Thinking about Lies and Misstatements

What is that old adage about politicians? You know that they are lying when their lips are moving. Knowing this to be sadly true, why would I bristle at Senator Clinton's response to the revelation that she fabricated the Tuzla, Bosnia tarmac experience? I suppose what gets me most is that it was not a misstatement. An example of misspeaking would be for her to say that she landed in Sarajevo instead of Tuzla. But to "clearly" remember being under fire and not participating in a welcoming ceremony that was in fact filmed by a network news camera is pretty clearly a lie. The good Senator made statements in explanation such as that she was tired from the campaign or that she had been to 80 countries and was mixed up. She said that she is human and made a mistake. I wonder how many of the 80 trips involved running for cover from sniper fire. Surely not too many (if any). One could reason that it wouldn't be too difficult to keep incidents such as she described straight in the mind.

"I went to 80 countries, you know. I gave contemporaneous accounts, I wrote about a lot of this in my book. You know, I think that, a minor blip, you know, if I said something that, you know, I say a lot of things - millions of words a day - so if I misspoke, that was just a misstatement," she said.

That is pretty profound! You know?

First Lady Laura Bush visited my classroom in February of 2004. The steps that were taken for her security in a domestic setting were impressive. Every part of the visit was planned in advance to minimize any possible risk to the First Lady. My classroom was scoured by security personnel. The police and Secret Service presence was massive...and she was visiting a High School in Arkansas, not a hot zone in a war-torn country. If the military had even the slightest concern that Mrs. Clinton would be in danger, my impression, based on experience with Mrs. Bush, is that they would not have allowed her to be in the line of fire. As I write, several figures from the military are expressing outrage about Senator Clinton's misstatement. Naturally, the implication of her story is that the military failed to secure the airport at Tuzla. When the potential commander-in-chief sullies the reputations of the officers in charge so easily, that could make for a tense relationship.

Enough rambling from me. I am disappointed that she came to the point to where she told the Bosnia story so many times that she actually believes it. It would still be told from stop to campaign stop if the evidence of her lack of veracity were not preserved on CBS video. I hope that the old adage about lying politicians is a lie, and that, my friends, is the truth.

Easter Sunday

It is Easter Sunday, 2008. The girls enjoyed their egg hunt, but it was a bit cold outside here in NW Arkansas. I can't wait for the warmer weather to return. We had some warm weather while in San Antonio last week, but it was still not the way I like it.



By the way, I played golf with Mike on Thursday. I pretty much played like I hadn't been on a course in a while (which is true!). I still had some good holes. We were in the flight path of Randolph AFB, so I got to see a lot of aircraft that day. I did have one very cool experience while in San Antonio that was not family related. Mike took me on base and he got me into a T-1 simulator. I flew a couple of sorties. I tried for a long time to hook up with a tanker in flight, but I was repeatedly over-correcting and had to come back in for another attempt. I got close on several attempts, but never really did the deed. I had mixed results on my landings. I did a lot of bouncing on my first landing but nailed the second. Granted, Mike was in the right seat and handled some of the things that I forgot, but I guess I did okay. I really wish I had learned to fly when I was younger. Now I have heart issues that preclude me from getting a pilot's license. No worries.



My brother lives in Virginia Beach, VA and sees navy aircraft all the time. I think that he enjoys living in a military town, even though he is not in the service himself. He sends me pictures of ships and aircraft often. Living here in NWA, we don't have a lot of big airshows nearby. I would travel a long way to get a chance to fly in a B-17. There are not many left in flying condition, let alone available for public flights. I greatly admire the crews of the bombers that flew in the Second World War. The Allies lost a lot of aircrews in the European and Pacific theaters, but most in the European Theater of Operations. Like anyone who was never actually there, I can only imagine the range of emotions that ran through the crew of a bomber on a combat mission. I think that I would have served honorably, but I also believe that I would have felt a lot of anxiety about the possibilities.



God bless you all today and always. On this day on which remember the risen Savior, let us also take a moment to remember those who fought and died for our country so that we might enjoy the freedoms they served to protect.

Back from San Antonio

I returned yesterday from a trip to San Antonio, Texas to visit my wife's sister and her newly expanded family. Stacy and Mike are the proud parents of twins. After a very long wait for the Lord's timing, they finally have the children that they have wanted for so long. Ian and Jillian are beautiful babies and they couldn't have better parents!

While on my trip, I had the opportunity to visit Randolph Air Force Base. To my great surprise, I found that the legacy of the Tuskegee Airmen lives on in the 99th Flying Training Squadron. For information on this distinguished group of airmen, visit the RAFB website. As a fitting tribute to these gallant African-American pilots, the 99th Flying Training Squadron maintains a museum exhibit in the halls of the squadron offices. I found the fact that the 99th lives on to be a fine way of recognizing the history of the squadron. Today's 99th even sports the characteristic red tail of the legendary Tuskegee Airmen. Thanks to the U.S. Airforce for their pride in their heritage. In the photo above left, a T-1A Jayhawk flies over downtown San Antonio. The aircraft is assigned to the 99th Flying Training Squadron at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas. (U.S. Air Force photo/Lt. Col. Russell Hopkinson)

Classes at BHS have been on Spring Break and we return to classes on Monday. I hope everyone has had a relaxing break. As for me, I did.