Tornado update

As you may or may not know, the area I live in, as well as the entire Southeastern US, has been racked with severe thunderstorms and massive tornado outbreaks for the past two or so weeks. I was not directly affected, nor were my parents (who currently live on the west coast but still maintain a residence about forty or so miles north of me).

However there were more than a few employees at my store that were inconvenienced by the storms, trees blocking streets/driveways or destroying out buildings and the like, and several that were touched more directly by tragedy. One person’s sister had her log home pushed eighteen feet to one side of its foundation, but was otherwise structurally intact. You’d think a log home would be more vulnerable since they are basically held together by gravity. Yes, there are some bolts and straps involved, but gravity plays a major part. Not one log was out of place, but the home is still a total loss. There is no way to get it back on the foundation for less money than it would take to tear down and re-build. In a turn of tornado witchery, that same log home had a stone fireplace sucked out the back of the home, chimney and all, but the mantle, hearth, and stone surround in the bedroom were still in place around the hole.

I had another employee who lost his uncle, and his aunt has been hospitalized. A tornado plopped down in the valley they lived in and due to the altitude of the storm clouds and the height of the mountains on either side of the valley it just ran up and down the length of the valley getting stronger and stronger until it was able to squeeze through a pass at one end and move on. Their house was destroyed, his uncle died in the collapse, and his aunt was dragged out and rode the funnel until it dropped her. He said she looked like she’d fallen off a motorcycle on the interstate.

Now, on to more current news, Osama bin Laden is dead. Killed by American troops in his home in Pakistan. I am not saddened by this. I am not disturbed by the chants of USA! USA! USA! in the streets. I am not going to mourn his passing, or chastise those who celebrate. The man was evil personified. We didn’t invade his country, we were invited in, by his king, to defend it when Saddam Hussein threatened it. No perceived injustice we ever did to that man could ever justify the acts he condoned, organized, or contributed to. He is dead, justice has been served.

That being said I do not desire that his body be displayed on the fence at the White House or from a gallows at the Pentagon. Both options were being bandied about in some other forums (or is it fora?) but we are not that kind of country. I understand the burial at sea, that way no one spot becomes a shrine for the jihadists, or a focal point for demonstrations. I would not mind seeing his body treated the same way the Nuremberg defendants were treated after their convictions and executions: cremated and ashes scattered in undisclosed locations for the same reason. The supposed care being taken to respect Islamic traditions with respect to the treatment of his body baffles me however. There should be photos taken, not necessarily published, and conclusive samples taken and preserved to prevent any mad conspiracy theories later on. After that burn him and scatter him. End of story.

Regarding President Obama’s birth certificate: I am not and never have been a "birther" but as the controversy dragged on and grew I, and a lot of people more educated and with more resources than myself, did begin to wonder if maybe there was something to it. Obviously there wasn’t, but why did it take so long for the President to release this easily (for the person it belongs to) obtainable document and why did he spend so much money denying any attempts in court to compel him to release it. What in the world was he using this fake issue to distract us from? It makes you wonder.