Going FASTER?

Well, since I need to drop a few pounds for my APFT anyway, I’ve decided to fast today. I used to do this for two weeks at a time in college, but I find I don’t have that kind of willpower anymore… My last attempt was about 18 months ago, and I only made it three days. I’m just doing one this time, but I think I’ll start doing it on a regular basis, say, one day every other weekend.

UPDATE
Too much stress for a fast… I’m doing Atkins.

The Untold Truth?

Armistice Day was first commemorated in the United States by President Woodrow Wilson in 1919, and 30 states made it a legal holiday. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 inviting all States to observe the day and made it a legal holiday nationwide in 1938. It has been observed annually on November 11 since then – first as Armistice Day, later as Veterans Day. This was a clever ruse to hide the fact that President Wilson had a secret affinity for the United States Marine Corps. President Wilson, although a Dem, was not an all together bad guy. In the summer of 1918, he met with the German and Allied commanders, separately, of course. He pushed both sides toward ending the war, and, as fate would have it, he suggested the armistice signing take place on 11 November 1918. Everything fell into place. He gave it one year and then initiated the most misunderstood holiday these United States ever saw. He sold it as a celebration of the armistice all the while keeping in mind that November 10 was the birthday of the beloved Corps. Trying to appease St Peter and God himself, thus ensuring swift entry through the pearly gates, he gave the United States Marine Corps the day after that hallowed day of their birth as a holiday, thus freeing Marines everywhere to celebrate in the grandest of fashion. So on this the two hundred thirty second birthday of our beloved Corps, While raising toasts to Chesty Puller, Dan Daily, Smedly D Butler, Carlos Hathcock and all the great men and women that have been bestowed the honor of United States Marine, let us not forget the one democrat that gave the Corps so much! If you share this with anyone that has never served in the only true branch of service, they may not believe you and that's ok, the world needs non-believers. Semper Fi!

"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a difference in the world. But, the Marines don’t have that problem" — Ronald Reagan

UPDATE:
As it turns out, this was actually fabricated by a friend of mine. Here I thought he’d done some sort of outstanding historical research.

The Book of Greenesis, Chapter 1

1In the beginning Al Gore created the internet.

2And the earth was without propaganda, and prosperous; and calmness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of Al Gore moved upon the face of the Democratic Party.

3And Al Gore said, Let there be spin: and there was spin.

4And Al Gore saw the spin, that it was profitable: and Al Gore divided the spin from the truth.

5And Al Gore called the spin Global Warming, and the truth he called Denial. And the evening and the morning were the first day.

6And Al Gore said, Let there be a documentary about the Warming, and let it divide the Environmentalists from the Neocons.

7And Al Gore made the documentary, and divided the Environmentalists which were under Socialism from the Neocons which were above such nonsense: and it was so.

8And Al Gore called Socialism Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

9And Al Gore said, Let the Environmentalists under Socialism be gathered together unto one place, and let Carbon Credits appear: and it was so.

10And Al Gore called the Carbon Credits Earth-friendly; and the gathering together of the Socialists he called MoveOn.org: and Al Gore saw that it was profitable.

11And Al Gore said, Let the Socialists bring forth grass, the herb yielding halluciantions, and the nutroot yielding nutroots after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the internet: and it was so.

12And the Socialists brought forth grass, and herb yielding hallucinations after smoking, and MoveOn.org yielding to nutroots, whose seed was in the internet, after their kind: and Al Gore saw that it was profitable.

13And the evening and the morning were the third day.

14And Al Gore said, Let there be spin among the Socialists of the heaven to divide the Environmentalists from the Neocons; and let it be for propaganda, and for profit, and for scaring children, and everyone else but me:

15And let it be for spin in the Socialism of Heaven to give spin upon the earth: and it was so.

16And Al Gore made two great lies; the greater lie to rule the Democrats, and the lesser lie to rule the schoolchildren: he got the Nobel Peace Prize, also.

17And Al Gore set them in MoveOn.org to give spin upon the earth,

18And to rule over the Socialists and over the schoolchildren, and to divide the Environmentalists from the Neocons: and Al Gore saw that it was profitable.

19And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.

20And Al Gore said, Let the spin bring forth abundantly the nutroots that hath conspiracy theories, and failed draft-dodgers that may fly above Congress in the open.

21And Al Gore created great panic, and every nutroot that blogeth, which the documentary brought forth abundantly, after their kind, and every failed draft-dodger after his kind: and Al Gore saw that it was profitable.

22And Al Gore blessed them, saying, be Socialist, and use no technology, and do not melt the icecaps to fill the seas, and let everything but people multiply in the earth.

23And the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24And Al Gore said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: as long as it isn’t people.

25And Al Gore praised the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and Al Gore saw that it was profitable.

26And Al Gore said, Let us make Democrats in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the nutroots, and over the conspiracy theorists, and over the draft-dodgers, and over all the anti-victory activists, and over every Socialist that creepeth upon the earth.

27So Al Gore created Democrats in his own image, in the image of Al Gore created he him; Obama and Hillary created he them.

28And Al Gore blessed them, and Al Gore said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and repress prosperity, and subdue it: and have dominion over the nutroots, and over the conspiracy theorists, and over every Socialist that moveth upon the earth.

29And Al Gore said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing hallucinations, which is upon the windows of all the Socialists, and every tree, which removes carbon dioxide; to you it shall be for activism.

30And to every nutroot, and to every conspiracy theorist, and to every Socialist that creepeth upon the earth, wherein there is activism, I have given every green herb for hallucinating: and it was so.

31And Al Gore saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very profitable. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Let’s Set Some Goals!

Okay, I’ve decided to add some focus to my life: it’s time to start setting real goals! I will set goals of three durations: short-term (monthly goals), medium term (quarterly goals), and long term (annual goals). I will make a new posting each month of new goals, and note which I achieve and which I fail. (I can tell that you’re already excited) For now, I will be focusing on four areas which need drastic improvement: physical fitness, financial portfolio, professional development, and homeownership.

My goals as of 1 NOV 2007 will be:

Short-Term (for 31 NOV 2007):
Physical: Score 230 on my APFT *
Financial: Balance my personal budget
Professional: Expert Rifle and Pistol qualification
Homeowner: Have washing machine fixed

Medium-Term (for 31 DEC 2007):
Physical: 15% bodyfat (isn’t that pathetic?)
Financial: Close accounts with Chase Bank
Professional: Finish all preparation for OCS
Homeowner: Cut tree limbs for insurance compliance

Long-Term (for 31 DEC 2008):
Physical: APFT badge (minimum 90 in each APFT event)
Financial: Open account with thinkorswim.com
Professional: Find GS-09 or better job to accept commission
Homeowner: Furnish living room

—–
* I would like to add that scoring well on the APFT actually has nothing to do with physical fitness (especially as a military member), and training for one can actually be detrimental to one’s health. APFT goals would probably be better situated under “professional development.” However, training for APFT’s does AFFECT my physical training overall: it takes time and energy away from other endeavors; it demands that I build muscles with lots of mitochondria and capillaries when what I really need is big, reinforced myofribils; it makes my heart more efficient when it needs to be stronger (efficiency in the heart isn’t as good as it sounds); etc.

Randi Rhodes

I’ve been doing a little research on Randi Rhodes, the Air America talk show host who recently fell down while walking her dog and couldn’t be bothered to correct the rumors that ran rampant for three days that her injuries came about as a result of vicious “right wingers” mugging her.

On her website is a summary ruling from a Virginia court, in which she is found innocent of defamation against contracting company CACI (which provides services in support of American operations in Iraq) because, for example, the statement “there are videos that clearly show rape and murder, and, yes, they show… the rapes of children and… the murder of people who have been caught in this dragnet in Iraq” was found to be HYPERBOLE and “could not reasonably be interpreted as stating actual facts.” And there’s lots more like that in the document .

WHAT THE HELL?

She also insinuates that Blackwater started the current California wildfire .