Shining examples of Wrong

I get so tired of people who can't do their jobs, and who are so lame they don't even care about the consequences of their incompetance. I found this latest example at ALa's. Then we have another fine example of Political Correctness gone off the deep end, because apparently White People are not allowed to be proud! You tell 'em, Grau!! For a more humorous example of wrongness, check out the pic at NoHoldsBarred. Is it worse than the thongs-for-men pic?? It's a matter of personal viewpoint, I think. Either way ... Spew alert!!

Sunday links

Toni talks Thongs - for Men! Warning ... Spew alert! When I saw "the asshole is back" over at the tiny blog, I was intrigued. Partly because Seattle was mentioned, and partly to find out if she really is an asshole. So I went to I, Asshole, and scanned, read, wandered about ... until I found "She drives me Crazy"! Go read ... she's a hoot - and she totally nails the average Seattle driver!!! Thanks to Beth of SWWBO for a fine collection of links today, such as Cassandra's announcement re: Judge Roberts, and the reminder about the Carnival of the Recipes hosted at SarahK's place. AFSister contemplates giving birth to a stick of butter ... kinda! She's on vacation this week -- feel free to leave a comment or ten to welcome here home. *Grin* Thanks to James over at Partamian Report, I know now that Simunitions will hurt, when they find the right spot! Plus, I am certain that James and I share a rude sense of humor!!! Be sure to catch up with Fuzzybear Lioness on the yet-to-be-named project to assist the wounded at Walter Reed (and elsewhere). Her story of Two Fathers made me misty-eyed today - go read! Finally - Mustang23 has a Caption Contest you can participate in. And if you are really bored, you can try out get addicted to the snazzy little game he posted a few days ago. I can't touch his high-score, and believe me ... I've Tried!!

Good new about Iraq

Chuck Z is blogging again, with the aid of voice to text software, and he's still got the wit and wisdom to make me laugh and think. Today he reminds us that there are some fantastic and generous people out there who deserve more attention and recognition. Soldiers' Angels provides relief in various forms to injured military, and to those deployed. One of these Angels is Holly Aho, whose blog is both a tribute to the men and women she supports, and a great source of positive information and inspiration. Today, as part of her Positive News series, she offers the following : When is the MSM going to start mentioning THIS informaion about Iraq? Per the Multi-National Force - Iraq As of 15 May 2005 , and despite years of neglect by the Saddam regime, an insurgency intent on intimidating teachers and students, and the damage caused by war, 3,105 schools have been renovated and another 950 schools are currently under rehabilitation. Iraq 's Ministry of Health (MoH) on 4 September initiated the first polio immunization program in the country since the start of the war to topple Saddam Hussein in March 2003, in an effort to protect 4.7 million children from the infectious disease. With support from the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Union (EU), who contributed over US $2.5 million, the Iraqi authorities succeeded in immunizing the vast majority of children in the first three days of the campaign, UNICEF said. A total of 25 million doses of vaccine were purchased with help from a $3.2 million grant from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). She goes on to offer news on the Iraqi Security Forces, The Ministry of Defense, the Economy, and much more. Please go read the whole thing, and leave her comments - she deserves to know how much we need and appreciate this kind of update!

What we lose

John of Argghhh! reminds us how much war hurts, in reference specifically to the Marines who were killed this week, and to war in general. We have the tiger by the tail, and must not let go. The only thing to do from here is ride the tiger until we stop it. Also, be sure to check out today's LinkFest and see what the Castle Denizens are writing about.

Chuck is back

The speech-to-text software seems to be working, and Chuck has his second post up in two days. Yay! Go check out today's What to do entry. And if you have any ideas on gloves for the man with one pinky - he'd love to hear about it. This technical miracle would be useful for any servicemember who can't type due to injuries. Fuzzybear Lioness has been thinking about that, and working on a project to help out. Check out her update on the project.

Most Americans

According to a New York Times editorial titled "Guns in the Parking Lot", 'Most Americans' agree with employers like ConocoPhillips when they ban employees from driving around with firearms in their cars. Apparently, that puts me in the minority, since I don't actually agree with this concept. Then again, is the generalization really true? Do 'Most Americans' agree with the sentiment? I am certain that most people wish to feel safe and secure when they go to work. They probably don't want to fear being blown to bits when one of their co-workers blows a gasket and takes out a handy gun to commit mayhem. But is there a majority of concern that no law abiding Joe or Jane should be allowed to have their handgun in their personal vehicle? Look at it another way. If guns are not permitted in the company-owned parking areas, what about knives? I am guessing, without having seen the full document, that there is no mention of knives, or crossbows, or garottes. If violence in the workplace is the concern - these are all potentially lethal! I'm curious ... if you own one or more guns, and you occasionally take them to the range for practice, or even to participate in matches, how do you feel about companies telling their employees what can and can't be stored safely in their cars? This essentially means that you cannot plan events directly after work, since you have to go home to retrieve the items you want to take to the range with you. If the objects are legal to own, if there are no laws broken, why have this restriction? I'm really curious to hear how you feel on this one. Whether you own guns or not, should this be something that companies can control? UPDATE Speaking of guns ... check out the sweet little item that John has posted. Can I have one, pretty please??

Godspeed Smoky Smith

Blackfive adds to his Someone You Should Know series, raising his glass to the last Canadian Victoria Cross winner: Ernest Alva (Smoky) Smith -- someone we Should Have Known. "You never know when your last sunrise is going to be." ... Good words to live by.

Denizennes in Action (updated)

AFSister's thinking about Parental Responsibility, or when is it not the parents fault, perhaps? Speaking of parenting - she's on her own this week, sans hubby and kids - so go give her a kind word, eh?! FuzzyBear Lioness is continuing to fine-tune her ideas on helping the wounded at Walter Reed Army Medical Center, as well as other places. We don't have pictures yet, but Bad Cat Robot and I ripped into several helpless pieces of paper tonight, proving that the physics of high-speed lead versus thin papyrus-like material has predictable results. Watch her space for more details... UPDATE : Picture posted now! UPDATE 2 : I didn't keep my targets from last night, but here is a previously posted target that I'm a bit proud of. SWWBO confesses that she sings silly stuff (and maybe sells seashells down by the seashore) - but mostly to her horse, Petey! Cassandra continues to have feminine issues ... er, issues with feminine behavior, that is! Meanwhile, Kat uses very few words to say what she has to say about Jihad Jane, while using all of the spare words on other topics ... like the murder of Steven Vincent in Basra. Not to ignore the guys ... Bill muses on Life with a Luddite, while Rammer has some words about words, and John provides my History homework.

Fleet Week in Seattle!

This one is for both Sgt B and JMH ... It's Fleet Week in Seattle! This weekend will mark the end of the month-plus long chain of events called SeaFair, and includes the opportunity for civilians to tour several military vessels. Military ships arrive for Fleet Week Eight ships from the Coast Guard, the U.S. Navy and the Canadian navy arrived at the Seattle waterfront yesterday. The vessels will be open for public tours tomorrow through Sunday at Pier 91. The largest vessel available for tours, the USS Bonhomme Richard, is a Wasp-class amphibious assault ship that was part of the Indian Ocean tsunami-relief effort last winter. Also here for Fleet Week is the USS Ogden, an Austin-class amphibious transport dock, and from the Canadian navy, the HMCS Nanaimo, Yellowknife, Saskatoon and Whitehorse — all Kingston-class coastal-defense vessels. Click here for an image of the USS Bonhomme Richard in Elliott Bay, with Mount Rainier in the background. Having toured the USS Abraham Lincoln on Independence Day, I don't know whether I'll make it downtown this weekend. If I do, JMH, I'll be heading for the Canadian ships! According to the article, all of the tour reservations are full, but there will be a wait list sign up at pier 91.

Generals vs. Editors

"Why, it appears that we appointed all of our worst generals to command the armies and we appointed all of our best generals to edit the newspapers. I mean, I found by reading a newspaper that these editor generals saw all of the defects plainly from the start but didn't tell me until it was too late. I'm willing to yield my place to these best generals and I'll do my best for the cause by editing a newspaper." So who do you think said this? Leave your answer/guesses in the comments,. No Googling allowed, by the way!! This oughta be fun ... Thanks, Max!

Role Models

I don't really care whether Rafael Palmeiro used steroids or not, lied or not, any of it. Most sports figures are not great role models - they just happen to be people with physical gifts, who get paid way too much money. Everett (WA) resident Jennifer Cabanayan hasn't done a lot yet, either. But she's young, and she's working on something worthwhile. Last year she wore a sash that said "Miss Everett Teen USA 2004". In a little over a week, she will trade that for something a little more on the green side. Miss Everett Teen USA Enlists In The Army August 1, 2005 EVERETT - Miss Everett Teen USA 2004 is putting away her sash to put on a U.S. Army uniform. Last summer, Jennifer Cabanayan appeared at community events, including the Mukilteo Lighthouse Festival and the National Night Out Against Crime, as Miss Everett Teen USA 2004. Now she has enlisted in the Army and will leave for boot camp at Fort Jackson, S.C., on Aug. 11. The petite brunette says Army service has always been in the back of her mind. "I'm capable, I'm healthy. This is the right thing to do," said Cabanayan, who attended Cascade and Marysville-Pilchuck high schools before earning her GED. "I cannot wait for that moment of putting on a uniform. It gives you that honor." Her plan includes airborne jump school after basic training. Her grandfather served with an Army Airborne unit in Vietnam -- the apply truly does not stray far from the tree! The Miss Everett Teen USA title was a way to have a voice. "If smaller kids think you're a princess, they might listen more," Cabanayan said. Last November, she competed in the state pageant. Her Everett reign ended in May. This young lady is someone that a young girl (or boy) can look up to. Instead of being a princess, she will become a soldier ... and I congratulate her on the choice. Thanks again, Ry! UPDATE The Anchoress also has a post on this, and points back to her source at Ace of Spades.

Some schools Like the military

The anti-recruiting forces in Seattle have been active this year, with the protest at SCCC in January, the vote by Garfield High School to deny recruiters access to the students, and the protest that I attended in May (see archives) as prime examples. What a relief it was to read that the Federal Way school district invited the Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC) program into their high schools. Wait - don't get too excited yet. Check out the title of the article first : Military classes are off course By Danny Westneat In Seattle, the public schools are hostile territory for the military, as parents shoo away recruiters and are pushing to bar them entirely. In the suburbs, though, the armed forces are welcomed for more than just visits. They're teaching some of the classes. This sounds benign, doesn't it? No big deal, just some military involvement in teaching history or something. But wait ... Seattle is overly viperous toward the military. It's a vital institution, as well as a major source of jobs, and Seattle's schools ought to educate kids about both. Let the Army set up a booth at career day. It's better they buttonhole kids there, where they can be supervised. But ensconcing the military inside school walls, and subsidizing it with school dollars, is over the line the other way. ... But what other government agency, corporation or special-interest group gets to design what is taught in a public-school classroom, and then run the classes themselves? Take this fall's first course. It features the role of the military in history, taught by an officer using material provided by the military. That's like having a course on environmental policy taught by Greenpeace. First off, the school receives federal funding, so the classes are really not being paid for with 'local dollars'. Besides - the parents and school administrators feel these are valuable ... so it is their dollar to spend, isn't it? Comparing the Military to Greenpeace is just plain silly, nuff said about that. Besides, the topics of these classes aren't exactly HUN-101. Federal Way officials were drawn to it because it features courses in aerospace technology, a subject the schools couldn't offer otherwise. Finally, the Ultimate Goal of JROTC is uncovered ... It's also clear that a goal of JROTC is to groom future enlistees. Students are given information on how to sign up. The Defense Department testified to Congress in 2000 that JROTC is one of its premier recruiting devices. Armed-forces recruiting is essential. Without it, we'd have a draft. Schools must by law allow it, but it's their duty to supervise it, not subsidize it. There's a war on. Education devoted to exploring diverse points of view about war ought to include bringing the armed forces into our classrooms. They shouldn't, however, be handed the keys. Yes - the JROTC is a tool of the recruiting forces, it provides a way for youth to meet with servicemembers, to learn from them, and to explore the world of the military from their safe high school environment. It is not, however, brainwashing. Call it a Diversity program, if that helps make it less scary. Thanks to Ry for the hat-tip ! [Linked to Mudville Gazette's Open Post]