Author: Blue Bronc

The ship has weather’d every rack,
the prize we sought is won,
The port is near, the bells I hear,
the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel,
the vessel grim and daring;
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up–for you the flag is flung–for you the bugle trills,
For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths–for you the shores a-crowding,
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Here Captain! dear father!
The arm beneath your head!
It is some dream that on the deck,
You’ve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,
The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;
Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

Walt Whitman, “Leaves of Grass”, Philadelphia: David McKay, 1891-92

By Blue Bronc, a Trail Mix Contributor

The sheer arrogance.  The absolute lack of empathy.  The stupid response.  The sadness of America for having voted for a person who would be better in an assisted living home than loose on the streets.

Who?  Trump.  I just listened to his idiotic and completely moronic response to the mother and father, Ghazala Khan and Khizr Khanf, who spoke at Hillary’s nomination talking about the son they lost in the Bush war.  Their son was killed, the father took the idiot (even worse than the Village Idiot) to task and stated the head of the Republicans had “not sacrificed”.

The one with his buddy on his head, a dead orange rat, stated that he “sacrificed”.  He f*$&ing “sacrificed” by hiring a thousand workers.  Jesus Alou (hay-sus ah-lou).  The guy has no idea of the world.  Or of what “sacrifice” means.  He “hired” (which I decline to believe) a thousand people and for that he “sacrificed”.  He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.

At what point do the blue collar supporters realize that hiring a thousand workers to build a tower (which will be bankrupt as soon as it is built) counts as much as going into a combat zone and being killed.  Or at least that is what the idiot (I’m sorry, he could be suffering mental disease and should not be called an idiot) is telling the media.  He sacrificed by hiring workers is his sworn statement.

His sacrifice by hiring laborers is the same as a mother’s loss of her son fighting for the United States?  At what point will his supporters see he is a carny barker?  When will his dismissal of their children’s sacrifices in the military mean something to them?  It had better be pretty soon.

“I, _____, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help me God.”

It might have the statement “obey the orders of the President. . .”  That means legal orders. Not torturing.  Illegal orders from any officer, non-com or other military or civilian authority are not obeyed.

Notice it says “. . .defend. . .”  Yup that means defend as in to the death.  Just like the son did.

That the fool says he “sacrificed” is to make me barf.  And, I hope any and all veteran do the same.

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By Blue Bronc, a Trail Mix Contributor

The one thing a transgender soldier, airman, sailor or Marine did not want to happen is to be discovered as transgender.  Before June 30, 2016, if you were found out you faced being tossed out of the military.  That was bad, you did not want to leave except at the end of your enlistment.  If you had a nasty commander you might end up with an “Other Than Honorable” discharge, that made being discharged even worse.

You spent your entire military service in a deep lie.  Afraid of being found out.  If you lived off base you had a closet to hide in when off duty.  But, you probably would not invite anyone over.  If you lived in a barracks you were stuck unless you had a separate room.  But, you were always afraid of inspections which might find panties in your locker.  You were always looking over your shoulder if you went to clubs or on a date.

Today, July 1, 2016, life has changed for those in the military who are transgender.  Think back over the sequence of changes which have hit the Pentagon during the last years.  Gays and Lesbians, okay to serve.  Women allowed in combat MOS.  Transgender service men and women allowed to serve openly.  Read the last two sentences again.

Taught to kill in basic training and then kill in other ways in more training.  That is every soldier’s life.  It does not matter if you wear a skirt or coat and tie off duty you learn how to pull the trigger on duty.  In America that has been going on since the beginning of the Revolutionary War. Many transgender people have served honorably and many of died fighting for our country.

A question is asked about why enlist in an organization which you know does not want you?  For some, they have a deep sense of patriotism, a sense of duty.  Many see military service as a way to see the world.  More than a handful see it as a way of proving to themselves, and others, that they are man enough or strong enough or tough enough, and not feminine (denial of being transgender).  And, during wartime, combat is a way to commit suicide covered in glory and a flag.

Today I am so happy for so many transgender people in uniform.  They no longer need to hide who they are.

Yes there will be push back by some.  But, it is the military and the orders are issued to treat trans soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines the same as every other soldier, sailor, airman and Marine.  You do not disobey legal orders in the military.

For so long this day was a dream.  A dream that I expected would never come true.  Now, this day is so happy.  A deep relief has come over me as it has many others.  I know of others who cannot know of this day, they are dead.  The cause does not matter anymore.

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— Mark Twain

By Blue Bronc, a Trail Mix Contributor

Brisket?  What do you mean a smoked brisket is going to bring down the world? Jesus Alou!!!  (haysus ahlu)

I am very sorry.  At first I could not conceive of a single idea as to why a brisket would cause the Dow to drop faster than the diaper on a three year old at a wedding.   Or why a nice brisket could cause panic in the usual panic prone.

No.  I was very confused when the Loon Carny Trump took credit for a crashed brisket.  I cannot imagine he knows how to drive.

It was only after I enjoyed a martini, perfect drink when pondering a carny taking credit for anything.  Usually they run for the next county.  It was actually the second round that I started to put it all together.  Trump had lost his diaper and his small hands were playing with a brisket.

Okay, so now I watch a little television, actually a forty inch (101.6 cm for our EU folk)  television – not really very little, and find out that not only has a brisket been abused, a brexit has been too.  Not that I know anything about a brexit.  Rather scary word there.  Possibly one that has very significant meaning to those with access to good apple or pear wood for smoking the brexit.

Although, my ancestors fought, and eventually fought very well, against the Brits, I do not remember anything in the family tree which was associated with a British Brisket.  Then I started to consider that a Brexit and a Brisket might not be in the same meat group.  Maybe a Brexit was closer to a Gaegogi (dog meat).

That is when I realized I was closer to the truth.  Carny Trump did not know what a Brisket was a week ago, and all of a sudden he was taking credit for killing the European Union, the United Kingdom and England.  That takes a lot of Gaegogi.  And, probably a lot of other things us poor people cannot afford.

What is going on?  I finally asked myself, after making sure I had no left over brisket which could be involved in some sort of weird relationship with the orange one.

It took some time to understand that the Brits had done their own Revolution, like ours, but without the winning side sitting in the worst winter in a very long time.

Now that the British Union Jack is flying high, except that Scotland is about to vote to dump the English and the Union Jack becomes jacked off.  So, if you bought a Union Jack and you still have the receipt you might consider returning it for the simple Saint George’s version.

Looking in the refrigerator left me with the knowledge I have chops tonight, lamb chops (not mutton).  Therefore, I am not involved in the great brisket caper.

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“I thought at the time I should never get the peculiar disgusting smell of the vapour of warm human blood heated by the sun out of my nostrils. I would rather have smelt gas a hundred times. I can never describe that faint sickening, horrible smell which several times nearly knocked me up altogether.” — British Captain Leeham, talking about the first day of the Battle of the Somme, in ‘Tommy Goes to War’

By Blue Bronc, a Trail Mix Contributor

What does it mean to be Lesbian or Gay or Bisexual or Transgender, or any other person than white male in the missionary position today?

What is your feeling of safety? Of security in this world?

2007, I was discussing my first campaign with the chief of police.  There was great concern that my running would be accompanied by protests and violence.  We were over concerned, nothing did happen.  While discussing FBI statistics regarding issues the talk came to me.  “What are the odds I would be killed?”  A very real question.  At the time we in the LGBT community knew the number at 25% greater that a transwoman would be murdered over a male walking down the street.  The chief, a friend now, thought a little and admitted that odds of me being killed were off the chart.

How often are any gay or transwomen assaulted and killed?  Many police fail to even report assaults and deaths may be suicide or OD.  The numbers are unknown, but are better than ever, at least a few more honest reports are filed. How many sex workers just disappear?

The other day a coworker asked me what my greatest fear is as a transwoman.  Easily it is walking down the street alone.  It struck her hard.  Very hard.  The reality is any woman walking alone anywhere is a target.  Being a transwoman I know the current odds of being attacked and killed walking down the street.  According to the FBI it is 100% greater than a male walking down the street.

I cry for those killed and wounded this morning.  The sadness will not go away.  The constant concern that some idiot, pumped up with the hate from Republicans, from far right wing idiots, from the “christians” (they are not Christian in any manner) and from other religions, will declare they are freeing the world of the  gays and will kill us does not go away.  Will this concern end?  I do not believe it ever will.

How do we administer revenge?  We are but a small percentage of the peoples of this community, this country, this world.  We are not in a position to stop the attacks alone.  Our lives depend on allies.  Many allies from so many different communities.  Allies from all religions too.

Do I feel scared?  No.  I and many others will not be scared.  We will not be frightened back into the closet.

Well not much happened during the campaigns.  I did get a few death threats, but not serious.  Those were sent to my post office box.  It was the one under the windshield wiper blade that got my attention.

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— Ojibwe, Native American Song

By Blue Bronc, a Trail Mix Contributor (also, see PatD below)

This is a fine time for a holiday.  It is also a holiday which occasionally, most of the time really, has lost its meaning.  This is when we honor those military and other uniformed services members who have lost their lives protecting these United States.  One of those, a Navy seaman, was my great-uncle.

His ship was not a fighting ship and not a large ship either.  She was a converted civilian cargo ship, her keel laid in 1913, and after civilian service she was commissioned to the U.S. Navy July 26, 1918.  In service for not eight weeks she was sunk by a German submarine torpedo September 16, 1918. * My great-uncle’s body was never recovered.

From the Revolutionary War on, many of my ancestors answered the call for volunteers to fight for the United States.  Dying is not on the list of reasons to enlist by most.  Yet is one of the reasons to not join used by so many.  They may not say it out loud very often.  Listen to the many excuses-reasons for not enlisting.

My grandfather loved his brother very much.  So much so he enlisted as soon as he turned eighteen.  But, by that time WWI had ended and his hate of Germans had to be quenched.  He loved the Navy too.  But he, like all others of my family, were not career military, we were enlistees who served and then returned to civilian life.

Many of my friends and co-workers are veterans.  They have their stories of family and friends in the military.  They too look at this weekend as a holiday.  We each have ways of remembering and honoring our dead.

*His name is the second name of the enlisted dead.

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Submitted by PatD, a Trail Mix Contributor

Presidential Proclamation

In honor of all of our fallen service members, the Congress, by a joint resolution approved May 11, 1950, as amended (36 U.S.C. 116), has requested the President issue a proclamation calling on the people of the United States to observe each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating a period on that day when the people of the United States might unite in prayer. The Congress, by Public Law 106-579, has also designated 3:00 p.m. local time on that day as a time for all Americans to observe, in their own way, the National Moment of Remembrance.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, do hereby proclaim Memorial Day, May 30, 2016, as a day of prayer for permanent peace, and I designate the hour beginning in each locality at 11:00 a.m. of that day as a time during which people may unite in prayer.

I also ask all Americans to observe the National Moment of Remembrance beginning at 3:00 p.m. local time on Memorial Day. I request the Governors of the United States and its Territories, and the appropriate officials of all units of government, to direct that the flag be flown at half-staff until noon on this Memorial Day on all buildings, grounds, and naval vessels throughout the United States and in all areas under its jurisdiction and control. I also request the people of the United States to display the flag at half-staff from their homes for the customary forenoon period.

Army Rangers Release Memorial Day Song From Afghanistan
https://youtu.be/HZvUAD0wGOc

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