Texas History

I heard something the other day that disturbed me. A guy on the radio said that the United States took Texas from the Mexicans and therefore they deserved to inhabit it undisturbed. He was talking about ILLEGAL immigration.

It made me wonder how many people really don't know how Texas came to be. Now I certainly don't claim to be a history major but, if I'm not mistaking, the Texicans fought for their independence against the tyranny of the dictatorship of Santa Anna. Just like the colonist fought against the tyranny of the King of England. I'm sure there was more to it but that's the gist of it.

I'm also sure that before someone goes tying Texas up in some cockamamie crapola, they should study just a bit.

Pray for Prevention (and Lost Hair)

Have you ever noticed how you (or me) call on God alot more in the mist of trouble? Yeah, me too. I'm finding myself in the mist of a struggle that I can't seem to get an appropriate response from the proper authority. (I'm being vague on purpose.) I've called all the right people and have even talked to some. But there is no immediate assistance. If I cross the line I can get immediate assistance but that would be the negative kind and would only create more problems. I haven't been on this side of things and it gives me a whole other perspective of some of the families I've seen in my past affiliations.
I'm telling you folks, proactive is the proper way to be, but reactive is the way things seem to be done. It's a durn shame. I'm praying heavily and constantly (or consistantly- whichever is the proper word) that the "prevention services" get here in time.

D-Day

Today is the 53rd anniversary of the invasion of Normandy. We went in as "liberators not conquerors" were the words FDR used. As many as 6000 men died on D-Day and it was a success. The whole thing cost the lives of somewhere around 425,000 Allied and German forces.

I heard someone ask today, that if our media were to have been around on June 6, 1944, do you think that they would be asking President Rososevelt for an "exit strategy" or hollering about how the cost of American lives wasn't worth it?

I wonder...

The Unholy Trinity

"He has studied the Western postmodern mind and has devised a strategy based on its unholy trinity of multiculturalism, moral equivalence and cultural relativism."

I saw this statement while reading an article titled "Nuclear Iran?" by Victor Davis Hanson. It first caught my attention because of the phrase "western postmodern mind". Mainly because I'm not sure i fully grasp the definition of the word 'postmodern', but yet I feel some connection to it. Then the rest of the sentence "unholy trinity of multiculturalism, moral equivalence and cultural relativism" put to words something I've thought about quite often but didn't know how to say.

It doesn't seem that multiculturalism is helping our great nation a bit. Many will attempt to say that we must accept all cultures in this country because that's what this country was built on. That is no doubt a grave misunderstanding. The people that came to this country and made it great did not come here and say "my culture is great and I will continue living it in this country." They came to this country to live free of the ties and burdens set on them by their own countries. They came and assimilated to the culture of this new nation. A culture that singled no one people out but included all who would take hold of it. They came and learned a new language and new laws and customs. They came with the thought of being a part of a new nation where they were free to worship, teach, speak and to pursue their dreams without fear of a government or dictatorship that would keep them from a better life.

This nation is great because it leaves open the door for any individual to excel and create and invent without fears of retribution or domination or control by the government. This nation encourages self-reliance and independence. You can be as great as you want. If you try hard enough you can be a professional athlete making millions of dollars or you can create a new software and become one of the wealthiest people in the world. This country is great because it rewards hard work and personal effort and the government doesn't take your reward and distribute it where it pleases.

This great nation has made mistakes and, for the most part, I think it recognizes them and attempts to correct them. I am sure that being such a young nation that there will be other mistakes made. But I am equally as sure that, as long as this nation recognizes independent thoughts and ideas and the rewards continue to be worth the effort, that there will be great people who grow up here or come from foreign lands to pursue their dreams, that will continue to make this a great nation.

We must get over this idea that we have to accomadate every nationality that crosses our borders looking for a new life. We must get beyond multiculturalism, moral equivalance and moral relavance and see this nation as ONE NATION with one goal to become one people.

I'm sure I haven't said everything I wanted to say about all of this, but there will be more to come.

Travelers

We're all travelers in this world.
From the sweet grass to the packing house.
Birth 'til death.
We travel between the eternities.

-Prentice Ritter

I'm indeed blessed to have traveling companions

such as I do. I can only hope that God uses me in these travels

and that all I do can be to glorify Him.

The Not-so Merry-go-round

My general superintendent asked us to come to our next meeting with a list of our strengths and weaknesses. So I started contemplating on what mine would be and discovered one blaring weakness that tends to be a strength, that tends to start the Not-so Merry-go round.

My weakness is that I expect that everyone is honest and hard working. I like to think that if I treat all my men like men and that if I respect them and their position and situations, then they'll respect me and earn their money instead of look for opportunities to screw me and milk the job. Unfortunately that isn't how it always happens. So I rely on my foreman to counterbalance any of my mis-judgements. Then I have to wonder (especially now that all my old guys are gone) if I correctly assessed them and their abilities enough to rely on their judgement. That's where the not-so merry-go-round begins.

My strength is that I expect that everyone is honest and hard working. Everyone gets a clean slate when they come on my job and everyone gets the benefit of the doubt. My men don't have to worry about being bird dogged and hopefully that helps them to relax and be more productive. Obviously I'm not always correct and therefore I return to the previous paragraph and begin the not-so merry-go-round.

The Last of the M H-icans

I've been working at the "same" shop for twenty years. I don't know why except that I always seem to find something to commit to so I can't, with good conscience, leave the job undone. I say "same" because the company has gone through four names and a complete upper management turnover so technically it's really not the "same". I haven't gone anywhere but everyone else has. All the guys I came up in the trade with are gone. All the guys I worked for are gone. There is only me and one more left and he's received an offer that I don't think he can refuse. So here I am, hard headed and not going anywhere till they run me out. I'm the last of the M H-icans.