Category: Personal Blog (Page 23 of 27)

Apparently they’re Nazis.

Americans are back to eating their own.  The outrage de jour is a photo being circulated of a platoon of Marine scout snipers posing with a scout sniper flag.  For those of you that don’t know, the Scout Sniper emblem is a lightning bolt shaped “SS”.  The logo isn’t exactly the same, but it is very similar to the double lightning bolts of the Nazi Schutzstaffel, commonly known as the SS.  When I was in the fleet, I served in a weapons company that contained a Scout Sniper platoon.  I remember thinking that the logo did seem like a public affairs nightmare waiting to happen, but it never seemed a problem as far back as 2000 when I first saw it.  I have no idea how much further back it has been around.

Why has it only now become an issue?  Well, for starters, MARINES AREN’T NAZIS, NOR DO THEY IDEALIZE THEM!  Secondly, this highlights how disconnected the military is from the rest of society.  The lighting bolts have been around a very long time and only now has been dispensed and met with public scrutiny.  Finally, perhaps it has something to with the fact that there are only so many ways you can stylize two S’s.  Even KISS has failed to be more creative(apparently the logo isn’t even used in Germany).  I can only think of one more creative option to draw two S’s, but it requires, “An S, then a more different S”.

Even the Commandant has come out an apologized.  “Always Faithful” indeed.  At the very least these Marines will not face disciplinary action, though blood has been called for.  America, I warn you, you are not immune to history.  Do NOT alienate your warrior class.  Your government, with your consent, already violates the document we have sworn to uphold and protect.  You cannot throw enough parades or buy enough drinks at the bar to make up for that.  To relate some of the finest shooters in the world with a universally recognized evil is salt in the wound.

Well, I’d love to take credit for this, but I guess I have to give some to the mother.  When I left my last job and went to law school I was concerned I’d develop soft hands.  I know that if you’re the average of the 5 people you associate with most, the Learned Sergeant’s bonnie Irish lass will keep his life interesting.

On a side note, one of the things that really excite me are laboratories that aren’t these stereotypical disinfected areas that are hyper-clean and filled with lab coats (though that is its own kind of cool).

Just watched the Devil’s Double the other day.  I highly recommend it.  It’s a mostly biographical movie following a man who serves as a body double for Uday Hussein.  The guy finds himself having to deal with the moral issues of following one of the most evil men alive at the time.  It was one of those movies where I had to spend a few minutes outside with a Lucky Strike to bring my rage level down a few notches.  I do not know how a person watches a movie like that and questions the morality of the Iraq invasion.  There are many reasons to have been against it, but a defense of the Husseins is not one.

Fun Fact:

Uday also amassed a large video collection, found in his palace in 2003, much of which featured himself in both public and private situations, and which also included three copies of the family comedy film Air Bud. ^{(From Wikipedia)}

I was driving around downtown and there was a black guy on the side of the road waiting to use the crosswalk.  I was stopped on one lane while the opposing (nearer) lane kept pushing by for about 15 cars before someone stopped. When someone finally stopped, I thought, disgusted to myself, “I bet if that was a white guy someone would have stopped.”

A second later, another thought.  I’m confident I didn’t stop for him because he’s a black guy, but my first thought was that no one stopped for him because he was black.  Perhaps the racism is my own.  I didn’t initially consider the fact that perhaps no one saw him.  I didn’t consider the fact that my town has the rudest and most self-righteous pedestrians I’ve ever known, perhaps causing people to not want to stop for one.

Nothing profound there, just a thought.

Video related, earmuffs kiddies:

A few weeks ago I saw a preview for The Hunger Games.  It looked pretty cool so I figured I should read the book before it comes out next month.  If I see a movie, I’ll never motivate myself to read the book (see: Lord of the Rings).  Conceding that “The book was better”™ there are too many books out there to spend my time with one I already know the end to.  This motivation is actually what got me to finally get through Atlas Shrugged after 2 false starts.  But I digress:

The Hungry Games (as referred to by the Learned Daughter, who is henceforth to be referred to as Katniss on this blog.) was actually a pretty good book.  I read it to her before bed for several nights.  Juvenile fiction is often derided as being of little value, but I don’t buy it.  I’ve gotten a great deal of value out of mountains of Heinlein juvenile fiction.

What was unique about this book was seeing the world through the eyes of a female protagonist.  Moreso, it was really neat to see that in an action book.  I guess this could be saying more about me than literature as a whole, but it isn’t often that I read a book from the eyes of a female.  I could be wrong, but I think the last time I did that was in a Janet Evanovich book a decade ago, give or take a year or two.

If you have a daughter, BUY HER THIS BOOK! It provides a badass female lead who succeeds through brains, combative skill, and compassion.  It isn’t overly deep, but it is entertaining and empowering for girls. It exposes a child to deep violence, but isn’t lewd.

If you have a son, BUY HIM THIS BOOK!  I think any man, especially a teenage boy, could do well to be exposed to a powerful female, and see the world through her eyes.  Too often powerful female leads in  our culture are either sexed up Tomb Raider types (which has its own appeal) or a butch Michelle Rodriguez.  Katniss serves as a real, believable person who is capable and competent in times of trouble. Honestly, I think it would have served well in my own education growing up to be exposed to a little more Katniss Everdeen and a little less Al Bundy.  I’m poorer for my ignorance.  Katniss is an outstanding model for what we should want in our warriors.

So without any real spoilers, I highly recommend it.  And now I can go watch what looks like is going to be a really cool movie.  The casting looks pretty solid too. Click below for the trailer:

http://www.traileraddict.com/emd/48922

Apparently only the diverse viewpoint that is complimentary to the diversity program will be allowed to be spread to the student body.  An email sent out to all students.  All following words in bold or italics are my own:

Dean Burnett,
It is important for you to know that there are many students in our law school who are supportive of your position and the upcoming diversity dialogues.  Many of us were surprised, disappointed, and shocked (among other things) that our colleagues drafted a letter to our state legislators to complain about this situation.  There are many students who share the opinion that the letter represented a minority among us, although it reflected poorly on all of us.  While we are each entitled to our opinions on the upcoming dialogues, we’d like the legislators to also hear from those of us who are supportive of you, our law school, and the diversity dialogues – what we suspect is the majority view.

Colleagues,

Many have expressed their dissatisfaction with the email and attached letter from the Idaho legislature that we received on Monday.  As has been suggested, a letter that voices support for Dean Burnett and the upcoming diversity dialogues is being drafted.  If you would like to add your name to the growing list of signatures to be included with the letter of support to the state legislature, please let me know.

Warmest regards,

[name omitted by TLS]

Mind you multiple letters have been sent to the Dean against this mandatory training event, none of which have been cleared to find their way mass emailed to the student body at large.  I may also add a link I see from an unsubstantiated assertion in the letter that it is apparently the “majority view” that is supporting mandating attendance and OWS’s 99%.  Beyond including people who likely do not wish to be included, it also demonstrates a lack of confidence in the position to rely upon having a majority.  

Additionally, a question was sent to the Dean by a student:   I got a question from a student regarding Dean Morant’s email. Specifically, the “As you are inclined, please feel free to stay or leave during the dialogues,” part of it, and what that means to the mandatory attendance.  How should I answer this and questions of the like?

Dean Burnett’s response:  The answer is that if an individual signs in and attends a session up to the time when Dean Morant announces that folks are free to stay or leave, the individual will be deemed to have satisfied the attendance requirement (and will receive the certificate). And avoid the memo on their student record that will be reviewed by the bar.

It appears at the least that Dean Burnett (who has at times served as the professor of the Professional Responsibility class) could take a lesson from Dean Morant about the use of threats and its place in a professional dialogue.

Now, if you were patient enough to work through this you deserve to be awarded with a completely unrelated video to erode any sense of seriousness in my post.  So how about something about how Superman is the lamest super hero in history:

Seriously, someone needs to stop me from going to used book stores.  Some people rescue puppies, I rescue books.

Seems the Idaho legislature is getting involved.

Dean Burnett responds:

Letter for Senator Pearce (and Other Legislators)

Who wants an unrelated video?  I recommend making sure you’re in loose clothing.

In the middle of a move and the new house has no internet.  Bear with me.  I can feel your judging eyes.  Hey!  Look over there!  A funny picture!

I’d very much like to tear down Ann Coulter’s recent piece Three Cheers for RomneyCare point by point.  However, I lack the time to even reach for such low hanging fruit.  It is difficult to resist however.

I’ve read a few of Coulter’s books, but this is by far one of the least intelligent things I’ve ever read by anyone, from liberals to anti-gun advocates and beyond.  There’s better thought out writing in a Maddox article.  Besides Coulter’s inability to differentiate issues and simplistic thinking, she serves as a prime example to exactly why a “cornservative” is simply a liberal in sheep’s clothing.

“Corn”servative:  A person, often self identifying as an evangelical Christian, who also considers himself a conservative, but does not espouse conservative beliefs.  These people often live in America’s bread basket and bible belt.  In short, a person who thinks  being a conservative means they should exert their energy on such trivial issues as keeping the gays from marrying and drawing a hard line on abortion rather than free markets and individual freedom.

Even for someone as simple minded as Coulter, I’m amazed that she is actually defending the individual mandate.  Why?  Because Romney has an R next to his name.  The money line:  “What went wrong withRomneycare wasn’t a problem in the bill, but a problem in Massachusetts: Democrats.”  What does this mean?  It means that it’s okay to treat people as property, to violate the right to freedom of contract, to completely rewrite the relationship between the citizen and the government, even in an era when the government is already the enemy(basically all the things Democrats do), so long as you keep teh ghey at bay.

Runner up for the money line:  “For more on “pandering” and “lobbyists,” see “Gingrich, Newt.” (Yes, that’s an actual person’s name.)”

Really?!  I mean she’s making fun of Gingrich because his name is Newt?  She’s doing in article where she is defending a guy who goes by “Mitt” because apparently “Willard” would be weird.