Navigation? There is a "Home" button and an "Up" button on every page. The Home
button will take you back to the front of the site, the page before this one.
The Up button will always take you up or back one page to the previous page you
were viewing.
I have left "A Few Quotes" as the first page in the site. All the rest of the
pages are arranged in reverse chronological order, with the newest pages
immediately following the "A Few Quotes" page. Okay? - The exception is ancient
history - last spring (2009) when I had some pages in vertical "tree" format.
If you agree with my rantings, read and enjoy your visit. If you do not, good
bye and have a nice day.

The "Gadsden Flag", designed by Colonel Christopher Gadsden, was the first flag of the U. S. Navy during the Revolutionary War. The choice of a rattlesnake was influenced by earlier use of the rattlesnake symbol by Benjamin Franklin who felt that it was appropriate for many reasons:
It is unique to America.
It appears extremely vigilant.
It feeds on the vermin that steal from the hard-working farmer's harvest.
It never initiates an attack except when provoked.
It always warns before attacking.
It never surrenders after attacking.
I have been told that displaying this flag marks me as a violent right-wing militia extremist. Not Guilty. The Wikipedia article on the Gadsden Flag tells the story fairly accurately: of its first use by the American Military, before the Stars and Stripes flag was designed; and its present use by U S Military units subsequent to 9/11.