Think FRiva Las Vegas is just for fun?
Our featured Saturday Night Dinner Speaker is one of the backbone Conservative Political Commentators speaking today. Rich Galen has published Mullings - a Cyber Column. Here is one of my favorites:
Rich Galen
Monday May 27, 2002
[This is a reprise of Mullings from Memorial Day, 2001.]
We went to Arlington National Cemetery to attend the annual Memorial Day observance. The Lad was in charge of President Bush's appearance and he graciously offered to get us seats in the Amphitheater to watch.
The entrance to Arlington National Cemetery is directly across the Potomac River from the Lincoln Memorial. These two historical – mystical – sites are connected by the Memorial Bridge.
At the entrance there is a sign which asks visitors to remember this is an active cemetery with the words:
"Welcome to Arlington National Cemetery,
America's most sacred shrine.
These are hallowed grounds."
The Mullings Director of Standards & Practices and I made our way up the walkways, past the many small groups of school-aged children and their chaperones listening to docents explain what they were looking at.
They were looking at rows and rows of American flags which had been placed in the ground front of each and every headstone. There are over a quarter of a million people buried at Arlington.
Generals and privates. Admirals and seamen.
Each headstone gets its own flag. Each flag, the same size.
We walked the grounds, map in hand, grass wet from days of thunder storms, the morning still cloudy and threatening. We paused and reflected, having found what we were looking for.
We made our way to the Amphitheater where the ceremony would take place.
The Lad spotted us. As he led us to our seats we each took one of the small American flags which were being handed out by elderly vets. Holding my flag, I read the inscription above the stage: "We, here, highly resolve that those dead shall not have died in vain."
On cue, the Air Force Band and Chorus began to perform. On cue, the sun peeked out.
An announcer informed us we would hear a 21-gun salute signaling the arrival of the President on the grounds. Off in the distance, there was an order followed by the report of a cannon, then another order, another report, and so on. Twenty-one times.
During it all, the crowd stood silently.
The announcer then said the Army Band would play the National Anthem, after which the President would lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The Tomb of the Unknowns is located to the rear of the Amphitheater on a large, elevated deck, out of our sight.
At the playing of the National Anthem, the military personnel snapped a salute and everyone else put hands on hearts.
After a delay, during which the wreath was placed, we could hear, very faintly, the sound of taps.
The crowd was hardly breathing; as if breathing might drown out the sound of the bugle.
The President arrived on the stage without Ruffles and Flourishes. Mrs. Bush took her seat, without fanfare.
After the opening prayer, there was a recitation of letters written by young men in different wars, in different places. When it was completed, there was no applause. The crowd was silent.
This was not a ceremony of pomp and circumstance. Nor an occasion for soaring rhetoric.
The President spoke, quietly, of sacrifice, and of duty, and of honor. He spoke of young men and young women who would never live out their lives. He spoke of the last kiss between a husband to his wife; the last wink and wisecrack of a brother to a sister as a train pulled out of a station; a father and son hugging for the final time at an airline boarding gate.
Afterwards, we stood amid the crowd watching, silently, the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns; the military ballet which takes place 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Arlington National Cemetery, on Memorial Day, has nothing to do with the sweep and grandeur of history, nor the gigantic commitment of resources to battles and wars; nor grand strategies and brilliant tactics.
It is the place where – and the day when – we remember the men and women who were killed at Pearl Harbor, and on Omaha Beach, and at Bull Run, and Verdun, and in Korea, and Viet Nam, and Afghanistan, and all the other un-locatable places with unpronounceable names where we have sent young men and women to fight and, too often, to die.
Arlington National Cemetery, on Memorial Day, has everything to do with a single white headstone. Nestled in a neat row among all the other white headstones next to it, in front of it, and behind it. Up hills and down swales.
We had paused at one white headstone, among a quarter of a million others. The one with the words:
Flags in hand, in the wet grass, on a gray morning, of Memorial Day, at Arlington National Cemetery, we paid our respects to her dad.
And prayed, silently, that he rest.
In peace.
Submitted by MAJ. Silas W. Bass
Historian General
Francis Bellamy (1855-1931) wrote the Pledge of Allegiance for the observance of the 400th Anniversary of the discovery of America by Columbus. Since 1891, he had been working on a journal for juveniles entitled, “Youth’s Companion.” He worked closely with James B. Upham, the editor of the paper.
Bellamy’s job on the paper was to promote patriotism and the flying of the flag over the public schools. He was made chairman of the executive committee for the national public school celebration of Columbus Day in 1892.
Bellamy visited President Benjamin Harrison to ask him to endorse the idea of a flag over every schoolhouse and the teaching of patriotism in all the schools. On June 21, 1892, President Harrison signed the proclamation that said, “Let the national flag float on every schoolhouse in the country and the exercises be such as shall impress upon our youth the patriotic duties of American citizenship!”
Francis Bellamy wrote these now famous words, first printed in “Youth’s Companion.” September 8, 1892:
“I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
At the Second National Flag Conference held in Washington, D.C., on Flag Day, 1924, they added the words, “of America.”
A further change was made in the Pledge by House Joint Resolution 243, approved by President Eisenhower on June 14, 1954, which added the words, “under God,” so that it now reads:
“one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
HAPPY THURSDAY!
<----Cookies anyone? There's enough for all. I'll put your name on the package too. :)
<===Click Here
I'd pay a million bucks to see those braindead *&)^%#)*&#@^%)*&%#(@ so called "judges" be forced to tell these men and women, face to face, that their children and grandchildren can't say the Pledge of Allegiance in school.
'I PLEDGE ALLEGIANCE TO THE FLAG'
What do these words mean to you? To me they say, "Thank you, America, for your strength, your courage and for your freedom....which has been a beacon to the world for two hundred years."
'OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA'
....Whose bright stars are fifty states...each bearing it's own stamp of individuality. People...two-hundred million strong...people...who have come to her from all corners of the earth.
'AND TO THE REPUBLIC FOR WHICH IT STANDS'
A land of laws...which an ingenious system of checks and balances that allows no man to become a tyrant...and lets no group prevail...if their power is not tempered with a real concern for the government...a land where the right of dissent and of free speech is jealously guarded...where the ballot box is the sword...and the people its wielder.
'ONE NATION...UNDER GOD!'
A land where freedom of worship is a cornerstone of her being. A land graced with temples and churches, synagogues and alters, that rise in profusion to embrace all the religions of the world.
'INDIVISIBLE'
A land forged by the hot steel of raw courage...and formed forever...by the awful crucible...of civil war.
'WITH LIBERTY'
Where man in pursuit of an honest life will not be denied his chance...where her citizens move freely within her vast borders without hindrance of fear...a land brimming with opportunity...where freedom of choice, is the guideline for all.
'AND JUSTICE'
The courts of our land are open to all. Its wheels of justice grind for all causes...all people. They look to every avenue for justice...every concern of the law, and they temper their reasoning with mercy...
'FOR ALL'
John Wayne
RWP
"As you may know, I spent five and one half years as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War. In the early years of our imprisonment, the NVA kept us in solitary confinement or two or three to a cell. In 1971 the NVA moved us from these conditions of isolation into large rooms with as many as 30 to 40 men to a room. This was, as you can imagine, a wonderful change and was a direct result of the efforts of millions of Americans on behalf of a few hundred POWs 10,000 miles from home.
One of the men who moved into my room was a young man named Mike Christian. Mike came from a small town near Selma, Alabama. He didn't wear a pair of shoes until he was 13 years old. At 17, he enlisted in the US Navy. He later earned a commission by going to Officer Training School. Then he became a Naval Flight Officer and was shot down and captured in 1967. Mike had a keen and deep appreciation of the opportunities this country, and our military, provide for people who want to work and want to succeed. As part of the change in treatment, the Vietnamese allowed some prisoners to receive packages from home. In some of these packages were handkerchiefs, scarves and other items of clothing. Mike got himself a bamboo needle.
Over a period of a couple of months, he created an American flag and sewed it on the inside of his shirt. Every afternoon, before we had a bowl of soup, we would hang Mike's shirt on the wall of the cell and say the Pledge of Allegiance. I know the Pledge of Allegiance may not seem the most important part of our day now, but I can assure you that in that stark cell, it was indeed the most important and meaningful event.
One day the Vietnamese searched our cell, as they did periodically, and discovered Mike's shirt with the flag sewn inside, and removed it. That evening they returned, opened the door of the cell, and for the benefit of all us, beat Mike Christian severely for the next couple of hours.
Then, they opened the door of the cell and threw him in. We cleaned him up as well as we could. The cell in which we lived had a concrete slab in the middle on which we slept. Four naked light bulbs hung in each corner of the room. As said, we tried to clean up Mike as well as we could. After the excitement died down, I looked in the corner of the room, and sitting there beneath that dim light bulb with a piece of red cloth, another shirt and his bamboo needle, was my friend, Mike Christian. He was sitting there with his eyes almost shut from the beating he had received, making another American flag.
He was not making the flag because it made Mike Christian feel better. He was making that flag because he knew how important it was to us to be able to pledge our allegiance to our flag and country.
So the next time you say the Pledge of Allegiance, you must never forget the sacrifice and courage that thousands of Americans have made to build our nation and promote freedom around the world. You must remember our duty, our honor, and our country. "
I’m in my kitchen baking chocolate chip cookies for a Marine who would give her life for her country and flag tomorrow if asked. We are not rich. Cookies are the least I could do. The more I think about it, the madder I get. I’m mad as a hornet. I’m so mad I could spit.
This ruling yesterday will probably be overturned, Lord willing. I'm shocked these people would even "go there" right now (or ever). Yeah, it will be overturned, but it's the freaking principle of the matter. How dare they?!?! Over 3,000 innocent Americans were slaughtered 9 months ago, over half never to be found. Nothing to bury…nothing. They are a vapor. It was a blessing if the family got a finger back to bury. We’ve got thousands of troops out there now fighting this evil (our family and friends, mind you). Some of them are dying and coming home in body bags. How dare these evil people stab America in the back like this.
I heard on the news last night, this poor, traumatized Atheist…..bless his pea pickin’ heart….. is upset because he doesn’t want his daughter being ostracized for her beliefs. Well I say too *&^%$ bad!!!
That’s life. Being ostracized and feeling left out is part of growing up. Everyone reading this was ostracized in his or her childhood. We were all weird. We were all made fun of. Big deal. It put hair on my chest. It made me tough as nails. Yes growing up hurts. So does being an adult. Life hurts. So what. A court cannot legislate or make laws to protect children from being ostracized. What a crock!
When I was growing up, people made fun of me for the way I dressed. I couldn't wear a bikini and had to wear "granny suits", no short shorts, and no Jordache jeans so tight I couldn’t breathe. I wasn’t allowed to dance. Girls hated me and tortured me. Boys chased me only long enough to figure out I didn’t “put out” so that was the end of that. No date to the prom for me either (I had to ask a boy from another school to be my date. How embarrassing). I didn’t do drugs or drink in high school so no party invitations ever came to my mailbox. I stayed home, read books and ran for President of everything at school…and won. No one wanted to date me but I was electable. LOL!! Sniff, sniff…boo hoo…big deal. It’s over…it’s in the past. I lived through it. I’m a great adult now (I hope).
I DEMAND THE COURTS MAKE LAWS TO PROTECT THE GOODY GOODIES OF THIS WORLD!!! NOT
I don’t understand why the three letter word GOD is so offensive to people. I’m around people who believe differently than me all the time and I mind my manners and am not rude about it. I don’t freak out, get my panties in a wad and cause a big stink. I ADJUST and COPE. Why can’t non-Christians adjust? Is it too much to ask for people to just shut up, be polite, mind their manners and adjust?
I’m sick and tired of being told by a court to be tolerant. (Unconstitutional????) Lord have mercy, liberals have no earthly idea just how tolerant we are. We tolerate and tolerate and tolerate until we’re blue in the face. In fact, I think they count on our tolerance. They know we will sit back and be peaceful, tolerant good little Christians, mind our own business, raise our families, not rock the boat. They know we won’t fight. We’re too busy living from paycheck to paycheck so we can pay our *&^%$* taxes.
I’m sick to death of liberals. You know what??? They are BULLIES. They push, they shove, they pout, throw temper tantrums, stomp, kick their feet, snarl, and foam at the mouth to get their way. They make me sick. 
If that flag, our precious flag, comes down, that’s it. That’s the end of it. I’m the eternal optimist, but I know in my heart, if that flag should ever come down, the world will go to hell in a giant suitcase. Evil will be free to practice their favorite extracurricular activities on billions of human beings around the globe. America is HOPE and PEACE because we ARE a God fearing nation. God has blessed us with unimaginable prosperity. He blessed us, so we could then bless the rest of the world. He loves everyone, not just his people. Why did he send Jonah to the Ninevites if he only loves "his people", the apostles to the gentiles?
And what really cracks me up, except I don’t feel like laughing, is people honestly think they can remove the word GOD, and they are rid of him. LOL Sorry buddy, but you can’t REMOVE God. You can try, but he isn’t going anywhere. God IS. God IS and that’s it. Period. End of discussion. Keep mocking him and making a fool of yourself trying to make him disappear. God will NEVER magically go “POOF”…away. God is with you, not matter how much you hate him or deny him.
I have nothing more to say. I’m back to making my cookies for a brave American who will fight for my children, our constitution and our flag. God bless her and all our other troops, alive and dead, who were stabbed in the back yesterday.
Associated Press
SIGONELLA, Sicily — A Navy helicopter was severely damaged Thursday after what the Navy said was a “hard landing” during a training flight. There were no major injuries to the crew.
A statement from Sigonella Naval Air Station, Italy, said the mishap occurred just after the MH-53 E transport helicopter took off.
The chopper sustained “significant” damage after it made a hard landing but “there were no significant injuries to crew members,” the statement said.
It said Italian and U.S. firefighters, as well as medical personnel responded.
The statement didn’t say how many people were on board the helicopter or provide further details. Officials said the base’s spokesman was unavailable late Thursday for further comment.
The MH-53E, which is built by the Sikorsky company, can carry up to 55 troops or a payload of 16 tons over 50 nautical miles. It normally carries a crew of two pilots and one to five additional crew members depending on the mission, the statement said.
For the Republic, To the Republic
"Also I heard the voice of the Lord saying who shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, here am I, send me."