The Texian Partisan

National Ammo Day, 2011!

2011-11-18T21:40:00.004-06:00

Another National Ammo day is upon us, where we buy 100 rounds of our preferred caliber, gauge, and/or reloading components, so that the bean-counters at the ATF can pass up their chain of command that We the People have plenty of ammo, lest they think that we will be easy pickings for disarming. Wherever you are, happy birthday, Kim du Toit!

This year I will add that the Appleseed Project is a great program, a combination of marksmanship and heritage, in teaching citizens how to accurately shoot and what is important about our history in being armed against a tyrannical government. I plan on making it in the next year to one of the classes they offer, tho the closest ones are still a couple hours' drive away.

Cancer, bad! Kilts, good!

2011-09-22T16:53:00.002-05:00

I wish I had found out about this earlier in the month, perhaps even the end of last month to help, but it is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and as a fundraiser, several bloggers are in a contest for Kilted to Kick Cancer. Ambulance Driver has several posts about other bloggers who are kilting themselves this month, including a link to DIY instructions on making your own utility kilt. They're collecting donations for the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Livestrong, so all my loyal readers (both of you!) should go find someone among the many and donate! With a $40 donation to any of the contestants (or straight to PCF.org), Magnum Boots and Alt.Kilt will send you a KTKC t-shirt as a sign of their gratitude.

Here's some factoids to chew on. (Shamelessly borrowed from AD, here.)

Prostate Cancer Facts:

* About 240,890 new cases of prostate cancer will be diagnosed in 2011.
* About 33,720 men will die of prostate cancer in 2011.
* About 1 man in 6 will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.
* More than 2 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point are still alive today.
* Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer.
* About 1 man in 36 will die of prostate cancer.

Testicular Cancer Facts:

* It most often affects men between ages 20 and 39.
* It affects 8,000 men a year, and kills 390 of them.
* It is the most common form of cancer in men ages 15-34.
* 95% of cases can be cured if detected early.

One fact mentioned on the KTCK site, that hits home for me, is this:
Prostate and testicular cancers kill just as many men as breast cancer kills women. Since my wife already went in for her first breast exam, I should probably do similar for myself, to keep that boogieman away, as we already lost my mom's younger sister to breast cancer over a year and a half ago, all because she ignored it until she couldn't anymore (it had grown and spread to her lungs, and she finally saw a doc when she had trouble breathing).

If you give a mouse an AK

2011-05-07T22:48:00.003-05:00

If you give a mouse an AK

If you give a mouse an AK, he'll want to shoot it.
If he gets to shoot it, he'll want to bump-fire the whole magazine.
If he bump-fires the whole mag, he'll need more ammo.
When he goes to the store to get more ammo, he'll see that 75-rd drum.
If he gets that drum, he'll want to try setting his foregrip on fire!
When he sets his foregrip on fire, he'll think about what replacement parts he'll need.
If he looks into replacement parts, he'll see that a set of parts isn't much cheaper than a whole new AK.
Then he'll want another AK!

ETA Looks like I might have to change this, after seeing this vid:

A day to celebrate, a day to mourn

2011-04-21T11:48:00.004-05:00

I suppose, first, the good news:
Happy San Jacinto Day! Today is the 175th anniversary of the Texian Army defeating the Mexicans, and winning our independence from them.

In unrelated good news, the website The Homemade Gunsmith is back up, now hosted in an undisclosed location here in the US, guarded by Dick Cheney and his guns (ok, I made up that last bit), safe from the Internet Gestapo (for now). The sad news, related to that, is that the site's founder, Philip A. Luty, has died after his battle with cancer. (Big thanks to Firehand for the notice.) I regret that I have no more information that that, since last I'd heard, he was in prison, for the Byzantine crime of aiding a criminal who used his designs for a homemade gun, even tho all Luty had done was publish the book, for which they'd already arrested and jailed him (ok, he also designed and built the first gun himself, to make sure it would work, proving the despite their laws, they could not overturn man's inventiveness and determination, and for that, he was jailed, but as we like to say over here, he served his time for the crime, then they threw him back in for someone else copying his design and building their own gun, claiming that he was "aiding terrorists").

Happy Birthday Texas!

2011-03-02T13:01:00.002-06:00

In honor of our independence 175 years ago, this is our Declaration of Independence, written at Washington-on-the-Brazos.

The Unanimous Declaration of Independence made by the Delegates of the People of Texas in General Convention at the town of Washington on the 2nd day of March 1836.

When a government has ceased to protect the lives, liberty and property of the people, from whom its legitimate powers are derived, and for the advancement of whose happiness it was instituted, and so far from being a guarantee for the enjoyment of those inestimable and inalienable rights, becomes an instrument in the hands of evil rulers for their oppression.

When the Federal Republican Constitution of their country, which they have sworn to support, no longer has a substantial existence, and the whole nature of their government has been forcibly changed, without their consent, from a restricted federative republic, composed of sovereign states, to a consolidated central military despotism, in which every interest is disregarded but that of the army and the priesthood, both the eternal enemies of civil liberty, the everready minions of power, and the usual instruments of tyrants.

When, long after the spirit of the constitution has departed, moderation is at length so far lost by those in power, that even the semblance of freedom is removed, and the forms themselves of the constitution discontinued, and so far from their petitions and remonstrances being regarded, the agents who bear them are thrown into dungeons, and mercenary armies sent forth to force a new government upon them at the point of the bayonet.

When, in consequence of such acts of malfeasance and abdication on the part of the government, anarchy prevails, and civil society is dissolved into its original elements. In such a crisis, the first law of nature, the right of self-preservation, the inherent and inalienable rights of the people to appeal to first principles, and take their political affairs into their own hands in extreme cases, enjoins it as a right towards themselves, and a sacred obligation to their posterity, to abolish such government, and create another in its stead, calculated to rescue them from impending dangers, and to secure their future welfare and happiness.

Nations, as well as individuals, are amenable for their acts to the public opinion of mankind. A statement of a part of our grievances is therefore submitted to an impartial world, in justification of the hazardous but unavoidable step now taken, of severing our political connection with the Mexican people, and assuming an independent attitude among the nations of the earth.

The Mexican government, by its colonization laws, invited and induced the Anglo-American population of Texas to colonize its wilderness under the pledged faith of a written constitution, that they should continue to enjoy that constitutional liberty and republican government to which they had been habituated in the land of their birth, the United States of America.

In this expectation they have been cruelly disappointed, inasmuch as the Mexican nation has acquiesced in the late changes made in the government by General Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, who having overturned the constitution of his country, now offers us the cruel alternative, either to abandon our homes, acquired by so many privations, or submit to the most intolerable of all tyranny, the combined despotism of the sword and the priesthood.

It has sacrificed our welfare to the state of Coahuila, by which our interests have been continually depressed through a jealous and partial course of legislation, carried on at a far distant seat of government, by a hostile majority, in an unknown tongue, and this too, notwithstanding we have petitioned in the humblest terms for the establishment of a separate state government, and have, in accordance with the provisions of the national constitution, presented to the general Congress a republican constitution, which was, without just cause, contemptuously rejected.

It incarcerated in a dungeon, for a long time, one of our citizens, for no other cause but a zealous endeavor to procure the acceptance of our constitution, and the establishment of a state government.

It has failed and refused to secure, on a firm basis, the right of trial by jury, that palladium of civil liberty, and only safe guarantee for the life, liberty, and property of the citizen.

It has failed to establish any public system of education, although possessed of almost boundless resources, (the public domain,) and although it is an axiom in political science, that unless a people are educated and enlightened, it is idle to expect the continuance of civil liberty, or the capacity for self government.

It has suffered the military commandants, stationed among us, to exercise arbitrary acts of oppression and tyrrany, thus trampling upon the most sacred rights of the citizens, and rendering the military superior to the civil power.

It has dissolved, by force of arms, the state Congress of Coahuila and Texas, and obliged our representatives to fly for their lives from the seat of government, thus depriving us of the fundamental political right of representation.

It has demanded the surrender of a number of our citizens, and ordered military detachments to seize and carry them into the Interior for trial, in contempt of the civil authorities, and in defiance of the laws and the constitution.

It has made piratical attacks upon our commerce, by commissioning foreign desperadoes, and authorizing them to seize our vessels, and convey the property of our citizens to far distant ports for confiscation.

It denies us the right of worshipping the Almighty according to the dictates of our own conscience, by the support of a national religion, calculated to promote the temporal interest of its human functionaries, rather than the glory of the true and living God.

It has demanded us to deliver up our arms, which are essential to our defence, the rightful property of freemen, and formidable only to tyrannical governments.

It has invaded our country both by sea and by land, with intent to lay waste our territory, and drive us from our homes; and has now a large mercenary army advancing, to carry on against us a war of extermination.

It has, through its emissaries, incited the merciless savage, with the tomahawk and scalping knife, to massacre the inhabitants of our defenseless frontiers.

It hath been, during the whole time of our connection with it, the contemptible sport and victim of successive military revolutions, and hath continually exhibited every characteristic of a weak, corrupt, and tyrranical government.

These, and other grievances, were patiently borne by the people of Texas, untill they reached that point at which forbearance ceases to be a virtue. We then took up arms in defence of the national constitution. We appealed to our Mexican brethren for assistance. Our appeal has been made in vain. Though months have elapsed, no sympathetic response has yet been heard from the Interior. We are, therefore, forced to the melancholy conclusion, that the Mexican people have acquiesced in the destruction of their liberty, and the substitution therfor of a military government; that they are unfit to be free, and incapable of self government.

The necessity of self-preservation, therefore, now decrees our eternal political separation.

We, therefore, the delegates with plenary powers of the people of Texas, in solemn convention assembled, appealing to a candid world for the necessities of our condition, do hereby resolve and declare, that our political connection with the Mexican nation has forever ended, and that the people of Texas do now constitute a free, Sovereign, and independent republic, and are fully invested with all the rights and attributes which properly belong to independent nations; and, conscious of the rectitude of our intentions, we fearlessly and confidently commit the issue to the decision of the Supreme arbiter of the destinies of nations.

Beans, bullets, bandages... what else?

2011-03-01T00:36:00.003-06:00

Greetings, all! I'm not dead, just playing too much Bejeweled Blitz and Zuma on Facebook as of late, and wishing I could get another Blue Heeler from Texas Cattledog Rescue, tho recent events have had my brain working again. On a online discussion forum, another member posted a link to the science story about the possibility of a solar flare being stronger and more disruptive than Hurricane Katrina, followed by commenting that he should stock on gas for his camp stove and lanterns. My remark was

Beans, bullets, and bandages; what else can you really do? (Sounds kinda like my shopping/packing list for "going Grizzly Adams"!) One of the bloggers I occasionally read opined on this topic herself, about any number of possible scenarios.

Today at work I mentally turned over this list of supplies, making it into a game of what else I thought necessary of emergency preparedness, all based around words starting with the letter "B". Let's start with those three mentioned above, with brief explanations and expanded thoughts on each.

Beans- simple, dried, will keep a long time without refrigeration, tho I prefer mine served up as red beans 'n' rice.

Bullets- another item that will keep a long time without special handling, just keep it cool and dry, very useful with a later item for defense of homestead and procuring fresh meat.

Bandages- this and a fully-stocked first aid kit will help keep one breathing for a long time!

Now to the additional items:

Boomstick!- this would be the item to work with the bullets mentioned above. Either one is rather useless without the other. (As I've commented many times, an empty gun is just an awkward club!) Don't forget some way to keep it clean and in good repair.

Blades- edged tools of various types, from pocketknives, to machetes and cleavers, to axes, to more specialized ones like a spoon-carving knife, maybe even a bayonet to attach to the end of your rifle, if it's a military surplus one. And some way to keep them sharp.

Bedroll and Blankets- gotta have somewhere to rest your weary head! Ain't no good to yourself or others if you're plumb wore out! Probably would include a tent or tarp or tepee to keep the rain and cold wind off ya while sleeping.

Burro or Bicycle- a way to get around, and some of the more economical ways than some folks propose, especially in light of rising gasoline prices. (My "all-terrain" bike has folding baskets on the back for carrying groceries and gear, and I've nicknamed it my "Tin Burro," as a jibe at those who call their motorcycles "Iron Horses.")

Boombox and Bands- some type of radio to keep up with news and weather, in the event of power loss for TV and Internet, and some music to sooth nerves and boost morale during trying times. (I'd recommend a solar/handcrank-powered radio as a backup, for long-term emergencies, like this one with the American Red Cross branding, plus it's got an onboard LED flashlight, always good during an emergency. Just make sure it's not your only one!)

Bible- or whatever your preferred spiritual guidance is, just bring it with you!

This is more a listing of mostly "essentials" for any type of emergency preparedness, not just for hurricanes or solar flares or zombie attacks, and shouldn't be interpreted as all-inclusive or the order as an indicator of importance. It was a mental exercise for me while I was bored at work, simply based around the alliteration of the three basics of the beginning of this list. Your list of supplies should be longer, as would mine, because existing on just the contents of this list would get boring!

Definitions: Conservative

2010-08-08T17:06:00.004-05:00

This has been rattling around in my head the last few days, growing in response to a friend pointing out she is a Democrat and didn't care for all the right-wing-slanted emails she was getting, and I wanted to point out that really, neither of the major political parties in the US represent my views, and really don't look like they're going to change to meet those views in the near or distant future. Mainly because my views can be summed up as "leave me and my sh!+ ALONE!", and neither party is going to be following that advice anytime soon.

Both parties, to varying degrees, have inserted themselves into my daily life, whether it's how many time I have to show some type of identification card or paperwork to prove my identity, or how much taxes I have to pay just buying a soda, a car, or a gun. I became very disillusioned with the Democrats, under Clinton, when they decided it was ok to burn down a church with children inside on a Sunday morning after a almost-2-month standoff following a botched raid, all because of suspicions of machine guns at that property. The Republicans didn't do much better, when after regaining control of Congress after a 50+ year absence, they became the same big spenders as the other guys, even if they changed what the spending was on, they didn't follow thru with any of their promises of cutting back (and by cutting, I mean, last year your department got $100, this year you get $75, not the usual gubmint SOP of granting an automatic raise of $110, and "cutting" it to only $105!). And the so-called War on Terrorism was turned into a PC-at-all-costs Charlie Foxtrot, instead of "This is War, we fight it to WIN!" And the eight years of whining from the Dems and their useful idiots on the far left about "Bush is the Hitler" kinda grew annoying quickly-- I think when Hitler was around, his political opposition grew quiet, once they started ending up in ditches with a hole in their head. I seem to recall reading about a "Night of the Long Knives" where the Officer Corps of the German army was violently purged of anyone suspected of not being loyal enough to Der Fuhrer. Hmm, wasn't it in the recent news that the General in charge of the war in Afghanistan was forced out of his position after some remarks made by his staff being derisive of the civilian leadership, found their way into print... and that's under this current administration, isn't it?

Pretty much, I don't like either major party, the Democrats or the Republicans, each claiming to be "Liberal" and "Conservative," respectively... ok, that's more like, disrespectively, by their own actions. Altho this administration seems hell-bent for Change At Any Cost, thankfully, they have little to show for their efforts that is positive. I mean, usually when the news reports that some law or budget failed to pass in Congress because the Repubs opposed it, they treat it like they voted against it out of some political (and racial) bigotry, and fail to note that Dems who also opposed it. Usually this is trumpeted as "bipartisan support" if something passes, but not "bipartisan opposition" when it fails. (Oh, except when it was back during the Repub-majority Congress.) Sen. Pelosi wants to claim she's gonna "drain the swamp" that is DC's political good ol' boy (and girl) network of corruption, but she can't get it thru her head that she's the biggest, ugliest gator there, after her remark about the ObamaCare bill, "we have to pass it to find out what's in it." Excuse me?!? NO!!! They've demonstrated more than enough times that they aren't interested in any input from The People of these many States, enough to make one think that they don't care what We think, they're ramming their legislation thru, whether we like it or not! And any "Change" to reverse this trend isn't gonna come soon enough to save the US from it's own internal destruction. They're proving the claims of some of the wild-eyed crazies out there saying that voting doesn't matter, the self-appointed Elites will do what they want with our taxes and with our laws, exempting themselves all the while.

It may sound overly dramatic to compare the current state of the US to an abusive marriage, but when DC makes all the rules, demands all the taxes, and the States and the People have to toil to meet these demands for the "promise" of getting back some of our tax monies in the form of Federal Funds and all these BS "Stimulus programs", it's more than an unequal agreement, it's time for a divorce. Let the States take care of themselves instead of paying tribute to DC, and hoping that the Feds will take care of us. Texas for Texans, California for... those peoples, New York for the DamnedYankees; let us all go our own ways, and reform into regional confederations to better meet our needs. (Those needs certainly aren't being met by the present FedGov; DC is going after Arizona for daring to enforce Federal immigration law, while now giving a silent nod of consent to California to allow marijuana to be grown and sold there-- back during the "evil Bush years" the DEA raided some of the Pot shoppes; now, not so much. Hmm, I wonder if you have to present ID when buying weed there, just to prove that you are old enough or whatever!)

Certainly there's enough folks here in Texas raising their voices in support of independence once again, but that still has a ways to go, from what I can see. Too many people brainwashed into thinking they need the FedGov in their lives, to protect them, to support them. WTF?!? We're Texans, dammit, we support and protect ourselves! If we have hard times, we have friends, family, neighbors to turn to, not some damned NannyState FedGov, offering us candy with hooks attached! (The Federal Highway Funds, collected from the taxes we pay on gasoline, have always come with strings attached: lower the highway speed limit (remember the good ol' "Double Nickle"?), raise the drinking age, require wearing seat belts, lower the drunk-driving intoxication levels, and I'm sure I've missed a couple of others.) I think we could easily cut out the middle man of "wealth redistribution", by keeping our money, that WE earned, in our pockets, and we can give it to whatever suits our fancy. We could donate to church charities because we want to, instead of being taxed without any real say-so, and then the charities would be able to afford to help the needy in our own area, instead of them having to cut back on their services offered (which in turn creates more demand for gubmint services, which raises their budgets, increasing the taxes they need for their support, out of my and your wallet!)

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Ok, this has drifted heavily from what I intended to write, trying to define myself as what I see as a "plain conservative" with the main focus being "Leave me and my sh#+ ALONE!" and how the Federal gubmint isn't meeting any of that thinking. Isn't a major part of the usual definition of conservative, being that you are content with things the ways they are in your life? Meanwhile, the Liberals in DC are pushing any and every Change on us, just because they can! ("Yes, We Can!" "Change is good!" Wait a minute, weren't those the main slogans for the last two winning Dem Presidents? Hmm... maybe we should revive Clinton's own "It's the economy, Stupid!" next time.) For some reason, Jeff Goldblum's line in Jurassic Park comes to mind:

Yeah, but your scientists were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn't stop to think if they should.

Hence, we have a bunch of laws being forced on us by the Elites in DC, in arrogant disdain of the limits on the FedGov by the US Constitution. I realize this has been going on for, oh, a couple of centuries, but I was never able to get away with something wrong by claiming that I was only continuing what I did the day or week before, and I wasn't punished then, so why pick on me now? Why do we excuse, or allow excuses from, the FedGov for willfully violating the Constitution, which everyone serving there took an oath to defend and protect? Wouldn't a "plain conservative" be reminding those bastids, "Hey, that's not in your job description, so cut it out, or you're fired!" Well, I have, and it's not doing much good, since most of those bastids will look at any "petition of grievances" I send and ignore it for the simple reason of, I don't live in their district. Since they don't think my opinion is important enough to listen to and take counsel, then my tax money can't be important enough to fund their pet projects that enrich their buddies.

Fine, whatever, I'm taking my ball and going home, and taking my home with me! Texas doesn't need DC telling us what to do anyway!

Found a new T-shirt!

2010-05-26T22:57:00.003-05:00

Just to prove I'm not dead yet, I found this shirt at Wally-World, of all places! I like it!

Happy B-day, Texas!!!

2010-03-02T18:28:00.002-06:00

Before the day gets away from me, I wanted to wish all of Texas a Happy Independence Day!

I apologize for the hiatus, I'll probably get more into it later.

Radom chit pt 2

2009-10-01T12:52:00.002-05:00

It's happy dance time! Kim du Toit is back on the air! (With help from his lovely wife Connie.) Big ol' hat tip to Xavier for the notice.

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Is it wrong for me to wish for an EMP that'll wipe out all the electronic masturbation toys (i.e. cell phones, Ipods, Blackberrys, etc.) of these fools who keep walking directly in front of our car?

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Anybody want a kitten or two? We've got 4 two-month-olds ready to go, out the door, and two of our other cats both had litters a week ago! One had 10 kittens (only 6 survived) and the other had 4 (3 survived). Here's a pic of one new mamma with all of the kits.

We realized there was no way all 14 of the kits could've come from one mamma (who I caught in the middle of giving birth to #2), and since one of the cats went from "mostly pregnant" to "not pregnant anymore," and we found the 4 all-black ones in the litter box (eww!), we deduced that the not-as-huge-pregnancy cat had hers in the litter box, and the hugely-pregnant cat was having hers wherever she could find (I ran in after hearing one of the babies crying, getting dragged around by her momma still attached by the umbilical cord! She really didn't have good instincts for this.)

I always feel like, sombody's watching me...

2009-09-06T17:37:00.003-05:00

No, not the Geico commercial, I'm laughing at the fact that my Sitemeter tells me that the Bobbies came looking at my blog, after I commented on Phillip Luty! The next day, Britain's SkyTV came calling too! Looks like the Brits are getting their knickers in a twist over someone who remembers what it once meant to be a Brit, owning a gun, ready to stand up to defend self, country and King!

Jeeze, I'm getting folks from all over (not just on that subject, tho): British Telecom, someone in Croatia, Portugal,Sweden, Finland, some folks apparently getting me passed around in their email, even someone serving in Operation Iraqi Freedom! Wow, thanks for visiting!

PS I wanted to say thanks to Firehand at Irons in the Fire, a lot of the folks coming here were following links from his blog, where he got fired up about the injustice done to Phillip Luty, so he posted about it too.

Random chit

2009-09-06T16:33:00.002-05:00

If you happen to see Mark Chesnutt while you're running errands today, don't forget to wish him a Happy Birthday. It's #46 for him.
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I don't feel like commenting more on the current BS outta DC, I've already put in my 2 cents in other blogs, so I'm probably up to about $.50.
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In a sad commentary on events, the British Scouting Association has banned carrying any knives. Despite British law still allowing non-locking pocketknives with blades no-more-than 3 inches, the officials claim it is because of concerns over a "growing (British) knife culture." I'm calling BS, it's over a lack of arresting-and-punishing-the-guilty-yobs culture! I can't imagine being in Scouts and not being encouraged to have a pocketknife on your person. In fact, I recall a meeting after a campout (that I missed), where one of the advisors was disappointed that several of the Scouts on that trip didn't have a basic pocketknife, so he was presenting them all with an Opinel, and the reminder to "Be Prepared," you know, that "Scout motto" thing. Now? {sigh} I'm pretty sure that Sir Baden-Powell is spinning in his grave.

Funny thing about it all, from what opinions I've gathered online, is that England is the only one with this "problem," across the English Channel in France (and the rest of Europe), a pocketknife is perfectly normal to have with you, you know, as long as you're not up to no good. As examples, if you're in the park and using your Opinel or Swiss Army knife for slicing up some cheese and summer sausage for lunch, the Gendarmes will probably wish you bon appetit; whilst if you're out drinking and fighting in the alley behind the bar and the cops find you with a big ol' RamboNinjatronicDeathMaker2000, well, kiss your ass good night, you're going to jail! Hell, I was reading another Texan's blog, where he chronicled his adventures in nanny-state-ism, after using his pocketknife in a restaurant to cut up his food ('cause frankly, restaurant knives ain't good for cutting soft cheese, much less a steak). One of the employees called the cops on him, and they stopped him three times along his way home! They all chatted with him for a minute and let him go, but it still added up to wasting 45 minutes of his time, plus the expense to the taxpayers to investigate this "crime." Oh yeah, he's more than a little pissed about it, as would I. (Oh, by the way, welcome to my blogroll!)

Update on Homemade Firearm author

2009-08-15T22:49:00.004-05:00

A while back I expounded on a citizen's right and duty to be ready for defending themselves against criminals and tyrants, with a link to the website of Philip Luty, tinker-extraordinaire, who authored Homemade Expedient Firearms, in which he shows plans for a working submachinegun made from common household materials. Working because he actually made it, in spite of the UK's laws against the peasants having guns of pretty much any type, and for his troubles the gubmint there locked him up for 5 years; it would've been only 4, but they buggered up his parole because he was fairly unrepentant about the whole thing. Being incarcerated only served to piss him off, so he decided to branch out, from a book of his plans to the whole freakin' Internet, documenting his developing hobby of amateur gunsmith, tho without the ability of testing his creations anymore, because of constant gubmint scrutiny. They even resorted to arresting his father and brother on the trumped up charges of "conspiracy" in '05, despite the evidence of Luty's own tesimony of planning and working alone. I had noted, with some concern, that his website had become "forced dormant" in recent months, and today I find that it is because Mr Luty has been jailed once again, for "aiding and abetting" some alleged "terrorists" who were found in possession of his book. The UK gubmint refuses to disclose where he is being held, they barely admit that they do have him in custody, and they further refuse to describe in any detail what the charges are and who the other suspects and the details of their case. In an attempt to win some favor in his case, his family has taken down the body of the website, thus the "you are here" post on it, but without any other explanation.

Ya know, this makes me glad the US told them what to do with themselves 230-sumthin' years ago, and with the current trends, I hope that Texas will do the same to the US soon! Then maybe we can offer him political asylum if he wants to leave there (once he's released from prison again), since as a convicted felon he's otherwise having tremendous difficulty in getting a Visa, and he is suffering from cancer, which means he probably isn't going to get preferential treatment under their oh-so-wonderful national socialized health care, and can't leave the country to seek treatment elsewhere.

A-Ha! AlGore's invention ain't so bad, it remembers for you! You can still read his site here.

Current events

2009-08-05T21:54:00.002-05:00

Apparently That One has appointed too many Czars to oversee every little mote of gubmint interference in our lives, because there is now a office of Stasi and Okhrana to check up on folks who resent the new Gubmint Health Care Reform Plan. Those "shovel-ready" jobs He promised must be in building the new offices for all the files they're going to keep on nearly every citizen!

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As my Ex has already posted, we had to put our old Sheltie to sleep this last Friday. Emmett was 16 1/2 years old, and the runt of his litter, tho he lived a lot longer than either of his brothers. It was a little strange, his death bringing back together for the day, my parents and me and my Ex (we're ALL divorced!). Tears were shed, prayers were said, and he left this world surrounded by those who loved him in life; I guess we should all hope for that as our ending.

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Tonight I was driving around, and encountered our local bicycle group going on their monthly "moonlight ride." Except I think they're still supposed to follow all the same traffic laws as a motor vehicle; this group was taking up both lanes on one side of the road, making it impossible to pass them. For all that some bicycle enthusiasts scream and fuss about having equal rights to use the road, this group (and most kids riding crazy) leaves the impression that they aren't really about "sharing the road," they want special rights for being out there and "being green" (NOT like Kermit the Frog). Plus, there's the hypocrisy of them driving their cars to the bicycle shoppe where they started from, then they'll drive back home once the ride is done. They don't ride their bikes as necessary transportation like some folks do, this is leisure for them, and self-righteous at that, given the smugness of the environmental movement today. (People's Exhibit A: mercury is bad in fish, but good in new, gubmint-required light bulbs. People's Exhibit B: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle is good unless it's your old car, then it's not even good as spare parts anymore once the gubmint gets ahold of it! Then it sits waiting for the smelter, and pollutes the groundwater with caustics.)

Requiescat in pace, Capt. Speicher

2009-08-05T21:43:00.002-05:00

I found out Sunday that the remains of Navy Capt. Michael "Scott" Speicher were recovered and identified, after almost 20 years of him being listed as MIA/KIA from the first Gulf War. Apparently, he died during the crash of his F/A-18 hornet, and his remains were found by Bedouin tribesmen, and according to their traditions, buried before sundown the end of the next day. An Iraqi citizen remembered this, and brought Marine Corps teams out last month to investigate, bringing to a close the mystery of Speicher's disappearance and death, and bringing some closure to his family.

H/T to TexasFred.net.

Local Victory Garden in the "news"

2009-04-28T22:01:00.002-05:00

I put "news" like that because it's the University Press, the Lamar U. student newspaper (which, frankly, barely qualifies as a university-level student newspaper, IMO). The article in question is on the front page (which I can't read in .pdf, no matter how many times I download & install Adobe, it just hates my computer and vice versa; thankfully I have the paper itself in front of me). The gist of the story is that the McFadden-Ward House is planting a Victory Garden, as a community gardening project called Green Thumbs, which is apparently a hands-on children's education project. From the story by Rei'sha Hector, UP staff writer:

"It's surprising that a lot of kids, these days, don't have a clue where vegetables come from, so it's important to teach them an interest in nature, conservation, and gardening," Carol Cuccio, McFadden-Ward House education assistant, said.

The education department at the McFadden-Ward House thought the same and created in January Beaumont's first community garden, now named the Victory Garden. A variety of seed have already been planted, such as carrots, bell peppers, tomatoes, squash, green beans, zucchini, and tons more. The garden also contains a small herbal garden.

I think it's great that they're trying to get the next generation interested and involved in gardening, maybe the children can glean some wisdom from Beaumont's old timers, who had Victory Gardens for real, the last time around, before that knowledge is lost. I find it a little bothersome, tho, that the article made no mention of the historical nature of the Victory Gardens, or their current revival, especially in light of the occasions and holidays that the McFadden-Ward House is decorated as it was during the World Wars.

More about Gov. Perry and secession

2009-04-19T18:51:00.003-05:00

In our local newspaper today ,they had a little "pro/con" editorial about Gov. Perry's comment at the Tea Parties about Texas seceding. Now, I think it's kinda funny that the "our position" view (of the Enterprise's editorial board) was that him bringing up secession also has the baggage of the Confederacy and slavery, when it's only the opponents of secession that EVER bring up slavery, to emotionally charge the argument and to bias any neutral bystanders against any rational reasons FOR secession. At least the two commentors on their page had the common sense to see thru the straw man claim. (Plus, they support my idea that those opposed to secession aren't from Texas to begin with. From what I've seen, true Texans love Texas and don't think it's a bad thing if Texas was an independent nation again!)

One thing I've started wondering about, is that if Gov Perry does declare Texas independent again, does he automatically become the President of the new Republic of Texas, and where does that leave the Texas Nationalist Movement? (Leaving aside for the moment whether we'd instantly become a Republic, or would there be a vote for some other name.) Last I checked, their President was also the last President of the interim govt of the Republic of Texas group. (There's also the thing about Chuck Norris saying he'd run for the job!) Hell, where would Kinky Friedman sit in all of it? Would he run for President instead of Governor? Same for Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson; would she run for President too? She certainly wouldn't have her old job anymore, no need to represent a state that's not in the Union anymore, unless she was made first Ambassador to the US.

Speaking of ambassadors, I've figured out what I want to be when I grow up. I want to be Texas' first Ambassador to France, appointed by President Chuck Norris! (Hopefully!) I already like their bread, and their toast (strange fact: French bread put into the toaster doesn't come out as French toast), and some of their knives (Opinel, cool old school!), and their Foreign Legion makes the US Marines look sane in comparison! Plus, if they give me any shit about being from "that little upstart country," I can point out a couple of things: (1) We're bigger than them; (2) (A) Mexico beat them; (B) We beat Mexico; (C) Therefore, I'm sure our embassy staff and me can kick more that a few of their asses! Also, it might be fun to have the Dissident Frogman over for drinks and swapping gun stories, and I could offer him sanctuary if his country goes in the crapper more.

(I had previously wanted to be Texas to be independent again so I could visit England, and I could wear a big honkin' Bowie knife on my belt, and be protected under their crazy-assed "cultural exemptions" to their highly strict knife laws! Now, I'd want to add a pistol and claim diplomatic immunity for capping some yobs and hooligans.)

Gov Perry in hot water after Tea Parties

2009-04-16T20:52:00.003-05:00

I heard on the news a little bit ago that some Democrats and other whiny types are upset over Gov. Perry's mention of Texas secession at the tax protest Tea Parties yesterday. While he may have only meant it in passing, for some of us it is a very real topic. I encourage Gov. Perry to not back down from these fools, and I encourage all my loyal readers (yes, both of you!) to also write to the Governor to do the same. The last thing he needs to do is show lack of courage before these damnedyankees, scalawags, and carpetbaggers.

While there is not a direct email address for the Governor, there is a comment form on his website. Please use it (or call) to leave your encouragement.

Goin' to a Tea Party

2009-04-14T17:30:00.003-05:00

They're having one tomorrow, here in town. Me and the Missus are going, tho there's something that's been bothering me about the whole thing. Weren't tax protests usually focused around NOT paying the taxes? Whatever the reason, be it your opposition to some gubmint policy (i. e. slavery, a war, Alaska being admitted to the Union, fluoride in the water, etc.) or whatever, you weren't supposed to pay your taxes, hence the media belittled you as a "tax protestor" and lumped you with other "fringe kooks."

As much as the local Tea Party group claims that they are acting like the Sons of Liberty in a non-violent action to make the gubmint notice, they're forgetting something. I think Mike Vanderboegh sums it up pretty well on his blog. I think it's pretty evident that our "representatives" in Washington, DC (District of Criminals) didn't listen to We the People when we said we didn't want the MegaBailOuts I & II and we think That One firing and replacing the CEO of GM (apparently it now means Gubmint Motors) isn't in his job description either! I'm afraid it's getting near nigh time to say talking isn't working anymore, maybe "They" will notice action! Something like what Vanderboegh imagined in the Window War. (This story is "non-violent" too, in the same manner that no one was hurt.)

Certainly, the expected number of people for the nation-wide Tea Party tomorrow will eclipse anything the "Million Moms" or "Million Men" could actually get out for their protests, and our "representatives" and other gubmint officials won't be able to safely ignore us anymore, tho I'm sure any complacency on our parts afterward will unravel our efforts for this protest; then we may have to resort to something more "extreme" for them to remember who the real bosses are. (Re: the US Declaration of Independence starts with We the People, not We the Ruling Elite.)

Standard Disclaimer: I in no way advocate the immediate use of violence to accomplish political goals. However, when our "opposition" in their gubmint offices can make a new code or rule with a simple stroke of the pen, enforceable at gunpoint by other gubmint officials "just following orders", and We the People have no immediate way of overruling them as they nibble away at OUR Liberties, THEY need to remember that WE are the ones who control the reins of power, and that WE will take that power back! Maybe thru peaceful means (see Texas' Gov. Rick "GoodHair" Perry standing up for Tenth Amendment/State Sovereignty recently), maybe thru violent means (the history books forget about the "Battle of Athens, Tenn." when WW2 vets picked up their guns and fought against their corrupt county officials), but We the People will retain the true reins of power in the US.

WHOOT! Ninjas 3, Pirates 0!

2009-04-12T15:52:00.002-05:00

This news item just in: US Navy SEALs killed 3 of 4 pirates holding Capt Phillips off of Somalia, and rescued said Captain. Now to the WTF portion of our program: our dear gubmint is planning to bring the surviving pirate back to the US for trial?!? The only thing that bastid deserves is to swing at the end of a yardarm!!!

Gonna be busy tonight... Updated!

2009-03-11T11:26:00.005-05:00

Listening to the Texas Perspective at 9PM, hoping they'll discuss how Chuck Norris wants to be President of Texas. (I wonder if he'd make everyone take Karate classes, in addition to Concealed Handgun classes? Nah, too many folks would freeze up in a robbery, trying to decide between shooting the bad guy or doing a flying roundhouse kick in the head!)

Updated!!! Some silly little columnist in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram thinks that Chuck is ineligible to be President of Texas because of some silly notion as not being born here! I feel I should point out that NONE of the Presidents of Texas between 1836 and 1845 were born here. (David Burnett, Noo Joisey; Sam Houston, Virginia; Mirabeau B. Lamar, Georgia; Anson Jones, Massachusetts) There's no qualification in the Constitution for a native-born Presidential candidate. To that end, Chuck already has a campaign commercial ready! (Altho I fear that if he was elected, then we truly would have a Chucktatorship!)

Victory Gardens

2009-03-08T19:27:00.003-05:00

I've been reading up on these some, and to that end, we're planning on putting in a small-ish plot of a garden (around a 4 x 8 foot section) to see how well we can do. With all the concerns about rising this and falling that, it'll be a good way of insuring some stability for the household, better I reckon than stocking up on dry and canned foods, altho there is some of that. Still, one needs a way to replenish/augment any stored food with a fresh supply, and what better way than growing your own? Plus, we've had a fairly mild winter (seems to follow a hurricane, but I won't swear to it), so everything else is already pollinating and budding (and, according to these folks, we've already passed the date for our last frost, whatever's planted now would be safe from that).

There's a few places out there that will sell you a survival set of seeds, for planting after The End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine). That's great and all, but it reminds me too much of the overhyped "Pay-triots" cashing in on citizen's concerns in an apparent crisis, back during the 90s. Once that first set of seeds is in the ground, you still need to eat while waiting for that crop to ripen, which I'm sure they know someone who'll sell you a years worth of MREs, and while you're at it, they know somebody else to supply you with an "assault weapon" and thousands of rounds of ammo so you can protect your valuable pantry and garden from the Zombie Biker Gangs, who are roaming about like something out of Mad Max or Dies the Fire!

Seriously, I doubt it'll ever get that bad, for that long-- for one thing, if it was, then Uncle Sam can't collect his taxes for bailing us out!

A big part of my encouragement to start this was reading the Fox Fire series of books, about an ongoing class project to interview elderly Appalachians about the old skills, wisdom, and lore needed before and during the early 20th Century in their mountains and valleys. I feel like that knowledge isn't much different than what was needed and used by the frontier Texans of the 1830s and 40s. And I reckon we all need a hefty dose of inspiration from our forefathers, to remind ourselves that they endured much worse in their dreams for independence and liberty, so we should steel ourselves for similar hardships, be they natural, manmade, or "shit happens."

Victory Seeds
Red, White, and Grew website and blog

Happy Birthday Texas!!!

2009-03-02T00:01:00.002-06:00

It was 173 years ago that a band of settlers met at Washington-on-the-Brazos to draw up a document listing grievances and declaring themselves independent from Mexico. Some of those grievances sound familiar, if one changed the names of places and countries:

It has sacrificed our welfare to the state of ~~Coahuila~~ those other 49--M., by which our interests have been continually depressed through a jealous and partial course of legislation, carried on at a far distant seat of government, by a hostile majority, in an unknown tongue (read:LawyerSpeak--M.)...

It has made piratical attacks upon our commerce, by commissioning foreign desperadoes, and authorizing them to seize our vessels, and convey the property of our citizens to far distant ports for confiscation. (Sounds kinda like Gov. GoodHair's TransTexasCorridor super tollroad plan run by Spaniards--M.)...

It hath been, during the whole time of our connection with it... hath continually exhibited every characteristic of a weak, corrupt, and tyrranical government...

These, and other grievances, were patiently borne by the people of Texas, untill they reached that point at which forbearance ceases to be a virtue...

We are, therefore, forced to the melancholy conclusion, that the ~~Mexican~~American people have acquiesced in the destruction of their liberty, and the substitution therfor of a ~~military~~socialist government; that they are unfit to be free, and incapable of self government...

The necessity of self-preservation, therefore, now decrees our eternal political separation...

Now, I don't see any of my kin's signatures on that paper, but I do know that some of them were on site the next month when we forced Mexico to recognize us when we whupped their asses at San Jacinto.

While ol' Sam Houston might not have wanted Texas to leave the Union in 1861, I think he might be strongly in favor of us breaking away and being independent again if he saw how the Federals treat us and every other state now, especially during this time of "economic troubles." (See the above excerpts from the 1836 Declaration of Independence.) Thankfully, there are folks working toward that end, building grass-roots support for a new Texas Independence. The movement's president hosts a online talk show Wednesday nights at 9 PM Texas Standard Time. (The rest of the week, they play nothing but Texas-themed "red dirt radio" country music. Good stuff!)

Kevin Fowler - 100% Texan!

2009-03-01T14:07:00.001-06:00

Here's some music to get you, my faithful readers, in the mood for tomorrow!

Gunnie stuff

2009-03-01T11:31:00.003-06:00

(I originally titled this "Gunny stuff", but I didn't want to confuse Uncle Sam's Misguided Children any more than they already are.) ;)

While I usually expound on how Texas is better off without the US, I will admit that our founding documents were echoed in many ways from their's, especially the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. I haven't heard of any other country in the world whose founding documents allow, nay, demand that its citizens be armed (US Second Amendment; Texas Article I, Section 23); most countries have some article which makes noise about right of security and safety, but never explains how to do that.

As the US Founding Fathers saw, the only way to do that is make every citizen responsible for themselves: individually, folks could protect themselves from criminals; altogether the People would be able to overwhelm any army the government could hope to tyrannize them with. To that end, there's no Constitutional stipulation of a "Royal Armorer" or government approval to make guns. As such, the recent actions of various government agencies (noises about a renewed "assault weapons ban" and ammo taxes and restrictions thru "micro stamping" every bullet with a serial number(?!?)) would make it seem prudent to learn how to make firearms from common household materials, so that the People could fight back, when various laws and agencies make it near impossible to buy guns and ammo thru traditional, legal means.

Mind you, I've heard from assorted gun-rights philosophers that just because the People have the right to own firearms, doesn't mean they also have the enthusiasm necessary to use them when the Government has infringed that right one too many times. Folks seem complacent in thinking, "it doesn't matter that I toil for nearly half the year paying off the taxes from various Federal, State, and local agencies, I STILL HAVE MY GUNS!" or "it's terrible that I fear an IRS audit for the smallest accidental infraction, but I STILL HAVE MY GUNS!" What good is having a right if one is too afraid to exercise it, because of some imagined retribution by tyrants? (I'd point out, that retribution can come all at once, or a little at a time, like we're suffering under NOW!) Even Thomas Jefferson said "The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time by the blood of patriots and tyrants." (It's kinda pathetic that this link is to a Canadian site, the comments there are pretty fired up for being our far northern neighbours, I should expect that host to be in the US.)(Here is a link to the whole letter, from which that quote comes.)

I'm kinda surprised...

2008-12-20T13:37:00.002-06:00

...That no one reminded me after the last post: The first rule of Ninja Club is, we don't talk about Ninja Club!

After all the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, there should be more ninja movies, and these guys agree. Help them if you can.

That is all.

I can't believe I missed it!

2008-12-07T18:31:00.003-06:00

Friday, the Fifth, was the Day of the Ninja, and I completely forgot! To atone for this, I've created a new avatar from NinjaTown:

[/silly moment]

"Conspiracy theories"

2008-12-05T21:52:00.003-06:00

I was listening to the Mike Reagan show on the radio tonight, and a series of callers raised the question about That One's birth certificate. While I don't particularly care whether or not his place of birth is Hawaii or somewhere else, what did bother me was listening to Mike Reagan laugh at the callers and dismiss their concerns. It reminded me too much of the '90s, when the Patriot groups were dismissed by the Government representatives and the Media as kooks and "anti-gubmint militia nuts" because of a few "out there" claims, while ignoring the other legitimate points the Patriots tried raising. A few of the points of contention: Council on Foreign Relations/Bildeberger/Masonic members influencing/controlling our govt; the Federal Reserve not being a legitimate branch of the govt; fluoridation of the water; black helicopters; US govt prisons being built as "re-education camps" for conservative citizens (funny thing, the lefties started crying about the "camps" being planned for them, after 9/11 and the PATRIOT Act); the Assault Weapons Ban being another step toward total US disarmament, as per UN plans for the New World Order. I realize most of these "conspiracy theories" have been floating around for a long while (see John Birch Society, and the Anti-Masons), but that doesn't make some of the concerns behind these "theories" any less real. I suppose at the root of them all is fear/anger that our own country isn't being run with our own best interests, or that we're being influenced by too many outsiders. It does seem like... no, hell, it's obvious that our govt isn't what the Founding Fathers wrote down as the limited Federal govt, with the majority of the power staying with The People and the several States. Instead the States are subsidiaries of the omnipotent FedGov, and have been that way for some time. Incrementalism, the long process of changing by small increments until a larger change is achieved, is what's happened here (as Chuck Harder described it, its like stealing the bologna from the deli one slice at a time by asking for "just a taste" instead of taking it all at once), and the FedGov is going to resist harder to being put back than the People did when it happened in the first place. It's enough that I'd say Texas should cut our losses and strike out as independent once again; we can't do any worse than the US is already doing, and if it did get worse, we could just apply for foreign aid from the US!

Well, if the Russkies think it...

2008-11-25T20:06:00.002-06:00

It can't be that bad, right? This report certainly has lots of folks talking about Texas independence. Here's the whole of the report, in case something happens to it at Drudge:

RUSSIAN ANALYST PREDICTS DECLINE AND BREAKUP OF USA
Tue Nov 25 2008 09:04:22 ET

A leading Russian political analyst has said the economic turmoil in the United States has confirmed his long-held view that the country is heading for collapse, and will divide into separate parts.

Professor Igor Panarin said in an interview with the respected daily IZVESTIA published on Monday: "The dollar is not secured by anything. The country's foreign debt has grown like an avalanche, even though in the early 1980s there was no debt. By 1998, when I first made my prediction, it had exceeded $2 trillion. Now it is more than 11 trillion. This is a pyramid that can only collapse."

The paper said Panarin's dire predictions for the U.S. economy, initially made at an international conference in Australia 10 years ago at a time when the economy appeared strong, have been given more credence by this year's events.

When asked when the U.S. economy would collapse, Panarin said: "It is already collapsing. Due to the financial crisis, three of the largest and oldest five banks on Wall Street have already ceased to exist, and two are barely surviving. Their losses are the biggest in history. Now what we will see is a change in the regulatory system on a global financial scale: America will no longer be the world's financial regulator."

When asked who would replace the U.S. in regulating world markets, he said: "Two countries could assume this role: China, with its vast reserves, and Russia, which could play the role of a regulator in Eurasia."

Asked why he expected the U.S. to break up into separate parts, he said: "A whole range of reasons. Firstly, the financial problems in the U.S. will get worse. Millions of citizens there have lost their savings. Prices and unemployment are on the rise. General Motors and Ford are on the verge of collapse, and this means that whole cities will be left without work. Governors are already insistently demanding money from the federal center. Dissatisfaction is growing, and at the moment it is only being held back by the elections and the hope that Obama can work miracles. But by spring, it will be clear that there are no miracles."

He also cited the "vulnerable political setup", "lack of unified national laws", and "divisions among the elite, which have become clear in these crisis conditions."

He predicted that the U.S. will break up into six parts - the Pacific coast, with its growing Chinese population; the South, with its Hispanics; Texas, where independence movements are on the rise(emphasis mine); the Atlantic coast, with its distinct and separate mentality; five of the poorer central states with their large Native American populations; and the northern states, where the influence from Canada is strong.

He even suggested that "we could claim Alaska - it was only granted on lease, after all." Panarin, 60, is a professor at the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and has authored several books on information warfare.

Developing...

Pondering...

2008-11-18T15:47:00.009-06:00

Ok, the Obamamessiah has said that he's bringing the troops home from Iraq and Afghanistan ASAP. He's also said he'll create a national civil security force as powerful as the military. Is he planning on using those newly unemployed troops to fill the ranks of his new security force? Are these troops gonna be happy about being "drafted" into this new national police? What will become of these former troopers if they aren't shanghai'd into service and, as I've speculated before, that the national police will be filled with "previously underrepresented minorities"? I'm thinking that a bunch of folks comfortable with small arms handling and no jobs when the national economy is in the crapper is a very bad idea. Especially if one of the first edicts of the new administration is to ban further sales of "assault weapons" (NewSpeak of the Libs for "scary looking guns that are very suitable for hunting, defense, and militia service) especially when the full-auto military versions of these weapons are what the above unemployed soldiers are already familiar with!

I've been puzzling over how Texans would get fed up enough with the "new and improved" status quo, to finally throw in enough popular support for renewed Texas independence. The best scenario I can come up with, is that the new US administration stirs up too much trouble at once (bringing home the troops, driving up unemployment, which in a bad economy makes it worse; raising taxes to pay for the near-universal welfare because of the unemployment and bad economy), while things here in Texas aren't that bad (oil sales & exploration up, construction up, employment good) except where it's tied more directly into the US economy (Starbucks and Circuit City closing stores). Somebody called Texas Overnight just before signoff on Monday morning, to remark that the Republic of Texas folks (ok, the caller said "kooks") were a few years too early to have the popular support they needed, things are looking better now for the people of Texas to support the movement if things turn bad for the US. And another thing that would help is if things do turn for the worst, the Texas Independence group comes forward to say, "We have a better way, to stabilize the economy, to protect Texans and Texas from terrorism and international crime; we will be the lighthouse that the people of the US will look to, for assurance that things will get better; however, we must not allow ourselves to be dragged down with the US as she sinks from her own overburdened, bloated, leviathan-like military-industrial complex whatchamacallit." (Ok, my speaking skills petered out there, insert your own weighty, witticism.) If the people of Texas are convinced that returning to gold and silver for currency (or at least stopping free credit for everyone, especially the gubmint, which essentially invents money out of thin air every day!) will end the nearly out-of-control inflation and price swings; if they believe a smaller, unobtrusive government will preserve their retirements and health insurance instead of that monster in Wash., DC dipping into the "Social Security Trust Fund" to pay for every little pork project; if they think being Texas, Independent, will refresh their freedoms, instead of subservience to the US Federal Government which demands those freedoms be traded for security; then I believe the people will support it wholeheartedly. The Independence group has already planned these things out at a basic level, but is unable to begin anything since the officials in State and Federal govt. don't want to surrender their power, dismissing it as a "fringe anti-gubmint, militia nut movement", refusing to even allow any type of referendum vote on Texas independence, in spite of petitions showing adequate popular support, especially for that referendum.

BTW, you can listen to El Presidente and the VP of the Texas Nationalist Movement via Texas Independence Radio, live on Wednesdays at 9 PM Texas Standard Time (Central Time Zone) and by podcast if you miss the live show thru the Downloads area of the website. Since they've started this weekly program in the last month, they've discussed Texas and its relation to the US, with regards to the economy, the election, and everything else, and how we can again be independent, why we should be independent. Even without the Interim government, if Texas broke away tomorrow, we already have most of the systems in place to keep operating as we are, without the US gubmint's help! The DPS is a Texas-wide police force (altho they mainly operate along the highways and keep track of drivers' licenses); the Texas Rangers are our special investigation force, not just Chuck Norris kicking people (even tho some in Austin want to retire the group as redundant to the FBI); Texas Cable News is our own version of CNN Headline News; we can buy back Texas State Bank from Compass Bank (owned by Spaniards!).

It's (almost) all over but the shoutin'

2008-11-04T14:21:00.003-06:00

In just a few more hours the polls will close, the votes will be counted, and then, we can start bickering about who cheated more for the next few months. (I reckon all the way up til January 20th!) Then, if That One loses, he can begin his 2012 campaign. (I head Rush say the Obamamessiah spent 15 minutes voting today-- apparently He couldn't figure out how to vote "present.")

My predictions on the results: for Jefferson County, Obama 55%, McCain 43%, "other" 2%.
Nationwide, Obama 45%, McCain 50%, "other" 5%, with the Electoral College going for McCain. These are just my gut feelings, please don't get mad at me if you use these figures to bet with your coworkers. BTW, go get your free small Starbucks coffee and Ben and Jerry's ice cream.

We will have Peace in our time

2008-11-02T18:39:00.005-06:00

How do you say Schutzstaffel in Ebonics? However you do, this would certainly be a "work-around" for that archaic Posse Commitatus law, forbidding the use of the military for police work within the US. One of Texas Fred's commentors suggested using that pre-existing force "necessary to the security of a free state" if there's any problems with insurrection or civil disorder, but I think those anti-gubmint militia nut types are nuthin' but a bunch of racist good ol' boys, whereas the Obamaessiah's "special security force" would be filled with "reformed" ghetto gangbangers, who were denied their chance to make something productive of themselves and forced by "The Man" to turn to a life of crime! (NOT!!!)

BTW, if anybody thinks I'm being racist with the above post, piss off, I'm in good company; there's plenty of folks who also think That One is the WRONG ONE for the US. Note, I said "the US," not "the USSR!" You want a Socialist country, move to one! Don't try to change the US into one!

From the bookshelf

2008-10-22T16:16:00.004-05:00

I just finished reading S. M. Stirling's The Scourge of God, the latest in the series that started with Dies the Fire. I liked this better than The Sunrise Lands, it's predecessor in this second trilogy. The characters were being fleshed out, the children of the Change, the first generation to grow up after the Event that wiped out modern technology, sending mankind into a new Dark Age. Even tho many of these characters were the same as were in the first trilogy, we last saw them as children, now they're all grown up. The Scourge of God picks up where The Sunrise Lands left off, with our band on a cross-country quest to seek out what happened to Nantucket. (Apparently they didn't read Island in the Sea of Time; that's ok, neither did I!) Along the way, there's trials aplenty, new allies and enemies, but my favorite is the laugh out loud scenes.

First is in chapter nine, when the Dunedain Rangers have infiltrated the Boise Bossman's palace, bursting onto the scene to take as many hostages as possible, the bossman blurts out "God, what are you bastards doing here?" to which John Hordle replies "Nobody expects the Elvish Inquisition!" (A little backstory here: the Dunedain Rangers are an offshoot of the Bearkillers and the MacKenzies, two groups that survived the Change and allied to each other in the Oregon/Washington area. One of the founders of the Dunedain Rangers was heavily influenced by Tolkien's Lord of the Rings stories, to the point that it became part of their mythologies of the old world, especially the parts about the Elves and the humans fighting against evil armies. It was enough of an influence that the Rangers adopted Elvish as their secret language; hence, everyone associates Elves with the Dunedain Rangers.) (Oh yeah, it's also a reference to Monty Python's "Spanish Inquisition" skit.)

The second scene was later in the same chapter, when a young female Ranger, Ritva, was hunting to feed her group (the ones on the Quest, not the ones I just mentioned attacking the Boise Bossman's house), when she was ambushed by a Scout in the hire of the Church Universal and Triumphant (also known as CUT; a large group of religious fanatics who reside in Montana, and shun most of what's left of technology, blaming mankind's dependence on it as why God visited the Change on the world, but I digress), who had tracked her group for many miles. They're in a one-on-one battle, her broadsword and buckler against his tomahawk and long-knife, and it ends with her winning, but letting him live. What I loved about the fight was the description of the Scout-- he was a Boy Scout, in this future world without technology. I love how Stirling imagined the Scouts (at least, the ones who survived the Change in this area, the northern Rockies), reverting some to the American Indian military-style scouts, with their own Cub Scout mythology woven in (during the fight, he shouts out his battle cry "Akela!, which is a character from the Jungle Book by Kipling, who in turn influenced Scouting's founder Sir Baden-Powell with the story and others from British Colonial India). Keeping much of the Indian scout uniform, "long woolen shirt" decorated with "badges of merit," fringed buckskin leggings and moccasins, it's like seeing where Scouting would have gone if introduced during the Renaissance, in the new English colonies in North America.

I wish I could've been there when Stirling thought up the idea of having the Scouts added to the story in this way, and how he got them to the point where they are now (23 years after the Change, or 2021 AD!) I'm trying to figure, if D-Day for Dies the Fire was March 17, 1998, there could have been some Scouts on a Spring Break trip to Philmont, NM or anywhere else in the Rocky Mountains, perhaps near an Indian Reservation, where they were taken in, honing their much needed survival skills. Apparently, the Indians were able to survive the sudden death of everything technological much better than the rest of the US; as one of the Lakotas remarked in Scourge of God, it wasn't as far for the Indians to fall when the bottom dropped out, so many "on the Rez" were nearly there anyway!

Anyway, reading that battle scene finally compelled me to order a manual on Tomahawk and Long Knife fighting, since it's been on one of my wish lists for a while, related as it is to Mountain Man and Texas Revolutionary period and non-firearm fighting skills. That's pertinent to the whole Change series, since firearms no longer work, that no-more-tech thing that changed the laws of physics (Take that, Scotty!) such that high pressure and internal combustion and advanced chemistry don't work anymore. (No cars, no guns, no batteries in your flashlight, no electricity anywhere, nothing!) The first trilogy spoke more of the characters trying to figure out "why" and "who did this" (its a toss-up between God and "Alien Space Bats" for the latter), it hasn't been touched on much in this second trilogy. And it's a little better, without that distraction from the storyline.

Now I just have to wait another year for the third book in this trilogy, hopefully Rudi and his band of friends will make it to Nantucket and return home, because these cliff-hangers are the worst when it comes to the waiting! I know, I can go to his site and read the sample chapters of the next book, but I did that with The Protector's War, and it was like having an appetizer without the main course for another several months! (Oh, bother! I just looked at his site, and discovered that he plans four books for this current series, which he calls the Emberverse II, with the first series being the Emberverse I. That means two more books!!) Stirling seems to like setting things in worlds without modern conveniences, as he did with The Peshawar Lancers and "Shikari in Galveston". (not Shakira!) Unfortunately, my understanding of Hindi and Sanskrit is nil, nada, zip, nothing! About as good as my understanding of Elvish!

Early voting

2008-10-21T19:26:00.002-05:00

Tommie and I went to the courthouse today, to vote early. It went smoothly enough, they had their new computerized system to sign folks in, and those touch-screen electric voting machines. The thing I thought most interesting that I commented on it to the voting clerk who took me to the booth (she had to log-in with the supervisor's card), was the curtains they had set up to surround and separate the voting machines. This is the first time I've even seen those in a polling place here, not just on the TV portrayals of elections. Granted, the curtains weren't the full-length shower curtain-type, these were hung from head high and draped down to about waist high, but like I said, this is the first election I've ever seen them used. The clerk said they (the county) was going "all-out" to dress up this election. It beats the old-fashioned pop-up "student blinders" voting booth that I grew up with.

Apparently early voting is doing fairly well in areas that have it. Now I wish there was a way to block out the rest of the election season until it's over! (Beyond plugging my ears and crying "LALALA-I'MNOTLISTENING-LALALA!")

More random thoughts

2008-10-19T19:53:00.004-05:00

First off, I'm sorry to announce that Military Motivator has disappeared from the Æthersphere. The last posting was in the middle of August, titled "Imperial Fleet Week," was kinda funny, a home video depicting TIE Fighters flying under the Golden Gate Bridge, AT-AT walkers along the beach, and a "moonrise" of the Death Star, all over San Francisco! The irreverent military themed humor will be greatly missed.

KOLE 1340 AM is kinda back on the air here in SE Texas. So far they're running "The Afternoon Drive with Ronnie Linden" over and over, interspersed with the announcement of "we're working to bring KOLE back on the air soon." It wouldn't be so bad, except these shows are from winter-ish of 2006-07, based on the subject matter of so-and-so getting elected.

My ex, Kelly AKA Phoenyx has "retired" from blogging, due to her ongoing fight with her health, making it difficult for her to think and concentrate enough to update it regularly. It'll be sad to not have her blog to read anymore, since it was a way to keep up with each other without being intrusive (visiting, calling, stuff like that), but I can understand her reasons. I'll still blog here, on my quasi-regular schedule. I stopped by her house the other day to pick up a rather cumbersome tool that I'd left there in the garage, and we stood around visiting for a while, which reminded me of the old friend I had before we messed it up with getting married.

I will be so glad when this election is over with. The polarized hostility is worse than any sports rivalry, and I'm afraid that when the results are announced, there will be riots of celebration or indignant "protests." Even former Bill Clinton adviser James Carville has made similar remarks, that "if Obama goes in and he has a consistent five point lead and loses the election, it would be very, very, very dramatic out there." Nevermind that historically, if a Democrat didn't have an overwhelming lead (much greater than 5%), the Republican candidate would win the election. Recall: Dewey Defeats Truman! Still, this talk doesn't bode well for civil order in the next month, and political relations for the next several years. Note, the eight years of accusations from the Left about Bush stealing the election of 2000 and "Bush=Hitler." (If that's true, why aren't you idiots in ovens?!?) The cynic in me is about to explode, and I'm gonna taze anybody that gets near me with this shit!

Random thought...

2008-07-19T20:32:00.002-05:00

Ok, if we are paying attention to the election coverage, we have noticed the progression of the Obamessiah from Lefty Liberal to Cool Centrist over the last few weeks. I think it stands out that he's shifted so much on his attitude toward private gun ownership, from the standard National Democrat position of "only the police and military should have guns" to a moderate "private gun ownership is fine, the Supreme Court says so." As we've seen in elections past, when the Democrat candidate takes a shift of positions like this, as the election nears, the candidate usually picks up a shotgun, dons a camo jacket, and trots across a field with news crews in tow, to show how rugged and macho his is, how he supports the sportsmen, and how he's "not going to take away your duck-hunting rifles." (Actually uttered by Bubba Clinton!) What I'm wondering is, when the Obamessiah drifts that far and wants to "get outdoors," should Dick Cheney send him an invite?

Aren't the BoyScouts (TM) supposed to be proud of America?

2008-07-15T17:13:00.003-05:00

Then why are so many of their pocketknives made in CHINA?!?!? I'm looking thru their online catalogue at the pocketknives, lots of good memories there, my first pocketknife was the BSA Deluxe model, made by Ulster in the USA. (I originally said Utica of New York, but that's where Kabar knives are made; altho they did make some Boy Scout knives, they didn't make mine!) I spy the current Deluxe, a little different than mine, the Phillips screwdriver is in a different place, so I look at the close-up pic... IT'S MADE IN M-F-ING CHINA!?!?! I start peering over their other knives, the Utility is made by Imperial in the USA... the Eagle Pen Knife-- crapola, it's from China too... the old-fashioned Boy Scout Knife with brown handles, made by Camillus in USA-- umm, Camillus closed a couple of years ago (gee, they're listed as out-of-stock, too, duh). So... how old are these pictures? When were the latest batch done? Do they need to take new ones to reflect the current stock and where it's made?

At least with the Swiss Army Knives sporting the Boy Scout logo, we still know they're made in Switzerland... altho, the Classic (little thing, got a pen blade, nailfile, scissors, toothpick and tweezers, red handles) normally runs about $10 (any more than that and you're getting ripped off!). The BSA logo'd Classic is $24... so, the Boy Scout logo adds $14 to the value?!? I don't think so, Tim! Especially considering that the Chinese-made Eagle Scout pen knife, which is a copy of the Swiss Army Classic, costs $13, so they're losing a dollar there!

Now, granted, I've heard that the quality of Chinese-made knives is improving, depending on the factory and the company's quality control that the Chinese are making them for, but, still, it's the principle of the thing! Shouldn't the Boy Scouts' knives be made by quality companies, preferably in the US? (The Swiss Army Knives are quality products, the Swiss make so many of them, that's how the prices are still affordable, even tho by comparison the Chinese stuff is a much cheaper price... ask yourself if it's still a value once that Chinese-made knife breaks; at least the Swiss Army knives have a warrantee for repair or replacement.)

Whoever is in charge of the Boy Scouts' equipment procurement needs a little electro-shock thereapy to encourage them to re-evaluate their ways, or as I tend to shout at the TV... TAZE 'EM!!!

Weekend thoughts

2008-07-13T09:49:00.002-05:00

I'm wandering around the Net, and I'm shocked to find that Tony Snow died yesterday. He was only 53 years old, and he finally lost that battle with cancer. I liked him as a radio show host on Fox News Radio (and when he sat in for Rush), before he took that job as White House Press Secretary. (I thought he would have been better if they'd allowed him to speak his mind at some of the inane questions, especially from Helen Thomas.)

One of the commentators from LoneStarTimes.com, good ol' Squawkbox has his own blog, at Squawkboxnoise.com. He's still insightful, thoughtful, and of a biting wit, and not too shabby with the graphics program, either.

While the skeletons in Obamessiah's closet may not stretch that far back, I wouldn't be surprised if the skeletons in the skeleton's closets did! If anybody with a lick of common sense actually listened to what he says, then only hard core socialists would want to elect him, and even then they'd be saying, "Man, he's way too radical for us, for wanting to do some of that as soon as he gets into office! He'll completely bankrupt the country, leaving nothing to work with for the second year!" Lately he's been pandering to the center, to win votes there, which only pisses off his main leftist supporters and the right is gonna remain suspicious of him, no matter what. (Let's not forget, any criticism of the Obamessiah and his policies is automatically racist!)

But it was just there!

2008-07-10T20:00:00.003-05:00

A quick post, to let my fellow SETexians know, the Krystal Burger in Beaumont closed this Monday, and KOLE 1340/1380 AM is no longer on the air either.

The Krystal Burger closing is a bit of a surprise, apparently even to the employees, they showed up Monday and were told to go back home. The Enterprise says it was lack of advertising.

KOLE being off the air I guess is an eventuality, given that they changed owners and started messing with the format some.They used to have a morning call-in show, then Laura Ingraham and Bill O'reilly, a local afternoon call-in show, some evening syndicated shows, a Saturday morning call-in. The new owners got rid of all the local hosts and programs, going with all satellite-feed syndicated shows, mostly from the Fox News Radio lineup. Then a couple of weeks ago they pulled everything and had a repeating 30-second message broadcast saying they were moving their studios and would return to the air soon. That went on for a couple of days, then that stopped, and now I've noticed their website is gone too. This wouldn't be so bad, except the two shows I really liked, Glenn Beck and Texas Overnight with Charlie Jones, have to be hunted down on other stations (in other towns, in this case, Dallas), and with Glenn, at a different time slot than I'm used to (even tho he does have a TV show). Still, it's like when your favorite TV show gets moved around by the network, and you keep missing it because you're used to the old time slot. I'd try badgering KLVI to add them to their schedules, but that would mean getting rid of their best sellers, like Rush and Coast to Coast AM, for those times, and I'm pretty sure that ain't happening.

No comments here about Heller Vs DC

2008-06-27T14:02:00.003-05:00

I don't think there's much I could say that hasn't already been said by other gunnies, and much more eloquently than I could manage. Let's say that I'm not surprised by the Antis already crying and whinging their hands about "blood in the streets" and other bullshit every time gun "rights" (that are treated like privileges by them) are restored to The People.

In somewhat related online news, there's a petition to the Lege and the Guvner demanding a return of open carry for Texas Citizens. When I first looked at it a few days ago, there was just under 6K signatures, now it's nearly 15K! On the one hand, this would take away the uncertainty protection that concealed carry gives to everyone: the bad guys don't know who is packing, so they're more hesitant to attack any one person. (However, if they did decide to attack someone, they'd more likely use overwhelming force to negate the possibility of that one being able to fight back.) On the other, this is Texas, it's damned hot in the summer! Others have pointed out the drawback of concealed carry in the heat-- less clothing to conceal well, having to choose a lighter gun with less power so it can be easier concealed, having to go without which defeats the purpose of getting the CHL.

Personally, I think it would be funny if the bars, saloons, taverns, cantinas, pubs, icehouses, etc. had to put the signs back up that read "Please check your gunbelt at the door."

'Nuther day

2008-06-24T20:46:00.002-05:00

Sorry I didn't post more the other day, I was... a bit buzzed, from reading another online graphic novel I found, Girl Genius. It's got a lot of stuff I like, all rolled into one: graphic novel drawn by Phil Foglio, steampunk setting, and the story is pretty involved! (And boy, does Foglio know how to draw womens!) It took me two full days of reading to catch up with everything, since it's been online for 5 1/2 years already, publishing 3 times a week.

I was so overwhelmed with the story that I forgot to thank Will for his two posts, about my remarks about the TV show Jericho and Texas, and the Roswell, Texas online graphic novel. (Which only happened because I was making my rounds thru the blogosphere, and commented about his remark about someone else's review of Eric Flint's 1812 and 1824 novels.)

Quick Jericho update

2008-06-22T21:47:00.002-05:00

Since the end of Jericho Season 2:

Season 2 on DVD finally came out last week. I still haven't sat down to watch it, tho the GF says she's looking forward to watching the bad guy Goetz get "capped" over and over (play, rewind, play, rewind), especially after a bad day at school. I'm hoping maybe SciFi will pick it up, since they replayed Season 1 episodes the night before a new Season 2 episode aired on CBS, til they got bored with that. When I do finally watch the S2 Jericho DVDs, I'll probably start with the last two episodes, just for the "Independent Republic of Texas" bits, to catch what I missed the first time thru. It was kinda a shock to see that the first time, then that burst of Texas Pride said "Hey, we're still kicking ass and taking names!" Still, tho, they ended the series on a good note; the good guys win, the bad guys lose, and the masked man rides off into the sunset.

A Memorial Day post after all

2008-05-26T14:17:00.001-05:00

I hadn't planned on posting anything for Memorial Day. Then while I was at my mom's taking care of her dogs, I watched the President speak from Arlington after he laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. This song just started playing in my head. It makes me cry nearly every time I hear it.

So what do you want to do tonight, Brain?

2008-05-22T19:02:00.002-05:00

see more dog pictures

I got the hardcore giggles when I saw this one. Hell, even my First Sergeant quoted the line in response to a question at last drill.

Ok this is just too cool

2008-05-12T19:46:00.002-05:00

This has got to be the first online catalog designed by Rube Goldberg.

H/T to Tam and Roberta X.

A day late for San Jacinto

2008-04-22T09:43:00.003-05:00

Once again, I didn't post on San Jacinto Day, to commemorate it, altho I sure as Hell flew my flag. I just didn't have any inspiration to write anything. So, I'll let you peruse some other Texans writing about the day here and here. (H/T to Tam.) Even the Pistolero gets into it two days in a row.

I think a big part of why I was uninspired, was being more concerned about WildFire's dog Peaches. She's 15 years old, and her body's starting to go, altho Fire's gotten a few more good days out of her, after the initial panic of the weekend, when Peaches apparently had a smallish stroke and lost a lot of mobility and her sight. I've already offered what words I can over there, so I won't rehash them here.

Looks like the world is conspiring against me...

2008-04-20T18:07:00.003-05:00

Next weekend would be very busy for me, except I already have something to block out all my time: State Guard training. It seems like everything else I'd like to do this month all falls on the same weekend. Saturday is San Jacinto Day at the battleground (the day itself is tomorrow), there's World Tai Chi and Qigong Day then too, the Rubber Duckie Derby at Riverfront Park here in Beaumont, and I'm sure there's something elsewhere too. Back in March when we went to Texas Independence Days at Washington-on-the-Brazos, I was looking forward to seeing the Battle of San Jacinto reenactment in the same year. Not happening now. Gotta make sure our shit's squared away and we don't look like a giant clusterfuck doing our D&C at AT next month. At least with Tai Chi, I can at least imagine I'm doing it instead of regular PT, and from some studies, imagining is somewhat helpful compared to being idle or doing something else (apparently the brain imagining doing the exercise helps promote the energy flow, even for those unable to move).

Six word Bio Meme

2008-04-15T12:10:00.002-05:00

Oh, bloody hell, I hate having to do homework.
Wildfire tagged me for this meme, writing your own six word memoir. Here's the rules being cut-and-pasted around the Net:

1. Write your own six word memoir.

2. Post it on your blog and include a visual illustration if you want.

3. Link to the person that tagged you in your post and to the original post if possible so we can track it as it travels across the blogosphere.

4. Tag at least five more blogs with links.

5. Leave a comment on the tagged blogs with an invitation to play.

Hmm, I'm getting an inkling of an idea---

1. Recovering Boy Scout, Good Turns fortnightly!
2. Guns, dogs, Texas, not much else.
3. Got a good woman, with cats.

Err, that's about it, no more, empty. Now to go hang this albatross on Nyx. Looks like we ain't done step 4 very much, anyway.

Inspired

2008-04-10T13:29:00.002-05:00

A post at DoubleTapper spurred some thinking on my part about who shouldn't be allowed to own a gun. Here's what I commented:

For the USA? Perhaps anyone who isn't willing to own a gun as a prerequisite to voting, barring the existing felons and insane. Certainly, as SailorCurt pointed out, anyone who is anti-gun usually doesn't own a gun and has nothing to lose by agitating against their ownership. So, if we tie gun ownership and voting together, they'd have an interest in working for real crime solutions, instead of blaming the guns. Even make it part of the public records, refer to them as "Civilian" and those of us with guns are "Citizens," similar to Heinlien's Starship Troopers.

A bit succinct, but really, is it that bad an idea? I'm sure we can have an appeal process to restore full rights to felons and the mentally ill, ya know, after a grace period of demonstrating good behavior of 5 or 10 years. In Roswell, Texas, the law in Texas was that you had to have a firearm, and if you wanted to go without, you had to apply for a special permit to be unarmed, after being certified of sound mind and character. (Hot Damn! I just went to the Big Head Press site to copy the previous link, and they're gonna print up Roswell, Texas into a real paper graphic novel!! YESSSS!!)

Back on topic: certainly someone who is deranged or adamant about their opposition to gun ownership would be willing to sign away their rights. And I know if the government instituted this new law, there'd be screams from all the libtards about how they're being disenfranchised. Tough. Suck it up and buy one, if you can afford an iPod and a cell phone and cable TV, you can afford a gun, nothing in the law about actually using it, altho it would be irresponsible to not learn how to use and care for it, and certainly to not keep it safe from those irresponsible to not use a gun wisely (like children and thieves). I think this would negate every local gun law out there, like the DC handgun ban (soon to be followed by Philly, Chicago, and San Fran, by the news today) and the Cali waiting periods.

More wishful thinking on my part.

Mini-rants

2008-04-09T16:12:00.002-05:00

I apologize for the near-stream-of-consciousness style of this piece. I'll admit it may be difficult to follow in some places, but that's kinda how my brain works sometimes.

I have a problem with one of my new neighbors. They moved in across the street about a month ago, kept to themselves pretty much, up until this last week. I walk my dogs in the big vacant lot adjacent to their house, but don't let my dogs go onto their yard. I've been walking the dogs there since I moved in six months ago because I was told that the owner of the lot is deceased, and the previous tenants next door didn't complain. Then three days ago the woman comes out to ask that I don't let my dogs shit in their yard, they don't like cleaning it up and watching their step while mowing. Ok, not a problem, since I'm not walking my dogs in their yard, right? Not quite. Apparently they think their yard includes some periphery around it, because they caused a fuss yesterday about the smell of the dog shit coming into their house when they leave the windows open. And accusing me of letting my dogs shit in the yard because there's a pile right off their back porch. I don't know how they've got dog shit in their back yard but it sure as fuck ain't my dogs doing that. They were doing fine asking that I get my dogs to shit at the back of the vacant lot, until they said their landlord told them that he owns all three lots on that side of the street, the vacant lots on both sides of their house! I told them I had heard differently, the lot I was using had reverted to the estate of a dead man, but they insisted, even saying that the man would mow that lot just to deny me the use of it. I finished walking my dogs, and asked the girlfriend's dad about this, and he said to the effect that they were full of bullshit, the lot I was using belonged to a dead man's family, and the other vacant lot belonged to a woman who is the sister of a good friend. This got us both a bit riled up, and I called the county's tax office, because who better would know who owns property than the government agency who collects money from it? Sure enough, their landlord is lying about owning all three lots, the tax office gave me the listed owners, and interestingly enough the owner of record for the house lives at a PO Box in Missouri. (That makes us wonder who is their "landlord" and what, if any relation he has to the owner. It reminded the GF of some folks who tried claiming they owned one of the lots and could rent it out, and they were caught in their scam.) It also confirmed my previous info about the other lot's owners. Later yesterday I walked my dogs as usual, and the neighbors sat on their back porch and glared at me, making sure the dogs didn't shit in their precious yard (which they didn't), and I tried striking up pleasantries with the woman when she sat out there. That went ok for a few minutes, until I mentioned that the county's records didn't jibe with their landlord's claims of owning all three lots. She got ugly about that, saying she had to go over papers to move into that place and she knows what the landlord says is true, and that I needed to leave. Fine, I left, and had to wind back down to go to bed (curse these early mornings at work). I feel like putting up a sign that reads "Glare all you want, we'll shit more" in the vacant lot just to goad them on, until my better side says ok, you got your mini-rant out of the way, let's deal with this rationally. So today we were gonna drop by the neighborhood police substation, to make them aware of the situation as it stands, in case they have to be called later, only to discover that it closed a while back. So I did the next best thing, I called my ex Father-in-Law, since he's a detective with the city police. I explained the situation to him and asked who can I go to at the station to let know about this? He considered it and said my best course of action was to not walk my dogs there and to find out the landlord's name and number to talk with him. Ok, I can do that, I'm not afraid to call him a liar to his face. Especially after dealing with his tenants who have a near-Fundamentalist zeal about their Truth, no matter the facts! Their landLord can tell them the world is flat, and it doesn't matter how many globes you show, they won't believe you.

In other news, the Senate is having hearings on the progress in the Iraq War, and some of the Presidential candidates are using is as an opportunity to grandstand. Senators Clinton and Obama are soooo against the war... gee, go figure. What isn't making news is what I wish McCain would stand up and say:

Everybody knows I was a POW, in the last war where the US turned tail and ran away, leaving our allies to be rounded up and slaughtered, after the American people were brainwashed by the Media into believing it was an unwinnable war. The Tet Offensive destroyed the Viet Cong's numbers in South Vietnam, but because the evening news only showed the ferocity of their attacks, the American people's support dwindled away and the "anti-war" VC/NVA supporters in our midst gained courage. I am NOT going to let that happen today, not to our brave men and women in uniform who are willing to go where ordered, to fight the terrorists over there, so the American people won't have to fight the terrorists over here. But no, our round-the-clock news echoes the same "anti-war" mindset over and over from the last war, emboldening our enemies at home and abroad, and disheartening loyal Americans from fighting the good fight now when it can be still be won. I won't say there won't be sacrifice. I won't say there won't be blood shed by our sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, fathers and mothers over there. But until Americans steel their resolve to win this war we are already defeated, at home and abroad. And do not think the terrorists will not come here just because we're tucked our tails in surrender. Our men and women tracking the terrorist cells in the US are succeeding every day, but it doesn't make the evening news, because that still subscribes to the motto "if it bleeds it leads," and since no one dies in these arrests, not a peep is heard from the Media. Also, since these arrests are part of ongoing investigations, they can't be publicized. Otherwise the terrorists will know their agents have been caught and change their plans and operations. I will not let our detractors keep us from winning this war, because then all the sacrifices of our brave men and women will have been for naught, and I will NOT allow THAT again!

Like I said, I wish McCain would say that, but I'm not holding out hope. Thanks for sticking around to the end.

Brick Wall; Apply directly to the forehead!

2008-03-31T13:06:00.002-05:00

Why do I feel like this is my best option, when it comes to the November election? I don't like any of the candidates, but at least I'll be able to hold my nose and vote for the lesser of the evils. I still ain't gonna like it, because none of them represent MY interests, as a leave-me-the-hell-alone-ist! McCain has his name on about half the meddlesome bills coming out of the Senate, Clinton wants to claim credit for her husband's time in office, and Obama has way too many socialist skeletons in his closet, and neither of the latter can tell the simple truth to save their miserable lives. I don't think there's enough soap in SE Texas to wash away the ickiness I'll feel after Election Tuesday.

Bye Bye to Jericho again

2008-03-28T15:15:00.004-05:00

The TV show Jericho had it's second season finale this past Tuesday. I've since found out that CBS intended it to also be the series finale. While it saddens me a little, I'm still not sending the CBS offices any nuts to protest, like some fans did after the first season's premature death. I liked how this season ended, with some closure and no real loose ends, and it was left open enough to continue with a movie or novels or mini-series.

WARNING!!! SPOILERS AHEAD!!!

SAVE YOURSELF!! RUN, RUN FAST!!!

LAST CHANCE! I WARNED YOU!!!

I loved that Jake and Hawkins were saved twice by the Republic of Texas: first by crashing an ambulance thru the gates of their (our?) embassy in Cheyenne, the Allied States' new capital; second by the Texas Air National Guard shooting down two Allied State's fighter jets ready to shoot down Jake and Hawkins while they flew to Texas in a Texas' diplomatic jet.

To nitpick a little:

I wonder why the show's writers put the Texas Guardsmen in the old woodland camo BDUs, when they've finished transitioning to the Army's digital camo ACUs. Do they think the NG has some sooper-seekrit orders to keep one set of BDUs, because I know transitioning back would be a jigantinormous pain-in-the-ass, especially during a crisis, oh, say, like after a nuclear attack. I mean, even the army surplus stores are selling their used stocks of BDUs for really cheap. (And those are used, not new, crisp, and dark, like those on the show.)
I'm surprised the Texans managed to build/convert a new embassy in Cheyenne already, so soon after a nuclear attack. I'm more surprised Cheyenne allowed it, since that would be tantamount to admitting that Texas has the right to succeed, during a national emergency even.
I wonder how long it will be before the writers, producers, and CBS get a letter from the Texas Attorney General demanding that they cease-and-desist using the name "Republic of Texas" in conjunction with using the image of the Lone Star Flag. Why? Because that's what the AG did to the Republic of Texas Provisional Govt. several years back, and that's why the groups use the Burnett flag as their national banner. Now that I think about that some, I realize the RTPG implicitly acknowledging the AG's power, even tho they claimed the State Govt. had no legitimacy and no authority over them. I guess it was a matter of, you can't change the govt. if you're sitting in a jail cell.
I liked seeing the Texas Guardsmen in the BDUs. I guess I'm a little sentimental about those uniforms since that was the outfit I saw our soldiers in while I was growing up. (I admit the new ACUs are a lot cooler in the summer, they're not a heat magnet like the woodland BDUs.) It also made me proud to see the Texas flag on those trooper's shoulders. I jokingly pointed out, "Look! I've got job security!" Altho I almost immediately recognized the TANG HG insignia on the other shoulder. Which leads into...
Why does every soldier in this show have full-color unit insignia instead of subdued? Ok, so the Army soldiers had subdued flag and unit patches when they were going into combat, but the rest of the time, "bumming around town" and in the office, they wore full color patches on their shoulders.

These were just some of the little things that popped up while watching and ruminating afterwards. I've read some comments about the show, in this blog or that forum, but they're scattered. There doesn't seem to be a decent discussion group for this show, that isn't full of spammers. Back when I watch Babylon 5, there was a pretty good group on Usenet for fans. Now I think the Internet has made any fans too scattered across the ether, each one with their own small group or fan page, instead of a main area to gather.

I do hope the producers find a way to continue this show. If nothing else, it gave folks (specifically ME!) something to watch that wasn't a quasi-reality show.

PS Thinking about the Texas flag a bit more, I recalled the time I had to give Phoenyx directions to my new home. The simple part was saying "go this way, turn here, go past that store, turn at the stop sign," then I got stuck, because she needed landmarks, and on my own street I blanked out. I stumbled onto the front porch, looking around, well, there's the car parked in the yard... no, the house number... is kinda small... Oh! "Mine's the only one on the whole damned block with a Texas flag out front!" which also meant there aren't any other flags on my street. Showing off your patriotism seems in short supply around here. Thankfully there's a couple of businesses with giant Texas flags flying along the highway as I come and go to work. And several US flags, too.

PPS Holy F*&%ing Dog$#!+!!! THREE posts in one day!?! I can't bother to post three times in the same month! What's wrong with me?!?

Keeping valuables in the vault

2008-03-28T13:21:00.002-05:00

I just filled up my truck's gas tank, and I haven't had to spend that much since Hurricane Rita. One fillup for my truck, to top off the tank with 18.777 more gallons, was $58! Now I'm really glad I've got a locking gas cap, altho I'm surprised I haven't heard of cases of siphoning thieves yet. Instead all the gas thefts in the news are drive-offs from the stations.

More Soda Please!

2008-03-28T12:39:00.003-05:00

Created by OnePlusYou - Free Online Dating

This was kinda funny to do, there's a countdown clock and a space to click repeatedly to see how much caffeine you've had lately, measured on a bar graph with labels like "Slight Buzz," "Jittery," "Paranoid," "Near Death." I got up to "Spastic," a little past halfway, before running out of time. I guess since my day starts at 3 AM, being on my fourth cola today isn't that bad, considering.

H/T to Tam for the quick laugh.

This Patriotic Duty stuff is wearing me out!

2008-03-07T11:04:00.002-06:00

I've had a fairly busy week, going here and there, doing stuff that most folks would consider patriotic, for a Texan anyways.

The GF and I went to Washington-on-the-Brazos for Texas Independence Days on Sunday. We saw some reenactors in the Texas Army, listened to old folk musicians, looked at the displays in the museum and on the grounds, ate some Texas-sized birthday cake.
I had jury duty starting on Monday, and finishing on Wednesday. It was only on the last day that I got picked for a jury pool, then after waiting a while, we found out the judge didn't need us after all. He thanked us for our time and sense of civic duty, and was glad we were willing to participate in our jury system.
I voted in our Texas Primary on Tuesday, but I ain't telling you for who! I find it curious, no, bizarre that the Republican Primary had the Referendums listed, while the Democrat Primary did not. (I would link to the appropriate .pdfs, but the county has already taken them down. However, there's this article in the Dallas Morning Snews.) The referendums were to A)authorize a check of photo IDs when voting; B)require state and county governments to limit their budgets to only increasing with inflation and local growth, except for emergencies; C)require local, state, and federal officials to enforce our immigration laws.
I've got another drill weekend with the State Guard starting tonight.

I've remarked to friends that Thursday was the only day this week that I didn't have some direct .gov involvement.

Happy Birthday Sam Houston and Texas!!!

2008-03-02T20:48:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to post that before I retire for the day. Tommie and I got in a little bit ago from a daytrip to Washington-on-the-Brazos, where they were holding the annual Texas Independence Day celebrations. Fun had by all, stuff bought, pictures taken. Will post more later, after I've slept for a good while. G'night!

A micro "Eureka!" moment

2008-02-20T19:34:00.002-06:00

I've been grumbling for a while that I wished the Governor would authorize us (the State Guard, and the rest of the Texas military) to carry our sidearms with us even when off duty, like the Israeli Defense Forces do. (Aside: I've heard a few anecdotes of folks traveling in Israel and ogling the beautiful, bikini-clad women on the beaches, who also had an M-16 slung across their backs!)

Then this morning while walking the dogs (when I do some of my best thinking; alas, away from pen and paper) I realized that the state has quietly encouraged us to do so. Since the Legislature recently amended the laws concerning concealed carry, all members of the military in Texas can apply for a permit at no charge. Previously, the charge had been $70, half the regular fee. Now, the class will still cost ya (most places would probably have a military discount anyways), but if you can afford to equip yourself with a suitable, concealable firearm, and the means to conceal and carry it, you can afford a $100 or so for a CHL class.

Pity some of us still have employers who forbid carrying a legal concealed firearm while on the clock, but at least the Lege also amended the laws to protect employees who are CHL holders, to leave their firearms in their private vehicles in the employer's parking lot. Apparently one of the big computer companies in Texas fought against this and lost, after selectively discriminating against their employees who had CHLs: forbiding their leaving their firearms locked in their vehicles, comparing company databases against CHL lists (when it's still a public record), demanded that employees report having a CHL, firing those who "forget" to report same, and refusing to hire anyone who has a CHL. From what I've gathered, it's not so much a company policy against firearms ownership, as it is their insurance companies'. The insurance companies would seem to prefer paying out on a wrongful death (or two... dozen) from a madman shooting up the workplace, than pay for legal defense of an employee or customer who lawfully shot someone else intent on havoc and murder. Besides "First, kill all the Lawyers," I wonder what we could do to change that to something more in line with common sense.

More thoughts about Texas

2008-01-21T09:50:00.000-06:00

A little over a year ago, I pontificated about Texas being a State or Republic. Since then, I've discovered that the founder and master emcee of Radio Free Texas is not the "former & disgruntled" president that I imagined, but the current one! There is a sister station, Texas Independence Radio, which plays Texas-themed music and political talk programs (from what I've heard so far). There is also a Texas Nationalist Movement website with blog-type posts concerning Texas independence and related news. This is several steps up from the email discussion on a Yahoo group, where the everyday theme du jour is fucked-up conspiracy theories! That gets old pretty quick! I wonder how those folks get by on a day-to-day basis, if the Zionist government/Illuminatti cabal/Planet X alien implants are supposed to be keeping such free thinkers down? How can they have any time to work toward a free Texas if they're worried about the tracking chips in every piece of money in their wallets?

Earlier today I was contemplating whether or not Texas has a distinctive culture.

We have a style of dress (cowboy boots, jeans, cowboy hat) that has working, casual, and formal levels.
We have our own pantheon of demigods, men and women who achieved such greatness as to be elevated above mere folk, who formed our legends, from whom some of us can claim descendance.
We have our own holy sites and artifacts, like the Alamo and San Jacinto and the Bowie knife and Colt revolver.
We have our own style of speech, derived from various influencing cultures throughout our history (altho we haven't really developed Texsperanto like in Roswell, Texas).
We have a strong sense of identity above that of simply American.
We have a internationally recognized, distinctive flag, still in use, which predates our statehood.

I'm not sure what more I would need to claim Texas has a culture. Still, it was a fun mental exercise.

My biggest peeve about politicians...

2007-12-03T09:09:00.000-06:00

...That would be about gun rights.

It's a cute gimmick, having Chuck Norris' endorsement of Mike Huckabee, and in the commercial "HuckChuckFacts" each quotes "facts"about the other, where Norris cites a fact about Huckabee and huckabee in turn quotes a "ChuckNorrisFact." One of the first "Huck Facts" out of Norris' mouth is "Mike Huckabee is a lifelong hunter who'll protect our Second Amendment Rights." That "fact" pisses me off because the Second Amendment isn't about hunting, unless it's for Redcoats or Brown Shirts or Jack-boots! That is, the 2nd is about being ready to protect yourself and your family and community against any tyrants and thugs, whether they work freelance or under contract.

That said, the ad did prompt me to go to Mike Huckabee's website, where he does explain his views on the 2nd, which fairly closely match my own.

Other candidates say gun control doesn't affect hunting. Now I'm a very avid hunter, but the Second Amendment isn't really about hunting. It's about tyranny and self-defense. The Founding Fathers weren't worried about our being able to bag a duck or a deer, they were worried about our keeping our fundamental freedoms.

So far, he's doing a lot better job of winning my attention than the last Governor from Arkansas did when it comes to my gun rights. (Unfortunately, I was naive enough then to not recognize what a con artist the last one was. I claim it was a youthful indiscretion!)

Back to the HuckChuckFacts, we should keep in mind this from Chuck's favorites of his own Facts:

Contrary to popular belief, America is not a democracy, it is a Chucktatorship.

Moving the Redoubt...

2007-12-02T12:33:00.000-06:00

... to a spot near the Spindletop Hill, several miles south of the original redoubt along the Neches. Settling in is going nicely.

It's only paranoid if they're not out to get you.

2007-11-25T17:56:00.000-06:00

With the recent rise in recalls of Chinese-made goods due to toxicity, it almost seems like the ChiComs are demonstrating their economic superiority over the US and the rest of the Western World. It occurs to me, what if they are trying to cripple us in other ways? We've seen them try to influence elections by laundering money to favored candidates (Bill Clinton and Hsu; possibly Hillary and $1000 from Chinatown dishwashers, who amazingly can't be located afterwards). What if they (or someone they've paid off) were able to influence the weather, to undermine our economic and political power at home and abroad? Could some of these aspects of "global warming" be man-made, but not the way Algora claims? The Russians claim to have a "weather control machine," and the US denies operating any type of similar equipment. The Russians have even offered theirs "for hire"to send rain to drought-stricken areas, with a resulting typhoon hitting the country.

Is this paranoid? Maybe. But we know the Chinese have historically not been short-sighted in their foreign policy, or their goals of sabotaging Western capitalism. It's just that now we've let them get into position to do this to us, and we seem willingly, very blind to the threat.

On a related note, I read Invasion by Eric L. Harry several years ago. It was a thriller dealing with a near-future attack by China on the US. Now it looks like he was only wrong in the fact that China won't need a military invasion to destroy us.

It's not bad, just... different.

2007-11-22T17:45:00.000-06:00

I was at my mom's house dog-sitting while she's gone overnight, so I turn on the TV for a bit and find this. It's Shooter Jennings' cover of Dire Straits' "Walk of Life," and it's gonna take a little getting used to (tho not too much). That's a cool-looking guitar he's got, too.

A quick chuckle...

2007-11-20T10:28:00.000-06:00

I know I've been quiet lately, been busy with moving. Here's a favorite movie quote, from Remo Williams:

Chiun: It would be better for you to eat this can than what is inside of it. Why must everything in this country be coated with monositi-... monosoti...
Remo Williams: Monosodium glutamate. You can't even say it.
Chiun: I can say "rat droppings." That does not mean I want to eat them.

Shamelessly ganked from imdb.com.

A quick laugh...

2007-09-12T22:22:00.000-05:00

...For those of us old enough to remember: This just in...

From Britain, thru Vietnam, to NYC, RIP

2007-09-12T10:57:00.000-05:00

I was making my rounds thru my mostly-daily blog reads, and stumbled across this at the LoneStarTimes. I had seen the cover of "We Were Soldiers Once... And Young" in the bookstore many times, and watched the movie version during the busride down during the deployment last month. Then today I read that one of the gallant heroes from that battle (and the soldier pictured on the book's cover) was still acting bravely inside the WTC six years ago. (Warning: you might cry from reading this. I did. But it was from my joy that a man like him was still acting from the heart, knowing he might die; and from my sorrow that the world is much poorer without him.)

Memories

2007-09-11T10:38:00.000-05:00

Hi all, I'm Muninn, the good looking one, on the right. The other one is Huginn. We are best buds with Odin, telling him what's happening in the worlds. Lots of folks are remembering (that's my job) from six years ago. For a lot of them, this is sad, which is understandable, but for others this makes them mad, at someone who couldn't have done much to change what happened. They blame this grand cabal of people and organizations, who conspired to bring about events so those people could gain more power and money. If these groups are so powerful, why do they still hide behind governments to do their bidding? Most of the people in Midgard are used to having Evil Overlords running everything at the expense of the minions. These folks believing in these conspiracies are giving way too much credit to their boogymen. Any conspiracy that is big enough will have someone involved who doesn't like it and is willing to rat it out. If nothing else, a few years back Popular Mechanics magazine did a debunking of most of the popular myths about the Twin Towers attack. Is that mag part of the conspiracy too? The sad thing about these folks, even if you tell them the truth, they dismiss you as a willing participant in the cabal's lies. Oh, well.

Thx to PDPhoto.org for letting us gank the pic. You did a good job capturing my good side!

Report: Protect ALL Your Rights Day (Aug 28) purchases

2007-09-08T21:57:00.000-05:00

In my own way, I made some purchases to support the Protect ALL Your Rights Day,which was on August 28th, but I had spread mine out a little, across the fortnight. All of the deliveries were made during the week of the 28th, tho, so I suppose it counts enough. I had ordered another magazine and a shoulder holster for my Taurus PT-92AF, and these arrived separately, and then I bought a 100 round box of Winchester target ammo for the same gun. Well, it's 9mm Parabellum, which will work in any gun chambered for that, but the Taurus is the only thing I've got right now for that round.

Yes, this is my gun; no, I won't let you borrow it!

More YouTube music

2007-08-25T17:09:00.000-05:00

While I like some of Blues Traveler's music I think this one is stands out (and the video is pretty funny, spoofing the whole Hugh Hefner thing):

Girl Inside My Head

When all is said and done
I wish I needed no one
Never was up to me
Just something in her way that sets me free
It seems so easy

And yeah I try to pay attention
But there's only four things running through my mind

How hard will it be if she is nice to me?
How bad will it get if I let her get to know me?
Should she see the willing dog or should I be a jungle cat?
And most of all, my god, how does she make her eyes do that?
And I don't need another girl inside my head
Girl inside my head

"Johnny, be brave." I say inside
As I won't take a bite from the apple that she gave me
But that's not what I'm after
Still all along, my mother's voice singing "Treat her like a lady"
And yeah I try to pay attention
But there's only four things running through my mind

How hard will it be if she is nice to me?
How bad will it get if I let her get to know me?
Should she see the willing dog or should I be a jungle cat?
And most of all, my god, how does she make her eyes do that?
And I don't need another girl inside my head
Girl inside my head

I'm not the only one to write her letters
It doesn't matter anyhow
The question isn't if but...

How hard will it be if she is nice to me?
How bad will it get if I let her get to know me?
Should she see the willing dog or should I be a jungle cat?
And most of all, my god, how does she make her eyes do that?

How hard will it be if she is nice to me?
How bad will it get if I let her get to know me?
Should she see the willing dog or should I be a jungle cat?
And most of all, my god, how does she make her eyes do that?
And I don't need another girl inside my head
Girl inside my head

I'm not paranoid...

2007-08-24T20:43:00.000-05:00

Who told you I was?!?

I have to admit, tho, when SiteMeter tells me I've got folks from the Customs Service and Halliburton looking at my shit, it does make me more than a little nervous!

ETA: Ok, after a bit of reflection, it's a little funny that the MIBs think my blog is good enough to look over at least once.

Back home from mini- active duty

2007-08-23T12:58:00.000-05:00

Last Thursday I got a call from my Squad Leader, saying our Texas State Guard unit was being put on active duty. I got my gear and boogied down to the Armory, after dropping off my dogs at my mom's, and the bird going to the Ex's. (She was going to come by the house and check on the cats every few days.) (Aside: I made a mistake in thinking we were getting called up for relief of flood victims from the rains of Tropical Storm Erin, that had just plowed across central Texas.) We rode over to Camp Swift (between Bastrop and Elgin, outside of Austin) for more training and await further orders. Our "more training" was, no pun intended, a crash course in school bus driving. At the time, the plan seemed to be that we would be driving these buses full of evacuees back and forth between the Rio Grande valley area and points far north, like Austin and Dallas! Those of y'all watching Austin TV news (or Texas Cable News) on Saturday and Sunday may have seen the news story about us and our Special High-Intensity Training. Sunday afternoon about half of the troops there (including me) rode down to Raymondville, between Brownsville and McAllen, to prepare to drive those buses. We get there... and there's no buses, and apparently no evacuees yet either. Everybody's watching Hurricane Dean, and with every update, the projected storm track is turning further and further south, away from Texas. We continue training, using this time to run thru the evacuee processing center we and the National Guard had set up at the high school. After another day, we return to Camp Swift, discovering that most of our units' gear has traveled to Laredo with our other team members, when they deployed to there the day after we left. Personally, that meant my cell phone was dead, as I had left the charger in my duffel in the back of my Sergeant's truck since when we left for Raymondville, we were told to just pack for one night... which turned into three days. The rest of our troops returned that same night as we did, then we were demobilized the next morning (yesterday, Wednesday) and sent home.

I'm glad I've got my dogs back, I'm glad the storm didn't turn toward Texas (destroying folks' homes and such), and I loved the sense of camaraderie from the whole experience, working alongside units from all over this great state. We had only last been together two weeks before, for AT (Advanced Training), but this felt much better, because instead of just taking classes together, we knew we would have to rely on each other for the duration. The orders said the call-up was to last until the 30th of this month, altho I said to friends and family before leaving, that "They" reserved the right to keep my ass longer if they needed it. Looks like they decided we did a good job, didn't need us anymore, now go home! And as my chain of command said, wash your sh...tuff, pack it up again, and get ready in case they call us back tomorrow! Growing up along the Texas Gulf Coast, I'm already used to keeping an eye on the hurricanes, never thought it would be part of my job description too!

Oh! I also got a promotion, from E-1 to E-2. I am no longer Buck Private Mattexian, but Private, PV2, Mattexian! :D It's good to finally have some actual rank; before it just looked like I had forgotten to attach the rank pins to my uniform.

ETA: The "forgetting to put on my rank" kinda looked like this:

That little blank green square in the center of my chest is where the rank patch goes, along with one chevron pinned to the cap.

Stupid little cutsie polls

2007-08-10T18:05:00.000-05:00

This one hits a little too close to home, unfortunately...

Your Love Life Secrets Are

Looking back on your life, you will only have one true love.

You're a little scarred from your past relationships, but who isn't?

It's important to you that your lover is very attractive. You like to have someone to show off.

In fights, you love to debate and defend yourself. You logic prevails - or at least you'd like to think so.

A break-up usually comes as a shock to you. You always think things are going well.

Your Love Life Secrets, Revealed

Hi, my name is Matt...

2007-08-08T17:26:00.000-05:00

And I'm a YouTube addict. (Chorus: Hi, Matt!)

Since getting the computer hooked up with DSL last week, I've been catching up on some of my favorite music videos, along with watching newer ones. I've shared some oldies before
now I've got newer ones too. I liked this one so much when I first heard it (but didn't catch the band's name) that I've been hunting for it for at least a month, finally found it linked thru another vid, and bought the CD today, just for that song! This one by Trace Adkins puts me in a good mood, while this one makes me cry nearly every time I hear it. This one's funny and it seems to fit that they got Colin Hay (of Men At Work) to play it on "Scrubs." (Ok, there appear to be two versions of this. I kinda prefer the second.) Speaking of hospital Tv shows with music, this had me rolling the first time I saw it. And there's always the music in my head when I'm crazy enough to mow the yard in the middle of the day.

We interupt this interlude for the weather report

2007-07-27T20:13:00.000-05:00

Now we go to our StormCenter(TM); Stevie Ray Vaughan, how's it looking out there?

Well there's floodin' down in Texas, all of the telephone lines are down
Well there's floodin' down in Texas, all of the telephone lines are down
And I've been tryin' to call my baby, Lord and I can't get a single sound
Well dark clouds are rollin' in, man I'm standin' out in the rain
Well dark clouds are rollin' in, man I'm standin' out in the rain
Yeah flood water keep a rollin', man it's about to drive poor me insane
Well I'm leavin' you baby, Lord and I'm goin' back home to stay
Well I'm leavin' you baby, Lord and I'm goin' back home to stay
Well back home I know floods and tornados, baby the sun shines every day

The thing I think up at work...

2007-07-11T19:17:00.000-05:00

Does Alien Ant Farm count as a "one-hit wonder" band when their one hit was a cover of Michael Jackson's own hit "Smooth Criminal"? Discuss.

Musical interlude

2007-07-03T12:09:00.000-05:00

We interupt this hiatus to bring you some music. Today's selection is from Patsy Cline.

I fall to pieces
Each time I see you again
I fall to pieces
How can I be just your friend

You want me to act
Like we've never kissed
You want me to forget
Pretend we've never met
And I try and I try
But I haven't yet
You walk by and I fall to pieces

I fall to pieces
Each time someone speaks your name
I fall to pieces
Time only adds to the pain

You tell me to find someone else to love
Someone who loves me too
The way you used to do
But each time I go out with someone new
You walk by and I fall to pieces

Off the air, temporarily.

2007-05-15T15:35:00.000-05:00

Due to this separation, posting will be sporadic. I know, how would my adoring fans tell the difference between this and any other month? Well, at least this time I'm warning you about it.

Reposting from the wife: It'll be over soon

2007-04-23T16:56:00.000-05:00

This is from my wife's blog, announcing that we'll be getting a divorce... somewhat soon. As soon as we can find out what all we need to do, gather enough money, get her stuff moved, etc. I'll post more some other time.

BTW, I'm reposting this for all of ya'll who don't have the password to her sooper-seekrit clubhouse. (Actually she just restricted her blog to invite-only. So the links in it won't work if you're not already invited. Sorry.)

So This is Being a Grown-Up? It Sucks!

Now that the people who shouldn't find out by reading it in my blog have been told, I can post that Moonwolf and I are getting divorced. We'll still be living together until the house is finished, then I'll move in there with three of the dogs, the cats, and Pierre (the cockatiel).

I don't really think there's a "good guy" or "bad guy" in this. There's just not a marriage. We aren't right for each other. It can't be fixed, either. Seven years of being married, and at least five of them have been spent on trying to fix things... it just gets worse. At this point, I just want my life back. And I honestly believe he may have a chance to get his life in better shape without me around. We just aren't good for each other.

I think the idea that all marriages should last forever is outdated. As far as relious views of marriage... well... isn't the idea that you have to stay in a miserable situation for the rest of your life kind of in contrast to the rest of Christianity? I don't think people should take getting married and divorced lightly, but if things are truly that miserable with no hope in sight, isn't God all about second chances? Setting religion aside, it just makes sense that people used to stay married. Their lives didn't change. You lived in the same town and did the same job all your life, in most cases. If you could get an education, you went ahead and did that. If you couldn't, there wasn't much chance you ever would.

Life is different now. People move, they go back to school, they change careers... If two lives don't move in the same direction, and the relationship doesn't move with them, that's a problem.

I'm different now. I'm not the person I was at 22, when we got married. I wasn't a whole person then... I couldn't stand the thought of being alone, and I felt I needed to be in a relationship to feel loved. That's just not me anymore. And I have things to do with my life that maybe I can do better on my own. They aren't getting done at all this way.

So there will be no saying the words "my ex-husband" as if talking about some lesser life form. And there will be no vindictive fighting over who gets which scrap of something that should probably just be thrown out. None of that crap... that's not what this is about.

The house needs to be finished. I need to get a website set up for selling online the things I make. (Luckily, I know how to do that part myself.) I need to... *sigh*... There's a lot that needs to be done. A lot. And, at some point, I'll probably start a new blog. I can't explain why. I can't explain the need for the fresh start. Just think of it as a notebook, I guess. You fill one up, put it away, and then you need a new one... with blank pages and the "new notebook" smell. And don't try to tell me I'm the only person who's ever sniffed a new notebook. Or any other book.

I'll stop while you still don't think I'm a freak.

I'll let you all know where to go when I start over. I'll still post the occaisional update here until then. And yes, comments are off on this post. No one ever really knows what to say in these situations, anyway.

"And even though it all went wrong, I'll stand before the Lord of Song with nothing on my tongue but, 'Hallelujah!'"
--- Leonard Cohen
Thus sayeth Phoenix Ravenflame on this sacred day: 4/21/2007 09:56:00 AM

Recent thoughts

2007-04-17T19:01:00.000-05:00

First, my heart and prayers go out to the victims and the families of the Virginia Tech shooting yesterday, even the shooter's family. My concerns about the aftermath of this incident are probably close to those of other gun owners; the folks who want to further restrict legal gun ownership in this country will do everything they can to exploit this, and every rational, reasonable, logical argument gun owners have will either fall on deaf (ignorant) ears, or we'll be preachin' to the choir. I've been reading over at LawDog, Oscar Poppa, Anarchangel, and Blogomonicon about this, and I think they're much more eloquent about than I am.

On to other things...

I passed the CHL class last month during my State Guard weekend. I got 98% on the written test, and 241 out of 250 pts on the lab... er, shooting. Kept 'em all inside the silhouette, so no friendlies capped. ;)

I've been pondering the whole state guard/militia thing for a while. It started with a conversation between me and Phoenix a month or so ago:
Phoenix: "So what does the State Guard correspond to?"
Me (not quite understanding the question): "Ye olde village militia?"
Phoenix: "No, I mean, Army, Navy, Air Force..."
Me: "Oh, Army!"

That got me to thinking about how similar State Guard duty is to "ye olde village militia." Mainly, there's a lot of marching back and forth, with more marching, and MORE marching. Last month we got lucky and actually got to shoot our guns; I think almost every other time there won't be any. I think one of the main differences is that we only show up one weekend a month, they were supposed to show up every Sunday, after church, on the village commons or town square (at least, that's what the history books teach). We both come from the community, serve when needed locally, take our orders from the governor. Especially here in Texas, we trace back to the village militias that defended the frontier during our early years. I've come to the conclusion that for as much as the National Guard claims similar origins, since the Dick Act of 1903, they are essentially a state-recruitment level for the US Army, especially with the way the NG is being used now. Oh, wait, here it is, from Wikipedia (see above link): "(The National Defense Act of 1916) transformed the militia from individual state forces into a Reserve Component of the U.S. Army- and made the term "National Guard" mandatory." Ok, so I'm not crazy... maybe I am, but I'm not imagining this.

More to come later, now that I've cleared this outta my brain files.

Marty Robbins' "El Paso"... starring Steve Martin!

2007-03-12T12:28:00.000-05:00

I envision this "video" ( a skit Martin did on his show once) every time I hear "El Paso" from Marty Robbins. I saw it the first time it showed on TV, back in the ole days, before everybody could tape or Tivo any and every show. Well, apparently somebody did tape it, and has put it on Youtube, for the enjoyment of all anew. [big grin] I think my favorite bit is where Martin rides off atop an elephant as his steed, as Robbins sings "Out thru the backdoor of Rose's I ran, out where the horses were tiiiiiiii-iii-ied, I caught a good one, it looked like it could run, up on its back and away I did ride," followed by a few scenes later when Martin rides back, surrounded by chimpanzee bandidos on their own Shetland ponies. I don't know why it took my brain this long, but I finally realized that somebody was bound to have put the clip up on Youtube, so I just looked there today and found it!

Regrets

2007-03-07T20:15:00.000-06:00

I just finished reading about Lawdog's loss of his Moira.

It reinforced what hit me yesterday, about my own loss with Selkie. I was mainly beating myself up over the fact that after I moved out of my parent's house, I never took her to live with me. We rationalized it by saying she would be better off if she stayed with my parents because of the other dog, Maxine, would get too lonely. We took Emmett, my Sheltie, and he lived just fine in our apartment, until a couple of years ago when one of our other dogs attacked him. We decided to send him back to live with my mom, to keep him safe from our other male. Not long after that we had to put Sirius, the other male, down, because he was attacking our females too. That broke our hearts, but it was the best thing we could do. We see Emmett often enough since my mom lives here in town. Since my parents divorced the same year me and Phoenix got married, my dad moved a little north and took Selkie and Maxine with him. We'd go to visit him and the dogs, but sometimes the pain of leaving Selkie each time was too much and I'd start crying on the drive home. I never did bring her to live with us... sure, she'd stay a night or two if I asked, but she always went back to my dad. Then she got really sick and we had to put her down two years ago this July. I think what triggered it was getting the new kennel to keep the puppies in. They were tearing up the folding kennel, so I bought a sturdier new one, that is just like the other non-folding one, except it's blue instead of tan. The other one I had bought when Selkie was a pup, and this new one listed appropriate breeds, including "Australian Cattle Dog", which is half of Selkie's mix, the other being German Shorthaired Pointer. It just triggered a bunch of thinking about Selkie, leading to me regretting a bunch not bringing her to live with me once we started getting more than one dog in our place. Emmett helped me find Sydney one day; then one friend found Rosa but couldn't keep her; Teddy came to us from the couple who lived next to Phoenix's grandparents' house, when they couldn't take him with them when they moved back to Chicago; Stella just wandered up one weekend and stayed, despite our efforts to find her proper owner; and now we found two Black Lab pups on the street corner in front of our house last month. All these dogs, and I couldn't find room back when my Selkie was still alive. No wonder why I feel angry at myself for it. I'm trying to figure out what lessons I should be learning from this, beyond "Play with your dogs more NOW."

A belated Happy Birthday, Texas!

2007-03-05T11:08:00.001-06:00

I apologize for my tardiness in wishing a happy Texas Independence Day to you all. (Altho I'm not the only one.) I finally watched most of The Alamo from 2004 the other day. (Yes, the one with Billy Bob Thornton and directed by Opie.) While I can see that some of the critics didn't like a particular part near the end, there is at least one historical account that describes that happening. (FYI, I'm referring to where Crockett was captured and executed after the Battle.) Overall I thought it was a good rendition and, as far as I could tell, historically accurate. I still prefer the version in Roswell, Texas. (Warning; R,T can become addictive!)

In other news, I drove past the Voth Road Feed Store last week... well, I should say, I drove past where it used to be. It had closed for a while, then reopened under a new owner, then Hurricane Rita bitch-slapped the place pretty hard, and it's been sitting there, a broken eyesore. The front of the building was gone, replaced by a yellow "Danger!" tape and the old corrugated tin roof was peeled back in several spots. Last week, someone finally came with a backhoe and knocked it down, leaving a vacant lot. It's kinda sad because both me and Phoenix have fond memories of going in there with our respective family members (me & my dad, her and her Grandma) and playing with the incubator trays of chicks and other stuff.

I heard in the news that Prince Harry is insistent that he be allowed to join his troops in their upcoming deployment to Iraq, despite fears that he may be especially targeted by "insurgents" because of his being part of the Royal Family. I say, "Good on ya, Your Highness!" I truly understand that esprit de corps a lot better since joining the Texas State Guard; that desire to be with your squad mates, no matter what, not letting them down, not thinking that you're special enough to be exempt from anything they have to do.

I finally saw a pack of Czechvar beer yesterday, at our Super HEB. This is the real Budweiser pilsner, not that American copy of it. Budweiser is the German name for the Czech Budvar, and when messers Anheiser and Busch came looking for their lager, they copied the German name and the style, altho most beer connoisseurs would say they missed on copying the quality. Last year, BBNP, the owners of the Czechvar/Budvar brand, and Anheiser-Busch came to an agreement for A-B to distribute Czechvar in the US, after a century-long legal battle. From Radio Prague's Beer FAQ (which looks to be a couple of years out-of-date):

In 1876, the name Budweiser was adopted by the American brewer Adolphus Bush. When the Czech brewery, a few years later, wished to begin exports to the New World, this caused problems, and Budvar had to be given another name. For a time it was sold in the United States as Crystal, hardly an original name for a beer. Now the two companies largely manage to avoid each other's markets (theoretically). Both companies are currently entangled in a trademark dispute involving the right to use the name "Budweiser" and variations of it in Europe for their two very different beers. Budvar still calls itself, with some justification, "The Original Budweiser". As far as we understand it, the American brewer has been selling its beer as "Bud" in recent years because of the dispute. According to the Czech press, the two companies have outstanding trademark lawsuits in Portugal, Egypt and Italy. The Czech Budvar has a unique bitter-sweet flavour and the brewery has taken up the study of Coca-Cola's strategies over the years for protecting its trademark and recipe. Anheuser-Busch, along with some 40 other foreign firms, has been trying to buy a stake in Budvar since 1989, but the Czech government has dragged its feet in privatizing the brewery. The Czechs are wary of foreign investment in what they consider part of their national heritage. But the world's biggest brewer (Anheuser-Bush annually brews 5 times as much beer as all the Czech breweries together) doesn't give up easily. The company spends thousands of dollars in Ceske Budejovice every year, funding everything from pre-schools to beer festivals to win over the locals.

Great, now I'm thirsty!

A local tragedy

2007-02-07T17:50:00.000-06:00

There's a story in today's local news of a elderly man who apparently lived alone, and his body was discovered, dead after an indeterminate amount of time. Early estimates are that he died around the time that Hurricane Rita struck SE Texas, at the end of September 2005. His body was found in his hurricane-damaged home this week. Neighbors thought he had evacuated, like everyone else, and just never came back to town, the house abandoned all this time. It was only discovered because someone interested in paying the back taxes and buying the house was peeking into the windows, and saw the skeleton laying in bed, like something out of Faulkner's A Rose for Emily. Part of me wonders if a few more like this are waiting out there, like the buried cities of Pompei and Herculanium.

Certainly, if one drives around Beaumont, one will see more than a few houses still with blue tarps over the roofs or with unrepaired damage. There's at least two in my mom's neighborhood that are damaged from trees falling on them, unoccupied, unlivable, and she lives in a nice section of town. In the end of town where I live, it seems like one in three houses still have tarps or are empty. Generally, the tarped ones are occupied, altho as I live in one of those, I have to question the quality of the interior. Our roof leaks every time it rains. It was first noticed Memorial Day weekend last year, when we got a deluge, and the ceiling tiles in the kitchen and living room started caving in at 2 AM! One side of the roof looks like black Swiss cheese, from the holes showing the plywood sheets and old shingles underneath. Our next-door neighbors have the same problem, altho their roof shows the very old wood shingles under the top coat of (I think) asbestos slates. The previous neighbors had moved out, after complaining to our landlady of the leaks, making their front bedroom absolutely unusable. This didn't stop the landlady from renting to someone new before permanent repairs were made. However, the landlady did find the funds to hire a roofing crew to re-roof (not just replace the shingles) the adjacent building that is used as storage for a snack food vending company. That was sometime about the middle of last year. Since then, the landlady's husband has found time, and sheet metal, in the last month to cover the open-front gaping garage-apartment between the next-door house and ours, and he promises to do something about our roof soon. *Sigh* I'll believe that when it happens. I'm thinking between the age of this house, the damned Formosan termites, and the hurricane damage, the landlady ought to just burn 'em all down and rebuild something new, but that's not quite how slum lords work, is it?

Oh, well, as long as we can look forward to moving out of this dump and into Ganny and PawPaw's old house, I think we can keep it together for a little bit longer. My wife's grandparent's died in '04, and the In-Laws are fixing up (with our mostly unskilled help) the grandparent's old house so we can move into it. That project's been put on hold a few times, especially right after the hurricane, but the end is in sight. We only need to paint the living room, finish the floor in the living room and bedroom. It's been too cold for painting and laying tiles, tho, this last month. This warm spell right now should allow us to get some more work done.

In other news, I realise this is my first post since joining the Texas State Guard. I haven't commented about it here simply because I don't know how much I can say freely about it. Those with military experience might recall a little phrase called operational security. "Loose lips sink ships," "Have a nice big cup of shut the fuck up!"and the like. Sooooo... I can neither confirm nor deny that I may or may not know stuff. *snort* That sounds like one of the intro scenes from a fav computer game of ours, The X- Fools, "Government denies knowing stuff." Sounds about right. And I'm still adjusting to feeling a bit overwhelmed by it all, while keeping my shit together. I'm getting used to it.

I'm in the Texas Army now...

2007-01-19T11:21:00.000-06:00

Ok, not quite, but...

I've been thinking about joining the Texas State Guard, and I finally got in touch with someone from the local unit. I'm supposed to meet them in person this Saturday, and if I like what I hear, and they like what they see, I may be sworn at in that evening! The first weekend of duty would be weekend after this, so I've got to get hopping on getting all the immediately necessary uniform parts (desert boots, woodland BDU top and pants). I've already got some parts from my mis-spent youth, and they still fit! ( LBE belt, field cap with flaps, and a boonie hat.)

Phoenix and I have talked this over for a while, and she thinks it would be very good for me to do this. (Her mom's in favor of it too.) I've been thinking about it because I'm 35 and haven't served in the military in any real way, and there's been this... hole in my life because of it. Also, being the big Texas history buff that I am, I know my family has served Texas (in our Revolution) and the US (Dad in AF, uncles in Army aviation (rotary) and Navy corpsman) in various ways, and I've felt I was not doing my Duty, as far as that was concerned. But being married, I couldn't go enlisting into something where I'd be away from Phoenix for long periods.

Finding out about the State Guard seems like the best of both worlds; I'd get to serve, without the worry of being dragged out of Texas for months at a time. Since the SG is completely voluntary (and most of the time, unpaid), I get to buy my own uniform and gear. They've said they'll supply my insignia and check around if other guys in the unit have spare gear they don't need anymore or one I could borrow until I get my own. (Kinda sounds like I'm back in Scouts!) A sidearm looks to be the biggest purchase I'm looking at. (The Sgt I spoke with said most of the guys have Berettas and Sigs. Ohboy. I don't think they'll let me bring my Swedish Mauser!)

Some thoughts about Texas, Republic or State, whatever

2006-12-06T10:17:00.000-06:00

Ever since last Sunday's Enterprise carried an article about Radio Free Texas, I've been thinking back on the whole Republic of Texas thing (the 1995 version, not the 1836 original).

The last I had heard about the RT group was that they were working toward getting a internet radio station started, calling it Radio Free Texas, making it sound like it was going to be a All-Texas-Independence, All-the-time talk format. I thought there was already plenty of that type of junk on the shortwave, just without the Texas exclusiveness. (Remember that "hate radio" Clinton spoke of? He wasn't talking about Rush Limbaugh, no matter how much Rush crowed about it later. It was stuff on the shortwave radio, a small minority of idjits like "Pastor Peter J. Peters" and his "Christian Identity" fuckheads. CI is a bunch of white supremecists who think they've found their backing in the Bible; like I said, fuckheads.) According the the newspaper article, RFT is a all-Texas-music, all-the-time (so far from listening, it's mainly country, no mainstream artists, tho, which is good in its way, we're kinda tired of the "Nashville pop"). It's run by the "former president" of the RT group. I'm thinking he got tired of the political bullshit and took the ownership of the station with him. It wouldn't surprise me, I got burned out on the politics and greediness of the RT group and some of its members, back when I was interested in that. The Wikipedia article about it sums it up fairly well, altho my own recollections may flesh that out some.

I was a member on the email discussion group, where there was a lot of back and forth about how to get things done, primarily their goal of making Texas truly independent again. That goal started getting sidetracked in Spring of '96, when one faction split off (led by Jesse Enloe), claiming (of course) that they were the core group, even tho they called an unscheduled meeting one weekend and declared the others not there as derelict in their duties and voted in new folks, all Enloe's men. That started a big dust up on the discussion group; personally, I favored the group led by Archie Lowe, they didn't seem to be in it to make a quick buck, which was my impression of the Enloe group. Things seemed to smooth over, sorta, until the Fall when Rick McLaren was removed by Lowe for acting outside the powers of his office, since McLaren was the "Ambassador" and the founding member, but he continued to speak as the Provisional Government's representative, which was the President's duty, in this case, it was supposed to be Lowe's job. Lowe told McLaren to resign, McLaren shot back with the crazy idea that he was entire government and Lowe and anyone who disagreed with him had resigned themselves. With that, McLaren took his ball and went home, back to his Fort Davis "compound", surrounded by his homies, or as I called them, his "cult of personality". It wasn't too long before McLaren snapped and thought the fellow down the road was a spy for the Feds, and kidnapped the man and his wife, which lead to a standoff with the police and Texas Rangers. Dumbass.

After that, I suppose the group settled down to real activists, the folks who really wanted an independent Texas. They moved the office "headquarters" to Overton in eastern Texas, and I assume they are still working quietly toward their goal. I wish them luck, but I have too much of everyday life to keep up with to get invovled in that again.

The syncronicity of it makes me wonder,tho; the RFT article in the local paper and the Roswell, Texas graphic novel being serially published online. Certainly I've entertained the idea of an independent Texas more than once, but I don't see how the way the interem Republic of Texas group wants to run it can be effective. There's too many State, Fed, and Local government agencies and their officers that would have everything to lose if a libertarian-minded RT government took power. Altho I can see that folks like their roads smooth and garbage picked up, so these basic government services could be quickly taken up by the newly privatized agencies, and they can prove their worth in the free market instead of having a civil service job with lifetime benefits. But I'm sidetracking myself again... Would I like an independent Texas? Yes. Do I think it's realistic at this time, or even in the near future? Regretably, no. There's too many unforeseen consequences, I don't think the RT guys have fully thought thru yet. That doesn't mean I think the current state of government is perfect, and couldn't use some tweaking.

I got tagged: Three Things Meme

2006-12-05T10:56:00.000-06:00

Alright, alright, since the dear wife tagged me to do this, I guess I'll get it over with...

Three things that scare me:
1. TEOWAWKI (The end of the world as we know it: any situation which ends civilization, like a nuclear war, or some socialist being elected President, or the re-introduction of New Coke; not to be confused with TSHTF, the sh*t hits the fan, generally a sudden, temporary situation, but with unpleasant circumstances, such as our hurricane evacuation last year.)
2. The death of a loved one. Both of my parents are in their sixties, and it's just really noticable that they aren't getting around as well as they used to.
3. Clowns.

Three people who make me laugh:
1. Phoenix
2. Cledus T. Judd
3. George Carlin

Three things I love:
1. Dogs
2. Almost anything with milk chocolate in it (I'm thinkin' chocolate-dipped jalapenos are right out.)
3. My shovel!

Three things I hate:
1. Being cold and wet
2. Being stuck in traffic
3. Having to race in traffic (especially when driving in Houston)

Three things I don’t understand:
1. The calculus-based Differencial Equations and Analytical Geometry I tried to study at Lamar
2. Women's thinking
3. Liberal's thinking

Three things on my desk:
1. My blue enameled mug (water right now, no tea made yet)
2. Several rubber bands from work (Not like I stole them out of the supply room, I'm unpacking cases of merchandise and sometimes things are bundled together with the rubber bands.)
3. The invite to the extended In-laws christmas party.

Three things I’m doing right now:
1. Typing
2. Being cold
3. Popping back and forth to read a forum open in another window

Three things I want to do before I die:
1. Go backpacking along the Appalaichian Trail
2. Go sailing on Elissa again
3. Kill me a kibble

Three things I can do:
1. Change the oil and a flat tire (It disgusts me that there are folks who don't know how to do these simple, necessary things for their vehicles.)
2. Cook Chinese-style food
3. Sharpen a knife without cutting myself

Three things I can’t do:
1. Play piano
2. Play guitar
3. Pass a display of Swiss Army Knives without looking at them

Three things you should listen to:
1. The birds singing when you first wake up on a spring morning
2. Sting's "It's probably me" from the Lethal Weapon 4 soundtrack, where he's using a Zippo as a percussion instrument
3. My wife, otherwise she'll just make you listen again! :P

Three things you should never listen to:
1. The advise of Cliff Stamp
2. Any bubble-gum pop boy band
3. Kenny Chessney in his Parrothead phase (which, unfortunately, is right now)

Three things I’d like to learn:
1. Fluent Spanish
2. Morse code (Not just so I can figure out the code at the beginning of each episode of the TV show "Jericho".)
3. Advanced First Aid

Three favourite foods:
1. Anything with milk chocolate in it
2. Chicken fried steaks
3. Curly fries

Three beverages I drink regularly:
1. Water
2. Dr. Pepper
3. Iced tea

Three TV shows/Books I watched/read as a kid:
1. Sesame Street
2. Grizzly Adams
3. Curious George (the books)

I guess this is where I tag the next poor fool, so I'll go with Phoenix's Mom.

Cool online graphic novel!

2006-11-15T11:36:00.000-06:00

I recently found this online graphic novel (AKA a really good comic book) by the name of Roswell, Texas. As of today, I'm on chapter four, and it's a pretty good story. It's set in an Alternate History, where Texas won the War for Independence on better terms with Mexico (Santa Ana died at the Alamo), the geography of North America is a bit different (Texas is the Federated States of Texas, stretching from Cheyenne in the north, to New Orleans in the southeast), and it's a libertarian homeland, when a unknown flying craft crashes is the western town of Roswell in 1947. Then things get interesting....

I guess it's well-enough known among my friends that I love alternate histories, especially those set in worlds where the CSA won the War between the States (those tend to be the most popular). Harry Turtledove has written several novels in an extended series in this style. Roswell, Texas is the first I've found that focuses on an independant Texas. I'm looking forward to reading more of this, for as long as it lasts (into 2008, from what I've read on their forum).

PS Phoenix reminded me of this: I did like the second comic book mini-series "Captain Confederacy", set more-or-less in modern day, and the new "Captain" was a black woman, with her sidekick "Kid Dixie" looked like a poster boy for the Swedish men's swim team or something, muscular, blonde, blue-eyed; also, he's her lover. The nations of that world seemed to be in a technology race, with their superheroes as representing the best of their country. Mexico's superhero dressed like one of their wrestlers, Texas' was a version of the Six Million Dollar Man(TM), Imperial Germany's was a woman with a jetpack, and her name translated as "the flying mouse."

I also liked (somewhat) the "Republic of Texas" series from Daniel Da Cruz, starting with The Ayes of Texas, followed by Texas on the Rocks and Texas Triumphant. Written in the mid-80s, they had a wealthy Texas industrialist restore the Battleship Texas (with a few tech updates, like laser cannons!) and Texas declares her independence in the face of the Great Soviet Fleet touring the world's port as a show of their supremacy. We, of course, blow them the hell up. The other books continue Texas taking on the world's tyranical superpowers.

National Ammo Day and the elections

2006-11-02T09:53:00.000-06:00

We've got less than a week before we get a chance to vote for who our next Governor is. The main candidates are still current Gov. Rick "Good Hair" Perry, current Comptroller "Grandma" Carole Keeton Stayhorn-Rylander-Smith-Kline-Barney, Congresscritter Chris Bell (D-Houston), and singer-novelist Kinky Friedman. There's also a poor Libertarian making a stab at it, just so they can stay on the ballots in Texas for the next elections. I think Kinky's got everybody scared that he just might win, or at least get enough votes that they won't. There's the point that Perry's campaign was scaring sportmen with Kinky's old anti-hunting stance, which the Kinkster had rescinded (the press release is in his site's FAQs; warning: it's a PDF file). There's the next point that Chris Bell left a message on Kinky's answering machine asking him to consider dropping out of the race! Jeez Louise! That's as dumb as the convict writing a threatening letter to the judge from his jail cell demanding that he be released or else, then closing by saying he'll deny writing that letter if the judge reveals it to anybody else!

Phoenix posted before I could about this next item: National Ammo Day. It's the brainchild of Kim du Toit, a proud US citizen and Texan of South African birth and adamant gun owner. He feels like all the gun owners across the US buying 100 rounds of ammo on the same day (which adds up to over one billion rounds in private ownership) will send a message to business owners and the politicians, that gun owners are here, and we will be ready if they pass any funny laws to tax gun owners into submission (since they haven't yet figured out how to ban them outright); until that day, we're acting upon a Constitutional Right and a legal business transaction.

Some personal thoughts (rants) about 9-11.

2006-09-13T19:57:00.000-05:00

I was doing some research about the person I'm supposed to memorialize, and the emotions of that day came flooding back: anger, fear, sadness. And yet, because some camel jockeys hijacked the planes with boxcutters and some wires masquerading as a bomb, we've been told to bend over and take it, and be nearly naked when we get on a plane, and in several other places too now. Yes, I know there was a pregnant woman among the suspects earlier this summer from Britian but we haven't profiled ANYONE based on where they're from, how they're travelling, who they are, because we might *offend* someone. Fuck that shit. Are the terrorists Equal Opportunity Employers, not discriminating on the basis of race, gender, religion, etc.? NO!!! Why are we pussy-footing around the issue of who these people are and what they want, which is a Islamic WORLD! Islamic law EVERYWHERE!!! And woe to you if you're not Islamic enough for them, or they'll grab a rusty knife and saw your head off too! Folks don't like that I want our soldiers to take off the kid gloves in our handling of any captures and combatants, i.e. not firing on their temples when they're using them as a base of operations, treating any prisoners and the Koran with respect. Fuck that, I want Oscar Meyer to go into overdrive making and shipping bacon products to the Middle East for us to use as weapons of war NOW! They want to act like barbarians in this open-ended war, I say we bring it to them hardcore! Cluster-bombing with Baco-Bits, feeding the prisoners BLTs. They don't like that, gonna go on a hunger strike? Good, the sooner they starve, the sooner we ain't gotta keep taking care of their sorry asses.

On the home front: What the Hell is it with folks wanting to call 9-11 "Patriot's Day"? Did I miss that referendum? I thought Patriot's Day was just fine where it was, on April 19th, commemorating the Battles of Lexington and Concord, and coinciding with the day the Jews in the Warsaw Getto rose up against their Nazi captors. But because Janet Reno had a barbeque and Tim McVeigh had a blast, that day is stained forever, and we mus'nt use that name anymore for that day. So we recycle it for 9-11?!? Why not use Rememberance Day? It's not like anybody's using it anymore, not for it's original purpose, which has since been renamed Veteran's Day.

And excuse me, Mr President? The Minutemen aren't vigilantes, THEY'RE DOING THE JOB YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO!!! Do we need to elect Kinky Friedman as Governor, since he's promising to send 10,000 Texas Guardsmen (not the dismal 1500 the Fed promises) to protect the border FROM UNLAWFUL INVADERS! I don't care if they're coming across one at a time, when it adds up to 75,000 a week, IT'S A DAMNED INVASION!! I want something done about this last year!

2094 of 2996, five years later

2006-09-11T09:11:00.000-05:00

I was chosen to remember Mohammed Jawara. The similarities between he and I are a little eerie: we both worked as officers for security companies, although not the same one; he was 30 years old, it was 4 days before my 30th birthday. Beyond that, I have to rely on what others have said of him.

I would like to think how he is remembered on September11Victims.com is a fair represntation. I can't give better praise than Rob Bender did:

Mohammed was the epitomy of the Gentle Giant: secure in himself, careful with his words, and unerringly professional at all times. He did not deserve to die the way he did. He was a devout Muslim. He never lost his cool. He was big, and he knew how to bounce out the drunks, believe me. You knew that you could never mess with this man. And, no one ever will, wherever he is now. May Allah bless you on your journey. You are missed.

Thought of the day

2006-09-07T14:25:00.000-05:00

We (in Texas) have some elections coming up in a few months, one of the more important races is for Governor. My personal litmus test is a candidate's view on the Second Amendment, which is summed up pretty well in this quote:

"How a politician stands on the Second Amendment tells you how he or she views you as an individual... as a trustworthy and productive citizen, or as part of an unruly crowd that needs to be lorded over, controlled, supervised, and taken care of."
Texas State Rep. Suzanna Gratia-Hupp

Thx to Gun Owners of America for the reminder of the quote.

Now I wish I could go...

2006-09-06T10:32:00.000-05:00

...to the Texas State Fair in Dallas: God Bless Texas and pass the Rolaids.

Nother quiz... go figure!

2006-09-03T12:15:00.000-05:00

Which of Possum Girl's Kin are You Most Like? Your Result: Cousin Rambeaux This veteran of the Possum Army introduced the rest of us to "tough love". He's a great guy, but he's pretty set in his ways. He has no patience with slackers, whiners, hippies, commies, fakes, liars... much of anybody, really.
Possum Girl
Cousin Raynebeaux
Which of Possum Girl's Kin are You Most Like?

This one is from my dear wife Phoenix, who's celebrating her birthday today.(Yea, honey!)

And now for something completely different...

2006-08-20T13:38:00.000-05:00

The Adventures of Possum Girl!

It's something Phoenix is doing, that evolved from an inside joke among online friends. She bounces ideas off of me, and I'll sometimes think of something off the top of my head for her.

It's funny, it's cute... follow it!

Approaching 5 years since the WTC attack

2006-08-20T13:23:00.000-05:00

Today I joined the 2,996 project. Phoenix kinda encouraged me into it, and it'll give me something to post about, which Phoenix again is saying I'm not doing enough of. My appointment is to remember Mohammed Jawara, 30yrs, on duty at WTC for MAS Security. I think the gods have a twisted sense of humor for assigning him to me (he was nearly the same age as me, I also was working for a security company at the time, but not the same one).

That leave 902 unassigned people from that day. From their website:

The first 1,000 took 57 days. We made the jump from 1,000 to 2,000 in 25 days.

Now we’ve got 23 days to get the last 996.

I think we can make it.

Update: August 25th; only 223 left to go. Phoenix had an update of her own, where she mentions that Michelle Malkin joined, and that's given the project a much needed kick-start for these last days.

Bu-bye!

2006-07-10T22:06:00.000-05:00

RE: Gunkid
I don't have to say anything.
Everyone else has.

Boogers!!!

2006-05-24T20:24:00.000-05:00

Mudflaps!

Kumquats!

Le-thar-gic!

'Nuther quiz 2

2006-04-12T19:03:00.000-05:00

Average Grunt
You are 72% of a gun nut!

You've been trained in the art of the rifle. When you're handed a
firearm, you can generally use it competently. The local firing range
knows you on a first-name basis.

My test tracked 1 variable How you compared to other people your age and gender:

You scored higher than 69% on knowledge

Link: The Gun Nut Test written by slayer1am on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the 32-Type Dating Test

Ha! I *wish* I spent enough time at a range for them to know me, first name or not!
H/T to PawPaw from the Other Side of Kim forums.

I did my patriotic duty...

2006-03-19T10:02:00.000-06:00

I signed the petition for Kinky Friedman for Governor of Texas. I figure Texans deserve a real choice, and career politicians like Governor Rick "Good Hair" Perry, Congressman Chris Bell (who?), and Republican-turned-Independent State Comptroller "Grandma" Carole Keeton McClellan Rylander Strayhorn don't deserve a easy ride into Austin.
Aside: I'd want one of these shirts TODAY if it wasn't in brown. (Which only means I'll put off getting one til next month or so.) I like the visual effect, reminding those of us familiar with Texas history of some of the flags during our earlier struggles for independence.

Quiz: Which Sci-fi crew would you best fit in?

2006-02-21T12:21:00.000-06:00

I guess this means I should watch the series and movie. (I recall a few episodes, before Fox canned it!) I wouldn't have minded getting B5, that was my favorite show a few years back, a lot grittier than Star Trek or Star Wars and better for it.

(Aside: Babylon 5 had bajillions of great quotes; here's one of my favs (courtesy some friends):

I used to think it was a terrible thing that life was so unfair. Then I thought, 'what if life *were* fair, and all of the terrible things that happen to us came because we really deserved them?' Now I take great comfort in the general unfairness and hostility of the universe.

Makes ya think, don't it?)

You scored as Serenity (Firefly). You like to live your own way and don't enjoy when anyone but a friend tries to tell you should do different. Now if only the Reavers would quit trying to skin you.

Deep Space Nine (Star Trek)

88%

Serenity (Firefly)

88%

Millennium Falcon (Star Wars)

81%

Babylon 5 (Babylon 5)

75%

SG-1 (Stargate)

69%

Andromeda Ascendant (Andromeda)

63%

Nebuchadnezzar (The Matrix)

63%

Enterprise D (Star Trek)

63%

Moya (Farscape)

56%

Galactica (Battlestar: Galactica)

56%

FBI's X-Files Division (The X-Files)

44%

Bebop (Cowboy Bebop)

38%

Your Ultimate Sci-Fi Profile II: which sci-fi crew would you best fit in? (pics)
created with QuizFarm.com

Confederate Heroes Day and Challenger rememberance

2006-01-28T21:34:00.000-06:00

Thursday of last week was Texas Confederate Heores day, and I had meant to post this then, but didn't have any pics to go with it. So here it is, the Beaumont monument to our Confederate Heroes:

Today was the 20th anniversary of the Space Shuttle Challenger exploding mid-launch. I was only in 7th grade, and was not in one of the classes getting to watch the launch that morning, so when folks were talking amongst themselves about the shuttle blowing up, I thought "They're making stuff up to mess with me." I didn't really believe it until I got home and watched the near-continuous replay on TV, as the talkin heads tried to guess what went wrong. I woke up the next morning, thinking it was all a bad dream until I saw the special edition newspaper from the day before. I still tear up when I think about it too much.