I just…

Don’t understand the mentality that can do this…

The FBI arrested Courtney Williams, 40, of Wagram, North Carolina yesterday and a federal grand jury indicted her today in connection with her alleged transmission of classified national defense information to individuals not authorized to receive it, including a journalist (the Journalist). Williams allegedly violated 18 U.S.C. § 793(d).

“Clearance holders accept a solemn obligation to protect the classified information entrusted to them,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. “That they do so is critical to the security of our Nation. When clearance holders violate that trust, the National Security Division will act swiftly to hold them accountable.”

“We trust our war fighting individuals to cooperate as a team to protect our military and country,” said U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina Ellis Boyle. “We will pursue criminal charges to keep these warriors safe whenever we find leakers exalting their own feelings over the safety of the United States.”

Full article, HERE from DOJ OPA website.

I guess the real irony is the ‘journalist’ is the one that outed her in the article, by name…

She had TS/SCI clearance, and had signed Nondisclosure Agreements (NDAs), which include wording that distribution of ANY of those documents or other things are prosecutable…

So why did she do this for four years??? Was it money? Pissed off at the Army???

WHY???

I cannot fathom anyone doing this, much less to the actual people she worked with every day. I only hope she is convicted and sent to jail for MANY years.

TBT…

Anybody recognize these???

fuses

Back in the day before ‘breakers’ these were what you had in your house…

They weren’t called FUSE boxes for nothing…LOL

And an ’emergency’ fuse was a real copper penny! As a high school kid, I helped a friend’s grandpa restore a couple of old houses, including rewiring them. We were pulling out CLOTH wrapped wire that dated from the early 20th century, and fuse boxes where you could literally see the burn marks inside the box from fuses arcing as they’d blown over the years…

I’m still amazed those houses hadn’t burned to the ground over the years…

Especially with ‘this’ wiring…

Creative Commons CC-BY-SA-3.0-migrated

Known as knob and tube, it consisted of ceramic knobs were cylindrical and generally nailed directly into the wall studs or joists. The knob was used to secure and anchor the wire, seperating the wire from potentially combustible framework, and ensured that wires were not subject to excessive tension. Because the wires were suspended in air, they could dissipate heat well.

Ceramic tubes were inserted into holes bored in wall studs or floor joists, and the wires were directed through them. This kept the wires from coming into contact with the wood framing members and from being compressed by the wood as the house settled.

OBTW, the ‘maximum’ safe current was no more than ten amps with knob and tube, and the wires were cloth wrapped in most cases…

Today, it’s not unusual to see 30 amp up to 50 amp circuits in homes…

Posted in TBT

This one…

Bothers me a lot…

Australian authorities have arrested and charged the country’s most decorated living soldier, Ben Roberts-Smith, 47, with five war crime murders allegedly committed during the war in Afghanistan.

Roberts-Smith, a former member of the Australian Defence Force, was arrested at Sydney Airport on Tuesday. His arrest has sparked outcry from a former Australian prime minister, who argued its unfair to judge the actions of “men in mortal combat by the standards of ordinary civilian life.” X owner Elon Musk also weighed in on the arrest, calling it “insane.”

The Australian Federal Police and the Office of the Special Investigator said Roberts-Smith is being charged in connection with the killings of five unarmed Afghans in three separate incidents between 2009 and 2012. AFP Commissioner Krissy Barrett alleged that Roberts-Smith either killed the unarmed Afghans himself or instructed a subordinate to kill them. If convicted, Roberts-Smith faces life imprisonment on each charge.

Full article, HERE from Fox News.

It’s enough to make one wonder ‘what’ is the real point? Is this somebody out to ‘get’ Roberts-Smith, or something else? Supposedly, the investigation was started in 2017, so 8 years after the fact???

By lawyers who weren’t there, and who made the original complaint and why 8 years later, rather than at the time???

Of interest is the comment from the investigator that “We don’t have access to the crime scenes, we don’t have photographs, site plans, measurements, the recovery of projectiles, blood spatter analysis, all of those things we would normally get at a crime scene.”

What are they basing the investigation on then? The recall of people that were there? What was the ROE at the time, the specific orders given to Roberts-Smith and/or his bosses?

This kinda reminds me of the BS ROE our folks had to put up with where if the bad guys didn’t have guns in their hands, they couldn’t be shot, even after they had been observed shooting at our folks. And the lawyers wanting to know if any ‘children’ had been harmed.

Not that I ever saw anything defining what a child was… In a part of the world where children were routinely used as lookouts, trigger people, suicide bombers, etc.

Thankfully, I was not there and never had to make one of those decisions, but I knew folks that were and did.

And where does this leave Roberts-Smith? Even if he’s found not guilty, he is ‘tainted’ with the accusations, VC or not.

Sigh…

This…

Could get ‘interesting’ in any number of ways…

DHS Secretary Mullin raises the possibility of pulling CBP and customs officers from airports in large sanctuary cities, citing lack of cooperation with the federal government and funding refusals. International arrivals would be unable to clear customs at those airports. “It’s something we’re looking at,” Mullin said.

Markwayne Mullin is coming out swinging, no question!

So, Boston, Philly, NYC, Chicago, Seattle, SFO, LA, and, if Spanburger has her way, Dulles could lose their customs services. Which would severely impact the airlines as they would have to find somewhere else to clear international travellers.

Can you say Florida and Texas???

I knew you could. The other thing this would do is affect the types of aircraft the airlines could use on the international routes when they have to add 2-3 hours of extra fuel to reach a ‘cleared’ airport.

It might be time to look at your hole card if you were thinking about travelling overseas anytime soon…

Just sayin…

And one other thing, while I’m thinking about it…

WHO leaked we only got ONE of the F-15E crew back? WTF? Did nobody ever hear of OPSEC???

Nothing like giving the entire friggin country a license to headhunt one guy! Thankfully, he was recovered yesterday, apparently in a fairly sophisticated rescue. And it was very involved to keep the Iranians unsure of where exactly he was located.

Sigh…

A little humor…

To start the week!!!

And a few St. Paddy’s jokes… They took the slow boat…

  • Definition of an Irish husband:  He hasn’t kissed his wife for twenty years, but he will kill any man who does.
  •    Murphy told Quinn that his wife was driving him to drink.  Quinn thinks he’s very lucky because his own wife makes him walk.
  •    The late Bishop Sheen stated that the reason the Irish fight so often among themselves is that they’re always assured of having a worthy opponent.
  •    An American lawyer asked, “Paddy, why is it that whenever you ask an Irishman a question, he answers with another question?”  “Who told you that?” asked Paddy.
  • Question – Why are Irish jokes so simple? Answer – So the English can understand them.
  • Reilly went to trial for armed robbery.  The jury foreman came out and announced, “Not guilty.”

“That’s grand!” shouted Reilly. “Does that mean I can keep the money?”

  • Irish lass customer: “Could I be trying on that dress in the window?”

Shopkeeper: “I’d prefer that you use the dressing room.”

  • Mrs. Feeney shouted from the kitchen, “Is that you I hear spittin’ in the vase on the mantle piece?

“No,” said himself, “but I’m gettin’ closer all the time.”

  • Q. What do you call an Irishman who knows how to control a wife? A bachelor.
  • Finnegin: My wife has a terrible habit of staying up ’til two o’clock in the morning.  I can’t break her of it.

Keenan: What on earth is she doin’ at that time?

Finnegin: Waitin’ for me to come home.

  • Slaney phoned the maternity ward at the hospital.  “Quick!” he said.  “Send an ambulance, my wife is goin’ to have a baby!”

“Tell me, is this her first baby?” the intern asked.

“No, this is her husband, Kevin, speakin’.”

  • “O’Ryan,” asked the druggist, “did that mudpack I gave you improve your wife’s appearance?”

“It did surely,” replied O’Ryan, “but it keeps fallin’ off!”

  • Did you hear about the Irish newlyweds who sat up all night on their honeymoon waiting for their sexual relations to arrive?
  • My mother wanted me to be a priest.  Can you imagine giving up your sex life and then once a week people come in to tell you the details and highlights of theirs?
  • Paddy and Mick get a pilot to fly them to Canada to hunt moose. They bag six.

As Paddy and Mick start loading the plane for the return trip, the pilot says, “The plane can only take four of those.”

The two lads object strongly. “Last year we shot six, and the pilot let us put them all on board; he had the same plane as yours.”

Reluctantly, the pilot gives in and all six are loaded.

However, even with full power, the little plane can’t handle the load and down it goes and crashes in the middle of nowhere.

A few moments later, climbing out of the wreckage, Paddy asks Mick,

“Any idea where we are?”

“I think we’re pretty close to where we crashed last year,” says Mick.

  • Paddy says to Mick, “Christmas is on a Friday this year”

Mick says “Let’s hope it’s not the 13th.”

  • Mick walks into Paddy’s barn and catches him dancing naked in front of a tractor.

Mick says, “Oh no, Paddy, what ya doing?”

Paddy says, “Well me and Mary haven’t been getting on in the bedroom lately & the therapist recommended I do something sexy to attracter…..

  • The Irish have solved their own fuel problems. They imported 50 million tons of sand from the Arabs and they’re going to drill for their own oil.
  • Paddy says to Mick – I’m ready for a holiday, only this year I’m going to do it a bit different.

3 years ago I went to Spain and Mary got pregnant.

2 years ago I went to Italy and Mary got pregnant.

Last year I went to Majorca and Mary got pregnant.

Mick asks – So what are you going to do this year?

Paddy replies, I’ll take her with me

  • Paddy calls Easyjet to book a flight. The operator asks “How many people are flying with you?”

Paddy replies “I don’t know! It’s your frigging plane!”

  • Paddy and Murphy are working on a building site.

Paddy says to Murphy “I’m gonna have the day off, I’m gonna pretend I’m mad!” He climbs up the rafters, hangs upside down and shouts “I’M A LIGHTBULB! I’M A LIGHTBULB!”

Murphy watches in amazement!

The Foreman shouts “Paddy you’re mad, go home” So he leaves the site.

Murphy starts packing his kit up to leave as well.

“Where the hell are you going?” asks the Foreman.

“I can’t work in the  dark!” says Murphy.

  • Paddy, the electrician, got sacked from the U…S. Prison service for not servicing the electric chair. He said in his professional opinion it was a death trap!
  • Paddy is said to be shocked at finding out all his cows have Bluetongue. “Be Jeysus!” he said, “I didn’t even know they had mobile phones!”
  • Mick and Paddy are reading head stones at a nearby cemetery. Mick say “Crikey! There’s a bloke here who was 152!”

Paddy says “What’s his name?”

Mick replies “Miles, from London !”

Happy Easter!!!

To each and everyone I wish you a Happy Easter, may your day be filled with Love and Joy!!!

THE EASTER LILY HOLIDAY TRADITION

Each holiday is marked by cherished traditions that bring joy, comfort, and warmth, and provide continuity from one generation to the next. Easter has its share of traditions: egg decorations and hunts; gift baskets and chocolate bunnies, sunrise church services, parades, and, of course, the Easter Lily. For many, the beautiful trumpet-shaped white flowers symbolize purity, virtue, innocence, hope and life – the spiritual essence of Easter.

History, mythology, literature, poetry and the world of art are rife with stories and images that speak of the beauty and majesty of the elegant white flowers. Dating back to Biblical lore, the lily is mentioned numerous times in the Bible. One of the most famous Biblical references is in the Sermon on the Mount, when Christ told his listeners: “Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they toil not, neither do they spin; and yet….. Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”

Often called the “white-robed apostles of hope,” lilies were found growing in the Garden of Gethsemane after Christ’s agony. Tradition has it that the beautiful white lilies sprung up where drops of Christ’s sweat fell to the ground in his final hours of sorrow and deep distress. Churches continue this tradition at Easter time by banking their alters and surrounding their crosses with masses of Easter Lilies, to commemorate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and hope of life everlasting.

Since the beginning of time, lilies have played significant roles in allegorical tales concerning the sacrament of motherhood. Ancient fables tell us the lily sprang from the milk of Hera, the mythological Queen of Heaven.

The pure white lily has long been closely associated with the Virgin Mary. In early paintings, the Angel Gabriel is pictured extending to the Virgin Mary a branch of pure white lilies, announcing that she is to be the mother of the Christ Child. In other paintings, saints are pictured bringing vases full of white lilies to Mary and the infant Jesus.

The legend is told that when the Virgin Mary’s tomb was visited three days after her burial, it was found empty save for bunches of majestic white lilies. Early writers and artists made the lily the emblem of the Annunciation, the Resurrection of the Virgin: the pure white petals signifying her spotless body and the golden anthers her soul glowing with heavenly light.

It seems the thirteenth-century Barthololmeus Anglicus had this in mind when he wrote: ‘The Lily is an herbe with a white flower; and though the leaves of the floure be white, yet within shineth the likeness of gold.” So goes the saying, ‘To gild a lily is to attempt, foolishly, to improve on perfection.” To many artists and poets it seemed that, if any flower could have one, the lily had a soul.

In yet another expression of womanhood, lilies had a significant presence in the paradise of Adam and Eve. Tradition has it that when Eve left the Garden of Eden she shed real tears of repentance, and from those remorseful tears sprung up lilies. The spiritual principle held here is that true repentance is the beginning of beauty.

A mark of purity and grace throughout the ages, the regal white lily is a fitting symbol of the greater meaning of Easter. Gracing millions of homes and churches, the flowers embody joy, hope and life. Whether given as a gift or enjoyed in your own home, the Easter Lily serves as a beautiful reminder that Easter is a time for rejoicing and celebrating.

Ironically, the white (Easter) lily is a native plant of Southern Japan…

Interesting…

And not in a good way, IMHO…

The U.S. Supreme Court is considering the legality of an executive order from President Donald Trump that would restrict birthright citizenship.

The order would deny U.S. citizenship to children born in the United States to mothers who are unauthorized immigrants or have legal temporary status at the time of the child’s birth if the father is not a citizen or lawful permanent resident.

<snip>

In 2023, mothers who were unauthorized immigrants or had legal temporary status in the U.S. had 320,000 babies, representing about 9% of all 3.6 million babies born in the U.S. that year. About 260,000 of those babies would not have qualified for birthright citizenship if Trump’s executive order had already been in effect. This includes:

  • About 245,000 babies born to mothers who were unauthorized immigrants and fathers who were not citizens or lawful permanent residents
  • About 15,000 babies born to mothers who had legal temporary status and fathers who were not citizens or lawful permanent residents

Full article, HERE from the Pew Research Center.

Of note, a significant percentage of the ‘temporary status births’ were what is called birth tourism, with many of those being Chinese. Interesting, isn’t it???

And we all remember the sob stories about the pregnant females stopped at the southern border by the new administration in 2025, right? Did anyone wonder ‘why’ all those pregnant females were wailing and moaning about being stopped? If they had the kids in Mexico, no US citizenship!

Much like the whole feet wet/feet dry Cuban refugee status, ironically ended by Obama in 2017, HERE.

The Pew report only goes back to 1990, but the numbers they posit are pretty large, making up possibly 1/3 of the total illegal immigrants currently in the US, if those birthright citizenships had been denied.

Section 1 of the 14th Amendment has been open to discussion for many years, HERE. Much of the issue revolves around the words “subject to the jurisdiction thereof” and what that really means.

IMHO, birth tourists and illegals do not meet the requirement of being subject to the jurisdiction, since they are not American, and are not in the process of being naturalized.

Your thoughts?

TBT…

Hard to believe this was 51 years ago… sigh…

Digging WAY back in the vault…

Of memories, and the few operating brain cells that remember…

Setting the way back machine to 1974-5 thanks to a conversation last night with an old shipmate, he sent me a picture of the bar map from Olongopo, RP from 1973 (note- These were probably good for two or three days… Then somebody would change their bar’s name, and the Shore Patrol would have to go re-do it). Sorry it’s basically unreadable, and can’t be blown up any further!

There were over 100 bars and ‘restaurants’ in about 4-5 blocks of Magsaysay… interestingly, ‘our’ bars were on the first street to the right, Gordon Avenue, and NONE of them are listed…LOL

The picture below is from the cruise book from 1975, kinda says it all… The Mayaguez rescue, Jenny the donkey in Diego Garcia, and a monkey in the BOQ at Cubi eating popcorn it had stolen from a room…

VP4 pic

The donkey loved beer, and would actually drink it from the can (until she got too drunk, then she’d go lean against the Butler hut that was our ‘hangar’)…

A ‘normal’ road trip was 6 weeks, 7 countries and about 11-12,000 miles of just transits, not counting the operational flying…

Fun stuff, and good memories (the bad ones have been long forgotten)! An interesting side note, we never called ourselves ‘combat’ air crews, just alpha crews (You had to complete multiple qualifications to meet all the requirements to actually be certified to perform all the P-3’s missions), unlike the specialized crews today…

We could have a surveillance flight one day and an ASW flight two days later, or a mining evolution…

Another teacher…

Exploiting teens…

A 22-year-old high school special education teacher is facing decades behind bars after authorities say she engaged in sexual relationships with students and provided them with alcohol at her apartment.

Nadia Horn, who co-taught World Studies at Eau Claire North High School, made her initial appearance in Eau Claire County Court on Monday on felony child sexual assault charges.

According to a criminal complaint obtained by WEAU-TV, the investigation began on March 25 when the Eau Claire Area School District flagged a “potential inappropriate relationship” to a School Resource Officer. The subsequent probe revealed a pattern of grooming and exploitation involving multiple 16-year-old victims.

Full article, HERE from Fox News.

But as usual, we don’t see the outrage when it is a male teacher and underage females…

Why???

How is this any different than when a male does it? When a male is involved, the immediate call is rape! Is this not also rape?

And this is not a ‘one off’, as there have been at least 10 similar cases I can think of off the top of my head.

And those boys will be dealing with that the rest of their lives.

Grrrr…