Category: random

Climate change is “damn serious,” according to California Governor Jerry Brown, who has repeatedly blamed it for the state’s four-year drought, despite a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration report released in December 2014, that found computer models of global warming show increased winter rains. They concluded a La Nina weather pattern was the primary driver of drought.

And while man is responsible for the majority of California’s drought, it’s not in the way Brown claims.

Central and Southern California is a creation of mankind — who engineered the desert to suit his fancy. Since then, environmentalists and their regulation, coupled to poor water management have actually led to “tens of billions of gallons” of water going out to sea over the years.

In recent years more than 4.4 million acre-feet of water — enough to sustain 4.4 million families and irrigate one million acres of farmland — has been diverted to save the endangered Delta smelt. Unfortunately for the fish, a National Geographic report dated April 3, 2015, shows only six were found during the most recent survey.

One acre-foot equals 325,851 gallons, the average annual water usage for a suburban family household.

Meanwhile, Brown is cracking down on water use by fining over users, and trying to reduce overall usage by 25 percent from 2013 usage levels. However, the Associated Press reported that when local water departments were surveyed, water use had fallen by less than four percent in the month of March.

More than half of California’s surface water flows from the Sierra Nevada Mountains in the east down to the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta in Northern California. Much of the mountain runoff’s managed by two of the world’s largest water storage and transport systems – the federal Central Valley Project and California’s State Water Project.

Increased surface storage would give regulators more latitude to conserve water during heavy storm-flows and would have allowed the state to stockpile larger reserves during the 15 years that preceded the last drought. Yet no major water infrastructure project’s been completed in California since the 1960s.

Environmentalists have stopped the construction of water storage and delivery systems through legal and political actions. They have also fought to make sure that captured water’s released into streams and the ocean — rather than the water delivery system — in order dilute the salinity of the delta.

The Klamath River diversion project was canceled in the 1970s, putting an end to the Aw Paw reservoir, potentially the state’s largest man-made reservoir with 15 million acre-feet of water — enough to supply San Francisco for 30 years. And recently they put a stop to the construction of dams at the Sites Reservoir; the Los Banos Grandes facility; and the Temperance Flat Reservoir, while moving to freeze California’s water-storage resources at 1970s capacities.

It’s interesting to note that Israel is 60 percent desert and because of this they built giant desalination plants that run on natural gas. California could have improved its situation by increasing not only reservoirs, but by building desalination plants and prioritizing people’s water needs over a fish.

And instead of standing up to the Progressive Environmental Movement, Californians are opting to get their drought-parched lawns painted green.

Stop wasting time explaining yourself to others.
Your friends don’t need it and your enemies won’t believe it anyway.
Just do what you know in your heart is right.

So enamored with the idea of creating myself into a leader, I embarrassingly nicknamed myself the ‘Forest Fox,” when I was a teen. Yeah, jus’ like Revolutionary war General Francis Marion, the ‘Swamp Fox,’ or German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, dubbed the ‘Desert Fox.”

In the military, I was passed over for positions of leadership because I was too ‘gung-ho,’ – which I mistook in my youthful ignorance as a compliment.  Looking back, I realized my neck was good and stiff – making me a danger not only to myself – to but others.

There’s very little difference between a title and a label if the person given either has not earned or deserves it.

Oh, sure, I’ve been put in charge at various workplaces but then any schlep can cajole others, but it takes that special person to lead that proverbial ‘horse to water’ and too ‘get them to drink’ as well. Getting that ‘horse to drink’ has never been my forte’.

Time after time, I’ve made myself into a boss, which spelled backwards is “Double S-O-B.”

And I’m an even worse follower — who’s willing to bet that if you’ve ever defended your actions saying, “I thought…” you aren’t a follower either. After all – lets be honest here — ‘not thinking’ is the number one rule of a real follower.

Certainly, I’ve done some following in my day. It generally ended poorly with me in trouble because I got caught thinking or I was heading down a path I shouldn’t have been on.

When we’re truthful with ourselves, we know who we are.

Yet there is still a yearning in me that wants to do…what?  Manage, command, direct, head up, rule, conduct, control, guide, pace, shepherd, skipper, supervise – nope, none of these fit.

Maybe I’m meant to inspire. Affect, animate, arouse, cause, embolden, excite, influence, instill, motivate, provoke, spark, spur, stir, trigger…take your pick.

Yeah, I like the idea of inspiring, so I’ll leave the leading to others. The difference between the two is slight – but wider than the Grand Canyon.

Anytime a Progressive asks a GOP presidential candidate the question, “If you knew then what we know now, would you have authorized going into Iraq?” that candidate should pose an “If you knew then…” question of their own.  Here’s a dozen suggestions:

• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that ISIL would invade Iraq, would they withdraw all U.S. troops, then ignored the country, like they did?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that Russia would invade Ukraine, would they dismiss Mitt Romney’s suggestion that Russia is a threat?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that the Arab Spring would lead to the death of over a quarter of a million people, would they cheer it on?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that Obamacare would only cover 15 percent of those promised, would they read it first?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that Dodd-Frank didn’t reform banking, but created more homelessness, would they want it?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that the Stimulus package wasn’t really “shovel-ready,” would they pass it?”
• If Democrats knew then what we know now, that Obama’s election would lead to worsening race-relations in the U.S., would they choose him?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, that he deported nearly two million people — more than any president in history – would they vote for him?”
• If Democrats knew then what we know now, that Obama wouldn’t shut down Guantanamo as promised, would they pick him?”
• f Democrats knew then what we know now, that the promise of ‘transparency,’ would lead to ramped-up NSA data collection, would they vote for him?”
• “If Democrats knew then what we know now, would they support an ‘anti-war candidate,’ who has U.S. combat forces fighting in 70-percent of the world?”
• If Democrats knew then what we know now, that the WH phone really wouldn’t be answered at 3 a.m. during a terror attack, would they vote for Obama again?”

Sadly, no one has the courage to ask such questions. And sadder still, is that ‘yes,’ would be the answer from a majority of Democrats (and some Republicans,) to the proposed questions.

Recently, Nevada’s Congresswoman Dina Titus refused to answer the question, posed by Brittany M. Hughes of CNSNews.com, whether a human being conceived in rape has a right to life.

“Does a human being conceived in rape have a right to life?” Hughes asked.

“That’s not a quick question,” Titus answered.

“Is it a ‘yes’ or a ‘no’?” returned Hughes.

“Well, it’s not a yes-or-no question, so,” said Titus.

Not one to give up, Hughes followed-up, “Can you expand on that, why it’s not a yes or a no?”

“No, I’m not going…I don’t want to…I — I’m thinking about something else, so you can come back to me, or talk to Caitlin (Titus’ communications director Caitlin Teare) in my office, and see if we’ll have an answer for you,” Titus said.

When Hughes reached out to Titus’ office, she got no response. Yet, in a May 13 tweet, Titus wrote, “GOP bill #HR36 is a dangerous & extreme restriction on women’s reproductive rights…”

Opponents of the bill claimed it was direct challenge to the Supreme Court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that made abortions legal before viability, which is generally considered around 24 weeks of pregnancy. They also argued that the bill imposed new limits on the rape exemption by requiring that any woman seeking an abortion after 20 weeks prove that she either reported the rape to the authorities or sought counseling services. That same day at Titus’ tweet, the House voted 242 to 184 to approve the ‘Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act,’ putting a national ban on most abortions after 20 weeks gestation except in cases of rape, incest or when the mother’s life is in danger. And of course, Titus voted against the bill.

Meanwhile, Titus continues to toy with the idea of running for U.S. Senate, replacing the retiring Harry Reid.

“Nevadans deserve a strong voice and committed fighter to represent our state’s interests in the U.S. Senate,” she wrote following Reid’s announcement. “I am humbled by the calls I’ve received from supporters across the state encouraging me to run for Senate. This is a decision I will make carefully after talking with family and close friends to ensure it is in the best interest of District One and the people of Nevada.”

The U.S. needs Dina Titus like it needs another rip in the U.S. Constitution — which Progressives insist on shredding at every opportunity.

“Ramadi has fallen,” reported Muhannad Haimour, a spokesman for the provincial governor of Anbar.

ISIL overran the Iraqi army to take Ramadi, killing about 500 soldiers and civilians, sending thousands of people fleeing and capturing U.S.-issued arms left behind. The takeover followed a three-day siege that began with a wave of car bombs.

It’s not clear how many people remain in Ramadi, once a city of 850,000. But it’s believed that some 8,000 people fled the city in the past week.

ISIL militants stormed the homes of policemen and pro-government Al Bu Alwan tribesmen, detaining about 30. The militants went door-to-door with lists of so-called collaborators as homes and stores owned by pro-government Sunni Sahawa militia were looted or torched.

In a statement, the group said it had killed “dozens of apostates.”  Meanwhile, the United Nations continues to express concerns over the threats posed by ISIL to the ancient city of Palmyra in Syria’s western province of Homs.

Anyway, Ramadi’s fall comes on the heels of a U.S. operation that killed ISIL commander Abu Sayyaf in eastern Syria, while his wife was caught and is being held in Iraq. Happily, all the U.S. Special Force troops involved returned home safely.

In March, Secretary of State John Kerry insisted the U.S. was on its way to success in its effort to destroy ISIL.

“We’re growing in the capacity on the ground,” Kerry said. He also acknowledged that while progress in Iraq is being made, Syria is proving more challenging.

“Each time the Iraqis have now gone forward in an offensive effort, together with allies, the coalition, we have routed ISIL,” Kerry added. “In Iraq, they have gained back a significant percentage of the area that ISIL is controlling.”

His statements came weeks after the White House sent a war authorization to Congress that includes a three-year Authorization for the Use of Military Force. It’s been criticized by those who say President Obama’s request doesn’t go far enough to destroy ISIL, since it limits the use of forces on the ground.

Iranian-backed Shi’ite forces are mobilizing outside of the city, waiting to launch a counterattack. The counterattack, if successful, could be a step towards an Iranian takeover of Iraq.

Such a takeover will create a larger Iranian Shi’ite Caliphate instead of ISIL’s ‘little old J-V team’ Caliphate.

Pope Francis plans to recognize the non-existent “state of Palestine,” lending weight to a Palestinian push for international support for sovereignty and bypassing stalled negotiations with Israel. The announcement coincides with the church’s canonization of two Palestinian nuns, the first Arabic-speaking saints, in a Mass Sunday that President Mahmoud Abbas of the Palestinian Authority is to attend.

Palestinian leaders celebrated the endorsement. Israel’s Foreign Ministry said that it was “disappointed” by the Pope’s decision and that the recognition would “not advance the peace process.”

God promises blessings on those who bless Israel and curses on those who curse her in Genesis 12:3, “I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

Recognizing a ‘state of Palestine,’ is definitely not blessing Israel.

And as jihad’s waged around the world, a ‘holy war,’ is being carried out in the U.S. in the form of sharia law. George Washington University Law School Professor John Banzhaf filed a sixty-page complaint alleging Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., creates an “offensive” environment for Muslims because of school’s statuary, crosses and other religious forms of artwork.

He claims the university “does not provide space — as other universities do — for the many daily prayers Muslim students must make, forcing them instead to find temporarily empty classrooms where they are often surrounded by Catholic symbols which are incongruous to their religion.”

Banzhaf’s suit appears hypocritical after he came to the defense of a GWU student in April 2014, who posted a Sanskrit symbol on a public bulletin board that looks like the Nazi swastika. The GWU reported the incident to the D.C. police as a “hate crime.”

“While Christian, Jewish, and other students are free to openly display their religious symbols, Hindus, Buddhists, and other students can do the same only at the risk of being banned and ultimately expelled,” Banzhaf said in a written statement.

The student was eventually expelled.

Finally, at Georgetown University while discussing poverty at the Catholic-Evangelical Leadership Summit, President Obama said, “It’s important for us to guard against cynicism and not buy the idea that the poor will always be with us.”

He couldn’t be more wrong as noted in Matthew 26:11 where Jesus instructed his disciples: “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.”

As unannounced GOP presidential candidate Jeb Bush ended his visit to Reno, Nevada, Ivy Ziedrich called out, “Governor Bush, would you take a student question?”

The 19-year-old Democrat and political science major at the University of Nevada, Reno, had to preface her question first.

“Your brother created ISIS,” Ziedrich said, speaking of George W. Bush.

Then Ziedrich asked: “Why are you saying that ISIS was created by us not having a presence in the Middle East when it’s pointless wars where we send young American men to die for the idea of American exceptionalism? Why are you spouting nationalist rhetoric to get us involved in more wars?”

Bush pointedly responded: “When we left Iraq, security had been arranged, Al Qaeda had been taken out. There was a fragile system that could have been brought up to eliminate the sectarian violence.”

“And we had an agreement that the president could have signed that would have kept 10,000 troops, less than we have in Korea, could have created the stability that would have allowed for Iraq to progress,” he added. “The result was the opposite occurred. Immediately, that void was filled.”

He concluded: “Look, you can rewrite history all you want. But the simple fact is that we are in a much more unstable place because America pulled back.”

As John Adams stated, “Facts are stubborn things…”

While is true that ‘W’ signed the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) between Iraq and the U.S. in 2008, establishing that U.S. combat forces would withdraw by June 30, 2009, with all U.S. combat forces completely out of Iraq by December 31, 2011.

Negotiations between the U.S. and Iraq for a new SOFA began in fall 2010, as the legal authority — United Nations Security Council Resolution 1790 — expired December 31, 2008. The draft bill was approved by the Council of Ministers of Iraq on November 16.

In August 2011, the U.S. and Iran settled on between 3,000 to 5,000 troops to remain behind after the Obama Administration concluded Iraq was not at risk of slipping into chaos in the absence of U.S. forces. And on October 15, 2011, the Obama Administration proceeded with the plan to withdraw American forces from Iraq.

If we follow Miss Ziedrich down the same rabbit-hole — with George Bush out of office and a new SOFA on the table, any vacuum created in Iraq is Barack Obama’s failure, and thus the creation of ISIS/ISIL is his fault as he was at the time, and still is Commander-in-Chief of U.S. combat forces.

“It hasn’t been a good few months in the Reno media world, as we’ve lost several good people,” writes my dear friend, Elizabeth Rose on Facebook.

She couldn’t be more right as longtime Reno TV and radio newsman Richard DeWitt Oakerson, better known as ‘Dick DeWitt,’ passed away May 14, 2015, following a battle with cancer.  He was 81-years-old.

Born in Maryville, Missouri, July 16, 1933, he graduated from Maryville High School and Maryville College, then serving in the United States Marine Reserve, before joining the Air Force and being assigned to the Armed Forces Radio Network in Taiwan. After leaving the Air Force, he found work as the editor of the Del Rio, Texas, News Herald, before moving back to Kansas City to start his radio/television news reporting career at KCKN, working there 1960 to 1963.

In fact, in the October 10, 1960 edition of “Billboard,” reported: “Dick DeWitt, KCKN, Kansas City, Kan., says his three-month-old daughter, Laura Diane, is already following the deejay path with loud testing of her vocal chords.”

He later moved to Eureka, California to do the news on two of the three area TV stations. As a kid, I remember when he headed up the 6:30 newscast on Channel 3 KIEM-TV and did the news for Channel 6 KVIQ-TV.

He moved his family to Reno in the late 1960’s to be the news director for Channel 4 KRNV where he worked for over 20 years.  The Nevada Broadcast Association’s Hall of Fame inducted him in 1998.

In 2011, during the Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in Eureka and Arcata, and years after he had left Northern California, his memory was still being invoked, “Dick DeWitt was a good reporter…,” and “…I still miss Dick DeWitt’s newscasts…”

Any broadcaster who came from that area in the year’s since, including me, should be so fortunate to be remembered in such good light over four decade’s later. He was news director for radio stations, KROW and KNEV in the late 80s and early 90s, where I had the opportunity to work for him in the news department.

Dick remained on the air for another decade after KROW changed its call-letters to KKOH and its long-established country-music format to news-talk. In 2005,  AllAccess online reported that he was recovering in Washington state following cancer surgery.

He’ll be missed.

The pickings are getting slim in Reno as another long-time broadcaster has passed away. Along with being a music teacher, wedding minister, he also was an in-demand drummer, playing with ‘Papa Clutch and the Shifters’ and ‘Route 66’ at a variety of events including Hot August Nights.

I had the pleasure of working with him at KOZZ in the summer of 1997.

On the air in northern Nevada for 25 years, Lee’s voice could heard on telephone messages, while “on hold”, and other phone greetings. He was also heard on overhead speaker announcements in the airport, casinos, pawn shops, gas stations and elevators.

In July 2012, Lee was hospitalized after having several seizures. Doctors found a golf ball size malignant brain tumor, which surgeon’s removed a few days later.

Unfortunately, I remember disagreeing with him vehemently when he penned a letter to the editor of the Reno Gazette-Journal in early May 2012. He got so angry with me that he hung up the phone on me.

We never spoke again – and for that I’m truly sorry.

He seemed to be on the mend during the past two and half years, but the brain cancer finally won out. Lee died on May 11, 2015 at the age of 60.