Category: Uncategorized

Thank You!

An “Appreciation” By LTC (R) Ernest

Mr. President, in the hustle and bustle of trying to start and run a new small business in your rather tepid economic recovery (shovel ready projects!!!); I forgot to say thank you! For years I have shied away from owning weapons. I did not grow up around firearms, none of my relatives were hunters, and if we felt the need to kill something, our weapon of choice was a Fenwick casting rod, Mitchell Garcia reel, some 6 Lb. test line, and an Eagle Claw brand hook….and an unwilling, sacrificial night crawler…but I digress. I hope that the very nice people at PETA will forgive me for the trout I have eaten. I am a catch and release failure, no doubt.

I served in the Army for 20 years, so carrying first an M-16, and then a pistol, became second nature to me. However, unlike many of my fellow Soldiers, I never became a “gun guy”…weapons were a part of the job. I never felt the need to own weapons. The Army always had a very useful one for me. My wife was quite happy with this arrangement.

My gun ownership perspective has changed dramatically as I have watched radicalized Islamic Terrorists (can we say that without fear of arrest?) wreak havoc in this land that I love. Ft. Hood, Boston, San Bernardino, the list goes on. Coupled with the accelerating collapse of our society (pick a shooting incident carried out by home grown lunatics), and your administration’s astonishing inability to enforce the gun laws already on the books, or even control our borders, I no longer feel safe in my own home or “out and about” with my wife and children. The animals now run the zoos (Baltimore!). One wonders how many ISIS fighters will infiltrate America along with the Syrian refugees you seem so intent on importing. I’m sure they are perfectly nice folks, however, who just need free college, an IPhone, a nice American Girlfriend/Boyfriend, and welfare to turn from their misguided “kill the infidel” ways and return to the religion of peace.

So what is a dad to do? I do not enjoy Secret Service protection for life, so the logical step for me was to purchase weapons. I am now the somewhat unwilling owner of a Mossberg 12 Gauge Shotgun and a Springfield .45 pistol. In steps unthinkable to me before your administration, I am now an NRA Life Member and have a concealed carry permit. My wife is not quite as happy with this arrangement.

Thank you, sir. You have opened my eyes to the reality of near post-Obama America, and Mr. LaPierre and the wonderful folks at Mossberg and Springfield Firearms are the ultimate benefactors of your policies. I should add that the folks at Federal Ammunition are doing pretty well, too. While I understand that your supporters (Feel the Bern!) are zealous in their belief that guns are the problem, I think this is analogous to blaming fast food for obesity, or cars and alcohol for DUI. The logic fails. Sad, I think, that in your America personal responsibility in parenting, and the personal responsibility and accountability necessary for living in a civil democracy have become so passé!

P.S.—Dave Petraeus wants to talk about personal e-mail servers for Senior Government Officials. Go Figure!

Cheers,

Ernest.

 

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Voter’s Guide to the 2016 Presidential Primaries

       by: James Reacher

As a loyal 53rd Regiment reader, I suspect you probably live or have official residency in one of many Southern states that will be voting on March 1. Now, as a practicing member of the political class, I urge you to review the websites of the candidates, watch debates and candidate forums, and make an informed decision on whom to support. However, I also know that the hectic lifestyle of the average 53rd Regiment reader does not support this type of political junkie level obsession. With that in mind, please find a proponent and opponent case for each of the remaining candidates. Please note at the outset that my work has led me to develop very strong opinions about all of these candidates, so do not take it personally when I light up your current favorite. I can assure you that I am lighting up my current favorite as well.

THE DEMOCRATS

Should you be in the incredibly narrow demographic of Democratic primary voter and 53rd Regiment reader, your choices are pretty simple — Secretary Hillary Clinton or Senator Bernie Sanders.

Hillary Clinton

The pro-Clinton case is based on experience. She has been in public service in one form or another since 1983. She has been the First Lady of Arkansas and of the United States as well as a U.S. Senator and Secretary of State. If you want the Democratic Party to nominate the candidate with the most experience and greatest likelihood of winning, you should vote for her.

The anti-Clinton case for primary voters has two main components. The first component is stylistic. Even in a primary, she seem unwilling to fully embrace the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. She is like the wary parent who will dole out a little freedom, but only in moderation and with close supervision.

The second anti-Clinton case is management. She has proven herself to be an utter failure at management. During President Bill Clinton’s first term, Hillary Clinton led the group that attempt to craft a health care reform measure. What she came up was so unpalatable that it never even got a vote in either the House or the Senate, despite the Democrats controlling both chambers. Republicans had their best mid-term elections in generations running against her efforts.

And, I cannot close out this section without mentioning Benghazi. Others in the 53rd Regiment roster can write with greater knowledge and experience on this issue, but it is my strong belief that she failed to provide adequate oversight or concern for U.S. diplomats in harm’s way and this failure directly led to the deaths of Americans. Her continued unwillingness to acknowledge her role in this tragedy is an enormous black mark on her record as a public official.

Bernie Sanders

There is a saying in politics that there are few joys greater than running a campaign in which you have no chance of winning. This seems counterintuitive until you realize how much fun it would be to be able to promise anything you want, say anything you want, and attack your opponent in any way you wish. Make no mistake, this is the type of campaign that Bernie Sanders is running.

The pro-Sanders case is that he is promising everything a liberal has ever dreamed of — universal healthcare, free college tuition, increased minimum wage, punitive taxes on wealthy people and corporations. He is like an Aaron Sorkin character brought to life.

The anti-Sanders case is also twofold. The first side is strategic. He openly admits that he plans to raise taxes on everyone, even middle class voters, to provide universal healthcare. The Democrats already ran a candidate who promised to raise everyone’s taxes. His name was Walter Mondale and he lost 49 states in 1984.

Beyond this strategic concern, were I a Democratic primary voter, I would be wary of voting for someone who has spent so much of his Congressional and Senate career loudly complaining while getting little to nothing done. The Senate has show horses and work horses. Sanders is unequivocally a show horse. Show horses do not know how to close deals and do not know how to marshal their allies for legislative battles. It feels good to vote for the “ice cream for dinner” candidate, but there is a reason no responsible parent allows a diet like that one.

THE REPUBLICANS

This is the deepest Republican Presidential candidate field in my lifetime. With two exceptions, I think all of these men are qualified and would do a fine job as President. GOP primary voters are deciding among the very good and not merely affirming the anointed acceptable choice. I think my writing will reveal the two I find unqualified. The pros and cons of the remaining Republican Presidential candidates proceed below in alphabetical order.

Ben Carson

Were some sort of traumatic brain injury to befall me, I want Ben Carson to be my surgeon. He is a brilliant and accomplished man who success in the medical field has literally inspired books and movies. He is a man of impressive faith and his love for his wife is inspiring.

However, the campaign, debates, and candidate forums have made clear that he is completely unprepared for the Presidency. He appears to have little to no knowledge about foreign affairs and has used his time in debates to give non-seneschal answers including reciting the preamble to the Constitution as his closing statement at a recent debate.

On a personal level, I know a few of his former campaign staffers a little bit and the manner in which they were treated was appalling to me. If this is how he runs a campaign, I shudder to think how he would run the Executive Branch and how he would serve as Commander in Chief.

Ted Cruz

Ted Cruz has the most impressive resume of any of the remaining candidates. He attended Ivy League schools for his undergraduate degree and for law school. He was the editor of the law review journal at Harvard and served as a clerk for the Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. He also argued multiple cases before the Supreme Court while serving as the Texas Solicitor General. Cruz was also senior staffer for the 2000 Bush Presidential Campaign.

In politics, the campaign Cruz mounted for the U.S. Senate in 2012 is one of the greatest political upsets ever. Cruz ran against the sitting Lieutenant Governor and was outspent almost 3-to-1. He did line up the impressive support of a myriad of political “outsiders” to help nationalize this campaign.

He immediately parlayed this win into a role as a national conservative leader. First term U.S. Senators often keep their heads down and focus on making gains on minutiae. Cruz instead turned himself into a national leader and conservative talk darling. This is quite the feat for someone who had been working as a lawyer in esoteric corporate law prior to the campaign.

The opponent case for Cruz is simple — by all accounts, he is thoroughly unlikable. This is seen in small ways like his college roommate who routinely tweets out derogatory information about him and the DC lobbyist/staffer/consultant world is filled with “you didn’t hear this from me, but…” stories about how unlikable he is. This is also seen in big ways like the fact that zero of U.S. Senate colleagues have endorsed him and the fact that Nikki Haley met with him in private last week and then decided to endorse Marco Rubio.

Someone who cannot get along with what should be his allies and in fact wears his lack of professional respect as a badge of honor is going to have an awful hard time getting anything done as President. I learned long ago that my political opponents and those who disagree with me believe just as strongly as I do in the merits of their case. To get things done, sometimes you need to acknowledge the merits of your opponent’s view and try to find some middle ground. Cruz seems unwilling or unable to do this.

John Kasich

John Kasich is a proven success as a leader in both Congress and as Governor of Ohio. During his time as a member of the House of Representatives, he rose to Chairman of the House Budget Committee. In that role, he got President Clinton to agree to a balanced federal budget, an achievement not seen since men had been walking on the moon and not duplicated by Congressional leaders of either party since.

As Governor of Ohio, he has led the state through an economic renaissance while also balancing budgets and implementing conservative policies. He won two tough statewide elections in a state that a Republican Presidential candidate has not won since 2004.

As a Presidential candidate, he has campaigned with dignity and compassion — two qualities that have been sorely lacking on both sides of this contest to date.

There are two sides to the opposition argument against Kasich. First, despite his recent conversion to campaigning with kindness, Kasich has a lifetime of having a somewhat volatile temperament. He has belittled his political opponents, including questioning their commitment to Christian values and joking to Ohio lobbyists that they are advised to metaphorically get on the Kasich policy bus lest they be run over by said bus.

The second main argument against Kasich is that he is less conservative than the other candidates left. He stretched Ohio law to the limit to get the state to accept Obamacare provided funds to expand those covered by Medicaid, a federal/state program that provides subsidized health insurance to children and to poor people. Opponents of this maneuver were met with the aforementioned question about their commitment to Christian values when they protested to Kasich about it. Kasich has also taken a much more benign view about how to handle illegal immigrants currently in the country who are working and being otherwise law abiding.

Marco Rubio

I had the good fortune to see Marco Rubio speak to a large, receptive audience in Florida in 2010 and can attest that he is one of the most electrifying, engaging, and impressive speakers that I have ever seen. I am positive that he won a lot of supporters, donors, and volunteers that day.

His 2010 campaign for the U.S. Senator also ranks as one of the most remarkable success stories in American political history. Despite having served in elected office since he was 26 years old and serving as Speaker of the Florida House when he was only 34 years old, Rubio was out of elected office and working as a lawyer and adjunct college professor in 2010.

This story gets lost in our “every day a new battle” political culture, but what Rubio pulled off in that 2010 U.S. Senate Election is awe inspiring. He defeated Charlie Crist, the sitting Governor of Florida in the GOP primary and drove Crist out of the Republican Party, a worthy achievement on its own. In the general election, Rubio then won a tough three-way race with Crist now running as an Independent. It takes a lot of courage to look at a seemingly insurmountable electoral challenge and still try. Rubio had the courage to try in 2010.

In addition to his skills as a campaigner and orator, Rubio made friends and influenced people in the Senate. On immigration reform, he spearheaded an effort on immigration reform that got Congress closer to a solution than they had been since 2005. His Senate record is filled with efforts where he brought together disparate voices and worked with his colleagues to propose solutions. Washington is broken and as President he could fix it.

Like the other candidates, there are two main fronts on why a GOP primary voter should oppose Rubio. First, Jeb Bush tried to brand Rubio as the “GOP Obama” and in many ways the label fits. Like Obama, Rubio is relatively inexperienced at federal politics and despite his impressive rhetoric and bridge building skills, he has very little in actual accomplishments as U.S. Senator. For example, his vaunted bipartisan immigration reform effort fell apart in large part because Rubio walked away when the debate over the bill became heated.

The other half of the “GOP Obama” dig is stylistic. On matter big and small, Rubio always seems to be on the verge of being too cute by half. His town hall answers are often two parts — “here is what I would like to do (what the voter clearly wants to hear)” and “here is what I think could actual be done (a more disappointing compromise solution)”. His reputation is that he is on your side until things get tough and then he starts looking out for himself. On a more personal level, Rubio has been a Catholic, a Mormon, and an evangelical Protestant. He now attends both Catholic and Protestant services while identifying as Catholic. Religion is a deeply personal matter, but I do wring my hands a bit about someone who seems unwilling to choose an option.

Donald Trump

If you have made it this far, thank you. I will confess that I have an objection to Donald Trump as a candidate that is based both on disdain for his policy pronouncements and on disgust for his boorish personal behavior. However, like any political science graduate, I can argue it round or square. Just know that the round argument is not sincere on my part.

The proponent case for Donald Trump also comes from Jeb Bush. Jeb is a lot more successful in this essay than he ever was in the campaign! The Bush folk’s people spent weeks trying to derisively label Trump as a “chaos agent”. This supposed insult is one of the fundamental tenets of Trump’s campaign — he will bring tumultuous change to Washington and the world at large with the singular goal of improving America. To voters drawn to Perot in 1992 and to Buchanan in 1996 and to the Tea Party in 2014, this disdain for Washington and promise of massive change and upheaval to the establishment in Washington is a siren song calling them home. If you think the country is failing and your station is life is declining because of that failure, this promise to restore the American greatness of the past holds enormous appeal. You’re incorruptible and bold leader will single handedly run roughshod over all the vexing obstacles in the way to make America great again.

The two fold opponent case against Trump is both personal and policy based. By any objective standard, Donald Trump is a loathsome human being. His ex-wife, Ivana, listed “cruel and inhuman treatment” as the grounds for their divorce. More recently, he has mocked a disabled reporter, responded to his critics with childish name calling and threats of violence, and implied that Megyn Kelly’s menstrual cycle was the primary cause of her tough questioning of him. Presidents have to spend vast amounts of time and energy convincing would be opponents to support Presidential policies. Someone who cannot handle the crucible of a Presidential campaign is going to have a difficult time being strong enough and wily enough to outmaneuver his opponents.

On policies, Trump is proposing things that are not possible. Mexico is not going to send payments for the construction of a border fence. Presidents cannot unilaterally impose trade tariffs on imported foreign goods. He needs laws, treaties, and trade agreements to advance these goals. You need two sides willing to negotiate to make deals. I have serious doubts that Mexican leaders will want to meet with someone who characterized their immigrants as violent criminals and that Congressional leaders who have spent the past year being called do nothing losers will be eager to join Trump at the negotiating table.

In addition, during the debates and the candidate forums, Trump has both demonstrated a frightening lack of understanding of even basic federal policies as well as a willingness to change his positions on the fly to better appeal to his audience. For example, until 2012 he was a forceful pro-abortion advocate. Then, when he thought about running for President in 2012, he declared himself pro-life. This year he has urged Congress to fund Planned Parenthood and said recently that Planned Parenthood does “wonderful things having to do with women’s health.”   Someone this thin on policy who also seems to lack a moral core for policy decisions gives me a lot of pause about what they would do as President.

So now we have mercifully come to the end and I hope this has been helpful. Armed with this knowledge, I want to urge you to vote. Your vote does make a difference both cumulatively and individually. All of the states voting between March 1 and March 14 will be awarding delegates on a proportional basis, so even if you candidate does not win your state, they could still win delegates. Also, some of these races have been very close. The Iowa Democratic caucuses actually went to coin flip tiebreakers in several locations.

Your vote matters. Use it!

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Ranger

Loyal, loving, high energy, on guard, mischievous, playful, stubborn, and always ready to go;  these are but a few of the qualities that describe our two year old Australian Sheppard, Ranger. Born on Veterans Day in 2013 and joining an Army family, we named him after an elite US Army organization, The Army Rangers. It is clear to us now that the name fits the dog.

Like US Army Rangers, our Ranger embodies the heart, soul and spirit of an intense warrior or a playful herding dog. He will accomplish extraordinary things other herding dogs can only dream about. He’ll play field hockey in the family room with a plastic bone in his mouth and slap the tennis ball from field goal to field goal (wall to wall). If he hears something in the backyard, he begins with a soft grumbling bark to let us know there is trouble lurking out back, get the door open and let me take care of it. He doesn’t need a scouting report or an Intel Brief, he’s old school, and he just rolls at full speed! If the doorbell rings, we have a five alarm fire and max volume barking to boot. Until he meets the “intruder” and gives him the old fashion sniff test, Ranger’s radar is up and he is fully prepared for battle at a moment’s notice.

A US Army Ranger never rests on his laurels and this Ranger is no different. He will continue to prove himself to be the best of his breed each and every day. Self-sacrifice and sheer determination at overcoming obstacles (i.e. closed doors that he has learned how to open), completing his job, and protecting his herd (his family) is what Ranger lives for day in and day out.

Like US Army Rangers, our Ranger too works hard and plays hard. His mischievous side gets the best of him at times. After going out and playing in the snow, he’ll sneak into a winter coat pocket and steal away with a glove. Or he’ll go into the kitchen and swipe a hand towel to chew on. If he encounters a laundry basket he’ll capture a sock and hold it prisoner under his paws. When you catch him in the act, he’ll look away as if to deny “the false allegations that have been made against him.” No doubt about it, he has a major league rascal streak that runs right through that tri-merle coat of his. Perhaps as best explained by a dog trainer we used to help train him a year ago, “Ranger is that party guy who parks himself at the keg and goes all night talking to everybody” and I’ll add, is the last guy to crash and fall asleep with a bottle in his paw.

Ranger is always in the middle of the action. If he’s not invited, he’ll invite himself. If you keep him exercised through walks and throwing a ball, give him a job and work him a bit, in the end he’ll relax and be a little calmer at the end of the day. If you fail to keep this grand bargain with Ranger, his high energy will get the best of him and you, he just can’t help himself. In the end, Ranger is a keeper. He’s a loving companion wired to please but also wired to work. He’s not Airborne but he is a Ranger!

Ranger Pic

 

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Justice Antonin Scalia

It is the practice of The 53rd Regiment to post original content. After much deliberation, the editorial board has decided to make an exception for the homily given by Antonin Scalia’s son, a catholic priest, at his funeral mass on 20 February 2016. These next 15 minutes are well worth your time and a superb spiritual reflection on Father Scalia’s words. May the Lord bring Antonin Scalia quickly into His kingdom.

Please find the link to the Homily in the comments section below the article.

 

 

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Life

A 12 Year Old Boy’s Response to this question:

A friend of yours says to you, “I think women should have the right to get an abortion if they want to.” How would you respond?

I’d first ask “why?” Then I would say that the fetus is a human being, its not just a cell. I would tell them it is a distinct, living, whole organism. I would also say that the fetus has just as much of a right to the woman’s body as she does at the time.

Editor’s note: A twelve year old gets it why can’t the rest of us?

 

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Candidates for Dummies

by Black Jack Pershing

We have witnessed plenty of change in the last 30 years. We have seen the end of the Greatest Generation’s stewardship of the country, the Boomers’ chaotic attempt to lead the country and the first Gen X’er President, the unlikely Obama. Anyone who falls even slightly to the right has to be feeling similar to me: bewildered, irritated, disgusted, worried.

· Bewildered at the disappearance of our founding principles as a basis civil society and government in the US

· Irritated at the opposite: the emergence of real selfishness and self-indulgence as the basis for the way the country is run

· Disgusted at the disappearance of strong ethical leadership in most large institutions. I’d add the emergence of a ‘screw the little guy’ ethic among business leaders.

· Worried: that it may be too late to turn any of this around. If it is to be turned around – who will lead it articulately, genuinely, ethically, effectively?

· The passing of Judge Scalia inspired this essay. I don’t think I have ever been more worried about the US; the passing of Scalia once again opens the door to even more radicalization of how government is led.
The Candidates:

Clinton: Awful. The longer the primary season goes on, the more she will seem like a bad throwback and reminder of low brow nonsense. Just. Awful. The Democrats should be embarrassed and ashamed and many are. Criminal.

Bernie: he is emblematic of the spoiled brat generation coming into view. He is the ultimate socialist Santa Clause to the griping entitled. We cannot even blame welfare recipients for Bernie. His fans are predominantly young and white. They were never taught history or civics. They are mobile device staring self-obsessed zomboids. Created by dopey over managing Boomers who can’t let them make a decision without therapy sessions and micro-management. And they want free stuff. Free education Bernie? Why – so they can get a Women’s’ Studies or Art History degree and be even more useless? How about tech school and learning a trade so you can at least be useful, you little jerks?

Trump: the ultimate outgrowth of reality TV and all the dummies that hang on ‘what’s on TV tonight?’. He is the hero of the uninvolved dummies of society that watch TV as pastime and have nothing going on socially. He is a product of the entertainment industry – gone rogue. He is the champion of those who are pissed off but don’t know why. They don’t know why because they never read anything and watch CSI Whatever and Celebrity Apprentice. But they’ve been screwed for real and they want to get back at those who did it. Trump is great at calling out the easiest targets, oversimplifying everything and mastering sound bites. He reflects the USA well right now: bellicose, inarticulate, seemingly angry, and kind of a fat slob. I am guessing many trumpians voted for Obama because they felt we needed a black president. These kinds of people are the worst kinds of Americans because they combine being uninformed with being confident about their choices. They are always right until they are not. Many trumpians are independents and smug about it. Of course we all know that the middle of the road is for dead armadillos and yellow stripes. If I have to – I will vote for Trump but it still seems surreal – or – maybe if Lyndon LaRoushe is on the ballot again I will consider that.

Jeb: Bush fatigue is real. The low energy thing is legit – at least when he is talking. He likely could have been more effective than his brother or father but people are staying away from him in droves. Good guy. Has integrity. Just not his time. Too bad for Jeb. I could vote for him. He is not too old, but he seems to represent something that is almost gone – I’d call them caretaker republicans. They usually don’t screw things up but they don’t make anything better.

Carson: Hard to take him seriously given his quiet and almost sleepy persona , but he’s smart, patient, accomplished, and has integrity. If he drops out we will have lost the best example of class in the republican pool. Was great to see a guy like him run. I could vote for him. I wish he had a real chance. He lacks killer instinct.

Rubio: Great on paper. Not so great in reality. Seems like an over eager Cub Scout, or a senior on the high school debate team trying too hard to be glib. His ears are simply too large for him to be president. I could vote for him and if he does break through I hope he grows up fast and can defend himself. Allowing himself to be depantsed by the New Jersey Sumo showed real weakness and lack of preparation. Let’s face it – Senators are too compromised and argue about meaningless nonsense. All of them.

Cruz: certainly a favorite among the conservatives that vote 100% principle or against a long list of ‘must have’ views. The problem with that kind of inventory is that it leaves out likeability, of which, Ted has very little. Ted is the guy everyone hated in high school, who asked if there was homework at the end of class. Ted was also one of the early targets in any gym class dodgeball game; he usually got hit in the crotch or the face and limped off to the side in disgrace. He is the know-it-all we all deal with at work that you pray will just shut up at meetings. He is also unacquainted with pushups, running, or any kind of fitness. Hard for me to support him but I will if he gets the nomination.

Kasich: reasonable. Kind. Positive. Experienced. Great record as a governor. Gets legitimate criticism for enacting parts of Obama-care in his state. He may be another caretaker republican. Currently he’s the only one I can endorse, now that Fiorina is out. He has charisma and persona could counter Hilary’s nastiness with a bemused attitude about all of her fascist views. Kasich strikes me as the only Repub that could make a legitimate claim to be a champion for the little guy.

Regrets: Fiorina is smart as heck but has come across as shrill and mean at times. Has not broken through. Likely lacks requisite charisma to win. May have gone overboard on the Botox.

Black Jack Pershing’s Republican Wish List: Trump’s punishing message to companies that move operations out of the country should be maintained. Border must be sealed regardless of the disposition of the illegals. (too much technical goofy and uninteresting arguments are going on among the candidates about their orthodoxy related to amnesty. Yeah yeah yeah.) Rand Paul’s talk about loss of liberty is legit. Most repubs are ignoring it. ISIS must be eliminated and the US needs a permanent and sizeable base in the Middle East – permanently. BO blew it in Iraq where we could have done this. Regardless of whether you believe in Climate Change – cheap renewable energy must be developed both for conservation and security reasons. A post oil world benefits all of us. The large energy companies should be incented to work on this long term. The size of the US government should be cut by a third through the implementation of simple policies and technology. There are too many ignoramuses in the US. The teaching of American history and civics must be improved. Corporate tax rates must be brought down to at least 20% and permanent laws about what fair taxation consists of should be written. What is fair? Likely no more than 25% of anyone’s income should ever be confiscated by the state. Ever. We need to get it defined and stop arguing about it. On the social side – almost all is lost due to changing norms. Republicans should strategically focus on liberty and individualism. Science will likely prove the true genocide than abortion is and it should decline. Repubs should stay where they are on that issue. All others? Rely on federalism to let the states work the issues out. Let the churches speak out in society on all issues about personal morality – Republican politicians should just focus on limiting the scope and creep of government control. Finally – unless a republican group emerges that can engage the Hispanic population, they will be lost for decades – much as the Irish were in the early 20th century. I am not hopeful about any of this, but I hope I am surprised as the coming year unfolds.
Disagree? Write your own column, snapperhead!

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Cowards Burn in Hell

 

The Islamic Sick Imbecile Society (ISIS) is growing. Let’s just refer to them as Imbeciles for short, or perhaps the JV Team as President Obama refers to them. Their message of hate, Islamic extremism and cowardice is somehow attractive and appealing to the feeble minded Muslim intolerant community along with other losers. ISIS rages against freedom, women that dare go in public not wearing a burka or Christians that are faithful to God. These are but a few of ISIS’s grievances against civil society and for these “crimes” they rage war against innocents – children, women and elderly.

The formerly named Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, and newly minted corrected name of Team Imbecile, offers poor living conditions, 72 mythical virgins and a lifetime of moral depravity, self loathing and a one way ticket to hell. But yet, somehow Team Imbecile is attracting westerners to join them? Why?

A few questions:

  1. Is the Obama Administration doing enough to counter the Imbecile message? For that matter, is the Administration doing anything to counter the Imbecile message? Apparently not, they’re the “JV Team.”
  2. Would it be difficult to develop a public service add campaign and for the government to run PSA’s in Muslim communities countering these messages? Absolutely not! Why hasn’t this been done? The Obama Administration has underestimated the threat and lacks imagination.

So there’s that.

The tactics of the Imbeciles are barbaric. They sever heads with knives and swords; they rape innocents including children and then shoot them in front of their parents; they compel young men to fight with them or they kill them; they persecute Christians and force Christian women into being sex slaves for their coward force of jihad’s; they strap bombs on innocents and force them to blow themselves up in suicide attacks against other innocents; they talk other imbeciles into blowing themselves up in the name of their god. Let’s pause at that thought a minute — so their god is happy that they took innocent lives killing themselves along the way? Sounds more like the devil to me!

Yeah, these jackasses really have a lot to offer and I find it hard to fathom that the Unites States of America can’t counter what these geniuses are selling. So what we have established here is that 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue lacks imagination, lacks the will to fight and lacks credibility when it comes to countering the Imbecile message. We have a Commander-in-Chief that telegraphs US military strategy and is resistant to putting “boots on the ground.” But yet we have boots on the ground back in Iraq (close to ~5K service members that is not being reported in the news) because he withdrew boots on the ground prematurely after we achieved victory in Iraq (… and the US news media fails to point this out too). This single action led to the creation of the Islamic Sick Imbecile Society (ISIS), made up of former Al Qaeda, terrorist affiliates and other low life’s recruited from despot situations and Imams driving hate.

I leave you with this thought to ponder from one of our great presidents who understood the promise of America, his duty to his country and his commitment to the next generation of Americans:

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”– Ronald Reagan

 

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Baggers

Undervalued, underappreciated and arguably overworked, the American Bagger, formerly known as a “Bag Boy” back in the day, is one of the under celebrated entry jobs in the American work force. While the position has grown in complexity and scale over the past decades, the best grocery chains continue to invest in these junior positions to identify skills and talents that can progress to cashier (think banking skills), stock clerk (think fulfillment center) and or management material. It is much more than just “paper or plastic,” baggers must have the mental agility to organize, anticipate and forecast content packaging before placement in the bag. You either “have it” or you don’t.

Bagging is never as simple as bread and eggs on top, give me a break. This is actually insulting to those of us who have lived the life, earned the stripes and been there in the trenches inheriting three carts worth of groceries backed up on the conveyor belt with an angry cashier and customer looking at you when you arrive like “hello, where you been?!” In a word, pressure. The clock has been ticking and one of your bagger-mates allowed this problem to manifest by not having the courage to jump in and meet the challenge. It’s just like anything in life, there are always a few slackers not carrying their weight. It really chaps my ass! To my fellow baggers, get in the fight, grab the mantle and seize the moment. This is your opportunity for greatness.

Many in the bagger community feel targeted by the Obama recession. In the 1980’s the American Bagger Society had 327,543 active contributing members spread across all 50 states and US territories. Morale was high, positions were valued and opportunity abound. Today there are less than 97,000 members beat down by out-sourcing, no sourcing and self-service aisles. Bagger nation is on the run. Some in the bagger community have even reported being targeted by the IRS for their tips undergoing audits and backroom pressure. We have been blamed for everything from Global Warming to polluting landfills with paper and plastic. It’s outrageous. The biggest scheme going on these days are those crappy recycle bags the big store chains give out guilting customers away from classic paper bags. Stores charge you a buck each for these lousy bags and then you leave the damn thing in the car or house every freaking time you go to the store! Then the cashier looks at you like, “forget your bag again dumbass?”

Baggers deserve an opportunity to earn a living wage. Between the insults, the lack of appreciation and the pressure, we are finding solidarity with garbage men. Their industry too is under assault through automated garbage trucks with mechanical arms that are displacing the garbage truck back-enders. From Super Bagger to no bagger leaves one question — can the professional be rebuilt or is this one more loss to the American fabric that goes away like the milkman?

 

 

 

 

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Iraq – The Surge – A Patrol      

               

by Captain JMD, call sign Echo Zulu 21, US Army (Veteran)

Memories of my time in service and specifically certain experiences in relation to deploying are still very vivid. I don’t want to be dramatic, but considering how disconnected so many Americans are with current sacrifices that are our Military is still enduring, with a war going on “behind the scenes” and most of America disengaged , I think it’s important to highlight reality.

     American Lives are being lost. I remember early October 2006. We were within 2 weeks from deploying, replacing the 4th Infantry Division (ID) out of Fort Hood, TX. The radio was already on in my Chevy Cavalier and I was driving to Physical Training (PT) on a Monday morning. Rolling to a stop in front of one of what seemed like 10,000 cleaners, the voice on the radio spoke of an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) that took the lives of three 4th ID Soldiers, in the Area of Operations (AO) my unit was being assigned. It wasn’t supposed to be that bad. There was a Burger King, Pizza Hut and Post Exchange (PX) there. After Wednesday, I exclusively listened to my iPod Shuffle, because it was now clearly a trend and I knew I was going to be driving right through the neighborhoods where these heroes’ families lived. Also, I was scared.

     My Platoon. I was assigned the Support Platoon 3 weeks prior to wheels up, meaning I was getting to know an entirely new Platoon Sergeant, NCO group and unit of Soldiers with jobs I was not familiar with. I was branched Ordnance out of Army R.O.T.C. and primarily had focused on maintenance and ammunition through doctrinal training. My first Platoon on Active Duty was a 120 Soldier maintenance unit. We were largely responsible for the fueling and transportation of our Heavy Battalion: Tanks and Bradley Fighting Vehicles. We supplied oil, gasoline, and ammunition; and when down range the ultimate comfort …Porta Shitters. (By the way, ever seen one of those bad boys over flow on the back of a US Army transportation vehicle on a patrol, with the toilet paper that randomly popped off the holder, so it’s streaming down the street dangling in between every vehicle in the patrol? If you haven’t, I will give you a heads up: Battalion Commanders do not like that; however, local Iraqis will figure out a way to maximize its value and you will hate your life when you get back on the Forward Operating Base (FOB) and have to pressure wash your vehicles to remove the Iraqi Police (IP) or Iraqi Army (IA) shit.

     The Plan. Contact picked up and sustained quickly after we arrived just north of Baghdad and leadership developed a plan to take action. Part of that plan was to try and maximize assets and leaders. I was asked to train and lead my platoon to take on the route clearance mission, which would allow our tasked Engineer unit to be free for other important missions. Honestly, over tasked is likely irrelevant, because we were all “doing more with less” and that was something that, for me, has translated into a transferrable skill in the civilian workforce as well.

     IEDs Suck. IEDs were the number one killer of US Troops during the time I was deployed and it was literally increasing daily. If you took small arms fire, it was like a weight lifted off of your shoulders, because you would identify the target, return fire, destroy the target and you’re done with it. If you found an IED, a hoax IED, or got hit with one, there’s about a million different scenarios that could unfold. I’ll start with one of many long days on a route clearance patrol.

     Prayer. At 0300 my watch alarm goes off. Doesn’t matter, because I was wide awake. Grab my shaving stuff, head to the bathroom, shave, and head back to the room. Put my uniform on, bless myself with St. Jude’s oil, and head out to the motor pool. Unlock our makeshift office, check my Operations Order and walk over to headquarters. Get the Intelligence brief, say F-my life and head back to the motor pool. My Soldiers are checking the vehicles, but not much left to be done, because we got everything ready the night before. There is an extremely important local meeting, the local tribal meeting, that my Commander and other VIPs are participating in and it’s in Tarmiyiah, which as my man Echo Charlie would say, “is hotter than the devils hell”. Regardless of that, we’re going to clear the ENTIRE route, which encompasses 95% of the AO. Also, I’ve not taken a patrol up the eastern side of our AO yet, on Route Cobras, which is a 10 mile stretch of choke points connecting Route Coyotes, which connects to MSR Tampa (picture Iraqi I-95), and goes to south to Camp Taji.

     8 MPH. It’s still dark, we’re rolling out with 1 Husky (big ass mine detector), 1 Buffalo (a Transformer with a robotic arm made exclusively to be blown off by IEDs) and 3 Humvees with .50 cals. Steely eyed EZ21 (me) is in command of this elite unit, saying Hail Mary’s in between every possible time I had to actually communicate to someone and we’re topping out at 8mph.

     Iraqi Stare-down. So the sun comes up, people start coming out and we’re not finding much. We’re moving north on Cobras and as we approach 0900 in the morning, getting closer to Tarmiyah, we notice a change in the civilians. No smiles, people waving us off, people coming closer and closer to the patrol. At some point shortly thereafter, I hear the leadership head up to Tarmiyah and they are following us, since we’re clearing their route…but it’s taking longer than anticipated. At some point about 75% of the way to Tarmiyah, the leadership’s patrol catches up and they pass us to head to their destination about 5 kilometers northwest of us.   Then the call comes in from Demon 6, my commander:

     Comms. “EZ 21 this is Demon 6: we’ve got command wire on the south side of Coyotes at grid (IED indicator)”…basically, west side of Tarmiyah…the leaderships egress route-potentially. There’s two ways in and out of Tarmiyah: Cobras and Coyotes.

So Demon 6 has a platoon dismounted and they’ve established security and they’ve been there for roughly 2 hours by the time we get there. Coyotes is a slightly elevated road, with tall reeds that come up level with the roof of a Humvee in most locations. There’s limited visibility for the vehicle and the road is built up a bit, almost like on a platform in some spots.

     IED Halt. I dismount and link up with Demon 6 and we take a knee behind the vehicle opposite of the command wire. He told me that the command wire was tangled up in the reeds and there was also some loose gravel about 20 meters west on Coyotes from where we were. On top of that, we had a few Apaches come on site, and when they did, 2 people on a bike sped off (probably the enemy positioned to trigger the IED). Several indicators of a potential IED attack. All the while, the leadership meeting is over, the route is certainly NOT cleared and everyone in Tarmiyah knows who’s in that meeting.

So, we send the Buffalo up, the wire gets cut, it digs up a propane tank…no idea what’s inside of it. “2-1, what do you want to do?” I advise to call Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD), and get rid of it. The site has been secure for close to 3 hours at this point and EOD was aware. They come up, do a controlled detonation and pack up shop. Time to head home, finish the route clearance and be done with this mission…but we are far from home at an 8 mph clip.

Demon Company heads back to their patrol base in Tarmiyah to help secure the Command’s patrol and we continue on with clearing Coyotes, westbound, to then hit MSR Tampa and then head south to Camp Taji. EOD hits me up on the radio, asks to pass on our left side, I say sure and we slow to about 1-2mph and drift slowly to the right side of the road, giving them the lane to our left. Then the earth explodes like a volcano. It literally looked like a volcano, zero exaggeration!

     IED explosion. I saw the flames and road break apart and then simultaneously SPC Whiskey, my driver, slammed the breaks and my head turned and faced him. I saw his face slam on the steering wheel, we stopped and my Kevlar hit the dashboard. As my head came back up, I faced out of the windshield and the explosion was still there. Instantly, I thought the EOD vehicle that just passed us was gone. Over the radio I can hear my gunner and dismount, PFC Sierra and PFC Alpha, so I know we’re up and also hear the two vehicles behind me, because they had no idea where we were since the explosion debris engulfed us. I start calling the EOD call sign, as well as the route clearance Buffalo and Husky team and they report back as all good. As soon as that happens, I start hearing our .50’s going off, trying to immobilize a van speeding off north through the reeds.

Meanwhile, I’m on the radio reporting the IED attack, being hit up by Command who’s trying to come down Coyotes to get back to the FOB, because Route Cobras was now a “black route,” meaning No Go terrain. Cobras is “black”, because our other route clearance team found an IED on it.

     IED Tactics. Two deep buried 155mm Artillery Rounds went off directly in front of my Humvee and directly behind the EOD vehicle. Battle damage assessment (BDA) conducted by the EOD team determined that the first IED that was called in was a hoax, set up to learn our tactics and drills with the plan to hit us on the way back home. Additionally, had they not buried those rounds so deep, it would have been a different outcome for both of our vehicles and crew. The blast site and burial of the 155mm rounds caused the explosion to go straight up in a controlled manner. I credit St. Jude’s oil and nonstop Hail Mary’s.

     It’s an Army thing. The Command team passed my patrol on MSR Tampa heading south back to the FOB. The gunner in my rear vehicle was not wearing his combat gloves at this point and leadership noticed. I then proceeded to take the biggest ass chewing of my Military career, after all of that, but I was talking to another unit on another frequency, so I did not hear it. I sure found out when I got back to headquarters to submit my patrol debrief.

     Lived another day. My Company Commander thought I was KIA, which she told me when I got back, because…well who knows. The rest of the Battalion staff was laughing hysterically, because of the epic ass chewing tirade the Battalion Commander went on, all while thinking he was talking to me, but in reality it was my Private dismount troop talking to him, because I was on another frequency.

Good first month. That was about 30 days into what ended up being a 15 month deployment. I’m proud to say that I still have family and friends that continue to serve and bear the sacrifices that are undoubtedly getting more and more difficult, and more distant to the American public.

 

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GothamCiti

“Save the Franchise”

Tumbling, stumbling and falling into the abyss circa 2010, Master Alderson was wondering, searching, and praying for an answer. Endowed with US Marine focus, he kept circling back to the mission, “save the franchise.” Hamstrung with few financial resources after being undermined by the villain Madoff, he co-opted a man willing to take on the challenge of leading an upstart group of underdogs that were committed to playing the game the right way and battling for victory each day. Chieftain Collins, experienced in being underestimated, did not hesitate at the challenge in a city of doubt. He took the challenge and ran with it ignoring his crosstown rivals.

… and then Boom! Five years into the experiment; after turmoil, sweat, tears and hard work, it happened under Captain America’s (#5 David Wright) leadership, the Super Heros emerged. One-by-one they began to make their mark. From the shadows, emerged the Dark Knight (#33 Matt Harvey) to rest control of Gotham. Fighting a glorious battle, the Dark Knight had a wing clipped in 2013 and returned to the bat cave to recover. But he would not be denied upon his return.

His battery mate, Wolverine (#45 Zach Wheeler) picked up the slack and continued the fight in Gotham and delivered smoke and high heat to the enemy. Although the Wolverine was a mutant and engineered to not suffer human injuries, he was infected with a virus in 2014 and suffered a similar injury to the Dark Knight.

The Silver Surfer (#48 Jacob deGrom) emerged to carry on the fight, and fight he did. Regularly underestimated entering Gotham’s rotation he emerged in 2014 as the NL Rookie of the Year, and in 2015 he used his “faster than light” super power to mow down the AL All-Stars in 10 pitches in a single inning, an All-Star game record.

Enter stage right from the dugout, Thor (#34, Noah Syndergaard), “if you have a problem with me pitching inside, meet me 60 feet and 6 inches away” led the NY Mets with his big hammer, warrior spirit and willingness to challenge royalty at every turn. While the villain Moustakas fired F-bombs from his safe fortress in the dugout, and hid behind umpires, Thor picked up his hammer and went to work mowing the royalty down, to include the little kitten Moustakas.

… And prepared for battle at a moments notice, Iron Man (#32 Steven Matz), part of Gotham’s Queens Vengeance Force, used his brilliant intellect and sophisticated pitches to silence the enemy at the plate, especially from a flank attack on the left.

… and then, when the battle endured late into the night, enter The Hulk (#40, Bartolo Colon) to wage his brand of war with brute strength, craftiness and an appetite to defeat all enemies at all costs! Willing to take on all challenges and park his ego for his superhero teammates, he set the tone with the spirit of an ageless, hungry warrior.

In the year 2015, the Gotham Greats took the fight to the privileged royalties after being under-estimated all year. Their work is far from over after needing to re-group after a fierce five game battle. Outplaying their opponent for the first six innings of each game, they failed to protect their advantage late in innings. The Gotham Greats have reset, refocused and are already preparing for battle in the 2016 campaign. They are wiser, more experienced and filled with an indomitable spirit to conquer and vanquish their opponents beginning with their arch rivals, a pesky fly known as the Nats!

 

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Exodus

The modern day Exodus has been well under way in the Middle East for the last six years of the Obama Administration. This time instead of Israelis fleeing Egypt, Christians are fleeing Iraq, Syria and neighboring countries. The exodus has been supercharged since the Obama Administration withdrew US Forces from Iraq in 2011, against the recommendations of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. This single decision set in motion the formation of the brutal terrorist organization ISIS, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, organized from extremist Islamic terrorist groups such as Al Qaeda Iraq (AQI) among others. ISIS is one big dung pile in the heart of the Middle East attracting  low-life maggots from across the world to terrorize the innocent, brutalize Christians and pillage civilian populations that don’t conform to their brand of Islam.

In 2010, US Vice President Joe Biden, said this, “I am very optimistic about — about Iraq. I mean, this could be one of the great achievements of this administration. You’re going to see 90,000 American troops come marching home by the end of the summer. You’re going to see a stable government in Iraq that is actually moving toward a representative government,” said Biden. It is a gross understatement to say VP Biden got this wrong. US troops withdrew creating a vacuum for Iranian influence and cooperation with the Shia al-Maliki government to dominate Iraq’s politics, which alienated the Sunni’s leading to the resurgence of terrorism and ISIS.

Between President Obama’s flippant comment about ISIS being the JV team; and his failure to honor his own words three and half years ago  telling President Assad of Syria, that using chemical weapons would be crossing a red line, and then doing nothing as Assad gassed his own people, the president opened all the doors on the barn of ignorance, weakness and hollowness. The US has lost credibility with our friends and enemies alike resulting in tremendous loss of innocent life and the current quagmire of what is left if the heart of the middle east.

In Iraq today it is estimated that there are less than five hundred thousand Christians remaining from an Iraqi population of 1.5 million Christians ten years ago. In Syria, six hundred thousand have fled or been killed out of an estimated population of 1.1 million Christians. Al Qaeda, ISIS, terrorist maggots are not on the run, they have re-grouped, reorganized and grown in size and number, and they have carved out their own country, the so called “Caliphate,” out of Iraq and Syria. All this while the world’s greatest power has sat on the sidelines for five, six years allowing this cesspool of terrorists to grow in number while our president gave speeches denying the seriousness of the threat and the resurgence of terrorist numbers. Paris and San Bernardino were the final straws of disgust with the American public demanding action from this president as over 70% of the American public disagrees with a “leading from behind” approach to foreign policy which has now been defined as The Obama Doctrine,  “do nothing, at any cost.”

Americans may be war weary but when we withdraw from being the world’s conscious, bad things happen and in this case, a Christian Exodus of the living runs over the graves of the hundreds of thousands who have been persecuted. This is not us, this is not our country, we are not cowards. We stand up and fight for innocents, and we win! I remind all of us, there are reasons to fight!

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SmokingMan

 With X-Files returning and a sighting of Smoking Man in a recent episode, we are left wondering who he is? What does he represent? Who does he really work for? Is he hiding aliens or is he orchestrating a government conspiracy to control Americans in order to establish a one world government and eliminate our freedoms. If America falls, they all fall. He knows it. Does he respect the US constitution or does he lead through executive fiats and orders? Who is Smoking Man?

Some believe he is a progressive democratic as he believes in a central authority controlling the lives of the ordinary unwashed masses. Uber-regulation supercharged with alien technology and DNA, the master keys to controlling the human race and eliminating the pesky libertarians and patriots. Amazon drone delivery units, street cameras on every corner and GPS enabled cell phones, convenience items for the public or orchestrated control by the Smoking Man to track us, all of us? Insights from the Smoking Man in his own words:

“Men can never be free, because they’re weak, corrupt, worthless… and restless. The people believe in authority. They’ve grown tired of waiting for miracle or mystery. Science is their religion – no greater explanation exists for them! They must never believe any differently if the project is to go forward.”

The “project,” what is the project? Mulder and Scully have been searching this answer for decades. Some believe the project is the American Affordable Care Act (ACA). Get the masses signed up, collect all their personal information and family history, secure their DNA and begin “the selection” and tagging process. Build the data base, empower control through the IRS and have the masses re-register every year through enrollment with significant fees and co-payments to secure the necessary funding. Supposedly this scheme was developed by the Smoking Man and the One World Syndicate, implemented by a willing democratic progressive movement.

This theory, although highly plausible has yet to be proven. The 53rd Regiment would like your thoughts, your opinions on this matter. Please help us analyze what the Smoking Man and his cohorts are up to. Post up with your comments.

                

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Shameful

by CDR (R), USN

American Sailors being held at gun point by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard (IRG) on their knees and with their hands behind their heads. Captain James Lawrence’s dying words during the War of 1812 – “Don’t give up the ship” – have been lost in America’s failed foreign policy and our decline on the world stage. Our mighty fighting force is no longer respected, not because we lack capability but because our nation’s leaders lack the backbone to stand and if necessary fight. We no longer fight on principal nor stand our ground on the battlefield or on the vessels flying our nation’s colors. Our nation’s leaders thank our adversary for the safe treatment of our fighting force instead of being outraged and demanding the global community hold Iran accountable for their actions of capturing our sailors instead of rendering aid, and humiliating them by parading their pictures on public media, clearly a violation of the Geneva Convention and of course a complete propaganda play. They succeeded. We failed.

Although I think there should be accountability for the officer’s actions as it led to giving up the two Riverine Command Boats (RCB’s), the much larger problem is that we are perceived as a weak and capitulating nation. We are not respected. We are no longer feared. Our leaders try to appease our adversaries; they should take a few minutes to see how that worked out with the rise of Nazi Germany. They should read a history book. They should apply common sense. They should google Iran – 1979. They should figure out that peace is achieved through strength, not weakness. The US SEVENTH FLEET motto sums it up the best – A Ready Power for Peace.

We need to change the direction of our country to ensure the USA remains a superpower and doesn’t collapse like the former Soviet Union. One only needs to refer to the words of our national anthem to determine how we do this. We Americans are free people, we are brave people; but we need to use our wits and our intellect to ensure we elect the right leaders that will keep our nation strong. At the end of the day, the accountability rests with populace empowered to put in place our democratically elected leaders.

 

 

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NationalFailureLeague?

Is the NFL too Big to Fail?

By The Badger

The Super Bowl is right around the corner. The game is the pinnacle of its sport. It’s not just about a football championship game it’s also about marketing, advertising and sponsorships. Frankly, it’s about big business. Ticket prices are steep, CEO’s mingle with Hollywood celebrities and the parties both before and after the game would make the Great Gatsby envious.

To own an NFL franchise is a capitalist’s dream. While there are certainly great risks to go along with the incredible asking price of a franchise today, the overall financial rewards are significant and have helped some of the current owners become billionaires. Many of the owners as well as the NFL execs in NY are truly great business leaders who have combined an excellent overall marketing strategy with a terrific product resulting in unprecedented appreciation in the value of their teams. Think Apple stock price appreciation over the last 10 years and you will start to get the picture on how the value of an NFL franchise has grown the last decade. I repeat, to own an NFL franchise is a capitalist’s dream.

But is the NFL really a business based on capitalism? Does company (or in this case team) revenue sharing across all competitors sound like capitalism?   That’s how the TV contracts work in the NFL. When a company (again in this context team) wants to relocate to improve their economic situation how many capitalistic industries require a majority approval vote across all the competitors to approve the move?   Other than perhaps one of the other professional sports leagues I can’t think of any. While I love the teamwork of football and of the NFL, the more I think about it I come back to the thought that there are elements of a monopoly here. Sure, there are 32 individual teams but the case could be made that the league as a whole is certainly not a pure capitalistic industry.   Interesting to note too that the NFL can get local municipalities (tax payers) to fund new multi million dollar stadiums. Sound capitalistic to you?

Be clear your author loves professional sports but more importantly is thankful for all the opportunities our great capitalistic society has provided him. I know that the competition that comes from and with capitalism drives innovation, drives consumer value and drives more opportunity for more people. Is the NFL doing all of that? I don’t think so.

The NFL needs to be careful. While it’s the biggest most popular professional sports league in the country it’s got some PR issues. Player safety, player character and affordability for the fan base are all brewing issues. Billionaire owners appear to be overly focused on driving more and more personal wealth in a “clubby” industry insulated from much if any government oversight. In a sluggish economy where most Americans are currently not prospering the NFL would be wise to be mindful that they are not too big to fail.

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Tribute

Farewell to an Old Soldier by LTC (P) Zoltan “Z” Krompecher 

Being an Army family means that my wife and children have accepted the requirement to move often: every one to three years we pack our worldly possessions and move to a new location, each one unique in its own way. This lifestyle has led to wonderful relationships, and we look back fondly on the friendship made with a family from Kalamazoo. Recently, the Western Michigan University and Kalamazoo community said goodbye to a man who spent most of his life serving as a natural ambassador to the university, the Army, and the community. He was a friend to many.

In my first week as the Professor of Military Science at Western Michigan University (WMU), a time when I was still trying to figure out where to park, a gentleman with a Soldier’s stature walked into my office and introduced himself as Herb Kenz. A comfortable conversation ensued between two soldiers who, following combat, found academia a welcome environment. Herb shared childhood tales of growing up in Saint Ignace, his journey to war, and the courtship of Jean, the woman who captured his heart.

Following high school, life pushed Herb out of the quietude of the U.P. and into a world broken from war. As a soldier in occupied Japan he guarded Emperor Hirohito and became part of the healing process between former enemies. Five years later, he stared war in the face in Korea. These experiences must have led him to believe the world could be a better place, because he came home to Michigan and Jean (staying in the Army reserves) and decided to help others through teaching, but what I remember most about Herb and Jean was the way they “adopted” WMU ROTC cadets.

ROTC cadets generally represent a variety backgrounds but are united in the hope of one day commissioning as Army officers. They are the great “unwashed” who arrive on campus nervous and apprehensive. To temper their anxiety, Herb and other WMU ROTC Alumni, along with spouses, show up on the first day to grill food, share stories, answer questions, and make newly arrived students feel welcome: a shining example of generations passing hands.

Herb had a warm smile and easy approach which helped cadets see past temporary discomfort by understanding the world is worth getting up for in the morning, even at 0530 to run in the Michigan cold. Through their efforts, the WMU ROTC alumni formed strong bonds with the cadets. They helped the cadets press on towards the finish line together. They made it, and somewhere along the line they discovered each other and themselves. With every new class of cadets, Herb never lost that smile or the warmth that enveloped those of us lucky enough to know him. After graduating, many cadets entered the army ingrained with the lessons of camaraderie that Herb and his ilk helped teach them. Many of these young officers return to campus to impart these same lessons onto new generations of cadets.

Perhaps the deepest lesson Herb taught us, one not found in an Army manual, was not to return to the ordinariness of our lives because faith, family and the greater good are more important than oneself. He loved Jean, their children, his students and WMU. He loved Michigan.

For a time, Herb and Jean participated in Community Theater. It makes sense, because he could adapt to any environment. In the end, it was as if he needed a larger stage, so he left the spotlight to be with Jean.

Last month, alumni and students of WMU gathered in Saint Augustine’s to pay tribute to Herb. Lieutenant Colonel (Retried) John Colburn held roll-call by calling out the names of present service members, each one responding with, “Here, Sir!” When they got to Herb’s name there was no response. Second passed and then a 21-gun salute was fired following by a lonely trumpet playing Taps to honor the kind soul of a man who never really grew old.

I arrived to Kalamazoo knowing nobody, and then Herb showed up.

 

 

 

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