Monthly Archives: October 2018

D-Day 2018

Common Sense, Ethical Behavior, World Politics

November 6, 2018 could be another “D-Day”.  Not the start of a great campaign to free Europe from the domination of Nazi Germany, but rather the beginning of the further decline of our country.

It has been fascinating to watch the machinations of the Democratic Party since Donald Trump won the 2016 Presidential election.  It is kind of like the stages of grief after the loss of a loved one: 1. Denial and isolation; 2. Anger; 3. Bargaining; 4. Depression; 5. Acceptance.

Denial and Isolation were obvious.  The crying and sobbing supporters of Hillary Clinton when the results were known, plus her refusal to even come out and admit she had lost and congratulate the winner. 

Anger was as well.  It wasn’t fair. Hillary had won the popular vote.  The Republicans had somehow cheated.  There had been collusion with the Russians to win the election.

Bargaining occurred when they decided to do something to overturn the results of the election.  The creatures of the “Deep State” swamp began to plot and scheme.  Former President Obama stayed in Washington and helped form the basis of the so-called “Resistance” movement.

Depression began when it became obvious that the dirty tricks weren’t forcing Trump out of office.  He was actually fighting back, giving as much as he got in the verbal fisticuffs. That saw the rise of “Antifa” type groups, using violence to defeat any expression of conservative values.  People screamed at the top of their lungs on the first anniversary of 2016 election day.  It was like an adult temper tantrum. Continue reading D-Day 2018 →

Ban All Guns! Again?

Common Sense, Ethical Behavior

Another mass shooting.  This time in a synagogue in  Pittsburgh. This is a new opportunity for those who fear firearms to demand another Federal gun ban.  Another opportunity to act based on emotions and not on rational thought.

Apparently there was no armed security at the synagogue.  Why?  Unfortunately, there has been an uptick in anti-semitism all over the world, but particularly in Europe, Canada and the United States.  Much of this has been influenced by the rise of radical Islam.  We must remember that the Nazis had close ties with Muslim leaders prior to and during the Second World War.

The irrational hatred of Jews goes back millennia.  I will not even attempt to explain it, but it is there.  The Israelis have dealt with this since the inception of their nation in 1948.  They guard their schools, synagogues, and public places with armed personnel.  Israelis can also obtain concealed weapons permits, although the requirements are stricter than in many areas of this country.  There is an emphasis on proper training and maintaining proficiency. That makes common sense.

Israel is a small country, populated by individuals who mostly share the same religion, Judaism.  Our country is obviously much more diverse in it’s population, and is much larger.  We can’t have armed guards or law enforcement everywhere, so we must frequently rely on ourselves for protection.  Again, if there had been one,  just one armed individual in the Tree of Life congregation, the tragedy might have been prevented or at least mitigated.

National gun control would force many legal gun owners to go underground.  Criminals, terrorists and mentally unstable people will ignore the laws, as they do at present.  The shooting galleries called Chicago, Baltimore, Philadelphia and Detroit are classic examples of that fact.

Our law enforcement personnel need our help.  I call again for our Sheriffs and Police Chiefs  to consider training and deputizing responsible people to be an additional deterrent to the violence which has become too frequent in recent years.  The shooter at the Baptist church in Sutherland Springs, Texas in 2017 was confident that he wouldn’t be impeded as he committed his atrocity.  It was a known “Gun Free Zone”, and many parishioners  had left their legal concealed weapons in their cars that morning in respect for their pastor’s wishes.  Was that the case with the Pittsburgh synagogue as well?  It may be a trite saying to some, but I believe it is absolutely true.

“When guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns”.

A Tale of Two Nutcases

Common Sense, Ethical Behavior, World Politics


In June of 2017, James Hodgkinson, a left wing activist, registered Democrat, and almost rabid supporter of Bernie Sanders, shot Congressional Representative Steve Scalise (R-LA) and four others at a morning baseball practice in Alexandria, VA.  He was subsequently shot and killed by law enforcement officers at the scene.

In the last few days, 13 pipe bombs were mailed to various Democratic politicians and supporters.  The bombs were apparently crudely made, and thankfully none exploded.  The FBI has arrested Cesar Sayoc, a Florida resident who is reportedly a registered Republican and a Trump supporter.

After the Scalise shooting, President Trump and other high ranking Republicans rightly pointed out that Bernie Sanders should not be held accountable for the actions of a clearly deranged supporter.  The same should apply in the case of Cesar Sayoc, right? Continue reading A Tale of Two Nutcases →

The United States or Venezuela?

Common Sense, World Politics

Sometimes I think that I have awoken from a very disturbing dream, a nightmare in fact, where I have watched my country “Transformed” into something I barely recognize.  A place where traditional American values of truthfulness, honesty and justice have been taken away and replaced by something very different.  A world where free speech is replaced by political correctness, respect for law and order replaced by the rule of the mob, and our legal system perverted to only protect the rights of those with the financial wherewithal to buy it.  Unfortunately, it’s not a dream, but a reality, and we are at a tipping point where it could go either way.

If the left, represented broadly by the Democratic Party, has it’s way, we will continue the drift towards some kind of American version of European Socialism.  That system, by the way, has worked well for many of the European countries since the end of the Second World War.  However, their ability to pay for that method of meeting the needs and desires of their citizens was paid for, at least in part, by not having to pay for the costs of national defense.

NATO, formed by the Western European nations and the United States to ward off the aggressive threats posed by the Soviet Union and it’s Eastern Block allies, has always been funded primarily by our country.  In the beginning, this was of course necessary.  The European Continent was in ruins, and ripe pickings for domination by the USSR.  We saved them from that fate, and rebuilt their economies in the process. Continue reading The United States or Venezuela? →

Modern Airline Travel

Aviation Safety, Common Sense

A week’s vacation, which included two trans-Atlantic crossings on a major U.S. Airline, have prompted me to make the following observations.

After a long career in the airline industry, which lasted from 1964 to 2000, I am saddened to see the state of affairs to which this once great industry has allowed itself to degenerate into.  Don’t get me wrong, it isn’t totally the industries fault.  Meddling by the Carter administration, in promoting and passing the Airline Deregulation Act of 1978, was the beginning of a series of events which have changed a pleasant experience into something of an ordeal, to be suffered, not enjoyed.

The loss of competition in the industry has caused an unbelievable erosion of in flight service, which is astounding to someone who remembers how it was in the past, even in economy class.  That’s unfortunate,  but that isn’t the worst of it.

Since 9/11,  the simple act of checking in for a flight and passing through security has become, at least for some, a humiliating ordeal.  My wife and I both have artificial joints.  I have an artificial left knee, and she has an artificial right knee and shoulder.  Lots of titanium there to be sensed by the metal detectors.  So, we both went through the TSA Pre-Check procedures, hoping that would end some of the deadlock at the security lines.

Not so fast.  Even though I am a retired international airline Captain, and have gone through more background checks than most people over my lifetime, I am still subjected to full pat downs and explosive substance checks every time I fly.  Why is this?  A simple answer comes down to this:

Continue reading Modern Airline Travel →

Resistance?

Common Sense, Ethical Behavior, World Politics

Since the November 2016 Presidential election, we have witnessed a phenomena unlike any other in the history of the nation.  With the lone exception, that is, of the secession of the southern states in 1861, which led to the Civil War.  Are we headed there again?

When President Trump was elected, the initial reaction of the left was shock, which was followed by denial, and finally by rage.  Then, in an unprecedented action, the outgoing President, Barack Obama, announced that he was going to remain in Washington, and form a “Resistance Movement” against the policies of the incoming administration.

In the 23 months that followed, the Democratic party, following it’s leadership in the House and Senate, have systematically attempted to foil and disrupt virtually every action taken by the Trump administration.  These actions have led to an ever increasing trend towards conflict and violent acts.

Not simply satisfied to talk about their “Resistance”, they have slowly but surely moved towards verbal, and then physical assaults against those whose politics they oppose. People like California Congresswoman Maxine Waters have urged her supporters to confront Republican officials wherever they find them, be it in a supermarket, gas station or restaurant. Waters said to “tell them they are not welcome”.

Not welcome where, Maxine?   In a public place of business?  In a sports or entertainment venue?  At their place of work or residence?  Who are YOU to determine where people are, or are not welcome.  Continue reading Resistance? →

Drinking & Flying

Aviation Humor, Common Sense

There are airline pilots who are alcoholics. That’s a simple fact. However, they are an extremely small portion of that group, due to the severe penalties which are imposed for the infraction of even attempting to pilot an airliner under the influence of alcohol, or any other drug for that matter. These days, crews are given un-announced drug or alcohol tests before or after flights on a regular basis. Since I have been out of the cockpit for nearly 14 years, I can only realistically comment about the timeframe prior to that. Please understand that there always is humor in all phases of life, including this serious issue.

TWA, the airline I flew for for the better part of 36 years, had a very strict policy about alcohol consumption. Basically, it said it’s pilots could not consume alcoholic beverages 24 hours before flight time, and NEVER on a layover. Since on international flights there were many layovers of 36 hours, or even much longer, up to a full week, that policy was routinely disregarded.

Most of us followed a self imposed routine of a minimum of 12 hours, “bottle to throttle”, which was more restrictive than the FAA’s 8 hour rule. In any event, a beer or two prior to dinner with perhaps a glass of wine with dinner was the practice for those of us who imbibed at all. The comedy associated with the rule can be illustrated with the following two examples.

In the ‘60s and ‘70s, many TWA crews signed for their meals at specifically listed restaurants located in various European layover cities. Since in those days orange juice was frequently more expensive per liter than table wine, the crews would order a carafe of wine to drink with dinner, and the restaurant would list it as orange juice on the bill they sent to the company. One day I came to work and found a letter in my crew mailbox. Everyone got one. It was from the Chief Pilot, and said: “While I am pleased that the international crews are maintaining their health by keeping a high level of Vitamin C in their diets, would you all please try to curtail your consumption of orange juice at the layover restaurants?”

Another time, I was in the pub next to our layover hotel in London. We had many crews staying there on layovers, and that pub was the favored “watering hole” for a pint or two before dinner. Suddenly, there was a great scraping of chairs as they were pushed back from tables around the room. I looked up to see the International Chief Pilot, and the Vice President for International Operations standing in the doorway surveying the scene. After a brief silence, the VP said: “Alright you bastards, the next round is on me!” Everyone then proceeded to pull back up to the tables, pick up their pints, and conversation returned to normal. The rule was unreasonable, and even the “Bosses” knew it.