Pictures - As Promised!

OK, florring pictures:



This is the room, Saturday afternoon about 1530 hours (3:30 p.m. for you civvies out there). View from the hallway, the laundry room is to the left just before this doorway. The main hall is behind me, full of all the stuff I took out of this room. Sorry, didn't think to get a "before" picture, and I wasn't about to put everything back in there just for that. I'm crazy, not stupid.



This is the view from inside the room. There was carpeting in here before I started this little project. As you can see, Centex Homes didn't care enough to make sure the floor was cleaned up before the carpet was laid in the first place. When I did the tile (visible in the hall beyond) I had to scrape every inch of the floor so the thinset would adhere. Otherwise, the moisture would have prevented a good bond and I would be replacing all the tiles. Yeah, I'll pass.



0800 Sunday morning: I started laying the Harmonics brand laminate flooring, with lots of help. (not to worry - church is at 1730)



Sara is the 105 pounds of black lab/Welsh Corgi mix, Sadie is the Dalmation/Pointer mix, Mackenzie (Cocker/Dachshound) is checking out the background, Logan (Mastiff?/Dane?/bloodhound? mix) is sprawled next to me and Cinnamon (identify her breed and win a prize!) can't get close enough. I'm the one in the blue shirt. How do you like my contacts?



0805: By this time, it was determined that too many cooks would spoil the broth. The were relegated to the other end of the house. Bye, puppies!



0935: Halfway mark - starting to look really nice.



1100: Last pieces fit and placed. The floor is complete, now all I need to do is break for lunch and go to my favorite home improvement warehouse (hint: it rhymes with rowes) to get two curved corner blocks and some baseboard.



Go ahead and "ooh" and "aah" while I run down the street...



1300: Putting the finishing touches on the baseboard - I love paintable caulk. It covers a multitude of sins left over from the original builder - like walls that aren't quite straight, true, and plumb.

I wasn't the only one being productive that day:



TMBWitW was finishing up the hall bath - I had applied a smooth coat over the knockdown (next time, I'm just tearing out the old wall board and putting in new. Faster, and less effort) and painted the base blue color a couple of weeks ago. She applied the pictures and redecorated with Winnie the Pooh stuff from various sources.

She likes Pooh a lot:



Next post, I will get some shots of the double wide doors at the back - I haven't trimmed out the outside, and the inside isn't painted, so you will be able to see just how out of plumb the walls are in this house.

God bless you all!

Blessings are dispensed without regard to receivers ability to accept said blessing. Winnie the Pooh, Harmonics Laminated Flooring, and any other accidental commercial vehicles used in this posting are trademarks and copyright of their various owner. Hey, I'm an average joe. I just use the things like a good consumer. Were you really expecting a binding legal disclaimer? Pssh. Getouttahere.

My Weekend

Very busy (as I am sure you can imagine). Between shopping for the girl, Praise and Worship rehearsal, and running around like a chicken with my head cut off, I managed to get a new floor in the baby room. And base board. In fact, the only thing left is to paint it and then the furnishing can begin. TMBWitW is thinking Sunshine Yellow.

A man's work is never done, when it come to finishing the house. I know, I promised pictures of the new back door, so I'll get those up. Soon. And, I'll post florring (florring? sheesh. Flooring.) pictures. Very exciting.

Right now the front hall has stacks of stuff from the room that will be the child's room; we need to find new places to stack our stuff. Either that or have a heck of a yard sale.

Check back soon - I promise, pictures this week!

God bless you all!

The Verdict Is...

Girl!

Expected to join us around the week before Christmas. This places her on or near no fewer than eight other birthdays in that time frame; odds are she'll be sharing a birthday with someone.

We don't have a name picked out yet. We (I) had a boy's name picked out - I was going to name him after my father, which is a family name from way back. TMBWitW is leaning towards a particular name, but I won't say anything until it is a firm decision.

We actually knew around 2:30 today, as you can tell it's well past that now; TMBWitW and her Momma had to go to a baby store right away since the sex was known. Shopping, you know.

I am very excited. We are so blessed to have a child! This is gonna change everything, isn't it?

God bless you all!

This Says it Pretty Well

In case you've not picked up on it, I am a Christian. Carol Wimmer wrote this in 1988, and it expresses my feelings pretty well. I wish I was this talented. I'll bet you, dear and gentle reader, wish I was this talented as well. Then I wouldn't be all jealous of people like Carol Wimmer:

======

When I say, "I am a Christian," I'm not shouting, "I've been saved!"
I'm whispering, "I get lost! That's why I chose this way"

When I say, "I am a Christian," I don't speak with human pride
I'm confessing that I stumble-needing God to be my guide

When I say, "I am a Christian," I'm not trying to be strong
I'm professing that I'm weak and pray for strength to carry on

When I say, "I am a Christian," I'm not bragging of success
I'm admitting that I've failed and cannot ever pay the debt

When I say, "I am a Christian," I don't think I know it all
I submit to my confusion asking humbly to be taught

When I say, "I am a Christian," I'm not claiming to be perfect
My flaws are far too visible but God believes I'm worth it

When I say, "I am a Christian," I still feel the sting of pain
I have my share of heartache which is why I seek His name

When I say, "I am a Christian," I do not wish to judge
I have no authority--I only know I'm loved


Copyright 1988 Carol Wimmer

======

TMBWitW and I will be going for the mid-point ultrasound this afternoon. This is the day we find out if the nursery will be ducks and bunnies or trains and big rigs. She is hoping for a girl, I am hoping for a boy (to name him after my father), but we both feel extremely blessed just to be able to have a child and we will love it no matter what it is. I'm sure you can't tell just how excited I am.

WOO HOO!!!

God bless you all, and I will be posting later this afternoon with some really cool news. If I have your phone number, I may just call you from the ultrasound room. Won't that be cool, Gawfer?

Red Shirt Friday July 28

It's that time of the week again! I found a nice red Hawaii'an print for tomorrow. What are you wearing? (A big thank you to Sues for the image)

My headache is gone, the temperature here has climbed back up, and life is good.

May God bless you and keep you always.

Do You Smoke Cigarettes?

Before I left to lay down, I saw this on Sgt. Allen's blog:

This article tells me if you are buying your cigarettes from a "discount" store, or from someone not actually licensed to sell them, you may be supporting the His-Bollocks organization.

You. May. Be. Supporting. The. Terrorists.

Little helpful advice here - STOP SUPPORTING TERRORISTS BEFORE I HUNT YOU DOWN MYSELF.

Smoking is harmful to your health.

God loves you and wants you to be healthy. I quit with God's help, so can you.

I Love the Rain

Naturally, you have to live in the desert and not have had any for a long time to appreciate that statement.

It's kind of sprinkling here in the Valley of the Sun today.

I'm at home, waiting for the migraine medicine to kick in so I can take a nice long, quiet, dark nap.

You see, one of the side affects of having rain in the Valley is the dropping barometric pressure. For whatever reason (I am sure there is a medical study/connection thingy to prove this) when the pressure changes, migraines are triggered in some people. Like me.

Now, normally I don't let a little thing like a headache get in my way. Take some Tylen*l or Exedr!n Migraine and work through it. But, when the migraine advances past the simple jackhammer on the back side of the skull into the territory of nausea and dizziness, I pretty much throw in the towel and take the good stuff. I know that adrenaline overrides my migraines in a hurry, which explains why I never really had trouble with them while in the service; but there's really no call for adrenaline rushes in my current line of work. Except for driving to and from work, but I think I've covered that in previous posts.

The weather here is being weird along with the rain - last Friday and Saturday we set record highs (118 and 116 respectively) for the dates; today it's a balmy and humid 82. I've gone so far as to turn off the A/C and open the doors to let the breeze through and let the dogs run in and out without having to be a doggy doorman while I am here.

Man, it's taking a while for this stuff to kick in. I'm really amazed, considering I took some of the T before heading off to work, some of the E at work (effectively ignoring the dosage instructions, don't tell TMBWitW, our Doctor, or Sue, OK?) and the good stuff once I decided I'd had enough and came home.

Well, I will stop waiting and go lay down. No sense wasting a perfectly good opportunity to catch some sleep.

May God richly bless your lives, and may you always seek His will in your life.

Couple of Things

First, a tip of the hat to rick and kathy for this well worded verse.

Second, a quick salute to my best friend from high school, Bob, who sent me this alert via e-mail yesterday:

Doctors

The number of doctors in the U.S. is 700,000.
Accidental deaths caused by physicians per year are 120,000.
Accidental deaths per physician is 0.1714.
Statistics: courtesy of the U.S.Dept of Health & Human Services

Guns

The number of gun owners in the U.S. is 80,000,000 (yes! that's 80 million).
The number of accidental gun deaths per year, all age groups, is 1500.
The number of accidental deaths per gun owner is 0.0019.
Statistics: courtesy of the FBI


Statistics show that doctors are approximately 9,000 times more dangerous than gun owners.

Remember, guns don't kill people, doctors do.

Fact: Not everyone owns a gun, but everyone has at least one doctor.

Please alert your friends to this alarming threat. We must ban doctors before this gets completely out of hand!

Out of concern for the public at large, I have withheld statistics on lawyers for fear the shock would cause people to panic and seek medical attention.

Slow Thought Process Day

TODAY IN HISTORY

July 25, 1987:

Cary Cartter marries his first wife, which is rectified on April 4, 2000 when the divorce is final. The only high point(s) are the two beautiful girls he helps raise for twelve years, he manages to get sober and quit smoking with the grace of God, and he starts seeing life as it is.

In other news, Cary is now very happily married and expecting his first child in December.

God is good, and takes care of His own. Looks after them, so to speak. Allows them to make mistakes, but loves them anyway. The best model for parenting there could be. No matter how badly I screw up, He will always love me and accept me back.

Please contrast this belief system to the cult of islam, in which you will either conform or be killed. No do-overs, no second chances. Just be islamic or die.

Yes, the "i" in islam is lower case for a reason. This reason. (snappy salute to Gunz, who will be linked as soon as his new blog is up and running)

When are all the "moderate" muslims going to stand up and be counted? When is the violence perpetrated in the name of islam going to be renounced?

Compare that to what happens when a Christian steps out of line – immediate rebuttal, rebuking of the actions that are not in line with Christ’s teachings. Heck, even the little church in Kansas that "protests" the troop’s funerals is being told to cease and desist – and not just by the other churches, but by courts of law. I can’t wait to hear they are coming to Phoenix – I’ll protest their protest.

Sorry for the rambling today, just a bunch of thoughts tumbling around in my mind.

May God richly bless your life. May you find His peace and love in your life. May you know that He will love and accept you, no matter what your life has been up until now.

We're High Class Now!

As much of a techno-junkie as I used to be, I stopped keeping abreast of bleeding edge updates quite a few moons ago. As such, the finer points of HTML have eluded me, much to my web-ring masters' chagrin on more than one occasion, even though I only posted about it once.

Anyway - Gawfer started a blog roll of his own, with help from the exceedingly helpful and computer-savvy Texas Fred. I got a little piece of code (two things to watch out for - a software guy with a screwdriver, and a hardware guy with a piece of code!) and inserted it in my sidebar - now I have IKA's Blogroll listed!

Go ahead, get the "ooh" and "aah" out of your system - I'll wait.

After I tested the view, I noticed that IKA had a scrolling window - saving all sorts of room in the sidebar, especially as the blog roll grows. Well, I knew (being the hyper-aware kinda guy that I am) that Texas Fred's blog roll didn't have that little window. It only took me about five minutes of code inspection and some cut-and-paste action, and voila Fred's roll is in a window too!

I have really come a long way, haven't I? Well, I think I have.

P.S. to all the CAIR lurkers - until you all start standing up and denouncing the murderous activities of the "minority" of your religion, then the rest of the world will continue to see these actions as the mainstream, accepted actions of your religion, and you wouldn't want that, would you? Unless, of course, it truly is NOT a "Religion of Peace" as you so heartily claim...

God bless you all, especially those who would reject the blessing - ya'll are gonna have a real surprised look on your face come Judgement Day!

Thanks, Gunz!

A big thank you and Ooh-Rah! goes out to Gunz, for this lovely photo of me in my younger years, passing on some advice to John Murtha, who recently received an award for his peace-making skills.

Pardon me while I go take a shower; the fact that I even mentioned that traitorous EX-marine makes me feel rather filthy.

Yes, this is a rare Saturday posting. I volunteered to help TMBWitW move some boxes around in the retention area at work, and I woke up a bit early.

When I saw the picture Gunz sent me, (he snagged it from sues) I about fell out of my chair laughing so hard. A little warning next time, please.

God bless you all! Even Murtha, and Lord, let me find it in my heart to forgive him for what he is doing to the morale of our troops.

Remember!

I'm going to be wearing my Red Shirt tomorrow - how about you?

God bless you all and have a good weekend!

More On Personal Responsibility

Mary had this link to an interesting article regarding the de-socialization of the United States.

The author, Vedran Vuk, has some very salient points about the state of the personal union. We, as a people, have come to accept certain government programs, and have even planned our old age around them - Social Security, Medicare, etc. - when it really comes down to taking care of our own.

Back in the day, when the family unit was more often than not located on a family farm or ranch, this made sense. Multiple generations of families living in the same household would work together and help one another - the larger the family, the fewer hired hands needed. My own family grew on the family dairy farm at Black River Falls, Wisconsin, and up until my father's generation the family was pretty much located in Wisconsin and northern Illinois. Since then, there has been an explosion of migration all over the country - I have cousins from California to Maine, from Washington to Florida.

But have we lost the connectedness that being a close family brings? I believe so - some of you may still have close relationships with all of your siblings - I have spoken only to my older brother lately; with the exception of our cousin in Colorado no one else in my family knows that we are expecting a child in December. My mother doesn't even know, and she isn't returning my phone calls again. (that's another post, and quite the soap opera, if you ask me)

Anyway - I know my family is not unique, but I also know that there are still families out there who are still close.

Back to the point - could some of these programs be dismantled? We hear about the privatization of Social Security - what about the ultimate in privatization, and return all of the money to the wage earners? Then, let them make their decision on what they want to invest in. Yes, there are some people who would have one heck of a blow-out, but then sobriety should bring them back to the sense that they just partied away their retirement fund. Along with the removal of Social Security, perhaps it would be time to look at a national sales tax again - removing the income tax and only taxing what you actually buy, instead of what you earn. This has been called a "Fair Tax" and there are much more informed people out there to discuss it with than me; don't even get me started.

Vedran Vuk makes another good point - the mindset of those on welfare is such that if you can count on someone else to bail you out all the time, why worry? This is "letting" people shirk their child-rearing duties, especially where that pesky "Personal Responsibility" thing comes in. I cannot fathom the thought process that says you should set your children up for failure. Isn't that worse than child abuse? My gosh, how can you look at your "adult" children in jail and know that you allowed them to get there, and then blame anyone or anything other than yourself for not giving them the decision making skills and work ethic they needed to lift themselves up?

Tell you what - you all just think about this one for a while. Let's meet back here later and talk about it.

What To Do?

Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm kind of tired. I've cranked out a couple of Bill Whittle-esque entries, and all that venting has wiped my brain. Thus the no-brainer entry yesterday.

Don't get me wrong, there's lots of stuff to blog about, especially in such a target-rich environment as the world today - obliviots, morons, meatheads, politicians (oops, repeated myself there) - but I seem to be empty of words right now.

Not to worry - I am sure that something will tweak my senses again in the next day or two, and then I'll be off and running again.

Me? Not much - I have been working on learning how to play the bass guitar for the church's praise and worship team. The key there is working - I know where notes are on the piano, I know how to play trumpet (although it's been a few years since I've puckered), but trying to translate that information to the bass guitar is ... well, interesting would be one way to put it.

I still sing; in fact, I would be considered a vocalist before any other kind of musician-related "label" but the need is strong for those of us leading p&w to show that we are not limited to singing along with the CD player in front of the congregation.

And, since it's the middle of July, we need to start working on our Christmas program. What fun!

Well, God bless you all, and go visit some of the people on the blogroll. Tell 'em I said "Hi!"

One Year ... and Counting

The tone has changed, the readership has increased (thanks, guys!), and I am looking forward to year two.

My favorite post? I thought you'd never ask...

Originally posted September 16, 2005

The Sheep, the Sheepdogs, and the Wolves

First, a big thank you to this guy for bringing this to my attention.

Second, go read this and then come back here. Warning: raw language ahead – this guy is passionate about this subject.

Finished? Good. We need to discuss something.

I don’t know what your politics are. I really don’t care, because I made a decision a long time ago to judge someone by their actions, not by their words. You get a much better reading of them that way.

I voted the way I did in the national election (it doesn’t matter which one, which year; the candidate I voted for didn’t always win) because the candidate I voted for was a sheepdog. A gray sheepdog. You can pose and posture all you want, but until you actually act on your convictions, you are nothing but a clanging symbol. Or a bleating sheep.

I served this country, and I took an oath to defend her against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I never broke that oath; I feel I am still under obligation to that oath and this country. Many people I served with are no longer with us because they took that oath to it’s extreme conclusion. When I took the oath, it was explained to us, a roomful of eager young recruits, that “foreign or domestic” meant that we were swearing to fight against even our own mothers if they were a threat to the freedoms of this country. With that in mind, the tearing away of the fabric that makes up this country, it’s history, it’s traditions, it’s very nature, should be seen as an attack by domestic enemies.

I am a Christian. I was converted to the Lord by a young man who went on to give his life in service. I am not for war, but I am not going to stand here and say that war is to be avoided at all costs. There is a reason there are no fully non-aggressive countries on today’s geo-political scene. The nature of man is to defend that which is his. God did not create man to be war-like; man became war-like when two opposing viewpoints were formed (over the nature of an offering to God, by Cain and Able). From that point on, wars were fought throughout history. No, Christianity was not always on the right side. Some wars were fought in the name of Christianity that were actually wars for one person to gain power over others. Those were wrong, and give Christians a history that is difficult, if not impossible, to reconcile. Christians are called to be good stewards of that which is bestowed upon them by God. That includes defending what is theirs, as well as helping others defend their blessings.

This is where the sheepdogs come in. I am a gray sheepdog. I am getting long in the tooth, but I will still stand up to any enemy, foreign or domestic, and say enough is enough. I will stand between the wolves and the sheep, despite how loudly the sheep will bleat that they do not need protection from the misunderstood wolf, and keep the wolf from advancing. If the wolf insists on coming closer, I will help take the fight to the wolf.

What I cannot understand is why the sheep continue to bleat even after the wolf has broken through the ranks of the sheepdogs. Yes, some sheep lost their lives, the sheep will bleat, but we have studied the way of the wolf, and it was the actions of the sheepdogs that brought the attack in the first place. Leave the wolves in peace, the sheep bleat, and they will leave us in peace.

That is not safe thinking. That is not sane thinking. You have studied that which the wolves wanted you to see. They did not allow you to study all facets of them, for that would have revealed the darker side of their existence. They have systematically denied that there was a dark side to them. The few wolves who have ingratiated themselves to the sheep by not attacking them right away, while not condemning the attacks by the rest of the wolves, are merely waiting for the day they themselves can make their attack. Then the sheep will bleat again, oh, you sheepdogs, always trying to foment hate against the wolves. You just don’t understand them.

That’s the problem. We do understand them. As long as the wolves did not attack our herd, we sheepdogs were more than happy to let them exist. They have a reason to be on the earth, just as the rest of us do. When they crossed the line and attacked our herd, bypassing the sheepdogs, then they became the enemy.

Now we have other sheep, who appear to be sheep, but who are really wolves in sheep’s clothing. They do everything in their power to discredit the sheepdogs and the Shepherd of the flock, knowing that even if a sheepdog were to raise the alarm that a wolf had slipped in amongst the sheep, the other sheep would cover the alarm with their bleating, saying that the sheepdogs are trying to discredit one of the most loved and creative sheep to ever film a documentary.

Last time I checked, providing aid to the enemy was a treasonous offense. By claiming that events that happened actually did not happen, or by misrepresenting how events transpired, these wolves in sheep’s clothing are giving more reason to the wolves to attack this herd than ever before. Do they think the wolves will let them co-exist if the wolves were able to successfully attack this herd? Do they think their misunderstood wolf friends would allow them to continue in the freedoms and lives that they enjoy today? Ask any citizen of a country where the Laws of the Wolf have been enacted just how quickly the lives and freedoms they took for granted disappeared. Also ask them how quickly their sheepdogs were rounded up and killed – er, “punished” for crimes against the (new) Shepherd. And, whatever happened to the old Shepherd, anyway?

I am tired of the Newdows and the Moores and the Garafalos of this country trying to make us out to be the enemy. If they believe that this country is doing it wrong, then they need to seek out another country where they will be allowed to do it the way they feel it should be done. Not by force, but by reason. As long as there are humans in control of the countries on this earth, reason will not win out. Reason backed by sufficient force will win. We need those who reason and those who are forceful to work together, as they have since the founding of this country, in order to continue to be a world leader. This two hundred and twenty nine year experiment called a Republic, a Representative Democracy, is the best model for it’s citizens there is. Don’t let the sheep tear it apart with their bleating. Allow the sheepdogs to do their jobs, and stand behind the Shepherd. When a new Shepherd is chosen, stand behind that one. Don’t discredit the leader; this show weakness to the wolves that they will exploit.

Now, are you a sheep? Or a sheepdog? Or are you a wolf? If you are a wolf, I will watch out for you, and you will not be allowed any closer than you are. If you are a sheep, I may not agree with what you are bleating, but I will defend to the death your right to bleat it, as long as you don’t cross the line of treason. If you are a sheepdog, I am honored to stand beside you.

America No Longer Exists?

My pastor and his wife think that the America I know and love doesn’t exist anymore. They think that I am holding on to an outdated ideal, and that I should realign my thinking with "how the nation is now."

I don’t think that they have a full grasp of the situation. I can excuse that; they are young (in their late twenties) and haven’t learned all there is to learn yet. She watches CNN for the unbiased reporting of stories; he thinks "L**se Change" is a documentary.

They think that since this country is made up of immigrants, we should allow the poor, struggling immigrants to continue to come in to this country, unchecked, in order to find a better life for themselves. I believe that if this country, which was founded by legal immigrants, but which is made up mostly of native-born legal citizens now, should have better border security and tougher enforcement of existing laws.

They think that patriotic displays and acknowledgment of the sacrifices made and being made are too "over the top" and turn people off; I think that without giving tribute to those who have gone before to secure the freedoms we enjoy this country will evaporate.

I believe that this country can be great; it will take some work and a paradigm shift back to personal accountability but it can be done. Let’s start with ourselves, making sure that we are following God’s Law and the law of the land (yes, including that pesky "speed limit" law) and acting as examples for others; then we can start to help those around us to start complying with the laws and being responsible for their actions. Call on your community, state, and national leaders to be the representatives of the people, not their personal or lobbyist interest.

We can rebuild this country to what it once was – a leader of the civilized world.

God bless you all. Let’s get rebuilding!

Quick Reminder

Don't forget to wear your Red Shirt tomorrow.

God Bless, and a big THANK YOU to all the troops out there!

Why We Are in a Quagmire

This started out as a comment over on Drunken Samurai's site, where he had a few choice words. !!Language Warning!!

Violence is the norm in times of war. Unmitigated torture and mistreatment of a prisoner is strictly outlawed by the Geneva Convention. Now that the left has tied the hands of the military (actually, just made double knots in the ties that are already in place), the American Fighting Man has that much less chance of success.

In the World Wars, there were no lines drawn along certain parallels or borders that the Allied Forces could not cross; our win/loss record there speaks for that policy. After the war, the prisoners were exchanged and the countries we invaded were rebuilt with our money. In Korea and Viet Nam, there were lines drawn on the map; in the middle east there have been lines drawn in our minds as to how far the troops are "allowed" to go. After Korea and 'Nam, prisoners were exchanged (on our part) and the countries we invaded were rebuilt (again, using our own money). Our win/loss record for these conflicts also speaks volumes. By drawing a line, and saying "We will not cross this," we have shown the enemy just how far we are willing to go to confront them.

Not all the way, no no, that might offend them. We will go to this point, and then we will not advance beyond this. The enemy, on the other hand, has no compunction with crossing any and all lines; whether physical or mental, they will cross that point and keep going in order to fulfill their mission, without regard to offending those they attack.

Where does that leave us?

It leaves us in the untenable position of fighting a limited war against an unlimited enemy, without the ability to fully defend ourselves. The enemy will use any and all means at their disposal to attack the American Fighting Man (and his Allies, God Bless them, everyone), including masking their motives and movements by using non-combatants as camouflage ("The US bombed a wedding!" "Never mind that they were firing SAMs from the middle of the reception line...") and by not identifying their own troops by having them wear a distinct uniform. In more than one instance, uniforms of our Allies were used to confuse our troops, giving the enemy the edge in who gets off the first shot.

The American Fighting Man is not allowed, by Geneva Convention, to be out of uniform when in battle, to use non-combatants in combat roles, to wear any uniform other than their own, to treat prisoners inhumanely, among other tenets.

Compare that, please, against the actions of the "freedom fighters" when they held some of our troops prisoner. Compare that to the physical torture and beheading of not just our uniformed troops but also civilians who were trying to rebuild the infrastructure of the country. That's right, boys and girls, we have already started rebuilding the country (once again, with our own money) before hostilities have even stopped!

We, as a country, were vilified because we made some prisoners wear underwear on their heads (the heads were still attached to the living bodies, in case anyone missed that). We, as a country, were demonized because prisoners were forced to form a human pyramid (a living human pyramid, in case anyone missed that part too ...). We allow their journalistic sources (Al Jazeera, in case anyone missed that too ...) to continue doing their "job" while they remove the heads of our journalists (Daniel Pearl, in case ...).

Above all else, remember which side in this battle is following rules, and which side is not.

Some people say the US is a terrorist force. We have the finest standing army, the most technologically advanced weapons and tools, and the best-behaved forces on the face of the earth. Yes, there are some bad apples in the bunch - but compare that to the ration of good and bad apples in the forces we face! Add to that, most of the allegations against our troops are just that - allegations; whereas the enemy makes videos of and then broadcasts the atrocities they commit.

We should be fighting this war the way we know how, the way the forces on the ground have been trained to, not the way some loud (and minority) voices want them to. The time for making nice is over, the gloves have got to come off; otherwise the forces we are fighting against will never be subdued.

God bless you all, and may we be able to vanquish those who are arrayed against us, both foreign and domestic.

Support The Troops BBQ

Bushwack over at American and Proud Of It is ramrodding a BBQ in support of Our Troops. If you live in the SoCal area, or are willing to travel a bit, hop over to AaPOI and check out the details.

I know I would love to be there, and I am willing to drive in from Phoenix to join my fellow bloggers in support of Our Troops, showing solidarity against certain naysayers with the initials of CS (part of Code Yellow Stripe Down Our Backs).

Rolling "fast"? Heck, let's get this Rolling BBQ going!

God Bless You All!

Happy Marine Corps Reestablishment Day

From the History Division of the official United States Marine Corps HQ site:

"The Treaty of Paris in April 1783 brought an end to the Revolutionary War and as the last of the Navy's ships were sold, the Continental Navy and Marines went out of existence.

"Following the Revolutionary War and the formal re-establishment of the Marine Corps on 11 July 1798, Marines saw action in the quasi-war with France, landed in Santo Domingo, and took part in many operations against the Barbary pirates along the "Shores of Tripoli"."

A tip of the hat to my lovely bride for reminding me of this little bit of history. Thanks, TMBWitW!

New Background

A big thanks to Gawfer for the idea and the follow up tips.

See? The Navy is good for more than just a boat ride here and there...

Semper Fi!

God Bless you all!

My Weekends Are Too Short

So, here's a joke to get Monday off to a good start:

Two US Marines are listening to the radio in Iraq.

"American soldiers," coos a soft female voice, "Your so-called national Leaders have lied to you. You are needlessly risking your lives to wage A useless, unjust, illegal, and unwinnable war. Now is the time to return home to your loved ones, while you are still alive. If you foolishly insist on remaining where you are not wanted, the brave resistance fighters will have no choice but to kill you and add your name to the long ever-increasing casualty list of this insane war. So why risk never seeing your loved ones again for a so-called president who has repeatedly lied and deceived you at every opportunity? Why should you be sacrificed so that US corporations can enjoy fatter profits? The only wise thing to do is return home now, while you are still drawing breath, before you return zippered into a bodybag."

"What's this?" sneers one Marine. "An Islamo-terrorist version of Tokyo Rose?"

"No," answers the other. "It's just CNN!"

I shamelessly lifted this from the Snopes.com site this morning, so if you've already seen it, laugh again at it's truth.

How was your weekend? Blessed, I hope.

Speaking of blessing: God bless you all.

It's Friday!

I'm wearing my Red Shirt, are you?

No More PC BS

I don’t think I can convey the disgust I feel for the policy-makers at this point in time. In a perfect world, the Field officers would lead the fighting troops, and the bureaucrats should stick to whatever the heck they do to earn their keep.

Sues pointed out this article on Angry American Designs:

=======start quote
The following is an article from military.com regarding the asinine charges being brought against Lt Col. Alan West in Iraq. We were thinking about adding this to the political humor section, but thought better of it. John Weisman is the co-author of "Red Cell w/ Richard Marcinko.

John Weisman:Memo to Army Chief of Staff Pete Schoomaker
November 3, 2003

Dear General:

Now let's see if I get this straight. An officer whose Tikrit-based troops have come under attack from Saddam loyalists becomes aware that an Iraqi detainee has information about a planned ambush of his Soldiers, but the prisoner isn't being cooperative.

The officer then goes to interrogate the detainee -- an Iraqi police officer, by the way -- and in the course of questioning, fires his weapon as a way of making the point that he's serious about obtaining straight answers.

The detainee then tells the truth. The ambush is averted, and Soldiers' lives are saved.

The officer is then:
A: given a commendation.
B: promoted to full colonel for showing initiative under pressure and loyalty to his troops.
C: told to resign his commission immediately or face a court martial.

The correct answer, I'm sorry to have to report, is "C."

Lt. Col. Alan B. West, who aggressively interrogated an Iraqi detainee so that he could prevent an ambush and save his Soldiers lives, is being charged with aggravated assault by his unit's JAG officer.

According to published reports, Lt. Col West allowed two of his Soldiers to "physically agress" the prisoner (an act for which they were later fined), and then West brandished his pistol and fired two shots to scare the man into talking.
For this, the Judge Advocate General's office wants to end his 19-year career and possibly send him to prison for eight years. Meanwhile, idiot officers who get their men killed are being given medals and promotions, and generals who have never come under fire are putting themselves in for Silver Stars.

General Schoomaker, this is madness -- and you have to put a full stop to it right now.

Because this is what happens when lawyers, not shooters, run the military.
This is what happens in the politically correct world in which a secretary of the army (Togo West) hires a consultant who actually drafts a report stating that the Army needs to become less aggressive and more in touch with its feminine side. WHAT????

This is what happens when the Army culture replaces risk-taking and initiative with hundreds of pages of rules and regulations that hamper war-fighting, degrade unit integrity, and place inane limits on how Soldiers can or cannot conduct themselves in battle.

This is what happens when managers and systems analysts replace Warriors in the command structure.

This is what happens when somewhere along the chain of command, the idea that war is about killing people and breaking things gets completely lost. This is what happens when the Army forgets the words of General George S. Patton, Jr.: "We must be eager to kill, to inflict on the enemy -- the hated enemy -- wounds, death, and destruction."

Now, I'm not in favor of hooking prisoners up to field telephones -- although it has certainly happened in the past. Nor am I in favor of taking the Argentine approach to interrogation, i.e., tossing one prisoner out of a chopper 10,000 feet above the South Atlantic and then posing the question to the second prisoner in the chopper.
Moreover, Lt. Col West's actions came nowhere close to anything that can be called torture. Aggressive? Obviously. Outside the box? Absolutely. But aren't those qualities precisely the qualities we want in our officers?

Because if I were a Soldier serving under West's command, I'd say HOOAH, Colonel, and follow him to hell. Why? Because Lt. Col. West demonstrated something that far too few of today's officers are willing to demonstrate to their men and women: loyalty DOWN the chain of command.

Lt. Col. West put his Soldiers' lives above his own career. That sort of behavior deserves to be praised and rewarded, not given eight years and a dishonorable discharge. HOOAH Col. West

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OK, this is PC run amok. We are fighting a WAR for crying out loud. That used to mean “Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!” That used to mean “They are to the north of us, they are to south of us, they are to the east and the west of us. They can’t get away this time.” It used to mean the United States would go in, kick butt, take names, and then compassionately turn around and rebuild the country we decimated. For reference, see what we did in Japan and Germany after WWII. We didn’t hold their prisoners after the hostilities were over, we released them and shipped them back to their country.

Getting, and using, information from the enemy is an intelligent maneuver, one that has been used since warfare began, back when Og figured out that Ug was going to be hunting in the next valley over and Og waited for him. Using the intelligence gathered to keep your own troops from harm should be commended, not punished!

I’ll tell you what is happening here – since the Liberal press and Democrats can’t get us to cut and run formally, they are tearing at the American Fighting Man from within – demoralizing his attempts at leadership, undercutting the very thing they are supposed to do, so that no officer will ever again attempt to use information gathered from an enemy source to keep his own men safe, or to inflict more casualties on the enemy than the enemy can inflict on him.

Col. West did not fire the weapon AT the prisoner, he fired it NEAR the prisoner. Would the Liberals have preferred he use a dull knife to rip the prisoner’s head off while screaming “Glory to God?” The Liberals seem to love it when the terrorists do that to one of our guys, and yet you don’t hear the Libs calling for the terrorists to be brought up on charges, do you?

All you “cut and run” supporters – I here