Sunday, July 31, 2016

Does election fraud matter? ID is minor compared to hacking e-mails

The DNC hack revealed election fraud according so some sources, but Democrats have been telling us for decades that election fraud doesn't really exist so why do we need Voter ID? Now we find out that the DNC itself engaged in targeted voter suppression, registration tampering, illegal voter purges, and more. But look! Trump is a fraud!

You'll need to click a couple times to reach the report: "Democracy Lost: A Report on the Fatally Flawed 2016 Democratic Primaries."

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2016/7/29/1554022/-Election-Justice-USA-Study-Finds-that-Without-Election-Fraud-Sanders-Would-Have-Won-by-Landslide
"Recently unearthed documents reveal that the FBI knew the IRS was unfairly targeting groups because of their conservative politics two years before Congress even heard about the agency’s misconduct.  The revelation has already added fodder to the conservative case to impeach the current IRS Commissioner John Koskinen."  Judicial Watch

http://dailysignal.com/2016/07/28/obama-administration-knew-of-irs-scandal-2-years-before-congress-but-did-nothing/

Very disappointing.  I doubt that anyone really trusts the IRS, but we expect the FBI to do better.

Saturday, July 30, 2016

$50 million vs. $19,000

According to Wall St. Journal, hedge fund managers (the Clinton’s son-in-law is one, I believe) have contributed almost $50 million to Clinton’s campaign, but only $19,000 to Trump. Could be perfectly innocent reasons for this—we always knew Clinton would be the candidate (coat tails, it’s her turn, etc.) And now we know the DNC rigged the primaries against Bernie. Oh, and did you see his new sports car after he endorsed Hillary? So they’ve had more time to flood her campaign with wish lists for regulations and special favors. They haven’t been that sure about who the Republicans would choose until the close of the primaries. Also, since Trump isn’t a politician, they don’t know if he’ll play footsy with the big money interests (he’s not big money, despite his wealth). But it could mean they know who can be bought because they’ve done it before.

The editors of National Review:  "She is an opportunist without anything resembling a conviction with the exception of her unwavering commitment to abortion, a “public servant” who along with her husband grew vastly wealthy exploiting her political connections and renting access to everybody from Goldman Sachs to Vladimir Putin, a petty, grasping, vindictive, meretricious time-server whose incompetence and dishonesty have been proved everywhere from Little Rock to Benghazi."

Friday, July 29, 2016

Hillary's Hate

"She promised to make government bigger and bigger and bigger. A communist at heart, she promised to suck up to the hardcore socialists in her party. She promised to empty the prisons. She promised to create worse-than-useless green jobs with big taxpayer subsidies. She promised to flood the country with aliens, illegal or otherwise, and hard-to-assimilate Muslims. With her grating voice, she attacked Republican nominee Donald Trump shrilly and relentlessly."

 http://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/263681/hillarys-hate-matthew-vadum

Did you hear the one where she shouted she'd get money out of politics?  Yuck it up. That's a real knee slapper.   WSJ reported today she's taken almost $50 million from hedge fund managers, and Donald Trump $19,000.

Leftist film maker shocked by lack of enthusiasm for Hillary

Film director, Josh Fox, best known for his Oscar-nominated anti-fracking documentary Gasland, uploaded a video (below) to his Facebook page.  http://www.dailywire.com/news/7844/leftist-filmmaker-uploads-video-showing-his-shock-chase-stephens

"This is amazing, this place is empty (Wells Fargo arena in Philadelphia). There is nobody left in here. I mean this whole stadium, look at this," as he pans his cellphone to show the lack of cheering Dems. He continues in disbelief, adding, "This is not voter enthusiasm.... I can't believe my eyes. I've never seen anything like this. This is the primetime of the Democratic National Convention right after the nomination of Hillary Clinton and this place is emptied out like crazy. I'm stunned."

I noticed it had well over a million shares--obviously not by Democrats!  He also mentioned that Bernie supporters had the worst seats in the house, and apparently they didn't show up for Hillary's coronation.

The DNC e-mail scandal on top of Hillary's e-mail scandal

Diane commented:  The e-mail dump had top DNC officials making plans to smoke Bernie. They were going to use his reported religion of Judaism against him down south. They called women Bimbos, reportedly were fully disrespectful to Black and Brown citizens. 

So the question is, "When will the Party in general demand their resignations?" 


 http://truthfeed.com/breaking-complete-list-of-wikileaks-dnc-email-dump/13099/

Examples with links.

DNC discussing their relationship with NBC/MSNBC/CNN and how to get better treatment.

A mole working inside of the Sanders campaign.

Politico writer sending his stories to the DNC before he sends them to his editor.

Democrats using interns to organize fake “protests.”

Trump was obviously joking about Russia and Hillary's e-mails, but the leftist media, who should have been on the story about what happened but gave her a pass, now have their panties in a wad crying "treason." They are so fake. Fake editors, fake journalists, fake outrage. This week they've been accusing Trump of being a mole to expose the DNC's treatment of Bernie and minorities; now he's committing treason. Should be an interesting campaign, but very lop sided media coverage.




The Russian hacker meme

Hillary's campaign manager "Mook provided no proof that Russian agents committed the crime, he clearly painted Russia as an American adversary acting with malign intent. He then yoked Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump to Russia’s neo-Czar Vladimir Putin: “I think that what’s troubling is how he (Trump) praised Vladimir Putin,” Mook said." http://observer.com/2016/07/clinton-campaign-tries-to-deflect-damaging-content-with-trump-smear/

Whoa Nellie. Talk about Trump blabbing nonsense. He might as well have said Norma Bruce--I have ties with Russia that go back to the 1950s! I've even visited there! And I traveled there by train, not cruise ship. I am against Hillary Clinton, and I spend hours on an ancient computer. But it's just not as good a story. Sigh. 

Russia seems to figure prominently in Democrat lies. Remember when they smeared Palin, with a Russia joke when it was Tina Fey who said it? Since the lapdog press never checks it was really a popular story. When caught saying disparaging things about minorities and gays and Bernie in their leaked e-mails, they just deflected it to Russian hackers (they could see them from their kitchen?) instead of the content.

I still think someone needs to check into the murder of that DNC guy. There's a lot of that following the Clintons. But he was just a white, middle class man, not worthy of press coverage. Important only to his family, who would never be asked to speak on national TV about their lost son/brother. http://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/Man-Shot-Killed-in-Northwest-DC-386316391.html

What if Wasserman Schultz was Clinton's key to the nomination?

 
In case this clip doesn't show in your browser: Wasserman Schultz was Hillary's campaign co-chair in her failed 2008 bid for the nomination. What if, in order to lock down the 2016 nomination, she were made the party chair? (The Wikileaks e-mails indicate that Hillary had been chosen before the primaries.) That means some one would need to step down, and that capable, able person was none other than Tim Kaine, the current vice presidential pick, a cafeteria Catholic to scope up those few Democrats who still have scruples.  Quite a pay off for him for stepping aside.

Thursday, July 28, 2016

I wonder who the bigger narcissist is, Trump or Obama?

Around here, 3-4 dozen was the high guess. Guess we weren't giving him enough credit for being the Narcissistic in Chief.

"Addressing the Democratic National Convention on its penultimate night to lay out the case for Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign, President Obama began by recalling his political debut at the 2004 Democratic National Convention. He then described how his family has become so well known to America in the intervening years. He spoke of his time i...n office, how the presidency has physically aged him, but how his daughters euphemistically note he now looks more "mature."

He spoke of everything he is proud to have achieved -- passing ObamaCare, expanding clean energy production, reducing consumption of foreign oil, passing the Iran deal, bringing troops home, killing bin Laden.

He spoke of how inspired he's become meeting Americans of all stripes. He spoke of his optimism. He spoke of the values he imparted from his family.

If it's starting to sound like Obama talked a lot about himself, that’s because he did.
In total, we counted 119 times Obama referred to himself during his speech ostensibly about Hillary Clinton." 
 Grabien.com

He also misquoted the Declaration of Independence AGAIN (4 times before this, at least, 2010, 2014, 2015, 2016?). He just cannot bring himself to acknowledge that rights come from God.

"The Obama version skips over a few words; the actual Declaration of Independence declares, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” But the point is that the Democrats — the Democrats! — are citing the Founding Fathers and the document of our national creation in their argument. This used to be the Republicans’ style. But since the GOP left it unused, the Democrats are picking it up and using it."

Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/morning-jolt/438460/barack-obamas-dnc-speech-appeal-conservatives

It was almost worth listening to the speeches of the DNC to hear them plagiarize the Republicans--saying this is a great country. After 8 years of hearing we are gun clingers, Islamophobes, anti-marriage, neo-fascists, war mongers and racists, it was sort of refreshing. Even if they don't believe it.

Not sure where Trump was speaking, but he was obviously joking about Russia and Hillary's e-mails, but the leftist media, who should have been on the story about what happened but gave her a pass, now have their panties in a wad crying "treason." They are so fake. Fake editors, fake journalists, fake outrage. This week they've been accusing Trump of being a mole to expose the DNC's treatment of Bernie and minorities; now he's committing treason. Should be an interesting campaign, but very lop sided in press coverage.

Why are you voting for Hillary (as seen on Facebook)

If you are Gay, why are you voting for Hillary when she wants to bring in millions of refugees that believe gays should be executed?

If you are Black, why are you voting for Hillary when she defends Planned Parenthood and admires Margaret Sanger, who wanted to abort as many black babies as possible and exterminate the black race because they are like "weeds." Most of those clinics are in Black neighborhoods.

If you are a Woman, how can you vote for Hillary when she has buried all of Bill's rape victims under the rug. As an attorney, Hillary also defended the rapist of a 12-year old girl and laughed about it later. She plays the woman-card and acts entitled; implying that she deserves your vote merely because of her sex. How is that gender neutral?


If you are a Miner, Steelworker or have a Factory job, why are you voting for Hillary when she supported NAFTA and TPP, and workers are being laid off because jobs are going overseas? She also welcomes open borders and illegals to get benefits with your tax money and compete for our jobs. Hillary boasts that under her administration miners and steelworkers will lose their jobs.


If you are a Law abiding citizen, how can you vote for Hillary when she is clearly above the law? Hillary deleted thousands of secret e-mails after they had been subpoenaed by the courts (illegal). Hillary kept thousands of classified and top secret e-mails on her private server; servers that had less security that g-mail and Hotmail. You can be sure Russia, Iran, and China have those now. 


The DNC clearly broke the rules by heavy-handedly favoring Hillary over Sanders while they were still competing for the nomination.

If you are a Veteran, in the military, or closely related to a military member, why are you voting for Hillary when she left those men to die in Benghazi and had the nerve to lie about it over and over again? They called for help, but the help was told to stand down.


 Furthermore, Hillary wants to eliminate the NRA, take away your guns, and abolish the second amendment?

Who is left?
‪#‎TheTrumpTrain

Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Symbols of the United States and Democrats

Allen West Republic's photo.  

Glenn Beck's photo.



Lots of symbolism in the meme if a proud Hillary in front of an American flag and the Wells Fargo arena surrounded by a fence.

Philadelphia, home of the first American government after our revolution, with a Liberty Bell holding the place of this century in the 2016 Democrat convention. Historic symbolism. The first major party to select a former president's wife to be its candidate.  Some fine day, a woman may actually do it on her own.  Do Bernie's supporters even know about our American Revolution, separating us from a monarchy across the ocean, or the issue of taxes without representation, or how brief and clear our Constitution is with religious freedom, free speech and gun ownership?

I see a photo (?) of a flag behind Hillary--still haven't seen any real American flags on the stage with the speakers--Elizabeth Warren's stage was practically nude for her speech. It was rumored that they rushed in with flags after it made the rounds of social media that there weren't any, but so far, I haven't seen them. The hosting arena is named for a huge bank, Wells Fargo, which had a $25 billion bail out in 2008 (repaid it). It usually hosts sporting events and celebrities, but even with segregated restrooms and fences and ID requirements for delegates, no one is threatening to boycott Pennsylvania--I guess that's just for southern, Republican states.

Looking into the mirror

It's not easy to look in the mirror and not recognize the person primping or combing.  But it's also difficult to see someone who used to be gorgeous, fit and bright 50 years ago when you first met. That image is imprinted in my memory.

We moved to Columbus almost 50 years ago.  It was an exciting time for us. New friends, new careers, new city. The possibilities seemed endless.  Everyone we met was so nice, so friendly, so moving ahead in their careers, and it was inspiring for us. The older people--in their mid-40s--were positive and helpful, willing to assist the youngsters and newbies. And so I met a young man, son of a colleague, who was about 20.  He was moving between his divorced parents' homes, dropping in and out of colleges, going between girlfriends and he seemed aimless.  He was drop dead gorgeous--had movie star looks and body. But something was a little odd, and I couldn't place my finger on it because  I was young and naive.  Finally, I realized by talking to others it was drugs, more specifically marijuana, and maybe some worse stuff used when his brain was befuddled.  He wasn't a criminal--that's pretty much a myth even 50 years ago.  People who are regular users of marijuana don't go to jail--unless they've been caught committing another crime or the police need them as informants, then it might happen, but with well off parents and a good lawyer, the most they'd get was a week in jail and maybe probation. The damage was being done inside his head--he had been a brilliant engineering student, and by 20 was just sort of stupid--in the sense of not caring about his class work. Even the party crowd he hung out with eventually moved on; he didn't. So when I see him today with bad teeth, big belly, saggy flesh, I know it isn't just age. He didn't finish college, did support himself all these years at fairly low level, low responsibility jobs. He's not a problem to society--just as you legalization folks promise. But it's still sad.

The pro-marijuana crowd, all with financial interests, will glowingly praise the benefits of the drug, and claim it's not as bad as cigarettes.  Although most users I know do both.  Do cigarettes make you stupid? Do they steal your future?  Do they destroy relationships? Do they make you happy to spend your free time on the couch rather than socializing or learning or progressing?  Do cigarettes lie to you the way weed does?  I know the manufacturers did for decades, and I suspect it's starting all over again.

Tuesday, July 26, 2016

And in the eighth year of the reign of Barack

"In the eighth year of the Obama presidency, members of his own party surveyed the American landscape and found an abundance of misery. The audience heard of children victimized by immigration law and mental patients not receiving needed care. New Jersey’s Sen. Cory Booker spoke of “stunningly wide disparities of wealth” and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders described a rigged economy benefiting only a privileged few. New York’s Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand spoke of unequal pay, lack of paid family leave, and a mom with two kids working full-time but still living in poverty. Perhaps it’s time for a change."  James Freeman, Wall Street Journal, 7-26-2016

More on e-mails and Democrats

I've seen some memes and posters about the latest e-mail scandal of the Democrats. They are much more worried about who hacked them than what they said about Sanders' supporters and minorities. Not sure the party faithful will see it that way. Now even Donna Brazile has been implicated. It should be a lesson to anyone, anywhere, politics, business or church, don't put it in e-mail if you don't want it exposed.

#‎blacklivesmatter‬ is marching in Philadelphia, the city of brotherly love, with a large sign, "Hillary, delete yourself." Is that a threat?

 http://www.nytimes.com/2016/07/25/us/politics/donald-trump-russia-emails.html?_r=0

 http://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-07-25/cybersecurity-experts-say-russia-hacked-the-democrats

 http://www.cnn.com/2016/07/25/politics/democratic-convention-dnc-emails-russia/

Meanwhile, in Philadelphia with the Democrats

The parents of the Fairfax County Virginia schools had been petitioning the school board to reconsider its new mixed locker and bath room edict, but with no success. Then. Guess what? Tim Kaine, former governor of Virginia and now a senator from that state, was selected as Hillary Clinton's running mate, and they needed to tap down any backlash for Obama's unpopular transgender policies, and definitely needed to win Kaine's home state. It was a miracle! The Board sent out a letter to parents, stating not that it had reconsidered its crazy policy unpopular with 99.9% of the students, but that it was postponing the implementation of the policy.

 Isn't politics grand? Segregated toilets and ID checks in Philadelphia for the DNC, and a Virginia school board postponing putting boys in the girls' locker room. In North Carolina that gets your tourism industry destroyed.

ISIS hasn't been mentioned in the DNC speeches although the bloody crimes continue in Europe. Today in Normandy an elderly Catholic priest was beheaded at the altar while saying mass by ISIS members. Amazing what can be done with knives. Another dead, another severely wounded. CNN reports it, "Doesn't know the motive?" One of the nuns escaped and went for help. In the U.S., we're killing air conditioners (mine is fried in the van), because according to John Kerry, that's the real danger, not ISIS.

Oh. And someone noticed almost no American flags flying over the DNC. I'm not watching--can anyone confirm?

Michael Brown's mother of the Ferguson riots is going to speak at the DNC. I can understand her grief. Her son is dead. If my son high on drugs had robbed a minority run store and then lunged into a police car to grab the officer's gun, I'd be grieving too. I just wouldn't go to the nation on TV and absolve him of guilt.

Monday, July 25, 2016

Think I'll go eat worms (from a children's song)

BEN SHAPIRO: "Hillary Clinton is in serious trouble. She’s not in trouble just because she’s unlikable. Everybody knew that. She’s not in trouble just because she’s corrupt. Everybody knew that, too. She’s in trouble because she’s politically inept. She’s in trouble because she can’t escape her unlikability and corruption by attacking Donald Trump. That was her game plan, too. She was hoping to sail to the White House on the wings of popular hatred of Trump. It’s not going to... happen – polls show Americans hate her even more than they hate Trump. That’s because she’s totally out of touch. She sees herself as a victim. She went on national television over the weekend and complained that “I often feel like there’s the Hillary standard and then there’s the standard for everybody else.” Americans across the country nodded: if she weren’t Hillary Clinton, she’d be in jail!"

Ninety five degrees and no AC

From Lakeside, Ohio to Columbus is about 2.5 hours, and Saturday after we started out when it was 95 degrees (probably 105 on the asphalt) we discovered our AC in the van had died. It was working fine on Friday. About 10 miles out we returned to our cottage with an almost dead cat, flushed faces and wet clothes. First we tried the nice service station outside Lakeside, and not only was it closed (late Saturday afternoon) but it was for sale. Thankfully, our guests (daughter, son-in-law, niece and husband) came up with a plan after determining it was nothing they could fix when the Wal-Mart trip yielded nothing. We drove in air conditioned comfort in our daughter's new Honda, and our son-in-law Mark followed us in our van sweating out the trip getting us safely home. Then he got back in the cool car and made the return trip for his vacation at Lakeside. I hope he is fishing on the dock now, he deserves it.

What does the priest say to Kaine in confession?

I was reading today the Catholic Catechism section on penance and reconciliation, and wonder how this fits with those who support the killing of the unborn in violation of church teaching, especially those supporting and influencing the laws of a nation of over 300 million. Being pro-choice reaches much deeper than dismembering a fetus or taking a morning after pill. In politics it’s lock step with euthanasia and the designation of male and female which protect families. The pro-choice mind set on the value of another human being, not unlike slavery in the mid-19th century when there were political decisions that could make or break a promising career.  “ I personally wouldn’t own a slave in Maine but support the right in South Carolina”. 
 
I do wonder what a priest says to really powerful, influential Catholics like Pelosi, Biden and Kerry (or even the deceased T. Kennedy), and now Kaine (who I believe rose up through the ranks as pro-life and then flipped to buy his political success) and was selected by Clinton* to make the party platform more compatible with the formerly reliable Catholic constituency http://www.catholiccrossreference.com/catechism/#!/search/1440-1449/fn/1446:47 
 
We Lutherans (and Presbyterians, Baptists, Methodists, Brethren, etc.) have no such rules; we just show up or don’t, believe or don’t, it makes no difference, and no one cares. We can sin as much as we want because no one has any authority to say otherwise, “Jesus paid it all,” as the hymn says.
 
*Yes, Trump did the same political calculation choosing Pence to buy Evangelicals, but where is the church rule that says he can't?

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Reasons to love bacon





GC Science's photo.
Yesterday for lunch at the lake house with our daughter and son-in-law and niece and husband, we had  bacon-lettuce and tomato sandwiches.  Gosh, it had been ages since I'd had one. Then I also munched a little on the extra bacon.  Joan had brought along a pound of thin sliced, and I had a pound of thick, so I cooked them up ahead of time, we put out the sliced farm tomatoes, and leaf lettuce and let every one fix their own.  Fresh fruit and chips completed the banquet.

Here is a list of the Top 10 Reasons why bacon is actually healthy for you!

Pork-Powered Protein: The protein found in bacon is extremely valuable to maintaining our energy levels and a fully functioning, healthy body, with a minimum of those nasty, waist, thigh and butt expanding, fat-building carbohydrates.

Bacon’s Blood-Balancing Bounty: Several university and medical center studies have shown that including bacon as a regular, moderate part of one’s diet naturally works to lower the body’s blood pressure and blood sugar levels, helping to prevent and/or alleviate the effects of diabetes, as well as heart disease, stroke and heart attack.

Flushing Fat With Flavorful, Friendly Flesh: While people have heard horror stories for years that bacon is full of harmful fat and after all, if you are what you eat, who wants to be a PIG? But the facts are completely the opposite, as bacon helps to fully satiate our appetite with high protein / low carb energy, helping the body lose weight, raise one’s metabolism and build leaner, stronger muscles.
Bacon actually has less total fat, saturated fat and cholesterol than many popular cuts of beef and chicken. While some fish has less fat and cholesterol than bacon, bacon has more protein power and does not contain toxins such as mercury.

Bacon’s Brain Building Business: Bacon is chock full of a very important nutrient called “choline,” which helps increase our intelligence and memory, from conception to Senior Status, and has been shown in University studies to help fight off the debilitating effects of Alzheimer’s Disease and other chronic mental impairments.

Bacon Lets You “Pig Out” On Essential Vitamins & Minerals: Bacon provides us with substantial amounts of the important, necessary vitamins and minerals our bodies need to function healthfully. From bacon, we receive: 65% of our Recommended Daily Intake of Thiamin (Vitamin B1) as well as 47% of our Niacin (Vitamin B3), 38% of our Vitamin B12, 36% of our Zinc, 24% of our Vitamin B6, 22% of our Riboflavin (Vitamin B2), 22% of our Phosphorus, 10% of our Pantothenate, 10% of our Magnesium, 9% of our Iron and the Protein to fat balance in bacon is actually 4 to 1, which is one of the highest protein to fat balances found in any meat, fish or fowl found on Earth.

Effective Mood Elevator: Bacon makes you feel happy, satisfied, blissful, which greatly reduces stress in our lives and effectively relieves the negative effects of frustration, self-deprivation and sense of lack in one’s existence.

Nitrates and Nitrites – Now Non-Issues: The fact is, while it is true that nitrates and nitrites are unhealthy for your body, what most pro -veggie, chicken and fish nutritionists fail to tell you is that you can easily avoid nitrates and nitrites by simply (A) not burning / charring / over cooking your bacon or by (B) Baking your bacon in the oven.

Some people also choose to avoid nitrates and nitrites by (C) cooking their bacon in the microwave, however, some medical research shows a strong correlation between microwaved proteins (all meats and proteins, from beef to fish, from cheese to eggs and even milk) and cancers caused by protein mutation under the conditions of microwave bombardment, so we recommend using the oven, 400 degrees, 8 to 10 minutes per side.

P.S. if you always include some dairy and citrus in your bacon meal, the vitamins A, D and E work to effectively prevent conversion of “nitrates and nitrites into dangerously toxic “nitrosamines” in the stomach, rendering them harmless to the body.

Bacon Power Now Expands To Our Vehicles and Industry: Yes, believe it or not, a company in The United Kingdom, TMI Foods has already successfully found a way to use bacon fat and grease to manufacture a powerful, low emission, environmentally friendly, all-natural, bio-diesel fuel that can be used to effectively and inexpensively run anything from motor vehicles to turbines and from the various engines of industry to illuminating and empowering generators. That’s right … Pig Power now also means “Power To The People!”

Universally Beloved Flavor Enhancer: Because bacon tastes so amazingly awesome, we’re a LOT more willing to set many of our finicky ways aside to enthusiastically eat many of the boring, icky, lackluster, so-called, “healthy, nutritious food items” that are supposedly good for us, as long as they come wrapped in bacon or with lots of bacon bits broken up and served with or within them.

While We Heart Bacon – Bacon Heart’s Your Heart: While people over the years have mistakenly made jokes about bacon being a leading contributor to heart disease, actually there are in fact several studies that show that the Omega-3 Fatty Acids and “choline” found in bacon can actually protect the heart from developing detrimental problems, as well as actually help HEAL such anomalies, after they have occurred!
Unlike the Omega-3 Fatty Acids supplements derived from fish sources, the ones that come from bacon aren’t chock full of poisonous mercury, like most of the popular fish oil versions are. So bacon Omega-3’s can not only help prevent heart disease, as well as lower your cholesterol, reduce inflammation and improve circulation, but also help you to avoid mercury and other toxic poisons being regularly spewed into our planet’s oceans.

Saturday, July 23, 2016

Trump is now THE candidate--no agreement on speech

Washington Post was offering readers paragraphs about Mrs. Trump's speech long after it was old news, not mentioning when Obama, an actual candidate in 2008 touted for being such a wonderful speaker, used Deval Patrick's "Just Words" speech (quoting many Americans) or Biden's challenge with borrowing a good line or three. From the Trump campaign's point of view, I suppose all was good if it keeps his name up front. Free publicity.

"The recurring theme of lawlessness, and Trump's determination to stop it, may be the most stark line of demarcation between the two parties. When Democrats hear that, they think racism, which is funny because what that tells you is that they think of black people as criminals who are most put at risk by the enforcement of laws. When Trump says it, he's talking about black and white people alike being protected from criminals." (Dan Calabrese, Herman Cain website)

I do find this odd. Violent crime, although on an uptick under Obama the last 2 years, is at historical lows. Why do Democrats fail to acknowledge the success of Bill Clinton's legacy--The Omnibus Crime Bill?

I did love Laura Ingraham's speech.  Well worth watching. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sqNhDVcvrsg

Friday, July 22, 2016

MACRA and DREXIT

The latest government acronym that will increase your medical cost and lower your quality of service is MACRA, The Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015. It was signed into law over a year ago and is the “law of the land” now with overwhelming bipartisan support in Congress and with much lobbying and cheerleading from medical associations. Obama even joked about having Republicans on board.  And MACRA is very lengthy and very detailed legislation. 962 pages. Does your doctor have time to read it? Efficient, quantifiable, homogenized, controlled and dehumanized. We might get a Drexit. http://hitconsultant.net/2016/07/19/34815/

http://www.forbes.com/sites/theapothecary/2016/07/21/last-years-medicare-doc-fix-is-already-breaking-down-here-are-some-new-fixes/#dff7517154cc

"As many as 58 percent of surveyed physicians would opt to join a larger organization to mitigate individual risk and have access to a greater array of resources. Eighty percent saw physician consolidation as an inevitability under MACRA, with half of physicians viewing financial pressures as the top driver of consolidation."  I suspect this is the true purpose of MACRA.  No independent doctors. https://ehrintelligence.com/news/physician-readiness-for-macra-implementation-found-wanting

The list of suggestions for change looks as long as the legislation. http://advocacyblog.acponline.org/2016/06/macra-solutions-versus-macra-rants.html

Thursday, July 21, 2016

How taste in beauty changes

Blue hair. That's what we called women over 65 when I was a kid. It was mean, but that's how kids are. And green hair was for a bad blonde rinse poorly applied. Now hair is lime green, purple, burgundy and polkadot, but on young women. What skin shade looks good with purple hair? And men wear orange running shoes with pink shoe laces and man buns. A nose ring used to be for bad tempered bulls, now they're for baristas serving $5 cups of latte. When I served coffee in the 1950s it was ten cents and if you smiled you could get a quarter tip. A nose ring would have gotten you fired. Tattoos used to be for tough guys, usually military, now they are walking art galleries with skin as the canvas stretched across big bellies and skinny calves and no one knows who the artist is.

Not sure a subjective view cuts it

. . . the researchers looked at 65 different mortality risk factors as they tracked participants through the later years of their lives. Once the number crunching was finished, the factor that rose to the top was surprisingly simple and straightforward.

The most sensitive measure of longevity was the individual’s own subjective evaluation of how healthy he or she felt. In other words, a person reporting that he or she feels healthy outweighed any other single predictor of a long life, including any medical measures such as cholesterol levels and blood pressure.'

It's hard for someone with diabetic neuropathy or COPD to report "I feel healthy." Unless they lie.  Unless they just haven't been to the doctor in years and don't know better.  Having a positive attitude and a fulfilling life is different.  I have a friend about 80 with a wonderful sense of humor, bright fulfilling volunteer life, and so many ailments she should be in a text book.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/out-the-ooze/201605/the-surprising-factor-can-predict-long-life

Bikers in Cleveland

 

Maybe you think this is harsh?  Picture an end-term abortion, and get back to me.

Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Speeches by First Ladies

I've now read more FLOTUS speeches than I care to, and they all talked about parents, hard work, strong values being passed on to their husband and self. Just about the only time Democrats talk about that without charges of racism and white privilege. After all, Obama was raised in a white family and his grandmother was a banker who sent him to private schools. I still think Elizabeth Dole's speech in 96 was the best ever, and no one can borrow from that one. FYI: I'm watching NBC--it is devoting more time to this than necessary. Has NBC ever found fault with the Obamas?

However, if you don't like a candidate the wife is fair game it seems.  I remember when a group from the American Library Association refused to attend (or maybe picketed) a speech by Laura Bush, a former librarian and big supporter of reading and archives.  ALA is so left it could fall off the planet. And I remember people on the right criticizing Mrs. Obama for her toned arms! She always looks great, and is a great role model for girls who can't get out of jeans, but detractors couldn't see it.

I read one account that Michelle’s speech 8 years ago was the same as that 7 habits of highly successful people book. But can’t imagine why Trump's campaign staff wasn’t more careful. At least she didn’t say it was the first time she’d been proud of her country. Although, maybe she did—I didn’t hear the speech.

I was a speech writer for a state politician in my 1983 job for the state of Ohio; it was a lot of cut and paste from her old speeches plus mixing in current issues, then making sure it had her rhythm and style. In those days you didn’t have the internet for checking word phrases.

Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Bursitis and walking update

Finally, I saw a sunrise. I'm getting 6-7 miles a day in walking, and mornings are best. All broken into small segments of one mile or less so I don't risk inflammation.  I use only the flat, east-west streets of Lakeside which indicate where the shore line was about 8-10,000 years ago.  We had a glacier in this area of the U.S. and then that darn climate change and global warming.  It was very hazy today, and promises to be very hot, but those first few moments as the sun pops over the horizon are glorious.

 I've seen several people using hiking poles, and when checking I seek trekking, hiking, walking, shock absorbing, ultralight, women's, cork, rubber, etc. Sure looks better than using a cane. https://www.rei.com/learn/expert-advice/trekking-poles-hiking-staffs.html

One woman I saw with walking poles is getting ready for the 500 mile Camino in Northern Spain where hikers stop at monasteries, villages and churches. She did it several years ago, and is planning another one. She talked about it for a Women's Club program.  http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/article-2159915/Walk-lifetime-Why-epic-Camino-trail-Spain-route-true-happiness.html

Dockside church service

  
Maybe Windows 10 photo feature isn't so bad after all. I think it auto corrects for wrinkles. It even cleaned up the ladies behind us. Actually, by the time the service started, it was packed. Sometimes over flows to park area.

Monday, July 18, 2016

Now you can be on the Ferguson Grand Jury

  What happened in Ferguson that makes ‪#‎blacklivesmatter‬ a lie and "Hands up don't shoot" a fake? This is all a myth - an evil nasty story that has no relation to the truth, but has led to the deaths of many police officers and life time crippling injuries of others.

There was a Grand Jury investigation into the shooting and that has been made into a play. It is verbatim eyewitness testimony with nothing added. It's the truth. Now you can judge. But it is an hour and 22 minutes, but riveting. The set and costume design are amazing, as are the actors. The creator--the man who used only the words of the testimony--is Phelim McAleer and it was performed by professional actors on stage in Los Angeles. Now you can see it on YouTube.  But you can also see how witnesses see things differently, and how some are mentally unstable or frightened.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBVNATEyF_g

"If Michael Brown had just stopped running, it could have ended another way." Eyewitness

Donald Trump has a new voter

Harry writes:  "Sitting at a stop-light, I was rear-ended last night on Bruckner Boulevard by a beat-up old Toyota going about 15 mph. No damage to my crash-resistant rear bumper, but whiplash to my neck. I got out of the car to confront the driver of the other car, and discovered it had no license plates, and there were four Mexican occupants (speaking Mexican Spanish). I asked for his drivers' license and insurance five times. No response. He sat in his car, looking terrified. Finally, one of the other occupants got out of the car, and offered me $5 cash for my troubles. I could have called 911 for the cops, but this is Deblasio's New York. I thanked the Mexican offering me the cash for his generosity, rejected his donation, and drove off. My neck aches, and Donald Trump has another voter."

Sunday, July 17, 2016

Obama and race relations

President Barack Obama began his administration by criticizing Boston police for responding to a break in call from a neighbor. As it turned out, the man owned the home, had forgotten his key, was trying to get in, and he was black, a friend of Obama's, Louis B. Gates of PBS. Well, I live in a condo complex of 30 units and I don't know all my neighbors, and I too would call the police if I saw a break in attempt. But Obama made it about race. And today, he has to speak out yet again after exacerbating race relations for the last 8 years.

Now we have three more police dead, after five dead in Dallas, and Obama making things worse.  I hope he doesn't decide to speak at their funeral.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/veteran-officer-rookie-baton-rouge-police-killed-article-1.2714978

http://www.reuters.com/video/2016/07/17/obama-condemns-shootings-of-police-offic?videoId=369292433&videoChannel=1

http://www.breitbart.com/video/2016/07/17/cleveland-police-officer-on-baton-rouge-shooting-obama-has-blood-on-his-hands/

Saturday, July 16, 2016

Nothing lasts forever

My favorite cup, far right middle row with the gulls, develop a chip, then a crack that looked unsanitary, so it had to go. Probably had 25 years of good service because I bought it here in Lakeside at a now defunct gift store. All the added text had worn off years ago. Now I'm using my Fire King, top row middle that I got in 1961. I'll bring one up from Columbus so I don't have an empty peg. I'm VERY particular about size, so I'll have to choose it.  Each cup sort of has its own story.  The gray with teal is for Central Ohio Watercolor Society (COWS); the navy blue is advertising for Alt Realty in Columbus--Marti Alt and I worked together for many years; the white with black was to commemorate the Abigail Tea room 1933-1991; the yellow mug is from Coffee 'n Cream shop here in Lakeside, but the pottery is in Ohio. The Abigail sold and reopened in 2008 under new ownership, but failed. In 2010 it was auctioned, and now the building is two cottages again, as it was originally.

All Lives Matter suspension in Canada

Tenor Remigio Pereira was recently suspended from The Tenors of Canada for singing, "all lives matter," changing the words of "O Canada" at an MLB game. Not clear to me if they thought it was disrespectful to their national anthem or to blacks. But I fear it is now racist to claim all lives matter. Is it disrespectful to mention baritones and basses also count if a group is named THE TENORS? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpxsJ-_vdPU

Quercus muehlenbergii Engelm, the chinkapin oak.

"Chinkapin oak  (also called Chinquapin) is usually found on warm, moist Udalf Alfisols, Dystrochrept Inceptisols, Udoll Mollisols, and Udult Ultisols over much of its range.  In the extreme southwestern part of the range chinkapin oak also grows on warm, dry Ustoll Mollisols and Astalf Alfisols."  I have no idea what those soils are, but the only  place I've ever seen these trees is Lakeside, Ohio. They have a wide range in northern and Midwestern United States.

The tree's scientific name honors Gotthilf Heinrich Ernst Muhlenberg (1753–1815), a Lutheran pastor and amateur botanist in Pennsylvania. He was the son of a German Lutheran missionary Henry Melchior Muhlenberg. In publishing the name Quercus mühlenbergii, German-American botanist George Engelmann mistakenly used an umlaut in spelling Muhlenberg's name, even though Pennsylvania-born Muhlenberg himself did not use an umlaut in his name. (Wikipedia)

There's a very large one on the corner of Third and Walnut, next to Hoover Auditorium, but at Third and Oak I can see 8-10 of them.  Very tall and shady. Our soil is rocky and the roots shallow and spread, so when they fall in a big wind, it is incredible.

Friday, July 15, 2016

Ohio abortions, 2014

This appears to be the newest report from Gov. Kasich's Department of Health.  I found some of the numbers don't match up, but perhaps it's resident and non-resident  Break down by race is about 51% for white and 39% for black with Cuyahoga County with the majority.

https://www.odh.ohio.gov/~/media/ODH/ASSETS/Files/health%20statistics%20-%20vital%20stats/Induced%20Abortions%20in%20Ohio%202014.pdf

The other Joan from the other Rome writes

"A 92-year-old lady I know had to traipse all over town today to pay a $100 fine she received for parking in a handicapped parking space at Walmart for a few minutes last week. She is in good health for her age but doesn't always have an abundance of energy. She was an "undocumented" parker, but all our "undocumented" residents are not fined or dealt with in any way; in fact, they are given special cities where they can avoid any penalty for their crimes. Maybe we should establish a "sanctuary city" for people who park illegally, so they can avoid the results of their violation of law?? Or maybe she could be elected to Congress so she doesn't have to obey the law? It's nice to know that we're punishing the offenses that really matter!"

(There is a reporter for EWTN who lives in Rome, Italy, and reports on the Vatican.  This Joan lives in Rome, Georgia)

A baby or a fetus

Diane's sixth great grandchild arrived five weeks early--perfectly formed and healthy.  But another woman carrying her could have chosen a late term abortion and called her a fetus....a lump of inconvenient tissue.

Does eating breakfast at friends' home count?

Eating at home (if it's healthy food) may be protective.

"The researchers analyzed health and dietary data from nearly 100,000 male and female U.S. health professionals who were followed for more than 20 years. They found that people who ate 11–14 homemade lunches or dinners per week had a 14% lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes during the study period than those who ate six or fewer weekly homemade meals. People who ate more homemade meals ate more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and consumed less soda, according to the study."

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/news/hsph-in-the-news/homemade-meals-type-2-diabetes-risk/?

Today we're going to the Idlewyld B & B for breakfast for Dan's homemade pancakes.

Thursday, July 14, 2016

Don't know him, but he's called it

  
 
Here is another post by Mark:
So someone just asked me; "what do you think black people need to do to solve the issues you keep talking about?" Here's what I think; the first step is with black males. Black males need to go home and start being MEN IN
THEIR HOMES instead of BOYZ N THE HOOD. They need to start DEALING with the crime in their communities instead of DEALING the dope that causes so much of it. They need to start realizing that nobody fought and died so you could live like a fool and die like a coward. And they need to take this load off their women's backs and take their rightful place of responsibility in their families.
Do that.....
and everything else will fall into place.

Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Liberals call it voter suppression

Whether you call it "voter identification requirements" or "voter suppression" depends on your political views. In my city I have to show photo ID, sign a book, and have my signature compared as well as stating my address is the same as my ID. For every dead person who votes, or parking lot listed as an address, or non-citizen who votes, someone's vote is being stolen and people lose their confidence in the process. Only one party objects to clean voter rolls, and to my knowledge they don't roam the hills of southern (rural) Ohio looking for people Hillary Clinton wants to put out of work to take to the polls. However, when marijuana is on the ballot, I suspect both parties will be offering assistance.

Little black lives

It's a shame that ‪#‎blacklivesmatter‬ isn't a slogan for the unborn. 78% of abortions in New York are for black and Hispanic babies, but no one is rioting. 72% in Mississippi, but no one is marching or clogging freeways. In 2010 in New Jersey 55.9%, the District of Columbia 64.8% and Georgia, 73.2% and in Texas 63.7% were Black or Hispanic, all supported and financed by white, liberal Democrats, but no days of rage are planned.

Printed group prayers

Some group prayers sound more like sermons and I have to stop after the first sentence and wait for it to end. Who writes prayers that include words like "diversity," "seeking new opportunities," "inclusiveness," and "tolerance?" A government bureaucrat?

Are we being manipulated by trending stories on social media?

I think it was either Wall Street Journal or Washington Post that posted a side by side view of what trends on Facebook on various issues. I suppose they calculate from hashtags, which I rarely use. You can check any of about 10 issues and see how we are being told completely different versions by the (mostly) on-line media which are often connected to mainstream TV and print. For instance, much on the left about bathrooms is posted by an LGBQT rights organization that probably few on the right have ever heard of.  I see I'm not the only one posting statistics about percent of white offenders shot by police exceeding black, but that news isn't crossing over. Some reporters definitely don't know the difference between percentage and rate, and believe crime should reflect percentage of population. If that were so, 50% of homicides would be by females. Although both left and right could read Department of Justice reports that homicide rate declined from 9.3 homicides per 100,000 in 1992 to 4.8 homicides per 100,000 in 2010, they disagree on why, and rarely cite it in #blacklivesmatter stories, even though blacks have benefitted the most. Unfortunately, there is something called the Ferguson affect and crime is on the uptick--again, disagreement on why.

November 2011, NCJ 236018

What if you read a story about Chicago murders and that most occur on street and alleys and parking lots, in fact that the outdoor rate of murders had gone from 61.3% in 1991 to 82.4% in 2011.  Scary, right?  But what if you read that in 1991 the outdoor murder number in Chicago was 928, and by 2011 had dropped to 435, and the streets of Chicago are safer than 20 years ago?  Both figures are true, but it depends on the slant the reporter chooses to use to manipulate the reader. Black Lives Matter will probably not tell you that most of the falling crime rate in the last two decades has been for blacks, because the white rate was low 20 years ago, and is still low.  It is the black community, the one complaining about increased police presence in the neighborhood and more black criminals in prison that has benefitted the most from the Clinton era omnibus crime bill.

Chicago murder analysis, 2011

Cleveland Browns running back Isaiah Crowell posted a drawing/cartoon of someone dressed all in black (a message?) slitting the throat of a policeman. He's since apologized for his poor decision. Sorry. That's not good enough for me. He needs to hear from President Obama and AG Lynch and lose his flying privileges and the Browns should fire him. Where was his outrage at black men being killed by black men, which is about 4,500 a year or 40— criminal or innocent — for every one killed by a cop, and where was his rage when whites, mostly committing crimes, were killed by police to protect him, his family, and job--that number is higher than blacks. He's disgusting. And the media can step up and take the blame for race pimping and never telling the truth, only reporting about blacks, and often erroneously.

Monday, July 11, 2016

Update on real and fake olive oil

I think I blogged on this years ago.  Found this today.

"The brands that failed to meet the extra virgin olive oil standards, according to this study: Bertolli, Carapelli, Colavita, Star, Pompeian. Eat Grown Local also reports: Filippo Berio, Mazzola, Mezzetta, Newman's Own, Safeway, and Whole Foods in this list; the data may be from the earlier 2010 study when more brands were evaluated.
 
The real deal: California Olive Ranch, Cobram Estate, Lucini. Kirkland Organic, Lucero (Ascolano), McEvoy Ranch Organic are also noted by Eat Grown Local."

http://lifehacker.com/the-most-and-least-fake-extra-virgin-olive-oil-brands-1460894373

How do we find the real thing? Olmsted recommends a few reliable retailers, including Oliviers & Co. in New York and New Jersey. Otherwise, look for labels reading “COOC Certified Extra Virgin” — the newly-formed California Olive Oil Council’s stamp — or the international EVA and UNAPROL labels.

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/your-favorite-food-its-probably-fake-2016-07-10

Marketing strategy for Lakeside

While looking for my map of the Great Lakes (wanted to figure out exactly where Lake Superior was) I found a power point illustration for a 2010 lecture at Lakeside on marketing strategy for our little town. I found a chart showing the recession of 2000 was over by November 2001 (how often are you told Geo. W. Bush inherited a recession) but with slow job growth and the recession of late 2007 was over in June 2009 with even slower job growth, and with both, plus the one in 1991, it was the private sector, not government programs that created the recovery. Looks like we're about due, doesn't it? But government won't learn, no matter who is in office.

Advertising

How many believe the hype, labels and advertising? I just made some "bullet proof" coffee, and the coconut oil label promises that it's pure, extra virgin, gluten free, certified organic by QAI (which has USDA approval), chemical free, Hexane free (a petroleum based solvent used in some processed foods), cold pressed, no trans & hydrogenated fats, a BPA free container which is reusable, bottled to retain nutrients, flavor and color. Ah, but here's the clincher. It promised me a "healthy soul." Not even my church promises that.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/10/bulletproof-coffee_n_6424258.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/14/style/the-cult-of-the-bulletproof-coffee-diet.html?_r=0

Sunday, July 10, 2016

Black lives matter

Black lives matter began on social media, was picked up and distributed by mainstream news, all about the false narrative that police kill blacks out of proportion to the population. But crime isn't committed that way. The victimization rate for Blacks (27.8 per 100,000) was 6 times higher than the rate for Whites (4.5 per 100,000). The offending rate for Blacks (34.4 per 100,000) was almost eight times higher than the rate for Whites (4.5 per 100,000). (Homicide Trends in the United States, 1980-2008 NCJ 236018) From 2003-2009 among reported arrest-related deaths, 42% of persons were white, 32% were black, and 20% were Hispanic. And crime rates for blacks is 8x that of whites. (Bureau of Justice. Arrest related deaths, 2003-2009. NCJ 235385) So Whites are being killed at a higher rate than Blacks. We don’t see it on tv.

Is voter ID racist

True the Vote released one of its largest voter-roll research findings to date this week, flagging more than 36,000 records in 16 counties for cases of duplications, death, double voting, minors registered, illegal addresses and so on. Maybe you're saying "so what," but this was Florida, the state where Democrats try to read minds in elections they lose based on hanging chads (a paper fragment when a hole is made). Every fake voter steals the right of someone who is a valid voter.

 If voter ID is racist , how was Obama able to get 99% of the black vote and the black voter turnout exceeded white voters in both 2008 and 2012? Two elections aren't a pattern, but if black voters don't turn out for Hillary, don't say it's the fault of voter ID.

Friday, July 08, 2016

Keeping college students ignorant

This could be the problem. Less than 1/3 of the top universities in the U.S. require a course in American history for a history major. Not. One.
 
  • That means, not only do our future leaders from our elite universities not know about the Spanish, French, Dutch and Portuguese explorers and settlers; they don't know that less than 400,000 African slaves came to the former British colonies and that about 18 million went to the islands and South America.
  • They don't know about the NW Ordinance of 1787, signed before the Constitution that outlawed slavery in new states and guaranteed religious freedom; they aren't taught about the horrific expense in blood and treasure of the Civil War; they don't know why we have a relationship with Cuba, Puerto Rico and the Philippines, former colonies of Spain.
  • They don't know the contribution of churches to the big 3 of the 19th century--abolition, temperance and women's rights; they don't know that whites and blacks marched together in the civil rights movement and it was Republicans that led the way for 100 years before LBJ got in the act.
  • They don't know the incredible improvements in public health that our parents and grandparents paid for--they've never seen an iron lung or a person's face destroyed by small pox. Their babies don't die of measles.
  • They don't know how the federal government has lied to native Americans still to this day and yet offer them cradle to grave assistance to keep them poor; they don't know why the Great Depression in the U.S. extended for a decade due to government programs instituted by FDR; they don't know how or when the military and schools were racially integrated or about the great bi-partisan efforts.
  • They don't know that the U.S. government at the highest levels actually was infiltrated by Communist spies and sympathizers and it wasn't just about who could make movies. They probably don't know which came first Viet Nam or Korea or who we were fighting.
Yes, it's a shame that today's millennials learn history with social media lies or from late night comedy shows. They at least should know as much as the new immigrants do when they raise their hands to become citizens.

http://www.goacta.org/images/download/no_u.s._history.pdf

 "Of the 23 programs that do list a requirement for United States history, 11 allow courses so narrow in scope—such as “History of Sexualities” or “History of the FBI”—that it takes a leap of the imagination to see these as an adequate fulfillment of an undergraduate history requirement."

"Some strange topics can take the place of United States history. Of the schools that do not require a single course in U.S. history, majors have free-range to choose from niche courses such as “Soccer and History in Latin America: Making the Beautiful Game” (Williams College), “Modern Addiction: Cigarette Smoking in the 20th Century” (Swarthmore College), “Lawn Boy Meets Valley Girl” (Bowdoin College), and “Witchcraft and Possession” (University of Pennsylvania)."

And students and their parents go into debt for this drivel?

"Our colleges and universities, whether in the name of “inclusion” or globalism or a debased hope that they will attract more students by eliminating requirements, have created a vicious circle of historical illiteracy and the civic illiteracy that accompanies it."

I didn't major in history--I was a foreign language major, but I did have 2 or 3 courses in American history plus one in political science. This survey is just shocking, and certain explains how we've become so divided in the U.S.

People often say

Why would you consider selling your Lakeside cottage when you enjoy it so much?

Here's some photographic evidence.

 
 

Thursday, July 07, 2016

Myths about blacks in prison

"Drug sentences do not explain blacks’ overrepresentation in prison. Blacks represent 39% of drug convicts, compared with 37% of all prisoners. This means that if all drug convicts were removed from America's prisons tomorrow, the share of black prisoners would drop from 37.4% to 37.2%. In the federal system, blacks accounted for 24% of 2015 drug-trafficking convictions and 6 percent of convictions for simple possession. It is blacks’ disproportionate involvement in violent street and property crimes that causes their over representation in prison, not drug prosecutions."

https://www.manhattan-institute.org/sites/default/files/IB-HM-0716.pdf

The organ concert

Yesterday I joined a lovely group of women for a discussion of a common interest, and one mentioned that she's part of a group at home where she allows 10 minutes for an organ concert then cuts it off.  One woman in the group was new to that expression, and thought she meant music.  We explained: an organ concert is when people (mostly older) sit around an compare in great detail their surgeries, diseases, or just aches and pains.

I was about 50 when I noticed.  We were at a lovely restaurant, on the porch with a view of the river, and I could overhear the ladies at a nearby table doing one upmanship on knee and hip surgery, arthritis, and cancer. Around that time I heard the expression "organ concert" and I saw my future.

Ten years ago I wrote about the three forbidden topics for a pot luck. Weight, health and age. It's worth another look, so I don't tell you about my pain level today or why can't things be like they used to be, or whether I had too many calories yesterday.

Guys Club at Lakeside

Wednesday, July 06, 2016

What James Comey said about Hillary Clinton

  • He concluded Hillary was “extremely careless” in handling our nation’s secrets.
  • He admitted no reasonable person could have believed putting these emails on a private server was at all appropriate or acceptable.
  • He admitted 110 emails on the server were classified at the time they were sent — showing Hillary not only lied, but knowingly endangered national security as secretary of state.
  • He admitted Hillary deleted work-related emails before turning them over to the State Department, despite her claims otherwise.
  • And, most shocking, Mr. Comey even admitted it’s likely foreign governments hacked her emails — and our adversaries could know critical secrets about the U.S. government because of Hillary’s actions.
  • http://www.allenbwest.com/allen/heres-why-im-delighted-about-the-fbis-verdict-on-hillary

    Donald Trump has zero ads to Hillary's thousands.  He's got a lot of material--they write themselves.

    Thinking of Martha Stewart today . . . and how she decorated the jail

    Wall Street Journal: "For our money, the most revealing words in FBI Director James Comey ’s statement Tuesday explaining his decision not to recommend prosecuting Hillary Clinton for mishandling classified information were these: “This is not to suggest that in similar circumstances, a person who engaged in this activity would face no consequences. To the contrary, those individuals are often subject to security or administrative sanctions.” So there it is in the political raw: One standard exists for a Democratic candidate for President and another for the hoi polloi. We’re not sure if Mr. Comey, the erstwhile Eliot Ness, intended to be so obvious, but what a depressing moment this is for the American rule of law. No wonder so many voters think Washington is rigged for the powerful."

    http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2016/07/05/he-saidshe-said-hillary-clinton-vs-james-comey-on-her-email-practices/

    http://www.wsj.com/articles/for-hillary-clinton-political-fight-over-emails-is-far-from-over-1467767839

    Can a young couple live on one income?

    Some young'ns think a couple needs two incomes to survive these days. Not true. You just have to rein in the gottahaves to the essentials. In the old days of the 1970s, we didn't have cable contracts, phone contracts, eating out several times a week, computers to play with, 2 or 3 cars, homes where everything matched or it got replaced (we even got by with laminate counter tops), TV in every room, college debts, credit card debt, very few people I knew were paying support for another family in another house and few took vacations except the rich (a cottage at Lakeside was $45/week). We didn't have a paid vacation or paid health insurance. And at our house, no one smoked or drank alcohol, and that is a HUGE savings. Refigure your budget with a 1970 plan, and see if you really need to go to work, ladies.

    That said, today so many things are cheaper. Computers, TV, microwaves, clothing, even food are a fraction of the cost of 40 years ago. And compared to the 80s, mortgage rates are laughable. A tithe is still 10% and that's the best budgeting tool.

    Tuesday, July 05, 2016

    On how bad Trump is

    I have never cared for Trump. I always suspected he was a plant by the Clinton-Soros machine to take out the candidates they feared because it was such a stellar group. However, as he continued to win, he began to stab his mentors and creators in the back, until he began to believe he could do it. And even if I'm right (or if I'm just into conspiracy theories), on his worst day he's better than Clinton.


    Crimes and misdemeanors, but no intent

    "FBI Director James Comey announced that the FBI will not recommend charges against Hillary. Although he said that there was extreme "carelessness" in handling classified information, the lack of intent to violate the law precluded prosecution. That's a bit of a surprise given that the Department of Justice is currently prosecuting Petty Officer First Class Kristian Saucier for a similar crime where no inten...t was involved. This gives rise to suspicions, verging on certainty, that the law is different when your name is Clinton, that laws are for the "little people" and not those in charge. As Kurt Schlichter has recently warned, the sense that there's no such thing as rule of law in today's America is likely to be quite corrosive. If Hillary can do this much damage to America's fabric now, how much worse will things be with her in the White House?"

    https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/statement-by-fbi-director-james-b.-comey-on-the-investigation-of-secretary-hillary-clintons-use-of-a-personal-e-mail-system

    http://www.9news.com/news/nation-now/glenn-reynolds-about-that-clintonlynch-accidental-meeting/264670390

    http://www.politico.com/story/2016/07/fbi-recommends-no-charges-against-clinton-in-email-probe-225102




    Explosion at the Bruce cottage

    I decided to fix the last two eggs for breakfast this morning.  So I took out a heavy, deep, ceramic cereal bowl, sprayed it with non-stick spray, and cracked and dropped in the two eggs.  I covered it with a damp paper towel so I wouldn't have egg to clean up inside the microwave.  Zap for 1 minute.  Took a peek, then zapped for another minute.  I carefully removed the bowl (very hot).  Hmm. A slice of cheese would taste good on that, so I took the package out of the frig and removed a slice and placed it on the eggs, hoping it would melt.  It just sat there.  So I walked to the opposite side and took out a fork and knife. When I poked my wonderful egg/cheese meal with the fork it exploded.  And I mean, everywhere, including my nice light teal shirt that matches my teal and yellow summer slacks and all around the coffee pot and microwave.  Plus the steam scalded my right forearm. So, it wasn't cooling while I did those other tasks, it was building up steam.  There's a message here, and I'll figure it out.

    A great story by a guy I don't know about another guy I don't know

    This story by David Lester (don't know him) appeared on Facebook about the clean up in West Virginia after the recent flooding.

    "On Thursday I was up to my ankles in every imaginable kind of waste helping a 70 some year old lady throw away every single one of her belongings. Then I look and another truck pulls in and this guy jumps out and says in a deep British accent "My name is Anthony...how can I help?"

    That day we tackled every job that required no brains and lots of brawn and also strong stomachs. Came to find out Anthony heard about the flood devastation through friends in WV and international medi coverage and decided to fly in from London and help. He flew into Charlotte, rented a truck, loaded up with supplies and drove to Clendenin. I invited him to stay with us and he agreed. We shared military stories and he was a great guest. He returned every day back to the floods.

    On Sunday (July 3) I didn't accompany him and he wound up putting a displaced elderly woman up in the Motel 8 in Dunbar for two nights on his dime. On this day of celebrating our Independence Day (which he calls traitor day😜) I wanted to give a shout out to this great guy that my family adores. Thanks Anthony for your kind heart and British wit!! And he doesn't do Facebook but I thought his efforts should not go unnoticed."

    A wonderful July 4 story, don't you agree?

    Looking for links I see a socialist web site is blaming funding cuts for disasters.  Really? For some people always look for political advantage.

    http://www.cnn.com/2016/06/25/us/west-virginia-flooding-deaths/index.html

    http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2016/06/30/west-virginia-faces-new-reality-after-deadly-flood/86555454/





    Monday, July 04, 2016

    Did Thomas Jefferson read St. Robert Bellarmine

     There is no way to know if Thomas Jefferson ever read the original works of St. Robert Bellarmine. Chances are very good Jefferson knew of the writings of the 16th century counter-reformation Catholic who was extensively quoted in a book that was in Jefferson's library--a book that spoke out about the right of kings to rule. The Congressional Library still possesses a copy of Patriarcha, a book which once stood on the library shelf of Thomas Jefferson.  Patriarcha, was written by Robert Filmer, the privage theologian of James I of England in defense of the Divine Right of Kings and principally in refutation to the Jesuit Cardinal Bellarmine’s political principles of popular sovereignty.”

    Jefferson's words echo that of a man who wrote two centuries earlier, and whose work itself echoes St. Thomas Aquinas.

    With regard to the equality of men:

    Declaration of Independence:  “All men are created equal; they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.”

    Bellarmine:  “All men are equal, not in wisdom or grace, but in the essence and nature of mankind” (De Laicis,” c.7).  “There is no reason why among equals one should rule rather than another.” (Ibid.)  “Let rulers remember that they preside over men who are of the same nature as they themselves” (De Officus Princ.” c.22).  “Political right is immediately from God and necessarily inherent in the nature of man” (De Laicia” c. 6, note 1).

    With regard to the function of government:

    Declaration of Independence:  “To secure these rights governments are instituted among men.”

    Bellarmine:  “It is impossible for men to live together without someone to care for the common good.  Men must be governed by someone lest they be willing to perish” (De Laicia,” c.6).

    With regard to the source of power:

    Declaration of Independence:  “Governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

    Bellarmine:  “It depends upon the consent of the multitude to constitute over itself a king, consul, or other magistrate.  This power is, indeed, from God, but vested in a particular ruler by the counsel and election of men” (De Laicis, c. 6, notes 4 and 5).  “The people themselves immediately and directly hold the political power” (De Clericis, c. 7).

    With regard to the right to change the government:

    Declaration of Independence:  “Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government. . .Prudence, indeed, will dictate that governments long established should not be changed for light and transient reasons.”

    Bellarmine:  “For legitimate reasons the people can change the government to an aristocracy or a democracy or vice versa” (De Laicis, c. 6).  “The people never transfers its power to a king so completely but that it reserves to itself the right of receiving back the power” (Recognitio de Laicis, c. 6).

    https://fellowshipoftheminds.com/2013/09/17/st-robert-bellarmine-and-the-declaration-of-independence/

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellarmine-Jefferson_High_School

    http://supremacyandsurvival.blogspot.com/2016/07/st-robert-bellarmine-and-declaration-of.html

    https://suburbanbanshee.wordpress.com/2013/07/04/thomas-jefferson-and-st-robert-bellarmines-natural-law-teachings/

    http://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?id=6607&CFID=27181055&CFTOKEN=86110878

    Sunday, July 03, 2016

    Let's not forget about Nigeria

    Nigeria was the first mission field I heard about as a child.  Church of the Brethren missionaries would come to our church in Mt. Morris and talk about their work. The Church of the Brethren in Nigeria is now larger than the mother church denomination, but is experiencing terrible persecution from Muslims.  What follows is from The Catholic News Agency and is the most recent I could find, a report of June 9 of a meeting at Heritage Foundation.  It will take more than a hashtag to solve this.  Boko Haram is more lethal than ISIS according to the Global Terrorism Index and the number of displaced people is second only to Syria.

    “What is unfolding in Northern and Central Nigeria is one of the worst, most neglected humanitarian crises in the world,” Elijah Brown, executive vice president of the 21st Century Wilberforce Initiative, stated at the Heritage Foundation on June 9, introducing the report.

    Attacks on villages and schools by the terror group Boko Haram– most known for its April 2014 abduction of over 200 school girls in Chibok – have displaced millions in the last few years. Other problems that have arisen are attacks by militants of the Fulani herdsmen in the fertile Middle Belt region, destroying entire villages."

    http://www.heritage.org/events/2016/06/nigeria

    http://europe.newsweek.com/boko-haram-splinters-isis-over-child-suicide-bombers-us-general-473004

    http://www.standwithnigeria.org/

    http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/17/world/global-terror-report/index.html

    http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/11/africa/nigeria-suicide-bombing-boko-haram/index.html

    Saturday, July 02, 2016

    13 foods to avoid at the grocery store

    With the exception of potato chips (which I have trouble resisting), I avoid most of these foods--they are very high priced (per oz.), full of fillers, HFCS, and, just stuff bad for you. I switched to real butter years ago, never drink pop, bought almond milk once before seeing what a rip off it was, avoid most processed meat (have an occasional hot dog for old time's sake), eat only old fashioned oatmeal (90 seconds in the microwave), buy regular yogurt and add fruit at home. You do become addicted to flavors and textures, so keep this junk away from kids even if it sounds healthy.

    http://thestir.cafemom.com/healthy_living/198850/13_grocery_store_staples_experts?

    "Many foods seem harmless and appear to be healthy with labels saying "natural" or "low fat," but these items aren’t what you think. You can create the same product or buy a true healthier alternative."

    Sounds of the early morning walk at Lakeside

    When the city walker starts out for a morning walk in a small town along a large lake (like Lakeside, Ohio where we have our summer home) at first she hears silence.  But the sounds begin to roll in the ear soon.  At first it is the disgusting crunch, crunch of the Mayflies underfoot at every intersection with a street light. An experienced Lakesider just reminds herself--it means the Lake is healthy.

    Then she hears the birds--sparrows, black birds, robins, cardinals, jays, mourning doves--and all the others that she's been told about on the morning bird walks provided by Lakesiders but can't identify. It's a beautiful cool morning, but some people are running air conditioning window units unaware, something I don't hear at home because everyone has whole house AC.  Then if the windows are open, I hear some muffled talking, probably from rumpled beds, and a baby, very young is crying.  Maybe a wet diaper? No sleeping in for the new mom and dad.

    Now there's something I never hear at home--a screen door slams as the resident walks to the porch with a hot cup of coffee.  I can hear the boats patrolling the shore, probably from the Customs and Border Protection from a near by port.  Other noises, like the tiny business district waking up and getting ready for customers. Someone needs to take vacations at another time so this tourist area can be served. If it weren't for the fact I need to stay on the flat streets, I'd head for the lakefront for other sounds--almost like a different place, but just two blocks.