The Essential Man’s Wardrobe

 Perhaps the most frequent question we get at Put This On is: “what are the essential elements of a man’s wardrobe?” Often it is framed in the context of something like, “if I were to buy five items to wear all the time and I never had to go shopping or buy anything again…”

I generally try not to respond to the questions that seem to be predicated on the assumption that a man should hate his clothes and want to spend as little time, effort and money as possible on them, so I’ve generally avoided the question. Today, though, I’ll take a stab at it.

Here are some essential elements of a man’s wardrobe. This list assumes that you do not wear a suit and tie to work (if you do, I’d recommend Will’s list, here). This is also not intended as a be-all, end-all. I’d be happy to hear what you think is missing, or unnecessary. I do think it’s an excellent starting point, however.

This wardrobe is useful not just for those starting out, but for those who want to simplify or those who wonder why it’s so hard for them to pack for travel. These are all essential elements, and they are largely interchangeable. Focus on very high quality and fit, and you will look great in them, even without accent pieces.

• Solid gray or navy suit.
• Navy blue blazer.
• Good straight-cut blue jeans.
• Khaki pants.
• Mid-gray wool pants (preferably light weight).
• Trim khaki shorts.
• White and light blue oxford shirts (oxford is a heavier, textural cloth that is inherently more casual - in this case the collars would be button-down, as well.)
• White and light blue dress shirts (something in a finer fabric, without a button-down collar, suitable for wearing with a suit).
• Solid black grenadine necktie.
• Other neckties based on needs and taste - colored, textured solids, knits, simple diagonally striped ties.
• White linen pocket hankerchiefs.
• Plain white t-shirts.
• A couple of other plain t-shirts - navy or heather gray are good choices.
• A trim-fitting solid polo or two (white and blue are good colors).
• Gray crew-neck sweatshirt.
• Cashmere v-neck sweater (light gray or camel/oatmeal are good colors).
• Plain white sneakers.
• Black cap-toes.
• Brown dress shoes.
• Brown or burgundy casual shoes or boots (chukkas or plain-toe bluchers are a good choice).
• Belts to match shoes.

After this, you may need one or two casual jackets. A peacoat or duffel coat is good for cold weather. A Harrington or mechanic’s jacket is good for less cold weather.
Again depending on local weather, you may need an overcoat suitable to wear with a suit, gloves, a scarf or a trench coat or mac for rain.

Focus on fit and quality. Quality is particularly important for the more durable goods on the list, like shoes. Add accents that speak to you. You’ll look good.

(Above: McQueen in a white oxford, oatmeal v-neck sweater and a Harrington.)

from: http://putthison.com/post/712103418/the-essential-mans-wardrobe-perhaps-the-most

The Importance of Gray Pants

The Importance of Gray Pants

There are two essential casual pants: blue jeans and chinos.

For every other situation that doesn’t call for a suit, there is only one: gray wool.

Even more than the blue blazer, the gray pant is a staple of the well-dressed man. Virtually every sportcoat will look well paired with gray pants. In fact, some suggest that if a sportcoat doesn’t pair with gray pants, you shouldn’t bother buying it. Gray pants are a foundation: they are the first pants you should buy, and probably the second and third, as well.

Truth be told, you will likely need more than one pair of gray pants. Flannel is the best fabric for winter. It’s warmer, and it has been a favorite for decades because it wears and drapes so well. In the summer months, you’ll need something lighter in weight - probably a worsted. If you live somewhere genuinely hot, you should consider a pair in a very light weight wool designed for hot weather, like a fresco.

The matter of styling is up to you. The current style tends toward a slim, flat-front pant. I have a pair of Brunello Cucinelli flannels in this style, and they’re wonderful with a trim coat. I also have a pair of Polo flannels that are notably wider in the leg, with double reverse pleats, for when I’m feeling a little more classic. My worsteds are by Incotex, with some a little wider than the others.

A mid-gray will be most versatile. Darker grays are a little more sober, but a little tougher to pair. Lighter grays are in style at the moment, and can look quite elegant, but are a little less serious-looking. Serious-looking, of course, is a good quality if you’re buying just one pair.

Gray pants are the garment that you’ll go to again and again. It is the rare outfit that features a jacket, but not a suit that wouldn’t look great with a pair of mid-gray pants. Other colors - like khaki or navy blue - should get in line well behind gray. Seriously: at least two, maybe three or four pairs of gray pants before you buy any other color.

(Above pants, in charcoal gray, by Howard Yount)

from: http://putthison.com/post/3106478547/the-importance-of-gray-pants-there-are-two

Red Skelton's Pledge of Allegiance 1969

I’ve been listening to you boys and girls recite the Pledge of Allegiance all semester and it seems as though it is becoming monotonous to you.
If I may, may I recite it and try to explain to you the meaning of each word?”

I – me, an individual, a committee of one.

Pledge – dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self pity.

Allegiance – my love and my devotion.

To the flag – our standard, Old Glory, a symbol of freedom. Wherever
she waves, there’s respect because your loyalty has givenher a dignity that shouts freedom is everybody’s job!

United – that means that we have all come together.

States – individual communities that have united into 48 great states. Forty-eight individual communities with pride and dignity and purpose; all divided with imaginary boundaries, yet united to a common purpose, and that’s love for country.

And to the republic – a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern. And government is the people
and it’s from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders to the people.

For which it stands, one nation – one nation, meaning “so blessed by God”

Indivisible – incapable of being divided.

With liberty – which is freedom — the right of power to live one’s own life without threats, fear or some sort of retaliation.

And Justice – the principle or quality of dealing fairly with others.

For all – which means, boys and girls, it’s as much your country as it is mine.

Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country and two words have been added to the pledge of Allegiance…

UNDER GOD

Wouldn’t it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer and that would be eliminated from schools too?

Funiculi, Funicula - Dangerfield (Monte in "Easy Money") vs Scala

Funiculi Funicula (An English version of the song is subtitled "A Merry Life".)

Some think the world is made for fun and frolic,
And so do I! And so do I!
Some think it well to be all melancholic,
To pine and sigh; to pine and sigh;

But I, I love to spend my time in singing,
Some joyous song, some joyous song,
To set the air with music bravely ringing
Is far from wrong! Is far from wrong!

Harken, harken, music sounds a-far!
Harken, harken, with a happy heart!
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Joy is everywhere, funiculì, funiculà!

Ah me! 'tis strange that some should take to sighing,
And like it well! And like it well!
For me, I have not thought it worth the trying,
So cannot tell! So cannot tell!

With laugh, with dance and song the day soon passes
Full soon is gone, full soon is gone,
For mirth was made for joyous lads and lasses
To call their own! To call their own!

Harken, harken, hark the soft guitar!
Harken, harken, hark the soft guitar!
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Hark the soft guitar, funiculì, funiculà!.



Funiculì Funiculà

Aissera, Nanninè, me ne sagliette,
tu saie addò?
(Tu saie addò?)

Addò 'stu core ngrato cchiu' dispiette
farme nun pò, farme nun pò.

Addò lo fuoco coce, ma si fuje,
te lassa stà
(Te lassa stà).

E nun te corre appriesso, nun te struje,
sulo a guardà, sulo a guardà.

Jammo, jammo 'ncoppa jammo jà
Jammo, jammo 'ncoppa jammo jà
Funiculì, funiculà
Funiculì, funiculà
'ncoppa jammo jà,
Funiculì, funiculà.

Jammo, jammo 'ncoppa jammo jà
Jammo, jammo 'ncoppa jammo jà
Funiculì, funiculà
Funiculì, funiculà
'ncoppa jammo jà,
Funiculì, funiculà.

Se n'è sagliuta, oi n'è, se n'è sagliuta
la capa già.
(La capa già)
E' gghiuta, pò è turnata, pò è venuta,
sta sempe ccà!
(Sta sempe ccà!)

La capa vota, vota attuorno, attuorno,
attuorno a tte.
(Attuorno a tte.)

Sto core canta
Sempe nu taluorno
Sposammo, oi' Ne!
(Sposammo, oi' Ne!)

Jammo, jammo 'ncoppa jammo jà
Jammo, jammo 'ncoppa jammo jà
Funiculì, funiculà
Funiculì, funiculà
'ncoppa jammo jà,
Funiculì, funiculà.

English translation:
Yesterday evening, O Nannina [nickname for Giovanna], I climbed up,
Do you know where?
To where an ungrateful heart can no longer vex me!
Where a fire is burning, but if you flee
It lets you be.
It doesn't chase you, doesn't melt you, with just one glance!
Let's go, let's go, let's go to the top,
Let's go, let's go, let's go to the top,
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Let's go to the top, Funiculì, funiculà!

Let's go from here below up to the mountain, O Nannina, a step away!
You can see France, Procida, and Spain,
And I see you!
You rise, pulled by a cable, quick as a wink
into the sky.
We'll rise up like a whirlwind all of a sudden knows how to do!
Let's go, let's go, let's go to the top,
Let's go, let's go, let's go to the top,
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Let's go to the top, Funiculì, funiculà!

My head is spinning, O Nannina, It's gone up there already!
It went there, spun 'round, and then returned:
It's always here!
My head is spinning, spinning,
Encircling you!
This heart of mine is always singing
the same refrain:
"Marry me, O Nannina"!
Let's go, let's go, let's go to the top,
Let's go, let's go, let's go to the top,
Funiculì, funiculà, funiculì, funiculà!
Let's go to the top, Funiculì, funiculà!

Eight Colorado counties want to leave the state

As a sign of just how divisive the recently ended Colorado legislative session has been, it may very well result in a literal division of the state.

As many as eight counties composing the rural, oil and gas-rich northeast corner of the state are pursuing a plan to cut ties with a capital city they no longer feel represents their interests and come together as the 51st state in the country: North Colorado.

“We’re actually going to pursue it,” said Weld County Commissioner Douglas Rademacher, a farmer whose jurisdiction is spearheading the effort. “Frankly, we’ve been ignored in northeastern Colorado now for the last, going on eight years with the current administration in Denver.”

“Frankly, we see no option,” he said. “We are going to move forward.”

Rademacher cited numerous examples of how Denver politicians are out of touch with rural Colorado, from passing tough new gun laws — “that gun legislation really pissed a lot of people off in Weld County,” he said — to trying to clamp down on companies that extract natural gas through fracking.

But the final straw, he said, was Gov. John Hickenlooper’s signature on Wednesday of Senate Bill 252 requiring rural electrical cooperatives to double to 20 percent the amount of renewable energy in their portfolios by 2020.

“It’s a death by a thousand cuts, but the straw that finally broke the back was the governor signed 252 yesterday, which puts another huge impact on rural Colorado to meet these unrealistic deadlines and mandates for renewable energy,” he said. “And yet, the major population centers don’t have to abide by it. There’s a hypocrisy going on in Denver that’s just driving us crazy.”

Rademacher said a theoretical North Colorado could also include counties in neighboring states like Kansas and Nebraska, some of which he said have expressed interest in joining the effort. He said there was also serious talk among the county commissioners about asking a neighboring state to annex their territory — Rademacher said Wyoming would be the obvious choice.

In the end, it was decided that self-representation was the most appealing course, even though Rademacher admits that forming a new state will be difficult. The last time a state was formed from another was when West Virginia gained sovereignty from Virginia in 1863.

“Nevertheless, they were all done for the same reason, lack of representation,” he said. “And that’s where we’re at.”

“Frankly, I think we’re ready to cut and go.”

It may be easier said than done. The rules for creating new states are outlined in Article IV, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution, which require the approval of the existing state’s legislature and Congress.

Each upstart county plans to let its residents’ vote on the idea, which Rademacher said they want to do at the first opportunity, even though the deadline for questions to appear on the November ballot is Aug. 1.

If the votes pass, the legislature and the governor would then have to petition Congress to allow for the formation of a new state. Rademacher thinks getting the legislature to do so will be the biggest hurdle.

“I don’t think they’ll let us go,” he said, pointing to the region’s rich oil and gas deposits and the agricultural industry that contributes substantially to Colorado’s economy.

U.S. history is filled with failed attempts at new states. According to the nonprofit, nonpartisan National Constitution Center, it’s been tried at least 75 times and been successful only five — Vermont split from New York, Kentucky from Virginia, Tennessee from North Carolina, Maine from Massachusetts, and West Virginia from Virginia.

The most recent attempt to form a new state was in 2011, when residents of Pima County, Ariz., tried to break out on their own to distance themselves from the politics of Maricopa County.

Rademacher said he’s heard from non-contiguous counties in Colorado about if and how they could also join the effort. But he said the territory of wannabe North Colorado at least has to share a border with other breakaway-minded counties.

“We can’t build a highway to heaven,” he said.

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Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2013/06/07/eight-colorado-counties-want-to-leave-the-state/#ixzz2VfZjDCJk

Report Details U.S. Government’s ‘Disastrous Muslim Outreach’

http://cnsnews.com/news/article/report-details-us-government-s-disastrous-muslim-outreach

(CNSNews.com) - A new report documents the failures of Muslim outreach conducted by the U.S. government before and after the Sept. 11 attacks, faulting both Republican and Democrat administrations for reaching out to known terrorist funders and leaders.

Published by the Israel-based Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center by Patrick Poole, a counterterrorism consultant and investigative reporter, the 14,000-word exposé details the federal government’s “long-standing policy of engaging extremists.”

Among the many examples, Poole cites government leaders inviting radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki to the Pentagon, just months after one of his spiritual disciples had flown a plane into the Pentagon on Sept. 11, 2001.

The report, “Blind to Terror: The U.S. Government’s Disastrous Muslim Outreach Efforts and the Impact on U.S. Middle East Policy,” finds that a “campaign of political correctness” has been ingrained in government, hindering investigations and resulting in culturally sensitive policies towards Islam, such as guidelines that required FBI agents to remove their shoes before raiding a mosque that financially supported the Taliban.

According to the report, President Obama issued a directive in August 2011 ordering law enforcement to engage “community partners” to help combat “violent extremism.”

“One example of the effect of this new policy are the Shari’a-compliant guidelines that federal law enforcement officials must now comply with when conducting raids related to Islamic leaders or institutions,” Poole explains. “This was exhibited in May 2011, when the FBI raided a South Florida mosque and arrested its imam and his son for financially supporting the Taliban.”

The rules required law enforcement officials to remove their shoes before entering the mosque and dogs were barred from property, Poole said. “The common sense of these new rules undoubtedly would have been put to the test had the subjects tried to flee, to be pursued by shoeless federal agents.”

The report also reveals that numerous leaders linked to terrorism have been used as conduits for the Muslim community since the first attack on the World Trade Center in 1993, under the Clinton, Bush and Obama administrations.

Poole points to Abdul Rahman al-Amoudi, who was a regular visitor to the White House under both Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, who asked him to help train Muslim military chaplains. He made six taxpayer-funded trips as a civilian goodwill ambassador to the Middle East for the State Department beginning in 1997.

But throughout his time working with the government, al-Amoudi was a major fundraiser for al-Qaeda.

Anwar al-Awlaki, the radical American-born Imam who was killed in Yemen by a drone strike authorized by Obama in 2011, was also a go-to community partner for the U.S. government.

“One of the first Muslim leaders that the government turned to was Anwar al-Awlaki,” says Poole, “the al-Qa’ida cleric who was in direct contact with at least three of the September 11 hijackers.”

“As the cleanup from the terrorist attack on the Pentagon continued, Awlaki was invited by the Pentagon’s Office of Government Counsel to speak at a lunch in the building’s executive offices as part of the government’s new Muslim outreach policy,” Poole writes. “Ironically, one of the September 11 terrorists who had helped hijack American Airlines Flight 77 that was flown into the Pentagon had described Awlaki as ‘a great man’ and his ‘spiritual leader.’”

Awlaki had ties to terrorist suspects dating back to 1999, and continued to support terrorism, including email exchanges with Ft. Hood shooter Major Nidal Hasan.

In another example, Shaykh Kifah Mustapha, a long-time supporter of Hamas who was caught on video singing the terrorist group’s praises—“calling for violence against Jews as children danced around him carrying guns”—was given a guided tour of top-secret FBI facilities in 2010.

In November 2010, under Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s leadership, U.S. Ambassador to Britain Louis B. Susman visited the East London Mosque, a “longtime hotbed of extremism.” The year before, the mosque hosted a conference where Awlaki phoned in. Weeks before Susman’s visit, the mosque chairman said Awlaki’s involvement was an act of “fairness and justice.”

“The U.S. government…failed to even acknowledge the blunder, let alone attempt to reconsider its long-standing policy of engaging extremists,” he added. “In fact, the American Embassy issued a statement explaining that the visit was ‘a part of President Obama’s call for a renewed dialogue with Muslim communities around the world.’”

As a result of that dialogue, several terrorists have been invited to the Obama White House, affecting U.S. foreign policy, Poole argues.

“In 2012, Hani Nour Eldin, a known member of the Egyptian al-Gama’a al-Islamiyya (a U.S.-designated terrorist group), was invited to Washington, D.C.” the report says. “Eldin was escorted into the White House to meet with Obama’s national security staff.” At the meeting Eldin demanded the release of the Blind Sheikh, currently in federal prison for masterminding the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

An “even more egregious” example is Nafie Ali Nafie, a Sudanese war criminal and architect of genocides in the Nuba Mountains and in Darfur, who was invited by the State Department to a Sudanese Delegation in May 2012.

“As these examples demonstrate,” Poole writes, “the U.S. government’s ignoring the terrorist support of its Muslim outreach partners has had a slippery-slope effect in its foreign policy by inviting members of terrorist groups and war criminals to Washington, D.C. for ‘dialogue.’”

“The legacy of the U.S. government’s Muslim outreach programs since the 1990s is a monument of failure by any measure,” Poole concludes. “With more American lives and body parts strewn across American streets once again in Boston, these outreach partners threaten the health and legitimacy of our constitutional republic with their demands.

“It is clearly past time for Congress to ask whether this long since failed experiment should come to an immediate end.”

Russia to Resume Nuclear Submarine Patrols

They're Back...



(Reuters) - Russia plans to resume nuclear submarine patrols in the southern seas after a hiatus of more than 20 years following the break-up of the Soviet Union, Itar-Tass news agency reported on Saturday, in another example of efforts to revive Moscow's military.

The plan to send Borei-class submarines, designed to carry 16 long-range nuclear missiles, to the southern hemisphere follows President Vladimir Putin's decision in March to deploy a naval unit in the Mediterranean Sea on a permanent basis starting this year.

"The revival of nuclear submarine patrols will allow us to fulfill the tasks of strategic deterrence not only across the North Pole but also the South Pole," state-run Itar-Tass cited an unnamed official in the military General Staff as saying.
The official said the patrols would be phased in over several years. The Yuri Dolgoruky, the first of eight Borei-class submarines that Russia hopes to launch by 2020, entered service this year.

Putin has stressed the importance of a strong and agile military since returning to the presidency last May. In 13 years in power, he has often cited external threats when talking of the need for a reliable armed forces and Russian political unity.

Fears of a nuclear confrontation between Russia and the United States has eased in recent years, and the Cold War-era foes signed a landmark treaty in 2010 setting lower limits on the size of their long-range nuclear arsenals.

But the limited numbers of warheads and delivery vehicles such as submarines that they committed to under the New START treaty are still enough to devastate the world. Putin has made clear Russia will continue to upgrade its arsenal.
Russia's land-launched Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBMs) would fly over the northern part of the globe, as would those fired from submarines in the northern hemisphere.

Both the Borei-class submarines and the Bulava ballistic missiles they carry were designed in the 1990s, when the science and defense industries were severely underfunded.

Russia sees the Bulava as the backbone of its future nuclear deterrence, but the program has been set back by several botched launches over the past few years.

(Editing by Sonya Hepinstall)