The team had received an important assignment and many thought that somebody should do it.

Somebody else could aslo do it, but nobody did.

Somebody got pissed because it was really the job of many.

Many now considered that somebody else should have started, but nobody understood that many actually should have had.

It ended up like this; many blamed somebody else, when in fact nobody could blame someone.

 Andrea and Joshua (2 of my Children) are a trip. It never fails. Whenever I break out a Little Debbie snack cake, not just any Little Debbie, but the little ones with the chocolate cakes held together by chocolate fudge icing covered by milk chocolate – that’s right, that’s the one. When they hear the sound of that plastic wrap crinkling…they know and they come running! They want a bite of the good stuff that dad has.

Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession. – James 1:17-18 NLT

I like that! “Whatever is good”, “whatever is perfect” comes from the Father! The Father has the good stuff – truth, love and hope. He wants us to have these things in abundance. I always have those Little Debbie in the fridge, they just taste better that way, so the crinkling plastic wrap is always the same – a chocolate covered Little Debbie. The children know what they are going to get – the best that I have to offer. Not much chance of that changing. Not much chance of my children being anything less than my prized possessions either. So we learn from God and about God that in the vastness of time and space, out of all creation, we are important to God and that He loves us enough to save the good stuff for us - Hope, life and love.
 

This week, we heard 24 cadets at the Air Force Academy received the first wings awarded in the institution's history for pilots specializing in unmanned aerial systems and other remotely piloted aircraft. Seeing as how this year the Pentagon will buy more unmanned aircraft than manned, we thought it quite significant that the first class of undergrads had hit this milestone, but—geeks that we are—what really piqued our interests were the unique wings themselves.

It turns out that new UAV pilots do have their own insignia, which was approved and handed out to pilots completing non-undergraduate training in unmanned aerial systems late last year (Note: for the cadets honored Tuesday, receiving their "wings" is more a turn of phrase; they still have some training to complete should they choose to pursue the same distinction as the actual Predator and Reaper pilots).

Staff Sgt. Austin May: The designer of the new UAV wings  USAF

Designed

by Staff Sgt. Austin May of the 100th Air Refueling Wing, the UAV occupational badge is meant to convey the same airborne-oriented aesthetic as the traditional Air Force Pilot badge (see below) while symbolizing the unique role unmanned aircraft have taken in America's surveillance and strike capability.

The actual wings are similar to those on the standard Air Force Pilot badge to signify that, while remotely piloted, UAVs are still planes in the air, subject to the same laws of physics and principles of flight as piloted aircraft. But the shield is wholly unique. Its shape mirrors that of the traditional design, but the insignia within is specific to the remotely-piloted aircraft mission.

The globe represents the world in which Airmen operate and the global reach of American air power, a reach facilitated by the unmanned aircraft. The rays of light symbolize both the dawn of a new age of aviation as well as the UAV's ability to shed light on far-flung corners of the planet. And the lightning bolt? It's just a reminder that though the primary objective of many unmanned missions is surveillance and reconnaissance, remotely piloted aircraft reserve the capability to rain down some fire (specifically Hellfire) if needs be.

As for Staff Sgt. May, his artistic talents aren't limited to occupational badges. For those of you who dig military humor, his "Air Force Blues" comic strip is updated weekly.