First – a quick reminder that The O Word will be on the air at 0700 Mountain Standard Time tomorrow morning, as usual, but only 30 minutes long. Be sure to join the chatroom or call in the listener line at (347) 838-9573.

It’s been a while since I’ve done an Update for my blogroll friends, so here goes:

First up is Blackfive, where the ethics videos for certain government entities have been procured and posted.

Richard is making good use of his new camera.

Good old GuyK woke up this morning with a list of aches and pains. He shares his morning with you…

Our Sovereign Joy has a series going on about sinners being restored from their trespasses. I’m going to mark this as a required reading entry.

Texas Fred has a couple of articles up about the recent SCOTUS decision about child rapists … and their “right” to not be executed. Nope, nothing controversial there… (update – latest entry is about the 2nd amendment)

On One Loon’s Tales, Loon herself is also carrying the story of the SCOTUS miscue decision.

Political Pistachio, back on after a brief blip, talks about the SCOTUS too – but this time, about the 2nd Amendment case involving handguns in our Nation’s Capitol.

I’m sensing a trend here – Samantha has a view on the SCOTUS dropped ball also.

Rogue wants to know who took his country. Good question. I’m bettin’ the DemocRATs had something to do with it.

Right Turn has her view on the Henderson KY shooting.

According to Jenn’s latest post, the “think” tank in San Fransissyco has determined that an appropriate memorial for our current president would be renaming a public works building. I think it’s a crappy idea.

American and Proud of It joins the ranks of the bloggers posting on the SCOTUS’ collective cranial collapse.

ablur has some information on the Obamassiah you might want to read.

Mary has a book review about Stormie. (good to see you in action, Mary!)

Akinoluna has a story about triplets who are joining the Marine Corps – together! Instant family tradition, anyone?

Got a few minutes? Make that a bit longer – as is the case anytime you want to peruse Dumb Looks Still Free – as he delves deeply into the respective plans (not policies!) of the presumptive candidates. A good read, worth the thought and effort of getting all the way through it.

cookiecrumbexpress shows off the last part of the trip home, and shares a little bit about certain members of the Obama Nation being “removed” from the public eye…

Third Wave Dave highlights the effort to send the largest care package shipment to our troops in history.

Old Soldier has two questions for you, one regarding the legal standing of the primates, and another concerning voting. Two separate entries, please take the time to view both.

Cube takes a look at the Microsoft team – then and now. All I have to say is, thank God the seventies ended when they did.

My Point shares Doctor Blogstein’s search for a fatwa. Oh. My.

Just John has a reminder from the Japanese park authority about your dog.

Bloviating Zeppelin has a must-read on the so-called “Fairness Doctrine” that should be used as a reference while you contact your representatives.

Supporting the Troops has the Wednesday Hero up – go check out (Army) SSGT Voss…

And last (but certainly not the least) of the recently updated (according to blogrolling.com, anyway) is my good friend Gawfer, with his thoughts on Obama, McCain, and the American Dream.

Be sure to check out the rest of the people on my blogroll. Tell ’em I sent ya.

My Bad: I am most disgusted with myself for forgetting to mention the latest member of my blogroll, Amboy Times. Another good read. GO! Enjoy!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Time, Inc. is a bunch of weasels, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

If you are a Marine, please take the time to read and comment. If you are not a Marine, then it’s up to you whether you read this or not. The issue was brought to my attention by Akinoluna. She blogged about the trend of the term “Devil Dog” to be looked on as a curse more than a point of pride.

Personally, I find this trend disturbing. I am very proud of the nickname “Devil Dog” and find it odd that the younger Marines of today would be bothered by it. However, I will take to task those of higher rank that use it only when getting ready to issue a correction or reprimand – of course it would become associated with bad behavior. The idea behind using it, as stated in the article:

“I think the backlash against ‘Devil Dog’ does begin with the leadership. [Noncommissioned officers] (myself included) use the following phrase, ‘HEY, DEVIL DOG!’ to initiate a ‘correction’ when we don’t know exactly who the Marine may be. Thusly, hearing the phrase Devil Dog creates a negative Pavlovian response in Marines. As they come up in the Corps, the response stays,” one Marine wrote.

(emphasis mine) (yes, I know the article appeared back in April. sue me.)

Now, when I was serving, if you didn’t know who the Marine was, you would use the term “Marine” to get their attention. “Devil Dog” was reserved for when you knew who were motivating – and it was used as motivation: “Come on, you Devil Dogs! Let’s take that hill!”

Corrections or reprimands would start out with you, the corrector or reprimandor, spotting a goldbricker slouching across the parade deck (for example) and hollering out, “Hey, MARINE!” This would get their attention and allow you to quickly determine the rank of the offender.

You would then issue the correction based on their rank: if the Marine in question was of lower rank, then “boot” or “maggot” was used to get your point across: “Hey, maggot – quit dragging your heels whilst strolling across my parade deck – step to smartly, and make it look like you know where you’re going!”

If the Marine was of the same rank, then a more comradely term would be used: “You know, corporal, by dragging your heels while walking across the parade deck some boot might think that was the way to do it. Let’s try stepping a little more lively to impress the newbies.”

If the Marine was of higher rank, then a whole new attitude would have to surround the conversation: “Good morning, Second Lieutenant Wetbehindtheears, here on the hallowed grounds of the Third Battalion, we have a tradition of either circumventing the parade deck or stepping off in a smart manner in order to impart the respect we have for those who have passed before.”

Using “Devil Dog” as a jumping-off point for corrections is setting a bad example – and chewing up the traditions of the Corps. Shame on the Marine who helps tear this fabric. Let’s show some respect for those who HAVE passed before!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, listen to The O Word on BlogTalkRadio, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!