Freedom -Free-dom frē-dəm\ n. The quality or state of being free as a: the absence of necessity, coercion, or constraint in choice or action. b: Liberation from slavery. c: The quality or state of being exempt or released usually from something onerous. © 2008 Merriam Webster Inc.

Many people think of Independence Day as a day off from work. A day to shoot off fireworks. A chance to enjoy a summer barbecue, a weekend camping trip or a day at the beach. But when I think of Independence Day, all at once I am filled with both gratutide and an overabundance of caution. I celebrate the magnificent gift of freedom that our founders bestowed upon us with their fantastic experiment, yet I am increasingly wary of the current generation of it’s handlers. As Americans, we owe our allegiance to our Constitution, not some elected body that pretends to carry out our wishes every few odd years so they can maintain their stranglehold on power. Read More »

Technorati Tags: barack obama, Iraq, patriotism, political commentary, Terrorism

Hokie - “a word that people used to express feeling, approval, excitement, surprise” - Johann Norstedt - Retired VA Tech English Professor

Once again, a suicidal maniac hell-bent on exacting as much revenge as possible has struck one of the nation’s schools, this time a world-class university. But as information about the shootings, suspect and victims arrived at news desks in drips and drabs, the over-the-top coverage of the incident by the mainstream media wasn’t very helpful. In fact, the sensationalism with which NBC, Fox News and others covered this nightmare did nothing except feed disinformation and rampant speculation.

On the April 16th morning broadcast of Fox News Live, within hours of the conclusion of the massacre, Fox contributor and former D.C. Homicide Detective Rod Wheeler was asked about the possibility that an M-16 may have been this shooter’s weapon of choice. It is unclear -and may never be known- whether a witness reported an M-16, whether a witness assumed that an M-16 was involved due to the volume of fire or exactly where Fox obtained this information.

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Technorati Tags: mass murder, Seung Hui Cho

In memory of Robert Jones, Thomas Tucker and Kristian Menchaca. Welcome Home.

To paraphrase a principle attributed to William of Ockham:

“All things being equal, the simplest explanation is the correct one.” That’s the principle known as “Ockham’s Razor”.

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Technorati Tags: Iraq, patriotism, US Constitution