Now, I'm supposed to be writing a paper right now for my political philosophy class. Naturally, this is more interesting.
One day, I'd like to have a love like this:
Monday, December 8, 2008
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
In the Hills
I'm stuck in this room
with florescent lighting.
Outside it's bright
the sky is blue
the trees are green
the air is clear.
I miss that place
in the mountains.
Open plains
rolling hills.
The way the air touched my skin.
The ocean in the distance.
The freedom all around me.
For days I could wander
and never be found.
But i know where I am.
I see the deer
the cattle
the bobcat crouched in the tall grass.
No houses.
No cars.
Just freedom.
I miss
that place.
with florescent lighting.
Outside it's bright
the sky is blue
the trees are green
the air is clear.
I miss that place
in the mountains.
Open plains
rolling hills.
The way the air touched my skin.
The ocean in the distance.
The freedom all around me.
For days I could wander
and never be found.
But i know where I am.
I see the deer
the cattle
the bobcat crouched in the tall grass.
No houses.
No cars.
Just freedom.
I miss
that place.
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
If Only in my Dreams
I have this fantasy life where:
I feel completely comfortable in a bikini having my picture taken.
I'm the girl on the arm of that guy.
I don't have to worry every time I run my debit card.
I don't have to wonder where my boyfriend is or who he's with.
Running is a challenge, but not an insurmountable one.
I have the time to go to the beach.
My biggest worry is that my highlights are growing out.
I can travel. Just somewhere.
I can get a decent night's sleep.
My decisions are easy.
I don't do anything just because it's necessary for survival.
I don't feel like everyone I know is leaving me behind.
I can sit back and just enjoy every day.
Buying requisite books for school and uniforms for work isn't going to put me in debt of any kind.
I have a should to lean on.
I just want to rest. Just for a little while.
I feel completely comfortable in a bikini having my picture taken.
I'm the girl on the arm of that guy.
I don't have to worry every time I run my debit card.
I don't have to wonder where my boyfriend is or who he's with.
Running is a challenge, but not an insurmountable one.
I have the time to go to the beach.
My biggest worry is that my highlights are growing out.
I can travel. Just somewhere.
I can get a decent night's sleep.
My decisions are easy.
I don't do anything just because it's necessary for survival.
I don't feel like everyone I know is leaving me behind.
I can sit back and just enjoy every day.
Buying requisite books for school and uniforms for work isn't going to put me in debt of any kind.
I have a should to lean on.
I just want to rest. Just for a little while.
Thursday, May 8, 2008
1,000 Ships
I've had a hard time finding the motivation to write as of late. It's hard to find things worth writing about anymore. That which is worth the effort is too personal to be published here.
I finished reading Margaret George's "Helen of Troy", one woman's imagined account of Helen's life, from her childhood in Sparta to her death of old age. Since there is no historical record of Helen or even of Troy, this is pure fiction based on what we know of Mycenaean culture at the time and the other writings about the Trojan War. Few ever really delved into Helen herself, and even fewer explored what her life was like after the fall of Troy. Naturally, that's the part that has always intrigued me. To scratch the surface of the story, you have a woman who has been trapped her entire life by her seemingly unparalleled beauty. Then for no apparent reason she shirks her crown, her husband, and her daughter to run away with a man half her age. She brought brought with her destruction on literally a legendary scale.
While I disagree with George's portrayal of Helen as a hapless victim of the god's wills, it does at least give credence to the fact that human control only extends so far. We can only control so much of that which surrounds us. According to the story, the Trojans assumed that no one would actually make a war over a woman, let alone a war that lasted over ten years.
The novel touches on several issues, the most glaring is of child-parent relations. Helen questions her lineage to Zues and distrusts him, while Aphrodite claims Helen as her daughter in spirit, though Aphrodite repeatedly abuses Helen and sends her on a path of destruction. The characters are constantly working to right their parent's wrongs, to avoid their parent's fates, and to generally separate themselves from their parents. It is in this constant effort that they lose themselves and tumble along the paths set for them anyway.
More interesting and more subtle is the implication, especially in the end of the novel, that there are two kinds of people in this world: The first is the most common; people who live ordinary, happy lives interspersed with brief moments of sadness and trial, but otherwise their days are peaceful and unexceptional. Then there are those who live lives of tragedy; these are people who fight their entire lives for few fleeting moments of peace and joy. Everything is a trial, a test. Nothing can be simple for them as it is for the first people. They labor for just those brief moments, and those moments have a sweetness the first people cannot fathom. And then the moment is gone and it fills them with an emptiness that only they can understand. They can never get these moments back, no recreation will suffice. Their lives are a series of tragedies interspersed with shining moments of triumph, but the shine quickly fades.
But the latter are strong, they are the survivors. They experience unparalleled joy and unparalleled sadness. The former live in a happy ignorance of what they're missing.
At the end of the novel, Menelaus prays that his grandson never becomes a hero and lives a simple, peaceful life. Helen prays the same. However, it is not what either wished for themselves. They both surrendered great things to live lives of tragedy. Helen voluntarily walked away from her own daughter for just a wisp of the kind of rapture she instinctively knew she was missing. Menelaus sat on the beaches of Troy with his countrymen while doing so plunged his nation into depression for over a decade for one day to triumph, to be a hero. These people wish simplicity on others, but not on themselves.
And so I sit here looking out over a cloudy bay and at pictures of a place in the woods I will probably never see again, and I think about those I have loved and lost. I think back on a life I used to have and I wonder if there is anything I could have done to keep it. I wonder what steps I could have taken to maintain those relationships, to keep that happy ignorance. But I look in the mirror and I know I was only ignorant for brief flashes, that I've always known it would be this way. Like Helen, I prefer the struggle because I know on some level there is a greater prize for greater hardship.
If I can just get over this next obstacle, I can see what awaits me on the other side.
I finished reading Margaret George's "Helen of Troy", one woman's imagined account of Helen's life, from her childhood in Sparta to her death of old age. Since there is no historical record of Helen or even of Troy, this is pure fiction based on what we know of Mycenaean culture at the time and the other writings about the Trojan War. Few ever really delved into Helen herself, and even fewer explored what her life was like after the fall of Troy. Naturally, that's the part that has always intrigued me. To scratch the surface of the story, you have a woman who has been trapped her entire life by her seemingly unparalleled beauty. Then for no apparent reason she shirks her crown, her husband, and her daughter to run away with a man half her age. She brought brought with her destruction on literally a legendary scale.
While I disagree with George's portrayal of Helen as a hapless victim of the god's wills, it does at least give credence to the fact that human control only extends so far. We can only control so much of that which surrounds us. According to the story, the Trojans assumed that no one would actually make a war over a woman, let alone a war that lasted over ten years.
The novel touches on several issues, the most glaring is of child-parent relations. Helen questions her lineage to Zues and distrusts him, while Aphrodite claims Helen as her daughter in spirit, though Aphrodite repeatedly abuses Helen and sends her on a path of destruction. The characters are constantly working to right their parent's wrongs, to avoid their parent's fates, and to generally separate themselves from their parents. It is in this constant effort that they lose themselves and tumble along the paths set for them anyway.
More interesting and more subtle is the implication, especially in the end of the novel, that there are two kinds of people in this world: The first is the most common; people who live ordinary, happy lives interspersed with brief moments of sadness and trial, but otherwise their days are peaceful and unexceptional. Then there are those who live lives of tragedy; these are people who fight their entire lives for few fleeting moments of peace and joy. Everything is a trial, a test. Nothing can be simple for them as it is for the first people. They labor for just those brief moments, and those moments have a sweetness the first people cannot fathom. And then the moment is gone and it fills them with an emptiness that only they can understand. They can never get these moments back, no recreation will suffice. Their lives are a series of tragedies interspersed with shining moments of triumph, but the shine quickly fades.
But the latter are strong, they are the survivors. They experience unparalleled joy and unparalleled sadness. The former live in a happy ignorance of what they're missing.
At the end of the novel, Menelaus prays that his grandson never becomes a hero and lives a simple, peaceful life. Helen prays the same. However, it is not what either wished for themselves. They both surrendered great things to live lives of tragedy. Helen voluntarily walked away from her own daughter for just a wisp of the kind of rapture she instinctively knew she was missing. Menelaus sat on the beaches of Troy with his countrymen while doing so plunged his nation into depression for over a decade for one day to triumph, to be a hero. These people wish simplicity on others, but not on themselves.
And so I sit here looking out over a cloudy bay and at pictures of a place in the woods I will probably never see again, and I think about those I have loved and lost. I think back on a life I used to have and I wonder if there is anything I could have done to keep it. I wonder what steps I could have taken to maintain those relationships, to keep that happy ignorance. But I look in the mirror and I know I was only ignorant for brief flashes, that I've always known it would be this way. Like Helen, I prefer the struggle because I know on some level there is a greater prize for greater hardship.
If I can just get over this next obstacle, I can see what awaits me on the other side.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Movie Review: Stop Loss
I'm taking a stand and doing this review without having seen the movie. And I don't intend on seeing it, either. I just feel the need to lay out exactly why this movie looks so horrifically off-base I was, for possibly the first time in my life, fighting the urge to throw something at the movie screen and yell. Because Ryan Phillippe can hear me yelling, you know.
The premise of this film is that an army war hero returns from Iraq and is set to go into the IRR (Individual Ready Reserve) after his active duty contract has expired. Most servicemen and women consider the IRR "getting out" of the service because most servicemen and women are never called back to active duty. Phillippe's character is more than ready to return to civilian life. However, at least according to the movie trailer and IMDb website, he is almost instantaneously recalled to active duty upon returning home. This is what some people call being "stop lossed"- prevented from going off active duty in a time of war. Kerry called this a "backdoor draft". Phillippe's character, like some servicemen and women, apparently didn't read his contract and decides that this act is a "breach of contract" (I'm quoting the trailer here) so the next logical step is for him to go AWOL so he can get legal help for this matter.
Let's ignore for a second the fact that this movie is asking for you to have sympathy for a soldier who is more than willing to let his buddies get the big green weenie and go back to war while he runs away. Let's even ignore the fact that this is a soldier (and there are more like him) who thinks that all deployments are voluntary actions and you shouldn't have to go on deployments that you don't like. I'm going to go into the legality of this issue as why this movie, and the idea that it is making people that something completely illegal IS legal, makes me want to stab myself in the eye.
From the DD Form 4/1, The Standard Enlistment Contract (every soldier, sailor, Marine and airman reads and signs this before he or she can join the service), Section 9(c): "In the event of war, my enlistment in the Armed Forces continues until six (6) months after the war ends, unless my enlistment is ended sooner by the President of
the United States."
Section 10(a-c): a. FOR ALL ENLISTEES: If this is my initial enlistment, I must serve a total of eight (8) years. Any part of that service not served on active duty must be served in a Reserve Component unless I am sooner discharged. b. If I am a member of a Reserve Component of an Armed Force at the beginning of a period of war or national emergency declared by Congress, or if I become a member during that period, my military service may bextended without my consent until six (6) months after the end of that period of war. c. As a member of a Reserve Component, in time of war or national emergency declared by the Congress, I may be required to serve on active duty (other than for training) for the entire period of the war or emergency and for six (6) months after its end."
It actually goes into even further detail about these practices so that there is NO WAY a serviceman/woman can enlist without knowing that their active duty contract may be extended. But then you get soldiers like this character who agree to it only on the condition that they never have to fulfill their obligations.
According to Wikipedia, only one person has one a suit about this. The National Guardsman had already completed his STANDARD EIGHT YEAR CONTRACT THAT EVERYONE SIGNS including his agreed to IRR time, so he was granted clemency. Because, unlike the character of this film, he actually did fulfill his contract and "uphold his end of the bargain."
A whole 'nother issue that I foresee with this film is that it seems to portray a solider coming home from deployment and being told he will immediately be redeploying. I'm not going to go off on this too much because in all fairness, I haven't seen the film! I have no idea if that's how they will cover it, but that's how it's presented in the trailers. Not including the leave that soldiers get after a deployment and the fact that deployment preparation, or "work up", takes months, unless an individual soldier is being sent on a special assignments, entire units don't deploy and redeploy back to back. I believe there's a "rest" period they all take in between. And unless they are a quick reaction force, or some other unit that is on stand by, no unit is somehow sucker punched by a deployment. They know well in advance, as in years in advance what the deployment rotation is slated to look like.
To sum: every military man or woman agrees to being stop lossed before they ever even go to their basic training. They sign the contract.
And despite what some little "shit birds" as they are commonly known will tell you, you can't pick and chose deployments either. You agree to follow lawful orders. That's why these lawsuits don't work.
The premise of this film is that an army war hero returns from Iraq and is set to go into the IRR (Individual Ready Reserve) after his active duty contract has expired. Most servicemen and women consider the IRR "getting out" of the service because most servicemen and women are never called back to active duty. Phillippe's character is more than ready to return to civilian life. However, at least according to the movie trailer and IMDb website, he is almost instantaneously recalled to active duty upon returning home. This is what some people call being "stop lossed"- prevented from going off active duty in a time of war. Kerry called this a "backdoor draft". Phillippe's character, like some servicemen and women, apparently didn't read his contract and decides that this act is a "breach of contract" (I'm quoting the trailer here) so the next logical step is for him to go AWOL so he can get legal help for this matter.
Let's ignore for a second the fact that this movie is asking for you to have sympathy for a soldier who is more than willing to let his buddies get the big green weenie and go back to war while he runs away. Let's even ignore the fact that this is a soldier (and there are more like him) who thinks that all deployments are voluntary actions and you shouldn't have to go on deployments that you don't like. I'm going to go into the legality of this issue as why this movie, and the idea that it is making people that something completely illegal IS legal, makes me want to stab myself in the eye.
From the DD Form 4/1, The Standard Enlistment Contract (every soldier, sailor, Marine and airman reads and signs this before he or she can join the service), Section 9(c): "In the event of war, my enlistment in the Armed Forces continues until six (6) months after the war ends, unless my enlistment is ended sooner by the President of
the United States."
Section 10(a-c): a. FOR ALL ENLISTEES: If this is my initial enlistment, I must serve a total of eight (8) years. Any part of that service not served on active duty must be served in a Reserve Component unless I am sooner discharged. b. If I am a member of a Reserve Component of an Armed Force at the beginning of a period of war or national emergency declared by Congress, or if I become a member during that period, my military service may bextended without my consent until six (6) months after the end of that period of war. c. As a member of a Reserve Component, in time of war or national emergency declared by the Congress, I may be required to serve on active duty (other than for training) for the entire period of the war or emergency and for six (6) months after its end."
It actually goes into even further detail about these practices so that there is NO WAY a serviceman/woman can enlist without knowing that their active duty contract may be extended. But then you get soldiers like this character who agree to it only on the condition that they never have to fulfill their obligations.
According to Wikipedia, only one person has one a suit about this. The National Guardsman had already completed his STANDARD EIGHT YEAR CONTRACT THAT EVERYONE SIGNS including his agreed to IRR time, so he was granted clemency. Because, unlike the character of this film, he actually did fulfill his contract and "uphold his end of the bargain."
A whole 'nother issue that I foresee with this film is that it seems to portray a solider coming home from deployment and being told he will immediately be redeploying. I'm not going to go off on this too much because in all fairness, I haven't seen the film! I have no idea if that's how they will cover it, but that's how it's presented in the trailers. Not including the leave that soldiers get after a deployment and the fact that deployment preparation, or "work up", takes months, unless an individual soldier is being sent on a special assignments, entire units don't deploy and redeploy back to back. I believe there's a "rest" period they all take in between. And unless they are a quick reaction force, or some other unit that is on stand by, no unit is somehow sucker punched by a deployment. They know well in advance, as in years in advance what the deployment rotation is slated to look like.
To sum: every military man or woman agrees to being stop lossed before they ever even go to their basic training. They sign the contract.
And despite what some little "shit birds" as they are commonly known will tell you, you can't pick and chose deployments either. You agree to follow lawful orders. That's why these lawsuits don't work.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Friends (Caution: There's Emo Ahead)
Throughout the course of my life, I've had a small handful of real friends. People who are there when I need help, a willing shoulder when I need support no matter what. No matter how long it's been since we last spoke, we will always be friends.
And then there are the other friends. People who claim to be like "a sister!" to me. These are the people who weren't there for me when my brother had his accident. These are the people who, when I undertook the creation of a charity organization, have turned up their noses at supporting it. And by supporting it, I mean doing something as simple as clicking the mouse. I am willing to support them in their endeavors, but they can't be bothered to support mine.
For all the times you've claimed to be kin.
For all the times you've claimed to be there to help when I need it.
For all the times you said you cared.
Thanks. No really, thanks.
And then there are the other friends. People who claim to be like "a sister!" to me. These are the people who weren't there for me when my brother had his accident. These are the people who, when I undertook the creation of a charity organization, have turned up their noses at supporting it. And by supporting it, I mean doing something as simple as clicking the mouse. I am willing to support them in their endeavors, but they can't be bothered to support mine.
For all the times you've claimed to be kin.
For all the times you've claimed to be there to help when I need it.
For all the times you said you cared.
Thanks. No really, thanks.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Ah the bridge.
"So, is that chow hall still named after Lieutenant Bobo? Yeah he was a great Marine...he killed A LOT of people."
The bridge to Bobo Hall, as seen through a candidate's eyes:
The bridge to Bobo Hall, as seen through a candidate's eyes:
Thursday, February 21, 2008
CodeGREEN
This is perhaps a product of too much free time spent on the internet contemplating stuff, or it's brilliant.
I agree with some of the pretty ideas that CodePINK has come up with, specifically about better care for our veterans. I don't agree with their method. Organizing sit-ins outside of Walter Reed and telling Marines they're war criminals just doesn't do a lot in terms of veteran support. Instead of sitting here and being mad, I thought perhaps I could lead by example.
About two times a year I donate to some sort of Marine charity, whether it be Toys for Tots, anymarine.com, or the Semper Fi Fund. Last year I encouraged my sorority to adopt a group of Marines in Iraq, and we put together specialized care packages and sent letters and pictures and the like.
CodePINK claims they support our troops, but they don't DO anything to support our troops.
If you're on CodeGREEN, you support the troops and DO IT. This isn't about words, it's about action.
www.myspace.com/compassionincombat
This is one of several small organizations dedicated to sending care packages to Marines serving overseas.
The Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund
This is a personal favorite charity. They are dedicated to providing financial and quality of life assistance to Marines and Sailors and their families in their time of need.
Fisher House
Fisher House helps military families live near the hospital where their loved one is, suffering from illness or injury.
anymarine.com
AnyMarine is a source of addresses for Marines and Sailors serving overseas who need more mail and support from home.
All of these charities are easy. A simple monetary donation can make the difference between whether a Marine gets a phone card to call home or not. A short letter can boost a spirit after a rough day in Iraq.
These men and women deserve better than CodePINK's two-faced support. They deserve real support.
Want to improve life for our military men and women? This is where you start.
I'm a firm believer in ductus exemplo, lead by example. If you want to stand head and shoulders above CodePINK, go CodeGREEN and check out these charities. Then tell your friends and family about these charities.
It's not hard, it's not a huge commitment. It's as simple as passing the link to one of these organizations on to a friend, or penning a brief message of support, slapping a stamp on an envelope and dropping that envelope in the mail.
Be better than them.
I agree with some of the pretty ideas that CodePINK has come up with, specifically about better care for our veterans. I don't agree with their method. Organizing sit-ins outside of Walter Reed and telling Marines they're war criminals just doesn't do a lot in terms of veteran support. Instead of sitting here and being mad, I thought perhaps I could lead by example.
About two times a year I donate to some sort of Marine charity, whether it be Toys for Tots, anymarine.com, or the Semper Fi Fund. Last year I encouraged my sorority to adopt a group of Marines in Iraq, and we put together specialized care packages and sent letters and pictures and the like.
CodePINK claims they support our troops, but they don't DO anything to support our troops.
If you're on CodeGREEN, you support the troops and DO IT. This isn't about words, it's about action.
www.myspace.com/compassionincombat
This is one of several small organizations dedicated to sending care packages to Marines serving overseas.
The Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund
This is a personal favorite charity. They are dedicated to providing financial and quality of life assistance to Marines and Sailors and their families in their time of need.
Fisher House
Fisher House helps military families live near the hospital where their loved one is, suffering from illness or injury.
anymarine.com
AnyMarine is a source of addresses for Marines and Sailors serving overseas who need more mail and support from home.
All of these charities are easy. A simple monetary donation can make the difference between whether a Marine gets a phone card to call home or not. A short letter can boost a spirit after a rough day in Iraq.
These men and women deserve better than CodePINK's two-faced support. They deserve real support.
Want to improve life for our military men and women? This is where you start.
I'm a firm believer in ductus exemplo, lead by example. If you want to stand head and shoulders above CodePINK, go CodeGREEN and check out these charities. Then tell your friends and family about these charities.
It's not hard, it's not a huge commitment. It's as simple as passing the link to one of these organizations on to a friend, or penning a brief message of support, slapping a stamp on an envelope and dropping that envelope in the mail.
Be better than them.
Monday, February 4, 2008
Code Pink
Code Pink describes itself as a grassroots women's peace organization. That's all well and good, I guess. Who doesn't want peace? The main web page for Code Pink claims that they want to not pull military funding, but reallocate funds to veterans aid. Again, who doesn't want this?
It's the Bay Area Code Pink that we really need to worry about. http://www.bayareacodepink.org
They have made it their personal mission to "SHUT DOWN recruiting in our town."
"CodePINK found out last September '07 that Marine Recruiters had invaded our peace-loving, anti-war town of Berkeley and set up an officer recruiting station targeting youth from U.C. Berkeley, Berkeley City College, and other colleges in the Bay Area. We have been holding "How Berkeley Can U BE" (see the Calendar) daily and weekly events and actions in front of the M.R.S.* (Marine Recruiting Station) to halt business as usual at the station."
That is directly from their website. The wording of it tells you just how little they know about the people they are protesting. It's called a Selection Office, ladies. As is: applicants work very hard to apply for the Marine's officer programs and if they are fortunate they are selected to begin training. This is not an enlisted recruiting station, and if it was, so what? The wording throughout the site is eyebrow raising, to say the least. They act like the Corps is out snatching children off the street and giving them rifles. Not so much. On the enlisted side, a person must be 18 (the age of legal consent) or 17 with parental consent. They may be young, but they are still adults. They are old enough to vote, own a car or house, have children, get married, buy tobacco, and do just about anything short of get drunk. But they aren't old enough to decide to join the military?
That's just the enlisted side, and OSO (Officer Selection Office) is another ball game. These are older applicants (nope, not recruits!) who cannot complete the program until they have graduated college. These are college educated individuals who, according to Code Pink, are too weak minded and young to sanely decide to join the military. I personally find that insulting. I had to hunt my original OSO down, he did not find me. Candidates pursuing the officer routes are usually self-motivated individuals who have decided to pursue this life path without the influence of a "recruiter."
So Code Pink, you're missing your own point.
The main page for the organization professes many good goals, one of them is anti-discrimination. However, the Bay Area Code Pink seems to think (with the support of the majority of city council) that the military is one life choice people shouldn't be allowed to make in Berkeley. From the people who claim a desire of equality, they say military service is not a viable option for Berkeley residents and all military recruiters need to leave the city. So city residents who want to join the military either out of a sense of civic duty, family tradition, a need for college funds, economic hardship, or a need for discipline are out of luck. This is one lifestyle choice the city of Berkeley simply cannot abide. If the hypocrisy of this is still lost on you, then, well...perhaps you should join them.
Code Pink advocates civil disobedience (thank you Gandhi for teaching them big words) but makes a point of instigating arguments with candidates attempting to enter the OSO. They are disrupting local businesses and trying to prevent American citizens from exercising their right to join the military. To make matters worse, the city council is corrupt enough to back them.
This is the link for the city council, http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/council8/ if you would like to give them a big hello. Councilman Wozniak is one of the few who stood against the mob. Two others did as well, but their names haven't yet been released.
Contact your local Congressman and let him know of your displeasure. Code Pink isn't quite bright enough to take that step, let's show them we have above average intelligence.
It's the Bay Area Code Pink that we really need to worry about. http://www.bayareacodepink.org
They have made it their personal mission to "SHUT DOWN recruiting in our town."
"CodePINK found out last September '07 that Marine Recruiters had invaded our peace-loving, anti-war town of Berkeley and set up an officer recruiting station targeting youth from U.C. Berkeley, Berkeley City College, and other colleges in the Bay Area. We have been holding "How Berkeley Can U BE" (see the Calendar) daily and weekly events and actions in front of the M.R.S.* (Marine Recruiting Station) to halt business as usual at the station."
That is directly from their website. The wording of it tells you just how little they know about the people they are protesting. It's called a Selection Office, ladies. As is: applicants work very hard to apply for the Marine's officer programs and if they are fortunate they are selected to begin training. This is not an enlisted recruiting station, and if it was, so what? The wording throughout the site is eyebrow raising, to say the least. They act like the Corps is out snatching children off the street and giving them rifles. Not so much. On the enlisted side, a person must be 18 (the age of legal consent) or 17 with parental consent. They may be young, but they are still adults. They are old enough to vote, own a car or house, have children, get married, buy tobacco, and do just about anything short of get drunk. But they aren't old enough to decide to join the military?
That's just the enlisted side, and OSO (Officer Selection Office) is another ball game. These are older applicants (nope, not recruits!) who cannot complete the program until they have graduated college. These are college educated individuals who, according to Code Pink, are too weak minded and young to sanely decide to join the military. I personally find that insulting. I had to hunt my original OSO down, he did not find me. Candidates pursuing the officer routes are usually self-motivated individuals who have decided to pursue this life path without the influence of a "recruiter."
So Code Pink, you're missing your own point.
The main page for the organization professes many good goals, one of them is anti-discrimination. However, the Bay Area Code Pink seems to think (with the support of the majority of city council) that the military is one life choice people shouldn't be allowed to make in Berkeley. From the people who claim a desire of equality, they say military service is not a viable option for Berkeley residents and all military recruiters need to leave the city. So city residents who want to join the military either out of a sense of civic duty, family tradition, a need for college funds, economic hardship, or a need for discipline are out of luck. This is one lifestyle choice the city of Berkeley simply cannot abide. If the hypocrisy of this is still lost on you, then, well...perhaps you should join them.
Code Pink advocates civil disobedience (thank you Gandhi for teaching them big words) but makes a point of instigating arguments with candidates attempting to enter the OSO. They are disrupting local businesses and trying to prevent American citizens from exercising their right to join the military. To make matters worse, the city council is corrupt enough to back them.
This is the link for the city council, http://www.ci.berkeley.ca.us/council8/ if you would like to give them a big hello. Councilman Wozniak is one of the few who stood against the mob. Two others did as well, but their names haven't yet been released.
Contact your local Congressman and let him know of your displeasure. Code Pink isn't quite bright enough to take that step, let's show them we have above average intelligence.
Friday, February 1, 2008
Quantico
I officially began talks with the Florida OSO today, to begin the process of building a strong relationship and seriously get myself back into the program. Naturally the eager Lieutenant immediately pushed for having me sign a PLC contract next week for this coming summer.
When I returned home in defeat in June, I felt like an idiot. Really, I knew when I signed that contract that I would not be physically ready to complete OCS in time. And I know it now. Beyond the shadow of a doubt I know I could have a first class PFT by the end of this month, but that isn't the point. Having a first class PFT does not a ready candidate make. It doesn't make me better able to hump 40 pounds of gear, it doesn't make me better able to be on my feet all day every day bearing weight, and it doesn't make me better able to run at a pace faster than a 9 minute mile. It just means I can complete a first class PFT.
The Lieutenant's desperation increased when he realized that OCC slots are 20 deep in a wait list for the summer of 2009 and PLC slots haven't been opened yet. Basically, if I don't go this summer I may not end up going until 2010. Frankly, I can wait. To me, this is almost like trying to be sane about getting a tattoo. If you are really serious about the tattoo, then does it matter if you get it tomorrow or five years from now? No, because in your heart of hearts you know it's the one for you.
If I go this summer, I will see a repeat of last May. I don't know if I will recover from that kind of failure again. However, if I wait, for years if necessary, and go when I am athletic enough to compete, I won't fail again. As Tristin said, I need to do this on my terms now. I went on their terms before, and it backfired. This time I'm going to go when my body is ready to handle that kind of punishment. I can put off my degree and go next summer as a PLC candidate, or if those slots fill up too fast (no reason they should) I can simply wait. OCS isn't going anywhere. It's what I keep saying, it's the advice I keep giving. It's time I listen to my own advice.
When I returned home in defeat in June, I felt like an idiot. Really, I knew when I signed that contract that I would not be physically ready to complete OCS in time. And I know it now. Beyond the shadow of a doubt I know I could have a first class PFT by the end of this month, but that isn't the point. Having a first class PFT does not a ready candidate make. It doesn't make me better able to hump 40 pounds of gear, it doesn't make me better able to be on my feet all day every day bearing weight, and it doesn't make me better able to run at a pace faster than a 9 minute mile. It just means I can complete a first class PFT.
The Lieutenant's desperation increased when he realized that OCC slots are 20 deep in a wait list for the summer of 2009 and PLC slots haven't been opened yet. Basically, if I don't go this summer I may not end up going until 2010. Frankly, I can wait. To me, this is almost like trying to be sane about getting a tattoo. If you are really serious about the tattoo, then does it matter if you get it tomorrow or five years from now? No, because in your heart of hearts you know it's the one for you.
If I go this summer, I will see a repeat of last May. I don't know if I will recover from that kind of failure again. However, if I wait, for years if necessary, and go when I am athletic enough to compete, I won't fail again. As Tristin said, I need to do this on my terms now. I went on their terms before, and it backfired. This time I'm going to go when my body is ready to handle that kind of punishment. I can put off my degree and go next summer as a PLC candidate, or if those slots fill up too fast (no reason they should) I can simply wait. OCS isn't going anywhere. It's what I keep saying, it's the advice I keep giving. It's time I listen to my own advice.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Movie Review: I am Legend
I had the opportunity to see "I am Legend" last night, and unfortunately I was left with more questions than answers. It was definitely entertaining and at times stressful enough to have me pressed into the back of my seat, but it should have been split into two movies. A mini-series, perhaps.
Getting to see New York City as a natural wonderland is fascinating, as is watching a lone man survive in the forest that once was Manhattan. It's especially interesting to see how he has used all of the abandoned junk to live almost as he would have in a normal situation, and to wonder if I could be so clever as to make an entire townhouse run off of car batteries and pump gas straight out of the tanks. It would be unbelievably cool to steal a brand new Mustang and shoot stuff out of it with a semi-automatic rifle I snaked from the local armory.
Will Smith is great, but they should have gone deeper into just how crazy he was going. The german shepherd carried the movie, let's be honest. Who knew dogs can act? What they did show of Smith's decent into madness was gripping.
Now for the negatives. This should have been split to give the story decent play. The back story is shown through flashbacks, which is creative for an apocalyptic-zombie thriller, but it was darn confusing. How did the virus mutate? Why did it have the vampire/zombie effects on humans? How long did it take to build up? Were the darkseekers really devolving, or were they in fact evolving? And why exactly did they keep the "I am Legend" title when the entire point of that title was lost in this film?
At any rate, it was highly entertaining, if the ending was a bit of a deus ex machina.
They need to cast more German shepherds in movies.
Tuesday, January 1, 2008
It's Howdy Doody Time!
I guess some things will never change. C and I will never stop periodically checking up on each other, most likely to see what we periodically say about each other.
Speaking of misinterpretations, there is a difference between quitting and simply never trying. Despite more adversity than most people have ever even imagined, I am still finishing my degree. I don't view my desire to live in different places and try new things as a negative. I may have bounced around a lot, but I am still reaching my goal. I just don't see any reason to limit myself.
I knew before I even signed the paperwork that I would not finish OCS if I went last May. I knew it. I was not physically ready. It would have been easy for me to stay on light duty for the entire first 10 days I was there and be sent home right off the bat. I had the opportunity to just pack my trash and walk out within the first two days. But I stayed. I stayed until I was literally falling apart at the seams. I stood up to my recruiter when he asked me to take the less than honorable way out. And you know what I got for it? Out of some odd 50 candidates, I was the only one invited back to OCS. And I will go back. As soon as this is published, I'll be out the door for a three mile run. I am no runner. Out of all physical activity, running is the most difficult for me. But I want to be a Marine, so I force myself to do this. I am not going to take the easy way out, I don't want the easy way out. I may not have finished OCS (I was on crutches and not even able to drive a car I was so broken when I got back, by the way) but at least I had the intestinal fortitude to try. And after receiving a serious beating, I genuinely want to go back. I have been face to face with the uglier side of the Corps, and I still love it.
I am not going to simply accept what life hands me. Ever. Life is too short to waste. So no, I don't see a whole lot of reason to stay at one school just because it is the common thing to do. I have no desire to pursue grad school and that doesn't make me a failure or a quitter, it makes me someone who is ready to dive into the real world. There are too many glorious adventures to be had for me to stay on one road.
I may have failed OCS, but at least I tried. And I'm trying again. I am putting myself through school to finish my degree. Doing things the traditional way is boring and easy. I'm going to take the untraveled path.
It's not that I have the potential to be more than a cashier, it's that I am more than a cashier. I am not the person who will be bagging your groceries any time soon.
And I don't work at Marbella, thank you.
Speaking of misinterpretations, there is a difference between quitting and simply never trying. Despite more adversity than most people have ever even imagined, I am still finishing my degree. I don't view my desire to live in different places and try new things as a negative. I may have bounced around a lot, but I am still reaching my goal. I just don't see any reason to limit myself.
I knew before I even signed the paperwork that I would not finish OCS if I went last May. I knew it. I was not physically ready. It would have been easy for me to stay on light duty for the entire first 10 days I was there and be sent home right off the bat. I had the opportunity to just pack my trash and walk out within the first two days. But I stayed. I stayed until I was literally falling apart at the seams. I stood up to my recruiter when he asked me to take the less than honorable way out. And you know what I got for it? Out of some odd 50 candidates, I was the only one invited back to OCS. And I will go back. As soon as this is published, I'll be out the door for a three mile run. I am no runner. Out of all physical activity, running is the most difficult for me. But I want to be a Marine, so I force myself to do this. I am not going to take the easy way out, I don't want the easy way out. I may not have finished OCS (I was on crutches and not even able to drive a car I was so broken when I got back, by the way) but at least I had the intestinal fortitude to try. And after receiving a serious beating, I genuinely want to go back. I have been face to face with the uglier side of the Corps, and I still love it.
I am not going to simply accept what life hands me. Ever. Life is too short to waste. So no, I don't see a whole lot of reason to stay at one school just because it is the common thing to do. I have no desire to pursue grad school and that doesn't make me a failure or a quitter, it makes me someone who is ready to dive into the real world. There are too many glorious adventures to be had for me to stay on one road.
I may have failed OCS, but at least I tried. And I'm trying again. I am putting myself through school to finish my degree. Doing things the traditional way is boring and easy. I'm going to take the untraveled path.
It's not that I have the potential to be more than a cashier, it's that I am more than a cashier. I am not the person who will be bagging your groceries any time soon.
And I don't work at Marbella, thank you.
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