Received this story in an email and wanted to pass it on this July 4th.

When in England, at a fairly large conference, Colin Powell was asked by the Archbishop of Canterbury if our plans for Iraq were just an example  of empire building' by George Bush.

He answered by saying, 'Over the years, the United States has sent many of its fine young men and women into great peril to fight for freedom beyond our borders.
The only amount of land we have ever asked for in return is enough to bury those that did not return.'
   You could have heard a pin drop.

       

  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

       

       There was a conference in France where a number of

international engineers were taking part, including French

and American. During a break, one of the French engineers

came back into the room saying 'Have you heard the latest

dumb stunt Bush has done?  He has sent an aircraft

carrier to Indonesia to help the tsunami victims. What

does he intended to do, bomb them?'

        A Boeing engineer stood up and replied quietly: 'Our

carriers have three hospitals on board that can treat several

hundred people; they are nuclear powered and can supply

emergency electrical power to shore facilities; they

have three cafeterias with the capacity to feed 3,000

people three meals a day, they can produce several

thousand gallons of fresh water from sea water each

day, and they carry half a dozen helicopters for use in

transporting victims and injured to and from their flight

deck. We have eleven such ships; how many does

France have?'

       

   You could have heard a pin drop.

       

  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

       

       A U.S. Navy Admiral was attending a naval conference

that included Admirals from the U.S., English, Canadian,

Australian and French Navies. At a cocktail reception,

he found himself standing with a large group of Officers

that included personnel from most of those countries.

         Everyone was chatting away in English as they sipped

their drinks but a French admiral suddenly complained that,

whereas Europeans learn many languages, Americans learn

only English.' He then asked, 'Why is it that we always have

to speak English in these conferences rather than speaking

French?'

        Without hesitating, the American Admiral replied 'Maybe

it's because the Brits, Canadians, Aussies and Americans

arranged it so you wouldn't have to speak German.'

       

        You could have heard a pin drop.

       

  

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

       

           AND THIS STORY FITS RIGHT IN WITH THE ABOVE…

       

         Robert Whiting, an elderly gentleman of 83, arrived in

Paris by plane.  At French Customs, he took a few minutes to locate his

passport in his carry on.

        'You have been to France before, monsieur?' the customs officer

asked sarcastically.

        Mr.. Whiting admitted that he had been to France

previously

        ' Then you should know enough to have your passport ready.'

    The American said,  "The last time I was here, I didn't have to show it.

    'Impossible. Americans always have to show your passports

on arrival in France!'

        The American senior gave the Frenchman a long hard

look. Then he quietly explained, "Well, when I came ashore

at Omaha Beach on D-Day in 1944 to help liberate this country,

I couldn't find a single Frenchmen to show a passport to.'

       

                            You could have heard a pin drop.

 

                             If you are proud, pass this on!

Our business in check book covers and personal checks. If you are running low on checks, you can order direct from the manufacturer at http://www.checkbookcoversflair.com , get greater choice and save money.

U.S. government bean counters along with many of the Wall Street analysts have been telling us there is no inflation. No inflation? What planet are they living on?

For the last 20-years, the U.S. Congress has played politics against it's citizens to the point where the dollar is becoming worthless. It now takes two incomes to run a home. Fuel and overhead costs are through the roof.  State property tax bandits tug at improvement we make.

The spillover of higher fuel costs is driving up the price of FedEx and nearly every commodity delivered to your store. The transportation and  airline industry is forced to ratchet up fares, the electric company needs to increase rates as well as accelerated expenditures for the cost of government. Wholesale prices are bolting higher.

The housing crisis is spreading like a cancer. Property tax rates increase while the value homes spiral downward. The working class is getting squeezed at all ends. And it is this resilient core of America that must keep it's head above water.

As John Major, British prime minister once said, "It's time to get back to basics: to self-discipline and respect for the law, to consideration for others , to accepting responsibility for yourself and your family, and not shuffling it off on the state."

The Congress can encourage responsible energy drilling in every known backyard. After the initial drill the footprint is miniscule and the social rewards are high. Until new cheap energy replaces oil as a fuel choice, all methods of exploration and experimentation need encouragement.