First I want to thank NBC for the Dateline show which was about bullying. I watched about 5 minutes of the 1 hour show and was almost in tears. Not because I felt for the victim, but because I am a eating, sleeping victim of bullying myself.
Bullying has always been a problem for me. (I hope you bear with me during this blog, because tears are going to roll) My father was a deadbeat drunk, and my mother had cognitive development issues which sent me to school with nothing. Everyday I had something new to learn. I didn't have a father to teach me how to fish. My mother soothed herself by rocking in a rocking chair for hours on end listening to music on her tape player. She wouldn't let me outside because it would be inconvenient to have to remember where I was. It's also worth noting that most young boys get in lots of trouble if left unsupervised. That game of football can quickly turn into something bad.
My bullying started in 4th grade. But before I go to 4th grade, I want to go to 3rd grade. That's where this story begins. I had behavioral problems due to having a mother who was easily manipulated. I could tell her whatever I want and get away with about anything because she wanted the easiest way to stay in her rocker. My school was running out of options on how to keep me and only one school existed in town which would be able to handle my behavioral issues. The last attempt at keeping me was signing me up for a pen pal program. A regular student at another elementary school and I became pen pals. We talked, and wrote each other at least once a week. I had an imaginary friend who wouldn't leave me. This person could never bully me because he didn't know me.
This pen pal relationship lasted for about 4 months. It was great. But because I never had my mother tell me no, I developed another behavioral issue: stealing. It started small, but grew bigger. This was until the school bookstore came to town. All of the other children were buying books and toys and fun things. My mother didn't have any money so I couldn't buy anything. It hurt. Not because I actually wanted something, but because I wanted to be accepted. By buying something of my own, I would be in the group. So one day I stole from the book store. I didn't just steal, I pillaged. I took probably 13 books, at least 5 posters, dozens of pens and more book markers than I knew what to do with. The total value was probably somewhere near $50.
There were supposed to be checks on how the items were taken out of the book store, but due to my enhanced stealing skills I got everything out. I got it all the way home. My mother looked at what I bought and knew something wasn't right. That's when she did the best thing she ever could have: she made me return the stolen items. I returned all of the posters and 3 of the books. 10 books I had hidden and I still have them to this day. Nobody except my mother and I knew I stole the books. When my mother and I went to the principal to return the books, there was a look of disappointment. The principal called the gym teacher and I remember playing basketball with awesome colored balls.
The time seemed like forever, but I was only a 3rd grader. The conversation that was going on was to tell my mom that this was the last straw. I was going to be kicked out of my school and sent to a different school. I guess she pleaded with them, but doing the right thing cost her this time.
I was given the final two months of school off and had to do weekly homework from my teacher.
Then 4th grade came and with it a new school. I was in a special needs class. At the time I was mixed in with people like myself and with students who had real disabilities. Some in wheelchairs and some who couldn't write because of cerebral palsy. One day in class I got to see that old pen pal of mine. I said hello when introduced, but the boy who was my supposed friend knew that I just came from the special needs class. I was a problem.
The teacher spoke to him and at lunch I sat by myself. Until my former pen pal joined me. I was scared. I made growling sounds so they would go away because I didn't know what to say. No one had ever talked to me like a friend before.
I can tell you that this day, and that moment was one of the worst of my life. From that point forward, I never had any friends. I don't mean this metaphorically. I mean it literally. Never in years 4-12 did I have any friends. In fact, I had one person come to my house from my grade in that entire time. He only came to try and get me sold on some CD purchasing plan. When I didn't buy, I never saw him again.
To this day, I have no friends in that town. All that remain are my mother, aunt, uncle and cousin. If it doesn't resonate with you what bullying does, then this might: At my wedding I didn't have any friends either. My best man was my cousin. Two of the other 3 groomsmen were my wife's siblings. The other was my other cousins husband who I had never met.
To this day I cannot make friends and it hurts.
Tuesday, July 7, 2015
Saturday, June 6, 2015
The June Heavy Weights Part II
I'm scared to even write this blog. Not because I'm literally scared but because of how much the last blog with a similar title meant to me. At the time I was battling marriage issues and wondering how I'd ever leave the year married. I went on to create a resolution of getting a divorce. Safe to say that resolution never occurred and I'm a better man for it.
Life has thrown so many curveballs since I wrote my predecessor blog on June 9th, 2010. I know today is June 6th, 2015, but the 5 years in that span have changed my life forever.
I've become a business owner. I've become better. I had a child at the time I wrote the first blog, and now I have a second. My wife has become a staple in my life even as I look back on those hard times.
Looking forward I don't know what the future holds for me other than death. In the time between now and then I am tasked with making the best out of my life no matter what I do. I have to. I have two children who depend upon my guidance. They don't know yet but I am the backbone of their formative years. They may never look back on this time and wonder how their lives ended up the way they did. But I can assure you and them that at this point in my life, I had the most fucked up childhood a young boy could ever not ask for.
When I was of my daughters age, I watched my father beat my mother brutally. I sat in corners hiding hoping I wasn't next. I was scared not because the fear of being beaten was upon me but because I had never know this type of fear before. It has remained in my brain ever since. It's a constant reminder to watch what I say to my daughter because she will remember these years for the rest of her life. Hell she may grow to resent these years and promise herself one day to never be like she was during these years.
I wouldn't be offended because everyone wants to have a better life.
I can tell you that I'm growing as a man. I want more. More money, more life and more hockey. In 2010 I don't know what my life looked like. I do know that in 1988 my mother and father divorced. I was five, the same age as my daughter is now. I remember that like clock work.
What I want is to create a location that is central for all of my loves in life. I know Facebook is around and will offer that to me. I know that I want this location to be the center of my attention. (In case you haven't noticed I'm holding nothing back) I want to be free to be who I am. I want to be the rockstar of my world and to be thanked for everything I have done to get here.
I don't want to do this fraudulently. I want to look back and be proud. Maybe as proud as Bob Bafferty is today after winning the triple crown with American Pharoah. I get the red line that this is misspelled too. I don't care and neither does he.
Truth is we all must perservere. I spelled that wrong but I cannot right click due to my wife's Macbook Pro being a full block of scroll mouse. I hope I look back on this one day and laugh.
Everyone should try to be better. Whether that better is by going to goalie training or learning new ways that help your children understand life. I want it all. I want to be the best. I want to compete.
Truth is, I'm all about I.
I served my country and I gave to you. I gave six years of my life for what I look back as a noble cause. For the rest of my life I should be able to think about me and what I want.
But the real truth is I'm a man. I have a family and they come first. So whenever there is a time to write about the I in my life, I will dot the I's and cross the T's. That's because the time for me is so rare that I need to exploit it and live in it. Bask in it. Own it.
Thank you for reading the June Heavy Weights Part 2. I'm glad you are here, friend.
Life has thrown so many curveballs since I wrote my predecessor blog on June 9th, 2010. I know today is June 6th, 2015, but the 5 years in that span have changed my life forever.
I've become a business owner. I've become better. I had a child at the time I wrote the first blog, and now I have a second. My wife has become a staple in my life even as I look back on those hard times.
Looking forward I don't know what the future holds for me other than death. In the time between now and then I am tasked with making the best out of my life no matter what I do. I have to. I have two children who depend upon my guidance. They don't know yet but I am the backbone of their formative years. They may never look back on this time and wonder how their lives ended up the way they did. But I can assure you and them that at this point in my life, I had the most fucked up childhood a young boy could ever not ask for.
When I was of my daughters age, I watched my father beat my mother brutally. I sat in corners hiding hoping I wasn't next. I was scared not because the fear of being beaten was upon me but because I had never know this type of fear before. It has remained in my brain ever since. It's a constant reminder to watch what I say to my daughter because she will remember these years for the rest of her life. Hell she may grow to resent these years and promise herself one day to never be like she was during these years.
I wouldn't be offended because everyone wants to have a better life.
I can tell you that I'm growing as a man. I want more. More money, more life and more hockey. In 2010 I don't know what my life looked like. I do know that in 1988 my mother and father divorced. I was five, the same age as my daughter is now. I remember that like clock work.
What I want is to create a location that is central for all of my loves in life. I know Facebook is around and will offer that to me. I know that I want this location to be the center of my attention. (In case you haven't noticed I'm holding nothing back) I want to be free to be who I am. I want to be the rockstar of my world and to be thanked for everything I have done to get here.
I don't want to do this fraudulently. I want to look back and be proud. Maybe as proud as Bob Bafferty is today after winning the triple crown with American Pharoah. I get the red line that this is misspelled too. I don't care and neither does he.
Truth is we all must perservere. I spelled that wrong but I cannot right click due to my wife's Macbook Pro being a full block of scroll mouse. I hope I look back on this one day and laugh.
Everyone should try to be better. Whether that better is by going to goalie training or learning new ways that help your children understand life. I want it all. I want to be the best. I want to compete.
Truth is, I'm all about I.
I served my country and I gave to you. I gave six years of my life for what I look back as a noble cause. For the rest of my life I should be able to think about me and what I want.
But the real truth is I'm a man. I have a family and they come first. So whenever there is a time to write about the I in my life, I will dot the I's and cross the T's. That's because the time for me is so rare that I need to exploit it and live in it. Bask in it. Own it.
Thank you for reading the June Heavy Weights Part 2. I'm glad you are here, friend.
Thursday, May 21, 2015
ISIS
Today is May 21st. The news reads something like this: sports, more garbage, useless information and ISIS takes Ramadi.
I don't care what the news says, and I'll tell you why. Nearly 95% of what you read, see or hear is bullshit. Most news agencies will film something and then comment later on it. Almost as if they were filming a movie and then putting the words to it later.
Case in point: When I was deployed to Iraq my unit had to go recover a blown up HUMVEE. The vehicle was burning and the occupants were fully cooked. Dead on arrival, and I didn't have time to do anything to rescue the people. By the time I arrived, the children had gathered offering their support to us and condolences for the lost troops. The men in the vehicle were not from my unit. I never knew their names, and to this day I don't know who they were.
Something changed though. The camera man who stood behind us while we checked for enemy remained still. When the all clear was given, he came out from hiding and began to film. Instantly the parents of the children came out and instructed their kids to throw rocks at the vehicle. The parents spewed anti-american propaganda, which was a 180 turn from what they were just telling us. The message on TV wasn't one of compassion. CNN reported it as another instance of the Iraqi's not wanting us around.
So today when I read that Ramadi had fallen, I took the news with a grain of salt. The reason is I have pictures with buddies from the military who are dead. Whole photographs where the only person living is myself. It's sad. To think that many of my comrades paid the ultimate price in Ramadi only to have this happen is pathetic.
The problem isn't the Iraqi's. It's their culture. Generally in the Arab world, Islam is a very pacifist culture. People who live in Saudi Arabia, Iraq and other Muslim area's are very shy about themselves. They won't do anything to bring harm to another. They won't make a stand even if it means degrading themselves. So when ISIS comes in with their extreme rules, many Iraqi's will roll over and do nothing. That's why their military is useless. Iraq needs a leader, perhaps a dictator.
Yes, I know. I was part of a military force used to remove such a man. Iraq is a place where communism works.
So why are we waiting to put someone in power? The easy answer is our government has promised the American people that we will end our decade and a half war status. Obama doesn't want to be the guy who invades a country. He'll forever taint the democratic party by pulling out and then re-invading Iraq.
Almost no one likes George Bush. Not because he was a president, but because he led the charge into Iraq.
So how do we solve Ramadi? The answer to most people is to re-insert troops. But what does that accomplish? We lose men and women to a place that just doesn't care.
We can send missiles like we already have been. CNN and Al Jazeera will report how badly we missed an caused casualties.
The answer to ISIS isn't easy. It for sure isn't America. If no other country will take a stand to remove ISIS, they will prosper and grow. If the United States has to go back, it's time to take Iraq and occupy it. Change it to a military state and own the country. The 51st state.
I don't care what the news says, and I'll tell you why. Nearly 95% of what you read, see or hear is bullshit. Most news agencies will film something and then comment later on it. Almost as if they were filming a movie and then putting the words to it later.
Case in point: When I was deployed to Iraq my unit had to go recover a blown up HUMVEE. The vehicle was burning and the occupants were fully cooked. Dead on arrival, and I didn't have time to do anything to rescue the people. By the time I arrived, the children had gathered offering their support to us and condolences for the lost troops. The men in the vehicle were not from my unit. I never knew their names, and to this day I don't know who they were.
Something changed though. The camera man who stood behind us while we checked for enemy remained still. When the all clear was given, he came out from hiding and began to film. Instantly the parents of the children came out and instructed their kids to throw rocks at the vehicle. The parents spewed anti-american propaganda, which was a 180 turn from what they were just telling us. The message on TV wasn't one of compassion. CNN reported it as another instance of the Iraqi's not wanting us around.
So today when I read that Ramadi had fallen, I took the news with a grain of salt. The reason is I have pictures with buddies from the military who are dead. Whole photographs where the only person living is myself. It's sad. To think that many of my comrades paid the ultimate price in Ramadi only to have this happen is pathetic.
The problem isn't the Iraqi's. It's their culture. Generally in the Arab world, Islam is a very pacifist culture. People who live in Saudi Arabia, Iraq and other Muslim area's are very shy about themselves. They won't do anything to bring harm to another. They won't make a stand even if it means degrading themselves. So when ISIS comes in with their extreme rules, many Iraqi's will roll over and do nothing. That's why their military is useless. Iraq needs a leader, perhaps a dictator.
Yes, I know. I was part of a military force used to remove such a man. Iraq is a place where communism works.
So why are we waiting to put someone in power? The easy answer is our government has promised the American people that we will end our decade and a half war status. Obama doesn't want to be the guy who invades a country. He'll forever taint the democratic party by pulling out and then re-invading Iraq.
Almost no one likes George Bush. Not because he was a president, but because he led the charge into Iraq.
So how do we solve Ramadi? The answer to most people is to re-insert troops. But what does that accomplish? We lose men and women to a place that just doesn't care.
We can send missiles like we already have been. CNN and Al Jazeera will report how badly we missed an caused casualties.
The answer to ISIS isn't easy. It for sure isn't America. If no other country will take a stand to remove ISIS, they will prosper and grow. If the United States has to go back, it's time to take Iraq and occupy it. Change it to a military state and own the country. The 51st state.
Thursday, May 7, 2015
Rigged Interview/ other bullshit
I'm drunk. Watching hockey and drinking Molson. I'm also about to smoke some insanely good weed. The advantages of living in Colorado.
I've had massive opportunities in my life. Some have been incredibly awesome. I will say that my experiences in 1st Armored Division of the United States Army was probably the most dynamic and wonderful experience of my life. Probably the worst experience I have ever had was deciding to leave the same unit because I didn't want my wife's family to be worried about my combat tours. Bad choice. I have kids now, so that's in the past. They are my life, and I wouldn't trade them for anything. Even the year I spent in Iraq doing nothing but watching goats from a guard tower.
This blog is about something that I never thought I'd experience. The Army had it's fair share of bullshit. People would get promoted over you because they knew the right people. Even though promotion ran off of a points system run by the Department of the Army, the female's putting out on the side seemed to always max out on points.
I took part in a rigged interview this week. I was on the wrong side of the rigging. It sucked. I walked into the interview with a suit and tie on my body. I had my notepad and pen in one hand, and a waiting handshake in the other. On my resume was at least 2 years of relevant experience highlighted by the bachelors degree that I worked so hard for. Turns out, I wasn't selected because a young lady who had no relevant experience and no education knew the right people. This was a position for which I easily qualified. There was nothing else. It was just me. But then I learned that my experience in the Army wasn't as unprofessional as I thought. Turns out, the Army and the military for that matter are almost exactly like the civilian sector. Well for pay purposes. If you know the right people, you can stave off that bullshit deployment to Korea. If you know the right people at your job, you can get promoted over anyone else. The department will even supply the coaching, and your new manager will tell all the other candidates that he doesn't want an employee that needs to be taught everything. Even though that's what is going to happen with the candidate in question.
Honestly, I'm tired. I studied for 4 years to get my degree in accounting. Unless I get my CPA, my degree is worthless. I might as well have studied basket weaving. I would venture to say that 95% of the people who get accounting degree's (bachelors) find themselves doing fully cycle accounting for a profession. Nothing that you spend your 3rd and 4th year studying. Such bullshit.
That's also why I took a broad range of courses. I can still remember my first course in communication. My first semester. I took classes that were easy. I could ace anyone of them, and never look back.
Now my life is jumbled. It just doesn't get any easier. Even the things that I have worked for have become difficult to progress in.
WTF?
I've had massive opportunities in my life. Some have been incredibly awesome. I will say that my experiences in 1st Armored Division of the United States Army was probably the most dynamic and wonderful experience of my life. Probably the worst experience I have ever had was deciding to leave the same unit because I didn't want my wife's family to be worried about my combat tours. Bad choice. I have kids now, so that's in the past. They are my life, and I wouldn't trade them for anything. Even the year I spent in Iraq doing nothing but watching goats from a guard tower.
This blog is about something that I never thought I'd experience. The Army had it's fair share of bullshit. People would get promoted over you because they knew the right people. Even though promotion ran off of a points system run by the Department of the Army, the female's putting out on the side seemed to always max out on points.
I took part in a rigged interview this week. I was on the wrong side of the rigging. It sucked. I walked into the interview with a suit and tie on my body. I had my notepad and pen in one hand, and a waiting handshake in the other. On my resume was at least 2 years of relevant experience highlighted by the bachelors degree that I worked so hard for. Turns out, I wasn't selected because a young lady who had no relevant experience and no education knew the right people. This was a position for which I easily qualified. There was nothing else. It was just me. But then I learned that my experience in the Army wasn't as unprofessional as I thought. Turns out, the Army and the military for that matter are almost exactly like the civilian sector. Well for pay purposes. If you know the right people, you can stave off that bullshit deployment to Korea. If you know the right people at your job, you can get promoted over anyone else. The department will even supply the coaching, and your new manager will tell all the other candidates that he doesn't want an employee that needs to be taught everything. Even though that's what is going to happen with the candidate in question.
Honestly, I'm tired. I studied for 4 years to get my degree in accounting. Unless I get my CPA, my degree is worthless. I might as well have studied basket weaving. I would venture to say that 95% of the people who get accounting degree's (bachelors) find themselves doing fully cycle accounting for a profession. Nothing that you spend your 3rd and 4th year studying. Such bullshit.
That's also why I took a broad range of courses. I can still remember my first course in communication. My first semester. I took classes that were easy. I could ace anyone of them, and never look back.
Now my life is jumbled. It just doesn't get any easier. Even the things that I have worked for have become difficult to progress in.
WTF?
Thursday, March 12, 2015
Emailing Hilary Clinton
Watch the news. Get a gander.
What's coming off the wire these days is all political related. That's the way it is when this country get's nearly two years away from a new president. If you research the trends of media during an administration where the president has a chance to be re-elected, you will find less hype over what is going on.
It happened with George Bush after Bill Clinton. It happened with President Obama after George Bush. It's happening again.
Had Hilary made a willful attempt to dethrone Obama after his first term, the problems that she would face would have been no where near as problematic as they are now. The media is trying to scrounge everything they can up.
The current scandal is one which has been covered up over and over again. Benghazi has been a thorn in a bed of roses for the Clinton campaign. She unfortunately timed her ride to the white house when the media is covering her every move. Checking her character to see what flaws she might show.
Her tactics to this point are pretty clear: Wait. By waiting she affords the media time to get the information correct and then let the world forget about it. The problem is also that she is waiting.
A congressional investigation is currently ongoing to find out where her emails were during the attacks, and furthermore why she didn't have an official account during this time.
Huge questions, and answers may not come quickly. It might be time for Hilary to start thinking about dumping the tank. Throwing her pot at a potential bid later down the road. Age isn't on her side though.
The real question is: if Hilary has nothing to hide, why not just dump everything out in front of congress now and give full explanations? Tell the truth and let the process unfold. That's not happening. So eventually congress WILL get the information it seeks. When this happens, it's going to take weeks if not months to search for data leading up to the attacks. What will be even more interesting is what else the government will find during this time.
Mrs. Clinton has made a mistake. I don't think she will recover from this one. The primary reason is that Hilary is riding a democratic wave into the white house. Most people are expecting a republican controlled congress to mess things up. This will play well in the elections, almost certainly allowing another democrat in office. However if the Republicans manage to gain leverage while in control, things won't be the same.
My guess is Hilary has an Ace of Spades and a two of diamonds in her pocket. If she doesn't play this carefully, her poker hand will be bust.
What's coming off the wire these days is all political related. That's the way it is when this country get's nearly two years away from a new president. If you research the trends of media during an administration where the president has a chance to be re-elected, you will find less hype over what is going on.
It happened with George Bush after Bill Clinton. It happened with President Obama after George Bush. It's happening again.
Had Hilary made a willful attempt to dethrone Obama after his first term, the problems that she would face would have been no where near as problematic as they are now. The media is trying to scrounge everything they can up.
The current scandal is one which has been covered up over and over again. Benghazi has been a thorn in a bed of roses for the Clinton campaign. She unfortunately timed her ride to the white house when the media is covering her every move. Checking her character to see what flaws she might show.
Her tactics to this point are pretty clear: Wait. By waiting she affords the media time to get the information correct and then let the world forget about it. The problem is also that she is waiting.
A congressional investigation is currently ongoing to find out where her emails were during the attacks, and furthermore why she didn't have an official account during this time.
Huge questions, and answers may not come quickly. It might be time for Hilary to start thinking about dumping the tank. Throwing her pot at a potential bid later down the road. Age isn't on her side though.
The real question is: if Hilary has nothing to hide, why not just dump everything out in front of congress now and give full explanations? Tell the truth and let the process unfold. That's not happening. So eventually congress WILL get the information it seeks. When this happens, it's going to take weeks if not months to search for data leading up to the attacks. What will be even more interesting is what else the government will find during this time.
Mrs. Clinton has made a mistake. I don't think she will recover from this one. The primary reason is that Hilary is riding a democratic wave into the white house. Most people are expecting a republican controlled congress to mess things up. This will play well in the elections, almost certainly allowing another democrat in office. However if the Republicans manage to gain leverage while in control, things won't be the same.
My guess is Hilary has an Ace of Spades and a two of diamonds in her pocket. If she doesn't play this carefully, her poker hand will be bust.
Tuesday, March 10, 2015
Halfway Lit Part II
I never intended to write a series of blogs. I never intended to write something so that I could have part II. I guess writing about being halfway drunk or lit changes that.
Here again, I'm halfway lit thinking about everything in the world. I'm on the downward slope of this high. Heading back to my normal terrain. Most likely I'll end up in a ravine before getting back to sea level. But that's another story. ~~~~catch the metaphors!
When I was in the military, and especially on my second deployment, I became somewhat of a poet. I wrote things so well that people said they would buy my stuff. I once wrote a blog about firefighters that nobody seemed to understand.
This didn't make sense, because I was just told that I should sell my work yet people didn't understand me? That's because I write my poems for me, everyone reading them seems to think they are taking me literally.
So being on the downward spiral of a lit, or being high is different. It's not like being drunk. The alcohol level in your body depletes so slowly that you feel depressed. While it's almost and instantaneous thing with weed. It just stops. Like a big breath of air.
Poems for me can take any sort of map.
Here is one instance:
The rose on my watch is green and red.
Through the night it ticks by my bed.
Because I'm not wearing it while I'm far far away.
That's because the watch ticks, for my redeployment in May
This story is of a little tin soldier.
Who fell on the ground and made the lid colder.
Of the manhole cover he fell on through.
It's almost like a scene from Guess who's two?
I seriously made that up on my own. It's not a big thing to me. I just kinda do it. <- nike="" p="">
Peace.
Here again, I'm halfway lit thinking about everything in the world. I'm on the downward slope of this high. Heading back to my normal terrain. Most likely I'll end up in a ravine before getting back to sea level. But that's another story. ~~~~catch the metaphors!
When I was in the military, and especially on my second deployment, I became somewhat of a poet. I wrote things so well that people said they would buy my stuff. I once wrote a blog about firefighters that nobody seemed to understand.
This didn't make sense, because I was just told that I should sell my work yet people didn't understand me? That's because I write my poems for me, everyone reading them seems to think they are taking me literally.
So being on the downward spiral of a lit, or being high is different. It's not like being drunk. The alcohol level in your body depletes so slowly that you feel depressed. While it's almost and instantaneous thing with weed. It just stops. Like a big breath of air.
Poems for me can take any sort of map.
Here is one instance:
The rose on my watch is green and red.
Through the night it ticks by my bed.
Because I'm not wearing it while I'm far far away.
That's because the watch ticks, for my redeployment in May
This story is of a little tin soldier.
Who fell on the ground and made the lid colder.
Of the manhole cover he fell on through.
It's almost like a scene from Guess who's two?
I seriously made that up on my own. It's not a big thing to me. I just kinda do it. <- nike="" p="">
Peace.
Sunday, March 8, 2015
Presidential Candidate: Hilary Clinton
I really shouldn't be writing about politics on this blog. It's probably a really bad idea. Although our government should be a point of emphasis for all Americans, it's often a point of contention. Many people will choose who they do and don't like based off of politics.
For the record: I'm not Democrat, I'm not Republican, and I'm not anything else. I'm a veteran of the United States Army, and as a veteran I put my emphasis on anything that helps our troops and veterans. So if a democrat will help train our troops, while giving our veterans the best care then I guess you could say I'm a democrat. Same for Republican or independent. Most of the time though, I baffle people. Most of the time military isn't the first priority of a presidential candidate. So when you pick a person to vote for, you often find yourself picking opposite ends. Such as picking a president who wants to help our military, but also wants to make terrible tax cuts to do it.
I'm not a fan of Hilary Clinton. I think she's phony and will be exposed as such. Unfortunately for our voting public, it won't be enough to stem her from office. She's destined to be the next president. That's the cycle.
The real problem is her use of publicity stunts to keep her name just relevant enough so that people won't forget her. Kinda like Obama. Obama takes heat for Benghazi, then drops the IRS bombshell to eat up a little time and then finally reveals that he lied about Obamacare to keep everything off Benghazi. Now any investigation into Benghazi makes Republicans look foolish.
Hilary is using the same tactics. What Republic has this command and control right now? Who is even the front runner for the Republican nomination?
Keep thinking because none of them are as obvious as Hilary Clinton on the democrat side.
Hilary Clinton is the wife of a snake. Bill Clinton deregulated banks, and even went as far as to cut defense funding after a couple of missiles missed Osama Bin Laden's hide out in 1998. Don't think for a minute that the first possible "first man" won't make decisions on this country. Bill won't stand by the wayside.
This will be Bill Clinton 2.0
For the record: I'm not Democrat, I'm not Republican, and I'm not anything else. I'm a veteran of the United States Army, and as a veteran I put my emphasis on anything that helps our troops and veterans. So if a democrat will help train our troops, while giving our veterans the best care then I guess you could say I'm a democrat. Same for Republican or independent. Most of the time though, I baffle people. Most of the time military isn't the first priority of a presidential candidate. So when you pick a person to vote for, you often find yourself picking opposite ends. Such as picking a president who wants to help our military, but also wants to make terrible tax cuts to do it.
I'm not a fan of Hilary Clinton. I think she's phony and will be exposed as such. Unfortunately for our voting public, it won't be enough to stem her from office. She's destined to be the next president. That's the cycle.
The real problem is her use of publicity stunts to keep her name just relevant enough so that people won't forget her. Kinda like Obama. Obama takes heat for Benghazi, then drops the IRS bombshell to eat up a little time and then finally reveals that he lied about Obamacare to keep everything off Benghazi. Now any investigation into Benghazi makes Republicans look foolish.
Hilary is using the same tactics. What Republic has this command and control right now? Who is even the front runner for the Republican nomination?
Keep thinking because none of them are as obvious as Hilary Clinton on the democrat side.
Hilary Clinton is the wife of a snake. Bill Clinton deregulated banks, and even went as far as to cut defense funding after a couple of missiles missed Osama Bin Laden's hide out in 1998. Don't think for a minute that the first possible "first man" won't make decisions on this country. Bill won't stand by the wayside.
This will be Bill Clinton 2.0
Publicizing our fight
This is our fight. This is the fight of every person who has ever taken the oath as a member of our armed forces.
Today we stand strong, free, and greater than ever because of who we are. Because we are men and women of the United States Marines, Air Force, Army and Navy we are strong.
As a veteran, I see what we have done. I know that every member of each service has in some way been tested in these last 14 years. Now, our story's are beginning to take shape in the public eye. People are not being force fed news anymore. They are seeing what real people saw in combat.
I speak about this because I have watched both Lone Survivor and American Sniper. I know these films are great and tell truly moving stories to the American public. The stories relayed in each of these films comes directly from a book. From the eyes of people who lived it, screen writers try and fit the pieces into a complex film.
I can tell you they are doing it wrong. It's not their fault though.
I don't expect every detail of every military movie to be 100% accurate. If we can get 40% accuracy, that's pretty good. However, this is also hollywood which makes any film scene much more dramatic than it actually was. Also this type of information often leaves out some of the best feel good moments because they won't sell tickets.
I'll give you an example. In the book American Sniper, Chris Kyle mentions how he can tell the difference between Marines and Soldiers. Marines always seem willing and motivated to beat the living shit out of the enemy no matter what the circumstance. With Soldiers, it really depends on which unit you get. As a former soldier, I agree with this. I know the difference between the two units. Having served in a highly motivated unit and a very demotivated unit I know this comparison. However no film maker can put this into production without losing the audience. Telling people here in the states that one service is actually better than the other will rub people the wrong way. It only takes one mistake for thousands of people to wait for a film to show up on DVD. That's the last thing anyone in hollywood will take a risk on.
Hollywood will also not take a risk on a war film closing without big endings. At the end of the movie in Lone Survivor, it appears that the Army, Air Force, and Marines all converge on one area to rescue Marcus Lutrell. In reality, their wasn't an AC 130 in the sky firing magnetic death from above. Also, Army Apache's didn't show up for his rescue. I should also point out that the Apache's in the film were not accurate. Apache's run a 30mm cannon underneath. The sound from the film of the gun is that of a Marine Cobra which is not as bulky.
These kinds of things have to happen, and they must happen often. However with the war's winding down, people are finally getting the after action report from film. For years we tried to get public support for the war. Never killing to many enemies in excess to avoid public lynching, but never leaving enough enemies on the ground to attack American bases whole sale.
Both of these wars have been an ugly war between the media and the American people. It's what happens off the camera that should be on the news. Unfortunately that's not what happens.
So you must understand when viewing the latest war film that you are not getting the truth. You are still getting a feel good moment meant to sell tickets and congratulate actors.
I encourage anyone reading this blog to research the wars. Don't just go to CNN and make your opinion. Research what people say who have been their. People who believe in what we are doing. Then compare them with people who don't agree with them.
For the record, I could care less what country we invade or take over. As a former Soldier, I knew it was my job to support and defend the constitution no matter what. So if that means invading Japan or Australia, I would have done it. The place we go doesn't matter. It's the country we represent that does.
Today we stand strong, free, and greater than ever because of who we are. Because we are men and women of the United States Marines, Air Force, Army and Navy we are strong.
As a veteran, I see what we have done. I know that every member of each service has in some way been tested in these last 14 years. Now, our story's are beginning to take shape in the public eye. People are not being force fed news anymore. They are seeing what real people saw in combat.
I speak about this because I have watched both Lone Survivor and American Sniper. I know these films are great and tell truly moving stories to the American public. The stories relayed in each of these films comes directly from a book. From the eyes of people who lived it, screen writers try and fit the pieces into a complex film.
I can tell you they are doing it wrong. It's not their fault though.
I don't expect every detail of every military movie to be 100% accurate. If we can get 40% accuracy, that's pretty good. However, this is also hollywood which makes any film scene much more dramatic than it actually was. Also this type of information often leaves out some of the best feel good moments because they won't sell tickets.
I'll give you an example. In the book American Sniper, Chris Kyle mentions how he can tell the difference between Marines and Soldiers. Marines always seem willing and motivated to beat the living shit out of the enemy no matter what the circumstance. With Soldiers, it really depends on which unit you get. As a former soldier, I agree with this. I know the difference between the two units. Having served in a highly motivated unit and a very demotivated unit I know this comparison. However no film maker can put this into production without losing the audience. Telling people here in the states that one service is actually better than the other will rub people the wrong way. It only takes one mistake for thousands of people to wait for a film to show up on DVD. That's the last thing anyone in hollywood will take a risk on.
Hollywood will also not take a risk on a war film closing without big endings. At the end of the movie in Lone Survivor, it appears that the Army, Air Force, and Marines all converge on one area to rescue Marcus Lutrell. In reality, their wasn't an AC 130 in the sky firing magnetic death from above. Also, Army Apache's didn't show up for his rescue. I should also point out that the Apache's in the film were not accurate. Apache's run a 30mm cannon underneath. The sound from the film of the gun is that of a Marine Cobra which is not as bulky.
These kinds of things have to happen, and they must happen often. However with the war's winding down, people are finally getting the after action report from film. For years we tried to get public support for the war. Never killing to many enemies in excess to avoid public lynching, but never leaving enough enemies on the ground to attack American bases whole sale.
Both of these wars have been an ugly war between the media and the American people. It's what happens off the camera that should be on the news. Unfortunately that's not what happens.
So you must understand when viewing the latest war film that you are not getting the truth. You are still getting a feel good moment meant to sell tickets and congratulate actors.
I encourage anyone reading this blog to research the wars. Don't just go to CNN and make your opinion. Research what people say who have been their. People who believe in what we are doing. Then compare them with people who don't agree with them.
For the record, I could care less what country we invade or take over. As a former Soldier, I knew it was my job to support and defend the constitution no matter what. So if that means invading Japan or Australia, I would have done it. The place we go doesn't matter. It's the country we represent that does.
Thursday, March 5, 2015
Why I write blogs
Not long ago, I was dreaming of becoming some sort of writer. I remember wanting to write a book on my childhood and how fucked up it was. I loved reading at the time, and nothing validated a persons life as much as an autobiography. The problem is you really only get one shot at an autobiography. Quite a bit more has changes since my childhood, and I would never know what to focus on.
When I was 24 years old, I read an article in a snowboarding magazine. The title said "working class hero" and it pictured a young man riding his snowmobile off a very steep cliff high in the mountains. On his back was his snowboard, and some other gear. Reading the article, it almost seamed like the guy writing the story was about as fucked up as the guy riding the snowmobile. I quickly began to learn that many of the people who write for magazines often live the lifestyle they write about.
I quickly have up on the magazine writing idea because blogging is so much more convenient. I'll never be famous for my blogs, but I will at least have published something and vented it for everyone to read.
Writing gives me a sense of leverage. I can write about anything. The key to my writing is knowing when my article is about to suck. Unfortunately, that time usually comes about midway through a blog. It will seem like I have a whole bunch of momentum going into my story, but then out of no where I'll lose my steam and drop off.
I once wrote for my college newspaper. I took special pride in seeing my name on an article. It almost made me feel famous. People would look at that article, and before they read anything they would know my name. I was a junior reporter, so my picture didn't come with any of my articles. I wrote well enough to stay on for free during my freshman year. Over the summer, I interviewed for what was something I happened to be passionate about. I wrote about some really cool things, but I also found myself hindered by the politics of a dip shit editor.
Then one day everything changed. I wrote an entire article. Not just in my basement, but I traveled throughout my entire state to get the information. Unfortunately our copy editor had been sick on our review day so our assistant editor in chief reviewed the article. Normally this person doesn't review copy articles. That goes to the copy editor who doesn't get any credit for their work. The only glory for a copy editor is they get paid more than the editor themselves. They hold one of the highest positions, and most of the time keep the editor in chief from writing something really bad.
But I digress...back to my article that I had written. I wrote the article and had kind of blogged it. I didn't really think about which way the stories were going. I didn't write to a point. I wrote with many points which is really hard to close. Sometimes in the newspaper industries writers will start a point and never finish it. We call this the cliff hanger. I left about three cliff hangers all dealing with several college food reviews. My assistant editor in chief reviewed the article and closed the gaps. But when this person did this, he was stepping off of his authority chair and onto his writing chair. Thus when the article came out, his name was listed first on the article with my name as a contributor. This was so far from the truth because he never even left the building for the article.
When I saw this I was pissed. I typed a letter and signed it for him. I told him that stealing someone's work is not acceptable, and that plagiarism is against university policy. The next day my EIC called me in and told me that I was to never speak to our assistant editor in chief again. He was a nice guy, but I think he was intimidated by me. I don't know why, maybe my military service.
Either way, that was the last article that I wrote free hand too. The assistant editor in chief was also in charge of all the editorials. So I lost my editorial as I wasn't allowed to talk to the boss of them. I went to sports and found university sports to be absolute bullshit. I interviewed a coach who insisted that I refer to him as coach in my story. I didn't like him, I didn't respect him and he didn't like that.
I left sports, to the dismay of the sports editor who really liked me, and went to work for the EIC on investigative reporting. Unfortunately our school didn't have any good scandals going for it. So I was shit out of luck and ended up covering bullshit stories. My EIC got a lead that our IT department was not archiving old emails. This meant that if John Smith had gone to school and graduated, if someone else came to the school as John Smith this person would immediately have access to the previous John Smith's files because the actual folder for this name stayed open. That wasn't the case. Emails stayed open for 2 years after the student graduated or left school. This gave each former student the ability and time to transition to a new email. Then after that time, their entire folder was deleted. This meant that if the government or anyone else asked for record, our school wouldn't have them.
I told my EIC to go fuck her self with a nice sized dildo. I was fired, and sent to the employment office where I was informed that I was not allowed to work for club organizations in a paid manner ever again.
Too bad. I really didn't care.
But with blogging, I don't have this problem. If you don't like my blogs, you can leave at any time. You could with the newspaper too, but I was writing under my universities mast head.
But the real point is that I write so that I can be free. These last 20 minutes on this computer have been solitude for me. I hope they are for the reader as well, but I guess I'll just hope you made it this far in my blog.
My goal in my blog is me. But I hope that you might get to the bottom of this blog and like what you see. Enough to follow my blog....pretty please?
When I was 24 years old, I read an article in a snowboarding magazine. The title said "working class hero" and it pictured a young man riding his snowmobile off a very steep cliff high in the mountains. On his back was his snowboard, and some other gear. Reading the article, it almost seamed like the guy writing the story was about as fucked up as the guy riding the snowmobile. I quickly began to learn that many of the people who write for magazines often live the lifestyle they write about.
I quickly have up on the magazine writing idea because blogging is so much more convenient. I'll never be famous for my blogs, but I will at least have published something and vented it for everyone to read.
Writing gives me a sense of leverage. I can write about anything. The key to my writing is knowing when my article is about to suck. Unfortunately, that time usually comes about midway through a blog. It will seem like I have a whole bunch of momentum going into my story, but then out of no where I'll lose my steam and drop off.
I once wrote for my college newspaper. I took special pride in seeing my name on an article. It almost made me feel famous. People would look at that article, and before they read anything they would know my name. I was a junior reporter, so my picture didn't come with any of my articles. I wrote well enough to stay on for free during my freshman year. Over the summer, I interviewed for what was something I happened to be passionate about. I wrote about some really cool things, but I also found myself hindered by the politics of a dip shit editor.
Then one day everything changed. I wrote an entire article. Not just in my basement, but I traveled throughout my entire state to get the information. Unfortunately our copy editor had been sick on our review day so our assistant editor in chief reviewed the article. Normally this person doesn't review copy articles. That goes to the copy editor who doesn't get any credit for their work. The only glory for a copy editor is they get paid more than the editor themselves. They hold one of the highest positions, and most of the time keep the editor in chief from writing something really bad.
But I digress...back to my article that I had written. I wrote the article and had kind of blogged it. I didn't really think about which way the stories were going. I didn't write to a point. I wrote with many points which is really hard to close. Sometimes in the newspaper industries writers will start a point and never finish it. We call this the cliff hanger. I left about three cliff hangers all dealing with several college food reviews. My assistant editor in chief reviewed the article and closed the gaps. But when this person did this, he was stepping off of his authority chair and onto his writing chair. Thus when the article came out, his name was listed first on the article with my name as a contributor. This was so far from the truth because he never even left the building for the article.
When I saw this I was pissed. I typed a letter and signed it for him. I told him that stealing someone's work is not acceptable, and that plagiarism is against university policy. The next day my EIC called me in and told me that I was to never speak to our assistant editor in chief again. He was a nice guy, but I think he was intimidated by me. I don't know why, maybe my military service.
Either way, that was the last article that I wrote free hand too. The assistant editor in chief was also in charge of all the editorials. So I lost my editorial as I wasn't allowed to talk to the boss of them. I went to sports and found university sports to be absolute bullshit. I interviewed a coach who insisted that I refer to him as coach in my story. I didn't like him, I didn't respect him and he didn't like that.
I left sports, to the dismay of the sports editor who really liked me, and went to work for the EIC on investigative reporting. Unfortunately our school didn't have any good scandals going for it. So I was shit out of luck and ended up covering bullshit stories. My EIC got a lead that our IT department was not archiving old emails. This meant that if John Smith had gone to school and graduated, if someone else came to the school as John Smith this person would immediately have access to the previous John Smith's files because the actual folder for this name stayed open. That wasn't the case. Emails stayed open for 2 years after the student graduated or left school. This gave each former student the ability and time to transition to a new email. Then after that time, their entire folder was deleted. This meant that if the government or anyone else asked for record, our school wouldn't have them.
I told my EIC to go fuck her self with a nice sized dildo. I was fired, and sent to the employment office where I was informed that I was not allowed to work for club organizations in a paid manner ever again.
Too bad. I really didn't care.
But with blogging, I don't have this problem. If you don't like my blogs, you can leave at any time. You could with the newspaper too, but I was writing under my universities mast head.
But the real point is that I write so that I can be free. These last 20 minutes on this computer have been solitude for me. I hope they are for the reader as well, but I guess I'll just hope you made it this far in my blog.
My goal in my blog is me. But I hope that you might get to the bottom of this blog and like what you see. Enough to follow my blog....pretty please?
Wednesday, March 4, 2015
Seals vs Delta vs Devgru vs Recon vs Rangers
For the last few days I've been trolling pages which attempt to set the record straight regarding which one of our elite special operations forces is the best in the business. I've heard countless tales of hard charging Seals who did everything right put up against the meanest operators delta has to offer. All of this only ends in " well I can't really choose one because they might find me". That's about the lamest excuse I've ever heard.
If you are going to compare something, then fucking compare it. Don't act like you are actually going to make a statement and then all of a sudden back off. You're only proving you are full of shit.
From the get go I will tell you that I'm not comparing Delta and Devgru. I don't know shit about either, and anyone who has not served in either of those units is full of shit when they start listing which one does what better or more.
Having served in the military, I have first hand experience with Rangers and Navy Seals. I don't recall working with Recon folks, but I could be wrong. I've worked with CIA operatives on one occasion and it wasn't for a mission. I had to sit through a briefing and nobody in the room was allowed to ask any questions. So that's my CIA experience.
Whenever I hear about Special Ops, the first thing I hear is this god forsaken Tier Chart. If you're not familiar with this chart, I'll write it out here:
Tier 1: Delta, Devgru
Tier 2: Rangers, Seals, 160th Soar
Tier 3:Special Forces (Green Berets), Force Recon, Air Force Combat Controllers
People often look at this and immediately say that Tier 3 is where the shittiest of the spec ops fall. Or even better, that Tier 3 is where regular Marines and Army soldiers fall.
The one thing you should know is that this is not a list of who is most bad ass. This is a list of who get's what based on funding from the government. I don't know how the funding is broken down, but I do know that the outfits in Tier 3 are in that tier because they require very little to get going. Controllers land before anyone and line up landings, drop zones, and quite a few other things that make them pretty bad ass. Force Recon is a special unit of the Marines that identify land targets which will slow down a conventional force such as the Marines or the Army. They are in the middle of the worst of it trying to give advise. Special Forces often fall in on local militia's that just need guidance to attack enemies of the United States. They help locals revolt, among other things.
Tier 2 is an interesting group. Some folks like to call this "Grey Ops". Truth is, it's just a funding standpoint. Rangers will do their own missions often killing many enemies in the process. I've trained with these folks, and let's just say if they find you trying to shoot them they will be wildly disappointed when it's only you and not 500 more. Seals don't need an introduction. They have books written by multiple people which outline what they do. Launching from Naval ships, Subs, and Planes they obviously require quite a bit of money. Not included is the their wild training after indoctrination courses.
160th is a whole different animal. They have regular black hawks and chinooks just like any other Army aviation unit. Then they have the little birds, specially fitted long rang black hawks and after the killing of Bin Laden, it appears they are proud owners of a black hawk helicopter which is radar resistant. With all of that, and who know's what else, you can imagine the price of maintenance is higher than a regular unit. Aviation isn't cheap, and neither is the 160th.
Tier 1 I really don't know anything about. But one could imagine the price of covering up their non-public missions. That's a lot of money to keep expensive missions on the down low.
So where do these units stand and how do they stack up?
RANGERS:
Rangers vs. Seals: Well, this one doesn't make sense. Rangers tend to work in no less than platoon level organizations. Army platoons range from 24 soldiers on up. Seals work as low as 1. I'm not real sure how to compare 24 to 1.
When it comes to not being heard, both are incredibly good at hiding what they do. Rangers spend quite a large portion of their time providing security over watch for seals. So they work hand in hand. As outlined in "Lone Survivor", Operation Red Wings had 4 members on the ground. Still 20 less than an average Ranger platoon, so I don't know how to compare. I've heard though that Seals will work together in company formations. Rangers do this too. So in an equal setting, you are still comparing apples to oranges. When it comes to Rangers vs Seals, I'd take the Rangers over the Seals. But if it were a simple mission to get someone out, I'd take the seals. As I go on, you'll start to realize that these are all different units and they all have specialties that make them unique.
Rangers vs. Green Berets: Here is a good one. Rangers don't go into foreign countries to train local militia's. They go into foreign countries to kill. Green Berets will go in as small teams to blow shit up, but I've never heard of company level (100-200) going in together for a mission. Green Beret's form A teams which specialize in the exact mission at hand. Others follow for the additional tasks. From an administrative position, I'd take the Green Beret's. I don't see the benefit in dropping off 200 Rangers in a foreign land all by themselves. They would be found quickly and likely run out of ammo. Having locals revolt with their own ammunition, like the Green Beret's do, would be much more beneficial. Starting to add up a little more what rangers do......
Rangers vs Recon: Rangers generally don't do recon for the Army. The Army has scout's for that. The Marines do to, but the Marines are also about killing the enemy. I think Rangers vs Recon is the fairest playing field. Recon and Rangers both jump out of planes. Recon and Rangers both kill lot's of enemies. The thing is, you almost never hear about Recon missions. That's because most of them are special operations capable, not special operations full time. When it comes to this category you have to really pick what you want. If you are storming an airfield: Rangers. If you are lining up targets for a full invasion: Recon. If you want to pick which one is more reliable: I'd again go with the Rangers. Purely from a spec ops point of view. Otherwise their is no difference other than branch of service.
RECON:
Recon vs Seals: Most recon units, when running spec ops, will be in and out pretty quick. Seals run in the same sort of manner. Seals are better trained and have more access to higher grade weapons than recon. I'd take the Seals.
Recon vs Green Berets: If the Recon unit is a full fledged unit part of an assault team, and thus not in a spec ops role, I'd take Recon. If the Recon unit is in a spec ops role, I'd take the Green Berets. Army SF is fully aware of their surroundings. They train for certain area's of the world both in language and culture. Furthermore, they are stationed in places where they likely won't ever leave or transition to other bases. So they spend their entire time off duty studying what the area will look like on duty. As GI Joe would say: Knowing is half the battle. Snake Eaters!
Recon vs Rangers: See above
SEALS:
Seals vs Rangers: See above
Seals vs Recon: See above
Seals vs Green Berets: I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS ONE! Navy SEALS were born from UDT divers. At one time, UDT's wouldn't leave the water. They would clear everything for Navy ships to advance, troops to get to shore, or Marines to clear a beach. Once the water met the sand, they swam back the other way.
Green Beret's were designed to be the on land version of the UDT's. They would go on land and destroy everything. Not only in their own battles, but with locals as well. They were the perfect complement.
Seals were born to bring the Green Beret's ass kicking ability and the UDT's water skills together. As one, the SEALS are probably the best spec ops unit available. On land or sea, I'd take the Seals.
GREEN BERETS:
SF vs Rangers: See above
SF vs Recon: See above
SF vs Seals: See above
So in conclusion, outside of our tier 1 units, which one is the best: As most point out, these are apples and oranges situations. Not to mention, not a single one of these spec ops units can survive without their main counterparts. The seal's won't survive long without the Marines. The Rangers won't survive long without the rest of the Army and Recon certainly will need the support of the Marines to continue their mission.
I've laid out above what each unit can do and compared them. But in the end, it only makes sense that I'd pick one out. My choice would be the SEALS. Pound for pound, you don't get much better and kicking ass than a Navy Seal. While they all are capable of fully humiliating any enemy at home or abroad, Seals bring the water and land together which makes them so much more bad ass.
If you are going to compare something, then fucking compare it. Don't act like you are actually going to make a statement and then all of a sudden back off. You're only proving you are full of shit.
From the get go I will tell you that I'm not comparing Delta and Devgru. I don't know shit about either, and anyone who has not served in either of those units is full of shit when they start listing which one does what better or more.
Having served in the military, I have first hand experience with Rangers and Navy Seals. I don't recall working with Recon folks, but I could be wrong. I've worked with CIA operatives on one occasion and it wasn't for a mission. I had to sit through a briefing and nobody in the room was allowed to ask any questions. So that's my CIA experience.
Whenever I hear about Special Ops, the first thing I hear is this god forsaken Tier Chart. If you're not familiar with this chart, I'll write it out here:
Tier 1: Delta, Devgru
Tier 2: Rangers, Seals, 160th Soar
Tier 3:Special Forces (Green Berets), Force Recon, Air Force Combat Controllers
People often look at this and immediately say that Tier 3 is where the shittiest of the spec ops fall. Or even better, that Tier 3 is where regular Marines and Army soldiers fall.
The one thing you should know is that this is not a list of who is most bad ass. This is a list of who get's what based on funding from the government. I don't know how the funding is broken down, but I do know that the outfits in Tier 3 are in that tier because they require very little to get going. Controllers land before anyone and line up landings, drop zones, and quite a few other things that make them pretty bad ass. Force Recon is a special unit of the Marines that identify land targets which will slow down a conventional force such as the Marines or the Army. They are in the middle of the worst of it trying to give advise. Special Forces often fall in on local militia's that just need guidance to attack enemies of the United States. They help locals revolt, among other things.
Tier 2 is an interesting group. Some folks like to call this "Grey Ops". Truth is, it's just a funding standpoint. Rangers will do their own missions often killing many enemies in the process. I've trained with these folks, and let's just say if they find you trying to shoot them they will be wildly disappointed when it's only you and not 500 more. Seals don't need an introduction. They have books written by multiple people which outline what they do. Launching from Naval ships, Subs, and Planes they obviously require quite a bit of money. Not included is the their wild training after indoctrination courses.
160th is a whole different animal. They have regular black hawks and chinooks just like any other Army aviation unit. Then they have the little birds, specially fitted long rang black hawks and after the killing of Bin Laden, it appears they are proud owners of a black hawk helicopter which is radar resistant. With all of that, and who know's what else, you can imagine the price of maintenance is higher than a regular unit. Aviation isn't cheap, and neither is the 160th.
Tier 1 I really don't know anything about. But one could imagine the price of covering up their non-public missions. That's a lot of money to keep expensive missions on the down low.
So where do these units stand and how do they stack up?
RANGERS:
Rangers vs. Seals: Well, this one doesn't make sense. Rangers tend to work in no less than platoon level organizations. Army platoons range from 24 soldiers on up. Seals work as low as 1. I'm not real sure how to compare 24 to 1.
When it comes to not being heard, both are incredibly good at hiding what they do. Rangers spend quite a large portion of their time providing security over watch for seals. So they work hand in hand. As outlined in "Lone Survivor", Operation Red Wings had 4 members on the ground. Still 20 less than an average Ranger platoon, so I don't know how to compare. I've heard though that Seals will work together in company formations. Rangers do this too. So in an equal setting, you are still comparing apples to oranges. When it comes to Rangers vs Seals, I'd take the Rangers over the Seals. But if it were a simple mission to get someone out, I'd take the seals. As I go on, you'll start to realize that these are all different units and they all have specialties that make them unique.
Rangers vs. Green Berets: Here is a good one. Rangers don't go into foreign countries to train local militia's. They go into foreign countries to kill. Green Berets will go in as small teams to blow shit up, but I've never heard of company level (100-200) going in together for a mission. Green Beret's form A teams which specialize in the exact mission at hand. Others follow for the additional tasks. From an administrative position, I'd take the Green Beret's. I don't see the benefit in dropping off 200 Rangers in a foreign land all by themselves. They would be found quickly and likely run out of ammo. Having locals revolt with their own ammunition, like the Green Beret's do, would be much more beneficial. Starting to add up a little more what rangers do......
Rangers vs Recon: Rangers generally don't do recon for the Army. The Army has scout's for that. The Marines do to, but the Marines are also about killing the enemy. I think Rangers vs Recon is the fairest playing field. Recon and Rangers both jump out of planes. Recon and Rangers both kill lot's of enemies. The thing is, you almost never hear about Recon missions. That's because most of them are special operations capable, not special operations full time. When it comes to this category you have to really pick what you want. If you are storming an airfield: Rangers. If you are lining up targets for a full invasion: Recon. If you want to pick which one is more reliable: I'd again go with the Rangers. Purely from a spec ops point of view. Otherwise their is no difference other than branch of service.
RECON:
Recon vs Seals: Most recon units, when running spec ops, will be in and out pretty quick. Seals run in the same sort of manner. Seals are better trained and have more access to higher grade weapons than recon. I'd take the Seals.
Recon vs Green Berets: If the Recon unit is a full fledged unit part of an assault team, and thus not in a spec ops role, I'd take Recon. If the Recon unit is in a spec ops role, I'd take the Green Berets. Army SF is fully aware of their surroundings. They train for certain area's of the world both in language and culture. Furthermore, they are stationed in places where they likely won't ever leave or transition to other bases. So they spend their entire time off duty studying what the area will look like on duty. As GI Joe would say: Knowing is half the battle. Snake Eaters!
Recon vs Rangers: See above
SEALS:
Seals vs Rangers: See above
Seals vs Recon: See above
Seals vs Green Berets: I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THIS ONE! Navy SEALS were born from UDT divers. At one time, UDT's wouldn't leave the water. They would clear everything for Navy ships to advance, troops to get to shore, or Marines to clear a beach. Once the water met the sand, they swam back the other way.
Green Beret's were designed to be the on land version of the UDT's. They would go on land and destroy everything. Not only in their own battles, but with locals as well. They were the perfect complement.
Seals were born to bring the Green Beret's ass kicking ability and the UDT's water skills together. As one, the SEALS are probably the best spec ops unit available. On land or sea, I'd take the Seals.
GREEN BERETS:
SF vs Rangers: See above
SF vs Recon: See above
SF vs Seals: See above
So in conclusion, outside of our tier 1 units, which one is the best: As most point out, these are apples and oranges situations. Not to mention, not a single one of these spec ops units can survive without their main counterparts. The seal's won't survive long without the Marines. The Rangers won't survive long without the rest of the Army and Recon certainly will need the support of the Marines to continue their mission.
I've laid out above what each unit can do and compared them. But in the end, it only makes sense that I'd pick one out. My choice would be the SEALS. Pound for pound, you don't get much better and kicking ass than a Navy Seal. While they all are capable of fully humiliating any enemy at home or abroad, Seals bring the water and land together which makes them so much more bad ass.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
Marshawn Lynch: Defining how low ball he is
Marshawn Lynch is a funny guy. He acts like he is a man who just doesn't like the media. He pretends to be a socially awkward guy who wants to be left alone.
The problem is, Marshawn Lynch or "ML" from here on out, he doesn't follow through.
Notice how ML only makes a big deal in front of multiple camera's? Or maybe when it's just ML and the fans?
He's two different people. That's because ML is full of shit.
Who the hell says: I'm just here so I won't get fined, and then roughly a month later files for a patent? ML is craving the media attention like Linsay Lohan is craving heroin. He want's it, and he wants to control it.
Here's the facts: when ML was playing in Buffalo, you didn't hear this shit. ML played the game and did it well. He also gave interviews. The key was: Buffalo never had any post season success. Seattle has, and all of a sudden this man who just doesn't like the media is snaking his way into side money.
Here's what I think of ML: He's full of shit.
The problem is, Marshawn Lynch or "ML" from here on out, he doesn't follow through.
Notice how ML only makes a big deal in front of multiple camera's? Or maybe when it's just ML and the fans?
He's two different people. That's because ML is full of shit.
Who the hell says: I'm just here so I won't get fined, and then roughly a month later files for a patent? ML is craving the media attention like Linsay Lohan is craving heroin. He want's it, and he wants to control it.
Here's the facts: when ML was playing in Buffalo, you didn't hear this shit. ML played the game and did it well. He also gave interviews. The key was: Buffalo never had any post season success. Seattle has, and all of a sudden this man who just doesn't like the media is snaking his way into side money.
Here's what I think of ML: He's full of shit.
Saturday, February 28, 2015
Halfway Lit
Well I'm halfway lit on a combination of Molson and Bud Light Platinum. Piss beer, I know.
I'm starting to wonder if this blog will count as a March or February blog, because I started writing this near midnight on the 28th of February but by the time I post it the blog will be in March.
On to non ramblings - I have nothing to say. Not even one word.
In my alcohol ridden state, I wanted to post a little bit about some things that really irk me. I don't want to name "names", but I want to vent it. You know, the way you would see it.
I must say that I like the new facebook layout. It allows me to not see the feeds of people I don't want to see but still be their friends. (Why I do this I don't know)
This is the case that I want to write about. I have a friend on facebook who is kind of doing well for herself. I don't know her real well, but I knew her through her ex husband. She writes how to's for women who don't have half a brain. The problem that I have is that she ran into a gold mine. Her success is wholly pivoted off of the success of her boyfriend. Her business, her whole way of life wouldn't be legit if it wasn't for him. This is also defined as a modern day gold digger.
I don't have a problem with her be successful or using her nice bodily assets to become successful. The problem I have is that people do work hard for a living. People bust their asses to become something, and often times along the way they fail. Often they fail really hard and they have to pick up the pieces and try to make something of that. Not everyone, including 3/4 of her audience, has the ability to find someone as successful as her boyfriend. So while she is "living proof" that a single mom can do things, what she fails to realize is that not every woman out there living with two kids on her own will find this awesome man who has shit tons of money. What most women will find is a normal guy who works for a living and really doesn't have the money to go on exotic vacations.
I don't know, that's just me. I have worked hard for everything I have. I don't pin any of my successes on the likes of anyone else. If I fail, I fail on my own. If I succeed, then I succeed on my own. No bullshit about riding on the back of someone else.
Does it matter? No. But Bud Light Platinum and it's 6% alcohol volume have me thinking about things that make no sense at all.
FYI - it's 12:02 am and this is now a March blog. At what point was I in February? I don't know, but again BL-P.
That is all. Time for a documentary and more beer.
I'm starting to wonder if this blog will count as a March or February blog, because I started writing this near midnight on the 28th of February but by the time I post it the blog will be in March.
On to non ramblings - I have nothing to say. Not even one word.
In my alcohol ridden state, I wanted to post a little bit about some things that really irk me. I don't want to name "names", but I want to vent it. You know, the way you would see it.
I must say that I like the new facebook layout. It allows me to not see the feeds of people I don't want to see but still be their friends. (Why I do this I don't know)
This is the case that I want to write about. I have a friend on facebook who is kind of doing well for herself. I don't know her real well, but I knew her through her ex husband. She writes how to's for women who don't have half a brain. The problem that I have is that she ran into a gold mine. Her success is wholly pivoted off of the success of her boyfriend. Her business, her whole way of life wouldn't be legit if it wasn't for him. This is also defined as a modern day gold digger.
I don't have a problem with her be successful or using her nice bodily assets to become successful. The problem I have is that people do work hard for a living. People bust their asses to become something, and often times along the way they fail. Often they fail really hard and they have to pick up the pieces and try to make something of that. Not everyone, including 3/4 of her audience, has the ability to find someone as successful as her boyfriend. So while she is "living proof" that a single mom can do things, what she fails to realize is that not every woman out there living with two kids on her own will find this awesome man who has shit tons of money. What most women will find is a normal guy who works for a living and really doesn't have the money to go on exotic vacations.
I don't know, that's just me. I have worked hard for everything I have. I don't pin any of my successes on the likes of anyone else. If I fail, I fail on my own. If I succeed, then I succeed on my own. No bullshit about riding on the back of someone else.
Does it matter? No. But Bud Light Platinum and it's 6% alcohol volume have me thinking about things that make no sense at all.
FYI - it's 12:02 am and this is now a March blog. At what point was I in February? I don't know, but again BL-P.
That is all. Time for a documentary and more beer.
Thursday, February 26, 2015
Net Neutrality
I was at work today when I took a break to check out Yahoo!
Unfortunately, my company has a block on Yahoo! and I was not able to visit the site. It was determined by someone higher than me that Yahoo does not benefit the company and has the ability to place workers off task.
What my company couldn't stop me from doing (they have not outlawed it yet) is going on my phone and checking the internet there. On the front page of Yahoo! was the vote on net neutrality. The powers that be voted to regulate our internet. Don't be alarmed.....YET!
What today's vote means is that internet companies such as Comcast and other internet primary service providers are now classified as data companies. This move will put internet providers of all types into one category. So as much as Verizon is an internet provider, Comcast is now a cell phone provider (in theory).
How this works: Say Verizon wants to have internet rights to places in remote Montana. Instead of just putting towers on main roads, they now have to attempt to serve area's which are much harder to reach. Like Verizon, Comcast must also offer it's services in places that would normally be harder to get to. The problem is that if Comcast and Verizon were to merge their internet products, they would still be classified as data and could not escape what the government is controlling.
Essentially, we just took a step away from the constitution and towards socialism.
While this isn't such a big deal right now, the immediate future spells competition for those interested in getting into new markets. For instance, Comcast cannot shutter the speeds it offers in Montana simply because it is more expensive to serve this market over a place like Seattle. Comcast must make reasonable efforts to offer all residents of Montana the same service package they would offer any metro area. The easy solution to this is to slow down internet speeds everywhere. Not so fast, Comcast cannot do that either. Data providers must now offer everyone the opportunity to the same internet speeds.
That's all well and good, for those using home internet. However our internet usage is fast approaching a high mobile market. So for Verizon, they cannot shutter your speeds just because the network is slow. So guess what? The unintended consequence: Comcast raises prices to keep all equipment at the same service range while Verizon raises prices to allow for data to be passed easily through their network.
The first question is: Who falls first? I believe home based internet will fall first. Comcast cannot easily reach houses like Verizon can with a phone. One cable line equals one house. One cell phone tower equals many users.
But the real issue is not that our prices will rise. The issue is that the government put it's hand in a place we thought was free from government. Look at any other bill in congress where something started out as small regulation. It always ends up with our government running the whole system, and eventually making it worse.
Although this isn't accurate, I wouldn't be surprised to see the internet inaccessible on federal holidays in the near future.
Unfortunately, my company has a block on Yahoo! and I was not able to visit the site. It was determined by someone higher than me that Yahoo does not benefit the company and has the ability to place workers off task.
What my company couldn't stop me from doing (they have not outlawed it yet) is going on my phone and checking the internet there. On the front page of Yahoo! was the vote on net neutrality. The powers that be voted to regulate our internet. Don't be alarmed.....YET!
What today's vote means is that internet companies such as Comcast and other internet primary service providers are now classified as data companies. This move will put internet providers of all types into one category. So as much as Verizon is an internet provider, Comcast is now a cell phone provider (in theory).
How this works: Say Verizon wants to have internet rights to places in remote Montana. Instead of just putting towers on main roads, they now have to attempt to serve area's which are much harder to reach. Like Verizon, Comcast must also offer it's services in places that would normally be harder to get to. The problem is that if Comcast and Verizon were to merge their internet products, they would still be classified as data and could not escape what the government is controlling.
Essentially, we just took a step away from the constitution and towards socialism.
While this isn't such a big deal right now, the immediate future spells competition for those interested in getting into new markets. For instance, Comcast cannot shutter the speeds it offers in Montana simply because it is more expensive to serve this market over a place like Seattle. Comcast must make reasonable efforts to offer all residents of Montana the same service package they would offer any metro area. The easy solution to this is to slow down internet speeds everywhere. Not so fast, Comcast cannot do that either. Data providers must now offer everyone the opportunity to the same internet speeds.
That's all well and good, for those using home internet. However our internet usage is fast approaching a high mobile market. So for Verizon, they cannot shutter your speeds just because the network is slow. So guess what? The unintended consequence: Comcast raises prices to keep all equipment at the same service range while Verizon raises prices to allow for data to be passed easily through their network.
The first question is: Who falls first? I believe home based internet will fall first. Comcast cannot easily reach houses like Verizon can with a phone. One cable line equals one house. One cell phone tower equals many users.
But the real issue is not that our prices will rise. The issue is that the government put it's hand in a place we thought was free from government. Look at any other bill in congress where something started out as small regulation. It always ends up with our government running the whole system, and eventually making it worse.
Although this isn't accurate, I wouldn't be surprised to see the internet inaccessible on federal holidays in the near future.
Sunday, February 22, 2015
Teachings in religion: A FB post from 2009
Currently, the time is 1 A.M in the morning and I am beginning to feel
wheezy after taking my narcotic sleep medication. I take the pills
because they reduce my sleep interrupting nightmares that happen so
frequently.
While trying to catch some much needed rest in preparation for my mother to come out Colorado and my Wife's return from Wisconsin, I have stayed up late each night cleaning a little bit more than I normally would have. While taking one of my elaborate breaks, (as Jillian knows, I work for five minutes and rest for 10), I stumbled upon a book which I began reading almost four months ago. The book is titled "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins. I know that by typing that man's name, I just arrived on my fellow friends' list, hate mail recipients list. Some of you are clearly already turned away by what I have to say, yet others may find what I am bullshitting through to be of some value. Either way, I wish for all of you super religious people who choose to stop and debate a topic half way through, to read my entire essay prior to actually commenting. Although I did just put that disclaimer in my work, I think about 75% of the christian population will forget it and make some naive comment about a certain section in my essay, rather than the whole thing.
Years ago, I became a victim of something that is almost never heard of. It's a type of abuse where elders support it, and children will do anything to be in it. This type of abuse is brought on by years of brainwashing in a degree that only a 26 year old who has wasted many years of his life listening to can speak of. This type of abuse is neither physical, verbal, or emotional. Nay, it is religious abuse and it has become increasingly popular amongst the evangelicals and fundamentalists' (Strap a bomb to my belly and take out as many people who do not agree with our teachings) type of people. Funny how things turned out, from my childhood to now. I was once so brainwashed that I "was on fire for the lord". Good thing I wised up and realized that I was wasting my money to give a man a house who did nothing more than reject the poor (which my mother thought he was acting on god's behalf when he(the pastor), said no to her requests to help her with a bill she was behind on. After all, it was the money she had given to an offering.
I am not really into divulging my entire abuse, because most of it is very ignorant propaganda that my church willing placed on each child. Just watch the documentary "Jesus Camp". Some of these children walk around with tape over their mouths to certify that they are not controlled by themselves, but rather a superficial being. Too bad that rule didn't apply to the NHL when a player high sticked another. The natural defense could be that god told me to do it and I am his messenger. Or when the drunk driver walks away clean from an accident that killed a mother and father along with their three children. Could you call that natural selection? You see, it has been things like this that actually lead me to believe that I wasted portions of my life pondering a god that isn't real. Well then, how about the Euphoria when you are so called "saved". I found that same feeling present when I closed on my home and became the first member of my family to own a home. I guess a salesman has one goal in mind to close the sale; to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside before they hand you a doggy bag full of dog shit.
It's okay though, as I have rebounded well to lead an un-blind folded life. I have been given chances to diversify myself and see what people are really made of. After making comments similar to what I have already written, I found myself on another page being bombarded with hilarious questions such as this one: if there is no god, then why would people rally around one another to help each other no matter what the circumstances? Well my dumb friends, I have to tell you that our country is currently trying to rally around the mortgage prices that gave many people the euphoria they felt when they were saved or when they closed on that huge McMansion.
Finally, I have seen the left behind series so many times that I just want to puke. The fear propaganda involved with it is absolutely ridiculous. To think that some man is going to come around, wipe out a Generation and then revive himself to be killed by Jesus, is just phony. Well to tell you the truth, I think it may have already happened. Mussolini believed that he must hold the upper hand among the people so that they will "craft his way". Upon his escape, he was killed. Maybe he was then resurrected as Adolf Hitler. After all, hitler told his prisoners that they would be treated to royalty and then sent them to a place where they would get a nice warm shower. Too bad that shower was a cyanide gas waiting to annihilate them. I guess if that were the case, then the United States of America would be Jesus. As we ended world war two and conquered the empire that held the world hostage. Maybe that's why we are so into spending money on places like new life church to watch them have a stage complete with an arena size scoreboard so that if you cannot see the preacher, you can watch him on the jumbo trons. Welcome to America, land of the free, home of Jesus.
Thoughts?
While trying to catch some much needed rest in preparation for my mother to come out Colorado and my Wife's return from Wisconsin, I have stayed up late each night cleaning a little bit more than I normally would have. While taking one of my elaborate breaks, (as Jillian knows, I work for five minutes and rest for 10), I stumbled upon a book which I began reading almost four months ago. The book is titled "The God Delusion" by Richard Dawkins. I know that by typing that man's name, I just arrived on my fellow friends' list, hate mail recipients list. Some of you are clearly already turned away by what I have to say, yet others may find what I am bullshitting through to be of some value. Either way, I wish for all of you super religious people who choose to stop and debate a topic half way through, to read my entire essay prior to actually commenting. Although I did just put that disclaimer in my work, I think about 75% of the christian population will forget it and make some naive comment about a certain section in my essay, rather than the whole thing.
Years ago, I became a victim of something that is almost never heard of. It's a type of abuse where elders support it, and children will do anything to be in it. This type of abuse is brought on by years of brainwashing in a degree that only a 26 year old who has wasted many years of his life listening to can speak of. This type of abuse is neither physical, verbal, or emotional. Nay, it is religious abuse and it has become increasingly popular amongst the evangelicals and fundamentalists' (Strap a bomb to my belly and take out as many people who do not agree with our teachings) type of people. Funny how things turned out, from my childhood to now. I was once so brainwashed that I "was on fire for the lord". Good thing I wised up and realized that I was wasting my money to give a man a house who did nothing more than reject the poor (which my mother thought he was acting on god's behalf when he(the pastor), said no to her requests to help her with a bill she was behind on. After all, it was the money she had given to an offering.
I am not really into divulging my entire abuse, because most of it is very ignorant propaganda that my church willing placed on each child. Just watch the documentary "Jesus Camp". Some of these children walk around with tape over their mouths to certify that they are not controlled by themselves, but rather a superficial being. Too bad that rule didn't apply to the NHL when a player high sticked another. The natural defense could be that god told me to do it and I am his messenger. Or when the drunk driver walks away clean from an accident that killed a mother and father along with their three children. Could you call that natural selection? You see, it has been things like this that actually lead me to believe that I wasted portions of my life pondering a god that isn't real. Well then, how about the Euphoria when you are so called "saved". I found that same feeling present when I closed on my home and became the first member of my family to own a home. I guess a salesman has one goal in mind to close the sale; to make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside before they hand you a doggy bag full of dog shit.
It's okay though, as I have rebounded well to lead an un-blind folded life. I have been given chances to diversify myself and see what people are really made of. After making comments similar to what I have already written, I found myself on another page being bombarded with hilarious questions such as this one: if there is no god, then why would people rally around one another to help each other no matter what the circumstances? Well my dumb friends, I have to tell you that our country is currently trying to rally around the mortgage prices that gave many people the euphoria they felt when they were saved or when they closed on that huge McMansion.
Finally, I have seen the left behind series so many times that I just want to puke. The fear propaganda involved with it is absolutely ridiculous. To think that some man is going to come around, wipe out a Generation and then revive himself to be killed by Jesus, is just phony. Well to tell you the truth, I think it may have already happened. Mussolini believed that he must hold the upper hand among the people so that they will "craft his way". Upon his escape, he was killed. Maybe he was then resurrected as Adolf Hitler. After all, hitler told his prisoners that they would be treated to royalty and then sent them to a place where they would get a nice warm shower. Too bad that shower was a cyanide gas waiting to annihilate them. I guess if that were the case, then the United States of America would be Jesus. As we ended world war two and conquered the empire that held the world hostage. Maybe that's why we are so into spending money on places like new life church to watch them have a stage complete with an arena size scoreboard so that if you cannot see the preacher, you can watch him on the jumbo trons. Welcome to America, land of the free, home of Jesus.
Thoughts?
How Film Became Political
Enjoy watching film? I do. I enjoy the theater. Not just the show on the screen, but everything around it. The soda, the seats, the candy and occasionally my kids. Most of the time I get into the show, so bringing the children isn't always the best idea.
Sometimes I enjoy deep films with meaning and emotion from everything. Other times I just go for the title of the film and let the plot, or lack thereof, develop.
What I don't like about film is when the actors open their mouths AFTER the film has been released. Too often these stars go on big marketing and PR campaigns to get people into the theater. You'll see them on talk shows, advertisements and public speaking circuits. They talk about their film, their favorite parts and how it relates to them.
Then the movie get's into the theater and all of that particular actor's traits you saw while on sale, are gone. They are the real person. They speak their minds and immediately go political. Immediately.
For instance, let's look at Michael Moore. His best films came out during the Bush administration. Normally I'd applaud such great work, but take a look at his filmography as a whole. Notice how he spent his most critical films during republican presidencies? It's 2015 and his last film was in 2009. A little hang over from the Bush era, but still an attack on conservatives. During the Bush years, his longest break was 2 years. Now he shuts up.
Then let's talk about the Oscars. A true case of hypocrisy if there ever was one. You have some of the wealthiest, let's just call them richest, people of cinema on stage collecting awards while wearing expensive clothing that has been borrowed to them. Three days later these titans of stage will be advocating for helping third world countries, promoting their charities and advancing liberal policies.
Honestly, it's kind of sickening to hear. This is why act/ors/resses get so much negative publicity. They portray someone else for the world to see, but then want to be taken seriously. They take money from the strong, the weak, the rich and the poor but don't care that they only serve one side.
Just remember the blabbering idiots when they walk on stage with shit they don't own, and then spend the next two weeks talking about helping people who don't have anything.
Sometimes I enjoy deep films with meaning and emotion from everything. Other times I just go for the title of the film and let the plot, or lack thereof, develop.
What I don't like about film is when the actors open their mouths AFTER the film has been released. Too often these stars go on big marketing and PR campaigns to get people into the theater. You'll see them on talk shows, advertisements and public speaking circuits. They talk about their film, their favorite parts and how it relates to them.
Then the movie get's into the theater and all of that particular actor's traits you saw while on sale, are gone. They are the real person. They speak their minds and immediately go political. Immediately.
For instance, let's look at Michael Moore. His best films came out during the Bush administration. Normally I'd applaud such great work, but take a look at his filmography as a whole. Notice how he spent his most critical films during republican presidencies? It's 2015 and his last film was in 2009. A little hang over from the Bush era, but still an attack on conservatives. During the Bush years, his longest break was 2 years. Now he shuts up.
Then let's talk about the Oscars. A true case of hypocrisy if there ever was one. You have some of the wealthiest, let's just call them richest, people of cinema on stage collecting awards while wearing expensive clothing that has been borrowed to them. Three days later these titans of stage will be advocating for helping third world countries, promoting their charities and advancing liberal policies.
Honestly, it's kind of sickening to hear. This is why act/ors/resses get so much negative publicity. They portray someone else for the world to see, but then want to be taken seriously. They take money from the strong, the weak, the rich and the poor but don't care that they only serve one side.
Just remember the blabbering idiots when they walk on stage with shit they don't own, and then spend the next two weeks talking about helping people who don't have anything.
Saturday, February 21, 2015
How tight to strap goalie pads
This is a sports related blog, but it doesn't deal with a sport but rather equipment in one. Therefor it doesn't go in my ticker.
I wanted to cover goalie pads for a little bit. I play goalie myself in beer league. My experience goes as high as college club hockey. Over the year's I've gotten older and more eager to find out what works best. I've often fallen into the one size fit's all category and kept my pads one way for a really long time.
For instance my pad length now. Currently I have goalie pads that use an ankle strap and two calf straps. I also have a calf buckle. Going from bottom to top I use 5, 5, 3 on Brian's goalie pads. That's kinda tight but still allows for rotation. The biggest reason I made my switch to this tension about 2 years ago was that my pads were turning all on their own. I'd have my leg pointed straight out and the pad would go to the left or right of my knee.
Previously I used a 2, 2, 1 set up. This was super loose. I even put my ankle strap through the middle skate cowling to have even more slack. I really liked this set up and kept it for about 3 years. For the 5 years that I've had my pads I've only used 2 settings.
Now I think I'm ready to go back to the 2,2,1 set up and here is why: The tighter I make these pads, the juicier the rebounds get. I can give a great bounce and set up the next shooter by using my tight settings. With the 2,2,1 setup I often have separation between my shin and the pad. This allows the puck to literally drop dead in front of me. FYI - you should always gauge how you want to play the puck on the team in front of you.
I say this because most beer leagues offer very bad defenses. It's the nature of the way adult leagues are played. Most people want to score, and it goes for both sides. Defense is often saved for the slowest people because they don't have the ability to score.
This is why I am switching back to a loose setting. I've found that in the past season of adult league, my team has become very weak on defense. Often allowing 3 on 1 and even a 4 on 0. When you get these kinds of problems coming your way, or the opponent is shooting low on you the worst thing possible is to give away a rebound. Step 1 is to not have a pad that automatically kicks pucks 50 feet away. You have no control that far away. If you have that kind of pad, you should have a defense fast enough to pick up your rebounds and clear for you. I do not have this. I also am pretty bad at mopping up sloppy shots. These turn into nasty situations in front of the net and my score board stats show it.
I don't have the puck to give up, but I wanted to share my sizing to help a little bit more.
I wanted to cover goalie pads for a little bit. I play goalie myself in beer league. My experience goes as high as college club hockey. Over the year's I've gotten older and more eager to find out what works best. I've often fallen into the one size fit's all category and kept my pads one way for a really long time.
For instance my pad length now. Currently I have goalie pads that use an ankle strap and two calf straps. I also have a calf buckle. Going from bottom to top I use 5, 5, 3 on Brian's goalie pads. That's kinda tight but still allows for rotation. The biggest reason I made my switch to this tension about 2 years ago was that my pads were turning all on their own. I'd have my leg pointed straight out and the pad would go to the left or right of my knee.
Previously I used a 2, 2, 1 set up. This was super loose. I even put my ankle strap through the middle skate cowling to have even more slack. I really liked this set up and kept it for about 3 years. For the 5 years that I've had my pads I've only used 2 settings.
Now I think I'm ready to go back to the 2,2,1 set up and here is why: The tighter I make these pads, the juicier the rebounds get. I can give a great bounce and set up the next shooter by using my tight settings. With the 2,2,1 setup I often have separation between my shin and the pad. This allows the puck to literally drop dead in front of me. FYI - you should always gauge how you want to play the puck on the team in front of you.
I say this because most beer leagues offer very bad defenses. It's the nature of the way adult leagues are played. Most people want to score, and it goes for both sides. Defense is often saved for the slowest people because they don't have the ability to score.
This is why I am switching back to a loose setting. I've found that in the past season of adult league, my team has become very weak on defense. Often allowing 3 on 1 and even a 4 on 0. When you get these kinds of problems coming your way, or the opponent is shooting low on you the worst thing possible is to give away a rebound. Step 1 is to not have a pad that automatically kicks pucks 50 feet away. You have no control that far away. If you have that kind of pad, you should have a defense fast enough to pick up your rebounds and clear for you. I do not have this. I also am pretty bad at mopping up sloppy shots. These turn into nasty situations in front of the net and my score board stats show it.
I don't have the puck to give up, but I wanted to share my sizing to help a little bit more.
Racism
I'm beginning to wonder how sick of the word "racism" the world is getting? Probably not much considering it's only meaningful purpose is for a black man to put a white man down. It's retribution for the slavery that I was never even a part of. Yet being a white man, I must be punished by people of my own skin color to be acceptable to the minority.
Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettsburg address with a purpose: That white and black should be together. Than no man should look upon the other and ask why he can't have that man's item if he earned it. Yet today, so many years later his dream is tarnished. Thanks to the folks who race bait our country and use politics and the office of the president to spread hateful propaganda, we are no better than we were before.
Today, I cannot say anything offensive because I am in the majority. If one person see's another criticize the minority it's a shunned act. But should the likes of Al Sharpton grace the presence of a television show, he can spit whatever ignorant racist shit he wants. How the hell is that fair to anyone who wants to see progression.
The truth is we can't progress. We can't move. We cannot become one. Our race is too heated, too divided. When one race jumps over another in popularity, it sparks outrage. People voice their minds and are out of jobs. Yet if those same people are black, they can say whatever they want and their words are used as a topic of discussion.
This has gotten out of hand. Our country needs a revolution. Somebody needs to come out on top. Either that, or a black man/white woman and vice versa must meet and pro create rapidly to make everyone a little black and a little white.
We are too much pre-MLK and not enough today. Hate is our calling card and until anyone is willing to take that stand, we will never move anywhere.
Abraham Lincoln delivered the Gettsburg address with a purpose: That white and black should be together. Than no man should look upon the other and ask why he can't have that man's item if he earned it. Yet today, so many years later his dream is tarnished. Thanks to the folks who race bait our country and use politics and the office of the president to spread hateful propaganda, we are no better than we were before.
Today, I cannot say anything offensive because I am in the majority. If one person see's another criticize the minority it's a shunned act. But should the likes of Al Sharpton grace the presence of a television show, he can spit whatever ignorant racist shit he wants. How the hell is that fair to anyone who wants to see progression.
The truth is we can't progress. We can't move. We cannot become one. Our race is too heated, too divided. When one race jumps over another in popularity, it sparks outrage. People voice their minds and are out of jobs. Yet if those same people are black, they can say whatever they want and their words are used as a topic of discussion.
This has gotten out of hand. Our country needs a revolution. Somebody needs to come out on top. Either that, or a black man/white woman and vice versa must meet and pro create rapidly to make everyone a little black and a little white.
We are too much pre-MLK and not enough today. Hate is our calling card and until anyone is willing to take that stand, we will never move anywhere.
The price of ACA
It's like 3 in the morning and I cannot sleep. For days, maybe even weeks I've been steaming at the ACA or "Obamacare" tax reform that has started this year. This bill is so fucked up, from start to finish, that the only people who benefit from it are the government trolls giving great ratings and those who couldn't afford insurance before.
There really is no one way for me to take on ACA without having about 17 different topics on it. So I'll just rant away on how shitty the whole program is.
For instance, myself. I spent my time in the military, got hurt and had I done nothing I would have benefited from the "pre-existing" condition portion of the ACA. Unfortunately, getting hurt didn't stop me from trying to better myself post military. I went on to get my bachelors degree in accounting and found myself a decent job with benefits, and many more incentives that the ACA is not designed for.
Recently, I looked at what the ACA had to offer and I found startling results. Keep in mind that I don't have the time or necessary resources to conduct a peer reviewed study for which I can solidify this blog. What I do have is about 10 case samples of people who volunteered their information.
For instance, I asked about 5 couples what they made in a year. I know most of them are low income, so each family made $30k or less per year. Obviously they do not have jobs with ACA minimum insurances, so their options are to take what their employers give them and cover the rest with the exchanges. Or they can deny what their employer gives them, and risk losing money saving subsidies at the exchanges. Luckily all of these people have pro-created so they really didn't risk anything. They all marked that they had insurance through ACA, and they all paid very little in taxes.
Take my family for instance. My household income was just shy of $125k last year. Neither my spouse nor myself qualify for ACA because we both have employer sponsored insurance. We found ourselves in another tax bracket for ACA, but in a totally different bracket for income.
Why? Because of the 5 couples I talked about above, all of them are in the $0-$50 a month category for insurance under ACA. Almost all of them have food stamps, and nearly all of them pay the majority of their expenses as child care.
I don't have food stamps. I pay a shit load for child care, but I still budget my money to have enough to pay all of my bills.
However this year I noticed something really interesting happening. What was once a credit in the tax code is now cash waiting to be distributed. For these families who paid nearly nothing in taxes, were given incredible subsidies paid for by my IRS tax bracket, and enjoyed eating off of other people's good fortunes they get high amounts of money back.
I'm not talking about little sums. I'm talking between $6 and $15k. That never used to happen. That's because back in the day if you took food stamps, a portion was racked out of your tax return to offset what was given to you. Now it's free money, well for the person using foodstamps.
I on the other hand had the fortune of paying large amounts in taxes. Then when I filed my return, I found that I owed even more. Infact, I didn't get a return.
I have a wife, two kids, a home and a stable job. I help make serious strides in my workplace and contribute to society by helping others in need. Yet when a break would be nice, I pay for it.
So how is the ACA fair? Well truth be told, it's not. It allows the formerly non-insured to free load off of the backs of those making decent money. It also changed the term "middle class" by making those who earn less than $40k for a family per year actual middle class. Yet the IRS moved to charge these same families LESS than what they consider "upper middle class". The upper middle class is now lumped from $75k to $225k per year. They pay for all those making $40k and less.
Why did they do this? The majority of the people in this "upper middle class" segment are between 28 and 45, are educated and have the means to budget their money. They make smart financial decisions based on what they can actually afford (by using a budget), and at tax season time they are less likely to spend thousands due from a tax return on a vacation. Most would actually pay down bills which would keep them in the same bracket, but shield their money. So this is why the IRS targets this group. Because anyone in this group can budget for a vacation. They don't need a once a year boost to aim for a lifestyle of luxury for a whole week. They can budget from it. So if they charge each of us between $400 to $2,000 at tax time, they can cover the ACA budget without pissing off the people who wrote the bill.
Problem 1: Most people in my category have student loads to pay for. This is because they wanted to better themselves. Less than 25% of the lower middle class has an associates degree. The vast majority already have, or will soon see student loan forgiveness.
Problem 2: We don't live in a country that provides raw goods to the world anymore. We are a service oriented country. To provide a service, you often don't have anything tangible to offer. You best offer is advice, or answers to complex questions. The lower middle class though, they have gone from working in factories to taking jobs at retail stores. They don't unionize here because the wages are so low. In return they get thousands in tax breaks.
Problem 3: As we begin to give less to the world, we start to take. Taking costs a shitload more than giving. Only recently have the oil prices dropped so low that OPEC realizes it's largest consumer is within 20 years of being energy independent. The problem is, once foreign oil is not relied upon anymore, our oil prices will dip to pre 9/11 levels. All these oil jobs will go away. Entire fields will be shut down, and one of the last true gritty middle class jobs will go away. Then we will be back on foreign oil, this time with more people taking welfare assistance.
Conclusion: Why the hell should I work so hard to have a nice home and raise my family in a nice place when I have to pay for the vacations and dreams of those who wish to work for so less? Why should the upper class be exempt from the terror that is driving a steel rod through the middle class? The real answer is that we are all on the Titanic (not really). The upper class doesn't want to see the 2nd class passengers (people like me), and they sure as hell don't want to see 3rd class passengers. They don't want to share anything, including the problems of the middle class. To them we are all one, but unfortunately less than 50% of the middle class is paying for nearly 85% of the debt made by them. Not to mention, it's this second class of people like me who have to work for the upper class to shield them from paying for the 3rd class.
This ship won't sink though, not at least entirely. In this case the 2nd class passengers will drown, while the 3rd class passengers won't realize that the water rushing in is going to collapse the entire boat. All while the 1st class boards another ship, watching the 2nd and 3rd class passengers take what was left of a beautiful upper deck.
I don't think we are in this together. I think we are torn apart.
There really is no one way for me to take on ACA without having about 17 different topics on it. So I'll just rant away on how shitty the whole program is.
For instance, myself. I spent my time in the military, got hurt and had I done nothing I would have benefited from the "pre-existing" condition portion of the ACA. Unfortunately, getting hurt didn't stop me from trying to better myself post military. I went on to get my bachelors degree in accounting and found myself a decent job with benefits, and many more incentives that the ACA is not designed for.
Recently, I looked at what the ACA had to offer and I found startling results. Keep in mind that I don't have the time or necessary resources to conduct a peer reviewed study for which I can solidify this blog. What I do have is about 10 case samples of people who volunteered their information.
For instance, I asked about 5 couples what they made in a year. I know most of them are low income, so each family made $30k or less per year. Obviously they do not have jobs with ACA minimum insurances, so their options are to take what their employers give them and cover the rest with the exchanges. Or they can deny what their employer gives them, and risk losing money saving subsidies at the exchanges. Luckily all of these people have pro-created so they really didn't risk anything. They all marked that they had insurance through ACA, and they all paid very little in taxes.
Take my family for instance. My household income was just shy of $125k last year. Neither my spouse nor myself qualify for ACA because we both have employer sponsored insurance. We found ourselves in another tax bracket for ACA, but in a totally different bracket for income.
Why? Because of the 5 couples I talked about above, all of them are in the $0-$50 a month category for insurance under ACA. Almost all of them have food stamps, and nearly all of them pay the majority of their expenses as child care.
I don't have food stamps. I pay a shit load for child care, but I still budget my money to have enough to pay all of my bills.
However this year I noticed something really interesting happening. What was once a credit in the tax code is now cash waiting to be distributed. For these families who paid nearly nothing in taxes, were given incredible subsidies paid for by my IRS tax bracket, and enjoyed eating off of other people's good fortunes they get high amounts of money back.
I'm not talking about little sums. I'm talking between $6 and $15k. That never used to happen. That's because back in the day if you took food stamps, a portion was racked out of your tax return to offset what was given to you. Now it's free money, well for the person using foodstamps.
I on the other hand had the fortune of paying large amounts in taxes. Then when I filed my return, I found that I owed even more. Infact, I didn't get a return.
I have a wife, two kids, a home and a stable job. I help make serious strides in my workplace and contribute to society by helping others in need. Yet when a break would be nice, I pay for it.
So how is the ACA fair? Well truth be told, it's not. It allows the formerly non-insured to free load off of the backs of those making decent money. It also changed the term "middle class" by making those who earn less than $40k for a family per year actual middle class. Yet the IRS moved to charge these same families LESS than what they consider "upper middle class". The upper middle class is now lumped from $75k to $225k per year. They pay for all those making $40k and less.
Why did they do this? The majority of the people in this "upper middle class" segment are between 28 and 45, are educated and have the means to budget their money. They make smart financial decisions based on what they can actually afford (by using a budget), and at tax season time they are less likely to spend thousands due from a tax return on a vacation. Most would actually pay down bills which would keep them in the same bracket, but shield their money. So this is why the IRS targets this group. Because anyone in this group can budget for a vacation. They don't need a once a year boost to aim for a lifestyle of luxury for a whole week. They can budget from it. So if they charge each of us between $400 to $2,000 at tax time, they can cover the ACA budget without pissing off the people who wrote the bill.
Problem 1: Most people in my category have student loads to pay for. This is because they wanted to better themselves. Less than 25% of the lower middle class has an associates degree. The vast majority already have, or will soon see student loan forgiveness.
Problem 2: We don't live in a country that provides raw goods to the world anymore. We are a service oriented country. To provide a service, you often don't have anything tangible to offer. You best offer is advice, or answers to complex questions. The lower middle class though, they have gone from working in factories to taking jobs at retail stores. They don't unionize here because the wages are so low. In return they get thousands in tax breaks.
Problem 3: As we begin to give less to the world, we start to take. Taking costs a shitload more than giving. Only recently have the oil prices dropped so low that OPEC realizes it's largest consumer is within 20 years of being energy independent. The problem is, once foreign oil is not relied upon anymore, our oil prices will dip to pre 9/11 levels. All these oil jobs will go away. Entire fields will be shut down, and one of the last true gritty middle class jobs will go away. Then we will be back on foreign oil, this time with more people taking welfare assistance.
Conclusion: Why the hell should I work so hard to have a nice home and raise my family in a nice place when I have to pay for the vacations and dreams of those who wish to work for so less? Why should the upper class be exempt from the terror that is driving a steel rod through the middle class? The real answer is that we are all on the Titanic (not really). The upper class doesn't want to see the 2nd class passengers (people like me), and they sure as hell don't want to see 3rd class passengers. They don't want to share anything, including the problems of the middle class. To them we are all one, but unfortunately less than 50% of the middle class is paying for nearly 85% of the debt made by them. Not to mention, it's this second class of people like me who have to work for the upper class to shield them from paying for the 3rd class.
This ship won't sink though, not at least entirely. In this case the 2nd class passengers will drown, while the 3rd class passengers won't realize that the water rushing in is going to collapse the entire boat. All while the 1st class boards another ship, watching the 2nd and 3rd class passengers take what was left of a beautiful upper deck.
I don't think we are in this together. I think we are torn apart.
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