No Internet notice

And for anyone who cares, the Puerto Rico Telephone Company is nothing more than a third rate craptastic group of incompetent shitnozzles.

After somehow losing the payments for the past two months, as well as still charging us for services we cut off three months ago, they had the gall to tell us that they would reconnect our phone sometime next week if we paid them a fee that was over one-hundred dollars. Y'know, to make up for the payments they lost, even though our bank statement says that they deposited our checks.

The Raging Mrs. lived up to the first part of her name. The person on the other end of the line was rather lucky that they were on the phone, rather than in person. I'm rather lucky as well, because had the conversation taken place face to face, I would have to find a place around here to dispose of one shredded body.

So the short short version is this: The Raging Mrs. told PRTC to fuck themselves with a chainsaw, which means we have no phone line. And since we can't get cable internet on post, we don't have any internet at our house. I'm typing this from an undisclosed location on post. In the meantime, we're trying to find some way of getting internet that doesn't require a phone line or cable. We thought we had found a company that could get us internet, but due to our location (or more importantly, due to the location of their broadcasting tower) that fell through. Needless to say, posts from me are going to decline in number for a while until we get this figured out.

But we will get it figured out, one way or another.

And now for some good news - the laptop stolen from a VA employee's house has been recovered.

WASHINGTON - Social Security numbers and other personal data on 26.5 million veterans and military troops were not copied from a Veterans Affairs computer missing for eight weeks, the FBI said Thursday.

The recovery of the laptop and external drive was a "positive note in this very sad saga," VA Secretary Jim Nicholson said.

Now, according to some of the reports I've seen, the employee had permission to take all that information home so that she could continue working. If that's the case, I want to see some heads way up high start rolling. But hopefully, none of the information was copied or removed.

Time will tell. The wife and I had a password installed on our bank account because of this. The tech we spoke with said that quite a few people had been doing that. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

He's Moderate

Barack Obama sez: white men have difficulty clapping in rhythm and adds that John Murtha is not to be second guessed.

Unfortunately...

...they seem to prefer the Stone Age: Hostage Murdered

Whatever it takes

Bomb them further into the stone age.

Level their power plants. Flatten their water supply. Destroy everything that allows them to function, until the terrorists give up the captured Israeli soldier.

And if they find the soldier dead, continue to flatten everything the terrorists have, until the terrorists can no longer attack Israel.

I have never understood the restraint Israel places on itself. They target as selectively as possible. They give up the Gaza Strip, for god's sake, hoping that the Palestinians will just leave them alone! But nothing works. Nothing works when the people you're dealing with are people in name only.

So if they don't want the carrot, give them the stick. And make damn sure it's a big stick.

Burn the ground and then salt it, so that no Palestinian can ever again use that land to attack Israel. As far as I'm concerned, until the Palestinians stop their terrorism against Israel, they have forfeited the right to live. If they cannot draw breath without using it to attack Israel, then prevent them from drawing another breath.

Is that nice? No. But the Palestinians have shown that they will only allow one group of people to survive. It is their own choice to attack. Israel should ensure that they never get the chance.

NEVER AGAIN!

There are some people....

There are some people out there that you just hate to meet, for whatever reason.

Some people don't know how to have any fun, as if laughter was something to be avoided. They don't know how to keep an interesting conversation going; they always interject something off-topic or smothering.

Some people have gone through life trying not to offend people by being PC, or by changing themselves to fit other people's perceptions. They try to be everything to everyone, and in doing so make themselves less, as if in assuming so many identities they have forgotten to forge their own.

Some people only say what other people want to hear, instead of saying the truth. Truth can be uncomfortable. Truth can be harsh and acidic. And thus, the truth can make some people fidget in their chairs and plug their ears.

Some people have run away from risks in life, staying in their comfort zone at all times, even when it means living a bland, average life. They've never experienced anything great, because they refuse to risk failing in their goal, and thus never even make it halfway to greatness.

Some people go through life doing what they're told, and never once saying "You know what? Screw you, I'm going to do what I want for once in my life!"

And then there are the other people. The other people that you love to meet, and try to surround yourself with.

These are the people who say what's on their mind, even when it might piss people off. They care more about the truth than your feelings, and even if they offend you in the process you're thankful that there's at least ONE person in the world who won't load you down with bullshit.

The other people not only know how to laugh and have a good time, they try to do it as much as they possibly can.

The other people are individuals to the core, and you know when you meet them that there ain't anyone else in the world quite like this guy or gal. Put twenty people in identical clothing and identical haircuts, and you can still pick those other people out, because the sheer act of fitting in with everyone else is so alien to them that they just can't do it.

The other people know that you don't get rich, or famous, or achieve greatness by sitting on your front porch bragging about what you did in highschool. You find the highest peak you can, and start climbing it, because the reward at the top of that peak is worth all the risks involved. And if you only made it halfway there, you can at least look down at all the miserable pukes who didn't even try, and pity them. Or tell them where the hand-holds are. Or both. What if the Wright Brothers said "Nah, too risky!'? What if the Pilgrims said "You know, Greenland should be good enough don't you think?" What if Christopher Columbus had said "Turn it around boys, it's too risky."? But they didn't. They were the other people.

Rob Smith was one of those other people. You read his blog, and you didn't know whether to curse him out or laugh out loud. You looked at the things he did in life, and you had one of two thoughts. It was either A) "Oh hell, I wish I'd done that!" or B) "Did you mean to fuck it up that bad, or was it an accident?"

Never once did you read his writing and go "Meh. Whatever."

Rob was found slumped on his couch this morning. He was in his mid 50's, but he packed more life into those years than some people could experience in three lifetimes. He lived life on his terms, and if you didn't like it then you could kiss his cracker ass.

I met Rob in Tacoma, when he and his friend Catfish (and Catfish's wife Georgia) were doing a road trip through the States. He was a cranky old coot, but that could have something to do with the fact that I showed up in a kilt and a smile with my then girlfriend (now wife) on my arm. We talked, and drank, and had a good time, and then my wife and I went home. We've kept in touch, kinda-sorta. I'd read his blog, he'd stop by here every now and then, and we'd wave at each other over the internet. I figured I'd get another chance to hang out with him when I got off this island.

Not this time.

Rob had written steadily for years. He influenced more people than even he knew. And when the bullshit was flying, you could always count on Rob to cut through the crap and lay out the truth as he saw it. Even if you didn't like what he presented, you knew he wasn't giving you a line of BS. He had a hell of a life, both good and bad, and towards the end of it managed to beat down his personal demons. Again, life on his terms. There wasn't anything that was going to control him if he had anything to say about it.

Rob wrote the way people should write. He was popular because he not only put his heart out on his blog, he made sure you could understand how he felt and why he felt that way. He was a better communicator than most of the intellectuals today could even dream of being.

Dammit, Rob, you're going to be missed. This planet needs more of people like you, not less.

But Godspeed, brother.

Ohpleaseohpleaseohpleaseohplease!

Granted, I don't think it will actually happen, but at least someone is speaking about taking the New York Slimes to task for their leaks of classified programs.

The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee urged the Bush administration on Sunday to seek criminal charges against newspapers that reported on a secret financial-monitoring program used to trace terrorists.

Rep. Peter King cited The New York Times in particular for publishing a story last week that the Treasury Department was working with the CIA to examine messages within a massive international database of money-transfer records.

There was nothing illegal about this latest program that the NYT exposed. It was working. It was successful. It was legal. And the Administration asked the Times to NOT PRINT THE DAMN STORY because it would compromise the program's effectivness.

But the NYT put it out anyway, and that's one more program that we cannot use to capture terrorists.

So I say hold their feet to the fire. Find out who's leaking the stories and burn their asses. Put people in jail for a good looooooooooooooooooong time.

But like I said, I don't think it will actually happen. As much as I hate to say it, I really do believe it will take another terrorist attack on this country before people get serious about dealing with terrorists and the countries that support them.

West Point has a new Cadet

And something tells me he's got a whole lot of reasons to succeed. Check it out.

Found at the MilBlogs.

Quick Digest

Michelle Malkin has had a Photoshop contest for the New York Times. I don't really see the furor directed at NYT as particularly helpful. I want the leaker. Find who blabbed, then try him, convict him, and hang him.

Palestinian gang threatens WMD attack on Israel.

Russian Hostages Gateway Pundit: Beheaded by Al Qaeda in Iraq. Lots of good stuff at Gateway Pundit.

ACLU vs. NSA update.

Seize the Land!

Maxi Preesh....

...on the wishes for good drugs, better health, and of course the empathetic squirms and howls are always comforting.

This is what we're talking about:


Foley Catheter

Bascially a tube inside a tube, one tube of which helps drain wastewater from one's system. The other is used solely to inflate (and, mercifully (in due time) deflate) the balloon that keeps the drainage tube in one's bladder.

Now, can anyone venture: what two words, when used adjacent to each other, mix most poorly with "Foley Catheter"?

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.

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!

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!

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.

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.

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.