Motorcycle Kick Start Horn Beep Beep

Motorcycle, Kick Start, Horn, Beep, Beep. Well, there it is with punctuation, haha. I hope this blog is searchable because that phrase needs to be out there in cyberspace. Now for a little story about how this phrase came to be:

Long ago we were a group of Airmen, we were friends, serving our country on a nameless northern tier Air Force Base. Well, now it's nameless, but back then it went by the name "Kincheloe".

During that time, our friend Sammy had suspected that the entries in his personal development plan were not being reviewed sufficiently. Sammy would turn in his workbook, sometime later it would be returned, with generic verbal comment, "Keep up the good work Sammy". The hours spent working on our development plans were expended after a full days work in the shop, or on weekends. We all desired meaningful feedback for all of our hard work. We discussed this one day in the shop, could Sammy be right? Certainly Ssgt McCoy was reviewing the entries.

Anyway, Sammy came up with an idea to test his theory. In one of the entries in his workbook he simply wrote, "Motorcycle, kick start, horn, beep, beep. When the workbook was returned without notation and another "Good work Sammy".

Sammy had his answer,... and so did we.

Buy American?

America needs you! Buy American, it's the patriotic thing to do! Is it? What's American? Let's look at cars. Are there any American cars? GM? Ford? Chrysler? The BIG THREE? American? No, these companies are not American, these companies are GLOBAL.

Take GM first, according to Wikipedia, a global company selling the following brands: Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, GM Daewoo, Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saab, Saturn, Vauxhall and Wuling.

How about Ford? According to Wikipedia, an American multi-national corporation selling: Ford, Lincoln, Mercury, also owns Volvo, has a small stake in Mazda and Aston Martin, and until just recently Jaguar and Land Rover were also subsidiaries.

Chrysler? Chrysler is listed in the Wikipedia as an American automobile manufacturer. Well, that is, if you don't include the years from 1998 through 2007 when it was owned by Mercedes Benz. It sells products under the following nameplates: Chrysler, Dodge, ENVI, Jeep, and soon to be Fiat, if the company survives. Subsidiaries are listed as: Chrysler Canada, Chrysler Australia, and GEM. The company has used drivetrain components from Mitsubishi, Sunbeam, Renault, VM Motori, Mercedes-Benz, Cummins, and Volkswagen.

Where do the BIG THREE manufacture the bulk of their products, America? The U.S.? North America? South America? I could list the factories and countries that they are located in, but you can look that up, it's here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_GM_factories
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Ford_factories
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Chrysler_factories

Are these automobile companies American? I think not. These companies are GLOBAL (or, multi-national). There's nothing wrong with being a global automotive company, but there is something wrong with deception.

Constitutional Protections and Political Activism

Does the U.S. Constititution guarantee "The right to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"?

Many Americans would do well to read the U.S. Constitution and the Declaration of Independence to determine what is contained in each document. It may not say what you think it does.

For instance, the existence of Self-evident truths, and certain unalienable Rights, were outlined in first few paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence. The unalienable right to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness is presented as guaranteed by Providence, by the creator, God. While people may often disagree as to existence and the guarantor the source of these Rights; the rights themselves, are generally not in question.

The document further states that Governments are instituted among Men to secure these rights deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. Therefore, the political activism of good citizens is vital for our representative form Government is to work properly. Clear spoken consent is necessary. Unspoken, or tacit consent, will never secure, or long keep, the Liberty that a free and just people deserve.

The U.S. Constitution begins with the following words:

"We the people of the United States, in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America."

What? Where is "The right to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"?

It's not there.

However, the Constitution also contains the people's "Bill of Rights" including Amendment IX,

Amendment IX

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

So, while the U.S. Constitution was written to protect the people from an over-reaching government, it is up to the people to insure that the Government follows the basic tenets contained therein. Otherwise, we lapse toward tyranny.

Does the U.S. Constititution guarantee "The right to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness"?

No, it does not. Neither does it deny it.

You are free to say what you will, but I say that:
Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Awesomeness, is everyone's God given right.

Leading By Example

I don't like "Leading by Example" the concept looks good on paper, but is not often put into practice. Has anyone noticed who always gets in trouble for breaking the rules? It's me. It could be anything, taking a long lunch, making personal calls or checking personal e-mail at work,.. you get the picture. I'm not trying to "get away" with anything, I just feel that I should be able to do what others, especially supervisors, have been allowed to do with impunity. "Rank Has Its Privileges", I am told. Yeah, the problem may be that I catch on too late, yep, it could be my timing. Perhaps I join in on the rule breaking at the saturation point, when curbs must be instituted to stop the epidemic. I can understand that. All I know is, every time someone needs to be "made an example of", it is usually me. Not every time, but of all my fellow rule breakers, I am leading. I am the one "Leading by Example", and I shouldn't be.

Earth Hour

Symbolism is one thing, people acting in concert to create changes for the good, no matter how small, this is how generations have always left their mark on history. Where freedom is not infringed, collaborative efforts of large groups of people for a common good will always produce lasting change. The power is in consensus. I support earth hour, it's my choice.

Cliche's

The most important thing that I have learned from cliche's is:
Don't burn your bridges until you get to them.

The Air is My Canvas.

I like to paint pictures with words, it saves me a lot of money that would have otherwise been spent on art supplies.