This was sent by AW1Ed. It’s the only one this morning.
“SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The fatal shooting of Titus Ellington at the Castle Point Apartments in July 2018 was a justifiable homicide and no charges will be filed, according to the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office.”
https://www.abc57.com/news/home-invasion-suspects-death-a-justifiable-homicide
I’m sure there are more, so please inflict them on Dave Hardin, who is probably still in a daze and bumping into furniture from his trek.
This is from Poetrooper. As spenorty as it is, I think he’s getting his game back in spades.
Cashiering is a historical military ritual in which an officer who has betrayed his oath or failed in his duty is required to stand before the assembled troops and have all symbols of rank and service stripped from his uniform, to demonstrate most forcefully the disgrace he has brought upon himself and possibly them. His cap is knocked off and crushed underfoot; epaulettes or shoulder boards are ripped from his tunic; brass buttons are cut away; all medals, awards, and symbols of rank and past service are torn off and dropped in the dirt; and finally, his formal sword is broken over the knee of a fellow officer, with the two pieces scornfully cast at the disgraced officer’s feet. It is a rite of personal and professional degradation, purposely intended to convey as much contempt and evoke as much shame as possible, to deter other officers from bringing such dishonor upon themselves and their services.
This weekend, retired Lieutenant Colonel Ralph Peters went on CNN’s dubiously titled Reliable Sources and, in the presence of the show’s serially unreliable host, Brian Stelter, and all those unfortunate souls in airport waiting areas across the nation being force-fed this liberal Sunday-morning drivel, cashiered himself. It appears that fulminating Trump Derangement Syndrome brought this former Fox News military analyst to perform this sad ceremony.
To his credit, he did a bang-up job of it.
First, Peters said:
Well, the most dreadful part is that we have a president who does not respect our system of government, does not understand our government, who is not interested in understanding our government, who believes that the Constitution is a menu from which he can choose only the most delectable items, who disdains career bureaucrats, who doesn’t respect the Constitution.
Whap! There went Peters’s headgear. Then this self-anointed Russia expert proceeded to do one of those Russian kick dances on his fallen headdress while ripping away his shoulder boards with this:
But the twin – the evil twin of that is that I believe, as a former Russia analyst for most of my career, and having worked directly with Russian intelligence services, I am convinced that the president of the United States is enthralled to Vladimir Putin. There is no other way to explain his behavior. And he perfectly fits the profile of the kind of people the Russians target.
Poor Peters continued this ritual of self-abasement by ripping away his buttons and medals with this:
I left Fox because as a former military officer who took an oath to the Constitution, I could not be part of a channel that to me was assaulting the Constitution, the constitutional order, the rule of law. But that said, Fox isn’t immoral, it’s amoral. It was opportunistic. Trump was a gift to Fox and Fox in turn is a gift to Trump. As you observed earlier, it’s a closed loop and so people that only listen to Fox have an utterly skewed view of reality.
Peter’s sword-breaking was reserved for this observation:
[P]eople supporting Trump are radicals. These … couch potato anarchists … don’t have a program to make America great again, and by the way America is great right now, rather, they’re destructive. They want to tear things down. They want vengeance. And Trump is brilliant at that. He’s done what autocrats and charlatans and false messiahs throughout history have done. He’s told core supporters, you’re not to blame for the mistakes you made. You’re not to blame for your failures. It’s them, it’s the minorities, it’s the immigrants, it’s fake news, it’s the deep state.
As a combat veteran, which Peters is not, I have to wonder if this sneering, whiny-voiced news show commando has a clue as to how many millions of his military family he has just branded as destructive, vengeful, racist couch-potato anarchists, followers of a false messiah and derelict in our oaths to the Constitution. It is a fact that a substantial majority of military personnel, whether active-duty, retirees, or veterans, are conservative in their politics, so Peters had to know he was spitting in the faces of millions of his former comrades. While not enamored of some of Trump’s antics, many of us see him as something of a political Patton – a bit headstrong, perhaps, and sometimes crude in his language, but nonetheless an effective, hard charging leader who knows who and where America’s antagonists are and takes the battle to them with whatever weapons are called for. And wins. We, and I suspect our enemies as well, find it hard to imagine this president drawing a bright red line for an adversary and then turning tail when it is defied, leaving America to be mocked by some pissant potentate as it was under his presidential predecessor.
Except for a few former senior officers fearful of losing their monetized security clearances with the cushy sinecures in corporate boardrooms and network greenrooms those bring, this loose-lipped, self-cashiered light colonel is most likely going to find his newly chosen political parade ground a lonely place indeed. As Peters’s disloyal diatribe gets around the military community he has so scurrilously slandered, he soon may wish that he had performed an additional historical military ritual: seppuku, the Japanese face-saving rite of self-disembowelment.
I love stuff like this.
The former head of the leading boot making company of the U.S. military was recently sentenced to federal prison for fraud after a scheme in which he imported Chinese-made boots labeled with “USA” to pass off as American-made.
Vincent Lee Ferguson, 66, of Knoxville, Tennessee, was sentenced to more than three years in prison for the contract fraud earlier this month.
The former president and chief executive officer will join his Wellco Enterprises, Inc. co-workers, former Senior Vice President of Sales Matthew Lee Ferguson, 41, and former Director of Marketing and Communications, Kerry Joseph Ferguson, 36, who were sentenced in June to six months in prison, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Tennessee.
Under the Berry Amendment, U.S. military uniform items must be manufactured in the United States. The company has been the lead boot supplier for the Department of Defense for more than 70 years.
Between 2006 and 2012 alone, DoD paid more than $138 million for combat boots.
Ferguson and his executive team’s Chinese import scheme began as early as December 2008 and lasted through August 2012, a time in which they sold more than $8.1 million worth of the fraudulent boots, according to the release.
Two shipments of fraudulent “USA” boots were seized by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection. On each pair, Ferguson and his team had the manufacturer tear away “Made in China” tags prior to shipment.
“Falsely selling our military millions of dollars of combat boots by saying they were ‘Made in the USA’ when they are actually Chinese-knockoffs not only defrauds the government, but also defrauds the American soldier,” said Defense Criminal Investigative Service Assistant Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer. “Our soldiers rely on their equipment, from their guns to their boots, to protect this country, and counterfeit products could fail at a moment when they need them the most.”
So there it is: check the label to see if it’s been switched. Danner makes some military-style boots, but if one of their products is made in China, they say so. Most manufacturing of that kind has gone overseas, anyway. Could be why some of it wears out too quickly, too.
Attention on deck! Listen up! It appears that China, our esteemed trading partner, and manufacturer of multiple hundreds of thousands of brands of US-bound electronics junk, is not only forming its very own Nuke Triad Club, but is also targeting our very own turf, the island of Guam.
Ain’t that just sweet??? After all those stories about the Norks in Norkiland targeting the US’s left coast and Guam, now we have to worry about the Chinese doing it, too?
From the article:
“The Pentagon, for the first time, has publicly reported what commanders in the Pacific have known about, and kept a wary eye on, for some time: China is practicing long-range bombing runs against U.S. targets.
“While the Defense Department annually reports on the rapid growth in capabilities of China’s air, land and sea forces, the 2018 report is the first to acknowledge the direct threat to U.S. territory.
“Recent developments on China’s H-6K variant of its Badger bomber give the bomber “the capability to carry six land-attack cruise missiles, giving the PLA a long-range standoff precision strike capability that can range Guam,” the report said. It also acknowledged frequent bombing practice runs that U.S. commanders at the newly renamed U.S. INDOPACOM in Hawaii have watched expand in numbers and distance.”
— Military Times article
There is a link in the article to another article on how China has been practicing bombing runs against the USA territory of Guam. Now, that’s just rude.
Here’s another link to an article regarding the proposed $716 billion DoD budget for FY2019. https://www.defensenews.com/congress/2018/08/20/this-week-in-congress-us-senate-debates-pentagon-spending-bill/
Maybe we should stop sending our technology to China for manufacturing. You know, keep it close to the buttons on the front of your blouse or shirt.
We did talk about that the other day: bringing all US manufacturing home to Mama, but no one brought up this very subject, which could have been addressed.
I know it would run up the cost of the iPad for Applefans, but – well, they’re obsessed with Appletoys, anyway, and I’m so unimpressed with all of that stuff that I’m still using a 15-year-old computer.
Looks like the Soviet didn’t wake up Dave Hardin, so the usual crime stories haven’t come up yet. Much of this is local, so please bear with me.
From the Bannockburn PD: A Wisconsin man was charged with aggravated felony misuse of a weapon by the Bannockburn, IL, police.
James L. Blackwell, 24, of Milwaukee, was originally arrested July 22, according to a Bannockburn Police report.
Police and the Deerfield Bannockburn Fire Protection District were sent to a gas station at the southeast corner of Waukegan and Half Day roads to investigate smoke coming from a vehicle, according to the report.
During their investigation, police learned the car was stolen, according to the report. An officer safety alert was issued because Blackwell is affiliated with the Gangster Disciples and had a criminal history with weapons and assault offenses, police said.
Per the article, the Lake County State’s Attorney’s office approved his being charged with a lack of an FOID. I’m not sure that will stick, if Blackwell is a resident of Wisconsin, but imagine being a gangbanger and trying to get an FOID. Think about it for a moment. If that doesn’t make you fall down laughing, nothing will.
I’ve been following this since it first appeared, and I’m glad to see this individual termed “unfit” by the legal system. He and his dingbat wife kept their 10-year-old daughter locked in the basement of their home because they thought she was demonically possessed. Unfit in the state of Illinois means he has to spend time in a state-approved facility before he faces trial.
In other words, she was probably a normal, energetic, bright young girl and they couldn’t deal with it.
And why we’re getting Chicago news from the UK is beyond me, but this story has 60 people getting shot over the weekend, 29 people getting arrested for gun violence, and CPI Police Chief saying it’s the same people doing this.
Also one of the shooting victims was a 3-year-old child, and the likelihood that any of these guns were bought by FOID gun owners is ludicrous.
According to the Marine Corps Times, the Marine was shot in the head. However, the bullet bounced off his helmet. He’s being put in for a Purple Heart. Would a CAR be more appropriate? https://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news/your-marine-corps/2018/08/16/marine-shot-in-the-head-in-sangin-returns-to-full-duty/
According to the NYT article (below) he was seen by a medic as standard procedure and returned to duty thereafter, per Maj. Joshua C. Benson, a Marine Corps spokesman, in an email.
There is insufficient information in the MC Times article to form a real opinion this. It does not say that he was hit hard enough to develop a concussion from the impact, only that the round bounced off of his helmet. That could generate a concussion, or leave him unconscious, or damage his hearing sufficiently to impair his ability to do his job in the field.
So did the Marine in the 325th get a concussion, or was he rendered unconscious briefly? The article just doesn’t say, and I’m not willing to compromise anyone’s security over there by sticking my nose into it.
This New York Times article does have a small amount of additional information, however, including news that an Army Special Forces soldier was killed in a roadside bomb attack during that same time period.
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/13/us/politics/special-forces-soldier-killed-afghanistan.html
Things you can say to your kids /grandkids to bring order out of chaos:
Chocolate chips are meant for cookies. If you want chocolate chip cookies, I will help you make them.
There is more than one peanut butter and jam (or banana) sandwich in the world.
I told you that you were smart enough to do that arithmetic problem by yourself on paper.
No, sharing does not mean letting the dog/cat eat off your plate at the dinner table.
Popcorn is not a major food group. Make a better choice.
Of course I’ll let you make those cookies by yourself. I still want to be in the kitchen when you do that, because you always have questions.
I’m proud of everything you do, even if it’s silly.
One day a week without a (name the device) is like a vacation from school, isn’t it?
Well, if you spilled it, then you know how to clean it up, right? Come and tell me when you get it cleaned up.
You can always tell me the truth. I will still love you.
N.B.: Someone passed this story on to me some time ago, and I thought I would relay it to you now. If you’ve heard it before, even better. I ran across it while cleaning out my files, dumping unneeded stuff, and when I read it, I thought of Mikey Whinestein… and I started laughing all over again.
I was sitting at my desk when I remembered a phone call I’d forgotten to make. I found the number and dialed it. A man answered, saying “Hello.”
I politely said, “This is Chris. Could I please speak with Robyn Carter?”
Suddenly a manic voice yelled out in my ear “Get the right f***ing number!” and the phone was slammed down on me. I couldn’t believe that anyone could be so rude.
When I tracked down Robyn’s correct number to call her, I found that I had accidentally transposed the last two digits.
After hanging up with her, I decided to call the ‘wrong’ number again.
When the same guy answered the phone, I yelled “You’re an asshole!” and hung up. I wrote his number down with the word ‘asshole’ next to it, and put it in my desk drawer. Every couple of weeks, when I was paying bills or had a really bad day, I’d call him up and yell, “You’re an asshole!” It always cheered me up.
When Caller ID was introduced, I thought my therapeutic ‘asshole’ calling would have to stop. So, I called his number and said, “Hi, this is John Smith from the telephone company. I’m calling to see if you’re familiar with our Caller ID Program?” He yelled “NO!” and slammed down the phone. I quickly called him back and said, “That’s because you’re an asshole!” and hung up.
One day I was at the store, getting ready to pull into a parking spot. Some guy in a black BMW cut me off and pulled into the spot I had patiently waited for. I hit the horn and yelled that I’d been waiting for that spot, but the idiot ignored me. I noticed a “For Sale” sign in his back window, so I wrote down his number.
A couple of days later, right after calling the first asshole (I had his number on speed dial,) I thought that I’d better call the BMW asshole, too.
I said, “Is this the man with the black BMW for sale?”
He said, “Yes, it is.” I asked, “Can you tell me where I can see it?”
He said, “Yes, I live at 34 Oaktree Blvd, in a yellow rambler, and the car’s parked right out in front.”
I asked, “What’s your name?”
He said, “My name is Don Hansen,”
I asked, “When’s a good time to catch you, Don?”
He said, “I’m home every evening after five.”
I said, “Listen, Don, can I tell you something?”
He said, “Yes?”
I said, “Don, you’re an asshole!”
Then I hung up, and added his number to my speed dial, too.
Now, when I had a problem, I had two assholes to call.
Then I came up with an idea. I called asshole #1.
He said, “Hello.”
I said, “You’re an asshole!” (But I didn’t hang up.)
He asked, “Are you still there?”
I said, “Yeah,”
He screamed, “Stop calling me,”
I said, “Make me,”
He asked, “Who are you?”
I said, “My name is Don Hansen.”
He said, “Yeah? Where do you live?” I said, “Asshole, I live at 34 Oaktree Blvd, in Fairfax, a yellow rambler, I have a black Beamer parked in front.”
He said, “I’m coming over right now, Don. And you had better start saying your prayers.”
I said, “Yeah, like I’m really scared, asshole,” and hung up.
Then I called Asshole #2.
He said, “Hello?”
I said, “Hello, asshole,”
He yelled, “If I ever find out who you are…”
I said, “You’ll what?”
He exclaimed, “I’ll kick your ass,”
I answered, “Well, asshole, here’s your chance. I’m coming over right now.”
Then I hung up and immediately called the police, saying that I lived at 34 Oaktree Blvd, in Fairfax, and that I was on my way over there to kill my gay lover!
Then I called Channel 9 News about the gang war going down on Oaktree Blvd. in Fairfax.
I quickly got into my car and headed over to Fairfax. I got There just in time to watch two assholes beating the crap out of each other in front of six cop cars, an overhead news helicopter and surrounded by a news crew.
NOW I feel much better. Anger management really does work.