VITALS

Big Man on Campus

Steve William Laible, MBA

Retired Mustang (Captain/USAF) ghost

Dark Horse Candidate for Congress

Oregon 2nd District

6' 5"

290lbs

FICO 850

BP 116/72

A1C 5.3

HDL 53

LDL 56

Cholesterol

121 mg/dL

Triglycerides

59 mg/dL

Prostate

1.15ng/ mLg

Medical Procedures

(Lifetime)

Tonsillectomy (Age 4)

Vasectomy (Age 35)*

Double Cataract Lens

Replacement (Age 60)

*Note: Imagine if the extreme right Republicans get their way! Both genders will be denied choice!

The government (state & federal) has absolutely no business managing our bodies.

One suggestion I have is to cross party lines with important votes. This bipartisan olive branch will steal the power of those 4-5 obstructionists who lord their power over the entire membership. They become moot. And Congress can get back on tract working hard to pass legislation that Americans want.

Over time, when Members behave accordingly, doing the work of the people instead of bulldozing their own agendas through the halls and the media, only then can they become a truly effective, efficient, well-oiled machine!

Regardless, we, and by we, I mean you. You have to push back on certain issues. Government is too invasive in our lives.

Birth control belongs solely with those engaged in conception, their doctor and their faith. No dC bureaucrat representative needs to have their hands on the power of cockblocking anyone. Crude, but precise.

My personal experience slapped me in the face while stationed at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Pentagon). After 14-years [enlisted sergeant), I was selected for Officer Training School (OTS), after receiving the personal recommendation from Verne Orr, Secretary of the Air Force.

When I returned to Wash DC assigned to the USAF Honor Guard, I sensed something was up and sure enough, my bride of 14-years had herself an affair in my absence. We had two young boys at the time, Adam 5, and Chase 1, so I forgave her, and remained in the marriage.

Long story short, she was also preggers! Imagine that.

She wanted to abort. I reassured her that I would stay in the marriage and raise the child as my own, if that helped with [her] decision.

Kyle is now 38, with a son of his own!

Jacob is a great kid. Like his dad, both are "gifts"to the world.

I love this Kyle as my own, because he is! I named him, Kyle David. He is a "gift" to the world. He is incapable of lying. The sweetest soul ever. It's a terrible shame his bio dad, a married Lt Colonel wanted nothing to do with him. This breaks my heart.

I had the 'conversation' when Kyle was 6.

I told him he was a lucky kid. He had two dads--a biological dad AND a REAL one!

I told him how magical it was how he arrived on planet Earth--one in a quadtrillion! That he is such a rare and special kid, a "gift" to me and his mom. And how he will do great things in his "life" which is also a "gift."

He looked somewhat puzzled but accepted my words. He was happy and went off to play with his two brothers. Who were also receiving this ground-breaking news.

Nothing changed. Life was good for me and my boys. My Three Sons!

One fond memory I have about Kyle was my using a bungi cord to lock his bedroom's French doors. Kyle was maybe 3-years old and would sneak out of his bedroom every night around 3am, grab the lemon fresh pledge and a rag from under the kitchen sink.

Every morning we discovered everything in the house was wet and shiny and smelling of lemons. The furniture, the TV screens, windows, the door handles, countertops, silverware, the refridgerator, inside and out, were all so clean, messy, and smeared.

I'm confident he also likely cleaned his face and tongue, too. The bungis were my way of protecting him AND our house.

So, being faced with a real-world situation, all the rhetoric aside, about how one defends their abortion position, this was now at my front door.

My brides' younger sister had had 4 abortions in the span of less than 10-years, and that never sat well with me. (She had lived with us in Hawaii & Virginia, worked at the Washington Post, and was never without a 'date' given the abundance of young bucks (soldiers, marines, navy, etc.) So, when faced with the real-life situation, the extraordinary life-changing decision for myself (I was 36) and my family. We [chose] life...and it was our choice.

Not governments!

State legislators & courts, especially the SCOTUS, have no businesss climbing inside vaginas or wombs, and it MUST end! It's sick and perverted. We are not China, who limits how many children parents can have--one!

Two things can be true at the same time:

Pro-Life [AND] Pro-Choice!

I totally understand & appreciate Pro-Choice AND Pro-Life advocates! Someone needs to fight for the unborn.

For me, personally, it really was never a "choice" per se. I NEVER even considered an abortion, even AND especially given my circumstances, the way I was raised, my moral compass, faith, etc.

Here I was, faced with my wife being pregnant by another man & I never once considered abortion. I learned something about myself in that moment.

Epilogue

We remained married for another five years, 19-years in total.

I was shipped out to Korea for 16-months, on a remote tour, no families, my last tour of duty, before retirement, as the 'first' Squadron Section Operations Commander, supporting two f-16 fighter squadrons.

On Christmas Eve 1992, I received divorce papers in the last 'mail call' of the day. Just like in M*A*S*H...a speaker on a pole.

I refused to sign, because she was asking for my entire 20-year pension at my pending retirement. Basically, the Soldier Sailor Act saved me.

Seems she had "met" a new love interest. Christopher, a Security Policeman gate guard, who was also a 21-year old male model, in his off-duty time.

I called and spoke to Chris. My highest priority was asking him to please store his weapons. Keep his guns locked at all times, especially his daily service weapon. I was so worried for my three young sons, and helpless to protect them from 6,700 miles away! He assured me, he would.

I wished them luck, hung up the phone, and finished out my tour of another 12-months.

Weirdest Christmas Eve ever!

I retired the next year, from the USAF, having completed a 22-year distinguished career, on New Year's Eve 1993.

My Three Sons (Adam 12, Chase 7, Kyle 6), anxious to have their daddy back, wanted to come live with me in Oregon! That's how we arrived back in Grants Pass, enjoying the hometown family atmosphere I had enjoyed growing up, among some 250+ remaining relatives.

(Laible, Shepard, Pollock, & Kolkow+ clans.)

Unfortunately for me, Adam & Chase, after awhile, Kyle was very homesick for his mommy, so I drove to Portland and flew him back. She's a good mom. Their bond was strong & important. She & I had grown apart in our 19-year marriage becoming more like brother & sister. Life is short with many curves, speed bumps & yes, even roadblocks.

"Never love anyone who treats you ordinary."

~ Oscar Wilde

I never worked again...until they graduated high school, years later, and moved out. Suffering from Empty Nest Syndrome (ENS)(it's a real thing) I was lost. I had no purpose. That's when I created the Stevie Tenderheart comic strip from thin air. In hindsight, I'm fairly certain my two boys didn't exactly appreciate the 24/7 supervision. (eh, eh, eh, he says, with a clever and sheepish grin.)

I didn't even date for years because I hadn't yet met ALL of my cousins!

Oh, I'm sad to report, it didn't work out for the lovebirds and she wanted me back. But I don't walk backwards. Seems Christopher was already engaged before taking on another fiancée. Players gonna play!

She did eventually find a good man. She & Rob have been happily married for at least 20-years, now.

The Kodel Party vision for America the Beautiful begins in Oregon

VITALS

Big Man on Campus

Photo Gallery