Comments on: 7 things that make Sun Valley better than a normal summer camp

By: Mr C. from Medford, ny

Mr C. from Medford, ny — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 01:49:51 +0000

Herb, when you are ready and serious about investing in renewable Energy that exterminates oil and gas completely write your interest in same here . you will get a reply , politic has made a whore of the issue , and the media ignores the truth of the matter , take the time to listen , I am sure youll have an intense interest .

Mr C

By: Liberty, Seattle, Wa

Liberty, Seattle, Wa — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 19:06:38 +0000

Hey Reese,

Your not alone! You are in company.

By: Reese, Wheaton IL

Reese, Wheaton IL — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 22:09:47 +0000

I haven’t been reading for the past month or so because I got laid off and without work, I don’t need to kill time at work.

But, what a delight to open my beloved Slate and see your byline. Thanks, it made my otherwise pathetic day.

By: Liberty, Seattle, Wa

Liberty, Seattle, Wa — Mon, 14 Jul 2008 20:07:24 +0000

I went to summer camp once back in High School. It was way worse than your story. I was raised in Southeast Alaska (Ketchikan). I had to go to this church camp that was on a neighboring island and you could only reach it by float plane. This place was about 4 buildings big and looked like one of those cult compounds that Dateline would have a blast busting.
My friend got sick and had to leave early. Guess who came up with a BS line so that she could leave early too? Something about being her best friend, blah, blah, blah!
Yes, 16 years later I still enjoy making my mother feel extremely guilty in making me attend this cult like summer camp.
Oh yeah, you were not allowed to use the bathroom (seperate building) at night due to black bears wondering around the compound and instead they provided a bucket and a small closet.

By: Ivan, Washington, DC

Ivan, Washington, DC — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 03:38:32 +0000

1. Travelling to camp was usually done at government expense with orders and a duffle bag. Sometimes we flew with weapons but rarely.

2. We slept in tents with little trenches around them so that if the rain came down, most of it would be diverted around your sleeping bag on the ground, only to roll into the guy’s tent that was below yours. We tried to exercise light discipline at night because unnessary light tended to attraction the attention of the unwanted locals.

3. Barracks were unisex, although that didn’t always stop the fraternization. As a general rule, this was rare though. But several weeks without sighting any new females will give you a new-found appreciate for the babes that have been assigned to your unit.

4. We too were forced to hike up hill and dale and engage in a wide number of felonious activities. But then our unit’s unofficial motto was “Rape, maim, kill and plunder.” Bugs were involved but they were more an annoyance.

5. Nutrition can be summed up as two elements: MRE’s and cat holes. Be prepared for the high-carb, high-protein diet of an MRE (although stay away from the pork patties). These will plug you up quickly. When you go take care of business, don’t forget to bring a buddy to keep watch. And, for gawd’s sake, keep as much of the TP as possible from your MRE packet.

6. Once you got to camp there were limited ways to communicate with family back home, but most involved either writing letters or bribing someone at battalion. I never had to deal with “imbedded” reporters though. (Camping in the 1980’s was so much more civilized.)

7. I was homesick much of the time too, except when we would get to go out and exercise the weapons and do attack/defense drills or harass the local populace.

8. I can only imagine what it’s like for our poor boys in Iraq and Afghanistan. My main advice: find some real fruits and vegetables to supplement your MRE’s otherwise your in for a lifetime of hemmorhoids. And make some friends! The locals don’t like it when you only come to shoot at’em but don’t spend any money. A few bucks spent on the local economy goes a lot farther than kicking in somebody’s door.

By: Bob Shelby Twp. Mi.

Bob Shelby Twp. Mi. — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 20:34:05 +0000

Sounds to me like the “FREE LUNCH SYNDROME”; increasingly becoming more verboten.

All the perks that go with the “free lunch” are intended to get the recipient baited to the point of “GOTCHA” by the corporate sponsors to erase “NO” from corporate dialogue.

The “free lunch” can be as addictive as “crack cocaine”. Once you’ve been had, you’re transformed to a “CORPORATE COOLIE”.

“SUZE ORMAN” is my background dialogue while submitting this “BLOG”.