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August 12, 2004

The Sounds of Fall Are in the Air

The weather today was actually cool, well cool for August in Mississippi anyway. After getting home from work I grabbed a Guinness, a book, and headed for the swing on the front porch. It was nice to sit and read without sweat dripping onto the pages.

Familiar sounds also accompanied the cool weather--some appreciated, others not. One of the pleasant sounds is the MSU band practicing for the coming football season. The band practice field is not too far away and, if the wind is blowing just right, we can hear the session with no problem at all. Sylvester Croom is getting the Bulldogs ready to play and it sounds like the band will be ready to urge the team on. The canon in front of the ROTC building is away getting rebuilt for the coming season as well. With luck it will be fired more this season than it has been in the last several.

The cool weather is also inviting for motorists to turn off their air conditioning and open the windows and sunroofs. But what lets the fresh air in also lets the obnoxious, pounding, over-bassed music out. I have to ask myself how anyone can possibly enjoy music so loud that I can hear it a mile away. And most of the tunes come from rickety old cars in which the sheet metal resonates more than the speakers making good quality sound an impossibility But then again, I wouldn't really call what they listen to "music" so who cares how it sounds. Bad music is bad music regardless of the decibels but my ears would much prefer it not be heard at all.

With any luck there will be many days like this before winter hits. One of the things I dislike about Mississippi is the lack of four seasons. We go from blazing hot to freezing cold in a weekend and typically have very short, almost non-existent, falls and springs. The winters are usually cold and wet with an occasional snow but mostly they bring icy roads, broken tree limbs, and power outages. Growing up in other states I did grow to love actually having four seasons in a year. One day maybe I can get back to the world of four seasons.

Posted by robertgreen at 10:40 PM

August 10, 2004

Bill Clinton is a Coward of the Year

Well I've always said that the man lost all integrity when he denied having sex with Monica and argued over the meaning of "is". Now FastCompany agrees. In the September 2004 issue they present the 2003-2004 Cowards of the Year on page 33. Their reasoning is that on page 773 of My Life the former President says " I'd had an inappropriate encounter with Monica Lewinsky". Come on, admit it; admit you had sex "with that woman" We all know it, step up to the plate and say it.

I've not read My Life, and probably never will. I have looked for it though and can't find it in the fiction section. Perhaps it is mis-shelved in the bookstore?

Posted by robertgreen at 11:27 PM

PC(USA) Just Doesn't Get It

I got another response today, if you call it that, from the PC(USA) on the Israeli/Palestinian issue. I wrote to the Anti-Defamation League and told them that I was sorry for what my church had done in proceeding with a selective divestment in companies that do business in Israel. What I got today was:

Thank you for your message and remarks.

We understand there are many news articles circulating that do not contain all the facts of this issue. Due to space availability in various publications, many of the details of this complex issue are not reported. We would like to direct you to the following web sites, where this issue is explained in more detail. Perhaps some of the information contained on these web pages will foster greater understanding between all concerned peoples.

They then listed some other web resources to "further my understanding" of the problem. This is a common reaction by my church leadership and by liberals in general, to assume that if you disagree with them, the problem is that you do not understand. No, the problem here is that they do not understand. And I mean that literally--they do not understand the problem and apparently have no desire to understand.

The issues are indeed difficult but one of the web resources they referred me to assumes it is simply a problem of the West (the US) needing to invest more in the third world countries. After all that is what this problem is all about, isn't it? In some cases that may be true and we are trying to invest and bring more of these countries along with us. But Al Qaeda does not want this. They are, in fact, fighting and committing acts of terror because they do not want the investment from the West. They want to keep control by denying basic freedoms and access to information to others. Offering them money and helping them develop a better government will not work.

Of course the PC(USA) goes on to argue for UN involvement and reduction of nuclear weapons. All typical moveon.org and Democratic party talk that is irrelevant. The UN was not able to act effectively for over a decade and that is why the US went to war in Iraq. We did not cut the UN out of the picture, the cut themselves out by taking little or no action.

What really bothers me in the repeated calls for greater understanding of Muslims and their religion by the PC(USA). I have no problem with everyone striving to better understand other religions but the PC(USA) implies that this is a Christian/Muslim war. They, and a few uneducated people, are the only one's who seem to think this. Most people that I know, including warriors who are currently fighting in Iraq understand that this is not a war with Islam. Actually, most of the Muslims I know would argue that Al Qaeda, not the PC(USA), need to better understand Islam.

The PC(USA) essentially calls for more talk while ignoring the realities of the situation. The goals of Al Qaeda are clearly stated in a manual captured in an Al Qaeda member's home in Manchester, England. The manual says in the very beginning:

Islamic governments have never and will never be established through peaceful solutions and cooperative councils. They are established as they [always] have been
by pen and gun
by word and bullet
by tongue and teeth

The terrorists, in this case at least, are not willing to listen to the UN. I submit that based on the actions of the Palestinians, the Palestinians are not willing to listen to reason either.

Before President Clinton left office, he met with Yassir Arafat and, depending on which report you listen to, had brokered a deal that would have given Arafat 85% to 95% of what he was asking for. Arafat turned the deal down because it was not 100% of what he wanted. So what do we do? The PC(USA) goes after Israel.

No, I'm not the one who needs to better understand the issues, the PC(USA) needs to better understand the issues. They need to realize that Israel is one of our greatest allies, and although they may not be perfect, they deserve our support. The Palestinians are not all bad either but they are not as lily white as the PC(USA) will lead you to believe. But perhaps most importantly, we are not at war with Islam but with terrorist who are denying freedom, freedom we as Presbyterians believe is every person's right, to those under their control. We are not out for oil or land, we are the good guys trying to help the downtrodden get what is their God given right--basic freedom.

Posted by robertgreen at 8:41 PM

August 8, 2004

CO Leadership Conference

I just finished a weekend leadership conference for Prospective Commanding Officers in Atlanta. The conference started out as one just for those recently selected fro command but then turned into one for those already in command as well. I fall into the later category.

The workshop was a great idea and most of those who are in command now said they wished they had something like it when they assumed command. We all learned the hard way and it is great that the new commanders can benefit from that. Admittedly I was a bit reluctant to attend. The last thing I needed was another weekend filled with work but I went anyway and am glad I did.

Part of the reasons I am glad I went was that I got to spend some time with the best people this nation has to offer. I was in a room with about 100 others who had been selected by a national board to lead our Sailors. We had Captains leading much of the discussion but we were participating. We even had a video teleconference with Vice Admiral John Cotton. It was some pretty heady stuff.

Talking about leadership always gets you fired up, which, I suppose, was another reason for the workshop. Leadership development is truly a life-long process and I know I get better with every book I read and every workshop I attend. The workshop was not inexpensive in terms of travel costs and pay for all of us in attendance but I think it was well worth the price and hope the workshop continues next year for the new COs.

Posted by robertgreen at 10:31 PM