Random stuff…

Posted on by November 16, 2013

This is from a discussion at the Socratic Club at OSU…

Worth thinking about… Just sayin…

In other news-

The GW CSG is onstation off Tacloban and the Marines have moved V-22s into the area flying from Cebu Airport to support the relief efforts.  But I find it interesting that there is VERY little coverage (and some appears actually negative) as to whether it will be enough…  Considering that, to my knowledge, no other major support operations are anywhere close to actually being in place including the UN, Red Cross etc.  I find it rather interesting that what the Navy and Marines are doing is being downplayed like it is…  I can’t help but wonder if this ties back to the administration’s desires to ‘minimize’ the military…

Here locally, Kaiser has dropped INOVA Hospital from it’s provider list.  This is rather interesting, since this is the major hospital that serves Alexandria and Southern Arlington Co.  Also, it appears United Health is dropping a LOT of doctors, especially those that provide Medicare/Medicaid treatment… Link HERE.

There is also a lot of back and forth going on about the ‘changes’ to obummercare that the Prez did Thursday and it’s legality… The congresscritters finally got off the dime and at least the House passed a measure, but who knows what the Senate is going to do?  Article HERE.

The dems own this and are running like hell to get away from it, and BO is backed into a corner…  I’m amazed at the Dems talking heads continuing to say it’s all the Pubs fault… And Pelosi flat out lying on TV yesterday…  Next thing it will all be Bush’s fault!

And Oprah (spit) is out there saying this is ALL about racism…  Link HERE.

Personally I think this whole cluster is nothing more than a stepping stone to the administration’s goal of single payer controlled by the government…

And THAT scares the hell out of me…

It’s getting ugly out there…

Posted on by November 16, 2013

Via commenter Stretch, a link to Sebastian’s post on the latest from Colorado on the recalls…

Stretch’s comment is pretty appropriate too, especially for us ‘old farts’…

“I hate living in ‘Interesting times’.”

Democratic interests groups are getting quite dirty and nasty with their tactics to keep from losing additional seats.

Link HERE.

Seb and Bitter stay on point for all of us on the legal issues; they are truly nice folks that dedicate a LOT of personal time to tracking these things nationwide, not just locally in PA and the surrounding states!

I’d highly recommend you add their blog, Shall Not Be Questioned, to your daily read list!!!

Jace and Vito…

Posted on by November 15, 2013

Jace has now found his ‘tongue’ and is vocalizing…

And yes, it’s turned the wrong way… Sorry bout that, but PP just grabbed the phone and took this on the fly!!!

Vito is one patient dog… And when Jace starts crying, Vito starts licking 🙂

A Chance Encounter…

Posted on by November 15, 2013

Frequent commenter Toejam sent this via email, and posted with his permission…

I was shopping at a local(North Carolina) “Harris Teeter” supermarket today. As chance would have it I pulled into a parking space next to a 7 year old Buick sedan. As I walked toward the store I noticed the license plate had: “Recipient of the Distinguished Flying Cross” on it. That’s one step below the “Congressional Medal of Honor” for you non-military types.

Suddenly a stooped, Silver-grey haired man approached. He was stooped & old but he had a special sparkle in his eyes.

I asked if this Buick was his. He said “yes sir it is”. Here standing next to me was the WW-II pilot of a B-17 that was shot down over Europe and he called me “Sir”!

3 out of 4 engines of his B-17 were shot totally out by flack at 26,000 feet and the plane was starting to spiral down. He ordered his 9 man crew to bail out, but he decided to stick with the plane to try and keep it fairly level till the men got out. Finally, it was his turn. He jumped at barely 500 feet.

He didn’t say how many of the crew survived and I didn’t ask. The survivors were aided by the “partisans” and, after a long cold trek, they got back to American lines.

Here we were standing in the middle of a busy parking lot, me listening and him telling me this like he was reliving a dream. Cars were backed up but neither of us noticed.

Finally, I thanked him for his service and his heroic deed. He gave me a card with his address and phone number. Then while getting into his car he smiled and said: “come over for a visit some time and we’ll have a longer talk.”

You can bet I’ll take him up on the offer.

The LINK is the abbreviated story of the B-17 Pilot Toejam met today. A humble, polite but very proud member of the “Greatest Generation”.

When Toejam does meet with LT Logan, I’ll post it here.

I wonder…

Posted on by November 14, 2013

How far are we away from this happening again???

This was sent by a friend who’s dad was there in 1932… And he said he’s seeing the handwriting on the wall…

The mood of the country is DEFINITELY not positive right now, and I cannot remember the divisions being this deep in my lifetime…

There has been a purge of brass across the entire military structure both on the high ranking officers and senior enlisted ranks, and it seems to be continuing and now dropping down to the O-6 (Col/Capt) ranks.  What is also happening is the O-5s and E-7s are retiring rather than trying to grab the brass ring one more time…

This means most of those in the senior ranks have drunk the koolaid and will do (or be forced by higher) to do what ever is required by the administration…

And then there is Sequestration…

And we hear of DHS forming a military ‘army’ of ‘federal’ officers to counter demonstrations inside the USA.

And it seems that anyone who is former military, Christian, believes in freedom, etc. is now being classified as a ‘domestic terrorist’, while the real terrorists are being quietly removed from lists, bought off, cooperated with by this administration…

I just don’t see this ending well, not at all.

I’m I being totally paranoid here???

Here we go again… Sigh…

Posted on by November 14, 2013

The PSH has started yet again over the ‘invisible’ weapons…

Federal law enforcement authorities are raising concerns new, futuristic 3-D printed guns made entirely out of plastic could pose a myriad of security threats across the U.S., as a law banning undetectable firearms is set to expire.

3-D industrial printers that can create plastic models and prototypes can make workable guns that can’t be picked up by metal detectors, and officials say they could pose a threat to countless government institutions, schools and other buildings.

And is anyone surprised by ‘these’ statements???

A longtime ban on undetectable firearms is scheduled to expire Dec. 9 and two Democratic senators, Chuck Schumer of New York and Bill Nelson of Florida, have called for a ban on plastic guns. Rep. Steve Israel, D-N.Y., also has introduced legislation on the issue.

“The expiration of this law, combined with advances in 3-D printing, make what was once a hypothetical threat into a terrifying reality,” said Schumer. “We are actively exploring all options to pass legislation that will eliminate the problem.”

Full article HERE from Fox.

Didn’t we go through this when Glocks first came to the US???

And the supposed ‘ceramic’ pistols???

But the horse is out of the barn now, and it’s awfully hard to close that door. I can’t help but wonder if Chuck U Schumer will try to ban Glocks, S&W M&P and all the other polymer pistols while he’s at it???

And what about the AR lowers? And… And… And…

Sigh…

 

WTF???

Posted on by November 14, 2013

So BO apparently went on TeeWee today and said, “It’s on him” for the Obummercare screw up, and now he’s decided you ‘can’ keep your policy…

BUT, can you see ANY insurance company putting those policies back in for only a year, and I really don’t see how either BO or the Congresscritters can force them to do it…

Cause the insurance companies have spent three years ‘crafting’ policies that will meet the new rules…

Am I wrong here???

I got nuthin…

Posted on by November 13, 2013

Can’t find anything good to say, so I’m going with jokes… sigh…

It seems that God was tired, and wanted to take a vacation. However, being everywhere at once, it was a little difficult for him to decide on where to go. So, he called the Archangel Gabriel in on the carpet…

GOD: Gabe, I’ve got a problem, and I was hoping you could help me out.

GABRIEL: I’ll try lord.

GOD: Well, I need a vacation, and I can’t decide where I should go, and I was hoping that you could give me some suggestions.

( Gabriel thinks intently for a few seconds,…)

GABRIEL: How about Mercury? That’s a nice place.

GOD: Nope, too hot. It takes all night to get over the sun-burn you got during the day.

( Gabriel thinks a little longer…..)

GABRIEL: Hmmmm,…. Well, how about Mars?

GOD: Nope, Mars is too much of a party place. All that whooping and hollering, I never get any rest when I go there.

( Gabriel is starting to get a little desperate by this time….)

GABRIEL: Well, how about Earth?

GOD: NO!! No Way!! The last time I went there, I got this little Jewish girl pregnant, and I haven’t heard the end of that yet!

 

Here’s another one….

 

An engineer dies and reports to the pearly gates.  St. Peter checks his dossier and says, “Ah, you’re an engineer — you’re in the wrong place.”

So the engineer reports to the gates of hell and is let in. Pretty soon, the engineer gets dissatisfied with the level of comfort in hell, and starts designing and building improvements.  After a while, they’ve got air conditioning and flush toilets and escalators, and the engineer is a pretty popular guy.

One day, God calls Satan up on the telephone and says with a sneer,

“So, how’s it going down there in hell?”

Satan replies, “Hey, things are going great.  We’ve got air conditioning and flush toilets and escalators, and there’s no telling what this engineer is going to come up with next.”

God replies, “What???  You’ve got an engineer?  That’s a mistake -he should never have gotten down there; send him up here.”

Satan says, “No way. I like having an engineer on the staff, and I’m keeping him.”

God says, “Send him back up here or I’ll sue.”

Satan laughs uproariously and answers, “Yeah, right.  And just where are YOU going to get a lawyer?”

And a couple of pics that kinda say it all…

I REALLY need one of these for the commute to work…

Seal fast vehicle

And in other news, the meter is damn near pegged with the BS going on around this town…

Morale meter

Please go visit the folks on the sidebar, they’re all good reads!!!

A must read…

Posted on by November 13, 2013

Via Borepatch, you really need to read this one…

http://idrivewarships.wordpress.com/2013/11/10/a-sailors-dying-wish/

It just proves the ‘real’ traditions of the Navy are alive and well in that they truly take care of shipmates, young AND old…

RIP EM2 Cloud, the kids are picking up the tradition you helped start…

Sequestration be damned…

Posted on by November 12, 2013

The Navy and Marines are doing their jobs and once again responding to a natural disaster…

WASHINGTON (NNS) — Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel has ordered the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) and other U.S. Navy ships to make best speed for the Republic of the Philippines. 

The aircraft carrier, which carries 5,000 Sailors and more than 80 aircraft, is currently in Hong Kong for a port visit. The crew is being recalled early from shore leave and the ship is expected to be underway later this evening. 

In company with the carrier will be the cruisers USS Antietam (CG 54) and USS Cowpens (CG 63), and the destroyer USS Mustin (DDG 89). The supply ship USNS Charles Drew (T-AKE-10) is already underway and will rendezvous with the group as they get closer. USS Lassen (DDG 82) got underway yesterday for the region. Embarked on board USS George Washington, is Carrier Air Wing Five (CVW-5). 

CVW-5 is a collection of aircraft designed to perform various functions including disaster relief and includes the “Golden Falcons” of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 12 flying the MH-60S Seahawk; and the “Saberhawks” of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 77 flying the MH-60R Seahawk.

As needed, these ships and aircraft will be able to provide humanitarian assistance, supplies, and medical care in support of the ongoing efforts led by the government and military of the Republic of the Philippines. 

The ships should be on station within 48-72 hours. The Defense Department is continuing to work closely with the Philippine government to determine what, if any, additional assets may be required. 

From the BBC.

Roughly 250 Marines and sailors with the 3rd Marine Expeditionary Brigade are on the ground in the Philippines as of Tuesday morning. Their chief mission is to support the Philippine military in lifting support materials into the disaster zone, as well as evacuating Americans and injured locals.  BG Paul Kennedy, the III MEB commander, toured the disaster zone by plane shortly after arriving there.

I understand from folks in theater there will be a pretty large effort, much like what USS LINCOLN did during the Indonesian earthquakes…

I’m sure the UN will try to take credit, and I really hope they don’t try (again) to make our Sailors and Marines wear the Blue Beanies…

But it’s interesting that there is little to no coverage of this other than Fox and foreign news services… 

And I’m betting the administration won’t cough up any extra funds to replace what’s being used in the HA/DR efforts, or replace any of the consumables that go over the side to support those in need.