Artifacts #2: A Sign of the Times

I was first stationed stationed at RAF Upper Heyford, an air base a double handful of miles or so north of Oxford, from 1982 to 1984. In early 1984, I PCSed back to the CONUS and found myself in the antithesis of England: Nellis AFB, NV.

I missed the Midland's cool rain, soft green topography, and ancient peace. Vegas came on to me in all her brash exuberance, and I found myself pining and homesick for a place that was only my home for a couple of years.

Nellis is the home of the Red Flag exercise, and as such, routinely hosts USAF, sister service, and allied force units from across the globe. In 1985, a year or so after I left Heyford, the 20th TFW rolled into town to participate in Red Flag. I got to see some old line buddies and catch up on news. 

A tradition at the time was for visiting units to paint identifying markings on a piece of sheet metal screwed to the outside of the hangar out of which they worked for the duration of the exercise. When they left, Nellis personnel would come along, paint over the markings, and the next unit would roll in and the cycle would repeat. I was determined to save the Heyford sign, regardless of its intended transient nature. 

So, the night after the 20th packed up and left, I got off a long swing-shift at Eagle AMU and on my way out I Street gate, eased my truck up next to the hangar. I looked around for roaming SPs and saw none. So I slid out, and quickly popped out the retaining screws, threw the sign in the back, and rolled on home. 

The sign has followed me ever since. Before its current posting in my garage work space, it came back to Nellis and hung behind my desks at the 57 IS and 57 ATG, reminding me of that first tour.

Oh, and after I "liberated" the sign, I kept my eye on the unpainted piece of hangar. Sure enough, within a couple of weeks, CE had put up another piece of sheet metal. 

The new one was riveted in place.

It's My Right!

It is not unusual in the United States for special interest groups to voice their opinions in unseemly ways. In fact, it's part of how we do business and we pride ourselves on our general freedom to make asses out of ourselves in the name of whatever we think is important enough to warrant looking asinine.

Of course,  whether or not our demonstrative behavior is seen as "unseemly" is subjective. If you agree with those prancing and shouting, then you will view their actions as honorable and worthy. If not, you'll just think they are out of touch at best and fucking assholes who threaten the fabric of our democracy at worst.

Amped and Armed

So, where on this continuum does the "I love guns & coffee" crowd fit? It seems even some of those in the armed camp think their brethren may have stepped outside the reservation. A friend and comrade-in-arms from my Air Force days who also happens to live happily in not-Austin-Texas, is decidedly conservative, and who is very much on the side of open gun ownership policies passed along, with approval, this piece titled "This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things:"

http://practicaltacticalpodcast.com/starbucks/

In short, it was published on Practical Tactical Podcast, a site that provides"information, news, blog postings, and reviews about the firearms and gear industry," and takes to task those gun rights advocates who chose to promulgate frequent and repeated open carry of firearms into Starbucks coffeehouses.

The Right to be a Total Dick

The Starbuck's demonstrators are Constitutionally correct, just as the Wetsboro Baptist church is Constitutionally correct. Both are exercising their right to express their beliefs in ways that will almost certainly disturb and offend their fellow Americans. In fact, I would argue that the whole point of "God Hates Fags" signs or dragging your Mossberg 930 along for a mocha has little to do with educating the public and more to do with irritating your fellow Americans.

Furthermore, I find the idea of a weaponized culture disconcerting. A society where being armed is the norm is indicative of instability, a retrograde to a time when fear of one's fellows warranted the bearing of swords or pistols or knives or shillelaghs. Some would argue that, well, American society is unstable and more dangerous and the truly prudent go perpetually armed. That to do any less indicates a personal helplessness and acceptance of de facto victim status. I think this is just wishful thinking exacerbated by l'amour de la zombocalypse.

Ladies night out

So I suppose there are two points here: 1) as Practical Tactical restates "Just because you CAN doesn’t always  mean you SHOULD." and 2) Do we really want to live in 1870s Deadwood or modern Somalia?