Just Stop it Already

Look, I try to be as tacti-cool as the next guy.

I love our little inside jokes, the memes, and all that.

And, yes, *The Mandalorian* is an awesome series.

But.

Stop.

Just stop.

I'm sick of every company I see popping up a new patch, or sticker, or shirt with some variation of the sigil, or "This is the Way" or whatever.

You all are turning it into the "Crusader Cross" of 2020, I swear.

I have issues

Coworker last night asks if I can sharpen a knife for him.

"Sure."

Then, he hands it to me.

"Nope. I refuse." While he was trying to figure out where I was coming from, I was examining the "knife" in the loosest sense of the word, which wouldn't even pass muster as truck stop store quality.

"I can't do anything with this but throw it away. I'll bring you in a decent knife tomorrow."

Because it's not like I don't have any spares.

Another small fragment...

We did a lot of desert training. No sweat, (no pun intended) as far as I was concerned. 

Sure, most of my time doing ugly stuff was down in South America - but if the Altiplano isn't high desert, I don't know what is. Not to mention growing up in the southwest, hiking and camping and trail running and the like. Whether it was Stateside, the Middle East, or down south, dry and sandy was sort of in my blood at this point.

So, as much as they pushed the limits, the thought of getting tossed out of a helicopter for a week's survival and evasion practical in the middle of the Mojave didn't stress me like it did some of the others. 

Which is why they dropped my presumptive ass in the middle of New York City. 

A short bus ride, a long ride in a blacked-out plane, and a text message. "Your name and photo have been posted to the Homeland Security threat list and publicly disseminated. Your electronic devices have been compromised. You have 36 hours to return to the facility." Nothing more, no hints, no tools, and no support network. 

That's what I get for thinking I knew what was going on.

You had *ONE* job...

I rarely delve into politics here, but this is one of those times.

And, without taking sides or promoting my own thoughts. Just an observation.

After the 2016 campaign revelations regarding how the Democratic Party treated Bernie Sanders and engineered the Clinton nomination, you would *think* that the one goal they would have foremost in 2020 would be to make everything aboveboard and as transparent as possible. Or at least to appear as such.

Instead, I swear these days I feel like I'm watching some cheesy kid's cartoon where the villain doesn't realize they didn't even close the curtain. And they would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for those meddling kids.

I need to buy popcorn at this rate and just sit back for a few months...

Nothing quality to share...

Had a long (but good) week of work travel last week, and still mentally recovering. So right now the idea bank is overdrawn, even for short commentary.

I'll try to fix that in the next day or so.