Category Archives: Politics

Apple vs Lazy Big Brother

SOB: Son of a Bos'n Posted on by  

OK — Color me clueless, but I simply do not understand the government’s position.  They simply do not appear to know what it takes to decrypt an iPhone, so they are taking the easy way out.  Make someone else do it. 1. If you have too many failed attempts, using the iPhone to access the data, the phone will erase the disk. So, trying different passwords is not an option. 2. The first thing you do in a case like … Continue reading →

Lawfully Good vs Lawfully Evil

SOB: Son of a Bos'n Posted on by  

Those of us who played Dungeons & Dragons and its many successors, well remember a concept called alignment. It was a way to measure a character’s ethical and moral positions. You had to place yourself on two distinct and orthogonal scales — whether you respected the law, and whether you would strive to do good or evil things. These two scales were unrelated, but intersected each other.  Today, many people view life in the real world as a choice between … Continue reading →

Chris Christie on Drug Addiction

SOB: Son of a Bos'n Posted on by  

In the past, I have disagreed with some of Chris Christie’s positions, but today, this talk puts him at the top of my list of candidates. On Oct. 30, while campaigning during happy hour at Shooter’s Tavern in Belmont, New Hampshire, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie related a pair of personal anecdotes to elucidate why he thinks the United States should change the way it handles drug addicts. I have been against the War of Drugs since the beginning.  It … Continue reading →

Conservative Christian Values

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First off, please read this article on the Salon website. The pope rebukes the GOP: The real story behind Boehner’s departure and the right’s assault on American values Musa al-Gharbi is a political philosopher affiliated with the Southwest Initiative for the Study of Middle East Conflict (SISMEC). My wife and I have been frustrated with many of the people we run into at GOP events for years.  We had to stop attending the local Conservative group, simply because my wife … Continue reading →

Fireworks in the Neighborhood

SOB: Son of a Bos'n Posted on by  

I just sent the following to our local newspaper.
———————————————————–
If you were one of those people setting off the hundreds of illegal
fireworks in my neighborhood last night, but like to thank veterans
for their service, think about this. By sending up those fireworks,
you were doing the exact opposite of thanking them. As an old Vietnam
veteran, those fireworks did not bring me joy. They brought me
sadness and sorrow. Having explosions surround my house tonight
brought me back to those long nights in Vietnam. I cannot image what
it must have felt like for the veterans of today’s wars.

We served with honor to protect this nation. You acted with dishonor,
breaking the law and putting everyone around you in danger. Hopefully
no one was hurt because of your actions. The next time you are
tempted to say “Thank you for your service”, keep your mouth shut. We
don’t need your thanks, we need your cooperation.

Bob