The Immigration Road.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part I

INTRODUCTION

I stood along a dirt road in New Mexico watching an archeologist poke a stick into a very small depression on the side of a the hill.  The depression’s only unique feature was its color.  Unlike the tan color of the desert, it was very black.  The archeologist stood up and said, “You may not believe this, but a family of about 12 people lived here.  I would estimate somewhere between 6 to 9 thousand years ago.” My job as a training instructor included doing site surveys of areas we planned to use for training.  This included looking for archeological sites.  I was often amazed at how the archeologists could tell by the slightest changes in the ground that people had lived in an area.

 Recently, in terms of political time, immigration, especially illegal immigration has become a hot button topic.  It is important that before we make any changes in our present immigration system, that we understand the history of immigration in the United States and the purpose of immigration laws.

To approach this issue I have divided immigration into 6 distinct periods.  These periods are: The Land Bridge Period, The Pre-Columbian Period, The Colonial Period, The Early Republic, Post Civil War Period, and The Current Period.  These periods are distinguished by the immigration pattern, immigration purpose, immigration benefits, and immigration legislation.  I will use an apolitical approach in an attempt to not become embroiled in individual political passion.

In the course of this series I will present the demonstrated facts about immigration.  This perspective will always be from the impact it has on American[1] society and economy.  Keep in mind that the mindset of these distinct periods is not in keeping with many present day norms.  It is critical that any discussion does not compare morality of 10,000 BC, with 2013 AD.   It is also critical that no comparison be attempted between immigration in Asia, Europe, or Africa to the immigration in America. 

This series is not presented to argue a point, or particular solution to immigration in America.  Instead, it is intended to spur discussion based on the information provided.  It is important that you do not read into, or attempt to jump ahead of the articles as they are presented.  Discussion of the individual articles is important, but discussions about current situations should be left until that article has been presented.  What follows one article may not be what you expect, and sifting through the noise ahead of an article is annoying. Feel free to comment, or correct anything you think is wrong.  I do not propose to know it all, and as with any article, no matter how hard I try, some of my own prejudice will find its way into the discussion.

As the articles progress I will update each with links to the other articles in the series.  I really do not like series blogs, but this is such a complex subject it is impossible to boil it down to a single 750 word blog post.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part II

The Land Bridge Period

                                                      

Approximately thirty thousand years ago a land bridge stretched between present day Siberia, and Alaska. The most popular theory is that people who would become known as American Indians crossed this land bridge.  This began the Land Bridge Period of immigration to the Americas[2].

For eighteen thousand years people this land bridge allowed for both animals, and later man, to spread across the Americas. These people created hundreds of cultures, and sub-cultures, each with their own ethnic identity, religion, and methods of survival.  Given the sheer size of the Americas there was plenty of room for these cultures to develop with very little interference from the outside, or one another.

The environment controlled the migration of animals and people.  As the planet began to warm during the last Ice Age[3], animals in particular began to migrate to warmer and more fertile land.  Since man at this point was very dependent on wild game, they followed these animal migrations across the Land Bridge.  This immigration to the Americas was based solely on the food source.

The pattern of immigration during the Land Bridge Period at first would have been family groups of about 40 people. Given the vast lands of the Americas, these groups would have found themselves free to spread over both Americas. During this period these groups consisted of nomadic hunter gatherers.  They would continue to follow the food sources further into the Americas.

The important point to remember is the reason these people migrated.  It was for survival and the journey to improve their lives by maintaining a constant and secure source of food, water, and shelter.  Although it is possible that some of the groups migrated to escape enemies, this was not the primary reason.

Approximately twelve thousand years ago the land bridge between Siberia and Alaska was once again swallowed by the sea. By the time the land bridge closed there were hundreds of thousands of people spread across the Americas. And though you would think this was the largest migration of people the Americas would experience, you would be wrong.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part III

The Pre-Columbian Period

The Pre-Columbian Period of Immigration was one of internal immigration within the United States. It was during this period that some tribes combined with others, and other tribes split completely and migrated to entirely new areas.  There are also some great mysteries.

Social development flourished in the southern portion of America.  One group of interest were the mound builders, and the most interesting of these was the Mississippian Culture.

We often imagine that the American Indian as settling is villages that were small, and that they lived in tents or grass huts.  This was true in America when the Spanish arrived in 1539.  However, the Mississippian culture existed in the mid-west, south-east, and as far west as present day Arkansas.  Often called the “Mound Builders” because of the large earthen mounds they built, the culture goes beyond just making hills.

The Mississippian people built wooden temples, or houses atop the mounds to form large cities.  They had moved from hunter/gatherers to an agrarian society[4].  They developed a chiefdom system of government and power was held by a few, or one.  They also constructed palisades.  The question of the palisades, especially in the later part of the culture is interesting.

You build walls for two reasons.  The first being defense, the second being to contain something, or someone.  There is no doubt that this culture was involved in the conquest and enslaving lesser peoples.  Immigration control is a means to control population.  This need to control the population of your nation by controlling immigration is not new, but the fact is had been practiced within the Native American culture in general is highlighted by the Mississippians.  A mystery surrounds this culture…it disappeared with little evidence as to why long before the arrival of the Europeans.

Another example of this is the Iroquoian Nations.  The Mohawk, Seneca, Oneida, Onondaga and Cayuga tribes shared the same language and culture.  They were co-located and formed league in the late 15^th or early 16^th century.  Known as the 5 Nations they were a powerful force in the New York area. These tribes demonstrate how 5 Nations coalesced into a single force.  However, there is the anomaly of the 6^th Nation.

At some point the Tuscarora Nation migrated south leaving the area controlled by the 5 Nations.  This migration was probably forced by the increased competition of the coordinated actions of the 5 nations.  Once settled in the eastern areas of North Carolina they became the largest and most powerful force in the area.  It would remain there until just before the American Revolution. 

This pattern of tribes with like language and culture combining, or breaking apart is repeated throughout the United States as power struggles led to forced migration. 

Each tribe had rules concerning the introduction of foreign people into the tribe.  In many cases foreign people were introduced as captives, or slaves.  In a few cases someone from another culturally connected tribe may be allowed to join a group, but they would have been required to demonstrate their value to the tribe.

It would have been inevitable that the American Indian would have once again built huge complex cities, had it not been for Christopher Columbus.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part IV

The Colonial Period

The rediscovery of the Americas brought change throughout the entire New World.  The new immigrants did not initially arrive as family units, but as military units with the desire to explore, exploit and convert.  When you think of the early Colonial Period, the Spanish are the leading immigrants. Immigration is seldom though of in terms of the early Spanish expeditions, but whether the sailors and soldiers of these expeditions realized it, it is what they did.

Spanish immigration began with explorers who discovered new areas that could be exploited for their material resources.  They did this with government funding, and the moral support of the Catholic Church.  The Church saw souls as a resource.  The Spanish practiced the harsh methods of immigration, not only one the American Indians, but also on their own soldiers and sailors.  These sailors and soldiers did not realize that in many cases the plan did not include them being returned to Spain. Spain also introduced the first African slaves into America.

The British Empire began an immigration that would have the greatest impact on America.  The British pattern of immigration differed from that of the Spanish.  The British commercialized the idea of immigration.  The British Government backed commercial permanent immigration to America.  They also allowed totally independent commercial immigration.  This would provide Britain with new sources of materials and income, as well as expanding the empire.

Immigration during this time consisted of like minded people to develop societies free of Government interference.  These people immigrated to escape political intimidation based on religious belief.  This change in the reason of immigration was a new pattern of immigration to the new world.

Unlike the Spanish, the goal of converting the natives was not a priority.  That is not to say that the British immigrants did not try, or want to convert the natives, it was not one of the goals of immigration. The conversion methods when used were not nearly as harsh as those used by Spain were. 

The Colonial Period consisted of the introduction of new ideas in government, religion, and culture.  People from throughout Europe and their African slaves replaced, assimilated, or forced Native Americans to migrate west. This shift in demographics took place in less than 100 years and propelled America toward a new destiny.

This new idea of many religious points of view existing in relatively close proximity, combined with varied cultures were doing something in America that they were unable to do in Europe. Of course the wars in Europe created many conflicts in America…these were conflicts that extended to America…not created in America. There were certainly conflicts that existed between the Native Americans and the new immigrants, but those are to be expected.

Displacement of the Native Americans was a major issue among the Native Americans.  Some, like the Cherokee tribe, assimilated to the new culture.  The Cherokee even began to participate in the culture as land holders, and slave owners.  Others, such as the Tuscarora, fought hard against the new immigrants, and in the end were forced to return to the rest of the Iroquoian Nation.

Throughout the Colonial Period there were no controls on immigration imposed by the colonizing nations.  If you could afford the passage, which few could, then you could immigrate to America.  One method that many people chose was to become indentured servants.  An indentured servant would enter into a contractual agreement to serve as labor for someone for a particular period.  After this period was complete they were free to go where they pleased.  This becomes an important issue in later periods.

The Colonial Period ended abruptly with the onset of the American Revolution.  A new nation was born from the colonies and immigration took on a new meaning.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part V

The Early Republic

The Treaty of Paris signed September 3, 1783 ended the American Revolution.  The former British Colonies were now faced with the problem of creating a Government. On March 4, 1789 the United States Government began work, the Federal Government had been born.  Suddenly, nearly 4 million people[5] came under the control of a new government. 

Since the new republic required participation of its citizens there needed to be a definition of what a U.S. Citizen was.  The 1790 Naturalization Act set out to define who was a citizen, and how an immigrant became a citizen. The 1790 Act consisted of 4 sections.

Under the 1790 Act to be considered for naturalization a person must first be a free white person, of good moral character.  The Act prevented Native Americans, Blacks, Slaves, Indentured Servants, and Asians from becoming citizens. Your moral character was determined by a common law court.

In addition to being a free white person of good moral character you had to have resided in the United States for 2 years, and at least 1 year in the State that you file the application.   The 2 year provision was intended to show that the new immigrants had established themselves and not been involved in any criminal activity that would indicate a bad moral character.  The 1 year in the state in which the application was made also allowed the courts access to any criminal activity.

Finally, the 1790 Act allowed for the children (under 21) of naturalized citizens to be considered citizens as well.  In this part of the act a citizen was the father. Lineage had to follow the father.

The 1795 Naturalization Act increased the time of residence from 2 to 5 years.  It also required that a citizen renounce all previous allegiances and hereditary titles 3 years before being granted citizenship.

In 1802 Act directed the clerk of courts were instructed to record the entry of all aliens to the United States.  The alien’s name, birthplace, age, nation of allegiance, country of emigration, and place of intended settlement was recorded.  The clerk of court would issue a certificate that established the time of the aliens entry into the United States.

By the time of the Civil War the population topped 16 million.  In addition to natural growth[6], there were mass immigration events.  These include the immigration of Irish due to the famine of the 1840’s, and the Chinese.

The Chinese were culturally, linguistically, and religiously extreme in terms of the dominant language, religions and cultures of America.  They immigrated due to famine and a failed economy in China. They immigrated as large family groups drawn by the promise of wealth gold rush in California.  They established self-contained communities within established American communities.  These “China Town’s” can be found in many of the western states, some of which actually existed below the streets of many cities. This Chinese sub-culture was seen as anything but one of “good moral character.”  This sub-culture consisted of opium dens and prostitution. However, it also highlighted the American ideal of hard work and persistence. The Chinese understood business and provided services to the growing mining communities of the American West.

The 1802 Act remained unchanged until after the American Civil War. 

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part VI

The Post Civil War Period

After the Civil War the United States suddenly had approximately 200,000 new residents in the form of freed slaves. During the war in 1862 anyone who had been honorably discharged from the Army had the 5 year residency requirement waived.  In 1894 this was extended to members of the Marines and Navy.

Even with the addition of former slaves to the mix, the majority of immigration continued to be from Britain, with Ireland leading the way.  Due to the continued hostile environment set up in Ireland, along with famine Irish Catholics were streaming into the United States.  The common port of entry for most of these immigrants was New York.

This created an issue for New York.  Prior to 1891, the states were required to log, and issue certificates of citizenship.  With so many immigrants arriving in New York, the State was absorbing all of the costs associated with recording the entry to the country, and the courts were clogged with petitions for citizenship.  The 1891 Immigration and Naturalization Act created the Immigration Bureau. This now shifted the responsibility of logging and tracking the petitions for citizenship to the Federal Government. 

By 1900, immigrants began to include people from Italy, and Eastern European Nations. This new surge in immigration was still creating backlogs in civil courts throughout the nation.  In 1906 the Immigration Bureau changed into the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization.  This new Federal bureau was placed in charge of all matters pertaining to immigration.

The 1906 law also changed the process for becoming a citizen.  The process began with the immigrant filing declaration of intent. After filing this declaration within a period of 2 to 7 years they could then petition for citizenship.  Previously the court decided if the person was of “good moral character.”  The 1906 law now only required that the applicant provide two witnesses with personal knowledge of the individual who would sign an affidavit of that stated the applicant had lived in the United States for 5 years, and was of good moral character. Next the petition would be investigated and by the Bureau of Immigration and Naturalization and they would submit a preliminary report with recommendations to the judge. The last step was a hearing before a judge.  If the judge found in favor of the petition the immigrant would take an oath and renounce all previous allegiances. The law did not change the fact that Native Americans and Asians were denied citizenship.

Several pivotal laws during this period were the Emergency Quota Act of 1921 and the Immigration Act of 1924.

The Emergency Quota Act of 1921 was intended to be a short term cure to the problem of immigration.  Wide spread unemployment after World War I spurred the need to curtail immigration. The Act limited immigration to 3 percent of the people from that same country living in the United States as of the 1910 census.    

The Immigration Act of 1924 further restricted immigration by dropping the quota to 2 percent.  In this act the barriers to race were removed.  For the first time Native Americans and Asians could petition for citizenship.  

The Post-Civil war period saw a great deal of immigration from across the globe, and this combined with economic issues within the country created more stringent guidelines to control immigration.  War, famine, persecution and a chance to make a better life drew people to the nation, and set the tone for immigration well into the Current Period.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part VII

The Dream for a Better Tomorrow

Everyone dreams for a better tomorrow.  Many people say they want a better life for their children than they had.  Though this is true, they need to improve their own lives to make this possible. 

Although the original immigrants were unwittingly trapped in a new world, it was their need to stay fed, clothed, and sheltered from the storms that drove them forward. Like the immigrants that followed them, they came with the clothes on their backs.  They would give birth to great leaders.  Men who recognized what it meant to be a leader, and the great responsibility that came with leadership.  Of course, not all of these were benevolent leaders. Just like in the world they left, some would become despotic and practice the most evil of all arts.  A study of the cultures that developed in the microcosm of Pre-Columbian America is a study of world history.   

The rediscovery of America led to immigration from something to something.  Many of the early immigrants were seeking fame and fortune.  And as with any risky endeavor, many lost their lives both figuratively and literally.  Some of these immigrants were thrown into a world and abandoned. Like anyone they made due with what they had, they learned from the people who had migrated thousands of years earlier, and they brought to these people new ideas.

The problems of the Old World and New World combined with the solutions to those problems gave rise to a new nation, and most importantly a new way in which people and Government interacted.  The rise of individualism, the right to think and live in the way you saw fit became a beacon that attracted the disenfranchised moths of the human race.  Well before the rise of republican democracy, people began to vote for a better life with their feet.

Like the Mississippian, Inca, Mayan, Iroquois, and others in America, the new immigrants posed problems, brought disease, and threatened the balance of the New World.  However, instead of destroying the cultures that existed before, the new ideas of freedom allowed for the melding of new ideas, and the rejection of the old.  These ideas spread beyond the borders of the New World and crossed the globe to replace the old ideas of Emperors, and Monarchs.  Government no longer held to the whims of one, or a few, but became one that was of the people, and by the people.

Like a life boat in a sea of drowning people, the United States of America is seen as the dream of a better tomorrow.  Like a life boat nearing capacity America struggled with how to filter those who immigrate and educate them as to what the idea of freedom means. Something the nation began to struggle with at the turn of the 20^th century, and is still struggling with today. 

The first half of the 20^th century saw two World Wars, and the rise of a new type of war with the beginning of the Cold War.  Although the issue of immigration was certainly addressed during this period, it was never answered. That brings us to the Current Period of Immigration.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part VIII

The Current Period

Author’s note: In an attempt to keep these articles as short as possible, and the complex nature of the Current Period in Immigration this article will briefly describe the legislation during the period.  A more detailed discussion will follow in a future article.

The 1952 Immigration and Naturalization Act

In the early morning hours of 9 March, 1916 five hundred men under the command of Pancho Villa attacked the small town of Columbus, New Mexico.  Screaming, “Villa, Villa, Viva Mexico,” the raiders set about looting and burning the town.  What they had not counted on was the fact that nearly all of the residents were armed. When the detachment of the 13^th Cavalry that was garrisoned in the town recovered from the initial assault the attacking Villa was forced to withdraw.

The early part of the 20^th century was marked by socialists, anarchists, communists, and revolutionaries. The threat posed by immigrants to the homogenous ethnic makeup of the United States spurred the immigration laws of that period. The Immigration Act of 1924 had created quotas, the requirement to have a visa, it defined the term “Immigrant,” and established the naturalization processes that would remain in effect until the second half of the century.

At the end of World War II the world was awash with refugees.  Escaping the horrors of post war Europe, Asia, and Africa these refugees were drawn to the first Super Power, the United States.  The very first shots of the Cold War had begun in a small peninsula in Asia.

In 1952, the Current Period of immigration began with the Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1952.  Until this time the rules of immigration and naturalization had been contained in wide variety of statutes. The 1952 act combined all of these statutes into a single act.

The 1952 act removed the racial barrier to naturalization. No longer was a person required to be a free white of good moral character.  This requirement had been in effect since the Naturalization Act of 1790. It retained the quota system for immigration, but modified it to include preferential ethnic groups and those with special skills.  It also defined three types of immigrants.

The first group consisted of immigrants with special skills, such as engineers, doctors, and scientists were given a fast track to immigration.  This group also included relatives of present citizens; they were exempt from the quota system.

The Second group consisted of the average immigrant.  This group was limited to 270 thousand per year.

The Third group consisted of refugees.  This created the idea of Political Asylum that is used heavily today. 

The Act also allowed for the deportation of immigrants, and naturalized citizens who were engaged in subversive activity.  This was specifically used to target communists and other revolutionaries who were considered dangerous.

To become a naturalized citizen the act states

         

“The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 requires an alien to apply for a petition for naturalization. This form may be obtained from any office of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, a division of the Department of Justice, or from any court authorized to naturalize aliens. Before applying, an alien must be at least 18 years old and must have been lawfully admitted to live permanently in the United States. He must have lived in the United States for five years and for the last six months in the state where he seeks to be naturalized. In some cases, he need only have lived three years in the United States. He must be of good moral character and "attached to the principles of the Constitution". The law states that an alien is not of good moral character if he is a drunkard, has committed adultery, has more than one wife, makes his living by gambling, has lied to the Immigration and Naturalization Service, has been in jail more than 180 days for any reason during his five years in the United States, or is a convicted murderer.”[7]






The Act was not without controversy. President Truman vetoed the act, but Congress overturned his veto. This is an interesting debate to note. It is an example of what is missing in politics today. The Act was sponsored by two Democrats. It was Vetoed by a Democrat, and over ruled by Democrats.[8]

President Truman’s veto statement reads,





“Today, we are "protecting" ourselves as we were in 1924, against being flooded by immigrants from Eastern Europe. This is fantastic...We do not need to be protected against immigrants from these countries–on the contrary we want to stretch out a helping hand, to save those who have managed to flee into Western Europe, to succor those who are brave enough to escape from barbarism, to welcome and restore them against the day when their countries will, as we hope, be free again....These are only a few examples of the absurdity, the cruelty of carrying over into this year of 1952 the isolationist limitations of our 1924 law. In no other realm of our national life are we so hampered and stultified by the dead hand of the past, as we are in this field of immigration.”[9]

In response, Pat McCarran stated,






“I believe that this nation is the last hope of Western civilization and if this oasis of the world shall be overrun, perverted, contaminated or destroyed, then the last flickering light of humanity will be extinguished. I take no issue with those who would praise the contributions which have been made to our society by people of many races, of varied creeds and colors.... However, we have in the United States today hard-core, indigestible blocs which have not become integrated into the American way of life, but which, on the contrary are its deadly enemies. Today, as never before, untold millions are storming our gates for admission and those gates are cracking under the strain. The solution of the problems of Europe and Asia will not come through a transplanting of those problems en masse to the United States.... I do not intend to become prophetic, but if the enemies of this legislation succeed in riddling it to pieces, or in amending it beyond recognition, they will have contributed more to promote this nation's downfall than any other group since we achieved our independence as a nation.”[10]

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965

If you want to point to one act that has had the most significant effect on America this is the one. The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 came amidst a time of turmoil within the United States. The Civil Rights Movement was at its height and the present system of national origin quotas was seen as counter to that movement.

The Act removed the quota system that was established in the 1920’s excluded immigrants from Asia, Africa, and Latin America. The purpose of the acts from the 1920’s was to maintain the status quo of the demographics of American culture. The 1965 Act was not popular with the majority of Americans. The concern was that by allowing unfiltered immigration would greatly impact the American demographic.

The 1965 Act changed immigration by focusing on the skills and family relationships of immigrants. The family relationships did not just include naturalized citizens, but residents. This meant that a person related to someone who was legally in the United States would receive preferential treatment. This opened a flood gate to immigration from Latin America. The supporters of the bill assured the American people that this change would not greatly affect the demographic of the country.

The Cuban Adjustment Act of 1966, created a pathway for legal immigration to virtually anyone from Cuba based on a very loose set of criteria. If you could find your way to the United States you were all but guaranteed a visa.

The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986

Recognizing the problems caused by the Immigration Act of 1965, and the failure of controlling immigration along the borders, this act sought to rectify the problem. The 1986 act made it illegal to hire illegal immigrants, while at the same time legalizing the hiring of certain seasonal illegal workers.

The act also legalized illegal immigrants that had entered the United States Prior to 1982. The immigrants were required to turn themselves in, pay a fine, back taxes, and admit they had entered the country illegally.

The Immigration Act of 1990

This Act increased the number of legal immigrants per year to 700,000. This was an increase over the previously allowed number of 500,000. It created new types of visas and continued the preferential treatment of those who had family in the United States. It also removed many barriers to immigration. Previously those who had serious diseases were barred from entry. In particular, this act removed AIDS as a barrier to immigration.

The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996

The last major act of congress that has had the greatest impact was the 1996 Act.  Given the complexity of this act it will be discussed in detail in the next article in this series.

Summary

The current period of Immigration differs very little from the periods of the past in terms of why people immigrate to the United States.  However, legislation has had a huge impact on how new immigrants are allowed into the United States.  The discussion now changes from the history of immigration to the cause and effect of both immigration and the laws presently in effect, and proposed concerning immigration.

The Immigration Road

By

CaptBlackEagle

Part IX

Conclusion and the Future of Immigration

The future of the United States, as a free nation, is tied to immigration, and integration of immigrants into the ideals of freedom.  This was the goal of every immigration act passed since the founding of the nation.  In the early days of the republic there was no mass immigration from Canada, or Mexico.  In order to immigrate to the United States, you had to take a slow boat.  As they say….change…changed everything.

Social changes in our neighboring countries, chief among these are Latin American nations made the United States a better place to live.  We became what Gloria Steinem called “The enormous frosted cupcake surrounded by millions of starving people.”   Our own social change put sprinkles on the top of that cupcake.

Immigration, both legal and illegal, has created a new class of people that have not integrated into free people.  Instead, they have brought along their own unresolved issues from the countries they are escaping, and in some cases are attempting to create little versions of their own country within the boundaries of America.  This is demonstrated by the Irish and Chinese immigration of the 1800’s.  It is further highlighted by Latin immigration of the 1950’s and 1960s, as well as, the Middle Eastern immigration of the 1980’s and 1990’s. 

Any reform to immigration must deal with present Illegal Immigrants, prevention of future illegal immigration, and immigration of those who are desirable.  As a nation we must be prepared to take consistent and conscious steps to ensure that we create fiscally responsible and economically feasible methods to control immigration.  The methods to make this happen will not be politically acceptable to everyone, but the alternative would be more devastating than doing nothing at all. 

Many oppose anything other than what they want…they have no give and take, and certainly have no proposals that offer alternatives.  They are, for lack of a better term, as useless as, teats on a boar. If you fit in this category, you may want to stop reading right here and crawl back into your bunker.  If you are open to finding real solutions, please keep on reading.

This is the last article in the series The Immigration Road.  It was provided to establish the history of immigration in America.  All of the articles that follow this series will reference this work as a starting point for those articles.  Thanks for taking the time to read this.

CaptBlackEagle.

CaptBlackEagle was born and raised in the United States.  As a United States Security Forces member he has traveled to Europe, Southwest Asia, and Latin America.  After retiring from the military he obtained a B.S. in Computer Science with a minor in History with honors.  He is presently mostly retired.

---

[1] For the purpose of this entire series American refers to the territory containing the United States.  Americas refers to both North and South America.

[2] There are many other theories that exist about how the Native Americans got here, to include that the evolved in America.  These theories, though interesting have very little support to support them.

[3] There is some discussion as to whether we are at the end of the last Ice Age, or in the warming trend that follows an Ice Age.

[4] It is interesting to note how societies progress.  In a hunter/gatherer lifestyle almost every minute of the day is dedicated to survival.  It can be theorized that the environment provided enough food that they had time to create complex technologies that allowed them to cultivate crops.

[5] 1790 census

[6] By Natural growth I mean births.

[7] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_and_Nationality_Act_of_1952 Accessed 10 Jan 2013

[8] I know I said I would remain apolitical, but this is an important point.

[9] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_and_Nationality_Act_of_1952  Accessed 10 Jan 2013

[10] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immigration_and_Nationality_Act_of_1952 Accessed 10 Jan 2013

A Rude Awakening

I arrived in Montana in April of 1980.  It was a bit of a shock both culturally and environmentally for me.   As a born and raised North Carolinian, I had become accustomed to both rural and city life.  I was used to four seasons that came with almost complete certainty.  Montana stood in stark contrast to everything that I knew to be normal.

Anyone that knows me realizes that I am an outdoor person.  If it can be done under the open sky I will do it.  My passion is water, and water means fishing, swimming, exploring. Montana provided everything I needed, and then some.

Memory is shaped by many factors such as smells, temperature, sounds...May 18th, 1980 provided all three of these to shape a memory that never fades.  So, let me set the stage for this flashback to the 80's.

I was lucky enough to have the day off from my military duties, and as with any day off, my friends and I were going to live it up on the Missouri River.  The Missouri River runs through the middle of Great Falls, Montana.  Great Falls gets its name from a series of very large waterfalls that were chronicled by the American explorers Lewis and Clark.  Of course the Great Falls have changed quite a bit since the Corps of Discovery passed through.

The biggest change being the establishment of dams that use the power of the Falls to generate power.  My favorite of these Falls are the Black Eagle Falls (so named because of Lewis seeing what he thought was a Black Eagle in the area), The Rainbow Falls (when running at full speed they create a perpetual rainbow in the mist), and the Horseshoe Falls (well, they are horseshoe shaped).  Starting at Black Eagle Dam, the Missouri river runs through a deep, steep-walled canyon.  Our goal on this day was Rainbow Dam.

Rainbow Dam

We picked Rainbow Dam for several reasons...first it was fairly isolated.  It had a small island that remained above water when the dam was open. Most importantly, the wind was normally calm at the river bottom.  Great Falls has a wind we used to refer to as the Hawk.  It was fast and a cold blooded killer. To reach the dam you had to traverse a very steep and treacherous series of cliffs to reach the river bottom. This meant we would travel light.  Our plan was to fish all day on Sunday, camp on the island (actually a great big rock), then fish most of the day on Monday.

The Rock Island and Cliffs.
The Island is the one to right.

The weather was warm with temps in the 60's and the sky was clear.  Certainly a day where Big Sky is the best description of Montana. None of us had been in Montana long enough to know the danger we were placing ourselves in.  Weather, especially in spring, can go from wonderful to deadly in the space of a few hours.  But we were young and could manage anything.

The trip to the river bottom was uneventful, with the exception of a few slides here and there we managed to make it to the Island in just over an hour. Since the canyon was so dangerous and deep the rule was, if you couldn't take your supplies down in one trip...then you didn't take it. So we were very light...and skipped taking sleeping bags and chose to take only field jackets with liners, a canteen of water each, a bag or two of snacks (we planned on eating fish by dinner time), a couple of us brought handguns, and of course fishing gear.

Sunday was a bust.  Our only discovery was that some Suckers had setup home in the rocks around the small island we were on, but none of us were that desperate to eat those. Near sunset we started a small fire as the temperature began to dip into the 40's. Like all good fishermen and poor gamblers, we expected the next cast to bring a big payoff, we fished through the night.

The Sucker Fish.

As the night progressed, the stars which had been brightly sparkling above, were now covered by a shroud of mist.  We figured it was just fog.  Most of us were good southern boys and fog was part of our life.  Nothing to worry about.  Something that should have clued us in was...that as the fog grew thicker...the warmer it was getting.  In fact, it became downright comfortable. At some point...one by one..we gave in to the sleep monster.

I remember one of the guys waking us all up.  It was now early morning, about 6am or so.  The sun was obscured by that same fog, but the land around us was covered by a thin layer of grayish dust.  In fact, it was clinging to our clothes and skin. We rinsed it off of our eyes and skin with the cold clear water from the river and began to try and make sense of it all.

Of course, since we provided security for nuclear weapons, our first thought was that there had been a nuclear war and we missed it.  But we quickly dismissed this..since we were alive and not dead. Regardless of what had happened, we knew it was something on a massive scale and we needed to get back to the base. So we began the long climb out of the canyon.

Breathing was an issue.  The dust was easily disturbed and when we coughed we had to spit it out in clumps.  It took us nearly two hours to climb out, and left us exhausted.  At the top of the canyon, for as far as we could see, the Earth had gone from multicolored to gray, with the exception of the telephone poles and fences...the Earth was now the Moon.  My buddy's car gave us an opportunity to look at the dust.  It was very fine, almost like talcum powder and dissolved very easily from the moisture on our fingers.  Odd.

As we arrived on the base the guards at the gate all had their chemical gear on. This was an alarming sight, maybe we had missed the big war. The guards told us to go back to our barracks and stay there. So that is where we went.

At the barracks we learned that Mount St. Helens in Washington had erupted.  Of course rumors had it that we would all be dead men because we had breathed in the deadly ash.  Thankfully, this was not true...that I know of. For the next few days we were required to wear a dust mask if we went outside.  Because of the hazard that the ash posed to vehicles, we gained another two days off.  Bonus!

Mount St. Helens goes boom

Ash

Life in the Military was weeks of boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.  I would not have traded that life for anything.

Blood and Guts

Being a part of the Security Force assigned to protect Nuclear Weapons Convoys was an honor.  You didn't get assigned to this team, you competed for it.  Well at least when I was doing this back in the early 1980's.

As I stated in the previous articles in this series, the Convoy Team consisted of Fire Teams.  On the ground our vehicle of choice became the Peace Keeper Armored Car.

Peace Keeper Armored Car.

With run flat tires and a bullet resistant shell and windows, the Peace Keeper was an upgrade from the standard pickups we used to use.  As with any upgrade there were "issues".

One issue was how the armor was attached to the main chassis of the vehicle.  Any rough treatment would end up with the body falling off.  There was a misunderstanding concerning the winch.  Since it had a winch we thought the vehicle could go off road.  It can't, and the winch was not nearly powerful enough to pull the 5 ton vehicle out of anything. 

Since a convoy consists of machines, at some point in time it will break.  When an important vehicle broke down we would set up a National Defense Area.  This is a temporary area that becomes important Federal Property.  Our team practiced setting these areas up and managed to do so in just seconds. 

The Mission

On one mission I was assigned to one of the Fire Teams that followed directly behind the Weapons Van.  The Weapons Van had an issue with its brakes, so we had to stop the convoy and set up a National Defense Area until it could be fixed, or replaced.  My Fire Team immediately raced ahead of the convoy where we would block traffic. 

I jumped out and ran up the road a short distance and began to stop traffic.  The first vehicle I stopped was a tractor trailer with a couple from Canada.  Behind them were several smaller cars.  The couple in the vehicle looked at me in astonishment.  I could understand the look given the fact I was dressed in full battle gear, but they just kept staring at me in amazement.  I was sort of puzzled.

That is when my Fire Team Leader came up and said, "Hey you have blood streaming down your face!"

I touched my hand to my face, and sure enough..blood was streaming down my face from the crown of my nose.  The night prior to the Convoy the nose pads on my glasses had broken, and getting out the the vehicle I remember my helmet hit the top of the door.  I guess that had jammed the sharp point where the nose pads connected into my nose.  It didn't hurt much, but I guess it did add a certain charm to the situation.  I smeared the blood around a bit to make it more dramatic and carried on.

Blood scares the hoola hoop out of people.

Death Before Dishonor

Airborne Fire Team Charlie

In the previous post I talked about one of the missions that put us One Breath Away From Death, this article is the second part of this series.  

I talk about Fire Teams a lot in these articles, so I will tell you what a Fire Team is.  This definition was true as of my retirement in 1995. A Fire Team consists of 4 people.  There is a Leader, Rifleman/Grenadier, Machine Gunner, and Assistant Machine Gunner.  The standard rifle of choice was the M-16 A1 (later on we got the A2 version).  The M-16 allowed for three type of fire settings...Safe (no fire), Semi (1 round per trigger squeeze, and Auto (as long as the trigger is down it would fire).

M16 A1

There is a civilian version of this weapon called the AR-15.  The AR-15 is often confused with an assault weapon.  The M-16 is an assault weapon (since it allows for full auto fire)...the AR-15 is not (it only fires on semi-auto.  I know the Anti-Gun nuts will freak out, but what a weapons looks like does not make it an assault weapon.  

The Rifleman/Grenadier carried a combination M-16 plus one of two types of grenade launchers.  The older type grenade launcher was the XM-148. This weapon was horrible. It was difficult to fire, and was very prone to breaking. 

XM-148

The newer type was the M-203.  It was much easier to fire, and was very reliable. 

M-203

The Machine gun we used was the iconic M-60.  Used since 1957 the M-60 was a nightmare to carry.  The gunner had to carry the gun and 200 rounds of ammo. The assistant gunner carried the spare barrel kit, and additional ammo. The running joke was that the shortest man got the M-60.  I will say it tended to work out that way.

M-60

Aside from the weapons and ammo we also carried the good old Metal WWII style Helmet, with a Vietnam Era Flak Vest, and our load bearing equipment (LBE). 

Helmet

Flak Vest

Load Bearing Equipment.

And of course the most hated piece of gear the Vietnam Era Gas Mask

Gas Mask with cover.

All of the combat gear, and cold weather gear was stored in our Hawk Bag.

Combat Vogue Circa 1980's

When in a mission we wore the Helmet, Flak Vest, LBE, Gas Mask on our side in its carrying bag, Ammo, Canteen, cold weather gear, and of course an empty plastic bottle. Other gear included code sheets (lose these and go to jail). 

To unsuspecting civilians we could look very dangerous...or very uncoordinated...that stuff was hard to move in.

The Mission

The Charlie missions were always an iffy affair.  If the Helicopter worked...If the wind was not too bad...If the temperature was not too low...If the rain/snow was not too heavy...If the clouds were not too low...then we went. If not..we still went...just a different way (which I will not tell you about). 

This particular day the weather was on the edge. The cloud cover was sporadic and ranged from a few hundred feet to about 1 thousand feet.  Since we were required to have a visual of the convoy throughout most of its movement, the clouds would mean we would by flying lower than normal. 

When the warhead reached its final destination we would orbit within visual range of the team on site.  The site we were at was in a canyon that was open on one end and closed on the other.  On the way to the site the clouds lifted to a higher altitude of about 3000 feet above ground level, high enough that we could safely maneuver above the convoy.  At the site the clouds appeared to be at that same level...the difference was the hills that made up the canyon were around 2 to 3 thousand feet above the site itself.  

We began our orbit of the site and went through several evolutions of the pattern when suddenly the front of the cockpit went from white cloud,  to white cloud and trees...very big...very close trees.  The pilot...who was normally a pretty quiet guy...screamed...yanked hard on the stick and we began a very hard turn.  I swear I could see the astonished faces of the squirrels as we barely..and I mean by feet...missed hitting them.

The term "Death Before Dishonor" is a nifty thing to have on the back or your flight helmet...but being killed because you hit a squirrel would make for a lousy epitaph.

 

Energy Security: Vital to a Nations Independence

This is the fourth part of the series on Energy Security.

Part IV

Barriers to Energy Security.

In the previous parts of this series we discussed how Energy Security is vital to our National Security, how much energy is available, and broke down the costs associated with the energy we use.  We have focused on Oil, but that is far from the only source of energy available.  In this part we will look at the obstacles facing Energy Security.

There are two major categories of Energy Sources.  The first category is the Fossil Fuels.  Fossil Fuels include Oil, Natural Gas, and Coal. The second category is Alternative Fuels. Alternative Fuels include Bio-Fuels (ethanol, methanol, etc), Wind, Solar, and Nuclear.  Each of these energy sources face Technological, Economic, and Regulatory barriers.

Technological barriers are the easiest of all barriers to overcome.  15 years ago oil in North Dakota was considered non-recoverable. Prior to that time oil was drilled vertically.  You drilled straight down.  The difficulty with a well of this type was you needed to position the well directly over your target.  It would take many wells, on many different pieces of property to recover the oil.  Then along came horizontal drilling. With a horizontal well you could drill to multiple sources from one piece of property.  It was not only more economically feasible, but it was environmentally friendly.

Economic barriers are often the greatest barrier.  Recovering coal or oil that costs more than can be bought from other sources does not make sense. As pointed out with the North Dakota example above, the horizontal drilling resulted in economically feasible recoverable oil.

The overwhelmingly greatest barrier to Energy Security are the Regulatory Barriers.  Before any energy undertaking can begin the legal battle must be fought. This is fairly easy at the state and local level, however, when the Federal Government gets involved the idea of Energy Security is replaced with political agendas. It is here we discover that an economically feasible endeavor becomes too expensive for the market.  This is not to say there should not be regulations, but as with most Federal Regulations they over step common sense and dance into "What If".

Fossil Fuels

The Great Satan

There are certain truths about Fossil Fuels that must be considered.  They are dirty when compared with some Alternative sources.  The recovery, refining, and use of Fossil Fuels do indeed have hazardous bi-products. These bi-products include sulfur, radiation, nitrates, and mercury (to name just a few). There is also a direct impact on the land used during recovery.  This is especially true of coal.  There is no escaping the fact that Fossil Fuels are not as clean as other forms of energy and they are not a renewable resource. It is also true that they are not as dirty as some would have you believe. 

Coal provides 49.61% of the electricity in the United States.  Oil (3.03%) and natural gas (18.77%) provide 20.80% of the electricity generated in the U.S. In total Fossil Fuels provide over 60% of the electricity generated in the U.S. 

The Great 

"What If"

Like many educated people I count on the principles of science to describe the world around me.  Although the Scientific Method begins with a "What If...", it quickly moves to the "What is...".  The greatest "What if" involves Global Warming...more specifically Human Caused Global Warming (HCGW).

The "What If" of HCGW is based on the premise that human activity contributes to Global Warming. This is a scientifically sound principle..everything on earth is intertwined and will affect the environment in either a positive, or negative way.  However, the "What If" of HCGW exponentially expands from speculation of a contribution by existence, to a major cause of Global Warming.  It is in this stretch that HCGW jumps from science to politics.

By far the most common argument among those that support the HCGW idea is..."The Vast Majority of Scientists agree that humans are the major contributor to Global Warming." Once upon a time the Vast Majority of Scientists also agreed that the Earth was flat and the Sun orbited the Earth.  Luckily for us you don't vote on the truth of science...but many people will vote on the Politics of Science.  For the sake of argument we will assume that the Great "What if" is true.  How does that affect Energy Security?

Satan, The Great What If and Energy Security.

The Quest for Alternative Energy.

A very good friend of mine in Montana is at the forefront in the quest for alternatives to Oil. He is an innovator of new lubricants that are affordable, renewable, and have minimal impact on the environment.  He has spent the last 15 years and large sums of money attempting to tackle one aspect of of the Energy equation.  He uses organic materials to create his lubricants..this means he grows them on his farm.  

So far he has created a lubricant that will work under certain environmental factors..sadly the environment they will work in, is not found in Montana.  Although his lubricant is renewable, its impact on the environment is unknown...and it is not affordable.  I have yet to see any new technology that is initially affordable. 

The technological ability of an alternative source of energy to be effective requires that it be economically feasible.  If we could use corn as a method to supply our energy needs, make that corn burn super clean, it would be of little use if it cost $10 a gallon and pushes the price of food up.

The extremes of the HCGW debates are all or nothing views.  This is not an intelligent, or even secure point of view. The environmentalists would have everyone believe that energy producers want to destroy the environment.   On the other hand there are those who want to just drill or dig for energy. They both want to scare you into making irrational choices. Fear is not a good position to be in when making security decisions.

Drill, Dig, Nuke, Windmill, Solar Panel, and Who Knows What Else?

When deciding your best course, you should know where you are.  At present the machines of human life run on fossil fuels.  These are the same machines that put the Western World at the top of the game.  Nuclear power is a cheap alternative that could replace the use of Oil and Coal as forms of Energy. Wind and solar energy is in its infancy, but they too show an ability to create viable power systems. 

By removing the irrational regulatory barriers to fossil fuels we buy enough time to create sustainable, economically viable, renewable energy alternatives.  We will have the time to create clean battery technology to make Wind and Solar power work.  We will have the time to look at the impact of bio-fuels. But most importantly we build an Energy Secure nation.

Summary

In this post we looked at the barriers to Energy Security, and how those barriers are/can be broken down.  In the next post we will bring it altogether in a plan for building an Energy Secure Nation.

http://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/Why-Krugmans-Argument-Against-Fossil-Fuels-Fails-Economics-101.html

http://www.essortment.com/fossil-fuel-its-impact-environment-57291.html

http://www.salon.com/2011/05/31/linbd_fossil_fuels/

http://www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-and-you/index.html

http://www.modelt.ca/faq-fs.html

  

Energy Security: Vital to a Nation's Independence

This is the Third Part of the Series on Energy Security.

Part III

What is the Cost of Energy Security?

Most of us realize the cost of energy.  We see it when we put gas in our vehicle, or pay our power bill.  The cost to us, and its effect on our economy does not stop there.  Everything you come in contact with has an energy cost. To understand these costs we will focus on Oil as an energy source.

At the time of this blog being written the cost of a 42 gallon barrel of oil was $98. From a average barrel of oil you will, through the fractioning process, get about 19 gallons of gasoline. Do the math..Cost per gallon=$98 per barrel/42 gallons in a barrel.  Cost per gallon $2.33.  Keep in mind this is pre-production cost...nothing has been refined yet.  Refining adds another $.50 per gallon...which brings us up to $2.83 per gallon.  Of course there is a tax with that.

Federal Taxes are a flat 18.4 cents per gallon.  State, and local taxes are highly variable based on where you are.  In Florida the total in taxes is 38.4 cents per gallon.  That now makes the price of one gallon of gas $2.90 per gallon.  Of course the company that refines the gasoline must transport it to the pump, advertise it, pay employees etc...this adds another 29 cents per gallon. Leaving us with a flat cost of $3.19 per gallon.  At present, (20 September, 2012) the cost of gas at my local station was $3.70 per gallon.  That would mean the gas companies are making 50 cents on every gallon...right?

Not so right...that 50 cents does not account for other taxes (income, property, etc).  This is where things get  difficult to track on a per gallon basis.  The other factors that affect cost at the pump are so highly variable that it becomes nearly impossible to accurately track..so that this point I must make an educated guess.

In 2007 Exxon's stated after tax earnings were 10.4 percent. That is higher than the industries average earnings for that year of 8.3%.  Those numbers are after-tax income.  To make maters worse those earnings include the sales of non-gasoline items.  Yes..those $2 Twinkies add to the company's profits.

In the retail world (and you are buying gas at retail prices) the cost of an item already includes all of the associated expenses.  This includes the actual cost of an item, advertising, employees, sales space, and other operating taxes.  Then they bump that to "what the market can bear" or what is commonly known as the markup.  Jeans for instance carry a markup of 100% to 350%.  Now lets say that your local gas station shoot for Exxon's 10.4% profit.  It would appear that the sale of Jeans is much more of a greed issue, than the sale of gasoline.

But what about the base cost of $98 per barrel of oil?  Where does that come from?  We have all heard of the theory of supply and demand.  The greater the supply and the less the demand the less money something is worth...and the inverse is true as well. There is another factor at play...Market Sentiment. There is a mistaken belief that investors in oil control the price as part of a grand conspiracy.  There is some truth to that...but that is something to be discussed a bit later.

The way most people invest in oil is by investing in the oil company.  This has no impact on the cost of oil one way or the other.  The oil companies profit as we described is not just from oil, but from all of the other products they sell as well.  However, there is a special group of investors, and they do affect the price of oil. They are called Futures Investors.

Futures investments mean that a purchaser agrees to pay a particular price for a product on a specific date.  This is an extremely important method of investing since it allows a company to plan for a rise, or drop in prices of a particular product. Futures investors come in two flavors...the Hedger..and the Speculator.

An example of a Hedger would be an airline.  They buy oil based on a set price.  This protects them from unexpected hikes in price that would affect the cost of their business. A Hedger intends on actually buying the oil.

A speculator is a totally different animal.  They use guesses (educated sometimes) to determine what the price of oil will be at a future date.  They have no intention of buying the actual product. This type of investing can be a roller coaster to doom, or a ride to great wealth.  And the determining factor in both is Market Sentiment.

The mere belief that oil prices will rise..or fall is enough to result in the immediate increase, or drop in prices. This is like letting your cat play the piano...he might hit some comforting notes...but he is just as likely to drive you nuts.

Although Futures Investors play a significant part in the price of oil world wide, there is of course OPEC. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries is the largest organization that controls the price of oil. The list of member countries in OPEC reads like a Who's Who of unstable dictatorships, and theological opposites of the western world.  But there is a symbiotic relationship.  OPEC needs the money from the industrialized nations of the west to survive, and the west needs the OPEC to continue forward.  Or so they want you to believe.  As much as I would love to jump into that discussion right now...it will be saved for the next installment of this series.

Part III

Summary

You have learned the reason gasoline costs what it does.  The fact that nothing in this nation moves without it has been a fact since the invention of the internal combustion engine.  In the days before the train goods were moved by horses.  A horse could move twice its weight 30 miles per day.  So if you wanted a nice orange from Tampa, it would take 25 days to have it transported to North Carolina.  In that time..it would not be so nice. Prior to the invention of the train your food had to be locally grown. A train can move that orange in less than 12 hours.  Add refrigeration and you can get fresh orange juice year round.

Look around your home...everything there is tied to the price of oil.  For manufacturers of goods, energy is a prime consideration in what you pay for those goods.  I have watched those shows were people get "back to nature".  They brag about their independence from the normal world...while they cut wood with an iron axe.  That iron was mined using modern methods of digging.  It was smelted in large furnaces fired by coke (a coal derivative).  It was transported to the store by truck or train using petroleum products.  The people who mined the ore, smelted it, and eventually sold it..all used Oil to survive their day.  Try as you might...oil is a requirement.

The Cost imposed by Government equates to 56.4 cents on every gallon of gas sold in Florida (86.9 cents in California) compare that to the before tax profit of the Oil company of 50 cents and it is clear that the entity that profits the most is the Government. 

Most of the argument about Oil comes from those who dislike big oil companies (I call that jealousy) and the environmentalists (I normally write that environMentalists). As far as big oil goes...they profit no where as much as the Government..and they take all the risk.  In the pricing scheme the post Oil per barrel cost is peanuts compared to what the raw product costs.

The next installment in this series will deal with the issue of how we can become independent of outside influences in creating Energy Security.

Read Part I and Part II 

References
http://www.api.org/News-and-Media/docs/Testimony-Archive.aspx
http://www.oil-price.net/
http://www.floridastategasprices.com/Tax_Info.aspx
http://www.wisebread.com/cheat-sheet-retail-markup-on-common-items
http://www.investopedia.com/articles/economics/08/determining-oil-prices.asp#axzz26zrfE0H0
http://www.opec.org/opec_web/en/press_room/178.htm

Energy Security: Vital to a Nation's Independence

This is the second part of the Energy Security Series.
To read Part I Click Here

Part II

Measuring Energy Resources

When measuring Energy Resources there are some fundamental ideas you should know.  For many energy resources such as, Coal, Oil, and Gas there is a big difference between how much exists, and how much can be recovered economically, or within the confines of current regulations.

The economics of recovery is affected by not just the difficulty in recovering the resource, but also recovering it within the confines of current regulations. The basis of how much in recoverable resources is based on these two issues.

According to President Obama's administration the United States has 20 million barrels of "proven" oil reserves.(1)  When the President refers to "proven" reserves he is talking about resources that can be recovered given economic, technological, and regulatory constraints.(1) What does this mean?

When they say economic constraints this basically means the oil can be sold at a competitive price. Probably the most self-regulating portion of any business is the ability to sell the product at a profit.  For U.S. producers this means waiting for the price to be increased by OPEC before they can sell what they have.

Technological constraints are a bit different.  15 years ago much of the oil located in North Dakota were not technologically accessible.  However, in the 15 years since then drilling methods have made the oil not only technologically accessible, but economically accessible. Technology has opened all new sources of Oil alone and continues to do so.

Regulatory constraints is a government created obstacle.  It takes approximately 10 days to get a permit to drill for oil in North Dakota...it takes a couple of 14 days to get a permit to mine coal in Ohio...it take 27 days to get a permit in Colorado...it takes almost 307 days to get permits from the Federal Government..and in the case of coal..it may take even longer.  Some will probably argue that the Federal Government is more concerned with the environmental impact.  Nothing could be further from the truth.  The States are very keenly aware of the impact that drilling or mining may have on their natural resources, and people's lives. Why does it take the Federal Government so long to approve a new well or mine, when the States can do so in at most a few weeks?  Maybe we can answer that question by the end of this series.

What about he President's opposition? The Republican party uses a USGS study that says there are 198 billion barrels of oil that is "Technically Recoverable".(1) Technically Recoverable includes not just oil we know is there, but also oil we think is there based on geological surveys and can be recovered by present technology.  The estimate does not take into account the economic feasibility, or regulatory constraints.

As you can see by the chart there are 763 barrels of undiscovered oil..and the United States has 26 percent of that oil. Is this an accurate picture of the oil resources for the United States.  No, it is not.

The USGS only takes into account traditional oil. You know the kind that squirts out of the top of an oil well.  However, it does not take into account the oil found in the tar sands of Canada, or the shale oil in North Dakota and Montana.

Using these numbers it is easy to see that President Obama is underestimating the amount of oil resources available. Though it may look like the Republicans are over estimating the amount available it may very well be likely they are underestimating that amount as well.

A much more detailed study that included all forms of Oil concludes that there is approximately 1442 Billion Barrels of oil in the United States alone. According to Energy for America if we include the 320 barrels of oil in Canada, and the 31.2 billion barrels of oil in Mexico we have a total of 1.7 trillion barrels of oil.  That is more oil than the world has drilled since the discovery of oil in Titusville Pennsylvania 150 years ago, or enough oil to power the United States for 250 years.(2)

Invariably someone will ask, "What about Alternative/Renewable Energy Sources?" What about it?  We certainly will not stop researching and testing alternative sources of energy, but on the other hand why would we cripple our economy now on untested alternatives?  If we can't find a viable alternative energy source in the next 250 years...maybe we should all find a cave now?

In the next installment of this series we will look at the Economic impact of Energy.




References Used.
(1)http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2012/04/how-much-oil-is-really-in-the-us/256186/
(2)http://www.energyforamerica.org/inventory/

Other Refrences
http://www.energyforamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Energy-InventoryFINAL.pdf
http://www.energyforamerica.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Fact-Sheet-on-Inventory-Video-Logo1.pdf

Energy Security: Vital to a Nation's Independence.

Part 1

The Importance of Energy Security

For a nation to be able to exist it must be free to make its own decisions independent from influence from other nations.  There are three key elements that empower that type of freedom.  They are Economic Security, Energy Security, and National Security.  These three elements are connected to one another and a weakness in one, will cause a weakness in the entire system.

Security Pyramid 

Many will tell you that Economic Security is a very complex system that requires years of advanced study.  In reality, you are an expert (if you are not in debt up to your eyeballs).  If a nation owes other nations then it is not free to pick its own course.  Economic Security is closely tied to National Security.

National Security is defined by the Instruments of Power that a country can use to remain free.  These Instruments of Power are defined by the D.I.M.E theory.  The D.I.M.E theory can be quite complex but I will attempt to make it easy to understand.

Diplomacy is a very important part of National Security.  Diplomats negotiate with other nations on nearly everything.  Social issues, Import/Export treaties, Peace treaties, Military access, and mutual support agreements...and many more.  A nations leader may say one thing to the public, but his diplomats convey the real message to other nations, or in some cases try to head off something a politician said that was stupid.

Information about ourselves and other nations is key in National Security.  This information comes from many sources, with a huge portion being gathered, analyzed, and distributed by a nation's intelligence agencies.  The release of this information is sometimes carefully scripted to lead a nation's enemies in to believing one thing, when in fact something else is true.

Military power is the sword of National Security.  The size, arms, training, logistics, and demonstrated ability to project this power where needed greatly enhances a nations ability to project power and achieve National Security.

Economic power is the funding that can be wielded against an enemy, or even friends. It allows a nation the ability, should it need to, to act independent of any other nation.  It enhances diplomacy, helps gather information, and builds a strong Military.  Without it a nation will not last long.

Energy Security is a mainstay of modern nations.  Without energy industry does not create anything, products do not move to consumers, armies do not fight. A nation must have its own source of abundant energy to claim Energy Security.

The importance of Energy can not be understated, it is the vital to the survival of any nation. The following video is a presentation by Congressman Allen West, Colonel US Army (Ret). during the RNC as part of the NewtUniversity series.

Go to Part II

How to Make Pizza

K.Z in Maryland wrote to President Obama with a very sad story.  You see if the Payroll Tax Cuts were allowed to expire K.Z would not be able to have pizza night with his kids...or...have cable T.V.  OH THE HUMANITY!!

Don't despair K.Z....Let this Tea Party Activist show you how to survive the horror of losing 40 bucks.  First...lets make some Tea Party Pizza.

THE DOUGH.  There are two routes you can go here K.Z.  First you can buy the pizza dough already made, or you can make it yourself.  Here is a recipe for your own pizza dough...best of all there are no preservatives.  Get it here...I have tested this one..and it is yummmmmy.

THE SAUCE.  The sauce is actually optional...since you are a liberal you will be drawn to put tofu or some other nasty ingredients on top...I keep it simple...so tomato paste, garlic, basil and olive oil to taste. You can also splurge and buy a jar of ready made sauce....but it is full of yucky preservatives.

THE TOPPINGS.  Carrots are not good on a pizza, so you might want to try out some nice onions, green peppers, or my favorite Meat.  I'm just guessing here but I think your lack of meat may be causing you to not think clearly.

Now making your own pizza is a load of fun and a great way for the family to have an awesome Pizza Night...best of all it will cost under 12 bucks for a super extra large PIZZA.  You can take the time you would normally be spending with the cable remote and actually TALK with your children.  You will also be introducing them to the concept of being frugal, working toward a goal, making their own food.

As a Tea Party Activist I am not a fan of taxes..however..the payroll tax is supposed to go toward Social Security..a system that is already unsustainable...mainly due to fat lazy pigs like my Ex-sister-in-law.  Instead, to pay for your tax cut the Democrats want to raise the fees on new home sales.

The issue is not eating pizza...watching movies...or spending time with your family.  The issue is creating a budget that forces our government to live within its means....something you might be interested in trying. I see many people every week that make far less than you or I and they have a great time with their kids doing some crazy things like fishing, playing board or card games, or just talking.  I seriously do not think your problem is not having another 40 bucks in your pay check...but you might be a tad bit lazy.   If you would like to see how bad things could be check out any of the references to the Great Depression...or heaven forbid the recessions of the 60's.

Good luck K.Z.  you are raising some government dependent children...I feel for you.

The Unexplained Mystery of Brown Mountain.

Brown Mountain has always been a place of mystery.  The local native tribes consider the mountain a sacred place.  They tell stories about how in ancient times there had been a great battle between two tribes.  At the end of the battle many braves had been killed, and how the Indian Maidens had set out in the darkness with torches to try and find their braves.  Since that time mysterious lights have  appeared on certain nights and weave their way to the top of the mountain.

By the mid 1700's the old Indian trails had become a rough dirt track that led from the small settlements in the Western North Carolina mountain's to the more civilized areas near the coast. The journey would take several weeks and was filled with danger.  The first of which was crossing Brown Mountain.

Sam was driving his team of mules up Brown Mountain.  The mules pulled the wagon slowly, but deliberately up the Mountain side.  The wagon was laden with large barrels of apples and other goods that he and his family spent all summer preparing.  He looked forward to being Moses to sell them in the local villages, and picking up supplies that would keep him and his extended family fed though the winter.  With him was Moses, one of his slaves.  Moses and Sam were more than just Slave and Master, they were friends.  Both of them were 50 years old..an old age by mountain standards.  Although they had made this trip many times, this trip was different.  They would try to cross the mountain at night.

Even in the best of weather the trail over Brown Mountain was dangerous, but with the clouds gathering near the summit, the thought of descending the mountain's rain soaked roads in the dark was not something Sam looked forward to. He figured that if pushed through the night he might beat the storm.  If he waited it might be days before he could cross the mountain.

Around midnight the team reached the summit.  Clouds were swirling close overhead, and as lightning stabbed at the darkness a mist began to settle on the trail below them.  Sam and Moses gently began to guide the team down the trail their way lit by torches and the lightning.  As they descended they had to look hard to see the edge of the trail in the darkness. Though the lightning did provide some light the mist was growing thicker, and the trail was becoming slick with mud as a light rain began to fall.

It is said that when catastrophe hits..time seems to slow down..this was certainly the case for Sam and Moses.  The rear wheel of the wagon had slipped ever so slightly off the trail..the mules feeling the weight of the wagon pulling them backwards panicked and began clawing at the trail to gain a foot hold.  For the slightest of moments it appeared the mules would win..then the wagon tumbled off the trail.

Moses was thrown clear of the wagon in those first moments..and he watched as the wagon careened tail first off the trail dragging the terrified mules..and his master with it.  Sam clung to the buckboard and tried to apply the brake with no effect.  He watched as the mules were slammed against trees as the wagon towed them down the mountain side.

The mules were the first casualties as they were dashed against rocks and trees..miraculously the wagon had missed the first dozen obstacles before finally slamming into a tree throwing Sam down the side of the mountain. Sam slid for what seemed an eternity before coming to rest hard against a rock.

Moses found himself just a few feet off the trail.  At first he found breathing very painful..but in a few moments that passed and he was able to stand.  He walked up to the trail and began looking for some sign of the wagon. Through the mist, as the lightning flashed, he could see a swath of mule and wagon parts littering the slope down the mountain.

Sam slowly opened his eyes..his back was the first thing he noticed..because it felt like someone had lit a fire there..the pain was excruciating.  He tried to move, but couldn't. All he could see at first was the mist and from time to time the lightning revealed that he was under a very large oak tree. He tried to call out, but the pain was too great, and he found himself struggling to remain conscious.

Moses began picking his way down the debris filled slope.  The mist was growing thicker, and the rain was picking up a bit.  He was able to find a torch that had been on the wagon.  Using a flint he kept for his rifle he lit the torch and used it to aid him as he began searching for Sam.

Sam was not sure how long he had been lying there, he figured he had passed out for some time, since the mist was thicker than before, and the rain had lightened up some.  He tested his back and found that it no longer hurt.  This was good since he had to get up and start trying to find Moses. He rose slowly and began looking around him.  He looked first up..then down the slope.  He knew there was no way he could climb the slope, his best bet was to find the trail and follow it back up to where the accident all started.  When the lightning flashed he could see the trail just a few yards below him.  He began making his way down to the trail.

Moses had gone 50 yards or so, half sliding, half falling down the slope.  Every few yards he would see parts of the mules and wagon intermingled with mud, roots, and trees. He began to call out for Sam, and slowly waved his torch in hopes of catching Sam's attention. He noticed that the mist was getting thicker..but at least the rain had slackened.

Sam had made it to the trail.  He was surprised to find that it was not as slick as he thought it should be. He also was surprised to find that after such a terrible fall he was in no pain at all.  He hoped that Moses had also been so lucky. That is when he saw it.  Just ahead in the mist something was glowing and slowly waving back and forth.  It looked like a torch. It was a bit too far to call out, so he quickened his pace to try and catch up to it.

Moses continued down the slope, waving his torch side to side.  He began coming upon larger parts of the wagon.  Their cargo was broken open along the slope.  He realized that he had been lucky to have been thrown free of the wagon when he did.  He could not imagine that his master had survived, but he held out hope.  That is when he saw it...a faint glow along the trail just below him.  Could it be Sam?  He quickened his pace to try and catch up.

Sam was catching up to the light.  That is when he saw there was another light just ahead of the one he was closing in on.  Could it be that there were others on the trail tonight?  Something caught his attention and he turned and looked down the trail.  What he saw sent a chill up his spine.

The mist had grown so thick that Moses's torch had taken on an unearthly glow.  Much like the light he saw on the trail.  As he got closer something didn't seem right about the light. It did not move like it was being carried..it sort of floated. Moses made it to the trail and was just a few yards from the light, that is when he realized he was not alone.

Sam stood frozen as the first Indian Maiden passed. The glow of her torch illuminated her face, the face was that of extreme sorrow as she looked left and right..then slowly passed by him without a word.  The trail was filled with a long line of glowing torches, each one carried by an Indian Maiden mourning her lost brave.

Moses stood and watched as each solemn figure passed by him.  Each with tears streaming silently down their faces.  Each looked right though him, searching for their lost loved one, existing in that place between here and the here-after.

Sam felt a force urging him to walk up the trail, back to the crest where everything had gone so horribly wrong. The mist was growing thicker as he climbed, but he felt no pain as he climbed that mountain in search of Moses.

Moses joined the procession of Maidens as they moved up the mountain, he had no fear of these ghostly creatures as he climbed the mountain in search of his master.

It is said that today, when the mist forms in the valley and begins to enshroud Brown Mountain, the souls of the searchers can be seen proceeding up the mountain in search of their loved ones.  Scientists have said that it is an optical illusion caused by the headlights of cars and trucks on the nearby highway, but that does not explain the first recorded sighting of the lights in 1765 by a German surveyor of the area.

There are a great many things on this Earth that do not have explanations..this is one of them.

THE SACRED COW

When I was young and dumb…some will say the dumb part has not changed…a friend of mine asked me for help.  He was married and had two kids…he explained that he had run short for money to buy food.  I was single and relatively speaking…rich.  Being a super nice guy I lent him $100 to buy food for his family.  This is what friends do for one another. 

About a month later he approached me again.  This time the tire on his car had blown out and he needed some money to buy a replacement.  I told him that I had some money to loan him…but I would need it back since I was saving to go on leave.  He promised that he would repay me.  I loaned him $100 dollars.  He was so happy he invited me to his house for a home cooked meal…I never pass up a home cooked meal.

He lived in the housing area on base.  It was a very small apartment…part of a duplex.  The furniture was used…his kids were clean…and their clothes were very nice.  The apartment was clean…his furniture was nice, but I could tell it came from a thrift store. 

After dinner we sat down to watch some movies on cable, and talk.  He began to complain about how much the cable company charged for their service.  He told me that he was always running behind, but he couldn’t let them disconnect him…his family could not live without cable.  Most of us have our Sacred Cow…for him it was cable.

A Sacred Cow is something you will do whatever it takes to keep.  It is not to be touched by anyone for any reason.  The basics of life will even be sacrificed for the Sacred Cow. I could tell that if I even suggested that maybe he should drop the cable service until his finances were in better shape he would have fought me tooth and nail.  His Sacred Cow was a necessity to him.

As our National Debt continues to climb our nation is faced with making some tough decisions.  We have many Sacred Cows which many are ready to defend at all costs. In fact, as our Sacred Cow becomes more expensive we will do what it takes to keep it.

Politicians…like the rest of us realize that in order to get our debt under control…the Sacred Cows need to be modified…reduced…maybe even eliminated.  That truth does not seem to matter.  At the mere mention of touching one of these Sacred Cows…people will pull out all manner of excuses.  They invoke the image of Granny in a cold house…with no food.  They raise the Flag over the wounded Veteran.  Like my friend…even the suggestion of reducing the amount spent on a Sacred Cow will result in the gnashing of teeth…anger…even to the point of violence. 

People will cackle like hens and runabout like brain damaged raccoons even if someone thinks out loud about touching their Sacred Cow.  Granted the greatest among these are Politicians…who are prone to making grandiose claims….or party partisans who make fools of themselves in defense of obviously failed social experiments. The Sacred Cow must be preserved! 

Our nation can no longer afford the luxury of providing food, shelter, and clothing to the children of illegal foreign nationals...at the expense of feeding our elderly, or caring for our wounded Vets.  We can no longer afford to support educational experiments at the expense of our students and teachers.  We can no longer afford to subsidize other nations at the expense of our own.

I do not call of wanton cutting of any program…however…every program is full of waste…each and every Sacred Cow must get trimmed.  Unlike a Hindu Barbecue…Cow must be on the menu.

I challenge everyone to look at your own Sacred Cow and seriously decide…what fat can be trimmed to make it better for us all.

THE UNCERTAINTY TAX

Submit for your approval…you are sitting on your front porch sipping on tea when you see a truck pass by…the truck is spewing smoke..and generally stinking up the neighborhood.  You head to your garage and start working on making fuels cleaner.

You invest all of your extra money…all of your free time…and after years of hard work design the perfect system.  Your system uses coal…but unlike other systems you can capture almost all of the CO2 released in the process of creating electricity from coal.

You find the perfect site…you and other investors spend millions in legal fees, engineering plans, and environmental studies…the Environmental Protection Agency issues you a permit to build your plant. Things are looking good.

You have secured the financing, bought the property, and have all the other permits needed to build your plant.  Then just as you finish the ground breaking ceremony…a letter arrives from the EPA revoking your permit.

You are out all of your money…and time that can never be recovered…you have no recourse.

The EPA did that to the Spruce Number 1 Coal Mine in West Virginia.  In an unprecedented move it revoked a permit. This means that no company that has followed the rules can have any certainty that the permit means anything.

Top Enviro-Mentalist

How does this affect you and me?  Well first off companies that require approval to build a factory, or plant can not be sure that the permits it has attained will have a hard time finding financing.  Who would issue a loan, or invest in a project that may…at any moment be cancelled? This does not just affect the investors in the project, but all of the sub-contractors, lending institutions, local, and state Governments.

For those of you that have driven through Appalachia, you are aware of the tough lives those people live.  Since the most recent popular fad is the religion of Human Caused Global Warming…a pseudo science…based in myth and lies…the EPA is now poised to use regulatory means to enforce political belief.  For Appalachia it cost them 250 jobs on this one project alone.  For the region it has cost $250 million in direct investment into the area.

Of course all of this holds to President Obama’s promise to force energy prices to skyrocket.  Who does that affect most of all?  The unemployed poor..who of course depend on our tax dollars to pay their electric bills…the working poor..who must decide between food and clothing or keeping the lights on.  Of course it also impacts companies who must charge more for goods and services to pay to keep the conveyors running.

The EPA is not about protecting the environment…it is about protecting and enforcing political dogma based on a unfounded theories…extending the reach of the Federal Government into state, and local Governments, and destroying the ability of business to innovate in a way that promotes a cleaner environment.

In any discourse concerning the economy…this type of roadblock must be removed.  Returning the EPA to its original mandate is not enough.  The EPA must be completely reengineered to an agency that works on facts…not political hype.

Reference: Wall Street Journal

MY MAILMAN IS OVERPAID

MY MAILMAN IS OVERPAID!!

Everyday my fat lazy Mailman, referred to by some as a postal worker…a term that implies he works…does his best to not do his job.  If it is possible he will fold, spindle, and mutilate anything that does not easily fit in a mail box.  When the package is too big to be furiously stuffed into my mailbox he loves to pound…and I do mean pound…on my door.  Then with a sneer he says, “You have another oversized package”.  I guess maybe by using the U.S. Postal Service to get my packages I am in some way violating his personal rules on walking.

When I first saw him he reminded me of Santa Claus…Gray hair, beard…basically the shape of a bowling ball with feet…and stubby little arms.  Now he looks more like a very angry elf…Ugg…he is way over paid.

When President Obama said he was freezing Federal Civilian Pay I thought about fatso…serves his lazy bones right too.  But then…I wondered…Why was the Obama so quick to stick it to the Federal Worker…that is so unlike him.  Was he saying they are over paid?

The Republicans have been saying that for a long time..and it has nearly become one of those urban truths.  Government workers are massively overpaid.

Just B Askin posted here that that is not true….So if they are not overpaid what is the truth?  I set off to do some digging….and this is what I have found.

I began at a place that many people trust…Fact Check.org.  Here is what they had to say:

• Senator-elect Rand Paul of Kentucky, for example, said recently: “The average federal employee makes $120,000 a year. The average private employee makes $60,000 a year." This has become a GOP talking point and the basis for the House Republicans’ call for a hiring freeze in the "Pledge to America." But it’s misleading.

• The analysis is based on data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and crudely done by dividing total compensation (salary and benefits) by the number of current federal civilian employees. Comparing such averages is quite misleading, for two reasons:

     o First, BEA says the figure is inflated by including compensation that is actually paid to benefit retirees, not just for current workers. The figure is at least several thousand dollars too high, by our calculations.

     o Second, the average federal civilian worker is better educated, more experienced and more likely to have management or professional responsibilities than the average private worker.

Do I think Rand Paul was wrong?  Yes…How wrong is he…I do not know.  I will accept, for now, the idea he is several thousand dollars too high…I will go so far as to say he is 10k to high…that would mean that the average Fed Employee is paid 110k..versus the average civilian worker being paid…for giggles…70k.  That is still a difference of 40k.

Now they throw in this crazy notion of Fed workers being better educated and experienced.  That is a very dubious claim.  For instance, to become a Federal Worker you take a Civil Service exam…Your score goes a long way to getting hired by the feds…But wait…before being hired there are many “perks” that can be added to get on with the Feds…these perks to your points include ethnicity, gender, military service, and disability.  So much for equal employment opportunity.

Now lets look at an example.  Jane and Jack apply for a job with the U.S. Postal Service.  Jane has worked for Fedex for 5 years…she is white…and under 30 years old.  Jack is fresh out of the military…He has a 10 percent disability connected with his military service…Jack is a Pacific Islander.

The first thing that happens is they are graded by a computer…Jack and Jane both score a 100 on the Civil Service Exam.  However, Jack gets 10 point for his service..and another 20 points for his disability.  Jack gets to move on to an interview…Jane doesn’t.

The point here is not that Jack does not deserve a boost up…the point is that the average Federal worker is not necessarily better qualified.  A federal worker is not graded on the profit they bring to the company…in fact…who knows how they grade them?

Factcheck.org goes on to repeat themselves to the point of making me sick. In fact they say “We calculate…” but never say how they calculate their numbers.  Factcheck.org should be called Fatchance.org….much like my Mailman.

So, what is the real truth?  We will probably never know.  I do know this…we have a deficit that is more money than I can imagine.  While private employment drops, Federal Employment has expanded.  If Federal workers are so darn good…they can do what I do…get a job that pays more money in the private sector…where you are expected to make a profit…not just spend money.

If you would like to know more about this, check out the article at: Are Federal Workers Overpaid

Want to know more about fatcheck.org?  Check out the “impartial” panel. Progressives are us.

I am now trying to figure out how to order a 200lb anvil..and have it delivered by the U.S. Postal Service.  Hope Santa enjoys lugging that puppy.

My Devil Dog!!

Today I received some of the greatest news since...well...since my son was born.  He is now a Devil Dog! I am so proud of him it is hard not to overdue this report without seeming like a prejudice father.  But I am!. For those of you who have never had the privilege and honor to serve this nation let me explain what happens when someone joins the U.S. Military Service.

First thing is making the right choice for you.  Not all services are created equal..each has its own challenges..each has its own pros and cons.  As the years have progressed our nations military has gone from being separate services to a combined fighting system.  The lines of communication between them has gone from a blurry fat line...to a much sharper fine line..one that has made our military the greatest fighting force on this planet.

I myself chose the Air Force...most of my family were either Navy or Marines...However, my Father served in the AF during the Korean war...and my uncle started out as a Marine..then transferred to the AF and made a career of it. However, when the time came I made my choice based on what I wanted to do..and being a cop is what I wanted to do.

My son has always wanted to do something special with his life...and this step..is the first step toward that goal.  His choice of service is one that I have always been in awe of.

The second step is Qualifying for the job.  It is not an easy thing to do.  In today's military you must be more than just strong...you must be smart.  Idiots need not apply.  The position he chose is as a Special Communications Signals Collector Operator.  Google it.


Most civilians see a person in uniform at parades...or in a recruiters office.  It is easy to forget that the little girl..or office person you are looking at is also a trained combat weapon.  They not only do paperwork..but are trained to fight.  You won't see that in your local bank.


The third step is Basic Training.  Basic Training is a test of your will as well as your body.  You are trained to respond as part of a team...you are trained to be able to operate at full speed while under trying circumstances.  This is something that lasts a life time. To complete basic is an accomplishment that is something to be proud of.


The fourth step is completing combat training.  Everyone in our military is trained to fight..hence the term U.S. Armed Forces.  Learning the complexity of moving as a team...utilizing the correct methods of engagement..knowing your weapons inside and out.  I guess this is why Homeland security worries about our veterans.


The fifth step is learning your job.  In my son's case...this will be pretty technical stuff.  In fact, with all military specialties it is learning new and exciting things..knowing how your specialty enhances the war fighting capabilities of the greatest Military Force on Earth.


Finally he will deploy with his unit...he will continue a learning process that will last a life time.


It is hard to say when a boy becomes a man...but on this day...I learned that my little boy is a full fledge Man..with the rights and responsibility that comes with the title.


Congrats to you buddy...Welcome to the tribe of Veterans...you are now a Devil Dog!!


Out of respect for him I will not tell you which one is him...he and I are not that keen on photos...but I will say he is the good looking one.


His video is here: Charlie Company