Random Thoughts with a Smith-Corona

The Great Sin .S. Lewis called it The Great Sin. Thomas Aquinas and Augustine called it the essence of all sin. It holds first place among the Seven Deadly Sins. The Bible suggests it was the cause of Lucifer’s fall from heaven. It also led to the fall of mankind. And all of us suffer from it in some measure, whether we know it or not. “According to Christian teachers, the essential vice, the utmost evil, is pride. Unchastity, anger, greed, drunkenness, and all that, are mere fleabites in comparison: it was through pride that the devil became the devil: pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind….it is pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began.” 1 Lewis tells us that pride is “essentially competitive—is competitive by its very nature—while the other vices are only competitive, so to speak, by accident. Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only having more of it t...

A Letter From The Special Forces Community Concerning The Second Amendment Jan 29 2013 07:52 PM | HMFIC in  Articles asmdss   special   forces   sof   2nd amendment   assault weapon   gun control   constitution   bill of rights After a getting a "WARNO" previously, ASMDSS and  Stolen Valor  received this letter from members of the SOF community on their concerns for America and the Second Amendment. This letter was signed by over 1100 members of the SOF community, of which the names will not be published as this is Active and Retired members. Whether you agree with it or not, it is well worth the read. 29 Jan 2013 Protecting the Second Amendment – Why all Americans Should Be Concerned We are current or former Army Reserve, National Guard, and active duty US Army Special Forces soldiers (Green Berets). We have all taken an oath to “…support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemie...

I don’t remember if it was close to Veterans Day, but it was cool and the leaves lined the streets in West Point, Georgia, waiting for the street sweepers to come along and sweep them up.  As was usual for this 9 year old boy back in 1967, I departed the house for a 15 minute trip down the street to visit one of my friends. As I got close to his house, I saw the line of cars parked along the street, among them an Army staff car and folks going in and out of the house. I walked on over to my friend’s house, but he wasn’t there, and turned around and walked home, slowly observing the scene as I walked back by the house that was the center of all the activity.  I wondered why some of the people coming out looked like they had been crying, so when I got home I asked my mom.  Mom didn’t know, but the next day I found out that one of the young men that grew up in West Point had been killed in the Vietnam War.  I didn’t cry about it, but to this day whenever the lea...

I think it was Garth Brooks who once had a song in it where the words were "some of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers".   As a young man, I grew up wanting to be a fighter pilot in the Navy or the Air Force (I wasn't picky).  I felt as though God did not answer those prayers, because the Air Force turned me down because of my eyesight, and the Navy accepted me into the Naval Flight Officer Program, but because I didn't want to ride in the backseat, I declined the offer. I was able to successfully get a job at Eastern Airlines, but that was not piloting a 727, but a Ford F 350 Lavatory Truck.   While that job did pay for college and my flying lessons, I should note that it was not the ideal job for one to use to obtain the prerequisite flying job. Many years later, upon finishing law school, I met my flying mentor, Bill Baldwin, a member of the Commemorative Air Force in Peachtree City, Georgia.  Bill introduced me to the PT26 Cornell,...

The process of a trial is unknown to a great many of my first time clients.  Most clients only know courtroom legal procedures from watching "Law and Order" on TV.  Most of the TV shows will get some of the terminology right, but other than that, it's pure Hollywood.  In Georgia, the following procedures are very likely to occur in most situations.  I hope this is informative for you.  Once again, this is not to be construed as legal advice, unless you and I have entered into a contract for representation.  How Most People View Court Pretrial Procedures There are a number of things that can happen to a criminal case. It can be dismissed by the prosecutor, you can enter a pretrial intervention program, you can plead guilty, or the case can go to trial. Under certain circumstances your attorney may be able to get your case dismissed via a nolle prosse or dead docket. If you're convicted following a trial or if you plead...

The following information is presented as a courtesy, and I need to throw in a disclaimer that nothing in this article constitutes legal advice unless there is a written and signed agreement for representation between me and you.   The First Appearance Following an arrest, you will most probably appear at a First Appearance hearing. This is simply a formal hearing at which you will be informed of the specific charges against you, advised of your rights and where the court will set a bail.  Among the factors that a judge uses when setting bail is the severity of the crime, your contacts in the local area, your prior record, and are you likely to threaten any witnesses.  The Judge may also ask you at this point if you want to hire your own attorney of if you want the court to assign you a court appointed attorney.  The judge will set your bond and in most cases bond can be posted by a bail-bondsman, cash or property. If you elect to use the services of ba...