Happy Holidays from Denmark

Hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas!

Best wishes for 2008!

R & K

(Or as the Danes say:)

Chav Nativity Scene

The American Flag

I was watching Black Hawk Down on TV for a little while last night and I noticed that the American flag on the soldiers' uniforms was seemingly facing the wrong direction. Today, K did some quick research and found out why. It's a bit silly, I suppose, but it makes sense:

Question: Why is the American Flag patch worn "backwards" on the shoulders of members of the U.S. Military?

Answer: A United States Flag patch always has the union of the flag (the blue field with stars) to the viewer's left.

This works well when looking at the left side of the vehicle or person, but when looking at the right side it appears the flag is flying backward when the vehicle or person is in motion. The flag would appear to be "in retreat" as the vehicle or person moves forward.To alleviate this problem, the International Civil Aviation Organization decreed that flags painted on aircraft must face the direction of the flight so that it's aerodynamically and aesthetically correct. For consistency, the Flag Foundation recommends that flags or flag decals on vehicles, as well as flag patches on uniforms, should be displayed in the same manner.

Therefore, the American Flag patch on the left sleeve of a Military uniform should have the union to the viewer's left. A flag patch on the right sleeve should be displayed with the union to the viewer's right. In both cases the flag is facing forward and is streaming to the back as the person moves forward.

[from Yahoo! Answers]

Rick Faye Seminar

I went to a seminar at my martial arts place tonight. Rick Faye, the guy who started the Minnesota Kali Group, came over here to do a 3-hour evening seminar in Jeet Kune Do. There were about 25 people there and we covered a lot of ground in those 3 hours. It was a bit overwhelming actually. Rick Faye is amazingly adept at this type of martial arts. And he should be since he's 2-degrees separation from Bruce Lee! The instructor at the gym was getting flung around the same we he flings us around. Amazing!

The Sad Thing About America

On the bus home this evening, I was listening to some songs on my iPod (bless that little thing!) and one of them just resonated amazingly with me. Rufus Wainwright's "Going To A Town". It really captures the sentiment of sadness I feel with regard to America. The core ideals of the US are so beautiful, pure and awe-inspiring, but I feel like those ideals are being consistently stripped away. And that's what makes me sad. It can be such a great nation. It's getting ruined by so many things. The Bush Administration, lawyers, pharmaceutical companies, the war in Iraq, rampant capitalism, ignorance, horgging resources, too many guns, and a docile citizen majority who just lay down and accept all this. And did you know there are people in New Orleans that are still homeless?

These are things we want to commit ourselves to changing, even if just a little.

---

Going To A Town

I'm going to a town that has already been burned down
I'm going to a place that is already been disgraced
I'm gonna see some folks who have already been let down.
I'm so tired of America

I'm gonna make it up for all of the Sunday Times
I'm gonna make it up for all of the nursery rhymes
They never really seem to want to tell the truth
I'm so tired of you America

Making my own way home
Ain't gonna be alone
I got a life to lead, America
I got a life to lead

Tell me do you really think you go to hell for having loved?
Tell me and not for thinking every thing that you've done is good
(I really need to know)
After soaking the body of Jesus Christ in blood
I'm so tired of America
(I really need to know)

I may just never see you again or might as well
You took advantage of a world that loved you well

I'm going to a town that has already been burned down
I'm so tired of you, America
Making my own way home
Ain't gonna be alone
I got a life to lead, America

I got a life to lead
I got a soul to feed
I got a dream to heed
And that's all I need
Making my own way home
Ain't gonna be alone

I'm going to a town that has already been burned down