Ryan and Jen Sykes   Intelligence Specialist Ryan Sykes is one of our young lions, and you need to know his story. It allows us to place the little travails of life in perspective, and demonstrates the courage of ordinary life sometimes requires, and the power of love.   Ryan and his gallant wife Jen are […]

Sea anemone on HMAS Sydney   The properties of the wood cut from the teak tree are quite remarkable. The timber is used in the manufacture of outdoor furniture, of course, which is important in the coming patio season, and in boat decks and other applications where weather resistance is desired. It is easily worked, and […]

I was talking to Tom out in West Virginia. In the old days, calling from the Hollow as he was, his voice would have been scratchy. Not today; his voice was crisp as fresh paper thanks to digital transmission. He was going to the hospital the next day, and a call to me was one […]

It is the weekend of the infamous Hash Bash at the University of Michigan. The protest began after the arrest of White Panther Party leader John Sinclair, sent up to Jackson for ten years for the possession of two joints.   In 1972, users of cannabis began to flood the crossroads at the heart of […]

I hope your night was silent and peaceful. I dreamt I was soaring in the blackness last night, free as a bird. There were no court dates. On my narrow dark wings I rose with quiet thrust to survey the territory below me. I could sense movement in the trees far below, felt more than […]

  Ownership of the night is the birthright of all Americans, or at least it was in the later days of the last high-octane century. Upon obtaining their driver’s license, the young owned the night.   It would not have occurred to the young Lieutenant Junior Grade to have considered that his first and greatest […]

Advisors Mauritanian Officers and Advisors, 2007 I woke up early, unrested and agitated. The middle of the week contains the hardest night, energy reserves squandered on the rocks of Monday and Tuesday, and still so much to accomplish to avoid disaster. Robert Mugubwe must be feeling the same way, since he is so much older, […]

This could pass for one of the greatest shows on earth, this circus turn of the quarter year. This day devoted to pranks and foolishness fits well with the mood. Hard to imagine that we a done with so much of this young year, and we have dug such a deep hole. The good news […]

   President Bush owned last night, at least the beginning of it. He was at brand-spanking new Nationals Stadium to throw out the ceremonial First Pitch. The game started at twilight in the chill, and there was a minor delay of about an hour for many of the fans to get into the stadium based […]

   President Bush owned last night, at least the beginning of it. He was at brand-spanking new Nationals Stadium to throw out the ceremonial First Pitch. The game started at twilight in the chill, and there was a minor delay of about an hour for many of the fans to get into the stadium based […]