Posted on

Some heroes gets their rewards and others get, something else

EFD Celebrates 2,500 posts since 2005. Weird huh?

It was nice, if only for a short time, to view something on TV news other than blatant speculation over what happened to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. I speak of the somewhat solemn ceremony that is taking place in the White House as I write this. Of course, the airing of the ceremony on CNN didn’t last long because Jake Tapper had to come in and talk and talk some more. The White House to do is honoring 24 soldiers from World War II, Korea and Vietnam with the Medal of Honor. These were Black, Hispanic and Jewish soldiers — the majority awarded posthumously — who were originally presented the Distinguished Service Cross. A congressional review upgraded the awards from the nation’s second highest for valor to the top decoration. It isn’t stated on the special “microsite” but because these brave soldiers were Black, Hispanic and Jewish is why they were not originally awarded the Medal of Honor.

First U.S. WWII hero. Dorris Miller, remains without Medal of Honor
First U.S. WWII hero. Dorris Miller, remains without Medal of Honor

It is always a glimpse at a real hero to read the citations for the MOH dating back to the Civil War. Well, some may argue that certain ones didn’t deserve the award. Read the citations and make your mind up on your own. And, it’s certainly not to say that a few of the awards are, shall we say, unusual, such as the Unknown Soldiers of Rumania (now spelled Romania) and Italy, both from World War I.

Speaking of unrewarded heroes, which we were, I see there is a development in getting additional recognition for perhaps the first American hero of World War II. I wrote a story more than a decade ago as to how locals in the Waco, Texas, area had made a push to upgrade a Navy Cross — now the Navy’s second highest — to the Medal of Honor. The award was third highest behind the MOH and the Navy Distinguished Service Medal when Cook Third Class Doris Miller received the medal.

Miller was a Black farm hand from the Waco area when he joined the Navy in 1939 and ended up as a mess attendant and cook, one of the few jobs open to African Americans back then. Miller, called “Dorie” by his shipmates, was stationed on the battleship U.S.S. West Virginia berthed in Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Miller responded to the attack along with shipmates. Miller helped move the ship’s captain, whose wounds proved mortal, to a place of greater safety on the bridge. Although he had not been trained to fire anti-aircraft weapons, Miller took over such a gun battery and began shooting at Japanese planes. Stories passed down through the years say Miller even shot down one of the planes, though it was never proven. Miller was portrayed in the 2001 movie “Pearl Harbor” by Cuba Gooding Jr.

There remains a long-held notion that Miller would have been a Medal of Honor recipient had he have been white. To the day, the effort to have Miller nominated for the MOH has failed. It is most fitting, though not a substitute for a Medal of Honor, that the Republican U.S. House member, Rep. Bill Flores, who represents that area of Central Texas, is leading an effort to have the Waco Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital named after Dorie Miller. I used that facility for my VA primary care for some seven years. And I believe that I played a pretty major role as a journalist in keeping the facility from closure. I know that sounds conceited and probably is. But it is nevertheless the truth. The publication I wrote for back then has the hardware to prove it . That isn’t taking anything from them. Papers like rewards and they got recognition for my work and that of a couple of others.

Okay, so now what? We go back to endless coverage of Flight 370? It is a mystery, though one wonders how long it will sustain the coverage cable news is giving it? Only fate and the suits know for sure. So until next time, … “All Right. Good night.”

Posted on

It ain’t too weird to buy a chili burger in Austin

Methinking, kindasorta like methinks though not, about hamburgers. My thinking zeros into chili burgers in particular. Why chili burgers in particular? Well, I got to searching this Web thing, you see? I finally locked onto Austin. Doesn’t everyone? That’s certainly what Austin folks think. Keep Austin Weird. Come on, The weirdest thing about Austin is Leslie Cochran and now she he is dead.

That isn’t to say Austin lacks its charms. That big, beautiful pink granite structure that just puts the rest of the city scape to shame is primarily among those charms. That is, more so when the Legislature isn’t in session. But my thinking of Austin prompted me to see if the Texas Chili Parlor was still alive and kicking. Apparently, it still is.

A few blocks from the Capitol on Lavaca Street is a favorite of pols and state workers and whomever else want a touch of Texas when it was. Yes, I’m talking about that era, the 70s, man. Hey, man, catch a buzz on Gwad-a-loopy and get a chili burger. I can’t remember the first time I went to Texas Chili Parlor. It was sometime in the late 70s, when the Armadillo World Headquarters was becoming past tense. I don’t know whether I was just hungry for a chili burger or a bowl of chili. I suppose I could have ordered both. That certainly wasn’t my first chili burger.

I don’t remember my first. I do remember a particularly good burger at the little place on Hwy. 96 in Kirbyville, Texas. That was in high school when I would visit the little town for football or girls or, most likely, girls. I can’t recall the place’s name. It’s not there, at least in the sense it was there in the early 70s. Maybe it’s a tanning salon/eight-liner joint now. Who the hell knows.

My work as a reporter took me to the Texas Capitol — in the state capital of Austin — every now and then. This was at the turn of the century. Sounds really freakin’ old doesn’t it? I’m talking about the 21st century. I met an old flame there once while on break from some mindless committee hearing who happened to be working in the Big Building while going for her Ph.D. at “The University.” We met and walked over to the chili parlor. Boy had she changed, in every way but appearance. She still looked young and quite nice, with the exception of her pants suit. The brown one. I could still see her in those plaid shorts and white polo the day she was feeding me grapes as we were sitting in an East Texas cow pasture waiting for Bugs Henderson to play, or was it Ray Wylie Hubbard? Upon seeing each other all these years I was kind of stunned to see that she looked as if hadn’t aged a bit, and told her. I could see that she didn’t want to remark on my looks.

“God, you look old as the Visigoths of the Reconquista.” Or else, she could lie. She might lie under certain conditions but she was always very frank about things and people who weren’t born with her cute little face.

Well, 500-plus words now and I’ve not even gotten close to what I wanted to write about. Yes, definitely, if you crave a chili burger, or even chili, when you find yourself in downtown Austin head over to Texas Chili Parlor and remember back when you could eat chili, sip a cold Lone Star and hear you some Waylon and Willie.

At least Willie is still around. Have a great, EFD, weekend!

Posted on

Crimean affair is just another day of the wolf and the sheepdog running the hen house

We Americans always get ourselves in a tizzy when Russia turns to the provocation that it has shown over many years. It is too bad we didn’t get ourselves as worked up when George W. Bush invaded Iraq under false pretenses, thus destabilizing the entire Southwestern Asia region.

I am no fan of Vladimir Putin. When Bush said upon visiting with the Russian leader at the president’s Texas ranch that “I was able to get a sense of his soul.” That was supposed to be something good. I think, as is the case with many of W’s exploits, he had a great misreading of what the Bush perceived as his Russian counterpart’s soul.

Just as was with the case with Iraq — bolstered by Fox News and a mainstream media that was too lazy or foolish not to check out our claims — there is reportedly much support for the Russian invasion and occupation of Crimea. That goes for both many Russians as well as Ukrainians in name only (UINO) traditionally of Russian heritage. In fact, former Soviet Union leader Nikita Khrushchev’s daughter believes that many of the older residents of Crimea are still angry that Khrushchev gave Crimea back to the Ukraine 60 years ago.

This world has complicated relationships among its residents. Just imagine how those Texans would feel who moved to the Mexican state of Tamaulipas in the 70s for cheap living and good fishing, only to have the United State annex it today. Well, some residents would be pretty damn happy about it. Then given the area’s interactions with other settlers and invaders, others would be understandably outraged.

Ms. Kruschcheva’s interview provides some interesting thoughts on the Russian move into Crimea. That includes the Russian people  and their thinking of the past as almost a dogma. Another National Geographic article adds yet another layer to the story that is the move made by Russia into Crimea. It’s a gas. No, I am really talking about gas. Yet another petroleum product over which world leaders can go crazy!

Russia, like it’s predecessor the Soviet Union, is a natural enemy of the U.S. That is how many see it who explore realpolitik for a living. Often, those adversarial relations can often be compared to the old Warner Bros. cartoon featuring Ralph the Wolf and Sam the Sheepdog. Each morning the two go to work, doing their thing. Ralph steals chickens and battles Sam daylong as the sheepdog fights tooth and nail to protect his flock. At the end of the day, they punch out on the clock.

Ralph says: Good night, Sam! Sam says: Good night Ralph!

President Obama and the EU will get all huffy with Russia. Putin will be his blustery self. Hopefully, the casualty count will remain few. Russia and its long-time semi-ally and partial foe, the U.S. clock out on another day of running the world.

Good night, Vladimir! Good night, Barrack!

Posted on

The actions of our democracy were outside the chambers last night, sorry to say

This was the first State of the Union address I have missed in several years. I did not miss watching it because of something the President did or didn’t do. I missed it because I knew every good deed that was proposed in the past year was usually grounded because of our pitiful excuse of a Congress.

Here is a full transcript of the 2014 SOTU. Beginning with:

 “Tonight this chamber speaks with one voice to the people we represent: It is you, our citizens, who make the state of our union strong.”

What would the President say? “Man, this whole stinkin’ union sucks!”

During this past year, the minority within the House majority, along with the minority of the Senate minority, caused the federal government to shut down for half a month. We, the workers (part-time ones like me too) were all paid but we worried about whether that would happen because our senior U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R, Texas, held up the legislation allowing us our pay to the end of that sorry saga. I wish someone viable would appear to defeat Cornyn, the piece of dusty furniture that occupies our vaunted Senate succession from the great Sen. Sam Houston, who was for those from another planet was also President of the Republic of Texas and Governor of Texas. That is, until Big Sam was overthrown by Texas citizens of the United States who wanted to undo all the state had fought for by succeeding from this nation over slaves they couldn’t even afford.

No viable candidate brings me to the end of the SOTU. Read it yourself. I will. I have read the excerpts and the pundits, some of them. I rest my case, whatever it was on the SOTU because the scourge of idiocy showed itself outside the great congressional chamber where first, one of Cornyn’s opponents “showed his ass,” as we say down in Texas.

Rep. Steve Stockman, R, Texas is leaving Congress to run against Cornyn. That’s the good news, that he’s leaving Congress. Stockman, unseated congressional legend Rep. Jack Brooks who served 42 years in office. I wasn’t living in that district then. I am living in that district now but because of redistricting we have a brand new piece of Republican Tea Party furniture. Thankfully, I was ably represented back then, in 1995, by Rep. Charlie “Good Time Charlie” Wilson, D, Texas of “Charlie Wilson’s War” fame. Not that I could have done anything to stop the looney tunes Stockman from taking office. During Stockman’s tenure he was reviled for a bizarre incident in which he received a fax from Michigan militia types just after the Oklahoma City Bombing. While Stockman was accused of having received the message before the bombing and not reporting it to the FBI (he did report it), his sanity and ethics were questioned for sending the fax to the NRA. Plus his ties to a Michigan militia seemed also shady.

But Stockman, these days, seems shady-er, shadier. Cornyn’s high-powered Republican operatives have dug deep and found all kinds of dirt about financial shenanigans from Stockman and his missing in action from the House.  

Then there was that whole Stockman, figuratively thank you, showing his ass last night by walking out on the SOTU. The Senate candidate said he did so to protest the President abusing his power yadda, yadda. What a moron you are Steve Stockman.

Finally, the Republicans also made news for the party’s former Marine and FBI agent member of the House who last night threatened to throw a reporter off the balcony of the Capitol and to break the reporter into. That was because the reporter had the gall to ask Rep. Michael Grimm, R, N.Y., a question that was about some campaign finance irregularities rather that something from the SOTU on which the congressman probably had ready for a quote.

It turns out Grimm has a long history of bad behavior toward the press and others as well as many ethical and financial questions trailing his time in Congress.

Both congressional Republican morons think they can speak to reporters on their own volition. But that isn’t the way our democracy works. As it turned out, I made the better decision to just keep a copy of the SOTU handy to read at my own pace. Besides, all the action, if you want to call it that, was outside the chamber. Unfortunately.

Stupidity be thy name, Mr. GRIMM and Mr. STOCKMAN.

Posted on

Behold the approach of the seven warning signs of Christmas

For the past several weeks I should have looked out for them. But today was when it really hit. I am talking about the seven warning signs of Christmas.

Now I’m not sure what all the signs are. But here I am on “Black Friday” — Really a horrible name for a day that is supposed gold for merchants who may finally get their books back in “black” — and here I was walking in Kroger earlier only to hear:

“Just hear those sleigh bells jingling,
Ring ting tingling too
Come on, it’s lovely weather
For a sleigh ride together with you … “

Such a wonderful song to hear where it has been cold enough to wear a sweater and a coat the last few days, only to get the shorts ready for another day or so.

Other signs abound. Commercials with Christmas music on TV. Santa Claus appears, though not ready for his IFR ride across the planet, at least the jolly fat man gets his lists together and gives them an initial once-over. Fat f***, I bet he doesn’t have Type II diabetes either. Ho, ho, ho.

Folks are out, shopping ahead of the crowd for their fake Christmas tree. As if the supply of faux spruces and firs will disappear, just as, did the old growth longleaf pines that once majestically stood over our deep pineywood lands in East Texas.

I can’t remember ever having anything but a real tree for Christmas when I was growing up in a small town in the boonies of Southeast Texas. Back in the day, property wasn’t all posted off to keep everyone away. The way things worked was that you went on the big forest tracts, most owned by the big timber companies, and you found a little tree to cut. It was the same as going hunting for squirrel, rabbit and even deer, when I was a kid. I’m not sure when it began, that the timber companies began leasing their land to sportsmen. That is, the land where they didn’t cut trees. And you just didn’t want to go on the timber company land for a tree anymore. You started worrying about things like trespassing. Or being hassled by a range rider, a private dick for large landowners who normally would just shoo you off the property on which you were trespassing. Some would hold you for the law. Some nuts would even shoot you.

My Daddy never had a chain saw. He always cut a tree with an ax, or a hatchet. I imagine if I went for a real Christmas tree, I would fell it with a chain saw. I’m too damn old and achy to cut down a tree with a hatchet

I am sure I will have to make a trek to some of the area shopping cities for work. But I have no interest in doing such for my own fun.

Anyway, the tell-tale signs are here. Can hear what I hear? Can you see what I see? Oh yes.

I had fun that one time I got to play Santa in a mall for a newspaper story. You know, a first-hand account, behind the scenes, an undercover account, the man behind the suit. But in the end, I had to go back and write a story about it. Ah, the damned quid pro quo again, taking me on a ride.

Oh well, ho ho ho. We’ll see more of these warning signs. Get ready for them. Have a good time. While you can