Why did alberto gonzales DROP OUT of the U.S. Air Force Academy? (link)

[diamond14]

it seems to be 'washed over' in his biography....The USAF Academy is not easy to get into, and very few DROP OUT without a damn good reason (like they assaulted another student, or FAILED in academics, or CHEATED on their academics, etc.)....PLUS, Rice University (an expensive Private college) is NOT what you dream of when you are already at the TOP, the USAF Academy....where did a low-level military guy get the money to go to Rice U.???? And did gonzales finish his military commitments...there are EXTRA military commitments if you go to USAF Academy - it costs TONS of taxpayers money for each student at the Academy....did gonzales pull crap like bush* did? where the U.S. Military spent a MILLION DOLLARS teaching bush* to fly and he went AWOL....did gonzales fly jets too?)

any DUer's know more about this 'mystery' part of gonzales career??? anytime these bushites start adding that 'GOD' part to it, I suspect there's a LOT more to why Gonzales left the USAF Academy.....



http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29893-2004Dec27_2.html

Gonzales's Journey: From the Stands to the Heights (WP)

-snips-

Like many poor black and Hispanic students at the time, Gonzales chose the military when he graduated from MacArthur in 1973, enlisting in the Air Force. In his commencement address to the Class of 2004 at Rice, Gonzales said that if he thought he could have attended college he would not have enlisted.

He was assigned with 100 other airmen north of the Arctic Circle at Fort Yukon, Alaska, a radar station, and within two years, with the encouragement of his officers, Gonzales finally applied to a college: the U.S. Air Force Academy.

He entered in the fall of 1975, but he told the Rice graduates in his 2004 commencement that he tired of the engineering and science curriculum and became interested in politics and law. So he finally applied to Rice. "Ultimately I simply put it in God's hands by applying for a transfer to the school I once dreamed about attending as a boy," he told the graduates. "If accepted at Rice, I would leave and pursue a legal career. If denied, I would stay and fulfill my military obligations. This was my prayer."

[bobbieinok]

1. a Rice grad????....oh no, oh no.....and W's nephew too????

I just knew the school would decline when they dropped the mandatory freshman calculus and spherical geometry course....it was required of all students, whatever the major might be

[dflprincess]

2. I assume he just couldn't cut it.

It can be rough. My cousin went to the Academy and came close to dropping out, but she hung in there. I think you have the option of transferring to another school, without obligation, if you decided to do so by the end of your sophmore year (maybe sooner - don't quote me).

[merci_me]

3. What sounds backwards here?

"he tired of the engineering and science curriculum and became interested in politics and law. So he finally applied to Rice...."

He tired of engineering and science, so he thought the school for him would be Rice???

Mary

[diamond14]

4. did gonzales complete his military service???? when did he drop out???

did albert spend TWO YEARS at the US Air Force Academy and then DROP OUT???? how much did that cost US, the taxpayers????? or did albert drop out after ONE year and do something else until accepted at Rice U? There is also NO DATES for when gonzales graduated from Rice U....so we don't know if he had to make up undergraduate coursework or what?????


-snips- from WP biography.....

Gonzales chose the military when he graduated from MacArthur in 1973, enlisting in the Air Force....

He was assigned with 100 other airmen north of the Arctic Circle at Fort Yukon, Alaska, a radar station, and within two years, with the encouragement of his officers, Gonzales finally applied to a college: the U.S. Air Force Academy.

He entered the US Air Force Academy in the fall of 1975....


Gonzales entered Rice in the fall of 1977, just after turning 22

[MADem]

7. He should have been required to reimburse the government

...or at least done some reserve time -- the standard is three years for every one year of education.

They do make exceptions for 'important' people, like star atheletes--the basketball player David "The Admiral" Robinson didn't do any active duty time to speak of after spending his college years at the Naval Academy...he was off to the reserves, and then to the San Antonio Spurs to play ball. He did his reserve obligation by doing a few drills on a support ship, but mostly by doing public service and recruiting ads.

As I recall, there was a bit of a flap about that, that he didn't do his service obligation. The SECNAV personally signed off on the exception to policy, saying that he would be a great "ambassador" for the Navy. The people on active duty thought he got a way too cushy deal.

Ole Alberto must have had some juice to work that deal, or perhaps the USAF was still in drawdown mode post-Nam and could better afford to let him go without making a big deal about it--it's a stunning waste of taxpayer dollars, though, if they didn't get some sort of obligation from him after he left.

[BikeWriter]

8. Sounds like another one who got a deferment from his obligations to me.

:-(

[bobbieinok]

5. missed that!!!!! yeah, go to a school that is one of the premier science

engineering schools in the country.....oh yeah

[phusion]

6. Maybe it wasn't sadistic enough...? n/t

:evilfrown:

[Bozita]

9. I grew up with a USAF Academy guy

One of their very few All-America football players.

There was a cheating scandal. He knew about the cheating. He said nothing.

When the scandal blossomed, he was drummed out.

By then, the thought of flying was irresistable. He finished his degree at a local university.

Then he enlisted ... in the Air Force. Better yet, he earned his wings. Saw a lot of missions over VietNam.

Retired a few years ago as a colonel in charge of a USAF base in Italy. The one that had a pilot sever a cable on one of those cable cars. It made the news, bigtime.

Anyway, he passed away about two years ago. Heart attack. Died in his sleep.

RIP, Rich.

Good friend, good neighbor, good teammate, good person.

BTW, very few cadets leave voluntarily.

[diamond14]

12. yes, "very few cadets leave voluntarily"...so why did gonzales leave?

and did he complete his military duty?

and how much money does two years at the USAF Academy cost the American Taxpayer?

[NNN0LHI]

10. Maybe he was razzed about his cartoon voice over like voice and beat it?

Hey, it can happen?

Don

[SoCalDem]

11. and he's a Vinson & Elkins alumni

http://www.hardbeatnews.com/details2525.htm

snip...
Prior to serving in the White House, Gonzales served as a Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas. Before his appointment to the Texas Supreme Court in 1999, he served as Texas' 100th Secretary of State from December 2, 1997 to January 10, 1999. Among his many duties as Secretary of State, Gonzales was a senior advisor to then Governor Bush, chief elections officer, and the Governor's lead liaison on Mexico and border issues.

Prior to his appointment as Secretary of State, Gonzales was the General Counsel to Governor Bush for three years. Before joining the Governor's staff, he was a partner with the law firm of Vinson & Elkins L.L.P. in Houston, Texas, according to his bio. He joined the firm in June 1982. While in private practice, Gonzales also taught law as an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law Center.

Among his many professional and civic activities including board trustee of the Texas Bar Foundation from 1996 to 1999.

Among his many honors are the Hispanic Scholarship Fund Alumni Hall of Fame, the Good Neighbor Award from the United States-Mexico Chamber of Commerce, and the President's Awards from the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the League of United Latin American Citizens.

Gonzales is a graduate of Texas public schools, Rice University, and Harvard Law School. He served in the United States Air Force between 1973 and 1975, and attended the United States Air Force Academy between 1975 and 1977. He is married to Rebecca and is the father of three sons. – Hardbeatnews.com

[Jacobin]

13. Interesting bio. I'm sure he's against affirmative action

now that he has reaped its benefits.

[fob]

14. That last paragraph in bold is quite a stunner. What does he mean by

"If denied, I would stay and fulfill my military obligations."

So HE got to determine whether he would fulfill his service or not? And the way that's worded, since he did get his transfer to Rice (or whatever happened) that means he chose NOT to fulfill his obligations, right?

[diamond14]

15. it really does SMELL BAD !....sort of like bush* GOD-story about

FINDING GAWWWDDD at the Broadmoor Hotel in Colorado Springs, at the base of Pikes Peak.....it's the same crap bush* pushed over on the media about his own AWOL/deserter status in the military....

1975, when gonzales dropped out of the USAF Academy, the Vietnam war was still on-going....people were NOT ALLOWED to just leave if 'GOD' wanted them to....

APRIL 29, 1975

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

16. ross perot graduated from naval academy and bugged out

with no miltary service at all. it must be a texas thing.


security alert - when i opened this thread i got a warning that nytimes.com wanted to give me a cookie.

[diamond14]

17. what ross perot did is irrelavent...why did gonzales DROP OUT ?

that's the question.....WHY DID GONZALES DROP OUT of the United States Air Force Academy?


IMO, there's something going on here...it's not exactly clear, and good people want to know, before we hire this guy for the US Attorney General of the United States.....


----------------------------------------------

I've seen your 'scare' about the NYT before...it's commonly used by those trying to scare others away from the 'liberal media'....doesn't fool me....

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

18. wtf are you talking about?

i mentioned ross perot as an anecdote and i said it must be a texas

thing. i'll check with you first from now on to be sure my posts

aren't irrelavent.

about my "scare" from the nytimes.com. my pc prompts for cookies. i

got one from nytimes.com and posted about it. i get the same warning

when i go to buzzflash. i thought it was odd that nytimes.com wanted

to put a cookie on my computer when i clicked on this thread. wtf

does that have to do with scaring people away from the "liberal

media"? what are you talking about? get a grip.