The Flag and the Father

Tuesday, August 04, 2009
By Joshua Rhett Miller A promise is a promise.

A California dad is refusing to take down the tattered and torn American flag that's been flying on his lawn in Fresno for almost a year, despite complaints from neighbors on his military-heavy block and from a national veterans group that says he's mistreating the Stars and Stripes.

Even passersby have phoned Louis Haros, demanding that he take down his weather-beaten flag immediately.

But Haros, a Vietnam veteran, told his son last September that he'd wave that flag until he comes home from Iraq.

And a promise is a promise.

"I made a promise to him that it won't come down until he's home," Haros told FOXNews.com on Tuesday. "Well, it's still there. I feel if I bring it down and something happens to him … I don't know."

Paul Haros is already back on U.S. soil after his second tour in Iraq. He and his dad spoke yesterday when he landed in Wisconsin to undergo medical checks and to relinquish his weapons. But Louis Haros says the flag won't come down until Paul returns to Fresno.

"I told him this flag protected me in Vietnam and I will see that it protects you," said Haros, a former master sergeant in the U.S. Army. "In a normal situation, I would've brought it down a long time ago."

Corporal Paul Haros is expected to be back home by Friday after two tours in Iraq as a member of the Army Reserve and a tour with the 82nd Airborne Division in Operation Desert Storm.

It won't be soon enough for some of Haros' neighbors, who see no reason to wait any longer to play taps for the flag.

"I understand why the gentleman is doing it, but it's in tatters," neighbor John Southward told FOXNews.com. "I fly my flag every day."

But Southward, a former Navy signalman, said he also found it "appalling" that Haros' son had been in Iraq long enough for the flag to become so raggedy.

"To me, that's appalling," Southward said. "I wish Mr. Haros and his son the very best, I really do."

Another neighbor, Bryan Walters Sr., was so moved about the condition of the flag that he confronted Haros and then dropped off a new one.

"I'd been watching that flag fall apart," Walters, a Navy veteran, told the Fresno Bee. "It had been getting more and more tattered every day, and it was just breaking my heart."

Ryan Gallucci, a spokesman for AMVETS, a group of 180,000 U.S. veterans, said while it's a "dicey" situation, the organization would prefer that Haros stop flying the tattered flag.

"It's a national symbol and not just a symbol of one soldier's sacrifice," Gallucci told FOXNews.com. "We would advocate he replace it with a serviceable flag out of respect for those who have gone before."

Gallucci acknowledged that Haros was flying the flag for the "right reason," but he suggested that he properly retire it in an appropriate fashion.

According to U.S. Code, an American flag should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning, when it is "no longer a fitting emblem for display."

Haros said he intends to bring the flag down as soon as his son comes home. He's "definitely" surprised by the complaints he and his wife have received from neighbors and even strangers who drive by and later call their home.

"Once they understand the reason behind what's going on, they get it," Haros said. "But nobody can actually be in the shoes of the individual until you stand in them. It was a promise I made to my son. If something happened to him, how could I live with that?"

Still, the negative attention brought on by the flag has Haros' wife getting anxious.

"She's saying she doesn't want to get any more heat," he said of the multiple phone calls they receive each day. "It's really turned into something."

What would you do? Should there be "certain circumstances" for which an American flag can be flown?

A FEW THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

APHORISM: A SHORT, POINTED SENTENCE EXPRESSING A WISE OR CLEVER OBSERVATION OR A GENERAL TRUTH; ADAGE

1. The nicest thing about the future is that it always starts tomorrow.

2. Money will buy a fine dog, but only kindness will make him wag his tail.

3. If you don't have a sense of humor, you probably don't have any sense at all.

4 Seat belts are not as confining as wheelchairs.

5. A good time to keep your mouth shut is when you're in deep water.

6. How come it takes so little time for a child who is afraid of the dark to become a teenager who wants to stay out all night?

7. Business conventions are important because they demonstrate how many people a company can operate without.

8. Why is it that at class reunions you feel younger than everyone else looks?

9. Scratch a cat and you will have a permanent job.

10. No one has more driving ambition than the boy who wants to buy a car.

11. There are no new sins; the old ones just get more publicity.

12. There are worse things than getting a call for a wrong number at 4 AM. Like this: It could be a right number.

13. No one ever says 'It's only a game.' when their team is winning.

14. I've reached the age where the happy hour is a nap.

15. Be careful reading the fine print. There's no way you're going to like it.

16. The trouble with bucket seats is that not everybody has the same size bucket.

17. Do you realize that in about 40 years, we'll have thousands of old ladies running around with tattoos? (And rap music will be the Golden Oldies! )


18. Money can't buy happiness -- but somehow it's more comfortable to cry in a Corvette than in a Yugo.

19. After 50, if you don't wake up aching in every joint, you are probably dead!

20. Always be yourself. Because the people that matter, don't mind. And the ones who mind, don't matter.

THE CELLAR HOUSE PLANTATION

Lots of us like scary things and stories of the super natural. Today while I was just browsing the internet I found this website about the Cellar House. If you have lived in Pocomoke any length of time there is no doubt you have heard the frightening tales that surrounds this property.

Many years ago, and for a short time, my dad was grounds keeper at the Cellar House. One day he came home and could tell me about the "girl" he saw in a window upstairs of this old plantation house. Then, "suddenly," he told me, "she was gone". Now I know my dad was not lying to me or teasing me. Even though he was that kind of guy I knew this day he knew what he saw. At that time the owners were only there occasionally so it could not have been one of them but maybe a "tenant" from long ago.

If you have traveled the Pocomoke River at all by boat you have, no doubt, seen this beautiful home. Here's just a little of what I read on the website.

Home to The Graham family of Maryland’s Eastern Shore and a handful ghosts from the eighteenth century, Cellar House Plantation stands to tell the tales of folklore and legends of days past.

The original Cellar House dates back to a land grant from Lord Baltimore in 1666. It is said to have been built by a French sea captain for his bride. The captain incorporated uncommon refinements for the area such as full paneling in the great room and great room chamber, and elaborate cornices and chair rails throughout the house.

As the story goes, this sea captain returned early from one of his expeditions to find his new bride pregnant with a local man from Pocomoke City. Outraged, he banished her from the house. Months later, she returned by raft with her baby to beg her husband for forgiveness. The raft overturned near Cellar House and the baby drowned. She swam to shore and when her husband saw her, he dragged her up to the master bedroom and stabbed her to death. Knowing that he would be hung for this macabre crime, he fled.

Please read the rest of this story and the exact history of The Cellar House.

Go to www.cellarhouse.com/ If this doesn't get you there type in Cellar House or Cellar House Platation.

Tiger Woods Cuts One

Wind grabbed everyone's attention at the Buick Open on Sunday. Not Mother Nature's wind; Tiger Woods' wind. While Tiger was deep in concentration on the 18th hole, microphones caught the unmistakable sound of a loud fart.

After Tiger's alleged toot, he and his caddie chuckled and looked to the crowd. Were they looking at the source of the flatulence? Or were they pulling the oldest trick in the book and pointing the blame? Claiming copyright infringement, CBS and the PGA are ripping (no pun intended) these videos off line. While they do the dirty work, Woods has remained silent about the indiscretion. Just remember Tiger: He who denied it, supplied it.

Check out the video below.

What do you think? Did he or didn't he?

Obama Touts Electric Car Plan, Stimulus

Will this FOOL ever stop? Does he think the American people can just sh!t out the money for all these liberal socialist programs?



President Barack Obama says Indiana factories "are coming back to life," earning cheers as he returned to an economically struggling region to sell his costly stimulus plan.
Obama announced Wednesday in Indiana that the stimulus is now providing $2.4 billion in taxpayer grants to create electric cars — and tens of thousands of jobs. He said Indiana is the second-largest recipient of these grants.

He spoke from the factory floor of Monaco RV, purchased in June by Navistar International Corp. after its previous owner went bankrupt because of the collapse in the recreational vehicle industry. Indiana's Elkhart-Goshen area had an unemployment rate of 16.8 percent in June. That's up 10 percentage points from last year. It's also higher than it was when Obama visited in February.

As Congress breaks for the summer, the public message war is on. Obama wants to persuade Americans that his economic agenda is working but also that it will take time to produce the number that people really want: more jobs.

Indiana's Elkhart-Goshen area had an unemployment rate of 16.8 percent in June. That's up 10 percentage points from last year. It's also higher than it was when Obama visited in February, although the jobless rate has at least come down from 17.5 percent in May.

This is the same region where Obama made his first bolt outside the Washington beltway as president, three weeks on the job. He was lobbying for the stimulus.

The resulting $787 billion legislation included $2.4 billion to support a new generation of electric cars. The competition for the money is completed, giving Obama something concrete to offer in his return visit. The money will be split among nearly 50 projects in 25 states, with the biggest shares going to Indiana and Michigan to create job opportunities in the automotive sector.
Obama also will be selling his broader, stick-with-it message about building the foundation of a whole new economy. At stake is the kind of public support that could influence his success on related matters such as health care legislation, as Republican criticism mounts and public skepticism of the stimulus looms.

Obama's trip comes as signs of an economic recovery have started to emerge in key areas such as housing and manufacturing.

But jobs are the key to success — for individuals, for families, for politicians — and those haven't been returning yet.

Overall, unemployment in the United States hit 9.5 percent in June, the highest level in 26 years.

New monthly numbers come out Friday, and the White House has been trying for weeks to set expectations that joblessness will worsen before it gets better.

Obama previewed the next jobs report this way: "It's likely to show that we're still continuing to lose far too many jobs. As far as I'm concerned, we won't have a recovery until every American who wants a job can find one. But history does show that you need to have economic growth before you have job growth."

And on that front, there is some positive news.

The economy shrank at a 1 percent rate in the April-to-June second quarter, new figures show — another contraction, but a sharp upgrade from the 6.4 percent slumps in the first quarter and a 5.4 percent decline in the fourth quarter of 2008.

The president says the progress is due in part to the stimulus effort. Republicans have taken whacks at the stimulus for weeks, contending that it was not worth the cost and has not produced results as the nation keeps shedding jobs each month.

The American public is still uneasy. A total of 79 percent of people describe the economy as "poor," according to an AP-GfK Poll.

And Obama's approval rating on the economy is now at 50 percent, the same poll found, down from 58 percent in April.

The last time Obama was in the Elkhart area, he said, "Recovery will likely be measured in years, not weeks or months."

Still, the White House is sensitive to the fact that people measure progress in terms of their daily lives.

Of the new grants, $1.5 billion will go to the production of batteries and their components; $500 million will go for other components needed for the cars, like electric motors; and $400 million will go toward plug-in hybrid cars, training for technicians and related costs.


VIA

A Patriotic American; letter to the President

Obama wants the American Peoples email? For me he isn't asking the American people to email the right topics. Read this:

Dear Mr. President,

　

　

Please be advised, Sir, that Americans today are quite competent citizens. I, as an American citizen,

resent the fact that you want to view what comes into my own private email.

. Please know, Sir, that I have the capability to delete such nonsense. Does casual

conversation through email mean that if a friend and I email each other about your

socialistic health care idea that someone is free to send it to you? What will you do with

it? And why do you care?

Here is a news flash, Mr. President, I do not need your socialistic health care. And many

Americans don't want it or need it. What part of NO don't you understand?

　

　

Mr. President, there are so many other things that need your attention besides Americans

private email. Why not let the citizens email the White House if they suspect terrorist

activities in their neighborhood? Or how about the small communities across America

that have city leaders (mayors, city managers, police officers) that don't give a darn about

the good citizens of those communities? Could you set up an email address for that?

And while your aides are reading emails how about another address so citizens across

American can keep you abreast of the drug deals going down in their towns? Or children

and adults that are lost?

Please stop wasting Americas time with your health care!

And while I am here let me suggest to you that instead of giving the car dealers the

money they have requested, take that money and divide it among those people that

helped build those cars and have been laid off! How can we buy cars when a nation such

as ours is in such an uproar? I like my old klunker of a car. Yes, we can afford to buy

another that is efficient and brand new. So why don't we? Because it has to be paid

for, Mr. President. Alot of Americans are afraid they will lose their jobs.

America is broken, Mr. President. America is crumbling into pieces right before my

eyes. It makes me sick when those that don't have get handed food while I, myself, check

prices before I buy. It makes me sick when I hear that there are more taxes to be

paid on sodas, cigarettes, alcohol and anything else you can tax. When will it end?

Before you "repair" us Americans one by one you need to "repair" America as a

whole. Put Americans back to work at their original jobs. They don't want jobs brewed

up by the government. They want the jobs that were taken away from them. Put the

lazy Americans that won't work to work in your programs. Let them earn their keep

for a change to ease the burden of those that are fortunate to still have their jobs.

To be honest, alot of Americans don't want your government health care. They fear

socialism. They fear the loss of so many freedoms and the one freedom that is

so dear is "the right to choose". In the long run this will be taken away from us.

Thankyou for taking the time to read this (or have it read by someone). And have

a blessed day, Sir.

　

MAXINE AND HEALTH CARE

I,__________________, being of sound mind and body, do not wish to be kept alive indefinitely by artificial means.

Under no circumstances should my fate be put in the hands of pinhead politicians who couldn't pass ninth grade biology if their lives depended on it, or lawyers/doctors interested in simply running up the bills.

If a reasonable amount of time passes and I fail to ask for at least one of the following:

Glass of wine
Cup of coffee
Margarita
Sex
Martini
Cold Beer
Chocolate
Chicken fried steak
Cream gravy
Sex
Mexican food
Chocolate
French fries
Chocolate
Pizza
Sex
Ice cream
Cup of coffee
Chocolate
Sex
Chocolate

It should be presumed that I won't ever get better. When such a determination is reached, I hereby instruct my appointed person and attending physicians to pull the plug, reel in the tubes, let the 'fat lady sing,' and call it a day!

Have a Drink IT'S 5 O'CLOCK SOMEWHERE!

White House Call For Informants:

If You Oppose Obamacare, Even in ‘Casual Conversation,’ the White House Wants to Know About It

If you see anybody publicly opposing President Obama’s plan to implement a government-centric overhaul of the health care system, the White House wants you to report that person (or persons) ASAP.

From the White House website:

"There is a lot of disinformation about health insurance reform out there, spanning from control of personal finances to end of life care. These rumors often travel just below the surface via chain emails or through casual conversation. Since we can’t keep track of all of them here at the White House, we’re asking for your help. If you get an email or see something on the web about health insurance reform that seems fishy, send it to
flag@whitehouse.gov."

Emphasis added. Of course, as we’ve seen in the health care debate to date, the term “disinformation” is used by the Obama White House as a catchall to describe any opposition to the President’s push for single-payer, government-run health care — meaning the White House wants to be informed of any forwarded emails or blog posts or any “casual conversations” that could be taken as opposition to their health care overhaul plan.

The White House has, as yet, offered no explanation of what it is they plan to do with the tips on policy opposition they hope to receive from citizen informers.
Interestingly, as Jake Tapper pointed out on Twitter this morning, the title of that post on the White House is a quote from John Adams’ 1770 “Argument in Defense of the Soldiers in the Boston Massacre Trials.”

26th Annual National Night Out Today 8/4

Free Event, food, music & vendors


Pocomoke City PD wants to remind you that National Night Out 2009 is happening on 08-04-09 from 6PM til 9PM at the Pocomoke Cypress Park.

The purpose of the event is to increase citizen and officer relationships within the Community.

There will be OC104, live music, food, vendors, games, Olympic Track Star, Dance teams, Basketball Tournaments and much more.


Contact the Pocomoke Police Dept. for info @ 410-957-1600

OBAMA POSTER

Obama Joker poster
plastered around LA

No one has claimed responsibility for
the posters

　

By LILY FU, Special Contributor

A poster depicting President Obama as Heath Ledger's Joker character in "The Dark Knight" has began to surface around Los Angeles.

According to LA Weekly , Obama is shown with white makeup on his face and, like the Joker in the Batman movie, he has his mouth slit wide open with the word "socialism" on the bottom.

The poster has been plastered on freeway columns and other public places around the city. See images of the poster .

No one has claimed responsibility for the posters, but many are comparing the look of the poster to Shepard Fairey's famous "Hope" poster , a ubiquitous image throughout Obama's presidential campaign.

Conservatives are already using the poster as an opportunity to attack the president. Thomas Lifson on American Thinker writes , "It is starting. Open mockery of Barack Obama, as disillusionment sets in with the man, his policies, and the phony image of a race-healing, brilliant, scholarly, middle-of-the-roader." Reader WesternMilitant on AtlasShrugged.com said , " We DESERVE this joker. We elected him. I hope we choke on him so we never forget."

But Robert Dougherty on Associated Content points out that linking the Joker to socialism isn't correct . "The Joker was many things, but was hardly a socialist. In fact, the Joker is the polar opposite of a socialist, and anyone who watched 'The Dark Knight' would know that. Socialism is the result of an all powerful central government that runs every aspect of life -- but the Joker subscribes to anarchy, one of socialism's polar opposites

CREATION

The Creation:

On the first day, God created the dog and said:

'Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. For this, I will give you a life span of twenty years.'

The dog said: 'That's a long time to be barking. How about only ten years and I'll give you back the other ten?'

So God agreed.

On the second day, God created the monkey and said:

'Entertain people, do tricks, and make them laugh. For this, I'll give you a twenty-year life span.'

The monkey said: 'Monkey tricks for twenty years? That's a pretty long time to perform. How about I give you back ten like the Dog did?'

And God agreed.

On the third day, God created the cow and said:

'You must go into the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer's family. For this, I will give you a life span of sixty years.'

The cow said: 'That's kind of a tough life you want me to live for sixty years. How about twenty and I'll give back the other forty?'

And God agreed again.

On the fourth day, God created man and said:

'Eat, sleep, play, marry and enjoy your life. For this, I'll give you twenty years.'

But man said: 'Only twenty years? Could you possibly give me my twenty, the forty the cow gave back, the ten the monkey gave back, and the ten
the dog gave back; that makes eighty, okay?'

'Okay,' said God, 'You asked for it.'

So that is why for our first twenty years we eat, sleep, play and enjoy ourselves. For the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family. For the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain the grandchildren. And for the last ten years we sit on the front porch and bark at everyone.

Life has now been explained to you.

There is no need to thank me for this valuable information. I'm doing it as a public service.

Perseid Meteor Shower Aug 11

Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge will be open all night from Tuesday evening, Aug. 11, until dawn on Wednesday morning, Aug. 12, to allow the public to view the Perseid Meteor shower.

Refuge Manager Lou Hinds said, “We plan to extend visiting hours later than normal to permit overnight viewing of the Perseid Meteor shower. Anyone wishing to see the meteor shower must arrive on the refuge before the entrance gate closes at 10 p.m. However, visitors not wishing to stay overnight may leave at any time.”

Public access to trails and other visitor facilities will be prohibited after 10 p.m., but beach parking will remain open. All campfires will be prohibited after 10 p.m. to enhance nighttime viewing opportunities, especially since many people believe this is one of the most rewarding sky-watching events of the year.

The Perseid meteor shower begins in mid-July with a few meteors striking through the sky each evening. The peak of the shower has been forecasted for the 11th and 12th of August, where spectators are likely to view 10 to 150 meteors per hour, if the skies are clear and dark. This famous meteor shower has been observed for over 2000 years, by spectators all around the world.




VIA

How to Save Your Wet Cellphone:

How to Save Your Wet Cellphone: Tech Clinic

By Joel Johnson

Even if a wet cellphone seems dead, there's a good chance it can be resuscitated. Just make sure you act fast—the longer the water sits inside, the greater the likelihood it will destroy the phone for good.

This is a DIY moment. While consumers are conditioned to send back broken merchandise, your phone's warranty probably doesn't cover water damage. And you may not have much luck pulling a fast one on your phone company—most of today's phones come with a "water sticker" that permanently changes color if it gets wet.

The first step: Immediately cut the power by removing the battery. I know it's tempting, but resist the urge to power up your phone to see if it works—just turning it on can short out the circuits. If you have a GSM phone (the type used by AT&T and T-Mobile), you'll want to remove the SIM card as well. Even if your phone turns out to be beyond repair, the SIM should retain a lot of its onboard information, such as the contacts in your phone book.

With the battery safely set aside, you now have one goal—dry your phone, and dry it fast. If you let the moisture evaporate naturally, the chance of corrosion damaging the phone's innards increases. Instead, blow or suck the water out. But don't use a hair dryer—its heat can fry your phone's insides. Instead, opt for a can of compressed air, an air compressor set to a low psi or a vacuum cleaner (a wet/dry Shop-Vac would be perfect). The idea is to use air to push or pull moisture out through the same channels it entered.

Finally, use a desiccant to wick away any leftover moisture. The most convenient choice is uncooked rice. Just leave the phone (and its disconnected battery) submerged in a bowl of grains overnight. If you're worried about rice dust getting inside your phone, you can instead use the packets of silica gel that often come stuffed in the pockets of new clothes. But acting fast is far more important than avoiding a little dust, so don't waste time shopping if you don't already have a drawer full of silica gel.

The most important thing to remember is to avoid heat. That means no hair dryers, ovens, microwaves or extended periods in direct sunlight. While heat will certainly evaporate the moisture, it could also warp components and melt adhesives. Those fragile glues are also why you'll want to avoid dunking the phone in rubbing alcohol (an oftprescribed tip on the Web). Alcohol is a solvent and can dissolve the internal adhesives. (If you drop your phone in the toilet, it's okay to wipe the outside with alcohol to disinfect it.)

One final, perhaps surprising, note: If your phone gets soaked in salt water, you should probably flush the whole thing in fresh water before it dries. When salt water evaporates, it leaves crystals that can damage a phone's fragile components. Just be sure to remove the battery before flooding the device.

THIS WEEKEND

Our 49th Annual
Wheat Threshing, Steam & Gas Engine Show
will be held
AUGUST 7, 8, 9, 2009
on Rt. 313 between Denton and Federalsburg, Maryland

Official opening 10 AM each day. Events throughout each day.

Plenty of good food. Breakfast begins at 7 AM.
Hamburgers, Hot Dogs, Crab Cakes and Fried Chicken served daily from 10 AM until ?

Sawmill, Rock Crusher, Steam Models, Miniature Steam Train, Thresher

FREE ADMISSION - FREE PARKING

-- SEE IN OPERATION --
Steam Engines, Antique Tractors, Gas Engines, Antique Cars, Miniature s
Flea Markets - Daily Parade - Blacksmith Shop
Tractor Games
PARADE OF EQUIPMENT 5 PM FRIDAY & SATURDAY, 4 PM SUNDAY
ANTIQUE CAR PARADE SATURDAY 1:00 PM

Evolution of Threshing - From the Flail to the Modern Combine - Saturday 2 PM

FREE EVENING ENTERTAINMENT

Church Services Sunday 9 AM - Gospel Music Sunday 5 PM
-- EXHIBITORS WELCOME --

http://www.threshermen.org/

If you go wear lightweight clothing and comfortable shoes. There is MUCH to see!

F/A-18 "Hornet" Pilot

Navy Captain remains ID'd 18 yrs later,

Pilot's remains found in Iraq desert
Updated: Sunday, 02 Aug 2009, 4:02 PM EDT
Published : Sunday, 02 Aug 2009, 2:42 PM EDT
Jason Marks
NORFOLK, Va. - The remains of the first American shot down in the 1991 Persian Gulf War have been uncovered ending an 18 year mystery. Sunday the US Navy declared Captain Scott Speicher dead.
"18 years is a lot time not to know what happened to your father or your husband," said Norfolk's Amy Waters Yarsinske.
For almost two decades, Navy Captain Michael Scott Speicher's family never gave up hope that someday he would be found alive. That hope was dashed after the Navy confirmed that bones and skeletal fragments found in Iraq belonged to the missing pilot.
"It's bitter sweet," added Yarsinske. "It really is. You miss him."
Speicher's F/A-18 Hornet was shot down January 17, 1991. It was the first night of the Persian Gulf War. The Navy found the wreckage, but never found his body. Several times over the last 18 years his status changed from "killed in action" to "missing in action" and then to "missing captured".
The Navy says earlier this month an Iraqi citizen gave US Forces new information on where the pilot's remains were buried.
"There are so many unanswered questions," said Yarsinske.
Yarsinske never got the chance to meet Speicher though she feels as if he is a part of her. She spent 8 years investigating the crash, then wrote about. She hopes the Navy will someday release what it believes happened to Speicher.
"I think they need to," added Yarsinske. "I think if they don't, you will never lay this to rest. You will never lay him to rest."
In the years spent searching for Speicher, the US Military changed protocol on how it handles looking for missing servicemen. It's something Yarsinske says is a tribute to Speicher.
"Probably part of the magic of Scott Speicher was what he taught us and what he gave other people," said Yarsinske. "He saved other lives, because of his sacrifice."
Navy Secretary Ray Maybus said this morning in a statement: "Our thoughts and prayers are with Captain Speicher's family for the ultimate sacrifice he made for his country. I am also extremely grateful to all those who have worked so tirelessly over the last 18 years to bring Captain Speicer home."

Boy, Is It Ever H O T !!

Have you been hot lately?

Have you been feeling like you're hotter than the fireworks on the 4th of July?

Can't seem to get any

relief from the heat and humidity?Well..................................Relax!!!!! Summer is almost gone!

It'll be time for this soon..................................

Do All Ducks Want to Be the Aflac Ducks?

Before leaving Chincoteague Island my husband had to stop by the local insurance company.

This duck was at the front door. Being Chincoteague I just thought it was a decoy. Right?

As it turns out it is a real duck nesting there!

I wonder who she is insured with?

Ponies Return to Assateague

The Chincoteague ponies returned to Assateague Island this morning without the hoopla and massive crowds that pony penning day brings. The remaining ponies grazed under the trees at the carnival grounds while the younger ones that had been sold at the aution waited on the other side for their new families to take them home.

The "buy back" ponies were quite cordial today and I assumed they were ready to return home. They have done this before. Many of them have made the trip many times

.

The herd returning today was smaller than the original herd that swam over. Ponies that live on the northern end of Assateague Island return home in horse trailers.

Around 11:00 this morning the ponies headed home led by the Saltwater Cowboys. Because the herd was small enough the Saltwater Cowboys lined the outsides of the ponies and slowly walked them back to Memorial Park. We had ridden to the park earlier and very early this morning horse lovers were already waiting.

They walked past us at a steady pace and before you knew it they had passed by, turned left and continued on. I have never seen this before in all the years I have lived so close to Chincoteague and Assateague. I wish now I had taken my children to witness alot of this. This is a tradition that has remained for 84 years. It is a tradition that these people do so well at keeping. I also found myself wishing I had taken my younger brother years ago on the Wednesday of the penning instead of our usual trek to the beach and Mr. Whippy's. Hope he hasn't held it against me all these many years.

And a hint for next year if you go: watch the movie Misty of Chincoteague and then go ask any older person you can find on Chincoteague about pony penning. They'll be more than glad to tell you all about it!

Chincoteague Ponies Return to Assateague

The remaining Chincoteague ponies returned to Assateague Island today without the hoopla and massive crowds that penning day brings. Alot of the ponies had already been driven back to the north end of Assateague in trailers.

No free Lunch at The White House

White House Invites CEOs to Lunch, Makes Them Pay for the Meal

If you're a corporate CEO, and you are invited to the White House for lunch, you'd better bring your credit card along. Yes, the days of the free lunch are over at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. Case in point: A recent Oval Office powwow between President Obama and the heads of Xerox, Coca-Cola, AT&T, and Honeywell, where the executives were asked by White House staffers to provide their credit card information so that they could be billed for the cost of the meal. Via


The White House defended the unusual move as a way to avoid conflicts of interest. But the Bush administration didn't charge presidential guests for meals, one former official said, and at least one etiquette expert found the whole thing unseemly -- suggesting it was a serious breach of protocol.


The president regularly hosts meetings with the nation's top business leaders to listen to their grievances and suggestions, and making them pick up the tab for their meals is intended to show that the relationship is free of ethical complications.No word on what each CEO ordered, and whether the White House price structure seemed fair, wildly exorbitant, or like a bargain.


VIA

84th Chincoteague Pony Penning and Carnival

After a morning of excitement and and anticipation among thousands of viewers this is all that was left at Memorial Park yesterday evening.

Then on towards the carnival grounds to see those ponies. This is kinda like their very own Oscar week. Just as we got there I found this pony being led to the coral. The ooh and aahs began and I was captured myself. At first the litle guy wanted no part in the hoopla but soon settled down and the petting began. I felt sorry for the little guy because he wanted nothing more but to find his mom and get something to eat.

To be continued.....................

jmmb

Pony Penning contd.

We seem to have gotten to the carnival groungs at "happy hour" for the ponies. Instead of the usual "show" the ponies put on with the frolicking and snorting they seemed to be more interested in eating. The chatter from the crowd and finger pointing didn't seem to amuse them.

Lots of hearts will be broken this week because someone couldn't take a pony home with them. But along with that sadness will be many happy tales to tell and I am sure everyone will take home a "special" pony in their heart.

And at the end of the day when the carnivals' Tilt-a-Whirl stops tilting and whirling and the Ferris Wheel stops going round and around, when all the screams of enjoyment have ceased, and the smell of cooking food has faded into the night the descendants of Misty will settle down. It's been a long day for them.

Sometimes it's even difficult to get a pony to smile


~~ This is dedicated to my daughter who is currently busy touring the United States.

I know she will see this. I miss her.~~

jmmb

In God We Trust

Should the motto "In God We Trust" be removed from U.S. currency? Vote HERE

Mall Boots Out Anti-Obama Kiosk

(July 29) -- Politics Daily's Mary C. Curtis calls it The Battle of Concord ... Mall.
Free Market Warrior, which sells conservative-themed products, is losing its lease and must leave North Carolina's Concord Mills mall at the end of the week.

Loren Spivak, who owns the kiosk, says the decision is purely political, noting that other stores in the mall sold lots of pro-Obama merchandise for months after the inauguration. A statement from the mall near Charlotte says it won't renew the lease because Spivak refuses to remove three bumper stickers and a T-shirt that suggest a link between the president and terrorism.

Although the future of Spivak's business is in doubt, he says the uproar has given his kiosk's sales a boost during its final days in the mall.

Chincoteague Salt Water Cowboys Pony Penning (Today)

Since the Chincoteague Pony Penning is this week and all the hustle has been about the ponies and their swim onto Chincoteague I find it only fair to give credit to the Chincoteague Salt Water Cowboys. In fact, if you know anyone that lives on Chincoteague they very well may be a "Saltwater Cowboy". jmmb Chincoteague's Salt Water Cowboys - Legends of the Wild East

by Sam Serio

Just as the Chincoteague ponies are horses uniquely adapted to their environment, the Chincoteague Salt Water Cowboys are a breed of cowboy uniquely adapted to their job. What, exactly, is their job?

While the majority of them serve as volunteer fire fighters for the Chincoteague Island Fire department, that's not the job that has earned them the title of Salt Water Cowboys. Their cowboying job consists of, among other things, spending some wet and wild hours at the end of each July herding the Chincoteague ponies from their year-round home on Assateague Island across a football-field-long stretch of water to Chincoteague Island for the annual Pony Penning and Auction.

While that might not sound like high-paying work (and the Salt Water Cowboys don’t earn a nickel for their efforts) it is vital to the survival of the Fire Department, which owns the Chincoteague Island pony herd and supports itself with the proceeds of the annual Pony Auction. The Pony Auction, due in large part to the efforts of the Salt Water Cowboys, is now the biggest event in the Chincoteague Island calendar, drawing more fifty thousand visitors from around the globe each year.

The Salt Water Cowboys have earned celebrity status among their fellow Chincoteague residents, but their pony collecting duties extend far beyond what the public sees on Pony Penning day. The money earned for the sale of Chincoteague Island ponies each year is used not only for the Fire Department, but to support the pony herd itself.

Although they spend their lives in the wild, the ponies are rounded up each spring and fall for inoculations, worming, and hoof trims, and checked for any other injuries. They are also provided with extra feed when necessary.

During the spring and autumn roundups, which happen around during foaling time in April and before the cold weather sets in October; the Salt Water Cowboys are called on again.

They're asked to collect all the ponies, which run in two separate herds in the Chincoteague Island National Wildlife Refuge on Assateague Island. The southern herd is taken first to a holding pen by the Woodland Trail before being guided to a larger corral on Beach Road where they are fed, watered, and rested for the night before getting their veterinary treatments.

While the southern herd is being treated, the Salt Water Cowboys have the much larger job of gathering the ponies on the northern range, a process which begins at 7:00 AM and continues until all the stragglers have been brought in. The Salt Water Cowboys are required to be expert riders, because trying to manage their own horses while plowing through marshes, under branches, and along sandy beaches in pursuit of balky ponies is no job for an amateur horseman.

The northern herd is about double the size of the southern one, and the Salt Water Cowboys guide them to an isolated holding pen accessible only to the cowboys on horseback or to the attending veterinarian by vehicle. Tourists can reach it on foot, but only with a great deal of determination.

One thing which makes the job of the Salt Water Cowboys just a bit easier is that, after participating in a few roundups, some the older Chincoteague ponies seem to learn the drill, and start moving to their collection points as soon as they see the Cowboys, bullwhips cracking, headed their way. But there are always plenty of independent pony spirits to keep the Salt Water Cowboys on their game!

Submitted By jmmb...

Thank you

Need A Laugh?

Police chief gives taser to citizen

Wilson Glenn used to live here in Pocomoke,in-fact he was my neighbor, anyone remember him? I do.

HALLWOOD, Va. - A father waves a taser at a cell phone camera then points it at his son's back. The teen falls to the ground and out of the picture. Then he jumps up joining in the laughter of the other men.

The father then hands the taser back to its owner, a grinning Hallwood Chief of Police Wilson Glenn.

The town is home to nearly 300 residents. It sits about 2 hours away from Hampton Roads in Accomack County on the Eastern Shore.

WAVY.com caught up with Glenn outside his home in June. He wouldn't talk to us on camera about the incident but admitted he handed over his police weapon, claiming the video was just a joke. Glenn said he knew the whole thing was being videotaped.
Beyond that, he would only tell us the incident is being investigated. Whose investigating? WAVY.com learned it's the town council, who hired Chief Glenn in April 2006. No one from the council would comment. There's also no mention of the incident in council minutes for the past two months.
Mayor Timothy Raynor told WAVY.com over the phone, the incident "wasn't a big deal."

Glenn claims he is taser certified however, we checked and found no record.
As the video clearly shows, the X-26 taser is not being used as intended. So, WAVY.com sent the video to company representatives. Steve Tuttle, Vice President of Communications sent us the following statement:

While TASER International stands behind the safety of its life-saving technology, it is paramount that a successful TASER program requires clear use of force polices, stringent oversight and recurrent certified training.
WAVY.com discovered Hallwood does not have a policy which dictates how and when any weapon, including a taser, should be used.

Glenn ultimately blames someone trying to seek vengeance for leaking the video.

"We got a couple people in town trying to tear police department apart," he said.

WAVY.com told the Accomack County Commonwealth's Attorney Gary Agar about the video. He asked the state police to investigate. The investigation is currently ongoing.

from: www.wavy.com

Contributed by; jmmb

ELEPHANTS MIGRATION TRAIL

ELEPHANTS MIGRATION TRAIL
Elephants march through hotel lobby after it was built on their migration trail! The Mfuwe Lodge in Zambia happens to have been built next to a mango grove that one family of elephants have always visited when the fruit ripens. When they returned one year and found the luxury accommodation in the way, they simply walked through the lobby to reach their beloved grove of trees.

The animals come in two-by-two. Hotel staff and visitors have gotten used to the elephants' impromptu strolls through the lobby. Now the family group, headed by matriarch Wonky Tusk, return every November and stay for four to six weeks to gorge on mangos - up to four times a day. Andy Hogg, 44, the lodge director, has lived in South Luangwa National Park since 1982. But in all his years of dealing with wild animals he has never seen such intimate interaction between humans and wild animals. "This is the only place in the world where elephants freely get so close to humans," says Andy. "The elephants start coming through base camp in late November each year to eat the ripe mangos from our trees."

Living in the 5,000 square mile national park, the ten-strong elephant herd is led to the lodge each day by Wonky Tusk. The hotel was built directly in the path of the elephants' route to one of their favorite foods ....Mangos

"The most interesting thing about these wild animals," explains Andy, "is that this is the only herd that comes through, and they come and go as they please."
Mfuwe Lodge consists of seven camps and the base camp where the elephants walk through. Employing 150 staff, the management of the lodge report that there have been no incidents involving the wild elephants to date. "The elephants get reasonably close to the staff, as you can see in the pictures of the elephants near the reception area," Andy explains.. "But we do not allow the guests to get that close."

"Guests can stand in the lounge but only as long as there is a barrier between the elephants and the guests," he added.
"The elephants are not aggressive but you wouldn't want to tempt them. It is the elephant's choice to be here and they have been coming here for the last ten years. There are other wild mango trees around, but they prefer ours. The lodge was unwittingly built upon their path," Andy says, "so we had no idea they would do this. It wasn't a design error, we just didn't know. The lodge was built and the elephants started walking through afterward."

"We keep people at a safe distance, but allow them close enough to see what is going on. These are still wild and dangerous animals, so there must be enough time for people to get away."
The hotel is set in an idyllic national parkland. Naturally, the lodge becomes busier for both elephants and guests during November. "We find that we get more people visiting us during the elephant migration because of the unique experience of being so close to wild animals in an unusual environment," says Andy. "But as I said this is a totally natural phenomenon, as the elephants come here of their own accord. It is certainly a rare but magnificent sight."

Video For Today

The news has been slow and the healthcare crap is worn out.
How about a couple videos to perk ya up.

crank it up..........

More on the Pain medication contract

In a previous post I tried to explain why I would not sign a contract for pain medication. We had a nice debate about the contract and some folks even suggested I must be a druggie for not signing the contract.

Well it would be quite the opposite if one has any commonsense at all because a druggie will do anything to get their Buzz!

I have not had ANY form of pain medication now for quite some time, yeah I'm stubborn and in pain now, and have been threw the withdrawals of these harsh opiates all because I WILL NOT and I never will sign a contract that the Doctor/Government can invade my private life at their will, and at any time they want.

I found a copy of the standard contract that the Doctors can/will require you to sign, so I ask...... Would YOU sign it, or would you give-up your freedom of private life for a bottle of pills?

The quotes in red is what I object too.


Medication Contract

I, , _____________have agreed to use the following medications as
part of my treatment for chronic pain.

I understand that these medications may not eliminate
my pain but may reduce it and improve what I am able to do each day.

MEDICATION DOSE DIRECTIONS QUANTITY PER MONTH

I understand the following guidelines for continuing pain treatment under the care of

1. I understand that I have the following responsibilities:

•I will take medications at the dose and frequency prescribed.

•I will not increase or change how I take my medications without the approval of this
health care provider.

•I will arrange for refills at the prescribed interval ONLY during regular office hours. I
will not ask for refills earlier than agreed, after-hours, on holidays or on weekends.

•I will obtain all refills for these medications only at pharmacy
(phone number: ), with full consent for my provider and pharmacist
to exchange information in writing or verbally.

•I will not request any pain medications or controlled substances from other providers
and will inform this provider of all other medications I am taking.

•I will inform my other health care providers that I am taking these pain medications
and of the existence of this contract. In event of an emergency, I will provide this same
information to emergency department providers.

•I will protect my prescriptions and medications. I understand that lost or misplaced
prescriptions will not be replaced.

•I will keep medications only for my own use and will not share them others. I will keep
all medications away from children.

•I agree to participate in any medical, psychological or psychiatric assessments recommended
by my provider.

•I will actively participate in any program designed to improve function, including social,
physical, psychological and daily or work activities.


2. I will not use illegal or street drugs or another person’s prescription. If I have an addiction
problem with drugs or alcohol and my provider asks me to enter a program to address this
issue, I agree to follow through. Such programs may include:

•12-step program and securing a sponsor

•Individual counseling

•Inpatient or outpatient treatment

•Other:_____________________

If in treatment, I will request that a copy of the program’s initial evaluation and treatment
recommendations be sent to this provider and will not expect refills until that is received. I
will also request written monthly updates be sent to verify my continuing treatment.

3. I will consent to random drug screening to assure I am only taking prescribed drugs. I
understand that a drug screen is a laboratory test in which a sample of my urine or blood is
checked to see what drugs I have been taking.

4. I will keep all my scheduled appointments. If I need to cancel my appointment, I will do so
a minimum of 24 hours before it is scheduled.

5. I understand that this provider may stop prescribing the medications listed if:

•I do not show any improvement in pain or my activity has not improved.

•I develop rapid tolerance or loss of improvement from the treatment.

•I develop significant side effects from the medication.

•My behavior is inconsistent with the responsibilities outlined above, which may also
result in being prevented from receiving further care from this clinic.

Signed: Date:________________

Provider: Date:_________________

Click this link to the actual contract
http://www.ohsu.edu/ahec/pain/med_contractlf.pdf