One Small Victory for Common Sense

Well, we can take some small comfort in the DoD's decision not to file charges against the Marines who fired at the Chattanooga Religion of Peace murderer. (See Post from August 3, 2015)

Perhaps there has been an outbreak of common sense in the Pentagon. Let's hope it goes viral, not only in the Pentagon, but all around the Beltway and its environs.

I wouldn't hold my breath, however. You-Know-Who is still the Commander in Chief.

Have the Top Brass Taken Leave of Their Senses?!?

I don't know whether there is any truth to  the allegations floating around in cyberspace that a Navy officer and a Marine fired their weapons at the Muslim miscreant who shot up two recruiting stations in Chattanooga on July 16, killing five service members and wounding others. Further speculation suggests that the military members who returned fire are to be charged with illegally discharging a firearm on federal property.

If charges are indeed filed, prepare to witness a Moogie in all her righteous wrath. The re-shaping of our mighty military, and not for the better, has apparently ramped up on steroids.

Pepper says if charges like that were leveled against him, he would demand a court martial. And I suspect the air in that chamber would turn such a vibrant shade of blue that it could be seen miles away.

The SecDef needs to get his head out of his nether regions and stand up to the Administration, especially about policies that jeopardize the safety of our military and their families. Maybe the new Chief of the Army will hold some sway -- if he doesn't get mesmerized first.

Bad, bad times are afoot.

Senseless Slaughter

Four dead Marines. An injured police officer. Two others injured. Two shot-up military facilities and another dead terrorist hooking up with his virgins in paradise. Why do I suggest that the shooter might have been an adherent of Islam? His name, just released, is Muhammed Yussef Abdulazeez, age 24, born in Kuwait.

Yes, the U.S. Attorney in Chattanooga has announced that investigators are treating the attacks as "domestic terrorism." I have heard it reported that the FBI will now treat the attacks as domestic terrorism until they know it isn't international. How very decisive of them. I wonder if they had to clear that position with the White House?

As with the slaughter at Ft. Hood, these shootings took place at a "gun free zone."

This absolutely ignorant, patently absurd policy of making military facilities "gun free" must be repealed.

Our military members are trained and trained and trained in the use of firearms! If anyone can safely carry, and take out a rampaging shooter, our military can. Tragically, they now clearly appear to be unarmed sitting ducks for anyone that has access to an App that will locate the 20 nearest "gun-free" commercial zones. Yep, there's an App for that.

Just Google "ISIS tweets warning" and you won't believe the number of links that come up relating to Twitter-delivered threats to the military and American cities. With information like that on hand, there is no question that our military members with the bullseyes painted on their chests need to be armed with sidearms, at the very least.

Rest in peace, brave Marines.

And burn eternally in hellfire, Abdulazeez.

Happy Reunion -- Get Out the Tissues

This video is out of Chicago, from the ABC affiliate there. It depicts the arrival of a bomb-sniffing dog named Clia in the airport concourse after her retirement. She was surprised by her former handler who has been allowed to adopt her. Her sheer joy at seeing him, and his obvious love for her, are genuinely heartwarming. I get happy tears every time I watch it -- and I've watched it a lot!

Post by ABC 7 Chicago.

Her handler, SGT Jason Bos, says, "It's time for her to retire and live the couch life." I love  the comments left on the original post on Facebook.

A Climax in the Bergdahl Saga Approaches

Well.

After yesterday's colossal gaffe (IMHO) by the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs (see yesterday's post), it seems that at least one decision-maker in the DoD has come to his senses.

SGT Bowe Bergdahl will be charged with desertion. NBC reports:

Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who was held captive by enemy forces in Afghanistan for five years, will be charged with desertion, a senior defense officials tell NBC News. The officials say the charges could be referred within a week.

According to the officials, the desertion charges would be based on allegations that Bergdahl abandoned his remote outpost in June 2009 to avoid hazardous duty or important service, which are grounds for charges of desertion under the Uniform Military Code of Justice, or UCMJ. According to one senior official, Bergdahl's actions in Afghanistan go well beyond the lesser offense of AWOL, absent without leave, because he allegedly abandoned his post "in the middle of a combat zone, potentially putting the lives of his fellows soldiers at risk."

The charges will apparently not allege that Bergdahl left with the intent never to return. Bergdahl was reportedly captured by the Haqqani terrorist network in Pakistan. He was released in a prisoner swap for five Taliban commanders held at Guantanamo Bay in May.

Perhaps the public will finally be made privy to the details surrounding his capture and the prisoner exchange that led to his release last year. Too many good men lost their lives searching for him -- their memory demands clarification and closure.

Wouldn't it be "interesting" if the Young President granted him clemency? You know -- traitor to traitor.

D-Day, H-Hour, Plus Seventy Years

This iconic photograph is enlarged so that it fills the entire entryway of the National WWII Museum's "Beaches" gallery. The men aboard the Higgins boat appear life-size as they wade ashore in Normandy.  It is so very moving.

Back in the 1940s, my father-in-law lied about his age so he could join the Army Air Corps and help save the world. He was sixteen years of age. A red-headed spitfire. He wound up in the mountains of the China-Burma-India theater with a bunch of gurkhas who were fond of posting severed heads atop poles in the ground. He was responsible for placing transponders that guided Allied planes as they flew over "The Hump."  As incoming fire hit his locations, he and the Gurkhas learned that holes aren't just for transponders, and the deeper the better.  He learned how to sneak into nearby British officers' tents, "borrow" their gin, take a swig or two before soaking his jungle-rot-plagued feet in it, pour it back into the bottle, and return it to its rightful owners. He wasn't particularly fond of the British. Or the Finns, for that matter. He suffered from occasional bouts of malaria that he originally contracted in Burma the remainder of his life. Needless to say, the man he became was a direct product of his WWII experiences -- he was one of the most brilliant men I've ever encountered, usually jovial and loving, but sometimes quite callous, and often ruled by the principles of self-preservation.  Little surprise there.  He did, however, help save the world.  Thank God and Grandpa.

My mother told me stories about the Home Front in small-town mid-America.  Her family saved the rendered fat from the little bit of meat they could buy to donate to the munitions industry. There were ration books, limiting the amounts of food, gasoline, and clothing that civilians could purchase so that our fighting men could have first dibs on limited resources. She peeled the tin foil from the wax paper that wrapped chewing gum and took it to the metal drive at the library. School children wrapped rolls of bandages from worn-out cloth to be shipped overseas.  Everyone from children to grandparents had skin in the game; everyone sacrificed in one manner or another. Sadly, that is not the case today. The White House even seems to float above the fray.

My father was barely 15 when the Allies landed in Normandy seventy years ago today.  A few weeks ago I asked him to email me his memories of D-Day.  I'd never heard him talk about it much.  Now I understand why -- I guess we take today's 24-hour newscycle for granted.  Here's what he sent me:

Don’t remember much, the news was pretty  well shut down in those days.. Only had radio, the papers put out what they called ‘EXTRAS, READ ALL ABOUT IT’ and Newsreels at the movie theaters.. I recall hearing on the radio ‘ the invasion of fortress Europe has begun’ on the coast of France, but it was much later when we got any details.. The gov’t had a slogan ‘loose lips sink ships’ and they clamped down on most info…Any bad news was pretty well omitted..

Loose lips sink ships.

A few weeks ago, the Obama administration outed a CIA operative in Afghanistan, placing his very life in jeopardy, then, in essence, said, "Oops."  Shortly thereafter, our Commander in Chief unleashed on the world  five of the worst terrorists known as our Veterans suffer and die without care from the VA.

We need you again today, Boys of Pointe Du Hoc.  On the beaches of the Potomac.

Query: Does Military Service "Qualify" One For Elective Office?

And, the answer is a resounding, "Of course."

This mid-term election cycle is getting rather heated. Several candidates here in Arkansas are putting much advertising emphasis on their military credentials. One criticism that always seems to rise to the forefront on social media is, "How does he/she think that military service qualifies someone to be in _____________?" (Congress, the Senate, the Governor's Mansion, City Hall, Justice of the Peace, whatever, fill-in-the-blank). I'm here today to address that question.

These days, many people are unfortunate enough never to have had a close connection to the military. That is indeed a shame -- for them.

War is never a happy thing but Mankind has not evolved nearly far enough to turn its collective cheek to antagonism and aggression, so there will be war in this world. There will be skirmishes. There will be evil people who seek to do harm to, or to subjugate, their neighbors. Mankind is not ready to demilitarize. And as long as there is war, there must be Warriors.

There will be natural disasters.

The Military trains its service members -- its Warriors in whichever uniform -- (and their families) in much more than a specific skill set. It teaches Discipline. Honor. Leadership. Respect. Sacrifice for the greater good. Love of Country. Problem identification. Problem solving. Moderation. Devotion. Teamwork. Tongue-biting, when necessary. How to Strategize, as opposed to how to Plan. But, Planning is taught, too. Healthy habits. How to encourage and cheer the accomplishments of Brothers and Sisters.  How to set an example, and to train those who will be tomorrow's leaders and trainers. How to keep going when keeping going is out of the question.

How to live with pain and loss.

(The Military also instructs how to use massive numbers of acronyms ad nauseum, but that's not necessarily always a positive. It probably helps on Capitol Hill, however.)

So, you tell me. How does serving in the military not qualify one to engage in elective public service?

So, be forewarned, Mr. and Ms. Naysayer -- henceforth, picking on one's pride in having honorably served these United States will not even be acknowledged as viable criticism of someone's candidacy. And, hopefully, those of you who have no connection to the Military now understand a small portion of the traits we more fortunate sons and daughters immediately recognize and associate with someone who has worn the uniform.

You may now open your eyes.

Memorial Day 2014

And, we remember all those who gave their all.

With admiration and gratitude.

I've known several service-trained dogs. They're pretty special.

Being "Thankful For My Family" Doesn't Begin to Describe How I'm Feeling Right About Now

 The funeral was yesterday.  My heart broke for those parents whom Fate had led to sit in front of an open casket, draped with both a folded American flag and an Arkansas Razorback flag, bearing the body of their 24 year-old son. My heart broke for his siblings.  My heart broke for the love of his life and mother of his child. For his son and extended family. For his brothers and sisters in arms. For his church family. For every parent in that room.

The slide show celebrating his life brought both tears and laughter. The three different preachers got their message of salvation across. The music was both iconic and touching, ranging from "Amazing Grace" to Kenny Chesney to Christian rap, among others. I must admit, I've never heard Christian rap before. It was interesting.

The whole service exhausted me. And it terrified me, as you will see, with good cause.

SIL#2 and Younger Daughter sat beside #2's mother in the front row.

The evening before, Wednesday evening, my precious young family was on I-30, on its way to the visitation, in stop-and-go rush hour traffic.  #2 was driving their 6 day-old Toyota Venza while YD sat in back with 10 month-old Grandbaby#5, without wearing her seatbelt so she could more easily tend to #5. (The car was their second brand-new car in less than a month, by the way, because the first one turned out to be a genuine, irreparable, dangerous lemon. This one was much better.)

SIL#2 had come to a safe stop, along with the flow of traffic, and (fortunately) within a reasonable distance from the car ahead of him, when YD saw him coming. She flung herself over the baby the split second before she felt the impact.

Daughter was slammed around the back seat; SIL#2 smacked his head on the windshield, even though he was wearing his seat belt. No air bags deployed. Thank God for a strong car seat -- a little fear was the worst that the Grandbaby suffered. The new car was, of course, rendered not drivable, but SIL managed to get it limpingly to the shoulder anyway, and without being driven into the car in front of them..

The unlicensed, non-English-speaking driver, with no insurance, who plowed into them at 50 mph in stop and go traffic told the State Trooper, before he was taken away on a stretcher to be treated at a hospital at taxpayer expense, that he had just consumed "solamente tres cervezas." (Only three beers.) And, we all know that "solamente tres cervezas" probably means several mas cervezas than tres.

Is my rage showing?

Pepper pulled into the driveway from running with Grandbaby#1 just as I was pulling out, so he hopped in the car with me and we got to the kids, during rush hour, in record time. I took #2 an ice pack. I'm not sure it helped him, but it helped me to be able to do something.

Today, the day after that sad, sad funeral, just remembering that phone call from Younger Daughter and its aftermath has opened the spigot on my teary faucet. I have sent up countless prayers thanking my good God for sheltering my family and preventing what might have been. My Facebook post thanked God and Toyota for their safety. The kids went to the ER later Wednesday evening with #2's father and his wife and checked out fine, but for the whiplash. They took a goofy photo there that showed them trussed up in neck braces, grinning and flashing thumbs up. YD texted the pic to me and Elder Daughter, captioning it as this year's Christmas card photo. I think the good drugs had kicked in by then.

They were stiff and sore yesterday, and SIL#2 still has a pretty impressive goose egg on his forehead, but they could have been so, so much more worse off. I can't imagine the panic that SIL#2's mother must have felt when she got that call from #2 explaining why they couldn't make it to the visitation.

The stress level at Moogie's Manor is running pretty high right about now, and we can't really put all of this behind us until Tuesday. We will bury that young man in the VA Cemetery on Tuesday -- the first day available for a burial. Pepper worked his contacts to smooth the process for the parents. Thirty-five years of military service pay off in the most unusual ways sometimes.

So. I need to turn my thoughts to happier places in my mind. How about more Spring flower pictures?

This is the bed in the side yard.  We put in the geraniums and croton earlier in the week. The pop of color makes us happy.

This is another view of the bed. The Son and his family gave me that Bottle Tree for Christmas. I really like it. Annnnd, I've added a couple of bottles to it since Christmas!  ;-)

I love the white azaleas beneath the Japanese maple at the top of the driveway.

This is the white dogwood and its companion Japanese maple beside the front door as seen from the dining room windows. I took this pic yesterday because gazing at this natural beauty reveling in the filtered sunlight gave me such a sense of peace.

Tell your loved ones how much they are loved. We are not promised tomorrow.

I hope this is the end of that Case of the Creeps I posted about in March. I think I'll go play in the dirt some more.

Ukraine: Conspiracy Theory du Jour

I'm working on the iPad, and I'm not very adept at cutting and pasting, so there will probably be no links. And you'll have to trust me on the veracity of my facts. Just remember that I was a docent at the National D-Day Museum, so I'm pretty accurate on my WWII era trivia.

I've been thinking.

That can be dangerous sometimes, according to Pepper.

Anyway, I now postulate that the Young President's administration has potentially been doing an intentional run-up to this Ukraine mess, coupled with the tanked economy, in order to reach a more sinister end.

Hence, a significant reduction in the Defense budget was recently announced due to policy changes in Iraq and Afghanistan, along with a need to pare the budget.  Also, we will shortly experience a drawdown in troop strength which will reduce our military readiness to levels not experienced since the isolationist period following WWI. Seriously.

So, if we find ourselves needing to amp up troop strength because Russia is rattling swords, how can we prepare to pitch in to help our "treaty" partner, Ukraine? (While Ukraine is not a member of NATO, it is a signatory to the Budapest Memorandum of 1994, which was designed  to give some comfort to the emerging nations after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Today, Kiev demanded enforcement of the accord.)

Facing similar need, after WWI, when our troop strength was cripplingly impaired, what did we do to prepare to save the world as the bad guys were gearing up to overtake as much of it as they could?

We instituted a draft, of course!

So, here comes The Draft!

But, you might say, what about those opposed to VIOLENT military service? We mustn't compel them to engage in conduct that they find distasteful! Of course not.  So, what if there will be an option for nominal "national service?" The Young President could then have his "civilian force," first alluded to in the campaign for his first term. And, then what?

I leave you to ponder that.

And, seriously. Think about it.

It's Veterans' Day

The day that we formerly celebrated the termination of WWI on the western front -- Armistice Day.  Many still recognize the Armistice with two minutes of silence at the Eleventh hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh month.  I did, turning my thoughts to those who served, those who lost their lives, and the families left to keep the home fires burning.

And I am grateful to each and every soul who dons the uniform, voluntarily, with pride, to serve and protect American interests both at home and abroad.  I am grateful to those who serve today as well as those who have hung up the camo of whatever hue.

Thank you!  Wholeheartedly, thank you.

My father (USNR, 20+ years), my father-in-law (Army Air Corps), my son (ARNG), my great-uncle (WWII).

And that fella I live with:

Army and Army Guard (34+ years).

My children have a pretty good gene pool!

Is this guy saluting with his left hand?  I just noticed that.  Hmmm.  But, you get the idea, right?

NOLA Navy Week: A Photographic Retrospective

I finally have a little break in the Home Improvement action.  I've been wanting to post a batch of pictures and videos that I took when NOLA Navy Week kicked off on April 17th to accompany my April 23rd post, so here we go. 

Through my work with the Louisiana Committee of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve ("ESGR"), and Pepper's "employer" position as Director of Labor relations for the local utility company, we wrangled an invitation to participate in a "Bosslift" as the ships traveled up the Mississippi. Bosslifts are one method that ESGR uses to educate employers of Guardsmen and Reservists about just exactly what their employees do when wearing their military "hats."  We've flown them in C-130s, toured bases, shown them how the Coast Guard performs marine rescues -- any number of things.  But, this was going to be a spectacular Bosslift.

After a safety briefing, we were to be flown via Blackhawk helicopter to land on the U.S.S Wasp, a multipurpose amphibious assault ship, as she traveled upriver to her berthing station near the Crescent City Connection bridge.  We were to have lunch with crew members and observe them at their duty stations.  What a dream come true for a little girl born to a Daddy in the Navy, and who grew up to marry an Army chopper jockey!

Dream gone bad.  The weather gods had different ideas, mainly due to the high winds, and the flight was canceled (not to mention the weekend's Blue Angels air show).

To make it up to us, a local paddlewheeler boat, Creole Queen, was engaged to ferry us downriver as the ships came up, and we were allowed to follow Wasp to her berth -- a two-hour adventure, complete with complimentary cocktails!  In driving winds and drenching rain.  But, it was fascinating and we stayed outdoors on the aft deck the entire time.  What a view!  Herewith, some pics and videos:

Sailors in real uniforms from the U.S.S. Constitution.  Pretty cool.

A taste of the lousy weather as we headed downriver.

Passing one of the military ships.

And a couple of videos.

This is one of the Merchant Marine vessels that use the Mississippi as home berth, when they're not being dispatched all over the globe.  One of them was used after Katrina -- at the really brave direction of her Captain, who had been ordered not to do so by the brass -- as a provider of dialysis services in sick bay (since the hospitals were kaput), and supplier of fuel from her own tanks for emergency vehicles.  Captain Lansden was later commended by the White House for his humanitarian aid, and rightly so.

Here comes Wasp!

And there she goes!  You can tell how they launch amphibious landing craft aft.

This is the old dock at the former Naval Support Activity.  A Field Artillery unit from the Louisiana National Guard fired a 21 gun (cannon!) salute as each ship passed by.  You'll see more in a video below.

Wasp rounding the bend by the French Quarter.

Wasp being pushed into her berth by tugboats.  There's a pretty strong riverboat pilots' union around here.

View of the St. Louis Cathedral and Jax Brewery in the French Quarter from the water.

The Ecuadoran tall ship, BAE Guayas, at berth.

The Indonesian tall ship, Dewaruci, at berth.

The U.S. Coast Guard tall ship, Eagle, at berth.  She's actually a commissioned training vessel.  I'll post more pics later from the day I volunteered for the tall ships, from aboard Dewaruci and Eagle.

Coast Guard fast boats patrolling.  There was lots of security.

And, as the paddlewheeler Creole Queen heads back to dock, her steam calliope salutes the American ships with a medley of sea services anthems.  A pretty impressive and memorable day!

Thankful in New Orleans on this Memorial Day

Pepper and I headed over to the National WWII Museum this afternoon, thinking that we would support it on Memorial Day.  But once we got there, we discovered that nearly everyone else near the Gulf Coast had the same idea!  We left without eating at either of the fine restaurants there, grateful that our Museum has grown in such stature that it's overwhelmed on a national holiday.  We decided to go back at another time when they might could use our business.

Speaking of gratitude -- I spied this over at IMAO.  Harvey invited everyone to steal it and post it.  So, without further ado:

I am thankful indeed.

Memorial Day 2012

I know I'm a day early, but this is just such a moving picture that I needed to share it today.

Truly a dramatization of the old adage about a picture and a thousand words.

Never forget.

A Request for a Little Citizen Legislative Lobbying

Pepper forwarded this to me this afternoon -- he received it from MOAA, a retired Military Officers advocacy group:

Dear General Pepper,

In last Friday's legislative update, we advised you that Senators Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) and Marco Rubio (R-FL) have joined forces to introduce the bipartisan "Military Health Care Protection Act of 2012" (S. 3203).

This bill would acknowledge that career servicemembers and families pre-pay huge premiums of service and sacrifice, and limit increases in cash TRICARE fees in any year to the percentage increase in military retired pay.

With the Senate Armed Services Committee set to begin drafting its version of the FY2013 Defense Authorization Bill this week, your help is needed to build maximum Senate support for the Lautenberg-Rubio bill as quickly as possible.

Please act now to send your two senators a MOAA-suggested message urging them to cosponsor this important legislation and seek its inclusion in the defense bill.

If anyone gets a free minute or two, and if you're so inclined, we'd very much appreciate your calling S. 3203 to your senators' attention, relay your support, and ask that they sign on as co-sponsors.  You can click on the blue link above to go directly to a pre-fab email (you may draft your own message if you prefer).   

It couldn't hurt to remind those who represent us that this is a big election year, either.  And that not only do you vote, you also have a long memory.  And that you have a big, hungry dog who'd just love to visit the Senators in D.C..

On second thought, maybe you should leave out the part about the big dog.  But, keep it in the back of your mind!

Wake Up! It's 2012!!!

To one and all (except maybe for a few folks in DC), HAPPY 2012!!

May this new year provide you and yours with twelve flavors of awesome, health, happiness, and prosperity.

And, maybe a Razorback victory in the Cotton Bowl. And another Saints Super Bowl ring.

Maybe a Powerball win or two.

And the safe return of all our military members to the loving arms of their families and loved ones.

Now, go eat that pork roast and those black eyed peas and cabbage! (Moogie is preparing cabbage and Brussels sprouts because we can use every single dollar the Fates can spare!). The Lord helps those who help themselves!

Do You Suppose They Were Preoccupied?

Weren't the Occupy dudes supposed to have some big, hands-across-America-ish, nationwide demonstrations today? 

Apparently, the New Orleans chapter either never received, or ignored, the memo.  (Okay, it wasn't a memo, it was an email from MoveOn.org -- yes I'm still undercover!)

I was at City Hall this morning to speak to the Council and Mayor on Military Day about ESGR. City Hall is right across the street from Duncan Plaza where the Occupy folks (and their homeless chums who were run out of Duncan Plaza a few years ago, but seem to have found their way back on the coattails of the Occupy Cognoscenti) have pitched their tents (and the city, being ever-prepared for parades and parties, has set out several PortaPotties).  There were a bunch of extra cops both in the entry area of City Hall and the Council Chamber, as if they expected a bunch of Occupiers to storm the seat of city government. 

When I arrived and saw all the cops I actually grew a little apprehensive about being able to get out and to my car after the session without encountering a mob of foolish, fragrant people -- our session with the Council began at 9:30 and was supposed to last until about 11:30; the Occupy Show of Force was supposed to crank up at 11:00 near a sign erected on the sidewalk across the street.  As I prepared to leave, I could see a sea of television news trucks through the front windows.  Hmmmm, I thought.

Then, I walked outside.  And saw this:

I think the news folk outnumbered the Occupy folk.  Here are the PortaPotties.

This whole Occupy thing is starting to get a little amusing to us irrelevant people who live in flyover country.  You know a thing has jumped the shark when The Daily Show starts gigging it:

The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

But, I think my very favorite jab at the Occupants so far is this:

Go ahead, Occupunks, make his day.

Home Depot Turns Its Back on Our Military, Without Warning

A friend, both literal and virtual via Facebook, who is married to a retired Army veteran and is a recently-retired Army vet herself, announced her own personal vendetta against Home Depot over the weekend on Facebook.  You don't really want to mess with Cissy.

It seems that, without warning, Home Depot will offer its military discount to all military and vets only on the four big patriotic holidays instead of year-round.  It has adopted this policy even though its website still heralds its "year-long military discount."  You should go to the link and read the comments -- Home Depot will lose a ton of business over this change in policy, and probably should.  It's one wonderful thing to honor those who serve, and their families, with a small discount; but it's just downright tacky to announce to the world that you offer such an honor when, in fact, you don't, and then to embarass military shoppers at the checkout counter.

Lowe's, on the other hand, still proudly offers a year-round discount.  I verified this yesterday when Pepper and I purposefully went to Lowe's instead of Home Depot to do a good-sized bit of garden-ish shopping.  Nice people, nice perquisite for this family's 35 years of service.

When we start building our retirement place in Arkansas, you can bet that we'll hightail it away from Home Depot as fast as we can, directly to Lowe's.  And, I imagine we won't be alone.

Are you listening, "Big Orange Box!"  And thanks, "Big Blue!"

The "Hire a Hero Act" -- It's a Good Thing

I received this email today from NGAUS (the National Guard Association of the United States) via our Louisiana ESGR. If you get a spare minute or two, please consider contacting your Congressfolk in support of this measure.  It's important to stand up for those who stand in front of us, and Citizen Soldiers rock!

NGAUS Alert - Hire a Hero Act

NGAUS Legislative Alert #11-5


March 23, 2011


The Issue: Amending the Internal Revenue Code to allow employers to claim the work opportunity credit for hiring Ready Reserve and National Guard employees




Immediate Action Required: Contact your Senators and Representatives to urge them to support the Hire a Hero Act, S. 367 and H.R. 743, that would allow employers to claim the work opportunity credit for hiring employees who are members of the Ready Reserve or National Guard


Congress needs to address the unemployment rate for the National Guard and Reserve which persists at greater than 20% according to the Civilian Employment Information (CEI) and the Status of Forces Survey for the Reserve Components.


Section 51 of the Internal Revenue Code encourages the hiring of veterans and other targeted employees by giving employers a “work opportunity credit” of up to 50% of wages paid. Unfortunately, members of the National Guard and Reserve are not included in this class of target employees despite their unacceptably high rate of unemployment.


To help alleviate unemployment for Guard and Reserve members, Sen. Scott Brown (R-MA) has introduced the Hire a Hero Act, S. 367, in the Senate and Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-KS) has introduced the same bill in the House, H.R.743. The Hire a Hero Act would allow employers to claim the work opportunity credit for hiring members of the National Guard and Reserve.


Contact your Senators and Representative and urge them to support S.347 and H.R.743. In addition to using the “Write to Congress” feature, which can be found on our Web site at www.ngaus.org/writetocongress http://capwiz.com/ngaus/utr/1/NJOHPGIVWQ/GKHLPGIWBY/6644641566, contact the local district office of your Senators and Representative to express your concerns in this matter and attend a town hall or district meeting in your area to speak up for the National Guard. Your email, letter, call or presence could make the difference.




TAKE THE FOLLOWING ACTION:


By using the “Write to Congress” feature on the NGAUS Web site at www.ngaus.org/writetocongress http://capwiz.com/ngaus/utr/1/NJOHPGIVWQ/JQMMPGIWBZ/6644641566, you can IMMEDIATELY e-mail your elected representatives. A sample letter is included in our “Write to Congress” feature. You can e-mail the pre-written message or edit the sample letter as you desire. This is the quickest and most effective method of expressing your views to Congress. Also, contact your friends and family and urge them to "Write to Congress" as well. For more in-depth information and background visit our web site at www.ngaus.org

Thanks for helping.  Sometimes even Congress can get it right.

Barry the Sideshow Guy, and The State of the Circus

Yes, our Young President has joined the Circus as "BO, the Amazing Rubber Man." 

You can see how his act is adjusting to the message sent by voters last November -- he's learned the error of his Progressive ways and is moving toward the center!  Couldn't you tell from his campaign, or SOTU, or STFU, or whatever, speech last night?

Look again. 

While his words and face might have been coming at you from the smack-dab center of the political tightrope, his feet were firmly planted on the far left platform.  Let's just call him "Stretch," shall we?

Don't buy the sleight of face, folks.  Don't buy it.

Just one more thing -- where does he get off suggesting that our service men and women in Iraq have cause to do anything other than hold their heads high?!?!  What a clueless jerk.

I'm glad that spectacle is over with for another year.  And that Pelosi had to sit in the gallery with the rest of the ordinary Congressfolk.  I'm glad about that.  How do you like coach, Madame ex-Speaker!