But I have not forgotten:
The Scout Law
A Scout is:
Trustworthy
Loyal
Helpful
Friendly
Courteous
Kind
Obedient
Cheerful
Thrifty
Brave
Clean
Reverent
It has been a very long time.
The way things should be…
It is both proper and fitting for a man to occasionally enjoy a good pipe or a fine cigar and a nice nip of whisky. These are both noble, manly pursuits.
It is also both proper and fitting for a man’s wife to nag him unceasingly for doing so.
I knew it…
We thought that the US federal government had reached a new low at Ruby Ridge. Then came Waco, and now we have the disgusting story of Elián Gonzales. This boy’s mother risked her life and, as it turned out, lost it in order to spring herself and her child from the enemy prison. She died, he lived, and now, contrary to the elementary principles of humanity and the will of the majority of those concerned, we threw the kid back over the wall in order to make propaganda for a communist dictator. There is no way that we, as a nation, can ever make amends for that act.
-Jeff Cooper
The Unvarnished Truth
I suppose a celebrity feels that his popularity is what makes him a celebrity, and he cannot be popular unless he appears to be a vulgarian. If this is the truth, it is certainly a very sad truth, for we who are fortunate enough to use the noble English language are personally befouled when we desecrate it. In my opinion, it is far better to be a snob than a slob.
-Jeff Cooper
More good news.
I’d like to wish Nathan hardy congratulations for bagging his first bull elk. Nathan took this beastie at a range of 15 yards. It is impressive that he was able to get that close to the elk, and even more impressive that he was able to keep his wits about him and attend to business once he did.
Did you learn anything?
Last week, whilst in Vietnam, an idiot reporter asked President Bush a question, to the effect of, “Do you think that there is anything that the {failed} Vietnam war could teach you about how you should be handling the Iraqi war?”
I didn’t listen to his response because I was talking over it. My response was, “Of course. When there’s a war that needs to be won, best get in, win it decisively, and above all, do that fast before the democrats get a chance to get themselves elected to a majority in congress just to make sure you loose it.”
That should be the lesson we learned from Vietnam.
Reading List
I have recently finished reading Mark Twain’s Roughing It. This book is a fine account of life in the American “old west,” and has much to recommend it. The above link is to the Project Gutenberg electronic text in its entirety.
Previous to this, I had the pleasure to indulge in Jerome Klapka Jerome’s Three Men in a Boat. I had never before heard of this second author before I stumbled upon him one day whilst repeatedly mashing the Random Article button at Wikipedia. I can’t imagine why I’ve never heard of this book before, but nothing that I could say would add anything to the book’s excellence. Just read it.
The most striking feature of these books is that both of them were well worn by the time the year 1900 rolled around, but they are both compellingly modern.
Most recently, however, I have come across the writings of the late Col. Jeff Cooper, deceased just this 25th of September. Col. Cooper’s commentaries are located here.They are nothing short of amazing. If you don’t have a sense of humor, don’t bother. Col. Cooper’s writings will probably make some people madder than they would be after being forced to listen to hours of the Rush Limbaugh Show.
Col. Cooper was harsh, unyielding, macho, sure of himself, honorable, and as sharp as they come. He had a wonderful gift of language that I am jealous of. Even if you disagree with him %80, read his commentaries anyway because you will learn something new. Start at the beginning, and understand that it will take a bit of time to understand that he’d been writing these commentaries for many years prior to 1993, but they were published elsewhere. So you will find that there is some context missing.
Among other things, you will learn of the tyranny committed by our government in the 1990s against our own citizens. I don’t remember much about the Waco, TX incident because I was in high school at the time, and was thus rather disconnected. Col. Cooper points out that whilst the Branch Dividians were all nuts, they hadn’t broken any laws, and the ATF really didn’t have any good reason to go kicking in their doors. You’ll also learn about another episode in which an ATF sniper assassinated the wife of a suspect while she was holding her baby. Why don’t I remember any of this?
For some reasons unknown to me at this point, I feel it necessary to insert the disclaimer that I think both David Koresh and Randy Weaver were unqualified nut cases. Col. Cooper asks the questions that I never heard during that time, namely, since when is it ok for armed agents of the United States Government to assassinate our fellow citizens, no matter how crazy they may be, without even holding a trial. I should also disclaim that shooting our citizens is a far worse offense than the warrant-less interception of phone calls made to or from known enemies over-seas. I can’t wait to read up to the Elian Gonzalez debacle. The fact remains that Janet Reno is still walking around in freedom. In a just and righteous world, this would not be.
Another thing that I learned was that the Clinton administration ordered the destruction of many fine Springfield Armory 1903 and M1 Garand rifles, as well as a number of M1911 Colts, despite the facts that these are not weapons that you find in the hands of your typical street-thug. These weapons won WWI and WWII for us. They were our heritage. Our grandmothers and grandfather paid for them with their scrap metal, their war bonds, and often with their lives. It was our right to collect them and hold on to them as living snippets of our shared history, and pass them to our children and grand-children, preserving the stories of how they saved nations and ended the holocaust. In many ways, this was the parallel of melting-down the Liberty Bell, crumpling-up the Declaration of Independence and hurling it into the recycling bin, or demolishing Montecello to the purpose of installing a parking garage. This was a great shame that will never be reported.
Col. Cooper advocated granting the franchise only to those who had read and understood the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, the Federalist Papers, and de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America. Upon reading this, I hardily agreed, even though by those standards I would be disqualified. I have not digested the last two of the four mentioned, as they are talked-about, but never seriously studied in our public (Government) schools today. Before the next election, I will have read them all, and perhaps the anti-Federalist papers for good measure.
The great thing about Col. Cooper is that he was tough as nails, and unapologetic for it. His writings demonstrate what it means to be a man. He wrote them in a way that is convincing because his words are plain, but they are not simple. Col. Cooper was an educated man, and that becomes very clear due to the depth of his words.
In this age of the modern, sensitive “man,” reading Col. Cooper’s work makes me want to stand up and shout “Yes!” He got it right. He reached me. I, for one, will not be feminized.
A new addition.
Amy and I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Cassandra Evelyn Shiver into the world! 7 lbs, 3 oz. in weight and 21 inches in length. Delivered at around 3:00 November 14th at Huntsville Hospital. Mother and child are doing well. Father is giddy, and justifiably so.
Congratulations to Chris and Karen, and welcome to the world, little one. May you lead a blessed, happy, and long life!
