"Baseball, Hot Dogs, and the Flag!"

While I was gone last week, I got to do one of my favorite things; I went to see the Chicago White Sox! Few things make me as happy as a Sox game. The best part of this was the company; I was with my beautiful and amazing daughter, who I had infected with the Sox addiction early in her childhood.

She picked me up at the train station, I was already dressed in my favorite "Louis Aparacio" number 11 jersey and Sox hat; we drove directly to the ball park (I still call it Comiskey). We got great parking, right across the street from the park. Before we went in, we walked a few blocks to a local hot dog "joint"; a walk-up place with genuine "Chicago Hot Dogs"; yummy! We walked around the outside of the park where there is a monument to former White Sox greats. I had memories of my youth as I read some of the records of these heroes of my "salad days". Finally, we went into the ballpark. The seats were about the best I've ever had, lower box near the batters box; I was in "White Sox Heaven". We were surrounded by a sea of Sox hats, jerseys and shirts, everyone was in a jovial mood, and an instant comradeship was made with the crowd. The evening was perfect, about 72 degrees, with a slight breeze.

White Sox fans are what one might call a "blue collar" crowd who are very verbose about their team, and that other team on the north side. Jokes and jabs about the CUBS are quite prominent, and everybody laughs.

Then something happens to silence the entire park, not a sound is made, or a joke is whispered. A single figure walks out to home plate and stands looking at the crowd; and he begins to sing the "National Anthem". Thirty-thousand people stand, sing and salute the Flag of the United States of America. In that one moment, more than Sox fans, more than Chicagoans; we were all Americans, united in tribute and pride in our wonderful country and its Flag.

Today is "Flag Day". One day a year we designate to pride in the American Flag; there is no other like it anywhere in the world. It is the symbol of freedom throughout the world. It has flown over countless battlefields, picnics, parades and public buildings. It should always fly higher than any other flag; it has been a blessing to all of the rest of the world. We should never forget this! America and her flag need never apologize to any other nation or group. This flag marched through Paris to cheering crowds. This flag was proudly raised by Marines on Iwo Jima. This flag flew over the Marine base at the siege of Khe Sahn, and it was carried up Pork Chop Hill.

This flag has been the symbol of aid in food and medicine to people in dire need everywhere in the known world. Spend some time today thinking about our flag, and those who don't appreciate what it stands for: it's not a "Hammer and Sickle", or a "Swastika"; it's the "STARS AND STRIPES". BE PROUD, AMERICA, THIS FLAG WAVES FOR FREEDOM!

"CAUTION"

Every day when we get into our vehicles, we encounter "road signs"; STOP, NO LEFT TURN, YIELD, SLOW CHILDREN and ROAD WORK AHEAD are only a few of the warnings we must heed in order to maintain safety for us and others. One of those signs says CAUTION; this sign covers a multitude of situations on the roadway; it causes us to take notice of things out of the ordinary; perhaps a bump or hole in the road; some type of hazard. Have any of you ever hit a hole in the road that wasn't marked? This can be quite a wake-up as you are calmly driving along; teeth jar, spine whips and eyes widen, it's a real surprise! If a hole or bump is big enough, it can be more than an unpleasant moment; it can mean vehicle damage, and in some cases an accident that can cause injury or loss of life. We need to be ever vigilant as we travel along the streets and highways on our daily treks. If we were to disregard these signs and signals, to what end would we come?

I have written several articles in the past about Iran and its lunatic leader Ahmadinejad. Iran has given the United Nations and the United States the "International Finger" whenever confronted with criticism or sanctions. Iran is one of the Middle-East's most verbal Israel haters. Suspected uranium enrichment for nuclear weapons has been spoken about for several years now, yet, very little had actually been done to stop this. Iran is on very friendly terms with Russia and Syria; neither of these nations has been particularly sympathetic to Israel, and love doing "business" with Iran. Missile delivery systems and technology are valuable commodities, and Russia is not above making a deal with Iran; regardless of what is said in public.

Yesterday, June 7, 2011, Iran ordered submarines to the Red Sea in order to "collect information". The type of submarines that were dispatched were unspecified; the type of armament aboard these vessels wasn't addressed. After entering the Red Sea, they left to "continue their mission" into the Gulf of Aden; only a short trip to the Suez Canal; a "rock throw" from Israel. Israel says this move was meant to provoke action. I tend to agree with Israel's assumptions in this matter. In February, Iran sent some warships through the Suez in a show of strength and provocation. Could this have been a "sign"? Ahmadinejad has said "Try to imagine a world without Israel"; could this have been a "sign"?

The Middle-East is more volatile now than it has ever been in the past. The New Egypt is in flux, and an anti-Israel sentiment is becoming pervasive. Each day, Israel becomes a larger target for radical Islamist haters. The United States has adopted an attitude of "wait and see" in regards to Israel. Israel is "watching the road signs" with justifiable trepidation.

How many more "road signs" do we need before we do something substantial for our greatest friend in the Middle-East? Will our President continue to ignore the "CAUTION" sign? Will Mr. Obama wait until we reach a "DEAD END" in the Israeli threats from Iran? Pay attention, Mr. President, you are approaching a huge "hole in the road" and the whole world may end up "in the ditch" if you don't help a friend!

(This is my last blog until next Tuesday, as I take a short vacation. Watch the world while I'm gone.)

"Over-Exposed!"

Is there such a thing as degrees of morality? Is there an acceptable level of perversion or bad behavior? What should we use as a standard for our moral fiber in America? Finally, where do we want America to go in social values?

I know "people are people", and they will have their faults; yet, when do we say "enough"? I've heard all the stories about Jack Kennedy, and I am sad that he had those types of behavior in his life. I also know that way back then, had they been made public, it would have been political suicide, and "Camelot" would not have existed. It has been said that FDR had a "special" lady friend, yet very little was said about that, because America would not have tolerated that behavior from its president. Is has been rumored that Thomas Jefferson had an illicit relationship; I guarantee that would have been a disaster in 1776, had it been common knowledge.

We have taken prayer out of our schools; we have made carrying a bible to work practically a criminal offense. We are more concerned about the rights of prisoners than the rights of our citizens. We have made criminal illegal aliens into victims, instead of invaders to our land. We have allowed the A.C.L.U. to allow one or two people dictate what we are allowed to do in public places, and what language we are allowed to speak. We continue to drift away from what has made America, America.

I am now going to offend some folks. America was founded on Judeo-Christian ethics! ETHICS; a word we all use but few follow, and it seems those who use it the least, are those who serve as our senators and congressional representatives. I know there are some governors and mayors who also have shown "poor judgment" too. We have thrown American values and ethics "under the bus"; in favor of tolerance and political correctness.

A couple of days ago, I wrote about Congressman Anthony Wiener; I'll admit I had some fun at his expense, yet, it seems those allegations are now proving true. Mr. Weiner is just the latest, and not really the worst of our leadership's bad behavior. It is no wonder that those radical Islamists call America the "Great Satan". I'm not saying they are any better than we are; but we are surely giving them fuel with this type of perverse activities from our elected officials.

Mr. Weiner says he will not resign; but he's sorry! Yes, he's sorry; he's sorry he got caught! I didn't vote for Mr. Weiner, yet his life choices reflect on me and every other American. He was chosen to represent us to the rest of the world in our Congress. It now rests with Congress and Mr. Weiner as to what actions will be taken. Because of Charlie Rangel, I doubt any credible action will be taken; they will take care of their own; it is up to us. America must send a message at the voting booth and cast out this type of abhorrent behavior. If someone exposes himself in public, he will be arrested. Mr. Weiner has exposed himself to the entire population of America! What will America do now?

"Fixed Income, Early Retirement!"

At my house, in the last two-plus years, our income has been reduced by about 30%! I don't know about anybody else, but a 30% financial hit is pretty tough to take. Now, we're not starving, but we definitely have made some decisions that are different than we would have made with 30% more money. Our faith in God has most certainly helped us in all these decisions; and a grasp of common sense is also a factor when things take a financial down-slide. We have changed our shopping habits, combining trips out of the house to lessen unnecessary travel and save fuel cost. We have changed our choices as to what groceries we purchase; our dollars don't go as far as they used to go. I have many friends and acquaintances that are on "fixed incomes" and they are ALL experiencing these same things. None of us have expanded our spending habits. When your old spending habits continue, you have too much month left at the end of the money! When you don't recognize this axiom, you must be a fool! When the things you do don't work, don't repeat them; your results will be continued failure. ADMIT YOUR MISTAKES; it will help you from continuing to screw things up! Rationalizing bad decisions won't hold water when held up to the light of common sense.

Last week, the White House admitted that the citizens of the United States of America will lose 14 BILLION DOLLARS ON OBAMA'S AUTO BAILOUT! How does this make you feel, as a taxpayer? I'm kind of upset!! Obama spoke last week, and once again, he echoed back to George Bush. This President will never admit to his own mistakes. Like a child, he constantly looks for someone else to take the blame for his poor judgment. What is worse than this, is his continued pursuit of further spending in the face of consistent failed policies.

His minions still feel they are correct in their spurious spending habits, and refuse to take a look at any serious spending cuts in our "over blown" budget. Nancy Pelosi believes she will soon be back in the Speaker's Seat; returning like "Freddy Kruger" for another "nightmare"!

At what point does this become Barack Obama's mess? Unemployment is still at disastrous levels; the housing market is moving at the speed of an "oil painting" and Moody is considering lowering our national bond rating. Oddly, this is still George Bush's fault!

Mr. Obama, I feel like this entire article should be written in "RED INK"! George Bush is in Crawford, Texas; he has not been the President for some time now. It is your bad decisions that have driven America into this economic firestorm. America cannot sustain much more of this stupidity from the White House. Barack, live within your means! Perhaps our current president needs to be on a fixed income; let's retire him in 2012!!

"Catterpillar Jar!"

Have you ever made a decision that you regretted? When I was boy, about six years old, I walked around our neighborhood picking fuzzy caterpillars off of the buildings, and putting them in a jar. I put holes in the jar so the insects could breathe. As I examined the jar in the course of my travels, I noticed it had become coated with the fuzz from the caterpillars. Remember, I was six years old; my first instinct was to take the top off of the jar and blow out the fuzz. I was with my friend Tony that morning; we were buddies. After a few minutes from the "blowing incident" I noticed that my face felt funny, and I asked Tony what it looked like. Tony said it looked kind of swelled. We were close to Tony's house, so we stopped in to see his Mom. Tony's Mom took one look at me and said "Joey, go home and show your mother right now!" Well, I went home and when my Mom saw me, she was quite upset. She tossed me in the bath tub, scrubbing me vigorously, then, covering me with calamine lotion. When I finally got a look at my face, I was a little scared; it looked like a balloon of red welts. Mom proceeded to call Dr. Kaufman, our pediatrician; he said the caterpillars defend themselves with that fuzz, and I got a massive dose of their poison. Six year old boys aren't always very smart! Bad decisions can cause pain and embarrassment. Sometimes one bad decision leads to another.

In the last few days, we have seen the story of Congressman Anthony Weiner in the news. It is alleged that the Congressman sent a picture of his male private parts to a young girl. This, if true, is very disturbing, yet in our current atmosphere of tolerance, isn't too surprising. Sex scandals are rampant in politics and entertainment. John Edwards, "Arnold", Bill Clinton and scores of others in politics have been "caught with their pants down". What I find so disturbing about this, is the Congressman's own statement, "He can't say with certitude whether the penis in the picture is his or not." What this says to me is that the Congressman does have pictures of his penis, or has had pictures of his penis taken! AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!! I can honestly say I don't know a single person who has ever had any pictures of his penis taken. I'm hoping never to know anyone who has pictures of his penis in his photo album at home! At what point in one's life does one consider taking pictures of their genitalia a good idea? Could this be considered a good conversation starter, or ice breaker at a party?

Mr. Weiner (no pun intended) has been a vocal member of Congress for some time now; yet, I somehow feel his words won't carry as much weight as they may have carried in the past. It looks to me like Congressman Weiner "BLEW IN THE JAR OF CATERPILLARS!"

"Alternate Universe"

I remember an old episode of "Twilight Zone" which dealt with an astronaut who lands back on earth, but it is in an alternate universe where things look the same; but not exactly the same. As the astronaut sits in his hospital room, the people he knew and the world he knew were somehow twisted and distorted; as if they were strangers in a strange land. As the plot moved along, the astronaut convinced those in charge to launch him into the stratosphere; where he went through some weird lights and landed on his own earth. It seems our hero had exchanged places with his mirror image in another dimension. You've got to love Rod Serling!

Now you must be asking yourselves, where I'm going with this "alternate universe" stuff? Not long ago, our president made statements about our borders being safer now than they have ever been. He also made statements about stepped up protection and enforcement of prosecution of illegal aliens. Far be it from me to question the President's veracity; but, WHAT?? I spend much of my time reading different news sources around the country; the southwest and western states are always interesting, as they are experiencing such devastation from the influx of illegal aliens. Anyone who doesn't believe this, please do some research on your own; don't rely on me or anyone else. If you know anyone who lives in the area, contact them for firsthand knowledge of this awful situation.

A few days ago, a Houston Police Officer, Kevin Will, was struck and killed by an illegal alien, who was driving drunk. This, in itself, doesn't sound unfamiliar in today's atmosphere of illegal alien behavior; but the story gets much worse. Johoan Rodriguez, 26, was at a blood alcohol level that was three times the legal limit, he was claiming to be an American citizen; he was twice deported and had several encounters with the Houston Police Department. He had a falsified driver's license to support his spurious claim of citizenship. Twice he was thrown out of America; and twice he came back. This time, while speeding in a drunken stupor, he hit Officer Will, killing him instantly and dragging his body down the highway. This is a tragedy that didn't have to happen. Had the Mexican government taken care of its own economic problems; had our President addressed this problem with some real action, then Officer Will would be having dinner with his family tonight, instead of being another victim of criminal illegal alien intrusion into America! This is not an isolated instance! Our borders are porous, and are being violated every day of the week. Our President says it is safer now than ever; I don't believe him!

It's time for you to come back from that "alternate universe" Mr. President; things aren't safer, the border is a battle zone, and you pretend everything is alright! How many more police officers, and honest LEGAL citizens must suffer before you act? Perhaps Barack Obama is from that America in an "ALTERNATE UNIVERSE", he obviously doesn't know what is happening here!

"We Need a New Squad Leader!"

There is a country song titled "Beer for my horses, and whiskey for my men!" about an old Civil War cavalry unit. It is bawdy and fun to listen to, it also speaks to the bond soldiers have to one another, and how leaders in combat love their men.

Sleeping, eating and bathing with people on a daily basis can be very bonding. Lying in the dirt, with explosions and gunfire can even be more bonding. Nobody depends on others more than a member of the military in a combat situation. Each member of every squad; each squad in every platoon; each platoon in every company and each company in every battalion depend on everybody doing their parts to insure a successful mission, with the least amount of death and injury: this all hinges on trust and loyalty; all forged under the heat of firefights. Squad leaders depend on their men to protect each other; even before they protect themselves; it's all about survival and love of compatriots.

Our soldiers, marines, air force and navy are the finest men and women in the world; and deserve the very best support America can supply. Men and women in service know what they need more than any politician. Even we old "vets" can't say what is necessary in today's battlefields; all conflicts are unique. One thing we can all agree on is the bond between warriors. We know the value of trust and loyalty.

A recent Gallup Poll has shown that the majority of the military view Barack Obama as "less than favorable" in his presidential leadership capabilities toward the needs of our fighting forces. Non-military folks give Mr. Obama a 48% approval rating, while only 37% of the active military polled give him a favorable review; about a quarter of a million military people were surveyed. What does this say about our current Chief Executive? When I served there were always jokes about Richard Nixon and Ho Chi Min; but Nixon was still Commander-in-Chief, and we all held him in a measure of respect. Nixon did serve in the Navy during WWII, and had some grasp of what those serving go through on a daily basis; and knew the importance of rapid supply of men and equipment in times of combat. Soldiers know if they are "running out of bullets", and "fresh troops"; lack of both can get men killed quickly.

Perhaps Mr. Obama's low approval rating goes back to him sitting on his hands about adding troops last year for nearly six months. One hour of waiting in a combat situation seems eternal; it only takes seconds for a comrade to die.

Oddly, no group surveyed was over the 50% approval mark in support of this President. What does this say about how America views the leadership ability of Barack Obama? Along with our troops, is America being left in a "foxhole" with no relief in sight? It's time for a new "squad leader", one who cares about his "troops"!