Tag Archives: Main Feed

There’s nothing like a little hometown news that’s, well, home-y.

On Saturday, May 22, during what is usually a routine lowering of the water level for cleaning the UNM Duck Pond, a larger than normal amount of sludge caused water levels to decline more rapidly than what was anticipated. As a result, the water level fell too low for some of the fish to survive.

Get an axe.
[Update: This post is already half obsolete.  It appears that the fiscal hawks succeeded in getting the big spenders’ attention, who now swear, swear that they will cut $100 Billion from 2011.  I still say it’s too late for Representative Hal Rogers, whose quote about federal layoffs indicates that he does *not* get it, and that he never will.  Fiscal conservatives pointed out his unsuitability for the Chairmanship of the Committee on Appropriations when his name first came up for it, and they have been proven right.

I do not advocate a “reign of terror” wherein our own party must run each day fearing the gong, but the combination of timing, importance, centrality to our whole GOP effort this session, and the flaming disconnection … Continue reading →

On the 25th, the chief Soviet advisers to the Afghan military met in Kabul. They were ordered to prevent any Afghan units, which were opposed to the Soviet presence, from approaching Kabul. Those military advisers and technicians who worked with the DRA air defense forces were directed to prevent actions against the air movement of the paratroopers by taking control of all the air defense systems and their ammunition storage bunkers. The advisers temporarily disabled some air defense systems by removing the sights or physically locking them. Consequently, the Soviet air armada flew into Afghanistan unopposed. Continue reading →

What is Cee-Lo Green playing at?  Perhaps the smart kids are already all over this, but Cee-Lo Green’s fantastic single has a troublesome title.  The song is called Fuck You, and it is worth every bit of the vulgarity.  Great song, great lyrics, great video, so get past the F-bomb.  It Happens.  The thing is huge.  I challenge you to watch the original “not so clean” version and not love it:

Now he has come out with a “clean” version, below, which is poorly done.  It is obviously poorly done.  It is obviously intentionally poorly done.  Don’t take my word for it; watch the bleeping video:

So is this just a petulant Cee-Lo acceding to a record company demand?  I doubt it.  He would … Continue reading →

   I first posted this while sitting on a curb in a small town in Japan.  Murayama is on the northern outskirts of Yamagata City, Yamagata Prefecture.  We have family up there, so each year we go up for this wonderful street festival.

   This year, I had just returned from Afghanistan, and on the way back, picked up a Nokia E75.  I had done my homework, determined that the phone would work in Japan and shelled out some serious cash at the airport in Kuwait City.  The Nokia E75 is a thing of beauty–a small phone with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, and the Symbian … Continue reading →

Soon, the Obama administration will have to decide whether to commit additional troops to Afghanistan. From the New York Times: Military Chief Says More Troops Needed for Afghan War. This announcement has been well-telegraphed, so that it comes as a surprise to nobody who pays attention. So far, I am pleased with the attention the White House has paid to Afghanistan.

As some of you know, I was there when the 17,000 additional troops arrived this year. One of my tasks was to help find places to put them, and in fact a handful of them replaced my team. So I was certainly happy to see them; happy to get back to family a little earlier than I expected.

The President could easily have … Continue reading →

My tour in Afghanistan is complete–I am currently in Kuwait, starting to come home at long last.  I wound up less comfortable with posting from over there than I thought I would be.  Let’s just say that it will be easier to communicate when I am no longer on active duty.

Call me old-fashioned, but I am amazed at what I see written and depicted on blogs from active-duty types these days.  More on that soon.  I grew up in the Cold War Navy, and I am that guy, the one constantly telling his friends and colleagues to watch what they say on the phone, to support personnel, and now–online. Many many stories to tell–coming soon.  Right now, however, I am sitting in a Starbucks in Kuwait, making … Continue reading →