JamesSavik

In most states, the Governor is the pardoner, with the power to commute sentences of criminals or clear their records. In some cases, this has been abused and there have been pay-for-pardons scandals. The opposite is also true. A recent two-term Southern governor, who was quite the holy roller and spent most of his time trying to ban abortions, did not pardon anyone. He showed himself to be quite the hypocrite: an outspoken Christian who refused to practice forgiveness.

Table of Organization and Equipment (TO&E) BatDiv I Repulse (Fleet Flagship, Admiral Bassett) Renown Resolution Rodney BatDiv II Montana (Division Flag) Musashi Missouri Mutsu BatDiv III Sovereign (Division Flag) Superb Spartan Santa Cruz BatDiv IV Nagato (Division Flag) North Carolina North Dakota Nel

In one of my many college gigs, I worked for a company that erected different prefabricated buildings. It was like building Ikea furniture taken to the next level. My favorite was the redwood pavilion because they were always out in the country on a farm or a lake, and could be done in a day.

Y'all remember the great hoarding of toilet paper back in 2020?

There are few things more likely to inspire mass shootings than dealing with petty, officious bureaucrats. They may blame guns, but we know better. I swear to God, I think that make up random paperwork requirements just to piss me off.

If there's a baby in your house, he's the boss. That's not because he's precocial. It's just how humans work.

Many different plants are collectively called phlox. There are perennial and annual versions that are quite different. While some are delicate, others are quite hardy and are good as a showy ground cover for even hot and arid spots. Pictured is the perennial version that has been a staple in Mississippi gardens for generations. There is a light blue version that grows wild by the roadside in the South called Sweet William.

I miss Dewey, and Drake was gone before I arrived, but I did get to read some of his stuff. There are many others who have passed or just dropped offline. The reason I came to GA was it seemed an island of stability.

Get in mah belly!

Wut could go wrong? DON'T ASK!

There's nothing to writing a quatrain, Nostradamus wrote them by the score. As poems go, they are quite plain, Getting them to rhyme can be a chore.

Continuity of Government (COG) First really became a serious concern in the fifties at the height of the Cold War, when everyone with a chemistry set was playing with weapons of mass destruction. This made a whole generation of officers, who made their spurs after the surprise attacks on Pearl Harbor, extremely worried. COG (Continuity of Government) are the contingencies, plans, and facilities to continue government activities and operations after a major attack or large-scale natural disaster. Considerable efforts were made over the years of the Cold War to ensure the continuity of government. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was created by an executive order during the Carter administration. It eventually grew to the point of being cabinet-level. Numerous facilities are scattered all over the country in out-of-the-way places. Each agency is responsible for creating and maintaining its Continuity of Operations Plan (COO). There was a happy decade after the fall of the Soviet Union when COG was just a paranoid Cold War era nightmare. Many facilities were shut down or mothballed. Funding was slashed. It took the 9/11 attacks to move COG forward with new funding and legislation. The Department of Homeland Security was established, and the Patriot Act was passed. The United States COG plan is robust, established, and well-funded. Any foreign or domestic enemy who wished to settle accounts with the United States or topple its government altogether must understand that it will take a titanic effort. The United States is dug-in deep in facilities built to withstand nukes. The citizens may be dead in the hundreds of millions, but by God, the IRS will survive to tax the cockroaches.

RAVEs sound like this...

If you smell bad enough, you can mosey right along with the zombie herd. You just have to mosey with a shambling gait and hold your cell phone just right.

Many cats wriggle with excitement before they pounce on... mice, toys, or your ankle. Fuzzy little serial killers.

Karen and Ken and their ilk are making going out to any venue more obnoxious than it's worth.

Karen and Ken partake in their duties with the homeowner's association with all the pettiness and officiousness you might expect.

Cleo can be... quite catty sometimes.

I use video games for my catharsis. I have a company sized combined arms force with modern equipment: main battle tanks, APCs, gunships and mobile artillery. Such maneuvers should be restricted to cyber-space, as the mess it makes is incredible.

I think every author should try their hand at short stories. By their length, they encourage an economy of words instead of the prolix style of novels where you wander around for a few hundred pages desperately seeking a plot.

Capt. Susan Ivanova: [Sitting on the floor in Medlab, rocking herself back and forth, crying silently and staring at Marcus's body] I said go away! Dr. Stephen Franklin: Susan it's me. You okay? Capt. Susan Ivanova: Damnit Stephen, why the hell did he do it?I didn't want him to, I never, *never* would have asked him to! Dr. Stephen Franklin: I know. [he sits down next to her] I know. Capt. Susan Ivanova: And how the hell did he find out about that machine? Dr. Stephen Franklin: Look, after we gained control of the Alien Healing Device, Sheridan and I decided it was too dangerous to let others know about it, so I coded all my log entries. He must've hacked his way through half a dozen security overrides. Capt. Susan Ivanova: It's typical, he was always pulling crap that like, even I never knew what the hell to do with him. He was the most undisciplined, the most annoying... [glances back at his body] I was just lying there and I was feeling myself letting go of my body. And I remember the last thing I thought was, 'I'm gonna die now'... and it wasn't so bad. And then I heard this voice coming from far away saying 'I love you.' And I thought 'Is this God? Is this God?' I mean, he really did have an English accent just like in all those old movies. And then I felt myself being pulled down, and I got heavy, so heavy, you know, tired, and it was... I forced my eyes open, and there he was next to me. And we were hooked into that damn machine, and I tried to pull it apart, Stephen, I swear to God I tried. I just-I couldn't even move, I couldn't move! [breaks down sobbing] Dr. Stephen Franklin: Look, there was nothing that you could have done, all right? Your system was traumatized. You can't blame yourself. Capt. Susan Ivanova: I don't, I don't, I don't. I just-you know, all my life I've had problems with relationships. You may have noticed. Dr. Stephen Franklin: A little. Capt. Susan Ivanova: You know, the ones I loved always ended up hurting me or leaving me. And the ones who stayed, they had nothing inside. No depth. After awhile I just decided to forget about it. And then, here was Marcus. I knew he'd never hurt me... and I knew that he'd never leave me... and I knew that he loved me. I knew it. I just didn't want to admit it. And he gave so much, and he wanted so little in return. He just wanted a kind word, or a smile and all I ever gave him in two years was grief! It's because I think I saw what I wanted. And I was afraid. Dr. Stephen Franklin: I thought you knew it wasn't going to work out. You were just protecting yourself from being hurt again, that's all. Capt. Susan Ivanova: Maybe, but maybe I should've tried just one more time. I could've done that for him. Now I can't. At least I should have just boffed him once. Dr. Stephen Franklin: 'Boffed'? Did you just say 'boffed'? Capt. Susan Ivanova: [managing a weak smile through her tears] It's the type of thing he would've said. I mean hell, it's not like I was doing anything else. Dr. Stephen Franklin: Well I guess that's one way to deal with unrequited love, huh? Capt. Susan Ivanova: All love is unrequited, Stephen. All of it. [She leans towards Stephen and he gathers her in his arms, both of them now crying softly] From Babylon 5 S4E21 Rising Star