The Iraq war is over!

Well, it must be... you don't hear about it on the news at all do you? The war seems to have completely disappeared. You would think there would be a story or two on this weekend, since it's Memorial Day...

I wonder if the upcoming election is part of the reason we are not hearing anything about the war anymore. Any good news out of Iraq will help McCain. I'm willing to bet that a big attack (or even a small one) against the U.S. or Iraqi government forces will result in front page news. Relative peace and progress will result in continued silence from the media.

A little disappointed watching "Ironman"

We went to see the movie "Ironman" today. It was a pretty good action movie, overall I enjoyed it. I had one little moment during the movie though that stuck with me.

First let me say, I know I'm over-sensitive to references to the military and to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, but with good reason I think. Look at my last post about Stephen King, and look at the protests against recruiters. We are portrayed in the media as illiterate victims of the system, or war criminals. I think it's amazing that anyone even wants to be in the American military these days.

So I was happy to see a decent representation of military people (Air Force) in the movie. They were played a little naive and awestruck by the Rober Downey Jr. character, but it was pretty fair.

So the movie went on, I was enjoying it. The hero goes on his first rescue mission in some far-off villiage in an Afghanistan-like country. He beats up a bunch of bad guys and is suddenly confronted by, I think four, bad guys holding guns to the heads of innocent villagers. So he pulls a neat little trick with his suit, (I won't spoil it) and kills the bad guys, freeing the people.

And the crowd watching the movie cheered.

Nothing against the movie and nothing against the people watching it, but... There are real, live, actual men and women serving in those places right now doing that for real. Rescuing real, live, actual innocent villagers from real, live, actual bad guys. Not actors, not fiction, no CGI explosions or fake gunshots. Real.

When does their movie get made? When do moviegoers cheer for them? Why can't we see that? I know people want that movie, the cheer from that crowd today proves that. People want heroes, people want to be proud of something.

We are the good guys. It would be nice if someone would recognize that for a change. Rather than try to tell us we should be ashamed of what we've done.

Stephen King: Another clueless tool

Here we go again, another idiot who can't keep his ignorance and bias out of public view. He said to a group of high school kids at an event at the Library of Congress:

"I don't want to sound like an ad, a public service ad on TV, but the fact is if you can read, you can walk into a job later on. If you don't, then you've got, the Army, Iraq, I don't know, something like that. It's, it's not as bright. So, that's my little commercial for that.

Sadly, as fewer and fewer people have any exposure to the military, more and more will accept this stuff as fact. He is probably sitting at home right now wondering why this is such a big deal. After all, I'm sure all the people he knows feel the same way...

Looks like another good book!

Remember this article: http://caferacer99.blogspot.com/2007/04/good-article.html

Well the author of that article, Kyndra K. Rotunda, has written a book about her first-hand experience with the legal side of the war on terror. She is a lawyer and an Army Reservist and she's trying to debunk the myths about Gitmo. Here is the link: Honor Bound at Amazon.com

What should happen is the media and the anti-war crowd should read her book and take her first-hand account into consideration when writing or speaking about Gitmo. What I'm afraid will happen is that they will decide that the book doesn't fit into their preconceived ideas about what is happening there, so they will ignore it.

Pretty much the same way they ignore all of the rest of us in the military. Still waiting for the movie about one of the Medal of Honor winners from this war...

Matthew DeBord is a clueless tool

Read this idiot's OpEd piece printed in the Los Angles Times:

Petraeus' 'ribbon creep'
A uniform full of medals and decorations clashes with his message.
By Matthew DeBord April 9, 2008

Gen. David H. Petraeus may be as impressive a military professional as the United States has developed in recent years, but he could use some strategic advice on how to manage his sartorial PR. Witness his congressional testimony on the state of the war in Iraq. There he sits in elaborate Army regalia, four stars glistening on each shoulder, nine rows of colorful ribbons on his left breast, and various other medallions, brooches and patches scattered across the rest of the available real estate on his uniform. He even wears his name tag, a lone and incongruous hunk of cheap plastic in a region of pristine gilt, just in case the politicians aren't sure who he is.

That's a lot of martial bling, especially for an officer who hadn't seen combat until five years ago. Unfortunately, brazen preening and "ribbon creep" among the Army's modern-day upper crust have trumped the time-honored military virtues of humility, duty and personal reserve.

Think about any of the generals you've seen in recent years -- Norman Schwarzkopf, Barry McCaffrey, Wesley Clark (all now retired) and others -- and the image you'll conjure no doubt includes a chest full of shimmering decorations. In Petraeus' case, most of them don't represent actual military action as much as they do the general's devotion to the institution of the U.S. Army and vice versa. According to an annotated photograph produced by the Times of London last year, the majority of ribbons on Petraeus' impressive "rack" were earned for various flavors of distinguished service. As brave as he may be and as meritorious in general, is all that ostentation the best way to present the situation in Iraq to an increasingly war-skeptical public?

Of course, Petraeus' goal is not just to make simple, soldierly arguments before Congress -- it is to dazzle, at least initially, with the blazing imagery of rank. What, after all, are mere Brooks Brothers suits on the members of Congress in the face of a fighting man's laurels? Some of the showiness can be attributed to regulations: The official uniform of the Army is to be worn in a very specific manner, and the brass have an obligation to live up to their billing by showing plenty of ... well, brass. On the other hand, if you're wearing four stars, you surely have some say when it comes to matters of peacockery.

Medals and decorations have a long history with a slightly cynical tinge. This goes back to their inception, during the Napoleonic era, when the strategic genius from Corsica discovered that baubles handed out to the combatants helped ensure loyalty and ferociousness. "With a handful of ribbons, I can conquer all of Europe," he said. In more contemporary times, decorations have suffered a fraught reputation among the rank and file: nice to get but awkward to display if the memories associated with them are of violence, loss and the ineptness of commanders. There have been isolated incidents of Iraq war veterans returning their medals, and, of course, Vietnam War vets were better acquainted with this kind of protest.

The greatest military leaders, in the age of organized national armies, have often conspicuously modified the official requirements of the uniform, even in the most public of settings. Ulysses S. Grant accepted Robert E. Lee's sword while outfitted in disheveled Union blue and muddy boots. Douglas MacArthur presided over the signing of the Japanese Instrument of Surrender on the deck of the battleship Missouri without donning so much as a necktie with his khakis. George Patton was flamboyant, in his jodhpurs and riding boots, but he backed it up in battle after battle. His legend derived equally from brilliant tactics and an outrageous wardrobe.

Perhaps the best example, however -- and one that Petraeus and his cadre should look to for inspiration -- was set by two of the most politically savvy generals America has produced: Dwight Eisenhower and George Marshall. In photographs following World War II, with Ike fresh from rescuing Western civilization while Marshall was working to rebuild it, both men appear victorious, yet somber, cognizant of the challenges met and the challenges ahead. Eisenhower wears a single row of ribbons, Marshall three.

When you've saved the world and managed the lives and deaths of millions, it obviously compels a certain level of modesty about showcasing your accomplishments, however monumental. Apparently when you're trying to explain why your war-fighting achievements are "fragile" and why the conflict you're running in a hot, dusty faraway place might never be won, it does not. Memo to Petraeus: When you're making the case for more patriotic gore, go easy on the glitter.
Matthew DeBord is a writer in Los Angeles.

So lacking anything substantive to say, he decided to attack Petraeus's uniform. The only thing DeBord accomplished is to prove that he knows nothing about the military and can't be bothered to try to find out.

"He even wears his name tag..." Petraeus doesn't have a choice. He is required to wear it. It's funny that there was no one in DeBord's editorial chain, the people who read and decided to allow this editorial to be printed, who had even the tinyest knowledge of the military. No one who could say: "Hey, Matt, those guys have to wear those. Maybe you could leave out that name tag thing..."

But I guess it's not so surprising that no one at that paper has any military experience or knowledge. Or perhaps they just don't care if what they write is true or not, as long as it makes their point.

Anti-war protests

I'm pro anti-war protests. Whenever I see people out in the street protesting against anything the government does, it proves to me that we live in the country that I think we do.


When hundreds or thousands of people feel free enough to go out into the street and proclaim opposition to the government it's a powerful statement that we live in a free and open society. These people don't have to fear a knock on the door in the middle of the night, no one is going to come for them because they carried a sign.


It also makes me feel like we in the military are doing our job. Not only from the "freedom" aspect, but also from a safety perspective. A large gathering of people is a target, especially if they advertise ahead of time. Obviously we are safe here at home if people still feel like they can gather together in large groups in the street.

I also think it's good for the leaders of the parties to see that they shouldn't enter into a war without great deliberation and debate. This is why I still think it's wrong to blame Bush alone for the Iraq war. He made his case to the Senate, they had the means to question him and his administration. If they didn't ask the right questions, that's on them. You can say Bush lied and manipulated the evidence, but I have yet to see credible proof. Obviously the congress doesn't think there is credible proof either, or they would have impeached by now. But that's beside the point.

The anti-war protests emphasize to our "leaders" that they need to be very sure the next time they vote to go to war, they are willing to stick to it for longer than the first bad news from the front. (They probably won't, but that's a whole other story.)

The problem I have with the recent protests is the targeting of recruiters. No one protesting against recruiters can still claim to support the troops. Recruiters are troops, plain and simple. Most of them are what we call "detailed recruiters." Which means they are ordered to recruiting duty, they didn't volunteer for it. If you believe recruiters are evil and are preying on young people to support this administration's illegal war, then you have a shortsighted, immature worldview.

So protest. Protest against this war, or all war in general if you wish. But leave the recruiters alone. They are just Soldiers doing a job.

Surprise party!

Katie threw me a surprise birthday party last night, for my 40th. It was a lot of fun. I suspected she was going to do it, but as the evening went on I started thinking I was wrong. She told me she got tickets to dinner and a play for us and I bought it hook, line and sinker.

We walked into the resaurant and had to go upstairs and there everyone was. I really was surprised. Katie did a great job! We had a great time.

And she bought me the watch that I wanted so bad! Actually my parents and Kate's mom pitched in for it too, I'm very happy!

Found my next watch!

White dial, leather strap, German made, not too expensive. I can get a brown strap for it and, with the white face, it'll be more versatile. This'll be just for the weekends.

Short attention span

Check this article out. This is exactly what led to 9/11. The bad guys test us with small pinpricks that we ignore, and wait for the time to be right for the big attack.

After 9/11 we responded with force, we acted proactively, and we haven't been attacked again. Now we are going back to running scared again and the terrorists are paying attention. How much you want to bet there won't be any major terrorist activity from now until the election? A major attack would benefit the Republican candidate, all of whom come across as tougher on terrorism. No major attacks and we will forget about terrorism and focus on the freebies that the candidates are promising us. American's have short attention spans: remember the Iraq war? (Actually, it's still going on...)

New York Post
January 8, 2008
Iran 1, USA 0
Naval Error In The Gulf
By Ralph Peters
EARLY Sunday morning, the US Navy lost its nerve and guaranteed that American sailors will die at Iranian hands in the future.
As three of our warships passed through the Straits of Hormuz, five small Iranian patrol craft rushed them. As the Revolutionary Guard boats neared our vessels, an Iranian officer broadcast a threat to our ships, claiming they'd soon explode.
The Iranians tossed boxes into the water. Mines? Just in case, our ships took evasive action.
The Iranians kept on coming, closing to a distance of 200 meters - about two football fields. Supposedly, our Navy was ready to open fire but didn't shoot because the Iranians turned away at the moment the order was given.
We should've sunk every one of them.
Not because we're warmongers. But because the Iranians had made threats, verbal and physical, that amounted to acts of war. When will we learn that resolute action taken early saves vast amounts of blood and treasure later?
Oh, from Washington's perspective we did the right thing by "exercising restraint." But Washington's perspective doesn't amount to a gum wrapper in a gutter. What matters is what the Iranians think.
They now believe that the Bush administration, our military and the entire United States are afraid of them.
It goes back to the politicized and irresponsible recent National Intelligence Estimate that insisted the Iranians had abandoned their nuclear-weapons program years ago.
They didn't. They're pursuing enriched uranium as fast as they can. That's what you need for bombs. At most, Tehran ordered its weaponeering efforts to parade rest - until it has the ingredients it needs, after which building bombs won't take long at all.
Forget Washington's trust-fund-twit view of all this: Here's how the train of thought rolled down the tracks in Tehran:
"The Americans have told the world we don't want nuclear weapons, even though they know we do want them. That can only mean that America is afraid to confront us, that their weak, defeated president needs an excuse to back down.
"We can push these cowardly Americans now. They've had enough in Iraq. Their spirits are broken. Their next president will run away like a gazelle pursued by a lion.
"Even their military is frightened of us. On Sunday, America's might bowed down to us. They are frightened and godless, and the time has come to push them."
Sunday's incident wasn't a one-off event improvised by the local yokels after a long Saturday night at the hookah bar. It was blessed and carefully planned in Tehran and had practical as well as political goals.
At the tactical level, the Revolutionary Guards' naval arm was testing our responses: How soon do the American weapons radars activate? At what range do the lasers begin to track targets? How close can a small vessel get to a major American warship? How do the Americans respond to possible mines? Can we use phony mines to steer them into real ones? How long does it take an American commander to make a decision?
Above all: Does an American commander have the courage to make a decision on his own? When he doesn't have time to deflect responsibility onto his superiors?
And it wasn't just some madrassa dropout with salt spray on his glasses scribbling notes on the lead Iranian boat. On shore, the Iranians would've had all their intelligence facilities tuned in to map our electronic profile as our ships prepared to defend themselves. Rent-a-Russian military experts would've been onhand to assist with the newest gear purchased from Moscow.
The Iranians may even have had an escalation plan, in case we opened fire. President Ahmedinejad and his posse may seem contemptible to Washington, but the Iranians think several moves ahead of us: We play checkers, they play chess.
On Sunday, the Iranians tested us. We failed. They'll probe us again. And every time we fail to react decisively, we raise the number of future US casualties.
Remember the USS Cole? You bet the Iranians do. They plan to better that attack by an order of magnitude.
For almost 70 years, we've deployed the finest navy in the history of the world. But it looks increasingly as if we've gone from "Damn the torpedoes, full speed ahead!" to "Will this interfere with my next promotion?"
Ralph Peters' latest book is "Wars of Blood and Faith."

Crescent Moon Sprint Triathlon

This was my third triathlon, I wrote this report in September.

Short version.
750m swim: 17:17
T1: 2:53
13 mile bike: 44:27
T2: maybe 1 minute, I forgot to hit the button until I hit the exit
5k run: 26:15
Total: 1:30:42
These are my watch times.
Overall 30/250
AG 8/21

So, long version. Sorry no pics, we forgot the camera. Not really a big deal though. I only have one pair of tri shorts and one tri top, so all the pics pretty much look the same.

This sprint was held in the Aurora Reservoir, east of Denver, about 45 minutes from my house so we were up early. There was a HIM that started before my race so my wave went off at 9:05. Plenty of time to hang out, wait for the bathroom and get set up. I ate a bagel before leaving home, but forgot to eat again before the race. This kind of bit me later on the run because I felt a bit of an energy loss. I meant to eat a Cliff bar about a half hour before the start, oh well.

After my first sprint and my XTERRA in July, I felt very relaxed for this race. I mean I wasn't worried about finishing, so that stress wasn't there. The whole build-up to the race this time was fun and the day was just relaxing and fun.

I borrowed my friend's expensive carbon-framed road bike. So I got to train on it for a couple of weeks. Made a huge difference.

So I went out for the swim feeling good. I thought the water was cold at 65 degrees, but there were folks without wetsuits. I started out taking it pretty easy, as usual. I worry about running out of air. But since this was my last race, and I've done longer distance now, I decided to push it on the way back from the turn around bouy. I started swimming a little faster, and it felt okay. So I pushed a little faster, and then the swim was over. I think I have more speed in me. Really it feels like I can turn my arms over a little faster and "pull" a little harder. Looking forward to trying it.

I tried something new for me, wearing my tri-top under my wetsuit. I have worried about being cold on the bike, but it was no problem with temps in the 70s by race time. That saved me time in transition. I probaby gave the time back by putting on bike gloves. I should have gone without for a 13 mile bike ride. I didn't think they would take that long to put on, but it took about 30 seconds. I came in about 30 seconds behind a guy in my age group at the end, so those gloves are haunting me.

The bike course had some long hills on it. The RD had to change the bike course at the last minute because of construction. So we had to do three u-turns on the course, which stole a lot of momentum. I think I have more speed in me here too. I don't like road biking, it's boring to me. So I didn't do as much training as I should have. But I kept telling myself not to leave anything out there since it was the last race of the year. I need more hill work. I drank a bottle of gatoraide. And since it was a two loop course, I got to see my wonderful wife cheering me on twice.

T2 was quick.

The run was uphill, both ways. It seemed. It was a very long, gradual uphill to the turn-around point, with dips and hills on the way. Here I was chasing a guy in my age group, and we used different strategies. He walked the uphills, I ran them. But I slowed down, so I would almost catch him nearing the top of the hill, then he would pull away on the downhill. The whole last mile of the race went on like this. I never caught him. **** those bike gloves! I also felt a little wooden-legged and drained. I wish I had eaten something before the swim.

All in all, I had a great race! Best part was that it was fun. I feel like I can go a lot faster, too. I made some decisions while training for this race. I'm going to reign in my ambitions a bit. I was thinking of a HIM next summer, that's out. I don't enjoy the long miles on the road bike enough to throw myself into training for it. I plan to do an Oly and, at least, the two XTERRA races here in Colorado, schedule permitting. There is another off road tri (Indian Peaks Dirtfest) near here that I will do if I can. And I'll do this Crescent Moon Sprint again, it was well done and a blast.

Crested Butte Bank XTERRA, July 2007

I wrote this right after the race, just getting around to posting it now.

What a day! What a weekend! First and foremost let me say, this was a blast!

I wanted to die often during the course of the day. I questioned my sanity, my motivation for doing triathlon in the first place and my future in the sport several times, but overall, I can't wait to sign up for next year.

First the overview. I almost managed to come in DFL, I only missed it by one in my age group (22/23) and overall by seven, (103/110.)

Swim 1200 meters/.75 mile: 24:19
T1: 3:04
Bike 24k/14.9 miles: 2:00:22
T2: 2:02
Run 9k/5.6 miles: 1:07:27
Total: 3:35:15

Breakfast was oatmeal, bagel with peanutbutter at about 6 a.m. A banana about 7:30 and a gel 15 min before the swim.

We stayed at a little hostel in Crested Butte. Got up about 5:30, ate, packed up and were down to the race site about 7. We were pretty early it seemed, there were very few people in transition. I picked out a spot and got marked.

After packet pick-up the day before we had a Q&A session with Seth Wealing, the XTERRA US champion and Melanie McQuaid, the world champion, and a couple of others including Jennifer Smith. Smith ended up winning the women's race, Mcquaid was second. Wealing was second for the men.

The Q&A was fun, they had plenty of good advice. Tire pressure for the mountain bike, shoes for trail running, etc...

Setting up.



The swim was supposed to be 1000meters, then it was supposed to be two 600 meter laps with a beach run in the middle. It turned out to be a deep water start (treading water) with two laps around a 600 meter course, then exit. It was all because of an unexpected abundance of seaweed in the lake. I actually ran into a bank of seaweed and it was so thick it stopped me. I often had seaweed hanging from my goggles when I turned my head to breathe. That didn't bother me that much. I wish I could blame my slow time on the seaweed, but I'm just that slow.

Here you can see the start. In the foreground is the bank of seaweed.



The race volunteers worked for days to clear the channel out to the course and the course itself in time for the race. They did a great job. There was much trepidation beforehand and very little complaining afterward.

**** this wetsuit!



Transition was uneventful.

The bike was a tough. The first about 4 miles included about 2 miles of pushing the bike up steep, muddy, rocky, rooty singletrack. Did I mention steep? Followed by an equally steep decent, which was a blast. Then we hit a dirt road for a mile or so. Then the killer. A long, slow (for me) slog up about 5 miles worth of jeep trail, and the inevitable decent down the other side.

Now I've only been mountain bike riding for a couple of months, but this was a great trail. I'm so happy we didn't come up the other side. The downhill was super technical. I was cursing at the top of a few sections and then laughing out loud when I got through them in relief. The end of this section was a stream crossing through about knee deep water. I'm hoping they took pictures, I'll buy it.

The end of the ride. I'm smiling on the outside, but I'm crying on the inside.



I'm glad I brought an extra pair of dry sock for the run. At the start of the run I was hurting. I had taken a gel before the swim and another during the bike. I drank a bottle of gatoraide and some water. My stomach was pretty upset. I hit the three aid stations on the run and drank gatoraide and water at each. But I ended up walking a good part of the first three miles of the course. It was the same course as the first part of the mountain bike ride, at least this time I didn't have to push my bike up it.

By the end of the run my quads felt like stone, but I stumbled in.



I'm going to have to figure out how to eat. I also figure that just getting faster will help. I think if I had finished in 2:40 instead of 3:30, I would have been fine. And I think that is a doable thing if I train well over this offseason.

I know my training was poor, and my conditioning for all three sports, (not to mention my technique,) needs much work. But now I know where I stand, and what to expect. I'll be back. Good times!

Boulder Stroke and Stride

This was a 750m swim and a 5k run back in June of 2007. There is an option to do a second lap for a 1500m swim. They have these every Thursday night during the summer at the Boulder Reservoir. This was my first open water swim, first swim in my wetsuit and first multisport experience. Wish I could say everything went great.

My goal for the swim at the start was to see how fast I could go. My goal after about 200m was just to live through it. I had a bit of a panic attack after I got out into deeper water. I couldn't put my face into the water and do a crawl stroke. Every time I put my face into the water I had to lift it right back out. I finished with a modified breast stroke with my head up out of the water.

I went through an interesting thought process during this time. I started thinking about how I could return my wetsuit, get my fees back for the races I've entered, where the heck are those lifeguards, etc... After a while, when I realized I was going to make it, I started thinking about how to fix this. I need to come back to the res and do laps where I can't touch and learn to deal with it. I will come back for a couple more of these races before my first tri.
My time was 20:19.

My heartrate was sky high in transition and for the first mile of the run. Transition:2:33.

The run was fine after my hr came down a bit. Finished in 26:19. Not bad for me, I'm usually slow. It will get faster when I can train myself not to panic on the swim.

Overall, 63rd out of 100. AG 9th out of 10. But I'll get faster.


UPDATE: I did several more of these races over the summer and didn't panic on the swim. I enjoy these enough to do more next summer.

Think I'm ready to start posting again

I'm going to start by posting a bunch of my race reports from last summer. Wanted to get this in before I start racing again next year.

Merry Christmas, too!

My first Triathlon was the Table Mountain Tri in June of 2007.

Here are the stats:
Pool swim, 500m: 10:41
T1: 1:44
13 mile bike: 39:22
T2: 1:07
3.1 mile run: 29:07
Total: 1:22:02

I wrote all this out just after the race.

This race was all about lessons learned for me. I managed to overtrain and overtaper at the same time. I trashed my legs with too much mountain biking last weekend and an overnight backpacking trip mid-week. I also somehow managed to not do any tri training for about 10 days leading up to this race. I think I need a written plan for the last week leading up to the race.

I had a very late wave start time: 10 am. So I had way too much time to sit around and wait to start to begin with, then the race start was delayed. The police closed part of the run course for an investigation, so the organizers had to reroute. My wave started at 10:40, the temp was about 80 degrees.

I was worried about the swim, because I'm not a swimmer (or cyclist or runner for that matter). But it was over before I knew it, and I didn't stop or backstroke at all.

My son took pictures and caught me with my head up.



So on to T1.



I'm big into visualization, so I have run through the transitions many times in my head. I hope I will get faster with practice, but I'm happy just because I didn't forget anything and I didn't have to go back for anything.

Headed out for the bike:



I rented a road bike for the race. I planned to ride my mountain bike, but I'm very happy I got this one. It's so much lighter. I adjusted the seat height and handlebars, but the seat was still too low and the handlebars in the wrong spot. The chain came off twice while shifting. I'm still glad I used this bike just because I know I worked a lot less than I would have with my heavier MTB. The time I lost fixing the chain, I more than made up for by pushing less weight, and I know it helped on the run.

I had water and gatoraide on the bike and drank about half of each. My biggest problem on the bike is my lack of experience. I shift the wrong way sometimes and I don't trust the bike around corners. I hit the brakes and slow down through most corners.

So I headed out on the run. No problems in transition. I tried to drink some water since the temp was getting into the high 80's by now.



The run was two laps now instead of one and about a tenth of a mile longer. Still a good run with two water/gatoraide stations. As usual for me my second lap was faster than my first. It takes me a long time to warm up and settle in to a pace.

Here I am, proud survivor of my very first Triathlon:



All in all a good day. Could have done without the heat and the almost three hour wait from marking to start, but still a good day. The race was pretty well organized and the volunteers were great. I've pretty much got my 17yo son convinced to do this with me next year. Hope we get the chance.

Tired of it all

I'm so tired of politics. Nothing changes it seems. I've decided to focus more on doing some of the things I really want to do, like the Triathlons, hiking and riding my motorcycle.

Nothing is going to change for a while anyway. The Republicans are bound now to the policy they started and the Democrats are paralyzed by politics. They could end the war but they only seem to care about the next election. They have the Republicans on the ropes but they won't lead. They will only talk.

I'm just tired of repeating the same things over and over again. So I posted links to some of my previous posts on the right side of the page. I'm going to be very busy this summer with two triathlons in July, taking my company to annual training in August and another tri in September. I want to do some serious riding in the mountains on my Triumph too. So, unless something really motivates me to write, that's where I'll be.

I don't have any reason to think so, just a feeling, but I suspect that this time next year I could be back in the desert. I just think I'm due for another deployment. I'm also feeling a little guilty for being back here for so long, it's been more than three years since my last one. I know guys who have been over three times.

Looks like a good book

New book by a former Navy SEAL. Here is a link to the first chapter: Lone Survivor

Triathlon training

I have been working out like crazy lately. I've decided to do a couple of sprint-distance triathlons. The first one is a 500 yard swim, a 20 kilometer (12.8 mile) bike, and 5k (3.2 mile) run. The second is the same except the swim is 750 meters.

I plan to do the bike part on my mountain bike instead of a road bike. I really want to do XTERRA style tri's. That's where the bike is a mountain bike race on dirt, and the run is a trail run. I wanted to do one this summer but it doesn't work out with my schedule. Next year I will do two, I hope.

But this is going to affect my blog posting time. I am spending a lot less time watching the news and more time training. I think that's probably a good thing. There isn't much good news happening right now. Apparently the single most important issue in America is whether Paris should be in jail or not. War? What war? We are doomed and we deserve what is coming.

I'm either going to get sent back to Iraq in the next year or the quitters will get their way and the war will come home to us. Either way, I'm going to try to enjoy myself in the meantime.

Okay...

I was tired and grumpy when I wrote that last post. I really like polar bears! Don't get me wrong. I still think all that stuff, except mayble I was a little hard on the polar bears and New Orleans.

It's not that I WANT the planet to heat up and destroy coastal areas and eliminate animals that can't cope. I hope none of that happens. I'm just saying that maybe that's just the way things go, from a geologic perspective.

Global warming... again

I liked what NASA Administrator Michael Griffin said the other day in an NPR interview.

"To assume that it is a problem is to assume that the state of Earth's climate today is the optimal climate, the best climate that we could have or ever have had and that we need to take steps to make sure that it doesn't change," Griffin said. "I guess I would ask which human beings — where and when — are to be accorded the privilege of deciding that this particular climate that we have right here today, right now is the best climate for all other human beings. I think that's a rather arrogant position for people to take."

I, for one, wouldn't mind seeing Colorado warm up a little bit. It's JUNE, for crying out loud, and it's STILL cold in the morning!

But seriously, he makes the same point I was trying to make in a previous blog. He just does it better. I understand why all the people living in coastal areas, and people who worry about polar bears more than people, are all up in arms about climate change. They have a dog in the hunt, so to speak. Personally, I don't expect the world to stay exactly the same forever, I don't expect every species of animal to survive infinitely, and I don't expect the government to provide me with health and happiness. (Just threw that last one in there to see if you are paying attention.)

Griffin is right, it is extreme arrogance to think we should try to "freeze" the planet, so to speak, in it's current state. We should try to minimize our impact, keep the air and the earth as clean as possible, protect wildlife from undue harm, etc... I'm in favor of most of the environmentalist agenda. I love the outdoors and want to see it protected for my kids. But I don't expect every glacier to be exactly the same for them as it is for me.

And not when it means crippling our economy or radically altering our way of life. If that makes me selfish, so be it. I like my car and my motorcycle. I like my heated and cooled house and my lights at night. I like the malls, theaters and coffee shops I am entertained at, and the heated swimming pool at my gym. I'm not willing to sacrifice that to try to save New Orleans and the polar bears. F 'em.

What the...?

Am I the only one who thinks that it's a tiny bit hypocritical of the left-wing loonies out in California to waste taxpayer money, not to mention the carbon emissions, to try to force those two stupid whales back out into the ocean?

There seems to be no limit to the lengths people will go to trying to save these whales. No amount of (tax) money that is too excessive. The Coast Guard is out there too. That's taxpayer money. Not to come across as heartless, but wouldn't it have been better to just let nature take it's course? Haven't we humans messed around with nature enough? Wasn't Al Gore just winning an Oscar for telling us how horrible it is when human activity affects nature?

For crying out loud, which is it?!?!

So in this case not only are these people inserting themselves into the natural cycle of life and death (the circle of life, right Simba?), but they are using fossil fuel powered boats to do it! And topping it off, of course, are the wasted tax dollars. Money which, obviously, should be going to rebuild New Orleans below sea level; in order to ensure a steady supply of victims during the next hurricane or when the icebergs all melt next year.

I can't even begin to imagine how a person can rationalize this kind of hypocrisy. But I guess they have plenty of practice, as highlighted by this blog report from an Al Gore speech. Scroll down to the pictures of the trucks in the parking lot.

I guarantee that I could write a blog about the hypocrisy of rightwingers too, but lefties make it sooooo easy.