MOVED

You should be redirected before you read this, but in case you are not here is the bread crumb trail.

Teh Squeaky Wheel

This place will be shuttered sometime tomorrow (Friday).

If you are still having login issues at TSW send me an email at:

sinner -at- tehsqueakywheel -dot- com.

If you haven't done so yet, head to the new digs and pull up a pile of wood shavings.

A law was made a distant moon ago, here
The posts and comments cannot be too hot
And there's a legal limit to the spam here
in Debalot

The Teh may never fly till after sundown
By 8 the morning Vodka must appear
In short there's simply not
a more congenial spot
for Frischmas poet corners
that the kids call
Deb.a.lot.

Update: the transition is not yet complete, so comments here are still okay.

Announcement

The time has come. We are finally moving.

Teh Squeaky Wheel will be our live site sometime tommorow (Friday). This site will redirect for awhile and then be reedited to the original idea.

Please go over and have a look, sign up for an account and upload an AVATAR!

There are wrinkles to iron out, but it seem ready for prime time.

Update: DOH!

Merry Frischmas, Gerbils! Our own Debster, whose SWP has been remarkably silent for nearly two weeks and who has managed to lock down the AbbeyWeb tighter than her own personal Jonestown Guyana, misses all the interactive attention she used to get.

So she has been making drive-by appearances at her favorite "stalker" sites.

"It's Thursday. Bring on Teh Crazy!® Dance, monkey, dance!"

Update: tim @ tehdebabbeyfiles breaks a biggie. Lesson: anarchists imposing rules on other anarchists rarely works. The more Deborah Frisch acts like a tyrannical thug, the fewer places she's likely to find refuge, and the faster she will overstay her welcome in the few that remain.

Sinner speaks, Thread Boy complies.

New Thread

Evening Thread, for left coasters and nite owls.

Elvis Sightings

If you've received a visit from teh Crayzee Fayree at your site, or seen her presence elsewhere, let us in on the fun.

Those who recently subscribed to the Abbeyweb, after being invited to do so last week, are now finding their access limited or removed. This, in addition to the sequestering of the Abbeyweb archives, gives Deb what she wants - a modicum of control over the ability of unwashed billions to view her past and present comments.

At this rate, soon only "true" AbbeyWeb members will be left at AbbeyWeb.

The only question is whether the end result will be a recovering community, or a locked box that only Deb inhabits, with the current traffic and activity of SWP--

Which, come to think about it, is where her meatspace avatar also appears to be headed.

I wonder if some concerned citizens should alert Hostage Rescue to the current Deb standoff.

I don't expect the Helsinki Syndrome - that's Helsinki, Sweden - is all that likely in this case.

Announcement

I am pleased to announce the newest 2 Ministers of "Teh Squeaky Wheel"

HoseDragger is now officially "Minister of Defense"

Tim is now officially "Minister of Intelligence"

Let's hear it for the newest members of teh cabinet!

Update: Heh

Frischmas® Eve Poetry Corner™

WOMAN

Woe, man.

Whooooooah, MAN!

She is a Frisch
She makes my butt isch
She threatens toddlers and SEALS.

Debaisy, and Uncle Fester, and Luke, and ... ummm... Beau
The AbbeyWeb Dukes, anonymous pukes
girls too far left will leave you bereft...

I want to to be Brenda's ...star.
Jane... stop this crazy thing... called troll.

More of "teh funny"™ from Minister of Intel-elect tim:

TOP TEN CLUES YOU'RE A HARDCORE
DHD-ER:

1) You wonder why your spell-check keeps flagging 'teh' as a mistake;

2) Muppet Show re-runs remind you of DHD.com;

3) Your priest worries why you spend so much time with a guy named 'Sinner';

4) You've set all your clocks for the correct time...in Eugene, Oregon;

5) You forbid your niece from riding her tricycle--because everyone knows that teh cycles cause teh crayzee!

6) You score tickets to your favorite team on the 50-yard line...and the only cheer you can think of is, 'teh, YAY!"™

7) You petition your local liquor store to start carrying WTF vodka™

8) You go out for karaoke with your friends...and all you can remember are hosedragger's parody-lyrics

9) Your spouse informs you that you were giggling in your sleep last night, and mumbling, "New thread! New Thread!"

10) Your reasoning for military action in Iran includes the premise: "...because we can't let nukes fall into the hands of a batfrisch country!"

In case you didn't notice, the DHD clock is set to "Batfrisch Savings Time"

Update: Sorry Sulla... I guess that just proves we are not the same person... Unless we did it on purpose! Maybe we are both Jeff Goldstein! (That would be sweet)

DHD 24/7

Don't you people ever sleep?

Good morning fine Gerbils! [squeak!]

Just how are we this fine morning?

I had this little ditty in my head all morning, so its time to let teh funny out.

Who teh leader of teh club
That is a creepy bitch

D-E-B B-I-E F-R-I-SC-H

Hey! there, Hi! there, Ho! there
You're as loathsome as can be

D-E-B B-I-E F-R-I-SC-H

Debbie Frisch! (Beau Payton!)

Debbie Frisch! (Beau Payton!)

Forever let us hold her to account!
TEH! TEH! TEH! TEH!

Come along and fling some poo
The gerbils are on the march!

D-E-B B-I-E F-R-I-SC-H

OPEN THREAD

Egads, y'all are chatty.

New thread.

Yes, I'm still at work. But not at my desk. I'm a one man Geek Squad around here.

Warning: this post contains sax and violins.

OPEN THREAD

(But please, for Fatwa's sake: ixnay on the anilowmay.)

Sorry to repost something, but this really has me steamed:

sinner's got a daughter and is in the process of moving. he's a software engineer, i think.

As Chell said on the other post:

Now what could possibly be the benign reason behind a post like that? Really.

“Teh Deb Abbey Files” didn't exist when she posted that little gem, that combined with the fact that she was successful in getting their archives locked away into the “sekrit clubhouse” tells me that she didn't expect to have the disinfectant of sunshine applied to this email. That really ups the creepy factor.

Also, what is up with Dr. Debbie Frisch and kids of people she dislikes? With all the things I have chosen to reveal about myself, she gloms onto the fact that I have a daughter. Just how creepy is that?

I made light of this earlier, but I really should take it more seriously. I have done a pretty great job of separating my meatspace ID from my webspace ID, but nothing is 100%. Someone with talent and time to kill could find quite a few clues to my ID. Maybe enough to get within a million people or so... Deb has no skillz, but does seem to have plenty of time and a sugar daddy-o footing the bills.

For the record, I absolutely feel threatened by this email. This is not anything like the Jeff Goldstein stuff because those threats (and yes, they were threats) were out in public. This feels a lot more real and a lot more sinister. Lurking in the shadows and plotting something against me and my family.

Filing an RO, which if I understand it correctly would be a “slam dunk” with this sort of evidence, would only serve to ID me, so I will rely on my webspace measures to shield my family.

Anyone seeing stuff like this, please get a screen cap and send it to me. If you are on the list and get the direct email, I would also be very interested in seeing the email with the headers intact.

I need a new picture to focus on, just to cleanse myself.

Ahhh. Bless you, Velvet Fog.

Maybe we wont hear from Beau again....

From: Beau Peyton
Date: Sep 12, 2006 11:59 AM
Subject: Re: [Abbeyweb] Happy Birthday
To: abbeyweb@abbeyweb.net

Thanks for the warm wishes.

This day, which marks the 44th year I've been on this planet, is significant.

It marks the day when I officially and irrevocably gave up all hope for homo sap and decided to withdraw, to the greatest degree possible, to a very small circle of trusted friends and family members and away from society at large.

My private life is forever closed except to a very small number of people.

I think the best thing that can happen to the planet is for some plague to kill a few million humans, starting with the jackals that go out of their way to make life miserable for other living things.

I will not be posting here or elsewhere again. Life is simply too short to spend it sitting in front of a keyboard arguing with people about things you can't change. It's too short to endure childish insults, threats and harassment from cowardly strangers.

But I do appreciate those of you that took time to read and respond to the things I've written. I tried to contribute something of value and interest.

For those I've had conflicts with, I apologize for any rudeness of behavior and hope the best for you.

Warm wishes to all who come here for the fellowship, constructive dialog, stories and humor. To all others, a plague upon your house.

Beau

(Thanks to XXX - if you want credit say so)

Too bad too, it was getting to be fun to hammer Beau.

I think I will try once more:


If that doesn't do it, maybe this one will:



Thanks to Fred for the idea!

AbbeyWeb!

Hi Beau!!!!

According to Deb Abbey Files, Deb Sayz:

1. sinner and sulla, the guys who started and manage don't hire
dr. deborah frisch http://donthiredeb.blogspot.com/ sinner's got
a daughter and is in the process of moving. he's a software engineer,
i think. don't know much about sulla.

I have a daughter and I have just moved. That should narrow down my ID to about 100 billion people. I guess I might be called a "Software Engineer", but that is not my primary gig.

This is pretty troubling behavior for a group that was (according to our friend Beau) very (VERY) concerned about getting personal information out in the innertubes.

So, Beau, whatcha gonna do about this? Huh?

My guess is nothin'

If that is the case, I guess that just about ends any shread of credibility you might have had with me. I don't speak for the gerbils, but I suspect I was giving you MUCH more consideration that the average gerbil.

It might just be worth it to blow my ID in order to get TROs against every member of the AbbeyWeb mailing list and get those archives in my hands via discovery in the big fat laysuit I would bring. I wouldn't win, but it would certainly be huge fun to see it all unfold.

The wheel in the cage goes:
round and round round and round round and round

The wheel in the cage goes:
round and round round and round round and round


all through the day!

Open Thread

9/11 Stories

Today is the anniversary of the acts of terrorism in New York City, Washington DC and Pennsylvania. Each of us will remember where we were and what we were doing that fateful day.






Please share your personal story in the comments.

The rules are simple, the story you share must be:

• Your own thoughts and rememberances of that day.
• Free of politics.
• From the heart.

Anything not following these simple rules will be removed.

Comments

Remember, today's business is ONLY about 9/11 stories.

This is a thread for comments on the story thread above this one. Off topic comments will be deleted (contrary to normal DHD rules).


Regular DHD activity will return tomorrow, for today there is an open thread here.

Thank you.

Last open thread before 9/11.

Enjoy!

My beloved Packers suck rocks.

I need to take a walk...

Open Thread

My wife and I are headed to Ventura for a quick mini-vacation, since I must be back to work on Tuesday.

The hotel has lan access, so I will pop in at least once to offer my comment on tomorrow's 9/11 post.

Related to that, here is an audio commemoration site of that day, for those who feel up to it.

Announcement!

[Clears Throat]

I am happy to announce that a Comcast customer from San Jose, CA was the 100,000th visitor to DHD.

Thank you to this visitor as well as each of the 99,999 visitors before that made this community such a great thing.

[Applause]

new thread for the overnight/morning crowd.

I thought we might do a very special episode of DHD on Monday.

I will make a post that morning with my story of September 11th, 2001 and I would like for all y'alls to post your stories of that black day in the thread. The stories don't have to be dramatic, mine will be mostly about my morning and how the news effected the office and other mundane observations. A story from the heart, but not mushy. All these stories of everyday lives and everyday people, taken together, should make a powerful statement.

No teh snark, no teh silly and certainly no teh Deb.

Any posts off topic on that thread will be deleted, in opposition to normal DHD policy.

Also, there will be no threads started on Monday other than the story thread.

Start thinking about what you want to post. If you need/want pictures, email them to me and I will upload them to my image host and send you back the html to display in your post.

If this turns out something like I think it might, I will make a special place for all the stories on a separate space.

Thanks for giving me the opportunity to try something of this magnitude.

Well, well, well....

I am so glad I am here today, not only am I getting lots done with nobody around, but I managed to snag some interesting info.

Looky who has been lurking again...

11 visits with nothing to say? Come on, we must have gotten so much smarter since last time to frighten away the wordwarrior!

Just bookmark it already, do you really need to search every time?

SOOPER SEKRIT MESSAGE to Dr. Frisch: Upgrade your version of Firefox!

Update: POKE!

Morning... I am back at the office due to some QWest related downtime this past week.

The question of the day, will the trolls ever learn?

Discuss

Here is a Technorati tag, just for some fun...
Deb Frisch

Update: DOH!

it appears that the abbeyweb listserv has been converted to a subscription board.

Apologies to those Abbey site readers who have been inconvenienced by our discovery, and Deb's subseqent "championing" of the First Amendment (there's one for the Debinition file, Joe) by restricting access to her speech.

I'm all for self-censorship. But in the world humanity lives in, Dr. Deborah Frisch, Ph.D., that means censoring yourself BEFORE you speak, not moving heaven, earth, and bits on a disc to ensure that words you have ALREADY uttered cannot be seen.

John Kerry tried that with his "Winter Soldier" book in the last election. didn't work out so well then either.

Remember Watergate? Remember Whitewater? Remember when Peter lied about playing ball in the house?

Titanic efforts to cover up suggest that there's something WORTH covering up.

It's like driving nails holes ito a piece of wood when you get angry, and pulling them out when you calm down. the nails are gone, but the holes are forever.

Welcome to a thing we like to call accountability. We know you're not well-versed in the term. But don't worry - you've been flagged for accelerated learning here at the School of Hard Knocks.

James harshes on a prof from my alma mater...and I say Go James, and Go Cougars.

Cold fusion and a fevered imagination...bad combination.

"Seriously Deb, if you're going to snark you need to keep up with the big boys."

Discuss.

Leaving for the night, behave!

I will leave with this thought from "GoatSucker":

By the by, what's up with the "teh" thing on that blog?? Inside shit
sure is annoying to us outsiders.

Heh® teh whatt® is flinging poo at us... whaaa. my widdle heart breaks.

Merry Frischmas!

Wondering what happened the night Dr. Deb was arrested?

Wonder no more

BrendaK speaks, I listen!

OPEN THREAD

For teh silly®

There are a few new "approved" comments at casa "teh crazy"® that made me chuckle

Your only friend CHELL is trying to join the VBSers at DHD.
Posted by Not CHELL at September 8, 2006 12:31 PM

The truth sort of hurts, or in this case is really effin funny

Are you back from poughkeepsie?
Posted by joe at September 8, 2006 02:17 PM

I love reference humor... Those of you on or reading the mailing list that was referenced in a previous comment should really enjoy this one.

Low level "teh crazy"®, but I takes what I can gets...

Squeaky wheel it is!

I am still doing some host/Wordpress research, but that will be the next issue. Blogspot vs. Wordpress Host.

Progress has been made on the clicking, please show your support...

rabbit sayz:

DEB-Court Countdown Calendar:

Just 17 short days until her next scheduled courtdate. (That we know of) Sept. 25,2006 in Lane County Oregon.

Will DEB-Bile remain free from teh Green Can Man until then?

Will DEB-Bile remain unable to post on her own pawthetic blog?

Ok, I get it...

It's RED, Gravatar sucks, there is some stupid bug not allowing comments...

FINE... BE that way...

Actually, yeah... there are issues and I am working on getting them fixed. The question is: "Is it worth it?"

---

Here are the goals:

1. Get better authoring software, which Wordpress in IMHO the best.
2. Leave this site to the Google Searchers for Dr. Deborah Frisch.
3. Leave Dr. Deb behind as a focus (she will always be a topic).

Here are the solutions:

1. Do nothing and stay here.
2. Move to blogsome
3. Move to a new blogspot
4. Get a Wordpress host and make the required mods

Details:

1. I hate the idea of staying here because it makes the original mission very difficult. I list it as an option only to make this statement.

2. The gerbil cage blogsome site is working, but has the above issues. Avatars being the hardest to fix. (Live comment preview can be done ala my home blog)

3. This would at least solve the avatar stuff, but we are stuck w/ the Google evil empire.

4. This cost $$$ and let me tell you, the ad revenue (pfft, he said "revenue") doesn't even come close to covering a hosting account. Also not a small amount of tech geekery would be required to make the changes to Wordpress.

If, say the ad revenue were to jump suddenly and I would hit the magic number that the ad hosting company needs to actually send real money, I would be very happy to divert that money to a hosting account. I would also be willing to give the tech geekery a go.

I am looking for guidance here folks, this is YOUR place and YOUR COMMUNITY. If a solution doesn't serve, then it doesn't get implemented.

FREE AT LAST!

Virtual August is at an end. We've shipped. Hot dang!

The previous thread has some intriguing tidbits from Deb about her arrest, culled from Abbeyweb. Links available as well, for the stouthearted. Check it out.

Me...I'm going to Disneyland!

No, I'm not talking about that bald Aussie rocker who sings like a sheep...

Midnight Oil Thread

because, really, all the health and social maladies pale in signifcance to time and a half and free sushi.

I've been working on something for a while now and I think its time to unveil it

The Gerbil Cage

Comment here or there... The question is, do I give it up, or do I set this site to redirect there?

Frischmas Travels

SWP is quiet today, and getting quieter as past comments to existing postings are sanitized like the ABC 9/11 miniseries under pressure from the Clinton Legacy Task Force.

But Deb has not been silent. She's been participating on the SJDM mailing list, on such weighty decision-science topics as sex (important only in terms of global warming) and economics (bad! bad!).

It's not completely unhinged, but you can tell when an attempt at a reasoned reply starts off well, but rapidly snowballs into misspelling Condaleeza Rice's name in hilariously obscene (/sarc) ways.

So...SWP may remain silent for a while, but Dr. Deborah Frisch is posting.

Follow the tubes...

I know there are some great legal minds out there, so...

Gratuitous personal use of the blog for Legal advice follows:

The situation:

I have been granted a free licence for a piece of software that can be used to develop other software. It is a tool, none of the end-product would have any trace of the tool's code or use any of the tool's functions.

The issue:

The license for this tool has the following clause:

You may not use the Software or any information made available for display using the Software, or any outputs generated with the Software, or any application developed with the assistance of the Software in any commercial or business environment or for any commercial or business purposes for yourself or any third parties.

You may, however, use the Software for non-commercial research or personal use only.

(bold mine)

The question(s):

1. Can they really do that???? It's like saying that you can't sell a house made with the hammer I sold you, but you could give it away.

2. Is that enforceable in any way?



I am a huge believer in the rights of software authors; I make my living at that game so it follows that I would be in favor for getting paid...

This seems over the top stupid. If I read this right, I must uninstall my free (for beta testing) copy post-haste and pitch it forever. Anyone buying this tool would almost certainly be in violation of this clause as open source software often is used for commercial purposes.

Maybe Dr. Frisch isn't the only one that is "teh crazy"®.

Buzzards or gerbils?

Discuss

They just let us go for the evening, but I'll be back early tomorrow for what will hopefully be the day we deliver a bouncing baby product.

New thread for all you tricksy VBS gerbuzzilds (what you get when you cross a gerbil and a buzzard, in that one-in-a-million case where you don't just end up with a well-fed buzzard).

Night, all.

OK, which one of you jokers bumped Dr. Frisch's tipjar up to $15?

Also: What is the meaning of this statement? Did I miss something during my long (and continuing internet dark age?

Update: Well, it's off to my luddite housing again...

I made up my "waiting for the QWest guy to fail to show up" time and I now venture forth to the land of anti-technology.

Don't do anything I wouldn't do... wait...

I'm sure I am the very last to hear this slice of "teh funny"® but it needs to be on the front page.

FATWA FATWA FATWA!!!!

Update: Fatwa's original intro:

If you're in the mood for some top-notch television entertainment this evening, check out this ultra-low-budget radio promo for a couple of shows which might be of interest to VBSers.

(You may have to scroll down a bit on the linked page and/or wait a few seconds for the file to load.)

CAUTION: THIS IS NOT WORK-FRIENDLY!

You have been warned.

For some reason, the conversion to mp3 made the spot sound a little "tubby". Plus I don't own the right type of mic for voiceovers (I'm more a writer/producer when it comes to radio, anyhow) and am getting over a cold. Feh.

A little mid-range roll-off and/or high-end boost might improve audibility; I hope teh funny® comes through anyway.

Music courtesy of the Fatwa Arbuckle Dead Project Archives®.

Afternoon all.

Since I practice what I preach, I'll be taking a few hours off from work this evening to get my meds adjusted by my psychiatrist.

If they ever come up with a drug - aside from Monster Energy Drinks - that would let me be Obsessive/Compulsive ONLY during work hours, and switch off instantly when it's time to go home, I'd be a happy camper.

Boss: "Can you work late tonight?"
me: "Sorry; can't. Life kicks in at 5:00 sharp. Doctor's orders."

As if. They hire folks like me because we're workaholics with OCD. Throw enough Twinkies, Sani-Wipes and frappuccinos our way, and we'll work until our brains melt.

Good Morning all!

Only one thing to say on this lovely Wednesday...

TRUST TEH CYCLE®!
TEH CRAZY® WILL COME!
TRUST TEH CYCLE®!

Until the fireworks start...

OPEN THREAD

We do have fun, don't we...

Eve Open Thread

All is quiet on the Pacific Northwestern front.

So...keep up with the happy gerbil fun.

To newcomers: pull up some debris and have a seat, and say hello.

Good Morning!

And a fine morning 'tis!

I bumbed up the advisory because I just feel it in my bones, that and a few comments got approved at casa "teh crazy"®.

Hope to have some news on the QWest nonsense today or tomorrow. I am going to post something on that at the Mothership later today.

Also, Gerbils might want to check out Gravatars and maybe sign up for one. Please give me feedback of this is an acceptable avatar system for then next generation DHD.

Meanwhile:

MORNING OPEN THREAD

Took a bit longer to leave work than I'd hoped.

Headed up to Malibu to pick up some Wellness Formula for one of our houseguests, who arrived with a case of Colorado Gummylung. Gorgeous day, beautiful view of beach and ocean. Traffic was not hideous enough to overwhelm my feel-good iPod playlist, which says more about the playlist than north PCH.

I'm off to the barbecue. A couple hours viewing slow-roasted breasts on the beach gots me hungry for chicken.

Lord, I apologize for that last joke...

It was a beautiful, sunny day in the City of Angels.

I got to enjoy some of it, along with a homemade pasgetti dinner.

It's not vending machine Doritos, but it ain't bad.

New thread.

I am considering moving this blog to Blogsome because of my frustration with Blogger and now some comments that smilies and such in the comments.

Check out my personal blog for a feature preview.

What do you think? Would you follow?

This thread is ONLY for discussion of a possible move. Previous open thread for normal DHD silliness serious discussion of issues.

Update: Looks like a resounding YES, now taking suggestions for names.

Some unsuspecting neighbor has an unsecured wireless network!

No telling how long I will be able to have a free ride.

Open Thread

new thread.

Sorry. 8pm on Saturday night on Labor Day weekend, and I'm still working.

If that's not a reason to not hire Dr. Deborah Frisch, I don't know what is.

Well, since Sulla posted on the last thread, thus killing it...

OPEN THREAD

With Dr. Debroah Frisch in lock-up or away from the keyboard for fun, the DebLand Security forces can take a deep breath and lower the advisory to the lowest level since ... well ... evah

This, of course, does not mean we should not be vigilant.

I fully expect to see all heck break loose when I get another chance to get on the net.

Stupid Atrios. These things are addictive.

OPEN THREAD

While Deb is on vacation, it's time to take a breath, crack open a cold one, and enjoy each others' company.

Any negative expressions will be hugged into oblivion.

HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY THREAD

Happy Labor Day Weekend, everybody.

Me...I'm off to work. More later.

OPEN THREAD

Last one to leave, turn out the light.

Night Owl Thread

It's Friday, friends. And you know what that means.

OPEN THREAD

Since this may have been lost in the shuffle, here's a repeat and clarification of an earlier post on charities, courtesy Blizzardlane and others.

www.booksforsoldiers.com
"If you're like me and buy books, read them and then one day turn around and say, "Didn't I used to have a bedroom where this book-storage room used to be?" Go here and get to boxing them up. One of my friends who did a swing through Iraq and Kuwait said the downtime is the worst, and every book that anyone receives from home gets passed to dozens of people."

Heifer International (www.heifer.org)
"If you're conflicted about the war, go here. I've worked with these people in the past and I cannot say enough good about Heifer. Every year I give a basket of chicks or bunnies or bees -- one year a calf together with my friends! Read what they do. This is real "teach a man to fish" stuff.

Soldiers' Angels
A great resource for sending foodstuffs, letters, phone cards, etc. to those serving overseas.

New Thread


Previous one never happened.

These are not the comments you're looking for.

Evening thread

Another busy day. But some good stuff in the threads as well.

Comments closed for the previous posting, but feel free to comment here. Thanks again to Hawk for helping us honor a good man.

Silver Star for SPC (E-5) Richard L. Smith

17 November 1965 – Ia Drang Valley, Republic of Vietnam

And the Lord Said,
“Whom shall I send?
Who will go for us?”
And I said,
“Here am I.
Send me!”
- Isaiah 6:8















Specialist Five Smith performed gallantry in action against the enemy on 17 November 1965 in Ia Drang Valley, Republic of Vietnam while serving as a crew chief of a UH-1D helicopter while assigned to Company B, 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile). On 17 November, Landing Zone (LZ) Albany was surrounded and engaged by enemy forces. Specialist Smith voluntarily departed from his crew chief’s position in his helicopter and ran out onto the open field while under fire, and at risk to his own life, dragged back onboard wounded Soldiers for evacuation. He performed this action twice after Medical Evacuation Unit crews repeatedly refused to land due to the hostile conditions at the LZ. The gallantry displayed by Specialist Smith was in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflects great credit upon himself, 229th Assault Helicopter Battalion, the 1st Cavalry Division (Airmobile) and the United States Army.
















As you can see, his award was a long time in coming. To know what he did on a day like that and be patient for more than 40 years to see the recognition is just amazing to me and a testament to that breed of soldier that endured that war.

I shook his hand right after MG Rodriguez pinned his “Silver Star” on him and the look of pride on his face was indescribable. I spoke with him again at our inside reception for him and his humbleness was also very striking. To paraphrase him, it didn’t seem like a big deal at the time. No, running back and forth under a hail of enemy fire repeatedly to save your fellow soldier is not a big deal; it’s a monumental deal. One I dare say that we all struggle to convince ourselves we are capable of in similar circumstances.
















Sinner,

Thank you for letting me send this to you. This was a great day for a great American.

Hawk

Because I got totally pwned by dean04 and am too humiliated to respond...

OPEN THREAD

WHAT ELSE YOU CAN DO WITH YOUR MONEY

Lest we be seen as nothing more than the financial front for Jeff Goldstein ("with this $122 I shall rule the world! hahaha!")...

I've been spending the last few weeks filling my iPod with back episodes of Pundit Review radio.

A recurring segment is "Someone you should know" with Matt from BlackFive, where he highlights our valiant men and women of the armed forces, the way the mainstream media did in WWII but has long since forgotten how to do.

To hear so many of these stories in a short period of time is overwhelming. These stories and these brave souls should get far more attention than they do.

The show also featured a few segments with Soldiers' Angels founder, the mother of Sgt. Brandon Varn. This organization gives people the opportunity to reach out to the men and women who are serving their country in any number of ways, from adopting a soldier, writing a letter, to buying them beef jerkey or other items.

A little goes a long way. To those who served and to those who serve: thank you. Enjoy the jerkey.

Update: Blizzardlane adds some charitable suggestions.

"If you're like me and buy books, read them and then one day turn around and say, "Didn't I used to have a bedroom where this book-storage room used to be?" Go here and get to boxing them up. One of my friends who did a swing through Iraq and Kuwait said the downtime is the worst, and every book that anyone receives from home gets passed to dozens of people."

Also from Blizzardlane: "If you're conflicted about the war, go here. I've worked with these people in the past and I cannot say enough good about Heifer. Every year I give a basket of chicks or bunnies or bees -- one year a calf together with my friends! Read what they do. This is real "teach a man to fish" stuff.

There's a raft of new posts over at Casa Insana. Most of it is forgettable drivel, or excellent Plaintiff's Evidence. Jeff's attorney thanks you, Dr. Deborah Frisch, for making his job so very easy. (No, I'm not in contact with him. I just hear him laughing. I only live a thousand or so miles away; it's hard not to.)

I don't want to belabor the obvious since it's so repetitious, though I do note that the fact that we have been donating to Jeff's tip jar has really rankled her.

No, the only thing that really bothers me this morning is this:

So now we're scheduled for a court date in November and I cannot see how discussing:

a. the restraining order and how Jeff blatantly perjured himself in it
b. the police report, where he committed more subtle perjury
c. the lingering disagreement about who wrote the pedophilic auntie moonbat/saliva quote and how funny the count without the O joke is

violates the RO from Colorado.

First: leave "perjury" questions to the judge. I'm sure you'll get a master class on the subject in November.

I'm sure you'll also learn tons about legal terms like "patterns of behavior," "credibility," and "batshit crazy."

But really, item C. I know we've been over this, but it bears repeating:

"count without the O" is not funny.

I performed standup for five years. I sold jokes to other comics. I headlined clubs where the bar was built on a pile of the severed heads of funnier comics than you'll ever be.

"count without the O" is a class A - or should that be class O? - felony count of First Degree Lame. It sucks. It's not even Margaret Cho funny.

I know you never made it past Open Mic night, but trust me on this: when you become a Made comic, and you try THAT hard to sell something THAT unfunny, the Family gets very unhappy.

I remember a prop comic once, lived in Terre Haute. Would not shut up about this bit he used to do with a glazed donut and a Kleenex. It was so bad it couldn't be used at Guantanamo. One day he woke up with the severed head of his favorite rubber chicken at the foot of his bed.

I'm saying this, Deb, because I care. It's not even a joke. It's not clever. It's a poorly-thought takeoff of the whole "C*ckula" thing you didn't even make up. You stole someone else's joke, and you made it even less funny - this is a mortal sin in comedy.

Deb, you're basing your entire defense on a flipping Photoshopped cereal box. It's not even a good likeness, dammit! Jeff is Jewish; the Cockula on the box still has his cowl. (Where's a digital moyl when you need one?)

The only humor you are capable of is unintentional. Your life in recent weeks is a laugh riot, but it's the worst kind of comedy - the kind where you make the audience feel bad about themselves for laughing at you. You're Andrew Dice Clay, with less gift for rhyme and still less likeability. You are to comedy what Andy Dick is to comedy. You couldn't get a gig at a Comedy Central roast. I've got TAPEWORMS that have worked a comedy central roast.

You. Are. Not. Funny.

And any lawsuit based on a demand that someone find that pathetic excuse for a joke funny is doomed to fail.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have another donation to make to the Protein Wisdom tip jar.

Good morning. Still digging through the last batch of comments.

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