Comment

Comment by Jason Torpy on August 25, 2011 at 8:57am

Check out the MAAF blog for military funerals, chaplain policy, stars and stripes coverage (to be posted soon), and much more

http://blog.militaryatheists.org/

Comment by Rick on August 24, 2011 at 10:46pm

I'm Runing for the Office of the President. Do you like My Hair?

 

    I was reading online the other day what Republican Party presidential candidate hopeful would like to do.  Reading it I was surprised that the man would even consider doing such things.  But then again, this shows you just how far the so called “Republican Party” has gone to the right.

     Now I grew up in Houston in the only congressional district in Texas, if not the country that carried Berry Goldwater in the 1964 Presidential campaign.  In fact, I remember when Daddy Bush was a local congressman.  Just FYI, Ellington Field was where his son’s Air National Guard unit was stationed, which by the way, was in his congressional district.  Daddy was all for stopping communism, but only if other sons of less influential and non-politically connected families would and could do it.  I have a cousin who has a lovely Purple Heart he got in South Vietnam because it was “expected” that he serve, as his father had during WWII.

     Well, besides that sore point with me…

     Perry would like to do away with having WE THE PEOPLE VOTE WHO WE WANT TO REPRESENT US IN THE UNITED STATES SENATE.  Now originally, US Senators were chosen by the individual states government.  This was done away with in the late 1800’s.  They were in short, political appointees. 

     But due to various things, like, oh corruption and the like, an amendment to the Constitution was made, and passed.  The people, not the likes of Tammany Hall, would choose their Senators.

     Also Perry would like to see that any ruling by the US Supreme Court could be overturned by 2/3 of the Congress.  So much for the “Checks and Balances” in our form of government.  So many things, like citizens’ RIGHTS would be so easily taken away.  A woman’s right to abortion, Rights Warning statements to those being arrested, trial by jury, access to the courts, the right to vote even.

     If you think I’m off base here…just go scan the Patriot Act.  Warrantless searches….yup….check it out.  Just like they use to have in the former USSR.  Searches without warrants…..and ya know…it was all due to the needs of “NATOINAL SECURITY” too….

   Then there is the balanced budget he’d like have made part of the Constitution.  Well, here in Texas it is part of the Texas Constitution.  And every year, it has to be balanced.  Now mind you a couple of years ago it wasn’t.  But it did get balanced.  You see, what the Texas State government does is shift a lot of things down to the counties to handle.  Therefore, people are still taxed for these things, but on the county level and not the state. 

     Oh, by the way, with the end of Reconstruction back in the 1800s, after the Civil War, Texas wrote a new state Constitution.  In there was the Balanced Budget part.  This hasn’t changed in about 140 years.  Rick Perry had nothing to do with it.  Sorry Ricky.

     But this isn’t the first time we’ve had this attempt….let’s hop into our time machine and go back to the 1980’s…….

The Gramm-Rudman-Hollings Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (99th Congress, S.1702, Pub.L. 99-177, title II, December 12, 1985, 99 Stat. 1038, 2 U.S.C. § 900) and Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Reaffirmation Act of 1987 (Pub.L. 100-119, title I, Sept. 29, 1987, 101 Stat. 754, 2 U.S.C. § 900) (both often known as Gramm-Rudman) were, according to U.S. Senator Phil Gramm of Texas, "the first binding constraint imposed on federal spending, and its spending caps have become part of every subsequent U.S. budget. Together with a rapidly growing economy it produced the first balanced federal budget in a quarter of a century.”

President Reagan signed the bill on August 21, 1986.

The Budget Enforcement Act of 1990 supplanted the fixed deficit targets.

Balanced budgets did not actually emerge until the late 1990s when budget surpluses (not accounting for liabilities to the Social Security Trust Fund) emerged.

….now what is not being brought up is that the Republican Party controlled the Congress and Senate from 1994 until 2006.  With G. W. Bush in the White House, the Republican Party controlled all three from 2001 until 2006.

     Now while I do hold the Democrats as responsible for the unbridled spending, the Republicans were in control and charge.

     So this idea of a balanced budget amendment kind of throws me.  And when I would mention this in chat room and on bulletin boards online, I was told that my “tin foil hat” was on too tight.  Or that with inflation, the cost will be reduced…..

    NOT.

     And of course, there is the “abortion” issue.  Mr. Perry wants to stop all abortion.  This broken record has been the battle cry for the so called Republican Party since the 1992.  When the Republicans saw that the Christian Coalition had Political Action Committees (PAC) which could generate more money the “god”, and the preachers would tell their followers who to vote for, thus giving them a “block” vote, they quickly rolled onto their back, spread their legs and cried, “TAKE ME!”

     Prior to this the idea of a women not having access to birth control, weather prescription or through medical procedures was not acceptable nor taken lightly.  I watched older women who grew up when birth control pills were only a day dream, and abortions were done in backrooms fight tooth and nail to protect their rights to have control over their bodies.  My mother was one of them.

     So when I look at Perry, I just see a slick politician who plays the religious card BIG TIME.   And what is so sad, these religious people just don’t see or want to see how they are being played.  Sad.  It’s really sad.

     But like the old Wobbly union song use to go, “work all day and live on hay, and when you die there will be pie in the sky…”

    I think I’d like to have my pie now, thank you.

Comment by Nichelle Wrenn on August 5, 2011 at 6:45pm

"Rock Beyond Belief" is a GO at Ft. Bragg... in a year or so. I'm so there!

Comment by Chris Z on June 21, 2011 at 5:33pm

Thanks Rick!

Comment by Jason Torpy on June 21, 2011 at 9:22am

All,
Check out the latest updates at Atheists in Foxholes News:
http://blog.militaryatheists.org:
Support MAAF hero Oscar Zavala
Read out military humanist communities around the world
National chaplains organization reflects on atheists
$50,000 matching grant from the Stiefel Freethought Foundation
news roundup with many other stories of interest

Comment by Rick on June 21, 2011 at 4:07am

  Honestly, from the ones I've known, it depends upon the individual.  As for learning a second or third language, if you pass the DLAB and there is a slot or funding, you can go to DLI. Other places have language school, like at Bragg. I was called years ago to see if I wanted to go learn Russian, but I couldn't get away. Wish I had.

  As for quality, not everyone can make it. But.... you get some bad apples in there like any situation.  I knew one who was a GREAT guy.  And then I had an employee who was former SF and an ex con.  In the military, you get a mixed bag of people. 

  I've been asked twice to apply to SF, but passed.  Maybe if I had been younger, maybe if the right situation arose.  But to me it was the ultimate compliment when someone who is SF asks you to do that.  

  I've known Para Rescue guys, Rangers, SF, Recon and one former SEAL.  It just depends upon the individual, at least that's the way I see it.

Comment by Chris Z on June 20, 2011 at 1:00am

I'm interested in what people here think about the men who serve in Special Ops groups.  Are you more likely to find in a Special Ops group more people who care and believe in what they are doing than say in the Marines, Army, Navy, Airforce, etc.?  Every institution has its good and bad people and I'd like to think that the military has a higher quality of people, but we've all seen some real idiots, a lot of them, with no moral fiber when it comes to their personal lives.  I think of Special Ops as the ultimate calling, and so perhaps you get a lot of real quality guys there too, who care about our country, believe in our constitution, etc.  It's difficult to be accepted, physically and mentally.  Also you have to learn a second language.  That's not the most illuminating sign of intelligence, but it's more work, that many people aren't willing to do.  What do you think?

Comment by amanda alexander on June 18, 2011 at 1:29am

Oh are there any soldiers from ft stewart in this group? And also is this a place where I can vent when they do something religious that I get sucked into? Like prey during special pops >.< I'm fat, I don't need god's help to get me skinny... I need diet and excercise and an eating disorder

 

Comment by amanda alexander on June 18, 2011 at 1:26am

I am happy to finally have found a place to be a more open athiest in the military.

Comment by Rick on May 22, 2011 at 5:28pm

  I’m really ticked off now…..BIG TIME!

Last night I expected all the “rapture”  yahoo’s to be gone.  All I expected to find was a bunch

of clothes, empty house, apartments, mobile homes and the like.  Cars just left on the street with the keys in them.

I had planned to go out looting. I was gonna clean up with the cash they left behind, their valuables, jewels, precious metals, silverware, electronics and the such.

BUT NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

I even had a SHOPPING LIST!

And I had a list of things my friends wanted…..  Of course, there were some prescription meds certain friends wanted me to get for them…. And some things that weren’t prescription as well….

It only goes to show you, you can’t trust these “rapture” clowns….

Sigh……..back to clipping coupons….

• ‹ Previous
• 1
• 2
• 3
• 4
• 5
• …
• 25
• Next ›
• Page