Take a Logical Approach

I'm sure that many of you have seen this picture on social media sites. Before you react emotionally, stop and consider the caption that is circulating along with it. "My good friend SSGT. USMC bank refused to work with him. Help me with making this go nation wide."

Reacting emotionally, immediately everyone says "That poor Marine!" If you think about it logically, you may come up with a different answer. A SSGT USMC is an E-6 in the Marine Corps. A Staff Sergeant normally takes about 6 years to attain that rank. Base pay for a SSGT with 6 years of service is $2886 per month. Add to that their Cost of Living Allowance, Basic Housing Allowance, Hazardous Duty Allowance and Combat Pay for a tour in Iraq and they bring in between $3500-$5000 per month depending on married status. Also, while serving time in Iraq, that pay is considered in a hazardous duty zone so their pay is also tax free. Three tours is a long time to be living tax free with extra pay.

Before you get your feathers ruffled, I realize the sacrifices that are being made by our fine troops. Remember, we are talking logically, not emotionally! So, say a service member gets a mortgage on a house and then is sent to Iraq where they are effectively doubling their pay. They are being fed and clothed and housed at no cost to them. Meanwhile they may have a family back home holding down the fort, OR they may not. Either way, the service member is responsible for keeping their bills paid just as if they were at home. If they are not being financially responsible, their command has the option to reprimand you and take your some of their pay.

Calculating the pay on the low end of the scale ($3500) per month for 3 tours or 3 years that adds up to $126,000 tax free. If you cannot pay your bills with 3 years of tax free income, you should never have signed that mortgage in the first place. It's as simple as that. Keep in mind that the entire time they are serving in the military they are being fed, housed, medically cared for, and clothed essentially for free.

I'm not saying all our troops are irresponsible or mismanage their money but it certainly seems correct in this case. Either the troop didn't pay their bills or they had a spouse at home throwing away their money. I don't know the entire situation but that's the way it appears to me. It's not that I'm unsympathetic to our fine troops..it's the fact that they aren't perfect and make mistakes the same as everyone else. Most of you know that I despise banks, but in this case, I'm betting that the service member didn't fulfill their financial obligations. Love me or hate me, that's my opinion.

P.S. I am a vet who served in the Persian Gulf and received tax free pay as well.  Ask any military member before you start saying that it's not true.

QR Codes

I never really saw the usefulness in those funny looking barcodes until today. Adding my contact information or a link to my blog was simple. Anyone with a barcode scanner app in their smartphone can simply scan a code to add me to their contact list. (the scanner app I chose was called i-nigma) I'm going to keep experimenting with adding logos and such to the codes. Yes, I know it's geeky but it simplifies exchanging contact info. Give it a try!

Here is why Facebook will fail

Number one reason is over inflated worth. Yes, they have close to a billion daily users. There is no denying that traffic is worth something on the net. Advertisers are leaving because Facebook ads just don't produce enough results.

Number two reason, users are already growing tired of it. Pretty simple to understand, like a new relationship...the new wears off. Facebook changes privacy policies as often as diaper changes. They make unwelcome updates and changes that piss people off and they just don't care. (See comments about Timeline for example)

Number three reason, users are the product. Facebook makes bank on selling your data to more efficiently target you for sales. They know your demographic, they know if you're overweight, they know if you drink, they even know where you are if you use a smartphone. That kind of data mining could easily be used for nefarious purposes.

I'm not saying that Facebook is worthless but I'll be willing to bet that in 5 years most users will have moved on to bigger and better things. My advice would be, don't put your money into it unless you're willing to lose it. It IS a passing fad.

Camaraderie (BKR!)

We who have served in the military have a strange bond. AKA a good work ethic, punctuality, and attention to detail.

While you are in the military, you get to know the people around you. Like them or not, you still know those people really well. There are all kinds of people meshed together that have a common goal: To get the job done! Although I can't remember everyone's names, I do remember their mannerisms and voices. You get to see peoples peculiarities whether you like it or not.

I've reconnected with some of them and I enjoy the company of those who served with me. We may not have been close friends while we served but we all know how hard we worked and always made the best of it. I've heard we were the hardest working squadron (VF-154) in the Navy, but I don't know it for a fact. We put in killer hours and we never failed our tasks. No, we don't all share the same views, but if you messed with any of us, you had to deal with all of us!

I'm proud to say that I'm a Black Knight forever...none shall pass! BKR baby!
Thanks to all the guys and gals who serve today to keep us all safe from those who wish to do us harm!
AT2 Tinner

Good Times Gardening

I've spent the last few days working alongside my Dad in his garden. He's been feeling pretty good and hasn't even needed his oxygen bottle much lately. It's always nice when he's feeling chipper!

Today we were pulling staples and nails out of some old 2x6's together, just chatting it up as we worked diligently on completing our task. He would stop every few minutes to rest but he stayed busy the entire time. He had bought all this used lumber for cheap and it required some effort but it was still as good as new. Upon completion, we both felt a sense of accomplishment because it was several hours of work. The time seemed to pass quickly and we had fun working together.

Normally, I'm pressed for time and I'm rushing to do projects. I'm realizing that taking things a little slower, talking with Dad and working together is very therapeutic for both of us. We need to visit more and I need more patience because any day could be his last, or mine for that matter! I've thoroughly enjoyed his company lately and hope that things can continue to get better. I don't say it enough but that old man has done more for me than I could ever do for him...That's why he's such a great Dad. His golden years have been rough, and it's only getting tougher. We'll make it though because I am his left hand man!

Republic or Democracy?

(If you read this, please comment or answer my question on facebook)

I often wondered how a Democrat or Republican was truly defined. It's easier to understand the differences if you go back to the basis of the words. Put simply, there is only one difference in them, defining who controls sovereignty. A Democracy grants the powers of sovereignty to a majority group whereas a Republic grants those powers to an individual. Sovereignty is the supreme power to make rules or laws.

In a pure democracy, it's basically mob rule. For example, if a vote were called for a new law and a slight majority won the vote, then the majority rule is applied and the minority have no more say. Democracy is a dictatorship of the majority.

In a republic, the group only has advisory powers; the sovereign individual is free to reject the majority group-think. (in the USA we have an exception: if 100% of a jury convicts, then the individual loses sovereignty and is subject to group-think as in a democracy.) If a bill is passed and an individual rejects the majority group rule, the individual has the right and voice to reject or refuse the rule. Within a republic, the rule is advisory, not mandated.

The United States is a mixture of the two. The people in a republic enjoy their natural rights, sometimes called God-given rights, and in our democracy we enjoy government granted or civil rights. This is the basis for what distinguishes between Democrats and Republicans.

I value the rights of an individual more than the rights of the people as a whole so I favor our republic. I don't completely reject democracy either because it has its place in our country structure...but I have discovered that I am more Republican than Democrat.

How SOPA/PIPA Was Defeated

In America, we have some pretty savvy politicians in Congress. At the same time, they can be clueless about their constituents. The Senators and Congressmen who have been on the hill for some time definitely know how the political game is played. It isn't pretty and can be downright cutthroat. Last week, we had an internet uprising that they still don't understand.

Senator Patrick "Dipstick" Leahy sponsored the PIPA legislation and ran it through the Senate committee unopposed. Sen. Harry Reid was planning to zip it through the Senate floor without much discussion. Meanwhile Congressman Lamar "Dopey" Smith had crafted his bill, SOPA, and already had a majority of support in the House and was pushing to put it to a vote. Dipstick and Dopey had been heavily lobbied by the entertainment industries to push this legislation through ASAP!

The EFF (Electronic Freedom Frontier) had poured over the bills and were crying foul and putting up red flags. I'm not sure where I heard about it first but there was language in both bills that would basically change how our sacred internet worked. There were people all over the net screaming this must be stopped! Dopey claimed that anyone opposing his bill "just didn't understand it."

The first victim in this scandal was Godaddy.com who supported the bill originally. Online, there was a boycott organized to move away from using GoDaddy. In just a few days, they lost thousands of customers and changed their stance about the legislation. In forcing a large corporation to withdraw its support, internet users gained more momentum. Other companies like Google took notice of the revolt.

Google decided to get behind the movement rather than oppose it. Wikipedia and Reddit announced Wednesday that they would "blackout" their sites for 12 hours. Google followed suit with a blackout of their logo in support. Many other sites participated in black Wednesday. There was a call for petitions to be signed, calls to Congress and email demonstrations against the two bills. Google's petition alone garnered over 8 million signatures. The people spoke!

Dopey announced that it was "a publicity stunt" and that he didn't understand why anyone wouldn't want copyright holders protected. Dipstick simply blamed all the defectors who pulled their support. They still don't realize that it was a grassroots movement and that it was not lead by Google or any other website. Google et al..simply responded to the sentiment on the net and helped have our voices heard. It was a swift movement of netizens that crushed SOPA/PIPA.

The problem remains..Dipstick is already vowing to confront this "problem" after a brief delay. The RIAA and MPAA are both clearly involved. Chris Dodd, CEO of the MPAA and former Senator claims the protest was "white noise" making it impossible to have further conversation. Obviously the protest fell on deaf ears. It's going to be up to all of us to keep them in line.

Get lobbyists and PAC's out of our politics. The politicians serve their dollar wielding masters instead of their constituents. It's time to have a voice again people! Stop just doing as you're told and start paying attention to the world around you...or I promise, you will not like the results.

UFC 142 Picks and Results

Carvalho vs. Arantes
Taking Carvalho
X LOSER Arantes takes the decision.

Funch vs. Pyle
Mike Pyle takes this one.
√ WINNER Pyle knocked him out at 1:22 first round

Alcantara vs. Omigawa
I have lousy luck when I pick japanese fighters. My pick Alcantara.
√WINNER Alcantara nearly submitted him at the end of Rd. 1. Wins decision.

Gonzaga vs. Oliveira
Gonzaga seems to be a punching bag now. Oliveira by KO.
X LOSER Gonzaga put him down and choked him out easily!

Tavarez vs. Stout
Tavarez has talent but Stout has heart and determination. Stout by decision.
X LOSER Tavares convincingly won round 1, I gave Stout the last two rounds but the judges saw it differently!

Barboza vs. Etim
This will probably be fight of the night in my opinion. Both are crazy good, my pick is Etim.
X LOSER Barboza was winning but not by much. Suddenly he threw a spinning heel kick..landed perfect knocking out Etim instantly. One classic knockout!

Silva vs. Prater
Picking Prater but I haven't seen much of either guy.
√ WINNER Silva finished him off quick but ref Mario Yamasaki awards Prater the victory because Silva hit him a couple of times to the back of the head...bad decision!

Massenzio vs. Palhares
Palhares is a monster at 185. If he is able to get the fight on the ground, he will submit Massenzio.
√ WINNER Palhares pulled him to the ground and submitted him quickly. Beastmode!

Belfort vs. Johnson
Vitor by brutal knockout and ending the career for Johnson. Johnson didn't make weight..again!
√ WINNER Belfort took him down after taking some punishment but finished with a rear naked choke. 

Aldo vs. Mendes
Aldo can pick him apart on the feet and has good submissions too. Aldo destroyed Faber and Mendes doesn't offer anything more than Faber. Aldo will wear him down and KO Mendes.
√ WINNER Aldo got him at 4:59 of the first round..knocked the crap out of him with a knee but Mario Yamasaki made a quick decision to stop it in the last second of the first round. I would have liked to have seen if he could recover but probably not. Good fight!

Alarming? Yes and No

I've really thought out some of the political strategies being used lately and I'm realizing that being alarmed is exactly what was intended by the powers that be. I've been playing right into their hands and feel stupid for not realizing it until now. If my goal were to solely make the president look bad in an election year, this would be a simple way of doing it!

Start with a piece of legislation that is mandatory like the defense bill (NDAA) which guarantees that veterans and troops will be payed. Any legislation that if vetoed, would make the president appear to be not supportive of the military or soft on terrorism. After the bill has passed the Senate and sent to Congress, amend it with some outrageous language that makes it appear that it is a play for absolute power. Shuffle the bill through with majority power and send it to the president to sign into law while he's away on vacation. Alert the media that the legislation is in the bill and blame the president for trying to create a police state. Be sure to stir up the president's supporters. Hype it up until the president has got to sign it. If he signs it into law, PRESTO you have new leverage in the upcoming election. Sign it or not, the president can't come away looking good.

This is political maneuvering and most people will just read the headlines or watch the news and only hear the part of the story that particular media outlet wants to portray as the bad guy. Ask yourself this...Who actually amended the bill with the language because the president is only presented with bills that are drafted and passed by the House and Senate. It was drafted by the Republican controlled House Armed Services committee. Will the new law be used for evil? I think it will and the fingers will all point toward Obama.

The political gamesmanship is a tricky thing and some are masters at making the public perception wrong. If a single American is detained unjustly due to this crappy legislation, I'm positive that the media will blame Obama. I'm definitely not an Obama supporter, but this is the way they intend to oust him. Later this year, look for all Republicans to be crying foul over this legislation, when they are in fact the ones who drafted it. This is how the game is played.

The Analogy

Consider America as a household with bills to pay and a job. Say that home (America) has a set income. (taxes/revenue) At the same time, America has bills to pay like health insurance, (Social Security/Medicare) home mortgage & maintenance, (Infrastructure) electricity and gas, (Energy) student loans, (Education) groceries, (WIC) security monitoring, (defense) etc. All these bills add up to a little more than the household income. But wait, the wife (Republicans) bought a brand new car. (wars) The logical choice to be made is get another job to increase income (taxes)...right? It's called being fiscally responsible or paying your bills. But the wife (Republicans) insists that you cut your spending to pay for the new car. So you start looking at cutting costs but almost everything you are spending is essential for the health and well being of the household. It's stupid to cut out essentials rather than earn more money. That's why the Republican ideology is moronic.

On the other hand, the hubby (Democrats) would like to upgrade the groceries and health insurance and all the other bills while insisting that both members of the household work and earn more money. (higher taxes) The hubby also wants to keep the brand new car (wars) and maybe even get a big screen TV! (stimulus/bailouts) That's why Democratic ideology is stupid too!

So the bills come due and the wife (R) decides she won't write the checks to pay the bills, (debt ceiling crisis) and they get reported to the credit companies (S&P/Moody's) and their credit rating goes down costing them more in interest and making those same bills even more expensive.  Both parties bicker without giving an inch that each one is right until the household goes bankrupt and ends in divorce.

It really is time to clean house and shake up our government to end the deadlock and stop going further into debt. Americans won't enjoy the day the dollar fails. Mark my words, if we don't change things drastically, it's going to happen.