Andrew Olmsted: Frater, Ave atque Vale

BLOGGER ANDREW OLMSTED has died in Iraq. (Via Blackfive and Obsidian Wings). He left a last post for publication in this event; he also expressly indicated that his death should not be politicised in any way, so keep that in mind regarding your comments whether here or at Obsidian Wings. Here’s his blog, always worth reading. [update: blog down at the moment; Obsidian Wings has excerpts]

update 2: “Why Go to Iraq?” (Andrew Olmsted in the Rocky Mountain News)

About Andrew Olmsted:

Fort Carson-based Army Major Andrew Olmsted was blogging from the war in Iraq, where his mission was to teach members of the Iraqi Army how to defend their country and provide security for their people. Major Olmsted was a veteran blogger and he was determined to make a difference in Iraq. “The sooner the Iraqi government doesn’t need U.S. support to provide security for its people, the sooner we will probably be asked to leave.”

update 3: Tim Blair farewells Major Olmsted.

spot_the_dog

Use the Force, Luke!

On the other hand, there’s this.

So the spirit of defiant freedom isn’t entirely dead.

(again, Instapundit, which I won’t link, because if you haven’t bookmarked him, you should.)

1984 Anyone?

We are asked to keep an eye on this British blog, because the author has been threatened with arrest for possibly violating Britain’s “incitement of religious and racial hatred” laws. Folks, if things keep going as they are, it could happen right here in the US.

Personally, I think a law banning “religious and racial hatred”, while no doubt well-intentioned, is an extremely bad idea, and unnecessary. We already have laws against committing physical crimes against people and property, and when they’re properly enforced, that should be enough. Even freedom of speech, one of our most sacred tenets, has limits set on it (falsely yelling “fire” in a crowded theater is the example always brought up, but it means not inciting violence against people because of religion, race, etc.). But freedom of speech also means freedom of thought, and if you want to be a religious bigot or a racist asshole in the privacy of your head, that’s your right, no matter how little I might think of you for it. Enforcing laws against hatred is the same as enforcing laws against freedom of thought, the very step needed to create a totalitarian society.

Unfortunately, Britain appears to be already far down that road, with Canada not far behind. We in the US (and with the help of the Anglosphere) should be vigilant and militant, to make sure that doesn’t happen here.

(h/t Instapundit and The Gates of Vienna).

Chairman Rudd

1984… or 2008?

I’m sure we’ve all seen this, but it’s cool.

Greetings from “The Beef of God”

First of all, I want to thank Tizona, the Sword of El Cid, for inviting me aboard.

The story of my handle, Angus Dei, is a humorous one.  I used to date a woman who was a Minister of Music, and her best friend was also a female music minister who was a laugh riot to be around.  Very smart, but so absent minded because of her preoccupations that she appeared to all the world to be a scatterbrained airhead.  Anyway, said absent minded music minister was always in a rush because she was a world class procrastinator, and one of her weekly chores was getting the Church services printed out.

One week she rushed one in to the Pastor that had Agnus Dei misspelled as Angus Dei.  The Pastor returned it to her, and had the mistake circled in red, with the instructions, “Agnus Dei, not Angus Dei: Lamb of God, not Beef!”  It was one of those times I laughed so hard my ribs hurt, and for days afterward whenever I’d think of it I’d lose it.

Kind of like after the first time I saw… The Onion Moon Landing!