A Higher Calling?

www.ChurchSignGenerator.com

Appeasement Doesn't Work

Hadn't seen this before, but it reminds me of something Winston Churchill once said: "An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last." This editorial, titled "Europe, Thy Name is Cowardice" was written by Mathias Döpfner, CEO of the large German publishing firm Axel Springer, and published in the German periodical Die Welt on November 20, 2004.

A few days ago Henry Broder wrote in Welt am Sonntag, "Europe - your family name is appeasement." It's a phrase you can't get out of your head because it's so terribly true.

Appeasement cost millions of Jews and non-Jews their lives as England and France, allies at the time, negotiated and hesitated too long before they noticed that Hitler had to be fought, not bound to toothless agreements.

Appeasement legitimized and stabilized Communism in the Soviet Union, then East Germany, then all the rest of Eastern Europe where for decades, inhuman, suppressive, murderous governments were glorified as the ideologically correct alternative to all other possibilities.

Appeasement crippled Europe when genocide ran rampant in Kosovo, and, even though we had absolute proof of ongoing mass-murder, we Europeans debated and debated and debated, and were still debating when finally the Americans had to come from halfway around the world, into Europe yet again, and do our work for us.

Rather than protecting democracy in the Middle East, European appeasement, camouflaged behind the fuzzy word "equidistance," now countenances suicide bombings in Israel by fundamentalist Palestinians.

Appeasement generates a mentality that allows Europe to ignore nearly 500,000 victims of Saddam's torture and murder machinery and, motivated by the self-righteousness of the peace-movement, has the gall to issue bad grades to George Bush... Even as it is uncovered that the loudest critics of the American action in Iraq made illicit billions, no, TENS of billions, in the corrupt U. N. Oil-for-Food program.

And now we are faced with a particularly grotesque form of appeasement. How is Germany reacting to the escalating violence by Islamic fundamentalists in Holland and elsewhere? By suggesting that we really should have a "Muslim Holiday" in Germany.

I wish I were joking, but I am not. A substantial fraction of our (German) Government, and if the polls are to be believed, the German people, actually believe that creating an Official State "Muslim Holiday" will somehow spare us from the wrath of the fanatical Islamists.

One cannot help but recall Britain's Neville Chamberlain waving the laughable treaty signed by Adolph Hitler, and declaring European "Peace in our time".

What else has to happen before the European public and its political leadership get it? There is a sort of crusade underway, an especially perfidious crusade consisting of systematic attacks by fanatic Muslims, focused on civilians, directed against our free, open Western societies, and intent upon Western Civilization's utter destruction.

It is a conflict that will most likely last longer than any of the great military conflicts of the last century - a conflict conducted by an enemy that cannot be tamed by "tolerance" and "accommodation" but is actually spurred on by such gestures, which have proven to be, and will always be taken by the Islamists for signs of weakness.

Only two recent American Presidents had the courage needed for anti-appeasement: Reagan and Bush.

His American critics may quibble over the details, but we Europeans know the truth. We saw it first hand: Ronald Reagan ended the Cold War, freeing half of the German people from nearly 50 years of terror and virtual slavery. And Bush, supported only by the Social Democrat Blair, acting on moral conviction, recognized the danger in the Islamic War against democracy. His place in history will have to be evaluated after a number of years have passed.

In the meantime, Europe sits back with charismatic self-confidence in the multicultural corner, instead of defending liberal society's values and being an attractive center of power on the same playing field as the true great powers, America and China.

On the contrary, we Europeans present ourselves, in contrast to those "arrogant Americans", as the World Champions of "tolerance", which even Otto Schily justifiably criticizes. Why?

Because we're so moral? I fear it's more because we're so materialistic, so devoid of a moral compass.

For his policies, Bush risks the fall of the dollar, huge amounts of additional national debt, and a massive and persistent burden on the American economy, because unlike almost all of Europe, Bush realizes what is at stake - literally everything.

While we criticize the "capitalistic robber barons" of America because they seem too sure of their priorities, we timidly defend our Social Welfare systems. Stay out of it! It could get expensive! We'd rather discuss reducing our 35-hour workweek or our dental coverage, or our 4 weeks of paid vacation, or listen to TV pastors preach about the need to "Reach out to terrorists, to understand and forgive".

These days, Europe reminds me of an old woman who, with shaking hands, frantically hides her last pieces of jewelry when she notices a robber breaking into a neighbor's house.

Appeasement? Europe, thy name is Cowardice.

'Nuff said.

New Technology in Digital Photography

This is a pretty amazing new technology in digital photograhy linked with the Internet.

www.MonitorCamera.com

Civil Servant with Tiny Brain

It is actually pretty amazing that a 44-year-old man is able to function fairly normally when his brain is "virtually absent." This probably proves how little of our gray matter we actually use, eh?
And, as if civil servants don't get enough grief, it turns out the man with the small brain is one of them. I'm sure the jokes will start to fly if they haven't already. I'm trying to think of a positive spin on civil servitude based on this story but have yet to come up with one. Any ideas?

Tiny brain, normal life

Ultimate Back Scratcher

Smart dog. Just a little something to bring a smile.

Thanks, L.

Dumb Criminal Acts

I hope I'm not starting a "dumb" theme here... but people are unbelievable.

www.DumbCriminalActs.com

Winston Churchill Gets the Boot

Looks like Winston Churchill, famous for his two-finger "victory" salute, got the one-finger salute from the British education system. Seems that Churchill, a legendary and key figure in the Allies victory in World War II, is to be pushed aside in favor of more classes on drug and alcohol abuse and global warming. I have to think that things are definitely warming up in England these days. Perhaps they've pulled him from the curriculum so that they won't have to answer student questions about the ever-increasing appeasement tactics the British Goverment is using. I don't know - if choice comes down to Churchill or Chamberlain, I've got to go with Churchill. Let's hope the Brits figure this out soon.

The Sun Online - News: Two-finger salute

PS - For you libs, just so you won't think it's a "red" thing, the Brits are yanking Martin Luther King, Jr. too.

Smoke Detectors and Sleep

Last night, as I went to bed, I said a little prayer and asked God to wake me up by 6:00a. I do this sometimes, I don't know - some people ask win the Publisher's Clearing House sweepstakes, I ask for help getting up a little earlier. Anyway, I asked and then faithfully drifted off to sleep.
I suppose, when I asked, that I imagined I might be awakened by the smell of fresh baked bread, or by a gentle rain caressing the window outside my bedroom, or perhaps by the Publisher's Clearing House folks knocking on my door (I don't play their game so that would truly be a miracle). But God has a sense of humor... So in the midst of a dream about waiting in line at the Post Office while being totally ignored, something I'm sure most of us have experienced, a subtle, cheerful chirp worked it's way into the postal supervisor's lecture on why her worker's breaks were more important than the long line of waiting customers. ...And people want government-run medicine? Eventually, the "chirp" became more insistent and finally woke me up. It was the smoke detector just outside my bedroom.
Okay, I admit it. I didn't change the batteries in my smoke detector at the regulated schedule of the beginning of Daylight Saving Time - or is it supposed to be at the End of DST? Or both? I don't know. Suffice it to say I didn't do it. I'm not a big fan of "daylight saving" in the first place. The amount of daylight doesn't really change, we just pretend it's a different time for most of the year... but I digress.
I lay there for a couple of minutes trying to figure out if out I could out-sleep the chirp before realizing that I'd give up before it did. I glanced at the clock: 5:45a - right on time... just what I asked for. The smoke detector was cheerfully chirping to let me know I'd forgotten the Daylight Saving Time rule of changing its battery. God was probably chuckling... me, not so much.
Okay, I have a boatload of AA and AAA batteries in the laundry room. I figured I could change the battery quickly and maybe sneak 15 more minutes of dreamtime before the PCH van arrived. So I stumbled downstairs, grabbed two double-A's and the kitchen ladder and then headed back towards the insistent chirping. Lights on - whoa, that and the ladder this early don't mix... Once I stabilized myself I addressed the smoke detector. How do these things open? Which way does it turn? How far? I twisted and pulled hoping not to tear it out of the ceiling. After a minute or so of twisting and re-looking I opened the taunting contraption. Wonderful, There's a sealed battery compartment inside. Great - I spent the next minute or so pulling and twisting to get the battery compartment open. This was really starting to eat into my 15 minutes of snooze time. (Why is it that "snooze" time seems to be the most rewarding sleep? Is it that we feel like we're getting away with something? Who invented the snooze button? Did [s]he get a Nobel Prize for it?) After another minute of fumbling and I was there - so close to going back to snooze-land... Okay, God is probably laughing out loud now: a nine-volt battery. Who in the world uses 9-volt batteries any more? The whole world runs on double A's and triple A's! If I'm not mistaken, when I bought my hurricane-deterrent household generator last year they told me it ran on six double A batteries. (As an aside, do 3 double A batteries = 2 triple A batteries?)
At this point I was re-thinking my strategy. Surely I could get back to sleep in spite of the annoying chirp. Probably not. I made my way back downstairs to the battery stash. Yep, you guessed it... no 9-volts. I wandered over to the kitchen to the junk drawer (we all have one, don't we?) and rummaged through it again sensing the slippage of my snooze time. No batteries there either. What to do?
I finally hit upon an epiphany. I could pull the battery from the basement smoke detector and switch it with the upstairs screaming-me-me and thereby save a smidgeon of my snoozedom. Guess what, my basement doesn't have a smoke detector. There is something on the ceiling that looks like a smoke detector but I think it's a gas detector or something. I didn't have gas at the time so I couldn't be sure. Whatever it is it didn't appear to have a battery so that plan was shot. I went back upstairs. Okay, my next plan was the downstairs smoke detector. I went all the way back upstairs to get the ladder, then back downstairs to pull the battery in the kitchen and then back upstairs to replace the obnoxious claxon outside my bedroom. Finally the beast was muzzled. I went back to bed and, I guess, slept through the PCH van visit.

Morals of the Story:

1. God wants you to change your smoke detector battery.
2. If you don't change your smoke detector battery, the manufacturers, working with God, have configured them to announce your mistake between 2:00 and 6:00 in the morning.
3. Might be a good idea to keep a couple of 9-volts on hand just in case.

Site Dedicated to Dumb Laws

Find out the silly things that are illegal where you live... In Georgia, "No one may carry an ice cream cone in their back pocket if it is Sunday."

www.DumbLaws.com

Online Vanity Plates

Interesting little diversion... Build your own.

www.Acme.com/licensemaker/

Lauren Green Visits Modern Day Ark

Sounds like an uplifting trip for Lauren Green as she works on a Christmas special. Among other things, she met Johan Huibers, who built — with his own hands — a 1/5 scale replica of Noah's Ark.

Visting the Modern Day Ark in Holland

Flesh-eater

Looks like the flesh-eating bacteria is back. See link below.

http://chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/4976651.html

Hummer Gets Vandalized

Let me see if I've got this. A person makes a "lifestyle" choice that liberals condone, such as homosexuality, and they are supposed to receive extra protection from "Hate" crimes. But if someone makes a "lifestyle" choice that liberals are against, such as buying a Hummer, it's okay to attack their property and then smugly stand by and say "they got what they deserved."

Hummer Gets Eco-Vandalized in Washington Neighborhood

Property Taxes - Disgrace

This is unconscionable.... See link below.

http://tinyurl.com/2pzwqj

Museum of Bad Art

No, there's nothing of mine there...

www.MuseumOfBadArt.org

World Toilet Organization

This is a real organization... www.WorldToilet.org

Hold that Button

How long can you hold it? How long will you hold it? How amazing is it that all of this technology has been laser focused to support this type of activity?

www.HoldtheButton.com

Elephant Story

Received this heartwarming and true story from Thad...

In 1986, Mkele Mbembe was on holiday in Kenya after graduating from Northwestern University. On a hike through the bush, he came across a young bull elephant standing with one leg raised in the air. The elephant seemed distressed, so Mbembe approached it very carefully. He got down on one knee and inspected the elephant's foot and found a large piece of wood deeply embedded in it.

As carefully and as gently as he could, Mbembe worked the wood out with his hunting knife, after which the elephant gingerly put down its foot. The elephant turned to face the man, and with a rather curious look on its face, stared at him for several tense moments. Mbembe stood frozen, thinking of nothing else but being trampled.

Eventually the elephant trumpeted loudly, turned, and walked away. Mbembe never forgot that elephant or the events of that day.

Twenty years later, Mbembe was walking through the Chicago Zoo with his teenaged son. As they approached the elephant enclosure, one of the creatures turned and walked over to near where Mbembe and his son Tapu were standing. The large bull elephant stared at Mbembe, lifted its front foot off the ground, then put it down. The elephant did that several times then trumpeted loudly, all the while staring at the man.

Remembering the encounter in 1986, Mbembe couldn't help wondering if this was the same elephant. Mbembe summoned up his courage, climbed over the railing and made his way into the enclosure. He walked right up to the elephant and stared back in wonder. The elephant trumpeted again, wrapped its trunk around one of Mbembe' s legs and slammed him against the railing, killing him instantly.

Probably wasn't the same elephant.

Marketing Madness

A few observations on some marketing ploys I don't understand:

• Capital One has taken to mailing larger envelopes stuffed with bubblewrap among their you've-qualified-for-lots-more-credit marketing. I guess it's supposed to make us think they're sending us something for free. Seems like an awful waste...
• Those Visa commercials where the whole world stops and everyone, including the hussy behind the counter is annoyed because someone paid with cash. We're going to raise up a generation of children who think that paying with cash is evil and who overwhelm themselves with debt so they'll be cool... oh, wait... anyway, I think the message I got from this commercial is that businesses that accept Visa have clerks that look down their noses at customers...
• Spike TV and those incessant Girls Gone Wild video infomercials. On the few occasions when I get up at five AM and workout in my basement, I'd like to be able to put something interesting on the TV to keep me company. Does Spike really need to run non-stop GGW infomercials all morning? For that matter, do they need to run them at all? How about some UFC re-runs?
• Pregnancy strip commercials that show a stream of "liquid" spraying over the end of the strip while I'm eating my dinner... or at any time. I don't think anyone needs to see that.

Live Earth - Who's Really Behind It?

Interesting article on www.JunkScience.com, titled "Live Earth's Gross Groupies."

"Why is NBC airing Al Gore’s Live Earth concert this weekend? Why are Democrats, who claim to support the Fairness Doctrine, not objecting to this outright gift of unequal broadcast time to just one side (theirs) of a controversial political issue?"

Global Warming

Boortz had this yesterday. I'm going to have to add a link to RedPlanetCartoons.com.

Your First Kiss

So, it's your first kiss and several questions might come to mind:
- Is it the right time?
- Is anyone watching?
- Does your partner even want to?
- Is your breath fresh?

Then you lean in and just go for it!!!

Headed Home

As we headed out of Bluefield this morning I wondered whether I was tired already or tired still. I guess it was too early to be tired already so it had to be tired still... This is a picture of Grandma's kitten 'Cutie.' She is a rambunctious rascal and very entertaining when she's chewing on someone else... We visited Mom's grave yesterday afternoon and spent some time remembering her smile and sense of humor. Then last night we attended Nikki's (my niece) wedding (7/7/7). It was nice and quaint. She was married in the church my grandmother went to as a little girl. She was beautiful. The minister conducted the best wedding ceremony I've ever heard. As best I could tell everyone had a good time at the reception... That pretty much wraps up our July-o-poluza except for the drive home. We should be back at the housee tonight and back at work tomorrow. I may post a few more pictures once I get home and look at them.

Amy the Armadillo

One of the stars of our week on Amelia Island was Amy the Armadillo (see 7/1 post). Actually, I don't know that anyone ever named her. I thought it might anthropomorphize her a little and thereby make the story a more heartwarming tale and less like it is about an armor-plated rat. (I would have said 'opossum' but, as Michael will inform you, an opossum is a marsupial where an armadillo is a mammal - hence, armor-plated rat. Class dismissed.) Anyway, here's Denise's picture of sweet little "Amy."

USS George Bancroft @ King's Bay

On the 5th I mentioned the static display at Kings Bay Subase that was quite impressive. Through the miracle that is the Internet (I had to come to WV to get access!) I discovered it is the USS George Bancroft SSBN-643 surfacing just outside the gate. I found this picture at www.StMarysSubMuseum.com. I think old George is more impressive when viewed from across the street but this gives you the idea. One of my brothers spent a few years on a sub - not all at once but it might have felt that way - so I thought this was pretty cool.

From the Island of Amelia to Virginia Blue Fields

For those of you who don't know (Mark, excluded), there are two Bluefields (WV & VA). We got to spend time in both today - woohoo! Our drive up I-95, I-26, and I-77 was quiet and uneventful - as I said before - just how we like it. All the way up there was the constant presence of law enforcement (no problem with that) but I don't recall any of them having the typical 'bubble gum machine' on top. They were all of the hidden lights variety - they're getting sneakier. Again, I have no problem with that. I also don't recall seeing any accidents along our route. Our trip covered 576 miles 2,560 feet in elevation - I guess we were driving uphill all the way. What a day! Once we got here we had the distinct pleasure of spending a couple of hours visiting with my 84-year-old grandmother, Doris - the most fulfilling portion of the trip so far. By the way, we were extremely pleased to hear that Johnny's niece is doing well after her surgery this afternoon. I'm looking for a picture of grandma but don't have one with me - we'll see if we can rectify that.

Cumberland Island - Oops

Once again the morning sky looked gray (grey? - I'm never 100% sure which to use) and menacing. That color in combination with the bright pink of my belly (no sunscreen yesterday - ouch!) convinced us to delay our scheduled departure to Cumberland Island. Cumberland Island is less than a mile north of Amelia Island and yet we had to drive more than an hour to get there. Thanks to Magellan we went via Kings Bay Naval Base. It was out of the way but that submarine static display at the gate is impressive. We then worked our way down into St. Mary's to catch the ferry. I've been trying to find something positive to say about the ferry experience... I'm still working on it. We didn't sink - that's about the best I can come up with at this moment. The crew was friendly - I'll give them that too. Actually it was our fault. We went to go to the beach taking the 9:45a ferry out and the 2:45p ferry back. So for investment of ten hours (7:00a - 5:00p) we got one hour on the beach. Bad investment. On top of that the beach was a letdown. The beach at Fort Clinch is better, cheaper, and easier to get to. Perhaps Cumberland Island is a better trip if you are going to go exploring, but I certainly won't go back for the beach. It made for a long, hot day but, I have to say that everyone, exhausted as we were, kept in good spirits throughout. Obviously, this ate up most of our day. The only thing left was dinner. Tonight we had a YOYO dinner (You're on your own). Lisa and I went back to Barbara Jeans for blackened catfish. Both the food and the service were good this time. All in all, my first trip to Amelia Island has been very enjoyable. I won't hesitate to come back. Tomorrow we head north for Bluefield, West Virginia. Here's to a safe journey for everyone.

Happy Independence Day

Hope you all had a wonderful 4th. It rained again last night so we weren't sure what we were getting as we started the day. By the way, I neglected to mention that Johnny, assisted by Angie, made an apple pie for us last night - very much in the spirit of Independence Day. I firmly believe that you should always be sure to thank anyone willing to cook for you - 'nuff said. Anyway, the sun broke out and we headed for the beach. That lasted about 20 minutes before the rains returned. So we tried the pool - it wasn't raining there. If you know Florida, you understand. That lasted about 30 minutes. So we all wound up back in the condo playing Sorry Card Revenge. After lunch we headed back to Fort Clinch to their beach. Some beach... We had fun scavenging and playing. Dinner was at The Surf, which is supposed to be torn down after Labor Day to make room for condos - too bad. I ate too many all-you-can-eat wings... Later tonight, Lisa, Katie, and I went downtown to watch the fireworks. We watched an awesome show across the water in St. Mary's, GA as we waited on Fernandina's show. But we all agreed the wait was worth it - we had a blast. Hope you did too.

Rocky Day

Today started off cold, wet, and blustery with a dark feel to it. The weather was playing havoc between the wind and the rain. The best thing we could find to do was to watch the movie "Flushed Away" (probably one of the best movies of 2006 IMHO) on DVD. "Milicent Bystander" gets me every time. Then, after a short walk on the windswept beach, we decided to drive around the island. We explored the very remote Fort Clinch State Park. It looks like a great place for hiking & biking but we did neither. We did walk out the long, long fishing pier (from which today's picture was taken). We debated going to the Island Seven Theater to see that "Rat" movie (see how I cleverly avoid showing that I can't spell that French name?) but it appeared that the entire island had the same idea - so we skipped it. We finished out the weather-bitten day with a shimp boil and spirited games of Catchphrase. The day wound up on a sad note as I learned that my Aunt's significant other passed away this morning. I am truly sorry for her loss. The day ended much as it started though for different reasons.

Toilet Cleaning Instructions

1. Put both lids of the toilet up and add 1/8 cup of pet shampoo to the water in the bowl. 
2. Pick up the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom. 
3. In one smooth movement, put the cat in the toilet and close both lids. You may need to stand on the lid. 
4. The cat will self agitate and make ample suds. Never mind the noises that come from the toilet, the cat is actually enjoying this. 
5. Flush the toilet three or four times.This provides a "power-wash" and rinse". 
6. Have someone open the front door of your home. Be sure that there are no people between the bathroom and the front door. 
7. Stand behind the toilet as far as you can,and quickly lift both lids. 
8. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak through the bathroom, and run outside where he will dry himself off. 
9. Both the commode and the cat will be sparkling clean. 

Sincerely, 
The Dog

Shark's Teeth

The morning broke clear after yesterday's rain and most of us took advantage of the clear skies to go back to the beach and the fresh breeze off the Atlantic. Lisa & Denise sought the comfort of the historic downtown shopping district instead. In all cases it was an enjoyable morning. Our only sadness was in saying farewell to Denise (in the driver's seat) as she headed back to MCO. We had lunch at Cedar River Seafood and it was very casual and very good. Lisa says, even though they offer the option of 'broiled' seafood, stick with the fried stuff - it's what they do best... We spent the rest of the day searching for shark teeth on the beach. I think Katie said we have 25 or so. I guess if you come down this way your only shark fears will be involve being gummed mercilessly. We did see some dolphins this afternoon as they swam north along the shore... I think we're heading north tomorrow ourselves - we're going to Cumberland Island, weather permitting.

Office Jargon

Remembering an email I received about "deep diving" that had nothing to do with the ocean. I guess this kind of jargon makes mundane jobs seem more exciting. Here's some more fun jargon I found. Don't be a "Mucus Trooper..."

Jargon Watch

Rain & Armadillos

The day started out as a bright & sunny beautiful day. This is a view off the balcony of the condo - very nice. Lisa's sister drove up from Orlando to visit (Samantha opted for Blizzard Beach) and, apparently, brought the rain with her. Perhaps she needs to visit us in Newnan - we need the rain desperately up there. We went to Barbara Jeans for Johnny & Angie's anniversary (18th) dinner. The food was excellent. They're famous for crab cakes and didn't disappoint... Wish the service had been a little better. On the way back Michael & Katie spotted an armadillo in the condo complex. Johnny can catch lots of critters but armadillos aren't one of them. Hope you're getting rain if you need it or dry if you don't.

Catchin' Any?

Lisa wanted me to tell everyone she caught this shark the first day here... Yep, she's quite the fisherwoman. I kept the post last night short - I wasn't sure if the messaging software would split the message. So I'm sitting here on the 4th floor balcony watching the already hot sun come up over a placid Atlantic Ocean. Johnny & Angie and their kids, Katie & Michael, are here with us this week. We all went to the historic downtown & had dinner at the Crab Trap (like the one at St. Simons). The birthday girl had blackened mahi & I had blackened "ponga" (never heard of it before). The fish was very good. Don't remember what Johnny shared with Michael but Angie had a seafood casserole that looked good too.