Funny, and Not Funny At ALL

First the funny...

Well, it would be funny if it weren't true.  There's that, I suppose.

And then there's this, from the Usual USAF Source:

Third Air Force Commander Overturns Sexual Misconduct Conviction: Third Air Force Commander Lt. Gen. Craig Franklin has overturned the conviction of Lt. Col. James Wilkerson, former 31st Fighter Wing inspector general at Aviano AB, Italy, citing lack of sufficient evidence. Franklin rendered this decision in late February. Last November, a military court found Wilkerson guilty of improper sexual conduct with a female civilian base employee. However, "after a careful, lengthy, and thorough deliberation, Lieutenant General Franklin concluded the evidence presented at trial did not amount to proof beyond a reasonable doubt, and he declined to approve the conviction," US Air Forces in Europe-Air Forces Africa spokesman Lt. Col. Paul Baldwin told the Daily Report on March 4. Baldwin noted that Franklin "acted within his authority in deciding the conviction should not stand" and "would not have performed his duties had he taken any other course of action." Authorities released Wilkerson from confinement on Feb. 26. Baldwin said Air Force officials are now determining Wilkerson's next assignment and whether he will receive a promotion to the rank of colonel. "We're working closely with Air Force headquarters to complete these actions as quickly as possible," he said. Baldwin emphasized that Franklin "does not personally know" nor does he recall "ever interacting in any social setting" with Wilkerson.

—Amy McCullough

Good on Gen. Franklin.  A reversal is highly unusual in the military justice system under any circumstances and a reversal in a sexual misconduct case is basically unheard of, especially in the current climate.  When I say "current climate," I mean things like this:

"The Air Force and the 31st Fighter Wing are dedicated to a culture where sexual assault is simply unacceptable and will not be tolerated," said Brig. Gen. Scott Zobrist, 31st FW commander, in a release.

[...]

"I take any allegation of criminal conduct by someone under my command very seriously—regardless of the rank of the accuser or that of the alleged offender," stated Zobrist.

Allegations of sexual assault SHOULD be taken seriously, each and every time.  That said, I believe there's a difference between prompt and proper investigations and a witch-hunt.  I've been following the sexual abuse issue ever since the scandals at basic training blew up last year, and the scandals at the Air Force Academy before that.  Forgive me, Gentle Reader, but it seems like the Air Force might be overreacting just a tad.

Finally, one wonders if Lt. Col. Wilkerson will stay in the service.  A charge like this, even when it's reversed, will follow him around like a sick puppy.  As for me?  I'd be pretty pissed at the service after spending three or four months in confinement, not to mention having to endure the horrors of an investigation and being relieved of my assigned position during that time, even if the Air Force pinned eagles on my shoulder.

The Downside o' Early to Bed, Early to Rise...

... are the looks I get from the neighbors and passers-by when they see me drinkin' beer and smokin' a cigar on the verandah at 1100 hrs.  Like this:

Well, screw 'em.  We do it because we CAN.  

For the record: bedtime at 0015 hrs, wakey-wakey at 0730; I feel almost normal.  But as for that "healthy, wealthy, and wise" krep: I'm oh-fer-three.  I don't think ol' Ben knew what the Hell he was talkin' about.

It's That Time o' Year

Spring is edging ever closer (but not yet close ENOUGH) and I'm beginning to see evidence.  Case in point, this:

There are some nice photos there.  Cherry blossoms, as noted elsewhere on the blog in recent days, are a favorite of mine.  And cherry blossoms are one of the things I miss about livin' in Beautiful La Hacienda Trailer Park.  I posted pics of an ornamental cherry tree right outside my front door EVERY year while I was livin' there, like this:

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Forgive Me...

... or indulge me.  Whatever.  Sakura... taken a few minutes ago:

I just love the delicate pinks and the contrasting copper-colored new leaves.  And no smart-ass comments about my manliness, OK?

And this:

Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Spring?

or... confused? Taken about four minutes ago... the ornamental Cherry tree just outside my door.

I'm thinking the third of March might just be a lil bit... umm... early. But, Hey! We'll take it, Gentle Reader. And now it's back out to continue with Happy Hour... already in progress. It's quite the lovely afternoon here at El Casa Móvil De Pennington, what with it being 80 degrees and all. Loverly. To say the VERY least.

Note the widely divergent dates on those two posts.  I could use a lil bit o' 80-degree weather right now.

CNX

From the Usual USAF Source:

Out of the Public Eye: Due to the budget sequester, the Air Force has cancelled all aviation support to public events for at least the remainder of Fiscal 2013, and is standing down the Thunderbirds aerial demonstration team to preserve flying hours for readiness needs, announced service officials. "Engaging with the public is a core Air Force mission and communicating and connecting with the public is more important today than ever before. However, faced with deep budget cuts, we have no choice but to stop public aviation support," said Brig. Gen. Les Kodlick, Air Force public affairs director, in the service's March 1 release. Effective March 1, Active Duty, Air National Guard, and Air Force Reserve units ceased all aviation support at air shows, tradeshows, and open houses, unless the event includes only local static assets; they also stopped flyovers (including at funerals and military graduations), orientation flights, heritage flights, and F-22 demonstration flights, states the release. Cancellation of the Thunderbirds' 2013 flying season takes effect on April 1, according to the release. Thunderbirds and heritage flight crews will complete their certification procedures in case the budget allows resumption of scheduled events in 2013, states the release. (See also Sequestration's Disconnect.)

Rumor has it the Blue Angles (<=== not a typo) will follow suit:

Update on Blue Angels canceled rumors: With sequestration in effect, NAF El Centro, which marks the beginning of the 2013 air show season, could be in jeopardy of being nixed. Because Obama and Congress failed to prevent the sequester from occurring Friday, the popular Blue Angles (<=== typo) air show could be scrapped as part of mandatory spending cuts. However, at this time, no official word has been given. With April fast approaching, fans want clarity.

I saw this coming from a long ways off.

Today's Happy Hour Soundtrack

We took today's Happy Hour in shifts, due mostly to the early start of today's hockey game.  Our first installment was taken indoors... as we paced the living room for much of the third period, all of the overtime, and then for the shoot-out, about which, more later.

So.  It was the game, followed by a shower, and thence out on to the verandah, where we took beers numbers three and four, all the while listening to Ray LaMontagne with our windows and door open, on account o' coz it was a brilliantly warm (mid-70s) kinda day.  Like this, musically:

Kiss me before you go
I'm going nowhere lately
Kiss me before you go
I'm going nowhere lately

Ah, well... yes. We've known a few barflies in our time and we're grateful for those ladies.  Oh, yes... we are.  But that's neither here nor there.  Well, it MIGHT could be here, but we'll leave it at that.  But about the game...

It left us cold.  That's NOT to say it wasn't a good game, coz it most certainly was.  It was the ending, Gentle Reader, in which the Beloved Wings lost in the shoot-out, otherwise known as The Gimmick.  I actively dislike... nay, I HATE... the shootout.  In times past the outcome would have resulted in one point apiece for both the Beloved Wings and the hated 'Hawks, given things weren't resolved in regulation time, nor in the five-minute OT.  But no... we had to go to the gimmick and those hated 'Hawks got the winner's two points.  I long for Former Happy Days, in which it would have been one point apiece, and that's it.  Next...

The league itself recognizes the shoot-out is just a gimmick, mainly coz there ain't no such thing in the playoffs when every game counts.  Tied at the end of regulation time in the playoffs?  Well then, play a 20 minute OT and if things aren't resolved then, play another OT.  Keep going until one team or the other scores and ends it.  I'm not sayin' that should be the case during the regular season, not at all.  But I AM sayin' that if you're tied at the end of regulation and OT... well, then.  One point apiece and we're done.

That said... today's game was brilliant.  It was play-off hockey and I was on the edge of my seat... or pacing the floor... until the final goal was scored.  It's just too bad it had to end the way it did.

This Is Just WRONG

Hockey... before noon?

Hell, I still have half a pot o' coffee to drink and half the blog rounds yet to be done.  Do I start drinkin' beer before I'm fully caffeinated?  That's just wrong, too.

Let's Go RED WINGS!

What?

Ahem.  Barry, I served with Richard Nixon. I knew Richard Nixon. Richard Nixon was a friend of mine. Barry, you're no Richard Nixon!*

*Full disclosure:  I was a moonbat in Nixon's day and I loathed the guy then, not so much now.  But I DID serve with him; he was my CinC.

Broadening Our Horizons LIV

I shouldn't have.  But I did, which is to say I paid an exorbitant price (12 Yankee Dollars!) for a six-pack of a beer that's only "Meh."  That would be this...

That's an Indian Wells Brewery Lobotomy Doppel Bock.  The average BA score on this brew is 71, which puts it in the mid-pack of all beers reviewed at Beer Advocate.  You wouldn't guess the beer is rated that high by reading the first six or eight reviews which, to be honest, are piss-poor.  The beer is OK, if you look at it simply as a beer.  Where I fall down is considering the brew as it's advertised and labeled: a doppel bock.  And that it is NOT... with not near enough malty goodness and not near enough taste.  The beer supposedly has a 10.8% ABV but you can't discern the alcohol at all in the taste.  Some people might consider that to be a good thing, as for me?  Not so much.  If I'm gonna drink a strong beer I wanna be reminded that I'm drinking a strong beer.  Don't be sneakin' up on me.

This beer is gonna be a "one and done."  I'll finish the sixer, but that's it.  There are better bocks out there and I'll drink 'em.

And now... out to the verandah, for it's a beautiful, sunshiny, and warmish (61 degrees) day out there.  No wind, either!

Saturday

Oh, this just cracks me UP!



The Usual Source is too cute by half in its description:

The Guardian Viral Video Chart has got the perfect solution if everyone has been getting on your goat this week, the kids have been bleating and you've been feeling a bit gruff. Just when you think you have herd everything – we've got the goat version of Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer at number one. And if that's not enough to cheer you up, here's a link to 22 more internet remixes featuring goats, with thanks to Buzzfeed – we kid you not!

The "22 more" link is good, too, even if I didn't recognize but two or three of the artists there*.  It's still funny shit.

And then there's this:



There's sumthin' about bein' a Luddite that works*, yanno?  There are a LOT more of those, here.  Good stuff, too.

*Full disclosure:  (1) Yeah, I'm an OLD Fart.  (2) I send e-cards.  A LOT of 'em.

Today's Happy Hour Soundtrack

We seem to gettin' most of our musical ideers from XM these days and today is no exception.  I heard this while I was oot and aboot this afternoon...

You are here and warm
But I could look away and you'd be gone
Cause we live in a time
When meaning falls in splinters from our lives

That would be Fleetwood Mac, of course, with Bob Welch on lead guitar and vocals.  The Bare Trees album got LOTS of air play back in the day when it first hit the stores.  I was livin' the Good Life in Klamath Falls, Oregon at the time.  Sorta.

Mr. Welch recorded the tune a few years later on one of his solo albums, to wit:



Both versions are worthy, both versions call up memories from Former Happy Days, but in radically different circumstances.  French Kiss was released in 1977 when I was livin' the REALLY Good Life in Westby, Montana... the last year of my second childhood.  The Second Mrs. Pennington and I married the following year and I settled down after that.  Sorta.

OK... Beer Me!  Outdoors!

Random Notes

Said with apologies to Rolling Stone for lifting the title to an on-going feature in the magazine.  At least it used to be but ya can't prove it by me, seein' as how I haven't cracked an RS in about 20 years or more.  But there was a time...

I subscribed to RS back in my plastic hippie days... beginning around 1969 or so... and kept that subscription going until the late '80s, or about 20 years.  I used to save my issues, too, and had about three or four or more one-cubic-foot boxes stuffed full of old Rolling Stones.  Which boxes I carted around with me when I moved... the magazines accompanying me from Boron AFS, CA to Wakkanai, Japan to Klamath Falls, OR to Yokota AB, Japan to Fortuna AFS, ND back to Oregon and then to England and then to... well, ya get the ideer.  It was in 1985... when we moved from Oklahoma City to Dee-troit... that The Second Mrs. Pennington put her foot down and made me throw the things out, along with my equally-large 20-plus-year collection of motorcycle magazines.  I kept the RS subscription going for another few years but the issues always went out in the trash when we were done reading them... TSMP made sure of that.

I told her those things would be valuable some day and she'd be sorry we threw away a gold mine; it turns out I was wrong about that.  Well, sorta wrong.  I had all of those issues... and more.

―:☺:―

The Beloved Wings finished up a two-game road trip to the Left Coast last evening, winning one and losing one... a shoot-out win over the hapless Tiburons last evening and a heartbreaking 2-1 loss to El-Eh night before last.  Last night's win vaulted the Wings from 10th place in the West to fourth.  Who'd a thunk it that two measly points would make that much difference in the standings?  Well it did, and that's coz things are pretty tight in the West, except for the Ducks and the hated Blackhawks, who are running away and hiding from everyone else.  I don't recall the previous shortened season bein' this tight, but then again I don't remember a LOT o' things.

―:☺:―

We took Happy Hour out on the verandah yesterday and the chances are pretty good we'll do the same today.  It' still not very warm here on The High Plains o' New Mexico... only in the low 50s... but that's warm enough, provided the wind stays down.  We're beginning to not like this winter thing... ENOUGH, already.

―:☺:―

And finally... Happy Sequester Day!  That's all I'm gonna say on the subject, mainly coz I'm SICK TO FUCKING DEATH of it.

Casual Friday...

... that would be tomorrow, right?  Or Not.



Heh.  That's pretty good as well as bein' pretty much the ONLY hockey you'll see on ESPN.

But while we're on about "Casual Friday..."  I used to HATE that day, coz "casual" really isn't; the day should be called "Corporate Casual Friday."  When EDS broke down and authorized a Casual Friday I had to go out and buy a whole buncha new clothes, mainly because there was nuthin' in my closet in between suits and Levi's... me bein' the sort that would NEVER do "Dockers."  But then we did.  And sport shirts instead of tee shirts.  All that crap.

It got worse, too.  About a year later EDS went to an all-corporate-casual dress code so WE went back to The Men's Wearhouse (and similar places) to acquire a new wardrobe.  It ain't cheap to dress casual, lemmee tell ya.  I was also stuck with about seven or eight suits hangin' in the closet, none of which would see more than one or two wearings for the remainder of my civilian career.

That said, we (a) saved back a couple o' suits when we retired... one dark, one light (for weddings, funerals, and other formal events) and (b) took one of those suits to the cleaners today.  It's been hanging in my closet since this occasion:

That would be SN1's commissioning ceremony in May, 2000 which, coincidentally, was also the last time I wore that particular suit.  So, yeah... it needed to go to the cleaners.  I have a wedding to attend in March and we DO want to look our best.  Or a reasonable facsimile thereof.

Ur Doin' It Wrong...

Air Frame: The Air Force Honor Guard Drill Team practices a new routine on the drill pad at Keesler AFB, Miss., Feb. 19, 2013. (Air Force photo by Kemberly Groue)

The pointy end goes the other way.

We Are Pissed

I did my 2012 taxes this afternoon, seein' as how we were in receipt of our final outstanding 1099s a couple o' few days ago (that would be sometime around the 20th of this month), and we are shocked.  There have been numerous articles published in the press and elsewhere to the effect that roughly half of all Americans don't pay ANY income tax.  Here's an excerpt from one such article:

1) About 46.4 percent of U.S. households didn’t pay federal income taxes in 2011. Mitt Romney’s right about that.

(Tax Policy Center)

So there's that, for starters, and I am NOT in that 46.4% of Americans who pay no income tax.  Imagine my surprise and disgust that, after about three hours of labor-intensive tax preparation, I find I have to write checks to both the Feds and the State o' New Mexico, the latter of which will ding my bank account to the tune o' just slightly less than one thousand Yankee Dollars... and that's after deducting about 15 grand in uncompensated medical expenses.  I find it both interesting and troubling that a person living on a pittance of pensions from a military retirement, private pension plan, and Social Security  pays that goddamned much (85% of said SS payments are taxable, go figure, as is all of both my other pensions). I don't mind paying my fair share... but what the feds and the State o' New Mexico consider "fair" and what **I** think is fair are widely divergent.

Yeah, I know... First World Problems... we has 'em. I suppose I shouldn't bitch, piss, and moan, mainly because I'm blessed that I live in the USofA and not somewhere else. Still and even... I don't get it.  I must not be doin' sumthin' right.

Today's Happy Hour Soundtrack...

... is inspired by a photo in this month's Nat Geo:

Forgive the serious reflections down the center of the photo... I could have taken the time to fix them but I didn't.  The photo is most definitely worth viewing full-scale, which is actually larger than the original in the magazine.

On to our tune...



I had the occasion to view sakura on numerous occasions while I was in Nippon; each and every opportunity was memorable.  I never did view the blossoms at night, though... and never realized what I missed until I saw this month's NatGeo.

Ah, well.  There are a LOT of things I've missed in life; this is but one.

O! The Humanity!

" ...it's a terrific crash, ladies and gentlemen. It's smoke, and it's flames now ... and the frame is crashing to the ground, not quite to the mooring-mast. Oh, the humanity and all the passengers screaming around here. I told you, I can't even talk to people whose friends are on there. Ah! It's–it's–it's–it's ... o–ohhh! I–I can't talk, ladies and gentlemen. Honest, it's just laying there, a mass of smoking wreckage."

Don't recognize the quote?  Go here.

About Time

The meme is near and dear to my heart; mebbe the US will lift the embargo after Raul fades away in 2018.  That would make perfect sense and I would have the option of buying Cuban cigars legally.  Not that I would, mind you... the things are seriously overpriced and the product from non-Cuban manufacturers is just as good, often at half the cost.  It would be nice to have the option, though.

Today's Happy Hour...

... will be slightly delayed while I wait for feeling to come back to my upper lip.  Yes, I'm recently home from yet another installment of Adventures In Modern Dentistry, this time it was to take impressions for my new bridges and implants.  Dr. Thompson had to numb me up for a little laser clean-up work and to remove and replace the temporary upper bridge I've been wearing since September last.  There's light at the end of the tunnel: our new implants and bridges are scheduled to be installed on March 20th.  Yays! and Huzzah!

There's no reason to delay today's Happy Hour soundtrack, though.  We'll be listening to a lot of this sorta stuff (sambas!) once I can feel my lip again...



I heard this tune on XM while I was out and about this afternoon.  There was a point in time when I was a BIG fan o' Brazil '66 and I'm still pretty much a fan.  Just not as much as I used to be.

The Sky Is Falling... In a Couple o' Different Flavors

First a couple o' toons from the Usual Source o' such things...

Mr. Ramirez kinda puts this in perspective, doesn't he?

And then there's this, from the Usual USAF Source:

BRAC Again: With the sequestration deadline just days away, Air Force officials are once again urging Congress to consider another round of base realignment and closures. Air Force Secretary Michael Donley said last week the Pentagon's forthcoming Fiscal 2014 budget request, which is set to go to Congress in a few weeks, would include a request for more base realignment and closure. "We continue to believe BRAC authority is a tool we urgently need to allow [the Defense Department] to divest excess infrastructure and meet other needs, including modernization," said Donley on Feb. 22 at AFA's Air Warfare Symposium in Orlando, Fla. "Given sequestration, it's even more important for Congress to give DOD BRAC authority to pursue health care reforms that will help us control costs," he added. Air Combat Command boss Gen. Mike Hostage said he realizes BRAC is a "touchy topic," but said it could be critical to ensuring that the command remains mission capable in light of the steep budget cuts that sequestration would bring. ACC is set to transition to a state of tiered readiness, which means that the command will place any unit not deployed or preparing to deploy in "dormant status," said Hostage during a Feb. 21 interview with the Daily Report at the symposium. "I need to close one out of every three" ACC bases, he said. In its Fiscal 2013 budget request, DOD asked for two new rounds of BRAC—one in 2013 and one in 2015—but Congress turned down the proposal.

—Amy McCullough

Yeah, Congress can't agree on relatively easy budget reductions and/or something as simple as enacting Simpson-Bowles... so they'll entertain more base closures.  Don't hold your breath, Mr. Donley.  

On a better note...

Air Frame: Airmen prepare a B-1B Lancer for a night mission in US Central Command's area of responsibility on Feb. 21, 2013. The bomber, assigned to the 28th Bomb Wing at Ellsworth AFB. S.D., is operating as part of the 34th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron from a undisclosed air base in Southwest Asia. (Air Force photo by SrA. Joel Mease)  (Click on image above to reach larger version.)

I think the Bone is THE most beautiful aircraft in the inventory today.  YMMV, Gentle Reader, but that's my pick.

An Update to Today's First Post

The sun came out about 20 minutes ago, which event prompted ME to get out, as well.  A couple o' few different views o' the latest WX event...

That would be the Portales Intra-city waterway, winter and summer versions.  Just for the contrast that's innit, Gentle Reader.  Here's the view of the intra-city, looking west (heretofore unseen):

For those of you unfamiliar with the southwest... we have no drainage systems like all y'all do back east.  That's what the streets are for in this part o' the world.

And finally... contrasting views of the Casa Inmóvil de Pennington...

I much prefer the latter over the former.  That will come and I hope it's soon.