Andrew

Until the next time

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by liberal japonicus With this comment, the names of the 17 people killed by a legally purchased AR-15 have been posted in the comments. Unlike the Las Vegas shooting, all of the victims were living in the same area, so I used the local paper to provide the links, except for the first identified victim, … Read more

Closing Time

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by Andrew

I believe that when we leave a place a part of it goes with us and a part of us remains. Go anywhere in these halls, when it is quiet, and just listen. After a while you will hear the echoes of all of our conversations, every thought and word we’ve exchanged. Long after we are gone, our voices will linger in these walls for as long as this place remains. But I will admit that the part of me that going will very much miss the part of you that is staying.

G’Kar, Babylon 5

This will be my last post at Obsidian Wings. Not, as has noted, that anyone is likely to notice I’m gone, since I’ve done a lousy job of keeping up of late anyhow. <g> I have no desire to leave, but given my personal circumstances, it appears to be the best of my available options.

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Choices

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by Andrew "For a warrior there is no other end to the journey." — Alyt Neroon, Babylon 5 Geez, I’m sick for a few days and I miss a thread where I’m actually a featured player. I’m going to lose my egotist’s society membership card if I’m not careful. Fortunately, I’m firmly of the belief … Read more

Fairness, Revisited

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by Andrew By request, some more discussion regarding the Fairness Doctrine. One basic tenet of my beliefs regarding government is that government should act only to address specific problems. Some will no doubt disagree with this, but even those with far greater faith in the ability in government than I can probably agree that government … Read more

The Beauty of ‘Fairness’

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by Andrew "There’s no two things on Earth are equal or have an equal chance." Sergeant Buster Kilrain, Gettysburg Via Captain’s Quarters, I see that Representative Dennis Kucinich, in between Presidential runs, has decided to resurrect the Fairness Doctrine. For those unfamiliar with the Fairness Doctrine, the basic idea was that if a station ran … Read more

You Can’t Take the Sky From Me

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by Andrew If memory serves, when my taste for Babylon 5 was first revealed here at ObWings, there was some discussion of another sci-fi show called Firefly. As luck would have it, I received both Firefly and Serenity as Christmas gifts, and Amanda and I had time to watch the full series and the film … Read more

Protecting Soldiers is Number One(?)

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by Andrew This is really hilzoy’s shtick, but I’ll hope she’ll forgive me for jumping in on it. While IEDs are the biggest killer of our troops in Iraq, RPGs remain a significant threat and will do so for the foreseeable future. The DoD, to its credit, went looking for a way to protect troops … Read more

A Proposal for the Democrats

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by Andrew I should first note that I am in complete agreement with hilzoy’s proposal (and that my agreement is solely my own and does not represent an endorsement by my employer). And I sympathize with the Democrats who are gun shy about being unfairly accused of being against the troops because they want to … Read more

It Was My Understanding There Would Be No Math

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by Andrew Responding to hilzoy’s post on discrimination, in which I end up making a case quite different to what I expected. For those who don’t recall, the study hilzoy referenced sent virtually identical candidates to interview for jobs, the one variable being ethnicity: each job was applied for by white, hispanic, and black applicants. … Read more

Tenets for a Useful Military

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by Andrew Continuing the series begun here and continued here, this installment looks at the characteristics the United States should desire in the Army it builds for the 21st century. I see seven critical tenets for a successful military force: deterrence, deployability, flexibility, scalability, support, deference, and minimizing temptation. Let’s take a look at each. … Read more

About Time

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by Andrew While I’m sure there will be many things about a Democratic Congress I will dislike, I’m pleased to see that at least they’re going to do one of the things that convinced me to vote for them: provide some oversight of the executive branch. More precisely, they’re going to take a closer look … Read more

Marking Time

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by Andrew Prediction, Andre Gide once observed, is very difficult, especially about the future. That is certainly the case in Iraq, where the situation remains grim while President Bush considers suggestions for new courses of action. Hilzoy is upset that President Bush is dithering while Iraq burns, noting that "[w]e do not have all the … Read more

Segregating Fiction

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by Andrew One of the A1 stories in today’s Wall Street Journal takes a look at how black authors are treated by the book industry. I don’t spend a lot of time in book stores, tending to get my books via Amazon instead, but I’ve been in them often enough to notice the various ethnic … Read more

What the U.S. Needs from Its Armed Forces

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by Andrew Continuing the series. Part one here. The purpose of the Army, as is laid out in FM 1.0 The Army, is to fight and win the nation’s wars. As far as mission statements go, that isn’t bad, as it lays out what needs to be done clearly and succinctly. However, it also doesn’t … Read more

Warfare Changes Gears

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by Andrew This is a reprint of something I’ve placed over at my own site, for those who haven’t seen it there, as I believe this series might be of interest to the ObWi audience. As even the casual student of history knows, warfare is a means to an end, not a means to itself. … Read more

Military Equipment Woes

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by Andrew Back in the days before the war, the biggest thing heavy units did was a rotation to the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California. Located in the Mojave Desert not far from Death Valley, the NTC had a dedicated opposing force (OPFOR) and enough space to conduct maneuvers at the brigade level, … Read more

Hiatus

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by Andrew For whatever reason, I’m just not up to this right now. I don’t know if it’s the election or something more personal, but coming to ObWings these days is an occasion for me to get angry rather than to learn. There’s no point in that, as I have a pretty acid tongue under … Read more

Project Valour IT

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by Andrew I know this isn’t what readers come here for, so I’ll be brief and ask your indulgence on this one. Project Valour IT is a fund drive intended to raise money for troops injured in Iraq and Afghanistan, purchasing voice-operated laptops for troops with hand and arm injuries or amputations. If anyone has … Read more

Galacticablogging Live

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That’s right, I’ll be working without a net this evening and liveblogging tonight’s episode of BSG, “Collaborators.” Naturally, to prevent any spoilers from escaping, I will perform in the hermetically-sealed environs of the extended post. Other BSG fans are invited to jump in via the comments.

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BSG Blogging: Exodus, Part I

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by Andrew

Someone asked that I move the Galacticablogging over here. If the consensus is that this doesn’t really belong at ObWi, I’ll discontinue the experiment.

A week after I suggested Moore and company might have finally found their niche by changing from ‘humanity on the run’ to ‘humanity resists the Cylons,’ it appears I spoke too soon. Surprise. Last’s night’s episode, starting with the title, suggests that New Caprica will be only a brief way-station on the way to Earth, although I’ll concede that all could changed based on what happens next week. Continued below the fold to allow readers to avoid spoilers.

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Homeward Bound

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by Andrew I am heading home today, as my deployment to Fort Riley has mercifully come to an end. So I may not be around much over the next few days, because I will be trying to get to know my wife again. I hope everyone enjoys their weekend, and feel free to talk about … Read more

Conservative in the Mi(d)st

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by Andrew In any relationship, there comes a point where the participants must weigh whether the benefits of the relationship outweigh the costs. That time has come in my relationship here at Obsidian Wings. As the commentary in response to my latest post scrolled in, I was, as I frequently am, surprised by how people … Read more

Tribalism and Politics

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by Andrew Steven Hopkins: Dear Sir, you are without any doubt, a rogue, a rascal, a villain, a thief, a scoundrel and a mean, dirty, stinking, sniveling, sneaking, pimping, pocket-picking, thrice double-damned no-good son-of-a-bitch. And you sign your name. Benjamin Franklin: I’ll take a dozen right now. A lot of things have changed since 1776, … Read more

On Power

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by Andrew In which I write about what people seem to have thought I was writing about when I talked about libertarian Democrats. For those looking to catch up, you can start here, here, and here. While I am not really a libertarian, I do tend to distrust aggregations of power because, even if those … Read more

Libertarian Democrats and Bigfoot

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by Andrew I see that Markos Moulitsas is busy selling his libertarian Democrat trope again, this time at Cato. I suppose, as a nominal libertarian (I’m really more of a small-r republican, actually), I ought to be flattered that the Democrats are at least looking for our votes now. The Republican response to libertarians leaving … Read more

Government and Labor

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by Andrew As may come as a surprise to some readers, I have a soft spot in my heart for unions. While I am as suspicious of their tendency to aggregate power on behalf of their leadership as I am of any other large organization, I think that unions are a good means for workers … Read more

Ikuko Toguri, RIP

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by Andrew I find it at once sad and ironic that Tuesday, as the House prepared to pass HR 6166, Iva Toguri breathed her last. Ms. Toguri is better known as ‘Tokyo Rose,’ the sobriquet given to various English-speaking Japanese women who broadcast popular music laced with appeals for Allied personnel to surrender to the … Read more

Sad, But True

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by Andrew A very good point raised by a Corner reader, and a good reminder of why it’s important to contact our representative and Senators about pending legislation to make sure they understand where we stand. America is a  democracy. Politicians take their positions, by and large, because those positions get them votes. Terrorism was … Read more

Reading is Fun(damental)

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by Andrew Just because I like to read, a little chat about some books I’ve read lately. All book links are to my reviews on my own site. Decision in the West, by Albert Castel. Someone here at ObWings inspired me to read this one, for which I’m quite grateful. It’s an account of Sherman’s … Read more

The Next Congress

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by Andrew Checking the news this morning, I see that Senator Lincoln Chafee held off Cranston Mayor Stephen Laffey in last night’s primary election in Rhode Island. Stipulating that it is by no means necessary to feel anything about all events, I read that and was unsure whether that was good news or bad. On … Read more

But for Me, It’s Monday

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by Andrew It must be considered an incredibly bad thing when a Marine Colonel issues an assessment of Anbar province that concludes not just that the West is losing, but that we have lost. Anbar province encompasses much of western Iraq, including Ramadi and Fallujah, two major trouble spots for the Coalition since the insurgency … Read more

Errors

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by Andrew   We are all born as molecules in the hearts of a billion stars. Molecules that do not understand politics, polices, or differences. Over a billion years, we foolish molecules forgot who we are and where we came from. In desperate acts of ego, we give ourselves names, fight over lines on maps, … Read more

Nothing to Fear (?)

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by Andrew Alex over at Inactivist has a good post up about President Bush’s speech yesterday conflating Iran and Nazi Germany. As Alex notes, the President is walking a fine line with the current situation in Iran: he’s got to convince people that Iran is a serious problem, but he also has to convince them … Read more

Another Victory For Republican Framing

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by Andrew So I’m reading Senator Byron Dorgan’s new book, Take This Job and Ship It, and I get to the chapter where he’s talking about environmental problems. He points out some of the problems we face when foreign countries don’t force companies to bear the costs of their externalities, an important issue. He then … Read more