Last Saturday morning we went to Washington D.C. to the Restoring Honor rally hosted by Glenn Beck. It was amazing to be there in many ways. I felt like I was taking part in a significant historical event. I think it's clear it was a historical event even though some would dismiss it as a sham or hijack of MLK's historic significance. It's like the kinds of events you grew up reading about in history books or seeing on some History Channel episode. But this time instead of watching or reading about "those people" who attended, I was actually one of them; someone actually taking part in history. I keep thinking about what my part in it is. Just being there and adding one more body to the crowd count at a minimum. But is there more to it? I ask myself: "what more can I do?" as if I had all this spare time to do things (like write a blog at 6:00 am).
Several co-workers, upon realizing my family and I went to the rally (mostly because I have a picture of the crowd on my computer wallpaper) ask "what was it about?" or "why did you go?". I find it hard to answer the question on many levels. For one I think "don't you see what's happening?" but then I realize they don't. Not many people have "awakened" to what's happening in our country, except the 30M+ of us who are now paying attention. But the question still rolls around my head: Why was I there? At a simple level I was there because I felt I had to be. My awakening to the realities of what's happening in our country drove me to seek out others who see the same things going on and feel the same way I do about them. I certainly found those people Saturday, August 28, 2010 in Washington D.C.. The place was full of people, 500K+ in my view, all like minded individuals who share the same concerns, hopes, values, fears, and convictions that I do. Much of the theme was centered on God and restoring that component to our nations values. So how does an atheist fit into that group of people, in that venue and still claim to be "like minded"? I think it's easy (speaking from experience): We agree on the message of values and pricipals Even though I don't believe in divine providence or an invisible hand, I don't degrade or think less of those who do. If having faith (in anything) makes it work for you, gives you peace or direction, or strength then by all means go for it. Glenn certainly has been helped by his faith to turn his life around (an inspiring story actually).
Why do some (atheists, progressives, on the left, etc.) have a problem with the concept that our Founding Fathers (many of them) felt that man's rights came from God and that our countries founding principals were inspired by God? I don't have a problem with it. Just because I don't believe in God doesn't mean others shouldn't. I don't think they are deluded in some way by their faith, just like i'm not deluded in some way by my lack of it. To me it's a personal choice: It's part of who you and I are and why (in some cases) I like you. What works for me may not work for you, and that's OK. I respect the faith and convictions of others, even if I don't share them or for that matter agree with them.
All that said: I think it's completely valid to consider God's role in our nations values and founding principals. While I don't agree on the source of them, I do agree on the content and intent of them. To me, the author/source/inspiration is a matter of intellectual debate for some other place and time and I honestly don't mind personally accepting that some guy named God (who was a man or represented the best thoughts and intents of man) was the source of those values & principals. We do need Faith, Hope and Charity. Faith that we can make a difference. Hope that more poeple will share those values. Charity for helping our fellow man (and yes women) in all ways. Those principals apply regardless of who you are or what you think. I completely agree our rights do not come from the government or any man. The Left calls them "human rights" and that works for me. Again the author isn't the issue for me. Unfortunately they (some on the Left) only see those rights as a tool to leverage more power over those same humans so they can ultimately take those rights away from individuals in the name of "the greater good" of scociety. That's what makes blood shoot out of my eyes.
So while you may not find me in church with you praising the deity who inspired those values and principals we both agree on; you can certainly count on me to be there with you applying those values and principals in order to restore honor to our country and our lives.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Chippoke State Park, Day 4 camping
It's the fourth night of our summer vacation. I'll be with my family the first week as we drive up to Virginia to visit my brother David. While I fly back to FL on the 5th, Linda and the Kids will continue up through Boston, New York and other places to visit key historical sites where we (she) can show our kids the places, people and events that were significant to the founding of our country. With all the "hope & change" going on we felt it was important for them to learn the real history of our nation, what was going on at the time and how that led to the founder's taking the huge risks they did to create a new nation. The kids have journals to take notes and write down what they've learned along the way. I'm putting my thoughts and notes down in this blog and Linda's keeping her journal as well.
We are all setup at the campsite for our 4th night camping. Chippoke State Park is a beautiful place, Situated along the James River near one of the 40 odd spots John Smith of Pocahontas lore landed as they sailed their ships up the James River. We went down to the river shore and we were the only ones around. The red sunset lit the sky orange-pink against bright blue. Schools of small fish made small ripples along the surface of the lake as the only disturbance to the otherwise glassy surface. We broke the rules and jumped the fence of a closed trail down the to the river's edge. Along the water we found thousands of shells from scallops, oysters, clams and other mollusks. I found scallop shells as big as a lions paw! (Eventually I'll figure out how to get pictures into my iPad from the camera and post them with my blogs).
Sleeping tonight will be much nicer. It's in the 70's here which makes nice sleeping weather. Monday and Tuesday night we spent at Edisto State park near the beach in South Carolina, south of Charlston. After sunset the wind died down and the humid mid-80's air wasn't the best sleeping conditions. Any movement drew a sweat so I slept in my cool-max sheet (basically a sleeping bag made from light tee shirt material) in my boxer shorts. The MSR Mutha Hubba tent is awesome with a fully screened enclosure to keep even the gnats out but let the air flow. There wasn't much fishing around. The campsite backed up on to a salt marsh. I walked out to a small pool of water left by the receding tide which seemed to be low water the entire time we were there. Thousands of fiddler crabs scurried out of the way as I walked, trying to avoid being crushed by my feet. The kids spent most of the time in a nearby tree, climbing like monkeys and playing all kinds of games. The water at the campsite was slightly salty so we ended up picking up a couple of gallons of fresh water on the way back from our Charleston visit.
In Charleston on Tuesday, we went to Patriots Point and took a tour of the USS Clamagore, a Diesel WWII Submarine and the USS Yorktown CV-10 Aircraft Carrier. The Yorktown was awesome. We spent 4 hours (9:00am to 1:00pm) walking the decks and stairs throughout the ship. We ate lunch in the main mess area. Lunch was cooked in the ships kitchen and served on the same stainless steel food trays the crew used when the ship was on active duty. It was really cool.
After the Yorktown, we drove to downtown Charleston, and visited The Old Exchange, the last building built by the British before the revolutionary war. The building sits on top of the half moon battery which was situated on the East wall of the old city wall. When built, Charleston was a walled city along the river. We took a self guided tour of the upper floors of the Old Exchange and then a guided tour of the dungeon. Timothy was our tour guide, a young blond man who worked as a park ranger at Lexington and Concord (as I recall) so he knew a little history. He told us the story of Charleston during before, during and after the revolution. During a part of his talk, he asked the audience about what we knew of the Boston Tea Party. Nicholas was the only one to answer and explained the Boston Tea Party was a protest about taxes on tea, and how the men dressed as indians, boarded East India ships and dumped the tea into the harbor. Timothy was completely impressed. He told Nicholas that he has been the only person who knew those three facts and details of the event. He explained that the people of Charleston had a similar tea party incident after the Boston event. The British however locked the tea up in the cellar of the Old Exchange to protect it from being dumped as was done in Boston. The Sons of Liberty in Charleston however did better than the Boston group: They managed to break into the Old Exchange, steal the tea and sold it. The proceeds went to purchasing arms for the fight against the British.
We also learned that one of the cash crops of the area at the time was Indigo, used to make blue dyes for clothing. Because of it's expense, blue material, especially deep blue, was reserved for only the very top ranks of the British military such as Admirals and such. Knowing this, the American patriots decided to outfit their troops in Blue uniforms as a dig to the British. They were basically flaunting the fact that a new privateer in the American military wore a uniform more expensive than the top brass of the British Army! Overall the tour was excellent and we learned more about the history of this country and how the founding of our nation came to pass.
Sunday Night we stayed at Ft. Clinch at the very Northern most tip of Florida right across from Cumberland Island GA. In cooler weather that is a very nice campground. The fort there is awesome. I lived in Jacksonville Beach growing up and through High School and yet never went to that park. :( We will definitely go back there with the kayaks and/or the boat to spend some quality time on the St. Mary's river fishing and adventuring. Next time we visit there I need to remember to reserve campsite 39 or 40 which is right next to the river.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
We are all setup at the campsite for our 4th night camping. Chippoke State Park is a beautiful place, Situated along the James River near one of the 40 odd spots John Smith of Pocahontas lore landed as they sailed their ships up the James River. We went down to the river shore and we were the only ones around. The red sunset lit the sky orange-pink against bright blue. Schools of small fish made small ripples along the surface of the lake as the only disturbance to the otherwise glassy surface. We broke the rules and jumped the fence of a closed trail down the to the river's edge. Along the water we found thousands of shells from scallops, oysters, clams and other mollusks. I found scallop shells as big as a lions paw! (Eventually I'll figure out how to get pictures into my iPad from the camera and post them with my blogs).
Sleeping tonight will be much nicer. It's in the 70's here which makes nice sleeping weather. Monday and Tuesday night we spent at Edisto State park near the beach in South Carolina, south of Charlston. After sunset the wind died down and the humid mid-80's air wasn't the best sleeping conditions. Any movement drew a sweat so I slept in my cool-max sheet (basically a sleeping bag made from light tee shirt material) in my boxer shorts. The MSR Mutha Hubba tent is awesome with a fully screened enclosure to keep even the gnats out but let the air flow. There wasn't much fishing around. The campsite backed up on to a salt marsh. I walked out to a small pool of water left by the receding tide which seemed to be low water the entire time we were there. Thousands of fiddler crabs scurried out of the way as I walked, trying to avoid being crushed by my feet. The kids spent most of the time in a nearby tree, climbing like monkeys and playing all kinds of games. The water at the campsite was slightly salty so we ended up picking up a couple of gallons of fresh water on the way back from our Charleston visit.
In Charleston on Tuesday, we went to Patriots Point and took a tour of the USS Clamagore, a Diesel WWII Submarine and the USS Yorktown CV-10 Aircraft Carrier. The Yorktown was awesome. We spent 4 hours (9:00am to 1:00pm) walking the decks and stairs throughout the ship. We ate lunch in the main mess area. Lunch was cooked in the ships kitchen and served on the same stainless steel food trays the crew used when the ship was on active duty. It was really cool.
After the Yorktown, we drove to downtown Charleston, and visited The Old Exchange, the last building built by the British before the revolutionary war. The building sits on top of the half moon battery which was situated on the East wall of the old city wall. When built, Charleston was a walled city along the river. We took a self guided tour of the upper floors of the Old Exchange and then a guided tour of the dungeon. Timothy was our tour guide, a young blond man who worked as a park ranger at Lexington and Concord (as I recall) so he knew a little history. He told us the story of Charleston during before, during and after the revolution. During a part of his talk, he asked the audience about what we knew of the Boston Tea Party. Nicholas was the only one to answer and explained the Boston Tea Party was a protest about taxes on tea, and how the men dressed as indians, boarded East India ships and dumped the tea into the harbor. Timothy was completely impressed. He told Nicholas that he has been the only person who knew those three facts and details of the event. He explained that the people of Charleston had a similar tea party incident after the Boston event. The British however locked the tea up in the cellar of the Old Exchange to protect it from being dumped as was done in Boston. The Sons of Liberty in Charleston however did better than the Boston group: They managed to break into the Old Exchange, steal the tea and sold it. The proceeds went to purchasing arms for the fight against the British.
We also learned that one of the cash crops of the area at the time was Indigo, used to make blue dyes for clothing. Because of it's expense, blue material, especially deep blue, was reserved for only the very top ranks of the British military such as Admirals and such. Knowing this, the American patriots decided to outfit their troops in Blue uniforms as a dig to the British. They were basically flaunting the fact that a new privateer in the American military wore a uniform more expensive than the top brass of the British Army! Overall the tour was excellent and we learned more about the history of this country and how the founding of our nation came to pass.
Sunday Night we stayed at Ft. Clinch at the very Northern most tip of Florida right across from Cumberland Island GA. In cooler weather that is a very nice campground. The fort there is awesome. I lived in Jacksonville Beach growing up and through High School and yet never went to that park. :( We will definitely go back there with the kayaks and/or the boat to spend some quality time on the St. Mary's river fishing and adventuring. Next time we visit there I need to remember to reserve campsite 39 or 40 which is right next to the river.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Monday, June 21, 2010
Did Kagan Compare the NRA with the KKK? - Robert VerBruggen - The Corner on National Review Online
Did Kagan Compare the NRA with the KKK? - Robert VerBruggen - The Corner on National Review Online
Interesting bit of insight into her thought process.
Interesting bit of insight into her thought process.
Monday, June 14, 2010
The new computer...
A few weeks ago my 10 year old, made from spare parts desktop system, running Windows 2000 finally bit the dust. As you can tell from the state of my last machine, I'm not much of a "latest and greatest PC" kind of guy. Which is actually strange because I am a bit of a gadget guy with GPS, iTouch, HAM radio and such. I've been using an old emachines laptop with a thermal shutdown problem (watch a youtube video and the fan goes turbo before the entire system just drops dead). After some consideration of what I actually do on a computer at home (most of the time) if figured all I need is a system that does email, browse the web, edit/create word documents, spreadsheets, and maybe a drawing or two (with Visio if possible). I didn't think of the iPad until I talked to a guy with one at the Austin airport flying back last week. I asked a few questions and decided that it may do most of what I want. This weekend I took the plunge and purchased an iPad with 3G and 64G of memory. Signed up for AT&T's unlimited data plan and mobileMe (cloud computing stuff).
I've downloaded a few apps to let me access the files on my NAS storage disks (Filebrowser), use the device as a car GPS (motionX), and an office document suite (Office2 HD). I must say the email in the iPad isn't the greatest. I tried sending an email with an attachment but wasn't successful. Apparently since the iPad doesn't have the concept of a local file system, there's no "attach file" option. I was able to go into the file browser, copy a file from my NAS disk to the iPad and then "send as an email attachment". That didn't work to well with a .pdf; I couldn't read the attachment on the copy I sent to myself as a test. A quick search didn't reveal any alternatives to the built in email on the iPad....
I tried to edit a word document with Office2 HD but strangely, the application doesn't work with the blue tooth keyboard I picked up for the iPad (to make typing easier). Using the BlogPress app (free) I can create blog posts like this one (I'm typing it now with the keyboard) and it seems to work pretty well. I sent an email to Office2 HD to tell them about the issue and hopefully they will fix it soon and I'll see an "update" when I hit the app store soon.
The Apple/Mac style keyboard takes a little getting use to. I can't figure out how to page up/down/home/end. I have no idea how the option and command keys work (if at all) but for basic typing with some tactile feedback, it's pretty nice.
Now for wireless: It is awesome to be able to browse the web from anywhere (almost). I have yet to find a place I can't get a 3G signal. After getting home from Best Buy (where I purchased the iPad) I hooked it to my laptop and started a sync in iTunes. I took quite a while, mainly because I chose to restore my iTouch stuff to the iPad (which worked fine). As soon as the sync was done we jumped in the car and headed to the beach. I played with the iPad, setting up the 3G account with AT&T as my wife drove us to the coast. Setup was quick and I was online browsing, setting up email accounts and downloading apps basically in the middle of nowhere. It was sooooooo cooool (still is).
Right now I have the iPad in a docking cradle on my desk with the keyboard right in front. A nice little setup for typing emails, blogs and other stuff. And portable: no wires at all!
I'm hoping I find the right combination of apps to let me edit and create MS documents, spreadsheets and such. I also need to find a good app to enable printing to my wireless printer. All-in-all it seems to be working out. There are a few kinks (when using Goodreader for PDF's, the unit forgets my wi-fi network security key!) Apple claims the "closed" OS and all is robust but so far I can't see it being much better than a PC with some of the bugs in apps I've seen.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
I've downloaded a few apps to let me access the files on my NAS storage disks (Filebrowser), use the device as a car GPS (motionX), and an office document suite (Office2 HD). I must say the email in the iPad isn't the greatest. I tried sending an email with an attachment but wasn't successful. Apparently since the iPad doesn't have the concept of a local file system, there's no "attach file" option. I was able to go into the file browser, copy a file from my NAS disk to the iPad and then "send as an email attachment". That didn't work to well with a .pdf; I couldn't read the attachment on the copy I sent to myself as a test. A quick search didn't reveal any alternatives to the built in email on the iPad...
I tried to edit a word document with Office2 HD but strangely, the application doesn't work with the blue tooth keyboard I picked up for the iPad (to make typing easier). Using the BlogPress app (free) I can create blog posts like this one (I'm typing it now with the keyboard) and it seems to work pretty well. I sent an email to Office2 HD to tell them about the issue and hopefully they will fix it soon and I'll see an "update" when I hit the app store soon.
The Apple/Mac style keyboard takes a little getting use to. I can't figure out how to page up/down/home/end. I have no idea how the option and command keys work (if at all) but for basic typing with some tactile feedback, it's pretty nice.
Now for wireless: It is awesome to be able to browse the web from anywhere (almost). I have yet to find a place I can't get a 3G signal. After getting home from Best Buy (where I purchased the iPad) I hooked it to my laptop and started a sync in iTunes. I took quite a while, mainly because I chose to restore my iTouch stuff to the iPad (which worked fine). As soon as the sync was done we jumped in the car and headed to the beach. I played with the iPad, setting up the 3G account with AT&T as my wife drove us to the coast. Setup was quick and I was online browsing, setting up email accounts and downloading apps basically in the middle of nowhere. It was sooooooo cooool (still is).
Right now I have the iPad in a docking cradle on my desk with the keyboard right in front. A nice little setup for typing emails, blogs and other stuff. And portable: no wires at all!
I'm hoping I find the right combination of apps to let me edit and create MS documents, spreadsheets and such. I also need to find a good app to enable printing to my wireless printer. All-in-all it seems to be working out. There are a few kinks (when using Goodreader for PDF's, the unit forgets my wi-fi network security key!) Apple claims the "closed" OS and all is robust but so far I can't see it being much better than a PC with some of the bugs in apps I've seen.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Tuesday, May 18, 2010
Mayors: Fight Gun Scourge Through Courts
This kind of article just makes the blood shoot out of my eyes. Read it if you can keep from vomiting...
The premise that the availability or existence of a thing is the reason for it's misuse is absurd. Suing a gun maker for the "damaged caused by their product" assumes that the fact a criminal using a gun to kill someone is somehow a defect in the gun itself. It makes no sense. It would be like saying bottled water companies should be sued if the water quenches your thirst and re-hydrates you, Duh: *thats what it is suppose to do!* If you happen to water board and drown someone with the bottle of water, would that lead to "water control" laws? These misguided people focus on the device as the cause of the problem, not the people using it.
Show me that place where you can flash your US drivers license and walk out, with as many guns as you can carry with no BATF background check or waiting period. That statement is a prime example of the bold face lies that these people are allowed to get away with.
Mayors: Fight Gun Scourge Through Courts
The premise that the availability or existence of a thing is the reason for it's misuse is absurd. Suing a gun maker for the "damaged caused by their product" assumes that the fact a criminal using a gun to kill someone is somehow a defect in the gun itself. It makes no sense. It would be like saying bottled water companies should be sued if the water quenches your thirst and re-hydrates you, Duh: *thats what it is suppose to do!* If you happen to water board and drown someone with the bottle of water, would that lead to "water control" laws? These misguided people focus on the device as the cause of the problem, not the people using it.
Show me that place where you can flash your US drivers license and walk out, with as many guns as you can carry with no BATF background check or waiting period. That statement is a prime example of the bold face lies that these people are allowed to get away with.
Monday, April 19, 2010
Is Truth Stranger Than Fiction?
A story about Thai Soldiers caught my eye this morning. Reading the article was eerie, I couldn't help but imagine a slightly different version:
In the U.S. capital Washington hundreds of soldiers and riot police have taken up positions in a main commercial district popular with tourists. The heavy security was mobilized to prevent anti-government protesters, who have been demonstrating over a month now, from marching on the area.Certainly this is a fictional scenario. But how far away from this are we?
Soldiers armed with assault rifles and police in riot gear massed early Monday morning on Pennsylvania Ave.
They spread rolls of razor wire across parts of the sidewalks and took up positions on the street and overpasses, and briefly blocked traffic.
Anti-government protesters threatened to march on the area, which the government says it will not allow.
But by mid morning only a hundred or so red-dressed protesters danced and cheered in front of barricades while traffic flowed normally and businesses were open.
Ben Gleck, the international spokesman for the protesters, known as the TEA Party. He says they called off the march.
"There will not be a march on Pennsylvania Ave today. But, we reserve that option to do it other when we feel like," he said. "We want to exercise our freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, freedom of movement, and we feel like … but it's not a need to risk anybody hurt or killed over this."
Although the march was called off, soldiers and riot police did not immediately pull back and razor wire remained in place.
The military presence raised concerns of another violent clash in Washington.
On April 10, 24 people were killed and hundreds injured when soldiers tried, and failed, to clear protesters from the city's historic district.
Both sides have blamed the other for the violence.
The Tea Party protesters are mainly from the countryside and have been demonstrating for weeks demanding new elections. They have occupied a major commercial district, blocking traffic and forcing shopping malls and hotels to close their doors.
They say Washington elites overthrew their democratically elected leaders in the 2009 Elections.
A series of politically charged court rulings and legislative actions diluted or eliminated Constitutional protections and expanded executive powers in 2010 after the current administration took office.
The government offered to hold elections in nine months and says it is willing to negotiate with protesters. But, protest leaders say they are done negotiating and will continue pressuring the government to immediately step down.
Sunday, April 11, 2010
Now we are talking! The Florida Congress is doing all the right things!!!
In addition to HB 21, the Florida House and Senate are working on several pieces of legislation to protect the state's citizens from the federal takeover taking place in our country today.
- CS/HJR 37 - Health Care Services
- HM 17 Congressional Term Limits
- SCR 10 - Balanced Federal Budget
- CS/CS/SB 8 - Medicated and Public Assistance Fraud
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