The Gun Control Song

I don't care who you are, this is funny.

Just Say It Like It Is

Twenty years ago, a confessed terrorist held an event in his Chicago home to introduce a bright new politician who was running for the Senate. 8 years ago, I suggested that electing a man to the Presidency who was friends with terrorists William Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn and an America hating preacher like Jeremiah Wright was a dangerous idea.

Since then, terrorism has blossomed around the world in places like Iraq, Syria, Libya and yes, in Paris and San Bernardino. 24 hours ago, that man sat in the Oval office and tried to suggest that two Islamic terrorists who attacked dozens of Americans with bombs and semi automatic rifles might have had a grudge related to work.

This morning, we wake to reports that in less than 72 hours we’ve learned the San Bernardino Jihadi’s built bombs identical to that in an Al Qaeda terrorism magazine; That they were in contact with suspected terrorists already under FBI surveillance.

The man in the oval office suggested that new gun laws might have saved lives…even though the shooting that killed 14 and wounded 21 happened in one of the states with the toughest gun laws in America. He will call it “workplace violence”, or a “minor setback” or “a bump in the road” but he won’t call it what we all know it is: Islamic Terrorism…By Americans, against Americans, on American soil.

- Lars Larson

Sniper's Response to Michael Moore

Green Beret sniper Bryan Sikes took some time to pen a letter to Moore that absolutely destroyed him in an incredibly hilarious and fabulous way.


Mr. Moore:

Good afternoon there sweetheart, I hope this finds you alive and well. You can thank our men and women of the armed forces for that, by the way, and that also includes us cowardly snipers. It seems you’ve found time between licking the jelly off your fingers and releasing your grasp of a bear claw to tweet some junk about snipers being cowards.

My buddies and I got a good laugh over the tweet, so I thank you. For a guy worth $50 million dollars, you sure have quite a bit to bitch and cry about. I guess like a moth to flame, you too gravitate towards things that are popular and in the moment — in this case it’s snipers. Too bad for you that your attempt at being relevant via your 70+ year old family experience has failed. It has only made you look dumber than a bag of hammers. Next time you should try something more original than going after snipers for one reason or another…that was so last month.

It’s typical of “men” like you to criticize the intestinal fortitude, focus, discipline and patriotism of a sniper. It must stem from an inferiority complex or something. But hey, it’s okay cupcake. We snipers are thick skinned and the efforts of world class turds such as yourself to portray us in a negative light only makes us laugh. If you and I were in the same room, I’d throw you a smile and gently pat you on the head knowing you’re nothing more than a mouth breathing, Crisco sweating waste of space not even worthy of being in the presence of a sniper. It’s almost funny how people like you preach things like ‘acceptance’ and ‘not passing judgement’ or ‘labeling people’, but then are the first to do so when a person is in some way dissimilar from you.

So tenderfoot, I leave you with this final thought: what if you found yourself in some sort of hostage situation where you were held at knife-point by some crazed person and they were dead set on making an example of you by bleeding you out on Hollywood Blvd in front of the world, and the only way out was with the precision aimed fire of a sniper? Would you want that coward to take the shot? Because knowing how you feel about snipers such as myself and your hatred of firearms, I’d probably drop the mag, roll the bolt and go get a Jack & Coke before helping you out.

Very Respectfully,

Sikes

Ten Interesting Facts About Myself

• I have visited 48 states. All I have left is Alaska and Hawaii.
• I am an ENTP
• I have a rare disorder of an undisclosed nature, I suffer from moderate hearing loss, 24/7 tinnitus, and a long-term shoulder issue.
• I am one of The Few and The Proud.
• I have learned more about who I really am in the last 4 years than all my years before.
• I was once a very good marksman.
• I love what I do for a living, and would do it for free if I could afford to.
• I once gave a very famous rock star a fat lip and a black eye (he deserved it).
• I have driven coast-to-coast 3 times: twice in lifted Jeep CJ-7s, and once in a Datsun 260Z.
• I have plenty of regrets, but I love where my life experience has brought me so far.

My First Love and First Kiss

When I was 4 or 5 years old, a cute little girl next door named Alison stole my heart. We quickly became “boyfriend and girlfriend” and we played “wedding” a lot. Of course, when the “preacher” announced that the husband could kiss his wife, well… Alison and I are still friends.

I had a few girlfriends growing up, and even a short-lived marriage right when I joined the Marine Corps. One day in the barracks I saw a new WM (Woman Marine) that all the other guys were talking about, and I just knew I would never stand a chance with her. I didn’t even dare try to talk with her. One day I went to the barracks laundry room to wash my uniforms, and found a load someone left in the washer. It was a female’s clothing, but I didn’t let that bother me. I just transferred the load to the dryer without ogling the panties (too much), and went on about my business. And then she walked in. Before I could explain that I had moved her clothes into the dryer, and did NOT fondle her gear, she smiled, said she had seen me through the door, and thanked me. And then she hung around and chatted while our laundry finished up. That simple and unassuming few minutes together gave me the courage to ask her out to dinner… and she said yes! Thus followed a magical few months that I will always remember as my first real love… until she graduated Marine Corps Combat Engineer School (at the top of her class!), and she moved back to her hometown… and promptly broke my heart.

My Earliest Memory

Once upon a time, my earliest memory (believe it or not) was of being breastfed. The problem with that memory was that my mother never breastfed me. My stepmother (whom I called “Mom”) finally figured out that what probably happened was that my aunt had probably done it, and I must have thought it was weird, so that’s why it stuck in my memory. Nowadays, I only remember remembering it. Strange how memory works… and sometimes doesn’t work.

When I was 5 or 6 my older sister Diane and I snuck down by the creek near our house, and I watched while she smoked grapevine. She threatened me with physical harm (ok, I may be misremembering that part) against telling Mom and Dad. Guess what I did the moment we got home? Yep. And I lived through it. But I only remember remembering that now.

When I was 14, I witnessed my Dad saving a woman’s life. We were driving his semi truck down a highway in Oklahoma City when he hit the brakes hard. That woke me up out of my bored stupor enough to jump across to his seat and look out the window as he ran across the road and back a hundred feet or so, to where a guy was pointing a handgun at a lady in a car parked at the curb. This all happened within a few seconds - my dad snuck up behind the guy, grabbed his gun, and planted a punch right into his face. The guy fell to the ground, knocked out cold. My dad yelled at the woman to drive away, and she peeled out and took off. My dad tucked the gun under his belt, rolled the guy over against the curb, and trotted back to the truck. He handed the revolver to me, told me to unload it, which I did… as he shifted the truck into gear and drove away… just like the badass Marine he was.

Speaking of violence, I once had a rather significant unwelcome event force me into a desperate but very necessary act. It has really worked to twist me up inside. I have gone for the last 20 years shifting back and forth between remembering it like it had just happened, to thinking it actually didn’t happen, even though it really did. Now that the non-disclosure agreement has expired, maybe I should finally go see a counselor about it.

At this point, my earliest memory that I can honestly recall with clarity is from when I was 13 years old. My dad and I were driving around town, and I was thinking about that breastfeeding memory. No, this isn’t about to get icky - it happened to be shortly after my Mom figured it all out, I found myself thinking about memory, and worrying that my brain would get clogged up with meaningless memories, rather than ones I could hold onto and value. At that moment, a man in a white van turned left in front of us, and waved at my dad. My dad waved back. And now that’s my earliest memory.

I Don't Care Who You Are - This Is FUNNY

“FIRST DEMOCRAT DEBATE HIGHLIGHTS: 2015” —- A Bad Lip Reading of the First Debate
Posted by Conservative 50 - Living The American Dream on Thursday, October 29, 2015

Five Problems with Social Media

Dang - right off the bat, I’ve got a problem with this “30-Day Writing Challenge” thing. Actually, my problem isn’t with the Challenge itself; it’s with how the topic for this first day’s piece is written, which is my point: there are no problems with social media. The technology is progressing in some very interesting and important ways. There ARE some problems with how people use (and abuse) social media, though.

I am the first to admit a mild addiction to some social media tools; Facebook is at the top of that list. My excuse relates to my interest (personal and professional) in how people use technology to learn and improve their lives. I figure that, although I spend too much time on social media, at least I am absorbing knowledge that has contributed to my success as an educational technologist. Like many other people, I waste a lot of time randomly browsing mindless posts, memes, nonsense “news” pieces, biased stories, and other general nonsense, when I could and should be doing something outdoors. And when I am outdoors, sometimes out in the middle of a wonderful motorcycle or mountain bike ride or hike, what do I often do? Yep, I reach for social media, in case one of my “friends” out there might appreciate a selfie of Paul in a cool place. Ugh.

Another problem with social media involves data mining of our thoughts, ideas, comments, preferences, etc. in ways that often surprise people. Ever wonder why an ad for a product you just commented on suddenly appears on the side of your Facebook feed? You don’t really wonder how that happened, right? Does it bother you? I have grown (groan?) accustomed to it.

When people blindly accept the default privacy settings as they sign up for a social media tool ("I'm excited to get started - I'll do that later") they open themselves up to issues they may not foresee. We also need to pay attention to how privacy settings and terms of service agreements change over time, and make sure we are comfortable with where a given tool is headed in regard to how it handles and manages the data it extracts and extrapolates from your interaction.

I wish more people realized that Twitter isn’t just “I just farted!” updates. Sure, there is a lot of that noise out there, but Twitter has proven to be a gold mine for me when I use it as a news and information collating filter. I won’t get into the nuts and bolts of that right here and now, but it’s not too difficult to figure out.

Lastly, a problem… actually, more of a gripe about a certain social media tool I like a lot: Can someone please tell my why the otherwise awesome app that is @Instagram STILL doesn’t implement one of the most basic aspects of social media - SHARING content between users? Why do we need an external app to do this? Can’t those three little dots at the bottom right of each post include a “Repost” feature? ‪#‎instagram‬ ‪#‎ugh‬

Anthropogenic Climate Change?

I wonder how the level of greenhouse gas emissions by cars, trucks, factories (all of the sources traditionally blamed for global climate change) compares to the level emitted by all of the wildfires across the West. And then there is the idea that the wildfires wouldn't be nearly as bad if our National Forests were better managed. Now THAT would be some evidence of anthropogenic climate change.

Motorcycle Tour of Iceland

Check THIS out!

Hypocrisy?

This Will Bend Your Brain

How to Schedule Gmail Messages

I am hesitant to use 3rd-party apps in my Gmail until & unless someone I know has recommended it. Luckily, I keep this page bookmarked for just such an occasion. Let me know what you think of it!

What Happens When You Ignore Your Mom's Texts

Hamburger Meat

THIS says it better than I could ever describe the “picking and pecking and pushing and prodding and poking” that drove me ABSOLUTELY BANANAS in my marriage.

Game-Changer

This is a real game-changer. And by "game," I mean the race-baiting antics and comments of Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, Eric Holder, and yes, Barack Obama, among many others.

Build a New Model

Ok, we have built a new model of effective and efficient face-to-face, online, and hybrid education. What's our next step toward greater adoption, Mr. Fuller?