Couple of movie scenes

The last refuge of a blogger with bloggers-block.  But you should enjoy these.  Getting ready to make the trip to Brigid's tomorrow for what promises to be a lovely night out with her and Dave.

I can kill you with my brain.....

Just because...

Facebook

I had a facebook account.  Basically used it to play games and such.  But found out they thought it was a good idea to track my web movements even after logging out.  So I punted it, immediately.

Robespierre--learning from the past....

From Kurt at A trainwreck in Maxwell.  I've made some changes that update it a bit. 

The next three months four years Robespierre Obama reigned supreme. he nominated all the members of the Government Committees Cabinet and judiciary, placed his men in all places of influence as Czars that are not answerable to the people of the United States or its Congress in the commune of Paris Washington DC, and assumed complete control of the Revolutionary Tribunal the federal government using executive fiat and regulatory agencies such as the EPA.

However, as his power increased, his popularity waned. On May 7 In February 2009 Robespierre Obama, who had previously condemned the Cult of Reason Christianity and Gun Owners as bitter clingers, advocated a new state religion anthropogenic global warming and Green Energy and recommended the Convention to acknowledge the existence of God strangling the economy of the United through draconian regulations in the name of green energy; on June 8 in February 2009 the inaugural Festival of the Supreme the Stimulus bill containing billions for green jobs being took place was signed. Meanwhile, the pace of the guillotine Democrats losing 'safe' seats to Republicans grew faster; public finance and government generally drifted to ruin, and Saint-Just  Morgan Freeman demanded  the creation of a dictatorship in the person of Robespierre that the American people re-elect Obama because he's black. On July 26 (oh hell, there's too many times to count now), the dictator Obama delivered a long harangue complaining that he was being accused of crimes unjustly. The Convention Congress, after at first obediently passing his decrees, next rescinded them and referred his proposals (such as his got-to-pass-right-now jobs bill) to the committees. 

....

 The rest is the history of Robespierre and his downfall, but there seem to be some parallels.  Maybe not the guillotine, I'll settle for one term as long as his disastrous policies can be reversed and we can get this country back on track.

....

That night at the Jacobin Club his party again triumphed. At the Convention the following day, Saint-Just could not obtain a hearing, and Robespierre was vehemently attacked (the 9th of Thermidor). A deputy proposed his arrest; at the fatal word Robespierre's power came to an end.

He fled to the Common Hall, whereupon the Convention declared him an outlaw. The National Guard under Barras turned out to protect the Convention, and Robespierre had his lower jaw broken by a shot fired by a gendarme. The next day (July 28, the 10th of Thermidor), he was sent to the guillotine along with Saint-Just, Couthon, and nineteen others.

There seems to be a meme starting....

DirtCrashr posted a variation on the Warren meme, as done by Vito Corleone.  Below is another contribution....

So maybe money talks...

There is a group in Canada ethicaloil.org who has been advocating for the use of oil from Canadian oil sands rather than Saudi oil on the grounds of human rights.  Much like the campaign against blood diamonds a few years ago, EthicalOil.org points out that the governments of the oil-producing nations who operate under shariah law don't quite make the grade as far as human right go and specifically points out that the rights of women are severely curtailed in those countries (woman cannot vote, drive, or even go out without a male relative).  This has led to a push-back from the Saudi government which is putting the screws to Canadian television to try to get them to stop airing the commercials from EthicalOil.

But here's an interesting thing that came through the wire this morning--King Abdullah has granted women the right to vote and to run in municipal elections.  The article tries to link this move to the Arab Spring, but I'm thinking that money is talking more than a political movement and that Abdullah is trying a different tact to counter EthicalOil's advertisements.

Gibson Guitar is a clear example of why Elizabeth Warren is wrong....

So Elizabeth Warren, the Democrat who is going up against Scott Brown in 2012, had a campaign appearance go viral on the internet last week. 

One of the comments she made was:  "You didn't have to worry that marauding bands would come and seize everything at your factory and hire someone to protect against this because of the work the rest of us did.

Tell that to Gibson Guitars, Ms. Warren.  They had the federal government come and seize $1,000,000 worth of materials, finished guitars, and electronic data from two of their factories, without the company being charged with wrongdoing.   The DoJ (I refuse to call it by its full name since justice has clearly gone by the wayside), is hiding behind the "ongoing investigation" aegis so they can avoid commenting on the situation.  This is the second time the DoJ has stolen property from Gibson and not returned it and is blocking their actions in the court system to resolve the issue.

The problem that Ms. Warren refuses to acknowledge is that the government has become the marauders of which she speaks and they strike at will.  Our civil liberties have been eroded to the point where we cannot defend ourselves from them, even in our homes, without fear of further reprisal.

Wow--didn't think anyone other than Freddie could sing like that...

Via Cold Fury.  Marc Martel of the Christian band (yes there is a ton of irony here), singing Bohemian Rhapsody and part of Somebody to Love.  The second one is part of his audition for the official Queen cover band.  I echo Cold Fury's sentiment that if Brian May doesn't pick this guy, he's missing the boat.

He might not have the stage presence of Freddie, but that can be learned.  I can see him in the white jumpsuit or the wife beater shirt easily.   If he plays the piano, he's golden.





And the real thing, just because....

A very under-rated movie

I was able to watch (again) the movie 'Sunset' with Bruce Willis, James Garner, and Malcolm McDowell.  Set in 1920's Hollywood, Willis plays Tom Mix; Garner is Wyatt Earp; and McDowell is the villain of course (looks like his character is somewhat based on Charlie Chaplin).  If you haven't seen it, it's definitely worth a rental.  For the internet cops--no one paid me, I just like the movie.  The tango scene with Bruce Willis in the Mexican-style cantina totally makes the movie.

My tin foil hat is going pretty well with my tailored wookie suit these days...

It's kind of funny that when the public speaks out about a law is passed or a regulation or something that nips away at our freedoms like a duck nibbling on a piece of bread is said to be the beginnings of a slippery slope, we're called conspiracy theorists.  Of course things won't be taken to that next illogical step, say the folks passing those laws or implementing those regulations using a dismissive and derogatory tone when questioned about the wisdom of implementing something like the TSA, the Patriot Act, or even Obamacare.  We're from the government and we're here to help.

If you don't want to be sexually molested or be seen naked, don't fly.  Vehicle monitoring is for your own safety, should you be in an accident, it can't possibly be used without your knowledge.  You have no right of privacy when your car is in your driveway at your home, but police continue to arrest people who are filming them in the course of their duty as a public servant on a public street.  Health insurance can't possibly be used to punish those who do not adhere to government guidelines of fitness (you must eat your broccoli, don't smoke, eat whole grains, watch your cholesterol).  The public doesn't deserve to keep its hard-earned money, the government can best decide where to spend it.

But of course it's expanded, now the NFL wants fans to be physically frisked before going to a game.  Onstar changed its terms of service so that even after you cancel the service, they can monitor and sell your vehicle logs unless you specifically deactivate the data connection (and we're supposed to take their word that if you request it, they'll do it).  The FBI is putting trackers on people's cars under the aegis of the Patriot Act.  In Chicago, the new Mayor wants to force enrollment into government 'wellness plans'. The government has forgotten that they are the servants of the public, not the other way around and devalue the currency of the land (dropping the markets again, BTW), pass laws that are shown to have no majority assent and haven't even been read, and treat even the most basic value of security in one's home as an outdated concept.

I dunno, but maybe they should be passing out more tin foil hats and Wookie Suits.  We might just get out of this mess if more folks started wearing them and taking off their rose-colored glasses.

Doubling down on stupid

The Obama administration has gotten its collective balls in a wringer on a couple of fronts:  domestically Obama is calling for more taxes on 'the rich' while re-defining rich as folks who are really not-so-much rich.  (That's part of the problem with being forced to quantify your definitions).  And the American public understands that class warfare is class warfare even if Obama says it's not.  This is so bad that his Democrat senate won't be pushing to 'pass this bill' for maybe a couple of weeks, if ever.  It's more of the same but with the additional 'problem' of recent experience showing that this absolutely will not work.  As a matter of fact, S&P is thinking about downgrading the US AGAIN because President Socialist doesn't realize that actually, you know, cutting the size of the federal government and its attendant spending is the only true way to get the economy moving and cut the deficit.  Taking more money from the American taxpayer will not work.

On the foreign affairs front, last year at this time, Obama made a lovely flowery speech about 'next year at this time' (chickens coming to roost now) 'there will be a Palestinian state living in peace with Israel.'  However, this is running into his re-election issue of trying to court the Jewish vote again, combined with the fact that Netanyahu refused to be pushed under the bus.  Because no matter what New York magazine says, Obama is most definitely NOT the first Jewish president, just as Clinton was not the first Black president.  It's got to be terrifying to Obama to be *thisclose* to actually having to stand up with Israel and veto a Palestinian statehood, since they are within two votes of making it happen.  For a guy who likes to vote 'present', taking a position, especially one he has shown he is fundamentally against, has to be the realization of his worst nightmare.

This guy and his policies are chock full of FAIL.  It'll be interesting to see if he can pull himself away from fund-raising in NYC to actually attend any of the UN sessions and to see if he can squirm out of the box he's painted himself into.

Phone cops play hardball...

I was having a conversation this morning and got reminded of WKRP, which was arguably one of the funniest shows on television.

'Scuse me while I whip this out....

Okay folks, I'm talking about my pocket knife but couldn't resist the Blazing Saddles reference.  Geez, if I'm the only one that does, consider yourself to be lucky.  Og, the Mighty and Indomitable, over at Neanderpundit, is starting a meme that is along the lines of "I'll show you mine and then you can show me yours."  So here it is, a Boker Trance Drop Point that Himself bought for me at the Shot Show three years ago.  (Note that the picture is from Moore Cutlery Custom Knives).

And why are people so surprised about Solyndra?

Folks have their knickers in a collective knot about the fact that the Obama administration mucked about in their loan from the American public to ensure that private shareholders got paid first.  And rightly so.  But seriously, this is not the first time that the administration has intervened in order to get their cronies paid off first. 

All one needs to do is look at GM.  There is this item by Mickey Kaus this morning about UAW workers getting bonuses to the tune of $5000/worker (BTW, this article states that GM has 48,000 workers, so that equals $240,000,000-a quarter billion dollars).  This is happening BEFORE the American public is getting paid back its $15 billion that was used to turn General Motors into Government Motors.

But this Bloomberg article from 2009 clearly states that shareholders got sidelined, at the behest of the Obama administration.

It seems to me that the GM and Chrysler bailouts were dry runs for this type of cronyism payout scheme.  Solyndra was more of the same, except there are some pesky laws that might actually have to be enforced by the DoJ.  You know, the criminal ones that are supposed to punish people who deliberately set out to defraud the American government.  Martha Stewart ended up in the slam for this, even though the 'evidence' in her case was very slim.  In this case, it was very public and the Obama administration aided it and Obama himself created a false impression by hailing Solyndra as his poster child for green energy in 2010.

The government is supposed to be an advocate for the taxpayers in this type of situation--it's part of being the steward of taxpayer funds and they have not and are not maintaining that public trust.   The Obama adminstration has shown very clearly in both of these situations that it is more interested in keeping its friends wealthy and happy and is more than willing to use our hard-earned dollars to make it happen.

Happy Anniversity to the Constitution

Today is the 224th Anniversary of the signing of the Constitution of the United States.  Despite it being crumpled and disregarded by the present government class, there are those of us for whom the words still have meaning and who believe that its tenents must apply to everyone equally.

Attaaaack Waatch takes it old school....

Beware!  It's:

from a tweeted idea from Iowahawk via DirtCrashr at Anthroblogogy....

Ahead of my time...

There is a new book out called Europe, Globalization, and the Coming Universal Caliphate by Bat Ye'or.  Her contention is something I've been trumpeting for a while--that muslims are colonists, not immigrants.  I expanded it to include any group who does not choose to assimilate and tries to put their ideals and ideas upon the society into which they have moved, but I'm glad that the idea is taking hold and that folks are starting to realize that the idea multiculturalism has been appropriated by colonization.  It's happened in most of the European countries and has begun here as well (Dearborn, Michigan).

Via Clifford May and the National Review Online with ht to:  Bookworm Room
Islam and its laws run in opposition to the laws of this land.  Both cannot exist together--you cannot be a good muslim and live under our laws.   Our laws cannot and should not be changed to adapt to outside forces that are inimical to our lives and liberties.

Seriously, what is the point of this??

The Early Show just had a segment about White House chefs doing micro-brew beers at the behest of the Obamas.  It was carefully pointed out that micro-brewing is legal in DC and that the Obamas bought the equipment with their own money.  Howevah......  I believe the White House chefs are paid for with taxpayer funds?  And they're doing micro-brew beer for parties at the White House?  It's a small thing I know, but just one of the other myriad small things that add up to the present residents of the White House thinking that they are royalty and not temporary residents (the more temporary, the better).

Someone should report the idea that the Obamas are using taxpayer funds for promoting alcohol consumption to Atttaaaack Waaaaatch.

The Man Who Wants to be Absolute Ruler of the Universe.... but is too imcompetent to make it happen

So Obama, while speaking to the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, said he'd just as soon that pesky Congress not get in the way of his vision for the future and his plans to completely run this country into the ground (I'm paraphrasing of course, but not by much).  Unfortunately by using regulations, he seems to be succeeding. 

This indicates to me that he'd rather be an Evil Overlord rather than an elected official holding a sacred trust with the American people.

So, according to the Evil Overlord List, how's Obama fairing?

10.  I will not interrogate my enemies in the inner sanctum -- a small hotel well outside my borders will work just as well.--check, if Gitmo counts.

11.  I will be secure in my superiority. Therefore, I will feel no need to prove it by leaving clues in the form of riddles or leaving my weaker enemies alive to show they pose no threat.--check, at least the first part, even if it's not deserved.

13.  All slain enemies will be cremated, or at least have several rounds of ammunition emptied into them, not left for dead at the bottom of the cliff. The announcement of their deaths, as well as any accompanying celebration, will be deferred until after the aforementioned disposal.--check, if Bin Laden counts.

17.  When I employ people as advisors, I will occasionally listen to their advice.--not-so-much (see #11).

21.  I will hire a talented fashion designer to create original uniforms for my Legions of Terror, as opposed to some cheap knock-offs that make them look like Nazi stormtroopers, Roman footsoldiers, or savage Mongol hordes. All were eventually defeated and I want my troops to have a more positive mind-set.--check.  MEchelle totally has this covered.

24.  I will maintain a realistic assessment of my strengths and weaknesses. Even though this takes some of the fun out of the job, at least I will never utter the line "No, this cannot be! I AM INVINCIBLE!!!" (After that, death is usually instantaneous.)--not-so-much (again, see #11).

45.  I will make sure I have a clear understanding of who is responsible for what in my organization. For example, if my general screws up I will not draw my weapon, point it at him, say "And here is the price for failure," then suddenly turn and kill some random underling.--not-so-much (again, see #11 or when he thinks that all regulations affecting farmers come under th USDA rather than the EPA).

61.  If my advisors ask "Why are you risking everything on such a mad scheme?", I will not proceed until I have a response that satisfies them.--not-so-much (again, see #11).

64.  I will see a competent psychiatrist and get cured of all extremely unusual phobias and bizarre compulsive habits which could prove to be a disadvantage.--not-so-much since the narcissim is still in evidence pretty much daily.

74.  When I create a multimedia presentation of my plan designed so that my five-year-old advisor can easily understand the details, I will not label the disk "Project Overlord" and leave it lying on top of my desk.--I dunno, does Attaaaaaack Waaaaaatch count?

100.  Finally, to keep my subjects permanently locked in a mindless trance, I will provide each of them with free unlimited Internet access.--not-so-much, if the FCC Internet rules fly.  Also see #74--Attaaaaack Waaaatch.

So I guess the bottom line is that Obama is really too incompetent (and caught up in #11) to actually be an Evil Overlord. 

For goodness sake, he's still wandering the countryside talking about passing something that he's calling a bill, but isn't, since it was never introduced into the Congressional system (way to go, Mr. Constitutional Law Senior Lecturer).  Or maybe it's just campaigning on the taxpayer dollar.  Unfortunately for the next year or so, we have to put up with his nattering, unless Solyndra or the Fast and Furious issues come home to roost and Congress finds a cause for impeachment.

Bill?? What bill??

At the same time that Obama is in North Carolina saying that if people love him then they need to help him pass his bill, a Republican Representative from Texas has actually introduced a bill with the same name as the yet unrealized and unintroduced, and unpaid for bill that Obama was calling "The American Jobs Act of 2011".  In the ultimate irony, Representative Gohmert's bill has the purpose of completely repealing the corporate income tax.

This was a brilliant move and as much theater as Obama was (and still is) pulling, since he keeps nattering about something that doesn't exist and never did, despite his waving around a sheaf of papers earlier this week.   But he should keep stumping on this because it would be a good idea to pass this bill.....

ht: Warner Todd Huston at Big Government, whose commentary on this you should read here.

Sig Sauer rocks the house

I lost a grip screw out of my Sig P-238 so I gave Sig a call for a new one.  Within two days of my call I had four screws (at no charge, even for shipping).  This is despite the fact that Sig's computer system was down when I called.

Maybe a little pricier than others, but surely worth it with customer service like that.

Thank you so much to the good folks at Sig for such sterling service.

My heads hurts....

On Don Wade and Roma's show this morning, they had as their very special guest, Rep. Jan "They lost power?" Schakowsky.  I kept it on, even though she makes my brain hurt with her non-thinking repetition of MSM talking points, because I want to keep track of the memes of the leftists in Congress.

There were two things that stood out:

1.)  it looks like the meme regarding job creation and Texas not being hit as hard by the collapse of the housing bubble was due to regulations, according to the left (in complete opposition to everything else I've read from non-Keysian economists).  Regulations are good.  Cutting regulations is bad and hurts job growth.   I found this meme also on Media Matters (the Soros-funded propaganda machine) so I'd guess it's going to make its way into the MSM pretty shortly.

However, Ms. Schakowsky (and Media Matters) missed the point regarding the Texas housing bubble reaction--Texas has regulations in place that do not allow home buyers to take more than 80% of a home's appraised value in cash-outs or home equity loans.  This prevents people from getting over-mortaged and it's prevents robbing Peter to pay Paul, so to speak since the cash-outs and loans can't be used to pay down other debts.   This is (again) in direct opposition to both federal policy and other state policies.


2.) apparently Obama, according to Ms. Schakowsky is one of the most pro-Israel presidents EVAH so she's very sad about Turner's victory in New York (a Roman Catholic Republican taking Anthony Weiner's seat in an Orthodox Jewish district that hasn't gone Republican since the 1920s).  Ms. Schakowsky doesn't keep track of things or has a very short memory if she missed Obama's treatment of Netanyahu; Joe Biden's speech; Obama advocating cutting Israel in half as well as giving their enemies a stronghold at the heart of the country.  Of course she really had no comment about it being a referendum or not on Obama's (and her) policies, but as soon as Media Matters comes up with a spin, she'll be able to parrot the talking points du jour.

I consider Ms. Schakowsky to be a stereotypical leftist Congressperson so it's good to get a perspective on how things are in her world.  I just wonder what color the sky is there??

Applicable phrase in so many conversations.....

But sometimes preceded by this (especially in the last two years):




Followed by this:

Groundhog Day, Part Deux... the Obama version.

Okay, so in June 2010, Obama asked for $50 billion to:  fend off "massive layoffs of teachers, police and firefighters" and to prevent a possible double-dip recession.

In September 2011, Obama is asking for $447 billion.  In a Monday press conference:  "He will be joined at the Rose Garden event by people from across the country who would benefit from the American Jobs Act, including teachers, police officers, firefighters, construction workers, small business owners and veterans," the official said.  Additionally the plan is:  "an insurance policy against the economy falling back into recession."

Really, it didn't work.   Going in at almost nine times the amount you asked for in June 2010 will not work either.  Give it up.  Seriously.





ETA: I just knew it! The great plan he's sending to Congress today that they are 'supposed to pass as quickly as possible' still doesn't have the important part in it--how it's going to be funded.  I think maybe he misunderstood all the brouhaha about talking about passing a nonexistent plan.  It has to be a whole plan, not just part of it.  Paying for it was actually the part people were interested in.  Loser.

Groundhog's Day..... the more things change, the more they stay the same.

So in 2006, NBC tried to find support for its meme that those redneck NASCAR fans just can't quite control themselves when faced with a fully-bearded dude dressed in muslim garb.  NASCAR fans didn't bother the guys and NBC decided not to continue their 'investigation' at the next race.

In 2010, ABC sent a reporter into a crowd of folks protesting the Ground Zero mosque who apparently tried the confrontational route by badgering ralliers and again, got nowhere but busted cold trying to start a fight.

In 2011, a Brazilian reporter for Al Jazeera, apparently trying to follow the same meme, decides to try to go to a Texas high school football game to 'interview' game goers about their attitudes about 9/11 and muslims in general and is politely told that due to FERPA and other issues, they would have to decline his offer to spin his reporting to make the populace of Booker, Texas look like racist Islamophobes.

You'd think that they'd quit trying after a while.....  The meme is dead dudes, look at the unions if you want real hate and violence.

The ultimate crisis not wasted....

I was in Boston on September 11, 2001.  I had been at my new job for just over two months.  I remember watching the TV in the conference room and seeing the second tower just seem to melt away.  I had one friend who was a defense department contractor who worked at the Pentagon periodically and another friend who had a shop in Greenwich Village, not terribly far from the Twin Towers and I finally got in contact with each of them the next day.  I remember comforting a new co-worker, a stranger as she cried helplessly at the carnage.  I remember my anger at those who perpetrated this heinous act.

I later remember the workings of Congress, those voices who said to not act quickly, lest there be unintended consequences of haste.  The Patriot Act, the TSA, the Department of Homeland Security.  The erosion of the values of the United States of American in response to the acts of fanatical muslims. 

I found it ironic that Hillary Clinton, in an address to the John Jay College of Criminal Justice on September 9, 2011 saying that:  [The United States] "cannot and will not live in fear, sacrifice our values or pull back from the world" over terrorism concerns, while trucks and other vehicles trying to get into New York City were being individually searched.

One thing that terrorists try to do is change the behavior of those whom they target.  And in this, Al Qaeda has succeeded.   We have small children, grandparents, and free citizens of this country being sexually assaulted in order to travel by air.  We have those who are so afraid of being called racist or Islamophobes that they would allow a Victory Mosque to be built at the site of one of the greatest tragedies and terrorist acts perpetrated in this country and that allow colonization of this country by those who do not wish to be part of this great experiment, but who wish to destroy and change it into their warped 8th century version of the world.   We have the head of NASA saying that, rather than take this country to the stars, the agency's mission is really to make muslims feel good because they were involved in the sciences in the 6th and 7th centuries.  We have the law of the land being twisted and broken and usurped.

From his place in Hell, Bin Laden has to be laughing his ass off.  And my anger is now directed towards those who are using his acts to erode my freedoms.

I will never forget the happenings of that day, which dawned so brightly.  I will fight to keep the reactions to that act from destroying my country.

Unions looking like idiots by jumping the gun...

So a bunch of ne'er do wells aka union members, along with the Rev. Jesse Jackson held a rally/protest in Chicago today calling on Congress to pass Obama's job plan.  The only problem is there is no plan, there is no bill (I'm really getting tired of him calling things an Act, before they actually are voted upon--maybe he needs to revisit SchoolHouse Rock and how a bill becomes a law).   So really, these morons want a re-run of Obamacare where you have to vote on it to find out what's in it??  Because that worked so well.  And because there is no plan to pay for it and because the rest of us are getting tired of class warfare and this whole non-quantitative 'fair share' idiocy, why should we take them seriously?  And they obviously don't understand the whole legislative process either.  So here's a remedial video for all of them.
 

Argh...

Let's just say that it's a good thing that if I had a superpower, it's not making people burst into flames.

That is all.

Well this could be fun to watch--CEO of Gibson Guitars to attend Obama's Job Speech

Via Breitbart's Big Hollywood, Gibson CEO Henry Juszkiewicz will be attending Obama's speech before the joint session of Congress tomorrow night as the guest of Rep. Marsha Blackburn (it might be that he will actually sit in the Speaker's Box).  As you probably know, Gibson Guitars was raided recently and he estimates that this probably illegal action by the DoJ will cost the company over $10,000,000.  Oddly enough, no charges have been actually filed yet (Gibson has not been informed as to why they've been raided and cannot get an answer), despite the raid and impounding of over a million dollar's worth of materials.  A rival guitar manufacturer who is using the same imported wood as Gibson, but gives to the Dems, was, oddly enough, not raided.

This could be better than Joe Wilson's 'You lie.' comment (which turns out that Wilson was right and Obama was lying, BTW).

Bets on the cameras doing loop-de-loops to avoid putting Mr. Juszkiewicz on the screen?? 

Quote of the Day from my sister

To preface this:  Usually I'm on my headset/phone when I walk into my building in the morning.  This morning as I'm walking in, my sister is telling me about a friend of hers who actually located camouflage ballet shoes to go with her camo tutu.  So she says, and I repeated out loud:

"Ya know, if you can find camouflage ballet shoes, then there's a good chance you're gay."

I repeated this as I'm walking past one of the facilities crew who promptly gave me a fisheye look, burst out laughing, and said "I'm letting you know I'm going to use that one."

Just so y'all know that turns of phrase do run in the family.

Let us rise.....

A French revolutionary named Camille Desmoulins (1760-1794) said:  "The great only appear great because we are on our knees.  Let us rise."  The words of this man ring truer today in the United States than they ever have before. 

We have a government who regularly violates the Constitution and who is ruling through executive fiat and by selective enforcement of the law.  The government class can best be described as a new Aristocracy and answers to no one--not their 'constituencies', not the law that is supposed to apply equally to each citizen of these United States.

We have a populace who have been 'dumbed down' over the last thirty years through those who wish to see serfs instead of citizens.  Instead of material that gives the tools necessary for independent thought, students are being taught that self-esteem is paramount to critical thinking.

We have a  media, who instead of being the 'Fourth Estate' and speaking truth to power, instead hides and covers for inept politicians and pushes political agendas that work to the detriment of this country.

It is time to stop consenting to our rights being violated.  It is time to step up and say 'No More!'

Let us rise.

Calling it like it is.....

Amy Alkon had to fly a few months back and in the course of her TSA 'patdown' had her vagina probed four times by the TSA agent, Thedala Magee.  Ms. Alkon (who I read daily) was upset at this and called it like it is--sexual assault and rape (which is what everyone else would also call it if it didn't happen at the airport).  To add insult to injury, literally, Thedala Magee is attempting to extort sue Ms. Alkon for defamation of character.  Fortunately a First Amendment lawyer, Marc Randazza, has stepped up to help Ms. Alkon put a stop to this attempt to suppress free speech.  Hopefully it will also cause a cascade to help us to regain our Fourth Amendment rights while traveling from one side of this country to the other.

Just wanting to show support, in some small way, for Ms. Alkon and her love for the rights of this country that are being trampled every day through complacent  and complicit sheeple.

Where can I get a job like that??

NASA scientists (and I use the term scientist loosely) are being paid to come up with scenarios such as one included in a report that

"...speculates that aliens, worried we might inflict the damage done to our own planet on others, might "seek to preemptively destroy our civilization in order to protect other civilizations from us."

"Humanity may just now be entering the period in which its rapid civilizational expansion could be detected by an ETI because our expansion is changing the composition of Earth's atmosphere (e.g. via greenhouse gas emissions), which therefore changes the spectral signature of Earth," the study says.

"While it is difficult to estimate the likelihood of this scenario, it should at a minimum give us pause as we evaluate our expansive tendencies."

And it could be that aliens will show up and offer to solve all of humankind's problems, including curing cancer in order to fatten us up and transport us to their home planet in order to eat us...  Oh wait, that's been done....




But seriously, I've read enough sci-fi that I could come up with any numbers of alternate scenarios as laid out by the writers of the past, I don't need to be a highly paid "scientist"......

Romanticizing Hard Work--a Rant

Something I've noticed is that many folks who would like to see the rest of us go without electricity, clean water, and transportation (especially teh EBIL Diesel trucks) have an idealized idea of how it is to oh, heat your house by wood or transport the myriad things that life in the country necessitates (and we're only nominally in the country--folks like my friend Chas are REALLY in the country).

We spent some time yesterday stacking wood--we moved about 2 1/2 tons by hand.  And while we were sorting and stacking, it occurred to me that the urban dwellers who kvetch about everyone driving big trucks, or the rabid recyclers, or the other 'greener than thou' folks really have no idea about the sweat equity that is necessary to be truly green (and for us, it's being cheap rather than being green, although it's a nice side-effect).  That said, it would be a lot harder for us to even do what we do without gas-powered implements, but we are well aware of the time-savings that those tools afford us.

Do they think that wood splits itself, that you can just start a fire anywhere and heat your house, that cooking using a wood stove is as easy as flipping a switch?  Or maybe that dryads donate sufficient wood and supplies?  I think that they are like the folks at Burning Man (not the naked guy, Roberta and Tam), but they go into the country for a weekend and 'rough it' and recycle the rest of the year and feel that they then can look down on the rest of us.

It's an annoyance.

I don't know about you, but I'm thinking some slower actions by Congress would be better

Of course, since everything is a crisis with Obama, he wants 'quick action' from Congress.  This is from a guy who decides to roll around the Midwest for a couple of days and then go on vacation for another 10.  How about actually looking at the issues, debating them on their merits, actually doing some more reining in of an out-of-control regulatory system?  Just let it go already.  Jeez louise..... 

And maybe in addition to a balanced budget amendment, there should be an automatic sunset on all laws of five years as well as zero-sum budgeting for all federal agencies.  That should keep everyone busy enough that they would quit mucking up everything.

Enter your crisis in this space....

I was reading an article today about Obama wanting Congress to pass a transportation bill.  The sentence reads:   

President Barack Obama is calling on Congress to pass a transportation bill to ensure funding for roads and construction jobs, arguing that failure to do so would spell economic disaster. 

I looked at Himself and asked if he only had one speech he uses for this kind of thing because you can just drop in about anything he's wanted done interchangeably in that sentence.

For example:

President Barack Obama is calling on Congress to pass a stimulus bill, arguing that failure to do so would spell economic disaster.

Or:

President Barack Obama is calling on Congress to pass a bill to raise the debt ceiling, arguing that failure to do so would spell economic disaster.

Or:

President Barack Obama is calling on Congress to pass a healthcare bill, arguing that failure to do so would spell economic disaster.

 But seriously, every time he's called on Congress to pass whatever bill, arguing that 'failure to do so would spell economic disaster', it's actually passing it that's caused the economic disaster.  

My life is made of irony....

We have some Jehovah's Witnesses who come by every couple of weeks.  We've never really talked religion, but usually about MPG of the cars vs. diesel, tractors, and heating by wood.  They're nice folks and invite us to things, although we've never gone.

Today he came by with an older guy instead of his wife.  Since our guy is earnest enough and is just walking his talk, I was hoping to make him look good and so sat and read through his literature and chatted with them for a while about the devil.  After they leave I realize I'm wearing my Simon Jester shirt with the stylized devil on it.  *sigh*  Oh well, I tried.

It's almost painful to watch... Man cuts off toes to save his life. But that's not the painful part.

Jon Hutt was trapped under a piece of logging equipment that fell off his trailer in a place with no cell phone service so he cut off his toes, wrapped them and his foot up, and then drove himself to the hospital.  And from the 911 call and such (once he was back in range), he maintained his sense of humor and his cool (when the 911 Operator told him he had to obey traffic laws, he just laughed and said 'No I don't.).  This is what one can call a Real Man.

Now to the painful part.  The painful part is watching nominally genetically male reporters like Matt Lauer and some other chiseled-jaw/empty head guy try to actually talk to and relate to this Real Man.  The empty head guy asked Mr. Hutt if he "learned anything about himself" from his experience.  Mr. Hutt looked at him (and didn't call him stupid) and just said "Not really."  Why?  Because he did what was necessary, got through it, and will go on.  He didn't and doesn't have anything to prove to anyone--he's a Real Man. 

It was humorous watching Matt Lauer hold the pocket knife the guy used (and of course Mr. Hutt had a pocket knife with him--he's a Real Man).  I think if Matt could have had rubber gloves on, he would have ('cause the knife had blood on it two weeks ago and must have cooties or something).  He was holding it so gingerly that I wonder how he actually kept it from slipping to the floor.

Something that Himself and I were talking about this morning is that urban dwellers don't really know what a Real Man is.  Watching Lauer and whoever the hell the other guy was trying to talk to this guy was proof that they really don't have a clue.

Pleasantly surprised.... Maybe Boehner does have huevos after all...

So, in a totally transparent wish to upstage the Republican debate next Wednesday, Obama comes out and announces that he wants to address a joint session of Congress (and also preempt network television programming) at the same time as the debate.  The Speaker of the House, Mr. Boehner, comes back with a 'well, that won't work for us since we've already got stuff planned, like votes and washing my hair.'  And so, Obama will now go up against the NFL on Thursday night.  The advantage of this for Obama is that it would be more devastating to lose in ratings against the Republican debate than it will against the NFL (in either case, I'd bet either would garner higher ratings than Obama).

Something else that occurs to me is that isn't a speech before a joint session of Congress a bit of overkill?  Shouldn't those things be saved for State of the Union addresses, declarations of war (or in Obama parlance--kinetic movements), and shit that really matters?  It shouldn't be used for grandstanding nor should it be used to rehash the same old same old because you all know how it's going to go.

I think, if I even bother watching (which I doubt), that we need to have the Obama drinking game:  every time he says 'let me be perfectly clear' or blames someone else for the mess his policies and regulatory overreach have caused, we drink.  I figure I can be blotto within the first five minutes, unless he's 53 minutes late again, like his last televised speech.