I love Ann,
Even right-wingers who know that "global warming" is a crock do not seem to grasp what the tree-huggers are demanding. Liberals want mass starvation and human devastation.
Forget the lunacy of people claiming to tell us the precise temperature of planet Earth in 1918 based on tree rings. Or the fact that in the '70s liberals were issuing similarly dire warnings about "global cooling."
Simply consider what noted climatologists Al Gore and Melissa Etheridge are demanding that we do to combat their nutty conjectures about "global warming." They want us to starve the productive sector of fossil fuel and allow the world's factories to grind to a halt. This means an end to material growth and a cataclysmic reduction in wealth.
There are more reputable scientists defending astrology than defending "global warming," but liberals simply announce that the debate has been resolved in their favor and demand that we shut down all production.
They think they can live in a world of only Malibu and East Hampton -- with no Trentons or Detroits. It does not occur to them that someone has to manufacture the tiles and steel and glass and solar panels that go into those "eco-friendly" mansions, and someone has to truck it all to their beachfront properties, and someone else has to transport all the workers there to build it. (And then someone has to drive the fleets of trucks delivering the pachysandra and bottled water every day.)
Liberals are already comfortably ensconced in their beachfront estates, which they expect to be unaffected by their negative growth prescriptions for the rest of us.
There was more energy consumed in the manufacture, construction and maintenance of Leonardo DiCaprio's Malibu home than is needed to light the entire city of Albuquerque, where there are surely several men who can actually act. But he has solar panels to warm his house six degrees on chilly Malibu nights.
Liberals haven't the foggiest idea how the industrial world works. They act as if America could reduce its vast energy consumption by using fluorescent bulbs and driving hybrid cars rather than SUVs. They have no idea how light miraculously appears when they flick a switch or what allows them to go to the bathroom indoors in winter -- luxuries Americans are not likely to abandon because Leo DiCaprio had solar panels trucked into his Malibu estate.
Our lives depend on fossil fuel. Steel plants, chemical plants, rubber plants, pharmaceutical plants, glass plants, paper plants -- those run on energy. There are no Mother Earth nursery designs in stylish organic cotton without gas-belching factories, ships and trucks, and temperature-controlled, well-lighted stores. Windmills can't even produce enough energy to manufacture a windmill.
Because of the industrialization of agriculture -- using massive amounts of fossil fuel -- only 2 percent of Americans work in farming. And yet they produce enough food to feed all 300 million Americans, with plenty left over for export. When are liberals going to break the news to their friends in Darfur that they all have to starve to death to save the planet?
"Global warming" is the left's pagan rage against mankind. If we can't produce industrial waste, then we can't produce. Some of us -- not the ones with mansions in Malibu and Nashville is my guess -- are going to have to die. To say we need to reduce our energy consumption is like saying we need to reduce our oxygen consumption.
Liberals have always had a thing about eliminating humans. Stalin wanted to eliminate the kulaks and Ukranians, vegetarian atheist Adolf Hitler wanted to eliminate the Jews, Planned Parenthood founder Margaret Sanger wanted to eliminate poor blacks, DDT opponent Rachel Carson wanted to eliminate Africans (introduction to her book "Silent Spring" written by ... Al Gore!), and population-control guru Paul Ehrlich wants to eliminate all humans.
But global warming is the most insane, psychotic idea liberals have ever concocted to kill off "useless eaters." If we have to live in a pure "natural" environment like the Indians, then our entire transcontinental nation can only support about 1 million human beings. Sorry, fellas -- 299 million of you are going to have to go.
Proving that the "global warming" campaign is nothing but hatred of humanity, these are the exact same people who destroyed the nuclear power industry in this country 30 years ago.
If we accept for purposes of argument their claim that the only way the human race can survive is with clean energy that doesn't emit carbon dioxide, environmentalists waited until they had safely destroyed the nuclear power industry to tell us that. This proves they never intended for us to survive.
"Global warming" is the liberal's stalking horse for their ultimate fantasy: The whole U.S. will look like Amagansett, with no one living in it except their even-tempered maids (for "diversity"), themselves and their coterie (all, presumably, living in solar-heated mansions, except the maids who will do without electricity altogether). The entire fuel-guzzling, tacky, beer-drinking, NASCAR-watching middle class with their over-large families will simply have to die.
It seems not to have occurred to the jet set that when California is as poor as Mexico, they might have trouble finding a maid. Without trucking, packaging, manufacturing, shipping and refrigeration in their Bel-Air fantasy world, they'll be chasing the rear-end of an animal every time their stomachs growl and killing small animals for pelts to keep their genitals warm.
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
Breaking Deep: The Official 11 Point Plan For Victory In Iraq
EXCLUSIVE: THE FULL 11 POINT PLAN FOR VICTORY IN IRAQ by General David Petraeus Commander of all U.S. Forces in Iraq, Admiral William Fallon, Centcom Commander, Middle East, and Ryan C. Crocker, U.S. Ambassador to Iraq.
This is the 11 point plan that the men in charge of U.S. Victory in Iraq have submitted to The White House, The Pentagon and the State Department, and which will serve as the blueprint for victory in Iraq. It has been brought to me and confirmed by sources both inside and outside of the Military.
This plan allays a principle fear of both John McCain and mine that we would be just sending in reinforcements without a specific battle plan, and our young American servicemen would just be rolling around waiting to get blown up, or sitting around waiting to get mortared. This is a masterful, aggressive and detailed battle plan unfolding, which makes the fuzzy headed and entirely politically motived Congressional actions being taken by the Democrats particularly absurd, annoying, damaging, and undermining of the U.S. Military and the Nation’s best interests.
1. U.S. troops are to be gradually pulled back from all Iraqi cities and towns and sent to seal the borders with Iran and Syria. The real insurgency is not indigenous to Iraq, but being pumped in through Iran and Syria.
2. Ramadi and Baghdad will be two of a handful of initial principle exceptions, as major U.S supported military engagements are in process in Baghadad and gearing up in Ramadi.
3. Iraqi Military Units meeting standards of “militia cleansing” ( ie militia free ) and ideologically dedicated to a United Iraq will be upgraded to Elite Status and given full operational autonomy.
4. Generals and leaders from Saddam’s Baath party, many out of work for three years, will be encouraged to rejoin the military enticed with high-pay and bonuses designed to serve as retrograde pay for their time off. The Baath party generals will be key to victory in Al Anbar Province, as I will lay out later today or tomorrow.
5. The state of security in each Area of Operations will dictate the tempo of U.S. pullback from towns to the Iranian and Syrian borders.
6. A massive assault is shortly due to be launched on Ramadi, the capital of Al Qaeda, and the remnants of the Sunni Insurgency, in Iraq. Ramadi has degenerated to a sort of post-modern trench warfare, Marines and Soldiers locked away in a variety of new urban outposts, while all the schools have finally been closed and it is nigh on impossible for the average citizen to conduct his daily life. The deadlock must be broken, and Al Qaeda must finally be ejected.
7. We will be “firing” most of the Sunni Tribal chieftans who we had been relying on as our major allies in fighting Al Qaeda in Al Anbar. The young chieftains were just absolutely no match for the superior Al Qaeda warriors, and outside of Ramadi their roles will be replaced by the new Baathist Generals brought into the mix. Al Qaeda had been going in for the kill on the Sunni tribes in the last few months, and we are employing such aggressive action to turn it around. I will shortly give a scoop as to how we are going to use the locals inside Ramadi itself.
8. Massively step up talks with, and put pressure on, those Sunni tribal leaders we have not been able to bring over to our side. Saudi Arabia will be involved with this.
9. Immediate, highly visible Infrastructure improvement first focused on the peaceful and cooperative areas of Mosul, Amara and Karbala. The idea is to make other areas around jealous of the rapidly modernizing cities, in order to incent them to tow the line of cooperation with the new Iraqi Government.
Such improvements will include, but are not limited to dozens of new bridges being built to accommodate the literally trebling of auto ownership in Iraq since the liberation; the building of many new hospitals to modern standards of medicine ( Ever been to an Iraqi hospital? Just stay home where it’s cleaner and send someone to fetch some drugs ); a massive campaign for fresh American private sector investment, and a raising of all school standards, with a centerpiece of several new universities being built.
10. Electoral Reform: The old system of national parties selecting candidates for positions was believed to have unfairly tipped the balance in favor of the Shiites and led to too many Pro-Iranian, Pro-Achmedinejad candidates ( like the nutbag terrorist Al Sadr ) receiving too many seats in the parliament. A new system of local candidates simply stepping forward and adding their name to the ballot will instead prevail.
11. And finally, a census will be taken. Believe it or not, we do not who is where nor how many of them there are.
This is the official, mostly secret 11 Point Plan for Success.
Starting tomorrow I will begin giving you the blow by blow updates on actual on the ground progress and upcoming, releasable, tactical plans.
By Pat Dollard
This is the 11 point plan that the men in charge of U.S. Victory in Iraq have submitted to The White House, The Pentagon and the State Department, and which will serve as the blueprint for victory in Iraq. It has been brought to me and confirmed by sources both inside and outside of the Military.
This plan allays a principle fear of both John McCain and mine that we would be just sending in reinforcements without a specific battle plan, and our young American servicemen would just be rolling around waiting to get blown up, or sitting around waiting to get mortared. This is a masterful, aggressive and detailed battle plan unfolding, which makes the fuzzy headed and entirely politically motived Congressional actions being taken by the Democrats particularly absurd, annoying, damaging, and undermining of the U.S. Military and the Nation’s best interests.
1. U.S. troops are to be gradually pulled back from all Iraqi cities and towns and sent to seal the borders with Iran and Syria. The real insurgency is not indigenous to Iraq, but being pumped in through Iran and Syria.
2. Ramadi and Baghdad will be two of a handful of initial principle exceptions, as major U.S supported military engagements are in process in Baghadad and gearing up in Ramadi.
3. Iraqi Military Units meeting standards of “militia cleansing” ( ie militia free ) and ideologically dedicated to a United Iraq will be upgraded to Elite Status and given full operational autonomy.
4. Generals and leaders from Saddam’s Baath party, many out of work for three years, will be encouraged to rejoin the military enticed with high-pay and bonuses designed to serve as retrograde pay for their time off. The Baath party generals will be key to victory in Al Anbar Province, as I will lay out later today or tomorrow.
5. The state of security in each Area of Operations will dictate the tempo of U.S. pullback from towns to the Iranian and Syrian borders.
6. A massive assault is shortly due to be launched on Ramadi, the capital of Al Qaeda, and the remnants of the Sunni Insurgency, in Iraq. Ramadi has degenerated to a sort of post-modern trench warfare, Marines and Soldiers locked away in a variety of new urban outposts, while all the schools have finally been closed and it is nigh on impossible for the average citizen to conduct his daily life. The deadlock must be broken, and Al Qaeda must finally be ejected.
7. We will be “firing” most of the Sunni Tribal chieftans who we had been relying on as our major allies in fighting Al Qaeda in Al Anbar. The young chieftains were just absolutely no match for the superior Al Qaeda warriors, and outside of Ramadi their roles will be replaced by the new Baathist Generals brought into the mix. Al Qaeda had been going in for the kill on the Sunni tribes in the last few months, and we are employing such aggressive action to turn it around. I will shortly give a scoop as to how we are going to use the locals inside Ramadi itself.
8. Massively step up talks with, and put pressure on, those Sunni tribal leaders we have not been able to bring over to our side. Saudi Arabia will be involved with this.
9. Immediate, highly visible Infrastructure improvement first focused on the peaceful and cooperative areas of Mosul, Amara and Karbala. The idea is to make other areas around jealous of the rapidly modernizing cities, in order to incent them to tow the line of cooperation with the new Iraqi Government.
Such improvements will include, but are not limited to dozens of new bridges being built to accommodate the literally trebling of auto ownership in Iraq since the liberation; the building of many new hospitals to modern standards of medicine ( Ever been to an Iraqi hospital? Just stay home where it’s cleaner and send someone to fetch some drugs ); a massive campaign for fresh American private sector investment, and a raising of all school standards, with a centerpiece of several new universities being built.
10. Electoral Reform: The old system of national parties selecting candidates for positions was believed to have unfairly tipped the balance in favor of the Shiites and led to too many Pro-Iranian, Pro-Achmedinejad candidates ( like the nutbag terrorist Al Sadr ) receiving too many seats in the parliament. A new system of local candidates simply stepping forward and adding their name to the ballot will instead prevail.
11. And finally, a census will be taken. Believe it or not, we do not who is where nor how many of them there are.
This is the official, mostly secret 11 Point Plan for Success.
Starting tomorrow I will begin giving you the blow by blow updates on actual on the ground progress and upcoming, releasable, tactical plans.
By Pat Dollard
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
What happens to the Dog you just don't want anymore?
From the best of "Craigslist:"
"I am posting this (and it is long) because I think our society needs a huge "Wake-up" call. As a shelter manager, I am going to share a little insight with you all...a view from the inside if you will. First off, this is a forum to for adoption and/or rehoming as clearly stated in the rules. All of you breeders/sellers on craigslist should not only be flagged (and I hope the good people on craigslist will continue to do so with blind fury), but you should be made to work in the "back" of an animal shelter for just one day. Maybe if you saw the life drain from a few sad, lost, confused eyes, you would change your mind about breeding and selling to people you don't even know…that puppy you just sold will most likely end up in my shelter when it's not a cute little puppy anymore. So how would you feel if you knew that there's about a 90% chance that dog will never walk out of the shelter it is going to be dumped at? Purebred or not! About 50% of all of the dogs that are "owner surrenders" or "strays", that come into my shelter are purebred dogs. The most common excuses I hear are; "We are moving and we can't take our dog (or cat)." Really? Where are you moving too that doesn't allow pets? Or they say "The dog got bigger than we thought it would". How big did you think a German Shepherd would get? "We don't have time for her…". Really? I work a 10-12 hour day and still have time for my 6 dogs! "She's tearing up our yard…". How about making her a part of your family? They always tell me "We just don't want to have to stress about finding a place for her…we know she'll get adopted, she's a good dog". Odds are your pet won't get adopted & how stressful do you think being in a shelter is? Well, let me tell you…your pet has 72 hours to find a new family from the moment you drop it off…sometimes a little longer if the shelter isn't full and your dog manages to stay completely healthy…if it sniffles, it dies. Your pet will be confined to a small run/kennel in a room with about 25 other barking or crying animals. It will have to relieve itself where it eats and sleeps. It will be depressed and it will cry constantly for the family that abandoned it. If your pet is lucky, I will have enough volunteers in that day to take him/her for a walk. If I don't, your pet won't get any attention besides having a bowl of food slid under the kennel door and the waste sprayed out of its pen with a high-powered hose. If your dog is big, black or any of the "Bully" breeds (pit bull, rottie, mastiff, etc…) it was pretty much dead when you walked it through the front door. Those dogs just don't get adopted. If your dog doesn't get adopted within its 72 hours and the shelter is full, it will be destroyed. If the shelter isn't full and your dog is good enough, and of a desirable enough breed…it may get a stay of execution…not for long though. Most get very kennel protective after about a week and are destroyed for showing aggression…even the sweetest dogs will turn in this environment. If your pet makes it over all of those hurdles…chances are it will get kennel cough or an upper respiratory infection and will be destroyed because shelters just don't have the funds to pay for even a $100 treatment. Here's a little euthanasia 101 for those of you that have never witnessed a perfectly healthy, scared animal being "put-down". First, your pet will be taken from its kennel on a leash…they always look like they think they are going for a walk…happy, wagging their tails. Until they get to "The Room", every one of them freaks out and puts on the breaks when we get to the door…it must smell like death or they can feel the sad souls that are left in there, it's strange, but it happens with every one of them. Your dog or cat will be restrained, held down by 1 or 2 vet techs depending on the size and how freaked out they are. Then a euthanasia tech or a vet will start the process…they will find a vein in the front leg and inject a lethal dose of the "pink stuff". Hopefully your pet doesn't panic from being restrained and jerk… I've seen the needles tear out of a leg and been covered with the resulting blood and deafened by the yelps and screams. They all don't just "go to sleep", sometimes spasm for a while, gasp for air and defecate on themselves. When it all ends, your pets corpse will be stacked like firewood in a large freezer in the back with all of the other animals that were killed…waiting to be picked up like garbage. What happens next? Cremated? Taken to the dump? Rendered into pet food? You'll never know and it probably won't even cross your mind…it was just an animal and you can always buy another one right?
I hope that those of you that have read this are bawling your eyes out and can't get the pictures out of your head…I do everyday on the way home from work. I hate my job, I hate that it exists & I hate that it will always be there unless you people make some changes and realize that the lives you are affecting go much farther than the pets you dump at a shelter. Between 9 and 11 MILLION animals die every year in shelters and only you can stop it. I do my best to save every life I can but rescues are always full, and there are more animals coming in everyday than there are homes.
My point to all of this…DON'T BREED OR BUY WHILE SHELTER PETS DIE!
Hate me or flag me if you want to…the truth hurts and reality is what it is…I just hope I maybe changed one persons mind about breeding their dog, taking their loving pet to a shelter, or buying a dog. I hope that someone will walk into my shelter and say "I saw this thing on craigslist and it made me want adopt"…that would make it all worth it."
"I am posting this (and it is long) because I think our society needs a huge "Wake-up" call. As a shelter manager, I am going to share a little insight with you all...a view from the inside if you will. First off, this is a forum to for adoption and/or rehoming as clearly stated in the rules. All of you breeders/sellers on craigslist should not only be flagged (and I hope the good people on craigslist will continue to do so with blind fury), but you should be made to work in the "back" of an animal shelter for just one day. Maybe if you saw the life drain from a few sad, lost, confused eyes, you would change your mind about breeding and selling to people you don't even know…that puppy you just sold will most likely end up in my shelter when it's not a cute little puppy anymore. So how would you feel if you knew that there's about a 90% chance that dog will never walk out of the shelter it is going to be dumped at? Purebred or not! About 50% of all of the dogs that are "owner surrenders" or "strays", that come into my shelter are purebred dogs. The most common excuses I hear are; "We are moving and we can't take our dog (or cat)." Really? Where are you moving too that doesn't allow pets? Or they say "The dog got bigger than we thought it would". How big did you think a German Shepherd would get? "We don't have time for her…". Really? I work a 10-12 hour day and still have time for my 6 dogs! "She's tearing up our yard…". How about making her a part of your family? They always tell me "We just don't want to have to stress about finding a place for her…we know she'll get adopted, she's a good dog". Odds are your pet won't get adopted & how stressful do you think being in a shelter is? Well, let me tell you…your pet has 72 hours to find a new family from the moment you drop it off…sometimes a little longer if the shelter isn't full and your dog manages to stay completely healthy…if it sniffles, it dies. Your pet will be confined to a small run/kennel in a room with about 25 other barking or crying animals. It will have to relieve itself where it eats and sleeps. It will be depressed and it will cry constantly for the family that abandoned it. If your pet is lucky, I will have enough volunteers in that day to take him/her for a walk. If I don't, your pet won't get any attention besides having a bowl of food slid under the kennel door and the waste sprayed out of its pen with a high-powered hose. If your dog is big, black or any of the "Bully" breeds (pit bull, rottie, mastiff, etc…) it was pretty much dead when you walked it through the front door. Those dogs just don't get adopted. If your dog doesn't get adopted within its 72 hours and the shelter is full, it will be destroyed. If the shelter isn't full and your dog is good enough, and of a desirable enough breed…it may get a stay of execution…not for long though. Most get very kennel protective after about a week and are destroyed for showing aggression…even the sweetest dogs will turn in this environment. If your pet makes it over all of those hurdles…chances are it will get kennel cough or an upper respiratory infection and will be destroyed because shelters just don't have the funds to pay for even a $100 treatment. Here's a little euthanasia 101 for those of you that have never witnessed a perfectly healthy, scared animal being "put-down". First, your pet will be taken from its kennel on a leash…they always look like they think they are going for a walk…happy, wagging their tails. Until they get to "The Room", every one of them freaks out and puts on the breaks when we get to the door…it must smell like death or they can feel the sad souls that are left in there, it's strange, but it happens with every one of them. Your dog or cat will be restrained, held down by 1 or 2 vet techs depending on the size and how freaked out they are. Then a euthanasia tech or a vet will start the process…they will find a vein in the front leg and inject a lethal dose of the "pink stuff". Hopefully your pet doesn't panic from being restrained and jerk… I've seen the needles tear out of a leg and been covered with the resulting blood and deafened by the yelps and screams. They all don't just "go to sleep", sometimes spasm for a while, gasp for air and defecate on themselves. When it all ends, your pets corpse will be stacked like firewood in a large freezer in the back with all of the other animals that were killed…waiting to be picked up like garbage. What happens next? Cremated? Taken to the dump? Rendered into pet food? You'll never know and it probably won't even cross your mind…it was just an animal and you can always buy another one right?
I hope that those of you that have read this are bawling your eyes out and can't get the pictures out of your head…I do everyday on the way home from work. I hate my job, I hate that it exists & I hate that it will always be there unless you people make some changes and realize that the lives you are affecting go much farther than the pets you dump at a shelter. Between 9 and 11 MILLION animals die every year in shelters and only you can stop it. I do my best to save every life I can but rescues are always full, and there are more animals coming in everyday than there are homes.
My point to all of this…DON'T BREED OR BUY WHILE SHELTER PETS DIE!
Hate me or flag me if you want to…the truth hurts and reality is what it is…I just hope I maybe changed one persons mind about breeding their dog, taking their loving pet to a shelter, or buying a dog. I hope that someone will walk into my shelter and say "I saw this thing on craigslist and it made me want adopt"…that would make it all worth it."
Monday, February 05, 2007
Indict the NY Times and Bill Keller for Treason
Rather than going after the specific individuals involved, the federal government indicted the Arthur Andersen accounting firm for its role in the Enron scandal. This corporate death sentence sealed the firm's fate and it shut down. Ostensibly, there was a vital public interest in destroying that venerable firm, thousands of jobs, and the partnership equity built up by career employees who never did anything wrong.
If failing to unmask a corporate cover-up is a crime against the public worthy of corporate execution, then what about revealing critical secrets about vital, and legal, counter-terrorism programs? There was no purpose to blowing the lid on the SWIFT financial surveillance program except to degrade its effectiveness. And now that SWIFT has stopped cooperating with American authorities, this highly effective (and, according to politicians on both sides of the aisle, indispensable) program is finished. The Justice Department should indict the Times for treason and let it share Arthur Andersen's fate.
Additionally, we're constantly lectured by liberals that the war on terror needs to be more about intelligence and law enforcement than military power. And it needs to be more about cooperating with our allies. And we need to track their money trails. Democrats should be made to take a stand on this issue, in which a critical program was shut down and cooperation with Europe was kneecapped by a brazenly anti-American newspaper. If the Senate is so preoccupied with meaningless resolutions, then how about one condemning the Times.
Comment: I see the N.Y. Times attacking American policy everyday. We roll over and take it. Like sheep.
Just criticizing Bush and his politics doesn't make you anymore patriotic than the next person, maybe even more so. But, there is a fine line that can easily be crossed. The N.Y. Times is responsible for doing just that.
If failing to unmask a corporate cover-up is a crime against the public worthy of corporate execution, then what about revealing critical secrets about vital, and legal, counter-terrorism programs? There was no purpose to blowing the lid on the SWIFT financial surveillance program except to degrade its effectiveness. And now that SWIFT has stopped cooperating with American authorities, this highly effective (and, according to politicians on both sides of the aisle, indispensable) program is finished. The Justice Department should indict the Times for treason and let it share Arthur Andersen's fate.
Additionally, we're constantly lectured by liberals that the war on terror needs to be more about intelligence and law enforcement than military power. And it needs to be more about cooperating with our allies. And we need to track their money trails. Democrats should be made to take a stand on this issue, in which a critical program was shut down and cooperation with Europe was kneecapped by a brazenly anti-American newspaper. If the Senate is so preoccupied with meaningless resolutions, then how about one condemning the Times.
Comment: I see the N.Y. Times attacking American policy everyday. We roll over and take it. Like sheep.
Just criticizing Bush and his politics doesn't make you anymore patriotic than the next person, maybe even more so. But, there is a fine line that can easily be crossed. The N.Y. Times is responsible for doing just that.
Friday, February 02, 2007
The Dog Meat Trade
Yeah, there actually is such a thing!
Despite a national law banning the practice,
1,370 dogs are slaughtered every day and over 500,000 dogs die annually for the dog meat trade in the Philippines. Click here for a brief history.
What can you do?
Your participation is critical to the success of this campaign!
OUR GOAL is to obtain OVER 50,000 signatures by JUNE 30, 2007. House Bill 2991 is expected to be addressed by Congress in July 2007. It is obvious that the only way we can ensure that dogs in the Philippines are protected is to place the Philippine government under the international spotlight.
I signed up.
Despite a national law banning the practice,
1,370 dogs are slaughtered every day and over 500,000 dogs die annually for the dog meat trade in the Philippines. Click here for a brief history.
What can you do?
Your participation is critical to the success of this campaign!
OUR GOAL is to obtain OVER 50,000 signatures by JUNE 30, 2007. House Bill 2991 is expected to be addressed by Congress in July 2007. It is obvious that the only way we can ensure that dogs in the Philippines are protected is to place the Philippine government under the international spotlight.
I signed up.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
I would have Died for Him
From an Air Force wife:
About two months into my husband's last deployment I got an interesting email from him. Before I go on to describe what he said, I should probably make clear that of the many choices in amount of communication available to military families, hubby and I have chosen the "I'd rather hear it from you" route, and he tends to give me a fairly clear picture of what his life is like deployed.
I have an incredibly active imagination, and so I exaggerate the information I get from sources other than my husband. After many, many, many,many incidents that nearly caused me to lose my mind we decided that it was better he tell me. Hubby can phrase and parse the situations he encounters all he wants... Just as long as I have an idea of what's going on. That way I can ignore any outside information and still feel like I have a handle on what's going on.
In any case, this is the background under which I received an email about a local on hubby's deployed base called "Rambo."
This email hubby sent me was odd. Never before has hubby singled out one of the locals he works with to tell me about, even though his deployed line of work has him working very closely with locals. I hear aggregate stories about incidents and I hear about funny and isolated events, but he has never mailed me a biography before. The reason is entirely OPSEC.
Rambo, however, was a special case. For one thing, he wasn't one of hubby's contacts. He lived on the base. For another, Rambo genuinely loved the Americans and having them there. He proved it constantly, putting himself in physical danger every day to make sure "his" base and "his" American soldiers were as safe as possible. Rambo could be counted on to be at the very front of the line guarding the facilities any time a crowd assembled.
Rambo's story began in the 1970's; he was an ethnic Tajik that fought with the United States against the Soviets. When the Soviets left, the Afghans allied themselves with various warlords until the Taliban took over.
The Taliban wasted no time in murdering Rambo's entire family, and Rambo left for the hills to fight with the Northern Alliance. When our special forces took Kabul, Rambo fought alongside them, and he was the first guard at the base.
My husband sent me an email about Rambo, pictures of the two of them together, and ended his email with this line, "Rambo takes care of us. He is one of us. Any one of us here would take a bullet for him."
I sent the story hubby emailed me out to many people I knew, because most of our civilian friends and family are far removed from the war. For more than a few, we are the only people they directly know who are fighting. They ask us questions, and they often do not understand. I try to pass on what I can. The amount of devotion Rambo showed to the guys at hubby's base touched me deeply, and I wanted to share what they told me was one of the reasons they supported their cause so much.
Just yesterday, now that hubby is home and safe with me, I learned of yet another chapter in Rambo's story and more proof of his amazing character.
The building hubby worked in while deployed was the target of a suicide car bomber. As the truck of explosives came through the gate, something about them triggered Rambo's attention and rather than waste time sounding the alarm - he took matters into his own hands and yanked the suicide bomber from inside the truck in an attempt to prevent its detonation. The truck detonated after both Rambo and the would-be bomber were free and took a huge chunk out of the building. The damage wasn't as extensive as it would have been if the explosives laden truck had managed to make it into closer proximity.
Rambo didn't blink. He just did.
No one can argue that there are many, many problems in Iraq and Afghanistan; and many things to overcome that are difficult, ugly, and at times despair-inducing.
But there are good things, and good people, there too. The foundations of these new countries will be built with such as them, although the building may be very long indeed.
My husband often recites John 15:13 from the Bible. It resonates with him very deeply: " Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." After hearing about Rambo, I understand why.
My comment: If we redeploy (retreat in grown up words), people like Rambo will be abandoned and beheaded by the militia. The Dems will blame Bush and all will be forgotten.
Courtesy of Andi's World (except for my comments).
About two months into my husband's last deployment I got an interesting email from him. Before I go on to describe what he said, I should probably make clear that of the many choices in amount of communication available to military families, hubby and I have chosen the "I'd rather hear it from you" route, and he tends to give me a fairly clear picture of what his life is like deployed.
I have an incredibly active imagination, and so I exaggerate the information I get from sources other than my husband. After many, many, many,many incidents that nearly caused me to lose my mind we decided that it was better he tell me. Hubby can phrase and parse the situations he encounters all he wants... Just as long as I have an idea of what's going on. That way I can ignore any outside information and still feel like I have a handle on what's going on.
In any case, this is the background under which I received an email about a local on hubby's deployed base called "Rambo."
This email hubby sent me was odd. Never before has hubby singled out one of the locals he works with to tell me about, even though his deployed line of work has him working very closely with locals. I hear aggregate stories about incidents and I hear about funny and isolated events, but he has never mailed me a biography before. The reason is entirely OPSEC.
Rambo, however, was a special case. For one thing, he wasn't one of hubby's contacts. He lived on the base. For another, Rambo genuinely loved the Americans and having them there. He proved it constantly, putting himself in physical danger every day to make sure "his" base and "his" American soldiers were as safe as possible. Rambo could be counted on to be at the very front of the line guarding the facilities any time a crowd assembled.
Rambo's story began in the 1970's; he was an ethnic Tajik that fought with the United States against the Soviets. When the Soviets left, the Afghans allied themselves with various warlords until the Taliban took over.
The Taliban wasted no time in murdering Rambo's entire family, and Rambo left for the hills to fight with the Northern Alliance. When our special forces took Kabul, Rambo fought alongside them, and he was the first guard at the base.
My husband sent me an email about Rambo, pictures of the two of them together, and ended his email with this line, "Rambo takes care of us. He is one of us. Any one of us here would take a bullet for him."
I sent the story hubby emailed me out to many people I knew, because most of our civilian friends and family are far removed from the war. For more than a few, we are the only people they directly know who are fighting. They ask us questions, and they often do not understand. I try to pass on what I can. The amount of devotion Rambo showed to the guys at hubby's base touched me deeply, and I wanted to share what they told me was one of the reasons they supported their cause so much.
Just yesterday, now that hubby is home and safe with me, I learned of yet another chapter in Rambo's story and more proof of his amazing character.
The building hubby worked in while deployed was the target of a suicide car bomber. As the truck of explosives came through the gate, something about them triggered Rambo's attention and rather than waste time sounding the alarm - he took matters into his own hands and yanked the suicide bomber from inside the truck in an attempt to prevent its detonation. The truck detonated after both Rambo and the would-be bomber were free and took a huge chunk out of the building. The damage wasn't as extensive as it would have been if the explosives laden truck had managed to make it into closer proximity.
Rambo didn't blink. He just did.
No one can argue that there are many, many problems in Iraq and Afghanistan; and many things to overcome that are difficult, ugly, and at times despair-inducing.
But there are good things, and good people, there too. The foundations of these new countries will be built with such as them, although the building may be very long indeed.
My husband often recites John 15:13 from the Bible. It resonates with him very deeply: " Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends." After hearing about Rambo, I understand why.
My comment: If we redeploy (retreat in grown up words), people like Rambo will be abandoned and beheaded by the militia. The Dems will blame Bush and all will be forgotten.
Courtesy of Andi's World (except for my comments).
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Buchwald's Farewell Column, Written to Be Released at Death
By E&P Staff Published: January 18, 2007 2:50 PM ET
NEW YORK Art Buchwald wrote a final column that he asked not be distributed until after he died. The piece was penned on Feb. 8, 2006, after Buchwald decided to check into a hospice. He eventually left the hospice, of course, and resumed his syndicated column. Buchwald died last night at the age of 81. Here's the farewell column, courtesy of Tribune Media
Services:
***GOODBYE, MY FRIENDSBy Art Buchwald Tribune Media Services
Several of my friends have persuaded me to write this final column, which is something they claim I shouldn't leave without doing.
There comes a time when you start adding up all the pluses and minuses of your life. In my case I'd like to add up all the great tennis games I played and all of the great players I overcame with my now famous "lob."
I will always believe that my tennis game was one of the greatest of all time. Even Kay Graham, who couldn't stand being on the other side of the net from me, in the end forgave me.
I can't cover all the subjects I want to in one final column, but I would just like to say what a great pleasure it has been knowing all of you and being a part of your lives. Each of you has, in your own way, contributed to my life.
Now, to get down to the business at hand, I have had many choices concerning how I wanted to go. Most of them are very civilized, particularly hospice care. A hospice makes it very easy for you when you decide to go. What's interesting is that everybody has his or her own opinion as to how you should go out.
All my loved ones became very upset because they thought I should brave it out -- which meant more dialysis.
But here is the most important thing: This has been my decision. And it's a healthy one.
The person who was the most supportive at the end was my doctor, Mike Newman. Members of my family, while they didn't want me to go, were supportive, too. But I'm putting it down on paper, so there should be no question the decision was mine.
I chose to spend my final days in a hospice because it sounded like the most painless way to go, and you don't have to take a lot of stuff with you.
For some reason my mind keeps turning to food. I know I have not eaten all the eclairs I always wanted. In recent months, I have found it hard to go past the Cheesecake Factory without at least having one profiterole and a banana split.
I know it's a rather silly thing at this stage of the game to spend so much time on food. But then again, as life went on and there were fewer and fewer things I could eat, I am now punishing myself for having passed up so many good things earlier in the trip.
I think of a song lyric, "What's it all about, Alfie?" I don't know how well I've done while I was here, but I'd like to think some of my printed works will persevere -- at least for three years.
I know it's very egocentric to believe that someone is put on earth for a reason. In my case, I like to think I was.
And after this column appears in the paper following my passing, I would like to think it will either wind up on a cereal box top or be repeated every Thanksgiving Day.
So, "What's it all about, Alfie?" is my way of saying goodbye.
NEW YORK Art Buchwald wrote a final column that he asked not be distributed until after he died. The piece was penned on Feb. 8, 2006, after Buchwald decided to check into a hospice. He eventually left the hospice, of course, and resumed his syndicated column. Buchwald died last night at the age of 81. Here's the farewell column, courtesy of Tribune Media
Services:
***GOODBYE, MY FRIENDSBy Art Buchwald Tribune Media Services
Several of my friends have persuaded me to write this final column, which is something they claim I shouldn't leave without doing.
There comes a time when you start adding up all the pluses and minuses of your life. In my case I'd like to add up all the great tennis games I played and all of the great players I overcame with my now famous "lob."
I will always believe that my tennis game was one of the greatest of all time. Even Kay Graham, who couldn't stand being on the other side of the net from me, in the end forgave me.
I can't cover all the subjects I want to in one final column, but I would just like to say what a great pleasure it has been knowing all of you and being a part of your lives. Each of you has, in your own way, contributed to my life.
Now, to get down to the business at hand, I have had many choices concerning how I wanted to go. Most of them are very civilized, particularly hospice care. A hospice makes it very easy for you when you decide to go. What's interesting is that everybody has his or her own opinion as to how you should go out.
All my loved ones became very upset because they thought I should brave it out -- which meant more dialysis.
But here is the most important thing: This has been my decision. And it's a healthy one.
The person who was the most supportive at the end was my doctor, Mike Newman. Members of my family, while they didn't want me to go, were supportive, too. But I'm putting it down on paper, so there should be no question the decision was mine.
I chose to spend my final days in a hospice because it sounded like the most painless way to go, and you don't have to take a lot of stuff with you.
For some reason my mind keeps turning to food. I know I have not eaten all the eclairs I always wanted. In recent months, I have found it hard to go past the Cheesecake Factory without at least having one profiterole and a banana split.
I know it's a rather silly thing at this stage of the game to spend so much time on food. But then again, as life went on and there were fewer and fewer things I could eat, I am now punishing myself for having passed up so many good things earlier in the trip.
I think of a song lyric, "What's it all about, Alfie?" I don't know how well I've done while I was here, but I'd like to think some of my printed works will persevere -- at least for three years.
I know it's very egocentric to believe that someone is put on earth for a reason. In my case, I like to think I was.
And after this column appears in the paper following my passing, I would like to think it will either wind up on a cereal box top or be repeated every Thanksgiving Day.
So, "What's it all about, Alfie?" is my way of saying goodbye.
Jailed for Revving his Engine in a "Racist Manner?"
I thought the judicial system in America was bogged down with rediculous wastes of human flesh.
Now, this guy in Scotland gets jailed and fined for revving his Lotus engine, "In a racial manner."
GEEZ, what's next? Will you get arrested for farting in the direction of Mecca?
The Islamic insanity is all over the world.
Now, this guy in Scotland gets jailed and fined for revving his Lotus engine, "In a racial manner."
GEEZ, what's next? Will you get arrested for farting in the direction of Mecca?
The Islamic insanity is all over the world.
Monday, January 15, 2007
Dr. Martin Luther King
I was a teenager when he was assasinated. I do remember some things from that dark era in history though.
I remember the huge white drinking fountains in school. One for whites and one for colored. I walked up to the one for coloreds and wondered if I would catch "cooties" or something if I drank from it. It didn't look any different than ours.
I saw the blacks living "across the tracks" in what everyone called, "Nigger Town." No one thought twice that it was a negative word. It's just what they called them.
I remember the riots on the Black & White TV. Spraying water hoses on them.
I remember the National Guard in front of a school while some brave black girls walked into the front door.
I remember seeing the churches on fire from bombings, and the girls that were killed.
I remember Governor Wallace vowing to stop all integration and saying, "Colored people are alright, as long as you own one or two of them."
I remember being told that blacks smell different than us and if you "gave them an inch, they would take a mile."
I remember being friends with a black girl while living in California. She asked me, "What do you think of colored girls?" I replied that I didn't know any colored girls enough. Her Brother became angry and basically ran me off. He didn't say why he suddenly changed but I think it was that.
We've come a long way.
Now, we've seemed to go the other way. We're in that area where some blacks think the government owes them something. I think that's a backlash of the government trying to fix everything.
I do know that I see a lot more blacks driving Jaguars and Mercedes than I do whites.
If that's progress, then I guess we've arrived at Dr, King's dream.
I remember the huge white drinking fountains in school. One for whites and one for colored. I walked up to the one for coloreds and wondered if I would catch "cooties" or something if I drank from it. It didn't look any different than ours.
I saw the blacks living "across the tracks" in what everyone called, "Nigger Town." No one thought twice that it was a negative word. It's just what they called them.
I remember the riots on the Black & White TV. Spraying water hoses on them.
I remember the National Guard in front of a school while some brave black girls walked into the front door.
I remember seeing the churches on fire from bombings, and the girls that were killed.
I remember Governor Wallace vowing to stop all integration and saying, "Colored people are alright, as long as you own one or two of them."
I remember being told that blacks smell different than us and if you "gave them an inch, they would take a mile."
I remember being friends with a black girl while living in California. She asked me, "What do you think of colored girls?" I replied that I didn't know any colored girls enough. Her Brother became angry and basically ran me off. He didn't say why he suddenly changed but I think it was that.
We've come a long way.
Now, we've seemed to go the other way. We're in that area where some blacks think the government owes them something. I think that's a backlash of the government trying to fix everything.
I do know that I see a lot more blacks driving Jaguars and Mercedes than I do whites.
If that's progress, then I guess we've arrived at Dr, King's dream.
Tuesday, December 12, 2006
Does a Hate Crime only apply to White on Black Crime?
Apparently, it does:
Victim Describes Beating (Black Mob Attack on White Girls in Long Beach, CA on Halloween)Long Beach Press-Telegram ^ 10/2/06 Tracy Manzer
Posted on 12/02/2006 9:58:08 AM PST by Yaelle
LONG BEACH - A 21-year-old woman who had a dozen bones on one side of her face shattered during a Halloween attack testified in court Friday, recalling the beating in chilling detail.
The victim - who asked the Press-Telegram in previous interviews to be identified by only her first name, Loren, out of concern for her safety - was with two friends visiting a haunted house in Bixby Knolls when the three white women were attacked by a group of black youths.
She appeared composed and confident while on the witness stand. The only moment that revealed any nervousness came as she stood next to a diagram where she was asked to note her position and the position of her friends and the attackers at the time of the beating.
As Deputy District Attorney Andrea Bouas and several defense attorneys stopped for a brief discussion, Loren nervously capped and uncapped a red marker as she waited for the prosecutor's questions to resume.
Loren's mother said outside court that the 21-year-old victim was horribly nervous about testifying, having never done it before.
Her daughter is also struggling with her extensive injuries, she said. A team of doctors, including two surgeons, are trying to determine Advertisement how best to treat her dizzy spells and her drooping eye.
Several of her teeth have died and will have to be replaced with a partial plate. No one yet knows if she will regain the sight partially lost in the one eye.
She is studying photography, and her injuries forced her to drop all her college classes this year. Her injuries could destroy her dreams of pursuing a career as a professional photographer.
Loren was perhaps the most seriously hurt the night of the attack, which resulted in the arrest of 10 Long Beach youths - 9 girls and one boy, ages 12 to 19 - within moments of the 9:30 p.m. beating.
A few days later, police arrested two 17-year-old males, both from Long Beach. They have been charged with the same counts for which the 10 minors are currently being tried, or adjudicated as it is called in juvenile court.
The charge includes three felony counts of assault by any means of force to produce great bodily injury. Eight of the 10 minors currently in court had a hate crime enhancement added to their charges, and the two 17-year-old boys - whose adjudications are set for early January - also face the hate crime allegation.
All of the minors are black, and witness statements that the youths shouted racial slurs while beating the three victims have resulted in community and nationwide outrage.
Court proceedings so far have been slow, due in part to the difficulty of transporting the 10 minors to the Long Beach courthouse from various Los Angeles County juvenile detention centers.
Each minor has his or her own attorney, to avoid a conflict of interest, making for drawn-out arguments at times.
Friday's session, scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m., started late after the prosecutor argued defense lawyers had violated Superior Court Judge Gibson Lee's order the previous day.
On Thursday, defense attorneys told reporters they changed the seating of the defendants. Until then, all the minors had sat directly behind their attorneys.
When the district attorney asked the first witness to take the stand to identify the minors in court Thursday, she matched the wrong police photograph to one of the girls in court.
Defense attorneys seized on the mistake. During cross examination the witness admitted the error, saying she could not see all of the defendants and therefore picked the wrong one. After further prompting, she said she based her identification the night of the arrest largely on what the minors were wearing, not their facial features.
Prior to the start of testimony Friday, Bouas argued that the defense attorneys had talked about moving the defendants but were told by the judge not to, according to bailiffs and officers in the closed courtroom.
The minors were rearranged anyway and Bouas accused the defense of running a "shell game," officers said.
Many of the defense attorneys became angry at the accusation, the officers said. They told the judge they did not know how the youths had been rearranged, but agreed to have the minors seated behind their assigned lawyer from now on.
"The judge stopped short of saying they violated an order," one officer said. "But he made it clear that it would not happen again."
All the officers spoke on condition of anonymity.
Once that matter was settled, the public was allowed into the courtroom and Bouas began with Loren's testimony.
Loren described how she and her friends began the night at her house, where they dressed in their costumes - she as Betty Boop, her friend Michelle as a pirate and her friend Laura as a vampire.
They had decided to go see the haunted house, located on Linden Avenue at the corner of Bixby Road, while they were waiting for a fourth friend to get off work. That was when they were all going to go to a costume party, she said.
When she and her friends arrived at the haunted house, she said, a young black male - whom she estimated to be 17 to 19 years old - was standing with a group of youths and began hollering "Are you with it?" at her and her friends while grabbing his crotch.
After the victims made their way through the haunted house and returned to the front yard where they had started, she noticed the crowd had grown larger and included girls and boys.
"He said, `Are you with it?' again," Loren testified. "He was loud, he was yelling."
The crowd was also getting louder and more boisterous and the victims could hear other things, she said.
"I heard them (say) something about the white people and `white b---."' Loren testified.
She described trying to walk away and being pelted with pumpkins and lemons. She was hit in the back of the head and in her back. The force was strong enough to cause pain, she recalled.
She also recalled seeing one of her friends - Laura - get hit in the back and in the legs. That is when her friend turned around and told the crowd to stop.
As Laura turned back toward Loren and Michelle, she said, she saw at least two girls grab that friend by her long hair and her dress and yank her backward.
"I heard one voice say, `I f------ hate white people,"' Loren testified.
It was a male voice that shouted the statement, loud enough to be heard over the shouting crowd, she said.
At about the same time she said she heard male and female voices saying, "white b---," and the group surged toward Laura, partially surrounding her friend and cutting off her access to Michelle and Loren.
Loren recalled yelling to Michelle that they were getting separated. Michelle was shouting back that she was calling 911 as she dialed her cell phone.
The victim described, and was asked to demonstrate, how her friend was knocked to the ground. Loren then recalled seeing a young man flip a skateboard he had at his side up over his head.
"I saw him flip it up and swing in the direction of Laura," she testified, describing the suspect as black, tall and with a medium build, adding that he was big but not overweight.
His hair was close to his head, in either braids or corn rows, she added.
Loren said she rushed back to Laura but was quickly surrounded by a group of about a dozen people, mostly girls. They circled her in two rows, one inside the other, she described.
She first felt someone kick the back of her leg, just below her knee, and her leg buckled. But she did not fall, the victim testified.
Punches to her face and the back of her head rained down on her, with more than one person hitting her and most of them girls, she said.
She felt her left cheek pop from the force of one extremely strong blow and assumed it was from a male.
She said she ducked her face and flailed her arms, trying to stop her attackers, but they continued beating her.
"I could feel the rhythm of one-two ... getting punched in the back of the head and the face," she recalled.
She was eventually knocked to the ground when she tried to flip open her cell phone to call for help, and it was knocked out of her hand, she said.
Many of them were girls, she said. Some were wearing sweaters with the Rocawear logo, several had braids and some wore hoop earrings, Loren testified.
Rocawear is a popular line of clothing created by rapper Jay-Z.
Curled in a ball on her knees, Loren said she wrapped her arms over her head and kept her legs tucked under her body. She could feel people pounding her with their fists and kicking her, striking her on top of her head, around her face, her back and up and down her body, she said.
"Once I hit the ground, I remember being kicked by what I thought was a man," she testified. "Because the force was so hard, and when I looked up I thought I could see ... male legs."
At one point, she peered out from under her arm and said she could see one of her friends laying on the ground.
"She was being stepped on," she testified. "It looked like males."
It didn't stop until a black man ran up and began pulling people off her, Loren said. She recalled him yelling at the youths to stop.
She said a young black woman grabbed her under her arms and helped her stand up, taking her closer to where her friends were standing.
The woman screamed for ice for the victim's swollen and bloody face as neighbors began to come forward, Loren recalled.
"I was bleeding really bad and grabbing at my nose," she said.
The police arrived first, followed by paramedics. Not long afterward, officers told her that they had found some people who might have been involved and wanted to drive her to a nearby parking lot to see if she could identify those people.
The victims were taken in separate vehicles one at a time, Loren said.
She sat in a police SUV with an officer who wrote down what she said as a line of youths was asked to come forward one by one into the glare of several police headlights and search lights.
She said she immediately recognized the first person, a girl in a white shirt, and told the officer, "Yeah, that's the one that beat my friend. I think she was attacking Laura."
Loren explained in court that the reason she told the officer she thought it was the girl who attacked her friend, rather than say she knew it was the girl, was because she had been instructed to be as specific as possible.
She had seen the girl going toward Laura, she said.
"She was attacking Laura, but I wasn't positive she was punching her or pushing her," Loren explained.
She also said she wasn't able to identify all the minors arrested that night.
As the district attorney began to show the victim police photos taken of the 10 youths in the parking lot, several defense attorneys objected.
Showing the victim the photos before asking her to identify the minors in court would coach her into saying precisely what the prosecutor wanted, they argued.
The same objection was raised with the first witness to testify; an 18-year-old who was in the area with her baby, her friend and her younger sister at the time of the beating. As in the first witness' case, the judge overruled the objection but it was quickly followed by several others made by most of the 10 defense attorneys in court.
Judge Lee ended Friday's proceedings at that point, saying he would return to the issue next week. Court is expected to resume Monday at 1:30 p.m.
JESSE JACKSON and AL SHARPTON!!!
Where are you???
Victim Describes Beating (Black Mob Attack on White Girls in Long Beach, CA on Halloween)Long Beach Press-Telegram ^ 10/2/06 Tracy Manzer
Posted on 12/02/2006 9:58:08 AM PST by Yaelle
LONG BEACH - A 21-year-old woman who had a dozen bones on one side of her face shattered during a Halloween attack testified in court Friday, recalling the beating in chilling detail.
The victim - who asked the Press-Telegram in previous interviews to be identified by only her first name, Loren, out of concern for her safety - was with two friends visiting a haunted house in Bixby Knolls when the three white women were attacked by a group of black youths.
She appeared composed and confident while on the witness stand. The only moment that revealed any nervousness came as she stood next to a diagram where she was asked to note her position and the position of her friends and the attackers at the time of the beating.
As Deputy District Attorney Andrea Bouas and several defense attorneys stopped for a brief discussion, Loren nervously capped and uncapped a red marker as she waited for the prosecutor's questions to resume.
Loren's mother said outside court that the 21-year-old victim was horribly nervous about testifying, having never done it before.
Her daughter is also struggling with her extensive injuries, she said. A team of doctors, including two surgeons, are trying to determine Advertisement how best to treat her dizzy spells and her drooping eye.
Several of her teeth have died and will have to be replaced with a partial plate. No one yet knows if she will regain the sight partially lost in the one eye.
She is studying photography, and her injuries forced her to drop all her college classes this year. Her injuries could destroy her dreams of pursuing a career as a professional photographer.
Loren was perhaps the most seriously hurt the night of the attack, which resulted in the arrest of 10 Long Beach youths - 9 girls and one boy, ages 12 to 19 - within moments of the 9:30 p.m. beating.
A few days later, police arrested two 17-year-old males, both from Long Beach. They have been charged with the same counts for which the 10 minors are currently being tried, or adjudicated as it is called in juvenile court.
The charge includes three felony counts of assault by any means of force to produce great bodily injury. Eight of the 10 minors currently in court had a hate crime enhancement added to their charges, and the two 17-year-old boys - whose adjudications are set for early January - also face the hate crime allegation.
All of the minors are black, and witness statements that the youths shouted racial slurs while beating the three victims have resulted in community and nationwide outrage.
Court proceedings so far have been slow, due in part to the difficulty of transporting the 10 minors to the Long Beach courthouse from various Los Angeles County juvenile detention centers.
Each minor has his or her own attorney, to avoid a conflict of interest, making for drawn-out arguments at times.
Friday's session, scheduled to begin at 1:30 p.m., started late after the prosecutor argued defense lawyers had violated Superior Court Judge Gibson Lee's order the previous day.
On Thursday, defense attorneys told reporters they changed the seating of the defendants. Until then, all the minors had sat directly behind their attorneys.
When the district attorney asked the first witness to take the stand to identify the minors in court Thursday, she matched the wrong police photograph to one of the girls in court.
Defense attorneys seized on the mistake. During cross examination the witness admitted the error, saying she could not see all of the defendants and therefore picked the wrong one. After further prompting, she said she based her identification the night of the arrest largely on what the minors were wearing, not their facial features.
Prior to the start of testimony Friday, Bouas argued that the defense attorneys had talked about moving the defendants but were told by the judge not to, according to bailiffs and officers in the closed courtroom.
The minors were rearranged anyway and Bouas accused the defense of running a "shell game," officers said.
Many of the defense attorneys became angry at the accusation, the officers said. They told the judge they did not know how the youths had been rearranged, but agreed to have the minors seated behind their assigned lawyer from now on.
"The judge stopped short of saying they violated an order," one officer said. "But he made it clear that it would not happen again."
All the officers spoke on condition of anonymity.
Once that matter was settled, the public was allowed into the courtroom and Bouas began with Loren's testimony.
Loren described how she and her friends began the night at her house, where they dressed in their costumes - she as Betty Boop, her friend Michelle as a pirate and her friend Laura as a vampire.
They had decided to go see the haunted house, located on Linden Avenue at the corner of Bixby Road, while they were waiting for a fourth friend to get off work. That was when they were all going to go to a costume party, she said.
When she and her friends arrived at the haunted house, she said, a young black male - whom she estimated to be 17 to 19 years old - was standing with a group of youths and began hollering "Are you with it?" at her and her friends while grabbing his crotch.
After the victims made their way through the haunted house and returned to the front yard where they had started, she noticed the crowd had grown larger and included girls and boys.
"He said, `Are you with it?' again," Loren testified. "He was loud, he was yelling."
The crowd was also getting louder and more boisterous and the victims could hear other things, she said.
"I heard them (say) something about the white people and `white b---."' Loren testified.
She described trying to walk away and being pelted with pumpkins and lemons. She was hit in the back of the head and in her back. The force was strong enough to cause pain, she recalled.
She also recalled seeing one of her friends - Laura - get hit in the back and in the legs. That is when her friend turned around and told the crowd to stop.
As Laura turned back toward Loren and Michelle, she said, she saw at least two girls grab that friend by her long hair and her dress and yank her backward.
"I heard one voice say, `I f------ hate white people,"' Loren testified.
It was a male voice that shouted the statement, loud enough to be heard over the shouting crowd, she said.
At about the same time she said she heard male and female voices saying, "white b---," and the group surged toward Laura, partially surrounding her friend and cutting off her access to Michelle and Loren.
Loren recalled yelling to Michelle that they were getting separated. Michelle was shouting back that she was calling 911 as she dialed her cell phone.
The victim described, and was asked to demonstrate, how her friend was knocked to the ground. Loren then recalled seeing a young man flip a skateboard he had at his side up over his head.
"I saw him flip it up and swing in the direction of Laura," she testified, describing the suspect as black, tall and with a medium build, adding that he was big but not overweight.
His hair was close to his head, in either braids or corn rows, she added.
Loren said she rushed back to Laura but was quickly surrounded by a group of about a dozen people, mostly girls. They circled her in two rows, one inside the other, she described.
She first felt someone kick the back of her leg, just below her knee, and her leg buckled. But she did not fall, the victim testified.
Punches to her face and the back of her head rained down on her, with more than one person hitting her and most of them girls, she said.
She felt her left cheek pop from the force of one extremely strong blow and assumed it was from a male.
She said she ducked her face and flailed her arms, trying to stop her attackers, but they continued beating her.
"I could feel the rhythm of one-two ... getting punched in the back of the head and the face," she recalled.
She was eventually knocked to the ground when she tried to flip open her cell phone to call for help, and it was knocked out of her hand, she said.
Many of them were girls, she said. Some were wearing sweaters with the Rocawear logo, several had braids and some wore hoop earrings, Loren testified.
Rocawear is a popular line of clothing created by rapper Jay-Z.
Curled in a ball on her knees, Loren said she wrapped her arms over her head and kept her legs tucked under her body. She could feel people pounding her with their fists and kicking her, striking her on top of her head, around her face, her back and up and down her body, she said.
"Once I hit the ground, I remember being kicked by what I thought was a man," she testified. "Because the force was so hard, and when I looked up I thought I could see ... male legs."
At one point, she peered out from under her arm and said she could see one of her friends laying on the ground.
"She was being stepped on," she testified. "It looked like males."
It didn't stop until a black man ran up and began pulling people off her, Loren said. She recalled him yelling at the youths to stop.
She said a young black woman grabbed her under her arms and helped her stand up, taking her closer to where her friends were standing.
The woman screamed for ice for the victim's swollen and bloody face as neighbors began to come forward, Loren recalled.
"I was bleeding really bad and grabbing at my nose," she said.
The police arrived first, followed by paramedics. Not long afterward, officers told her that they had found some people who might have been involved and wanted to drive her to a nearby parking lot to see if she could identify those people.
The victims were taken in separate vehicles one at a time, Loren said.
She sat in a police SUV with an officer who wrote down what she said as a line of youths was asked to come forward one by one into the glare of several police headlights and search lights.
She said she immediately recognized the first person, a girl in a white shirt, and told the officer, "Yeah, that's the one that beat my friend. I think she was attacking Laura."
Loren explained in court that the reason she told the officer she thought it was the girl who attacked her friend, rather than say she knew it was the girl, was because she had been instructed to be as specific as possible.
She had seen the girl going toward Laura, she said.
"She was attacking Laura, but I wasn't positive she was punching her or pushing her," Loren explained.
She also said she wasn't able to identify all the minors arrested that night.
As the district attorney began to show the victim police photos taken of the 10 youths in the parking lot, several defense attorneys objected.
Showing the victim the photos before asking her to identify the minors in court would coach her into saying precisely what the prosecutor wanted, they argued.
The same objection was raised with the first witness to testify; an 18-year-old who was in the area with her baby, her friend and her younger sister at the time of the beating. As in the first witness' case, the judge overruled the objection but it was quickly followed by several others made by most of the 10 defense attorneys in court.
Judge Lee ended Friday's proceedings at that point, saying he would return to the issue next week. Court is expected to resume Monday at 1:30 p.m.
JESSE JACKSON and AL SHARPTON!!!
Where are you???
Friday, December 08, 2006
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
I just learned something about Congress
You know, I just learned this morning they get almost 170K a year and they only work two months a year. That's about 2,700 a day!
A guy on Good Morning America was walking around the halls in the white house this morning....all empty.
Man, I wish we could fire all those deadbeats and put someone in there that'll work.
A guy on Good Morning America was walking around the halls in the white house this morning....all empty.
Man, I wish we could fire all those deadbeats and put someone in there that'll work.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
I will miss The Fruit Cake Lady
She died on November 13th. Hat tip to AmIAnnoying.com.
Circa 1911-November 13, 2006)
Born in Alabama
Birth name is Marie Rudisill
Appears on the Tonight Show's ‘Ask the Fruitcake Lady' (2002-)
Authored eight books
Aunt of Truman Capote
She didn't pull punches.
She helped raise Truman Capote.
She taught Mel Gibson how to make a fruitcake, Cuba Gooding Jr. to cook a cherry pie, and Hugh Grant how to stuff a turkey.
When someone asked her if she had been naughty or nice in 2005 she said, ‘Now how in the hell is a ninety-four year old woman gonna be naughty? My naughty days are over forever!'
Circa 1911-November 13, 2006)
Born in Alabama
Birth name is Marie Rudisill
Appears on the Tonight Show's ‘Ask the Fruitcake Lady' (2002-)
Authored eight books
Aunt of Truman Capote
She didn't pull punches.
She helped raise Truman Capote.
She taught Mel Gibson how to make a fruitcake, Cuba Gooding Jr. to cook a cherry pie, and Hugh Grant how to stuff a turkey.
When someone asked her if she had been naughty or nice in 2005 she said, ‘Now how in the hell is a ninety-four year old woman gonna be naughty? My naughty days are over forever!'
Monday, November 20, 2006
RECRIMINATIONS
THE UNAPOLOGETIC VARIETY
By: Norman Liebmann]
(I like the way he writes) A principal bone of contention in the recent election devolved on which party would more likely keep America safe. In a world full of Moslems, safety is an illusion, and nobody promised it more lavishly and irresponsibly than the Democrat Party. What passes for safety among Democrats is denial. Liberals are unprovoked beyond finger wagging and tongue clacking by Islamic excesses. They believe the silver lining to being beheaded by jihadis is that it is a quick cure for a migraine headache.
The Republicans waged an irresolute political campaign pretty much like military one they did in Iraq. In coming to power the Democrats will bring with them a virtual tsunami of taxation and corruption. Moderates have merged with Democrat surrender-freaks and marched under a banner that proudly proclaims “Mish Mash Accomplished”.
The electorate’s response demonstrated America’s aversion to partial birth wars and abortive political campaigns. History instructs them that compromise quickly morphs into collusion. George W. Bush described his party’s loss as “a thumping”. Rather it was a thoroughgoing humiliation and a pedal to the metal acceleration for the encroachment of Armageddon due largely to Bush’s naïve delusion that there are good Moslems and bad Moslems. He comes by this warped ambivalence honestly. Bush Sr. still labors under the delusion there are good Bill Clintons and bad Bill Clintons. Bush Senior is still sucking up to his unprincipled predecessor. The Bush’s family’s failure to inveigh against the crimes of Bill Clinton is tantamount to an endorsement of them. Apparently, Texas has become a rats’ nest of forgiveness. If the past is prologue, in due course George W. will soon be trysting with his nemesis, Cindy Sheehan.
The campaigns conducted by the Republicans and Democrats were septic and obscene, something like watching Jerry Springer and Maury Povitch throw up on each other. The Liberals rounded up the usual dupes and dragged them to the polls. They were fed the proposition that Bush engineered the 911 attack on the World Trade Center, and Civil rights leaders disseminated the canard that he also created the low pressure system that sent Katrina flooding Basin Street and gave everyone a damp case of “the blues”.
Instruments in the Democrat victory are Bill Clinton, (Hillary’s time-share husband), Kofi Annan, highly-situated scam artist and international oil hoaxer, and the ghost of Pancho Villa. Likely the Democrat campaign strategy was mapped out in the cantinas of Tijuana and the whorehouses of Little Rock.
The Democrat Party is also an acknowledged sanctuary for conscienceless opportunists, Arkansas yokels, the chronic disloyal, aging Princes of Pork, ugly women, and an assortment of sexual epicenes and pathogenic feminists. These ranks are fleshed out by “oppressed” minorities seduced by the promise of raising the minimum wage with a commensurate promise of minimizing work.
The hood ornament of the Democrat victory is Nancy Pelosi of the City of San Fag-cisco, America’s Babylon-by-the-Bay, who has finally reached the portals of Marxist/Leninist heaven where she can change her name to Svetlana and wait for her turn to straddle a tractor as a means of getting some sexual relief.
The Democrats now have leave to vent their true feelings toward all things military – contempt, distrust, and mostly, ingratitude. Nancy Pelosi has already laid claim to a plush office whose strategic advantage is a picture window that enables her to drop her knickers, and moon the Pentagon.
The politicians have formed a study group, presumably of the same ilk that oversaw the evacuation of Saigon. Needless to say, they will not be of the same fabric that raised the flag atop Mount Suribachi. It includes James Baker from the Bush Sr. Administration, which reaffirms the proposition that in politics there’s always room to go backwards. It is hoped that W. is good with leftovers. The whole process is something akin to trying to fertilize dinosaur eggs. Colin Powell’s head pops up intermittently like a prairie dog with his panacea solutions for Iraq. He does have unchallengeable credentials. After all, he did the voice-over for Desert Storm. It is hoped one measure the group will consider is the abolition of the State Department, that murky pond of compromise and nesting ground for the propagation of appeasers.
The slogan “Stay the course” has been discredited as the Bush strategy in Iraq deteriorated from “Victory or bust” to “Occupation and rust”. The Democrats are at odds over a date certain for bailing out of Baghdad. They are divided into two camps – those who believe we should take the money and run, and those who believe we should take the money and quit. Either strategy might be described as “committing Murtha”. In either case it only remains for the Marines to shove Saddam Hussein back down into his spider hole and hop the next freighter back to Camp Lejune. (Our sometime ally, Tony Blair, wants to enlist those rogue states, Iran and Syria, to help solve the problems of the Middle East. Apparently Neville Chamberlain lives! As an alternative to victory Blair is offering us a reenactment of Dunkirk.)
The War on Terror was destined to remain theoretical as long as George Bush was distracted by his preoccupation with making the world a cushy place for the swarthy tribes of the world, and a sewer big enough to mix the molasses for his brand of compassion. The problem is not that he hasn’t won the war in Iraq. He simply chose not to fight it. He is intent on fixing the infirmities of the world of terror and insurgency with a kind of global soothing. Hence, it is apparent that there is no such thing as “winning” in Iraq. Despite Bush’s good intentions toward the people of the Middle East, the determining pragmatism of Islam is a slavery-is-not-all-bad mindset.
In any event, Americans have turned their backs on open borders and piecemeal wars. The conventional wisdom is that any Moslem killed today is one that won’t have to be killed tomorrow. A viable strategy for the Bush Administration might have been, instead of discouraging a Civil War in Iraq they should have been fomenting one in Iran.
[Note: A grim factor in the election demographics is that American Jews voted
85% Democrat. Presumably old habits die hard. At Auschwitz such collaborators
were called “kapos” and served as maitre d’s stationed at the velvet rope to
check whether a hapless kinsman had a reservation in order to enter the gas
chamber. In gratitude for their support, Minnesota Democrats spit in their faces
by electing a Moslem to Congress. That is tantamount to the Hassidim in Brooklyn
sending a mohel to Mecca.]
The situation promises to get worse before it gets better. John Kerry has not abandoned his political ambitions. It is likely that Hillary will be the Democrats’ candidate for President in 2008 and Kerry will be their candidate for Vice- President. The ticket may well be designated as Bitch and Botch. Their Administration would quickly demonstrate that Democrats are unable to solve any problem until they have first made it global.
John Murtha’s candidacy for the Democrat Majority Leader has already been deep-sixed. His aspiration was sunk by his ethically-challenged political past and his unmistakable resemblance to Helen Thomas’ passport photo. Worse, we see the reemergence of that notable invertebrate Trent Lott, who made the Clinton impeachment an exercise in futility. Lott demonstrated that you can’t stand up without a spine, and to remedy that, in Lott’s case, would require a surgical procedure about as radical as implanting a hockey stick in his back.
Having done nothing about illegal immigration, nothing about Iran, nothing about North Korea, Bush has become Dudley Do Nothing. It took him a year to respond to 9/11 – and arguably to the wrong enemy. One suspects there will be a call for a fallback position to a Fortress America military posture, since the Europeans have scuttled their democracies and defaulted themselves and their posterity to the Moslem barbarians.
Bush now can look forward to the humiliation of impeachment without the amenities. The only way the Bush family can atone for the coming apocalypse is to subject the Arkansas lout to a gradual and painful execution for the public entertainment before his natural demise resuscitates the nation’s honor. The only question that Bill Clinton has to conjure with these days - is there impotence after death, or even worse, before?
John Paul Jones said, “I have not yet begun to fight” - and neither have the Republicans. Unsure of how to conduct war with the Iraqis, the Bush Administration instructed the Marines to approach any Moslem unlocked and unloaded - and with a saucer of milk. Bush was equally docile when he sent his pussycat political strategist brigades to reason with the groin kickers on the left. So much for the new tone.
In the interest of space, read the rest here.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Congratulations to the Democrats, but be Careful what you Wish for
Not all democrats are happy. I believe there are conservative democrats..or democratic conservatives (whatever) out there that are concerned.
I have met a few in other forums.
That's what I probably am, having voted democrat until this last presidential election.
I think somewhere between FDR and Kennedy, the conservative mindset gave way to socialism and liberalism.
Does being a democrat nowadays mean you accept the government's hand in everything you do?
Does being a demcrat mean you have to gleefully accept illegal aliens, giving them all the rights an American citizen enjoys?
Being a democrat, do you agree that the Iraq war is a failed concept and we should cut and run right now...nevermind how many Iraqis will be slaughtered when we leave?
Let's get ready for higher taxes and interest rates.
Fire up those social programs...change our language to Spanish (we don't need to be selfish).
Health care for everyone....that's what those other socialist countries do and it's working out fine for them.
I guess I need to learn Arabic and get used to being on my knees, looking up some other guy's ass too, since being a Democrat of today means I must apologize to all those countries that don't like us.
Next stop, the White House, I guess.
Let's put the Hildebeast or Obama-Whama in there.
The repubs did lose and the dems have finally gotten some power in the house after 16 years. Congrats but I am concerned about what this will create.
I don't see good things from this but maybe that's my pessimistic nature.
I'm off to learn all about Socialism and try to get a fixed rate on my mortgage.
I have met a few in other forums.
That's what I probably am, having voted democrat until this last presidential election.
I think somewhere between FDR and Kennedy, the conservative mindset gave way to socialism and liberalism.
Does being a democrat nowadays mean you accept the government's hand in everything you do?
Does being a demcrat mean you have to gleefully accept illegal aliens, giving them all the rights an American citizen enjoys?
Being a democrat, do you agree that the Iraq war is a failed concept and we should cut and run right now...nevermind how many Iraqis will be slaughtered when we leave?
Let's get ready for higher taxes and interest rates.
Fire up those social programs...change our language to Spanish (we don't need to be selfish).
Health care for everyone....that's what those other socialist countries do and it's working out fine for them.
I guess I need to learn Arabic and get used to being on my knees, looking up some other guy's ass too, since being a Democrat of today means I must apologize to all those countries that don't like us.
Next stop, the White House, I guess.
Let's put the Hildebeast or Obama-Whama in there.
The repubs did lose and the dems have finally gotten some power in the house after 16 years. Congrats but I am concerned about what this will create.
I don't see good things from this but maybe that's my pessimistic nature.
I'm off to learn all about Socialism and try to get a fixed rate on my mortgage.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
This Guy is Completely Devoid of Class
Bill Maher is, and always will be a complete moron.
If he's not obsessing on hating Bush, he's choosing to go out in public with this tasteless costume, making fun of Steve Irwin.
This fool will do anything to get noticed.
The sad thing is, sometime during the evening he looked in the mirror and thought that was funny.
If he's not obsessing on hating Bush, he's choosing to go out in public with this tasteless costume, making fun of Steve Irwin.
This fool will do anything to get noticed.
The sad thing is, sometime during the evening he looked in the mirror and thought that was funny.
Monday, October 30, 2006
"Party of the Rich" - Limousine liberals are upgrading to Lear jets
Strange how just a few years ago, it seems, Democraps (including me at the time) were thought to be against big business and rich politicians.
Now it seems all that time they were just getting richer (except me).I remember that last election that the dems are still whining about. Kerry and Edwards were the richest candidates ever to run for president.
The dems are just beside themselves because they can't understand why they have all that money and no power.
If it all changes (which it probably won't) in the elections, they'll have ALL the money and ALL the power.
I hope it happens. I'll be a lot more active on forums and my website when I gloat about how they're screwing things up on a daily basis.
Now it seems all that time they were just getting richer (except me).I remember that last election that the dems are still whining about. Kerry and Edwards were the richest candidates ever to run for president.
The dems are just beside themselves because they can't understand why they have all that money and no power.
If it all changes (which it probably won't) in the elections, they'll have ALL the money and ALL the power.
I hope it happens. I'll be a lot more active on forums and my website when I gloat about how they're screwing things up on a daily basis.
Monday, October 23, 2006
Thursday, October 12, 2006
BOOOSH!
What the hell are the North Koreans up to? This sounds a bit ominous to me.
WASHINGTON – As reports circulated of a second imminent nuclear test, a high-ranking North Korean official who is called the unofficial spokesman for Kim Jong-il issued a not-so-veiled threat to the United States today in an interview with South Korean radio.
WASHINGTON – As reports circulated of a second imminent nuclear test, a high-ranking North Korean official who is called the unofficial spokesman for Kim Jong-il issued a not-so-veiled threat to the United States today in an interview with South Korean radio.
"Everything will be settled in a week," said Kim Myong-chol on KBS Radio.
"That is, whether we, Korean people, will remain as we are now, or lose, or New York will lose, or Washington, D.C., will lose, it will all be settled once and for all."The report was carried in Chosun Ilbo, a Korean-language newspaper in the south.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Friday, September 29, 2006
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Tuesday, September 26, 2006
Wednesday, September 20, 2006
White and Nerdy
Did you catch Donny Osmond as his background dancer?
I think Seth Green is in there as well...not sure.
I think Seth Green is in there as well...not sure.
Monday, September 18, 2006
The Pope and the Muslims
The pope was quoting from literary text. If a muslim takes exception to that, he/she should respond with literary protests, not with violence.
I'm sorry the Pope thought he had to apologize. I hope he's watching this violence and is, at least in private, saying, "See, I told you so."
Now, they want his head?
Low-life barbarians.
I'm sorry the Pope thought he had to apologize. I hope he's watching this violence and is, at least in private, saying, "See, I told you so."
Now, they want his head?
Low-life barbarians.
Friday, September 15, 2006
10 first place winners in the International Pun Contest
1. A vulture boards an airplane, carrying two dead raccoons. The stewardess looks at him and says, "I'm sorry, sir, only one carrion allowed per passenger."
2. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. The one turns to the other and says, "Dam!"
3. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.
4. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says "I've lost my electron." The other says "Are you sure?" The first replies "Yes, I'm positive."
5. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.
6. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. "But why?" they asked, as they moved off. "Because", he said, "I can't stand chess-nuts boasting in an open foyer."
7. A woman has twins and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Ahmal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan." Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Ahmal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Ahmal."
8. These friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade" them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that only Hugh can prevent florist friars.
9. Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him... (Oh, man, this is so bad, it's good). A super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
10. And finally, there was the person who sent ten different puns to his friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did????
2. Two fish swim into a concrete wall. The one turns to the other and says, "Dam!"
3. Two Eskimos sitting in a kayak were chilly, so they lit a fire in the craft. Unsurprisingly it sank, proving once again that you can't have your kayak and heat it too.
4. Two hydrogen atoms meet. One says "I've lost my electron." The other says "Are you sure?" The first replies "Yes, I'm positive."
5. Did you hear about the Buddhist who refused Novocain during a root canal? His goal: transcend dental medication.
6. A group of chess enthusiasts checked into a hotel and were standing in the lobby discussing their recent tournament victories. After about an hour, the manager came out of the office and asked them to disperse. "But why?" they asked, as they moved off. "Because", he said, "I can't stand chess-nuts boasting in an open foyer."
7. A woman has twins and gives them up for adoption. One of them goes to a family in Egypt and is named "Ahmal." The other goes to a family in Spain; they name him "Juan." Years later, Juan sends a picture of himself to his birth mother. Upon receiving the picture, she tells her husband that she wishes she also had a picture of Ahmal. Her husband responds, "They're twins! If you've seen Juan, you've seen Ahmal."
8. These friars were behind on their belfry payments, so they opened up a small florist shop to raise funds. Since everyone liked to buy flowers from the men of God, a rival florist across town thought the competition was unfair. He asked the good fathers to close down, but they would not. He went back and begged the friars to close. They ignored him. So, the rival florist hired Hugh MacTaggart, the roughest and most vicious thug in town to "persuade" them to close. Hugh beat up the friars and trashed their store, saying he'd be back if they didn't close up shop. Terrified, they did so, thereby proving that only Hugh can prevent florist friars.
9. Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him... (Oh, man, this is so bad, it's good). A super calloused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.
10. And finally, there was the person who sent ten different puns to his friends, with the hope that at least one of the puns would make them laugh. No pun in ten did????
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Where are all the Angry Black Muslim Men?
Where are all these "angry black men" that are supposedly "proud black muslims" like Farakkan, and the like, and why aren't they standing up to these Islamofacist terrorists that are determined to destroy their so-called religion?
Aren't they muslim?
Aren't they tired of these pukes taking over their religion?
Why aren't they as eager to rise against this threat to their religion as they are to rise against white man's repression?
Along that line, where are all the so-called American Muslims? They need to stand up and weed all these cowards out.
If I don't see something, I'm inclined to agree that the entire Islamic world (West and East) is willing to back these terrorists and only mean harm to the western world.
Aren't they muslim?
Aren't they tired of these pukes taking over their religion?
Why aren't they as eager to rise against this threat to their religion as they are to rise against white man's repression?
Along that line, where are all the so-called American Muslims? They need to stand up and weed all these cowards out.
If I don't see something, I'm inclined to agree that the entire Islamic world (West and East) is willing to back these terrorists and only mean harm to the western world.
Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Is Nothing Sacred anymore?
Those evil insurgent bastards have gone too far!
They will wipe a lot of us out now. Have they no shame?
Friday, August 18, 2006
Why do we take Politics Personally?
It is funny how we take politics personally, since there's not much we can do about it, except state our opinion.
I was democrat in the Clinton years. Voted for him and for Gore...and found myself defending Clinton's Animal House antics while in the White House. And tried to justify his boldfaced lying us and the Grand Jury.
I was disappointed when Bush was elected because I'm in Texas and wasn't impressed with the way he ran things here while Governor.
My leanings changed after I saw how the Dems acted after both elections. I haven't seen any solutions for anything coming from these poor losers. All I heard from Kerry was, "I have a plan" or "This president didn't...(fill in the blank). The rest of the party is represented by a raging egotistical idiot who will say or do anything to stay in the limelight (Dean).
Their only hope apparently is Sen. Clinton. But she stays on the fence and won't take a stand on anything that requires a sense of commitment. She also has way too much baggage to be carrying into the campaign (some of it stolen from the white house when she left).
The rest has been whine, whine, whine.
When the president or his admin farts sideways, they're all over it. But, when one of their party is in trouble or goes against the fold, they either run away or send them to the alligators (Sen. Lieberman).
Basically, I haven't seen anything resembling a platform that the Dems have presented. The goal seems to do whatever puts them in a good light and the Repubs in a bad light.
Guess that's politics as usual, but we need to see some people with courage stand up and take responsibility for their actions and for their party.
Then, I might vote that way again.
I was democrat in the Clinton years. Voted for him and for Gore...and found myself defending Clinton's Animal House antics while in the White House. And tried to justify his boldfaced lying us and the Grand Jury.
I was disappointed when Bush was elected because I'm in Texas and wasn't impressed with the way he ran things here while Governor.
My leanings changed after I saw how the Dems acted after both elections. I haven't seen any solutions for anything coming from these poor losers. All I heard from Kerry was, "I have a plan" or "This president didn't...(fill in the blank). The rest of the party is represented by a raging egotistical idiot who will say or do anything to stay in the limelight (Dean).
Their only hope apparently is Sen. Clinton. But she stays on the fence and won't take a stand on anything that requires a sense of commitment. She also has way too much baggage to be carrying into the campaign (some of it stolen from the white house when she left).
The rest has been whine, whine, whine.
When the president or his admin farts sideways, they're all over it. But, when one of their party is in trouble or goes against the fold, they either run away or send them to the alligators (Sen. Lieberman).
Basically, I haven't seen anything resembling a platform that the Dems have presented. The goal seems to do whatever puts them in a good light and the Repubs in a bad light.
Guess that's politics as usual, but we need to see some people with courage stand up and take responsibility for their actions and for their party.
Then, I might vote that way again.
Monday, August 14, 2006
So-Called "Peaceful" Muslims Take Heed
It's about time the so-called "peaceful" muslems (like the ones in CAIR and those that say that terrorism in not part of islam), got off their collective asses and realized this islamic extremism is THEIR problem.
I hear everyday how they "denounce" terrorism and suicide bombings. We also hear how they are "peaceful" and want nothing to do with religious facism.
They say their goal is NOT to kill anyone and everyone that is not mulsim until islam is the one religion in all the world.
Oh no, they don't want that.
If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
I hear everyday how they "denounce" terrorism and suicide bombings. We also hear how they are "peaceful" and want nothing to do with religious facism.
They say their goal is NOT to kill anyone and everyone that is not mulsim until islam is the one religion in all the world.
Oh no, they don't want that.
If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
Friday, August 11, 2006
What makes a Leftwinger, what makes a Rightwinger?
By the way, I like this site:
The Nose on your Face
So, what exactly is a Leftwing Democrat and a Rightwing Republican?
What criteria is used to determine if someone is a Democrat or a Republican and what, in your opinion, makes someone more than just a Democrat or Republican, and puts them into the Leftwing or Rightwing?
Are the Democrats of the past (1940s - 1960s) the Republicans of today? If so, where does that put the Democrats of today?
Inquiring mind wants to know.
The Nose on your Face
So, what exactly is a Leftwing Democrat and a Rightwing Republican?
What criteria is used to determine if someone is a Democrat or a Republican and what, in your opinion, makes someone more than just a Democrat or Republican, and puts them into the Leftwing or Rightwing?
Are the Democrats of the past (1940s - 1960s) the Republicans of today? If so, where does that put the Democrats of today?
Inquiring mind wants to know.
Thursday, August 10, 2006
Who was there First?
Were the Jews the original inhabitants of Israel, or were the Palestinians?
The Israelis say Israel became a nation in 1312 B.C.E., two thousand years before the rise of Islam.
The Palestinians say Palestine was a nation 3,000 B.C.E, i.e. two thousand years before the habirus (Israeli wanderers infiltrated into parts of Palestine, the land of Canaan, the land of milk and honey with Jerusalem ( Uru-salem) as the capital of the Jebsites who founded it 5000 years ago and gave it its name.
Who is right?
The Israelis say Israel became a nation in 1312 B.C.E., two thousand years before the rise of Islam.
The Palestinians say Palestine was a nation 3,000 B.C.E, i.e. two thousand years before the habirus (Israeli wanderers infiltrated into parts of Palestine, the land of Canaan, the land of milk and honey with Jerusalem ( Uru-salem) as the capital of the Jebsites who founded it 5000 years ago and gave it its name.
Who is right?
Wednesday, August 02, 2006
Nice to see Racism is alive and well in the good old USA
Seems the Democraps are just sinking lower and lower. Showing senator Leiberman in blackface.
The picture loader ain't working so just go to the website linked in the Title and see for yourself.
The picture loader ain't working so just go to the website linked in the Title and see for yourself.
Monday, July 31, 2006
Writing
OK, fine, so I am a writer, although my writing lately has been of the technical/editorial kind so I can get a paycheck and pay that new whopping mortgage.
But now, I think it's about time I put the butt to the fire and wrote that book or two that I know are in me.
I know the characters will create themselves, just don't know what story I plan to use. Should it be a mystery, a story of fiction loosely based on non-fiction, an autobiography (who would read it?), or just a story about life?
I'll figure it out.
I always do.
But now, I think it's about time I put the butt to the fire and wrote that book or two that I know are in me.
I know the characters will create themselves, just don't know what story I plan to use. Should it be a mystery, a story of fiction loosely based on non-fiction, an autobiography (who would read it?), or just a story about life?
I'll figure it out.
I always do.
Tuesday, July 25, 2006
Houston, Texas - Sanctuary City
(Washington, DC) Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has expanded its investigation of government sponsored incentive programs for illegal aliens by filing a “Texas Public Information Act Request” with the Houston Police Department (HPD), and another with the City of Houston. The HPD request relates to General Order 500-5, a so-called “sanctuary policy” for illegal aliens, while the City of Houston request relates to the city’s taxpayer-funded day laborer site for illegal aliens.
HPD General Order 500-5, issued in 1992 by then-Police Chief Sam Nuchia, reportedly prevents Houston police officers from asking about an individual’s citizenship status or detaining illegal aliens. Meanwhile, Houston’s day laborer site, which is supported with federal funds from the Community Development Block Grant Program, reportedly provides assistance to illegal aliens seeking jobs.
“Publicly-funded incentive programs for illegal aliens not only make the illegal immigration problem worse, but they are also flagrantly illegal,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “It is a violation of federal law to hire an illegal alien. It is a violation of federal law to encourage an illegal alien to cross the border. It is certainly a violation of federal law for government officials to use federal funds to support illegal activity. Judicial Watch will thoroughly investigate Houston’s illegal alien policies and may take further legal action.”
These latest investigations expand upon Judicial Watch’s campaign to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.
On May 1, 2006 Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department over “Special Order 40,” a policy that prohibits police officers from inquiring about an individual’s immigration status, and reportedly restricts police officers from cooperating with federal immigration officials. Judicial Watch is asking the court to prohibit the LAPD from expending taxpayer funds to enforce and maintain Special Order 40, which violates both federal immigration laws and California law and puts American citizens at risk.
Judicial Watch also filed a lawsuit against the Town of Herndon and Fairfax County, Virginia to shut down a taxpayer funded day laborer site for illegal aliens.
HPD General Order 500-5, issued in 1992 by then-Police Chief Sam Nuchia, reportedly prevents Houston police officers from asking about an individual’s citizenship status or detaining illegal aliens. Meanwhile, Houston’s day laborer site, which is supported with federal funds from the Community Development Block Grant Program, reportedly provides assistance to illegal aliens seeking jobs.
“Publicly-funded incentive programs for illegal aliens not only make the illegal immigration problem worse, but they are also flagrantly illegal,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton. “It is a violation of federal law to hire an illegal alien. It is a violation of federal law to encourage an illegal alien to cross the border. It is certainly a violation of federal law for government officials to use federal funds to support illegal activity. Judicial Watch will thoroughly investigate Houston’s illegal alien policies and may take further legal action.”
These latest investigations expand upon Judicial Watch’s campaign to enforce our nation’s immigration laws.
On May 1, 2006 Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit against the Los Angeles Police Department over “Special Order 40,” a policy that prohibits police officers from inquiring about an individual’s immigration status, and reportedly restricts police officers from cooperating with federal immigration officials. Judicial Watch is asking the court to prohibit the LAPD from expending taxpayer funds to enforce and maintain Special Order 40, which violates both federal immigration laws and California law and puts American citizens at risk.
Judicial Watch also filed a lawsuit against the Town of Herndon and Fairfax County, Virginia to shut down a taxpayer funded day laborer site for illegal aliens.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
From Beirut Notes - Hezbollah Is Bringing the Temple Down On Our Heads
While Israeli bombs are killing Lebanese children and innocents by the hundreds, Hassan Nasrallah, Hezbollah's leader, decided to "fight for the Nation of Islam, whether the Lebanese want it or not".Iran, Syria, Hezbollah and Israel are turning Lebanon into killing fields. My beautiful country is being burned by crazy ideologies. My Lebanon of joy is being eaten by human monsters. My kind Lebanon is being butchered in the name of religion.Our enemy Israel is killing us but at least its civilians are dying and it is paying the price of its military adventure, so is Hezbollah. But the cowards of Syria and Iran are sitting and watching civilians die and smiling cunningly.The cowards of Syria and Iran are selling their oil at unprecedented prices and are reaping the political and economic benefits while we are loosing our children and billions of dollars.Those cowards are buying and selling our lives for their regimes' interests. The blood of Lebanese children is being traded like options, futures and shares and the Iranian and Syrian regimes are filling both their strategic and financial pockets.And Hezbollah is not a resistance force anymore. Hezbollah, today, is going on a worthless suicide mission and taking the whole of Lebanon with it.God help all the Lebanese, Shiites, Sunnis, Christians and Druzes, who have been cheated into death for the sake of Assad's and Khamanei's regimes.
May God watch over both you and Israel.
Read the bloggers from both Israel and Lebanon (as well as Iraq) for real news, not propaganda.
May God watch over both you and Israel.
Read the bloggers from both Israel and Lebanon (as well as Iraq) for real news, not propaganda.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Guess I need to just go suck a rock
Because I don't fit into this "mold."
WASHINGTON (AP) - Bloggers are a predominantly young group of Internet users who are novice storytellers, enjoy describing their own experiences and have a growing audience in the online world.
A glimpse of this group was put together by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
The survey found that almost one in 10 Internet users are bloggers and the audience for this group of online diarists is growing. Almost four in 10 of the approximately 147 million adult Internet users in this country say they read blogs.
The people they are reading on the online blogs are a young, ethnically diverse group. They are mostly newcomers to writing - often writing about their own experiences. More than half of bloggers are under age 30. They were most likely to list their life and events as the most popular topic, followed by politics and entertainment.
The poll findings are based on a sample of 4,573 Internet users with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points and a sample from a separate survey of 233 bloggers with a margin of error of plus or minus 7 percentage points.
WASHINGTON (AP) - Bloggers are a predominantly young group of Internet users who are novice storytellers, enjoy describing their own experiences and have a growing audience in the online world.
A glimpse of this group was put together by the Pew Internet & American Life Project.
The survey found that almost one in 10 Internet users are bloggers and the audience for this group of online diarists is growing. Almost four in 10 of the approximately 147 million adult Internet users in this country say they read blogs.
The people they are reading on the online blogs are a young, ethnically diverse group. They are mostly newcomers to writing - often writing about their own experiences. More than half of bloggers are under age 30. They were most likely to list their life and events as the most popular topic, followed by politics and entertainment.
The poll findings are based on a sample of 4,573 Internet users with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points and a sample from a separate survey of 233 bloggers with a margin of error of plus or minus 7 percentage points.
Thursday, July 13, 2006
Monday, July 10, 2006
Friday, July 07, 2006
Dying cat comforted by a deer
Margie Scott was devastated when her 9-year-old cat Sammy was diagnosed with kidney failure, but she never could have predicted what would give her comfort during her pet’s last days.
Because Sammy was declawed, he was strictly an indoor cat. But he always wanted to go outside. So, in his dying days, Scott decided to let Sammy spend some time outside each day. Sammy enjoyed his time outside the apartment, which is surrounded by woods and wetlands.
A family of deer regularly visits the complex, and one day, Sammy was sitting outside in the grass when two young deer happened by.
Scott watched in astonishment at what occurred next. “One walked up to Sammy and they touched noses,” she said. “The deer jumped back and made a sort of a snorting noise, like he was sneezing. It seemed like he was taken by surprise,” she said.
What she saw next was even more surprising. ”The deer started licking him all around the head and neck, and Sammy just sat there allowing the deer to do this,” said Scott.
For several minutes, the young deer licked the small cat. Scott grabbed her camera and got a picture of the tender scene.
“It was amazing,” she said. “I truly believe the deer was able to sense that there was something wrong with Sammy and that was why he started licking him, like he was trying to nurture him.”
Two days later, Sammy died.
Thanks to HogBrush.
Monday, July 03, 2006
Wednesday, June 28, 2006
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
Howard Dean needs help for his Bush-Hating Addiction
DEAN: If Karl Rove would have been indicted, it would have been for perjury. That does not excuse his real sin, which was leaking the name of an intelligence operative during a time of war. He doesn't belong in the White House, and if the President valued America more than he valued his connection to Karl Rove, Karl Rove would have been fired a long time ago. So, I think this is probably good news for the White House, but it's not very good news for America.
NBC: But what does it mean for Democrats in the context of the mid-term elections?
DEAN: I don't think it means anything. I think that, you know, Karl Rove is clearly the political mastermind behind the Republicans, but I think he would have continued to exercise that role even if he had been indicted. So, I don't think this means much.
Yeah Dean, you're just upset that Fitzgerald didn't drink the Kool-Aid. You continue with your rhetoric and you'll just continue to alienate democrats.
Bin Laden is your hero, the Republicans are evil.
This dude will say and do anything for the exposure...
NBC: But what does it mean for Democrats in the context of the mid-term elections?
DEAN: I don't think it means anything. I think that, you know, Karl Rove is clearly the political mastermind behind the Republicans, but I think he would have continued to exercise that role even if he had been indicted. So, I don't think this means much.
Yeah Dean, you're just upset that Fitzgerald didn't drink the Kool-Aid. You continue with your rhetoric and you'll just continue to alienate democrats.
Bin Laden is your hero, the Republicans are evil.
This dude will say and do anything for the exposure...
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Thursday, June 01, 2006
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
Disturbing Quote
"We have the right to kill 4 million Americans - 2 million of them children - and to exile twice as many and wound and cripple hundreds of thousands..." -Suleiman Abu Gheith, al Qaeda spokesman
Thursday, May 18, 2006
ILLEGALS
I drove past Home Depot today and saw about twenty younger men that looked like they might be of mexican descent...ah hell, they were illegals...standing around, waiting for someone to drive up, load them up, and go off to some job...just like we have been hearing about in the news.
Sure enough, a guy in a pickup with ladders attached drove up, said a few words to one of them that seemed to be a translator, and off he went with five of them loaded in the back.
I just now heard the President say it was ILLEGAL for an EMPLOYER to hire someone who is HERE ILLEGALLY.
Funny thing...
Sure enough, a guy in a pickup with ladders attached drove up, said a few words to one of them that seemed to be a translator, and off he went with five of them loaded in the back.
I just now heard the President say it was ILLEGAL for an EMPLOYER to hire someone who is HERE ILLEGALLY.
Funny thing...
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Excellent Washington Post Article on the Senator's Hypocrisy conerning Gas Prices
I will post this in its entirety because it's so good.
Going a Short Way to Make a Point
By Dana MilbankThursday, April 27, 2006
Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.
Gas prices have gone above $3 a gallon again, and that means it's time for another round of congressional finger-pointing.
"Since George Bush and Dick Cheney took over as president and vice president, gas prices have doubled!" charged Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), standing at an Exxon station on Capitol Hill where regular unleaded hit $3.10. "They are too cozy with the oil industry."
She then hopped in a waiting Chrysler LHS (18 mpg) -- even though her Senate office was only a block away.
Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) used a Hyundai Elantra to take the one-block journey to and from the gas-station news conference. He posed in front of the fuel prices and gave them a thumbs-down. "Get tough on big oil!" he demanded of the Bush administration.
By comparison, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) was a model of conservation. She told a staffer idling in a Jetta to leave without her, then ducked into a sushi restaurant for lunch before making the journey back to work.
At about the same time, House Republicans were meeting in the Capitol for their weekly caucus (Topic A: gas).
The House driveway was jammed with cars, many idling, including eight Chevrolet Suburbans (14 mpg).
America may be addicted to oil, as President Bush puts it. But America is in the denial phase of this addiction -- as evidenced by the behavior of its lawmakers. They have proposed all kinds of solutions to high gas prices: taxes on oil companies, domestic oil drilling and releasing petroleum reserves. But they ignore the obvious: that Americans drive too much in too-big cars.
Senators were debating a war spending bill yesterday, but the subject invariably turned to gas prices.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) engaged his deputy, Dick Durbin (Ill.), in a riveting colloquy.
"Is the senator aware that the L.A. Times headline reads today, 'Bush's Proposals Viewed as a Drop in the Bucket'?"
"I'm aware of that," Durbin replied.
Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) responded with an economics lesson. "Oil is worth what people pay for it," he argued.
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) sounded the alarms. "We are one accident or one terrorist attack away from oil at $100 a barrel!"
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) made a plea for conservation. "We have to move quickly to increase our fuel efficiency," she urged.
But not too quickly. After lunchtime votes, senators emerged from the Capitol for the drive across the street to their offices.
Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) hopped in a GMC Yukon (14 mpg).
Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) climbed aboard a Nissan Pathfinder (15).
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) stepped into an eight-cylinder Ford Explorer (14).
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) disappeared into a Lincoln Town Car (17).
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) met up with an idling Chrysler minivan (18).
Next came Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), greeted by a Ford Explorer XLT.
On the Senate floor Tuesday, Menendez had complained that Bush "remains opposed to higher fuel-efficiency standards."
Also waiting:
three Suburbans,
a Nissan Armada V8,
two Cadillacs and a Lexus.
The greenest senator was Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), who was picked up by his hybrid Toyota Prius (60 mpg), at quadruple the fuel efficiency of his Indiana counterpart Evan Bayh (D), who was met by a Dodge Durango V8 (14).
As a political matter, Democrats clearly sense that they have the advantage on the high gas prices, judging from the number of speeches and news conferences.
"The cost of Republican corruption when it comes to energy is hitting home very clearly for America's middle class," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) exulted yesterday morning.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) introduced an amendment to repeal oil-company tax breaks and distribute $500 tax rebates to consumers. It was quickly ruled out of order.
But Republicans were clearly feeling defensive. "We passed an energy bill last year, last July," House Speaker Dennis Hastert (Ill.) pleaded at a morning news conference. "It changes CAFE [corporate average fuel economy] standards. It changes some of the things that we can do -- I'm sorry, changes not the CAFE standards, but changes some of the supply issues, boutique fuels, all these things."
Only Sen. Mark Dayton (D-Minn.), who can speak freely because he is retiring, was willing to note the disconnect between rhetoric and action. "People say, understandably, 'Solve our energy problems right now, but don't make us do anything differently,' " he said on the Senate floor.
If the politics of gasoline favor Democrats at the moment, the insincerity is universal. A surreptitious look at the cars in the senators-only spots inside and outside the Senate office buildings found an Escort and a Sentra (super-rich Wisconsin Democrat Herb Kohl's spot had a Chevy Lumina), but far more Jaguars, Cadillacs and Lexuses and a fleet of SUVs made by Ford, Honda, BMW and Lexus.
A sampling of senators' and staff cars parked along Delaware Avenue NE found that those displaying Democratic campaign bumper stickers had a somewhat higher average fuel economy (23 mpg) than those displaying GOP stickers (18 mpg).
A fuel-efficiency rating could not be found for the 1970s-era Volkswagen "Thing" owned by Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
Maybe, lawmakers are starting to learn. When GOP senators had a lunch Tuesday a couple of blocks from the Capitol, many took cars. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) emerged from the lunch looking for his ride when he spied The Washington Post's Shailagh Murray. Reconsidering, he set out on foot. "I need the exercise," he reasoned.
© 2006 The Washington Post Company
Going a Short Way to Make a Point
By Dana MilbankThursday, April 27, 2006
Ladies and gentlemen, start your engines.
Gas prices have gone above $3 a gallon again, and that means it's time for another round of congressional finger-pointing.
"Since George Bush and Dick Cheney took over as president and vice president, gas prices have doubled!" charged Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), standing at an Exxon station on Capitol Hill where regular unleaded hit $3.10. "They are too cozy with the oil industry."
She then hopped in a waiting Chrysler LHS (18 mpg) -- even though her Senate office was only a block away.
Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) used a Hyundai Elantra to take the one-block journey to and from the gas-station news conference. He posed in front of the fuel prices and gave them a thumbs-down. "Get tough on big oil!" he demanded of the Bush administration.
By comparison, Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) was a model of conservation. She told a staffer idling in a Jetta to leave without her, then ducked into a sushi restaurant for lunch before making the journey back to work.
At about the same time, House Republicans were meeting in the Capitol for their weekly caucus (Topic A: gas).
The House driveway was jammed with cars, many idling, including eight Chevrolet Suburbans (14 mpg).
America may be addicted to oil, as President Bush puts it. But America is in the denial phase of this addiction -- as evidenced by the behavior of its lawmakers. They have proposed all kinds of solutions to high gas prices: taxes on oil companies, domestic oil drilling and releasing petroleum reserves. But they ignore the obvious: that Americans drive too much in too-big cars.
Senators were debating a war spending bill yesterday, but the subject invariably turned to gas prices.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) engaged his deputy, Dick Durbin (Ill.), in a riveting colloquy.
"Is the senator aware that the L.A. Times headline reads today, 'Bush's Proposals Viewed as a Drop in the Bucket'?"
"I'm aware of that," Durbin replied.
Sen. Pete Domenici (R-N.M.) responded with an economics lesson. "Oil is worth what people pay for it," he argued.
Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) sounded the alarms. "We are one accident or one terrorist attack away from oil at $100 a barrel!"
Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) made a plea for conservation. "We have to move quickly to increase our fuel efficiency," she urged.
But not too quickly. After lunchtime votes, senators emerged from the Capitol for the drive across the street to their offices.
Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) hopped in a GMC Yukon (14 mpg).
Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) climbed aboard a Nissan Pathfinder (15).
Sen. Ben Nelson (D-Neb.) stepped into an eight-cylinder Ford Explorer (14).
Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) disappeared into a Lincoln Town Car (17).
Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) met up with an idling Chrysler minivan (18).
Next came Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), greeted by a Ford Explorer XLT.
On the Senate floor Tuesday, Menendez had complained that Bush "remains opposed to higher fuel-efficiency standards."
Also waiting:
three Suburbans,
a Nissan Armada V8,
two Cadillacs and a Lexus.
The greenest senator was Richard Lugar (R-Ind.), who was picked up by his hybrid Toyota Prius (60 mpg), at quadruple the fuel efficiency of his Indiana counterpart Evan Bayh (D), who was met by a Dodge Durango V8 (14).
As a political matter, Democrats clearly sense that they have the advantage on the high gas prices, judging from the number of speeches and news conferences.
"The cost of Republican corruption when it comes to energy is hitting home very clearly for America's middle class," House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) exulted yesterday morning.
Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) introduced an amendment to repeal oil-company tax breaks and distribute $500 tax rebates to consumers. It was quickly ruled out of order.
But Republicans were clearly feeling defensive. "We passed an energy bill last year, last July," House Speaker Dennis Hastert (Ill.) pleaded at a morning news conference. "It changes CAFE [corporate average fuel economy] standards. It changes some of the things that we can do -- I'm sorry, changes not the CAFE standards, but changes some of the supply issues, boutique fuels, all these things."
Only Sen. Mark Dayton (D-Minn.), who can speak freely because he is retiring, was willing to note the disconnect between rhetoric and action. "People say, understandably, 'Solve our energy problems right now, but don't make us do anything differently,' " he said on the Senate floor.
If the politics of gasoline favor Democrats at the moment, the insincerity is universal. A surreptitious look at the cars in the senators-only spots inside and outside the Senate office buildings found an Escort and a Sentra (super-rich Wisconsin Democrat Herb Kohl's spot had a Chevy Lumina), but far more Jaguars, Cadillacs and Lexuses and a fleet of SUVs made by Ford, Honda, BMW and Lexus.
A sampling of senators' and staff cars parked along Delaware Avenue NE found that those displaying Democratic campaign bumper stickers had a somewhat higher average fuel economy (23 mpg) than those displaying GOP stickers (18 mpg).
A fuel-efficiency rating could not be found for the 1970s-era Volkswagen "Thing" owned by Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.).
Maybe, lawmakers are starting to learn. When GOP senators had a lunch Tuesday a couple of blocks from the Capitol, many took cars. Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) emerged from the lunch looking for his ride when he spied The Washington Post's Shailagh Murray. Reconsidering, he set out on foot. "I need the exercise," he reasoned.
© 2006 The Washington Post Company
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
Mexico is Harsh on its "Undocumented Workers"
I suspected as much but this article shows it.
That crook, Vicente Fox should look at his own backyard instead.
By MARK STEVENSON Associated Press Writer
TULTITLAN, Mexico (AP) -- Considered felons by the government, these migrants fear detention, rape and robbery. Police and soldiers hunt them down at railroads, bus stations and fleabag hotels. Sometimes they are deported; more often officers simply take their money.
While migrants in the United States have held huge demonstrations in recent weeks, the hundreds of thousands of undocumented Central Americans in Mexico suffer mostly in silence.
That crook, Vicente Fox should look at his own backyard instead.
By MARK STEVENSON Associated Press Writer
TULTITLAN, Mexico (AP) -- Considered felons by the government, these migrants fear detention, rape and robbery. Police and soldiers hunt them down at railroads, bus stations and fleabag hotels. Sometimes they are deported; more often officers simply take their money.
While migrants in the United States have held huge demonstrations in recent weeks, the hundreds of thousands of undocumented Central Americans in Mexico suffer mostly in silence.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
The 9/11 Cellphone Tapes
We are seeing and hearing a lot of information about the last minutes of some people in 9/11. The whole thing is bringing up the bad feelings and sense of anger I felt on that day.
The cellphone recordings of people in the towers and in the planes are sometimes overwhelming. I can feel everything these people are going through, especially this one of Kevin Cosgrove.
He was stuck on the 105th floor. You can hear him talking for a long time with the 9/11 operator. He repeats, "I'm not ready to die" several times.
In the last two seconds, he yells, "Oh, My God!" as the tower falls.
Click the title to hear the tape.
Monday, April 10, 2006
"We do the jobs Americans won't do"
Is plain bullshit.
I gain a lot of insight while riding the MetroRail through downtown Houston everyday, (I also wish I had a gun permit but that's a different story).
This morning, I eavesdropped on a unique situation. Two white guys got on the train, and I noticed right away they were homeless. Nothing unique there except that 90 percent of the homeless appear to be black, very few hispanic and I don't remember when I have last saw an oriental or middle-eastern homeless person.
Anyway, one of these guys was reading a newspaper and talking constantly about finding temporary work to "pay off his traffic fines" so he could go back to driving a truck. I admired that he was at least actively trying to do something to get out of his situation.
Along the way, he mentioned that he had tried several times to get a job doing construction work. Houston is bustling with construction work and I thought that would be a great way to get a few bucks. He said everytime he applied, they would'nt hire him because he DIDN'T SPEAK SPANISH!
Imagine that...you have to know spanish to dig a ditch these days. He said he didn't want to talk to anyone, he just wanted to make a few bucks to get back on his feet.
This situation helped me to realize that this is a blaring example of the fact that these jobs are not being done by illegals because WE won't do them, they're being done by illegals because the greedy construction owners and foremen would lose money if they hired americans. Then they would have to pay higher wages and taxes. The construction owners and foreman are the ones that are undermining our system, not the illegals. The illegals will work for anyone...as long as the authorities don't know about it.
That is also a good message to what the illegals really want with our country. They don't want to be citizens. That would mean they would have to pay taxes and obey the laws.
They would have to be accountable for their actions.
This bill will not make any difference in the amount of illegals that trespass into our country. They will still come.
As long as there is a means to make money to send back to the Motherland, they will keep coming.
Ask any mexican-american, the ones who came here, or their parents or grandparents came here legally, if they want the illegals to get amnesty. You will find virtually all of them don't want it.
Gotta go back to work now. Millions on welfare depend on me.
I gain a lot of insight while riding the MetroRail through downtown Houston everyday, (I also wish I had a gun permit but that's a different story).
This morning, I eavesdropped on a unique situation. Two white guys got on the train, and I noticed right away they were homeless. Nothing unique there except that 90 percent of the homeless appear to be black, very few hispanic and I don't remember when I have last saw an oriental or middle-eastern homeless person.
Anyway, one of these guys was reading a newspaper and talking constantly about finding temporary work to "pay off his traffic fines" so he could go back to driving a truck. I admired that he was at least actively trying to do something to get out of his situation.
Along the way, he mentioned that he had tried several times to get a job doing construction work. Houston is bustling with construction work and I thought that would be a great way to get a few bucks. He said everytime he applied, they would'nt hire him because he DIDN'T SPEAK SPANISH!
Imagine that...you have to know spanish to dig a ditch these days. He said he didn't want to talk to anyone, he just wanted to make a few bucks to get back on his feet.
This situation helped me to realize that this is a blaring example of the fact that these jobs are not being done by illegals because WE won't do them, they're being done by illegals because the greedy construction owners and foremen would lose money if they hired americans. Then they would have to pay higher wages and taxes. The construction owners and foreman are the ones that are undermining our system, not the illegals. The illegals will work for anyone...as long as the authorities don't know about it.
That is also a good message to what the illegals really want with our country. They don't want to be citizens. That would mean they would have to pay taxes and obey the laws.
They would have to be accountable for their actions.
This bill will not make any difference in the amount of illegals that trespass into our country. They will still come.
As long as there is a means to make money to send back to the Motherland, they will keep coming.
Ask any mexican-american, the ones who came here, or their parents or grandparents came here legally, if they want the illegals to get amnesty. You will find virtually all of them don't want it.
Gotta go back to work now. Millions on welfare depend on me.
Friday, April 07, 2006
Thinking....Again
I was thinking about the universe, and the fact that all those stars we see are really suns, and galaxies, and nebulas so far away that the light we see from them is at least four light years away. All these things are rotating around a mysterious center of a mysterious galaxy called the Milky Way. We are just one little, tiny dot in that galaxy.
I was thinking about the Milky Way being only one medium-sized galaxy, spinning among billions of other galaxies...everything traveling at the speed of light through the universe.
All the amazing suns and worlds spread over such a vast space.
Then I thought about a flower on a new flowering bush we bought yesterday. It brilliantly colored with purples and blues, and each flower was different. I realized that this place we call Earth contains billions of amazing things.
I picked up a handfull of sand and examined it....really examined each little pebble. Each one was different, different colors, different streaks, different sizes.
Then I just looked at the sky and the plants and trees around me.
We are surrounded by all these intricate, colorful, and constantly changing things and we don't realize it. We don't appreciate what we have. Is there another world like this one in the whole universe?
I don't normally consider all these things on a daily basis.
I plan to.
Beginning today.
I was thinking about the Milky Way being only one medium-sized galaxy, spinning among billions of other galaxies...everything traveling at the speed of light through the universe.
All the amazing suns and worlds spread over such a vast space.
Then I thought about a flower on a new flowering bush we bought yesterday. It brilliantly colored with purples and blues, and each flower was different. I realized that this place we call Earth contains billions of amazing things.
I picked up a handfull of sand and examined it....really examined each little pebble. Each one was different, different colors, different streaks, different sizes.
Then I just looked at the sky and the plants and trees around me.
We are surrounded by all these intricate, colorful, and constantly changing things and we don't realize it. We don't appreciate what we have. Is there another world like this one in the whole universe?
I don't normally consider all these things on a daily basis.
I plan to.
Beginning today.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
Immigration: This picture angers me to no end
This picture angers me more than anything I have seen in years. I am so disgusted with these ungrateful students.
Thursday, March 23, 2006
Illegal Immigration
This is perceived as quite a problem in the states that are strongly affected by it like Arizona, California and Texas.
I live in Texas and I can assure you, we have been invaded by Spanish-speaking people (about the nicest way I can put it). When I go into any convenience store, any time of day, I run into Spanish-speaking people, buying beer mostly.
There is a recent poll that says 88 percent of Americans say something needs to be done about this. The Senate is getting ready to introdue something to show they are acting on the wishes of the American people. But, what can/should the senate do? Is it already too late? Are the invaders here to stay?
President Bush wants to set up some kind of program where a worker can come up and work for a certain amount of time on a visa, then go back. That program is already in affect and has been used by industry for years. It's called the L1B visa program, and lawyers all over are hustling to bring workers over from anywhere...very lucrative gig for them.
The L1B visa thing was originally intended to help companies find someone AFTER they have looked for a suitable candidate among the US citizenry. Unfortunately, that's not the way it works. The major companies are hiring thousands of engineers and technicians from smaller companies, mostly Venezuela, Argentina, Columbia, and India, for less than their American counterparts, working them here for up to seven years, then sending them back. And I'm sure there are loopholes around that. I know, I'm working next to someone like that right now.
Right...so much for keeping the US jobs in the US.
So, that's President Bush's proposal. Now, Senator Frist wants to push legislation to enforce punishment on those that hire illegals.
Hello? I thought it was already against the law to hire illegals...I guess the greedy business owners have gotten around that little law for years by paying them in cash and not paying taxes (both the business owner and the illegal). Now it's gotten to the point that construction companies HAVE to hire illegals to make any money. They have become an essential element in the construction, food service, and cleaning service industries (just to mention a few). We go out and eat a lot and most restaurant chains hire illegals as their "cooks." The wait staff complain that they can't get an order done because they have to have an interpreter to talk to the cooks. Watch the buss staff and cooks the next time you go out to eat. You'll see.
These ompanies have made themselves dependent on illegal workers...just to make a buck.
Now you have senators opposing any kind of action to punish these lawbreakers and essentially give them the keys to YOUR city. One of the biggest manipulators is Senator Clinton. She wants to block the proposal to change illegal immigration from a misdeameanor to a felony.
Oh WAAH...she just sees the hispanic vote and wants to capitalize on it if/when she runs for president. You notice in the above quote that she wants penalties for those employers who EXPLOIT illegal immigrants? She doesn't say diddly about penalties for those employers who HIRE them.
That's illegal too, as I understand. And, that's the whole point of this rant. The illegals are taking over Tejas, Arizona, and California (among others). They are taking jobs, buying land and houses (one just moved in next to me in a house that I couldn't afford), paying cash for everything, and sending their money and support back to the Motherland to the tune of several billion dollars a year. In the meantime, we have to pay their medical bills, provide them an education (did you know that when they go to our schools, they don't even have to learn English? They usually have an interpreter. I saw that when I substituted a few years ago).
They are taking up our welfare and SSI payments and they STILL don't have to be American citizens.
This is not right.
I want my country back.
I live in Texas and I can assure you, we have been invaded by Spanish-speaking people (about the nicest way I can put it). When I go into any convenience store, any time of day, I run into Spanish-speaking people, buying beer mostly.
There is a recent poll that says 88 percent of Americans say something needs to be done about this. The Senate is getting ready to introdue something to show they are acting on the wishes of the American people. But, what can/should the senate do? Is it already too late? Are the invaders here to stay?
President Bush wants to set up some kind of program where a worker can come up and work for a certain amount of time on a visa, then go back. That program is already in affect and has been used by industry for years. It's called the L1B visa program, and lawyers all over are hustling to bring workers over from anywhere...very lucrative gig for them.
The L1B visa thing was originally intended to help companies find someone AFTER they have looked for a suitable candidate among the US citizenry. Unfortunately, that's not the way it works. The major companies are hiring thousands of engineers and technicians from smaller companies, mostly Venezuela, Argentina, Columbia, and India, for less than their American counterparts, working them here for up to seven years, then sending them back. And I'm sure there are loopholes around that. I know, I'm working next to someone like that right now.
Right...so much for keeping the US jobs in the US.
So, that's President Bush's proposal. Now, Senator Frist wants to push legislation to enforce punishment on those that hire illegals.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) has said the Senate will take up his proposal to tighten borders and punish employers who hire illegal immigrants if the Judiciary Committee doesn't complete a broader bill by next week.
Hello? I thought it was already against the law to hire illegals...I guess the greedy business owners have gotten around that little law for years by paying them in cash and not paying taxes (both the business owner and the illegal). Now it's gotten to the point that construction companies HAVE to hire illegals to make any money. They have become an essential element in the construction, food service, and cleaning service industries (just to mention a few). We go out and eat a lot and most restaurant chains hire illegals as their "cooks." The wait staff complain that they can't get an order done because they have to have an interpreter to talk to the cooks. Watch the buss staff and cooks the next time you go out to eat. You'll see.
These ompanies have made themselves dependent on illegal workers...just to make a buck.
Now you have senators opposing any kind of action to punish these lawbreakers and essentially give them the keys to YOUR city. One of the biggest manipulators is Senator Clinton. She wants to block the proposal to change illegal immigration from a misdeameanor to a felony.
She also called for new enforcement laws, including penalties for employers who exploit illegal immigrants, as well as a system to allow the roughly 11 million illegal immigrants currently living in the United States to earn their citizenship.
Clinton expressed sympathy to representatives of communities along the U.S.-Mexico border that are frustrated by the stress of providing social services to large numbers of undocumented immigrants. But she also said she hoped to send a message that supporters of punitive immigration policy faced significant political risk for doing so.
"We want the outcome to be that they're on the wrong side of the politics as well as the wrong side of history and American values," she said.
Oh WAAH...she just sees the hispanic vote and wants to capitalize on it if/when she runs for president. You notice in the above quote that she wants penalties for those employers who EXPLOIT illegal immigrants? She doesn't say diddly about penalties for those employers who HIRE them.
That's illegal too, as I understand. And, that's the whole point of this rant. The illegals are taking over Tejas, Arizona, and California (among others). They are taking jobs, buying land and houses (one just moved in next to me in a house that I couldn't afford), paying cash for everything, and sending their money and support back to the Motherland to the tune of several billion dollars a year. In the meantime, we have to pay their medical bills, provide them an education (did you know that when they go to our schools, they don't even have to learn English? They usually have an interpreter. I saw that when I substituted a few years ago).
They are taking up our welfare and SSI payments and they STILL don't have to be American citizens.
This is not right.
I want my country back.
Friday, March 17, 2006
Just what WOULD happen if we left Iraq now?
I am a dedicated American. I gave twenty years of my life to the Air Force in a law enforcement/combat role.
I feel strongly for every troop that is in harm's way there in Iraq.
But after reading this blog and some others, I decided that yes, it is time to pull out now. What good are we doing there? I know we are rebuilding and helping set up an infrastructure but, can't the Iraqis do that?
Our presence there seems to be more of an irritant than an asset. We are accidently killing civilians, as show in this blog. We also seem to just be targets for the insurgents (terrorists) that come in from other countries. We are just an opportunity for these organizations to perfect their craft. At our expense.
Will Iraq fall into civil war? Will Iran or Syria move in and take it over?
The most important thing to me is that we do not let the Iraqis down. We cannot allow the terrorists that are just waiting in the wings to swoop in and take over. Those that were our friends might become victims (just look into the past at what Hussein did to those that rose against him in Desert Storm).
I just don't know what would be right.
I feel strongly for every troop that is in harm's way there in Iraq.
But after reading this blog and some others, I decided that yes, it is time to pull out now. What good are we doing there? I know we are rebuilding and helping set up an infrastructure but, can't the Iraqis do that?
Our presence there seems to be more of an irritant than an asset. We are accidently killing civilians, as show in this blog. We also seem to just be targets for the insurgents (terrorists) that come in from other countries. We are just an opportunity for these organizations to perfect their craft. At our expense.
Will Iraq fall into civil war? Will Iran or Syria move in and take it over?
The most important thing to me is that we do not let the Iraqis down. We cannot allow the terrorists that are just waiting in the wings to swoop in and take over. Those that were our friends might become victims (just look into the past at what Hussein did to those that rose against him in Desert Storm).
I just don't know what would be right.
Happy St. Patty's Day
Starkle, starkle, little twink,
Who the hell you are, you think?
I'm not under the alfluence of incohol,
Although some thinkle peep I are.
The drunker I sit here,
The longer I be.
I fool so feelish,
I don't know who is me.
Who the hell you are, you think?
I'm not under the alfluence of incohol,
Although some thinkle peep I are.
The drunker I sit here,
The longer I be.
I fool so feelish,
I don't know who is me.
Tuesday, March 14, 2006
You ever wonder what the hit song was on the day you were Born?
Just a bunch of useless information, but it's interesting.
Mine was, "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart" by Vera Lynn
Mine was, "Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart" by Vera Lynn
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Probably the most Original Obituary I have Read
Obituaries are generally pretty dry and boring. Probably because they're only read by those that suffer the loss and people like me, who check it daily to make sure I'm not in it.
This one though, was posted by Mr. Drags in an It's Happening Forum at Wincoast.com.
This one was for Dorothy Gibson Cully, 86, mother of four, who had died peacefully June 3 while in the "loving care of her two favorite children." "All of her breath leaked out."
Here is the body of the obit:
"Miraculously, the apple was saved for the evening dessert. Calvin was not."
So funny. Enjoy.
This one though, was posted by Mr. Drags in an It's Happening Forum at Wincoast.com.
This one was for Dorothy Gibson Cully, 86, mother of four, who had died peacefully June 3 while in the "loving care of her two favorite children." "All of her breath leaked out."
Here is the body of the obit:
On June 3, 2005 at 10:45 p.m. in Memphis, Tenn., Dorothy Gibson Cully, 86, died peacefully, while in the loving care of her two favorite children, Barbara and David. All of her breath leaked out. The mother of four children, grandmother to 11, great-grandmother to nine, devoted wife for 56 years to the late Ralph Chester Cully and a true friend to many, Dot had been active as a volunteer in the Catholic Church and other community charities for much of the past 25 years.
She was born the second child of six in 1919 as Frances Dorothy Gibson, daughter to Kathleen Heard Gibson and Calvin Hooper Gibson, an inventor best known as the first person since the Middle Ages to calculate the arcane lead-to-gold formula. Unable to actually prove this complex theory scientifically, and frustrated by the cruel conspiracy of the so-called "scientific community" working against his efforts, he ultimately stuck his head in a heated gas oven with a golden delicious apple propped in his mouth. Miraculously, the apple was saved for the evening dessert. Calvin was not.
Native Marylanders and longtime Baltimore, Kent Island and Ocean City residents, Ralph and Dot later resided in Lakeland, Fla., and Virginia Beach, Va.. Several years after Ralph's death, Dot moved to Raleigh in 2001, where she lived with her son David.
At the time of her death, Dot was visiting her daughter Carol in Memphis. Carol and her husband, Ron, away from home attending a "very important conference" at a posh Florida resort, rushed home 10 days later after learning of the death. Dot's other children, dutifully at their mother's side helping with the normal last-minute arrangements -- hospice notification, funeral parlor notice, revising the will, etc. -- happily picked up the considerable slack of the absent former heiress.
Dot is warmly remembered as a generous, spiritually strong, resourceful, tolerant and smart woman, who was always ready to help and never judged others or their shortcomings. Dot always found time to knit sweaters, sew quilts and send written notes to the family children, all while working a full-time job, volunteering as Girl Scout leader and donating considerable time to local charities and the neighborhood Catholic Church.
Dot graduated from Eastern High School at 15, worked in Baltimore full time from 1934 to 1979, beginning as a factory worker at Cross & Blackwell and retiring after 30 years as property manager and controller for a Baltimore conglomerate, Housing Engineering Company, all while raising four children, two of who are fairly normal.
An Irishwoman proud of and curious about her heritage, she was a voracious reader of historical novels, particularly those about the glories and trials of Ireland. Dot also loved to travel, her favorite destination being Eire's auld sod, where she dreamed of the magic, mystery and legend of the Emerald Isle.
Dot Cully is survived by her sisters, Ginny Torrico in Virginia, Marian Lee in Florida and Eileen Adams in Baltimore; her brother, Russell Gibson of Fallston, Md.; her children, Barbara Frost of Ocean City, Md., Carol Meroney of Memphis, Tenn., David Cully of Raleigh, N.C. and Stephen Cully of Baltimore, Md. Contributions to the Wake County (N.C.) Hospice Services are welcomed. Opinions about the details of this obit are not, since Mom would have liked it this way.
"Miraculously, the apple was saved for the evening dessert. Calvin was not."
So funny. Enjoy.
Country Dweller, City Worker
Well, it happened again.
I ride the MetroRail into downtown and about once or twice a week, I get the crazy ones. You know the ones that are having a great conversation on their cell phone, until you notice....they don't have a cell phone.
They always seem to sit near me.
This morning...black lady.
I noticed the smell first, then the vocalizations.
She seemed happy though...laughed a lot...then out of nowhere, she yelled, "Oh my God!" Startled everyone. When I looked at her, she looked back like she hadn't heard a thing.
Man, life is so strange.
I ride the MetroRail into downtown and about once or twice a week, I get the crazy ones. You know the ones that are having a great conversation on their cell phone, until you notice....they don't have a cell phone.
They always seem to sit near me.
This morning...black lady.
I noticed the smell first, then the vocalizations.
She seemed happy though...laughed a lot...then out of nowhere, she yelled, "Oh my God!" Startled everyone. When I looked at her, she looked back like she hadn't heard a thing.
Man, life is so strange.
Thursday, February 23, 2006
Observations about our life on this Planet
1. Save The Whales. Collect The Whole Set.
******
2. A Day Without Sunshine Is Like, Night.
******
3. On The Other Hand, You Have Different Fingers.
******
4. I Just Got Lost In Thought. It Wasn't Familiar Territory .
******
5. 42.7 Percent Of All Statistics Are Made Up On The Spot.
******
6. Light Travels Faster Than Sound, Which Is Why Some People Appear Bright Until You Hear them Speak.
******
7. I Feel Like I'm Diagonally Parked In A Parallel Universe.
******
8. Honk If You Love Peace And Quiet.
******
9. Remember, Half The People You Know Are Below Average.
******
10. He Who Laughs Last, Thinks Slowest.
******
11. Depression Is Merely Anger Without Enthusiasm.
******
12. The Early Bird May Get The Worm, But The Second Mouse Gets
The Cheese.
******
13. I Drive Way Too Fast To Worry About Cholesterol.
******
14. Support Bacteria. They're The Only Culture Some People Have.
******
15. Monday Is An Awful Way To Spend 1/7 Of Your Week.
******
16. A Clear Conscience Is Usually The Sign Of A Bad Memory.
******
17. Change Is Inevitable, Except From Vending Machines.
******
18. Get A New Car For Your Spouse. It'll Be A Great Trade!
******
19. Plan To Be Spontaneous Tomorrow.
******
20. Always Try To Be Modest, And Be Proud Of It!
******
21. If You Think Nobody Cares, Try Missing A Couple Of Payments.
******
22. How Many Of You Believe In Psycho-Kinesis? Raise My Hand.
******
23 . Ok, So What's The Speed Of Dark?
******
24. How Do You Tell When You're Out Of Invisible Ink?
******
25. If Everything Seems To Be Going Well, You Have Obviously Overlooked Something.
******
26. When Everything Is Coming Your Way, You're In The Wrong Lane.
******
27. Hard Work Pays Off In The Future. Laziness Pays Off Now.
******
28. Everyone Has A Photographic Memory. Some Just Do Not Have Film.
******
29. If Barbie Is So Popular, Why Do You Have To Buy Her Friends?
******
30. How Much Deeper Would The Ocean Be Without Sponges?
******
31. Eagles May Soar, But Weasels Do Not Get Sucked Into Jet Engines.
******
32. What Happens If You Get Scared Half To Death Twice?
******
33. I Used To Have An Open Mind But My Brains Kept Falling Out.
******
34. I Couldn't Repair Your Brakes, So I Made Your Horn Louder.
******
35. Why Do Psychics Have To Ask You For Your Name?
******
36. Inside Every Older Person Is A Younger Person Wondering What Happened.
******
37. Just Remember - If The World Did Not Suck, We Would All Fall Off.
******
2. A Day Without Sunshine Is Like, Night.
******
3. On The Other Hand, You Have Different Fingers.
******
4. I Just Got Lost In Thought. It Wasn't Familiar Territory .
******
5. 42.7 Percent Of All Statistics Are Made Up On The Spot.
******
6. Light Travels Faster Than Sound, Which Is Why Some People Appear Bright Until You Hear them Speak.
******
7. I Feel Like I'm Diagonally Parked In A Parallel Universe.
******
8. Honk If You Love Peace And Quiet.
******
9. Remember, Half The People You Know Are Below Average.
******
10. He Who Laughs Last, Thinks Slowest.
******
11. Depression Is Merely Anger Without Enthusiasm.
******
12. The Early Bird May Get The Worm, But The Second Mouse Gets
The Cheese.
******
13. I Drive Way Too Fast To Worry About Cholesterol.
******
14. Support Bacteria. They're The Only Culture Some People Have.
******
15. Monday Is An Awful Way To Spend 1/7 Of Your Week.
******
16. A Clear Conscience Is Usually The Sign Of A Bad Memory.
******
17. Change Is Inevitable, Except From Vending Machines.
******
18. Get A New Car For Your Spouse. It'll Be A Great Trade!
******
19. Plan To Be Spontaneous Tomorrow.
******
20. Always Try To Be Modest, And Be Proud Of It!
******
21. If You Think Nobody Cares, Try Missing A Couple Of Payments.
******
22. How Many Of You Believe In Psycho-Kinesis? Raise My Hand.
******
23 . Ok, So What's The Speed Of Dark?
******
24. How Do You Tell When You're Out Of Invisible Ink?
******
25. If Everything Seems To Be Going Well, You Have Obviously Overlooked Something.
******
26. When Everything Is Coming Your Way, You're In The Wrong Lane.
******
27. Hard Work Pays Off In The Future. Laziness Pays Off Now.
******
28. Everyone Has A Photographic Memory. Some Just Do Not Have Film.
******
29. If Barbie Is So Popular, Why Do You Have To Buy Her Friends?
******
30. How Much Deeper Would The Ocean Be Without Sponges?
******
31. Eagles May Soar, But Weasels Do Not Get Sucked Into Jet Engines.
******
32. What Happens If You Get Scared Half To Death Twice?
******
33. I Used To Have An Open Mind But My Brains Kept Falling Out.
******
34. I Couldn't Repair Your Brakes, So I Made Your Horn Louder.
******
35. Why Do Psychics Have To Ask You For Your Name?
******
36. Inside Every Older Person Is A Younger Person Wondering What Happened.
******
37. Just Remember - If The World Did Not Suck, We Would All Fall Off.
Tuesday, February 21, 2006
What are you Thinking?
The sale of six US ports to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and our president backing this transaction has me just totally....totally bewildered.
I have tried and tried to back this administration. I'm slowly falling away. Not to the dark side for sure. I guess somewhere in the middle.
The president asks why it is alright for us to back a British-run port authority and not a middle-eastern one?
Here's one:
There are questions:
Didn't the president say we would not cooperate with countries that support terrorism?
Wasn't the UAE one of the few countries that fully recognized the Taliban as a government?
Wasn't two of the 9/11 terrorists from the UAE?
Didn't some money fot 9/11 go through the UAE?
Somthing just ain't right here....
I have tried and tried to back this administration. I'm slowly falling away. Not to the dark side for sure. I guess somewhere in the middle.
The president asks why it is alright for us to back a British-run port authority and not a middle-eastern one?
Here's one:
There are questions:
Didn't the president say we would not cooperate with countries that support terrorism?
Wasn't the UAE one of the few countries that fully recognized the Taliban as a government?
Wasn't two of the 9/11 terrorists from the UAE?
Didn't some money fot 9/11 go through the UAE?
Somthing just ain't right here....
Monday, February 20, 2006
Who has the Saddam Tapes?
The so-called "Saddam Tapes" that allegedly revealed so much about the pre-Iraq war were very interesting. But, in the "ABC News Exclusive," they said,
My first and still most pressing question is, which U.S. government agency has these 35,000 boxes of tapes and who is translating and analyzing them?
What's the deal?
Was this just another act of yellow journalism by ABC News? Is the whole Saddam Tapes thing just going to be dropped and never taken up again?
Who is minding the store?
Who is making sure this will be done?
Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, says the tapes are authentic and show that "Saddam had a fixation on weapons of mass destruction and he had a fixation on hiding what he was doing from the U.N. inspectors." Hoeckstra says there are more than 35,000 boxes of such tapes and documents that the U.S. government has not analyzed nor made public that should also be translated and studied on an urgent basis.
My first and still most pressing question is, which U.S. government agency has these 35,000 boxes of tapes and who is translating and analyzing them?
What's the deal?
Was this just another act of yellow journalism by ABC News? Is the whole Saddam Tapes thing just going to be dropped and never taken up again?
Who is minding the store?
Who is making sure this will be done?
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