Remember the riddle "who's buried in Grant's tomb?" Technically the answer is no one since Ulysses and his wife are entombed, but at least people know where they are. The same can't be said for some of those who are buried at Arlington. Like the atrocious conditions at Walter Reed revealed a few years ago, this is also a national disgrace. Why is it so difficult to treat our soldiers with the respect they deserve? After suffering the ultimate sacrifice how can they be treated so poorly by those who were entrusted to preserve their remains? It used to be an honor to be buried at Arlington, now it's where's Waldo.
Jeff Huber (wish he'd been my CO but the Navy didn't take me seriously when I tried to enlist in 1974) has his usual insightful observations on the fallacy of thinking we can win the debacle in Afghanistan. The original mission was never accomplished and has been lost to the caskets of history, so of course we must continue to involve ourselves in another fruitless and never ending land war in Asia. Is it because the Afghans don't look like the Japanese, Vietnamese or Koreans that people don't realize that Afghanistan is in Asia as are Iraq, Iran and Israel? What the heck are we fighting for?
Regime change in Iraq was discussed before 9/11. Then why didn't the troops have all the equipment they needed? Probably for the same reason that they aren't receiving all the help they need once they are injured or discharged. Because the goal was to topple Saddam and consequences were never considered. Not to the troops, their families, innocent civilians or the stability of the country.
The phrases "there's nothing new under the sun" and "what's old is new again" have been around for a long time...because they're true. In If A Man Answers (1962) Sandra Dee's character trains her new husband (Bobby Darin) to be more attentive by using the techniques from a book on dog training. Today's parents are discovering the Dog Whisperer's techniques also work well on children. Or, as my baby brother said after a few months of training his dog, "I should have had a dog before I had children." As is pointed out in the movie and in this article, it's really the trainer who is being trained. Consistency is the key and my parents excelled at that. If it was no when I was two, it was no when I was eighteen unless it had been due to a height or age requirement. I really miss my dad.
Adopted children should be able to find their biological parents after they are old enough to understand the consequences. For Matthew Roberts those were definitely more than he planned on. It isn't every day that one discovers that their father is one of the most hated murderers on the planet. That's really sad.
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Showing posts with label Afghanistan. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Afghanistan. Show all posts
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Thursday, October 22, 2009
This 'N That
No wonder people have given up looking for work. They did everything they were supposed to, they got more education so they could get ahead and now their resumes are the first ones discarded by employers looking to hire. Because they might leave for a better job when times get better. Like that's going to happen anytime in the near future.
Newsday is going to put its content behind a paywall, with access limited to people who subscribe to the print edition, pay for local cable, or you can pony up $5 a week, which is $260 a year. If people wouldn't pay $50 a year for the NYTimes a few years ago, very few people are going to find Newsday to be worthy of $260 a year or $5 an article when they accidentally print something interesting.
What drugs are these people on? For eight of the twelve years the Republicans controlled Congress they had a Republican president who claimed he was the Decider and they rammed bills, useless proclamations and tax cuts through to the detriment of the country. And the spineless Democrats not only helped them, sometimes they gave them more than they asked for.
Cheney wants Obama to quit "dithering" on sending more troops to Afghanistan. Meanwhile, back in the real world, a majority oppose sending more troops off to die in another useless land war in Asia.
Singing for her supper. Or not.The Performance Royal Society caused itself a little bad publicity by telling a woman who sings while she stocks shelves in a grocery store that she needs a performance license. Meanwhile musicians also don't approve of the government using their songs for torture. Britney Spears and Eminem qualify, but the Bee Gees?
Someone is begging for a Darwin Award. Dennis LeRoy Anderson outfitted is La-Z-Boy with a lawnmower engine, a cup holder and what every pimped out ride needs, a stereo. One day he rode it to the bar and had eight or nine beers. He tried to ride it home but a parked vehicle jumped in his way and with a blood alcohol level of .029, besides wrecking his ride, he received a DWI.
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The overwhelming response astonished him. He asked Cheree Seawood, one of his current assistants, to go through the résumés and help pick out several to interview. To make the task easier, he decided they should be even more rigorous in ruling out anyone who appeared even slightly overqualified (emphasis mine).Key senators are not thwarting President Obama on healthcare, they are thwarting the will of the American people. And it should be reported that way. If the senators are worried about survival, perhaps they should vote the way their constituents want instead of pandering to the insurance industry.
Newsday is going to put its content behind a paywall, with access limited to people who subscribe to the print edition, pay for local cable, or you can pony up $5 a week, which is $260 a year. If people wouldn't pay $50 a year for the NYTimes a few years ago, very few people are going to find Newsday to be worthy of $260 a year or $5 an article when they accidentally print something interesting.
What drugs are these people on? For eight of the twelve years the Republicans controlled Congress they had a Republican president who claimed he was the Decider and they rammed bills, useless proclamations and tax cuts through to the detriment of the country. And the spineless Democrats not only helped them, sometimes they gave them more than they asked for.
“We need more voices,” said House Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia, one of the party’s up-and-coming leaders. “Our party’s challenge has been that we need to be more inclusive — we need to attract the middle again. ... When one party controls all the levers of power in Washington, they’re going to try and villainize whoever they can on our side. It gives us an opportunity now to try and harness the energy and point it in a positive direction, so that we can attract the middle of the country to the common-sense conservative views that we have been about as a party.”As the Bible states (Job 4:8), those who plow evil and those who sow trouble reap it, and by pandering to the lowest common denominator the Republicans coddled a section of society which attacks its own instead of working together. 80 percent of voters do not identify with the Republican party or its ideals and unless there are some major changes in attitude those in the middle will run even further away.
Cheney wants Obama to quit "dithering" on sending more troops to Afghanistan. Meanwhile, back in the real world, a majority oppose sending more troops off to die in another useless land war in Asia.
Singing for her supper. Or not.The Performance Royal Society caused itself a little bad publicity by telling a woman who sings while she stocks shelves in a grocery store that she needs a performance license. Meanwhile musicians also don't approve of the government using their songs for torture. Britney Spears and Eminem qualify, but the Bee Gees?
Someone is begging for a Darwin Award. Dennis LeRoy Anderson outfitted is La-Z-Boy with a lawnmower engine, a cup holder and what every pimped out ride needs, a stereo. One day he rode it to the bar and had eight or nine beers. He tried to ride it home but a parked vehicle jumped in his way and with a blood alcohol level of .029, besides wrecking his ride, he received a DWI.
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Saturday, October 17, 2009
Saturday Morning Observations
Hmm, Byron York in the Washington Examiner has an article about how lefty anger could sink the Demowienies in 2010. As if the Republicants are happy with their choices for candidates. Perhaps the problem is that all of the choices suck, it doesn't matter if you're Republicans or Democrats. Maybe the reason why the congressional approval ratings are so low is because the majority of them are useless sycophants out to line their own pockets and don't represent the interests of the people who voted for them. It's just a thought.
The H1N1 virus is killing people who are obese or morbidly obese more frequently than in the past and the doctors seem mystified. Did they pay attention in medical school? Earlier in the article it's stated that for the people at risk the H1N1 virus affects the lower lungs as opposed to the usual invasion of the upper respiratory tract. As an asthma patient I can tell you that my lung function tests reflected an almost twenty percent increase when I lost fifty pounds. With less fat in the way, my lungs had more room to expand and at the same time more carbon dioxide was expelled, which increased the amount of oxygen my lungs were able to take in. One of the things I noticed during an asthma attack is that I tend to try and suck more air in without trying to exhale which means that the only the upper lungs are working. The lower lungs are congested and when I focus on exhaling forcefully, I tend to get a deeper, more satisfying breath. Being fat makes this more difficult. Duh.
I'm confused. Does the NY Times have a time machine? Today is October 17, 2009 and at the moment it is 11:44 am. How do they know for sure that the article on the overreaction to the H1N1 virus is going to appear tomorrow?
It's not that I think the H1N1 virus isn't a problem that might become worse, at least some lessons were learned from SARS, but a better focus might be how the many people who don't have health insurance are going to receive adequate treatment and if hospitals are strained already why isn't something being done to change that? Eight months into the pandemic and still not enough ventilators. That's like eight years into the Afghanistan debacle and the troops still don't have dependable weapons. Too bad we don't manufacture things in this country anymore, these problems would have been nipped in the bud thirty years ago. Viva la corporations! There bottom line is everything and now Americans are at the bottom of the line.
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The H1N1 virus is killing people who are obese or morbidly obese more frequently than in the past and the doctors seem mystified. Did they pay attention in medical school? Earlier in the article it's stated that for the people at risk the H1N1 virus affects the lower lungs as opposed to the usual invasion of the upper respiratory tract. As an asthma patient I can tell you that my lung function tests reflected an almost twenty percent increase when I lost fifty pounds. With less fat in the way, my lungs had more room to expand and at the same time more carbon dioxide was expelled, which increased the amount of oxygen my lungs were able to take in. One of the things I noticed during an asthma attack is that I tend to try and suck more air in without trying to exhale which means that the only the upper lungs are working. The lower lungs are congested and when I focus on exhaling forcefully, I tend to get a deeper, more satisfying breath. Being fat makes this more difficult. Duh.
I'm confused. Does the NY Times have a time machine? Today is October 17, 2009 and at the moment it is 11:44 am. How do they know for sure that the article on the overreaction to the H1N1 virus is going to appear tomorrow?
A version of this article appeared in print on October 18, 2009, on page A1 of the New York editionIt's written in the past tense. Writing it today is one thing but a lot can happen in the next twelve hours as I'm sure Thomas Dewey would have explained to them. Or if this asteroid had come a little closer.
It's not that I think the H1N1 virus isn't a problem that might become worse, at least some lessons were learned from SARS, but a better focus might be how the many people who don't have health insurance are going to receive adequate treatment and if hospitals are strained already why isn't something being done to change that? Eight months into the pandemic and still not enough ventilators. That's like eight years into the Afghanistan debacle and the troops still don't have dependable weapons. Too bad we don't manufacture things in this country anymore, these problems would have been nipped in the bud thirty years ago. Viva la corporations! There bottom line is everything and now Americans are at the bottom of the line.
BBB
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Eight Years On
The Second World War lasted six years and long before it was over the American people had built airplanes, ships, tanks, bombs, guns and bullets to support the troops. No effort was spared. Rationing of sugar, butter, meat, milk, gasoline and rubber were endured by the citizenry (rich and poor alike) so that the troops could have what they needed to ensure a successful outcome as well as spreading the pain equally among the populace.
It's been twenty years since we had a president with direct experience on the battlefield and it shows. Once you've had to dodge a few bullets or your plane has been shot out of the air you tend to appreciate your equipment and hope that it is the best there is. Unfortunately, the troops of today don't have that confidence and haven't for many years.
Eisenhower warned about the military complex in his farewell speech to the nation while also pointing out their responsibility to the country. Somehow the military complex has grown without holding up its share of the bargain.
We were on a night march and bombs started going off and there was incoming "fire". We were supposed to return "fire" while trying to make it to a safe outpost. Things were going okay until about five minutes into the firefight when my M16 jammed. It's amazing what you can do when you're scared. I cleared my weapon while on the run and after firing a few more rounds, it jammed again. Thirty five years later and the troops in Afghanistan are having the same problems with their weapons except this is not a training exercise. The M4 jams under duress and during last year's battle at Wanat, during a critical time in the battle, many of their weapons were rendered unusable due to jamming under heavy use and nine US soldiers lost their lives.
As I've stated before, the longer you are at war the more the enemy learns about tactics and the more willing they are to employ them. In 2006 the Taliban pinned down a group of Green Berets, they repeated it in Wanat and once again this past week. The absolute least, and I mean least, we could do for our troops is provide them with weaponry that works when they need them. Every time. A rifle is meant to be fired, not used as a club and it shouldn't get so hot that you are unable to clear a jam. If shuttle tiles can be built to withstand the heat of orbital reentry, weapons designed for war should be able to withstand sustained usage under the conditions they are supposedly manufactured for.
Eight years on and our troops are still going to war with inferior equipment. Mullah Omar may have retreated eight years ago but he's back now with experience under his robes and willing to use it. No one has ever successfully invaded Afghanistan and we aren't going to succeed using equipment that doesn't do its primary job. That we haven't learned that painful lesson is the second error of historic proportions and sending in 40,000 more troops with shoddy equipment isn't going to change anything except our troops increasing body count.
BBB
It's been twenty years since we had a president with direct experience on the battlefield and it shows. Once you've had to dodge a few bullets or your plane has been shot out of the air you tend to appreciate your equipment and hope that it is the best there is. Unfortunately, the troops of today don't have that confidence and haven't for many years.
Eisenhower warned about the military complex in his farewell speech to the nation while also pointing out their responsibility to the country. Somehow the military complex has grown without holding up its share of the bargain.
A vital element in keeping the peace is our military establishment. Our arms must be mighty, ready for instant action, so that no potential aggressor may be tempted to risk his own destruction.When I was in basic training they ran us through a simulated firefight using tracer ammunition. Even though I knew I wasn't going to be harmed it was still a terrifying experience.
We were on a night march and bombs started going off and there was incoming "fire". We were supposed to return "fire" while trying to make it to a safe outpost. Things were going okay until about five minutes into the firefight when my M16 jammed. It's amazing what you can do when you're scared. I cleared my weapon while on the run and after firing a few more rounds, it jammed again. Thirty five years later and the troops in Afghanistan are having the same problems with their weapons except this is not a training exercise. The M4 jams under duress and during last year's battle at Wanat, during a critical time in the battle, many of their weapons were rendered unusable due to jamming under heavy use and nine US soldiers lost their lives.
As I've stated before, the longer you are at war the more the enemy learns about tactics and the more willing they are to employ them. In 2006 the Taliban pinned down a group of Green Berets, they repeated it in Wanat and once again this past week. The absolute least, and I mean least, we could do for our troops is provide them with weaponry that works when they need them. Every time. A rifle is meant to be fired, not used as a club and it shouldn't get so hot that you are unable to clear a jam. If shuttle tiles can be built to withstand the heat of orbital reentry, weapons designed for war should be able to withstand sustained usage under the conditions they are supposedly manufactured for.
Eight years on and our troops are still going to war with inferior equipment. Mullah Omar may have retreated eight years ago but he's back now with experience under his robes and willing to use it. No one has ever successfully invaded Afghanistan and we aren't going to succeed using equipment that doesn't do its primary job. That we haven't learned that painful lesson is the second error of historic proportions and sending in 40,000 more troops with shoddy equipment isn't going to change anything except our troops increasing body count.
BBB
Sunday, September 06, 2009
Of War And Death
Surprise, surprise, surprise. Not. Our ignorance, and mind boggling arrogance, has killed quite a few of our own soldiers and now it seems that we, the taxpayer, footed the bill and installed the mines before some of these poor kids were even born. How's that for irony?
As tragic as Corporal Bernard's death is, the highly disputed AP photo is only showing the consequences, the true reality (he died on the operating table) of war. Soldiers are real people and they are really dying and in horrible ways. Being outraged over a photo, instead of how the young man came to be in that condition, is the real travesty. And as sorry as I am for the family, I am even sorrier for his teammates who have those moments and many more like them seared into their brains forever. If we can't handle looking at a photo then how do we expect our troops to function after seeing people die violently on an all too frequent basis?
I'm against the death penalty on principle, several of them if you want to be picky. One of the principles is that it isn't uniformly applied. In Kentucky Steven Green gets five life sentences for raping a teenage girl he and his friends had been stalking, killing her, her parents and her six year old sister, then setting fire to the lower half of her body to cover it up. Meanwhile in Florida, the death penalty is being recommended for Michael King who killed a young mother of two. If one crime is more heinous than the other wouldn't you think that what Steven King did was the most evil? Hopefully there is a no pizza provision as part of his sentence.
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In the article, British journalist Kate Clark quoted an unnamed Taliban commander as saying, "There's a kind of landmine called a Dragon. Iran's sending it. It's directional and it causes heavy casualties." The commander said the new mine would "destroy" large tanks "completely", whereas "ordinary" anti-tank mines had only caused "minor damage".Ah yes, the mujahideen and the Reagan Doctrine. Can't say that worked out real well for us. Now our soldiers are paying the price for a policy most people have forgotten. That still doesn't give us the right to burst into hospitals, tie up staff and visitors, and force patients from their beds.
If true, the revelation that an improved Iranian anti-tank weapon had been killing US and NATO troops in larger numbers would have been a major development in the war in Afghanistan. Roadside bomb attacks are acknowledged by US and NATO officials to be the cause of most of the casualties and deaths of foreign troops in the country.
The rapid rise in casualties over the past two years is attributed in part to the increased lethality of the Taliban mines.
But according to the Pentagon agency responsible for combating roadside bombs in Iraq and Afghanistan, the increased Taliban threat to US and NATO vehicles comes not from any new technology from Iran but from Italian-made mines left over from the US Central Intelligence Agency's military assistance to the anti-Soviet jihadists in the 1980s. (Emphasis mine)
As tragic as Corporal Bernard's death is, the highly disputed AP photo is only showing the consequences, the true reality (he died on the operating table) of war. Soldiers are real people and they are really dying and in horrible ways. Being outraged over a photo, instead of how the young man came to be in that condition, is the real travesty. And as sorry as I am for the family, I am even sorrier for his teammates who have those moments and many more like them seared into their brains forever. If we can't handle looking at a photo then how do we expect our troops to function after seeing people die violently on an all too frequent basis?
I'm against the death penalty on principle, several of them if you want to be picky. One of the principles is that it isn't uniformly applied. In Kentucky Steven Green gets five life sentences for raping a teenage girl he and his friends had been stalking, killing her, her parents and her six year old sister, then setting fire to the lower half of her body to cover it up. Meanwhile in Florida, the death penalty is being recommended for Michael King who killed a young mother of two. If one crime is more heinous than the other wouldn't you think that what Steven King did was the most evil? Hopefully there is a no pizza provision as part of his sentence.
BBB
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Random Musings
Eight years into the war in Afghanistan and all we have to show for it is that we are stuck in another land war in Asia. Osama bin Laden hasn't been accounted for, our troops are dying at the highest rates (more have died from March to now than in the first three years) since the war started and the Taliban are freely reimposing harsh penalties on Afghani citizens for participating in democracy. Next thing you know, they'll be talking to a Sicilian.
Eight years in and the military in Afghanistan have very few hi tech hospitals. How can this crap still be happening? I understand about going to war with the army you have, but shouldn't the army have weapons, armor and decent medical care by now? 70 minutes to get to a decent hospital after you've been involved in a roadside bombing doesn't sound very efficient. Or lifesaving.
Science doesn't seem to be a big thing in Texas. If the fire marshal had training instead of strutting around like Fire Marshal Bill, Cameron Todd Willingham might have been exonerated instead of spending the next thirteen years before he was put to death trying to get people to believe he was innocent. Just because he wasn't an angel doesn't mean he was a devil. Further prof that the death penalty process is barbaric and an in your face example of cruel and inhuman treatment. Even more so if you're innocent.
Do you ever think about what you're thinking about? I know I'm strange and I've known for a long time. I'm not autistic but it would be a good bet that my baby brother and I have more than a touch of Asperger's. As a small example I really don't like bright lights or loud noises. During my last year of school I wore sunglasses and a hat (at night) because I couldn't take the fluorescent lights anymore. And the hum was a constant that grated on my nerves. As a child I could spend hours watching the dust motes in the light or follow patterns in the ceiling and I still do. As an adult I catch myself doing long division when I'm not actively paying attention to something else. And now there is an application that will let me expand my mathematics skill, such as it may be. Now if only I could convince myself that washing dishes was a repetitive action that I enjoyed...
Rest in peace Senator Kennedy. Thank you for all you did and I hope that there will be someone who can take up the liberal torch. Not liberal by the conservative standard, but liberal in the truest sense of the word.
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Eight years in and the military in Afghanistan have very few hi tech hospitals. How can this crap still be happening? I understand about going to war with the army you have, but shouldn't the army have weapons, armor and decent medical care by now? 70 minutes to get to a decent hospital after you've been involved in a roadside bombing doesn't sound very efficient. Or lifesaving.
Science doesn't seem to be a big thing in Texas. If the fire marshal had training instead of strutting around like Fire Marshal Bill, Cameron Todd Willingham might have been exonerated instead of spending the next thirteen years before he was put to death trying to get people to believe he was innocent. Just because he wasn't an angel doesn't mean he was a devil. Further prof that the death penalty process is barbaric and an in your face example of cruel and inhuman treatment. Even more so if you're innocent.
Do you ever think about what you're thinking about? I know I'm strange and I've known for a long time. I'm not autistic but it would be a good bet that my baby brother and I have more than a touch of Asperger's. As a small example I really don't like bright lights or loud noises. During my last year of school I wore sunglasses and a hat (at night) because I couldn't take the fluorescent lights anymore. And the hum was a constant that grated on my nerves. As a child I could spend hours watching the dust motes in the light or follow patterns in the ceiling and I still do. As an adult I catch myself doing long division when I'm not actively paying attention to something else. And now there is an application that will let me expand my mathematics skill, such as it may be. Now if only I could convince myself that washing dishes was a repetitive action that I enjoyed...
Rest in peace Senator Kennedy. Thank you for all you did and I hope that there will be someone who can take up the liberal torch. Not liberal by the conservative standard, but liberal in the truest sense of the word.
BBB
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Torturing The Truth
Naughty, naughty. The crew without a clue continues to make the news long after they should have ridden off into the sunset. Condieliesalot gets caught in a biggie and is the first one being thrown under the bus, who could have foreseen that? Oh well, you lie down with dogs, you're bound to get a few fleas. Can you shop for shoes when you're in jail?
In written testimony she lied to the Senate Armed Services Committee and stated that she couldn't recall any specific details about the CIA requesting permission to use alternative interrogation techniques when she had already given verbal permission for waterboarding.
It's a good thing we defeated the Taliban when we did. Otherwise they might have gotten stronger and be on the verge of taking over Pakistan and its nuclear weapons. Does anybody really think that getting Saddam Hussein and the mythical WMDs was more important than getting Osama bin Forgotten? Or that it made the world safer for democracy? I think not and no matter how many times Cheney, who should be waterboarded until he STFU, says that Obama is making the United States less safe it will not change the fact that Bush and Cheney didn't capture bin Laden, they didn't defeat the Taliban, they didn't secure Afghanistan and now Pakistan is tumbling into the abyss. Good job boys, I feel safer already. Not.
Excuse me? Somebody needs to reread the definition of evil.
I want my country back, with its head held high and our ethics intact.
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In written testimony she lied to the Senate Armed Services Committee and stated that she couldn't recall any specific details about the CIA requesting permission to use alternative interrogation techniques when she had already given verbal permission for waterboarding.
According to the new narrative, which compiles legal advice provided by the Bush administration to the CIA, Rice personally conveyed the administration's approval for waterboarding of Zubaydah, a so-called high-value detainee, to then-CIA Director George Tenet in July 2002.I'll bet they have a comment, it just can't be printed.
Last fall, Rice acknowledged to the Senate Armed Services Committee only that she had attended meetings where the CIA interrogation request was discussed and asked for the attorney general to conduct a legal review. She said she did not recall details. Rice omitted her direct role in approving the program in her written statement to the committee.
A spokesman for Rice declined comment when reached Wednesday.
It's a good thing we defeated the Taliban when we did. Otherwise they might have gotten stronger and be on the verge of taking over Pakistan and its nuclear weapons. Does anybody really think that getting Saddam Hussein and the mythical WMDs was more important than getting Osama bin Forgotten? Or that it made the world safer for democracy? I think not and no matter how many times Cheney, who should be waterboarded until he STFU, says that Obama is making the United States less safe it will not change the fact that Bush and Cheney didn't capture bin Laden, they didn't defeat the Taliban, they didn't secure Afghanistan and now Pakistan is tumbling into the abyss. Good job boys, I feel safer already. Not.
Excuse me? Somebody needs to reread the definition of evil.
Releasing the Justice memos opened a door and the contents repulsed many people. But these were not evil men who drafted the memos. These were not evil people who carried out the methods authorized by them. They were our fellow citizens who were trying to protect us from the real evildoers.And they did a bang up job, didn't they? Too bad they didn't start working until after the damage was done. Perhaps if they had paid attention to a briefing memo entitled "Bin Laden determined to strike in US" or followed up on either of the two Clinton plans for al-Qaeda instead of dismissing their concerns as "chicken little" alarmists or ignoring the warnings from intelligence agencies all around the world we wouldn't have traveled to the dark side and compromised everything that America stood for.
I want my country back, with its head held high and our ethics intact.
BBB
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Union Of The Snake
Have you ever noticed that no matter how much we interfere in other country's dealings that within a short amount of time they revert to their old ways? We went to war with Afghanistan to eliminate the Taliban and to capture Osama bin Laden. Seven years later and the Taliban are back in power and threatening us without impunity. And that crap about improving the lives of women? It was just that. Crap. Afghanistan's freely elected President, Hamid Karzai, rushed a bill through Parliament whose only goal was to keep him in office until they have their next election. Most world leaders wouldn't put pen to paper and legalise the rape of women, restrict their access to courts, and approve child marriage in this day and age but that didn't stop Mr. Karzai. Oh no, he rushed the bill through without it being read out loud or debated by the Parliament. And we keep supporting this guy. You know it's bad when Saddam Hussein had more respect for women.
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We get the picture, things haven't changed much since the last Depression. Corporations, banks and Wall Street are the winners and their employees are the losers. And will stay that way. In the waiting line.
For a country that revolves around its citizens buying things we aren't going to last very long if a majority of the people are unemployed and stuck in places that don't have enough jobs for the amount of people who would like one and therefore can't afford to buy anything. If people can't afford housing, food or clothes, how can they afford a new car or a refrigerator for the house they no longer have? The recovery needs to start at the bottom, the top has had help for years and look at the mess they made. Not that they're suffering. Yet.
This is my issue with working for a corporate employer. They require that you be at work at a certain time, eat and sleep at a certain time, dress a certain way, behave according to their rules and that if you break them, you can be dismissed. For complying they promise to pay you a certain wage on a predetermined schedule and years ago they offered benefits such as a steady job, health insurance, vacation and sick pay and a pension after committing a large percentage of your life to the company.
In the eighties they started spending company money to move production to another country to save costs and increase profits. When they figured out that the people they laid off could no longer afford their products they didn't discipline the people who had exhibited faulty judgment by eliminating the consumer base, they laid off more people in the States and moved production to even poorer countries where they wouldn't have to pay benefits or worry about workplace conditions and could still give the almighty shareholders their precious dividends and executives received bonuses. Then they set about systematically dismantling the pension and health insurance for the people who had already fulfilled their end of the bargain and worked faithfully for them for years by claiming that they couldn't afford to keep the deals they made with the employees. And then the Bush administration shifted large sums of money from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to the already unstable stock market. End result? The elderly will eat dog food and ketchup or die of starvation or they can hang on until winter when they can freeze to death. The middle aged live in their cars and earn just enough to eat a mini meal at Mickey D's once a day and the youth wander the streets aimlessly with no hope for the future and see crime as their only way of getting ahead. I know I'm a cynic but what's next? Lining the homeless up against a wall and shooting them so the rich aren't offended by all those lazy people?
At one time we were the greatest country in the world and now all we have is faded glory. The rich don't notice, they are too busy vacationing or buying homes in other countries while ensuring that they pay less and less to the country that made it possible for them to be a success. Heck, they even adopt kids from poor countries while forgetting about the ones in the land of their birth. The sad part is that those who aren't rich don't mind getting help to cut their own throat because they no longer have the skills to think critically, question authority before it goes too far and are willing to be spoon fed economic pablum by the pundits instead of looking at their own circumstances and seeing how screwed they are.
We may not be watching Rollerball but American Idol, Survivor and Dancing With The Stars make a nice substitute, don't they?
BBB
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We get the picture, things haven't changed much since the last Depression. Corporations, banks and Wall Street are the winners and their employees are the losers. And will stay that way. In the waiting line.
For a country that revolves around its citizens buying things we aren't going to last very long if a majority of the people are unemployed and stuck in places that don't have enough jobs for the amount of people who would like one and therefore can't afford to buy anything. If people can't afford housing, food or clothes, how can they afford a new car or a refrigerator for the house they no longer have? The recovery needs to start at the bottom, the top has had help for years and look at the mess they made. Not that they're suffering. Yet.
This is my issue with working for a corporate employer. They require that you be at work at a certain time, eat and sleep at a certain time, dress a certain way, behave according to their rules and that if you break them, you can be dismissed. For complying they promise to pay you a certain wage on a predetermined schedule and years ago they offered benefits such as a steady job, health insurance, vacation and sick pay and a pension after committing a large percentage of your life to the company.
In the eighties they started spending company money to move production to another country to save costs and increase profits. When they figured out that the people they laid off could no longer afford their products they didn't discipline the people who had exhibited faulty judgment by eliminating the consumer base, they laid off more people in the States and moved production to even poorer countries where they wouldn't have to pay benefits or worry about workplace conditions and could still give the almighty shareholders their precious dividends and executives received bonuses. Then they set about systematically dismantling the pension and health insurance for the people who had already fulfilled their end of the bargain and worked faithfully for them for years by claiming that they couldn't afford to keep the deals they made with the employees. And then the Bush administration shifted large sums of money from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation to the already unstable stock market. End result? The elderly will eat dog food and ketchup or die of starvation or they can hang on until winter when they can freeze to death. The middle aged live in their cars and earn just enough to eat a mini meal at Mickey D's once a day and the youth wander the streets aimlessly with no hope for the future and see crime as their only way of getting ahead. I know I'm a cynic but what's next? Lining the homeless up against a wall and shooting them so the rich aren't offended by all those lazy people?
At one time we were the greatest country in the world and now all we have is faded glory. The rich don't notice, they are too busy vacationing or buying homes in other countries while ensuring that they pay less and less to the country that made it possible for them to be a success. Heck, they even adopt kids from poor countries while forgetting about the ones in the land of their birth. The sad part is that those who aren't rich don't mind getting help to cut their own throat because they no longer have the skills to think critically, question authority before it goes too far and are willing to be spoon fed economic pablum by the pundits instead of looking at their own circumstances and seeing how screwed they are.
We may not be watching Rollerball but American Idol, Survivor and Dancing With The Stars make a nice substitute, don't they?
BBB
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Abusing The Country
This is the opposition? They sound like they've been listening to too many "experts"and it certainly sounds like Gregg has turned off his brain as if it was a light switch. Anyway you look at it tomorrow's generation is going to have to pay for the sins of the Bush administration and to say that President Obama's budget is irresponsible after eight years of massive tax cuts for the wealthy and the almost continuous war on the poor, is a little too much like downing bottles of champagne and then trying to convince the police officer that you aren't drunk, you still have the judgment to drive and the alcohol on your breath is from a mint.
Republicans need to get a grip on reality and realize that the country is in a hole that they dug and learn to support their president. Or at least that's what they've been telling the rest of us for the last eight years while they destroyed the Constitution and rammed disaster after disaster down our throats while threatening us with treason for speaking out about being treated like an abused wife. The country divorced you and it didn't ask for alimony or child support, it just wants you to go away while it tries to rebuild itself.
And like true abusers, Republicans keep believing that more abuse will make us see it their way. Until they get therapy and realize that not only are they part of the problem but that they created the situation, the country is not going to listen to much of what they say.
BBB
Gregg repeated what has become an opposition mantra, saying the president's plan "spends too much, taxes too much and borrows too much."As opposed to the billions lost to graft and greed in the last eight years which will never to be accounted for, corporations getting ridiculous tax breaks and then moving their operations to a different country so they can avoid any taxes or paying workers a living wage, stealing the youth of today to fight wars whose only accomplishments were to kill innocent civilians, a couple of politicians in a sovereign state that had nothing to do with terrorist acts perpetrated on the United States yet lets Osama bin Laden wander free to continue creating havoc and leaves the veterans to suffer neglect and abuse after serving their country honorably?
Republicans need to get a grip on reality and realize that the country is in a hole that they dug and learn to support their president. Or at least that's what they've been telling the rest of us for the last eight years while they destroyed the Constitution and rammed disaster after disaster down our throats while threatening us with treason for speaking out about being treated like an abused wife. The country divorced you and it didn't ask for alimony or child support, it just wants you to go away while it tries to rebuild itself.
And like true abusers, Republicans keep believing that more abuse will make us see it their way. Until they get therapy and realize that not only are they part of the problem but that they created the situation, the country is not going to listen to much of what they say.
BBB
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Religion, Threats, Stupidity And Sadness
I am not disputing that there is a a God or higher authority. I hope and pray there is, because if we are the top of the food chain we are in a world of trouble. What gets my knickers in a knot are people that think that the brains we were given (or developed) are to immediately switch off whenever there is a crisis and that God will handle it for us. Jeepers creepers. How arrogant do you have to be to believe that a being could create the universe and then spend their time listening for your piddling little problems. Those problems might seem world changing to you, but not to the big guy, he's off building other universes. Hopefully filled with beings that use all of the attributes given us to make our lives better. God didn't mention guns or cars in the Bible but somehow people still manage to justify using them. Medicine is the same way. We were given brains to think our way out of problems, not pray that someone really busy would solve them. Sort of like taste buds, more than for just oatmeal.
The Taliban are wasting no time trying to order the new President around. I guess you can do than in a country that has never been successfully invaded. We were so unsuccessful in Afghanistan that now the Taliban is forcing Pakistani bus drivers to remove music and entertainment devices from public buses or be blown up. When the 1700 year old Buddhist statues were blown up, the world should have gotten a clue then, but no, the Taliban are no less religious fanatics than the Puritans were. The only difference is that there isn't another world these fanatics can be sent to explore and get them out of our hair.
No shit! This is a pet peeve of mine and one of the reasons I don't practice anymore. Acupuncture is sort of like real estate. Location, location, location. But most important of all is an accurate diagnosis. If migraines are caused by blood deficiency (pale lips, skin, conjunctiva, dull hair and nails, scanty or irregular periods) they are best treated by a combination of nutrition, herbs and acupuncture. If they are caused by too much yang (always angry or frustrated, road rage, very heavy periods with clotting), you can stick the needle anywhere and there is going to be some type of relief because you have essentially let some of the steam out of the system. If the migraines are aggravated before the period begins then it really helps if you regulate the menstrual cycle and work on the person's unhappiness factors. If they hate their lives and won't admit it, then you can expect a recurrence at the first missed treatment. It also helps if you know whether the migraine is liver, gallbladder or heart related but that is too technical and time consuming to sort people correctly for the studies. Therefore, for most migraines and headaches acupuncture will work no matter where you stick the needle. If you want to improve the quality of the person's life, you have to do a little more work. Acupuncture is the least (Nutrition, herbs, exercise, environment, moxa, cupping, etc) of what is known as Chinese Medicine. Very few western experiments are ever going to prove its efficacy so quit treating it like it is the be all and end all of Chinese Medicine because the studies aren't designed correctly which makes the whole system suspect. Like arthroscopic surgery for arthritis of the knee.
Hanging by a thread, and a frozen one at that.
I would like to think that it wasn't going to let go in my lifetime, but something tells me it's history as of the summer.
BBB
The Taliban are wasting no time trying to order the new President around. I guess you can do than in a country that has never been successfully invaded. We were so unsuccessful in Afghanistan that now the Taliban is forcing Pakistani bus drivers to remove music and entertainment devices from public buses or be blown up. When the 1700 year old Buddhist statues were blown up, the world should have gotten a clue then, but no, the Taliban are no less religious fanatics than the Puritans were. The only difference is that there isn't another world these fanatics can be sent to explore and get them out of our hair.
No shit! This is a pet peeve of mine and one of the reasons I don't practice anymore. Acupuncture is sort of like real estate. Location, location, location. But most important of all is an accurate diagnosis. If migraines are caused by blood deficiency (pale lips, skin, conjunctiva, dull hair and nails, scanty or irregular periods) they are best treated by a combination of nutrition, herbs and acupuncture. If they are caused by too much yang (always angry or frustrated, road rage, very heavy periods with clotting), you can stick the needle anywhere and there is going to be some type of relief because you have essentially let some of the steam out of the system. If the migraines are aggravated before the period begins then it really helps if you regulate the menstrual cycle and work on the person's unhappiness factors. If they hate their lives and won't admit it, then you can expect a recurrence at the first missed treatment. It also helps if you know whether the migraine is liver, gallbladder or heart related but that is too technical and time consuming to sort people correctly for the studies. Therefore, for most migraines and headaches acupuncture will work no matter where you stick the needle. If you want to improve the quality of the person's life, you have to do a little more work. Acupuncture is the least (Nutrition, herbs, exercise, environment, moxa, cupping, etc) of what is known as Chinese Medicine. Very few western experiments are ever going to prove its efficacy so quit treating it like it is the be all and end all of Chinese Medicine because the studies aren't designed correctly which makes the whole system suspect. Like arthroscopic surgery for arthritis of the knee.
Hanging by a thread, and a frozen one at that.
I would like to think that it wasn't going to let go in my lifetime, but something tells me it's history as of the summer.
BBB
Friday, October 10, 2008
Economics And The BogeyMan
Oh no! This is absolutely terrifying. It seems that Michelle Malkin and I agree on something. How in the hell did that happen? For once she got something right. Who would have ever guessed? The last time I was this shocked was 19 years ago when I read a Pat Buchanan article and it made sense.
Continuing in economic news, the babbling Bush spoke this morning and the Dow had the usual reaction and dropped 107points before he retreated to his den. Why he thinks we are a prosperous nation is beyond me. We don't make anything anymore and jobs that used to be done in the US are now done in India or China. Joe Six-Pack (is he an alcoholic?) doesn't have the money to pay his mortgage, put gas in his car or food on the table and we're considered prosperous? I don't think that word means what he thinks it means. Unless he's talking about his buddies in the oil companies.
Quote of the day comes from a Matt Yglesias commenter regarding the bubble mentality and the stagnation of wages.
So Bush has had a hard presidency. LOL. Like he didn't bring it on himself. Try being an American citizen trying to pay their bills or worrying about their loved ones fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan. Try being a mother and father who are trying to keep a roof over their head and hoping that their children will have a future that doesn't include poverty. Try being a compassionate human being instead of an enabler of the worst administration in US history. Try understanding that this country is in a world of trouble and doing more of the same thing we've been doing for the last eight years is not only foolish, it's crazy.
What I find interesting and disheartening at the same time is that in order to get real news, I have to watch the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. On the bright side at least we haven't had to suffer through stories about missing blond women or stars and their poor driving habits in quite a while.
BBB
Continuing in economic news, the babbling Bush spoke this morning and the Dow had the usual reaction and dropped 107points before he retreated to his den. Why he thinks we are a prosperous nation is beyond me. We don't make anything anymore and jobs that used to be done in the US are now done in India or China. Joe Six-Pack (is he an alcoholic?) doesn't have the money to pay his mortgage, put gas in his car or food on the table and we're considered prosperous? I don't think that word means what he thinks it means. Unless he's talking about his buddies in the oil companies.
Quote of the day comes from a Matt Yglesias commenter regarding the bubble mentality and the stagnation of wages.
To a certain extent, this was the financial equivalent of taking down the speed limit signs, turning off the traffic lights, putting every cop on desk duty, and telling people to drink more beer. Don’t be surprised when there’s a massive pileup on I-80.Radical measures. Really? I see that we are going to inject more money into failing banks and Wall Street companies in a futile effort to stave off the inevitable. As long as every solution relies on giving those who gambled on Wall Street more taxpayer money to piss away instead of to the average person who will spend the money throughout the economy, we will keep falling until we hit rock bottom. The radical measure would be to give us the money instead of those who will only use it to line their pockets or go to a fancy spa.
So Bush has had a hard presidency. LOL. Like he didn't bring it on himself. Try being an American citizen trying to pay their bills or worrying about their loved ones fighting in Iraq or Afghanistan. Try being a mother and father who are trying to keep a roof over their head and hoping that their children will have a future that doesn't include poverty. Try being a compassionate human being instead of an enabler of the worst administration in US history. Try understanding that this country is in a world of trouble and doing more of the same thing we've been doing for the last eight years is not only foolish, it's crazy.
What I find interesting and disheartening at the same time is that in order to get real news, I have to watch the Daily Show and the Colbert Report. On the bright side at least we haven't had to suffer through stories about missing blond women or stars and their poor driving habits in quite a while.
BBB
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
One More Instance Of GOP Hypocrisy
Support the troops! Unless you're a member of the GOP and think that 25 million is too much to spend on paralyzed veterans. A bridge to nowhere is okay, helping people who can't walk or pee without assistance is not. And then to add insult to injury the GOP tries to use the issue to accuse the Demowienies of avoiding dealing with high gas prices. Otherwise known as offshore drilling for their corporate buddies.
The best part? Tom Coburn has the nerve to consider himself a doctor. Unlike recently departed Randy Pasuch, not the kind that helps people.
BBB
Republicans blasted the bill as an attempt to bait them and distract from measures to deal with high gas prices.Let's recap the GOP support of the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Bad armor, insufficiently armored vehicles, no plan other than shock and awe, multiple tours, poor medical care if they get back to the United States in less than pristine condition, ignoring the emotional costs of war in veterans, closing brain injury units as the incidences of brain injuries in the troops was increasing due to the IEDs that nobody "could have foreseen", obstruction of the GI Bill and now willing to let injured veterans be forever hostage to other people for help.
"They're using every trick to get us away from dealing with high gas prices," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
The best part? Tom Coburn has the nerve to consider himself a doctor. Unlike recently departed Randy Pasuch, not the kind that helps people.
BBB
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Who Knew?
Every soldier that has died in Iraq could have been used to quell the Taliban in Afghanistan and catch Osama bin Laden. Years ago. After almost seven years of constant war and not much has been accomplished except spreading the pain of loss to more of our military families. So much for making the instigators pay for 9/11. Bin Laden looks like the winner in this contest. One man holding out against the might of the United States for seven years. There is something just not kosher about this situation.
Ferengi Rule #269. Trying to please an enemy makes you the loser every time. Too bad the Demowienies haven't learned that. They seem more comfortable operating by Ferengi Rule #28. What's in it for me?
Living on the poor side of town is about to get slightly easier since Macy's, Wal-Mart and a British grocery chain discovered that there is money in those neighborhoods.
Officer Nugent sounds like a person who must have put his fingers in the electric sockets many times if he believed that a man could survive six 50,000 volt taser shocks in three minutes. And then three more a few minutes later. He sounds like the kind of person who laughed every time he watched don't tase me bro.
Absolutely unconscionable. Raising the price of a drug that needs to be used as soon as possible in order to prevent mental retardation in affected infants from $1,800 a dose to $23,000 smacks of a "let's make money mentality" as opposed to a "let's use this drug to help children", especially since they didn't have to do research and development on it. Shameful. On the bright side, Hopkins proved that there was a $15 alternative that worked equally well. The universe can work in mysterious ways.
Search engines can be another indicator of an economy that isn't doing so well. Searches for pizza (Dominos by 980%) are up and sit-down restauraants are declining. U-Haul and Motel 6 are popular again while Macy's has dropped almost out of the top 50.
BBB
Ferengi Rule #269. Trying to please an enemy makes you the loser every time. Too bad the Demowienies haven't learned that. They seem more comfortable operating by Ferengi Rule #28. What's in it for me?
Living on the poor side of town is about to get slightly easier since Macy's, Wal-Mart and a British grocery chain discovered that there is money in those neighborhoods.
Officer Nugent sounds like a person who must have put his fingers in the electric sockets many times if he believed that a man could survive six 50,000 volt taser shocks in three minutes. And then three more a few minutes later. He sounds like the kind of person who laughed every time he watched don't tase me bro.
Absolutely unconscionable. Raising the price of a drug that needs to be used as soon as possible in order to prevent mental retardation in affected infants from $1,800 a dose to $23,000 smacks of a "let's make money mentality" as opposed to a "let's use this drug to help children", especially since they didn't have to do research and development on it. Shameful. On the bright side, Hopkins proved that there was a $15 alternative that worked equally well. The universe can work in mysterious ways.
Search engines can be another indicator of an economy that isn't doing so well. Searches for pizza (Dominos by 980%) are up and sit-down restauraants are declining. U-Haul and Motel 6 are popular again while Macy's has dropped almost out of the top 50.
BBB
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Six For Saturday
This morning I woke up on a different planet. It seems that either hell froze over last night or invasion of the body snatchers isn't just a movie. Deborah Howell of the Washington Post thinks that there should be more substantive coverage of the candidates instead of the current media focus on soundbites. She even made sense, seemed to think biographies and how they react to situations is important. Weird.
Wheeeee! Straight to the bottom. Unless you happen to own one of the multimillion dollar estates.
Cracking me up. "Netroots Nation" has been planned for a year and Obama picks this week to travel outside the country. He'd rather go to a war zone than face the people who helped him get where he is. This generation of optimists doesn't seem to have any experience with a one night stand.
I know I'm growing my own this season, but the tomato growers have lost over $100 million since the government (which couldn't find a hole in the ground with directions and a flashlight) manufactured a crisis it couldn't solve. The ownership society is fading fast. Unless you mean ownership by a big corporation that controls your every move.
We're toast. Whatever he says, the opposite is true. Bush needs to get off this false shtick of his that opening up the Outer Continental Shelf will solve the economic crisis of everyday Americans. The only people that OCS will help are his friends in the oil companies who need to find another way to gouge the American people since they didn't anticipate that people would quit buying. Everything.
The last episode of Dr. Horrible's sing a long blog is up. It has been a real hoot and hard to tell who's more over the top, Neil Patrick Harris or Nathan Fillion. Or is it Dr. Horrible's heretofore unknown to him video sidekick?
BBB
Wheeeee! Straight to the bottom. Unless you happen to own one of the multimillion dollar estates.
Cracking me up. "Netroots Nation" has been planned for a year and Obama picks this week to travel outside the country. He'd rather go to a war zone than face the people who helped him get where he is. This generation of optimists doesn't seem to have any experience with a one night stand.
I know I'm growing my own this season, but the tomato growers have lost over $100 million since the government (which couldn't find a hole in the ground with directions and a flashlight) manufactured a crisis it couldn't solve. The ownership society is fading fast. Unless you mean ownership by a big corporation that controls your every move.
We're toast. Whatever he says, the opposite is true. Bush needs to get off this false shtick of his that opening up the Outer Continental Shelf will solve the economic crisis of everyday Americans. The only people that OCS will help are his friends in the oil companies who need to find another way to gouge the American people since they didn't anticipate that people would quit buying. Everything.
The last episode of Dr. Horrible's sing a long blog is up. It has been a real hoot and hard to tell who's more over the top, Neil Patrick Harris or Nathan Fillion. Or is it Dr. Horrible's heretofore unknown to him video sidekick?
BBB
Friday, July 18, 2008
Education, Energy, Healthcare And Honoring The Troops
I admit it, I'm confused. What exactly did she do wrong? This isn't the Bible belt and mentioning a German study that finds a link between maternal stress and homosexuality falls into the category of proper discussion in a Biology class. Doesn't it?
For years Cuba has been made out to be a backward country, but if I get breast or bum cancer that's where I'm going to wish I was. Did you know that the food is pretty tasty there too?
Pat Tillman wasn't a friendly fire death, it was deliberate murder and the government is doing its best to cover it up. And being shot by the people on your side isn't friendly, it's gross negligence.
Unlike the crew without a clue and their military advisers, the troops knew they were probably going to die onHamburger Hill their mission in Wanat, Afghanistan. If only our leaders had the courage that our overworked, overburdened and underprotected troops have. If they aren't being shot or blown up, they're being electrocuted back at the base. Meanwhile, the brass thinks the powers that be deserve to travel in style. Why is it that Reserves, National Guard and regular troops are considered so expendable?
BBB
The controversy centers on an incident in June 2007, when Sheldon was asked by a student in a human heredity class about heredity's impact on "homosexual behavior in males and females." Among other references, Sheldon noted a German study demonstrating some link between maternal stress and homosexual behavior in males, according to the lawsuit.Rep. John Peterson (R-PA) speaks some common sense on energy policy, how very few people are thrilled with the current candidates and Phil Gramm's disconnect with the average American.
Peterson: Well, Phil Gramm is a very smart guy and he knows the economy well, but Phil Gramm doesn’t know the people I know. Phil Gramm must be insulated from the working poor. If he was around the working poor, he would have never said it. The working poor are struggling. This is not a recession in their mind. This is a difficult time where they are struggling to pay their bills. ... He thinks that’s not going on out in America; he just hasn’t been out there. He must come from a pretty affluent neighborhood and a pretty affluent family. ...And I thought the ABC commenters were lacking in intellectual ability. They have nothing on the Politico commenters. Heaven forbid that they should actually discuss the points of the article on energy, they're too busy getting lost on the nuances of whether the press is too liberal and giving Obama a pass and some guy defending Cheney by saying he was only in the oil business for five years. Absolutely fascinating how the 28%s are determined to stay in fantasyland. At the expense of the country.
Sometimes the people who whine have more and are just angry they have to spend more. The whiners I know aren’t poor.
For years Cuba has been made out to be a backward country, but if I get breast or bum cancer that's where I'm going to wish I was. Did you know that the food is pretty tasty there too?
Pat Tillman wasn't a friendly fire death, it was deliberate murder and the government is doing its best to cover it up. And being shot by the people on your side isn't friendly, it's gross negligence.
Unlike the crew without a clue and their military advisers, the troops knew they were probably going to die on
BBB
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Is The Week Over Yet?
When I have money, I shop for groceries and every week I've noticed that prices are up. Not by a nickel or a dime, but by 30 to 50 cents. Per item. My income is fixed, which means I only have a certain amount to spend on food and it is forcing me to compromise on the quality of food that I serve my mother. Fortunately my garden is growing. So, how do you know when the Green Zebras are ripe?
The serranos are coming along nicely, the Early Girls are ripening beautifully and I finally have a few green beans.
Talk about emboldening your enemies. Leaving Iraq is considered to be cutting and running, but this isn't? Afghanistan is blowing up in our faces, just like the 60 Minutes report from a few months ago that those on the hardly ever right labeled as lies and bashing the troops. I'll be really glad when the mission is accomplished. Whatever that mission is, because it certainly isn't about capturing Osama been Forgotten or eliminating al-Qaeda influence
Sometimes it seems like the bastion of hope and freedom that was called the United States is just a dwindling light in the rear view mirror.
The American people don't seem to learn from their mistakes. With approval of Congress at an all time low what did the Democrats of Georgia do? They reelected every one of their incumbents. The people who have consistently voted against their constituents interests are free to do damage for another two years. America isn't interested in change, it's interested in maintaining the status quo so it won't have to think. Reminds me of the Distinguished Gentleman.
Not that the media here in the US would report it fairly, so the BBC has a handy list of some of the McCain/Obama flip-flops.
BBB
The serranos are coming along nicely, the Early Girls are ripening beautifully and I finally have a few green beans.
Talk about emboldening your enemies. Leaving Iraq is considered to be cutting and running, but this isn't? Afghanistan is blowing up in our faces, just like the 60 Minutes report from a few months ago that those on the hardly ever right labeled as lies and bashing the troops. I'll be really glad when the mission is accomplished. Whatever that mission is, because it certainly isn't about capturing Osama been Forgotten or eliminating al-Qaeda influence
Sometimes it seems like the bastion of hope and freedom that was called the United States is just a dwindling light in the rear view mirror.
The American people don't seem to learn from their mistakes. With approval of Congress at an all time low what did the Democrats of Georgia do? They reelected every one of their incumbents. The people who have consistently voted against their constituents interests are free to do damage for another two years. America isn't interested in change, it's interested in maintaining the status quo so it won't have to think. Reminds me of the Distinguished Gentleman.
Not that the media here in the US would report it fairly, so the BBC has a handy list of some of the McCain/Obama flip-flops.
BBB
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