Monthly Archives: August 2014

“Shibumi” and the Middle Finger!

29 Aug 14 Middle Finger and Unintentional Discharges! “‘Shibumi’ is a Japanese word that loosely translates to ‘effortless perfection.’ Anything that is ‘Shibumi’ is quiet in refinement, noble, and fulfilling in a manner not shaped exclusively by analytical thought. In Japanese culture, Shibumi implies ‘simplicity of spirit,’ an attitude of refinement without pretense, honesty without […]

While Nero fiddles…

26 Aug 14 This experience, from a friend in the NW: “I visited our State Military HQ yesterday in order to have my wife’s ‘dependent’ ID card renewed. I encountered a lone and unarmed contractor/guard at the front gate. He was courteous and polite, but had never heard of ISIS and had no idea what […]

Warning Shot!

20 Aug 14 “Warning” Shot(s)! “No one remembers who came in second.” Walter Hagen On 19 Mar 1988 in West Belfast, Northern Ireland, two young British Army corporals inadvertently drove in the vicinity of the elaborate funeral procession for Kevin Bradey, considered a hero by the IRA. The two corporals were in civilian clothing, and […]

Pre-Corpse

19 Aug 14 “But, I don’t want to go among mad people,” said Alice. “Oh, you can’t help that,” said the Cat. “We’re all mad here!” From “Alice in Wonderland,” written in 1865 by English author Charles Lutwidge Dodgson under the pseudonym “Lewis Carroll.” A recent study, commissioned by the BHO Administration, concluded (buried near […]

LAD

12 Aug 14 “Good and prudent people will heed the warning. Darwin will claim the rest!” Glassy From a colleague and retired Paratrooper: “When asked why I’m carrying a gun, I politely reply, ‘… because you’re not! Someone here needs to be armed, so I guess it’s going to be me!’ Law enforcement and military […]

From “Warriors” to “worriers!”

10 Aug 14 “Warriors” or “worriers?” “We are undisciplined, like an octopus on roller skates. There’s plenty of movement, but no progress” H Jackson Brown Jr From a friend and colleague: “Formally legitimizing organized killing is the psycho-dynamic process our esteemed colleague, Dave Grossman, compasses in ‘Killology.’ Most humans are genetically hardwired to limit violence […]

Yet Another Massacre!

7 Aug 14 Comments on the murder of our two-star in Afghanistan (at the national “training academy”) and the serious injury of seventeen others, on 6 Aug 14, all perpetrated by a single VCA. These comments from a veteran of the African Bush Wars of the 1960s and 1970s: “My Directorate Section Chief (also a […]

No Pressure… No Diamonds!

4 Aug 14 Where is the glamour? “I feel like Zsa Zsa Gabor’s sixth husband. I know what I’m supposed to do, but I don’t know how to make it ‘interesting.’” Milton Berle A potential student asked my yesterday, “… and do you do all the stuff I’ve seen in Rambo movies?” I replied, “Do […]