Welcome to The John Boyd Legion of Honor!

By Rich Kozlovich

Over the years I've developed a list of personal heroes.  Norman Borlaug is at the top of the list as he was the greatest man to have lived in the 20th century, and since he died in the 21st century, he just might be the greatest man to have lived in two centuries.  Why? Because he is directly responsible for saving the lives of a billion people from starvation.  If that's the standard for greatness, and I think it is, then I think it's unlikely anyone will top that.

Another of my personal heroes is Col. John Boyd:

Known as "Forty-Second" Boyd......defeating every opponent in aerial combat at the Air Force's premier dog-fighting academy in two-thirds of a minute.........however this doesn’t demonstrate the “long and often painful saga of a man who, as a full colonel, went toe to toe, time after time, with a phalanx of two-and three-star generals for the good of the country, winning most of his battles and surviving long enough to help provide secretary of defense Richard Cheney the ideas needed for swift and decisive victory in the Persian Gulf War....... "defined by the courts-martial and investigations".......... Boyd's intellectual achievements were matched by his relentless guerrilla warfare against hidebound "careerists" then running the Air Force……

I'm a great admirer of those who deliberately make themselves rocks in the current, rowing against the tide being prepared to stand and defend all that's right and true against all comers.  That was John Boyd.  Whether it is in the government, military, academia or business this was his view, and is something we need to learn, repeat, retain and practice:

"To be somebody or to do something. In life there is often a roll call. That's when you will have to make a decision. To be or to do? Which way will you go?" - Col. John Boyd

Heterodoxy isn't for the faint of heart.  Having the courage to stand against the current and tell the world, "you're all wrong and I going to tell you why", takes guts, fortitude, the willingness to be attacked unmercifully, unendingly, and caring little for being liked.  That's rare, and so I've instituted a new accolade for those who demonstrate public courage and fortitude.  Men and women who have the courage to stand against the tide, to be the rock in the current. 

So, I've created the John Boyd Legion of Honor and I will install those I think are worthy.  My choices will not be based on they're positions in life or prominence .  My choices won't just be from, or about, science.  My choices will be their positions on issues, their courage, determination, and willingness to row against the tide in pursuit of truth, justice, all that's right and true, and those choices will be not be open to debate and are immutable.  

Since I've been publishing P&D all these years I have a backlog of candidates who I will be adding, so none of my choices are going to be in chronological order, and some may have already passed.  With the exception of Norman Borlaug, the order in which they appear will have nothing to do with categorizing them by importance.  They will be placed in alphabetical order.  Some will be well known publicly, some will partially known publicly, and some will have no public attention.   Past heroes will be added along with new heroes. 

So, let's start with:

Norman Borlaug -  "After thousands of crossing of wheat, Borlaug managed to come up with a high-yield hybrid that was parasite resistant and wasn’t sensitive to daylight hours, so it could be grown in varying climates. Importantly it was a dwarf variety, since tall wheat expended a lot of energy growing inedible stalks and collapsed when it grew too quickly. The new wheat was quickly introduced all over Mexico."  It's unfortunate history adds an appendage such as "The Great" onto the names of those who've managed to kill a lot of people through wars of conquest, such as Alexander the Great.   If there ever was anyone that truly earned the right to have the appendage "The Great" after their name, it's Norman Borlaug.

Bruce Ames -  One of the reasons we no longer hear the screams by environmentalist about how chemicals are killing humanity with cancer is because of Bruce Ames' development of what's commonly called the Ames test.  By the way, he never patented in order to make it widely available.  This test is literally textbook science that is taught to students all over the world.  The Ames test is brilliant in its simplicity. It was designed to assess how mutagenic (and therefore, potentially carcinogenic) a chemical might be  What he discovered was a whole lot of stuff, including the foods we eat, coffee being high on the list for naturally occurring chemicals that test carcinogenic. Here is my

Tim Ball - I never met Tim, but I did have an e-mail exchange with him many years ago, and he was one of my personal heroes.  While he was a mild tempered and an unfailingly polite man, he had plenty of backbone and guts to spare.  Never mistake amiability for weakness.  When sued him, he fought, and he won, and he used what in Canada is called the truth defense, AKA, the scorched earth defense.  Here is my file, and my

Andrew Breitbart - Breitbart was a conservative journalist and the founder of Breitbart News and a provocateur who electrically charged internet news.  Unlike most people he didn't have that little voice in his head that prevents people from saying the things they shouldn't say, as a result he's remembered as the Happy Warrior.   “Walk toward the fire. Don’t worry about what they call you. All those things are said against you because they want to stop you in your tracks. But if you keep going, you’re sending a message to people who are rooting for you, who are agreeing with you. The message is that they can do it, too."

Tucker Carlson -Tucker Carlson's Greatest Gift? He Prevents Other People From Being Talked About Some time back I wrote a piece noting that Tucker Carlson was now the nation's premiere political analyst, and now he's far more.  I never particularly liked him before he started his show, and often wondered how and why he was on so many political talk shows.  After he started his show I was a lot more impressed, yet there were times I really disagreed with him.  However, I loved the fact he was totally unintimidated by the prominent and powerful.  He was really great at spotting the logical fallacies these politicians, activists, and bureaucrats spewed out, and called them on it.  I really liked the way he was willing to cut his way through the jungle to get to the truth, and would "boldly go where no journalist had gone before".   And, I think this is really important: he was unfailingly polite to people I considered to be stupid and corrupt, so many of whom were like all the Biden nominees to federal jobs and the federal court. Here is my file.

Alan Caruba - Alan was one of the first writers to allow me to publish his work, and was an unending encouragement to me to keep going and expanding my focus.  My friend Alan passed in 2015, but as I said,  he'd given me permission to publish his work many years ago, and I've republished many of them because one thing about Alan's articles is true.  They're pretty much timeless.  The characters many change but the underlying facts and logic remain.    Here's my Alan Caruba file.  

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus - (c. 519 – c. 430 BC) "A Roman patrician, statesman, and military leader of the early Roman Republic who became a legendary figure of Roman virtue—particularly civic virtue—by the time of the late Republic.  The most famous story related to Cincinnatus occurs after his retirement from public service to a simple life of farming. As Roman forces struggled to defeat the Aequi, Cincinatus was summoned from his plough to assume complete control over the state. After achieving a swift victory in sixteen days^.  Cincinnatus relinquished power and its privileges, returning to labor on his farm. His success and his immediate resignation of near-absolute authority at the end of the crisis (traditionally dated to 458 BC) has often been cited as a model of selfless leadership, civic virtue, and service to the greater good. The story has also been seen as an exemplar of agrarian virtues like humility, modesty, and hard work."  (Wikipedia)

Paul Driessen - I first became aware of Paul when Dr. D. Rutledge Taylor was working on his documentary defending DDT and the fight against Malaria, especially in Africa, 3Billion and counting.  Paul was another who allowed me early on to publish his work and he still regularly send pieces I can publish.  I read his book Eco-Imperialism, Green Power, Black Death.  This is a book that is very readable for the general public and yet has the ability to capture the interest of those who are knowledgeable about scientific and environmental issues. It is a small publication and can be read in a short time. It should also be read more than once. I have just reread this book and I feel compelled to promote it to those who read this blog. In spite of ad hominem attacks and unfounded claims that his book is “unscientific” or that he is a corporate puppet, there are a host of well thought of individuals who have showered praise on this book because of the logic of his arguments and the facts presented. These are listed below. It can be ordered here.  Here is my Paul Driessen file. 

John Droz, Jr. - John is a physicist and a citizen’s rights advocate, who has taken a strong stand on alternative energy, education, and a host of other issues.  John publishes a twice monthly newsletter called the Media Balance Newsletter, and publishes articles on his substack news site, called Critically Thinking About Select Societal Issues.  I recommend subscribing to both. 

John is clearly a great believer in the foundational scientific concept of data in search of conclusions, not conclusions in search of data.  He's been a champion of conservative values for years but not for ideological reasons.  He's a conservative champion because he subscribes to the idea facts, history, and reality should create harmony, then that creates a viable ideology.   

Riley Gaines - Talk about standing against the tide, she optimizes it!  She has been standing against men who profess to be women and competing against real women in women's sports.  The outrage from the left was inflammatory, but she stood as firm rock in the current, and she's winning taking the scientifically factual position that, “Men are men, women are women. There are only two sexes. You can’t change your sex and each sex is deserving of equal opportunities'......"The Olympics says there’s no difference whatsoever between men and women, which is lunacy. We all know there are differences between men and women".  

Mary Grabar  -  Mary Grabar was born in Slovenia when it was still part of the Communist Yugoslavia and grew up in Rochester, New York. She earned her Ph.D. in English from the University of Georgia in 2002 and taught at a number of colleges and universities in Georgia until 2013.  While teaching, she wrote widely on political, cultural, and educational topics, and founded the Dissident Prof Education Project, a nonprofit reform initiative.  In 2014, she moved to Clinton, New York, and became a resident fellow at The Alexander Hamilton Institute for the Study of Western Civilization.  Mary has challenged the conventional wisdom (lies and folly) of the 1619 Project, and the corruption of history by Howard Zinn, which a corrupt academia finds disturbing.  Fighting 'The 1619 Project' Fake History: Lessons from Howard Zinn’s Fake History.  Here's my Mary Grabar file.  

Marjorie Taylor Greene - I'll bet this will set some people off.  There's no doubt she's difficult, and I have no doubt she's just as difficult in here personal life, but she doesn't suffer from being faint of heart.  In her battles against Speaker Johnson she's been consistent with her battle against Speaker Kevin McCarthy, both of whom are RINO moles, and she's determined to make them extinct in the Republican Congress.  Her challenge against Speaker Johnson has made it clear treason to the conservative principles these people have ran on will cost them.  They don't come out and say to the voters: "it's all about me sucker, get over it"!    They're actions prove it.  Her actions want to end that.  Culture is king, and that's what this really is all about.   The Republican culture, and it's time to create a conservative culture.   No matter what anyone thinks about Greene, she's just like U.S. Grant.  When Lincoln was told he needed to fire U.S. Grant because he drank too much, he said he can't because "he fights".  Well, like Grant, Greene fights! Here's my

Daniel Greenfield - Daniel Greenfield is one of the most prolific writers in America.  Solid facts, sound judgement, and clear insightful writing makes him one of America's best.  He writes primarily for Front Page Magazine, and as I said, he's prolific, which you will see visiting the site.   He gave me permission to publish his articles appearing on his personal blog, Sultan Knish Blog.  Here's my Daniel Greenfield file. 

David Horowitz - David was a "red baby", raised in a communist household by parents who were "long-standing members of the American Communist Party and strong supporters of Joseph Stalin."  After graduating from college he defined himself a Marxist intellectual, and sported each and every leftist meme that existed.  Then he changed realizing socialism is a failure and became one of the nation's leading conservatives, speaking all over the nation, including college campuses, and took a beating for this realization and his views.  Front Page Magazine is one of his creations.   Here's Wikipedia on Horowitz.

Robin Itzler -  I've forgotten now how I got to know Robin, but she's a true conservative and is very active in Republican California politics, making her a challenge to their leadership's schemes and machinations, and as you can guess, their leadership is RINO to the core.   She publishes a weekly newsletter that powerfully stands for core conservative values, and she's been attacked for that, but remains undeterred, and if anything, more determined than ever to promote Judaic/Christian values based conservatism.  Visit my  file.

William Walter Kay - William Walter Kay managed a web site, ecofascism.com, which appears to no longer exist, but for some time he regularly sent me his work, especially his book reviews, which were absolutely amazing.  Kay challenged all forms of junk science, and presented an in depth analysis of green initiatives.  He was devastating in making the connection between environmentalism and fascism and the groups that support those views.   Here are my William Walter Kay files.

Jay Lehr -  How many people can say the White House called them to say the President decided to take their advice on some issue?  That's what happened with President Trump and his decision to end the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.  Jay was a personal friend who I had the privilege of knowing and partnered with writing articles.  He also allowed me to publish all his many other articles.   Jay was a professor of Hydrogeology at The Ohio State University in the 1960’s and adjunct for many more years.  Jay was one of the original founders of the EPA and said they haven't done anything worthwhile since 1980 and needs to be abolished and put together a brilliant five year plan to do so.  He spent 25 years as the Executive Director of the National Ground Water Association. He then spent 25 years as Senior Scientist for The Heartland Institute. Most recently, Jay was Senior Scientist for the International Climate Science Coalition. Jay was passionate about educating others on the science behind the fallacy of man-made climate change.  Jay was active if the fight against junk science right up until the day he passed at 86.  Jay said as long as he was alive, he wanted to live, and didn't stop jumping out of airplanes for fun until he was 85. Here's my

James A. Marusek - James A. Marusek is a retired nuclear physicist who worked for the U.S. Navy, and who allowed me to publish is work for many years. While he wrote about other science related issues he really focused on anthropogenic global warming and solar cycles, especially dealing with solar minimums, which no one hears about from the media as well as the science community.  His work I've published has been hit extensively over the years.  Here's my James A. Marusek file. 

Stephen McIntyre - McIntyre became interested in 2002 regarding the claims of climate scientists because of the what he felt were discrepancies in that science, including that by Michal Mann and others, especially invoking Mann's' Hockey Stick Graph.  While the powers the be claimed the work done by McIntyre and Mckitrick didn't matter, time has shown otherwise, as it's been made clear Mann worked to eliminate the Medieval warm period.  As for the claims 97% of scientists agree, here was my analysis of that blatantly false claim, How Many Constitute 97%? In spite of the myriad of criticisms of both McIntyre and McKitrick, mostly based on surface temperature claims time has been on their side as it's been shown temperature readings are seriously flawed for a number of reasons, and aren't in harmony with satellite readings.  

Ross McKitrick -  I have been probing the arguments for global warming for well over a decade. In collaboration with a lot of excellent coauthors I have consistently found that when the layers get peeled back, what lies at the core is either flawed, misleading or simply non-existent. - Ross McKitrick

McIntyre and McKitrick could be one link because of their work, however I didn't think that was fair as they're careers are totally separate.  McKitrick is an economist specializing in environmental economics, and along with McIntyre refuted the Hockey Stick Graph and other claims by global warming devotees.  The patterns of life repeat over and over again, so in order to present a pattern, here are some of my old posts regarding Michal Mann called, The Mann Chronicles.  And here are the later Mann Chronicles. 

Francis Menton -  Francis publishes a blog called Manhattan Contrarian. While he's an attorney by profession, he's also amazingly brilliant when it comes to understanding and explaining the failure of alternative energy, scientifically, practically, economically, and that includes the delusions over batteries.   Alternative energy is a bust in every aspect, including the foolishness of claiming it's good for the environment. In point of fact, the truth is just the opposite.  But, the fight over energy production isn't the only battle he takes part in.   Here's my Francis Menton file. 

Marc Morano - Marc along with Craig Rucker and the rest of the CFACT team have been on top of the actual science regarding climate change right from the beginning, and have been hugely successful in refuting those claims.  Ten years ago the climate dogmatists were dominant and had the world believing we're doomed....doomed I tell you.  Now, polls claim the number of people who put climate at the top of their concerns has shrunk significantly, and as all their predictions and prophesies keep failing, that number will shrink even more.  Here's my

Steve Milloy -  I became aware of Steve when the ban on DDT turned 30.  While most in my industry considered DDT a dead issue, I considered it the only issue since that ban gave financial and emotional impetus for all environmental issues that followed.  Steve published Junkscience.com and posted this piece, 100 Things You Should Know About DDT.  Steve was also one of the early writers who allowed my to publish his work.  Here's my

Lord Monckton  - We shall lose the West unless we can restore the use of reason to preeminence in our institutions of what was once learning. It was the age of reason that built the West and made it prosperous and free. The age of reason gave you your great Constitution of liberty. It is the power of reason, the second of the three great powers of the soul in Christian theology, that marks our species out from the rest of the visible creation, and makes us closest to the image and likeness of our Creator. I cannot stand by and let the forces of darkness drive us unprotesting into a new Dark Age.” - Lord Monckton.

I have been following Lord Monckton's adventures in the global warming debate for so long that I can't even remember when I first discovered him, but he has truly been magnificent. ‘The angrier and more indignant they are, the more he seems to like it.”   Here is my  

George S. Patton - First of all, there are so many things I dislike about Patton I debated about adding him to this list.  But the criteria for being installed in this Legion of Honor is the willingness to stand against entrenched forces to do what needs to be done.  And Patton fits that category.   If Patton had been allowed to do what needed to be done the Soviets wouldn't have taken over Eastern Europe, Montgomery would have been shoved to the sidelines where he belonged, and the war would have ended earlier.   But he was up against entrenched corrupt forces in the FDR administration, which was filled with communists and their supporters, and invertebrate generals.

He was called Blood and Guts, with soldiers claiming it was his guts and their blood, but Patton was a front line general and Patton's planning and tactics probably saved a lot of Allied soldier's lives, and in my reading it was clear entirely too many Allied commanders were far too reckless with their lives.   While he's mostly remembered for slapping enlisted soldiers, he also spent far more time visiting wounded soldiers than any other allied General.  In spite of his despicable actions, he actually cared about them and honestly considered them heroes.

And in spite of all the clabber, Patton was right about Russia, which I explain with, My Take, on this article.

Craig Rucker -  Craig Rucker is the co-founder and executive director of the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT), which was founded in 1985 to “promote a positive voice on environment and development issues.”  Rucker’s strong belief in the “power of the market combined with the applications of safe technologies,” to “offer humanity practical solutions to many of the world’s pressing concerns,” resulted in “a number of leading scientists, academics, and policy leaders” joining Rucker in his CFACT efforts.  His stand against the false claims regarding climate change has been powerful.   Here is my

Thomas Sowell is Ph.D. American economist, author, and social commentator who is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, and in my  opinion one of the finest, if not the finest, thinkers in the world today.  He may be an economist but his commentaries and commons sense offerings on a host of issues are the epitome of wisdom.  Sowell clearly understands wisdom is the application of knowledge and understanding, and has been capable making extremely complicated issues understandable by almost everyone.  That kind of thinking and approach has actually been foundational to my work which is based on the fact everything is "the basics".   Make it simple stupid is "the basics".  His Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene, are brilliant.  Here is my Thomas Sowell file.  

Mark Steyn - When it comes to standing as a rock in the current, Mark Steyn is an amazing example. He's suffered the slings and arrows of the Mann cabal, and a clearly corrupt and vile court decision.  The Mann/Steyn legal battle will, in my opinion, be one of the great defining Constitutional issues to emerge in this century, after Steyn wins.  And I believe if this gets to the Supreme court, he will win.   Here's my

D. Rutledge Taylor - Rutledge is famous for his documentary Many years ago I became aware of a web site created by Dr. D. Rutledge Taylor, who was making a feature documentary film debunking the lies about DDT, and makes clear once and for all the devastation America’s ban on DDT caused worldwide.  I posted a lot of comments on his site, and I must have made a small but worthy contribution, as I was invited to the world premiere in New York City on September 17th, 2010, and I was pleased to find that I was listed separately in the credits as the Pest Control Consultant.  The “stars” in the film included: Doctors Elizabeth Whelan and Gill Ross of the American Council on Science and Health; Dr. Paul Driessen, author of, “Eco-Imperialism, Green Power, Black Death;” Richard Tren, a Director of Africa Fighting Malaria and co-author of, “The Excellent Powder: DDT’s Political and Scientific History;” Dr. Dennis Avery of the Hudson Institute; Roy Innes and a number of his associates from C.O.R.E.  All participants outline the real story about the devastation caused by the unscientific ban on DDT.   His defense of who was the great voice standing against all the junk science Rachel Carson spewed out about DDT in her junk science fiction book , is excellent.   

Donald Trump - This of course is a controversial pick, if you're a member of the Democrat/leftist/communist cabal, a RINO, or someone suffering from Trump Derangement Syndrome.  In short someone with serious mental problems.  But the reality is this man and his family have suffered the slings and arrows of  of outrageous fortune, and for what?  I don't think any sane person doubts Donald Trump believes the nation under the control of Democrats will die a vile death, and he’s putting his life, his fortune, and his honor on the line in order to prevent that from happening.  Otherwise, what do he and his family have to gain for suffering all that abuse?  I've never liked Trump on a personal level, but as the leader of this nation, and President of the United States, it's my belief he may be one of the nation's greatest Presidents ever. 

Jay Valentine -  Jay Valentine, CEO of ContingencySales, collected data and analysis to mathematically prove the 2020 election was stolen via voter fraud.  "Valentine and a team of high-tech criminal profiling experts traveled to Dallas to meet with election fraud investigators. The investigators canceled at the last minute, so Valentine and his team of experts conducted their own research......... It appears our stolen 2020 election was of such magnitude that it qualifies as a Sovereign Crime of Industrial Scale. Sovereign Crime means your government was a participant, active or passive, enabling this evil against our United States"  Here's my Jay Valentine file.

Amy Wax -  Amy Wax is an academic, an attorney, and a free speech activist calling into question all the insane diversity, equity, and inclusion policies of academia, and she's being punished for it by an intellectually, and in my view morally corrupt leadership in academia.  Here's my

Steven J. Welcenbach – Most people probably have never heard of Steve, but his contributions to good science, and his battles against junk science are numerous, and unfortunately unheralded. In 2008 Steve went full activist, attending the first International Conference on Climate Change in New York City, joining the Heartland Institute in their quest to bring to the public the true story of carbon dioxide, the gas of life. In 2010 he created and published a paper called The Reality News which continues to be published monthly and widely distributed to this day. The lies being promulgated by all of the quack scientists and medical people as well as politicians and government bureaucrats get continually laid bare.

Back in the late 1970s the mainstream press trumpeted the discovery of the ozone hole that formed over Antarctica during winter to be that smoking gun proving CFCs to be causing irreversible destruction of the ozone layer, immediately recognizing the "false cause fallacy" in that the Antarctic geography creates an almost perfect polar vortex each year with no sunlight. As a result of that foundational scientific truth he questioned:  "Why would you not expect an ozone hole to form?" Since that time Steve embraced the study of chemistry and geology, becoming an early pioneer in the hazardous waste disposal and environmental clean-up realm which continues today. Steve immediately called out the carbon dioxide destroying the planet hoax as false cause, pursuing many avenues of gathering true scientific data and conveying the truth to as many people as he could.

Terry Witt - A truly great guy.  A thoughtful warrior for what's right.Terry Witt will be missed.  He was a uniquely sophisticated thinker, dedicated to the promotion of truth, life quality advancement and human betterment/improvement. We can think of few other folks who embody his talents, kindness and commitment to always trying to do what is both best and right for his supporters, friends and family.  When you think about Terry and his efforts for just a bit, high praise of him is not only fully deserved but totally earned. Terry came to Oregon and Oregonians for Food and Shelter (OFS) at a time of turmoil. He left a good company with a secure position to undertake critical issue battles in a whole new, different, and largely unknown setting, with mostly unmet people. Succeeding in that kind of tumultuous change, having that type of dedication to duty is the essence of who and what is - Terry Witt! 

Sir Nicholas George Winton MBE (born Wertheim; 19 May 1909 – 1 July 2015) This was a life well lived.  He was a British banker and humanitarian who established an organisation to rescue children at risk from Nazi Germany. Born to German-Jewish parents who had emigrated to Britain at the beginning of the 20th century, Winton supervised the rescue of 669 children, most of them Jewish, from Czechoslovakia on the eve of World War II. Winton found homes for the children and arranged for their safe passage to Britain.^[1] This operation was later known as the Czech Kindertransport (German for "children's transport")."