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IN MEMORIUM: VIETNAM VETERAN BOB "SCOTTY" SCOTT 07.18.04
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Scotty was the best! A warrior. He was wounded so badly that he was left for dead, only to be eventually found, helicoptered to Phu Bai, then to Bien Hoa, Japan; and finally to Letterman Army Medical Center where he remained for more than two years.
Slight of body but big of heart, he was the linchpin for the A Company Reunions over the years. Most of us can still see Scotty: telling war stories, laughing, talking about his living on borrowed time. We still joke about a certain former 3 star general who tried to enlist Scotty as his aide.
Scotty will be missed. He was a devoted husband and his son Shawn was the light of his life. Shawn accompanied Scotty to the 101st Airborne reunion just a few months ago and recently graduated from the University of Washington.
Angelo Patri said, "In one sense, there is no death. The life of a soul on earth lasts beyond his departure. You will always feel that life touching yours, that voice speaking to you, that spirit looking out of other eyes, talking to you in the familiar things he touched, worked with, loved as familiar friends. He lives on in your life and in the lives of all others that knew him."
Airborne Scotty. The green light came on and you exited, soared, made a perfect PLF and fell into one of Doc Smith's big bear hugs. Scotty, we'll miss you. Members of 1/501 Airborne Infantry Battalion
Point Man
Point Man, point man, hump real fast.
Enjoy each breath, it may be the last.
Point Man, Point man, danger spot.
Crazy when it's peaceful, dead when it's not.
Hai Lang, Hai Lang, nightmare town.
Enemy is in there, don't make a sound.
Hai Lang, Hai Lang, lair of hate,
Foe's fortified, he lies in wait.
Gabriel, Gabriel, blow man blow.
Point Man cometh, let him know.
Gabriel, Gabriel, horn blares away.
Let him know what stands in the way.
May-Day, May-Day, a natural desire.
He dives for cover. THE FOE OPENS FIRE.
May-Day, May-Day, devil's invitation.
Point man escapes for a brief duration.
Victory, Victory, point man performed.
Five enemy captured, he's informed.
Victory, victory a few got away.
Point man's instincts saved him today
Point man, point man, goin' sane.
Don't see the glory, do feel the pain.
Point man, point man, what can you do?
Drink lots of whiskey, slurp lots of brew.
Phil Woodall
Personal Comments from Phil Woodall:
I remember the day Scotty got hit so well in 8 click. He was hit so bad. I remember the night that we got Scotty & Balda together for the first time. Balda went into the pagoda and rescued Scottie. Jesus what a day but I am proud. Scottie survived. I would have never believed except 25 years later the night we got Scottie & Balda together amazing.
In Memorium:
Sergeant Bob Scott
Vietnam Class of 68, 69
A Company
1/501 Airborne Infantry Battalion
2d Bde
101st Airborne Division.
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FREE MARTHA, FREE MARTHA BY KELLY THOMAS (MARCH 2004)
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I think Martha got a bum deal. I put immediate blame on her sorry lawyers. They put up no defense to amount to anything.
What were they thinking? What was Martha thinking?
One lawyer was her son-in-law. She should have talked to my brother-his philosophy: never do business with family, friends, and Christians.
Martha has possibly been stupid twice. First of all, did she violate investment rules? I think probably so. Should she have been brought to trial in light of how lame other prosecutions have been for far greater transgressions? I think not.
In a sense, it might have been a little arrogance that led her to be so dumb. I would think she was too smart to simply listen to her lawyers. No telling what she paid them. Regardless, they should give it back. I would have gone at it aggressively--testify, call the witnesses liars, gone after the prosecution.
One of the charges: amazing. Martha was charged for denying she used insider info. Get this. "Martha, did you us insider info?" "No!" OK says the prosecution, you lied, we are charging you. In other words, for denying you did something, you are prosecuted. Great. Welcome to America.
You can never trust the government. The examples are everywhere. The prosecutors have everything on their side. They lie, they do anything to get people to tell them things and then hold it against them. Think of cases like Jon Benet Ramsay: the Ramsays, guilty or not, immediately hired a lawyer, aggressively fought. They are still walking around.
Get this, the jurors are making the rounds of all the talk shows. They ought to be prosecuted. In this celebrity and media driven culture, to have the jury out touting how great and correct they are and justifying their decision is profane to say the least. They ought to be ashamed. Where is Ken Lay and many others who costs millions of jobs; people lost pensions--they have not even been prosecuted! Give me a break!
Martha has a few faults, come on! But, what is this hate of Martha. I tell you what I think it is: she is close to perfect in all she does, seen mostly by those of us who watch her on TV. I use to flip to her program and shake my head. She had these great kitchens, everything she did was to perfection. She even made dirt look attractive.
I was always fascinated with her hair. It looked like she just fell out of bed. My wife claimed that it was made to appear exactly as it did. I think the wife is right. And, let's face it, she can make a great souffle, she could do everything perfect. And, let's face it, most of us are so f..... up that we can't stand perfection.
I tell you what I'm going to do immediately is invest a little in Martha's Company, she will be back. God bless Martha.
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KELLY THOMAS PERSPECTIVE ON
MARLON BRANDO |
 Apocalypse Now, his girth was astounding. Wow, what a difference in the slim and trim Marlon Brandon of On the Waterfront.
My favorite movie of Brando's was
Sayonara. I think it remains one of his very best and one super movie with a social message. It was the world of the Geisha immediately after WW 11 and during the Korean War. Called Ace, Brando, emboldened the brooding military man, caught up in the politics of war and the times. It is mainly the story of forbidden loves that are improbable but happen. It is essentially love stories set amidst the background of early discrimination and prejudice between Japanese and American interests. Sad, tragic, and Brando all the way.
My favorite remembrance of Sayonara was the first meeting of the Geisha and Brando. She says something to him like, "We must now plan for when we are discovered and it is over."
What Brando embodies is that inevitable sadness of what success often brings: a weakening of the spirit, I think. As Brando embraced life and fame, his weight increased, his health suffered, and the public tragedies took a toll. In a sense, this is merely life. If only, he could have lived out his life as a movie where whatever he wanted to make happen, happen.
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| KELLY THOMAS PERSPECTIVE ON BILL CLINTON'S BOOK: MY LIFE |
At my local bookstore, there was a sign, due to the popularity of Bill Clinton's, My Life, "The demand outstrips supply." Great! For all of us who are aspiring writers, this is good news or bad, based on one's perspective. What does Bill Clinton have to say that we don't already know? The transcripts from the impeachment trial would be far better I would think. Presidential Memoirs from what I read are seldom any good. The best, according to many, (I haven't read it.) is Grant's, but gee whiz, his was reported to be ghosted (written) by Mark Twain.
For me, seeing how Bill gets back at Ken Starr is almost worth reading. During the Republican "get Bill" debacle, I often thought that the one who should be impeached was Ken Starr. Putting us through the intricacies of the Bill and Monica dalliances were tantamount to being burned at the stake. Here we were getting poked in the eye with a stick and we were paying big bucks to the guy wielding the stick. We are crazy. Starr always reminded me of a sadistic "Howdy Doody."
I've always thought about presidents in general: thousands could do a better job as president than the elected "holders" or certainly just as good. So, in a sense, what is it now about Bill that we need to know? A more cogent question is why would Americans buy this book? I guess the same reasons that thousands want to be on those absurd and embarrassing TV reality shows and call into Dr. Laura to be insulted or appear live on Dr. Phil to air their private troubles in a public forum. So, why should anybody be surprised that Bill's book is flying off the shelf. In California, we have more writers than readers, dumbing us down constantly.
Based on the excerpts I've read, it's not all that bad and pretty much what I expected. He got 10 million for writing the book: 956 pages. UnChristianlike, I think. I hope that Knopf takes a bath. Knopf made the decision to give Bill 10 million strictly for financial reasons when they wouldn't give most writers, ten times better and more interesting than Clinton, the time of day. The noise you hear is me slapping myself for being such a cad. Knopf won't take a loss, so don't worry.
The book didn't get much help from some quarters, however. A NY Times reviewer was pretty scathing, "the book, which weighs in at more than 950 pages, is sloppy, sel- indulgent and often eye-crossingly dull-the sound of one man's prattling away, not for the reader, but for himself and some distant recording angel of history. "Well, don't guess he liked it. Then, he really pulls out the "hatchet," "the book is a mirror of Mr. Clinton's presidency: lack of discipline leading to squandered opportunities; high expectations, undermined by self-indulgence and scattered concentration."
USA TODAY had a big spread on other president's memoirs; you think Bill's was long until you realize that Grant's was 1199 pages; Truman, 1190; Nixon, 1136; Jimmy Carter had four memoirs actually. Bill's is 957 pages.
I've been reading excerpts from the book, doubt I'll get it. After watching Bill on Sixty Minutes, My wife, ever the good Democrat, mused: "What is this with Clinton talking about his childhood as being the reason he was so messed up; all of us from the South come from dysfunctional families and we eat grits and collard greens. So What!
When "his life" was going on, I felt Bill should resign and he would had he been an honorable man. An aside: One thing I wondered about; however, did Bill ever say sorry to Monica? He should? An honorable man would, but we are talking Bill here. What would Hillary think? In retrospect, I'm kind of glad Bill didn't resign as Gingrich and fellow congressional hypocrites would have crowed about it.
And Bill's presidency doesn't look all that bad now that we are in the Iraqi mess. To his credit, he didn't bad mouth George W. nor did he dodge the Monica thing, but he wasn't very forceful either. It was only sex even if somehow he claimed it wasn't-still, just how much did it interfere? Not nearly as much as the theatre that followed. Bill said that by the time he finished the book, he had spent so much time on the writing, he was barely making minimum wage. Good quip Bill. We don't ever want to think you possibly have nothing to say.
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