I've mentioned before the role of education in the saving of our Republic, and I think we all recognize, at some level, that we must reclaim education if we are to reclaim our country. Where do we start, though? Do we abandon our current careers, go back to school for teaching certificates, and spend 20 years trying to teach the next generation self-reliance?
I don't think so. Certainly, for young people, that might be a viable option, and it is an admirable one. However, we need action that produces faster results than that. To that end, I have suggestions...
Make a new shooter. Find a friend, family member or co-worker who is not a gun-owner, and work to make them one. It has been written that power comes from the barrel of a gun. Well, so can freedom. My own political rebirth and journey toward freedom began with shooting. As a new shooter learns more about guns, he/she learns about the absurd patchwork of laws governing them. Guns breed a desire for freedom, and that is your ally.
Subvert the work your local school district has done. When a young person in your life begins spouting the nonsense which passes for truth these days, correct them. Not with condescension or snotty remarks, but firmly, and provide sources they can check for themselves. When they learn they've been lied to about one thing, it will make them look more critically at other information. Failure to teach critical thinking has been the oppositions greatest success.
Above all, homeschool your own children. It isn't as hard as you might think. If you never allow the rot to gain a foothold, you don't need to dig it out of their brains.
It will take dedication, perseverance and a lot of patience, but freedom can be brought back to this nation.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
My weight loss journey begins...
Yesterday, I wrote the following elsewhere...
After high school, I slowly put on weight. I ran a lot in high school, and was trim at 185lbs, 5'7". My healthiest weight since was in the police academy in 2003. I was 5'10", and 295 lbs, up 10 lbs from when I went in, but in considerably better shape. I was running three miles a day, and up to 6 on alternate days. Quite a monster, until I tore up my knee going over a wall during training. Having a bum knee really makes the weight go up. In May of '06 I was diagnosed with sleep apnea, put two and two together and figured out I'd had it since I was in the academy. It came on with the extra muscle I put on my chest. It stayed when my chest got fat.Then, today....
Got up to 360 in August of '05. I decided something had to be done. Got down to 315 by August of '06, then took a desk job. I fought with my weight since then, doing pretty good the first year, only putting on 15 lbs. Last year, I caught a particularly nasty bug that severely reduced my activity capacity. I was back up to 360 last week. Not gonna do it anymore. I just need to drop enough weight to be able to run again. Down to say, 290. Then I can shed the rest. My goal is 240, though 215 would be nice.
I had a physical last winter, at 350. Other than my weight, the doctor was shocked at my overall good health. Blood pressure is normal, cholesterol good, no other warning signs of any bad stuff. I don't like the way I look or feel at this weight. I want to be around for my daughter. I want to feel like I did in the Academy again.
This would be easy if it were something I could quit cold turkey. I can drop bad habits, but I can't stop eating altogether, clearly. My insanely busy schedule complicates matters. When I don't get enough sleep, it's damned hard to get any exercise.
I joined Weight Watchers today. Got a work buddy on it, too.
We'll see what happens. As of today, I am 357 lbs. It would be nice if one or two of y'all could keep on my ass about this.
Oh yeah. How'd I drop from 360 to 315 in a year? I had a job in a titanium foundry, slingin' airplane parts. 10 hour days carrying 60-85 lbs housings will take the weight off, let me tell ya....truth be told, I only worked that job six months, so yeah. 45 lb loss in six months...
Well, the first day went well. I was out and about, so I ended up hitting Burger King for my first meal, used half my points there, even with choosing healthier options.A bit different from my usual freedom oriented stuff. Only, not so different, when you think about it. Here, I speak of freeing myself from unneeded weight, from the daily troubles of a fat man, in a world designed for smaller people.Kept an eye on what I ate thew rest of the day, and ended up coming in exactly at my points limit. Wasn't terribly hungry, even when I woke up this morning, but I definitely felt more energized than usual. Must be the extra veggies. Hmm, think I'll blog this.
Anyhow, I finished brunch a while ago, and I am at just under half my allotment of points for today. I also have more than my daily points in extra "activity" points, as well as flex points they give me for the week. Haven't felt a burning need to use them, though. Knowing they are there helps.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
On Freedom
Reading a friends blog, I left a comment, a comment I got rather carried away with, and so I post it as my own blog here. The comment I left was in response to something she said about things she wasn't taught in school, like the difference between a privilege and a right. Of course, me being who I am, I got my rant on, and said the following.
They do not teach this stuff in school, and it is by design, rather than accidental. The school system was created to mold subservient worker drones, not active, critically thinking citizens. It has succeeded, to a large degree.
Those of us who are awake and paying attention have a huge responsibility. We are the last fading chance for Western Civilization. The heritage passed on to us by the Greeks and Romans is like a guttering candle flame, nearly extinguished by the wind. We must shelter it, and give it care, or it will be extinguished, plunging the world into darkness.
Benjamin Franklin, when asked what kind of government he had given us, replied, "A republic, if you can keep it.". Well, we've lost it, as few people even understand that our government was not meant to be a mob rule situation. So, it falls to those few of us who care, to do what we can to bring it back, to give honor to those men and women who risked their lives, their fortunes and their families, to ensure that liberty and freedom were made law.
We got in the mess we are in, because education was left in the hands of evil people who desired power. We got into this mess because of a willingness to compromise, to give in, "for the greater good". Well, it hasn't been for the greater good. My grandparents knew freedoms I can only dream of today, and my daughter will not have many of the ones I have now, unless we shoulder the burden, and take back our lives from the traitors in Washington DC.
Some freedoms have been won by those who did not have them, and for that I am grateful. However, many more have lost basic human rights under this government, and that is not something we should be willing to live with. The 20th century has been among the darkest in this nations history.
I will not go quietly into that dark night, I will not yield, I will not submit. I will rage against the theft of my freedom, and I will do what I must to educate others in the rights and responsibilities of an American citizen. Men and Women have bled the ground red to preserve our birthright as Americans. 200 years of blood calls out, asking us to hear, to understand what has been taken from us. Shall it fall upon deaf ears? I say no. I say we take back our rights. What has been lost can be retaken. We shall not fail, we shall not falter, and if we fall, to be trod upon and crushed underfoot, let no one say it was because we did not try.
The one thing the politicians understand is loss pf power. We, the people, hold that power. Only too few of us are educated enough to understand. That is our duty, to seek out the truth, and to spread it. Seed the contagion of truth and of freedom among those you know. Do not allow ignorance to be passed as truth.
The road will be long, and it will not be easy. You and I may not see the end, nor may our children. But if we persist, if we pass our legacy, our truth on to our descendants, one day, the people of our country will know true freedom again.
They do not teach this stuff in school, and it is by design, rather than accidental. The school system was created to mold subservient worker drones, not active, critically thinking citizens. It has succeeded, to a large degree.
Those of us who are awake and paying attention have a huge responsibility. We are the last fading chance for Western Civilization. The heritage passed on to us by the Greeks and Romans is like a guttering candle flame, nearly extinguished by the wind. We must shelter it, and give it care, or it will be extinguished, plunging the world into darkness.
Benjamin Franklin, when asked what kind of government he had given us, replied, "A republic, if you can keep it.". Well, we've lost it, as few people even understand that our government was not meant to be a mob rule situation. So, it falls to those few of us who care, to do what we can to bring it back, to give honor to those men and women who risked their lives, their fortunes and their families, to ensure that liberty and freedom were made law.
We got in the mess we are in, because education was left in the hands of evil people who desired power. We got into this mess because of a willingness to compromise, to give in, "for the greater good". Well, it hasn't been for the greater good. My grandparents knew freedoms I can only dream of today, and my daughter will not have many of the ones I have now, unless we shoulder the burden, and take back our lives from the traitors in Washington DC.
Some freedoms have been won by those who did not have them, and for that I am grateful. However, many more have lost basic human rights under this government, and that is not something we should be willing to live with. The 20th century has been among the darkest in this nations history.
I will not go quietly into that dark night, I will not yield, I will not submit. I will rage against the theft of my freedom, and I will do what I must to educate others in the rights and responsibilities of an American citizen. Men and Women have bled the ground red to preserve our birthright as Americans. 200 years of blood calls out, asking us to hear, to understand what has been taken from us. Shall it fall upon deaf ears? I say no. I say we take back our rights. What has been lost can be retaken. We shall not fail, we shall not falter, and if we fall, to be trod upon and crushed underfoot, let no one say it was because we did not try.
The one thing the politicians understand is loss pf power. We, the people, hold that power. Only too few of us are educated enough to understand. That is our duty, to seek out the truth, and to spread it. Seed the contagion of truth and of freedom among those you know. Do not allow ignorance to be passed as truth.
The road will be long, and it will not be easy. You and I may not see the end, nor may our children. But if we persist, if we pass our legacy, our truth on to our descendants, one day, the people of our country will know true freedom again.
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Foolishness, folly and filthy traitors...
Over the last decade, as I have learned more and more about the things I was never taught in public school, I have at times been bemused, irritated, frightened, disgusted, and a range of other emotions. I have suffered an ever increasing concern over the direction I have seen this country taking. I have called, emailed and phoned politicians, from mayor to congressmen, all the way up to the president. I've passed out fliers and collected signatures for petitions. I have tried to organize people, even had a hand in a failed third party or two.
Through it all, I have tried to keep a cheerful outlook on things. At this juncture, all I feel is anger. Anger at the dirty rat bastards who passed this joke of a stimulus bill, casting my grandchildren into debt, and pulling the rug from under economic recovery, all in the name of political gain.
Furthermore, now some faceless government bureaucrat will tell my doctor how to best treat me? Unacceptable. I hear the rumblings of states who are near to fed up with the feds, and I wish my wife would pack up and move with me. Montana would be nice, where we can still get a piece of land and outfit it for survival. I see the grumblings of the discontent, and I wonder where the new patriots are.
I fear reasoned discourse may be a forgone conclusion at this point. The feds have pushed and pushed, and states are beginning to push back. We have a president whose idea of working with the losing team is to tell them, "I won", as though that is sufficient to invalidate their concerns. He has his pet chief of staff in charge of the census, and he has Congress dancing to his tune.
I see CA is possibly going to cut food stamps. Nothing good will come of that, though I would ordinarily be the first to applaud such a measure. It needs to be phased out, not yanked away. One by one, I see the bastions of reason and rationality crumbling. Daily, we hear of new legislation proposed to be rammed down our throats. Like children, we are told we will take our medicine, whether we like it or not.
I think we went wrong when we stopped using rope on journalists and politicians. Even as I write this, I fear a visit from stern faced men in suits who will question me for making threats.
Deep within, I feel the heat of a burning rage as it stirs to life. I hope to channel it into some useful form of action, but what? The left has shown us that peaceful protest does nothing, else the war would have ended years ago. Clearly the ballot box no longer works, as the number of useless morons now outnumber the thinking populace. The jury box is no good in a country where the education system has been turned against our history and civic duties. I shudder at the notion of civil war, but I greatly fear that is where we are headed.
I fear for my family. I fear for the future of our country. I fear for the unborn generations who may never know freedom, once the light of America is extinguished. I rage at the treason which has brought us to this place. Treason by the very people we elected to serve us.
Through it all, I have tried to keep a cheerful outlook on things. At this juncture, all I feel is anger. Anger at the dirty rat bastards who passed this joke of a stimulus bill, casting my grandchildren into debt, and pulling the rug from under economic recovery, all in the name of political gain.
Furthermore, now some faceless government bureaucrat will tell my doctor how to best treat me? Unacceptable. I hear the rumblings of states who are near to fed up with the feds, and I wish my wife would pack up and move with me. Montana would be nice, where we can still get a piece of land and outfit it for survival. I see the grumblings of the discontent, and I wonder where the new patriots are.
I fear reasoned discourse may be a forgone conclusion at this point. The feds have pushed and pushed, and states are beginning to push back. We have a president whose idea of working with the losing team is to tell them, "I won", as though that is sufficient to invalidate their concerns. He has his pet chief of staff in charge of the census, and he has Congress dancing to his tune.
I see CA is possibly going to cut food stamps. Nothing good will come of that, though I would ordinarily be the first to applaud such a measure. It needs to be phased out, not yanked away. One by one, I see the bastions of reason and rationality crumbling. Daily, we hear of new legislation proposed to be rammed down our throats. Like children, we are told we will take our medicine, whether we like it or not.
I think we went wrong when we stopped using rope on journalists and politicians. Even as I write this, I fear a visit from stern faced men in suits who will question me for making threats.
Deep within, I feel the heat of a burning rage as it stirs to life. I hope to channel it into some useful form of action, but what? The left has shown us that peaceful protest does nothing, else the war would have ended years ago. Clearly the ballot box no longer works, as the number of useless morons now outnumber the thinking populace. The jury box is no good in a country where the education system has been turned against our history and civic duties. I shudder at the notion of civil war, but I greatly fear that is where we are headed.
I fear for my family. I fear for the future of our country. I fear for the unborn generations who may never know freedom, once the light of America is extinguished. I rage at the treason which has brought us to this place. Treason by the very people we elected to serve us.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
That's it, I'm done....
All through the election cycle, I had people I knew, people who normally were reasonable, intelligent people, telling me that, "Obama won't take your guns", despite reams of evidence to the contrary.....
Now, here we are, not 20 days into his administration, and we have Eric Holder as Attorney General, Rahm Emmanuel as Chief of Staff...Obama may not try to take my guns, but his cronies sure as hell will.
This morning, I logged onto the internet, and everywhere I went, I saw this:
A list rife with errors, with no way to clear ones name after being mistakenly put on, a list one of our congressmen was on, fer Chrissake! And, as Breda says, "Why does the government assume that they are the only ones with a list?".
800 Billion dollars for special interests, in the name of "stimulating the economy"? The fox is in the henhouse, my friends. We are in for interesting times. When things collapse, and the fighting starts, the grocery stores will shut down. I have spent my whole life being accommodating, being "tolerant" of those who used the Constitution for toilet paper. Putting up with differing viewpoints. No more. I am right, and on this subject, anyone who disagrees is wrong. End of story.
Now, here we are, not 20 days into his administration, and we have Eric Holder as Attorney General, Rahm Emmanuel as Chief of Staff...Obama may not try to take my guns, but his cronies sure as hell will.
This morning, I logged onto the internet, and everywhere I went, I saw this:
A list rife with errors, with no way to clear ones name after being mistakenly put on, a list one of our congressmen was on, fer Chrissake! And, as Breda says, "Why does the government assume that they are the only ones with a list?".
800 Billion dollars for special interests, in the name of "stimulating the economy"? The fox is in the henhouse, my friends. We are in for interesting times. When things collapse, and the fighting starts, the grocery stores will shut down. I have spent my whole life being accommodating, being "tolerant" of those who used the Constitution for toilet paper. Putting up with differing viewpoints. No more. I am right, and on this subject, anyone who disagrees is wrong. End of story.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Why haven't I heard of this guy before?
Brings back memories, that does...
Yep, really like this guy...
Hmm, this is the first of his I heard, NOT safe for work or children. If you don't like the F word, don't click on it. Hilarious.
Thursday, October 2, 2008
Which Leading Man are you?
Your result for The Classic Leading Man Test...
John Wayne
You scored 79% Tough, 0% Roguish, 24% Friendly, and 0% Charming!
You, my friend, are a man's man, the original true grit, one tough talking, swaggering son of a bitch. You're not a bad guy, on the contrary, you're the ultimate good guy, but you're one tough character, rough and tumble, ready for anything. You call the shots and go your own way, and if some screwy dame is willing to accept your terms, that's just fine by you. Otherwise, you'll just hit the open trail and stay true to yourself. You stand up for what you believe and can handle any situation, usually by rushing into the thick of the action. You're not polished and you're not overly warm, but you're a straight shooter and a real stand up guy. Co-stars include Lauren Bacall and Maureen O'Hara, tough broads who can take care of themselves.
Find out what kind of classic dame you'd make by taking the
Classic Dames Test.
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