Consequence Of Leading From Behind

This is what happens when the White House and State Department don't lift a finger to save four U.S. citizens killed by terrorists in Benghazi, Libya on September 11, 2012... 

This Guy Is Good

Please Remember

Remembering

MY DAD  

He always marched in the Memorial Day parade...

Never Forget

Many died young so that we may live free ...

God Is Nigh

Taps

Day is done,
gone the sun,
From the hills,
from the lake,
From the skies.
All is well,
safely rest,
God is nigh.


Go to sleep,
peaceful sleep,
May the soldier
or sailor,
God keep.
On the land
or the deep,
Safe in sleep.


Love, good night,
Must thou go,
When the day,
And the night
Need thee so?
All is well.
Speedeth all
To their rest.


Fades the light;
And afar
Goeth day,
And the stars
Shineth bright,
Fare thee well;
Day has gone,
Night is on.


Thanks and praise,
For our days,
‘Neath the sun,
Neath the stars,
‘Neath the sky,
As we go,
This we know,
God is nigh.

************

The Path Of The Warrior

We must never forget...

Cool Pool

A very amazing trick shot...

Inspired by "TwistedSifter"

How About A Trip To Norway

So, you'd like to visit the western fjords of Norway but can't afford it.  No problem. Watch this...

Must be viewed in full screen

Inspired by "Like COOL"

The Future Is Almost Here

Remember this...

It's here...

Abortion Must Be Banned

If you're pro-abortion, if you're pro-choice, or if you still have mixed emotions about abortion and a woman's right to choose, please listen to this ex-abortion doctor...

Recommended for "Adults Only"

Wake Up America

  

Inspired by "DVICE"

Make Up My Mind

I was so looking forward to the day West Virginia turned into the West Indies.  According to all the "experts", global warming was going to turn my state into a Caribbean paradise (if I lived long enough).  But according to the latest data from NASA, it ain't gonna happen.  Nope, just the opposite. It seems that when you burn all this nasty West Virginia coal we got and it makes all that CO2 gas, the planet is gonna get colder instead of hotter.

So this afternoon I did the only thing a sensible guy could do.  I took all those Bermuda shorts I bought and exchanged them for a bunch of thermal underwear.  Then I traded in my new dune buggy for a snowmobile.  I was thinking of getting a cabana for the pool I just had installed but maybe I'll buy an igloo instead.  Then I'll stock the pool with fish, drill some holes and ice fish year round right in the back yard. Anyone got any suggestions on a good high powered rifle for when all the polar bears show up?

You think I'm kidding, don't ya.  Not a bit.  You can read all the details at "Natural News".

   

That Was Really Cool

I have three favorite grand sons and five favorite grand daughters.  Today one of my favorite grand daughters had her sixteenth birthday.  To celebrate we went out to eat at one of her favorite restaurants.  Driving to the restaurant we were listening to oldies music on Pandora and you'll never guess what started playing...

Here's a picture of the birthday girl...

Happy Birthday Girl...

The Spirit Is At The Gate

Have A Little Faith

I've been accused of wanting to take our country back to the 1800's.  You know, do things the old-fashioned way because the new-fashioned way just isn't working.  You know, run this country according to the vision and wishes of the Founding Fathers.  You know, cling bitterly to my guns and ammo.  Yup, I'm one of them rich old white guys (minus the rich).

It sure would be a lot simpler if we could all just go back to the 1800's.  No traffic congestion.  No humongous national debt.  No income taxes to pay.  I also know it ain't gonna happen and that as an individual, there's not much I'm gonna to be able to do to change things.  But there's one thing I can do.  I can keep my faith.  I have my faith in God.  I've lost my faith in our government, but I still have my faith in my country.  And, I have faith in technology.

To illustrate my point, let's take the system of educating our children in this country.  It sucks.  It's expensive and getting more expensive every day.  It's graduating dummies and those kids at the McDonald's drive-thru are getting dumber every day.  Personally, I think the Department of Education should be abolished.  Heck, while we're at it, lets take the system all the way back to the 1800's and educate our children in a one room school house just down the road.  I know, I know, that's not gonna happen.  However, there are examples of changes happening in our educational system that gives me hope for America's future.

Yup, I used "Hope" and "Change" all in the same sentence.  Imagine a not-rich old white man like me saying something like that.

Below is an interesting article from "The Foundry" that illustrates a little bit of change and gives me a little bit of hope (dog gone, I did it again).  It's called "Khan Academy", a really cool technology tool for teaching our children.  If you look closely, you'll see many of the characteristics of the 1800's one room school house.  Things like this must be an integral part of the future of education in America just like it's becoming a key component of education in developing countries around the world.  If we do not take advantage of emerging technologies such as this, in a few years there'll still be a big chunk of land between the Atlantic and the Pacific and Canada and Mexico, but it won't be the United States of America.

Enjoy...

   

This Is Fast

Gotta have...

Inspired by "Mashable"

This Ain't Rocket Science

Political gurus get paid big bucks to "figure" this stuff out...

FACT:  47% of American taxpayers do not pay any Federal Income Tax.

LATEST GALLUP POLL:  46% of Americans are not following the IRS scandal.

I got a feeling the 1% difference is just polling margin of error.

The Irony...Only Prayer Can Fix What Is Wrong

Don't blame the following on politics.  By the way, does it make you feel any better when an IRS agent says, "Please, please, please"?

While applying with the Internal Revenue Service for tax exempt status in 2009, an Iowa-based anti-abortion group was asked to provide information about its members' prayer meetings.

                                                

On June 22, 2009, the Coalition of Life of Iowa (a pro-life conservation group) received a letter from the IRS office in Cincinnati, Ohio that oversees tax exemptions requesting details about how often members pray and whether their prayers are "considered educational."  The letter also requested the group to "please explain how all of your activities, including prayer meetings, are considered educational.  Please explain in detail the activities at these prayer meetings.  Also, please provide the percentage of time your organization spends on prayer groups as compared with other activities of the organization." 

Blame this on a country that has lost its moral compass (actually, we didn't lose it, we threw it away on purpose).  The firing of a few IRS employees will not fix what is wrong with America.  Sending a few IRS employees to prison will not fix what is wrong with America.  Impeaching the President of the United States will not fix what is wrong with America.

The irony is, only prayer will fix what is wrong with America.

A Different Kind Of Revival

When I was a kid my grandma made sure I went to church with her just about every Sunday.  I can remember being bored to death sitting through all those sermons that seemed to go on forever.  I tried everything in the book to pass the time sitting in those hard pews.  Perhaps a squirrel...

More Oldies

If I could sing, I'd sing this to my wife every day.
There, I've Said It Again.

Prom Night 1964

She wore Blue Velvet.

Love was ours.

And she's still with me.

And I still can see Blue Velvet after all these years...

The Answer

Hey, Mr. President.  You think you've got the answer to America's problems?  Well, you don't.  But this guy does.

Hey, all you politicians in Washington.  You think you've got the answer to America's problems?  Well, you don't.  But this guy does.

Hey, all you political pundits in the media.  You think you've got the answer to America's problems?  Well, you don't.  But this guy does.

And, who is this guy.  Well, he's my sixteen year old grandson and he put the answer to America's problems up on his blog yesterday.  If you want to know the answer, CLICK HERE.

Out, Damned Spot

What difference does it make to you?

Inspired by "Sultan Knish"

Mom's Day

You're Starting To Wake Up America

You know it's really bad for your children when The American Federation of Teachers (AFT) and the American Association of Christian Schools and the Home School Legal Defense Association ALL agree that the Common Core State Standard Initiative should not be implemented on our schools.  And you know it's really, really, really bad for our children when the president of the AFT, Randi Weingarten, declares in public that the bureaucrats in Washington don't have a clue.

Weingarten argued that teachers are not adequately prepared to implement Common Core, and that at the present time, pushing to implement the standards and assessments will cause more harm than good. “The fact that the changes are being made nationwide without anything close to adequate preparation is a failure of leadership, a sign of a broken accountability system and, worse, an abdication of our moral responsibility to kids, particularly poor kids,” Weingarten stated.

The union head proposed at least one year of field testing for the standards, as a matter ofresponsibility. She claimed that teachers and parents “must be a part of this.”

Weingarten addressed her home state of New York because, in her words, “they simply don’t get it in Washington.”  

Inspired by "The Foundry"

Neighbors

Prediction

Why not make a prediction.

I blew the last one big time.

What's The Matter, Cat Got Your Tongue?

WARNING...WARNING...WARNING

DON'T watch this if you have a cat or like cats.

DON'T watch this if you're susceptible to recurring nightmares.

And you WON'T watch this a second time if the cat's got your tongue...

Fastest Thing On Two Feet

History first recorded this phenomenon on July 5, 1799.
And it's been happening ever since...

It's Been One Of Those Days

Coming Soon To A Door Near You

Think About It

Wake Up America

Inspired by "Nice Deb"

I Still Like Bologna

Democrats And Guns

What happens when a Democrat campaigns with a gun...

Well, duh!

Health Hearse

Wake Up America

"Not All Those Who Wander Are Lost"

"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us"...

Inspired by "Google+"

For My Grand Daughter Katie

Everyone Under The Age Of Thirty Believes This

Stick Around...We Can Go Crazy Together

Inspired by "Twisted Sifter"

Whatever

Inspired by "Twisted Sifter"

I'm Thinking About Getting One Of These For My Grand Kids

"I Already Did This Once At Rehearsal...It's Your Turn."

Hot Lunch

I know I'm really old and my memory isn't as good as it use to be.  But I still remember eating "Hot Lunch" at school when I was a kid.  I remember the cafeteria.  It was in the basement of a brick building that was built at the turn of the 20th century.  Standing in line waiting to get into the cafeteria I remember looking through a door and seeing the coal fired boiler used to heat that old brick building.  But what I remember the most was the food.  I loved it.  Roast beef with mashed potatoes and gravy and green beans.  Spaghetti and meatballs with salad and rolls.  Or how about turkey and gravy with all the fixin's and it wasn't even Thanksgiving.  Nope, we didn't have pizza or hamburgers or chicken nuggets back in the 1950's.  Just real good food piled on stainless steel trays by round old ladies wearing aprons and hairnets and no latex gloves.

Schools don't serve that kind of food anymore, and some don't even serve pizza and hamburgers and chicken nuggets.  It's not good for ya, so they say.  Nope, nowadays kids are fed real healthy stuff like "braised black beans and plantains".  Or, how about "tofu roasted in Asian sesame sauce".  And no self respecting school lunch menu would be complete without "falafel and cucumber salad".  Yup, I can just see my nine year old grandson turning down a piece of pizza for some good ol' falafel and cucumber salad.

You think I'm kidding?  Read on...

Braised black beans and plantains. Tofu roasted in Asian sesame sauce. Falafel and cucumber salad. These aren't menu items from a high-end restaurant; they're lunchtime grub for students at a Flushing, Queens, public school's all-vegetarian cafeteria, the first in New York City to nix meat and believed to be one of the first public school in the nation to serve only vegetarian fare.

P.S. 244 in Flushing, the Active Learning Elementary School, which opened in 2008, gradually started offering vegetarian meals more and more days a week, reducing the days per week they served traditional cafeteria food like chicken nuggets, said P.S. 244 principal and co-founder Robert Groff.

"The founding of our school was based on health and nutrition and teaching kids how to make healthy choices in the belief that they would be more successful academically and in their life," Groff said. "But then we started to watch the kids. One, what they would bring in to school, and two, what they would gravitate towards in the cafeteria."

Administrators noticed a higher number of vegetarian meals in the cafeteria, he said, partially because of the school's population: P.S. 244 is about 70 percent Asian and Indian. The switch to meatless — which the school did in partnership with nonprofit organization New York Coalition for Healthy School Food — was seamless.

"Our head cook is also a vegetarian herself and a parent in the school," Groff said.

P.S. 244, which serves 400 students from pre-kindergarten through grade three, went all-vegetarian in January, but was just publicly recognized by the New York city schools chancellor, Dennis Walcott, during a visit on Tuesday.

“I am proud of the students and staff for trailblazing this extraordinary path,” Walcott said in a news release. 

Other items on the menu at P.S. 244 include tofu vegetable wraps, vegetarian chili served with brown rice, and black bean and cheddar quesadillas served with salsa and red roasted potatoes. Each meal has the same amount of mandatory USDA protein requirements as their meat counterparts have in other public schools.

Breakfast is also served, and that's vegetarian, too. Students start out their day with bagels and cream cheese, whole-grain banana bread, egg and cheese roll-ups, to name a few of the offerings from this month.

"We know that when students eat a healthy diet, they're able to focus better. Their immune systems are stronger, so they're sick less, and then they're in school more and they're able to focus and concentrate better, and therefore learn better. There's research about that," said Amie Hamlin, the executive director of New York Coalition for Healthy School Food, which has worked with P.S. 244 for several years.

Not all "typical" Department of Education meals have been removed from the cafeteria: Pizza Fridays are still on the menu, just without the pepperoni. Groff said most parents have greeted the changes warmly, and for those who haven't, he encourages them to send their children into school with their own lunches.

"That, alone, providing the options for the kids makes the difference," he said. 

The move to all-vegetarian has been in parallel with New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg's citywide health efforts.

"We've been watching how the mayor has been responding to something like sugary beverages or the smoking ban, and that was an opportunity for us, because we could see the direction the city is moving," Groff said. "We could move along with it to create the healthiest options for our kids."

Inspired by "Rachel Palmer"