I'm not much of a salad man, but when my sister-in-law made this salad for lunch one day, I fell in love with it.

If you know me, you won't be surprised to learn that this dish requires the use of a grill. But quit wasting my time, go check out the recipe for Debby's Chicken Strawberry Spinach Salad.

Via Kevin Aylward at Wizbang!, the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth have published a letter to Senator Kerry, asking that he take four steps to clarify circumstances surrounding his service in Vietnam and after he returned to the United States. If he does, they say they "will be satisfied that the American public has been sufficiently apprised as to these aspects of [Senator Kerry's] career," and they'll stop their ad campaign.

I'm not sure how this will play out, because Kerry will never agree to the terms they laid out. But at least they'll be seen by many folks to have made an offer. I have the feeling that the net effect will be further damage to the Democratic nominee.

That prediction is worth every penny you paid for it.

I don't really like to post jokes that much, but this one rises to the level of needing to be posted. Especially since it settles the subject question for all time.

A Soldier, Sailor, Airman and Marine got into an argument as to which service was "the best." The arguing became so intense, the four servicemen failed to see an oncoming truck. They were struck and killed instantly. Soon the servicemen found themselves at the Pearly Gates where they met St. Peter. They decided only he could be the ultimate source of truth and honesty. So, the four asked him, "St. Peter, which branch of the United States Armed Forces is the best?" After a few moments he replied that he could not answer that and would have to kick it up to God for an answer the next time he saw Him. Meanwhile, he said, thank you for your service on earth and welcome to Heaven.

Some time later, the four see St. Peter and remind him of the question they had asked when first entering Heaven. Suddenly a sparkling white dove lands on St. Peter's shoulder. There is a note, glistening with gold dust, in the dove's beak. "This must be the answer from the Boss. Let's see what it says." He opens the note, trumpets blare, gold dust drifts into the air, harps play crescendos, and St. Peter reads aloud to the servicemen.

MEMORANDUM: FROM THE DESK OF THE ALMIGHTY
TO: Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines
SUBJ: WHICH MILITARY SERVICE IS BEST

Gentlemen, all branches of the United States Armed Forces are honorable and noble. Each serves America well and with distinction. Being servicemen in the United States Military represents a special calling warranting special respect, tribute and dedication. Be proud of that.

Sincerely,

God
MCPO, USN (Ret.)

I saw this and just had to post it.

I'm trying to get to bed, but Bob Costas just started an interview with Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, Athens 2004 Organizing Committee President. All I have to say is — nice gams! Butterface, unfortunately, but those legs!

Update: David asks for a photo of Ms. Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, but unfortunately, I couldn't find any which show off her best feature. At any rate, here's a portrait shot:

Happy now, David? We aims to please 'round these hyere parts, doncha know?

I hadn't watched any of the medal ceremonies for events won by the United States until tonight, so I had no idea what folks have been talking about in regards to the arrangement used.

Here's a portion of what I read the other day in The Washington Post:

A "Europe-friendly version of the anthem," designed "to play down the notion of the U.S. as a chest-thumping, butt-kicking, jingoistic powerhouse," sniffed a writer in the Wall Street Journal, quoting an unnamed musician. "Even our warlike national anthem has been transformed, from blaring horns to peaceful, soothing strings" wrote Maureen Dowd in the New York Times, in a column about the toning-down of U.S. bravado at the Athens games.

Then I heard it for myself tonight. My reaction? Some folks need to get a life. I thought it was beautiful. It would be hard to sing to, but that's not the role it's taking in these ceremonies. I mean, c'mon, with the US women's 4x400 relay team, two of the young ladies didn't even place a hand over their hearts. That I found infinitely more objectionable than the lyrical beauty of our national anthem during the medal ceremony.

Mr. Breiner, you did a marvelous job with our anthem. Thank you.

And all you whiners? Sit down and shut up. You're starting to annoy me.

Many years ago, my sister-in-law Judy purchased a small, bound book filled with lined paper. In that book, she wrote down many Garrett family recipes, starting with my mother's signature chocolate cake. Then she gave it to me, and I could never sufficiently express my appreciation for that gift.

I've referenced this precious cookbook extensively ever since. And now, I've decided to share it with you. The first entry is for Wacky Cake, which is a marvelous, simple chocolate cake baked in a 13 by 9 pan, and interesting, without any eggs. I baked it for a neighbor's birthday because her daughter was allergic to eggs.

I'll be adding more recipes in the days ahead. Hopefully some of you will try and enjoy them.

I saw a brief story on the news this evening about expected widespread teacher shortages during the coming school year. And then it struck me: whereas I grew up attending classes with about 30 kids in each, these days my youngest kids have only about 20 classmates.

Combine the population growth over the past 30 years with the incessant drumbeat of "smaller class sizes, smaller class sizes" from those who can benefit most by expanding the perceived need for more teachers, I guess I can't be surprised that we're going to experience a teacher shortage.

How about we make the class sizes a bit bigger and save some tax money by cutting some of the deadwood haunting the halls of our children's schools?

The Washington Post has an article on the selection of high school mascots. Maybe it's just me, but the article has a condescending attitude, deriding the selection of "mainstream" mascots.

I find it stunning that one of the most influential newspapers in America concerns itself over such an insignificant subject.

In the interests of full disclosure, I'm a graduate of Brownwood High School, the proud home of the Brownwood Lions.

Those of you who follow my blog know I've been busy with other things lately, so you'll forgive me for bringing this to you a week late.

Ben Stein, of Ferris Bueller's Day Off and Comedy Central's "Win Ben Stein's Money" fame, wrote a moving letter to the wives (and a minor hattip to husbands) of American uniformed service members who are away defending us.

It's nice when the sacrifices are appreciated.

What bearing does Vietnam have on our presidential election this year? While I'll admit that if we knew all the facts, the absolute truth of everything that happened back then, we might have some insight into the character and principles of the two major candidates. But it seems to me that we'll never have access to the knowledge and understanding that we need based on these subjects, and there are much better sources for insight.

The only aspect of this whole debate that might be instructive is Senator Kerry's anti-war efforts back in the '70s. Many of his words are written in transcripts, captured on film, and are reasonably indisputable. The senator's voting record is concrete, as are President Bush's official actions as Governor of the Great State of Texas and as President.

How about we consider these subjects, as well as any actual plans for the future? Wouldn't that be much more meaningful then unsubstantiated (and unsubstantiatable) claims about what happened over thirty years ago?

Oh, and so you'll know where I'm coming from on Vietnam, while I'm not a Vietnam Veteran, I am a Vietnam-Era Veteran (that being the official Department of Defense term), retired from the U.S. Navy after 20 years of service in 1994.

Update: Joe Gandelman doesn't think the Vietnam disputes will end until all of us who lived in or with that war die. He's probably right.

My friend and fellow Texan John sent me this CBS News video (click on the search results page's link) of a bank robber in Spain back in April, trying to escape after releasing a pair of hostages. He didn't make it far.

Just more proof that the Guardia Civil don't mess around.

Joining in the OTB Beltway Traffic Jam.

When I reintroduced myself to computer games almost five years ago, the vehicle I used was Half-Life, and then its mod Team Fortress Classic. Even back in 2000, there was already talk of the sequel, Half-Life 2, but Valve never seemed to make any discernable progress. After a while, I quit bothering to notice when there was some supposed "news" on HL2.

Then today I noticed that Luke Hutteman posted a link to a new demo for Half-Life 2 (registration with FilePlanet required). It's a 22-minute demo movie, and it looks awesome. The realism of the game physics is amazing. I see that FilePlanet indicates the game should be released in Q3 2004, which I'll believe when I actually see it available for sale. But I'll certainly snap one up as soon as I see it, something I've never done with a new game in the past. This one looks incredible.

I recently returned from Texas after paying my final respects to Dad. Fortunately, I had the opportunity to say good-bye when I visited him last month, knowing his demise was imminent.

Thanks to all who expressed their concern and offered condolences, both here and elsewhere.

That's a phrase folks like to use a lot after some significant event, usually unpleasant, usually involving someone's death. "Life goes on." Of course it's true, we just have to look around and see that we still have to pay the mortgage, prepare meals, wash the laundry, etc.

But in some sense, life doesn't still go on. When it's someone you love who dies, a piece of you dies with them. Life certainly doesn't still go on for the loved one who died.

It may be because of some overwhelming event, such as the September 11, 2001, attacks on America, or it may be due to an act of heroism, such as Pat Tillman.

And among the many other circumstances, sometimes age catches up to you. Oh, it may be heart disease, it may be cancer, it may be a stroke, or it may be Alzheimer's. But no matter what the cause, life doesn't go on.

And that's the case today for Dr. Edward N. Garrett, retired Southern Baptist pastor, Doctor of Divinity, my father. Three days short of his 79th birthday, he succumbed to bone cancer. My step-mother, my brothers and I, and all our families, will appreciate your thoughts and prayers.

We'll miss you, Dad.

James Joyner has updated his 404 (Page Not Found) page. While we don't know where the potential missing page may be, we do know it's not in Cambodia.

Update: Okay, the original title wasn't working (it was a reference to Lieutenant(j.g.) Kerry's Christmas in Cambodia). That was flat-out stupid, so I've changed it to one that's not such a weak attempt at being cute.

But there are also others worth checking out: Steven Taylor at Poliblog has updated his 404 page, while Kevin Aylward at Wizbang! has a dated but still hilarious Lost Page response.

As for me, I'm too lazy and unimaginative to bother with it.

I picked this up from Luke Hetterman's Hutteman's blog (he's the guy who created the SharpReader RSS Reader, which I use). I don't know how well this will work, since it depends on lots of downstream sites (read below, then it will make more sense). Anyway, here ya go:

There are by some estimates more than a million weblogs. But most of them get no visibility in search engines. Only a few "A-List" blogs get into the top search engine results for a given topic, while the majority of blogs just don't get noticed. The reason is that the smaller blogs don't have enough links pointing to them. But this posting could solve that. Let's help the smaller blogs get more visibility!

This posting is GoMeme 4.0. It is part of an experiment to see if we can create a blog posting that helps 1000's of blogs get higher rankings in Google. So far we have tried 3 earlier variations. Our first test, GoMeme 1.0, spread to nearly 740 blogs in 2.5 days. This new version 4.0 is shorter, simpler, and fits more easily into your blog.

Why are we doing this? We want to help thousands of blogs get more visibility in Google and other search engines. How does it work? Just follow the instructions below to re-post this meme in your blog and add your URL to the end of the Path List below. As the meme spreads onwards from your blog, so will your URL. Later, when your blog is indexed by search engines, they will see the links pointing to your blog from all the downstream blogs that got this via you, which will cause them to rank your blog higher in search results. Everyone in the Path List below benefits in a similar way as this meme spreads. Try it!

Instructions: Just copy this entire post and paste it into your blog. Then add your URL to the end of the path list below, and pass it on! (Make sure you add your URLs as live links or HTML code to the Path List below.)

Path List
1. Minding the Planet
2. Luke Hutteman's public virtual MemoryStream
3. Boyd Garrett's Texas Native Blog
4. (your URL goes here! But first, please copy this line and move it down to the next line for the next person).

(NOTE: Be sure you paste live links for the Path List or use HTML code.)

A (non-Texan) friend sent me the following list today, and it hits the mark so well, I have to post it.

Rules to Enter Texas:

Note: applies to each person as they enter Texas. Learn & remember. East Coast and California-types pay particular attention!

1. Pull your stupid droopy pants up. You look like an idiot.

2. Let's get this straight; it's called a "gravel road." I drive a pickup truck because I want to. No matter how slow you drive, you're going to get dust on your Lexus. Drive it or get out of the way.

3. They are cattle & oil wells (ahl wayls). That's what they smell like to you. They smell like money to us. Get over it. Don't like it? I-10, I-20, I-30 and I-40 go east and west, I-35 goes north and south. Pick one.

4. So you have a $60,000 car. We're impressed. We have $250,000 cotton strippers that are driven only 3 weeks a year.

5. So every person in every pickup waves. It's called being friendly. Try to understand the concept.

6. If that cell phone rings while a bunch of doves are coming in, we WILL shoot it out of your hand. You better hope you don't have it up to your ear at the time.

7. Yeah, we eat catfish & crawfish. You really want sushi & caviar? It's available at the corner bait shop.

8. The "Opener" refers to the first day of deer season. It's a religious holiday held the closest Saturday to the first of November.

9. We open doors for women. That is applied to all women, regardless of age.

10. No, there's no "vegetarian special" on the menu. Order steak. Or you can order the Chef's Salad and pick off the 2 pounds of ham & turkey.

11. When we fill out a table, there are three main dishes: meats, vegetables, and breads. We use three spices: salt, pepper, and Picante Sauce. Oh, yeah.... We don't care what you folks in Cincinnati call that stuff you eat... It AIN'T REAL CHILI!! Chili was born and bred in San Antonio.... and real chili never met a tomato! [Boyd's note: Serve your chili with Fritos and you get the haute cuisine of Texas: Frito Pie.]

12. You bring "coke" into my house, it better be brown, wet, and served over ice. You bring "Mary Jane" into my house, she better be cute, know how to shoot, drive a truck, and have long hair.

13. College and High School Football is as important here as the Lakers and the Knicks, and a dang sight more fun to watch.

14. Yeah, we have golf courses. But don't hit the water hazards — it spooks the fish.

15. Colleges? Try Texas, Texas A&M or Texas Tech. They come outta there with an education plus a love for God and country, and they still wave at passing pickups when they come for the holidays.

16. We have more folks in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marines than any other state, so "Don't Mess with Texas." If you do, it will get your butt whipped by the best.

17. Always remember what our great governor Sam Houston once said:

"Texas can make it without the United States, but the United States can't make it without Texas."

I've known for some time that Stephen Green is a smart and thoughtful man. Today he proves it again.

...which is why I'll never have very many friends who are politicians. For a good example of lying for political gain, let's look at this Stars and Stripes interview with John Kerry:

Stripes: You said during your speech sir that never again would U.S. troops operate, or be hostage to a lousy energy policy --

Kerry: What I said is, I didn’t say never again, I said I don’t want them to be hostage.

Stripes: You think that’s what’s going on now?

Kerry: I think in the first war, their oil was a critical consideration, because Saddam Hussein’s intent was to take over the oil fields. Jim Baker said publicly that it had something to do with what we were doing.

Stripes: But our operations in Iraq right now, no?

Kerry: No. That’s not related directly to the oil … and I never suggested that it is.

Hmm, this assertion — that Kerry had never suggested that the 2003 invasion of Iraq wasn't directly connected to oil — didn't fit with my recollection of earlier Kerry statements, so I googled "Kerry Iraq Oil," and came up with this from the May 25, 2004, Washington Times:

"A strong America begins at home — with energy independence from the Middle East. Let's ensure that no young American soldier has to fight and die because of our dependence on foreign oil," the Massachusetts senator said.

Maybe I'm just insufficiently nuanced to discern the Senator's deep adherance to the truth, but the above quote certainly seems to suggest a connection. In my naïveté, I'd call that a lie.

Let's move on in the Stars and Stripes article. Later in the interview, Kerry states:

[The Bush administration] went into Iraq in a brilliant military strategy, which we all adopted and supported...

Whoa, wait a second. I thought he only voted to threaten the use of force, not the actual use of force, right? Oh, wait, this is a military audience, so a candidate has to look sufficiently martial. At any rate, another lie, thankyouverymuch.

Stripes: Tommy Franks has said in his new book that we should be in Iraq for three to five years – does that sound like a fair estimate to you?

Kerry: I think that that estimate depends on the success of my diplomacy. I will be more successful than George Bush, and I think any timetables now will depend on a new president, and a new credibility to re-create the relationships that this administration has broken.

Okay, typical political speech. "I'll do better than my opponent." Fine. But wait, how does that square with the next question:

Stripes: As a hypothetical, what happens if these old allies don’t come back? Or if they don’t want to go into Iraq in substantial numbers?

Kerry: Well, I’m not going to deal with hypotheticals. This is not a hypothetical. I’m working on knowledge I have, indicated to me from colleagues in the Senate who’ve traveled abroad and talked to people. I know the power of my own diplomacy and I believe, and I’m confident to say I can do a better job of bringing people to the table and reducing the burden on American troops. I know I can do it.

So the Senator is willing to discuss his hypothetical successes, but not his hypothetical failures. Typical.

It's starting to get under my skin, examining Kerry's words so closely. So I'll leave it to the reader to finish the fisking.

Hat tip to Kevin McGehee.

I'm watching retired Army General Tommy Franks on the Letterman show. My experience during my twenty years as an enlisted Sailor has led me to having limited respect for the bulk of military officers. There are some exceptions, and General Franks is one of them. He seems to me to have his head screwed on straight, and his priorities seem to be in the right place.

Just my opinion.

Update: Chief Warrant Officers are a different story, and command my respect by default.

I admit I haven't read the 9/11 Commission's report in its entirety yet, hence I wasn't aware that one of the problem areas the Commission addressed is the Senate's lousy performance at confirming Presidential appointments. That is, until I read one of today's editorials in The Washington Post.

There is one recommendation in the report from the Sept. 11 commission that ought to be implemented quickly but that risks being forgotten. The existing presidential appointments system, which causes large numbers of executive-branch slots to stand vacant, needs to be overhauled.

When I stop to think about it, this is a much bigger problem than, say, campaign finance reform, even before the misguided passage of McCain-Feingold. Key positions go unfilled while Senators posture like preening peacocks. What's the effect of that egotistical disregard for the welfare of our nation?

The significance of the appointments process to national security is clear from the story of 2001. When President Bush took office, Cabinet-level appointees were confirmed promptly, the deputy-secretary level took six weeks or so, and after that things slowed to a crawl. Two months before Sept. 11, half of the posts relating to national security stood empty. The Pentagon position of assistant secretary for special operations and low-intensity conflict, responsible for counterterrorism, was vacant on Sept. 11

Yes, you read that correctly: the Assistant Secretary of Defense position responsible for counterterrorism was vacant on September 11, 2001. I won't absolve Republicans of responsibility on the matter, either, because during the Clinton tenure, they started the current tradition of obstructing confirmations because they hated the President.

The editorial suggests a politically unfeasible process where candidates submit names of top nominees for FBI vetting prior to the election, but after that sidetrip into the fantasy world, they regain their senses with the continuation of their suggested process:

The Senate should commit to vote on nominees within 30 days of receiving their names, and it should demand the right to confirm only the top three managerial layers of each executive department.

Vote yes, vote no, I don't care, but vote, fer cryin' out loud! At least if the nomination is rejected, the administration can start looking for someone else to fill the post.

The Post has a good suggestion of their own, and I'm surprised the Commission didn't think of it as well:

In our view, the Sept. 11 commission could also have urged the Senate to do away with anonymous "holds" on nominees, which allow individual senators to turn the appointments system into a tool for extracting favors from the administration.

This ability to block nominees anonymously is the most craven practice of the US Senate, and should be abolished. Stand up and be a man (metaphorically, of course — our female Senators are just as responsible for behaving honorably, putting their country in front of their personal political desires). Declare the cowardice behind this practice and eliminate it.

Their last point emphasizes timing. We're at a critical point right now where people can do things that they won't be able to do in six months, and left undone by then, will never be implemented.

If these ideas are neglected now, they're unlikely to be revived later. Once the election is over, the losing party will have an interest in stalling reform, since reform would strengthen the executive. Right now, on the other hand, the stars are propitiously aligned: The polls suggest that both parties have a real chance of capturing the White House, so both have an incentive to fix the system. This is a rare instance of a policy reform that could actually benefit from being carried out in the middle of a horse race.

I'm generally an optimistic person, but I don't ignore reality. The Post is right about the importance of this issue. But it ain't gonna happen. Unfortunately.

People who have listened to shortwave radio for any period of time have most likely run across so-called "numbers stations." These are unidentified stations who recite series of numbers, or in some cases letters. The logical conclusion is that these are clandestine transmissions to spies from their controlling authority, but it's still mostly speculation.

The Washington Post has an interesting story on these unidentified stations and one man's obsession with them. I found it an engrossing read. If you're interested in radio or spy stuff, or both, have a look.

James Joyner tells us that the Chicago Sun Times is reporting that Alan Keyes may take on Barack Obama in the race to become the next Illinois Senator.

If the Illinois GOP is all excited about getting Keyes to run, then they must be really desperate or drinking some really wild hooch. If it was wrong for Hillary Clinton to run for New York Senator (it was), then it's still wrong for Alan Keyes (I believe he lives in Maryland) to run for Illinois Senator.

Jack Ryan may have been unfairly shoved out of the race, but you win some and you lose some. Illinois Republicans should take their lumps and start working on the next project, 'cause this effort ain't gonna get them anywhere.

I just got back from my trip to Texas, and had a great visit with my father, step-mother, brothers, and other friends and relatives. I was completely offline the entire time, so I've got tons of stuff to catch up on, not the least of which are all my favorite blogs.

Fortunately, nothing much happened this past week, right? Boston? What happened in Boston?