Remembered

Jim Morrison - remembered
Elvis Presley - remembered
Jimi Hendrix - remembered
Nathan Bruckenthal - remembered

The majority of the members of the military, myself included, did not serve with the intention of having our names plastered all over the news in the event of our death while serving.

That being said, the families and loved ones of those who have served do remember them and as far as I'm concerned that is what is important.

Generally speaking shipmates and fellow service members also remember fallen heroes.

One of the first things I had to do while I was on active duty, was to stand in formation at a fellow Coasties funeral at Arlington. He was killed in action overseas and I clearly remember watching his family stand beside his final resting place, among other simple white markers.

Whitney Houston was a celebrity and part of that is being remembered by the greater populace. She was a talented musician much the same as Morrison, Presley or Hendrix.

People are capable of both honoring fallen veterans and mourning talented musicians.

Whitney Houston - remembered

I just read the news today

I've often found myself taken aback by the completely irrelevant headlines in the news.

The media in this country is always cuing into the wrong stories and often puts a dishonest sensational spin on otherwise legitimate events. I generally find myself getting news from the internet and doing plenty of research on any particular subject before I commit to an opinion.

However, the point remains, I think that the media is generally focused on less-than-important stories.

This weekend Whitney Houston passed away and naturally the stories started to flow. Similar to the passing of any major celebrity, word got around and headlines were made. She was a talented artist and an influential human being who left a mark upon the world. People like that get headlines when they pass away; I think that's actually part of being a celebrity.

Today, amidst the slew of headlines, some people started to complain (similar to when other celebrities have passed away), that we shouldn't be concerned about her death. These same people would say that there is other stuff going on in the world (i.e. soldiers getting killed overseas) and that the news should focus on that.

It's funny, I read the stories (not all, but a lot of them) whenever service members are killed overseas. They don't always make the big headlines, but they are generally reported. I also happen to think that it was a tragedy that Whitney Houston died at such a young age.

I find it possible to take interest in/ feel sorry for the soldiers that are killed in action, while still being concerned that Whitney Houston passed away and I'm sure that I am not unique in this ability.

I also find it amusing that the same people/ agencies that rally against concern for the death of Whitney Houston (similar to Michael Jackson and Amy Whinehouse) take plenty of time to report the latest sports scores and talk about the greatest Super Bowl Commercials.

Where was the outrage when the Super Bowl occupied all of the headlines and news-feeds?

Hell, theres a Super Bowl every year, but I guess that's different.

#%$& CENSORED!

Earlier today we were driving along and Eminem was playing on the radio.

I'll be the first to admit that he is a pretty talented musician and a brilliant lyricist; however, it is very difficult to listen to his music on the radio.

I say this not out of dis-like for his songs, but more for the brutal bleeps and skips installed by the ever-caring FCC. Once it was pointed out, I couldn't help but think that some of my nearly twenty-year-old CD's sound better.

Having grown up in a relatively hands-off family, censorship was never really enforced for me as a child; as a result, Rambo: First Blood was one of the first movies I can remember seeing. Not that I'm complaining, but I am pretty sure that most would consider this an inappropriate movie for toddlers to watch.

However, life being as it was, I watched more than my fair share of ultra-violent movies, saw a good bunch of naked people and listened to plenty of profane music growing up. As a small aside, I think I've turned out to be a relatively productive member of society.

So, considering my own personal history with censorship, I am completely opposed to any and all government-enforced censorship. That includes censorship of movies, music, books, news and ideas.

I am of the opinion that telling people they aren't allowed to see or hear something will only increase their curiosity for said sight or sound.

I personally have no problem with nudity and as a sailor have an ear very desensitized to foul language. Personally, I take more issue with violence than I do with either of the other two primary censored categories, but all the same feel that it should not be something that the government controls.

If my kids want to listen to Eminem on the radio, what is the benefit of editing out every other word from the song?

Is someone under the false impression that they aren't going to look up the lyrics as soon as they find a computer?