Month: February 2005

NorthEAST AR, that is, along the New Madrid fault

Nothing here, just north of WallyWorld Central.

As usual.

::yawn::

This one is NASTY!

My daughter, a couple of hundred miles away, has the flu. I think I caught it from her emails.

Be careful out there. It seems the flu isn’t caught by anti-virus scanners but by users of anti-virus scanners.

Oh, the humanity of it all…

Heading on home

Cal Thomas’ most recent column (up today at Townhall.com) included one comment that has me strongly considering a change of pace.

“Light dispels darkness and good can overcome evil. But a light won’t shine if it isn’t lit and cursing the darkness illuminates nothing.”

Sounds like something I might think to post on my “Whistling in the Light” blog…

So, I’m considering

1.) Less blogging overall but especially here. Perhaps cut myself back even further to something like once a week more or less.
2.) A little more posting over at “Whistling in the Light”

and, what the heck,

3.) Spending less time on this computer and more time on another that’s set up to be more useful with my music transcription software, writing more music again. Maybe post more new music (or links to songs) at “Whistling in the Light”, etc.

Let’s see if I can break the cycle, or at least bend it a bit, eh?

🙂

Mostly off-topic for this blog, but I certainly hope this reaches a broader-than-usual audience…

My daughter’s, ummm, “guy friend” has proposed teaching her how to drive his stick-shift Mazda R. Thinking back on her initial driving lessons in our old Chevy Nova, I’m hereby declaring the institution of a fund to pay for his psychiatric counseling. It’s non-tax-deductible and I’ll be happy to administer it in any way I see fit. If you want to help this poor soul out, just let me know.

🙂

A note to Congress

On January 17, 1935, Franklin Delano Roosevelt (you know, the patron saint of Democrats) presented his administration’s case for enactment of Social Security. The full text is here. below is a one-paragraph excerpt that the Bush administration should throw in the current crop of Dems faces at every turn:

“In the important field of security for our old people, it seems necessary to adopt three principles–first, noncontributory old-age pensions for those who are now too old to build up their own insurance; it is, of course, clear that for perhaps thirty years to come funds will have to be provided by the states and the federal government to meet these pensions. Second, compulsory contributory annuities, which in time will establish a self-supporting system for those now young and for future generations. Third, voluntary contributory annuities by which individual initiative can increase the annual amounts received in old age. It is proposed that the federal government assume one-half of the cost of the old-age pension plan, which ought ultimately to be supplanted by self-supporting annuity plans.”

It’s obvious that the current Social Security program ought not to be dealing with the first issue mentioned by Roosevelt at all, by now. It’s equally obvious that the fact that the program is NOT annuity based is a large contributor to the current mess that the Social Security System is in now. And it’s is stomp-on-your-face obvious that the current generation of Dems will say anything and do darned near anything to prevent the third principle voiced by Roosevelt from being enacted.

There you have it: the patron saint of the Social Security System sepaks from the grave in favor of the Bush proposal for private accounts.

Mike, over at Half-Bakered posted this modified screencap of Janeane Garofolo moking the Iraqi ink-stained voters (and those who expressed “solidarity” with them) with a Nazi salute. The “Nazi News Network” logo and “Luft Amerika… ” were added as slams on CNN and Air America, naturally. Picking on half-wits: not nice, Mike. (But better than they deserve.)

Read his whole post here. He has links to more on the story No kidding: Garofolo really mocked the Iraqi voters and those who supported the Iraqi voters with that Nazi salute in an appearance on MSNBC.

Where are the British Royals and the Britpress when you need them? Garofolo doesn’t need a trip to Auschwitz for sensitivity training; she needs to be locked in a cell, alone with Saddam for a few weeks… Although, that could be considered torture enough to gain lenience for Saddam.

Or, sowing dissent in the ranks of the Dems?

Was I the only one who heard the theme to The Godfather during “the kiss” after the SOTU? That wily Bush. Who woulda thunk it?

Who is that masked Hyundai?

In partial defense, I’ll plead being really tired (lost sleep, being heavily “flu-ed” for a coupla days, etc.), but really… ::sigh::

Finally dragged myself outa bed, dumped several cupsa coffee down my gullet and we headed off 35 miles north to keep an appointed afternoon with our son. Shopped some. Wore my tail into the ground in a little over an hour. Cut things short and headed back, ?hoping for a serious nap! ::profound sigh::

On the four-lane that proceeds through 2 counties and halfway, now, through America’s Third World County, I was going rather more slowly than I usually do (I knew my driving skills were blunted by tiredness). But I was unaware of just how slowly I was driving until—was that déjà vu??? No! That’sthe same Hyndai that passed me ten miles ago! Whoa!! I’ve been lapped by a Hyundai!!!

Need. Sleep. Lots and lots of sleep.

🙂

UPDATE: got a little sleep since the post above. Not (yet) enough, but some. Still, the inage that popped into my simpled-out brain of a lil Hyundai circling the globe and lapping me as I toodled down the highway was enough to send my (totally simpled-out!) brain into paroxysms of (silent: too much effort to actually laugh!) hilarity.

And yeh, it probably was two different cars. But they’re so much cookie-cutter clones that it made it just that much easier for the “I’ve been lapped!” image to bubble up from some unconscious reservoir of silliness.

Or maybe that was my unconscious being serious…

Just go.

Eason Jordan still refuses to talk turkey; no facts to back up his claims of US soldiers targeting journalists for assassination

Eason Jordon’s multiple slanders of U.S. military in Iraq, CNN’s Coverup, and the mostly silent MMPA on the issue,spurs a rejoinder to that kind of mistreatment of our military via Kipling:

Tommy
by Rudyard kipling

I went into a public-‘ouse to get a pint o’beer,
The publican [Name: Jordan?–heh] ‘e up an’ sez, “We serve no red-coats here.”
The girls be’ind the bar they laughed an’ giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an’ to myself sez I:

O it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy, go away”;
But it’s “Thank you, Mister Atkins,” when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it’s “Thank you, Mr. Atkins,” when the band begins to play.

I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but ‘adn’t none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-‘alls,
But when it comes to fightin’, Lord! they’ll shove me in the stalls!

For it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy, wait outside”;
But it’s “Special train for Atkins” when the trooper’s on the tide,
The troopship’s on the tide, my boys, the troopship’s on the tide,
O it’s “Special train for Atkins” when the trooper’s on the tide.

Yes, makin’ mock o’ uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an’ they’re starvation cheap;
An’ hustlin’ drunken soldiers when they’re goin’ large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin’ in full kit.

Then it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy how’s yer soul?”
But it’s “Thin red line of ‘eroes” when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it’s “Thin red line of ‘eroes” when the drums begin to roll.

We aren’t no thin red ‘eroes, nor we aren’t no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An’ if sometimes our conduck isn’t all your fancy paints:
Why, single men in barricks don’t grow into plaster saints;

While it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Tommy, fall be’ind,”
But it’s “Please to walk in front, sir,” when there’s trouble in the wind,
There’s trouble in the wind, my boys, there’s trouble in the wind,
O it’s “Please to walk in front, sir,” when there’s trouble in the wind.

You talk o’ better food for us, an’ schools, an’ fires an’ all:
We’ll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don’t mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow’s Uniform is not the soldier-man’s disgrace.

For it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ “Chuck him out, the brute!”
But it’s “Saviour of ‘is country,” when the guns begin to shoot;
An’ it’s Tommy this, an’ Tommy that, an’ anything you please;
But Tommy ain’t a bloomin’ fool – you bet that Tommy sees!

…and, from an ancient letter home from a North African campaign:

“We hear that there are tumults and riots in Rome, and that voices are raised concerning the army and the quality of our soldiers. Make haste to reassure us that you love and support us as we love and support you, for if we find that we have left our bones to bleach in these sands in vain, then beware the fury of the legions.”

A worthwhile warning to such as Eason Jordan, Ted “Swimmer” Kennedy, Jean Fraud sKerry and their ilk. But one I dare say they are too stupid in their arrogance to ignore.