Death, Taxes and Change

As I forced myself to take a break from my economics homework (I didn't have to try very hard), I tried to remember how old I was when I first heard the comparison of death and taxes to reliability; I was unable to come up with an age, but I think I was pretty young.

It's ironic that we use two universally disliked items or ideas (the connotation of these terms almost oozes out into your lap) to describe something as being reliable. Yes, we can always count on death, and we know that there will always be taxes (politicians should be a separate species from the rest of us humans). Shouldn't reliability be a positive thing?

I submit that there is another item in our world that we can always count on: Change. It has been said before that the only real constant in this world is change. A certain politician even ran on a mere promise of change...What sort of person buys into that, when all they have to do is sit back and wait for inevitable changes? I like to call that the "shiny trinket effect," and it works well with voters. Change is indeed a constant, and it isn't always good.

I have a friend that joined the Marine Corps a few years before I did, and left active duty as a Sergeant. When talking to him one time, I mentioned what an interesting twist of fate it would be if he had stayed in and I ended up working for him in some capacity. Not that he works for me, but our roles would probably be much different if he had become my First Sergeant, or Sergeant Major. It then dawned on me that his departure from our Corps may have been a good thing, because he wouldn't like the changes that have taken place. It's odd that one of the more prominent challenges that a career Marine faces is being patient enough to put up with "progress."

I have often said to peers and subordinates that the job of the Corps continues to get more difficult as society continues down its path of degradation. As the morals and standards of our youth (and even adults) decline, the standards of the Corps remain the same. Our job of bringing young adults to our way of thinking, nurturing strong morals, and enforcing higher standards, gets harder every day. I often wonder if it's all really worth it, and then I see a young Lance Corporal or PFC that is just as excited about being a Marine as I ever was. It's like hooking myself up to some sort of emotional battery charger; it reminds me that the patience is well worth it. What about these various forms of progress?

It's now acceptable for Marines to wear flip flops as "appropriate civilian attire." Really. In addition, just try asking a 17 year old Marine if he knows what those loops on the waist of his jeans are really for! This type of thing probably sounds very trivial to some people, but the level of discipline that we demand of our subordinates carries over into many realms other than mode of dress. This is, however, not a new concept.

There is a quotation that I'm fond of using in one of the classes that I teach, and it brings things back into perspective a bit:

"I see no hope for the future of our people if they are dependent on the frivolous youth of today, for certainly all youth are reckless beyond words. When I was a boy, we were taught to be discrete and respectful of elders, but the present youth are exceedingly wise and impatient of restraint."

This quotation is not nearly as effective if you are unaware of when it was originally stated. This was first penned by Hesiod (often considered the father of Greek didactic poetry) in approximately 700 B.C. See? Nothing new here.

Every generation of Marine eventually reaches a level of maturity and wisdom that they feel grants them inclusion in an elite club: "Old Corps." How many retired Marines out there (or those that are no longer on active duty) have said the words, "When I came in the Corps...?" Yes; I know--We can't boil water in our helmets like you could. Noted.

My point is simple: Change will always happen, and we can't do much about it. Luckily, we have the wisdom to usually hang onto those things that we know we should not change. Today's young Marines have the same fighting spirit, drive to succeed, and esprit de corps that any previous generation had. I know that when I hang up my cover for the last time, I'll be passing the baton to an equally talented (even more so in many ways) and capable Corps of warriors.

Death and taxes indeed...

WTF For Sale

I came across this ad on a local website:

"Looking to buy a Goat. Anyone know where I can buy a goat? I have some grass i need cut and I don't feel like cutting it. I also hear goats make good golf caddies. Thanks for your time only serious sellers only please..."

(link to ad here)

2009 USMC Birthday Message

I shamelessly stole this from Eric.

This is one of the best birthday videos that the Corps has made to date. Well done.

Happy 234th Birthday Marines!

To my fellow Marines, including those no longer on active duty, I say, "Happy Birthday."

Here's a bit of the trivia from Marines dot com:

"During the American Revolution, many important political discussions took place in the inns and taverns of Philadelphia, including the founding of the Marine Corps.

A committee of the Continental Congress met at Tun Tavern to draft a resolution calling for two battalions of Marines able to fight for independence at sea and on shore.

The resolution was approved on November 10, 1775, officially forming the Continental Marines.

As the first order of business, Samuel Nicholas became Commandant of the newly formed Marines. Tun Tavern’s owner and popular patriot, Robert Mullan, became his first captain and recruiter. They began gathering support and were ready for action by early 1776.

Each year, the Marine Corps marks November 10th with a celebration of the brave spirit which compelled these men and thousands since to defend our country as United States Marines."

A great post about our heritage can be read by visiting Taco's blog here.

D.C. Sniper To Be Executed

John Allen Williams (who later changed his name to the more appropriate "Muhammad") is set to be executed today. To this I say, "It's about damned time." This one is a no-brainer.

One of the pinheads that likes to spend their time milling about outside the prison walls at execution time said,

"The greater metro area and the citizens of Virginia have been safe from this crime for seven years," Panilaitis said. "Incarceration has worked and life without the possibility of parole has and will continue to keep the people of Virginia safe."

I have a couple of questions for the starry-eyed protester--Does your crystal ball use batteries, or is it powered by fairy dust? By what other means are you predicting the future? How many people should go ahead and bet their lives on your assurances that monsters like this one will never get out of prison? In the mean time, I'll rely on the method that absolutely guarantees that the offender will never repeat their wicked crimes.

Story here.

Biden Says, But Cheney Does

Our illustrious Vice President said, "...who cares?" when asked about former VP Dick Cheney's assessment of this administration. I say, "Who doesn't care?"

Dick Cheney has REAL leadership experience (click here to view his bio). He has actually been in charge of things, real things.

Some folks have labeled Cheney as, "Darth Cheney." I say, "Damned straight." He's a badass, and he even shot a lawyer in the face. He's got real credentials.

Pew Research Data About Fox News Channel

So, the pros can see through the b.s.:

"...a study by the Pew Research Center showed that 40 percent of Fox News stories on Obama in the last six weeks of the campaign were negative. Similarly, 40 percent of Fox News' stories on Obama's Republican opponent, Sen. John McCain, were negative.

On CNN, by contrast, there was a 22-point disparity in the percentage of negative stories on Obama (39 percent) and McCain (61 percent). The disparity was even greater at MSNBC, according to Pew, where just 14 percent of Obama stories were negative, compared to a whopping 73 percent of McCain stories -- a spread of 59 points. "

This was discussed in an article on Fox (click here) about how a D.C. appointee has labeled Fox News a "wing of the Republican Party." I suppose that's in opposition to a few other news channels being rabid pawns of the Democrats. Can you imagine the response of CNN if that cesspool known as Chicago HAD been given the nod for the Olympic Games? How many reporters would have been peeing themselves in glee over that debacle?

Fox also dared to air some news about ACORN, and other untidy subjects (how much coverage did that get on CNN?). For this, a D.C. stuffed suit claimed that Fox is not a news channel, "...the way CNN is."

Maybe Fox should Reuter a few photos; would that do the trick for the D.C. crowd? Perhaps they could distribute a few pictures that a cabinet member personally, and professionally requests that they shelve; would that put them in the same league as the AP? Perhaps they could get Dan Rather to air some forged documents about the president's employment history; would that make them a "real" news channel?

Career politicians continue to disgust me.

The Mechanics of Fear

There are certain things that will always bother me.

The sound of gunfire, movies that accurately depict warfare, loud noises, crowds, etc.

There's probably no getting past the mechanics of the crap that I've been through. This is not a new concept, and it's been around since Christ was a Corporal.

What really pisses me off is those that think there's nothing to that whole PTSD thing.

I know of a couple of guys that have been told that their combat experience is a crutch, or that they need to grab a straw (suck it up).

This article here is just plain sad.

Second Amendment Blessings or Burdens?

Kurt Hofmann has an interesting piece in the St. Louis Gun Rights Examiner (click here to read it) about how the Second Amendment is truly recognized in D.C.

Draconian gun "control" still reigns supreme in the District of Columbia. In a previous post, and a paper I wrote (click here) about the fallacy of gun control, I touched on the increase in violent crime in D.C. after the implementation of their foolish anti-gun laws. In comparison to the national average, and even the average in states with little or no anti-gun laws, it's downright appalling.

Anti-gun laws do NOT reduce crime; they only hinder law abiding citizens' rights to defend themselves. Cops do a great job of investigating the crime after it has occurred. I'll rely on my ability to defend my family from harm, thank you very much.

Heisman Nomination

Let's all nominate our beloved Nobel Peace Prize winner for the Heisman Trophy. Click here to vote.

This is the logical choice; he's done just as much to warrant the Heisman Trophy as he has to warrant the Nobel.

UPDATE: ESPN and Nissan have obviously received enough nominations to take note of this absurdity, since they posted this aside on their website:

"* Only those candidates with a legitimate chance of winning the Heisman Trophy in the view of ESPN and Nissan will be added to the leaderboard."