I don’t know if he said this, but I’ve thought it

Monday Memories--strap on roller skates

Yes, I went around the block a few times on skates similar to these. Cracks in the sidewalks, bumps, skinned knees, and most painful, sometimes the toe lock would loosen, and slip off your shoe, leaving the leather thong still fastened at the ankle. The key to the lock was usually kept around the neck of the skater.

When high taxes create criminals

No one hates cigarettes more than I do--they are destroyers of health and burners of money needed for other goods and services. However, this is just stupid. 56.9% of the cigarettes consumed in New York are now smuggled into the state, according to a report from the Tax Foundation. Why? The cigarette tax in New York is $4.35 a pack, the highest in the nation. And New York City imposes an additional $1.50 tax, bringing the total taxes to $5.85 a pack — nearly 35 times higher... than in the lowest-taxed state. It's the classic "sin" tax. The people hurt the most are poor and they are probably the targets for the smuggling. This is an example of how any ridiculously high tax is counter productive. In 1960 the top tax rate was 91%, and total tax receipts as % of GDP was 7.9%. In 2013 the top tax rate was 39.6% and total tax receipts as % of GDP was 7.6%.

http://www.heritage.org/federalbudget/income-tax-receipts

http://taxfoundation.org/article/cigarette-taxes-and-cigarette-smuggling-state

Happy Father’s Day

Everyone is posting photos of “dad,” so here’s mine.  I don’t have a lot to choose from.  We didn’t have digital cameras in those days, or smart phones, and we didn’t record every get-together and holiday.  But this one was on the occasion of three new grandbabies born between September 10 and October 5 in 1961.  Dad wasn’t all that experienced holding babies, as you can see from the shape of his hands.  He was the oldest of nine, so of course my mother thought he must love kids!  He was 48.

Ham sandwiches for a crowd

BEST HAM SANDWISHES YOU'LL EVER HAVE!!!
2 -12 packages of sweet Hawaiian rolls (the small dinner roll looking ones)
1 1/2 lbs of Virginia ham (NOT honey ham)...
12 slices Swiss cheese
1 stick of real butter
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 teaspoon Onion Powder
1 teaspoon poppy seeds
Directions:
You will need two 9 x 13 pans. Place the bottoms of 12 rolls in each pan. Place ham (about 2 shaved slices or so) on the rolls. Cut the cheese slices into 4 parts and place 2 small pieces on each sandwich. Put the dinner roll tops on. In a sauce pan, mix butter, Worcestershire sauce, onion powder, garlic powder and poppy seeds. Wait until all butter is melted and then brush the melted mixture over the ham sandwiches. Cover with foil and let sit in fridge for 1 hour or over night. (If you want to bake them right away, you can also.) Preheat oven to 375 and bake for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve. They are great hot and even at room temperature. Enjoy!

Sunnis and Shi’ites can’t get along with each other; why should they get along with us?

"The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has just seized the Iraqi cities of Mosul and Tikrit, and is close to taking control of the nation’s largest oil refinery — indicating that the jihad between Sunni and Shi’ite Muslims is raging hotter now than it has in centuries, and isn’t going to die down anytime soon. . .the idea that the Sunni-Shi’ite divide, which is 1,400 years old and goes all the way back to the murky origins of Islam, is something that can without undue difficulty be “overcome” is a sterling manifestation of the general superficiality of Washington’s analysis of the Middle East, during both the Bush and the Obama administrations. - http://pamelageller.com/2014/06/sunni-vs-shia-explained.html/

Bush thought he could bring democracy to these warring groups and stop the killing; Obama thought he could pull out and the killing and chaos would not return. But looking at that big black blob (Shia) that is Iran, I suspect that’s where the problem is.

Obama’s on top of the Iraq situation—on the golf course

Is it the technology or the people using it?

We have the snooping technology to ruin the career of a TV chef for something she said 20 years ago, and to get a CEO fired for how he voted in 2008 on a pro-marriage issue, but there's no way for branches of the military to be alerted that Bowe Bergdahl had emotional problems and was removed from the Coast Guard before he enlisted in the Army?

And how about those missing files in the IRS? It's amazing that the federal government has no back up, isn't it (as required by law)? Lois Lerner's e-mails for that important period of time the IRS was harassing conservatives have mysteriously just disappeared. Has the IRS ever lost information on what YOU owe the government?

http://www.itworld.com/security/55954/law-requires-email-archiving

Obama’s good war

For those too young to remember, in 2008 President Obama campaigned against the Iraq War.  By the time of the election it was virtually over, and all he could do was promise to bring the troops home.  He had always said Afghanistan was the “good war,” however, hostilities there were increasing after being quiet and secure for years. Women had uncovered and were going to school, working, being elected, etc.  So he dawdled and waited during the summer of 2009, and by the time he OK’d a surge, it was probably too late.

  During his first term more military were lost than during Bush’s two terms.  575 US troops died in Afghanistan during the Bush presidency. By August 18, 2010, following two troop surges initiated by President Obama, that number had doubled.

When looking at a map today of how the jihadists have overrun Iraq, it’s pretty clear that everything was in place.  Perhaps the return of the five was just the impetus needed since they knew Obama never wanted to be there and probably wouldn’t fight to help the Iraqis that Bush had liberated from Saddam.

In 2009 the main stream media still couldn’t lavish enough praise on their beloved president and admired him for holding back for months.

“When the history of the Obama presidency is written, that day with the chart may prove to be a turning point, the moment a young commander in chief set in motion a high-stakes gamble to turn around a losing war. By moving the bell curve to the left, Mr. Obama decided to send 30,000 troops mostly in the next six months and then begin pulling them out a year after that, betting that a quick jolt of extra forces could knock the enemy back on its heels enough for the Afghans to take over the fight.

The three-month review that led to the escalate-then-exit strategy is a case study in decision making in the Obama White House — intense, methodical, rigorous, earnest and at times deeply frustrating for nearly all involved. It was a virtual seminar in Afghanistan and Pakistan, led by a president described by one participant as something “between a college professor and a gentle cross-examiner.” “ New York Times, Dec. 5, 2009

                 

http://allenbwest.com/2014/02/us-military-deaths-afghanistan-skyrocket-obama/

"Today the president acknowledged that the Islamic State's advance "poses a danger to Iraq and its people, and given the nature of these terrorists, it could pose a threat eventually to American interests as well." In 2007 he promised to withdraw regardless of the danger to Iraq and its people. He kept that promise." Wall St. Journal, June 13, 2014

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303373004579622360300173126.html

Today's household tips

1. When blogging, put the visiting dog in your lap to stop the barking.

2. Don't lick a slotted spoon.

3. Wear an apron when preparing beets.

4. Repairmen never have the parts with them and require a trip to the hardware store which adds to the time. But that's not a good reason to keep 50 bazillion pieces parts in jars and cans in the basement storage area.

5. Masking liquid (for painting white in watercolor) does not come out of carpets, but there is some hope for the furniture once it dries (just rub it off).

6. Have an extra key or two made and keep them at the neighbors.

7. Learn your daughter's unlisted phone number.

8. Owning a home is not an investment, it's a place to bury money you'll probably never see again.

9. If your cat develops a sneeze, your nice furniture and clothing are toast. Don't waste your money on cures, or changing cat food. Keep Kleenex handy.

10. If you like to make lists, don't run out before #10 or it won't look tidy.

The sin of envy

We fight one another, and envy arms us against one another. ... If everyone strives to unsettle the Body of Christ, where shall we end up? We are engaged in making Christ's Body a corpse. ... We declare ourselves members of one and the same organism, yet we devour one another like beasts 

St. John Chrysostom, Hom. in 2 Cor. 27,3-4:PG 61,588

I was looking through contemporary sermons (mostly audio which is difficult) on Sermon Cloud, http://www.sermoncloud.com/, but since the early church struggled with it from the beginning, I think this was one of the best.  “arms us against one another. . .making Christ’s body a corpse.”

St. John Chrysostom was a "golden-voiced" orator and one of the 8 great Doctors of the Church (Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine, Gregory the Great, Athanasius, John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, and Gregory of Nazianzus).

49% drop in gun homicide—but who knew?

There's no consensus on why gun homicide has decreased almost 50% in the last 20 years--aging population, more criminals in jail and off the streets, some kooks think it is all the aborted children who might have grown up to be criminals. But one thing is for sure, the media have been very quiet about the drop as gun ownership and population increase, and you'll never hear about it from the anti-second amendment folks like our president. http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2013/05/07/gun-homicide-rate-down-49-since-1993-peak-public-unaware/

• In 2010, there were 3.6 gun homicides per 100,000 people, compared with 7.0 in 1993, according to CDC data.
• In 2010, CDC data counted 11,078 gun homicide deaths, compared with 18,253 in 1993.⁵
• Men and boys make up the vast majority (84% in 2010) of gun homicide victims. The firearm homicide rate also is more than five times as high for males of all ages (6.2 deaths per 100,000 people) as it is for females (1.1 deaths per 100,000 people).
• By age group, 69% of gun homicide victims in 2010 were ages 18 to 40, an age range that was 31% of the population that year. Gun homicide rates also are highest for adults ages 18 to 24 and 25 to 40.
• A disproportionate share of gun homicide victims are black (55% in 2010, compared with the 13% black share of the population). Whites were 25% of victims but 65% of the population in 2010. Hispanics were 17% of victims and 16% of the population in 2010.
• The firearm suicide rate (6.3 per 100,000 people) is higher than the firearm homicide rate and has come down less sharply. The number of gun suicide deaths (19,392 in 2010) outnumbered gun homicides, as has been true since at least 1981.

Why is all this happening?

“The Crimea is gone. Ukraine is in danger of Russian domination. Syria and Libya are in turmoil. Egypt is a basket case. We are "negotiating" with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Iraq is being overrun. The EU is in decline even as the the power of China and Russia is growing. Traditional allies of American do not trust us any longer - and for good reason - America can no longer project its power, nor is it willing to do so. America's southern border is being assaulted by illegal immigrants that we can't take care of because we are broke - a debtor nation.

Why?

The world is in chaos today for one reason. It is due to the policies enacted by the progressive Democrat Party and their leader . . .”

Michael Smith at his Facebook page.

The VA scandal hasn’t gone away

“The VA scandal is like cancer: It doesn’t go away, it just gets worse when we aren’t looking… The Obama Administration’s self-made crises with the Bowe Bergdahl prisoner swap and the new wave of underage illegal immigration knocked the VA scandal out of the news. But it was like hitting your head with a hammer to take your mind off your broken leg. And Heaven help you if you need VA treatment for either of those things. While the media were distracted, a new VA audit revealed that delayed care for veterans is even worse than we thought. Over 57,000 veterans have been waiting at least 90 days for their first visit with a VA doctor. Over the past decade, another 64,000 vets enrolled, requested a doctor’s appointment, and never even got one. And out of 731 VA hospitals reviewed, 73 percent showed evidence of fraud to cover up the lack of care. The White House is rushing to provide care for all the illegal border crossers. How about an equal sense of urgency to provide care for our veterans?” Mike Huckabee

Safer sex?

I volunteer at a free clinic, and when my tasks are finished, I read the literature. Here's a brochure on STIs and condoms that I thought was interesting. Condoms don't reduce STIs at all for oral sex, and increase the risk for HIV; condoms during anal sex may decrease your risk for rectal chlamydia and cut your chance of getting HIV by up to half; condoms used every time can cut your chance of HPV by up to 70% (HPV causes cervical cancer and causes about the same number of deaths as HIV/AIDS every year); use of condoms every time can cut your chance of genital herpes by about 30%, but once you're infected you have it for life; using condoms every time can cut your chance of getting chlamydia or gonorrhea by about half; using condoms every time can cut your chance of getting HIV by about 85%--it kills about half a million a year. Only about 2/3 of sexually active teens use condoms, and as males age, they use them even less. All these odds assume correct usage and no breakage.

Now my question is, how many people would fly or drive with these odds of arriving safely?

And I have the references to the research if you need it.

The Medical Institute

Forgive for your own sake, if nothing else

Brat defeats Cantor, but that’s not the shocker

I'm not so shocked that someone who believes in free markets and our constitution could win a place on the ballot with almost no money--I'm stunned that you can find someone like that in academe, the least diverse place in the country for the last 4 decades.

This has never happened in our history—that a House majority leader would be defeated in his party’s primary.

The mess at our border

Have you seen the photos of the "unaccompanied children" (abandoned? kidnapped?) being dropped off in Arizona and other southern states? Most aren't Mexicans--their immigration rules are stricter than the U.S. They are mostly from Central America and not welcome in Mexico. They are dark skinned, some indigenous people, some mixed-race, flooding north because opportunities for education and a comfortable life style are limited in their home countries. In their countries the... power structure in business and government is mostly white European or Mestizo. Rather than provide opportunity for all, Central America and Mexico just push their bi-racial and indigenous people north. It would be like the U.S. rounding up anyone 1/8th or more African heritage, unemployed or underemployed, and sending them to Canada or Mexico with the message that we have no job growth or opportunities because of regressive-socialist government policies, so maybe someone else can handle it.

"If the Obama administration put half the effort into securing our border as it has invested to institute this operation, our state and nation would not be facing this situation," Gov. Jan Brewer (AZ) said.

Republican candidates in search of votes, are doing their usual limp spine tap dance, instead of speaking up for what is right for American citizens, particularly our minority population who will have to compete for jobs and college slots with these newcomers.

“More likely, the migration is a result of ambivalent immigration policy that is sending mixed signals abroad. While the Obama administration has deported a record 2 million people, the administration has also extended a compassionate arm to undocumented children. It’s no surprise, then, that there’s a widespread belief in Central America that if kids can survive the treacherous journey and get across that border somehow, they will be allowed to stay.”

 http://www.sacbee.com/2014/06/08/6464441/editorial-the-international-crisis.html?storylink=lingospot#storylink=cpy

New exercise plan

Obama has created this cruel crisis

They're calling it a "humanitarian crisis." 150,000 unaccompanied children crossing our border into Arizona and Texas? Who created this? How are they getting across the border? And how did they get into Mexico from Central America, since most aren't Mexicans (a country with very strict laws about this)? Obama gave the message 2 years ago that they wouldn't be turned back if they came before 2007, but somehow that year got left out of the message and what anxious parents who want a better life for their kids wouldn't think they'd better act now and enter the U.S. and take advantage of the social welfare benefits and education opportunities. The Democrats want this chaos so they can clobber the GOP on immigration issues. I wonder if they started the rumors and hired the drivers. Children don't leave mom and dad on their own and decide to go to America.

http://riograndeguardian.com/bordernews_story.asp?story_no=23

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/06/09/lawmakers-fault-lax-obama-immigration-policies-for-calamity-in-arizona/

http://www.glennbeck.com/2014/06/09/did-the-obama-administration-engineer-a-humanitarian-crisis-on-the-border-to-push-a-progressive-agenda/

http://www.cnn.com/2012/06/15/politics/immigration/

“In recent weeks, a tide of young, unaccompanied minors crossing the Texas border illegally has pushed the US immigration system to its breaking point. Unable to cope with the volume of children crossing the border without their parents, immigration authorities have had to find emergency solutions, such as housing thousands in a San Antonio Air Force base, a California Navy base, and a makeshift detention center in Nogales, AZ.'”

http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/DC-Decoder/2014/0608/Illegal-immigration-how-humanitarian-crisis-on-border-could-hurt-Obama-video

These children have not been vaccinated; have no documents; they are too young to be without their parents; they can be victims of violence.

“More likely, the migration is a result of ambivalent immigration policy that is sending mixed signals abroad. While the Obama administration has deported a record 2 million people, the administration has also extended a compassionate arm to undocumented children. It’s no surprise, then, that there’s a widespread belief in Central America that if kids can survive the treacherous journey and get across that border somehow, they will be allowed to stay. “

http://www.sacbee.com/2014/06/08/6464441/editorial-the-international-crisis.html#storylink=cpy