How will this help world peace?

It's nice I suppose to be idealistic, but I do wonder how holding hands around a pyramid built centuries ago with slave labor will help.

More than 1500 students, teachers and parents from 50 nationalities “formed a circle of peace that symbolized peace in the world” at the Giza Pyramids in Cairo, Egypt, Thursday, April 2, 2009, “delivering a message that young people from different cultures and religions can live together peacefully.” It’s hard to imagine what else that much money for the travel, food, hotel, etc. for 1500 might have done if these same students had just stayed home and helped their own countries. Perhaps that wasn't the purpose of the trip--maybe it was just Spring Break for rich kids and they needed a plan to get credit for it. However, tourism is Egypt’s number one industry, so I suppose they did help feed a family or two, just as we did during our recent trip.

Update, April 8: A reader has informed me this was an event of the New Cairo British International School. Upon checking the school's very nice website, I see nothing on the school calendar--no mention at all--but if you click to "parents" that's where you'll find the photos and the information which didn't appear in any of the news sources I checked. The school also celebrates Coptic Christmas holiday and has an Easter egg roll. The Prince of Peace you may recall, spent some time in Egypt when he was very young, and we celebrate his resurrection on Easter Sunday.

Meanwhile, young people of a number of different nationalities, mostly sponsored by radical leftist organizations backed by Soros and various communist/marxist front organizations demonstrated against the G20 and U.S. capitalism (fast crumbling under the weight of Obama’s heavy hand to push us over the cliff into socialism/communism). All these countries are covering their own ineptitude and grabs for power with their "bash a banker" hooliganism, led by the likes of our own Barney Frank drooling and lisping in front of cameras for the world to see.

Update, April 8: You gotta love these capitalists. Some enterprising Frenchman is charging empty headed young people with full wallets $67 a piece to learn how to be street demonstrators against the evil capitalists. Saw it in today's WSJ--with photos of drop and roll.

And here is one of my husband's first paintings of our recent trip--he's moving faster than my blog which is still stuck on our first day in Israel.

Ritalin, Obama, and the economy

Murray observed yesterday that

If my child behaved like Obama our family doctor would more than likely tell me he was suffering from *AD/HD. I mean, just look at what Obama's been up to since he's been in office.

He's at the White House for a press conference, then off to Ohio to give a speech, then over to Illinois to talk up HIS plan, then back to the White House to undo another Bush Policy, then off to Iowa to make some promises, then back to the White House to sign an unread bill. He holds a news conference every other day and hits the TV talk shows. His rapid fire, daily destruction of our country while breaking campaign promises doesn't seem to be enough since he is now over in Europe selling HIS plan. Why... the guy can't slow down or sit still. If that isn't hyperactivity then such a thing doesn't exist. It would be great if such activity was positive for the country, but quite the contrary; he is quickly sabotaging our country's finances and future. Foreigners know it but, out of fear, we seem to be slow to catch on. Even if he was stopped right now it would take years for this country to get back on its feet. We have a handful of legislators who know this, but unfortunately there are too many PORK lovers who are backing him.

When confronted, the backers usually claim that Obama "inherited" all these problems from the Bush administration. Well, that's nothing but a cop out that only separates the two parties even further. Besides, if you take the time to examine the chain of events you will find not only did the Democrats promote sub prime mortgages, Obama himself was part of it.

I've said it before: the only way to get this country back on its feet is to abolish our two party system. First, Obama must be stopped! It ought to be evident to everyone by now that the Democrats and the Republications are never going to agree on anything. Contrary to what Obama promised in his campaign speeches time and time again, that he would bring them closer together, he has done just the opposite. Every day he and his cohorts fire another arrow into the Republican crowd by blaming the crisis on them. Our legislators have lied to us so much that it's impossible to separate the truth or if truth actually exists anymore.
Dr. Murray

*The most common symptoms of ADHD are:
Impulsiveness: acting before thinking of consequences, jumping from one activity to another, disorganization, tendency to interrupt other peoples' conversations.
Hyperactivity: restlessness, often characterized by an inability to sit still, fidgeting, squirminess, climbing on things, restless sleep.

And Tom Barrett who writes for Conservative Truth has a similar theme. He first wants to stop putting kids on Ritalin; he then wants our President to stop ruining the country through his own “hyper” behavior.

Which brings us back to the problem I mentioned earlier. If we stop turning our kids into drug users, what will we do with all the Ritalin?

Because the NEA (National Education Association, the national teacher’s union) and most school systems have jumped on the Ritalin bandwagon, it has become a huge cash cow for the drug’s maker. As a result, huge stockpiles of the drug have been produced based on projected demand. So, even if the schools came to their senses, what could be done with all these drugs? I may have an answer.

I say we give it to Obama. He has all the classic signs of ADHD. He can’t stay focused on anything. He’s hyperactive. He can’t stay on one subject for more than a day. And he definitely can’t keep his hands to himself. And his staff shares his problems. The White House is crawling with ADHD!!

Let’s focus just on Obama, and examine his symptoms. The nation is in the midst of a major financial crisis, which he has acknowledged. The problem stems from policies instituted by his party 31 years ago which have resulted in a wave of foreclosures and hundreds of thousands of lost jobs. So you would think he would focus on fixing the credit problems and job creation. But he can’t seem to stay focused. In fact, during his first eight weeks in office he has constantly jumped from one priority to the next, while ignoring the major problems. Sure sounds like ADHD to me.

He told us he would focus on dealing with the so-called “toxic assets” held by financial institutions. Instead he has forced healthy institutions to take bailout money when they didn’t want it and didn’t need it. The president of Wells Fargo said that he when he tried to refuse the money he was told to take it and buy up smaller banks with it! That obviously won’t help the credit crunch, so why is Obama pushing it? Simply because if a few big banks absorb all the smaller ones, it will be easier for him to nationalize the banking system.

Ninety-five per cent of new jobs are created by small businesses. Helping them would be the single best way to stimulate job creation. And the best way to help them would be to reduce the unconscionable federal tax burden. In all of his trillions and trillions of dollars of proposals he has not thrown a crumb to small business. In fact, he has said that he will increase their tax burden, making it difficult for them to just survive, much less create jobs. (Obama has been hearing Republicans complain about him ignoring small business, so in the last few days he has come up with some half-hearted proposals. But they’re all bureaucratic in nature, and will result in more government control over businesses.) and there's more.

Our Bishop's Testimony doesn't reflect that of many Christians

Callon Holloway, Bishop of the Southern Ohio Synod for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), testified before Subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce committee.

"I am here today representing both the ELCA, the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States representing nearly 5 million people, and the National Council of Churches (NCC), an organization that represents 35 Christian denominations, 100,000 congregations and approximately 45 million people in the United States."

In my opinion the NCC is a "just us" social justice organization that couldn't find the great commission if someone opened a Bible to it. Even in the 1970s when I was a Democrat (although an evangelical Christian recently converted from humanism), I had no use for the NCC's no-cross, no-salvation gospel. Furthermore, the ELCA for 7 years has been struggling to fight off the gay-marriage, gay-ordination cult, and so far has been unsuccessful. Rather than look at what Scripture says about marriage, it has reinterpreted numerous verses, proof texting to fit a different agenda. So I'm not surprised some in our leadership have fallen for this "Gospel is greener on the other side" with the unbelievers. So Cal doesn't speak for me, or many Lutherans. Nor do I approve of his being part of the testimony (NCC and NWF) of organizations that are falling for this.

I would prefer he fell in with the Evangelicals of the Cornwall Alliance and the Science and Public Policy group (see its journal here), neither of which are a denomination, but both of which have a far stronger Biblical view than the ELCA/NCC representative, Cal Holloway, a man I personally like and admire. Speakers at this March 25 event:

* Tom Karl, Director of the National Climatic Data Center, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
* John Stephenson, Director of Natural Resources and Environment, Government Accountability Office
* Bishop Callon Holloway, Evangelical Lutheran Church in American, On Behalf of the National Council of Churches
* Larry Schweiger, President and CEO, National Wildlife Federation
* David Waskow, Climate Change Program Director, Oxfam American
* E. Calvin Beisner, Ph.D., National Spokesman, The Cornwall Alliance for the Stewardship of Creation
* Lord Christopher Monckton, Chief Policy Adviser, Science and Public Policy Institute

"The second International Conference on Climate Change concluded its 2-1/2 -day run March 10, 2009 in New York City after confronting the theme "Global warming: Was it ever really a crisis?"

The answer was a resounding "No." Check the link for presentations.

More than 75 papers and keynote addresses were presented by some of the world's leading climatologists, economists, policy makers, and opinion leaders. You can access videos of many of the presentations here. New videos and audio versions will be added as they become available."

Unfortunately, Bishop Holloway didn't attend this one.

Friday Family Photo July 1972

We all used to be skinny--even the kids. My husband and I have added some weight and our children some height (6'1" and 5'8") since this was taken at my mother's farm near Franklin Grove, IL in 1972. At that time we were still buying his suits in the boy's department--I think his waist was 28". But he actually got thinner. There was a serious recession in the 1970s and he lost his job in 1976 after first going to 4 days. It was a very troubling time for us--the marriage, the family, the budget, and especially his weight and health. He was only out of work three weeks, but it really upset everything, and he wasn't that happy at the "new" place where he became an associate and then a partner, and then an owner. It started to show on his slender frame. I don't recall the exact figure, but I think it was around 120 lbs.

We're chubby and fine now--so take heart. Unemployment is a terribly wrenching experience with many layers--lost friends and colleagues, fear, health problems, . . . new opportunities, although they may be down the road a few years. On the bright side--I'm betting our children remember none of this except climbing that cherry tree and running barefoot on the lane.

July 2002

HAMAS fundraiser this week-end in Cleveland for CAIR

While Soros backed anarchists and jihadists link arms in the world's most peculiar street alliance to protest the G20 gathering (for some reason beyond my comprehension these not-so-bright and on-the-payroll young'ns confused our rookie-pres with an evil capitalist conspiracy), HAMAS will be raking in the dollars for more home grown terror activity (can't call it that at the White House) right here in Ohio. As if Cleveland didn't have enough problems of its own making. Read about it here and be sure to follow the links.

Here are the players: Holy Land Foundation (funneled $12 million to HAMAS)
Monzer Taleb, aka Munzir Taleb, Monzer Talib, (singer-fundraiser for HAMAS)
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) (unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation trial)

Here are a few profiles of CAIR members and what they've said.

The full article reveals all sorts of links and familial relationships of the band members and the conspiratists. Maybe it's time to ask that hotel chain (Embassy Suites - Cleveland Rockside) why it is renting space to known terrorists?

A Thursday Thirteen rerun from 2007

This was blog number 4206--I don't number them anymore--makes a mess when searching for an old one.

Thursday 13--what I do now I didn't do then

Carol at her blog had written a letter to herself of 10 years ago--the Carol of 1997; I couldn't think of anything for 1997, or 1987, so I dropped back to 1977. The children were 9 and 10, I was working a few hours a day in the main library at Ohio State, we'd joined a new and thriving church the year before. My parents and grandparents were alive, as were all my siblings. If it weren't for the fashions, it was a nice, pleasant decade. So what do I do now, I didn't do then?

1. I make lists. I resisted this for years--and still rarely do it, but if there is a time crunch, I do make a list. I didn't even make a list for groceries, most of the time in the 70s. I just kept a typed list in my purse (same list every week) and could remember what we did and didn't have. Whatever automatic list maker I had in my head, got all filled up.

2. I belong to a book club now--joined in 2000, and the group is in its 26th year. However, I think I read less, but I do have more variety because on my own I rarely read fiction or mysteries.

3. I'm more proactive about my health, but still hate to exercise.

4. I occasionally have a glass of red wine--didn't drink at all until after my heart ablation in 2002, and still have never tasted beer (I think it smells like something has been left in the laundry basket).

5. I wear glasses now--prescription. I think I purchased reading glasses at a drugstore in the late 70s or early 80s, but didn't get into daily wear until 1993.

6. I travel outside the country now, but for years travel meant driving with 2 kids in the back seat (Mahhhhhaaaam, she's looking at me!) to visit relatives in Indiana and Illinos. Actually, in 1978 we did drive to Florida. Boy, is that a treat with squirmy, quarreling kids.

River cruise Germany and Austria, 2005
7. I spend more money on myself now than I did in the 70s.

8. Now my kids can cook for me, instead of the other way around. That's really great, and they both seem to enjoy entertaining.

Christmas at our son's home, 2006
9. I control more electronic gadgets in a day than what I would do in a year in 1977--digital camera, scanner, printer, 2 computers, email, blogging, cd player, DVD and VCR, several remotes, microwave, etc. Not into I-podding, blackberry, cell phones or MP3-ing. We have 6 TVs--we had one in 1977. The little photograph printer I bought this summer is still in the box, however, and I haven't connected my new mouse.

10. I pay more attention to political, national and international news, and read several newspapers, business and medical journals, but pay less attention to what's happening locally with the schools and city, and only read the local paper a few times a week.

11. I write more--I always wrote a lot (letters, essays, work related things)--a few hours a week, but now it is several hours a day.

12. I drive an older car now--in 1977 I had a 1976 Buick; now I drive a 6 year old van. Of course, I kept that Buick until 1985--tip for you parents: old sedans are great for teenagers.

13. I eat out more--it's a social thing, and there are many more restaurants to tempt us than 30 years ago. I go out earlier now for coffee--used to wait until the kids were in school, now I'm often the first customer.

New York Times reports

Now that Obama is president and NYT helped put him there. . . "It turns out there are terrorists in Iraq, retreat does embolden the enemy, the U.S. military was not just locking up innocent Iraqis for no reason, and American troops have improved the situation in Iraq considerably, not made it worse, at least over the past couple of years.

Now they tell us! What's changed, of course, is that Iraq is no longer the partisan flashpoint it was between 2003 and 2008, when opponents of the Bush administration saw American failure there as the key to their own political success. As it turned out, they were able to succeed politically even as America was at last succeeding militarily in Iraq. But now the tables are turned. It is President Obama's responsibility to ensure that success does not turn to failure." James Taranto, Apr. 1, 2009

Small wonder that the print press is slowly dying.

Losing the game with a rookie

"Barack Obama is a rookie in a sense that few other Presidents in American history have ever been. It is not just that he has never been President before. He has never had any position of major executive responsibility in any kind of organization where he was personally responsible for the outcome.

Other first-term Presidents have been governors, generals, cabinet members or others in positions of personal responsibility. A few have been senators, like Barack Obama, but usually for longer than Obama, and had not spent half their few years in the senate running for President."

Soft on our enemies and hard on our allies; his "change" is a throwback to a very old, and tired regime no longer taught in our schools. Read the whole article about how rookies can lose the game for you, by Thomas Sowell.

Clinton White House or April Fools Day?

"Journalists seeking to talk a little foreign policy with high-profile Obama administration officials live from the G20 meetings in London this week were solicited for phone sex instead after ringing up the toll-free number given by the White House.

In a press release, the White House accidentally listed a sex line number for journalists seeking an "on-the-record briefing call with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and National Security Advisor Jim Jones to discuss the NATO summit."

But after dialing, a soft-voiced female recording that was clearly not Clinton asked for a credit card number if you "feel like getting nasty." " Fox News

And then someone who watched the G20 press conference wrote on a wiki (blog?): "First and foremost, why isn't the national and international media making fun of President Obama for being a stammering idiot with a puny vocabulary? I didn't believe it until I just watched for myself, but Obama is a stuttering fool and seems to barely be able to manage a coherent sentence. He speaks worse than I write!

After President Obama's G20 press conference was over, I was stunned. Again he made numerous gaffs and can't seem to answer a question without going off on some tangent that has nothing to do with the original question. Obama continually called on reporters that are allies to the socialist cause and Obama knew would ask softball questions that would make himlook good, which is know easy task.

From day one, the American media attacked G.W. Bush for speaking exactly as Obama does, stammering and making little or no sense. I would readily admit that Bush was much worse at public speaking than Obama, but Obama clearly lacks the ability to speak without a teleprompter in front of him."

I was in the car, but I think I picked up a few -er, -uh, -um's during a news break and changed the station. That man hurts my ears. Even the sentences that do make sense, seem awfully elementary and repetitious. Doesn't he rehearse?

The city Easter Egg Hunt (Roll)

Maggie in Toledo writes:

"The City of Toledo is facing a $27.7 million deficit. The mayor is talking about laying off police officers, cutting salaries by 10% and voiding all labor contracts.

But we've somehow got enough money for an Easter Egg Hunt????"

Yes, Upper Arlington is having one too--Civic Association--probably not parks and rec. I have no idea how much it costs. They are awful. Just awful. I think our kids were about 5 and 6 when we finally decided they might be old enough for a little group fun. OHMYGOSH. It was a stampede--kids screaming and yelling and fighting. I'd never seen anything like it. My little ones were terrified and cried. I was horrified. Even 50 cents would be too much to contribute to watching spoiled suburban kids knocking each other down to grab a piece of smushed chocolate.

Dye and hide the eggs at home; it's a lot more fun and much safer.

How Obama has killed the economy and ambition in only 2 months

See my Coffee Spills blog.

Coast Guard and a domed stadium

Fargo has it all. The Coast Guard crews in boats and helicopters were rescuing people from their homes in Fargo. There apparently was even a heroic sheriff's deputy [unnamed by USAToday] as the river crested near the stadium. Now, I know the line of responsibility between the North Dakota Governor and the President of the United States, but where are the lashings from the press and the ridicule from the comedians who should be reporting that President Obama doesn't like white people. After all, he is prancing around Europe while people in the midwest are fleeing their homes in blizzards and floods. Where are the movie stars in hip boots or do they only show up when NOLA floods?

President Barack Obama has dispatched the acting head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the region.

White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said Nancy Ward is in Fargo and Obama has personally spoken with the governors of both states and with Fargo's mayor.

Gibbs said the federal government is working closely with state and local leaders to give them any help they need. He also implored citizens in both states to be vigilant in tracking flood conditions.

The vacuous USAToday actually praised Obama for even noticing in a radio address that they were in trouble. Sweet.

The stories of sharing and survival on the shores of the swollen Red River have mounted in recent days, almost as quickly as the flood waters rose. There was the sheriff's deputy who rounded up 2,000 sandbags and a college wrestling team to stack them, trying to save a stranger's rural home. And the thousands of volunteers who gathered in the domed stadium in Fargo, N.D., to fill 2.5 million bags with sand in a five-day race against the cresting river.

President Obama, inspired by their stubborn battle against nature, used his Saturday radio address to praise the sandbaggers and the college students who gave up spring breaks to help.

Pay for Performance

Neil Cavuto screams at the bill sponsor, H.R. 1664, who won't answer any questions except that Timmy "the Dodge" Geithner will be able to set the pay scale--probably of anyone, because this isn't limited to Wall Street. He sounds like a pouty teen (Alan Grayson), "Why would you say that? Why are you being rude?" Now that Obama has fired a CEO of a private company, which as President of the United States he had no constitutional authority to do, he has emboldened Congress to start their sneaky tricks again, ala Barney Frank and Chris Dodd and the country's melt down. They're pretending that salaries are the problem. That's a huge smoke screen. We've got lawless bandits in Congress who refuses to honor contracts.

Pew Report on the 2008 “Lessons of the Election”

Very little in depth journalism; little investigative punch; reporters drowning in information from various IT sources; newsroom cutbacks hurt.

“But the bottom line is this: In 2008—and much the same could be said in 2000 with the election of President George W. Bush — we elected a president about whom we knew remarkably little, and most of it came from the impression they wanted to create, not from things the press uncovered. That was less true in the elections of Bill Clinton, George H.W. Bush or Ronald Reagan.”

Link here.

Obama--a race to the bottom?

Here's more from that The Obama Deception movie. I'm not familiar with any of the people interviewed in the film--except the former MN governor. Maybe talk radio personalities and "experts" far right of Beck and Rush? Lots of anti-Bush and anti-Iraq war stuff. But they definitely think Obama is worse than Bush, whom they also hate. (Note, this is not word-for-word)

George Humphrey, economist and author: "They [there are a lot of "they" and global conspiratorial ideas in this film, but I think this refers to Wall Street Bankers] have created a power elite-- we are not talking about your millionaire down the street. You can't even be a member of their club unless you are a multi-billionaire. And friends, this is not about 'rich vs poor', this is about a very small handful of the worst criminal element on this planet, manipulating and destroying the good people of this nation and this world."

Gerald Clemente, future trends forecaster: "Now this Obama with 'change'-- look at the people he's put in to 'mastermind' the economic recovery. Larry Summers-- I love it.. Every time they talk about Larry Summers, he's always 'brilliant', he's another 'brilliant' one.. he's the one that helped dismantle the Glass-Stegall Act.. the banking act that was put in place in the 1930's, so the banks couldn't become the gangsters that they have become."

Webster Tarpley: "In the 1990s, you have the beginning of the 'derivatives bubble', thanks to people like Alan Greenspan, Rubin, Summers-- people who are now back in the Obama administration. And the derivatives I think are the centerpiece of this entire problem today."

Gerald Clemente: "These are the same people.. 'Geitner' of the Treasury Department.. imagine that, we now have a US Treasury Secretary who also is a Robert Rubin Protege of the Larry Summers Group, that dismantled Glass-Stegall and broke apart the regulations that would have prohibited the banks and brokerages from becoming these criminals. He was the former President of the New York Federal Reserve and now he's our Treasury Secretary?. As we all know, the Federal Reserve is no more federal than Federal Express, it's a private bank. And now we've put this guy in charge of it? Wall Street has hijacked Washington in broad daylight."

. . . George Humphrey: "Every single one of his appointments support the status quo, every single one of his appointments are there to screw the American People, every single one of his appointments are people who are working to bring down the Republic and the Constitution of this country."

Alex Jones: "Even if Barack Obama was the most wonderful person in the world, he was groomed and brought to power by the global elite [yes, there's that term again--I think it's code for Jews] to carry out their agenda. Humanity [he has a very annoying habit of calling people "humanity"] must look past their agenda and realize that presidents come and go, but the shadow government and their program of global enslavement continues."

. . . Webster Tarpley: "Generally speaking, this [Obama] is already the biggest liar and the biggest disappointment that we have seen in recent history-- qualitatively beyond the rather low standards set by Bush the Elder and Clinton in terms of delivering on promises." [I'd certainly agree with this statement.]

Alex Jones: "Bottom line: Obama is a fantastic actor, and an even better liar. His track record is clear-- he has done the opposite of everything he told the people he would do."

Someone said on the film, forgotten who, that if they cataloged all his lies, the film would never end, because they continue. Yes, I'd agree with that charge, too. It is truly amazing that a man who worked as a "community organizer" for nearly a decade, and never became a tenured law professor or wrote a law article or even practiced law, but wrote 2 autobiographical books, got hired by Illinois to represent a district for which he did nothing and which is still poor, and then got elected President on the basis of his looks and ability to speechify and talk black (something he had to learn as a foreign language as an adult). Call it a conspiracy against the American people if you wish, but really, Obama simply makes us look like a bunch of vacuous fools. . .if we're so great and wonderful and good, why would we let this happen?

Update: Apparently the conspiracy includes Google and YouTube, too: "YouTube is acting as a political police goon squad for the establishment, attempting to make sure as few people as possible see this important documentary."

April Fool--first new tax on the poor

As I noted yesterday, I have little sympathy with smokers, but Obama's new cigarette tax which will impact low-income smokers the most with an average of 13.3% increase and a decrease in state services which depend on those taxes, is really regressive. The SCHIP increase isn't helping those who don't have health insurance, it's pulling most enrollees off the insurance of the working parents' companies, which will cause other insured rates to go up, or companies to fail, so the government (Democrats and clueless RINOs) can further increase SCHIP to include 50 and 60 year olds not yet ready for Medicare. What a plan our great leader has for our low-income families.

This sin tax now is up from $.39 to $1.01 and the cigarette smuggling business is booming. See Brad Schiller article in WSJ. It really is a throw back to the days of FDR, taxing anything that was enjoyable like candy or movies, which hit the unemployed the hardest, and then enroll them in the WPA. Obama's new mandatory "volunteer" act to keep millions from working and on the dole just passed a few days before his April Fool tax--do you suppose they are related?

Also, the duplicity is amazing. Stop smoking programs and drugs have been shown to do nothing, but they are still funded by the government. Even the "quit help lines" which may be private and non-profit, use government grants. Then the researchers get grants to study the drugs, to whine about how the drugs aren't getting to the low-income, and then to do studies on how they don't work anyway. See JAMA, March 11, 2009, "Setting the National Tobacco Control Agenda."

There are now smoking cessation quit lines in every state, but because there are few resources, they can help only 1$ to 2% of smokers quit."

Notice, it's always the money and not the method that fails? And then in the front of that issue you find,

"Emerging evidence suggests the smoking-cessation drug varenicline is among a growing list of medications that might cause serious psychiatric adverse events."

To say nothing of the weight gain problem that often results from the non-smoking programs.

How to use the new code words

USAToday and WSJ editors are struggling with the new terrorism language in English. It's come down from on high--don't say anything mean about those guys threatening to blow up the White House--if we act really weak maybe they'll choose another target. Here's what appeared in the USAToday story about the terrorist attact (Taliban/ Mehsud) on the Pakistani police station.

"deadly assault"
"retaliate"
"militant bases"
"Mehsud plans to attack Washington and White House" [this was said twice in both articles; apparently repetition for emphasis is good if you can't use plain English about terrorism, and if you live in DC]
"striking targets"
"killed Benazer Bhuto" [the WSJ didn't get the memo, and used the more volatile "assassinated"
"harbor foreign fighters"
"revenge"
"launch and attack"
"sparked a stand-off"
"stormed a compound"
"some gunmen blew themselves up" [good-bye suicide bomber language]
"seige-style approach"
"seige of Mumbai" [remember when this story first came out before the language revision rules?]
"men arrested"
but here's the phrase that replaced EVIL, TERROR, etc. "cancer of extremism"

The WSJ actually used "terrorist attack on the U.S. capital" twice and called it Bhuto's assassination, but then downgraded to

"assault on a police academy"
"raided"
"avenge"
"attack"
"retaliation"
and it calls al-Qaeda "a group," "loyalists," "growing power of Taliban factions."

And so the U.S. print media, waiting for its bailout from Obama, continues on the search for wimp-out words. Do you suppose fewer would fail if they weren't just megaphones for the Democrats?

The GIVE Act. Does it violate the 13th amendment?

The bill, HR 1388: The Generations Invigorating Volunteerism and Education Act otherwise known as the "GIVE Act," has already passed. Here’s the roll who voted for it.



Did Congress read this bill? What was missing in VISTA, AmeriCorps, Peace Corp, Foster Grandparents, and the bazillion of local opportunities, funded by government, non-profits and churches? Is there an area not already covered by Sertoma, or American Legion, or the Lung Association, or Rotary or AARP? I never had the feeling that Points of Light was mandatory, did you? And didn't Democrats ridicule Bush I or is that why--because he didn't make it mandatory?

Did we really need another massive stack of federal dollars bundled in acres of paper co-opting volunteerism? Surely, they can't call this a "stimulus." Something like $22,000 per volunteer--but then, it takes a bunch of bureaucrats to run a program like this. And what in the world is a "social entrepreneur?" More people to join the unions that get out the Obama vote. More people to look to Obama has their savior in the White House. It makes them that much more dependent on the government.

The bill, promoted by the Obama administration as a means of “encouraging America's youth to participate in voluntary community service,” (if you read it, you’ll see it goes far beyond “encouraging,” that it opens the door to conscription) has received little scrutiny from Congress or the public. It provides funding for Obama’s favorite leftist organizations, especially ACORN, but starves out the churches that have traditionally been vehicles for volunteerism--in fact, the almost 50 year old Peace Corps was modeled after what the Mennonites, Brethren and Quakers did after WWII.

Did the RINOs read this bill before they voted for it? Time to call them home. Next time the Republican Party head guy sends out that envelope pleading for money, ask about the voting records of the RINOs. Senator Voinovich voted Yay, as usual; when anything wasteful or socialist comes along, he's all for it.

So the Senate will allow funding to ACORN, but they won't allow any religious expression in the "youth brigades?" Gateway Pundit And to think we spent American lives and money to free the women of Afghanistan from the fundamentalist Taliban, only to conscript our own.

Oh yes, “Requires states to develop comprehensive plans for volunteer and paid service by Baby Boomers and older adults.” (from summary of text)

And now, tax us to death

I have no patience with smokers or any addictions (except blogging, of course), but expecting nicotine addicted people to pay the tax increases so children (up to age 28) of middle class parents can drop their insurance and let the government pick up the tab is pretty silly. Take over the auto industry, create cars no one wants, stop producing and refining oil so prices soar, make current cars illegal to drive. Hit 'em again, harder, harder. Welcome to your 95% tax cuts and $5/gallon gasoline.

Before he finishes with us, Obama will have taxed us to death. “In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Benjamin Franklin wrote 1789. An earlier version comes from Daniel Defoe in, The Political History of the Devil, ” Things as certain as death and taxes can be more firmly believed.” Hmm. Maybe we need to take a look at the Defoe title.

A heads up for Christians

I recently watched a few minutes of an anti-Wall Street, anti-Federal Reserve, anti-U.S. government film called, "The Obama Deception." If you believe this film, you're in trouble.

“The Obama Deception is a hard-hitting film that completely destroys the myth that Barack Obama is working for the best interests of the American people.”

O.K. I agree. Yes, about 50% of the electorate realized he is a socialist and/or marxist. (And about 40% of those who voted for him did so for the novelty and guilt factor, never even looking at his politics, only his ethnicity.) But that’s a long way from believing this. . .

“The Obama phenomenon is a hoax carefully crafted by the captains of the New World Order.

“The Obama Deception is not about Left or Right: it's about a One World Government. The international banks plan to loot the people of the United States and turn them into slaves on a Global Plantation.”

Covered in this film: who Obama works for, what lies he has told, and his real agenda, and how his initial appointments and actions prove he serves the corporate oligarchs, not the American people. If you want to know the facts and cut through all the hype, this is the film for you."

The films claims Obama works for the same interests that George Bush I & II worked for. The film claims to be non-partisan. However, “new world order” has always been code for “the Jews did it.” Or, in the 19th century, "watch out for the pope." Tarpley can say it’s the “Anglo-American” world order, but we’ve certainly been hearing this conspiracy theme since--well, during my entire lifetime. “Military-industrial complex” (warned by Eisenhower) in the 50s; and we were railing against this in the 1970s. “Oligarchs,” “Wall Street fat cats,” “international bankers,” call it what you will, but remember, we've heard it all before--and not all that long ago, either.

Update: Ted Anthony, AP: "Here's an incomplete list from the history books: Indians, Quakers, witches, Englishmen, the federal government, Southerners and Northerners, Chinese "Celestials," Tammany Hall Democrats, Germans, Jews, Japanese, North Koreans, communists, socialists, Vietnamese, liberals, conservatives, gays, lesbians and Muslims. The Evil Empire and the Axis of Evil.

Now, a fresh group has been dropped into the cultural dunk tank. Bin Laden? Back-burnered, at least for now. Saddam? Gone and forgotten. Instead, in these jumbled days of economic uncertainty, fairly or unfairly, America's newest Snidely Whiplashes bear faces like those of Bernie Madoff, AIG executives and the private jet-flying heads of the Big Three automakers.

October 2008 seems years in the past

But here's what I wrote to someone supporting the candidacy of President Obama, who just couldn't fathom my fear and loathing.

"At the top for me is abortion, and Your Man as you call him, would advise his own daughters to abort his grandchild; McCain, whom I don't even like all that much, adopted a child, darker than Obama who would have died from starvation and neglect. Your Man is in bed with so many far left organizations I'm surprised there is room for Michelle--who hates our country. (You should have heard her in Ohio talking to blue collar moms) Your Man, as you call him, listens to racist hatred for 20 years in his church. Your Man promises to raise your taxes. He promises to sit down with terrorist regimes with no preconditions. I think McCain, who definitely isn't my first choice, understands the enemy but respects them and their power. He has experienced it personally. Morally, Obama's such a light weight I fear for our future just so white folks can stop feeling guilty over a past they had nothing to do with. David Axelrod, his handler, seems a bright man, he's in media, but I don't know how much he knows about international issues.

Yesterday we were visiting friends in another city. They are about our age and would like to sell their home which is in a lovely neighborhood. They said it wasn't as nice as their old one. So they drove us through that neighborhood--it was gorgeous--kind of like our "south of Lane" area in Upper Arlington. We saw nothing wrong with it--every home was in pristine condition, yards beautiful and palatial, but they kept saying they had been afraid because it was changing (years before) and the house had been broken into. Then we started noticing the neighborhood people washing cars, raking leaves, etc. African-Americans--middle and upper class, probably college professors, lawyers and doctors. But oh yes, these friends are for Obama--they had a sign in their yard.

I regret the election is a done deal, and I think both parties have behaved
miserably during the past month [mid-September melt-down], mostly the Democrats, but they are the best liars the U.S. Congress has ever produced, and this can and will be blamed on Bush, not their social engineering.

8 years coming of a perfect, non-racist society, with a Katrina-like plan for
our health care, education, and security. In 8 years, I'll be too old to care, but I'm not sure he'll allow any opposition by then anyway, so it may be longer."

And now a few words from Murray, guest blogger

Instead of sending updates on the old neighborhood's health and obits, today I received this. Something to think about.

I would like to see a show of hands from those people who have mailed their congressman or Obama a tea bag. If you haven't I'll be thinking that you still plan to or you are going to march on Washington instead or you agree with Obama's mass destruction of this country or you don't believe this country is being put down or you are such a staunch Democrat you have confidence that they will pull these miracles off with your money or you just don't give a damn!

I have often said that the main objective of our elected is to keep the masses confused. For years they have used diversions like immigration, the tax code, social security, medicare, abortion, war, the AMT, budget, PORK, bipartisanship, etc., etc., to keep us confused to the point that we, their constituents, couldn't come together and focus on any one cause. This my friends was by design and it is bipartisan. Our elected do not solve problems, they create them.

Now, at the risk of being labeled a Republican, I'm gonna tell you that the Democrats miscalculated when they sabotaged this country's financial structure trying desperately to make the Bush administration look as bad as possible... all in the interest of securing political power for themselves. If you don't want to believe this all I ask is that you look back on the events leading up to the mortgage mess and the pursuit of the "America Dream". I'm somewhat sure they didn't mean for it to tank this far but when you consider that they and the Republicans are unable to focus on any problem for any length of time or resolve them it became inevitable this country's financial structure was in an unstoppable downward spiral.

So what's the Obama game plan? Well, he's using the old tried and true method that has never failed either party. He's swamping us with everything at once in order to keep the masses confused. Plus he pretends he and his cohorts knew nothing was amiss and blamed everybody else. Feeling the need for a little insurance however, he has emptied the Treasury along with destroying individual wealth to create fear thus establishing a feeling of reliance on the federal government to "save" us. Just think about it for a minute. What can you do? Are the people going to march? I don't think so. Not at this time anyway. Impeachment will more than likely be out of the question [and you know why.] But, there are elections coming and that usually strikes fear in the hearts of the some incumbents. So sending in the little tea bag to your elected officials at this time is a way to be heard and just might get their attention. It could be the best 42 cents you ever spent. Besides, you'll feel much better for it! Murray

I have sent an empty tea bag to Obama, and a full one to Mary Jo Kilroy. Yesterday I received in the mail a seed package of "Forget-me-nots." Now if you like the stimulus package, you want to the government to AMTRAK the auto industry and FEMATIZE health care, and you're feeling like the government owes you for taking up space, send Congress a package of those. Takes about a year to really get going and then they will spread like crazy to your neighbors.

Visitor from Troy Ohio

If your site meter shows a visitor/commenter/reader from Troy Ohio, it's just me. I'm at the library. That's how I'm showing up on mine. Aren't libaries weird since they've turned into computer terminals? At least I'm in the main reference area where I can see books. Lots of books. Like Who's who in Amerian politics," and "Contemporary Authors," and "Feminist companion to literature in English." I'm in the 900s of Dewey--I'd tell you more, except I have on my older glasses--the ones I can read with but not see distance.

On the library terminal, I've lost at least 20 lbs--the screen is all squished. And the type font on my blog is different. So I apologize to all my regulars. I looked much better at home. My home, not yours. I probably look squishy on your too.

Cable connection down

Going to the library. Some days I hate technology.

Star Parker, back on the plantation

She thought she'd left. She wrote a book about it.

"I talked about government programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Job Opportunities and Basic Skills Training (JOBS), Emergency Assistance to Needy Families with Children (EANF), Section 8 Housing, and Food Stamps.

A vast sea of perhaps well intentioned government programs, all initially set into motion in the 1960's, that were going to lift the nation's poor out of poverty.

A benevolent Uncle Sam welcomed mostly poor black Americans onto the government plantation. Those who accepted the invitation switched mindsets from "How do I take care of myself?" to "What do I have to do to stay on the plantation?"

Instead of solving economic problems, government welfare socialism created monstrous moral and spiritual problems. The kind of problems that are inevitable when individuals turn responsibility for their lives over to others.

The legacy of American socialism is our blighted inner cities, dysfunctional inner city schools, and broken black families.

Through God's grace, I found my way out. It was then that I understood what freedom meant and how great this country is."

But now she sees rich Americans running to climb the fence to get on the plantation she tried to leave.

"Instead of poor America on socialism becoming more like rich American on capitalism, rich America on capitalism is becoming like poor America on socialism.

Uncle Sam has welcomed our banks onto the plantation and they have said, "Thank you, Suh.""

Read the whole article here; and weep for the country.

Monday Memories--MLA San Antonio 1994

One of my New Year's Resolutions was to join an exercise class, so here I am in my 1994 San Antonio "Walk with Majors" shirt getting ready to go to class today. Majors was (or is, don't know for sure) a book distributor, a nice family operation. Even if your library didn't use their services, they always bought breakfast for and gave a t-shirt to anyone who "walked with Majors."

One of the great things about being the veterinary medicine librarian at Ohio State was the terrific cities I visited and the conferences I attended. Several times my husband took a few vacation days and joined me. The Veterinary Medicine Section of the Medical Library Association is the best professional group ever. The OSU Libraries was poorly funded for professional meetings, but the college dean would usually find the money to pay for my registration, hotel and travel.

The next photo is Jerry and I; she was a hospital librarian from Detroit and we met at our first MLA in Boston in 1988. Although she started library school about 20 years after I did, we had both joined this organization at the same time, and are both now retired but I still hear from her at Christmas. I had a scrunchy perm in those days, and it looks like I didn't scrunch that day--I think these Majors Walks were very early and we probably hadn't yet hit the showers.

Here's an excerpt from a letter to my parents about that trip:

My friend Jerry from Detroit sent me a packet of photos this week which she took of San Antonio and us when we were there for the Medical Library Association in mid-May. It is a lovely city, and they really cater to tourists--must be one of their biggest industries. They had a river that was forever flooding and during the Depression the WPA corralled it in stone walls, into a lovely river walk, and it has been extended to other areas. The city business sort of goes on above it, and you never see the traffic or hear it when walking along the river. We did a lot of walking and picture taking; I attended meetings, and an architect (friend of a friend) took us on a city tour and we got to see some of the more unusual things the ordinary tourist doesn't see. We also visited an artist's colony and bought a nice watercolor of the Alamo. One morning the Majors company took us on a long hike through the King William restored residential section where we saw all these fabulous homes, and they gave us breakfast. Jerry had a photo of the two of us standing side by side in our Majors t-shirts and we look like librarian-Siamese twins because the shirts blend together.

Another treat was going to the air force base and seeing how they train the dogs. We vet librarians always do something with an animal interest. That base is incredible, and even though I'd heard a lot about it, you almost have to see it to believe it.

Obama fired the wrong guy

I opened one eye and half an ear to see what I hoped was the ghost of Tim Geithner on Meet the Press. TOTUS says it was a hired actor, but I don't think so. It was the real, flesh and blood lie-baby. The more he lied, the faster he talked, the more my jaw dropped. I don't know who was doing the interviewing, and I can't find the YouTube, nor would it be worth it to look at it again. Here's a guy who was working for FED which helped create the housing bubble and approved the AIG bonuses and when the TARP came down, now working for a former Senator who approved the d-d thing and got the wet snowball of financial disaster rolling down hill. Tim sounded like he was using Obama's teleprompter--not the machine, but the keyboardist/writer. Then they interviewed John McCain, who was very careful not to be disrespectful (which he didn't mind being when Bush was President), but he was truthful. Sarah Palin was his best feature, but oh my, he sounded so good after Tim the Two-Faced.

Hope and Change in Health Care

• Within three weeks of his inauguration, President Obama has succeeded in a dramatic government take-over of Americans’ health care, although he is unable to nominate a tolerable candidate for Secretary of Health and Human Services. [He tried to sneak in another tax cheat like Geithner.]

• More than half of kids roped into Mr. Obama’s kids’ health program will drop their families’ health coverage, and the SCHIP explosion has an unhealthy addiction to tobacco funding. [Remember, the President himself is a smoker, but the low-income are more likely to smoke, so the new tax increase hits them hardest. So many people have stopped smoking, that they may soon need to recruit them in order to pay for SCHIP!]

• By bailing out state Medicaid programs that have spent beyond our means, Mr. Obama punishes fiscally responsible states, and Medicaid’s failure to pay its bills will result in a “cost-shift” causing private premiums to rise by about $18 billion.

• Subsidies to COBRA, the already flawed program that allows departed workers to continue coverage with their previous employer, dramatically favor unemployment or part-time work, instead of full-time work with benefits

For the details, see "Obama’s Unhealthy Start: SCHIP Explosion, Medicaid Bailout, COBRA’s Bite" By Adam Frey, Public Policy Fellow, and John R. Graham, Director, Health Care Studies, at Health Policy Prescriptions, Feb. 2009.

"President Obama plans to build on the way
he mobilized millions of volunteers and small
donors in his successful election campaign,
and his administration will use similar
strategies to sell its health care proposal. A
patchwork of progressive organizations is
poised to unleash its activists to rally grassroots
support for any health care legislation.
And, perhaps most importantly, business
groups will be much less hostile – if not
openly supportive – of the effort to radically
transform health care."

". . . One such group that hopes to play a key role
in the effort is Health Care for America Now
(HCAN), a coalition formed last July with
the stated intention of spending $40 million
on grassroots organizing and multi-media
campaigns. The founding steering committee
for the organization is comprised
of 13 groups: Association of Community
Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN),
the American Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees (AFSCME),
Americans United for Change, Campaign
for America’s Future, Center for American
Progress Action Fund, Center for Community
Change, MoveOn.org, National Education
Association, National Women’s Law Center,
Planned Parenthood Federation of America,
Service Employees International Union,
United Food and Commercial Workers, and
USAction. Later additions include the Children’s
Defense Fund, Leadership Conference
on Civil Rights, and the National Council
of La Raza. Remember these names: All
are likely to be in the vanguard mobilizing
support for left-wing activism during the
next four years." CRC Trends, March 2009

Massachusetts Health Care--coming soon to your state?
"In Massachusetts's latest crisis, Governor Deval Patrick and his Democratic colleagues are starting to move down the path that government health plans always follow when spending collides with reality -- i.e., price controls. As costs continue to rise, the inevitable results are coverage restrictions and waiting periods. It was only a matter of time." WSJ story, March 27 here.

Hollywood lefties will change their tune

when Obama tries to cap and trade their salaries and spread their wealth. Although, he probably won't do that. The suit may be empty, but the wallet knows where the money came from.

“You know, the last eight years I was the loyal opposition and now there’s another loyal opposition,” Carter told CNSNews.com at the Green Door gala. “The only problem I really have is the spreading of hate by right wing, you know, super right – the spreading of hate, I don’t get it. I don’t understand it.”

Interesting, isn't it. When she disagreed with Bush, it wasn't hate. But when we disagree with her guy, it's hate. The Bush haters were just bizarre and deranged, but now when we've got a really dangerous guy in the White House, they see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing. I doubt that anyone younger than 40 remembers her, but she played Wonder Woman and looked just like my daughter, who was actually prettier. LinkOh yes, and she thinks it's kinder to let mentally ill homeless wander the streets with their prescription drugs than to provide supervised shelter. Now there's a big heart.

What media bias?

". . . none in the media are complaining about Big Guy not doing any live TV interviews, where he could get hit with "gotcha" questions about the budget deficit, veteran health-care cutbacks, or how much Michelle spends on shoes." Barack Obama’s Teleprompter . One of the best written, well researched blogs out there. Don't miss it.

I've forgotten most of my Russian

but not Russian and east European history. E. J. Dionne Jr. is just plain wrong, if he doesn't see the danger in this leftward drift.

Still, that doesn't make us socialist. There is, as yet, no broad demand for a government takeover of big companies or a widespread desire to replace capitalism with a cooperative system.

We've got the petty regulators, the bureaucratic bullies, the power hungry, pedantic feminists, the ridiculers and deniers of religion (except global warming) and a full blown marxist with clay feet and a closed mind with a sycophant following. Neither Rudd nor Obama have had a "fresh idea" or "hope for change" that wasn't tried in the mid-20th century, failing miserably and causing millions of deaths by democide. Maybe this isn't the "old socialism"--it just might be the new communism. Wake up, folks.

If you love the West

or even if you don't, you will after viewing Zack Thurmond's paintings. I love his shades of purple. Just makes me want to take a trip to Idaho with a camera and bag of paints and stretched paper. He's posting his work--daily--on his blog. Now that's a challenge. Here are some other artists doing a daily challenge. Zack writes:

So if you see that I haven't posted a painting in several days, leave me a comment deriding me for my laziness and lack of artistic conviction. I have no excuse not to put brush to canvas, regardless of the subject matter around me."

Cowpox Virus Transmission from Pet Rats to Humans in France

Oh yuk.

"In early 2009, four human cases of cowpox virus cutaneous infection in northern France, resulting from direct contact with infected pet rats (Rattus norvegicus), were studied. Pet rats, originating from the same pet store, were shown to be infected by a unique virus strain. Infection was then transmitted to humans who purchased or had contact with pet rats.

To Live Forever

is the exhibit at the Columbus Museum of Art with more than 100 objects including a mummy, statuary, coffins, jewelry, and vessels from the Brooklyn Museum's extensive collection. Having just returned from Cairo where we saw an amazing museum and the incredible pyramids and Sphinx, we thought it would be fun to see this exhibit. It runs from February 13-June 7, and it's a bit more leisurely than our race in Cairo to see so much in a brief time. We were not allowed to take photos of King Tut in Cairo, but here we are in Columbus.

And here we are at the real pyramids in Giza.


There were several places along the way at the CMA where one could fill out a card to respond to a question concerning the exhibit. For the one on "If you could live forever what would you take to the after life?" it appears Columbus is just about as tied to ordinary life as were the ancients; here are a few items I saw:

Starbucks

nail clippers

beer

Chipolte

cherry coke

Obama's goal

Maggie Thurber at Thurber’s Thoughts has some scary, but sobering thoughts on the possibility of an Obama second term. His approval rating is plummeting. After listening to Dems gripe for seven years about Bush's deficit of billions, we've seen him plunge us into trillions in two months. The people will catch on--eventually--but it will be too late. He doesn’t care; that’s not his goal.

The goal is not the presidency - that's merely a tool with which to achieve the agenda: the European-style socialism of America and the total consolidation of power within the hands of radical leftists. Sacrificing his re-election would be a small price to pay for the accomplishing this nefarious feat.

And sometimes it's the cat

"Roughly 240 Americans wind up in emergency rooms every day for sprains, fractures or other injuries from a fall caused by a dog or cat, U.S. researchers said on Thursday.

Researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said dogs and cats account for 88 percent of all fall-related injuries in emergency departments."

No one was seriously hurt, but I sat on the cat's tail today--she was standing next to the toilet and I didn't notice her. Boy, did she hiss.

"Women are 2.1 times more likely to have a pet-related fall than men, they said.

Tripping seems to be the biggest risk. About 31 percent of dog-related and 66 percent of cat-related injuries were caused by tripping. Another 21 percent of dog-related injuries occurred when people fell after being pushed or pulled by dogs.

The CDC said pet owners need to be aware that their furry friends can cause accidents. They recommended pet obedience training to reduce fall-related injuries."
Reuters

Against global warming hysteria?

Here's what James Taranto suggests:

Reader, if you are against global-warming hysteria, high taxes, socialized medicine and a weak foreign policy, Sunday is your day. Show how you feel about the issues by turning on your lights in the evening and leaving them on until you go to bed. If you go out for a drive after dark, make sure you turn your headlights on too.

Granted, the EarthHour people have a head start on us. They started planning this months ago, whereas we're giving you all of 48 hours notice. Yet we think the outlook is bright for this effort. Tell your friends, tell them to tell their friends, and so on, and we'll bet millions of people across the country will turn their lights on Sunday night.

If no one will listen to the silent majority, let's at least make sure they see us.

We don't waste electricity willy nilly, and I go to bed early, but I could leave the TV on.

Friday Family Photo

This has probably been on the blog before--need to scan some new photos. However, we just didn't take as many pictures 40 years ago. I think my husband took more photos (digital) on our Israel trip 2 weeks ago than we owned in our first 40 years of marriage (started traveling in 2001). This seems to be May 2007 and my husband is tending the back 40.


I just can't tell you how much we love this place. We feel like we are in paradise--and when things don't grow (I have a brown thumb) I just poke a few silk flowers in the ground from Garden Ridge and no one seems to notice. One year we won a prize for nicest patio. This view is the patio and deck in the back which overlook a creek and woodsy area where we see deer, heron, Mallards and Canada geese, and more recently, huge patches of replaced grass because something from the golf course near by transplanted itself over here where it wasn't wanted. The green growing leggy thing behind my husband isn't ours, but she never trims, one of the disadvantages of condo living.

I've heard a storm is coming this week-end, so we'll need to wait a bit before things look this green. All the trees are budding, so it must be time for our biggest snow or wind storm of the year. After all, we do live in central Ohio.

Tea with the President and Congress

“It is precisely those members of Congress who have had the most to do with creating the risks that led to the current economic crisis who are making the most noise against others, and summoning people before their committee to be browbeaten and humiliated on nationwide television.” Thomas Sowell.

And you, Mr. President, were a member of the very Congress that helped bring the economy to its knees. So for you, a used tea bag and yellow gold print symbolizing cowardly and costly.

Obama's stem cell ban and the barn door

While we were in Israel, home of another human life miracle which took place over 2000 years ago, President Obama was reported to have lifted "the ban" on embryonic stem cell research. First of all, there was never a ban on the research, only on expanding the use of human embryos in research funded by the U.S. taxpayer, an ethical dilemma with the potential to make abortion and euthanasia look like kindergarten stuff (and to turn young women into fertilized egg machines for pay). The announcement was really for show--one of the few campaign promises he could keep (other than the one where he promised to drive us over the socialist cliff to financial ruin--which he seems hell-bent on keeping). Second, he's too late; the research has moved so quickly we no longer need that death trap. Third, despite its availability (was never illegal or banned) embryonic stem cell research has never produced that first cure or break through.

Here's what President Bush said in 2001. And thank you God for a President with guts and a good heart.

"My administration must decide whether to allow federal funds, your tax dollars, to be used for scientific research on stem cells derived from human embryos. . .

My position on these issues is shaped by deeply held beliefs. I'm a strong supporter of science and technology, and believe they have the potential for incredible good -- to improve lives, to save life, to conquer disease. Research offers hope that millions of our loved ones may be cured of a disease and rid of their suffering. I have friends whose children suffer from juvenile diabetes. Nancy Reagan has written me about President Reagan's struggle with Alzheimer's. My own family has confronted the tragedy of childhood leukemia. And like all Americans, I have great hope for cures.

I also believe human life is a sacred gift from our creator. I worry about a culture that devalues life, and believe as your president I have an important obligation to foster and encourage respect for life in America and throughout the world.

And while we're all hopeful about the potential of this research, no one can be certain that the science will live up to the hope it has generated. . . " Speech 9 August 2001

Then in November 2007 came an announcement in respected journals that research groups in Wisconsin and Japan generated “induced pluripotent stem” (iPS) cells with the properties of human embryonic stem cells by direct reprogramming of adult cells. No human life needed to be destroyed in this breakthrough.

"Unlike embryonic stem cells, which are obtained by destroying live embryos, iPSCs are made directly from adult cells by adding a small number of factors to these cells in the laboratory. These factors remodel the mature cells and convert them into stem cells that are functionally identical to stem cells obtained from embryos. No human eggs are required and no human embryos are generated. Adult cells are obtained from a simple skin biopsy, 1/10th inch in diameter and about as painful as a blood draw. One study was able to produce an average of 10 pluripotent stem cell lines from a single skin biopsy. This approach can be used to generate stem cell lines from patients with specific genetic diseases to better study these conditions, and to provide patient-specific stem cells for possible stem cell therapies."

And then shortly before Obama's announcement came this one (which I supposed caused his handlers to hurry with his announcement before he got left in the dust)

"Led by scientists Kathrin Plath and William Lowry, UCLA researchers used genetic alteration to turn back the clock on human skin cells and create cells that are nearly identical to human embryonic stem cells, which have the ability to become every cell type found in the human body. Four regulator genes were used to create the cells, called induced pluripotent stem cells or iPS cells. Science Daily

While the servile media drooled at the thought of embryos being destroyed in the name of science, House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, observed:

“Advancements in science and research have moved faster than the debates among politicians in Washington, D.C., and breakthroughs announced in recent years confirm that the full potential of stem cell research can be realized without the destruction of living human embryos. This issue is not about whether federal dollars should fund stem cell research. There is little debate about that, and Republicans enthusiastically support adult, cord blood, and pluripotent stem cell research that have shown so much promise in recent years. The question is whether taxpayer dollars should be used to subsidize the destruction of precious human life. Millions of Americans strongly oppose that, and rightfully so. Taxpayer dollars should not aid the destruction of innocent human life.” ABC News Blog (probably never got on national news)

Thursday Thirteen--the little things will make us healthier, wealthier and wise

1. Pick up $10 worth of food at the supermarket this week to donate to the local food pantry. $10 won't be noticed in your pantry--doesn't buy a lot--but if everyone did it, many could be helped, and your local economy will benefit too. This week $10 at Marc's bought two large boxes of corn flakes, 2 large cans of spaghetti sauce, and 6 medium size cans of chunk pineapple in natural juice.

2. Reduce your own calories by 100-200 a day. Again, you won't miss them--it's a bite while waiting at Panera's snack table or cleaning up that bit of gravy with a piece of bread; you won't go hungry, but if you're consistent, you'll lose 10 lbs or so in the next 6 months. You'll feel better, the clothes will not need to be replaced, and you might even save on some medical bills. Your knees will thank me.

3. Your city government is probably making cuts "for show" so it can apply for some stimulus money. That's YOUR money--just say NO. Organize a few friends, grab a trash bag, put on an orange hunter's vest, and pick up some roadside trash. Make your mayor look foolish.

4. Go out to eat this week. Yes, waitresses and busboys and stock owners have bills too. If you aren't doing your favorite spot, try McDonald's or Wendy's. There are lots of healthy things on the menu. Can't swing the whole meal? Just go for dessert.

5. If you choose a sit-down restaurant, leave a generous tip. Everyone has to live, and you need to keep some of this in your own community and not send it all to Washington for the Obamacons to spend.

6. Plan a modest outing or vacation. Yes, Florida and Las Vegas are fun, but check out some local festivals--keep the souvenir budget in the hands of local crafts people.

7. Don't neglect your church tithe. You don't tithe? Well, no wonder your budget is a mess. That should come off the top. But if you're the $5 a week Christian, consider doubling that. If everyone in the pew did just that, most churches could pay off their mortgages and feed the African children.

8. Learn or relearn some basic cooking and sewing skills like grandma and mother had (well, not my grandmothers--they weren't known for their cooking although they could garden and can). This week I cooked up a mess of pinto beans--about $1.00. Tasted quite good. Somewhere I have a recipe for pinto bean cake from a good-ol-boy from Kentucky. Don't let the government tell you that food stamps are the only way--you can do a lot with 10 lbs of potatoes, a package of macaroni, a gallon of milk, and a few pounds of real cheese. The rice pudding I made--well, that needs a little work.

9. Death and taxes. Be prepared. Update your will--or at least locate it, and update your health directives. You just never know, and you don't want this to be a burden to your children or spouse. Martin Luther made this #1 in preparing for the next life: said you should get all your worldly affairs in order so that in the event of your death, "there won't be occasion for squabbles, quarrels or other misunderstanding" among the survivors.

10. Clean out your garage. You'll feel light and some worthy organization can resell your donations--this puts money into your local economy while adjusting your self-esteem and sense of self-worth. Plus, sweeping the garage out will burn a few calories to help with #2.

11. Help the post office (threatening lay-offs of employees) by sending a get-well or birthday card this week. It's still one of the best bargins out there.

12. If you're so inclined or need to, buy something BIG. Our friends Wes and Sue of Worthington just gave central Ohio a big boost. They put their lovely ranch with the huge lot, right price and a great school district on the market and it sold in 3 days. Then they needed a home, so they bought a half double (Bob Webb home) in a community of about 80, and are happily picking out appliances, wall colors and floor coverings. 30 year mortgages are at an historic low--4.85%, and there are great deals on new and used cars at Jack Maxton.

13. Every time you see a daffodil or forsythia blooming this Spring, pause and give thanks. Then take a deep breath and thank God for all the neat, colorful people blooming in your life. The oxygen and positive thoughts will do wonders for your wrinkles and attitude.

Can we hire this woman?

Marcia Picou, Baton Rouge, LA comments at Morning Bell about members of both parties:

I believe that any Congress person who voted for authorizing the stimulus plan without reading it, which will very likely waste billions upon billions of dollars, if not trillions (by the time interest is added in during payback time), should be held more accountable than the employess at AIG who received bonuses .

I believe we could turn our country back towards being a democratic Republic by three things:
Beginning term limits for congressional people,
limiting any raises and perks for Congress - only the American people should be allowed to vote for this, and
institution of the FairTax.

I also wish that Obama and the current administration would stop whining about what they “inherited” - they HELPED to create the inheritance.

Well said, Marcia. Now run for office.

Is the Federal Reserve Banking system part of the federal government?

I would say no, but a school teacher I was chatting with at the coffee shop said, "Of course it's part of the government." If it is, that is never said on any of the web sites of the twelve banks that comprise "the system." Now granted, the Board of Governors of the Fed is a federal government agency, but that's a board, not the Fed itself. The members of the Board are appointed by the President and approved by Congress for 14 year terms.

But the Fed itself is a central bank, private shareholder owned, and no matter where you look for answers you'll find either right wing, anti-semites who will swear it's a plot by Jews to own the world, or extremely non-commital bank owned sites and publications which are pretty mum about who and what they are.

I know this. There's a lot out there about what the Fed does, but not about who is in charge or who owns it.

Today, the Federal Reserve’s duties fall into four general areas:

conducting the nation’s monetary policy by influencing the monetary and credit conditions in the economy in pursuit of maximum employment, stable prices, and moderate long-term interest rates

supervising and regulating banking institutions to ensure the safety and soundness of the nation’s banking and financial system and to protect the credit rights of consumers

maintaining the stability of the financial system and containing systemic risk that may arise in financial markets

providing financial services to depository institutions, the U.S. government, and foreign official institutions, including playing a major role in operating the nation’s payments system.

It doesn't report to you and me, the taxpayers. The URL is not dot gov. And Ben Bernanke, not Barack Obama, is the most powerful man in the world.

I wish he were that harmless!

Washington Post graphic comparing Bush and Obama via The Foundry.

When the word "HOPE" means something

Yesterday I came across the web page for Hope Lutheran Church in Aurora, Colorado, an evangelical, confessional, liturgical, Bible-believing Lutheran church and member of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod. It also has a web master who knows how to design an easy-to-navigate web page and a pastor with a heart for communicating the Gospel from the pulpit, from Sunday school, and with decently current technology. So many churches (and libraries, businesses and schools) seem to have cartoonists and quasi-lunatics on contract for web design with a cacophony of colors, hidden links, and wiggling widgets. I was looking through their key to the events of Holy Week, and now the names and places really jump out at me after so recently visiting Jerusalem, the Upper Room, Caiaphas' home, the Mount of Olives, and Gethsemane. There are many Christians who want to focus exclusively on a "social justice" message for Jesus, but 1) one-third of the Gospels are devoted to one week of his life, and 2) all the moral and ethical values Jesus taught had already been given to the Jews long before his birth. He wasn't needed for that message; he was needed for our salvation.

What they're planning in Norway

Could this be in our future?

"Finance Minister and Socialist Left Party leader Kristin Halvorsen says her party wants a ban on the sale of gasoline driven cars by 2015. She says that new technology will be available by then.

- The Socialist Left will adopt this as a goal, but it must of course be effectuated in cooperation with other countries, she says.

In an interview with Aftenposten, Halvorsens says she believes that by 2015 the development of new technology will have advanced to the point where it is quite possible to demand that all new cars be emission free. Norway Post, March 26, 2009"

If they can ban the sale of new cars, I suppose they can ban the driving of the old. That's what you get with the socialist left, Obamamas and Obamans. You voted socialist, I didn't. Although this Norway story isn't all just gas--isn't all tree-hugging greengoes. Follow the money. Petroleum and natural gas are huge industries in Norway which has been pumping North Sea oil for nearly 40 years. Right now the price of oil is down, so the lack of major new discoveries in recent years has accelerated its decline and shift towards natual gas. According to one source I read, last year oil and gas companies spent a record of nearly $19 billion to seek and tap new petroleum resources off Norway. Now if they find it's profitable (i.e. the per barrel price goes up and your price at the pump), I assume they'll continue to sell their stash.

Have you read your STRS newsletter this month?

How about that part about bonuses for the fund managers even though all that money was lost. Really, was it their fault? Want some ACORNish outrage showing up at their door step Mr. Frank and Mr. Obama? Our pensions are not looking so great. This piece is not from that, but it could be

. . . we are just starting to see the unraveling of public pension systems that could well shake some of society’s basic foundations. Policemen, policewomen, firefighters, teachers and other public employees form the backbone of society. Many of these people happily take jobs offering lower wages in return for the psychic income of public service and, of equal importance, the financial income of a generous pension when they retire.

My pension is far from generous, certainly not like the public school teacher who has taught 30 years then retired because it didn't pay to continue. I only have 23 years, and some of that I had to buy back from Illinois. But many retired public servants do quite well, and then create other careers. I talked to a man the other day at the Senior Center--he and his wife had 5 pensions between them.

Card Check is NOT free choice

Every worker should be free to decide whether to join a union.

"Suppose to vote in state and national elections you weren't allowed a secret ballot behind a curtain. Suppose to vote you had to go downtown and vote in the baseball stadium, where your choices would be flashed on the scoreboard, before a howling mob. Your boss, and your co-workers, and your neighbors would all know who you voted for.

That is how the unions and liberal Democrats want to change the law in regard to employees choosing whether they want a union." American Spectator

"Union organizers waited for us in the break room, sat with us at lunch whether we wanted them to or not, and walked us to our cars at the end of the day. The entire time they were constantly badgering us to sign the cards. …I refused to sign the card every time they asked, and I know many others shared my sentiment. But none of that mattered to the UAW, because the pressure did not let up. In fact, one day, an official approached me again claiming fifty percent of the plant had signed — so now I was going to have to sign the card to ‘get my information in the system.’

I signed the card then because I thought I had to. I didn’t learn until later that even then, I should not have been forced to sign the card. I hope you’ll vote to defeat the misnamed Employee Free Choice Act." Testimony of worker Larry Getts before the Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions