Some of the talking heads on the left make no more sense than the Moron Magpies, Beckel and Jeckle . . .
Did these birds ever say anything that made sense?
Appologies to Paul Terry and Terrytoons©.
Thanksgiving Thoughts from a Soldier in Iraq
Putting Thanksgiving in perspective, I present an excerpt from an email I got today from a soldier in Mosul, Iraq.
As I sit here and write this on Thanksgiving, although I have a lot to be thankful for this year, I thought I would share a little with you about what I am thankful for today. I am thankful for my family, they have been there for me, and without their guidance, I would be completely lost. I am thankful for God, that he has seen fit to protect me this last year, that he helps my battalion make it safely back home, that he continues to protect the troops that will still be here, and that he has taken into heaven with open arms, the men and women who have given their lives in this war, who he just couldn’t live without in heaven. I am thankful that I was born in America, and not a country like Iraq. As strange as it may seem, I am thankful that Americans still have the right to voice their opinions about this war (whether I agree with them or not), if America still has the right to voice it’s opinion, that means we’re doing our job over here, and doing it well! Most of all, I am thankful for my fiancé, who has braved one of the most ultimate in hardships this last year, and stuck with me throughout it all. For certain, true love does exist. Finally, I am thankful that there are people back home who understand what we are fighting for, and proud of us.
God Bless!
Sincerely,
Sgt. Furman
Mosul, Iraq
And now you know why I’m so proud of these guys; let’s support them any way we can.
Inset photo credit Army Combat Training Centers
Thanksgiving Day
Damsel asked what I am thankful for on this day. Here’s a few things, although the list is certainly bigger than this.
- As I look at other places in the nation and the world today, I am thankful for the climate in California.
- I am thankful for technology and the ability to sit here and view pictures from Mars and deep space; to share thoughts, images, music and humor with others.
- I am thankful to have been given the talent and motivation to succeed in my career.
- I am thankful for our home and the shelter and comfort we enjoy.
- I am thankful for jazz, blues, classical, and symphonic music; and to have good taste in my preferences.
- I am thankful for and proud of our men and women serving in the armed forces, and the protection they provide.
- I am thankful and proud to be a right-thinking American.
- I am thankful for and proud of the United States of America and the freedom we enjoy.
- I am thankful for food, family and football on this day.
- Most of all, I am thankful for Damsel and the life and love we share together.
I Been Everywhere (Almost – USA)
Whenever I have the chance, I tell people I’ve been to every state but two: North Dakota and Iowa – and, that it’s my intention to score those additional states soon after I retire, perhaps sooner.
Damsel, during a not-so-long-ago visit with our friends near Wilmington, North Carolina, disclosed that we would be going to West Virginia on that trip, so I could score that state (which, prior to that, I had not previously visited). She also told Roger, our friend, that the Cap’n also needed to go to the “duh” state. “The duh state?” Roger inquired. “Yep,” Damsel replied, “Iowa — where Duh Moines and Duh Buque are located.” Damsel always knew how to crack Roger up — he couldn’t stop laughing for several minutes, and at any mention of Iowa thereafter, a resumption of chuckles and mirth.
Of course, Iowa would have really been a DUH State if their seven electoral votes had been cast for John Kerry in 2004. As it is, we still plan to go there for a visit to American Heartland.
Loophole Offers Easy Diploma for Deadbeat Students
Yet another symptom of the failing California educational system . . .
California – Loophole offers hope after failed exit exam – sacbee.com
Maybe California high school seniors who can’t pass an exit examination in math and English this year won’t lose their chance for a diploma after all. Though state law requires passage of the high-stakes test, there’s an apparent, largely unknown loophole.
Part of the California Educators’ “No Deadbeats Left Behind” strategy? Our blue state attitude towards education is disgusting.
Damsel Sends You Maize
Out of the cornucopia just in time for Thanksgiving . . .
Maize: Gift from America’s First Peoples
Columbus did not realize that the gift of maize was far more valuable than the spices or gold he hoped to find. He had no way of knowing that the history of maize traced back some 8,000 years or that it represented the most remarkable plant breeding accomplishment of all time. He might have been embarrassed if he had understood that then, as now, this plant developed by peoples he judged poor and uncivilized far outstripped in productivity any of the cereals bred by Old World farmers –wheat, rice, sorghum, barley, and rye. Were he alive today, he would certainly be astonished to see the extent to which the advent of maize has affected land use, food production, cuisine, and population growth around the world.
Walton Galinat, 1992, “Chilliesto Chocolate”
Source: Iowa State University Maize Page
Private Sector Lunar Plan to Compete with NASA
From SPACE.com — Private Sector, Low-Cost Lunar Plan Unveiled
A newly released study has focused on how best to return people to the Moon, reporting that future lunar missions can be done for under $10 billion – far less than a NASA price tag.
The multi-phased three-year study was done by a private space firm, SpaceDev of Poway, California, and concluded that safe, lower cost missions can be completed by the private sector using existing technology or innovative new technology expected to be available in time to support human exploration of the Moon in the near-future.
Artist rendition of the “rocket chair,” designed to lower people and equipment onto the lunar surface. credit: Spacedev
Fraction of time/cost
NASA has tallied its future lunar mission costs, projecting a figure of $104 billion over 13 years.
According to SpaceDev’s chief, Jim Benson, the private group has found that a more comprehensive series of missions could be completed in a fraction of the time and for one-tenth of the cost of the NASA estimate.
Each mission, as envisioned by SpaceDev, would position a habitat module in lunar orbit or on the moon’s surface. The habitat modules would remain in place after each mission and could be re-provisioned and re-used, thus building a complex of habitats at one or more lunar locations over time, according to a press statement on the study findings.
Benson also noted: “We are not surprised by the significant cost savings that our study concludes can be achieved without sacrificing safety and mission support.”
So – just what does NASA attribute the extra costs to?