Home Depot, but are contracted. That doesn’t matter – I purchased the floors at Home Depot (to the tune of $7,500), I paid with my Home Depot card and when there is a problem (or series of problems) I expect Home Depot to take care of things. I certainly don’t expect to have to leave 10 voicemails before anyone will return my call – or have a customer service person tell me they are handling everything and will have a solution by 4pm on Friday – just to find out said employee left for the weekend without even calling me! Did I mention that I’m finished with them?

May Day Madness

Here is what makes no sense to me. Leaving work yesterday around 6 in downtown Dallas, I can hear the loudspeakers from the illegal immigration rally blaring Lee Greenwood’s “Proud to an American” song, the one played around July 4th every year. I’m thinking to myself, “Ok, well maybe they are starting to get this idea of being an American. Maybe there is hope that they will see the importance of learning the English language and assimilating – which doesn’t mean forgetting your own culture – and maybe we can find a good solution to this issue – one that protects our borders and ensures that legal immigration is sufficient to support the demand for their labor”. But then, I get in my car, turn on the radio and hear sound bites from rallies all across the nation yesterday and I hear stuff like, “…if anyone needs deporting it is the white man in Los Angeles”, and “this is our land…it was stolen…and we are going to take it back…”. I even heard one clip of someone calling for an “Intifada”! Just what we need, angry white-hating Mexicans joining forces with Islamo-fascists’.

So now I am both mad (at the violent threats being thrown my way by La Raza and the like) and confused. Are they really “proud to be an American” or do they despise us for demanding that they follow our immigration laws? Why do Mexicans feel they are so much more important than the Indian, Chinese or Irish person (the Irish, by the way, have extremely long wait times to legal citizenship) who has been waiting in the immigration line for 2 years or more? They tell me that this was their land in the first place and they have a “right’ to skip ahead. Uh, I think the Apache, and other native tribes may have something to say about that. Not only did the United States “win” Texas in a war (more than one), but we also PAID for it! I got news for you, this land wasn’t stolen!

And another thing – where do you get off calling me a gringo in my country? Gringo means foreigner, typically a derogatory term for Americans in Mexico. I will give these racist hate mongers a few more weeks to slither back in to obscurity, but if by June or so, they are still calling for my death and deportation, well, its about time I take that concealed handgun class and make sure my family is safe from their anti-white, anti-American hatred. And to think, previously my worst fear was being the victim of Osama Bin Laden’s next terrorist attack, when all along, it was Jesse Diaz of LULAC that I needed to fear – fear he might put me on a boat and “deport me back to England”. As if my ancestors even came from England! Ignorance is bliss.

More evidence of terrorist ties - shocking!

This is just too good to pass up. Many of you (Richard – you know who you are) have been so extremely adamant in your statements that there is no way OBL could have had a working relationship with Sadam. One is a secular Muslim the other a fundamentalist – so based on this reasoning, it is impossible to think that Sadam had any relationship with OBL and his terrorist ways.

Just as I predicted a year ago, and reiterated on another blog just last week, as more of these documents get translated we are going to see that the only thing the loony left has been hanging their hat on is soon going to crumble before their very eyes – “Sadam had no ties to the people who attacked us on 9/11”. It may not be next week, and this particular document doesn’t prove anything in and of itself…but 20 or 30 of these documents will. At last check, there were hundreds of thousands of documents form Iraq secret service and military just waiting to be translated.

It is with great pleasure that I direct your attention to the following (courtesy of ABC news. As an aside, why does ABC an other media, think they must put editors notes on information that is supportive of the war effort but not on information that is against it. I don’t recall any editor’s notes on the CIA leaks, but I digress):

http://abcnews.go.com/International/IraqCoverage/story?id=1734490&page=1


Here are some highlights (or lowlights depending on how bad you hate the President)

“A newly released pre-war Iraqi document indicates that an official representative of Saddam Hussein's government met with Osama bin Laden in Sudan on February 19, 1995 after approval by Saddam Hussein. Bin Laden asked that Iraq broadcast the lectures of Suleiman al Ouda, a radical Saudi preacher, and suggested "carrying out joint operations against foreign forces" in Saudi Arabia. According to the document, Saddam's presidency was informed of the details of the meeting on March 4, 1995 and Saddam agreed to dedicate a program for them on the radio. The document states that further "development of the relationship and cooperation between the two parties to be left according to what's open (in the future) based on dialogue and agreement on other ways of cooperation."

"The relationship with him is still through the Sudanese. We're currently working on activating this relationship through a new channel in light of his current location [Afghanistan]," it states.

“The document does not establish that the two parties did in fact enter into an operational relationship. Given that the document claims bin Laden was proposing to the Iraqis that they conduct "joint operations against foreign forces" in Saudi Arabia, it is interesting to note that eight months after the meeting — on November 13, 1995 — terrorists attacked Saudi National Guard Headquarters in Riyadh, killing 5 U.S. military advisors. The militants later confessed on Saudi TV to having been trained by Osama bin Laden.)”

Someone you should know

This article tells so much more than just a tragic, heroic story of life and death. It completely goes against nearly everything that the angry left tells us about our soldiers in Iraq:

First, there is the fact that this marine was a high school salutatorian. Which seems odd since we are constantly told that the US military is the bastion of last hope for all the poor, and poorly educated kids who cant get into college. After all, who in their right mind would volunteer for that type of work when they have other options? Who indeed!

Then, we learn that on at least one occasion he went in to Iraqi homes to save the life of a mentally challenged kid who had a bomb strapped to him. Of course, according to John Kerry, our soldiers are only going into the homes of Iraqi’s to “terrorize them”. Mr Fry saved this boys life and countless others that were no doubt the intended target of this “victim bomber”.

Finally, we learn that last year he received a hand injury that would have won him a trip back to Germany – except for the fact that Mr Fry didn’t want to go back to Germany. He believed in his mission and stayed in Iraq. If things were going so horribly over there, why would he ever want to go back?

God speed Gunnery Sgt Fry.


Marine dies day before return home
Lorena native was proud of his work, did it willingly, family said
By Katy MooreWACO HERALD-TRIBUNESunday, March 12, 2006
A Marine from Texas who was due to return home from Iraq to his wife and three children this week was killed Wednesday after he volunteered to disarm a bomb in Iraq's war-torn Anbar province.
Gunnery Sgt. John D. Fry, 28, of Lorena, south of Waco, specialized in defusing explosive devices and planned to return to his family at Marine base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina for six months before starting another tour in Iraq in September.
"He believed in what he was doing," Malia Fry said of her husband. "He was protecting his country, and he was doing his job because he didn't want his children to grow up with people blowing up buildings."
As an explosive ordinance disposal technician, Fry disarmed hundreds of bombs during his six-month stint in Iraq.
On Wednesday, he volunteered to defuse one more bomb, which exploded and killed him, family members said.
"He laid down his life so other Marines would be safe, and he did it willingly," Malia Fry said. "Every EOD tech that is over there does the same thing a hundred times a day, and they don't think about themselves. They think about the Marines. . . . They think about the children that are over there."
In interviews, Fry's family described him as selfless in his work, protecting his comrades and Iraqis from explosive devices.
Both his wife and his mother, Beth Fry of Lorena, described an incident in which the Marine answered a call to disarm a bomb and played a game of hide-and-seek with a young Iraqi boy before sending the youngster away from the site and out of danger.
On another occasion, Fry arrived at an Iraqi home to find a bomb strapped to a young Iraqi boy with mental retardation.
The Marine disarmed the bomb and saved the child's life.
"He was so proud to be there doing what he was doing," Beth Fry said. "Not just the war part . . . but the Marines and all the military people that are there have restored power, built schools, built hospitals, and they have running water. Those are the things that nobody talks about and that nobody hears about."
Fry was assigned to the 8th Engineer Support Battalion, 2nd Marine Logistics Group, II Marine Expeditionary Force.
In October, family members said, Fry received a hand injury that was severe enough that he could have left Iraq and gone to Germany.
The graduate of Waco Christian Academy was happy that he was salutatorian of his high school class because he did not like speaking in public and did not want to give a speech at his graduation.
Relatives said Fry will be remembered as a devoted father and a humble patriot.
"(The military) wanted to give him the Bronze Star for his injury, and he wouldn't accept it," Beth Fry said. "He said what he was doing was what he was supposed to be doing and what everyone else was doing."
Family members said he had no second thoughts about returning to Iraq in September.
He is survived by three children: Kathryn, 9; Gideon, 7; and C.L., 2.
"He was a person who knew exactly what he wanted to do and was willing to make the sacrifice to do it," Beth Fry said. "And he realized the cost."

The acceptance speech nobody heard

As you three or four readers have noticed (or am I up to five readers now…not sure) I have been missing in action from the blogshepere for a while – work has been kicking my tale for the better part of a month with little relief in sight. I thought I would ease back into posting with this faux acceptance speech by Dennis Prager:

The Academy Award speech we should have heard
Mar 7, 2006
Here's a speech we would like to hear from an Academy Award winner: I thank you for this wonderful award. Receiving an Academy Award gives the recipient an almost unique opportunity to speak to hundreds of millions people around the world, so I would like take this once-in-a-lifetime moment to say this:
First, I want to thank my country, the United States of America. Every one of us here has this country to thank for enabling us to live lives of unprecedented freedom and unimaginable affluence. Too many of us forget that no other country in history has offered such opportunities to people in our profession or in any other profession, for that matter.

Second, I want to thank the men and women of the armed forces of the United States. While we bask in freedom and spend a good part of our lives going from party to party and award show to award show, tens of thousands of my fellow Americans are confronting a menace to our world as great as that fought by previous generations fighting Nazism and communism.

At the same time, I also want to apologize to these troops for my profession not having made even one motion picture about any of the heroic American fighters in Afghanistan and Iraq. This country is fighting a war, Hollywood. You may think this war is unwise, waged under mistaken, or even false, pretenses. And as an actor in Hollywood, you are overwhelmingly likely to hate this commander in chief. But even the men and women of Hollywood must recognize that America is fighting the worst people of our time, people who hurt every group Hollywood claims to care about -- minorities, women, gays -- people who engage in the sins Hollywood most professes to oppose -- intolerance and violence -- far more than anyone else on the planet.

In another era, when what many have labeled "the greatest generation" fought the German Nazis and the Japanese fascists, Hollywood made movie after movie depicting that great war and our great warriors. And Hollywood showed freedom's enemies as the cruel and vicious people they were. We have not produced one film yet depicting this war in positive terms or one depicting this generation's enemies of freedom as the cruel and vicious people they are.

In fact, the only nominated film about people who slaughter children at discos, blow up weddings, and bomb pizzerias and buses filled with men, women and children is one that attempts to show these murderers in God's name as complex human beings. Just imagine how the Academy would have reacted 60 years ago to a film depicting Nazi murderers as complex human beings. We have descended far.
We in Hollywood walk around thinking we are very important. That is why this year's nominated films for best picture are largely pictures with messages, pictures that relatively few people actually see. But although Hollywood was always concerned with politics, we have let ourselves be taken over by those for whom their message is more significant than the primary purposes of film -- to illuminate life and to entertain. Yes, entertain.

You know, entertainment is actually a noble pursuit. Life is difficult for almost every human being on earth. And if we can offer people an elevated way to divert their attention for a couple of hours from their troubled child, their marital tensions, their ill parent, their financial woes, we have rendered the world a greater service than by making another message-film against racism in America, the least racist country in the world.

My fellow actors, we walk around feeling that we are very important. But we do so only because we confuse fame with significance. We do have more fame than any other human beings in history. Far more people have heard of any actor here tonight than of any of the discoverers of any medication saving billions of lives, of any teacher of the disabled, of any nurse tending the aged, of almost any national leader.
But the truth is that, as noble a calling as acting can be, all we do is make-believe: We portray other people, and we speak words written by other people. Everyone knows our names, but almost no one knows us. All they know are the characters we play.

Thank you again. I hope I haven't ruined your evening.


Dennis Prager is a radio talk show host, author, and contributing columnist for Townhall.com.

My response to Friday DMN letter

Here is the letter that got me fired up:

The new first lady of civil rights
Re: "On the Sidelines – Sheehan is arrested, removed from gallery," Wednesday news story.
This newspaper devoted 111 words to one of the most remarkable events to take place Tuesday, more remarkable than the grandiloquent rhetoric of President Bush's address.
Cindy Sheehan was arrested in the House chamber minutes before the State of the Union address, after already being seated. She was not being disorderly. She was wearing a constitutionally protected T-shirt that read, "2245 Dead. How many more?"
Regardless of what you think of Ms. Sheehan, her free speech was abridged. Moments before the president was to deliver a speech that extolled the virtues of democracy and civil liberties, our government used Stalinist tactics to censor Ms. Sheehan.
Any American who is not outraged is not a patriot.
On Monday, the first lady of the civil rights movement died. On Tuesday, the torch was passed to Cindy Sheehan.
- George Henson, Dallas


And my response:


If your definition of a “patriot” is someone who cohorts with anti-American dictators like Venezuelan President Chavez (as did Sheehan), or who claims the President of the United States is the world’s biggest terrorist (as did Sheehan), then I think I will count myself lucky that you do not consider me a “patriot”.

Your assertion that Mrs. Sheehan’s free speech was abridged is true - yet free speech is abridged every day across the U.S., and yet it isn’t deemed unconstitutional. I bet your employer would not allow you to wear shorts to work in order to “express your desire to be more relaxed”, or what about students on college campuses who can only protest in “free speech zones” – their free speech is certainly abridged. I am certain you can’t wear shorts to court - not even to pay a traffic ticket. Would you consider the municipal judge to be “Stalinist”?

Cindy Sheehan doesn’t have a free speech “right” to wear an anti-troop shirt to the State of the Union Address any more than the wife of Rep. Bill Young has to wear a pro-troop shirt (she was removed as well by the way). If the rules for that gathering specify a dress code, then you must obey or else you have the “right” not to attend.

SOTU Thoughts

What is up with the Democrats cheering about their failure to reform Social Security? Am I the only one who thought that was a bit “odd”? They take pride in the fact that they defeated the President’s Social Security plan, but failed to offer an alternative. What a twisted sense of accomplishment.

What wasn’t “odd” but was despicable was the reaction, or lack thereof, on the part of several Democrats who would not even clap, much less stand, when it came to Bush’s statements that “we will never surrender to evil” (Charlie Rangel) or when John Lewis refused to stand up when Bush talked about “our love of freedom”. This is a microcosm of what the Democrats stand for. It is a perfect example of their defeatist attitude and their blame America first politics. If you can’t applaud for general freedom statements or pro-victory statements, what the heck are you doing in Congress?

The Democrats official response given by the Gov. of Virginia wasn’t too abrasive (refreshing coming from the party of Howard Dean), but it also lacked something that has been lacking for years – an alternate solution. If the Democrats would counter just one of the President’s plans with a plan of their own, they would gain some credibility. But they don’t. The President summed it up nicely when he said, “Hindsight alone is not wisdom and second guessing is not a strategy.” Well said, sir.

The circle of life

“Wake up Jack. Wake up son.” This is how I start my day, most days. Weekends not so much, but definitely Monday through Friday. It is my job to wake up my oldest son, get him dressed, and feed him breakfast. “Come Jackson – rise and shine. What do you want for breakfast this morning? Cereal or sausage biscuits?” (Jimmy Dean’s sausage biscuits have been one of his favorites for a while now). I gently roll him over, change his diaper and put on clean clothes. I then carry his mostly limp, half-asleep body to the living room and lay him down, ever so lightly so as not to disturb his second round of sleep, on the oversized chair. I then cover him up and start making his breakfast choice.

“Wake up dad. Rise and shine old man.” This is how I start most of my days, weekends included. It is my job to wake up my dad, get him dressed and fix him breakfast. “Come on Josh – time to get up and get going. What will it be today – bagel or cereal?” There was a time I’m sure when I was young and my dad would do the same for me. Now that he is in the twilight of his life, this is the least I can do for him. I help him put on his clothes, bring him his walker and escort him, slowly, to his favorite recliner – the one with the view of the woods out beyond the swimming pool. I then cover him up, and begin making his breakfast.

This is the circle of life. The child becomes the parent. Three years have already passed in a blink of an eye. I am fearful that when I next awake, Jackson will be saying those words to me as I lay there with the strength of a three year old in the body of a 90 year old. I just hope he loves me then as much as I love him now.

Bright Lights

Lately I have been in an introspective mood (see my really weird “Penny” post below). So staying with that theme…

Every morning I take the train to work - for those not in the DFW area the DART train is a mostly above ground light rail system. There is one small stretch though that does venture into the subterranean for a couple of miles – just before making it into downtown Dallas. Heading from north to south, you enter the tunnel after leaving Mockingbird station – you then proceed to the only underground station – City Place, before exiting the tunnel in downtown.

Lately, there has been something spectacular about the exit into downtown. I don’t know what it is about the stark contrast of the tunnel’s blackness and the emergence into what has mostly been over the last few weeks, bright, sunny skies. Maybe its because the change is so abrupt. There is no gradual lighting change that takes place. You go from total darkness (not total in the sense that there are no lights on inside the train, but total in that you look out and see nothing - blackness) to total, amazing light in the blink of an eye. And it is in this blink, that something comes over me that completely energizes me and gives me pause at the same time. It is in that instance that I feel God’s creation around me.

Maybe there is some symbolism here to be found. Maybe the darkness represents life without God and the light is the embodiment of walking in the presence of God – I really don’t know. Maybe it is all just in my mind. I don’t know and I don’t really care. When I come out of that darkness I feel a big smile come on and I get excited about the prospects of another day. I get excited about all that is great in my life. That’s not to say that this feeling lasts throughout the day. Like any feeling, it goes away. Some days it lasts longer than others. The real key is finding out how to bottle that feeling and release it at any time during the day – not just the morning commute.

1969 Penny

Do you ever look at your change? You know – the shiny or not so shiny round things in your pocket or “piggy bank”. Well, I did recently. It was a penny. I don’t know why I looked at it, but I did. President Lincoln’s face was stamped on it in 1969. It has a dull brown look to it – nothing like the shiny copper of more recent vintage. For whatever reason, the age of this penny got me to thinking about all that has happened in its life. I wonder how many “owners” it has had. Millions perhaps – maybe just a few. Maybe it has spent most of its life under some old lady’s mattress, only recently to resurface after she past away and her grandson put it back into circulation – who knows.

That 1969 penny has a story to tell. In God We Trust, Liberty, Out of Many, One. They all say something about America - Americans. There is a reason why so many want to come here and so few want to leave. Despite what some people may want you to believe, American is a pretty cool place – and Americans do some pretty amazing things in this world. If that 1969 penny could talk, I bet it would have one heck of a story to tell.

The U.S has reached a truce with Osama Bin Laden!

Not! But apparently OBL thinks he is in a position to bargain with us. It’s kind of hard to bargain when you have NOTHING to give. OBL is a leader with no way to lead. By the time his trained donkey can carry his messenger across the mountains to the terrorists, the terrorists are dead.

That’s not to say that because OBL is powerless (or damn near) that terrorism is defeated. We still have Zarquawi running around in Iraqi somewhere. But he too is getting closer to receiving his 70 virgins. We just took out the top bomb maker for AQ this past week with the predator attack in Pakistan. It is only a matter of time before the snake has no head at all.

All signs point to a stabilizing Iraq – which is not to say that Iraq is currently stabilized. Iraq is far from reaching a point where they no longer need ANY foreign help. The recent elections, and especially the last election have gone a long way to that country being able to care for itself.

OBL recent truce offer reminds me of what Saddam said upon his discovery in that hole – something along the lines of “I am the President of Iraq and am willing to discuss terms”. Terms? Yeah…I don’t think so. The only term that will be offered to OBL and others like him is how do you want your death – quick or slow. We have excellent options to facilitate both.

Terrorist wish list - disposable phones

It is highly suspicious that just THREE days after the NY Times broadcast to the world details about the NSA wiretap program, that a group of Middle Eastern men with known ties to terrorist cells (in Dallas) were arrested after attmepting to purchase between 60-150 prepaid TracPhones (phones that are near impossible to trace - because nobody knows who owns it)!!!

Michelle Malkin has a good roundup on the details of this story, which are just now starting to see the light of day.

Good grief - does the media have no regard for national security? We tell the entire world that we are tapping international calls between known terrorists and others in the US...and what happens next? They switch their method of communication and go out and buy disposable phones that cant be traced!! I was OUTRAGED over the initial story - and even more so now.

A couple of warriors you should know about....

I found this on Capt B's blog "One Marine's View." It is from his 1/8/06 entry and well worth the read. Everyone says that Marines, Soldiers, Arimen, etc are heroes...but have you actually taken the time to read about some of the things they do to EARN this title? It is amazing!

You should visit his site to read all of the heroic accounts listed on the 1/8/06 post - but here is my favorite:

For extraordinary heroism while serving as a Scout Sniper, Scout Sniper Platoon, in Support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. During the battle for Baghdad, Sergeant M's sniper team arrived within Company F's position as they came under heavy small arms fire from a determined enemy force. He immediately encouraged Marines to deploy and return fire. Noticing a disabled civilian vehicle on the road in the line of fire and with complete disregard for his own life, he rushed forward amidst a hail of gunfire and dragged a wounded Iraqi civilian to safety. Returning to the front, he spotted a wounded Marine struggling to get off the same fire swept street, he risked his life to lead the Marine to safety. Returning to the front, he spotted a wounded Marine lying in the street. Ignoring the hailstorm of bullets, Sergeant M rushed into the street for a third time to carry the injured Marine to safety. Sergeant M returned a fourth time to evacuate an unconscious Marine. Returning to the front again, he dashed into the contested street and assisted a Marine to safety who had been dazed by an explosion. Sergeant M ensured medical attention was administered and verified that evacuations were ongoing. By his outstanding display of decisive leadership, unlimited courage in the face of heavy enemy fire, and utmost devotion to duty, Sergeant M reflected great credit upon himself and upheld the highest traditions of the Marine Corps and the United States Naval Service.


Please read SSgt Daniel Clay's final letter home as well - be sure and grab a tissue first.

Italy breaks up terrorist plot against the US

Italy has foiled a terrorist plot that would have made 9/11 look like child's play. But you wouldnt know this unless you picked a paper from China, Australia, Italy, Englend, etc...in fact, if you would have picked up a paper anywhere but in the US this past week, you would know about this! This type of omission should not shock me at this point - but it still does.

It is not that there is an orchestrated media conspiracy - with the media ring leader calling up all outlets each night and telling them what to run - I don't believe that. But the fact that 90% of all journalists, editors, publishers are (by their own admission) liberal ensures that we will not get unbiased coverage.

It is interesting that Italy used wire taps to break this plot. The very same tactic that Bush is under fire for. It would be unmentionable for the Times to run a story hailing the effectiveness of wire taps to stop terrorism!

The story.

Buyer beware

Attention car buyers. Do not shop for a new car at North Central Honda. Here is the skinny on the scam they pulled on my sister in law and her husband recently.

Sister in law is expecting (twins) and they need to get a bigger car. Her husband takes his Honda Accord to the place he originally bought it (North Central Honda) to trade in for a Honda SUV (I forget the name – the one with 3 rows). The salesman and husband agree on price, trade in value, line up financing and it ends up being a deal at $500 month. They take his trade in keys, hand him the new keys and it’s a “done” deal.

One week later, husband gets a call from finance guy saying the deal fell through and the payment was going to go up to $680! “Unacceptable” says husband and says he thought they had a deal. After all, the credit manager had him fill out a credit application, and was told it was approved with x terms. Credit manager said, “let me see what I can do and I will call you back”. Doesn’t call back. Husband calls him back and plays phone tag for a few days. Credit manager calls and said, “I got it down to $550 and with a shorter term, lets meet Friday night and you can sign the papers.” Husband goes Friday night to meet (some location, not the dealership) and the guy no shows. Husband finally reaches him the next day and finance guy said something came up, etc, etc. Husband now wants his car back and goes back to the dealership to turn back the new car and get his old car. Of course, sister in law and husband are now late on their car payment because they thought they were going to trade it in. They have also already switched over insurance…but enough is enough and they want their car back.

Guess what, their trade in is “locked up somewhere” and they “can’t get it right now, but if they will hang tight a little longer they will get a deal worked”. They talk with their original salesman who they liked and who was surprised that their initial $500 deal was dead. He pretended (or could have been sincere) that he had no idea. Another few days pass and they get a call saying it’s a done deal at $560 month, which they take. If it were me, I say hell no and demand my car back and go somewhere else. But they were so beaten down by this they gave in - even if it cost them $60 more than they thought.

There are a few lessons to learn here. After hearing this and reading about stuff like this on-line, it turns out this is a common “yo-yo” scam pulled by many dealers – mostly on people with bad to average credit who often fall for this since they think they can’t get anything better (and who ironically enough, can usually least afford the higher payments that come with the scam). Lesson #1, arrange your financing ahead of time with your bank. That way you buy a car based on negotiating the price of the car and that’s it. Forget about them jacking you on rate, term, etc. Unless, you’re a savvy buyer and the dealer’s lender is offering major rebates by financing with them, don’t do it! Lesson #2, no matter how much you like that car – NEVER drive it off the lot until the financing has been approved (no “spot delivery”). You can solve this problem by following step #1.

This is a scam people. The finance guy knows within 15 minutes of running the application if the financing will go through. Financial institutions have this down to a science as to whom they will finance and whom they wont. The dealer knows that Joe Buyer with a 600 credit score aint getting the car for 72 months at 6% interest! But, if he lets Joe Buyer drive the car for a couple of weeks and get attached to it, well, that makes the new deal at 60 months and 13% interest a little easier to take. Car finance people are running a close second to tow truck drivers for me. I’m sure there are honest people in both professions, but I haven’t found one yet!

Freedom to sound stupid

Aint free speech grand! Fortunately, free speech has consequences – like when you say something really stupid, other people are “free” to point out your stupidity, or in this case hypocrisy.

Decorated war hero Rep. John Murtha had this to say about our troops (which he of course “supports”)…”I worry about a slow withdrawal [from Iraq] which makes it look like there’s a victory…”

Heaven forbid our men and women leave Iraq feeling victorious! Gotta love that troop support!


Here is another one, which is soooo outrageous, I’m not sure anyone really takes this guy seriously.

Actor Harry Belafonte “[President George W. Bush is] the greatest tyrant in the world. [He is] the greatest terrorist in the world."

I don’t know about you, but I’m pretty sure those people on Flight 93 would have rather had President Bush on board instead of those terrorist. I’m pretty sure Israeli teenagers would have rather seen President Bush walk into the pizza joint than the suicide bomber. I could fill up 10 pages with many more “I’m pretty sure” examples…but you get the point.

It is statements like this that continue to isolate Hollywood types from average Americans and that will guarantee that Republicans remain in control for the foreseeable future. Dean, Murtha, et al are the GOP’s greatest asset!

Happy New Year

Happy New Year to everyone! It is a really busy time at work, and at home (getting house ready for sale). I hope to have something new to post soon in case anyone happens by accident to find this blog!