BJC's Blog

Now I Really Want A Bow And Arrow

2015-01-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

This is truly mind-blowing:

Whoa! Pure, amazing awesomeness. I need a bow and arrow set now...

Superhero Vs. Superhero

2015-01-23T08:00:00.000-06:00

In my humble opinion, this is the kind of thing that fame and notoriety should be used for:

With the Super Bowl just around the corner, even Hollywood superheroes are getting excited about the match-up between the New England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks — and in the case of Marvel movie stars Chris Evans and Chris Pratt, they’re making a bet that’s worth cheering for.

The bet came about after some good-natured jabbing at each other on Twitter, initiated when Captain America star Evans (a Patriots fan, of course) told Guardians of the Galaxy star Pratt (a Seahawks fan) that, despite their Marvel movie alter egos, they’re required to be sworn enemies in the run-up to this year’s NFL championship game. After some back-and-forth in which Pratt told Evans that Seattle quarterback Russell Wilson is the real Captain America and Evans wondered exactly what a “seahawk” is anyway (it’s this), the pair agreed to make a bet on the outcome of the game.

According to the bet, a Seahawks win will result in a visit from Evans to the Seattle Children’s Hospital dressed as Captain America while waving the “12th Man” flag that has become a symbol of Seattle Seahawks fandom. If the Patriots win, Pratt will don his Star-Lord outfit and the jersey of New England quarterback Tom Brady for a visit to Christopher’s Haven, a nonprofit that provides housing and support for families while children receive cancer treatment in Boston.

It’s the sort of bet that makes you hope the Super Bowl ends in a tie, but knowing these two actors’ willingness to spend time with their youngest fans, it wouldn’t be a surprise if both visits happen (possibly without the corresponding NFL accessories for the bet’s winner).

Here is the series of posts on Twitter that brought the bet about:

@ChrisEvans We both know there's only one Captain America and his name is Russell Wilson. #SuperBowlBound #LOB #Repeat

— chris pratt (@prattprattpratt) January 19, 2015

@ChrisEvans OK. Seahawks win you fly yourself to Seattle, visit @seattlechildrenhospital as Captain America, waving the 12th man flag.

— chris pratt (@prattprattpratt) January 21, 2015

@prattprattpratt I accept. And when the Patriots humiliate your seachickens, I expect Star-Lord to arrive at @chris_haven in a Brady jersey

— Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) January 21, 2015

Well done, gentlemen! Well done.

It's Hard To Get More YES Than This

2015-01-17T08:00:00.000-06:00

No, seriously.

More deliciousness here. And here. And the official reveal here.

YES.

Darth Vader Gets Down

2015-01-15T12:20:00.001-06:00

I am greatly amused!

Who Do You Trust?

2014-12-26T08:52:00.002-06:00

Just an interesting little nugget from Gallup:

Obviously, I have extremely high regard for nurses and find their placement at the top of the list to be perfectly justifiable. :)

I also think it's quite telling how Congress dropped below car salespeople. It does make me question the 7% of people who think Congress' ethical standards are "high or very high," though. Seriously? What rock have you been under for the past few years?

*sigh*

Ignorance is dangerous, and these people are leading the pack.

Merry Christmas!

2014-12-25T00:18:00.000-06:00

Luke 1:26-38
Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee, named Nazareth, to a virgin who was to be married to a man named Joseph, of the family of David; and the name of the virgin was Mary.

And the angel came in to her and said, "Peace be with you, to whom special grace has been given; the Lord is with you."

But she was greatly troubled at his words, and said to herself, "What may be the purpose of these words?"

The angel said to her, "Have no fear, Mary, for you have God's approval. And see, you will give birth to a son, and his name will be Jesus. He will be great, and will be named the Son of the Most High: and the Lord God will give him the kingdom of David, his father:
He will have rule over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom there will be no end."

Mary said to the angel, "How may this be, because I have had no knowledge of a man?"

The angel in answer said to her, "The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will come to rest on you, and so that which will come to birth will be named holy, Son of God. Even now Elisabeth, who is of your family, is to be a mother, though she is old: and this is the sixth month with her who was without children. For there is nothing which God is not able to do."

Mary said: "I am the servant of the Lord; may it be to me as you say." And the angel went away.

Luke 2:1-20
Now it came about in those days that an order went out from Caesar Augustus that there was to be a numbering of all the world. This was the first numbering, which was made when Quirinius was ruler of Syria. And all men went to be numbered, everyone to his town.

Joseph went up from Galilee, out of the town of Nazareth, into Judaea, to Bethlehem, the town of David, because he was of the house and family of David, to be put on the list with Mary, his future wife, who was about to become a mother. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. She had her first son; and folding him in linen, she put him to rest in the place where the cattle had their food, because there was no room for them in the house.

And in the same country there were keepers of sheep in the fields, watching over their flock by night. An angel of the Lord came to them, and the glory of the Lord was shining round about them: and fear came on them.

The angel said, "Have no fear; for truly, I give you good news of great joy which will be for all the people: For on this day, in the town of David, a Saviour has come to birth, who is Christ the Lord. This is the sign to you: you will see a young child folded in linen, in the place where the cattle have their food."

And suddenly there was with the angel a great band of spirits from heaven, giving praise to God, and saying, "Glory to God in the highest, and on the earth peace among men with whom he is well pleased."

When the angels had gone away from them into Heaven, the keepers of the sheep said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem, and see this thing which has come about, which the Lord has made clear to us."

They came quickly, and saw Mary and Joseph, and the child in the place where the cattle had their food. And when they saw it, they gave them an account of the things which had been said to them about the child. All those to whose ears it came were full of wonder at the things said by the keepers of the sheep.

But Mary kept all these words in her heart, and gave much thought to them. Then the keepers of the sheep went back, giving glory and praise to God for all the things which had come to their ears and which they had seen, as it had been said to them.

You Know It's Bad When Even Hollywood Calls It A Cave

2014-12-18T14:50:00.001-06:00

It could be that this reaction is due primarily to the chicken coming directly home to roost, but still...obvious and shameful is obvious and shameful:

No doubt people have heard of major movie theaters nationwide canceling their screening of an edgy Seth Rogan and James Franco flick called The Interview, which pillories North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un.

Deadline Hollywood reported on the cancellations:

Ultimately, The Interview didn’t go well, and Sony’s controversial film appears dead. Regal and Cinemark said today that they will not screen the Seth Rogen-directed comedy, and other major exhibition chains including AMC and Cineplex are expected to follow suit.

And they did. This follows a vague threat of ‘9-11 style’ attacks on movie theaters (that doesn’t make much sense, but I digress) and President Obama even telling people to “go to the movies.”

One Hollywood actor who isn’t shy about speaking his mind is Rob Lowe, who posted the following viral comment on Twitter:

Needless to say, the director Judd Apatow was furious with the decision:

I think it is disgraceful that these theaters are not showing The Interview. Will they pull any movie that gets an anonymous threat now?

— Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) December 17, 2014

Then the director put it in perspective how ludicrous it is:

We also don't know that it isn't a disgruntled employee or a hacker. Do we think North Korea has troops on the ground in the US? Ridiculous

— Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) December 17, 2014

Apatow followed up with:

'Are we not allowed to make a movie where ISIS is the bad guy now?' -Judd Apatow http://t.co/gxneibARVl

— neiL Munshi (@neiLmunshi) December 18, 2014

But then he consoled audiences:

This only guarantees that this movie will be seen by more people on Earth than it would have before. Legally or illegally all will see it.

— Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) December 17, 2014

Some notable people were appalled by the knee-jerk decision:

. @JuddApatow I agree wholeheartedly. An un-American act of cowardice that validates terrorist actions and sets a terrifying precedent.

— Jimmy Kimmel (@jimmykimmel) December 17, 2014

No one should kid themselves. With the Sony collapse America has lost its first cyberwar. This is a very very dangerous precedent.

— Newt Gingrich (@newtgingrich) December 17, 2014

Canceling "The Interview" seems like a pretty horrible precedent to set.

— Zach Braff (@zachbraff) December 17, 2014

We are all @Sethrogen

— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) December 17, 2014

#TheInterview Is that all it takes – an anonymous threat and the numbers 911 – to throw free expression under the bus? #PussyNation

— Bill Maher (@billmaher) December 17, 2014

The rest of the Twittersphere weighed in:

I went from having zero desire to see #TheInterview to wanting to watch it while waving an American flag.

— Andy Netzel (@Andy216) December 18, 2014

First they came for the bad movies…and I did nothing.#theinterview

— Brian S Hall (@brianshall) December 18, 2014

BREAKING: Kazakhstan threatens retaliation over release of BORAT#TheInterview

— Harold Itzkowitz (@HaroldItz) December 18, 2014

Just a reminder that they dropped a bomb on Saddam Hussein in 'Hot Shots!': #TheInterview http://t.co/i43crsSLWq

— TrivWorks (@TrivWorks) December 18, 2014

Texas Theater to Show #TeamAmerica In Place of #TheInterview http://t.co/FrTHNVqWst

— frankyarriola (@frankyarriola) December 18, 2014

Let's face it. . .it's not every day we can successfully appease both#Cuba and #NorthKorea. #TheInterview #tcot RT

— Stephen England (@stephenmengland) December 18, 2014

It's unimaginable anyone would make a film about assassinating a world leader. Except for that one about W, amirite?http://t.co/T3ysnlVyzd

— Kyle Becker (@IJReviewEditor) December 18, 2014

@stephenmengland Posted the following "Satirical Analysis"pic.twitter.com/NFjM4yhsIk

— Kyle Becker (@IJReviewEditor) December 18, 2014

On the one hand, I'd just like to point out that these are the same people doing and saying stupid things like American soldiers are evil/horrible creatures guilty of the worst atrocities in the known world. These are also the same people who like to defend ISIS and other terrorist nations, uttering the non-sensical claims that if we would just listen and talk to them, they wouldn't want to kill us so much. Isn't it amazing, then, that when the same political realities that give them a virtually automatic microphone and built-in audience to speak their own banal thoughts to the masses as informed experts suddenly turn around and harm "their work" they suddenly find something objectionable about caving to politically correct whims?

Just thought that was worth pointing out. In this case, I happen to agree with most of the thoughts above - this was a terrible, terrible precedent to set, and absolutely the wrong move. Time will tell if other situations turn out differently, or if this will morph into a new form of negotiating with terrorists and/or terrorist sponsoring nations. I suspect Apatow is probably correct that more people will ultimately see the film now, but has the damage already been done?

I sincerely hope not.

A Whole New Nutcracker

2014-12-13T14:44:00.003-06:00

I like it. A whole lot, in fact.

This Is Why They Play The Game, Part 2

2014-12-06T22:28:00.003-06:00

With everything at stake today, it seemed likely that at least one big upset was going to happen, maybe more.

Pffft.

Not a single one. The scores, at least at the moment:

#1 Alabama 42, #16 Missouri 16 (final)
#2 Oregon 51, #7 Arizona 13 (final)
#3 TCU 55, Iowa State 3 (final)
#4 FSU 37, #11 Georgia Tech 35
#5 OSU 52, #13 Wisc 0
#6 Baylor 38, #9 KSU 27 (final)

Not a single upset. *sigh*

So, for K-State, it's a 9-3 finish to the year, and the promise of an above average bowl game. It works, though I would say the theme of this year is missed opportunities. They spotted Auburn 19 points and lost a marquee game that they really should have won. Against TCU and Baylor, they just came up short when it counted. Too many penalties, too many mistakes. They didn't deserve either of those wins, unfortunately. Brace yourself for another building year after losing Waters, Lockett, and a lot of other solid players.

Now, here's the silver lining. As mentioned in the previous post, the TCU/Baylor mess is going to cause a whole lot of fury either way. This sort of scenario is just about the most explosive scenario for the inaugural playoff system short of not having an SEC team in the mix at all (alas, Mizzou, I was genuinely rooting for you tonight...!). The other factor here is Ohio State's obliteration of a very good Wisconsin team using their third string QB. The talking heads are already talking about OSU jumping over both of the teams from the Big 12. There are good arguments all around, not only endorsing one's own team, but also in gashing holes in the arguments of the others in the mix. I don't envy the playoff committee - no matter what they decide, they're going to royally anger a lot of people who will be very right to be angry.

Regardless, hopefully all the gnashing of teeth will mean an immediate expansion to eight teams next year, and a clause that only league champions will be considered for automatic berths out of the Power 5 conferences (the others would be at large spots for the next three best teams regardless of conference). Give me those changes for next year, and I think we're really talking some good stuff.

We'll see...

This Is Why They Play The Games

2014-12-06T11:21:00.002-06:00

Part of why I love college football is that there is so much uncertainty. This is really aggravating on those years when you're in the driver's seat, of course, but when you're on the outside looking in, well, it's hope that makes Saturdays so exciting. In that spirit, here's the deal with the Big 12 today...

Baylor has been hoping its head-to-head edge over TCU would ultimately be the calling card that would catapult it over the Horned Frogs into the playoff.

The Bears still have reason believe they can make the playoff.

But it might not be the head-to-head advantage over TCU that gets them there.

Tuesday night, the College Football Playoff selection committee released perhaps it most controversial set of rankings yet.

In a stunner, the committee bumped TCU head of undefeated and defending national champ Florida State into the No. 3 slot. Baylor, meanwhile, was left on the outside looking in all the way back at No. 6.

The committee has noted it would only implement a head-to-head tiebreaker if two teams were close. At the moment, the committee doesn't see TCU and Baylor as being close, underscored by the three-spot gap. Committee chairman Jeff Long wasn't shy in saying the committee believes TCU is "better" than Baylor, either, even though the Bears beat TCU 61-58 in Waco on Oct. 11.

"It's a number of things we look at, and we believe TCU is better and deserving of that No. 3 rank over Baylor," Long said in a conference call with reporters Tuesday night. "We've certainly analyzed statistical data. We've compared those. We've contrasted them. We've looked at the facts, the quality of the wins. As we pointed out before, TCU has five wins over teams with winning records of .500 records and above, and Baylor has three, if you include Texas at 6 6. Those are factors we've taken -- certainly our coaches and others in the room look at the way the game is played, evaluate the games, evaluate the competition. Again, that's what this committee, human committee does. It evaluates the teams on their play in the game. That's one of the things we use to discern between teams."

Baylor has the opportunity to deliver a statement win to the committee this weekend against No. 9 Kansas State. Should Baylor blast the Wildcats, Florida State handle Georgia Tech and Wisconsin knock off Ohio State, it's possible the committee winds up with the Seminoles third, then TCU and Baylor vying for the fourth spot. In that scenario, perhaps the committee gives Baylor the edge, because of head-to-head.

But as of now, it's difficult to fathom that one game will narrow the gap enough for Baylor to pass TCU. Long, in fact, reiterated Tuesday that the committee would view the Bears and Horned Frogs both as equal champions of the Big 12, since the Big 12 recognizes co-champions.

"We will not determine a champion for the Big 12," Long said. "We will take the information that the Big 12 provides us."

For all of those reasons, the ESPN-affiliated statistical Web site FiveThirtyEight.com gives TCU a 96.3 percent chance of making the playoff heading into the final week -- the highest rate of any team. As long as the Horned Frogs avoid pulling a Kansas and allow Iowa State to hang around into the fourth quarter, they will be difficult to drop out of the top four.

Which is why TCU is sitting pretty. While the Bears might need help elsewhere.

Though maybe not much.

Baylor simply may need Georgia Tech to just beat Florida State. That would put the fourth spot back up for grabs, between, assuming they both won this weekend, Baylor and Ohio State.

The committee sees otherwise, but the justification for ranking the Buckeyes over Baylor is difficult to understand. The Bears have the better wins (TCU and OU vs. Michigan State and Minnesota), the better losses (West Virginia vs. Virginia Tech) and play in the tougher conference, at least according to ESPN Stats & Information.

The committee is also charged with picking the four "best" teams, not necessarily the four most deserving. How the committee could view Ohio State with its third-string quarterback as being better than Baylor with Bryce Petty seems incomprehensible.

So if Baylor takes care of business this weekend and Florida State's luck runs out, the Bears could join TCU in the final four.

One final aside: the scenario nobody seems to be talking about involves Kansas State. The Wildcats quietly moved up three spots to No. 9 this week, and can't be completely discarded from the playoff picture. Should K-State roll past Baylor, Wisconsin beat Ohio State and Georgia Tech finally take out the Seminoles, the Wildcats could conceivably slip into the fourth spot.

Heading into the final week of the season, playoff drama is cresting, nowhere more so than in Big 12 country.

After Tuesday, the Horned Frogs are feeling good.

The Bears are feeling nervous.

And the Wildcats are feeling anything is possible.

Who will be in?

Only four days to find out.

Worst case scenario, KSU ends up with another good bowl game -- Cotton or Alamo, perhaps? -- and another great year. Best case scenario, a share of the Big 12 Championship and an even better bowl game. Unrealistically optimistic scenario, the Cats obliterate a distracted and nervous Baylor, mayhem ensues throughout the day in the top 10, and the Cats slide into the #4 slot in the first playoff. Isn't it fun??

Yes, siree, that's why they play the games.

EMAW!!!

Happy Thanksgiving 2014!!!

2014-11-27T08:00:00.000-06:00

First, I would like to extend a genuine and heartfelt thank you to all the current and former members of the military. Your service truly embodies John 15:13:

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends.

How much more so for people you don't know and will never meet? To all of you who have sacrificed so much to preserve America and protect the rest of us...THANK. YOU.

But let us consider further on this holiday. Have you ever stopped to ask yourself just what it is that we are supposed to be thankful for on Thanksgiving? Sure, it's for all the creature comforts and the almost incalculable blessings we enjoy living where we do in the time we do. But do you know the real story of Thanksgiving? Not the bastardized version that is taught in schools and repeated throughout secular society nowadays, but the real story? Here it is (with just a slight bit of commentary thrown in)...

The story of the Pilgrims begins in the early part of the seventeenth century. The Church of England under King James I was persecuting anyone and everyone who did not recognize its absolute civil and spiritual authority. Those who challenged ecclesiastical authority and those who believed strongly in freedom of worship were hunted down, imprisoned, and sometimes executed for their beliefs. A group of separatists first fled to Holland and established a community.

"After eleven years, about forty of them agreed to make a perilous journey to the New World, where they would certainly face hardships, but could live and worship God according to the dictates of their own consciences. On August 1, 1620, the Mayflower set sail. It carried a total of 102 passengers, including forty Pilgrims led by William Bradford. On the journey, Bradford set up an agreement, a contract, that established just and equal laws for all members of the new community, irrespective of their religious beliefs. Where did the revolutionary ideas expressed in the Mayflower Compact come from? From the Bible. The Pilgrims were a people completely steeped in the lessons of the Old and New Testaments. They looked to the ancient Israelites for their example.

"And, because of the biblical precedents set forth in Scripture, they never doubted that their experiment would work. But this was no pleasure cruise, friends. The journey to the New World was a long and arduous one. And when the Pilgrims landed in New England in November, they found, according to Bradford's detailed journal, a cold, barren, desolate wilderness. There were no friends to greet them, he wrote. There were no houses to shelter them. There were no inns where they could refresh themselves. And the sacrifice they had made for freedom was just beginning. During the first winter, half the Pilgrims – including Bradford's own wife – died of either starvation, sickness or exposure. When spring finally came, Indians taught the settlers how to plant corn, fish for cod and skin beavers for coats.

"Life improved for the Pilgrims, but they did not yet prosper! This is important to understand because this is where modern American history lessons often end. Thanksgiving is actually explained in some textbooks as a holiday for which the Pilgrims gave thanks to the Indians for saving their lives, rather than as a devout expression of gratitude grounded in the tradition of both the Old and New Testaments. Here is the part that has been omitted: The original contract the Pilgrims had entered into with their merchant-sponsors in London called for everything they produced to go into a common store, and each member of the community was entitled to one common share. All of the land they cleared and the houses they built belong to the community as well. They were going to distribute it equally. All of the land they cleared and the houses they built belonged to the community as well.

"Nobody owned anything. They just had a share in it. It was a commune, folks. It was the forerunner to the communes we saw in the '60s and '70s out in California – and it was complete with organic vegetables, by the way. Bradford, who had become the new governor of the colony, recognized that this form of collectivism was as costly and destructive to the Pilgrims as that first harsh winter, which had taken so many lives. He decided to take bold action. Bradford assigned a plot of land to each family to work and manage, thus turning loose the power of the marketplace. That's right. Long before Karl Marx was even born, the Pilgrims had discovered and experimented with what could only be described as socialism. And what happened? It didn't work!"

"It never has worked! "What Bradford and his community found was that the most creative and industrious people had no incentive to work any harder than anyone else, unless they could utilize the power of personal motivation! But while most of the rest of the world has been experimenting with socialism for well over a hundred years – trying to refine it, perfect it, and re-invent it – the Pilgrims decided early on to scrap it permanently. What Bradford wrote about this social experiment should be in every schoolchild's history lesson. If it were, we might prevent much needless suffering in the future. 'The experience that we had in this common course and condition, tried sundry years...that by taking away property, and bringing community into a common wealth, would make them happy and flourishing – as if they were wiser than God,' Bradford wrote.

"'For this community [so far as it was] was found to breed much confusion and discontent, and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort. For young men that were most able and fit for labor and service did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men's wives and children without any recompense ... that was thought injustice.' Why should you work for other people when you can't work for yourself? What's the point? Do you hear what he was saying, ladies and gentlemen? The Pilgrims found that people could not be expected to do their best work without incentive. So what did Bradford's community try next? They unharnessed the power of good old free enterprise by invoking the undergirding capitalistic principle of private property.

"Every family was assigned its own plot of land to work and permitted to market its own crops and products. And what was the result? 'This had very good success,' wrote Bradford, 'for it made all hands industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been.' Bradford doesn't sound like much of a Clintonite" I wrote then "does he? Is it possible that supply-side economics could have existed before the 1980s? Yes. Read the story of Joseph and Pharaoh in Genesis 41. Following Joseph's suggestion (Gen 41:34), Pharaoh reduced the tax on Egyptians to 20% during the 'seven years of plenty' and the 'Earth brought forth in heaps.' (Gen. 41:47) In no time, the Pilgrims found they had more food than they could eat themselves.

This is important to know and remember, for a number of reasons. First and foremost, the motivation -- and, therefore, upon success, the thanks -- was primarily toward God. Yes, the Native Americans provided critical help, but even then they weren't exactly thriving. It was the combination of God and freedom (in the form of free market capitalism) that finally unlocked the winning formula that propelled us to a position of global leadership.

Some of our greatest leaders clearly understood this:

“I do recommend and assign Thursday ... next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be.” –George Washington (October 3, 1789)

Abraham Lincoln:

The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added which are of so extraordinary a nature that they can not fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military conflict, while that theater has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union.

Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense have not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well as the iron and coal as of our precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the imposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the divine purpose, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility, and union.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

God first, then freedom. Why is this such an important lesson to remember and on which we should dwell? Because we as a nation have strayed far from both of those things. Various indices -- both economic and legal -- rate America as falling each and every year, with dozens of nations now more free, and it doesn't take much to see the secularism creeping into our institutions, our schools, and yes, even into our churches on a daily basis. If we want America to once again be a global leader and a bastion of hope, we must reset our priorities on the things that worked before: God first, then freedom.

Let's be thankful for what we have, and mindful of what we need to do in the future to preserve and grow those tremendous blessings.

Happy Thanksgiving!

It's That Time Of Year Again...

2014-09-27T09:00:00.000-05:00

Kansas Vs. Pancakes

2014-09-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

Ha!

In a survey conducted by the American Geographical Society, almost a third of all respondents said that Kansas was the flattest state. Some people even call it “flatter than a pancake.” But what does science have to say about that?

The first, and only, study that we know of that directly compared the Sunflower State to a pancake was done by a trio of geographers in 2003. For their tongue-in-cheek analysis, they acquired a pancake from IHOP, cut out a sample slice and made a topographic profile of it using a laser microscope (assuring us that they would “not be daunted by the ‘No Food or Drink’ sign posted in the microscopy room”). They then compared their pancake to an east-west profile of Kansas taken from a 1:250,000 scale digital model of the state’s elevation data, and calculated flatness estimates for each.

A flatness value of 1.000 would indicate “perfect, platonic flatness.” The pancake was scored as 0.957, which the researchers said is “pretty flat, but far from perfectly flat.” The value for Kansas, meanwhile was ~0.9997, or “damn flat,” as they said.

“Simply put, our results show that Kansas is considerably flatter than a pancake,” the team concluded.

But that’s not the whole story. When the playful study first came out in the Annals of Improbable Research, Lee Allison, then the Director of the Kansas Geological Survey, quipped that “everything on Earth is flatter than the pancake as they measured it.”

Clarifying Allison’s retort in a paper from earlier this year, geographers Jerome Dobson and Joshua Campbell explain it like this:

“The pancake measured in the article was 130 millimeters, and its surface relief was 2 millimeters. Apply that ratio to the east-west dimension of Kansas, approximately 644 kilometers, and the state would need a mountain (2/130 x 664,000 meters) 9,908 meters tall in order not to be flatter than a pancake. Since the highest mountain in the world is 8,848 meters tall, every state in the U.S. is flatter than a pancake.”

So, go ahead and rejoice, Kansans. Your state’s not alone in being flatter than a flapjack.

When your coastal friends don't believe you about this, bet them some money and then up the ante with this:

The state with the most land in the flat, flatter and flattest categories is, perhaps surprisingly, Florida. Illinois, North Dakota, Louisiana, Minnesota, Delaware, Kansas, Texas, Nevada and Indiana round out the top ten.

Bam! Not even in the top five.

Also, I'm hungry now.

Do Women Really Make 22% Less Than Men?

2014-09-22T08:00:00.000-05:00

Yep, let's go there:

The Census Bureau released updated data this week showing that the so-called “gender pay gap” between men and women reached a record low, with women earning 78 cents for every dollar a man earns.

But does this mean that a woman who performs the exact same job as a man gets paid 22 cents less on the dollar? Of course not. If companies behaved that way, they would face lawsuits. Their profits would also suffer: underpaid women would jump ship to competitors and overpaid men would drive up costs and reduce companies’ competitiveness.

The pay gap results from the choices women make. Once factors such as career choice, education and experience, hours and work schedules, and career interruptions are taken into account, the so-called pay gap falls to about 5 cents. Other factors, such as the cost of fringe benefits, likely explain some or all of the remaining gap.

For example, even within the government’s General Schedule pay scale that effectively prohibits pay-based discrimination, women make only 89 cents on the dollar compared to men. Why? Well, women make up 75 percent of all federal social workers but only 17 percent of all federal engineers. However, federal social workers make an average of $79,569, while federal engineers make an average of $117,894.

Differences in career choices do significantly affect earnings differentials between men and women. But does that mean we should limit individual choices, forcing women into male-dominated professions and men into female-dominated professions?

Attempts to reduce the so-called remaining “pay gap” through legislation such as the Paycheck Fairness Act would unintentionally harm women by forcing one-size-fits all jobs upon employees, thus taking away some of the choices women make, and by potentially subjecting women to increased discrimination in the hiring process.

While it may be true that the average women earns less than the average man, most women don’t measure their worth by the size of their paycheck, but rather their ability to freely pursue their own choices and happiness.

It's not rocket science, nor is it some giant sexist scheme to keep women down.

Can we please put this myth to bed now? Just sayin'.

Agree or disagree? Feel free to comment below...I think this could be an interesting discussion.

We Will Never Forget

2014-09-11T08:00:00.000-05:00

Lightsaber + Katana = Awesome

2014-08-15T15:00:00.000-05:00

What could be better than a katana or a lightsaber? Why, both of course!

Fantasy Football Fantasy

2014-08-15T08:00:00.000-05:00

It's hard to get a much more official welcome back to the football season than this:

Woo-hoo! Foobah!!!

More Awesome Yo-Yo-ing

2014-08-12T08:00:00.000-05:00

I couldn't yo-yo my way out of a breezy hallway, though I rarely have a desire to do so. However, as I've said before, I do have an appreciation for awesomeness in all forms, and this video of the winner of the 2014 World Yo-Yo Championships certainly fits the bill. An added bonus - he's an American from California. Congrats and way to go, Gentry Stein!

I don't care who you are, that's just awesome.

Covet Alert...I Mean, Christmas Wish

2014-07-29T08:00:00.000-05:00

Um, yeah, so if anyone needs any ideas for this year...

Assassin's Creed In Real Life

2014-07-25T08:00:00.000-05:00

One of the hot video game franchises right now is Assassin's Creed by Ubisoft. The latest iteration of this series is Black Flag, set in the world of pirates. One of the themes of the game is how the protagonist climbs, leaps, and bounces his way through the world of the game to accomplish his missions, especially using very high places as an advantage point from which to strike. It's basically digital parkour. So, it is only natural, then, for parkour experts in the real world to want to simulate the world of the game. One group in particular was selected to do an official promo video for the game at Comic-Con last year, and it's amazing. Check it out:

I always enjoy seeing how videos like this are made; it's often just as interesting and entertaining as the video itself. For a look at how they actually made this promo, here's the behind-the-scenes video:

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Too cool! Makes me want to go out and learn parkour...

Housekeeping For The Week

2014-06-23T07:25:00.001-05:00

For those of you who don't know, we will be moving later this week. As such, I will probably not be posting much over the next few days. But, as soon as the craziness is over, I'll be back! :)

Android App Roundup

2014-05-28T08:00:00.000-05:00

It's been almost 18 months since I've done my last app roundup, and a whole lot has changed since then, so I thought it was time to do another one. I'll refer you to the previous post to read up on how Android works, the difference between apps and widgets, and other info like that. For this post, I want to focus on the best apps that I'm currently using or have used recently. There will be some overlap compared to the previous list, but there are quite a few new entries, too. Wherever possible, I'll link to free versions so you can try them out without any financial commitment.

Launchers

Action Launcher - I love this launcher! Up until the past couple weeks, it was my launcher of choice. Most launchers have essentially the same features, but this one has some genuinely unique capabilities. The app drawer is hidden on the left side of the screen, so a swipe in from the edge reveals it, even if you're in another app. It scrolls very quickly, so you can get to every other app on your phone in a hurry. There's also a "quickdrawer" that is essentially the same thing when you slide in from the right edge of the screen, but you can put whatever you want in it - apps, widgets, contacts, etc. The other feature I really like about Action Launcher is that it has shutters and covers, which basically give you one-swipe access to widgets (from the app icon) and the dual-functionality of both tapping to start an app and swiping to open a folder from the same app. That may sound confusing, but hit the link above and watch the sample video. It's very slick, and makes Action Launcher stand out from the crowd. There is a free version that lets you try it out, and a paid version which opens up all the features available.
Apex and Nova - Two great established launchers, both of which I have used extensively. Both have lots of customization and offer snappy performance. You can't go wrong with either one. Both have free versions you can try out and paid versions to unlock all features.
Next Launcher 3D - This is the best 3D launcher in the Google Play store, hands down. I've tried several, and all of the others are buggy, sluggish, and lack features. Next, however, is top notch. It is slightly slower than the other launchers listed here, but offers a gloriously amped up visual interface that cannot be found anywhere else. The effects are outstanding, and the level of detail is tremendous. If you like visual bling and whizbang awesomeness, this one is for you; it'll definitely impress the (geeky) chicks at parties. It's made by the same people who made Go Launcher EX, which was a terrific launcher until they gunked it up with ads and sales pitches for their other products. Hopefully they won't do the same to Next 3D. The only catch is that it's gaudily expensive...$17!!! I would never have purchased it myself, but Amazon has been running a bunch of specials lately where downloading a certain app grants you Amazon coins which can be used for other purchases in the App store, so I actually got it for free. You can try the full functionality for a few days via the trial version to see if you like it, even if you don't have any Amazon coins. For a quick look at the visual differences in a "3D" launcher, check out this demo video:

Browsers

Dolphin - In my opinion, this is the best overall browser on Android. It has a great combination of speed, features, add-ons to increase functionality (like one-tap integration with Dropbox or Pocket), and bookmark/tab synchronization. I rely particularly heavily on the sync tabs feature, which allows me to open any tab on one device -- whether my laptop at home, my phone, or my Nexus tablet -- and then pull it up on any other device. The best part? It's free.
Next - This one is made by the same people as Next Launcher 3D. It's lean, it's fast, and it's simple, though it still packs almost as many add-ons and other functionality as Dolphin. If it had tab sync, I'd be hard pressed to pick a winner.
Chrome, Firefox - I haven't used either of these for months. I used to use Chrome as my primary Android browser, but a particular update broke the sync functionality, and I couldn't ever restore it. It's probably fine now, but Dolphin worked seamlessly at the time and has continued working seamlessly, so I stayed with it.

Messaging/Communication

chompSMS - This is my messaging app of choice. It's simple and has a very clean interface, yet it has just enough customization available that you can make it look how you want. It has some nice features that the basic apps don't (scheduled sending, customized notifications), but none of the bloat that Handcent or Go SMS Pro have.
Pushbullet - This is a new one since the last list. It's another way to talk between various devices, including Android, iOS, Windows, and Mac. It's dead simple to send a link, a note, or a file from any device to any other, and it's blazing fast, too. This is a very slick multi-platform way to communicate.
Hangouts - If you have Android, you've already got it. Personally, I find this a necessary evil of using Google. It works fine, but it's got a dull, kloodgy interface with zero customization, terrible notifications, and little more than basic messaging functionality. Bleh.

Social Media

Talon - This is a pretty good Twitter client. The interface is very slick, and you can tell the devs went out of their way to create a good visual experience with it. There are one or two things that could be made simpler, but nothing major. No free version, unfortunately; I picked this one up with free Amazon coins, too.
Carbon - In my opinion, this is one of the two best Twitter clients that are fully functional but still free. A couple little oddities, but generally pretty simple to use and has a very visually appealing interface. Unfortunately, if you don't yet have logins through Carbon, you're out of luck - they've hit the Twitter token wall, so no new sign-ups are allowed at this time.
Falcon Pro - This is probably my favorite Twitter client of all, so it is with much regret that I only had one login when it hit the token wall. The dev pulled it from the Google Play store and offered it for free to everyone as a workaround, but in my experience it's been a little wonky in terms of refreshing properly after that. It's a crying shame, because I think Falcon Pro was not only a visual masterpiece, but the most intuitive Twitter client I've used.
Facebook - I confess, I hate Facebook. No, seriously, I can't stand it. I tried several third party clients in a desperate attempt to replace it, but none of them were reliable enough or had all the core features in place. *sigh* It's a necessary evil.
Google+ - Another built-in Google product, this one's actually pretty good. You may not know it, but Google+ is now the second largest social media platform, and growing fast. It still runs generally pretty tech-savvy, with lots of developers and tech writers, but more normal people are getting on there, too. It's pretty slick, and definitely worth a look.
GroupMe - This is a pretty recent addition for me, and is a great app for when you have a group of people who need to all stay in touch and in sync. I wouldn't use it as my primary messaging app, but for its niche purpose it is excellent.

Tools

CamCard - This is a great little tool for scanning business cards and adding the info to your contacts. It's a single purpose app, and it works pretty well, especially with simple cards.
Network Signal Info - This is a great app for checking out your mobile and wifi network signals. You can nerd out on lots of terms I don't understand, or just look at the graph of how strong your signal is. Either way, it can help diagnose connectivity problems.
Pocket - This handy little app allows you to save online articles in an offline format for easy reading later. It also integrates with most browsers, making it that much easier to catch up on any device.
Evernote - Naturally. This is one of the iconic apps of the smartphone world, and for good reason. At its core it's a note-taking app with sync capabilities, but over time the dev team has put together one of the most comprehensive...um, let's call it general data capture apps imaginable. It's amazing what they've packed into this, and very likely something you'll use, so it's worth your time to check it out.
Light Flow - I've been using this one forever to harness control of my notifications. This app allows you to customize the LED color, sound, and vibrations of almost every other app on your phone. I usually know what notification I've received before I ever turn on my screen because I use Light Flow.
QuickPic - Still my favorite photo manager. It's reliable, intuitive, and has a lot of functionality that I'll never use because I'm really basic when it comes to pictures and videos.
Remote Desktop - This is a relatively new app that allows you to control one device from another using the connectors in the Chrome browser. It's very seamless, very simple, and it just works. I like that it doesn't force a different screen resolution on either device; you may have to scroll more, but at least it doesn't mess up anything.
SwiftKey and Swype - Two of the oldest and best alternative keyboards for Android devices. SwiftKey excels at word prediction, but Swype is a little better at correctly interpreting your swiping patterns. Both are awesome, and I keep going back and forth between them.
CircleLauncher - This widget app has only gotten better and better over time. It allows you to pack a whole lot of shortcuts -- apps, contacts, bookmarks, whatever -- into a very small space. Lots of options to make it look just how you want and open just how you want.
Timely - This is my favorite alarm clock app. The interface is beautiful, and it syncs between devices so you can have the alarm go off on one or more of them at the same time (or different times, if you prefer). It's very simple to use, and the only thing I would change about it is that you cannot currently select your own music files as the alarm ringtones. Otherwise, it's terrific.

Games

Ruzzle -An extremely addictive time-killer! How many words can you form in 120 seconds by dragging your finger around a 4x4 grid? This game combines the nerdiness of knowing lots of words with the competitiveness that comes only from throwing down with total strangers. I love it!
Words With Friends - The classic word puzzle game. Still playing it daily...
Smash Hit - This is my new favorite game. Just released in March, it's already had tens of millions of downloads. It's kind of hard to describe, but you're basically floating through a series of rooms in which you're confronted with glass obstacles. You shoot metal balls at the glass obstacles to smash them, thus enabling yourself to pass through without contact. It's an endless scroller, which I generally don't like, but for some reason this one is really, really fun. Simple enough for kids to play, challenging enough for adults to spend hours on (trust me, I know!). Give it a try! Here's a demo video to give you a taste:

Vs. Football - A friend of mine runs the company that created this one. It's Words With Friends, but with football plays instead of words. Check it out!
The Quell series, TuneIn Radio, and the Angry Birds series are all still great for taking up time, too.

Weather

1Weather - As with the last update, there are still a bazillion and a half weather apps. Try a bunch and stick with the one(s) you like best. My favorite is still 1Weather.
HD widgets - This app does way more than weather, but that's my favorite use for it so I'm putting it here. Great visuals and lots of features and functionality make this one a must have.
NOAA - Another excellent weather app, with intuitive forecast and hourly pages. Most other weather services eventually trace their info back to NOAA, so I figured I might as well start out there.

Cloud Storage
All the usual suspects: I use Dropbox, Box, and Google Drive, as well as some newcomers like Copy, Pogoplug, Tresorit, Bitcasa, and Amazon Cloud Drive.

Productivity
The big ones remain: Docs to Go and QuickOffice; there are some others starting to pick up speed, like KingSoft Office, OfficeSuite 7 Pro, and Polaris.

Security
I actually haven't seen any significant movement from the last roundup, so I'll just re-post those:

Lookout - The best mobile anti-virus and security app on the market, it includes remote location (and locking/wiping for the premium version), backup capability, and other features.
Prey - Another great remote location app if your phone ever gets lost/stolen.
SeekDroid - Yet another one (really, if your phone gets stolen, can you ever have too many of these hiding around your phone?).
WheresMyDroid - (no, no you cannot!)

Root Apps
Having recently upgraded to a new phone, I'm not currently rooted. However, I would say these are the best of the bunch there:

Titanium Backup - This is the biggest name in root apps and backups. You can backup everything manually or by a schedule, automatically upload your backups to one of several cloud storage services, and perform a dizzying array of other import/export things that I haven't even begun to explore. It's got loads of functionality that I assume a developer would find incredibly useful, too, all for just a few bucks.
Root Explorer - The stock file manager is only allowed access to certain parts of your phone; this one uses root access to get to everything.
ROM Toolbox - Another personal favorite is this toolbox. It is truly a work of art, containing many of the same backup and development functionalities of Titanium Backup; it includes a root browser (like Root Explorer), a complete theme changer, the ability to change your phone's boot animation or individual system icons, numerous performance enhancement tools, an ad blocker...the list is gigantic. It's an incredible amount of stuff, especially for just $5.
Airdroid. This is my go-to app for transferring files to/from my laptop. It connects your phone to your computer wirelessly, making it extremely easy to transfer just about anything in either direction using just a standard web browser on your desktop or laptop. It's a must-have. Note: this must not be a root-only app, since it works on my current device...not sure what changed, but it's a good thing!

That's all I'm going to put in there for this roundup. Hopefully it gives you some new toys to play with, but with hundreds of thousands of apps to choose from -- Google Play has now surpassed the Apple App Store -- this really isn't even scratching the surface of the surface. But, hopefully it'll get you started on some fun new stuff.

Enjoy!

Tomb Of The Unknown Soldier

2014-05-26T12:00:00.000-05:00

Honor:

American Patriot: Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the tomb of the Unknowns and why?
21 steps. It alludes to the twenty-one gun salute, which is the highest honor given any military or foreign dignitary.

How long does the Sentinel hesitate after his about face to begin his return walk and does he carry his rifle on the same shoulder all the time, and if not, why not?

He does not execute an about face. He stops on the 21st step, then turns and faces the Tomb for 21 seconds. Then he turns to face back down the mat, changes his weapon to the outside shoulder, counts 21 seconds, then steps off for another 21 step walk down the mat. He faces the Tomb at each end of the 21 step walk for 21 seconds. The Sentinel then repeats this over and over until he is relieved at the Guard Change.

Why are his gloves wet?

His gloves are moistened to improve his grip on the rifle.

How often are the guards changed?

The Guard is changed every thirty minutes during the summer (April 1 to Sep 30) and every hour during the winter (Oct 1 to Mar 31). During the hours the cemetery is closed, the guard is changed every 2 hours. The Tomb is guarded, and has been guarded, every minute of every day since 1937.

Is it true they must commit 2 years of life to guard the Tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb, and cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives.

No, this is a false rumor. The average tour at the Tomb is about a year. There is NO set time for service there. The Sentinels live either in a barracks on Ft. Myer (the Army post located adjacent to the cemetery) or off base if they like. They do have living quarters under the steps of the amphitheater where they stay during their 24 hour shifts, but when they are off, they are off. And if they are of legal age, they may drink anything they like, except while on duty.

Is it true they cannot swear in public for the rest of their lives?

Again, another false rumor.

Is it true after two years, the guard is given a wreath pin that is worn on their lapel signifying they served as Guard of the Tomb, that there are only 400 presently worn, and that the Guard must obey these rules for the rest of their lives or give up the wreath pin?

The Tomb Guard Identification Badge is awarded after the Sentinel passes a series of tests. The Badge is permanently awarded after a Sentinel has served 9 months as a Sentinel at the Tomb. Over 500 have been awarded since its creation in the late 1950's. And while the Badge can be revoked, the offense must be such that it discredits the Tomb. Revocation is at the Regimental Commanderís discretion. But you can drink a beer and even swear and still keep the Badge. The Badge is a full size award, worn on the right pocket of the uniform jacket, not a lapel pin.

Are the shoes specially made with very thick soles to keep the heat and cold from their feet?

The shoes are standard issue military dress shoes. They are built up so the sole and heel are equal in height. This allows the Sentinel to stand so that his back is straight and perpendicular to the ground. A side effect of this is that the Sentinel can "roll" on the outside of the build up as he walks down the mat. This allows him to move in a fluid fashion. If he does this correctly, his hat and bayonet will appear to not "bob" up and down with each step. It gives him a more formal and smooth look to his walk, rather than a "marching" appearance.

The soles have a steel tip on the toe and a "horseshoe" steel plate on the heel. This prevents wear on the sole and allows the Sentinel to move smoothly during his movements when he turns to face the Tomb and then back down the mat.

Then there is the "clicker". It is a shank of steel attached to the inside of the face of the heel build-up on each shoe. It allows the Sentinel to click his heels during certain movements. If a guard change is really hot, it is called a "smoker" because all the heel clicks fall together and sound like one click. In fact, the guard change is occasionally done in the "silent" mode (as a sign of devotion to the Unknowns"). No voice commands - every thing is done in relation to the heel clicks and on specific counts.

How many times will a Soldier be on duty during the shift?

Each Relief (team) has a rotation during the 24 hour work day. This rotation is dependent on the number of Soldier-Sentinels who are proficient enough to guard the Tomb. The standard is 3-4 qualified Sentinels, 1-2 Relief Commander/Assistant Relief Commander, and 1-2 Sentinels in training. Generally, the Sentinel will be on guard duty for a tour and have two tours off in between - then go out for another tour. However, in extreme cases, Sentinels have been known to go back-to-back for the entire 24 hour shift.

Information from Society of the Honor Guard - Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

Memorial Day

2014-05-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

Patriot Post:

"I am well aware of the toil and blood and treasure that it will cost to maintain this Declaration, and support and defend these States." --John Adams

Memorial Day provides a stark contrast between the best of our nation's Patriot sons and daughters versus the worst of our nation's civilian culture of consumption.

Amid the sparse, reverent observances of the sacrifices made by millions of American Patriots who paid the full price for Liberty, in keeping with their sacred oaths, we are inundated at every turn with the commercialization of Memorial Day by vendors who are too ignorant and/or selfish to honor this day in accordance with its purpose.

Indeed, Memorial Day has been sold out, along with Washington's Birthday, Independence Day, Veterans, Thanksgiving and Christmas Days. And it's no wonder, as government schools no longer teach civics or any meaningful history, and courts have excluded God (officially) from the public square.

In his essay "The Contest In America," 19th-century libertarian philosopher John Stuart Mill wrote, "War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things; the decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks nothing worth a war, is worse. A man who has nothing which he cares more about than he does about his personal safety is a miserable creature who has no chance at being free, unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself."

It is that "decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling" which accounts for why so many "miserable creatures" have downgraded Memorial Day to nothing more than a date to exploit for commercial greed and avarice. While units large and small of America's Armed Forces stand in harm's way around the globe, many Americans are too preoccupied with beer, barbecue and baseball to pause and recognize the priceless burden borne by generations of our uniformed Patriots. Likewise, many politicos will use Memorial Day as a soapbox to feign Patriotism, while in reality they are in constant violation of their oaths to our Constitution.

That notwithstanding, there are still tens of millions of genuine American Patriots who will set aside the last Monday in May to honor all those fallen Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coastguardsmen who have refreshed the Tree of Liberty with their blood, indeed with their lives, so that we might remain the proud and free. My family, which humbly descends from generations of American Patriots from the American Revolution forward, will honor the service and sacrifice of our nation's fallen warriors by offering prayer in thanksgiving for the legacy of Liberty they have bequeathed to us, and by participating in respectful commemorations.

Since the opening salvos of the American Revolution, nearly 1.2 million American Patriots have died in defense of Liberty. Additionally, 1.4 million have been wounded in combat, and tens of millions more have served honorably, surviving without physical wounds. These numbers, of course, offer no reckoning of the inestimable value of their service or the sacrifices borne by their families, but we do know that the value of Liberty extended to their posterity -- to us -- is priceless.

Who were these brave souls?

On 12 May 1962, Gen. Douglas MacArthur addressed the cadets at the U.S. Military Academy, delivering his farewell speech, "Duty, Honor and Country." He described the legions of uniformed American Patriots as follows: "Their story is known to all of you. It is the story of the American man at arms. My estimate of him was formed on the battlefields many, many years ago and has never changed. I regarded him then, as I regard him now, as one of the world's noblest figures -- not only as one of the finest military characters, but also as one of the most stainless."

Gen. MacArthur continued:

His name and fame are the birthright of every American citizen. In his youth and strength, his love and loyalty, he gave all that mortality can give. He needs no eulogy from me, or from any other man. He has written his own history and written it in red on his enemy's breast.

But when I think of his patience under adversity, of his courage under fire, and of his modesty in victory, I am filled with an emotion of admiration I cannot put into words. He belongs to history as furnishing one of the greatest examples of successful patriotism. He belongs to posterity as the instructor of future generations in the principles of liberty and freedom. He belongs to the present, to us, by his virtues and by his achievements.

In twenty campaigns, on a hundred battlefields, around a thousand campfires, I have witnessed that enduring fortitude, that patriotic self-abnegation, and that invincible determination which have carved his statue in the hearts of his people.

From one end of the world to the other, he has drained deep the chalice of courage. As I listened to those songs of the glee club, in memory's eye I could see those staggering columns of the First World War, bending under soggy packs on many a weary march, from dripping dusk to drizzling dawn, slogging ankle deep through mire of shell-pocked roads; to form grimly for the attack, blue-lipped, covered with sludge and mud, chilled by the wind and rain, driving home to their objective, and for many, to the judgment seat of God.

I do not know the dignity of their birth, but I do know the glory of their death. They died unquestioning, uncomplaining, with faith in their hearts, and on their lips the hope that we would go on to victory. Always for them: Duty, Honor, Country. Always their blood, and sweat, and tears, as they saw the way and the light.

Duty. Honor. Country -- these are not for bargain sale or discount.

On Memorial Day of 1982, President Ronald Reagan offered these words in honor of Patriots interred at Arlington National Cemetery: "I have no illusions about what little I can add now to the silent testimony of those who gave their lives willingly for their country. Words are even more feeble on this Memorial Day, for the sight before us is that of a strong and good nation that stands in silence and remembers those who were loved and who, in return, loved their countrymen enough to die for them. Yet, we must try to honor them not for their sakes alone, but for our own. And if words cannot repay the debt we owe these men, surely with our actions we must strive to keep faith with them and with the vision that led them to battle and to final sacrifice."

President Reagan continued:

Our first obligation to them and ourselves is plain enough: The United States and the freedom for which it stands, the freedom for which they died, must endure and prosper. Their lives remind us that freedom is not bought cheaply. It has a cost; it imposes a burden. And just as they whom we commemorate were willing to sacrifice, so too must we -- in a less final, less heroic way -- be willing to give of ourselves.

It is this, beyond the controversy and the congressional debate, beyond the blizzard of budget numbers and the complexity of modern weapons systems, that motivates us in our search for security and peace. ... The willingness of some to give their lives so that others might live never fails to evoke in us a sense of wonder and mystery.

One gets that feeling here on this hallowed ground, and I have known that same poignant feeling as I looked out across the rows of white crosses and Stars of David in Europe, in the Philippines, and the military cemeteries here in our own land. Each one marks the resting place of an American hero and, in my lifetime, the heroes of World War I, the Doughboys, the GIs of World War II or Korea or Vietnam. They span several generations of young Americans, all different and yet all alike, like the markers above their resting places, all alike in a truly meaningful way.

As we honor their memory today, let us pledge that their lives, their sacrifices, their valor shall be justified and remembered for as long as God gives life to this nation. ... I can't claim to know the words of all the national anthems in the world, but I don't know of any other that ends with a question and a challenge as ours does: "O! say does that Star-Spangled Banner yet wave, O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave?" That is what we must all ask.

For the Fallen, we are certain of that which is noted on all Marine Corps Honorable Discharge orders: "Fideli Certa Merces" -- to the faithful there is certain reward.

Thomas Jefferson offered this enduring advice to all generations of Patriots: "Honor, justice, and humanity, forbid us tamely to surrender that freedom which we received from our gallant ancestors, and which our innocent posterity have a right to receive from us. We cannot endure the infamy and guilt of resigning succeeding generations to that wretchedness which inevitably awaits them if we basely entail hereditary bondage on them."

We owe a great debt of gratitude to all those generations who have passed the Torch of Liberty to succeeding generations. In accordance, I humbly ask that each of you call upon all those around you to observe Memorial Day with reverence.

To prepare hearts and minds for Memorial Day, take a moment and read about the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Join with other Patriots across the nation who will be placing flags at headstones in your local military cemetery (generally the Saturday prior to Memorial Day).

"What do you think of when you see a little American flags in front of a grave marker? Let me tell you a story about one little flag. As a fighter pilot on my 93rd mission over North Vietnam, my F-105 was hit by an air-to-air missile and my Electronic Warfare Officer Harold Johnson and I, were forced to eject. After unsuccessful rescue attempts, we were captured by enemy forces and imprisoned in the infamous 'Hanoi Hilton' for the next six years. One day in our sixth year of imprisonment, a young Navy pilot named Mike Campbell found a piece of cloth in a gutter. After we collected some other small rags, he worked secretly at night to piece them together into a flag. He made red from ground-up roof tiles and blue from tiny amounts of ink, then used rice glue to paste the colors onto the rags. Using thread from his blanket and a homemade bamboo needle, he sewed the pieces together, adding white fragments for stars. One morning he whispered from the back of our cell, 'Hey gang, look here,' and proudly held up that tattered American flag, waving it as if in a breeze. We all snapped to attention and saluted – with tears in our eyes. A week later, the guards were searching our cells and found Mike's flag. That night they pulled him out of the cell and, for his simple gesture of patriotism, they tortured him. At daylight they pushed what was left of Mike back through the cell door. Today, whenever I see our flag, I think of Mike and the morning he first waved that tattered emblem of our great nation. It was then, thousands of miles from home, imprisoned by a brutal enemy, that he courageously demonstrated the liberty it represents, and that is what I see in every American flag today."

Col. Leo K. Thorsness (USAF Ret.), Medal of Honor for actions over Vietnam, April 19, 1967 POW, Vietnam (1967-1973)

In honor of American Patriots who have died in defense of our great nation, lower your flag to half-staff from sunrise to 1200 on Monday. (Read about proper flag etiquette and protocol.) Join us by observing a time of silence at 1500 (your local time), for remembrance and prayer. Offer a personal word of gratitude and comfort to any surviving family members you know who are grieving for a beloved warrior fallen in battle.

On this and every day, please pray for our Patriot Armed Forces now standing in harm's way around the world in defense of our liberty, and for the families awaiting their safe return.

"Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends." --John 15:12-14

Photoshop Manufacturers Models

2014-05-22T08:00:00.001-05:00

It's really no secret that Photoshop is often used to tidy up pictures of models used in advertisements, but to see the process fast-forwarded from start to finish is still pretty astounding. Hit the link to watch an animated gif and a video of an underwear model getting the Photoshop treatment. It's borderline NSFW, but still fascinating to watch the literal transformation - she's literally a different girl at the end! For a safer version of the same kind of process, check out this video of a high-end watch:

Who knew watches needed this much touching up? It's pretty amazing what can be done with technology these days. It's also pretty amazing the lengths to which companies will go to make their ads look as good as possible!

On a completely unrelated note, I thought this was interesting:

According to researchers cited by Harvard Business School's Working Knowledge, three verbal cues give bald-faced liars away. ...

1. Verbosity

The first tell was simply that the liars tended to use a lot more words to make their points than the truth-tellers did.

"Just like Pinocchio's nose, the number of words grew along with the lie," says Van Swol. The only caveat here is that people who deceived simply by omitting facts, rather than offering untrue ones, also tended to use fewer words. So don't consider this tell foolproof.

2. Profanity

It turns out that people who swear more often tend to lie more often, too. In the study, this was even more pronounced after the receiving player challenged them.

"We think this may be due to the fact that it takes a lot of cognitive energy to lie," Van Swol says. "Using so much of your brain to lie may make it hard to monitor yourself in other areas."

3. Projection

The final major tell was that liars tended to use third-person pronouns more often ("he," "she," and "they"), presumably instead of making offers and justifications in the first person ("me" or "I").

"This is a way of distancing themselves from and avoiding ownership of the lie," Van Swol explains. Liars also used more complex sentence structure.

Hm, good to know...