Saturday, January 30, 2016

January 30 - Mark it in your Caldenars

So mark today down in you Calendar.  Janurary 30th, 2016.
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So today is the first day in history I got up,  looked up in the mirror and couldn't pretend I looked okay.  I couldn't suck it in enough or stand up straight enough or whatever.
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Today Sucked.
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I
Am
Million
Years
Old

Hillary: Doubts from a Believer


Let me start with saying words that will simply drive my mother mad (if you are anywhere near Victor Montana - you might hear her tortured "Aargh!" echoing across the lovely terrain) - I support Hillary Clinton in 2016.
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And yet, I have doubts.
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Not doubts with regards to Bernie Sanders - a man with great ideas and no chance of implementing them win or lose.
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And certainly no doubts with regards to the Republican race, which resembles a three legged race, except the pairs are tied facing opposite directions.
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And no doubts about whatever scandal of the day we are on now; Benghazi, Email Servergate, Whitewater, Travelgate, etc.  They are a succession of side-shows that she can handle, which I think is her personal biggest net positive.  She has been accused so often of being everything from a shrew to a doormat to the antichrist herself, that she harbors no illusions about Washington.
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She will go in with a clear focus on what can get done and what can't.
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And that is great.
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And sad.
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She is no Bill Clinton or Ronald Reagan who can move crowds or followers and haters forward with their oratory.
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Perhaps that cannot happen anymore.  The media is too segmented to give an orator, even a great one - a single platform. And the snark of tweets and comments happen realtime with self-reinforcement.  President Obama had the gift of Oratory, and - once elected - rarely used it.  Maybe he realized it wouldn't help.
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She will go in (if elected) knowing that the Republican opposition in Washington has no strategy.  They are unified ONLY in their voracious hatred of Democrats - even when those same Democrats offer reheated Republican policies.  And so she will be competent - and hated.  Four more years of bile.
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On the other hand, she won't scapegoat gays or women (probably).  And I think her heart (while two sizes too small) is in the right place.

Friday, January 29, 2016

Here is the issue with New York and the Snow

Day 1 - Fun
 Yes, it is cute when it falls and pretty for a day.
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But New York still throws out it's trash in bags every night.
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Now we have over a thousand snow plows because the put plows on all the trash trucks.  But after a day or two of plowing snow, the trash mounts up.
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Pretty snow, pretty quickly turns into yucky snow.  This was all on Monday - after a Saturday snow storm.  Not so pretty.
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This was Tuesday

Marc Rubio - Can you please Wake Ben Up.

You know, during the debate, I started to feel bad for Ben Carson.  I mean he doesn't get nearly the amount of questions that he should, given his polling numbers.  But then they ask him something and I think, Maybe they were just being nice NOT calling on him.  
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link to story
He is that little kid, asleep in the back of class that the teacher feels bad calling on.  You know... he makes the teacher repeat the question, even though it is on the board, because he has been day-dreaming about fighting dragons and welfare queens.  And then he gives the complete wrong answer "the square root of 7?".
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For example: on Russia (or maybe on Putin or maybe on ISIS) "Putin is a one horse, uh, country - oil and energy."
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One feels bad for pointing out that "Putin" is actually not a country at all (although if it were, it should border the river "Ritz" get it?).
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And, even in his tortured metaphor, oil and energy would actually be two horses.  I think he did that memory thing when you hear a name, like Putin, you associate it with a image to remind yourself who he is - and the Putin image is that manly one where he is bare chested on the horse.  Although, to Ben's credit - Putin is on only ONE horse.
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Dr. Ben's closing statement was, to say the least, novel.  Rather than give a pitch on why you should vote for him, he decided to recite the Preamble to the Constitution.  We all learn this in 4th or 5th grade - and can repeat it back at will with the full understanding and emotion an atheist can recite the Lord's Prayer at a wake.  Dr. Carson did bungled it slightly - securing the benefits of liberty rather than the  blessings, but that is an okay mistake for a Republican.  After reciting that he said, "Folks, it's not too late.  Enough said."
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Maybe he meant we can get back to secure the benefits of liberty if we voted for him, or maybe he meant he still had time to catch Jimmy Fallon - who knows.
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Enough said indeed.

Without Donald - the Debate Focuses on Which of Two Sons of Immigrants hates Immigrants More

Crubio?  Rubiz?
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One barely knows how to refer to Ted  Cruz and Mark Rubio in last night's debate in a civil, much less jovial, manner.  They are the Tweedledee and Tweedledum of politics - if Alice fell had fallen down the Rabbit Hole into a slightly less rational Wonderland.


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It is disheartening, beyond mere words, to watch these two, BOTH SONS OF CUBAN IMMIGRANTS, passionately argue over who can be more anti-immigrant.
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The Republican "Establishment" (at this point as powerful Auntie Em while Dorthy was in MuchkinLand) prefers Marc Rubio.  Herr Rubio is the son of two Cuban immigrants, while Herr Ted Cruz the son of a Cuban Immigrant Father and an American Immigrant Mother - while they lived in Canada.  Rafael Edward was swept to Texas and rechristened "Ted" before starting school - which is why he shows none of the politeness and charm endemic of our Canook neighbors.
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Both are so fiercely anti-immigrant now that they seem to be competing for the Presidency of the Daughters of the Confederacy not the United States.  And yet both are the products of the US' incredibly lenient immigration policy towards Cubans.
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There was, by the way, a moment of actual policy discussion by Jeb Bush (the disappearing man) about the problem of fighting both ISIS and Assad at the same time.  Only to be interrupted by Marc Rubio to say we should fund Sunni Militias (which - duh - ISIS is) then quickly followed up, before anyone could point out the problem with that line of thinking, that it was all Obama's fault anyway - which is end of every discussion point in the debates so far.
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As for the Megan Kelly / Donald Trump fiasco.  Trump was briefly mentioned but probably not noticed as Megan's new Pixie/Valkyrie doo was mesmerizing.
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If This Megan Kelly scared Trump then...

..last night's version would have had him soil himself.

Thursday, January 28, 2016

I was doing some electronic housecleaning and saw this...

Barbara, Gareth and Eddie outside the front of Waddesdon
So, I was cleaning up some old pictures and came across a few from Waddesdon.  I wanted to share something I found fascinating.
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It is a French Chateau outside of Aylsebury England built by the Ferdinand de Rothschild - a Viennese member of the family, who married an English cousin and then settled in London.  Ferdinand was quite in love with his wife and started building Waddesdon Manor for her, but she died in childbirth with their first child. He finished it and was an avid art collector, but never remarried.  It passed to his sister (Alice), who cared for the manor and the art, but didn't have children herself, until it went to a branch of the family with children.
View from the Gardens.  The pictures are in the Round Tower on the far left.
And so the Manor ended up with James Rotheschild.  His mother had been the favorite niece of both Ferdinand and Alice.  He took up residence later, but for his marriage he had commissioned a set of paintings that I love.
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It is the story of Sleeping Beauty, in which his new wife is painted as the princess and he was painted as the savior.  Other members of the family are in the portraits as well.  Below are 4 of the scenes.  I found them kind of cool and pretty - but more so I was touched by the amount of love he shows his new wife in this acquisition.
The witch casts the spell of "Eternal Sleep" on Beauty's 16th Birthday
The remaining fairy adds sleeping to everyone in the Castle.

The Dragon (the witch) comes to Beauty, but the Fairy helps the child's family

Everyone sleeps waiting for the Prince.

I didn't pictures of it all, but I found myself entranced in the room.

I Am Torn

I am torn about the debate tonight.
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On 1 hand, I wasn't going to watch (Trump or not) because the "debates" are both infuriating and anti-informational.  The candidates spout out lies and insults at the same rate (and are called - occasionally only - on the insults if it is towards another Republican).
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On the other hand, now that Donald Trump is sulking and refuses to participate, not watching may be seen as a tactic endorsement of Donald, which I would not mean it as.
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On the third hand, perhaps the candidates might use this Donald-free time to actually discuss real problems that face America and provide some idea of their solutions.
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Ouch! (Sorry, I feel out of my chair laughing at that last sentence.)
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I think the only sane course is to set Tivo to watch the debate (so I don't, even accidentally, condone Donald's behavior) - and then ignore it for a few days before deleting it.
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Because everything is better when Ryan Gosling says it.

Yeah - This is Advice I Need (phfft!)

I love this article ...
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Like it is rocket science.  Here;s how I did it....
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I got old as hell and hate it!

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Empire State from the Bank of America Tower

Immune to Irony

Fox News and Donald Trump
If you are not living in the United States you have been spared the worst of the Republican sideshow that is the "nomination process" for a candidate for the President of the Untied States.  We have a "debate".  These have been held at approximately monthly intervals since September (down from more often in 2012 because they showcased clowns).
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FYI - There is no actual "debating" that occurs in these forums as the word is defined.  Random questions are asked, Miss Universe style, and the candidate is given 90 seconds to wrap a campaign speaking point around something that hopefully resembles a response to a question.  If another candidate is mentioned - by name- he can respond.  This would, you might hope, lead to debating specific points of difference, but instead this is normally an extension of a previously aired grievance or ad.
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In these "debates", the only consistent theme has been that President Obama is defined (repeatedly) as a weakling afraid to stand up to whatever or whoever the subject of the question is.  In 1 of these, CNBC actually had follow up questions and challenged the truth of some of the most egregious lies (most are never challenged).  For that, these iron-backboned men - and Carley Fiorina - refused to have a debate on CBNC sister station NBC.  They moved it back to the friendly confines of FOX News and FOX Business channels.
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Fox News, the incubator of many of the candidates (Donald Trump practically lives there, Mike Huckabee, Sarah Palin, Rick Santorim have all had paid gigs there) is the chosen host broadcaster as a rule.
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Now, for Donald Trump, that is not enough.  You see in the first debate, Megan Kelly a rising star at FOX asked the first question.  It was not really out of bounds.(from Washington Post link including video).
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1) "Mr. Trump, one of the things people love about you is you speak your mind and you don't use a politician's filter. However, that is not without its downsides, in particular, when it comes to women. You've called women you don't like 'fat pigs,' 'dogs,' 'slobs' and 'disgusting animals.' ...
Your Twitter account has several disparaging comments about women's looks. You once told a contestant on 'Celebrity Apprentice' it would be a pretty picture to see her on her knees.
Does that sound to you like the temperament of a man we should elect as president, and how will you answer the charge from Hillary Clinton, who was likely to be the Democratic nominee, that you are part of the war on women?"
First of all, Kelly has her facts correct here -- up to and including the "knees" part. Now, Trump could certainly make an argument that this comment wasn't intended to be as suggestive as some have said -- and as Kelly seemed to believe.
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Mr. Trump's first response was "Only Rosie O'Donnell.." followed by a chuckle. He then said that he loved women, but Ms. Kelly's question wasn't very nice, and then proceeded to yacky yacky about Obama.
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After the debate, Mr Trump later went on TV and suggested that, although he liked Megan Kelly, she was crazy that night.  She had blood coming out her ears, her nose and "other places" - implying in his Donald-like way that the only female ever to ask him a tough question was in a bad mood because she was menstruating.
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Now it is the last of these great oratorical death matches and Mr. Trump has refused to participate because Megan Kelly will be one of the moderators.  Mr Trump, who has repeatedly told us he can stand up to Putin, China, Mexican Drug Lords and not be afraid like Obama.  He is however refusing to participate with Megan Kelly as one of several moderators.   Irony, however, is lost on his followers, so I doubt it makes a difference.

Tuesday, January 26, 2016

Rand Paul on Donald Trump - A spec of Dirt is more Qualified to be President

From a Salon recap of Rand Paul on Larry Wilmore's show. High-lar-e-ass!!
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Wilmore dedicated the top of the show to Donald Trump's hate-filled supporters and but the second act of the show he sat down with Rand Paul to ask WTF about Trump. As an optical surgeon, Paul knows all about people who can't see clearly. "Have you ever had a speck of dirt fly into your eye?" he began his response about Donald Trump. He called it "annoying, irritating, might even make you cry. But if the dirt doesn't go away, it'll keep scratching away at your cornea until eventually it blinds you with all its filth... and then it makes fun of you on CNN."

Larry just wanted to clarify the metaphor, "So the eye is the conservative voter and Donald Trump is the speck of dirt?" he asked.

"No, Larry. Donald Trump is a delusional narcissist and an orange-faced windbag. A speck of dirt is way more qualified to be president," Paul clarified. OUCH!

Monday, January 25, 2016

The attack in Istanbul

I don't know if you heard about the ISIS attack in Istanbul last week that killed 8.  Eddie and I were right there in June.  It is horribly sad, since the people of Istanbul were some of the nicest people I have ever met!

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The pictures above are of Ed and I in front of the new fountains that line the square between the Blue Mosque and the Hagia Sophia (the building behind us).  The Hagia Sophia was a Orthodox (Eastern) Catholic Church built starting in the 6th century.  It was the biggest building on the planet for a century and is still a marvel of engineering. 
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After the Ottoman Empire conquered Constantinople (Istanbul's old name, after Roman Emperor Constantine that moved the Roman Empire here), it turned Hagia Sophia into a Mosque.  In the 1930s it was turned into a museum.  It is gorgeous.  There are still first century murals of tiles of Jesus and Mary, as well as the beautiful calligraphy of when it was a Mosque.
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The Blue Mosque across from the Hagia Sophia.

An Egyptian Obelisk that the Romans brought to Constantinople in the 6th Century.  You can see this int he background of the pictures of the attack.  It is horrendously sad.

Blue Mosque on the first night of Ramadan.


From the spice market.  Near the square.


The ritual foot washing station outside the Blue Mosque

Me..  Seriously, some of the best people you will ever meet.
The people of Turkey really don't deserve this.  They have taken in over 2 million Syrian refugees.  And it isn't the Muslim issue, since both ISIS and Turkey are primarily Sunni.  Nope, it is that Turkey is an ally of ours and ISIS wants to spread their hate.

Sunday, January 24, 2016

Jeb Proves W. was, indeed, the smart one. Again.

The Governor of Michigan appointed a manager for Flint Michigan.
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In an effort to reduce costs (and because poor people don't matter), the Republican City Manager, who reported to the Republican Governor switched water from treated Lake Huron water to untreated, polluted Flint River water, which even the General Motors plant wouldn't use.
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Know there is permanent lead poisoning brain damage to the children of Flint Michigan due to this.  The state STILL hasn't allocated 1/10th of the money needed to fix the damage (trying to foist it on the Feds) and Jeb's answer is...
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drumroll please....
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Friday, January 15, 2016

You Would Think Safe Drinking Water Would Be Possible in The United States: You'ld be Wrong in Michigan

The Unnecessary Water Crisis He Precipitated
This is a priceless summation of the shit storm some Republicans hath wrought upon unsuspecting states.
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Michigan is governed by a Republican who doesn't give a shit about poor people.  I am not saying he hates them, or doesn't like them.  I mean he literally doesn't give them as much thought as he does his morning bowel movement.
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And the city of Flint is full of those very same, very poor people.  Flint used to produce cars, but the car makers moved out, taking the good jobs away.  The workers in the car industry left, but the poor people in ancillary jobs (janitors, food workers where factory workers used to eat, etc.) didn't have the funds to move.  So Flint is very very poor.
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The Republican Governor appointed a caretaker for the city, who looked at finances and in 2014 that cost-cutter's brilliant mind said, "Here's a place to cut - water.  Flint gets it's treated water from Detroit and pays for it.  But there is a river right here running through the city - and they can get their water from that river."
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Now that river is very polluted, but the appointed City Manager said - whose job was to bring the city budget in line with what the Republicans think Flint (black) lives are worth - said, "No worries, we are building a treatment plant to make it okay.  It will be ready in 2017.. or so.  Meanwhile we will use the old (lead) pipes and treatment processes that the car manufacturers did."
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General Motors, which still has some work in the city said, "No.  That water corrodes our equipment."
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The City Manger said, "Well, get your own water then GM.  That water may not be good enough for your fancy schamcy industry, but it is fine for the poor good people of Flint."
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After a year or so, people started getting very sick.  Lead poisoning was the cause per the medical community in Flint.
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So the Governor appointed a committee to study the matter.  After about 6 months, the committee said, "It looks like it might be lead poisoning."
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So the Governor appointed a second committee to figure out what do to.  After about 6 months, the committee came back and said, "We don't think there is a problem - not that much."
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To which pediatricians all over the city and state said, "Er... lead is a neurotoxin and it effects children's physical and mental development.  Even if you fix it now, you have children that will be effected forever."  The Republicans huddled on this (belief in science is not one of their strong points) and said, "Fine, we'll go back to Detroit's water."
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But those pesky pediatricians said, "Er.. you've already screwed the pooch and poisoned most all of the Flint city water pipes with two years of lead accumulation.  You have a serious problem."
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To which the cost-cutting Republicans have the perfect answer - tell the federal government to fix it.
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America is a first world country with pockets of third world slum infrastructure.  Don't get me wrong, we can afford a safe infrastructure, but then millionaires would have to pay taxes - and that is according the Republicans - a burden on job creators.  Whereas poisoning children and causing permanent mental and physical handicaps is not a burden on job creators - they just won't hire them.

Thursday, January 14, 2016

Yeah, it kinda does...

Just FYI diphsit.  It kind of does...
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Yeah it is.  It isn't the right to trash people who don't believe how you do. (link)

What's Wrong with this Picture

We are thinking of going to Charleston (SC) for Lynn's Birthday in May - after the South Carolina primary election dies down.  And I checked out places on  some trip site and so now I get the unsolicited e-mails.  I got this and something seems... odd.  Right?
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One would assume an Aquarium would show pictures of aquatic animals.  That particular aquarium being located in South Carolina, maybe some alligators or sea turtles or even native coastal birds.
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But a Madagascar Lemur?  I mean, it's cool they have them.  But I wouldn't expect that to be the featured photo for an Aquarium.
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(updated)  AND if you go to their "animals" page - there are not lemurs listed... http://scaquarium.org/our-animals/

Is Ted Cruz Secretly a plot by Al Jazera?

I know, I found it hard to believe too.  But look at his logo.

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Now, look at the logo of Al Jazeera.
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Coincidence?  I fear not.
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I fear Ted wants to secretly get elected and burn our Constitution.  What else can one expect from a ex-pat Canadian, except to try to tear us down from the inside?

Wednesday, January 13, 2016

Remember...

If Guns Don't Kill People, People Kill People.  Then what would the saying about dildos be...
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You say French Vanilla Coffee Creamer, I say big pink dildo.  Both seem equally vital to act of "principled resistance and facing down government totalitarianism" by taking over an empty wild-life refuge. link to funny video.

State of the Union Last Night

Once a year, for decades, the President is invited to Congress (a joint meeting of the House of Representatives and the Senate) to give the State of the Union address.
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This was Barack Obama's last State of the Union.  I won't critique it - since my guess is that if you were a Democrat you liked it and if you were a Republican, ever word out of his mouth annoys you.  However I do want to mention Paul Ryan - living proof that not everyone out of Ed's home state of Wisconsin is a nice person.
President Obama with Paul Ryan's I'm-A-Dick faced all night
I was, at first, annoyed -but later - saddened by our new Leader of the House Paul Ryan.  The President thanked him for getting a budget through on time - which many in his party have considered a stab in the back. And the President spoke of the things that he wants to do that they might do together.  But working with the President is an anathema to the Republican active base.  So Speaker Ryan did not react.  He didn't smile at any public thanks.  He didn't nod at any suggestions that the country might work well together.  He didn't applaud at any of the good things American has done.
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He did not react to anything.  He sat with a contemptuous stare that might have thrilled those in his deepest base, but was just offensive to many of us.  He showed the Office of the President the same respect he shows a sack of garbage - or the General Motors workers in Janesville.
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He must have had one of those pins he stabbed into himself when he wanted to acknowledge anything positive
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I'm not saying that this is unique, but I think it is.  Let's see some previous examples of opposition House Leaders applauding the opposition President - roll tape.
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Republican John Boehner finds something to applaud in President Obama's Speech

Republican Denny Hasart finds something to applaud with President Clinton

Newt Gingrich(!!) finds something to agree with with President Clinton

Democrat Nancy Pelsoi can find something to agree with in President Bush the Younger

Massive Democrat Tip O'Neil finds a smile and applause for President Reagan
And one last comment from a site keeping score
For those keeping score at home, here are just some of the issues that President Obama raised during Tuesday’s State of the Union address that Republican Senators and Congressmen in attendance refused to clap for, let alone get off their asses and cheer:
  • Nearly 15 million new jobs and the unemployment rate being cut in half.
  • Equality for all Americans.
  • Cutting pollution levels.
  • A good education for our children.
  • Fighting terrorism.
  • The idea that America is the strongest nation on earth.
  • Avoiding war.
  • Making it easier to vote.
And—drumroll, please—saving the best for last …
  • Curing cancer! 
File this one under shit-you-can’t-make-up.