It is hard to comprehend how we got from the point of trusting most people of the world to the point of not being able to trust anyone.  Our country fought in 2 world wars and several other smaller wars all in the name of helping our fellow-man. IT DIDNT WORK. Its kind of like giving a few dollars to the beggar at the corner of the block.  It seems like the right thing to do but then you realize that the money probably goes for either crack cocaine or Colt 45 malt liquor.  We are taught from childhood to help the less fortunate but it gets harder to follow those teachings when things happen like the shooting in Paris.  If , in fact, they find that the shooters came in with refugees from a war-torn land in the middle east then that will make it harder to accept any kind of refugee from anywhere.

The media and the talking heads of government are talking about how sophisticated and difficult it was to put together such an attack from a logistics standpoint.  Bullshit, I could put together a jihad in about 30 minutes.  You fed ex the guns to Pierre’s house.  You gather up about 6 or 8 guys of minimal intelligence, who have no job, no future, no food, and who are enticed by the thought of receiving 72 virgins and you explain the plan.  The plan being:  You guys take these Timex watches and go to Paris.  When the little hand gets to 12 and the big hand is on 11, then you go to Pierre’s house.  Pick your weapon, load it, and wait until the big hand gets to 6 and the little hand gets to 1.  Leave Pierre’s house and start shooting up anyplace you see where there are large groups of people.  Allahu Akbar.

Remember the part about giving the money to the bum on the corner?  Remember letting tens of thousands of refugees into your country for humanitarian reasons?  Neither turned out quite like you thought.  Did I hear someone say  MORAL QUANDARY?  Yep, I bet I did.  Moral quandary will be a good thing to say at some of the funerals they are going to have in France when people are asking why all those people died.

The word we need to hear is COALITION.  A coalition is defined as a temporary alliance of factions, parties, etc, for some specific purpose.  Faction being defined as every nation on the earth, other that those in the middle east.  Specific purpose being defined as wiping radical extremist muslims from the face of the earth.  You start at the western edge of Syria and you march east across the middle east at about 50 yard intervals.  You shoot everything moving that is dressed in black pajamas.  (remember what color the viet cong’s pajamas were?)  When you get to the Indian ocean, you turn around and come back again.  Muslims are damned easy to catch.  5 times a day they pull out a little rug and face Mecca to pray.  That is called a skillet shot.  Radical plan>?  You damned right it is but just how radical do you think those people in Paris would have considered such a plan?

Chuy the militant

Dorothy and I recently returned from a 3 week tour of the state of California.  I had been once before when a young lad but it was so long ago that not much was remembered.  I, like many people, are not sure what to make of the state.  I think I have come across a way to describe what California really is.  It is GOD”S button box.  Remember that our mothers and grandmothers had a box that contained buttons of every shape, color, and kind that could ever be needed for anything.  California is that and more.  It has everything and one of every type of person.

We saw most of the state and I have a favorite place.  It is Sequoia National Park.  Yep, the big trees.  Redwoods are the tallest trees on earth, Sequoia are the largest.  The park was not as crowded as Yosemite but still had a number of people looking around.  However, even with all the visitors there was a quiet, serene atmosphere in the park that was palpable.  Sequoia can have bark that exceeds 2′ in thickness.  This is a fire-retardant as well as some type of sound suppression, I guess.  I sat on a bench at the edge of a small clearing where one of the giants grew and it was every bit as quiet as being alone  in a cathedral.  Even when other people walked up there was not much talking or other noises. I assume everyone was as awestruck as I was.  Many who know me well understand how much I like nature and the things that God surely made.  I am moving the giant trees to the top of the list and would certainly recommend that should you have the chance , you should not miss it .  Go see the big trees.  Sit quietly and listen to them breathe.  Then wonder, as I surely did, how anyone ever harvested one of these magnificent wonders and turned it into picnic tables.  Shame on our ancestors for such a waste of such a miracle of growth.  3500 years old?

Gary

We have had another instance of school shooting.  As before, it is devastating for the community and the nation.  We grieve and we write newspaper articles as well as blogs about how sad it is.  Some folks immediately call for tighter gun control.  Availability of guns has nothing to do with the actual killing of our fellow human beings.  Samson killed legions with the jaw bone of an ass.  No, it’s not the weapon, its something else.  Something much more basic.  I believe it is the basic fabric of our society.  It probably has a great deal to do with the feeling of despair than much of our population has because of the lack of jobs, lack of family guidance, lack of caring about each other.  Does anyone have an answer?  I have some ideas and have expounded on those many times.  Maybe they are too simplistic, maybe they are not as complicated as those governing us seem to think solutions ought to be.  I know the governing body of the city I live in can not vacuum feces from a plugged up sewer without hiring a consultant to tell them which way the wind is blowing in order to keep the smell away from city hall.

Maybe we need to appoint a Czar to be in charge of correcting society’s ills.  We had one for the drug problem and look what happened there.  I am pretty sure that a visit to Oregon by the Prez is not going to accomplish much besides making him feel like he did something.

Gary

It was a pleasure for Dorothy and I to have the opportunity to visit with you and the gang on Thursday.  I know that you might not have been feeling as well as you would have liked, but you were the same as always.  A gracious host and mindful friend.

After leaving I had the opportunity to start reflecting on what our friendship has meant to me.  It is very difficult , if not impossible , to remember when we werent connected by this friendship.  It has been at least 65 years and that is a long time in anybodys books.

I relived all the rides we made together on Hwy 80 and Eddy street in the Plymouth.  I relived all the times we sat at Al’s Burger Bar watching the people circling.  I relived all the good times and laughs that we had.  There were so many that it boggles the mind.  We were so fortunate to have grown up in a small town with so many people that are still our friends to this day.  I only know a very few people who have that kind of experience and they are all people who have something extra,  a feeling that you get about them that makes you know that they are good people and thoughtful people.

When Dorothy and I decided to make the move to Lubbock in 1969 for me to continue my quest for a degree, it was none other than my buddy David who saved the day.  When I called you that day and advised that we had moved and you asked when I could start work, well, you cannot imagine the relief that I felt in hearing that question.  The thought of looking for a job was way more scary than trying to make grades at Tech.  You provided me the opportunity to work in a very nice place, meet very nice people and certainly made my life as easy as possible for the years we worked there at W. D. Wilkins.  For that, I thank you.  It was a show of friendship that I didnt expect but have never forgotten.

Again, I thank you for being my friend.  Our families have been entwined for so many years that our relationship may surpass that of mere friendship, but friendship is good enough for me.

I love you David.

Gary Homer

Next weekend is our annual family reunion in the hills of west Texas, Ft. Davis.  It is always a pleasure to go up there where it is almost always a few degrees cooler than along the coast.  Over the last few years the state has refurbished the Indian Lodge, making it even more pleasant a place to stay.

It seems that the pool at Balmorhea is in a bit of a turmoil.  I don’t quite understand the problem but kinda have the feeling that someone new has come in and made a few rule changes that have made things more difficult.  Hear that they only let a few cars in at a time thereby causing some parking problems along the highway.  Have you ever noticed how when a new “Jefe” comes on board they always have to flex a bit to make sure everyone knows who the new rooster is?  Has anyone ever stopped to think that if something has been working for almost a 100 years then why change it.  I know, time marches on and all that, but, there are some things that just need to march a little slower.  And keep that water running down the canal thru downtown Balmorhea.  If there is a water shortage, reroute it back out to the pool.  Probably a small expense to remain quaint.

Well I am glad they got that damned flag down over in South Carolina.  Never in my life have I heard such an uproar over a piece of cloth.  When did we get so damned sensitive that a flag that represented one side of our nation in a war that killed a major portion of our population on both sides become such a terrible thing.  Yes, it represented the South, yes, the south had slaves, yes, part of the north had slaves.  The war was fought for many reasons other than over the right to keep slaves.  We all know that.  Will there be a ban on the tying of a noose, the sale of a horse whip, the sale of a straight razor?  Should we quit growing cotton because of the connection of that plant with slavery?  Stupid premises?  Yes. But no more so than equating that flag to the problems that blacks face in our modern world.  Blacks face a lot of problems that are brought on themselves.  We all know that also.  Maybe start a petition to stop the sale of Mad-Dog 20-20 or Colt 45 malt liquor.  Now there are a couple of things that are oppressive.

I am starting a garden at the ranch tomorrow.  I had gotten out of the gardening business for a few years but just seems a pity to have that land, that has ample water, and leave it fallow (so to speak).  There ought to be some chili peppers and some okra growing out there.  I have a pretty good patch of pumpkins already that came from some pumpkins we threw out for the wild hogs to eat.  They didnt eat the pumpkins and now we have more growing.  I may be planting things for the coons and rabbits to eat but I will try to plant enough for all.

Time to get ready for church.  Hope all is well with each of you.  We need to count our blessings as fear that fewer blessing will be coming our way in an ever changing world.

Chuy

Responsibilities and powers of the President:                                                                     1.  execution and enforcement of the laws created by congress                                         2.  appoints members of cabinet and independent federal commissions.                           3.  Has power to either sign legislation or veto.  Veto can be overridden.                           4.  Has power to issue executive orders, which direct executive officers                                or clarify and further existing laws.

We are already being bombarded by candidates , with what they see as the things we need , to make our nation either as great as it once was or greater.  Most of what they say sounds like an answer to a prayer.  However, if one listens very carefully with their mind and not their heart, they will hear promises that can’t possibly be kept.  As all of know, little can be done without the cooperation of congress.  Under which of the above would a candidate use to empower that person to erect a fence across our southern border and require the neighboring country to pay for it.

My choice in the upcoming election is going to be someone who shoots square with us as voters.  That person is going to be someone who simply states that he/she has an agenda, outlines that agenda, and asks for us, the voters, to elect congressmen who will help him achieve what that agenda outlines.  The candidate is going to have to tell me what he/she has achieved in the past that would enable he/she to work with congress to get things done.  A “track record” will be a plus.

I don’t want a candidate that talks in a southern accent when campaigning in the south, nor someone who pronounces  the dish “chowda” when they normally say chowder.   I want someone who can be realistic in what they promise.  Cut big government sounds like a very desirable thing but will be much, much harder to accomplish.  Many of those boys are dug in deeper than a tick on a hound.  I would simply like to have someone state, our country needs to change our spending habits and with congressional help I will do all I can to facilitate that change.

Just some realism Please?

GHC

I have decided who I want for president of the United States.

I want someone, who, by their demeanor and ideology, ensure that no one laughs at me or says “I’m sorry” when I tell them that I am an American.

Nuff said

Chuy

Again we are faced with the possibility that a police officer was over zealous in his actions toward a group of teens.  Immediately the video was flashed across the internet and the talking heads started doing what they do best.  Call for his firing, put him in jail, racist reaction towards blacks.  You know the drill.  Rev Al had enough lather worked up on him to shampoo a buffalo.  Poor little bikini clad sista was thrown violently to the ground and held down with a policeman’s knee.  Horrors.  Days of slavery have returned.  Will storm troopers be next.  Will Simon Legree be resurrected ?  But wait, there seems to be other videos that are emerging.  These show the bikini clad damsel beating the hell out of another young lady just minutes before the police arrived.  Maybe there is another side to the story.

Why yes, there is another side.  The young lady in question was told to get down on the ground.  When a policeman tells someone to hit the deck it can be for many reasons.  One reason might be to keep you out of the line of fire.  It is used to differentiate the good guys from the bad.  Those laying face down dont get shot as often as those jumping around hollering at the “Pigs” about racial profiling.  The young lady did not obey the police officer.  Because she has been indoctrinated to talk back to people in authority, refuse orders and other protest methods she was subjected to procedures that are designed to keep the situation as safe as possible for the victims and the police.  Her parents need to keep their mouths shut, take her home and ground her little butt for the rest of the summer and spend some time teaching her about what police are really about.  Protecting us as well as themselves.  I doubt that you could find very many police officers that get up in the morning thinking about what they can do that day to oppress blacks.  They get up each day hoping they can do their job and get to come home alive at the end of their shift.

I for one am getting damned tired of hearing about how bad minorities are treated.  Your actions for the most part determine how you are treated in this world.  Act nice, you get treated nicely.  Loot a liquor store in protest against the killing of an armed man charging police, you are gonna get treated accordingly.

Get a grip.

Gary

Saw a news clip of the Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco.  Lord it was as vacant as a downtown store in Pecos.  When those folks pull a franchise they pull a franchise.  There is a rumor that they bulldozed two small hills on the southwest side of Waco that had the possibility of becoming peaks sometimes in the future.  I think that incident will slowly and quietly go away and we wont  ever hear about the trial of any of those bikers.

I dare say we are going to be hearing about the Clintons until we are all sick of them, if we aren’t already.  I try not to be too political because I think they epitomize what I think all politicians are about.

The floods in Texas are terrible.  When the rains stop and the newly grown flora turns brown and wildfires begin, let’s think back to when we had too much rain.  As I have said, in Texas when a mans roof gets blown off by a tornado, the first thing he does is check his rain gauge to see how much rain he got.

Noticed in the paper today that “campus carry” had passed.  I shudder to think how many of our lives would have been altered if Irene and Emma had been armed with a snub nose 38.  You wouldn’t have known whether Irene was tugging at her girdle or slapping leather and when Emma sneezed half the school would have been on the floor.  Mental pictures are scary as hell.  I can envision a situation in the future where some foreign student, in native costume, shows up for psych class and the professor just whips out a gun, hollering USA and pops a cap in the guy.  You know, jihad can work both ways.

NSA.  Wonder what they think they are gonna hear when they record my conversations?  Why yes, Mr. Jones, your debits and credits do equal.  Yes, you have gone bankrupt and didn’t even know it.  I guess the Maserati you bought kinda put a damper on your finances.  Yes, you do have to answer inquiries from the IRS.  Dear, do you need anything from the grocery store?  When are you going to Lake Charles?  Oh, i forgot.  Pretty boring stuff.  I hope they used up a whole hard drive listening to me chat.  I am not too scared because if “Hill” gets elected she is gonna have them erase everything they ever recorded to protect her and Bill.  I think the NSA should sell an app so we could all listen to each other.????

I am boiling a brisket for corned beef.  Gonna have some pan fried cabbage and some corn cakes.  I have some fresh beets in the fridge that need to be pickled so best get to that .  Although I am not jewish, I am an accountant, so you have to cover all your bases.  If I can’t go to the wailing wall in Jerusalem then I can at least eat their food.

Chuy

I am sitting here this Memorial Day evening awaiting the start of a TV miniseries about the birth of Texas.  It has been a nice day, weatherwise, and hopes to be more of the same tomorrow.  All is pretty much well with the world except for those folks up in the hill country who may have lost their homes to flooding.  That is a shame, for sure.

I have been reading a lot about gun control since the motorcycle gangs decided to have a re-enactment of the OK corral up in Waco.  All because of a parking spot?  I dont think so.  Let me be up front.  I am a licensed concealed firearm carrier.  That doesnt mean that I wear one to church. or to the grocery store, or even to the hamburger joint, it simply means that I am licensed to have one on my person as long as it cant be seen.  There is always one within reach in my car.  Why?  Because I go places that are sometimes scary and dark and inhabited by bad people.  I never start out the day thinking I will use my gun.  In fact, I hardly ever think about it at all.  It is just there.  I doubt that I will change my attitude about guns when Texas becomes an open carry state.  I wont ever walk down the street with a gun on my hip.  They are weighty and uncomfortable to carry, even in a shoulder holster.

I am not one of those folks who is afraid that the feds will come in and confiscate my guns.  I have registered guns that they could track without much trouble.  If they ask for them I would probably not put up too much fuss about giving the licensed guns to them.  I am not a person who thinks the feds are stupid.  I feel sure they are smart enough to understand that a confiscated gun could be replaced in a matter of hours with an unregistered gun.  There is just not much reason to try and disarm a nation that has as many guns as our country owns.  I feel sure that they understand that there are many millions of Americans who will own guns no matter what laws are passed to the contrary.  Outlawing firearms would be about as useless as outlawing sex.  It aint gonna happen.

What we need to outlaw is stupidity.  It was stupid for the owner of the Twin Peaks restaurant in Waco to welcome two opposing motorcycle gangs into his town and into  his restaurant, to not expect some type of trouble.  His last name is Patel.  I am gonna go out on a limb and guess that he is from India or is descended from Indian people.  He may not know about motorcycle gangs or guns being from a different culture but surely the man could figure out that if 10 people come into your restaurant, carrying chains, with guns in their belts and tats up and down their arms that trouble may ensue.  And that was just the female gang members, those setting up the meetings.

I have lived almost 72 years, going places I wanted to go, not being afraid of where I am at, and I plan on finishing out my tour of duty in the same manner.  I am not going to cry wolf, hide my guns in a bucket in the back yard, or do much of anything else controlled by paranoia.  I am going to buy an adequate amount of ammo, maybe a case or two of spam and just have a good time.  I am going to try and stay loose.  Well maybe not that loose.

Chuy