Today as I made my way to Mt. Irenaeus for Mass I could not shut out the specter of war and an overall feeling of helplessness from my mind. Saber rattling by the Bush Administration both in Iraq and lately Iran, along with news that Russia has put its long range bomber fleet back into the air for the first time since 1992. As the father of two draft age children I cringe at the thought of a return to conscription.
Uncategorized
Competition is good
I read a great deal each week. Thanks to bloggers and the internet in general I have a diverse assortment of new sources. As an open source user and advocate I read with particular interest those items dealing with Linux and other open source packages. It’s generally assumed that competition is a good thing for consumers and generally it is.
Scare tactics
It’s been nearly six years since the Bush Administration initiated their politics of fear and you aren’t really any safer than you were in 2001. They’ve used this fear tactic to persuade us that we ought to surrender basic freedoms that Americans have traditionally enjoyed.
Probable defeat
A young friend of mine and a reader of this blog sent me an email today about some comments made by Senator Joe Biden about occupying Iraq and continuing the fight there. I’m indebted to Andrew Sullivan’s blog for the following short Youtube clip of Brent Scowcroft. He was and is a voice of reason. … Read more
Conscientious objector
Thirty-five years ago I volunteered for the United States Navy. I volunteered for the Hospital Corps because like this man I didn’t think I could kill people. It ain’t in me. No amount of training can overcome my most basic instincts and core values. Agustin Aguayo deserves a medal, but he’ll likely get jail time … Read more
Benevolent blends
I got an advertisement from the Monks of Our Lady of Spring Bank in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin.
Franklinville from overhead
This is a picture of Franklinville, New York looking west taken this afternoon as I cruised overhead in a Cessna Skyhawk. It was a great day to fly. I hadn’t been up in nearly three weeks. I got in a couple of good landings and enjoyed the gift of powered flight once again.
Bell of mindfulness
One of my goals this summer has been to live mindfully. To enjoy each day and each moment as it comes. Life is really in the present moment. It is not in what we project nor in the past we have already lived. Only the present moment is what matters. We live and die in the present moment.
Interesting interview
Contrast this interview with Dick Cheney in 1994 with what we’ve witnessed in the last three years before and after invading Iraq. I wonder what changed his mind. Was it all September 11th or was there some other scenario? [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BEsZMvrq-I]
Happy Birthday
Today was my Uncle Wendell’s 90th birthday. Wendell was born into a world rocked by the First World War. My grandfather avoided military service for the United States involvement in the war because of Wendell’s birth. Wendell on the other hand served six years in the United States Army from 1939-1945. He married after war … Read more