Urine..or you're out!

From my good friend, Lieutenant Bill, the usual crystal clear logic that seems to defy politicians and lefty, feel-good, do-gooders, who believe others should benefit from the sweat off your brow:

I have a job.

I work, they pay me.

I pay my taxes and the government distributes my taxes as it sees fit.

In order to get that paycheck, in my case, I am required to pass a random urine test. I have no problem with this fact.

What I do have a problem with is the distribution of my taxes to people who don't have to pass a urine test.

So, here is my question: Shouldn't one have to pass a urine test to get a welfare check because I have to pass one to earn it for them?

Please understand, I have no problem with helping people get back on their feet. I do, on the other hand, have a problem with helping someone sitting on their butt - doing drugs while I work. Can you imagine how much money each state would save if people had to pass a urine test to get a public assistance check?

I guess we could call the program "URINE OR YOU'RE OUT"!

Something has to change in this country - AND SOON!

By the way, just a thought, but all politicians should have to pass a urine test too!

I kinda prefer Bill's reality to the bravo sierra that goes on in Sacramento and DC, don't you?

-30-

Hampster Dance..

Consider the lowly, outdated North American F-86 Sabre Jet. Small, personable, a far cry from the Thud or the F4 Phantom. (A jet dedicated to the proposition that, with a powerful enough engine or two strapped to its ass, anything will fly.)

No sir, the F-86 saw us through the Korean war and guarded our skies during the fifties. It was graceful and sleek and probably fighterdom's equivalent to the MGB GT, Triumph's Sprite, or the Mazda Myata.

Yet it held it's own against the Migs in the skies of Korea.

There are a number of You Tube videos out there that show the Sabre back in the day and those wonderful, venerable restored beauties that are still flying. It is said that these can be owned and made airworthy for just above five figures. I stumbled on the video below that flew in the face (sorry) of the mother-hen, safety-concious USAF of today. Here some very, very clever people in the 526th "Moonshine" FIS. Some real hot rocks guys with a flair for the intervelometer techniques, truly humorous stuff and some eye-popping gags.

..imagine an Air Force unit today pulling the stunts these guys did -- with brand new jets to boot!

-30-

Liberal Dave..

The nickname sounds like a pejorative; it is most certainly not. It refers to a very good friend with whom I work. He's liberal; I am conservative; that's it.

Dave and I do not have violent arguments about politics. We have known each other since August 2006 (which is to say that's how long I have been working at my current gig) and he never rubbed my nose in any perceived problems with George W. Bush. He was always cordial, civil, and possessed a marvelous sense of humor.

Still does.

Similarly, I knew Dave desperately wanted Obama to beat Hillary and was delighted when that -- ahem -- person was inaugurated. I also know that he is very disappointed in the current POTUS's performance. (Or lack of same.) Still in all, I am courteous, polite, and have only occasional fun at Dave's expense.

We both enjoy each other's company and professional relationship far too much to let politics interfere.

So, imagine my surprise when I get the e-mail below from Dave; a sentiment about one thing he believes is wrong with our government. Speaking with him, I get the impression he truly wants this amendment to come to be.

I joked about him showing up at the Santa Ana Civic Center on 15 April for the 2nd anniversary of the Tea Party get-togethers and he responded, "I just might."

So here's why Dave's so mad and here's what he wants us to do. It's made the rounds before, but coming from Dave to me it has special meaning:

No one has been able to explain to me why young men and women serve in the U.S. Military for 20 years, risking their lives protecting freedom, and only get 50% of their pay. While politicians hold their political positions in the safe confines of the capital, protected by these same men and women, and receive full pay retirement after serving one term. It just does not make any sense.

Monday on Fox news they learned that the staffers of Congress family members are exempt from having to pay back student loans. This will get national attention if other news networks will broadcast it. When you add this to the below, just where will all of it stop?

35 States file lawsuit against the Federal Government

Governors of 35 states have filed suit against the Federal Government for imposing unlawful burdens upon them. It only takes 38 (of the 50) States to convene a Constitutional Convention.

This will take less than thirty seconds to read. If you agree, please pass it on.

This is an idea that we should address.

For too long we have been too complacent about the workings of Congress. Many citizens had no idea that members of Congress could retire with the same pay after only one term, that they specifically exempted themselves from many of the laws they have passed (such as being exempt from any fear of prosecution for sexual harassment) while ordinary citizens must live under those laws. The latest is to exempt themselves from the Healthcare Reform... in all of its forms. Somehow, that doesn't seem logical. We do not have an elite that is above the law. I truly don't care if they are Democrat, Republican, Independent or whatever. The self-serving must stop.

If each person that receives this will forward it on to 20 people, in three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message.. This is one proposal that really should be passed around.

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution: "Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States."

..you all are among my 20. Let's get this thing done for Dave.

-30-

..again, this is for Fredd..

Fredd, The O-Dux fan and fellow conservative, opined that one of my pathetic recent posts was missing an expression of my sentiments, to wit "Obama Sucks".

As you can see that my life has devolved into a mini-vacation into my "other" hobby, Amateur Radio, and in constructing a small QRP radio, I discovered my beloved Tek 2445 was turning fuzzy on me. So that turned into a side trek into repairing the 2445 and re-learning the innards of Textronix oscilloscopes. I finally found the culprit with the help of my good friend, Dick, WB6JDH and, after I fixed the little beast, he drooled with envy over the bright, clean, pencil-lead thin trace as well as the on-screen cursors and frequency/voltage level displays.

I am sure most of you are now snoozing but for me, this sort of thing is positively intoxicating. So, grab the NoDoz and hang with me for a minute.

Anyway, the crafty WB6JDH convinced me that I desperately wanted the 7704A mainframe (and four plug-ins) he had and he would gladly swap me for my newly restored 2445.

I laughed and figured I'd take it home to humor him. It'd probably crowd everything else out on the bench so I'd just return it to him on the next trip and either sell the 2445 to him or take it home again. Long story short, with a little ingenuity, I crafted a pedestal for it and put my variable power supply below that so there was actually had more room than before. Here it is, in flagrante delicto:

..and I am now in a learning loop that promises to occupy my time until we get more serious about politics in mid-year. I promise you I'll take this off-line to a new blog I am starting for my ham radio adventures.

Until then, I believed that full disclosure was in order.

And, it seems I surfaced just in time to see that the pantload has stepped in it and got ripped a new one by Speaker Boehner.

“The President of the United States has a unique opportunity and responsibility to lead this nation. President Obama has acknowledged the challenges we face, but – thus far – he has done nothing to offer solutions. Now, worse, his political organization is colluding with special-interest allies across the country to demagogue reform-minded governors who are making the tough choices that the President is avoiding.

“This is not the way to begin an ‘adult conversation’ about solutions to the big challenges facing our country. Rather than inciting protests against those who speak honestly about the challenges we face, the President and his advisers should lead.

“When the American people watched the people of Greece take to the streets to protest cuts to unsustainable government programs, they worried it might foreshadow events in our nation’s distant future – but today, we see the same sort of protests on the streets of Madison, fueled by President Obama’s own political machine.

“Rather than trying to ‘win the future,’ the President’s political allies are trying, desperately, to cling to a failed past by fighting reforms our nation needs to liberate our economy from the shackles of debt and create a better future for our children and grandchildren. The President should make it clear to his friends that the people of Wisconsin, and states across America, can handle their own affairs without Washington special-interest money and meddling."

..pretty stiff language; I just hope Boehner and the rest of the guys we sent back to D.C. in November start putting various members privates in vices and begin turning the crank.

-30-

For Fredd..

"Obama Sucks!"

Note to the folks: sorry for the hiatus; I am trying to understand how to get my $100 Tektronix 7704A to work correctly.  Visualize the 2001 scene shere the apes first encounter the monolith.

Here's what we're dealing with:

..and Tek gratuitously put this vid on You Tube:

..pass the Sominex.

-30-

THE RETIRED HUSBAND

After I retired, my wife insisted that I accompany her on her trips to Target. Unfortunately, like most men, I found shopping boring and preferred to get in and get out. Equally unfortunate, my wife is like most women - she loves to browse. Yesterday my dear wife received the following letter from the local Target:

Dear Mrs. War Planner,

Over the past six months, your husband has caused quite a commotion in our store. We cannot tolerate this behavior and have been forced to ban both of you from the store. Our complaints against your husband, Mr. Harris, are listed below and are documented by our video surveillance cameras:

1. June 15: He took 24 boxes of condoms and randomly put them in other people's carts when they weren't looking.

2. July 2: Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.

3. July 7: He made a trail of tomato juice on the floor leading to the women's restroom.

4. July 19: Walked up to an employee and told her in an official voice, 'Code 3 in Housewares. Get on it right away'. This caused the employee to leave her assigned station and receive a reprimand from her Supervisor that in turn resulted with a union grievance, causing management to lose time and costing the company money.

5.. August 4: Went to the Service Desk and tried to put a bag of M&Ms on layaway.

6. August 14: Moved a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to a carpeted area.

7. August 15: Set up a tent in the camping department and told the children shoppers he'd invite them in if they would bring pillows and blankets from the bedding department to which twenty children obliged.

8. August 23: When a clerk asked if they could help him he began crying and screamed, 'Why can't you people just leave me alone?' EMTs were called.

9. September 10: While handling guns in the hunting department, he asked the clerk where the antidepressants were.

10. October 3: Darted around the store suspiciously while loudly humming the ' Mission Impossible' theme.

11. October 6: In the auto department, he practiced his 'Madonna look' by using different sizes of funnels.

12. October 18: Hid in a clothing rack and when people browsed through, yelled 'PICK ME! PICK ME!'

13. October 21: When an announcement came over the loud speaker, he assumed a fetal position and screamed 'OH NO! IT'S THOSE VOICES AGAIN!'

And last, but not least:

14. October 23: Went into a fitting room, shut the door, waited awhile, then yelled very loudly, 'Hey! There's no toilet paper in here.' One of the clerks passed out.

 ..my days and weekends are mostly free now.

-30-

"Ya'all be good, you heah..?"

Beaufort T. Justice woulda been proud of these good ol' boys.

-30-

Breaking the surly bonds..

..strap in, depart the earth, pull the apple, and enjoy real freedom.

-30-

For want of a nail..

 

Sorry to have been gone so long. 

This is mine. I got it cheap. It broke. I fixed it. I learned how to fix these type of things. That's what I have been doing..

..now I gotta go back to the shop. See you soon.

UPDATE: Honest to goodness, folks, I have been engaged in this effort as a semi-vacation from the political blog world. I would say for sanity reasons but that would be a slight prevarication. The little radio I was building wasn't checking out at the various build points and I had to debug it. Not to convey the impression that I know squat about electronics or troubleshooting radios -- I am a relative neophyte in that department -- but I give it a shot from time to time.

So, anyway, while checking out the VFO on this rig, I suddenly noticed that my trusty, rusty Tek 2445's display was quivering weirdly and the horizontal sweep was somewhat jerky. Here's the checkout config on a good day:

So, I put the radio away and popped the covers on the scope. After some head-scratching, RTFMing, swearing, and hallelujahs, I extract a couple of electrolytic caps, replace them and power the beast back up. Well,  I won't have to worry about the "don't fix it if it ain't broke" bromide any more because the 2445 was definitely broke after I fixed it.  

More head-scratching, manual-reading, etc. led me to a bad resistor in the +42V supply. Replacing it yielded the picture up at the top of this post and I'm back in biz, right?

..well, in the process of re-installing the scope back into the bench, I pulled my old surplus AN/URM-25D signal generator, noticed that the power cord was bad, did an R&R, and..

*sigh*

But it's fun and it take one's mind off of Obama and the rest of the clowns in D.C. busy ruining our lives. But I'll be back once I fix all of my test equipment.

-30-

Splinters in her crotch

A woman from Los Angeles, CA who was a tree hugger, a Democrat, and an anti-hunter, purchased a piece of timberland near Colville, WA . There was a large tree on one of the highest points in the tract. She wanted a good view of the natural splendor of her land so she started to climb the big tree As she neared the top she encountered a spotted owl that attacked her. In her haste to escape, the woman slid down the tree to the ground and got many splinters in her crotch.

In considerable pain, she hurried to Mt. Carmel ER to see a doctor. She told him she was an environmentalist, a democrat, and an anti-hunter and how she came to get all the splinters. The doctor listened to her story with great patience and then told her to go wait in the examining room and he would see if he could help her.

She sat and waited three hours before the doctor reappeared. The angry woman demanded, "What took you so long?" He smiled and then told her, "Well, I had to get permits from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management before I could remove old-growth timber from a recreational area. I'm sorry, but due to Obama Care, they turned me down."

..yeah, yeah, I know. It';s all over the internet and I haven't posted in a while, and all that. What can I say? Don't pay the ransom, I escaped? The dog ate my home work? I am on a secret mission for the Government?

You make one up, I gotta disappear again for a while.

..down periscope. Glub..glub..glub.

-30-

Obligatory Tuscon Post

My Reaction: Tragic beyond words.

My Reaction to Post-Tucson MSM Talking Head Rhetoric: Tragic beyond words.

I wished to abstain from from a "me-too" piling on about this affair, but the Libertarians over at ReasonTV say all that I wish to express and they do it neater, cleaner, and without the attendant histrionics that I my engage in.

..oh, and my prayers go out to the Congresswoman, the victims and their families.

-30-

..oh, and then there's this..

Can't pass this up without an obligatory "me too" post:

-30-

Help us out here in California..

Sorry for the stagnant blog. I've been real busy working on some work and fun stuff and have some personal things to take care of, so I haven't had time to think up and write clever stuff -- not even to bag on our Beloved Metro-sexual Pantload POSOTUS -- so I am going to jam in something that ought to make your blood boil and call it a day.

But before I do, if you are visiting this blog from out of State (or are even a Californian sick of the crap that our state gummint pulls) then I am begging and pleading you: WRITE YOUR U. S. CONGRESSMEN AND TELL THEM NOT TO BAIL OUT THIS SORRY-ASSED STATE AND ITS LIB POLITICIANS, LIB RETARD CITIZENS, THE ILLEGAL ALIENS, THE WELFARE QUEENS, THE PUBLIC SERVICE UNIONS, AND THE TEACHERS' UNIONS WHO JAMMED US INTO THIS JACK-POT IN THE FIRST PLACE!

..and now, on with the show:

-30-

A hero for the heroes..

Sent to me by my friend and high school classmate, Tom the copper from Georgia:

Lest you think this is a publicity stunt, some rock hack wanting to glom glory off our troops in a me too extravaganza, here's an excerpt form Gene's Wikipedia bio (emphasis added):

Politics
While a self-described social liberal, Simmons has also described himself as a supporter of the foreign policy of the George W. Bush administration. He supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, writing on his website: "I'm ashamed to be surrounded by people calling themselves liberal who are, in my opinion, spitting on the graves of brave American soldiers who gave their life to fight a war that wasn't theirs...in a country they've never been to... simply to liberate the people therein". In a follow-up, Simmons explained his position and wrote about his love and support for the United States: "I wasn't born here. But I have a love for this country and its people that knows no bounds. I will forever be grateful to America for going into World War II, when it had nothing to gain, in a country that was far away... and rescued my mother from the Nazi German concentration camps. She is alive and I am alive because of America. And, if you have a problem with America, you have a problem with me".

During the 2006 Lebanon War between Israel and Lebanon, Simmons sent a televised message of support (in both English and Hebrew) to an Israeli soldier seriously wounded in fighting in Lebanon, calling him his "hero".

In a November 2010 episode of the CNN news commentary program ParkerSpitzer, Simmons stated that he regrets voting for Barack Obama in the 2008 Presidential election. He criticized the 2009 health care reform measure, and Simmons also remarked about Obama that he "couldn't find somebody, in retrospect, more unqualified." He said as well, "I want the government out of my life".

..who doesn't, Gene, who doesn't?

-30-

January 2011 is National Obama Slamfest Month..

..I know; I just declared it to be so.

Continuing this trend of 31 days of unending disrespect for the dung-heap-in-the-Oval-Office, here are a few ditties from other wonderfully unhinged minds:

..and this wonderfully crude ode to The Metro-Sexual Pantload. (Warning! Adult Content!)

-30-

The more things change..

..the more this a**hole stays the same.

The Obama Fail blog chronicles -- in the fine style it does virtually every day -- how the Epic Pantload, Mr Hashmark-drawers, has rung up another mega-million dollar vacation on your and my tab:

There are only two certainties in life - President Obama loves to relax and he loves to spend your money. So it should come as no surprise that Obama's latest vacation is going to cost taxpayers a pretty penny..

I recommedn that you make it a regular habit to visit that site and give the author an "atta boy" comment, a pat-on-the-back, or whatever for his fine efforts going on his third year now.

-30-

..and we resume a normal work schedule.

So, on Monday, many of us will trudge back into the workplace, sit at our desks, sigh wistfully as we remember the past week's holidays and that string of days off, and stare at the calendar:

-30-

2011 is here..

|. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,.-‘”. . . . . . . . . .“~.,
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|. . . . . . . ./. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,:”. . . ./
|. . . . . . .?. . . __. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . :`. . . ./
|. . . . . . . /__.(. . .“~-,_. . . . . . . . . . . . . . ,:`. . . .. ./
|. . . . . . /(_. . ”~,_. . . ..“~,_. . . . . . . . . .,:`. . . . _/
|. . . . .{.._$;_. . .”=,_. . . .“-,_. . . ,.-~-,}, .~”; /. .. .}
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Decrypted:

 

..amplified by 3 dB..

 

..and by 6 dB..

 

..as Eddie Murphy waould say, "Merry New Year!" Now go have a wee jolt of Irish Whiskey.

-30-

Happy New Year: Events I am looking forward to in 2011..

"Please fasten you seat belts and make sure you trays are locked.."

Well, let's start this off with an event in the first week of the New Year: Nancy Pelosi handing the Speaker's Gavel over to John Boenher.

Somewhat later might be the first commercial jet ex-speaker Pelosi takes whose cabin depressurizes and causes her botoxed face to explode.

I'm hoping both make it to You Tube.

-30-

Have a slim fast..

Waiter, "..just one more wafer-thin mint, ma'amselle.."

There's a paucity of stuff to write about today and -- suffering through the usual post Boxing Day depression that -- I thought I'd pass along this little tidbit (words dripping with irony here) bound to make you all feel less guilty about your Yuletide engorgement.

It seems that there's a lady out there in Jersey who's feeling the (heart)burn in order to get into the record books:

A New Jersey woman who hopes to become the fattest woman in the world got 30,000 calories closer to her 1,000lb goal with a festive feast that could have fed dozens of revelers.

She's doing her impersonation of Diamond Jim Brady, pounding down the grunts with gusto in order to make it into the books:

46-stone (644 pounds) Donna Simpson, sitting in a reinforced metal chair, chowed down on the world's biggest Christmas dinner as she ate for two straight hours on Saturday.

The single mother-of-two tucked into two 25lb turkeys, two maple-glazed hams, 15lbs of potatoes (10lbs roast, 5lbs mashed), five loaves of bread, five pounds of herb stuffing, four pints of gravy, four pints of cranberry dressing and an astonishing 20lbs of vegetables.

She's already in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest female human to give birth and methinks with a few more snacks like her December 25th feast she's intent on closing in on largest mammal to do the same.

I'll lay aside all of the opportunities to comment snidely on this lady's quest for fame save to recite the litany of her menu:

• 2 portions of 25lb oven roasted turkeys
• 2 portions of 15lb maple glazed hams
• 10lbs of roast potatoes
• 5lbs of mashed potatoes
• 5lbs of chopped carrots
• 5lbs of sweetcorn
• 5lbs of roasted butternut squash
• 5 parcels of house-baked bread
• 4 pints of cranberry relish
• 4 pints of home-made gravy
• 5lbs of herbed stuffing
• 1 tray of mixed green salad including salad dressing.

Her calorie total was 30,000. Pass the bi-carb..

..oh yes, and the obligatory embedding of the skit from Monthy Python's Meaning of Life.

-30-

Merry Christmas, Mr Scrooge, in keeping with the situation..

..as we sail into Christmas day, The War Planner and Mrs War Planner will be plying the routes of commerce tomorrow in order to shore up some loose ends, lumps-of-coal-in-the-stocking-wise. So we may very well be in our cups by the time Santa negotiates the DEW line to consume all of the cookies and milk (or, liverwurst sammiches and cold bottle of Spaten Pils set out by the more thoughtful households). Consequently, I wanted to wish all you out there a very merry Christmas and/or politically correct happily joyous RamaHanaKwanzaaMas observance to the supreme deity of your choice.

In the spirit of Christmas, therefore, I present for your enjoyment my absolute favorite scene from one of the best old time Christmas movies: Scrooge, made in 1951 and starring Alastair Sim in the title role.

..to see further adventures of Scrooge's heartwarming rehabilitation, herewith is the conclusion of that wonderful movie.

You can have your Bing Crosby and Jimmy Stewart Yuletide flicks, these scenes -- guaranteed -- bring a tear to my eye and what vestige of Christmas spirit that can be wrung out of this over-commercialized season even in the bleakest of years.

Of course, my modern day favorite would have to be Dennis Leary's The Ref, a cynical sure-fire cure for those treacly, saccharine-induced diabetic comas that this time of year serves up.

NEXT FILM REVIEW: The War Planner reviews famous Boxing Day movies for the only holiday less well known and less well observed than Ground Hog Day. So I am thinking, what, The Champ, Rocky I, II, III, IV, V, VI, MCMLXII,  whatever:

In the mean time, chug-a-lug that egg nog and roast them chestnuts!

-30-

Just sayin..

..or so these headlines on Drudge seem to be sayin':

Lip-flapper-in-chief, The Lying Sack.

Happy Christmas Eve Eve, everybody. Party hearty these next seven days and then come back on 1-1-11 Ready To Rumble..

 -30-

Dennis Miller on life..

..and other important matters. I have loved this guy since his "9-11 conversion". I wish I coulda been turned on to him when he did MFN. Ten-minute rant; enjoy..

..only person who makes BO'REilly tolerable except when Laura stands in for Boring Bill. Nice to see/hear hip folks do the "I love America; Mooz-lems suck" shtick and have the audience applaud.

"Pelosi Galore"? I love it!

-30-

Milestone..

Arlen Sphincter is gone..

One instance where diarrhea of the mouth is supremely troubling..

And, in reference to the remark I made in the Pamela Reed post below, here's one case where you pick up the daily rag and hope to find and obit about a person and pray that his final days were spent squatting over a steam grate in Pittsburgh swilling Sneaky Pete from a brown paper bag or shrieking in agony from terminal rectal cancer.

He left the Senate pissing and moaning about how the system slammed the door on his ass or something:

"Congressman Mike Castle was rejected in Delaware’s Republican primary in favor of a candidate who thought it necessary to defend herself as not being a witch,” said Specter. “The spectacular reelection of Sen. Lisa Murkowski on a write-in vote in the Alaska general election and the defeat of other tea party candidates may show the way to counter right-wing extremists.”

To quote Allahpundit over at Hot Air!,

"He went out the way he came in. As a squishy careerist tool.."

Visit the Hot Air! thread; there's some absolutely delicious sentiments expressed about this idiot's departure.

What an angy, garrolous twit. He will be missed..Not!

-30-

Pamela Reed, everywoman..

This post is about a lady whom I unabashedly had a secret crush on. By the way, usually when folks run articles with black and white pics it usually heralds an obit..

..you know, one of those fragments of the daily rag you glance at in preparing the cushion that will insulate your pooch's solid and (some) liquid offering from the concrete of the patio. (Heretofore, in the War Planner household that meant the Los Anglees Slimes or the Orange County Ragister. Not so now, as our residence has become a pulp-free zone.) Anyway, a pic catches your eye and you discover that some personality you adore (or despise) has shuffled off their mortal coil and joined the bleeding choir eternal.

This  is NOT the case with Pamela Reed. She is, insofar as I know, as alive and kicking as she was back in the 80s when I first came to adore her.

So now, there are supermodels and the skinny, bulbous-breasted, ratted-hair skanks that seem to always make the news because they are either going into or getting out of (1) drug rehab, (2) abusive relationships, (3) the county lockup, or (4) all three of the above. We are treated to their mindless, abrasive prattle, over-exposed tits, butt, and skinny legs, and adolescent bleating about war, peace, animal fur, world hunger, and global warming.

And the puerile-minded of those among us sit at home, eating this vacuous offal up in large helpings between 24-hour marathons of American Idol and Sexy Housewives of Milpitas, California.

Pamela Reed came to me (or, I should say, my attention) as Kurt Russel's wife in the Robin Williams vehicle, The Best of Times. She had a passable figure (who cares) and one of those faces that bespeaks of the date you got fixed up with and, at first sight, was a disappointment. Then, as the night wore on, you came to realize that sweet face fronted a great mind, lively wit and -- no, really -- a good personality.

Somehow, you knew you would end up going steady with her, marrying her, and you and she would be staring back at 30 years of marriage, three kids who were (1) a doctor, (2) a college professor, and (3) a Major in the U.S. Air Force who flew C-130s in Desert Storm and now instructs at the Air Force Academy. (Hey, it's my fantasy; go write your own blog.) And you would be as comfortable with her now as you were over that very first beer in The Oar House in Santa Ana 35 years ago.

She was great in every role I saw her in and, I must admit, my favorite was her portrayal of Belle Starr in Walter Hill's The Long Riders. She had that [18]80's sultry look. The type of woman you wouldn't mind ponying up $15 for (or, if you were lucky, she'd discount her rate by $2.50) after long weeks on dusty trails or punching cattle. Whatever.

So after a grand and glorious career, you'd think this woman would be shot through-and-through with Hollywood, imbued with the glam of the industry and all that. 

Apparently, not so.

I mean you gotta love a woman whose IMDB trivia is so bereft of affectation as to defy belief. While there are many notable actors on that site that load up their brag sheets with such truckloads of manure that the aroma is enough to drive you away, clearly Pam is not one of them:

Trivia
Won a Cable Ace Award as Best Actress for the HBO series "Tanner '88" (1988).

Received her Bachelor of Arts from the University of Washington.

Earned a Drama Desk Award for the off-Broadway play "Getting Out" and an Obie award for 'sustained excellence in performance in theater.'

Helped raise money for a local fire station.

She and her husband adopted both of their children, Reed and Lily.

Had hip surgery in 1999.

Her engagement ring got stolen on the set of a movie, so she had to replace it.

Had a fire in her basement in 2001.

Personal Quotes
"In twenty years of being in Hollywood, this is what I've learned; If I want my hair to look good, I bend over and brush it - then I leave my house."

Where Are They Now
(December 2004) Resides in Hancock Park, California with husband and kids.

Had a fire in her basement after raising money for a local fire department? One hopes she got a good response. Otherwise, I cannot imagine such a rock-solidly plain and unaffected collection of remembrances; so plan as to be appealing. And, her quote about her Hollywood  career life lessons amounting to nothing more than ONE hair grooming technique. That's my kind of woman, salt of the earth and all that.

So, there's Rule Five Friday and countless gorgeous pin-ups made available for  the male psyche out there. But give me the good, plain, simple, kind, sweet, unaffected ladies any day! 

Pam, don't ever change! I love you just the way you are: for all of the simple goodness you represent.


..it's sorta the way I feel about Mrs War Planner, by the way.

-30-

..dididadadidit..

As an amateur radio operator, I can send and receive Morse code at 20 wpm (on a good night with no QRM) and can contest at about 30 WPM if pushed. Contests are fragmented, repeated conversations comprised of the call signs (i.e., K6WHP), signal strength reports, and the official exchange (state, city, or other significant information as the rules of the 'test dictate).

Not bragging it's just a fact.

But contests have formats that are highly stylized patterns and once one understands the pattern, one can fill in the blanks with the repetition involved in the transmissions.

However, there are those who engage in HST -- high speed telegraphy -- at speeds in excess of 50 WPM and do this in plain text with no abbreviations. One of my good friends and fellow QRPer -- Chuck Adams, K7QO, in Prescott, Arizona -- is number eight on the list of those who send and receive ("copy") Morse code at such a blinding rate -- 140 WPM -- as to be incomprehensible to even those who are familiar with the discipline. Here is an article int he WSJ about Chuck:

In the above video, Chuck is engaged in a conversation ("QSO") at a modest 18 WPM -- probably out of courtesy to the ham on the other side of the contact. It does not trouble Chuck as he is a devotee of this art and would like to keep it alive for posterity. I have had a few QSOs with Chuck on 30 meters (10.115 MHz) and my limitations have kept Chuck (and others) at a sedate 15-20 WPM so that I could copy.

To give you another reference about Morse code speed and skills, consider this. A few years back, Jay Leno had a contest wherein he pitted some kids (he said derisively) who were supposedly at the top of their game texting messages to one another using this new-fangled technology versus a couple of old-time hams (actually, guys about my age) sending a message to one another using Morse code. As you might surmise, the kids got their clocks cleaned. I won't dredge up the You Tube video -- it used to be all over the internet -- but those guys were sending at the rate of 22 WPM which is just a shade faster than I can operate at. I am fairly typical of most ardent amateur radio CW operators so, basically, there's a whole bunch of us codgers out here who can shut down all of the young kids with their blackberries..

.so..boo-yah on you!

But to get an idea of what HST is all about, take a look at the video below; this guy is ripping off the text on that menu at 60 WPM. Can you imagine what speeds 80% faster would be like?

I can't either.

-..72 ES GL..DIT DIT..-

Merry Chrsitmas from Tiger Valley, Texas..

..y'all.



TIGER Valley is a premier firearms and operational skills training facility located in central Texas. The facility includes a 1000 yard KD range, UKD range, shoot house, six story tower and nine tactical training bays. TIGER Valley offers pre-designed courses as well as custom designed classes to meet the training requirements of Federal, State, and local Law Enforcement agencies; military personnel; and private citizens.

-30-

The inmates are running the asylum..

..they also vote and breed.

1Lt Kevin "Sky" King of USAFA SQ 150, Long Beach, California passes along this vignette of the mental giants of TSA dealing with some of military returning from a war zone

As the Chalk Leader for my flight home from Afghanistan, I witnessed the following:

When we were on our way back from Afghanistan , we flew out of Baghram Air Field. We went through customs at BAF, full body scanners (no groping), had all of our bags searched, the whole nine yards. Our first stop was Shannon, Ireland to refuel. After that, we had to stop at Indianapolis, Indiana to drop off about 100 folks from the Indiana National Guard. That's where the stupid started.

First, everyone was forced to get off the plane-even though the plane wasn't refueling again. All 330 people got off that plane, rather than let the 100 people from the ING get off. We were filed from the plane to a holding area. No vending machines, no means of escape. Only a male/female latrine.

It's probably important to mention that we were ALL carrying weapons. Everyone was carrying an M4 Carbine (rifle) and some, like me, were also carrying an M9 pistol. Oh, and our gunners had M-240B machine guns. Of course, the weapons weren't loaded. And we had been cleared of all ammo well before we even got to customs at Baghram, then AGAIN at customs.

The TSA personnel at the airport seriously considered making us unload all of the baggage from the SECURE cargo hold to have it re-inspected. Keep in mind, this cargo had been unpacked, inspected piece by piece by U.S. Customs officials, resealed and had bomb-sniffing dogs give it a one-hour run through. After two hours of sitting in this holding area, the TSA decided not to reinspect our Cargo-just to inspect us again:

Soldiers on the way home from war, who had already been inspected, reinspected and kept in a SECURE holding area for 2 hours. O.K., whatever. So we lined up to go through security AGAIN. This is probably another good time to remind you all that all of us were carrying actual assault rifles, and some of us were also carrying pistols.

So we're in line, going through one at a time. One of our Soldiers had his Gerber multi-tool. TSA confiscated it. Kind of ridiculous, but it gets better. A few minutes later, a guy empties his pockets and has a pair of nail clippers. Nail clippers! TSA informs the Soldier that they're going to confiscate his nail clippers. The conversation went something like this:

TSA Guy: You can't take those on the plane.

Soldier: What? I've had them since we left country.

TSA Guy: You're not supposed to have them.

Soldier: Why?

TSA Guy: They can be used as a weapon.

Soldier: [touches butt stock of the rifle] But this actually is a weapon. And I'm allowed to take it on.

TSA Guy: Yeah but you can't use it to take over the plane. You don't have bullets.

Soldier: And I can take over the plane with nail clippers?

TSA Guy: [awkward silence]

Me: Dude, just give him your damn nail clippers so we can get the **** out of here. I'll buy you a new set.

Soldier: [hands nail clippers to TSA guy, makes it through security]

To top it off, the TSA demanded we all be swabbed for "explosive residue" detection. Everyone failed. Go figure, we just came home from a war zone], because we tested positive for "Gun Powder Residue". Who the hell is hiring these people?

This might be a good time to remind everyone that approximately 233 people re-boarded that plane with assault rifles, pistols, and machine guns..

..but nothing that could have been used as a weapon.

Can someone please tell me what the hell happened to OUR country while we were gone?

Sgt. Mad Dog Tracy

-30-

Date night, fellow babies..

(Because I felt like it, that's why..)

For the record:

She was a fast machine
She kept her motor clean
She was the best damn woman that I ever seen
She had the sightless eyes
Telling me no lies
Knockin' me out with those American thighs
Taking more than her share
Had me fighting for air
She told me to come but I was already there

'Cause the walls start shaking
The earth was quaking
My mind was aching
And we were making it and you -

Shook me all night long
Yeah you shook me all night long

Working double time
On the seduction line
She was one of a kind, she's just mine all mine
Wanted no applause
Just another course
Made a meal out of me and came back for more
Had to cool me down
To take another round
Now I'm back in the ring to take another swing

'Cause the walls were shaking
The earth was quaking
My mind was aching
And we were making it and you -

Shook me all night long
Yeah you shook me all night long

And knocked me out and then you
Shook me all night long
You had me shakin' and you
Shook me all night long
Yeah you shook me
Well you took me

[..guitar riff..]

You really took me and you
Shook me all night long
Ooooh you
Shook me all night long
Yeah, yeah, you
Shook me all night long

Your really took me and you
Yeah you shook me, yeah you shook me
All night long..

-30-

Looking ahead..

"That a**hole is always hogging everyone's limelight.."

1Lt Bill Preston of the USAFA sends this highlight for the upcoming year:

Next year, Groundhog Day and the State of the Union address BOTH occur on the same day.  "This is an ironic juxtaposition of events: one involves a meaningless ritual in which we look to a creature of little intelligence for prognostication, while the other involves a groundhog."

RUST NEVER SLEEPS UPDATE: I got double-teamed today. This one is from Major Joe Di Mento:

On a bitterly cold winter morning a husband and wife were listening to the radio during breakfast.  They heard the announcer say, "We are going to have 8 to 10 inches of snow today. You must park your car on the even-numbered side of the street, so the snowploughs can get through.”  So the good wife went out and moved her car.

A week later while they are eating breakfast again, the radio announcer said, "We are expecting 10 to 12 inches of snow today. You must park your car on the odd-numbered side of the street, so the snowploughs can get through."” So the good wife went out and moved her car again.

The next week they are again having breakfast, when the radio announcer says, "We are expecting 12 to 14 inches of snow today.  You must park...."  Then the electric power went out.  The good wife was very upset, and with a worried look on her face she said, "I don't know what to do.  Which side of the street do I need to park on so the snowploughs can get through?"

Then with the love and understanding in his voice that all men who are married to blondes exhibit, the husband replied,  "Why don't you just leave the bloody car in the garage this time?"

 -30-