Still Here

To anyone who is still checking on this blog I apologize for the lack of content. I realize that it's been over a year since I wrote but there's been a lot going on that precluded me from writing.

I'll start writing again soon.

M/V Arctic Sea "Disinformation"

Modern Day Piracy is complaining that the press wasn't told that the Maltese and Russians knew where the M/V ARCTIC SEA was located.

It sounds like the only information that was kept from the press was the location of the vessel. I think that was an entirely reasonable thing to do.

Let's put this in another way. Suppose a bus had been hijacked and was taken somewhere. The press gets the word and conjectures about it "disappearing." Meanwhile, the police are using a tracking beacon on the bus that the hijackers don't know exists. Is it wrong for the police to keep the press in the dark about the location of the bus until the situation is resolved?

If it was revealed that the concerned parties knew exactly where the ARCTIC SEA was, would the hijackers have removed the crew? If so, we'd probably still be looking for them. At the least, they would have tried to locate the beacon and secured it.

This wasn't a disinformation campaign against the press. It sounds like the press is upset that someone was able to keep a secret this time.


Hat Tip: Eagle Speak

CNN Gets it Wrong

Today, CNN posted a story about a British couple who had to be rescued in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. It's a common enough story but CNN had this line that causes me to write this entry;

Armstrong alerted the U.S. Coast Guard of their problems. However, the Coast Guard told the couple they were too far out to be rescued.

That's hooey! This is what I believe happened. The sailors contacted the Coast Guard to report their situation. When their position was plotted, the Coast Guard realized that they were well out to sea. At that point, the only option for the sailors is to be removed from their boat by another vessel. When they realized that they'd have to leave their boat behind, they decided to wait it out or arrange for a towing vessel. The bill for a tow boat to come that far out probably exceeds the value of the sailboat.

Finally, when the reality of their situation sunk in, they called the Coast Guard and said they'd like to get off. At that point, an AMVER vessel was most likely diverted to take the crew to safety.

The US Coast Guard is responsible for Search and Rescue in a chunk of the Atlantic that extends out to 040 Degrees Longitude. The area is over 4 million square nautical miles. No matter where you are in that chunk of water, the CG will make every effort to assist you.

OPSEC

Be careful what you talk about. You might be in this guy's restaurant.

HT to Storming the Tower of Babel.

Wii Games

I was asking for suggestions on Wii games that a 3 1/2 year old girl would like. My older sister suggested the following games. Any other suggestions?

DVD Bleg

I need a new DVD player for a non-HD TV. Is there any reason not to get a HD-DVD player for $47?

4th Annual Valour-IT Fundraising Competition

Project Valour-IT supplies voice-controlled laptops and other technology that supports the physical and psychological recovery of wounded veterans. Each year the milblogs and other bloggers spread the word about the project and encourage donations. Teams are divided by service branch in a spirit of fun competition, though all the money goes to the same place. Please click on the graphic on the sidebar to donate! Help Team Coast Guard help our wounded warriors!

==Update==
The Coast Guard Team has kidnapped the other team thermometers!

Good Advice

FrankJ at IMAO has excellent advise to carry us through to Election Day; "Be Positive."

McCain and Palin in Virgina Beach

In my seat
Originally uploaded by medicjm

I went to the McCain/Palin Rally in Virginia Beach earlier this month. I took my camera fully intending to put up a long blog post about it. Obviously, I have not had time to do it. I have posted some of my photos in Flickr.


I am in this picture taken by the BBC.

What Caused the Economic Mess.

Here's a video on Youtube that examines the cause of our current economic situation all the way back to the Community Reinvestment Act.

It is 10 minutes long and I apologize for that but it is worth a look.

UPDATE: Well, the video was blocked. The new link is here;

The Palin Effect

The Weekly Standard has a good article titled, "The Palin Effect." The author, Noemie Emery, dissects the effect Sarah Palin has had on the media and Democrats. Here's the money quote:

Somehow, every element of her life--the dual offense of being a beauty-queen and hunter; the Down syndrome baby who wasn't aborted; the teenage daughter about to get married, whose baby also wasn't aborted; the non-metrosexual husband working the nightshift; the very fact of five children--touched a nerve on the liberal template, and sent the whole beast into convulsions, opening an intriguing and somewhat frightening window onto the turbulent id of the left.

Emery also looks at how Palin's entrance has changed the game for Hillary.

"That sound you hear--along with a small snort from Hillary--is the weight of power in the Democratic scale sliding back to the side of the Clintons. After [Obama} made a point of stressing how little she matters, he now seems to need her more than ever. And she, of course, does not need him.

It's a very interesting read.

Just Asking

How come I haven't heard anyone say that Governor Palin has just as much foreign policy experience as Bill Clinton when he was nominated for president? Just asking.

Governor Palin for VP!

I've been interested in Gov. Palin (R-AK) as a Veep pick for some time. CDR Salamander seems to think she's going to get the nod.
Then there's this piece ofevidence.

UPDATE! All the major news outlets say they've confirmed that Palin is the pick!

Second Update: When Fox said they confirmed Palin, I started flipping through to the other news channels. When I got to MSNBS, the pundits were still talking about Pawlenty. Then someone off camera shouted, "It's Palin!" and all the talking heads said, "who?"

Southern Appeal found a message thread on a Hillary Clinton forum and they are ecstatic.

The Water Buffalos

I participated in a live draft this year for a fantasy football league. It was only the second time I've done it live and in person. It's so much better with beer and hot wings. Anyway, here's my team in no particular order.
QB
Peyton Manning
Mark Bulger

RB
Deuce McAllister
Julius Jones
Clinton Portis
Chester Taylor

WR
Marvin Harrison
Kevin Curtis
Antwaan Randle El
Dante Stallworth
Hines Ward

TE
Todd Heap
Jeremy Shockey
Marcedes Lewis

K
Stephen Gostkowski
Jeff Reed

DEF
New England
Buffalo

How I Spent My Weekend

I'm the one behind the camera.

In Spite of Ourselves

Someone sent me a link to this song. I love it!

Diocese of Southern Virginia Bishop Candidates

The Diocesan Nominating announced the five nominees for the 10th Diocesan Bishop of Southern Virginia. You may view nominees’ biographical sketches, and written answers to six questions posed by the nominating committee, by clicking on their names.

The nominees are:

The Very Reverend Edward H. Harrison
Dean, St. John’s Cathedral, Jacksonville, FL

The Rev. Herman “Holly” Hollerith, IV
Rector, Bruton Parish, Williamsburg, VA

The Rev. Canon E. Daniel Smith
Canon to the Ordinary, Diocese of Missouri

The Rev. L. Murdock Smith
Rector, St. Martin’s, Charlotte, NC

The Rev. Mary C. Sulerud
Canon for Deployment and Vocational Ministry,

Huh?

Here's a strange finding of the recent religion in America survey;
21% of Atheists Believe in God
I don't get it.

---

Hat tip; IMAO.

USCG to Establish Law Enforcement Rating

When I enlisted in 1991, there was a rumor that the Coast Guard would establish a Law Enforcement Rating for the enlisted. Every year the rumor would resurface. The Port Security Specialist (PS), a reserve only rating, would get all excited by the prospects for them. Eventually, everyone would be disappointed until the rumor started up again.

Well, now the rumor can be put to rest for it is now fact.

The law enforcement and security rating, approved by Allen June 6, integrates the port security specialist rating, which is filled by reservists only, with an active-duty counterpart. Fully establishing the new rating is expected to take 24 months.

This is good news for those in the PS rate. I would predict that there is going to be a slew of EAD opportunities for PS's who will provide the framework of the new rating. I wonder if the current PS Rating Force Master Chief, PSCM Sam Allred (a previous shipmate of mine) will be made the first Master Chief of the new rating.

I'm Still Alive

I am embarrased by how long it's been since I've actually put a post up here. I have been blogging here as well as on a blog that you can't get to from here.

Please keep coming back and I'll have more for you.