Your Son/Daughter is Going Where?? Round 2

It was presented to me many years ago by the nuns in grammar school that when Jesus turned the other cheek, it was not an act of submission but an act of defiance.
 
It was presented to me many years ago by the nuns in grammar school that when Jesus turned the other cheek, it was not an act of submission but an act of defiance.
He said to only do it 490 times ( Matthew 18:21, 22). The 491st time, Jesus whooped some butt (John 2:15). My nuns didn't like my little extrapolation way back in 6th grade.

Interestingly, most all religions, in their core beliefs, give a pass to soldiers and civilians when the fight is righteous or in self defense.

Back on-topic, in the later 1970s, I was asked by, a very vocal, pro-abortion woman, why I wanted to join the military and kill people. Wrong question to ask a Catholic. I hadn't learned to bite my tongue yet. It wasn't pretty.

DS hasn't experienced any "you're doing what" questions regarding his choice to go Army except for good natured ribbing from a few of my Marine buddies.

Today, I've learned to answer the "thanks for your service" thing with "thanks for your support (and the 10% discount where applicable)". On the one hand it bugs me to hear it, but on the other hand the folks saying it are sincere.
 
I hated the movie at first because a Marine leader would not have lost his bearing so easily.

I gradually grew to accept that the message wasn't an anti-Marine one, but rather a commentary on leadership, and the ability to adapt by said leaders.

I still like Jessup's character, and Markenson, for that matter. I thought they made the enlisted defendants dumber than dirt, out of convenience and playing to stereotypes.

Today, i find the movie entertaining. It has aged pretty well, IMHO.

I've always loved "A Few Good Men" but the Kiefer Sutherland character was ridiculous. A little less of a negative stereotype would have been nice. A little more depth of character. A little less robotic. No wonder Kevin Bacon didn't want to be "lumped in" with Marine officers like the Sutherland one.
 
The only threat to the American Way of life, ingenuity and perseverance, in Cuba is on the other side of Col. Jessup's Wall in the form of the idiotic US Embargo. Is it any wonder that Cubans make such great Americans?


Florida having many anti-communist Cubans & electoral votes would go a long way towards explaining US foreign policy towards Cuba.
 
You're both wrong, New York is full of vastly different regions with their own unique climates, cuisine, and attractions. What you downstaters think of as upstate has a completely different meaning to people who live in the real NY. The Mid-Hudson region is most assuredly NOT upstate, despite being north of the Tappan Zee. It may have bears, but real New Yorkers want nothing to do with it. The people there all sound like they live in Brooklyn.

By the way, this map isnt 100% accurate with its allocation of counties into regions, or with the name or number of regions but it gives people unfamiliar with NY a general idea of the size and breadth of the state


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One third of Vermonters sound like they were born & raised in one of the boroughs of the Big Apple. Bernie Sanders left 50 years ago & he still sounds like he's waiting "on line" for a slice.
 
As a "flatlander" and non-New Englander who grew up in the Mid-Atlantic and then at first went South, I used to mentally categorize Vermont and New Hampshire as one unit because after all, they were so small, so close and after all, they fit together. When I ended up living in Western Mass, I got more familiar with Vermont and started to see how very different the people there were it was from my neighbors even though we were geographically so close to them. Then, we moved to New Hampshire and I started to really appreciate the true sociological chasm that lies between those two states is HUGE and that does not seem to change very much. Massachusetts, (the real Massachusetts outside Rt128) Vermont and NH are hugely different from each other other than sharing a language and sports teams.

Massachusetts has 7 million people, about 5 million living within metro (one hour drive to downtown or less) Boston. The southern areas of New Hampshire & Maine are commonly referred to as "Northern Massachusetts". The only parts of Massachusetts not within an hours drive of downtown Hub are Western Massachusetts (often called "Ohio") and Cape Cod & the Islands, where moneyed Boston people buy 2nd homes and/or retire to.
 
My DD: I'm going to USAFA

Then my niece's boyfriend (28 yrs old) responded - ROTC is better because you can get a degree at least.

What the heck? Is he dumb? By the way, he graduated from American University and he thinks AU is an elite college :)

My daughter has over a 4.2 GPA and taking 10 APs and has great extra-curricular activities.
 
My DD: I'm going to USAFA

Then my niece's boyfriend (28 yrs old) responded - ROTC is better because you can get a degree at least.

What the heck? Is he dumb? By the way, he graduated from American University and he thinks AU is an elite college :)

My daughter has over a 4.2 GPA and taking 10 APs and has great extra-curricular activities.
Yes, but what was your response??

I admit to all kinds of delicious snark bubbling up. “Oh no, I am so glad you shared that with us, we must have read something wrong when we saw on multiple sources the Air Force Academy is ranked X in top colleges across the U.S and has produced Y Rhodes Scholars over the last 5 years. DD also considered AFROTC as an excellent alternate path.” Of course, that’s what my thought balloon says, not the Take The High Road comment I’d probably make, such as “Thank you for sharing your knowledge. She’s done in-depth research and is satisfied she will receive a quality B.S. She’s thinking about majoring in aeronautical engineering, but there are so many great choices in STEM and other disciplines. Of course, she also researched and considered AFROTC as an excellent alternate path to a degree and career as an Air Force officer. I absolutely agree with you AFROTC is a great path.” Smile brilliantly.
 
I bumped into the dad that I wrote about awhile ago. He's the guy who never had trouble talking about his kid's accomplishments. He still wondered if my son was in the Navy, and still couldn't believe he 'settled.'

'Your kid is still in the Navy?'

'Yep.'

''I still can't believe he did that. I always heard he was smart. He didn't want to go to college?'

'The Naval Academy is a college.'

'It is? Is it expensive to go there? What does it cost?'

'I'm not sure what it costs.'

'You don't know? Is he paying his own way? Is he taking out loans? He didn't get any scholarships?'

'No.'

'Then who's paying for it?'

'You are.'
 
I picked up a plebe at BWI yesterday, headed back after a positive test at home but now cleared, roomie of a sponsor plebe and I suspect soon to be an adoptee. We chatted about various things. Then she shared the one jarring note about being back with HS friends, one of whom was a guy who insisted there couldn’t possibly be female pilots who flew combat jets. She calmly told him she planned to be one, and that apparently he woke up in the wrong century. 🤣
As we headed toward the Yard, I told her to look up CAPT Rosemary Mariner, and the flyover done for her funeral service, specifically the USNI video.

RIP, Rosemary, you left us too soon.

 
I picked up a plebe at BWI yesterday, headed back after a positive test at home but now cleared, roomie of a sponsor plebe and I suspect soon to be an adoptee. We chatted about various things. Then she shared the one jarring note about being back with HS friends, one of whom was a guy who insisted there couldn’t possibly be female pilots who flew combat jets. She calmly told him she planned to be one, and that apparently he woke up in the wrong century. 🤣
As we headed toward the Yard, I told her to look up CAPT Rosemary Mariner, and the flyover done for her funeral service, specifically the USNI video.

RIP, Rosemary, you left us too soon.

Made me cry!
 
I picked up a plebe at BWI yesterday, headed back after a positive test at home but now cleared, roomie of a sponsor plebe and I suspect soon to be an adoptee. We chatted about various things. Then she shared the one jarring note about being back with HS friends, one of whom was a guy who insisted there couldn’t possibly be female pilots who flew combat jets. She calmly told him she planned to be one, and that apparently he woke up in the wrong century. 🤣
As we headed toward the Yard, I told her to look up CAPT Rosemary Mariner, and the flyover done for her funeral service, specifically the USNI video.

RIP, Rosemary, you left us too soon.

She graduated from Purdue at 19???? Whoa. What a trailblazer, along with her other flight school female pilots (and many other women). Thank you for sharing.
 
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