More bad mortgages if these guys have their way

These guys want to strengthen the Carter era legislation of Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) which helped create our current recession and explosion of defaults by lowering credit standards and recruiting marginally qualified buyers to be "home owners." I suspect they just want to keep their cushy jobs. Lots of money in workshops to recruit and train, and then more money on how to budget, then more on how to avoid foreclosure. Oh sure, it's House Dems who are pushing it, but whodathunkit without these guys?

http://206.130.110.176/wordpress/

"Another 'Bachelor' Falls Short of Alter"

That was a headline in my RoadRunner news page.  Altar is where people get married; alter is what you do in castration.

The hit ABC series continues its long-running tradition of bringing couples together only to see them break up shortly after 'the final rose.' Pilot Jake Pavelka's choice was a surprising one on this spring's season finale, and his relationship with tabloid regular Vienna Girardi has ended after just a few months.

The longest day

Yesterday was the first day of summer and the longest day of the year--now they'll start going the other way, and I'll be watching the sunrise move slowly to the south, until by August I'll see it over Marblehead instead of Kelley's Island.  About 9:30 there was still some daylight, and we were in our pajamas remarking that we really should have gone down to watch the sunset.  We heard a tap on the porch door and there was a good friend, in town only briefly.  If we'd been on the dock we would have missed her.  Although, maybe not.  She's a night person and I'm a morning persons--the tap could have come much later.

I took my book down to the hotel porch about 2:30 p.m. while Jim and my husband were sailing.  This is Mayfly season (good for the birds but really messy for people) and the slowest, young man I've seen in awhile was sucking them up in a vacuum cleaning louder than a leaf blower.  Or maybe he was blowing them. I don't think his mom ever taught him how to clean.  Fortunately, he wasn't very motivated and didn't continue too far down the wrap around porch with dozens of chairs.

I'm reading "Stepping heavenward; one woman's journal to Godliness" by Mrs. Elizabeth Prentiss, published in 1869 which apparently is considered a "classic" and is still in print.  I found it in the church "freebie" box, in perfect, unmarked condition (2008 reprint) about a year ago. It's really quite charming, sound theologically, and since it starts in the early teen years, one is reminded that nothing much changes in 200 years. It's fiction in diary form, a genre I usually don't appreciate, but it is well paced with a lot of introspection and spiritual temperature taking.  This was not on my TBR list, but I'm enjoying it. Need to get back to Keller's "Reason for God" which is what my Columbus group is reading.

Today is Tuesday and should be the first Farmer's Market.  There are two major seminar themes this week, "Race in America" and "American writers."  This morning's offering is "I am a promise" a film made in 1994. I'm sure it will not be noted that all our biggest poverty/education problems in this country are in urban areas controlled for generations by the Democratic machine which continues to create a sense of powerlessness, anger and hopelessness in people while buying their votes.  I don't want to hear how little has changed in 16 years and how if we just threw more money at it, everything would be OK.

The afternoon wellness program is an update on radiation therapy for treatment of cancer. That sounds interesting since I'm a bit of a medical research junkie. At 1:30 someone is giving a "living simply" lecture--yawn.  Been there done that.  Tomorrow morning the Herb class will meet at the train station.  I loved where we met last year--close to the lake and the herb garden, but we must have gotten too large for that open air space. Tonight's program at Hoover is "The Singers' Club at Cleveland," featuring love songs and music from the movies.

BP plans reads like fiction? Who approved the plan? The government.

Wrong addresses, phone numbers, species names, officials' names. I encounter that it seems with every report I read on-line whether government, private or non-profit. Who was suppose to check the figures? We must have thousands of employees making big bucks at the EPA, FEMA and MMS. Are there no fact checkers?

“BP PLC's 582-page regional spill plan for the Gulf, and its 52-page, site-specific plan for the Deepwater Horizon rig, are riddled with omissions and glaring errors, according to an Associated Press analysis that details how BP officials have pretty much been making it up as they go along. The lengthy plans approved by the federal government last year before BP drilled its ill-fated well vastly understate the dangers posed by an uncontrolled leak and vastly overstate the company's preparedness to deal with one.”

The federal government's clutch of regulatory agencies are the sister agencies of those which manage education, epidemics, national parks, homeless shelters, food purity, etc. The bigger the agency like EPA or HHS the more likely the failure. And yet, we're moving to bigger and bigger, more and more government. Why do we think that people who can't handle a huge job, could do better if we just gave them a humongous job?

Columbus Dispatch story

A magical experience?

You know how addresses stick in that little window at the top of your computer screen? The golf tournament is incredibly boring, so I turned on the computer and was flipping through that list--must be from last summer. Looked at Fat Triplets--gosh they were good. They were going great guns in October and November 2008--probably Obama fans--then trickled down to nothingness in December 2009. Total disallusionment, I'm guessing.

Then I clicked on something called steppingstonesmentalhealth and found unbelievable eastern mysticism--right here in Lakeside!

This week’s Intentional Living activity was extraordinary. I hosted a wellness retreat last weekend at Lakeside, Ohio, a chautauqua near Marblehead in western Ohio. Saturday evening we were guided in a Shamanic Drumming Journey to reclaim our magical child.

I assume this was done for Ohio Methodists based on the date. Have they somehow found the gospel of Jesus Christ lacking in spirituality and meaning so they listen to drums? Oh well, looking through her blog, she has found other interesting things to do in Ohio that don't require putting your mind in neutral or worshiping other gods.

Merkel signals G20 clash with Obama on finance

Odd, isn't it, that a German is the one who has to caution Obama. Perhaps she studied economic history and learned how long FDR dragged us down with his alphabet soup spending and the New Deal. Managed to make our Depression hang on for years, when countries that didn't throw money at it rode it out in far less time. But then, never waste a crisis, as Rahm would say. It did buy him 4 terms.

"German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Saturday spending cutbacks are needed following the spate of throwing money at the global economic crisis, in a direct counter to US President Barack Obama."

Merkel signals G20 clash with Obama on finance

Happy Father's Day!

To everyone who had a great dad who was always there for you, great. And if you got a crummy one in life's father lottery, well, honor him anyway. The Bible promises you a blessing if you do. It's the only one of the Ten Commandments that comes with a promise.

Men who marry the mother of their children reverse the devastation of childhood poverty. It's worth more than a college education in family economics compared to the single mom household. On the other hand, married dads who walk out on the family, usually for another, younger version of the wife of their youth, hurt everyone involved, including his kids, friends and community.

Our children aren't with us today at our lake home, but I have a package for their dad. Two shirts and a book. Woot! One of the shirts is a style he loves; the other, not so much--but I liked it. I also got him Glenn Beck's new book, The Overton Window, of the "thriller" genre. I never read that genre, but I suppose I could grit my teeth and try it. Couldn't be worse than reading the newspaper headlines. The lefty blogs (as Glenn says, writing in their mom's basement) keep trying to harass Glenn about this book (#1 on Amazon). First they ridiculed the poem used in the promo, not realizing it was Kipling's not his; then they accused him of plagiarism, not reading his credits to the author they accused him of plagiarizing. Sigh. It would help if his critics either watched or read him, instead of making up things.

The newly relocated art store, Artists N Kahoots looks very nice in the old Cokesbury bookstore location. My husband has his own section for prints of his watercolors. It's the crafty stuff that really sells, however. He doesn't do jewelry or pottery or cheese knives or decorated mirrors, batik scarves, wind chimes, etc.

I watched the sunrise at 5:55 this morning on my walk. It wasn't spectacular like many I've seen over Lake Erie, but it's always amazing to see the pink horizon, and then POP! there it is. If sunrises don't make you feel small and sunsets make you feel peaceful, then you need a tune up with the Creator. Don't worship "mother nature" or "mother earth," talk to the real Father of us all. He's anxious to hear from you on Father's Day, or any day.

We ate at the hotel again last night.  I had my 3rd rueben of the season, but this one wasn't as good as the first two--sort of soggy and the corned beef tasted odd.  So next time I'll go for the grilled chicken salad.  But the view of the lakefront and the classic car show on the lawn was spectacular.  Saw lots of cars from the 1950s, and a few from the early 60s that I would gladly ride around in with the top down.  We're really glad the hotel dining room as reopened.  When my husband went to pay the bill he discovered I had taken a twenty from his wallet when I went out to check on the new art store.  Plus, I hadn't spent it, but it was in my slacks and I had changed clothes!  So I dug around in my purse and we came up with enough for the bill and tip. Always check your wallet before leaving the house!

Worship at the pavilion at 8:30 with Bud Cox, the former Lakeside director.  I assume Rev. Jennings had another commitment--we always enjoy his services. Then after communion looking over the lake horizon we go to the Patio Restaurant for breakfast. It's a tradition, but the frig is pretty empty so today it will be a necessity too.

Freedom and liberty and myths

Most of my years were lived out in the 20th century. I grew up in a household with a liberal mother (liberal in the classical sense of the word, not the pejorative it has become), and a conservative father who owned a small business (first he worked for Standard Oil to learn the business, then became a partner with an older man in coal which was losing out to fuel oil to have the financial backing he needed, then bought out his partner and became a sole owner). Both of my parents attended Mt. Morris College (merged with Manchester in 1932), as did my mother's parents, my father using a Polo, IL charity and his athletic skills, my mother using her parents' dwindling resources. The town Mt. Morris in which my parents lived, went to college, and supported my father's little business had a thriving printing industry at one time begun by two young brothers in the early 20th century, the Kables. It then was unionized (don't know the dates), then was bought by a larger corporation, then was struck down by a union strike in the late 1970s, from which it has never recovered. The smaller publishing and fulfillment companies which grew up around the printing industry, eventually left too, as the town voters turned down bond issues and highly qualified and educated people left for greener, freer pastures, all of which will live out that same cycle. 1) Entrepreneurial start up based on a good idea at the right time, 2) thriving growth, 3) unionism, 4) increased government regulations, 5) stagnation and strikes, 6) outsourcing to less regulated area to avoid the unions, either in the U.S. or abroad, and finally, get-out-of-town-shut-it-down.

I never heard my parents argue about politics--he voted Republican, she voted Democrat, so for 65 years they crossed out each others votes. The fact that I didn't hear it, doesn't mean it didn't happen. After all, I left home when I was 17 (went to California after graduation to work in a church program, and then in the fall went away to college). From then on I was a visitor and we talked about other things--town issues, grandchildren, grandparents, health, etc. I followed Mother's path and voted pretty much a straight Democratic ticket until the 2000 presidential election, although for local and state elections I voted for what ever name recognition the candidate had.

During my parents' lifetime and my own, however, there were vast changes in our political, economic and religious life. They lived through two world wars, the Great Depression, Korea, Vietnam and various smaller conflicts. We had just celebrated our 40th anniversary in my father's home on Sunday when 9/11 happened on Tuesday. And during their lifetime and mine, the definitions of freedom and liberty were gradually changing. It used to mean, and this was before my time, freedom from the coercion of the state, but has evolved to mean freedom from need, from want, from lack, and especially from competition to be better or the best.

My chosen career, library science, is pretty much a profession owned and controlled by the state. Yes, there are a few private companies that employ librarians, but for the most part it is top to bottom state run and regulated. Librarians like to talk about "freedom to read" and that public libraries are "the university of the people" but that's another freedom myth, one that has been subject to the redefinition of that word. Librarians, whether public or academic, vote overwhelmingly Democratic--223 to 1--in the 2004 election. That fact alone makes the profession more liberal than Hollywood, more liberal than the ACLU. This is the result of a mindset of "we know what's best for you" and it's in all levels of government from your local zoning board, to the school board, to the state department of transportation all the way up to the Oval Office. This is why I say book banning begins in the back room of the library where "acquisition" takes place, not at the point where an irate parents comes in and complains about a sex scene in a child's book. It also explains why librarians did not invent the world wide web, Google, or any of the "tools" that are now putting them in unemployment lines. Even with all that information at their finger tips, all library innovation is dependent on government grants and regulations, not competition for ideas or investors or entrepreneurship.

The redefinition of freedom is taught throughout the public school curricula and the Sunday Schools and pulpits of mainline Protestantism. As poor as Haiti is, the private school where my husband volunteers has a classical, liberal (in the true sense) curriculum that would put ours to shame. It exists even in the "required" volunteerism component now included in most schools' college-bound tracks. In many churches, the message from the pulpit is not about freedom in Christ, but that redefined freedom that the government offers us, freedom from the need to work or be sexually chaste, freedom from saving enough for a 20% down payment on a mortgage, freedom from hunger or poor housing, freedom from having to wait for a new car until you can afford it, freedom from renting, freedom from having borders or fences that keep other people out, etc.

Planned economies promise such freedoms, usually by taking from someone who has and giving it to someone who has not. That's what President Obama offers us (following a long line of 20th century presidents), offered us this past week in his martial "words of war" against not just British Petroleum, but our whole way of life based on fossil fuels. Make no mistake, planned economies, including the newer "green" cap and trade plans, the top down, dictator/czar/president knows best, always end badly. The leftists among us advising the President are urging Obama to become a dictator, a communist--even using those words (they don't even hide it with squishy "progressive" language).

With all their faults and up and down business cycles, capitalism and corporate monopolies have never put in place plans that resulted in the deaths and imprisonment of millions and millions of their "customers" in the way that the planned economies of Germany, the Soviet Union, Communist China, and North Korea have murdered upwards to 100,000,000 of their own citizens.

It's a really high price to pay for "freedom," don't you think?

Lie of the Day by guess who?

There are some great ones on the list. . . just a sampling.

Lie: Part of the reason oil companies are drilling a mile beneath the surface of the ocean [is] because we're running out of places to drill on land and in shallow water.
--President Obama promotes his cap and trade plan in his speech from the Oval Office.

Lie: We're not satisfied with everything we've done [in Congress]. The way to cure that is to give us more authority and more ability.
--Barney Frank tells young Democrats that giving Congress more power is the cure.


Lie: [W]e have rescued this economy.
--President Obama, saying the stimulus worked so well that we need to pass another

Lie: [Iraq] could be one of the great achievements of this administration.
--Vice President Joe Biden forgetting to blame Bush for success in Iraq

Lie: There has never been a more open process for any legislation.
--House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, on Congress' work on the health care bill

Laura Ingraham: Lie of the Day Archives

Murray tries to be counted

Guest blogger Murray who lives in Mt. Morris, Illinois, and The Villages, Florida, has been playing tag with the U.S. Census. He writes here about his experiences with the 2010 census.

Have you been officially counted yet? Or if you're like me maybe you just don't count. I was in Florida when I received a Census form to fill out but since I don't claim Florida as my legal residence, I didn't fill it out for that address. We have our mail forwarded from Mt. Morris so we were just silly enough to think our Illinois census would be forwarded like our other mail. That did not happen, so I called the U.S. Census Bureau and told a person there of my dilemma and she took my address and said they would mail a census form to my Illinois address. That didn't happen, so I called them again and was told that they were no longer mailing out forms so I would have to wait for someone to show up. That didn't happen, but I did find a weather beaten notice in my bushes that a Stephanie Wolfe from the census had been in the neighborhood, so I called her number. Stephanie told me she didn't think she went to our street but couldn't explain how I had a "notice of visit" with her name and number on it. Implying that maybe "that didn't happen," she said that she had already turned in her information to her supervisor so there wasn't anything she could do. She said she would give her supervisor my phone number and he would probably call me. If I didn't hear from him then I must already be counted. Hmmmm, kinda makes me wonder how that happened! Now. . . we're supposed to trust the Federal government to run Obamacare? Plus all the other programs and policies the Obama administration have doled out against the wishes of the majority of the taxpaying citizens? Why not? I mean he's doing a hellava job with the oil spill, bringing the two political parties together, balancing the budget, our southern border disaster, ridding Washington D.C. of lobbyists, controlling spending, immigration control, our foreign policy, the two wars, kicking ass and stepping on necks of CEOs, etc., etc. And to think there's more to come! Murray

TBR list for summer

Not sure I'll get that much read. I like to take a book down to the hotel porch, but I end up people watching and writing in my blog notebook. But here's what I've got so far. There would be more but Barnes and Noble doesn't assign anyone to watch Glenn Beck's Fox program and his book recommendations often go to number one over night. For instance, I asked for George Washington Sacred Fire, and it apparently is temporarily out of stock (or print, don't remember); then I asked for F.A. Hayek's Road to Serfdom, and they didn't have any but had 11 on order (the UAPL has a waiting list of 10). But I was able to find The Overton Window, and Samuel Adams; a life. I like non-fiction, but rarely read a "thriller."

Also on my list to finish is Timothy Keller's The Reason for God, Larry Schweikart's A Patriot's History of the United States, and The Lutherans in North America.  Then I take along some recent JAMAs, which I'm starting to call Ojama due to the editorial slant and butt kissing of the editors, and the Spring and Summer issues of Watercolor and Watercolor Artist.

Day Fifty seven--Obama's been there since day one

It's day 57. "The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of the Interior, the Department of Homeland Security, and the White House, as well as the Coast Guard, have been putting out confusing and contradictory statements since the disaster began." Morning Bell. This White House didn't create the 2010 mess, but our Federal government laid the ground work many years ago by pushing the drilling into unsafe, deep waters and into untested technology. This was not the first choice of the oil companies, nor the Gulf states. The government set a $75 million limit on liability years ago after the Exxon Alaska spill, so with that kind of permission, the drilling way off shore began. We could have had help immediately with the effects of the spill and saved thousands of livelihoods, but Obama wouldn't set aside the Jones Act because of union pressures. Now almost 3 months later at the urging of other governors of Gulf states, he's considering a waiver. Perhaps Obama is trying to beat his record of last summer where he dawdled and fumbled for 90 days over troop requests for Afghanistan? After all, didn't he call this a war? He can win this war to destroy more of the economy if he just drags it out long enough. If he can cause BP to go bankrupt, he can ruin many pension plans along with all the businesses along the coast.

Jewish blogger has her PayPal account pulled

Judith Geller who writes a blog called Atlas Shrugged which is anti-Obama, and pro-Israel, is having her PayPal account pulled.

"However, after a recent review of your account, it has been determined that you are currently in violation of PayPal's Acceptable Use Policy. Under the Acceptable Use Policy, PayPal may not be used to send or receive payments for items that promote hate, violence, racial intolerance or the financial exploitation of a crime."

I only occasionally read her site, but it's only "hate" if you are a pro-Obama, tingle up the leg supporter or racially intolerant if you think Israel has a right to exist, or believe that there are Islamic Jihadists in the U.S. and Britain.

It's getting dicey. We now live in a country where the President can demonize private foreign companies, steal our money (40% of BP investors are Americans), reinstate McCarthy era interrogation teams to brutalize CEOs, and give our tax money to unions (which is probably where the 20 billion will go), hire tax cheats like Ginthner, and Communists like Van Jones and Anita Dunn as advisers, expand his bevy of Czars, a President who thinks all white people think a certain way and have prejudice "bred" into them, and that police and governors of border states act foolishly even before he gets the facts. And remember, he didn't meet with BP officials, in fact initially he said he wouldn't because he knew what they thought, until after he went on national TV and castigated them. This is not a steel trap mind; it's a locked dungeon.

Can PayPal revoke the President's account? Like the one that takes our tax money?

I don't use PayPal ever for anything. But if I did, I'd protest by not using it. It's a private company and it can set its own rules. But you have to wonder who's behind this, since usually private companies care about making money.

Update: PayPal reverses its decision. Geller is now using a different service. PayPal is owned by E-bay.

The murdering crook strikes again

Now he's old and sick and wants the prison system to pick up the tab. Edward Edwards has confessed to . . . "In 1977 in Ohio, 18-year-old Judith Straub of Sterling and 21-year-old Bill Lavaco were shot at point-blank range and killed.

In 1980, 19-year-old high school sweethearts Kelly Drew and Tim Hack vanished after a wedding reception in Wisconsin. Weeks later, their bodies were found in the woods. According to investigators, Drew was strangled and Hack was stabbed.

In 2007, Wisconsin investigators extracted DNA taken from semen on Drew's pants to state analysts. In June 2009, the DNA results confirmed a match to Edwards. Police arrested Edwards last July for the murders of Drew and Hack. In April, Edwards confessed to the Ohio murders."

Edward Edwards Guilty of Four Murders from 70's and 80s - Crimesider - CBS News

In the early 1970s we used to visit men in the Old Ohio Penitentiary through a church program (we were incredibly naive). We met aging career criminals like the Ohio Purple Gang and Thomas Licavoli who were being paroled due to old age, and I suspect, because the Governor didn't want to continue paying their medical bills. They probably all still had their money. Edwards, on the other hand, is apparently a pauper. I think it would be appropriate to have the families of the victims in charge of his health care.

Update: June 17 Also killed his foster son, he now confesses.

"I'm responsible for it," Edwards said. "It didn't work on my conscience. I spent the money. I was having a good time. You do it, forget it was done and go about your business until next time."

24 hour food recall

I see the USDA is coming out with a "new" food pyramid. Who knew you should eat more vegetables, less meat, and cut out the salt? My grandmother Mary was a health food nut. If there was meat on the table, it was chicken, and most of their food came from the garden. But that was the 1920s, what did they know?

New food guidelines to recommend more veggies - wtop.com

Quickly, can you recall what you ate yesterday? That's how a lot of food studies are done. Here's what I had. Breakfast: Apple, large, sliced with skin on; 1/2 cup walnuts; one large carrot. And I salted it because I like salt.

Lunch was 5 chopped vegetables, grilled in olive oil: celery, mushrooms, onions, corn, and peas, sprinkled with a very tasty new product called "Perfect Pinch," Parmesan Herb. You don't need very much, and it really jazzes up the veggies. Mushrooms and celery are pretty worthless when it comes to nutritional value, so they are there basically for filler. Then I had about 1/2 cup sliced strawberries on a sugar free Klondike Bar (ice cream).

Supper was 6 little beef meatballs cooked with rice, a little gravy, mushrooms and onions (I was trying to use up the mushrooms) with a side of broccoli sprinkled with shredded cheddar. For dessert I had Graeter's Ice Cream, about 1/2 cup, Black raspberry chocolate chip. I'm not even particularly crazy about ice cream, but for some reason, if it's in the frig I'll eat it.

So that totals up to six vegetables and two fruits (although mixed I supposed that's more like three servings of vegetables), two dairy, one meat, one grain.

Then there are the extras: cup of coffee with Half n Half; 4 Ritz crackers with crunchy natural peanut butter; multi-vitamin (which the gov't says we don't need); vitamin D tablet (doctor says I need that--Ohio you know); 4 oz. Merlot.

Before you eat your vegetables, you can paint them.

If you don't know where you're going, any road will take you there

I think that's a good paraphrase of Obama's speech on the oil spill. Even the left stream media is totally confused trying to parse this mess. Has he changed speech writers? Puppet masters? String makers? Teleprompter companies?

"It’s safe to say Chris Matthews has lost that tingly feeling down his thigh. It took only seconds after President Obama concluded his Oval Office address for Matthews and co-host Keith Olbermann to rip into the President for what they perceived as a lack of leadership and direction, and, especially in Matthews’ case, and over-reliance on meritocracy."

Obama is clearly a CPA--Cloward, Priven, Alinksy.

Exercise class has ended for the summer

Maybe we can try this exercise video.

F.A. Hayek and The road to Serfdom

What a stunning book! Can hardly believe I never read it before--well, wait, yes I can. I went to school when FDR was idolized and I was a Democrat for 40 years. Figures.

It's not like you have to go deep into a bunch of anecdotes to figure it out. He gives the plot away, and I don't use the term lightly, on page 5. This book is now number one on Amazon because Glenn Beck recommended it, but it was published in 1944 in the midst of World War II.

In 1944 Hayek warned the United States and England, that although they were in the midst of fighting a war against the German Nazis, they were committing all the same mistakes that led up to the National Socialists taking over and the rise of Hitler.

It is necessary now to state the unpalatable truth that it is Germany whose fate we are in some danger of repeating. . . the trend of thought in Germany during and after the last war and the present current of ideas in the democracies. . . There is the same contempt for 19th century liberalism, the same spurious "realism" and even cynicism, the same fatalistic acceptance of "inevitable trends." And at least 9 out of every 10 of the lessons which our most vociferous reformers are so anxious we should learn from this war are precisely the lessons which the Germans did learn from the last war and which have done much to produce the Nazi system. . . it is not so many years since the socialist policy of that country was generally held up by progressives as an example to be imitated.

In short, Hayek points out that the rise of naziism and facism was NOT a reaction against the socialist trends of the preceding period but a necessary outcome of those tendencies.

READ THIS BOOK. Believe it or not (and I hardly can) there are two copies in the Upper Arlington Public Library with 10 holds. I guess because of it's 1944 publication date, it managed to slip through the banning of conservative titles. I'll return my copy at the end of the week, and it's not a long read.

Good-bye to my Mama--Meryl Streep and Lily Tomlin

Last night we watched The Prairie Home Companion (2006) on the Sundance Channel about a fictionalized radio show by that name, doing its final show with peeks at back stage of the theater. There are some very touching parts, particularly this one. Streep and Tomlin play Yolanda and Rhonda Johnson, a singing group.



We don't watch many movies, especially at home, but this one is always good.

A Ph.D. is no guarantee except possibly for frustration and unemployment

Haven't we been hearing this for years? The job of a teacher with a PhD at a college is to turn out more PhDs who scramble for fewer and fewer jobs in academe? Stop the madness!

"Doctoral recipients in all disciplines are having a tough time finding teaching gigs, said William Pannapacker (writes as Thomas H. Benton), a columnist for the Chronicle of Higher Education and an associate professor of English at Hope College in Holland, Mich. For example, university job openings that required a math doctorate declined 40 percent in the 2009-10 academic year from the year before, said the American Mathematical Society.

At the same time, schools keep producing doctoral recipients. The number of doctorates awarded by U.S. colleges and universities reached an all-time high in 2008 at 48,802, nearly double the number awarded in 1970."

Ph.D. is no guarantee of a high-paying job | The Columbus Dispatch

"I can see November from my house."

After Congressman Bob Etheridge (D-NC) found out that the video of him assaulting a student on a public sidewalk who politely asked him a question had gone viral, he decided to issue an "apology" that included the words, "I regret," which never sounds like an apology to me. Then he lauded his past service, while calling the students' behavior intrusive. Nice apology. And it wasn't even a dicey question! The Democratic leadership has become so pathetic since the radicals consumed their party, belched and spit it out in little pieces. You'd almost feel badly for them, except they had months of warning with all that hopey changey blowing in the wind, and like those drowning buses in New Orleans, they just didn't get on board and get out of town while there was still time.



And WaPo is right on this--demanding to know who the students were and whether the Republicans sent them. Great investigative work by the obamedia.

UALC first vote to leave ELCA

At the special congregational meeting on Sunday, June 13, the resolution to leave the ELCA was passed with a 91.8% majority, 538 to 48.

This begins a 90 day consultation period, ending in a second vote in the fall. For more background on the ELCA decision, visit the ELCA Decision page by clicking here (numerous documents, both from UALC and ELCA).

There were many well considered and thoughtful comments during the time of public discussion of the motion. After discussion we moved to the sanctuary for prayer, singing and the vote.

Update: If you stumbled in here and are confused by the acronyms, this is a discussion about Lutherans. UALC is Upper Arlington Lutheran Church, founded in the Columbus suburb of Upper Arlington, Ohio about 55 years ago. It has 3 campuses and 9 Sunday services. Although it started in Upper Arlington, it now also has a campus in Hilliard, Ohio, and Columbus, Ohio. The church was planted, I think, by members of Holy Trinity Lutheran in Upper Arlington, and why they couldn't think of a pretty name like theirs, I don't know. ELCA is the name of the synod, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America created in 1988 by the merger of The American Lutheran Church (ALC of which UALC was a member), The Association of Evangelical Lutheran Churches, and The Lutheran Church in America (LCA). There are even more acronyms ahead, as we move toward new relationships with other Lutheran groups, like CORE and NALC.

Update: I had the history of the congregation wrong. Here's the story. "As I understand the story there was a group from St. John's [Grove City] who settled in the newly-developing area of Upper Arlington. The ALC thought it would be a good mission, (I guess Trinity was LCA) so they called a pastor, started meeting in a basement, moved to Hastings Jr. High auditorium, bought land at the corner of Lane & McCoy - I think - somewhere around there. There was a moratorium on churches in UA, but when that was lifted, a bigger plot of land became available where the pastor's house was, a farm house on Middlesex. We sold the smaller plot on the main street and bought Lytham, then in 1956 built the first building."

BP to pay for its mistakes, and also Obama's. Why?

Do you get the feeling that Obama has no desire to have this problem fixed because it works unbelieveably well in his plan?

Gloria Estefan

Another really terrific CD--this one for $2.00 from the library Friends' sale--Gloria Estefan's "Hold me, thrill me, kiss me," a collection of cover tunes, and all very nice. The title song was a 1952 big hit. If I can just find a boom box that plays cds, I'm getting a nice collection of love songs for our anniversary background music.

Gloria's family fled Fidel Castro's takeover of Cuba in 1959. Her father was imprisoned while taking part in the Bay of Pigs invasion and was not released until President John F. Kennedy arranged a prisoner exchange. She on the other hand, displeased many Cuban Americans by throwing a $30,000 a head fund raiser for President Obama in April, although she claims to be non-partisan. Well, the marxists, socialists and progressives who people his staff are not, so she has chosen a political philosophy that has torn Cuba apart for 50 years. I think many celebrities and entertainers have a huge guilt complex about their wealth, and believe if they swing left they can shake some of it.

Cheese

There are people who think American process cheese (it was actually invented in Switzerland) isn't "real" cheese, but that's what I grew up with--great grilled cheese sandwiches, great for melting over anything. A bit too soft for crackers, but. . it will work. But what is that gunk called "cheese product" or "cheese food?" Or low fat cheese product, or fat free cheese food? Why not just get a little yellow paint and spread it on the bread? If you need low fat cheese, just eat less of real cheese! Low fat (label) anything just means they added water or more whey to increase the volume.

Here's the story. Sometimes it can take a long time of standing in front of the open cooler looking for decent American process cheese:

Pasteurized process cheese - contains 100% cheese. Pasteurized process cheese food - contains at least 51% cheese. Pasteurized process cheese product – contains less than 51% cheese.

Visual Arts Ministry meets, greets and eats at the Bucket

The final meeting of the season was held at the Rusty Bucket. The hanging system has been put away for the summer (VBS starts next week) and the schedule is shaping up for Spring 2011, with the fall shows already in place. A great group of workers and friends. Wedding photos, summer plans, news about other missions, and family stories were shared making it a delightful evening.

Rescue teams reach stranded teen sailor

I've been known to over react where the health and safety of minor children are concerned, but I believe Abby Sunderland's parents/guardians are guilty of neglect and child abuse. Her father compares her adventure and desire to set a world record for "youngest" to teens driving on the interstate. So would he send her cross-country alone driving a semi-truck loaded with explosives? Not a good example, daddy. If as a nation we had the collective balls to raise the legal driving age to 18, we could save 5,000 lives a year. Hard telling how many permanent brain injuries and damaged limbs that would involve. A 16 year old doesn't have a mature brain, and a teen girl, regardless of her athletic ability and sailing experience probably doesn't have the physical strength or body mass to ward off pirates and typhoons.

Rescue teams reach stranded teen sailor - CNN.com

I'm dress shopping

On line. Suggest some brand names, please, or store. It's been awhile. Dressy. Sleeves. Not short. Not straight. Not white or black.  Size 8-10. $50 or under.

 

Thursday Thirteen--13 buttons, pushed, sewn, pressed and unused

1. Buttons on my jeans and slacks don't seem to stay where they should. The thread weakens and they fall off. Do you suppose it's the 10 lbs?

2. Other buttons don't want to meet up with the assigned button hole.

3. I just discovered that if I press the "unlock button" twice on my car key, that the lights stay on instead of just blinking to say "hello, here I am."

4. We have a new garage door and opener. It's super quiet and a perfect match for the paint, although it is metal. The opener is about the size of a fat ballpoint pen and I have difficulty finding and pressing the button.

5. After my mother died 10 years ago, I brought home her button tin. That's a carry over from 19th century and Depression day thrift. They rarely match anything, but I can identify some buttons from items of family clothing 60 years ago. Some could be from my great-grandfather's work shirts.

6. We have a lot of TV sets. Most have buttons for functions I don't understand.

7. The remotes for each TV are different--even more buttons I don't use. Like Zoom and Angle. Input and Sleep.

8. Rosie O'Donnel, that brilliant, wealthy, political strategist, has pushed my buttons with her ignorance. She is demanding that Obama seize the assets of BP and Great Britain. She says she doesn't care if it's communism. Well, no Rosie, that's called National Socialism. Remember Hitler? That was his system. The state steals private wealth. You're next in that system. It's not just for corporations.

9. AP has a story today that the BP reports read like fiction, with deceased experts and environmental plans for animals and plants that aren't in the Gulf of Mexico. Welcome to the research/report world, AP! That's another button for me. I constantly write to government agencies, non-profits, academic and media websites reporting mistakes, bad citations, bad links, non-existent experts and plans designed to only bring in more grant money, never to solve a problem. I rarely get a response. But if I do, I'm usually told it's not their responsibility or that I'm the one who is mistaken.

10. I wore a really bright printed jacket to coffee today. It must have pushed a button for another customer because she complimented me and said my husband should take me out for brunch. She wears more colorful clothes than I do--I don't much care for this garment.

11. I don't know when Mother Nature pushes the button for Mother Duck under the bush at our front door, but she must really be getting tired of sitting on those 9 eggs.

12. My new dryer, bought to replace the Maytag piece of junk that died after 4 years, doesn't have an alarm buttom to tell me "time to walk downstairs and unload."

13. We're having our furnace maintenance done today. We always use this company. There's a $25 off coupon on the web where you'd never see it which expired June 6. That's another button, constantly being pushed. Coupons. I hate them--on-line, in the newspaper, in the door-hanger bag, attached to the product, or in conjunction with another product like breakfast at Denny's combined with an oil change. Makes no difference. Coupons add costs to everyone's purchase just like all marketing and advertising, but they are grossly unfair and expensive to those of us who don't use them.

Come join other bloggers at Thursday Thirteen.

The Trailer For Glenn Beck's New Book Is Just As Nuts As You'd Expect (VIDEO)

Huffington Post writer must have had a red face after learning he/she ridiculed Rudyard Kipling and not Glenn Beck. Had to append an update. These people are so transparent. If it's Beck, it's got to be bad, right? Or have they always thought Kipling was a bad poet? Beck, Stu and Pat were chortling over some of the ignorant comments at the post--probably removed now.

The Trailer For Glenn Beck's New Book Is Just As Nuts As You'd Expect (VIDEO)

Sandals--a poem inspired by looking at feet

Summer time
Break out the sandals
The thongs and the glam.

Show bunions, corns
and calluses--
Summer’s grand slam. 

Elton John CDs

Today at the Discovery Shop (benefits Cancer research) I found two Elton John CDs. "Love Songs," (1996) and "Duets" (1993). If he can sing at Rush Limbaugh's 4th wedding, he can sing in my kitchen (that's where the cd player is).  $1.00 each.  Good buy.

25,000 pieces of hate mail

Mark Levin interviewed the rabbi David Nesanoff (not sure of the spelling) who interviewed Helen Thomas when she proudly demonstrated her hatred for Jews and Israel. (He was interviewing a number of people at the White House Jewish Heritage celebration that day.) She knew she was being interviewed--it was not a secret recording. He is now getting hate mail, and he says the people have no shame in their anti-semitism--they supply their names, e-mail and even addresses. Hatred of Jews and smearing a man who simply asked a question and didn't editorialize while she gave her appaling answers. Keep in mind, that those people who weep for Palestinian Arabs, like Helen Thomas, never decry the way they are treated in Syria, Jordan or Lebanon, where millions lived for generations and will never be allowed citizenship, a home or a job. Palestinian Arabs are better treated in Israel where they are citizens and have rights than they are in Arab countries where they are hated and reviled.

Governor Chris Christie--I hope this guy runs for President some day

"My argument is not with teachers in New Jersey. My argument is with a union who collects $730 a year from every teacher and school employee in the union in mandatory dues. And if you don't want to join the union here's your option: you can be out. You pay 85% of $730 ... to be out. It's like the Hotel California. You can check in anytime you like but you can never leave. That raises for the teachers union, get ready, $130 million a year. What do they spend that money on? ... $6 million in negative advertising against me since March 16th. Think about that. That's a little over two months they have spent $6 million on New York TV and Radio, Philadelphia TV and radio to attack me. That's dues money that is coming from their teachers, mandatory no choice, and from all of you because those salaries come from your property taxes and your state income taxes."

NewYorkistan?

The new threat to America. Home grown Islamic terrorists. The most recent foiled plot in New York City included a man whose parents are Palestinian, and "Carlos Eduardo Almonte, a naturalized American who came from the Dominican Republic and converted to Islam, highlights another trend among terrorist conspirators that analysts are beginning to study: the disproportionate number, not only of converts to Islam, but converts of Hispanic origin."

New York may be a target, but it's also a breeding ground.

NewYorkistan? by Judith Miller, City Journal 9 June 2010

Gay men thinner than heterosexuals

Some stereotypes are true. Actually, most are based on fact, like the one about librarians not being fashionable and wearing funny shoes.* Seems gay men are skinny and lesbians fat.

"In a study published in American Journal of Public Health, researchers determined that while 21 percent of straight men were classed as obese, only 14 percent of gay men were. The opposite was true of gay women. 26 percent of lesbians were found to be obese, as compared with 17 percent of the straight women."

Study: Gay men thinner than heterosexuals, lesbian heavier (ChicagoPride.com)

Kerith J. Conron, Matthew J. Mimiaga, and Stewart J. Landers, "A Population-Based Study of Sexual Orientation Identity and Gender Differences in Adult Health," June 1, 2010

*When I worked for the State of Ohio in the 80s, I had to dress much nicer than when I worked in a library, and I always wore high heels. But, being me, they were sort of chunky and sensible heels--not over 2". One of my co-workers observed, "So, it's true that librarians wear sensible shoes."

Traveling? Watch out for "tourista"

In 2008 and 2009 I travelled internationally and developed severe diarrhea and vomiting on the return trips to the United States. As a result of the 2008 trip, I spent a few days in the hospital. So, if you're doing any travel this summer (I'm definitely not), here are a few precautions (all of which I followed) from Harvard Men’s Health Watch, April 2010.

Traveler’s diarrhea, or “tourista,” is a well-known hazard for visitors to developing countries where sanitation is flawed. Here are some tips to prevent intestinal infections:

•Wash your hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand gel before you eat.
•Avoid salads, uncooked vegetables, and unpasteurized milk and cheese.
•Only eat fruit that you’ve washed in clean water and peeled yourself.
•Do not eat undercooked or rare food. Eat cooked foods while they
are still piping hot. Be especially wary of food from street vendors.
•Avoid the water unless you have boiled it yourself; chemical disinfectants
and water filters are available for use in special circumstances. Don’t use ice made from untreated water. Don’t use untreated water to brush your teeth. In general, unopened bottled or canned beverages are safe, as is coffee or tea made from boiled water.
•Ask your doctor about taking along antibiotics in case prevention fails.
•Above all, suspect everything.

Sarah, Nancy and Hillary

I was surprised that someone in the MSM gave Hillary Clinton the credit for so many women running for office and doing well in the recent primaries--even the conservatives. Huh? Hillary Clinton would not have been a powerful New York Senator if she hadn't been first lady for 8 years, and if she didn't have the backing of all her husband's friends and cronies. Nancy Pelosi and Sarah Palin, although at opposite ends of the political spectrum, did not run on their husbands' coattails or names. In fact, the joke goes, "So you think you've got it bad? Imagine somewhere there's a Mr. Pelosi!" Who even knows his name? But credit should also be given to the various grass roots conservative and constitutional groups. Indirectly, that leads back to Obama--people are outraged by his behavior, character and beliefs and it has been an energizing force, so they are out-running and out-performing the tired old Republican blah, blah, blah, and looking for something different.

Let them speak, as long as they aren't Tea Party voters

Nancy Pelosi was heckled and shouted down at a Progressive America's Future Now conference. Her security warned her they were throwing things. This is not right no matter who the politicians, but how this woman can be so terrified and weepy over peaceful Tea Party conservatives and so patient with really dangerous people whose intent is to destroy this country is beyond me. I heard the audio. They want their money--like NOW. After all, they supported Obama and Pelosi and it's payback time. These folks are just mean scavengers.

Pelosi Heckled at Liberal Conference - Political Hotsheet - CBS News

Pelosi heckled at liberal activist conference - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room

FOXNews.com - Hecklers Pounce on Pelosi During D.C. Speech

Pelosi delivers speech over screams of health-care activists

Oh, yes, and they were also anti-Israel. Did Pelosis address that? Or is that type of racism OK with the Dems? You can go to their website and download their play book. The campaign certainly has plenty of money from the looks of its sharp web pages.

The alien in the White House

When I commented on my blog some time ago that Obama was not "one of us" I received such vicious, race-baiting comments I think I took that essay down. People Liberals think you're talking about race or ethnicity, not character or patriotism. So I was glad to see Dorothy Rabinowitz's column in today's WSJ, "The alien in the White House" because she covers it all. The man doesn't know or respect our history--not even its failings. Who but the clueless about the spiritual base of the Civil Rights movement would turn Martin Luther King day into a national work day? Who but a man who had no respect for the military would make small talk to his audience before addressing a Muslim terrorist attack on our soil, on our military base? What President ever would jump into a purely local issue--behavior of police observing a break-in and call it racist without knowing the facts--but wait weeks and weeks to rally his subordinates in charge of the regulatory agencies to address an economy killing oil disaster? Who would go on an apology tour while we are still at war--or what commander-in-chief would all but ignore those wars he promised 3 years ago to end? Who but one who is an empty hollow shell, a man without a country, without an inner source, a complete narcissist, a man with no belief system except failed marxism, political grave of the spiritually dead. No, he isn't one of us. Nor is he in any traditional sense of the word, a leader.

Dorothy Rabinowitz: The Alien in the White House - WSJ.com

What about unintentional slip ups of CFAT regulations?

Ohio State’s Office of Environmental Health and Safety has reminded faculty and staff about the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS). These are comprehensive security regulations intended to prevent the intentional misuse of certain chemicals by sabotage, theft, diversion or direct attack. Homeland Security has authority to impose civil penalties up to $25,000 per day and shut down facilities that fail to comply. Is there a per day fine if it is an accident? Or a watchdog not watching? I mean something like an oil rig explosion where there was no sabotage from environmental anarchists, the left, terrorists or jihadists, just cozy relationships between government agencies and the oil company?

A note to the Helen Thomas and other Jew haters . . .

Saying "I regret . . . " is not the same as saying, "I'm sorry. . . "

When an "apology" is a political statement.

"I deeply regret my comments I made last week regarding the Israelis and the Palestinians. They do not reflect my heart-felt belief that peace will come to the Middle East only when all parties recognize the need for mutual respect and tolerance. May that day come soon."

Don't blame it on her age. Here's a review of her anti-Israel rants and tantrums. I've read that she is of Christian Lebanese extraction; well, no Arab country has treated Palestinians worse than Lebanon, and unfortunately, that includes its Christians, which are also a minority there.

Obama on BP: I want to know “whose ass to kick”

He might start with the federal agencies, and there's an alphabet soup bowl full of them. I'd start with MMS. Maybe there's been too much ass kissing, and Fox dissing in the White House. Obama's response to everything is always the wagging finger, the angry look, or flashing eyes. He's very unpresidential in that way. It doesn't build any confidence that he knows what he's doing. Call another commission. Threaten to fire someone whose business he doesn't own (yet). Whatever: this shows that big tenacled government doesn't respond well to really big problems. It's snarled in red tape and is preventing clean up and protection of the gulf states. If you've had a car wreck, maybe you need to get the injured to the hospital before you call the CEOs of the auto company to the White House for a tongue lashing. Today it's a mechanical/technology failure, but where will the leadership and coordinated response come from if it were a volcano, or an unidentified bacterial epidemic, or a nuclear plant failure, or collapse of the internet?

Hot Air » Obama on BP: I want to know “whose ass to kick”

Spill reveals Obama's lack of executive experience | Washington Examiner

In Gulf, It Was Unclear Who Was in Charge of Rig - NYTimes.com

Operational mistakes

Teach your children well

At a party last night I met a 23 year old college graduate, employed, about to move in a house owned by a family member. Her big concern? She doesn't know how to clean. Either her former roommates, parents, or a cleaning service did it. I turned to her father and asked how could this happen. And he just shrugged. It's not that hard if you start them young. Pick up toys. Hang up clothes. Wipe up spills. Wash and dry dishes. Put them away. Dust. Vacuum. It's a life skill. I told her she was welcome to come here and follow me around--I'm certainly no fastidious housekeeper, but I could show her a few things. Another neighbor offered to give her some rags. "What do you do with them," she asked. Then she said she also didn't know how to garden--so I was a bit more sympathetic. I don't either. "You mean like tomatoes and beans?" I asked. "No, weeds and grass." I suggested she hire a neighborhood kid to mow the lawn.

She definitely needs Flylady.

Catwatch

She hates to ride in the car, but she loves it after she gets there.

Rush Limbaugh marries descendant of John Adams

Maybe the Gores don't want to make it work, but Rush keeps on trying. This is his fourth marriage. All the media call him anti-gay, but he isn't. Remember, what passes for anti-gay these days is a simple belief in man/woman marriage, and he certain does have that. He is a former disc-jockey who enjoys a wide range of musical genres, so I'm not at all surprised that openly gay Elton John provided the music.

FOXNews.com - Radio Host Rush Limbaugh Heads Down the Aisle

Don't buy this edition of America's documents

How's this for a disclaimer on a cut and paste edition of the U.S. Constitution, with the Bill of Rights and all of the Amendments; The Declaration of Independence; and the Articles of Confederation:

"This book is a product of its time and does not reflect the same values as it would if it were written today. Parents might wish to discuss with their children how views on race, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, and interpersonal relations have changed since this book was written before allowing them to read this classic work."

Reviewer at Amazon.com writes: (Wilder Publications & A&D Publishing) DO NOT buy this publication. The publisher inserted "notes" all over the place. I don't know if it was an accident in the copying of the documents from one format to another but it detracts from the text (and also comments negatively on the disclaimer).

It's either a leftist paste up, or a really sloppy PC version. The publisher's getting so much negative publicity on this that it will probably work to its advantage. It's like when the left wing filters misquote Rush Limbaugh--more people tune in to see what he's saying.

Hotel Lakeside Dining Room reopens!

And we've eaten there twice already--great food and service.

Not sure this changes any image of the librarian

The librarians of UW go Lady GaGa.

Grayson Wants Republicans Sent To Prison

The new face of McCarthyism . . . Alan Grayson. Refuses to speak to the question which is what do you say to those that point out environmentalists have forced off-shore drilling.

REP ALAN GRAYSON: How about just tracking down every single person who said drill baby drill and putting them all in prison. Why don’t we do that?

STEPHANIE MILLER: There you go.

Miller can't be accused of McCarthyism--she's just a talk-show host and has no power. Grayson is with the government.

The Radio Equalizer: Brian Maloney: Democrat Tells Libtalker He Wants Republicans Sent To Prison

All Things Digital: The Eighth D

In this morning's print edition of the Wall Street there was a summary of the eighth D: All Things Digital conference which on-line links to June 1. What I found interesting were the photos of key participants WSJ chose to interview: Steve Jobs (Apple), James Cameron (movies), Julius Genachowski (government, FCC [watch out for this guy!]), Mark Zuckerberg (FaceBook), Steve Ballmer and Ray Ozzie (Microsoft) and Alan Mulally (Ford). And oh yes, one woman, Vivian Schiller (government, NPR). Hmmm. After decades of summer math programs, pushing computers on little girls, Title 9, and the feminist movement, the best they can do is a woman from NPR when touting advances and the future of technology? Sometimes 8 pictures tell a lot. If women ever had a level playing field, it's technology. It was the perfect storm of non-gendered skill sets and government boosts and set asides. And girls still couldn't compete with the nerds, geeks and ADD boys.

Come on ladies. Maybe you need to take a few risks, act up in class, invest your own money, drop out of college, relocate for better jobs, stop griping about the glass ceiling and the good ole boys network, and start your own business.

All Things Digital: Excerpts From the Conference - WSJ.com

NPR's Vivian Schiller on Why Internet Won't Kill Radio - WSJ.com

Obama and why the other Gulf has worsened

"Not wanting to attach the President's identity to an inevitable disaster is understandable as a political response, but not as one of a true leader. President Obama, who was nearly omnipresent during his first six months in office as the official spokesman for every matter from health care to the location of future Olympic games to the competence of the Cambridge, Massachusetts police department, had little to say in the first several weeks that oil flowed freely into the Gulf of Mexico. Some would say that criticizing the President for being too public earlier and too inaccessible later shows inconsistency. In actuality, such criticism rightly recognizes that the President has no concept of when his leadership is most needed."

More on this at Music City Oracle

Wrinkle ladies--Anita Renfroe

A Christian entertainer--wife of a Baptist minister.

And don't miss her "You raise me up," about underwire.

Notice what happens to the crowd

The Star Spangled Banner, "Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust!”



American Daughter reports on this, and writes out all four verses.

Dennis Hopper, 1936-2010

Somehow I missed the news that movie star Dennis Hopper died on May 29, but noticed it while reading Richard's blog, Three Score and Ten. Richard has interesting family and career stories, and knew Hopper through the business when he was younger. I think I'd seen him in two or three movies--Rebel without a Cause and Hoosiers. But I only remember Hoosiers. But he had over 200 roles in TV and movies, so I guess we just ran in different circles. When I did notice him in a small part, I think I mainly thought, "Oh yes, the crazy guy with the drug problems." As you can see, I'm not much into film. I didn't know about his art sideline/career. Seems to have been a really wonderful photographer even at a very young age.

Dennis Hopper, The Photographer : NPR

I checked the notice in the LA Times, which didn't seem to have much to write about except other people and the era in which he performed.

And what a messy way to die--with your wife and daughter battling for the estate. At least, why else does a near death, pain overwhelmed man file for divorce except his offspring are encouraging it?

Consumer Reports Warns of Protein Drink Dangers

Lead, arsenic and cadmium in protein drinks? Why? You don't need the protein--you sure don't need these heavy metals.

"The Consumer Reports investigation sent fifteen protein drinks to an independent laboratory for analysis, reviewed government documents and interviewed health experts, fitness experts and consumers. They found that most people get enough protein in their regular diet and do not need these supplements. Consumer Reports recommends that people who need more protein, can find it in healthier, cheaper sources such as milk, eggs and chicken breast.

The results of the laboratory analysis found that all fifteen of the protein drinks tested contained one or more of the contaminants arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury. Three of the products tested raised particular concern because consuming more than three servings per day could expose the consumer to levels of these contaminants that are above recommended limits."

Consumer Reports Warns of Protein Drink Dangers | InjuryBoard New York City

Thinking about how it might have been different for the Gores--and us

When the news came out about the Gores separating, I started thinking about the election of 2000. I liked Al Gore back then, and wouldn't have been sorry if he won although I did vote for George Bush, having just registered as a Republican. Gore won the popular vote, but not the electoral vote. And he would have won that if even his own state had gone for him. But let's imagine he'd won.

1) The bitterness he felt toward the Clintons for not supporting his candidacy probably would have eventually melted away, but he would have made sure Bill Clinton, and possibly even Hillary sat on the sidelines for his 8 years.

2) We still would have had the 9/11 attack, and because the WMD drum beat had been building primarily by the Democrats (go back and look at Kerry, Clinton, and Kennedy) in the late 90s I'm guessing . . .

3) we would have been at war in Afghanistan and Iraq just the same--and maybe even more quickly and with no opposition from any Democrats, since Gore was their man . . . not even that young, inexperienced Senator from Illinois. President Clinton had missed an opportunity to capture Osama, so Gore would have been gleefully going after him. What a prize that would have been for him.

4) It's possible the war may have come to an agreeable end because it would have had full support of his party, giving less reason for the enemy to keep fighting.

5) But possibly it could have dragged on and on, due to bad intelligence, mismanagement of resources, etc., stronger al-Qaeda. That doesn't change with presidencies. Our current president has hardly paid any attention to it after making it a campaign issue.

6) We still would have had Hurricaine Katrina in 2005, and since all the disaster planning and red tape were directly in the lap of NOLA's mayor and the state governor, there would have been no difference there--not even in the billions of aid received afterward.

7) And if the long war continued, by the election of 2008, the country would have been so sick of "Gore's War," it would have elected a Republican--probably not McCain--and we never would have heard of Sarah Palin and she could have finished her term as governor of Alaska. Maybe Tom Tancredo or Fred Thompson.

8) The whole global warming fiasco would have proceded on a much more scientific, less hysterical routes, with Al Gore busy elsewhere, and no school child or college student would have been forced to sit through that dumb film. He probably wouldn't have been investing in carbon exchange businesses--serious conflict of interest for a president.

9) We still would have had the current recession because that was brought on by pushing people into mortgages (CRA) who really couldn't afford them, and then bundling and selling the bad debt, and that began in the Carter years, and was completely bi-partisan, badly thought out politics. Although the recession of 2000-02 might have lasted longer if Gore had been president--Democrats are reluctant to cut taxes to goose the economy.

10) John Edwards wouldn't have been a v.p. candidate in 2004, nor a presidential candidate in 2008 (would have been Leiberman), so he wouldn't have been messing around with and impregnating the videographer. So perhaps his marriage could have been saved, too.

11) No one would have heard of Barack Obama, in fact, Illinois might not have even reelected him to another term. I don't know who the Republican president would have been in 2010, but I know he would be making a lot of trips down to the Gulf and would not have hastily stopped all drilling with no information on the current problem, he wouldn't have been having show trials of CEOs, there wouldn't have been a deficit building stimulus package, and although like all Republicans he would have thrown more money at social programs, he wouldn't have taken over private health care. In short, if Al Gore had won in 2000, we wouldn't have the Obama years.

12) And finally, the Gores' marriage would have survived--at least I can't think of any presidential couple who divorced after 8 years in the White House--not even the Clintons who had good reason.

Obama, Cloward-Piven and the Oil Spill

The Cloward-Piven Strategy is to bring about the demise of capitalism by overloading the system, largely by making more people desperate and dependent on the government. So don't assume that Obama's incompetence in health care, in immigration, in the environment, in the Middle East, or in the Gulf isn't part of an overall strategy.

Stu Tarlowe writes: "Thus, Cloward-Piven's goals are served by more and more aliens flooding across the border and filling jails, emergency rooms and welfare rolls. It is also served by the mortgage crisis; in fact, Professors Cloward and Piven were the creators of ACORN (Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now), which helped pressure banks to implement the lending policies that precipitated that crisis. But Cloward-Piven seeks a financial crisis far wider-ranging and more encompassing than a mere mortgage meltdown.

So if the oil spill in the Gulf manages to destroy the fishing and tourist industries in that region, shut down oil drilling, raise the price of oil and of food all over the country, and bring more and more Americans to a financial breaking point and thus dependent on food stamps and other government programs, Obama and Co. will smile and nod at one another as the Cloward-Piven strategy hums merrily along."

American Thinker Blog: Don't be fooled by Obama's 'incompetence'

BP's negligence plus the government incompetence equals a case for global warming?

"On Wednesday President Obama faced the reality that he and those sharing his agenda and beliefs cannot make their "global warming" case, that after billions of taxpayer dollars trying to make it stronger they only find themselves in a deeper hole of public resistance. So he lapsed into saying that a company's negligence and governmental incompetence finally, somehow, provide that elusive reason to cede lifestyle decisions great and small to the state, through a scheme that is according to all parties climatically meaningless. But that's ok, the issue's not "global warming" anymore.

You see, the public aren't buying "global warming", so the issue is no longer the issue. It never was anyway. The issue is whatever might work. So far, the Senate's global warming bill has been called "not an environment bill" by Sen. John Kerry, who instead says it's a jobs bill, and a national security bill. Yeah, that's it."

There's a ton of money in cap and trade--all the big players in government, the banks they've been bailing out, Fanny and Fred--they're all invested in making "green" work and can make millions if they pull it off. Don't let them con you.

The American Spectator : AmSpecBlog : And Bob's Your Uncle

Keith Olbermann confuses the arks

And he calls Palin dumb!



Also, his May ratings were the lowest this year. I'm guessing President Gee doesn't have a problem with his "public discourse."

An Hour That Makes All the Difference

Really? Eating together can do all this?

". . . teens who eat dinner with their families are 40% more likely to get good grades, as well as 42% less likely to engage in underage drinking, 59% less likely to smoke, and 66% less likely to use drugs. They are also much less likely to suffer from depression, fight with other kids, get in trouble at school, and engage in promiscuous behavior. In a related study, researchers found that children who ate dinner with their families every day or on most days were 15% less likely to be overweight than children who never or only sometimes ate dinner with another family member."

An Hour That Makes All the Difference

Romanoff, the second shoe to drop

Andrew Romanoff of Colorado was offered a job to drop out. Obama wants the other Democrat. You know what this e-mail, just released yesterday, means, even though the White House will spin it. These are three very distinct, clear job descriptions. I'm sure they weren't sent by Messina for editorial corrections. Rahm Emanuel's fingerprints are all over this, as they are with Sestak, as they will be when Blago sings. It's like the Nixon years--what did the President know and when did he know it? Except, our poor inexperienced President is probably as clueless about ethics as he is oil spills--where would he have learned? At least Nixon knew.

Romanoff says of the non-offer, non-bribe: "In September 2009, shortly after the news media first reported my plans to run for the Senate, I received a call from Jim Messina, the president's deputy chief of staff. Mr. Messina informed me that the White House would support Sen. Bennet. I informed Mr. Messina that I had made my decision to run," Romanoff said in a statement released early Wednesday evening. "Mr. Messina also suggested three positions that might be available to me were I not pursuing the Senate race. He added that he could not guarantee my appointment to any of these positions. At no time was I promised a job, nor did I request Mr. Messina's assistance in obtaining one."

CNN Romanoff details possible job offer
Romanoff Cracks

It's possible Tipper thought their marriage was maturing---into green dung heap

Forty years of standing by her man, and having their funds and lives co-mingled. And this is what it comes to . . legislating carbon caps, funding carbon research, investing her money in phony balony carbon exchanges like CCX  (worth trillions) while building and managing  huge homes, becoming a movie star celebrity, and denigrating her country. An aging, overweight, has-been hypocrite vs. your freedom and a huge settlement before it all collapses.  Which would you choose?

Or, and this is still my first guess, there's someone else. Counselor Mona Loeser in today's WSJ said, "It's extraordinarily unusual for a man to leave a marriage without having somebody." I heard my pastor say that in 1977 after 30+ years of marriage counseling. But he went a bit further--said he'd never known it to happen. I do know of one case--happened a few years ago--a man I know left his wife just to get away from her nagging and criticism, and there was no one else. But somehow, after 40 years, I would think the Gores would know how to deal with that.

Our new garage door

It's being installed this morning. I hope it doesn't disturb the mother duck on 9 eggs by the front door. The bottom panel of the door takes on water and then it starts to peel and look ugly. We've already replaced it once since moving here in 2002. So we're going for a new door--this one is metal, but will match the color of the building trim. We're also having a quieter opener/track installed, one that will have more than 10,000 open/closings, the life expectancy of the "average" opener. But because of the insulation in the door, other Americans get to help pay for our door with our tax deduction. Yes, our new brown garage door is "green." Actually, I'm more concerned about the gasoline powered vehicles that will be inside the garage, than I am an insulated door. Besides, who knows when whatever is in our insulation (roof and attic newly installed in 2001) and door, will be declared unsafe for .5% of the population and will need to be replaced? With Obama's new stop drilling rules and the regulations to come even though no one knows what caused the accident and the old regulations weren't being followed by either the government or BP, we just know gasoline is going to become very dear.

The flap in the press about Rand Paul

Rand Paul's comments about the 1964 Civil Rights Act show his inexperience with the press. Barack Obama in his early years, and even in his presidency, could get away with saying stupid things about police, terrorists, illegals, etc. because of his party and his race, but not a Republican/Libertarian. That said, which party really supported the Civil Rights Act overwhelmingly in both houses in 1964? The Republicans. Look it up.

The fundamentals of civil conversation at Ohio State University

President Gee in wanting "civil discourse" isn't mentioning any names, of course, but who do you really think he's including in this condemnation of the national civil debate? Surely not Katie Couric, or Keith Olbermann, or NYT opinion pieces disguised as news. He's not going to condemn union protests over capping pensions, or students protesting tuition hikes, but I'm guessing he's terribly concerned that peaceful Tea Party protests have been held in every state and the capital and the movement is growing.

"The profusion of fractious talk radio and bias disguised as cable news." Do you think he has ever watched Glenn Beck for a week and followed an American history lesson on his chalk board, or read one of his recommended books? Has he watched a Fox panel, where not two sides, but perhaps four are represented, and no one is shouting, or labeling? No, he's probably getting his "news about the news" through a filter like other liberals and academics.

He's not lifting up our current U.S. President as the most thin-skinned, whiny, petulant national leader in memory is he? He doesn't criticize the national media for NOT performing their role in keeping the administration on track by investigation and thorough analysis. No, he's going after the talkers and alternate media that actually do analysis. Glenn Beck, love him or hate him, is doing the job of the press--he's peeking under the skirts of the girlie men of this administration. College presidents never concern themselves over the bias of the regular broadcast media or the major newspapers (which are dying from lack of advertising). Has Gee ever spoken out when Christians and Conservatives are shouted down or denied access to an audience on college campuses? Do conservatives feel safe speaking out on the Ohio State campus?

"We cannot allow the diatribe and venom to shackle our nation’s progress." (Gee) This is the leading up to reinstating the so-called "fairness doctrine."

The fundamentals of civil conversation : onCampus

Parker got smart too late about Obama and Pelosi

Sen. Arlen Specter switched parties in Pennsylvania and lost to Joe Sestak (the guy who turned down a bribe to not run against Obama's choice, the former Republican Specter). Then Alabama's Rep. Parker Griffith, a Democrat, switched parties, and he also lost.

"I do not regret changing parties. I think politically it may have been a mistake. On principle, it was the right thing to do, and I'm happy about it," said [Parker] Griffith, the morning after losing the Republican primary to challenger Mo Brooks. . . .

He said he would continue to support local Republicans and planned to vote for Brooks in November. "I think Obama is a socialist. I think Nancy Pelosi is, as well," he said, repeating recent campaign themes linking Democrats, government spending and a suffocating national debt. (Huntsville Times)

Flotilla "Peace Activists" Attack Israeli Security Officers at Tel Aviv Airport

Thirteen female European activists, arrested for their participation in the flotilla to Gaza, attacked Immigration Authority officers escorting them to the airport for their deportation, the Interior Ministry reported Wednesday.

The Vicious Babushka: Flotilla "Peace Activists" Riot, Attack Security Officers at Tel Aviv Airport

Do you get the impression these "peace activists" (sounds like "meat eating vegetarians") are looking for a fight? That they are unhappy they weren't kept in jail? And they could've brought in humanitarian aid through Egypt--that's an Arab, Muslim country. Actually, they can dock in Israel, and bring in aid that way.

I watched a CNN analysis of the raid--it was bizarre. They were clueless about the violence against the Israelis. Jews, where ever you are, be careful. Read history. You're being set up.