"Operation Welcome Home ~MD~ "

"Hundreds of our Sailors, Airmen, Soldiers and Marines return from the War on Terror every week though the gates of the Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport. Since March 2007, Operation Welcome Home volunteers have greeted 55 flights and more than 12,000 Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines."

Thats it... Next time I'm flying I'm going with BWI...

Timeline of Call for Regulation of Fannie & Freddie...

This video clip from a FoxNews report in 2008 outlines the Timeline of calls for Regulation of the Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae "Mortgage Giants" and by whom... Interesting and thanks to the friend who forwarded it...

2001: President George Bush identifies the problem and brings it to the attention of Congress...

2003: The White house and John Snow push for a agency to regulate these agencies...

Democrat Barney Frank states that they are not in crisis and that we should encourage "Freddie & Fannie"...

2005: Alan Greenspan "We are placing the total financial system of the future at a substantial risk"...

Republican Senator John McCain introduces legislation for regulation but this bill was voted down along Senate party lines with all Democratic Party Senators voting against the bill... Then Democratic Party Senator Obama did not "Weigh In" on that vote...

"Big Shot" utilizes his 2nd amendment rights...

Denny Crane- Guns @ Yahoo! Video

The size of Obama's "Carbon Footprint"...

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"Obama Departs for Vacation 11:11 a.m. CHICAGO –

President-elect Barack Obama, sporting a baseball cap, boarded a chartered plane here on Saturday morning and headed to his native Hawaii for a 13-day Christmas vacation.
Mr. Obama, joined by his wife and two daughters, did not wave to the cameras as he ran up the steps to a United 767 plane. Several friends from Chicago also are spending the holidays with the Obama family in Hawaii, where they have rented beachfront houses in Kailua, but they are traveling separately.
A handful of reporters, staff and Secret Service agents were aboard the nine-hour flight for Honolulu."

Story here...

Now I have never been to Hawaii, in fact the longest flight I was ever on was one from NJ to California but that was on a DC-08 with a couple hundred "Smelly Tourists", as Senator Harry Reid (D) likes to call 'em, so our individual "Carbon Footprints" were probably a bit smaller then Obama's...

Peace on Earth...

Yankee Phil has a classic clip of Bing on his site and I had to post my favorite Bing Crosby with David Bowie video...

Enjoy and have a Merry Christmas...

"Those with experience"....

Point Pleasant Dive Team assists Marine Mammal Stranding Center...

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The Point Pleasant (NJ) Scuba Rescue Dive Team assisted the Marine Mammal Stranding Center staff recover a Harbor Seal that was found on the beach this weekend.

More info and photos can be found at the Point Pleasant Rescue Dive Team site...

The "True" meaning of the 2nd amendment..

This video was sent to me by a friend who lives in one of the most restrictive
gun rights states in the union. He will violate numerous laws and face very stiff
penalties if he takes precautions to protect himself, his wife, and their three small
children if he is caught with a gun in his state...

"Who is the 2nd amendment really meant to protect us from?"...

Please read the following before watching this video...

* Was Brady shot with a assault weapon?...

* This lady raised in a "Gun totting environment?"...

* What if concealed weapons permit holders were allowed at Virginia Tech?"...

* Back in 2002 there was a shooting at Appalachia Law school where a student killed many adults but was stopped by two law students who retrieved their weapons, not permitted in the school, from their vehicles and thus confronted the shooter who then gave up...

* Criminals DO NOT pay attention to laws!!! Gun Laws!!!

* 10 bullet clip or max bullet clip make a difference when you are standing there with NO defense?...

* "The 2nd amendment is NOT about Duck Hunting"...

* "Its about all of OUR rights to protect us from all of YOU"...

Vertical algae growth for energy production...

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Sent to me by friend Andrew Clem "Blog with no name" who knew that I once lived in the Florida Keys and studied Marine biology while working on a sportfishing boat. This is an interesting process and the potential energy produced is impressive. As noted by Clem they do not mention the disadvantages or the "downsides" but this is well worth looking into...

Video of process...

"The U.S. Department of Energy researched algae production from 1978 to 1996 until the Feds determined that algae oil could never compete economically with fossil fuels. Considering the current price and demand for oil, times have certainly changed."

Obama “Official Comment” Checklist

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1. That is NOT the: William Ayers that I know…

2. That is NOT the: Tony Rezco that I know…

3. That is NOT the: Rev. Jeremiah Wright
That I know…

4. That is NOT the: Gov. Rod Blagojevich
that I know…

5. That is NOT the: _________ that I
That I know…

6. That is NOT the: _________ that I
That I know…

7. That is NOT the: _________ that I
That I know…

8. That is NOT the: _________ that I
That I know…

9. That is NOT the: _________ that I
That I know…

10. That is NOT the: _________ that I
That I know…

4.5 Million Manufacturing Jobs Lost... In China...

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With the increases in employment layoffs being reported each month, there is the continuing reference to lost manufacturing jobs in the United States and the “blame-game” of these jobs going to other countries.

It is true that we have lost manufacturing jobs here in the United States but maybe it is not for the same reasons that were reported by several campaigns during the last series of elections…

Walter Williams has a great article about the status of manufacturing jobs here in the United States and other industrial countries and the findings may surprise you. He also cautions against “protectionism” tactics being used as promised by the Presidential candidate Obama…

"In each of the past 60 years, U.S. manufacturing output growth has averaged 4 percent and productivity growth has averaged 3 percent. Manufacturing is going through the same process as agriculture. In 1900, 41 percent of American workers were employed in agriculture; today, only 2 percent are and agricultural output is greater. In 1940, 35 percent of workers were employed in manufacturing jobs; today, it's about 10 percent. Again, because of huge productivity gains, manufacturing output is greater."

"The decline in manufacturing employment is not limited to the U.S. Since 2000, China has lost over 4.5 million manufacturing jobs. In fact, nine of the top 10 manufacturing countries, which produce 75 percent of the world's manufacturing output (the U.S., Japan, Germany, China, Britain, France, Italy, Korea, Canada, and Mexico), have lost manufacturing jobs but their manufacturing output has risen."

"The people who face foreign competition, say management and workers in the auto industry, are well organized, have narrowly shared interests and the resources to have considerable clout in Washington to get Congress to enact trade barriers. Restricting foreign competition means higher prices for their products, and hence higher profits and fuller employment in their industry."

"The people who are benefited by foreign competition, say auto consumers, have widely dispersed interests; they are not organized at all and have little clout in Washington. You never see consumers descending on Washington complaining about cheap prices for foreign products; it's always domestic producers who do the complaining."

"Some might reason that since Japan places restrictions on U.S. products entering their country, an appropriate retaliatory measure is not to allow Japanese products to freely enter the U.S. By the way, Japanese protectionist restrictions on rice imports force Japanese consumers to pay three or four times the world price for rice. "

NRA announces change on "Carry Permits" in parks...

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NRA Update reports:

“Today’s announcement by the U.S. Department of the Interior brings clarity and uniformity for law-abiding gun owners visiting our national parks,” said Chris W. Cox, NRA chief lobbyist. “We are pleased that the Interior Department recognizes the right of law-abiding citizens to protect themselves and their families while enjoying America's National Parks and wildlife refuges.”

"DOI announced the rule change today and will publish the new regulations in the Federal Register. The new regulations allow right-to-carry permit holders to exercise their Second Amendment rights on national park and wildlife refuges in those states that recognize such permits. The move will provide consistency across our nation’s federal lands and put an end to the patchwork of regulations that governed different lands managed by different federal agencies. In the past, Bureau of Land Management and Forest Service lands allowed the carrying of firearms, while lands managed by DOI did not. "

"Bail-Out" for Who?...

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Our Congress has been going to great lengths to bail-out the Top-three auto industries and the Auto workers who have supported our Congress people in the past. The question is who exactly are we bailing out?...

"The auto industry spent nearly $50 million lobbying Congress in the first nine months of this year. And people tied to the auto industry gave another $15 million in campaign contributions, CBS News investigative correspondent Sharyl Attkisson reports."

"It's not surprising that a lot of that money went to members of Congress from Michigan, where the auto industry is the biggest employer and politicians are passionate advocates for their constituents. Take Sen. Carl Levin, who received $438,304 from the automotive industry. And in the House, Rep. Joe Knollenberg received $879,327. Rep. John Dingell got nearly a million from the industry. All have enjoyed generous support from the auto industry over their careers, with GM and Ford as their two top contributors. All support a bailout."

"Dingell's wife Debbie once worked as a lobbyist for GM. When she married the congressman, she became a senior GM executive at an undisclosed salary. And we found the couple has extensive GM assets. Dingell's current financial disclosure filed in May lists GM stock worth up to $350,000, options worth up to $1 million more, and a GM pension fund. In 2000, among the Dingells' GM assets were stock options worth up to $5 million."

"And in 1998, the congressman reported selling GM stock options worth up to $1 million dollars."

The "Vocal" radicals are NOT the majority...

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First saw this article in the Wall Street Journal then found this video clip interview of the author Jeffrey Scott Shapiro...

It also made me think of all of the harsh remarks and hatred that came from the "Very Vocal" during and after President Ronald Reagans terms in office. But yet the "Vast Majority" came out to pay their respects to the President...

"After the family left, the doors of the presidential library opened, and the public began filing in at a rate of 2,000 an hour throughout the night. In all, about 108,000 people visited the presidential library to see the casket."

"The general public stood in long lines waiting for a turn to pay their respects to the president. People passed by the casket at a rate of about 5,000 per hour (83 per minute) and the wait time was about three hours. In all, 104,684 paid their respects when Reagan lay in state.[29][30] The Washington MetroRail subway set a daily record in ridership of 850,636 as a result."

source

Examples are here and here...

Toys for Tots ~Texas Steakhouse Staunton, VA~

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Texas Steakhouse ~Staunton VA.~

Texas Steakhouse in Staunton Virginia has stepped up to the "Plate" and is a active location supporting the "TOYS FOR TOTS" program
Administered by Marine Corps League Stonewall Detachment #330

It is my understanding that the Texas Steakhouse ~Staunton~ is offering a discount on meal tickets for patrons who make donations to the Toys for Tots program as well as maintaining a Toy donation box at the location...

Texas Steakhouse ~Staunton VA.~

134 Rowe Rd

Staunton, VA 24401

(540) 885-6073

Obama's Education Reform... What would he say about this?...

Rahm Emanuel describes the President-elect's agenda for education reform here at about 2:05 minutes into the video...

But I wonder what the President-elect's reaction would be to the following video of a teacher quizzing her 3-4th grade students about the then upcoming election...

Education reform?...

Pelosi: "Draining the Swamp" or "Circling the Wagons" ?...

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Remember back after the 2006 elections when the Democratic party took control of congress and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said they were going to "drain the swamp" of corruption in D.C.?

Still pending is the looming trial on federal bribery charges of one Democratic Party Representative William Jefferson, Louisiana.

You remember Jefferson. He is the guy who got caught with $80,000 cash in his freezer at home that was associated with him taking bribes regarding business deals in Nigeria, Ghana and other nations...

Of course the Democratic Representative has not yet been convicted at this time but why has it taken so long for this case to come to trial as compared to how quickly the conviction took place of Stevens from Alaska? Stevens was guilty and convicted and many people from the Republican Party called for Stevens to step down before and after the recent election...

But yet there is no call for Democratic Representative Jefferson to step down or allow another Democratic candidate to take his place. In fact it seems he has much support from the Democratic Party:

"Since his June 2007 indictment, Mr. Jefferson has raised more than a quarter-million dollars in political donations to retain the House seat he's held since 1990.
The money includes tens of thousands of dollars from political action committees controlled by other members of Congress. He's also gotten help from labor union PACs."

"Still, Mr. Jefferson's fundraising success contrasts with how politicians reacted after the indictment of Alaska Republican Sen. Ted Stevens in August. Several Republican senators, including defeated presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, announced at the time that contributions received from Mr. Stevens would go to charity."

"By contrast, members of Congress have been coming to Mr. Jefferson's aid. He has received at least $14,000 from Secure PAC, the leadership committee headed by Mississippi Democratic Rep. Bennie Thompson. Mr. Thompson also gave $2,300 through his separate re-election campaign fund."

And let us not forget the actions of the Democratic Representative William Jefferson back during the aftermath of the Katrina hurricane and during rescue operations...

"Rep. William Jefferson commandeered a National Guard detachment on September 2, during the height of the Katrina rescue operations, to go check on his own home and retrieve his belongings. Ultimately, several soldiers, a helicopter, and at least two large trucks were involved in the operation."

Imagine what the "belongings" might have been?...

So let us wait until after the trial and final result...

If the result is guilty and there is a conviction of the Democratic Representative,

Will Pelosi and the Democratic Party in fact "Drain the Swamp"

or

"Circle the Wagons"?...

"You never want a serious crisis to go to waste"?...

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"You never want a serious crisis to go to waste"...

"What I mean by that is it's an opportunity to do things that you think you could not do before"...

President-elect Obama's Chief of staff Rahm Emanuel made this statement in the above video clip and went on to describe the "opportunity" to make things right as he sees it...

He went on to describe several "opportunities" that it seems both he and his Obama are planning to implement plans to correct as they see fit. It almost seems that they are happy to see these "opportunities" as being in crisis to provide more lattitude in their proposed actions...

It will be interesting to see what the Obama team does with these "Crisis" situations and what kind of lattitude they take...

Saturday Night Live has even done a sketch about Emanuel and his statements but it is listed as "Unaired" by the site Breitbart but they have it here...

The "Double Tap"...

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The Double-Tap...

I have missed Jack Bauer's form of diplomacy...

Practice that 2nd Amendment Right...

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Today was the day to spend some time with friends at the shooting range and hone shooting skills. The range was busy and numerous weapons could be seen, tested, and discussed along with the discussion turning to current events and the new administration. Conversation soon turned to a local news story in the NewsLeader that described the increase in gun\ammo sales just before and since the election of President-elect Obama...

Gun\ammo sales have increased across the United States. With the increased demand a rise in price and value will be sure to follow. (It's the result of supply and demand, something that people in Washington politics still have a problem grasping). In fact it was reported in the story: "Andy Coffman, owner of the Gun Shack on Laurel Hill Road in Verona, said his sales started to boom about a month before the presidential election, and said he's already been warned by distributors that prices for assault rifles will probably increase 30 percent to 50 percent when orders are placed. Customers, he said, point to Obama as the reason for their gun purchases".

Be sure to note the comments at 3:00 minutes into the video for the description of numerous Obama supporters flocking to gun stores to purchase weapons they feel Obama will outlaw...

Charles Spence, Thinks Obama Is Anti-Gun - "I really live by the philosophy that when guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns. And the only thing that stops criminals from coming in my house tonight, is he doesn't know what awaits him on the other side."

During the lead up to the Presidential election my Virginia Senator, Jim Webb, appeared on numerous radio campaign ads advising me that he, along with Obama, are supporters of the 2nd amendment and Obama would not do anything to take my gun(s) away...

Should I now believe my Virginia Senator?...

Informed Electorate?...

I saw this over at Yankee Phil and it shows that the media services who serve and favor the Democratic Party did in fact do their fair share during this past election...

"Bailout" for who?...

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Pelosi and gang are working hard to deliver a "bailout" to the Top-3 Auto worker Unions that helped deliver them a victory last Tuesdays on election day. In fact President-elect Obama is now calling for a $50 BILLION bailout to the Top-3 automakers in Detroit as seen here...

"Congressional Democrats, meanwhile, are pushing for legislation to help the automakers. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called for congressional action, saying failure by one or more of the big U.S. automakers would have a ``devastating impact'' on the U.S. economy. Assistance must be conditioned on ``rigorous independent oversight'' of carmakers and restrictions on executive compensation, she said in a statement."

We see that Pelosi calls for "rigorous independent oversight" but it seems targeted at the evil "executive compensation" side of the problem. The article states that there should be the appointment of a "Auto-czar" but there is no mention of restructuring the Labor side of this equation. As stated in the prior post on this subject, the Top-3 automakers made very poor labor deals in the past and these too must be dealt with if the Top-3 are to survive. Otherwise we will just be dumping Billions of taxpayer money into a industry destined to fail...

Underwater Pumpkin Carving Contest...

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The team over at the Point Pleasant (NJ) Rescue Scuba Dive Squad had their annual Underwater Pumpkin Carving contest... Several local First Aid and Fire department teams attended and additional info will appear at the Point Pleasant Rescue site...

What to do with the Auto Industry?...

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The U.S. Auto industry, or should I say the "Top Three" automakers, are in trouble. Both GM and Ford are reporting massives loses and doubt that they will be able to continue operations if they do not receive additional "bail-out" money from the Federal government (Taxpayers)...

Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi is doing her best to bring more of this taxpayer aid to save the Big-3 automakers and the jobs they represent. Possibly her actions are to secure additional “bail-out” money so to prevent the Big-3 auto manufacturers from having to go into bankruptcy courts where many of the negotiated Union Auto-workers would be subject to cancellation or change. Unions are a very large voting bloc for the Democratic Party and this may be a significant reason for Pelosi’s actions… Do you Think!!!…

As analyzed by Harbour-Felax, labor costs the Detroit Three substantially more per vehicle than it does the Japanese

Health care is the biggest chunk. GM (Charts), for instance spends $1,635 per vehicle on health care for active and retired workers in the U.S. Toyota (Charts) pays nothing for retired workers - it has very few - and only $215 for active ones

Other labor costs add to the bill. Contract issues like work rules, line relief and holiday pay amount to $630 per vehicle - costs that the Japanese don’t have. And paying UAW members for not working when plants are shut costs another $350 per vehicle.

For those of you keeping score at home, that’s approximately $2,615 in costs per vehicle manufactured which GM has to pay (and thus pass on to its customers) that foreign automakers don’t. But that’s just the beginning. Labor work requirements, which state that workers can’t be laid off even when the auto company has no work for them, cost the auto industry even more:

"If an assembly plant with 3,000 workers has no dealer orders, it has two options. One is to close the plant for a week and not build any cars. Then the company still has to give the idled workers 95 percent of their take-home pay plus all benefits for not working. So a one-week shutdown costs $7.7 million or $1,545 for each vehicle it didn’t make"

"If the company decides to go ahead and run the plant for a week without any dealer orders, it will have distressed merchandise on its hands. Then it has to sell the vehicles to daily rental companies like Hertz or Avis at discounts of $3,000 to $5,000 per vehicle, which creates a flood of used cars in three to six months and damages resale value. Or it can put the vehicles into storage and pay dealers up to $1,250 apiece to take them off its hands"

Management for the auto manufacturers are also very much responsible for the state and condition of the American owned industry for they have negotiated and signed off on the contracts that have led to where they are now… But should the Federal government once again “bail-out” an industry that has gotten itself into trouble by their own “greed” (both Mgmt and Unions) and actions?

In the past I have bought American made vehicles such as Chrysler, Chevrolet, and General Motors products, to support the American worker. I do not wish to see harm to those retired workers who put their time in and are looking to get their promised benefits. But with these bad deals that were made by BOTH sides resulting in an additional $2,615 tacked onto a GM price tag, should the government bail these guys out with our tax money? And with Honda and other auto manufacturers operating plants in Texas, the Carolina’s, and other states, should I not buy a auto that was made by American workers in these plants?…

Lessons from the campaigns...

Spank that Donk has a great post-election piece about the Gilmore campaign that many in the business need to take a look at...

The Democratic President-elect spent more then $600 million on his campaign, Hillary must have spent at least $200 million, McCain $200-300(?) million, then add in all of the other campaigns out there. Just running a campaign has become big business and one that is only short term for some of those involved so setting up for the next "gig" is always in play. Look at the noise coming from "staffers" who are now attacking Palin. These people need to be identified and if they have facts, dirt, or info they wish to present they need to stand in the sunlight and do so...

Campaigns also need to get back to basic campaigning and get to the voters themselves. Sure you need to do the T.V. thing, the internet thing, the fundraising thing, enough with the robocall thing(!), and get back to talking with the people...

This political season found that the local person at a parade was willing to talk politics with somebody who was willing to listen and debate where needed. It's nice to see the float and the candidate running by waving and shaking your hand, but evidence from the local parades here in the Valley showed that the people wanted to talk about the issues...

"Journalist" Chris Matthews MSNBC...

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MSNBC "Journalist"(?) Chris Matthews made the following statement this week regarding President-elect Obama...

"Yeah, well, you know what? I want to do everything I can to make this thing work, this new presidency work, and I think that --"

Additional "Democrat" profiles...

"I'll Take that One"...

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For weeks leading up to the election I have been talking issues with friends and co-workers highlighted by the campaigns. One of the issues that often came up was the "bail-outs" going on to save financial systems that were lending money to people who could not afford the property\land that they were signing up for. Several blogs and writers have written about how many in Congress made these "risky\foolish" loans possible and I hope to write about that myself in the future with stacks of info and criminal convictions to refer to...

For sometime I have been telling friends at work that I had read in the past that the sticker price of a new American made vehicle included a built in charge of $1,300 just to pay medical and other benefits to retired Union Autoworkers. These deals were made by prior Auto management teams who made very bad business decisions in the past resulting in the situation they now face. Like the financial debacle we just "bailed-out" with taxpayer money, it now looks like Congress plans to bail out the auto makers because of their bad choices...

I was wrong!!!

Investors Business Daily ran this article and the fact is it is $2,300 added to the cost of each vehicle !!!

"Automotive chiefs are meeting with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi with their hands out. At issue: vast pension obligations to 780,000 retired workers that already add $2,300 to the cost of every new car sold. Credit-strapped consumers want value, not pension-inflated price tags. So, the bailout is in the works."

While driving home today this very same issue came up on the radio and one of the commentators brought up an interesting fact. If the auto manufacturers are forced into bankruptcy as they claim they are headed without a bailout, the bankruptcy courts would likely eliminate the union autoworkers contracts with the auto manufacturers. Likely this is why Democratic Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and her congressional friends are pushing for a bailout of the auto industry... Unions and their political contributions are an important part of the Democratic Party makeup at election time...

I have own and continue to drive American made vehicles but I no longer buy “New” vehicles due to the high cost and sharp decline in value after initial purchase. My 1995 Chevy now has 313,000+ miles on it and is still strong. I hope to see a new American auto industry that provides a good quality product at a “reasonable” cost…

For now look for me cruising town in the above "sleek-machine"...

"Pretzel Logic"...

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Not the Steely Dan album from the 1970's but the ongoing debate at work with a co-worker regarding the capital gains tax...

My friend, a strong Obama supporter, has described Obama's promise of a Capital Gains tax increase from 15% to 28% not as a tax increase but as a return to the prior tax rate of George H. Bush?...

With that "Logic", raising the top tax rate to 90% would not be a "tax increase" but simply a return to the prior rates before the Kennedy tax cut...

Augusta Stood Strong...

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Thanks to the volunteers who came out and worked the polls in the rain and long lines...

U.S. Coast Guard... "These Guys are Good"!...

While living in the Florida Keys and working on a Sportfishing charterboat I was able to see these guys in action and also assist during a rescue operation...

These guys are Outstanding...

License?...

Most places DO NOT require private boater owners have

a Captains license or extensive training...

But I thought Helicopter Pilots had to have something

worthwhile?...

Ronald Reagan's Wisdom, Just add a couple of years

Key West ~Sportfishing~

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Compass Rose Charters...

SeaBoots Charters...