Thursday, September 30, 2004
Multi-lateral vs Bi-lateral Talks with N Korea?
It was obvious in the debate tonight that Kerry (favors Bi-lateral talks) and Bush (favors multi-lateral talks) have different opinions about dealing with N. Korea. If both agree that Nuclear Proliferation is the biggest threat to the USA, then it is very important that we get this issue right. Not getting it right could mean WAR again with N Korea and this time there is evidence that missiles fired from N Korea could hit the West Coast!
As reported in Military Connections on August 2, 2003
Several questions come to mind:
1) Why does Kerry argue in favor of N Korea's demand, a position that this article calls " a major concession"?
2) Kerry seems to favor using the UN as a problem solver, but N Korea would consider involving the UN Security Council "prelude to war". Would Kerry be a president that favors appeasement to avoid war?
3)Kerry favored continued use of the UN in regards to Iraq. The UN issued 18 demands for compliance, and only Bush backed the demand (carrot)with a threat (stick) and did not back down leading to the overthrow of Sadaam. Would Kerry have ever gone to war with Iraq? Would the Iraqi people be better off today? Would Libya and Iran respect our word more or less under Kerry?
Sometimes, like Iraq, we have to fight, and that makes it easier to avoid a bigger fight in the future. The enemies read our strength and resolve and decide to wait until our faith in our right actions...weakens.
As reported in Military Connections on August 2, 2003
N. Korea Warns US Not to Bring Nuclear Issue to UN Security Council
By Steve Shayman
Voice of America News
"Tokyo, August 2, 2003 -- North Korea says planned six-country talks about its nuclear weapons program could be scuttled if the United States persists in moves to bring the issue to the U.N. Security Council. While Washington and its Asian allies express optimism for the talks, North Korea continues to keep the world guessing with its rhetorical blasts.
North Korea's official news agency says any move by Washington to discuss North Korean's nuclear program in the U.N. Security Council would "hamstring" negotiations on the issue, and would be a "prelude to war."
Two days ago, North Korea agreed to a U.S. demand for multilateral talks on the program, which would include the United States, North Korea, and the North's Asian neighbors. U.S. and South Korean officials say the meetings could start in Beijing next month.
Agreeing to six-party talks was a major concession by Pyongyang, which had been holding out for one-on-one talks with Washington."
Several questions come to mind:
1) Why does Kerry argue in favor of N Korea's demand, a position that this article calls " a major concession"?
2) Kerry seems to favor using the UN as a problem solver, but N Korea would consider involving the UN Security Council "prelude to war". Would Kerry be a president that favors appeasement to avoid war?
3)Kerry favored continued use of the UN in regards to Iraq. The UN issued 18 demands for compliance, and only Bush backed the demand (carrot)with a threat (stick) and did not back down leading to the overthrow of Sadaam. Would Kerry have ever gone to war with Iraq? Would the Iraqi people be better off today? Would Libya and Iran respect our word more or less under Kerry?
Sometimes, like Iraq, we have to fight, and that makes it easier to avoid a bigger fight in the future. The enemies read our strength and resolve and decide to wait until our faith in our right actions...weakens.
Mt. Rainier is Becoming Active, and Also Mt. Hood??
Mt. Rainier and Mt Hood are active. Does anyone know if the seismographs on Mt Rainier or Mt Hood registers only local events or could they be picking up almost continuous events at Mt St Helens?
Chart from 9/29/04 and 9/30/04
Chart from 9/29/04 and 9/30/04
Wednesday, September 29, 2004
Haiti and Hurricane Jeanne Update
A Christian missionary located in Haiti, by the name of Karen Davis talked with Haven Today about conditions in the city of Gonaives in Haiti. She said that in parts of this city of 250,000, flood waters ran over eight (8) feet deep. "Much of the ramshackle housing in the city was swept away by the flood. Five full days have elapsed since Jeanne went through the area ( at the time the program was recorded for broadcast, today), and many of the homes not destroyed are in shambles."
If you or your friends want to help, I'm sure Haven Ministries would love your support
If you or your friends want to help, I'm sure Haven Ministries would love your support
Tuesday, September 28, 2004
September 28, 2004
Andrew Hofer asks a great question:
"How can the Democrats possibly have gotten themselves into a position where they even suspect that a victory for the Zarqawi or Bin Laden forces would in some way be welcome to them? Or that the capture or killing of Bin Laden would not be something to celebrate with a whole heart?"
David Limbaugh asks the same question in an article "Christopher Hitchens on Mrs. Kerry and Dems Rooting Against American Success"
The Door Is Closing, is an article at Belmont Club suggesting Iran may be four (4) to six (6) months away from joining the Nuclear Club. Most agree that Iran must not be allowed to join and are trying desperately, with diplomacy, to head off the Mullahs. "What President Bush will do with the clock running out is anyone's guess. But it's three points down and five seconds to go."
Over at GeorgeBush.Com "Rudy Giuliani Unveils John Kerry's Debate Briefing Book".
"Senator Kerry has taken so many different positions on the issues facing the country that we thought he would benefit from the overview of the most interesting debate -- the one John Kerry is having with himself. He's been for the war, against the war and for it and against it again. Last week, he became an anti-war candidate again. This is a fatal flaw and the American people see through it. John Kerry is not able to take a principled position and is the wrong choice to guide America through this critical time."
Get your copy of Senator Kerry's Debate Briefing Book by clicking here.
At Marine Corps Moms the reception for returning troopers is a far cry from the way we greeted VietNam Vets. We still have a way to go, though, to protect their jobs when they return!
Finally at Regan's Rubric the question is asked, why, if two soldiers are equal in time and grade, but he is married and I am single, and we do the same job, should he make thousands more than I do? Is this a legitimate question? I think so! It wouldn't happen in private industry that I am aware of. Although we have taxed marrieds differently than singles (and we tax homosexual couples as two singles. The marriage deduction is not available to them). This seems to be one of those "life is not fair" things that we can fix.
"How can the Democrats possibly have gotten themselves into a position where they even suspect that a victory for the Zarqawi or Bin Laden forces would in some way be welcome to them? Or that the capture or killing of Bin Laden would not be something to celebrate with a whole heart?"
David Limbaugh asks the same question in an article "Christopher Hitchens on Mrs. Kerry and Dems Rooting Against American Success"
The Door Is Closing, is an article at Belmont Club suggesting Iran may be four (4) to six (6) months away from joining the Nuclear Club. Most agree that Iran must not be allowed to join and are trying desperately, with diplomacy, to head off the Mullahs. "What President Bush will do with the clock running out is anyone's guess. But it's three points down and five seconds to go."
Over at GeorgeBush.Com "Rudy Giuliani Unveils John Kerry's Debate Briefing Book".
"Senator Kerry has taken so many different positions on the issues facing the country that we thought he would benefit from the overview of the most interesting debate -- the one John Kerry is having with himself. He's been for the war, against the war and for it and against it again. Last week, he became an anti-war candidate again. This is a fatal flaw and the American people see through it. John Kerry is not able to take a principled position and is the wrong choice to guide America through this critical time."
Get your copy of Senator Kerry's Debate Briefing Book by clicking here.
At Marine Corps Moms the reception for returning troopers is a far cry from the way we greeted VietNam Vets. We still have a way to go, though, to protect their jobs when they return!
Finally at Regan's Rubric the question is asked, why, if two soldiers are equal in time and grade, but he is married and I am single, and we do the same job, should he make thousands more than I do? Is this a legitimate question? I think so! It wouldn't happen in private industry that I am aware of. Although we have taxed marrieds differently than singles (and we tax homosexual couples as two singles. The marriage deduction is not available to them). This seems to be one of those "life is not fair" things that we can fix.
Monday, September 27, 2004
Did The President Lie About Iraq?
The FactCheck.org, an affiliate of the Annenberg Center, critiques the ad of Bush calling Kerry inconsistent on Iraq. They say the quotes are taken out of context. Their bottom line on the ad is: "But aside from the $87 billion matter(which shows inconsistency), this Bush ad is a textbook example of how to mislead voters through selective editing."
When I read the actual quotes, sure Kerry says other asides, but they do not appear out of context to me. I also think you have to look at a longer period of time than the year they looked at to see Kerry's true pattern. To really look at Kerry being inconsistent, you need to look at the last ten years or so and Kerry "Flips and Flops" all over the lot. Judge for yourself by going to the FactCheck.org's site.
While you do that research also consider the Kerry question: Did Bush lie? Read the article in Insight ON THE NEWS "Did the President Lie about Iraq?" By Buddy Eberle. You will have to conclude the president did lie!. What was Kerry saying at this time?
Let me ad this reference to an article in Commentary about "The 1997 Speech That Damns John Kerry" He concludes by writing:
Kerry gave this blistering speech in response to the fact that on October 29, 1997, Saddam Hussein kicked U.S. weapons inspectors out of Iraq. Kerry argued it was "unthinkable" that Saddam be allowed to scuttle the inspection process and defy the will of the international community.
Yet despite more resolutions by the UN Security Council AND the passage of a law by Congress making regime change in Iraq the official policy of the US government AND a four-day bombing campaign against Saddam Hussein in late 1998, weapons inspectors did not set foot on Iraqi soil again until the Bush administration forced them back in in November 2002.
In the intervening four years America suffered terrorist attacks on her embassies in Africa, on her warship in Yemen, and on her homeland on September 11.
So is it plausible for John Kerry to have believed in 1997 that Saddam was a grave threat requiring the use of significant, preemptive, and unilateral military force but to now, more than five years later and in a post-9/11 world, stand before us and argue the opposite? It is not.
John Kerry's own words both then and now damn him as a man who changes his beliefs and positions based on political expediency and nothing more.
When I read the actual quotes, sure Kerry says other asides, but they do not appear out of context to me. I also think you have to look at a longer period of time than the year they looked at to see Kerry's true pattern. To really look at Kerry being inconsistent, you need to look at the last ten years or so and Kerry "Flips and Flops" all over the lot. Judge for yourself by going to the FactCheck.org's site.
While you do that research also consider the Kerry question: Did Bush lie? Read the article in Insight ON THE NEWS "Did the President Lie about Iraq?" By Buddy Eberle. You will have to conclude the president did lie!. What was Kerry saying at this time?
Let me ad this reference to an article in Commentary about "The 1997 Speech That Damns John Kerry" He concludes by writing:
Kerry gave this blistering speech in response to the fact that on October 29, 1997, Saddam Hussein kicked U.S. weapons inspectors out of Iraq. Kerry argued it was "unthinkable" that Saddam be allowed to scuttle the inspection process and defy the will of the international community.
Yet despite more resolutions by the UN Security Council AND the passage of a law by Congress making regime change in Iraq the official policy of the US government AND a four-day bombing campaign against Saddam Hussein in late 1998, weapons inspectors did not set foot on Iraqi soil again until the Bush administration forced them back in in November 2002.
In the intervening four years America suffered terrorist attacks on her embassies in Africa, on her warship in Yemen, and on her homeland on September 11.
So is it plausible for John Kerry to have believed in 1997 that Saddam was a grave threat requiring the use of significant, preemptive, and unilateral military force but to now, more than five years later and in a post-9/11 world, stand before us and argue the opposite? It is not.
John Kerry's own words both then and now damn him as a man who changes his beliefs and positions based on political expediency and nothing more.
Sunday, September 26, 2004
45 Million Uninsured
I have been having a friendly little debate with Jon's Corner of the Whirled and after my last response I went surfing some of the links on my website. I went to TCS Tech Central Station and came across the article "Good Bye, Joan" by Duane D. Freese. It chronicals the fight his sister went through fighting colorectal cancer. She was one of the 45 million uninsured.
Freese says, "The facts are that the goals of universal, affordable, quality health care are not partisan goals. The debate is about methods, not goals."
President Bush has put in place new prescription drug benefits for seniors -- one reason the costs of Medicare for seniors will rise but their cost for health care will go down. Part of that reform also will require seniors get a physical exam when they enter Medicare -- a step that should encourage early treatment. The Bush administration also is instituting reforms that will encourage the use of information technology to eliminate the communications gaps that cost so much in money, patient suffering and even lives. And he wants to promote personal health accounts to provide additional coverage to 4.7 million now uninsured Americans. Cost over 10 years: $120 billion.
Kerry's health plan essentially would create a reinsurance pool for small business, encourage people to sign into plans like those for members of Congress and reputedly help 27 million uninsured. Cost over 10 years: $653 billion, according to Kenneth W. Thorpe of Emory University, who drew up the cost estimates for the Clinton administration's health proposals, to $1.5 trillion, according to an American Enterprise Institute study directed by Joe Antos, formerly assistant director for health and human resources at the Congressional Budget Office. The National Center for Policy Analysis has provided a middle ground figure for the cost of Kerry's program, but says unintended economic consequences of the plan could leave as many uninsured in the end as there are today.
The costs of insuring all are staggering from $120 billion to as much as $1.5 trillion over 10 years. Before we spend that kind of money there should be a debate about our priorities in light of the hugh numbers we are spending now whether you calculate that amount on a Unified budget or a GAAP accounting budget. We also need an assessment of Tort reform, which the democrats oppose which is costing $250 billion per year.
Freese says, "The facts are that the goals of universal, affordable, quality health care are not partisan goals. The debate is about methods, not goals."
President Bush has put in place new prescription drug benefits for seniors -- one reason the costs of Medicare for seniors will rise but their cost for health care will go down. Part of that reform also will require seniors get a physical exam when they enter Medicare -- a step that should encourage early treatment. The Bush administration also is instituting reforms that will encourage the use of information technology to eliminate the communications gaps that cost so much in money, patient suffering and even lives. And he wants to promote personal health accounts to provide additional coverage to 4.7 million now uninsured Americans. Cost over 10 years: $120 billion.
Kerry's health plan essentially would create a reinsurance pool for small business, encourage people to sign into plans like those for members of Congress and reputedly help 27 million uninsured. Cost over 10 years: $653 billion, according to Kenneth W. Thorpe of Emory University, who drew up the cost estimates for the Clinton administration's health proposals, to $1.5 trillion, according to an American Enterprise Institute study directed by Joe Antos, formerly assistant director for health and human resources at the Congressional Budget Office. The National Center for Policy Analysis has provided a middle ground figure for the cost of Kerry's program, but says unintended economic consequences of the plan could leave as many uninsured in the end as there are today.
The costs of insuring all are staggering from $120 billion to as much as $1.5 trillion over 10 years. Before we spend that kind of money there should be a debate about our priorities in light of the hugh numbers we are spending now whether you calculate that amount on a Unified budget or a GAAP accounting budget. We also need an assessment of Tort reform, which the democrats oppose which is costing $250 billion per year.
Saturday, September 25, 2004
September 25, 2004
Interesting story from Slate: The Cult of Che, Don't Applaud The Motorcycle Diaries
Paul Berman writes about Che Guevera and for what he really should be remembered.
Belmont Club writes about Cat Stevens being turned away from the US. A lot has changed since 9/11. But not enough according to Michelle Malkin whose book "Invasion: How America Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals, and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores" is a must read.
Chrenkoff writes about "The Boss" who says the vast right wing conspiracy and Fox has forced the MSM to be objective, concluding that is amoral and in his eyes that's BAAAD.
Critical Distance BV Weblog has a great graphic of two galaxies colliding.
David Limbaugh.com finds a study done by The Heritage Foundation that says Kerry, if elected, would increase the budget deficit not reduce it:
Realistically, Senator Kerry's current tax and spending proposals would actually increase the budget deficit. Third-party estimates project that Senator Kerry's proposals would raise the 2008 budget deficit to $525 billion. Even a rosy projection that, whenever possible, relies on the Kerry campaign's own numbers reveals a 2008 budget deficit of $443 billion.
Now, by now you should know that we are talking about a unified budget, which understates the problem versus a GAAP budget
Paul Berman writes about Che Guevera and for what he really should be remembered.
Belmont Club writes about Cat Stevens being turned away from the US. A lot has changed since 9/11. But not enough according to Michelle Malkin whose book "Invasion: How America Welcomes Terrorists, Criminals, and Other Foreign Menaces to Our Shores" is a must read.
Chrenkoff writes about "The Boss" who says the vast right wing conspiracy and Fox has forced the MSM to be objective, concluding that is amoral and in his eyes that's BAAAD.
Critical Distance BV Weblog has a great graphic of two galaxies colliding.
David Limbaugh.com finds a study done by The Heritage Foundation that says Kerry, if elected, would increase the budget deficit not reduce it:
Realistically, Senator Kerry's current tax and spending proposals would actually increase the budget deficit. Third-party estimates project that Senator Kerry's proposals would raise the 2008 budget deficit to $525 billion. Even a rosy projection that, whenever possible, relies on the Kerry campaign's own numbers reveals a 2008 budget deficit of $443 billion.
Now, by now you should know that we are talking about a unified budget, which understates the problem versus a GAAP budget
Friday, September 24, 2004
"Good News for Tortuga Island; But Still Deadly"
By Mitch Battros - ECTV
Sep 24, 2004, 23:11
"Although a tragic and deadly catastrophe has in fact occurred, the latest news sheds light on a better ending for Tortuga Island.
"Having gathered several news sources, the task of putting a puzzle together has taken place. The original confirmation as reported by several international news agencies, some of which were provided in the last ECTV newsletter, was authentic and based on eyewitness reports. The main source of those reports came from two United Nations helicopter crews who were dispatched to assess the damage to Tortuga caused by hurricane ‘Jeanne’. When they made their first few flybys, all they could see was washed out land. Or perhaps better put, no land at all. It has been reported the broadcast which came over the UN radio was (parts may be lost in translation) “the island is gone. I can only see large waves”.
Mover Mike
"As this UN tandem helicopter crew continued aerial surveillance, bodies were seen floating in the water. It may have been hundreds washed away by high winds and tsunami like waves. It is not hard to see how this tandem crew put two and two together to complete a visual, and make their report as posted by several news agencies including ECTV.
"What was officially reported by UN representatives was based on the above observations. So indeed, it looked to them as though the Island of Tortuga had vanished, and all its 26,000 inhabitants were gone. The not so good news is that in fact, thousands have died, many of which were seen floating in the waters around Tortuga and Haiti. The search & rescue operation continues."
When I first heard about Tortuga Island last night, the thought that 26,000 people could cease to exist was horrifying. Then came confirmation from six (6) foreign newspapers confirming the worst, that the island had disappeared. Now we have reports that though the island has been devastated by Hurrican Jeanne, it still exists. I pray the story ends here. When so many of us living so close to the coast, it is miraculous that we have avoided such a huge disaster.
Here's the link to the Belfast Telegraph
Sep 24, 2004, 23:11
"Although a tragic and deadly catastrophe has in fact occurred, the latest news sheds light on a better ending for Tortuga Island.
"Having gathered several news sources, the task of putting a puzzle together has taken place. The original confirmation as reported by several international news agencies, some of which were provided in the last ECTV newsletter, was authentic and based on eyewitness reports. The main source of those reports came from two United Nations helicopter crews who were dispatched to assess the damage to Tortuga caused by hurricane ‘Jeanne’. When they made their first few flybys, all they could see was washed out land. Or perhaps better put, no land at all. It has been reported the broadcast which came over the UN radio was (parts may be lost in translation) “the island is gone. I can only see large waves”.
Mover Mike
"As this UN tandem helicopter crew continued aerial surveillance, bodies were seen floating in the water. It may have been hundreds washed away by high winds and tsunami like waves. It is not hard to see how this tandem crew put two and two together to complete a visual, and make their report as posted by several news agencies including ECTV.
"What was officially reported by UN representatives was based on the above observations. So indeed, it looked to them as though the Island of Tortuga had vanished, and all its 26,000 inhabitants were gone. The not so good news is that in fact, thousands have died, many of which were seen floating in the waters around Tortuga and Haiti. The search & rescue operation continues."
When I first heard about Tortuga Island last night, the thought that 26,000 people could cease to exist was horrifying. Then came confirmation from six (6) foreign newspapers confirming the worst, that the island had disappeared. Now we have reports that though the island has been devastated by Hurrican Jeanne, it still exists. I pray the story ends here. When so many of us living so close to the coast, it is miraculous that we have avoided such a huge disaster.
Here's the link to the Belfast Telegraph
Tortuga Island Disaster - UPDATE
Six newspapers have confirmed the disaster on the Tortuga Island, in which 26,000 people have disappeared:
Italy Global News Agency
The International – Portugal
Belt Iberica News Agency – Spain
IBL NEWS
Noticias News Agency- Barcelona
Gorodfm News - Russia
Italy Global News Agency
The International – Portugal
Belt Iberica News Agency – Spain
IBL NEWS
Noticias News Agency- Barcelona
Gorodfm News - Russia
"The Kid Did Good"
Quoted in The Daily times, Ed Morrisey, Jr., who swore Gorge W Bush into the Texas Air National Guard:
Morrisey said the commander he worked for at the unit in Texas was sent there to rebuild the image of the unit. There were only two to four pilot training slots given to them per year, he said. Individuals questioned by an evaluation board and then chosen by the commander had to be the best.
"Bush was selected and he turned out just fine,'' he said.
According to Morrisey, after Bush began working as a fighter pilot, he became regarded as one of the best pilots there. Unit commander Col. Maurice Udell considered Bush to be one of his top five pilots, Morrisey said.
"The kid did good,'' he said.
Morrisey said the commander he worked for at the unit in Texas was sent there to rebuild the image of the unit. There were only two to four pilot training slots given to them per year, he said. Individuals questioned by an evaluation board and then chosen by the commander had to be the best.
"Bush was selected and he turned out just fine,'' he said.
According to Morrisey, after Bush began working as a fighter pilot, he became regarded as one of the best pilots there. Unit commander Col. Maurice Udell considered Bush to be one of his top five pilots, Morrisey said.
"The kid did good,'' he said.
Tortuga Island Disaster
I haven't seen this anywhere except by Mitch Battros of ECTV
"I have now received no less than six news agency confirmations reporting the smallisland of T ortugaT he entire island along with its 26,000 inhabitants have been washed away by “large waves”. T his unthinkable event happened as a result of hurricane ‘Jeanne’, which has also killed over 2,000 people and displaced 250,000 in Haiti
"I have now received no less than six news agency confirmations reporting the small
Thursday, September 23, 2004
Tim Germer and the Unified Budget
Tim Germer has posted a chart of the Federal Deficit from 1960 to 2002 with estimates for 2003 AND 2004. A chart is like a picture of a thousand words. Unfortunately Germer's chart is not the whole story. It represents statistics from a unified budget which most politicians use, as did the Oregonian recently. As citizens, whose money it is that politicians spend, we should know what the GAAP numbers for the deficit are. Two things, under GAAP accounting which is not based on cash but on accrual methods, there was no surplus during the Clinton years, and the deficits are tremendously bigger than the politicians want you to know. For example, if you spend $3,000 per month for living expenses that is Cash Accounting if you do not count the oil bill which comes once a year of $300, and the term life insurance bill of $900, and the car insurance of $600 per six months. Under an accrual method your actual living expenses per month would be $3,200 (300 + 900 + 600 + 600=2400/12 = $200 per month). That's important especially if you think your pay of $3000 is covering your nut. You end up going into debt to cover those extra expenses, just like the Federal Government does. If your debt goes up each year, you did not meet expenses, you did not run a surplus.
Please see Mover Mike Sept 8, 2004
The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration
and the follow up Mover Mike posted on Sept. 10, 2004
Follow up to Sept 8th's "The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration
Please see Mover Mike Sept 8, 2004
The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration
and the follow up Mover Mike posted on Sept. 10, 2004
Follow up to Sept 8th's "The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration
Hate to Ruin Your Day!
2004 SurveyUSA Election PollsSorted:
Newest Data on Top
Last Updated:9/22/04President, OR 9/22/2004
Bush (R) 48%
Kerry (D) 47%
Other/Undecided 5%
Data Collected 9/19/04 - 9/21/04
Geography State of Oregon Sample Population 747
Likely Voters Margin of Error 3.7%
Client KATU-TV Portland
Source:http://www.surveyusa.com/currentelectionpolls.html
This is the first survey I've seen showing Bush ahead w/o the margin of error factored in.
Newest Data on Top
Last Updated:9/22/04President, OR 9/22/2004
Bush (R) 48%
Kerry (D) 47%
Other/Undecided 5%
Data Collected 9/19/04 - 9/21/04
Geography State of Oregon Sample Population 747
Likely Voters Margin of Error 3.7%
Client KATU-TV Portland
Source:http://www.surveyusa.com/currentelectionpolls.html
This is the first survey I've seen showing Bush ahead w/o the margin of error factored in.
Wednesday, September 22, 2004
What the Exxon Valdez Wrought...
You remember the horrendous accident in Alaska on March 24, 1989, the Exxon Valdez grounded on Bligh Reef, and spilled nearly 11 million gallons of oil into the biologically rich waters of Prince William Sound.
THE LAST PIECE OF THE OIL PUZZLE
By Sven Lorenz
"...thanks to a little-noticed change in regulations. In December 2003, the International Maritime Organization, an arm of the United Nations, agreed to eliminate single-hull tankers by 2010 and to accelerate the timetable to phase out certain single-hull vessels by May 2005.
"The following is hardly known by the public...but this agreement means that 13% of the world's tanker fleet will have to be scrapped by April 2005. By 2010, a staggering 40% of the world's oil tanker fleet needs to be replaced." (As a result of double hull tanker requirements).
What this means is that 13% of sea-born oil deliveries will cease next April! 80% of all oil consumption is delivered by sea! We could be real close to an oil demand shock that will make $50 per barrel look low and it won't be the fault of the oil companies.
Double-hulled tankers were required after the Exxon Valdez oil spill. The United States Congress passed The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 requiring double-hull tankers now, but allowing the transportation companies until 2015 to replace existing tankers. {A double-hulled tanker is a large tanker ship used for transporting liquids(usually petroleum).The ship has two hulls to prevent the liquid cargo from spilling; if the outer hull is breached, the inner hull keeps the transported substance in place.}
THE LAST PIECE OF THE OIL PUZZLE
By Sven Lorenz
"...thanks to a little-noticed change in regulations. In December 2003, the International Maritime Organization, an arm of the United Nations, agreed to eliminate single-hull tankers by 2010 and to accelerate the timetable to phase out certain single-hull vessels by May 2005.
"The following is hardly known by the public...but this agreement means that 13% of the world's tanker fleet will have to be scrapped by April 2005. By 2010, a staggering 40% of the world's oil tanker fleet needs to be replaced." (As a result of double hull tanker requirements).
What this means is that 13% of sea-born oil deliveries will cease next April! 80% of all oil consumption is delivered by sea! We could be real close to an oil demand shock that will make $50 per barrel look low and it won't be the fault of the oil companies.
Peter OToole Wouldn't Be Happy!
For years whenever friends mentioned "exercise", I would trot out my Peter OToole story:
" I get all my exercise being a pallbearer for my friends who exercised." It always got a laugh and a rolling of the eyes from my wife. I know she has my best interest at heart, still I resisted. Now this! According to studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association,
"Elderly people who take regular walks are less likely to suffer dementia than those who take little exercise...".
"Keeping active has already been proven to lessen the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Now moderate daily exercise such as long strolls has been found to keep elderly minds healthier."
No more Peter OToole jokes. I gave up drinking and smoking, now I resolve to give up my sedentary lifestyle.
Can I still make Peter jokes? (I think my wife just rolled her eyes!)
" I get all my exercise being a pallbearer for my friends who exercised." It always got a laugh and a rolling of the eyes from my wife. I know she has my best interest at heart, still I resisted. Now this! According to studies published in the Journal of the American Medical Association,
"Elderly people who take regular walks are less likely to suffer dementia than those who take little exercise...".
"Keeping active has already been proven to lessen the risk of heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Now moderate daily exercise such as long strolls has been found to keep elderly minds healthier."
No more Peter OToole jokes. I gave up drinking and smoking, now I resolve to give up my sedentary lifestyle.
Can I still make Peter jokes? (I think my wife just rolled her eyes!)
Now That's a Speeding Ticket!
The Minnesota "State Patrol officer arrested..., 20-year-old Stillwater resident Samuel Armstrong Tilley, for reckless driving, driving without a motorcycle license - and driving 140 miles per hour over the posted speed limit of 65 mph." (emphasis added)
I was given a ticket a year or so ago on I-405 driving, my convertible, on a sunny day, not a soul around, except for the motorcycle policeman. He said I was doing 62 with speeds up to 68 in a 50 MPH zone. If it happens again I can say "yeah, but did you hear about Samuel Armstrong Tilley?"
I was given a ticket a year or so ago on I-405 driving, my convertible, on a sunny day, not a soul around, except for the motorcycle policeman. He said I was doing 62 with speeds up to 68 in a 50 MPH zone. If it happens again I can say "yeah, but did you hear about Samuel Armstrong Tilley?"
Tuesday, September 21, 2004
The Weather, It is a Changin'
Interesting headline on Drudge: Antarctic Glaciers Melting Faster
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Glaciers once held up by a floating ice shelf off Antarctica are now sliding off into the sea -- and they are going fast, scientists said on Tuesday.
This reminded me of site I came across in my surfing:
Not by Fire but by Ice
The first article points out that now that part of the Antarctic shelf the size of Rhode Island broke off, the glacier that fed the shelf is moving up to eight (8) times faster than before to the sea. The fear is that if the glaciers melt, the sea level could rise up to 16 feet. I guess Florida could stop worrying about hurricanes.
The second article is based on a recent book states we are not being told that many glaciers are expanding. Some examples would be the glacier on Mt. St. Helens has increased by nearly 50 feet per year; the growing Nisqually Glacier in Washington State; growing glaciers on Mt. Shasta, doubling in size since 1950 etc.
We are experiencing some incredible climate changes. A recent special on TV hosted by Alan Alda showed dramatically the changes and warming taking place in Alaska. The earth appears to be warming, either by human intervention or naturally as the earth cycles between warming and cooling. To me the jury is still out. (After all ancients used to believe that a spear thrown through the air could effect the weather. What hubris we humans have!)
But, what do we make of growing glaciers?
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Glaciers once held up by a floating ice shelf off Antarctica are now sliding off into the sea -- and they are going fast, scientists said on Tuesday.
This reminded me of site I came across in my surfing:
Not by Fire but by Ice
The first article points out that now that part of the Antarctic shelf the size of Rhode Island broke off, the glacier that fed the shelf is moving up to eight (8) times faster than before to the sea. The fear is that if the glaciers melt, the sea level could rise up to 16 feet. I guess Florida could stop worrying about hurricanes.
The second article is based on a recent book states we are not being told that many glaciers are expanding. Some examples would be the glacier on Mt. St. Helens has increased by nearly 50 feet per year; the growing Nisqually Glacier in Washington State; growing glaciers on Mt. Shasta, doubling in size since 1950 etc.
We are experiencing some incredible climate changes. A recent special on TV hosted by Alan Alda showed dramatically the changes and warming taking place in Alaska. The earth appears to be warming, either by human intervention or naturally as the earth cycles between warming and cooling. To me the jury is still out. (After all ancients used to believe that a spear thrown through the air could effect the weather. What hubris we humans have!)
But, what do we make of growing glaciers?
IIcecece
Peter Ames Carlin in The Oregonian on Tuesday Sept. 21, 2004 is trying to tell us that 'Rather-gate' is not personal, it was just business. It was all about the "never-ending quest for the Get".
Peter maybe you should rely less on the NYT and reread Byron Yorks devastation of this piece of Urban Legend.
Bush’s National Guard years
Before you fall for Dems’ spin, here are the facts By Byron York from The Hill
Basically, what Carlin is saying is that when you "know" the story is true, but you don't have the facts, it is ok to tell the story anyway.
NO CARLIN, IT WASN'T BUSINESS.IT WAS PERSONAL!
PS you can email carlin at: petercarlin@news.oregonian.com
"What's more( he adds), the fundamental gist of the CBS story -- that Bush used his father's influence to secure a spot in the Texas National Guard, failed to take a required physical in the summer of 1972 and can't account for his service between then and the summer of 1973 -- remains unchallenged.
In fact, a lengthy, deeply sourced story in Monday's New York Times confirmed all that and more"Peter maybe you should rely less on the NYT and reread Byron Yorks devastation of this piece of Urban Legend.
Bush’s National Guard years
Before you fall for Dems’ spin, here are the facts By Byron York from The Hill
Basically, what Carlin is saying is that when you "know" the story is true, but you don't have the facts, it is ok to tell the story anyway.
NO CARLIN, IT WASN'T BUSINESS.IT WAS PERSONAL!
PS you can email carlin at: petercarlin@news.oregonian.com
Monday, September 20, 2004
Let us not leave until the job is done
Robert Novak wrote a column today titled "Quick exit from Iraq is Likely" in which he says that inside the Bush Administration policy apparatus there is a call for a quick exit from Iraq next year; kind of like call it victory and go home. Novak is saying it is enough to have rid Iraq of Saddam. The dream of building democracy would be abandoned.
Ali writing in Iraq the Model says :
Not only is Iraq part of the war on Terrorism, but a democratic, free Iraq...is not an adventure and this is not a neo-conservative dream. This is OUR dream. The dream of millions of oppressed Iraqis who saw what dictatorship can do and who were dying to witness a moment of freedom, to live a peaceful life, a life that carries hope and make dreams not that impossible, a life similar to yours, or is it too much to hope for? We had this dream before anyone heard about neo -conservative
I am saddened that we could be talking like this. Shame on us, if we leave before the job is done, for squandering our armed forces that serve there now, that have been wounded there, and that have died there. Shame on us for asking those mothers and fathers, spouses and children to sacrifice while their loved ones volunteered to rid the world of an evil and believed we would deliver an opportunity for liberty.
We did it in Korea. The job was half done. Look at the difference in health, life and liberty between the North and South. How many millions of men, women and children have died in the North.
We did it in Eastern Europe. We fought WWII to rid the world of a great evil, but did not come to the aid of those who tried to revolt against the Russian oppression, thus left the job half done.
We did it in Viet Nam. The job was half done. How many millions died after we left in Viet Nam, Laos, and the Killing Fields of Cambodia.
If we leave Iraq without finishing the job, we are saying the dream of liberty and freedom that the US has, is not for you. You can dream, but we will not help. We will be saying to our children and grandchildren that we did not value, enough, freedom and liberty. For you it is a dream.
Let us not leave until the job is done.
PS After I posted this, I saw that Victor Davis Hanson wrote similar sentiments on Sept. 17th, 2004, titled SeeYa Iraq? Leaving now would be a Disaster
Ali writing in Iraq the Model says :
Not only is Iraq part of the war on Terrorism, but a democratic, free Iraq...is not an adventure and this is not a neo-conservative dream. This is OUR dream. The dream of millions of oppressed Iraqis who saw what dictatorship can do and who were dying to witness a moment of freedom, to live a peaceful life, a life that carries hope and make dreams not that impossible, a life similar to yours, or is it too much to hope for? We had this dream before anyone heard about neo -conservative
I am saddened that we could be talking like this. Shame on us, if we leave before the job is done, for squandering our armed forces that serve there now, that have been wounded there, and that have died there. Shame on us for asking those mothers and fathers, spouses and children to sacrifice while their loved ones volunteered to rid the world of an evil and believed we would deliver an opportunity for liberty.
We did it in Korea. The job was half done. Look at the difference in health, life and liberty between the North and South. How many millions of men, women and children have died in the North.
We did it in Eastern Europe. We fought WWII to rid the world of a great evil, but did not come to the aid of those who tried to revolt against the Russian oppression, thus left the job half done.
We did it in Viet Nam. The job was half done. How many millions died after we left in Viet Nam, Laos, and the Killing Fields of Cambodia.
If we leave Iraq without finishing the job, we are saying the dream of liberty and freedom that the US has, is not for you. You can dream, but we will not help. We will be saying to our children and grandchildren that we did not value, enough, freedom and liberty. For you it is a dream.
Let us not leave until the job is done.
PS After I posted this, I saw that Victor Davis Hanson wrote similar sentiments on Sept. 17th, 2004, titled SeeYa Iraq? Leaving now would be a Disaster
Canyon Holds Ancient Civilization Secrets
The Four Corners of the US have fascinated many for years, and I have made several visits to this land; home of the Anazasi, Monument Valley, Canyon de Chelly. Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child wrote a best seller and great read, Thunderhead, about this area and a possible explanation for the disappearance of the ancient ones from this area. Now as reported in the AP, a new discovery has been made which may offer more clues:
RANGE CREEK CANYON, Utah - The newly discovered ruins of an ancient civilization in this remote eastern Utah canyon could reveal secrets about the descendants of the continent's original Paleo-Indians who showed up before the time of Christ to settle much of present-day Utah.
RANGE CREEK CANYON, Utah - The newly discovered ruins of an ancient civilization in this remote eastern Utah canyon could reveal secrets about the descendants of the continent's original Paleo-Indians who showed up before the time of Christ to settle much of present-day Utah.
Recommended Blog
Mark Rezyka over at Cartoon Nazi
issued a challenge to all the libs out there to name a single fact or accusation in the book “Unfit for Command” that has proven to be untrue. Some have finally responded and he destroys their criticism. Have you read Cartoon Nazi blog? Have you read the “Unfit for Command” yet? Better yet have you made a contribution to the Swift Boat Vets for Truth?
issued a challenge to all the libs out there to name a single fact or accusation in the book “Unfit for Command” that has proven to be untrue. Some have finally responded and he destroys their criticism. Have you read Cartoon Nazi blog? Have you read the “Unfit for Command” yet? Better yet have you made a contribution to the Swift Boat Vets for Truth?
Sunday, September 19, 2004
Approach, Avoidance?
There are many ways to learn about the "situation" in Iraq. I see evidence of the MSM everywhere from cartoons, the press, radio, and the nightly news. If that is all I let in, I think I get an incomplete view. We bloggers and readers of blogs have access to another source: people who are actually on the battle fields or living in the cities of Iraq and risking their lives. There are many blogs I read frequently. I am not vouching for their truth any more than I would for the truth as put forth by the MSM. That said, I was reading Regan's Rubric
this morning, a critique of an article, “Understanding Islam” written by Mrs. Georgie Anne Geyers, a syndicated Washington columnist. There seem to be two major sides about Iraq, either (1) we shouldn't be there because we, in the end, fuel the breeding of more people who hate us and will fight against us or (2) we are in a sense fighting the bully we encountered on the play ground in school. I like the latter argument, although I think there is an element of truth in the first. Regan states it like this:
The bottom line: Do you fight back against the bully in the schoolyard or do you hope he develops a conscience? We can mind our business all day long, but that will not deter the extremists. There are too many examples in history and presently to continue thinking that terrorism will reform itself.
I remember times in school when I encountered bullies. My natural instinct was to avoid them, look the other way unless personally threatened. If personally threatened, I could try to talk myself out of trouble, but knowing in the end I would have to fight. I think our natural instinct is to seek a peaceful solution, and this applies to the world and all it's institutions like the UN. I think there are those of us that will not take the next step, but will do anything to avoid confrontation. The bullies make it easy for some to avoid confrontation because their tactics are so ruthless. There are others of us that will try to compel the bullies to return to decency. I see this theme in our westerns, the most recent one starring Kevin Costner in "Open Range". Here, we may be as ruthless as the bully (What would Tony Soprano do?) justifying our ruthlessness by the ends. Deep down the decent people want peace. The question is: What will I do to keep the peace or restore the peace?
this morning, a critique of an article, “Understanding Islam” written by Mrs. Georgie Anne Geyers, a syndicated Washington columnist. There seem to be two major sides about Iraq, either (1) we shouldn't be there because we, in the end, fuel the breeding of more people who hate us and will fight against us or (2) we are in a sense fighting the bully we encountered on the play ground in school. I like the latter argument, although I think there is an element of truth in the first. Regan states it like this:
The bottom line: Do you fight back against the bully in the schoolyard or do you hope he develops a conscience? We can mind our business all day long, but that will not deter the extremists. There are too many examples in history and presently to continue thinking that terrorism will reform itself.
I remember times in school when I encountered bullies. My natural instinct was to avoid them, look the other way unless personally threatened. If personally threatened, I could try to talk myself out of trouble, but knowing in the end I would have to fight. I think our natural instinct is to seek a peaceful solution, and this applies to the world and all it's institutions like the UN. I think there are those of us that will not take the next step, but will do anything to avoid confrontation. The bullies make it easy for some to avoid confrontation because their tactics are so ruthless. There are others of us that will try to compel the bullies to return to decency. I see this theme in our westerns, the most recent one starring Kevin Costner in "Open Range". Here, we may be as ruthless as the bully (What would Tony Soprano do?) justifying our ruthlessness by the ends. Deep down the decent people want peace. The question is: What will I do to keep the peace or restore the peace?
Saturday, September 18, 2004
"Binstead's Safari"
Today was the 2nd birthday for our grandson Gregor held at the Multnomah Arts Center, where after presents and birthday cake, the kids engaged in spray painting on big square sheets of paper, clay crafts, and gluing feathers and glitter on headresses. Afterwards, our daughter invited my mother and me to her new home. While there we met her roommate who just purchased a baby Serval. A Serval is an African cat and when fully grown looks much like a Cheetah, only smaller, about three feet long. I'm told the cat can leap about eight feet high. The little kitten, perhaps hungry or lonesome, mewed a number of times. The sound was more like the sound of some exotic bird rather than that of a cat meowing.
I am not a cat person, but I find some of their habits fascinating. I remember reading the book "Binstead's Safari" by Rachel Ingalls. She described a safari camp in Africa that was visited by a lion at night. The Lion would lay close to camp and cough. I imagined the sound of that cough. It was a polite gentle cough, the quiet kind you might make in your hand to clear the tickle without disturbing those around you in a concert at the Schnitz. I shared that with my wife. We laughed. Later I would call her on the phone and when she would answer, "Hello?" I would emit my polite gentle cough.
"Michael", she would say.
I am not a cat person, but I find some of their habits fascinating. I remember reading the book "Binstead's Safari" by Rachel Ingalls. She described a safari camp in Africa that was visited by a lion at night. The Lion would lay close to camp and cough. I imagined the sound of that cough. It was a polite gentle cough, the quiet kind you might make in your hand to clear the tickle without disturbing those around you in a concert at the Schnitz. I shared that with my wife. We laughed. Later I would call her on the phone and when she would answer, "Hello?" I would emit my polite gentle cough.
"Michael", she would say.
Thursday, September 16, 2004
Sen. Kerry, Sign the Standard Form 180
Had dinner last night at a very nice restaurant (my first time) in Lake Oswego called Tucci"s. It was a wonderful experience, the food was very good and our waiter James was very nice to us all as we celebrated my wife's birthday. I am not allowed to talk politics with our friends anymore, but I was goaded by the statement that Kerry has released all his military records and it is Bush that has been AWOL, yada, yada, yada... Today I was told that the "Bush Bounce" was gone and that the race is all tied up again. You know, I don't care if my friends vote for Kerry for legimate reasons, but I sure get tired of them reciting "facts" and suggesting that that is why they are voting the way they are (if we could vote today); or giving me stories that just are not true. CNN and CBS are hoping that Kerry will win so they do all they can to influence the electorate, including using a Pew Poll showing the results even and ignoring polls to the contrary.
The biggest lie: Kerry has released all his military records!
Navy Contradicts Kerry on Release of Military Records
cnsnews.com ^ | September 16, 2004 | Marc Morano
Posted on 09/16/2004 3:45:11 PM PDT by blogblogginaway
(CNSNews.com) -The U.S. Navy released documents Wednesday contradicting
claims by Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry that all of his
available military records have been released.
The Navy, responding to a Freedom of Information Act request from the
legal watchdog group Judicial Watch, also referred interested parties to
Kerry's campaign web site for government military documents.
Navy Personnel Command FOIA Officer Dave German wrote in an e-mail to
Judicial Watch that the Navy "withheld thirty-one pages of documents from
the responsive military personnel service records as we were not provided
a release authorization."
A "release authorization" would have to come from Kerry filling out and
signing a Standard Form 180, something he has yet to do. A Standard Form
180 would authorize the complete release of all his military records. Judicial
Watch filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests in August to obtain
Kerry's military records.
The official U.S. Navy response was received by Judicial Watch on
Wednesday, the same day that Kerry told syndicated radio and MSNBC TV
host Don Imus that "We've posted my military records that they sent to me,
or were posted on my website. You can go to my website,
and all my -- you know, the documents are there."
When Imus pressed Kerry as to whether all of his documents were in fact
included on the campaign website, Kerry responded, "To the best of my
knowledge. I think some of the medical stuff may still be out there. We're
trying to get it.
"We released everything that they (the Navy) initially sent me," he added.
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said the Navy's correspondence
confirms that Kerry has not been forthright in releasing his military files.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnsnews.com ...
The biggest lie: Kerry has released all his military records!
Navy Contradicts Kerry on Release of Military Records
cnsnews.com ^ | September 16, 2004 | Marc Morano
Posted on 09/16/2004 3:45:11 PM PDT by blogblogginaway
(CNSNews.com) -The U.S. Navy released documents Wednesday contradicting
claims by Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry that all of his
available military records have been released.
The Navy, responding to a Freedom of Information Act request from the
legal watchdog group Judicial Watch, also referred interested parties to
Kerry's campaign web site for government military documents.
Navy Personnel Command FOIA Officer Dave German wrote in an e-mail to
Judicial Watch that the Navy "withheld thirty-one pages of documents from
the responsive military personnel service records as we were not provided
a release authorization."
A "release authorization" would have to come from Kerry filling out and
signing a Standard Form 180, something he has yet to do. A Standard Form
180 would authorize the complete release of all his military records. Judicial
Watch filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests in August to obtain
Kerry's military records.
The official U.S. Navy response was received by Judicial Watch on
Wednesday, the same day that Kerry told syndicated radio and MSNBC TV
host Don Imus that "We've posted my military records that they sent to me,
or were posted on my website. You can go to my website,
and all my -- you know, the documents are there."
When Imus pressed Kerry as to whether all of his documents were in fact
included on the campaign website, Kerry responded, "To the best of my
knowledge. I think some of the medical stuff may still be out there. We're
trying to get it.
"We released everything that they (the Navy) initially sent me," he added.
Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said the Navy's correspondence
confirms that Kerry has not been forthright in releasing his military files.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnsnews.com ...
Wednesday, September 15, 2004
Lair Hill
You know the YMCA on Barbur Blvd. next to Dunaway Park and the half mile oval that brings out the ambulance to watch over joggers on hot days. You know where Hooker Street (no...named after General Hooker in the Civil War!) connects to Barbur and First Avenue and if you live in those apartments on the south side of the street across from the tennis courts, you can smell the black powder from the Fourth of July fireworks carried on the breeze. And you know that if you walk up First where the street curves under Front Avenue and connects to Corbett, you could see a building with a set of steps that ends at a wall.
Well those three steps connected to a door that had been covered up in some recent remodeling. I stood on the top step, nose against the wall and wondered if in some dimension the door could still be opened. If I could find the key would I be able to walk through to the time when the door was the main access to commerce or family that used the building. If I could walk through that door could I go back to an earlier time and choose computer programming instead of sales, hold Microsoft instead of selling when it doubled, buy beach property in Manzanita, OR.
I have just one regret. I drove back to Lair Hill where I once lived to take a photo of those steps. Now, there is just my memory under a new building guarded by two golden hammers.
Well those three steps connected to a door that had been covered up in some recent remodeling. I stood on the top step, nose against the wall and wondered if in some dimension the door could still be opened. If I could find the key would I be able to walk through to the time when the door was the main access to commerce or family that used the building. If I could walk through that door could I go back to an earlier time and choose computer programming instead of sales, hold Microsoft instead of selling when it doubled, buy beach property in Manzanita, OR.
I have just one regret. I drove back to Lair Hill where I once lived to take a photo of those steps. Now, there is just my memory under a new building guarded by two golden hammers.
Monday, September 13, 2004
This Just In...
Police in Najaf have found the bodies of 200 men, women and children in a mass grave killed by orders of the Shari'a (Islamic Law) Court established by Al-Sadr. (According to The Middle East Media Research Institute). This follows the recent terrorism in Indonesia and the blatant slaughter of hundreds of school children at Beslan.
I'm sorry, I find the stacking of naked prisoners of Abu Ghraib absurd in comparison; absurd that we have spent so much time on that subject and outraged by neglect of media attention on the real story.
I'm sorry, I find the stacking of naked prisoners of Abu Ghraib absurd in comparison; absurd that we have spent so much time on that subject and outraged by neglect of media attention on the real story.
Sunday, September 12, 2004
"The Ways of the Hose and the Frustrations of the Sprinklers"
Every month Cecelia Maben visits my home dropping off a one page sheet showing the price of homes in our neighborhood compiled from the Realtors Multiple Listing Service. I always look forward to her delivery for I can see at a glance how home prices are advancing and compare ours to other homes in our area. Cecelia always has a column of her observations gathered from her walk. I found this poetic description of hoses and sprinklers tucked by the doorknob a few months ago:
"The Ways Of The Hose And The Frustrations Of The Sprinklers
Since I go to 4400 homes per month, I have the opportunity of seeing all kinds of hoses nd have to dodge water from sprinklers. Have you thought about how many colors of hoses there are today? It makes watering more fun and you can match your house. They come in red, yellow, lavender, turquise, blue and all shades of green. They are like snakes with stripes and reptile skins. Sometimes they are coiled up in ceramic pots with a sprayer attached making them look like a cobra. I see them tucked neatly along the edge of a flower bed as if waiting for their prey. I have seen them hanging over porch rails or tree branches, or wrapped around hose hangers or in boxes. I have seen the boxes empty with the hoses tangled up beside them. Occasionally, there are several tangled up together like snakes fighting. The newest kind of hoses are those coiled up kind. I have seen them looking like a well used 'slinky toy'. I am sure there are some of you that hate the untidiness of them. I am always glad when I can put them away for the winter so I don't have to look at them for awhile.
The sprinklers are a real frustration for me. I can't count how many varieties I have tried and none are perfect for every situation. The last one had a stake that goes into the ground and it broke off when it hit a rock after a few uses. At one store they had 15 varieties of sprinklers and probably at least that many varieties of nozzles and wands for spraying. I have three of those - the last one was purchased with all these great settings and it is a pretty green. I have decided the best way to water my flowers and garden is to do a rain dance and pray for rain. It is so much easier."
Thanks Cecelia!
BTW, you can reach Cecelia Maben
at Pete Anderson Realty (503) 281-4965 or (503) 256-9723
"The Ways Of The Hose And The Frustrations Of The Sprinklers
Since I go to 4400 homes per month, I have the opportunity of seeing all kinds of hoses nd have to dodge water from sprinklers. Have you thought about how many colors of hoses there are today? It makes watering more fun and you can match your house. They come in red, yellow, lavender, turquise, blue and all shades of green. They are like snakes with stripes and reptile skins. Sometimes they are coiled up in ceramic pots with a sprayer attached making them look like a cobra. I see them tucked neatly along the edge of a flower bed as if waiting for their prey. I have seen them hanging over porch rails or tree branches, or wrapped around hose hangers or in boxes. I have seen the boxes empty with the hoses tangled up beside them. Occasionally, there are several tangled up together like snakes fighting. The newest kind of hoses are those coiled up kind. I have seen them looking like a well used 'slinky toy'. I am sure there are some of you that hate the untidiness of them. I am always glad when I can put them away for the winter so I don't have to look at them for awhile.
The sprinklers are a real frustration for me. I can't count how many varieties I have tried and none are perfect for every situation. The last one had a stake that goes into the ground and it broke off when it hit a rock after a few uses. At one store they had 15 varieties of sprinklers and probably at least that many varieties of nozzles and wands for spraying. I have three of those - the last one was purchased with all these great settings and it is a pretty green. I have decided the best way to water my flowers and garden is to do a rain dance and pray for rain. It is so much easier."
Thanks Cecelia!
BTW, you can reach Cecelia Maben
at Pete Anderson Realty (503) 281-4965 or (503) 256-9723
Saturday, September 11, 2004
21-point rebuttal to Rather's Sept. 10 salvo
In case you missed it RatherBiased.com
http://www.ratherbiased.com/news/content/view/217/2/
offers 21 things Dan Rather ignored, did not properly address, or concealed from viewers in three key areas.
http://www.ratherbiased.com/news/content/view/217/2/
offers 21 things Dan Rather ignored, did not properly address, or concealed from viewers in three key areas.
Follow up to Sept 8th's "The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration
I am indebted to guest commentator Walter Williams writing in The PrudentBear.com http://www.prudentbear.com/archive_comm_article.asp?category
=Guest+Commentary&content_idx=35770
for a clarification about the surplus claimed during the Clinton years, specifically 1997 to 2000, by both parties. (see: The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration).
=Guest+Commentary&content_idx=35770
for a clarification about the surplus claimed during the Clinton years, specifically 1997 to 2000, by both parties. (see: The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration).
"Nearly four decades ago, President Lyndon Johnson's political sensitivities led him and the Congress to slough off some of the costs of an escalating Vietnam War through the use of accounting gimmicks. To mask the rapid growth in the federal government's budget deficit, revenues from the surplus being generated by Social Security taxes were added into the general cash fund, without making any accounting allowance for the accompanying and increasing Social Security liabilities. This accounting-gimmicked reporting was dubbed "unified" budget accounting.
The government's accounting then, as it is now, was on a cash basis, reflecting cash revenues versus cash expenditures. There were no accruals made for monies owed by or due to the government at some time in the future.
The bogus accounting understated the actual deficit for decades and even allowed for claims of budget surpluses in the years 1998 to 2001. While there were extensive self-congratulatory comments between the President, Congress and the Fed Chairman, at the time, all involved knew there never were any actual budget surpluses. There hasn't been an actual balanced budget, let alone a surplus, since before Johnson and his cronies cooked the bookkeeping."
"In the mid-1970s, the then "Big Ten" accounting firms proposed setting up for the federal government an accrual accounting and reporting system similar to that used in the business community. Purchases of capital equipment, weapons and buildings would be booked as assets and depreciated, taxes receivable and accounts payable would better reflect near term cash needs. Accrued liabilities, such as Social Security payments due in the future, would reflect longer-term cash-flow needs.
As the project progressed, GAAP accounting was applied to the government's operations and prototype annual statements were published beginning in 1974. The appropriate accounting for Social Security liabilities, however, was discarded during the Reagan administration as being politically untenable.
Under the eventual mandate of Congress, the accounting project culminated in the U.S. Treasury publishing its first formal Financial Report of the United States Government for fiscal year 2000, consistent with GAAP, except for Social Security and similar accounts such as Medicare, Medicaid and the Railroad Retirement Fund.
To the credit of the Bush administration, later reports, published in April 2003 and April 2004 for fiscal years 2002 and 2003, indicated for the first time since the 1980s what the Social Security and related numbers would look like if they were included in the accounting, just as corporations need to account for pension and retiree health benefit liabilities."
"The gimmicked accounting standards, as established during the Johnson era, and as used today for official, unified budget reporting, show a 2003 deficit of $374.3 billion. Using GAAP reporting (without Social Security reporting), the official GAAP deficit for 2003 expands to $665.0 billion. Including accounting for Social Security and related areas, the 2003 deficit balloons to $3,702 billion, or $3.7 trillion. The accounting reflects no adjustment for the new, more expensive Medicare program." (in all cases I've added emphasis)
2004 Results
Results for the official 2004 deficit will be published in the next several months, and the numbers are projected by the Bush administration to be significantly worse than in 2003, $445 billion versus $374 billion, with the actual deficit likely to near $4.3 trillion (my estimate). The 2004 GAAP financial statements on the government will not be published until March/April
-----------------------------GAAP-Based--------GAAP-Based
Fiscal--------"Official"----Deficit Without---Deficit With
-Year-----------Deficit------Soc. Sec., Etc.--Soc. Sec., Etc.
------------------------------------------------------------
2004 est.---$445 Billion-----$800 Billion-----$4.3 Trillion
2003--------$374 Billion-----$665 Billion-----$3.7 Trillion
2002--------$158 Billion-----$365 Billion-----$1.5 Trillion
Friday, September 10, 2004
Dear CBS
Dear CBS, when George Stephanopoulis took over This Week on ABC, I emailed the news department that I believed that Stephanopoulis was a shill for the Clintons and I would no longer watch the show, a show that up to that point had been a fixture of my Sunday TV fare. Whenever, I saw that ABC was having trouble with the ratings for This Week, I emailed the ABC news department and reiterated my reason for not watching their show. I have not watched "the shill" since. Now CBS, I want you to know I will no longer watch 60 Minutes. This show was, also, a fixture of our Sunday nights. We planned dinner around the show; eating before 60 Minutes. We planned activities around the show inorder to be home in time for 60 Minutes. I stayed loyal even though you did a puff piece on Bill Clinton so he could publicly deny any involvement with Jennifer Flowers and it saved his political ass. I even continued to watch after 60 Minutes repeatedly interviewed guests with new books, published by a sister company, that were designed to defeat George W Bush. Now I've had enough! This latest attempt to dishonor George W Bush using forged documents is the last straw. I know, I know, what took me so long? I gave up on the nightly news with Dan Rather some time ago. I guess I wanted to be part of the national experience, you know where everyone talks about 60 Minutes on Monday around the water cooler. Well, CBS, I'm done with 60 Minutes. I am not going to watch a show that is a shill for the left and is opposed to my political views.
Thursday, September 09, 2004
Re: Cheney's Threat?
My sister in law asks me what I thought of Cheney's comment that if you elect Kerry there will be a terrorist attack. I asked her if she thought this was a threat from Cheney? Do you think Cheney is a kind of guy that would want something like that to happen? The problem seems to be we keep reacting to news that isn't really news, but propaganda by a biased media.
My thanks to Patterico's Pontifications patterico.com/archives/002686.php
for this information about what Cheney really said:
Here is the full quote, in context, with the most relevant portion set in bold type:
"We made decisions at the end of World War II, at the beginning of the Cold War, when we set up the Department of Defense, and the CIA, and we created the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and undertook a bunch of major policy steps that then were in place for the next 40 years, that were key to our ultimate success in the Cold War, that were supported by Democrat and Republican alike -- Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower and Jack Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon and Gerry Ford and a whole bunch of Presidents, from both parties, supported those policies over a long period of time. We're now at that point where we're making that kind of decision for the next 30 or 40 years, and it's absolutely essential that eight weeks from today, on November 2nd, we make the right choice. Because if we make the wrong choice, then the danger is that we'll get hit again, that we'll be hit in a way that will be devastating from the standpoint of the United States, and that we'll fall back into the pre-9/11 mind set if you will, that in fact these terrorist attacks are just criminal acts, and that we're not really at war. I think that would be a terrible mistake for us.
We have to understand it is a war. It's different than anything we've ever fought before. But they mean to do everything they can to destroy our way of life. They don't agree with our view of the world. They've got an extremist view in terms of their religion. They have no concept or tolerance for religious freedom. They don't believe women ought to have any rights. They've got a fundamentally different view of the world, and they will slaughter -- as they demonstrated on 9/11 -- anybody who stands in their way. So we've got to get it right. We've got to succeed here. We've got to prevail. And that's what is at stake in this election."
Here's what AP said he said:
Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday warned Americans about voting for Democratic Sen. John Kerry, saying that if the nation makes the wrong choice on Election Day it faces the threat of another terrorist attack.
The Kerry-Edwards campaign immediately rejected those comments as "scare tactics" that crossed the line.
"It's absolutely essential that eight weeks from today, on Nov. 2, we make the right choice, because if we make the wrong choice then the danger is that we'll get hit again and we'll be hit in a way that will be devastating from the standpoint of the United States," Cheney told about 350 supporters at a town-hall meeting in this Iowa city.
If Kerry were elected, Cheney said the nation risks falling back into a "pre-9/11 mind-set" that terrorist attacks are criminal acts that require a reactive approach. Instead, he said Bush's offensive approach works to root out terrorists where they plan and train, and pressure countries that harbor terrorists.
Judge for yourself if you think AP quoted Cheney accurately!
My thanks to Patterico's Pontifications patterico.com/archives/002686.php
for this information about what Cheney really said:
Here is the full quote, in context, with the most relevant portion set in bold type:
"We made decisions at the end of World War II, at the beginning of the Cold War, when we set up the Department of Defense, and the CIA, and we created the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and undertook a bunch of major policy steps that then were in place for the next 40 years, that were key to our ultimate success in the Cold War, that were supported by Democrat and Republican alike -- Harry Truman and Dwight Eisenhower and Jack Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon and Gerry Ford and a whole bunch of Presidents, from both parties, supported those policies over a long period of time. We're now at that point where we're making that kind of decision for the next 30 or 40 years, and it's absolutely essential that eight weeks from today, on November 2nd, we make the right choice. Because if we make the wrong choice, then the danger is that we'll get hit again, that we'll be hit in a way that will be devastating from the standpoint of the United States, and that we'll fall back into the pre-9/11 mind set if you will, that in fact these terrorist attacks are just criminal acts, and that we're not really at war. I think that would be a terrible mistake for us.
We have to understand it is a war. It's different than anything we've ever fought before. But they mean to do everything they can to destroy our way of life. They don't agree with our view of the world. They've got an extremist view in terms of their religion. They have no concept or tolerance for religious freedom. They don't believe women ought to have any rights. They've got a fundamentally different view of the world, and they will slaughter -- as they demonstrated on 9/11 -- anybody who stands in their way. So we've got to get it right. We've got to succeed here. We've got to prevail. And that's what is at stake in this election."
Here's what AP said he said:
Vice President Dick Cheney on Tuesday warned Americans about voting for Democratic Sen. John Kerry, saying that if the nation makes the wrong choice on Election Day it faces the threat of another terrorist attack.
The Kerry-Edwards campaign immediately rejected those comments as "scare tactics" that crossed the line.
"It's absolutely essential that eight weeks from today, on Nov. 2, we make the right choice, because if we make the wrong choice then the danger is that we'll get hit again and we'll be hit in a way that will be devastating from the standpoint of the United States," Cheney told about 350 supporters at a town-hall meeting in this Iowa city.
If Kerry were elected, Cheney said the nation risks falling back into a "pre-9/11 mind-set" that terrorist attacks are criminal acts that require a reactive approach. Instead, he said Bush's offensive approach works to root out terrorists where they plan and train, and pressure countries that harbor terrorists.
Judge for yourself if you think AP quoted Cheney accurately!
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
Re: The Bush ANG Records
The Boston Globe today issued a story, based on newly released records, that charged George W Bush was AWOL from Guard Duty. Byron York has issued a rebuttal which I find credible.www.hillnews.com/york/090904.aspx
I'm writing about this because I served my country by being in the Army Reserve beginning in 1966, just like George W Bush. Some believe that only those who toured Vietnam served their country. My duty of Active Reserve lasted for six years and then inactive reserve for some unremembered time, just like George W Bush. I interrupted college for three months Basic training at Ft. Lewis and three months AIT at Ft. Ord. We were good troops, a cut above, but denigrated by our DI's for avoiding Vietnam. Our active duty lasted 119 days! If we had served 120 consecutive days, we would have been eligible for GI Benefits. After our six months of active duty, we drilled one night each week and a weekend for 5 1/2 years. During that time we worried about being called up for Vietnam. I was 11Bravo, a grunt, a foot soldier. I know where I would have gone if activated. Several of my buddies in the Air force Reserve were called up and sent for a year to Korea. Like Kerry, my buddies and I served our country, just like George W Bush. We didn't choose to go to Canada. I want this rebuttal on the record so we don't forget that George W Bush is an honorable man. His records have been released. Kerry can authorize the release of all of his records, just like George W Bush!
I'm writing about this because I served my country by being in the Army Reserve beginning in 1966, just like George W Bush. Some believe that only those who toured Vietnam served their country. My duty of Active Reserve lasted for six years and then inactive reserve for some unremembered time, just like George W Bush. I interrupted college for three months Basic training at Ft. Lewis and three months AIT at Ft. Ord. We were good troops, a cut above, but denigrated by our DI's for avoiding Vietnam. Our active duty lasted 119 days! If we had served 120 consecutive days, we would have been eligible for GI Benefits. After our six months of active duty, we drilled one night each week and a weekend for 5 1/2 years. During that time we worried about being called up for Vietnam. I was 11Bravo, a grunt, a foot soldier. I know where I would have gone if activated. Several of my buddies in the Air force Reserve were called up and sent for a year to Korea. Like Kerry, my buddies and I served our country, just like George W Bush. We didn't choose to go to Canada. I want this rebuttal on the record so we don't forget that George W Bush is an honorable man. His records have been released. Kerry can authorize the release of all of his records, just like George W Bush!
The Alleged Budget Surplus During the Clinton Administration
The alleged budget surplus during the Clinton Administration is really starting to bug me. In The Oregonian of Wednesday September 8, 2005 on page A5 is a chart of Federal Budget deficits from 1982 to a projected 2004. It shows that starting in about 1997 to 2000 that the US ran a surplus of up to $236.4 Billion dollars, and both Democrats and Republicans agree with this number because its source is the Congressional Budget Office. What bugs me? Below is a chart of the Public Debt (http://www.publicdebt.treas.gov/opd/opdpenny.htm)
Prior Fiscal
Years
09/03/2004 $7,366,776,167,570.79
09/30/2003 $6,783,231,062,743.62
09/30/2002 $6,228,235,965,597.16
09/28/2001 $5,807,463,412,200.06
09/29/2000 $5,674,178,209,886.86
09/30/1999 $5,656,270,901,615.43
09/30/1998 $5,526,193,008,897.62
09/30/1997 $5,413,146,011,397.34
09/30/1996 $5,224,810,939,135.73
09/29/1995 $4,973,982,900,709.39
09/30/1994 $4,692,749,910,013.32
09/30/1993 $4,411,488,883,139.38
09/30/1992 $4,064,620,655,521.66
09/30/1991 $3,665,303,351,697.03
09/28/1990 $3,233,313,451,777.25
09/29/1989 $2,857,430,960,187.32
09/30/1988 $2,602,337,712,041.16
09/30/1987 $2,350,276,890,953.00
It shows more debt every year. Yes, there is a slowing of the increase from 1999 to 2000, but we still owed more money each year. The debt doubled from $3.665 Trillion in 1991 to $7.366 Trillion in 2004; 13 years! Using the rule of 72, that means that debt has been compounding at a rate of at least 5.5% per year.
In order to show a surplus our government borrows from Social Security to make up the difference. Suppose you have a child of 16. The grandparents gave her $50,000 for college, which she keeps in the bank. In addition she/he gets a job at Nordstroms selling shoes and manages to save $500 a month while going to school. Now you as a parent make $4,000 per month and spend $5,000. You can go into debt by a $1,000 per month or you can borrow from your childs bank. If you take out $1,500 per month, you could say you are running a surplus of $500 per month. But in the bank account are your IOU's mounting at $1,500 a month. Now, it goes without saying, the average family would not run their finances this way. Not only would it piss off the grandparents, but I can see a lot of sleepless nights for the parents.
We are being lied to about the deficits and the amount of debt by both sides and we should demand openness.
For a look at the amount we owe go to: http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/.
Hit the refresh button as often and as fast as you like and watch it grow!!
Prior Fiscal
Years
09/03/2004 $7,366,776,167,570.79
09/30/2003 $6,783,231,062,743.62
09/30/2002 $6,228,235,965,597.16
09/28/2001 $5,807,463,412,200.06
09/29/2000 $5,674,178,209,886.86
09/30/1999 $5,656,270,901,615.43
09/30/1998 $5,526,193,008,897.62
09/30/1997 $5,413,146,011,397.34
09/30/1996 $5,224,810,939,135.73
09/29/1995 $4,973,982,900,709.39
09/30/1994 $4,692,749,910,013.32
09/30/1993 $4,411,488,883,139.38
09/30/1992 $4,064,620,655,521.66
09/30/1991 $3,665,303,351,697.03
09/28/1990 $3,233,313,451,777.25
09/29/1989 $2,857,430,960,187.32
09/30/1988 $2,602,337,712,041.16
09/30/1987 $2,350,276,890,953.00
It shows more debt every year. Yes, there is a slowing of the increase from 1999 to 2000, but we still owed more money each year. The debt doubled from $3.665 Trillion in 1991 to $7.366 Trillion in 2004; 13 years! Using the rule of 72, that means that debt has been compounding at a rate of at least 5.5% per year.
In order to show a surplus our government borrows from Social Security to make up the difference. Suppose you have a child of 16. The grandparents gave her $50,000 for college, which she keeps in the bank. In addition she/he gets a job at Nordstroms selling shoes and manages to save $500 a month while going to school. Now you as a parent make $4,000 per month and spend $5,000. You can go into debt by a $1,000 per month or you can borrow from your childs bank. If you take out $1,500 per month, you could say you are running a surplus of $500 per month. But in the bank account are your IOU's mounting at $1,500 a month. Now, it goes without saying, the average family would not run their finances this way. Not only would it piss off the grandparents, but I can see a lot of sleepless nights for the parents.
We are being lied to about the deficits and the amount of debt by both sides and we should demand openness.
For a look at the amount we owe go to: http://www.brillig.com/debt_clock/.
Hit the refresh button as often and as fast as you like and watch it grow!!
Re: 1000 US Armed Servicemen and Women Dead in Iraq
1000 US Armed Servicemen and Women Dead in Iraq and we mourn their deaths and are eternally grateful for their sacrifice. The press is playing this up as one more reason to elect Kerry and get rid of Bush. However, ask yourself, from Nixon, Ford, Carter, Reagan, Bush'41, Clinton and Bush'43, how many innocent men, women and children have been killed in the world by terrorists? Ask yourself, if Kerry is elected, Do I Feel Lucky?
Sunday, September 05, 2004
To Be Fair to My Dad:
To Be Fair to My Dad, this poem turns out to be a companion piece to
"My Father, His Son"
Sgt. Kowasch Visited Me In My Dream Last Night
Sgt. Kowasch visited me in my dream last night
in his strack uniform and cap pulled down exactly
two fingers above the bridge of his nose. I happened
to see his black on green name tag, KOWASCH,
the toughest drill sergeant at Fort Lewis.
I will never forget the way he ran, arms at his side,
fingers curled, thumb and fore finger touching,
upper body still. He could run for mile after mile
after mile, and we could too, after he was finished.
We ran in full field pack, rifle and spit-shined black
combat boots with a white dot, every other day,
on the heels. That small white dot kept us busy every night
polishing one of our pair of boots. We used that same shoe
polish to make the center aisle in the barracks gleam
like quiet water. Sgt. Kowasch trod that still water at 5:00AM
Sgt. Kowasch, I called. Mike Landfair,
you were my Drill Sergeant at Fort Lewis in the sixties.
Can I buy you a drink? He pulled up a chair and ordered
a Bud. What year were you there, he said. January, 1966!
I remember my three months there like it was yesterday.
My first night at Fort Lewis I pulled fire duty for an hour,
had no coat yet and outside it was snowing.
(I had heard so many stories about Army life. I feared
what was coming and yet my father had said “The Army
will make a man out of you.” I feared Viet Nam more.
I just knew that terrible things awaited me over there if
I didn’t avoid the draft. My other choice was Canada,
never to see my friends and family again.)
Kowasch remembered our company, made up of mostly reservists,
remembered how we had excelled at training and remembered
how hard he made it on us for avoiding combat. We talked
for awhile about those times, while he drank his beer.
I reminded him about the sand bags we filled under the barracks
and low crawling to the other end while dragging them; we laughed
about Peacock who would wake in the morning and yell “Vagina Mucosi”;
and the sparring partner for Cassius Clay, who said he would kick our ass
if Simonson and I stopped running; how I spent my first wedding
anniversary sitting on the washing machine in the latrine;
how we all could run 6 minute miles and fire M50s and M60s and field strip
45s under pressure; how we were stripped down as individuals and built back as a unit.
One thing I shared with Kowasch was how the Army had helped me. I found
that when things got tough in life, as they do for most of us, I could look back on my experiences and have confidence that this, too, I could get through.
As we reminisced, a slightly overweight and soft looking kid
hung on our conversation. If war broke out tomorrow with China,
he interjected, what should I do? I remembered my father’s words
to his anxious son, which seem more true today:
“Go into the Army”, I said, “The Army will make a man out of you.”
Sgt. Kowasch looked at me and winked.
"My Father, His Son"
Sgt. Kowasch Visited Me In My Dream Last Night
Sgt. Kowasch visited me in my dream last night
in his strack uniform and cap pulled down exactly
two fingers above the bridge of his nose. I happened
to see his black on green name tag, KOWASCH,
the toughest drill sergeant at Fort Lewis.
I will never forget the way he ran, arms at his side,
fingers curled, thumb and fore finger touching,
upper body still. He could run for mile after mile
after mile, and we could too, after he was finished.
We ran in full field pack, rifle and spit-shined black
combat boots with a white dot, every other day,
on the heels. That small white dot kept us busy every night
polishing one of our pair of boots. We used that same shoe
polish to make the center aisle in the barracks gleam
like quiet water. Sgt. Kowasch trod that still water at 5:00AM
Sgt. Kowasch, I called. Mike Landfair,
you were my Drill Sergeant at Fort Lewis in the sixties.
Can I buy you a drink? He pulled up a chair and ordered
a Bud. What year were you there, he said. January, 1966!
I remember my three months there like it was yesterday.
My first night at Fort Lewis I pulled fire duty for an hour,
had no coat yet and outside it was snowing.
(I had heard so many stories about Army life. I feared
what was coming and yet my father had said “The Army
will make a man out of you.” I feared Viet Nam more.
I just knew that terrible things awaited me over there if
I didn’t avoid the draft. My other choice was Canada,
never to see my friends and family again.)
Kowasch remembered our company, made up of mostly reservists,
remembered how we had excelled at training and remembered
how hard he made it on us for avoiding combat. We talked
for awhile about those times, while he drank his beer.
I reminded him about the sand bags we filled under the barracks
and low crawling to the other end while dragging them; we laughed
about Peacock who would wake in the morning and yell “Vagina Mucosi”;
and the sparring partner for Cassius Clay, who said he would kick our ass
if Simonson and I stopped running; how I spent my first wedding
anniversary sitting on the washing machine in the latrine;
how we all could run 6 minute miles and fire M50s and M60s and field strip
45s under pressure; how we were stripped down as individuals and built back as a unit.
One thing I shared with Kowasch was how the Army had helped me. I found
that when things got tough in life, as they do for most of us, I could look back on my experiences and have confidence that this, too, I could get through.
As we reminisced, a slightly overweight and soft looking kid
hung on our conversation. If war broke out tomorrow with China,
he interjected, what should I do? I remembered my father’s words
to his anxious son, which seem more true today:
“Go into the Army”, I said, “The Army will make a man out of you.”
Sgt. Kowasch looked at me and winked.
Saturday, September 04, 2004
Viet Nam Again!
Three years ago when I wrote this poem, I thought the controversy was settled. The emotions seem just as hot today as then:
My Father, His Son
In a railroad station in Idaho, my father was raised
by a railroad man. There wasn’t much money
and what there was went a long way. A quarter
would buy a bucket of milk, a loaf of bread and a penny
candy. Dad taught me the Lord’s Prayer and the 23rd Psalm
seated by my bed at night. He believed by the Grace of God
and inner strength anything could be done. I lived for his
approval. I watched for some sign that he loved me.
I have read newspapers since I was a child. The Oregon Journal
arrived each morning on a red, white and blue Schwinn
bicycle with balloon tires. The news was served up as if by a
slow waiter. My father and I would sit at the frosted green
Formica kitchen counter and argue for hours about the news
that stayed for weeks as headlines. We fought over Vietnam.
I screamed that it was a civil war. He, in patriotic fervor,
said we were there to save the people. He called me a God Damned
Communist, me, who voted for Barry Goldwater. In 1969 I became
a stockbroker, a proud profession, upon graduation. The years moved
at snail pace. The Bear Market shaved stock prices slowly, like a pencil
erasing eighths and quarters for months. President Nixon took a year
to resign. Each day new headlines about his conduct competed with my family
for attention. Those years were a time for small dreams, four door
sedans and marriage forever to the same girl. I served honorably in the Army
Reserves and never had to choose between my country and Canada.
I’ll be fifty seven next January. That 24 year old in the mirror just
escapes my eyes. I was married for the third time eight years ago. I still
read the news now delivered by a man in a squat-tired car. The stories
seem disposable, not worth an effort, like that trout that just noses
the fly on a hot summer day. With pictures of grief before that black wall
when I close my eyes, I am disillusioned and angry. Vietnam
could have been won, but for the politicians and today, Max De Sully
would be alive, instead shot by a sniper weeks after his Honeymoon.
Dad now thinks we had no business being over there. It was a quagmire.
Our government was wrong, warring when we had no national interests
to defend. I am sick of the massive encroachment of the government
into our lives. Dad now fears for his Medicare and Social Security.
He votes for all the liberals. My father and I have a skittishness about us.
My Father is now the Communist.
My Father, His Son
In a railroad station in Idaho, my father was raised
by a railroad man. There wasn’t much money
and what there was went a long way. A quarter
would buy a bucket of milk, a loaf of bread and a penny
candy. Dad taught me the Lord’s Prayer and the 23rd Psalm
seated by my bed at night. He believed by the Grace of God
and inner strength anything could be done. I lived for his
approval. I watched for some sign that he loved me.
I have read newspapers since I was a child. The Oregon Journal
arrived each morning on a red, white and blue Schwinn
bicycle with balloon tires. The news was served up as if by a
slow waiter. My father and I would sit at the frosted green
Formica kitchen counter and argue for hours about the news
that stayed for weeks as headlines. We fought over Vietnam.
I screamed that it was a civil war. He, in patriotic fervor,
said we were there to save the people. He called me a God Damned
Communist, me, who voted for Barry Goldwater. In 1969 I became
a stockbroker, a proud profession, upon graduation. The years moved
at snail pace. The Bear Market shaved stock prices slowly, like a pencil
erasing eighths and quarters for months. President Nixon took a year
to resign. Each day new headlines about his conduct competed with my family
for attention. Those years were a time for small dreams, four door
sedans and marriage forever to the same girl. I served honorably in the Army
Reserves and never had to choose between my country and Canada.
I’ll be fifty seven next January. That 24 year old in the mirror just
escapes my eyes. I was married for the third time eight years ago. I still
read the news now delivered by a man in a squat-tired car. The stories
seem disposable, not worth an effort, like that trout that just noses
the fly on a hot summer day. With pictures of grief before that black wall
when I close my eyes, I am disillusioned and angry. Vietnam
could have been won, but for the politicians and today, Max De Sully
would be alive, instead shot by a sniper weeks after his Honeymoon.
Dad now thinks we had no business being over there. It was a quagmire.
Our government was wrong, warring when we had no national interests
to defend. I am sick of the massive encroachment of the government
into our lives. Dad now fears for his Medicare and Social Security.
He votes for all the liberals. My father and I have a skittishness about us.
My Father is now the Communist.
Thoughts re: "The Bush Doctrine"
I first read Norman Podhoretz long article titled "World War IV: How It Started, What It Means, and Why We Have to Win" in Commentary(September 2004)
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/article.asp?aid=11802019_1
and then heard much of what he wrote emphasized in speeches before the RNC. I was reminded of this article and thought it would be good to repost:
http://www.commentarymagazine.com/article.asp?aid=11802019_1
and then heard much of what he wrote emphasized in speeches before the RNC. I was reminded of this article and thought it would be good to repost:
"Surprise! Guess Who Originated 'Pre-Emption' Policy?
http://www.chuckmuth.com | December 7, 2001 | Chuck Muth
Posted on 12/07/2003 9:53:30 AM PST by jigsaw
Anti-war kooks in general, and Democrat presidential candidates in
particular, continue to hammer the President for his pre-emption policy
of "do it to them before they do it to us." But if you thought Democrats
went nuts over comparisons of President Bush's tax cuts to JFK, you ain't
seen nothing yet. Wait'll they hear who originated the doctrine of
pre-emptive defense.
First, let's get everybody on record here.
Earlier this year, an online left-wing organization called MoveOn.org
hosted a "virtual" Democrat presidential primary in which Howard Dean
came out on top.
In competing for votes from the MoveOn members, Dean posted a position
statement on the organization's website
(http://www.moveon.org/pac/cands/all_interviews.html#1).
Included in the statement was this line: "On my first day in office,
I will tear up the Bush Doctrine of pre-emptive war." In his online Candidate Interview with the MoveOn folks, Dean elaborated: "I've said all along that
the Bush doctrine of preemptive war is wrong for America, and sets a dangerous precedent."
But Dean's not the only current Democrat presidential candidate to tell
the MoveOn folks that they oppose the pre-emption doctrine.
"The Bush Administration's pre-emption doctrine is unnecessary and
unwise," declared John Edwards in his interview. "The Administration's
provocative new doctrine has been distracting and damaging." Dick Gephardt
chimed in, "The U.S. should not have a pre-emptive war doctrine."
Sen. John Kerry said "it's counterproductive to make pre-emption a doctrine."
Dennis Kucinich stated flatly that "As President, I will repeal the
pre-emptive wardoctrine." And Al Sharpton declared that "It's a dangerous
and traditionally un-American doctrine."
This is unarguably the same position held by the vast number of MoveOn
members and left-wing Democrat activists. It's not too much of a stretch
to suggest this is the official Democrat position for the 2004 campaign.
So I wonder how Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the patron saint of liberal
Democrats everywhere, would have responded to the question of
pre-emptive defense in that interview? Actually, I don't have to wonder.
I have it right here (http://www.usmm.org/fdr/rattlesnake.html).
In a Fireside Chat on - and you're not going to believe the coincidence
of this date - September 11, 1941, FDR told the nation, "When you see a
rattlesnake poised to strike, you do not wait until he has struck before
you crush him."
Hmmmm. Response, Mr. Dean? Rep. Gephardt? Sen. Edwards? Sen. Kerry?
Rep.Kucinich? Rev. Sharpton?
At issue at the time was German submarine attacks on American ships,
particularly a September 4, 1941, torpedo attack on the American
destroyer Greer en route to Iceland. Roosevelt warned that "It is time for
all Americans...to stop being deluded by the romantic notion that the
Americas can go on living happily and peacefully in a Nazi-dominated world."
He described the Greer attack by Hitler as "one determined step toward
creating a permanent world system based on force, on terror, and on murder."
Roosevelt continued: "Normal practices of diplomacy - note writing - are
of no possible use in dealing with international outlaws who sink our ships
and kill our citizens."
"Let us not ask ourselves whether the Americas should begin to defend
themselves after the first attack, or the fifth attack, or the tenth
attack, or the twentieth attack," FDR declared. "This is the time for
prevention of attack." With that, Roosevelt declared open season on
any German or Italian vessels in the water.
By the way, discovery of this FDR policy statement isn't something new.
But funny how the media never seem to bring it up when questioning the
Democrat candidates who criticize the Bush policy, isn't it?
At any rate, the doctrine of pre-emption didn't originate in the Bush
administration. It was a policy adopted and implemented exactly 50
years, to the day, before the September 11 al Qaeda attacks on U.S. citizens.
And it was articulated, not by a 21st century Republican president, but by the
Democrat Party's liberal icon who recognized that America's security and
defense were of paramount importance - and didn't require the approval
of France.
They don't make Democrats the way they used to, do they?
# # #
Chuck Muth is president of Citizen Outreach, a non-profit public policy
advocacy organization in Washington, D.C. The views expressed are his
own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Citizen Outreach. He may be
reached at chuck@citizenoutreach.com."
How do minds get changed?
I am as passionate about the candidacy of W '04 as all those in my neighborhood with their Kerry lawn signs. I have "I Support the President" on my rear car bumper. I notice who has a sticker and who doesn't. I felt pride for my president and his words at the RNC and was amazed today at the reaction from co-workers who supported Kerry. My small sampling revealed no mind changes during the day. The speech was an explanation point that started with the Swift Boat Vets and ended the campaign of JFKerry. I was amazed as I drove home and saw the same number of Kerry lawn signs. I guess I expected that at least some of their owners would see the shame of supporting a man who was wrong on so many issues.
I expect no argument when I say, "1+1 =2. If someone says 1+1=3, I know what three looks like and can prove that 1+1 does not equal 3. There seems to be no rational way to get through to people who believe the opposite of me. Either they live in denial or don't find the evidence persuasive or don't believe my sources. I wonder how do people on opposite sides ever reach any sort of agreement. Take the Israel/Palestine conflict; can there ever be peace without one side wiping out the other side completely? My wife says "Thou Shalt Not Kill!" However we kill all the time. We kill the unborn, the State kills the guilty, we kill the enemy, and I kill bugs without a second thought.
The Hindi don't beieve in killing cattle or bugs for fear that through reincarnation, they may be killing a relative, I guess, but the do believe in killing people in war.
If I'm a politician how do I convince people to vote for me? Are all elections decided by the small pool of undecideds? Do I want to base everything on people who can be pushed and pulled? Isn't their virtue in sticking to your guns?
I expect no argument when I say, "1+1 =2. If someone says 1+1=3, I know what three looks like and can prove that 1+1 does not equal 3. There seems to be no rational way to get through to people who believe the opposite of me. Either they live in denial or don't find the evidence persuasive or don't believe my sources. I wonder how do people on opposite sides ever reach any sort of agreement. Take the Israel/Palestine conflict; can there ever be peace without one side wiping out the other side completely? My wife says "Thou Shalt Not Kill!" However we kill all the time. We kill the unborn, the State kills the guilty, we kill the enemy, and I kill bugs without a second thought.
Killed A Bug
I killed a bug the other day for fun
Squashed between the sink and tub.
Not one second passed before my deed was done
Life snuffed out, but here’s the rub
Is it that easy to take a life?
Or is the difference the size?
Could a large husband take out a small wife
Or think a moment, otherwise?
The Hindi don't beieve in killing cattle or bugs for fear that through reincarnation, they may be killing a relative, I guess, but the do believe in killing people in war.
If I'm a politician how do I convince people to vote for me? Are all elections decided by the small pool of undecideds? Do I want to base everything on people who can be pushed and pulled? Isn't their virtue in sticking to your guns?
