Saturday, June 24, 2006

Picture Time VII

This is from Panama. You know that every gringo who visits Panama has to take at least ONE picture of the Panama Canal.

Well, I took more than one. But I'm only showing you one of them, in the interest of keeping you interested in this blog.



I'm off to the beach. Toodles!

And Tim - Happy thoughts and good drugs, bro!

News Round-Up

With Tim getting fitted for his Bionic Tool (We can repair him! We can make him better!) I figured I'd check out what had been happening around the country.

Wow. That's what I get for not watching the news for a week.

We have a terror cell busted in Miami. The Left is in absolute denial about this, of course. "Oh, they weren't REAL terrorists! They were a bunch of bungling amateurs!"

Tell me, just what constitutes a "real" terrorist? Is it intent? Action? The amount of people that they can kill? If they plan to blow up a bus stop, but we catch them before they do it, are they no longer terrorists?

Can someone tell me how the Left can actually argue "The weren't real terrorists!" without their heads exploding from the influx of bullshit?

MORE confirmation of Chemical Weapons in Iraq. Um, duh. Anyone who hasn't been braindead and in denial for the past four years knew that Saddam had WMD. But the Left is so bankrupt of logic and facts that they had to hitch their wagon onto the "SADDAM WASN'T A THREAT" meme and hold on for dear life. Thus we get the laughable arguments that Saddam didn't have any WMD, Saddam didn't gas anybody, Saddam wasn't a threat, these are not the droids you're looking for, and various other drug-fueled pipe dreams and childish temper-tantrums put forth as "debate" from the Left.

By bringing Saddam's weapons to light AGAIN, it proves the Leftoids wrong on several counts AGAIN. Saddam was NOT contained. Saddam DID pose a threat. The weapons inspections were NOT working. And Saddam DID have weapons of mass destruction. This doesn't even begin to touch the other reasons for going into Iraq.

But let's face it - Saddam could have a parade in downtown NYC, where he's riding a nuke a la Dr. Strangelove and spraying Sarin gas all over Times Square, and the Leftoids would STILL find a reason to wail and gnash their teeth about the war. Because in the end, they're not against the war. They're against President Bush. Their hatred of all things Bush has snapped their already feeble minds and sent them spiraling downward in a well of hatred so damn big that they'll do anything they can in order to see President Bush brought down. And they don't care if they bring this country down with him. They don't care if American is left in smoking rubble so long as that BASTARD CHIMPY MCHITLERBURTON IS BROUGHT TO JUSTICE!!!11!1! POWER TO THE PEOPLE MAN!!!1

We're not dealing with rational people anymore. They would burn down their own house if they though Bush was inside it, even if they had to light the match from their own living room and bring the whole thing down around their ears. Sanity has departed from the Left.

Which merges rather nicely to this next bit - the NYT has once again leaked information regarding secret methods used to follow, observe and trap terrorists. And this time, the Slimes even admits there is nothing illegal going on! They just wanted people to know the truth, because, like, uh... it's IMPORTANT, MAN! GIMMIE MY PULITZER!

The Bush Administration asked the NYT not to run the story. We were still using the program to hunt terrorists, and we didn't want them to know what we were doing. And the NYT ran the story anyway.

Tell me, what do you call people who continually expose secret information to our enemy? What do you call people who work for our enemies? I call them traitors. And let's be clear - I don't think they're helping our enemies because they have a deep longing for a Caliphate. They're helping our enemies because they have a deep longing to see President Bush brought down for ANYTHING. They have been flinging shit at Bush for years, hoping that they could get something, anything to stick and create a scandal. And they've failed. So now, they're exposing the secrets with which we hunt down terrorists, feverishly searching for a scandal that they can pin on the Administration, and all they have done is alert the Terrorists to what we're doing. They've given away our secrets to al-Queda. They are actively working against this country because they can't stand the President.

In their hatred and seething they have done more harm to this country than anyone could have imagined. Whatever their motives, their actions have labeled them clearly. TRAITORS. Anti-American criminals who should be locked up for the rest of their lives, along with whoever leaked the information to them in the first place. Has there ever been another era where American citizens have worked so hard against American interests, all in the name of bringing down the President?

And what's even worse.... is anyone surprised by their actions? Nope. We expect them to be anti-American asshats these days. It's their MO. Until a Democrat is president, the NYT will be as anti-American as al-Jazeera. And we all know it.

Thursday, June 22, 2006

Percocet Time I

While Dave has been enjoying his well-deserved vacation and spending some quality time with his bride, I have been spending some quality time with a urologist, who this morning at approximately 1100 Eastern used a special set of surgical tools to first look around inside my urethra and bladder and then to incise a half inch long stricture (or contracture) in said urethra.

((( luckily I was anaesthetized at the time ))) LOL

Anyway, the doc then sent me home with a catheter which I am to wear for 10 days while the incision heals around it. Add a couple follow up visits and my pecker should be back to normal.

Meanwhile: ouch.

Picture Time VI

Egypt in one word - brown.

The yellowish tint in this photo isn't because of bad film, or crappy proccessing. It's because everything in Egypt is brown. And after you've been outside for a while, all the dust makes you brown as well.



Toodles!

Wednesday, June 21, 2006

Picture Time V

Today's picture comes to you from Virginia Beach. Fort Story, to be exact. I was on one of my beachcombing jaunts when I saw bird footprints in the sand, and just decided to take a shot of it. I haven't altered it in any way. It was the way the color of the sand, combined with the shadows, made it look almost like a photo of the surface of some different planet that appealed to me.



And yes, I'm still on vacation. And yes, I'm still enjoying it. Toodles!

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

Picture Time IV

I'm doing my best to avoid the news. I'm on vacation dammit!

The picture today comes from Pike Place Market in Seattle. As you walk inbetween the kiosks and shops, you enter a dark hallway, with seafood vendors and restaurants on one side, and produce vendors on the other. There's not much overhead lighting, so the vendors hang lights to make their goods look presentable. I took this shot with the apature closed ever so slightly so that the fruits and veggies would pop out at you, but everyone else not in direct light would fade into the background somewhat. As always, if someone wants this photo, let me know and I can send a larger copy via email.



Enjoy. I hear a gin and tonic calling my name....

My World is a Sanity-Free Zone

I work with one guy, name of Bob, works in our office in Georgia, who is lucid.

Everyone else is 100% dyed-in-the-proverbial-wood nutcase.

Makes for a long day sometimes, you know.

Monday, June 19, 2006

Gooooooooooooooooooooooallllllllllllllllll

Some football player from Ghana waves the flag of Israel after scoring a World Cup goal against the Czech Republic, and anger ensues.

UPDATE: Protestations ensue, so apology ensues.

Send him back to Obscurity, please.

Murtha

More about Murtha.

Ummm, it seems to me that he is no longer lucid.

Picture Time III

This picture comes to you from an undisclosed location in New England. I was in Massachusetts for my brother's wedding in '04, and during some down time I was walking around a harbor looking for a good seafood restaurant. It was sunset, and while walking past a few boats I saw an opportunity for a good photo.

The picture in this size doesn't quite do it justice, but you can get the idea. The colors are mindblowing. If anyone wants it larger, just email me and I'll get it sent off to you.

After my vacation, of course.

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Picture Time II

Yesterday we went with a picture from Korea. Today, we'll go with Puerto Rico.

In Old San Juan, you'll see the two castles that protected the city for centuries. El Castile del Morro, and El Castile de San Cristobal. El Morro is the more famous of the two, because it directly guards San Juan Bay. It is over six stories tall, built out of rock, and just the sheer look of it is imposing when you're sailing up close to it.

Unfortunately, I didn't have my camera for that shot. I did, however, take a tour of El Morro, and that time managed to bring my camera with me.

One of the most famous symbols of Puerto Rico is la garita. La garita are the Spanish watchtowers that were built along the entirety of the huge wall that protected the city of Old San Juan. They are featured prominently in El Morro and San Cristobal, in artwork all over the island, and even in my unit's patch. Here is a view of the entrance to one -



For someone of my size, it's rather small and cramped. For someone who was part of the Spanish Army in the 1500's, it's rather roomy. These guard posts helped keep San Juan defended for four hundred years, until the Spanish American war and the invasion of the American Army.

As a bonus shot, here is a view of the entrance to San Juan Bay, shot from El Morro.



In the distace, you can see a spit of land. That land held another fort. Due to the way the city was planned, the only real way to get to the heart of the city was through San Juan Bay. And the bay was guarded by El Morro and this other fort. Their cannons would literally shred any fleet that was foolish enough to attack it. Your only other choice was to land a mile or two away from San Juan, and then march up to it's imposing walls and try to lay seige.

I'll say it again - for close to four-hundred years, nobody was able to conquer Puerto Rico. That's longer than the history of the United States of America.

Anyways, that's two photos and a history lesson, all in one day. I'm continuing my vacation now.