22 March 2006

'09 (Our Time)

By the way, 2009 is now the first class to be recognized in three years. No big deal.

Yeah, it was a biatch pap-smear, but it was worth it. We may now wear civilian clothes, listen to music, watch movies, close our doors (and sleep) during the day, take passes and leave during the week, wear shoes that do not require polishing, and we get to be friends with (other) upperclassmen.

Plus, check these out:

Prop & Wings Insignia

Flight Cap with Prop & Wings Device

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 22:02 8 comments

Overheard from Squadron 20's Superintendant in Formation

What do Somali pirates do?


Why does Snoop Dogg carry an umbrella?


(See comments for answers)

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 21:58 1 comments

15 March 2006

By the Numbers

Recognition:

Hours that Recognition will last, from Thursday to Saturday evening:
~51

Dozens of fourth-class cadets that will be hospitalized during Recognition:
~80

Hundred of acres of rainforest that I would be willing to burn to be in San Diego this weekend watching the basketball team trounce Illinois, as several upperclassmen are:
~114

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 18:18 24 comments

10 March 2006

Who can I blame for this?

Public Education? Partisan congressmen? Poor parenting? The liberal media? Violent video games? Rush Limbaugh? The banning of prayer in schools? Michael Moore? Psychiatric drugs? Rampant obesity? Al Qaeda? El Niño? Who?!?

Overheard in Military Strategic Studies 100:
"Did the Battle of Britain last one day?"

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 07:52 1 comments

Mawwiage

These two are getting married tomorrow morning. They are going to be LukasAndJess Fischer. And I will be there. No Saturday School, no training, just plenty of wedding and joy. As far as marriage goes, put me down in the 'Big Fan of It' category. But not this kind of marriage. I'm not so crazy about that one.

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 07:33 5 comments

07 March 2006

UPDATED: Wow.

Wow.
South Dakota moved closer to imposing some of the strictest limits on abortion in the nation as the state Senate approved legislation that would ban the procedure except when the woman's life is in danger.

[…]

Under the measure, doctors in South Dakota would face up to five years in prison for performing an abortion. The only exception would be for women who need abortions to save their lives.

The bill is going back to the House, which has passed a similar bill. It will then go to the governor, who will most likely sign it. Then it will be illegal in South Dakota to perform an abortion, unless the woman is dying.

Wow.


UPDATE:

Gov. Michael Rounds has now signed the bill into law. Next stop: vicious, protracted legal battle! Woo! Expect virulent name-calling, hysterical screaming, and polemic posturing on both sides.

Speaking of politicking, this quote, from Cecile Richards (president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America), has got to be the most disingenuous I have read in a while:

"We had really hoped that the governor would weigh women's health as more important than politics"

As far as 'women's health' goes, the law allows abortions for women who will otherwise die. In any case less drastic than that, Gov. Rounds does indeed consider politics life more important than women's health:

"In the history of the world, the true test of a civilization is how well people treat the most vulnerable and most helpless in their society," the governor said. "The sponsors and supporters of this bill believe that abortion is wrong because unborn children are the most vulnerable and most helpless persons in our society. I agree with them."

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 20:51 4 comments

Contracting Mediocrity

Here at the Academy, deals are regularly struck with authors or publishers to incorporate a text into a course curriculum, and then force cadets to buy the book by taking money out of their pay. What's the problem with these agreements? The students are blessed with gems such as the following, taken from Clayton K.S. Chun's War, Military Theory, and Strategy:

"In [19th century Admiral] Mahan's view, sea transportation provided the most efficient and effective means to move goods and materials across the globe" (Chun, 2002, p. 59).

No kidding. What were those other theorists proposing? Teleportation?

Then we have "In his 1946 book The Absolute Weapon: Atomic Power and World Order Brodie made several observations about nuclear warfare that would help shape and define the debate about nuclear war in the United States about nuclear war and warfare in general" (Chun, 2002, p. 64) (emphasis added).

I wonder what they were talking about back then?

Finally, my favorite is the prophetic axiom that "Wars between sea powers that were separated by oceans or that were island powers were most likely to be fought" (Chun, 2002, p. 62).

He is spot on! If two nations go to war, they will almost definitely fight. The war. That they're fighting.

posted by Patrick Sauncy @ 15:16 1 comments