Ask the NSA

Keeping cool in Arizona, equine style

We have guests from Arizona this week, a Methodist minister and his wife who giving several presentations.   We tell them that Ohio is always this green--it's the greeniness that they comment on the most. And last night they were like little kids when the fireflies (lightning bugs) came out.

Obama is taking us to war

If you switched your party allegiance from GOP (Bush) to Dem (Obama) because of the two wars (which had bipartisan support and WMD intelligence from the Clinton years), then you’re just out of luck—or justifications. You fell for a slick speech and a pretty face topped off with a smattering of white guilt.  Obama’s red line has gotten very smudged.  We have no national interest in this civil war in Syria—and even if you say, “what about the slaughter of Syrian Christians,” keep in mind the rebel forces (which Obama is backing) are the ones killing the Christians.   Now we find out the decision was made weeks ago.

U.S. officials said that the determination to send weapons had been made weeks ago and that the chemical weapons finding provided fresh justification to act.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/decision-to-arm-syrian-rebels-was-reached-weeks-ago-us-officials-say/2013/06/14/3cc2d372-d51a-11e2-8cbe-1bcbee06f8f8_story.html?wpisrc=nl_headlines

You’ve been had.  The rest of us knew it back in 2008. He’s a liar; liars lie and then tell more lies to cover up the lies they told to get elected. Liars hang out with other liars—or even confirmed, unrepentant terrorists.

Sometimes he’s been right

Bush 41 is 89 today

In his honor, people are wearing loud, outrageous socks.

Ted Cruz on “help” from liberals

“Fifty-five years ago, my father fled Cuba, where he had been imprisoned and tortured—including having his teeth kicked out—as a teenager. Today my father is a pastor in Dallas. When he landed in Austin, Texas, in 1957, he was 18. He couldn’t speak a word of English. He had $100 sewn into his underwear. He went and got a job washing dishes and made 50 cents an hour. He worked seven days a week and paid his way through the University of Texas, and then he got a job, and then he went on to start a small business.

Now imagine if, at that time, the minimum wage had been two dollars an hour. He might never have had the opportunity to get that dishwashing job and work his way through school and work his way up from there. I cannot tell you how many times I’ve thanked God that some well-meaning liberal didn’t greet him when he landed in Austin and put his arm around him and say: “Let me take care of you. Let me make you dependent on government. Let me sap your self-respect—and by the way, don’t bother learning English.” “

Graduation speaker at Hillsdale College, “The Miracle of Freedom” May 11, 2013

This is most certainly true

In 2006 I jointed the choir at Upper Arlington Lutheran Church on Lytham Rd.  Alas. I only lasted about a year. My voice didn’t return. I had only four notes, and they weren’t in a row. But I certainly enjoyed it, and am so glad I tried. It gave me a new appreciation for our choir at UALC.

Thirteen things I liked about singing in the choir

Choir is hard work

Trying to keep up

Help Doma fight sex slavery

Human Trafficking is the THIRD largest and fastest growing international crime industry generating $32 Billion every year. $10 billion dollars in revenue comes from the US alone. We are 1/3 of the problem here. We can’t stop it alone, we need all of your help and support. Are you ready to help? Support Doma in the Fight - http://www.domaconnection.org/funding-freedom/

The Democrats’ War on Girls

Why wring hands over sexual assaults on military women, who at least should know how to protect themselves, physically, emotionally and sexually.  Plan B, a powerful hormone with complex directions that need to be followed exactly, is now available for girls of any age without medical or parental supervision, even though sex with a minor is against the law. The war against women is now the war against young girls.

How’s your trust level these days?

We’ve had these laws since the late 1970s

Privacy of phone records? Surveillance of foreign agents inside the U.S.? We've had the laws on the books for some time. What we've learned in the current Obama scandals is we can't trust government agencies not to misuse the guarantees. It’s disturbing that opinions on the law change among the electorate depending on who is in power.

Smith v. Maryland, 442 U.S. 735 (1979) was a case in which the Supreme Court of the United States held that the installation and use of the pen register was not a "search" within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment, and hence no warrant was required. The pen register was installed on telephone company property at the telephone company's central offices. In the Majority opinion, Justice Blackmun rejected the idea that the installation and use of a pen registry constitutes a violation of the "legitimate expectation of privacy" since the numbers would be available to and recorded by the phone company anyway. [Wikipedia]

The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (FISA court, AKA FISC) is a U.S. federal court authorized under 50 U.S.C. § 1803, Pub.L. 95–511, 92 Stat. 1788, enacted October 25, 1978. It was established by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA). The court oversees requests for surveillance warrants against suspected foreign intelligence agents inside the United States by federal law enforcement agencies (primarily National Security Agency and the F.B.I.). FISA and its court were inspired by the recommendations of the Church Committee. . . It is also rare for FISA warrant requests to be turned down by the court. [Wikipedia

People don’t care about snoops

I'm shocked by the people who will accept the explanation that if you're not doing anything wrong why care if Google is passing your information along to the NSA. Tell that to the supporters, donors and board members of conservative groups who had their private financial information passed along to the Obama reelection campaign by someone in the IRS. We didn't think that would happen either. Hey, Chad Johnson is in jail because he didn't know he wasn't supposed to slap his lawyer's butt in front of a female judge. How many laws are out there you don't know about and are violating and perhaps blogging about or discussing

You are public, not private

Phone records are public information; many companies do data mining, plus every time you use a "loyalty" card you are giving away your privacy. Ever read a HIPAA compliance statement? Everyone but the janitor gets your information--same with credit card agreements. Librarians know what books you've checked out (even 25 years ago we knew which professor had what in his office at just a glance). There's a GPS thing in your smart phone. PRISM seems to be the item in question. It is beyond what the Patriot Act allowed--and many Republicans left Bush because they didn't like the Patriot Act. Many in the government have decided it is illegal, but I'm guessing half of Congress haven't read the Act.

A 29 year old high school drop out says NO to PRISM, flees to China, and we have no idea what he might reveal tomorrow that hurts our security. I don't call him a hero, I call him a traitor. I also think a President who calls Ft. Hood "work place violence," but thinks PRISM is our security against terrorists, is really screwed up. PRISM didn't find the Tsarnaev brothers, or even Edward Snowden and even the fact they gave him a job, any job, makes the NSA look pretty ineffective.

http://www.slate.com/blogs/future_tense/2013/06/09/edward_snowden_why_did_the_nsa_whistleblower_have_access_to_prism_and_other.html

The author of the Patriot Act says it was not intended for data mining. PRISM goes far beyond the original intention. That said, Snowden broke the law. And what about our Congress? Do they break the law by not knowing what is in the Act? Is it like Obamacare--they just don't bother to read it? Obama is defending the actions of the NSA which is violating the intent of the law.

http://www.ibtimes.com/jim-sensenbrenner-republican-author-patriot-act-says-nsa-prism-surveillance-goes-too-far-1297697

Banana Pudding

Got some extra bananas to use up?

BANANA PUDDING FROM SCRATCH
1/2 c. sugar
2 tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
2 c. milk
4 separated eggs
1 tbsp. vanilla flavor
1 box of Nilla Vanilla Wafers
4 med. ripe bananas

Mix flour, salt, and sugar; add milk slowly. Stir constantly over low heat until thickened. Stir and cook for about 15 minutes. Beat egg yolks in bowl and stir into mixture slowly stirring constantly. Cook about 5 more minutes stirring constantly. Remove from heat and add vanilla. Line bottom of casserole dish with vanilla wafers, bananas (sliced) and custard mixture. Repeat layers, ending with custard on top. Beat egg whites until stiff. Add 1/4 cup sugar; whip until it peaks. Spread on top of custard and bake in oven at 450 degrees for about 5 minutes or until browned. Remove from oven and serve.

From cousin Jodie Minnick Strickland

The agents were in D.C. directing the operations against Tea Party

"The heart of the effort to target tea-party and other conservative groups, we are learning, occurred in Washington, and that is likely why five D.C.-based IRS officials who are connected to the targeting have retired, resigned, been replaced, or been put on administrative leave, since news of the scandal broke in mid May.

They include Holly Paz, who last week, according to an IRS source, was replaced as director of Rulings and Agreements, the division that oversaw the targeting of conservative groups; Washington lawyer Carter Hull, who is accused of micromanaging the processing of tea-party cases, and who, according to IRS sources, requested his retirement package on March 12; the commissioner of the agency’s Tax Exempt and Government Entities division, Joseph Grant, who retired on June 3; former IRS commissioner Steven Miller, who resigned days after news of the scandal broke; and the director of the IRS’s Exempt Organizations division, Lois Lerner, who was placed on administrative leave only after refusing to tender her resignation, according to Iowa’s Chuck Grassley.

All five are or were based in the IRS’s headquarters on Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C."

http://nationalreview.com/article/350644/stop-blaming-rogue-agents-eliana-johnson

http://townhall.com/tipsheet/carolplattliebau/2013/06/10/irs-holly-paz-gets-replaced-n1617171

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/24/joseph-grant-irs_n_3332164.html

http://dailycaller.com/2013/06/05/irs-employees-washington-irs-official-carter-hull-oversaw-targeting-of-conservative-groups/

Did you hear about the scandal?

Bob: “Did you hear about the Obama administration scandal?”
Jim: “You mean the Mexican gun running?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “The State Dept. lying about Benghazi?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “The IRS targeting conservatives?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “The DOJ spying on the press?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “Sebelius shaking down health insurance executives?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “The NSA monitoring our phone calls, e-mails and everything else?”
Bob: “No, the other one”
Jim: “The State Dept. (new today) interfering with an IG investigation on dept. sexual misconduct?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “HHS employees (also new today) being given insider information on Medicare Advantage?”
Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “Clinton, the IRS, Clapper & Holder all lying to Congress?” Bob: “No, the other one.”
Jim: “I give up! … Oh wait, I think I got it! You mean that 65 million low-information voters stuck us again with the most corrupt administration in American history?”
Bob: “THAT’S THE ONE!”

Breitbart "One Million Voices"

The only issue that matters

Does your church condone killing babies? How about its insurance plan?  What organizations does it support? And end of life issues, and marriage?  It’s all connected.

Monday Memories—Passing notes

I saw this on FB and it made me smile, because even in the old days, we knew how to stay in touch without speaking.  However, the more I thought about it, the more I remembered how the less popular or not such good students were left out of the loop except the excitement of the passing.  I wonder, if like kids today who long to be included in texting or other smart phone activities, there were kids who hoped someone would pass them notes scribbled on torn  notebook paper.

Chicken Apple Wraps

Chicken Apple Wraps… This sounds like a healthy meal, and a good use for Iceberg lettuce, which really doesn’t have much to recommend it except for holding other good things.

 

.

Ingredients
1/2 cup chopped cooked chicken breast
3 tablespoons chopped Fuji apple
2 tablespoons chopped black or red grapes
2 tablespoons Crunchy Peanut Butter
1 tablespoon lite mayonnaise (or Greek yogurt)
2 teaspoons honey
Iceberg lettuce

Preparation
Chop chicken meat and fruit, mix in bowl. Mix in peanut butter, mayonnaise and honey.
Spoon into open lettuce leaf, roll and serve

This was posted on FB by Deb Fowler Nicholson who writes about weight loss

MoDo first has to blame Bush before Obama

Maureen Dowd, we tried to tell you not to trust him.  He’s a statist and believes there is no limit to the power government should have.

“There was of course no way of knowing whether you were being watched at any given moment,” George Orwell wrote in “1984.” “How often, or on what system, the Thought Police plugged in on any individual wire was guesswork. It was even conceivable that they watched everybody all the time. But at any rate they could plug in your wire whenever they wanted to.”

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/09/opinion/sunday/dowd-peeping-president-obama.html?ref=opinion

“Back in 2007, Obama said he would not want to run an administration that was “Bush-Cheney lite.” He doesn’t have to worry. With prisoners denied due process at Gitmo starving themselves, with the C.I.A. not always aware who it’s killing with drones, with an overzealous approach to leaks, and with the government’s secret domestic spy business swelling, there’s nothing lite about it. “