The END OF THE WORLD, No, But Part Of THEIR World Ended

My alarm clock went off as usual this morning.  As I groggily edged out of my bed, I could hear trucks running along the Loop.  Thus I knew that either the world had not ended or that, conversely, I had been culled to the left instead of to the right, as per the Good Book.  I sort of chuckled as I thought about all the hype that has been piled on us over the past two or three years concerning the dreaded "12/21/12."  The Mayan "long count" calendar ended in our own year of 2012.  Apparently other ancient predictors also pointed to 12/12/2012 as "The END."  But no, the world did not end.

Then I thought about all those affected by the killings in Newton, Connecticut as well as the two or three other multiple homicides around the nation since "12/14/12."  I thought about all the parents and siblings who have lost their children, brothers, and sisters.  I thought about the several sets of grandparents who had the lives of their beloved grandchildren suddenly snuffed out by this murderer.  And I realized that for many of these people, their world has stopped, at least temporarily, and not because of some obscure Mayan prediction.

Time has stood still for many of these people as they are caught up in the tragedy and sadness forced on them by the Newton shooter.   These families are slowly coming to grips with the idea that some of their dear children will not be a part of their Christmas, at least not a physical part.  How difficult it must be to go on with Christmas plans.  I am sure there will be some that cannot.  No, the "world" did not end, but a big part of their world is gone. 

As Christmas draws closer, I hope that all of you will join me in thinking thoughts of sympathy and compassion for the people of Newton, and that you will pray for the survivors.  The loved ones who were killed are in a better place now, and it is the ones left behind who must grieve, and who must face a new world without those taken from them last week.  May the Good Shepherd comfort them all, and even more so on Christmas Day.

Vicki Soto - A True Hero

I have had the honor (but not the pleasure) to honor a number of fallen heroes in my blog, most of them police officers or firefighters.  But today I would like to join many others throughout the nation who are honoring a young lady from Newtown, Connecticut, a teacher.  Not just any teacher, but one who loved her children so much that, knowing what her fate would be, placed herself as a shield between the Newtown killer and her young students.  For this, Vicki Soto deserves our highest honor and respect.

If you are like me, you had never heard of Vicki Soto until later on into the coverage of the Sandy Hook massacre.  I mean, Miss Soto was not known to you and me.  She was not a famous person, not a nationally recognized figure.  Maybe she was not even known very widely in her state, perhaps not known by very many outside the town of Newtown.  Miss Soto was just an ordinary teacher.  I think it is the fact that she is an ordinary teacher that makes her the hero.  But on a most extraordinary day.

For reasons known only to the Creator, December 14th was the day a certain lunatic chose to unleash his hatred on the rest of the world.  Miss Soto left her home and family as usual that day.  She parked her car and walked into her classroom that day, the same as she had done since early September, and for the past five years before.  She started her class the same as she did everyday.  But then all hell broke loose.  As the gunfire started, then drew nearer to her classroom, Vicki Soto seemingly had only one goal on her mind: Save her kids!

According to what has been learned from the investigation, Miss Soto stood at the door to her classroom and waited for the gunman.  When the killer tried to get in, Vicki stood her ground and shielded the little children from harm, as best she could.  She stood alone and unarmed against the gunman, hoping with all her heart and strength to save her children.  Ultimately her action cost her
her life, but all her children were spared.  I could not help but be reminded of the following words from the Good Book:

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:13)


These words are from Vicki's neighbor, George Henderson, a man whom she had helped when he was injured and could not shovel the snow off his sidewalk:

“I want to get this out there,” he said. “Instead of her just being a statistic or number on a piece of paper, I want people to know Vicki’s story and put a face behind what she did for those kids.”

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/newtown-teacher-vicki-soto-remembered-article-1.1221004#ixzz2FYV4OeYB

So today I am proud to honor this ordinary person, this school teacher, who gave her life for the lives of those children entrusted to her by their parents.  Not a cop, not a firefighter, just an ordinary lady on a very tragic and extraordinary day.  It was a day that called for heroes, and Vicki Soto answered that call.  She is there now in the hands of the Good Shepherd.  But here, on this dark plane where we live, she will from now on be known as a hero that saved the lives of so many precious children.  May God comfort her family and all of those affected by this tragedy.

A Christmas Carol - Today In History

It was on this date in 1843 that Charles Dickens published what must be the second most popular Christmas story of all time, outshone only by the story of the Good Shepherd's birth over two thousand years ago.  While "A Christmas Carol" is not the greatest story ever told, this tale by Dickens does cause us to stop and think, to consider our lives, to think about times past, today's times, and those yet to come.  It gives us pause to count our blessings, to consider how we have lived and how we have cared for those dear to us.

Charles Dickens himself had every reason to despise the Christmas season.  When Dickens was still a teenager, his father was arrested and thrown into the debtor's prison. Charles Dickens was forced, at this young age, to go to work in a factory.  In those days in England, the Industrial Age was well underway and labor was in high demand.  In fact, labor was in such high demand that children well under the age of eighteen were forced to work.  Although Dickens had to work because his father was in prison, many families were so poor that all of the children as well as both parents had to work to make ends meet.  The terrible things Dickens saw as a child laborer made indelible impressions in his memory that were never forgotten.  Dickens, however, was not defeated by these terrible events in his life; instead, he used these memories as fodder for many of his novels, including "A Christmas Carol."

While many of Charles Dickens' works were dark reflections of the oppressive lives commoners lived in France and England during his time, "A Christmas Carol" showed one man's transformation from an arrogant miser who's heart was dead to the world into a happy man who came to care for his relatives and his employee.  "Scrooge" even came to care for Bob Cratchit's family, including young "Tiny Tim," the sickly lad who survived only because of Scrooge's generosity.  Scrooge was forced to review his life through the Ghost of Christmas Past and the Ghost of Christmas Present.  Unlike you and I, Scrooge was allowed by the Ghost of Christmas "Yet To Come" to see exactly how his life would end if he continued on his present path.  Scrooge, as we all know, was a changed man after these otherworldly visitations. He, like that famous tax collector in St. Matthew's Gospel, agreed to share his wealth and to make amends to those he had wronged throughout his life.

At the time "A Christmas Carol" was published, Charles Dickens was already a famous author, both in England and the United States, as well as in several other nations.  Within a few years, "A Christmas Carol" was standard fare every Christmas, being adapted into plays, operas, and eventually into one of the most popular motion pictures of all time.  I remember as a younger child waiting eagerly each Christmas to catch "A Christmas Carol" on television.  Of course my favorite movie production of "A Christmas Carol" is still the old black and white version that was released in 1938 and that starred Reginald Owen as Ebenezer Scrooge.  Years later, in 1984, another great version of the movie was released, with George C. Scott in the starring role.

I have to say that I am eagerly scanning the channel guide this Christmas season in search of "A Christmas Carol" in the black and white version.  I love to sit back with the family (assuming Child A and Child B grace us with their presence), eat popcorn and Christmas cookies, and watch that grand old story.  It was a sort of "tradition" while the kids were younger.  These days we can't depend on the children to be present for the "viewing" but we still enjoy it ourselves.  And it was today in history that Charles Dickens gave us "A Christmas Carol."

Mass Murder, The 2nd Amendment, and Progress

One of the worst tragedies and one of the most horrific mass murders was perpetrated yesterday against a man's defenseless mother, classrooms of innocent children, and a handful of brave school administrators who died trying to save those children.  The perpetrator, a man whom I refuse to give the dignity of naming in my blog, had in his possession several weapons at the time he committed all these murders.  One of the weapons was a Bushmaster .223 calibre assault rifle.  The Bushmaster .223 rifle is nothing other than an assault rifle, the purpose for which it was designed. A rifle of this nature is loaded with a magazine clip that holds from fifteen to seventy rounds of ammunition.  What progress!

I am an avid supporter of the 2nd Amendment, the enumeration of our right to keep and bear firearms. Our founding fathers believed that the population needed to be armed, for various reasons. Today some of those reasons still exist. For instance, I am firm in my belief that an armed population is a great deterrent to the criminal element. Most, probably all, school districts in this nation have adopted a "zero tolerance" policy with regard to firearms, thus ENSURING that ONLY criminals will be armed on the school campuses. Yes, many campuses also have armed policemen, but seldom at the elementary and primary schools. Would this situation have ended differently if someone on the campus had been armed? We will never know. The criminal yesterday was armed with an assault rifle, so it may well be that no one could have gotten to the classroom in time, not before this man emptied a clip could have held fifty rounds or more. Again, this is merely vain speculation.

I have the right to bear firearms - an inalienable right, according to the Bill of Rights. But I doubt that even our brightest forefathers could have envisioned the kind of firepower that would be available to the average American just a few generations after the founding of this great nation.  I also believe the founding fathers would have laughed at the suggestion that the American people should be unarmed. After all, theirs was a time when a simple trip to church could have ended in the tragedy of an Indian depredation. Since then, I am sad to say, not a lot has changed. We no longer fear Native Americans, but we fear ourselves, that is, the criminal part of our population. Again, I believe our founding fathers, if they were alive today, would stand up before the Congress and the President and demand that the freedom to bear arms be forever safe. But...

Once again I have to say that I believe our founding fathers had no idea of the kinds of weapons that would be available to their descendants. How many bullets per gun are "enough?" It was obvious from the days of the Conquistadors to the American Civil War that single-shot weapons were not the best answer. What if a single soldier faced multiple opponents?  What if a traveller were set upon by two or more attackers? His one shot was hardly defense enough. The need for more shots without reloading was proven, and was justifiable. But, as with many modern inventions, "progress" took us beyond the point of necessary function, to the point of, well, overkill. We have passed beyond the point of filling a need, to the point of excess. Is mankind better off because a person can kill twenty or thirty people with a single weapon and a single load? I don't think so. I am sure the people of Newton, when they can see through their grief, will agree.

Is it hypocritical for one who is a proponent of our Second Amendment to also support the limitation on the types of guns, magazine capacities, and ammunition available to the general public? I do not believe so. I believe that we are all entitled, based on the Second Amendment, and on the Declaration of Independence, to have the means and ability to defend ourselves, as part of the life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness outlined in those two sacred documents. AND I believe that we have been graciously provided, by domestic and international gun makers, with all the firepower and stopping power we need for legitimate pursuits, including self-defense. And THEN SOME!

As I said, I firmly believe in our rights under the Second Amendment. I believe that those Americans who want to own guns should be able to do so, and those who do not should not be ridiculed or forced to own guns. I also firmly believe that armed, responsible people can intervene to prevent, or at least mitigate, the degree of tragedy and murder one man can inflict on innocent people. But now I have come to believe that our gun makers have gone above and beyond the call of freedom and protection. And we, the people, have allowed the gun makers to thrive by purchasing these weapons. I include myself in this number. I think we have truly reached the point where "enough" is too much!

I served as a police officer for over ten years. During most of that time I managed to survive using an antique known as a six-shooter, or revolver. It held but six shots. Yet at my best I was able to fire those six shots, reload and empty the revolver twice more, and place the bullets in the right spot on a target, all in eighteen seconds. During the last couple of years of my career, criminals developed a preference for high capacity semi-automatic pistols. These automatics held as many as eighteen rounds. Soon, as you might guess, the police felt they were outgunned. What followed was a weapons race between cops and crooks, with the gun makers getting paid by both sides. Then a third party joined in, sportsmen. This segment of the gun-owning population saw the higher capacity pistols and rifles, and wanted to join in the fun. Thus, by 2012 we have available weapons that raise the criminal's available firepower and stopping power to a level comparable to that of many modern armed forces. And I am sure "improvements" will continue into the next century.

My point is that the means of killing for soldiers, police officers, local militias, and sportsmen (as well as criminals) reached the point of fulfillment YEARS AGO. The need for weapons that fired more than six shots without reloading was never really a need at all. I suppose soldiers might disagree with me on this, but at least as far as domestic law enforcement, sports, and criminal activity are concerned, we have been in an overkill mode since the mid-eighties. Today, in 2012, as this tragedy illustrates, we have reached a point beyond that of good use and reasonableness. We have reached the point of madness, as far as the firearms race goes. I am not sure what can be done at this point. We are accustomed now to the availability of high capacity, military style weapons. Unfortunately, however, we have yet to come up with a means of keeping such weapons out of the hands of those who have sinister, murderous intent. No matter, though, the firearms manufacturers keep those new "toys" coming. And we keep on buying them even though we cannot count on all people to be reasonable, to use their weapons in a reasonable manner.

Many people, and many politicians, will use this horrible incident to call for the ban on certain guns and ammunition.  Many will in fact call for the outright ban on gun ownership by law-abiding Americans.  I said law-abiding Americans because criminals do not obey laws, registrations, or bans.  They always seem to find ways to get to weapons.  But, as tragic as the Newton murders were, the fact is that no laws were broken by any gun owners.  And the fact is also that no one at the school was armed is just as much of an indictment of those who would restrict our 2nd Amendment rights as those who advocate for total derugulation of the firearms industry.  And, the fact is that neither faction caused this tragedy.  A mean and sinister man decided to kill.  He stole guns from his mother.  He killed her.  Then he went on a rampage.  And in all of this, no gun registration law could have stopped him, because he illegally obtained these weapons.

I do not believe the "Government" needs to pass more laws.  The laws are all there on the books.  And I do not make a call for no more gun control without proposing an alternative; one that does not involve the government at all.  It involves ONLY the gun makers and gun dealers.  I believe they can be just as "right thinking" as anyone.  Conversely, they can be just as greedy, just as money-driven as the most corrupt and calloused politicians.  But I call on the gun makers and dealers to do the right thing.  I call on them to do the unimaginable...the unthinkable.  I ask the gun makers to stop producing such high powered guns with such high round capacities.  Sounds ridiculous, I know.

But let's play "What if...?" for just a moment...

Suppose gun makers and gun dealers would voluntarily cut back, would voluntarily reduce the firepower of their guns and ammunition.  I believe two desirable outcomes would be possible.  First, there would be no need for the "Government" to attempt to curtail our freedom.  Second, the potential harm and damage a criminal could do to innocent people would be reduced.  I know that the firearms industry would not be very hospitable to these ideas, and I know many Americans would not be very hospitable to these ideas, either.  Yet, while these ideas would not be popular, I believe that the firearms manufacturers' own initiatives in these areas would help gain the trust of many Americans who are not comfortable with such firearms, would stave off any attempts by our government to intervene and curtail our rights, and would still allow Americans the opportunity to own weapons which are capable of both self-defense and meeting the needs of hunters and sportsmen.  Yet these would be weapons that did not lend themselves so readily to mass murder.

Maybe this is just a dream of mine.  I realize Walt Disney is not running the gun making outfits.  Potential loss of profits is of course in the millions of dollars while these changes rippled through the firearms industry.  But I am sure that we have reached the point today in which the needs of gun-owning Americans have been far exceeded by gun makers.  Do we, any one of us, need weapons that fire thirty rounds without reloading?  Do we really need armor-piercing bullets?   I don't think so.  If muggers attack, there are rarely more than one or two.  A hunter can only shoot at one deer at a time.  Yes, a few shots are great in case we miss the first time or if we are facing multiple attackers.  But once a person is shot two or three times, there is rarely the need for further projectiles.  Again, I am excepting military and police needs here.  In battle or in law enforcement emergencies, the need for firepower is there, but so is the professionalism and skill of those using this extra firepower. 

As for people, for us, yea even for me, it is quite likely that as long as powerful weapons and ammunition are available, then we will buy them.  Mostly responsible people will buy guns, but also plenty of less than responsible people will as well.  And of course, criminals will continue to obtain guns by illegal means, as they have since the days of Yankee Doodle.  But if the gun makers gradually phase out such weapons, eventually people will be satisfied with the remaining stock.  I hope also that more people will obtain their own handgun carry licenses, and that more people will be prepared to take action in situations such as we saw yesterday.  Responsible people carrying legal and reasonable weapons, firearms dealers making and supplying only weapons that fill a reasonable need, and government not trying to stamp out our civil rights...now that would be progress!

God Holds Those Precious Children Tonight

Today it was a tragic thing at work to see the flags being lowered to half-staff, but the reason we were called on to lower the flags is even more tragic, and...OUTRAGING!  I do not know if that is a real word, but if it is not, is should be coined for today's latest killing of innocents by an inadequate coward who could only raise the courage to kill himself and end his apparently failed life by killing the precious, innocent children of strangers.  This tragedy is even more bewildering because this man killed his mother, the apparent focus of his anger, at her home.  He then went to the school where she taught kindergarten and killed all the children in the classroom.  He also shot several school officials before ending his pathetic life.  Some of you may want to tell me I should not be so judgmental of this guy.  I mean, after all, he MUST have suffered through some personal problems, perhaps YEARS of personal problems.  Perhaps he did not have the best parents in the world.  Maybe he was bullied during his school years.  Go on, name your own reason that this man was not responsible for the hell and the carnage that he wreaked today on so many innocent children and adults.  For me, I cannot hold anything in my heart for this pathetic individual except utter disdain and contempt...and ANGER.

I refuse to name this person in my blog today.  I do not have the names of the children, of course, and I do not know if I would name them either, out of respect for the parents and children who have lost sons and daughters, brothers and sisters, today.  I should say, who have had their children snatched from them by this contemptible man, just the same as if some child molester had stolen the children away at some playground or shopping mall.  But enough about this man.  I now join what I believe must be BILLIONS of people around the world today who are saddened for the suffering and loss of the people in Newtown, Connecticut, and who are frightened for the safety of their own children in the wake of this terrible event.  May God hold each of the grieving persons in his arms tonight; the same arms that now hold their little children.


       

 

"Kingsbury Returns" or: What A Difference A Day Makes!

With the only semi-surprising news (to THIS easy chair quarterback) of the departure of Tommy Tuberville to Cincinnati over the weekend (of course I did not know he would be going to Cincinnati, just "going") the various sports bigmouths immediately began speculating as to who would be Tuberville's replacement. Of the many speculations, two caught my eye immediately.  One of them I dismissed immediately; the second seemed the OBVIOUS choice!

Let me dispose of the first speculation...er...first.  Some of the more highly regarded sports-mongers immediately "named" Coach Art Briles to the newly-vacated Tech job.  Sports writers across the nation jumped on the Briles bandwagon.  But in Waco, neither Art Briles nor the Baylor University "powers that be" even raised an eye-brow.  Art Briles has brought Baylor back to the old Southwest Conference Days of Glory.  His supporters have assured that anyone attempting to "buy out" Coach Briles' contract would have to shell out several fortunes.  Surely no one really took this notion seriously!

But, as to speculation number two, Kliff Kingsbury, Texas A&M's offensive coordinator and quarterback coach, the obvious choice, many sports "authorities" dismissed this idea outright.  Kingsbury had no experience, they said.  He had never been a head coach, they said.  Texas Tech would not even CONSIDER him, they said.  But, as I write this blog, Kliff Kingsbury has in fact been the head coach at Texas Tech for over an hour!  And what a great choice, as far as this easy chair quarterback is concerned.

It was back before "the turn of the century" (I have always wanted to be able to say that!), in 1999, to be exact, that I became a die-hard fan of the Texas Tech Red Raiders.  It was in that very year that new Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach took over in Lubbock.  Things changed almost immediately, both because of Leach's coaching style, and because of his choice for starting quarterback, a young man from New Braunfels named Kliff Kingsbury.  It was only a couple of games into that year's football season that the Red Raiders were reborn.  It was a rare combination of a new coach's game strategy and a new quarterback's stunning abilities, both in the air and on the ground.  Several football powers were stunned that year, and Texas Tech was once again a nationally recognized football program that even the big boys like Texas, Nebraska, and (blech!) OU suddenly had to take very seriously.

Kingsbury was the first of a string of super quarterbacks under Mike Leach, and himself had some big shoes to fill, taking over the quarterback slot from Sonny Cumbie, a legendary quarterback under Coach Dykes.  While at the helm, Kingsbury COMPLETED over a thousand passes and generated over 12,000 yards of total offense.  He set numerous school, conference, and NCAA records during his collegiate career.  After college, Kingsbury went to play for the New England Patriots as well as in the Canadian Football League.  His playing years, both collegiate and professional, have been spectacular.  But, as the sports loudmouths said, he lacks experience.  Or does he?

After leaving professional football, Kingsbury joined the Houston Cougars coaching staff where he served first as an offensive quality control assistant, and later as offensive coordinator and coach of (you guessed it) quarterbacks.  Not surprisingly, Kliff Kingsbury was instrumental in developing the talent of a Houston Cougar quarterback named Case Keenum.  Kingsbury left Houston to take over as offensive coordinator and quarterback coach at Texas A&M.  The Aggies' successful debut in the Southeast Conference (such an understatement) is certainly due in part to Kingsbury's talent as an assistant coach.  That brings me back to the talking heads' main objection to Kingsbury as a viable candidate for the Tech head coaching job: Lack of experience.  From the easy chair wherein I sit, it would seem that Kliff Kingsbury has all the experience required to start as a college team head coach.  And the Tech AD agrees with me!

Do I think Kliff will take over the Raiders and there will be no mistakes, that there will be no learning curve? Of course not.  But Kliff Kingsbury has the playing experience, the coaching experience, and the personal character it will take to lead the Red Raiders back to the heights they experienced in the pre-Tuberville days.  It may take more than one season, of course, and that brings me back to something I said earlier.  The suddenness of Tommy Tuberville's departure from Tech, literally during a recruiting dinner, was the only surprise to me.  This easy chair quarterback had already pegged on Tuberville's dimming star at Tech.  In my opinion, Tuberville's demise was delayed only by Tech's victories this year over the Kansas Jay Hawks and the TCU Horned Frogs, both in overtime. Nonetheless his years at Tech were coming to an end. But the hiring of Kliff Kingsbury was no big surprise.  Instead, it was the obvious choice!  Guns UP, Raiders! And congrats to Kliff Kingsbury.  I wish him the best!  

   

Drones Over Pakistan

My curiosity got the best of me the other day and I decided to try to find out how many people have been killed by unmanned aerial drones owned by the United States.  This information was not difficult at all to locate.  Several organizations, as well as the US Government itself, keep track of this information.  I decided to focus my attention on Pakistan, because this is a nation in which US drone activity is quite rampant, yet this is a nation with whom we ARE NOT AT WAR at the moment.

It turns out that US drones have been operating in Pakistan airspace since 2004.  Keep in mind this is public information.  Who can say how long drones have really been operating in Pakistan or anywhere else?  Anyway, from 2004 to 2007, drone kill "stats" were not kept quite as accurately.  So for that three year period, roughly 300 Pakistanis were killed by American drones.  Of that number, as many as 200 of the people killed were known to be civilians, NOT militants.  Since 2004, a total of 3176 people have perished in US drone attacks.  Of that number, 310 were "officially" noncombatants.  These are the people that just happened to be standing too close (within a thousand yards!) of the drone attacks and were accidentally killed.  This is also known as collateral damage.  Apparently three hundred unintended victims is an acceptable number in drone operations.  Again, we are not at war with Pakistan.  But, if you check out the stats a little closer, you find that ANOTHER 315 people were killed in these same drone attacks.  THESE people were classified as "unknown." In other words, the drone operators did not know if these were civilians or "combatants" so they were just, well, killed anyway.  The show must go on, you know.

So it turns out that, from the armed forces' own statistics, at least twenty percent (2 out of 10) people killed during the "average" drone attack are not even involved in the "non-war."  Pakistan, while not overly friendly with the United States (for obvious reasons) is still not at war with us.  Why are we killing people there?  By "we" I mean President Open and Transparent Obama, who has let us know many times that he gives the ultimate approval for these drone attacks in locations such Pakistan, where we ARE NOT AT WAR.  This President, who has violated not only "international laws of war" but also the words and the spirit of the Constitution of the United States, was yet re-elected to carry on the Drone Wars against a nation with whom we are not at war!  So the drone strikes continue unabated.  I do not really see this turning around in 2013, either.

But I noticed something else about the Drone Kill "stats" as they continued from 2004 to 2012.  You see, from 2004 to 2011, that stats are actually pretty vague.  Some sources report fewer deaths than others.  Of course, some report many fewer civilian deaths than others.  But a "funny" thing happened with the 2012 stats.  Suddenly, in 2012, not only were fewer people killed, but the "stats" were much more precise.  I had to wonder if this improvement in quantifying death had anything to do with the 2012 Presidential Campaign.  Hmmmm...

Like I said, with President Open and Transparent Obama in office for a second term, this time literally untouchable and unaccountable, there is precious little chance that the drone attacks in Pakistan will stop in 2013 or for the foreseeable future.  I also have to wonder what is limiting the Drone War to Pakistan.  Yes, I know that drones operate in Afghanistan and Iraq, but we are sort of "at war" with those two nations (though not declared as the Constitution demands) and this blog does not deal with those two nations.  My fear and belief is that President Obama will expand the Drone War to cover Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, and wherever else he decides he has the right to send drones in violation of international convention and in direct contrast to the supposed peaceable intentions of this great nation that Obama seems so intent in humiliating before the world. 

So the drones continue flying, the targets ever growing, and the President telling us we are justified in using this "tool" in the "War On Terror."  I would like to point out something to those who voted to keep this man in office, and to those who think our Government is so benevolent toward its citizens and the rest of the world, that there is NOTHING to keep our drones from overflying OUR NATION or any of OUR TRUE ALLIES.  This means that you or I could possibly someday be part of the collateral damage after some "militant" is attacked by a drone here in the United States.  Your friends living overseas, or you when touring overseas, are subject to the same risk.  Some "militant" could be driving down the street while you are browsing in a quaint gift shop.  As the drone "takes out the target" will you be one the "ten percent" acceptable civilian deaths?  You and I have the power, or I should say, can RETAKE the power, and demand that these drones be pulled out of all nations with whom we are not at war.  Oh, one more thing.  What is to keep some other nation from sending a drone over here to take out one of their "militants" who might be hiding in the United States? 

Well, I am DRONED OUT for tonight.  What are you going to do about it?  Drone warfare, I mean.  The President is here to stay, but he is only one man.  We STILL have Senators and Congressmen who will act for us, IF we demand it.  Are you DRONED OUT TOO?  Let your politicians know.  And, let them know THEY are accountable.  Because they ARE.  I hope you will join me in demanding that our Congress stop the Drone Wars in those lands with whom we are NOT FIGHTING.  For I can assure you that if the Drones Over Pakistan go unchecked, so will the DRONES OVER AMERICA in the coming months.  And yes, it will be THAT soon.

source: http://counterterrorism.newamerica.net/drones

 

Ban Bows And Arrows...NOW!!!

Has anyone heard the outrage and the hue and cry to ban bows and arrows?  Get BOWS and ARROWS....AND HUNTING KNIVES...out of the stores now!!!

I did not think so.  What's my point?  I'll tell you in just a minute.

Today's news stories are full of accusations and pointing fingers in connection with Jovan Belcher's murder of his girlfriend followed later by his own suicide. Yes, he used a handgun to do both these things.  So the papers, television, and Internet of course are full of cries to do away with handgun ownership rights.  After all, if Jovan Belcher had not had a pistol, maybe he and his girlfriend would be alive now!  Other stories tell us that the staff of the Kansas City Chiefs football team KNEW Jovan and his girlfriend were having problems, yet they did NOTHING!! Perhaps the winner for sensational journalism is the USA TODAY newspaper with its headline which incorporated a pistol into the NFL logo.  But all of these media are screaming in chorus that if only guns were not available, Jovan and his girlfriend would still be alive.

Now, lets go back to the great NEED to ban Bows and Arrows, and Hunting Knives.  You see, the very day that Jovan Belcher killed his girlfriend then himself, another young man in another state killed his father and the father's live-in girlfriend.  But, no gun was used in that crime.  Instead, a young man named Christopher Krumm walked into a community college classroom and shot his father in the head with a bow and arrow.  Unbelievably, the elder Krumm was able to physically fight his son AFTER being shot with the arrow, allowing students to flee the classroom.  Ultimately Christopher Krumm had to use a hunting knife to end the struggle with his father.  This was of course a tragic and incredible incident.
,
But I am amazed that no one is now calling for a ban on bows and arrows, and hunting knives.  No one is calling for a "five day waiting period."  Where is the Brady organization?  Surely NOW bows and arrows have been exposed for the dangerous things they really are!  Bows and arrows KILL PEOPLE!!  Oh yeah, the hunting knives NEED to go, too.  Think about it, really.  Seriously for a minute.  Can't we argue that if ONLY Christopher Krumm had not had access to a bow and arrow, his father and the father's girlfriend would still be alive?  No.  And everyone with any commonsense realizes this.  Yet a murder-suicide that took place on the same day as the grisly bow and arrow murder in Wyoming garners so much more attention in the media.  And that because GUNS were involved.

While we are at it, why stop with bows and arrows, and hunting knives?  Lets ban baseball bats as well.  I can recall the infamous case in which the two Menendez brothers so bravely attacked their sleeping father with baseball bats and beat the unconscious man to death. Now I think I can get back to my point.  That point is that a man decided to kill his girlfriend, then himself.  He chose to use a pistol to do it.  On the same day, another man chose to kill his father and the father's girlfriend.  Perhaps because no gun was available, he chose his bow and arrow for the job.  Perhaps, though, he thought he could inflict a little more pain and suffering with the bow and arrow, before finishing his father with the same knife he had used on the girlfriend just minutes earlier.  So what do we do?  Do we ban everything anyone could POSSIBLY use as a weapon?  That includes everything from a flower vase to a passenger jet loaded with travelers.  Or do we stop and try to understand what happened here?  I suggest we stop all the screaming and hype, and think about these terrible tragedies.

When we think about these things with a little bit of rationality, we realize that two people, for reasons no rational person will ever understand, decided to kill the persons dearest to them.  One killer opted for what was close at hand - a pistol.  The other man also opted for what was close at hand - in this case his bow and arrow set.  Both men were intent on murder.  Both men more than likely would have carried their evil plans through, regardless of what method of killing might have been available.  But, as usual, it is the gun crime that receives all the attention.  This is all the more surprising to me because of the grisly nature of the Wyoming murders.

I think the fact that no one is calling for the banning of bows, knives, vases, or whatever, makes it clear that gun-control fanatics are trying to capitalize on a high profile murder-suicide, while completely ignoring the DOUBLE MURDER/SUICIDE that did not involve a gun.  I believe that the people behind gun-control efforts (those with media influence) will in fact downplay, if not suppress news of murders and other crimes when no gun is involved.  I am saddened that a man decided to kill his girlfriend and himself by shooting her then himself.  But I am sickened that a man literally gutted his father's girlfriend with a hunting knife, then drove to the college where his father was teaching, shot his father in the head with his bow and arrow, then finished the second murder by stabbing his father multiple times.  And I say that if we who believe in the 2nd Amendment are called on to surrender our guns because of a few criminals' actions, then those same people should certainly call on all other persons to give up ANYTHING that could POSSIBLY kill ANYONE.  So, let us Ban The Bows And Arrows ...NOW!!! 

    

Christmas Time NOW

I titled this little post Christmas Time NOW because now it is actually post-Thanksgiving.  I realize we are all free to "feel the Christmas spirit" anytime we want, and I am certainly not opposed to feeling it the year 'round. It offends me to the point of offense, however, that the "Christmas Season" now starts prior to October 31st (also known as Halloween).  Before the kiddies have even selected this year's costume, the stores (particularly $&#Mart) have covered the remaining shelves with Christmas decorations and other Christmas-related items.  The toy aisle has overnight transformed itself into "your Christmas headquarters," while Christmas sales are running amok throughout the store.  Meanwhile, Halloween itself is still THREE WEEKS AWAY!!  Thanksgiving Day is all but forgotten during the "Christmas bustle."

Most retail stores make the biggest part of their profits during the "Christmas Season," so it stands to reason that store management would take advantage of this time.  I am certainly not begrudging the corporations their profit.  Perhaps I am in the minority now, but I look back with longing to the days when Christmas Time "started" after Thanksgiving; a time when we could pause and spend a day GIVING THANKS.  Yes, I knew that the next day was "the biggest shopping day of the year!!!!," but that Thursday the day was spent enjoying family and feasting beyond our means.  More the the point, prior to the Day After Thanksgiving, we could walk through the stores without the bombardment of remainders that it is "Christmas Season!!!!!!!!!!!"

Frankly speaking, I am sure that someone in "corporate" at $&#Mart realized that there was a problem with "Christmas Season."  The most profitable time of the year, this person reasoned, was...well, too short.  You see, from the fourth Friday in November to December 24th is, on average, about thirty days.  That was just too problematic, Mr. Corporate Planner, decided.  Problematic because profits could be nearly doubled, or maybe TRIPLED, IF Christmas Season were just a tad longer.  Maybe Corporate People in corporations all over the nation, nay encompassing the very GLOBE!, applied their collective minds to this problem.  Then one day...VIOLA!  The $&#Mart Corporate Guy (or Gal, I am not prejudiced!) came up with a BETTER WAY!  For the corporation, that is.  Yes, you guessed it!  Just make the Holiday Season THREE TIMES AS LONG and we can TRIPLE OUR PROFITS!.

Today we are all blessed with a Christmas Season that officially begins fourteen days before Halloween.  I guess in some ways this is convenient because now we can buy Halloween Costumes, Trick or Treat Candy, AND Christmas gifts all in one day and one stop.  That is true "one-stop" shopping, as $&Mart would have us know.  Of course, with Christmas Season now at least sixty days in length, $&Mart and the others hope that we One-Stop Shop several times before December 24th.  Then of course the stores will have the December 24th Last Shopping Day Sales, for those who were not able to find gifts in the sixty-three days preceding Christmas Eve.

I can honestly say that one thing has not changed for me, in spite of the best efforts of the corporate people at $&#Mart.  I STILL do the vast majority of my Christmas shopping on the last Christmas Shopping Day of the year.  I spend the remaining sixty-two days before Christmas boycotting the Christmas aisles and NOT reading the Christmas ads in the newspapers.  Yes, no matter what marketing strategies the Corporate People may throw at me, I still have the Spirit of Procrastination on my side.  That's right, Mr. (or Mrs.) $&#Mart Corporate Person.  You will not see THIS Christmas shopper darkening your doorstep until Christmas Eve at 4:30 PM.  So you might as just as well shorten your Christmas shopping days back to where they were pre-$&#Mart, because I am doing all my one-stop shopping just one day before Christmas.  Oh yeah, I won't be needing lights, either.  They are still up from LAST Christmas!