Wednesday, July 26, 2006
"I Wish I Hadn't Said That"
I learned something before 6:30 this morning: Discretion is sometimes the better part of valor ... and free speech!
On my way in to the Pentagon from the Metro I noticed an Air Force Staff Sergeant looking lost. I asked if she needed any help and she said it was her first time at the Pentagon. Turns out she's here TDY (temporary duty) from Texas. Also turns out she's here to serve on the current Uniform Board. How did she get lucky enough to be selected? Well it seems she wrote a letter to the Air Force Times a while back giving her opinion on the proposed t-shirt for the new Airmen Battle Uniform (tan with Air Force on the back). She described it to me as "hideous." Anyway next thing she knew she had been picked to serve on the Uniform Board that's meeting here.
So the take away is, don't write a letter to the Air Force times complaining about anything the Air Force is doing. Somebody may be watching. ¶ Wednesday, July 26, 2006 1 comments
On my way in to the Pentagon from the Metro I noticed an Air Force Staff Sergeant looking lost. I asked if she needed any help and she said it was her first time at the Pentagon. Turns out she's here TDY (temporary duty) from Texas. Also turns out she's here to serve on the current Uniform Board. How did she get lucky enough to be selected? Well it seems she wrote a letter to the Air Force Times a while back giving her opinion on the proposed t-shirt for the new Airmen Battle Uniform (tan with Air Force on the back). She described it to me as "hideous." Anyway next thing she knew she had been picked to serve on the Uniform Board that's meeting here.
So the take away is, don't write a letter to the Air Force times complaining about anything the Air Force is doing. Somebody may be watching. ¶ Wednesday, July 26, 2006 1 comments
Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Much Ado About Not Much
As expected, the media is making a big stink, so to speak, about President Bush's latest unscripted moment. The China Daily prints a duplicitous headline: "Bush Curses Hezbollah During G-8 Luncheon" He didn't, though he would have been right if he had.
So what did he actually say? "The irony is, what they really need to do is to get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit, and it’s over.” Big deal. I'll bet money you've heard worse at work or school. I hear worse on the bus or walking down the street. Most of us have probably said worse.
And what's with all this bogus righteous indignation from the left anyway? Aren't they the defenders of free speech? If it's good for Howard Stern and Janet Jackson then why not W? Hypocrisy, thy name is liberal nutcase.
Our kids are subjected to this kind of talk almost daily. My wife has to hear it in stores and restauarants. So please, don't expect me to get worked up over the President using this vulgarity in a private, candid conversation with a friend and ally. You want to get mad? Get mad about the media eavesdropping on two world leaders' discussion. I'm not nearly as worried about the NSA's surveillance of telecommunications as I am about the media's delight in telling us everything they hear. This was just a candid lunchtime chat. But in recent months the media has revealed classified information and programs, damaging our national security efforts.
The media wants to make a major issue out the imaginary outing of a "covert" agent who was telling all her friends and neighbors she worked for the CIA. At the same time the New York Times admits to revealing classified government programs and efforts. To quote the greatest President of the 20th century, "under World War II circumstances, [they] would have been charged with treason."
If there's a story here it isn't the President's language. I'll go so far as to say that Bush's choice of expletive will endear him even more to most Americans. As always, his demeanor and language, rustic though they may be, reassure us that he is more like us than most in politics. You can picture Bush chatting with you just the way he chats with Tony Blair. And that's a good thing. ¶ Tuesday, July 18, 2006 7 comments
So what did he actually say? "The irony is, what they really need to do is to get Syria to get Hezbollah to stop doing this shit, and it’s over.” Big deal. I'll bet money you've heard worse at work or school. I hear worse on the bus or walking down the street. Most of us have probably said worse.
And what's with all this bogus righteous indignation from the left anyway? Aren't they the defenders of free speech? If it's good for Howard Stern and Janet Jackson then why not W? Hypocrisy, thy name is liberal nutcase.
Our kids are subjected to this kind of talk almost daily. My wife has to hear it in stores and restauarants. So please, don't expect me to get worked up over the President using this vulgarity in a private, candid conversation with a friend and ally. You want to get mad? Get mad about the media eavesdropping on two world leaders' discussion. I'm not nearly as worried about the NSA's surveillance of telecommunications as I am about the media's delight in telling us everything they hear. This was just a candid lunchtime chat. But in recent months the media has revealed classified information and programs, damaging our national security efforts.
The media wants to make a major issue out the imaginary outing of a "covert" agent who was telling all her friends and neighbors she worked for the CIA. At the same time the New York Times admits to revealing classified government programs and efforts. To quote the greatest President of the 20th century, "under World War II circumstances, [they] would have been charged with treason."
If there's a story here it isn't the President's language. I'll go so far as to say that Bush's choice of expletive will endear him even more to most Americans. As always, his demeanor and language, rustic though they may be, reassure us that he is more like us than most in politics. You can picture Bush chatting with you just the way he chats with Tony Blair. And that's a good thing. ¶ Tuesday, July 18, 2006 7 comments
Settling In
Well, it's been awhile since I've posted. I expected as much since I just moved halfway across the country, changed duty stations, and changed jobs. As I said in the previous post we left (after 10 years!) the first week of June. Took us four days to drive across the country to the D.C. area. Long days and hotel beds...nuff said! On the bright side I did get to visit with my big sister who lives in southern Virginia.
So, I got checked in to my new unit at the Pentagon, got a great house (at a good price) in the area, and started trying to navigate the mass transit/commuter quagmire.
Some bad things:
Gas prices - 3rd highest in the US after CA & HI;
Commuting - one hour commute on bus/rail as opposed to walking 2 blocks to the shop, thank God for mass transit as the highway commute would be longer;
Churches - they're very different in the North, after 10-plus years at a big, friendly congregation we are struggling to find somewhere where we can fit in and continue to grow and serve;
Unpacking - boxes everywhere.
Good things:
New job, new training, new people, high-visibility, travel;
Schools - my kids will be going to some really good schools now. (There's a reason Louisiana is in a tie for last place in education!)
Purging - after 9 years in one house we accumulated a lot of stuff. Got rid of a one-car garage full of stuff before the move and getting rid of even more as we unpack.
Looking forward to my new job, even though it means tons of training as it will be a lot of stuff I've never worked with in my career field. Should be interesting and exciting since I'm not only learning some new comm gear but I'll also be providing direct support to some very high level folks within the DoD. Not to mention the added bonus of lots of travel around the globe.
I'm sure it will get routine after a while but right now just coming in to the Pentagon to work every morning is the coolest thing I've done in quite a while.
Hopefully I'll be able to get back to more steady blogging now that things are settling down. ¶ Tuesday, July 18, 2006 0 comments
So, I got checked in to my new unit at the Pentagon, got a great house (at a good price) in the area, and started trying to navigate the mass transit/commuter quagmire.
Some bad things:
Gas prices - 3rd highest in the US after CA & HI;
Commuting - one hour commute on bus/rail as opposed to walking 2 blocks to the shop, thank God for mass transit as the highway commute would be longer;
Churches - they're very different in the North, after 10-plus years at a big, friendly congregation we are struggling to find somewhere where we can fit in and continue to grow and serve;
Unpacking - boxes everywhere.
Good things:
New job, new training, new people, high-visibility, travel;
Schools - my kids will be going to some really good schools now. (There's a reason Louisiana is in a tie for last place in education!)
Purging - after 9 years in one house we accumulated a lot of stuff. Got rid of a one-car garage full of stuff before the move and getting rid of even more as we unpack.
Looking forward to my new job, even though it means tons of training as it will be a lot of stuff I've never worked with in my career field. Should be interesting and exciting since I'm not only learning some new comm gear but I'll also be providing direct support to some very high level folks within the DoD. Not to mention the added bonus of lots of travel around the globe.
I'm sure it will get routine after a while but right now just coming in to the Pentagon to work every morning is the coolest thing I've done in quite a while.
Hopefully I'll be able to get back to more steady blogging now that things are settling down. ¶ Tuesday, July 18, 2006 0 comments
