Holy Week Intermission

For Christians the week before Easter is called "Holy Week," or as Buff Delcamp wrote in this week's Cornerstone (newsletter of Upper Arlington Lutheran Church), Major Week, Greater Week, Authentic Week, Passion Week, Week of Salvation, and Sorrowful Week. It tells the story of the last week of the life of Jesus on earth, the week the sins of humanity are forgiven, and the world is redeemed. Jesus' life and teaching were not about man's solution to poverty, or slavery, or politics, or clean water, or green space, or domestic violence or anything else you might hear preached on Sunday morning from many pulpits. It was about God's solution for mankind's disobedience, told from "In the beginning. . ." in a garden to the end where we see a great city, a holy city, a New Jerusalem, dressed as a bride for her husband. Since I've so recently returned from "The Steps of Paul" in Greece, Turkey, and Israel I do want to continue updating my trip photos and log, but will avoid the day-to-day chaos in Washington, the steps of our President, and the world economy while I focus of the events of Holy Week. See you after Easter (unless you'd like to check the Holy Land Cruise 2009 link).

About that populist anger

Wall St. Journal's Obama booster, Gerald Seib, writes yesterday (Capital Journal) about the "populist anger." That makes me so angry--it was SO ginned up, it was ridiculous. So who's responsible for getting everyone hyped about CEOs' bonuses--bonuses (millions) that were a fraction of what Obama and his buddies are stealing from us (trillions) and the future unborn Americans (assuming they can make it past the now free-wheeling, free-for-all abortionists thanks to our President). Wasn't it old Barney's threats in Congress as he grilled Liddy? Wasn't it Obama's ACORN being bussed to the suburbs to harrass law abiding people who actually work for a living?

Can the passions be cooled, Seib asks. Don't know. Can newspaper reporters' jobs be saved when they've gored the ox (advertising for business) that pay their salaries? It depends, Mr. Seib. How angry will Americans get when they wake up and see Obama's poked a hole driven a bulldozer through our dike of protections at the top--our three branches of government with distinctly different responsibilities (and he's not the first to do this, just the worst). How mad will they be if they realize over half of Congress are flunkies slurping up the pig droppings from the pork trough in Washington trying to cover their appetites by shouting "it's the bankers," "it's the Jews," "it's someone else's greed."

Seib can't figure out what happened to the steadily rising median income of the middle class after the 1980s (except for a blip under Clinton, which he happily claims). Well, let's see if I remember my history. When the Great Depression finally ended in the 1940s after the war and inspite of FDRs programming, we did have a bit of prosperity, which made liberals and conservatives feel guilty, so the wealth transfer started big time. We had LBJ's programs and Carter's programs, and the Republicans tried to play catch up every time they got in office (but Congress approves the budget and Democrats controlled that until 1995). All the major cities with the poorest people are controlled by Democrats, from bottom to top. No one was a bigger spender on social programs (until January 2009) than Bush II.

But all you have to do is look at the wealthiest, most successful, most entrepreneurial and smallest demographic group--the Asian Americans--to see what happened in the last 20 years, and why the middle class is struggling to keep what it earns.

The government provides resources to households through cash and noncash transfer programs. These programs may be open to all or limited to those with incomes below set amounts. Holding other income
components constant, transfers from the Social Security Administration, Veterans Administration, and state governments increase household income. Payroll, state, and federal tax liabilities reduce household income. Certain tax credits, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit and the Additional Child Tax Credit, are refundable and may
increase household income. U.S. Census

And we have an awful lot of Americans who never pay any federal income tax (although they do pay exorbitant special interest taxes, like the recently raised poor tax called cigarette taxes). Here again, Asian non tax payers do not reflect their proportion of the population because, well, who knows? Pride? Ambition? Family values? Marriage? Flight from Communism?

"White Americans are 83 percent of total taxpayers, and the percentage of zero-tax filers who are white is 79 percent. African Americans are roughly 13 percent of total taxpayers and 17 percent of zero-tax filers. Asian Americans comprise 3.6 percent of total taxpayers and 3.4 percent of zero-tax filers." Tax Foundation figures for 2004

Of all the groups, Asian Americans lost the most by readjusting their income downward through wealth transfer to the poorer whites, blacks and Hispanics. And so it is with all who will try to succeed under socialism, Mr. Seib. The Asians are just the canary.

Populism? Mr. Seib should probably be putting out feelers for a job if he reads the tea leaves.

Who is more dangerous to society, Michael Vick or Barack Obama?

This morning I heard a news story on the radio that Michael Vick's bankruptcy "plan" was turned down by the court. Too bad someone doesn't apply the same standards to our President who has unleashed the pit bull of socialism on our people! Our little cock fighter pranced around the ring and sang "peck me" like a Dixie Chick. We're sending tea bags, but I don't think that is going to scare him when he's seen the crowds in Europe chanting and clapping. Even the phony Soros backed demonstrations made him happy. Or Barney Frank, how about a plan for him? He has actually physically threatened Americans. Michael Vick didn't threaten children. Congressman Frank prancing in front of TV cameras was actually going after citizens' children when he demanded names in Congressional hearings on job contracts he approved for the bailout.

I was flitting around the house doing laundry and ironing about 5:30 a.m. (I'm an early riser, obviously.) I decided to turn on the radio in the laundry room, and the reception isn't terrific, so I settled on NPR. Proximity to the WOSU tower seems to allow that when nothing else is up. After five minutes of a guy with a British accent preach about how we needed to teach banks "morality" and reporting with lots of saliva (is it their bad teeth?) the fabulous relationship between Obama and Brown, which just a few weeks ago was in the toilet, I switched to the early a.m. show on the paranormal--it made more sense than that guy. But after 5 minutes of a guy remembering an apparition in blue that came into his bedroom when he was 5 and it looked exactly like his mother who was quite ill and putting up with a gambling husband who was being hunted by the mafia, it really was a draw.

Socialism is a proven failure

So why does Obama want it so badly? Maybe he doesn‘t remember the 20th century?

"Socialism is the Big Lie of the twentieth century. While it promised prosperity, equality, and security, it delivered poverty, misery, and tyranny. Equality was achieved only in the sense that everyone was equal in his or her misery.

In the same way that a Ponzi scheme or chain letter initially succeeds but eventually collapses, socialism may show early signs of success. But any accomplishments quickly fade as the fundamental deficiencies of central planning emerge. It is the initial illusion of success that gives government intervention its pernicious, seductive appeal. In the long run, socialism has always proven to be a formula for tyranny and misery." The Freeman

Mirror, mirror on the wall

who's the most arrogant of them all? Obama!

Arrogant, dismissive, derisive? He's the worst president ever. EVER! George Bush never insulted the Europeans, and he certainly never insulted the people who elected him. Maybe Obama hasn't read our history, especially our recent history. He's only been reading WaPo and NYT. When have European countries gone to war on behalf of Muslims the way we did? (They like to keep their own Muslims immigrants unemployed and poor!) He commented on nothing Bush did that was positive. George Bush never insulted his predecessors, not even the really poor ones like Carter and FDR. Where did Obama learn his manners? In the slums of the third world? He is a disgrace to the office. Although it should be no surprise--this European "tour" is a summary of his campaign speeches. Does he not realize he's the President now? Of all of us? Why is he still running? Literally.

Obama Endorses Soros Plan to Loot America

"At the G 20 summit in London, President Barack Obama won rave reviews from reporters, many of whom clamored like school kids for the chance to ask him a question at his news conference, but the official conference document proves that plans are being made for what can only be described as the further looting of American taxpayers in order to feed unaccountable and corrupt global entities.

This is not “global cooperation,” as so many in the media described it, but a massive new expansion of the power and authority of international agencies and institutions such as the United Nations, the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank." Read entire story here.

It won’t be in Katie Couric’s report--the real meaning of his words, that is. Paraphrase of the news conference I heard. "Yes, we (I) can insult America. Yes, we (I) can be dismissive of the USA." I'm furious that he runs after these sycophants whining and apologizing for breathing. He took advantage of the September "meltdown" (and who knows who engineered that), and has driven the economy even deeper down first by his gloom and doom speeches, then by raising taxes and taking over companies and violating the constitution. But who needs a Constitution when we'll have to report to the UN?

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.