Judicial Murder

Terri Schindler died today at the age of 41. She did not die a natural death, however. She was tortured in a sick and inhumane way and then, she was killed in a manner that should never be allowed in America. We used to be civilized; today I am not so sure about that. What was her crime? Perhaps, marrying a man who has a heart of stone, who was strongly influenced by George Felos, an insignificant little 'Angel of Death' who truly appears to be one of the minions of evil. Bobby Schindler was right when he said, "I think Mr. Felos has some infatuation with death." Thank goodness for 'soul speak' so that Felos could psychically connect with Terri and hear her trapped and tortured soul cry out, "Somebody, kill me please!"

We treat terrorists better than this. Terrorists are never starved or deprived of water, by virtue of the Geneva Convention, even though terrorists aren't even subject to its rules. It is amazing how Terri Schiavo’s inalienable right to life was not protected by the constitution of America of 2005. Oh, how far we have come, and not in the right direction. If this is progress, we are stuck in reverse and gaining speed. May God have mercy on America.

“Mishkaawiisinidah”

I worked at Red Lake today. It was a surreal day, working in close proximity to the school buildings, with parking lots virtually deserted, with the exception of a larger police presence than I have ever seen in Red Lake. Police cars barricaded the entrances to each school building and police officers stood watch. The high school is next door to the casino, and the middle school is about four blocks west of the casino, but both are on the main street of Red Lake. Both are heavily guarded and off limits to all but the police, until schools re-open, possibly next week.

As it should be, every flag is at half-staff, out of reverence for the dead. There are ten white crosses along the chain link fence in front of the high school, each standing about five feet tall and with the name of one of the victims of the violence of last Monday. For about fifty yards, the fence is completely covered with flowers, signs and posters with messages of support, thoughts and prayers, and there are stuffed animals, teddy bears and other mementos. No one is speaking about the deaths openly, as the tribal customs require the names of the victims to remain unstated during this time of remembrance. The people I worked with were speaking in muted tones and the names remain unspoken, in deference to the customs among the Chippewa regarding mourning.

I did hear that part of the grieving process for the Chippewa Indians, who have a close-knit, family-based culture, is to have a two-day wake. Part of that includes prayers by a holy man, and a fire is built that is kept burning day and night until the wake is over. The logs for the fire are stacked to allow the wind to travel under them and aid in the deceased Chippewa’s journey to the afterlife. After two days, a traditional Christian funeral follows.

All seems to be calm now, but it is surreal, and I am sure that the closeness of the community has been severely shaken. From an outsider’s perspective looking in on a close-knit community, all I can say is, God bless them, and help them to be strong.

“Mishkaawiisinidah” is Ojibwe for “Let’s be strong.”

First Rain/ Thunderstorm

Gabriel slept through his first thunderstorm this morning. It stopped thundering after awhile and continued raining. He did see a bit of that. Being that he was a winter baby like me, this was the first rain he has seen. I credit us making noise while Gabriel sleeps for his ability to sleep through the thunder. I'll like that later when I don't have to share our bed with a scared kid who woke up during a storm. I'm not saying that it will never happen, just that it is less likely. By the way, the rain did more than just entertain Gabriel. It proved to me that the dripping from the skylight that Doug experienced the other day was not leaking. It was just condensation from our inadequately ventilated house.

The hand basket

The political handling of Terri Schindler has come into view as a defining moment in the relentless march toward euthanasia in America. If I were a fervent advocate of "the right to die," I would not be at ease with the legalized murder of Terri Schindler. I say “Terri Schindler” because her so-called husband has forced her into a de facto divorce… either that, or he is a bigamist. Take your pick. Extra-marital affairs are unlawful in Florida, just FYI.

Sometimes, the point in time at which a ventilator should be disengaged is not a clear-cut singular moment, and it is tricky to know if a dearly loved family member should be permitted to depart this life peacefully through choices we make involving their beneficial care, or the lack thereof. This is not such a case in the least.

Terri Schiavo was not going to die, at least not until her so-called husband, his parasitical lawyer, George Felos, and their not at all honorable judicial gangster, Judge Greer, got their demands met and her feeding tube was removed. She was not being kept alive by extraordinary methods. She was not "brain dead" by any characterization of that slick terminology. Her death would be caused not by the termination of medical treatment, but by dehydration and starvation.

From a non-medical standpoint, it was quite obvious that Michael Schiavo had great impetus in his egocentric quest of his wife's premature demise. He stood to collect a considerable fiscal inheritance, and liberty to walk down the aisle with the polluted woman with whom he has carried out a protracted extra-marital affair. He had the cash, until he took the money awarded him to provide for Terri’s therapy and paid his legal team to assure an innocent woman was sentenced to die. What we have here is legally mandated murder. What manner of a woman would covet a man like Michael Schiavo, knowing how unfeeling and despicable he acts toward his suffering in-laws? Doesn’t his common law wife understand that a man who has cheated on his wife has a tendency to do to same thing to the woman who has replaced his wife? Michael Schiavo’s callous antagonism toward his wife's parents shows unmistakably that he is on a vulgar individual drive to terminate Terri Schindler. Her parents, Robert and Mary Schindler, were sincere and forthright, honestly expressing their unrelenting declaration that Terri wanted to live. She lives on, but not for long.

Isn’t it blatantly obvious that, after 12 days without food, she has the will to live? IF she wanted to die, she would have given up and died. Terri Schindler wants to live, and no willful, legal murder of one so innocent will go unpunished. If we stand by and let this happen, we will rue the day that it comes back to haunt us, and I am speaking to America’s future, to anyone who listens.

This is a dangerous and slippery slope we are trampling, on, what, the road to Nazism and the duty to die? I saw a bumper sticker on the rear bumper of a rice burning four-banger today, driven by some Marxist-Leninist wannabe (judging by the rancorously anti-American slogans and hippy-chick pro-United Nations bumper stickers). While she had her cell phone glued to the side of her head in a semi-permanent and likely carcinogenic position, it occurred to me that here was another stooge who doesn’t understand what she is wishing for. After all, the human race has such malevolent avarice and egotistical deficiencies that collectivism is plainly preposterous and idiotic. The flip side, hard work pays off for those who give it their all. This ‘Blame America’ joker wasn’t an American I can be proud of. It seems ironic she had one bumper sticker that seems absolutely fitting, for some reason.

It said: “Where are you taking me, and why am I in this hand basket?”

Gabriel update

A faithful reader asked for more posts about Gabriel, so here it goes. Gabriel was recently the hit of the family Easter celebration. He got passed around all day. Many commented on how much he has grown. He has, in fact, grown a considerable amount since Doug's family saw him last. They saw him shortly after he was born. The Thursday before Easter Gabriel turned two months old. He went to the doctor for a check-up and vaccinations (my poor baby!). Gabriel weighed in at 12 lbs, 12 ozs and measured 23 1/4 inches. Of all the people who held him on Sunday, Gabriel seemed to particularly fall asleep in the arms of Liz, Doug's niece. Liz seemed slightly hurt by this, especially since her sister, Chris, teased that Liz bored Gabriel to sleep. As I told Doug, you should take it as a compliment if a baby falls asleep in your arms. That baby felt safe enough with that he or she fell asleep. I don't know about you, Liz, but the first time I fell in love was the first time a baby fell asleep in my arms.

"Supporters of Michael Schiavo's effort to end his wife's life have asked how conservatives, who claim to believe in the sanctity of marriage, can fail to respect his husbandly authority. The most obvious answer is that a man's authority as a husband does not supersede his wife's rights as a human being -- a principle we never thought we'd see liberals question." --James Taranto

You have got to stand for something or you’ll… be an amoral liberal (same thing, amoral EQUALS liberal). Whichever way the pollster wind blows, so goes the belief system of the Socialist Democratic Nazi Party of America (a more accurate name for the Democrap party, since that is basically what they stand for: death to the innocent, absolute taxation without tangible representation, confiscation of the wealth of the hard-working and giving that money to the slothful, idle, and those unlawfully in the United States). Of course, the Democrap Party also stands up for your civil rights, except, of course, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Oh, and the right to defend yourself, to pray anywhere you want, to do just about anything that would cause you to be a reflection on the life that God would want you to live.

The wacko oligarchic blood-sucking lawyers in black dresses who call themselves our judiciary have declared that the hypocrite phony named Michael Shiavo can execute his wife with the support of a judicial diktat, even though hearsay is inadmissible in Florida courts. So, the word of the Schindlers doesn’t count for a thing, but the lying word of Michael Shiavo, wife-abuse enthusiast, is the gospel truth… the gospel of death, and a license to kill, that is. Hearsay is useless in Florida, unless you want to kill your wife, and you have had a common law wife for the last ten years. Not only is that adultery and abandonment, both of which are taboo, but having two wives at the same time is, Michael Shiavo, homicidal megalomaniac that you are, polygamy, which is unlawful in every one of the 50 states of this once-great union. I have got to tell you, that George Felos, "Right to murder your wife" advocate, is one scary little man. He speaks with a forked tongue, just like his master. It is not for me to judge, but i find it hard to imagine that these two will be anywhere but in Hades one day soon. You know the arrogant monsters I am talking about.

If Terri Shiavo dies, after suffering these next few days for critical nourishment, those who have taken Jesus Christ as their savior will go to Golgotha. We will see Terri passing from this mortal subsistence to her great reward, while we who are left behind in this decaying world will see a startling transformation. Maria Esperanza, the distinguished Catholic seer, foretold that the death of an innocent childlike individual would be the harbinger of a long-anticipated swell welcoming God’s purifying Grace.

It is starting to happen. It is in evidence in the natural world. There is chaos and darkness. For now, it seems that Satan is triumphant. He has put the scales of evil blindness before the moral sight of America and the human race. We are consoled in knowing that no matter how sinister it becomes, the anguish and the gloom will be followed by renewal. I would be surprised if Michael Shiavo and his purely malevolent lawyer, George Felos, will allow Terri Schiavo-Schindler to live until Easter Sunday. Somehow, that seems appropriate, should God take her home on Good Friday at 3:00 p.m., by Easter morning, Jesus Christ will roll back the stone from the tomb, taking Terri in the radiance of his Love.

I have no doubt that soon she will be rejoicing in paradise before God in Heaven. My simple prediction, Terri is going home soon, as heartbreaking as that is to those left behind. Terri has an unalienable right to life, something that her so-called husband has no legal or moral right to steal from her, but he already has. Soon, Terri will be whole again. How very appropriate that reward will be.

Recall...and an expert opinion

Yesterday a Sears repairman came to replace a thing on the inside ceiling of the microwave. A recall put out by the company said that the plate thingy trapped grease up there and caused fires. We were more concerned about the state of the cord. The insulation seemed to be melting on its own and exposing the wires. Additionally, the control pad was constantly malfunctioning, the microwave not always heating, and the microwave randomly starting. We kept it unplugged. I told the repairman that if it was left plugged in it might randomly say "PAD". He told me that this meant that the control pad needed to be replaced along with the computer behind it, all to the tune of $150. He followed that up with the revelation that a new microwave like the one we have costs around $300. Do the math. I told him we'd most likely be getting a new one soon because the cord made it unsafe to use. He didn't put the recall repair kit in because he knew that we would throw the microwave away.

I called Doug and told him the news while he was on his way home. He stopped at Best Buy and looked at microwaves before he came home. Doug took me to see them, and we came home with one. The fun of installation commenced and did not end until midnight. I had been hungry since 5pm, so I was the first one to use the microwave. It's nice. I don't have to worry about starting the house on fire now. I like that.

To all my loved ones, family and friends, get a living will or health care proxy in order today! Our government is no longer “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” but in the hands of special interests and lawyers. They cannot handle our money, they are bankrupting our economy and the ideals that made America the greatest nation in the history of the world, and what next? They surely cannot be counted on to defend our liberties or err on the side of life. Trust no one with your life but God. These evil people can not be trusted!

I left just in time

Talk about something that makes a person think. Did anyone watch the news tonight and hear about that school shooting in Red Lake, MN? I was working there today, and I left one hour before the shootings. What is wrong with people these days, especially kids killing kids, and kids with guns? What is that all about? It sounds like eight people have been killed and 15 or so injured, by a student who is probably dead now, too. Apparently, the suspect killed his grandparents first and then headed for the school. It just really makes a person reflect, question and worry.

One of the executive directors for the Red Lake Band gave me what was, in his words, "a bit of friendly advice" to "get off the reservation before the sun goes down." I read an article about the Indian gang that is virulently active in Red Lake and Cass Lake. I can tell you from visiting the casinos on a regular basis that in these communities, hostility and murders aren't even a big deal any longer, as violence is an everyday occurrence. But when people get killed in a school, the news organizations take note. This really got my attention after I heard about it, particularly because I was the only non-Native American I saw in the city of Red Lake and at the casino the entire time I was there, which was about two hours. An hour later... all hell breaks loose.

There are countless news stories to support this thought: the whole world has gone crazy. This is madness. Can the hand of God's justice be far behind?

Today's News

I was happy to wake up and discover that Congress got its act together and passed the same version of Terri's Law so that President Bush could sign it at 1AM this morning. I hope the federal judge will find in favor of Terri. She deserves the right to live and should have had therapy a long time ago. Unfortunately, the randomly picked judge was appointed by Clinton. He may not be as persuaded to err on the side of life. After all, Clinton would never have appointed someone who was pro-life. We'll have to see what happens. Die with dignity, my foot! Being dehydrated and starved to death is not dignified!

On another note, it is obvious what the media thinks America wants to see when you turn on the TV and one of the top stories with as much importance as Terri's murder is Michael Jackson walking into court acting like he is in worse shape than Chief Justice Rehnquist. Who cares? He's a wiener! He's only doing it to get publicity. Quit giving him what he wants!

There is confirmation that innumerable Americans still appreciate our nation's Founding code: "We hold these Truths to be self-evident, that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness...." What else could account for the sorrowful awareness concerning the case of Terri Schindler-Schiavo, who was ordered put to death by dehydration and starvation, beginning Friday under court order?

Within our nation's matchless founding deed, The Declaration of Independence, as upheld by its consequent regulation, The Constitution, there is a momentous idiom, "unalienable." It's a word that delineates certain of our constitutional rights as powerless to be alienated, estranged, surrendered, or reassigned... not even under judicial decree. Life itself is one such unalienable right, and no good administration can reassign the right to life for a category of people into the control of another class of people.

Thomas Jefferson trembled for this nation, in reflecting that God's righteousness cannot slumber without end, presaged, "The God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time; the hand of force may destroy, but cannot disjoin them." For all the prosaic speeches about life's giving way to advance liberty, these unalienable civil liberties will either prosper as one, or perish as one.

WARNING: THIS BLOG ENTRY IS NOT PLEASANT AND MAY BE OFFENSIVE. SO BE IT. READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

For the last time, Terri Schiavo is NOT in a persistent vegetative state, no matter what the hypocrite lairs on CBS and the rest of the propaganda machine tell you. Watch the videos! Investigate the truth! Read the Schindler’s website. I have come to the conclusion that this is all part of a well-orchestrated plan to change "right to die" to "duty to die.” These iniquitous groups might as well be sitting in a clandestine assembly, saying “Hey, how are we going to get the ball rolling to get rid of some of these gimps and cripples?” Then, one of their fanatic automatons will say, “How about starting with a precedent? An example? How about a public execution? Even funnier, we can make it court-ordered! But who would be the perfect example to show others how important it is for useless people to die? How about that Terri Schiavo? She is just lying there, half-dead anyway. She can be the prototype that lets us kill ‘em all.”

Don't believe me?

Watch what comes to pass in future years as egocentric lawyers who call themselves congressmen take away your right to live if you are handicapped or in poor health. If you aren't one of their ilk, you are taking up breathing space better exploited by one of their radical cronies. This is eerily reminiscent of the Nazi fascist Germany of the 1930s and ‘40s, though no disrespect is intended to the horrific price paid by the Jews. The scary part? The people who claim to represent the downtrodden, the noninterventionist “freethinkers,” (but I jest, saying they think? Ha!) along the lines of Hillary Rodham Criminal, Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer, Ted ‘Hiccup’ Kennedy and Hanoi Jane Kerry, these are the people who will be bringing the Zyklon B. Does your baby have a cleft palate? A birth defect? How inconvenient… die, baby, die! One less defective human to exterminate, one less cripple to eradicate.

The last shred of respect for life is burning in a lake of fire. Coming soon to an American neighborhood near you... fire and brimstone. God help us all. Terri Schiavo deserves to live!

State-ordered execution

Terri Schiavo ought to be cared for by her parents. Clearly, they love her best. "The measure of a society is how they treat the least of us," says Kate Adamson, a former "vegetative state" patient who reports that the eight-day removal of her feeding tube caused her excruciating pain. "Life is sacred or meaningless," she says. "There is nothing in between."

By the way, Kate Adamson, while she was in an alleged vegetative condition, could hear her family and visitors talking around her hospital bed and can remember the things that were said about her, to her, and the exact words that they used. Persistent vegetative state, my foot.

If this insanity is allowed to persist, it will set a standard that doesn’t have a thing to do with “the right to die.” What it is becomes a court-endorsed “duty to die!” Who will be next? Even having a directive in place may not matter, though, as the courts will certainly overturn it in their greater wisdom. Those buffoons are just self-important, corrupt lawyers in black robes. Duh.

If Terri Shiavo dies, it is murder. M-U-R-D-E-R. The murderous three? Michael Shiavo, his sadistic anti-life attorney, and Judge Greer. Amazing, his lawyer said Terri Shiavo is in her “dying process.” Is that what they call court-ordered murder now? Out of curiosity, did you know that Judge Greer is on the board of directors of the hospice facility where Terri Shiavo is now starving to death? Can you say “conflict of interest?”

Furthermore, I find it alarming that the ACLU has strongly sanctioned the court-ordered execution of Terri Shiavo. Isn’t life a civil liberty? Isn’t it about time that the ACLU was considered a for-profit organization, along with Planned “Proudly Had an Abortion” Parenthood? By the way, both get an allocation from America’s confiscated tax dollars, yours and mine. This has got to stop! These sick people do not represent me and they have no right to my money for such malevolent objectives. I am embarrassed and ashamed to be an American with this psychosis in our midst. These evil people do not represent my America. When are we going to take America back? And how?

This isn’t just about Terri Shiavo. She is a victim of a warped America that has turned its back on God and the little bit that he asks of us. This reeks of the decadent selfishness of a people who think that they no longer need God, a people who, in fact, are playing God and taking lives when they so choose. I have no idea what Sodom and Gomorrah were like, but all I have to do to imagine the iniquity is to read the paper, watch that reality TV trash or walk through the mall and see the half-naked pre-teens who shouldn’t even be out on the town without adult supervision. To tell the truth, I can almost smell the brimstone.

confronting fears

Remember the Cathy cartoon in the comics in the Sunday newspaper? Remember how she was always dealing with women's issues like shopping, our weigh, and our relationships with friends, men, and our mothers? I finally got around to taking my maternity clothes out of my closet today. With the reduction of the number of items in my closet, I was able to find my pre-pregnancy jeans. I finally bit the bullet and tried them. I knew somewhere in the back of my mind that they didn't fit, and I didn't want to acknowledge it. I felt like Cathy as I did it. I want to get back into those size 8 jeans. I can't stand that they don't fit. I know everyone gains weight during pregnancy. I just don't want it leftover afterwards.

Free Heroin in Canada

Do any people other than legislators think that giving free Heroin to addicts is actually going to help them turn their lives around? I agree with the Vancouver police chief who said that it will decrease crime and prostitution, but I don't agree that the move away from crime for the addicts is the first step to recovery. I think it will just result in the taxpayers shelling out lots of money for very harmful drugs for a bunch of addicts who don't want to get straightened out. The question then becomes : do taxpayers think it is worth it to them to pay to dope up addicts to reduce the crime rate? What do you think? I think the Canucks are crazy.

Day Two

I have survived two days as an undergrad student. One helpful aspect of distance education is that I am not studying with my student peers, face-to-face, and realizing, “Gosh, I am older than dirt!” One bad thing about distance education is that you do not get that personal interaction. However, the method in which we are interacting is well thought out and it seems to work well, even without that “in person” contact. I have made contact with the members of my classes, just the same. The good news tonight is that I have completed my first three (minor) assignments and started on the fourth, which is due tomorrow.

Today, I drove to the office to drop off the non-working machine parts and related service paperwork that were filling my truck to the back doors. Heather and Gabriel came along to keep me company. One thing that is beneficial to the way our lives are mutually supportive is that Heather reads my assigned texts to me while I drive. We then debate the topics she or I take issue with, or the ideas we agree with. It helps me to retain the content better and it saves time reading the material when we get home. I figure that if we continue to do this, it may even be a bonus to Gabriel, since he hears his Mom reading aloud almost every day. At home, we both read aloud from newspapers, books, or whatever we find on the Internet that is of interest or worth debating.

Heather isn’t just my wife. She is my closest friend, confidant, my equal and my learning partner, coach and cheerleader. While Heather is a stay-at-home mom and I am the employed wage earner in this family, working on my AA/BA degree program is, in reality, a team effort. This is advantageous for every member of our family, Mom and Dad, and baby Gabriel, too. We are all in this together, and we are doing just fine.

Hey, our family is going to watch “The Incredibles” before this old man goes off to bed. 10-4. Over and out.

School daze (again)

Today was my first day as a college undergrad. It wasn’t unpleasant, not too harsh. At first, while I was setting up the newsgroups that will be a key component of my educational experience, it seemed a bit overwhelming. After reading the newsgroup threads from my instructors and fellow students, and once I created my replies, it didn’t seem so overpowering. Of course, I haven’t started writing my persuasive thesis yet. Then, all bets may be off, at least for a while until I 'hit my stride' again.

This shouldn’t surprise me, mainly because of the type of people this program is aiming to educate, but it does strike me how the other students come from every walk of life and every level of accomplishment. Most are parents who expressed how they want to make an impression on their children, to set an example of the path they hope their children will follow. There are grandmothers and moms, dads and one or two singles. One or two have held some remarkable leadership positions without the benefit of higher education. These are people who want to cause a change in their lives and they see education as the answer. As for myself, I am looking at the picture of where I want to be in ten years and this is an essential part of the future I am forming in my mind. This is day one of a long-term mission, and something I have wanted to do for years. It is going to take hard work but I can do it, and I will.

Doug's first assignment

Doug's first assignment was to write an autobiography. As usual, it was informative yet entertaining. It cracks me up to see him edit it five times. This is typical of Doug, but it makes me smirk every time. I would only bother to edit twice, at the most. I keep telling him that he would make a great newspaper editor, English professor or high school English teacher. The local newspaper could certainly use better editing than it is getting, and both high school and college students could benefit from his writing and grammar skills. right about now is where Doug would pipe up and say, "Quit talking about my Grammer!" (Grandma, get it?) Needless to say, I like to watch Doug work.

Is it morning already?

I am getting an early start this morning. It seems that a certain tech, who shall remain anonymous, and who is on-call today, is unavailable by telephone to take his calls. Gee, it must be nice to be paid to be on-call and yet, not have to take any calls. Isn’t that like free money? Therefore, I have three service calls to take care of this morning. The first is two hours from home and the rest are in Wisconsin. At times like this, I keep it in the center of my mind that I have a good life, and it doesn’t come free. Long before the sun comes up, I will be on my way to the land of cheese. One thing, that makes me feel fine? Some people get by on silly little things like merit, dependability and experience. The rest kiss ass. You can't fall back on that. Ahhh… I have skills. Whoohoo!

We have visitors this weekend. My brother, Dave, and his son, Josh, are staying with us. Alas, they will have to hang out here without me today. It isn’t a problem, since Heather and Gabriel will be here. This road trip is too long for them to come with me. I imagine they will be heading back before I get home from work, which is too bad, but at least we had Saturday to visit. Dave and Josh have both met Gabriel, so most members of my family have met our son. See? Life is pretty good, even at 4 in the morning. Grumble, grumble… it is time for me to hit the road.

Let our soldiers do their jobs

How can our soldiers get their jobs done and improve life in Iraq if their actions are being second-guessed by authorities here? Specifically, I'm thinking of 2nd Lt. Ilario Pantano and any other soldier in the same situation. Lt. Pantano was working in the Sunni Triangle, th most dangerous place to be in Iraq. If he felt that he and his men were in danger, who am I to second-guess his decision to eventually use lethal force to defend himself? I'm not the one putting my butt on the line. Maybe the people responsible for his charges and those involved in his trial should think about that. Also, if we keep the hands of our troops tied, we'll never get the job done. We need to let our troops use the force deemed necessary to send a message to the insurgents/terrorists/bad-guys. Telling the military how to do its job only prolongs the war and creates more casualties. They know what needs to be done and how to do it, so we should all leave President Bush and our fine fighting forces do what they deem necessary. Stop charging our soldiers with murder! Death happens as a matter of course in war, and we are at war against terrorism. Stop giving enemy combatants rights they do not deserve. They are not fighting in a country's uniform, for a country, so the Geneva Convention doesn't apply to them. Finally, tell the UN, and certain members of the media, to go to hell!

And you didn't think there was a political bone in my body! FOOLED YOU!

Ode to Brian: My own personal Geek Squad

Who needs Best Buy when all I have to do is call up my cousin/godfather? Yes, the dual role makes him special. The computer genius makes him even more special. Brian, once again, saved my butt by solving my computer problems. This one was actually Doug's problem, since networking and wireless routers are way over my head, but Brian rescued me. The man has forgotten more about computers than I'll ever know. Of course, that isn't too difficult. I feel like such a dunce when it comes to technology. Anyway, this is a public thank you to the man who spent three hours on the phone long distance to help us when he could have been sleeping or spending quality time with his wife and child, who, by the way, are pretty stellar people. I wonder if he remembers talking me through a computer problem on a long distance phone call to Ireland, where I was in a college study abroad program? Anyway, I just had to mention how great my godfather is. Thanks, Brain...I mean, Brian.

Bored, bored, bored... Not me, not now!

Now that I have relocated Heather’s computer and the network is operating smoothly, I have a deadline to meet, more or less, with regard to my computer. Today, I received the 2005 edition of my operating system with all its annoyingly bloated new features. Microsoft calls it innovation. I call it “software obesity.” As always, there are numerous added services that I will never use. I ultimately disable much of what Microsoft considers essential, but which my computer does not.


Friday morning is my online orientation as a new student of WIU. I will have to use online software as a big part of the virtual classroom, and I need to have my PC “rehabilitated” first. Before Friday, I need to restore my computer, completely wiping the hard drive for a clean start with that new OS software. I have lots to do before Friday, and still haven’t finished my autobiography for Monday’s class. I will get it together before then, though, no worries about that. At least I’m not bored to tears, with nothing to do!

School daze

This weekend, we got our wireless network up and running. I moved Heather's computer into the living room, so that she can get online while Gabriel is sleeping. She hasn't been able to email her family much since Gabriel was born. Of course, that is to be expected, but I wanted to make it more convenient for her to at least send an email now and then. It does help me out, too. With classes starting on Monday, I will be able to study, "attend classes," and enjoy my family, all at the same time, as opposed to playing the hermit, hiding out in my little closet, er, office.

My first assignment is to write an autobiography introducing myself to my virtual class. In a way, I guess it isn't a virtual class, since we will be viewing each other's posted comments and sharing ideas in near-real time. Okay, since I will probably never meet my classmates, it is still a virtual class. Anyway, duty calls. I have a lot of work at the Lights today. Later.

Admissions (If she was? Nope. If she were... )

I "met" my admissions counselor last week. Her name is Andrea. She is feisty, pleasant and has just enough zing to make the process of preparing for years of study (again) seem less painful than it otherwise might be. Even though she is in Arizona, it seems strangely familiar, in this small world, how she has visited many of the casinos I helped set up with new games or get ready to open. She told me that she is a transplant from the Midwest, so that helps. If she were from California, on the other hand, I might be thinking, “Danger, Will Robinson! Danger!” Nah, not really. She is nice. I wonder... if I say enough kind things about her, will it get me any brownie points with my admissions counselor?

I ordered books for the first classes today. It looks like this is really happening, almost as simple and smooth as glass. Andrea told me today that if I wimp out, she is going to kick my, uh... Hi, Counselor. What’s up?

Hey... it was 54 degrees and sunny yesterday. It seems that spring is tipping the scales in the mêlée that is the transition from winter to spring. You know how it is, mild one day, snowing and sub-zero the next. Incidentally, it was snowing when I left on a service call this morning. My seasonal passion for winter is fading, and gardening fever is winning me over.

Sunday, Boring Sunday

Is it just me, or are Sundays really boring when football season ends? I like the ritual of planting on the couch or bed and watching two groups of big, burly guys beat each other up over a ball. I suppose I'll have to replace it with a movie, but it just isn't the same. I can't even say that I'd be satisfied with a Sunday baseball game, because half of the fun is watching the game with Doug. Anyone who knows Doug will tell you that he thinks that baseball ranks right up there with golf and tennis as the most boring sport. I ask you, what is a woman to do? Doug, pick a movie!

How many children will have to die?

The only good things to come out of that tragic story in the last blog? Two things i can think of. One, that the father of the those twins will face capital murder chargers for killing them, born or unborn. And two, that with this law, the fact that unborn children are receiving a modicum of legal protection and recognition is a glimmer of hope in this world gone completely insane.

How many children have died because of abortions? Nobody knows for sure, but a conservative estimate, as of today, in the whole world, including developing countries, is that about 188,182,000 children have been murdered by abortion. Check this link for the source of the numbers. The main thing is, though, abortion should not be used for birth control. Finally, people need to take responsibility for their actions! No whining. If you do the deed, take responsibility for it. As I like to say, build a bridge and get over it!

Just me, ranting again.

Another needless heartbreak comes out of a miracle of life, created through irresponsibility, another moral defeat snatched from an undeserved victorious blessing. Yet again, I ask myself, “What happened to a respect for life?” You know you can count on me to clarify until this is unambiguous.

A Texas man is facing a capital murder charge after his 4-month-pregnant girlfriend convinced him to forcefully step on her stomach in order to kill the unborn twins she was carrying. Authorities believed 16-year-old Erica Basoria had been abused by her boyfriend, 18-year-old Gerardo "Jerry" Flores, indicting him under the Texas Prenatal Protection Act.

This law was passed to protect unborn children in cases where the purpose was to cause a miscarriage through deliberate violence against the mother. The regulation defined the lawful term ‘individual’ as, “a human being who is alive, including an unborn child at every stage of gestation from fertilization until birth.” Praise God for small miracles! Nevertheless, the law included language that makes it irrelevant in either a criminal prosecution or a civil action to the behavior of the unborn child's mother so that the law would not pertain to a woman having an abortion.

Anyone familiar with Heather and me knows that we don’t just believe half-heartedly, we vociferously maintain the uncomplicated mandate: “Thou shall not kill.” God didn’t say, “Don’t kill anybody, as long as they have been born.” He made it clear, “Whatsoever you do to the least of my brethren, that you do unto me.” That is from Colossians 3:17, for sinners like me to read again. Let me be unequivocal. Abortion is the murder of innocent children. Period. That we stand by this principle isn’t news to my family, or to Heather’s family. What is news in all of this?

The manipulative, coldhearted mother of these unborn twins will not be held accountable for her actions. How can two people consciously do something like this and only one of them be prosecuted? This woman overtly attempted to cause a miscarriage. Let me define that: this woman willfully planned the premeditated murder of her two unborn children. Two precious children are dead, and their mom isn’t going to have to answer for it.

I cannot state this as efficiently as could the homicidal maniac who is the mother of these two dead children. In her words, “About two weeks before the miscarriage, I started hitting myself in the stomach. I would do this every day and I would use both of my fists when I did this. I would hit myself 10 or more times.”

Her parents, too, should be held accountable. Basoria’s sworn statement stated that her parents pled with her for more than two weeks to have an abortion. Therefore, they are guilty as well. The “grandparents” didn’t murder the twins. Erica, Mommy Dearest, convinced her boyfriend, the babies’ father, to kill them. Without question, their mother permitted it, appealed to her cooperative partner. She conspired with dad, and thus, he killed their children. Those prospective grandparents wanted their grandchildren dead. Guilty. As a parent myself, this is heart-breaking.

Whatever happened to respect for life? What happened to taking responsibility for one’s actions? It's like this: if you don't want children, if you are a teen and not married, you aren't prepared to be a parent, and you aren't ready for sexual relations, so knock it off already! Abstinence works every single time it is tried. Period. When God becomes weary of our collective iniquity, we are all accountable for tolerating a civilization that has devolved into madness. God help us. This world certainly needs a mountain of divine intercession, and I pray that we get the guidance we need.

By the way, Mom, Dad... and God, thanks for giving me life!

The Joys of Homeownership

I see Doug already posted about the momentary malfunction of our heating system, but I must tell you my thoughts on it. I sleep under a blanket and sheet and like to be toasty warm when I sleep. So when I wake up to nurse Gabriel in the middle of the night, sometimes I shiver. I didn't really think anything of this particular shivering session until I picked up Gabriel and noticed his hands were cooler than usual, bordering on cold. Then I looked at Doug. Mister sheet-around-the-waist had the sheet pulled up to his neck. I put a second, warmer blanket around Gabriel as I held him to me and went to investigate the thermometer/clock we have in the kitchen. My jaw dropped when I noticed that it said61 degrees. I checked to see if the thermostat had been bumped and found it set on 68 degrees. I went over to the register along the wall and it felt cold. That was when I woke up Doug. I knew it was in the teens or something like that outside, and the temperature in the house would fall fast if we didn't do anything. My first thought after keeping my baby warm was that the birds need it to be 70 degrees in here. I was glad Doug was home for this little problem. I would have been panicking if I had to try to figure out how to make the boiler kick on while trying to nurse Gabriel. I'm no good at that fix-it stuff anyway. I probably would have run over to our neighbor across the street and pleaded for help. I'm incredibly clueless when it comes to this stuff. The ironic thing is that I just finished checking the boiler and thermostat again because it is now 78 degrees in here. I'm roasting! I've concluded that it is only the sun pouring in that is heating up the house. We'll pretend it is summer for a few hours.

Baby, it's cold... inside.

Heather woke me at 4:30 this morning and told me that the house was chilly. It wasn’t an icebox, but it was 61 degrees, definitely colder than it should have been. It turned out to be a minor issue, though that is a bit cool for the birds. We turned on the electric registers while we waited for the boiler to heat the hot water registers. Come to think of it, the cost of electricity has actually gone down in the last ten years, while the rate for natural gas continues to rise. Would it make more sense to heat the house with the electric heaters? We aren't sure, but it is something we are considering.

We decided to use “dual heat” for now, turning the registers up to a few degrees less than the optimal temperature, with the thought that it would help moderate the temperature and maybe save us a buck or two. If the hot water boiler doesn’t kick in, the electric registers will keep the house from getting icy cold. Oh… the problem with the boiler? I have no idea. I turned off the breakers for five minutes and turned the power back on. Apparently I had to reset an electrical relay or something. The house is toasty warm again.

After much deliberation and procrastination, my conclusion is that I need to think about where my career might lead. I decided I should do what I can now, while my kids are still young, so that I have more education. In this case, only one of my kids has been born so far, but you already knew that. With that in mind, there is no time like the present.

Heather can tell you, I have always planned to get more education. I just never took the initiative to get started. With my irregular schedule and on-call status 24 hours a day, every day, I assumed that I couldn’t make the time to get edumacated. That is the reason why some genius came up with distance education, I imagine. I submitted the truckload of paperwork to get started. Other than tying up the loose ends, and getting the books, materials, etcetera, most everything is in place. I will start college (again, and feeling old in doing so) on March 14th. I will take a full-time credit load (think in terms of semesters) but only take 2 classes at a time, for 9 weeks each, instead of 4 classes for 18 weeks. The classes will be comprehensive but for a shorter period than in a typical college environment.

The school I chose has a high level of accreditation, which makes me feel comfortable with it, obviously. I wondered if an AA/BA could be equivalent to a traditionally earned degree at a ‘brick-and-mortar’ university. Would it be as genuine if you never made an appearance at the school, in the flesh, so to speak? After researching this matter, I found that it doesn’t make one bit of difference. The powerful equalizer is the accreditation, the reputation of the school and the quality of the education. I really want to do this. In four years, with God to give me strength and my family’s support, I will have a Bachelor’s degree in Business Management. When I graduate, my kids will still be young. I don’t want to miss the big games and concerts being on the road, after all.

I love what I do and couldn’t imagine wanting to quit. Not only that, but also I have years of experience, self-confidence and I do my job well. But in ten years, will I want to travel 1,000 to 2,000 miles a week for my job, and work up to seven days a week? What kind of advancement opportunity is there for me? With that in mind, I am planning for the future. I am excited about the possibilities. I know I have plenty of hard work ahead of me. Speaking of that, I need to get to work. I have a road trip of 500 miles ahead of me today. See what I mean? I will probably put close to 2,000 miles on the odometer this week. Job security is nice. I want an education to back it up.