An Angry American

The Way Back Machine

2012-02-14T16:49:00.001-05:00

Time to dust off the old way back machine...

In February, 2009, Obama presented his 2010 budget. In that budget he predicted the federal deficit would decrease dramatically during Obama’s term, dropping from an estimated $1.841 trillion in fiscal 2009 to $557.4 billion in fiscal 2012.

Flash forward to today.

Well the other day...

Obama presented his 2013 budget to congress which predicts the federal deficit for fiscal 2012 will not be $557.4 billion after all. Instead, the White House says, it will be $1.3269 trillion.

Hmmmm...

That seems to indicate a problem.

As in...

The people in charge of the financial well-being of our country made a $769.5 mistake in their estimate... an error of 138 percent.

Now... why doesn't that make me all warm and fuzzy?

Wow...

2012-02-12T14:58:00.000-05:00

It seems our brains really are in our asses...

I have no other way to understand this:

Spanking kids can cause long-term harm

The article, based on a study done in Canada, says in part:

Durant and co-author Ron Ensom, with the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa, cite research showing that physical punishment makes children more aggressive and antisocial, and can cause cognitive impairment and developmental difficulties.

Recent studies suggest it may reduce the brain's grey matter in areas relevant to intelligence testing.

Really?

A swat on the ass can reduce gray matter?

I guess those of us who grew up with the experience should be thankful.

I mean, just think how insufferably smart we'd be otherwise...

Don't get me wrong here.

Hitting a child hard enough to leave marks is wrong.

Any punishment that causes physical harm to a child is wrong.

But, an open-handed swat on the ass?

Every kid needs one at one time or another.

"It's time we drain the Jacuzzi and throw the bums out with the bath water."

2012-02-12T01:03:00.001-05:00

*Sigh*

Still looking for that reason...

You know, the one that explains why this woman isn't what we need and why she couldn't have been elected...

The Nanny Nation...

2012-02-10T18:46:00.002-05:00

If the government has its way, we will become a nation of 'children' being looked after by our our government, which is much smarter than we are and certainly knows better than we do what we should want to do with our lives...

The latest example?

Is sugar worse than tobacco?

From the article:

"scientists from the University of California, San Francisco believe that sugar limits shouldn't be self-imposed. They want to see the sweet stuff regulated, much like alcohol and tobacco"

Oh, they have their reasons. We eat too much sugar, which leads to heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. It causes a greater burden on public health than infectious diseases.

Nice, huh?

Yes, I realize we've become an out-of-shape, obese nation. Yes, I realize there are health issues attached. And yes, I suffer from a disease that is caused by what I eat. Directly caused by what I put into my body.

But...

I believe it is my choice how I treat my body. I know the pros and cons. I know what happens when I eat foods my body doesn't process well.

It isn't fun and it hurts. A lot.

Most of the time, I make the right choice. I don't drink. I avoid my trigger foods.

Yet, every once in awhile, I make the choice to enjoy something I know I shouldn't and I pay the price.

It's called weighing the consequences.

That is what adults do. It is what adults should be able to do, without big government stepping in and taking over.

I really don't want to see a day when sugar is locked away, available only by who knows what.

All because someone, somewhere, has decided they know what's good for me better than I do.

One of the most troubling signs...

2012-02-08T15:29:00.000-05:00

(Apologies are in order; I mistakenly used a photo of Elizabeth Olten in my original post. I have corrected the error... and a special thanks to my dear liberal friend who pointed the error out to me... with the normal, tired insults included)

This is 18-year-old Alyssa Bustamante.

At first glance, one might think, she's kinda cute.

One would probably not think there's a monster beneath that smile.

But there is.

Alyssa used her younger sister to lure 9-year-old Elizabeth Olten to their house to play. Alyssa then took Olten into the woods behind their house where she'd already dug a shallow grave. She strangled the little girl in unconsciousness and then slit her throat.

Alyssa was 15 at the time.

After killing the little girl, Alyssa wrote in her diary:

"I strangled them and slit their throat and stabbed them now they're dead. I don't know how to feel atm. It was ahmazing. As soon as you get over the 'ohmygawd I can't do this' feeling, it's pretty enjoyable. I'm kinda nervous and shaky though right now. Kay, I gotta go to church now...lol."

She then went off to a dance at the Mormon church her family attended.

She looks normal... except if you really look at her eyes. They are the eyes of a monster; dead, flat, soulless...

And for me, that is one of the most troubling signs that we have gone wrong. Some how, some where, we have gone wrong.

We are raising monsters instead of normal, healthy, happen children.

Alyssa's defense blamed the fact she was taking Prozac, which she started in 2007, after attempting suicide. They blamed the fact she was born to teenage, drug-abusing parents. Her father is in prison, her mother dumped her on her grandmother to be raised. They say her sentence is too 'harsh'.

I look at that face and wonder where we went wrong.

Did it start when we decided talking about God in schools was somehow harmful?

Was it when the Supreme Court decided human life, in the form of an unborn child, was meaningless?

How about when we decided our children didn't need to be protected from highly sexualized images being forced fed to them everywhere they looked - TV, movies, books, magazines, video games...

We've become an culture where anything goes, no behavior should be frowned on or deemed wrong. Sex, drugs, violence... all cool and if you dare to speak up against it...

I have no answers.

But clearly, we need to figure it out before it's too late...

If it isn't already.

And they wonder why...

2012-02-04T22:45:00.001-05:00

This just in on the spread of Islam in the Netherlands:

Muslim politician calls for a ban on dogs in the Hague

It is legal to own a dog in the Hague. At the moment.

But, the Muslim population, 12% in the city of around 500,000, objects because they believe dogs to be unclean.

They believe it is a violation of their rights to have to put up with people walking their dogs in the city.

This is not an isolated thing. It has happened in other cities, in other countries.

In one city, when their demand was laughed off, there was an increase in dog poisonings.

Dogs violate their right religious freedom and their right to live according to Islamic principles...

I believe I feel almost more strongly about my right to have a dog than I do my right to bear arms... and if anyone tries to take that right away from me...

Things will get very ugly.

Hoo-ray for Hollywood??

2012-02-03T04:28:00.001-05:00

Yeah... no.

They're at it again.

Danny Glover, and a cast of who knows how many others, wants Obama to pardon Leonard Peltier.

Who, you may be asking, is Leonard Peltier?

He is a "Native American Activist" and a member of the American Indian Movement...

He's also the man in prison for the murder of these guys:

Jack Coler

Ronald Williams

Coler and Willaims were agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation at the time of their deaths. They were pursuing an suspect wanting in the questioning of an assault and robbery when their vehicles came under assault from a high-powered rifle, leaving the men, armed only with .38's defenseless.

They died; Coler from a shot to the head and Williams from two execution style shots to the head.

The left, of course, will tell you Peltier didn't get a fair trial.

Others will tell you Peltier has confessed to being the one who killed the two agents.

Personally, I think Leonard Peltier should've assumed room temperature back in April of 1977 after his conviction.

But, hey, what do I know?

I'm not from Hollyweird...

So...

2012-02-03T04:01:00.001-05:00

It's been a month of random good things.

It wasn't exactly what I'd planned or expected, but I'm glad I did it.

I had days where trying to come up with one good thing was a lot harder than I thought it would be.

And, we won't count the days when posting just slipped my mind.

Anyway... Should I continue it or not?

I'm not sure.

I'm trying to get back to 'serious' posts but...

Blah.

The presidential race has left me uninspired.

I mean, Newt and Mitt? That's the best we have?

I guess I'll take a couple of days and decide what's what...

Today's Random Good Thing

2012-02-01T04:41:00.003-05:00

Today is February, the first.

That means there are 18 days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training.

It's my first undeniable sign of spring...

Today's Random Good Thing

2012-01-30T00:35:00.002-05:00

Once again...

Two for the price of one.

Sunday is my day off and I basically did nothing but take it easy...

Can't beat it.

Today's Random Good Thing

2012-01-28T17:35:00.001-05:00

Simple is best.

So far, we haven't gotten as much snow as predicated.

This is always a good thing.

Today's Random Good Thing

2012-01-27T05:47:00.002-05:00

So...

Will this count as yesterday, the 26th, or today, the 27th...

I'm on straight nights now and, because we do things a bit oddly, I am currently working the 26th, regardless of the fact it is really the 27th...

Anyway, count it for either or both...

I woke up in a funk Thursday.

I've got a lot going on right now, none of it particularly good, all of it chaotic.

I really, truly, want to get it settled, whichever way it washes out.

I'll get there, eventually. It'll just take time.

Anyway... about the good thing...

The funk didn't settle in the way it felt like it was going to.

In fact, as I think about it now...

It's pretty much gone.

I'll take that as a very good thing.

A snapshot of what's wrong with this country...

2012-01-25T19:54:00.003-05:00

In an disgusting letter mailed to his local paper, a convicted killer has bragged about his 'life of leisure':

Danny Robbie Hembree Jr. was found guilty of murdering 17-year-old Heather Catterton in 2009 and had this to say in his recent letter:.

"Is the public aware that I am a gentleman of leisure, watching color TV in the A.C., reading, taking naps at will, eating three well balanced hot meals a day," Hembree asked in the letter. "I'm housed in a building that connects to the new 55 million dollar hospital with round the clock free medical care 24/7."

Hembree is also a suspect in the deaths of two other women, 30-year-old Randi Dean Saldana, and 30-year-old Deborah Ratchford. He confessed to the crimes but later said he only did so to cover up a string of armed robberies.

Makes perfect sense, right?

I'm not, however, talking about his crimes or his confession when I mention a snapshot of what's wrong with this country.

I'm talking about the fact that there is a 55 million dollar hospital somewhere attached to a prison housing death row inmates.

There are rural areas in this country without hospitals.

It's absolutely insane...

Ever get the feeling...

2012-01-25T08:14:00.000-05:00

That you're like this guy?

A square peg in a round hole?

Fred Flinstone, running as fast as you can in your stone wheeled car while those in today's cars are zipping by you?

*Sigh*

I do.

Recently, they changed blogger on me. I'm managing but I'm not as comfortable as I was.

Now, another change in Facebook is being forced on me.

It's called Timeline and will make every stupid thing you've every posted more easily available to your friends... whether you want it to be or not.

I find myself wondering one thing...

Why can't they leave me alone?

I *liked* the old blogger.I *like* Facebook the way it is...

Same can be said about a lot of things in my life...

But technology just rolls along, crushing dinosaurs like me in its path...

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-25T08:08:00.001-05:00

Is actually yesterday's but since I didn't get to it then, I'll get to it now:

Massage.

It's the best random good thing about my day yesterday.

Today is starting out (ending, for me) in a not so good way...

Came home to find the dog had the runs last night.

Just what I wanted to do before going to bed.

She is still a good thing in my life, however...

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-23T14:21:00.002-05:00

actually comes via the media, which doesn't often give us good things.

Girl foils kidnapping

Calysta Cordova, 9-years-old, went missing on a walk home from school. The truck she was riding in with her kidnapper broke down and the two were taken to a nearby convenience store. Calysta had the fortitude and knowledge to call 9-1-1 and then refuse, loudly, to go anywhere with the man. He ran off but was caught a short time later.

There are two good things in this story; one, that the girl is safe and back home and two, that she was, at some point in her young life, taught about 9-1-1 and 'stranger danger'.

We don't want to scare our kids but the unfortunate truth is we need to make sure they know what to do if the unimaginable happens.

It is a good thing Calysta did.

I should be paying more taxes...

2012-01-22T16:46:00.000-05:00

or, so said Obama:

If you don't want to watch, here's the important part, at least to this post:

"I've been hearing a lot of these Republicans talking about, oh, that's class warfare, and he just wants to redistribute, and doesn't believe in work, and he's trying to create an entitlement society, and this and that and the other. Let me be absolutely clear: I should pay more taxes, and folks in my income bracket should pay more taxes, and certainly folks who are making billions of dollars should pay more taxes, not because I want to take their money and just give it to somebody else."

Maybe someone should remind our Constitutional scholar that there is nothing in the Constitution that keeps him and his fellow liberals from voluntarily giving more of their money to the federal government.

Just once, I'd like to see them put their money where their mouths are...

But I'm not holding my breath.

Today's not so random good thing...

2012-01-22T16:34:00.001-05:00

is another simple one.

Today isn't yesterday and that is a very good thing.

I worked a double shift yesterday, from 1500 until 0700 this morning. It was uneventful, basically pretty boring and I met some of new interns and am encouraged.

But...

I am getting too old to be working 16 hours.

So, it's a very good thing today is today and not yesterday!

A few facts on Gout...

2012-01-21T00:41:00.001-05:00

So...

I have gout.

A disease that predominantly affects men.

Old men.

Me? I'm a female and I'm 52, which feels older than it is at time...

Gout also 'normally' presents in the big toe first.

Yeah, right. My big toe has never bothered me. It's the other side of my foot that hurts and it isn't the toes, it's the joints of the metatarsal area.

At least eight years ago, before my mother passed away, I went to see a foot doctor because my left foot hurt so badly at times I could barely walk. I clearly remember telling him that I couldn't imagine it hurting any more if it were broken. He x-rayed my foot and said it was fine but he had no explanation for the pain. I think he gave me a steroid shot.

I've lived with pain that I cannot describe for at least eight years. Probably longer.

What's it like?

When I'm suffering a flare, the weight of the blankets on my bed are unbearable. Putting on a shoe or boot makes my foot hurt all the way up to my knee. Pain killers barely touch it when it's that bad. The only thing that seems to work is keeping off it and keeping it elevated. My life, however, does not lend itself well to that so I suffer and I spend a lot of time standing on one foot.

Since those long ago days with the foot doctor, I have had flares in other places, most recently both index fingers on my hands, which scares me. I consider myself a writer and I spend a lot of time typing. Pain in my fingers is too scary to contemplate.

Since starting the medication, I've discovered a couple of other things, mostly by the reduction or absence of pain. My knees, for instance, do not hurt as much as they once did. And a chronic pain in my hip seems to be gone.

So, no, Greybeard, the gout pain doesn't keep me from posting. It keeps me from doing some of the things I'd love to do, like take my dog for a long walk or like sleeping well...

But finally there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

I am losing weight, trying to eat better, and I am treating my disease...

Finally.

And if you want me to explain what gout is, let me know. I'll tell you all I know about it.

Random Good Things...

2012-01-21T00:24:00.003-05:00

Let's see...

I'm behind, again. Time seems to slip away from me and I don't get here like I should.

So, what's been good in my life?

Wednesday we had a good old fashioned winter storm; wind gusts in the 37 mph range, heavy snow, subzero temps pushing windchills into the range you don't want to know about...

So, the good thing for Thursday was the end of the storm. The cold is still hanging on, but I can take it without snow.

And the good thing for Friday?

My niece, the newlywed, is home for the weekend. We're going to lunch today. Just having her home is a very good thing in my book.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-17T21:19:00.000-05:00

Another day of relatively mild weather before we hit the deep freeze again...

Lunch with my sister and brother-in-law...

An enjoyable hot stone massage...

Pretty much a normal, nothing dire happening day...

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-16T21:39:00.004-05:00

Adjusting.

As in, adjusting to my new medication.

The nausea seems to pretty much be gone, as are the other symptoms.

And, though I think it's too early...

I think I'm already noticing a difference.

Good doesn't begin to cover it.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-14T15:02:00.002-05:00

Winter.

Bright, sunny, bitterly cold winter...

Along with the knowledge that I don't need to be outside in the bitter cold to enjoy the beautiful sunshine along with the crisp, white mantel of snow...

It takes your breath away.

Michael Moore is still barking at the moon...

2012-01-13T20:17:00.001-05:00

During the Tavis Smiley Symposium on Poverty in America held at Indiana University, Moore recently said:

'...and that's younger people... because they are not as racist as the previous generations. I mean, can I just throw out just one stastic. The only white age group that President Obama won was 18-29 year olds. He lost every other white age group. So that may sound depressing. But the hopefull part is our young people they are going to fix this. You know this, our kids are not bigots they are not homophobes. They don't look at things the way the parents and grandparents did"

So...

According to Moore...

Older white people didn't vote for Obama because we're all racists...

It couldn't possibly be because we were the ones 'fortunate' enough to have lived through Jimmy Carter...

Nope.

Why do they do it??

2012-01-13T20:07:00.000-05:00

I am, to say the least, mildly confused by a great many things these days. Most of them, however, I can do nothing about, and it truly doesn't matter if I'm confused or not.

Among those things are the fact that this country hasn't had a budget in 1,000 days, and the fact that our debt is now equal to our economy...

But...

Here's my question for now. It's of a personal nature... one I can, and have, done something about, but the question remains.

Several months ago I was diagnosed with gout.

It sucks. It is the most painful form of arthritis there is. I have days when my foot hurts so badly the idea of putting my boots on to go to work is akin to deciding to be water boarded.

I do it and I hurt, a lot.

I've changed my diet, learned to a certain degree what triggers a gout flare (alcohol is gone forever from my 'diet', so are ham and processed meats...)

It brought my gout level down to around a 10 or 11.

When I asked my health care provider about treating it, her response was 'Let's just keep an eye on it.'

I didn't like that answer, especially not in light of some of the information I've gotten online.

So... I went back to my old doctor, the one I trust a great deal.

According to him, untreated gout will 'destroy your joints'...

Waiting is not a good plan, unless you want to undergo joint replacement surgery sooner than later.

I figure I've had gout for at least 10 years, without it being diagnosed. Waiting to treat it was a fool's option.

So...

Why did my health care provider suggest it?

I really don't know.

My pharmacist told me it was how they once handled it, but the research has shown it to be a bad option.

Why does any doctor suggest waiting as an option when there is a treatment available?

I'm on medication now and at the moment it is kicking my ass. Nausea and I have become best friends. Drowsy means falling asleep if I close my eyes for more than five seconds...

But I'll take it. I'll even take the gout flare they warn may be a side effect.

I'll take them because I know they'll go away.

Joint replacement won't.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-13T19:35:00.002-05:00

Snow days.

I don't get them myself. I'm considered 'essential personnel' at the university and have to report for work, even when the place is shut down.

And, it wasn't today...

But the local schools had a snow day.

For those of you unfamiliar with the concept, snow days are the result of snow storms, which make traveling to and from school too hazardous for the students, so school is cancelled for the day.

What could possibly be good about such a thing?

In the last 24 hours, we've received almost 6 inches of snow.

This area depends on winter sports for a large portion of income for a lot of folks and up until today, we've had almost none of the fluffy white stuff...

So, it's a good thing to finally get some.

The 7F temperature with a -6F windchill, along with the forecasted low of -7F tonight, however...

Today's Random Good Thing:

2012-01-10T18:03:00.000-05:00

The young lady is my niece. The man is her father and the occasion was her sister's wedding this past October.

Nieces and brothers-in-law are good things...

But today's random good thing is the fact there is to be another wedding in the family. My niece, this niece, is engaged and around a year from now will be tying the knot...

Definitely a good thing.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-08T23:58:00.003-05:00

Is very much of a personal nature.

Today, I unplugged.

No internet, no computer. I relaxed, napped, and read the day away.

It was peaceful and I think I needed it.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-07T13:09:00.004-05:00

That's a photo of a real ladybug, taking in the early morning, when everything was covered with dew.

Maybe not so much a good thing as it is a cool thing, but there you go.

Cool can be good, can't it?

Today's Random good thing...

2012-01-06T11:34:00.004-05:00

Well...

It's the 6th of January.

I didn't do one of these posts yesterday.

That means I made it four days...

*Sigh*

So, I'm going with the obvious today:

It's a good thing that I remembered to do the post.

This is not at all what I had in mind...

And Another Neanderthal is heard from...

2012-01-06T11:32:00.001-05:00

First, it was Alan Colmes...

On Fox News, the pontificating, smug bastard referred to Rick Santorum and his 'crazy' ideas, highlighting the fact that Santorum and his wife took their newborn son home. What made it 'crazy' in Colmes's view was the fact that the baby had died after two hours.

And now it's this guy...

Patterico's post is worth reading, so I hope you do.

I've heard people wonder why anyone would use such private grief to criticize Santorum.

The explanation, for me, is simple.

It is the simple lack of respect for human life

It is the belief that a baby, until it is alive, and unless it is born perfect, is nothing more than a meaningless mass of tissue.

Alan Colmes and Eugen Robinson clearly embrace that concept.

To them, Santorum's child, because he didn't survive, wasn't a child.

And to me, that is more a comment on them, then it will ever be on Santorum.

Is it just me?

2012-01-04T11:11:00.001-05:00

Or have any of you noticed the same thing?

I'm talking about how disorganized or incompetent all of the Republican candidates seem to be this time around.

They say things that are flat-out stupid and then have to waste time and money explaining that isn't what they really meant to say...

They forget to file the paperwork needed to get them on the ballots in important states...

They ignore common sense rules of campaigning in the first place, for some unknown reason believing they will somehow not be held accountable...

They all claim to be as conservative as Ronald Reagan... while their records practically scream something entirely different...

I am truly not impressed by any of the candidates.

John McCain coming out to endorse Romney doesn't change my mind about Romney; in fact, it's another mark against him.

Ron Paul flat-out scares the hell out of me and should he be elected, it would truly be over.

Santorum is an unknown, yet I am hesitant to learn more about him for fear it will be a gigantic waste of time once the media attacks.I'm not impressed.

Republicans, if this is the best you have to offer...

We are truly in trouble.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-04T10:30:00.000-05:00

It seems awfully early to be deciding what today's good thing is but it's shaping up to be one of 'those' days, so it's better to get this out of the way.

The deep freeze we've been in seems to be relenting. After a couple of days of highs in the teens and lows in the single digits with subzero windchill temps, it is now a balmy 21 with a forecast for a high of 30.

From one extreme to another...

But this one I will gladly take.

Today's Random Good Thing...

2012-01-03T20:05:00.002-05:00

The Iowa Caucus is over.

Or shortly will be.

I normally enjoy politics but I am definitely on overload over this...

Time for something completely different...

2012-01-02T07:48:00.000-05:00

I'm in one of those moods lately.

You know the one I'm talking about.

Everything and everyone bugs the hell out of you.

Nothing fits and I'm not talking clothing; I'm talking about your life.

Right now, I feel like I'm facing a mountain that I have to climb... and my pockets have been filled with the weights they use to handicap race horses...

So...

Time to try and shake the dust off.

Here's what I'm going to do.

I'm going to post one good thing a day. It might be nothing more than a good thought. It might be something good that happened to me. It might be something good I've read about, heard about, watched, or listened to...

Think I can do it?

I mean... how tough can it be, right?

So, since today is the second, I'll start off with two good thoughts:

For January 1st:

It's a brand new year. The slate has been wiped clean. Time to start anew...

For January 2nd:

It's Monday, which for me, translates into Friday.

I hope y'all have a great day!

Merry Christmas...

2011-12-25T20:55:00.000-05:00

No lengthy message this year for one simple reason: I don't want to be negative or down on this day and when it comes to too many things, that's about the only thing I can be.

So...

I'll simply wish one and all a very Merry Christmas and a joyous New Year...

And, as always:

Peace.

The nature of things...

2011-12-23T18:42:00.000-05:00

We've been without a contract for a year, at least. I'm not sure because I don't pay that much attention to those things. Mainly because I don't necessarily want to belong to a union... but I have no choice.

Anyway...

The three-year contract includes 'raises' of 10, 15, and 20 cents, I believe.

After ten years with no raise whatsoever.

My new pay won't cover the cost of my union dues, which I haven't been paying because we haven't had a contract.

I'm losing money... but the union will get their $70 a month...

One little boy...

2011-12-17T19:28:00.000-05:00

who gets what all those full-grown liberals don't...

Honor First...

2011-12-15T00:31:00.000-05:00

One year ago...

Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry was killed in the line of duty...

Guns from the botched Fast and Furious operation were found on the scene.

A year later...

There are no answers.

His family still grieves but gets nothing from the leaders of the country he died defending.

Rest in Peace, Agent Terry.

You died as you lived; with honor...

You will not be forgotten.

I think these people have the stupidity market surrounded...

2011-12-14T23:42:00.000-05:00

Anyone else think this idiot should have her child taken away from her? I mean, if they'll take kids away because of their names...

Wonder if she has any idea just how long it takes to stop a train?

Help them what, exactly?

2011-12-12T14:20:00.000-05:00

A photo at Yahoo today:

A bit of explanation. The Occupy idiots are blockading the Port of Longview in Longview, Washington today.

The people they're hurting are the truckers who are just trying to make a living.

The people they're not hurting?

The Longshoreman.

The sign held by the one protestor got me curious. Just what does a longshoreman make?

Here's the answer:

Longshoremen were paid hourly wages of $19.63 to $34.58 for regular work and $35.08 to $50.90 per hour for overtime, according to a PayScale survey of 61 people in this occupation that was updated in September 2010. Including bonuses of $1,500 to $11,504, the total annual wages reported by longshoremen in the survey ranged from $50,393 to $99,907.

Popular Industries

Two popular industries for employment of longshoremen were listed by PayScale. The lower-paying one was the shipping/transportation/warehousing/logistics/distribution industry, which paid $21.54 to $33.83 per hour. The port and transportation/shipping agency industry paid between $22.09 and $35.52 per hour.

Popular Cities

The four most popular cities for longshoremen to work were all on the west coast, according to PayScale's survey, with Seattle, Washington topping the list. San Pedro, Los Angeles and Long beach, all in California, were second, third and fourth. Bayonne, New Jersey was fifth..

Wages by Experience

Longshoremen with one to four years of experience earned $21.25 to $33.84 per hour, while those on the job for five to nine years made $14.11 to $33.83 hourly. Longshoremen with 10 to 19 years of experience made $24.08 to $35.38 per hour, PayScale reported.

So...

A man making over $20 an hour is whining about his job and wants us to help him.

I don't know about you but I don't make anywhere near that much...

I could use a little help.

That wonderful religion...

2011-12-10T08:57:00.001-05:00

Ladies, please ignore the photo below. You know how weak-willed women are...

How can anyone take Islam seriously when they keep preaching idiotic crap like this:

An Islamic cleric living in Europe reportedly has warned Muslim women not to get too close to bananas, cucumbers or other produce -- to avoid having “sexual thoughts.”

The unnamed cleric, whose directive was featured in an article in el-Senousa, a religious publication, purportedly said that if women wanted to eat these foods, a third party -- preferably a male related to them, such as their father or husband -- should cut the items into small pieces before serving, the Egyptian website Bikya Masr reported.

What's next? Men will be told to put toothpaste on a woman's toothbrush because, well... that tube is round if you squeeze it just right...

Good grief.

"Somebody needs to be held accountable..."

2011-12-01T21:52:00.000-05:00

This woman is 37 years old and has 15 children.

FIFTEEN...

In the video she whines about having to pay for those kids and says somebody needs to pay and somebody needs to be held accountable...

It'd be laughable if she weren't serious.

Watch it, if you can stomach it.

Where is the leadership?

2011-11-17T21:51:00.000-05:00

It's a question I've heard a lot lately, from a wide variety of people: Where are the leaders, both for the nation and for the Republican Party.

Well...

Here:

How Congress Occupied Wall Street

By Sarah Palin

The moment you threaten to strip politicians of their legal graft, they'll moan that they can't govern effectively without it. Perhaps they'll gravitate toward reform, but often their idea of reform is to limit the right of "We the people" to exercise our freedom of speech in the political process.

I've learned from local, state and national political experience that the only solution to entrenched corruption is sudden and relentless reform. Sudden because our permanent political class is adept at changing the subject to divert the public's attention—and we can no longer afford to be indifferent to this system of graft when our country is going bankrupt. Reform must be relentless because fighting corruption is like a game of whack-a-mole. You knock it down in one area only to see it pop up in another.

What are the solutions? We need reform that provides real transparency. Congress should be subject to the Freedom of Information Act like everyone else. We need more detailed financial disclosure reports, and members should submit reports much more often than once a year. All stock transactions above $5,000 should be disclosed within five days.

We need equality under the law. From now on, laws that apply to the private sector must apply to Congress, including whistleblower, conflict-of-interest and insider-trading laws. Trading on nonpublic government information should be illegal both for those who pass on the information and those who trade on it. (This should close the loophole of the blind trusts that aren't really blind because they're managed by family members or friends.)

No more sweetheart land deals with campaign contributors. No gifts of IPO shares. No trading of stocks related to committee assignments. No earmarks where the congressman receives a direct benefit. No accepting campaign contributions while Congress is in session. No lobbyists as family members, and no transitioning into a lobbying career after leaving office. No more revolving door, ever.

This call for real reform must transcend political parties. The grass-roots movements of the right and the left should embrace this. The tea party's mission has always been opposition to waste and crony capitalism, and the Occupy protesters must realize that Washington politicians have been "Occupying Wall Street" long before anyone pitched a tent in Zuccotti Park.

Go and read the whole thing.

She's right.

Now, this is how you handle the idiots...

2011-11-13T07:22:00.000-05:00

Politely, firmly, no nonsense.

You don't let them escalate nor do you let anyone on your side escalate things.

Way to go, Brandon Darby.

11-11-11

2011-11-10T21:33:00.000-05:00

It started on the "eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918 as Armistice Day, the end of World War I, at least on the western front.

It became Veteran's Day after World War II.

It is the day we are supposed to pause and remember all those who have served their country throughout the years by wearing the uniform, by leaving home and family to put their lives on the line on foreign shores.

They go because they were asked, because they volunteered, because they believe in this country and the freedoms we hold dear.

They go because they know they must.

They go so we do not have to.

Today, I want to honor one of my own family who answered the call of his nation, my cousin, Tom. I've lost contact with Tom but I do think about him often...

It was 1967. He was young and a Marine, a bad time to be both.

He landed 'in country' one day to face a forced march to the DMZ. Once they reached their destination, they dug in and were told to get some sleep.

It was raining.

Tom said he tried to get comfortable but if he covered his face with his helmet, the rain ran down his back and if he protected his back, it ran down his face.

Despite the rain, despite the fear, despite the conditions, he slept.

He said when he woke up the next morning, his only thought was "If I survive this place, nothing will ever bother me again."

He did survive.

He doesn't talk much about what happened after that first night.

He did say he read the letters he'd sent home to his mother; they were nothing but lies he told her to protect her.

He also told me the story of his 'homecoming'.

He arrived at Detroit Metro, in dirty fatigues, with his duffel bag over his shoulder. He was met by some protests who spit at him and called him a baby burner.

He responded by chasing them through Metro... until he realized if he caught them, he was going to kill them.

He stopped and went home.

His life has been hard. He's had bouts with depression and alcoholism, included a drunk driving arrest.

He was wise enough to seek help when he realized he was suffering PTSD...

I have no idea how he is now, but I do pray he is doing well and that some of the ghosts have left him alone.

We ask so much of those who wear the uniform for us.

They ask for so little in return.

Respect, gratitude, honor.

I have two wishes when it comes to our veterans.

One, that we never again dishonor them the way we did after Vietnam. That is, was, and always will be a scar on this nation's soul.

And two, I wish them peace, love, and joy for the rest of their lives.

May God bless and keep those that didn't come home...

And may we honor those that did, not just for one day, but for always.

What the Occupy idiots are up to now...

2011-11-09T13:00:00.000-05:00

So, I've basically been ignoring the mass stupidity that seems to have engulfed the media and a small segment of society.

They have, however, provided me with moments of pure amusement, such as when I found out that the Occupy Detroit people have a $450,000 slush fund, paid for by donations, most of which were donated online and paid for via . . . Mastercard and Visa...

Or the report from NYC in which one young woman complained about corporate greed and then complained about the fact that her $5,500 laptop had been stolen...

But the best moment? The 99% are complaining about how the homeless people are eating at their kitchens. Clearly, charity is not high on their list...

And now, on the west coast, I believe, the homeless are tired of the Occupy people and want the police to get rid of them.

How can you not laugh?

But, then I see something like this:

And I realize these people aren't harmless buffoons. Don't get me wrong; they ARE buffoons; they're just not harmless.

Their utter and complete ignorance and lack of basic human compassion or caring about anyone or anything beyond themselves makes them dangerous.

We all need to keep an eye on them.

And one day...

2011-11-06T16:36:00.000-05:00

when you're not looking, they grow up.

Kids, that is.

I'm not a mother; I'm an aunt, a mentor, a 'second mother', to some truly great young people.

The two who hold the biggest pieces of my heart are my sister's daughters. It's been my absolute joy and pleasure to watch them grow up and to know that I've had a small part in helping them become the amazing young women they are.

Why, you may be asking, am I waxing so philosophical today?

This is why:

On October 29th, my niece took a huge step in her life by joining it with a man she loves.

She was two yesterday and today, she talks about spending time with her hubby.

I have no idea how it happened so fast.

I do know that I am insanely proud of the beautiful woman she's become.

And for whatever little part I played in that, I am thankful.

Officer Trevor Slot, Walker (Michigan) Police Department

2011-10-13T18:10:00.001-04:00

There is a thin blue line in our country; one that most people don't think about until they run into it.

When that happens, the people who hold that line are often cursed, vilified, and attacked in a myriad of ways, including physically.

When those same people find themselves in need of protection, they turn, of course, to that same blue line, the one they vilified and cursed.

Every time the line is cursed and vilified, every time one of those who hold it is killed, the line frays just a little. It bleeds. It weeps. It becomes a tattered, raggedy thing.

But it holds.

It holds in spite of those who act like they wish it did not.

It holds because the people who wear the uniform are a dedicated, honorable group who put other people ahead of themselves and their families.

It holds because it must.

It always will.

The latest hero to leave a hole behind in the line is Officer Trevor Slot

On October 13, 2011, Police Officer Trevor Slot was struck and killed by vehicle driven by a bank robbery suspect while attempting to deploy stop sticks on I-96 at 8th Avenue.

The robbery suspects, two males, were killed shortly thereafter as police converged on their crashed Oldsmobile Bravada along I-96 at Eighth Avenue. Both died after exchanging gunfire with multiple officers from three police agencies.

Officer Slot is survived by his wife, Kim, and family.

To be sure, he is not the only one.

Nor will he be the last.

Rest well, Officer Slot.

It is in our hands now.

Know that the line will hold.

10-42

Hank Williams Jr...

2011-10-11T02:19:00.002-04:00

... and all his rowdy friends have been fired by ESPN because Hank spoke his mind on the Fox and Friends show.

So much for free speech, right?

Well, Hank has a little something more to say about the situation:

Keep on keepin' on, Hank.

Let me get this straight...

2011-10-02T16:11:00.000-04:00

This guy is 27 years old and he's been arrested 65 times?

What the hell is wrong with this picture?

Has our justice system really gotten that bad?

Man Arrested For 65th Time After Holding Woman And Her Children Hostage

A woman and her two small children escaped a home in unincorporated Northbrook after her attacker fell asleep, ending a week-long captivity during which the woman repeatedly beaten.

Francisco Tirado, 27, of the 3700 block of Salem Walk in unincorporated Northbrook, was charged Friday with two felony counts of aggravated domestic battery and one felony count of aggravated unlawful restraint, according to a release from the Cook County Sheriff’s office.

The arrest was the 65th since 2001, the release said.

Apparently, it has.

Danny Faulkner's killer has yet to be executed. Hollywood types still back him...

Troy Davis, executed recently for killing an off-duty police officer, was the latest celebrity cause...

Michael Vick is back to making money hand over fist...

Criminals have more rights than victims...

Cops are the enemy...

Insanity rules.

Of course they do...

2011-10-02T15:48:00.000-04:00

Democrats push tax hikes first in deficit talks

Democrats want tax hikes to be the first item negotiated in "super committee" deficit-reduction talks, trying to force Republicans to confront an issue at the heart of this year's budget fights, sources told Reuters.

The tough stance by Democratic members of the powerful 12-member congressional panel reflects the party's wariness that Republicans might try to sideline the issue of revenue increases in the negotiations.

"They've raised the idea of doing taxes first," a Republican aide involved in the discussions said on Friday on condition of anonymity.

They have no ideas beyond raising taxes...

And anyone that believes the tax increase will only be on the rich has not been paying attention to history.

Some things need no explanation...

2011-09-27T20:39:00.002-04:00

Where did this woman come from?

2011-09-27T12:35:00.001-04:00

And how do we get her to go home and stay there?

Joy Behar and Michael Moore together...

There's a nightmare for ya.

And good old, ultra-svelte, tolerant Joy, when talking about Chris Christie, wonders if Americans will 'tolerate a fat president'...

Well, Joy, we've tolerated an incompetent one for three years...

Fat and competent might be a nice change.

Stand off, part...

2011-09-26T14:03:00.001-04:00

five, ten, or one hundred...

I've lost count.

Anyway, congress is once again facing a funding standoff.

This time involving disaster aid.

The hold up?

The Republican controlled congress has passed a bill requiring 1.6 trillion dollars in spending cuts to off-set the disaster aid.

The democrats, of course, are against any cuts whatsoever.

My question to Nancy Pelosi?

Whatever happened to pay as you go?

And, an even more important question - why the hell can't these people do their jobs?

Cupcakes for sale?

2011-09-26T14:00:00.000-04:00

The UC Berkeley College Republicans are in trouble.

Why?

They want to sell cupcakes.

How can such a simple thing cause so much trouble?

Simple.

Diversity pricing:

White/Caucasian: $2.00 a cupcake1
Asian/Asian American: $1.50 a cupcake
Black/African American: $0.75 a cupcake.

Students are calling the pricing "hateful" and "hurtful"...

Those students are completely missing the point.

The College Republicans are trying to point out how unfair affirmative action practices are.

As a result, there is talk that the group may lose their funding from the university. They may suffer punishment of a different sort or kind; the university is looking into it.

Does anyone else find the idea brilliant?

It shows the hypocrisy of the liberal mindset. I mean, it's hateful and hurtful to charge one group more for a cupcake based purely on a physical attribute...

But it's okay to allow a group of people more access to an education and the money to fund that education based on the same physical attribute.

Now that is hateful and hurtful, if you ask me.

What are we teaching our kids??

2011-09-22T16:21:00.000-04:00

Student Suspended for Saying Gay Is Wrong: MyFoxDFW.com

Clearly, nothing about the Constitution of the United States.

Oh, I'm sure they talk about it.

But teach the values held within it?

No.

Ever wonder if you've chosesn the wrong profession?

2011-09-19T15:56:00.000-04:00

I do.

There was a cocaine bust in Hong Kong recently and that photograph above is the result. That's 1,200 pounds (560 kilograms) worth of cocaine.

It has a street value of 77 MILLION dollars.

If I've done the math right, which is always a risky thing to assume, that works out to be something like $65,000 a pound.

There are times when I feel like I definitely chose the wrong side of the street to play on...

No, not really.

In Remembrance...

2011-09-11T05:00:00.001-04:00

Ten Years Ago...

2011-09-10T17:19:00.000-04:00

This is the night, ten years ago, when we went to bed unaware.

We slept the sleep of the innocent.

We had no idea what awaited us the next morning.

At first, it was simply a horrible plane crash. Tragic, unbelievable but an accident.

Surely an accident...

And then we knew.

We had been attacked.

We were suddenly, undeniably at war.

There could be no other response. Not to an unprovoked assault on us; our people, our lives, our freedom.

Our hearts, our souls, were left bruised and bleeding, our lives changed forever by madmen filled with a hatred we could not fathom or understand.

Ten years later, I still don't understand that hatred.

I will never understand it.

But, I will continue to fight it in whatever way I can.

I will fight it by living my life, unchanged. By not bowing to fear created by madmen

I will fight it by refusing to let them win.

I will continue to love my family, my country, and God.

They hurt us that day, without a doubt.

But they did not win.

They will not win.

Ever.

Courage, defined

2011-09-05T08:17:00.000-04:00

It's a common debate, isn't it?

What, exactly, is courage?

Is it a willingness to stand up and fight? To face your fears? To not back down?

It may very well be all of those things, but if you pay attention over the next six days you will see courage defined again and again and again.

For me, courage is the ability to pick yourself up when you are not only down, but when you have been completely devastated. It is the simple act of getting up in the morning when there is nothing left of your heart but an empty, aching hole. It is the act of picking up and going on because you know you have to. Life demands it.

That is exactly what the families and friends of those who died on September 11th, 2001 have done.

They've continued through the many long days and longer nights when they truly didn't want to. They've resisted the urge to crawl into a hole and pull it in after them. They have persevered in spite of a grief I'm not sure any of us can understand with the same intimacy they have experienced. We have our own grief but it is nothing like theirs.

Pay attention this week. Listen to the incredible stories that are out there.

If you do, you'll hear not only courage defined, but you will hear a resounding rejection of the madness and evil of that day. You will hear that courage whisper...

We are still here.

We are still strong.

You will not defeat us.

We will never, ever forget.

God bless those families and friends...

And thank you for your courage.

Your stories are a lesson we should all take to heart.

The continuing saga, Part II

2011-08-18T19:30:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, it was the dog's turn to make me crazy.

It wasn't her fault, however. I understand why she did what she did...

I seriously wonder why all the weird stuff happens to me. Really.

Here's the story:

Yesterday, I took my niece to lunch. While we were eating, a thunderstorm rolled in.

A very impressive thunderstorm.

I looked at my niece and said "My poor baby."

My said "She'll be fine."

After we said good bye and she went back to work, I ran out to my sister's house to get her two dogs, one of which doesn't like thundersboomers any more than Riley. I also had a couple of errands to run but I wasn't gone any more than 90 minutes. Honest.

I walked into my house to find Riley in the front hall. No big deal. I must've left the hall door open.

No, it was closed. I looked from the door to my dog and noticed she was wet. As in soaking wet.

We went into the house and I looked around. The front window, which I had left open when I left was now closed. The dowel I use to keep it open was lying outside, on my front stoop.

The explanation was clear.

My dog, in a panic because of the storm, had jumped through the window.

When the new neighbor came over awhile later things got really strange.

Apparently, my dog, once she was outside, was standing in the street when some blonde lady stopped her car to check on the dog. The dog, got in her car and then either the lady took her for a drive around the block or she and the new neighbor put her in my house.

Either way, my dog was willing to go off with a complete stranger.

I don't like that. At all.

And I feel awful for leaving her home alone to panic enough that she felt safer going out the window than she did staying safe and dry in her house.

*Sigh*

Random strangeness.

I can't seem to get away from it.

Random things that make you go hmmm

2011-08-15T22:52:00.000-04:00

This blog has been visited by someone in Tunisia. Once. Huh? I don't think I know anyone in Tunisia but... cool?

It's also been visited by someone in O Fallon, Illinois, 107 times. I think I might know who that is. But really?

And Frackville, Pennsylvania... 417 times. No clue.

I don't look at my visitor's map often because it weirds me out in a way.

I appreciate all the visits, no matte where y'all hail from...

Thank you.

To cleanse your palate of Washington's stupidity...

2011-08-13T15:52:00.002-04:00

Out of the mouth of...

2011-08-06T14:28:00.000-04:00

The usual suspects...

2011-08-06T14:15:00.000-04:00

Beau's Mom asked who the suspects were in the Dastardly Bat caper...

Well, that's them, looking all cute and innocent...

And while I'm sharing photos of my fur kids...

Here's one of their 'big sister'.

The Siamese is Max. The other is Maddie. And the big girl of the bunch is Riley.

The continuing saga of...

2011-08-04T01:44:00.001-04:00

I live a quiet life, really. Work, family, friends, my pets. That's about it. It's not much, but I like it.

So why, I find myself asking myself, do weird things keep happening to me?

The latest tale involved that little guy up there.

It's supposed to be a photo of a little brown bat but it might be a big brown bat and it isn't THE bat, just one that looks like THE bat. It doesn't truly matter to the story...

Last Friday morning, when I got home at 0715, I noticed a dark brown spot on the carpet in my bedroom. My first thought, as always with two cats in the house, was now what did they kill and bring inside?

I bent down to look and realized it was a bat.

A week or two ago I wouldn't have thought twice about it but a friend on Facebook posted a link about how they'd found a rabid bat in Ann Arbor.

Yes, that's a good distance from where I live but when I found the little bugger on my carpet, the story pinging within.

I scooped the thing up, without touching it, and put it outside with the garbage. I then went to sleep.

Friday afternoon I had an appointment at the vet's for my dog so I said, casually, "I found a dead bat in my house..."

He immediately made a face and asked if I still had it. I told him I could probably still get it and he told me to get it and take it to the county health department to get it tested. He then proceeded to make my day by telling me that the assumption, when you find a dead bat in your house, is that you have been bitten and if you don't have the bat to be tested, you get the shots...

The article about rabid bats immediately came to mind.

Lovely.

I went home and retrieved the bat, putting it into a Ziploc and into my fridge where it sat all weekend because the Health Department closes at 4:30...

I spent the weekend worrying about my cats, who hadn't been vaccinated recently due to funding problems.

I spent the weekend trying very hard not to think about those shots. Weren't there like 15 of them... directly into your stomach?

Monday morning, the bat went to the Health Department and I spoke with a nurse who told me that I had done everything right and I had nothing to worry about. I had plenty of time to get the test results back and get the shots, if I needed to. Oh, and there are only two shots now and they're not nearly as bad as they once were. I mentioned that my cats hadn't been vaccinated and she said, get them vaccinated and they'll be fine.

I really, really wish I'd talked to her on Friday.

The bat got packed up and shipped off to Lansing, where they would cut off his fuzzy brown head and examine his brain.

The cats got vaccinated, cutting my worries down to just me, but at a greatly reduced level.

I got a phone call on Wednesday telling me the test was negative.

So, things turned out all right...

But again. Why does the weird stuff happen to me?

I guess my life is so quiet most of the time that the fates figure I need a little something every so often to keep it interesting.

Lucky me.

Thank you . . . And Good Bye

2011-07-21T08:05:00.002-04:00

The things we do as we get older...

2011-07-19T15:02:00.002-04:00

I heard the dreaded words a couple of months ago during a routine check up with my medical care provider.

"We need to schedule colonoscopy for you."

Visions from Alfred Hitchcock immediately filled my head.

I heard the horror stories about how awful the night before was. How 'that stuff' you had to drink was awful. How the trips to the bathroom were excruciating. I was told about cold sweats, light-headedness, how, after awhile, things began to burn that should never burn...

So...

If you're like me and of an age where you need to have things checked, here's my version of the truth. Plan, simple, without too much graphic detail.

Yesterday afternoon, around 3:00, I took four Ducolax tablets. My pharmacist was nice enough to give me the four pills without making me pay for an entire box of 25.

An hour or so later, I felt a little 'grumbling' and made my first trip to the bathroom. It was no worse than when you've eaten something that doesn't agree with you and your body wants it gone.

Around 5:00, I mixed 8 ounces of a generic 'Miralax' with 64 ounces of lemon-lime Gatorade, which I'd kept in the freezer for about an hour. Mixing it in was actually the hardest thing I did all day. It didn't want to dissolve, so it was shake, shake, shake...

I drank the first 8 ounces expecting it to taste something like road kill or worse. I'd heard stories about having to choke it down and about wanting to puke it right back up.

It tasted like lemon-lime Gatorade to me.

Twenty minutes later, I drank 8 more ounces and then, shortly after, made my second trip to the bathroom.

I will admit that for awhile it seemed like the amount of Gatorade remaining didn't change. I swear I drank it for hours and hours.

It was between two and three before I finished it all.

My trips to the bathroom weren't all that bad. I'm not saying they were pleasant, but self-induced diarrhea isn't supposed to be fun, is it? There were a couple of times when I was in the bathroom long enough that I had to immediately drink another glass of Gatorade but I can only remember that happening twice.

The worst part of the night came shortly after I'd drank the last glass. The taste was still lemon-lime Gatorade but it seemed a little grittier than it had before. Maybe I didn't shake it enough. Almost immediately after drinking it, I knew i was going to throw up. My body had had enough and sent it back up to me.

I have no idea how much came back up, but I retained enough for it to do its job and I now know what 'watery diarrhea' really is...

About 20 minutes after I'd thrown up, I ate some lime jello, which stayed where it was supposed to. I watched some TV, talked to a friend on the phone for a bit, and then went to sleep.

My trips to the bathroom? Twice.

At 8:45 this morning, I arrived at the hospital per schedule. I then sat in the hallway until almost 9:30 because the surgery schedule was such that they had 20 procedures schedule for out-patient work and only 12 rooms available for prep and post recovery.

I finally got a room, got changed into one of their stylish gowns, got an IV started, and settled in to wait my turn. I watched The Three Stooges.

Less than an hour later, I was taken down to 'holding' for some more waiting. I was given a pill to put under my tongue. I can't remember what she called it; it was an anti something intended to temporarily stop the muscles from doing what those muscles do - push things out.

Less than 15 minutes later, I was wheeled into the OR. My doctor said hello and asked me how I was. I was hooked up to all sorts of things and my sedation nurse injected something into my IV. I almost immediately began to get drowsy. She then told me to turn onto my left side and I don't remember a single thing after that until I woke up and heard my doctor talking about the Red Sox.

It was the hardest part of the entire experience, seeing as I am a diehard Detroit Tigers fan.

Twenty minutes in recovery, another 20 back in my room, and I was out the door around noon to have breakfast with my sister.

There was nothing horrible about it. A little on the unpleasant side the night before, but nothing approaching horrible.

Oh, and the doctor found two polyps and removed them. He told me they weren't anything he'd worry about, but they will be biopsied.

And now, I'm done worrying about that for another 10 years.

The minor discomfort of last night was a small enough price to pay for that.

No horror stories, no awful stuff to force down.

A simple medical procedure that can save your life.

Get it done.

The Thin Blue Line... again...

2011-07-12T16:30:00.000-04:00

I haven't posted this in awhile. Not because it hasn't been needed; it has. It seems like officers are dying at an ever increasing rate these days... and though I do not honor them individually, I honor them in my heart, every day.

There is a thin blue line in our country; one that most people don't think about until they run into it.

When that happens, the people who hold that line are often cursed, vilified, and attacked in a myriad of ways including physically.

When those same people find themselves in need of protection, they turn, of course, to that same blue line, the one they vilified and cursed.

Every time the line is cursed and vilified, every time one of those who hold it is killed, the line frays just a little. It bleeds. It weeps. It becomes a tattered, raggedy thing.

But it holds.

It holds in spite of those who act like they wish it did not.

It holds because the people who wear the uniform are a dedicated, honorable group who put other people ahead of themselves and their families.

It holds because it must.

It always will.

The latest hero to leave a hole behind in the line is Terra Haute, Indiana, police Officer Brent Long. Officer Long was killed while serving a warrant with a US Marshall's task force.. Also shot during the incident was Long's K-9 partner, Shadow. Shadow, at last word, survived.

To be sure, he is not the only one.

Nor will he be the last.

Rest well, Officer Brent Long.

It is in our hands now.

Know that the line will hold.

10-42

Words of Wisdom...

2011-07-11T18:04:00.000-04:00

The Sugar Daddy Has Run Out of Sugar; Now We Need New Leaders
by Sarah Palin on Saturday, July 9, 2011 at 6:22pm

Barack Obama’s big government policies continue to fail. He should put a link to the national debt clock on his BlackBerry. The gears on that clock have nearly exploded during his administration. Yesterday’s terrible job numbers should not be a surprise because it all goes back to our debt. Our dangerously unsustainable debt is wiping out our jobs, crippling our economic growth, and jeopardizing our position in the global economy as the leader of the free world.

As a governor, I had to deal with facts, even unpleasant ones. I dealt with the world as it is, not as I wished it to be. The “elite” political class in this country with their heads in the sand had better face some unpleasant facts about the world as it is. They’ve run out of money and no amount of accounting gimmicks or happy talk will change this reality. Those of us who live in the real world could see this day coming.

Back in January 2009, as governor of Alaska, I announced: “We also have to be mindful about the effect of the stimulus package on the national debt and the future economic health of the country. We won’t achieve long-term stability if we continue borrowing massive sums from foreign countries and remain dependent on foreign sources of oil and gas.” Then I urged President Obama to veto the stimulus bill because it was loaded with absolutely useless pork and unfunded mandates. Everyone knows my early and vocal opposition to that mother of all unfunded mandates known as Obamacare starting back in August 2009, and many recall my objections to the Federal Reserves’ inflationary games with our currency known as QE2 from November 2010. It’s a matter of public record that I did not go to Harvard Law School, but I can add.

The same “experts” who got us into this mess are now telling us that the only way out of our debt crisis is to “increase revenue,” but not by creating more jobs and therefore a larger tax base; no, they want to “increase revenue” by raising taxes on job creators who are taxed enough already! As Margaret Thatcher said, “The trouble with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people’s money.” That’s where we are now. Hard working taxpayers have been big government’s Sugar Daddy for far too long, and now we’re out of sugar. We don’t want big government, we can’t afford it, and we are unwilling to pay for it.

This debt ceiling debate is the perfect time to do what must be done. We must cut. Yes, I’m for a balanced budget amendment and for enforceable spending caps. But first and foremost we must cut spending, not “strike a deal” that allows politicians to raise more debt! See, Washington is addicted to OPM – Other People’s Money. And like any junkie, they will lie, steal, and cheat to fund their addiction. We must cut them off and cut government down to size.

To paraphrase Hemingway, people go broke slowly and then all at once. We’ve been slowly going broke for years, but now it’s happening all at once as the world’s capital markets are demanding action from us, yet Obama assumes we'll just go borrow another cup of sugar from some increasingly impatient neighbor. We cannot knock on anyone’s door anymore. And we don’t have any time to wait for Washington to start behaving responsibly. We’ll be Greece before these D.C. politicians’ false promises are over. We must force government to live within its means, just as every business and household does.

We can’t close our $1.5 trillion deficit overnight, but we must get as close as we can as soon as we can. Little nibbles here and there over 10 years (spun to sound like they’re huge budget cuts) aren’t anywhere near enough. I know from experience that cutting government spending isn’t easy. As governor, I made the largest veto cuts in my state’s history, and I didn’t make many friends doing it. But we will never recover, we will never get free of devastating debt, unless we make tough choices now. We don’t hear talk like this from leaders in D.C. or from those running for office because they say what they think we want to hear rather than what must be said.

We are in desperate need of real leadership, but President Obama’s solution to everything is to grow government by borrowing more money, spending more money, printing more money, and taxing our job creators. He once said that he “believes in American Exceptionalism…just as the Greeks believe in Greek Exceptionalism.” Well, the path he has us on will make us just as “exceptional” as Greece – debt crisis, stagnation, permanent high unemployment, and all.

As we approach 2012, there are important lessons we can learn from all of this. First, we should never entrust the White House to a far-left ideologue who has no appreciation or even understanding of the free market and limited government principles that made this country economically strong. Second, the office of the presidency is too important for on-the-job training. It requires a strong chief executive who has been entrusted with real authority in the past and has achieved a proven track record of positive measurable accomplishments. Leaders are expected to give good speeches, but leadership is so much more than oratory. Real leadership requires deeds even more than words. It means taking on the problems no one else wants to tackle. It means providing vision and guidance, inspiring people to action, bringing everyone to the table, and with a servant's heart dedicating oneself to striking agreements that keep faith with our Constitution and with the ordinary citizens who entrusted you with power. It means bucking the status quo, fighting the corrupt powers that be, serving the common good, and leaving the country better than you found it. Most of us don’t see a lot of that real leadership in D.C., and it’s profoundly disappointing.

But let me tell you where real hope lies. It’s not the hopey-changey stuff we heard about in 2008. Real hope comes from realizing how God has blessed our exceptional nation, and then doing something about it. We have been blessed with natural resources, hardworking entrepreneurs, and a Constitution that preserves the greatest form of government ever devised by man. If we develop those natural resources, allow our entrepreneurs to keep and invest more of what they earn, and adhere to the time-tested truths of our Constitution, we will prosper and endure.

But first and foremost we must tackle our debt. We don’t have the luxury of playing politics as usual. We need real leaders who will put aside their own political self-interest to do what is right for the nation. And if they don’t emerge… well, America has a do-over in November 2012.

- Sarah Palin

You all know where I stand. I haven't changed one bit since 2008.

And if we let the media define this woman as unelectable, we are all idiots and will suffer for her loss.

To Boldly Go...

2011-07-09T07:37:00.000-04:00

I remember it like it was yesterday. The headlines of the local paper proudly proclaimed:

Hail to Thee, Columbia...

And the entire world watched as we did the impossible:

I remember the lows...

The shock. The horror. The absolute stunned and empty way I felt...

And again...

I grew up watching the show that proclaimed:

Space: The Final Frontier...

I believed it. I loved it. I wanted to ride that rocket into space...

And now:

After 30 years and 135 missions...

Let's light this fire one more time, Mike, and witness this great nation at its best," Atlantis commander Christopher Ferguson told launch director Mike Leinbach just before liftoff.

It's over.

In 12 days, maybe 13, the United States, the country that put a man on the moon and developed the shuttle programs is out of the business.

They're saying it will be at least three years, maybe even five before another American launch takes place.

That's no way to boldly go...

My heartfelt thanks to the men and women of NASA...

You gave me dreams I will cherish forever.

The bedrock of my life...

2011-07-08T15:54:00.000-04:00

She would've been 89 today. That's almost as hard to imagine as the fact that my father would've been 99.

My mother was an amazing woman, built of tough Finnish stock, seasoned and tested by the the winds of fate and the hardships of life.

She grew up on a farm, long before tractors with air conditioning and machines to do the hard lifting.

Life wasn't easy not then, not later, not ever.

I don't think there was ever enough money or time for her to do the things she may have wanted to do.

But, she did what she had to. She lived her life. She lived it without complaining.

She married at 29 and went on to have 6 kids that she and my dad raised to be decent, hard working people.

She loved us and gave us all that we needed. As I've said before, that doesn't mean all that we wanted. Needs and wants are different and in my family, needs always came first... and yet, I never felt deprived of anything.

Then, when she was beginning to think of a future without work, a future that involved grandchildren that were the love of her life, she was hit by a massive stroke. She was never the same, yet her stoic heritage kept her from complaining. She shouldered the burden and carried it in a way that made me so damned proud of her.

Today is her birthday and there have been a few tears but I know they are selfish of me. She was more than ready to go home and she went on her terms. I am happy for her and I know I'll see her again.

Until then, I am content to remember her for all that she was and all that she gave us.

I am content to see her in the faces of my nieces. I see her reflected in the compassion and generosity of one and the fierce, stoic independence of the other.

They are her legacy. They are her gift to the world.

And if that is the only mark she was able to leave behind...

All I can say is thank you, Mom. You did a damned good job.

"When in the Course..."

2011-07-03T16:13:00.000-04:00

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.--Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government...

These are the words that started it all.

The greatest experiment that mankind had ever undertaken when it came to government.

It was a leap of faith that succeeded far beyond anyone's imagining.

They are words that are still important, still ring true.

They must be respected. They must be protected.

Happy 235th birthday, America.

There are words and then there are words...

2011-06-30T17:39:00.003-04:00

As readers, we all love words, don't we? We love the rich use of language found in our favorite stories. We love the ebb and flow of those words, the vivid tapestry they paint...

And then, there's this:

Overheard on a radio spot produced by the FBI. The ad was detailing a recent investigation into a man caught stealing from an ATM.

"... agents swooned in from all directions..."

"Swooned in"?

Really?

Let's pause a minute and picture that:

The criminal, wearing a cheesy wig to hid his identity from the ATM cameras. Our stalwart and brave federal agents lying in wait until the precise moment and then...

They charge in and... swoon.

I don't know about you but I can easily picture something along the lines of Bozo the Clown standing in front of an ATM with a dozen immaculately dressed FBI agents in dark suits and white shirts lay scattered around on the floor compliments of their mutual fainting spell.

For some reason, I don't think that's the image the FBI spokesperson quite wanted to convey.

*Sigh*

I do love words.

Both when they're used properly and when they're not.

How do these idiots keep getting elected?

2011-06-30T08:10:00.000-04:00

Obviously, Senator Durbin has never heard of the Constitution...

Freedom of religion...

2011-06-29T20:02:00.000-04:00

I should be outraged. I know I should be. But...

I am mostly just tired.

Two years ago, this would've been impossible.

Today? The lame stream media doesn't even cover it.

From the Houston Chronicle:

Houston VA accused of censoring religious speech

I could quote the entire article and probably should, be here are some interesting tidbits:

In one example cited in documents filed this week in federal court, cemetery director Arleen Ocasio reportedly told volunteers with the National Memorial Ladies that they had to stop telling families "God bless you" at funerals and that they had to remove the words "God bless" from condolence cards.

And there's this:

According to court documents, Ocasio banned veterans organizations and volunteer groups from using certain religious words such as "God" or "Jesus," censored the content of prayer and forbade the use of religious messages in burial rituals unless the deceased's family submitted the text for prior approval.

The documents allege that VA prohibited volunteer honor guards from providing optional recitations to families for consideration, and that when burial teams conduct military honors for a veteran's funeral, a government official monitors what is said.

Chapel a 'meeting facility'

Court documents also describe the closure of the cemetery's chapel after Ocasio's appointment as director two years ago.

"The doors remain locked during Houston National Cemetery operating hours, the cross and the Bible have been removed, and the Chapel bells, which tolled at least twice a day, are now inoperative," the complaint reads. "Director Ocasio only unlocks the chapel doors when meetings or training sessions are held at the building. Furthermore, it is no longer called a 'chapel' but a 'meeting facility.' "

There are the funerals and grave sites of the men and women who served our country when we needed them. They died for this country...

And now, the government has the audacity to tell their families that they cannot properly honor their loved ones.

No God.

No Jesus.

No prayers.

No chapel.

Dear God...

Help us. Please. Our leaders in Washington have clearly lost their souls and their humanity. Give us the strength to undo this craziness. Please.

Amen

Rock N Roll and Thaddeus McCotter...

2011-06-27T14:09:00.000-04:00

Not only does the man talk sense when it comes to what we need to save this country, he plays a mean guitar:

And, the best news of the night? He's considering a run for the presidency. I can get behind that.

June Thoughts

2011-06-20T16:52:00.000-04:00

As I've already posted, I was born in June.

So was my sister. She celebrated her birthday on Sunday and now she is once again a year older than I am. We spend 16 days the same age.

There was one more birthday in June for us.

My father was born on June 15, 1912.

I thought about writing something to mark the day but, strangely, nothing came.

He would've been 99. Even though he's not with us anymore, that seems a significant number.

He was ten years older than my mother and had been married once before when they got married. He was 39, she was 29.

They went on to have six kids, all of whom lead productive lives. We were taught that you get the things you want in life through hard work.

He was a big man in almost any way you'd care to measure. He had a big laugh and he lived life big.

I remember hearing a couple of things at his visitation, things that surprised me and didn't. One came from a neighbor lady who told the story of how, one winter when her water had frozen, my father made sure she had water every day until the problem was taken care of. I remember thinking two things; I didn't know he did that and I'm not surprised he did that. It was how he was.

The other takes a bit of explaining.

Having been born in 1912, my father was not a poster child for equal rights. I remember he rarely had a good thing to say about 'people of color' as they are called these days.

But...

I vividly remember sitting at the funeral home, during his visitation and seeing an elderly black couple walk in. I can remember thinking they had to be in the wrong place.

Then, they introduced themselves to my mother and told her a story about how, a long time before, when they had lived in our small town, my father had helped them. He'd been a friend. Kind and generous. To the point that they felt compelled to travel from Chicago to attend his funeral.

It blew me away... but it didn't.

Good men, by definition, do what's right no matter the circumstance.

My father was a good man.

If I have anything in my life that I will look back on with regret, it is the fact that he was only in my life for 18 years. It wasn't long enough. Not nearly long enough...

But I would feel that no matter how many years I had with him.

I thought of him a lot yesterday.

I thought about the life he gave us, the values he taught us, and everything I learned from him and I realized one thing.

I was lucky to have him.

Love you, Dad.

June 6, 1944

2011-06-06T16:38:00.000-04:00

D-Day.

Sword

Juno

Gold

Omaha

Pointe du Hoc

Utah

Beaches, places sanctified by the blood of soldiers, by the brave young men who knew they had to succeed against impossible odds.

Freedom depended on them.

Over 6,603 Americans were wounded; 2,499 fatally...

They went and they did because they knew they had to. If not them, who?

They knew evil had to be fought and vanquished.

There is a famous poem, written after World War I that has become connected to D-Day, at least in my mind. I have no idea why. It is said to have been written by Canadian physician, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, after he witnessed the death of his friend, 22-year-old Lieutenant Alexis Helmer.

IN FLANDERS FIELDS

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie,

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

On June 6, 1984, President Ronald Reagan spoke on the 40th anniversary of D-Day. He spoke at Pointe du Hoc and gave one of his most memorable speeches. The words that still echo within me are these:

The Rangers looked up and saw the enemy soldiers -- the edge of the cliffs shooting down at them with machine guns and throwing grenades. And the American Rangers began to climb. They shot rope ladders over the face of these cliffs and began to pull themselves up. When one Ranger fell, another would take his place. When one rope was cut, a Ranger would grab another and begin his climb again. They climbed, shot back, and held their footing. Soon, one by one, the Rangers pulled themselves over the top, and in seizing the firm land at the top of these cliffs, they began to seize back the continent of Europe. Two hundred and twenty-five came here. After 2 days of fighting, only 90 could still bear arms.

Behind me is a memorial that symbolizes the Ranger daggers that were thrust into the top of these cliffs. And before me are the men who put them there.

These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war.

Those boys did their jobs. They came home. They lived their lives and asked for nothing.

Those boys are leaving us now.

But... we owe them everything and we should remember.

We should remember and say thank you...

Every chance we get.

June 3, 1959

2011-06-02T21:15:00.000-04:00

Fifty-two years ago.

I came into this world a month early 52 years ago because my mother slipped on a pea.

That's what she told me. She was standing at the kitchen sink shelling peas and slipped on one she'd dropped when she went to answer the phone. She grabbed the counter to keep from falling but the jar was enough.

I was supposed to be born the first week of July.

Crazy how things happen, huh?

After tomorrow, my older sister and I will be the same age for 16 days and then she gets to be old again.

So...

Observations on this momentous occasion?

None, really.

I miss my parents, every day. I miss their presence, their laughter, their support, their wisdom, and their unbelievable kindness. Not just to the six of us, but to anyone that needed it. They were always willing to help. It didn't matter who you were or what you needed. If they could help, they did.

It was a good lesson growing up.

I miss how life once was.

People seem to sneer at the 50's an awful lot these days but that leaves me wondering what they're sneering at.

Life was simpler. Kids listened to, respected, and obeyed their parents. They weren't the center of the universe, demanding 24-hour attention. Their job was to pay attention and learn how to be a decent adult.

Cops were the good guys, for the most part. They were to be respected and if a cop brought you home, you were in big trouble. There was no 'why are you picking on my kid' or yelling for a lawyer.

Schools taught the basics; the things you actually need to get through life. There was no social engineering, no political correctness. Reading, writing, and arithmetic may not be glamorous, but they worked.

Kids went outside to play and parents didn't have to worry about something horrible happening to them. In the summer, we'd head out after dinner with orders to have our bikes back when it got dark. We played in the yard. We ran through sprinklers. We hung out at the local school playground. And we knew, without a doubt, that if we did anything stupid or wrong, our parents would know about it by the time we got home. Every parent in the neighborhood was just that - a parent. It gave them some sort of magical ability to know things and to pass them on.

Life was simpler because it had rules. Hard rules that kids didn't break, rules that society didn't break.

So...

If I've learned anything in 52 years, it's that things don't always get better. Change isn't always good and change for change's sake is a poor substitute for almost anything else.

I've also learned that the human spirit is an amazing thing. That there is no limit to what mankind can do, if given the opportunity.

I still believe in God and I always will.

I still believe people are basically decent and hardworking.

I still believe family is the bedrock of our society, of life. I love my family more than I will ever be able to say and I don't tell them that nearly enough.

And I still believe that life, no matter what, is worth living.

I don't want another 52 years but I'll take whatever the good Lord sends my way with awe and appreciation.

And finally...

Thanks Mom and Dad.

For life.

And everything else.

The next big threat?

2011-05-30T13:56:00.001-04:00

Yup.

Fireworks.

They're the next big threat to the environment, at least in California where they now have to do an 'environmental review' before they can issue a permit for those nasty fireworks.

I keep saying that the environment wackos want us sitting in the dark, doing nothing.

It's beginning to look like I'm right.

Memorial Day 2011

2011-05-28T15:15:00.000-04:00

It's the beginning of summer. The first long weekend filled with warm weather and good times. Barbecues, picnics, beer...

Revolutionary War: 217,000 serving, 6,188 wounded, 4,435 dead

Boating, swimming, ballgames...

Civil War: 3,213,363 serving, 354,805 wounded, 191,963 dead

Watermelon, corn-on-the-cob, chicken on the grill...

World War I: 4,734,991 serving, 204,002 wounded, 53,402 dead

Kids everywhere, running, playing, carefree and happy...

World War II: 16,112,566 serving, 671,846 wounded, 291,557 dead

Graduations, gatherings, the easy, laid-back, hazy days of summer...

Korea: 5,720,000 serving, 103,284 wounded, 33,741 dead

Pretty girls looking good; good looking boys acting tough to impress those girls...

Vietnam: 8,744,000 serving, 153,303 wounded, 47,424 dead

Long walks on the beach, through the park, holding hands, making plans...

Gulf War: 575,000 serving, 467 wounded, 147 dead

They don't get a day off. Their battle is never done; the enemy is hard to define and harder to recognize...

Iraq War: 140,000 serving, 33,041 wounded, 4,452 dead

Let's all remember that this weekend, this Monday, this day is about more than the good things in life. It is about those who made the ultimate sacrifice to guarantee those good things for the rest of us. We cannot allow it to be anything less.

Afghanistan: 1,449 Americans dead

Remember them. Give them a minute of your time. Give them your thoughts. Give them the respect they deserve. They gave us their bodies, their blood, and their very lives...

Give them your thanks.

It's the least that we can do.

We owe them everything.

The liberal version of debate...

2011-05-27T14:16:00.002-04:00

Whine, pout, and walk off the set:

Frankly, I don't think Ben Ferguson was obnoxious or out-of-line. Rosenberg clearly expected to be able to spout the party line without interruption.

Do you hear that? It's coming...

2011-05-26T20:21:00.001-04:00

It's the sound of freedom. Of hope. Of decency.

It's the sound of people who get it. They understand what is so special about this country.

They understand how we became what we are.

They understand...

And they are determined to bring us back to our roots...

Will you join them?

Or will you buy into what the media has been trying to sell all along?

Our nation is at a critical turning point. As we look to the future, we are propelled by America’s past. It’s imperative that we connect with our founders, our patriots, our challenges and victories to clearly see our way forward. A good way to do this is to appreciate the significance of our nation’s historic sites, patriotic events and diverse cultures, which we’ll do in the coming weeks on our “One Nation” tour.

We’ll celebrate the good things that bring Americans together; those things that will give us the needed strength to meet the heady challenges ahead. I’ve said many times that America doesn’t need a “fundamental transformation,” instead we need a restoration of all that is good and strong and free in America! So, together let’s prepare ourselves for the days ahead by reminding ourselves who we are and what Americans stand for.

We’ll celebrate the meaning of our nation’s blueprints, our Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution, which are the threads that weave our past into the fabric necessary for the survival of American exceptionalism. Our founders declared “we were born the heirs of freedom”, and despite our difficulties and disagreements, we remain one nation under God in freedom, indivisible. Through visits to historical sites and patriotic events, we’ll share the importance of America’s foundation.

We encourage you to support the pro-America events we’ll be privileged to participate in during these coming weeks. Discover the ties that bind Americans, our history, our traditions, and the exceptional nature of our country!

Follow the One Nation tour at www.SarahPAC.com

It's coming.

It's strong.

It's vital.

It's a force to be reckoned with.

Game on.

Great minds think alike?

2011-05-25T21:39:00.002-04:00

The words of a statesman

2011-05-24T12:15:00.000-04:00

"Israel recognizes the Palestinians right to exist."

"It is time for Prime Minister Abbas to declare Israel has a right to exist."

And that, to me, sums it up.

Going back to the 1967 borders would mean that the flow of weapons to Israel's enemies would be unchecked. It means that every home in Israel would be under the threat of rocket attack at any time, within a time span of 60 seconds.

Sixty seconds to find safety once the sirens sound.

No one should live like that.

Real leaders are everywhere except...

2011-05-20T18:44:00.000-04:00

Calling anyone with a brain...

2011-05-16T19:46:00.002-04:00

They do not want peace.

They do not want peace.

They do not want peace.

If you don't believe me, watch this:

They do not want peace.

They never have.

They never will.

Leadership

2011-05-06T01:17:00.000-04:00

I was going to try and write a post about the sideshow staged at Ground Zero today, especially the part about Obama walking away from the sister of the man who was the pilot on the plane that hit the Pentagon...

I was going to try but it left such a sad, bitter taste in my mouth that I couldn't. I can't. I don't have it in me.

Then, I saw this:

And I was again struck by the actions of a true leader, of a woman of strength, compassion, caring, and faith.

Whether she runs or not, she's a role model more of us should look up to.

The Palin Doctrine on the Use of Force

2011-05-04T04:10:00.000-04:00

On Monday, May 2, 2011, Governor Sarah Palin spoke at Colorado Christian University, for the Tribute to the Troops benefit in support of Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS). During her speech, she outlined her policy for using the United States Military:

A lesson here then for effective use of force, as opposed to sending our troops on missions that are ill-defined. And it can be argued that our involvement elsewhere, say, in Libya, is an example of a lack of clarity.

See, these are deadly serious questions that we must ask ourselves when we contemplate sending Americans into harm’s way. Our men and women in uniform deserve a clear understanding of U.S. positions on such a crucial decision.

I believe our criteria before we send our young men and women, America’s finest, into harm’s way, I believe that our criteria should be spelled out clearly when it comes to the use of our military force. I can tell you what I believe that criteria should be. I can tell you what it should be in five points:

First, we should only commit our forces when clear and vital American interests are at stake, period.

Second, if we have to fight, we fight to win. To do that we use overwhelming force. We only send our troops into war with the objective to defeat the enemy as quickly as possible. We do not send our military and stretch out the mission with an open-ended and ill-defined mission. Nation-building, a nice idea in theory, but it’s not the main purpose of our armed forces. We use our military to win wars.

And third, we must have clearly defined goals and objectives before sending our troops into harm’s way. If you can’t explain the mission to the American people clearly, concisely, then our sons and daughters should not be sent to battle. Period.
Fourth, American soldiers must never be put under foreign command. We will fight side by side by our allies, but American soldiers must remain under the care and command of the American officers.
And fifth, sending our armed forces should be the last resort. We don’t go looking for dragons to slay. However, we will encourage the forces of freedom around the world who are sincerely fighting for the empowerment of the individual.

When it makes sense, when it’s appropriate, we’ll provide them with support and help them win their own freedom. We’re not indifferent to the cause of human rights or the desire for freedom. We’re always on the side of both. But we can’t fight every war. We can’t undo every injustice around the world.

But with strength, and clarity in those five points, we’ll make for a safer, more prosperous, more peaceful world. Because as the U.S. leads by example, as we support freedom across the globe, we’re gonna prove that free and healthy countries, they don’t wage war on other free and healthy countries.
The stronger we are, the stronger and more peaceful the world will be under our example.

A look back...

2011-05-04T02:40:00.000-04:00

At voices and sounds that will remind you how it came to be that so many people rejoiced at the death of one man:

It's hard to understand at times, and it's harder to listen to... even after ten years.

Thank God, he's dead.

I'm troubled...

2011-05-03T01:25:00.000-04:00

I'm troubled by the idea that we can exalt in the death of another person... But I'm strangely okay with it, too. There are times when you see evil and the solution is to kill it. It can be that simple.

I'm troubled by the idea that we gave a murderer far more respect than he or his followers have ever given to the people they share this world with.

I'm troubled by the fact that these 'holy' warriors have no problem hiding out in luxury while their followers live in the dirt and die for the cause.

I'm troubled that our 'ally' Pakistan is seriously claiming they had no idea bin Laden was hiding out all comfy cozy in their country.

I'm troubled by the fact that the people we give billions to side with a murderer.

I'm troubled by the almost certain knowledge that the war just got more difficult, not less.

I'm troubled by the fact that Obama, after doing absolutely the right thing, is now equivocating on releasing the proof. Does he want there to be doubt? I don't know. Maybe.

I'm troubled that Hilary Clinton, of all people, had the best comment about this weekend's events... but not really. She summed it up like the president should have:

Our message to the Taliban remains the same, but today it may have even greater resonance: You cannot wait us out. You cannot defeat us. But you can make the choice to abandon al-Qaida and participate in a peaceful political process.

I'm troubled by the fact that I'm troubled by so much...

But, the one thing I am not troubled about is that the world is a better place without the likes of bin Laden in it.

Once again: Thank you, God, for the brave men and women of the United States Military. They are, bar none, the best there are.

Justice...

2011-05-02T00:40:00.002-04:00

There's a part of me that wants to drag his corpse through the streets, to let crowds gather to cheer and celebrate with his corpse hanging from a tree, to spit on him and trample his bones into the dust...

But no.

We are not like them.

It is enough that he is dead.

Let the Royal Celebration begin...

2011-04-30T21:18:00.000-04:00

Shortly after the Royal Wedding, Sky News cameras still on the scene and running, caught the following video of a priest turning cartwheels outside Westminster Abbey...

Gotta love the sheer joy of the moment.

Obama lied to us...

2011-04-20T04:22:00.000-04:00

I haven't heard that said so frankly by too many people. Give the videos a look-see and you'll hear some interesting stuff...

Let's save Detroit...

2011-04-18T12:37:00.000-04:00

Geoffrey Fieger, ambulance-chasing lawyer from Detroit, has a plan to save the Motor City. According to Fieger: it's simple:

"I'd shovel the snow and I'd clean the streets and parks," he said. "Then, I'd tell the police department to leave marijuana alone and don't spend one dime trying to enforce marijuana laws. I also would not enforce prostitution laws and I'd make us the new Amsterdam."

Yup. It's that simple, don't you know? Legalize prostitution and Marijuana and young people would flock back to the city because it, in Fieger's words, 'would be a fun place to live.'

Yeah, that's all it will take.

The Way Back Machine... (warning: videos not work place appropriate)

2011-04-17T17:46:00.000-04:00

Time to blow off the dust and take a trip in the Way Back Machine.

Just a short leap this time, back to January, 2011:

On January 8, Congresswoman Gabby Gifford was shot in an apparent assassination attempt by a man who is, undoubtedly crazy. Along with immediate, knee-jerk blaming those 'right-wing' extremists, we got repeated calls for a 'new civility in politics' like this:

Escorted by four Broward Sheriff's Office deputies, U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz solemnly called for more civility in political debate Sunday, a day after a gunman shot and critically injured her close friend Gabrielle Giffords in Arizona.

Wasserman Schultz, D- Weston, said both Republicans and Democrats have been guilty of heated rhetoric, which she said may have contributed to a shooting rampage at a "Congress on your corner" event outside a Tucson supermarket that killed six and injured Giffords and 12 others.

And this:

TUCSON — President Obama offered the nation’s condolences on Wednesday to the victims of the shootings here, calling on Americans to draw a lesson from the lives of the fallen and the actions of the heroes, and to usher in a new era of civility in their honor.

But over the past weekend, at TEA Party Tax Day Rallies, we saw this:

And this:

That's the left for you.

Civility only if you follow the party line.

Time to "Learn how to fight like a girl"...

2011-04-16T19:05:00.000-04:00

Governor Palin gave a speech in Madison, Wisconsin today and in spite of the union thugs gathered to shout her down, she gave a speech that should be a hallmark for anyone with the notion to run for the nomination to meet.

Common sense is not completely dead in Washington: Exhibit 1 - Thaddeus McCotter

2011-04-14T00:44:00.000-04:00

Again.

I wish he'd run for the Senate so I could vote for him.

No, check that. I wish he'd run for President...