My Point of View

Tech Coach Blog...

2007-06-22T10:15:00.001-05:00

This is my brother's blog - - some pretty useful stuff here! Enjoy... http://tech.burgessfam.com/

To Reach Me Now...

2007-06-04T13:37:00.001-05:00

this is actually a cool way to make a long distance phone call without paying for it - - you put in your local phone number, then my service (Grand Central) calls you and connects you to me at no cost to you. Pretty cool, I think!

This is Too Funny!

2007-06-04T11:21:00.001-05:00

Funny Video - - Go Army! :-) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5GhAdXpKYU

Freedom of Choice

2007-05-25T06:39:00.000-05:00

"...and I pray that my children will learn that they can have freedom of choice, but not freedom of consequences..."

- letter to Dr. Laura show, 21 May 07

Soldier Song - "If I Die Before You Wake..."

2007-05-01T12:57:00.001-05:00

God Bless The American Fighting Man. You wont want to miss this video... written and sung by American Soldiers...

"If I Die Before You Wake..."

1st Lt Jared Landaker, USMC

2007-04-30T08:42:00.000-05:00

I was quite moved when I heard Dr. Laura Schlesinger read this aloud on her radio show. It's an account of a Marine helicopter pilots' final return to CA. Read the whole thing...its worth it.

God Bless America.

Article Link

If this doesn't bring it home

2007-04-24T08:44:00.001-05:00

Its easy to forget on a minute by minute basis that there are hundreds of thousands of Americans out there every second doing their duty in Iraq and Afghanistan Then you read something like this short e-mail from a deployed soldier to his wife and you're right there with them... Wow.

Hope this inspires you to send a card, call a friend, or say a prayer for these brave men...

http://worldblog.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/04/23/162905.aspx

Dont Kiss the Ref

2007-04-24T07:32:00.001-05:00

Funny story in today's news...

"I didn't know it was against the rules," said defender Cleberson of Brazilian club Cabofriense after being shown a yellow card for kissing referee Ubiraci Damasio.

Damasio had called a foul on Cleberson and the two seemed to be interacting amiably until Cleberson planted a peck on the Damasio cheek. The ref pulled the card and said, "You can't kiss me."

Why is anyone watching?

2007-04-20T12:04:00.001-05:00

This thing with NBC showing the videos of that loser from Virginia is so frustrating - - how low will they go? As low as it takes, I guess... Disgusting. Probably the only thing worse than the execs at NBC deciding to show those videos are the millions of Americans who are still watching... where are we headed here? Not our finest hour, thats for sure...

Some Excellent articles by Jason Whitlock, KS City Star reporter

2007-04-18T07:32:00.001-05:00

I used to read Jason Whitlock daily when we lived in KS, and I think that I agreed with his position about 25% of the time. For the last two days, however, I think that he's batting a 1000 as he takes on the gangsters, hucksters, charlatans, and shameless men of little character hovering in the fringes of seemingly every racial debate...

Tuesday, 17 Apr 07, Imus isn't the real bad guy. Instead of wasting time on irrelevant shock jock, black leaders need to be fighting a growing gangster culture . By JASON WHITLOCK - Columnist

now this moring Jason has another excellent piece - -

Wednesday, 18 Aug 07, Imus 'Fight' is over money, fame. By JASON WHITLOCK - Columnist

For me, this is about integrity and character more than race - - and Jason gets that....

So what do I expect?

2007-04-17T07:24:00.001-05:00

Twenty years ago, I'd have said that I expect my kids to become great.

Today, I have a different set of expecations and hopes for my kids than the ones I imagined then. Today, I am hoping for, praying for, and working towards the goal of helping develop three good men. Men who have character, compassion, a good work ethic, and a love of God. Men who are good to their wives, good to their kids, dependable at work, and overall solid citizens. Whether they turn out to be lawyers, doctors, architects, and engineers, or whether they wind up as reporters, mechanics, salesmen, or pursue careers in the military - - I dont really care. Those job titles dont measure the man - - I'm looking for the man behind the title.

Is that stupid? Did I just say something that the whole rest of the world already knows? Why did it take me so long to figure this out?

Well, perhaps I figured it out a while ago, but I'm so driven to accomplish objectives, that I must admit that some of this objective-focused approach towards life has rubbed off on my child-raising. Upon reflection, however, thats not the real me - - the real me is the guy described above. I want my boys to grow into good men...men who are good husbands, fathers, Christians, and employees. Men who provide for their families, bring the kids by to see their grandfather, and men who I can still talk to about important things in either of our lives.

I guess the last thing I hope for in my sons is a spirit of service. We have been given many things in this country, and it is my hope to instill an appreciation for those things into our kids as well. To bring them up with kind and compassionate hearts for those less fortunate than us, and with a desire to give back to those who might not have as much or to the country which provides so much. I had a long and frustrating dialogue with someone in my family last year about service to the country - - her view was that only the military understood service to the country. My view is that many people give and sacrifice for the country - - whether those in the ministry, the medical profession, the education system, the legal system, fire fighters, policemen, or even the recreational sports systems are all giving back to make this country great. They are all just as heroic as the men in the service...at least they have the potential to be just as heroic, because they are working with people in need - - whether those people are in need from age, health, wealth, or education is not really the issue. In my mind, if you are willing to see the needs of other people around you and to meet those needs, then you are a "hero" right on par with the men and women in the service. One caveat, of course, would be those men and women who have given more than just time - - those men and women who have been killed or wounded while serving this country are a higher level of hero than anyone described previously - - and they're so much higher that it makes the rest of us pale in comparison. But, for the living, I believe that we all, not just those in the service, we all have an obligation to give back, to show compassion, to show kindness, to help those less fortunate than us... and I believe that this is a large part of how we're measured. We're all called to love the Lord God first - - but having done so, I believe that we honor Him best by how we treat others...and it is this desire that I also hope to pass on to my sons...

Twenty years ago, I expected my kids to become great - - I guess that I still do.

Commander Phil Murphy-Sweet

2007-04-16T07:00:00.001-05:00

Funeral today for Phil Murphy-Sweet. Phil was our neighbor in California at Naval Housing there while we both attended grad school at the Naval Postgraduate School. He is survived by his wife Cheryl, and three children. Phil volunteered for a six month tour of duty in Iraq and after five months was killed by a roadside bomb, or IED. What a loss. A loss to our country, a loss to his family, and a loss to his friends. My heart goes out to the family...and as I think about this war, its harder. Harder to be sure of anything. A friend of mine at work and I were discussing the war and "what should be our position" and I remarked that while I support the war, I also have some reservations when I put my dad hat on... The more personal this war becomes, the harder it is to think about. As he said, anyone who is either 100% in favor of this war, or those who are 100% against the war - - well, their opinions dont count, because they're not really thinking about the problem. Thats a paraphrase, so I'm not quoting him directly here, but I like the way he framed it -- war is hard stuff - - and patriotism isnt easy either. It takes hundreds of thousands of men and women willing to risk their lives every day to pay for this freedom that we value so much.... and they are glad to do that for us. Its only when you know someone who was called to pay that price, however, that you can really start to appreciate just how much that really costs.

Takes your breath away, doesnt it?

Phil Murphy-Sweet - God Bless You...and Thank You.

My Point of View....

2007-04-16T06:23:00.000-05:00

Welcome to my blog... a place to put down thoughts and ideas about a wide range of things that I am interested in...