New Blog: “Man & Dog Expeditions”

Here’s something neat: a new blog I’ve found out of Regina, Saskatchewan. While I don’t know his backstory, the author is an Afghanistan veteran with a service dog. The two of them head out on some pretty epic outdoor adventures, then blog about it here.

Here’s their site (link)

Also, just for fun, here’s my favorite quotes from last week. Enjoy:

I’d rather entrust the government of the United States to the first 400 people listed in the Boston telephone directory than to the faculty of Harvard University.

– William F. Buckley

If you kill enough of them, they stop fighting.

– Curtis LeMay

Out of every hundred new ideas ninety-nine or more will probably be inferior to the traditional responses which they propose to replace. No one man, however brilliant or well-informed, can come in one lifetime to such fullness of understanding as to safely judge and dismiss the customs or institutions of his society, for those are the wisdom of generations after centuries of experiment in the laboratory of history.

– Will and Ariel Durant

We’re Veterans, Not Victims

The Problem

I’ve spent enough time ‘in theater’, and have a good enough memory to remember, who was and who wasn’t there with me. And I can tell you unequivocally that not one of the bureaucratic bastards who make decisions for our returning veterans ever stood by my side when the shit hit the fan. Every veteran out there is nodding his head right now, because every one of them knows it too. Those of us who fought and died together have a bond that only we can understand. I know that sounds like boilerplate bullshit, but it also happens to be true. We also know that bureaucratic bastards aren’t unique to government: there are plenty of them that make it through the recruiter’s office. Furthermore, plenty of them end up gracing the halls of academia and thus being commissioned into Her Majesty’s Canadian Armed Forces, where they will end up in key decision-making positions and can dick-dance away a 30-year career making life difficult for the rest of us. Even if you’re a commissioned officer, you know those of whom I speak.

The burden of bad management seems to fall most heavily on those who have released from the military and are now attempting to create civilian lives. This goes doubly for those with physical or psychological wounds, of which there are many. What I want more than anything right now is to speak to veterans, both retired and serving, to try and root out some intellectual rot that I’ve seen setting in across our ranks.

Saturday Night Special

I don’t plan to make the Saturday Night Special a regular thing, notwithstanding the fact that this is two Saturdays in a row. That said, this is one hell of a write-up from the National Post on the composition of the Alberta NDP. For my domestic readers, you’ll want to take a look at this. For those outside of Alberta, here’s a glimpse at how out-to-lunch we’ve gone out here.

National Post: NDP Composition

Hitting the Links

I have a large number of interesting articles that I’ve run across over the last few weeks, so I’m trying to clear the backlog at the same time as I attempt to present them in a less-than-random order. Since it’s current news, here’s a selection of “Bruce Jenner” commentary. I wrote about this subject on Monday, but here’s everyone else’s thoughts. Matt Walsh (first link below) has a particularly good piece. Have a read and let me know what you think.

Matt Walsh at The Blaze

Mark Steyn at SteynOnline

Michael W. Chapman over at CNS News

Our First Guest Post Here at “Hail & Grapeshot”

This is an original post from a guest author. I haven’t done this before, but there’s a first time for everything, right? To be clear, I am not the author of this post, but I fully endorse her message. After reading it, I’ve gotta say that I was floored. The issue of domestic abuse still doesn’t get enough exposure, so it’s really nice to hear a genuinely original thought on this topic. Read on:

Women and Abuse

Lucy V. Churchill

Almost six years ago, a good friend of mine left an abusive marriage that was full to the brim with one-sided emotional, sexual and financial abuse, as well as (also one-sided) manipulation, coercion, and adultery. My friend’s two sons from that marriage are also emotionally abusive to her, mirroring the patterns of their father. One of the children (her step-son, in fact, but who called her “Mom” for a decade) hasn’t talked to my friend in almost 3 years, which, admittedly, has brought some peace (or at least relief from continued manipulation and abuse), although said peace is painfully mixed with unwarranted doubts and guilt on my friend’s part.

Quick Change of Blogging Plans

I had planned this morning to link to a new blogger I’ve found recently. Unfortunately, he’s having a bit of technical trouble, so instead, I’ll introduce you to Aaron Clarey (a.k.a. Captain Capitalism). The Captain generates a fair bit of content, but to get a good idea of what he does, here’s three links to his stuff. Might not be for everyone, but enjoy:.

Communism and the American Muse

Society vs the Individual Part 1

Society vs the Individual Part 2

“Adventures in Academia: The Stuff of Fiction” by Margaret Wente (G&M)

If it isn’t obvious by now, I have a bit of a bee in my bonnet over the way that universities operate. Shockingly, this article appeared in the Globe and Mail (not exactly a bastion of rational argument). But Wente nails this one. What she describes is NOT out of the ordinary, nor will her comments be surprising to any open-minded individual who sets foot on campus. As a side note, I ran across this article on social media accompanied by the ravings of a number of ‘liberal arts’ students. What I found there was indistinguishable from self-parody as comment after comment reinforced the main tenets of Wente’s argument.

Adventures in Academia: The Stuff of Fiction (link)

“They Damn-Well ARE the Droids I’m Looking For!”

Do you remember Obi-Wan Kenobi in that first Star Wars flick where he’s trying to smuggle Luke Skywalker and his two robotic pals off of their home planet? The whole crew of them end up at a check-stop where Obi-Wan waves his magic hands and tells the Stormtrooper that “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for”. The shtick works and the poor guy mechanically repeats back: “These aren’t the droids we’re looking for”. In the film, it’s all very cool and the good guys get away. Big win all-round, right?

Saturday (Morning) Special

As I said yesterday, I’ve been out of the game for a bit. So here’s a few things that I’ve run across in the last little while.

1) Stares at the World (link) – I haven’t fully vetted this blog yet, but I’m pretty sure I like it (which isn’t the same thing as saying I agree with/endorse any of it). I have a feeling I will, though. Written by another Canadian vet, it’s well worth checking out.

2) To The Root (link) – This blog is very…different. Not at all what I’d usually read/follow. That said, this is one seriously smart and talented guy (we’ve had some long talks). Swing on over and check him out. Poetry, politics, philosophy, and more.

3) This talk by Victor Davis Hanson (link) – The video is a bit older (2010, I think) but all the more poignant for that, trust me. I’ve been aware of VDH for a while, as I run across his writing occasionally, but it’s only recently that I’ve paid him much attention. I highly recommend a YouTube search for him. VDH is a Classicist and an Historian. His take on contemporary issues in light of long-term historical trends is spectacular.

We’re Back!

Well, that was a much longer hiatus than what I had initially planned. I’ve been immersed in research, exams, and romantic languages for several weeks. That said, I’ve got a ton of material to share, and plenty of thoughts to get out. Expect a fair bit of material over the next while.

Just to play a bit of catch-up, here’s a short commentary that I put together back in May (or thereabouts) when this was whole issue was a little fresher. While the controversy has died down a bit, the underlying issues haven’t, so here’s my take on it.

Relevant background links: Here and Here

The Kipnis Controversy

Laura Kipnis is right, and her critics prove it.

Kipnis talks about sex between students and professors, which seems to set many people on edge. But she’s an academic critiquing academia, so naturally this is the example she uses. She could just as easily have talked about the kindergarten teacher marrying the principal, the hygienist dating the dentist, Dr. Smith sneaking a quick kiss with Nurse Brown, or the CEO having a romantic weekend getaway with his secretary.