Saturday, March 30, 2013

WELCOME TO AMERICA

To my knowledge, I don't think that I've personally seen up close someone who was simply racist. The setting: Starbucks, waiting in line when a person, several feet away, said to my friend who is Asian, "you are freaking me out by being this close." My friend and I are "freaked" out ourselves by her comments. We laugh and move on to getting our coffee. (I will have to say that it was one weird experience and think that we ran into a crazy). Really, we weren't even that close, other than to each other and I do think that was what she didn't like. We may have been hugging. My friend is a nurse at the Cancer Infusion Center. All day long, she deals with people fighting for their lives. She is great. And hugging is a part of her life. We start out the door and this same woman says to my friend, "Welcome to America" which obviously is racist. Amazing. I honestly didn't know people like this existed. F..king weird. This is San Francisco, the bastion of tolerance, do your own thing, be whoever you are or want to be. Stand on any corner in San Francisco and hear five different language. An interesting thing about this racist: well dressed, attractive female. What the hell. Weird! You want to say to this person: "What in the f..k is your problem?"

PROP 8

The debate over "Prop 8" in CA and the "Defense of Marriage Act" has about saturated the airways. I think we need more love and so I support "gay marriage." In some ways, that is about the extent of my interest. I am not overwhelmed one way or the other. I have to admit that I hate to see men "French" kissing but that is just me.

Throughout this debate, there have been a couple of surprises: the Catholic Archbishop of San Fran for one gave an impassioned comment for marriage being between a man and woman. It is a little surprising as San Francisco is so "gay," with political clout that I am surprised the archbishop is not a little more circumspect.

And, this started me thinking about the Catholics on the Supreme Court. They are a majority. A couple of them go to "Mass" everyday. Does being a Catholic influence them? I am sure they would say "no" but not sure that I accept that. I have been somewhat alarmed in general that for the first time in history, we have no Protestant on the Supreme Court. Nobody seems excited but me. Oh well, what the hay😳!!!!

Thursday, March 28, 2013

WE ALL DIE

Recently, I ran into someone that I'd once met when Rose and I were coming to the Infusion Center. She mentioned a mutual friend with ovarian cancer. I asked how she was doing? He said "OK" and then he followed it with this statement. "You know people routinely live ten years with cancer, once diagnosed." I thought to myself, "I don't think so." My experience is that cancer is such an insidious disease and incredibly unpredictable. Someone can seemingly be going along OK and suddenly they die. This was confirmed just yesterday. By chance, I ran into my favorite doc, an oncologist and she related a conversation she had with the husband of one of her patients who expressed some dismay, among other emotions, that his wife died so quickly once she reached a point. The doc said "no, not really once the patient is at a certain point." Yes, an insidious disease!😞





Sunday, March 24, 2013

SILVER LININGS PLAYBOOK

SILVER Linings Playbook is one of those movies you've got to see because everybody else has. It doesn't disappoint and it isn't because of the hype because there really isn't much. It is just a delightful movie. FJennifer Lawrence was absolute wonderful. I didn't think I knew her but had watched her in Hunger Games with my grand daughter and before in Winter's Bone, a terrific movie. This inn't just a feel good movie as it takes some difficult subjects and trys to deal with them with realism and some "tongue in cheek." Robert De Niro was great and the Mom (Jackie Weaver) was great. I love the movie and I've met lots of those types of people in it. Bipolar is kind of the condition of the month.The movie defines it well with its erratic mood swings. A type of craziness that we all have seen. And, even a little genuine grief thrown in. Well done movie and it does what movies can do: make whatever they want to happen, happen. In this case everybody ends up happy.

ZERO DARK THIRTY

When I was in the 82d Airborne, the expression, "Oh Dark Thirty," was a familiar one. What it meant was that we went to what was called, "Green Ramp," the kicking off place for airborne jumps. Based on the time of the year, the misery varied. It was a strange thing. I was always happy mostly that the paratroopers were young, part of life. And, now, of course,
in a way, because of that experience, it is a little easier to grasp the movie, Zero Dark Thirty. I can't say I liked the movie. The torture scenes were pretty bad and I think unnecessary. And, yet maybe so. I would like to think that if Americans saw the torture, they would realize that this is not the way we want to do things. Torture is a terrible thing and acts like "water-boarding" are just beyond the pale. Overall, I liked the movie. The way they played the real heroine was good. I doubt in real life that she was as bold as the movie made her. I thought the killing of Ben Ladin could have been done with a little more Hollywood: compassion for kids and wives. No big bad Americans dressed like in space outfits, with too much use of the "F" word. But, that's just me.

Thursday, March 21, 2013

COMRADERIE

Most of the “troops” who are participating in war have a Love/Hate relationship with it. They hate it because of the surroundings of death, the wounding of their buddies, the evil, and the tough circumstances in which they are required to exist, etc. At the same time, they love:

1) The indescribable relationships they develop. Very few, if any, environments, mold meaningful relationships as the environment of war. I still have friends from my V-N experience that seem somewhat sacred when we see each other or when we communicate. A few months ago I spoke at a Prayer Breakfast at Fort Lee in Virginia. One of my friends from the 1-1st. Cav. (Americal Division) was there (He has a son stationed at Ft. Lee) I didn’t know he was there until after the program was finished. When he came up to the podium I felt like he was my brother…I felt somewhat emotional as he did. In fact, for a short while we could hardly speak, but just hugged each other. Bottom Line: A friend forever… Nearly all troops develop those type of relationships with a significant number of their colleagues. The 1-1st. Cav Is having a reunion this Fall…Nov..in El Paso. I have received a few e-mails from several encouraging me to attend (I am planning on it) One particular individual that started communicating with me is a surprise because during the time we in the unit, although we were friends, we weren’t “bosom-buddies.” In his e-mail he recalled an incident /ministry for which he wanted to thank me and he went on to express much appreciation. At the time I had no idea it meant anything to him. One never knows!
2) Even though the carnage of war is traumatic and difficult to experience, most troops recognize that they are involved in a very meaningful mission and that they are part of something that is much bigger than self. Although there are a minor number that can’t deal with it, most can, and, in fact, are ultimately strengthen as a result….perhaps, not immediately, but ultimately.
3) Almost, without exception, the troop talks and acts like he/she is living for their DEROS (date expected to rotate from overseas)--troops keep short timers calendars, etc. In the process they build and imagine an ideal situation and environment when they return to their homeland. In most cases, when they return, within a couple of months they are disappointed, disillusioned and would rather be back with their buddies. I think this is more true of male service members than female service members. It is also less true of those that go back to a good marriage. However, quite often, even the meaningful and strong marriage is challenged because of the disappointments of coming back to a society that doesn’t live up to what was imagined when they were in the war zone.


COMRATERIE

Most of the “troops” who are participating in war have a Love/Hate relationship with it. They hate it because of the surroundings of death, the wounding of their buddies, the evil, and the tough circumstances in which they are required to exist, etc. At the same time, they love:

1) The indescribable relationships they develop. Very few, if any, environments, mold meaningful relationships as the environment of war. I still have friends from my V-N experience that seem somewhat sacred when we see each other or when we communicate. A few months ago I spoke at a Prayer Breakfast at Fort Lee in Virginia. One of my friends from the 1-1st. Cav. (Americal Division) was there (He has a son stationed at Ft. Lee) I didn’t know he was there until after the program was finished. When he came up to the podium I felt like he was my brother…I felt somewhat emotional as he did. In fact, for a short while we could hardly speak, but just hugged each other. Bottom Line: A friend forever… Nearly all troops develop those type of relationships with a significant number of their colleagues. The 1-1st. Cav Is having a reunion this Fall…Nov..in El Paso. I have received a few e-mails from several encouraging me to attend (I am planning on it) One particular individual that started communicating with me is a surprise because during the time we in the unit, although we were friends, we weren’t “bosom-buddies.” In his e-mail he recalled an incident /ministry for which he wanted to thank me and he went on to express much appreciation. At the time I had no idea it meant anything to him. One never knows!
2) Even though the carnage of war is traumatic and difficult to experience, most troops recognize that they are involved in a very meaningful mission and that they are part of something that is much bigger than self. Although there are a minor number that can’t deal with it, most can, and, in fact, are ultimately strengthen as a result….perhaps, not immediately, but ultimately.
3) Almost, without exception, the troop talks and acts like he/she is living for their DEROS (date expected to rotate from overseas)--troops keep short timers calendars, etc. In the process they build and imagine an ideal situation and environment when they return to their homeland. In most cases, when they return, within a couple of months they are disappointed, disillusioned and would rather be back with their buddies. I think this is more true of male service members than female service members. It is also less true of those that go back to a good marriage. However, quite often, even the meaningful and strong marriage is challenged because of the disappointments of coming back to a society that doesn’t live up to what was imagined when they were in the war zone.


SEXUAL ASSAULT

Sexual issues involving crimes or potential crimes are so difficult to even discuss. For someone like myself, I must be a nut for even trying since I am a man. The very attempt makes me suspect and rightly so. But, I'm going to venture it, mainly because I have a need to explain the military, right or wrong. Sexual assault is a very complicated issue in the military when it is not "clear." How can it not be clear?Rape is rape and stop is always stop. The case of the LTC, Air Force pilot, is one of those that takes on the confusing scenario. He was convicted of sexual assault, then it was overturned by a General, his commander. The situation was very murky: A woman staying in his home, under the same roof as his wife. During the night he assaults her. He is convicted. The jury believed the woman's account. The General believed the wife's account who said he never left the bed and so the General, his commander, threw out the conviction. I personally believe the Pilot was guilty. Why would the victim lie? Although a jury can be wrong, they heard the evidence. While a General being able to do this may seem strange to civilians, not so to the military. The military is not a Democracy. Soldiers's don't get to vote on whether they take the "hill" or not. The commander decides.


A sadder case to me are the young teenagers in Steubenville, Ohio where these teenagers rape a girl, drunk, etc.; their lives ruined, to include the victim. No winners here. And, any of us who know teenagers know they get up every morning and take a stupid pill.

{{{{{{{Jerry}}}}}}

Tuesday, March 19, 2013

MY BROTHER RAZ

YOUR BROTHER RAZ. My conversations with him only a short time leaves me to believe he wouldn't want anymore fanfare for this life's closure. Speaking for myself, I look forward to seeing him again. He was so gracious to me.

Linda C.(Army Nurse)
Colonel, USA, Ret

10th ANNIVERSARY of the BEGINNING of the IRAQI WAR

Today is 10th Anniversary of beginning of Iraq war. Such a waste. F..king politicians. Over 450 Californians killed and more than 5000 overall. Such a waste. What I often think: if we could figure out a way to make politicians pay when they send Americans into harm's way for no reason. The politicians should pay. MFers

Saturday, March 16, 2013

BIGOTS

CPAC. I don't know what the acronym stands for: THey just had a convention. They should have called themselves, A CONVENTION OF BIGOTS.

Thursday, March 14, 2013

Catholics Have It Wrong

I am about getting tired of all this Catholic BS. I have been accused even when I was in the military of being anti-Catholics. It was not true but I objected to their sense of exclusivity.

And, if you ever had a hardcore Catholic commander, it could be tough. When I was in the 82d last, I would go into the commander and when I tried to tell him something, it would be, "I've already talked to Father about that:" CG, Chief of Staff went to Mass every day. All the above is mostly just a gripe but listening to how the media is approaching all of this, is very irritating to me. And, people say, Church" like they are speaking for us." I have always viewed Catholics as Christians. I now see them as simply another religion, i. e., Buddhism, Islam, Hindu, etc.; their whole system is outside the Bible. Consequently, why do we call them Christians. The Pope as Jesus on earth, Priest forgiving sins, on and on. Let's have some thinking here.

THE CATHOLICS

Dave, good and well thought out comments. However the thing that is most upsetting, we are not touching. The Catholic theology. They absolutely have it wrong as related to the Bible and we need to point it out. Most Catholics, like about a 100%, don't have a clue what the Bible says, rather what the Priest says. They have cannon law and a made up theology and nobody confronts it, i.e., the new Pope is infallible, descended from Peter, speaks in excathedra, Priests can forgive sins, canon law, etc.

{{{{{{{Jerry}}}}}}}

Monday, March 11, 2013

WHO IS MOST CRAZY

If we ever had any doubt, Karzai is a f..king nut: us and the Taliban? How do we get ourselves so f..ked with these imbeciles. Here is how stupid he is--All he needed to do was sidled up to us and express his need for support. We would give him millions and probably figure out how to keep thousands of troops in Afghanistan. So, I guess a relevant question: who is the more stupid? Let's use this latest statement by Kaizai to get the hell out of Afghanistan ASAP.

HAGEL

Hagel's first trip out to visit the troops has not been too smooth.

IN YOUR FACE. This is what Republican Lindsay Graham and Mitch McConnell have accused the president of; an "In Your Face" strategy for the coming months. Accusing the president of telling them to "kiss off" sounds like a winner to me. I would have used, go f..k yourself but read where Boehner used that line to Harry Reed. LOL. Although Reid comes across as pretty weak, still for Boehner to say it--pretty unseemly. OK, for me, hell, I am an opinionated blogger.

And, Graham is opposing Chuck Hagel? Give me a break. The next few years are going to be tough times for "Defense." We need an enlisted guy in there. We've tried officer leadership/politicians. Look where that's gotten us? Rumsfelt and Bush gave us Petraeus and Allen and a host of other ethically challenged generals. And, before them, Chaney who could not go to Vietnam because he had "other priorities." Come on!

This is one that gets me. Some f..king columnist calls Hagel anti Jew and people get all shook up. I am a big time supporter of Israel but they constantly f..k up. It is almost like they sit around some table and say, "What can we do to piss our neighbors off?" Oh we know, we'll just build some houses in the Palestinian area. So what that Hagel shoots from the hip. About time. Most in Washington wouldn't know plain talking if it ran over them. They stick their finger in the air to determine the direction of the prevailing political bullshit. Hagel has been accused of being a maverick. Good for him. Presently at almost all levels, what I see is "group think." The generals in particular need their asses kicked. Most of them love to hear their own voices and are working on their memoirs on "Company" time. Think Petraeus, spending all that time with a biographer that he was f..king. And, he was suppose to be overseeing the troops.

Hagel will have his hands full. There's a kind of military mafia: (I just know the Army) West Point graduates who look after each other. They are "ring knockers" and help each get promoted and get choice assignments. They talk about looking after the troops but don't overall do "s..t." Their mantra is mostly, "Nothing is too good for the troops and that is what the troops get, nothing." Hagel has been an enlisted guy, he gets it.

Like Downton Abbey? There's an example: the Aristocracy (Officers) are upstairs, the Servants (enlisted) are downstairs.

Biggest challenge I think for Hagel will be the military itself. We do what we always do after wars. We downsize the military. Shrink it to where it is questionable about its effectiveness. Not to mention the fact that we get rid of some of our best men and women. In to many cases, we absolutely treat them awful. We have used them up and throw them out. The Army is already way to small. The All Voluntary Force is a bust in my estimation. Those in now are good, quality soldiers but we have deployed them over and over. They are spent. Deployed over and over. Unlike Vietnam, if we needed more "cannon fodder, we drafted more. Now, we merely sent them to war over and over.

This is an aside but so fits into the present equation. We let Melvin Laird and economist icon Milt Freeman sell us a bill of goods when we ended the draft. We could have easily turned the draft into a community service, requiring our young people to serve. After 9-11, we discovered this vast amount of patriotism across the board, the children of the "have" and the "have nots" lined up to serve and we squandered the opportunity. And, now, of course, it is too late. We don't have the political will to bring back a Community Service, giving Amerrica's youth choices. Many would have chosen the military.

Hagel is a good choice for SecDef. Those who don't think so, "F..K you very much."

Friday, March 08, 2013

CHAVEZ

CHAVEZ. Big party for his funeral. Sounds good, what any funeral ought to be. A party, a celebration. Where it all breaks down is that the f..ker is dead. Know what that means? He is gone, Sayanara (So Long). To try to preserve him is almost humorous, like he could come back to life. I believe in some idea of eternal life and doubt Chavez is dialed in. Not judging here, just don't see Chavez making it through the "pearly gates." He is out of here and sure as hell nothing can bring him back. I do like the "party" idea though.

NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN

Most of the old retirees I know are getting more selfish, more self-centered, more mean spirited, and more closed-minded. They end up being curmudgens. Dont know why but its sad.

Brother, I totally agree with you about most old men. If you want to find that reinforced, read the "NY Times" interview with Bobby Knight. I am sure he has many supporters but he came across as an old man who is all the things you mentioned and I'd add one: arrogant asshole.

Thursday, March 07, 2013

MOST DANGEROUS NATIO ON THE PLANET

I do know this. North Korea is the scariest nation on the planet. The ROK (South Korea) needs to make serious plans on facing the threat. I hate war but based on the Confucious Ethic, "worship of the leader" who probably has the mental maturity of a 7th grader at best, i. e., loves Dennis Rodman. With decades of brain washing, the idea that they would not drop the bomb is absolutely absurd.

CASTRATION

Recently, I was trying to make sense of the mess we're in with these deep budget cuts, the so called sequester. I also tried to explain why the President's campaigning for pressure on Republicans was like "pissing in the wind." Over 200 plus Republicans are in safe Republican districts and they don't give a flying f..k what the President wants or what is good for the country. We have a broken system and we cannot fix it. Many of those, make that the majority of Americans, are involved in some way with the federal government. They are on Medicare, get their health coverage at VA, on Social Security, have government backed mortgages. The list is endless. However, these people bad mouth the government and rail against government spending. The list of their grievances is endless. They vote for a rep who mouths the things they want to hear. They don't make the connection that the sequester cuts will touch them.
Consequently, with attitudes like this, when they vote, they vote against their own interests. And, in my book, it makes them stupid.

PREZ MEETS WITH REPUBS

A comment by a reader. What I would say if I were President: "I personally think that the Republicans are a collective bunch of colossal assholes. However, I don't want to cause pain to people and so whatever these self serving, non thinking, good for nothing, sorry MFers want, I'll give them.

Wednesday, March 06, 2013

AFFIRMATION

Recently a friend was telling me an experience: "So I took my children and their little friend from gymnastics out to dinner. I recognized our waiter. He was the barista at a Starbucks that we frequented. Turns out he is a student at the Seminary. He has two small boys.He then proceeds to tell me how thankful he is for Jesus. 😁😁He was a crystal meth addict and lived on the streets for 10 years. He said one day he begged Jesus to help him. He now lives on Campus at the Seminary. Maintains a 4.0 average and can't wait to have his masters so he can minister to people on the streets.

When the friend first told me she had encountered this person, I was about to comment on his relatively simplistic view of his restoration but then, thankfully, thought better of it. We have to affirm the fact that he believes his faith has saved him.

Saturday, March 02, 2013

THE POPE

The First Pope, Saint Peter, was chosen by Jesus says Time Mag. Bullshit. Jesus said, "You are Peter and upon you will I build my church." Jesus was probably speaking to a larger assembly and not to Peter personally. After this, Peter goes out and denies Jesus three times. What the f..k! Think Jesus is going to entrust a future to someone as undependable as Peter. Noway! please! From this purely innocuous statement by Jesus, the Roman Catholic Church has built up all these myths. Such bullshit.