3000? 30,000? 300,000?

How many "personal" E-mails did Hillary  say she eliminated while leaving official E-mails on  her servers? And what were these personal E-mails about?   Yoga pants.  What the hell are yoga pants anyway; they  must be important to rate so much discussion.  Oh,  I was forgetting; she E-mailed Bill to check up on him.  Trouble there --Bill claims he neither sends or receives E-mail.  You  can count on   it -- we will never see the E-mails on Benghazi. 

Two days away from Okinawa

March 30, 1945, we were just two days away from Okinawa.  We had completed our duties at Iwo Jima and a few weeks ago had loaded on troops and material at Saipan.  We recognized we were in danger of suicide plane attacks and prepared by calling general quarters before sunrise  every morning. The Japs liked to come in flying low and out of the sun.  This made it difficult to see the plane and difficult to detect by radar.

Tokyo Rose warned the battle for Okinawa would cost many lives.  She said the Japs realized that if they lost Okinawa they gave up all chance of winning the war.  However, they would keep fighting.

Palm Sunday -- a day of triumph

Yes, it was a day of triumph, a day for common people to show their love.  The coming week would be filled with disappointment, tragedy and pain; one disciple would betray him; another would deny him, and all would sneak away and leave him to suffer.  He would be tortured and nailed to a cross.

But this was a day  of gladness,  a glorious time.  Jesus had sent his disciples to get a colt, and he rode this colt on the streets of Jerusalem. He was greeted with shouts of "Hosanna.  Hosanna in the highest." People spreads their coats and palm branches ahead of him.  Everywhere he was greeted  with love.  .

Terrible times were ahead but this was indeed  a day of triumph.

Marines turn Iwo Jima into victory

This day, March 26,  1945, the United States declared the battle for Iwo Jima was over, with America winning but paying a big price in casualties. A few days later, the battle for Okinawa would begin.

I remember a navy event

Most World War Two vets were like me    -- they gave little thought to all but major events during their service.  I was certainly that way, only much later did I start remembering  events.

Four of our officers were the backfield for Holy Cross.  They could not understand why I did not think their 1942 upset (55-12) of Boston College was so important.  Only last year did I learn that the celebration of the victory became a tragedy when a fire started and almost 500 died.

What was my connection?  We were playing touch football on a little island and I was crashing in and destroying their offense; two of them teamed to block me  (illegally)  above my knees which sidelined me .

Remembering an LSU star who has died.

Bobby Lowther, one of LSU's greatest athletic stars and a World War II veteran, died at age 91.  Lowther was an outstanding basketball player and pole vaulted and threw the javelin. He played on the 1946-47 basketball team with Joe Adcock, Frank Bryan, Billy Walters and Bubba Webb.

Lowther was training for the Olympics when he broke his leg; he managed to play another year of ball. Adcock became a great major leaguer, hitting four home runs in one game.  Bryan left to play professional basketball.

I remember this because I entered LSU in 1946.  Not many of us WW2 veterans are left.

     (Lowther is the only athlete to make all-American in two different sports.)

Ride Away - Roy Orbison

Spring has sprung and I still live

Is that the sun I see as I peer through the window expecting to see another grey rainy day?  Perhaps the old saying of March coming  in like a lion and going out like a lamb is at least partly true.

I didn't  forget the first day of spring and I have not abandoned my blog; I just have felt too dull to do anything.  When I got out of bed Wednesday morning I was dizzy and had no balance, making me afraid of falling.  I regret not going to church Sunday but I feared the possibility of a fall was too likely.  I am somewhat better this morning.

I have watched parts of some basketball games but LSU's one point final second loss killed most of my interest in the tourney. At least the baseball team is hitting the ball well and is winning.

Israel election makes me happy and unhappy

Outcome of recent elections in Israel left me both happy and unhappy. I wanted Netanyahu's party to gain the most seats so that netanyahu could possibly keep Obama from making a bad deal with Iran, an agreement that would place the United States in grave danger of a nuclear threat from Iran.

I'm unhappy with the results because peace in that area is far away because of Israel's unfair and brutal treatment of Palestinians.  Netanyahu promised he would never agree to a Palestinian state and would continue to confiscate their land.

I see little hope of peace in this decade.

Famous words -- Congenital Liar

There was quite a storm when William Safire, New York Times columnist, wrote that they applied to Hillary Clinton.  This was during  the time of Whitewater, Travelgate, etc The political world was shocked; like me, millions went to the dictionary and decided  Hillary was  being called a "born liar. "

Safire was noted for his command of  the English language.  What words would he have for the Clintons now as they seem to have a different set of rules for the rest of us?

Pickens leaves Iwo to prepare for Okinawa

The battle for Iwo Jima would continue until America would gain victory March 26, but the Pickens had left and proceeded to Saipan to prepare for Okinawa.  For as long as I am alive and able, I will remember and comment on Iwo Jima.  This expresses my feelings:

     "Iwo Jima will live in the hearts of  all persons who were there.  No others will ever know the tortures this little island prodouced.

                 From the personal narrative of Mark White, Photographer for the USS Pickens.

What the heck -- its just a ticket for speeding

Jessica made her meeting in Alexandria despite getting a speeding ticket minutes before she arrived for a meeting with  the  Board of Ordained  Ministry.  This morning  (Monday) Jessica will be interviewed by the board, which has the responsibility of commissioning her for the ministry.

Jessica will return to North Carolina Wednesday and will resume classes at Duke Seminary.

(Following the meeting Jessica learned that at the Louisiana annual conference this spring she will be commissioned a minister of the United Methodist Church)

Jessica to arrive tonight

Daughter Jessica will fly in tonight (Saturday) from North Carolina but will  return Sunday. 













Daughter Jessica will fly in tonight (Saturday) but will have to return to North Carolina Sunday.  She is coming in to meet in Alexandria Sunday afternoon with United Methodist Church bishops and other officials.
This is another step toward meeting  every requirement to spend a year as a missionary in Israel.



























she will

Brighton is two

We helped our youngest grandson, Brighton, celebrate his second birthday  Thursday with cake and presents.  His observance was to continue as his parents took him to play games and ride toys.

Those two years passed very fast.  Why do pleasant events pass so swiftly while tiresome and unhappy times linger and go by slowly?

I blame Obama and Holder for the pollicemen being shot.

The president and the attorney  general  are happy this morning.  Their remarks stirred up more racial strife that resulted in two police officers being shot in Ferguson, Mo.  Both officers are in serious condition -- one was shot in the face  and the bullet is lodged in his head; the other was hit in the shoulder and the bullet went out through his back.

Just the day before Obama and Holder made hateful comments about the Ferguson police department and implied racism ruled all police departments.  Holder even threatened to have the federal government take over local police departments.

What terrible leadership this nation has.

     (The Shreveport Times this morning ran a cartoon attacking Ferguson police.  How proud they must be.)

A terrible case of bullying

Half of the congregation were nodding as Tom Howe preached on bullying -- bullies ranging from international leaders like Putin to that of school kids.  He related a story of a bully knocking school books from a student's arms and kicking them down the hall as a girl laughed.

As he condemned bullying I was thinking that it was different when I went to school, but then memories of bullying  began to crowd into my mind.  The worst I remember was the case of two friends  who threw another friend into the bayou.  After some struggling the non-swimmer  got to the bank.  His two friends thought  this was so much fun they threw the victim in again.  He struggled but he    was too exhausted to  reach the shore and drowned.

I was not involved in anything approaching  that tragedy, but I can remember being bullied and got into trouble  with the principal when I defended myself.

"I'm hit. I'm going down!"

Much fierce fighting on Iwo Jima remained but it was apparent that the Marines would be victorious ( the war ended March 18.)  The Pickens had completed its job and  was headed back to Saipan.

i don't remember just when I left my  job on deck and returned to the radar shack.  We were  listening to the TBS when we heard a frightened voice   exclaim, "I'm hit, I'm going down!" The  pilot's cry brought the war home to me like nothing else.

Mark''s company goes public

Son Mark was on the stage with other executives of MaxPoint Interactive as they rang the bell for the stock market opening Friday morning.  MaxPoint  was making its  IPO (initial public offering) of 6.5 million shares.  The offering  was made at  11.50 a share.

Mark is director, Product Affairs, for the company.  He is co-inventor of a system for improving shape-based targeting by using interest level  data.

Spring will come

After all our problem is global warming.  Thanks to Obama the government is making grants to green energy, which will solve all our problem..

Okay, the cold, the snow and ice are not funny for most of the nation.  In Northwest Louisiana we are on the edge of the  blizzard and were blessed with only light sleet and snow last night.  Some schools did not open, but most opened, only later than regular.

And spring will come officially March 20.  We can expect cold days and snow and or sleet into April, I am sorry to say.

My only answer on Iran

I have  some ideas on how to handle Isis, and if my policies are followed   the  economy will be made healthy.  But I don't have an answer on what to do to eliminate the threat posed by Iran.

Netanyahu addressed Congress today and said any plan that allows Iran to develop nuclear weapons is bad and Israel will oppose it. The plan he outlined leaves me with the feeling that any plan could lead to war.  I am very fearful of Obama's negotiations;  his plan would allow Iran to have nuclear weapons.

We have one thing in our favor (if Obama does not give it away) and that is to be so much stronger with nuclear weapons than anyone else, and can promise any nation that attacks us will be hit ten times as hard as we are hit.

Conversation with Jessica

Talked with Jessica.  She preached both sermons Sunday at Apex United Methodist Church.  The remainder of the day she was working with youth groups.

She took another step toward meeting obligations of her planned missionary year in Israel.  Her budget has been approved. Now comes raising  the needed the funds.  Several more obligations must met, including a meeting with the Louisiana Conference of the Methodist Church.