Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Avoid Guns! Or staying healthy per my wife's doctor's printed instructions
Winter of My Life
VERBATIM POST
And catching you unaware of the passing years.
It seems just yesterday that I was young,
Just married and embarking on my new life with my mate.
And yet in a way, it seems like eons ago,
And I wonder where all the years went.
I know that I lived them all...
And I have glimpses of how it was back then and of all my hopes and dreams...
But, here it is... The winter of my life and it catches me by surprise...
How did I get here so fast?
Where did the years go and where did my youth go?
I remember well...
Seeing older people through the years and thinking that those
Older people were years away from me and that winter was so far off
That I could not fathom it or imagine fully what it would be like...
But, here it is...
My friends are retired and getting grey...
They move slower and I see an older person now.
Some are in better and some worse shape than me...
But, I see the great change...
Not like the ones that I remember who were young and vibrant...
But, like me, their age is beginning to show and we are now those
Older folks that we used to see and never thought we'd be.
Each day now, I find that just getting a shower is a real target for the day!
And taking a nap is not a treat anymore... it's mandatory!
'Cause if I don't on my own free will... I just fall asleep where I sit!
And so, now I enter into this new season of my life unprepared
For all the aches and pains and the loss of strength and ability
To go and do things that I wish I had done but never did!!
But, at least I know, that though the winter has come,
And I'm not sure how long it will last...
This I know, that when it's over... Its over...
Yes, I have regrets.
There are things I wish I hadn't done..
Things I should have done, but indeed,
There are many things I'm happy to have done.
It's all in a lifetime...
So, if you're not in your winter yet...
Let me remind you, that it will be here faster than you think.
Whatever you would like to accomplish in your life, please do it quickly!
Don't put things off too long!!
Life goes by quickly. So, do what you can today,
As you can never be sure whether this is your winter or not!
You have no promise that you will see all the seasons of your life...
So, live for today and say all the things you want your loved ones to remember...
And hope they appreciate and love you for all the things
You have done for them in all the years past!!
Life is a gift to you.
The way you live your life is your gift to those who come after.
Make it a fantastic one.
~ And, Remember ~
"It is health that is real wealth
And not pieces of gold or silver."
~Author, Unknown
An English Lord’s Insight To Obama’s ‘Documents’
Lord Christopher Monckton, known in England as the Viscount Monckton of Brenchley, was born on February 14, 1952. Acclaimed occasionally as the “high priest” of climate skepticism, he prevented several government-level scientific frauds while serving as a Downing Street special advisor to Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, saving the British taxpayers billions of pounds.
In 1986 Lord Monckton was among the first to advise the Prime Minister that “global warming” caused by CO2 should be investigated. Two years later she made a speech predicting that temperatures would rise by 1degree centigrade per decade, and set up the Hadley Centre for Forecasting.
Both would later change their views on this topic based upon increasingly better and more reliable data a good part of which was generated through the Hadley Center itself. In 2006, a finance house, (Lord Monckton sent me the following quote below to confirm the Financial House and the papers he wrote along with some others he has written.) in London consulted with Lord Monkton on whether “global warming” would prove catastrophic. His 40 page report concluded that, though some warming could be expected, it would be both harmless and beneficial.
“The report to the finance house was posted on the Sunday Telegraph website for some years, but has been taken down now. So link instead to Scienceandpublicpolicy.org or to Wattsupwiththat.com, where entering “Monckton” into the search field will pull up dozens of papers and articles by me. M of B” [M Of b stands for Monckton of Brenchley.]
It was Lord Monckton who discovered evidence of a well-funded clique of scientists, officials and politicians who had been manipulating data results to exaggerate the imagined (and imaginary) problem. Two weeks following his report, the Climategate emails confirmed the existence and identities of the clique he had named, revealing not only their questionable methods but also the close personal links between them. This can be verified at “The Lord Monckton Foundation Agaphesis.”
More @ Freedom Outpost
Precision Rifle Fire, an equipment based solution mindset
The second part to John Mosby's question, "Where is this SDM and Sniper thing going" requires a look at capabilities and effects.
The most skilled sniper on the team doesn't pull the trigger. The most skilled sniper does everything else, calculates bullet drop, windage, the ballistic arc to confirm loophole placement, the angle of the shot, correction for altitude, humidity, and temperature. All of these considerations get plugged into either a calculator or referenced against a DOPE (Date On Previous Engagement) book to ensure that the first round down range hits the intended target.
Lets think about all the factors that affect that bullet.
Muzzle Velocity, which depends on
- Temperature
- Bore Condition
Atmospheric Density, which depends on
- Altitude
- Pressure
- Temperature
Wind Deflection
Rotation of the Earth
Now think about all the things that we can control, or things we can gain some extra measure of control over.
Fundamentals of Fieldcraft for Unconventional Warfare, Part One
LANGUAGE.
(I posted a short piece on the old site a couple of weeks ago, about a shortcoming in my gear-planning. The issue was that, when forced to camp out unexpectedly while traveling, I didn’t have shelter outside of the vehicle for HH6 and TMO, and HH6 decided that camping without a tent was out of the question. The responses to that article, both positive and negative, are the reason for this article. –J.M.)
Unconventional warfare warfighters possess a significantly different set of fieldcraft skills requirements than their conventional force cousins. This is a direct result of the difference in organization, equipment, and mission parameters of these different elements. While the conventional force element generally has the organic capacity to overcome any potential threat, or the ability to callat on inorganic supporting elements, the UW force will, in many operational settings, not have that ability, due to METT-TC considerations.
Whether a SF ODA, a LRS patrol, or a Force Recon team, the small-unit UW element has to rely on stealth (a subject I’ve beaten to death previously on this blog) to avoid unwanted contacts that would result in the team being either over-run or forced to call for distant supporting elements for help. The foundation of all my fieldcraft and outdoors recreation, from long-distance backpacking, horse packing trips, to simple camping out with the family in tight spots during travel, is predicated on that background.
The following notes are based on the essential individual skills common to 18-series (Special Forces) soldiers, that are relevant to the fieldcraft in this paradigm.
Task: Identify Factors Unique to the Operational Environment
More @ Mountain Guerrilla
Hunting the Jackal: A Special Forces and CIA Soldier's Fifty Years on the Frontlines of the War Against Terrorism
$7.99
For more than half a century, Special Forces and CIA legend Billy Waugh dedicated his life to tracking down and eliminating America's most virulent enemies. Operating from the darkest shadows and most desolate corners of the world, he made his mark in many of the most important operations in the annals of U.S. Spec Ops.
He spent seven and a half years behind enemy lines in Vietnam as a member of a covert group of elite commandos. He trailed Osama Bin Laden in Khartoum in the early '90s, and would have killed the terrorist kingpin if his superiors had allowed it. And at the age of seventy-two, he marched through the frozen high plains of Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Hunting the Jackal is the astonishing true account of the singular career of a courageous soldier in his nation's shadow wars -- including his pivotal role in the previously untold story of the capture of the most infamous and elusive assassin in history, Carlos the Jackal.
Another book on The Gallant Pelham
The Perfect Lion: The Life and Death of Confederate Artillerist John Pelham
$47.15
Hiker escapes Pine Creek fire by trekking over divide
"It was clear from where I was that if they didn't get it under control, there would be a problem," Worth, 54, said Saturday afternoon as he sat on a patio outside his Livingston home.
For the past couple of days, Worth, a longtime hiker and backpacker, had been backpacking with his dog, Brownie, in the Davis high country area and the Deep Creek area. As he headed to his truck, he was ready to get on the road.
"I was tired and I had potato salad waiting for me in the fridge at home," he said.
Instead, he spotted the Pine Creek fire.
Within hours of the fire's start and subsequent run toward the area he was in, Worth was in a race with the advancing flames — a competition that sent him overnight up over the ridge and down the other side of the divide to safety. Rescue workers who were looking for him say he's lucky to have escaped a dangerous situation.
More @ Missoulian
What I Ask of Romney and Obama
The Republican Convention ended on the theme "Believe in America." That sounded nice, but it was just another platitude. Mitt Romney's speech was filled with platitudes: "We will honor America's democratic ideals. ... We're united to preserve liberty."
Please.
Liberals and conservatives have real differences. We should state them.
America is going broke, and tough decisions must be made. To save our future, we must slow the growth of entitlements (SET ITAL) and (END ITAL) military spending. Mitt Romney was silent about that.
Sure, "Believing in America" means individuals get to decide how to run the businesses we create. But it should also mean that we get to run the rest of our lives, too: whom we marry, what we do for recreation, what substances we ingest, how big our soft drinks are. Mitt Romney said nothing about that.
I want to believe that if Romney is elected, he will finally impose some fiscal discipline and fight to put America on a sustainable course -- but his Tampa speech gave me no confidence that he would.
Instead, he pandered, saying, "As governor of Massachusetts, I chose a woman lieutenant governor, a woman chief of staff, half of my cabinet and senior officials. ..."
So what? What does that have to do with America's problems? Was that supposed to persuade people that Republicans don't wage "war on women"? It won't.
If conventions are mere infomercials, Republicans should at least do them well.
More @ Rasmussen
A Record of Triumph Unsurpassed in Warfare
Just before 5AM on Saturday, 30 July 1864, the enemy triggered explosives in a tunnel under Southern lines at Petersburg, burying 278 Confederate soldiers in the upheaval. General Robert E. Lee later recognized General William Mahone’s three counter-attacking brigades at the Crater: “All who charged from that vale crowned themselves heroes.”
Bernhard Thuersam, Chairman
North Carolina War Between the States Sesquicentennial Commission
www.ncwbts150.com
"The Official Website of the North Carolina WBTS Sesquicentennial"
A Record of Triumph Unsurpassed in Warfare:
Dead Bodies Several Layers Deep:
“On Monday morning a truce was granted, and the Federals sent out details to bury their dead between the lines. They dig a long ditch and placed the bodies crosswise, several layers up, and then refilled it. After they had finished burying their dead and were moving off, General Mahone noticed that they left the dirt piled up high enough for breastworks on the slope of the hill, midway between the two lines of battle.
He quickly discovered the danger of this, as it would have afforded shelter for another assaulting column, He stopped the burial detail and made them level the ground, as the found it. General Pendleton, Chief of Artillery of General Lee’s army, was standing near, and paid a high compliment to Mahone’s foresight.
The Last Act of a Great Battle:
This was the last act in this celebrated battle – a battle won by the charge of three small brigades of Virginia, Georgia and Alabama troops, numbering less than 2,000 muskets, with the aid of the artillery, which rendered effective service to the charging columns, over an army of 70,000 men behind breast-works, which surrendered to this small force of nineteen flags.
General B.R. Johnson, who commanded the lines which were broken by the explosion and upheaval of the Crater, in his report of the battle said: “To the able commander and gallant officers and men of Mahone’s Division, to whom we are mainly indebted for the restoration of our lines, I offer my acknowledgments for their great service.”
Secretary of War James A. Seddon said: “Let appropriate acknowledgement be made to the gallant general and his brave troops. Let the names of the captors (of the flags) be noted on the roll of honor and published.”
Nowhere in the history of war were greater odds driven out of fortifications and defeated. The charge of three brigades of Mahone’s Division is a record of triumph unsurpassed in warfare.”
(Southern Historical Society Papers, Volume XXV, R.A. Brock, editor, Southern Historical Society, 1897, page 90)
A Record of Triumph Unsurpassed in Warfare
World War II veteran kills home intruder, cites self defense
Earl Jones sat down for about 20 minutes waiting for the trespasser to enter his living room so he could gun the man down. Here Jones reenacts the shooting.
VERBATIM POST
A 92-year-old World War II veteran proved that he can still shoot and kill on sight.
Kentucky farmer Earl Jones heard a crash in his basement, so he reached for his .22-caliber rifle and sat with it in his lap for about 20 minutes on Monday morning
Jones of Boone County aimed the rifle after hearing footsteps climb the stairs. When the intruder — 24-year-old Lloyd (Adam) Maxwell — kicked open the basement door, Jones fired a bullet into his chest, killing him around 2:30 a.m.
"These people aren't worth any more to me than a groundhog," Jones told theKentucky Enquirer. "They have our country in havoc. We got so many damned crooked people walking around today."
Jones actions appear to fall within the state's definition of force for self-defense, according to the Kentucky Enquirer. Kentucky's Castle Doctrine permits deadly force in defence of one's home.
Jones harbors no remorse over the shooting. "It was simple. That man was going to take my life. He was hunting me. I was protecting myself," he said.
Jones grew up hunting squirrels and later received weapon training for the U.S. Air Force. "I didn't go to war for nothing," Jones said. "I have the right to carry a gun."
Ever since his wife Virginia Pearl died in 2006, Jones has lived alone in a home on his 500-acre farm. He has worked the farm since 1955, but has been frustrated with two other burglaries this year.
In April, thieves stole 90 head of cattle from behind his home. In August, thieves stole thousands in cash, a personal check and a television.
When he heard more intruders, Jones had had enough. "We're getting tired of this damn crap," he told WKYT.
After being shot, Maxwell fell backward down the stairs, where fellow intruders Ryan Dalton, 22, and Donnie Inabnit, 20, grabbed Maxwell's body and escaped in a Chevrolet Impala.
If they didn't flee, Jones would have felt within his rights to shoot them too. "I was hoping another one would come up. I aimed right for his heart," he said.
Dalton and Inabit called Kenton County Police and said Maxwell was accidentally shot while fishing. After questioning, Dalton and Inabit admitted to being at Jones' house, reports WKYT.
Dalton and Inabit have been charged with second degree burglary and tampering with evidence.
Police told Jones to put his hands up when they arrived at his house. "I'm not putting my damn hands up," he said at first, but later obliged.
The authorities started questioning Jones and took away his rifle, much to his chagrin.
"How am I going to protect myself if they come back looking for revenge?" Jones asked.
