Chicken dinner cancelled...
Well apparently the offer by Saddam of further inspections and a free chicken dinner did not pass muster with the Azore's conventioneers. The gauntlet is now thrown down, though who threw it is up for debate. Saddam by refusing to stop lying, or the Western Powers [minus] who have said "enough is enough" no more negotiating stunts, it's time to "lock and load" and rock n' roll.

Looking in hind sight on the last six months there are two things that strike me. I have felt for some time that if GWB had been a little less bellicose in public but instead had made the diplomatic circuit on the QT drumming up support from the doubters and undecideds, he would have come out in a better spot today. As one of my favorite Presidents, Teddy Roosevelt, said, "Talk softly but carry a big stick". Not that they would have all joined....hardly, but it might have cut down on much of the negative chatter from the ignorant.

Secondly, had the main body of weasels, Germany, France and Russia, put forth a solid front with the coalition of the free, perhaps Saddam might have been much more inclined to give the game up and retire to Corsica or some other vacation spot. But with three of his long time economic sponsors pledging peace at any cost, in additon to the peace marches by the naive and ignorant, he felt that once again he could worm his way out of a tight spot. Now because of the Weasels and peace marchers giving heart to Saddam, war is quite inevitable.

Of Course, this is all hindsight and speculation. But while I'm in that mode, my observation on how hostilities may begin. As of this writing the administration is deciding whether or not to give Saddam a deadline, 72 hours, to comply. Whether this limitation is set or not, is really unimportant. Saddam thinks, one way or the other he as 72 hours. And his experience in Desert Storm I was that immediately after the deadline passes, the bombs start to fall. I would let him think just that and perhaps carry out a few heavy sorties around the country every night to make him wonder, "is this it?" But the moon is full now, not a good environment for our night fighting armies and air forces. So make him keep his troops on high alert for weeks, and then deliver the main thrust. Nothing wears troops in defensive postions out quicker than being on alert for weeks on end.

There are two military geniuses from Midland, Texas.....myself and Gen. Tommy Franks and Tommy has the reins so I'll leave the details to him. He is up to the job!

Come for Sunday dinner.....
In a surprising new development, Saddam Hussein has invited UN inspectors back to look around one more time and then come for a chicken dinner at one of his 400 palaces [to be decided later]. At U.N. headquarters in New York, Chief Inspector Hans Blix said he would study the invitation and discuss it with the council. Asked if the Iraqi invitation was a stunt, he told CNN,"I certainly wouldn't call it a stunt, Saddam has never been known to pull stunts. ... I think that they will actually serve chicken, but we will of course inspect it also".

Iraq's Foreign Ministry said Saddam's science adviser, Lt. Gen. Amer al-Saadi - the point man on disarmament - had invited the two chief inspectors to come to Baghdad at the "earliest suitable date to discuss means to speed up joint cooperation, but please not for another week, as we are still moving some items". Amer al-Saadi pledged to take inspectors to all locations where chemical and biological labs had been to show them that they are no longer there.

In another bid to show cooperation, Iraqi authorities gave inspectors the names of 183 more scientists involved in Iraqi chemical weapons programs, U.N. spokesman Hiro Ueki said Saturday.These, of course, were due five months ago and Iraqi officials denied ever having kept names from the UN, but chief inspector Blix hailed this move as a show of real cooperation.

In Saddam's hometown, Tikrit, thousands of people including Baath Party officers armed with Kalashnikovs and men in Arab dress, carried portraits of the Iraqi leader and chanted "We love Saddam," as they filed past a local dignitaries in a reviewing stand. We seek one of two things: victory or martyrdom," said one demonstrator, Abdullah Rasheed al-Haza'a. To show their willingness to negotiate even at this late date, US officials pledged assistance in the martyrdom.

Why did the Chick cross the road?......
The Dixie Chicken's singer Natalie Mange is now singing a different tune. In a case of what came first, the Chick or the egg, Natalie has appologized for her recent statement in which she said that she was sorry that President Bush is from Texas.

The Chick, apparently being of a lower mental caliber, didn't realize that statements made in Europe could be transmitted back to the US. Realizing that she now has to come back to America, and presumably her home in Texas, Natalie wished to rephrase her statement. She indicated that what she really meant to say was, "I love George W. Bush, worked on his campaign, and would be his love slave if he weren't an honorably married man. And I just want my Texas fans to know that I have purchased an AR-15 rifle and 300 rounds of .223 ball ammunition and have offered to go to Iraq and pick off a few human shields". The fact that almost every radio station in Texas has been bombarded with hate mail against the Chicks was also viewed as a factor in this latest statement.

This is a nice attempt Natalie, but the egg is out of the cartoon, the true nature of your feelings is exposed. Perhaps you and the other Nitwits of Fame will heed a proverb that I learned long ago........."Never miss a good chance to shut up!"

Don't leave the light on...
In a move that was not unexpected, the French hotel chain Sofitel surrendered it's Manhattan hotel today. The French tricolor was lowered and was quickly replaced on the flagstaff with the Stars and Stripes. Sofitel chairman Paul Charoy, by all accounts a Frenchman, said, "This is not a political consideration, the move is temporary and we just wanted to be safe." Of course the French are well known for switching sides temporarily and putting their own safety above political considerations, morals and world wide responsibility.

For you traveling budget minded Gaelic Boycotters, Sofitel is owned by Accor, whose units include U.S. motel chains Red Roof Inn and Motel 6. So tell them not to worry about leaving the light on for you, you'll be down the road at the Holiday Inn where the flag of the United States flies proudly all the time.

TeeVee Land.....
Tonight, world events were put on hold for the extravaganza presentation of the First Annual TV Land Awards. Oh what memories of happy times! It was good to see all the stars of years gone by in this gala event. Some impressions.

*Sally Struthers is just about as big around as she is tall. When did this happen? The last time I saw her raising money for starving waifs, she looked like one of them herself. She must have raised a lot of money....and bought her own food supply.

*Rob Reiner is still a Meathead. Parodying Michael Stivic, he had to sing a little anti-war song. Where's Archie when we needed him?

*Lee Majors, the 6 Million Dollar Man, now looks like about a dollar and change. I wouldn't have recognized him, looking this very old. But, receiving the Super Hero Award he countered the Meathead by offering a tribute "to the real heroes, our Armed Forces". Way to go 6 Million!

*Barbara Eden at whatever age.....still looks like a babe to me. I Dream of Jeannie!

*Best award: Don Knotts as the "Best Sidekick". It's strange seeing him so old, when every night at 9:00 pm. he's a young Barney.

* It was good to see many of the Star Trek crew back together! By the looks of them, William Shatner seems like he could pop at any minute and if Scottie survives another week we'll be lucky. And I thought he was so young.

* Agent 99, Barbara Feldon, is a really classy chick.

*David Cassidy, aka Keith Partridge, has grown up to look exactly like his dad, actor Jack Cassidy.

*Oh my God, even Larry Matthews, little Richie Petrie, is an old guy now. Where has time gone?

*Shocking: Leave it to Beaver was virtually ignored, though June Cleaver, Barbara Billingsley did make a guest appearance. Where are awards for Lumpy, Eddie and Larry Mondelo?

*And in the big surprise of the evening, Carl Reiner announced that he is writing one final episode of the Dick Van Dyke Show for the remaining original cast, Sally Rogers, Richie, Dick and Laura! Tune in to TeeVee Land.

Axis of almost evil....
I saw this item today posted on Sgt. Stryker's website and they credit the original to Andrew Marlatt, of SatireWire, so I'll take their word for it. In any event it's just too good not to pass on.
-------------------------------------

Bitter after being snubbed for membership in the "Axis of Evil," Libya, China, and Syria today announced they had formed the "Axis of Just as Evil," which they said would be more evil than that stupid Iran-Iraq-North Korea axis President Bush warned of in his State of the Union address. Axis of Evil members, however, immediately dismissed the new axis as having, for starters, a really dumb name. "Right. They are Just as Evil...in their dreams!" declared North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. "Everybody knows we're the best evils... best at being evil...we're the best."

Diplomats from Syria denied they were jealous over being excluded, although they conceded they did ask if they could join the Axis of Evil.

"They told us it was full," said Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. "An Axis can't have more than three countries," explained Iraqi President Saddam Hussein. "This is not my rule, it's tradition. In World War II you had Germany, Italy, and Japan in the evil Axis. So, you can only have three, and a secret handshake. Ours is wickedly cool."

International reaction to Bush's Axis of Evil declaration was swift, as within minutes, France surrendered. Elsewhere, peer-conscious nations rushed to gain triumvirate status in what became a game of geopolitical chairs. Cuba, Sudan, and Serbia said they had formed the "Axis of Somewhat Evil," forcing Somalia to join with Uganda and Myanmar in the "Axis of Occasionally Evil," while Bulgaria, Indonesia and Russia established the "Axis of Not So Much Evil Really As Just Generally Disagreeable."

With the criteria suddenly expanded and all the desirable clubs filling up...Sierra Leone, El Salvador, and Rwanda applied to be called the "Axis of Countries That Aren't the Worst But Certainly Won't Be Asked to Host he Olympics."

Canada, Mexico, and Australia formed the "Axis of Nations That Are Actually Quite Nice But Secretly Have Some Nasty Thoughts About America," while Scotland, New Zealand and Spain established the "Axis of Countries That Be Allowed to Ask Sheep to Wear Lipstick." "That's not a threat, really, just something we like to do," said Scottish Executive First Minister Jack McConnell.

While wondering if the other nations of the world weren't perhaps making fun of him, a cautious Bush granted approval for most axis, although he rejected the establishment of the Axis of Countries Whose Names End in "Guay," accusing one of its members of filing a false application. Officials from Paraguay, Uruguay, and Chadguay denied the charges.

Israel, meanwhile, insisted it didn't want to join any Axis, but privately, world leaders said that's only because no one asked them.

No Blood for Cash...
With a variety of talk floating around about just what interest the UN Security Council naysayers have in Iraq, I thought you would like to see some of the facts submitted by alert reader Joe Hannon. The information is from the conservative Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies at The Heritage Foundation, so factor that in...but facts is facts.

WHO BENEFITS FROM KEEPING SADDAM IN POWER?

FRANCE
• According to the CIA World Factbook, France controls over 22.5 percent of Iraq’s imports. French total trade with Iraq under the oil-for food program is the third largest, totaling $3.1 billion since 1996, according to the United Nations.
• Roughly 60 French companies do an estimated $1.5 billion in trade with Baghdad annually under the UN oil-for-food program.
• Total Fina Elf, France’s largest oil company, has negotiated a deal to develop the Majnoon field in Western Iraq. The Majnoon field purportedly contains up to 30 billion barrels of oil.
• Total Fina Elf also negotiated a deal for future oil exploration in Iraq’s Nahr Umar field. Both the Majnoon and Nahr Umar fields are estimated to contain as much as 25 percent of the country’s reserves.
• From 1981 to 2001, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), France was responsible for over 13 percent of Iraq’s arms imports.

GERMANY
• Direct two-way trade between Germany and Iraq amounts to about $350 million annually, and another $1 billion is reportedly sold through third parties/countries.
• It has recently been reported that Saddam Hussein has ordered Iraqi domestic businesses to show preference to German companies as a reward for Germany’s “firm positive stand in rejecting the launching of a military attack against Iraq.” It was also reported that over 101 German companies were present at the Baghdad Annual exposition.
• During the 35th Annual Baghdad International Fair in November 2002, a German company signed a contract for $80 million for 5,000 cars and spare parts.
• German officials are investigating a German corporation accused of illegally channeling weapons to Iraq via Jordan. The equipment in question is used for boring the barrels of large cannons, and is allegedly intended for Saddam Hussein’s Al Fao Supercannon project.

RUSSIA
• According to the CIA World Factbook, Russia controls roughly 5.8 percent of Iraq’s annual imports. Under the UN oil-for-food program, Russia’s total trade with Iraq totaled somewhere between $530 million and $1 billion for the six months ending in December of 2001.
• According to the Russia’s Ambassador to Iraq, Vladimir Titorenko, new contracts worth another $200 million under the UN oil-for-food
program are to be signed over the next 3 months.
• Soviet-era debt of $7 billion through $8 billion was generated by arms sales to Iraq during the 1980–1988 Iran–Iraq war. (February 28, 2003 Fact Sheet No. 1.)
• Russia’s LUKoil negotiated a $4 billion, 23-year contract in 1997 to rehabilitate the 15 billion–barrel West Qurna field in Southern Iraq. Work on the oil field was expected to commence upon cancellation of UN sanctions on Iraq. The deal is currently on hold.
• Russia’s Slavneft company is believed to have signed a deal around October 2001 with Iraq for a $52 million service contract to drill at the Tuba field in Southern Iraq.
• In October 2001, Slavneft, a Russian–Belaruscompany, negotiated a $52 million service contract or the Suba–Luhais field in southern Iraq. The oilfield is believed to hold at least 2 billion barrels. The contract is pending approval from the UN for additional drilling at the Luhais field.
• In April 2001, Russia’s Zaruezhneft company received a service contract to drill in the Saddam, Kirkuk, and Bai Hassan fields to rehabilitate the fields and reduce water incursion.
• A future $40 billion Iraqi–Russian economic agreement, reportedly signed in 2002, would allow for extensive oil exploration opportunities throughout western Iraq.
• Russia’s Gazprom company over the last few years has signed contracts worth $18 million to repair gas stations in Iraq. (Houston Chronicle).
• The former Soviet Union was the premier supplier of Iraqi arms. From 1981 to 2001 Russia has supplied Iraq with 50 percent of its arms.

CHINA
• According to the CIA World Factbook, China controls roughly 5.8 percent of Iraq’s annual imports.
• China National Oil Company has negotiated a deal for future oil exploration in the Al Ahdab field in Iraq. Total estimate of the contract is unknown.
• In recent years, the Chinese Aero-Technology Import–Export Company (CATIC) has been contracted to sell “meteorological satellite” and “surface observation” equipment to Iraq. This contract was approved by the UN oil-for-food program.
• CATIC also won approval from the UN in July 2000 to sell $2 million worth of fiber optic cables. This and similar contracts approved were disguised as telecommunications gear. These cables can be used for secure data and communications links between national command and control centers and long-range search radar, targeting radar, and missile-launch units, according to U.S. officials. In addition, China National Electric Wire & Cable and China National Technical Import Telecommunications Equipment Company are believed to have sold Iraq $6,104,000 and $15.5 million worth of communications equipment and other unspecified supplies, respectively.
• According to a report from SIPRI, from 1981 to 2001, China was the second largest supplier of weapons and arms to Iraq, supplying over 18 percent of Iraq’s weapon’s imports.

God Speed..!
I received the email below from Tim Millar today, a friend from the Ia Drang Vietnam, We Were Soldiers, bunch with whom I am connected. The email is from a friend of his, Linda, a Senior Flight Attendant with American Airlines who volunteered to work troop shuttle flights to the Middle East. Her idea is to line the inside of the aircraft with printed emails of support for our young men and women who may soon be in harms way. What won’t fit on the walls will be passed around so that every soldier on that plane will know that we are all behind them 100%. Hope you can help........!
-----------------------------------------

"I am one of thousands of volunteers who are working military charters to fly our troops over to the Middle East. On my last trip the one thing that stood out to me is how important it is for our troops to know that we care. Protests are making a big splash in the media and that's what they are leaving home with. Regardless of our position on war itself, I believe it is important to thank all these men and women who are putting their lives on hold and heading for the dangers on the tip of the spear.

I would like to collect as much e-mail as possible to print out and take with me on the next trip and display them on our aircraft walls for the troops to read. I know it would be so uplifting for them. Veterans, parents with children, teachers with students -- anyone who wants to express their support for our men and women, please send your e-mails to drkbay@charter.net".

Thank you one and all,
Linda

World Bites....
President Bush has imposed sanctions against the leadership of the anti-white Mugabe government in Zimbabwe and immediately they fire off the ulitimate and predicted "racist" charge against the US. The same US that feeds half of impoverished black Africa....and recently announced a 1.5 billion dollar AIDs package aimed at Africa including.......Zimbabwe.

And almost forgotten Chelsea Clinton gets a six figure job right out of college....as a consultant. Sources say the job offer was based strictly on merit and not on her looks or connections. In a note of wonderment, I've always pondered how anyone coming straight out of college can be a consultant on anything?

In business news the US economy could be permanently crippled....Broadway Musicians are on Strike. This is a vital sector of the US GNP affecting possiby .00000003% of the population. The French have urged Bush not to launch strikes and are sending violins. But thanks to "virtual music" the strike did not affect plays, and such productions as "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," "Take Me Out" and "Vincent in Brixton". I suppose this is good news, but it beats me, having never heard of any of these. My "broadway" exposure is limited to a high school production of Les Miserables I saw just last week. We had live musicians.

In very troubling news close to home, the Alamo is under seige by termites! The UN has urged restraint in handling the situation and wants to give Terminex inspections time to work. The termites are reportedly a virulent Mexican strain.

And in the most astounding development on the digital scene......the Blogger Template server is now working......... weeks after they announced that they had installed new miracle hardware that would prevent any further problems!

Tidbits....
Nothing says "no war, peace in the Middle East" like protesters ransacking and looting the store of a Middle Easterner...
Peace Protestors Riot

Nine years...
It was nine years ago today that I gave up alcohol. That's a long time between cold beers. I didn't give it up easily or without a fight. That's the way addictions are. You go down swinging. And far down I had gone. From losing almost everything I owned and everything I was to almost losing my life, I had sacrificed everything for the next drink. It now seems completely crazy that a high achieving, positive personality, well educated individual could have come to that point. And it is insane but that's what unchecked chemical addictions will do...to anyone no matter his personal strength, character or best of intentions.

The entire story, like most, is a long one and you won't be bored with it here. But suffice it to say that I lived five or so years of sheer hell and that AA saved my life along with the help of friends and family. Not only saved it but embued in me an entirely different outlook on life based on gratitude for things both big and small. And not that this came easily either. Through those years of selfishness I had imagined that I could solve my problems alone and by my force of will. So I drove just about every human who offered help away. At some times the only true friend I had was my golden retreiver "Ranger". In no small way he helped save my life, giving me that one small spark to continue on so I could take care of him. Thus the name of my website Big Gold Dog.

AA is more well known and accepted today than in earlier times. Society has come to grips with the notion that addictions are a sad fact of life, and it is rare that any family today is not touched by them in some fashion. But AA is still somewhat misunderstood. As we say, it is not a program of promotion, but one of attraction. It is not about or against drinking or alcohol, it is about finding a way to live life on life's terms without alcohol or drugs for me or anyone else attracted to that notion. It is not about fighting the battle everyday, it is about giving up the battle entirely. Once I truly surrendered to the fact that I had lost control over alcohol the battle was over. I can honestly say that the hell I lived through was in most ways worth it. I see things as I did not before.

And finally a word of thanks and gratitude to all those who stuck with me during those dark ugly years and those who came later who gave me the opportunity to live a new life. This Pepsi's for you!

Not my Daddy's Army any more......
In a "slap in yo face!" for future blonde jokes and a kick in the butt for the Islamonazi's I hope that you will take a long look at this proud photo and then come back to read....the rest of the story.

Ok, a great picture.....and these proud Americans are a first. The first all female crew to man [no pun intended, it's just a word] a KC-135 aircraft in a combat zone. The women are: Clockwise from lower left) 1stLt Alison, Capts Heather and Waynetta, and Senior Airman Lyndi [Last names withheld for operational security.] of the 376th Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron of Robins Air Force Base, Ga. The story in the press release reads.
--------------------------

......."They have been deployed here since Dec 9. Once inside the tanker, the women began their pre-flight and take-off duties with an ease borne of plenty of experience and skill. Most of them have deployed before, to places like Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Iceland and Thailand.

Between the four of them, they total almost 4,000 flying hours in the KC-135. The flight path to Afghanistan traversed three of the "Stans." The country itself remains a dangerous place. Just a few days before the historic flight, coalition forces on the ground encountered the heaviest fighting since Operation Anaconda last year. Norwegian F-16s from Ganci dropped munitions in support from the air.

Once over Afghanistan, the crew got down to business, refueling F-16s from the European participating air forces of Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway. Based at Ganci, the aircraft provide combat air support to coalition ground forces.

In the refueling world, the motto is, "Nobody kicks ass without Tanker gas." The crew emulated that motto when the boom operator connected two moving aircraft together on a night with 1 percent moon illumination.

"It's awesome knowing that I'm having a direct impact on the mission," said Lyndi on her 17th combat mission over Afghanistan. "The fighters couldn't put bombs on target without gas, and I'm the one who gets it to
them," she said. More than 50,000 combat missions have been flown in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

In all, Lyndi refueled 10 European F-16s during the flight, off-loading 63,000 pounds of fuel. "I'm accomplishing something with my Air Force career," said Alison. This is especially true in the case of OEF, an operation that more than 1,800 women support, according to the public affairs office at Central Air Forces, the air component of U.S. Central Command.

"I've always thought the greatest thing I could do with my life was to serve my country and be willing to die for it -- for my family, my neighbors, people I don't even know," Waynetta said. "Now, we're here supporting troops in Afghanistan who are defending our freedom and way of life." Basking in the early morning sunlight, the tanker headed
back to Ganci. As the snow-capped mountains poked out above the clouds, the women reflected on the significance of the flight. "All we wanted was to fly together," said Lyndi. "I'm so excited we got to do it."

"We believe in equality," Waynetta said. "But, the fact of the matter is, we're still girls and we're doing something our grandmothers couldn't do."
---------------------------

You go girls.....we're damn proud of you....no blonde jokes from me. The only question I have is, "Are you old enough to drive?"

Mid-East TV Guide...
Not wanting to appear to be culturally insensitive I thought I would publish this weeks TV fare for Middle Eastern readers.

SUNDAY
7:30 - My 33 Sons
8:00 - Osama Knows Best
8:30 - Let's Mecca Deal
9:00 - I Dream of Jihad
9:30 - The Kabul Hillbillies

MONDAY
7:00 - Husseinfeld
7:30 - Mad About Everything
8:00 - Monday Night Stoning
8:30 - Win Bin Laden's Money
9:00 - Allah McBeal

TUESDAY
7:30 - Wheel of Terror
8:00 - The Price is Right.... if Saddam Says It's Right
8:30 - Children are Forbidden from Saying the Darndest Things
9:00 - Taliban's Wackiest Public Execution Bloopers
9:30 - Buffy the Yankee Imperialist Dog Slayer

WEDNESDAY
7:00 - Beat the Press
8:00 - When Kurds Attack
8:30 - Two Guys, a Girl, and Pita Bread
9:00 - Just Shoot Everyone
9:30 - Veilwatch

THURSDAY
7:00 - Fatima Loves Chachi
7:30 - M*U*S*T*A*S*H
8:00 - Survivor Iraq [chemical attack episode-repeat]
8:30 - Married with 139 Children
9:00 - Eye for an Eye Witness News

FRIDAY
7:00 - Judge Saddam
7:30 - Suddenly Sanctions
8:00 - Who Wants to Marry a Terrorist Millionaire
8:30 - Cave and Garden Television
9:00 - No Witness Left Alive News

SATURDAY
8:00 - Spongebob Squareturban
8:30 - Who's Koran Is It Anyway?
9:00 - Teletalibans
9:30 - Camel 54, Where Are you?

If you know of any programs we have omitted please add them in the "comments" section.
**Courtesy of alert TeeVee viewer Don Dulin

Changes in Attitudes, Changes in Latitudes...
Whatever the final outcome of the campaign to rid Iraq and the world of a mass murderer, I sincerely hope that the leadership in the USA will at long last change the way we use our wealth and bounty. Since the end of WWII the US has been the leading nation in the world's supply of foodstuffs, medicine and humanitarian assistance to the more needy, if not unappreciative, flotsam on the globe. In truth, the reason was partially selfish and self serving. In the mid part of the twentieth century there was a serious and real threat that Russia and China would spread their communist influence to less developed and unstable nations. They did this by handing out money and protection. We needed to "compete" with the red menace for the affections of the disadvantaged by in effect buying their loyalty, or at least their compliance. Right or wrong, this was the way it was for 50+ years.

But the world has changed with the new millenium. In the Western World, Russia spent itself out, literally and figuratively, and their former client states are now thirsting for capitalistic democracy. In the East, China has made some small steps towards capitalism or at least a more moderate form of communism, while robust capitalism in Japan and Korea acts as a blunting force to whatever communistic urges may linger in the Red Dragon. The young people in China are on the Internet. They have had a taste of capitalist decedance...they won't go backwards. And for all the angst and blood over Vietnam, it is becoming more clear that it had the desired effect on ambitions of tyrannts in the East. We lost that campaign, but we are winning the war.

For several decades, I believe, the middle majority of America has had a gnawing feeling that the global pigs had been feeding at our trough for too long. In the past we could see the benefit of slopping the hogs to keep some order, if not status quo in the world. This has changed with the campaign against Saddam, visibly changed, and the middle of America can feel and taste it. The US supplies half of all the world's relief in the form of food supplies to the weak and wandering. Half. And we get 2/3rds of the worlds hate directed back towards us. We announce that we will contribute billions of dollars to help relieve Africa's AIDS sorrows and we are derided in the major capitals of Europe as having designs on conquering the world. Through monetary and military assistance to Turkey we have helped them in becoming a modern nation, and they repay this with a vote of no assistance, even though we are trying to rid them of a murderous neighbor on their very border.

The time for change has come. Big changes. How well we could use some of the trilions we give away each year if we were to dedicate this money in helping our own citizens to have better lives through lower taxes, better schools, feeding the poor and a modern healthcare system for all. So....Turkey, you are a democracy, we acknowledge your right to vote as you see fit, but don't expect another dime from us. No credit either. Hey "non aligned" nations of central Africa, we hate to see it, but seems you may well starve because our breadbasket is closing and those who don't starve may die of AIDS, it's not really our problem. Germany, we are putting a "For Sale" sign on our bases in your country, closing the doors and moving to Lithuania or Estonia. They appreciate the cost of freedom there, and they'll also appreciate the extra billions in their treasury.

The time has come to stop giving money to people who don't like us. To not like us is their privelage, but we don't to have clothe and feed them so that they can throw stones at us. It's time for us to cut the marginal nations of the world free to swim, sink, die or get their bread from France. It's time to start developing better relations with countries who are among the up and coming. And not just coming up with their hands out. Countries in our own hemisphere like Brazil and Mexico where, though with their own troubles, they are making strides in democracy and workable capitalism. Countries in the East like the Phillipines and India. These are countries that have promise, countries who for the most part appreciate a capitalist democracy and moreover know that sometimes you must fight to preserve it.

I can only hope that our legislators, in the coming years, won't let our American spirit of generorsity override the treatment we have been accorded by much of the world in the last 9 months. Tell them, "Uncle Sugar's" checkbook is closed. Let the hogs get their slop courtesy of another trough.
Call it tough love.

Mr. TeeVee.....
My good friend, business partner and fellow bon vivante Joe Galloway sends me this note about his next TeeVee appearance tonight on CNN....

"I taped a little spot as the Newsmaker of the Week to broadcast Saturday night on CNN Capitol Gang with Al Hunt. Show goes on at 9pm est; my segment shortly after 9:30pm est. Watch. They gonna use some movie clips, pix of me with the gun etc etc as background".

The picture he refers to is one of him from Vietnam, sporting his correspondents beret and totin' a Swedish Automatic rifle. I sent them this picture from our files the last time he appeared on CNN......glad to see they're getting the mileage out of it.

Fountain Pen of Memories...

Call me an ignorant West Texas yokel, but what the hell are the people in New York thinking about when they want to build something like this as a memorial to September 11th victims? From this angle it looks like a fountain pen with fungus.

The project features "....a tower 1,776 feet tall, symbolic for the year of American independence, that would demonstrate the durability of democracy, while the top floors would be filled with indoor gardens as a "confirmation of life." The tower would be the world's tallest". Excuse my naive thinking but a monstrosity like this, an expensive fairly useless monstrosity at that, doesn't demonstrate the durability of squat except stupidity and having plants growing 1500 feet in the air confirms only my belief that good sense in New York is still a rare commodity. And here we go again with the having the "world's tallest building" syndrome...this just two years after the worlds second tallest twin towers came tumbling down. I suppose that the thinking is that terrorists won't be interested in flying planes into a building full of plants.

I have been to a fair number of memorials in my life and I think that the most "memorial" of all of these is the Arlington National Cemetary. Plain, pastoral and unadorned except for the graves of those who have served their country well. This tells it all, and has never failed to bring a tear to my eye. Tears of saddness and of pride. The thousands of simple markers tell the story of the Nation's sacrifices far better than a plant filled fountain pen.

"No blood for Megabucks Memorials"

Duct tape still available...
In West Texas we still know how to conduct a trial.

Judge duct tapes defendant's mouth shut

Down with [fill in blank here] Now! ...............
From Lisa at A Blog From A Broad come these photographs* of British protesters angry in their indignation about [fill in blank here]. One can hope that they know what they are protesting and that it is just their typical British reserved demeanor that prohibits them from actually wanting to offend anyone by mentioning their cause on their banners. Personally, I hope that they are protesting the habit of wearing underwear....one of the scourges of the 21st Century.

*Official [fill in blank here] protest photos courtesy of Mr. Chris Walsh , an actual person from Britain [not to be confused with Chris Gissing, another British subject].

Weather Awards.....
....and in the category of "Best weather forecast by a drunk, or obviously mentally deranged weatherman", the winner is.........The Weather Channel. A portion of the award reads, "....for the distinction of predicting that the high temperature in Midland Texas on February 24th would be 60° with sunny skies, when in fact the actual daytime high reached only 21° at 5 a.m. and then sank to 18° in the afternoon with intermittent snow squalls, few true weathermen can match this abyssmal record."

I agree and it would be funny, except that acting on their late evening forecast of the previous day, many dupes did not bring their much loved house plants back inside and they now look like a two week old withered green salad. The Weather Channel, in my eyes, are nothing more than plant mass murderers and I urge you to protest and boycott the Weather Channel, and weather in general.

Voices of the past......
From British historian and commentator Allistair Cooke.....worth the read.

Appeasing Hitler and Saddam
"I must tell you that throughout the past fortnight I've listened to everybody involved in or looking on to a monotonous din of words, like a tide crashing and receding on a beach - making a great noise and saying the same thing over and over. And this ordeal triggered a nightmare - a day-mare, if you like. Through the ceaseless tide I heard a voice, a very English voice of an old man - Prime Minister Chamberlain saying: "I believe it is peace for our time" - a sentence that prompted a huge cheer, first from a listening street crowd and then from the House of Commons and next day from every newspaper in the land. There was a move to urge that Mr. Chamberlain should receive the Nobel Peace Prize. In Parliament there was one unfamiliar old grumbler to growl out: "I believe we have suffered a total and unmitigated defeat." He was, in view of the general sentiment, very properly booed down. This scene concluded in the autumn of 1938 the British prime minister's effectual signing away of most of Czechoslovakia to Hitler. The rest of it, within months, Hitler walked in and conquered. "Oh dear," said Mr. Chamberlain, thunderstruck. "He has betrayed my trust."

During the last fortnight a simple but startling thought occurred to me -- every single official, diplomat, president, prime minister involved in the Iraq debate was in 1938 a toddler, most of them unborn. So the dreadful scene I've just drawn will not have been remembered by most listeners. Hitler had started betraying our trust not 12 years but only two years before, when he broke the First World War peace treaty by occupying the demilitarised zone of the Rhineland. Only half his troops carried one reload of ammunition because Hitler knew that French morale was too low to confront any war just then and 10 million of 11 million British voters had signed a so-called peace ballot. It stated no conditions, elaborated no terms, it simply counted the numbers of Britons who were "for peace." The slogan of this movement was "Against war and fascism" - chanted at the time by every Labour man and Liberal and many moderate Conservatives - a slogan that now sounds as imbecilic as "against hospitals and disease." In blunter words a majority of Britons would do anything, absolutely anything, to get rid of Hitler except fight him. At that time the word preemptive had not been invented, though today it's a catchword. After all the Rhineland was what it said it was - part of Germany. So to march in and throw Hitler out would have been preemptive - wouldn't it?

Nobody did anything and Hitler looked forward with confidence to gobbling up the rest of Western Europe country by country - "course by course," as growler Churchill put it.

I bring up Munich and the mid-30s because I was fully grown, on the verge of 30, and knew we were indeed living in the age of anxiety. And so many of the arguments mounted against each other today, in the last fortnight, are exactly what we heard in the House of Commons debates and read in the French press. The French especially urged, after every Hitler invasion, "negotiation, negotiation." They negotiated so successfully as to have their whole country defeated and occupied. But as one famous French leftist said: "We did anyway manage to make them declare Paris an open city - no bombs on us!"

In Britain the general response to every Hitler advance was disarmament and collective security. Collective security meant to leave every crisis to the League of Nations. It would put down aggressors, even though, like the United Nations, it had no army, navy or air force. The League of Nations had its chance to prove itself when Mussolini invaded and conquered Ethiopia (Abyssinia). The League didn't have any shot to fire.

But still the cry was chanted in the House of Commons - the League and collective security is the only true guarantee of peace. But after the Rhineland the maverick Churchill decided there was no collectivity in collective security and started a highly unpopular campaign for rearmament by Britain, warning against the general belief that Hitler had already built an enormous mechanised army and superior air force.

But he's not used them, he's not used them - people protested. Still for two years before the outbreak of the Second War you could read the debates in the House of Commons and now shiver at the famous Labour men - Major Attlee was one of them - who voted against rearmament and still went on pointing to the League of Nations as the saviour.

Now, this memory of mine may be totally irrelevant to the present crisis. It haunts me. I have to say I have written elsewhere with much conviction that most historical analogies are false because, however strikingly similar a new situation may be to an old one, there's usually one element that is different and it turns out to be the crucial one. It may well be so here.

All I know is that all the voices of the 30s are echoing through 2003. . . ."

Famous Visitor..........

I am blessed to be visited by well known veteran Dick Ackerman and his wife Kay. Dick is mentioned prominently in the best seller, We Were Soldiers Once, and Young and witnessed some of the most vicious fighting of the Vietnam War. Dick was walking point for the column that was the 2/7th Cavalry as they made they way through the jungle to Landing Zone Albany where they were ambushed by overwhelming North Vietnamese forces which resulted in close hand to hand combat and the death of 155 American troops and an uncounted, but certainly higher number of North Vietnamese forces.

I admire Dick for his courage and honesty in talking about overcoming the demons that have haunted him since this life changing experience and for the gentle person he is today. He is a pleasure to be around, and certainly has a grateful perspective on life today.

Thought for the Day....
Though it appears that the "protesters" are large in number.....they are mostly naive nitwits and they are still the minority. But the numbers of fact thinking sane individuals who believe that Saddam is a real menace, is much larger, much larger! It would just not seem right to have the majority marching, "For War".

And what about those "human shields"? The thought among sane fact thinking individuals is that they are the lowest of the low. But what, just what if they are working for the CIA? This thought has crossed my mind. This would be he ultimate "cover", Saddam welcoming his comrade allies and they placing Peace Banners on the bridges, public works and buildings. Banners with microchips embedded so that smart weapons could home in on them. Just a thought. A pleasant thought, instead of just thinking that they are the naive scum they probably are.

Change is good...
Streams is now in large print edition and with a wider text box, to enhance your reading pleasure.

From the source..
From the British newpaper, The Guardian, comes a letter to the editor that should be read by all human shields, "No Blood for Oil" nitwits and Frenchmen.......but probably won't be.
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Dr B Khalaf
Friday February 14, 2003
The Guardian

I write this to protest against all those people who oppose the war against Saddam Hussein, or as they call it, the "war against Iraq". I am an Iraqi doctor, I worked in the Iraqi army for six years during Iraq-Iran war and four months during Gulf war. All my family still live in Iraq. I am an Arab Sunni, not Kurdish or Shia. I am an ordinary Iraqi not involved with the Iraqi opposition outside Iraq.
I am so frustrated by the appalling views of most of the British people, media and politicians. I want to say to all these people who are against the possible war, that if you think by doing so you are serving the interests of Iraqi people or saving them, you are not. You are effectively saving Saddam. You are depriving the Iraqi people of probably their last real chance get rid of him and to get out of this dark era in their history.

My family and almost all Iraqi families will feel hurt and anger when Saddam's media shows on the TV, with great happiness, parts of Saturday's demonstration in London. But where were you when thousands of Iraqi people were killed by Saddam's forces at the end of the Gulf war to crush the uprising? Only now when the war is to reach Saddam has everybody become so concerned about the human life in Iraq.

Where were you while Saddam has been killing thousands of Iraqis since the early 70s? And where are you are now, given that every week he executes people through the "court of revolution", a summary secret court run by the secret security office. Most of its sentences are executions which Saddam himself signs.

I could argue one by one against your reasons for opposing this war. But just ask yourselves why, out of about 500,000 Iraqis in Britain, you will not find even 1,000 of them participating tomorrow? Your anti-war campaign has become mass hysteria and you are no longer able to see things properly.

Locum consultant neurologist, London
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Additionally, this statement from the leader of the Iraqi Kurdish leader is profound.

And for a great bit of parody on the world scene, read Restaurant Inspections Fail

Lucky Pierre...
Today's submission let's you participate in the Glory that is France! Retired Army Colonel and noted historian Blair Craig gives us a "heads up" on a brand new computer game in Beta testing by the French Army. Sounds magnifique!
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Paris - Inspired by the commercial success of the United States Army’s "Boot Camp" video game, the General Staff of the French Army has announced plans to market "Ultimate Surrender," a video game based upon the proud military traditions of the Gauls.

In the game we follow the exploits of Lucky Pierre, an apprentice garlic salesman from Marseilles, as he joins the French Army and begins a rigorous course of combat training. The First Level of the game is called "Survival School," and the players have to help Lucky Pierre survive 24 hours without red wine or crème brulé. The Second Level is "Capitulation," and the goal here is to see which player can have Lucky Pierre surrender the fastest without firing a shot or getting his uniform dirty.

Level Three is "Collaboration." Here the players battle to see who can collect the largest numbers of pairs of nylon stockings and packages of chocolates by having Lucky Pierre perform sexual favors for members of the occupying forces. Level Four is "Be Ungrateful to America for Rescuing Your Sorry French Ass Once Again." In this extremely challenging part of the game contestants vie with one another to see who can make Lucky Pierre behave in the surliest manner when the United States inevitably comes to the rescue of the defeated French. The Final Level is "Pretending to Have Been in the Resistance." Here contestants compete in a battle of tall tales and whoppers as they try to protect Lucky Pierre from treason charges.

Marketing tests show that "Ultimate Surrender" is a big hit with French teenagers and young adults who are too young to have experienced France’s lightening surrender to the Germans in 1940 or its defeat by the Vietnamese in 1954 at Dien Bien Phu. "Zees is a great tool to inspire ze patriotism in ze youths, n’est ce pas?" said General Jean-Jacques Loseur, Commander-in-Chief of the French Army, during his weekly press conference. "Since ze end of ze Cold War we French have not had many opportunities to surrender or to show great cowardice in the face of much weaker opponents."

Shields-R-Us.....
Well it seems as if the massive "human shield" effort has arrived in Iraq. Well 14 shields have arrived. Here are some comments from these rocket scientists.

Canadian Roberta Taman said. "I'm here because I believe that the world wants peace and that we can achieve peace." But she added, "I'm outa' here in case of war, I'm no martyr". That's the spirit Roberta, moral committment!

Worried about Iraq's water supply European ignoramus, Ignacio Cano of Spain says, "A country that can hardly provide water for its citizens cannot be a threat to the world," Well gee whiz you dumb Spanish dirtball, maybe they would have a water supply if Saddam didn't spend all his money on palaces, statues of himself and military hardware. And this from a Euromoron whose country still allows torturing of animals for sport.

Standing on the bridge, Iraq Peace Team leader Kathy Kelly of Chicago said, "You can imagine what this city would be like if it were cut off when some people need desperately to get to a hospital or to connect with the people on the other side". OOOOO scary thought Kathy, war is hell when people can't get to the other side of a bridge to connect, this completely changes things and the administration may now have second thoughts about purging the world of a crazed psychopath.
HEADLINE NEWS: George Bush didn't realize that war might mean people couldn't connect....orders troops home!

Some of the activists charge that the Geneva Conventions governing the practices of war make it a crime to attack facilities essential to civilian life.
Dear Shield: would this include the Kurdish human body and Kurdish homes. Just a thought for you to consider.

But on the positive side for the forces of good, "The campaigners, organized as the Iraq Peace Team, have been draping banners over public facilities in Baghdad this week — an electricity station, a water treatment plant and, on Thursday, the Martyrs Bridge over the Tigris.
Dear Shields, thank you, draping large banners over the public facilities surely helps in target acquisition.

Earth shaking news....

I'm shocked that this could have happened in the world of TeeVee entertainment. Just shocked!
Read this

Buy Croatian....
Now is the time for Americans to put up or shut up concering the neferious slitherings of our erstwhile allies, France, Germany and now Belgium. We liberated two of these countries in 1944 and completely rebuilt the other after whupping their ass fair and square, and we didn't have to do that. Now they say they're not interested in helping us out in destroying a demon state, because they just remembered that they don't like us and what have we done for them lately. OK, but now we Americans must do what we do best, which is apply economic pressure...and you can help. Do your best not to buy products from these jellyfish. As we say in Texas, "money talks, and bullshit walks".

I intend to boycott products from these countries and am compiling a mental list of things I intend not to buy from them. But you know it's a fairly tough job, especially concerning France and Belgium. I don't buy anything that I am aware of from France or Belgium anyway. I suppose I'll have to Google up some dot.FR domains, and write to them and tell them that although I've never heard of their product and wouldn't buy it anyway, now I'm really not gonna' buy it. The French pride themselves on wine, cheese and women's underwear and I don't need any of these, but if I did we have great women's undergarment businesses here in the States. They make cars, at least I think they still do, but Puegeot's and Renault's were, no offense intended here, worthless pieces of scrap, the Renault's being only a small step up from a Vespa. I'm really searching here to remember anything that France does make, that is of neccessity. Help me out, if you think of anything, drop me a wire.

Now the economy of Belgium is an even more mysterious subject. I know that they used to be famous for lace. And in fact, I have a beautiful lace table cloth from Belgium that was my grandmothers, it's a work of art. And I have a small crystal duck from Bruge purchased for me long ago by friends who visited Belgium. So...I know that they make lace and crystal ducks. What else do they do? Export drugs I believe, but I don't think they should do that. I hope that someone reads this and can point me in the direction of a company in Belgium that actually makes something that we use and couldn't do without. Then I'll have the pleasure of emailing them and telling them that I just found out that they make a product that I can't do without, but I will because I'm not buying it.

German goods are more obvious in their boycottablity, for the Germans actually do make some useful products. Overpriced but useful. The Germans are technicians, engineers and builders. They have some quality items on the international market and ones that I could use. For example, we recently looked at some German electric generating equipment which was state of the art and a thing of beauty, overpriced but great equipment. I hope we still have the email address of the company who tried to sell it to us, I'd like to write them and tell them that due to their national government policy, we won't be buying it. Of course, we weren't going to anyway...it was overpriced.

I would like to think that recent German actions and opinions on the world stage are merely a lapse during a bad time in their national consciousness, a final cleansing action concerning their angst at starting several world wars. But I'm still boycotting their products. That's why I'm emailing the Mercedes-Benz headquarters and telling them that I was going to buy 2 or 3 of their cars this year, but due to their government policies they can just kiss that order adios, I've decided to buy an Austin Mini-Cooper from our good true friends the English.

The next phase of the boycott is to find products to buy that come from our new good friends in Denmark and the Baltic States. I think the Danes make some neat stuff in the "artsy" area and of course they have great dogs. I'm sure I'll find something useful from Croatia also, it may take some searching but I just know there is some product that the Croats are famous for, and I'm gonna' buy me some of it.

Adieu......
And finally to cap off our salute to France week, this from retired Colonel Wayne Porter.........

Why are there so many tree lined roads in France?
Because the German Army likes to march in the shade.

More of, "L'Amour d' France"

The emails are thick with paeans for the French, more today........

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So the French still aren't on board with us spanking Iraq. Oh boo hoo. Let's take a look at the mighty French military prowess, shall we?

Gaellic Wars - Lost. In a war whose ending foreshadows the next 2000 years of French history, France is conquered by of all things, an Italian.

Hundred Years War - Mostly lost, saved at last by female schizophrenic who inadvertently creates The First Rule of French Warfare: "France's armies are victorious only when not led by a Frenchman."

Italian Wars - Lost. France becomes the first and only country to ever lose two wars when fighting Italians.

Wars of Religion - France goes 0-5-4 against the Huguenots

Thirty Years War - France is technically not a participant, but manages to get invaded anyway. Claims a tie on the basis that eventually the other participants started ignoring her.

War of Devolution - Tied. Frenchmen take to wearing red flowerpots as chapeaux.

The Dutch War - Tied

War of the Augsburg League/King William's War/French and Indian War-
Lost, but claimed as a tie. Three ties in a row induces deluded Frogophiles the world over to label the period as the height of French military power.

War of the Spanish Succession - Lost. The War also gave the French their first taste of a Marlborough, which they have loved every since.

American Revolution - In a move that will become quite familiar to future Americans, France claims a win even though the English colonists saw far more action. This is later known as "de Gaulle Syndrome", and leads to the Second Rule of French Warfare: "France only wins when America does most of the fighting."

French Revolution - Won, primarily due the fact that the opponent was also French.

The Napoleonic Wars - Lost. Temporary victories (remember the First Rule!) due to leadership of a Corsican, who ended up being no match for a British footwear designer.

The Franco-Prussian War - Lost. Germany first plays the role of drunk Frat boy to France's ugly girl home alone on a Saturday night.

World War I - Tied and on the way to losing, France is saved by the United States. Thousands of French women find out what it's like to not only sleep with a winner, but one who doesn't call her "Fraulein." Sadly, widespread use of condoms by American forces forestalls any improvement in the French bloodline.

World War II - Lost. Conquered French liberated by the United States and Britain just as they finish learning the Horst Wessel Song.

War in Indochina - Lost. French forces plead sickness, take to bed with the Dien Bien Flu.

Algerian Rebellion - Lost. Loss marks the first defeat of a western army by a Non-Turkic Muslim force since the Crusades, and produces the First Rule of Muslim Warfare: "We can always beat the French." This rule is identical to the First Rules of the Italians, Russians, Germans, English, Dutch, Spanish, Vietnamese and Esquimaux.

War on Terrorism - France, keeping in mind its recent history, surrenders to Germans and Muslims just to be safe. Attempts to surrender to Vietnamese ambassador fail after he takes refuge in a McDonald's.

The question for any country silly enough to count on the French should not be "Can we count on the French?", but rather "How long until France surrenders?"

The French: A Metaphor

"Going to war without France is like going deer hunting without an
accordion. All you do is leave behind a lot of noisy baggage."

Frogs have change of heart......
More from the email wires....this from alert reader, retired army Colonel, Dave Fletcher.

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French to Send Surrender Advisors to Iraq

02/04/2003 - William Grim

Paris - In a stunning reversal of policy, French President Jacques Chirac announced today that the French government will be supporting the War on Terror after all. Five hundred soldiers from the elite L'Abandonnement du Field d'Honneur Battalion (French Surrender Battalion) of the Legion Etrangere (Foreign Legion) are in the process of shipping out to Iraq where they will assist the elite Iraqi Republican Guards in their inevitable surrender to the overwhelming might of the American Armed Forces.

"Eet ees important to be haughty and insufferable when surrendering," said General Philippe de Peepee, the Commanding Officer of the Surrender Battalion, who has personally surrendered in over 200 battles going back to Dien Bien Phu in 1954. "We French are ze world masters at surrendering, n'est ce pas, not like you arrogant Americans who never surrender. Ha, I spit on your filthy American victories."

President Chirac also announced that his government will be sending 3000 advisors from the elite Force du Collaborateur Francaise (French Collaboration Force) to assist the Iraqis in collaborating with the Americans while pretending to be part of a non-existent resistance movement.

Viva la Frogs.....
And this in the email bin today from Joe Galloway.........

--------------------------------------------
January 24th, the Wall Street Journal ran an editorial critical of the French position vis-a-vis American policy toward Iraq. This generated several comments from readers. Here are two published on Tuesday, February 3rd:

"The 20th century will remember France as the only nation that failed to fire a shot in defense of its capital, that while under occupation rounded up its Jews for the Nazis without even being ordered to do so, that scuttled its navy rather than flee to the Allies to continue the struggle, that produced films and sang in night clubs for Nazis so as to live happily ever after as a Vichy ally of the Nazis while millions of others fought for their liberation (after the war we were told that all Frenchmen were in the Resistance), that tried to build a nuclear reactor (read nuclear bomb) for Iraq, that is so filled with self-doubt that the use of a couple of foreign words like telephone or drugstore causes a national stroke, that threatens to use a veto right against the very nation that granted it that right as a sop gift, that is so obsessed with international impotence that it openly wishes for death and destruction upon a stronger ally, but in the guise of a higher morality (read appeasement).

Jacques Chirac recently declared that "war is total failure." Luckily for him and France the Allies felt differently in his own lifetime or there wouldn't be a nation called France today. After a century of abysmal decisions, for which tens of thousands of American lie dead in that country, France should have the decency to keep quiet and the U. S. should have the good sense not to listen."

Another writer was more succinct:

"God bless France! She's always there when she needs us."

The Day After....
Always, in momentous events, the day after brings more reality into the picture. The reality is that the Columbia is gone, the crew is gone, and we won't know for quite a while, if ever, what truly happened. Theories will abound, congressional hearings will point blame, perhaps even lawsuits will be filed. But the overidding reality for me is that space travel is, and always has been a mighty dangerous business.

I reminded myself of that by looking thru pictures I took of a shuttle launch I attended in 1996. Being on the VIP guestlist, we got to get a closeup view of the shuttle mere hours before it was to liftoff [above]. We rode in buses around the base of the launch platform, attended the prelaunch briefing four hours before blastoff and then viewed the launch from a very close three miles away. The magnitude, size and complexity of the launch platform with the shutte resting there is staggering. The whole affair is as big as some of the largest 20 story office buildings in our city, and with tubes, pipes, vents and electrical equipment twining throughout. The shuttle itself has millions of individual parts and holds within itself some of the most volatile chemical compounds known to man. And this whole array of parts, vents, wiring, electronics and explosives has to work perfectly, everytime.

I remember in 1996 while at the 10 second mark or so of the countdown, flashing back to 1986 and the Challenger disaster and thinking, "Please God, don't let it happen again, while I'm here". It was still very much on everyone's minds even ten years later. But the launch was flawless and the shuttle streamed away into the night sky while we listened to radio traffic from the ground controllers. "Columbia, you are 30 seconds into flight, 10 miles altitude, 18 miles downrange and you are doing 2800 m.p.h." Everything was working fine, and in 30 seconds they're doing 2800 m.p.h. I still get goosebumbs. Only eight minutes later we heard, "Columbia, you are cleared for orbital insertion, you are doing 17,500 m.p.h. and are over Africa". In eight minutes I'm still standing at the launch site, with the smoke not even cleared from the lauchpad, and they are doing 17,500 m.p.h. over Africa, we could still see the rocket motors dimmly twinkling in the eastern sky. They were around the world once already by the time I made it the 22 miles back to the hotel in Cocoa Beach.

One of the philosophies I have come to live by is one of Acceptance. Acceptance of the things we cannot change, the Courage to change the things we can, and the Wisdom to know the difference. We must accept that spaceflight is dangerous, we need to find, fix and change the things we can to make it less risky. But we must have the wisdom to know that many things in life that are worthwhile are not easy, are indeed risky and move ahead. The last thing that the seven newly departed astronauts would want if for there to be exessive blame, fault finding and delay. But somethings, even though dangerous, are worth doing. They would want us to get flying again, they gave their lives for that.

God Bless You....
God Bless the brave, dedicated souls who lost their lives today, and Bless the families they have left behind. Thank you for your service!

These tragedies always hit us the hardest. In America we lose 1000's of lives daily due to car wrecks, fires and other accidents, but tragedies such as the Columbia hit us in the gut. And rightly so. Much of the reason is I think, that somewhere in us, we realize that the astronauts and scientists who test the reaches of space are among our best and brightest. As has been said before, "Where do we get such people"? These were in the main, ordinary people who had a desire to find out new things, to see how things worked and to push the envelope of science from earth into space. They worked hard advancing their knowledge and skills in space travel, where their work was to be done and then paid the ultimate price for the chance to live their dreams. It is an old cliche, but they died doing what they loved.

This personal national tragedy comes at a strange times in our collective thoughts as a nation. The debate, worry and fear of a possible war with Iraq has to a great degree occupied our sentiments. And now this. It also involves something very personal for me. My brother has been with N.A.S.A. for over 30 years and was in the shuttle design program at it's inception. He knows some of those who died today. I have had occasion to meet astronauts and scientists in NASA programs and I know what a dedicated and close knit group they are. They will all take this event as a death in the family. And the tragedy unfolded quite literally in the skies above my home where as I was safely drinking my morning coffee, they were risking and giving their all for us.

Whle trying to put this in perspective, to understand it and I think to ease the grief, I have realized that these sorts of things are nothing new. Mankind has been exploring here on earth since the beginning. Men would set out on foot to see what was on the other side of the horizon and never return. As technology progressed, crews of men in ships would sail off never to be heard from again, dying anonymously, but in equally tragic ways as the crew of Columbia did today. The difference is that today we instantly know the circumstances and view it moments after the fact. And to some degree because of this we have become hardened to tragedy. But to see people of science, knowledge, exploration and bravery perish while only moments from home, is something that is almost to much to bear.

Squirrel research
One of the best resources, friends and tools one can have in the war on squirrel terrorism is the Internet. Just the other night using search words Squirrel*Attic*Removal I Googled up 696 results and read many of these pages of helpful hints. Some more helpful than others. Most had the common first pointer, "remove trees and branches close to your home, these are pathways for squirrels to get into your attic". Well, Duh! Unfortunately my house is surrounded by trees and I'm not going to cut these down, remembering the first tip on Texas summertime gardening...plant trees around your house for shade.

I read pages on squirrel eating habits, squirrel mating habits, squirrel sleeping habits to the point that I now consider myself rather the expert on squirrels and their lifestyles. I did get some useful tips however. One supposedly effective method is to put cat or dog urine in your attic...squirrels don't like to live next to feline/canine urine. The problem there is that, I don't either, especially right above my bed which is where the squirrels live. I then came across a product from the Sunbeam Corp. that emits, "high piercing ultrasonic and audible level screeching sounds". This sounds good, squirrels don't like screeching sounds in their living quarters. But who am I kidding, I don't either, and I suspect the Big Gold Dog would take offense to unusual ultrasonic sounds all night.

But I think that I did make some headway, in the chemical warfare department. I found a product named "Scoot" that contains Napthalene, which apparently renders squirrels rather incoherent, scrambling there sensory ograns and making them search out fresh outdoor air. Sounds good, but you know it's really dark in the attic at night, and I can image squirrels running amok and crashing around up there. Here is a good example of squirrels running amok. What squirrels do when you are gone.

I'm at a crucial junction now. Squirrels have their young in February, and I'm sure there is nest building going on in my attic. The idea is to make the terrorist vacate the premises before she has her young. If I use chemical warfare after the young are in the nest, then the Mom will leave the young ones behind, causing more of a problem and making me feel the ruthless warlord. Yesterday, I thought that I had isolated the point of entry into the attic, so I placed cardboard over the hole above the storage shed that looked like the probable squirrel door. I hoped that if one were trapped inside they could force the cardboard out [emergency exit here..!] thus proving I had the entryway identified, or if they were outside they could not get back in. All was quiet while I went to sleep. Then....at 2 AM I heard the familiar sounds of squirrel claws scratch, scratch, scratching while I pondered weak and weary. And this morning the cardboard was undistubed. I have more work to do. But....

I will fight them in the attic, I will fight them in the gutters, I will fight them in the garden, so that if the Pancho Estate should last for 1000 years, men will still say, "This was his finest hour"!

Going Squirrely...
These are dangerous times we live in. The winds of war are sweeping towards Iraq, terror in our land is a real possiblity, computer viruses are rampant. Yet sometimes the real threat comes to our own backyard, our homes, our attics. The threat has come to me in the form of squirrels. I am living with terror in the attic. And the threat is pervasive.

Ten years ago in Midland, Texas squirrels did not exist, yet somehow these marauding menaces have now become a veritable plague upon our city. They are cunning, starting out in ones and twos, capturing your heart, making a pastoral scene, making us feel like a real cosmopolitan city. Then the numbers increase and they strike. First it was digging up potted plants, throwing dirt hither and yon. Then, advancing to the real damage, tearing up patio furniture and finally to the ultimate threat, inhabiting my attic.

I realized my predicament just the other night. I had heard noises occasionally, attributing these to squirrels in the rain gutters, foraging for pecans. But then, reality had me, I heard them distinctly above my bed. There are no gutters above my bed. It had to be the terrorists come to roost in my attic. They scamper, they scratch, their little claws making "clickity" noises. One started scratching on what seemed to be the very plaster above my bed, intent on dropping down on my head and cracking it like a nut.

I will state here that I love animals, sometimes more than most people, but the line is in the sand, the gauntlet has been dropped. This is a fight for my very survival!

State of the Union.....
My take on the Presidents address tonight, gives him generally high marks. There was the usual comments on the progress made in the last year, and the new proposals he will seek from Congress in the upcoming term. Touched on were the much needed reforms in healthcare, Medicade, and the need for reasonable prescriptions for low income citizens. The most notable healthcare issue being the reform of the indecent malpractice lawsuits and the insurance prices which ensue. Energy issues were touched upon, the most suprising of which was the announcement of large scale funding for fuel cell technology rsearch. I'm glad of this, even though I shouldn't be as it may put me out of business. But most probably I'll be long gone by the time this reaches the general market place.

The moment of truth and the high point of the evening was the discussion of the war on terrorism and of course, Iraq. In a grand moment Mr. President announced to the world that, "I will do everything necessary to protect the American people!" He seemed to be saying that the US was attacked on September 11th and we are not going to let that happen again. We will not let dictators proscribe how we live, and if you [France/Germany?] don't want to help, we don't need it. We are going to do what needs to be done to protect our country.......do with yours what you will.
Bully for you George!

And Justice prevails......
Just when I get the most morose about the way things go in the world, I come across an uplifting article to restore my faith in a Supreme Being who does dispense justice. This in today's newspaper from the Associated Press.

Winchester Va. [AP]
"A man trying to beat his dog to death with a gun, was fatally wounded when it apparently went off accidentally, police said. Raymond Poore Jr. , 43, called his wife at work thursday and told her that their dog had bitten him and he intended to kill the animal.

The wife came home about 6 p.m. and found her husband unconscious, with a number of dog bites and scratches. Emergency medical personnel discovered that Poore had been shot. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police Capt. David Sobonya said Poore must have beaten the 30 lb. Shar-Pei with the gun that went off. He said that the stock of the weapon had broken and there appeared to be blood and dog hair on it. The dog is in the care of animal control officers and is expected to make a full recovery."

There seem to be some questions left unanswered. Chief among these are: How long had Poore been on welfare. Was his trailer home a single or double-wide. Did the Shar-Pei sleep underneath the plywood porch, or in the trash dump behind the trailer. And...how many junked cars were resting in the front yard.

Bleep this...!
And in more stirring news from the print media, I browsed the N.Y. Times story entitled, "Fewer Viewers object as unbleeped bleep words spread on network TeeVee". The gist of the story being that the FCC is getting fewer complaints from viewers about "nasty" words even as they proliferate on mainstream TeeVee.

My objective reasoning on this topic is simple. Fewer mainstream citizens above the age of 30 watch mainstream TeeVee. And the one reason for that is. IT IS MOSTLY bleep CRAP.
Thank you.

Nyet et Non!
This article gleaned by astute New Zealander NZ Pundit explains in depth the point I have been making about the European's hypocrisy in declaring "No Blood for Oil".

A sample

"Critics of possible U.S. military action against Iraq say its all about oil. They are partially right; they just got the "U.S. part" wrong. Its about Moscow and Paris wanting to protect their oil interests in Iraq. Its about billions of dollars for Russia and France as long as they look the other way while Saddam Hussein develops weapons of mass destruction, supports terrorism, and continues to be a destabilizing force in the Middle East".

Take this Fat Girl!!!
In the one case of legal good sense I can remember this century, a judge has tossed out the "hey you made me fat" McDonald's lawsuit. On the surface and to 99% of the population this was a no brainer. To the indolent and trial lawyers it is a travesty of justice. The indolent and trial lawyers can go to hell.

The indolent and apparently stupid Fat Girl's father, Mr. Fat Girl Sr. said and I quote, "I never saw anything in the Bronx restaurants that informed her of the food's ingredients. I always believed McDonald's was healthy for my children." Plaintiff's lawyer and financial advisor Mr. Sam Hirsch said, "The effects of its food on people's health were a very insipid, toxic kind of thing." Many believe his statement applies to trial lawyers, not fast food, which strangely is dependent on the buyer actually making the decision to purchase and consume it.

Fat Girl Sr. stated that, "a McMuffin for breakfast and a Big Mac meal for dinner was her regular diet." Fat Girl Sr. apparently did not feel responsible for his child's correct eating habits as he was probably out doing crack, ergo, the responsibility for his daughter's health fell to the uncaring amporphus corporate giant.

This ruling seems to be bad news for one Mr. Caesar Barber, a 272 lb. solid citizen, who sensing that the fat was in the fire, was suing not only McDonalds, but Wendy's, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Burger King. As a settlement the restaurants have offered Caesar coupons for Cheese Whopper's, Double Meat/Cheese Wendy's and a super sized order of drumsticks and thighs with mash potatoes and cream gravy.

Out of sight, out of mind...
I have been wondering why it is that certain segments of the population who are so vocal in registering outrage and protests over a posssible war with Iraq continue to ignore the facts in the case. Facts like Saddams warlike behavior towards his Arab neighbors, his use of chemical weapons on his enemies and on his own Kurdish populace, and in particular his persecution of Iraqis themselves.

In the late 90's when action was called for and delivered to the Serbians I don't remember much, if any, outcry from the same folks who now seem so visible, if not in numbers then in voice. What was the difference then that generated so little concern for "US Imperialism" in action. The fact is that Slobodan Milosevic was much less an international threat than Saddam Hussein and this occured in Europe, a problem for Europeans. The only answer that seems plausible to me is that the situation in Iraq is not on the TeeVee everyday as was the plight of the Muslims in Serbia. If you remember, as things got worse there, the coverage increased with almost daily images of the ethnic minority being burned out of their homes, refugees running before the tanks, mass murders beside the road.

But this certainly palls in comparison to the atrocities that Saddam has perpetrated in his region, and with the probable capacity to take this reign of terror on a much wider scale. It is a sad state of affairs these days that many people get all their information from TeeVee or selected reading on the Internet and due to Saddam being a very effective tyrannt, dictator and benovolent ruler, not much information escapes his vacuum. Certainly not graphic visual images, the ones that most effectively shape peoples opinions. The information on the barbarity of Saddams actions are there if one cares to read independent news journals and reported first hand accounts of Iraqis lucky enough to escape. I was surprised last evening to see ABC's Peter Jennings in Baghdad, trying to talk with ordinary Iraqis about how they felt concerning a possible US action. Ol' Pete, it seemed to me, was rather taken aback that no one seemed to want to say how they felt on an international new broadcast. Gee Pete, wonder why, could it have been that you had two "official Iraqi information officers" with you?

And later the History Channel had a very well done report on conditions in Iraq, which had quite graphic footage of the torture system sponsored by Saddam. But, I will bet big money, that very few of the protest crowd were watching. They were probably at some non reality based entertainment event, discussing the role "The Lord of the Rings" had in making them more informed citizens. The out of sight, out of mind theory also explains to me why the twits carry the "No Blood For Oil" banner so high. When you don't have any real information on a subject, make up something. And although because of "Big Oil" we all have cheap energy which allows us the excesses of life in the West, we just love to hate them. Blame the war on greed, oil and Imperialism, surely they really don't torture people in Iraq, we've never seen a picture of it.

No oil, No blood, No war..
As I was perusing the news on CNN online early this morning the main story was on the "war protesters" in Washington, accompanied by a photo of someone, probably a 23 year old English Major, holding a sign which read, "Stop the War, No Blood For Oil". Now having seen what the effects of war can do, I'm generally against it too. Except that sometimes it's necessary when dealing with maniacs and tyrannts bent on dealing mass death to their own citizens and more importantly.....me.

I have no doubts that there are people in the "anti" camp that are genuinely concerned for perfectly rational reasons. Like the destabilization of the Arab world that could come from a war with Iraq, or the thought of all the casualties that could result. Or the children...let's do it for the children. But that sign, which is typical these days, has got to go. First, there is no war at the present and at Saddam's whim, there might not be one. But the Blood for Oil thing. Please, if you can't think of another reason not to have a war with Iraq just go home, shut up and find another saying, that one is juvenile, childish, naive and just plain stupid.

For one thing you don't understand capitalism, we get all the oil we need and there's more where that came from and we get it the old fashioned way....we buy it. There are plenty of sellers. Secondly, if we wanted Iraqi oil that badly we could have had it at anytime in the last ten years. We just make one phone call to Mr. Compassionate, Saddam and say, "we forgive you for everything, it's OK that you kill your own people, we don't care, the sanctions are off, we just want to buy some oil." Saddam would sell us all we needed and at cheap prices, and we'd all be friends. Except for the families of the people he's murdered, which is probably half the population, because they're hoping we come on with the war. And what if Big Oil got involved in a more free Iraq in some way? Well possibly some of the Iraqi people might benefit instead of just Saddass's palace bankroll. If the sanctions had been lifted, Big American Oil could have had a field day. Iraq's oil fields are in shambles, they are desperate to produce more, the Exxon's and Chevrons would have been more than welcome. But we didn't lift the sanctions for good moral reasons. And now you think we're going to risk American lives to get oil that we could have had without a shot being fired?

So really, people, scratch the "No Blood for Oil" thing. Or if you have to have oil in your graphics, change it to "No Oil for Blood" and show it to the folks who live in the EU or PU or whatever, you know Europe, they get 40% of their oil from the Mid-East.

Technically speaking...
And here we have yet another ignoramus, this of the talking head variety. In a CNN report today one of their resident geniuses, Jamie McIntyre tells us that chemical weapons rockets found in an Iraqi bunker are not "technically" chemical rockets. Yes, these 122mm.rockets are specifically designed to hold chemical weapons and they are the same type as have been actually found holding chemical weapons in the past, but no..."technically" they are not chemical weapons as they don't presently hold chemicals.

This logic is something we can easily get a grip on. To wit: an Abrams Tank is not "technically" a killer weapons system. In reality it is 40 tons of metal sculpture. Only after it fires it's main gun disintegrating another amored vehicle, I suppose, does it actually become a tank. An M-16 is, for all purposes, an eight pound plastic stick, until you fire a 5.56 round thru someone's head...then it becomes a rifle. Using this theory we should allow violent felons to carry 9mm pistols. After all they're just paper weights until one loads ammo into one, and surely a violent felon wouldn't dream of obtaining actual ammunition and using it!

I should be surprised that Mr. McIntryre deems to think that anyone will take him seriously, unfortunately I'm not surprised at all. There are a plethora of ignorami who will believe quite readily that this in not "a smoking gun". After all these are just a few unloaded rockets and Saddam says he doesn't have chemicals to put in them. Why shouldn't we believe him? Until he actually uses them "technically" Saddam is Santa Claus.

The Ingoramus Factor
Warning:I generally refrain from profanity in my literature, but I reserve the right to use it here

Once again, for the third time in several years, our community is facing a multi-million dollar bond election for improvements to our school facilities. The past two tries at this have failed, the last probably because it was excessively ambitious and expensive. It would have renovated many 50 year old schools, built several new schools including a new high school to replace the 70 year old model, and provided many more classrooms and facilities. The upcoming election faces really the bare bones of keeping the school buildings operating, building a new elementary school where one is needed and adding more space for classrooms.

The outcome of the election is open for debate. There are three sides to this, two with legitimate arguments. The "Pro's" know we need more classrooms for our enlarged population, and know that 50 year old school buildings only last so long, especially when overcrowded. The "Con's" argue that although we need new facilities, this is not the package to do it with, or that too much money is being spent. I am a "Pro" but I can and do listen to the "Con" arguments, there should be two sides to any debate. And the third group, who will be the deciding factor in the election are the Ignoramuses or Ignorami.

Early voting is now underway and in order to gauge the community's attitude on this, our crack 6 o'clock TeeVee news team was outside the county voting office talking with the early voters. My first hint of what is to come went like this.

Talking Head: "Sir, Ma'am, may we ask how you voted?"
Mr. and Mrs. Ig Noramus: "Well, yup we voted NO!"
Head: "And may we ask, what were your reasons?"
Iggy: "You bet, we think that they shoulda' just taken better care of them school buildings".

My first thought, right off the top was, you ignorant son of a bitch. Do you still live in the same house you lived in 50 years ago? Did you ever have to pay for major repairs to your stinkin' shack, or add on to the shack. Do you still have the same car you had 50 years ago driving it without any repairs because you took such good care of it....you ignorant stinkin' son of a bitch. You probably live in a trailer park and throw your old trailer in the county dump when it's worn out and then go buy yourself a new one on credit. Ingoramus! And that was just my first thought. My second thought, on some reflection, is that sadly this election will be decided by the ignorant.

There have apparently always been ignorami in this world; read Mark Twain, he is a fount of 19th century ignorami identification. It's just that I've had so much higher hopes for the world in this age of communication, the internet and everybody has to go to college. But, I think, the Ignoramus Factor has indeed gotten worse, rather than better. What better example than our most well known people, who are unfortunately not world leaders but singers, movie and teevee people. Many are spouting off about the outrage of a possible war with Iraq, when I doubt that one year ago most could have pointed it out on a map. The winner of today's Igno Personality Award is to one Ms. Sheryl Crowe, who is against the war, because in her own words, "We shouldn't have enemies". Good reasoning Sheryl you Ignorant SLxx".

Memories...

In the 1960's Jim Hall and his Chaparral Racing cars dominated the worldwide road racing scene. His cars were technical innovations and works of art. Jim was the first to introduce effective aerodynamic devices to his cars, innovations that set the stage for modern designs that are still being used today. Innovations that changed the entire nature of auto racing. Chaparral Racing was, and is still based in Midland, Texas. The cars were in their prime when I was a teenager who had just learned how to drive, and Jim Hall was our idol. Young, smart, an international sports celebrity and owner, builder and driver of these amazing cars. Yesterday I had the unique opportunity to spend a good deal of time viewing the Chaparrals on a personal tour. It brought back some great memories

One of the early Chaparrals sported a very high, very large moveable wing and when it appeared on the scene it stunned the competition, not only for it's looks, but because it worked......increasing the downforce on the car and thus the speed thru the corners. Jim went on to design and build a whole series of Chapparal's each with it's own unique improvement, and along the way winning such races as Sebring and Nurburgring in Germany. The Chaparrals culminated in the Chaparral 2-J which was the first true "ground effects" car on the racing scene. The 2-J featured a box like vehicle, called by some "the flying brick", the shape being necessitated by the snowmobile engine, mounted on top of the powerplant that powered two rotary fans on the rear of the car. This device, combined with skirts along the perimeter of the car, sucked air from beneath the car creating a vacuum that held the vehicle to the track. This innovation was so effective that the SCCA banned the car after only four races.

Jim Hall and Chaparral Racing went on to enter the Indy Car circuit where they remained until the mid 1990's having great success and winning the Indy 500 in 1980 with Johnny Rutherford driving [yellow car above]. The cars are now stored in the original shops where they were built and tested, soon to be placed in a special museum display in Midland. I had the good fortune to meet Jim Edwards, a former Indy Car driver himself, who is in charge of maintaining and restoring the cars to their original running condition before being presented to the museum. Jim took the time to give me a personal tour and what a great time it was, hearing the inside stories about the cars, races and the man I had so admired so long ago. This visit would be like a football fan being able to spend the afternoon with the entire 1972 Dallas Cowboys Super Bowl Team, it's some significant sports history. Jim invited me back for more pictures, something I intend to do.

My favorite monopoly...
My love of the cable industry grows daily and I am thrilled to see that other consumer oriented groups are now joining me. Today the much admired Consumer Reports has blasted the cable companies in a strong statement involving the word, "lying". As in lying to the consumer about the nature of rate increases. In some instances rates in the last year have gone up 9% while the consumer price index has shown less than a 1% rate increase.

"Cable operators are blaming the rate increases on a number of things in an effort to hide the underlying cause -- the greed of the nation's most persistent monopolists in the midst of a costly and anti-consumer merger wave," the report said. Instead, the consumer groups said, "rate hikes are funding a series of mergers in the industry that are meant to increase the operators' monopoly power, eroding consumer choice and enabling the companies to keep raising rates."

The problem is that in most areas of the country, cable companies do have monopolies with only limited oversight by local governments who granted the company rights to operate in their areas. It will be interesting to watch the outcome as this struggle of oppression over consumers continues.

A graphic display......
Why I have never used the Google Image Search capability I can't say. Ignorance I suppose. But today my brother the rocket scientist [quite literally, he works for NASA] sent me an email explaining all the little nuances of the worlds best search engine. I forget all the nuances, but the Image Search is all I need. I'm a graphic kind of guy, do oodles of photography and like to photomorph famous heads on obscure bodies. So being able to find pictures of famous heads is important to me. This sure does the trick.

First I did a search for my friend, famous author, Joe Galloway . No problem, in 00.58 seconds it pulled up pages of Joe Galloway pictures....some even from my websites. Next I tried my name, Wallace, again many Walli, and even some of me. But the real winner was in my search for images of my better half, Julie. When I entered Julie I came up with the mother lode of all Julies worldwide. There were an estimated 8000 Julies portrayed somewhere on line. Blonde Julies, dark haired Julies, muscle babe Julies, dog Julies, horse Julies, Julies with and without sweethearts, business Julies, casual Julies. But I did notice that by and large, Julies tend to be well educated. Many of the graphic Julies were associated with dot.edu websites. There were also many fashion Julies. And maybe it was just my imagination but many seemed to be blonde also.

I have to say that I only got through approximately 1000 Julie thumbnail pictures before I became Julied out. I was looking for my Julie and I'll bet she's there. Maybe if you have time you can click this Julie and find her.