All American Week 2013

Posted: May 19, 2013 in Military
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Fort Bragg and the 82nd Airborne Division get ready to celebrate All American Week

Fort Bragg and the 82nd Airborne Division get ready to celebrate All American Week

Despite the fiscal bloodletting that has gone on between our civilian masters in government and our commissioned leadership here on Fort Bragg (and the rest of the military for that matter), the predominant celebration of the post outside of the July 4th celebration (cancelled due to said fiscal woes) will take place this week.

All-American Week will begin tomorrow, bringing together the 18,000 plus paratroopers of the venerated division in a series of demonstrations and displays, competitions, and an embracing of their long and storied history.  See here for a review of last year’s All American Week.

The week kicks off Monday morning at 0630 with the full force of the division creeping along at a 9 minute mile pace run through their area, snarling traffic for those unfortunate enough not to pay attention to the warning emails and post bulletins that have been circulating for the last week.  Family, friends and alumni will line the route looking for a glimpse of their loved ones, listening to the competition of cadences being sung to keep runners in step and to see the colors and streamers earned on the fields of battle since long before the theory of vertical envelopment was a capability in the art of warfare.

The keynote event of the week will be the Division Pass and Review held on Thursday at 1000.  This gathering of all abled bodied paratroopers stands at attention in the blazing early morning North Carolina sun, dripping sweat in the ever-present May humidity organized by their assigned battalions, ready to present themselves to the Division Commander and whomever the chosen keynote speaker will be.  Veteran paratroopers and former members of the division will be invited to take the field in what has been termed the “old timers parade” in celebration of their sacrifices.  The unsung heroes of the Pass and Review will be the medics and combat lifesavers who quickly and quietly remove and aid paratroopers who pass out from locking their knees while standing at attention or who tried to drink Fayetteville dry of beer the night before.  These quiet professionals quickly drag the offending fool out through the ranks to the aid station, diagnose their dehydration, stick em with an IV and begin the long shaming process of one who could not hang in the Division’s most important event of the year.  It is serious business carrying on the traditions and lineage of one of America’s premier combat organizations and you better be ready to take a ration of shit for not being able to suffer through a couple hours of the NC sunshine.

The rest of the week will be interspersed with various competitions including combative, jump competitions, team assaults and various displays of the lethal capabilities the 82nd can deliver to the field of battle.  At 1230 on Thursday soldiers killed in Iraq and Afghanistan will be recognized at the 82nd Airborne Division Museum located at Ardennes and Gela streets.  The names of paratroopers who paid the ultimate price since last year will be added to the roles of remembrance and recognized for their sacrifices.

For the uninitiated on Fort Bragg, All American Week seems to place a strangle hold on the limited roads that lead across the post.  To those of us who have been around it year after year it is one of the ultimate displays of history, tradition and lineage delivered with all the pride and discipline 18+ thousand paratroopers can deliver.  It is a visual definition of Esprit de Corps that affects anyone who witnesses it, but only those who have been in the brotherhood (sisterhood too) can understand.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H86l4BP5g5U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38ueJVxyId8

Heroes of the Homefront

Posted: May 10, 2013 in General, Military
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For the Heroes at Home without whom we could never have the strength to do what we do.

For the Heroes at Home without whom we could never have the strength to do what we do.

Today, May 10th 2013 is officially Military Spouse Appreciation Day.  Most often when we refer to military spouses we focus, like I do, on the lady who kicks ass and takes names when I am away.  To often we forget that spouse is not restricted to the female gender.  There are plenty of men who do what needs to be done around the home front while their significant other is deployed to some far away land.  In the realm of equality it may not be too long into the future where the institution may catch up to the acceptance of marriage equality in the military, and at that point it is anyone’s game.

Regardless of who the military member is or the dynamic of the relationship, today we get to honor those who sit back here keeping the kids safe, the lights on, the bills paid and all the other mundane tasks that life requires us to do.  They take on the jobs that in normal times are accomplished as a partnership all as their own.  They bear the burdens left behind, sometimes at a moments notice, all while keeping up a brave face in public, only allowing the facade to crack in the privacy of their own homes.

The fear is ever present for them, that they may look out the front window and see people in their military finest walking up to the door to deliver what they have feared all along.  Yet each day these ladies and gentlemen wake up, stuff down that fear and move on with their day.  They get the kids ready for school, fix their meals, clean up the boo boos, and wipe away the tears of their little girls when they are too young to understand why daddy is gone for so long and they just want him to tuck them in for the night.  They do this night after night for months on end.  Sometimes they have to give in to the stress too, they are only human after all.

This is not the limit of their superpowers.  It is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the immense strength they possess.  In addition to management of the home, they are our long distance therapist when we wake them up in the middle of the night because we are time zones away.  They give us strength over the phone when we tell them one of our comrades has paid the ultimate price or has been wounded in battle.  The first question is always “are you alright”?, the second is “what can I do”?.

We soldiers are burden with what is happening around us at any given time, our spouses are burdened with what happens after.  Our spouses not only have their own fears and demons to deal with, but we place our own upon them too.  The best of them drive on, some, simply reach their limit.  There is no definitive mark on the wall for that limit, it is different and unique for each.  Those that have reached their limit need to be recognized as well, there should be no fault laid at their feet, this life is simply not for everyone.

To all the spouses out there, officially recognized by law or not, you are a rare breed and I salute you.  We soldiers wear our uniforms and are easily recognizable, if you are reading this look to your left and your right and look at the person sitting their without their significant other present.  They may not be readily apparent for they wear no uniform, but they just may be a military spouse and their service member spouse may be deployed far away.

To my lovely wife, the foundation that has held us together all these years, I LOVE YOU.  Our time together in the Army is quickly nearing an end, and I know many times through these long years it has seemed like it cannot get here soon enough, yet you have been there all along, through the good and bad.  Together we have made it through our darkest times, but I would never have even tried if you were not the half that makes me whole.

UPDATE:

To my wonderful mother, who shouldered the burden of a newborn for a year while my father sat in a jungle 12,000 miles away, thank you and I love you.  You did not have internet and email, regular mail was slow and unreliable, and there were no cell phones to call right away.  You gave me the foundation for life in that year and showed me what qualities I needed to find in the mother of my children.  My wife is the half that made me whole, but you gave me the frame to fit the pieces in.

msp

Family

Posted: May 5, 2013 in General, Military
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I have been pretty delinquent in posting lately.  It is not like there has not been an abundance of things I could write about and keep within the theme of the blog.  It is not like I have been overly faithful to that theme over the last year and a half, I have strayed off the path on numerous occasions.  That is something I am going to do yet again.

Those of you who know me personally know what the current living arrangements are with me and my family.  For those that do not, we are living in opposites sides of the state for the near future.  This is not negative, not by any means.  We made a decision based off of where we were living, my retirement in just 2 short years and our desire to have our kids settled in where we wanted to end up without simply uprooting them at our whim when they would be close to completing their respective schools.  A career in the Army has caused them enough problems in their short lives for us to cause them more when me and the Army are done with each other.

So unlike the multitude of times I have gone off to far and distant lands, not really knowing what the outcome may be, we spend the majority of time apart, safe in our respective cities and as many weekends together as we can possibly spend.  In the last 10 months or so, we have managed going just a couple of weeks between visits, all except this last trip.  It was just about a full month, and it really truly sucked going that long.  My wife and son have been around this life since long before some assholes decided to fly some planes into our nightmares.  My little princess on the other hand has only ever known her daddy to be in and out of her life for periods of time.  For the first few years of her life I was actually gone more than I was home.   The last few years there has been a much better balance, but for a little girl that is only going to be 8 years old in just a couple of weeks, it is a substantial amount of time away.

There have been two times in my baby’s young life that I have witnessed that I crushed her little heart.  As long as I have know her I have been her hero, literally, her hero, and I managed to bring her to tears twice because I was leaving her.  The first time she was just about two years old.  The family was dropping me off for yet another trip and as I took my little girl out of her car seat to say goodbye and give her her hugs and kisses she looked me in the eyes and was aware, in that moment of her little life that I was leaving her.  Needless to say as I looked into her beautiful blues I was heart broken at how crushed she was and how little I was going to be able to do ease the pain she was feeling.

Yesterday was the second time I watched her little heart break.  This time she was old enough to both articulate her heartache to me and her mom and at some level understand what we were telling her and that it was just a temporary thing and I would be back no later than the end of the month to celebrate her birthday with her.  Despite all of that, it crushed me yet again to break this little girls heart.  This was after we spent a pretty cool day together despite the crappy weather, having a decent lunch and seeing Iron Man 3.  Great movie for all by the way, each of us loved it even the teenager, who it seems nothing is enjoyable anymore.

As I was driving my way home today I received a text from wifey thanking me for making them a priority this weekend and how much they miss me.  That long ride home got me to thinking a little bit once I got that text.  My first thought was that I never imagined they saw it that way.  I mean, it never dawned on me when I said I was going to get out there this weekend that I was doing it for them.  I guess on some level that was true.  The fact of the matter is that when I decided earlier in the week to get up early Saturday and head west, I was doing it because I missed them and I needed them.  It was a shitty week overall and it was far too long since I last got out there and visit my family.  So, my week ended overall on a very positive note and while I thought I was going to visit  for my own selfish reasons, I got a chance to do what any good parent should and simply be there.

When I say be there, that is exactly what I mean.  I was there wholeheartedly.  No work, no personal issues, nothing but me with the family.  We shared time together and it was good.  I left this morning disappointed that I was leaving, but feeling pretty good, that despite the life we have chosen for our children, they understand that we all have it pretty good.  They understand, whether it sucks some times or not, that we can be apart, but we are still together.  That we we do not have to be in each others pockets all the time in order to be a good, solid family.

I love what I do for a living.  I am good at it, I work with the best there is in the business.  It has never been the safest life but we have done our best to prepare, as much as anyone can in this career field, to be able to exist without each other.  We have never lied to our kids or downplayed the significance of what happens down range.  For is, we have found this to be the best course of action for our children. This is much to the chagrin of a my son’s grammar school when he decided to tell his class one day many years ago where Iraq was and how dangerous it could be.  I guess that did not sit too well with the parents of some of his classmates as we were asked to not be so honest with our enthusiastic child.

I have seen the loss in the eyes of children whose parents did not make it back.  It is unforgettable and it is unique each time, but we owe it to those children to see it.  We owe it to those we have lost.  My daughter recently asked me what Memorial day was and I told her it was our time to remember those who died in the military.  The part that I did not, could not get across to her at the time is that it is not just honoring those who gave their lives, but it is also honoring the sacrifices they made before, during and after the last moments of their lives.  It is the time away, the time their little princess will never get again.  It i honoring the loss that goes on long after the pain starts to fade and they move further along in their lives.

Bottom line we need to make the most of the time we have with our family.  It is precious and you never know when it will be no more.  Time is not simply a clock ticking away, it has depth and dimension and the time you invest now lives on long after you do.  I thank my family, my wife, my son, and my little princess for reminding me of that constantly.  Not because I need a constant reminder, but because sometimes we all need to be reeled back in to the things that matter.

The Spectacle of Modern Media

Posted: April 20, 2013 in General, GWOT, Homeland Security
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After watching the coverage of the events which unfolded this week in Boston I wanted to take a little while and write something critical yet poignant and relevant about what we, as Americans, seem willing to accept from the fourth estate these days.  Last evening as the manhunt was coming to a close I was flipping back and forth between the major news networks and was incensed at the inability of all the talking heads from sensationalizing, speculating, and just outright using their platform as a means to spread their filth.  To me, and many of the people I was sharing with it was outright disgusting.

In some sense just writing this blog and entertaining my 10s of followers, loyal as they are, I am part of today’s media.  I in no way, claim to be a reporter or to have any information of relative value beyond my own opinion and my personal experiences.  I am not afraid of a controversial subject, yet I do my best to make sure that what I say is understood to be my opinion and not a representation of the organization that I work for.  That is something that I take pretty seriously and it is one reason why I try not to be overly critical of anything military related, I temper my opinions on my Commander in Chief, and have spoken out about those who have gotten themselves in trouble because they did not take the same care in their own statements.  I want to make this clarification because I think along with my freedom of speech, guaranteed by the 1st Amendment to the Constitution, there is a responsibility to do so with a sense of, responsibility.

This may be a novel idea, but I think it is something that the media today does not have as an institution.  This is regardless of the network they work for.  There are few if any reporters that present the goings on, on a day to day basis, with anything in mind but the entertainment value of the story in front of them.  I think some of the local networks do a better job of it, they are accountable to the people they are showing themselves to.  The nationals, television and print media, are in it for the sensationalism.

Somewhere along the way this week the events in Boston morphed from the destructive events at the Boston marathon and all those affected by it, to the sexiness of SWAT teams, intelligence, shelter in place requests, and two dumbass brothers who committed numerous heinous acts for what reason no one knows at this point.  One brother, most likely the leader was mortally wounded somewhere between lead poisoning and his prostrate body being run over by his younger brother as he made his escape.  The other is laid up in a hospital with the Feds eagerly awaiting to question him and salivating at the fact that he may be declared an enemy combatant.

In between the bombings and the capture of “suspect 2″ the John Kings, Anderson Coopers, Geraldo Riveras, Shepard Smiths, Chris Hayes, and all the little minions that work for their respective networks just stirring up the pot of shit like they always do.  Latching on to any little detail that is put out and making something from absolutely nothing.  John King and his really not very accurate law enforcement “sources” got more wrong than they did right, often leading to dissension in the ranks of the CNN crew as they pointed fingers at each other.  Fox was absolutely no better in their coverage as they took it upon themselves to both tie the brothers to an Al Qaeda off shot group in Russia and repeatedly mistake the sounds of flashbangs going off for a gun battle.  Hell, one of the FOX reporters even had the balls to describe in vivid detail “My gunfight” from the night the older brother was killed; what a piece of shit.  The only time I saw anything of the victims being reported on was when it could be tied to continue the fervor against the brothers.

On top of all this shitty reporting we have the conspiracy theorists just adding their own special blend of crap to the equation.  Alex Jones, Glenn Beck, Infowars and all the other tin-foil hat wearing crowd are just full of conspiracy as a result of the events of this week.  Between the two ends of this equation the American public is just eating it up like Honey Boo Boo’s family at a Golden Corral buffet.

The best of all this is yet to come.  We now eagerly await the interrogation and the results of all the evidence that was gathered which is just now getting the attention it deserves.  A significant portion of Boston and it’s suburbs are now a crime scene.  There will be more rumor and speculation and for sure more conspiracy theory floating out there in the ether.  It is a sad state of affairs this 24 hour news cycle.  I hope somewhere along the line this gets back to the victims, both the sadness and the strength.  It is their amazing stories that will allow the country to move on, which will force the country to move on.  In the end whatever happens to this shithead is simply justice, the lessons are in those who will overcome their injuries, their fears and their losses.  The lessons are in those who will not be able to overcome what they have been through and the long term effects on their families and loved ones.

If law enforcement and government were smart they would stop holding press conferences.  They would type up a press release that says in no uncertain terms what they want it to say.  Then they would use social media as a means of distributing that information and take absolutely no questions from the press.  It may be a Constitutional right, this freedom of the press thing, but that does not mean that anyone actually has to speak to them.

We the people deserve better from those whose careers are made by us watching them.  We should demand better than what we receive.  Instead of receiving a product, and a piss-poor one at that, we should receive information.  We do not currently get that from the networks, we get a ready made template just waiting to be filled in and delivered with whatever is the flavor of the day.  What we need is a National Media Blackout Day.  Just one full day in which no one watches the news.  A day in which everyone uses social media as a means to tell the media outlets over and over again that no one is watching them.

I have a new respect for the city of Boston after all they have been through this week.  My condolences for those who lost loved ones in this senseless tragedy and best wishes and speedy recoveries to those who were injured.  I hope those who need it seek the help they may need from the wounds they cannot yet see.  The greatest of respect to all the law enforcement and emergency responders for all they did during the week.  Most of all a nod of respect to the volunteers and bystanders who overcame their fear and shock in the aftermath of the explosions to render aid and comfort to those who so desperately needed it.  You have done the city where the American Revolution began proud.

Excuses, Excuses

Posted: April 11, 2013 in Military, Political, Rants
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I am usually not one to criticize, at least not heavily, in print the decisions of our military leaders.  Today, however, I was confronted with a situation that I simply have to vent about.  The powers that be here at my long-term residence of Fort Bragg, NC have decided that due to the current fiscal climate it is an unjustifiable expense to hold our annual Fourth of July celebration this year.  In all the years I have been here (since 1994) the celebration has never been cancelled before.  Hell, even last year a torrential downpour and high winds only halted the celebration for just a short while until the storm was over.  Right after that, business as usual.

Citing the lame-ass excuse that they:

The decision was driven, in part, by overtime costs associated with the festivities

Overtime cost that exceed $120,000 for the day.  I remember a time on Fort Bragg, and in the military in general, when we soldiers were tasked with the duties of supporting post-wide events.  Civilians and their salaries were not a part of the costs of doing business.  I am not in any way putting down the contributions of our civilian workforce and the support they have provided us during these last 12 years of war, but if we have moved to the point of  a professional military service where we cannot support ourselves and our festivities in-house with our troops, then we have indeed fallen far below the standard.

We, the current and past service members and our families and friends, have paid the costs in blood, sweat and tears for the last 237 years of this country’s history.  We have answered every call since before the Declaration of Independence was signed.  That day would never had been celebrated if it were not for the sacrifices our military members have made.  Even in times of war, when we have been off in foreign lands we have had our families back home joining in the celebration of the day of the founding of our country.

It is with a sad heart that I have to hear the excuses stemming from the ineptitude of our elected officials, officials from both sides of the aisle.  It is a travesty that we, Americans, have fallen so low as to repeatedly elect, and re-elect those who we have little to no faith in and a distinct lack of trust for.  Repeatedly, we have given up more and more freedom, and this year we will feel the pinch of our irresponsibility; not only will we have to feel the effects of our governments inability to stop spending, come to consensus for the good of the people they represent, and their overall disdain for our ability to live our lives for ourselves, now we are not going to be able to see a celebration of our former greatness.  A celebration we deserve to have for all the lives we have given in support of it all these years.

In 1776, our Founding Fathers reached down and grabbed their balls, placed their signatures on the greatest document ever written in our history and gave a big “FUCK YOU” to a tyrant across the sea.  We stood up an Army and a country without the benefit of taxation yet today we cannot even celebrate that great day from 237 years ago because a bunch of dumb fuckers cannot balance a checkbook.  A federal income tax became law 100 years ago this month and still with all the money they suck out of our paychecks each month for taxes and fees to be an American we still cannot throw a party.

I have a petition on “We the People“.  Please sign it and lets send the criminal enterprise a message that we at least deserve our day.  Especially when there can be parties hosted with celebrities and music and dancing off of our dime.

You Cannot Legislate Acceptance

Posted: March 31, 2013 in General
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The U.S. Supreme Court this week heard a couple of landmark, game changing cases in reference to marriage equality.  The whole country is anxiously awaiting the rulings on the constitutionality of DOMA and California’s Prop 8.  Even the most staid of conservative politicians and loudmouths feel that eventually there will be equality in marriage throughout the country, if not from federal legislation, than within some means of the states.  Depending on the outcomes of these decisions, states like my current home of North Carolina may have to rescind or modify in some way the state constitution’s codification of marriage as only that of one man and one woman.

The ever present cynic in me does not necessarily see a USSC overturn of these laws as an instant change in legislative practice nor do I see it being the pool of universal acceptance that many activists see it as.  The Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, actually has no law-making capacity in its powers.  It is strictly legal and judicial review, not legislative powers as determined by the Constitution.  It is not within the words or deeds of the court to mandate acceptance, diversity or equality, only to determine if any of those guarantees have been infringed upon.

The more militant among us will blame the court, the Justice department or hell, even the President for whatever the outcome may be from these two cases.  Some will do so because all they can do is listen to other ignorant bastards who pick and choose which lines from the Constitution they want to use to stir the pot.  Like many of the sheep who get sucked into cults, they listen to charismatic delivery of someone who knows how to take advantage of the disenfranchised and fire them up and stoke the flames of their ignorance.

On the flip side of the coin, should the Court decide that there is no Constitutional violation in either DOMA or Prop 8, the side in favor of change and who backed bringing these cases to the Court will be no less vehement in their disgust.  Just like both Houses of Congress have been for a long time now, the polarization between the sides will be ever present and the American people will suffer for it.

Should the outcome fall to the side of equality, and I personally hope it does, there is an assumption that it will lead to instant and gratuitous change for marriage equality.  After all, diversity will be codified by Constitutional decision and what could be more important than that?  I believe that simply because diversity will be the rule of law, that acceptance is not something you can enforce by law.  If it was, there would have been no need for sweeping civil rights laws almost 100 years after the 13th Amendment to the Constitution which made slavery, or more accurately the freedom of all individuals from enslavement regardless of who you are, was ratified by the states.  Even after Affirmative Action and numerous of equal rights laws were enacted, there was still a lack of acceptance.  Hell, to this day many states must submit any changes to their voting districts due to the population census to the Justice department in order to ensure that they have been drawn up appropriately due to past examples of exclusion and gerrymandering.

My prediction for these cases is that the Court will find DOMA un-Constitutional since it is essentially a codification of exclusion and prejudice in federal law.  They will find that it is a right of the states to determine what constitutes marriage or union at their level.  I think in order to reinforce their decision they will strike down Prop 8, but not in its entirety, but in such a way to provide a framework for the states to determine their own route to marriage equality or a semblance thereof.  One of the reasons Prop 8 will not be stricken down wholeheartedly is because it was voted by the people of California and if the Court does take the route of states rights, then it would be contradictory to their opinion.

Diversity is a word that is often misused in legal opinion.  It cannot and should not be defined by quota.  I do not use the services of a business and question why there is not a good blend of color or lifestyle.  I judge them on the quality of of service provided.  If that is at the hands of a staff that would do the United Nations proud in ethnic representation or at the hands of flamboyant rainbow representation it does not matter as long as the goods and services provided are commensurate with the fee paid.  No business owner, big or small, should be dictated how many of what should represent their workforce provided they are not intentionally excluding someone because of who or what they are.

You can legislate diversity.  You cannot legislate that it be universally accepted.  It would be a great world if everyone just got along, but one of the greatest, and most frustrating things about our country is that we are allowed to have our own opinions.  So much so that that is truly the heart behind our First Amendment to the Constitution.  We can be completely misguided and ignorant in our opinions and unless you intentionally try to do someone harm with them, we are completely free and uninhibited by law for having them and speaking them.

Diversity can be mandated by a vote and a signature.  Acceptance comes with time and exposure.  One of the great things about evolution is that it is not always proven with physical or outward appearances.  Sometimes it comes simply in the thoughts and actions of those who not long before were on the other side of the coin.

The Immoral Majority

Posted: March 26, 2013 in Discrimination
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We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

Way back in the day when those good ole boys in powdered wigs put together our Constitution, they elected to set the above words as the preamble to it.  Much like most of my college level papers have an abstract before beginning the narrative, the Preamble sets the scene in a short, concise statement what you should uncover through the proceeding pages.  Now, they realized not long after the Constitution was ratified that it still did not go far enough and just two short years later they brought in the first ten amendments to it.  Here we sit 225 years later anxiously awaiting the US Supreme Courts decision on some additional freedoms; they are addressing the constitutionality of the Defense of Marriage Act and California’s Proposition 8.

DOMA is a federal act that essentially states in all its bigoted glory that the government of our nation does not recognize any type of marriage besides that between a man and a woman.  I will get back to this one in a minute.  Prop 8 is California’s state version saying essentially the same thing.  The attorney for the state of California who is arguing in favor of Prop 8′s constitutionality was dumb enough to state twice during his presentation that he is sure that one day the law will be overturned but pleaded with the court that they should not speed it along.  Chances may be pretty good that that one ready for the scrap heap.

Now lets get back to DOMA for a few minutes and reflect back to the Preamble above.  Way back in the late 18th century a bunch of powdered wig wearing men had the foresight to write 52 simple words that should be the template by which we, as Americans, should live by.  Back in a time when blacks were considered property and not citizens they had the foresight to create a document that would live and breathe and adapt to the times that it governed, all proceeded by those 52 clarifying words.  Yet in this day and age when we have achieved equality, at least by rule of law if not in full practice across the board, we are taking another issue of equality before the USSC decide.  All this because a bunch of political hacks decided to imprint their interpretation of supreme religious morality upon the fabric of our nation.

It astounds me that in this day and age that the most common argument against marriage equality comes from the pages of religious text and those that shout those phrases and verses are generally the least educated on the history of our nation and are more than willing to hold themselves above the same passages they espouse so willingly. It seems it is not hypocrisy when you have the volume to your voice and the power to choose regardless of the opinions of those they were elected to represent.  These same dickbags claim that the union between a man and a woman is sacred while quoting their text, yet they conveniently leave out the contractual agreements marriages were formed over and the commodity of a good marriage for the man.  They argue in favor of “traditional” marriage, yet fail to realize that more than 50% of all “traditional” marriages in this day and age end in divorce.  [Insert your personal deity here] forbid the “gays” reverse that trend and show all the moral “straights” the value of love in a lifelong union.

The truly fucked up part of this whole farcical endeavor is Americans vociferously speak out against perceived slights and inequalities in other countries and cultures yet we cannot achieve the level of equality within our own borders that we violently criticize within others.  We try to force our mis-perceived  “democratic” freedoms on countries who do not allow their women to drive, stone to death women who are raped, force women into traditional “modest” dress that has been the norm longer than we have been a country and too many other human rights violations to even begin to name, yet we cannot get behind the fact that two people of the same gender, Americans, want to spend the rest of their lives together and receive the same privileges as those of us in a “traditional” marriage.  THE ULTIMATE IN HYPOCRISY WITH A GLOBAL REACH.

This is not a rant to break on anyone’s religion or personal belief structure.  If it is your belief that being gay is wrong, the beauty of this country is that it is your right to believe that.  What you do not have the right to do is thrust your beliefs upon others and make your dogmatic wisdom the law of the land.  This great country of ours is blessed with the faithful, the faithless, gay, bisexual, transgender, black, white, hispanic, asian and a couple hundred other flavors of individual.  That is what makes us great.  Yet like many of those same countries we continuously poke our self-righteous stick at, we hide behind rule of law to impose our own special blend of sanctioned indignity on.

We as a nation have far greater problems we need to focus on.  We send money overseas to nations that we poke our stick at in the name of human right, yet our once prominent cities are going bankrupt with the populations leaving in droves.  We speak out against the abuses of whole sections of societies in other countries yet we legislate prejudice into our legal code.  We attempt to define the institution of marriage as a wholly religious doctrine while turning our backs on our veterans who have given mind, body and soul to defend that same ability.  The righteous worry about the same-sex couple living next door to them raising their children while they use their wealth and status to get their own fucked up kids out of trouble with the law.

It is time to pull our collective heads out of our collective asses and start thinking about what is right and wrong in terms of what we personally know is right and wrong.  Stop living by the words of those who have a platform to stand on and shout them out and get our own houses in order rather than worry about the one next door.

Hellfires and Brimstone

Posted: March 10, 2013 in Political, Rants
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The use of drones to launch Hellfire missiles has been a contentious issue for quite some time now.  It was a somewhat common topic during the Bush administration and it has exploded, literally and figuratively during the current presidential administration.  It has really made waves since the remote control death of Anwar al-Awlaki in 2011 and his 16 year old son just a couple days later, both by remotely piloted drones sporting the bad-ass Hellfire missile.  What made this situation uber-special is that al-Awlaki and his kid were both technically American citizens.

The whole point of contention in this matter is the “targeted” killing of American citizens in Yemen without “due process” as guaranteed by the Constitution.  It does not matter that Awlaki 1 was a senior member of al Qaeda, who is believed to be behind the Christmas shoe-bomber and his failed attempt to blow up an airplane.  Nor does it seem to matter that he was a “spiritual” adviser to the Fort Hood shooter, Abdel Hassan, quite possibly convincing him to unleash his inner jihadi on a hospital full of people.  I have a feeling that there is a little more to the killing of his son than the simple “assassination” of a boy who just happened to be unfortunate enough to have such a detestable piece of shit for his father, than the people on both sides of the aisle are up in arms about.  I don’t know, like maybe he just had the unfortunate enough piece of luck to be sitting in the passenger seat the day they blew up the guy they were really targeting, al-Awlaki’s number two.

Let us flash forward to present day and discuss the potential for use of drones within our borders.  That seems to be the hot topic of conversation across the board and one that the current administration is having a hard time framing an answer to.  At least that is an answer to a question that has no good answer to it.  While I am not really a fan of Eric Holder or current policies in general, I have to admit that the sensationalized scenarios being proposed by our latest crop of bullshitting do-gooders have no good answers to them.  So, here are my answers to the questions, stripping out all the one-sidedness that Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians, and all the other assholes that keep stirring everybody up with their “common” man, real-American guy ways.  In reality they are bullshit artists who are just playing a 4-year long con on people so desperate for someone who says all the right things, while they go about spreading the flame of discontent.  Here is a clue people, the next election may be one via social media in four years, but the dumb-ass memes doing a word for word of your favorite politician are not really going to solve anything.

So, back to missile being launched within the continental US.  A surgical strike in a known terrorist, American or otherwise, in a coffee house right in the middle of D.C. is not really a surgical strike.  In that regard, something just as lethal, but better guided to the intended recipient, rather than all the unfortunate sheeple that happen to be sitting near them, like I don’t know a bullet, or a blackjack to the back of the head followed by a set of felx-cuffs may be the proper escalation of force in that particular instance.

Now, lets take same said asshole, again, American or otherwise, driving a truck full of something horribly destructive across the Kansas plains, intent on destroying something American.  Feel free to send a remotely piloted ballistic device right up their backside.  American or not, intent to use a Weapon of Mass Destruction in our country deserves quick, and deliberate use of force.  The more lethal it is up front, the less we have to take to trial later.

So what is really wrong with this picture?  Is it really about denying the rights of Americans and due process, or, is it really about people sitting in positions of power, realizing that they have been fucking us over for years and just trying a new way of maintaining their control over the parties they represent?.  Let’s be real here people, this is not about drones or hell-fire missiles, religion or lack there-of.  This is about solidifying a base of power that is intended to move either them or their party further along the power track; eventually culminating in the top seat.

How can I say what I am saying?  That is a good question.  My answer is simply this, because the speech and rhetoric is targeted and intended to appeal directly to the people they are speaking to; their sheeple.  They paint the other side of their argument as the big-bad wolf and themselves as the dutiful sheepdogs here to protect us sheep from those wolves.  There is nothing but superficial bi-partisanship; no intention at consensus or bridge building; no attempt made to bring America’s needs to the front and dig deep for solutions.  It is all rhetoric and appeals to the audience it is targeted to.  As long as side are drawn and represent the partisanship, rather than American issues, that will be the case.

There are a few politicians out there from multiple party lines that I would like to think can actually transcend what they are part of now.  As a confirmed pragmatist however, I am never disappointed to see things continue on as they have been for as long as I have been alive.  I will be pleasantly surprised though, the day one of these cats has the balls (figurative here) to actually give the finger to the system,  take the podium in either House of Congress, allegedly to speak about one thing, turn around and give a big “fuck you” to the other 534 elected officials they are representative with.

To all my peeps out there constantly posting politically charged memes and speech excerpts, do more than just proliferate someone else speech.  Demand the level of responsibility they preach about and make them pay when they fall short.  Don’t be a sheep for these assholes when you are sheepdogs in the real world.  No matter how appealing or accurate what they say is, it is just speech until they actually do something.

A Letter from a Grateful American to His Congressman

Posted: March 5, 2013 in Government
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Unlike many Facebook letters I can personally attest to knowing this person. We were assigned together a decade ago and I was able to run into him downrange during my last trip to Iraq where he was a DA Civilian. This is a real letter that he wrote to his Congressman to express dissatisfaction with how Congress has handled the current fiscal crisis and the effects of sequestration on our civilian counterparts in the DoD.  I have cut his name out of the signature block out of courtesy.  Please feel free to pass this on, I will pass any requests for proof this was written by a real person and not attributed to some undeserving celebrity on to the writer of this letter.
Enjoy, THIS is what being an American is all about!

I wrote to my Congressman (Andy Harris)…. I feel pretty freaking good about it.

“Dear Sir,

As a Veteran of two combat tours as an Active Duty Soldier, AS WELL as two tours in Iraq as an Emergency Essential Department of the Army (DA) Civilian, (October, 2001 – Initial Entry to Afghan Theater, 5th Special Forces Group, K-2 Uzbekistan and Mazar E Shariff Afghanistan; March, 2003 – Initial Entry to Iraqi Theater, 5th Special Forces Group, Al Jaffar Jordan; April 2007 – Subject Matter Expert, Satellite Communications Systems, MNF-Central, Tikrit Iraq; April 2008 – Subject Matter Expert, Satellite Communications, MNF-North, Tal Afar Iraq) I AM DISGUSTED WITH THE MANNER IN WHICH THE CURRENT CONGRESS HAS CONDUCTED ITS BUSINESS REGARDING THE PENDING “BUDGET UNCERTAINTY” AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE.

I served nearly a decade in the Army. When I became physically unable to meet the standards set for me by the proud traditions of the Corps of Non-Commissioned Officers, I made the painful and difficult decision to leave my life in Uniform. Being one that believes in living a life of service, I started a new career as a Department of the Army Civilian. Since my transition in late 2005, I have transplanted my family 4 times. That’s averages once every two years. We have lived in the Republic of Korea, Washington State, Hawaii, New Jersey and are now residing in Maryland; the place where we intend to put down our “roots.” As I mentioned above, I’ve spent more than a year of my time as a DA Civilian directly in harm’s way as a forward deployed asset of the Department of Defense in Iraq. Combine that time with the other (numerous) Temporary Duty Assignments in support of the Army and my Command, I missed more than half of my son’s first four years on this Earth. That’s time I will not get back, sir. Don’t get me wrong… it’s a sacrifice that I would make again, if called to do so. I merely want to make sure that YOU are aware that it happened. I want this little grain of context to exist in your mind as you consider your position on sequestration.

I am now a resident of your Congressional District. I represent just one of the 28,000 households that Maryland gained as a result of the Base Realignments and Closures (BRAC) of 2005. I write to you representing one of the thousands of households that have taken up residence in Cecil County. I want to let you know that the consensus of opinion in my workplace, in my neighborhood, in my town and amongst the entire DoD Community is that you, sir, are FAILING.

I wonder if you have considered what the effect of a 20% reduction in household income for a newly established core of residents will have on the community you represent. I wonder if you have considered the effect that this will have on your future political career as our representative. I can assure you, if the sequestration is allowed to move forward; if food is taken off my table as a result of mandatory furlough; if I can’t afford to let my son play spring baseball, or use the internet in the safety of my home, or eat an ice cream cone, or go to the doctor; if my wife gets cold because we can no longer afford to heat our house… I want YOU to know that I will invest every ounce of the energy that I have into working within the community to ensure that you get voted out of office as quickly and decisively as possible.

Offer me some perspective, sir. In what way does your sacrifice for this nation match my own? Enlighten me as to why 800,000 people have to take a 20% reduction in pay because you, and the other members of Congress, can’t agree on how to eliminate 2-3% of the Federal Budget? Why is it that I continue to accomplish the missions that are placed before me, while you continue to make a mess out of nearly everything you touch… but I’M the one that’s going to take a pay cut?

Granted, I’m not standing before you and saying that all Government Employees are fantastic. Some of them are leaches that contribute nothing more to the world that a collection of boogers on the under-side of their desks. I am not one of them, sir. I directly support combat operations on a daily basis. I make myself available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year for technical assistance to telecommunications sites around the world. When systems break, I’m the guy that gets called in an emergency to restore vital communications resources around the world. I help design, test and implement the systems that enable commanders to speak to their troops, gathering and distribution timely and accurate intelligence information and give the Soldier/Sailors/Marine the ability to call his/her spouse/mother/child in the middle of the night for what may be his/her last “I love you.”

I have sweated for this country. I have bled for this country. I have lost my brothers and sisters in arms, and continue to serve out of respect for the fact that they no longer can. Your reluctance to act in this matter disrespects me, my family and everything I have ever done in service to this nation. I implore you to prevent the coming furloughs.

Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. I appreciate that you are extremely busy. Please take every… single… word… of what I have said, seriously.

The Crow and the Butterfly

Posted: March 3, 2013 in Government
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Just about eight years ago my very pregnant wife and I were doing some serious work putting together what would be our daughters nursery.  We put in new carpet, a lavender paint and on one wall a very large mural.  We placed a large tree in a garden and throughout the room and on the mural we placed a variety of butterflies.  As my little princess grew, we changed her crib into a bed, but the room essentially stayed the same.

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Until today, that little labor of love stayed in tact.  Even after we moved everyone to our future home, I could not bring myself to do anything with either child’s room.  It has been a bit depressing thinking about doing anything with it despite the fact that I have known for months that I need to get off my ass and start prepping this house for whatever will happen with it in the future.  No matter what though until this weekend the most I could do was clean the room it has just been too much to think about with all the other changes in our lives lately and those that I know are on the horizon.

If everything goes according to plan, next month we will close on what will hopefully be the last house we ever buy.  Our new home, sits about mid-way up a mountain in a beautiful neighborhood.  We will move everyone into it in June, just as the kids finish school for the year.  The one unfortunate thing about the new home is that the kids will have to change schools from the ones we just put them into this year.  It will not be too daunting for them and they are moving into schools that are comparable or better to the ones they are in currently.

The reason I finally got a start on prepping the house is that I picked up a boarder this weekend and while the rooms are clean a princess’ palace garden theme and camouflage room are not really suitable for business.  So it was with a heavy heart that I got myself together and went to purchase the paint and other supplies needed to do what I have know I have needed to do for several months now.

I am normally not what you would call a sentimental fellow, most that know me would attest to that, but the very last thing I first put the primer on was the mural.  That thin white paint did little more than fade the mural and the very colorful butterflies just a little bit.  Once I started putting the first coat of paint on, that little tree of life taunted me as the most prominent pieces of it decided they were going to shine through.  A little while later with the second coat a couple of the butterflies and that damn sign were still giving me fits.  Finally, after I got the third coat on the mural wall, all I could see was the mural in my mind, right where it was supposed to be.  I just closed my eyes before this sentence and I could see it all, in its glory right where it was.  I truly hope that when I get back from work tomorrow, after letting the paint set-up overnight that something does not decide to be stubborn and pop its head through.

So, why was something as simple as painting a room such an endeavor for someone as non-sentimental as me?  This has been the only home that my children have known.  We bought it and have lived in it since before even our son was born.  This coming September will be 18 years.  Up to this point, our entirely too small home has been exactly that, a home.  The only reason we have not fixed it up and sold it so far is that it would cost me more to live in an apartment as I work towards retirement.

So, why the title of a Shinedown song for this post?  Other than the fact that my little girl sings it beautifully, as I was working through the emotions of changing something that has meant so much to both me and my wife, I realized a slightly alternative meaning to the song.  The butterflies are pretty obvious.  Gia-bear has been my butterfly princess since the day she came home from the hospital.  The crow, that is time and all the change that comes along with it.  You cannot stop it and along with it the change just keeps on coming.  My little girl is growing up, she is not much shorter than her mom at this point.  My little man, is just a hair bit shorter than me and I expect by the end of the year to be looking him in the eye without looking down hell, I may even be looking up at them.  Time, she is a fickle bitch, and just like the crow eats up all the scraps, leaving you not much beyond memories.

Now that one room is done, the other will go a bit easier, as will the rest of the work that needs to be done around here.  Time goes on, my kids will continue to grow and me and my wife will continue to get older.  Fortunately, she has some dynamite genetics and looks even more beautiful today than the day I met her.  Here is a full length view of our garden scene.

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And for your listening pleasure the song behind the title:

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