Robert at Interstate 4 Jamming wants you to mark your calendar for the Shrubbery’s visit to the real Fanastyland, rather than the pale imitation he has constructed in Washington.

Tbogg cleaned out his box of Aggie jokes in his take down of George Deutsch, the recent Texas A&M graduate and political appointee who decided he had the chops to correct a NASA scientist.

This one is dated, which I blame on Blogger, but Shakespeare’s Sister has a great body slam on the Shrubbery by Charles Rangel.

Well, I’ve cleaned out my “pending” file.

Has anyone explained that it is bad form to use the tactics of the enemy, especially an enemy that had been declared in rebellion against the government and Constitution of the United States, as justification for your actions. This is really pathetic. Did any of these people take an American history course? Do they understand which side won the Civil War?

I’m sure someone can explain the difference between basing the civil laws of a society on the Bible, and basing them on the Qur’an. One of the things that bothers me is that if either were really the “revealed truth”, that “truth” wouldn’t have to be interpreted, i.e. the meaning would be obvious from the text and there would be no priests, ministers, pastors, imams, rabbis, etc.

Sorry, folks, but when it comes to civil law, I would just as soon not base laws on books that tell you not to kill and then almost immediately begin listing all of the reasons you are required to kill people. I sense a certain lack of consistency that is important in the law.

Via ‘Noz, the Black Iris, a Jordanian, offers: Instructions on How to Burn Denmark’s Flag Properly. Don’t assume anything from the post’s title, just go and read what one Muslim thinks about the cartoons.

Professor Cole adds his opinion on the reaction to the cartoons, and notes that while you can be arrested for wearing a t-shirt in the US, things aren’t quite that controlled in the third world. [Aside: I thought he drew blood with that one.]

I looked back at the time, and have been tracking it ever since, and it is a clear pattern. Under the Republicans the military budget is designed to help defense contractors, while the real benefits increases come from the Democrats.

As this Army Times article and post from the Bad Tux show, that trend continues.

We have all of this new, unproven hardware in the pipeline and based on the design specifications, not actual performance, proven systems are being retired. They are cutting people to pay for this at a time when we are short-handed.

Anyone dropping by should know this because it may color something that I write. Governments that have attacked me, or my associates in the reconnaissance business, while we were engaged in non-hostile activities in or over international waters will never be my friends.

I have no problem with those involved in the unpleasantness in Southeast Asia, because we were doing our jobs and it wasn’t personal. It was a war and you are required to be hostile to the “enemy”.

The governments of North Korea, China, Israel, and Libya were not at war with the United States at the time of the attacks and I see no reason to excuse them for their actions. The aircraft and vessels were clearly marked, were outside their territorial waters, and they chose to attack.

Many are probably unaware of the majority of these attacks, but I lost friends or was severely inconvenienced by evasive maneuvers, so I don’t intend to forget or forgive, no matter what my government decides to do.

I don’t mind playing the game, although I have a shoulder that gives me a bit of trouble from a block I threw playing for my squadron in Germany that resulted in a brutal sacking of the opposing quarterback. If I’m not playing, I couldn’t care less.