We are being inundated with news stories about the sailors who were detained by the Iranians because our disabled boat drifted close to one of the Iranian islands.  Is there so little news that this rates more than one or two reports?  I think not.

The news folks are making innuendos that the sailors did something wrong by apologizing to the Iranians for drifting into their territories.  If I accidentally ran over a small corner of my neighbors ( who is a total a-hole) front yard and he demanded an apology I would probably do it.  I would be biting my tongue until my nose bled but I would do it.  Why?  So I didn’t end up in jail.  Incidents have a way of accelerating into something that weren’t meant to be.  We should look at this in the same light.  You do what you need to do to get yourself and your men back in your boats and back to sea.  When you get back to base you make your report, turn your boat into the garage and the tell the mechanic to get the damned thing fixed so it doesn’t happen again.  Gather up some money and buy a trolling motor to keep on board for emergencies.

Question?  If we have the technology to look through the window of a house from a spy satellite in space, why in the name of St Elmo are we sailing a damned motor boat in an area that is contested territory?  Cant we train our sailors in an area of the ocean that no one really cares about?  Its kinda like walking thru the junkyard. knowing that the man who owns the place has a bull-dog that eats the legs of people who it catches. Go around.  If you poke a stick at a rattle snake, let me tell you Leroy, it will eventually strike.  If you screwed up and had too short a stick, then you are bitten..  Not the snakes fault.

The older I get the more serene I wish things were.  I would like to get up some morning and turn on the news and see the news people just sitting behind their desks looking at each other.  The anchor asks ” Either of y’all got anything?”  They report back, ” Nope”, and they sign off the air.  I switch over to the business news and learn that stocks are steady with no real down turns or up turns.  No gain no loss.  “See y’all tomorrow.”  Sports channel and the moderator announces that no professional athlete has been jailed, failed drug test, accused of beating any member of his or her family, and all contracts were amicably settled during the previous evening.  There were no trades and Johnny Manzel has agreed to become a valet car attendant at Cowboy stadium.  You catch the weather and learn that the Arctic and Antarctic ice packs have begun to grow and global warming is over.  Is all this too much to ask?

GAry