When the driver of a huge trailer lost control of his rig, he plowed into an empty tollbooth and smashed it to pieces. He climbed down from the wreckage and within a matter of minutes, a truck pulled up and discharged a crew of workers.
The men picked up each broken piece of the former tollbooth and spread some kind of creamy substance on it. Then they began fitting the pieces together. In less than a half hour, they had the entire tollbooth reconstructed and looking good as new.
"Astonishing!" the truck driver said to the crew chief. "What was the white stuff you used to get all the pieces together?"
The crew chief said, "Oh, that was tollgate booth paste."
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
COWBOY LOGIC
1. Never slap a man who's chewing tobacco.
2. Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.
3. There are two theories to arguing with a woman. Neither works.
4. Never miss a good chance to shut up.
5. Always drink upstream from the herd.
6. If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.
7. The quickest way to double your money is to fold it and put it back into your pocket.
8. There are three kinds of men: The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves.
9. Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.
10. If you're riding' ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it's still there.
11. Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier'n puttin' it back.
12. After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him.
The moral : When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.
OH!! Also, Never squat with your spurs on!!!
2. Never kick a cow chip on a hot day.
3. There are two theories to arguing with a woman. Neither works.
4. Never miss a good chance to shut up.
5. Always drink upstream from the herd.
6. If you find yourself in a hole, stop digging.
7. The quickest way to double your money is to fold it and put it back into your pocket.
8. There are three kinds of men: The ones that learn by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence and find out for themselves.
9. Good judgment comes from experience, and a lot of that comes from bad judgment.
10. If you're riding' ahead of the herd, take a look back every now and then to make sure it's still there.
11. Lettin' the cat outta the bag is a whole lot easier'n puttin' it back.
12. After eating an entire bull, a mountain lion felt so good he started roaring. He kept it up until a hunter came along and shot him.
The moral : When you're full of bull, keep your mouth shut.
OH!! Also, Never squat with your spurs on!!!
HIGH MAINTENANCE FLOTUS or INCOME REDISTRIBUTION
Mary Lincoln was taken to task for purchasing China for the White House during the Civil War.
And Mamie Eisenhower had to shell out the salary for her personal secretary from her husband’s salary.
Total Personal Staff members for other first ladies paid by you the taxpayers:
Mamie Eisenhower: One-- paid for personally out of President's salary.
Jackie Kennedy: One
Rosaline Carter: One
Barbara Bush: One
Hilary Clinton: Three
Laura Bush: One
Michele Obama: Twenty-two
How things have
changed! If you're one of the tens of millions of Americans facing
certain destitution, earning less than subsistence wages stocking the
shelves at Wal-Mart or serving up McDonald cheeseburgers, prepare to
scream and then come to realize that the benefit package for these
servants of Mrs. Obama are the same as members of the national security
and defense departments and the bill for these assorted lackeys is paid
by YOU, John Q. Public:
Michele Obama's personal staff:
One.. $172,200 - Sher, Susan (Chief Of Staff)
Two..
$140,000 - Frye, Jocelyn C. (Deputy Assistant to the President and
Director of Policy And Projects f or The First Lady)
Three..
$113,000 - Rogers, Desiree G. (Special Assistant to the President and
White House Social Secretary for Mrs. Obama)
Four..
$102,000 - Johnston, Camille Y. (Special Assistant to the President and
Director of Communications for the First Lady)
Five.. $100,000 - Winter, Melissa (Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief Of Staff to the First Lady)
Six.. $90,000 Medina , David S. (Deputy Chief Of Staff to the First Lady)
Seven.. $84,000 - Lilyveld, Catherine M. (Director and Press Secretary to the First Lady)
Eight.. $75,000 - Starkey, Frances M. (Director of Scheduling and Advance for the First Lady)
Nine.. $70,000 - Sanders, Trooper (Deputy Director of Policy and Project for the First Lady)
Ten.. $65,000 - Burnough, Erinn (Deputy Director and Deputy Social Secretary)
Eleven.. $64,000 - Reinstein, Joseph B.(Deputy Director and Deputy Social Secretary)
Twelve.. $62,000 - Goodman, Jennifer R. (Deputy Director of Scheduling and Events Coordinator For The First Lady)
Thirteen.. $60,000 Fitz, Alan O.(Deputy Director of Advance and Trip Director for the First Lady)
Fourteen.. $57,500 - Lewis, Dana M. (Special Assistant and Personal Aide to the First Lady)
Fifteen.. $52,500 - Mustaphi, Semonti M. (Associate Director and Deputy Press Secretary To The First Lady)
Sixteen.. $50,000 - Jarvis, Kristen E. (Special Assistant f or Scheduling and Traveling Aide To The First Lady)
Seventeen.. $45,000 - Lechtenberg, Tyler A. (Associate Director of Correspondence For The First Lady)
Eighteen.. $43,000 - Tubman, Samantha a (Deputy Associate Director, Social Office)
Nineteen.. $40,000 - Boswell, Joseph J. (Executive Assistant to the Chief Of Staff to the First Lady)
Twenty.. $36,000 - Armbruster, Sally M. (Staff Assistant to the Social Secretary)
Twenty-One. . $35,000 - Bookey, Natalie (Staff Assistant)
Twenty-Two. . $35,000 - Jackson, Deilia A. (Deputy Associate Director of Correspondence for the First Lady)
Total $1,591,200 in annual salaries all for someone we did not vote for, and apparently have no control over. There
has NEVER been anyone in the White House at any time who has created
such an army of staffers whose sole duties are the facilitation of the
First Lady's social life.
One wonders why she needs so much help, at taxpayer expense.
Note: This does not
include makeup artist Ingrid Grimes-Miles, 49, and "First Hairstylist"
Johnny Wright, 31, both of whom traveled aboard Air Force One to Europe
...
Copyright 2009 Canada Free Press: canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/12652< http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/12652>
The
Canadian Free Press had to publish this. I wonder why the US media has
not brought this to light??? Too scared that they might be considered
racist or suffer at the hands of Obama???
LOOKS LIKE A HOMICIDE
Two police officers responding to a domestic disturbance with shots fired arrive on scene. After discovering the wife had shot her husband for walking across her freshly mopped floor, they call their sergeant on his cell phone.
"Hello Sarge."
"Yes."
"It looks like we have a homicide here. "
"What happened?"
"A woman has shot her husband for walking on the floor she had just mopped."
"Have you placed her under arrest?"
"No sir. The floor is still wet. "
JACK'S MORAL OF THE DAY
An old man, a boy and a donkey were going to town. The boy rode on the donkey
and the old man walked.
As they went along they passed some people who remarked: "What a shame,
and the old man walked.
As they went along they passed some people who remarked: "What a shame,
the old man is walking and the boy is riding."
The man and boy thought maybe the critics were right, so they changed positions.
Later they passed some people who remarked: "What a shame, he makes that little
boy walk." So they then decided they'd both walk!
Soon they passed some more people who remarked "They're really stupid to walk
when they have a decent donkey to ride."
So, they both rode the donkey.
Now they passed some people who shamed them by saying: "How awful to put such
a load on a poor donkey."
The boy and the man figured they were probably right, so they decide to carry the donkey.
As they crossed the bridge, they lost their grip on the donkey and he fell into the river and drowned.
The moral of the story?
If you try to please everyone, you might as well kiss your ass goodbye!
The man and boy thought maybe the critics were right, so they changed positions.
Later they passed some people who remarked: "What a shame, he makes that little
boy walk." So they then decided they'd both walk!
Soon they passed some more people who remarked "They're really stupid to walk
when they have a decent donkey to ride."
So, they both rode the donkey.
Now they passed some people who shamed them by saying: "How awful to put such
a load on a poor donkey."
The boy and the man figured they were probably right, so they decide to carry the donkey.
As they crossed the bridge, they lost their grip on the donkey and he fell into the river and drowned.
The moral of the story?
If you try to please everyone, you might as well kiss your ass goodbye!
Monday, June 29, 2015
MANY PROBLEMS HAVE AN EASY SOLUTION
A man who'd just died is delivered to a local mortuary wearing an
expensive, expertly tailored black suit.
The female blonde mortician asks the deceased's wife how she would
like the body dressed. She points out that the man does look good
in the black suit he is already wearing.
The widow, however, says that she always thought her husband looked his best in blue, and that she wants him in a blue suit. She gives the Blonde mortician a blank check and says, 'I don't care what it costs, but please have my husband in a blue suit for the viewing.'
The woman returns the next day for the wake. To her delight, she finds her husband dressed in a gorgeous blue suit with a subtle chalk stripe; the suit fits him perfectly... She says to the mortician, 'Whatever this cost, I'm very satisfied.. You did an excellent job and I'm very grateful. How much did you spend?'
To her astonishment, the blonde mortician presents her with the blank check. 'There's no charge,' she says.
'No, really, I must compensate you for the cost of that exquisite blue suit!' she says.
'Honestly, ma'am,' the blonde says, 'it cost nothing. You see, a deceased gentleman of about your husband's size was brought in shortly after you left yesterday, and he was wearing an attractive blue suit. I asked his wife if she minded him going to his grave wearing a black suit instead.
She said "It makes no difference as long as he looks nice."
'So I just switched the heads.'
The widow, however, says that she always thought her husband looked his best in blue, and that she wants him in a blue suit. She gives the Blonde mortician a blank check and says, 'I don't care what it costs, but please have my husband in a blue suit for the viewing.'
The woman returns the next day for the wake. To her delight, she finds her husband dressed in a gorgeous blue suit with a subtle chalk stripe; the suit fits him perfectly... She says to the mortician, 'Whatever this cost, I'm very satisfied.. You did an excellent job and I'm very grateful. How much did you spend?'
To her astonishment, the blonde mortician presents her with the blank check. 'There's no charge,' she says.
'No, really, I must compensate you for the cost of that exquisite blue suit!' she says.
'Honestly, ma'am,' the blonde says, 'it cost nothing. You see, a deceased gentleman of about your husband's size was brought in shortly after you left yesterday, and he was wearing an attractive blue suit. I asked his wife if she minded him going to his grave wearing a black suit instead.
She said "It makes no difference as long as he looks nice."
'So I just switched the heads.'
TOP JOKES 062915
=========================================== =
The executive was interviewing a young blonde for a position in his company. He wanted to find out something about her personality so he asked, "If you could have a conversation with someone, living or dead, who would it be?"
The blonde quickly responded, "The living one."
=============================================
A man arrives at the gates of Heaven. St. Peter asks, "Religion?"
The man says, "Methodist."
St. Peter looks down his list, and says," Go to Room 24, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8."
Another man arrives at the gates of Heaven. "Religion?"
"Baptist."
"Go to Room 18, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8." A third man arrives at the gates. "Religion?"
"Jewish."
"Go to Room 11, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8.
" The man says, "I can understand there being Different rooms for different religions, But why must I be quiet when I pass Room 8?"
St. Peter tells him, "Well, the Catholics are in Room 8, and they think they're the only ones here."
=============================================
Survey shows: 10% of women had sex within the first hour of their first date. 20% of men had sex in a non-traditional place.
36% of women favour nudity.
45% of women prefer dark men with blue eyes. 46% of women experienced anal sex
70% of women prefer sex in the morning
80% of men have never experienced homosexual relations
90% of women would like to have sex in the forest
99% of women have never experienced sex in the office.
CONCLUSION: Statistically speaking, you have a better chance of having anal sex in the morning with a strange woman in the forest than to have sex in the office at the end of the day.
MORAL: Do not stay late at the office, nothing good can come of it.
=============================================
An eminent psychologist was called to testify in court. A severe, no-nonsense professional, she sat down in the witness chair unaware that its rear legs were set precariously on the back of the raised platform.
"Will you state your name?" asked the district attorney.
Tilting back in her chair, she opened her mouth to answer, when she was catapulted head-over-heels backward and landed in a stack of exhibits and recording equipment. Everyone watched in stunned silence as she extricated herself, rearranged her disheveled dress and hair, and was re seated on the witness stand. The glare she directed at onlookers dared anyone to so much as smirk.
"Well, doctor," continued the district attorney without changing expression, "Maybe we should start with an easier question."
============================================
Two high-school buddies were attending the senior prom. "Suzy wants to go out to my car. She's really hot," one boy noted. "I'm really nervous. I know I'll goof up!"
"Take it easy," his friend assured him. "All you gotta do is compliment her. Chicks love to be complimented. You'll have her in the palm of your hand."
About a half-hour later the young man came back, rubbing a black eye. "Shit, man! What happened to you?!" his buddy asked.
"I took your advice."
"Didn't you compliment her?"
"Sure, I did! We got into my car and started kissing. I told her that for such full lips, hers sure tasted sweet. She liked that. "After awhile I started feeling her tits, and I told her that for such large breasts, they sure were firm. She like that, too."
"It sounds like you were doing great," his friend answered.
"Well," the other answered, "that's when everything went wrong. I got her dress up, her panties off, and I tried to think of another compliment."
"What did you say?"
"For such a large crack, it doesn't stink much." Then he added, "That's when the fight started!"
===========================================
One Sunday morning, the pastor noticed little Johnny was staring up at the large plaque that hung in the foyer of the church. The seven-year-old had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up, stood beside the boy, and said quietly, 'Good morning son.'
'Good morning pastor' replied the young man, focused on the plaque. 'Sir, what is this?' Johnny asked.
'Well son, these are all the people who have died in the service, 'replied the pastor. Soberly, they stood together, staring at the large plaque.
Little Johnny's voice barely broke the silence when he asked quietly, 'Which one sir, the 8:30 or the 10:30 service?'
The executive was interviewing a young blonde for a position in his company. He wanted to find out something about her personality so he asked, "If you could have a conversation with someone, living or dead, who would it be?"
The blonde quickly responded, "The living one."
=============================================
A man arrives at the gates of Heaven. St. Peter asks, "Religion?"
The man says, "Methodist."
St. Peter looks down his list, and says," Go to Room 24, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8."
Another man arrives at the gates of Heaven. "Religion?"
"Baptist."
"Go to Room 18, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8." A third man arrives at the gates. "Religion?"
"Jewish."
"Go to Room 11, but be very quiet as you pass Room 8.
" The man says, "I can understand there being Different rooms for different religions, But why must I be quiet when I pass Room 8?"
St. Peter tells him, "Well, the Catholics are in Room 8, and they think they're the only ones here."
=============================================
Survey shows: 10% of women had sex within the first hour of their first date. 20% of men had sex in a non-traditional place.
36% of women favour nudity.
45% of women prefer dark men with blue eyes. 46% of women experienced anal sex
70% of women prefer sex in the morning
80% of men have never experienced homosexual relations
90% of women would like to have sex in the forest
99% of women have never experienced sex in the office.
CONCLUSION: Statistically speaking, you have a better chance of having anal sex in the morning with a strange woman in the forest than to have sex in the office at the end of the day.
MORAL: Do not stay late at the office, nothing good can come of it.
=============================================
An eminent psychologist was called to testify in court. A severe, no-nonsense professional, she sat down in the witness chair unaware that its rear legs were set precariously on the back of the raised platform.
"Will you state your name?" asked the district attorney.
Tilting back in her chair, she opened her mouth to answer, when she was catapulted head-over-heels backward and landed in a stack of exhibits and recording equipment. Everyone watched in stunned silence as she extricated herself, rearranged her disheveled dress and hair, and was re seated on the witness stand. The glare she directed at onlookers dared anyone to so much as smirk.
"Well, doctor," continued the district attorney without changing expression, "Maybe we should start with an easier question."
============================================
Two high-school buddies were attending the senior prom. "Suzy wants to go out to my car. She's really hot," one boy noted. "I'm really nervous. I know I'll goof up!"
"Take it easy," his friend assured him. "All you gotta do is compliment her. Chicks love to be complimented. You'll have her in the palm of your hand."
About a half-hour later the young man came back, rubbing a black eye. "Shit, man! What happened to you?!" his buddy asked.
"I took your advice."
"Didn't you compliment her?"
"Sure, I did! We got into my car and started kissing. I told her that for such full lips, hers sure tasted sweet. She liked that. "After awhile I started feeling her tits, and I told her that for such large breasts, they sure were firm. She like that, too."
"It sounds like you were doing great," his friend answered.
"Well," the other answered, "that's when everything went wrong. I got her dress up, her panties off, and I tried to think of another compliment."
"What did you say?"
"For such a large crack, it doesn't stink much." Then he added, "That's when the fight started!"
===========================================
One Sunday morning, the pastor noticed little Johnny was staring up at the large plaque that hung in the foyer of the church. The seven-year-old had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up, stood beside the boy, and said quietly, 'Good morning son.'
'Good morning pastor' replied the young man, focused on the plaque. 'Sir, what is this?' Johnny asked.
'Well son, these are all the people who have died in the service, 'replied the pastor. Soberly, they stood together, staring at the large plaque.
Little Johnny's voice barely broke the silence when he asked quietly, 'Which one sir, the 8:30 or the 10:30 service?'
No liberal’s child’s playpen is complete without a Che Guevara Little Thinker doll
CHE GUEVARA
Che Guevara was a rebel, an adventurer, a statesman, a civil rights leader, and a revolutionary. He was many things to many people, but "cute" wasn't one of them - until now.
Our Che Guevara Little Thinker doll stands roughly 11 inches tall and comes dressed in green fatigues, black boots and belt and, of course, his trademark beret. It's as adorable, appealing and charismatic as the real Che was intense, violent, and charismatic.
Read More
Our Che Guevara Little Thinker doll stands roughly 11 inches tall and comes dressed in green fatigues, black boots and belt and, of course, his trademark beret. It's as adorable, appealing and charismatic as the real Che was intense, violent, and charismatic.
Read More
Coming soon to your neighborhood thnx to POTUS AND SCOTUS!
SECTION B HOUSING FOR EVERY NEIGHBORHOOD
The
court sided with a community organization alleging that Texas’ housing
department had improperly clustered Section 8 housing in low-income,
high-crime areas — essentially preserving the segregation that federal
housing law was designed to end.
Texas had argued that the lawsuit was invalid, and the question before the high court was whether the Fair Housing Act — a law intended to outlaw racial discrimination in housing — allows people to sue over practices that might not be explicitly discriminatory, but end up hurting minorities disproportionately.
- See more at: http://moonbattery.com/#sthash.vwBRwH9q.dpuf
Texas had argued that the lawsuit was invalid, and the question before the high court was whether the Fair Housing Act — a law intended to outlaw racial discrimination in housing — allows people to sue over practices that might not be explicitly discriminatory, but end up hurting minorities disproportionately.
- See more at: http://moonbattery.com/#sthash.vwBRwH9q.dpuf
1ST PITCH AFTER 9/11/2001
ONE REASON HE'LL BE CONSIDERED ONE OF THE GREATEST PRESIDENTS IN EYES OF MANY
RIHANNA LIKES THE SHOE!
Chris Brown might want to consider picking up a copy of the current
issue of Rolling Stone, fapping to it, wiping it off, then showing it to
a judge. It more or less proves that Rihanna egged him on into beating
her up on purpose, "for her own personal amusement," because there's
something wrong with her - as if it wasn't already obvious from the pics
from this issue, which are more weird than they are hot.
Some Rihanna quotes:
Some Rihanna quotes:
“I do think I’m a bit of a masochist,” she says this evening. “It’s not something I’m proud of, and it’s not something I noticed until recently. I think it’s common for people who witness abuse in their household. They can never smell how beautiful a rose is unless they get pricked by a thorn.”
“Rihanna’s hit single “S&M” is semi-autobiographical. “Being submissive in the bedroom is really fun,” she says. “You get to be a little lady, to have somebody be macho and in charge of your shit. That’s fun to me…I like to be spanked. Being tied up is fun. I like to keep it spontaneous. Sometimes whips and chains can be overly planned – you gotta stop, get the whip from the drawer downstairs. I’d rather have him use his hands.”
WHO'D DATE THEM IF THEY DIDN'T HAVE TOO???
You can tell these women are full of shit, because they list their
qualifications as not having any diseases, having a job, and a place to
stay. The fact that they complain about not being able to find men on
their level just goes to show the kind of men who would be interested in
dating them.
DYLAN ROOF'S INSPIRATION
Dylann Roof refers to Harold Covington’s white separatist group, the Northwest Front, in his alleged manifesto. The rightwing sci-fi writer distances himself from the shooting, but his followers speculate if his work influenced Roof’s actions
One of the shadowy figures who appears to have influenced alleged Charleston killer Dylann Roof is Harold Covington, the founder of a white separatist movement and, within supremacist circles, an influential sci-fi author. Covington, the latest in a long line of rightwing sci-fi writers, has been linked to racist crimes in the past and this week called the massacre “a preview of coming attractions”.
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The Roof killings are not the first time Covington’s name has come up in connection with an allegedly racist murder. Covington was part of a group of white supremacists in the 1970s who massacred black people at a rally in Greensboro (Covington didn’t kill anyone and wasn’t in attendance on the day of the violence). He was also at one time close with Frazier Glenn Miller , who is charged with killing a one woman, a 69-year-old Jewish man and that man’s 14-year-old grandson in front of their temple last year.
Covington said he’d never heard of Roof before the massacre.
Much of Covington’s influence on his followers comes from his novels.
The Northwest novels “are not meant to be mere entertainment”, according to Covington’s website Northwest.org. “They are meant to be self-fulfilling prophecies. The author wishes to inspire the creation of a real Northwest American Republic, and his novels are filled with a great deal of sound practical advice about how to do it.”
Covington’s prophecy
In an email exchange with the Guardian, Covington said he was urging followers not to talk about Roof until “all the facts were out”.What did he mean by that? “I mean that a lot of times these things are not as advertised and people like you have a tendency to try to use us as props and aids to support the Official Version. Oklahoma City being a prime example; there is a compelling case to be made that was a government sting operation gone very wrong, but I long ago gave up any hope of ever getting anybody to listen; anything we say is simply shouted down or kicked aside, we are treated as cranks at best, and facts are never allowed to interfere with the Received Wisdom from on high.
“For another example, I am well aware of the ideological orientation of the Guardian (I lived in the British Isles for a number of years [Covington spent time among skinheads in the UK – “a lot of them were great guys,” he said on a recent podcast]) and I understand that I have not a snowball’s chance in hell of getting our viewpoint represented honestly and fairly there.”
A few hours later, a new installment of his radio show went up on the Radio Free Northwest website, in which he did not advocate for violence, but did fantasize for a little while, saying that liberals were afraid of Charleston because it was “a preview of coming attractions”.
FROM:
White supremacist who inspired Dylann Roof calls Charleston ‘a preview of coming attractions’
28 Jun 2015 at 08:51 ET
READ FULL ARTICLE HERE
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE SMOKING 9 YEAR OLD?
The acclaimed and prolific American photographer Mary Ellen Mark, who died May 25 at the age of 75, was known for her humanist portraits: homeless children in Seattle, prostitutes in India, a family
living out of their car. In 1990, she took one of her most memorable
shots, titled, "Amanda and her cousin Amy." The location is listed as
Valdese, N.C.
In light of Mark's passing, NPR sought to find out more about the two children in the photograph, particularly Amanda: Why was she smoking and wearing makeup and fake nails at age 9? What does she remember of the photo shoot? And what has happened since that sunny afternoon in 1990?
She now goes by Amanda Marie Ellison — her surname was Minton at the time of the photo. She is 34 years old, lives in Lenoir, N.C., and indeed still remembers the photo.
"Never forgotten it. Never in my life have I forgotten it," she says.
Ellison openly concedes she was a "wild" child, but she says she was just emulating the adults in her life, all of whom by her memory were drug-addicted, residing in a low-income housing complex nicknamed "Sin City." It was around that time that she began to smoke.
"If I couldn't get [cigarettes], if somebody wouldn't give them to me, yes, I'd steal a pack of cigarettes and be gone," she says. "I'd sit in the woods and smoke 'til they were gone."
By her own admission, Ellison's adulthood is still tumultuous. She has served time in prison and says she is still "surrounded by crazy people and drugs." But she says her life has improved, and she wishes she could talk again with "that photographer lady."
"If I had to guess," Ellison says, "I would say she would be, I don't know, overwhelmed with joy that I have made it this far."
FULL NPR ARTICLE HERE
In light of Mark's passing, NPR sought to find out more about the two children in the photograph, particularly Amanda: Why was she smoking and wearing makeup and fake nails at age 9? What does she remember of the photo shoot? And what has happened since that sunny afternoon in 1990?
She now goes by Amanda Marie Ellison — her surname was Minton at the time of the photo. She is 34 years old, lives in Lenoir, N.C., and indeed still remembers the photo.
"Never forgotten it. Never in my life have I forgotten it," she says.
Ellison openly concedes she was a "wild" child, but she says she was just emulating the adults in her life, all of whom by her memory were drug-addicted, residing in a low-income housing complex nicknamed "Sin City." It was around that time that she began to smoke.
"If I couldn't get [cigarettes], if somebody wouldn't give them to me, yes, I'd steal a pack of cigarettes and be gone," she says. "I'd sit in the woods and smoke 'til they were gone."
By her own admission, Ellison's adulthood is still tumultuous. She has served time in prison and says she is still "surrounded by crazy people and drugs." But she says her life has improved, and she wishes she could talk again with "that photographer lady."
"If I had to guess," Ellison says, "I would say she would be, I don't know, overwhelmed with joy that I have made it this far."
FULL NPR ARTICLE HERE
FROM ONE OF THE SEAL WIVES ATTENDING THE CHRIS KYLE FUNERAL
CHRIS KYLE(April 8, 1974 − February 2, 2013)
This is apparently from a wife of one of the Navy Seals in attendance... it makes interesting, disturbing, but hardly surprising reading.
Chris Kyle became the armed services number #1 sniper of all time. Not something he was happy about, other than the fact that in so doing, he saved a lot of American lives.
Three years ago, his wife Taya asked him to leave the SEAL teams because he had a huge bounty on his head by Al Qaeda. He did and wrote the book "The American Sniper." 100% of the proceeds from the book went to two of the SEAL families who had lost their sons in Iraq.
That was the kind of guy Chris was. He formed a company in Dallas to train military, police and I think firemen, how to protect themselves in difficult situations. He also formed a foundation to work with military people suffering from PTSD. Chris was a giver not a taker. He, along with a friend and neighbor, Chad Littlefield, were murdered trying to help a young man that had served six months in Iraq and claimed to have PTSD.
Now I need to tell you about all of the blessings.
Southwest Airlines flew in any SEAL and their family from any airport to the funeral... free of charge. The employees donated buddy passes and one lady worked for four days without much of a break to see that it happened. Volunteers were at both airports in Dallas to drive them to the hotel.
The Marriott Hotel reduced their rates to $45 a night and cleared the hotel for only SEAL's and family.
The Midlothian, TX Police Department paid the $45 a night for each room. I would guess there were about 200 people staying at the hotel, 100 of them were SEALs.
Two large buses were chartered (an unknown donor paid the bill) to transport people to the different events and they also had a few rental cars (donated).
The police and secret service were on duty 24 hours during the stay at our hotel.
At the Kyle house, the Texas DPS parked a large motor home in front to block the view from reporters. It remained there the entire five days for the SEALs to meet in and so they could use the restroom there instead of the bathroom in the house.
Taya, their two small children and both sets of parents were staying in the home. Only a hand full of SEALs went into the home as they had different duties and meetings were held sometimes on a hourly basis.
It was a huge coordination of many different events and security. Derek was assigned to be a Pall Bearer, to escort Chris' body when it was transferred from the Midlothian Funeral Home to the Arlington Funeral Home, and to be with Taya. A tough job. Taya seldom came out of her bedroom. The house was full with people from the church and other family members that would come each day to help. I spent one morning in a bedroom with Chris' mom and the next morning with Chad Littlefield's parents (the other man murdered with Chris). A tough job.
George W Bush and his wife Laura , met and talked to everyone on the Seal Team one on one. They went behind closed doors with Taya for quite a while. They had prayer with us all. You can tell when people were sincere and caring
Nolan Ryan sent his cooking team, a huge grill and lots of steaks, chicken and hamburgers. They set up in the front yard and fed people all day long including the 200 SEALs and their families.
The next day a local BBQ restaurant set up a buffet in front of the house and fed all once again. Food was plentiful and all were taken care of. The family's church kept those inside the house well fed.
Jerry Jones, the man everyone loves to hate, was a rock star. He made sure that we all were taken care of. His wife and he were just making sure everyone was taken care of....Class... He donated the use of Cowboy Stadium for the services because so many wanted to attend. The charter buses transported us to the stadium on Monday at 10:30 am. Every car, bus, motorcycle was searched with bomb dogs and police. I am not sure if kooks were making threats trying to make a name for themselves or if so many SEALs in one place was a security risk, I don't know. We willingly obliged. No purses went into the stadium!
We were taken to The Legends room high up and a large buffet was available. That was for about 300 people. We were growing. A Medal of Honor recipient was there, lots of secret service and police and Sarah Palin and her husband. She looked nice, this was a very formal military service. The service started at 1:00 pm and when we were escorted onto the field I was shocked. We heard that about 10,000 people had come to attend also. They were seated in the stadium seats behind us. It was a beautiful and emotional service. The Bagpipe and drum corps were wonderful and the Texas A&M men's choir stood through the entire service and sang right at the end. We were all in tears.
The next day was the 200-mile procession from Midlothian, TX to Austin for burial. It was a cold, drizzly, windy day, but the people were out.
We had dozens of police motorcycles riders, freedom riders, five chartered buses and lots of cars . You had to have a pass to be in the procession and still it was huge.
Two helicopters circled the procession with snipers sitting out the side door for protection.
It was the longest funeral procession ever in the state of Texas . People were everywhere. The entire route was shut down ahead of us, the people were lined up on the side of the road the entire way.
Firemen were down on one knee, police officers were holding their hats over their hearts, children waving flags, veterans saluting as we went by.
Every bridge had fire trucks with large flags displayed from their tall ladders, people all along the entire 200 miles were standing in the cold weather. It was so heartwarming. Taya rode in the hearse with Chris' body so Derek rode the route with us. I was so grateful to have that time with him.
The service was at Texas National Cemetery. Very few are buried there and you have to apply to get in . It is like people from the Civil War, Medal of Honor winners, a few from the Alamo and all the historical people of Texas.
It was a nice service and the Freedom Riders surrounded the outside of the entire cemetery to keep the crazy church people from Kansas that protest at military funerals away from us.
Each SEAL put his Trident (metal SEAL badge) on the top of Chris' casket, one at a time. A lot hit it in with one blow. Derek was the only one to take four taps to put his in and it was almost like he was caressing it as he did it.
Another tearful moment.
After the service Governor Rick Perry and his wife, Anita , invited us to the governor's mansion. She stood at the door, greeted each of us individually, and gave each of the SEALs a coin of Texas. She was a sincere, compassionate, and gracious hostess. We were able to tour the ground floor and then went into the garden for beverages and BBQ. So many of the Seal team guys said that after they get out they are moving to Texas. They remarked that they had never felt so much love and hospitality. The charter buses then took the guys to the airport to catch their returning flights. Derek just now called and after a 20 hours flight he is back in his spot, in a dangerous land on the other side of the world, protecting America.
We just wanted to share with you, the events of a quite emotional, but blessed week."
To this day, no one in the White House has ever acknowledged Chris Kyle; his service, his death, his duty, his generosity, his caring, his life.
However, the President can call a sports person and congratulate him on his bravery for announcing to the world that he is gay.
He can say on national television that someone, a man who has committed a crime and was shot by police in the line of duty, would have made him a good son.
The SEALS have asked that you please, keep this moving if you think Chris Kyle would have made a good son.
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