tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-233004332024-03-13T00:35:46.552-07:00Mr. Constitution EncyclopediaDouglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.comBlogger179125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-64847146530840501012009-09-14T16:49:00.001-07:002009-09-14T16:50:16.025-07:00Old Glory<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguWeX-ywM2GO2_4oOa7G9GEYEyeXaIT1PsmAP3jW4mEnUgzcIUIXyGHWkNmBvr5fRYhzl98MUUzIryONzkQO_uKPidi68Bx4u4WiZoG1FOWSUTeihMaeA4hDvClYt0u3g_BpqE/s1600-h/usaflag01.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 265px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguWeX-ywM2GO2_4oOa7G9GEYEyeXaIT1PsmAP3jW4mEnUgzcIUIXyGHWkNmBvr5fRYhzl98MUUzIryONzkQO_uKPidi68Bx4u4WiZoG1FOWSUTeihMaeA4hDvClYt0u3g_BpqE/s400/usaflag01.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381474653592395314" /></a>Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-37696608792553143272009-08-25T16:49:00.001-07:002009-08-25T16:49:46.909-07:00Thomas Jefferson Quote about Tyranny and Liberty"When the people fear their government, there is tyranny; when the government fears the people, there is liberty" - - Thomas JeffersonDouglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-55547408732862403442009-08-09T09:40:00.000-07:002009-08-09T09:42:18.994-07:00Hot Air Steamers Troopathon 2009 Award<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIBsE3m4P2rfJwwEB-5t9IICYE9N5duRsY2UmCPaB3IyVq4QC1S4B_xWVpckN2y1ZQSw5CLz4fRxRM_Yi22x-bV2SxYR5XPkbzRSB_bvDKBnVn7QIkLVELvuZHdYWaN0oTCjIA/s1600-h/maf_hotairsteamers_trophy.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 147px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIBsE3m4P2rfJwwEB-5t9IICYE9N5duRsY2UmCPaB3IyVq4QC1S4B_xWVpckN2y1ZQSw5CLz4fRxRM_Yi22x-bV2SxYR5XPkbzRSB_bvDKBnVn7QIkLVELvuZHdYWaN0oTCjIA/s200/maf_hotairsteamers_trophy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5368005272112261954" /></a>Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-66893056954729237492009-05-28T14:03:00.001-07:002009-05-28T14:16:11.128-07:00Pictures of Walid Shoebat At UCLA<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52OoMffRGNngr_0bDLhXIsxKgmhBqRTbZI9vtSGkw2a3_FXoJ4ZRppb4DHZx34cXqazVXiQQOrEMCH2L1KREkvi8JdzM38YJ5fqEbb2165rLjliI8ZEQUuPLzcqRHr38pLycc/s1600-h/downtownLA+019.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj52OoMffRGNngr_0bDLhXIsxKgmhBqRTbZI9vtSGkw2a3_FXoJ4ZRppb4DHZx34cXqazVXiQQOrEMCH2L1KREkvi8JdzM38YJ5fqEbb2165rLjliI8ZEQUuPLzcqRHr38pLycc/s320/downtownLA+019.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340986580853782434" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2ilGK7l2m-Xvh0GOElbmNFSgTD9g8xSkHeXRFJTxPy9BiVS0WDDt-3HpYFEEuvHDOKzcQ3w-2h3hhEJHsReipauhsML7VuvnB9H_LKNOTH8PIkObdoz07bu9nSeojdDiv2qMJ/s1600-h/downtownLA+018.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2ilGK7l2m-Xvh0GOElbmNFSgTD9g8xSkHeXRFJTxPy9BiVS0WDDt-3HpYFEEuvHDOKzcQ3w-2h3hhEJHsReipauhsML7VuvnB9H_LKNOTH8PIkObdoz07bu9nSeojdDiv2qMJ/s320/downtownLA+018.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340986578952119250" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7mOMM3kC50ksyjENX1QSylR-wm7iwZ-LP82k64lWQ-nWJ8pXQtDFJD7-68asyuEzD6Hmf0AuTDj-7cfyymoDSPqfdSkd-ROf7zlFcs5bZKQ7cmXskgFxz7gOXIWOAtSkLkC8/s1600-h/downtownLA+017.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf7mOMM3kC50ksyjENX1QSylR-wm7iwZ-LP82k64lWQ-nWJ8pXQtDFJD7-68asyuEzD6Hmf0AuTDj-7cfyymoDSPqfdSkd-ROf7zlFcs5bZKQ7cmXskgFxz7gOXIWOAtSkLkC8/s320/downtownLA+017.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340986571147702434" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiaCRUqRg0LbsMZ5r6GUR3SC7RshIkO51p35bd9XqOTWa0FX9AIGZxG5GeBZxWwxbO1Yj3aDHb8EIICMzDb7igqM7slmVA-IN_CQIgdo_9194iVfs18aY9GImkXESBlUxG63lL/s1600-h/downtownLA+016.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiaCRUqRg0LbsMZ5r6GUR3SC7RshIkO51p35bd9XqOTWa0FX9AIGZxG5GeBZxWwxbO1Yj3aDHb8EIICMzDb7igqM7slmVA-IN_CQIgdo_9194iVfs18aY9GImkXESBlUxG63lL/s320/downtownLA+016.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5340986567057866082" /></a><br />Above are myself posing with Walid Shoebat, Kamal Saleem, and General Paul Vallely.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-17065382987053515232009-05-20T18:30:00.001-07:002022-03-04T12:10:33.550-08:00Thomas Jefferson Quote: Liberty and TyrannyWhen people fear the government, that is tyranny. When the government fears the people, that is liberty.
Thomas JeffersonDouglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-52813373788152312772009-04-06T13:31:00.000-07:002009-04-06T13:36:12.048-07:00Famous Quotes, President Calvin CoolidgeOur government rests upon religion. It is from that source that we derive our reverence for truth and justice, for equality and liberty, and for the rights of mankind. Unless the people believe in these principles, they cannot believe in our government. There are only two main theories of government in the world. One rests on righteousness, and the other rests on force. One appeals to reason, the other appeals to the sword. One is exemplified in a republic, the other is represented by despotism. The government of a country never gets ahead of the religion of a country. There is no way by which we can substitute the authority of law for the virtue of man. Of course we can help to restrain the vicious and furnish a fair degree of security and protection by legislation and police control, but the real reforms which society in these days is seeking will come as a result of our religious convictions, or they will not come at all. Peace, justice, humanity, charity - these cannot be legislated into being. They are the result of Divine Grace. - - Calvin CoolidgeDouglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-82684383734734452872009-03-28T04:53:00.000-07:002009-03-28T05:17:49.890-07:00When Grandchildren Grow<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo9b8GMuzDbXC3qiESbmwsQDOZqGh1rnDpXLLMlTi2ab_S3Lm1J_tjs0FXx1ekURq9KOy6GWSAIZM6ZpVpo1sR9nzpUNy4gjQT8aJWP12EGpabzmhA63EG5E04Fvg4sER3Reiu/s1600-h/Picture+019.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo9b8GMuzDbXC3qiESbmwsQDOZqGh1rnDpXLLMlTi2ab_S3Lm1J_tjs0FXx1ekURq9KOy6GWSAIZM6ZpVpo1sR9nzpUNy4gjQT8aJWP12EGpabzmhA63EG5E04Fvg4sER3Reiu/s400/Picture+019.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5318207665296136210" /></a><br />My wife and I are fairly young to be grandparents, yet we have two of them. We had our son fresh out of high school, and though it was not the wisest thing to get married so young, we have managed to fall deeper in love over the years, and will celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary this year. Our children, as did we (and our own parents), decided to start families at a fairly young age. My son's son was born when Christopher was a mere 23 years old. My daughter had her son at 18. Yesterday, after living together for a year or so (not thrilled about them "living in sin," but accepted it because it was necessary to hold the emerging family together until they determined marriage was the right thing to do) my son and his girlfriend became Husband and Wife. I am thrilled for them. Little Ezekiel, my precious one year old grandson, will be better off in the long run.<br /><br />Our daughter and her boyfriend are still trying to find their way. Her son, Cortez, is five weeks old (pictured above) and is a joy to have around the house, though his newborn demands means we all get a little less sleep.<br /><br />Watching my grandchildren grow, however, brings a joy that I can't explain. It is different than the love you have for your children. Not a deeper love, or a love not as intense, just different. One thing I can say is that being grandpa is a lot of fun. Nothing brings a tear of joy to your eye faster than coming home from a long day at work and being greeted by your visiting grandson, arms out, excited to see his grandpa.<br /><br />Yeah, my children may have gotten the order of events mixed up a little, having kids young and prior to marriage, but I believe that all children are blessings, and I am reminded of that every time I look deep into the eyes of my blessed grandchildren.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-61669868842213058622009-03-16T10:55:00.000-07:002009-03-16T10:56:32.191-07:00Winning War QuoteHow do you win a war when you are not willing to admit who the enemy is?<br /><br />-- <a href="http://politicalpistachio.blogspot.com">Political Pistachio</a>Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-29342572750264071902008-08-10T11:05:00.000-07:002022-03-04T12:11:50.463-08:00Thomas Jefferson Quote: God Gave Us Liberty“God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the Gift of God?” Thomas Jefferson 1781Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-26333841702970917042008-07-21T10:51:00.000-07:002008-12-10T06:02:44.390-08:00A Day At The Zoo With Ezekiel<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilt9MitzEvpBW1kqTr-Bdz757wCGiyFK5-F8eabh_FYQWAzqmPACvqwqEdEdv1XcP9KB3sqYDzY-cc1rIJUIexWQo4kbF5M8PyimWJYxGpc-8006Y8gdPa99l6xNn9oJntfuwz/s1600-h/Ezekiel+Posing.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilt9MitzEvpBW1kqTr-Bdz757wCGiyFK5-F8eabh_FYQWAzqmPACvqwqEdEdv1XcP9KB3sqYDzY-cc1rIJUIexWQo4kbF5M8PyimWJYxGpc-8006Y8gdPa99l6xNn9oJntfuwz/s320/Ezekiel+Posing.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225527993549616770" /></a><br />My grandson, Ezekiel, went to the San Diego Zoo for the first time last Saturday. He is eight and a half months old, and most enjoyed the flamingos, llamas, and children. A few of the monkeys caught is attention for a moment, and some of the more colorful birds made him smile, but the llamas and flamingos caught his attention, and it was difficult to break him away.<br /><br />The day was pleasant, low seventies, and except near the end of the day, Ezekiel was a perfect little gentleman.<br /><br />I can't wait until next year when we take him back. He will understand what he is looking at more, and will be in awe. It will be fun.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-81947016978640274332008-07-16T05:35:00.000-07:002008-12-10T06:02:44.471-08:00What Would Reagan Do?<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0QUi7j-eonSWmgDCy1oHwezKcYRGPltEApXva2L5vfG62wIIEJtl06l6SRGqqrO8d6_Fi1Vx0-UNwTk0fBoewA4XcIBR6-HhUmOBmANA1ysWZdDHiH7EXVxkiQHr9MJr3YZpj/s1600-h/2002314347840111441_rs.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0QUi7j-eonSWmgDCy1oHwezKcYRGPltEApXva2L5vfG62wIIEJtl06l6SRGqqrO8d6_Fi1Vx0-UNwTk0fBoewA4XcIBR6-HhUmOBmANA1ysWZdDHiH7EXVxkiQHr9MJr3YZpj/s320/2002314347840111441_rs.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5223590111818652722" /></a><br />The transcript to Ronald Reagan's famous 1964 speech in support of Goldwater:<br /><br />_________________<br /><br />Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you and good evening. The sponsor has been identified, but unlike most television programs, the performer hasn't been provided with a script. As a matter of fact, I have been permitted to choose my own words and discuss my own ideas regarding the choice that we face in the next few weeks.<br /><br />I have spent most of my life as a Democrat. I recently have seen fit to follow another course. I believe that the issues confronting us cross party lines. Now, one side in this campaign has been telling us that the issues of this election are the maintenance of peace and prosperity. The line has been used, "We've never had it so good."<br /><br />But I have an uncomfortable feeling that this prosperity isn't something on which we can base our hopes for the future. No nation in history has ever survived a tax burden that reached a third of its national income. Today, 37 cents out of every dollar earned in this country is the tax collector's share, and yet our government continues to spend 17 million dollars a day more than the government takes in. We haven't balanced our budget 28 out of the last 34 years. We've raised our debt limit three times in the last twelve months, and now our national debt is one and a half times bigger than all the combined debts of all the nations of the world. We have 15 billion dollars in gold in our treasury; we don't own an ounce. Foreign dollar claims are 27.3 billion dollars. And we've just had announced that the dollar of 1939 will now purchase 45 cents in its total value.<br /><br />As for the peace that we would preserve, I wonder who among us would like to approach the wife or mother whose husband or son has died in South Vietnam and ask them if they think this is a peace that should be maintained indefinitely. Do they mean peace, or do they mean we just want to be left in peace? There can be no real peace while one American is dying some place in the world for the rest of us. We're at war with the most dangerous enemy that has ever faced mankind in his long climb from the swamp to the stars, and it's been said if we lose that war, and in so doing lose this way of freedom of ours, history will record with the greatest astonishment that those who had the most to lose did the least to prevent its happening. Well I think it's time we ask ourselves if we still know the freedoms that were intended for us by the Founding Fathers.<br /><br />Not too long ago, two friends of mine were talking to a Cuban refugee, a businessman who had escaped from Castro, and in the midst of his story one of my friends turned to the other and said, "We don't know how lucky we are." And the Cuban stopped and said, "How lucky you are? I had someplace to escape to." And in that sentence he told us the entire story. If we lose freedom here, there's no place to escape to. This is the last stand on earth.<br /><br />And this idea that government is beholden to the people, that it has no other source of power except the sovereign people, is still the newest and the most unique idea in all the long history of man's relation to man. <br /><br />This is the issue of this election: whether we believe in our capacity for self-government or whether we abandon the American revolution and confess that a little intellectual elite in a far-distant capitol can plan our lives for us better than we can plan them ourselves.<br /><br />You and I are told increasingly we have to choose between a left or right. Well I'd like to suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There's only an up or down: [up] man's old -- old-aged dream, the ultimate in individual freedom consistent with law and order, or down to the ant heap of totalitarianism. And regardless of their sincerity, their humanitarian motives, those who would trade our freedom for security have embarked on this downward course.<br /><br />In this vote-harvesting time, they use terms like the "Great Society," or as we were told a few days ago by the President, we must accept a greater government activity in the affairs of the people. But they've been a little more explicit in the past and among themselves; and all of the things I now will quote have appeared in print. These are not Republican accusations. For example, they have voices that say, "The cold war will end through our acceptance of a not undemocratic socialism." Another voice says, "The profit motive has become outmoded. It must be replaced by the incentives of the welfare state." Or, "Our traditional system of individual freedom is incapable of solving the complex problems of the 20th century." Senator Fulbright has said at Stanford University that the Constitution is outmoded. He referred to the President as "our moral teacher and our leader," and he says he is "hobbled in his task by the restrictions of power imposed on him by this antiquated document." He must "be freed," so that he "can do for us" what he knows "is best." And Senator Clark of Pennsylvania, another articulate spokesman, defines liberalism as "meeting the material needs of the masses through the full power of centralized government." <br /><br />Well, I, for one, resent it when a representative of the people refers to you and me, the free men and women of this country, as "the masses." This is a term we haven't applied to ourselves in America. But beyond that, "the full power of centralized government" -- this was the very thing the Founding Fathers sought to minimize. They knew that governments don't control things. A government can't control the economy without controlling people. And they know when a government sets out to do that, it must use force and coercion to achieve its purpose. They also knew, those Founding Fathers, that outside of its legitimate functions, government does nothing as well or as economically as the private sector of the economy.<br /><br />Now, we have no better example of this than government's involvement in the farm economy over the last 30 years. Since 1955, the cost of this program has nearly doubled. One-fourth of farming in America is responsible for 85% of the farm surplus. Three-fourths of farming is out on the free market and has known a 21% increase in the per capita consumption of all its produce. You see, that one-fourth of farming -- that's regulated and controlled by the federal government. In the last three years we've spent 43 dollars in the feed grain program for every dollar bushel of corn we don't grow.<br /><br />Senator Humphrey last week charged that Barry Goldwater, as President, would seek to eliminate farmers. He should do his homework a little better, because he'll find out that we've had a decline of 5 million in the farm population under these government programs. He'll also find that the Democratic administration has sought to get from Congress [an] extension of the farm program to include that three-fourths that is now free. He'll find that they've also asked for the right to imprison farmers who wouldn't keep books as prescribed by the federal government. The Secretary of Agriculture asked for the right to seize farms through condemnation and resell them to other individuals. And contained in that same program was a provision that would have allowed the federal government to remove 2 million farmers from the soil.<br /><br />At the same time, there's been an increase in the Department of Agriculture employees. There's now one for every 30 farms in the United States, and still they can't tell us how 66 shiploads of grain headed for Austria disappeared without a trace and Billie Sol Estes never left shore.<br /><br />Every responsible farmer and farm organization has repeatedly asked the government to free the farm economy, but how -- who are farmers to know what's best for them? The wheat farmers voted against a wheat program. The government passed it anyway. Now the price of bread goes up; the price of wheat to the farmer goes down.<br /><br />Meanwhile, back in the city, under urban renewal the assault on freedom carries on. Private property rights [are] so diluted that public interest is almost anything a few government planners decide it should be. In a program that takes from the needy and gives to the greedy, we see such spectacles as in Cleveland, Ohio, a million-and-a-half-dollar building completed only three years ago must be destroyed to make way for what government officials call a "more compatible use of the land." The President tells us he's now going to start building public housing units in the thousands, where heretofore we've only built them in the hundreds. But FHA [Federal Housing Authority] and the Veterans Administration tell us they have 120,000 housing units they've taken back through mortgage foreclosure. For three decades, we've sought to solve the problems of unemployment through government planning, and the more the plans fail, the more the planners plan. The latest is the Area Redevelopment Agency.<br /><br />They've just declared Rice County, Kansas, a depressed area. Rice County, Kansas, has two hundred oil wells, and the 14,000 people there have over 30 million dollars on deposit in personal savings in their banks. And when the government tells you you're depressed, lie down and be depressed.<br /><br />We have so many people who can't see a fat man standing beside a thin one without coming to the conclusion the fat man got that way by taking advantage of the thin one. So they're going to solve all the problems of human misery through government and government planning. Well, now, if government planning and welfare had the answer -- and they've had almost 30 years of it -- shouldn't we expect government to read the score to us once in a while? Shouldn't they be telling us about the decline each year in the number of people needing help? The reduction in the need for public housing?<br /><br />But the reverse is true. Each year the need grows greater; the program grows greater. We were told four years ago that 17 million people went to bed hungry each night. Well that was probably true. They were all on a diet. But now we're told that 9.3 million families in this country are poverty-stricken on the basis of earning less than 3,000 dollars a year. Welfare spending [is] 10 times greater than in the dark depths of the Depression. We're spending 45 billion dollars on welfare. Now do a little arithmetic, and you'll find that if we divided the 45 billion dollars up equally among those 9 million poor families, we'd be able to give each family 4,600 dollars a year. And this added to their present income should eliminate poverty. Direct aid to the poor, however, is only running only about 600 dollars per family. It would seem that someplace there must be some overhead.<br /><br />Now -- so now we declare "war on poverty," or "You, too, can be a Bobby Baker." Now do they honestly expect us to believe that if we add 1 billion dollars to the 45 billion we're spending, one more program to the 30-odd we have -- and remember, this new program doesn't replace any, it just duplicates existing programs -- do they believe that poverty is suddenly going to disappear by magic? Well, in all fairness I should explain there is one part of the new program that isn't duplicated. This is the youth feature. We're now going to solve the dropout problem, juvenile delinquency, by reinstituting something like the old CCC camps [Civilian Conservation Corps], and we're going to put our young people in these camps. But again we do some arithmetic, and we find that we're going to spend each year just on room and board for each young person we help 4,700 dollars a year. We can send them to Harvard for 2,700! Course, don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting Harvard is the answer to juvenile delinquency.<br /><br />But seriously, what are we doing to those we seek to help? Not too long ago, a judge called me here in Los Angeles. He told me of a young woman who'd come before him for a divorce. She had six children, was pregnant with her seventh. Under his questioning, she revealed her husband was a laborer earning 250 dollars a month. She wanted a divorce to get an 80 dollar raise. She's eligible for 330 dollars a month in the Aid to Dependent Children Program. She got the idea from two women in her neighborhood who'd already done that very thing.<br /><br />Yet anytime you and I question the schemes of the do-gooders, we're denounced as being against their humanitarian goals. They say we're always "against" things -- we're never "for" anything. <br /><br />Well, the trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant; it's just that they know so much that isn't so. <br /><br />Now -- we're for a provision that destitution should not follow unemployment by reason of old age, and to that end we've accepted Social Security as a step toward meeting the problem.<br /><br />But we're against those entrusted with this program when they practice deception regarding its fiscal shortcomings, when they charge that any criticism of the program means that we want to end payments to those people who depend on them for a livelihood. They've called it "insurance" to us in a hundred million pieces of literature. But then they appeared before the Supreme Court and they testified it was a welfare program. They only use the term "insurance" to sell it to the people. And they said Social Security dues are a tax for the general use of the government, and the government has used that tax. There is no fund, because Robert Byers, the actuarial head, appeared before a congressional committee and admitted that Social Security as of this moment is 298 billion dollars in the hole. But he said there should be no cause for worry because as long as they have the power to tax, they could always take away from the people whatever they needed to bail them out of trouble. And they're doing just that.<br /><br />A young man, 21 years of age, working at an average salary -- his Social Security contribution would, in the open market, buy him an insurance policy that would guarantee 220 dollars a month at age 65. The government promises 127. He could live it up until he's 31 and then take out a policy that would pay more than Social Security. Now are we so lacking in business sense that we can't put this program on a sound basis, so that people who do require those payments will find they can get them when they're due -- that the cupboard isn't bare?<br /><br />Barry Goldwater thinks we can.<br /><br />At the same time, can't we introduce voluntary features that would permit a citizen who can do better on his own to be excused upon presentation of evidence that he had made provision for the non-earning years? Should we not allow a widow with children to work, and not lose the benefits supposedly paid for by her deceased husband? Shouldn't you and I be allowed to declare who our beneficiaries will be under this program, which we cannot do? I think we're for telling our senior citizens that no one in this country should be denied medical care because of a lack of funds. But I think we're against forcing all citizens, regardless of need, into a compulsory government program, especially when we have such examples, as was announced last week, when France admitted that their Medicare program is now bankrupt. They've come to the end of the road.<br /><br />In addition, was Barry Goldwater so irresponsible when he suggested that our government give up its program of deliberate, planned inflation, so that when you do get your Social Security pension, a dollar will buy a dollar's worth, and not 45 cents worth?<br /><br />I think we're for an international organization, where the nations of the world can seek peace. But I think we're against subordinating American interests to an organization that has become so structurally unsound that today you can muster a two-thirds vote on the floor of the General Assembly among nations that represent less than 10 percent of the world's population. I think we're against the hypocrisy of assailing our allies because here and there they cling to a colony, while we engage in a conspiracy of silence and never open our mouths about the millions of people enslaved in the Soviet colonies in the satellite nations.<br /><br />I think we're for aiding our allies by sharing of our material blessings with those nations which share in our fundamental beliefs, but we're against doling out money government to government, creating bureaucracy, if not socialism, all over the world. We set out to help 19 countries. We're helping 107. We've spent 146 billion dollars. With that money, we bought a 2 million dollar yacht for Haile Selassie. We bought dress suits for Greek undertakers, extra wives for Kenya[n] government officials. We bought a thousand TV sets for a place where they have no electricity. In the last six years, 52 nations have bought 7 billion dollars worth of our gold, and all 52 are receiving foreign aid from this country.<br /><br />No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. So, governments' programs, once launched, never disappear. <br /><br />Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth.<br /><br />Federal employees -- federal employees number two and a half million; and federal, state, and local, one out of six of the nation's work force employed by government. These proliferating bureaus with their thousands of regulations have cost us many of our constitutional safeguards. How many of us realize that today federal agents can invade a man's property without a warrant? They can impose a fine without a formal hearing, let alone a trial by jury? And they can seize and sell his property at auction to enforce the payment of that fine. In Chico County, Arkansas, James Wier over-planted his rice allotment. The government obtained a 17,000 dollar judgment. And a U.S. marshal sold his 960-acre farm at auction. The government said it was necessary as a warning to others to make the system work. <br /><br />Last February 19th at the University of Minnesota, Norman Thomas, six-times candidate for President on the Socialist Party ticket, said, "If Barry Goldwater became President, he would stop the advance of socialism in the United States." I think that's exactly what he will do.<br /><br />But as a former Democrat, I can tell you Norman Thomas isn't the only man who has drawn this parallel to socialism with the present administration, because back in 1936, Mr. Democrat himself, Al Smith, the great American, came before the American people and charged that the leadership of his Party was taking the Party of Jefferson, Jackson, and Cleveland down the road under the banners of Marx, Lenin, and Stalin. And he walked away from his Party, and he never returned til the day he died -- because to this day, the leadership of that Party has been taking that Party, that honorable Party, down the road in the image of the labor Socialist Party of England.<br /><br />Now it doesn't require expropriation or confiscation of private property or business to impose socialism on a people. What does it mean whether you hold the deed to the -- or the title to your business or property if the government holds the power of life and death over that business or property? And such machinery already exists. The government can find some charge to bring against any concern it chooses to prosecute. Every businessman has his own tale of harassment. Somewhere a perversion has taken place. Our natural, unalienable rights are now considered to be a dispensation of government, and freedom has never been so fragile, so close to slipping from our grasp as it is at this moment. <br /><br />Our Democratic opponents seem unwilling to debate these issues. They want to make you and I believe that this is a contest between two men -- that we're to choose just between two personalities.<br /><br />Well what of this man that they would destroy -- and in destroying, they would destroy that which he represents, the ideas that you and I hold dear? Is he the brash and shallow and trigger-happy man they say he is? Well I've been privileged to know him "when." I knew him long before he ever dreamed of trying for high office, and I can tell you personally I've never known a man in my life I believed so incapable of doing a dishonest or dishonorable thing.<br /><br />This is a man who, in his own business before he entered politics, instituted a profit-sharing plan before unions had ever thought of it. He put in health and medical insurance for all his employees. He took 50 percent of the profits before taxes and set up a retirement program, a pension plan for all his employees. He sent monthly checks for life to an employee who was ill and couldn't work. He provides nursing care for the children of mothers who work in the stores. When Mexico was ravaged by the floods in the Rio Grande, he climbed in his airplane and flew medicine and supplies down there.<br /><br />An ex-GI told me how he met him. It was the week before Christmas during the Korean War, and he was at the Los Angeles airport trying to get a ride home to Arizona for Christmas. And he said that [there were] a lot of servicemen there and no seats available on the planes. And then a voice came over the loudspeaker and said, "Any men in uniform wanting a ride to Arizona, go to runway such-and-such," and they went down there, and there was a fellow named Barry Goldwater sitting in his plane. Every day in those weeks before Christmas, all day long, he'd load up the plane, fly it to Arizona, fly them to their homes, fly back over to get another load.<br /><br />During the hectic split-second timing of a campaign, this is a man who took time out to sit beside an old friend who was dying of cancer. His campaign managers were understandably impatient, but he said, "There aren't many left who care what happens to her. I'd like her to know I care." This is a man who said to his 19-year-old son, "There is no foundation like the rock of honesty and fairness, and when you begin to build your life on that rock, with the cement of the faith in God that you have, then you have a real start." This is not a man who could carelessly send other people's sons to war. And that is the issue of this campaign that makes all the other problems I've discussed academic, unless we realize we're in a war that must be won.<br /><br /><br /><br />Those who would trade our freedom for the soup kitchen of the welfare state have told us they have a utopian solution of peace without victory. They call their policy "accommodation." And they say if we'll only avoid any direct confrontation with the enemy, he'll forget his evil ways and learn to love us. All who oppose them are indicted as warmongers. They say we offer simple answers to complex problems. Well, perhaps there is a simple answer -- not an easy answer -- but simple: If you and I have the courage to tell our elected officials that we want our national policy based on what we know in our hearts is morally right.<br /><br />We cannot buy our security, our freedom from the threat of the bomb by committing an immorality so great as saying to a billion human beings now enslaved behind the Iron Curtain, "Give up your dreams of freedom because to save our own skins, we're willing to make a deal with your slave masters." Alexander Hamilton said, "A nation which can prefer disgrace to danger is prepared for a master, and deserves one." Now let's set the record straight. There's no argument over the choice between peace and war, but there's only one guaranteed way you can have peace -- and you can have it in the next second -- surrender.<br /><br />Admittedly, there's a risk in any course we follow other than this, but every lesson of history tells us that the greater risk lies in appeasement, and this is the specter our well-meaning liberal friends refuse to face -- that their policy of accommodation is appeasement, and it gives no choice between peace and war, only between fight or surrender. If we continue to accommodate, continue to back and retreat, eventually we have to face the final demand -- the ultimatum. And what then -- when Nikita Khrushchev has told his people he knows what our answer will be? He has told them that we're retreating under the pressure of the Cold War, and someday when the time comes to deliver the final ultimatum, our surrender will be voluntary, because by that time we will have been weakened from within spiritually, morally, and economically. He believes this because from our side he's heard voices pleading for "peace at any price" or "better Red than dead," or as one commentator put it, he'd rather "live on his knees than die on his feet." And therein lies the road to war, because those voices don't speak for the rest of us.<br /><br />You and I know and do not believe that life is so dear and peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery. If nothing in life is worth dying for, when did this begin -- just in the face of this enemy? Or should Moses have told the children of Israel to live in slavery under the pharaohs? Should Christ have refused the cross? Should the patriots at Concord Bridge have thrown down their guns and refused to fire the shot heard 'round the world? The martyrs of history were not fools, and our honored dead who gave their lives to stop the advance of the Nazis didn't die in vain. Where, then, is the road to peace? Well it's a simple answer after all.<br /><br />You and I have the courage to say to our enemies, "There is a price we will not pay." "There is a point beyond which they must not advance." And this -- this is the meaning in the phrase of Barry Goldwater's "peace through strength." Winston Churchill said, "The destiny of man is not measured by material computations. When great forces are on the move in the world, we learn we're spirits -- not animals." And he said, "There's something going on in time and space, and beyond time and space, which, whether we like it or not, spells duty."<br /><br />You and I have a rendezvous with destiny. <br /><br />We'll preserve for our children this, the last best hope of man on earth, or we'll sentence them to take the last step into a thousand years of darkness.<br /><br />We will keep in mind and remember that Barry Goldwater has faith in us. He has faith that you and I have the ability and the dignity and the right to make our own decisions and determine our own destiny.<br /><br />Thank you very much.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-2087154124912277992008-07-06T23:19:00.001-07:002022-03-04T12:12:49.404-08:00John Adams Quote: Loss of Freedom is Liberty Lost Forever"But a Constitution of Government once changed from Freedom, can never be restored. Liberty, once lost, is lost forever." -- John Adams, letter to Abigail Adams, July 17, 1775Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-23175967929259268462008-06-28T22:44:00.000-07:002008-06-28T22:45:35.481-07:00Wisdom of Thomas JeffersonI predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.<br /><br />Thomas Jefferson<br />3rd President of the United States (1743-1826)Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-27371383020406396512008-05-04T09:43:00.001-07:002008-12-10T06:02:44.638-08:00Playing With The Enemy Movie<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqSBSq3X6DpG2lfx29tngqSmy9ZdgW3l78GHXA873bTHxFECQGh7LZ4iStNqZphjfzy2efvM-giExVcs6yASN6toZfdLpjYUIq0Y21u-qHvYJ0BBM9jSiqSU6iulJAZ5EhoE6uUg/s1600-h/PWTE_02a.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqSBSq3X6DpG2lfx29tngqSmy9ZdgW3l78GHXA873bTHxFECQGh7LZ4iStNqZphjfzy2efvM-giExVcs6yASN6toZfdLpjYUIq0Y21u-qHvYJ0BBM9jSiqSU6iulJAZ5EhoE6uUg/s200/PWTE_02a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5196559096558870450" /></a><br />Gary W. Moore is a humble man, calm and friendly, happy to discuss the life of his father. After all, the tale of his father is larger than life, and a story we can learn from - because it is a tale about second chances, but second chances in a direction that we don't always expect.<br /><br />Gary's father, Gene Moore, began his journey to the pages of <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Playing With The Enemy </a>as a 15 year old baseball prodigy that was drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1940. The outbreak of World War II, however, demanded that the young phenom join the military. Gene Moore joined the United States Navy, and his tour began in North Africa where he played for the Navy baseball team to entertain the troops. The duty was not always easy, or away from danger, evidenced by the death of the center fielder when an explosion on the field took the young ballplayer's life. Later, as the war effort concentrated more on the theater in Europe, Gene Moore was sent on a secret mission to guard German POWs in Louisiana. These prisoners were very special, however, and their capture was a secret to the outside world for a tremendous reason. The submarine these German sailors were the crew of was the <a class="links" href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/u505.htm">U-505</a> (now on display in <a href="http://www.msichicago.org/whats-here/exhibits/u-505/">Chicago, Illinois at the Museum of Science and Industry</a>), inside which the United States procured the Enigma Machine and all of the code books that went with it, enabling us to stay on top of the changes in the code, and therefore assisting us in winning the war against Germany. During this time that Gene Moore guarded these prisoners, primarily out of his desire to play baseball (and perhaps a little boredom), Gene Moore and his fellow military baseball players taught the enemy soldiers how to play America's pastime.<br /><br />The story does not end there, however. Tragedy, and the storms of life that can crush dreams, and enable the birth of new ones, came to Gene Moore's life. It was then that he learned about second chances, and the importance of the unexpected things in life.<br /><br />This inspirational true story is being made into a film by Producer Gerald R. Molen via his WhiteLight Entertainment production company. Molen's and White Light Entertainment's credits include Schindler's List, Minority Report, Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Twister, Casper, Rain Man and The Flintstones. White Light Entertainment has to its credit 33 Academy Award nominations, 19 Academy Awards, including two for the best picture and a total box office collection of $4 billion from the 14 movies it has produced so far. The screenplay was written by WhiteLight director of development David Ranes and the author's son, Toby Moore, who's also set to portray his grandfather. The film is in production now and is slated to be released during the first quarter of 2009.<br /><br />I first met Gary W. Moore, the author of <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Playing With The Enemy</a>, at a book signing in San Diego on <a href="http://dvgibbsnews.blogspot.com/2006/10/networking-is-good-thing.html">October 1, 2006</a>. A month later <a href="http://dvgibbsnews.blogspot.com/2006/11/evening-with-gary-w-moore.html">we got together in Pasadena</a>, California after another book signing, and it was then that I realized I had made a wonderful friend. Since then, Gary W. Moore has appeared on my <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio">Political Pistachio Radio Show</a> a number of times (<a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio/2007/04/07/playing-with-the-enemy-on-political-pistachio-radio">April 7, 2007</a>; <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio/2007/06/16/political-pistachio-and-playing-with-the-enemy">June 16, 2007</a> with his publisher: <a href="http://www.savasbeatie.com/">Ted Savas</a>; and <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio/2008/01/27/Political-Pistachio-discusses-">January 26, 2008</a>).<br /><br />And honestly, <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Playing With The Enemy</a> is a great read, and a book that is not about World War II and Baseball as much as it is about the human spirit.<br /><br />As for the movie? Well, I hear there is going to be some great acting talents in the film, but the producer has not released the names, yet. However, when we know who those actors are that are in the film, you will find out about it on <a href="http://www.politicalpistachio.com/">Political Pistachio</a>, and of course at that time we will have Gary W. Moore return to <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio">Political Pistachio Radio</a> to discuss the latest news regarding this blockbuster film.<br /><br />Also see Gary interviewed by CNN <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/media.htm#15">here</a>, and the Fox affiliate in Milwaukee <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/media.htm#17">here</a>.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-48511291220910521322008-04-04T10:16:00.000-07:002008-12-10T06:02:44.795-08:00Getting it all done. . .<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTvp_1i6CXS31KRgyePiEHpvRVrGUT0iW5662ciqUsRP-io0kiI6fQrFmJt9O_INrJT1M10DRz1Fp2idr8uBWavwpv_arpF2CctoBGA8UaSUESLtf03sCZURsxvlx-nNX5FjSl/s1600-h/bridge.bmp"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTvp_1i6CXS31KRgyePiEHpvRVrGUT0iW5662ciqUsRP-io0kiI6fQrFmJt9O_INrJT1M10DRz1Fp2idr8uBWavwpv_arpF2CctoBGA8UaSUESLtf03sCZURsxvlx-nNX5FjSl/s320/bridge.bmp" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5185442585194283586" /></a><br />I last wrote on this blog with the enthusiastic intention of paying more attention to this ever-important site. Well, so much for that.<br /><br />Now that I have spent a lot of time on my <a href="http://dvgibbsblogs.blogspot.com">political blogs</a> and <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio">my radio show</a>, I realized it was time to return to this blog again, and of course work on my books.<br /><br />Time has a funny way of slipping through one's fingers.<br /><br />This morning I also decided to create a new blog (like I have enough time for all of my sites as it is) called <a href="http://liberaltrollhaven.blogspot.com">Liberal Troll Haven</a>. Liberal Trolls, you see, fascinate me. Well, that, and I don't have the ability to leave well enough alone, I guess. Anyhow, rather than inundate Political Pistachio with posts that battle the trolls, I thought I would create a site specifically for battling these harbingers of idiocy. And, I have left the comment section wide open for their responses. May be interesting.<br /><br />As for the book, <a href="http://dvgibbsdeception.blogspot.com">The Way of Deception</a> has changed drastically. Viewpoint is still in its infancy.<br /><br />Okay, enough of this blogging stuff, back to the books.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-62012207452058092022008-02-04T13:36:00.001-08:002008-02-04T13:36:51.309-08:00The Journey So FarAs I continue to build my market through blogs and my <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/">Blog Talk Radio</a> Show (<a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio">Political Pistachio Radio</a>)<br />I am discovering relationships with authors (and a few other people I feel greatly humbled to know) that are inspiring me to move forward, and continue my journey to wherever the Lord wants me to be.<br /><br />The first author I got to know, and one that inspired me to continue on with my goal of becoming a published writer, is <a href="http://www.jakonrath.com/">J.A. Konrath</a>. Joe is one of those people that I can relate to. An average guy with an above average ability to write. Like me, he endured a lot of rejections in the industry, until suddenly he landed a big deal. Konrath secured a six-digit deal for his Jack Daniels Detective series, and wrote about his journey along the way. It was the June, 2004 issue, page 32, "After the BIG SALE" by J.A. Konrath, that first caught my attention. The article outlines in a journal style the road to becoming published for Joe Konrath, and how a regular guy suddenly found himself joining the club of published writers. . . and with a six figure deal to boot. That journal about his excitement, and how it all happened for him, was inspiring, as was a later article in the September 2005 issue of <a href="http://www.writersdigest.com/">Writer's Digest</a>. The title of that article was "After the Book Comes Out," and the lessons I learned from the article inspired me, and made me remember that although the publishing game seems to be primarily about those with name recognition getting published, unknowns can still pull it off. I later had the opportunity to meat with Konrath, and Mario Acevedo, in San Diego at the Mysterious Galaxy bookstore. . . and had dinner with them afterward. It was about six months after that meeting that I began to blog.<br /><br />In July of 2006, <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/07/dan-bessie-jeanne-johnson-myself-and.html">while on a trip to the Oregon Coast I met another writer</a>, and an up and coming publisher, by the name of <a href="http://www.bluelupinpress.com/">Dan Bessie</a>. Meeting him and his wonderful wife was the <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/07/back-from-vacation-in-oregon-and-ready.html">highlight of that trip</a>, and the relationship continues to this day, although now Dan and his wife live in France. Well, if ever I visit France, I have a friend to visit too. Anyway, getting to know Dan added to what I had already learned from Konrath, "Don't stop trying, and enjoy the journey."<br /><br />On October 2, 2006 I <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/10/networking-is-good-thing.html">attended a booksigning in San Diego </a>that changed my path as a writer drastically. I had found out about a book called "<a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Playing With The Enemy</a>" by Gary W. Moore while browsing through the internet - and, being the history and baseball enthusiast that I am, <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/10/networking-is-good-thing.html">I just had to attend that book signing</a>. Along with Gary at that booksigning was Jeff Edwards, author of "<a href="http://www.thedeckplate.com/">Torpedo</a>." Well, as a Navy veteran, I thought to myself, "What a great opportunity to meet two fantastic writers, one with a book about my beloved Navy, and the other about World War II and baseball." The friendships with them both have been fantastic and inspiring. And out of those friendships also came <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/10/i-joined-military-writers-society-of.html">my acceptance into </a>the <a href="http://www.militarywriters.com/">Military Writers Society of America</a> (through which I met <a href="http://www.geocities.com/militarypoliceofvietnam/">Jim Stewart</a>, author of The Ghosts of Vietnam/Angel of Vietnam), and eventually the <a href="http://www.americanauthorsassociation.com/">American Authors Association</a> as well.<br /><br />Shortly after that, <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/10/i-joined-military-writers-society-of.html">I attended my first Writers Conference</a>. The conference I attended was <a href="http://www.lajollawritersconference.com/">The La Jolla Writers Conference</a> in San Diego, California. After the first day of the conference, and please don't think me horrible for saying this, I didn't feel like I was told anything that I didn't know. Little did I know, the next two days would knock that cocky little attitude right out of my thick skull. In short, I learned a lot.<br /><br />In November of 2006 <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/11/just-completed-reading-playing-with.html">I completed reading Playing With The Enemy</a> and at that time realized that <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Gary W. Moore's book</a> was hands down the best book I had ever read. I had to meet him again and tell him so. Shortly afterward I drove to meet with <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/11/evening-with-gary-w-moore.html">Gary W. Moore in Pasadena</a>, and the man touched me in more ways than just the inspiration of becoming a writer. As a Christian, he helped me realize that the writing isn't just about me, or my book, it is about God's plan for my life. Life is about chances, and second chances, and paths the Lord takes us that we don't even expect. From that day onward, a wonderful friendship has developed, and I feel blessed to know <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Gary W. Moore</a>.<br /><br />Shortly after that, on November 13th, 2006 <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/11/last-night-i-was-on-internet-radio.html">I was a guest on a show </a>called "<a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/mypoint">My Point Radio</a>." The hosts, Dave and <a href="http://www.screwliberals.com/">Jenn</a>, asked me about my work in progress, and about my blogging. Apparently, Jenn was (and is) a fan of my blog, <a href="http://www.politicalpistachio.com/">Political Pistachio</a>, and had mentioned me on a prior occasion on the show. Night Rider, better known now to me as Phil, took it upon himself to learn more about me, and ever since then a friendship with Dave, Jenn and Phil has ensued. That was my first introduction to <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/">Blog Talk Radio</a>, and little did I know, it would be only a matter of time before I was a host myself.<br /><br />In early December of 2006 I had another opportunity to meet an author at the <a href="http://mysteriousgalaxy.booksense.com/NASApp/store/IndexJsp">Mysterious Galaxy Bookstore</a> in San Diego, California. This time I got to meet <a href="http://www.howardvhendrix.com/index.htm">Howard V. Hendrix</a>, a very intelligent mind, and a fantastic person to have the opportunity to speak to. Though I am not in constant touch with him, the <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/12/meeting-howard-v-hendrix.html">meeting with him in that bookstore </a>that night was definitely an experience that broadened my knowledge, and inspired me as a writer. The following day I went out to Imperial east of San Diego to <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2006/12/jim-stewart-and-christmas-in-small-town.html">meet with Jim Stewart at an event </a>where the proceeds of the sales of his book went to the <a href="http://www.woundedwarriors.org/">Wounded Warriors</a> charity, an organization created to support the families of our wounded warriors.<br /><br />On January 7th, 2007 <a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2007/01/last-night-my-computer-crashed.html">my computer crashed</a>, and many of my files were not backed up. The setback regarding my writing projects was severe, and the work on <a href="http://dvgibbsdeception.blogspot.com/">The Way Of Deception </a>in regards to the latest rewrite was completely lost. The devastation affected my writing and my life. But, like any good writer, I got back on the horse and continued on with my writing, trying to recapture in my book what I had lost.<br /><br /><a href="http://douglasvgibbs.blogspot.com/2007/01/radio-host-on-wide-awakes-radio.html">After toying with Wide Awakes Radio</a>, and then their stream going down, on February 24, 2007 my <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio">Political Pistachio radio show</a> premiered on <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/">Blog Talk Radio</a>, and with it the opportunity to further market myself, and help market my fellow writers. In the beginning the show wasn't that great, but as time passed I grew, the show got better, and so did the guests.<br /><br />But you know, I think I will talk about all of that on another post sometime.<br /><br />Well, <a href="http://www.playingwiththeenemy.com/">Gary W. Moore</a> has been a guest three times, and numerous other writers have joined the show too. Bloggers and politicians so far have also graced my little show with their presence. But like I said, that will have to be on another post. This one is long enough already. God Bless, and we'll talk to you soon.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-19497499158647134422008-01-28T19:08:00.000-08:002008-12-10T06:02:44.955-08:00James Houston Turner<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi56bm5Xl5n_4Z_H3pqmKcC-fKASYvvWStn_B8IEevvV_Rd7kRrZQbnQ-BAQg4qPuS56H67CxMBGQNXBr_aNzDmjJd0kR7YTgpTMEuFydOFjvP2nFI1cYpx4XwkLUva2xBTMTMP/s1600-h/turnercrowd.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5160657602095235698" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi56bm5Xl5n_4Z_H3pqmKcC-fKASYvvWStn_B8IEevvV_Rd7kRrZQbnQ-BAQg4qPuS56H67CxMBGQNXBr_aNzDmjJd0kR7YTgpTMEuFydOFjvP2nFI1cYpx4XwkLUva2xBTMTMP/s200/turnercrowd.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />A while back I wanted to post on this, but our friends at Blogger decided for a while that my blog was a Spam Blog - sorry, fellas, it's not.<br /><br />Anyway, on Saturday, January 19th, I drove out to Los Angeles to meet with <a href="http://www.jameshoustonturner.com/">James Houston Turner</a>, the author of <a href="http://www.jameshoustonturner.com/video%20page.htm">The Identity Factor</a>. He had flown out here from Australia to see his son, who is a United States Marine, and to conduct a book signing at <a href="http://www.mystery-bookstore.com/blog/">The Mystery Bookstore</a> in L.A.<br /><br />Before flying out to the United States, he sent invitations to all of his <a href="http://www.myspace.com/jameshoustonturner">MySpace friends</a>, and I am one of those people. I responded saying that I was unable to attend because the book signing interfered with <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio">my radio show</a>. I later changed my showtime, and yes, that is me and Mrs. Pistachio in the picture above talking to <a href="http://www.jameshoustonturner.com/">James Houston Turner</a>.<br /><br />When we met, we hit it off. James had also set aside a book for me and personalized the autograph. I decided to also buy an extra one, and came home with two of his books.<br /><br />Last Saturday we met again, deciding to have a little coffee at a McDonalds in San Diego County. Well, the coffee meeting grew to beyond two hours, and the meeting was fantastic. And in the end, he gave me three books to give away on Saturday when he is a guest on <a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio/2008/02/03/Political-Pistachio-Before-Super-Tuesday">Political Pistachio Radio</a>, and I gave him a bunch of <a href="http://www.politicalpistachio.com/">Political Pistachio</a> bumper stickers.<br /><br />I feel fortunate to have met this writer, and I am reading his book right now. I will give you a report when I am finished.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-85847034862205156752008-01-01T08:23:00.001-08:002008-12-10T06:02:45.114-08:00Salsa Recipe for all of those upcoming Football Games!!!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimI__jPPaIzO5uzEnuQ0RCqifoCidEOFT66ZddAGfxDUGFkcOR8Gs-JLp9M8LHjsIHUVnWcYnZQAPtw0jSwnpiz7kPud3a6TopxZAPrtOeiKlrCoGwE7uGAB04v6VKrrSSmiM7/s1600-h/salsa.JPG"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEimI__jPPaIzO5uzEnuQ0RCqifoCidEOFT66ZddAGfxDUGFkcOR8Gs-JLp9M8LHjsIHUVnWcYnZQAPtw0jSwnpiz7kPud3a6TopxZAPrtOeiKlrCoGwE7uGAB04v6VKrrSSmiM7/s200/salsa.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5150591235889123506" /></a><br />. . .or just for munching on during New Years Day.<br /><br />Have some Tortilla Chips you are in the desperate need to dip into something?<br /><br />Well, Salsa is always a nice treat.<br /><br /><strong><em>Doug's Salsa Recipe</em></strong><br /><br />Ingredients:<br /><br />1 can of RO-TEL ORIGINAL Diced Tomatoes and Green Chiles<br />2-3 Medium Tomatoes (DO NOT REFRIGERATE TOMATOES - refrigeration causes tomatoes to lose their taste a little)<br />1 large lime<br />1 Clove of Garlic<br />3-6 Green Onions<br />Cilantro (optional)<br />1/2 of a Carrot (optional)<br />jalepeno pepper (optional)<br />Salt<br /><br />Double the ingredients for a larger batch.<br /><br /><br />Pour can of diced tomatoes and green chiles into bowl.<br /><br />Cut fresh tomatoes by hand into small pieces, the smaller the better. Do not use food processor or similar device because it makes the salsa taste watered down. I often use Roma Tomatoes - if you do, add one more tomato because they are smaller.<br /><br />Add Tomatoes to bowl.<br /><br />Cut lime in half and squeeze juice into bowl. I often have another lime or two available in case I get a lime that does not produce much juice. If it has seeds, hold the cut side up when you squeeze so that seeds don't fall into mixture. Some folks like less lime and only use a half a lime for this size of a batch.<br /><br />Cut clove of garlic into small pieces and then crush with a fork until it is like a paste. Then add garlic paste that you made into mixture.<br /><br />Cut up onions into small pieces. Once again, like the tomatoes, it is better to cut by hand with a knife. Appliances tend to tear onions rather than cut them and some of the onion flavor becomes lost. I put 3-6 for number of onions to use because it is a matter of taste. I use 6 onions, my dad uses 3.<br /><br />Add onions to mixture.<br /><br />Chop cilantro in similar fashion. Cilantro gives the salsa that true Mexican taste, and I like cilantro a lot. I tend to only cut up and use the leaves because the stems tend to give the salsa a parsley flavor. Remember, cilantro can be strong, so use discretion. I use about four stems worth (remember, use only the leaves for best results).<br /><br />If you decide to add the carrot, chop pieces as small as you can get them. Amount varies based on your taste.<br /><br />Jalepeno can overtake the flavor if not used sparingly, but if you want a little more heat in your salsa, feel free to use the pepper. Note, keep seeds for more heat, eliminate them for less. If I use jalepeno I tend to use a quarter chile per can of ROTEL. I don't use them often, however, because the flavor of the salsa is so good without them.<br /><br />Salt to taste.<br /><br />Added notes: pick your ingredients carefully. The quality of the tomatoes play a large part in the flavor of the salsa. And once again, do not refrigerate the tomatoes. They lose flavor when refrigerated.<br /><br />Okay, now stir it, let it sit twenty minutes, stirring every 5 minutes - then enjoy!Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-60455486260954670522007-12-30T19:45:00.000-08:002008-12-10T06:02:45.280-08:00Albondigas recipe for the New Year!<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw7AbkWHAewPlMHBF2aYTvDCQ3ii8ij2hUVU-KCgfWGlBVJMSZxQYqfTMuyoxbW4DOik7xB0pEsuwdfTmr37dkm9YlSF57M6S4whHatpvuoDUTdtYy65K_KKQUDy3GEMYMfiG/s1600-h/albondigas.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHw7AbkWHAewPlMHBF2aYTvDCQ3ii8ij2hUVU-KCgfWGlBVJMSZxQYqfTMuyoxbW4DOik7xB0pEsuwdfTmr37dkm9YlSF57M6S4whHatpvuoDUTdtYy65K_KKQUDy3GEMYMfiG/s320/albondigas.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5149989609755201666" /></a><br /><strong>Doug's Albondigas Soup Recipe (also known as Mexican Meatball Soup)</strong><br /><br />Overall Preparation Time: about 2 hours<br /><br /><em>Ingredients:</em><br /><br />Group 1 - - <br /><br />2 Tablespoons olive oil <br />1 large garlic clove (chopped, minced, mashed)<br />1 large brown onion (quartered/chopped)<br /><br />Group 2 - -<br /><br />6 carrots, sliced<br />1/2 pound french cut green beans, chopped (canned/drained is fine, fresh is better)<br />1 stalk of celery, sliced<br />1 green onion, sliced<br />1 pinch of chili powder<br />1 lime, cut (you will squeeze all of the juices into pot when the time comes to add this item, then discard the rest)<br />1 green bell pepper, gutted and cut into pieces about same size as carrot slices<br />1 can of tomato sauce, 8 oz.<br />1 can of diced tomatoes, 14 oz.<br />6 cans of chicken broth, 14 oz.<br />56 oz. of water (fill four of the chicken broth cans)<br /><br />*** optional: pinch of crumbled oregano leaves, pinch of basil leaves. Fresh preferred. Soup is good without these spices, but it has a nice flavor with them as well. Try it both ways, see which you prefer.<br /><br />Group 3:<br /><br />(1) 1/2 pound of fresh ground beef<br />(2) 8 oz. packages of Farmer John Original premium pork links<br />1/2 cup of white rice/uncooked<br />2 large pinches of parsley flakes (fresh, chopped as fine as possible; or dried flakes are fine, but once again, fresh provides a better taste)<br />2 uncooked eggs<br /><br />Group 4:<br /><br />Salt<br />Fresh Ground Pepper<br />Cilantro (leaves only - remove stems)<br /><br /><em>Preparation</em>:<br /><br />Group 1 - Heat oil in over medium heat. Add onion and garlic. Saute' until tender, about 5 minutes. Place all items in Group 2 into large pot, high heat. Add Onions and Garlic to pot. Bring to boil, then lower heat to low/medium and simmer for about 30 minutes.<br /><br />While the soup is simmering, combine all items in Group 3 in a large mixing bowl, adding about 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt and a reasonable amount of fresh ground pepper. It is best to mix it by hand. Be aware, if the items just came out of the refrigerator, it will be very cold on the hands. I tend to mix it for about ten minutes, or at least until it is obvious that the meat, rice, eggs, and parsley are thoroughly mixed.<br /><br />After the soup has been simmering for 30 minutes, make walnut size meatballs out of the meat and drop them into the soup.<br /><br />Cover, and bring the soup to a boil. Then, lower the soup to a low heat and let it simmer for about an hour, stirring occasionally.<br /><br />Season and garnish with the items (to your preferred taste) in Group 4 after the soup has simmered for an hour.<br /><br />Be aware, Cilantro is strong, and some prefer it to be used sparingly. The soup is fine without it if you are unable to locate cilantro, but cilantro has a uniquely Mexican flavor that really adds to the soup.<br /><br />Added note: I have made the soup with a chopped up potato, and sliced Italian squash before, and it was good, but I prefer to use these two items in my tortilla soup - a recipe I will have on this site someday in the future. There are many ways to make Albondigas, and some even use Chipotle Sauce. After years of experimentation, I have only come across one restaurant that I think makes better Albondigas than me. But hey, that's just my opinion.<br /><br />Enjoy the soup. <br /><br />Tomorrow night I plan to post my salsa recipe.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-13886853849894711662007-12-07T22:16:00.000-08:002007-12-07T22:20:22.697-08:00My recent introduction to a Yahoo Group I recently joinedThis is to properly introduce myself, my history, and my convictions.<br /><br />I was born in 1966, which makes me younger than some, and older than <br />a many or a few. Such a year of birth enabled me to graduate from <br />high school in 1984, the same year I turned 18, and the first year I <br />could vote (making me what some call a Reagan Baby - and of course I <br />voted for Reagan that year). 1984 was also the year I planned to <br />begin going to college, which was an easy choice since I had both <br />athletic and academic scholarships at a number of Universities <br />(baseball and long distance runner), and so my wise choice at that <br />time was to instead make my girlfriend pregnant, get married, and <br />enlist in the U.S. Navy.<br /><br />OOPS.<br /><br />Then, a little less than a year later, on July 1, 1985, I died. <br />(<a href="http://www.blogtalkradio.com/politicalpistachio/2007/11/03/ppr-36">link to my radio show titled: The Day I Died</a>) <br />On that date my newborn son was three months old, my marriage was <br />eleven months old, I had been on board my first sea-going command <br />seven months, and none of that mattered. Death had reached me and <br />it was all over.<br /><br />Or was it?<br /><br />After an estimated two hours of lying on the roadway bleeding <br />profusely (1:30 AM on a lonely highway), and not breathing for the <br />final twenty minutes (ah ha, impossible, you say - that's why it is <br />called a miracle) before I was found, my lifeless body was flown to <br />Palomar Memorial Hospital by Life Flight. They got my heart beating <br />again on the way there, and three days later they retired the <br />respirator that I had needed in order to breath up to that point. A <br />week and a half deep coma kept me in intensive care, and then when I <br />opened my feeble eyes, two more months of non-cognizant life as a <br />vegetable followed, none of which I remember. Suddenly, one day, <br />strapped to my bed because I had been tugging on the tubes in me and <br />taking swings at the doctors and corpsmen, I woke up and <br />said, "Where am I?" It took two years to rehabilitate to a point <br />that I could return to duty, during which time I learned how to walk <br />again, suffered on average 80 epileptic seizures per day, struggled <br />through brain damage that reminds me to this day that I am not the <br />person I once was since the high intellect center and memory center <br />was damaged, endured (and still endure) a constant ringing in my <br />left ear (an ear that is now deaf), and a variety of other things. <br />My left knee limps sometimes, reminding me of the damage to that <br />joint. The scars each have their own tales, from the one on my face <br />that reminds me how horrible I looked when my family saw me in <br />intensive care for the first time with my cheekbone exposed, to the <br />scars on my legs and back the told doctors my ability to function <br />physically was going to be severely hampered. After trying me out <br />on another sea command, the Navy realized I was not fit to continue <br />my service as a U.S. Naval Sailor, and put me out with a medical <br />discharge.<br /><br />When I was intensive care the doctors told my mother and wife that <br />they gave me no chance to make it, so start making funeral <br />arrangements. And, if for some unbelieveable chance I somehow <br />pulled through, be aware that I would be severely mentally retarted.<br /><br />The doctors were wrong.<br /><br />When they discharged me from the Navy the doctors told my wife that <br />I would need to be closely monitored, and that because of certain <br />traumatic injuries, it did not look like I would live past the age <br />of thirty.<br /><br />And after hearing the story people tell me, "Wow, man, you were one <br />lucky son of a gun."<br /><br />Luck, my friends, had nothing to do with it. As I like to tell <br />people, "Please be patient, God is not finished with me yet." <br /><br />Yes, that's right, I give God the glory for my survival.<br /><br />But my struggles were not over. My wife, though devoted to me, also <br />battled me daily over my archaic belief in a God that allowed me to <br />die, go through all of that pain that eventually led to my <br />rehabilitation, and left me a partial human being. How could He be <br />a God of love? Why didn't he just mercilessly allow me to die? My <br />response was, "No, it is because of that accident I have been given <br />the chance to live."<br /><br />Thing is, later she admitted that all along she knew I would <br />survive. Something told her so long ago that my life would not end <br />so easily or abruptly. So, she took care of me, assisted me, and <br />remained with me during those difficult years.<br /><br />Then, three years ago she asked me if she could go to church with <br />me, after twenty years of calling me a self-righteous hypocrite. <br />And then, during the alter call, she went forward, and accepted <br />Jesus as her God and Savior. Now, with our marriage in His hands, <br />our relationship has become the vessel of faith I have always <br />dreamed it would become.<br /><br />So the story about me is a story of miracles. I survived when I <br />should have died. I rejoiced when I should have crumbled and cursed <br />Him. I am a functional adult when I should be a vegetable. I have <br />a happy marriage to a wonderful Christian woman when I should be, by <br />societal standards, divorced. I had my last seizure in 1993 after <br />my brain decided to re-route its electrical signals. I walk when I <br />should be in a wheel chair. And I an an independent, self-reliant <br />Conservative, when after all that I've been through you would think <br />I'd want to be a dependent slave to the system that paid for my <br />hospitalization when I was in the military.<br /><br />I began blogging at Political Pistachio (www.politicalpistachio.com) <br />in March of 1996. My site went from a two or three hits a day site, <br />to a now 4,000-5,000 hits per month site. I own over 50 pages, <br />blogs and sites, a dozen of which I am active on either daily, or at <br />least a few times per week. My Blog Talk Radio show began in <br />February of 2007 and now is in the top ten most listened to shows <br />among over 1,500 Conservative shows.<br /><br />Not bad for a vegetable, huh? And guess what? I give credit where <br />credit is due. I give all the credit and glory to my Lord and <br />Savior, my God, Jesus Christ.<br /><br />Well, how's that for an introduction?<br /><br />And thank you for the warm welcome. Thank you for making me feel at home.<br /><br />Oh, and one more thing, remember early on in this post where I <br />said "OOPS" after indicating that I took a sharp turn away from <br />college and into a young marriage that only led me into the clutches <br />of despair and tragedy? I know that had I have gone to college, and <br />done the things that my faith would have led me to do, I would have <br />avoided going through all of that pain and suffering. Had I have <br />listened to the Lord originally I would have taken a different <br />path. But that does not mean that the path I took is the wrong <br />path. Through the storms and trials and tribulations of my life I <br />have grown strong in the Lord, He has built within me character that <br />I would not have if I had taken another path. Because of that path <br />I took my wife and I have a strong Christian marriage forged from <br />the fires of trials and tribulation, and we have two wonderful <br />children as well. No, I don't recommend people take the hard road, <br />but for me, that is where my life took me based on the choices I <br />made as an individual. I am highly educated, educated by the <br />highest professor in the Universe, and He decided to train me <br />specifically in the school of hard knocks. And through that <br />education of storms and trials and tribulations I have become who I <br />am - and I thank God for that. Yep, there is no OOPS about it. I <br />am the man He meant me to be, and I am still growing and learning to <br />be the servant He desires me to be. No regrets. He has taken the <br />tragic events of my life and used them for His glory, and I am <br />humbled that He would use a lowly servant such as I for such a <br />calling. Glory to Him in the highest.<br /><br />Amen.<br /><br />God Bless.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-18019149364621554132007-11-25T20:28:00.000-08:002007-11-25T20:31:00.165-08:00Danger of turning our back on GodIn this age of moral relativity and the constant attack on Christianity I am reminded of the importance of this verse from the Holy Bible:<br /><br />Psalm 33:12 <br /><br />Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD; and the people whom he hath chosen for his own inheritance.<br /><br />Now I understand that at the time the reference was to Israel, but it is true that any nation that turns its back on God will lose the Lord's blessing, and I fear that the United States is dangerously heading down such a path.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-89098343801836636912007-11-22T09:54:00.000-08:002007-11-22T10:20:22.318-08:00Why Eating Turkey Makes You SleepyEarly during my marriage to my lovely wife, the one most folks call Mrs. Pistachio, she asked me a question that I am sure many of you have always wondered the answer to. Honestly, I don't know the answer, but on the day that Mrs. Pistachio asked me "Why does eating turkey make you want to take a nap afterwards?" Being the joker I sometimes can be, I mustered my best poker face and told her my <em>made up on the spot</em> answer with confidence that she would be convinced that I was well educated regarding the workings of the chemicals residing in Turkey meat.<br /><br />I told her, "Eating Turkey makes you sleepy because turkeys have a special chemical in their body that induces one to sleep. This chemical is a defensive mechanism necessary for a turkey's survival in the wild because when a pack of wolves attack a herd of turkeys, after eating the first turkey, the chemical causes the wolves to fall asleep, allowing the remaining turkeys the opportunity to flee to safety."<br /><br />She smiled, happy to be privy to this wonderfully insightful new information of which she had determined to be correct based on my strong delivery, and because she trusted my knowledge on the subject of turkeys.<br /><br />I laughed inside, and later forgot all about it, never telling her that what I had told her, in short, was a load of bull.<br /><br />Years later, while at a Thanksgiving feast at the in-laws, one of her sisters, with a mouth full of turkey and gravy, asked, "I wonder why eating turkey makes you sleepy."<br /><br />Mrs. Pistachio, feeling informed and confident proudly declared, "So that in the wild, when they are attacked by wolves, the wolves will fall asleep and allow the rest of the little turkeys to get away."<br /><br />The room fell silent. A few members of the family actually nodded their heads as if in full agreement with Mrs. Pistachio's explanation, while the remainder of diners either dropped their heads as they fought back laughs, or gazed at her with a look of horror and confusion.<br /><br />She says, "Right, Doug?"<br /><br />I didn't answer. I was laughing too hard to get a word out.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-85530094953812734032007-11-16T23:25:00.000-08:002007-11-16T23:27:15.546-08:00The Joys of GrandparenthoodMy 9 day old grandson, the first one so far, is precious. Ezekiel is a quiet baby, with a lovely face. He brightens my life. Still waiting for the photos to come it - when they do, I will post them quickly.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-21863475807919016142007-11-08T09:46:00.001-08:002007-11-08T09:46:40.558-08:00When Love Takes You In<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/demRHgul2Zk&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/demRHgul2Zk&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />Dedicated to the miracle born yesterday, my first grandbaby, Ezekiel Christopher Gibbs.Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23300433.post-35976639883064065282007-11-01T11:44:00.000-07:002007-11-01T11:45:01.668-07:00Coma<div align="left"><em><strong></strong></em> by Douglas V. Gibbs</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">White. Shining arrogance pranced like ivory keys on a piano. Ebony dots paced the ceiling, gazing wonderingly at my spinning madness. Mocking my mental hurricane of fog and mist. I could not see them through my stormy eyes. Still, they watched me. Watching me on my back, strapped to four steel posts.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Where has my body landed?</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Shadows mocked the white brilliance, leaning their grayness over my upturned face. Familiar forms, yet unknown. A face molded together. The face belonged to someone I remembered, but forgot.An orifice in the face opened, spitting ghosts of words.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">My damaged brain sputtered. Cranial fog cleared momentarily. Chaos organized for a moment. Only a short moment.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Concentration relinquished a momentary solution. The voice was familiar because it belonged to my mother.Chaos returned. My disembodied limbs reached to embrace her. Tingling spiders marching down my arms held my arms captive. I remained still. Mother’s tears rolled down my cheeks.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">An epileptic seizure captured my body. Darkness came. Life faded. Death twisted my insides, rolling through my body like the roar of an angry lion. Helicopter blades thumped. Sirens screamed. People placed their hands all over my naked body, holding me with needles and masks.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">White. The ivory ceiling with ebony dots loomed overhead. Virgin sheets on my snowy bed contained my languid, quivering body. White walls with bright lights shining on a milky tile floor thundered around my personal prison of tubes and machines. Frosty garments on anti-septic attendants marched, shouting orders to each other as a needle plunged into my purple wrist.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">The place radiated purity, but the bleeding heart of mother’s red blouse served as a focal point.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">My eyes opened. Tears ran down her face. I stared curiously, unable to understand why she, or myself, resided in this white place of beeping machines.Numbness filled me. Another episode returned. My lips exploded. Ice cream lips tingled in unison. Eyes wandering backward, my vision became obstructed by fluttering needle-points. Everything was spinning. I closed my eyes. The spin increased.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Tumbling. Rolling. My body died in my dreams. I recalled pain invading my body. Skin peeled from my face like the rind of a rotten orange. Rolling along the highway. Pounding with each crash of crumbling metal. Crimson fluids fled from my being.I can’t catch my breath!</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">The white sanctity of the hospital returned. The nightmares abated.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">I opened my mouth to ask questions slamming mercilessly against my skull. My tongue rolled around in my mouth untrained. My swollen lips forgot how to speak.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">I managed a primitive grunt.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">A man in a white coat ran to my side as mother screamed hysterically. He stabbed a needle of light into my eyes, prattling nonsensical verbiage all the while. Pure gibberish. He spoke only noise.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">The terror of darkness returned. My eyes closed. Rolling nightmares of chaos imprisoned me. I jerked awake in my dreams. Numb pain.Memories rolling. Pounding. Cries of pain. The faces of men looking down at me while tossing around noise with their tongues.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">The seizure passed. A new face stood over me. A familiar face. The loving gaze of my uncle.“He’s coming out of it,” said my uncle.Words. Wonderful words. The eloquent poetry of speech from my uncle’s lips embraced me like an old friend.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">I murmured the first thing that came to mind. “Where am I?”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“In the hospital, son.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Son? </div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“You’re not my dad.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“No, I am not,” replied my uncle with a slight grin on his weathered face.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">How absurd. Of course he is not my father.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“How did I get into the hospital?”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Car accident,” said Uncle. “Doozie, too. You rolled that little car eight times down the highway. Got thrown down a slope, or something like that. They didn’t give you much of a chance, from what I hear. Ten minutes or so, says your dad. Ten minutes later and you’d be in a coffin right now, I reckon. Not too good. You were comatose, you know. Month and a half, or so. This is the first time you’ve acted sensible in months.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Months?</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Is there anything that you want?” he asked out of common courtesy.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Yes,” I said. “I want a hamburger.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“You can’t eat food like that in this ward. They’ll take it away.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“I don’t care. That’s what I want.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Uncle grinned, hurried off, leaving me with my Auntie. I glared at her suspiciously.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">She smiled, sort of halfway. Her hands, drying from age, lay peacefully on her lap. Tired eyes of deep blue studied me, moving slightly behind the time-ridden slits that housed them.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Can I be unstrapped?” I asked.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">She arose and vanished for a moment along the corridor, returning moments later with one of those men in the white coats. He grinned like he knew me, and unstrapped my bonds.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“No funny business,” he said. “You were taking swings at people when you were out of it.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“I was?”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Yeah,” he said. “Just remember, one swing, and the straps go back on. Don’t be pulling on any of the tubes, either.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“No problem,” I responded.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Auntie sat back down and asked, “How do you feel?”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Well,” I replied honestly, “I can’t feel half of my face or my legs. Pain is racking just about every other point in my body that isn’t numb. Despite being unstrapped, I feel like I can’t move a muscle, and I am starving for a hamburger.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">”She nodded.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">Uncle Bill returned, leaning over me with a box in his hand. A finger of his other hand stood vertically across his lips as he whispered conspiratorially, “Sshh, here’s that burger. Eat it under the sheet.”</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">My hands responded painfully, reaching eagerly for the box. Under the sheet I devoured the contraband.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">I pulled my head out for air. A retired respirator loomed nearby.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Uncle Bill?” I garbled with a mouthful of food.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Yes?” he replied.</div><div align="left"></div><div align="left">“Thanks. This is the best burger I’ve ever had!”</div>Douglas V. Gibbshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09388639848567082980noreply@blogger.com0