The View from the Bunker

Spineless

2007-07-13T13:56:00.000-05:00

"...as soon as we commit militarily, a good portion of the country starts questioning everything. Some think it's a mark of our civility, but that seems to be making a virtue of spinelessness. If we don't even have the moral courage to know our right to defend ourselves as a country, how can anyone take us seriously?"

This is probably one of the best editorials I have read in a while. Although IMAO is known for their humor, today, Frank J. posted a serious editorial that I feel goes right to the heart of one of the biggest problems in America. This writing also opens up many questions and issues that I feel are vital that we address.

I'm with Fred

2007-07-09T15:53:00.000-05:00

"I am tired of people apologizing for America, the greatest beacon of hope for all freedom seeking people in the world."
-Fred Thompson

It is refreshing to hear words like this spoken by some one who could possibly be our next president. I know that if Fred runs, he will have my vote.

If you haven't, go check out his blog, Fred File.

Let us remember

2007-05-28T00:35:00.000-05:00

For love of country they accepted death...
~James A. Garfield

On this Memorial Day, let us remember those who have given their last measure for our freedom.

Also, be sure to say a prayer for those who are currently serving our country during the ongoing War on Terrorism.

And to my Air Force brethren:

Here's a toast to the host
Of those who love the vastness of the sky,
To a friend we send a message of his brother men who fly.
We drink to those who gave their all of old,
Then down they soared to score the rainbow's pot of gold.
A toast to the host of men we boast, the U.S. Air Force!

Fireside Chats Revived

2007-05-23T00:17:00.000-05:00

In my last post I mentioned Fred Thompson's internet video response to Micheal Moore's challenge. In that post I was discussing the contents of the video - I want to step back a minute and talk about the format itself.

Candidates issuing videos is nothing new, however, Fred Thompson posted this response just hours after Moore made the initial challenge. I believe this bods well for his candidacy if he runs. Most candidates run topics by their advisers and opinion polls before issuing a statement. Fred Thompson has shown that he is not afraid to make his views known by issuing a digital video - imagine how far ahead he could stay of his opponents if he continued this throughout the campaign - blindsiding opponents before they can even consider a response.

Let's take this idea of digital videos one step further. Pretend for a moment Thompson is elected president. Imagine a weekly video from Thompson posted on youtube. This could be the modern day version of Roosevelt's fireside chats. By speaking directly to the citizens on a weekly basis using this new format, Thompson could truly be a president of the people. Than again, so could any president that is wise enough to use this new tool.

Media

2007-05-22T23:59:00.000-05:00

It's still a long ways out, but you can't help but hear about the presidential candidates. I'm not paying too much attention to all the gossip about them, primarily because the man I want in office hasn't announced he is in the running yet - Fred Thompson. Thompson is a man among boys - if you have been living under a rock and missed his response to Micheal Moore, go watch it now. I swear I'll get an alias just so I can vote for this man twice.

I did happen to watch Rudy Giuliani on Letterman last night and was impressed by some of his answers to Dave's queries. Letterman kept asking questions slanted to try to get Rudy to blame Bush for Iraq, buy Rudy wouldn't give it too him. Letterman kept on digging trying to sling mud on Bush, but Rudy just stuck to his guns. This is one of the things that sickens me - the media will take absolutely anything and try to use it to make Bush look bad. They hate him so vehemently it clouds their every thought.

How I long for the days when major media outlets actually cared about reporting the truth.

A Table in the Presence

2007-02-27T00:00:00.000-06:00

A very close friend of mine gave me a book this past Sunday that he thought I would enjoy reading. It is "A Table in the Presence" by LT. Carey Cash. I don't read books that often, but sometime about this book really caught my attention.

LT. Cash served in Iraq during the initial invasion as a chaplain attached to the 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment. The cover of the book bills it as "The Dramatic Account of How a U.S. Marine Battalion Experienced God's Presence Amidst the Chaos of the War in Iraq".

I am only two chapters into the book, but it has been excellent so far. LT. Cash has described how God was present with these Marines no matter what. I have found this to be very inspirational, because lately, as shameful as it is to admit this, I have struggled with some doubts. I don't think it is any coincidence that my friend chose now to loan me this book.

I plan to post a some more complete thoughts on this book when I finish it, but so far I would highly recommend it.

Mourning

2007-02-26T22:49:00.000-06:00

Today, well, today has been an interesting day to say the least.

Today, I had the honor of paying my respects to a young man who laid down his life for our country. Twenty year-old Private First Class Chad Marsh was killed in action Feb. 18th when a grenade exploded near him in Baghdad, Iraq.

Twenty years old -- just a few months older than me. When I found out his funeral procession would be passing by near to where I live, deep down I felt that I needed to be there. After lunch, I picked out a spot along the procession route and waited. After about 45 minutes the roar of motorcycles could be heard in the distance. As I rose to my feet, they came into view - a flag waving group of motorcycles escorting a hearse, followed by a hummer and more motorcycles, and finally the family and friends. Other passing motorists stopped their vehicles and stood beside them to pay their respects.

I have not cried in recent memory, but today for this young soldier I did not know, I cried.

Rules of Engagement

2007-01-18T15:56:00.000-06:00

Much of the talk in the news lately has been the new "surge" strategy for Iraq. I had the opportunity yesterday to have lunch with a U.S. Army sergeant who has served two tours of duty in Iraq, and participated in the initial invasion and made the push from Kuwait into Baghdad. I picked his brain on his thoughts on the current situation, the viability of the surge plan, and the options of where do we go from here.

I have my personal views on the situation, having supported the war all along, but I will try to keep them from coloring the rest of this post and convey this soldier's impressions from actually having his boots on the ground. Here on out, I will refer to this soldier as "Sgt. R"

As I said Sgt. R. participated in the initial drive from Kuwait into Baghdad. On their arrival to Baghdad, the rules of engagement were what we typically think of in times of war - any potential threats were neutralized. He stated that Baghdad was relatively secure due to the fact that the citizens knew that the American troops could take whatever actions necessary to maintain the security.

Over time, however, the rules of engagement changed. The military softened it's stance, in an effort to "win over" the hearts and minds of the Iraqi citizens. Sgt. R states that the citizens began to realize that they could get away with violence, and the military troops couldn't do anything about it. Their hands were tied. To top it off, when soldiers do take action, they face murder charges. These more restrictive rules of engagement have lead to the current situation in the Sunni Triangle.

The new surge plan proposed by President Bush involves a return to the original rules of engagement, which Sgt. R believe will bring Baghdad back under our control and restore peace in the city. However, he says that the peace will only exist because of the fear of the American troops. He wonders how will we maintain that peace for good. Eventually, once troops are withdrawn, the violence will return. Do we plan on an extended peace-keeping mission? Is it even possible?

Sgt. R said he doesn't know the answer, but hearing him relate his experiences has given me a lot to think about. I don't know the answer any more than he does, but as a nation, we must come up with a long range solution.

The Violence of the Lambs

2007-01-18T00:01:00.000-06:00

This movie looks horrible...yet I want to see it so bad because it looks hilarious at the same time.

Check out the trailer:

The Beast

2006-12-29T17:00:00.000-06:00

"Computers don't make errors. What they do, they do on purpose. By now your name and particulars have been fed into every laptop, desktop, mainframe and supermarket scanner that collectively make up the global information conspiracy, otherwise known as The Beast."

-Dale Gribble

I just got bank from the bank a little bit ago, after a very frustrating afternoon. It started when I was eating my lunch today and was looking through the mail. I decided to open my bank statement and see if I had gotten paid for some work last week. As I read through the statement, I realized just how generous of a person I really am.

Apparently, I had donated several hundred dollars to various charities overseas in Italy. Also, I donated to the Tsunami relief fund for the children of Georgia. As in Atlanta, Georgia.

All of these charges had been made within the last few days, so I quickly called the number on the back of my debit card to see if they could freeze my card. They said I had to go to my bank. So, off to the bank I went. Thankfully the lady there was very helpful, and froze my card immediately. I was afraid I would be out of the money, because I though that unlike a credit card a debit card offered no protection against fraudulent charges. Thankfully, this isn't the case, so now I have my money back at least.

I still have to wait a week to get my new debit card, but I guess that isn't so bad as long as I still have my hard earned money. I would like to know who by and where my card number was stolen, as I only really ever use it to pay at the pump at the local gas station, and I occasionally buy stuff on Amazon, which I think is pretty secure.

I guess this is what you get for having your information in The Beast. Maybe I should just ditch the debit card and go entirely to cash and hard currency. Then I'll move out into the woods and bury my money in the back yard. Sounds like a plan.

Initial thoughts

2006-12-26T23:31:00.000-06:00

Update: A more complete article on the death of President Ford is now up here.

"I guess it just proves that in America anyone can be President."

Personally, I have always found it interesting that President Ford was never actually elected President. And yet, while holding that office for just one term, he made sweeping changes and helped a nation heal from the wounds of the Watergate scandal, and begin a new chapter of life after the end of the Vietnam War.

Although I wasn't alive during his time in office, I feel sort of a sense of loss, knowing my country has lost one of it's former leaders. My prayers this evening will be with his wife Betty and family. As I head off to bed, I will close with this appropriate quote from President Ford:

"The greatest defeat of all would be to live without courage,
for that would hardly be living at all.”

President Ford dead at 93

2006-12-26T23:01:00.000-06:00

The death of former President Ford has been confirmed within the last 10 minutes by several major news outlets.

May you rest in peace Mr. President.

Haiku of Hatred

2006-12-06T23:26:00.000-06:00

My heart aches with pain
When I see you, I vomit
Die away from me

- Steven Hyde

Turn it up

2006-11-22T00:28:00.000-06:00

I got an early Christmas for myself today - a Creative Zen Vision:M mp3 player! I've been downloading mp3s for a long time - I started out with the first version of Napster, back in the good old days before the lawsuits shut them down.

I never really had much need for an mp3 player until about 3 months ago when my favorite radio station changed formats. It's hard to believe that in this metro area there are now no media outlets for alternative music.

Without my familiar station, the 45 minute drive to and from school has become quite dull. So, I decided to treat myself to an early Christmas present and picked up the Zen and an FM transmitter, so now I can listen to whatever I want as I cruise down the road.

I originally wanted an iPod - I mean everybody has one, but I have started download my music on the new Napster service, so an iPod wouldn't work for that, and I'm glad I ended up with the Zen, it seems like a much better player in my opinion. Of course, today's my first day with it, so we'll see how it pans out in the long run.

Addendum

2006-11-21T00:35:00.000-06:00

While reading through my previous post I want to clarify a few things:

I am in no way romanticizing or glorifying war - I'm not one of these kids that wants to run off to war and get a bunch of medals.

Guess what - I've seen people die. I've done CPR on a person in the middle of a highway and watched them die, I've seen someone die in a fire while trying to get out of their house, I've found people who died alone, I've seen the anguished face of a mother as she watched her son be declared dead. There's nothing glamorous about it - it's not noble to witness these things. There's no honor, no glory in it.

It pretty much sucks. And yet, as terrible as these experiences are, I think I have grown and learned from them. I know they will forever be with me.

All of these things occurred right here in my hometown, but yet, I feel like maybe I'm missing out on something by just knocking around my hometown while other's are fighting overseas. I wouldn't want to be over there for any glory and honor, most won't find it there, but for the experience.

I don't know, maybe it's the journalist in me, but I know that something big is going on, there's a story there that will need to be passed on to future generations, and quite possibly the defining event for my generation is occurring, and I'm sitting in my parent's basement.

What did you do during the war Grandpa?

2006-11-21T00:12:00.000-06:00

I've been thinking a lot lately - well, not really thinking, more like contemplating. I recently started reading a book entitled "The Story of World War II" by Donald L. Miller. In the preface, Miller makes reference to war as "the greatest of human experiences". I also recently read "Nam" a book comprised entirely of the words of Vietnam veterans. They too spoke about the human experience of war - the horrendous sights, the humanity, and the emotion of it all.

Each of those wars defined a generation.

While studying those topics, I realized that right now, what will probably be the defining human experience for my generation is occurring with the war in Iraq. I know many people my age who are over there currently, and many who have returned from their tours of duty. While speaking recently with a friend who is now home after two tours, he described it as "a million-dollar experience that I wouldn't pay a dollar for". As we visited, he made it quite clear that while he had no desire to go back, he wouldn't trade anything for the experience.

All of this has lead me to ask myself - the greatest human experience of my time is occurring, and what am I doing?

This question has been haunting me know for some time, it is a question I'm afraid to answer. Although war is a horrible thing, I almost wonder if I am missing out on something if you will. I'm sitting here in my parent's basement, and attending class at a local community college while my peers are off fighting in a foreign land.

Someday down the road I hope to have grandkids - when they ask me, "Grandpa, what did you do during the war?" - what will I tell them?

Remembering

2006-09-11T00:12:00.000-05:00

Five years ago today - it doesn't seem possible. It seems like it was just yesterday, yet it seems like an eternity ago. The images of that morning are seared into my mind forever, so vivid it feels as though those terrible events occured just hours ago. Yet the world has changed so much since then, we have went to war, homeland security is at the forefront - it seems as though a lifetime has passed.

As we mark this anniversary, let us remember those who lost their lives that day. The 343 FDNY firefighters, the police officers, and the thousands of civilians. Let us keep their families in mind as well. We will never forget.

Pet Peeve

2006-09-06T20:38:00.000-05:00

You know what I hate? I hate it when you go to an appointment be it at the doctor, dentist, whatever, and you are sitting in the waiting room reading a really interesting magazine article, and just as you get to the good part and are about to find out what happens, they call you back to see the doctor. I hate that.

It happened to me today at the dentist. There I am reading a fascinating article about bear hunting in Pennsyvania, and just at the climax of action when the hunter is leveling his rifle at the bear, I hear my name called. Now I will never know if all their hard work tracking had payed off and they got the bear.

Getting Raped

2006-08-21T16:31:00.000-05:00

Verizon Introduces New Charge-You-At-Whim Plan | The Onion - America's Finest News Source

Any Verizon customer, such as myself, will attest that even though this is a humor article its actually pretty much true. I always dread the arrival of my Verizon bill in the mail, because I know I'm going to get raped once again.

Bar hopping

2006-08-06T00:33:00.000-05:00

I did something out of the ordinary for myself this weekend - I spent the entire night in a bar last night. Now, I know most of you are thinking "big deal", but this is the first time in my life I have ever set foot in an establishment that was solely a bar.

Anyway, I came to realize several things: First off, bars are a great place for college kids to hang out. Secondly, I made a pact with one of my friends that if he ever sees me sitting in a bar when I'm 40+ years old that he is to promptly shoot me. There were several older people sitting in the bar who were total losers - it was just a sad sight. It's one thing to go out with some buddies and have a beer, but when your sitting at the bar getting trashed while your kids sit at home alone their is something wrong with that picture.

Like I said, the bar scene is great for college-aged kids, but after that, grow up a little, take on some responsibility, and maybe stay at home with your family for a change, instead of getting up on the bar and stripping like the 50 year old guy at this bar did. I guess that's what you get for going to a small town bar, I'm sure a bar in a college town would suit my tastes much more.

Army MARS program still going strong

2006-07-19T23:23:00.000-05:00

Army MARS program still going strong

Here's an interesting article about the U.S. Army MARS program that I'm involved in. In my spare time I operate one of the member radio stations mentioned in the story.

Tripping

2006-07-15T15:16:00.000-05:00

Basil is tripping for the weekend, hmmm, I may have phrased that wrong, but anyway he has turned his blog loose and left us with a free for all trackback post! Go and enjoy all the trackbacky goodness.

Mr. and Mrs. Windigo

2006-07-15T01:16:00.000-05:00

Pretty exciting day today, well yesterday rather, since it's now after midnight. Anyway, I attended Windigo's wedding. That's right folks, there's now a Mrs. Windigo! I can't help but be really happy for him, I got to meet the new Mrs. and she is a great lady.

The ceremony was really nice, and went off without any hiccups. The wonderful service was followed up with excellent cake and punch, but I was a little disappointed that I didn't get to see the new couple open their gifts, but I know Windigo should like mine. Hopefully, they will have opened them by the time Windigo reads this or it will spoil the surprise, so he has fair warning to stop now and continue reading after opening it.

At first, I wasn't sure what to get for a gift. This is the first wedding I've attended alone, so always before my folks would take care of the gift and I would just sign my name on the card.

So after much thought, I settled on a very traditional wedding gift - a set of weapons. That's right, a deluxe set of stainless steel kitchen knives. Whether dicing celery for a delightful soup or stabbing an intruder in the liver, these knives are guaranteed to give years of trouble free service.

And just to be thoughtful I threw in a set of kitchen towels, which should serve Mrs. Windigo well to dry dishes or sop up the blood while Windigo buries the body under the gazebo.

At any rate, I suggest you swing by Sakrata and tell Windigo congratulations.

White Elephants

2006-07-11T21:46:00.000-05:00

As many of you know, I reside in the general vicinity of Wichita, the Air Capital of the world. Lately, I've grown quite fed up with the ideas being presented by the Sedgwick County commission and the Wichita city council. For those of you that aren't familiar with current events in this areas, these two groups of people have a major fetish for white elephants.

The county voted last year to build a new arena, which really wasn't needed in the first place, but its a done deal now and planning is in the works. The project is already over budget and behind schedule.

The city has decided that they want to work on a water walk project along the Arkansas river. This idea is floundering as well - the one business that they have attracted to the area, Gander Mountain, is sinking fast. As an aside, whoever designed the Gander Mountain store was an idiot - the building faces away from the river, so looking at it from the river all you see is the bare back wall - kinda detracts from the whole water walk theme.

The city and county are both pouring money into the doomed "Exploration Place" which is nothing more that a glorified money pit. I toured the facility once, and you couldn't pay me to go back.

Now we can finally get down to what really irks me. The arena planners keep stating how we need to mirror Oklahoma City. The water walk developers keep talking about San Antonio. Why on earth do we want to be like other cities? Whatever happened to being unique?

We are the Air Capital of the world, and what do we have to show for it? We have an air museum that is struggling to survive, because the city and county refuse to fund it. I mean, it's kind of obvious in my eyes - we are the AIR CAPITAL - we should have a world class air museum. The board of the Kansas Aviation Museum has a long term vision for a complex that would be incredible, with the main part of the facility housed in the renovated Wichita Municipal airport terminal, and several hangers featuring restored aircraft that changed the world after they rolled off the assembly lines at Wichita plants.

Why not take all the money that is being poured into all the white elephants and build that museum? Something we can be proud of, something that will show what made Wichita what it is today, something that shows our heritage, and something unique.

But no - our leaders will continue to waste our money to try to be like everybody else.

It's a girl

2006-07-11T21:09:00.000-05:00

Redneck birth announcement

This is awesome - if I ever have a kid, this is how it's getting announced.

hat tip to basil