RenegadeRider

This past weekend marked the third anniversary of the Iraq war. Anti-war protests were scheduled in many communities all across the country, and even all around the world. Not to be outshone, the Reno lefties held their own protest. It included many of the usual suspects, such as A.N.S.W.E.R. and Code Pink, both with strong Marxist/Stalinist ties. They marched through the downtown casino area and finished up at the Federal building. They had their usual assortment of signs such as "Bush is the terrorist" and "Impeach Bush" etc. In opposition we joined forces with the local Patriot Warrior group and some students from the UNR College Republicans. They had prepared a large number of signs and we brought our flags. We were stationed at the Federal building to greet them as they arrived. We should note that the operation did not seem as smooth and polished as the San Diego PW group. I considered the message on many of the signs to be caustic insults against ...

Protest Warrior group before the arrival of the anti-war group.

The usual suspects, Int'l A.N.S.W.E.R wa in attendance.

The Code Pink contigent.

Standard message.

Typical messages. I don't understand the "Pick Fruit". Note the happy faces.

Our back yard. The mountains at sunrise.

It's been cold and snowy the last week or so. It usually melts off fairly early and doesn't constitute a major problem. It just makes the cars very dirty. I had my first meeting with the cardiologist. He insisted that I walk at least an hour EVERY day. I get no excuses for snow, other inclement weather, or any other cheap excuse. This is going to make me tired.

Moving day has come and gone. It was raining the whole day. We even saw a double rainbow form horizon to horizon. Dianne thinks it was an good-luck omen. It doesn't show on the photo. We have now moved in. The boxes are mostly unpacked. Our garage is now crammed full of empty moving boxes. Maybe someday we'll even be able to put our cars in there. We wanted to put some items in our back garage. The ground was too soggy to be able to drive on so some things didn't get where we wanted. Every day the house inches into a better, more desirable order and we get more comfortable in our nest. I have had my first meeting with my cardiologist and have begun my cardiac rehab program. Dianne really liked the doctor. I agreed with her. He was much better than the cardiologist in San Diego.

I have been very negligent about posting for a very long time. This may (or not) be the continuation of the process. Our house is due to close on Wednesday. Life has been hectic. Mix the move with the doctor’s instructions that I should restrict and strenuous physical exertion. We have been busy squeezing in all the last moment social visits that seem to always get neglected when the time seems to be a luxury. Perhaps it is a reminder that time is never a luxury. Today was packing day. The crew was very good. I have heard stories of packing crews even packing the garbage. Tomorrow the truck gets loaded. And then we are off. My recent adventure. Three weeks ago Friday I awoke at about 5:30 am. While lying in bed I noticed some minor chest pain. I then arose and went down stairs to begin the day. I soon experienced other symptoms that I recognized as possible heart attack symptoms. I informed Dianne about what was happening. We were soon ready and drove to a nearby hospital...

I baked the pumpkin pie.

Apple Pie toook two bakers.

A large anti-war rally was scheduled yesterday. I joined the festivities, but on the opposing side. Smash has this photo . He added, The protestors may have had hundreds of people and dozens of messages, but this is how KFMB chose to end their brief segment on the event. That, my friends, is what I call "stealing the media." The anti-war protesters – well, primarily, their message was anti-Bush. They were so wrapped up in hating the president that logical, rational arguments were almost non-existent. They wanted to “Impeach Bush” and “Dump Bush”. Their signs noted in a-hundred-and-one ways that they thought he was stupid. They also claimed that “Bush Lied, thousands died”, demonstrating their originality, and that Bush was a racist because of Katrina. There were also attacks on religion, i.e. “those fascists, Pat Robertson and friends that want to make the USA a police state”. A few also mentioned the war. One of the most memorable characters carried a sign saying that...

Do you ever have the feeling that the news media is arrogant and even not on our side? Did you ever notice they seem to ask stupid questions that are not about the story, but more about them? Check out this news conference discussing the emergency preparations in New Orleans where General Honore slapped down a reporter that was "Stuck on Stupid". Male reporter: General, a little bit more about why that's happening this time, though, and did not have that last time... Honore: You are stuck on stupid. I'm not going to answer that question. We are going to deal with Rita. This is public information that people are depending on the government to put out. The audio file and the transcript can be found here . And the video can be found here .

One of the requirements for pilot training is to make a solo cross-country flight with a round trip greater than 150 miles. The plane I had been flying, a Cessna 172 with a 160 HP engine was temporarily down for maintenance so I decided to use the club’s Cessna 150. I knew that the 150 would be a bit slower but I thought it would still easily do the job. On the outbound leg I noticed a fire in the mountains to the east. I advised the Ramona tower and was informed that the air tankers were already working the fire. My flight was from San Diego to Apple Valley and had to cross over mountains that were more than 6000 feet high. I chose 8500 feet as a cruising altitude. This would give me ample altitude should I encounter any downdrafts. The 150 climbed its’ heart out and finally reached 8500 feet just in time to cross over the mountains. Over the mountains I met a UAL 737. I rocked my wings vigorously to let him know that I did not want to land at LAX. Then it was an easy descent...

Clikc this picture for a 9/11 Tribute.

Today President Bush gave a speech at a Naval base in Coronado, CA commemorating sixty years since victory over Japan in WWII. He arrived yesterday. We had heard that protesters would be trying to make his life miserable. We met at a principal intersection in Coronado for an Operantion Thank You rally. We had flags and signs saying things like, " Thank You US Military" and other similar thoughts. Since a large part of the traffic was military Personnel and employees on their way home, the reception was great . The military personnel appreciate it. One car even drove by displaying a license plate reading in part, "POW". We thanked him profusely. While we were there a large black SUV turned left in front of us. The rear window opened and none other than Donald Rumsfeld leaned out, waved and said thank you - to us.

We watched the National Geographic special, Inside 9/11 . It was two separate 2 hour programs telling the story of what and how it came to happen. I think it told the story very well and I reccommend it highly.

Curmogeonly & Skeptical has a good explanation on the history of civilization .