Rob Reiner plays to type--he's still "Meathead"

Rob Reiner, now 76, played to type in the 1970s, Meathead, a thickheaded liberal who if he didn't jump to conclusions or fall for lies, he would have no exercise at all. Now he's going after "Christian Nationalists." Not sure what he's trying, but is he criticizing Christians who believe in borders? Christians who wave flags and sing the national anthem at parades? Christians who believe all lives are worth living? Christians who believe in honest elections? Christians who don't buy into the anti-Christian climate chaos? Christians who worship Jesus instead of humanist agendas? Are these the Christians who deliver his goods, keep his plumbing working, and build his lavish homes? Are these the Christians who do his gardening and prepare his food and clean his homes? Prepare his taxes, fix his teeth, repair his automobiles, check out his library books, ring up his groceries, laugh at his movies so he can make money? Are these Christians who support Trump and therefore snobs like Reiner can claim they shouldn't be allowed to vote?

 
Rob Reiner is worth $200 million, not exactly NFL territory, but probably he never lifted a finger to do real work--both his mom and dad were successful Hollywood types. His only talent was picking the right parents. Reiner is a secular Jew criticizing people of another religion. Typical Hollywood hypocrite.

Tell me how you really feel! The Fire Department

This is an excerpt from an essay about a volunteer fire department with a board out of control, but it's so well written I thought I'd capture it.

"Even our pillars of “higher education” have vanished from the critical thinking circles of rigorous public discourse. They have fallen fast and hard for intersectional identarian ideologies and gross sexual deviancies; so much so that they are now simply mindless delusion factories. Factories whose sole product are the feckless, soulless acolytes of enforced groupthink and Marxism. Graduates devoid of the critical thinking skills that were once hallmarks of these institutions, are now just carbon-copy idealogues with witheringly expensive credentials and huge student loan debt.

Last year’s Harvard plagiarism debacle illustrates this clearly – over 400 years of rigorous scholarship have been thrown into the mud at the feet of the new god of academia: the DEI dynasty – an institution that John Carter’s Substack, Postcards from Barsoom aptly identifies in his essay, Fake Gay and DEIing of AIDs.

This same indifferent disregard and breathless arrogance that has destroyed Harvard appears to be continuing its cancerous boardroom sweep across the country by power-drunk venomous apparatchiks who gleefully issue destructive diktats from on high, seeking to tear down anyone and anything remotely opposing their newfound authority. The days of working out minor quibbles and personality differences are long gone – replaced by angry Maoist HR-scolds swinging administrative battleaxes around in politically fueled blood-rages."

A good read about a community in the Pacific Northwest now without its volunteer fire department.

Firing The Fire Board - by Michael Carter (substack.com)

Jim Minnick obituary

Leroy James "Jim" Minnick, beloved lifelong partner and best friend to Mary Brown passed away peacefully on Thursday February 8th, 2024, at the age of 68. Jim was known to family and friends for his kindness, leaving behind a legacy of love and cherished memories.

Born in Glendale, California on December 25, 1955. Jim grew up in South Carolina. He was a son of Evelyn Mae Corbett-Morris and Ershel Leroy Minnick. Jim's journey was intertwined with that of his lifelong partner, Mary Brown. Their love story was one of unwavering devotion and companionship, spanning 3 decades. Together, they built a life filled with laughter, love, and countless shared adventures. Their bond was a testament to the enduring power of love and commitment.

His dedication, work ethic, and integrity earned him the respect of co-workers at Quebecor where he was employed for 22 years. Jim will be remembered for his generous spirit and compassionate heart. He was always ready with a helping hand or a listening ear, offering support and encouragement to all who crossed his path. His kindness knew no bounds, and his impact on the lives of others was immeasurable. In his free time, Jim enjoyed coin collecting, metal detecting and loved to watch sports. He found solace and joy in the simple pleasures of life.

Jim is survived by his loving lifelong partner Mary Brown, siblings, Gery Martin (Ava), Jodie Louise Strickland and a very special great aunt, Norma (Bob) Bruce [correction, first cousin once removed]. He also leaves behind Nieces: Julie Jenneman (Steven) and Kristy Smith (Carl), Nephews: John, Steve (Leslie), and David Minnick and several great nieces and nephews.

He is preceded in death by his parents Evelyn Mae Corbett-Morris and Ershel Leroy Minnick. [siblings] Lorrie Passailaigue, Lawrence James Minnick (Linda), Lonnie John Minnick, Julian Byron Carter, Barbara Jean and Gloria Kay and their beloved dog Eli.

He also leaves behind a host of relatives, friends, and colleagues who will forever cherish his memory.

Though Jim's physical presence may be gone, his spirit will live on in the hearts of all who knew and loved him. His legacy of love, kindness, and integrity will continue to inspire and uplift us in the days ahead.

A celebration of Jim's life will be announced at a later date.

Rest in peace, Jim. You will be deeply missed and fondly remembered, always.

https://www.westmorelandfuneralhome.com/obituaries/Leroy-James-Minnick?obId=30693463

From shoes to uncles

There's an editorial in WSJ today from a woman who had been told by her doctors she had to give up high heels. There's a pay wall, but I know she finally opted for good health rather than be crippled. I was never a shoe fanatic, but I did wear high heels, probably 3" in high school and college, then 2" in my 40's, then sort of wedgies, and now flat Mary Jane's. After I retired in 2000 at 60 I was always well dressed when I went out in public--like to the coffee shop, grocery store or various club meetings. Until about 2010, I always wore high heels with my slacks. After exercise class I would go home and change clothes rather than appear in the grocery store in my athletic clothes. Somewhere after 70 I decided that was probably wasted energy. These memories are included in the blog I wrote in 2015 about "What I used to do and don't anymore." If I hadn't written it, I might not remember I ever wore high heels.

My grandmother Weybright held out as long as she could. Born in 1876 she was still wearing sensible high heels and a nice dress when I would drive her to cattle sales or the state fair (she managed her farms) in the late 1950s. Women were stronger and smarter in those days. I think she also wore a hat in public.

In the photo below (1949) my grandmother is in the back on the right and I can see she's wearing heels with a strap; her sister-in-law, Alice Jay, who was older is seated on the left and is also wearing heels. It was a terribly hot sticky day, and I was very uncomfortable as I can see from the look on my face.

  

The person taking the photo was my uncle, J. Edwin Jay, the retired president of Wilmington College in Ohio. I decided to check the internet, and found that a younger faculty member had decided to publish in 2015 Jay's story of his years at Wilmington on the internet from a typed manuscript he found in the library. So I looked up Prof. McNelis who had retired, and sorry to say he died about 6 months ago, so I can't thank him for that nice gesture. Uncle Edwin and I corresponded for years, and I made a special trip to see him before he died in Detroit in 1963. And we know all this because some journalist has given up her painful shoes.

James I. McNelis, III, Ph.D. (teachingtolkien.org)

James McNelis Obituary (2023) - Eureka, CA - Times-Standard (legacy.com)

History and Tradition - Wilmington College (Wilmington, Ohio)

Here's What "Trendy" Shoes Looked Like In Every Decade Of The 20th Century (ranker.com)

The Trump Obsession of Biden

I was listening to the VDH podcast (Victor Davis Hanson) this morning, and he repeated this story (with vocal imitations) about Biden. Then I saw it in print.

"Things are becoming so strange, so surreal, so nihilistic in contemporary America that the chaos can only be deliberate. Chance, incompetence, and accident could not alone explain the series of disasters we now daily witness that are nearly destroying the country.

When the ailing and non-compos-mentis president now speaks, he rarely becomes excited about Iranian or terrorist provocations. Biden seems restrained even at Russia’s outlawry in Ukraine. The atrocities of Hamas now earn only measured objections from Biden. He does not seem too angered by the collapse of the border. Nor do the deaths of 100,000 Americans to imported fentanyl earn a loud trademark Biden scream.

No, what earns his unchecked ire, often expressed in shouts and hysterical tones, are Donald Trump and his supporters. Most recently, out of nowhere, Biden resurrected the old and proven falsehood that Trump had libeled the Normandy dead as losers and suckers. He then compounded that libel by claiming Trump’s supposed dismissal of the heroic dead was a grievous family insult to his own late son, who did not die either in combat or while in uniform but in 2015, tragically, from brain cancer.
During these anti-Trump fits, Biden wakes up and his face tightens up. He begins screaming, in uncharacteristic, animated fashion, anytime he can smear half the nation’s voters as “semi-fascists” and “ultra-MAGA” extremists. In private, he swears that Trump is a “f—ing asshole” and “sick f—k.” If only Biden substituted “cartel” or “Iran” or “Hamas” for “Trump” or “MAGA.” we might see an animate president."

My observation?  Biden's irrational behavior is just one of the reasons you need to turn a deaf ear and blind eye to any insult you hear about Trump being a Nazi or racist because the Trump stories are almost always lies stuffed with evil and puffed up by the media. I've yet to find one that was true. And Biden every day shows he is far worse than any of the caricatures of Trump.

St. Mary's Summer School of Faith 2023 with Charles Craigmile

I'm a huge fan of Charles Craigmile's theology classes, and have followed him about 10 years now.  I'm usually a little behind. I just found the 2023 list of classes, but haven't watched them yet.  I wish St. Mary's would put the classes on a podcast, although he also has good visuals.

In 2023, Charles Craigmile presented a series of sessions at St. Mary’s in Lake Forest as part of their Adult Education program1. The sessions covered various topics related to the Catholic faith and were held weekly on Tuesday nights. Here are some of the topics that were covered: 

https://youtu.be/d9qpfZBFUU4?si=Y8GNDtyxN0ThOvAC  2023 Summer School of Faith

The Identity and Mission of the Catholic Church
Grace & the Sacraments and the Spiritual Life
Living a Moral Life and Contemporary Moral Issues (marriage, divorce, contraception, abortion, IVF, homosexuality, etc.)
Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven & Hell

Collecting My Thoughts: Summer School of Faith 2022, Vatican II

Restoring the sacred in a secular age.  Series for 2019   https://youtu.be/AcS6WXVr6GU?si=jykqmBkfm2WrC7QW

Collecting My Thoughts: Summer School of Faith-Sixth, 2018-Charles Craigmile, Culture Lost, Culture Reclaimed

The income gap

If a thesis is repeated hundreds of times, many people believe it; if it is repeated millions of times, hardly anyone doubts it. Like masks can stop the spread of a virus, or you can stop climate change by forcing people to own a different car or sending rich celebrities in private planes to conferences where they lavish themselves with goodies, or men can become women by wishful thinking and hormones. And there's another one: there's a rising gap between rich and poor.

"Phil Gramm, Robert Ekelund, and John Early recently showed in their excellent book "The Myth of American Inequality: How Government Biases Policy Debate." The actual percentage of their income paid by the top one percent of earners in tax in the U.S. was only 16.1 percent in 1962, when the top marginal rate was 91 percent. However, in 1988, when the top rate was only 28 percent, the percentage paid by the top one percent of earners had risen to 21.5 percent! As the top tax rate fell by two-thirds, the percentage of their income that the top one percent of tax filers paid in federal income and payroll taxes rose by a third.

Since the 1960s, the welfare state in the U.S. has been constantly expanded, so that the proportion of the population receiving transfer payments, and the amount of transfer payments, has increased continually. If one takes into account taxes on the one hand and transfer payments on the other, it becomes clear that the actual income, i.e. what a citizen has left after taxes and transfer payments, is much lower for the rich and much higher for those on low incomes."

New Study Calls into Question the Theory of Rising Inequality - Foundation for Economic Education (fee.org)

Exploring Income Transfers: What You Should Know (enrichest.com)

List of 80+ Federal Welfare Programs (singlemotherguide.com)

Bare-faced Go-away-bird vs. Lying dog-faced pony soldier

 Remember when Joe Biden called a woman a lying dog-faced pony soldier in 2020? He wasn't sued because no one had a clue if his slur was racist, sexist or homophobic, so the media gave him a pass. Our Page a day bird calendar for Feb. 5 has a bird that could have been named by Joe Biden. It's a "Bare-faced Go-away-bird. " It doesn't have a mask and it's difficult to tell the males from the females. It was named by a German and is found in a number of African countries.

Bare-faced Go-away-bird - eBird

The hysteria pandemic on top of the Covid pandemic

"The media, the government, scientific and public health organizations, etc. relentlessly twisted the facts to conform to their ideology. Most of us were deceived into believing that COVID-19 was far worse than it really was, that interventions were more effective than they really were, and that downsides of interventions were smaller than they really were. The pandemic became cartoonishly distorted across every dimension. A psychic pandemic had been superimposed onto a real pandemic.

Public health elites did not worry that the messaging was wrong. They worried that the spell might be broken. Thus Birx lamented, “When people start to realize that 99% of us are going to be fine, it becomes more and more difficult [to get people to comply].”

Almost all pandemic policies sharply contradicted decades of scientific consensus. Most experts knew this was wrong but were unwilling to fight the mob. But some did."

Kevin Bass, "How my medical school scandalously dismissed me" The Illusion of Consensus, 

How My Medical School Scandalously Dismissed Me (illusionconsensus.com)

Autoimmune diseases afflict primarily women

Women account for around 80% of all cases of autoimmune disease, a category that includes conditions such as lupus and rheumatoid arthritis. What explains this sex bias has long been a mystery, however. . . . A prime suspect is the X chromosome: in most mammals, including humans, a male’s cells typically include only one copy, whereas a female’s cells typically carry two.

https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00267-6?

As if 99.9999% of the third world didn't know that men and women are different, here's one more proof for more advanced cultures--autoimmune diseases. Yet the authors of this article needed to include this disclaimer just in case someone sues Nature magazine: " (This article uses ‘women’ and ‘female’ to describe people with two X chromosomes and no Y chromosome, reflecting the language of the study, while acknowledging that gender identity and chromosomal make-up do not always align.) "

 Of course, gender is a grammar term and not science or biology.

Xist ribonucleoproteins promote female sex-biased autoimmunity (cell.com)

Inspirational message our young people need to hear

This Davos speech should be required reading for every teen-ager and every Democrat. For Christians committed to social justice and economic opportunity for the poor, it would also be a good study.

https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2024/01/special-address-by-javier-milei-president-of-argentina/?

"Today I'm here to tell you that the Western world is in danger. And it is in danger because those who are supposed to have to defend the values of the West are co-opted by a vision of the world that inexorably leads to socialism and thereby to poverty."

Milei: "Thanks to free trade capitalism, the world is now living its best moment. Never in all of mankind or humanity's history has there been a time of more prosperity than today. This is true for all. The world of today has more freedom, is rich, more peaceful and prosperous. This is particularly true for countries that have more economic freedom and respect the property rights of individuals.
Countries that have more freedom are 12 times richer than those that are repressed. The lowest percentile in free countries is better off than 90% of the population in repressed countries. Poverty is 25 times lower and extreme poverty is 50 times lower. And citizens in free countries live 25% longer than citizens in repressed countries."

[njb: I would disagree with him that the world is more peaceful, and unfortunately the U.S. is funding some of those conflicts. Also, the freedom index for the USA is losing ground. We're 17th. Thank you, Democrats for limiting our speech, religion and destroying the trustworthiness of the media.]

Message from General Mike Flynn about U.S. Wars

Message on X (Twitter) from Mike Flynn

The United States of America invaded Iraq back in 2003 based on now U.S. Government debunked claims of Weapons of Mass Destruction. The very famous speech that General Colin Powell gave in the United Nations with the full weight of the CIA behind him where he said Iraq possessed weapons of mass destruction, was all a lie. 

We then proceeded to lose so many young lives, killed and wounded. We also lost trillions of dollars from our treasury (meaning from American taxpayers). We lost a ton of prestige as well on the world stage. All for a loser endless war that now looks to be turning the tide toward war once again, but this time the tide is against the United States. 

Also, Iran is most certainly developing a nuclear weapons programs. We know this because our government under Obama and Biden have told us. These administrations are funding them to the tune of billions of dollars. This is no secret—it’s all public knowledge and those on the left appear to consider it their duty to support Iran (I really don’t know where this attitude comes from). Do these people hate America (and Israel) so much, they want to see a war or the destruction of entire societies? That’s what nuclear weapons can do.

 I can speculate and analyze all day long about this and point fingers at Obama and Kerry, the Clintons, pressure from the globalists at the WEF, or maybe it’s the CCP directing our U.S. foreign policy (I’m not kidding—at times, it feels that way).

All the money we’re pouring into Iran flows into Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, Iran surrogates inside the Iraq Government, and many other Iranian aligned groups and individuals in the greater Middle East.

Tactically but with strategic consequence are the number of attacks on U.S. forces. That number is now north of 150 resulting in several casualties. During the previous Iraq War, there were more than 600 U.S. casualties directly caused by Iran. 

Iran has unleashed proxy wars in Israel, Syria, Yemen, Gaza, Lebanon, Red Sea, and are likely behind protests here in America as well as influencing, through their relationships with Venezuela, the invasion of our southern border. 

The big “so what” is that Iran is our enemy, not our friend. 

And what is the Biden administration’s response: Continue to send billions in aid and trade to Iran (our enemy). 

In my judgement, you cannot make peace with fanatics. For example, there were over 300K soldiers and civilians killed during the final Battle for Berlin against the Nazi's in 1945. The Nazis knew they had zero chance for victory. But that’s how fanatics operate. We have to stop dealing with fanatics.

Lastly, if we don’t focus right here at home, AMERICA FIRST, we could lose everything. So much is at stake and we’re not even allowed to close the front door to our home. I believe in God. I believe in the power of prayer. I believe that we have lost sight of the importance of God in America. To reclaim our republic as a Judeo-Christian nation built on a set of moral principles and values, we need to be fearless and we better get our act together very quickly. 

God Bless America.

https://twitter.com/GenFlynn/status/1753078333275877862?

Race hustler in Boston needs a reality check

That bald race hustler squad member is calling a Walgreen closing in a high crime and vandalism area of Boston, racism. Well, why not. They say that about everything. Didn't AOC chase out a Walmart with jobs in her district claiming something similar? There is a cure for their ignorance. Let them work for a week in such a neighborhood, without their own government paid security, either stocking shelves, unloading trucks, riding the bus to work and walking a few blocks or standing at the pay cubicle, so they can fear for their lives. Let them shop in the neighborhood and be victims of muggings and theft. Let them look at the profit/loss statements and face the investors fleeing to other stocks.

 
The Democrats might consider dropping their party's push for defunding police and turning criminals back out on the street when they've committed mayhem. Democrats are not tough on crime, but sure can run their mouths while coddling criminals.

Depolarization of Christians during this political climate

Our church is offering an educational unit on "Depolarization" to help members face the increasing divisions especially in the current election cycle using the Bible as a guide. Call it a polarizing subject, but abortion is at the top of my list. I don't want to nor will I attempt to bridge the gap between me and a Democrat, a Christian, a fellow member of the body of Christ, who voted twice to push through the abortion issues which passed this year in Ohio. A change in our state constitution to "protect the rights of women." And let's just throw in a recent side issue of men in women's sports and locker rooms bill, a bill which DOES NOT protect women, but which would allow continued mutilation of children, aka "affirming care." A bill which Republicans in the legislature needed to override the veto of our so called Republican governor, Mike DeWine.

Actually, I haven't heard too many conservatives complain about the divisions and polarization in our country--they seem to know that liberals are feeling some guilt and anxiety about the wars, the border, and abortion available to the last day, and THAT's causing them to see a profound chasm of the Democrats own creation. It's not the party they signed on to 30-40 years ago, nor the party I left almost 25 years ago. It's not for me to close the gap or wave the white flag.

Congregational meeting and Dave Mann's retirement

When we began attending UALC in 1974 we met a young couple who were students at Luther Seminary in Bexley, Dave and Pam Mann (although she might have been his fiancée still). He was hired to be the Middle School minister. He had long blond hair and played the guitar. He's also a great organist.  He was sort of in an out -- he became our missionary to Cameroon in Africa. Instead of raising support as many missionaries have to do, our church kept them "on staff." We watched their four children grow up and eventually they returned to the U.S. (must have been some culture shock) where he rejoined our local staff with the usual ministerial responsibilities. In a few years he took a position at Institution Univers in Ouanaminthe, Haiti for about a decade, then returning to UALC where he was in charge of our international ministry. Bob participated in the Haiti short term ministry for 10 trips and taught in the school there.  Pam is a fabulous artist and contributed to so many of our in house art projects and quilt ministry, and also for many years she was a leader in the church's aerobic classes.  They retired at the end of 2023, and today was the celebration for their years of service and best wishes for their next adventure.

Dave and Pam were in Haiti during the terrible earthquake in 2010, and although Ouanaminthe was not hit, his school took in many students from the damaged area.  On his Facebook page he wrote:

"The day began with an all-school worship service. I was privileged to give the message. It was not difficult to find the word that would be right – Ours is a God who knows how to transform evil into good. The story of Joseph which is a key piece of my Bible curriculum in the 10th and 11th grades demonstrates this teaching. As I began to quote Genesis 50:20, many of the students completed the verse with me aloud. And, of course, the cross of Jesus is the ultimate proof that our God is a redeemer. Joseph’s story was not finished when he was in prison. Jesus’ story was not finished in the tomb. Haiti’s story was not finished on January 12th. Our story is not finished today. Our God will have the last word.""

On Easter Sunday 2018 Dave preached and told this story about John and Ali which I recorded in my blog.

"John was having a very busy day, and he passed a black man on Route 23 going north who’d had a flat tire and was attempting to flag someone down. John felt the Lord tap his shoulder but proceeded on as he had a busy schedule. Then he felt a firmer tap, so he turned around to help the stranded motorist. Not only was the tire flat, it was ruined. Not only was it ruined, but the man, Ali, had no money. So John paid for the tire himself, and then installed it for Ali. When they were finished, Ali told him he’d been waiting for two hours and no one had stopped, so why did John stop? “Because I serve the King,” John told him. Then Ali said, he’d like to know about this King that John served. Last Easter Ali was baptized a Christian and joined our Lutheran church. Dave told him that he would experience rejection and even hate from his Muslim community, but God’s love, through John had touched him and he came to know the living Lord."

  

Bob with Pam and Dave in Haiti in 2008

Bob and Pam at the quilt show at UALC in 2019 

Swamped by e-mail and Ben Sira

My e-mail is out of control. I'm not asking for solutions. This is a rant, not a cry for help. I think I get 50-75 a day, and I've scrupulously unsubscribed to those which sneak in because mailing lists are sold. However, even the ones I've asked for and read, or save, send other suggestions and offers and I can't always tell from the subject line whether it's important. Then add the medical portals for the 2 of us which send all manner of "stuff" including alerts about appointments and requests to sign in remotely. There are specialists not connected to our regular physician, they send notices too. I can give many other examples--charities, church groups, clubs, condo association, credit card, groups of friends that do "reply all", spam, and so on, and on. Sometimes I miss a personal e-mail letter which I love because it gets lost in the crowd.

Recently my book club read "Sisters of Sinai" which I liked so I bought a used copy (so I could check the bibliography) because I was interested in Ben Sira (Sirach, Ecclesiasticus). The Scottish twin sisters finding a scrap of Ben Sira manuscript in Hebrew in Egypt in 1896 was one of the most important Biblical discoveries in recent time, right up there with the Dead Sea Scrolls. After checking the internet, I signed up for something called Academia which is open access for academic papers so a reader can browse and download. There are many others that aggregate publications like SSRN which I've used, and even Ohio State has one called Knowledge Bank. On my first try, I found over 124,000 papers written about Ben Sira. Now I'm getting inquiries from this service about updating to premium and have I considered reading paper xyz. I also bought a few other books through ABE, and I get not only notices about where they are in transit, but wouldn't I like to try this or that book. So you see, it's my own fault.

A beautiful duck

 We have a page a day calendar of birds on our kitchen table. Today I said, Mandarin Duck, that's the most beautiful bird I've ever seen. So I looked it up in birdsfact.com and it said, "It is the most beautiful duck in the world in comparison to other species of ducks." https://birdsfact.com/mandarin-duck/

A Mandarin Duck Somehow Found Its Way To Central Park (thethings.com)

8 Fascinating Facts about Mandarin Ducks- The Symbolic Ducks in Korean Weddings | Nature World News

Inflation 1973-2023 in my recipe box

Today I was looking through my recipe box (sort of a historical archive now since I rarely bake) for something cobbler like/lite and found a recipe for cheesecake that serves 12 by my cousin Judy who lives in Winnebago, IL and grew up in Byron. It was dated August, 1973, so I have no idea why we were exchanging recipes. Our big family reunion was 20 years later and for that she contributed some from her mother, Aunt Gladys (d. 1976). Anyway, I'm not going to make a cheesecake, but on the back of the card I noted the prices. Things have changed a bit in 50 years. Pie filling (for topping) .59; Dream Whip .26; graham crackers .23; cream cheese .55. It seems I didn't count the sugar, eggs, and butter because I probably had that on hand (called homemaker math). It's in my handwriting, so I probably copied it to fit in this tiny box for 3 x 5 cards.

Some on FB are old enough to remember the nightmare of stagflation of the 1970s--high inflation, high unemployment, and low growth. In 1973 the average rate of inflation for food prices was over 13%. In August 1973 when I noted the prices, the food inflation rate was 18.2%! That may be why I noted the costs on the card. Compare that to 2023 food prices which was 5.8% for the year. The killer rate we all remember (and blame Biden for) was about 10% for 2022. I blame this primarily on the lockdown which really messed up all levels of the economy as well as health.

Data are from https://www.usinflationcalculator.com/inflation/food-inflation-in-the-united-states/? 

The Mentor magazine

It was snowing in Columbus, OH, on January 19.  I'm recovering from back strain and much improved, so was tackling the laundry. My adult ADHD kicked in and I noticed something on a top shelf peeking out, calling to me while the washer filled. Debating whether to stress my back, I reached for it and found a May 1929 "The Mentor" magazine.

"The Mentor magazine was published from 1913 to about 1931 by The Mentor Association. The Association was founded by William David Moffat in 1912 and included experts in various fields. Each issue was devoted to a single subject augmented by fine photogravures (photogravures are prints produced in such a way as to mimic the richness and subtle range of tone found in photographs). . . http://archives.dyclibrary.net/?p=206

I've searched this computer for the data base of my grandparents' library, but I can't find it.  I created and printed it back in the 90s, but my back will not allow bending, stretching and lifting. I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have picked this up anywhere unless I recognized it. Both my maternal grandparents attended college in the 1890s and although they subscribed to many practical and farming magazines, this looks like it would have appealed to their interests.  This issue concerns wild animals (birds, bears, elephants) and travels, particularly the American west.  Also articles about animal artists. Robert L. Dickey, Grace Mott Johnson, Louis Jonas

I particularly enjoy the advertisements in old magazines. There's a full-page ad for Woman's Home Companion (Springfield Ohio) which promised serialized books for only $1.00 a year. Last year (1928?) the subscriber could have enjoyed The Story of Religion, What is Wrong with Marriage, Mareea-Maria,  The Foolish Virgin, The Quart Eye, Mamba's Daughters, Troupers of the Gold Coast or the rise of Lotta Crabtree, Keeping off the Shelf, and The Father. Of course, on the back, there is a full color ad for Camel cigarettes, "a Miss is as good as a mile" with an attractive young woman offering cigarettes to a handsome man.

Over reach of regulatory agencies--the deep state

NPR--liberal:  "The U.S. Supreme Court wrestled Wednesday with the implications of overturning a nearly 40-year-old precedent that could weaken the way the federal government regulates, well, everything.

A system in place for decades has governed how judges review curbs on air and water pollution, gun safety measures and workplace protections. But conservative legal foundations and business groups have urged the court to scrap that system, arguing it hands too much power to federal agencies at the expense of Congress and the judiciary.

Several of the court's conservative justices expressed deep skepticism of the current framework. But all three left-leaning justices offered support for keeping the system in place. And Justice Amy Coney Barrett, a Trump appointee, raised concerns about "inviting a flood of litigation" if they reversed course."

Supreme Court hears arguments in a case that could weaken federal rulemaking : NPR

Daily Signal--conservative: "The U.S. Supreme Court took up two cases Wednesday regarding the regulatory authority of the federal government as fishermen argue that government agencies are exceeding their authority by imposing costly mandates.

In Loper Bright Enterprises vs. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. vs. Department of Commerce, fishermen are challenging administrative law, dubbed “Chevron deference,” that asserts that when a federal statute is ambiguous about specific regulations, courts should defer to the implementing agency’s interpretation of the law.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration implemented a rule in 2020 forcing fishing companies (such as Relentless Inc.) to pay for federal observers to monitor the fishermen at sea on their own fishing boats—even though Congress did not give the agency authority to do so."

https://www.dailysignal.com/2024/01/17/supreme-court-hears-fishermens-challenges-to-costly-regulatory-authority-of-feds/?

NJB opinion:  Both Democrats and Republicans lean heavily on long-time bureaucrats to carry out their agendas, however Democrats also have the power of academe in their corner. Few conservatives can even get hired at major, powerful universities, let along make it through P & T. That limits their ability to get past the gatekeepers at the journals and print media. So we have the revolving door of CDC, FAA, EPA, FTC, FCC, FDA CFPB, etc. plus all the "tools" and "acts" and lobbyists and union leaders who control these groups. The liberal media are screaming that the SCOTUS could "gut" or "strangle" these agencies. Without ever mentioning the constitution. Or what's happening to us, the citizen/voter.

A friend says we need to pray about the SCOTUS decision: I'm all for prayer; Paul tells us to pray without ceasing. But it also wouldn't hurt Christians to be informed. What if each young mothers Bible Study group chose to look at just ONE agency/act /regulation that the federal, state and county governments are doing about foster care, trafficking of children, Head Start, safety of playgrounds, SNAP, school nutrition, and so forth. There are probably thousands. Sometimes church involvement is limited to applying for grants which in turn puts the government in the middle of the church via its budget.