Peace thru Superior Firepower

i bought a bunch of pins from these guys back when the boys of the 173rd airborne dropped in on the whacki iraqis and sent them in a care package. i wonder how many of them ended up attached to unusual places?

this explains a lot

i've wondered why i have been hearing stories diametrically opposed to the published news from my amigos in the sandbox in the middle east. so i was listening to Tom Sullivan, a local talk show host on my way to work. he reads this on the air, and it kind of clears up a little of the fog surrounding what i'm hearing from the middle east, and what i'm reading and hearing in the american press. the author is a marine reservist. interesting. fodder for thought.

and this little bombshell from the new iraqi prime minister won't open the eyes of those that don't want to see. i can already hear the deriding comments regarding the independence of the new iraqi government, and how they will parrot whatever gw and the bushies want stated. maybe. i don't know, but this guy presents a credible arguement for u.s. intervention in iraq.

pix from the house of pain

here are a couple of pix diane took while we were (still) working on the rental.


three things come to mind

1. i can't believe i lived in that house with such ugly linoleum


2. it was frickin' hot that day


3. bo the nook definitely needs to go a diet

at least i learned something from the navy...i can paint like nobody's business

today's bumperstickers are:

Honk If Anything Falls Off

and

Earth first. We can log the other planets later

harping about MM

you, gentle readers will probably get tired of my ongoing diatribes against the portly "everyman" from flint michigan, but then it's my blog. so, here i am, cruising the NY Times op ed articles for the last week, and came across this. you may need to do a quickie survey to get a free online username/password, but it's worth it.
anyway, here i am, reading the flagship newspaper of the hard core right wing crazies (tongue firmly in cheek), and i read this article by David Brooks. i can't say i always agree with what he writes, but he always makes me consider that there are at least two sides to just about any issue under discussion. imagine my surprise as he begins slapping the crap out of moore. surprise, surprise. i had to read the article twice to make sure that i got it all, and that i wasn't reading in my own not inconsiderable bias.
the upshot of the article is how moore is making a career out of bashing america, and the american way of life, to any audience OVERSEAS he can find. and he's finding very receptive audiences. i know that there are things in this country that are wrong. i'm not jingoistic in my love of my country. reality in the homelessness plight, garbage in the streets, chronically poor working stiffs, i know these things. but they are not the whole story, only a small slice. there are many "small slices" like the ones i mentioned, but to consider the entire system, and our economy/society as basically rotten to the core....don't buy it. there is a fundamental goodness in this country that apparently MM has missed out on. and to hail him as some paragon of the left saddens me, because by extension, those of the left must share most or all of his values. doesn't it?

picking at scabs

thought i'd dig up an old klintonista address to the people of the u.s. regarding our friendly raggedy assed deposed middle eastern head of state. here's the link to a PBS site with the address transcription.

saw a clip last night after getting home from work from the MM opus regarding the bin laden family, and how bush authorized their "escape" *delivered in a smarmy breathless growl that i guess passes for passion* shortly after the 9/11 attacks. seems to me that the darling of the anti-shrubs, one richard clark, testified in front of the 9/11 commision that HE authorized their flight. and he testified after dissembling and heming around the subject only after it was pointed out that he wrote that in his book. hmmmm.

today's bumperstickers are:

I Do Whatever My Rice Krispies Tell Me To

and

What if the Hokey Pokey is what it’s all about?

wall to wall mike moore. yawn

so, ya going to see MM's new opus? oh, you already have? think it was factual? if the answer is yes, then please examine just ONE critique of moore's previous works here. every documentary he's done has been shredded by people that don't have an axe to grind with him. let's just say moore plays fast and loose with the facts to make up his own reality.
my view of moore is that he is the left's answer to Ann Coulter without the looks, or maybe Michael Savage with the looks.

by the way, Spinsanity is a pretty good place to get the dross and chaff knocked off of the latest news. they smack the crap out of both sides of the isle when it comes to BS'ing the public. they lean a little left, but all in all try to be fair and objective.


cool news in the middle east. i think it was a stroke of genius performing the handover to the interim iraqi government 2 days ahead of schedule. kind of jerked the rug out from under any public horror shows that may have been planned for the 30th. we really did see history made today. this is years sooner than any other occupation we've participated in for turnover to the locals. now, i know that we have our hands jammed up to the elbows up the interim govt.'s keister, and we are moving their mouths, but that is pretty much par for the course historically as well.

so what has been accomplished since 9/11/01? for a brief time, america stood as one (sort of, mostly, because we all know the idiots that believe the U.S. is always wrong, all the time). that was amazing. what else?

• dropped the taliban on their heads


• got the paki's and the indians to talk to each other and quit threatening to lob nukes at each other. that was good. we needed the paki's to whack the taliban, and they came through for us. not bad for a country a year earlier that was in the cross hairs of possible us/un sanctions for being a bunch of butt heads


• we took out two of the worst murderers in modern history, and tossed their shaggy assed dad in the slammer after digging him out of a hole


• we pissed off the french ... snip out germans, because spieler was right....ignoring them, which then placed their sweetheart oil for food kickback programs in the wastecan. that's not a bad thing


• got the north koreans talking instead of threatening. no small feat, that. guess the fact that the u.s. might just go in and kick some heiny instead of standing on the sidelines wringing our collective hands came across loud and clear


• ditto above for kahdaffi, or quaddaffi, or however the hell you spell his name. no more weapons programs, dismantling the ones in progress, agreeing to international inspections, and suddenly a voice of reason after being a homebase for terrorists for 2 decades... good work george.


• iran sat up fast and looked around, and discovered there were american troops right over....there. close enough to smell the gun oil. they've been keeping a low profile, although they did poke the brits in the eye last week with the three boatloads of marines and supplies.


• old Putin went before the world press a couple of weeks ago, and told everyone what they had told the U.S. prior to our invading iraq...hussien was planning/funding terrorist attacks against american soil and american interests abroad. that was pretty brave of him, considering he squawked as loudly as the french and germans did, and for the same reasons...iraqi oil, and monies owed by saddam to other govt's. i think that was probably the final straw, since the russian intellegence agencies are still deeply dug in in many parts of the world.

we've lost over 700 troops in a little over a year. this is sad, and it's horrible, and i feel for each and every one of their families. but, having said that: every single individual in military uniform is there voluntarily. every one of them. there is no such thing as the draft, no press gangs rolling through town collecting likely suspects. there were more deaths in Detroit from January to now vs. deaths in iraq. sad. but i don't see the politicians on their soapboxes decrying the loss of american lives in u.s.

oh, and there have been no airplanes flown into buildings, or poison gas released, or trucks full of explosives driven into malls since the clamps were put on. as much as i hate the patriot act, i can only point to the results.

whew. that was long winded. think i'll shut up, and get back to work

today's bumperstickers

You're Just Jealous Because The Voices Are Talking To Me

and

Well, did the fuck-up fairy visit us again?

cupping

wow. i am the last person on earth to actively seek out alternative methods of healing. too wrapped up in the western medicine mumbo-jumbo i guess. my doc sent me to an acupuncturist to see if they can give a little relief. i went reluctantly. dayam. no needles, but i was "cupped" along the spine. i feel as good as after a physical therapy session with a massage. don't know how long it will last, and i don't know what makes it work, but i am not complaining! i thought it was somewhat humorous when the acupuncturist tried explaning that the cupping process was going to "draw out" the old injury. call me puzzled. how do yo "draw out" osteo-arthritis with a little suction applied to the surface of the skin? like i said, don't know what makes it work, but i feel better for having the procedure. even if it only lasts for a few hours, that's an improvement. ah, the modern wonders of ancient medical practices.

can't log in...humm. damned firewall

you know, i talk a big game about having a clue when it comes to computers. but sometimes... sometimes i don't know my a... well,i shall try to keep this pg-13 or better.
anyway. i have this really great firewall installed on my home computer. the program is zone alarm. it works pretty damned well. too damned well. i can log into netscape at work (it's also my AIM info) but this computer just looks at me like i have three heads or something. no flitting about the internet dropping bon mots and pearls of wisdom on aol blogs for this kid. maybe i can get the 11 year old from across the street to come over and teach me how to use this thing.

today's bumper stickers

Procrastinators will rule the world... eventually.

and

He who laughs last thinks slowest.

craaaaaap

i've been spending the little free time i have working on my rental so that i can sell it. long sad boring story.
one of the rooms was painted midnight purple. full gloss, frickin enamel. we have used so much primer and paint in that house in the last 5 weekends that it is now certifiable in the state of california as earthquake proof.
so i pull the sink, vanity and toilet out of the bathroom, for a linoleum job. looks damned good. new light fixture, new medicine cabinet, new vanity and sink. old toilet. one of the "drought friendly low flow" jobs i installed when we lived in the house. tank leaked when i put it together, had to take it apart, use a ton of plumbers putty, but it held. new wax ring. new fastners. tightening down the bowl fastners. just a leeeetle bit more. ok. i stand up and the damned bowl starts cracking at supersonic speeds. so i guess the bathroom will have a new toilet as well. sux to be me today.

looking back

was digging through a bunch of pix i have from an old website i built. hard to believe that was me in 1977. pearl harbor, on ford island, in the barracks. i was attending a school on ford island.

why i love dogs

here's a little tidbit gleaned from reuters about a mass murder averted by a friendly dog. knew there was a reason i loved dogs, and why dog people are good hearted.

of course, i mean good hearted in an abstract way. this dude WAS cruising neighborhoods, looking for a bunch of folks to kill.

today's bumperstickers are:

Jesus loves you. Everyone else thinks you're an asshole.

and of course:

This Would Be Really Funny If It Weren't Happening To Me

umm, coffee

thought i'd post a link to my favorite coffee in the world. and my favorite blend is their Major Dickason's Blend®. oh, you don't have a Peet's Coffee house nearby? they ship. shameless endorsment to help spread the word to the world. i want them to stay in business for ever, so give it a try! now all i need to do is link this blog to peet's and see if they'll send me free coffee!!

stirring the pot

one of the hangouts i like to lurk in is ron martini's submarine bulletin board. the link is in the links box on the left. i found an interesting thread there today, and thought i'd pass it along. it's a bunch political, but there are a couple of posts in the thread that sort of balances it out. must say that i agree with the original post for the most part.

sorry, but i don't get this

ok, so i'm reading the news, and came across this .
now i'm not exactly sure about what the military is supposed to be doing, based on what the bozos in congress are spouting. let's see. the military is supposed to kill people and break things, which they do quite well. and now, they can't kill people (islamofacists) with bullets because the bullets were manufactured in Isreal? WTF? good thing i'm not in politics, because i think i'd be using the *f* bomb like the vice president did today in congress. i'd be using the word so often describing my disbelief that the american public would be desensitized even more than they are now. really, WTF?

can we talk?

can we talk? no, really, can we talk? if you can't see the road on a clear night without running your fog lights, get the hell off the road. you are a menace.

ahh, the blue glow

this is one of the reasons why i do the work that i do. this is a close approximation of the color given off by the electrons as they shift their speed of light from metal to water. it's actually magic that you can see. i never get tired of it.

my own little corner to set up a soap box.

well, here i am. a blog. i've had websites, and i've banged around on the web, but this is a first.
howdy. i'm bo the nook, and yes, i am a nuke. i work at a research reactor. i get to do some of the coolest things you can think of, and they pay me. doesn't get much better than that.
today's rant:
getting a bit tired of the lack of civility i've encountered lately. i know folks have a bad day, and they need to vent. do it myself. but there seems to be a pervasive fog of incivility (is that a word?) in a lot of the interactions i have with folks of late. is it me? i wash my feet, and take daily showers. i try to accept people for what and who they are. i only cork off when someone says something that is patently misguided, or intentionally offensive. must be the political season. too bad. there are folks out there in the big world with experiences and values different than mine. i'd like to learn from them, but it's impossible to do so if there is not at least a modicum of civility to allow the exchange of ideas and information.
i should also point out that i can be a raving butthead myself, and i recognize the fact that nobody will be aiming sainthood recommendations in bo the nook's direction any time soon.