Water Dog

We are thankful that we didn't get the snow at least at the 2000' elevations in WNC, 12* not counting wind chill. 6000' elevations likely got some snow.

That's funny, no global warming news articles today. We are not as bad off as y'all here in the sunny South. Only 8* on the wind chill.

You are exactly right about that. They have violated every agreement that they have made. Here is a fact sheet on their duplicity. It will likely be another give away. It would be nice if c312 is right on this one. <http://www.cdi.org/nuclear/nk-fact-sheet.cfm>

c312: I'm a little lost here... I have never heard of any Christian, not even any "right wing card carrying snake handling Christian", stone his wife, or child, has anyone else. I have never heard of any brand of Christian sawing someone's head off with a dull knife. I have never heard of any Christian blowing themselves up in a group of other people. I have never heard of any back woods para-military good old boys do any of these things although I would know enough to be somewhat leery of them. On the other hand I have heard of Muslims doing all of these things and more.

The best way to lose credibility is to not keep our word to the 25 million people that we liberated in Iraq. "Cut and Run" or as some say, "Re-deploy", is a sure way of losing credibility in the world. A way to gain credibility is to WIN in Iraq. Another way to gain credibility might be to give the Iranians the opportunity to phase out their nuclear plans and if they aren't immediately forth coming drop a small tactical nuke down their chimney. These maniacs cannot be allowed to have nuclear arms.

Thanks, that was a good link, Noway. Had to print it out just in case I forgot something. ;D

Yur english ain't that bad, welcome! ;D

Buy some stuff from the website and I'll guarantee that you will get catalogs to match! ;D You can also order catalogs of your choice. They make pretty good reading this time of year.

Imagine that much muscle, hide, teeth, and bone! I saw one in a roadside ditch just south of Charleston, SC one night about midnight a few years ago. It looked like a log, but my buddy said, "that ain't no log" and I backed up. It was close to a well lit fenced in yard with a yapping dog. When I stopped the car the gator go up on all four feet and ran down the ditch and back into the swamp. Had I been outside the car, I don't believe that I could have out run it. I had no idea how fast they can move.

A good joke has to have some truth to it and that one does. ;D It would work well with the USF&WL boys and girls also in their quest to find endangered kangaroo rats, owls, wood peckers, etc. on the farms of America.

Papa Rock, you are a true scholar! Interesting discourse and you stayed on topic. RW, I'll have to admit, I am interested in vengeance against the Iranians who have committed atrocities against our soldiers and citizens, that is a failing of mine. RW: Any terrorist act of any kind on our soil concerns me particularly a dirty bomb or clean bomb, any bomb. Iran can not be allowed to possess "the bomb", given their mentality.

I forgot to mention that the Ethiopians have been kicking butt against the Islamic terrorists in Somalia with a little from us. Apparently, the Ethiopians didn't feel the need to take the alphabet networks in with them....as a consequence have been very successful. The African Union is evidently sick of militant Islam in their midst and are taking care of business. Maybe we should take a page out of that book for Iraq, and Iran. About the African Union: Yes, even though we have killed several of OBL's assistants, we are still after his #2 and him if he is not already dead. We need to be serious about limiting Iranian involvement in Iraq, I expect the use of a few low yield nukes along the Iraqi border might discourage unlimited access by Iranian terrorists. One thing that the terrorists do respect is strength. Maybe a small demonstration of strength would be helpful.

I believe that some in our Government are trying to make the best choice with a series of bad options, where there is no clear magic bullet to solve the problem, and they have to weigh the costs and benefits of a series of unpalatable alternatives. With this decision making there are risks that have to be weighed. We should recognize that there isn't necessarily a magic bullet that's going to solve the problem easily and without a cost, and that sometimes acting on very imperfect information we run the risk of making a serious mistake, but we still have to make a decision because not to make a decision is the worst of all outcomes. One thing that is so troubling is that our leaders around the world that represent western societies and western cultures really don't have the will to fight this right now, and I think they don't even have the guts to admit what this is. This is a religious war. It is viewed in too many circles as just episodic events, an episode of terrorism here, an episode of terrorism over there, an episode there, but not really related, we'll just keep dealing with these episodes. One of the things about religious wars and one of the reasons why so few people really want to categorize this as a religious war is because there is no room for compromise in a religious war. Fervently devout religious believers don't compromise. That's why there's no room for the UN. There's no room for a settlement negotiated when you're talking about religious wars, and we are in the midst of a religious war, and the aggressors in this case are militant Islamic fascists. Negotiation is used as a tool by Islam to prepare for war. The enemy has not suffered a loss yet. They've just taken Somalia, they're slaughtering people in Iraq, and they're on the rise in Afghanistan. I'm not saying that we haven't made any progress. We have made a lot of progress in Iraq with the people electing a fledgling government but we haven't been taking the war to this enemy. We've been doing the typical State Department PC thing. "We can't let Iran take over the Middle East." What are we going to do to stop that? Peace always follows a genuine Victory. We will not have peace with a declared victory, a pseudo-victory, a wimp and run pull out that will cost more lives in the long run. A boni-fide, undeniable WIN in Iraq would go a long way toward defeating Islam fascism. They are going to have to be defeated.

Gentlemen, I believe that each of you are on the right track and that we will continue on a collision course with militant Islam for the foreseeable future and that is not encouraging. The militants will see our pull out of Iraq just as they did our pull out of the ill conceived 'cut and run' mission in Somalia. This will further embolden them on their quest for world wide indoctrination of their version of Islam. Unfortunately it takes more than a twin towers atrocity to harden the American Will to the point of following through with a military response. If something like that happens again or something worse; for example, a nuclear strike you will see the politicos follow the polls as the will of the American People changes. The last thing that a warrior wants is war, but if it comes you have to recognize the risks and follow through. In the last 2000 years there have been about 35 years when there wasn't a war going on somewhere. In order to succeed in war, PC Rules of Engagement and the ever present hostile News Media have to be left home. In the Revolutionary War the British tried to fight a PC war by wearing nice red coats and lost. The mission must be clearly defined and you follow through until completion. Mission creep is not allowed and you don't tie the hands of the military leaders.. Our military should not be used as a social proving ground or meals on wheels. All of the politicians that we have now violate the above. The only difference is that some are worse than others. Facts: Peaceful ways of defeating Islam 1.The West's need for oil also fuels militant Islam. If we could achieve energy independence again along with Europe, militant Islam would falter to a certain extent. They wouldn't change their hatred but they wouldn't have the funding to achieve their goals. 2. There is a lot of discontentment in Iran with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and the militant Islam hierarchy and lower sales of oil would slow them down. We need to encourage a regime change. 3. In our own hemisphere we to our detriment allow the environmental wackos to keep us from energy independence. We need to develop and use all of our resources: nuclear, hydrogen, natural gas, oil, oil shale, coal, solar, alcohol, wind, and hydro. I think that we need to be both concerned with Iran militant activities and our response or lack thereof. I'm not sure that this Congress would authorize a nuclear response to a nuclear attack by Iran on us or Israel. I'm afraid that we may be too PC and too soft to avoid an attack.

At any given time there is a very small percentage that feel the need to serve our country in the military especially in time of war. Your son is a member of an elite group. He laid it on the line for us. Please tell him that he has support and appreciation for his service and sacrifice from everyone that I know.

This has really been a worthwhile post! I went out and checked the local stores after I saw your post and got a few things, spinner baits for a buck, which is a good price. Where it really paid off was that I had to spend a few days in Myrtle Beach and found bucoos of stuff there. They have a huge fishing section, mostly saltwater, but fresh water as well. I went back over a two day period and have enough stuff to last quite awhile. ;D they had this out the 2nd day "Fisher" , only one but I got it. The clerk had looked the first day and couldn't find one, so I got lucky. I have been asking about the rumor about getting out of fishing and hunting gear and the answer is the same as RW's comments. Some of the stores won't be selling guns, it's a business decision, they will keep them where sales are good. Fishing sections will be larger in some areas; I hope that this includes mine. There is a Bass Pro shop across the street which helped round out the day.

Lucky boy ! Timing is everything. ;D I've always been concerned about people who keep exotic snakes that can survive in the wild here. You hear of one every now and then.

Prayers are sent my friend for you, the family, and your grandmother! I have had some experience, each one is likely an individual case. Hang in there!

Listen up Boys! Life is an education; you are never going to get done. ;D Sorry bout that. ;D Many jobs require continuing education and certification after you get hired. My recommendation would be to get as broad of a background in your field as you can before you have too many more responsibilities. Double majors aren't bad as well as advanced degrees, but there may be a better way to get an advanced degree, let the employer pay for it. When looking for a job, career, look into the employer's policy on allowable time off and financing perks for continuing education. Technology is changing so fast many employer's will pick up the tab for time away from the job as well as books, tuition, etc. just to keep well trained employees. That can be real important to you. You can gain on the job training as well as total time of employment while going to school. Say; for example, that you are working for a State agency as a Biologist with a 4-year undergraduate degree. If you are employed near a University you may very well be able to go back to school part time to get your Masters or pH all the while getting benefits and time-in-grade! When you are young you don't think much about retirement age but you may be able to retire with 30 years at fifty rather than sixty. Your retirement income is based on your top four years where I work, check yours out. You can start out at a low salary, get your advanced education practically free and finish at your highest salary your last four years. You will then have time and experience available to double dip for another 15 or so years, maybe even as a pro fisherman. You can tell that I learn most things the hard way! ;D

Take care of those teeth, boys, and they will take care of you! Ever try to gum and apple? ;D Without good teeth, you will have to close your split shot with pliers, can't cut line or crack hickory nuts, you would be in terrible shape! ;D

You fellas have your life ahead of you and are getting a lot of good advice. I would suggest that you talk to some of the pros if you get a chance or maybe even better read their bios. Success on the tour is far from the only measure of being a successful person. The road is a tough life and not many marriages will last with the husband on the road all of the time. I would suggest that you postpone marriage and having children until you have experienced a few tourney seasons and have the lay of the land in mind and a plan for your career. If you let things, "just happen", you are going to get other people in trouble besides yourself. Raising children is the most important thing that you will do with your life and is not to be taken lightly. You don't want to start a family and then run out on them!!!! Develop a plan. Get your school guidance counselor to help you evaluate your potential. Some people are not cut out for college. There is nothing wrong with being the best mechanic, carpenter, machinist, dozer operator, or whatever tradesman. Carpenters often turn into builders who do very well financially. Pick a field that you will be happy doing. Learn to live in the present that is reality. As for seasonal jobs, I have known people who worked in Alaska for six months of the year and were able to take the other six months off! America is the land of opportunity. You are only limited by your GOD given abilities. Set yourself some goals and then get out there and achieve them. Realize that catching fish for a living may not be the same for you as it was when this profession was just a hobby. Make no mistake; you will look at things differently when your bread and board depends it.

And how about immigration would actually deport illegals! How's that for a fantasy... ;D

I expect that the Irish side of my family might have made a little Irish Stew out of them as well as anything else that moved, based on my cousins.

Sorry there "Fisher", I went ahead and bought it..... ;D I bought some nice reels on sale before Christmas, recently they had spinner baits on sale for $1 each! These were not packaged with a brand name and were a newly stocked item. They looked good enough to me. The large and small ones that I visit across NC seem to be pretty well stocked with typical baits. No high end stuff. You can't predict when they will put items on sale. Wal-Mart is making some changes, my wife buys fabric and they are doing away with that section. The cheap prices, convenience, and hours that they are open all work for me. Doing away with fishing supplies would be a downer.

That is the headline but I'll have to tell you both of those men and their coaching philosophy is much more impressive to me than who won or lost. Much has been made of the fact that both are black and that is an important achievement to many but of more importance is their testimony to the entire world that they are both Christians and live and coach as Christians. I accidentally watched the trophy ceremony and was absolutely blown away. First the Colts owner actually thanked GOD and gave him credit for the Colts success and Tony Dungy further expounded on this theme and went on to say that both he and Lovey Smith are involved with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, etc. Their legacy will be the example that they are setting to all of these young players and the youth of America out there. These gentlement will have tremendous influence for good. "You don't have to be a hooligan; you can be a decent person as well as an athlete." I haven't watched much professional or college sports much since the 70 tys simply because of the players, the hype, and it seems that some are not much above the level of common (albeit well paid ) criminals. Tony and Lovey have been there all along and maybe there is hope after all for professional sports. I have despised the team 'gang colors' and general low morals and hooliganism exhibited by athletes of all levels. I believe that I will support professional sports by watching them some again, at least those two teams.