Well, 2003 is about done. A new baby year is upon us. 2004 has all the earmarks to be a great year. The economy is rebounding, jobs are there, the war on terror is going well, and the Democratic party is imploding.
Yes yes, it looks like 2004 will be a great year. I want to thank all of you for visiting my blog, I resolve to make it better next year with more posts and tons of fun.
Have a happy and safe New Year's celebration, and may 2004 be full of tidings and good cheer and health.
The Washington Post reports that Steve Spurrier has resigned as head Coach of the Redskins.
Coach Steve Spurrier and the Washington Redskins worked out the final details of his resignation this afternoon -- after a few hours of confusion in which Spurrier was unaware that he had quit his own job.
Spurrier's resignation was worked out by agent Jimmy Sexton while the coach played golf, presumably in Florida. Spurrier, who had hired Sexton on Monday, was initially unable to reach the agent today because of cell phone troubles on the golf course. That led Spurrier to deny that he had quit after the team had announced his departure in a news release.
Spurrier has been the coach of the Redskins for the past two years after leaving The University of Florida as head coach there. Apparently his "Fun and Gun" style didn't work out in the NFL.
Interestingly though, Nebraska is without a head football coach after firing Frank Solich after a dismal 9-3 season. (As a Penn State fan, I'd love to see 9 wins about now)
I think it is entirely possible that in September you might see a certain visor wearing coach on the sidelines at Nebraska.
I just added a new poll to my web-site. Question: Which gun should I take with me to Philadelphia this week for protection.
Keep in mind, I have my Concealed Carry Perrmit, so no illegal stuff will happen.
Go to the left and vote now!!
Well, two days to New Years, and I couldn't resist posting about the Mummers exciting march down Broad Street Philly. For 100 years the mummers have been doing their thing in Philly.
What is a Mummer? Well according to Fralinger String Band, The first String Band club was formed in 1901, and featured violins, banjos and guitars. A few years later, drums, saxophones, accordions and glockenspiels were introduced, giving the String Band a unique sound. Parade rules do not permit the use of brass instruments in a String Band. The instrumentation is exclusively saxophones, banjos, accordions, violins, bass violins, and percussion instruments.
The Philadelphia Mummers of today total over 10,000 marchers on New Year's Day. There are three distinct divisions of the parade: Comic, Fancy, and String Band. Comic division clubs lampoon modern day local and national political and social themes. The Fancy division clubs wear large, ornate costumes, carrying back pieces and performing with floats and props. The String Band division clubs not only wear elaborate costumes like the Fancy division, but also drill and perform playing musical instruments.
The Mummers are as much a part of Philadelphia tradition as Cheesesteaks, Rocky Balboa running up the art museum steps, booing Santa Claus, and the Broad Street Bullies.
As a kid, I remember waking up on New Years day, and flipping on the television to channel 6 (before the parade moved to WB) to watch them strut down Broad Street. My favorites were always the String Bands and their culminating show and judging at City Hall.
I am attending this year's parade in Person. I am looking forward to it as much as the New Year's Eve celebration on South Street.
So if you are ever going to Philly, try to schedule it around New Years and catch a true piece of Philly. The Philadelphia Mummers parade.
I am selling an extra iTrip I have on Ebay. I got it for Christmas, but I already had one.
See my item
Buy it if you like.
First I want to apologize for not blogging in a while, especially to my Alliance Bretheren. I intended to get home from the in-laws last evening in time to post some, and vote in the new blog showcase, but my beloved hated turnpike had other ideas.
My in-laws live in Pittsburgh, I live near Allentown. Different ends of the state. To get back here I had to take the Turnpike east to Carlisle, and then I-81 north to where I live.
Frequent readers of the Nap Room know how much I hate the PA turnpike. Its antiquated, and costs too much to ride on. It was World's Fair worthy in 1950, but in 2003, it belongs in a museum.
As I said I rode the turnpike; me, my wife, and our two cats. Traffic was horrible. People were rude, cutting each other off, and honking their horns.
When I stopped at a travel plaza I saw a woman at the vehicle next to mine almost get run over when she didn't move fast enough for a guy in a mini-van backing out of his spot.
"Why don't you move before I run you over" he said.
The woman politely said, "Oh, calm down, it's ok. Merry Christmas"
I love it, killing them with kindness. I would rather just kill them, but that's just me.
What what I do want to know is why people are rude to other people like that. Would he really have run her over? With his wife and small child grinning in his car seat?
People suck.
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So Pennsylvania has finally passed it's budget. The last State in the Union to pass one, we are finally done. Thank you Rendell for fucking it all up. |
Rendell, a big city liberal from Philadelphia, had ambitious plans for Pennsylvania. Tax increases, funding for all day Kindergarten, slots at racetracks.
To try and get all that done, he passed his budget in two parts. His first part was a balanced budget that slashed programs like Meals on Wheels, Drug and Alcohol counseling by, in some cases, 90%. He intended to come to the rescue a few weeks later with massive tax hikes and the like.
He underestimated what he probably thought were backwoods representatives who quickly moved to pass the bill, leading to the budget impass that finally ended last night.
Passing a state budget has been a battle from the day Rendell introduced it in March. In his budget address, Rendell gave the General Assembly a balanced bare-bones budget with deep cuts across many programs, including drug and alcohol treatment, libraries, and social welfare. The budget approved last night restores much of those cuts.
But in a move that still puzzles many, he asked the Republican-controlled General Assembly in March not to pass the bill and to instead allow him time to offer a budget that would raise the personal-income tax to raise $650 million to pay for early-childhood education initiatives, including smaller classes, preschools for the neediest, and all-day kindergarten. He also sought to legalize slot-machine gambling to pay for a reduction in property taxes and a major economic stimulus package.
But rather than wait for the ambitious spending plan, the General Assembly passed Rendell's budget in record time, forcing Rendell to veto the $4.1 billion education spending portion of the bill.
Since then, the state has missed more than $1 million in school subsidy payments.
Rendell said many people thought he would not win his battle for an increase in the personal income tax and increased education funding at a time when many states were slashing education budgets.
Referring to Yogi Berra's famous line, he said: "It ain't over till it's over. Well, tonight it's over, and we done good."
Well, I'm glad someone's happy. The income tax is going up from 2.8% to 3.1%. There is a new 6% tax on all gross receipts for Cell Phone and Local/Long distance, as well as an additional 35 cent tax on cigarettes.
I'm glad President Bush has been producing jobs, because this bill will end some, and lead more and more people to leave Pennsylvania.
Well, it's holiday time again. I can't say Christmas, because in the event that the UN gets control of the Internet like that plan I will have to be ready for a multi-cultural, sensitve internet.
So taking a cue from Glenn Beck, I will call the upcoming holiday RamaHanaKwanzmas.
Get this, from today's Toungtied section of Fox News
The Central Michigan University affirmative action office’s attempts to ban Santa Claus backfired after noel-lovers stood up for their rights, reports the Saginaw News.
The office posted a "Christmas Warning" on its online calendar warning against displays of Christmas cheer. The advisory, entitled, "How to celebrate Christmas without offense" said it "is inappropriate to decorate things with Santa Claus or reindeer or other 'Christmas' decorations."
This is my favorite part:
"Good ideas for decorations during this time are snowflakes, snowpeople, poinsettias to give a feeling of winter," the notice said. Other cultural or religious holidays in December such as Hanukkah or Kwanzaa did not have similar warnings attached, the paper said.
First off, what the hell is "snowpeople"? I always thought it was snowMAN!! Talk about political correctness!! And of course Kwanza would not have anything attached. It's not a real holiday. It's made up, in case you didn't know.
I'm glad they didn't have anything attached to Hannukkah, its a beautiful holiday and should be celebrated, just as Christmas should be celebrated.
There, I said my points.
I'm back from my fun filled business trip. Nothing like 4 days of meetings and budget talks broken up with Christmas parties to dull your senses and make you somewhat crazy.
I just wanted to thank Rob from
I'll have more to say tomorrow or so, but until then.
Stay safe.
From Fox News:
Some of the worst sexual predators in Florida are taking college courses and U.S. taxpayers are picking up the tab.Federal law enacted in 1994 prevents state and federal prison inmates from getting financial aid. But Florida law, enacted not long afterward in response to a gruesome child rape and murder, allowed jurors to confine the worst predators in mental health facilities.
Offenders housed in these centers are not called "inmates" but "residents." According to the letter of the law, that means they qualify for Pell Grants dispersed by the Department of Education.
Most people would look at this story and ask, "What's wrong with criminals trying to better themselves through education?" The majority of the time, I'd agree. Education is absolutely the best way to prevent people from committing crimes. In this instance, however, I feel a little differently.
A college education has become extremely necessary to anyone looking for a job that doesn't consist of menial labor. You just have to have it, in most instances. Personally I think job experience is more important than a degree, but the job market thinks very highly of a college diploma.
In light of that, I don't think its fair to award Pell Grants to sex offenders. There are literally thousands of good kids, who haven't committed any crimes, who are going to be denied funding to go to college. I wish that most of these kids didn't have to depend on grants to go to college but that's just how it is. I digress.
While I'd hate to deny an education to somebody who truly wanted one, I'd rather see honest, hard working kids take priority over people who have committed crimes.
From USA Today:
Federal judge grants John Hinckley Jr.'s request for unsupervised visits with his parents, official says.A Justice Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said U.S. District Judge Paul L. Friedman issued the order granting John Hinckley Jr.'s request
Hinckley, 48, has lived at St. Elizabeths Hospital in Washington since he was acquitted in 1982 by reason of insanity in the shootings of Reagan, presidential press secretary James Brady and two law enforcement officers. Reagan was nearly killed and Brady was permanently disabled. Hinckley said he shot Reagan to impress actress Jodie Foster.
I'm torn on this issue. On one hand, John Hinckley is nuts. He was nuts when he claimed that he shot the President to impress Jodi Foster and according to most of his doctors he hasn't improved much.
On the other hand, he's John Hinckley, a man not exactly unknown to law enforcement. Its not like he could move around very easily without being recognized. He's also basically being released into the custody of his parents who will perhaps have some sort of control over him.
What has to be considered is the question of whether or not Hinckely will harm anybody while released. The judge who released him is certainly aware of the consequences should Hinckley go on a crime spree, so I imagine that he saw some evidence that convinced him that Hinckley would be able to control himself.
I hope he's right.
From Fox News:
Major musicians are lining up behind political candidates and causes in an effort to mobilize their audiences, but some experts and a new Fox News-Opinion Dynamics poll suggest they are unlikely to have a dramatic impact on voter attitudes.Nonetheless, musical artists of all genres can be found delving into issues and candidates with all their creative energies.
We give too much credit to the opinions of celebrities. We have a tendency to put what they say or think above what we ourselves think, and it shouldn't be that way.
Don't get me wrong, the Dixie Chicks and the members of System of a Down are more than welcome to their opinions, but what they think shouldn't be any more important than what the average citizen thinks. The problem, however, is that these celebrities have access to the media unlike anybody else in the nation. What they say and do sometimes gets more press coverage than the President. What's really irking is when groups or artists like the Dixie Chicks find out that their political views aren't that popular with their fans and they begin to cry about "censorship" and their inability to "express their views" when their records sales bottom out. I'd tell them that its their fans expressing their views.
I would say that if you want to express your opinions to the masses you had better be ready for some people to disagree with you. It comes with the territory. If you deal in the arena of opinion there's always going to be a chance that you're going to get attacked. On my own website I've been accused, on different occasions, of being a racist, a bigot and a homosexual. Its just part of expressing your opinion. You're going to get some negative feedback and some of it may be ugly.
What I'm trying to say, I guess, is that we shouldn't put too much stock in things said by a group of people as out-of-touch-with-reality as celebrities. Sure they're able to bombard us with their opinions through the media, but that doesn't make them right. No more than having these websites makes Tom or I right.
So the next time you see some celebrity on TV giving it to our President, take it with a grain of salt. They're really no better than you or I.
I pride myself in being able to at least do business things and other really important things on time. I pay my bills on time, and have all my business reports in on time.
Part of it is that I remember stuff good. Another thing is that I have my trusty palm pilot and Franklin Covey planner. Recurring things beep before they are due, and I never sometimes miss a deadline.
Well, today I missed a deadline. It wasn't 100% my fault. They changed the date of said report without properly notifying me. By that I mean the message was buried in a 3 page email. And 4 of the other 5 people who also do my job in Pennsylvania also missed it. The other one shares an office space with my boss, so she was personally reminded.
E-mails I just skim if longer than 2 paragraphs. This e-mail seemed written more by Ayn Rand than by my boss. With it's small font and endless narration, I just disregarded most of it, and printed out the attachment, which I assumed was the real reason for the e-mail.
Anyways, I want to say a goodbye for a bit. I am off to Capital City for training. Fun and snow in Central Pennsylvania. YAY.
Rob from Say Anything Blog will be filling in through Friday. He has a great site, and I hope you welcome him with all the love and devotion I expect from the 5 peole who read me.
So you know I have a ChristmasHoliday Tree Farm. I get money from people for goods and services. Bacic free market stuff.
I got two 2 dollar bills this weekend stamed with this wheresgeorge.com stuff. It said to track my bills online. I did, and there was much rejoicing.
What I don't get is who has so much time on their hands that they stamp these bills, write little messages on them, and send them out in the world. Who the fuck cares where my 20 dollar billls goes. More than likely my little paper George spent time in the crotch of some smelly hooker stripper paying her way through college and to pay her sorrostitute dues.
Anyways, I digress.
We got him!! In a move this morning, American forces captured Saddam Hussein in a basement in Tikrit. Hiding like a field rat, he was taken without a shot.
This is indeed good news, though the battles aren't over. There willl no doubt be skirmishes, and there is a democratic nation to build, but this is a big step.
There is a question to ask. What do the 9 idiots running for President have to hold against George Bush? A big thing they did have against Bush was the inability to capture Hussein. With his capture, this is one less thing to hold against Bush. Also, most of the candidates running for his job would not have sent troops to war. This dictator and torturer would still be in power. Mass graves would not be unearthed.
Time will tell, but I just have to say that Democrat or Republican, this is good news indeed.
I'm getting sick of people saying whenever a warm snap hits in January that it's because of Global Warming. Pewey.
Right now, mid-December we've had about a foot of snow, and another 6-10 inches are due tomorrow. And again next Wednesday.
It was 5 degrees last night. It's fucking cold, and snowy.
There is no global warming.
Not at all.
All around the country, basic freedoms are being usurped by greedy two-bit politicians. You give some assholes a title like "City Council Member" and they think they are King George.
Case-in-point, in Rockville City, Montgomery County, city tyrants have passed a smoking ban. All restaurants, bars, and public buildings will be smoke-free by February 1st.
According to the Washington Post, the council voted 4-1 for the ban. The lone voter against the ban, councilman Robert E. Dorsey, had presented a proposal to prohibit smoking until 9 p.m. and allow bar and restaurant owners to decide whether to ban smoking after that.
"I think the owners have some idea of what business they like to take in and not have it dictated upon them," said Dorsey, the lone dissenting vote, before the meeting. "I wish we could be intelligently discussing this and not just caving in without consideration of the business perspective."
That is exactly the type of free-enterprise ideals which should be taking place. Instead the council voted on emotions and the 'for the children' mantra.
Councilwoman Anne Robbins said "There can be no compromise on this issue in terms of public health," adding that her mother died of lung cancer supposidly from second hand smoke. |  Anne Robbins. The face of a nice lady? No, an evil person who is destroying America |
Whatever happened to common sense and personal responsibility. If I don't like smoke, I won't go to a smokey bar. If I want to smoke, I should be able to go to a bar that allows me to smoke my cigars.
What is happening to America?
The New York Times is Liberal. Do I have to point this out? In today's editorial page they, of course, came out strongly in favor of the stripping away of our Constitutional rights.
The Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, widely known as McCain-Feingold, closed two gaping loopholes in campaign finance law. One was "soft money," the unlimited, and often very sizable, contributions to political parties that were then funneled into federal campaigns. The other concerned sham "issue ads," commercials run just before an election that were unregulated because they purported to be about political issues but were actually intended to help particular candidates.
I like how they say sham issue ads. I guess when grassroots groups such as the NRA or ACLU run ads is a sham, but when a obviously liberal paper like the New York times runs slanted editorials or the LA Times sits on stories until it will most hurt a candidate they oppose that is legitimate free press.
They even go on to call for more reforms:
More, and more creative, approaches are needed. Now that many of the constitutional objections have been stripped away, Congress has a greater obligation than ever to address what the court's majority aptly called "the ill effects of aggregated wealth on our political system."
I would only have to assume that they are so much for these reforms because the large liberal press is now further empowered to attempt to use their might to mold American politics in a shape which they deem as correct.
American newspaper editorial pages were empowered yesterday, while the rights of everday citizens' voices to be heard by joining interest groups was diminished.
Steve Jobs has transformed Apple computer since his return several years ago. Though still behind in the market share game to Microsoft they have reworked their image to be the cool, must-have item. From iPods to iMac and iTunes, Apple stuff is cool.
They do, however, miss the point when it comes to customer feedback. Their service after the sale is miserable, the warranty that comes with Apple products is laughable, and just try to get someone to answer a complaint.
My wife recently decided to purchase a new iTrip for my iPod. The trouble was that I already have the iTrip. She tried to cancel the order, calling the number on their web-site. They changed their hours of operation from what was listed on their web-site. She called back the next day. After 30 minutes on hold, she hung up. She will just return it when it comes and eat the restocking fee.
This is a problem with Apple. You would think that a computer company which only has about 5% of the market share would do something to really set themselves apart. Thank God their computers are fairly reliable. You don't have to call them that much.
The few times I've had to call other computer companies was a much better experience than Apple. (with the exception of the dummies at Dell). Gateway I got a friendly midwestern gentleman who went out of his way to solve my modem problem. Microsoft also had very informative and friendly people at their customer support.
What I don't understand is why Apple can't do the same? I guess it's part of Apple being based in California. You get your service from Starbucks drinking liberal elitists who, perhaps in between reading The Nation will take time to dis you for not being from the Left coast.
Whatever.
Well the Kangaroos in the Supreme Court of The United States (SCOTUS)
have in effect burned the Constitution. Your rights have been infringed, and these traitors, these lawyers in robes, have eroded your freedoms. These freedoms are in the Constitution to limit government from stopping you from living your life.
In case you don't follow the news, SCOTUS has upheld the McCain-Feilgold campaign finance, particularly the part which limits political action ads before federal elections. The First Amendment reads:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
The element of the campaign law which limits ads is limits on the free exercise of speech and of redress of grievances.
The Justices who voted to trample the Constituion are Sandra Day O'Conner, John Paul Stevens, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Bryer, and David Souter.
Justices Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, Anthony Kennedy, and Antonin Scalia voted against the measure and to preserve the constitution.
You should be pissed off about this. This is a destruction of your rights. It doesn't help that President Bush folded to political pressure and signed the bill. Traitors like the five ambulance chasers who voted for this and for Senators McCain and Feinbold who introduced it should be held as American traitors in the eyes of history.
I would humbly ask that you vote for me in the 2003 best blog award. I am nominated for Best Slithering Reptile Blog.
Please, be a pal, and vote for me.
John Fucking Kerry is at it again. His new target of socialist hatred is the NRA. In a letter written to Federal Election Commission Chairwoman Ellen Weintraub he asked the commission to block any attempt by the NRA to get a media exemption to campaign finance rules.
You see, the NRA is trying to get around the unconstitutional McCain-Blindfold Campaing Finance law which banns groups like the NRA from running ads identifying federal candidates close to elections in states where they are on the ballot.
Mr. Kerry sais in his letter:
"We urge you to prevent the NRA from hijacking America's airwaves with the gun lobby's money,"If the NRA has something to say, it can play by the rules, just like the millions of people in America who do every day."
If the NRA had a media channel they would be free to editorialize and identify candidates like the New York Times, LA Times, and The Washington Post do. These papers slant decidedly to the left and are free to identify candidates whom they oppose.
According to the McCain-Blindfold bill a rich man like Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. who runs the New York times can direct the power of his paper to attempt to shape politics while a group made up of dues paying private citizens cannot do the same.
Of course it doesn't help that President Bush, in a spineless political move, signed the bill. If democrats want to point to someone who has trampled our free speech rights, look no farther than our Commander-In-Chief, at least in this instance.
From Reuters
A small earthquake has shook the Mid-Atlantic states, rocking some buildings in downtown Richmond, Virginia. The 4.5 magnitude quake wasz also felt in Washington DC and points north.
Democratic Presidential hopeful Howard Dean was quick to offer a comment.
"This is the sort of thing to expect from such a miserable failure as President" he went on during his speech to a black church "he has mislead the American people to believe that an earthquake could not happen"
Other candidates have also commented on the quake while campaigning from the New Hampshire and Iowa.
John Kerry quipped "A true leader would not let this fucking happen"
...developing.
What's the deal with all this low carb shit. There is low carb bread, pasta, meals, even beer.
Bread bakers and such are complaining that people aren't buying bread anymore because of the low carb craze.
Even KFC is advertising that their chicken only has 11 carbs per piece (which, incidentally is a shitload of carbs)
The bigger point is that as Americans we are dumb sheep. Like lemmings we go off a cliff following the herd.
Remember ALAR? Cholesterol in eggs? Butter? All these things were proven to be bunk. Most peole can eat a half dozen eggs a week and not affect their cholesterol. Butter was proven to be better than margarine (Olio for those of you in the heartland) because of the transfatty acids which are far worse for you than any fats or cholesterol in butter.
If you eat sensibly, you can eat most anything. Just don't eat a pound of bacon a day, or tablespoons of lard, and you won't die young or anything.
I don't have a lot to say right now because I have a massive headache. Excederin hadn't cut it, my head hurts.
One thing I found though about headaches is that, at least for me, most of them are cured with drinking some water and sitting quietly for a bit.
People often joke that I drink a lot of water. I drink cup after cup of it, it's my favorite beverage. No ice please, just a cold glass of iceless water.
One thing I believe is that a lot of ailments are cured by drinking a lot of water. As I said when I get headaches they are usually cured by drinking water. When I am sore, water helps out. So whenever my wife says she has a headache or can't sleep good I always say "Drink some water, you are probably hehydrated"
I'll write more as my head clears.
From Espn
As far as the BCS computers were concerned, Saturday evening's Big 12 championship game didn't exist. It was the microchip equivalent of a bye week. Oklahoma vs. Kansas State, or the Kansas City Chiefs. . . it didn't matter. Win or lose. . . it didn't matter. The computers had long since crunched their quartiles and decided the Sooner Schooner would soon be parked on the cobblestone streets of New Orleans' French Quarter.
Granted, Oklahoma is one of the best teams in College Football ever. Great offense, fast stiff defense, and a Heisman hopeful at Quarterback.
But despite of this, they still lost to Kansas State 35-7 and will still play for the BCS championship. I didn't say National Championship because the winner though called "National Champion" will not really be National Champion. No playoffs, all decided by popularity polls and a geek with a computer.
Other teams only have one loss like LSU and UCS, numbers 2 and 3 in the polls as of this morning. Do they have any less claim to play in the BCS title game? Why should Oklahoma get to play for the BCS championship when they didn't even with their own conference?
The BCS is a joke. Though I love the holiday bowl games, and the fun atmosphere around them, I think it's time for a true playoff in Div 1-A college football. It's about time big time college football does what High Schools and Div 1-AA and Div 2 have been doing for years.
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So, we got about 10 inches of snow. Not a life ending blizzard, but enough to make it a pain in the ass for our Christmas Tree Farm. We have a long road, a parking lot, and a much of rows in between the trees to blow out before we can open. |
What is it with assholes and 4x4s? Whenver it snows they are the ones out there getting in wrecks slowing the road crews from getting the roads cleard for the rest of us.
In the interest of full disclosure I do own an All Wheel Drive vehicle. I own a Subaru, but I am not dumb enough to think that after 10 inches of snow by 9 AM a Christmas tree farm will be operational. Not going to happen.
From A Newsweek Article
BUSH’S BIRD is big and luscious, golden brown and generously garnished. But, The Washington Post reported on Thursday, the bird was just a prop. Soldiers were actually served from steam trays; the White House said the turkey in the photograph was simply on hand to prettify the chow line.
The revelation is the latest in a series of stagecrafted moments designed to shine an impossibly perfect light on the president. Turkeygate unfolded merely one day after British Airways that announced that none of its pilots made contact with President Bush’s plane during its secret flight to Baghdad, despite White House claims of a dramatic midair exchange that nearly prompted Bush to call off his trip. On May 1, Bush landed on the deck of the USS Lincoln and, in front of a giant banner emblazoned MISSION ACCOMPLISHED, declared “major combat operations have ended.” Six month later he would deny that his staff had hung the banner there, though there’s little doubt they had. To give a speech in New York after September 11, Bush brought in extremely powerful lights to illuminate the Statue of Liberty behind him; for a talk he delivered at Mount Rushmore, cameras were positioned so Bush’s profile was perfectly aligned with the presidents carved in stone.
Author and presidential historian Douglas Brinkley has analyzed how presidents from Abraham Lincoln to Jimmy Carter craft their public personas and has concluded that in this age of mass media “all we need is the one image. We don’t need a transcript of a great speech.” Bush, he says, is a master of creating those images. Brinkley spoke with NEWSWEEK’s Brian Braiker about presidential stagecraft, what Bush does best and how productions like the MISSION ACCOMPLISHED banner can come back to haunt him.
Is this really an issue? The fact the the President traveled to Baghdad should not really be an issue. As commander-in-chief he has the obligation to see to the morale of his troops and every right to visit them in the field. If the only thing they can cling to is the fact that the turkey was only a centerpiece then they have serious troubles.
President Bush could personally find the cure for Cancer, but they will still nitpick about something. Talk about liberal bias.
To tell you the truth, I never really believed in how biased Newsweek was until I started reading it at my previous job over my lunch breaks. Though it did cover many touchy subjects on both sides, it always seemed to treat conservatives and conservative thought with disdain.
Usually it was done through snide comments or backhanded compliments. The result was the same, smearing conservatives while giving liberals mostly a free ride.
The worst thing about actually needing food items during a storm is having to pretend you aren't the people who are panicking.
My wife says to me while making her holiday rum balls,
"We need Corn Syrup"
"Ok"
"And bread and eggs"
"Is it because we are getting snowed in and are probably going to die?"
"No, we actually need the stuff".
So I go to the store to buy some stuff, and pick up some chipped steak to make cheesesteaks, and see total panic. People are buying bread, eggs, milk, cat litter and all sorts of stuff that they can't obviously live without for the 4 hours they might be snowed in.
The bread isle is literally bare. The only thing left is some low carb shit, and a few loaves of Hawaiian sweet bread.
In case you are cold like me, and in celebration of the 70th anniversary of the repleal of prohabition I want to include a recipe for a holiday festive drink called Boilo.
Ingredients
1 bottle (750ml) 101 proof blended whiskey
1 pint honey
2 cups water
2 TBS caraway seeds
2 cinamon sticks
Rind of 1 orange
Rind of 1 lemon.
Combine water, lemon and orange rinds, caraway seeds, cinamon sticks. Boil down till half water is gone. Remove from heat.
Add whiskey and honey and stir till dissolved.
Strain out particles and store in bottle.
Allow to sit for 24 hours and then serve warm.
This drink will be sure to warm you up!!
Cheers!!!
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Friday
Snow...heavy at times. Snow accumulation of 6 to 8 inches. Lows in the mid 20s. Northeast winds 10 to 15 mph.
Saturday |
I have to wonder as us in the Northeast rush to buy milk, eggs, and bread what people who never saw snow think about this crazy weather.
"What is this white stuff?"
"Why do they panic?"
Well the answer is simple. We are all going to die.
With as little as 2 inches the world as we know it comes to an end. Power will go out, people won't be able to eat, and combined with sudden cravings for bread and milk, hoardes of people heard to the stores to buy the their last supper before the end of days.
Personally, when I know the world is ending I buy steaks condoms and porn. Plus I stock up on ammo.
Another by-product of snow is the inability of students to learn. IQs drop 20-50 points and it becomes so difficult to instruct, schools simply shut down.
So before the world ends, I want to say I enjoyed blogging and I will see you all in the afterlife.
From the Penn State Daily Collegian.
A "Conservative Coming Out Day" at Pennsylvania State University was denounced ahead of time as hateful because the phrase mocks an annual gay rights event and alienates members of that community on campus, reports the Collegian.
Sponsored by the Penn State College Republicans, the event was intended to show how marginalized political conservatives feel on campus. One student told the rally how an English teacher introduced herself on the first day of class by saying, "I hate Republicans."
Gay rights groups on campus expressed concern about the language on fliers advertising the event, saying the conservatives’ pledge to "come out of the closet" mocked their own struggles for freedom and justice.
Ahh, my Alma Mater, how I love thee. I can tell you from a first hand standpoint that Penn State is very liberal. I don't know if it is so much the student's, but the faculty definatly leans to the left.
I remember in a women's studies class I took, the professor said she said the conservative establishment enables women to be held in bondage and to be raped.
The funny thing is, I really never noticed it too much. I was political, but I just shrugged it off. My mother always said "play the game". I'm not about to get into a pissing match with a PhD who holds my grade. And also when I got a C in English 202 while everyone who agreed politically with the hippy English teacher got A's.
I also remember another time when our new (Jewish) University President said he would no longer allow a Christmas Tree in Old Main, breaking a tradition that went back many many years. Some pissed off students spent their own money to buy a tree, broke into Old Main and set up a Christmas tree, complete with decorations.
Mr. President allowed the tree and has every year since.
Well my Select Comfort Sleep Number bed came, and after about 20 minutes I was laying on it. It was simple to set up and after the first night definatly seems more comfortable than a regular mattress.
I will keep you updated.
Well, it looks like snow for the Northeast. A strong winter storm is heading our way, just in time for the weekend. Yay.
Well, as promised, here is a picture of me out to hunt Bambi.
Die Bambi Die
Proving that all hippy free love socialists deep down love the almightly dollar while still trying to defeat capitalism, former Beatles Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr are suing Apple iTunes over the use of the Apple logo and name in conjunction with the Apple iTunes service. It seems they think they own everything. I am just waiting for them to sue Volkswagon because of the Beetle might be confused with their shitty music.
I think Paul is still miffed that boy lover Michael Jackson outbid him for the rights to his own songs.
They also rail against music swapping services like Napster and Kaaza, but refuse to allow their songs on legitimate services like iTunes. Go figure.
The problem is that groups like the Beatles and Metallica who are history think this keeps them relevant. They don't seem to undestand the motives behind file and music downloading, and don't want to embrace new technology. No Beatles or Metallica song will ever be on my iPod.
I grant you that a portion of the downloaders are crooks who just want free stuff, but more than that it is a population that is increasingly digital. From MP3 players to Tivos, the downloaders want their music portable, transferrable, and digital. The RIAA member bands have been slower than a DMV line at offering this service that the market obviously is demanding. People searched elsewhere for it. Instead of embracing it and offering a technology that would enable them to make money AND offer downloads, they fight every step of the way.
If the RIAA would have spent more time developing new technologies instead of trying to just protect their copyrights than maybe pay per download would be a norm in our society.
What Mr. Conductor and The Walrus don't seem to get is that people are getting more and more fed up with this kind of action. From the Beatles suing Apple iTunes to the RIAA itself suing a wheelchair bound honor student, they look more and more like anti-capitalist communists.
Become one with nature, and marinate it!!
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Today is basically a state holiday here in Pennsylvania. Today is the first day of Deer season. Schools are closed, and good luck finding anyone at work. They all take the day off to hunt delicious whitetail deer.
I didn't go hunting today. There are too many wacko's in the woods right now. Plus I figure going on the second or third day of the 12 day season will be just as good. |
In the city, you hear gunshots, you duck. Gunshots in the city are not what you want to hear.
So tomorrow I will go out hunting. I will include a picture of me in my getup. I want you to see how much of a hick I am.
