A fascinating story via Amritas
Terrorist Hunter: By day, Shannen Rossmiller is a Montana mother of three. At night, she takes down AmericaÂ’s enemies. ItÂ’s a compulsion even she canÂ’t explain.

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I do all of the dishes all of the time. I can't think of the last time my husband washed dishes. He doesn't even do them when I'm out of town; he just leaves a lovely little pile. Regardless, we have one of the best marriages I know of. How could that possibly be? /eye rolling

And don't even get me started on "great sex." I can't believe it polls that high. If that's the most important thing that's keeping your marriage together, I feel sorry for you.

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Should people with no kids pay more taxes to cover the slack for those who can't afford their own kids? Good thing I'm not the only one who was horrified at the suggestion: this comments section was reassuring.

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A friend of mine from high school was stationed here, and the husband and I went to his going-away picnic before he deployed. His parents were there, and his father paraded me around the unit, telling anyone who would listen about what an upstanding young lady I am. He insisted on telling everyone about what good kids we were in high school and how we never got in trouble and never were involved in any "hanky panky." I'm sure by the end of the night the entire unit was laughing about what dorks we were. But his dad was right; we really were good wholesome kids.

AWTM writes about her first love...and how it ended. I used to think I had a standard adolescence, but the more people I talk to, the more I realize that maybe I didn't. My early boyfriends were perfect. And no one ever asked me to have sex until I got to college. How quant: I never experienced pressure to have sex until I was 20 years old. I never thought much about it growing up, but now I look back and realize what lovely people I associated with as a teen.

My friend's father was right to be proud of us. We were good kids.

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I have a pro-Walmart story I thought I'd share since all we usually hear is bad stuff about them.

A few weeks ago I noticed my car was leaking oil. I had gotten my last oil change done at Walmart, but it had almost been three months since, so I didn't think that was the source of the problem. I took the car in to the dealership, and they deduced that Walmart had destroyed the oil filter housing. It cost us $80 to sort it all out.

We went to Walmart and explained what had happened, and they asked us why we hadn't brought the car back to them when we noticed the oil leak. We explained that the car was new and still under warranty, and that we hadn't put 2-and-2 together because the oil change had been done so long ago. But they took care of it anyway and gave us the full amount we'd paid at the dealership. In cash, without filing any forms or waiting for a check to show up.

This is the second time a Walmart manager has handed me cash. The first time was a few years ago when an incompetent employee sold me the wrong fishing license and got me saddled with a $100 conservation fine. (I still can't believe the conservation officers didn't let me off with a warning. I had to go to court and argue my case to the judge; I made for a funny sight, sitting there in a little plaid dress next to a bunch of men in orange jumpsuits.) Anyway, Walmart listened to my sob story about how their guy never asked me what state I was from when he sold me the license, then and split the difference for the blame and handed me half of the money.

Walmart sure keeps me happy with their handing-out-cash policy.

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Two teasers to make you think and hopefully get you to read the blog posts to which they belong.

First: Thereby Hangs a Tale's Does America Support our Military Strategy? (via Achilles)

We have an angry voting public. About 71% are mad at the war and the President. But just what are they angry about? I’ve researched the polls and no poll that I can find goes beyond a simplistic, “Are you for or agin the war?” Are those polled just angry at a bullheaded (or principled, depending on your view) President? Are they frustrated by continued fighting in a war that may already be lost?

Second: Neptunus Lex's Us and Them Part I

It’s also popular to say that the people are “war weary,” but - apart from the very small percentage of those who are actually deployed, or their families - what do they have to be weary of? We live lives of ease, prosperity and entitlement our own parents could not have imagined, we shop at the mall, are very nearly fully employed, the economy is on solid footing, the stock market is through the roof and yet we go to the watercoolers with worried looks and tell ourselves that the country is very much on the wrong track, tut-tut.

Posted by: Sarah at 04:45 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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I really go back and forth on what I think "education" should be. Sometimes I think it should lean more towards teaching people a trade. Other times, like when I read The Closing of the American Mind, I think it should lean more towards teaching people to think. Unfortunately I think it leans towards neither right now: we seem to produce grads who can neither balance a checkbook nor recognize a syllogism. I don't know what the answer is.

But I sure know it's not this:

British secondary schools will drop Winston Churchill from a list of figures to be mentioned in history teaching. Also dropped: Hitler, Gandhi, Stalin and Martin Luther King. The schools will now be emphasizing "lessons on debt management, the environment and healthy eating."

The article's accompanying graph is chock full of frightening tidbits like "Less on electricity and magnetism, more on IVF, stem cells, vivisection and nuclear energy." Look, I hated figuring out resistance of circuits as much as the next person, but you have to work on hard things in school. It's not all debates on stem cell research. That's what your blog is for.

UPDATE:

The more I think about this, the stupider I think it is. It's like they're replacing tried-and-true schooling with whatever's in vogue. Science knows a heck of a lot more how electricity and magnetism work than how stem cells do. How are they going to pin down what to teach about stem cells when we're not positive how they work? The same goes for teaching how to make "healthy meals"; aren't we always hearing new studies that something that was once good/bad for us is now the opposite? Butter, margarine, eggs, chocolate, wine, how many times have we scratched our heads over new evidence on what we should eat?

Why are they abandoning the basics of education for stuff that's so subjective?

Posted by: Sarah at 04:34 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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Guard Wife gives it to Ted Rall with both barrels. She uses phrases like "Left-wing cuckoobird who draws junior-high level cartoons for a living" and hands him his hat. Nicely done.

And this comments section at Standing By is fascinating. Go be a fly on the wall.

Posted by: Sarah at 04:28 AM | Comments (2) | Add Comment
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1 Awww, thanks! (blushing)

Posted by: Guard Wife at July 19, 2007 02:04 PM (mMRvT)

2 Army Wife Toddler Mom also has a great post about this... linkage ain't workin so well for me at 0130 today, but it's there. http://armywifetoddlermom.blogspot.com

Posted by: Green at July 20, 2007 08:35 PM (VqW06)

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Who knew that I was accidentally saving the planet? I wanted to have one baby and have instead had zero. Hooray for me! Via Steyn:

So how far are the ecochondriacs prepared to take things? In London last week, the Optimum Population Trust called for Britons to have "one child less" because the United Kingdom's "high birth rate is a major factor in the current level of climate change, which can only be combated if families voluntarily limit the number of children they have."

Thank heavens Steyn goes on to point out that the birthrate is not even at replacement rate in the UK, but whatever. Less babies means less global warming. Actually, it probably just means less environmentalists, because the only nimrods who will consider this are the hardcore greens.

I know, let's just all get in a big gay pile, à la South Park, and prevent the future from ever happening! Then there won't be global warming for sure! Derp!

And I love the word "ecochondriacs."

Posted by: Sarah at 06:09 AM | Comments (3) | Add Comment
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1 "Less babies means less global warming. Actually, it probably just means less environmentalists..." Same thing

Posted by: tim at July 18, 2007 09:30 AM (nno0f)

2 ecochondriacs (that IS great, by the way) make me want to have more babies than the four we've already inflicted on the world. I mean, really. How on EARTH can we take over the world with a mere four children? That's not even a hockey team!

Posted by: airforcewife at July 18, 2007 09:42 AM (Nrq7o)

3 Airforcewife - You go girl. Only one more for a Bball team, woohoo!

Posted by: papertiger at July 18, 2007 08:48 PM (mqoa4)

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I got tagged by Anwyn to do 8 facts about me. I already did 13 of them a while back, and 100 when I started blogging, so I'm gonna twist this meme into something I've been wanting to do for a while: a Piece of Crap list. I first saw this on Right Wing News, and now whenever something is driving me nuts, my first thought is that it would definitely go on my Piece of Crap list. So 8 things that I hate:

1) Krispy Kreme donuts
They have too much glaze for me, but mostly I just hate how people keel over with ecstasy whenever you mention them. I love donuts more than the next person, but I hate name-brand donut worship.

2) Dave Matthews Band
There's no real good reason why, but I don't like any of their songs except for "Satellite." I think their music is grating, and they were so ridiculously popular when I was in college that it made me hate them even more.

3) Jay Wolfe Nissan of Kansas City
When we bought our first car, we decided to buy an extended warranty. We specifically told the dealership that we were moving to Germany soon and that we'd never live in Kansas City in our lives. Naturally, we came to find out that they sold us a warranty that was specific to their dealership and that has a $150 deductible at any other Nissan dealer. Oh, and it didn't work at all in Germany, even though they told us it would. So it was a huge waste of money, and I'm extra mad because it's not like we moved unexpectedly and just had bad luck: we told them all of this up front and they intentionally sold us something that wouldn't work for us. Piece of crap dealership.

4) dolphins
Everyone thinks dolphins are these beautiful, peaceful creatures, but they're not. Just because they have a cute face and look like they're smiling doesn't mean they're nice. Dolphins rape their females and kill their babies. Not so cute after all. I've seen enough Discovery Channel to completely get over any ideas that dolphins are magical.

5) baja sauce
As you well know, I'm an enormous Taco Bell fan, but one thing I can't stand is this sauce they put on certain items. I call it baja sauce because the first time I encountered it was on a baja chalupa, but there is no official name for it -- with which I could ask they leave it off of my order -- and they sneak it on to many new items. I can handle most foods, but this sauce turns my stomach and ruins anything it touches. Thus it's hard to try new things at The Bell; every new item could contain the dreaded sauce. Ugh, just thinking about it makes me sick.

6) glow-in-the-dark
Perhaps it is because my brother used to think it was funny to lock me in the bathroom while we were playing with glow-in-the-dark legos, but something caused me to be extremely disturbed by anything that glows in the dark. Whenever I would get glowing keyrings or toys as a kid, I'd always have to make sure they were completely covered up before bedtime. And don't even get me started on those stupid stickers people put on their ceilings. To this day, I can't sleep if something is phosphorescing in the bedroom. Creeps me out.

7) France
This one barely needs any explanation, but I'll give the short version. I lived there for a year. I was constantly mocked, had trash thrown at me, got cussed out, threatened with rape, grabbed on the street, and chased by a guy on a moped so I had to crawl under a car to hide and escape from him. I don't really feel like returning to France anytime soon.

Harry Potter
This one might ruffle some feathers, but I just don't get the Harry Potter craze. They're kids' books. I'm glad kids are enjoying reading in this video game age, but I don't get all the hype the adults have built up. When I homeschooled a boy five years ago, he read a few chapters of one of the books out loud to me. It's a book for children and it reads like a book for children; I don't understand why adults are going bananas for them. I understand if you want to read the book so you can discuss it with your kids, but really getting into it and fighting over who gets to read it first? My parents never flipped out and bought three copies of Ramona Quimby. Because it was a kids' book and they didn't care. I just don't get why adults are reading Harry Potter; don't they have grown-up books to read?

Anybody else want to do a Piece of Crap List? If so, consider yourself invited. Or add one piece of crap in the comments.

Posted by: Sarah at 04:00 AM | Comments (23) | Add Comment
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1 Damn - you don't even like dolphins? That's kind of mean. They are nice to people though. I read once that there has never been a recorded case of a dolphin or orca attacking a person. Oh, and I love glow-in-the-dark stuff. Reminds me of the 70s.

Posted by: John Rohan at July 17, 2007 04:15 AM (BfPzY)

2 Dolphins are fine, but I hate dolphin worship. They're no different from any other animal. And yes, I've swum with them and petted them and stuff. I've petted turtles and opossums too.

Posted by: Sarah at July 17, 2007 04:23 AM (vrR+j)

3 I'd like to add Nietzsche to the piece of crap list. Also, War and Peace. And basically anything people wax poetic about because if you've read it, it must mean you're smart. I once knew someone who would attempt to inject Nietzsche into EVERY conversation we ever had. We could be talking about Victoria's Secret thongs, and he would say, "You know, as Nietzsche said..." It got to the point where I wanted to smack him upside the head with a copy of Thus Spoke Zarathustra. Oh - and Dr. Spock. Big piece of crap there.

Posted by: airforcewife at July 17, 2007 04:49 AM (0dU3f)

4 oh oh Rachel Ray worship... I LOATHE her, and I was watching the financial report only to hear shes like a kagillionaire now. Her cooking is basic Her voice is grating And tuna out of a can and mac and cheese do not make you a chef. My 3 year old can come up with better dinner ideas

Posted by: armywifetoddlermom at July 17, 2007 05:20 AM (PjrBf)

5 Ouch. Distilled down to a nutshell, I like Harry Potter because 1) I would have loved to be able to wave a wand and do magic when I was a kid, and Rowling builds that word cleverly and credibly; 2) Classic good v. evil, bad guys (mostly) get what they deserve; 3) Her characters are easy to empathize with. Somebody was complaining to me the other day that she should have been severely edited because "I hated middle school. I don't need to live it again." I said, "Well, maybe that means she's a pretty good writer if she can make you feel it again that acutely." Anyway. I still occasionally enjoy re-reading some of my favorite books from childhood, so the fact that they are children's books barely registers with me, much less bothers me. Bottom line: she's created highly entertaining stories that make you want to know what happens next.

Posted by: Anwyn at July 17, 2007 05:54 AM (dzxw9)

6 Anwyn -- I haven't re-read any of my childhood books, mostly because I loved them so much as a child and I'm afraid they might not live up to the standard I set for them. I am sure they are more simple than I remember. And I didn't know you were a Harry Potter reader; I certainly didn't mean to hurt your feelings. Many people in my life love those books, my father included. I just don't get it, and this is the first time I've said it out loud

Posted by: Sarah at July 17, 2007 06:24 AM (vrR+j)

7 You didn't hurt my feelings ... beyond what saying "ouch" can get rid of. Just thought I'd put up a modicum of defense for those of us adults who love HP. The beauty of your childhood favorites being simpler than you remember is that you can polish off a re-read in one day. Heh. Actually, I read a new children's book not too long ago: _Holes_. It's good. I'm kind of fortunate that I still like children's books, since I'm needing to build up a stock of them that I think a little boy would like, as opposed to the little girl I used to be.

Posted by: Anwyn at July 17, 2007 06:55 AM (dzxw9)

8 I like Harry Potter books, too, but not in the fighting-over-them sort of way. I like the story line, and I think that, for children's books, they are written very well. I laughed about the baja sauce because I also hate it. And I think of you every time I go there What would be on my piece of crap list? Reality tv. I think I am the only person in America who does not watch American Idol or the like. For me, it would be a colossal waste of time.

Posted by: Kate at July 17, 2007 07:08 AM (tB/4l)

9 Starbucks: It’s JUST freakin’ coffee people Rap: Put a “C” in front of it Unusual pets like ferrets, snakes, monkeys: Just get a dog and quit trying so hard to get attention Hyphenated Americans: E Pluribus Unum, ‘nuff said Narcissism People who take sports WAY too seriously Vegetarians: We’re carnivores, get over it Redundancy

Posted by: tim at July 17, 2007 07:36 AM (nno0f)

10 Actors, singers, etc who earned an audience through talent (or in some cases "talent") then misuse that reach to spread their sophomoronic views about world affairs, politics, climate, etc. Shut up and sing, or get off the stage.

Posted by: Tim Fitzgerald at July 17, 2007 01:49 PM (hCd4F)

11 LOL! You are too funny. I'll just say that I love some of the things you don't, but we all got our, um, issues. Thanks for the laugh so early in the morning.

Posted by: Butterfly Wife at July 18, 2007 02:06 AM (gI6/R)

12 This is an action, not a thing. I can't stand people who slow down on the on-ramp to the interstate. If you don't understand the theory behind an on-ramp, you shouldn't be driving. Also, people who are perfectly willing to take advice about global warming from a politician/businessman (Gore), but won't acknowledge anything I have to say (Geologist/Environmental Scientist). Love the one about the Dolphins.

Posted by: James at July 18, 2007 03:31 AM (DxgIR)

13 airforcewife - I was at a party and some guy started talking about Nietzsche. My buddy asked him if he had ever been in prison. He had. My friend had been in jail. He told me that people who had been to prison like to quote Nietzsche. I guess to justify their lives?

Posted by: Patrick in Toms River at July 18, 2007 08:22 AM (BCedX)

14 I had to laugh at Jay Wolfe Nissan. My company gets all their company cars through Jay Wolfe, and the service has always been a little shady. Since my job description covers the vehicles, I always get to deal with them. My favorite is when I have to take the van in to service at the Chrysler dealership in Lee's Summit, I'm pretty much stuck. (I work in Westport. For those who aren't familiar with KC, Lee's Summit is about 20 miles southeast.) They'll be more than happy to call me a rental car, but they won't give me a loaner. I do so love Jay Wolfe.

Posted by: Joel at July 18, 2007 08:55 AM (bNgS/)

15 John Rohan, sorry buddy, there have been recorded attacks on humans and even inter specie rape.

Posted by: unkawill at July 18, 2007 10:35 AM (YwdKL)

16 KK Donuts are great when you can go to the store, and they are making them hot and fresh. Otherwise, they are no better than Dunkin, Daylight, or Safeway, really. But I DO like the massive amount of sugar glaze, yum! Nuke 'em and they are almost as good, until they get to be 3 or more days old, then they suck.

Posted by: donuts at July 18, 2007 10:39 AM (Xi5mv)

17 Harry Potter is overrated. The movies just got darker and darker and more depressing. The first one was kinda fun. But really, there is so much more for adults to read. Have you read Ted Dekker? Great author. Try "Obsessed", it'll knock your socks off.

Posted by: hairy potty at July 18, 2007 10:43 AM (Xi5mv)

18 I don't get the Harry Potter craze either. At the very start of it, a supposedly highly intelligent friend of mine recommended I read it because the level of writing was so "HIGH" compared to other books for children. Total waste of time. Agree with you on France. I would add: Rap (agree with Tim - put a C in front of it) Incompetence Passing the buck People who view Europe as intellectually and socially superior just because they have been to one or two large European cities on vacation and liked the public transport. Self-loathing Americans - perhaps that is redundant with the above statement? Romance novels

Posted by: pattycake at July 18, 2007 12:06 PM (IPPgn)

19 Really dumb entertainers who have millions of dollars who think their opinion is worth one cent more than anyone else's.

Posted by: John at July 18, 2007 12:56 PM (FeeWU)

20 If John Edwards were a cook he would bake Krispy Kreme Donuts. Vacuous insubstantial crap rapped in sugar glaze. Hate France, check. Think its a crime that JK Doweling has more money then the Queen, just for writing pre teen power fantasys for budding homosexuals. I'm with you on Dave Mathews band and dolphins. Iowahawk did a piece suggesting that car dealers deserve their own circle in Dante;s Hell. I agree with that to some extent. Although I am still looking for that rare honest car dealer, so far it's a search in vain. I haven't encountered Baja sause, so I have no opinion as yet. I am indifferent to phosphorescents.

Posted by: papertiger at July 18, 2007 08:45 PM (mqoa4)

21 Kate, I'm with you on reality TV. I have never seen more than 30 seconds of any reality TV show when flipping the channels (unless you lump Jeopardy in with other reality TV competition shows like American Idol and the celebrity dance show...). One couple with whom we are good friends can't get enough of ANY reality show. We can't even discuss TV anymore -- usually leads to argument over the merit of giving a damn about some random person's life (which I tent to not do...) Adding to the list: Idiots who spew their political view on any topic in the discussion, but offer no intelligent discourse on said topic. If you want to just make a statement with no thought behind it, please move to Washington DC and join the rest of your brethren. Anyone who has ever written a check at the grocery store since 1997. The debit card works the same way and gets me through the line about 4 minutes more quickly. The personal lives of ANY celebrity are crap. I don't care who had a baby/who's in rehab/who's boinking whom/etc. By extension, the mere existance of People magazine, Entertainment Tonight and other related media annoys me.

Posted by: SlithyToves at July 19, 2007 10:15 AM (hHZ38)

22 I'm with the previous commentors on reality tv being on the "crap" list. I would definitely add Sprint...they've been firing customers and they're the ones that should be fired. I'm a Dunkin Donuts fan versus Krispy Kreme...but I've got to say that I do love Rachael Ray.

Posted by: Nicole at July 21, 2007 07:05 AM (S/s4V)

23 Orson Scott Card wrote an essay about one of the characters, and included some discussion of how the Harry Potter books moved from children's books to adult books. "I think the power of the Harry Potter books surprised even Rowling. Certainly there is a progression of tone from the first volumes through the later ones. I spoke before of darkening, but it might rather be viewed as a de-lightening. The first volume was like J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit in that it was self-consciously a children's book, full of delightful jokes. Dumbledore, like the Wizard Gandalf in The Hobbit, was a trickster, a jester. The world was full of wonders that were, quite simply, fun; game-playing and riddle-solving were at the heart of the story. It was a romp. Even including the climax, the book was light -- in physical weight, in voice, in mood, and in moral consequence. But the later volumes steadily progressed to ever-more-serious consequences, with ever-fewer moments of genuine frivolity. There was still humor, but it had a darker edge. Why? Because Rowling was no longer telling a children's story, she was telling a story that happened to be about children. The light tale-for-children tone turned to the much darker hues of a story rising out of the author's unconscious. Much has been said about how Rowling had the whole series planned from the beginning. I believe that this is true -- up to a point. The asymmetry in the lengths of the books suggests that Rowling began to fill her pages, not with deliberate (and intellectual) inventions, but with story that simply flowed and often went in directions that simply felt right to her. Most important, she went from the sharp, clear black-and-white morality of the first book to a far more shaded and nuanced view of good versus evil. You could almost always tell good guys from bad guys in Stone because good guys were nice to Harry and bad guys were mean. But by the time we found our way through Prisoner of Azkaban, we had a "good guy" -- Sirius Black -- who had been, as a student, perfectly capable of setting up the probable murder of his fellow student Severus Snape. Yet Black remained on the good-guy team... ...The result is that the moral universe of the Harry Potter novels moves from clarity to a deepening chiaroscuro in which truth can lurk in shadows and error can stand in the sun. This is the kind of thing that authors rarely plan; it happens when they themselves become immersed in the tales and let their unconscious mind lead them down paths they had not anticipated." There's a lot more obviously, I won't quote the whole thing at you. http://www.intergalacticmedicineshow.com/cgi-bin/mag.cgi?do=issue&vol=i5&article=_card-essay And then there's the whole thing about how a good story is a good story, which everybody can enjoy...

Posted by: Sabbrielle at July 30, 2007 10:10 PM (nMpWu)

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My husband and I found out we're not "cruise people" when he got back from Iraq. We hated it, and we don't really plan to do it again. But there's something so darned alluring about those right-wing nutjob cruises, you know, the ones with D'Souza and Steyn and Davis freaking Hanson. Now that I might like to do someday.

So I had a good chuckle at Venomous Kate's fisking of a reporter who "infiltrated" the nutjob cruise. I felt this reporter's pain on our cruise, where our dinner partners were much more interested in discussing the evils of our tablemate's pharmaceutical job than the evils my husband had just fought in Iraq. Poor thing didn't fit in, but at least her shipmates were nice to her; ours just accused us of lying.

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One thing I've noticed since I've started trying to have a baby is how absolutely unfair the process seems at times. There are couples out there who have tried for years to have babies and would give anything for a child. And then there's these monsters:

A couple authorities say were so obsessed with the Internet and video games that they left their babies starving and suffering other health problems have pleaded guilty to child neglect.
...
Viloria said the Reno couple were too distracted by online video games, mainly the fantasy role-playing “Dungeons & Dragons” series, to give their children proper care.

“They had food; they just chose not to give it to their kids because they were too busy playing video games,” Viloria told the Reno Gazette-Journal.

Police said hospital staff had to shave the head of the girl because her hair was matted with cat urine. The 10-pound girl also had a mouth infection, dry skin and severe dehydration.

Her brother had to be treated for starvation and a genital infection. His lack of muscle development caused him difficulty in walking, investigators said.

I'm so mad I can't even think of anything else to say.

Posted by: Sarah at 03:44 AM | Comments (6) | Add Comment
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1 The whole process does seem totally unfair. I cannot begin to imagine how upsetting this is for you. But I hope you are able to let some of that anger go. Best wishes with baby making process.

Posted by: Butterfly Wife at July 15, 2007 07:22 AM (gI6/R)

2 I know what you mean. And it's not just baby MAKING that's unfair. It's baby-keeping, too. Whenever I read about parents like these - or those stupid teenage girls who give birth at the prom and then throw their kid away, all I can think is, "I would have taken your baby! There are people all over who would have taken that baby! How is giving that child up worse than the treatment the parents give it themselves?"

Posted by: airforcewife at July 15, 2007 08:56 AM (0dU3f)

3 Lock 'em up, throw away the key, never let them near a computer again, and give their babies to somebody who will treasure them for the rest of their lives.

Posted by: Anwyn at July 15, 2007 09:48 AM (dzxw9)

4 Can I tell you, this is why I could not work in pediatrics... I could not take the stuff I saw... seriously. God Blass those who work in childcare and child advocacy full time

Posted by: armywifetoddlermom at July 15, 2007 12:35 PM (PjrBf)

5 I hear ya loud and clear. After miscarriages, a long deployment, and several months of trying -- and hearing about all these other unplanned pregnancies of people we know -- we've finally succeeded in conceiving our first child. My fear is that, for some reason, we won't get to keep it. I've been feeling the same as you over these kinds of stories, and stories of hundreds of teenagers and single women becoming mothers after a one-night-stand. HOW? Why is it so hard for a stable, responsible family to conceive (and carry to term) a child that they will love, cherish, and bring up to be a contributing member of society? I don't get it! Hugs in your direction! And God bless your efforts! You will make excellent parents. I don't know you at all in person, but I can just tell.

Posted by: deltasierra at July 16, 2007 12:17 PM (l0MIM)

6 Sarah, I think of this every time I hear a story about Britney Spears. This to me is the epitome of useless. I was just thinking of you this morning. I would like to think that the relationship that we have is not beyond repair, because I hope that you would feel that you could have a sympathetic ear should you ever want to reach out to me. It's been two years now, so I can relate to your frustration.

Posted by: Kate at July 17, 2007 07:21 AM (tB/4l)

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VDH takes The Times to task.

Critics called for the resignation of Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, a change in command in Iraq and at Centcom, new strategies, and more troops. But now that we have a new secretary, a new command in Iraq and at Centcom, new strategies, and more troops, suddenly we have a renewed demand for withdrawal before the agreed-upon September accounting—suggesting that the only constant in such harping was the assumption that Iraq was either hopeless or not worth the effort.

Amen to that. I had a discussion back in 2003 with a German friend who said we were wrong to go to Iraq without support from countries like France. I pointed out that the problem is that there was actually no possibility of getting France's support, that Chirac said they would not vote for war no matter what. They had already made their decision, no matter what we said or did. Same with the anti-OIF types at The Times: there's absolutely nothing we could do to ever get them to admit that Iraq is not a lost cause. So what's the point?

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The brother visit is going swimmingly. He just graduated college and is looking for a Big Boy Job, so he's content to sit around all day with me watching South Park and eating trail mix. Easy entertainment.

My husband was supposed to jump this morning, so the brother and I were going to head out to the St. Mere Eglise Drop Zone to watch. (Do they really not see how disturbing that name is? Talk about inauspicious. Husband and I were trying to come up with other examples: Omaha Beach Water Park, etc.) Anyway, I thought watching the jump would be the coolest thing you can do in this town, but naturally the Army didn't cooperate with my tourist plans. The husband got up at 3:30 for a 9:00 jump -- let's hear it for Hurry Up And Wait -- and then called shortly after 8:00 to say they'd run out of parachutes so he wasn't jumping today. So there goes my good idea.

Looks like more South Park for us.

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Some morning links before I head to the airport:

Mark Steyn: British bomb plot and Michael Moore-style health care

According to a report in the British Medical Journal, white males comprise 43.5 percent of the population but now account for less than a quarter of students at UK medical schools. In other words, being a doctor is no longer an attractive middle-class career proposition. That's quite a monument to six decades of Michael Moore-style socialist health care.

Incidentally, that was the exact same argument I tried to make at our office Christmas party in Germany.

John Stossel: Government is all about force

Government has nothing it hasn't first expropriated from some productive person. In contrast, the private sector – whether nonprofit or a greedy business – must work through persuasion and consent. No matter how rich Bill Gates gets, he cannot force us to buy his software. Outside government, actions are voluntary, and voluntary is better because it reflects the free judgment of creative, productive people.

And a great Mark Steyn quote from The Corner:

I want to bequeath the wonders of this earth to the next generation, but I worry that my grandchildren will never know the feeling that you've totally demonstrated your tremendous concern and commitment to taking action just by going to a concert and staying until halfway through the George Michael set when he started doing stuff from the new album.

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My baby brother shows up today for a visit. And by baby, I mean he's 25. But in our family, he'll always be the baby.

This will be the first time we've really spent any time together since I got married. I have him all to myself for a week.

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Last night's episode of Army Wives was much better, in my opinion. It really reminded me of military life and hit on several issues that Army families have to deal with, from the wife fixing a clog in the sink to the tug in a soldier's heart between his job and his family. I wrote about my experiences with a soldier's heart over at SpouseBUZZ.

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Mary Katharine Ham has lots of jokes about an article on the French eating at McDonald's.

"We hate it and go to it. It's our paradox," a journalist for the French magazine Challenges, Alice Mérieux, said. "We're very anti-American in principle, but individually, if you're going to the movies and have to eat in 10 minutes, you go to McDonald's."

Yep, I saw this in action. When I was in my French language class, a Hungarian, a Czech, and I did an expose on McDonald's. We went around our French town and interviewed folks about their thoughts on McDonald's. Naturally, they all thought it was a despicable place with disgusting food. And naturally there was always a line out the door and onto the sidewalk.

What I thought was especially interesting was that the Hungarian and the Czech didn't really get the concept of the difference between fast food and restaurant food. I had to explain to them that Americans do indeed eat at McDonald's, but we don't consider it Fine Dining. We actually do have sit-down restaurants that we eat at. For them in their home countries, the price of McDonald's was the same as the price at a sit-down place, so the distinction was lost on them. They thought we considered McDonald's the same thing as a fancy restaurant. So at least I can say that I dispelled one misconception during my year in France: I taught a Hungarian and a Czech that McDonald's is not classy.

Of course, this is coming from the girl who ate at Steak n Shake for her senior prom...

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1 I've decided fancy dinners are not always the best dinners. I met my husband for the first time at a steak and shake. And although I do enjoy going out once in a while all dressed up, it's just way more fun to go to steak and shake and color with crayons on the menu. I do believe this is the redneck northern girl coming out in me.

Posted by: Josie at July 11, 2007 04:35 PM (zVz85)

2 I don't what this says about me, but my husband always calls me his "cheap date." Steak n Shake is just about heaven on earth for me.

Posted by: Kate at July 13, 2007 11:01 AM (FmdP4)

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Via Tim: Ten Politically Incorrect Truths About Human Nature: Why most suicide bombers are Muslim, beautiful people have more daughters, humans are naturally polygamous, sexual harassment isn't sexist, and blonds are more attractive

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This is hilarious:

Found at Chic[k]pilot

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