Thanks Hud for the idea.
Here’s my Dad, one of the few scanned pix I have of him (I’ve got more, but I just haven’t scanned them). RMC Robert T. Spencer, Sr. (USN, Retired) passed away on January 5, 1991 at the age of 54. He had been terminally diagnosed just three weeks prior with metastatic carcinoma. As I understand it, it’s the type of cancer which spreads like wildfire throughout the entire body once it starts.
I had known Dad as a short, skinny guy my entire life (always at 5’6” and 136 lbs.), and then at the end he withered away to the point where I could pick him up and he was as light as a feather!
It turns out that on his deathbed, he told us what really happened in August of 1958. We knew well before then he had been at Eniwetok Atoll at the time, but he insisted that he witnessed only three tests.
Try 35.
I was furious at my government for the first time in my life. It was because my dad wasn’t able to tell us the truth until the end, the good Sailor that he was (he worked on sensitive teletype encryption machines during his years in the Navy and had Top Secret clearance). It took me many years to put the pain and the anger behind me and I’m glad I did.
I wish my Dad didn’t have to go through what he did, but I understand it was for a greater purpose, as painful as it is to admit. He did this so that we could all live in freedom and not as slaves to Communism. It’s one of the reasons why I blog: so I will not have to become dhimmi, enslaved to Islam. If I can’t fight with my physical being, then I will fight with my mind and my words.
Thanks, Dad. I miss you.

Here’s a picture of the company Dad was in aboard the USS Boxer at the time of Operation Hardtack. First row behind the officers, third from the left:

This little particular ring shown here is but the first of many unique items in version 1.10 of Diablo II: Lord of Destruction (which I blurbed about six months ago when it was released) that one of my characters picked up: the lucky character? A Level 84 Paladin named Lyonhart.
Finding stuff like this makes Fighting Evil so much FUN!
Now, next on my list are: Rainbow Facet Jewels, Gheed’s Fortune Grand Charm, and the Annihilus Small Charm!

CALL TO HUD AND AMRITAS: Get this game so we can go Fight Evil together online! What say ye?

I was shocked two days ago by the announcement of the sudden passing of actor Richard Biggs, who played Dr. Stephen Franklin on Babylon 5. He had a pretty good career going for him, but I’ll always remember this guy as one of the cast of a show which essentially changed my life and opened my eyes. He was only 43.
Biggs’ character, Dr. Franklin, was a guy who stood up on his principles and was as complex as the rest of us are: he did time in the brig for refusing to turn over medical and genetic data he compiled on the Minbari prior to the Earth-Minbari War; he helped find a cure to a pandemic plague only too late to save the Markab people; he suffered from addiction to “stims” and went on “walkabout” to detox himself. He even played spy during the fight to take back Earth: he teamed up with Marcus to infiltrate Mars Security and rescue Sheridan.
Here is the posting by J. Michael Straczynski, the creator of Babylon 5, about Biggs’ death.
Farewell Richard. I pray that your family will remain comforted in the years ahead.

I normally don’t blog on Thursdays because I work, but I have to make an exception. When I first saw this picture yesterday I wondered “what the hell is Gore hurling about now?” Then I read the article.
This man pisses me off to no end. He is a sore loser, man! And he still acts like the election was stolen from him! Oh the horrors! Actually Al, you tried again and again with your buddies to adjust the results in the Florida counties where voters generally favored the Democrats. And in retrospect even the pro-Democrat papers across the country who conducted their own research into the debacle concluded: BUSH WON!
I actually liked the RNC’s response to Gore’s speech at NYU: “Al Gore’s attacks on the president today demonstrate that he either does not understand the threat of global terror or he has amnesia.”
Right on track, but I’d go one step further: Gore has dementia! So it’s no use telling you to get over it. You never will. Thank GOD you never became President.

OK, there are those of us who remember the nickname for the Democrats’ 1976 team of Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale: GRITS and FRITZ. Then in 1984, those people who really despised (and I mean, really despised) the Dems’ pick to run against Reagan and Bush had a secret chant: NO MORE GRITS FROM FRITZ AND T*TS!
Now, after reading her record in Congress (quite recently, as House Minority Leader) and comparing it to her fellow Democrat in the other chamber, may I suggest the following:

NO MORE SNITS FROM TWITS AND...well, you get the idea.

People, I saw the pictures of Nick Berg‘s execution very closely and read what these bastards had to say, especially Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the man who did the deed. They hate us all and want to see us DEAD or enslaved under Islam.
Zarqawi says his act was to avenge the abuse at Abu Ghraib prison, which, we now know, all took place on a single day: November 8th last year in the wake of a riot. He is full of shit.
The United States Armed Forces are bringing those responsible for Abu Ghraib to Justice under the UCMJ. As bad as it was, what happened there pales in comparison to the bloodthirsty revenge mindset of the terrorists. I don’t care what the liberals think. Those who continue to associate the terrible actions of SEVEN MEN AND WOMEN with the rest of our forces serving in Iraq, trying to bring peace to a people who have known nothing but tyranny for half a century (including Saddam’s tenure) are also full of shit.
There is only one solution to this problem we have with the Islamofascists:
WE WILL COME FOR YOU.

I hope not. I’m glad I don’t live in a state with SBC as my local phone company. At least, not anymore. When I was in Michigan I thought their service sucked. The only phone company worse than SBC was GTE…until they were bought out by Verizon.
Anyway, 100,000 CWA unionized workers went out on a four-day walkout to protest SBC’s latest contract offer. SBC has told the union they will withdraw said offer if it is not accepted by 11:59 PM on Monday…two minutes before this walkout is supposed to end…and start negotiations over from scratch.
So I feel bad for all my friends in the SBC states until then. Service will suck even more, so hang in there.

FINALLY, someone who cuts through the BS with the NAACP: none other than that Great American Comedian, BILL COSBY!

“Ladies and Gentlemen, the lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal. ...These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids - $500 sneakers for what? And won’t spend $200 for ‘Hooked on Phonics.’
“They’re standing on the corner and they can’t speak English. I can’t even talk the way these people talk: ‘Why you ain’t,’ ‘Where you is’...And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. And then I heard the father talk. ... Everybody knows it’s important to speak English except these knuckleheads. ... You can’t be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth!”

Now just watch: we’ll see how fast it takes for the liberal supporters of the NAACP (once an honorable organization geared to help black people in the early years of the 20th century) to start calling DOCTOR Cosby (remember folks, he has a Ph.D. in Education!) an “Uncle Tom” like they have with Colin Powell and Condoleezza Rice!

Some time ago I posted a comment on a few other blogs in the sphere about liberalism being the Giant Nipple Solution. Well guess what, this shouldn’t surprise anyone, but the European Commission is airing an ad throughout the European Union reminding people to vote…except in Ireland!
The ad supposedly has a baby looking at his mother’s breasts, trying to figure out which one to suck on for his next meal. The intention of the ad was to show voters that they have choices to make.
Being a conservative country as far as human sexuality goes, the Irish didn’t see it that way:

A member of the four-man, four-woman Cinema Advertising Association (CAA) panel, which took the decision, said they found that they ended up looking at the breast and not the baby.
“It was literally the breast full screen size with an erect nipple side on and the infant gazing across at them,” said Greg Lyons, a copy consultant at the CAA.
“The panel found themselves looking at something that was very difficult for them,” he said. “The infant was contemplating the breasts in rather an adult way.”

I can’t help but laugh my head off!

After I heard about Senator Kerry’s interview on Fox News’ Hannity and Colmes program, I decided to take a look at the transcript, and since President Bush needs to concentrate on fighting the war, I stepped in for him as best I could, making for a rousing debate! Check it out!

UPDATE: 05/16/2003 at 2113 MST: Macker makes it into the Carnival of the Bush Bloggers on his first try!

This should definitely amuse The Hud. Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi has taken to task several inexperienced lawmakers for, among other items, reading comic books…YES, COMIC BOOKS!...during legislative sessions, as well as for using their cell phones.
Man is this funny! When I was younger, teachers would regularly take away comics from us kids if we were caught reading them in class. You’d figure even grown ups in Japan (a country with a huge comic book following) would know when to put these down and get to the business of running the country.
If Koizumi’s dressing down doesn’t work, maybe he could request NHK to start showing lawmakers reading their comics on live TV. The embarassment factor certainly would induce them to cease and desist!

Twenty-five years ago, Margaret Thatcher became the first woman Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. As Prime Minister, Thatcher privatized many British industries which had been nationalized after the end of World War II and started the British down the road to a free market economy.
Margaret Thatcher was a stalwart champion for the Free World (with Ronald Reagan and George Bush) and for her country’s part, helped bring about the downfall of the Soviet Union. Back in 1982, she sent the Royal Navy to the Falkland Islands to take them back from Argentina. Result: when they got there the Brits promptly kicked Argentina’s ass!
To this day, she remains steadfast in her support of freedom and democracy as a member of the House of Lords…and in reality, a real Lady!
Aside from President Bush and his father, if there were any other leader I’d like to meet, it’d be this Iron Lady. To that I raise my glass and say, THANK YOU LADY THATCHER!

The Tampa Bay Lightning wants to give away FREE BEER during the rest of the playoffs to anyone who deposits $100 toward 2004-05 season tickets. This comes from a state where the other NHL team, the Florida Panthers, messed up many Hockey Fan Traditions (such as the Detroit Red Wings’ Octopi on the Ice) when they threw RATS onto the ice in the 1995-96 season. The Panthers were promptly dispatched by the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Finals that year.
I hope for obvious reasons, the Lightning does NOT go through with this…lest they want to get their asses handed to them on a platter if they get to the Finals by the Western Conference champion!

Well, iTunes is now at its 1-year anniversary and to celebrate, Apple has released its latest version, 4.5. One new function is the iMix, where members can publish their own playlists to the iTunes Music Service. I’ve done just that…click on the artwork to check it out!
And if you haven’t done so, go and download iTunes 4.5 (yes, it’s available for Windows too). The Macker Commands It!

After seeing various postings on other blogs regarding “religious cleric” (read: THUG) Moqtada al-Sadr, who’s holed up in the Shiite holy city of Najaf (or is it Karbala?), Iraq, I immediately realized a perfect song for him! HERE IT IS!

Thanks to Cato the Youngest for the inspiration.