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Joe

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  1. Well Christian brainwashing certainly worked on me for way too long. I grew up in the wilds of Eastern Nevada. We learned all about sex in the locker room and the pool hall, and about how horribly evil it all was on Sunday. Wouldn't it have been wonderful if Christianity could have seen sex as an integral part of love?

  2. I would certainly agree that Midway was a decisive and crushing defeat for the Japanese Navy. As a disciple of Mahan, I would maintain that this was a strategic defeat comparable, in many contemporary ways, to Trafalgar.

    I remain unconvinced of the decisive nature of Guadalcanal.

    Imperial Japan, as with some contemporary powers, was full of bluster, efficiency, and dash; but she had no depth. There's an iconic photograph that demonstrates this. A Zero fighter is being moved on a field harnessed to a water buffalo.

  3. The huge grey owl was perched easily on the patio table and regarded the teenager with great yellow eyes.

    Hi. I'm Cameron. I'm a familiar.

    The teen stared as he heard this greeting without ears, in his mind.

    Do you even know what a familiar is? If you know anything about witchcraft and familiars, you might have thought of Pyewacket from Bell, Book, and Candle, or maybe Wizard Justyn's tatterdemalion black cat from Owlflight....

    And of course, familiars can move in a variety of ways that aren't strictly commonplace....Prince Rupert's dog Boye, was a ferocious familiar; they were scared of him because he fought so bravely alongside Prince Rupert in many battles. They tried to shoot him with a silver bullet, but their aim was off. No surprise there, nothing but a great lot of ill bred revolutionaries and stumble bum republicans they were....

    I think you understand that something eldritch is taking place here; and I also think that you're beginning to relax just a little, so I'm going to let you have more freedom of movement; but believe me when I tell you that you have to listen to what I'm about to tell you, and as I suspect you now know, you will listen. Why don't you go into the kitchen and get us some cold drinks. I'd like a root beer in a nice bowl, if you please....

    [This story is just beginning, I've two chapters so far. I would love to have an editor if this strikes anyone's fancy.]

  4. Meaning no disrespect. And as a veteran, I certainly do not undervalue the courage and sacrifice of the soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen involved in this battle. But we sometimes undervalue the contribution of others. I would suggest that the best part of the German Army was destroyed on the Eastern Front. In like vein, I would suggest that the best part of the Japanese Imperial Army was in a hopeless quagmire in China, where it was thoroughly chewed-up and stumbled home in ignominious defeat after the surrender.

    The strategic loss to Japan at Guadalcanal was great, particularly the loss of the initiative. But the material loss was not decisive, and was approximately equivalent to the allied loss at Bataan and Singapore. Possibly a little less.

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