Still Too Busy?

Satan called a worldwide convention of demons.

In his opening address he said,

"We can't keep Christians from going to church."

"We can't keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth...."

"We can't even keep them from forming an intimate relationship with
Their SAVIOR."

"Once they gain that connection with JESUS, our power over
them is Broken."

"So let them go to their churches; let them have
their covered dish dinners, BUT steal their time, so they don't have time
to develop a relationship With JESUS CHRIST.."

"This is what I want you to do," said the devil:

"Distract them from gaining hold of their
SAVIOR and maintaining that
Vital connection throughout their day!"

"How shall we do this?" his demons shouted.

"Keep them busy in the non-essentials of life and invent innumerable
Schemes to occupy their minds," he answered....

"Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and
borrow, borrow, borrow."

"Persuade the wives to go to work for long
hours and the husbands to work
6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so
they can afford their empty Lifestyles."

"Keep them from spending time with their children."

"As their families fragment, soon, their
homes will offer no escape from
The pressures of work!"

"Over-stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still,
small voice."

"Entice them to play the radio or I-Pod whenever they
drive.." To Keep the TV, DVDs, CDs and their PCs going constantly in their
home and see To it that every store and restaurant in the world plays
non-biblical music Constantly."

"This will jam their minds and break
that union with CHRIST."

"Fill the coffee tables with magazines and
newspapers."

"Pound their minds with the news 24 hours a day."

"Invade their driving moments with billboards."

"Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, mail order catalogs, sweepstakes, and
Every kind of newsletter and promotional offering free products, services
And false hopes."

"Keep skinny, beautiful models on the magazines and TV so
their husbands Will believe that outward beauty is what's important, and
they'll Become dissatisfied with their wives. "

"Keep the wives too tired to love their husbands at night."

"Give them headaches too!"

"If they don't give their husbands the love they need, they will
begin to Look elsewhere.."

"That will fragment their families quickly!"

"Give them Santa Claus to distract them from teaching their
children the Real meaning of Christmas."

"Give them an Easter bunny so they won't talk about HIS resurrection
And power over sin and death..."

"Even in their recreation, let them be excessive."

"Have them return from their recreation exhausted.."

"Keep them too busy to go out in nature and reflect
on GOD'S creation. Send them to
amusement parks, sporting events, plays, concerts, and
movies Instead."

"Keep them busy, busy, busy!"

"And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in gossip and
Small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences."

"Crowd their lives with so many good causes they have no time to seek
Power from JESUS."

"Soon they will be working in their own strength, sacrificing their health
And family for the good of the cause."

"It will work!"

"It will work!"

It was quite a plan!

The demons went eagerly to their
assignments causing Christians everywhere
To get busier & more rushed, going here & there..

Having little time for their GOD or their families.

Having no time to tell others about the power of JESUS to
change lives.

I guess the question is, has the devil been successful in
his schemes?

You be the judge!!!!!

Does "BUSY" mean: B-eing U-nder S-atan's Y-oke?

First Stamp Expo!

What a great time this past Saturday at the Virgnia Philatelic Expo (VAPEX). This was the first time I had ever attended a stamp collecting event and I must say it was amazing. I was able to find many fine examples of stamps from our country's past as well as some amazing items for sale. There was one first day cover there valued at over $45,000! I spent quite a bit of time at a particular table digging through a box of stamps on paper trying to fill out a set of "Wonders of America" stamps (40 in all). It took a long time but I managed to fill the set and also a couple of smaller sets. I am looking forward to more events coming to this area. This is such an amazing hobby that is dying off slowly...cursed by the fact that letter mail is falling off to email.

What a scam!

The latest on the health care reform road is the new "opt out" option that Democrats are saying is now available to the states. What some of them are trying to keep quiet is the fact that the "opt out" is that the states can opt out of having their residents forced to participate in the plan, but the states must still pay for it. Consider this...it would be the same as having a money back guarantee on a product but you don't get your money back if you return it, you are just allowed to return it. Sounds like a scam to me. Why don't these knuckleheads focus on reforming the system we have, making it more affordable and accessible without trying to nationalize it. Less government in this case is better!

So Sad...but So True!

When Comedians Should Just SHUT UP!!

So let me get this straight. You put a comedian (and not a very good one) on a talk show with three other women who are all riding their menstrual cycles like their hair is on fire...and all of a sudden she is a legitimate opinion writer? CNN is carrying a story by none other than the unbelievably intellectual (I am going to burn in Hell for that lie) Joy Behar that just proves why celebrities should stick to entertaining and not getting involved with anything more involved than which restaurant to eat in tonight. Though admittedly, she is not stroking the President to hard in this article...it drips of pandering to her love affair of everything Obama. This guy just can't do anything wrong to these bleeding heart liberals who think the most important issues to this country are gay marriage and closing Gitmo. What the hell has happened to this country? Our kids are failing in schools that don't have enough money, our roads are falling apart, and political correctness is now a worse virus than H1N1 and we are more concerned about making sure that two men can get married! OY!!! If people like Joy Behar would just shut up, maybe the sane people could be heard. Or maybe that is the problem right there...the majority is being too silent and the minority is being heard!

Let Me Get This Straight...

We're going to pass a Health Care Plan written

by a committee whose head says he doesn't

understand it, passed by a Congress that hasn't

read it but, exempts themselves from it,

which is to be signed by a president who

smokes, with funding administered by a Treasury

chief who runs the IRS, but didn't pay his taxes,

overseen by a surgeon general who is obese,

and financed by a country that's broke.



What possibly could go wrong?

Some Uniforms Should Have Never Changed

Sorry to mix football on my "Observations" blog, but can't pollute my Vikings page with a picture of a Patriot...but this is one of the uniforms in the NFL that should have never been changed. I understand that often teams change their uniform to change their "image" (Atlanta), but more often than not it is to make people buy a whole new version of their favorite team's jersey. New England is one of those teams that should have never changed their uniforms...I loved their old version and do not think their current helmet logo is good at all. And why exactly did the throwbacks come around...again, for the money. The commercials run during the game to advertise the throwbacks. Anything to make money. I do, though, wish some of the teams would bring back the old logos: Denver and Tampa Bay to name a couple.

We're Not Crazy, We're Just Catholic!!

----------Reasons why people think we're "crazy"----------

-We like to keep Mass interesting. We sit, stand and kneel, in no particular order. Probably just to keep the blood flowing.

- It's not merlot and Ritz they're serving; it's the Flesh and Blood of Jesus. No, really.

- Forget a big meal afterwards, just pick up some of the breakfast tacos they're always selling after Mass

- Purgatory.

- We all have 20 cousins. On each side of the family.

- Infant Baptism isn't dumb; it's after-life insurance.

- $5.00 in the collection basket is the epitome of generosity. Anything more than that, someone has hit the lottery.

- A missal is a book, not a weapon. However, it has been known to pull double duty.

- The signs we make aren't just a mark of respect, they're a lot of fun to do.

- We really like statues. A lot.

- After every confession, everyone hits themselves on the head. This is because they have realized that they forgot that really big sin, and they know that it'll hang over their head til the next time.

- Contraceptives? Why?

- Altar boys continue well into their twenties.

- The 14 Stations has nothing to do with TV.

- We've always been taught that celibacy til marriage is the only way to go, forever and ever, amen. That being said...

- The Mass doesn't start for a few minutes not because of tardy parishioners. It's because the priest is running late.

- The Virgin Mary is not a God and we don't treat her as such. But she is without sin, gave birth to Jesus and did it without having sex. That warrants more than a little respect.

- 11:00 a.m. Mass means 11:15.

- We actually get all the jokes in Dogma.

- There are two very different, irreconcilable factions in every single church in the world. They are known as the Saturday or Sunday Mass bunch.

- St. Patrick drove all the snakes out of Ireland. SNAKES.

- You miss JPII more than you miss some relatives...

- Bake Sales are a way of life.

- Your knees are more calloused than your feet.

- Priests have been giving us alcohol since we were little kids. No wonder any one of us can drink Protestants under the table.

- The Catholic way of dealing with a mid-life crisis is having another kid.

- Mass is nearly unchanged after almost 2000 years. We're a little stubborn.

- Whatever you gave up for Lent, you have it in your hands at 11:59 p.m. Saturday night, counting the seconds til midnight.

- Episcopalians are referred to as "Diet Catholics"

- You either love or hate the Stations of the Cross. There is no middle ground.

- We all know Da Vinci code is bogus and inaccurate. Yet we'll still read it if nothing else is going on.

- "Offer it up!" = "Quit bitching!"

- We have Midnight Mass so there are no interruptions on Christmas morning

- You've slipped out an Amen after the Pledge of Allegiance.

- Holy Water can kill just about anything. So Protestants are pretty much screwed if a vampire comes calling.

- There's no need for impromptu prayer; you can always fall back on the Rosary.

- Alleluia becomes almost a swear during Lent

- It's not uncommon for just one family to take up an entire pew or two.

- Boondock Saints is the greatest movie ever. E-Ver.

- Confession. Enough said.

- You're of the opinion that Stephen Colbert should be Canonized.

- When in doubt, say a Hail Mary.

- Peter Griffin, a Catholic!

- Whenever anyone in Star Wars saga says "May the Force Be With You", we get the urge to say "And Also With You" (coming soon: "And With Your Spirit)

- The Pope does indeed wear a funny hat. But it's way more interesting than Joel Osteen's suit and tie.

- Even though you never met her or been to a country she's been in, you're still willing to have "seen" a miracle by Mother Teresa.

- We're the oldest Christian religion. Period.

Gotta Love This!!!!

Think about this:

1. Cows

2. The Constitution

3. The Ten Commandments

-------------------------------------------------- ----------------------

COWS Is it just me, or does anyone else find it amazing that during the mad cow epidemic our government could track a single cow, born in Canada almost three years ago, right to the stall where she slept in the state of Washington ? And, they tracked her calves to their stalls. But they are unable to locate 11 million illegal aliens wandering around our country. Maybe we should give each of them a cow..

------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE CONSTITUTION They keep talking about drafting a Constitution for Iraq .... Why don't we just give them ours? It was written by a lot of really smart guys, it has worked for over 200 years, and we're not using it anymore.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

THE 10 COMMANDMENTS The real reason that we can't have the Ten Commandments posted in a courthouse or Congress is this -- you cannot post 'Thou Shalt Not Steal' 'Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery' and 'Thou Shall Not Lie' in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians .... it creates a hostile work environment.

World's Biggest Idiot!!

Is there a bigger idiot wasting good oxygen in the world today than Michael Moore? He is a continuing font of blithering idiocy!! He claims capitalism has done nothing for him, yet he is reportedly worth (financially anyway, otherwise he is worthless) $50 million. Looking at this picture, he isn't eating too poorly. This guy has done nothing but spew stupidity and hatred for the country that has allowed him to prove to us all that maybe not all abortions are bad. In his case, maybe his mother should have just held her water and drowned him! He twists the truth and tricks people into looking like they support him. But you know, there must be a lot of blind and stupid Americans. Not only did they pay to see his movies...the same people put our current president in office.

Ralph Is Right Again!

One of my favorite writers today is Ralph Peters, a retired Lieutenant Colonel whose no-nonsense approach to politics and especially as it affects the military, has both thrilled those of us in the military and upset some...mainly those in the upper ranks who do not like having him call them out. Once again, he talks about how political correctness is killing our troops. How, instead of fighting a was as it should, we are fighting it as our enemy would like us too...with one arm tied behind our back. It is time that we place the troops on the ground necessary and kill the enemy...if innocents get in the way it is an unfortunate part of war...war is UGLY!!! Here is a link to the most recent Ralph Peters' article...I highly encourage you read it.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/the_rules_murdering_our_troops_u935ECKNWXpLK8C5D96pdN

Hi Ho, Hi Ho, Its off to Jail I go!

Here is another one of those spoiled athletes getting what is deserved. If you are so stupid as to shoot yourself in the leg, then you deserve prison...and longer than two years. The NFL has already said that when Burress gets out he will be allowed back into the league. Why? I am sure the Eagles will have a good receiver by then and won't need to see if he can play for them. I am pretty sure that most people will forget who he is in two years. As our friend Walter from Jeff Dunham's act would say..."Dumbass!!"

Health Care Reform, More "Change" We Can Believe in...Right?

Can somebody please help me understand how it is not the democratic process or the American way to let your Senator or Representative know that you don't like something? People across the country are letting their elected representatives know that they do not like the idea of Socialized health care and they are being called "plants", "special interest groups", and being systematically dismissed as rowdies who don't really represent what America is thinking. Is that so? Then why does it happen everywhere these guys are holding their town halls? People do not want to be told what they can and cannot be seen for at the doctor. Insurance companies do that enough the way it is, it would be worse with Uncle Sam as the head of the World's largest HMO. Maybe these legislators should listen to their constituents and go back to Washington and tell our new Socialist President that this "change" of his may need another look...or at least come up with a plan that is not filled with generalities. I am all for people being able to be seen by a doctor, but I believe that is what Welfare has been abused for all these years. Perhaps he is trying to fix the wrong problem. Hopefully they will start listening to the citizens of this country instead of dismissing them as a bunch of ignorant trouble makers.

Can I Get an Amen!?

This is a letter written by Lou Pritchett, a former vice president at Procter & Gamble, to The New York Times. As of Thursday, the Times has not published this letter, but it has been making the rounds on the Internet. Snopes and other hoax-watching sites have confired this is a legitimate letter written by Pritchett. It states succinctly what many Americans are feeling these days.

I thought I would share it:

AN OPEN LETTER TO PRESIDENT OBAMA
By Lou Pritchett

Dear President Obama:

You are the thirteenth President under whom I have lived and unlike any of the others, you truly scare me.

You scare me because after months of exposure, I know nothing about you.

You scare me because I do not know how you paid for your expensive Ivy League education and your upscale lifestyle and housing with no visible signs of support.

You scare me because you did not spend the formative years of youth growing up in America and culturally you are not an American.

You scare me because you have never run a company or met a payroll.

You scare me because you have never had military experience, thus don't understand it at its core.

You scare me because you lack humility and 'class', always blaming others.

You scare me because for over half your life you have aligned yourself with radical extremists who hate America and you refuse to publicly denounce these radicals who wish to see America fail.

You scare me because you are a cheerleader for the 'blame America' crowd and deliver this message abroad.

You scare me because you want to change America to a European style country where the government sector dominates instead of the private sector.

You scare me because you want to replace our health care system with a government controlled one.

You scare me because you prefer 'wind mills' to responsibly capitalizing on our own vast oil, coal and shale reserves.

You scare me because you want to kill the American capitalist goose that lays the golden egg which provides the highest standard of living in the world.

You scare me because you have begun to use 'extortion' tactics against certain banks and corporations.

You scare me because your own political party shrinks from challenging you on your wild and irresponsible spending proposals.

You scare me because you will not openly listen to or even consider opposing points of view from intelligent people.

You scare me because you falsely believe that you are both omnipotent and omniscient.

You scare me because the media gives you a free pass on everything you do.

You scare me because you demonize and want to silence the Limbaughs, Hannitys, O'Relllys and Becks who offer opposing, conservative points of view.

You scare me because you prefer controlling over governing.

Finally, you scare me because if you serve a second term I will probably not feel safe in writing a similar letter in 8 years.

Lou Pritchett

Note: Lou Pritchett is a former vice president of Procter & Gamble whose career at that company spanned 36 years before his retirement in 1989, and he is the author of the 1995 business book, "Stop Paddling & Start Rocking the Boat."

Pointing the Finger...

I heard an unfortunate story today that shows the total lack of taking responsibility for our actions in this country. The story was about how homes under foreclosure often are left dangerously in disrepair...in this case, with swimming pools filled with murky water. A young girl had fallen into a pool while under the care of her grandparents who were inside the neighboring house and thought she was in their backyard. In the story, the reporter was asking the question, "Who is to blame for this tragedy?" Is it the bank, the city, who? Not once was it mentioned that the grandparents had failed to keep an eye on their granddaughter. And when they interviewed the mother of the girl, she NEVER mentioned her parents being at all to blame. How quickly our litigious society looks to blame someone else for our misfortunes. It was tragic that this happened to this young girl, but let's take responsibility for our own actions...or inaction.

Happy 4th of July!!

This has got to be one of my favorite holidays! Even though I often don't do too much, I just love the day...love what it represents. I even got my new 20-foot flag pole installed in time, complete with an Army flag beneath the Stars and Stripes. It looks awesome. I hope people remember what this day is...other than just another long weekend. It seems that in America we are losing sight of what many of our holidays stand for and just like the long weekends.

Remember Man That Thou Art Dust...

It has been a crazy past couple of weeks. I was in the Washington, D.C. area when the two Metro trains collided, killing several and injuring many. Some were young, some were older. Then following quickly behind was the death of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett...with the shocking death of Michael Jackson and then most recently Billy Mays. Their deaths are no more tragic than the deaths every day of more "common" people, but they show that at any time, God can call us home. It is not just the old who die...so keep your affairs in order and be ready when God comes to you and tells you it is time. May God have mercy on their souls...they were all good people.

They Are NOT Our Friends!

Our President is determined to continue kissing up to the Muslim world, acting as if WE are the ones who should be sorry for what has happened in the past. When I think of Muslim men, I think of what you see here..men bent on violence and protesting...not working to support their families. When I think of Muslim women, I think of women covered from head to toe. We are being painted, by our own president, as egotistical, arrogant Americans who will need to apologize to the Muslim world for Abu Ghraib and other misdeeds of that nature (of which there are few) for years to come. How quickly he has forgotten that it was Muslims who attacked the World Trade Center, the American Consulate in Yemen, the Marine Barracks in Lebanon, took 52 Americans hostage for 444 days in Iran...and several other attacks on non-Americans in other countries. When are the Muslims going to apologize to us? It is time for him to stop trying to coddle the Muslims and be an American President!!!!

Right to Life - Not Just for the Babies

I wish to go on record as saying that killing the doctors who kill babies for a living is NOT the way to go about spreading the Pro-Life message. The murder of Dr. George Tiller is abhorrent and in no way does anything to further the battle against abortion. He was, one of the worst when it comes to abortion doctors, performing still, late term abortions which are the ugliest of them all. Even this does not justify his murder. He lived most of his life in fear (of that I am not sad)...needing a body guard and riding in an armored car. I would like to personally extend my sympathies to his family. I would like to say he is in a better place...but I doubt it!

Solve the Problem!!

When are we going to finally take care of this international problem called North Korea? These guys are doing nothing more than holding the world hostage so they can get the food they need for their army (they give none to the general population) and fuel for their military. The picture I show here is what North Korea is all about.

For the past few years we (our government) has been hiding from the truth behind a delusion that the North Koreans want good relations with us and will drop their nuclear ambitions for food and energy subsidies. The "Six-party talks", created by these fools, were supposed to bring about a peaceful solution and get the North Koreans to stop with the nuclear activity. For all of these years they have led us around by the nose. It is time we stop dangling the carrot and whack them with the stick!!! How do you have productive talks when only one side is talking? That is called a monologue!

These people understand nothing less than brute force. If we REALLY don't want them to have nuclear weapons...then stop talking and show them that we mean business! We have gone to war to stop countries from supporting terrorists, yet we are afraid of upsetting a country that will not hesitate to give those very terrorists nuclear weapons to use on us.

Our government needs to stop fooling themselves, take off the rose-colored glasses and stop thinking that a bunch of talking and diplomacy is going to work. Oh by the way...don't think for a second that the Iranians aren't watching this!

A Reason For This Day

Happy Memorial Day! The traditional beginning to "summer" and the travel season has unfortunately become mainly that...just another long weekend we can use to have a BBQ. Don't forget, this day is about so much more. This is a good day to remember not only those who have died in service to this great nation or after their lives have come to their natural ends, but also those who are still living...many older gentlemen who proudly wear a hat showing what ship they served on...or that they are a Vietnam Vet. Go up to one of them...thank them for what they did for our country...for YOU! Shake that Vietnam Vet's hand and tell him....tell him you really do think that what he did in that horrible place many years ago was appreciated....because he did what his country asked of him and didn't run away. Remember all those who have served and are serving....even their families who sacrifice so much so their loved one may serve. This is NOT a day about hot dogs and hamburgers or getting ready for summer. There is a reason our flag flies at half-staff part of the day.

There is a God!!!

Tony Kornheiser is leaving Monday Night Football! The biggest buffoon on MNF since Dennis Miller is finally gone! Why did MNF insist on constantly putting one non-football idiot in the booth the past few years! This guy was worse than Miller, and I did not think that was possible. At least Miller knew football! Kornheiser wasn't sure what sport he was watching half the time. Here is a column on Yahoo that is pretty good.....

http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Kornheiser-out-Gruden-in-Monday-Nights-are-now?urn=nfl,164086

Finally! Someone calls a spade a spade!

This is an exact republication of an article by retired Army Colonel Ralph Peters, one of my favorite journalists. He is not afraid to tell it like it is! And oh by the way, he took President Bush to task too!

The Casualty Con
Bam Falling For Taliban Tricks

By Ralph Peters

THE most effective weapon terrorists have found to wield against us isn't the headline-grabbing suicide bomber or even the deadly roadside bomb, the IED.
Such weapons can harm us, but they can't stop us. Terror's super-weapon is the lie.
Lying about civilian casualties is the one sure way to impede or even halt US (or Israeli) operations, to force such tight restrictions on our troops that they can't win.
The casualty con's so effective as both propaganda and tactic that terrorists everywhere have adopted the technique. It's been so successful that our enemies long ago transitioned to the next phase: creating civilian casualties and blaming us.
It works. The media love the charge. Our troops and pilots are always guilty -- even if proven innocent. Because so many on the left want us to be guilty.
Few journalists bother to investigate. If the Taliban, al Qaeda, Hezbollah or Hamas says it, it must be so. In Media Wonderland, terrorists never lie. Now every successful strike on a Taliban target generates the instant claim that the dead were all civilians.
And it isn't just the media who back the Taliban. The Obama administration -- a case study in instant foreign-policy ineptitude -- signs up, too.
This week, Taliban terrorists publicly beheaded three civilians in Afghanistan's Farah province, then herded women and children into compounds from which they fought government forces and US advisers.
With a vicious ground battle under way, the Talibs knew attack aircraft would appear. According to military sources, they set up the target. And, just in case, they slaughtered those women and children with grenades before any aircraft appeared. The entire massacre was a planned media event.
And who gets blamed? Not the Taliban. Before the smoke cleared, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton was apologizing. (Apologizing is one thing this administration does with real enthusiasm.)
Our SecState played right into the Taliban's hands. It was instinctive on her part. Clinton and her new Cabinet peers know that our military's evil. No need to say a single word about the Taliban's atrocity.
A few hours later, President Obama stepped up to his mike and read a prewritten statement about his meeting with Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai and Pakistan's bookie-in-chief, President Asif Ali Zardari.
We'd need to comb the historical records, but it's just possible that no American president ever read a statement so out of touch with on-the-ground reality. The platitudes were thick, the substance was thin and the vision was pure fantasy.
No criticism of Karzai for consistently playing the populist card and backing Taliban claims. No criticism of Zardari for cowering while the Taliban overruns his country and its huge military twiddles its thumbs, dreaming of a war with India.
No, our president announced that he's going to bring civilian resources to bear now, sending $1.5 billion a year to Pakistan. Yet self-impoverished Pakistan has more than 170 million angry Muslims. Our president's going to make them our pals for an annual nine bucks a head?
It wouldn't matter if we poured in $90K for every Pak. Multi-year development projects are useless against an insurgency that's 60 miles from the capital. We're turning a home fire extinguisher on an inferno.
The Pakistanis have to fight. If they're not willing to fight to save their own country, there's nothing we can do.
Meanwhile, back in Afghanistan, the Taliban strategy of creating civilian casualties -- and lying about who the casualties are -- is undercutting any potential effectiveness of the 21,000 more troops we're sending to that worthless, hopeless country.
At the end of the day, the Taliban strategy works because our own government sides with the terrorists against our troops.
Instead of begging for forgiveness, Clinton needed to take a firm position. She should have said: "The deaths in Farah province were entirely the fault of the Taliban. To punish these terrorists and better protect Afghan civilians, we're loosening our rules of engagement. We will not tolerate this cynical use of women and children as unwilling weapons of war. These war criminals will be hunted down and killed."
Instead, Hillary blamed our military. Again.
This is war, Madame Secretary. Tragic mistakes happen, but the incident in Farah province wasn't an error -- it was a brutal, cynical set-up. And you stabbed our troops in the back. Again.
If the Obama administration doesn't want to fight, it should bring our troops home now. And let's see how much good those civilian-aid workers do.

Is This the Best "Change" We Get?

President Obama campaigned on his "Change" for Washington politics. As we have seen, very little has changed...whether it be from his inability to affect change or his lack of desire. He has made some changes, usually the easy ones that he knew he could get away with such as anything that has to do with murdering babies. He also fought off the doubters of his Christian upbringing...claiming he was Christian and showing that he practiced his faith. Well...here is another one of his "changes. He is so proud of his Christian upbringing...and so willing to make sure we know about it...that he has cancelled what has been a traditional non-denominational prayer breakfast at the White House held on this day...the National Day of Prayer. All of the presidents prior to him since it was brought about by I believe Truman, have had the breakfast. But "change" is needed and he wouldn't want anyone to think he is pushing his religion! Funny, none of the other presidents pushed theirs. So what is it that our "Christian" president has against sharing a belief in God with others? The more I see of his "changes", the less I like this president.

Very Interesting

This is the second time I have seen a story about former porn star Stormy Daniels considering running for the Senate. It has been quite fun to read the stories. The best part has been the comments by people who said things like it is time to get some of the lawyers out of Washington, she won't be any different than the other Senators who screw their constituents, and they get more colorful as they go on. Personally, I think it would be nice to see someone without the "good-ol boy" syndrome behind them. The only requirement should be that the person is educated and has an idea of what they are doing on the issues. I would think that some sort of past experience in politics would be nice, but there have been wives of killed congressmen placed in their seats without any kind of experience. It will be interesting to see if she actually runs...right now she in on a listening tour.

A Sad Day Indeed!

Today it was announced that Dom Deluise has died at age 75. This is why getting older stinks...all the people I grew up watching on TV and in movies are now at the age where they begin to die off. I loved watching Dom Deluise in Smokey and the Bandit II and in the Canon Ball Run movies. You know, I never realized how sneakingly dirty those were until I let my son watch one with me for the "humor" that I had remembered. I loved in when Deluise's character would become "Captain Chaos!" He was so much fun to watch. There are so few actors today that touch people like those of his age.

Interrogation Photos to Be Released

Recently, our new "Change" President announced that the government would release photos and documents that showed the "cruelty" of American military members when interrogating prisoners. Apparently we, the only country who appears to do so, did not follow the Geneva Convention on the treatment of prisoners of war (by the way, those we have captured do not meet the criteria of a POW, so are not technically protected by that convention). I do not condone killing or maiming detainees...but I do condone our Intelligence people using whatever means necessary to get the information from them that will protect Americans. Here is an excerpt from an article I read in the Washington Times called Loose Lips or Loose Pics, Equally dangerous to national security. It compared the Nation's attitude now with that back during WWII. Here it is:

In an act that would have been unheard of during World War II, the Pentagon, in response to a lawsuit by the never-vigilant American Civil Liberties Union, will release by the end of May photos depicting the purported abuse of detainees in Iraq and Afghanistan by American personnel. No doubt this will make people who regard America - or at least the Bush administration - as a greater evil than al Qaeda feel better. It also is bound to encourage our enemies and discourage intelligence officers who risk their lives daily in faraway places to protect Americans and our way of life.
In any game, much less a war, when one player plays by a set of rules and the other plays by no rules at all, it does not take a genius to conclude who will win. America's enemies know how to play us and how to use our Constitution, legal system, the media and public opinion to advance their ends, while frustrating ours.
America-haters expect the public to recoil at tactics far less severe than the ones they use. They want us to believe our behavior is directly linked to theirs and that if we don't use techniques to extract information from suspected terrorists - information that might save American lives - then they won't torture Americans who might have information they need to help them kill more of us.

I can honestly say that if I were about to be captured in Iraq or Afghanistan, I would shoot myself in the head...because if I didn't do it then, after much torture and suffering...my enemy would. How many "POWs" have been returned alive from those two theaters? I'll tell you.....ZERO!!! The only ones who have returned have been headless or rescued. We are lying to ourselves if we think that if we treat them better they will treat us better. That is old school thinking that no longer applies. They need to be scared to get captured. Our enemies want all Americans dead, not just uniformed ones, at any cost...so we had better do what we need to do to defeat them!

Holiday Inn ROCKS!!!!!

I am at my second Holiday Inn Express in a week and they have both been....The Bomb!!! This one in Osh Kosh not only has the complimentary breakfast in the morning, but also has a complimentary lounge in the evenings for two hours. I was told the owner does it at all his Holiday Inn Express hotels. The hotel itself is really nice...what I would expect from a major hotel. So, this is my unsolicited plug for Holiday Inn...I'm glad I have rewards with them, because I will be using them all the time now.

From 7 We Go To 5....

Tonight was the dreaded disco night on American Idol. Why they keep doing this theme each year I will never know. Tonight was proof that Paula Abdul really is a nut case and should be locked in a padded round room so she doesn't hurt herself. She babbles, says stupid things, and then barely hides her drooling over Adam's performance...which, by the way...was again very very good. And Matt should have been allowed to leave last week, cuz I did NOT like his performance this week. I predict that Lil Rounds and Matt will go home this week.

A Very Good Burger!!

I had not heard of Culvers before coming north for my business trip. I went over to one across the street from my hotel and had a Cheddar Butterburger. This burger was so good!!! No more expensive than eating at McDonalds, I thought this burger was much better and I really enjoyed the french fries. Afterward I had a Butterscotch shake...I haven't had one for so long. A very good meal for a good price. I will definitely eat at a Culver's again!

The Future of Your Army

I just spent the last week at the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) at the George C. Marshall Conference. This is a conference that recognizes the top ROTC Cadets from around the country. It was a very good conference with several senior current and past leaders in the Army imparting their knowledge and wisdom upon the Cadets. On Thursday, the Corps of Cadets conducted a parade for us...and inspiring sight to say the least.

Totally Shocked!!!

I cannot believe that the judges on American Idol WASTED their save on Matt. I missed all the performances on Tuesday night, but if he sang anything like he did tonight, he should have been kicked off without performing again. That was one of the worst performances since we last had to endure Sanjaya!! Hopefully he will go home next week, and now there is no save for someone much more deserving later on.

Blown Away!!!

Now I never cared for Adam Lambert from the beginning, but I think it was more his look than anything...because this guy can sing!!!! I don't know the song he sang tonight, never heard it before...but he showed such control over his voice, the unbelievable range and purity of his sound. I swear he sang most of his song falsetto, which is no easy feat...especially staying in tune. He got a standing ovation from Simon and a new found respect from me. I pick him to win it all with Allison as his competition in the finals. You heard it from me!

Movie Review - Australia

I had heard the warnings that this movie was too long (about 3 hours) and a bit slow moving, but I rather liked it. It did plod along at times, but the story takes a bit to tell. It is based around a cattle ranch in Australia and the children of mixed blood (black and white). I thought Hugh Jackman did a pretty good job of acting and Nicole Kidman gave her typical performance (never much cared for her). I would recommend getting this movie to watch, but make sure you have the time. Worth a rent.

Protecting the Unborn

When should we protect the unborn? Oklahoma recently passed a law allowing a mother to use deadly force to protect her unborn child. This stems from an incident where the boyfriend of a pregnant woman punched her in the stomach and she stabbed him to death. The babies (4) died and she was convicted of manslaughter. Talk about irony!!! This same mother could have aborted these four babies and not faced any criminal charges at all! Now I agree with this new law to protect the babies, but how is it that a woman can kill to protect the same babies the law gives her the right to kill? If we don't consider the life protected when it is conceived, then why bother at all until the baby is born. After all...it is just a fetus...right? We are a sick people.

Megan Goes Home...Finally!!!

American Idol voters finally sent this girl packing. She has been terrible the past few weeks and it hurt to hear her sing her song again tonight. While she was waiting with Anoop to here who was going to go home she had the dumbest look on her face...what a dufus! Well, at least some of the better bad ones are still there and not her. We will see....

Proud To Be A Midwestern Boy!

You look at this image and it tells a lot. There is a lot of heart, determination, and good old-fashioned stubbornness shown here. I went through the Fargo Flood of 1997, the one they thought would never be surpassed...I remember that feeling. Once again, when Mother Nature reared her ugly head, residents of the Red River Valley said, "Bring it on!" Instead of crying out "Where is the government, where is FEMA?" and pointing fingers to blame someone for their misery; they grouped together, sometimes a few...sometimes hundreds...to save "their" city. There is no spirit like the spirit of a Midwesterner. You wonder why people like hiring folks from the Midwest...this is why. That drive, that determination to never quit. I am proud of all the people in the Red River Valley, I have a few friends still there. I wish them continued luck against that damned river...and keep them in my prayers....please do the same.

UPDATE: Just saw this slideshow on CNN.com...Awesome!!! http://www.cnn.com/2009/US/weather/03/30/fargo.slideshow/index.html

He's Back!

It's official...at least in my book. Tiger Woods is back!!! I watched part of the final round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational yesterday and watched Tiger and Sean O'Hair tee off. I knew when I saw that O'Hair only had a 5-stroke lead that he was in trouble. With Tiger in second place just 5 shots back, you could smell the blood in the water and know that Tiger would bring the heat. Of course, O'Hair made a comment that all naive and non-winning players make..."I'm not playing Tiger Woods, I'm playing the course." And thus his downfall began. By the time I stopped watching, Tiger was down by two strokes with another 10 holes to go. O'Hair had already begun to unravel and Tiger was getting in the groove. It is nice to see Tiger get a win under his belt so he can let the PGA know that all is well in the golfing world again.

Early, But a Good Story...

I know Father's Day isn't until June, but I saw this story today and thought it was pretty cool...and unfortunately, very true! Like Valentine's Day, men take a backseat in the importance placed on their particular day. Mess up Mother's Day and suffer until you have enough "ata-boys" to overcome that "OH S%#T!" But men tend to have Father's Day treated as nothing more than a day for a special meal. I have had it told to me that on Mother's Day, it is a time for mom to have "alone time", but on Father's Day, I should want to spend it with my kids...which I do...and want to...at a baseball game! Anyway...here is the link to the story...a good read:

http://www.parenting.com/article/Mom/Relationships/Dads-Deserve-a-Day!?cnn=yes

Historic Run!

They didn't make it past the second round, but the Lady Jackrabbits from South Dakota State University (my Alma mater) made a good showing in their first appearance in the WNCAA Basketball Tournament. Of significance is that this was their first year of eligibility since becoming a Division 1 school just a few years ago. They were 32-2 for the year, seeded 7th in the tournament and ranked 17th in the Nation. In defeating TCU in the first round, 90-55, SDSU had made 16 three-point shots, tying a WNCAA record. It was awesome to see a school such as SDSU make such a splash in the tournament. They lost to Baylor, but it was hard fought. Losing by two is so difficult, but I am sure we will see SDSU again...and hopefully the men's team will get their chance too.

Save the Children!

OK, this is getting beyond ridiculous! The state needs to take the children away from this woman. She has now FIRED the neonatal nurses a non-profit group was providing at a cost of over $40K/month. They had four nurses on staff at all times. She accused them of spying on her for Social Services. It is their responsibility to report anything harmful to the children. She is now going to "pay" for help herself...with what? She is unemployed and has very little income from welfare. They need to take these children away from her NOW and place them in foster homes where they can grow up safe and healthy. She is obviously not mentally stable.

Obama and Jay Leno

Last night I watched the President on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Though I have heard some who said he should not have gone on there, I thought it was just fine. For one thing, he explained a couple of things with the whole AIG debacle that I now understand much better. He also appeared human as he relaxed and joked around...maybe a little too much. When he made the offhand remark about his bowling being like the Special Olympics, I thought to myself that we would hear about that real fast. We did. His office immediately put out the standard apology, but the most relevant comment came from the Special Olympics people. Instead of jumping on the President and being extremely negative, they followed the usual attitude of the Special Olympics and said that this was an excellent learning opportunity that words can hurt. They met what was a poor choice of an example by the President with class. My hat is off to that spokesman for the Special Olympics.

Veterans United

President Obama had proposed that military veterans use their private insurance when being seen at a VA hospital, even if for a service related injury. Veteran's Service Organizations, and in particular the American Legion, rose up in protest. They believed, as do I, that no veteran should have to pay one cent to be treated for service related injuries...that care was promised to us in our contracts. One of the biggest fears was that in the case of coverage caps for a family, the veteran could use the max allowed for the family and the insurance coverage for the year could be gone. Thankfully, it has just been announced that the President has withdrawn this plan from consideration...he actually listened to the Veteran's groups.

Happy St. Patty's Day!!!

A bit late in the day but a very Happy St. Patrick's Day! You really have to love a holiday that exists almost solely for the purpose of drinking! As a local radio personality said today..."The whole world today celebrates St. Patrick's Day with a lot of drinking...what those in Ireland would call....Saturday"!

"Eyes Right" (From my Brother)

TO ALL in UNIFORM past, present and future and all those deployed. I hope my grandkids and all youngsters learn to appreciate their freedom like this kid.

"Eyes Right" tributeA lone young Belgian waits to salute Canadian Troops who were attending a memorial service...

The "Eyes Right" command is the highest compliment Troops on parade can pay and is reserved for dignitaries at reviewing events.

How's this for class? Watch what they do for this little boy.

Every now and then something just makes you smile.

The Litter Robot!!! Awesome!

I just had to show this thing off. I finally broke down and spent a small fortune on the Litter Robot. It is a self sifting litter box that rolls and dumps the litter into a bin below after the cat has done its thing. Whoever invented this thing is a genius. It works so well. The only issue I have is that the cats (I have 4) do not step out of it, they jump. So location is important since they drag some litter with them. But if my major cleanup is vacuuming some loose litter instead of scooping everyday...I can handle that. We now dump the bin once a week!!! Add a little litter to keep the level up...and BAM! Worth every one of the MANY pennies spent...wish I had gotten it sooner!!!

Send a Message!

I really wanted to write on this. It is about time we let the Chinese and any of these other knuckleheads know that we are going to protect ourselves. The USNS Impeccable is one of six surveillance ships that perform military survey operations. It is an oceanographic ship that gathers underwater acoustic data, using sonar and is mainly manned by civilians and is unarmed. Perhaps we should give her some muscle next time and stick a destroyer next to her or a couple frigates. That way, when the Chinese get stupid again we can send a message across their bows to leave us alone. They have been harassing these ships for the past couple of weeks. How much crap do we take before we slap the crap out of someone. We didn't take action when the Islamists were doing this and we lost two skyscrapers and over 3,000 American lives. Time to use that big stick!!!!

Is There a Plan?

So now that he has been in office for almost two months, it seems like there is really no focus for President Obama. All the talking heads I see on TV say that the economy right now should be his one and only focus because everything else will branch off that. However, in his first two months he signed a non-debated stimulus package that NONE of the Congress had actually even read and has rolled back a couple of policies that kept the government from funding abortions or giving money to those who do. He has also dabbled a bit in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. He does not seem to be too focused, although he does keep reminding us that times are hard and it may get worse. Doesn't exactly give me a great amount of confidence in his leadership or those he has chosen to help him.

John Wayne Poll Results

How un-American!!! I cannot believe that the two people who did participate in the poll actually said they did not care for John Wayne! How can anyone who claims to be an American not like John Wayne? He is as American as Mom, Baseball, and Apple Pie! A true American icon!!! Sorry Duke! I hope you aren't rolling over in your grave!

Spring Ahead!

Here is your friendly reminder from your favorite blogger to Spring Ahead this weekend. It's time to lose an hour of sleep but gain some time in the evenings for that much needed yard work or just puttering around the yard. Personally, I think they should eliminate it completely. Loss of daylight doesn't stop farmers from working these days anyway with the new equipment they have. Just seems like a now unnecessary inconvenience.

Show Me the Money!!!

The inevitable is happening. Gay couples in Massachusetts, who recently were awarded the right to marry, are now going after Federal benefits currently only provided to heterosexual couples. As with Federally funding abortions, I have a problem with my tax payer money going toward an issue I do not believe in for moral reasons. I understand that a lot of my taxes are used for things I don't believe in...people are funding a war they don't believe in. But to me this is a different case. Marriage was created by God for the purpose of procreation and the continuing of the human race. When is the last time you heard that sex between two males or two females produced a baby? I am sure some of our "let's play God" liberal scientists will make it happen soon. Do not get me wrong...I do not hate gays, I wholeheartedly disapprove of the lifestyle! I do not think they should be able to file taxes as married/jointly, or get each other's benefits. The STATE allowed them to marry, so the only benefits they should get should be from the state.

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Finally! A little snow for the winter. We haven't had a decent snow here in over two years! This is beautiful! I miss those days in South Dakota when I was young when we were outside playing in the snow after eating Thanksgiving dinner. Here in beautiful Virginia we are lucky to see snow and amazed if we have it for Christmas. This is our first real snow for a long time and all I get is a couple hours late for work which is baffling since they get real nervous here when snow shows up! I would much rather stay home and enjoy my fireplace!