A Few of Fr's Finest....Every Day....11-14-02

JohnHuang2 and Billie

[daisyscarlett]

A Few of FR's Finest.....
......Every Day

FR is a Treasure Trove of talented, compassionate, patriotic, wonderful people who gather every day to discuss the latest news and issues; salute and support our military and our leaders;  tell a few jokes;  learn a new word;  write poetry;  pray for those in need;  and congratulate those who are deserving. Thank you, Jim Robinson, for giving us the vehicle in which we can express ourselves.

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   I can remember lurking when there were only a few regulars who posted, and now there are over 60,000 who have registered for posting privileges. The forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest November 11, 2001

So many people have written me since my original Veteran's Day Tribute, asking how they, or a loved one, could be included in that tribute. Since I can no longer add the photos to the body of the thread, I've been including them in additional posts as I received enough to make another collage.

Still that doesn't seem to be enough. I think there's never been a better nor more appropriate time to keep the faces of our own Veterans and Active Military in front of FReepers--every day! That's why I wanted to do yet another Daily Thread .....ABOUT FReepers .....and FOR FReepers. But not only about our Military FReepers; for all FReepers! Wouldn't it be nice to get to know a few of the other FReepers as well? That's why, in addition to seeing FR's Finest Military Personnel every day, I thought it might be fun to feature a different FReeper (or FReepers) each day. If you would like to be pictured, or know someone who would, please FReepmail me and we'll turn the spotlight - on YOU - for the day!

And do let me know if you'd like your picture added to the groups of Veterans/Active Military below. I will keep this page updated, and continue to add them to the comment section of the original Veteran's Day thread as well.

TOP: Logos, SwedeGirl's hubby, Neil E Wright, FallGuy, 1John, Sneakypete
MIDDLE:  T'wit, COB1, LadyX, Dick Bachert, 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub
BOTTOM:  YankeeinSC, Delta21, JoeSixPack1

TOP:  Bosniajmc, AFVetGal, Archy, A Navy Vet
MIDDLE:  4TheFlag, Aeronaut, 68Grunt, Xinga
BOTTOM:  Codger, AAABest, Clinton's A Liar, Duke809, dcwusmc

TOP:  mc5cents, Norb2569, LBGA's son, VanJenerette
MIDDLE:  Jim Robinson, KJenerette, davidosborne, KG9Kid
BOTTOM:  gwmoore, Equality7-2521, SAMWolf

TOP:  porgygirl, Phil V., MudPuppy, NorCoGOP
MIDDLE:  RaceBannon, OneidaM, rdb3, jwTexian
BOTTOM:  USMC Vet, TheMayor, Vineyard, rhododogma

We now have eleven groups of veterans/active military; we will post each group of three or four twice a week, with thumbnail/links of the remaining seven or eight groups on each thread. Click on any of the thumbnails below to see the group full-size.

         

GROUP 5A: TOP:  spectr17, RightOnline, SERE_Doc, Tet68. MIDDLE:  FutureSnakeEater, RightOnline's wife, CIApilot, Clamper1797. BOTTOM:  usmcobra, onedoug, DiverDave, Joe6-pack.

GROUP 6A: TOP:  g'nad, AgThorn's son Justin, SLB, AgThorn's son Brett. MIDDLE:  fish70, razorback-bert, CheneyChick, Leroy S Mort, Mark17. BOTTOM:  Terry's Take, Taxman, DinkyDau.

GROUP 7A: TOP:  ValerieUSA's son Grant, SK1Thurman, kd5cts, RangerVetNam, dansangel and .45man's son-in-law Tony.BOTTOM:  rangerX, Old China Hand, Trish, Howlin's dad, Mustang.

GROUP 8A: TOP: ohioWfan's son, MamaBear's father-in-law, MamaBear's dad, ladtx. MIDDLE:  The Mayor's niece, M.Kehoe, Beach_Babe's son-in-law. BOTTOM:  deadhead's dad, HiJinx, Severa's hubby, viligantcitizen's granddad.

      

GROUP 9A: TOP: Q6-God, Scan59, Mama Bear and JKPhoto's son, ofMagog. MIDDLE:  Big'ol_freeper, JustAmy's great uncle, Prodigal Son. BOTTOM:  JustAmy's husband, JustAmy's brother-in-law, JustAmy's brother.

GROUP 10A: TOP: dakine's wife, MeeknMing's dad, Auntbee's nephew, MilitiaMan7, AlasBabylon. BOTTOM:  Joe Brower, Temple Owl, Temple Owl's wife, dutchess' dad, Aomagrat.

GROUP 11A: TOP: ladtx #2 son; DiverDave's twin Don; petuniasevan and husband poorman; Mustard; ladtx #1 son. BOTTOM: AlamoGirl's brother Floyd; AG's dad; AG's brother Jim (inset); WVNan's husband; ladtx' Aunt Eva.

                     

They still don't 'get it'

by JohnHuang2

The lawmakers were tough -- real tough --

on the Bush administration, chiefly it's plans on dealing with Saddam Hussein, who faced a Friday deadline on whether to accept or reject a unanimous U.N. Security Council resolution, sponsored jointly by the U.S. and Britain, calling on Iraq to disarm or face "serious consequences", a euphemism for military action. (Saddam accepted Wednesday).

One after another, angry lawmakers rose to the floor, denouncing -- in language which, even by Washington standards, seemed unduly over-the-top -- what they deemed Bush's 'reckless' 'aventurism', his impetuous penchant for unilateralist, diplomacy-be-damned belligerent foreign policy and jingoism. Adding fuel to the fire: A New York Times report Sunday that Bush had tentatively approved Pentagon plans for striking Iraq, using 200,000 to 250,000 troops in a coordinated land, sea and air assault.

Watching the proceedings, it's like I'd been transported to some strange, parallel universe, a world where Tuesday's GOP election resurgence, which gave triumphant Republicans control over the Senate as well as the House, had never happened. It was if Republicans had lost, rather than netted, 2 Senate seats, or Democrats had recaptured control of the Speaker's Chair in the House.

'New tone'? Ha! What 'new tone'?

One high-ranking lawmaker excoriated Bush, calling his policy towards Iraq nothing more than 'a pack of of lies' and 'falsehood', motivated by 'ill intentions.'

The war resolution "does not have the minimum of fairness, objectivity and balance," he lividly told fellow lawmakers in a bitter, blistering speech, adding that Bush's take-no-prisoners approach 'flagrantly ignores' painstaking progress achieved with Iraq "in past years."

I thought to myself, 'man, O man, don't these people get it? Heck, even the U.N. got the message in the form of that U.S.-backed Iraq ultimatum, I thought. Sheesh, we can get even Syria -- still on Foggy Bottom's list of terrorist nations -- to endorse Bush's tough line against Saddam, but we can't get these clowns to budge an inch?

All right, all right; maybe I'm reading too much into Tuesday's midterm results, and perhaps it's ridiculous for me to expect the Iraqi Parliament -- oops, did I mention that by 'lawmakers' I meant Iraqi "lawmakers"? That I was merely talking about the Iraqi "Parliament" all along? -- to knuckle under.

Which brings up an interesting point, in a weird sort of way.

For those who think elections don't matter a lick, that Republicans and Democrats are but 2 sides of the same coin, imagine (if you will) had November 5th gone the other way; imagine a tsunami sweeping Democrats into office Election Day, with the Donkey Party ruinously capturing control of the House and padding its majority in the Senate -- shouldn't be too hard to do, given the bloodbath the White House typically faces during its first midterm elections, costing the party an average of 30 House and 8 Senate seats; imagine waking up Wednesday morning to learn that Nancy Pelosi, the wingnut from San Francisco, was poised to become Speaker of the House, a heart beat away from the presidency (Gephardt had planned to resign his leadership post to run for president, regardless).

What a tragic, calamitous defeat for the White House: A seismic shift in power in a time of war to a party whose seething aversion to military conflict is equaled only by the loathing it harbors for the U.S. military itself.

The world, not just the U.S., would feel the reverberations, the political shock waves spawned as a newly emboldened anti-war party, overwhelmed by a sense of vindication, boisterously seized the reigns.

A landslide for Democrats would mean the U.N. Iraq resolution would still be languishing in the Security Council, headed for certain defeat. President Bush, his prestige in tatters, would no longer command respect on the global stage, his toppled influence a smoldering rubble on the ground.

Elections don't matter, eh?

If that's true, then why was Saddam Hussein secretly rooting for Nancy Pelosi's team?

Think about it, if Saddam could vote, which Party do you suppose he'd prefer: The Party led by one George W. Bush, or the party ruled by a Leninist crackpot, a flag-burning 60s throw-back who idolizes Fidel Castro?

Vice President Dick Cheney or Albert Gore -- which one gets Saddam's vote-of-confidence, as it were?

Condoleezza Rice or Jim McDermott?

Colin Powell or David Bonior?

Donald Rumsfeld or 'Barbra' Streisand?

Any questions?

Didn't think so.

Anyway, that's...

My two cents...

THIS WEEK'S THREADs

11-11-02 Veteran's Day
11-12-02 Temple Owl
11-13-02 Mo1 and The Freeople Thread

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

     1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
     2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
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     5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me an FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

[lodwick]

Remembrance Salute!

Never forget.

[Mudboy Slim]

Ah yes...what a wonderful country we are blessed to live in...MUD

[Mudboy Slim]

De nada, mi hermano...MUD

[ValerieUSA]

BEAUTIFUL!

[ValerieUSA]

I gotchyer monarchs right here! Step on up... See the amazing monarchs!

[WVNan]

Great discourse John. Hits the nail on the head as usual.

[lodwick]

Another super day is wished for all.

Have a great day everyone. bbl

[WVNan]

Well, actually those are'nt the owls I directed daisy to, but I like them too., especially since LOUIE got in there. This is the one I found. There's only five of them.

[Mudboy Slim]

Will do, my FRiend, will do...MUD

[Dubya]

A father and his small son were standing in front of the tiger's cage at the
zoo.

The father was explaining how ferocious and strong tigers are, and junior
was taking it all in with a serious expression.

Dad," the boy said finally, "if the tiger got out of his cage and ate you up
..."

"Yes, son?" the father said expectantly.

"What bus should I take home?" the boy finished.

[dutchess]

Another great 2cents today John. You've got the left nailed!

Good morning everyone. Love the owl graphics Billie! How are you going to keep topping yourself!

gailA. Great rant! Felt your passion through my computer screen. Kind of reminded me of how I felt everytime I watched Clinton speak!

[Dubya]

Things It Takes Most Of Us 50 Years To Learn

1. The badness of a movie is directly proportional to the number of
helicopters in it.

2. You should never say anything to a woman that even remotely suggests
you think she's pregnant unless you can see an actual baby emerging from
her at that moment.

3. The one thing that unites all human beings, regardless of age,
gender, religion, economic status or ethnic background, is that, deep
down inside, we ALL believe that we are above-average drivers.

4. There is a very fine line between "hobby" and "mental illness."

5. People who want to share their religious views with you almost never
want you to share yours with them.

6. If you had to identify, in one word, the reason why the human race
has not achieved, and never will achieve, its full potential, that word
would be "meetings."

7. The main accomplishment of almost all organized protests is to annoy
people who are not in them.

8. You should not confuse your career with your life.

9. A person who is nice to you, but rude to the waiter/janitor, is not
a nice person.

10. When trouble arises and things look bad, there is always one
individual who perceives a solution and is willing to take command.
Very often, that individual is crazy.

[Dubya]

THIS SAYS IT ALL!!!!!

Broken Arrow, Oklahoma School officials remove "God Bless America" signs from schools in fear that someone might be offended.

Channel 12 News in Long Island, New York, orders flags removed from the newsroom and red, white, and blue ribbons removed from the lapels of reporters.

Why? Management did not want to appear biased and felt that our nations flag might give the appearance that "they lean one way or another".

Berkeley, California bans U.S. Flags from being displayed on city fire trucks because they didn't want to offend anyone in the community.

In an "act of tolerance" the head of the public library at Florida Gulf Coast University ordered all "Proud to be an American" signs removed so as to not offend international students.

I, for one, am quite disturbed by these actions of so-called American citizens; and I am tired of this nation worrying about whether or not we are offending some individual or their culture.

Since the terrorist attacks on September 11, we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Americans. However, the dust from the attacks had barely settled in New York and Washington D.C. when the "politically correct" crowd began complaining about the possibility that our patriotism was offending others.

I am not against immigration, nor do I hold a grudge against anyone who is seeking a better life by coming to America. In fact, our country's population is almost entirely comprised of descendants of immigrants; however, there are a few things that those who have recently come to our country, and apparently some native Americans, need to understand.

First of all, it is not our responsibility to continually try not to offend you in any way. This idea of America being a multi-cultural community has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. As Americans, we have our own culture, our own society, our own language, and our own lifestyle. This culture, called the "American Way" has been developed over centuries of struggles, trials, and victories by millions of men and women who have sought freedom.

Our forefathers fought, bled, and died at places such as Bunker Hill, Antietam, San Juan, Iwo Jima, Normandy, Korea, Vietnam, We speak English, not Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Russian, or any other language. Therefore, if you wish to become part of our society - learn our language!

"In God We Trust" is our national motto. This is not some off-the-wall, Christian, Right Wing,political slogan – it is our national motto.

It is engraved in stone in the House of Representatives in our Capitol and it is printed on our currency. We adopted this motto because Christian men and women, on Christian principles, founded this nation; and this is clearly documented throughout our history. If it is appropriate for our motto to be inscribed in the halls of our highest level of Government, then it is certainly appropriate to display it on the walls of our schools.

God is in our pledge, our National Anthem, nearly every patriotic song, and in our founding documents. We honor His birth, death, and resurrection as holidays, and we turn to Him in prayer in times of crisis. If God offends you, then I suggest you consider another part of the world as your new home, because God is part of our culture and we are proud to have Him.

We are proud of our heritage and those who have so honorably defended our freedoms. We celebrate Independence Day, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and Flag Day. We have parades, picnics, and barbecues where we proudly wave our flag.

As an American, I have the right to wave my flag, sing my national anthem, quote my national motto, and cite my pledge whenever and wherever I choose. If the Stars and Stripes offend you, or you don't like Uncle Sam, then you should seriously consider a move to another part of this planet.

The American culture is our way of life, our heritage, and we are proud of it. We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things where you came from. We are Americans, like it or not, this is our country, our land, and our lifestyle.

Our First Amendment gives every citizen the right to express his opinion about our government, culture, or society, and we will allow you every opportunity to do so. But once you are done complaining, whining, and griping about our flag, our pledge, our national motto, or our way of life, I highly encourage you take advantage of one other great American freedom, the right to leave.

Barry Loudermilk If you agree, pass this onto other Americans!! It is time to take a stand!!

[lodwick]

Great post and bttt.

[Mixer]

No anniversaries today in fact none until next Monday. Enjoy the day. The sun finally came out this morning.

[jwfiv]

Good morning to you all. Very charming, those little owls.

JH2, regards and thanks for another look at the horizon through your eyes. You always pick up some landmark or movement that my poor vision misses.

Pelosi as the new face of the Dems, and their choice of Boston for their Convention '04, both thrill and delight me. It will be a farcical parade rivaling the memorial for Wellstone. The three ring circus will showcase the Kennedy syndicate, various has beens like Dukakis and Hartpence, and we'll be so sick of Heinzkerry the bottom will fall out of tomato futures.

Everything the Dims are doing will push the remaining fence-sitters into the GOP corner.

Dubya rocks. America rolls.

[lodwick]

Don't ask me why. ;-)

[WVNan]

Hi loddy and good morning to everyone. Won't be around much today. Hope everyone has a great one.

[HiJinx]

Mr_Magoo has had a heart attack (Sunday night) and quadruple bypass surgery. The prayer thread is over here.

Please ping fellow FReepers...

[WVNan]

Oh no! This is not good. Prayers right away.