- The rights of the individual are to be protected at all cost. Sometimes this becomes very difficult.
- Do unto others with kindness and compassion, understanding full-well that this does not always work out.
- Question conventional wisdom. This is called "positive doubt." Do not accept the status quo.
- Attack right-wing Republicanism wherever and whenever you see or hear it. To stand by and do nothing is to miss an opportunity to shovel some of their own bullshit into their laps.
- Harming people in order to make money and gain power is never a good idea and a poor path for human beings to walk.
- Big business will not conduct itself in an honorable way without oversight. Corporations are not humans. They do not have a conscious. They are cold blooded. Unlimited profit is always the outcome of uncontrolled, unregulated capitalism.
- Any program that helps people rise up out of misery and despair is a program worth funding.
- Religion and politics don't mix. The selling of religious ideology is not a holy matter. It is right-wing Republican ideology.
- Liberal means open-minded, understanding, generous, charitable, progressive, requiring the government to help all citizens, not just the chosen few. Conservative means closed-minded, orthodox, traditional, tightly dogmatic, unyielding, requiring the government to help only the rich. Which would you prefer? I happen to find liberalism more in touch with the human spirit.
- When liberalism is excessive, it generally will cost us a lot of money. When right-wing conservatism is excessive, it generally will cost us our freedoms and a whole lot of suffering. I have always felt it an honor to be called a liberal. Most right-wing advocates think they are insulting us by calling us liberal. "Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words, oh how they fuel me."
Thursday, January 31, 2013
A Liberals Ten Commandments
Not to Worry, Rape Victims Who Want An Abortion: We Won't Charge You With Felony Tampering With Evidence, Just Your Doctor | Common Dreams
Not to Worry, Rape Victims Who Want An Abortion: We Won't Charge You With Felony Tampering With Evidence, Just Your Doctor | Common Dreams
There's no end to this idiocy. Right-wing nutcases are popping up faster than mushrooms in the spring.
There's no end to this idiocy. Right-wing nutcases are popping up faster than mushrooms in the spring.
Wednesday, January 30, 2013
2nd Quote of the Day
“No woman can call herself free who does not control her own body.”
Margaret Sanger
Margaret Sanger
Another Day In Arkansas
With a newly elected right-wing Republican legislature, I've heard of two new bills which warm the heart. The first was a bill to allow people to carry guns in church. I'm assuming this means that at one time, we were sensible enough to say no. But alas, you never know when the minister might get crazed with damnation words and would need to be shot. To be truthful, I have thought that might not be a bad idea on occasion. These right-wingers have an unusual way to express their Christianity.
Now the boys in Little Rock have proposed a bill that would allow at least 5 people to witness the putting to death of someone sentenced to die by lethal injection. We might as well make a show of it. Next they'll record it and make a reality show out of it. I figured Arkansas would take a nose dive with a Republican legislature, but I didn't think it would be so fast. Next it will be limiting abortions, which they have already tried, but lost by 1 vote. They'll shame someone into voting with them the next time. I'm considering starting a boycott of Little Rock, until some sanity returns to the capital. I would exempt the airport for obvious reasons. We're going to need to get out of here fairly often.
Now the boys in Little Rock have proposed a bill that would allow at least 5 people to witness the putting to death of someone sentenced to die by lethal injection. We might as well make a show of it. Next they'll record it and make a reality show out of it. I figured Arkansas would take a nose dive with a Republican legislature, but I didn't think it would be so fast. Next it will be limiting abortions, which they have already tried, but lost by 1 vote. They'll shame someone into voting with them the next time. I'm considering starting a boycott of Little Rock, until some sanity returns to the capital. I would exempt the airport for obvious reasons. We're going to need to get out of here fairly often.
Quote of the Day
"Life is a turbulent journey fraught with confusion, heartbreak, and inconvenience. This book will not help." Lemony Snicket: Horseradish, Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid
Peeverisms
- Don't ever take a loaded gun for granted. Or the owner.
- If it's over 50 steps, drive.
- If the sun is out, and it's over 50 degrees, tee it up.
- Never marry someone you haven't seen naked.
- In the scheme of things, the only thing more important than work is everything.
- Some days you're better off staying in bed.
- Never commit a crime you can't buy your way out of.
- If it looks like a politician and smells like a lawyer, run.
- It is impossible to kill your way to peace. Even a fist grader would know this.
- Guns will not make us safer. Would drinking poison for a cold make you feel better?
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Quote of the Day
Looking in The Crystal Ball For 2013
- The economy will get better. Unemployment will improve. And the rich will get richer.
- We will get some gun control, but not near enough. I think it would be best if no one had any guns, including the government.
- God will top 1800.
- It will snow 40 feet somewhere in the states, and rain 18 inches over 2 days. Hopefully, not in Arkansas. And I swear the climate is not changing.
- We're going to get so far behind in Arkansas with a Republican legislature that the Republicans will swear we are ahead. Their first move, allow people to carry guns to church. We got a lot of brain-power in Little Rock. Emphasis on rock.
- Somewhere in the world this year there will be an immaculate conception.
- We will end up in five wars this year. We're already in four, so this ain't much of a prediction.
- Tiger Woods will win five tournaments this year, including one major.
- The Supreme Court will mercifully disappear.
- Will Take Charge will win the Arkansas Derby and the Kentucky Derby.
- Right-wing Republicanism will receive a death blow in 2013. They're already staggered, and with their brain-power, are bound to make additional mistakes.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Quote of the Day
"Waiting is one of life's hardships." Lemony Snicket, Horseradish, Bitter Truths You Can't Avoid
NOW YOU ARE MORE
Sunday, January 27, 2013
GOT RELIGION?
I ain't much for arguing over religion. I have never believed that you come to know God externally. I've always thought it to be an internal experience. Now it's not that external things can't help, like a beautiful sunset, mountains, the ocean, beautiful cathedrals, paintings, meaningful moments. All of these thing, and many others, act to wake you up to the possibility that there is more to life than just yourself. Listening to all the right-wing crusader crap we got going on around here just doesn't seem to help me. I've always had this funny notion that you don't need to go looking around for God, that God resides inside all of us. It is up to each of us to come to terms with that, and understand that we are each a part of the divine plan, however insignificant, poor, or disenfranchised we may be or feel. No one can lead you to God. You're already there.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Wine No More
“I've
never been into wine. I'm a beer man. What I like about beer is you
basically just drink it and order more. You don't sniff at it, or hold
it up to the light and slosh it around, or drone on and on about it, the
way people do with wine. Your beer drinker tend to be a
straightforward, decent, friendly, down-to-earth person, whereas your
serious wine fancier tends to be an insufferable snot.”
Dave Barry
Dave Barry
The Killer In Me Is The Killer In You. Or, Reality Sucks
How to Die With Dignity
- Don't let a doctor anywhere near you.
- Don't whine. Everybody dies.
- Make sure all your business is in order. You don't want the family fighting over your stuff before you take your last breath, do you?
- Don't let any lawyers in to visit you, at least not when you are about to die. God wold surely not think much of that.
- Stipulate in your will that your final medical bills not be paid. It's always good to get the last laugh, even though it may be a little late.
- Right when you are ready to take your last breath, yell out, "Forgive me." That will keep them thinking.
- Just about the time I'm ready to go, I'm going to request a sponge bath. Just my luck, there will be a male nurse on duty.
- I hear the moment you die, you poop your britches. Somehow, that seems like a good summation of the whole thing.
Friday, January 25, 2013
The Wild, Wild West
Carry a gun to church. Arkansas's newest idea in making everyone feel safe. I think it has got to be one of the stupidest things I have ever heard of. As I've already stated, it gives me one more reason to stay away from church. With any amount of luck, they'll shoot one another. They could plot against another church down the road and attack. This would definitely be more exciting than most sermons I've heard. If it weren't so pitifully paranoid, it would be funny. With a Republican dominated legislature in Little Rock, this is only the beginning.
Freedom to Connect: Aaron Swartz (1986-2013) on Victory to Save Open Internet, Fight Online Censors
I hear old folks moaning about how irresponsible and lazy our young folks are. Welcome to reality.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
Obama’s Dirty Wars Exposed at Sundance | Common Dreams
Obama’s Dirty Wars Exposed at Sundance | Common Dreams
Coming to regular theaters. Probably not in right-wing towns, seeing they love this kind of thing.
Coming to regular theaters. Probably not in right-wing towns, seeing they love this kind of thing.
Right-wing Arkansas Legislature
They passed a bill giving people the right to carry a gun into a church. Another reason not to go to church. Stupid!
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Cheap Advice for Woman
If you're a woman being abused by a man, you need to examine the situation carefully. It may look like love, but it smells like fear.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Profits of World's 100 Wealthiest Could End Poverty Four Times Over: Report | Common Dreams
Profits of World's 100 Wealthiest Could End Poverty Four Times Over: Report | Common Dreams
The rich keep getting richer. The poor keep dying.
The rich keep getting richer. The poor keep dying.
Quote of the Day
Monday, January 21, 2013
Quote of the Day
“Religions are, by definition, metaphors, after all: God is a
dream, a hope, a woman, an ironist, a father, a city, a house of many
rooms, a watchmaker who left his prize chronometer in the desert,
someone who loves you—even, perhaps, against all evidence, a celestial
being whose only interest is to make sure your football team, army,
business, or marriage thrives, prospers, and triumphs over all
opposition. Religions are places to stand and look and act, vantage
points from which to view the world. So none of this is happening. Such
things could not occur. Never a word of it is literally true.”
Neil Gaiman, American Gods
Neil Gaiman, American Gods
QUESTIONS?
- Do Happy Meals really make kids happy, or just fat?
- Did oil really seep out of Cheney and Bush's ears?
- Is war really the best way to achieve peace?
- If guns don't kill people, why do they have bullet-holes in them that bleed so much?
- Why would God only bless America?
- How did nationalism ever get confused with patriotism?
- When did it get approved that the military can advertise its services on TV and at sporting events with my tax dollars?
- How come prisons are filled with mainly poor, minority males?
- Why do we keep voting for the same fools in Congress?
- Why do men worry about what a woman does with her pregnancy? They don't seem to worry about getting her pregnant?
- Why are we the only civilized country in the world that doesn't have some form of universal health-care?
- In a good economy, how come rich people keep getting richer, and poor people keep getting poorer?
- In a bad economy, how come rich people keep getting richer, and poor people keep getting poorer?
Sunday, January 20, 2013
LIFE
Every two years I have to do a stress test and
echo-cardiogram. And it never fails, I get to thinking about life and death and
the meaning of it all. I suppose that is normal, particularly when you are so
intently focused on you and your present state of health. Probably another
factor in my current searching is the fact that it has been twelve years since my
brush with death due to a staph infection after heart surgery. Couple that with
several friends who are now struggling with their health, and my mind seems to
have turned to life and death issues. We hardly ever want to die, although I am
certain there are times when that might be best. We search for life, hoping
that good health will follow us all of our days. But it seldom does. In the
ever flowing circle of life, death takes its place in the circle. Neither life
nor death stand to be judged. They just are. We make of them what we will. Some
people who are alive are already dead, and some of the dead continue to have as
much life as you or I. Ends up it all seems to be in the daily living. The how.
I've always thought a life well lived really never comes to an end. Sure, our
body gives out. We run out of time. But a lot lives on. This is our shot at
immortality. The memories, the stories, pictures, ideas, accomplishments,
career, the family we leave behind. You wonder what people will say about you.
In the end, I never come up with a whole lot. I would be satisfied with, "He
was a good guy." While that's not compellingly overwhelming, it would do.
Guns. Guns. Guns.
The Wild, Wild, Village
I've been listening to various people in the Village expound on gun control. They seem very nervous that someone might take away their weapons, or make it harder for them to secure new one's. The attitude doesn't register in my mind. It's just beyond my wildest imagination that the world can become a better place by all of us arming ourselves to the hilt. One fellow was explaining how his son went out and bought a plate of ammunition for his assault weapons. Frankly, if I were that fearful of life and worried so much that I needed an arsenal of weapons to feel safe, I would prefer to be dead.
Where Do You Draw The Line?
- If someone calls you a cheat, a no-Count liar, do you want to cuss them?
- Suppose someone said to you your mother was a whore, your father bastard. Would you want to hurt them?
- Your kids look just like you, and are just about as dumb. Do you want to hit me?
- Suppose I came to your house and I was going to steal your things. Would you shot me?
- If I told you Christ was not real, that he was a fraud. Could you handle that?
- Can yo accept people for who they are? Could you handle your child being gay, or lesbian?
Obama One Lousy Socialist: Corporate Profits Up 171% | Common Dreams
Obama One Lousy Socialist: Corporate Profits Up 171% | Common Dreams
He's actually much closer to a moderate Republican, if there were such a creature.
He's actually much closer to a moderate Republican, if there were such a creature.
Thursday, January 17, 2013
LIFE AND DEATH
- You need to be born.
- You need to find meaning for your life, find out what you are meant to do, live every moment to its fullest, seek out others you enjoy being around, and be happy.
- You will die.
Quote of the Day
Cause you'll never know
It just might be an angel come
Oh, knockin' at your door
Knockin' at your door...
Being Poor Isn't All That Bad
- You don't have to worry about paying taxes. Your in the same company as General Electric, Boeing, Verizon, and Honeywell.
- You don't have to hang around with the rich. Rich people are a pain in the ass.
- If the stock market goes belly-up, so what.
- You don't have to worry about a "fiscal cliff." You already fell off.
- You don't have to worry about anyone stealing anything from you. Other than your soul.
- Never hang your head for being poor. Money makes life easier, but not necessarily better.
- They say the poor will be rewarded in heaven. I think they thought that up at the first Republican Convention. Screw them. Why wait for heaven?
Guest E-mail sent to directors
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Tuesday, January 15, 2013
Elevating Cussing to an Art Form
- Never use a cuss word unless you mean it.
- Never cuss in front of older women. It's a waste of time. Drunken sailors got nothing on older women.
- Try to make up new cuss words. The old one's get overused.
- Time your cuss words in such a way that they keep the listener off guard. Like in church or at a funeral.
- Never let a young kid out-cuss you.
- I've heard tell cussing is using the name of God in vain. I don't quite get that, but what the hell.
The Way It Is
Being a pacifist for some 42 years, people sometimes think of you as a coward, trying to get out of something. A weenie. A wimp. Unpatriotic. I never thought of myself in that way. I'm willing to die for what I believe. It's just that I'm not willing to kill for it.
Quote of the Day
“Love is that condition in which the happiness of another person is essential to your own.”
Monday, January 14, 2013
Ten Ways to Figure You've Been Screwed
- If the government says it's best for you, look out.
- If you're bent over and you feel something creepy sneaking up your backside, it's too late.
- If you're boss says you'll get that raise some time in the future, I hope you're not smiling.
- If a minister comforts you by telling you you'll get your just reward in Heaven rather than here on Earth, you been had.
- If they tell you you're going to war to protect democracy and promote truth, justice, and the American Way, you better make sure they are using a condom.
- You're screwed if you ever think the rich will give you a break.
- Gas prices go up. So do they.
- If you believe everything the corporate media says, you not only been screwed, you must be blonde.
- With a Congress like we got, we're all screwed.
- Being screwed is only half the story. They want you to smile and say thank-you.
Quote of the Day
Jodie Foster
Live Free and Die: Americans' Health Even Worse Than You Thought | Common Dreams
Live Free and Die: Americans' Health Even Worse Than You Thought | Common Dreams
Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow may not come. And by the way: God Bless America.
Eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow may not come. And by the way: God Bless America.
Sunday, January 13, 2013
How About Gun Control for the Pentagon? | Common Dreams
There's a novel idea. Disarming everyone. That should help our right-wing paranoids, who are worried about the government having all the guns. No one has any guns. Perfect.
A Prayer for the Overthrow of the Wicked
1 Why do You stand afar off, O LORD ? Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble ? 2 In pride the wicked hotly
pursue the afflicted ; Let them be caught in the plots which they have
devised. 3 For the wicked boasts of his heart's desire, And the greedy
man curses and spurns the LORD. 4 The wicked, in the haughtiness of his
countenance, does not seek Him. All his thoughts are, "There is no God."
5 His ways prosper at all times ; Your judgments are on high, out of
his sight ; As for all his adversaries, he snorts at them. 6 He says to
himself, "I will not be moved ; Throughout all generations I will not be
in adversity." 7 His mouth is full of curses and deceit and oppression ;
Under his tongue is mischief and wickedness. 8 He sits in the lurking
places of the villages ; In the hiding places he kills the innocent ;
His eyes stealthily watch for the unfortunate. 9 He lurks in a hiding
place as a lion in his lair ; He lurks to catch the afflicted ; He
catches the afflicted when he draws him into his net. 10 He crouches, he
bows down, And the unfortunate fall by his mighty ones. 11 He says to
himself, "God has forgotten ; He has hidden His face ; He will never see
it." 12 Arise, O LORD ; O God, lift up Your hand. Do not forget the
afflicted. 13 Why has the wicked spurned God ? He has said to himself,
"You will not require it." 14 You have seen it, for You have beheld
mischief and vexation to take it into Your hand. The unfortunate commits
himself to You; You have been the helper of the orphan. 15 Break the
arm of the wicked and the evildoer, Seek out his wickedness until You
find none. 16 The LORD is King forever and ever ; Nations have perished
from His land. 17 O LORD, You have heard the desire of the humble ; You
will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear 18 To vindicate
the orphan and the oppressed, So that man who is of the earth will no
longer cause terror.New American Standard Bible
It Takes a Village
Hot Springs Village has its share of Village Idiots. A lot of times the town drunk is mistaken for the village idiot. We have numerous town drunks. But this is not appropriate. The village idiot doesn't need booze to be an idiot. It comes naturally. It can be cultivated in some people, but it takes a lot of work and time. It is true that some village idiots can be taught rather than born with the talent. But they are generally born into it, having learned from their parents how to master the art. Every Village needs a village idiot, otherwise no one would know they are normal. My latest book is, "It Takes a Village to Raise a Village Idiot." If this offends you because you happen to be the village idiot, suck it up and run for public office. Every other village idiot has.
Quote of the Day
“This is what you shall do; Love the earth and sun and the
animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for
the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate
tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward
the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man
or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with
the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the
open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you
have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever
insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem and
have the richest fluency not only in its words but in the silent lines
of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every
motion and joint of your body.”
Walt Whitman
Walt Whitman
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Seeking Serenity
- The harder you look, the less likely you'll be able to find it.
- Serenity has nothing to do with those around you, or for that matter, where you're at, be it a mountain cabin or a busy street corner.
- Seek serenity from the inside out, not the outside in.
- Quieting your thoughts is the first step towards finding serenity.
- Serenity cannot be found at the bottom of a bottle or in the thrill of a pill.
- You have to let go of anger, resentments, regrets, revenge. If you were fishing and caught a snake, would you put it on the stringer? Some things have to be let go.
- As big a shock as this might be, the world will go on without you. Accepting this moves you one giant step towards finding serenity.
For My Buddy Beau
Our friends had to put down their dog, Beau. He was terribly sick. He was a friendly, happy dog. His only shortcoming was he didn't particularly like our dog, Dewey. Of course, Dewey is about ten times his size, so you can't really blame him. Dewey sits at the patio door waiting for Beau and John to go by every morning. He'll be missed.
“If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.”
Will Rogers
Friday, January 11, 2013
Quote of the Day
“I can believe things that are true and things that aren't true
and I can believe things where nobody knows if they're true or not.
I can believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and the Beatles and Marilyn Monroe and Elvis and Mister Ed. Listen - I believe that people are perfectable, that knowledge is infinite, that the world is run by secret banking cartels and is visited by aliens on a regular basis, nice ones that look like wrinkled lemurs and bad ones who mutilate cattle and want our water and our women.
I believe that the future sucks and I believe that the future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone's ass. I believe that all men are just overgrown boys with deep problems communicating and that the decline in good sex in America is coincident with the decline in drive-in movie theaters from state to state.
I believe that all politicians are unprincipled crooks and I still believe that they are better than the alternative. I believe that California is going to sink into the sea when the big one comes, while Florida is going to dissolve into madness and alligators and toxic waste.
I believe that antibacterial soap is destroying our resistance to dirt and disease so that one day we'll all be wiped out by the common cold like martians in War of the Worlds.
I believe that the greatest poets of the last century were Edith Sitwell and Don Marquis, that jade is dried dragon sperm, and that thousands of years ago in a former life I was a one-armed Siberian shaman.
I believe that mankind's destiny lies in the stars. I believe that candy really did taste better when I was a kid, that it's aerodynamically impossible for a bumble bee to fly, that light is a wave and a particle, that there's a cat in a box somewhere who's alive and dead at the same time (although if they don't ever open the box to feed it it'll eventually just be two different kinds of dead), and that there are stars in the universe billions of years older than the universe itself.
I believe in a personal god who cares about me and worries and oversees everything I do. I believe in an impersonal god who set the universe in motion and went off to hang with her girlfriends and doesn't even know that I'm alive. I believe in an empty and godless universe of causal chaos, background noise, and sheer blind luck.
I believe that anyone who says sex is overrated just hasn't done it properly. I believe that anyone who claims to know what's going on will lie about the little things too.
I believe in absolute honesty and sensible social lies. I believe in a woman's right to choose, a baby's right to live, that while all human life is sacred there's nothing wrong with the death penalty if you can trust the legal system implicitly, and that no one but a moron would ever trust the legal system.
I believe that life is a game, that life is a cruel joke, and that life is what happens when you're alive and that you might as well lie back and enjoy it.”
Neil Gaiman, American Gods
I can believe in Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny and the Beatles and Marilyn Monroe and Elvis and Mister Ed. Listen - I believe that people are perfectable, that knowledge is infinite, that the world is run by secret banking cartels and is visited by aliens on a regular basis, nice ones that look like wrinkled lemurs and bad ones who mutilate cattle and want our water and our women.
I believe that the future sucks and I believe that the future rocks and I believe that one day White Buffalo Woman is going to come back and kick everyone's ass. I believe that all men are just overgrown boys with deep problems communicating and that the decline in good sex in America is coincident with the decline in drive-in movie theaters from state to state.
I believe that all politicians are unprincipled crooks and I still believe that they are better than the alternative. I believe that California is going to sink into the sea when the big one comes, while Florida is going to dissolve into madness and alligators and toxic waste.
I believe that antibacterial soap is destroying our resistance to dirt and disease so that one day we'll all be wiped out by the common cold like martians in War of the Worlds.
I believe that the greatest poets of the last century were Edith Sitwell and Don Marquis, that jade is dried dragon sperm, and that thousands of years ago in a former life I was a one-armed Siberian shaman.
I believe that mankind's destiny lies in the stars. I believe that candy really did taste better when I was a kid, that it's aerodynamically impossible for a bumble bee to fly, that light is a wave and a particle, that there's a cat in a box somewhere who's alive and dead at the same time (although if they don't ever open the box to feed it it'll eventually just be two different kinds of dead), and that there are stars in the universe billions of years older than the universe itself.
I believe in a personal god who cares about me and worries and oversees everything I do. I believe in an impersonal god who set the universe in motion and went off to hang with her girlfriends and doesn't even know that I'm alive. I believe in an empty and godless universe of causal chaos, background noise, and sheer blind luck.
I believe that anyone who says sex is overrated just hasn't done it properly. I believe that anyone who claims to know what's going on will lie about the little things too.
I believe in absolute honesty and sensible social lies. I believe in a woman's right to choose, a baby's right to live, that while all human life is sacred there's nothing wrong with the death penalty if you can trust the legal system implicitly, and that no one but a moron would ever trust the legal system.
I believe that life is a game, that life is a cruel joke, and that life is what happens when you're alive and that you might as well lie back and enjoy it.”
Neil Gaiman, American Gods
Our Esteemed Congressman
Tom Cotton is an embarrassment.He spouts off about going to Harvard. He obviously didn't learn much. Well, I suppose he did learn how to drink tea. As fate would have it, he overdosed. And he knows how to manipulate people. He went to Afghanistan so he could use it to run for public office. Typical Harvard attorney. One day he is not going to be enough to make up for what he's not.
Bronx Residents Accosted by NYPD Win Landmark Court Ruling Deeming "Stop and Frisk" Tactic Illegal
Bronx Residents Accosted by NYPD Win Landmark Court Ruling Deeming "Stop and Frisk" Tactic Illegal
Individual rights against a police state. Score one for individual rights.
Individual rights against a police state. Score one for individual rights.
A Voice for Peace in Afghanistan: 'Stop This Criminal War' | Common Dreams
A Voice for Peace in Afghanistan: 'Stop This Criminal War' | Common Dreams
War is never a good idea. You and everyone else always lose.
War is never a good idea. You and everyone else always lose.
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Answering The E-mail
Dear Bruce: Why don't you like the church? Ed
Dear Ed: Seems like a big waste of money.
Mr. Peever: Can you offer any proof that capitalism doesn't work with democracy? Sharon
Dear Sharon: The U.S.of A. One don't need much else.
Dear Mr. Weik: Just how liberal are you? Karen
Dear Karen: Do you know Michael Moore? He seems like a moderate to me.
Peever: You don't like the NRA. Why? Larry
Dear Larry: Let me count the ways: Stupid; big guns, small dicks; paranoid; reckless; right-wing; ......
Mr. Peever: Do you think pornography is evil? Mary
Dear Mary: People seem to like to show themselves off. Most shouldn't. If you don't like it, don't look.
Dear Bruce: Do you ever think we will ever get decent health-care? Martha
Dear Martha: As soon as we get the same health-care that Congress gets, we will have decent health-care. Until then, the whole things a joke. Unfortunately, it's on us.
Mr. Liberal Hotshot: Do you think joining the military is a good idea for a young person? Carl
Dear Carl: No. They mainly recruit the poor, minorities, kids who have gotten in trouble, and sociopaths. You don't see many rich kids signing up. The poor and disenfranchised rick their lives so that the rich can get richer, from a safe distance.
Peever: What about those right-wing, Christian, Republicans you are always talking about. Aren't they multiplying? Ken
Dear Ken: Unfortunately, like cockroaches. Particularly here in Arkansas.
Mr. Bruce: What do you think about gay marriages? Harry
Dear Harry: I don't see that it hurts anyone. Why not let them be as miserable as married heterosexuals? Think about it.
Dear Ed: Seems like a big waste of money.
Mr. Peever: Can you offer any proof that capitalism doesn't work with democracy? Sharon
Dear Sharon: The U.S.of A. One don't need much else.
Dear Mr. Weik: Just how liberal are you? Karen
Dear Karen: Do you know Michael Moore? He seems like a moderate to me.
Peever: You don't like the NRA. Why? Larry
Dear Larry: Let me count the ways: Stupid; big guns, small dicks; paranoid; reckless; right-wing; ......
Mr. Peever: Do you think pornography is evil? Mary
Dear Mary: People seem to like to show themselves off. Most shouldn't. If you don't like it, don't look.
Dear Bruce: Do you ever think we will ever get decent health-care? Martha
Dear Martha: As soon as we get the same health-care that Congress gets, we will have decent health-care. Until then, the whole things a joke. Unfortunately, it's on us.
Mr. Liberal Hotshot: Do you think joining the military is a good idea for a young person? Carl
Dear Carl: No. They mainly recruit the poor, minorities, kids who have gotten in trouble, and sociopaths. You don't see many rich kids signing up. The poor and disenfranchised rick their lives so that the rich can get richer, from a safe distance.
Peever: What about those right-wing, Christian, Republicans you are always talking about. Aren't they multiplying? Ken
Dear Ken: Unfortunately, like cockroaches. Particularly here in Arkansas.
Mr. Bruce: What do you think about gay marriages? Harry
Dear Harry: I don't see that it hurts anyone. Why not let them be as miserable as married heterosexuals? Think about it.
Wednesday, January 9, 2013
Arkansas Ranks in Bottom Five-Education
Right-wing Republicans continue to cling to guns, religion, and abortion, all in a frenzied appeal to the uneducated.
Military Retirement Cost
From the Center For American Progress: Retirement costs for military personnel: $180 billion per year.
Quote of the Day-She's Wrong and Her Words Dangerous
“Guns are our friends because in a country without guns, I'm what's known as "prey." All females are.”
Ann Coulter
Ann Coulter
Violence Begets Violence
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
West Gate Shenanigans
The POA board wants to replace the Fay Jones sculpture that it took down with a fake. There's a novel approach.
Climate Change and Poverty: The Post-Crisis Crises | Common Dreams
Climate Change and Poverty: The Post-Crisis Crises | Common Dreams
Capitalism can't work in its present form. It only delivers to the rich.
Capitalism can't work in its present form. It only delivers to the rich.
Where the Hell Am I?
I see newly elected Justice of the Peace James Zahnd is going to host his first town hall meeting at the Summit Bank on Jan. 23, 10am. I'm thinking of stopping by and asking him if the county has anyone other than right-wing Republicans helping with the decisions. And I don't understand this Justice of the Peace thing. Where the hell am I?
The Tao of Peeverism
- People are not allowed to work to their greatest potential.
- Our government would be wise to minimize expenses by moderating military and imperial desires.
- Lavish buildings and frenzied profit making are not the signs of a wise society. Feeding the hungry and housing the homeless are.
- Capitalism uses cunning and deceit to dress up profiteering and imperialism.
- Do not expect yourself to be perfect. After all, you are probably human.
- When a group of people come together to accomplish something for the common good, their collective power will add up to more than the sum total of the participants. This is called The Tao of the Group Hug.
- Life's three biggest vices: Doing nothing. Being satisfied with doing nothing. And doing something that amounts to nothing.
- Justice, compassion, equality, are far more important than profit.
- People like the good-old-days. They know what to expect because they have already lived them. But try as conservatives may, the good-old-days will not return. That is not the way of the world. These people end up not knowing what is what.
- We sanction law enforcement and the military to look after us. It is their job to keep the peace and protect us. But it is unwise to think that they are immune to the ills of the world.
- You cannot seek spiritual wellness outside of yourself. You will not find it in books or in the words of others. The Holy is within you. Seek it from the inside out rather than the outside in.
- When your behavior does not match your inner wisdom, you have lost your way.
- In the last analysis, at the end of a day or a lifetime, you must ask yourself this question: Did a do more good than harm?
Monday, January 7, 2013
Hot Springs Village Neighborhoods
Hot Springs Village is set up in such a way that it is difficult to define neighborhoods. While there is nothing inherently magical or good about a neighborhood, it is wise to be able to define a geographical area as a neighborhood. Cal-de-Sacs would probably be the most common identifier in the village. Golf courses, lakes, or other natural boundaries might also be used. Neighbors are those individuals living around you. Collectively, you make up a neighborhood. A neighborhood is basically what its members make of it. That can range from nothing, with no one knowing or interacting with one another, to a vibrant, giving, teaching, and nurturing environment. The choice is ours. I'm assuming that most people would prefer the later. It would seem more beneficial and helpful for everyone to know one another, interact on a regular basis, and work towards both a safe and livable neighborhood. This probably already happens in some areas, to some extent. Could it be better in your area? It takes some work, but amazing things can happen, some of which I'll mention in another post. If we cannot be good neighbors, we cannot be good citizens.
Fox' Lump of Coal vs. Rachel's Righteous Rage | Common Dreams
Some good news about the news. Some bad news about the animal: Fox becoming Extinct. On danger list.
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Hot Springs Village Review
- Marketing and the POA board are worried about getting people to move here. I would worry about getting people to stay here.
- Wanting people to play more and more golf is not going to work. There are only so many tee times and so many good days. Plus, the courses cannot take a whole lot more play.
- I would moderately improve the East end gate until more businesses appear. Better signage would help. Buying architectural plans at exorbitant prices is a waste of our money. We have plenty of talent in the Village. Someone can come up with a modest plan, at no cost.
- I would keep the interim manager, although I understand she wants to retire. We will spend thousands and get less.
- We need to replace the next three POA board members who are coming up for re-election. It would be nice to see some younger people step forward, if there are any.
- Our restaurants need help. We need to rethink everything concerning our food service. They are playing to a terrible crowd: Rich but cheap. Old and can't see at night. Enormous competition for those people that can see and will spend some money. Add it up. It ain't going to work.
- The easy days are over. Cooper used them up and handed the place over to us. Now we have to manage to keep what we have, grow at a slow and controlled pace and keep fee's as low as possible. People no longer view the purchasing of lots as a future place to build. Reality is drying up a lot of those dreams. The lots left are not very good for investment buying. The days of buy and build or buy and sell are over. Even if the lots do sell, the cost of developing them will bury us, or cause builders and buyers to forget it. It is no longer adequate to think outside the box. The box needs to be replaced by a pyramid of needs and wants. One of the first things we need to correct is to build a community designed to handle an aging population. Hot Springs Village is not made for the elderly population we are becoming. In all likelihood, we will become a municipality in the not so distant future. Making this work will take a lot of skill and a lot of money.
Saturday, January 5, 2013
A Ship of Fools
That's us. We think the government is something other than ourselves. How can They treat us this way? How is it they get an excellent pension and I get nothing? They get medical benefits, we get nothing. Why is it they no longer seem to be working for me, but instead seem to be helping themselves and their rich friends to all our money? Jefferson is credited for writing this in the Declaration of Independence: "Prudence....will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariable the same object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new guards for their future security." I would say it a bit differently, but it would amount to about the same thing: When you are absolutely sure the government is no longer serving the common good, it is time to dump it, one way or another.
Quote of the Day
“There are two visions of America a half century from now. One is
of a society more divided between the haves and the have-nots, a country
in which the rich live in gated communities, send their children to
expensive schools, and have access to first-rate medical care.
Meanwhile, the rest live in a world marked by insecurity, at best
mediocre education, and in effect rationed health care―they hope and
pray they don't get seriously sick. At the bottom are millions of young
people alienated and without hope. I have seen that picture in many
developing countries; economists have given it a name, a dual economy,
two societies living side by side, but hardly knowing each other, hardly
imagining what life is like for the other. Whether we will fall to the
depths of some countries, where the gates grow higher and the societies
split farther and farther apart, I do not know. It is, however, the
nightmare towards which we are slowly marching.”
Joseph E. Stiglitz
Joseph E. Stiglitz
Friday, January 4, 2013
The Killer in Me is the Killer in You
Argh: House GOP Votes To Support the Sanctity of Wife-Beating and Other Traditional Values | Common Dreams
Argh: House GOP Votes To Support the Sanctity of Wife-Beating and Other Traditional Values | Common Dreams
More male crap coming out of Congress. We need to flush them.
More male crap coming out of Congress. We need to flush them.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
A Call For Compassion
It is not enough to call oneself compassionate. Do unto
others as you would have them do unto you,
is not an armchair slogan meant for the faint of heart. It is the
boiling down of all the great religions into an elixir for a better world.
Treat one another like you would like to be treated is a call to action. It is
the dirt out of which all goodness grows. If there is a hungry person, feed
her. She doesn’t need
your sympathy or cute platitudes, she needs a meal. If a person is living on
the street, in a car, or in some filthy or drug infested slum, he doesn’t need your pity or pleasant
scriptures, he needs a place to live. If
I am killing my enemy and destroying his home and family, he doesn’t need my explanations or a
copy of my ideology, he needs me to quit. Preaching that the poor will get
their reward in heaven is of little value to a person here on Earth who is
burdened with injustice and oppression. It is a morally devoid position taken
by irresponsible preachers. We have been called to respond compassionately to
our fellow human beings, now. The calling has come to us. We are the chosen ones. It is time for us to step
forward. Now is the time. Promises of a better tomorrow are not worth much
today.
Obama’s New Year’s Resolution: Protect the Status Quo | Common Dreams
Obama’s New Year’s Resolution: Protect the Status Quo | Common Dreams
This is not what we were hoping for when we elected him for a second time.A lame duck President is going to have to do better than this.
This is not what we were hoping for when we elected him for a second time.A lame duck President is going to have to do better than this.
Answering The E-mail
Dear Lori: My mentor and adviser in college was a Marxist sociologist. He taught me a capitalist, free-market economy was incompatible with democracy. I was never quite sure of that until about ten years ago. Now I get it.
Dear Bruce: You write a lot about God, but I can't figure out exactly where you stand? Ken
Dear Ken: You are very much right. I talk a lot about God. If it's a made up story, it's a good one. If God is real, sitting on a cloud somewhere out there, directing the universe, I figure I'm screwed.
Dear Peever: What do you think about Rush Limbaugh and the other right-wing pundits? Sally
Dear Sally: Not much.
Dear Mr. Weik: What do you think about the "fiscal cliff?" Ed
Dear Ed: I think it's a bunch of made up nonsense. We went over the cliff when we elected, or rather appointed, George Bush Jr. as our President. At the time, I said it would take twenty-five years to recover from his incompetence. I stick by that.
Dear Mr. Peever: You seem pretty comfortable as a provocateur, constantly stirring up the pot. Don't you ever get tired of it? Lea
Dear Lea: No.
Dear Mr. Bruce: Do you have anything good to say about The Village? Harry
Dear Harry: I like the water.
Dear Peever: You have said that our educational system is outdated and obsolete. What wold you do? Linda
Dear Linda: I would close them and start over. The industrial revolution is over. So are most of the ways we continue to teach.
Dear Bruce: Another apocalypse has come and gone. Any comment? Carol
Dear Carol: I think it would do the Earth good if humans vanished. Any ideas? Nothing seems to have worked so far.
Quote of the Day
“A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.”
― Dwight D. Eisenhower
― Dwight D. Eisenhower
We Have The General Manager We Want
I think our current general manager is doing a wonderful job. I have heard meetings are much better. I would encourage the board to hire her. Unfortunately, the president hired the last yoyo and is likely to do the same. He is apparently not a good judge of character. He is a character.
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
God Speaks to The Peever
- Holy Crap! What are you guys doing down there?
- Heart attacks are my revenge for eating my animal friends.
- Keep hiding behind closed gates. I'll get you.
- With hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, tornadoes, terrorists, and Congress, are yo sure you want to take my name out of the Pledge of Allegiance?
- I made man before woman to give him time to make up an excuse.
- Keep your words soft and sweet. You never know when you're going to have to eat them.
- Peever, your sole purpose in life is to peeve people off.
- Sure I get angry. I made you in my image, didn't I? Mistakes anger me.
- If you walk by a person on the street who is hungry, homeless, alone, needs assistance, guess what?
- The Garden of Eden, and Noah's Ark are examples of mythological stories that have appeared in every culture since the beginning. Don't be stupid.
- Here's the thing: Of all the creatures in the universe, you guys had the most promise. Now I'm thinking you have to stop procreating. Everything else will fall into place.
The Public is Not The Militia. The National Guard is.
The 2nd Amendment is misused more than Viagra.
Tuesday, January 1, 2013
2012 Culture and Resistance with Alice Walker, Randy Weston, Walter Mosley, Gore Vidal and More
2012 Culture and Resistance with Alice Walker, Randy Weston, Walter Mosley, Gore Vidal and More
Excellent review of the past year. You won't see any of this reported in the corporate media.
Excellent review of the past year. You won't see any of this reported in the corporate media.
Important Events
- Your first love. My first kiss and first love went hand in hand. She was Summer-Fall-Winter-Spring, princess of the Howdy Dowdy Show. What a dame. When I went to kiss her on television, the static shock convinced me we had something special.
- What is your most important possession? I found an arrowhead along a creek when I was probably 12 or so. I kept it all these years. I hold it in my hand and rub it like a Jennies lamp. I always thought it was magical. I still do.
- What was your biggest problem growing up? One of the biggest problems I had was undressing in the locker room at high school. The girls didn't think it was funny. Neither did their PE teacher.
- How did you meet your spouse? As I recall, I was peeping in her window.
- What types of things concern you most? On an immediate basis, my underwear is riding up. Beyond that, I am worried about how our children and their children are going to make it in the world we are leaving them. I wish our politicians had that same worry.
- What have you accomplished that makes you most proud? I quit working.
- What do you like most about yourself? Well, I'm a pretty fancy dresser. I've heard it referred to as "tacky." I always thought "tacky" was good. I don't take any crap, and will not let you get away with spreading any. I'm glad I'm a liberal. The alternatives suck.
- What do you like to eat? I love ice cream, pies, steaks, and french fries. Of course, I'm not suppose to eat any of those things, having had open heart surgery. Now I eat low-fat everything. I wonder if I've died and went to low-fat hell?
- What was the first car you owned, or drove? The first car I had was a 57 Chevy. Black, with a lot of chrome. The neatest thing was it had a vacuum ashtray. It would suck things out and put them in a jar in the engine compartment. Great for getting rid of roaches, if you know what I mean.
- Have you lost someone close? This is a hard one, but well worth remembering. The hardest for me was losing my father at age 18, two weeks before I graduated from high school. My mother has also died. As an only child, it feels weird. I'm grateful I have a wife and two children. Losing someone always reminds you of the temporariness of life. You'd like to be able to hold on to, but it don't work that way.
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