Late Flightline F4riday – A Night in the Air War Over Vietnam, Dec. 26 1972 August 16, 2016
Posted by Tantumblogo in Flightline Friday, fun, history, non squitur, silliness, Society, technology.comments closed
Linebacker II was the most intensive period of aerial bombardment of the Vietnam War. It was the culmination of 7+ years of desultory, on-again, off-again bombing campaigns conducted with ludicrous limitations that rendered the United States single largest military advantage – overwhelming air power – almost neutered. Thousands of men died, hundreds more languished for years in hellish North Vietnamese prisons, as politicians in Washington dithered, committing just enough forces to kill numerous North Vietnamese and Americans, but never enough to be decisive. It was the worst aerial campaign in US history.
Linebacker II was, in essence, the final conducting of the air war the Joint Chiefs had been calling for since 1965. In 12 days of bombing, they rendered North Vietnam defenseless, crippled, and ready to end the war on terms the US at that time found acceptable, even if those terms were as false and illusory as the entire war had been. That is to say, it allowed the US to get (most? some?) of the POWs home, to save face, and to more or less abandon the South Vietnamese to a grim fate, especially after a hyper-liberal Congress was elected in 1974 in the wake of Watergate, which cut off almost all US aid to the beleaguered nation. But it was seen as very preferable to simply an out and out surrender, or an even more cold-hearted and open abandonment of a long-proclaimed vital ally.
What is presented in the video below is a series of cockpit recordings of internal B-52 intercoms and inter-aircraft radio chatter during the Linebacker II mission of Dec. 26, 1972. The aircraft where the recording was made was B-52D Lilac 2 out of Andersen AFB, Guam. The campaign had begun on December 18, then the Nixon Administration imposed a 36 hour bombing halt for Christmas. This allowed the North Vietnamese to reconstitute their almost depleted defenses a bit, and made the mission of Dec. 26 one of the harriest of them all. By Dec. 30, the lat night of the raids, the North was out of SAMs, most of their radars were destroyed, and they had no effective way to respond. But that was not the case this night, when several aircraft were lost.
The video includes a map which shows the aircraft which are involved, their call signs, and their slow progress over North Vietnam. It is really an impressive piece of work, and a valuable contribution to the historical record.
Last Night, a Beautiful, Edifying Response to the Atrocities in Oklahoma City August 16, 2016
Posted by Tantumblogo in Basics, Dallas Diocese, disaster, error, General Catholic, Latin Mass, Our Lady, paganism, scandals, sickness, Society, the struggle for the Church, Tradition, Virtue.comments closed
For a variety of reasons, I did not feel comfortable reporting, in advance, on the desecration (for the 2nd year in a row) of a statue of Our Blessed Lady by satanists in Oklahoma City. I had covered the satanic antics extensively in the past, I have had little time to write of late, and I just didn’t feel very motivated to do so. I also feel that the publicity they are receiving is probably a significant factor in their ongoing self-immolation of their souls through deliberately offensive behavior. I did not desire to give them more of what they wanted.
If I had covered the matter, it would have been to once again show up the Oklahoma City government’s seeming complicity in these acts, through rental of public facilities for black Masses and the provision of police protection for deliberate religious atrocities. I have felt since this series of events began that OKC’s excuse, that they simply HAD to let these satanists run wild, or else be sued by liberals in the ACLU or other places for supposed violations of the separation of Church and state, to be pretty weak tea. It became even more weak when it was revealed that New Jersey has had a law against the desecration of religious objects on the books for decades, and that a man was charged for violating that law when a muslim destroyed a statue of Our Lady earlier this month. Apparently, officials there aren’t as scarified of the all-conquering liberal interpretation of the 1st Amendment as some in OKC are. I still maintain, the often rabidly anti-Catholic attitudes of the dominant OKC evangelical protestant population were ultimately behind the city’s tacit acceptance of, if not open connivance in, these atrocities. I think the evidence continues to bear that out more and more.
I was going to let all this pass, until I saw the beautiful response of local Catholics last night. There was a Mass of Reparation for the sins against Our Lady (and Lord) at the local TLM parish, which, of course, also was the Feast of Our Lady of the Assumption. Attendance was huge, greater than 450 for a single Mass by my reckoning, even though the bishops of the United States, judging it an intolerable burden for anyone to ever have to attend Mass two days in a row, had, of course, made this Monday feast not a Holy Day of Obligation this year.
Not only that, but hundreds came early and stayed late for the Rosaries before and after. These were also offered in reparation to Our Immaculate Mother for the offenses against her by poor, pathetic, lost souls. It was such a large crowd that yours truly stood for the 2+hours of the evening’s proceedings, but with a very glad heart.
I did not take any photos or videos, though I did record the sermon, a strong study of the history of this Feast and allied Marian beliefs, and Our Lady’s unique role in the economy of salvation. Unfortunately, some fussy kids were between the speaker and my phone, and so the audio did not come out very well. I am certain many photos will be published soon, however.
At any rate, it was an inspiring night, to see so many people come out, when they didn’t “have to,” in the sense of it being binding on conscience, to do conduct a mass, pious response to an event (the desecration) that should cause all people of good will, not just Catholics, to shudder. Of course we know the circle of good will seems ever-decreasing in this day and age, where more and more people hold absurdly reductive views of what it means to be a good, moral person: “Well, I may watch porn, abuse myself, get drunk, cheat on my wife a bit, contracept, steal some from my company, and ignore my children, but I’m basically a good person. I mean, it’s not like I’ve killed anyone.” Yet the line from “tolerance” (really, indifference) of desecration of holy objects in public, to tolerating all manner of sin short of murder, as somehow morally indifferent, is a very short one. It started 500 years ago in Germany, and has run in a straight line to the world we see around us today.
But you knew that already. Choir, consider yourself preached to.
Why is Diocese of Ft. Worth Encouraging Catholics to Support Radical Pro-Abort, Pro-Sodomy Congressman? – UPDATED August 16, 2016
Posted by Tantumblogo in Abortion, Basics, contraception, disaster, Ecumenism, error, foolishness, General Catholic, horror, paganism, persecution, Revolution, scandals, secularism, self-serving, sexual depravity, sickness, Society, the struggle for the Church, unbelievable BS.comments closed
Wouldn’t you call allowing one of the most immoral politicians in the state to speak and canvas for votes at a Catholic parish giving support? That’s exactly what the Diocese of Fort Worth has done, giving Representative Marc Veasey (Leftist – TX) – who coincidentally happens to be my representative, thanks to rampant gerrymandering – permission to speak, in the sense of promoting himself for re-election, at All Saint’s Catholic Church.
Marc Veasey is a pro-abort’s pro-abort. He staunchly supports abortion through all nine months of pregnancy and is as solid a supporter of Banned Parenthood as you can find:
Not only that, but I received the following reply from Rep. Veasey regarding the USNS Harvey Milk imbroglio. He had this to say about his general position with regard to the sins of Sodom and Gomorrah:
As your member of Congress and a staunch supporter of LGBT issues………
He (his staff) apparently completely misread my communique, because it then goes on to tell me how I can further “work with him” to lobby on behalf of LGBTQRSTUV “rights.” As if error has rights, amiright?
It is also certain that Veasey holds any number of other grave errors and immoral beliefs: contraception, divorce on demand, fornication, government repression of the Church, a completely secularized society, etc. As I said, he is one of the most reliably left-wing members of Congress, who only holds office as the result of a court-ordered gerrymandered district. For instance, the streets on either side of mine are not in Veasey’s district, while mine is.
But but bu- the Diocese of Fort Worth says, “seamless garment!!” Look at all the good things Rep. Veasey supports, and, also,
Francis more or less commands we vote for him! The Affordable Care Act and unlimited immigration are pretty much new Dogmas of the Faith, according to FW communications director Pat Svacina, who apparently approved this event. Thus, we have so much we “agree with” – including, apparently, agreeing that murdering perfect innocents in their millions is somehow forgivable, or at least ignorable, if one supports providing high-cost, really crappy insurance to a tiny segment of the population.
It is amazing how fast the deplorable, completely discredited “seamless garment” has come roaring back to vitality in chanceries around the land under this pontificate. Of course, it never really went away, those same progressives who have always filled the chanceries since VII were simply more circumspect under preceding pontificates.
For what it’s worth, you can contact the FW diocesan communications director, the individual most responsible for putting this event on, at the below:
| Pat Svacina Director of Communications 817-945-9420 817-996-9609 Cell psvacina@fwdioc.org |
If you are one of those who like to believe that all kinds of highly politically charged stuff goes on at various Dioceses without the knowledge of the Bishop (I, for one, am not one of those), you could also try to make Bishop Olson aware of this situation, assuming your communique even gets to him, and is not shunted into some unread folder or filtered out by a secretary or other interloper, you could make use of the below:
817-945-9311
officeofthebishop@fwdioc.org
If you do decide to contact Bishop Michael Olson, I do recommend you be brief, to the point, and polite. No cussy words or accusations of sin, they tend to obliterate the point you are trying to make, as well as your credibility.
For my money, the idea that the Bishop would not know that a Congressman is coming to speak at one of his parishes is incredible. Of course he knows, and of course he approved. The only reasons I can think of for such approval are worldly – it would be bad to offend a Congressman, he has power to help/hurt the material condition of the Church, etc. While the reasons which most militate against his speaking are all spiritual in nature, cutting to the heart of the Church, the truth, and her identity.
But such considerations as the latter, so important for so many centuries, even to the point of countless souls enduring unspeakable hardships to defend them, have gotten decidedly short shrift in the past 50 years of the new, “open,” post-conciliar Church.
UPDATE: Another excuse given by the Communications Director of the Diocese of Fort Worth for hosting this event is that of “hearing all sides.” But can you imagine this director giving the OK to have Donald Trump speak at a Catholic parish, and can you imagine the howls of protest from many priests and chancery bureaucrats should such an invitation be extended?
This is all about holding certain (liberal) opinions individuals with influence in the Church share.
Francis de Sales: “Have Patience With Everyone, Including Yourself” August 16, 2016
Posted by Tantumblogo in awesomeness, Basics, catachesis, Domestic Church, General Catholic, Glory, Grace, Interior Life, mortification, reading, Saints, sanctity, Spiritual Warfare, Tradition, true leadership, Virtue.comments closed
From Thy Will Be Done, The Letters of St. Francis de Sales, an exegesis on patience, not only with others, but with ourselves. As so typical of this great Saint, there is much sublime thought here, and considerations made often overlooked by others. The letter itself was sent from the Saint to a busy mother. I am certain many readers can well relate to the difficulties the pious mother faced:
My dear daughter,
I remember you telling me how much the multiplicity of your affairs weighs on you; and I said to you that it is a good opportunity for acquiring the true and solid virtues. The multiplicity of affairs is a continual martyrdom, for just as flies cause more pain and irritation to those who travel in summer than the traveling itself does, just so the diversity and the multitude of affairs causes more pain than the weight of these affairs itself.
You need patience, and I hope that God will give it to you (if you ask it of Him carefully) and that you will try to practice it faithfully, preparing yourself for it every morning by a special application of some point in your meditation, and resolving to restore yourself to patience throughout the day as many times as you sense yourself becoming distracted.
Do not lose any occasion, however small it may be, for exercising gentleness of heart toward everyone. Do not think that you will be able to succeed in your affairs by your own efforts, but only by the assistance of God; and on setting out, consign yourself to His care, believing that He will do that which will be best for you, provided that, on your part, you employ a gentle diligence. I say “gentle diligence,” because violent diligence spoils the heart and affairs, and is not diligence, but haste and trouble.
My God, Madame, we will soon be in eternity, and then we will see how all the affairs of this world are such little things and how little it matters whether they turn out or not. At this time, nevertheless, we apply ourselves to them as if they were great things. When we were little children, with what eagerness did we put together little bits of tile, wood, and mud, to make houses and small buildings! And if someone destroyed them, we were very aggrieved and tearful at it; but now we know well that it all mattered very little. One day it will be the same with us in Heaven, when we will see that our concerns in this world were truly only child’s play.
I do not want to take away the care we must have regarding these little trifles, because God has entrusted them to us in this world for exercise; but I would indeed like to take away the passion and anxiety of this care. Let us do our child’s play, because we are children; but also, let us not trouble ourselves to death in playing at it. And if someone destroys our little houses and little designs, let us not torment ourselves greatly at this; because also, when this night comes in which it will be necessary for us to take shelter – I mean to say, death – all these little houses will be of no use to us; we will have to take our shelter in the house of our Father. Faithfully attend to your obligations, but know that you have no greater obligation than that of your salvation and of the saving progress of your soul on the way to true devotion. [So people get lost down in the weeds of life, even of relative goods – caring for children, homeschooling in a really thorough way, preparing for college, providing for their families, etc., that they start to miss the really critical things. On the converse, as the Saint notes below, sometimes we demand far too much perfection from ourselves]
Have patience with everyone, but chiefly with yourself; I mean to say, do not trouble yourself with your imperfections, but have the courage to lift yourself out of them. I am well content that you begin again every day: there is no better way to perfect the spiritual life than always to begin again and never to think you have done enough.
Recommend me to the mercy of God, which I ask to make you abound in His holy love. Amen……..
————–End Quote—————-
The more I read St. Francis de Sales, the more I admire and appreciate his writings.
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