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ZeFlyingSquirrel
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Name: Jeff
Gender: Male
Interests: piano, clarinet, martial arts-tricking, forms, sparring, the works. including nhb, xma, xpt, all that good stuff...
Expertise: uhh... karate? clarinet? yeah... that's about it... not very skilled person... wait. piano counts too
Occupation: Student
Industry: Entertainment
Message: message me
AIM:  Zeflyingsquirrel
AIM:  TkdmasterJeff
ICQ:  255683359
Yahoo:  TkdmasterJeff
Member Since:
12/24/2003
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| Navy SEAL falls on grenade to save comrades
Monsoor was only the second member of force to be killed in Iraq
Updated: 6:32 a.m. PT Oct 14, 2006
CORONADO, Calif. - A Navy SEAL sacrificed his life to save his comrades
by throwing himself on top of a grenade Iraqi insurgents tossed into
their sniper hideout, fellow members of the elite force said.
Petty Officer 2nd Class Michael A. Monsoor had been near the only door
to the rooftop structure Sept. 29 when the grenade hit him in the chest
and bounced to the floor, said four SEALs who spoke to The Associated
Press this week on condition of anonymity because their work requires
their identities to remain secret.
“He never took his eye off the grenade, his only movement was down
toward it,” said a 28-year-old lieutenant who sustained shrapnel wounds
to both legs that day. “He undoubtedly saved mine and the other SEALs’
lives, and we owe him.”
Monsoor, a 25-year-old gunner, was killed in the explosion in Ramadi,
west of Baghdad. He was only the second SEAL to die in Iraq since the
war began.
Two SEALs next to Monsoor were injured; another who was 10 to 15 feet
from the blast was unhurt. The four had been working with Iraqi
soldiers providing sniper security while U.S. and Iraqi forces
conducted missions in the area.
Fondly remembered
In an interview at the SEALs’ West Coast headquarters in Coronado, four
members of the special force remembered “Mikey” as a loyal friend and a
quiet, dedicated professional.
“He was just a fun-loving guy,” said a 26-year-old petty officer 2nd
class who went through the grueling 29-week SEAL training with Monsoor.
“Always got something funny to say, always got a little mischievous
look on his face.”
Other SEALS described the Garden Grove, Calif., native as a modest and
humble man who drew strength from his family and his faith. His father
and brother are former Marines, said a 31-year-old petty officer 2nd
class.
Courage under fire
Prior to his death, Monsoor had already demonstrated courage under
fire. He has been posthumously awarded the Silver Star for his actions
May 9 in Ramadi, when he and another SEAL pulled a team member shot in
the leg to safety while bullets pinged off the ground around them.
Monsoor’s funeral was held Thursday at Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery
in San Diego. He has also been submitted for an award for his actions
the day he died.
The first Navy SEAL to die in Iraq was Petty Officer 2nd Class Marc A.
Lee, 28, who was killed Aug. 2 in a firefight while on patrol against
insurgents in Ramadi. Navy spokesman Lt. Taylor Clark said the low
number of deaths among SEALs in Iraq is a testament to their training.
Sixteen SEALs have been killed in Afghanistan. Eleven of them died in
June 2005 when a helicopter was shot down near the Pakistan border
while ferrying reinforcements for troops pursuing al-Qaida militants.
There are about 2,300 of the elite fighters, based in Coronado and Little Creek, Va.
The Navy is trying to boost that number by 500 — a challenge
considering more than 75 percent of candidates drop out of training,
notorious for “Hell Week,” a five-day stint of continual drills by the
ocean broken by only four hours sleep total. Monsoor made it through
training on his second attempt.
© 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
wow... that's intense loyalty to friends... if i had to die i'd wish for it to be something like that.
in similar to military news, we did extremely well at cupertino =) the really scary thing was the saluting judge, who i learned later was a marine. i was saluting and i was like "uhh.. that's not the tino drum major...". anyway. we did well. great job guys!
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| it's a weird thing that there seems to be a lack of intelligent conversation as progress through generations. is it that odd in my class and the younger classes to talk to someone about what you're feeling, why you're feeling them, and how to fix it? i've found myself talking to this year's and last year's seniors a lot about pretty much anything, and it's been a lot of fun just talking and learning more. but it seems nowadays whenever people seriously "talk" about something they're just complaining about something or someone... aka "i can't believe this person did that... i dont' understand why we have to do this... this person/thing is dumb, etc." sure its nice to vent and all, but it really doesn't do anyone good to spread all of that negative feeling around. now to confirm that i belong with the latter of the two groups i'll state that i don't understand why people do that: has it become cool to bash other people? does it boost one's self esteem? most of the time it doesn't.
recently i've been talking to a lot of the band staff members just individually about problems within their section, stresses we're dealing with, and surprisingly its been a lot of fun (or at least enlightening) just because we're stating facts and helping each other figure things out.
conversely, i've talked to other people who just kept blaming adam and dan and other staff members for all the chaos that's been going on. (i won't elaborate on that). and really it doesn't get you anywhere, you're still pissed (if not more) at the person and nothing's being done about it.
as much as i tried to keep this unbiased it kind of steered toward my point at the end. whatever.
g'nite, i have a ushap test tomorrow. whee!
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| so maybe this is a little late but whatever. so friday marked the end of a huge portion of my life, it was alex's last day at karate. it's going to be so weird to go over and teach and have him not be there; we've been training/teaching together for about 9 years. it's also weird in the sense that i have to step up to where he was and take charge of the classes. sure we're getting a new instructor and all, but that leaves me as the last old school mv black belt (that started as a student there). well even if you don't read blogs or myspaces or whatevers, best of luck to you alex, and i'll see you whenever you decide to visit us.
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| So yeah... its the second week of school and i'm dying. this sucks.
i haven't updated in a while, i guess this warrants an update, not that anyone reads it.
yay long entry!
survey first
--Goth--
Do you wear black eyeliner?: ... no
How much black clothing do you own?: eh... not that much, 3-4 shirts?
Do you think about death often?: eh... kinda but not in that way
Do you want to die?: nah i have too much to do
Are you a social outcast?: nah
Are you pale?: nope
Do
you cut?: nope
Do you like Hot Topic?: kinda, go stickers
--Skater Punk--
Can you skateboard?: kinda
How often do you go into Pac Sun?: eh... whenever i'm actually at a mall
What's your sneaker brand?: adidas!
Do you do stupid stuff with your friends?: nah my friends are wimps. depends which friends you speak of
Are the long skater cuts hott?: ...?
How much do you get in trouble?: i get away with stuff =)
Do you listen to the bands who are considered "posers"?: *sigh* yes
How many piercings do you have?: none
--Prep--
How
often do you say the word "like"?: i try to avoid it
Do you shop at Abercrombie and Fitch?: nope
Are the A&F models hott?: eh...
How many purses do you own?: none!
Is lipgloss a must?: uhh... not for me it isn't
How often do you wear makeup?: lets think about this one
Ever had a manicure?: uh... no
Rock music is bad, right?: wrong
Are you ever ditzy?: i'm... klutzy
Do you own high heels?: uh. no. (i'm starting to think this is a girl's survey)
Have you ever said "Oh my gosh"?: yes
Are
you a cheerleader?: nah
--Hippie--
Is your hair long?: ish. its kinda medium
Are you a vegetarian?: i'd die w/o meat
Do you own a tye dye shirt?: nar
Do you want peace?: sure
Do you want to save the animals?: depends on which ones
What do you think about the war?: it depends.
Have you ever made a peace sign with your two fingers?: yep
--Gangsta--
Are you from the ghetto?: nope
Do
you own "bling bling"?: nah
What do you think about do-rags?: ...
Do you like rap?: no. well... not the modern rap anyway
How about hip-hop?: eh... nah
Was
Tupac truly the greatest rapper in the world?: ... yes.
What do you think about afros?: eh
Have you ever said 'fo shizzle'?: nope
How about 'oh, snap son'?: nope
--Frat--
Is life a party?: most of the time
How often do you get drunk?: eh... not often
What's the point of getting drunk anyway?: i really don't know. unless you're really stressed or something. or if you have stupid friends =P
Do you care about your grades?: i don't want to but i do
Do you need attitude adjustment?: nah i'm perfect!
--Emo--
How often do you cry?: not often.
Do you have an ex?: yeah
Do
you have an acoustic guitar?: nope
Are you emotional?: emotional... i dunno. sensitive? yes.
Do you like soft music?: sure
Do people understand you?: nah.
Do you write your own songs?: occasionally
Is your hair dyed dark?: no
--Jock--
Do you play any sports?: hellz yes
How
important are they to you?: important
How important is your reputation?: extremely
Do you pick on the geeky kids?: i try to avoid it
What
do you think about football?: kinda goofy
Are you considered a bully by anyone?: hopefully not
--Geek--
Do you wear glasses?: eh no
Do you get good grades?: yep.
Are you smart?: yep
Do you use an inhaler?: no.
Do you stick pens and calculators into your shirt?: nah. i use my pockets
pockets?: yep!
Does your mom buy your clothes?: uh... no
How often are you on the computer?: a lot
Do you get picked on?: eh... generally not.
yep... so i guess i'll start with band camp/staff camp... i can't remember anything before that anyway. Staff camp was a blast, i got to know everyone a lot better and picked my awesome other cabin leaders chrispy and jimbo, yay for driving around getting almost 300 dollars worth of stuff for our cabin!
next thing chronologically has got to be band camp. We had a blast the first night there without the campers, or at least i did, getting settled and putting up decorations and just relaxing. Then the next morning the campers came and all hell broke loose =P. So basically i had a crappy week. i was basically running from one problem to the next, then to rehearsals, and didn't really get any time to rest. and... yeah everything just sucked for me. but i'm happy for all the people that had fun =) i guess the highlight for me has to be ditching the dance and just talking to tal and alex and being under the stars, and... that's about it. (wow i'm pathetic). but the music is awesome!
amazingly i'm done! then school started, marching band, calc, bio AP, wind ensemble, ushap, spanish 4, and hamlit if you don't know my schedule. it sucks and its hard.
ah well good luck to everyone!
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| "Study links teen sex, lyrics August 7, 2006 BY LINDSEY TANNER
Teens whose iPods are
full of music with raunchy, sexual lyrics start having sex sooner than
those who prefer other songs, a study found.
Whether it's hip-hop,
rap, pop or rock, much of popular music aimed at teens contains sexual
overtones. Its influence on their behavior appears to depend on how the
sex is portrayed, researchers found.
Songs depicting men as
''sex-driven studs,'' women as sex objects and with explicit references
to sex acts are more likely to trigger early sexual behavior than those
where sexual references are more veiled and relationships appear more
committed, the study found.
Teens who said they
listened to lots of music with degrading sexual messages were almost
twice as likely to start having intercourse or other sexual activities
within the following two years as were teens who listened to little or
no sexually degrading music.
Among heavy listeners,
51 percent started having sex within two years, versus 29 percent of
those who said they listened to little or no sexually degrading music.
'So common, it's accepted'
Exposure to lots of
sexually degrading music ''gives them a specific message about sex,''
said lead author Steven Martino, a researcher for Rand Corp. Boys learn
they should be relentless in pursuit of women and girls learn to view
themselves as sex objects, he said.
The study, based on interviews with 1,461 participants, appears in the August issue of Pediatrics today.
Natasha Ramsey, a
17-year-old from New Brunswick, N.J., said she sometimes listens to
sexually explicit songs because she likes the beat.
''I won't really
realize that the person is talking about having sex or raping a girl,''
she said. Even so, the message ''is being beaten into the teens'
heads,'' she said. ''We don't even really realize how much.''
''A lot of teens think
that's the way they're supposed to be, they think that's the cool thing
to do. Because it's so common, it's accepted,'' said Ramsey, a teen
editor for Sexetc.org, a teen sexual health Web site.
Benjamin Chavis, chief
executive officer of the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network, a coalition of
musicians and industry executives, said explicit music lyrics are a
cultural expression that reflects ''social and economic realities.''
''We caution rushing
to judgment that music more than any other factor is a causative
factor'' for teens initiating sex, Chavis said.
Other factors cited
Martino said the
researchers tried to account for other factors that could affect teens'
sexual behavior, including parental permissiveness, and still found
explicit lyrics had a strong influence.
However, Yvonne K.
Fulbright, a sex researcher, said factors including peer pressure,
self-esteem and home environment are probably more influential than the
research suggests.
''It's a little
dangerous to just pinpoint one thing. You have to look at everything
that's going on in a young person's life,'' she said. ''When somebody
has a healthy sense of themselves, they don't take these lyrics too
seriously.''
AP" Anyway... i saw this on chris's xanga and i guess i agree that there is a link. just re-posting because i can.
so i can't even remember what's happened since i last updated... band stuff aka drum major camp and staff camp starting, and... OH jonathan got his black belt. yes he can kick your butt now, but not mine.
ew not looking foward to school...
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